In India, thousands of people led by opposition parties have staged countrywide protests against the governments controversial measure of banning high value currency bills.



Opposition parties have criticized the unprecedented move as a financial emergency, but the government says the decision will deal a massive blow to corruption.



Rallies were held in major cities such as Kolkata, New Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, with the biggest protests being witnessed in states led by opposition parties such as West Bengal in the east and Kerala in the south.



The main opposition Congress Party dubbed the street protests the Day of Rage.





Since the last 20 days, there is rage in every citizen in the country, rage among farmers, among women, among senior citizens, said a leader of the main opposition Congress party, Ghulam Nabi Azad, in the lower house of parliament.

Parliament has also witnessed noisy disruptions in the last eight days by opposition lawmakers, who say they do not disagree with the policy of curbing illegal money, but its implementation, which has led to massive harassment of ordinary people.



Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called the move monumental mismanagement.





Since 86 percent of India's currency was scrapped with a notice of four hours on November 8, the country has grappled with massive cash shortages, disrupting the lives of ordinary people and leading to huge bottlenecks in the informal sector where business and trade rely heavily on cash transactions.



Defending the measure in parliament on Monday, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the governments move is a war against black money and the entire country has accepted it in that spirit.



Black money or the black economy is the term commonly used in India for illegal wealth, which is estimated to be 20 percent of Indias gross domestic product or $450 billion; but, only some of it is stashed in stockpiles of cash  much of it is invested in real estate or jewelry.





Speaking at a rally a day before the protests, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at opposition parties saying that while he is trying to shut down the black economy, the opposition parties are trying to shut down the country.



Modi has called the money ban the first of many steps he intends to take to stamp out the shadow economy.



Political gamble



Political analysts have called the measure a high stakes political gamble for Prime Minister Modi, who came to power vowing to stamp out corruption.

They say it could win him massive support if he shows some visible results in getting rid of graft in a country where anger with high-level corruption is huge, but that could easily slip away if cash shortages persist.



Ajoy Bose, an independent political analyst in New Delhi, says that for the time being Modi is getting momentum for doing something decisive; but, pointing to the cash crunch, Bose says, Nobody even knows exactly the implications on the economy and the kind of distress it could cause, so it is really a very high risk thing.
Israel says it will buy 17 more highly sophisticated F-35 fighter jets from the United States.

The purchase, approved by the countrys security cabinet, will bring the total number of the advanced aircraft in the Israeli fleet to 50. The first jet of the new purchase order is expected to be delivered in just a few weeks.

Lockheed-Martin builds the F-35, which is designed to avoid enemy radar even while flying at supersonic speeds.

It also is one of the most expensive pieces of military equipment the U.S. military has in its arsenal.

Israeli public radio quotes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as saying the planes will strengthen Israeli security and ensure the country's existence for decades.

"Israel can defend itself with its own forces against all its enemies, whatever the distance," he is quoted as saying.

Russian airstrikes in neighboring Syria along with Iranian threats to wipe out the Jewish state have made Israel wary of the dangers it faces in its unstable backyard.

The F-35 purchase is part of the 10-year, $38 billion U.S. military aid package for Israel President Barack Obama signed in September.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his government is committed to helping all those whose property was destroyed by last week's fires to rebuild their homes and their lives.

He promised during a special Cabinet meeting in Haifa Sunday to "brutally shorten" the bureaucracy and quickly extend a helping hand.

Before the meeting, he met with a couple whose 20-year-old restaurant in the hills outside Jerusalem is now a huge pile of ashes.

"The fire there and in other places burned property, it burned objects replete with memories. It even burned animals in some places. But to our joy, this time we were well-prepared and it did not burn lives."

Police and firefighters say nearly all of the blazes that raged across parts of Israel and the West Bank for most of last week are out. Although there were no deaths, the fires sent more than 100 people to the hospital, mostly for smoke inhalation.

Netanyahu praised the "courage" of the Israeli firefighters and also thanked the Palestinian Authority for sending help. He also said he "appreciates" everyone, Jews and Arabs, who opened their homes to fire victims.

Authorities suspect as many as 40 of the fires were deliberately set. Several people are under arrest, but no other details on their identity or motives have been officially released.

Prime Minister Netanyahu said such crimes will not be tolerated.

"Whoever starts a fire, either by malice or negligence, whoever incites to arson, we will act against them with full force."
The head of Germany's foreign affairs committee, an ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, called Monday for Berlin to impose sanctions on Russia because of its supporting role in the war in Syria.

The Syrian army and its allies announced the capture of a swathe of eastern Aleppo from rebels Monday in an accelerating attack that threatens to crush the opposition in its most important urban stronghold.

Norbert Roettgen, a lawmaker in Merkel's Christian Democratic (CDU) party, and Greens parliamentarian Franziska Brantner said that the West must act immediately in view of the Syrian-Russian attacks in eastern Aleppo.

"The EU must at least impose sanctions on the Russian henchmen of these atrocities," they wrote in a statement.

"It's not acceptable that those responsible for war crimes fly to Munich or Paris to do their Christmas shopping while women and children are dying in Syria," they added.

The leaders of the United States and five European countries discussed their concerns about Syria during a meeting in Berlin on Nov. 18, but did not talk about imposing the Syria-related sanctions against Russia that have been sought by the Syrian opposition.

Roettgen and Brantner said that while sanctions would only work slowly, Russian President Vladimir "Putin would have to take their effects into account in his calculations on the consequences of his actions in Syria."

A spokeswoman for the German foreign ministry said on Monday that an immediate humanitarian cease-fire was necessary in Aleppo for the sake of the people there.

"This tragedy must end. The regime and its supporters, above all Russia and Iran, bear the biggest responsibility for that," the spokeswoman said.
The European Union has pledged its continued support towards vulnerable communities facing food shortages in Malawi. An EU commissioner made the pledge at the end of his three day visit to Malawi.

Nearly half of Malawi's population is facing the worst hunger situation in a decade.

This is largely because of the El Nino weather phenomenon, which caused flooding and then drought, leaving 6.7 million Malawians in need of food aid.

During his visit to Chikwawa district over the weekend, EU commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides told people how much the EU has already helped Malawi.

Since El Nino started affecting Malawi the European Union has allocated nearly 16 million euros [$17 million] in emergency assistance in humanitarian need alone and of course disaster risk reduction projects to help the countrys most vulnerable, Stylianides said.

Some cash has been given directly to the vulnerable communities to enable them to buy food and other basic necessities from the market.

Part of broader package

The assistance, Stylianides said, is part of the wider $55.1 million package (52 million euros) for the whole of southern Africa.

Early this year, the Southern African Development Community declared that nearly 30 million people were food insecure in the region.

The commissioner also said the EU will be providing $180.1 million (170 million euros) of development aid in Malawi for resilience and rural development action of relevance to the El Nino response.

We are committed to help in this emergency as long as it takes. Our response will continue in the course of next year but, you know, [as] El Nino is the recurrent phenomenon, our common approach must go beyond immediate relief.

EU-funded projects in southern Malawi include an irrigation scheme in Zomba.

Beatrice Wisiki, a single mother of five children, is a beneficiary of the project. She says that this is her second harvest of the year and that she is now a changed person. She says being a single mother of many children, she was one of the poorest people in the community but she says she has benefited a lot from this irrigation project and is able to now feed her family and send all her children to school.

The EU humanitarian aid will continue until the first harvest in March 2017.
A journey to Mars presents many challenges, not the least of which will be how to feed the astronauts during what is expected to be a six-month journey to the Red Planet.

To that end, the U.S. space agency NASA is working to create lightweight food bars that provide calories without adding a lot of extra weight to the Orion spacecraft and the massive booster needed to get to Mars.

Unlike the International Space Station, where astronauts can choose from more than 200 food items, thats simply not feasible on a mission to Mars, primarily because the amount of fuel needed to get to Mars means finding ways to save weight in other areas, like food. Also, the ISS is regularly resupplied with various consumables.

The food bars, for now at least, are being developed for breakfast, NASA said.

When you have 700 to 900 calories of something, its going to have some mass regardless of what shape its in, so weve taken a look at how to get some mass savings by reducing how were packaging and stowing what the crew would eat for breakfast for early Orion flights with crew, said Jessica Vos, deputy health and medical technical authority for Orion. When you think about multi-week missions in Orion, having just one package for breakfast items for crew will help us limit the space we need to store them.

While many Americans eat a protein bar in place of a meal from time to time, NASA said those are not good enough for the Mars mission.

Theres no commercially-available bar right now that meets our needs, so weve had to go design something that will work for the crew, while trying to achieve a multi-year shelf-life, said Takiyah Sirmons, a food scientist with the Advanced Food Technology team at NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Some of the flavors being worked on include orange cranberry and barbecue nut.

NASA notes that for other meals, astronauts on their way to and from Mars will have food selection similar to the ISS.

One potential problem with food bars is that they may lower crew morale, as food choice, taste and quality are important on long missions.

So, NASA is also working on other ways to provide food to astronauts, including a vegetable production system like the one on the space station as well as other types of packaged foods.

The first manned launch of the Orion is expected as early as 2021, with manned missions to Mars coming sometime later.
The Myanmar government is to set up a national level committee to investigate conditions and allegations of abuses amid international pressure from rising violence and a humanitarian crisis in northern Rakhine state.

Myanmars state counselor and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi has faced growing criticism for failing to tackle the violence, as a military campaign targeting the Muslim Rohingya minority has triggered the displacement of tens of thousands.

Zaw Htay, a member of the State Counselors Office Information Committee, told Myanmar media the formation of the new investigative committee was underway.

The committee follows on the Rakhine State Advisory Commission, in place since August, under former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, who recently expressed deep concern over violence.

Escalation

The violence has escalated in northern Rakhine since an attack on a border guard post on October 9 that left nine soldiers and police dead.

In subsequent operations, the military says 234 suspected attackers were arrested in Rakhine State from November 9 to 14, and 69 suspected attackers killed. The government says nearly 200 additional suspected attackers were detained from November 14 to 23.

Security analysts say there are mounting concerns about increasing militancy in the region, due in large part to past treatment of Muslims in Myanmar.

After violence in 2012, more than 120,000 Muslim Rohingya were forced to live in holding camps amid reports of squalid conditions, and tough restrictions on mobility.

Sidney Jones, director of the Jakarta based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, says the threat of jihad would mark a transformation for the region.

Up until now there hasnt been a militant group of Muslims themselves committed to jihad. And now it looks like its beginning to be one. And that could make a major transformation in how the local extremist groups see a possible alliance, Jones said.

Abuses

Human rights groups allege widespread abuses, including rape by Myanmar forces and the torching of hundreds of homes during the crackdown.

Chris Lewa, a rights activist for the advocacy group the Arakan Project, said the governments operations, which she described as brutal, have escalated since mid-November. She added a lack of humanitarian access was affecting all communities, especially those in the Maungdaw region, near the Bangladesh border.

Its very brutal and the issue [in] that area is access to displaced people and even non-displaced. And its not only the poor, its everyone because they cant access markets and they cannot harvest  this is going to lead to a humanitarian disaster, she said.

Human Rights Watch has identified 430 destroyed buildings in three villages near Maungdaw using high-resolution satellite imagery.

The rights groups deputy Asia director, Phil Robertson, called the militarys response as a clear overreaction.

It looks like the Burma army is off the hook and doing whatever they want in these areas pursuing scorched earth tactics  attacks on civilians  ostensibly in pursuit of these militants, but in fact a clear overreaction by the Burma military that is basically engaging in collective punishment against the Rohingya, Robertson said.

Verification

The Irrawaddy newspaper reported [November 25] comments by the brother of the spokesman for the Islamic Council for Maungdaw, who said hundreds of villagers in the northern region had been killed in the past month, amid allegations of rape by government soldiers.

But Aung Zaw, editor in chief of The Irrawaddy, said it was very important for international access to the region to verify the abuse claims.

A lot of human rights violation reports regarding that region need to be verified because both sides are claiming without any substance. The government denied this [the abuses].

The other side  how many people are being killed, how many houses are being burnt [down]. But this has to be treated carefully because there are a lot of campaigns on two sides without [taking in] the reality in the ground, Aung Zaw told VOA.

He called for the international community to take into account frustration by local Buddhists over a lack of attention to the regions economic development, seen as one of the poorest in Myanmar.

When the West talks about the Rohingya issue  they only talk about Rohingya  and theres a deep polarization, we are headed into a dangerous era, because the way they see things is very much black and white. They dont talk about it in nuances on the ground, he said.

Amid the crackdown, thousands of Rohingya have fled into neighboring Bangladesh, with many being forcibly pushed back, which Amnesty International called a flagrant violation of international law.

Last Friday, some 5,000 people protested in the Bangladesh capital, Dhaka, against the violence on the Rohingya. The Malaysia government also issued a statement, calling on the government of Myanmar to address the alleged ethnic cleansing in the northern Rakhine State.

Members of Annans commission have been in talks with both Buddhist civil society and Muslim religious leaders.

The commission also called for the protection of women and children during army operations and for stateless Rohingya to be granted official government citizenship.

Myanmars central government and local Buddhist communities oppose the use of the term Rohingya, preferring to use the term Bengali for some 1.3 million Muslims living for the most part in northern Rakhine state.

The community has faced widespread discrimination since a 1982 law stripped many of their citizenship. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates there are more than 800,000 individuals in Rakhine state lacking citizenship.
The Obama administration has expanded its legal authority to attack the al-Qaida-linked Somali militant group al-Shabab.

Citing senior U.S. officials, The New York Times reported Monday the administration has deemed al-Shabab to be part of the armed conflict that Congress authorized against the perpetrators of the September 11, 2001 attacks.

The move, the paper said, has some legal and foreign policy experts concerned the administration is overexpanding its authority to cover counter-terrorism operations in countries far from Afghanistan.

It will also strengthen future president Donald Trump's authority to combat thousands of Islamist militants in the Horn of Africa nation, the paper said.

The U.S. has carried out numerous airstrikes aimed at al-Shabab leaders, including one that killed the group's top leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane, in 2014. There are also a small number of U.S. intelligence and military personnel on the ground, helping Somali government and African Union troops battle al-Shabab.

Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow Micah Zenko told the Times, "It is crazy that a piece of legislation that was grounded specifically in the experience of 9/11 is now being repurposed for close air support for regional security forces in Somalia."

The Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Al-Qaeda, approved by Congress in 2001, was passed in the days following the 9/11 terror attacks against the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon.

But President Barack Obamas top counterterrorism adviser Lisa Monaco said the terrorism threat is constantly evolving and requires an adaptable response.

Monaco added that the administration recognizes that we must more effectively partner with countries where terrorist networks take hold, enabling and empowering these partners to share the burden of combating these threats tour mutual interests.

Al-Shabab has been fighting since 2006 to overthrow the Somali government and establish a state based on the group's strict version of Islamic law. The group became an al-Qaida affiliate in 2012.
The death of former Cuban President Fidel Castro has put U.S. policy toward Cuba back in the spotlight, and is highlighting stark differences in the world view of President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump.

Obama considers opening up U.S. ties to Cuba after more than 50 years of bitter estrangement one of his signature foreign policy achievements. He visited the Caribbean island nation in March  the first sitting U.S. president to do so since 1928.

I have come here to bury the last remnants of the Cold War in the Americas, he told the Cuban people.

Over the past two years, the two countries have re-opened their embassies after more than 50 years. U.S. cruise ships are now docking in Cuba, and there are regular flights by U.S. airlines to the island.

Reacting to Fidel Castros death, Obama issued a diplomatically worded written statement, offering condolences to the Castro family. It said: History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and the world around him.

Trump issued a toughly worded statement calling Fidel Castro a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Trump pledged that his incoming administration will do all it can to ensure the Cuban people can finally begin their journey toward prosperity and liberty.

Fidel Castros 85-year-old brother Raul is Cubas current president. He helped to draw up the opening to the U.S. but has not introduced any major political or economic reforms to the communist system. Raul Castro appears to be in good health and firmly in control. He has pledged to step down in 2018.

Future ties in question

The death of the iconic revolutionary figure, 90-year-old Fidel Castro, and Trumps election are raising questions about what will happen to the warming of U.S.-Cuban ties. A senior Trump adviser, Kellyanne Conway, told ABC News This Week Sunday that Trump is open to any number of possibilities on resetting U.S. relations with Cuba, but he would demand concessions in return.

But we remain very firm that when you open up diplomatic relations, as President Obama has, with Cuba and Fidel Castro in the last several years, that to get nothing in return, including political prisoners and assurances that people on the island of Cuba will be free politically and economically - I mean, I've personally met, and I'm sure you have, victims of Fidel Castro's oppression and his torture and his imprisonment.

Conway said the release of political prisoners held in Cuba would be a key factor in future relations.

Obamas Cuban policies also have been criticized by a number of lawmakers from both major parties. Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida called Obamas statement on Fidel Castros death pathetic, saying there is no mention of the thousands he killed and imprisoned.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, whose father is from Cuba, told ABC News This Week that the coming days will be a test of resolve.

I very much hope that we dont see any U.S. government officials going to Fidel Castros funeral. I hope we dont see Barack Obama and Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton and Democrats lining up to lionize a murderous tyrant and thug.

The White House has not announced who will be traveling to Fidel Castros funeral on December 4.

Some lawmakers are hoping that the passing of Fidel Castro may usher in a new chapter in U.S.-Cuban ties. Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota has introduced bipartisan legislation to lift the 50-year-old U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, saying it is based on the ghosts of the past. Only Congress can lift the embargo.
Mexican businesses reported a broad increase in the frequency, cost and impact of crime in 2015, a poll published Monday showed, in a fresh blow to President Enrique Pena Nieto's efforts to restore order to the violence-wracked country.

Over 35 percent of businesses across Mexico were a victim of crime in 2015, up from 33.6 percent in 2013, according to the poll conducted every two years and published by Mexico's national statistics institute INEGI.

Pena Nieto took office in 2012 vowing to end years of drug violence, but the murder rate has ratcheted up in recent months, helping to erode his already low popularity.

Mexico's economy has consistently underperformed since Pena Nieto assumed power, and the poll poses a fresh headache for his administration, which is struggling with a weak peso, cheap oil and the threat of a Donald Trump presidency in top trading partner the United States.

The survey found the total cost of crime to businesses in 2015 was 138.9 billion pesos ($6.75 billion), or 0.73 percent of gross domestic product, up from 119 billion pesos in 2013 and higher even than the 134 billion pesos in 2011, when the country's drug war was at its bloodiest.

Nationwide, nearly 15 percent of businesses canceled investments due to insecurity.

"Local authorities, whether of smaller municipalities or at the state level, have stopped doing many of the things they should be doing," INEGI's Adrian Franco said at a news conference.

Theft, extortion and fraud were the most common crimes businesses faced, Franco said.

The survey showed that 90.3 percent of crimes against businesses were neither reported nor investigated. The so-called "black figure," which gives a sense of impunity levels, was higher than the 88.1 percent seen in 2011 and 2013.

Of crimes that were reported, in 62.2 percent of cases nothing happened nor was solved. The majority of respondents said insecurity was the main problem they face, with 16.5 percent flagging graft.

The survey polled 33,866 businesses between Feb. 15 and April 30, 2016.

Well over 100,000 people have died in drug-related violence since 2007, when former President Felipe Calderon sent in the military to battle the country's drug dealers.

When he announced his candidacy in 2015, President-elect Trump accused Mexico of sending drug runners into the United States, and has since threatened to rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement and fence off Mexico behind a border wall.
Transformed into a holding pen by the European Union, tensions are escalating on the Greek island of Chios as both residents and refugees pay a heavy price.

Just over a week ago, brewing frustrations culminated in clashes breaking out in Souda refugee camp, which is home to about 800 people.

For two nights running, huge rocks and - some claim - molotov cocktails were thrown from the ancient walls of a castle onto refugees in the tents below, while a small number of Greeks and some residents of the camp clashed.

And with some still too fearful to sleep in the camp, which is in the islands main town, there are now concerns that more violence could follow.

Always ready

Now my bags, my money and my passport are always ready with me, said Mohammed Al Jassem, who fled Syria and arrived in the camp eight months ago.

The fascists could come at any time. At any time you could have a big problem, he said, referring to the widespread belief that neo-fascist Greek political party Golden Dawn, which had a meeting on the island in the days meeting up to the clashes, was involved.

Jassem recalled rocks thudding onto paths and into tents near him as terrified families and children fled for their lives in the darkness of night.

He is desperate to move from the island to Europe, but cannot. Like the others here, he arrived too late.

Stemming the tide

Up till mid-March, more than 100,000 refugees had washed up in flimsy dinghies on Chios shores before quickly moving on to mainland Greece and into the rest of Europe.

However, on March 20 the EU-Turkey deal came into effect. It stemmed the number of refugees arriving in Europe and prevented people from moving on from the Greek islands until a decision was made about their asylum status.

Last Thursday, more violence broke out on Moria detention camp in Lesvos, another one of the islands affected, after a woman and her grandchild died in a gas stove explosion.

Though increasingly fragile, for now the deal still holds, and with the asylum process unable to keep up and people unable to move on, Chios and all the other Greek islands have become stretched well beyond capacity.

The consequences are becoming all too evident.

Souring relations

Since then, relations have gradually soured in Chios both within the camp and between the refugees and Greeks living on the island.

In Souda camp, alongside Syrians can be found many other nationalities - many of whom feel cheated by procedures and have no idea when, or if, they will be able to leave the island to continue on to mainland Greece.

Shortly after the deal, hundreds of refugees broke out of a detention center on the island, and in June in Souda tents belonging to humanitarian agencies burnt down amid protests in the camp.

Refugees feel the process is discriminatory and unpredictable, and this generates a lot of tension among the refugee community, explained the Norwegian Refugee Councils Sebastien Daridan.

Layers of frustration

Those living in Chios were quick to help refugees even before NGOs arrived on the island, and many remain sympathetic.

But as petty crime has risen, so the islands vital tourism economy has taken a hit, and patience is wearing thin.

Daridan said that both refugees and the islanders are victims, with Chios effectively sacrificed for the deal.

You have, due to the asylum process, a situation which is unpredictable and explosive, meaning there are so many layers of frustration that anything can lead to any incident," he said.

Dearth of trust

In response, humanitarian workers on the ground told VOA that more needs to be done to improve integration between refugees and the local population if such attacks are to be avoided in the future.

But fractured relationships extend well beyond the island. Last week Greeces minister for migration criticized local authorities on Chios for not approving the creation of another camp.

It was an accusation rejected by the deputy mayor George Karamanis, who said their trust, and that of the public, had been eroded amid a dearth of information and support from the state.

Theyve decided the island is going to play an important role in stopping flows [of refugees], he told VOA, but the islands are not supported enough in order to play this role.

Risk remains

All agree that something needs to change to avoid a repeat of what happened in Souda, and small tweaks have been made in the aftermath - the police, though they are widely distrusted by the refugees, have apparently stepped up patrols around the site.

But as long as islands like Chios remain under-resourced and overcapacity, with both camp residents and islanders deprived of information, the risk remains.

Niko, from Ghana, now sleeps in his brother 's tent. His own home of eight months was burnt down during the attacks.

People are being kept on this island and being treated like animals, he said. But its like a dog - the more you cage it, the more it becomes wild.
Despite another weekend of massive protests in Seoul, and facing a possible impeachment vote that could come as early as this week, South Korean President Park Geun-hye remains secluded and isolated in the presidential Blue House.

On Monday, her lawyer Yoo Young-ha denied another request from government prosecutors to question the president this week about an influence peddling scandal involving a longtime confidant and close political aides.

It is difficult as (President Park) is having a tight schedule ahead, including appointment of a special prosecutor and preparations for measures to control urgent state affairs," said Yoo in a written statement.

For the fifth consecutive week, massive peaceful protests were held throughout South Korea to demand that Park resign. Organizers estimated that nearly two million people rallied across the country with 1.5 million gathered in downtown Seoul. Police said the turnout in Seoul was closer to 270,000.

The South Korean presidents approval rating has dropped to just 4 percent and a recent poll found that 80 percent of South Koreans support her impeachment.

President Park has issued two public apologies since the scandal broke and there are reports that she may make a third public address this week.

Otherwise the president has remained withdrawn from public view. Last week she was absent from her weekly cabinet meeting and she did not attend the Asia Pacific economic leaders forum in Peru earlier this month.

While Park has denied involvement in any wrongdoings, her reclusive reaction to the growing scandal is reinforcing her guilt in the minds of the public.

Im really doubtful whether the president really understands what is really going on and what really the public thinks about this scandal, said Younjae Kim, a political public relations consultant with One Public Strategies in Seoul.

Suspect

Also on Monday President Park accepted the resignation of Minister of Justice Kim Hyun-woong.

There were reports of tension between the Blue House and the Justice Ministry after Park was named a criminal subject last week in the investigation of the scandal being conducted by the Seoul Central District Prosecutor under the Justice Ministry.

The prosecution claims it has evidence proving Parks involvement in illicit acts allegedly committed by her close friend Choi Soon-sil and former aide Ahn Jong-bum to force major Korean conglomerates to donate more than $65 million to two foundations using threats of tax audits.

On Sunday, prosecutors said President Park might have also conspired to pressure KT, the countrys second largest telecom company, to direct lucrative advertising contracts to Choi and her friends. Prosecutors said they have indicted Cha Eun-taek a K-pop video director and friend of Chois, and others involved, on charges of extortion, embezzlement an abuse of authority.

Choi has been charged with abuse of authority, coercion and attempted fraud for her part in the corruption scandal. Ahn faces similar charges and another presidential adviser was charged with leaking government secrets to Choi, who was allegedly influential in formulating government policy even though she held no official position or security clearance.

Independent counsel

President Park last week first reneged on her earlier promise to cooperate with the criminal probe into the corruption scandal. Calling the current investigation biased, the presidents spokesman said she will wait for the upcoming impartial independent counsel to be named by the National Assembly.

The opposition parties that control the National Assembly are expected to submit to the president the names of two candidates for independent counsel by Tuesday. The president will have until Saturday to choose between the two.

Critics argue the president is trying to delay the legal proceedings for as long as possible.

Impeachment

The dual investigations however have not slowed opposition leaders in the National Assembly.

The two largest opposition parties, the Democratic Party of Korea and the Peoples Party, have indicated they will submit this week a joint impeachment motion that could be voted on by Friday.

Impeachment requires a two-thirds approval vote from the 300 member National Assembly.

To reach the 200 votes needed for impeachment, the 159 members of the two main opposition parties will need 41 votes from independent lawmakers and from Parks ruling Saenuri Party, which controls 128 seats.

"The ruling party, which is responsible for the paralysis and breakdown of state affairs, must self-reflect not just in words, but also by participating in impeachment unconditionally, said Choo Mi-ae, head of the Democratic Party of Korea.

Once an impeachment motion is passed it still must be reviewed by the Constitutional Court, a process that could take up to 180 days.

The presidents single five-year term of office ends in early 2018. In exchange for ending impeachment efforts that could paralyze the government, Park had offered to give up much of her power to a new prime minister to be selected by parliament, and to concentrate on defense and diplomacy.
Syria's Foreign Ministry on Monday denounced comments by Qatar that it will continue to back rebels against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as merely an attempt "to raise the morale of the terrorist groups" in the face of army advances.

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told Reuters in an interview on Sunday that Doha would continue to arm Syrian rebel groups even if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump were to end Washington's support for them.

Sheikh Mohammed's remarks showed "the Qatari regime is one of the sources of extremism, terrorism and takfiri thought," Syrian state news agency SANA reported, citing a Foreign Ministry statement. "Takfiri" is an Arabic term used to describe jihadist ideology.

Qatar is one of the leading supporters of the insurgency against Assad, joining other Gulf monarchies, Turkey and the United States to supply arms and training to some rebel groups that they say have been vetted.

Damascus regards all the rebels fighting to oust Assad, including both jihadists and nationalist groups, as terrorists.

The Syrian army and its allies have recently advanced in Aleppo, the insurgents' most important urban stronghold.

The Syrian government is supported by Russia's air force, Iran and Shi'ite Muslim militias from Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan.
A second poor rainy season in Somalia has pushed livestock herders in the drought-hit Puntland region to trek an average of 60 km (40 miles) to fetch drinking water, aid agencies said on Monday, calling for rapid action to prevent renewed famine.

Five million Somalis, or more than four out of ten people, do not have enough to eat because of poor rains and fighting between the Islamist militant group al Shabab and Somalia's African Union-backed government.

"Somalia went through a very similar situation in 2011 where two failed rain seasons, overlapping shocks, restricted action and a late response resulted in large-scale human catastrophe," 38 aid groups, including Oxfam, Action Aid and the Norwegian Refugee Council, said in a statement.

"We have been repeatedly promising to not let this happen again. ... What are we waiting for?"

It called on humanitarians and donors to revise existing projects to focus on life-saving support for women, children and other communities hard-hit by the drought.

"It is our responsibility as donors, as implementers, as national and local authorities, as Somali business community ... to see that this drought does not lead to a famine," it said.

Somalia's 2011 famine, which killed 260,000 people, was caused by drought, conflict and a ban on food aid in territory held by al Shabab.

Charities have repeatedly warned about the threat of renewed famine as the Horn of Africa nation continues to be plagued by poor rains and conflict, as well as shortages of aid.

Humanitarian access to the al Shabab strongholds of lower and middle Juba regions remains limited, agencies said, with satellites monitoring rainfall trends showing those areas to be "the most worrying in all of Somalia."

International attention has shifted away from the drought to Somalia's elections, Kenya's plan to close Somali-dominated Dadaab refugee camp, conflict and the withdrawal of peacekeepers from more than eight areas, the agencies said.

Thousands have been displaced in recent weeks by fighting between the warring Galmudug and Puntland semi-autonomous regions and around the central town of Afgoye.

Al Shabab has seized control of several towns in central Somalia after they were abandoned by Ethiopian contingents in the Africa Union peacekeeping force.
Three of the South African president's Cabinet ministers have called on scandal-plagued Jacob Zuma to resign.

Local media say Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi called on Zuma to step down at a meeting of the ruling African National Congress, or ANC, over the weekend that was extended into Monday.

Political analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website that, "There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life."

Zuma's time in office has been mired in numerous controversies and increasingly his fellow ANC lawmakers and activists have called on him to step down.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC and alliance no longer want him as president," Munusamy said. "The countdown to Zuma's exit has begun."

His exit, however, might not be as swift as some would like. The president still enjoys support from the rank-and-file ANC members and some of its lawmakers. He survived a no-confidence vote in parliament earlier this month. The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, presented the motion, arguing that indications Zuma allowed the powerful Gupta family to choose Cabinet members shows he is a threat to the country's stability.

Zuma has also been fiercely criticized for using about $20 million in public funds for upgrades to his private rural home. He later apologized and agreed to repay a fraction of the money.

The ANC, the party of Nelson Mandela, came to power after apartheid ended in 1994.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to reverse President Barack Obama's warming of relations with Cuba, the clearest indication yet that the historic restoration of ties is under threat.

"If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal," Trump said in a Twitter message Monday.



The tweet is consistent with what Trump has said for months about the U.S.-Cuba deal, which he views as one-sided in favor of Havana. The matter has received renewed attention following the death last week of longtime Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Trump's chief of staff on Sunday said the president-elect is "absolutely" willing to reverse Obama's opening to Cuba. Speaking on Fox News Sunday, Reince Priebus said the future of U.S.-Cuba relations depends on whether Havana makes "movement in the right direction" on human rights.

"Repression, open markets, freedom of religion, political prisoners  these things need to change in order to have open and free relationships," said Priebus. "There's going to have to be some movement from Cuba in order to have a relationship with the United States."

Obama had been working with Castro and others in the Cuban government for nearly two years to re-start relations between Cuba and the U.S., culminating earlier this year in the first direct flights between the two countries in 50 years and the reopening of embassies.

When Trump was asked early during his presidential run about the United States' warming of relations with Cuba, his response was largely positive.

"I think it's fine," Trump told The Daily Caller in a September 2015 interview. "We should have made a better deal, [but] the concept of opening with Cuba  50 years is enough," he said, referencing Washington's longstanding economic and diplomatic sanctions against the socialist country.

Fast forward a year, and President-elect Trump's public stance on the issue has almost completely reversed. Now, when Trump talks about President Barack Obama's efforts to normalize relations with Cuba, it is almost entirely in negative terms.

That trend continued following the Friday death of Cuba's revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro.

In a statement, Trump slammed Castro as a "brutal dictator" who oversaw "firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty, and the denial of fundamental human rights."

Though Trump did not reveal any details about his plans for Cuba policy, he promised his administration will do "all it can to ensure the Cuban people can finally begin their journey toward prosperity and liberty."

The statement stood in stark contrast to that of President Obama, whose statement largely spoke of Castro in neutral terms and once again reasserted that Washington extends a "hand of friendship to the Cuban people."

The relaxed regulations introduced by Obama made it easier for Americans to bring products back from Cuba, allowed more access for doctors to work with Cuban researchers on medical investigations and ended the 180-day ban on ships docking at U.S. ports after leaving Cuba.

Obama also visited Cuba earlier this year, marking the first time a U.S. president had stepped foot in Cuba since Calvin Coolidge did in 1928.

At the time of Obamas announcement, national security adviser Susan Rice was asked whether a new administration would be able to alter the new rules, to which she said: It would be profoundly unwise and counterproductive to turn back the clock.

But during that September campaign stop, Trump said he would roll back Obamas executive orders unless Cuba met his demands, which include religious and political freedom for the Cuban people and the freeing of political prisoners.

John Kavulich, president of the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, said it would be easy for a Trump administration to eliminate the flights to Cuba, calling them an additional measure of normalcy in an anything-but-normal relationship.

Individuals associated with the president-elect, both officially and unofficially, will not be enthusiastic about the resumption of the flights; they will view each flight as a satchel of United States currency traveling on a one-way journey to Cuba with no meaningful measurable return other than to perpetuate abhorrent commercial, economic and political systems, he said.

Although Trump's comments on Cuba may have been inconsistent during the presidential campaign, the businessman does have a long record of criticizing Castro.

In a 1999 opinion piece in the Miami Herald, Trump explained why he was unwilling to form partnerships that would allow him to build casino-hotels in the Cuban capital of Havana.

"If I formed a joint venture with European partners, I would make millions of dollars. But I'd rather lose those millions than lose my self-respect. I would rather take a financial hit than become a financial backer of one of the world's most-brutal dictators, a man who was once willing to aid in the destruction of my country," Trump said.

"To me the embargo question is no question at all," he continued. "Of course, we should keep the embargo in place. We should keep it until Castro is gone."
President-elect Donald Trump renewed Sunday his unsubstantiated allegations of vote fraud in the election he won earlier this month.

He wrote in Twitter that he would have defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton in the nationwide popular vote "if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally." Four hours later, he called into question the results in three states he lost to Clinton on November 8.

"Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California -- so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias -- big problem!"

Trump will take office in January because he won a majority under the Electoral College system used to choose presidents in the United States, despite trailing in the total vote by about 2 million. Before election day he regularly made statements suggesting the voting process was rigged or fraudulent, but never provided any evidence to back up those claims.

In October, he said the election was being rigged not only by the media "but also at many polling places" in favor of Clinton. He also called out his party for not backing his claims.

"Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before election day," he tweeted on October 17. "Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive!"

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla called Trump's latest statements Sunday "baseless and counterproductive," and said Trump was acting irresponsibly.

"It appears that Mr. Trump is troubled by the fact that a growing majority of Americans did not vote for him," Padilla said. "His unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a president-elect."

Trump in recent days also criticized an effort by Green Party candidate Jill Stein, later joined by Clinton's campaign, to call for a recount of the vote in the state of Wisconsin, which Trump narrowly won.

His campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, speaking Sunday on ABC News, called the recount effort "ridiculously fantastical" and questioned why Clinton would not accept the results. She recalled how Trump himself was asked repeatedly before election day if he would do so, though those questions were prompted by his own refusal last month to say definitively that he would.

Any recount in Wisconsin, or in Pennsylvania and Michigan where Stein also wants authorities to look at the votes, is unlikely to affect the outcome of the election.

Clinton election lawyer Marc Elias wrote Friday in a statement that the campaign is aware the number of votes she lost by in those states is larger than any deficit ever overcome in an election recount, and that after doing its own investigation it had not planned on taking any action of its own.

"Because we had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves, but now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides," he said.

He further commented Sunday after the criticism from Trump.

"We are getting attacked for participating in a recount that we didn't ask for by the man who won election but thinks there was massive fraud," Elias said on Twitter.

Out of millions of votes cast, Trump won by about 27,000 votes in Wisconsin, 12,000 in Michigan and 68,000 in Pennsylvania. Stein got about 1 percent of the vote in each of those states.

There were ongoing concerns that Russian hackers might try to influence the election, particularly after U.S. officials alleged that they successfully hacked the computer network of the Democratic National Committee and tried to hack voter registration databases. Researchers who investigated the cyber-attacks concluded that Russians created and disseminated fake news about the election, apparently to try to help Trump win.

A post on Stein's campaign website called the voting machines used in Wisconsin "highly vulnerable to hacking and malicious programming" and said the machines lacked any security features.

The state must meet a federal deadline of December 13 to complete the recount.
Tunisia is hoping to reverse a decline in foreign investment and shake off some of its post-revolution economic malaise at an international conference that opens Tuesday.

The two-day event is aimed at drumming up interest in projects worth some $30 billion and boosting an economy hurt by militant attacks, labor unrest and political instability.

It comes as Prime Minister Youssef Chahed's government tries to contain a fresh wave of resistance against austerity measures demanded by international creditors.

"We have to revive hope among our youth," Chahed said before the conference, in which the government says representatives from at least 40 countries are expected to take part.

France and Qatar are the main foreign backers, with French Prime Minister Manuel Valls and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, due to address the opening session.

Renewed support

After arriving in the capital, Tunis, Valls pledged fresh support.

"We will increase our financial assistance," Valls told reporters. He said Tunisia would be allowed to convert some debt into finances for new investments, but did not elaborate further.

Tunisia has been held up as the sole political success of the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, but its democratic transition has been undermined by economic uncertainty and weak growth.

The government also faces a major challenge to provide economic opportunities to young people frustrated by high unemployment and a lack of development.

Some 500 foreign companies have left the North African country due to labor protests and security problems, including several militant attacks in 2015. New foreign investment fell to 2 billion dinars ($885 million) in 2015 from 3.5 billion dinars in 2010.

Chahed's administration, in place since August, points to a new investment law that it hopes will revive the flow of foreign capital by reducing bureaucracy, taxes on profits, and restrictions on transferring funds out of the country.

Financial park

The conference will make the case that with its political transition essentially completed, Tunisia now needs longer-term investments to develop industries and create jobs.

On Sunday, Chahed relaunched a $3 billion financial park and real estate development north of Tunis funded by Bahrain's Gulf Finance House, which had been suspended for five years. The project would create nearly 1,000 jobs in its first phase, he said, and showed that Tunisia was still "an attractive and competitive site for investors."

On Saturday, President Beji Caid Essebsi received a group of local businessmen who he said would launch 1.5 billion dinars ($650 million) worth of projects in Tunisia's poorest regions.

But protests against austerity measures included in the 2017 budget provide an awkward backdrop to the conference.

Tunisia's powerful UGTT union has threatened to hold a public sector general strike over plans to freeze wages, and various groups including lawyers, teachers and pharmacists are threatening to strike this week against new taxes.

Chahed said the budget was "the most controversial in the history of the country." But, he added, "we have had the courage to begin these reforms in order to balance our public finances."
Rights groups on Monday urged Ugandan security forces to show restraint as they violently crackdown on tribal militia in a remote area near Congo.

More than four dozen people have been killed in clashes since Thursday, most of them guards protecting a tribal king who is critical of Uganda's long-time President Yoweri Museveni. The militia, armed with modern weapons as well as spears and machetes, have killed more than a dozen police officers in an escalation of a long-simmering conflict between the central government and a remote kingdom known as Rwenzururu.



The Ugandan security forces must not jettison human rights in their handling of the clashes in the western Kasese district, said Amnesty International in a statement Monday.

The full picture of the weekend's events is yet to emerge, but there appears to be shocking examples of unlawful killings and a complete disregard for human rights during the arrests,'' said Abdullahi Halakhe, Amnesty's East Africa researcher. In a shocking display of heavy-handedness, many people appear to have been summarily shot dead and their bodies dumped.

Ugandan troops arrest King Mumbere

Maria Burnett, an Africa researcher with Human Rights Watch, said that everyone, including government troops and their commanders should face investigations into their conduct that led to the deaths.

Gunfire rang out outside the palace in Kasese on Sunday as Ugandan troops tried to disarm King Charles Wesley Mumbere's guards and arrest him. Ugandan security forces overwhelmed the guards, broke into the palace and arrested Mumbere. In the process they may have killed an unknown number of the king's supporters.



Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye on Monday described the killings as a massacre and posted a photo purporting to show bodies of victims outside Mumbere's palace.



God save our country from this senseless violence, he said.

Separatists want own country

Mumbere is king of Uganda's Bakonzo people and some of his supporters have been calling for secession from Uganda, according to Ugandan government spokesman Col. Shaban. Bantariza, who said he had seen copies of money printed by the secessionist group, which is hoping to create a republic known as Yiira. Mumbere denies being the commander of the separatists.



The killings on Sunday have shocked many in this East African country that has had one president since 1986. Although tribal leaders and traditional monarchs only have ceremonial powers, the attack on Mumbere's palace is widely seen as a humiliating event among his followers. Television footage showed Mumbere being led to a police station as a soldier jerked him by the trousers. He is still in detention at an unknown location.

Land disputes are common

President Museveni, who took power by force three decades ago, has struggled to win over the support of the Bakonzo people in presidential elections. There are frequent land disputes in the area, with many accusing the government of sponsoring land grabs. A new plan to divide up Kasese into two parts has also been fiercely opposed.

In the 1990s, the area was the scene of a violent insurgency by the Allied Democratic Forces, a rebel group that now is based in Congo after being forced out of Uganda.
Ukraine's former president Viktor Yanukovych on Monday blamed armed nationalist radicals for fomenting violence in the 2014 Maidan protests that led to scores of protesters being killed and ultimately prompted him to flee into exile.

His testimony to a Ukrainian court via a video link from neighboring Russia was the first time Ukrainian authorities could question the pro-Kremlin leader in relation to the fatal shootings of demonstrators in Kyiv nearly three years ago.

He appeared as a witness rather than an accused in the trial of five riot police officers accused of murder, angering many Ukrainians who want to see him in the dock. Around 15-20 protesters were outside the court as the session began.

Proceedings televised

Yanukovych used the six-hour televised proceedings to defend his actions in the final months of his presidency. He called his ousting a "coup", denied giving orders for police to fire at protesters and said he was trying to prevent bloodshed.

Questioned on specifics, he said he couldn't remember whether he had spoken to Russian leader Vladimir Putin by phone during the Maidan protests or whether he had met a close Putin aide at his residence around the same time.

Asked if he had signed a request for Russian troops to invade Ukraine, he deferred the question to his lawyer.

Information about the shootings of protesters had first come to him via the media. He said the new authorities had destroyed crucial evidence of what really happened at Maidan.

More than 100 died during protests

"Different provocations escalated the situation. Radicals and those who manipulated them were guilty. They provoked the bloodshed," he said, adding later that all the leaders at Maidan protests carried political responsibility for the deaths.

"It was reported that the shooting was being conducted from buildings that were under the opposition's control. I did not give any order to shoot," he said.

Yanukovych escaped Kyiv in the final days of the Maidan protests, which installed a Western-backed leadership and lit the fuse for Moscow's annexation of Crimea and a separatist conflict in the mainly Russian-speaking east.

More than 100 demonstrators were killed in the three months of protests in Maidan square  48 allegedly shot by police snipers who Ukrainian authorities say received direct orders from Yanukovych. He is being investigated on suspicion of mass murder in a separate case.

Ukraine's General Prosecutor Yuriy Lutsenko stood up in the courtroom during a break in Monday's proceedings to read out a statement accusing Yanukovych of treason.
Unidentified gunmen have kidnapped three workers from the United Nation's refugee agency in Sudan's restive Darfur region, a local official told Reuters on Monday.

The three workers, one Sudanese and two Nepalese, were kidnapped from Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state and were taken to an unknown location, said West Darfur government spokesman Abdallah Gar al-Nabi.

Security forces were working to retrieve them and locate the culprits, he added. An official from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) declined to comment.

Security remains fragile in Darfur, where mainly non-Arab tribes have been fighting the Arab-led government in Khartoum, and the government is struggling to control rural areas.

Some 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur since the conflict began in 2003, the United Nations says, while over 2.5 million have been displaced.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir in 2009 and 2010 on charges of war crimes and genocide in his drive to crush the Darfur revolt.
Vietnam is lengthening a military runway on a tiny islet to help hold off a larger, more aggressive China for control in Asias widest-reaching sovereignty dispute as other claimants keep quiet or seek negotiations.

The government in Hanoi is extending the runway on one of the Spratly Islands, a disputed archipelago in the South China Sea, from 762 to 1,005 meters and building new hangars, according to the U.S. think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The longer runway would allow easier access for the air forces maritime surveillance aircraft, it said.

Historic use of the sea, strong national pride and a history of deadly conflicts are motivating Vietnam to fortify more than two dozen islands in the chain.

The Vietnamese have to play a very careful game, said Adam McCarty, chief economist at Mekong Economics in Hanoi. They dont really want to provoke China, but they also cant just let China do whatever it wants to do.

China has also irritated Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and the Philippines since 2010 with its quick expansion into the 3.5-million-square-km (1.4 million-square-mile) ocean.

Standing up to China

But other governments normally keep quiet when China passes ships through their maritime zones. Malaysia, for one, hopes to protect its extensive trade and investment relations with the world number two economy, while Brunei is also quiet.

The Philippines, once hostile enough to take the maritime dispute to a world arbitration court, began making peace with China in August. The two sides may now explore jointly for undersea fossil fuels.

Vietnam has already done landfill work on 27 South China Sea islets, more than any other claimant, though Chinas land reclamation is grabbing more headlines.

Vietnam has also acquired submarines and spent heavily on military expansion over the past eight years, analysts note.

Unique cause for concern

Vietnam is uniquely wary of China for historical reasons, analysts say. The two sides fought a border war in 1979 and have reported three major clashes at sea. An incident in the Paracel Islands in 1974 sank a South Vietnamese navy ship with the captain on board, killing a total 71 from both sides. A 1988 naval battle left 64 Vietnamese dead.

From 1992 to 1996, Vietnam staved off Chinas efforts to explore some of the seas islets, but China has taken an upper hand since then despite a 2007 plan in Vietnam to link maritime resources to its coastal economic development.

Two years ago Vietnamese and Chinese vessels rammed each other in the Gulf of Tonkin after China allowed an offshore oil driller to position a rig in overlapping waters. The oil rig incident sparked anti-China riots in Vietnam and left 21 dead. Vietnam protested a Chinese rig using the same waters in April.

I think, number one, they have very unfortunately experienced in the past that they have had actual military confrontation with China in terms of protecting their maritime interests, said Andrew Yang, secretary general with the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies think tank in Taiwan.

Historic claims

Vietnamese people have used the South China Sea for hundreds of years, stoking the nationalism behind todays dispute with China. Before North and South Vietnam were unified in the 1970s, the south maintained military and civilian communities in the Spratlys. Its claims to the ocean now also overlap with Malaysia and the Philippines.

The Vietnamese leadership still has to be very sensitive and responsive to what the Vietnamese people really feel and want, he said. Theres a strong anti-China sentiment and theres very strong nationalism in Vietnam, so they have to be seen to be pushing back against China but at the same time they realize you cant poke the bear too often or you get a really bad backlash.

Vietnamese officials once believed the South China Sea to hold oil and natural gas reserves off their south coast, McCarty said, but they eased away due to the cost of exploration. The country is not sophisticated in deep-sea fishing, another common economic reason countries cite for their interest in the South China Sea, he said.

As China builds up tiny disputed islets with the capability of launching planes, Vietnam fears its claims will be harder to defend, McCarty said.

Hanoi seeks peace with Beijing

Still, the country counts China as its top supplier of raw material for a fast-growing manufacturing sector. China is also Vietnam's top trading partner.

The Communist government in Hanoi squelched the 2014 riots in part to keep peace with Beijing. In September, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc pledged to manage their differences over maritime issues.

At the same time, Vietnam is pursuing closer security ties with Japan, India and the United States as a bulwark against China.

Theyve gone much further than Malaysia and much, much further than the Philippines to be able to represent a deterrent [to China], said Carl Thayer, emeritus professor of politics at The University of New South Wales in Australia.

In May the U.S. government lifted a 30-year-old embargo against selling lethal weapons to Vietnam and separately it has offered $18 million in military aid. Japan is also sending maritime patrol boats to Vietnam.

China prefers two-way talks with rival maritime claimants to solve disputes and has lashed out at the United States for intervention.

Vietnam had long been negotiating bilaterally with China, but Vietnam is different in saying that where third party interests are involved, then they have a right to be involved, Thayer said.
In the summer of 2014, Khalifa, then a 20-year-old Yazidi mother of one 3-year-old son, was kidnapped by Islamic State militants and sold as a sex slave. In the year that followed she was bought and sold several times, and the following is only one part of the many horrors she endured. She tells her story to VOA in Kurdish, edited for clarity.



When Islamic State (IS) militants entered my town, I fled to my sister-in-laws house with 14 other people. She and I were both pregnant, but we walked for 45 minutes away from her home, trying to avoid capture. But we were too late. Some friends called us and told us if we dont come back, IS will kill us. When we got back to her house, we were surrounded and captured.



The next day militants separated the men and the women, and then transferred the young women to a prison. We stayed a week before we were moved because airstrikes were raining down on the prison. They kept moving us to avoid the airstrikes and finally brought us to an abandoned village. I told them I was pregnant, but they didnt believe me.

You are lying, they said. You are not even married.



A few days later I gave birth, and they believed me. But it didnt matter, I was transferred to Raqqa in Syria with my son and my new baby girl.

In Raqqa, a Saudi IS soldier told me: I have an eye for you. Someone else more important than me wants you, but I will take you anyway. I will bring you home to Kurdistan.



I had been in prison, so I didnt know what the militants were like. I believed him. He also told me if I did not go with him, he would take my son.



But we didnt go to Kurdistan. He brought me to Aleppo, where he sold me to another man, an IS Emir Ill call Mahmoud. I was put in a room upstairs in a house occupied by IS, next to two IS bases, and they decided my name was now going to be Lameya.



Lameya, look how brave we are, Mahmoud said, showing me videos of gruesome deaths. We behead people like they are animals.



I asked: What have these people done to deserve being beheaded?



He continued to show me videos, and when I got upset, he said, I want to make you brave.

Deadly holiday



After I had been with him for five months, it was the first day of Newroz, a traditional Kurdish new year's celebration, and I was in bed. Mahmoud said, Its Newroz, Lameya. What do you do on Newroz?



Are you Kurdish, and you dont know what we do? I replied, confused.



Ill show you what we do, he answered. Lameya, get up and get your children. I have a surprise for you.



For a moment, I was happy, looking forward to any small kindness. When I looked out the window and saw 25 people dressed in orange, I thought they were a cleaning crew come to clean the house.



But then I saw the head IS Emir taking things from their hands. They were identification cards and peshmerga uniforms. Then he opened a book and signed a page. I learned later he was signing that he approved killing the soldiers, and it was right with God.



In what way do you think we will behead these people, Lameya? Mahmoud asked me. I was so scared I was shaking. The men were each pushed to their knees by a different IS militant and their heads were covered with black sacks. One by one, they were beheaded by individual militants.



But the last man alive was scared and cried out: No, please let me live! I begged the Emir to let this man, just one man, survive. The Emir briefly had mercy.



I am Haval Mohammad from Kirkuk in Iraq, the doomed man shouted. He was a Kurdish peshmerga soldier like the rest. I know I only have a few minutes left of my life. Please tell people what happened here.



Not long after, they chopped off his head and the bodies were thrown in the dirt, separate from their heads.



Let the dogs eat them, the Emir said.



This is nothing



But all this is just something that happened. I have told you almost nothing because my whole story is too long to tell.

The worst part was the force. If any of them wanted me, they would tie my hands and rape me. I was already a prisoner but they always used force. When things werent going well for them in battle, they took it out on me.



When IS lost Kobani, I was handcuffed and raped by four men.



When I first got home, after being ransomed by my family with money from the Kurdish government, I was like a dead person. Now I am starting to live, and I am once again Khalifa, and I must speak out. I cannot forget there are still thousands of girls with IS, and this is happening to them every day.

As Yazidi people we want nothing, need nothing and aspire to no dreams other than the release of our girls.
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

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Daniel Bruhl. Photo: Barcroft Media/Getty Images

The new Cary Fukunagaproduced series at TNT just picked up its two male leads. Deadline reports that Daniel Bruhl and Luke Evans will star in The Alienist, a turn-of-the-20th-century crime drama set in New York City that Fukunaga was originally signed on to direct, but will now executive produce. Bruhl will play Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, a criminal psychologist specializing in mental pathologies who gets tapped by the citys police commissioner (a guy named Theodore Roosevelt) to investigate the murders of several young male prostitutes. And after meeting a reporter named John Moore (Evans) at the scene of a crime, the two band together to tackle the savage killings. Given that the show will take place in 1896, we can expect a Knick-esque kind of approach to nascent technologies in service of the narrative that will make us all think, How did people even get anything done back then?! as the series promises Moore and Kreizler will use the emerging disciplines of psychology and early forensic investigation techniques to track down one of New Yorks first serial killers. And since The Knick has sadly left us, we can just pretend that the heroes of Alienist will be sending bodies down the street to the Knickerbocker Hospital for Dr. John Thackery and his wild hair to examine.
Photo: Raising Malawi/Instagram

Madonnas special singing and storytelling Tears of a Clown concert, which was performed earlier this year in Melbourne, Australia, was supposed to be a one-off, but the Queen of Pop is resurrecting and revamping the show for Miamis Art Basel  theres still tickets left at a mere $5,000 per standard ticket, reports the Miami Herald. Along with getting the opportunity to see Madge perform live and possibly ride around on a tiny bicycle, the show also features a cast far more impressive than your average circus, with Sean Penn, Ariana Grande and Chris Rock all taking the stage and host James Corden in the part of the ringmaster. The concert, along with its corresponding art auction, VIP-only cocktail reception ($150,000 each) and dinner, are raising money to benefit Madonnas Raising Malawi nonprofit, an organization that helps fund pediatric surgeons working in an underserved and impoverished area.


From Homos, or Everyone in America, at the Bank Street Theater. Photo: Monique Carboni

You are no Larry Kramer, the Academic shouts at his boyfriend, the Writer, a hothead on a tear about homophobic violence.

This isnt Boys in the Band, the Writer later snaps at the Academic, who sometimes dabbles in campy pronoun play.

The two nods to icons of gay theater encapsulate the concerns and the scale of Homos, or Everyone in America, a new comedy-drama by Jordan Seavey now getting a blisteringly fine world premiere from the Labyrinth Theater Company. Recalling both the furious politics of Kramers AIDS jeremiads and the sentimental pathos of Mart Crowleys pre-Stonewall classic, Homos is as essential to our moment as those works were to theirs. Its portrait of a romance and what comes after  the men meet on a Friendster date in 2006 and break up on an L train platform two years later  brings our picture of gay life into a post-gay era of no-fault hookups, marriage equality, and self-outing teenagers. But with devastatingly pointed intelligence it also dramatizes the irony that despite having won so many of the battles of the Forty Years War for liberation, gay men remain as conflicted and as vulnerable to hatred  self- and otherwise  as they were in the bad old days.

How Homos folds itself around that theme is as complicated and astonishing as advanced origami. Like origami too, its materials are deceptively simple. The two main characters, though beautifully drawn, are semi-archetypal, as their names suggest: The Academic (Robin De Jesus) is a Latino graduate student in media studies with a wolfish grin and a romantic disposition; the Writer (Michael Urie) is a Jewish neurotic with a flirty mouth and a stockaded heart. The mens rise and fall as a couple is depicted in a series of standard  almost generic  scenes from a marriage. Theres the drunken meet-cute at a Park Slope wine bar; the euphoria of first contact; the pleasure of discovering their complementary modes of banter; the too-early statement of love and the subtle recoil that follows; the consequent squabbles over drinking, drugging, and wandering eyes; the housing question; the manic avoidance; the possible infidelity with sort of strapping Dan; and the explosively tearful final fight that seems to wipe out any good that came before it.

That two men in their 20s are experiencing such ordinary early-adult life events, rather than mourning their cohort or struggling to come out, is sufficient to render them new onstage. But Seavey further complicates matters by slicing the story into jagged shards and jumbling the order. The plays opening scene, set (it seems at first weirdly) in a Lush bath-products store, actually occurs chronologically late in the story, well after the couple has broken up; later, when we see a fuller version of the same scene near the end of the 105-minute production, entirely different meanings emerge because we now know the history that precedes it. Key moments like that are depicted as many as four times, each with a different frame and aspect ratio. (The intermittent inclusion of Dan, played by Aaron Costa Ganis, suggests the way outside figures both do and do not explain a couples problems.) At a more granular level, the flood of coy and often hilarious dialogue recapitulates the structural device with its own intersplicing. Particularly in moments of high erotic or argumentative tension, characters speak in what would have been monologues had Seavey not cut them up into phrases and twined them together as tightly as lovers bodies. If the technique risks purpleness, its still effective. Manhandling the delivery of information and pushing conversation to its limits of playability, Seavey mimics the confusions of otherness and complicates the relationship between cause and effect, giving us the apology before the fight and the post-traumatic stress before the trauma.

Because, yes, beyond the crushing failure of the relationship there is trauma, though Seaveys distributive structure keeps it from dominating the action. (In a chronological narrative, that trauma, an act of violence we are not shown, would have produced a false climax two-thirds of the way through.) Still the question arises: What would happen to the pungency of the conversation and the potency of the story if it were all untangled and played straight? Does Homos represent a new, gay dramaturgy? Certainly nothing about the production, directed inerrantly by Mike Donahue, is unbent. Dane Laffreys scenic design consists of little more than a warren of carpeted corridors twisting in and out of the seating areas so that the actors come to seem like ants in an ant farm that also contains all 69 members of the audience. Scott Zielinskis lighting chooses uncomfortable extremes of illumination and darkness rather than a pretty middle ground. But what makes the question of the dramaturgy nearly moot is the quality of the acting. In a way, Costa Ganis, as Dan, and Stacey Sargeant, in the role of the Lush salesperson, have the more difficult jobs, needing to hit their emotional marks dead on from a standing start and with huge gaps in their arcs. Still, De Jesus and Urie are remarkable, Urie familiarly so from plays like Buyer & Cellar that demonstrated his flustered charm and gimlet bite. But De Jesus, whom Ive only previously encountered as an ingratiating third banana in musicals like In the Heights, is a revelation. Both as an arguer (he is, after all the Academic) and as a man who lets his emotions get too far ahead of his stability, he brings overwhelming passion to what might otherwise be a merely theoretical breakthrough of a play.

Seavey, 35, has been bouncing around OffOff Broadway and the network of regional workshops and retreats for a while. Homos itself has been in development since 2011, when he wrote the first draft after a friend was the victim of a hate crime in Williamsburg. (This timing explains why the FriendsterMyspaceFacebook trajectory outlined in the play ends before reaching Grindr.) The delay, and thus the chance to let the work mellow, must have frustrated the author but may have been beneficial. After all, Seavey is dealing, behind the love story, with very large ideas that have bedeviled the gay community  and everyone else  forever. One is the conflict between personal liberty and civil rights that played out in early liberation politics, then got temporarily buried by AIDS; Seavey shows how it has returned within the smaller, normalized context of relationships. It is no less devastating there.

If in exploring that theme he is following the lead of Kramer and Crowley (and Tony Kushner) there is also in Homos the echo of Arthur Miller in his American morality mode. During the course of the plays action, the Writer sells a short story that connects the murder of an out gay 15-year-old to the closetedness of the gay celebrity journalist (clearly Anderson Cooper) covering the case. The connection, as the Academic points out, is tenuous at best, yet the play does something similar, connecting an act of homophobic violence to the emotional violence a man may inflict on his lover while breaking up. Are individual choices ever not social and political choices as well? Its a question turned over and over like a gem in Homos, or Everyone in America, a play you should see only if you care about either of its title characters.

Homos, or Everyone in America is at the Bank Street Theater through December 11.
Waco auto dealer Richard Karr has filed a breach of contract and negligence lawsuit against the contractor who built Karrs new dealership on Wacos Motor Mile on Loop 340.

Karr alleges in the suit, filed last week in Wacos 170th State District Court, that the roofing and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems installed by John E. Erwin General Contractor Inc. had pervasive defects and deficiencies and were installed in a negligent and careless manner.

The dealership, which opened at 900 W. Loop 340 two years ago after moving from Valley Mills Drive, suffered more than $300,000 in damages because of the alleged defects and deficiencies, the suit alleges.

My client disagrees with that, said Erwins attorney, Steve Fontaine. He says it was constructed in a good and workmanlike manner. Parties disagree, and my client will defend the lawsuit.

Temple attorney Paul H. Sanderford, who filed the suit on Karrs behalf, declined comment on the allegations in the petition.

The suit asks Judge Jim Meyer to order the parties into arbitration in an effort to resolve the dispute and says the parties have been unable to agree upon an arbitrator.

The petition proposes four arbitrators, including two from Austin, one from Bell County and one from Houston.

Fontaine said he thinks the parties will agree on an arbitrator.

The pervasive deficiencies and defects in the roof system caused and continues to cause damage to other materials and finishes within the facility, including but not limited to insulation, ceiling tiles, walls and floor finishes, the suit alleges.
A 63-year-old industrial worker suffered life-threatening injuries in an unusual accident at Forterra Pipe & Products in Lorena on Monday afternoon, Lorena Police Chief Tom Dickson said.

At about 12:30 p.m., emergency responders were called to 11710 Chapel Road after the driver of a tractor-trailer, Ernest Clinton Smith, of Waco, became trapped in the vehicle while he was reportedly discarding sand from the vehicles trailer. Dickson said while the trailer was reportedly elevated from the base of the vehicle, the cab swung around near the side of the vehicle and the trailer overturned onto the cab, trapping Smith inside the cab.

Right now, we dont know if he was loading up, hauling out or dropping off, but somehow the trailer hauling the sand tipped over, Dickson said. In the process, the cab swung around, the trailer fell and pinned the driver inside.

Waco fire crews, police and medical personnel responded to Forterra Pipe & Products in an effort to rescue Smith. Dickson said the cab was mangled, and crews worked more than 30 minutes to extricate the driver.

The driver had life-threatening injuries and it took quite a while to extricate the driver from the truck  probably 45 minutes to an hour, Dickson said. Paramedics were able to start an IV while he was still in the cab to get fluids to him. His injuries were so that a tourniquet had to be placed on a limb because of severity.

The damaged tractor-trailer was marked with a logo of Sunset Logistics Inc., a Fort Worth-based trucking company with a fleet in Waco.

An air ambulance was called to the business before Smith was removed from the cab. He was taken to Baylor Scott & White Medical Center in Temple for treatment.

He was alert when he was taken to Temple, Dickson said. This is kind of a freak accident. We will write up a report on it and I believe OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) or some other agency may take a deeper look into this to see if there were any safety violations.

Dickson said industrial accidents at Forterra Pipe & Products are uncommon.

Dickson said Smith was still undergoing treatment at the hospital late Monday afternoon.
A multi-agency sweep led to the arrests of more than 40 wanted fugitives throughout Central Texas in a joint operation over the past two weeks, Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton announced Monday.

The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force partnered with Waco police, the McLennan County, Limestone County and Bell County sheriffs offices, Texas Department of Public Safety, and Mart police in an effort to arrest wanted fugitives in the region. A total of 44 people were arrested, including 38 fugitive warrant arrests and six additional arrests.

During the operation, officers recovered 27.4 grams of cocaine, 19.9 grams of heroin, 10 grams of marijuana and officers recovered one stolen vehicle. Other arrests included warrants for drugs, trafficking of persons, burglary, assault, felon in possession of a firearm and other various crimes.

Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Dan Phillips released a statement thanking responding agencies for their efforts. He called the operation a huge success in protecting local communities and credited the Waco Police Department for their active role in the partnership.

Anytime we can target violent felons and remove the primary criminal element from the streets, the community as a whole benefits, Phillips stated. The Waco Police Department has been an active partner with the Lone Star Fugitive Task Force since 2003, and we are always appreciative of their dedication to these operations and reducing violent crime.

All of the officers involved in this operation should be praised for their hard work and efforts to safely bring these violent offenders to justice.

Waco Interim Police Chief Frank Gentsch also thanked the various agencies for their efforts.

I would like to thank all of our local, state, and federal partners for helping make this operation a success, he said. It is these types of operations that are vital to maintain the safety of our community in which we all work and live.
Sometimes the news reaches out and slaps you in the face. The suicide of a young Queensland boy last week, Tyrone Unsworth, did that to me last week.

He was reported to be all of 13 years old when he died last Monday, and said to be just 12 on a friend's fundraising page for his funeral. He took his own life after intolerable bullying for being gay.

It physically hurt to read of his death, despite knowing neither him nor his family. It hurt to hear his mother's anguish, courageously told to The Courier-Mail, about him suffering years of abuse. To hear of a vicious assault with a fence paling a month before his death, a criminal act which put him off school. To see the photos of a beautiful, freckled young boy with an enormous smile and two big front teeth, proudly clutching two trophies, cuddling his mother with a hi-vis shirt, smiling a smile never to be smiled again.

He'd been called a gay boy and a faggot. His mother knew he'd been dealt that kind of horror, for years, even though he was only in year 7. He's not the first to be called those names, and he won't be the last. And his mother knows those words killed him.
As dictators go, Fidel Castro was certainly a record breaker. For more than 50 years  an entire life for some of us  he ruled his small island and its 11 million subjects with an iron fist.

True, that iron fist was often carefully clothed in velvet, at least for the benefit of outsiders, like those Western intellectuals, democratically-elected leaders and Third World nationalists whom to the very end, continued to fly into Havana with disappointing regularity to pay homage to the man who defied and regularly outwitted no fewer that 10 US presidents.

In the end, of course, Castro proved to be mortal, like you and me.

And at least for me, there is a sobering irony in the way of his parting, not with a bang as I am sure he would have liked, but with a fizzle. A senile old man still spouting slogans from three generations ago at a time when his people make ends meet by selling pirated Che Guevara t-shirts to the same cashed-up American tourists that were until recently despised by Castro as ideological enemies.
It looked just like her baby. And yet the mother became convinced her daughter had been replaced.

The six-week-old child in her arms was not her own but "something else". Beset by a rare mental disorder known as Capgras delusion, the mother took a long knife from the kitchen last July.

The street in the Newcastle suburb of Wallsend where a six-week-old baby girl was found dead. Credit:Max Mason-Hubers

The 26-year-old had arrived from Senegal the year before with her elder daughter, joining her husband in Wallsend, Newcastle after years spent apart.

The mother  who cannot be named for legal reasons  suffered no mental illness during pregnancy or in the weeks after the birth, a court found in a September hearing.
Some of the state's lowest income rural electorates will be hit hardest when generous subsidies for rooftop solar energy are withdrawn at the end of next month.

In a potential political headache for the Nationals, eight of the 10 NSW seats with the highest proportion of households with solar installations are all held by the party.

In the National Party-held seats of Barwon and Lismore 36 per cent of voters live under rooftops with solar installations, the highest share in the state. In the electorate of Tweed the proportion is 30 per cent and in Port Macquarie 28 per cent, analysis by solar advocacy group Solar Citizens shows.

State-based solar bonus schemes for energy fed into the power grid from small-scale rooftop systems underpinned the strong household take-up of solar power, especially in regional NSW. But these schemes will expire on January 1, leaving many households with rooftop solar panels out of pocket.
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At the invitation of Mr. Roman Nasirov, Head of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, WCO Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya visited Kyiv, Ukraine on 24 and 25 November 2016 to discuss Customs reform and the WCO regional structures hosted by Ukraine Customs.

The State Fiscal Service was established in 2014, replacing the Ministry of Revenues and Duties created in 2012, through the merger of the State Tax Service and the State Customs Service. After visiting the airport office to see how Single Window implementation begun this year with involvement by five border agencies, Dr. Mikuriya received a full briefing on the Customs reform process and on advice received from other international organizations and Customs administrations.

Secretary General Mikuriya also discussed the future direction of WCO Regional Training Centre as well as the Dog Training Centre, which was granted WCO regional status this year. Mr. Nasirov and Dr. Mikuriya agreed on developing a comprehensive Customs reform programme incorporating the advice received, and aimed at gaining the understanding and support of political leaders and business. The WCO would provide advisory support and the necessary technical assistance.

Dr. Mikuriya visited the University of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine and gave a lecture to students on the WCOs contribution in an evolving environment. He was also awarded the title of Honorary Professor. In response to questions from students, Dr. Mikuriya elaborated on the role of research in Customs and on ways to address integrity.
Delegates from the WCO, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) met at WCO Headquarters on 21 and 22 November 2016 to discuss matters relating to advance passenger data in the framework of the WCO/IATA/ICAO Advance Passenger Information (API)  Passenger Name Record (PNR) Contact Committee. Chaired by Mr. Jean-Guy Brin (Canada), the 10th Session of the Contact Committee was attended by 84 delegates from the WCO, ICAO and IATA as well as from other international organizations. In her opening remarks, Ms. Ana Hinojosa, Director of the WCO Compliance and Facilitation Directorate, explained that the work of the Contact Committee in maintaining the API and PNR Guidelines is aligned with the WCOs security initiatives, specifically those on passenger control.

During the session, Committee members finalized and adopted the update of the "Management Summary on Passenger-related Information", known as the "Umbrella Document", which provides a high-level executive briefing describing and distinguishing between the different sources and systems for passenger-related information. The update of the document is aimed at enhancing the consistency of the terms used therein, as well as reflecting recent developments relating to advance passenger data.

Contact Committee delegates noted the increased demand from countries to implement API and PNR systems. In this regard, new "Guidance on how to build API-PNR systems" was proposed and developed by Members during the intersession, in order to provide insight into the important aspects that need to be considered when implementing API-PNR systems. The draft of the Guidance was discussed during the session and received comments and further input from Committee members. Delegates adopted the new Guidance, in principle, as a living document and they will provide further input in writing during the intersession, prior to the documents submission for endorsement by the WCO Permanent Technical Committee (PTC) in April 2017.

Mrs. Teresa Hardy (United Kingdom) and Mrs. Janice Koich (Delta Airlines), Co-Chairs of the PNRGOV Working Group, the body responsible for maintaining technical standards and guidance material on PNR data under the auspices of the IATA, provided the session with an update on the work done by the Working Group and on its work plan concerning the PNRGOV standards maintenance process. The Co-Chairs also highlighted the work carried out by the Working Group to examine issues concerning the quality of PNR data. Additionally, the Co-Chairs presented the deliverables produced by the Working Group for endorsement by the Contact Committee.

The session was provided with an update on the latest developments concerning the European Union (EU) PNR Directive by the Delegates of EU, who described the main provisions of the Directive mandating EU Member States to develop "Passenger Information Units". Following the update, the Delegate of Canada shared his countrys experience of establishing a bilateral agreement between the EU and Canada to enable PNR data transfer.

The key outcomes of the 9th Session of the ICAO Facilitation Panel held in May 2016 were presented by the Delegate of the ICAO, who highlighted the proposal to update Annex 9 to the Chicago Convention to make the implementation of API mandatory by its Members. If adopted by the ICAO Council, the updated Standard on API will become effective in July 2017.

The Contact Committee undertook technical work on the maintenance of the API Message Implementation Guide by processing a Data Maintenance Request (DMR) submitted by the United Kingdom and by discussing the development of the XML format for API, working together with the WCO Data Model Project Team (DMPT) and the IATA PNRGOV Working Group.

The Contact Committee re-elected Mr. Jean-Guy Brin to serve as Chairperson of the 11th Session of the Contact Committee, and elected Mr. Debi Prasad Dash (India) to serve as Vice-Chairperson.

Lively discussions took place among participants on a wide range of topics, with all the delegates contributing to the session through their interventions, comments, input and participation in the development of documents, as well as through the sharing of experiences and lesson learnt.
With the aid of the German Customs Cooperation Fund, a WCO National Workshop on the modernization of the Customs Laboratory in Albania was held at the Customs Laboratory in Tirana from 23 to 25 November 2016.

The Customs Laboratory is a well-equipped, medium-sized laboratory that will be relocated to a new modern building next year.

At the opening of the Workshop, Mr. Arber Misja, Director of the Customs Laboratory of Albania, highlighted the importance of Customs Laboratories that, apart from their traditional role as an instrument for the determination of tariff classification, Customs duties and other taxes, Customs laboratories are nowadays playing a greater role in safeguarding human health and welfare, as well as drug enforcement and in the fight against terrorism. He concluded by thanking the representatives from the Spanish Customs Administration and from the WCO Secretariats Tariff and Trade Affairs Directorate for facilitating the discussions on the modernization of the Customs Laboratory of Albania.

In response to the special interest indicated by Albanian Customs, Mr. Juan Moreno Peceno, Chemist from the Customs Laboratory of Madrid, Spain, explained, by using actual textile samples, how to analyze textiles that are often covered or laminated with plastics or other materials. He also demonstrated how to examine and evaluate analysis data and results for the purposes of correct identification of textiles in terms of the Harmonized System (HS) classification. In this connection, the importance of exploring further regional cooperation in sharing best practices on Customs chemical analysis with a view to improving the accuracy and effectiveness of Customs laboratory analysis work, as stipulated in the Action Plan for Phase III of the Revenue Package, was also explained.
Under the sponsorship of HMRC (Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs - UK), a WCO Workshop on Customs Laboratories and Test Procedures was held in Zimbabwe (Harare) from 21 to 24 November 2016 and attended by Customs staff from Zimbabwe and Sudan. The Workshop was co-facilitated by Mr. Daniel Cardozo, WCO Accredited Trainer on HS matters from Uruguay Customs. The opening of this activity was officiated by Ms. Nellie Mupanduki, Head of the Technical Services of the Customs Unit in ZIMRA (Zimbabwe Revenue Authority). In Her opening remarks, Ms. Mupanduki highlighted the importance of the Customs Laboratory for the correct tariff classification of goods and the efforts of Zimbabwe Customs in establishing a standard Customs Laboratory in line with the requiremens for Test Procedures stipulated in Article 3 of the WTO Trade Facilitation (Bali) Agreement. The participants discussed relevant areas of analytic methodology (e.g., test kits for drug detection), the modifications introduced in the chemicals area in the Harmonized System (HS) 2017 edition, HS classification cases and also considered the possibilities for the implementation of the Customs Laboratory in Zimbabwe. The role of the Customs Laboratory in the protection of mineral resources in Zimbabwe and Sudan was emphasized by the participants. At the closing ceremony, Mr. Cardozo emphasized the importance of a Customs Laboratory for the correct classification of commodities in the Harmonized System and in the National Tariff. He also emphasized the importance of the cooperation and networking between the Customs Laboratories in the region.
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Bancolombia S.A. provides banking products and services in Colombia, Panama, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Guatemala. The company operates through nine segments: Banking Colombia, Banking Panama, Banking El Salvador, Banking Guatemala, Trust, Investment Banking, Brokerage, International Banking, and All Other. It offers checking and savings accounts, fixed term deposits, and investment products; trade financing, loans funded by domestic development banks, working capital loans, credit cards, personal and vehicle loans, payroll loans, and overdrafts; financial support to real estate developers and mortgages for individuals and companies; factoring; and financial and operating leasing services. The company also provides hedging instruments, including futures, forwards, options, and swaps; and brokerage, investment advisory, and private banking services, including selling and distributing equities, futures, foreign currencies, fixed income securities, mutual funds, and structured products. In addition, it offers cash management services; foreign currency transaction services; life, auto, commercial, and homeowner's insurance products; and online and computer banking services. Further, the company provides project and acquisition finance, debt and equity capital markets, principal investments, M&A, hedging strategies, restructurings, and structured financing; money market accounts, mutual and pension funds, private equity funds, payment and corporate trust, and custody; internet-based trading platform; inter-bank lending and repurchase agreements; managing escrow accounts, and investment and real estate funds; and transportation, securities brokerage, maintenance and remodeling, and outsourcing services. As of December 31, 2021, it operated 1,015 branches; 28,676 banking correspondents; 529 PAMs; 210 kiosks in El Salvador and 187 in Colombia; and 6,094 ATMs. Bancolombia S.A. was incorporated in 1945 and is headquartered in Medellin, Colombia.
RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. provides reinsurance and insurance products around the world. The company was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Bermuda with offices in Ireland, Australia, Switzerland, Singapore, and the US.

The company operates through two segments that include multiple underlying businesses and investment vehicles. The two main segments are Property and Casualty & Specialty. The company operates through intermediaries that include DaVinci Resinsurance Inc, Top Layer Reinsurance LTD, and RennaisanceRe Syndicate 1458 among others.

Top Layer Re is the first major venture and was started in 1999. It is a joint venture with State Farm targeting high layers of the US reinsurance business. DaVinci Re was formed in the wake of 9/11 to assist with capacity and it was given added capacity in the wake of hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma. Medici was formed in 2009 and is an open-ended fund intended to spur investment in the catastrophe bond market.

The Property segment writes catastrophic insurance policies to insure insurance and reinsurance companies against natural and man-made catastrophes. These include but are not limited to hurricanes, floods, freezes, and terrorism.

The Casualty & Specialty segment provides a wide range of consumer products including business insurance, malpractice insurance, liability insurance, workers' compensation, mortgage insurance, and health insurance among others.

Among RenaissanceRes Specialty businesses is capital management. The firm offers 6 investment vehicles and has more than $11 billion under management making it the #1 ILS or insurance-linked asset manager in the US. In regards to its credit ratings, the firm and all of its vehicles carry an A or better rating from every credit rating agency.
Vipshop Holdings Limited operates online platforms for various brands in the People's Republic of China. It operates in Vip.com, Shan Shan Outlets, and Others segments. The company offers women's apparel, such as casual wear, jeans, dresses, outerwear, lingerie, pajamas, and maternity clothes; men's apparel comprising casual and smart-casual T-shirts, polo shirts, jackets, pants, and underwear; and skin care and cosmetic products, including cleansers, lotions, face and body creams, face masks, sunscreen, foundations, lipsticks, eye shadows, and other cosmetics-related items. It also provides shoes and bags, which comprises casual and formal shoes, purses, satchels, luggage, duffel bags, and wallets; handbags; apparel, gears and accessories, furnishings and decor, toys, and games for boys, girls, infants, and toddlers; sportswear, sports gear, and footwear for various sporting activities; home furnishings, such as bed and bath products, home decor, kitchen and tabletop items, and home appliances; and consumer electronic products. In addition, the company offers food and snacks, beverages, fresh produce, and pet goods; beauty products; and internet finance services, including consumer and supplier financing, and microcredit. Vipshop Holdings Limited provides its branded products through its vip.com and vipshop.com online platforms, as well as through its internet website and cellular phone application. Further, it offers warehousing, logistics, product procurement, research and development, technology development, and consulting services; software development and information technology support solutions; and supply chain services. Vipshop Holdings Limited was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Guangzhou, the People's Republic of China.
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DERIDDER -- Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser joined the Beauregard, Allen and Vernon Parish Tourist Commissions to cut the ribbon, officially opening the newly renovated Gothic Jail in DeRidder on Monday.

Originally built in 1914, the jail was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981 and then closed the next year when it was deemed inhabitable. Renovations to the Gothic Jail will allow visitors a glimpse into the day-to-day running of the jail, as well as a vision of what living in the jail was like for the jailer and his family. The first floor, or the jailers quarters, and the second floor jail cells will be available for tours. The third floor is closed off and will possibly be opened in the future, pending State Fire Marshal approval.

This jail is a unique piece of Louisiana history and will serve as a crown jewel on the 180-mile Louisiana Myths and Legends Scenic Byway, said Nungesser. With the renovations and additions to the Beauregard Parish Courthouse, these opulent structures that were so proudly built and protected by the people of Beauregard Parish will now stand for future generations to admire.

Our ultimate goal is to have the jail serve as an Interpretive Center for the Myths and Legends Byway, said Lori Darbonne, Beauregard Parish Tourist Commission Executive Director. Here, visitors will have the opportunity to learn of some of the legends and lore of Louisiana and its once known Neutral Strip. The Myths and Legends Byways recent opening sets the precedence for a great opportunity for tourism in the region of west Louisiana.

The State of Louisiana Byway Program is one of the best programs ever created for rural tourism. This program leads people to back roads Louisiana and gives rural tourism centers the opportunity to promote and advertise properties we could otherwise not do, said Adagria Haddock, Allen Parish Tourist Commission Executive Director. The Myths and Legends Byway was built on using the stories, pictures, and culture of a time when land pirates and outlaws ran the area known as No Mans Land. The mysteries, intrigue and stories of the Gothic Jail made this a tailor-made icon for our Byway.The opening of the Gothic Jail gives credence to the Myths and Legends Byway as truly a unique area in Louisiana history.

The development of The Myths and Legends Byway is perhaps the most significant improvement for the tourism industry in western Louisiana since the creation of tourism commissions in the 1970s. Using state highways as an attraction themselves is a brilliant way to guide visitors throughout the state, said John Crook, Vernon Parish Tourist Commission Executive Director. The mysterious Gothic Jail is truly a Louisiana icon and is the perfect logo for the old No Mans Land region of western Louisiana.

History

Col. William Louis Stevens served as the original architect for construction of the jail and adjacent parish courthouse in 1914 at a cost of $168,000 for both buildings. In 1922, Mechanics Illustrated Magazine described the jail as a grand mansion. In the 1950s the Gothic Jail became known as the Hanging Jail when a song of the same name was written about the execution of two men found guilty of the August 1926 robbery and murder of a taxi driver. Temporary gallows were built at the top of the spiral staircase in the center of the jail, and the men were hanged on the afternoon of March 9, 1928.

The jail is the only known penal institution in the country to be constructed in the Collegiate Gothic design of the 20th century having shallow arches, dormer windows, and a single tower serving as an exclamation. The original design of the jail was done with the idea a prison should be a house of correction rather than a dungeon of punishment. Each jail cell included a comfortable bed, bath and toilet, and a window to allow prisoners fresh air and a view of the outside world. The jail featured a tunnel leading from the building to the adjacent courthouse and used to transport inmates during trial to avoid contact with the public. The Beauregard Parish Gothic Jails reputation for near perfect sanitation and health conditions were unheard of for a prison of its time.

The Gothic Jail serves as a cultural artifact for Louisiana and our area. The opportunity to utilize the jail for historical tours is now a reality long awaited, said Darbonne.

Tours

Tours are open to the public Monday through Friday at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. The cost is $5 per adult and $3 per student or child. Group tours are available and can be arranged through the Beauregard Tourist Commission.

The $152,000 renovation to the Beauregard Gothic Jail was funded through a 2010 Capital Outlay grant for asbestos and lead abatement.

More information

For more information on the Beauregard Parish Gothic Jail, visit www.beauregardtourism.com.

For more information on the Myths and Legends Scenic Byway, visit www.louisianabyways.com/byway/myths-and-legends-byway.
By West Kentucky Star Staff Nov. 28, 2016 | 12:41 PM | MARSHALL COUNTY, KY

Two men face charges following a traffic stop on Thanksgiving Day.

The Marshall County Sheriff's Office said a deputy stopped a vehicle Thursday night on US 641 South. The driver, 18-year-old Diego Lopez, was arrested on a DUI charge.

Police said Lopez produced false identification and gave officers a false Social Security card. Lopez was additionally charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument and no operator's license.

The passenger in the vehicle, who identified himself as 24-year-old Lucas Lopez, was found to be in possession of marijuana and was also arrested. Both were lodged in the Marshall County Detention Center.
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As part of one of the most successful musical theatre dynasties in recent times, Scarlett Strallen is a name you've likely heard a few times. She's the eldest of four sisters, who also include actors Summer, Zizi and Sasi. Her credits range from the big budget West End productions of Mary Poppins and A Chorus Line, to the smaller scale yet critically acclaimed Candide at the Menier Chocolate Factory, with two Olivier Award nominations along the way - for HMS Pinafore and Singin' in the Rain.

After a spell in New York, she now returns to the Menier to star in the revival of Masteroff, Bock and Harnick's She Loves Me. Based on the play by Miklos Laszlo, the musical premiered on Broadway in 1963, and formed the basis of the films The Shop around the Corner and You've Got Mail. It features songs such as "Ice Cream" and "A Trip to the Library".

It's been a while since we last saw you onstage in the UK, where have you been?

I've not been back here for three years, and it feels like yesterday, it's so strange. I'm based in New York now. I went over to do Macbeth in 2014 and while I was there I saw A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder which was an absolutely brilliant show, so I auditioned and took over from my old friend Lisa O'Hare [who replaced Strallen in Mary Poppins] and I was on that show for a year. From there I've stayed and done a few things in New York and Boston, I've just done Pirates there this summer.

What was it about She Loves Me that convinced you to come back?

The call for She Loves Me came through at the end of the summer and I absolutely couldn't resist. It was all about timing, I was actually due to do a different job over Christmas and when the Chocolate Factory called, I had to excuse myself from it because I couldn't not do this, I knew that it had just happened in America and if it was happening here then it wouldn't happen again.

I've always loved this show. I saw the recent production in New York with my very good friend Gavin [Book of Mormon star Creel], it's so intimate and can be quite dark at times. The characters are very lonely to begin with and then they find this love all around Christmas, it's so romantic and so heartwarming.

How have rehearsals been?

The two runs that we've done, people have been very moved, which is always a good sign. The score is such a joy to sing, it's incredibly hard but I love a challenge - it's very like Candide for that.

Of course Candide was also at the Menier, what is it about the venue that keeps actors coming back?

I love the Menier, as an actor there, especially in musicals, you don't have anywhere to hide, it's so intimate - even more so than the Donmar. Everyone's so in your face that you have no choice but to be incredibly authentic and really feel the material - thankfully they always pick great shows, so you know you're going to have a challenge. You also know that they're going to cast shows so brilliantly, I've worked with Katherine [Kingsley] and she's married to Dom [Tighe], I know Mark [Umbers], so it's a real family feel - and the restaurant's incredible!

Are you at that stage in your career where you can just pick what you want to do?

Oh my goodness, I wish, I'm just like the next actor, I have no clue what the future holds. But with that comes incredible excitement, if you can hold your nerve.

What is it that you look for in a role then?

I really love a challenge, I started primarily as a dancer and then went to drama school, so I discovered my voice quite late. So, luckily, I have so many different passions that I don't like to put any limit on myself. Having said that, I think A Chorus Line almost wrecked my body! So I'm very happy to be doing book work, lovely scenes and incredibly hard singing.

Scarlett Strallen and Katherine Kingsley in rehearsals for She Loves Me

 Alastair Muir

Your parents were both performers, did you ever feel pressured to follow in their footsteps?

No, not in the slightest. I'd go with my dad to the theatre, wherever he was, whenever he was in a show, I'd go most weekends and some evenings - I loved being there. The first thing that happened was Aspects of Love [at the Prince of Wales in 1992] and there was a young girl part in it, so I asked my dad if I could audition. I was very ill at the time, so I clearly had a determination even way back when. I grew up seeing how hard the industry is with my parents, it wasn't all completely rosy, I saw them very tired and stressed a lot of the time, but I just wanted to be a part of that magical world.

Do you think your sisters felt a pressure to follow in your footsteps?

I don't know, I hope not. We're very supportive of each other and we're also very different, if you've met us all, we're such different characters, so I think it's easy for the different passions to come out. Sasi, the youngest, she went to RADA and she's now at the Globe, she's really pursuing the straight acting career - which of course we all want to do - but she's really doing that. Zi's in Mary Poppins but she's also an incredible comedic writer and she's going to LA to pursue that.

How did you feel handing over the role of Mary Poppins to Zizi?

Who better to pass the baton on to? I'd played the part in so many places for such a long time, there was very little else I felt I could have achieved with it. Going to see it [with Zizi in the role] was one of the most moving experiences I've had because I felt like I did the whole show with her. It's been five years since I did it but I remembered every step.

Did you give her any tips?

I didn't give her any tips because with any part you have to discover it for yourself. Even with the part I'm playing now, I love Barbara Cook, she's a complete idol of mine, but I had to do away with the recordings that I've listened to so often and just try and find it for myself, otherwise you hear someone else's voice.

Would you let your future children go into the profession?

It would be incredibly hypocritical of me to say 'no you mustn't' because I begged my dad when I was eight years old. So if my children are desperate to do it, I don't think I could possibly be the one to say no. I would definitely encourage them to have a very good education though, like I did. I think you can have it all.

With your sisters, your auntie Bonnie Langford and your godfather Christopher Biggins, Christmas must be a fabulous time at the Strallen's...?

People always ask me what a Strallen Christmas is like, but usually we're working and we're all absolutely exhausted and we can't even speak, we're just dribbling over our food to be honest.

You mentioned Zizi has her comic writing, are there any strings to your bow we don't know about?

I have lots of passions, I'm certainly a huge traveller, and having lived in New York I'm now deciding where else in the world I can live, what other city I can go and explore, and just try and be a citizen of the world. Also, I actually fantasised about going back to university to study English, I'm really feeling that with this part because she's so obsessed with literature. I'd like to do this for as long as possible though - until the business gets tired of me.

Why should people come and see She Loves Me?

I think it's the most delicious Christmas present you could experience. It's so romantic and it's got gorgeous characters. It's a comedy as well as being deeply moving, it will just take you away from the world and all it's troubles for a couple of hours and make you feel warm and fuzzy inside, hopefully.

What's next for you after She Loves Me?

I'm going to go back to New York to do a very short production of Cole Porter's called The New Yorkers, it's semi-staged with a script in hand, beyond that I've not a clue.

She Loves Me will open at the Menier Chocolate Factory on 7 December, with previews beginning on 25 November.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ACCREDITATIONS

Knowles Centre a Winnipeg organization that provides treatment services and skill-based programs for young people and their families, has been reaccredited by the Council on Accreditation. This affirms that Knowles Centre meets rigorous, internationally recognized standards of excellence, providing assurance to its stakeholders that it offers the highest quality services. Knowles Centre is the only youth treatment facility in Manitoba accredited by COA. Its services include group-care treatment, treatment foster care, independent living, day treatment and sexual abuse treatment programs.

AWARDS

Manitoba LGBT* Chamber of Commerceannounced winners of its 2016 Chamber Awards at a gala ceremony on Thursday, Nov. 24. Recognized for their contributions are: Oh Doughnuts, 2016 New Business Award; TD Bank Group, 2016 Corporate Ally Award; Shandi Strong, 2016 Trailblazer Award; ALT Hotel, 2016 Tourism & Hospitality Award; Michelle McHale, 2016 Community Builder Award  Individual; Rainbow Pride Mosaic, 2016 Community Builder Award  Organization, and Hayato Nakabayashi, 2016 Student Award. The Manitoba LGBT* Chamber of Commerce exists to help build a strong Manitoba economy supported by, and supportive of, diverse communities. Our mission is to cultivate, contribute to and promote a thriving community of LGBT*-owned and allied businesses, professionals and business students in Manitoba.

Canadian Association of Nurses in Oncology/Association canadienne des infirmieres en oncologie (CANO/ACIO) announced award winners: Nadia Zenchyshyn, manager of patient care at Health Sciences Centre, was awarded the Pfizer Award of Excellence in Nursing Leadership; Barb Hues of CancerCare Manitoba won an Excellence in Nursing Education.

BOARDS

Canadian Home Economics Foundation Four Canadian home economists were recently named to the board of trustees of the Winnipeg-based Canadian Home Economics Foundation. Donna Ryland, who works in food development and research at the University of Manitoba, joins the executive committee as projects co-ordinator. Ann Halbesma, retired teacher of home economics, joins the executive committee to work on communications and development. Claudia Thierry, retired teacher of home economics and French as a second language, will be regional representative for Quebec. Jane Forest, former administrator and treasurer of the Toronto Home Economics Association, will be regional representative from Ontario. The Canadian Home Economics Foundation is a nationally registered charity that initiates and sponsors research, education and public-service projects by home economists that improve the quality of life, consumer knowledge and community well being, as well as supporting post-secondary education to the home economics profession. It is funded primarily by individual donors from across Canada.

Stevenson-Britannia Adult Learning Centre Inc. has announced its 2016-2017 executive and board of directors: John Loewen, chairpman; Robert Poirier, vice-chairman; Barry Melville, secretary-treasurer. Members at large: Dr. Joel Antel, Gordon Sobowale, Crystal Shorting, Paddy Douglas and Willie Foehr. Ex officio members: Gail Fishman, education director, Monica Ernstberger, assistant director. Stevenson-Britannia has been operating a literacy and high school program since 1998.We assist adult learners to improve their academic skills and obtain a Manitoba high school graduation certificate.

Got a promotion or a new contract? Email your submissions to bizlistings@freepress.mb.ca.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Canadas first ultra-low-cost air service  Winnipeg-based New Leaf Travel  is celebrating an important milestone on Monday.

The company announced its 1,000th flight will depart from Hamilton en route to Winnipegs Richardson International Airport.

One thousand (flights) is an important milestone, said Barry Rempel, president and CEO of the Winnipeg Airports Authority. In congratulating them, we note it is somehow fitting that the achievement will be marked in

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Jim Young, NewLeaf CEO: "Canadians have responded exceptionally well to our direct flights between destinations, and we are pleased to expand this service."

Winnipeg, having launched their inaugural from here earlier this summer.

New Leaf said that during the slightly more than four months it has been in operation, it and its partner  Flight Airlines  have transported more than 100,000 customers across the country.

It also noted the company is continuing to expand its route network with the recent announcement of new sun destinations to Florida and Phoenix from Hamilton, Edmonton and Calgary.

To celebrate the milestone, New Leaf said it is offering a 15 per cent discount off all domestic base fares to the first 1,000 reservations booked on Monday.

These offers, this value, continues to set us apart, the air service said. We are Canadas first and only ultra-low-fare leader. On all the routes we operate, Canadians enjoy lower fares.

Although the air service recently added some new sun destinations, it also has temporarily suspended service on some other routes. Without New Leaf flying those routes, air fares have gone up again, the company said.

We are delighted to take credit for dropping the price in air travel in Canada by 23 per cent on the routes that we serve, said New Leaf president and CEO Jim Young, adding they have done exactly what it set out to do; provide Canadians with the opportunity to fly at ultra-low fares.

Our focus has not wavered once from this goal, and we are proud to celebrate this achievement today.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Granola and oatmeal lovers may need to prepare for some sticker shock.

Oat production in Canada, the worlds biggest exporter, is set to plunge after rain and snow delayed harvests across the Prairies. Because the crop spent too much time in wet fields, grain quality declined, which means more will end up as livestock feed and less will be suitable for making food products such as breakfast cereal.

Since the end of September, when the extent of the damage began to emerge, prices have rebounded from a seven-year low, staging the biggest harvest-season rally in a decade.

Matthew Mead / The Associated Press files While the oat harvest was mostly complete by early November, 2015, this years harvest is still ongoing in Saskatchewan and Alberta, with six per cent and 27 per cent remaining unharvested in those provinces respectively.

More than 90 per cent of Canadas oat exports are sent to the United States, where companies such as General Mills Inc. and Quaker Oats Co. use them in everything from snack bars to cereals.

You cant make a Cheerio out of barley, said Randy Strychar, the president of Oatinformation.com, an industry researcher based in Vancouver. Its going to be tight.

Production will drop 13 per cent to 2.98 million metric tons after lingering harvest delays, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada said Nov. 17. Strychar says the decline may be as much as 20 per cent because farmers were so far behind the normal pace of harvesting.

As of Nov. 21, farmers in Saskatchewan still hadnt collected six per cent of their crop, according to the provinces agriculture ministry. Alberta had 27 per cent unharvested as of Nov. 15, data from the provincial government show. A year earlier, the oat harvest was mostly completed by early November.

Oat futures on the Chicago Board of Trade were up 25 per cent from the end of September through Nov. 24, the biggest rally for the period since 2006. Before the harvest delays, prices on Sept. 13 touched US$1.71 a bushel, the lowest since February 2009. The most active futures contract closed Wednesday at US$2.23 .

Canadian oat exports will drop to a four-year low of 1.5 million tons in the year that began Oct. 1, down from 1.6 million tons a year earlier, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates. American food processors depend upon Canadian supply because U.S. farmers dont grow enough, which means they import about 57 per cent of what they use.

Even if farmers managed to complete the harvest this week, the grain wont be usable for food makers. The United States may have to import more from northern Europe and draw down existing inventories to manage the supply rout, according to Strychar at Oatinformation.com.

It may take a few months before oat buyers start to see higher costs because supplies had been ample from earlier harvests and prices were low, said Dave Sanders, a Vancouver, Wash.-based vice-president for Cereal Byproducts Co. The company, which gets about 80 per cent of its oats from Canada, markets 10,000 tons annually for use by food makers and producers of pet food.

While oat inventories in the U.S. Midwest may be as high as 21 million bushels  enough to last five months  not all of it is food-grade quality, so millers may try to purchase more to make sure they dont run out, said Ryan McKnight, a merchandising manager at Carmans Linear Grain Inc. that originates, stores and transports crops.

Mills ran out in 2014, and they dont want that to happen again, McKnight said.

 Bloomberg News
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

An influx of new residents is putting pressure on apartment vacancy rates in Winnipeg and throughout Manitoba.

In its latest rental market report released today, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) said the overall vacancy rates for Manitoba and Winnipeg both edged down a notch between October 2015 and October 2016.

In both cases, it dipped to 2.8 per cent from 2.9 per cent.

FreeImages.com / Robert Linder Overall vacancy rates for Manitoba and Winnipeg both edged down a notch to 2.8 per cent between October 2015 and October 2016.

Strong migration figures have put downward pressure on the vacancy rate, the corporation said, noting Manitoba had a net population gain of 8,455 people during the first half of 2016.

Contributing to the growth was a 27 per cent increase in international migrants coming to the province at the end of the second quarter, it added.

It also noted only 185 new units were added to Winnipegs rental inventory in the past year. Thats a percentage increase of less than one per cent.

Average rents for a two-bedroom apartment, on the other hand, increased by two per cent in both Winnipeg and the province.

CMHC said the average monthly rental rate for a two-bedroom apartment in Winnipeg was $1,068 in October. That compared to $1,045 a year earlier.

In Manitoba, the average rent for a two-bedroom suite was $1,033 compared to $1,012 a year ago. Of the seven urban centres surveyed, Winkler continued to boast the lowest average monthly rental rate for a two-bedroom unit, at $667. That was down from $696 in October 2015.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

During the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign, President Barack Obama had this to say about the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): NAFTAs shortcomings were evident when signed and we must now amend the agreement to fix them.

During President Obamas term in office there have been some modest efforts under the Beyond the Border Action Plan to improve the flow of goods and people between Canada and the United States.

Fast-forward to the 2016 presidential campaign and now-president-elect Donald Trump said: We lose with Canada  big league. Tremendous, tremendous trade deficits with Canada. This is the worst agreement ever signed.

What can be expected in the future? Given the size of the Canadian market, a free-trade agreement is more important to Canada than the U.S., but nevertheless it is a significant amount of trade, and its especially important to U.S. states in the Great Lakes region and southwest.

Every day, more than $2 billion in trade and services pass between our two countries. The combined annual trade amounts to almost $1.5 trillion. Canada is the United States largest customer, and more than 400,000 people cross the border every day. From an employment perspective, U.S. exports to Canada support some eight million U.S. jobs, while about 2.5 million Canadian jobs (14 per cent of the workforce) are dependent on Canadian exports to the U.S.

In the state of Washington, for example, goods sold to Canada amount to more than $23 billion per year, generating 244,000 jobs.

In the state of Michigan, 241,000 jobs are dependent on $75 billion worth of annual trade with Canada. In New York, trade with Canada is almost $34 billion per year and creates 596,000 jobs.

(Mr. Trump singled out how bad NAFTA has been for New York state when he said, New York has been horribly, horribly hurt by NAFTA.)

The movement of employees between our two countries is vitally important.

As an integrated economy, we do more than make and sell things to each other; now, our companies increasingly innovate and make things together.

NAFTA includes provisions covering labour mobility. The Trade NAFTA (TN) visa is designed to facilitate temporary entry of workers on a reciprocal basis.

The TN provision is guided by a list of professional occupations to work in Canada, the U.S or Mexico.

One significant drawback of the TN list is that its more than 20 years old. A lot has happened in that time that the list has not kept up with. New occupations have emerged, particularly in IT, finance, health care and many other industries. Only two professions have been added to the list since its creation.

This disconnect with the modern labour market hurts productivity. It creates inconsistency, delays and unpredictability for many businesses that need to mobilize employees between the two countries. In a survey conducted of Canadian and U.S. businesses in 2013, the resounding message was that the TN visa list is out of step with existing and emerging occupations.

This is in contrast with the more contemporary approach Canada is taking on mobility provisions in agreements with its other trading partners, such as the recently agreed-upon Canada European Union Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA).

While CETA excludes key services in health care, public education and other social services, the temporary-entry provisions will make it easier for highly skilled professionals and businesspeople, such as engineers and senior managers, to work in the EU. The temporary-entry provisions will expand on existing WTO access by setting a framework to facilitate temporary travel or relocation for selected categories of business people, including short-term business visitors, investors, intra-company transferees, and professionals and technologists.

A further advantage of CETA, in comparison with NAFTA, is the inclusion of a framework for the mutual recognition of credentials.

When regulatory bodies in two jurisdictions agree that the professional qualifications in each others jurisdictions are satisfactory, they can sign a mutual-recognition agreement that allows professionals trained and qualified in one jurisdiction to provide services in the other.

Would it not make sense to have such arrangements in place within the North American trade pact?

Political issues aside, the economic benefits of NAFTA to Canada and the U.S are significant. Dismantling the agreement will exact a high price on business and affect the livelihood of more than 10 million workers and their families in Canada and the U.S. alone.

Is NAFTA the worst trade deal ever signed? Far from it. But it certainly could use a major makeover to the TN visa list to increase productivity and the economic benefits that go with it.

Stephen Cryne is the president and CEO of the Canadian Employee Relocation Council and is located in Toronto.
David Speetzens job is to work on an old, unsolvable puzzle.

Speetzen teaches philosophy and directs the War, Peace and Terrorism program at Winona State University. He enjoys the work, he said, because war theory is passed down from generation to generation in a way that binds him to the philosophers of the past.

War theory has been tweaked and modified and handed down over time, said Speetzen, who recently began studying how technology is changing the way wars are waged  and whether advances like drones somehow violate longstanding ethics of warfare.

People used to question whether ambush was at odds with Christianity, he said. They used to question the use of poison arrows and the use of bows and arrows  being able to kill someone from a distance without them being able to kill you.

You can apply war theory to current events, he said. Its like Im adding a little piece to this puzzle.

Speetzen aims to dismiss fears among the general public that drones and social media and cyberwarfare will make an Armageddon possible within our lifetimes.

In a presentation he gave on campus this month, Speetzen argued that none of these advances are game-changers and that they all have exploitable weaknesses.

Drones, he said, can be hacked or simply shot from the sky.

Governments and insurgents alike will have access to social media and will mostly cancel out the efforts of the other.

And cyber attacks that do serious damage are difficult to execute and largely preventable through protective networking by potential victims.

There are smart people working on both sides, he said.

These are somewhat new matters of interest to Speetzen, who earned a bachelors degree in English and philosophy from the University of Minnesota Morris and a doctorate degree in philosophy from Washington University in St. Louis.

He had always enjoyed philosophy, he said, but decided to read up on war theory after 9/11 and the United States subsequent invasion of Iraq.

I was skeptical they had weapons of mass destruction, he said.

Speetzen predicts there will be more wars waged using scant reasoning.

As drones replace soldiers and fewer human lives are put at risk, governments might come to see war as a more attractive way of resolving conflict, he said.

But people wont stop fighting for what they believe in, Speetzen said. There will always be troops on the ground once their drones have been shot from the sky.

People wont stop fighting for what they believe in. There will always be troops on the ground once their drones have been shot from the sky. David Speetzen
The Friends of Winona Public Library has released a new book, Lairds Legacy: A History of the Winona Public Library, by local historian Greg Gaut. The book is now for sale at the library circulation desk.

This library history project began in 2014, when Chad Ubl, the city of Winonas community services director, discovered a trove of historic material in Winona Public Librarys vault. It convinced him that the librarys history should be told. What started as discovery, turned into a collaborative project between the library, the Friends of the Winona Public Library, and Gaut, a historian specializing in historic preservation.

In 1897, two years before the first Carnegie library in Minnesota, Winona lumberman William Harris Laird donated the public library building to Winona with the stipulation that the city maintain it as a public institution. His gift is an impressive neo-classical building sheathed in white limestone and capped by a central dome.

It is the oldest library building still in use in Minnesota. The book tells the story of Winonas public library from its origins in 1886 to the present time, focusing on the legacy of Lairds philanthropy.

The Friends of Winona Public Library is a nonprofit that maintains an interested membership, focuses attention on the library, stimulates the use of library resources, receives gifts and endowments to the library, and cooperates with the library in developing services and facilities for the community. Book sale proceeds will serve as a perpetual fundraiser for the Friends.
WASHINGTON (TNS)  Donald Trump is branded with all manner of unflattering labels, but one that hasnt seemed to much bother him is climate pariah.

The president-elect is unabashed in his disdain for Americas global-warming policy. He has placed a staunch climate-change doubter and antagonist of mainstream science in charge of reshaping  or as Trump has suggested, dismantling  the Environmental Protection Agency. He has talked frequently about reneging on the Paris global climate treaty the U.S. took a lead in drafting. And he has said he wants every federal green-energy program eliminated.

Environmentalists take little comfort in Trumps recent comments that he accepts there is some connectivity between human activity and climate change and that he has an open mind about it, as what hes said elsewhere and done so far suggests otherwise.

And even those comments gave scientists cause for alarm. You can make a lot of cases for different views, Trump told The New York Times, casting doubt on the finding by more than 90 percent of climate scientists that emissions are accelerating global warming. Im not sure anybody is ever going to really know.

Yet few things on Trumps confrontational agenda put him more quickly on a collision course with the rest of the world, much of his own country and even some in his own party than his stated desire to abandon the fight against global warming. The looming assault on environmental regulation will test the resilience of Californias leadership role in the world, which is defined in large part by aggressive action on climate change that became a blueprint for the Obama administration.

Donald Trump will be about the only head of state who does not believe in climate science or the responsibility of his government to act, said Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club, which signed up more members in the week after Trump won the election than during the rest of 2016 combined. This makes the Bush-Cheney administration look like it came from an environmental training camp.

But Trump may be picking a tougher fight than he knows. The last time the White House made the kind of retreat Trump envisions  when President George W. Bush walked away from the Kyoto protocol in 2001  the policy landscape of climate change was drastically different.

Much of the action on climate change in this country no longer plays out in federal agencies but at local commissions enforcing laws in 29 states that push public utilities to go green. Their mandates are to encourage investment in cleaner plants and technology development.

Major U.S. trading partners that signed on to the nearly 200-nation accord reached in Paris last year are already signaling that they will retaliate if the United States backs out, possibly by slapping environmental trade tariffs onto some American products.

Bailing on the deal could also increase the influence of China, itself once a chief climate pariah and now a green-energy powerhouse and lead instigator of international climate agreements. Trump is poised to create a leadership vacuum in the fight against climate change that would only expand Beijings reach, Chinese officials say.

None of those potential consequences faze the free-market think tanks urging Trump to go rogue. Just weeks ago, these groups were on the lonely fringe, pursuing an agenda written off as wacky by the mainstream science community, but now find themselves helping drive policy at the highest levels.

We disagree with President Obama that climate change is the end-all and we ought to reorient the global economy around this phenomenon, said William Yeatman, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

One of the organizations most outspoken scholars, Myron Ebell, was assigned by Trump to oversee the transition to the new administration at the EPA. Ebell accuses the mainstream science community of unnecessarily alarming the public about global warming. Where many erstwhile allies abandoned that position in the face of mounting evidence to the contrary, Ebell doubled down. Last year, he attacked the call by Pope Francis for action on climate change as scientifically ill-informed, economically illiterate, intellectually incoherent and morally obtuse.

That Ebell is now setting the direction of the EPA is horrifying to no small number of policymakers and scientists who have worked on this issue since even before the Kyoto talks. Some dont even accept it. They expect Ebell will stir so much public outrage that his influence in the new administration will quickly wane.

He is a fanatical ideologue, said David Doniger, who directs the climate program at the Natural Resources Defense Council. If this were a corporation, would you turn a sales unit over to a nut like that?

But Trump, who shook up his transition team after winning the election, has left Ebell in charge of the shift at the EPA and may keep him in place to run the agency. Trumps transition team did not respond to a request to interview Ebell.

Trump faces an even more politically daunting barrier: many fellow Republicans. Generous federal tax credits for wind and solar production have provided an economic boost to states red and blue alike. Republican Sen. Charles E. Grassley of Iowa put Trump on notice, saying this year that only over my dead body would Congress allow a repeal of the wind tax credits Trump has proposed eliminating.

Still, U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, which have been dropping for years, are projected to turn sharply upward under Trump, according to the Lux report, even as California and many other states push ahead with their climate plans.

For starters, Trumps agenda would enable unfettered operation of Americas most polluting power plants. Obamas Clean Power Plan  which Trump said he will immediately kill  aimed to shut those down. Without those federal regulations in place, states resistant to the California-type approach are free again to go their own way.

Combine that with Trumps plan to strip all subsidies for green power, and add a Trump environmental agenda that includes none of the aggressive goals Hillary Clinton set for accelerating solar installations, and the amount of carbon released into the environment surges.

The public remains alarmed by climate change, and Trump will pay a heavy political price if he proceeds, environmental groups warned.

But even the climate contrarians at the Competitive Enterprise Institute are skeptical about how far he will go. Yeatman pointed to a postelection report in an energy industry publication that said Trump is already putting on the back burner his plan to end the wind and solar subsidies driving so much of Americas green economy.

And the energy plan the Trump campaign has now posted on its website also concerns him. Along with a massive surge in fossil fuel production, Trump promises to make full use of renewable energy sources.

And on Tuesday, Trump walked back a few more steps. Asked whether he was dead set on abandoning the Paris accord, the president-elect wavered. Im looking at it very closely, he said. I have an open mind to it.

Trumps energy plan would enable unfettered operation of Americas most polluting power plants and strip all subsidies for green power. His environmental agenda also includes none of the aggressive goals Hillary Clinton set for accelerating solar installations, and the amount of carbon released into the environment surges.
Donald Trump wont officially become president until January, but critics are already raising concerns that he is violating a constitutional clause meant to keep foreign countries from buying influence with U.S. officials.

The Emoluments Clause says U.S. officeholders cannot accept presents, gifts or fees from any king, prince or foreign state. Yet reports suggest that foreign diplomats have been encouraged to stay at Trumps new hotel in Washington, D.C., where suites run up to $20,000 per night.

Could foreign states use such dealings to influence Trumps behavior in office? Is the hotel pitch a sign Trump will use the Oval Office to further enrich himself and his family? Joel Mathis and Ben Boychuk debate the issue.

Joel Mathis

It looks like Donald Trump, as president, is going to be the same thin-skinned two-bit hustler hes always been.

Lets forget the specifics of the Constitutions Emoluments Clause for a second, and just ask ourselves this: Should the president use the Oval Office to get rich? Or should the president use the office on behalf of the people who elected him?

Should there ever have to be a question?

Heres what traditionally happens when a president takes office: He  its always been a he  puts his assets in a blind trust, outside his own control or the control of close relatives, so that he wont know how his actions as president affect his own personal net worth. The idea? To make sure the president is always, always working on behalf of the people.

Trump refuses to play by the rules  something that was easy to see coming when he became the first majority party presidential nominee of the modern era to refuse to release his tax returns. Rules, it seems, are for other people.

The laws totally on my side, the president cant have a conflict of interest, Trump told New York Times editors and reporters on Tuesday.

Hes right that many anti-conflict-of-interest laws exempt the president  a nod to the Constitutions separation of powers. But presidents dont generally use that exemption to see what they can get away with. Instead, they hold themselves to the highest possible financial standards. Even Jimmy Carter put his peanut farm in a blind trust.

In theory I could run my business perfectly and then run the country perfectly, Trump told the Times. Theres never been a case like this.

He would be easier to believe, except that his Washington, D.C., hotel is suddenly seen as a way for diplomats to buy favor. It doesnt help that, over last weekend, he settled a fraud lawsuit brought against his Trump University. Or that on Tuesday, it was reported his charitable foundation admitted breaking IRS rules in using its money to benefit Trump himself.

Meet the new Trump. Same as the old Trump.

Ben Boychuk

Its tempting to resort to snark when considering the question of whether Donald Trump has violated his oath of office before even taking it.

After all, if the Constitutions provision for an Electoral College is an antiquated and outmoded stricture, why couldnt the Emoluments Clause be dismissed similarly? We live in a globalized world. Trump is a businessman with holdings all over the place. The new hotel is supposed to be pretty nice. What of it?

And if, as progressives never tire of reminding us, the Constitution is a living, breathing document that should adapt to ever-changing circumstances, then surely the Constitution can adapt to President Trump, just as it adapted to President Barack Obamas unprecedented expansion of executive power.

Obama had a pen and a phone that he used to overcome a Congress that stubbornly refused to roll over for his policy agenda. Trump has hotels. Again, what of it?

Well, for one thing, we remain a nation of laws, not men, regardless of whoever happens to sit in the Oval Office at any given time.

So, does Trump have an Emoluments problem or not? Im not an expert, but Seth Barrett Tillman is. He spent eight years of his career as a legal scholar studying the clause. Some of his writing on the subject appears on the National Constitution Centers website.

His conclusion? The foreign emoluments clause doesnt apply to the president. His reason? George Washington set the precedent.

Traditionally, precedents established by President George Washington and his administration carry great weight, Tillman writes. President George Washington accepted and kept two diplomatic gifts, but he neither asked for nor received congressional consent. Washingtons conduct was widely reported in the press. So it would seem to indicate that he, his administration, Congress, and the public did not believe that the Clause applied to the presidency.

Controversy over? No, not really. As Tillman pointed out in an interview with a legal affairs news site, Trump is still subject to various bribery laws and rules on gift-taking. But, Tillman said, Trumps critics are constitutionalizing an issue that should not be constitutionalized.

President Trump will almost certainly have a constitutional crisis or two of his own. But the Emoluments brouhaha isnt it.
High winds and frigid temperatures resulted in a slow start to this years gun season for Wisconsin deer hunters.

According to preliminary figures from the Department of Natural Resources, hunters harvested 140,638 animals statewide from Nov. 19 through Nov. 22, down about 2 percent from 144,199 registered deer kills at the same time last year.

Despite the slow start, DNR officials said harvest numbers improved along with the weather throughout the week.

From all accounts, it was a great opening weekend, despite very high winds which many hunters said reduced deer activity, said DNR Big Game Ecologist Kevin Wallenfang in a press release. Conditions and deer movement improved on Sunday, and the hunters that department staff talked to were in good spirits and took home some nice deer.

License sales were also down 2 percent from last year. The DNR reported 575,363 licenses had been sold ahead of opening day, compared to 591,783 last year.

Sauk County hunters registered about 500 fewer deer compared to 2015. Local hunters reported 3,438 kills throughout the county, a 13 percent decrease from last years 3,972.

In neighboring Columbia County, 2,479 deer were killed, down 11 percent from 2,802 reported at the same time last year.

Online registration

DNR officials said the departments online registration system, GameReg, worked well this year. In 2015, the system experienced significant data gaps after the DNR tried to offer real-time county by county harvest tallies. This year, officials said they received overwhelmingly positive feedback on GameReg, which has now been used for two gun deer seasons and is critical for herd management.

Harvest registration is the most important information that we collect, Wallenfang said in a press release. If hunters want us to know whats happening and make the best management decisions possible, they need to comply with this requirement.

Hunting accidents

The DNR investigated three non-fatal hunting accidents during opening weekend in Waukesha and Taylor counties.

Upcoming seasons

A final summary for the entire nine-day gun deer season will be posted on the DNRs website on Tuesday.

In addition to the regular gun deer season, a four-day antlerless-only gun hunt will occur Dec. 8-11, and an antlerless-only holiday gun hunt will be offered in Sauk County from Dec. 24 through Jan 1.
The novel tells the story of a non-traditional family in the aftermath of a terrible accident. When Aaron Macivers beautiful young wife, Madeline, suffers a head injury in a bicycle crash, she is left with the mental capabilities of a 6-year-old. In the years that follow, Aaron and his second wife care for Madeline with deep tenderness and devotion as they raise two children of their own. Inspired in part by Elizabeth Spencers "Light in the Piazza," Hamilton offers an honest and exquisite portrait of how a family tragedy forever shapes the boundaries of love.
Wisconsin election officials estimated Monday it would cost $3.5 million to recount every presidential vote, while expressing confidence it would uphold Republican Donald Trumps surprise win in Wisconsin, which helped him become president-elect.

The recount was requested by Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein, who cited unspecified evidence of voting irregularities, and American Delta Party candidate Rocky Roque de la Fuente.

The $3.5 million figure is far more than previous estimates, and the state Elections Commission said in order for the recount to begin the amount must be paid in full in by 4:30 p.m. Tuesday by the campaigns of Stein, de la Fuente or a combination of both.

Also Monday, Steins campaign asked a Dane County judge to order that the recount of all ballots tallied by optical scan machines  which is how the vast majority of ballots in Wisconsin are counted  be conducted by hand after the commission rebuffed that request earlier in the day.

The developments underscored the unprecedented nature of the recount, set to begin Thursday and end by 8 p.m. Dec. 12, under a plan approved by the commission Monday.

State election officials emphasized the timeline is unusually speedy and will require the employment of thousands of temporary workers. Its designed to meet a federal deadline for any dispute involving presidential election results to be settled within 35 days of Election Day  this year, thats Dec. 13  so the Electoral College can meet before the holidays to formally elect the next president.

An online fundraising bid by Stein helped her campaign raise more than $6 million in recent days to pay for recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Those three states tipped the Electoral College to Trump, although polls did not predict his wins there.

The Stein campaign moved closer Monday to triggering recounts in the other two states. It said it initiated a court proceeding in Pennsylvania that could lead to a statewide recount. The campaign said it will request a recount in Michigan on Wednesday.

No evidence

Wisconsin elections officials say they found no indication of an effort to tamper with results.

Official results show Trump beat Democrat Hillary Clinton by a little more than 22,000 votes in Wisconsin, or less than a percentage point. Thats close, but far greater than could be expected to be reversed in a recount absent an unprecedented scale of vote-counting error  or an unprecedented effort to manipulate the results.

State Elections Commission chairman Mark Thomsen, a Democrat, told reporters hes confident a recount will uphold Trumps victory in the state. His remarks came after a special meeting of the commission to plan for the recount.

Thomsen also blasted Trumps baseless claim, circulated on his Twitter account Sunday, that Trump won the national popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.

Recent tallies have shown Democrat Hillary Clinton winning the national popular vote by more than 2 million, even as Trump won the Electoral College that picks the next president.

Thomsen called Trumps remarks an insult to the people that run our elections.

Ive never seen this kind of attack on poll workers, and on how this system works, Thomsen said.

The Clinton campaign has signaled it will closely monitor the recount in Wisconsin and potential recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania. The campaigns attorney, Marc Elias, wrote that it has examined the possibility of attempts to hack election results but has not uncovered any actionable evidence.

Majority are paper ballots

About 90 percent of all ballots cast in Wisconsin are paper ballots, the vast majority of which are tabulated by optical scanners, with the remainder counted by hand, according to Elections Commission spokesman Reid Magney. About 10 percent of votes are cast on touch-screen machines.

A recount of the paper ballots will involve counting them by machine or hand, a decision that will be left to each of the states 72 counties. Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell said Monday on Twitter the county would conduct a hand recount.

Recounting the touch-screen votes will involve examining the paper audit trails they leave behind. The paper records of votes must be verified for accuracy by each individual voter before he or she completes the process, Magney said.

The Stein recount petition says both the touch-screen and optical-scan machines are susceptible to compromise. The campaign has said the best way to find potential evidence of an attempt to tamper with the election results would be to recount or audit the vote.

The states elections supervisor, Ross Hein, said Monday that the machines are not connected to the internet, limiting opportunities to tamper with them.

In order to access the equipment, you would have to actually get your hands on it, Hein said.

J. Alex Halderman, director of the University of Michigan Center for Computer Security and Society, provided an affidavit that was included with Steins recount petition.

Halderman wrote that his tests have shown its possible to quickly install vote-stealing malware on voting machines that would surreptitiously alter election results.

Under a scenario described by Halderman, such malware could be loaded onto election officials desktop computers that are used to load the ballot design onto electronic voting machines. The malware then could be spread to the voting machines when the ballots are loaded onto them, Halderman wrote.

Cyberattacks noted

The affidavit notes the 2016 campaign was affected by an unprecedented scale of cyberattacks.

Attackers infiltrated and released emails from Democratic National Committee staffers and Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta. They also infiltrated voter registration databases in at least two states, Illinois and Arizona.

An affidavit submitted with the Stein campaigns court filing cites a statistical analysis by Walter Mebane, professor of political science and statistics at the University of Michigan.

According to the affidavit, Mebane found statistical anomalies in vote counts from small wards in Wisconsin where votes are tallied by optical-scan machines.

Mebane wrote separately about his findings in a Washington Post report published Monday. The affidavit was authored by Philip Stark, director of the Statistical Computing Facility at the University of California Berkeley.

The Stein campaigns petition notes the number of absentee votes cast in Wisconsin increased significantly  which the petition alleges could be attributed to a breach of the states electronic voter database.

But state election officials have highlighted a long-term trend toward increased absentee voting. Early, or in-person absentee, voting hours also were expanded before this election after a federal judge struck down portions of a state law restricting them.

The recount will not scrutinize the internal workings of electronic voting machines.

A separate audit of the machines, required by state law and scheduled to begin next month, will examine the machines error rates.

Hein said officials in Wisconsins 72 counties, who will oversee the recount, will need to work long hours in the next two weeks to meet the deadline.

It is going to be a very tight and aggressive timeline, Hein said.
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Big award for ace of the IT industry

Professor Barry Dwolatzky honoured by his peers for his outstanding contributions to ICT sector.

Dwolatzky, the driving force behind Johannesburgs new high-tech development, the Wits Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct, has been honoured with the Distinguished Service in ICT Award.

The award was presented to Dwolatzky at the 38th Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) President's Awards held on Friday, 24 November 2016.

The award presented by the IITPSA in association with EngineerIT. According to article published online on ITWeb the award was presented to an individual 'who is seen as a role model and mentor, who has made an outstanding, career-length contribution to the SA ICT industry and who has shown a long-term commitment to the aims and objectives of the Institute'.

Dwolatzky, Professor of Software Engineering in the Wits School of Electrical and Information Engineering and Director of Joburg Centre for Software Engineering, was praised for his contribution to ICT innovation and skills development.

Read the full ITWeb article: Barry Dwolatzky awarded for distinguished service in ICT

Also read the full EngineerIT article: Distinguished service in ICT awarded to industry ace
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. 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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.

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The Mosaic Company, through its subsidiaries, produces and markets concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients in North America and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. It owns and operates mines, which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients, such as diammonium phosphate, monoammonium phosphate, and ammoniated phosphate products; and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients primarily under the Biofos and Nexfos brand names, as well as produces a double sulfate of potash magnesia product under K-Mag brand name. The company also produces and sells potash for use in the manufacturing of mixed crop nutrients and animal feed ingredients, and for industrial use; and for use in the de-icing and as a water softener regenerant. In addition, it provides nitrogen-based crop nutrients, animal feed ingredients, and other ancillary services; and purchases and sells phosphates, potash, and nitrogen products. The company sells its products to wholesale distributors, retail chains, farmers, cooperatives, independent retailers, and national accounts. The Mosaic Company was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida.
The following companies are subsidiares of Textron: AAI Corporation, AAI Services Corporation, ALSTOM Gears, Able Aerospace, Able Aerospace Services Inc., Able Engineering & Component Services, Aeronautical Accessories LLC, Airborne Tactical Advantage Company LLC, Arctic Cat, Arctic Cat ACE Holding GmbH, Arctic Cat France SARL, Arctic Cat GmbH, Arctic Cat Inc., Arctic Cat Production LLC, Arctic Cat Production Support LLC, Arctic Cat Sales Inc., Arctic Cat Shared Services LLC, Arctic Cat UK Ltd., Arkansas Aerospace Inc., Avco Corporation, Aviation Service servis letal doo Ljubljana, Aylesbury Automation, B/K Navigational Equipment sro, BELL TEXTRON ASIA (PTE.) LTD., Beech Aircraft Corporation, Beech Holdings, Beechcraft Defense Support Holding LLC, Beechcraft Domestic Service Company, Beechcraft Germany GmbH, Beechcraft International Holding LLC, Beechcraft International Service Company, Beechcraft New Zealand, Bell Textron Canada International Inc., Bell Textron Canada Limited/Limitee, Bell Textron Co. Ltd, Bell Textron Inc., Bell Textron Korea Inc., Bell Textron LLC, Bell Textron Miami Inc., Bell Textron Prague a.s., Bell Textron Rhode Island Inc., Bell Textron Services Inc., Bell Textron Supply Center BV, Bell Textron Technical Services Inc., Benzlers, Brazaco Mapri Industrias, Burkland, Cessna Aircraft Company, Cessna Citation European Service Center SAS (99.9%; 1 share  Textron France SAS), Cessna Dusseldorf Citation Service Center GmbH, Cessna Finance Corporation, Cessna Finance Export Corporation, Cessna Mexico S de RL de CV, Cessna Spanish Citation Service Center SLU, Cessna Zurich Citation Service Center GmbH, Citation Parts Distribution International Inc., Cushman Inc., Datacom Technologies, David Brown Group, Doncaster Citation Service Centre Limited, E-Z-GO Canada Limited, Energy Manufacturing, Flexalloy, HBC LLC, Hawker Beech de Mexico S de RL de CV, Hawker Beechcraft Argentina SA , Howe & Howe Inc., Howe and Howe Technologies, Industrial Technology Inc., InteSys Technologies, International Product Support Inc., KSB Annecy SAS, Kautex (Changchun) Plastics Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Chongqing) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Guangzhou) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Pinghu) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Shanghai) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Wuhan) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex Corporation, Kautex Craiova srl, Kautex Germany Holding GmbH, Kautex Inc., Kautex Japan KK, Kautex Shanghai GmbH, Kautex Textron (UK) Limited, Kautex Textron Benelux BVBA, Kautex Textron Bohemia spol sro, Kautex Textron CVS Limited, Kautex Textron GmbH & Co. KG, Kautex Textron Iberica SL, Kautex Textron Management Services Company de Puebla S. de RL de CV, Kautex Textron Portugal  Produtos Plasticos Sociedade Unipessoal Lda., Kautex Textron de Mexico S de RL de CV, Kautex Textron do Brasil Ltda., Kautex of Georgia Inc., Kaywood Products Corp., Klauke, LCI Corporation International, LLC Textron RUS, Maag, McCord Corporation, Mechtronix, Medical Numerics Inc., Midland Industrial Plastics, MillenWorks, MillenWorks Themed Technologies, MotorFist LLC, OPINICUS Simulation and Training Services LLC, OmniQuip International, Opinicus, Optical Boring Co., Opto-Electronics, Opto-Electronics Inc., Overwatch Systems, PEINER Umformtechnik, Pipistrel, Pirelli Tyres - General Rubber Goods (GRG) division, Premiair Aviation Maintenance Pty Ltd, Progressive Electronics, Ransomes, Ransomes Inc., Ransomes Investment LLC, Ransomes Jacobsen France SAS, Ransomes Jacobsen Limited, Ransomes Limited, Ransomes Pensions Trustee Company Limited, Replacement Part Solutions LLC, Response Technologies LLC, Rotor Blades Limited, Sukosim Verbindungselemente, TRU Simulation & Training Spain SL, TRU Simulation + Training Inc., TRU Simulation + Training LLC, TekGPS Engineering Srl, Textron Airland LLC, Textron Atlantic LLC, Textron Aviation Australia Pty. Ltd., Textron Aviation Canada Ltd., Textron Aviation Defense LLC, Textron Aviation Finance Corporation, Textron Aviation Inc., Textron Aviation Prague Service Center sro, Textron Aviation Rhode Island Inc., Textron Aviation Services de Mexico S de RL de CV, Textron Capital BV, Textron Communications Inc., Textron Far East Pte. Ltd., Textron Finance Holding Company, Textron Financial Corporation, Textron Financial Corporation Receivables Trust 2002-CP-2, Textron Fluid and Power Inc., Textron France Holding SAS, Textron France SAS, Textron Global Services Inc., Textron Ground Support Equipment Inc., Textron Ground Support Equipment UK Limited, Textron IPMP Inc., Textron India Private Limited , Textron Innovations Inc., Textron International Inc., Textron International Mexico S de RL de CV, Textron Limited, Textron Management Services Inc., Textron Motors GmbH, Textron Motors North America Inc., Textron Outdoor Power Equipment Inc., Textron Realty Corporation, Textron Shared Service Centre (Canada) Inc., Textron Specialized Vehicles Inc., Textron Sweden AB, Textron Systems Australia Holding Pty Ltd, Textron Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Textron Systems Canada Inc., Textron Systems Corporation, Textron Systems Electronic Systems UK (Holdings) Limited, Textron Systems Electronic Systems UK Limited, Textron Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Textron UK Pension Trustee Limited, Textron Verwaltungs-GmbH, Turbine Engine Components Textron (Newington Operations) Inc., United Industrial Corporation, Westminster Insurance Company, Williams Machine & Tool, and Zhenjiang Bell Textron Aviation Services Limited.

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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.
Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure, Gas Utilities and Infrastructure, and Commercial Renewables. The Electric Utilities and Infrastructure segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest; and uses coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, oil, renewable generation, and nuclear fuel to generate electricity. It also engages in the wholesale of electricity to municipalities, electric cooperative utilities, and load-serving entities. This segment serves approximately 8.2 million customers in 6 states in the Southeast and Midwest regions of the United States covering a service territory of approximately 91,000 square miles; and owns approximately 50,259 megawatts (MW) of generation capacity. The Gas Utilities and Infrastructure segment distributes natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and power generation natural gas customers; and owns, operates, and invests in pipeline transmission and natural gas storage facilities. It has approximately 1.6 million customers, including 1.1 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, as well as 550,000 customers in southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky. The Commercial Renewables segment acquires, owns, develops, builds, and operates wind and solar renewable generation projects, including nonregulated renewable energy and energy storage services to utilities, electric cooperatives, municipalities, and corporate customers. It has 23 wind, 178 solar, and 2 battery storage facilities, as well as 71 fuel cell locations with a capacity of 3,554 MW across 22 states. The company was formerly known as Duke Energy Holding Corp. and changed its name to Duke Energy Corporation in April 2005. The company was founded in 1904 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Kimco Realty Corp. is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on open-air mall-style properties in the US and is among the largest mall REITs on the market. The firm has been in business since the post-war boom of the 1966 and trading on the public markets since 1991. The name is a blend of the founders names, Martin Kimmel and Milton Cooper, who merged their assets in order to form the larger company.

The stock was added to the S&P 500 in 2006 and has held its position ever since. Kimco is also know for being the first vertically integrated REIT meaning it is internally managed and advised, and provides its own asset and property management. The firm raised $120 million with its IPO and was worth $11.4 billion in October 2022.

As of October 2022, the company laid claim to more than 530 properties enclosing 92 million square feet of retail space. The properties are primarily located within grocery-anchored shopping centers and mixed-use assets in suburban areas. The tenant-focus is on a diverse blend of essential and/or necessity-based goods or services that drive multiple consumer trips per week and provide stable income.

Kimco Realty is headquartered in Jerico, N.Y., but does not limit its investments by geography. The companys properties are located in 1st-ring suburbs surrounding major metropolitan areas from coast to coast. One area of focus is high-barrier-to-entry coastal properties in population-dense vacation zones while another is the rapidly expanding Sun Belt.

The firm offers a variety of services and features apart from property rentals that include curbside pickup zones and many others that enhance the tenant and consumer experience. Other features include digital maintenance requests, Click Pay, and a Discount Program. Some of the markets served by Kimco Realty include New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Miami, and Atlanta.
SUPERVALU INC., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a grocery wholesaler and retailer in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The Wholesale segment engages in the wholesale distribution of various food and non-food products to independent retail customers, such as single and multiple grocery store operators, regional chains, and the military. It also provides professional services, such as pass-through programs; and various services comprising retail store support, advertising, couponing, e-commerce, network and data hosting, training and certifications classes, and administrative back-office solutions. The Retail segment operates retail stores that provide groceries and various additional products that include general merchandise, home, health and beauty care, and pharmacy products. It provides its products under the Cub Foods, Shoppers Food & Pharmacy, and Hornbacher's names, as well as 1 Rainbow stores. The company's stores offer a range of branded and private-label products comprising perishable and nonperishable grocery products. As of February 24, 2018, it operated a network of 3,437 stores, including 3,323 wholesale primary stores; and 114 retail grocery stores. The company was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited, a pharmaceutical company, develops, manufactures, markets, and distributes generic medicines, specialty medicines, and biopharmaceutical products in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers sterile products, hormones, high-potency drugs, and cytotoxic substances in various dosage forms, including tablets, capsules, injectables, inhalants, liquids, transdermal patches, ointments, and creams. It also develops, manufactures, and sells active pharmaceutical ingredients. In addition, it focuses on the central nervous system, pain, respiratory, and oncology areas. Its products in the central nervous system include Copaxone for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis; AJOVY for the preventive treatment of migraine; and AUSTEDO for the treatment of tardive dyskinesia and chorea associated with Huntington disease. The company's products in the respiratory market comprise ProAir, QVAR, ProAir Digihaler, AirDuo Digihaler, and ArmonAir Digihaler, BRALTUS, CINQAIR/CINQAERO, DuoResp Spiromax, and AirDuo RespiClick/ArmonAir RespiClick for the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Its products in the oncology market include Bendeka, Treanda, Granix, Trisenox, Lonquex, and Tevagrastim/Ratiograstim. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited has a collaboration MedinCell for the development and commercialization of multiple long-acting injectable products, a risperidone suspension for the treatment of patients with schizophrenia. The company was founded in 1901 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.
Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc. provides home and security products for residential home repair, remodeling, new construction, and security applications. It operates in three segments: Plumbing, Outdoors & Security, and Cabinets. The Plumbing segment manufactures, assembles, and sells faucets, accessories, kitchen sinks, and waste disposals under the Moen, ROHL, Riobel, Victoria+Albert, Perrin & Rowe, and Shaws brands in the United States, China, Canada, Mexico, Southeast Asia, Europe, and South America directly through its own sales force, as well as through independent manufacturers' representatives to wholesalers, home centers, mass merchandisers, and industrial distributors. The Outdoors & Security segment offers fiberglass and steel entry door systems under the Therma-Tru brand; storm, screen, and security doors under the Larson brand; composite decking and railing under the Fiberon brand; and urethane millwork under the Fypon brand. This segment also manufactures, sources, and distributes locks, safety and security devices, and electronic security products under the Master Lock and American Lock brands; and fire resistant safes, security containers, and commercial cabinets under the SentrySafe brand. It serves home centers, hardware and other retailers, millwork building products and wholesale distributors, specialty dealers, and remodeling and renovation markets, as well as locksmiths, industrial and institutional users, and original equipment manufacturers in the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America, Japan, and Australia. The Cabinets segment manufactures custom, semi-custom, and custom cabinetry, as well as vanities for the kitchen, bath, and other parts of the home directly to kitchen and bath dealers, home centers, wholesalers, and builders in North America under the AOK, Diamond Brands, Homecrest, Kitchen Craft, Omega, and EVE brands. The company was incorporated in 1988 and is headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois.
The Boeing Company is the worlds largest manufacturer of airplanes and commands more than 50% of the market in some channels and categories. The company and its family of subsidiaries design, develops, manufacture, sell, service, and supports commercial jetliners, military aircraft, satellites, missile defense, human space flight, and related services worldwide. The company operates through four segments including Commercial Airplanes; Defense, Space & Security; Global Services; and Boeing Capital providing products and services to end-users in 150 countries.

Boeing got its start in 1910 when William E. Boeing developed a love for aircraft. Soon after he takes his first plane ride which leads him to build a hangar and begin construction of his first plane. The onset of WWI helped spur the companys growth but business was cut drastically in its wake. The start of WWII was another milestone for the company and one that led to its current position of dominance. The company was incorporated in 1916 and is based in Chicago, Illinois. Boeing employs over 140,000 people in 65 countries making it one of the most diverse employers on the planet.

The Commercial Airplanes segment is built around the iconic 7-series which includes the 737, 747, and 787. The segment provides commercial jet aircraft for passenger and cargo requirements, as well as fleet support services for regional, national, and international air carriers and logistics and freight companies. In terms of global volume, the company estimates about 90% of all air freight is carried aboard one of its jets. This segment also includes the Dreamliner family of planes. The Dreamliner is a game-changing airplane for many carriers as it opens up the potential for new one-stop destinations because of its capacity and range.

The Defense, Space & Security segment develops and manufactures a range of systems including manned and unmanned aircraft, missiles, missile defense systems, satellites, communications equipment, and intelligence systems for governments. Among the many iconic brands within this segment are the AH-64 Apache, Air Force One, B-52, C-17 Globemaster, Chinook, F/A-18, and the V-22 Osprey VTOL aircraft used by the Marines.

The Global Services segment offers a range of products and services that include supply chain and logistics management, engineering, maintenance, upgrades, conversions, spare parts, pilot and maintenance training, technical and maintenance documents, and data analytics to its commercial and defense customers.

Boeing is also a leader in innovation, leveraging its many decades and avenues of experience to further aerospace and defense technology. Among the many innovations is the MQ-25 Stingray which will be the worlds first autonomous aircraft. The Stingray is only one of many areas of research that also include drones and undersea vehicles.
The following companies are subsidiares of Pfizer: AH Robins LLC, AHP Holdings B.V., AHP Manufacturing B.V., Agouron Pharmaceuticals LLC, Alacer, Alpharma Holdings LLC, Alpharma Pharmaceuticals LLC, Alpharma Specialty Pharma LLC, Alpharma USHP LLC, American Food Industries LLC, Anacor Pharmaceuticals, Anacor Pharmaceuticals Inc., Angiosyn, Array BioPharma, Ayerst-Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC, BIND Therapeutics Inc., BINESA 2002 S.L., Bamboo Therapeutics, Bamboo Therapeutics Inc., Baxter International - Marketed Vaccines, BioRexis, Bioren, Bioren LLC, Blue Whale Re Ltd., C.E. Commercial Holdings C.V., C.E. Commercial Investments C.V., C.P. Pharmaceuticals International C.V., CICL Corporation, COC I Corporation, Catapult Genetics, Coley Pharmaceutical GmbH, Coley Pharmaceutical Group, Coley Pharmaceutical Group Inc., Continental Pharma Inc., Covx, Covx Technologies Ireland Limited, Cyanamid Inter-American Corporation, Cyanamid de Argentina S.A., Cyanamid de Colombia S.A., Distribuidora Mercantil Centro Americana S.A., Encysive Pharmaceuticals, Encysive Pharmaceuticals Inc., Esperion LUV Development Inc., Esperion Therapeutics, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals, Excaliard Pharmaceuticals Inc., Farminova Produtos Farmaceuticos de Inovacao Lda., Farmogene Productos Farmaceuticos Lda, Ferrosan A/S, Ferrosan International A/S, Ferrosan S.R.L., FoldRx Pharmaceuticals Inc., Foldrx Pharmaceuticals, Fort Dodge Manufatura Ltda., G. D. Searle & Co. Limited, G. D. Searle International Capital LLC, G. D. Searle LLC, GI Europe Inc., GI Japan Inc., GenTrac Inc., Genetics Institute LLC, Greenstone LLC, Haptogen Limited, Hospira, Hospira (China) Enterprise Management Co. Ltd., Hospira Adelaide Pty Ltd, Hospira Aseptic Services Limited, Hospira Australia Pty Ltd, Hospira Benelux BVBA, Hospira Chile Limitada, Hospira Deutschland GmbH, Hospira Enterprises B.V., Hospira France SAS, Hospira Healthcare B.V., Hospira Healthcare Corporation, Hospira Healthcare India Private Limited, Hospira Holdings (S.A.) Pty Ltd, Hospira Inc., Hospira Invicta S.A., Hospira Ireland Holdings Unlimited Company, Hospira Ireland Sales Limited, Hospira Japan G.K., Hospira Limited, Hospira Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Hospira NZ Limited, Hospira Nordic AB, Hospira Philippines Inc., Hospira Portugal LDA, Hospira Produtos Hospitalares Ltda., Hospira Pte. Ltd., Hospira Pty Limited, Hospira Puerto Rico LLC, Hospira Singapore Pte Ltd, Hospira UK Limited, Hospira Worldwide LLC, Hospira Zagreb d.o.o., ICAgen, Idun Pharmaceuticals, Industrial Santa Agape S.A., InnoPharma, InnoPharma Inc., International Affiliated Corporation LLC, JMI-Daniels Pharmaceuticals Inc., John Wyeth & Brother Limited, Kiinteisto oy Espoon Pellavaniementie 14, King Pharmaceuticals Holdings LLC, King Pharmaceuticals LLC, King Pharmaceuticals Research and Development LLC, Korea Pharma Holding Company Limited, Laboratoires Pfizer S.A., Laboratorios Parke Davis S.L., Laboratorios Pfizer Ltda., Laboratorios Wyeth LLC, Laboratorios Wyeth S.A., Laboratorios Pfizer Lda., MTG Divestitures LLC, Mayne Pharma IP Holdings (Euro) Pty Ltd, Medivation, Medivation Field Solutions LLC, Medivation LLC, Medivation Neurology LLC, Medivation Prostate Therapeutics LLC, Medivation Services LLC, Medivation Technologies LLC, Meridian Medical Technologies Inc., Meridian Medical Technologies Limited, Monarch Pharmaceuticals LLC, Neusentis Limited, NextWave Pharmaceuticals, NextWave Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, P-D Co. LLC, PAH USA IN8 LLC, PF Americas Holding C.V., PF Asia Manufacturing B.V., PF PR Holdings C.V., PF PRISM C.V., PF PRISM Holdings S.a.r.l., PF Prism S.a.r.l., PFE Holdings G.K., PFE PHAC Holdings 1 LLC, PFE Pfizer Holdings 1 LLC, PFE Wyeth Holdings LLC, PFE Wyeth-Ayerst (Asia) LLC, PHILCO Holdings S.a r.l., PHIVCO Corp., PHIVCO Holdco S.a r.l., PHIVCO Luxembourg S.a r.l., PN Mexico LLC, PT. Pfizer Parke Davis, Parke Davis & Company LLC, Parke Davis Limited, Parke Davis Productos Farmaceuticos Lda, Parke-Davis Manufacturing Corp., Parkedale Pharmaceuticals Inc., Peak Enterprises LLC, Pfizer, Pfizer (China) Research and Development Co. Ltd., Pfizer (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Pfizer (Perth) Pty Limited, Pfizer (Thailand) Limited, Pfizer (Wuhan) Research and Development Co. Ltd., Pfizer AB, Pfizer AG, Pfizer AS, Pfizer Africa & Middle East for Pharmaceuticals Veterinarian Products & Chemicals S.A.E., Pfizer Anti-Infectives AB, Pfizer ApS, Pfizer Asia Manufacturing Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Asia Pacific Pte Ltd., Pfizer Atlantic Holdings S.a.r.l., Pfizer Australia Holdings B.V., Pfizer Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Pfizer Australia Investments Pty. Ltd., Pfizer Australia Pty Limited, Pfizer B.V., Pfizer BH D.o.o., Pfizer Baltic Holdings B.V., Pfizer Biofarmaceutica Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Pfizer Biologics (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd, Pfizer Biologics Ireland Holdings Limited, Pfizer Biotech Corporation, Pfizer Bolivia S.A., Pfizer Canada Inc., Pfizer CentreSource Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Chile S.A., Pfizer Cia. Ltda., Pfizer Colombia Spinco I LLC, Pfizer Commercial Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Commercial Holdings TRAE Kft., Pfizer Commercial TRAE Trading Kft., Pfizer Consumer Healthcare AB, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare GmbH, Pfizer Consumer Healthcare Ltd., Pfizer Consumer Manufacturing Italy S.r.l., Pfizer Corporation, Pfizer Corporation Austria Gesellschaft m.b.H., Pfizer Corporation Hong Kong Limited, Pfizer Croatia d.o.o., Pfizer Deutschland GmbH, Pfizer Development LP, Pfizer Development Services (UK) Limited, Pfizer Domestic Ventures Limited, Pfizer Dominicana S.R.L, Pfizer ESP Pty Ltd, Pfizer East India B.V., Pfizer Eastern Investments B.V., Pfizer Egypt S.A.E., Pfizer Enterprise Holdings B.V., Pfizer Enterprises LLC, Pfizer Enterprises SARL, Pfizer Europe Finance B.V., Pfizer Export B.V., Pfizer Export Company, Pfizer Export Holding Company B.V, Pfizer Finance Share Service (Dalian) Co. Ltd., Pfizer Financial Services N.V./S.A., Pfizer France International Investments, Pfizer Free Zone Panama S. de R.L., Pfizer GEP S.L., Pfizer Global Holdings B.V., Pfizer Global Supply Japan Inc., Pfizer Global Trading, Pfizer Group Luxembourg Sarl, Pfizer Gulf FZ-LLC, Pfizer H.C.P. Corporation, Pfizer HK Service Company Limited, Pfizer Health AB, Pfizer Health Solutions Inc., Pfizer Healthcare Ireland, Pfizer Hellas A.E., Pfizer Himalaya Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Holding France, Pfizer Holding Ventures, Pfizer Holdings Corporation, Pfizer Holdings Europe Unlimited Company, Pfizer Holdings G.K., Pfizer Holdings International Corporation, Pfizer Holdings International Luxembourg (PHIL) Sarl, Pfizer Holdings North America SARL, Pfizer Hungary Holdings TRAE Kft., Pfizer Inc., Pfizer Innovations AB, Pfizer Innovations LLC, Pfizer Innovative Supply Point International BVBA, Pfizer International LLC, Pfizer International Markets Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer International Operations, Pfizer International S. de R.L., Pfizer International Trading (Shanghai) Limited, Pfizer Investment Capital Unlimited Company, Pfizer Investment Co. Ltd., Pfizer Investment Holdings S.a.r.l., Pfizer Ireland Investments Limited, Pfizer Ireland PFE Holding 1 LLC, Pfizer Ireland PFE Holding 2 LLC, Pfizer Ireland Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer Ireland Ventures Unlimited Company, Pfizer Italia S.r.l., Pfizer Italy Group Holding S.r.l., Pfizer Japan Inc., Pfizer LLC, Pfizer Laboratories (Pty) Limited, Pfizer Laboratories Limited, Pfizer Laboratories PFE (Pty) Ltd, Pfizer Leasing Ireland Limited, Pfizer Leasing UK Limited, Pfizer Limitada, Pfizer Limited, Pfizer Luxco Holdings SARL, Pfizer Luxembourg Global Holdings S.a r.l., Pfizer Luxembourg SARL, Pfizer MAP Holding Inc., Pfizer Manufacturing Austria G.m.b.H., Pfizer Manufacturing Belgium N.V., Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland GmbH, Pfizer Manufacturing Deutschland Grundbesitz GmbH & Co. KG, Pfizer Manufacturing Holdings LLC, Pfizer Manufacturing Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Manufacturing LLC, Pfizer Manufacturing Services, Pfizer Medical Technology Group (Belgium) N.V., Pfizer Medicamentos Genericos e Participacoes Ltda., Pfizer Mexico Luxco SARL, Pfizer Mexico S.A. de C.V., Pfizer Middle East for Pharmaceuticals Animal Health and Chemicals S.A.E., Pfizer New Zealand Limited, Pfizer Norge AS, Pfizer North American Holdings Inc., Pfizer OTC B.V., Pfizer Overseas LLC, Pfizer Oy, Pfizer PFE ApS, Pfizer PFE AsiaPac Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Australia Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Australia Pty Ltd, Pfizer PFE B.V., Pfizer PFE Baltic Holdings B.V., Pfizer PFE Belgium SPRL, Pfizer PFE Brazil Holding S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE CIA. Ltda., Pfizer PFE Chile Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Colombia Holding Corp., Pfizer PFE Colombia S.A.S, Pfizer PFE Commercial Holdings LLC, Pfizer PFE Croatia Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Eastern Investments B.V., Pfizer PFE Finland Oy, Pfizer PFE France, Pfizer PFE Global Holdings B.V., Pfizer PFE Ireland Pharmaceuticals Holding 1 B.V., Pfizer PFE Italy Holdco 2 S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Italy Holdco S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Pfizer PFE Limited, Pfizer PFE Luxembourg S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Mexico Holding 3 LLC, Pfizer PFE Netherlands Holding 1 C.V., Pfizer PFE New Zealand, Pfizer PFE New Zealand Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Norway Holding S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE PILSA Holdco S.a r.l., Pfizer PFE Peru Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Peru S.R.L., Pfizer PFE Pharmaceuticals Israel Holding LLC, Pfizer PFE Pharmaceuticals Israel Ltd., Pfizer PFE Private Limited, Pfizer PFE S.R.L, Pfizer PFE Service Company Holding Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer PFE Singapore Holding B.V., Pfizer PFE Singapore Pte. Ltd., Pfizer PFE Spain B.V., Pfizer PFE Spain Holding S.L., Pfizer PFE Sweden Holding 2 S.a.r.l., Pfizer PFE Sweden Holding S.a.r.l., Pfizer PFE Switzerland GmbH, Pfizer PFE Turkey Holding 1 B.V., Pfizer PFE Turkey Holding 2 B.V., Pfizer PFE UK Holding 4 LP, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 1 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 2 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 3 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 4 LLC, Pfizer PFE US Holdings 5 LLC, Pfizer PFE spol. s r.o., Pfizer PFE Ilaclar Anonim Sirketi, Pfizer Pakistan Limited, Pfizer Parke Davis (Thailand) Ltd., Pfizer Parke Davis Inc., Pfizer Parke Davis Sdn. Bhd., Pfizer Pharm Algerie, Pfizer Pharma GmbH, Pfizer Pharma PFE GmbH, Pfizer Pharmaceutical (Wuxi) Co. Ltd., Pfizer Pharmaceutical Trading Limited Liability Company (a/k/a Pfizer Kft. or Pfizer LLC), Pfizer Pharmaceuticals B.V., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Global B.V., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Israel Ltd., Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Korea Limited, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals LLC, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Pfizer Pigments Inc., Pfizer Polska Sp. z.o.o., Pfizer Private Limited, Pfizer Production LLC, Pfizer Products Inc., Pfizer Products India Private Limited, Pfizer Research (NC) Inc., Pfizer Romania SRL, Pfizer S.A., Pfizer S.A., Pfizer S.A. (Belgium), Pfizer S.A. de C.V., Pfizer S.A.S., Pfizer S.G.P.S. Lda., Pfizer S.L., Pfizer S.R.L., Pfizer SRB d.o.o., Pfizer Saidal Manufacturing, Pfizer Sante Familiale, Pfizer Saudi Limited, Pfizer Seiyaku K.K., Pfizer Service Company BVBA, Pfizer Service Company Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Services 1, Pfizer Services LLC, Pfizer Shared Services Unlimited Company, Pfizer Shareholdings Intermediate SARL, Pfizer Singapore Holding Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Singapore Trading Pte. Ltd., Pfizer Spain Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Pfizer Specialties Limited, Pfizer Strategic Investment Holdings LLC, Pfizer Sweden Partnership KB, Pfizer TRAE Holdings Kft., Pfizer Trading Polska sp.z.o.o., Pfizer Transactions Ireland Unlimited Company, Pfizer Transactions LLC, Pfizer Transactions Luxembourg SARL, Pfizer Transport LLC, Pfizer Ukraine LLC, Pfizer Vaccines LLC, Pfizer Venezuela S.A., Pfizer Venture Investments LLC, Pfizer Ventures LLC, Pfizer Worldwide Services Unlimited Company, Pfizer Zona Franca S.A., Pfizer spol. s r.o., Pharmacia, Pharmacia & Upjohn Company Inc., Pharmacia & Upjohn Company LLC, Pharmacia & Upjohn LLC, Pharmacia & Upjohn S.A. de C.V., Pharmacia Brasil Ltda., Pharmacia Hepar LLC, Pharmacia Holding AB, Pharmacia Inter-American LLC, Pharmacia International B.V., Pharmacia LLC, Pharmacia Limited, Pharmacia Nostrum S.A., Pharmacia South Africa (Pty) Ltd, PowderJect Research Limited, PowderMed, Purepac Pharmaceutical Holdings LLC, Redvax, Renrall LLC, Rinat Neuroscience, Rinat Neuroscience Corp., Roerig Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Roerig S.A., Sao Cristovao Participacoes Ltda., Searle Laboratorios Lda., Serenex, Servicios P&U S. de R.L. de C.V., Shiley LLC, Sinergis Farma-Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Site Realty Inc., Solinor LLC, Sugen LLC, Tabor LLC, The Pfizer Incubator LLC, Therachon, Thiakis Limited, Treerly Health Co. Ltd, US Oral Pharmaceuticals Pty Ltd, Upjohn Laboratorios Lda., Vesteralens Naturprodukter A/S, Vesteralens Naturprodukter AB, Vesteralens Naturprodukter AS, Vesteralens Naturprodukter OY, Vicuron Holdings LLC, Vinci Farma S.A., W-L LLC, Warner Lambert, Warner Lambert Ilac Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Warner Lambert del Uruguay S.A., Warner-Lambert (Thailand) Limited, Warner-Lambert Company AG, Warner-Lambert Company LLC, Warner-Lambert Guatemala Sociedad Anonima, Warner-Lambert S.A., Whitehall International Inc., Whitehall Laboratories Inc., Wyeth (Thailand) Ltd., Wyeth AB, Wyeth Australia Pty. Limited, Wyeth Ayerst Inc., Wyeth Ayerst S.a r.l., Wyeth Biopharma, Wyeth Canada ULC, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare LLC, Wyeth Europa Limited, Wyeth Farma S.A., Wyeth Holdings LLC, Wyeth Industria Farmaceutica Ltda., Wyeth KFT., Wyeth LLC, Wyeth Lederle S.r.l., Wyeth Lederle Vaccines S.A., Wyeth Pakistan Limited, Wyeth Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Company, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals FZ-LLC, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals LLC, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Limited, Wyeth Puerto Rico Inc., Wyeth S.A.S, Wyeth Subsidiary Illinois Corporation, Wyeth Whitehall Export GmbH, Wyeth Whitehall SARL, Wyeth-Ayerst (Asia) Limited, Wyeth-Ayerst International LLC, and Wyeth-Ayerst Promotions Limited.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Johnson & Johnson: 3Dintegrated ApS, ALZA Corporation, AMO (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AMO (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd Beijing Branch, AMO (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd Guangzhou Branch, AMO (Shanghai) Medical Devices Trading Co. Ltd., AMO ASIA LIMITED, AMO Asia Limited (Korea Branch), AMO Asia Limited Taiwan Branch (Hong Kong), AMO Australia Pty Limited, AMO Australia Pty Limited (New Zealand Branch), AMO Canada Company, AMO Denmark ApS, AMO Development LLC, AMO France, AMO Germany GmbH, AMO Groningen B.V., AMO International Holdings Unlimited Company, AMO Ireland, AMO Ireland Ireland Branch, AMO Italy SRL, AMO Japan K.K., AMO Manufacturing USA LLC, AMO Netherlands BV, AMO Nominee Holdings LLC, AMO Norway AS, AMO Puerto Rico Manufacturing Inc., AMO Sales and Service Inc., AMO Singapore Pte. Ltd., AMO Spain Holdings LLC, AMO Switzerland GmbH, AMO U.K. Holdings LLC, AMO United Kingdom Ltd., AMO Uppsala AB, AUB Holdings LLC, Abott Medical Optics, Acclarent Inc., Actelion Ltd, Actelion Pharmaceuticals, Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Actelion Pharmaceuticals Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Actelion Pharmaceuticals US Inc., Actelion Treasury Unlimited Company, Akros Medical Inc., Albany Street LLC, Alios BioPharma, Alza Land Management Inc., Anakuria Therapeutics Inc., Animas Diabetes Care LLC, Animas LLC, Animas Technologies LLC, AorTx Inc., Apsis, Aragon Pharmaceuticals, Aragon Pharmaceuticals Inc., Asia Pacific Holdings LLC, Atrionix Inc., Auris Health, Auris Health Inc., Backsvalan 2 Aktiebolag, Backsvalan 6 Handelsbolag, Beijing Dabao Cosmetics Co. Ltd., BeneVir BioPharm Inc., Berna Rhein B.V., BioMedical Enterprises Inc., Biosense Webster (Israel) Ltd., Biosense Webster Inc., Branch of Johnson & Johnson LLC (RU) in Kazakhstan, C Consumer Products Denmark ApS, CSATS Inc., Calibra Medical LLC, Campus-Foyer Apotheke GmbH, Carlo Erba OTC S.r.l., Centocor Biologics LLC, Centocor Research & Development Inc., Cerenovus Inc., ChromaGenics B.V., Ci:Labo Customer Marketing Co. Ltd., Ci:Labo USA Inc., Ci:z Holdings, Ci:z. Labo Co. 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Ltd., Hansen Medical Deutschland GmbH, Hansen Medical Inc., Hansen Medical International Inc., Hansen Medical UK Limited, Healthcare Services (Shanghai) Ltd., Hickory Merger Sub Inc., I.D. Acquisition Corp., Innomedic Gesellschaft fur innovative Medizintechnik und Informatik mbH, Innovative Surgical Solutions LLC, J & J Company West Africa Limited, J&J Pension Trustees Limited, J-C Health Care Ltd., J.C. General Services BV, JJ Surgical Vision Spain S.L., JJC Acquisition Company B.V., JJHC LLC, JJSV Belgium BV, JJSV Manufacturing Malaysia SDN. 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Service Center (DAFZA Branch), Johnson & Johnson (Mozambique) Limitada, Johnson & Johnson (Namibia) (Proprietary) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (New Zealand) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Philippines) Inc., Johnson & Johnson (Private) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Thailand) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson (Trinidad) Limited, Johnson & Johnson (Vietnam) Co. Ltd, Johnson & Johnson - Societa' Per Azioni, Johnson & Johnson AB, Johnson & Johnson AB Eesti filiaal (Branch), Johnson & Johnson AG, Johnson & Johnson AG (Zuchwil Branch), Johnson & Johnson Belgium Finance Company BV, Johnson & Johnson Bulgaria EOOD, Johnson & Johnson China Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Consumer (Hong Kong) Limited, Johnson & Johnson Consumer (Thailand) Limited, Johnson & Johnson Consumer B.V., Johnson & Johnson Consumer Health Care Switzerland Branch of Janssen-Cilag AG, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Holdings France, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc., Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. (Dominican Republic Branch), Johnson & Johnson Consumer NV, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Saudi Arabia Limited, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Services EAME Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Del Paraguay S.A., Johnson & Johnson Dominicana S.A.S., Johnson & Johnson Enterprise Innovation Inc., Johnson & Johnson European Treasury Unlimited Company, Johnson & Johnson Finance Corporation, Johnson & Johnson Finance Limited, Johnson & Johnson Financial Services GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Financial Services GmbH (Branch Office), Johnson & Johnson Gateway LLC, Johnson & Johnson Gesellschaft m.b.H., Johnson & Johnson GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Guatemala S.A., Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems Inc., Johnson & Johnson Health and Wellness Solutions Inc., Johnson & Johnson Hellas Commercial and Industrial S.A., Johnson & Johnson Hellas Consumer Products Commercial Societe Anonyme, Johnson & Johnson Hemisferica S.A., Johnson & Johnson Holding GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Inc., Johnson & Johnson Industrial Ltda., Johnson & Johnson Innovation - JJDC Inc., Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC, Johnson & Johnson Innovation Limited, Johnson & Johnson International, Johnson & Johnson International (Belgian Branch) (European Logistics Center), Johnson & Johnson International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Johnson & Johnson International (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (Branch), Johnson & Johnson International Financial Services Unlimited Company, Johnson & Johnson K.K., Johnson & Johnson Kft., Johnson & Johnson Korea Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Korea Selling & Distribution LLC, Johnson & Johnson LLC, Johnson & Johnson Lda, Johnson & Johnson Limited, Johnson & Johnson Limited (Sri Lanka Branch), Johnson & Johnson Luxembourg Finance Company Sarl, Johnson & Johnson Management Limited, Johnson & Johnson Medical (China) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical (Proprietary) Ltd, Johnson & Johnson Medical (Shanghai) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical (Shanghai) Ltd. Beijing Branch, Johnson & Johnson Medical (Suzhou) Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical B.V., Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices & Diagnostics Group - Latin America L.L.C., Johnson & Johnson Medical GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Medical Korea Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medical Limited, Johnson & Johnson Medical Mexico S.A. de C.V., Johnson & Johnson Medical NV, Johnson & Johnson Medical Products GmbH, Johnson & Johnson Medical Pty Ltd, Johnson & Johnson Medical S.A., Johnson & Johnson Medical S.C.S., Johnson & Johnson Medical S.p.A., Johnson & Johnson Medical SAS, Johnson & Johnson Medical Saudi Arabia Limited, Johnson & Johnson Medical Taiwan Ltd., Johnson & Johnson Medikal Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Johnson & Johnson Medikal Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Ankara Branch), Johnson & Johnson Medikal Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Izmir Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East - Scientific Office, Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ - LLC (Lebanese Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC, Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC (Ghana Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC (Kenya Branch), Johnson & Johnson Middle East FZ-LLC Branch (TSO) (Saudi Arabia Branch), Johnson & Johnson Morocco Societe Anonyme, Johnson & Johnson NCB (Belgian Branch), Johnson & Johnson Nordic AB, Johnson & Johnson Pacific Pty Limited, Johnson & Johnson Pakistan (Private) Limited, Johnson & Johnson Panama S.A., Johnson & Johnson Personal Care (Chile) S.A., Johnson & Johnson Poland Sp. z o.o., Johnson & Johnson Poland sp. z o.o. oddzial w Warszawie "Consumer", Johnson & Johnson Private Limited, Johnson & Johnson Pte. 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I., Johnson & Johnson de Chile Limitada, Johnson & Johnson de Chile S.A., Johnson & Johnson de Colombia S.A., Johnson & Johnson de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Johnson & Johnson de Uruguay S.A., Johnson & Johnson de Venezuela S.A., Johnson & Johnson del Ecuador S.A., Johnson & Johnson del Peru S.A., Johnson & Johnson do Brasil Industria E Comercio de Produtos Para Saude Ltda., Johnson & Johnson for Export and Import LLC, Johnson & Johnson s.r.o., Johnson Y Johnson de Costa Rica S.A., Johnson and Johnson (Proprietary) Limited, Johnson and Johnson Sihhi Malzeme Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, LTL Management LLC, La Concha Land Investment Corporation, Latam International Investment Company Unlimited Company, Legal Entity Name, MDS Co. Ltd., McNEIL MMP LLC, McNeil AB, McNeil Consumer Pharmaceuticals Co., McNeil Denmark ApS, McNeil Healthcare (Ireland) Limited, McNeil Healthcare (UK) Limited, McNeil Healthcare LLC, McNeil Iberica S.L.U., McNeil LA LLC, McNeil Nutritionals LLC, McNeil Panama LLC, McNeil Products Limited, McNeil Sweden AB, Medical Device Business Services Inc., Medical Devices & Diagnostics Global Services LLC, Medical Devices International LLC, Medos International Sarl, Medos International Sarl succursale de Neuchatel (Branch), Medos Sarl, MegaDyne Medical Products Inc., Menlo Care De Mexico S.A. de C.V., Mentor B.V., Mentor Deutschland GmbH, Mentor Medical Systems B.V., Mentor Partnership Holding Company I LLC, Mentor Texas GP LLC, Mentor Texas L.P., Mentor Worldwide LLC, Micrus Endovascular LLC, Middlesex Assurance Company Limited, Momenta Ireland Limited, Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Momenta Pharmaceuticals Inc., NeoStrata Company Inc., NeoStrata UG (haftungsbeschrankt), Netherlands Holding Company, NeuWave Medical Inc., Neuravi Limited, Novira Therapeutics, Novira Therapeutics LLC, NuVera Medical Inc., OBTECH Medical Sarl, OGX Beauty Limited, OMJ Holding GmbH, OMJ Ireland Unlimited Company, OMJ Pharmaceuticals Inc., Obtech Medical Mexico S.A. de C.V., Omrix Biopharmaceuticals Inc., Omrix Biopharmaceuticals Ltd., Omrix Biopharmaceuticals NV, Ortho Biologics LLC, Ortho Biotech Holding LLC, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical LLC, Orthospin Ltd., Orthotaxy, PT Integrated Healthcare Indonesia, PT. Johnson & Johnson Indonesia, Patriot Pharmaceuticals LLC, Peninsula Pharmaceuticals LLC, Pharmadirect Ltd., Pharmedica Laboratories (Proprietary) Limited, Princeton Laboratories Inc., Productos de Cuidado Personal y de La Salud de Bolivia S.R.L., Proleader S.A., Pulsar Vascular Inc., Regency Urban Renewal Associates, RespiVert Ltd., RoC International, Royalty A&M LLC, Rutan Realty LLC, SYNTHES Medical Immobilien GmbH, Scios LLC, Sedona Singapore International Pte. Ltd., Sedona Thai International Co. Ltd., Serhum S.A. de C.V., Shanghai Elsker For Mother & Baby Co. Ltd, Shanghai Elsker Mother & Baby Co. Ltd Minghang Branch, Shanghai Johnson & Johnson Ltd., Shanghai Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Sightbox LLC, Sodiac ESV, Spectrum Vision Limited Liability Company, Spectrum Vision Limited Liability Partnership, SterilMed, SterilMed Inc., Surgical Process Institute Deutschland GmbH, Synthes Costa Rica S.C.R. Limitada, Synthes GmbH, Synthes Holding AG, Synthes Holding Limited, Synthes Inc., Synthes Medical Surgical Equipment & Instruments Trading LLC, Synthes Produktions GmbH, Synthes Proprietary Limited, Synthes S.M.P. S. de R.L. de C.V., Synthes Tuttlingen GmbH, Synthes USA LLC, Synthes USA Products LLC, TARIS Biomedical, TARIS Biomedical LLC, TearScience Inc., The Anspach Effort LLC, The Vision Care Institute LLC, Tibotec LLC, Torax Medical Inc., UAB "Johnson & Johnson", UAB Johnson & Johnson Eesti Filiaal (Estonian Branch), Vania Expansion, Verb Surgical, Verb Surgical Inc., Vision Care Finance Unlimited Company, Vogue International, Vogue International LLC, Vogue International Trading Inc., WH4110 Development Company L.L.C., XO1, XO1 Limited, Xian Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd., Xian-Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd. Beijing Branch Office, Xian-Janssen Pharmaceutical Ltd. Shanghai Branch Office, Zarbee's Inc., and Zarbee's Naturals.

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Eskom confident of Thyspunt seismic safety

28 November 2016

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South African nuclear utility Eskom said it is confident its probabilistic seismic safety studies for Thyspunt adequately characterise the site's seismic hazards. It denied allegations by a research institute that it had not shared its findings on the seismic safety of the Eastern Cape site.

Thyspunt is one of two potential sites for new nuclear power plants for which Eskom earlier this year submitted applications to the country's National Nuclear Regulator. The other site, Duynefontein, is in the Western Cape.

Eskom's statement was issued on 25 November in response to media reports citing a study published by the Africa Earth Observatory Network-Earth Stewardship Science Research Institute (AEON-ESSRI), based at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth. The report, Geo-realities @ Thyspunt.za authored by AEON director Maarten de Wit, says the proposed nuclear plant site is at seismic risk from the Kango fault coupled with the presence of deep "canyons" in the bedrock, covered by sand and soft rock.

The report says that aquifer systems, valleys and canyons beneath the sands at Thyspunt "may not be able to protect large tidal swamps and/or tsunami waves from flooding across the bedrock below sea level". It also says a plant built at the site "could literally become a Fukushima prone to flooding from below". It adds that "there has not been open access to all the scientific data" from Eskom's site studies.

Eskom said extreme scenarios and alternative models and interpretations, such as those presented in the AEON report, were addressed by the SSHAC Level 3 (Senior Seismic Hazard Analysis Committee) methodology it used in its studies of Thyspunt. The US-developed methodology is the approach required by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission for construction of new nuclear plants and is accepted as "one of the most comprehensive and rigorous approaches", the company said.

Eskom itself, and not the studies referred to by AEON, identified a segment of the Kango fault that was seismically active 10,000 years ago and then proceeded to quantify that risk. "That work was incorporated in the Thyspunt seismic hazard calculations and is reflected in the seismic design input that will be used for the design of the power stations," it said.

"Eskom would like to make it clear that the plan has always been to remove the sand and excavate into the bedrock to create a level horizon in competent material to eliminate the liquefaction risk. This is the same approach as was taken at the existing Koeberg Nuclear Power Station in the 1970s," it added.

Eskom said the AEON-ESSRI studies brought "no new data to the table as relates to the suitability of the Thyspunt site for nuclear power plant siting" and in fact used information based on research previously carried out and publicly shared by Eskom. The findings of the SSHAC study, completed in 2013, are freely available on the internet and the research has led to the publication of more than 20 scientific papers in the international scientific literature, the company said. "Suggesting that Eskom has not shared the data and findings of its own studies is patently untrue," it said.

The South African government last week announced plans to increase nuclear capacity by 1359 MWe by 2037 - less and over a longer timeframe than the previously announced target - under draft integrated resource and energy plans which are currently open to public consultation. Eskom has said it plans to invite applications from companies interested in building new nuclear plants by the end of this year.

Eskom operates the two-unit Koeberg nuclear power station, near Capetown.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News



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UK regulators question Westinghouse's target date for AP1000 GDA

28 November 2016

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UK regulators expect to complete the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) process for Hitachi-GE's UK Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (UK ABWR) as scheduled, in December of 2017, but doubt the GDA for the Westinghouse AP1000 will be done by March as previously stated.

In its quarterly GDA report for May to October 2016 issued recently, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) also said it had met "a number of times" in the period with General Nuclear Systems as the potential GDA Requesting Party (RP) for China General Nuclear's HPR1000 design.

UK ABWR

Horizon Nuclear Power - established in 2009 and acquired by Hitachi in November 2012 - plans to deploy the UK ABWR at two sites - Wylfa Newydd, which is on the Isle of Anglesey, and Oldbury-on-Severn, in South Gloucestershire.

Of the UK ABWR, ONR said: "Our delivery confidence for this project is green/amber, which means that successful delivery remains probable, however constant attention from both Hitachi-GE and the regulators is required to ensure that risks do not materialise into major issues threatening delivery. Hitachi-GE shares our view of delivery confidence. Overall we are confident that completion of the GDA by the end of December is achievable."

ONR's "intensive assessment" of the design continues, it said, and with a year remaining in its anticipated schedule it is "moving towards finalising any significant safety case issues and identifying any final matters that may require additional work and/or design enhancements". There are technical issues outstanding and a large volume of work remaining, it added, but Hitachi-GE "continues to respond well and at this juncture we consider the project stable overall, and are confident in Hitachi-GE's projected completion date of December 2017".

The period covered by the report included closure of Regulatory Issue RI-01 (identification and justification of source terms), which represents the completion of new analyses and clarity on the hazard. This is a "commendable achievement" by Hitachi-GE, ONR said, and will help Horizon in the future stages of the project.

The Environment Agency is continuing to carry out its assessments and starting consultation on its findings so far on 12 December. Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is also working towards this consultation. The Environment Agency and NRW considers that a statement of design acceptability (SoDA) in December 2017 is achievable, ONR said.

AP1000

NuGeneration (NuGen), the UK joint venture between Japan's Toshiba and France's Engie, plans to build a nuclear power plant of up to 3.8 GWe gross capacity at Moorside, in West Cumbria using AP1000 nuclear reactor technology provided by Westinghouse Electric Company, a group company of Toshiba.

Of the AP1000, ONR said: "Our delivery confidence for this project is amber/red, which means that successful delivery of the project is in doubt with major risks or issues apparent in a number of key areas. 122. We acknowledge that Westinghouse has made progress since the start of the year and its commitment is welcome; however there are only five months remaining and a very large amount of assessment to complete with issues still emerging. We will undertake a project deep dive at the end of this year, when we expect to have a clear view on the viability of completion and closure at the end of March 2017."

ONR noted the results of Westinghouse's revised management arrangements for the UK GDA project. "The improved oversight is helping to progress matters and to secure and maintain the resource it needs to deliver the project. Overall submissions are improving, however there are instances where further revisions are needed to meet regulatory expectations."

There are concerns about the volume of work still to be assessed in the remaining time, it added. "Westinghouse has submitted first revisions of documents in all areas and multiple revisions in some areas. However, there are technical issues arising from our assessments and in some areas, the compression of the schedule is a significant challenge to us."

HPR1000

The UK EPR design became the first reactor design to complete the GDA process and receive a Design Acceptance Confirmation (DAC) from the ONR and a Statement of Design Acceptability from the Environment Agency in December 2012. Under a deal agreed in October last year, China General Nuclear (CGN) will take a 33.5% stake in EDF Energy's 18 billion ($28 billion) project to construct Hinkley Point C, in Somerset, which will comprise two Areva EPR units. In addition, the two companies will develop projects to build new plants at Sizewell in Suffolk and Bradwell in Essex, the latter using Chinese reactor technology - the HPR1000.

General Nuclear Systems is a joint venture between CGN and EDF, developed to deliver the Bradwell project in Essex. ONR said: "Our interactions have focused on ensuring that the RP is ready to commence the GDA and has met the 'pre-requisites' identified in our 'Guidance to Requesting Parties'. Our view is that the potential RP is in a good position to commence GDA, and we await a request from Government to commence the process."

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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A young man wanted to make a point about racism in the United States, but his plan backfired when he was exposed for a liar by police. 20-year-old Khalil Cavil of Texas was working at the Saltgrass Steak House in Odessa when he claimed he was discriminated against because of his Muslim name. Cavil took
Eric Aniva

By: Tanya Malhotra

(Scroll down for video) A man of Malawi, was arrested on a charge of sexual assault after being accused of having sex with multiple underage girl despite being HIV positive.

Now, 45-year-old Eric Aniva of Nsanje, has been sentenced to two years of hard labor after being convicted of multiple counts of harmful cultural practice.

Many human rights organizations have condemned the light sentence.

Anber Raz, who is the deputy director of Donor Direct Action, an international womens rights organization, said that it is a miracle that Aniva was even convicted.

Raz revealed that the light sentence is due to lack of witnesses willing to testify against Aniva. Prosecutors were willing to charge Aniva with sexual assault against the girls, but none of the victims were willing to testify.

Instead, Aniva was tried and convicted of a lesser crime, harmful cultural practice, for having sex with widows.

As we reported earlier, Aniva said that the young girls complimented him over his sexual performance and that they loved it.

Aniva said that it is part of the tradition for girls to have sex with a male prostitute who is known as a ahyena.a He claims that so far, he has slept with about 104 girls and young women since the beginning of his acareer.a

aThese girls are never scared. In fact, they are very relaxed with me,a he bragged. He said that the girls pay to have sex with him once they reach puberty.

The girls have sex with the hyena over a three-day period after their first menstruation. The act is not seen by village elders as rape, but rather as a form of ritual acleansing.a

However, Aniva, who is HIV positive, agreed that the practice has the potential of being the opposite of cleansing, and is a way of spreading the disease.

When asked why he does not wear a condom, Aniva said that it is against their religion to use protection.
Muslim boy (illustration)

By: Feng Qian

(Scroll down for video) A Muslim rights organization is calling on police to launch an investigation after a teacher severely abused a student for being a Muslim.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called for an immediate and thorough investigation of the alleged assaults on a Muslim kindergarten student at the David Cox Road Elementary School in Charlotte, North Carolina, by one of the schoolas teachers.

During the first two months of the school year, the Muslim student was subjected to relentless bullying and harassment not only by his classmates, but by the teacher.

For example, the teacher, who was identified as Alma Simpson, would routinely single out the student from his classmates and require him to carry a heavy backpack throughout the day.

The backpack contained a large textbook and headphones, which caused the student to develop significant back pain. The teacher would also treat the student harshly and reportedly called him a abad Muslim boya on multiple occasions.

On Wednesday, the teacher approached the student, grabbed him by the neck and began choking him. Another teacher then separated the two and began consoling the student who was crying and extremely shaken.
This lecture was delivered on January 7, 1998 to the International Summer School on Marxism and the Fundamental Problems of the 20th Century, organised by the Socialist Equality Party (Australia) in Sydney, from January 3-10, 1998.

Castroism has been the subject of immense confusion, not a small part of it created by the Pabloite revisionist tendency which emerged within the Fourth International. The Pabloites presentedand some of them still presentCastroism as a new road to socialism, as confirmation that the socialist revolution could be carried out, and a workers' state established, without the conscious participation of the working class.

Led by Joseph Hansen in the US and Ernest Mandel in Europe, the Pabloite revisionists abandoned the struggle for revolutionary leadership in the working class, and ceded the historical tasks of the proletariat in the backward countries to the petty-bourgeois nationalists.

In so doing, they helped prepare some of the most terrible defeats suffered by the working class in the latter half of the 20th century.

The International Committee of the Fourth International waged an implacable struggle against this perspective, thereby defending and developing the theoretical and political weapons forged by Marxism over the whole previous period. Involved in this struggle were the most essential questions relating to the tasks of Marxists.

Our movement fought against those who saw Marxism merely as a means of discovering, describing and adapting themselves to supposedly unstoppable objective processes that were compelling other, non-working class, forces to lead the struggle for socialism. It defended the perspective that the only road to socialism lay in building revolutionary parties, based on the international proletariat, in a relentless struggle against the dominant bureaucracies and petty-bourgeois leaderships, no matter how powerful or popular they might appear.

In dealing with Castroism 35 years later, we are entitled to ask who was right in this dispute? Did Castroism provide a new road to socialism or did it turn out to be a blind alley and a trap for the working class? What were the consequences of the Pabloites' renunciation of the role of the working class and its conscious revolutionary vanguard? We will take the opportunity in this lecture to review this strategic experience and its lessons for the working class movement.

Che's revival

A fitting place to begin our analysis is with the recent commemorations marking the 30th anniversary of the execution of Ernesto 'Che' Guevara, the most prominent exponent and practitioner of the perspective of guerrilla warfare with which Castroism is identified. In recent months we have witnessed a virtual Che revival, though not the sort that the Argentine-born guerrilla could have envisioned, even in his worst nightmare.

Che has become the object of commercialization in a manner which seems quite incongruous with his radical reputation. His image itself has been transformed into a commodity. The Swiss watchmaker Swatch has come out with a 'revolution' model, with the guerrilla's visage. His face has also been used to advertise skis, to adorn the covers of rock CDs and even to sell beer.

In Argentina, the government of Carlos Menem, the favorite of Washington for his embrace of the IMF and enthusiastic support for the Persian Gulf war, has even issued a commemorative stamp honoring Che as a 'great Argentine.'

The Castro regime has also gotten into the act. It recently brought back Guevara's remains from Bolivia, reintering them in Cuba with pomp and circumstance. The Cuban government has organized Che tours for foreign ex-radicals and markets Che T-shirts and trinkets, providing a new source of hard currency for the crisis-ridden Cuban economy.

What is it about Che that makes him so susceptible to being turned into a harmless, though profitable, icon? The qualities which his admirers cite are well-known. Physical bravery, self-sacrifice, asceticism, giving his life for a cause. These can all be admirable traits. No doubt they present a stark contrast to the prevailing social ethic in which a man's worth is determined by the size of his stock portfolio. But these qualities, in and of themselves, are by no means indicators of the political and class character of those who possess them. Religious sects and even fascist movements can claim to have produced martyrs with similar qualities in their own struggles for wholly reactionary ends.

A careful review of Guevara's career demonstrates that his political conceptions had nothing to do with Marxism and that the panaceas of armed struggle and guerrilla warfare with which he was identified were fundamentally hostile to the revolutionary socialist struggle of the working class.

In the midst of the recent revival of the image of Che there have appeared several new biographies of the guerrilla leader. Those of the Mexican author Jorge Castaneda and the American John Lee Anderson, while by no means offering a Marxist political analysis, do provide some useful insights into both Guevara's trajectory and that of the Cuban revolution.

What emerges so clearly from the detailed recounting of Che's career in these books is the abysmal shallowness and the tragic results of his political perspective.

Alongside these factual accounts there has been a renewed attempt by various petty-bourgeois left tendencies to portray Guevara as a revolutionary leader and theoretician whose example and conceptions continue to provide a meaningful perspective for the struggle against capitalism. Unlike the biographers, these groups provide no fresh insights or information. They combine a diseased nostalgia for the glory days of middle class radicalism with what can only be described as a falsification of Guevara's real views and their political consequences.

Some, such as the Socialist Workers Party in the United States, uncritically echo the official commemorations of the Cuban government. Others, like the old Pabloite scoundrel Livio Maitan in Italy or the Morenoite MAS in Argentina, attempt to portray Guevara as having posed some sort of revolutionary alternative to both Stalinism and the Castroite regime itself.

In a recent statement on the Cuban question, the Morenoites praise Che's slogan of 'One, two many Vietnams,'' and declare: 'Even if with disastrous methodsguerrilla focos, isolation from the mass movement, opposition to the construction of revolutionary workers partiesit expressed the necessity of extending the revolution internationally.''

How a necessary and revolutionary perspective can be expressed through disastrous methods, the Morenoites do not bother to explain. This tendency, like all the Pabloite factions, has made a career out of attempting to demonstrate how various forcesPeronism, Stalinism, guerrillaismare 'expressing' the struggle for socialism.

Indeed, the Morenoites, at an earlier stage, even reached the point of finding this expression in the Cuban dictator whom Castro overthrew, Fulgencio Batista. Proclaiming him 'Cuba's Peron', they hailed the Cuban working class for failing to respond to a general strike call issued by Castro's July 26th movement. After Castro won, however, they placed his portrait alongside that of General Peron on the masthead of their newspaper.

The political alchemy of the Morenoites notwithstanding, the disastrous methods of Guevara were a faithful expression of the political perspectiveor perhaps more accurately lack of any real perspectivewhich underlay them.

Neither the Morenoites nor any of the other Pabloite tendencies care to make a class analysis of Castroism and Guevarism, trace their historical origins and development, or draw up a balance sheet of the experience with guerrillaism in Latin America over the past nearly four decades.

That critical task can only be carried out by our movement, based on the struggle it has undertaken throughout that period for the political independence and international unity of the working class.

Proletarian socialism versus petty-bourgeois nationalism

The Pabloite revisionists, like the middle class ex-radicals in general, are hostile to such an approach. They fervently hope for a revival of Castroism. All of them were enthused by the appearance of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation in Chiapas, Mexico and likewise applauded the actions of the Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement when it seized the Japanese embassy in Lima, a little more than a year ago.

Our movement did not join in celebrating this apparent resurgence of Guevarism and the hollow political formula of 'armed struggle.'' We have a long record of fighting against such conceptions, recognizing that they embody not the revolutionary socialist strivings of the proletariat, but rather the politics of petty-bourgeois nationalism. They are directed not at resolving the vital questions of revolutionary leadership within the working class, but rather at denying the revolutionary role of this class altogether and diverting radicalized layers of students, as well as workers and peasants, away from the struggle for socialism.

They serve not to illuminate, but rather obscure, the strategic problems of the socialist revolution that were elaborated by Trotsky in his theory of Permanent Revolution. Such slogans as 'the duty of the revolutionary is to make the revolution,'' 'armed struggle,'' and 'protracted peoples' war'' leave unanswered the issues of what class will play the leading role in the revolution, what is the connection between the revolution in one country and the world revolution, and what is the relation between the struggle of the workers and oppressed in the backward countries and that of the working class in the advanced capitalist ones.

Behind their radical rhetoric, these movements have definite conceptions about all these questions. Invariably, they are directed at suppressing the independent revolutionary struggle of the proletariat, and subordinating the oppressed masses as a whole to the needs of the national bourgeoisie.

In this sense, no matter how radical these movements may appear, they are, in the final analysis, one of the last bulwarks of imperialism against the socialist revolution. It is this essential nature of petty-bourgeois nationalism and guerrillaism which provides a key to understanding the ease with which capitalism has appropriated the image of Che for its own purposes.

If one examines carefully the politics of the Peruvian MRTA and the Mexican Zapatistas, they are merely a different manifestation of the accommodation with imperialism carried out by all bourgeois nationalist regimes and movements. The Tupac Amaru group seized the Japanese ambassador's residence with the aim of pressuring Japanese imperialism to exert influence over the Fujimori regime to soften its policy. The group's ultimate aim, communicated to some of the hostages, was to force a negotiated settlement through which it could transform itself from an armed movement into a legal petty-bourgeois political party.

As for the Zapatista movement, it has been universally hailed precisely because it has, from the beginning, renounced any revolutionary aims. The vague demands of Subcomandante Marcos have been for democratization, an end to corruption and increased cultural rights for the indigenous population. These demands could and have been embraced not only by the petty-bourgeois left, but by sections of the ruling PRI and even the right-wing opposition party, PAN. Marcos and the Zapatistas, rather than providing a revolutionary road forward for the Mexican workers and oppressed peasantry, have been converted into another instrument for settling political accounts within the Mexican bourgeoisie.

The political role of the petty bourgeoisie

What precisely do we mean when we describe these different movements as 'petty-bourgeois nationalist'? This is not merely a political epithet thrown by Marxists at their opponents. It is a scientific definition of the class interests and methods which characterize these movements. Marx, basing himself on the experience of the 1848 revolution, and Trotsky, in his theory of Permanent Revolution, demonstrated that the petty-bourgeoisie is incapable of independent and consistent political action. Its inconsistency is a reflection of its intermediate social position. Caught between the two main classes of society and continuously being differentiated into exploiter and exploited, it is compelled to follow one or other of these classeseither the proletariat or the bourgeoisie.

In the postwar period, imperialism created and came to depend upon a new social layer identified as the middle class. In the advanced capitalist countries, this consisted of functionaries who staffed government bureaucracies and corporate offices, administered social services of newly-created welfare states and ran the growing mass media.

An analogous stratum emerged within the oppressed countries, and it was to this layer that imperialism handed over power during the period of decolonization. In Latin America, as in other areas of the globe oppressed by imperialism, the opportunities presented to this social layer were far more limited than what prevailed among their counterparts in the advanced capitalist countries. Thousands of students graduated from university with no prospect of a professional career. In many cases those who did pursue a profession or attempted to live off a small business enjoyed little more in terms of living standards than the average worker. It was this social stratum which provided the principal social base for petty-bourgeois nationalist politics.

There was, therefore, an objective class basis for the emergence of the Pabloite theories of a 'new world reality', in which the struggle for socialism could be undertaken, not by the working class and its conscious revolutionary vanguard, but rather by the radicalized petty bourgeoisie. Ultimately these revisionist formulations reflected both the strivings of this particular social layer, as well as imperialism's need for a buffer between itself and the threat of proletarian revolution.

The roots of the Cuban Revolution

Like every major event, the revolution led by Fidel Castro in 1959 had deep roots in preceding historical developments. These historical roots, generally ignored by the cheerleaders of Castro among the Pabloites and the petty-bourgeois left in general, must be examined to understand the class content and political significance of Castroism.

Cuba's history was shaped principally by the abortive character of its independence struggle, which effectively transferred its status from a colonial possession of moribund Spanish colonialism, to an economic and political semi-colony of the rising imperialist power, the United States.

The US intervened in Cuba in 1898 following a 30-year war waged for Cuban independence. The intervention was short and decisive. The Spanish were relieved of their colonies in the Treaty of Paris, a settlement in which the Cubans themselves had no participation.

This settlement produced what became known as the Platt Amendment Republic. Named for the US senator who drafted it, the legislation was passed in Washington and then imposed as an amendment to the first Cuban constitution. It included a prohibition against the nominally independent Cuban republic entering into any international treaty deemed prejudicial to US interests. It also guaranteed the US the right to intervene militarily: 'for the preservation of Cuban independence, the maintenance of a government adequate for the protection of life, property and individual liberty, and for discharging the obligations with respect to Cuba imposed by the Treaty of Paris.'' The US would avail itself of this 'right' repeatedly in the first part of the 20th century.

Cuba's dependence upon US imperialism was not merely the formal one embodied in the Platt Amendment. It rested upon the Cuban export of sugar to the US market. This single crop accounted for the vast majority of the island's export earnings and was shipped almost exclusively to the United States. The sugar monoculture condemned the majority of the population to backwardness, poverty and chronic unemployment.

The political and social relations that came to prevail in Cuba were bound up with the uncompleted character of the bourgeois democratic struggle for national independence. While Cuba's semi-colonial status was among the more blatant in the world, it was by no means unique.

As the Fourth International was to warn on the eve of the Second World War: 'Belated national states can no longer count upon an independent democratic development. Surrounded by decaying capitalism and enmeshed in the imperialist contradictions, the independence of a backward state inevitably will be semi-fictitious and the political regime, under the influence of internal class contradictions and external pressure, will unavoidably fall into dictatorship against the people.''[1]

Another statement, written in the same year, stressed that there was no possibility of ending imperialist oppression outside of the world socialist revolution: 'The hopes of liberation of the colonial peoples are therefore bound up even more decisively than before with the emancipation of the workers of the whole world. The colonies shall be freed politically, economically and culturally, only when the workers of the advanced countries put an end to capitalist rule and set out, together with the backward peoples, to reorganize world economy on a new level, gearing it to social needs and not monopoly profits.''[2]

As we shall see, Cuba's subsequent history has proven this thesis, albeit in the negative. Without such a united and international struggle of the working class, genuine economic, political and cultural liberation has proven impossible.

The relationship between the US and Cuba gave rise to a bourgeois political setup which was notable for its impotence, extreme corruption and frequent eruptions of violence. US domination of the economy, combined with a predominance of foreign immigrants in both the business and landowning classes, also bred a Cuban nationalism which was characterized by extreme anti-Americanism and even a xenophobic strain.

Another perspective, however, did emerge in Cuba. In 1925, the Cuban Communist Party was formed, affiliating itself to the Third International. Its most prominent figure was Julio Antonio Mella, a law student who became the leader of a university reform movement in the early 1920s and sought to turn the students to the working class.

Mella and his comrades led the struggle against the dictatorship of Gerardo Machado, whom Mella described as a 'tropical Mussolini.'' Jailed by the dictatorship, he was freed under popular pressure and then fled the country, traveling to the Soviet Union, Europe and finally Mexico.

Mella broke with the Communist Party in Mexico in 1929, declaring his support for Trotsky's struggle against the Stalinist bureaucracy. Shortly thereafter he was assassinated.

Mella had emerged out of a broad movement of Cuban students and intellectuals seeking to change the island's corrupt political system and its domination by US imperialism. But he renounced the prevailing nationalist conceptions and adopted the perspective of socialist internationalism.

Stalinism was to prevent the working class from providing its own solution to Cuba's historic problems based on such a perspective. It can be said, therefore, that Stalinism helped prepare Fidel Castro's rise to power long before he and the Cuban Communist Party ever considered joining forces. By suppressing the perspective for which Mella and the first generation of Cuban Marxists had fought, Stalinism promoted the growth of radical petty-bourgeois nationalism.

In the first lecture at this school, David North dealt at some length with how history consisted, not merely of 'what happened' and 'who won', but rather, what alternatives existed, what were the consequences of those which were taken and those which were not. What would have happened had the Left Opposition prevailed? The same question can be posed in relation to Cuba, albeit on a smaller scale.

There are limits, of course, on what we can safely say about 'what might have been'. One cannot assert with any assurance, for example, that had there been a genuine communist party in Cuba, a socialist revolution would have taken place in such and such a year. We can state with certainty, however, that had there existed a genuine revolutionary party of the working class, as opposed to the corrupt political apparatus of Cuban Stalinism, the emergence of the specific tendency known as Castroism would have been impossible.

In the wake of the Stalinist degeneration of the Communist Party in Cuba, the country passed through a profound revolutionary crisis. A nationwide insurrection erupted in 1933, forcing the dictator Machado to flee the country. The high point of this movement was a general strike by the working class, which saw the seizure of factories, sugar mills and estates.

As the general strike grew in intensity and scope, the Stalinist Cuban Communist Party, which dominated the unions, issued a back-to-work order, claiming that the strike threatened to provoke a US intervention. While the vast majority of workers ignored the order, the CP nonetheless entered into secret talks with Machado, obtaining concessions for the party in exchange for its responsible role in seeking to end the walkout.

This deal, short-lived only because of Machado's subsequent flight into exile, was to set a pattern which the CP would follow for the next 25 years. The Stalinists continued their domination of the labor movement, while forging a series of alliances with conservative bourgeois parties and even military regimes. In the 1940s, the Stalinists entered the government of US-backed strongman, Batista.

Castro and Castroism

With Stalinism held in contempt for its collaboration with right-wing parties and dictatorships, the rhetoric of anti-imperialism and social revolution became increasingly the monopoly of radicalized middle class nationalist elements particularly centered among the students of Havana University. It was in this hothouse environment that Fidel Castro got his start.

Born to a Spanish landowning family, Castro's awakening to political life began as a student in a Jesuit high school. There, he came under the influence of Spanish priests who supported Franco fascism. He read all of the works of Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, the founder of the Spanish Falange and was, according to his classmates, strongly attracted to fascist ideology.

In the late 40s and early 50s Castro was involved in the activities of the armed student gangs that dominated the university. The ideology of these gangs was both nationalistic and explicitly anti-communist.

Castro entered a struggle against Batista as a member of the bourgeois Ortodoxo Party. He had stood as a candidate to the Cuban legislature in 1952, but Batista's coup of that year thwarted his parliamentary ambitions. He then began organizing a small group of followers for armed action. He led an assault on the Moncada army barracks in July 1953. All of the 200 participants were either killed or jailed.

Castro's actions were not unique. Throughout this period, followers of various parties and petty-bourgeois factions carried out attacks on garrisons, assassination attempts and even the seizure of Batista's palace. There is little in Castro's political statements during the period leading up to the 1959 revolution to differentiate him from the run-of-the-mill politics of anti-Batista Cuban nationalism. His most famous speech, 'History will absolve me,'' prepared in his defense at the trial on the Moncada assault, consisted of denunciations of the dictatorship's repression and a list of fairly mild democratic reforms.

Following a brief jail sentence, Castro went to Mexico, from where, at the end of 1956, he organized a landing of some 80 armed men. Like Moncada, the landing was a catastrophe with barely a dozen surviving the first encounters with Batista's repressive forces. Yet, barely two years later Castro was to take power.

Power literally fell into the hands of Castro's guerrillas because there existed no other credible political force on the island.

This political vacuum was a function, above all, of the absence of any revolutionary leadership in the Cuban working class. Whatever the limitations of Castro's reformism, his social policies were far more radical than those put forward by the Stalinists. Moreover, his armed actions, as limited as they were, won wide popular support at a time when the Cuban Stalinists were seen as accomplices of the dictatorship.

Castro's original intentions were to reach an accommodation with the US. On his first trip to the United States, four months after coming to power, Castro declared the following; 'I have stated in a clear and definitive manner that we are not communists. The doors are open to private investments that contribute to the development of industry in Cuba. It is absolutely impossible for us to make progress if we do not reach an understanding with the United States.''

Castro's movement, however, had committed itself to a limited agrarian reform as well as social measures to benefit the Cuban people. In its first months it had decreed a redistribution of unused land, a reduction in rents, wage increases and various measures expanding education and health care.

Washington would have none of it.

The US sought to discipline Castro with naked economic pressure. In a spiraling conflict with the Cuban regime, the US cut Cuba's sugar export quota, its principal economic lifeline and then refused to provide it with oil.

The Cuban regime responded with nationalizations, first of US property, then Cuban-owned enterprises, and a turn to the Soviet bureaucracy for assistance.

US foreign policy was rigidly ideological and vindictive. Britain had handled similar developments in a quite different way. African leaders like Nkrumah, Kaunda and Kenyatta were cultivated despite their radical and even 'socialist' rhetoric, thereby preserving British imperialism's influence and interests in the region.

Ironically, US arrogance and stupidity has proven to be one of the central pillars of Castro's rule over the past 40 years. They have has allowed him to pose as the embodiment of Cuban nationalism and to cast any opposition as a tool of Yankee imperialism.

Along with the turn to Moscow, Castro forged an alliance with the Cuban Stalinists. This move was hailed by the Pabloites, and the petty-bourgeois left in general, as a further indication of the revolution's radicalization and its socialist character. It was nothing of the sort. As we have seen, Cuba's Popular Socialist Party, as the Stalinists were then known, was a thoroughly reactionary and discredited political force. It represented part of the existing bourgeois political setup in Cuba, having faithfully served even the Batista regime.

Having found himself unexpectedly catapulted into power, Castro turned to the PSP out of necessity. He had neither a party, a program nor even a real army. The Cuban Stalinists provided him with an apparatus and an ideology through which he could rule.

Castro subsequently would reinterpret his own political past, declaring that he had become a 'Marxist- Leninist'' long before the Batista coup, though 'not quite'' a communist. All of his political adventures, from his days with the armed anti-communist gangs on the university to his campaign as a Congressional candidate for a bourgeois party, were recast as mere tactical initiatives aimed at preparing the conditions for a socialist revolution.

What was it that Castro, as well as other left bourgeois nationalists, found in 'Marxism-Leninism'? Clearly, they were not seeking a scientific perspective to guide the struggle of the working class for its own social and political emancipation. At the same time it was more than just a pretense aimed at winning support from Moscow.

They saw the Marxism-Leninism they learned from the Stalinists as a policy which promoted the use of the state to effect desired changes in the social order. They also found in it a justification for their own unrestricted control over this state, ruling through an omnipotent 'revolutionary party' headed by an infallible and irreplaceable national leader. It should be recalled that Chiang kai shek also modeled his party, the Kuomintang, on what he learned from Stalinism.

The myth of guerrillaism

Like virtually all the nationalist regimes and tendencies that emerged in the postwar period, Castroism has rested on a set of myths concerning its own origins and development. Such mythologizing is inevitable, given the class character of these movements, resting as they do upon the petty bourgeoisie and the national bourgeoisie, while claiming to represent the interests of the oppressed masses.

After coming to power, Castro and his followers portrayed their victory as the exclusive outcome of the armed struggle waged by the guerrillas in the Sierra Maestra mountains: a military victory over imperialism and the native bourgeoisie won by a small force through sheer will and determination. As Che Guevara was to write, barely a month after the toppling of the Batista dictatorship:

'We have demonstrated that a small group of men who are determined, supported by the people, and without fear of dying... can overcome a regular army... There is another lesson for our brothers in [Latin] America, economically in the same agrarian category as ourselves, which is that we must make agrarian revolutions, fight in the fields, in the mountains, and from here take the revolution to the cities, not try to make it in the latter..''

This conception, which became the official explanation of the Cuban revolution, represented a radical distortion of events. In the course of Batista's six years in power, some 20,000 Cubans lost their lives at the hands of the regime. Of these, 19,000 were killed in Cuba's cities. Acts of sabotage, political strikes and other forms of resistance, the majority of them outside the control of Castro's July 26th movement, were widespread and ultimately provided the principal impetus for the regime's downfall.

Castro's guerrillas amounted to, at most, a few thousand men. There were no conclusive military battles and the largest engagement involved no more than 200 guerrillas. Batista lost the support both of the Cuban bourgeoisiea substantial section of which backed Castroand Washington, which imposed an arms embargo on his regime. Deprived of this support it rapidly disintegrated.

Within Cuba, this myth of Castro's guerrillas defeating both US imperialism and the native ruling classes through sheer audacity and military prowess served a very definite political purpose. It justified the consolidation of a regime that placed all the reigns of state power incontestably in Castro's own hands.

The myth developed by Castro and Guevara was to be exported with catastrophic results. The so-called Cuban road was promoted throughout Latin America as the only viable form of revolutionary struggle. Thousands of Latin American youth were led to the slaughter by the promise that all that was required to overthrow governments and end social oppression was courage and a few guns.

Guevara's most well-known writing, 'Guerra de Guerrillas'' or guerrilla warfare, served as a handbook for this doomed strategy. It summed up what he described as the three great lessons of the Cuban experience for the 'mechanics of revolutionary movements in America'':

1. Popular forces can win a war against the army.

2. It is not necessary for all conditions to be present to make a revolution; the insurrectional foco [term for guerrilla unit] can create them.

3. In the underdeveloped Americas the terrain of the armed struggle must be primarily the countryside.[3]

What little political analysis these writings contained was radically false. Latin America's path of development had been capitalist for many years. The essential foundation of oppression in Latin America was not, as Guevara claimed, Latifundia - that is the concentration of land in the hands of a tiny minority - but rather capitalist relations of wage labor and profit. Even as these works were being written, the continent was undergoing major structural changes that were further proletarianizing the population and leading to massive migration from the rural areas to the cities.

None of this was analyzed. Revolutionary preparation was reduced to the impressionistic process of picking the appropriate rural arena for guerrilla war. Those who followed this advice ended up trapped in jungles and backland, where they were condemned to one-on-one combat with the Latin American armies.

What emerges again and again in Guevara's politics is the rejection of the working class as a revolutionary class and contempt for the ability of the workers and oppressed masses to become politically conscious and carry out their own struggle for liberation.

While he proposed the countryside as the only possible venue for armed struggle, it was not a matter of mobilizing the peasantry on social demands. On the contrary, Che's conception was one based on the utilization of violence in order to 'oblige the dictatorship to resort to violence, thereby unmasking its true nature as the dictatorship of the reactionary social classes.' In other words, the aim of the guerrilla band was to provoke repression against the peasantry, who would supposedly respond by supporting the struggle against the government.

For such a struggle, neither theory nor politics were required, much less an active intervention in the struggles of the working class and oppressed masses. As Guevara set about to build guerrilla groups in Latin America, he insisted that they exclude all political controversy and discussion. Unity was to be based solely on an agreement on the tactic of 'armed struggle'.

The fiasco of Guevarism

The results were predictably disastrous. It was in his native Argentina where Che set up one of the first guerrilla groups, under the leadership of the journalist Jorge Masetti. In his biography of Che, Anderson provides a particularly chilling account of this fiasco. The guerrillas never saw combat. Some became lost and apparently starved in the wilderness. Others fell into the hands of the police. Before the decimation of the group, however, Masetti had ordered the execution of three of its members for alleged disciplinary infractions. The author cites one of the survivors of this debacle, who notes that all three of the condemned men were Jewish. It turned out that Masetti, before his alignment with Castroism, had been a member of an extreme right-wing nationalist and anti-Semitic organization in Argentina.

Che's own group in Bolivia came to a similar end. What is most noteworthy about his activities there was his complete indifference to the social and political situation in the country itself. The tin miners, the most powerful force in the Bolivian revolution of 1951, were engaged in strikes and confrontations with the army in the months preceding Che's arrival in the country. In his diary he merely noted these events as part of the scenic backdrop to his own activity. He had no perspective or policy to present to the Bolivian workers. As for the Bolivian peasantry, its reaction to the initiation of armed struggle was not to back the guerrillas but rather to turn them in to the military.

In Bolivia, the Castroites had counted on the support of the pro-Moscow Communist Party. This support was never forthcoming and many have blamed the Stalinists and the Moscow bureaucracy itself for condemning the guerrillas to total isolation and perhaps even providing US intelligence with information on Che's whereabouts.

This is plausible. The secretary general of the Bolivian CP, Monje, was apparently a KGB asset who moved to permanent residence in Moscow shortly after Guevara's death. One thing that emerges from Castaneda's biography is the extraordinary domination of all of the principal Communist Parties of Latin America by such figures, in many cases men who had a direct role in Trotsky's assassination in 1940. He also establishes, through formerly secret documents from the Soviet archives, how these parties were funded through direct subsidies from Moscow. The Soviet bureaucracy was financing reliable political agencies whose purpose was to further its own quest for peaceful coexistence with Washington.

But in the end one is left with the fact that such a betrayal was not really that necessary. The idea that a revolution would be made by bringing less than two dozen armed men into a region where they had no political antecedents, no support or even a worked out program and perspective to win such support, was doomed from the outset. It is a measure of the pathetic character of this adventure that in his final days, surrounded by the Bolivian army, Guevara was planning to appeal for international support... by addressing letters to Bertrand Russell and Jean Paul Sartre.

Cuba and the Fourth International

The Cuban revolution proved to be a crucial turning point in the history of the Fourth International.

After leading the struggle against Pabloism in 1953, the American section, the Socialist Workers Party, reunified with the main Pabloite tendency led by Ernest Mandel a decade later. The reunification was based primarily on their common assessment of Castroism and the role of petty-bourgeois nationalism. They determined, based on the nationalization of the bulk of the productive forces in Cuba, that it had become a workers state. Furthermore, they advanced the perspective that Castroism could become an international tendency, giving rise to a new revolutionary leadership of the world working class.

This perspective had implications reaching far beyond Cuba. As Trotsky had pointed out in relation to the debate over the definition of the Soviet state in 1939-1940, behind every sociological definition lies a historical prognosis. Bound up with the designation of Cuba as a workers' state was a break with the entire historical and theoretical conception of the socialist revolution developed from Marx onwards.

In Cuba, power had fallen into the hands of a guerrilla army which was clearly of a petty-bourgeois nationalist character, without any serious ties to the workers. The workers themselves had played no significant role in the formation of the new regime, nor had they established any means of exerting democratic control over the state once it was formed.

To designate such a regime as a 'workers state' had immense ramifications. It meant abandoning the entire struggle waged by the Marxist movement for the political and organizational independence of the working class. Instead, it indicated that the path to socialism lay through subordinating the working class to the nationalist leaderships. It would be the Castroites, the guerrilla armies and other nationalists rooted in the petty-bourgeoisie who would lead the socialist revolution, not the working class, educated and organized by parties of the Fourth International. That was the central historical prognosis flowing from the sociological definition of a Cuban workers state put forward by the Pabloites.

The perspective elaborated by the SWP's Joseph Hansen in relation to Cuba was founded upon a gross vulgarization of Marxism. He took as his point of departure the previous decision by the Trotskyist movement to use the highly conditional and somewhat makeshift definition of 'deformed workers state' in describing China and the Eastern European buffer states.

In these earlier discussions, the SWP had placed the emphasis on the adjective 'deformed', to indicate that these states were historically unviable. They had opposed Pablo's attempt to use this definition as a means of endowing Stalinism with a revolutionary potential.

Hansen, however, in an even cruder fashion than Pablo, set out to demonstrate how Cuba met a series of abstract criteriaabove all economic nationalizationwhich supposedly placed it in the category of workers state.

The working class had not made the revolution, and it exercised no control over the state apparatus in the revolution's aftermath. But these facts were taken merely as a few more normative criteria the Cuban revolution had failed to meet, demonstrating that progress was still to be made, and that uncritical support was all the more necessary.

As Hansen wrote at the time: 'The Cuban government has not yet instituted democratic proletarian forms of power as workers, soldiers and peasants councils. However, as it has moved in a socialist direction it has likewise proved itself to be democratic in tendency. It did not hesitate to arm the people and set up a popular militia. It has guaranteed freedom of expression to all groupings that support the revolution. In this respect it stands in welcome contrast to the other non-capitalist states, which have been tainted with Stalinism.

'If the Cuban revolution were permitted to develop freely, its democratic tendency would undoubtedly lead to the early creation of proletarian democratic forms adapted to Cuba's own needs. One of the strongest reasons for vigorously supporting the revolution, therefore, is to give the maximum possibility for this tendency to operate.'[4]

Cuban reality was quite different from the rosy scenario painted by Hansen. The Cuban Trotskyists, for example, were ruthlessly repressed, their leaders jailed and their press smashed. The island has long held one of the largest number of political prisoners of any country in the world, not a few of them Castro's former comrades in the July 26 movement.

From a theoretical standpoint, the most deceptive aspect of Hansen's assessment was his suggestion that, if given the opportunity, the Castro regime would 'institute democratic proletarian forms of power'; i.e., workers councils or, to use the term forged in the Russian revolution, soviets.

Such organs of workers power, however, are not instituted or granted from above by a regime created by the petty-bourgeois nationalists. Such institutions, whether created by Castro, Gaddafi or Saddam Hussein, are never more than window dressing for a bonapartist regime. Genuine workers councils or soviets can be created only by the workers themselves, as a means of organizing the masses, overthrowing capitalism and establishing a new proletarian state power.

Lenin and the Bolsheviks did not hand soviets down to the workers after seizing power. Rather, they led the struggle for power through these organs that the Russian proletariat had created itself, based on the development of its class struggle and the growth of political class consciousness produced by the protracted intervention of the Russian Marxists.

The Pabloites adopted the position that Castro's national-izations, and his self-proclamation as a Marxist-Leninist, constituted the confirmation of the Permanent Revolution.

In reality, Cuba, like so many other oppressed countries in the course of the decades following the Second World War, provided a confirmation of Permanent Revolution, but in the negative. That is, where the working class lacked a revolutionary party, and therefore was incapable of providing leadership to the masses of oppressed, representatives of the national bourgeoisie and the petty-bourgeois nationalists were able to step in and impose their own solution. Nasser, Nehru, Peron, Ben Bella, Sukharno, the Baathists and, in a later period, the Islamic fundamentalists in Iran and the Sandinistas in Nicaragua, were all examples of this process. In virtually all of these cases nationalizations were also carried out.

In a document sent by the Socialist Labour League to the SWP in 1961, the British Trotskyists sharply criticized Hansen's adulation of the petty-bourgeois nationalist leaderships.

'It is not the job of Trotskyists to boost the role of such nationalist leaders,'' they stated. 'They can command the support of the masses only because of the betrayal of leadership by the Social Democracy and particularly Stalinism, and in this way they become buffers between imperialism and the masses of workers and peasants. The possibility of economic aid from the Soviet Union often enables them to strike a harder bargain with the imperialists, even enables more radical elements among the bourgeois and petty-bourgeois leaders to attack imperialist holdings and gain further support from the masses. But, for us, in every case the vital question is one of the working class in these countries gaining political independence through a Marxist party, leading the poor peasantry to the building of Soviets, and recognizing the necessary connections with the international socialist revolution. In no case, in our opinion, should Trotskyists substitute for that the hope that the nationalist leadership should become socialists.''[5]

Those familiar with the subsequent degeneration of the Workers Revolutionary Party know that this passage reads like a direct indictment of the line which Healy, Banda and Slaughter would begin pursuing barely a decade later, in relation to the PLO and various Arab regimes. This only demonstrates the acuteness of the analysis, and the fact that the revisionist attack on the Fourth International was rooted in objective class forces. Having abandoned the struggle against Pabloism, the leadership of the British section was to fall victim to the same class forces that had fatally undermined the SWP.

What was involved in proclaiming Cuba a workers state, and its revolution a new road to socialism, was the renunciation of the entire perspective of Permanent Revolution. The working class no longer had to play the leading role in the backward countries, nor was it necessary to fight for the development of socialist consciousness within this class. Instead, bands of guerrillas, basing themselves on the peasantry, could bring about socialism without, and even in spite of, the workers.

This marked the rejection of the most essential foundation of Marxism. The struggle for socialism was separated from the proletariat. No longer was the liberation of the working class the task of the working class itself. Instead it was turned into a mute spectator of the actions of heroic guerrillas.

In considering this perspective, one can clearly grasp the class basis for the enduring infatuation of the petty-bourgeois left as a whole with Fidel Castro. What they see in Castro is the ability of the petty-bourgeoisie to dominate the working class and to play a seemingly independent role. Cuba, for them, served as proof that the leftist intellectual, the student radical or middle class protester did not have to subordinate themselves to the working class and the difficult and protracted struggle for the development of socialist consciousness among the workers. Rather, they could revolutionize society through their own spontaneous activity.

In combating this revisionist attack on Marxism, the SLL traced the dispute over Cuba to fundamental methodological questions. It demonstrated that the SWP was engaged in what Trotsky had described as the 'worshipping of the accomplished fact,' that is, adapting themselves to the so-called reality determined by the existing social structure, the existing leaderships in the working class and the bourgeois forms of consciousness prevailing among the broad masses of workers and oppressed. All of these were accepted as objective, determining factors, entirely separated from the conscious struggle of the revolutionary proletarian party.

The SWP's method was one of passive contemplation of these 'facts'', and an adaptation to existing leaderships, in search of what appeared to offer the most immediate prospects for political success. Thus they became apologists for these leaderships, justifying their every action with the argument that, given the circumstances, what else could they do? These 'circumstances' however, always excluded the conscious struggle of Trotskyists to mobilize the working class independently on its own socialist and internationalist program.

The SLL defended the theoretical conquests made by the Trotskyist movement in the struggle against Stalinism. It insisted that the strategic experiences of the whole imperialist epoch had demonstrated that non-working class leaderships could not carry through to completion the struggles for liberation from imperialist oppression and backwardness in the colonial and former colonial countries.

These struggles could be completed only through the conquest of power by the working class and the extension of the world socialist revolution. The principal task flowing from this analysis was the building of independent revolutionary parties of the working class, based on a struggle against all opportunist trends, particularly the Stalinists, who sought to subordinate the working class to nationalism and nationalist leaderships.

Above all, Pabloism denied that the achievement of the socialist revolution required the development of a high level of socialist political consciousness within the leading sections of the working class. The political consciousness of the workers was, in the Pabloite scheme of things, a matter of indifference. To the extent that the working class was seen as having any relation to the socialist revolution, it was merely as an objective force led and manipulated by others.

The resolution drafted by the Pabloites after reunification with the SWP spelled out the political implications of the theoretical revisions developed on the Cuban question. It stated the following: 'The weakness of the enemy in the backward countries has opened the possibility of coming to power even with a blunted instrument.''[6] In other words, workers states could be established without even building parties of the working class.

In these countries, they declared, and particularly in Latin America, the conditions of mass poverty and the relative weakness of the bourgeois state structures 'create situations in which the failure of one revolutionary wave does not lead automatically to relative or even temporary social or economic stabilization. A seemingly inexhaustible succession of mass struggles continues... The weakness of the enemy offers the revolution fuller means of recovery from temporary defeats than is the case in imperialist countries.'[7]

This was a gross distortion of Trotsky's theory of Permanent Revolution. When Trotsky pointed to the weakness of the bourgeoisie in Tsarist Russia it was not in some kind of timeless vacuum, but rather in relation to the domination of imperialism on the one hand and the objective strength of the small, but concentrated, Russian working class on the other. The bourgeoisie was never too weak to either crush or control the petty-bourgeois democracy. It was weak in that it confronted a young proletariat with a revolutionary leadership at its head.

The Pabloites, however, had rejected the role of the industrial proletariat and had assigned the task of revolution to just such petty-bourgeois forces.

Their theory of 'blunted instruments' and 'inexhaustible mass struggles' was elaborated on the eve of the first in a series of US-backed coupsled by General Castelo Branco in Brazilwhich were to plunge Latin America into a decade of nightmarish repression, whose shadow still hangs over the continent.

The Pabloites not only failed to prepare the working class for these events, they helped facilitate them by insisting that the revolution could be carried out by forces other than the working class and endorsing the Castroite perspective of armed actions by isolated guerrilla bands.

Pabloism and the crisis of leadership

Why did Castroism become such a pole of attraction in Latin America? While the continental-wide conditions for guerrilla warfare presented by Guevara may have proven false, there was one thing that the countries shared in common. The dominant leaderships in the working class, particularly the Stalinist Communist Parties, offered no way forward under conditions of growing revolutionary crisis.

So the 'new reality' which the Pabloites celebrated, the rise of a petty-bourgeois-led radical nationalist tendency like Castroism, was essentially a manifestation of the unresolved crisis of revolutionary leadership in the working class itself. Yet they presented it as the solution to this crisis, disavowing the strategic aim of the Fourth International. Abandoning an independent orientation to the working class and the struggle to build up a party which could smash the bureaucracies' domination, they reduced the role of the Fourth International to that of aiding the petty-bourgeois nationalists and Stalinists, influencing them and subtly nudging them to the left.

How was this perspective realized in practice? In1968, the Pabloites held their Ninth Congress, in the immediate aftermath of Guevara's Bolivian fiasco and on the eve of great class struggles in Latin America. They instructed the parties affiliated to the United Secretariat in Latin America to abandon the working class and engage in guerrilla warfare.

As the congress document stated: 'Even in the case of countries where there may first occur great mobilizations of conflicts by the urban classes civil war will take varied forms, in which the principal axis for a whole period will be the rural guerrilla, a term whose principal meaning is military-geographic and which does not imply an exclusively (or even predominantly) peasant composition.'[8]

The resolution continued: 'The only realistic perspective for Latin America is that of an armed struggle, which can last for many years. Technical preparation cannot be conceived of merely as an aspect of work, but rather as the fundamental aspect on an international scale and one of the fundamental aspects in those countries where even the minimum conditions don't yet exist.'[9]

There could not have been more explicit instructions. In case anyone within the Latin American sections harbored doubts as to whether they had sufficient backing among the peasantry, or the necessary political conditions to stage an uprising in the countryside, the resolution assured them that no peasant support was necessary and that the political situation was beside the point. All that was required were 'technical preparations' for armed struggle.

The result was the political liquidation and physical annihilation of the cadres led by the Pabloites in Latin America.

In Argentina, for example, the official section of the United Secretariat reconstituted itself as the ERP before formally breaking with the Pabloites. It engaged in the kidnapping of business executives for ransom, simply adding on demands for increased wages and better conditions for the workers.

What was the effect of such actions? The workers were essentially taught that it was not their role to wage the struggle to put an end to capitalism. They were merely to serve as grateful spectators, as heroic armed guerrillas did it for them.

In Chile, the workers conducted a sustained offensive, ultimately strangled by Allende's Popular Unity government whose policies paved the way for the Pinochet dictatorship. In Argentina, the Cordobazo of 1969, in which the workers of Cordoba seized control of the city, inaugurated a protracted offensive which was suppressed by the Peronists and then annihilated by the dictatorship of Videla. In Bolivia, the miners rose up repeatedly only to be subordinated by their leaderships to a supposedly nationalist and left section of the military under General Torres. Predictably, Torres soon handed power over to his more traditional colleagues who carried out the ruthless repression of the Bolivian workers.

With their turn to Castroism, the Pabloites had abandoned both the working class and the struggle to free it from the domination of the old bureaucracies. Just as Castro had supposedly confirmed Permanent Revolution, he had also rendered this crucial struggle superfluous.

The SWP's Hansen put forward this thesis with his usual cynicism and crudity, proclaiming that Castro had overcome the counterrevolutionary role of Stalinism.

'Unable to blast away the Stalinist obstacle, the revolution turned back a considerable distance and took a detour. The detour has led us over some very rough ground, including the Sierra Maestra of Cuba, but it is clear that the Stalinist roadblock is now being bypassed.

'It is not necessary to turn to Moscow for leadership. This is the main lesson to be drawn from the experience in Cuba... To finally break the hypnosis of Stalinism, it became necessary to crawl on all fours through the jungles of the Sierra Maestra.'10

This conclusion had definite political implications, reaching far beyond Cuba. If one could simply 'bypass the Stalinist roadblock' by means of guerrilla war led by petty-bourgeois nationalists, the difficult and protracted struggle waged by the Fourth International to break the chokehold which Stalinism maintained over the working class, was not only superfluous but counterproductive.

The net effect of this perspective was not to break, but rather strengthen, the grip of Stalinism over the workers' movement in the oppressed countries and particularly in Latin America. It helped to divert a whole generation of Latin American youth from any struggle within the working class. The turn to guerrillaism represented a boon to the Stalinists and other bureaucratic leaderships. It isolated the most revolutionary elements among the youth as well as a section of radicalized workers, thereby strengthening the bureaucracy's own grip over the workers movement.

In the end, the Pabloites' adaptation to petty-bourgeois nationalism helped ensure that the working class had no revolutionary leadership as it entered the major class struggles of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The guerrilla adventures they promoted, gave the military and imperialism the pretext for imposing dictatorship. Thus, this revisionist tendency played a crucial role in preparing the bloodiest defeats ever suffered by the workers of Latin America.

Balance sheet of guerrillaism

What became of the Guevarist-Castroite movements that the Pabloites proclaimed as the new instruments of the socialist revolution? To trace their concrete evolution is to lay bare the class character of these movements from their origins.

The FALN of Venezuela was one of the principal guerrilla movements of the 1960s, formed with Cuban support. Let us cite a statement by one of the leaders of this movement during that period.

'When we speak of the liberation of Venezuela we mean the liberation of all Latin America; we do not recognize frontiers in Latin America. Our frontiers are ideological frontiers. We interpret international solidarity in a truly revolutionary way, and we are therefore committed to fight, to fight imperialism until it no longer exists; we are committed not to lay down our arms until North American imperialism in particular is reduced to impotence.'

The author of these lines was Teodoro Petkoff. Not only did he lay down his arms, he has since become Venezuela's Minister of Planning and the chief official responsible for implementing IMF austerity programs. From proclaiming continental solidarity and a struggle to the death against Yankee imperialism, Petkoff is now engaged in slashing wages and privatizing state enterprises with the aim of successfully competing with other capitalist economies in the region for transnational investment. He is expected to emerge as the leading candidate in this year's presidential election in Venezuela.

His case is representative. In Uruguay, the Tupamaro guerrillas now form part of the Frente Amplio, a bourgeois electoral front which administers the disintegrating social conditions in the capital of Montevideo. The M-19 movement worked out an arrangement with the Colombian government, that not only assured their leaders posts in parliament, but allowed their members to trade their weapons for small business loans.

In the early 1980s, the Castro regime and its supporters claimed that Central America, with the taking of power by the Nicaraguan Sandinistas and the eruption of civil war in El Salvador, offered a fresh vindication of their perspective.

But what became of all these movements? The Sandinistas, the FMLN in El Salvador, the URNG in Guatemala, all joined in pacts with the very forces responsible for the murder of hundreds of thousands of workers and peasants. Castro helped broker these pacts in the Contadora and Esquipulas negotiations which consolidated power in the hands of US-backed factions of the bourgeoisie, while turning the cadres of the so-called liberation movements into parliamentary deputies, military officers and policemen in the new regimes. All of these groups have become divided into various factions, denouncing each other, with great justification, for political betrayal and financial corruption.

Meanwhile, the masses of the region confront conditions of poverty and oppression which are as bad or worse than those which gave rise to the revolutionary upheavals in the region 20 years ago. The net effect of these Castroite-influenced petty-bourgeois nationalist movements was to sow demoralization among a layer of the more militant workers, youth and peasants.

Cuba today

What of Cuba itself? What is the end result of the new road to socialism which both the Castro regime and the Pabloite revisionists proclaimed 35 years ago?

For 30 years the island survived thanks to huge subsidies from the Moscow bureaucracy. According to both Castro's supporters and US estimates, economic subsidies from the Soviet Union to Cuba amounted to somewhere between $3 and $5 billion annually. The mechanism for this aid was the purchasing, by the Soviet bloc, of Cuban agricultural products, particularly sugar, at above world market pricesas much as 12 times as highand the sale of petroleum at below market prices. Based on this arrangement, Cuba reached the point of buying sugar from the neighboring Dominican Republic, and reselling the oil on the world market to obtain hard currency.

Dependence on Soviet subsidies ultimately had the effect of solidifying Cuba's monoculture in sugar, the historic foundation of its backwardness and oppression. Just as before the 1959 revolution, Cuba's exports, 83 percent of which went to the USSR and Eastern Europe, consisted of sugar, tobacco, nickel, fish and a few other agricultural commodities. From the Soviet bloc it imported manufactured consumer goods and machinery, not to mention a large share of its food.

No amount of tinkering or abrupt changes in economic policy dictated by the infallible 'lider maximo' Fidel Castro changed this essential relationship. In the end, the substantial reforms won by the Cuban people in the areas of health, education and nutrition were sustained through these subsidies. Now that the regime is turning to foreign direct investment, the reforms are being systematically whittled away.

Castro entered into a Faustian bargain with the Soviet bureaucracy, in which he functioned as a pawn in US-Soviet relations in return for Soviet subsidies. Inevitably, the devil has come to collect his due.

Dissolution of the USSR spelled economic catastrophe for Cuba. The Castro regime's response has been to promote increased foreign investment and to allow the emergence of a growing social stratification within Cuba itself.

Foreign Minister Roberto Robaina explained Cuba's policy recently in an interview with the state-run newspaper Granma: 'In Cuba what is taking place is an economic opening with full guarantees for foreign investors... This opening is strategic and is widening and deepening with every day...

'Mitsubishi Motors, Castrol, Unilever, Sherrit Gordon, Grupo Sol, Total, Melia Hotels, Domos, ING Bank, Rolex, DHL, Lloyds, Canon, Bayer, these are all names of success in the universe of business and they are in Cuba. Some of these firms have the greatest capital in the world and they have placed their confidence in us.

'Ease of investing capital, security and respect, guarantees of profit repatriation, availability of personnel with a high level of excellence, accommodation, desire to get ahead, seriousness in negotiations and loyalty of their Cuban partners are some of the elements which those who have decided to join with Cuba appreciate most...'[11]

Though he didn't say it in Granma, the point is undoubtedly made to these investors in private that in Cuba they can obtain some of the cheapest labor in the hemisphere and are guaranteed a strike-free environment by a Stalinist-trained police state.

The Castro regime habitually claims that foreign capitalist investment has been sought for the purpose of saving the 'social conquests'' of the Cuban revolution. The reality is that the Castro regime, like bourgeois regimes throughout the former colonial world, is engaged in marketing cheap labor to the multinationals.

In the case of Cuba, this is done in an extremely direct and centralized form. Cuban labor is contracted out to the foreign corporations for hard currency paid to the Cuban government. The government hires the needed workers and then pays them a fraction of this amount in the form of pesos, the local currency. The foreign companies retain full discretion in firing workers.

The growth of social inequality is fed by a burgeoning dollar economy. The greatest source of foreign reserves today is the cash sent by exiles based largely in the US to their relatives in Cuba. What can one say of a 'revolution' which is economically dependent on those whom it recently denounced as counter-revolutionary 'gusanos,' or worms?

Other hard currency filters in through the growth of the tourist industry, which the Castro regime has made the centerpiece of its economic planning. The result is what some in Cuba have described as touristic apartheid. New hotels, restaurants, stores have been erected, reserved solely for foreigners, with ordinary Cubans barred. Prostitution is rampant. The immense majority of the population lives under conditions of poverty.

The Castro regime blames all of the island's economic problems on the US embargo. Without question the US policy is a brutal and irrational exercise of imperialist power against a small, oppressed country. But this policy has been in effect for 35 years. In the meantime, Cuba had economic relations with virtually every other major country in the world.

Cuba's crisis is fundamentally the outcome of the bourgeois character of the revolution itself. It failed to resolve any of the historic problems of Cuban society. Rather, the contradictions were covered over with massive subsidies from the Soviet bureaucracy.

Few countries have seen such a massive exodus of refugees. In the first years of the revolution these consisted largely of the bourgeoisie and more privileged layers of the middle class. But those who have fled on rafts and inner tubes in the 1980s and 1990s are motivated by the same forces which sent thousands fleeing from Haiti, Mexico and other countries: the desire to escape hunger and oppression.

On top of these conditions rests a regime that stifles the aspirations of the masses of Cuban working people. Castro rules through a political dictatorship organized along military lines. The essential institution of the state is the armed forces which runs most of Cuba's economic enterprises.

Castro is enshrined in the Cuban constitution as president for life. To oppose him is therefore not merely 'counter-revolutionary,'' but unconstitutional. He is both head of state and head of government as well as first secretary of the Communist Party and commander-in-chief of the military. In short, all power is concentrated in his hands and he imposes his personal dictat over every significant decision With Castro now in his 70s, succession is becoming an increasingly pressing question. His brother Raul occupies all secondary posts in the government, military and party.

To the extent that Cuba was identified with socialismsomething promoted by both the imperialists on the one hand and the Castro regime and its petty-bourgeois left supporters on the otherit has had the effect of discrediting the conception of a socialist alternative to capitalism, particularly in Latin America.

Summation

The First International under Marx adopted the slogan that 'The liberation of the workers shall be the task of the workers themselves.'' That is, socialism was, in the final analysis, the self-determination of the working class. It could not be granted to the workers or won for the workers by some other class force acting on their behalf. It could be the product only of the conscious struggle of the working class, democratically organized as a class for itself, fighting to change society on its behalf and that of all humanity.

The International Committee defended this perspective against all the fashionable theories of the 1960s and 1970s which rejected the working class and claimed to have discovered other, more revolutionary, vehicles providing convenient shortcuts to socialism. Thirty odd years later, there is nothing left of these theories. The struggle undertaken by the ICFI has been powerfully vindicated by history.

We should recall what Joseph Hansen said about the intransigent struggle of the International Committee and its refusal to bow before Castroism. This stand, he warned, would be 'political suicide in Latin America.' What really happened? Pabloite revisionism and its support for Castroism helped to lead a generation of radicalized youth into suicidal adventures for which the working class paid the biggest price.

What would have been the effect if, instead of adapting themselves to Castroism, the forces which fell under the influence of Pabloism had subjected the politics of petty-bourgeois nationalism to a relentless criticism?

Certainly the result could have proven to be one of temporary isolation, at least from the movements dominated by the petty-bourgeoisie. But in the process they would have educated the most advanced sections of workers and youth. Through this struggle, a leadership could have been prepared capable of mobilizing the working class in revolutionary struggle. Instead of falling under the domination of military dictatorships which helped achieve a temporary restabilization of world capitalism, Latin America could have given a powerful impetus to the world socialist revolution.

The central lessons we must draw from this strategic experience concern the critical responsibilities of Marxists. Their task is not that of discovering and adapting themselves to some other forces who will spontaneously carry out the socialist revolution. Rather, it is to build independent revolutionary parties of the working class, sections of the International Committee of the Fourth International, that base themselves on implacable theoretical firmness and tell the working class the truth.

The objective conditions in Latin America and internationally are maturing to the point where the struggle undertaken by the Trotskyist movement will intersect with the revolutionary movement of millions. The lessons this movement has assimilated from the struggle for socialism in the 20th century, will become decisive for its realization in the 21st.

Notes

[1] Leon Trotsky, Writings of Leon Trotsky 1939-40,

(New York: Pathfinder Press, 1973), p. 202

[2] Documents of the Fourth International:

The Formative Years 1933-40 (New York: Pathfinder, 1973), p. 394

[3] Ernesto Che Guevara, La Guerra de Guerrrillas,

(La Habana:Talleres de INRA, 1961)

[4] Joseph Hansen, Dynamics of the Cuban Revolution:

The Trotskyist View (New York: Pathfinder Press, 1978), p.75

[5] Cliff Slaughter, ed., Trotskyism Versus Revisionism: A Documentary History (London: New Park Publications, 1974), vol. 3, The Socialist Workers Party's Road Back to Pabloism, p. 65

[6] Ibid, vol. 4, The International Committee Against Liquidationism,

p. 199

[7] Ibid

[8] United Secretariat 9th Congress documents

[9] Ibid

[10] Joseph Hansen, Dynamics of the Cuban Revolution:

The Trotskyist View (New York: Pathfinder Press, 1978) p. 265

[11] Granma, 16 November, 1994
Chicago police fatally shot two people over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Kajuan Raye, 19, was shot and killed by police in the Englewood neighborhood on Chicagos South Side around 11:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Cleotha Mitchell, 37, was shot and killed by police in the Homan Square neighborhood at 12:30 a.m. on Friday.

Raye was standing at a bus stop on Wednesday night when two police cars pulled up alongside him. When he took off running, police got out of their vehicles, chased him down the street and shot him in the back, killing him. Police claim that Raye was a suspect in a battery incident that they were responding to in the area, but the details of any such incident, if it occurred, remain unknown.

An officer involved in the chase was recorded shouting, Hes got a gun! However, no gun was found at the scene or on Rayes person. The officer who shot Raye was not wearing a body camera. All indications are that this was an act of murder of an unarmed man.

Mitchell was killed by police officers who claim he was a suspect in a nearby homicide. However, Mitchells sister insists that he was not involved in the shooting and that the police had mistaken him for another man. Mitchells friends and family, who he was visiting at the time, told local news reporters that he had stepped outside for a cigarette when police shot him. Though the police reportedly found a gun at the scene, it is not clear whether the gun belonged to or was used by Mitchell.

Both killings follow the fatal shooting of a 25-year-old man, as yet unidentified, on November 19 in West Englewood. In this case, police allege they saw him shoot at another man. Police say they shot the victim after he was ordered to drop his weapon and did not. The young man died after being taken to the hospital.

Another 26-year-old man at the scene was shot in the abdomen and is still alive. It is unclear yet whether police shot that man as well. The identities of both men have yet to be released.

The names of the officers involved in the three shootings have not been made public. Each of the officers involved has been placed on desk duty for at least 30 days, as is procedure for the Chicago Police Department (CPD) in cases of officer-involved shootings. All incidences are reportedly under investigation by the City of Chicago Independent Police Review Authority (IPRA), which has been involved in covering up police crimes and firing investigators who refuse to comply.

IPRA was formed in 2007 as a civilian committee to replace the Office of Professional Standards, a review board that existed within the CPD. The initiation of this reform did nothing to stop police murders.

The three recent shootings take place one year after the release of dashcam footage of the shooting of a 17-year-old black youth, Laquan McDonald, by CPD Officer Jason Van Dyke. Van Dyke was indicted shortly after the release of the footage on November 24, 2015, over one year after he shot and killed McDonald. Van Dyke was accused of first-degree murder, but only in the wake of mass protests and demands for the resignation of Democratic Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the city council.

Since then, Emanuel has implemented a few fraudulent police reforms aimed at defusing social anger, while at the same time working to increase the diversity of the police force with hundreds of new hires. In January of this year, Emanuel proposed a doubling of the number of Tasers available to police. Tasers produce so-called non-lethal incapacitation with painful electric shocks. The devices have killed hundreds and have been used as a form of torture in American prisons.

On November 22, Emanuel rolled out a plan to significantly increase the number of police in Chicago. The plan includes 970 new recruits over the next two years, and the hiring and training of 516 new armed police officers. Emanuel claimed that hiring more police was necessary to address the wave of violence that has swept the city in 2016, in which 4,000 people have been wounded and nearly 700 killed so far this year.

In fact, the increase in violence in the city of Chicago is primarily due to the escalation of the attack on the working class in the years after the 2008 financial crisis. Over the last eight years, aided by both the Democratic Party establishment and the trade unions, the working class in Chicago has suffered mass layoffs, public school closings, mental health facility closures and sharp reductions in basic social services, such as food assistance and other social services that provide for basic needs.

Most of the jobs created during the so-called economic recovery under Obama have been low-wage, with few or no benefits. Many workers remain underemployed, or unemployed for long periods of time, and turn to crime as a means of supporting themselves.

As part of his effort to recruit a greater number of African-American and Hispanic cops, Emanuel hired Deborah Farmer, of Brown Farmer Media Group, for $85,000 to use social media marketing and retired officers to recruit black youth.

Efforts to diversify the Chicago police force amount to nothing but an attempt to use identity politics, long a tool of the Democratic Party and the ruling establishment, to divide social opposition in the working class.

The addition of more black and Hispanic police officers to the ranks of the CPD is meant to be seen as a progressive reform, since minorities are disproportionately represented among the victims of police violence. But such a measure will do nothing to make Chicago police less violent, or more connected to the most impoverished communities, as Emanuel and advocates for reform claim.

The Chicago Police Department is one of the most violent in the country, with police killings surpassing the number of shootings carried out even by the notorious Los Angeles Police Department over the years from 2010 to 2015. More than 50 percent of the Chicago police force is non-white, and more than half of officers who shot at workers and youth in the past five years were black or Hispanic.

The issue of police violence is not fundamentally one of race, but of class. Under the incoming Trump administration, a massive escalation of police powers and national surveillance programs will take place, as the ruling class faces the threat of ever greater opposition to its brutal austerity measures and attacks on democratic rights from the masses of working people across the US and the world.

The strengthening of police powers, supported by both Democrats and Republicans, will mean an escalation of police killings like those that have occurred in Chicago over the past week.

The author also recommends:

Chicago Mayor Emanuels police reform: Increased repression and cover-up

[4 January 2016]

Chicago police brutality and the Democratic Party

[3 December 2015]

The conspiracy to cover up the police murder of Laquan McDonald

[30 November 2015]
A report released last Friday by an influential Chinese think tank, the National Institute for South China Sea Studies (NISCSS), provides details of the US military build-up in Asia under President Barack Obama and also a glimpse of the nervousness in Chinese ruling circles over the Donald Trump presidency.

The Obama administrations pivot to Asia has transformed the South China Sea into a dangerous geo-political flashpoint by deliberately inflaming longstanding territorial disputes between China and its South East Asian neighbours. The US has seized on Chinas land reclamation activities on islets under its control to ramp up military provocations, including three freedom of navigation operations within the 12-nautical-mile territorial limit claimed by China around its land features.

In releasing the report, NISCSS director Wu Shicun admitted that his institute like everyone else assumed that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would win the US presidency. As quoted by the South China Morning Post, Wu said the US would likely expand its military presence in the region under Trump.

There will not be a reversal in the Asia-Pacific policy, but the strategic rivalry between China and the US is likely to continue over the South China Sea, Wu predicted. He warned that Trumps plan to increase the size of the US naval fleet from 272 to 350 warships could lead to a greater US military deployment in the Asia Pacific and break the delicate balance in the region.

According to the South China Morning Post, the NISCSSs Report on the military presence of the United States of America in the Asia-Pacific region is the first attempt by a Chinese academic institution to document US military spending and deployment in Asia from publicly available data. The NISCSS is based on Chinas Hainan Island, which is directly adjacent to the South China Sea and hosts key Chinese naval bases, including nuclear submarine facilities.

An abstract of the NISCSS report posted on its web site outlines what Wu declared was the unprecedented increase in US military deployments in the region under Obama. By 2020, the Pentagon will have stationed 60 percent of its air and naval assets in the Asia Pacific, including its most advanced weapons systems.

In view of the great strategic value of the Asia-Pacific region and the Indian Ocean to the United States, the US military established seven military base groups in these regions, accounting for 50 percent of all of its overseas military bases, among which are 122 in Japan and 83 in South Korea, the report states. By 2015, the Pentagon had 368,000 military personnel in the Asia Pacific, including 97,000 stationed to the west of the International Date Line.

The report highlights a vast expansion of US surveillance operations, directed particularly against China, via advanced reconnaissance aircraft, aerial drones, electronic surveillance ships, nuclear submarines and reconnaissance satellites. China has become the No.1 targeted country of the US close reconnaissance in terms of frequency, scope and means, it states. According to statistics available, the US made more than 260 sorties of close reconnaissance against China in 2009 and the number in 2014 was more than 1,200.

The report notes the obvious increase in operations by US vessels and aircraft in the South China Sea during 2015 to more than 700 patrols. This not only threatened Chinas national security, damaged Chinas relevant maritime rights and interests and undermined Sino-US strategic mutual trust, but is also very likely to lead to accidental collisions at sea or in the air.

The report also points to the expanding US build-up with military allies and partners in Asia. This included: the stationing of an advanced aircraft carrier in Japan; the deployment of the THAAD anti-ballistic missile system in South Korea; the forging of an extensive basing arrangement with the Philippines; access for US Marines, aircraft and warships to Australian bases; greater access to Singapores naval and air bases; and enhanced military relations with Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand.

China is in no doubt as to the purpose of US military activities in the South China Sea. Along with untrammelled freedom of navigation, the reported explains that Washington aimed to consolidate its alliance and partnership system to pursue absolute superiority in maritime military capacity and to dominate rule-making in the region.

The NISCSS report was obviously written from the standpoint of Chinas strategic interests. Beijing has responded to the US build-up in Asia over the past five years by accelerating its own expansion, including the establishment of facilities on its South China Sea islets that could, in the future, be used for military purposes. The militaristic reaction of the Chinese regime, which represents the interests of a super-rich oligarchy, only heightens the danger of war between nuclear-armed powers.

The NISCSS report, however, underscores the scale of the US military expansion in the Asia Pacific. British strategic analyst Alex Neill, based in Singapore, told the Financial Times: I think it is fair to say that the US has increased the pace and intensity of surveillance flights all along Chinas periphery, and that has been commensurate with Chinas military modernisation.

Neill does not of course consider what would happen if China took commensurate steps and conducted hundreds of military surveillance flights along the US East and West coasts, as well as around Hawaii. To ask the question is to answer it: the reaction would be explosive in the US political, military and media establishment.

The installation of the extreme right-wing Trump as US president will only heighten the danger of war in the Asia Pacific. Trump has already foreshadowed a trade war with China as part of his Make America Great Again nationalist agenda. In its historic decline, however, US imperialism no longer has the economic clout to advance its global dominance and has increasingly resorted to military threats, provocations and war to assert its interests.

Reflecting the fears in Chinese ruling circles, NISCSS president Wu declared last Friday: What I am most worried about is that there will be a new arms race in the Asia-Pacific due to the tension in the East and South China seas. As Wu is no doubt well aware, an escalating arms race, which is already well underway in the Asia-Pacific, is the prelude to conflict and war.
The Obama administration is opposing efforts to recount the presidential election vote in the three key states of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

The New York Times reported Friday that a senior Obama administration official issued a statement that read, We stand behind our election results, which accurately reflect the will of the American people. The official said the administration is confident in the overall integrity of electoral infrastructure, a confidence that was borne out. As a result, we believe our elections were free and fair from a cybersecurity perspective.

This statement is extraordinary on several levels. First, the fact that the Times identified the official as a senior figure means that the presidenteither personally or through a close advisoris denouncing an entirely legitimate legal action to verify the outcome of the election in states where the result was exceptionally close.

Second, the claim that the election accurately reflects the will of the American people is contradicted by the fact that Clintons lead in the popular vote has swelled to over 2.2 million and is expected to climb even higher. Trump won the November 8 election despite his popular vote defeat because of the arcane and anti-democratic American Electoral College system.

Clinton won the popular vote by a wider tally than the victorious candidates in four post-World War II elections: 1948 (Truman over Dewey), 1960 (Kennedy over Nixon), 1968 (Nixon over Humphrey) and 1976 (Carter over Ford). Al Gore lost the Electoral College to George W. Bush in 2000 due to the anti-democratic intervention of the Supreme Court, which halted a recount in Florida that would have given the decisive state to Gore. The Democratic candidate won the popular vote by 500,000a quarter of Clintons margin in 2016.

Yet the Democratic Party and its main spokespeople, from Obama and Clinton to the supposedly left Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, are virtually ignoring the divergence between the popular vote and the electoral vote and quietly accepting Trumps fraudulent claim to have won a massive popular mandate for the implementation of a far-right agenda.

Third, growing calls for a recount follow legitimate appeals by attorneys and election scientists for a review of possible fraud. On Wednesday, Professor J. Alex Halderman of the University of Michigan issued a statement calling for a recount on the grounds that electronic voting machines may have been hacked, resulting in Trump winning key states.

Halderman wrote: The only way to know whether a cyberattack changed the result is to closely examine the available physical evidencepaper ballots and voting equipment in critical states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, nobody is ever going to examine that evidence unless candidates in those states act now, in the next several days, to petition for recounts.

On Friday, Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein filed paperwork for a recount in Wisconsin and is expected to file recount petitions in Michigan and Pennsylvania this week. These will likely be accepted and recounts will move forward. Should the results be overturned in all three states, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton would pass the threshold of 270 electoral votes required to become president.

Wisconsin

Trumps present lead is 22,000 votes out of 2.9 million cast. A recount will now begin with a deadline of December 13. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and Attorney General Brad Schimel are both Republicans. Several precincts in Sauk and Outagamie County posted results that showed more votes for presidential candidates than total votes. Local official election web sites then updated the figures, eliminating thousands of votes for Trump. A Democratic Party-aligned group filed an election complaint with the Wisconsin Elections Commission to investigate the discrepancies.

Michigan

Trump leads by roughly 10,000 votes out of 4.8 million cast. Unlike Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Michigan does not conduct a manual audit of precincts to compare reported election totals with ballots cast. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and Attorney General Bill Schuette are both Republicans.

Pennsylvania

Though the vote margin in Pennsylvania is larger than in the other two states68,000 votes out of 6 millionmost Pennsylvania counties use electronic voting machines that Halderman characterizes as insecure. These machines do not print a paper record of the vote. Halderman explains that such machines can be infected by bugs, misconfiguration, or malicious software aimed at altering the result. They have been labeled the highest risk for fraud by the voter-protection non-profit organization Verified Voting.

The Clinton campaign issued an official response on Saturday through its general counsel, Marc Elias. The statement reads, Because we had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves [i.e., initiate a recount], but now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides.

Elias wrote that the Clinton campaign will take the same approach in Pennsylvania and Michigan. We do so fully aware that the number of votes separating Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in the closest of these statesMichiganwell exceeds the largest margin ever overcome in a recount.

The Obama administration remains openly hostile to any recount effort.

The Hill reported: Obama allies are dead-set against the multi-state recount effort. Former Obama White House Communications Director Dan Pfeiffer mocked it on Twitter: The amount of Democratic energy and money being wasted on recounts instead of trying to win the Louisiana Senate Race is mind-boggling.

Just six weeks ago, the Obama administration took the unprecedented step of officially accusing Russia of interfering in the elections. The October 7 denunciation by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Homeland Security read: The US Intelligence Community is confident that the Russian Government directed the recent compromises of emails from US persons and institutions, including from US political organizations These thefts and disclosures are intended to interfere with the US election process.

Attempts by the Obama administration and the Clinton campaign to downplay the coming recount exposes the fraudulence of their pre-election effort to generate hysteria over Russian hacking.

According to a forthcoming book by Amie Parnes and Jonathan Allen, Obama pressured Clinton to concede relatively early on election night. Three high-level Clinton sources say Obama called Hillary Clinton on election night and told her: You need to concede.

There was a lot of discussion about Michigan and Wisconsin and whether the numbers could flip it, one of the sources close to Clinton said. If anybody knew what actually happened that night, no one would have conceded.

Clinton has come under substantial pressure to go along with the Green Partys recount effort due to the scale of her popular vote margin and the narrowness of her defeats in these three states. The fact that the effort to rescue the Democratic Party has fallen to the Green Party speaks both to the spinelessness of the Democrats and the pro-capitalist, pro-establishment character of the Greens. This opens the door for a more prominent role for the Greens within the political establishment in the period ahead.

The Trump campaign has responded to the recount in a defensive and provocative manner. In a series of tweets, Trump attacked the recount as a vindictive political stunt and claimed he lost the popular vote because of millions of people who voted illegally. The latter completely unsubstantiated claim actually undermines his argument against the recount, since such widespread fraud would clearly necessitate an extensive review and recalculation.

On Sunday, Trumps former campaign manager and current transition leader Kellyanne Conway implied on ABC News This Week program that Trump might revoke his decision not to prosecute Clinton for her use of a personal email account while serving as secretary of state if she does not oppose the recount effort. Conway accused Clinton of joining this ridiculously fantastical recount that Jill Stein is engaging in in Wisconsin and perhaps elsewhere. She added, So youve got the president-elect, Donald Trump, being quite magnanimous to Hillary Clinton and youve got her responding with joining into this recount

Underscoring the support of the Obama administration for Trumps ultra-right government-in-waiting, Conway noted later in the interview, President Obama and President-Elect Trump speak regularly. They spoke yesterday at length. Theyre trying to move on and form a government.

Senator Bernie Sanders appeared on the same ABC News program and said the recount was not a big deal. He added, I dont think that anybody, Secretary Clinton or anybody else, thinks that theres going to be profound changes.

The pathetic role played by the Democrats cannot be explained merely as the product of their congenital spinelessness and cowardice, although these traits are on full display. Rather, the Democratic Party represents a capitalist class whose priority in the transition of power lies in limiting social opposition in the working class and imposing the reactionary policies planned by the incoming administration.
According to initial estimates, Francois Fillon has won 67 percent of the vote in the run-off presidential primary election of Frances main right-wing parties, easily defeating Alain Juppe.

Fillon is a former prime minister under Nicolas Sarkozy and practicing Catholic who admires Margaret Thatcher and advances a violently right-wing program. He is likely to face off against neo-fascist Marine Le Pen in the final round of the presidential election next May.

Voter turnout was roughly 4 percent higher than in the first round of the primary a week ago, in which 4.2 million voters participated. Fillon won all of Frances 100-plus departments and overseas territories with the exception of Juppe's home area, Gironde. Juppe, a former prime minister under Gaullist President Jacques Chirac, also won Correze and, overseas, French Polynesia, Wallis-and-Futuna and Guyana.

Juppe conceded defeat at his campaign headquarters, saying, I congratulate Francois Fillon for his decisive victory I wish him good luck for his upcoming presidential campaign.

Fillon hailed his deep-going victory and called for unity among supporters of all the right-wing candidates. He attacked the pathetic five-year term of Socialist Party (PS) President Francois Hollande, adding, I know the gravity of the situation and what my fellow citizens expect. I will listen to them in the coming months. I will take up with them the main challenge in France: that of truth and totally changing the countrys references. I will work with all those who know that happiness is something that is conquered.

Less than three weeks since Donald Trumps election in the United States, Fillons emergence as the candidate of The Republicans (LR) signifies a major shift to the right, entailing an intensification of austerity and efforts to promote nationalism. Fillon proposes 110 billion in social cuts, nearly half of which would come from the slashing of Social Security and elimination of health care for numerous illnesses, as well as the elimination of 500,000 public-sector jobs.

He has suggested that abortion is not a fundamental right and indicated that he would support stepped-up judicial persecution of religious minorities, including passage of a law against the burkini.

In foreign policy, Fillon proposes a massive escalation of wars in the Middle East directed against the Islamic State (IS), which he denounces as Islamic totalitarianism. He has observed that this war threatens to set off World War III, while absurdly blaming this danger on IS, which controls only a limited amount of territory in Iraq and Syria, rather than on the policies of the major world powers.

Fillons candidacy will intensify the economic and strategic rivalries that are tearing apart the European Union, which is already threatened by the British exit and a referendum next week in Italy that could lead to the installation of an anti-EU, anti-euro government. Fillon has indicated he wants better relations with Russia, while repeatedly declaring that his goal is to prepare France to become Europes leading power. The target of such remarks is obviously Germany, the EUs dominant member-state.

Fillons primary victory highlights the collapse of French democracy. The PS is hated for having assaulted the workers with austerity measures and waged unpopular wars. Yet the candidate that currently is presented as the likely winner of the election aims to impose a program of Thatcher-style economic shock therapy, using the PS state of emergency and reactionary labor law to escalate Frances military operations and destroy basic social rights won by the French working class in the course of a century of struggle.

The deep economic and military tensions internationally, as well as the character of the leading French presidential candidates, rule out the coming to power of a candidate whose policy would be significantly different. Whether the election ultimately goes to Fillon, Le Pen oras now seems highly unlikelya candidate of the PS or allied political tendency, what is being prepared is more war overseas and social war against the workers at home.

Opposition by workers to this offensive will be victorious only if it is organized independently of the trade union bureaucracy and PS satellites such as the New Anti-capitalist Party. The leaders of these organizations, who drove opposition to the PS labor law into a dead end last summer, are already suggesting that Fillon has a legitimate right to seek to impose his program on the French people.

Asked on France Inter about the legitimacy of a Fillon administration, General Confederation of Labor (CGT) leader Philippe Martinez answered, Of course it would be legitimate, as long as promises are kept as long as there are no new laws that are proposed.

Everything suggests that Fillons nomination as LR candidate will boost the vote for Le Pens National Front (FN) in the presidential and legislative elections. Nicolas Sarkozy won the presidency 10 years ago by appealing to anti-Muslim prejudice and to the FN voter base. Voters at that time preferred to vote for Sarkozy rather than FN candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen, Marines father, because Sarkozy presented himself as a democratic candidate, in contrast to Jean-Marie Le Pen, who was infamous for statements denying the Holocaust and trivializing the Nazi occupation of France.

Fillon seems to be using Sarkozys playbook. However, the record of Sarkozy and, even more, of Hollande over the last 10 years has eliminated many obstacles to a massive shift of votes from the more traditional right to the FN. The same period has also seen evolution toward the extreme right of social democratic and petty-bourgeois politics.

The PS government under Hollande, by legitimizing the legal arsenal of the Vichy regime and the Algerian war, proposing a policy to deprive alleged terrorists of nationality, and imposing a state of emergency, set up a police state framework that blurs the distinction between traditional parties of government and the FN.

Marine Le Pen has taken over the FN, carefully avoiding any display of pro-Nazi sympathies and giving top party positions to individuals tied to ex-PS member Jean-Pierre Chevenement, such as FN Vice President Florian Philippot. These ex-Chevenement supporters seek to give the FN a populist and social facade. The nomination of a violently free-market LR candidate will assist them as they demagogically pose as the only alternative to the pillage of the people by the banks.

Already yesterday, Philippot was attacking Fillon, declaring, Fillon is clearly a free-marketer, clearly for austerity. Attacking Fillons extraordinary violence, he added, Fillons program is harsh: 500,000 public-sector jobs cut, especially in rural areas, and a hike in the sales tax If you examine what Fillon would do, it means 12,500 fewer police and paramilitary security forces and 700,000 more unemployed.

Yesterday, the Canadian press warned that a possible Le Pen-Fillon run-off in May could prove very close. Its not clear that Fillon is an attractive character for the left in French society to rally around, Paul Diggle of Aberdeen Asset Management in London told the Globe and Mail. I wouldnt be willing to give you any better odds than 50-50 on Le Pen versus Fillon.
The 2017 federal budget passed by the grand coalition government marks a turning point in German post-war history. Almost three years after outgoing president Joachim Gauck and the German government officially announced the end of military restraint, a massive build-up of the military domestically and abroad stands at the centre of the budgetary plan.

In the next year, the defence budget alone will be raised by almost 2.5 billion, to 36.61 billion. The funds for military acquisitions will climb by approximately 1 billion, from 10.16 billion to 11.1 billion. The Foreign Office of Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier (Social Democratic Party, SPD) is to receive 5.23 billion in 2017, around 420 million more than this year. The funds for the Christian Democratic Union (CDU)-led Federal Ministry of the Interior will be increased to 8.98 billion. That is more than a billion more than this year and far more than designated in the original governmental draft (8.34 billion).

The additional billions for security forces and the military are only the beginning of a massive campaign of military build-up. On Thursday, the Handelsblatt featured the following headline: Merkel promises higher military spending: Chancellor wants NATO commitment to meet 2 percent of economic output. In its report, the mouthpiece of German industry and the banks calculated: Germany would have to spend 23 billion more euros for defence in order to fulfil the NATO stipulation of 2 percent of GDP.

What was long considered virtually impossible is now the official policy of the government. In her governmental declaration on Wednesday, Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) announced: [W]e are approaching that which we allnot just Christian Democrats, but also Social Democratspledged as a contribution to NATO, ladies and gentlemen.

The German government seized on the victory of Donald Trump in the US presidential elections as a pretext to advance its plans for a more independent foreign and military policy. While Merkel did not mention Trump once by name in her governmental declaration on Wednesday, even bourgeois commentators considered her speech a reaction to Trumps pledge to withdraw from free trade agreements like the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Openness will bring us more security than isolation, declared Merkel, holding out the prospect of a greater role for Germany in world politics. While Germany obviously cannot solve all problems, the question remains: Are we ready, with our experience of social market economy, for a social order which I believe as before brings with it the highest degree of economic strength and social justice, to champion an intensification and organisation of globalization? Or are we not ready and are withdrawing into ourselves?

Who is Merkel trying to fool with her propaganda? The worldwide diplomatic offensive of the Foreign Office and the military missions in Afghanistan and Mali or in Syria and Iraq have nothing to do with social market economy or justice, but rather the defence of the geo-strategic and economic interests of German imperialism by the most brutal means.

The official Federal Financial Plan 2016 to 2020 explicitly states: the values, interests and priorities of the Federal Republic of Germany identified in the White Paper on security policy and the future of the Bundeswehr form the strategic framework for the mission and tasks of the Bundeswehr as an instrument of German security policy.

Germany must provide an active contribution to political conflict resolution, which is appropriate given the political aspirations and the weight of Germany in the world. It continues: To counter the risks and threats to Europe and Germany appropriately and as far as possible, a variety of security and defence policy options must exist, including the use of military instruments.

What then follows reads like a recipe for the preparation of military interventions like those the United States has long carried out: The armed forces of the 21st century must have a wide range of capabilities as well as a high degree of operational capacity. Moreover, flexible and professional structures, highly-qualified personnel, and adequate equipment  are necessary for conducting stabilization operations up to high-intensity combat missions.

A core goal of the financial plan is the pursuit of stronger foreign policy independence and flexibility. In training, exercise and possible future missions, new and existing forms of cooperationespecially in the realm of further developing bilateral relationscan be vitally important, reads the section on Military Defence.

The German government is aware that a large majority of the population rejects the return of militarism and war, above all because of the terrible crimes committed during the Second World War. This explains the massive military build-up taking place domestically. The ruling class is alarmed at the increase in political opposition and is preparing itself at the same time for serious social conflicts.

Merkel declared she was very happy that in the area of domestic security considerable efforts were being made. Among the authorities of domestic security, she said, thousands of new positions had been created. She added, provocatively, that she could only hope that the offers are so attractive that enough people will choose to accept them. That is, of course, of the greatest importance to us.

While in parliament the Left Party and the Greens vote against the budget as nominal opposition parties, they agree with its general direction. Representatives of both parties have attacked the government from the right in several speeches. Anton Hofreiter, the leader of the Green Partys parliamentary faction, criticized Merkel for not having done enough to oppose the coming apart of the European Union as the chancellor of the most powerful country in the EU. In addition to this, he wished that one or another here in the House would issue a clear statement against Russian war crimes in Aleppo.

Michael Leutert of the Left Party celebrated the fact that, in part, the budget bore the fingerprints of his party. Under pressure from the Left Party, more funds were allocated for the Foreign Office and for humanitarian aid during negotiations. Nevertheless, German foreign policy was essentially incapable of taking action at the moment. He had at least not yet heard that the civil war in Syria and Iraq was ended, that the situation in Ukraine or Afghanistan had calmed, or that the conditions in Africa turning people into refugees had disappeared.
India has taken important steps in recent weeks to enhance its military-strategic ties with Japan and Israel, both close US allies.

These steps are aimed at aggressively pursuing the Indian elites great power ambitions in the broader Asian and Indian Ocean regions against its main rivals, China and Pakistan. At the same time, they are part of Indias ever-closer integration into Washingtons military-strategic offensive against China, including the development of closer bilateral and trilateral cooperation with the chief US allies in the Asia-Pacific, Japan and Australia.

Modi visited Japan on November 11-12, during which time he held talks with his Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, and signed several bilateral agreements to enhance Indo-Japanese economic and military ties. Highlighting New Delhis and Tokyos mutual support for each others geopolitical ambitions, the joint statement Modi and Abe issued at the conclusion of their talks said, Abe appreciated Prime Minister Modis active engagement in the region under (Indias) Act East Policy and Modi appreciated Japans greater engagement in the region under its Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy. It went on to say that the two leaders had recognized the potential for deeper bilateral cooperation and synergy across the Indo-Pacific region.

Underscoring that China is the principal target of the burgeoning India-Japan alliance, the joint statement reiterated Abes and Modis position on the South China Sea dispute, which dovetails with that of Washington. The statement parroted the US claim that China is threatening freedom of navigation and over flight. This claim is in fact a transparent pretext for asserting the Pentagons right to maintain an armada off Chinas shores, so it can impose a blockade and/or implement its AirSea Battle plan in the event of a war or war crisis with China.

Modis and Abes decision to highlight the South China Sea dispute is particularly provocative, as China had explicitly warned India not to involve Japan in the dispute on the eve of Modis visit.

Modi and Abe also lined up behind the recent US provocations against North Korea, including the massive military exercise it conducted with South Korea this summer based on the scenario of a regime change war against Pyongyang. The statement condemned in the strongest terms North Koreas continued development of its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes. Washington has consistently used the conflict with North Korea as a means to pressure Beijing and justify military preparations against it.

The most significant development during Modis Japan visit was the signing of a civil nuclear cooperation pact allowing India access to Japans nuclear technology. This is the first time Japan has signed a civil nuclear agreement with a country that has not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and there was significant public opposition to doing so, because of Japans history as the only country to ever suffer nuclear attack and the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster.

The potential for big profits for Japanese big business was undoubtedly a factor in the Abe governments readiness to defy domestic opposition over nuclear commerce with India. But there were also major military-strategic calculations. A similar civil nuclear deal between New Delhi and Washington in 2008 was pivotal in cementing a global Indo-US strategic partnership. As with the 2008 deal, the Japan-India nuclear agreement will help New Delhi to further concentrate its indigenous nuclear program on the development of nuclear weapons. Last month India boasted that, with the launch of its first indigenously-built nuclear submarine, it has completed the nuclear triad, meaning it can now launch nuclear weapons from air, land and underwater.

In an attempt to downplay concerns about nuclear proliferation, the Abe government pointed to an addendum to the civil nuclear cooperation agreement in which New Delhi reiterated its commitment to a voluntary moratorium on nuclear weapons tests and Tokyo stipulated it has the right to terminate the agreement if India conducts a future nuclear test.

During Modis visit, the two countries moved to further expand their military ties. According to the joint statement, Abe and Modi welcomed the entry into force of the two Defence Framework Agreements concerning the Transfer of Defence Equipment and Technology and concerning Security Measures for the Protection of Classified Military Information.

India is reported to be on the verge of finalizing the purchase of 12 Japanese-built amphibious surveillance aircraft, in what would be one of Japans first arms deals since it removed restrictions on foreign arms sales.

In a clear indication of Indias further integration into a US-led anti-China alliance, the statement noted: The two Prime Ministers welcomed the holding of trilateral dialogue among Japan, India and the United States, and strengthened coordination and cooperation in such areas as HA/DR [Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief], regional connectivity as well as maritime security and safety. The two Prime Ministers also welcomed continued and deepened trilateral dialogue among Japan, India and Australia.

Two days after the conclusion of Modis Japanese visit, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin made a six-day visit to India. This was the first such visit by an Israeli President to India in two decades. It was publicly acknowledged that its primary purpose was to pave the way for Modi to visit Israel early in 2016, in what will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country.

While Indias previous Congress-led government pursued closer relations with Israel, Modi and his Hindu supremacist Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) government have made expanding New Delhis military-strategic and economic relationship with Tel Aviv one of their main foreign policy goals. The ideological affinity between the Hindu supremacist, anti-Muslim BJP and Israels Zionist right has played no small part in furthering the burgeoning Indo-Israeli alliance. The stronger relations between India and Israel have also been clearly encouraged by the US, which views them as its main ally respectively in South Asia and the Middle East.

When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met Modi in New York in September 2014, he boasted that the sky is the limit for the relationship between the two countries. That meeting was followed by Israel Defence Minister Moshe Yaalons visit to India in February 2015, the first ever such visit by an Israel Defence Minister; Indian President Pranab Mukherjees visit to Israel later that year; and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swarajs visit to Israel in early 2016.

Hailing the strengthening of Indian-Israeli ties under Modi, the Indian English-language daily Pioneer wrote in an editorial on November 18: Long-held balancing acts in India-Israel relations have gone now. With the coming of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the era of India's staid diplomatic establishment was replaced by active engagement of nations, cutting across ideological barriers of the Cold War days.

For two decades Israel has been a major arms supplier to India. Indeed, New Delhi is the worlds largest buyer of Israeli military equipment. During his visit to India this month, the Israeli President indicated his governments readiness to expand into the co-production of weapons. Modi subsequently said that both sides agreed on the need to make their defence ties more broad-based through a weapons-production and manufacturing partnership.

Israeli weapons sales to India amount to more than $1 billion annually and include missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles and weapons systems. Some Indian military analysts have expressed concerns that Tel Aviv is also selling weaponry to China and are calling for New Delhi to press for a guarantee that only India will be eligible to buy Israels most advanced weapons.

According to press reports, New Delhi has placed hundreds of millions of dollars worth of rush orders with Israeli arms manufacturers in recent weeks so as to enhance its readiness to fight a war with Pakistan. For the past two months, South Asias nuclear-armed rivals have been involved in escalating border clashes. (See: Death toll mounts, as India-Pakistan tensions seethe)
The Socialist Equality Party (SEP) and International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) held a successful public meeting at the Jaffna public library canteen on November 20. It was attended by workers, students, fishermen and housewives, including residents from the nearby islands of Kayts, Karainagar and Punguduthivu.

The meeting was chaired by Paramu Sampanthar, a leading SEP member from the Northern Province, with reports from SEP political committee members M. Thevarajah and Pani Wijesiriwardena. Speakers discussed the rising danger of imperialist war, the role of the Tamil nationalist parties and the necessity for workers to fight for a socialist and internationalist program.

Opening the event, Sampanthar explained that US President-elect Donald Trump would establish the most right-wing administration in US history and step up Washingtons economic and military aggression against its international rivals. Mankind faces the possibility of being dragged into a devastating world war, he told the meeting.

Sampanthar reviewed the political positions of the Tamil nationalist organisations and warned: The Tamil nationalist parties, including the Tamil National Alliance [TNA], are functioning as a tool of US imperialism and support its international war drive. They held prayers in temples and churches for the victory of Hillary Clinton during the election and now express their readiness to work with Trump.

SEP political committee member M. Thevarajah pointed out that Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena had been brought to power in January last year through a US-orchestrated regime-change operation, with the full support of the TNA.

The establishment of a pro-US government in Sri Lanka, Thevarajah said, was part of Washingtons pivot to Asia, a strategy aimed at diplomatically isolating and militarily encircling China.

Pani Wijesiriwardena began his report by pointing to the official silence of the entire political and media establishment about the real danger of a new world war.

The purpose of this meeting is to break this silence, explain the scale of this danger and present a scientific program to prevent this possibility, the speaker. Since the launching of the first Gulf War in 1991, we have experienced an unending 25 years of wars by the major powers. US-led imperialist interventions have decimated Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria.

The speaker told the audience that under its so-called pivot to Asia, Washington was urging its alliesJapan, South Korea and the Philippinesto provoke China and that the US navy has on three occasions deliberately entered territorial waters claimed by Beijing in the South China Sea.

Wijesiriwardena detailed how Washington had also enlisted India as a regional frontline state against China and encouraged the Indian government to adopt a more aggressive stance against Pakistan.

This situation has led to increased war tensions between India and Pakistan along the Kashmir border, which could trigger an all-out war between these two nuclear-armed powers. Such a war, which would see the US supporting India and China backing Pakistan, could escalate into a full-scale world war.

Wijesiriwardena explained how the TNA and other Tamil nationalist organisations were backing Washingtons geo-strategic provocations.

The very forces that the TNA appeals to for the protection of the democratic rights of Tamil peoplethe US and other imperialist powers, who supported the nearly three-decades long communal war against the Tamil people waged by successive Colombo governmentsare now dragging mankind towards a world war, the speaker said.

Pointing to the record of the ruling classes of the region, Wijesiriwardena said the nearly seven decades since the 1947 division of the Indian sub-continent had demonstrated that every section of the bourgeoisie, including the Tamil nationalist elite in northern Sri Lanka, is incapable of carrying out any of the basic democratic tasks confronting society.

This confirms the central tenet of the Theory of Permanent Revolution formulated in 1905 by Leon Trotsky, the co-leader of the Russian Revolution. As Trotsky explained, in countries of belated capitalist development, the capitalist class are organically incapable of resolving the most basic bourgeois democratic tasks. Those tasks can only be realised through a socialist revolution carried out by the working class.

Wijesiriwardena warned that Trumps election victory would not see any lessening of Washingtons aggressively militarist foreign policy. A Trump administration, he said, will put Wall Streets demands into action, with US war plans proceeding even more intensely.

The speaker concluded by explaining that the deepening crisis of capitalism not only creates the conditions for war but also provides the objective foundation for socialist revolution and appealed for workers and youth to study the revolutionary program of the SEP and IYSSE.

The Socialist Equality Party and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality are fighting along with their international co-thinkers to rally the millions of workers worldwide, now entering into struggles, around an anti-war movement based on the perspective of socialist revolution. This was the central theme of the anti-war conference held in Detroit on November 5 by the SEP in the US. We invite all gathered in this hall to join us in building this international anti-war movement.

SEP and IYSSE members and supporters conducted a vigorous campaign for the Jaffna meeting in the days leading up to the event. Campaigners distributed hundreds of leaflets and spoke with workers, students and residents throughout the city, including at Jaffna University and other educational institutions, work places and in the adjoining suburbs of Pasaioor, Kurunagar, Chavakachcheri and Chunnagam.

Hostile to the SEPs anti-war program, leaders of the Jaffna University Student Union ordered SEP campaigners to leave the university premises. When SEP supporters insisted on their democratic rights, one of the student leaders claimed that no one was allowed to conduct political campaigns on the campus. We cant allow any political discussion here, he said.

The Jaffna University Student Union maintains close political ties with the TNA. Like the TNA, the student union supported the US-orchestrated regime-change operation in Sri Lanka which brought Sirisena to power.

Several university lecturers spoke with SEP campaigners and opposed the student union leaders anti-democratic attacks. These so-called student leaders are openly doing the political work of the TNA at this university and blocking the fight you are taking up for working class politics, one lecturer said. Im very familiar with your decades-long principled struggle against the civil war. I'll raise this issue in the teachers council meeting.

Many people voiced their concerns about the growing danger of war and discussed the SEPs socialist program during the campaign for the Jaffna public meeting.

One shop owner said: The TNA talks about the rights of Tamils but has close ties with the top brass of the government. They oppose the unity of ordinary Sinhalese and Tamils and at the same time maintain a dark silence about the grave danger of world war. No one, apart from you, is explaining the danger of world war. Such an event would be a disaster.

A medical student told campaigners that it was very dangerous doing political work in Jaffna: If we campaign against the Colombo government we have to face the repression of state forces. If we do politics against the Tamil capitalist parties were subjected to repression from them, and the state. I do believe, however, that we have to stop the drive towards another world war.

Jeganathan who is from the Vanni area, which was devastated during the Sri Lankan civil war, said: I have my own experiences of warwe had bombs raining down on us and only narrowly escaped death. I oppose this sort of disaster occurring anywhere in the world. A third world war would produce an unthinkable catastrophe.
The announcement Friday night of the death of Fidel Castro, one of the major figures of the 20th century, has provoked a broad range of public reactions reflecting the bitter controversies over his contradictory historical legacy.

His death at 90 came nearly a decade after he surrendered the reins of unchallenged power he exercised over Cubas political life. For nearly half a century he was president for life, first secretary of the ruling Communist Party and commander-in-chief of the Cuban military, with much of this authority passing dynastically into the hands of his younger brother, Raul, who is now 85.

His rule outlasted that of ten US presidents, from Eisenhower to George W. Bush, all of whom were committed to the overthrow of his regime, including by means of the abortive CIA-organized Bay of Pigs invasion of 1961, literally hundreds of assassination attempts, and the longest economic blockade in world history.

The longevity of his political career is, in many ways, astonishing. No doubt, there were elements of the Latin American caudillo in his rule and he could be ruthless in relation to those seen as political rivals and opponents. At the same time, he possessed an undeniable personal charisma and a degree of humanism that attracted support from both the oppressed masses of Cuba and wider layers of intellectuals and radicalized youth internationally.

The reaction of the US media to Castros death has been predictable. Editorial denunciations of the brutal dictator have been accompanied by revolting coverage giving greater air time to a few hundred right-wing Cuban exiles dancing in the streets of Miamis Little Havana than to the somber and very real mourning among broad layers of the population in Cuba itself.

On the island, ten years after relinquishing power, Castro has maintained a significant, albeit diminished, popular base, reflecting support for the undeniable improvements in social conditions for the countrys most impoverished layers that were wrought by the revolution he led in 1959.

The indices of these changes come into clear focus when one compares conditions in Cuba to those prevailing in the neighboring Dominican Republic, which has roughly the same size population and gross domestic product. The murder rate in Cuba is less than one quarter that in the Dominican Republic; life expectancy is six years higher (79 vs. 73), and the Cuban infant mortality rate is roughly one-sixth the Dominican. Cubas literacy levels and infant mortality rates, it should be added, are also superior to those in the United States.

The commentary in the US media centering on denunciations of Castro for political repression deserves to be placed in historical context. After all, the United States has, over the course of a century, supported countless dictatorships responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in Latin America alone. Castro and Castroism were ultimately the product of this bitter and bloody history.

Castros own political evolution was shaped by US imperialisms decades-long plunder and oppression following the islands transformation, as a result of the 1898 Spanish-American war, from a colony of Spain into a semi-colony of Washington. Under the so-called Platt Amendment, the United States guaranteed itself the right to intervene in Cuban affairs as it saw fit, and seized Guantanamo Bay to serve as its military base.

The US-backed Batista dictatorship

Before the revolution, Washingtons man in Havana was Fulgencio Batista, who headed a ferocious dictatorship that ruled in the interests of foreign corporations, the countrys native oligarchy and the mafia, which turned the country into a center of gambling and prostitution. Torture was routine and John F. Kennedy himself commented that the regime was responsible for the political murders of at least 20,000 Cubans.

As vicious as this regime was, it was by no means unique in the region. During the same period, Washington supported similar mass crimes carried out by Trujillo in the Dominican Republic, Duvalier in Haiti and Somoza in Nicaragua.

Those who attempted to alter the existing order by democratic means were disposed of with violence, as seen in the CIA-organized overthrow of the Arbenz government in Guatemala in 1954. The result was a growth of seething popular hatred for the United States throughout the hemisphere.

Born into a Spanish landowning family, Castro developed politically within the hothouse environment of student nationalist politics at Havana University. Reportedly, as a youth he was an admirer of Spanish fascist Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera and the Italian duce Benito Mussolini.

Among his politically formative experiences was a 1948 trip as a student to Bogota, Colombia, where the US had convened an inter-American congress that was to found the Organization of American States to assert US hegemony over the region. During the visit, the assassination of Liberal Party candidate Jorge Gaitan led to the mass uprising known as the Bogotazo, in which much of the Colombian capital was destroyed and up to 3,000 were killed.

Castro himself acknowledged that he was also significantly influenced by the politics of Juan Peron--the military officer who came to power in Argentina--admiring him for his populism, anti-Americanism and social assistance programs for the poor.

Still in his twenties, Castro began his struggle against the US-backed dictatorship of Batista as a member of the Ortodoxo Party, a nationalist and anti-communist political tendency rooted in the Cuban petty-bourgeoisie. After running as an Ortodoxo candidate for the Cuban legislature in 1952, Castro turned to armed action a year later, leading an ill-fated assault on the Moncada army barracks in which all 200 insurgents were either killed or captured.

Following a brief jail sentence and exile, he returned to Cuba at the end of 1956 with a relative handful of armed supporters, who suffered overwhelming losses in initial engagements with government troops. Yet, within barely two years, power fell into the hands of his guerrilla July 26 Movement, under conditions where both the Cuban bourgeoisie and Washington had lost confidence in Batistas ability to rule the country.

There existed broad international sympathy for Castro, whose uprising was seen as a struggle for democracy. Among those expressing support for the new regime was American author Ernest Hemingway, who described himself as delighted with the overthrow of Batista.

Initially, Castro denied he had any sympathy for communism, insisted that his government would protect foreign capital and welcome new private investment, and sought to reach an accommodation with US imperialism.

However, as the masses of Cuban workers and peasants were demanding results from the Castro revolution, Washington made it clear that it would not tolerate even the most modest social reforms in the territory 90 miles from US shores. The expectations within US ruling circles was that after brief celebrations of the fall of Batista, the new government would get back to business as usual. They were horrified that Castro was actually serious about changing social conditions on the island and raising the living standard of its impoverished masses. They met any attempt at altering the existing order with intransigence.

In response to limited land reform, Washington sought to strangle the Cuban economy, cutting Cubas sugar export quota and then denying the island nation oil.

Castro responded with nationalizations, first of US property, then of Cuban-owned enterprises, and turned to the Soviet bureaucracy for assistance. He simultaneously turned to the discredited Cuban Stalinist Popular Socialist Party, which had supported Batista and opposed Castros guerrilla movement. The Stalinists provided him with the political apparatus that he lacked.

Castro was representative of a broader bourgeois-nationalist and anti-imperialist movement that swept the colonial and oppressed countries in the post-World War II period, giving rise to figures like Ben Bella in Algeria, Nasser in Egypt, Nkrumah in Ghana and Lumumba in the Congo, among others. Like Castro, many of them attempted to exploit the Cold War conflict between Washington and Moscow to secure their own interests.

No doubt, there was an opportunistic element in Castros self-proclamation as a Marxist-Leninist and his turn to the Soviet Union. However, it is also the case that in 1960, the October Revolution, which had transformed Russia 43 years earlier, exerted a massive influence internationally, even though the Soviet bureaucracy had long since exterminated the revolutions leaders and severed all ties to genuine Marxism.

While the rising expectations of the Cuban masses and the obstinate reaction of US imperialism served to push Castro to the left, he was in no sense a Marxist. While sincere in his original intentions to implement significant reforms of Cuban society, his political orientation was always of a pragmatic character.

Ultimately, Castro went the furthest in striking a Faustian bargain with Soviet Stalinism, which provided massive aid and subsidized trade in return for exploiting Cuba as a bargaining chip in its quest for peaceful coexistence with US imperialism.

With the Stalinist bureaucracys final betrayal, the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, Cuba was thrown into a desperate economic and social crisis, which the Castro government was able to offset only through an ever-widening opening to foreign capitalist investment, as well as major subsidies from Venezuela, whose own economic crisis is now closing off that source of aid as well.

Rapprochement with Washington

These are the conditions that laid the groundwork for a rapprochement between Washington and Cuba, with the reopening of the US embassy in Havana and Obamas visit to the country last March. For its part, US capitalism is determined to exploit Cuban cheap labor and potentially lucrative markets, and ward off the growing influence in the country of its Chinese and European rivals.

The ruling strata in Cuba see the influx of US capital as a means of salvaging their rule while pursuing a course similar to that of China. The Cuban elite hopes to secure its own privileges and power at the expense of the Cuban working class, under conditions where social inequality on the island is rapidly deepening.

No doubt all of this troubled Castro in the last decade of his life. During this period, he continued to comment regularly in the Cuban media through a column known as Reflections. These writings provided little in the way of theoretical insight and reflected the thinking of a sincere petty-bourgeois radical.

To his credit, until his death he continued to despise everything that US imperialism stood for. He vigorously attacked the hypocrisy of Barack Obama and his combination of human rights rhetoric with imperialist wars and drone assassination programs.

In the aftermath of Obamas visit to Cuba, Castro wrote one of his last columns, bitterly denouncing the US presidents speech in Havana. He declared: ... we are capable of producing the food and material riches we need with the efforts and intelligence of our people. We do not need the empire to give us anything.

The reality, however, is that the Obama visit and the move to normalize relations with US imperialism signaled that Castros revolution, like every other bourgeois nationalist movement and national liberation struggle led by middle-class forces, had reached its ultimate dead end, having failed to resolve the historic problems stemming from the imperialist oppression of Cuba and moving toward restoration of the neocolonialist relations that it had previously opposed.

Only a cynic could deny the elements of heroism and tragedy in the life of Castro and, above all, the protracted struggle of the Cuban people.

However, Castros legacy cannot be evaluated solely through the prism of Cuba, but must take into account the impact of his politics internationally and, above all, in Latin America.

Here, the most catastrophic role was played by left nationalists in Latin America, as well as petty-bourgeois radicals in Europe and North America, in promoting Castros coming to power at the head of a small guerrilla army as the opening of a new path to socialism, requiring neither the conscious and independent political intervention of the working class nor the building of revolutionary Marxist parties. The myths surrounding Castros revolution, and, in particular, the retrograde theories of guerrillaism propagated by his erstwhile political ally Che Guevara, were promoted as the model for revolutions throughout the hemisphere.

The role of Pabloite revisionism

Among the most prominent proponents of this false perspective was the Pabloite revisionist tendency that emerged within the Fourth International under the leadership of Ernest Mandel in Europe and Joseph Hansen in the US, subsequently joined by Nahuel Moreno in Argentina. They insisted that Castros coming to power had proven that armed guerrillas led by the petty-bourgeoisie and based on the peasantry could become natural Marxists, compelled by objective events to carry out the socialist revolution, with the working class reduced to the role of passive bystander.

They further concluded that Castros nationalizations created a workers state in Cuba, despite the absence of any organs of workers power.

Long before the Cuban Revolution, Leon Trotsky had explicitly rejected the facile identification of nationalizations undertaken by petty-bourgeois forces with the socialist revolution. The Transitional Program, the founding document of the Fourth International, written in 1938, declared that one cannot categorically deny in advance the theoretical possibility that, under the influence of completely exceptional circumstances (war, defeat, financial crash, mass revolutionary pressure, etc.) the petty-bourgeois parties including the Stalinists may go further than they themselves wish along the road to a break with the bourgeoisie. It distinguished such an episode, however, from a genuine dictatorship of the proletariat.

In response to the expropriations carried out by the Kremlin regime in the course of its invasion of Poland (in alliance with Hitler) in 1939, Trotsky wrote: The primary political criterion for us is not the transformation of property in this or another area, however important these may be in themselves, but rather the change in the consciousness and organization of the world proletariat, the raising of their capacity for defending former conquests and accomplishing new ones.

The International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI) fought intransigently against the Pabloite perspective, insisting that Castroism represented not some new road to socialism, but rather only one of the more radical variants of the bourgeois nationalist movements that had come to power through much of the former colonial world. It warned that the Pabloite glorification of Castroism represented a repudiation of the entire historical and theoretical conception of the socialist revolution going back to Marx, and laid the basis for the liquidation of the revolutionary cadre assembled by the Trotskyist movement internationally into the camp of bourgeois nationalism and Stalinism.

While waging a principled defense of Cuba against imperialist aggression, the ICFI rooted its analysis of Castroism within a broader assessment of the role of bourgeois nationalism in the epoch of imperialism.

Defending Trotskys theory of permanent revolution, it wrote in 1961: It is not the job of Trotskyists to boost the role of such nationalist leaders. They can command the support of the masses only because of the betrayal of leadership by Social-Democracy and particularly Stalinism, and in this way they become buffers between imperialism and the mass of workers and peasants. The possibility of economic aid from the Soviet Union often enables them to strike a harder bargain with the imperialists, even enables more radical elements among the bourgeois and petty-bourgeois leaders to attack imperialist holdings and gain further support from the masses. But, for us, in every case the vital question is one of the working class in these countries gaining political independence through a Marxist party, leading the poor peasantry to the building of Soviets, and recognizing the necessary connections with the international socialist revolution. In no case, in our opinion, should Trotskyists substitute for that the hope that the nationalist leadership should become socialists. The emancipation of the working class is the task of the workers themselves.

These warnings were tragically vindicated in Latin America where the theories promoted by the Pabloites helped divert a whole layer of radicalized youth and young workers away from the struggle to mobilize the working class against capitalism and into suicidal armed struggles that claimed thousands of lives, served to disorient the workers movement and helped pave the way to fascist-military dictatorships.

In the first instance, these theories claimed the life of Guevara himself in Bolivia. Ignoring the militant struggles of the miners and the rest of the Bolivian working class, he vainly sought to recruit a guerrilla army from among the most backward and oppressed sections of the peasantry, ending up isolated and starving before being hunted down and executed by the CIA and the Bolivian military in October 1967.

Guevaras fate was a tragic anticipation of the disastrous consequences Castroism and Pabloite revisionism would have throughout the hemisphere. Similarly, in Argentina, the cult of guerrillaism served to blunt and disorient the revolutionary working class movement that had erupted with the mass strikes of the Cordobazo of 1969.

Castro himself, acting both as a client of the Soviet bloc and a practitioner of realpolitik in the attempt to secure the stability of his own regime, sought to forge ties to the same Latin American bourgeois governments that those who emulated him were attempting to overthrow. Thus, in 1971 he toured Chile, extolling the parliamentary road to socialism in that country, even as the fascists and the military were preparing to crush the working class. He hailed military regimes in Peru and Ecuador as anti-imperialist and even embraced the corrupt apparatus of the ruling PRI in Mexico, after it had overseen the massacre of students in 1968.

The overall impact of Castros policies, as well as those of the political tendencies who glorified him, was to hold back the socialist revolution throughout the hemisphere.

Now, the imperialist powers in general, and the US in particular, are evaluating to what extent the death of Castro can be used to advance their interests in Cuba and beyond.

President Barack Obama issued a hypocritical statement declaring, History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him, and assuring that the Cuban people must know that they have a friend and partner in the United States of America.

For his part, President-elect Trump issued a statement celebrating the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. There is growing speculation over whether Trump will carry through on his threats to rescind measures enacted by Obama meant to facilitate the penetration of Cuba by US banks and corporations.

While the representatives of imperialism seek to exploit Castros death to advance the cause of reaction, for a new generation of workers and youth the study of the historical experience of Castroism and the far-sighted critique developed by the International Committee of the Fourth International remains a vital task in preparing the working class for coming mass revolutionary struggles and building the parties that will lead them.
Approximately 1.5 million people demonstrated in South Koreas capital Saturday, demanding the removal of President Park Geun-hye. Demonstrations in other cities brought the total number of participants to 1.9 million. About 100,000 people took part in Busan, South Koreas second largest city. An additional 50,000 people gathered in Gwangju and 20,000 in Daegu.

It was the fifth and largest weekly protest to date since allegations of corruption emerged in September surrounding the president and her personal confidante, Choi Soon-sil. Counting all the protests around the country, the rallies were the largest in South Koreas history.

In Seoul, the protesters again filled Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul and marched within 200 meters of Cheongwadae, the presidential residence, while chanting Park Geun-hye, resign! They also carried placards reading Arrest President Park and Surrender Now. The protest was organized by 1,500 civic groups, many of which have close ties to the Democrats and other official opposition parties.

The immediate scandal involves accusations that Park allowed Choi Soon-sil, who holds no government post, to be involved in deciding policy matters and to solicit funds from corporations for companies that she effectively controlled. This affair is bound up with rifts in South Korean ruling circles, including Parks own Saenuri Party.

However, the demonstrations also reflect broader popular opposition to her administrations attacks on working-class conditions and basic democratic and social rights, including a drive to casualize the workforce, cut jobs, and privatize state-owned industries.

For many people, these are the first protests they have ever attended. Students from middle schools, high schools, and universities continued to take part in large numbers. Chang Hae-jin, an 18-year-old high school senior, told the media: This is my first time participating in a rally. When I was studying for the (college entrance) exam, I was sorry because I could not do anything. Park should not hide like this. She should be honest about her wrongdoings.

Parents also continued to bring their children. Jung Young-hoon, a 36-year-old father of two, told the Korea Herald: It is difficult to take care of my children on the street during the rally, especially because of the weather, but it is peaceful, so its okay. I had to come to show them this is democracy.

Significantly, protestors demands are beginning to go beyond the status of the president. As of last Friday, the student unions at 13 universities had decided to boycott classes while an additional 10 are expected to join them this week. Students at Korea University have occupied the schools main building since Thursday to denounce the chancellors future plans, which include eliminating one of the universitys departments and raising tuition fees.

At Seoul National University students have occupied the administration building for a month to oppose privatization plans. The president of the student body, Lee Tak-gyu, said students would join the class boycott on November 30.

Demonstrators are also once more taking aim at the Park administrations decision to revise history textbooks for middle and high schools. The government is attempting to re-write the books to whitewash the crimes of conservative leaders and dictators, including Parks father, General Park Chung-hee.

Cho Seong-hun, 21, a student at Myongji University, said: Students are taking to the streets as they are angry about Parks policies, including a government-authored history textbook. He added, reflecting the struggle young people face to find employment: I am majoring in library and information science. Most graduates become librarians, and its getting more and more difficult to get a permanent job.

According to Lee Jun-hyup of the Hyundai Research Institute, one in three youth, those between the ages of 15 and 29 years-old, could be considered unemployed. The real unemployment rate for all workers stands at 10 percent, including those who have given up looking for work or are in part-time jobs involuntarily.

For now, however, the protests have not gone beyond the confines established by the opposition parties, led by the Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK). These bourgeois parties are attempting to divert the public anger into support for their own campaigns, particularly for the presidential election scheduled for next year, and quell discontent over the growing social crisis.

Democrats and conservatives have the same aim. While Chu Mi-ae and Moon Jae-in of the MPK again took part in Saturdays rally, right-wing politicians also joined, including Nam Gyeong-pil, the governor of Gyeonggi Province who recently left the ruling Saenuri Party, and former Seoul mayor Oh Se-hun.

The MPK and its allies, the Peoples Party and Justice Party, as well as the anti-Park faction of the Saenuri Party have formed a de facto alliance, backing the presidents removal. The opposition intends to propose an impeachment bill this Wednesday, with a vote as early as Friday and no later than December 9. Saenuri must promptly cooperate with the impeachment move that the three opposition parties have agreed to, said Representative Chu Mi-ae, the MPK leader, appealing to those who still back Park or who may waver at the thought of breaking with their party.

Nam Gyeong-pil, a potential presidential candidate who openly supports South Korea obtaining nuclear weapons, stated at a recent news conference: The impeachment motion should be done by December 9. If it pointlessly drags on, the peoples patience will reach its limit. In other words, if Park is not removed soon, the protestors could begin advancing demands that none of the parties are willing to meet.

For the impeachment bill to pass, it requires a two-thirds vote of the 300-seat National Assembly. Assuming that all opposition and independent lawmakers vote in favor, it would still need the support of at least 28 lawmakers from the Saenuri Party. According to Yonhap News Agency, some 40 Saenuri lawmakers may vote for its approval.

If the bill succeeds, Park would remain president, but her official duties would be transferred to Prime Minister Hwang Gyo-an. The Constitutional Court would then examine the case. If six out of the nine justices support the charges against her, Park would be removed as president and a new election would be held within 60 days. The court proceedings could drag on for weeks. In 2004, the Constitutional Court took 63 days to dismiss impeachment charges against President Roh Moo-hyun (No Mu-hyeon).

According to media polls, Parks approval rating has fallen to 4 percent, the lowest of any South Korean president. She is expected to deliver another public apology this week, but has shown no signs of willingly giving up her office.

Support for the Saenuri Party has fallen to 12 percent. The pro-Park faction comprises about 68 lawmakers out of the 128 conservative party members in the National Assembly. The faction recently boycotted a party meeting to discuss the impeachment procedures.

The author also recommends:

South Korean opposition parties call for President Parks impeachment

[23 November 2016]
Manitobans may soon lose the advantage of cheap hydro rates if a recently signed trade agreement is ratified.That is because the Canada-EU (CETA), signed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the end of October, effectively allows foreign, private investors the right to compete with government-owned companies, including Manitoba's supplier of electrical energy and natural gas.He was speaking at a press conference on Oct. 25 on the occasion of a constitutional challenge he had filed the previous Friday with the Federal Court of Canada.The statement of claim maintains that clauses within CETA effectively call for the elimination of subsidies, monopolies and state enterprises intended for the public welfare.It also argues that the patriation of the Constitution in 1982 eliminated 'Crown Prerogative' meaning the prime minister needs the backing of Parliament before he can legally sign any international treaty.The investor-state dispute settlements are determined in international tribunals outside the jurisdiction of Canadian courts.Galati's statement of claim maintains that the ceding of decisions in disputes over property and legal matters to a foreign tribunal in-camera violates Canadians' constitutional right to a fair, public and independent judiciary.The constitutional challenge also argues CETA encroaches on areas of exclusive provincial jurisdiction, such as natural resources, education, health, the regulation of professionals and the incorporation of companies with provincial objects. Such encroachment violates the constitutionally mandated division of powers.Canada's International Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland has referred to CETA "as a way for Canada and Europe to push back against the anti-globalization sentiment and to show that a progressive trade agreement can be done."These agreements are invariably engineered in corporate and elite political sectors. There is virtually no involvement on the part of public interest groups, including labour, environmental and farm organizations, in the crafting of these deals. In Canada, there were not even well-publicized public consultations on the deal.The very sectors which played an important role in establishing the 'progressive values' within Canada and the EU had no role to play in the creation of CETA.Framing the discussion as trade among like-minded progressive nations distracts from the very real concern about how CETA would interact with NAFTA..The national treatment articles in NAFTA mandate that U.S. and Mexican investors are entitled to the same benefits and advantages European investors enjoy. Only in this instance, Canadian investors would not realize reciprocal advantages with the other NAFTA countries.With so much at stake, Manitobans and Canadians deserve a much more thorough debate and discussion about the possible ramifications of these trade agreements.We have seen CETA promoters like former prime minister Brian Mulroney granted multiple interviews and given plenty of room to expound on the virtues of the deal.By contrast, critics like Rocco Galati, Maude Barlow of the Council of Canadians and former minister of defence Paul Hellyer have largely been relegated to the sidelines.With so much at stake, Canadians deserve a full, honest and informed conversation about CETA and the potential Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).Unrestricted access for Manitoba agricultural and other products to the world's largest markets may be a tantalizing prospect. But the price to our democracy, sovereignty and standard of living could prove to be too rich for our blood.
The Israel Air Force attacked an abandoned ISIS military facility in the Syrian Golan Heights early Monday in response to the mortar and gunfire aimed at an IDF patrol from that area the previous day, dropping 10 one-ton bombs on the target.

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There were no immediate reports of injuries.

The target, an outpost in Wadi Sirhan not far from the border with Israel, was previously used by the UN. International forces abandoned the outpost two years ago after fighters from Shuhada' al-Yarmouk (the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade), which is affiliated with ISIS, kidnapped UN peacekeepers.

It has since been taken over by the militants and serves as a base of operations near the border with Israel. The outpost is used for training and to store arms.

The Israel-Syria border fence (Photo: Avihu Shapira)

"This is a follow-up attack to the one carried out yesterday (Sunday), meant to prevent the terrorists from returning to the facility, which constitutes a substantial threat in the area," the IDF Spokesman's Office said in a statement.

The skirmish began on Sunday when a unit of the IDF's Golani Brigade was in the middle of an ambush operation near the border fence not far from moshav Nov.

The soldiers came under fire by the terrorists from a heavy machine gun-mounted vehicle.

Shortly after the gunshots were reported, prompting the soldiers to return fire, a number of mortar shells were also fired in Israel's direction from the Syrian side of the Golan Heights which landed near the security fence. Moments later, the IAF reported it had killed all four terrorists.

Following the skirmish on Sunday, the IDF raised the alert level across the Israel-Syria borderfrom Hamat Gader near the Sea of Galilee to the Hermon Mountain in the northern part of the Israeli Golan.

There are hundreds of Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade militants in the area who fight the Syrian regime and the Nusra Front group (affiliated with al-Qaeda) from time to time.

The incident breaks with usual patterns of similar incidents which have taken place over recent weeks in which fighting between rebel forces and the Syrian regime is usually presumed to be the cause of stray mortars and bullets, rather than deliberate attacks by ISIS terrorists.

Nevertheless, the assault on Israeli territory does come against a background of renewed fighting between rebel forces and the Syrian army commanded by President Bashar Assad.

Indeed, on Saturday rebel forces announced an operation designed to lift the regimes siege on areas controlled by the rebels.
MANILA - Philippine police detonated a suspicious package they thought could have been a home-made bomb found in a trash bin near the US embassy in Manila on Monday, the police chief in the capital said.

There was no damage from the controlled detonation, Senior Superintendent Joel Coronel said, although the incident created a traffic jam in the area.

Business at the embassy continued as normal, with dozens of Filipinos queuing outside for visa applications. There was no immediate comment about the incident from embassy officials.

Coronel said police received a call before 7am local time (11pm GMT Sunday) from a street sweeper who found an old mobile phone with black and red electrical wires connected to a package. It was thought the package could have been a bomb.

"There is no danger, there is no cause for alarm," Coronel told reporters. He said there were no explosives, such as gunpowder, in the package.

"The blast you heard was caused by ... a controlled detonation. We are trying to identify who left the package at the trash bin," he said.

However, a police intelligence official, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said the mobile phone was connected to an 81 mm mortar shell.

"We are still making further investigations to check if the ordnance is live," the intelligence official told Reuters.
NEW YORK  US President-elect Donald Trump claimed without evidence Sunday that "millions" voted illegally in the national election, scoffing at Hillary Clinton's nearly 2 million edge in the popular vote and returning to his campaign mantra of a rigged race even as he prepares to enter the White House in less than two months.

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Trump and his lieutenants assailed an effortnow joined by Clintonto recount votes in up to three battleground states, calling the push fraudulent, the work of "crybabies" and, in Trump's estimation, "sad."

The president-elect himself launched a Twitter offensive that spanned more than 12 hours on Sunday, casting a shadow over the legitimacy of an election that he actually won.

US President-elect Donald Trump (Photo: AP)

"I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," he tweeted in the afternoon before alleging in an evening tweet "serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California."

Trump's transition team did not respond to questions seeking evidence of the unfounded claims.

There's been no indication of widespread vote manipulation, illegal voting or hacking that materially affected the outcome one way or the other. It's that very lack of evidence that suggests Trump is likely to prevail in recounts.

Trump on Sunday tweeted part of Clinton's concession speech, when she told supporters they must accept that "Donald Trump is going to be our president," and snippets from her debate remarks, when she denounced the Republican nominee for refusing to say in advance that he would accept the Election Day verdict.

This came on top of his saying it was a "scam" that Green Party nominee Jill Stein was revisiting the vote count in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Trump won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday. His Michigan margin was a hair's breadth 0.22 percent of the state's votes.

Clinton leads the national popular vote by close to 2 million votes, but Trump won 290 electoral votes to Clinton's 232, not counting Michigan. She could conceivably tip the electoral balance in the remote event that all flipped to her in recounts.

Hillary Clinton (Photo: AFP)

Trump was mostly silent on the brewing recount effort until it became known that Clinton would join it, at least in Wisconsin. On Saturday, a day after Wisconsin officials said they would conduct the first presidential recount in the state's history, Clinton campaign attorney Marc Elias said: "We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides."

Elias said Clinton would take the same approach in Pennsylvania and Michigan if Stein were to follow through with recount requests in those states.

That loosened Trump's tongue.

"Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in," Trump tweeted Sunday. "Nothing will change."

He quoted from her concession speech"We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead"and he concluded: "So much time and money will be spent - same result! Sad."

On NBC's "Meet the Press," Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said Stein, "the Hillary people" and others supporting recounts have to decide whether they are going to back a peaceful transition "or if they're going to be a bunch of crybabies and sore losers about an election that they can't turn around."

Trump's incoming chief of staff, national party Chairman Reince Priebus, on "Fox News Sunday," called the effort a "total and complete distraction and a fraud and something that they should drop."

Clinton's lawyer said her team has been combing through the results since the election in search of anomalies that would suggest hacking by Russians or others and found "no actionable evidence" of an altered outcome. Moreover, Elias said, Trump has a vote lead even in the closest states that well exceeds the largest margin ever overcome in a recount.

But "we feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself," he said.

Trump beat Clinton in Wisconsin by fewer than 22,200 votes, less than 1 percent of votes cast. He won Pennsylvania by some 70,600 votes, just more than 1 percentage point over Clinton.
Members of the joint committee of the Knessets Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and Finance Committee convened on the eve of Yom Kippur, on October 10. In attendance were the committees chairman, Knesset Member Avi Dichter of the Likud, fellow party members Yoav Kish and Anat Berko, and MK Erel Margalit of the Zionist Union.

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They were asked to approve an allotment of NIS 2 billion (about $520 million) from the defense budget for routine matters, and to approve a separate allotment of NIS 1,000,280,000 ($256 million) for the purchase of two military vessels to defend Israels gas wells. They were not told if that was the actual price or a down payment.

The police investigation ordered by the attorney general is focusing on the vessels protecting the oil rigs, not on the submarines (Photo: IDF Spokespersons Unit)

The letter with the request was submitted to the committee that same morning, Margalit, who questioned the urgency, did not receive any answers. The request was approved.

Looking back, Margalit refers to that event as the Yom Kippur of the vessels.

The need for the two ships is indisputable. The gas rigs installed in Israels economic water are exposed to missiles from Lebanon, Syria and Iran, as well as to attacks of vessels from the sea. When the state began the litigation with businessman Yitzhak Tshuva and his partners on the distribution of the gas profits, I asked why were they not required to cover at least part of the security expenses. Security is the states business, not the those who own the franchise, the state responded.

In the October meeting, Margalit asked why the money was being taken from the budget. Wouldnt it be more appropriate to borrow the money and repay the loan from the gas profits in the future? He did not receive a response on that, either.

The police investigation ordered last week by Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit , focuses on the vessels, not on the submarines. The investigators, members of the Lahav 443s financial unit, will be interested in knowing why the international bid for the construction of the two ships was suddenly canceled, and why the deal was signed instead with the German company without a tender. As far as I know, four shipyards operating in different countries, including one which is partly owned by Israeli businessman, showed an interest in the tender. Someone decided to cut a corner.

Is Israel seen as a Third World country?

The job was given to Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW), a subsidiary of the ThyssenKrupp conglomerate corporation, which manufactures the submarines ordered by Israel. The investigators will have to peel a few layers before they reach the gist. ThyssenKrupp is a huge corporation, which produces vessels, spare parts for cars, etc. Its work ethic in Third World countries has generated harsh accusations in the German media, police investigations and forced resignations among the corporations leadership. The investigators, in Germany and in Israel, will try to understand whether the corporations executives saw Israel as a Third World country, too.

HDW was founded in 1838 in the city of Kiel, on the shores of the Baltic Sea. Its official history mentioned the fact that it built Christina, the famous yacht belonging to Greek oil tycoon Aristotle Onassis, and skips its enormous contribution to the Nazi war effort. The 64 submarines (U-boats) it built during World War II destroyed thousands of the Allies military and civil vessels.

After the war, all the German shipyards were dismantled, apart from this one. In 2005, it was acquired by ThyssenKrupp. In 2008, in the middle of the global economic crisis, ThyssenKrupp was on the verge of bankruptcy. It was looking for a buyer.

ADM, an Abu Dhabi-based holding company, showed an interest. The companys chairman is Ahmed Darwish Al Marar of Abu Dhabi; the CEO is Iskandar Safa of Lebanon, a Christian Maronite, one of the most prominent figures in the global shipping industry. In October 2006, ThyssenKrupp signed a memorandum of understandings with the company from Abu Dhabi, which would have given the Arab firm half of the ownership over the production of the vessels, apart from the submarines.

For reasons that have never been explained, the agreement was not implemented. The Arab company eventually bought the production of civil vessels in Germany and the corporations military shipyard in Greece. Its ties with the German corporation remain tightso tight, in fact, that a defense establishment source wondered this week whether these ties were taken into account when the contracts were signed.

Additional layers

The next layer the investigators will have to peel is the maintenance issue. A was said last week about the purchase of the submarines and the ships. Little was said about the maintenance. The prime minister can buy more and more submarines, but the Navy will not be able to maintain them. The maximum number is six. So when the construction of the three submarines ordered by Israel will be complete, it will have to take the three old submarined out of service.

In internal IDF discussions, the Navy avoided promising that it would be able to maintain the two vessels purchased to protect the oil wells. Something will have to be done, and fasteither a major expansion of the Navy shipyard in Haifa or a privatization of the military shipyard and joining forces with Israel Shipyards and other elements, including the German corporation.

With all this lurking in the background, representatives of the German company Miki Ganor and attorney David Shimron met with the Histadrut labor federations chairman, Avi Nissenkorn. They pressured him to agree to a privatization. As this was going on, head of the shipyard workers' union Nissim Elimelech wrote a letter to the IDF comptroller, demanding the dismissal of Navy officers who were pushing for the privatization of the entire shipyard or part of it. The letter was exposed by Yedioth Ahronoths military correspondent, Yossi Yehoshua.

Miki Ganor is the next layer to be examined. Ganor, a Navy graduate, is a businessman who once got into trouble in Austria. Today, he is part of Caesareas upper crust, along with Shlomi Fogel, the owner of Israel Shipyards and an associate of Netanyahu's, along with Yitzhak Molchothe prime ministers lawyer, relative and associate as well as the prime minister himself.

Netanyahu (R) and Shimron. Why did the German corporations representative choose the prime ministers personal lawyer? (Photos: EPA, Yaron Brener)

The investigators may ask why the German company has a representative in Israel when, according to the Prime Ministers Office, Israel is working directly and only with the German government on this issue. Why did Ganor replace the previous representative, former Air Force officer Shaike Bareket, whose colleagues in the defense establishment saw as an upright and decent person? And why did Ganor choose to appoint David Shimron, the prime ministers personal lawyer, as his attorney? Did he do it at the Germans orders, or behind their backs, as they claim he did?

This is when the investigators will be able to return to the first layer of this parrticular onionnamely, to Avriel Bar-Yosef, who served as deputy head of the National Security Council (NSC) and who was supposed to be appointed head of the NSC by Netanyahu. Bar-Yosef has been questioned as a suspect in a different bribery affair, which also involves the Germans. He is considered the father of the submarine deal. If and when it is required, he will be an ideal candidate for state witness.

Attorney General Mandelblit held a discussion in his office last week in the presence of State Attorney Shai Nitzan, Deputy Attorney General Dina Zilber and others. The subject was the recent revelations made by Channel 10 reporter Raviv Drucker. The participants realized that they had been wrong to authorize Justice Ministry Spokesperson Moshe Cohen to tell the press that there were no criminal aspects to the affair. The public expects a certain moveif not action, then a clarification. They found it difficult to decide what to do, until a phone call arrived from the police and ended their suffering. There is new information, they were told, criminal, something that came up in Bar-Yosefs investigation or reached the police in a different way.

Major-General Meni Yitzhaki, head of the polices investigation unit, arrived at the Justice Ministry in the afternoon. The details he provided left no room for doubt. Mandelblit ordered a police investigation and made it public.

Mandelblit is a graduate of the Harpaz affair. He barely pulled himself out of it, admonished and humiliated. He was afraid that the same process, in which a conflict between the political echelon and the IDF develops into a criminal investigation and poisons the entire system, would repeat itself. He looked for a way to calm things down: The State Attorneys Office would monitor the reports, Dina Zilber would look into the conflict of interests prevention agreement signed with Shimron and Molchos law firm, the politicians and the media would do what they do, and the affair would be over. He was wrong, big time: Now he has no choice but to prove that he is determined to investigate, fearlessly and without prejudice.

Structured corruption

One of the main people to be interrogated will be attorney Shimron, who Mandelblit had worked closely with when he served as cabinet secretary. Shimron is in trouble. He has completely denied the allegations that he used his influence in the public arena in favor of the German corporation, and there are at least two significant cases in which his denials were contradicted by the facts. He also denied that he had ever informed his client, Prime Minister Netanyahu, of his commitment to the German corporation. An email sent by the defense establishments legal adviser, Ahaz Ben-Ari, allegedly contradicts that denial.

Senior Justice Ministry officials are in trouble, as well, albeit on a less dramatic level. After Molcho, Shimrons partner and relative, was appointed as Netanyahus diplomatic messenger, the two signed a conflict of interest agreement. The agreement, which was signed during former Attorney General Yehuda Weinsteins term, has more holes than Swiss cheese.

Later, when it turned out that the two were specializing in businesses in the media area, including regulation, while the chief regulator, Communications Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is their private client, Justice Ministry officials were forced to review the agreement once more. The holes remained, and so did the lack of transparency. One could not escape the conclusion that senior officials in the State Attorneys Office are intimidated by the power gained by Shimron and Molcho, and by their association with royalty.

The way these two have been treated should be compared to the way others have been treated. Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz, for example, wanted to appoint Shaul Meridor as his ministrys director-general. It turned out that Meridors brother, Matan, is a junior partnerwith a 3-percent ownershipin a law firm that deals, among other things, with gas. The brother was forced to leave that law firm and open one of his own. Now compare these two brothers to Netanyahus relatives and associates.

A brave, independent attorney general should put an end to this practice. This is, after all, institutionalized corruption. There should no longer be a mix between private and government businesses, definitely not inside the prime ministers aquarium. In Shimron and Molchos case, either they leave the prime ministers operations room or give up their private businesses altogether.

The question is whether Mandelblit, a graduate of the prime ministers bureau, is capable of thoroughly cleaning up the system. I recently read, in a book describing the corruption in the American political establishment, an old Yiddish proverb. After asking, 'Who invented water?' It answers, 'We dont know, but it was definitely not invented by the fish that swam in it.' Mandelblit, it can then be said, swam in the swamp that he now has to dry up.

The investigation does not have to go into the number of submarines the army needs, what the army said, what the NSC said, what former Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said and how Netanyahu went behind his back. These are issues for a public discourse, for the state comptroller, not for a criminal investigation.

I asked high-ranking security officials in both the past and present was their reaction was to the submarine deal. Some thought it was a mistake, though a legitimate one. Some saw it as a decent decision. And some even thought it was the right decision to make. The argument mainly revolved around strategic questions in regard to Iran, the IDF's priorities and the security budget. No one suspected Netanyahu made billions of dollars-worth of decisions to put bribe money in his own bank account. There isn't a shred of evidence that points in that direction.

Those who opposed the deal mainly wondered about its timing: the submarines won't be needed for another 15 to 20 years, and in the meantime the equipment will only get better and cheaper, our security needs will change and so will our priorities. Those who supported it said that if Netanyahu prefers to strike a deal with Angela Merkel and not her predecessors, he has a right to do so. They compared the deal to the deliberations that had prevented the government from purchasing F-35 fighter jets: both require a commitment that spans generations. It is likely that by the time the last F-35 arrivesm 80% of its missions could be achieved for much less cost by UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles). It is less likely, however, that a similar revolution will happen under water.
Gershon Mesika, the state witness in a corruption affair involving former senior Yisrael Beytenu officials , has told police investigators that former deputy minister Faina Kirschenbaum had asked him for a NIS 1.5 million commission in return for NIS 3.5 million to pay off his debts.

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"This is a sensitive topic. Commission in return for erasing debts is in the gray area, which smells a bit fishy, and that's why such deals usually get closed in small forums, where there is trust," Gershon told police.

Mesika, the former head of the Samaria Regional Council and chair of the Central Company for the Development of Samaria, became a state witness in the large-scale corruption affair in March 2015.

Faina Kirschenbaum (Photo: Ido Erez)

Officials at the State Attorney's Office described the corruption scandal as one of the most severe in Israel's history. They are hoping to use Mesika's testimony to convict Kirschenbaum, who was a high-profile member of Yisrael Beytenu and a close associate of Chairman Avigdor Lieberman. The bulk of the party's activities went through her, and she was involved in all its parliamentary and political moves.

Kirschenbaum and former tourism minister Stas Misezhnikov are among the 16 suspects questioned over the Yisrael Beytenu corruption scandal. She is suspected of receiving bribes in return for allocating funds that originated in the state's coffers to different municipalities and organizations.

She was in charge of the allocation of the party's coalition moneysome NIS 170 million a year in taxpayer money given to parties as part of their coalition agreements to do with as they see fit.

Settling debts in return for services

Mesika told police interrogators that he met with Kirschenbaum at her Knesset office in 2010 and asked for her help with settling the Central Company for the Development of Samaria's mortgage debt of NIS 10 million.

"I explained to her that the Central Company for the Development of Samaria took out mortgages from the Finance Ministry and that we needed to pay them back due to houses not being built (because of the intifadaLD). I asked her to allocate funds from her coalition money to erase the debt," Mesika told interrogators.

"I don't remember if I gave her a sum, or if she told me that she could help with NIS 3.5 million," he added.

Gershon Mesika (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

The two also discussed what Mesika will give in return for the financial help. "An understanding was created according to which she will receive NIS 1.5 million (in services) for party needstransportation and other things the company (for the Development of Samaria) could give," Mesika said.

"In an answer to your question, there was no (official) agreement. When it comes to Yisrael Beytenu, an agreement is based on someone's word," he added.

Several days later, Mesika received the green light from Kirschenbaum, and the Central Company for the Development of Samaria began providing services to Yisrael Beytenu. By December 2011, the debt was settled.

'I'd never agree to pay bribes in cash'

When asked by police interrogators why the company had to pay a commission for erasing the debt, he explained that "The coalition money given to Yisrael Beytenu can be spent as they see fit, and they would not have given me this deal without a return."

He went on to note that "the party has hundreds of objectives, and they decide where to allocate their coalition money ... erasing debts is not something very attractive unlike, for example, asking for a budget to build a synagogue in (the settlement of) Itamar after the murder of the Fogel family , something the party would want to help with and be part of the project."

Mesika said he made it clear to Kirschenbaum that this commission could only come in the form of services his company was already providing. "I would never agree to pay bribes in cash, because that goes against everything I believe in. I saw justification in providing services, having the party help the company and in return the company provides it with services," he said.

In addition to services the company provided the party, Mesika said Kirschenbaum had also referred people who provided the Central Company for the Development of Samaria with services and received payments from the company for these services.

Main suspects. Top row, L-R: Stas Misezhnikov, Faina Kirschenbaum, Gershon Mesika, and Alex Wiznitzer. Bottom row, L-R: Ranit Kirschenbaum, Moshe Kopple, Doron Simchi, and Dov Litvinoff (Photos: Yaron Brener, Motti Kimchi, Oz Mualem, Atta Awisat, Avi Muyalem)

The interrogators pressed Mesika on this matter, asking "How were these services 'returned' to Yisrael Beytenu? Meaning, the company paid hundreds of thousands of shekels as part of business deals with people referred to it by Yisrael Beytenu. How did this money go from these people to Yisrael Beytenu?"

Mesika responded that "It was my understanding that these people provided or still provide services to Yisrael Beytenu, and the payment we gave them was for those services they provided, provide, or will provide the party. That's my own reasoning. No one told me this. You have to understand there wasn't much talking done. When it comes to Yisrael Beytanu, it's all about actionsnot talking."

Mesika said it was clear to him that the people who were referred to him by Kirschenbaum "were all connected to the NIS 1.5 million" and that he had to hire their services.

"Every time there was a delay in payment to the people she sent, they'd go crying to her and she'd make sure to inform me of this, telling me 'What's going on with this? Any progress on payment to one of the people I sent you?'" Mesika recounted.

He described Kirschenbaum as "involved in what was happening as far as things moving along. She made sure things happened the way she wanted them to, with regards to payments for her people. If a payment was late, she'd talk to me."

Kirschenbaum opts to remain silent

Kirschenbaum, who is suspected of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, money laundering and other tax offenses, allegedly received personal benefits in return for the coalition funds she allocated, as well as benefits for the party itself and for her close associates.

Kirschenbaum allegedly received these benefits in cash or in funding of private trips for her and her family, among other things.

When asked to explain NIS 2 million found in her bank account and an additional NIS 2 million in her mother's account, Kirschenbaum claimed the money in her own account is inheritance money while the funds in her mother's account are both savings and inheritance money.

"There are two bank accounts I share with my husband. In addition to that, there is one more account managed by a management company due to my being the deputy interior minister (at the time). There is about a NIS 2 million balance in the account managed by the management company. Part of it is inheritance left to us by my husband's parents, which was around NIS 1.4 million, and the rest are savings we've accumulated over the years."

She went on to state that the money in her account appeared in her declarations of capital and that she had no connection with the money in her mother's account.

"The police sensantionally presented this money as hidden funds that allegedly originated in unknown, criminal sources," she accused.

After initially cooperating with investigators, Kirschenbaum changed her mind: "Since my (initial) questioning, there has been a war of attrition waged against me, as well as character assassination and blatant damages caused to me, my family and everyone around me ... My name and photos are constantly in the headlines. I've been personally and publicly denunciated ... I feel that the investigation is no longer done to uncover the truth, as police had already shot the arrow and are now marking the target around it. There is no meaning to this investigation as I've already been tried, convicted and denunciated by investigation authorities and the public. For lack of any other option, I decided to use my right to remain silent."
TOKYO - North Korea is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, seen by the North as a rare comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States.

State media reported Monday that the North has ordered flags outside official buildings be flown at half-staff to honor Castro. The iconic Cuban leader died Friday at age 90.

Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy and that a delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castro's memorial services.

According to a Japanese agency that monitors North Korean media, Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honored in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.
Israels use of the Supertanker the largest aerial firefighter in the worldhas fuelled an intense dispute after the Israel Fire Service claimed that the police put it to use unecessarily which will cost the state tens of thousands of shekels.

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Since the Boeing-747 Supertanker, manufactured by Global SuperTankern arrived in Israel on Friday, it conduct two extinguishing missions. However, both missions were preceded by the a protracted flight in which the plane circled above the sea awaiting the green light to execute its assigned task.

Supertanker in action (:  ,  )

X

We have no idea why you operated it beyond conducting a test run or for a visual performance, one official said from the fire service.

On Sunday, the Supertanker departed for Haifa, the city hardest hit by the fires, but was forced to wait for two-and-a-half hours above the sea in Atlit, a coastal town located south of Haifa until it finally received permission to proceed to Mount Carmel to release flame retardant on the raging fires.

Upon completion of the mission, which took just seven minutes, the Supertanker returned and landed in Ben Gurion Airport after three hours in the air.

Supertanker in Jerusalem Hills (Photo: AFP)

The plane was also used the day before when flew for two hours, once again circling idly above the sea before finally receiving the order to fly to Nataf where it also unleashed flame retardant before a number of reporters and photographers waiting in the area in anticipation of the spectacle.

Given that there were no significant fires at the time of its departure for a mission, question have been asked about the necessity of it conducting circles above the sea all at the cost of tens of thousands of shekels per hour.

Speaking to Ynet, a Jumbo 747 pilot of an Israeli company estimates that the cost of operating the Supertanker stands at around $10,000 per hour, including fuel costs and maintenance. For Israel this equates to 40,000 shekels for the five hours it was put to use. Overall, including the costs of flying the Supertanker to Israel, the country will have to foot the bill of around $1.5 million.

The police, which ultimately decided when and how the plane would be deployed, released a statement defending their decision: Most of the fires in the last few days developed in the afternoon which were intensified by easterly winds, the statement began.

Photo: AFP

As dusk dawned it became difficult to put the fires out because regular firefighting planes have no capability to operate after dusk. The Supertanker was put on alert in the air as a preventative measure in order to provide an immediate response to any area where a serious fire broke out which could spread. It should be highlighted that the speed at which the fires spread under the weather conditions over the last few days was extremely fast, hence the need for an immediate response.

The foreign ministry has thus far refused to divulge details of the operational agreements signed with the company based in Colorado Springs. However, an official did state that the contract was signed to cover a period of time and had nothing to do with the number of times the plane is sent into the air. The state will not be publishing the precise figures.
If a female soldier serves in a tank together with a male soldier, a little tank-crew man will be born nine months later. That was one of the arguments voiced against the decision that was published last week, to incorporate women in the Armored Corps as well

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Its so wonderful to have an imbecile argument to present in order to make the public discourse more shallow. This format repeats itself in every public debate. People voice the most foolish argument, it is attacked, and victory is secured. But this is not a public debate. Its deception.

A woman IDF fighter. Fearing the political correctness dictatorship, a careful person chooses the right to remain silent (Photo: AFP)

Colonel (res.) Raz Sagi published a book called Women Fighting in the IDF two years ago. Its not just a book. Its an indictment. According to Sagi, a lot of data were hidden for years from the public, from the women fighters themselves and even from the IDFs top officers. This indictment becomes more even serious because there was no public debate. Things that were said by retired senior officers , like Yiftah Ron-Tal and Avigdor Kahalani, were published and attacked. it was easy. They were defeated by a knockout. But no one dared to raise slightly more serious arguments, like the ones appearing in the book.

I asked Sagi if anyone in the leading media outlets had invited him to one of the studio debates on the issue. Not a single one, he told me. No one approached me. It may be another result of the political correctness, which is becoming the enemy of the public discourse and freedom of speech. After all, the argument that maybe, just maybe, womens service in a tank is an idea deserving a slightly more serious discussion, will turn the person making the argument into a chauvinist and misogynist. And so, fearing the correctness dictatorship, a careful person chooses the right to remain silent.

There are excellent arguments in favor of womens integration in the army. There are also successful cases, like the Kurdish female fighters in the Peshmerga. Those claims must be heard. But other claims must be heard, too.

Sagi presents a series of figures and studies suggesting that the incorporation of women in regular armies has led to a drop in the level of demands for operational fitness, and accordingly to a drop in the operational preparedness. The book is based on research from the American, British and Israeli armies, as well as on in-depth interviews and male and female soldiers. The results are troubling. Only 2.5% of women reached the male average in a 3-kilometer run. Sixty-two of 97 female aircraft mechanics failed to perform tasks such as replacing aircraft tires, and more.

Sergeant Kelly Logan from the US Army fought for the incorporation of women in combat roles. She got what she wanted, was sent on an operational mission in Bosnia and was forced to admit: I had a complete change in attitude. When we had to do things like digging and reinforcing bunkers, the guys ended up doing most of the physical work Many women were so unprepared for heavy-duty soldiering that they would have endangered the unit in a crisis."

A person whose opinion I value told me that the IDF was working to incorporate disabled and autistic people, and that this carried a price that a civilized society had to pay. Thats true. But women are in a different category. And most importantly, the research presented by Sagi clarifies that not only has the operational preparedness suffered, but the women themselves have paid a heavy price for the social experiment performed on them and on their bodies. Who cares about women, though, when its more important to appear enlightened?

And one more thing: The difference between advanced societies and dark societies stems, usually, from the status of women. Advancing women and gender equality is not a womens interest. Its a superior need of every human community. While we are in the midst of a period of change, the road is still long. But we are allowed to ask if this road includes turning female soldiers into tank-crew members. Before pulling out a Pavlovian response, we should review the research presented by Sagi.
'We need an English Parliament' Nuttall demands Scot MPs be booted out of House of Commons

By David Maddox, Exclusive Fri, Nov 25, 2016The TelegraphNorth West of England Ukip MEP Paul Nuttall says that under his leadership Ukip would also scrap the Barnett Formula which showers Scotland with extra cash for Nicola Sturgeon to spend on pet projects including promoting independence and breaking up Britain.In a radical plan he wants Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish MPs to be removed from the Commons which would then deal with English devolved issues.Instead he wants the House of Lords abolished and replaced with a second elected chamber for the whole of the UK.The new Senate would act as a revising chamber for the four national parliaments as well as the chamber which would deal with UK-wide issues such as defence, the Budget and foreign affairs.The Prime Minister would then be elected in the new senate while the English Government in the Commons would be led by an English First Minister.Mr Nuttall, 39, told the Daily Express: I really feel very passionately that we need an English Parliament.The way devolution has been done is very unfair on the English and it is creating anger among many people in England.It is clearly wrong that Scots should vote on English only matters and it is time they were removed from the House of Commons which should become the English Parliament.He said: Clearly the unelected peers have had their day. The whole Brexit debate and the way they have tried to block it underlines that. These people have no democratic mandate.We need an elected chamber but we also need to get really radical. If the Commons becomes an English Parliament then the British Parliament should be the Lords or a Senate and that is where the Prime Minister should be.He also wants to use the new freedoms afforded by Brexit to consider new devolved powers on issues like VAT and corporation tax where Brussels prevented powers being passed down to regional assemblies.He said: I just think we should hand over maximum revenue raising powers to Scotland, get rid of the Barnett Formula and tell them to get on with funding their own services.That would put the SNP in a difficult spot if they actually had to take responsibility for spending levels.Mr Nuttall will also maintain the partys commitment to proportional representation after Ukips 4 million votes in the 2015 general election only produced one MP.He said: It is clearly wrong that we got one seat for 4 million votes but the Lib Dems got eight times as many seats with just over half our votes and the Tories got a majority with just 36 per cent of the votes.We need a fairer system that properly reflects support for parties in our country.
El Al Airlines and its pilots have agreed to terms of a new deal aimed at ending a year of protests that forced flight cancellations, delays and higher expenses, Israel's flag carrier said on Monday.

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The airline and its pilots have been locked in a bitter dispute for the past year, with pilots protesting against El Al's attempts to impose efficiency measures to reduce costs, particularly as competition has intensified.

El Al, which has a fleet of 42 aircraft and employs some 600 pilots, said in a statement that the two sides were finalizing the deal and it would likely be signed in the coming days, sending shares in the airline 4 percent higher.

The Histadrut Labour federation said in a separate statement it was happy to help bridge the gap between the sides and they would meet on Monday to finalize the deal.

The dispute with pilots contributed to a 25 percent drop in El Al's third-quarter profit to $70 million as revenue fell 1 percent and expenses grew 7 percent despite a 17 percent decline in fuel costs, it said last week.

In protest at the efficiency measures, pilots who had taken on extra flights began to split them. Those working outside their regular rota would fly one direction and get paid to sit in business class on the return leg, increasing El Al's costs.

Instead of four pilots flying to New York, staying over for the required 44 hours and then flying the plane back to Israel, El Al was forced to send eight pilots on full pay. Pilots also extended flights by as much as an hour to receive extra pay.

After El Al banned split-flights due to the cost, it was forced to cancel about 15 flights, including to New York, Los Angeles and Asia, and lease aircraft and crews from European carriers.

Under the new agreement, pilots will receive an annual salary increase of 7.35 percent while pilots will halt split-flights and El Al will no longer lease planes.

Pilots will have overnight stays cut to 27 hours from 44 hours before flying the return leg, and a flight from Tel Aviv to New York will take 40 minutes less.

El Al has said some pilots' salaries have doubled to about 160,000 shekels ($41,421) a month this year, mainly due to overtime, adding 270 million shekels in labor costs.

Most El Al pilots are former Air Force pilots and many Israelis feel safer on El Al because of tough security, though the airline has been losing market share as passengers increasingly seek out cheaper options. El Al had allowed passengers to cancel flights or change dates without penalties.
ANKARA - Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed to Turkey that aircraft which carried out an attack on Turkish soldiers near the Syrian city of al-Bab last week did not belong to Russia, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said on Monday.

Speaking at a news conference after a cabinet meeting, Kurtulmus said "necessary steps" would be taken over last Thursday's air strike, which killed at least three Turkish soldiers and wounded ten, once flight records are reviewed.

Turkey's military has said the strike was suspected to have been carried out by Syrian government forces, in what would be the first such Turkish deaths at the hands of Syrian forces since Ankara launched a cross-border incursion in August.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that he has recently called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, stressing to him the importance of negotiating peace rather than turning to unilateral international moves.

"Let's not set fires, let's extinguish them and march together towards peace," Netanyahu told Abbas.

He also noted that he hoped the Obama administration would keep its word from 2010 not to allow for unilateral resolutions against Israel to pass at the UN Security Council.
The terrorist who stabbed to death two Israelis in November last year received two life sentences and an additional 20 years Monday from the Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court, while second terrorist, who attempted to stab to death a man outside the Ofer shopping mall in Petah Tikva, was sentenced to 16.5 years.

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Raed Khalil, a 36-year-old Palestinian from Dura village in the West Bank, stabbed Aharon Yisayev, 32, and Reuven Aviram, 51 to death at the Panorama building on November 19 last year.

Raed Khalil (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

Speaking shortly after the sentence had been handed down, Reuvens brother, Alex, said that he believed it to be just. We have waited for this moment for a year and in my opinion, the judges gave him what he deserved. The murderer, according to the requests made by the family, should not leave prison or see the light of day or his family, he said. It is my understanding that according to new laws he will not be released. He killed Jews and his place is in prison for his entire life.

According to the indictment, Khalil took a 23cm-long knife from a kebab restaurant nearby and from there went to carry out the murderous attack.

The two victims (from left): Aharon Yisayev and Reuven Aviram.

After taking the knife from the restaurant, which he put in his coat pocket, Khalil went up to the second floor of the Panorama building looking for Jews. On exiting the lift he saw Aviram and attacked him, stabbing him several times. Managing to escape to a synagogue, Aviram, screamed "terrorist" before collapsing and ultimately succumbing to his wounds. His second victim, Yisayev, was stabbed nine times.

Earlier in the day another terrorist was convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to 16.5 years in prison for carrying out a stabbing attack in which one man was wounded in October 2015 outside the Ofer shopping mall in Petah Tikva.

Alex Aviram 'Raed shouldn't see the ligth of day or his family' (Photo: Yarvi Katz)

The terrorist, 25, was sentenced by the Lod Magistrates Court which also ordered him to pay 100,000 shekels in compensation to his victim.

The terrorist after he attempted to murder a Jew in Petah Tikva

The convicted terrorist, from the city of ad-Dhahiriyain Hebron, was indicted last March after admitting his guilt as part of a plea bargain in which the state requested that he be sentenced to 17 years in prison and be ordered to pay a financial penalty.

Staying in a shop Kafr Qasim in Israel without permission at the time of the attack, he decided to carry out an attack shortly before writing a letter to his parents entitled al-Aqsa you are not alone in which he stated his desire to become a martyr.

Terrorist apprehended in Petah Tikva

When he arrived at Petah Tikva, he searched for his victim. Before choosing a passerby at random, he yelled allahu akbar and al-Aqsa before attacking and stabbing him. The victim resisted his attacker who attempted to flee before eventually being overpowered by more passersby and arrested.

Commenting on the sentence, the state prosecutor said: During the wave of terror stabbing attacks in the latter half of 2015, the indicted individual carried out a stabbing attack in Petah Tikva out of a desire to harm Jews because they are Jews.

The terrorists actions were carried out in an extremely violent and cruel fashion, the prosecutor continued, using a weapon motivated by nationalism and racism. Only because of the fight put up by the victim and the actions of those passing by did the attack not result in death.
KABUL -- An Afghan official says Taliban fighters have killed four border police in an ambush in the southern province of Zabul.

Bismullah Afghanmal, the provincial governor of Zabul, said the police were ambushed while on a foot patrol in a mountainous area. He says several Taliban were also killed in Sunday's clash, but had no additional details.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan, a police official says 30 ISIS militants have been killed in the eastern province of Nangarhar in the past 24 hours.

Police spokesman Hazrat Hussain Mashraqiwal says the IS fighters, including a senior judge for the extremist group, were killed in Afghan airstrikes and ground attacks. He says there were no casualties among the Afghan forces.
Arguments broke out shortly before a state memorial took place for the fallen soldiers of Operation Kadesh during the 1956 Suez Crisis at a military cemetery in Mount Herzl in Jerusalem on Monday.

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Shortly before the ceremonial proceedings got underway, some of the aggrieved families began expressing fury over the fact that the ceremony, which started at 11:00am as it does each year, was apparently changed to begin one hour later.

PM Netanyahu and President Rivlin at the ceremony (Photo: Amit Shabi)

Some families, more enraged than others, decided to recite the traditional memorial prayer for the fallen soldiers and leave the ceremony despite it being the first one to have been attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

During his speech, President Reuven Rivlin criticized the families who staged the protest. It is regrettable that you were caused so much distress. The decision was made to hold the memorial ceremony every ten years, attended by state officials, so the families would not be bothered by security arrangements each year. Because of (the fact the ceremony is held once every 10 years), we made great efforts to be here, he said. A question was raised as to why prime ministers do not attend the ceremonies and why there isn't a memorial every year. So now, the prime minister has come. This reception is completely unnecessary. What a shame it is to desecrate the honor of the fallen."

Speaking after President Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also apologized for the delay and the anguish caused to some of the family members before stressing the importance of national unity.

You are sitting between the graves. No one was differentiated then, and should not do so today, between the left and the right, between this or that part of society. They were all fighters for the people of Israel. This is the correct way to respect their memory, said Netanyahu.

Presideny Rivlin (R) (Photo: Amit Shabi)

The Prime Ministers Office released a statement clarifying the reasons for the confusion over the ceremonies starting time. The state memorial taking place now was scheduled in advance for 12:00pm. It was coordinated by the Defense Ministry. The prime minister arrived at Mount Herzl at 11:47am and entered the procession with President Rivlin and the chief of staff. The prime minister was not late and anything stating otherwise is untrue. The inconvenience caused to those present during their arrival and at the entrance was due to the construction of the Hall of Valor at Mount Herzl and due to the funeral processions of Miriam Eshkol, (wife of former Prime Minister Levi Eshkol), which will take place at the site in two hours.

During the Suez Crisis in November 1956, Israel, in cooperation with Britain and France, conquered the Sinai Peninsula from the Egyptians in order to stop the blockage of ships in the Gulf of Eilat. During the operation, 172 Israeli soldiers were killed, three were declared missing and one was captured.

In regards to the operation, Netanyahu said, "We did not have the support of the United States then, and as a result of not having that support, Prime Minister Ben-Gurion was forced under American and Russian pressure to retreat from the Sinai very quickly. Well, things have changed since then. We are currently in a tremendous international bloom, but the cornerstone of our relationships is our steadfast alliance with the United States."

"We are extremely appreciative and thankful for this support," continued Netanyahu. I never forget that and as such, I admire and appreciate the agreement we made with Barack Obama about security aid to Israel. I expect that at the end of his term Barack Obama will stand by his 2010 statement that the way to peace is not through Security Council resolutions, but through direct negotiations with the Palestinians, as was the position of the United States over the years."
BEIRUT -- Syrian opposition activists say an airstrike on a neighborhood held by the ISIS group in an eastern Syrian city has killed at least 17 civilians.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Monday that the previous day's airstrike on Hamidiyeh neighborhood in Deir el-Zour killed 18 and wounded others.

Opposition activist Omar Abu Laila, who is from Deir el-Zour and currently lives in Europe, said the airstrike struck a vegetable market on Sunday, killing 17 and wounding more than 25.
NICOSIA -- A United Nations envoy says he will employ shuttle diplomacy to help Cyprus' rival leaders get back to the negotiating table after reunification talks broke down last week.

Envoy Espen Barth Eide, the UN secretary-general's special adviser on Cyprus, said after contacts Monday with Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and breakaway Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci that resuming negotiations won't be easy.

But Eide says both leaders are willing to get things moving again.

Talks aimed at reunifying the ethnically divided island as a federation ground to a halt last week after the two leaders clashed on how many people would be eligible to reclaim homes and property in zones each side will control.
The Israel High Court shelved a petition on Monday put forth by Meretz attempting to block the appointment of Rabbi Eyal Karim as the IDF's chief rabbi. Karim can officially assume the position following a ceremony to be held Thursday.

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Meretz Chairperson Zehava Gal-On, MK Mihal Rozin and MK Tamar Zandberg said in response, "We respect the High Court for standing by its promise to clarify Rabbi Karim's words, and we respect the decision not to cancel the appointment. We are pleased the judges didn't reject the petition without reason, and we are sure this ruling was justifiably detailed, and that the verdict will be quoted from in the future."

Col. Eyal Karim (left)

The three MKs added that "This is a real precedent in the courts intervening in the appointment system, particularly in the IDF, based on statements alone. This is a warning from the court that veering from IDF values will not be overlooked."

Karim filed an affidavit to the High Court in which he said, "Every rabbi, whether he be a teacher or a public official is required to be capable of retracting and admitting a mistake. I am not afraid to say that I was wrong. I was wrong in that I thought briefly about complicated questions which have more to them than just one halakhik (Jewish legal) stance. I was wrong in that I didn't clarify my words accurately and there were those who were hurt by them. I have already whole-heartedly apologized for this."

Zehava Gal-On and Tamar Zandberg (Photo:Yaron Brener)

Karim clarified his remarks and said that he never permitted rape. Referring to previous anti-gay statements he had made in the past, Karim added that one should treat all people with dignity and equality, regardless of their sex or sexual orientation.

Sunday, Meretz MKs issued a response to Karim's affidavit, saying that they "welcome the clear statements written in the affidavit and the moral message included in it, which is important for all soldiers in the IDF." As such, the MKs explained that the petition had served its purpose and they will not insist on continuing proceedings.

"We also think there is no room for further consideration of the petition in light of the detailed affidavit provided by the respondent," said Chief Justice and Supreme Court President Miriam Naor in the ruling. "It is a shame the clear words of the respondent were not expressed earlier."

Naor noted in the ruling that it was "better late than never. The clear statement by the respondent's affidavit is that these statements are inconsistent with the values of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. We wish Col. Eyal Karim much success in such an important role and hope he brings glory to the IDF and the State of Israel."
WASHINGTON -- The death of Cuba's Fidel Castro is unlikely to slow down US efforts to normalize relations with its Cold War enemy, the White House said on Monday, pointing to the economic impact of the diplomatic thaw already underway such as commercial flights and other growing ties.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters at a daily briefing on Monday than any move to unwind the normalizing relations between the United States and Cuba over the past two years "would deal a significant economic blow" to Cuban citizens.
lone wolf said: I hope Poland kept track of all the screwings over and looks-down-snotty-noses and treats you accordingly Click to expand...

petros said: How many times has blackhead trashed Poles prior and now they are heroes? WTF? Click to expand...

It'll probably remember Britain declaring war on Germany in 1945 after Germany invaded Poland.Despite Germany's actions in WWII towards Poland and her people, the Poles still have no qualms, by and large, it seems in being in a political union with Germany.I trash them because they are all coming over here in their swarms.
COLUMBUS -- A police chief says authorities are looking into whether the attack at Ohio State University was related to terrorism.

Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs was asked at a news conference Monday afternoon whether authorities were considering the possibility that it was a terror attack.

Jacobs says, "I think we have to consider that it is."

Authorities say a man purposely plowed his car over a curb and into pedestrians on Monday morning before jumping out of the car and attacking people with a butcher knife. A police officer who was nearby because of an earlier gas leak was on the scene in a minute and shot and killed the attacker.

The FBI and other agencies joined the investigation.

Authorities say nine people were hurt, one of them critically.
According to the Israel Police on Monday, officers from the Lahav 443 special investigations unit arrested 18 suspects on suspicion of operating a network of fraud operations against international companies.

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Police stated that "Suspects were involved in systematically committing large-scale fraud against foreign companies, including false representations designed to convince victims to transfer funds to the accounts of those involved."

Photo: Motti Kimchi

The statement from police further added, "As part of their investigation, officers from the national fraud investigations unit raided the homes and businesses of suspects in Ashdod, Netanya, Tel Aviv, Ramla, Tira, Givatayim, Gan Yavne and Ashkelon. Computers, cell phones, money, documents and all materials relevant to the investigation were collected.

"Depending on developments, a hearing to request an extension of detention will be held in the Rishon Lezion Magistrate's Court. The investigation, which is still in early stages, is being jointly managed with the Israel Securities Authority and the State Attorney."
COLUMBUS -- A US official has identified the suspect in the Ohio State attack that injured nine people as a man of Somali descent.

The official identified Abdul Razak Ali Artan as the now-deceased suspect. He was born in Somalia and living in the United States as a legal permanent resident. It was unclear when Artan came to the US.

The official wasn't authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing case and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

A second law enforcement official confirmed that authorities believe the suspect's name is Abdul Artan. That official also wasn't authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing case and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Authorities say the suspect was shot to death Monday by a police officer after driving up onto a curb and into pedestrians and attacking people with a knife.
WASHINGTON -- An Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard vessel pointed its weapons at a US Navy helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, two US defense officials told Reuters on Monday, an action they described as "unsafe and unprofessional."

The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the incident took place when a Navy SH-60 helicopter flew within half a mile of two Iranian vessels in international waters. One of the vessels pointed its weapons at the helicopter, the US officials said.

The officials added that at no point did the crew of the helicopter feel threatened, but it was unsafe because it could have lead to an escalation.
Scam. That was Henrietta Schubert's first thought when lawyers told her a 16th century Flemish painting hanging in a French museum belonged to her Jewish grandparents, who had sold it in 1938 to secure their passage from Nazi Germany to America.

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But when France's government returned "Portrait of a Man" to Schubert's family on Monday, her tears could not have been more genuine.

"You never expect something like this," Schubert, 67, said. "The Nazis are dead, and this can help our wounds heal."

The Schuberts (Photo: AP)

Aware that time is stealing chances to identify the owners of lost or looted WWII treasures, France has dialed up efforts to find them or their heirs. The government, which in the past relied on claimants to come forward, now is actively seeking them out.

The groundbreaking initiative relies, in part, on painstaking detective work by dozens of genealogists scouring death records and other public and private archives to piece together the family trees of people persecuted or killed by the Nazis.

That's how an Edgar Degas sketch that Nazi occupiers in Paris stole from Maurice Dreyfus in 1940 came to be reunited this year with his daughter, Viviane. Her family was the first beneficiary of the government's proactive search program, launched in 2015.

"We just got back a small, little piece of my father that I never knew about, which is a beautiful, beautiful miracle," Viviane Dreyfus said at the handover ceremony in May of Degas' "Trois Danseuses en Buste."

Maurice Dreyfus died in 1957, unaware that the charcoal sketch of three ballerinas had been found six years earlier in a cupboard of the Nazi-era German Embassy in Paris. Dreyfus never had mentioned the 19th century artwork to his family.

Photo: AP

"It's wonderful that France is taking responsibility to find out who this all belongs to, as it's so much more than art," Viviane Dreyfus said.

France's museums still have and display some 2,000 pieces of unclaimed art and other treasures recovered after the Allies defeated Nazi Germany in 1945.

At least 145 of the items are known to have been stolen from Jews. Others are thought to have been bought or commissioned by Nazi occupiers, often forcibly. The histories of many of the pieces are unknown.

In museums, works with such a painful provenance are identified with a discrete label"MNR," French initials for National Museums Recovery. So discrete, in fact, that most museum visitors have no idea that they are appreciating art with a multi-layered history.

Photo: AP

Unclaimed MNR art includes works by Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir, Edouard Manet, Paul Gauguin, Gustave Courbet and others less well-known.

"Many Holocaust survivors and Jews who fled the Germans didn't talk about their often painful wartime experiences, including that they had art works spoliated. So many families don't know," Marie-Christine Labourdette, France's director of museums, told The Associated Press.

Now, genealogists are close to identifying several families as the rightful owners of recovered works. Their searches have led them beyond France to Britain, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Portugal and Japan, Antoine Djikpa, president of the Genealogists of France, said.

"Our goal is to establish all legal certainty," Djikpa said.

Yet in some cases, families have rebuffed the overtures for reasons that remain mysterious, he said.

"You can reach the paradoxical situation where an heir refuses any contact, while we are here to serve him," Djikpa said.

Photo: AP

The oil on wood painting returned to Schubert's family during a handover ceremony Monday at the French Ministry of Culture had been earmarked by the Nazis for Adolf Hitler's "Fuhrermuseum."

The Nazi leader, a failed artist, wanted to build a museum in his hometown of Linz, Austria, to house thousands of stolen works that he ordered be placed at his personal disposal.

Christopher Bromberg, Henrietta Schubert's cousin from Philadelphia, came with her to Paris to collect their grandparents' painting, which they had not known existed until recently.

"The painting doesn't even have to have any monetary value," Bromberg said. "It's about connecting us to our past and the story of our family that was lost."
A reservist and her civilian employer helped bring Thanksgiving cheer to military families here Nov. 21.

Senior Airman Raquel Densmore, 328th Airlift Squadron, delivered 18 holiday baskets filled with everything needed for a Thanksgiving dinner including gift cards to purchase a turkey.

In her civilian occupation Densmore works for T.Y. Lin International, a global, multi-disciplinary infrastructure services firm with offices in Rochester and Buffalo, New York, and headquartered in San Francisco, California. Their Quality Worklife Committee organized the holiday giving event. Employees brought in everything from apple juice to stuffing to pie crust. They even stocked the baskets with coloring books and crayons for the children.

Densmore worked for T.Y. Lin before she enlisted in the Air Force Reserve, but that didn't stop the company from supporting her military service from the beginning.

The company has always been very supportive of my military service. I am always impressed with the way they engage the community," said Densmore. Each year we choose a project for the holidays and since I had recently returned from deployment the suggestion was made to support our local service members. It is a really great feeling to see the people in my civilian family help out my military family.

The baskets were accepted by the Friends of Family Support Association and distributed across NFARS to all branches of service.




DOMINIC LAWSON: The horrific murder of Jo Cox and a contemptible campaign to smear Brexit supporters

By Dominic Lawson for the Daily Mail 28 November 2016Were it not for the death of the retired Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, the BBC would have been leading its news bulletins yesterday morning with the story that came second on its revised agenda.This was about a letter addressed to the party leaders at Westminster by the Equality and Human Rights Commission urging them to tone down campaigning that, it argued, has legitimised hate.It is clear who the Commission has in mind: the politicians who campaigned (successfully) for the Leave side in the EU referendum campaign.And the timing of the letters release to the BBC, just days after the conviction of Thomas Mair for the murder of the Labour MP Jo Cox, is far from coincidental.It is entirely in line with newspaper columns last week by some of those still unreconciled to the Brexit vote, one of which  on the day after Mairs sentencing  was headlined Dog-whistle politics can be a deadly game.The argument, such as it is, seems to be that the emphasis on the need to control immigration put by many of those campaigning for Brexit triggered Mairs unspeakably violent attack on one of the countrys most admirable politicians, who was on the Remain side.But the wider point of such pieces is to insinuate collective responsibility for the crime on the part of those who argued that Britain should exit the EU and become a fully independent nation once again.Such writers are almost akin to the fictional Dr Heinz Kiosk (an invention of the late satirist Michael Wharton), who, whenever some disturbing crime took place, would declare: We are all guilty.The imaginary Dr Kiosks motives were not political, however, while those who attribute moral responsibility to Brexit campaigners for Jo Coxs murder are engaged in pure politics.Indeed, the notion of collective responsibility is always highly ideological, whether on the part of those who attribute Islamic terrorism to Muslims in general or who blame all Jews for any action by the Israeli Defence Force.It is true that when carrying out his horrifying attack, Mair was heard to shout: This is for Britain. And the murder did take place during the final week of the Referendum campaign.But when you look into the details of Mairs (highly disturbed) thought processes, it becomes clear that Britains membership of the EU was not his principal, or even secondary, concern. As the trial judge said, he was no patriot but an out-and-out white supremacist, who for decades had been obsessed with the notion that the white race (a biological nonsense in itself) was facing extinction.He began his indoctrination 30 years earlier by subscribing to a South African publication devoted to attacking those who opposed the policy of apartheid.He would sign his letters to the producers of those pamphlets Yours racially. And his British role model was not Ukips Nigel Farage, still less Boris Johnson or Michael Gove, leading lights of the Leave campaign.No, his inspiration, according to material gathered by the police, was David Copeland: the man who in 1999 planted three nail bombs in London targeting, in turn, black people, Asians and gay people.The police also uncovered internet searches by Mair which revealed his horror that his mothers second marriage was to a man of West Indian origins.What police photographs of his bookshelves also showed was that Mairs personal library consisted entirely of tomes about the Nazis (he appeared to worship Hitlers regime) and in his bedroom were Nazi memorabilia. Does this remind you of any Brexiteer you know? Me neither.It is undeniable that nationalism played a part in the success of the Leave campaign. But to the extent that it did, this emerged from a sense of deep affiliation to traditional British institutions, the most important of which is a sovereign Parliament.It was, in part, to defend these institutions that Britain fought Nazi Germany  the very dictatorship to which Mair built a shrine in his bedroom.The Times last week followed up the Mair trial with a detailed investigation into the modern political groups that embrace that murderers world view.The main one is called Knights Templar International, which says it seeks to recruit members who share an understanding of the threats we face today from radical Islam . . . and anti-Christian bigotry.The point is, just as Islamic terrorists are not interested in the nation state, but in establishing a sort of global caliphate, so people of Mairs mindset see themselves as promoting an equally trans-national white supremacist movement. The crucial distinction is this: racism is not the same as nationalism, even though many on the Left talk as if the two are synonymous.Actually, the falsity of this equivalence should be obvious to people in this country. The most spectacular growth in support for any of our political parties in recent years has been that enjoyed by the SNP.Those three letters stand for Scottish National Party. It is an avowedly nationalistic party, forged in the passionate belief that the Scottish people should have independence from Westminster.But is it a racist party? Well, there are elements on the fringe of the Scottish independence movement who might be described as Celtic supremacists and who do have a hatred for the English.But if you asked most Scots if they saw the SNP as inherently racist, they would rightly dismiss the idea as insulting.So why should those who support the idea of British independence from the institutions of the EU not be similarly affronted by the implication they are motivated by racism?While the issue of immigration was highly significant in the Brexiteers winning campaign slogan Bring Back Control, this was not remotely a racist phrase  and it is a disgraceful slur on those who agreed with that to stain them all as incipient white supremacists or connected in any way to the weirdo killer of poor Jo Cox.The Brexit campaign would never have succeeded without winning the votes of very many British Asians. I know a number of such voters and the idea that they were driven by overt or even hidden racism is as offensive as it is preposterous.No matter what your ethnic origins, if you believe in the idea of the nation state at all, then you are likely also to believe that such a state must have some degree of control over the number of those who have the right to enter from outside and make it their home.A territory without such control has forfeited one of the principal attributes of statehood and, as a signatory to EU treaties guaranteeing absolute freedom of movement to the citizens of all 28 member states, Britain was unable to exercise that control.The problem for the leader of the Remain campaign, one David Cameron, was not that he failed to recognise this. It was that he recognised it, but couldnt deliver it.He declared on live television in 2014: Britain, I know you want this sorted. I will go to Brussels, I will not take No for an answer and when it comes to freedom of movement I will get what Britain needs.But he broke this most explicit of promises. This was made brutally clear to him by a British Asian, Harry Boparai, in an ITV referendum debate in which the then PM faced audience questions.Boparai told Cameron that he had voted Conservative in 2015 because of that promise, but having been betrayed on this, he would vote for Brexit in the referendum.Is Harry Boparai a racist for casting his ballot in this way and for that reason? The suggestion is an insult, not only to Mr Boparai, but all those who thought similarly.To be fair to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, its letter to party leaders does concede that: The vast majority of people who voted to leave the European Union did so because they believe it is best for Britain and not because they are intolerant of others.But who is guilty of the greatest intolerance? Perhaps those who insinuate that the Brexit campaign was inherently racist should look at themselves in the mirror and examine their own contemptuous attitude to those with whom they disagree.
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!

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Dobra, k. Szczecina 900 m2

40 miejsc parkingowych



Atut: Dodatkowe dochody z paczkomatow InPostu, a juz niedugo i z myjni samoobsugowej.



Tradycyjny zakup nieruchomosci, mozliwosc wykupienia uzytkowania wieczystego.
Justin's First Report Card...











Canada's Prime Minister Junior Trudeau's first report card, Since being elected:







1) From his swearing-in on Nov. 4, 2015 to Feb 12 , 2016, the Trudeau government distributed



208 cheques worth a combined $5.3 billion.



But only $997 million was for projects

inside the country.



The rest  $4.3 billion  will be

spent outside Canada

on everything from aid for refugees



to helping poor countries fight climate change.







2) Hired 2 nannies paid for by the taxpayer.







3) He and his family flew to the Caribbean for a 10 day winter vacation on a Department of National

Defence Challenger jet, which cost about $100,000 per flying hour to operate

but reimbursed the



Canadian taxpayer only the cost of an economy air fare.



Yet he could still afford to pay $2,500 US a night to stay in a 3,400-square-foot villa on the Island of Nevis.







4) He stopped the enforcement of the

First Nations Financial Transparency Act (FNFTA)

and



restored full funding without any requirement of accountability.

Achieved this by quietly eliminating the law



created by parliament demanding First Nations report on funding spending.



In addition, has appointed 5 new commissioners with 50 million dollars to investigate why aboriginal



Women

are disappearing ??



5) He reinstated the Mandatory Long Form Census and the $500 fine or up to three months in prison for



refusing to fill out the survey or providing false information.





6) In the rush to bring in the first phase of 25,000 refugees the government back in November had



our military vacate their housing on 7 military bases and

are still not allowed back.

The reason? There is the possibility of more refugees moving into base housing as complaints of hotel accommodations



become more frequent.



Also there will be another influx of 25,000 more refugees by the end of 2016, to bring the total to 50,000.



7) His secretive Board of Internal Economy" just gave all MP's a 20% increase in office expenses which will add



an additional $57,690 for a new office budget total of $346,140 per MP and an additional $193,029 for a new office

budget total of $1,158,117 for the Speaker.





8) He began discussions on decreasing the MP's workweek by 20% by dropping the Friday sitting of Parliament.

The reason? To make Parliament a more family-friendly workplace.



9) He paid $32.9-million (U.S.) to maintain Canadas membership in the F-35 buyers' pool, despite his election promise



to exclude the aircraft when selecting this country's next warplane.



So how does he answer to that? He creates a new secretive government committee tasked with overseeing defence purchases.



10) He scrapped legislation introduced last year that allowed Canadians who held dual nationalities to be stripped of



their Canadian citizenship if they were found guilty of terrorism, treason or spying

offences.

**The first person that will benefit from this is Zakaria Amara the mastermind of the plot to bomb downtown Toronto in an effort to

terrorize Canadians and cripple the economy. He will no longer be deported nor have his Canadian citizenship revoked.



11. In July 2016 , he has successfully achieved the loss of 35,000 Canadian Jobs across Canada while our southern border



friends have an increase of over 250,000 new jobs.





Now, aren't we all glad we stopped Harper. Way to go, junior!

_____________________________________________________________________________













Definitely not the brightest candle on the cake, something many of us realized from the uh,ah, uh getgo!















Just rec'd this in my email.
Health News

Minneapolis, Minnesota - After a career as a physician in Minneapolis, Denise Krivach, M.D., was looking forward to spending her retirement years in the solitude of the Montana backcountry. As the Star Tribune reports, however, those plans abruptly changed when she woke up one day to find her body "non-functional." Local doctors initially diagnosed her with early onset dementia, but the Strib reports the former physician "rejected" that diagnosis and came to Mayo Clinic for a second opinion.

"After months of testing" at Mayo's Rochester campus, Denise's doubts about her diagnosis were confirmed. Doctors told her she did not have dementia but instead was suffering from autoimmune encephalitis - a diagnosis that, in short, meant "her immune system was attacking her brain," the newspaper reports.

Denise underwent surgery and found herself "lying in the hospital to face an uncertain future." That's when she met Alta, a four-year-old golden retriever that spent time with her as part of Mayo's "growing Caring Canines program," the paper reports. The response  and connection  were instant. "It was love at first sight," Denise tells the paper. "It made such a difference in my recovery  I never felt like I was quite alone."

Jessica Smidt, a former veterinary technician who was hired to oversee and expand Mayo's Caring Canines program, tells us interactions like this are not uncommon. "We just met with a little boy who recently came to Mayo Clinic for the first time, and the only way they could get him to be calm was for him to meet one of our dogs first," she says.

During Smidt's time as Mayo's healing enhancement therapy coordinator in Rochester, the Strib reports, the Caring Canines program has grown from six to 30 dogs. And this "expanded roster" has "allowed Smidt's team to report more than 11,000 patient interactions in 2015, totaling more than 2,100 hours of volunteer time."

It seems those interactions are having quite an impact on patients like Denise, who tells the paper that her time with Alta  who happens to be owned by Smidt  has "given me my life back." And while that life may no longer include spending her retirement years in Big Sky Country, it's one that does include her now being back on her feet with a "much better state of mind."

You can read the rest of Denise and Alta's story here. And for anyone interested in becoming part of Mayo's Caring Canines program, Smidt tells us the need for more dogs "grows every day." To help fill that need, Mayo Clinic will be hosting a therapy dog training class in Rochester in early January 2017. You can contact Smidt for more information, or to sign up.
It must have been a eureka moment for John Buchanan when the idea of rotating captains or multiple captains struck him. Excited with the thought of revolutionizing the game of cricket, Buchanan brought the idea into limelight little knowing that the concept would be least welcome. <br><br> The concept seemed to be more of a conspiracy to sideline Sourav Ganguly from the captaincy of the IPL team of Kolkata Knight Riders rather than an attempt to bring about a change in Twenty20 game. <br><br> The very thought of probably not having their very own and dear dada in the lead role created havoc in his hometown A roar of resistance erupted... effigies of Buchanan were burnt, slogans chanted And thus, a mere idea  became a conspiracy and a sensational topic for everyone to discuss, just the way I am discussing it now <br><br> Though it is hard to believe that Buchanan had no other intention in mind while framing the rotating captains theory (by no other intention, I mean the one mentioned in the couple of paragraphs above), I wouldnt mind giving him the benefit of doubt. <br><br> Let us keep aside the sensational Ganguly-Buchanan spat for a moment and think of the concept alone. Would it really be wise to have different captains for different aspects of the game? What good would it do to have a one skipper for batting, one for bowling, one for fielding and one for the toss as well? <br><br> The KKR coach seems to be an advocate of a very popular saying, The more, the merrier. But alas, that idiom doesnt fit every situation. <br><br> While narrating his theory to the media, Buchanan said that it is better to have more than one brain working on a game plan. Earlier, in press conference Buchanan said, I think with Souravs help, with [Chris] Gayles help, with [Brad] Hodges help, with [Brendon] McCullums help and with the help of the other players it will work fine. <br><br> It is evident that the coach wants to have all the best brains of the team to work together and ensure a season for KKR unlike the previous one. But in attempting to improve the situation, Buchanan seems to have ended up messing it further. <br><br> The very idea of having to consult different people at different points in the game can lead to a confused situation. A team is led by a single leader, who has his own set of ideas or plans to implement and enforce. Inclusion of more people in the decision making process would do nothing but complicate the whole scenario. Rather than remembering the tactics of the game, it would be a more daunting task for a bowler to remember whom he is supposed to consult regarding his next delivery. Who was the bowling captain? Was it Gayle of Ganguly? <br><br> Every team is known by the captain it is led by. Team India now has a different charm and style of playing under the current captain MS Dhoni than what it had under Rahul Dravid. Thus, shuffling skippers would not only confuse the teams style of playing, but also its outlook. <br><br> Consider a hypothetical situation where jobs have been segregated for different people and we have four different skippers for a single match. Despite the job specialization, one cannot rule out the possibility of opinions and ego clashes between the four leaders. Polarization within the team would be inevitable and this would negatively affect the game. <br><br> Even a country with a decentralized power system has a single ultimate authority, the President. <br><br> South African coach Mickey Arthur voiced the same opinion. I favour the one-captain situation because everybody in the team is clear about who is in charge at all times, said the Proteas coach. If you have more than one guy as leader, you dont know whom to turn to. <br><br> Many would nullify the argument by simply saying let us give it a chance, and things like even Twenty20 were alien to us when they came, but now it is the most popular of all. Well, there is no harm in experimenting. The world is always evolving and so can the game of cricket. <br><br> With the criticism and the resistance revolving around the rotating captains ideology, it is not clear as to what extent the idea would be implemented. Though I fear a complete mess up, I would be lying if I say I would not like to see a glimpse of it. <br><br> For only time will tell if the Archimedes of the Kolkata Knight Riders will indeed have a Eureka show in South Africa.
THE WALL OF SHAME

"The only thing [Trump's] mouth is good for is being Vladimir Putin's c--k holster."

--STEPHEN COLBERT

"[Ivanka Trump] Your father is a racist birther. Steve Bannon an anti-Semitic opportunist. You and your husband are enabling hatred. F--- your shoes."

--BRADLEY WHITFORD

"Melania [Trump] is a hooker."

--JACOB BERNSTEIN

"And my job is to shut other white people down when they want to interrupt."

"We have to, at the DNC, provide training. We have to teach them how to communicate, how to be sensitive, and how to shut their mouths if they're white."

--SALLY BOYNTON BROWN

"And to our detractors that insist that this march will never add up to anything: F--- you! F---you!

"Yes, I have thought an awful lot about blowing up the White House."

--MADONNA

"Barron Trump looks like a very handsome date-rapist-to-be."

--STEPHEN SPINOLA

"Barron [Trump] will be this country's first homeschool shooter."

--KATIE RICH

"Hollywood is crawling with outsiders and foreigners, and if we kick 'em all out, you'll have nothing to watch but football and mixed martial arts, which are not the arts."

--MERYL STREEP

"There's a billion to one chance we're living in base reality."

[That means we're almost positively living in a simulation, like a video game.]

--ELON MUSK

"When I would deny that there was a significant racist component in some of the politics on our side, it was because the people I hung out with were certainly not. When suddenly, this rock is turned over, there is this'Oh shit, did I not see that?'"

----------------------------

"In any other scenario, Hillary Clinton's lying about her emails, and her pay-for-play relationship with the Clinton Foundation would be disqualifying issues. The only reason they're not disqualifying is because Donald Trump is a fundamentally more repellent, dishonest figure."

--CHARLIE SYKES

"I made a mistake in recalling the events of twelve years ago... I said I was traveling in an aircraft that was hit by RPG fire. I was instead in a following aircraft."

--BRIAN WILLIAMS

"I'm here to tell you if you elect me governor of this state, I will end the civil war."

--TOM BARRETT

"I would not look to the U.S. Constitution, if I were drafting a constitution in the year 2012. I might look at the constitution of South Africa. That was a deliberate attempt to have a fundamental instrument of government that embraced basic human rights, had an independent judiciary. It really is, I think, a great piece of work that was done."

--RUTH BADER GINSBURG

"Callista Gingrich. Karen Santorum. Ann Romney. Now, do you really think our country is ready for a white first lady?"

--ROBERT DE NIRO

"The death of Andrew Breitbart disproves the adage that only the good die young."

--JULIAN BOND

"The National Institute of Health has said that it is a danger to women's health and safety of their families that for 30 years to be exposed to the prospects of pregnancy."

--GWEN MOORE

"[Tea Party Republicans] have acted like terrorists."

--JOE BIDEN

"Why did- Couldn't the President have said at that moment, way back in December of last year, 'no game playing. No hostage-taking. No terrorizing this country with the debt ceiling. I'm not going to negotiate with you guys. You can't play it that way.' Could he have done that?"

--CHRIS MATTHEWS

"[T]he tea-party Hobbits could return to Middle Earth having defeated Mordor."

--WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL

"I remember distinctly an image of--we were sitting on his couches, and I was looking at [Obama's] pant leg and his perfectly creased pant, and I'm thinking, a) he's going to be president and b) he'll be a very good president."

--DAVID BROOKS

"I feel like calling her back and smackin' her around."

--FRED CLARK, DEMOCRAT

"The picture was of me, and I sent it."

--ANTHONY WEINER

"[I]f you go back to the year 2000, when we had an obvious disaster and - and saw that our voting process needed refinement, and we did that in the America Votes Act and made sure that we could iron out those kinks, now you have the Republicans, who want to literally drag us all the way back to Jim Crow laws and literally - and very transparently - block access to the polls to voters who are more likely to vote Democratic candidates than Republican candidates. And it's nothing short of that blatant."

--DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ

"This is probably one of the worst times we've seen because the numbers of people elected to Congress. I went through this as co-chair of the arts caucus. In '94 people were elected simply to come here to kill the National Endowment for the Arts. Now theyre here to kill women."

--LOUISE SLAUGHTER

"The protesters have proven today that theyre not going away. It was a pretty rough night last night. You can imagine if people said, well, we just cant fight the power. Instead, this morning, they came by tens, by hundreds, by thousands. By midday today, it was easily more than 10,000, perhaps as many as 15,000 people on the square here in Madison. Not organized by anyone, just grassroots citizens who came out just like the Minutemen in 1776."

--JOHN NICHOLS

"They're sitting on the money, they're using it for their own -- they're putting it someplace else with no interest in helping you with your life, with that money. We've allowed them to take that. That's not theirs, that's a national resource, that's ours. We all have this -- we all benefit from this or we all suffer as a result of not having it. I think we need to go back to taxing these people at the proper rates."

--MICHAEL MOORE

"Why don't we just raise the taxes and let these folks have their collective bargaining, have their union representation and go back to their jobs? Raise the taxes on the wealthy."

--DAVID LETTERMAN

"In 1933, [Hitler] abolished unions and that's what our Governor [Scott Walker] is doing today."

--LENA TAYLOR, Democrat State Senator

"So I would urge my Republican colleagues, no matter how strongly they feel -- you know, we have three branches of government. We have a House. We have a Senate. We have a president. And all three of us are going to have to come together and give some, but it is playing with fire to risk the shutting down of the government."

--CHUCK SCHUMER

"Well, when you start off with the Preamble of the Constitution, you talk about the pursuit of happiness."

--JOHN LEWIS

"I'm Rebecca Kleefisch. I performed fellatio on all the talk show hosts in Milwaukee. And they endorsed me and that's how I became lieutenant governor."

--SLY SYLVESTER

"Do you think this Constitution-loving is getting out of hand? I mean, is it a nod to the Tea Party?"

--JOY BEHAR

"We cant just leave it up to the parents."

"[Military leaders] tell us that childhood obesity isnt just a public health issue; they tell us that it is not just an economic threat -- it is a national security threat as well."

--MICHELLE OBAMA

"Actually, I did not take part in [the assassination of Sarah Palin]. I led it."

--KATHLEEN PARKER

"[The repeal of ObamaCare is] a kind of creeping genocide."

--JESSE JACKSON

"[Obama] has to realize that Mitch McConnell has virtually said so that politically he wants to cut out his heart and throw his liver to the dogs."

--DAN RATHER

"And the instructions are not to improvise a comedy sketch, but to elect a group of unqualified, unstable individuals who will do what they are told, in exchange for money and power, and march this nation as far backward as they can get, backward to Jim Crow, or backward to the breadlines of the '30s, or backward to hanging union organizers, or backward to the trusts and the robber barons.

"Result: the Tea Party. Vote backward, vote Tea Party. And if you are somehow indifferent to what is planned for next Tuesday, it is nothing short of an attempted use of democracy to end this democracy."

--KEITH "Reagan's dead and he was a lousy President" OLBERMANN

"I gotta wonder when people are gonna start wearing uniforms. I mean they've got an army out there in Alaska of militia people. You've got these guys going around acting like street thugs. I mean it isn't far from what we saw in the thirties, where all of a sudden, political parties started showing up in uniform."

--CHRIS MATTHEWS

"[Sharron Angle] is a moron on top of being evil... I'd like to see her do this ad in the South Bronx. Come here, bitch. Come to New York and do it. I'm not praying for her. She's going to hell. She's going to hell, this bitch."

--JOY BEHAR

"So people have been hurting and I understand that. And it doesn't give them comfort or solace for me to tell them, you know, but for me, we'd be in a worldwide depression."

--HARRY REID

"And to play Dick Cheney, all I had to do was find my Dick Cheney. And you can find all the villainy in the world in your own heart, and that's what an actor's job is. I always say to kids, inside you is Hitler and Jesus. And you got to find the appropriate person and bring them out."

--RICHARD DREYFUSS

"Because I live in the District of Columbia which is so predominantly Democratic, I am a registered Democrat. But I am an avowed neutral. And to put that into practice, I take my young daughter into the voting booth and she votes for me. She's now 14. We've been doing this since she was about age 4. She's now quite informed."

--BOB WOODWARD

"Sarah Palin's an idiot. Come on. This is a remarkably, stunningly, jaw-droppingly incompetent and mean woman."

"The Democrats may have moved into the center, but the Republicans have moved into a mental institution."

--AARON SORKIN

"Perhaps the greatest threat of all is the undermining of our Constitution and the systematic attack against the inalienable rights of the citizens of this nation, rights that are guaranteed by our Constitution. At the vanguard of this insidious attack is the Tea Party. This band of misguided citizens is moving perilously close to achieving villainous ends."

--HARRY BELAFONTE

"[Christine O'Donnell is] a witch who doesn't masturbate."

--JOY BEHAR

"Ah, the Tea Party, the nativist bed-wetters who somehow control our national dialogue. Yes, I call them the Pee Party, Jay, because they're always peeing in their pants about something. They're just, they're afraid of a mosque being built in New York. They're afraid of guns. You know, they think Obama, who like every other pussy Democrat has never said a single word about gun control, but they are very sure that he and his Negro army are coming after their guns. You know what? If you think that he's coming after your guns, you need to get out of your chat room and have your house tested for lead. He's not coming after your guns or your Bible or your fishing pole or your chewing tobacco."

--BILL MAHER

"That's a trade-off society is making because of very, very high medical costs, and a lack of willingness to say, you know, is spending a million dollars on that last three months of life for that patient, would it be better not to lay off those ten teachers and to make that trade-off in medical costs. But that;s called the 'Death Panel' and you're not supposed to have that discussion."

--BILL GATES

"NOT the 'whiteman's bitch'"

--IESHUH GRIFFIN

"[If Rush Limbaugh suffered a heart attack in my presence, I would] laugh loudly like a maniac and watch his eyes bug out. I never knew I had this much hate in me. But he deserves it."

--SARAH SPITZ

"You want freedom, you going to have to kill some crackers. You going to have to kill some of their babies."

--KING SAMIR SHABAZZ

"If this was Texas, which is the state that, that is directly on the border with Mexico, and they were calling for a measure like this, saying that they had a major issue with, you know, with undocumented people flooding their borders, I would say I would have to look twice at this. "But this is a state that is a ways removed from the border. And, um, it just, it doesn't make sense to me that when you google this subject, if you put in 'Arizona S.B. 1070,' that you see a picture of the governor of Arizona meeting with President Obama in May of 2010. If you have direct linkage to the president, there are already National Guard troops on the border in Arizona."

--PEGGY WEST

"Tell [the Jews] to get the hell out of Palestine. Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. It's not German. It's not Poland. [The Jews] can go home. Poland. Germany."

--HELEN THOMAS

"After the last eight years, it's good to have a president that knows what a library is."

--PAUL McCARTNEY

"By the way, I just want to point out I'm wearing my splash shield because I was told I was going to be in the splash zone (during Harry Smith's colonoscopy on live TV)."

--KATIE COURIC

"And that Word is, we have to give voice to what that means in terms of public policy that would be in keeping with the values of the Word."

----------------------------

"Think of an economy where people could be an artist or a photographer or a writer without worrying about keeping their day job in order to have health insurance or that people could start a business and be entrepreneurial and take risk, but not job loss because of a child with asthma or someone in the family is bipolaryou name it, any condition  is job-locking."

--NANCY PELOSI

"Back in World War II, we viewed the Japanese as 'yellow, slant-eyed dogs' that believed in different gods. They were out to kill us because our way of living was different. We, in turn, wanted to annihilate them because they were different. Does that sound familiar, by any chance, to what's going on today?"

--TOM HANKS

"The 'White Right' is trying to set Barack up to be assassinated.... Here are Christians praying for God to kill Barack Obama."

--LOUIS FARRAKHAN

"I refuse to accept the notion that the United States of America is not going to lead the world economically throughout the 20th Century."

--JOE BIDEN

"Obama's critics keep blasting him for Chicago-style politics. So, fine. Channel your inner Al Capone and go gangsta against your foes. Let 'em know that if they aren't with you, they are against you, and will pay the price."

--ROLAND MARTIN

"Martha Coakley is running to fill the rest of Ted Kennedy's term, and her opponent is a far-right tea-bagger Republican."

--CHUCK SCHUMER

"I tell you what, if I lived in Massachusetts, I'd try to vote ten times. I don't know if they'd let me or not, but I'd try to. Yeah, that's right, I'd cheat to keep these bastards out. I would. 'Cause that's exactly what they are."

--ED SCHULTZ

"We also see how revved up the tea baggers are at the thought of hijacking health care reform and every chance we have at making progress in Washington."

--JOHN KERRY

"A few years ago, this guy (Obama) would have been getting us coffee."

--BILL CLINTON

"I didn't realize I had written a column defending Roman Polanski and minimized his crime - are you sure it was me? I mean, I? There is, apparently, more to this crime than it would seem, and it may sound like a hollow defense, but in Hollywood I am not sure a 13-year-old is really a 13-year-old."

--TOM SHALES

"Joe Wilson yelled 'You lie!' at a president who didn't. But, fair or not, what I heard was an unspoken word in the air: You lie, boy!"

--MAUREEN DOWD

"One awkward moment for Sarah Palin at the Yankee game... During the 7th inning, her daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez."

--DAVID LETTERMAN

"I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasnt lived that life."

--SONIA SOTOMAYOR

"We all considered sexual abuse of minors as a moral evil, but had no understanding of its criminal nature."

--REMBERT WEAKLAND, Archbishop of Milwaukee 1977- 2002

"You know, you might want to look into this, [President Obama], because I think maybe Rush Limbaugh was the 20th hijacker, but he was so strung out on Oxycontin he missed his flight."

"Rush Limbaugh -- 'I hope the country fails.' I hope his kidneys fail."

----------------------------

"[Obama] told me I did a great job. The first lady said the same thing. I got a 'well done' from the president, I'm on cloud nine."

--WANDA SYKES

"Americans are looking for more government in their life, not less."

--COLIN POWELL

"[Tea Party goers are] just a bunch of wimpy, whiny, weasels who don't love their country."

--PAUL BEGALA

"I wouldn't want [gay marriage] to go to the United States Supreme Court now because that homophobe Antonin Scalia has too many votes on this current court."

--BARNEY FRANK

"Going forward, my mind will be open to every solution -- except one. We should not -- we must not -- and I will not -- raise taxes."

--JIM DOYLE, Liar

"He's a terrorist. Rush Limbaugh is a terrorist."

--JOY BEHAR

"You know, I just want to say to her (Sarah Palin), just very quickly...F--- you."

--JON STEWART

"Should I be worried about being a slave and being returned to slavery?"

--WHOOPI GOLDBERG

"I also believe that America is the greatest sin against God."

--FR. MICHAEL PFLEGER

"Those who think they can revive the stinking corpse of the usurping and fake Israeli regime by throwing a birthday party are seriously mistaken. Today the reason for the Zionist regime's existence is questioned, and this regime is on its way to annihilation."

--MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD

"We'll be eight degrees hotter in ten, not ten but 30 or 40 years and basically none of the crops will grow. Most of the people will have died and the rest of us will be cannibals."

--TED TURNER

"Look, [Mitt] Romney comes from a religion founded by a criminal who was anti-American, pro-slavery, and a rapist. And he comes from that lineage and says, 'I respect this religion fully.'"

--LAWRENCE O'DONNELL

"Mexico does not end at its borders... Where there is a Mexican, there is Mexico."

--FELIPE CALDERON

"The planet has a fever. If your baby has a fever, you go to the doctor. If the doctor says you need to intervene here, you don't say, 'Well, I read a science fiction novel that told me it's not a problem.' If the crib's on fire, you don't speculate that the baby is flame retardant."

--AL GORE

"Don't fear the terrorists. They're mothers and fathers."

--ROSIE O'DONNELL

"Is America ready for a black president? Well, I say we just had a retarded one. When did being black become a bigger deterrent than being retarded?"

--CHRIS ROCK

"Shut the f--- up! Shut up if you can't take a joke [about President Bush]!"

--BARBRA STREISAND

"Right, oh, yeah, Happy 9/11! Celebrate the day, right?"

--JAMES BROLIN, Mr. Barbra Streisand

"I think President Bush very well may have signed an authorization for the 9/11 attacks."

--KEVIN BARRETT, UW-MADISON Lecturer

"I said what I said. I am not guilty."

--SADDAM HUSSEIN

"Terri will not be starved to death. Her nutrition and hydration will be taken away."

--MICHAEL SCHIAVO

"On the eve of the election last month my wife Judith and I were driving home late in the afternoon and turned on the radio for the traffic and weather. What we instantly got was a freak show of political pornography: lies, distortions, and half-truths -- half-truths being perhaps the blackest of all lies. "

--BILL MOYERS

"I hate the Republicans and everything they stand for."

--HOWARD DEAN

"The Iraqis who have risen up against the occupation are not 'insurgents' or 'terrorists' or 'The Enemy.' They are the REVOLUTION, the Minutemen, and their numbers will grow -- and they will win."

--MICHAEL MOORE

"And there is no reason, Bob, that young American soldiers need to be going into the homes of Iraqis in the dead of night, terrorizing kids and children, you know, women, breaking sort of the customs of the--of--the historical customs, religious customs."

--JOHN KERRY

"F---ing retarded."

"[Republicans] can go f--- themselves!"

--RAHM EMANUEL

"I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president."

--HILLARY CLINTON

"It depends on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."

--BILL CLINTON

"And let me tell you something -- for the first time in my adult lifetime, I am really proud of my country. And not just because Barack has done well, but because I think people are hungry for change. And I have been desperate to see our country moving in that direction and just not feeling so alone in my frustration and disappointment."

--MICHELLE OBAMA

"If asking a billionaire to pay the same tax rate as a Jew, uh, as a janitor, makes me a warrior for the working class, I wear that with a badge of honor."

----------------------------

"If you love me, you got to help me pass this bill."

----------------------------

"[F]or most of my lifetime, the United States was such a dominant economic power, we were such a large market, our industry, our technology, our manufacturing was so significant that we always met the rest of the world economically on our terms. And now, because of the incredible rise of India and China and Brazil and other countries, the United States remains the largest economic and the largest market but theres real competition out there. And that's potentially healthy. It makes -- Michelle was saying earlier I like tough questions because it keeps me on my toes. Well, this will keep America on its toes."

----------------------------

"If Latinos sit out the election instead of saying, 'We're gonna PUNISH OUR ENEMIES and we're gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us,' if they don't see that kind of upsurge in voting in this election, then I think it's gonna be harder and that's why I think it's so important that people focus on voting on November 2."

----------------------------

"We don't mind the Republicans joining us. They can come for the ride, but THEY GOTTA SIT IN BACK."

----------------------------

"We can absorb a terrorist attack. We'll do everything we can to prevent it, but even a 9/11, even the biggest attack ever... we absorbed it and we are stronger."

----------------------------

"We're buying shrimp, guys."

----------------------------

"We are the ones we've been waiting for."

----------------------------

"We talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers so I know whose ass to kick."

----------------------------

"We're not trying to push financial reform because we begrudge success that's fairly earned. I mean, I do think at a certain point you've made enough money. But, you know, part of the American way is, you know, you can just keep on making it if youre providing a good product or you're providing good service. We don't want people to stop fulfilling the core responsibilities of the financial system to help grow the economy."

----------------------------

"If you've got a business, you didn't build that. Somebody else made that happen."

----------------------------

"It is a vital national security interest of the United States to reduce these conflicts because whether we like it or not, we remain a dominant military superpower, and when conflicts break out, one way or another we get pulled into them. And that ends up costing us significantly in terms of both blood and treasure."

----------------------------

"But I -- I think that the most important thing for the public to understand is, we're not handling any of these cases any different than the Bush administration handled them all through 9/11."

----------------------------

"One such translator was an American of Haitian descent, representative of the extraordinary work that our men and women in uniform do all around the world -- Navy CORPSE-MAN Christian [sic] Brossard. And lying on a gurney aboard the USNS Comfort, a woman asked Christopher: 'Where do you come from? What country? After my operation,' she said, 'I will pray for that country.' And in Creole, CORPSE-MAN Brossard responded, 'Etazini.' The United States of America."

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"I hear that Dr. Joe Medicine Crow was around, and so I want to give a shout-out to that Congressional Medal of Honor winner. It's good to see you."

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"We are God's partners in matters of life and death."

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"[T]he Cambridge police acted stupidly."

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"I am going to teach [my daughters] first about values and morals, but if they make a mistake, I don't want them punished with a baby."

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"The reforms we seek would bring greater competition, choice, savings, and INEFFICIENCIES to our health care system."

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"Over the last 15 months, weve traveled to every corner of the United States. Ive now been in 57 states? I think one left to go. Alaska and Hawaii, I was not allowed to go to even though I really wanted to visit, but my staff would not justify it."

--BARACK OBAMA
Washington: The death of Cuba`s Fidel Castro is unlikely to slow down U.S. efforts to normalise relations with its Cold War enemy, the White House said on Monday, pointing to the economic impact of the diplomatic thaw already underway such as commercial flights and other growing ties.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters at a daily briefing on Monday that any move to unwind the normalizing relations between the United States and Cuba over the past two years "would deal a significant economic blow" to Cuban citizens.
District of Columbia: President-elect Donald Trump made unsubstantiated claims Sunday of serious US voter fraud and said "millions of people" had cast their ballots illegally, offering no evidence for the assertions he put forth on Twitter.

Trump`s shock path to the White House saw him fall short of his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in the popular vote -- she carried the election by 2.2 million ballots -- but win the all-important Electoral College count, which decides the US presidency.

The Republican billionaire`s latest statements, in which he said he would have won the popular vote were it not for the "millions of people who voted illegally," came as steps are being taken towards recounting votes in the state of Wisconsin, which Trump won.

Trump and his aides have pushed back hard against that recount, with the president-elect letting loose a series of early-morning tweets in which he quoted Clinton about the need to respect the electoral process.

But by the end of the day, Trump was alleging on Twitter that: "In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."

Although Trump had warned before the election that the result might be "rigged," he had offered no such complaint after his unexpected November 8 victory -- until now.

Back in New York late Sunday after spending the Thanksgiving holiday at his Florida Mar-a-Lago resort with his family, Trump again took to Twitter, alleging that voter fraud had occurred in several states.

"Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn`t the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem!" Trump posted.

Trump and his aides have offered no evidence concerning the claims, nor did Trump explain why he would oppose the nascent Wisconsin recount if illegal voting was such a serious problem.

No election observers have pointed to any such widespread fraud.While the recount was requested by Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who received a minute fraction of the total vote in Wisconsin, Clinton`s campaign has said it would join the process despite having seen no irregularities in the White House contest so far.

Trump`s top aide Kellyanne Conway, in the middle of the turbulence, appeared Sunday to at least hint that if the Clinton team pushes too hard on the Wisconsin recount, the president-elect might rethink his vow not to seek Clinton`s prosecution for using a private email server when she was secretary of state.

Conway said on ABC that while Trump was being "magnanimous" toward Clinton, "I guess her attitude towards that is to have her counsel go and join this ridiculous recount."

Marc Erik Elias, an election lawyer for the Democratic candidate, said in a post on Medium.com on Saturday that the campaign would also participate in recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania if they are arranged.

Most election experts see almost no chance the election outcome could be reversed -- Clinton trails in each state by several thousand votes.

Trump won Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin by a total of just over 100,000 votes, even while compiling many more than the 270 votes needed for victory in the Electoral College.The dispute continued to roil what has already been a rough transition period, as serious signs of internal discord over cabinet picks again emerged on Sunday.

The discord centers around the position of secretary of state, with some in the Trump camp supporting Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, as a more mainstream choice while others favor the more divisive former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani.

In what political analysts considered a highly unusual public airing of those tensions from within the Trump team, Conway last week tweeted that she had received "a deluge" of concern from people warning against Romney.

Asked about that on Sunday, she told NBC that she was not "campaigning" against Romney, but was "just astonished at the breathtaking volume and intensity of blowback" to a possible Romney nomination.

Trump supporters were infuriated in March when the former Massachusetts governor delivered a passionately worded attack on Trump on the part of the Republican Party`s establishment, calling him a "fraud," given to "absurd third-grade theatrics."
New York/Washington: President-elect Donald Trump on Monday stepped up his search for a new U.S. secretary of state, with the focus on former CIA head David Petraeus, who is a candidate despite admitting he shared classified information with his mistress.

The Republican was to meet Petraeus, a retired general, at Trump Tower in Manhattan in a new round of interviews.

Once the top U.S. military commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, Petraeus was sentenced to two years` probation and fined $100,000 last year for the unauthorised removal and retention of classified information.

He admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012.

Petraeus has also been mentioned as a possible new secretary of defense. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, is also holding talks with Mitt Romney on Tuesday in his second recent meeting with the 2012 Republican presidential nominee.

U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are also in the mix for the job of America`s top diplomat, Trump aides say.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller, asked if the president-elect was nearing the end of his search for a secretary of state, said Trump is using the interview process as he works toward a final decision on the position.

"Hell complete that when hes ready," Miller said. "Hes going to pick the person that he thinks will do the absolutely best job.

PETRAEUS TROUBLES

Petraeus` past mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to him being offered a top government post, even though Trump harshly criticized Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the election campaign for using a private email server while she was secretary of state.

Trump often compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against Clinton, who was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but never charged with any offence.

"Just based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received a lot more punishment," said a source who has advised the transition team on national security.

Among the Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said.

Giuliani is favoured by aides who worked on the election campaign while ideological conservatives are more inclined toward John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded but some in the Trump camp do not want too many senators coming into the Cabinet, the source said.

Trump arrived back in New York on Sunday after several days in Florida for Thanksgiving. He caused a stir on Sunday when he alleged on Twitter that serious voter fraud had occurred in the presidential election in New Hampshire, Virginia, and California - states won by Clinton - but provided no evidence to back his assertion.

All three states on Monday rejected his claim. New Hampshire`s deputy secretary of state, David Scanlan, said: Theres no evidence that weve seen that supports claims like that. Voter fraud does occur, but it occurs in isolated instances, he said.

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla said Trump`s "unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd."

Virginia Commissioner of Elections Edgardo Cortes said: The claims of voter fraud in Virginia during the November 8 election are unfounded."

The margin of victory in Virginia was larger than what is necessary for a recount to take place, the state`s department of elections said.
California: Three California mosques received a letter calling Muslims vile and filthy, praising President-elect Donald Trump and saying he plans to cleanse America, an association of Muslim-Americans said Sunday.

The same short, anti-Muslim letter -- addressed to Children of Satan -- was sent in recent days to mosques in San Jose in northern California and Long Beach and Claremont in the Los Angeles area, said the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR.

The letter dismissed Muslims as a vile and filthy people and called on them to pack your bags and get out of Dodge, the council said.

Trump, the letter added, is going to cleanse America and make it shine again. And, hes going to start with you Muslims.

The document has prompted council chapters in California to appeal for stepped-up police protection of mosques.

This hate campaign targeting California houses of worship must be investigated as an act of religious intimidation, and our states leaders should speak out against the growing anti-Muslim bigotry that leads to such incidents, said Hussam Ayloush, leader of the councils Los Angeles branch.

Since Trump -- who ralled against Muslims and immigrants during the campaign -- was elected on November 8, more than 100 anti-Muslim incidents have occurred across the country, said CAIR.

It quoted the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), which monitors hate crimes, as saying over 700 incidents targeting different minority groups had been documented since election day.
Islamabad: The Balochistan High Court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.

A divisional bench of the Balochistan High Court passed the order during hearing of review petition challenging acquittal of the 73-year-old former president by an Anti- Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.

Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, the son of Akbar Bugti.

The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".

However, Bugti's lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former president Pervez Musharraf has failed to appear before the court.

The court ordered that the administration should ensure adequate security to Musharraf while he appears in court.

Pakistan government had allowed Musharraf to go abroad in March this year for medical treatment.

Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistan's rugged mountains of Taratani in Kohlu district on August 26, 2006.

Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistan's natural resources.

The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country.

Musharraf, who went into self-imposed exile in Dubai after being forced to resign as president facing impeachment following the 2008 elections, had returned to Pakistan in 2013 to contest elections but was implicated in several cases. He also lost in the polls.

He was not allowed to leave the country until government allowed him in March this year to go abroad for treatment following orders by the Supreme Court.

Musharraf has been facing a slew of cases, including the high treason trial since 2013 and he was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government.

Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.


Islamabad: General Qamar Bajwa's "pro- democracy credentials" influenced Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to appoint him as Pakistani Army Chief, media reports said.

A report published in Dunya News said that the decision to appoint General Qamar Bajwa as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) was taken keeping in mind his pro-democracy credentials, which he displayed during Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) sit-in in Islamabad in 2014.

Bajwa got the distinction over the other generals when he was commanding 10 Corps during the sit-in days in Islamabad. He said that as the commander of 10 Corps, which looks after the region ranging from Rawalpindi all the way to Siachen, General Qamar Javed Bajwa stood firm against any arguments of a military intervention, a Dunya News report said.

The media commented that Prime Minister Sharif wanted to appoint an army chief who should be military expert as well as backing democracy in the Islamic nation.

Another leading daily, Dawn said, "Gen Bajwa's relatively more moderate view of the relationship with the civilian government, it is said, proved to be the decisive factor in Prime Minister Sharif's decision."

Dawn also said that Prime Minister Sharif named the new military command, appointing Gen Bajwa and Gen Zubair Mahmood Hayat as the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), respectively, in the hope of stabilising the fragile civil-military balance.
Beijing: Nine more people were on Monday detained in connection with a deadly construction site accident in China's eastern Jiangxi Province that left 74 people dead.

The platform for a cooling tower of a power plant under construction collapsed in Fengcheng City on November 24, leaving 74 people dead and two injured.

Local police detained nine people suspected of having major liability in the accident, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The construction of two 1,000-megawatt coal-fired power units at the power station began last July and was expected to be completed by early 2018.

Construction on the cooling tower is part of an expansion of the Fengcheng Power Plant owned by Jiangxi Ganneng Co Ltd. The tower is being built by Hebei Yineng Tower Engineering Co Ltd.

Among the detained are chairman of Hebei Yineng Tower Engineering Co Ltd, and chief engineer of the construction project.

Further investigation is under way, police added.

Earlier, 17 people were taken into custody for the accident.
Islamabad: Outgoing Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif on Monday paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the army media wing reported.

Raheel Sharif is set to retire on Tuesday and new army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa will take over.

Sharif and Mamnoon lauded Raheel Sharif`s valuable services as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life, Dawn reported.

Earlier, Raheel Sharif told the media that he would like to dedicate his post-retirement life to the welfare of the families of slain soldiers.


Islamabad: With its new Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa set to take charge, Pakistan has asserted that focus will remain on country's eastern border with India, even as the US nudged Islamabad to keep the pledge of not allowing use of its soil for terror attacks against neighbours.

Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest Army by troop numbers from Pakistan's outgoing Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif, who paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif here on Monday.

Sharif and Hussain lauded Raheel's valuable service as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life, Radio Pakistan reported.

"The military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it (under Bajwa)," Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Geo News.

"Focus will remain on country's eastern border and the armed forces backed by the nation will meet all challenges," he said.

"The legacy of General Raheel Sharif would continue in the light of the examples he set," Asif said.

The Defence Minister expressed hope that the government and military leadership will continue to work together for the betterment of the country.

General Raheel will become the first army chief in more than 20 years to step down at the end of his term. Previous army chiefs have either obtained extensions or in the case of General Pervez Musharraf, staged a coup.

Meanwhile, the United States yesterday welcomed the appointment of the new army chief and expressed hope that the country would never allow the use of its soil for terrorism against its neighbours.

The US embassy in Islamabad, in a statement, welcomed Prime Minister Sharif's appointment of Bajwa.

"We look forward to continuing our work with Pakistan's elected leaders, with Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and with the Pakistani military to advance our shared counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism goals for Pakistan and the region, and to enable Pakistani authorities to honour their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistan's soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbours," it said.

Raheel, who is set to retire on Tuesday, was appointed as army chief in 2013 by Prime Minister Sharif at the retirement of Gen Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani.

According to Pakistani media and experts, General Bajwa's "pro-democracy credentials" and his low-profile influenced Sharif to appoint him to the powerful post of army chief superseding four top generals.

The military has been in charge of the country for more than half of Pakistan's nearly 70-year history since independence.
Guwahati: Assam Police are reviewing the security of some BJP leaders in view of threats from a faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam (Ulfa), a police official said on Monday.

Intelligence inputs suggest that some leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party may be targeted by the anti-talk faction of Ulfa.

The security of legislators Tapan Gogoi and Bhaskar Sarma are being reviewed, said the officer who did not want to be identified.

Some unidentified men fired at the vehicle of BJP leader Sibnath Brahma in Kokrajhar town on Sunday night and injured one of his associates.

One of the two suspected militants walked up to his vehicle and fired from close range.

"We have inputs that the anti-talk faction might target some BJP leaders. Security has been intensified across the state and the existing security of Gogoi and Sarma is being reviewed," the officer said.

"There are also inputs that armed cadres of the anti-talk faction and NSCN(K) have entered Assam," said the official.

Of late, militants have intensified extortion drive in Tinsukia and Charaideo districts.


New Delhi: LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan today said he will welcome Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar into the NDA and claimed that the JD(U) chief was apprehensive that his ally Lalu Prasad of the RJD would weaken his party.

Speaking to reporters here on the 16th foundation day of his party, the Union minister lauded Kumar for his support to the Centre's demonetisation step, saying he had taken a "bold decision".

Paswan's Lok Jantantrik Party is part of the ruling NDA coalition at the Centre.

"If Nitish Kumar comes to the NDA, I will welcome him," the LJP leaded said. He, however, added that any such decision was the prerogative of the BJP, which headed the coalition.

Paswan claimed that Kumar, whose party JD(U) was a former BJP ally and now a bitter rival, was working "under the pressure of Prasad" who had a "history of weakening his allies".

He cited the examples of Congress and CPI, both of which were influential in Bihar in the 90s but lost much of it during their alliance with the former chief minister, and claimed that the JD(U)-RJD alliance will not last for more than two-and-a-half years.

Sources in the JD(U) though pooh-poohed speculation over Kumar's support to demonetisation and BJP or Paswan's praise for the Bihar chief minister.

A JD(U) leader said to see anything deeper in this was "absurd" as Kumar had already spoken about making India "Sangh-mukt" (RSS-free).

BJP chief Amit Shah had also praised Kumar yesterday, setting tongues wagging in the political circles.
New Delhi: A court on Monday sent to seven days police custody Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was arrested here a day after his sensational escape from a Punjab prison.

Delhi Police told the court that they were probing his links with Pakistan`s intelligence agency ISI.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh allowed police to quiz Mintoo till December 5.

Mintoo was arrested at a railway station here on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from the Nabha prison in Punjab along with another terrorist and four gangsters.
Poland`s prime minister called Monday for a Brexit "compromise" and said, Europeans in Britain and Britons in Europe should not be "made to feel like hostages" as she kicked off a landmark trip to London.

Britain`s shock vote in June to leave the European Union sparked fear among the 800,000 Poles living in Britain, particularly following a spate of xenophobic attacks after the referendum.

Beata Szydlo pledged Poland would be a "constructive partner" in potentially fraught negotiations to set the terms of Britain`s divorce from the EU, but that London had to set out a clear vision for its post-EU future.

"We need a good compromise which gives both our countries the best possible options for economic and security cooperation," she wrote in Monday`s Daily Telegraph.

"But the initiative for determining British ambitions and expectations as to the future level of cooperation with the EU has to come from London."

Five months after the Brexit vote, Szydlo pressed London not to use migrants like her UK-based compatriots as a bargaining chip in the negotiations.

"One thing is certain: millions of UK citizens living across the EU, and millions of EU-27 citizens living in the United Kingdom, should not be made to feel like hostages," she wrote.

"That means we have to guarantee... their right of residence."Szydlo`s comments came ahead of a crunch summit between the two governments, expected to focus on defence policy -- such as the deployment of 150 British soldiers to north-eastern Poland -- and foreign affairs including Russia`s actions in Ukraine and Syria.

Ahead of the meeting, May praised the contribution the Polish community had made to Britain.

"I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship with Poland, rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it," she said in a statement.

"Today`s meeting puts beyond doubt the common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship and the benefits it brings."

May has repeatedly said, she remains committed to Europe despite voters deciding to withdraw from the EU, a process the British premier has said she will formally begin by the end of March.

She has promised to curb migration from the bloc and has said the UK`s approach to EU citizens currently residing in the country will depend on how Britons abroad are treated in the negotiations with Brussels.

With Poles representing one of the largest minority groups in the UK, Poland has taken a cautious approach to Brexit and last week President Andrzej Duda urged politicians to tone down their rhetoric.

"I propose a glass of cold water to cool emotions, so that in the end it doesn`t turn out that we all lose -- both the EU and the UK," Duda told Bloomberg.

Monday`s summit comes after Poland`s foreign and interior ministers flew to London in September following the murder of a Polish factory worker in Harlow, northeast of London.

The June 23 referendum on EU membership was followed by a spike in the number of attacks against foreigners and two Polish police officers were deployed in Harlow following their compatriot`s murder.
Chandigarh: The Haryana government on Monday ordered a probe into the lapses by state police who did not intercept the escapees of Sunday's sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in neighbouring Punjab.

With security agencies tracing the movement of the jailbreak escapees, who included two terrorists and four dreaded gangsters, and pointing out that they moved towards Haryana, the Haryana government has launched an investigation into how the escapees were able to go past the security barricades set up at various places in Haryana, including the state's border with Punjab, to intercept them.

Haryana was put on high alert after 10-12 armed men attacked the Nabha jail, 100 km from Chandigarh, and freed two terrorists and four gangsters. However, the main escaped terrorist, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) leader Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested from the Nizamuddin railway station in New Delhi while he was ready to board a train to Mumbai.

Home Secretary Ram Niwas said on Monday that an investigation team has been constituted by Director General of Police "to look into the reasons for failure of police personnel posted at naka (barricade) set up in Kaithal to intercept the escaped inmates from Nabha Jail".

"Disciplinary action will be taken against the erring police personnel," he said.

Two cars, a Hyundai Verna and a Hyundai i20, which were used by the attackers of the Nabha Jail and were used by the jailbreak escapees to flee, were recovered from different parts of Haryana.

The Uttar Pradesh Police had on Sunday evening arrested gangster Parvinder Singh near Shamli in western UP and recovered weapons from him. Another getaway vehicle, a Toyota Fortuner SUV, was recovered from him.

The Delhi Police's Special Cell arrested Mintoo, who had trimmed his bread and hair to change his appearance and travelled by car and bus to reach Delhi via Haryana.

Ram Niwas said that nakas had been set up in the state to intercept the escaped inmates, including Mintoo. "The Haryana and Delhi Police had swung into action immediately after getting information in this regard from Punjab," he said.


New Delhi: Delegations from both Haryana and Punjab will meet President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhawan on Monday and urge him to intervene in the ongoing Sutlej-Yamuna Link canal project dispute between the two states.

The all-party delegation from Haryana will be led by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, while Punjab`s Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal shall be leading the delegation comprising of his ministers and MPs of alliance partners from the state.

Talking to the media in New Delhi, Khattar said an all-party meeting was held under his chairmanship at Chandigarh earlier this week and it was unanimously decided to call on the President on the Sutlej-Yamuna Link issue.

Punjab has de-notified the land acquired for the Sutlej-Yamuna Link and transferred most of it to farmers.

The SAD leadership is miffed at not getting an appointment from President Mukherjee even as the Punjab Congress has already met the President on the issue.
New Delhi: An all-party delegation led by Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar called on President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday to request him to get the Supreme Courts decision on the Sutlej-Yamana-Link (SYL) canal implemented at the earliest.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, CM Khattar said, We appealed to the President, he must exercise his power and provide Sutlej-Yamuna-Link canal water to Haryana, to quench state's thirst."

We are asking for our own share, not everything, and now after SC's verdict we are assured to get what we deserve, he added.

Ex-Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who was also part of the delegation, said, SC has given its verdict about Haryana's share in SYL. Punjab government's acts are questionable and unconstitutional.

The decades-old issue of water sharing between Punjab and Haryana came back to the centerstage after a five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Justice Dave, recently, held as "unconstitutional" the Punjab Termination of Agreement Act, 2004 which "unilaterally" terminated the 1981 water-sharing pact with Haryana.

The apex court held that Punjab cannot "unilaterally" terminate the agreement or legislate to "nullify" the verdict of the highest court.

The Punjab government responded by denotifying the land acquired for SYL canal project with immediate effect and return it to its owners free of charge.

Haryana then rushed to the court alleging that Punjab was not honouring the November 10 verdict and the March 17 interim order by which it was directed to maintain status quo on land meant for SYL canal.
New Delhi: Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh on Monday met party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav in the national capital.

Amar Singh has admitted to be pained by the unacceptable activities and abuses that he is being subjected to by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav`s supporters.

He had said the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance and it was time for him to speak to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, who has stood by him even against the wishes of his son.

A senior leader, while speaking against demonetisation in the Rajya Sabha, said action should be taken against me. At the time when the senior leader was speaking in the Rajya Sabha, an FIR was being registered against me in Azamgarh at the behest of a senior minister, an SSP told me. Had I not registered a counter complaint in advance, and had I not informed the IB, and had I not informed a New Delhi DCP, then the Uttar Pradesh government would have possibly arrested me on those charges," Singh told ANI.

"My effigies are being burnt in Azamgarh and Lucknow; a minister of the state government is doing so to please the chief minister, and the chief minister who is the son of a person whom I regard as a brother. In such a situation what would you feel? I am pained by such things. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," Singh had said.

The Rajya Sabha MP is considered to be a confidante and long-time friend of the SP`s national president.

"Mulayam Singhji against his son`s wishes stood with me publicly, which is a debt on me. Hence, I don`t want to hurt him, but now the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance," he added.

Recalling that he had said in an interview to a news channel that the political face of Uttar Pradesh will change by October-November, close to the state polls, he said, "My statement, which I had given as a political analyst, was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji."

"I had said that after observing Modiji`s working style. He gives a long leverage to his political opponents, and when there is an election, he comes to the field displaying his special skills," he said.

"In West Bengal, all stings against Mamata`s cabinet ministers were on corruption, it`s another thing that it did not have any surprising impact on the voters. Madan Mitra, a cabinet-level minister - as the matter is in the court, I will not say that Modiji and Amit Shahji got him arrested due to some malice - but he was arrested just before the elections and has not been released till today," said Singh to buttress his statement on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah`s style of functioning.But my statement was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," he added.

Speaking to ANI on October 27, Singh, who kept himself away from the media during infighting in Mulayam Singh Yadav`s clan and was portrayed as a villain by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, had said he might not be with CM Akhilesh, but would always be with Mulayam`s son Akhilesh.

"I may not be with CM Akhilesh, but I will always be with Mulayam Singh Yadav`s son Akhilesh. The father of the SP and the chief minister are the same, and god stands as a testimony that whenever I spoke to Netaji, it was in favour of Akhilesh, Netaji also knows this truth," Singh told ANI, while responding to Akhilesh`s allegations.

"When I was struggling for life and undergoing a dialysis, Netaji had come to meet me and he said there was a discussion on the issue of state president and when Akhilesh Yadav replaced Shivpal Yadav as the UP SP president, even then I was blamed for it," said Singh.
New Delhi: Various Opposition parties on Monday held a countrywide protest on what they call the government's mishandling of the currency ban.

The Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said that while they do not support the all-India shutdown (Bharat Bandh), they will continue their protest in Parliament and on the streets against the BJP-led central government's demonetisation policy.

Only the Left Front, which has its presence in Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura, called for a 12-hour bandh in these three states.

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Bandh observed in Thiruvananthapuram #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/7INC0pP7uo  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Early today, several Samajwadi Party workers held a demonstration and burnt effigy of central government in Allahabad against the implementation of the demonstration policy.

In Bihar, CPI(ML) workers stopped Hatia-Patna Express train in Jehanabad in protest against the note ban. In Patna, Congress workers took out a Jan Aakrosh Diwas rally against the note ban implementation.

Bihar: CPI(ML) workers in Darbhanga stop train in protest against #DeMonetisation (earlier visuals) pic.twitter.com/Aj7eqyrHzF  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

In West Bengal, the 12-hour band called by the Left evoked lukewarm response as train and flight movement in the state remained normal with most vehicles hitting the streets, and markets and shops remained open.

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Normal life continues in Kolkata #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/uvoqCI7w6t  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Normal life remained crippled in Left-ruled Tripura and Kerala due to the shutdown call as all government and semi-government, private offices, banks, educational institutions, shops and business establishments remained closed. All types of vehicles, except security forces too remained off the roads.

Train services between Tripura and rest of the country were affected due to the shutdown.

In Chennai, DMK workers participated in protest against demonetisation of high value currency notes.

In Nagpur, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers observed 'Jan Abhaar Divas' to counter Congress' Jan Aakrosh Diwas and offered sweets and flowers to people working today.

Nagpur: BJP's 'Jan Abhaar Divas' to counter Congress's #janakroshdiwas, offer sweets and flowers to people working #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/z5JbYcBwmg  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

A meeting of all the opposition parties, barring JD(U), was held in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad in Parliament House here and it was decided that the protests will continue till their demands are met, PTI sources said.

The opposition parties have been divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against it.

While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, other opposition parties stayed away.

Shiv Sena has backed demonetisation but said it is unhappy over the way it was causing problems to people.
New Delhi: Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested at a railway station here on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from a high-security prison in Punjab.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) leader was nabbed from the parking area of Nizamuddin railway station by Delhi Police's Special Cell, Special Commissioner of Police Arvind Deep told IANS. He was later produced in court which sent him to seven days police custody, on the Delhi Police's plea.

"He was arrested between 1 and 2 am when he was taking a ticket from the counter for going to Panvel (Maharashtra) from Nizamuddin," Deep said, adding Mintoo planned to move subsequently to Goa, where he had spent 18 years since 1989 and had good contacts.

Mintoo had also a plan to flee from the country to Thailand or Malaysia where also he had several good contacts. Earlier he had also visited these countries on a fake passport, said the senior police officer.

According to police, after escaping from the high-security Nabha Jail in Punjab, Mintoo along with Gurpreet Sekhon and fellow terrorist Kashmira Singh Galwadi, escaped on a SUV. Sekhon, who was the mastermind in the jail break, dropped the duo at Haryana's Kaithal.

Trying to change their looks by trimming their beards and moustaches, they travelled to Panipat and then boarded another bus to reach Delhi, where they separated, he said.

"When we surrounded him at the parking area of railway station, Mintoo also tried to attack the team with a pistol but police managed to apprehend him. A pistol and six cartridges were recovered from his possession," said Deep, adding the operation was still on to arrest Kashmira Singh.

"He may be in Delhi, we are working on it," he said.

On their escape, he said it was "all pre-planned". "We are suspecting that they have also exchanged money from their associates which is also a matter of investigation. We are interrogating with him," said Deep.

An earlier report said the arrest followed a joint operation by Punjab Police and Delhi Police.

Asked if this was true, Deep said the Punjab Police had "alerted us that Mintoo might go towards Delhi.

"Punjab Police had alerted Delhi Police on Sunday morning that the escaped terrorists and gangsters could go toward the national capital to escape to other parts of the country. We had deployed teams of Special Cell personnel at every railway station, bus terminal, bus stand, guest house, hotel and escape routes on border areas of the city," he said.

"We have also shared their photos with the teams and gave directions to arrest any person involved in suspicious activities," Deep said.

Mintoo was earlier wanted in more than 10 terror related cases, which included the 2008 attack on Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, Deep said.

The arrest came within 24 hours after Mintoo, another terrorist and four gangsters broke out of the Nabha Jail on Sunday morning after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men. On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who carried out the sensational jailbreak, was caught in Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh allowed police to question Mintoo till December 5 as Delhi Police told the court that they were probing his links with Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI, and that custodial interrogation will help in nabbing other co-accused who have helped him in his escape from jail.

Police also informed the court that a fresh FIR was registered against Mintoo under Section 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for being a member of a banned terror organisation.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said a report had been sought from the Punjab government and promised the central government's assistance to nab those on the run.

"The Home Ministry has been doing whatever needs to be done," he said.

"This (jailbreak) is a state subject and the Home Ministry has already sent advisories to states in this regard. The state (Punjab) government is looking into the matter," he said.
Chandigarh: The Haryana police force was on maximum alert on Monday, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab, even as one more abandoned car was found in Kaithal district.

Acting on inputs that some fugitives had passed through Haryana territory, the police remained on maximum alert and a vigorous search was on to nab the accused.

"We are maintaining a high alert. If any of the fugitive is found in Haryana, we will immediately nab him," IGP Karnal Range, Subhash Yadav said.

Another car was on Modnay found abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.

"A car has been found in the village," IGP Yadav said, adding it was suspected to have been used in yesterday's jailbreak incident.

Another car had been found abandoned on Sunday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

"Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, Kumar said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Security has been beefed up in Haryana and police force has been put on high alert after Nabha jailbreak incident at Patiala in neighbouring Punjab on Sunday.

The borders with Patiala and the adjoining borders with Ambala, Kaithal and Jind have already been sealed.

Checking is being carried out at 'nakas', Yadav said.

Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.
New Delhi: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbboba Mufti on Monday whole-heartedly supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to demonitise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

While briefing the press after meeting the Prime Minister in the national capital, Mufti termed the demonetisation move as a 'historic decision'.

Demonetisation is not an ordinary decision, initially people will face difficulties, but in the long run it would turn out to be a historic decision, the J&K CM asserted.

Earlier, Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar along with Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had openly supported the bold decision aimed at curbing black money, terrorism and corruption.

However, opposition parties like Congress, Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, Left Front, Bahujan Samaj Party, DMK have heavily criticised PM Modi over demonetisation move.

Ever since the Winter Session started, the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have been witnessing ruckus over demonetisation.

On November 8, the central government demonetised the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.
New Delhi: In a major breakthrough, Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab on Sunday, was re-arrested on Monday.

The Khalistani terrorist was arrested in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Special Crime Branch of the Delhi Police today morning from the Nizamuddin railway station.

"Punjab Police had suspicion about his movement towards Delhi and they contacted Delhi Police. Following intensive checking and tracking, he was arrested from the railway station last night," said Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police, Special Cell.

Harminder Mintoo and five others escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab yesterday after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates and bolted out with the inmates firing a hail of bullets.

The arrest comes after security agencies launched a massive manhunt to nab the six high-profile prisoners, including two terrorists and four gangsters.

Among the escapees was another terrorist Kashmira Singh, according to Punjab police chief Suresh Arora.

The alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh, was arrested just hours after from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle--a Toyota Fortuner--was stopped at a police picket.

Meanwhile, gangster Gurpreet Singh Lehmber and his aides, who had escaped from the Nabha Jail after the attack, have also been arrested by Police in Jalandhar.

How terrorists, gangsters fled from Nabha Jail

Six criminals, including Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, Kashmir Singh (both terrorists) and dreaded gangsters Gurpreet Singh Lehmber, Vicky Gounder, Amandeep Dhotian and Neeta Deol, had escaped from the Nabha Jail after the attack.

The attackers, dressed in police uniform, breached the tight security of the prison around 9 am. Witnesses said the attackers fired at least 100 rounds during a well-planned and executed attack that lasted barely 10 minutes.

Punjab DGP Suresh Arora admitted that the incident was a case of "mistaken identity". DGP Arora admitted that "conspiracy", "connivance" and "lapses" led to the incident.

With Punjab going to polls early next year, the opposition Congress said the incident exposed the "complete breakdown of law and order" in the state and triggered fears of revival of terrorism ahead of Assembly elections.
Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday thanked people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP and hailed his party's victory in local bodies as a "win for pro-poor and development politics".

The PM tweeted, "I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor and development politics of BJP."

In another post he wrote, "I laud BJP Karyakartas, Devendra Fadnavis and Raosaheb Patil Danve (president, BJP, Maharashtra). Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP."

I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

BJP today emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls winning 39 municipal chief's posts of the 147 urban local bodies, dealing a blow to Congress and NCP in the keenly fought elections, whose campaign centred around issues like demonetisation.

Results pouring in from around the state showed the BJP making inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds.

Elections to 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats across 25 districts in Maharashtra were seen as 'mini' Assembly polls and a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who led the BJP's campaign to extend his party's influence in the rural areas, where Congress and NCP has held sway for long.

Fadnavis, who entered third year in office heading the first BJP-led government in the state, had addressed around 50 poll rallies.

As many as 15,826 candidates were in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held yesterday in the first phase with around 70 per cent of the electorate exercising its franchise.

Polling was also held for municipal council presidents post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates were in the race.

In all, 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, are going to polls in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on December 14, December 18, and January 8.

(With PTI inputs)
Mumbai: It's really an interesting mandate!

Voters in Khanapur in Sangli district of Maharashtra on Monday rejected the candidates of all the political parties and elected only independents.

Elections to nagar panchayats were held in the state on Sunday and counting of votes took place on Monday.

Khanapur nagar panchayat

In Khanapur nagar panchayat, all the 17 seats were won by independent candidates while NCP and BJP were routed completely.

Khanapur tehsil is a part of Sangli's drought-prone region.

"Candidates of NCP and BJP were in the fray along with independent candidates. The total number of voters was 4,399, of which 3,921 exercised their right, registering 89.13 per cent turn- out. This was the highest response of voters in the district," said Kalpana Dhawale, tehsildar, Vita.

"By noon we realised that independent candidates are leading in every ward," said Dhawale, who was the returning officer for the election.

Further, two independent candidates in ward-1 got equal number of votes, even after a recount.

"As per the procedure, chits were prepared and a child was called to pick one," Dhawale said. "The chit had the name of Swati Rajendra Tingare. We declared her winner."

Asked how the new civic body might shape up now, she said, "I have communicated it to the district collector and sought his suggestion. I think the winners will now hold meetings and form an informal panel with some mutual agreements. Because they will have to appoint someone as chairperson of the nagar panchayat."
Delhi: BJP president Amit Shah said on Monday that Maharashtra local body poll results should be a wake-up call for Opposition attempting to mislead people on the issue of demonetisation.

Shah tweeted: "BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics. Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on demonetisation, a decision in national interest."

He also congratulated Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis for the good showing of his party in the state.

Congratulations to karyakartas of @BJP4Maharashtra , CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve for excellent performance in Municipal polls.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

BJP today emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls, dealing a blow to Congress and NCP in the keenly fought elections, whose campaign centred around issues like demonetisation.

Results pouring in from around the state showed the BJP making inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds.

Elections to 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats across 25 districts in Maharashtra were seen as 'mini' Assembly polls and a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who led the BJP's campaign to extend his party's influence in the rural areas, where Congress and NCP has held sway for long.

Fadnavis, who entered third year in office heading the first BJP-led government in the state, had addressed around 50 poll rallies.

As many as 15,826 candidates were in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held yesterday in the first phase with around 70 per cent of the electorate exercising its franchise.

Polling was also held for municipal council presidents post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates were in the race.

In all, 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, are going to polls in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on December 14, December 18, and January 8.

(With PTI inputs)
Delhi: The Indian Army said that complicity of Pakistan had been established in the killing of three soldiers, with one of them mutilated, at the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Army tweeted on Monday saying - "Refer Machhil op of 22 November where body of one soldier was mutilated. Search leads to recoveries that indicate Pak complicity."

Refer Machhil op of 22 November where body of one soldier was mutilated. Search leads to recoveries that indicate Pak complicity @adgpi pic.twitter.com/qmKbzjqUQN  NorthernComd.IA (@NorthernComd_IA) November 28, 2016

The incident had taken place in Machhil sector.

The three slain soldiers were - 25-year-old Prabhu Singh of Khir Jamkhas village in Shergarh tehsil of Rajasthan, 31- year-old K Kushwah of Daddupur, Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh and 25-year-old Shashank K Singh of Nasirudinpur in Mohamadabad tehsil of Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh.

Body of Prabhu Singh was mutilated, Army sources had said, as per PTI.

The Army at that time had vowed "heavy retribution for the cowardly act".

#JKOps 3 soldiers killed in action on LC in Machhal. Body of one soldier mutilated, retribution will be heavy for this cowardly act @adgpi  NorthernComd.IA (@NorthernComd_IA) November 22, 2016

However, spokesperson of Pakistan's Foreign Ministry M Nafees Zakaria had denied mutilation of any Indian soldier by Pakistani forces.

"Pakistan strongly rejects the false and baseless Indian media reports regarding the alleged mutilation of an Indian solider on the LoC," Zakaria had said in a tweet.

"These reports are a fabrication and a blatant attempt to malign Pakistan. As a professional force, Pakistan army isn't involved in any such unethical and non-professional activity and neither supports any such action," Pakistan spokesperson had added, as per IANS.

The beheading was the second incident of mutilation of a soldier's body in less than a month.

On October 28, the body of 27-year-old Indian soldier Sepoy Mandeep Singh was mutilated by terrorists, who fled back to Pakistani part of Kashmir under supportive fire cover by Pakistani troops.

(With Agency inputs)
Raipur: A Maoist sympathiser, allegedly trying to exchange banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes with the new ones worth Rs 49,000, was arrested in Chhattisgarh's Kondagaon district, Police said on Monday.

Based on specific input, the Naxal supporter identified as Paddam (46) was nabbed from Tekapal village under Mardapal police station area last night, Kondagaon Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh told PTI.

While a Police team was carrying out combing operation in Mardapal and Bayanar area, around 300 kms away from here, they received information about a suspect trying to exchange demonetised currency worth Rs 49,000 in the interior Tekapal, he said.

Subsequently, security forces apprehended him and seized the cash, he added.

A native of Kudur village in Mardapal region, Paddam was wanted in seven Maoist-related incidents in the area, including abduction and murder of a villager in 2014 and attack on a police party early this year, he said.

During interrogation, he revealed that a local Maoist commander-Nirmala had given him the cash looted from the villagers and after demonetisation he was looking to dispose it off with the support of his local resources, the SP said.

Notably, police had recovered unaccounted cash of Rs 44.25 lakh, in the denomination of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, and jewellery worth Rs 2 lakh from the possession of a man in the Naxal-affected Kondagaon district on November 11.

A local was unable to produce valid documents to explain the cash and jewellery he possessed and he was being interrogated to ascertain source of the money.
New Delhi: As a mark of their disapproval with regard to Prime Minister Narendra Modis demonetization move, the leaders of the Opposition parties have called for a nationwide bandh today, November 28.

More than a dozen Opposition parties have decided to intensify their campaign against the note ban in the states where they are either in power or have a significant presence.

The Congress, Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party stated that they do not wish for a strike, but will hold protests across the country. The Congress has termed it as "Jan Aakrosh Diwas".

The call for the bandh against currency ban was initiated by Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee, who will also hold a march in Kolkata at 1:00 pm, while the Aam Aadmi Party will hold a protest at Central Park in New Delhi.

Yesterday, PM Modi called out the Opposition at BJPs Parivartan rally in UPs Kushinagar when he asked whether curbing black money and corruption was priority or a staging a nationwide bandh.

Through his PM Modi app, the Prime Minister asked the nation to rate the governments move of demonetization as per preference. The results showed that over 93% people across the nation were in support of the currency ban.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met senior ministers and held discussions on the demonetisation row that has stalled the proceedings of the Winter session of Parliament.

The government is deciding on a floor strategy to counter the Opposition over the demonetisation issue in Parliament.

Earlier today, Opposition parties today held a meet in Parliament to chalk out strategy to end the ongoing logjam over the demonetisation move.

Speaking to ANI, Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Agarwal said that while all the opposition parties are united on demonetisation policy, Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) is maintaining a dual stand on the issue.

The deadlock in Parliament continued over demonetisation issues as both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessed repeated adjournments earlier on Friday.

The Congress has been demanding PM Modi's intervention on the matter.

In the wake of cash crunch being experienced across the nation, PM Modi yesterday called on the nation, especially the youth, to embrace digital banking.
New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday greeted Mauritania on its National Day.

"Greetings and felicitations on the occasion of your National Day," Mukherjee said in a statement issued here.

"I am confident that our close ties will be further strengthened in the coming years to the mutual benefit of the peoples of our two countries," the President said in his message to his Mauritanian counterpart Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.

"Please accept my good wishes for your personal health and well-being, as well as for the progress and prosperity of the friendly people of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania," he said.

Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb region of western North Africa and celebrates its National Day on November 28.
Chandigarh: Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded handing over of the Nabha jailbreak case to CBI, alleging a deep-rooted conspiracy, "which has deepened" with the arrest of Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.

"Since the Punjab Police DGP, Suresh Arora has already admitted to conspiracy and connivance in the matter, the case should not be probed by the Punjab Police and handed over to CBI for an independent investigation," he said.

Amarinder Singh also accused the ruling Akalis of "resorting to communal polarisation when faced with imminent defeat".

"The jailbreak incident also pointed to such an attempt by the state government," he alleged in a statement here.

Reacting to the arrest of Mintoo less than 24 hours after he dramatically escaped from Nabha jail in Patiala district along with five others on Sunday, Amarinder warned against allowing the matter to be pushed under the carpet with the arrest of Mintoo, and called for a thorough probe.

"It is a clear case of connivance," he maintained and added that since Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, the case could jointly be probed by the CBI and the IB, with support from the Delhi Police.

"The ease of his arrest belied Sukhbir Badal's claims of a Pakistani role in the escape of the hardcore terrorist, who has about a dozen terror cases against him," said Amarinder.

"Had the whole thing been plotted from across the border, Mintoo would have by now escaped out of India, instead of waiting in Delhi to be nabbed," he further stated.

The former Punjab Chief Minister demanded "meticulous interrogation" of Mintoo by independent agencies to get at the root of the conspiracy.

"With the entire police and administrative machinery in Punjab in the grip of the Akalis, such blatant incidents of law and order breakdown were to be expected in the run-up to the Assembly polls in the state," he said.

Assembly polls in Punjab are scheduled early next year.

Expressing apprehensions of violence and possible terrorist attacks in the poll-bound state, Amarinder reiterated his demand for imposition of President's Rule to ensure free and fair elections in Punjab.

Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo on Monday nabbed from Delhi railway station.
New Delhi: Amid attack from Opposition parties over high value currency ban, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said that Centre is ready to debate and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak on demonetisation if needed.

"If you have a complaint on implementation then we are ready to debate, don't doubt our integrity. You want PM Modi to come to Lok Sabha for this debate then will make an intervention," Rajnath Singh said during the Zero Hour.

"PM Modi will take part in debate in the House and will also intervene if needed," Rajnath added.

A number of opposition leaders, including Congress' Mallikarjun Kharge, Trinamool Congress' Sudip Bandhopadhyay and Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav spoke as they pressed for acceptance of their demand for an adjournment motion, a condition not acceptable to the treasury benches which want a debate without voting.

With the Opposition parties firm on their stand, Rajnath also added that nobody was questioning the government's intentions over demonetisation or imputing any malafide.
New Delhi: Even as Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station on Monday, plans to carry out terror attacks in states where Assembly elections are to be held has come to light.

Also, as per media reports, plans to target RSS, VHP and Shiv Sena leaders has been revealed.

Reports said these terror attacks were being planned with the help of Pakistan-based Lashkar (LeT) and KLF.

Elections are due in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Meanwhile, the militant outfit leader, Mintoo, was arrested late last night from Nizamuddin railway station, Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police, Special Cell, said today.

"Punjab Police had suspicion about his movement towards Delhi and they contacted Delhi Police. Following intensive checking and tracking, he was arrested from the railway station last night," said the officer.

It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle - a Toyota Fortuner - was stopped at a police picket.

Mintoo yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates of the jail in Patiala, nearly 200 km from here, and bolted out with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets.

Officials said efforts are on to nab the other prisoners who managed to flee.

Also Read - Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, gangster Gurpreet Singh Lehmber arrested

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014. He was wanted in ten terror cases.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh 'Gopi' after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

Among the escapees was another terrorist Kashmira Singh, according to Punjab police chief Suresh Arora.

(With PTI inputs)
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Union government on a plea by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, seeking the framing of a cogent and clear national security policy and guidelines covering economic offences as well.

A bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud issued notice as Swamy pointed to the issuance of phase three FM licence to the Maran family-owned Sun TV in Tamil Nadu.

Issuing notice, the court observed that this could not be linked to the question of national security involving the sovereignty of the country.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader has sought "detailed guidelines for the security clearance" and the "foolproof policy for the grant of security clearances" as he cited the divergent views taken by the high courts across the country.

Seeking that economic offence too should be brought in the ambit of national security policy and guidelines for the issuance of clearance certificate, he said that those involved in or being prosecuted for the economic offences should not be given air waves.

Swamy was referring to the prosecution of Marans in Aircel-Maxis matter, one of the 2G cases. The court was told that chargesheet has been filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation against them.

The CBI has accused former Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran of putting pressure on a Chennai-based telecom promoter C. Sivasankaran to sell his stakes in Aircel and two subsidiary firms to Malaysian firm Maxis Group in 2006.

Besides others, Dayanidhi Maran`s brother Kalanithi Maran too has been accused in the case.

Swamy said that there has to be clarity as to at which stage of criminal prosecution, a parson should be barred from bidding for airwaves. Should it be only after conviction or a stage prior to it like registration of FIR, filing of chargesheet or framing of charges, he asked.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on Monday hear the bail plea filed by self- styled religious figure Asaram Bapu.

The apex court, on November 21, refused to give him relief in connection with two rape cases registered against him.

Asaram had earlier knocked the doors of the apex court seeking bail on health grounds.

The Gujarat government had earlier told the top court division bench that the rape case registered against Asaram would very likely proceed in an expeditious manner, adding that the trial would be completed within six months so the bail should not be granted to him in the case.

The apex court had earlier this month sought the response of the Centre and five states on a plea seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged murder of children through black magic and attacks on ten witnesses in Asaram Bapu rape cases.
Aizawl: Presbyterian Church of Mizoram Synod, the largest church in Mizoram, announced that the Synod Office in Aizawl would no longer receive demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in cash.

Mizoram Synod's Senior Executive Secretary Rev. Lalramliana Pachuau, in a circular issued to all the local churches and pastoral committees, said that church collections should in future be deposited in the bank account of the Synod or transfer the money through digital transfer, cheques.

The branches and district offices under the Mizoram Synod were also cautioned not to receive demonetised notes in cash.

However, the Baptist Church of Mizoram, the second largest church in the state announced that the church continued to receive demonetised notes till Monday, but did not specify when it would discontinue receiving the notes.

Meanwhile, the new Rs 500 denominations, which arrived at the State Bank of India Aizawl branch on Sunday was distributed to other branches and other public sector and private banks.

State Bank of India Aizawl Branch Assistant General Manager Pradeep Kumar Sen said that the Rs 500 notes most probably would be dispensed by the ATMs by tomorrow.

Sen said that a large amount of Rs 100 notes also arrived along with the new Rs 500 note consignment and the arrival of Rs 500 notes was expected to ease the problem of the common people further.
New Delhi: Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was arrested from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi on Monday morning.

Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police, Special Cell, said the militant outfit leader was arrested late last night from Nizamuddin railway station.

The arrest happened within 24 hours after Mintoo, another terrorist and four gangsters broke out of the Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday morning after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men.

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014. He was wanted in ten terror cases.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh 'Gopi' after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who carried out the sensational jailbreak, was caught in Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh.
Banda: Three people were killed and two others injured in neighbouring Chitrakoot district, when their car hit a tree at Ramnagar-Deondha village, Police said on Monday.

The victims were returning to their village last night when the driver lost control of the vehicle and it dashed into a roadside tree, said Chitrakoot SP D P Singh.

While Kallu Vishkarma (55), Nand Kishore (32) and Sushil (35) were killed on the spot, two others were seriously injured and rushed to a hospital.
Jammu: A fierce gunbattle broke out between security forces and terrorists in Langate area of Handwara in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

The encounter, currently underway, broke out in the wee hours today.

J&K:Encounter underway in Langate area of Handwara between Security forces and terrorists (visuals deferred by unspecified time) pic.twitter.com/MEa9BWfmgI  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

The terrorists are exchanging fire with security forces.

As per the report, at least two terrorists are believed to be hiding in a building and efforts are on to sanitise the area.

The area has been cordoned off by the army.

More details awaited.
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti should release the thousands of people arrested during the summer unrest this year in the Valley as it did not require the Centre's approval, opposition National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said today.

"How about you start releasing the many 1000s that have been arrested & withdraw cases @MehboobaMufti? That doesn't require Delhi to act," Omar, a former chief minister of the state, said on Twitter.

His comments came after Mehbooba, during a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi earlier in the day, pressed for initiation of confidence-building measures to reach out to the people of the state.

The National Conference working president said Mehbooba will have to look to the Centre as she has surrendered all the authority of the chief minister's office.

"True to form @MehboobaMufti will look to the centre for everything because she has surrendered all the authority of her office," he said.
Bengaluru: IAF chief, Air Marshal Arup Raha here on Monday urged the force's commanders to focus on training and trainers for preserving air assets and team building.

"You need to enhance the quality of training and maintenance to keep pace with technological advancements. Improve training infrastructure to preserve air assets and team building," said Raha at the two-day station commanders conference comprising chiefs of flying, technical and non-technical training establishments.

He also interacted with air warriors and civilian staff of the Training Command's headquarters after inspecting a guard of honour.

Training Command's chief, Air Marshal SRK Nair received Raha and Lily Raha, President of Air Force Wives Welfare Association, on their arrival.

Later, Lily Raha chaired the Association's board of management meeting and reviewed the welfare measures taken by the command.


Mumbai: The ruling BJP on Monday emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls in Maharashtra, winning 851 seats across 164 urban local bodies, covering 25 districts, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi terming it a win for pro-poor and development politics of the party.

The BJP has also made major inroads into the traditional strongholds of Congress and NCP in the polls.

Elections were held for 3,705 seats spread over the 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats, of which results have been announced for the 3,510 seats so far. Counting for rest of the seats was still on.

Also Read: Maharashtra civic polls 2016: As it happened

Of the 147 municipal councils, where municipal chiefs were elected directly, BJP nominees won at 52 places, compared to the around half a dozen places, where that party held the civic chief's posts in these bodies.

BJP made inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds, winning 851 seats. Shiv Sena won 514, NCP 638, Congress 643, MNS 16, BSP 9, unrecognised parties 119, local coalitions 384, CPM 12 and Independents 324 seats.

In the last elections, BJP tally was 298, Sena 264, Congress 771 and NCP 916

As results started pouring in BJP's favour, Prime Minister Narendra Modi termed the victory as a "win for pro-poor and development politics of BJP."

"I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.

"I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM Devender Fadnavis. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP, the prime minister said in a tweet message.

In the polling held yesterday across 25 districts, around 70 per cent of the electorate had exercised their franchise. The elections, held against the backdrop of demonetisation, were seen as 'mini' Assembly polls and a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who led the BJP's campaign to extend his party's influence in the rural areas, where Congress and NCP has held sway for long.

Taking note of BJP's performance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Fadnavis and Maharashtra BJP president Raosaheb Danve for the "grassroot level work".

"I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP," Modi said.

"I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP," the PM tweeted.

Talking about the party's performance, Fadnavis said, "We won due to the blessings of Chhatrapati Shivaji and the people of Maharashtra."

Hailing the mandate for the BJP, he said it shows that people are with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of transparency.

In response to Modi's tweet on the poll outcome, Fadnavis tweeted, "Thanks Sir! You inspired confidence in people that our Nation is transforming.Mandate shows Maharashtra is with your vision of transparency."

The CM added that he was satisfied that people were trusting him to solve problems and challenges facing the state. He thanked the BJP leaders and ministers for working unitedly. Reacting to the results, Maharashtra Congress chief

Ashok Chavan conceded that his party need to work harder, whereas NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik alleged that BJP won due to money and the fact that it was in power.

"We need to work harder and rework our strategy in the upcoming phases. BJP's money power helped them win more seats. This is not the only reason for their success. We also need to work hard," Chavan told reporters.

In Parli municipal council in Beed district, Women and Child Development Minister Pankaja Munde of the BJP was outsmarted by her cousin and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde.

The panel backed by Dhananjay, who is the Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council, won 27 of the total 33 seats in Parli.

"I accept the people's verdict. I will analyse what went wrong and what led people to give this verdict," Pankaja said.

State Revenue minister Chandrakant Patil said, "BJP is expected to bag 50 municipal council president posts, while in another 50 councils the party will increase its tally considerably."

Terming the party's performance as "overwhelming", he said five years ago BJP was negligible in these areas and the outcome showed that people have accepted the demonetisation decision.

Responding to a query senior Congress leader Narayan Rane's criticism that sycophancy and not merit was the priority for selection of party candidates, Chavan said it was Rane's personal view.

"Rane is a member of the state parliamentary board, which selects candidates. If he says posts are sold, he is making a grave allegation and must substantiate it. I will take action," the former Chief Minister added.

The comments made by senior party leaders from Ahmednagar district Balasaheb Thorat and Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil blaming each other for the results were also unwarranted, Chavan said adding, "Making such allegations and counter-allegations publicly was wrong."

As to Rane's demand that Congress and NCP should fight the polls in alliance, Chavan said the decision on alliance was left to district units and Rane was part of this decision made at the state level. If this decision has to be reconsidered it will be discussed at the party level, he said.

NCP leader Nawab Malik said, "BJP won due to money and the fact that it was in power. However, it will bear the brunt of demonetisation in the next phase."

"BJP leaders Raosaheb Danve, Pankaja Munde and Babanrao Lonikar could not get their candidates elected," Malik pointed out.

In all, 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, are going to polls in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on December 14, December 18, and January 8.

(With PTI inputs)
Chandigarh: Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan.

Punjab DGP was quoted as saying by PTI as saying, "KLF chief Mintoo was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan."

Mintoo was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi on Monday.

The militant outfit leader was arrested late last night from Nizamuddin railway station, Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police, Special Cell, said today.

"Punjab Police had suspicion about his movement towards Delhi and they contacted Delhi Police. Following intensive checking and tracking, he was arrested from the railway station last night," said the officer.

UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle - a Toyota Fortuner - was stopped at a police picket.

Mintoo yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates of the jail in Patiala, nearly 200 km from here, and bolted out with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets.

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014. He was wanted in ten terror cases.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh 'Gopi' after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

(With Agency inputs)


New Delhi: Pro-Khalistan leader Harminder Singh Mintoo, who along with five others escaped from Punjab's Nabha jail yesterday, was on Monday arrested in Delhi.

Khalistan Liberation Front (KLF) chief Mintoo was arrested in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on the outskirts of Delhi, some 200 kilometres (124 miles) from the high-security prison in Punjab where he had been remanded on terror charges.

As per a report, Mintoo wanted to flee to some location in southern part of the national capital.

What led to the arrest:

A senior officer of the Special Cell told media that Harminder Mintoo made contact with one of his relatives in Subhash Nagar after which he got traced by the Delhi Police.

As soon as the calls were made, the agencies- IB and police forces of Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi- got their acts together.

"The intercepted phone call helped in the arrest," the police official said on the condition of anonymity.

The arrest was made within 24 hours of the sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday morning, in which two terrorists and four gangsters escaped after the prison was attacked by armed men.

According to police sources, Mintoo had shaved off his beard and gotten a hair cut to avoid being identified.

But, the joint team guided by NSA Ajit Doval had their plan in place that ended Harminder Singh Mintoo's hide-and-seek game at 3 am today.

2.5 million bounty announced:

A 2.5 million rupee reward was announced by the government for information on Khalistani leader Mintoo's whereabouts. However, it was not clear if the bounty had played any part in his recapture Monday.

Yesterday, three top prison officers were sacked or suspended following the jailbreak incident.

The Khalistani terrorist will be produced at Patiala House court in Delhi after 2:30 pm and shall be handed over to the Punjab Police on transit remand.
Chennai: Three members of the Al Qaeda terror group who were allegedly involved in a string of bomb attacks on courts spanning several states were nabbed by a joint team of NIA and Tamil Nadu Police on Monday.

All the accused were arrested from Tamil Nadu's Madurai city, and are now being shifted to Mysore in Karnataka for further investigation, ANI reported.

The arrested Al Qaeda men were allegedly involved in bombings at courts in Mysore, Chittoor, Kollam, Nellore and Malappuram, among other places.

Citing the police, PTI reported that they were allegedly planning to target several top leaders of the country, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Part of their plan was also to target foreign embassies in the country.

The accused were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali.

Explosive materials were also seized from them.

According to the police, the trio was allegedly running the Al-Qaeda network in southern Tamil Nadu.

Meanwhile, the NIA were also searching for two other suspected Al Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman.

The development comes days after NIA asked banks to freeze accounts of Islamic preacher Zakir Naik and his banned Islamic Research Foundation.

Naik is accused of radicalising Muslim youth through is sermons on television.

One of the terrorists in Dhaka cafe attack admitted to the interrogators that he had been highly inspired by the preachings of Zakir Naik.

On November 19, the NIA had registered a case under anti-terror laws against Naik and IRF for allegedly promoting enmity on the basis of religion and race.

The agency had also written to the Union home ministry for blocking websites and other online activities of Naik and IRF.
Muzaffarnagar: A 30-year-old Dalit was shot at allegedly by a gram pradhan and three others who also thrashed the victim's family members after accusing them of stealing a radish, police said on Monday.

The incident took place yesterday when the four accused, including gram pradhan?Anil, his son Nishant and nephew Sarouttem, reached Sunil Kumar's house in a car and started beating his family members, Circle Officer Bhushan Verma said.

They accused the family of stealing a radish from the gram pradhan's fields. When Kumar protested, the accused fired at him, the CO said.

He was taken to the hospital in a serious condition, he said, adding that police have registered a case against the four accused who are absconding.

Senior police officers have impounded the gram pradhan's car. Security has been tightened and extra police has been deployed in the area, the official added.
Kairana: Meerut Inspector General Ajay Anand on Monday said that they have recommended the names of three policemen, who after facing a lot of trouble arrested one of the armed men involved in the sensational Nabha jailbreak , for the prestigious gallantry awards.

"Our three personnel involved in this operation are namely Shehzad Ali, Deepanshu Tyagi and Rampal. A reward has been announced for them along with the gallantry award recommendation," Anand told the media.

Huge amount of arms and ammunition were recovered, informed Anand.Retorting over the recent Punjab jail break, Ulio Francis Riberio, former Punjab DGP, hailed the Intelligence Bureau for promptness and also advised the police forces to be more diligent.

"First thing is how did they escape? Obviously they had planned the whole thing. The miscreants were dressed as policemen. This is a very old trick it should've been anticipated but people become complacent. 24x 7 we have to be careful. The intelligence did a wonderful job," said Riberio.

In a major breakthrough, police arrested Parminder Singh, one of the Nabha jail attackers, from Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh yesterday.

Parminder is said to be the mastermind of the high-security Nabha jailbreak incident. As per the report, he was caught while trying to flee to Nepal in a car. His arrest has come as the first breakthrough in the jailbreak incident.
Geneva: An estimated 21 million people worldwide are trapped in conditions of contemporary slavery, including some five million children, a UN office said.

"Slavery is not something that belongs to the past but a cruel reality of our age," the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Monday in a media statement.

They also announced an upcoming event which will showcase the extent of modern-day slavery, Xinhua news agency reported.

The event, entitled "Revealing the Child Faces of Modern Slavery", will be organised by the UN Human Rights Office to mark International Day for the Abolition of Slavery on December 2.

The event is also to mark the 25th anniversary of the UN Voluntary Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, which since it`s establishment in 1991 has supported of thousands of men, women and child victims of various forms of slavery.

In 2016, the Fund issued grants to projects in 34 countries, helping more than 29,000 victims, a third of whom were children, the UN rights office said.
Columbus: At least eight people were stabbed, hit by a vehicle or otherwise injured in an attack today on the Ohio State University campus, and a suspect was shot to death, school and hospital officials said.

Hospital officials said the eight victims had non-life-threatening injuries. Police gave no immediate details on a possible motive for the attack.

The details started to emerge after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning students that there was an "active shooter" on campus near the engineering building and that they should "run, hide, fight."

Numerous police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads.

The shelter-in-place warning was lifted about an hour and half later, and university spokesman Ben Johnson issued a statement that made no mention of any gunfire other than the shooting of the suspect, who he said was killed.

The injured were stabbed, hit by a vehicle or suffered other injuries, Johnson said.

A law enforcement official said the suspect is believed to have struck people with a car before beginning to stab victims.

There was no indication that the suspect shot anyone, said the official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss the continuing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Rachel LeMaster, who works in the engineering college, said a fire alarm sounded before the attack.

"There were several moments of chaos," she said. "We barricaded ourselves like we're supposed to since it was right outside our door and just hunkered down."

LeMaster said she and others were eventually led outside the building and she saw a body on the ground.

Cassidie Baker, an Ohio State senior, said she saw police or paramedics helping one person on the ground outside Watts Hall, a materials science and engineering building.

"No one really knows what is happening, other than there's an active shooter," she said.

After the active shooter warning was lifted and the university declared the scene secure, the school said all classes would be canceled for the rest of the day.

The initial tweet from the university's emergency management department went out around 10 am and said: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College."

"Run, hide, fight" is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; hide, get silently out of view; or fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.
Ohio: At least seven people were injured at Ohio State University, CNN reported, after school officials reported an active shooter on campus on Monday.

The seven injured were transported to the hospital, according to CNN. The suspected shooter was shot, local television station WBNS reported, citing law enforcement sources.

Columbus police said on Twitter they were assisting university law enforcement. Representatives for the university did not immediately return calls.

WBNS showed images of more than a dozen police cars parked at an intersection at the school and a line of about 10 ambulances parked nearby.

Ohio State student Wyatt Crosher told CNN he heard what sounded like gunfire and then emergency sirens.

Crosher said that he was staying in his dorm room near the scene of the reported shooting.
Columbia: President Barack Obama will not attend Fidel Castro`s funeral, the White House said Monday, demurring on the question of who would lead the US delegation.

"The president will not be traveling to attend the funeral of Fidel Castro," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

Obama has sought to thaw tensions with Cuba, but stopped short of meeting Castro during a landmark trip to Havana earlier this year.
London: British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday welcomes her Polish counterpart Beata Szydlo to Downing Street, where Brexit will be high on the agenda of talks with ministers.Brexit will be high on the agenda of talks with ministers.

The high-level meeting will see the Polish and British leaders accompanied by a total of 14 ministers, in what London described as the first such meeting of its kind between the two nations.

The summit comes five months after Britain voted to leave the European Union, a decision which has raised concerns in Warsaw over the fate of around 800,000 Poles thought to be living in the UK.

May and Szydlo are expected to initially meet separately from ministers representing finance, foreign affairs, defence and other departments, ahead of joint talks on Monday afternoon, the British government said in a statement.

Ahead of the meeting, May praised the contribution the Polish community had made to the UK.

"I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship with Poland, rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it," she said in a statement.

"Today`s meeting puts beyond doubt the common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship and the benefits it brings."

May has repeatedly said she remains committed to Europe despite voters deciding to withdraw from the EU, a process which the British premier has said she will formally begin by the end of March.

She has promised to curb migration from the bloc and has said the UK`s approach to EU citizens currently residing in the country will depend on how Britons abroad are treated in the negotiations with Brussels.

With Poles representing one of the largest minority groups in the UK, Poland has taken a cautious approach to Brexit and last week President Andrzej Duda urged politicians to tone down their rhetoric.

"I propose a glass of cold water to cool emotions, so that in the end it doesn`t turn out that we all lose -- both the EU and the UK," Duda told Bloomberg.

Monday`s summit comes after Poland`s foreign minister, Witold Waszczykowski, and Interior Minister Mariusz Blaszczak, flew to London in September following attacks against nationals in Britain.

Two Poles were attacked outside a pub in Harlow, northeast of London, days after a Polish factory worker was murdered in the same town.

The June 23 referendum on EU membership was followed by a spike in the number of attacks against foreigners and two Polish police officers were deployed in Harlow following their compatriot`s murder.

The bilateral talks will also discuss defence policy, such as the deployment of 150 British soldiers to north-eastern Poland, and foreign affairs including Russia`s actions in Ukraine and Syria.
Quito: British police have received a genetic sample from Wikileaks founder Julian Assange for Swedish prosecutors to use in their rape investigation against him, an official said Monday.

British authorities took the sample from Assange in Ecuador`s London embassy where he is taking refuge, the South American country`s chief prosecutor Galo Chiriboga said.

Assange, 45, has been in the embassy since 2012 to avoid being sent to Sweden where he faces the rape allegations, which he denies.

He fears Sweden would extradite him to the United States to answer for the leaking of diplomatic cables by his whistleblowing website, which embarrassed Washington.

An Ecuadoran state attorney questioned Assange at the embassy on November 14 on behalf of a Swedish prosecutor who was also present.

On that occasion, "Mr. Assange presented a document stating that he had already handed over the DNA sample to the British police," Chiriboga told reporters in the Ecuadoran capital Quito.

"Therefore Sweden will now have to request that DNA sample from the British police."

He said Ecuadoran prosecutors would send the official transcript of Assange`s evidence from the November 14 hearing to Swedish authorities "in mid-December."
London: Pornographic websites could be forced to check their users are over 18 under new measures debated by British lawmakers Monday that are designed to protect children but have raised concerns over privacy and censorship.

The Digital Economy Bill proposes a fine of up to 250,000 ($310,000, 293,000 euros) or five percent of turnover, whichever is higher, for commercial pornographic websites which fail to implement an age verification process.

Critics warn that this process, which could include a requirement to enter credit card details, risks restricting adults` access to legal content -- and could open a door to fraudsters.

Culture minister Matt Hancock said the legislation would "protect the freedom of adults to watch pornography online but provide adequate protections for children with the same sort of safeguards online as they have offline".

He admitted the measures outlined in the Digital Economy Bill would not cover social media sites such as Twitter, but said they represented an "important step".

"Our approach I believe represents a targeted and effective way of protecting children from accessing or stumbling across pornographic material that`s most readily available and potentially harmful," he said.

There are also privacy concerns relating to who would have access to the user data, with one MP noting the breach suffered by Ashley Madison, a website for people seeking extra-marital affairs.

"There are no provisions in the bill as its currently drafted to secure the privacy and anonymity of those who are using these sites," said Alistair Carmichael, of the small Liberal Democrats opposition party.

He said the restrictions proposed could be "circumvented pretty easily by any tech-savvy 14-year-old", adding that the best solution to children`s exposure to pornography was better sex education.

Last month Britain`s data watchdog, Elizabeth Denham, also expressed concerns about who could access the data.

"Any solution must not result in the wholesale tracking or monitoring of individuals` lawful online activities, or the collection of data with a view to unlawful profiling of individuals," she said.

Hancock said: "We all want the internet to be free, but freedom operates within a framework of social responsibility, norms and the law."

After Monday`s debate, the bill will pass to the unelected House of Lords for further scrutiny.
Philippine police defused a bomb found in a rubbish bin near the US embassy in Manila Monday, authorities said, with officials blaming Islamic militants for what they called an attempted terrorist act.

An improvised explosive device composed of a cellphone, blasting cap, nine-volt battery and 81-millimetre mortar bomb was found by a street sweeper about 200 meters from the embassy, according to Manila police.

National police chief Ronald dela Rosa said Islamic militants in the southern Philippines who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group were probably behind the incident.

"This is an attempted act of terrorism," Dela Rosa told a news briefing.

"Because of an ongoing police/military operation there, (the militants) have many casualties. We can theorise that this is a diversion to loosen our operations," he added.

The military began an operation last Thursday against the Maute group, which staged a deadly bombing in President Rodrigo Duterte`s home town in the southern city of Davao that killed 15 people in September.

The militants are holed up in an abandoned government building in the mainly Muslim rural town of Butig on Mindanao island. Troops have been firing artillery to flush them out.

Dela Rosa said he believed the Maute gang or the Ansar Khilafa Philippines, another southern-based group sympathetic to IS, left the bomb near the US embassy.

Police said the bomb was left early Monday by a taxi passenger, who stopped and threw the device into a trash bin. A street sweeper later found the package and reported it to police, officials added.

The bomb could have caused injury or damage within a 100-metre radius, Police said.

Dela Rosa said, the bomb had the same design as the device the Maute group used in the Davao attack.

"Unless we get hard evidence, by analysis we can theorise this can be linked to Maute because of what happened in Davao," he said.

The Davao bombing prompted Duterte to put the nation under a "state of emergency" that led to tighter security measures.

The southern Philippines is home to various extremist groups and a four-decade Muslim separatist revolt that left more than 100,000 people dead, according to government estimates.

Manila police chief Joel Coronel said authorities were coordinating with the US embassy to determine if the mission was the target of an attempted bombing.

The embassy thanked Police for their "quick and appropriate action".


Ontario: Justin Trudeau will not attend Fidel Castro`s funeral, the Canadian prime minister`s office said Monday, after he was rebuked for calling the late Cuban strongman and family friend a "remarkable leader."

Instead, Governor General David Johnston will represent Canada at the commemoration in honor of the former Cuban president in Havana Tuesday evening.

Trudeau described Castro after his passing as "a legendary revolutionary and orator."

His kind words for Castro, however, were sharply criticized by the opposition and American conservatives who said he was praising a cruel dictator.

Pressed on the matter, Trudeau acknowledged the opposition`s concerns, saying: "He certainly was a polarizing figure, there certainly were significant concerns around human rights."
Chicago: Eight people were injured when an attacker apparently drove into a crowd at Ohio State University today, triggering an hours-long lockdown before authorities declared the campus secure.

Law enforcement shot and killed one suspect, according to local television station WBNS, which reported that police led two people out in handcuffs from a garage they had surrounded on the university's main campus in Columbus.

A witness suggested that a suspect was driving a red SUV.

The incident was called an active shooter situation, but it was unclear whether any of the victims had suffered firearm injuries.

Some reports suggested the attacker or attackers used a knife.

"Shelter in Place lifted. Scene is now secure. ALL classes are canceled on Columbus campus for the remainder of the day," the OSU emergency management services tweeted as it declared the incident over.

Television footage showed students leaving school buildings as Rebecca Diehm, spokeswoman for the Columbus fire department, said eight people had been transported to hospital.

One was in critical condition, and the rest were stable, she said.

OSU Wexner Medical Center tweeted that it was treating four victims, none with life-threatening injuries.

Earlier the university's emergency management service had urged students and staff to shelter in place amid reports of an active shooter, as SWAT teams fanned out across the facility.

"Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College," the service said in a tweet. A second tweet moments later told the public to "Continue to shelter in place. Avoid area of College."

Details were murky as the situation unfolded. One student told MSNBC she was walking along a road on campus when a car plowed into a group of people, including a police officer.

Another student, Joseph Noll, said he heard a fire alarm, but no shooting -- and also said a car had driven into the crowd.

"I was right there, and there was no one shot," he told WBNS. "Someone DID run over a crowd of people with their car. I can tell you that for sure."

"I just heard some screams, and I saw people running," he said. "And everyone just fled the scene immediately."
Columbia: One-eyed hostage killer Mokhtar Belmokhtar, one of Al-Qaeda`s most notorious allies in North Africa, was said Monday to have been slain in a French air strike.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed a report in the Wall Street Journal that US intelligence helped France target the veteran jihadist.

The news came as French defense minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was in Washington for talks with his US counterpart Secretary of Defense Ash Carter.

But neither top official confirmed the strike, said to have taken place in southern Libya earlier this month.

The Algerian militant, commander of an Al-Qaeda-linked faction of the Al-Murabitoun group, has been reported killed on several previous occasions.

But the official told AFP the latest strike is believed to have finally hit the elusive militant, once known for kidnapping Europeans for multimillion dollar ransoms.

According to the Wall Street Journal report, citing experts and unnamed officials, the strike reflects closer US and French intelligence cooperation.

After November 2015, Islamist attacks on Paris left 130 dead, US President Barack Obama announced promised that closer intelligence cooperation with Paris would begin.

Belmokhtar became one of the world`s most wanted men in 2013 after a spectacular assault on the In Amenas gas plant in Algeria left at least 38 hostages dead.

This year, his group claimed responsibility for an attack on luxury a hotel in Burkina Faso that killed another 20 people, most of them foreigners.

And reports he had arrived in Libya have fuelled concern that jihadists will take advantage of the political turmoil there to establish a base of operations.

Washington put a $5 million bounty on the 44-year-old`s head, dubbing him the leader of the Khaled Abu al-Abbas Brigade, also known as the "Signatories in Blood."

In May last year, he insisted that Al-Murabitoun remains loyal to Al-Qaeda, despite another of its leaders pledging allegiance the Islamic State group.

Belmokhtar was born on June 1, 1972 in the ancient desert city of Ghardaia, 370 miles (600 kilometers) south of the Algerian capital.In a rare 2007 interview he said he joined the mujahideen rebels fighting the Soviet forces in Afghanistan in 1991 when he was barely 19 years old.

In Afghanistan, he claimed, he lost an eye to shrapnel and had his first contact with the group that became Al-Qaeda, eventually rising to a senior position.

He returned to Algeria in 1993, a year after the Algiers government sparked civil war by cancelling an election that an Islamist party was poised to win.

He joined the Armed Islamic Group (GIA), and thrived thanks to his intimate knowledge of the remote deserts of southern Algeria, northern Mali and Niger.

In 1998 the "Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat" (GSPC) broke from the GIA and Belmokhtar went with them.

Nine years later, GSPC formally adopted the global ideology of Saudi-born jihadist kingpin Osama bin Laden and renamed itself Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

Belmokhtar was best known as a smuggler, known by some as "Mister Marlboro" for trafficking cigarettes.

But in 2013 he emerged as the hardline leader of the "Signatories in Blood," blamed for attacks across the Sahara and the Sahel in Algeria, Mali, Chad and Niger.

The group is one of several Islamist units roaming the scarcely governed wastelands of the Sahel, smuggling goods and people and attacking Western targets.
Bartella (Iraq): Iraqi special forces battling to clear Islamic State from eastern Mosul have killed nearly 1,000 militants but fighting has slowed as troops face a mobile enemy hidden among thousands of civilians in the city, a top commander said.

Six weeks into a major offensive, Iraqi forces have captured nearly half of eastern Mosul, moving from district to district against jihadist snipers, suicide attackers and car bombs.

Elite Iraqi troops, known as the "Golden Division", are the only brigades to have entered Mosul from the east, with Iraqi army, federal police and Kurdish Peshmerga units surrounding the city to the north and south. Shi`ite militias are trying to complete the encirclement from the west.

The U.S.-trained Counter Terrorism Service unit breached Islamic State`s defences at the end of October, but has been slowed by the militants` mobile tactics and concern over civilian casualties preventing the use of tanks and heavy armour.

Major General Abdul Ghani al-Asadi, one of the commanders of the special forces, said troops had adapted their tactics, surrounding one district at a time to cut off the militants` supplies and protect civilians.

"Progress was faster at the start. The reason is we were operating before in areas without residents," Asadi told Reuters in Bartella, on Mosul`s outskirts.

"We have arrived in populated districts. So how do we protect civilians? We have sealed off district after district."

He said around 990 militants had been killed in fighting in the east so far. He would not say how many casualties there were among government special forces.

"We have made changes to plans, partly due to the changing nature of the enemy ... Daesh (Islamic State) is not based in one location, but moving from here to there," he said.

"Tanks don`t work here, artillery is not effective. Planes from the coalition force and the air force are restricted because of the civilians."

THOUSANDS DISPLACED

The Iraqi government has asked civilians in Mosul to stay at home during the offensive, as humanitarian organisations say they cannot cope with an influx of hundred of thousands of people displaced from the city.

More than one million people are believed to remain in the city, the largest in northern Iraq.

Defeating Islamic State in Mosul, Islamic State`s last major bastion in Iraq, is seen as vital to destroying the "caliphate" declared by the group`s leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, from the pulpit of Mosul`s Grand Mosque in July 2014.

But commanders have said the battle could take months. Dozens of districts must be taken in the east before attacking forces reach the Tigris River which splits Mosul into east and west. U.S. air strikes have taken out four of the five river bridges used by the militants.

Major General Najm al-Jubbouri, one of the army`s top commanders, told Reuters that the western part of the city could be the more dangerous.

To the south, Iraqi army brigades are now advancing slowly on the remaining Islamic State-held villages before reaching the city limits. To the west, the mostly Iranian-backed Shi`ite militias known as Popular Mobilisation have cut off the highway to Syria, but they have yet to close in on the city.

"The force left in front of us is small, unable to stop our advance. Their spirit is broken," Asadi said.

"We have killed more than 992 fighters on our front plus more wounded ... Their supplies and communications to the outside world are cut. They stage fewer suicide bombings."

Iraqi military estimates initially put the number of insurgents in Mosul at 5,000 to 6,000, facing a 100,000-strong coalition force. But Asadi said the figure for the Islamic State presence may have been too high.

Iraqi authorities have not released estimates of civilian casualties but the United Nations says growing numbers of injured, both civilians and military, are overwhelming aid groups.
Jerusalem: Israeli forces reportedly killed four Islamic State militants in Syria in the first direct clash between the country and the jihadi group, the media reported.

The militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online.

Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire early on Sunday.

They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.

All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk," an IS offshoot which controls the area.

Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.

Israel seized 1,200 sq. km (460 sq. miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.
Astana: A court in Kazakhstan on Monday convicted two men of sowing unrest around a controversial land reform and sentenced each to five years in jail.

Max Bokaev and Talgat Ayan were both arrested in April as protests against proposed land code amendments rippled across the vast Central Asian country, threatening the 27-year rule of strongman President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The court in the western city of Atyrau found the pair guilty on charges of inciting social tensions and spreading false information during the spring protests, Kazakhstan's supreme court said in a statement.

Their sentences come after another court sentenced beer magnate Tokhtar Tuleshov to 21 years in prison earlier this month for his purported role in masterminding the protests in order to overthrow Nazarbayev.

Tuleshov was already in detention at the time of the land protests, but authorities said the businessman had "inspired and financed" them before his arrest in January.

Thousands participated in the countrywide demonstrations against amendments that would have changed the maximum length of leases on land for foreigners from 10 to 25 years.

New York-based Human Rights Watch reported that hundreds of people were detained in the build-up to a planned nationwide protest on May 21.

The same organisation last month called on Kazakh authorities to stop the trial of Bokaev and Ayan and free both men.

Nazarbayev, 76, signed off on a moratorium preventing implementation of the land reform through 2021 in a rare concession to political opposition.

Nazarbayev's reign has rarely been contested since Kazakhstan gained independence in 1991 and the strongman is the beneficiary of a flowering cult of personality.

This month the national bank announced the issue of bills worth 10,000 tenge (nearly USD 30) which will bear his image while Nazarbayev himself knocked back a proposal by lawmakers to rename the Kazakh capital Astana in his honour last week.

Land policy is highly sensitive in ex-Soviet Central Asia where many recall the privatisations of the 1990s after the collapse of the USSR with bitterness.
Manila: Manila police detonated a suspected bomb found on Monday in a trash bin just a few meters (yards) from the US Embassy, snarling morning traffic after authorities closed a portion of a major boulevard where the device was found.

No one was reported hurt in the incident.

Two explosions were heard as a bomb disposal unit detonated what police described as a suspicious package believed to be an improvised explosive device.

Street sweeper Winniefreda Francisco says she called police after finding a cellphone attached to a bottle-like cylinder wrapped in black, with wires connecting the cylinder to the phone. It was not immediately clear if the device found was really a bomb.

Manila police spokeswoman Marissa Bruno would not give further details, saying a statement will be issued later.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority official Frisco San Juan Jr said they had to divert traffic from a portion of Roxas Boulevard fronting the embassy. The closed lane of the road was reopened after police declared the area safe.
Dublin: Coast guards in Ireland had a pleasant surprise as a wind-beaten houseboat, but otherwise intact, washed ashore on the coast.

However, what was more unexpected for the baffled guards was to discover a small note, purportedly from its owner, revealing his intent.

The short note found inside was seemingly from a man in Newfoundland, Canada.

Apparently, the solar-powered houseboat made all the way to the Irish coast after floating across the mighty Atlantic.

The note read: I, Rick Small, donate this structure to a homeless youth to give them a better life that Newfoundlanders choose not to do!

No rent, no mortgage, no hydro.

According to a media report, local authorities spotted the boat at sea.

The news of the discovery spread fast after the coast guards posted the photos.

The owner of the vessel, Rick Small, is believed to be from Ontario, Canada.

The Halifax authorities were amazed it made it to Ireland and was in one piece, a spokesperson for the Irish Coast Guard reportedly said after getting in contact with their Canadian counterparts.

They said the owner was hoping to cross the Atlantic in it, but they managed to discourage him, according to the spokesperson.

Meanwhile, no final has been made as to what to do with the vessel but a local group has reportedly expressed interest in restoring it.
Pyongyang: North Korea began three days of official mourning on Monday for late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, remembering him as a "close friend" and heroically in a joint struggle against US aggression.

Flags flew at half-mast at official buildings across the country as a mark of respect for the revolutionary icon, despite a relationship that was often warmer in rhetoric than reality.

In the Pyongyang subway, commuters in one station crowded around a glass case containing a Castro obituary published by the ruling party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun.

Alongside a picture framed with a black border and showing a head-and-shoulder shot of a bearded Castro in full military dress, the obit recalled his visit to North Korea in 1986 when he met founder-leader Kim Il-Sung.

It noted that the Cuban leader was awarded the title of "DPRK (North Korea) Hero" for his efforts to strengthen relations between two countries "fighting in the outposts of the anti-US, anti-imperialist struggle."

Kim Hong-Chol, 76, a retired literary researcher in Pyongyang, said he clearly remembered Kim's visit.

"He was a great revolutionary. Until the last minute he supported and defended our revolution, and fought intensely for anti-imperialist independence and against America," Kim told AFP.

Asked about the historic restoration of Cuba-US diplomatic relations last year, Kim said Havana had acted "tactically for Cuba's revolutionary benefit".

Ordinary North Koreans usually express only officially-sanctioned views when questioned by foreign news organisations.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un sent a condolence message on Castro's death, calling him a "close friend and comrade" of the Korean people.

An official delegation led by senior Kim aide and vice chairman of the ruling Worker's Party Central Committee, Choe Ryong-Hae, left for Havana today to attend memorial events.

Castro only made the one visit to the North.

The fact that it came decades after the Cuban revolution and Kim's ascent to power was partly a reflection of a geographical, cultural and often ideological divide that a shared hatred of the "US enemy" could never fully bridge.

Neither Kim Il-Sung nor his son and successor Kim Jong-Il -- who had a profound fear of flying -- ever made the trip to Havana.

During the 1970s they were rivals in the Non-Aligned Movement, with Castro favouring the Soviet Union while Kim Il-Sung kept an equal distance from Moscow and Beijing in a bid to play the communist giants off each other.

When Castro attended a NAM summit in Malaysia in 2003, he stopped off in China, Japan and Vietnam -- but not North Korea.

But if the personal chemistry was lacking, the two countries remained allies, with Cuba one of the few countries willing to flout the international sanctions imposed on the North over its nuclear weapons programme.
Columbus: The suspect in today's attack at Ohio State University rammed into pedestrians with a car and attacked them with a butcher knife, before being shot dead by police, officials said.

Asked if authorities were considering the incident to be a terror attack, Columbus police chief Kim Jacobs said that investigators were considering it to be a "possibility."

"About 9:52 am, a male suspect drove a vehicle over the curb... Struck pedestrians," Craig Stone, chief of police at the university, told a news conference.

"He exited the vehicle, and used a butcher knife to start cutting pedestrians."

"Our officer was on scene in less than a minute and he ended the situation in less than a minute. He engaged the suspect, and he eliminated the threat," Stone added.

Nine people were transported to hospitals -- eight of them in stable condition and one critical, he said.

Jacobs said there was no indication of multiple suspects in the attack, despite witness accounts suggesting several attackers were involved.
Vatican City: Pope Francis urged scientists Monday to be in the vanguard of protecting the environment, in a speech critical of politicians yet to show "concrete will" in implementing global climate agreements.

The remarks at a symposium whose attendees included the British physicist Stephen Hawking, an avowed atheist, may have been directed at US President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump threatened to pull the United States out of the COP21 Paris Agreement, that binds countries to national pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, during a bruising election campaign.

Francis said it had fallen to the scientific and Christian communities to join together "in the shared goal of protecting our common home, threatened as it is by ecological collapse".

Such an alliance was possible because both "work free of political, economic or ideological interests" albeit using different approaches.

In contrast, "international politics has reacted weakly - albeit with some praiseworthy exceptions - regarding the concrete will to seek the common good," he said.

"The submission of politics to a technology and an economy which seek profit above all else, is shown by the `distraction` or delay in implementing global agreements on the environment," he added.

During the race for the White House, Trump repeatedly told crowds of rustbelt and southern voters -- factory workers, coal miners and oilmen among them -- that he would tear up climate agreements.

As far back as 2012 he had tweeted: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive."

Since being elected, however, Trump has said he is "open minded" about whether to support global accords.

The pope, who did not refer to Trump or any other politician by name, wrote a papal letter on the environment last year in which he said rapid action was needed to save the planet from ruin.
Aleppo: Government forces have retaken a third of rebel-held territory in Aleppo, forcing nearly 10,000 civilians to flee as they pressed their offensive to retake Syria's second city.

In a major breakthrough in the push to retake the whole city, regime forces captured six rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo over the weekend, including Masaken Hanano, the biggest of those in eastern Aleppo.

Yesterday, the 13th day of the operation, they also took control of the adjacent neighbourhoods of Jabal Badra and Baadeeen and captured three others, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Inzarat, Al-Sakan al-Shaabi and Ain al-Tall have all returned to regime hands and government forces have made large forays into Sakhur and nearby Haidariya, the monitor said.

It said government forces are "in control of most of the northern part" of Aleppo.

"The rebels have lost at least 30 percent of the territory they once controlled in Aleppo," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The regime gains came as its aircraft pounded rebel positions and amid heavy clashes between the opposition and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in the strategic Sakhur district.

Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided the city into a rebel-held east and a regime-controlled west.

Around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in the east have faced serious food and fuel shortages.

The Observatory said that nearly 10,000 civilians had fled east Aleppo overnight Saturday -- at least 6,000 to the Kurdish-controlled northern district of Sheikh Maksoud, with the rest fleeing to government-held areas.

"It is the first exodus of this kind from east Aleppo since 2012," Abdel Rahman said.

Syrian state television broadcast images of a crowd of civilians including women and children gathered around green buses that it said had come to pick them up in Masaken Hanano.

One woman was shown pushing a stroller and many others carried plastic bags on their heads as bombardment was heard in the distance.

Official media said they were taken "by the army to safe areas".

Yasser al-Youssef, from the rebel group Nureddin al-Zinki, said opposition fighters were consolidating their positions in Sakhur.

Sakhur lies on a stretch of just 1.5 kilometres between west Aleppo and Masaken Hanano, now both regime-controlled.

If the regime takes control of Sakhur, east Aleppo would be split in two from north to south, dealing a further blow to the armed opposition.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment on the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shelling and barrel bombs.

On Saturday, dozens of families fled Sakhur and Haidariya as regime raids and artillery killed at least 18 civilians in several districts, the Britain-based Observatory said.

At least 225 civilians, including 27 children, have been killed since the government's latest assault on east Aleppo began on November 15.

Rebel forces also intensified rocket attacks on western districts overnight, killing at least four civilians and wounding dozens, the Observatory said.
Columbus: A man plowed his car into a group of pedestrians at Ohio State University and began stabbing people with a butcher knife before he was shot to death by a police officer.

Police said they are investigating whether it was a terrorist attack. Nine people were hurt, one critically.

The attacker was identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, a Somali-born legal permanent resident of the US, according to a US official who wasn't authorised to discuss details of the case publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The FBI and other agencies joined the investigation.

The details emerged after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning that there was an "active shooter" on campus near the engineering building and that students should "run, hide, fight."

The warning was apparently prompted by what turned out to be police gunfire.

Numerous police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads.

Students barricaded themselves inside offices and classrooms, piling chairs and desks in front of doors.

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone said that the assailant deliberately drove over a curb outside a classroom building and then got out and began attacking people with the knife. A campus officer who happened to be nearby because of a gas leak arrived on the scene and shot the driver in less than a minute, Stone said.

Angshuman Kapil, a graduate student, was outside the building when the car barreled onto the sidewalk.

"It just hit everybody who was in front," he said. "After that everybody was shouting, 'Run! Run! Run!'"

Student Martin Schneider said he heard the car's engine revving.

"I thought it was an accident initially until I saw the guy come out with a knife," Schneider said, adding that the man didn't say anything when he got out.

Asked at a news conference whether authorities were considering the possibility it was a terrorist act, Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs said: "I think we have to consider that it is."

In recent months, federal law enforcement officials have raised concerns about online extremist propaganda that encourages knife and car attacks, which are easier to pull off than bombings.

The Islamic State group has urged sympathisers online to carry out attacks in their home countries with whatever weapons are available to them.
Imamnazar: Asian neighbours Turkmenistan and Afghanistan on Monday opened the first section of a USD 2 billion link connecting their two countries by rail for the first time and set to extend to Tajikistan.

Turkmenistan`s President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov and his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani attended the colourful celebrations featuring Turkmen traditional dancers.

A train pulling 46 freight cars completed the 3-kilometre journey from Turkmenistan`s Imamnazar customs point to Akina in Afghanistan.

This represents the tail end of an 88-kilometre (55-mile) link with Afghanistan that Turkmenistan began building back in 2013.

Berdymukhamedov said in a speech that the project "is written in golden letters in the history of our brotherly nations."

If completed, the 400-kilometre railway would boost trade between the three countries in a landlocked region where transport infrastructure is generally weak and could link up with other rail routes across Asia.

For commodity-rich former Soviet nation Turkmenistan in particular the freight link offers the opportunity to increase its energy exports to neighbouring countries.

Nevertheless, the project is weighed down with concerns about security in Afghanistan that prompted key backer the Asian Development Bank to suspend support for it last year.

Neither Tajikistan or Afghanistan have yet built their sections in the route.

Tajikistan has said it will not begin work on its own section while Afghanistan remains embroiled in some of the worst fighting the country has seen since the US-backed invasion began in 2001.

Should the link be completed, another Central Asian nation, Kyrgyzstan, and the region`s top trade partner China have both expressed interest in linking up to the railway in the future.

Central Asia has a central place in China`s One Road One Belt strategy driving westward overland trade via key infrastructural investments.

Turkmenistan and Afghanistan which were only previously connected by road are also participants in an ambitious USD 10 billion pipeline plan to send Turkmen gas to Pakistan and India.
United Nations: The United Nations Security Council is set to vote on Wednesday to impose new sanctions on North Korea for its fifth and largest nuclear test, slashing Pyongyang`s export earnings by some $800 million, diplomats said on Monday.

Diplomats said the council`s five veto-wielding powers - the United States, China, Britain, Russia and France - had agreed to new measures, seen by Reuters on Friday, that largely target the hermit Asian state`s coal export earnings.

"We didn`t get everything we wanted," said a U.S. official familiar with the draft resolution, though he added the proposed new sanctions were "pretty good."

North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 over its nuclear and missile tests. It conducted its latest nuclear test on Sept. 9, and the United States and China, a North Korea ally, spent over two months negotiating new sanctions. The draft text was given to all 15 Security Council members on Friday.

China is believed to be the only country that now buys North Korean coal and under the U.S.-drafted U.N. resolution likely to be adopted on Wednesday it would cut its imports by some 60 percent, or $700 million on 2015 sales, diplomats said.

The new sanctions would cap North Korean coal exports at $400.9 million or 7.5 million metric tonnes annually, whichever is lower, starting on January 1. Over the first 10 months of this year China has imported 18.6 million tonnes of coal from North Korea, up almost 13 percent from a year ago.

Coal is one of North Korea`s only sources of hard currency and its largest single export item. The draft U.N. resolution would also ban exports of copper, nickel, silver and zinc, which the U.S. official said is worth about $100 million a year.

STATUE BAN

The draft text would prohibit the sale of statues by North Korea, which the U.S. official said had reaped contracts worth tens of millions of dollars for Pyongyang.

"Pyongyang has prioritised the pursuit of nuclear weapons over just about everything else ... so we don`t think this action here in New York will immediately convince the regime`s leader (Kim Jong Un) to cease his pursuit of nuclear weapons, the U.S. official said.

"We do note that our action will be felt and will impede the DPRK (North Korean) regime`s ability to continue these programmes," the official said.

The draft resolution would prohibit countries from selling North Korea helicopters or vessels and statues.

It calls on U.N. states to reduce the number of staff at North Korea`s foreign missions and requires countries to limit the number of bank accounts to one per North Korean diplomatic mission amid concerns that Pyongyang had used its diplomats and foreign missions to engage in illicit activities.

The draft text says that countries can inspect the personal luggage of individuals entering or leaving North Korea as it could be a way to transport banned items.

The Security Council would blacklist a further 11 individuals, including people who have served as ambassadors to Egypt and Myanmar, and 10 entities, subjecting them to a global travel ban and asset freeze for their role in the North Korea`s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

The sale or transfer of luxury items to North Korea has long been banned by the Security Council. The draft resolution adds rugs or tapestries worth more than $500 and porcelain or bone china tableware valued at more than $100 to the list.
United Nations: The United Nations on Monday issued an urgent appeal to Syria`s warring parties to halt attacks endangering civilians in Aleppo and allow humanitarian aid deliveries to besieged parts of the city.

Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said rebel-held parts of Aleppo had received no aid since the beginning of July, and food was becoming scarce.

Supplies provided by the World Food Program ran out on November 13 and aid from other agencies is dwindling, "effectively leaving Eastern Aleppo city without food," he said.

The UN is "extremely concerned" about the estimated 275,000 civilians trapped in "horrific conditions."

"We urge all parties to the conflict to put an end to the indiscriminate bombing and shelling and to protect civilians and civilian infrastructures and to enable life-saving humanitarian assistance, as required under international humanitarian law," Dujarric said.

Faced with devastating bombing and street fighting, thousands are fleeing to safety after more than four months of siege.

Syria`s rebels lost all of the northern neighborhoods of their stronghold in east Aleppo on Monday, as the army of President Bashar al-Assad made significant advances in its offensive to recapture the entire city.
We, Indians, love cricket. We eat, drink and sleep cricket. We even go to the extent of worshipping some of our cricketers. All this is good as long as it is harmless. But, the reported fight between some of our cricketers and their fans in a pub is very disturbing. <br><br> Since the time India has been ousted from the T20 World Cup, media is abuzz with debates about why we lost? Some, which include Dhoni, say it was because of fatigue from the IPL matches, while others attribute it to excessive partying and lack of practice. Whatever be the reason, one thing is very worrying. We all seem to have lost the spirit of sportsmanship. <br><br> Cricket has now become so commercialised with the advent of events like IPL or product endorsements by cricketers, or allegations of match-fixing that it seems, we have lost the real essence of cricket. Cricket is a sport. It is a game and in a game there will always be a winner and a loser. <br><br> It shall be unfair to expect a team to always win. It is natural for fans to get disappointed but, a real fan is one who has faith in the abilities of his sportsman. We should realise that cricketers are also human beings. If they choose to party after a hard days work, then it may be their personal way of unwinding. Which rule states that if one faces some setback then one should not party? Did the cricketers commit a crime if they decided to go to a pub after being ousted from the T20 World Cup? May be it was their way of getting over their failure. Would it have made more PR sense for them if they came in front of the media with sad faces, pretended that they were too ashamed for what they did, lamented their fate, said that all is over and they did not deserve a second chance? Would that have satisfied the fans? No, this would have been wrong! The cricketers would also be sad at their failure but, that is not the end of the road. We should try to empathise with them. Every individual has a different way of dealing with failures. Some cut off themselves from everybody, while others let their hair down. <br><br> Yes, the cricketers are accountable to the country as a whole. Yes, they need to follow a disciplined life. Yes, they need to practice enough. Yes, they need to give their 100 percent to the sport. But, this is for their coach or the BCCI to see. Just because some cricketers went to a pub for a couple of hours does not mean they are frivolous. Moreover, it would be unrealistic to think that the cricketers themselves are not worried about their performance. In fact, they should and would be more worried than the fans. They have their entire career at stake. They know that if they do not deliver, they would be replaced not only on the cricket field but, also in the ad world. <br><br> Let us have some faith in our sportsmen. Let us refrain from extreme reactions. Let us not make them God when they win and abuse them when they lose. Cricket is a sport and a good sport demands good sportsmanship. Let us not be bad losers!
Washington State's subsidies for the Boeing 777X fuelled unfair trade distortions, according to the WTO

Boeing expects the US to appeal a World Trade Organization decision Monday that declared illegal a tax credit offered by Washington state, company representatives said.

The WTO decision was a win for the European Union on behalf of Airbus, which had argued that a Washington state tax benefit offered to Boeing to build the 777x jetliner was an unfair subsidy which violates global trade rules.

"I fully expect this case will be appealed," said Bob Novick, an outside counsel representing Boeing, adding that a final resolution of the case might not come until early 2019.

The US Trade Representative said it is reviewing the WTO decision with Washington state officials to decide how to respond.

Novick criticized the rationale behind the decision to strike down the Washington state Business and Occupancy (B&O) tax rate as wrongly concluding that the law favored the domestic manufacturing of goods because Boeing had not imported the wing for the 777x as it had for the 787 plane.

The WTO "jumped to the conclusion that the somehow the law favored domestic over imported," he told reporters in a conference call.

Boeing said the WTO rejected the EU claim that the company had received $8.7 billion in subsidies. Boeing estimates the total benefit of the disputed Washington state provision at $50 million a year, or a maximum of $1 billion.

Boeing has not received any of the benefits yet under the B&O tax break and does not expect to see any until 2020 at the soonest, Boeing officials said.

"After any appeal, we fully expect Boeing to preserve every aspect of the Washington state incentives, including the 777X revenue tax rate," said J. Michael Luttig, Boeing's general counsel.

The ruling from a WTO panel is the latest blow in a drawn out trans-Atlantic battle between the aviation industry's two titans, which has seen Airbus and Boeing each score points along the way.

US Trade Representative spokesman Matt McAlvanah said the agency was reviewing the ruling, but suggested it was ready to fight on behalf of the US aerospace giant.

"This case is a small fraction of the overall aerospace dispute, on which the WTO has found overwhelmingly in the United States' favor," McAlvanah said in a statement, noting the WTO has deemed illegal $22 billion in EU subsidies to Airbus.

"The US government will continue to hold the EU to account for illegal, market distorting subsidies that have put American workers and businesses at a competitive disadvantage."
European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici gestures as he speaks during a meeting with Greek Prime Minister in Athens, on November 28, 2016

Greece and its European creditors are "very close" to an agreement that would open the way to vital debt talks, EU economy commissioner Pierre Moscovici said Monday.

But first, Moscovici said on a two-day visit to Athens, the Greek government had to complete an ongoing audit of its latest fiscal reforms to enable a "package deal" on further structural changes and debt talks.

"I think we are very close to an agreement... if we are capable of concluding the review, then we must absolutely open...debt talks," he told Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

"It cannot be done... in just one meeting, but (there needs to be) a sequence which leads to a global agreement," he said, referring to a eurozone ministers meeting on December 5 at which the debt issue is expected to be discussed.

"We need to reach a staff-level agreement by the end of this week... it's absolutely doable," Moscovici then told reporters.

Greece's budget for 2017, to be approved by parliament on December 10, includes extra taxation on cars, fixed telephony, pay TV, fuel, tobacco, coffee and beer.

Greece's leftist-led government is desperate to reach agreement with the creditors on the new fiscal measures before the end of the year in order to secure a pledge of debt relief, hoping it will kickstart the ailing economy.

Athens is also hoping that a deal will persuade the European Central Bank to include Greek sovereign debt in its asset purchase programme, known as quantitative easing or .

Without debt relief, the ECB will not grant Greece access to QE, and without this, the country will not be able to return to borrowing markets by early 2018, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said Monday.

Greece's debt will grow to 315 billion euros ($334 billion) or around 180 percent of output this year, according to the Greek finance ministry.

ECB executive board member Benoit Coeure, who is also in Athens, on Monday said there were "serious concerns" about the sustainability of Greece's crushing debt.

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"All stakeholders in the Greek adjustment programme realise that there are serious concerns about the sustainability of Greek public debt," Coeure told an Athens conference.

"We are looking forward to a solution that can reassure markets," he said, one that would "allow the full involvement of the IMF in the programme (to) enhance the programme?s credibility."

The goal is to "ultimately restore market access for Greece before the (present EU bailout) ends in July 2018," Coeure said.

The International Monetary Fund has said it won't join the latest bailout -- Greece's third since 2010 -- until it sees a concrete plan from the Europeans to substantially cut the debt burden.

Despite strong opposition by Germany, Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem has said "short-term debt measures" could be discussed in December.

Moscovici on Monday told the Ethnos daily that "the conditions are adequate" to allow the issue to be raised at next month's ministerial meeting.
Minister of Petroleum of Venezuela Eulogio Del Pino speaks during the 23rd World Energy Congress on October 11, 2016 in Istanbul

Venezuelan Oil Minister Eulogio del Pino said Monday he was "optimistic" that an OPEC meeting this week in Vienna will reach agreement on oil production cuts to boost prices.

"I am optimistic" ahead of "this very important meeting", he said, quoted by the Algerian news agency APS, on his arrival in Algiers where he met his counterpart Noureddine Boutarfa.

The two ministers were to travel on to Moscow before Wednesday's meeting in Vienna on a mission to try to convince non-OPEC oil producer Russia to join in the output cuts.

"The aim is to meet with the Russian authorities and to share our strategy with them," del Pino said. "OPEC and non-OPEC countries must take action."

Boutarfa said on a visit to Iran last weekend that OPEC was prepared to cut output by 1.1 million barrels per day (bpd) if non-members reduce by 600,000 bpd, Iranian media reported.

President Vladimir Putin said last week Russia was ready to "freeze production", but stopped short of promising a cut.

Russia, its finances hit by low oil prices and Western sanctions, is pumping some 11 million bpd, a level not seen since Soviet days.

For Venezuela, the collapse in oil prices over the past two years has compounded its economic and political crisis.

In September, the 14-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries agreed at an informal Algiers meeting to cut output.

Details of the deal and on how to distribute the cuts have been left for the formal meeting in Vienna.
Washington State's subsidies for the Boeing 777X fuelled unfair trade distortions, according to the WTO

Subsidies given by the US state of Washington to Boeing are illegal, the World Trade Organization said Monday, in a victory for rival aircraft maker Airbus and the European Union.

The ruling from a WTO panel is the latest blow in a drawn out trans-Atlantic battle between the aviation industry's two titans, which has seen both Airbus and Boeing score points along the way.

The WTO said that subsidies set up by Washington state to support production of Boeing's 777X jet were "prohibited" as they encouraged the use of domestic materials, fuelling trade distortions.

The panel called for the subsidies to be withdrawn within 90 days.

Airbus was represented by the European Union in the case while the US federal government fought for Boeing and Washington state because companies and regional authorities do not have standing at the Geneva-based WTO.

Boeing said it expects the US to appeal against the decision.

"After any appeal, we fully expect Boeing to preserve every aspect of the Washington state incentives, including the 777X revenue tax rate," said J. Michael Luttig, Boeing's general counsel.

According to Airbus's own estimates, Washington state has given Boeing tax breaks worth $8.7 billion (8.2 billion euros) in a scheme scheduled to run through 2040.

Boeing has dismissed those numbers, putting the benefits to date at a maximum of $1 billion.

"The 777X will not cost Boeing a single dollar to develop thanks to Washington State's taxpayers," Airbus president Fabrice Bregier said in a statement of the aircraft that is expected to be market ready by 2020.

"This cannot go on any longer. It is time for the US Trade Representative to insist that Boeing cease its anti-competitive behaviour," he added.

The WTO, which aims to create a level playing field in global trade, does not have the ability to force compliance with its rulings, but can approve retaliatory measures which in theory can pressure trade manipulators to fall into line.

Calling Monday's ruling "an important victory for the EU," the bloc's trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said she expected the United States "to respect the rules, uphold fair competition and withdraw these subsidies without any delay."

Story continues

A spokesman for the US Trade Representative said the agency was reviewing the ruling, but suggested it was ready to fight on behalf of the US aerospace giant.

"This case is a small fraction of the overall aerospace dispute, on which the WTO has found overwhelmingly in the United States' favor," spokesman Matt McAlvanah said in a statement, adding that "the US government will continue to hold the EU to account for illegal, market distorting subsidies.".

- Tit-for-Tat -

The EU has also been reprimanded by the WTO during the tit-for-tat conflict between Airbus and Boeing.

In September, a WTO panel found that Brussels had not respected a 2011 ruling ordering it to take steps to withdraw several support and subsidy programmes for Airbus.

The WTO did not put a value on those programmes but Boeing said they amounted to $22 billion worth of illegal support for Airbus development and sales.

The EU has appealed against that decision, insisting that the subsidies in question had been discontinued.

Meanwhile, a separate 2012 WTO ruling on benefits Boeing received from federal, state and local governments in the US remains a source of dispute, with a report on the issue due out in the coming months.

- A new industry-wide pact? -

Airbus Group chief executive Tom Enders described the seemingly never-ending spat with Boeing as "a ridiculous series of disputes initiated by the US."

In seeking to move past drawn-out, costly squabbles at the WTO, Enders called for an agreement "on a set of globally applicable rules for the support of the civil aircraft industry, which would benefit both sides of the Atlantic."

He noted that the battle for aviation contracts was no longer just Airbus versus Boeing.

Aircraft maker Bombardier has received massive support from the Canadian government, while Russian and Asian firms have increasingly become market players, Enders said.

"We need a global framework," he continued. "This WTO battle is a battle of the past which benefits only the armies of lawyers both sides employ for more than a decade."
As George W Bush taught us: "fool me twice, we don't get fooled again."

Remember when Donald Trump's $25,000,000 fraud settlement was a one-day news cycle because we were all focusing on Trump's insane vendetta against Hamilton?

Well, today, Donald Trump responded to the New York Times's deep dive into his conflicts of interest  even as a consensus is emerging among constitutional scholars that the exotic emoluments clause will require Trump to sell off much of his business empire  by tweeting a series of bizarre, ghastly-fascinating conspiracy theories about alleged "millions of people who voted illegally."

OK, that's just bullshit.

There's going to be a recount. We'll find out what we find out. Even if it turns out  as is likely  that fraud and irregularities are small-scale and add up to too small a hill of beans to affect the election outcome, we should totally be auditing votes cast with electronic voting machines, in every election, both randomly and in close-run ballots.

But the real story this weekend is Trump's conflicts of interest, lavishly documented by the attentive Richard C. Paddock, Eric Lipton, Ellen Barry, Rod Nordland, Danny Hakim and Simon Romero of the New York Times.

* He has business interests with Jose E. B. Antonio, who is also Philippines dictator Rodrige Duterte's Special Envoy to the USA

* Similar conflicts potentially exist is some 20 known countries where the Trump organization has dealings

* Trump also has a long, undisclosed list of foreign creditors, potentially including sovereign wealth funds

* Trump has used his political campaign to curry favor with foreign leaders: after his businesses in Turkey were threatened as a result of his call for a ban on Muslims entering the USA, he stood up for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's firing of 100,000 public servants and shuttering of 129 news agencies, rescuing his business interests in the process

The Times goes on to report, in detail on Trump's political and business conflicts in Brazil, India, Turkey, The Philippines, Ireland, Scotland, and around the world  including filing a trademark on "The American Idea," among other trademarks, that (according to the application), Trump will use to link his global holdings to the office of the US President.

The Times story also includes interactive features and videos, and will reward your close scrutiny (unlike the fact-free accusation of three million fraudulent votes).

In August, Elizabeth Trudeau, a State Department spokeswoman, said the United States was "very deeply concerned" about reports of "extrajudicial killings by or at the behest of government authorities of individuals who are suspected to have been in drug activity in the Philippines." She added, "We have also made our concerns known." The question now, former State Department officials say, is just what kind of a stand the Trump administration will take as Mr. Trump and his family balance their personal and financial ties with foreign policy demands. Mr. Antonio first met Mr. Trump casually in the 1990s and has been his business partner in the Philippines for five years. President Duterte named him special envoy to the United States as the Philippines angrily pushed back at President Obama for criticizing his deadly campaign. At the time of the appointment, Mrs. Clinton was leading in the polls in the United States presidential election. Mr. Duterte has made clear that he does not appreciate American meddling in his country's domestic affairs. "I am a president of a sovereign state, and we have long ceased to be a colony," Mr. Duterte told reporters in early September, before a scheduled meeting in Laos with Mr. Obama that never took place. "I do not have any master except the Filipino people, nobody but nobody." Mr. Duterte handpicked Mr. Antonio as his intermediary with the United States, said his press secretary, Ernesto Abella, because of his business success, his previous experience as a special envoy to China and the Philippine president's "deep intuition about people." The appointment will be advantageous for the Philippines, Mr. Abella added, because Mr. Trump already knows Mr. Antonio.

Potential Conflicts Around the Globe for Trump, the Businessman President

[Richard C. Paddock, Eric Lipton, Ellen Barry, Rod Nordland, Danny Hakim and Simon Romero/New York Times]
The Taiwan Tourism Bureau has been establishing over 200 'Information Stations' at tourist spots to provide better and more convenient help to visitors. Click here for high-resolution version

TAIPEI, TAIWAN--(Marketwired - Nov 28, 2016) - In order to help independent travelers to have their question answered via friendly, Taiwanese style service, the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, especially collaborated with friendly stores and service providers throughout Taiwan to establish "Information Stations" that help visitors in Taiwan. Arriving at an "Information Station," you will see the yellow, round "Information Station" sign with black letters. Besides wall maps and friendly travel information services, the station also has Wi-Fi hotspots and QR codes that will guide the visitors to a variety of cloud-based travel services.

The Taiwan Tourism Bureau has been assisting local governments establishing "Information Stations" at tourist spots to provide better and more convenient help to visitors. So far, over 200 stations have been established and the 2016 most popular "station master" voting event has just ended, attracting over 190,000 votes. Based on the scoring rubrics measuring specialty, enthusiasm, friendliness, professionalism, and thoughtfulness, the winning station masters are ZHENG Mama Hand-Crafted Nougat, Wei-I Foodstuff Company, Ateliea Tea Shop, Peng-Fu tourism yacht, and Mizai Sweet Potato Candy.

Taiwan Tourism Bureau has announced that all 14 freeway service areas will also become Information Stations. This year, service areas in Guanxi, Qingshui, and Dongshan have already set up Information Stations and begun helping out tourists. By linking all 14 service areas, Information Station service coverage can be widened. Since freeways are the traffic backbones of Taiwan, service areas are already important stops and many of them have already started to feature local specialties, history, culture and food, becoming a tourist spot themselves. Through adding Information Stations, service areas can offer even better service to travelers.

Relying on the enthusiasm of these Information Stations, the Taiwan Tourism Bureau will use the slogan "Come and visit my home (station)" as a way to recruit more merchants to join the ranks of other stations. By doing so, the bureau hopes that these Information Stations can act as local guides and provide travelers with excellent hospitality and also bring traffic to the local food and scenic spots around the Information Stations. http://www.taiwan-askme.tw/en

Story continues

About Taiwan Tourism Bureau

Taiwan Tourism Bureau began in 1956. Responsible for the administration of domestic and international tourism policy making, execution and development.

Photo caption: The Taiwan Tourism Bureau has been establishing over 200 "Information Stations" at tourist spots to provide better and more convenient help to visitors.

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=3084804


Virtual Reality

Students Develop VR Campus Tour of Lehigh U

A group of students at Lehigh University (LU) have created a virtual reality (VR) app that allows potential students to tour the campus from their mobile devices.

Vertra offers a 360-degree view of LUs buildings, laboratories, Greek houses as well as popular off-campus attractions.

The app arose from a group project for an entrepreneurship class taught by professors Joshua Ehrig and James Peterson, according to a report from The Brown and White, LUs student newspaper. The project was originally going to be on virtual reality concert streaming, but the creators wanted to make a product people would need instead.

Vertras creators  students Asante Asiedu, Nick Zambas and Alex Spiezio  are in talks with other universities to create similar products for their campuses.

To view the VR campus tour, visit the Vertra site.
English Swedish

Gothenburg, Sweden, 2016-11-28 08:30 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --



Bilia has signed an agreement to acquire Metro Autos Toyota operation in Sweden, MW Gruppen Stockholm AB. The business is run from five facilities: three just south of Stockholm in Nacka, Haninge and Kungens Kurva, and one each in Sodertalje and Eskilstuna. The planned date of possession is 2 January 2017. Annual turnover amounts to about SEK 700 M and the operating profit has averaged SEK 28 M for the past two years. The number of employees amounts to about 115. The operations capital employed, plus agreed-on surplus values, amounts to about SEK 170 M. The agreement also includes acquisition of the five properties housing the business, worth a total of about SEK 165 M. The deal will increase the Bilia Groups capital employed and net debt by a total of about SEK 335 M.

The agreement is subject to approval by the Swedish Competition Authority.

In a comment Managing Director Per Avander says:

It is very gratifying to be able to take the next step in our plan of growing with Toyota. The business is well-managed and will create opportunities for synergies with Bilias other Toyota operations in Sweden.

Toyota Swedens Managing Director Xavier Heylen comments:

We thank Metro Auto Group for their efforts on behalf of Toyota over the years and the strong customer base they have built up. Toyota Sweden looks forward to continued close cooperation with Bilia, and we are convinced that we can together continue to strengthen Toyotas position and create more satisfied Toyota customers.

Metro Auto Groups chairman of the board Satu Wrede comments:

We have had 13 fantastic years with the MW Group and its very skilled staff. Together with Bilia the successful development of the company will continue.

Gothenburg, 28 November 2016

Bilia AB (publ)
ORO VALLEY, Ariz., Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tautachrome, Inc. (OTC-PINK:TTCM) today announced the appointment of Mr. Eric McRae to the newly created position of Business Operations Manager. In addition to managing the day to day business activities of the Company, Mr. McRae will be responsible for the financial controls of the Company and will participate in Company strategic planning.



Dr. Jon N Leonard, Tautachrome CEO stated, Mr. McRae is a committed Tautachrome investor as well as a tenacious businessman. Eric and I have discussed the Companys business operations requirements extensively over many weeks and I am persuaded he will be a significant asset to the Company in this new position and in related responsibilities.

Mr. McRae said this morning, I am pleased to work with Dr. Leonard in moving Tautachrome and its fabulous KlickZie technology forward and into market. I view this opportunity as the chance of a lifetime for me personally and am thrilled to be part of an endeavor aimed at changing the way people on earth communicate with imagery.

Dr. Leonard went on to say, Our immediate objectives remain to secure necessary capital, increase shareholder value and improve investor awareness. We are now preparing tailored and customized trusted imaging material aimed at a specific large US company with deep and global reach and with a highest requirement for trusted imaging capability. In addition, we have activated investor awareness programs to keep our shareholders abreast of things that matter to the Company.

Please see the newly posted Tautachrome video.

About Tautachrome, Inc.

Tautachrome, Inc. (OTC-PINK:TTCM) is an emerging growth company in the developing digital imagery technology sector. Tautachrome is an Internet technology development company with revolutionary patents pending, including Talk-to-the-Picture social networking and trustable imagery-based interaction.

Safe Harbor Statement: Statements made in this press release are forward-looking and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Risk factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, general business conditions, managing growth, and political and other business risks. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this paragraph and the risks and other factors detailed in Tautachrome's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Tautachrome undertakes no duty to update these forward-looking statements.
French English

Elis moves its headquarters to Saint-Cloud in the Greater Paris area

Saint-Cloud, November 28, 2016 - Elis, the leading multi-services group in Europe and Latin America, specializing in the rental and maintenance of flat linen, professional clothing, hygiene and well-being appliances, announces that it has moved its head office to Saint-Cloud in the department of Hauts-de-Seine, West of Paris.

The new headquarters will house 400 Elis employees and will bring together several of the Group's central and operational divisions, which were previously disseminated among several sites in the Ile-de-France region.

The Group wishes to offer its employees a new and more pleasant working environment, better suited to their needs, in order to support its growth and development. The new building, certified "HQE-BBC renovation", offers a bigger and modular workspace.

The development of the new premises was carried out with the support of a specialized company, and will improve day-to-day work, communication and exchanges between the teams.

On this occasion, Xavier Martire, CEO of Elis, declared: "By moving into these new headquarters, Elis is endowing itself with a high-quality work environment and offering its employees more convivial and functional workspace. This move also makes it possible to combine all the Group's central and operational divisions in one place, thus favoring better organization of teams and greater fluidity in their interactions. Beyond the logistical aspect, this is another step in Elis' development and a strong signal of the Group's growth ambitions."

New address of Elis's headquarters: 5, boulevard Louis Loucheur, 92210 Saint-Cloud

About Elis

Elis is a specialized multi-services group, leader in Europe and Latin America for the rental and

maintenance of flat linen, professional clothing, as well as hygiene appliance and well-being services.

With more than 21,000 employees spread across 13 countries, Elis' consolidated turnover in 2015 was

1,415 million and consolidated EBITDA reached 446 million. Benefiting from more than a century of

experience, Elis today services more than 240,000 businesses of all sizes in the hotel, catering,

healthcare, industry, retail and services sectors, thanks to its network of more than 300 production and

distribution centers and 13 clean rooms, which guarantees it an unrivalled proximity to its clients.

Contact

Nicolas Buron, Investor Relations Director - Phone: +33 1 75 49 93 93 - nicolas.buron@elis.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
FIROZ KOH, Afghanistan -- Bibi Asmas fate was sealed before she could understand what the word meant.

As an infant, she was engaged to a distant male relative who was several years older.

Their engagement, in a ramshackle house in Firoz Koh, the capital of Afghanistans western Ghor Province, has shaped most of the now 18-year-old Asmas agonizing experiences.

Most decisions about her life, she says, were made without her consent when she was just a child.

Asma met her fiance for the first time when she was 15. But the meeting turned into a nightmare.

One day, I went to the well, and he came and grabbed me, she recalled. Then he took me into a room. Then that happened there.

Asma says she didnt complain about the incident, but more devastation followed.

[A few days later] he returned to [neighboring] Iran, she said. There he asked his family to get another wife for him, and they did so."

Her mother, broken by the news, died. The family continued to face more misfortune.

After ending their engagement, her fiances family asked for some $1,000 as part of the nearly $3,000 bride wealth they had paid Asmas parents at the time of her engagement.

To escape reprisals from her former in-laws, Asma and her father moved to a new house in Firoz Koh. But even in the new house, she cannot find relief from her constant anxiety.

I am afraid. Misfortune cannot be greater than this, she said.

Radio Free Afghanistan was unable to independently verify her account or to reach her former in-laws, who are presumed to be living in exile in Iran.

Womens rights campaigners in Ghor, however, say Asmas story is typical of dozens of forced and child marriages that take place every year.

In July, police arrested Sayed Mohammad Karim, a 50-something cleric, who claimed to have married a 6-year-old girl.

Karim claimed he had received the girl as a gift from her parents, who were his disciples.

However, Nooria Navid, a womens rights campaigner, says most perpetrators of underage and forced marriages in Ghor go unpunished.

She says that during the past three years their 25-member group has registered more than 100 cases of forced or child marriages.

Almost every girl in Ghor is forced to get married before the age of 18, she told Radio Free Afghanistan. There is no fixed age for girls' marriage. Sometime girls are engaged three days after their birth.

Navid says she has witnessed marriages between a 20-year-old man and a 3-year-old girl. [There was once case in which] a 65-year-old man married a 6-year-old, she noted.

She says her group registered 11 such cases in August alone. Despite the tragedy of nearly every case, one of these even managed to shock them.

One strongman gave his henchmans horse to another person for a Buzkashi match in a remote part of Ghor. During the match, the horse broke its leg and died, she said. The strongman then accused the other of not taking good enough care of the horse and forced him to give his 1-year-old daughter to the horses owner.

Masooma Anwari, the head of the provincial womens directorate, says abusive cultural practices, a weak economic situation, and low levels of public awareness about womens rights have contributed to violence against women and their exploitation.

She says her groups research has revealed that incidents of suicide, mostly through self-immolation or hangings, were linked to underage and forced marriages in Ghor.

[Many women] do not know about their rights and still think they are under the command of men, she said. Men think they own women and that they can decide whatever they want [for them].

Anwari said her organization has sought to raise public awareness about underage marriages in Ghor. But inadequate funds and insecurity in the region prevent them from making an impact in the vast rural region with an estimated population of 1 million.

This year, Ghors Pasaband and Dolaina districts have witnessed fierce fighting between Afghan security forces and Taliban insurgents.

The presence of thousands of armed men often dubbed as irresponsible armed groups by Afghan authorities contributes to violence in the province. They also create hurdles for womens rights groups and prevent them from addressing or documenting incidents of violence against women.

Last year, Ghor made international headlines after a video of a young woman being stoned to death emerged. Authorities said 19-year-old Rokhshana was killed in the village of Ghalmin in October 2015.

Afghan officials said the region, close to Firoz Koh, was controlled by the Taliban.

Rokhshana was accused of attempting to elope with a 23-year-old man named Mohammad Gul after her family had married her off against her will.

Gul was let off after a lashing.

He [Mohammad] was released because he had relatives and supporters, Navid said. But the girl, who had only her poor father backing her, was brutally stoned to death.

She said that 15 years after the fall of the hard-line Taliban regime, the lot of women in rural Afghanistan has not improved.

Navid says her advocacy for womens rights is often met with threats and harassment by local strongmen.

I will sacrifice myself so that other women and the generations to come will not become victims," she said.

as/fg
Those who run afoul of the authorities in Central Asia face two choices: wait until they come for you, or run.

Among the political or religious opposition figures, rights activists, independent journalists, and others who have found themselves "wanted" by local authorities, some have chosen to flee.

For about a decade after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, running could mean simply traveling to Russia, or another country from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), to live in relative safety. But the reach of Central Asian authorities has grown longer and now extends outside the CIS.

A recently released report from the London-based Foreign Policy Center entitled "No Shelter: The Harassment Of Activists Abroad By Intelligence Services From The Former Soviet Union," examines the cooperation in extraterritorial practices of security services, including those from Central Asia.

To discuss the report, RFE/RL arranged a Majlis, or panel, to talk about how security services are able to operate outside their countries, harass those wanted back home, often on questionable charges, and carry out kidnappings, and even assassinations.

Moderating the discussion was RFE/RL Media Relations Manager Muhammad Tahir. From the United Kingdom, two of the authors of the report -- Adam Hug (@AdamHug ), policy director at the Foreign Policy Centre, and Dr. John Heathershaw (@HeathershawJ) of Exeter University, who is an associate professor of International Studies with a particular focus on Central Asia and peace and conflict studies  took part. Ruslan Myatiev (@adalatseeker), the editor at the Alternative News of Turkmenistan website joined the discussion from Europe, as did Kyrgyzbek Konunov, a Tajik journalist and cofounder of the Coalition for Democracy and Civil Society in Tajikistan. Both Myatiev and Konunov fled their countries to escape persecution. I had a few things to say as well.

Fortunate To Flee

Myatiev said he was fortunate that both he and his immediate family were able to flee Turkmenistan. But he explained that, although they were out, there were still relatives back home.

"One of the tactics the Turkmen security service uses is intimidation, [putting] pressure on relatives, intimidating them with all different things -- issues at work, problems at work, problems with being enrolled in a university, all different threats, after which they [the relatives] prefer not to communicate with me, or with my family members. and they see us as the source of these problems."

Konunov's description of Tajikistan suggests that Dushanbe employs similar tactics. "Of course most of us have families left behind and friends, etc." Konunov said, "And, of course, they become the target of persecution and harassment from the government side because, even from my personal experience, there were cases when my friends were harassed by the authorities and eventually I had to stop communicating with almost all of my contacts back home."

This is an old tactic, which has not lost any of its effectiveness in trying to coax exiles back home.

But authorities no longer wait for some exiles to be pressured into returning after hearing tales of abuse of family members and friends.

Heathershaw noted that part of the report deals with "a great deal of continuity from the Soviet era, particularly in terms of the connections between the security services' offices, the culture of the KGB essentially."

Renditions, Disappearances

In some cases, such cooperation between Central Asian security services and Russia's security service has led to "rendition or disappearance," Heathershaw said. He explained wanted nationals are sometimes detained, for example, in Russia but when it becomes apparent that the process of legally extraditing people back to their homelands will be arduous or impossible, "persons are released onto the street and then taken off of the street."

Such people usually resurface in courtrooms or prison cells back in their home countries. The report details some of these cases of disappearance or rendition.

As the Foreign Policy Center report, and many other reports, say, in many cases those dissidents or perceived enemies of Central Asian governments who are sent back home face torture or death.

The report also points that out one of the more recent changes facilitating the work of Central Asian security services abroad is the appearance of diasporas. Security services are able to plant their people in these communities abroad so that, as Hug put it, "traditional surveillance is being done by people within the diaspora community."

Central Asian communities abroad have grown during the 25 years of independence. This is true in Russia, where several million migrant laborers from Central Asia are located, but also in places like Turkey, where the leader of Tajikistan's opposition Group 24, Umarali Kuvvatov was assassinated in March 2015.

"The Umarali Kuvvatov case seems to be one where, amongst the Tajik diaspora in Turkey, we see some infiltration of his group, his associates, by those who sought to remove him and eradicate him, to assassinate him," Heathershaw explained.

Recurrent Patterns

The report also looks at how even groups like Interpol can be used by governments, such as those in Central Asia. "Interpol is being used as a tool to pressure people even when there is no realistic chance that they will be extradited to those countries," Shaw said. He said issuing Red Notices for people wanted in their homelands "is a tool to put pressure on those activists and stop them going about their business, stop them traveling, putting them on edge."

Heathershaw noted that this was part of the reason for publishing this recent report, so that "you can see recurrent patterns of politically-motivated requests through Interpol, recurrent patterns of abusing these systems."

The Foreign Policy Center report comes out as Interpol is working on reforms that should be unveiled in 2017.

Hug conceded that for now "there are definite capacity issues in Interpol and a definite lack of specialist knowledge." Some of the figures who fled Central Asia were sufficiently well-known and when they were detained by Interpol, they were released fairly quickly.

But for many hundreds of people who have fled Central Asia seeking asylum far away "there's going to be lots of people within that who don't have access to the resources and networks that some of these more high-profile figures have."

The panel discussed these issues and others in greater detail. An audio recording of the Majlis can be heard here:

Listen to or download the Majlis podcast above or subscribe to Majlis on iTunes.

The views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of RFE/RL
Afghan officials say leaders of the Taliban insurgency continue to operate out of hideouts and safe havens in neighboring Pakistan.



They have questioned recent media reports citing Taliban officials who claim the Quetta Shura -- the Taliban leadership council named after the southwestern Pakistani city where it is believed to be based -- has now moved to Helmand. The southern province is Afghanistans largest and a global epicenter of opium production.



Members of the Quetta Shura, as well as shadow governors and district governors and other military officials, often come from Quetta to Helmand and other provinces, said provincial Governor Hayatullah Hayat. But their council has not been transferred to our province.



Hayat added that currently all high-ranking Taliban officials live in the Pakistanis cities of Quetta and Peshawar. Peshawar is the capital of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, while Quetta serves as the provincial capital of southwestern Balochistan. Both share a long and porous border with Afghanistan.



On November 26, the Associated Press reported a possible relocation of the Talibans leadership council to Afghanistan. It quoted Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid as saying their council was moved to Afghanistan some months ago.



The report also cited one Taliban official as saying the council was moved to southern Helmand Province.



The Taliban were seeking to take control of Helmand and its capital Lashkar Gah to transfer the Quetta Shura here, Hayat said. But they faced a serious reaction by Afghan security forces and did not succeed in their plan.



In Kabul, Afghan presidential spokesman Dawa Khan Meenapal said he agrees. He says while Taliban violence has escalated over the past two years, insurgent leaders remain in Pakistan.



The Taliban have not transferred their council, and they have no permanent base in any corner of Afghanistan, he told Radio Free Afghanistan.



He says Islamabad could be trying to deflect international pressure over the presence of Taliban sanctuaries on its soil. Now the rumors are being circulated to show the international community that Pakistan has already done something, Meenapal said.



Islamabad has mostly denied the presence of Taliban sanctuaries on its soil. But in an unusually candid admission in March, Pakistani prime ministers adviser for foreign affairs, Sartaj Aziz, said Islamabad has considerable influence over the Taliban because its leaders live in the country.



"We have some influence over them because their leadership is in Pakistan and they get some medical facilities. Their families are here," he told a think-tank audience in Washington. "We can use those levers to pressurize them to say, 'Come to the table.' But we can't negotiate on behalf of the Afghan government because we cannot offer them what the Afghan government can offer."



In May, a U.S. drone strike killed Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansur in a remote corner of Balochistan Province. Pakistan authorities said they recovered a Pakistani passport with the name Wali Muhammad, which they said Mansur used to travel to Iran and elsewhere.



Islamabad is still investigating the case.

as/fg
MASON CITY  Two men accused of threatening someone with a gun Monday on a Mason City street have been arrested.

Jack Hovenga, 18, of Mason City, and Brady Hunt, 36, of Hampton, were each arrested on a charge of felony intimidation with a dangerous weapon and misdemeanor harassment.

Hovenga displayed a handgun, which was later found to be a pellet gun, to someone about 8:30 a.m. Monday in the 100 block of North Pennsylvannia Avenue, said Mason City Police Lt. Rich Jensen.

Court documents list the exact address as 112 N. Pennsylvania Ave., the address for KIMT-TV.

In addition to showing the gun, Hovenga also made statements the victim took as a threat, Jensen said.

Hunt is accused of driving the vehicle that Hovenga was sitting in when he allegedly showed the gun and made the statements, according to court records.

Police and court records did not identify the alleged victim.

KIMT President and General Manager Steve Martinson had no comment when asked if the victim was one of the stations employees.

In addition to the threat and harassment charge, Hovenga also was charged with felony possession and conveying contraband and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.

Police say he was found with suspected methamphetamine at the Cerro Gordo County Jail.
ALLISON  A North Butler kindergarten educator has been honored as a finalist for a prestigious state teaching award.

Laura Tracy, who is in her 28th year of teaching, was named one of four finalists for the 2017 Iowa Teacher of the Year Award. Sponsored by the Iowa Department of Education, it honors outstanding, exceptional educators.

Tracy said via email that the nomination by student Walker Buss parents, Scott and Billie Buss, took her by surprise.

In their nomination letter, the Buss family praised Tracy as a tireless academic innovator who communicates well with parents, provides a safe learning environment and embraces technology.

I feel that Mrs. Tracy is always doing little things that make my son a confident learner, the letter read. ... She is everything we could have hoped for in a teacher who supports a child development philosophy at home.

Tracy, who began her career with North Butler Schools in 1989, used technology in an innovative, self-directed project last spring, allowing her students to become movie stars.

As her class begins learning expeditions, Tracy said she and her kindergartners discuss what they know  or think they know  and what they wonder about.

After reading Jack and the Beanstalk and studying beans, students asked Tracy if they could watch a video of the story.

There werent many to choose from, so Tracy asked her class if theyd like to make their own movie.

That resulted in Kindergarten and the Beanstalk, in which her kindergartners developed a storyboard and used stop-action animation to tell the story of a bean that initially wouldnt grow.

They planned a movie premiere for families, friends and neighbors after working in groups to film scenes.

Dressed as movie stars, the children rode in a limo to the school auditorium, where they watched the video on a big screen and signed autographs for guests.

In planning, Tracy said she tries to visualize learning from her students perspective, regularly asking what might make the biggest difference for a learner or what steps to take next.

I genuinely believe our students can lead us to the solutions were looking for, she said. They key is to take time to listen more and observe more.

She said doing so allows her to slow down the tendency to judge, sensing what to try next and make more room for compassion and empathy.

From my view, all students are gifted and talented, so I do all I can to empower them, Tracy said.

Its most rewarding for her to hear, Mrs. Tracy, I figured it out! whether its in the classroom or in physical education class.

She recalled a time a student broke her leg and had to be in a wheelchair, missing roller skating. One classmate put on his skates and grabbed the handles of the wheelchair, while another put his hands on his friends shoulders to help push.

Soon, all three were laughing, she said.

Tracy says her kindergartners fill my day with purpose and meaning and keep my spirit forever young as they teach her to see things from a different perspective.

Her grandfather and second-grade teacher were among several influences to pursue a teaching career.

In 1926, her grandfather, then 21, left his family in Germany to immigrate to the U.S.

With faith, courage and hard work, he found an American sponsor, learned the language, worked for 10 years as a hired man and rented a farm until able to buy his own, she said. He went through many dramatic changes to create opportunities for himself and his family.

At age 14, he left school to work on the family farm. A month later, Tracy said he changed his mind but was told it was too late  he had to remain at home and keep working.

I empathized with the gravity of that moment, Tracy said.

Tracy says shes never forgotten what its like to be in Mrs. Hillpipers second-grade classroom in Dows, which included music, a reading corner and creative projects.

She smiled and seemed genuinely glad to see her students, Tracy said. It was OK to make mistakes.
MASON CITY | A Nora Springs man whose vehicle was destroyed in a rollover on Avenue of the Saints last week has been released from the hospital.

Shamarre Lee, 21, lost control on a patch of ice over the Winnebago River bridge in the highway's eastbound lanes just outside the Mason City limits around 8 a.m. Saturday, said Iowa State Trooper Keith Duenow.

The bridge is about three-quarters of a mile east of the Thrush Exit.

The Blazer rolled multiple times and broke apart.

Lee, who was wearing a seat belt, was flown by helicopter to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa. He has since been treated and released, a hospital spokeswoman said.

No citations were issued.

-- Molly Montag
MASON CITY  Panda Express construction is progressing on Highway 122 in Mason City.

The location looks to open in the first quarter of 2017, employing 15 to 20 people, according to Jamie Green, regional real estate manager for Panda Express.

Panda Express to open Mason City location MASON CITY  Panda Express, a fast-food chain serving American Chinese cuisine, is planning 

Headquartered in Rosemead, California, the fast-food chain restaurant serves American Chinese food.

Panda Express chose this location because of its high visibility on the main retail corridor and convenience to most people in Mason City, Green said in a statement. Panda Express is very excited to enter a new market and offer its American Chinese cuisine to the people of Mason City.

A $750,000 building permit was taken out with the city. According to the blueprint, the restaurant will be around 2,600 square feet, City Assessor Dana Naumann said.

 Courtney Fiorini
Important stuff you won't get from the liberal media! We do the surfing so you can be informed AND have a life!
WSJ: UAE tried to convince Saudi Arabia not to cut oil production

Cavusoglu: Greece must stop arming the demilitarized islands in the Aegean Sea

Moody's downgrades outlook for banks in Germany, Italy, and 4 other countries to negative

About 40 international companies to announce their relocation to UAE by end of year

Israeli Prime Minister cancels participation in climate summit in Egypt

Earthquake strikes in Antalya

Polish manufacturing output falls amid economic uncertainty

IEF: Oil price to exceed $100 due to EU sanctions against Russia

Iranian MFA denies information about country's planned attack on Saudi Arabia

Lebanon: U.S. guarantees will protect maritime border agreement with Israel if Netanyahu wins

Belarusian MFA responds to Armenia after reaction to statements of Alexander Lukashenko

Azerbaijani propaganda machine launches anti-Iranian rumors in social networks

Lavrov and Abdollahian discuss situation in Persian Gulf zone and South Caucasus

Erdogan and Aliyev discuss results of Sochi meeting of Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders

Goldman Sachs predicts that natural gas prices in Europe will fall by about 30%

White House alleges Iran's plans to supply Russia with surface-to-surface missiles

Iran to send delegation to Vienna to strengthen relations with IAEA

Iranian Foreign Minister to discuss state of nuclear deal negotiations with Borrell

Putin: Russia is ready to supply grain to the poorest countries even without participation in the deal

First list of Armenian servicemen killed as result of Azerbaijan's September aggression is published

Pentagon to supply Vampire anti-drone system to AFU

Xi Jinping confirms China's readiness to invest in Pakistan

Kuzmina: I don't agree that Armenia's economy will be swept away if the borders with Turkey are opened

Poland to build wall on border with Kaliningrad

Garo Paylan proposes opening Armenian-Turkish border

Eduard Solovyov: Russia stated extreme undesirability of close contacts between Baku and NATO countries

Zelenskyy: Threat of use of nuclear weapons by Russia exists and it is not related to non-compliance with ultimatums

IRNA: Azerbaijani State Security Service reacted nervously to Pashinyan's visit to Tehran

FLYONE ARMENIA to start operating flights on the route Yerevan - Beirut Yerevan

Moscow to host meeting of Secretaries of CIS Security Councils

Armenian MFA considers it inappropriate to comment on Lukashenko's rambling statements

Dollar rises, euro falls in Armenia

Makredonov: The Sochi summit showed that it is it's too early to write Russia off

Biden's threat to impose profit tax on oil companies is more of boast than threat

Vadim Mukhanov: Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh are one of main points of negotiations

Russia analyst describes Karabakh Armenians fate if Western version of peace treaty is signed

Armenia MFA: Lukashenko statement is disconnected from reality

Russia MFA spox comments on Zangezur corridor prospects

Voytolovsky: Both sides will have weighty reasons to extend Russia peacekeepers mission in Karabakh

Armenia finance minister: Expenditure for PM's office will be reduced next year

Finance minister: Expenses for needs of parliament staff, Armenia President will increase considerably in 2023

Zakharova on meeting of Russian, Armenian and Azerbaijani FMs in Sochi

Armenian President congratulates Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

Azerbaijani special forces conduct exercises on border with Iran

Armenia defense minister meets with head of EU monitoring mission

Nikol Pashinyan: It is necessary to continue the work to reduce cash turnover

Russia resumes its participation in grain deal

UK shortage of F-35 fighter pilots

Premier: Ministry of Internal Affairs, Foreign Intelligence Service will be established in Armenia in 2023

Shoigu: The NATO grouping near Russia's borders has grown 2.5 times since February

New Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad hopes to continue talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran

Security Council chief receives head of EU monitoring capacity mission to Armenia

Pashinyan: Armenia-Azerbaijan borders existence was recorded both in Sochi and Prague

Second President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan to take part in rally on November 5

Canada to welcome 500,000 immigrants a year by 2025

Armenia PM: Communication difficulties, challenges in relations with Turkey have been overcome

Pashinyan: Armenian side suggests extending mandate of Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh

MFA: Armenia has no misunderstandings with Iran

Russia position on Karabakh status corresponds to Armenia government approach, PM says

Pashinyan: Armenia attaches great importance to further development, deepening of relations with Brazil

Premier: Armenia defense spending will increase by 113% in 2023 compared to 2018

Deputy PM Grigoryan to attend Armenia-Azerbaijan border delimitation, security commissions 3rd meeting

Pashinyan: Armenia has set new record for registered jobs

Israir Airlines launches flights between Tel Aviv, Yerevan

Armenia envoy briefs UK House of Commons defense committee chair on impact of recent Azerbaijan attack

PM: Armenia's economy is booming today

Seoul, Pyongyang launch missiles

Newspaper: Armenia ruling political team is in favor of western version of peace treaty with Azerbaijan

State Department: US will contribute to Armenia-Azerbaijan talks

Turkey parliament approves extending mandate of countrys military in occupied Aghdam of Karabakh

Sweden to reach NATO's defense spending goal of 2% of GDP by 2026

Lebanon raises electricity price for first time since 1990s

Lavrov and Cavusoglu discuss situation over 'grain deal'

Turkey not satisfied with Sweden's promises

Azerbaijan claims to have 'exposed' Azerbaijanis who acted 'under control of Iranian secret service'

Taliban sets up female Interior Ministry unit in Afghanistan to disperse protests

U.S. concerned about Iran's 'threats' against Saudi Arabia

Lebanon is facing a power vacuum, left without a president

Gas exports from Iran to Armenia to double

In first 9 months about $1.7 billion is transferred to Armenia
STEPANAKERT.  The adversary violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between the Karabakh and Azerbaijani opposing forces more than 110 times, over the weekend.

During this time the Azerbaijani armed forces fired around 2,500 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 one shell from a mortar, two shells from a rocket-propelled grenade, and five shells from an automatic grenade launcher, in an easterly direction of the line of contact.

But the NKR Defense Army vanguard units continue confidently carrying out the military task set before them, and take actions in response when necessary.
The Georgian government leads its obligations toward the countrys national minorities to the matter of teaching the official language, according to the Armenian Community of Georgia website.

It is noted that on November 26, the new Parliament of Georgia approved the new cabinet of the country.

Now, the parliament is examining the Government Program, which is the cabinets action plan for the next four years.

The said documents section that refers to the exercising and protection of the rights of the countrys national minorities notes as follows, in particular:

The Civic Equality and Engagement 2015-20 Action Plan will be implemented.

Raising the state language proficiency level will be a special priority.

Access to state services and industry administrative documents will be improved for the national minorities in densely populated areas.

Infrastructure, socioeconomic opportunity development will continue in the regions inhabited by national minorities.

An opportunity will be ensured for the national minorities to preserve and develop their cultural identity.
YEREVAN.  If something is permissible, it is permissible to everyone, ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Vice-Chairman Armen Ashotyan said at a press conference on Monday.

He noted this when asked whether President and RPA Chairman Serzh Sargsyan will become the Prime Minister after 2018, and added that there is nothing unconstitutional, anti-political thing here.

During the RPA congress on November 26, Sargsyan had not reflected on the situation that will come about after 2018, when, under the Constitution, the government shall resign after the term of the incumbent President comes to an end, and a new government shall be formed.

It is still a secret, however, as to who will be the RPAs PM candidate at that time.
New history lessons adopted by the California Board of Education this year may especially resonate with students and families in the City of Fresno.

Schools are now required to teach about the Armenian genocidean important history in the Fresno area, which has a large American-Armenian community, according to The Fresno Bee.

The US State of Californias revised history and social science framework adds key facts relating to Armenian Genocide and its causes, and asks teachers to link it to the Holocaust.

Teachers also are to provide information on the unprecedented American humanitarian response to the genocide: relief efforts raised more than $117 million in the aftermath, saving more than 1 million refugees.

The new content, which is more inclusive and aims to teach students to think critically about historical events, is expected to show up in textbooks by 2018.
YEREVAN.  The participation of Armenian specialists in the next expedition to Issyk-Kul Lake in 2017 is possible, candidate of historical sciences, doctor Vasily Polskikh stated during Yerevan- Bishkek space bridge titled: The Legends of Issyk-Kul. What did Armenian Monks Hide At the Bottom of the Lake?.

Vasily Polskikh noted that Russian-Kyrgyz expeditions are conducted annually. However, taking into account the big area of search and different characters of materials, there is still a lot of work to do. The researcher hopes there will be a joint Kyrgyz-Russian-Armenian expedition this summer adding that he was in Armenia last year, but the main problem is funding of the project.

According to him, following the results of already done work, the legend that there is a treasure hidden at the bottom of the lake isn't confirmed yet. He said that the detective story began when Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky discovered the Catalan Atlas on one of the pages of which Issyk-Kul Lake and a building with two churches were represented. He added the inscription said that it was an Armenian temple where the Apostle St Matthew's body was buried.

The expert said that there are no other references on this subject, but there were many evidences showing the presence of Armenians and Christians in the territory of the country in general. Asked about the approximate location of the Armenian monastery, Vasily Polskikh noted that it could not be claimed unambiguously that the temple was located in Kurmenty bay, as there were no direct proofs of it. However, the artifacts which were indirectly confirming this, were found. Later, an Orthodox church was built on the same place, the ruins of which still exist. But there was a version that the temple could be under water in the area of Issyk-Kul. An object having the size of 2 to 5 km was found at the site, and large amount is necessary for the research.

Speaking about the story of a treasure, Polskikh noted that it referred to the beginning of the 20th century. In brief the story is: Russian emigrant Uspensky got acquainted with a hieromonk in China. Before his death, monk told Uspensky that he was the treasure keeper on Issyk-Kul. Returning to Kyrgyzstan, Uspensky began the searches of treasure. He managed to find an alabaster plate decorated with deer, gold and bronze hammers. The authorities learned about that story and representatives of the Soviet law enforcement agencies got engaged in excavation, but all efforts have not been successful so far.
YEREVAN.  The new prime minister and the new government seem to have changed the logic of development of Armenia, Noravank Scientific Educational Foundation Executive Director, political scientist Gagik Harutyunyan, said at a press conference on Monday.

In his words, fight against corruption in the country can get great impetus after the parliamentary election slated for next April, and this causes some optimism.

I believe that replacing the previous PM with the new one can lead to certain changes in Armenia, said Harutyunyan. I have the impression that if the RPA [i.e. the ruling Republican Party of Armenia] wins the elections this time as well, there definitely will be reforms, since its hardly possible to go forward like this.

The analyst added that the RPA possesses some potential for making these changes.
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 conducted a planned monitoring of the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan.

The monitoring was held on Monday, in the eastern direction of Talish village of NKR Martakert Region, the NKR Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

From the positions of the NKR Defense Army, the monitoring was conducted by Ghenadie Petrica (Moldova), Field Assistant to the Personal Representative to the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office (CiO); and Peter Svedberg (Sweden), staff member of the Office of the Personal Representative to the OSCE CiO.

From the opposite side of the Line of Contact, the monitoring was held by Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, Personal Representative to the OSCE CiO; and his field assistant Jiri Aberle (Czech Republic).

The monitoring passed in accordance with the agreed schedule, and no ceasefire violation was recorded.

From the Karabakh side, the monitoring mission was accompanied by representatives of the NKR Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense.
YEREVAN.  The United Nations (UN) Office in Armenia on Monday issued a statement condemning the recent cases of violence against women in capital city Yerevan.

The United Nations in Armenia strongly condemns the recent cases of violence against women in Yerevan and widely reported by media and social networks.

In one instance, on 25 November 2016, a 37 year-old woman was fatally wounded by her partner in Shengavit administrative district, while in another case, on 26 November 2016, a woman was brutally beaten by her spouse during the day on Teryan Street in front of many passersby.

It is a brutal and sad irony that this happened during the days when the United Nations, together with international partners, national authorities and civil society, is observing the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, a campaign that runs annually from 25 November to 10 December.

Stopping domestic violence, which is a serious violation of human rights, and bringing perpetrators to justice must be a priority not only for law-enforcement bodies, but for each and every citizen in our society. Indifference is as unacceptable as the crime itself, and the United Nations is determined to play its own part by ensuring that such cases are not left unpunished.

These cases once again prove the urgency of adopting the Law on Domestic Violence, and we urge our partners, the Government and the Parliament of Armenia, to bring this legal protection mechanism to life as soon as possible. Any further delays may cost more lives, the UN in Armenia statement reads.
YEREVAN. - The statement of the Armenian President in regard to the Government and Prime Minister was a mandate of trust.

Justice Minister of Armenia Arpine Hovhannisyan told the aforementioned to reporters in the National Assembly (NA) Monday.

To the question as to whether there have been promises related to her further office as a minister after the President's statement on that in case the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) wins, current PM Karen Karapetyan will continue to remain in that post, Hovhannisyan noted: ''Of course, no. I generally think that there is no such format of giving promises in connection with holding offices in the future. This is incorrect. The President's statement in connection with the Government and the Prime Minister was a mandate of trust to continue the policy of reforms, which the current Government is going to implement.''
The U.S. Government welcomes the agreement that was reached in June and September between the Armenian government and parliamentary political factions  with input from civil society representatives  on strengthening the integrity and credibility of the Armenian election process, the U.S. embassy in Armenia said in a statement on Monday.

We consider this agreement a meaningful step towards restoring public trust and accountability in Armenias electoral processes. Based on President Sargsyans pledge in December 2015, we take seriously the Armenian governments commitment that the parliamentary elections of 2017 will be conducted in the atmosphere of greater trust, so that results of the election are not doubted by either political parties, or citizens.

To help make this public commitment to credible elections a reality, the United States is pleased to join  along with the European Union, the UK, and Germany  in providing financial support to the new voting processes and equipment provided for in the June 17 and September 9 agreements, so that these processes and equipment are in place for the spring 2017 parliamentary elections. With our fellow international donors, all of whom are working in partnership with the United Nations Mission to Armenia, the U.S. Embassy will help fund the efforts of the Armenian government, political opposition, and civil society to strengthen trust in the Armenian electoral process via same-day voter authentication and the publication of signed voter lists after the elections, all as agreed in the June and September agreements.

We join in this effort understanding that no single new electoral mechanism will completely do away with electoral fraud, however. It is a matter of political will. Fundamentally, the burden is on the government and its constituent institutions  the Central Election Commission, law enforcement bodies, and the judiciary  to foster a markedly different approach to elections; to ensure the Armenian peoples free expression of choice at the voting booth; and to safeguard the essential, unfettered work of domestic and international election observers and media both on election day and afterwards. A free and fair election also requires responsible civic engagement in the election process, along with engaged electoral observation, from the Armenian opposition, civil society, and all citizens regardless of their political views.

The U.S. Embassy agrees with President Sargsyans assessment that the forthcoming elections will shape the future of the Armenian state. The United States was the first country to recognize Armenias independence in 1991, and our two countries have been friends and partners for 25 years. We remain strongly committed to being a part of Armenias ongoing democratic growth and in helping it become the independent, secure, and prosperous nation its people deserve. Free, unfettered, and credible elections are an absolutely indispensable component of the path towards achieving this goal.
Using the right of a third party intervention, Commissioner of the Council of Europe (CoE), Nils Muiznieks, has submitted written observations to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), reads the Commissioners statement directed to Turan.

The observation has to do with the upcoming consideration by ECHR of defense lawyer Khalid Bagirov's complaint against Azerbaijan in connection with his disbarment.

The reason behind the defense attorney's prosecution is his active involvement in the human rights defense, his remarks at a hearing before the Shaki Court of Appeal in September 2014 being the direct reason.

The Commissioner substantiated his observations by the fact that Khalid Bagirov acted as a defense lawyer for a number of famous human rights defenders and public figures, such as Leyla and Arif Yunus, Rasul Jafarov and Hilal Mammadov. He was also about to proceed with the defense of Khadija Ismayilova, but was then before disbarred.

Nils Muiznieks noted that the human rights situation in Azerbaijan raises serious concerns.Repressions and selective criminal prosecutions against those who express critical opinions is a widely-spread phenomenon in Azerbaijan.

According to him, ''Azerbaijan was failing to comply with its international obligations which require safeguarding these rights.''

The Commissioner also noted the fact of ignoring the ECtHR decisions by official Baku, as in case of Hilal Mammadov or seizure of the file cases pending before the Court in their investigations of well-known lawyer Intigam Aliyev.

''In the case of defense lawyers, disbarment or threat of disbarment may in particular be used as a tool for punishing lawyers who take on sensitive cases or for preventing them from doing so. The disbarment in these cases therefore constitutes a retaliation for activities a lawyer may have carried out in the legitimate exercise of his or her professional responsibilities,'' the statement reads.
YEREVAN. - Department of Especially Important Cases of the Investigative Committee of Armenia has disclosed another criminal fraud related to the grants provided by the EU Delegation to Armenia.

The director of an NGO is charged with the misappropriation of 134.620 euro, the agency's press-service reports. The investigation revealed the mechanism of the crime and the inflicted damages were compensated.

It was established that the organization took part in a grant competition in 2008. It presented a program and in December of the same year an agreement for several years was signed in December of the same year. The amount was transferred to the organization's account, but the latter failed to carry out its obligations, its representative merely misappropriating the money. The misappropriated amount is assessed at 134.620 euro or 67.335.130 AMD.

To explain the ''disappearance'' of money, forged documents were quickly drawn out on allegedly emerged additional expenses.

The NGO's director has been charged under Article 178(1)(3) and Article 325 (2). The inflicted damages have been fully compensated.

Earlier, information was disseminated on another case of fraud related to EU grants. 10 people have been involved in this case as defendents.
LISLE, III., Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kretschmar Premium Meats & Cheeses has partnered with Homeland and country music star Easton Corbin to donate $1,000 to Make-A-Wish Oklahoma. Kretschmar made the donation in Oklahoma City on Wednesday as part of its Legendary Wishes campaign, which helps Make-A-Wish grant wishes for children with life-threatening illnesses.



A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fc5f78f0-e071-4779-a15b-3bb8fe0a62a5

Three-time American Country Award winner Easton Corbin invited 9-year-old Wish Kid Arleigh and her family backstage before his performance and presented a donation of $1,000 to Make-A-Wish Oklahoma. Arleigh was diagnosed in 2014 with Philadelphia Positive Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, which is very rare. She is currently undergoing treatments and was so excited to take a break and be able to accept this check.

"It was an honor to present Make-A-Wish Oklahoma with a check for $1,000 to help bring more wishes to life," said Corbin. "I'm proud to show my support for this cause. This is something really special that Kretschmar is doing across the country to make dreams come true for children with life-threatening medical conditions.

Arleigh and her family were also treated to a live performance by Corbin, Kretschmars brand ambassador for 2016. Easton hit the music scene in 2009 with a #1 single, "A Little More Country Than That" and won several Breakthrough Artist awards. Since then, Corbin has released three hit albums with songs including "Roll With It," "Lovin' You is Fun," and "All Over the Road." Corbin has a full schedule in 2016 and is currently touring with Carrie Underwood, as well as performing in his own headlining shows.

We so appreciate Kretschmar and Homeland for supporting our mission and helping us to grant wishes to Oklahoma children with serious illnesses like Arleigh, said Beverly Mullen, Make-A-Wish Oklahoma.

Since partnering with Make-A-Wish in 2012, Kretschmar has donated more than $600,000 nationally and sponsored more than 12 wishes with local chapters through its Legendary Wishes campaign. Along with its retail partners, Kretschmar has raised additional funding through in-store sales of Make-A-Wish paper stars, employee donations and sandwich fundraisers. Those efforts have raised more than $85,000, which was given to local Make-A-Wish chapters to grant even more wishes.

Kretschmar is committed to supporting the important efforts of Make-A-Wish and helping to make wishes come true for children with life-threatening medical conditions, said Michael J. Sargent, Senior Brand Manager, Smithfield Foods. We are privileged to have the opportunity to make more unforgettable experiences possible with help from Homeland and Make-A-Wish.

This year, Kretschmar helped grant three wishes across the country. In Joplin, Mo., Kretschmar teamed up with Make-A-Wish Missouri to grant a 17-year-olds wish to restore his fathers 1970 pick-up. Along with Make-A-Wish Middle Tennessee, Kretschmar granted the wish of a teen who wanted to attend the CMA Music Festival in Nashville, Tennessee. The 17-year-old experienced a country music trip of a lifetime; four days of VIP treatment in the Music City, including an all-star concert at Nissan Stadium and a private Kretschmar Country concert. Kretschmar also helped send a 14-year-old girl to the San Francisco Zoo through Make-A-Wish Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana.

For more information about Kretschmar Deli and its involvement with Make-A-Wish visit www.KretschmarDeli.com or www.Facebook.com/KretschmarDeli.

Kretschmar is a brand of Smithfield Foods.

About Kretschmar

Kretschmar Premium Deli Meats & Cheeses has meant quality since 1883. Our hams are made with a unique hardwood smoking process. Kretschmar poultry and beef are hand-trimmed using the finest cuts. Our full line of Off-The-Bone deli meats are delicately sliced from the leanest, most tender cuts. And our premium Wisconsin cheeses repeatedly win in competitions world-wide. Try the Legendary Taste of Kretschmar today. For great recipes and more, like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/kretschmardeli or visit our website at www.kretschmardeli.com.

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.

About Make-A-Wish

Make-A-Wish grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. According to a 2011 U.S. study of wish impact, most health professionals surveyed believe a wish-come-true has positive impacts on the health of children. Kids say wishes give them renewed strength to fight their illness, and their parents say these experiences help strengthen the entire family. Headquartered in Phoenix, Make-A-Wish is one of the world's leading children's charities, serving children in every community in the United States and its territories. With the help of generous donors and more than 28,000 volunteers, Make-A-Wish grants a wish somewhere in the country every 21 minutes. It has granted more than 270,000 wishes since its inception in 1980; more than 14,800 in 2015 alone. Visit Make-A-Wish at www.wish.org to learn more.

About Easton Corbin

Mercury Nashville recording artist Easton Corbin is lauded for his traditional country sound, authentic lyrics and mastery of understatement. American Songwriter says, "Easton Corbin has one of those rare, glorious voices that was made-just made-for singing country music." His self-titled debut album released in 2010 and spawned back-to-back hits "A Little More Country Than That" and "Roll With It;" making him the first country male artist in 17 years to have his first two consecutive singles reach No. 1. In 2012 the Gilchrist County Florida native released his sophomore album, All Over The Road, which included the Top 5 hits "Lovin' You Is Fun" and "All Over The Road." Corbin set a career-best debut on Country Airplay with his top 5 hit single, "Baby Be My Love Song," from his No. 1 debuting album About To Get Real. His current single "Yup" is climbing the country singles chart. Corbin is currently on tour with Carrie Underwood's The Storyteller Tour.
Editors' pick: Originally published Nov. 28.

On our road trip for Best Places in the World to Retire, we are visiting some of the most popular places for U.S. and Canadian expats to move and to retire. Recently, we visited Ajijic, Mexico (pronounced "Ah-hee-heek") and its surroundings, which, in the high season, can be home to as many as 10,000 Americans and Canadians (perhaps about 20% of the overall population).

Strictly speaking, several towns and villages comprise the overall Ajijic area, which the locals refer to collectively as "Lakeside." At an elevation of about 5,000 feet, Ajijic is located next to the largest lake in Mexico, Lake Chapala, about an hour's drive south of Guadalajara and five hours east of Puerto Vallarta.

Upon first visiting the area, it's easy to see why it's so popular. Here are just some of the comments we received on our site about Ajijic from contributors:

Ajijic Weather

The elevation of the Ajijic area lowers the temperature from what it would be at sea level, for example, in Puerto Vallarta, and then the large lake moderates the temperature, making it less cold in the winter and less hot in the summer.

Jerry Smith, MD, is a retired clinical professor from Texas who retired early after traveling much of Mexico on his motorcycle with his wife. "It's springtime all year long in the Ajijic area," said Smith. "The worst blizzard I've ever seen down here was in the dead of winter when one night it got down to 45 degrees. Normally in the wintertime it's about 60 at night and 75 in the day."

"Our hot months are from the middle of April, May, and early June where the temperature ranges from 90 to 94 degrees," reported Thomas Hellyer, who moved to the Ajijic area from the state of Washington. "That was the highest temperature that I have seen here in seven years."

Even the rainy season, which starts in mid-June, is less severe and bothersome than in most tropical locations. "The rainy season extends to mid-October, during which we generally get about 40 inches of rain," noted Richard Tingen, who moved to the area after visiting his retired parents in Guadalajara. According to Tingen, "Usually, the rains come at night, during which we may get half an inch or an inch and then the sun comes out at seven in the morning. 90% of our rains are during the very early morning or late evening."

Ajijic Cost of Living

Michael Kavanaugh moved with his wife and son to Ajijic in 2007. "Overall, the cost of living in the Ajijic area is much less than, for example, Tuscaloosa, Ala., where I used to live," Kavanaugh told us.

Kavanaugh gave us some examples. "My wife just took our grandson to have a dental X-ray for $4. A total annual blood work for myself was around $60. Getting a teeth cleaning in the U.S. could cost between $125 to $200. Here, its $7.50."

What Kavanaugh told us that surprised us most, however, was the price he paid for property taxes. "We have a house that's over 4,500 square feet on about a third of an acre and my property tax is less than $300 a year."

Amaranta Santos rents houses mainly to American and Canadian expats. Santos related the reaction she receives from her clients to the lower costs, especially with regard to out of pocket / without insurance healthcare costs. "When they first move here, many expats can't believe what they hear, so I have to make it clear that they are being charged in pesos and not dollars. They say, 'Oh, so it's $200.' And I say, 'No, it's 200 pesos (U.S. $10).'"

Santos told us, "It's crazy because when you go to a doctor, you pay 200 to 300 pesos ($10 to $15) for the consultation."

Ajijic Healthcare

While we did hear complaints that the Ajijic area was not large enough to support a big-city hospital, we were repeatedly told that the healthcare locally available was good considering that Ajijic is a lower-population area and that nearby Guadalajara has extremely high-quality, modern healthcare.

According to Dr. Smith, "The healthcare facilities in Chapala and Ajijic are the bare minimum, which is fine for issues such as minor infections, diarrhea, scorpion stings and minor trauma. For anything really serious, one needs to go to Guadalajara, where we have world-class physicians and hospitals."

Ajijic Safety

No discussion of living in Mexico or even visiting Mexico is complete without squarely dealing with the subject of safety. I can personally report, after renting in the Ajijic area for more than two months, that I encountered many, many middle-aged and even elderly American and Canadian women who lived on their own with no issues whatsoever.

As one of the first expat women business owners in the area, Anne Dyer is somewhat of an institution in the Ajijic area. "I am a single person who has lived here for 29 years and I feel very comfortable and very safe."

"Crimes against people, such as assault, murder, rape, or somebody getting beat up, is very rare in the Ajijic area," said Spencer McMullen, who moved from California to the Ajijic area and now practices law in Mexico. "When it does happen, there is attention called to it because it's not that common."

David Truly, Ph.D. settled in the Ajijic area with his family in 2010 to further his studies on international retirement migration to Mexico. He now teaches university classes and offers private consulting for businesses, governments and nonprofits. Truly made clear that, although there is very little violent crime, crimes against property in Ajijic are not as uncommon. "When you go to lesser developed countries, there are certain areas of towns that are not as wealthy so when you go riding in your Mercedes and you are wearing your Rolex, you will be setting yourself up for trouble. It is the same thing as if you are driving around certain parts of Boston, Detroit, or New Orleans. But generally speaking," Truly reported, "it is very safe. We raised our kids here and I have never felt any concern; as in a lot of Mexican villages, people look out for each other."

McMullen agreed. "We have been here for 11 years. When my children were teenagers I would give them 200 pesos (about U.S. $10) and a cellphone and they'd go to the market and walk on the malecon alone (walkway along the water), and I didn't worry."

Speaking English in Ajijic

Ajijic has so many English-speaking expats that it is possible to get by without speaking Spanish. "You can definitely get by in Ajijic with just speaking English," said Dr. Santiago Hernandez, who lived in Chicago for more than 30 years. "It is rather ironic," said Hernandez, "because I probably spoke more Spanish when I was practicing in Chicago than I do now here in Mexico."

Ajijic Lifestyle

Mirna Segura was born and raised in Mexico but lived in the U.S. for several years. Segura told us, "Another nice thing about living here is that the people in Ajijic are very warm and most expats notice that."

Alicia Gomez is another native Mexican who used to live in the U.S., and who agrees with Segura about the general nature of the local Mexicans and their interaction with expats. "Most expats have families but sometimes these families forget that they have parents," at which point, according to Gomez, "the maids take care of the expats like they were family. The expats are our guests. The least that we could do is to make them feel welcome and make them feel that they are not alone."

This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held TK positions in the stocks mentioned.
A guest chef dinner featuring an eight-course menu, Italian wine pairing and cocktails.

Calling all Italian food lovers: when bringing together the most desirable luxury estate  a place to see and to be seen in Phuket and a visiting chef from Italy cooking with special imported Italian ingredients with fresh local finds, the result is sure to be an unforgettable event. This December, Executive Chef Stefano Baiocco, from the Villa Feltrinelli, Gargnano, Lake Garda  Italy, will prepare a seven-day event of Italian culinary extravaganza at Sri panwa, Phuket.

Chef Stefano is one of the most highly regarded chefs in Italy and were pleased to bring a taste of Italy to Sri panwa for whats sure to be an unforgettable week of authentic and innovative Italian cuisine this December said Vorasit-Wan Issara, Managing Director of Sri panwa, Phuket. Im so thrilled for the opportunity to present the modern Italian cuisine with international influence at Sri panwa and to create unique Italian dishes from local ingredients found in the markets of Phuket, known for its finest and fresh seafood ingredients. added chef Stefano about collaborating with Sri panwa.

Wan  Vorasit Issara, owner & MD together with Suki  Yu Po Yan, Hotel Manager of Sri panwa, they both did their hotel training at Villa Felrinelli, the very traditional countryside estate hotel owned and operated by legendary hotelier Robert H. Burns, Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli (Lake Garda, the oldest and most prestigious hotels in Italy). Chef Stefano was also their ex-boss during the internship. Mr. Burns, founder of Regent International Hotels, and founder and developer of Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli, Gargnano, Italy, is a legendary figure of the hotel industry famed for setting new benchmarks in luxury hospitality.

Event Details: The seven-day event of modern Italian culinary where guests enjoy cocktails and small bites prior to experiencing the eight-course tasting menu.

The Menu: Chef Stefano presents Modern Italian culinary delights created from the finest imported ingredients and the fresh local delicacies of Phuket. The eight-course tasting menu includes 2 starters, 2 pasta/risotto dishes, 1 fish dish, 1 meat dish and 2 deserts.

Venue: Baba Soul Food

Date: Thursday, December 1st to Wednesday, December 7th 2016.

Time: Small bites and welcome drinks starts at 6.00pm and serving at 7.00pm. Guests are recommended to arrive 15 min. prior to start time.

Cost: THB 6900 ++ per person include welcome cocktails.

How to book: Reservation can be made via email: chill@sripanwa.com or call + 66 076 371 000

ABOUT THE GUEST CHEF:

Stefano Baiocco, Executive Chef at the Villa Feltrinelli, Gargnano, Lake Garda  Italy, has cooked around the world since 2001. A native Italian, his journey around the world from Florence, to Paris to Japan has equipped him with a vast array of professional experience by working in prestigious venues and with some of the worlds finest chefs includes Alain Ducasse and Pierre Gagnaire. Focusing on sumptuous but simple  the philosophy of Chef Stefano Baiocco that represents the importance of putting great effort in the details, ensuring consistency and matching of flavors, whether a simple salad, enriched with a careful selection of herbs and edible flowers, or a more elaborate fish and meat dish, hes earned himself and the restaurant recognitions that include 2-Star by Michelin Guide.
Why is Poland a Good Market for Android Pay and Apple Pay?

Since last week, Android Pay is available in Poland. On November 17th Poland joined a club of early adopters of one of the biggest disruptions in our banking industry, as some like to call it. In the same moment, Poland became 2nd country in Europe to accept Android Pay just after the United Kingdom. And from the wider perspective, it is 6th country to adopt it after US, UK, Australia, Singapore and Hong-Kong. That is a pretty nice company to hang out! You need to admit.

As Poles we are not used to be on a podium or be in a such group of countries that share something in common from a global point of view. Moreover, despite the size (6th nation by population in the EU) we are still not really well recognisable. Well, our kiebasa, pierogi and of course wodka are, but they sometimes overshadow more interesting things that Poland has to offer. Plus, there are still people out there who think that Poland is a part of Russia, and we speak Russian Please, go back to your high school, now.

This a little bit off-topic paragraph gives basis to what I heard after the Google announcement. Couple of my international friends asked  why guys from California decided to go with Android Pay in Poland? Why it is Poland and not Spain, Germany, France or any other country in the world which they know better? I am answering that it is a matter of time when Android Pay will launch in their countries, but it took me some time to explain why Poland is a good choice for Google. If you also scratch your head for an answer, why Poland and not your country is now proudly accepting Android Pay, stay with me.

Kowalski likes his mobile banking app and is not afraid to use it

According to different sources and estimations, there is more than 14 million active users of online banking in Poland. The number is growing continuously from year to year, recently by 10% as of the second quarter of this year. The number in real life is bigger, since not all the banks provide such information. But, online banking does not have much in common with Android Pay, right? Yes, but this is first thing to show. Poles enjoy new technology, and adopt to it pretty fast. As an addition to that, number of branches represents negative trend, and they are closing one by one around the country. In first half of 2016, banks closed approximately 500 branches out of 7 thousands. People prefer to deal with their finance online, rather than wasting time in lines (yes, Im looking right now at you Germany!).

Out of 37 commercial banks in Poland, 20 of them have a mobile banking app

Let us move to mobile banking. There is more than 6 million active users who login to their bank accounts via mobile device at least one time per month. Again, the number is definitely bigger, because not all the banks disclose population of their mobile users. Popularity of mobile banking comes mainly from high standards of the apps and their great functionality, usually covering all functions of the internet banking platforms. What you can do on your PC, usually can do also on mobile. Together with rising penetration of smartphones (65% by 2019), the correlation is highly positive. Poles do not only use apps to check their balance on the account, but also to make transactions, open deposits, invest, set limits for their debit cards and much more.

But, it is all about numbers, not my feeling or comments of industry experts. So, I picked up 10 biggest banks in Poland, which publish information on the number of their active mobile users. From a simple comparison it is clear that on average 20% of current accounts is managed through a mobile device. If you ask me, it is a significant number of customers that banks can not disregard and Google too. The leaders are mBank with 38%, Pekao 33% and BZ WBK 28%. Those customers are definitely ready for more and will not hesitate to use mobile payments. But, what about the infrastructure? Is it ready as Polish customers are? Well The infrastructure is more ready than you think.

Nowak can pay contactless in almost all terminals across Poland

Readiness of the clients to adopt new mobile ways of payment is one thing. Another one important for this equation is readiness of the infrastructure. Android Pay and Apple Pay are useless when you can not use them in a store (yes, we are taking in-app purchases out of scope). They do not require any additional terminal or hardware to accept payment. Both companies from Silicon Valley should be definitely thankful to Visa and MasterCard. The important thing that some tend to forget is that not Apple neither Google was first to develop tap-and-pay transactions. In fact, Visa and MasterCard had been doing research and development, running pilot programs, and issuing contactless payment cards for years by the time Apple and Google started even to think about payments.

Coming back to Poland and readiness of the infrastructure. To accept Android Pay or Apple Pay in stores, we need to have a contactless payment-capable point of sale terminal. No NFC ready terminals, no business case for any of those two mobile payments methods and dozens other to come. It happens, that Poland is a leader in share of contactless ready terminals. It is estimated that at the end of June 2016 there were 425 thousands terminals adapted to contactless payments. This means that 85% of the all terminals are compatible with Android Pay and Apple Pay. The same thing is with cards. At the end of the second quarter of 2016, Poles where using approximately 28 million cards with contactless functionality, which constitute a 77% share of the total number of payment cards in Poland.

Like you see, the infrastructure is ready, and there is a huge potential there. By potential I mean that majority of Poles still pay by cash. But those who use cashless methods of payment adopt the latest trends pretty fast. There is a big gap between cash-lovers and fans of cashless society. Roughly, 23% of all payments in Poland are cashless. Comparing it to the Nordic countries where cashless transactions took over the cash, it is almost nothing. But from the point of view of the necessary scale that Android Pay needs, the number of customers using contactless cards in Poland is more than the whole population of Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland or even Sweden.

Android Pay will get a share of Polish market in no time

I recall a report titled Digital Trends 2013 by Deloitte saying that Poland has been a leader of innovation in banking in comparison to other European countries, as a number of novel solutions have been introduced over the years for the benefit of Polish customers that are still not available in most Western European countries. As an example they mentioned the fast adoption of NFC. I strongly believe that that it is still a case, and Poland will adopt Android Pay in the same quick pace like it did with contactless cards. Fingers crossed!

Data source: National Bank of Poland, The Polish Bank Association

PS. Kowalski and Nowak are Polish friends of John Doe

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are my own and do not reflect the view of ING Group.



About the Author

Piotr Jan Pietrzak is a Senior Project Specialist at ING Payments Centre, on International assignment in frames of the ING International Talent Programme, and Project Specialist / Senior Project Specialist also at ING Bank, Slaski.



Other Point of Sale news of interest:
We are always looking for innovative ways to advance the promotions industry, said Steven Boal, CEO and Founder of Quotient, whose main consumer property is Coupons.com . Were excited to add this distribution channel and reach the millions of TV viewers, giving consumers another way to save and brands another way to reach shoppers.

The offering is made through a partnership with interactive TV company Ensequence. Traditionally, interactive televisions reach has been limited to households with smart TVs or streaming devices such as Apple TV or Roku. This is the first time a company has been able to distribute CPG digital coupons through national TV ads without the need of special hardware. Ensequence has distribution to more than 15 million Comcast customers as well as through 62 network affiliates such as Discovery, AMC, VH1, A&E, the History Channel, National Geographic and more.

Were excited to partner with Quotient, the largest distributor of digital coupons, said Peter Low, CEO of Ensequence. We are breaking down silos by using the reach and branding power of linear television to drive the promotional value of couponing for the leading CPG brands. Its easy to deploy, is dynamic and, unlike TV ads in general, is 100 percent measurable.

TV viewers will see an overlay on an ad that prompts them to text a code to retrieve a link for a digital coupon from Coupons.com. Then, once they buy the item, they scan the receipt with their smartphone and get a cash-back rebate that goes to PayPal. Alternatively, consumers can print the coupon to use it at checkout.

About Quotient Technology Inc.

Quotient Technology Inc. (NYSE: QUOT), formerly Coupons.com Incorporated, is a leading digital promotion and media company that connects brands, retailers, and consumers. We distribute digital coupons and media through a variety of products, including digital printable coupons, digital paperless coupons, coupon codes and card linked offers. We operate Quotient Retailer iQ, a real-time digital coupon platform that connects into a retailers point-of-sale system and provides targeting and analytics for manufacturers and retailers. Our distribution network includes our flagship site and app, Coupons.com, as well as Grocery iQ, Shopmium, and our thousands of publisher partners. We serve hundreds of consumer packaged goods companies, such as Clorox, Procter & Gamble, General Mills and Kelloggs, as well as top retailers like Albertsons-Safeway, CVS, Dollar General, Kroger, and Walgreens. Founded in 1998, Quotient is based in Mountain View, Calif. Learn more at Quotient.com

About Ensequence

Ensequence works with the worlds leading television brands and distributors. The company provides networks, advertisers and distributors with products to enable the most compelling television advertising and programming seen today. Our management team has extensive experience with a deep and broad understanding of all aspects of television distribution, programming, ad sales, technology and media. Ensequence is the market leader in combining the measurability and ROI of digital media with the superior branding power of television. read more
PodcastOne programming will now be distributed to Australians via a new localized platform and Southern Cross Austereo programming will be distributed by PodcastOne in the U.S.

The companies will jointly develop new content

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 30, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) and PodcastOne today announced they have signed a long-term partnership to create PodcastOne Australia, a brand and platform that will bring the best in podcasting directly to listeners.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/88b2e4a0-f249-4100-8f5d-a70cd129bd1b

SCA will operate PodcastOne Australia as the exclusive partner in Australia and New Zealand with select SCA podcasts made available in the U.S. on the PodcastOne platform.

As one of Australias leading media companies, SCA reaches 95% of the country with assets in television, radio and digital. PodcastOne is the largest advertiser-supported podcast network in the United States, delivering more than 200 programs, with over 350 hours of original weekly episodes, which were downloaded 1.5 billion times last year.

The joint venture represents the first international partnership of this magnitude in the commercial podcast industry with the companies together developing and producing content for both the U.S. and Australia.

PodcastOne Australia will be available early in 2017 via mobile app and website, providing listeners with a single, curated destination to easily get the best existing PodcastOne programs, along with the jointly-created lineup.

The partnership was signed in Los Angeles by Grant Blackley, Chief Executive Officer of SCA and Jim Berk, Chief Executive Officer of PodcastOne.

I am thrilled that SCA has this opportunity to be partnering with PodcastOne. This partnership gives us the ability to tap into the expertise, experience and success of the leading commercial podcast company in the U.S. market, where the podcasting industry is a number of years ahead of audio on-demand in Australia, said Blackley. We recognize the enormous growth potential of podcasting, both internationally and domestically, and look forward to further building this vast platform with the best international and unique Australian content. SCA is striving to be at the forefront of developing the Australian podcasting industry and its talent.

This is PodcastOnes first partnership outside of the U.S. - really the first of its kind in the podcast industry all together - and Executive Chairman Norm Pattiz and I are very excited it is with Southern Cross Austereo, who leads the radio and audio industry in Australia, said Berk. SCA will now have a U.S. platform to actively promote the best commercial podcasts in Australia, giving creators and producers the opportunity to expand audience reach to new territories, and grow audience by being available on the PodcastOne app and website.

Building on SCAs track-record as a leading audio content creator, a dedicated, stand-alone PodcastOne Australia team of executives is being structured within the company to nurture new talent, commission new content, adapt existing content, develop existing talent, undertake technical production and monetize the podcasts.

Grant Tothill, currently Head of Strategic Partnerships at SCA, has been appointed to the newly created position of SCA Head of Podcasting to run the new business.

Further announcements about new Australian podcasts and the launch of the platform will be made in the coming months.

Background on PodcastOne

PodcastOne, (www.PodcastOne.com) the nations leading advertiser-supported podcast network, was founded by Norm Pattiz, founder of radio-giant Westwood One. The network currently hosts more than 200 of todays most popular podcasts, including Adam Carolla, Shaquille ONeal, Steve Austin, Heather and Terry Dubrow, Dan Patrick, Barstool Sports, Dr. Drew, Neil Strauss, Gabrielle Reece, Penn Jillette, Eddie Trunk, Ross Mathews, Rich Eisen, Chris Jericho, Jay Mohr, TheCHIVE, Malcolm McDowell, Laura Ingraham, the Forbes on PodcastOne Network and more.

Background on SCA

SCA operates 78 metropolitan and regional commercial radio stations, 107 regional commercial television stations, 41 apps, 94 websites and 7 digital only radio stations. It is the #1 radio company in social media with 10.8M Facebook Fans, 2.3M Twitter followers, 1.2M Instagram followers, and 146k YouTube subscribers.




In-Depth

Microsoft Unveils SQL Server's Future

Microsoft packed a number of major announcements, including SP1 improvements and Linux support, in this month's key note address by Scott Guthrie at their Connect() virtual event.

Microsoft's main talking point with regards to its SQL Server at November's Connect() developer event was that Microsoft is providing tools for any developer to write any app on any platform. In between major announcements like Visual Studio for Mac and Microsoft joining the Linux foundations, Microsoft also made some major announcements regarding SQL Server. The public preview of SQL Server v.Next (that's not a typo) on both Linux and SQL Server was announced, along with major changes to SQL Server's long-standing edition model, beginning with Service Pack 1 for SQL Server 2016. Finally, as part of its commitment to honoring open source principals, Microsoft announced it was making the SQL Server JDBC driver open source.

SQL Server Standard Edition Gets an Upgrade

The biggest news for many independent software vendors is that SQL Server is moving to a more unified development model. Before this month, SQL Server reserved many key features (In-Memory OLTP, Columnstore indexes, data compression and partitioning to name a few) for the Enterprise Edition of the product. This meant many independent software vendors (ISVs) would write their applications to not take advantage of these features in the RDBMS in order to give customers the ability to run on any edition. By offering a more complete model in the on-premises version of SQL Server, Microsoft gives ISVs a single development and allows them to take advantage of the features that differentiate the platform from open source competitors such as MySQL and PostgreSQL. Microsoft calls this the consistent programming surface area (CPSA) and it is a big deal for ISVs.

What features remain only in Enterprise Edition (EE)? Mostly scalability features -- while Standard Edition can only address 128GB of RAM, EE is only subject to the limits of the operating system. There are also limits around the amount of memory and CPU resources allocated for columnstore and in-memory OLTP. Several other internal features like advanced scanning and online table and index rebuilds remain Enterprise-only. Microsoft also has not changed the model for high availability and disaster recovery -- Standard Edition still only supports two-node failover clusters, and limits the capabilities of AlwaysOn Availability Groups. In enterprise edition, customers can use their secondary replicas to offload read workloads. However, in Standard Edition the secondary replica (customers are limited to one) is limited to failover uses only.

Other SP1 News

There were a several other major enhancements to SQL Server 2016 SP1. For anyone who has built views or stored procedures in SQL Server, you have experienced the pain of changing code for revision or deployment. SP1 introduces 'CREATE OR ALTER' syntax that allows developers to automate the deployment of their database objects and fits better into the continuous deployment model that many modern applications use. The other major enhancement is the addition of DBCC CLONEDATABASE command to SQL Server 2016. This command was a late addition to SQL Server 2012 and 2014, and with SP1 it gets added to SQL Server 2016 with some extra features. The biggest extra feature is the ability to clone the data from the Query Store, which is an execution plan management feature. This allows an ISV to profile their application in a test environment, identify and fix problematic execution plans and then clone that data to their customers. Note, that the CLONEDATABASE feature is limited to metadata -- you would still need to use backup and restore or import and export. There are several other new internal features which expose more metadata about query operations, which should make tuning problematic queries more intuitive for DBAs and developers.

SQL Server on Linux and v.Next

SQL Server on Linux was announced in March 2016. This was big news when it happened and it was mentioned that it would be released sometime in 2017. However it was not clear how the versions would align with SQL Server 2016 that was released in June. Well, with this month's announcements everything became clear; there will be a new release of SQL Server on both Linux and Windows in 2017. While the full set of upgraded features hasn't been released, Microsoft announced support for graph functionality and adaptive query execution for Azure SQL Database at PASS Summit in October, which is usually an indication that those features are coming to the on-premises product.

What does this mean for customers who just upgraded to SQL Server 2016? Well, if you have software assurance, you can upgrade for free. Upgrades are a fact of life with any modern software. With SQL Server 2016 and above Microsoft has given you the tools to make these upgrades easier, low risk, and require minimal outages.

SQL Server on Linux also made its public debut last week. Even though it had been announced in March, access had been limited to a select group of private preview customers. Microsoft is supporting many Linux platforms including Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Ubuntu, and, interestingly, Docker containers. The SQL Server Docker containers allow a developer running on a MacBook to use Visual Studio Code develop against SQL Server in a Windows-free environment.

The best way to describe SQL Server on Linux is that Microsoft's goal with the release is for it the same SQL Server no matter what OS is runs on. A couple of features (SQL Agent, Always On Availability Groups) are not in the product, but are slated to be added in the forthcoming community technical previews. The areas that are different are around high availability and disaster recovery, which are dependent on Windows Server Failover Clustering in Windows. In Linux, these features will use open source options like Pacemaker and Corosync . In the end, the process of developing and administering SQL Server will be the same on all platforms. You can interact with SQL Server on Linux just like you would on Windows, whether it's using BCP or SQLCMD on the Linux command line, Visual Studio Code, or SQL Server Management Studio on Windows.

Microsoft also introduced a command line tool called "DMVTOOL" that allows SQL Server's dynamic management views to be accessed from the command line. This allows system administrators who may have limited knowledge of how to write SQL queries to get performance information without touching the database.

What Is the End Game?

About the Author Joseph D'Antoni is an Architect and SQL Server MVP with over a decade of experience working in both Fortune 500 and smaller firms. He is currently Principal Consultant for Denny Cherry and Associates Consulting. He holds a BS in Computer Information Systems from Louisiana Tech University and an MBA from North Carolina State University. Joey is the co-president of the Philadelphia SQL Server Users Group . He is a frequent speaker at PASS Summit, TechEd, Code Camps, and SQLSaturday events.



Microsoft has shown that they want to support all apps on all platforms, and engage a generation of developers who have mostly worked with open source tools throughout their training and career. This has been one of the hallmarks of Satya Nadella's Microsoft. Microsoft seems to be doing the same with SQL Server -- one platform whether your running on Linux or Windows, or even Azure. The Azure SQL Database product is not 100 percent feature-complete with SQL Server, but it has trended towards being so over time. Having the CPSA allows that to happen, it greatly simplifies development effort and, in my opinion, it also shows Microsoft wants to be thought of the premier database across all platforms whether Linux, Windows or containers.
This article was originally on GET.com at: 4 Things To Splurge On And Good Reasons Why You Should

Even though Singaporeans are increasingly watching their spending due to the economic gloom that has gotten us pretty pessimistic for some time now coupled with poorer consumer sentiment, we still have to eat and live. It is true that shopping and splurging may not be at the top of our heads especially when we've got things like job security to worry about, but there remain things that we have to spend money on.

Don't get me wrong, splurging doesn't mean you have to chalk up mountains of credit card debt or that you need to be completely careless. We at GET.com are all for the idea that you spend responsibly within your means. Read on to find out which are the 4 things that you should spend on and the accompanying good reasons why you should.

4 Things To Splurge On And Good Reasons Why You Should

1. Food That You Love

Do you live to eat or eat to live? As a matter of fact, I belong to the former and I'm gutted to know that I can no longer stuff myself with fresh prawns like I used to because of the allergy that recently cropped up in my life. That means, at least for now and till the allergy magically dies off, I have to bid goodbye to yummy dim sum, delicious seafood dishes, and my favourite Amaebi sushi.

So, if you're lucky enough to be able to eat all the amazing food that you love, go for it. Just make sure that you don't go overboard - embrace everything in moderation. And even though you may be slogging your life out at work on weekdays, make sure you reward yourself on the weekends (or on your days off if you work shift jobs). It's always a good idea to strive for a better work-life balance.

2. Great Quality Clothing

Everybody needs clothes but if you're looking to shop for some new clothing, you should definitely invest in quality items to ensure that you'll get as much wear out of them as possible. This is especially so for timeless pieces of clothing that you know you'll be wearing and re-wearing a ton.

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Sure, you may lament that a white T-shirt is just a white T-shirt, but that $5 piece that you got from the pushcart stall at the bus interchange isn't going to last you anywhere near as long as a better quality tee that costs ten times as much. To make matters worse, before you even spot holes or minor tears on your poor quality apparel, you would have noticed that the fit has gone all wonky from washing and tumbling.

To ensure the best fit and quality (if you can afford it), get your work clothes tailored. Make sure to pick quality fabric such as Egyptian cotton if you're getting shirts made for you the bespoke way.

Seriously, you don't have to spend thousands and thousands of dollars on designer items right off the runway in order to get something that's good quality.

3. Comfortable & Quality Footwear

You'll save more money in the long run by buying great quality and comfortable shoes from legitimate shops that are known for selling shoes instead of going for poorly made, cheap footwear. A good pair of shoes will keep us grounded, quite literally.

This has been tried and tested by yours truly and I need to kick myself for taking so many years to learn that cheap $10 shoes (or even the majority of shoes from high street brands that I personally love) don't do the wearer good at all. Not only do such shoes hurt our feet and surprise us with ugly blisters, they also aren't the most comfortable thing we can slip our feet into.

Yes, this includes flip flops. For the record, my first pair of $40 Havaianas that I got when I was still a secondary school kid are still functioning and wearable even up till now (they've gone through multiple university camps, sandy beaches and a whole lot more).

To stretch your dollar, be sure to use the best shopping discount cards in Singapore when you do go out to shop. If you shop at departmental stores more often, check out the 2 best credit cards for departmental store shopping.

4. Energy-Efficient Appliances

Do you still rely on old-school air-conditioners at home to cool your rooms down? If you do, perhaps you really need to update your home with energy-efficient appliances. Even so, they aren't as costly now compared to when these energy-efficient products first arrived in Singapore.

Trust me, such appliances work well and they will help shave lots of money off your monthly utilities bill. Perhaps 4 or 5 years ago, my dad switched our air-conditioners to the energy-efficient variant and was pleasantly surprised to learn how much less electricity we were using and consequently how much less money he had to donate' to Singapore Power every month.

Put simply, if you make the switch, you'll break even really soon and do your part for the environment altogether. What's not to like about that?

What do you think? Share your comments with us below!

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The move will allow FlySpaces to accelerate growth in the Malaysian market

5th from right: Mario Berta, Founder of FlySpaces; on his left is Lais De Oliveria, Founder of 8spaces

The Airbnb for office and other commercial spaces, FlySpaces, has announced it has acquired Malaysia-based co-working space marketplace 8spaces.

Mario Berta, the founder of the Manilla-based FlySpaces, told e27 that the deal has been cooking since a meeting at the Geeks on the Beach conference in late August this year.

More than actual numbers of spaces 8spaces is adding local knowledge and clients portfolio, 8spaces and FlySpaces share most of the co-working already, but 8spaces is a bigger brand than FlySpaces in Malaysia, said Berta.

The Founder of 8spaces, Lais de Oliveira, will be joining the executive team and focus on the Malaysian market and regional community building for FlySpaces (as Chief Community Officer).

Joining the fastest growing regional player will enable 8spaces to fulfill its mission while working with a solid and strong team. This is the direction 8spaces was headed in any case, said Lais.

According to a press release, the acquisition was made for an undisclosed amount of cash and equity.

Currently, FlySpaces offers over 800 available spaces across 5 cities including Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Cebu, Singapore, and Hong Kong.

Its clients include top international brands including Nestle, Heineken, Unilever as well as tech giants Google, and Uber.

FlySpaces said it plans to launch in a sixth regional city, Jakarta, by January next year.

-

Image Credit: FlySpaces

The post Co-working gets spacious: FlySpaces acquires Malaysias 8spaces appeared first on e27.
After a structural revamp of my company, we have embarked on expansion with more hires as well as moved from a limited liability partnership to a private limited company. Alvinology Media LLP is now AM Collective Pte Ltd and we are committed to do better in the digital and social media space, providing the best services for our existing clients while acquiring more clients along the way.

Goals and aspirations aside, there are administrative tasks to settle first.

One of the first thing we need to do when registering a new company is to decide on a business banking partner to set up our corporate account with. Which bank in Singapore will suit us best?

As a small-medium-enterprise, value-for-money is very important for us. We want a banking partner that is convenient, accessible, yet able to fulfill all our banking needs at the lowest costs possible. Borrowing from the wise words of Singapores previous Labour Chief, Lim Swee Say, we need a bank that can be Cheaper, Better, Faster. And Id add to that  a bank that offers great service.

After evaluating the business banking offers from four banks in Singapore  UOB, OCBC, DBS and Maybank , we decided to bank with the latter.

Heres how we came to came to this decision to go with the Maybank FlexiBiz Account.

1. No minimum balance required

All the other three banks, UOB, OCBC and DBS require minimum balance to be maintained in your corporate account, ranging from S$5,000 at OCBC to S$10,000 at DBS and UOB. Maybank is the only bank with no minimum balance requirement and the minimum deposit is also set low at just S$1,000.

2. No monthly subscription for Business Internet Banking

As a digital and social media agency, we walk-the-talk in our business practices too, resolving to rely more on Online Banking through web or mobile whenever possible. As such, Internet Banking is an important consideration and Maybank do not charge a monthly subscription fee for this.

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3. Low transaction fees

We work with a lot of influencers and publishers from both Singapore and from around the globe. However, the volume of transactions may differ vastly every month as payment is done after each project which may engage with different number of parties. Maybank offers one of the most competitive FAST transaction fee in town. If payment is made to another Maybank account in Singapore, its free.

4. Neither monthly nor annual fees

This is the best part that fits the value-for-money requirement. There is absolutely neither monthly nor annual fees to bank with Maybank! No other Banks, even the large ones, in Singapore offer this.

Quite a few websites undertake price comparisons for Business Banking services offered by large banks in Singapore. When you compare, you will see that Maybank clearly stands out as the best value-for-money business banking partner.

With Maybank you will discover, there is no minimum balance, no fall-below fee penalty and no monthly or annual fee! Also, Maybanks FlexiBiz Account pays interest of up to 0.038% p.a. for balances maintained, a feature absent even with large banks.

5. Branches are conveniently located

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This factor may be unique to us.

Our office is located at Oxley Biz Hub in the Tai Seng area and the Maybank bank at Nex mall in Serangoon is near our office for us to make cheque drops or other banking needs. There are also Maybank branches near to the home for me and my other main business partner, Claudia.

While Maybank may have fewer branches as compared to local banks, they have the most number of branches among overseas banks in Singapore. They are strategically located at all corners of Singapore which ensures that you have access to a Maybank branch at any time.

6. Excellent Service  Short waiting time

whatsapp-image-2016-11-25-at-6-27-26-pm

We were pleasantly surprised at the Branch when it came to account opening. Maybanks focus on consumer experience is commendable, with their commitment to completing a service as fast and pleasantly as possible. As such, the waiting time for physical banking is just a few minutes.

Dont believe me? Try banking your Chinese New Year red packet money into a Maybank bank branch during the crazy rush and compare the wait time to that at UOB, DBS and OCBC branches. You will experience the difference personally.

Account opening is also much easier with Maybank. It can be done at any branch via walk-in, with no prior appointment needed. I had a lot of difficulty scheduling an appointment with another bank which we banked with for Alvinology Media LLP. This time round with Maybank, everything was a breeze.

7. Efficient Business Internet Banking and innovative BIB Lite Mobile App

In this age and time, one thing we definitely cannot live without is technology. The usage of technology for finance is currently a trend in Singapore. With Maybanks Internet Banking, all my transactions can be done online. Additionally with BIB Lite  the mobile app of the desktop version  I can check account balances on the go with a compatible iOS device via TouchID authentication and even on an Apple Watch.

I believe this is a form of Fintech, a recent trend in the Internet industry which I work in. As a definition, Fintech is normally applied to the segment of the technology startup that is focused in sectors such as mobile payments, money transfers, loans, fundraising and to some extent even asset management. This was another thing that contributed to my confidence with Maybank.

During my visit to Maybank, I had glanced over this word several times and it piqued my curiosity. My prior understanding was Fintech is the use of technology for anything related to finance from mobile wallets to stock trading apps  almost similar to the actual definition.

I did my research online and it appears that Singapore is the fastest growing country in South-East Asia to adopt Fintech. Coincidentally, Maybank is heavily involved in the Fintech space. They have been working with many local Fintech companies to develop the best financial solutions for their customers.

Yes, banks do work with Fintech companies and not just view them as competitors.

Stay tuned for our coming article on Fintech to find out more!

8. Good customer experience

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Claudia and I visited the Maybanks Nex branch in October to open the corporate account for AM Collective Pte Ltd. From the time we stepped into the bank to the moment when we walked out with our account all set up and done, it took no more than 30 minutes.

There was no queue and we were served almost immediately after getting a queue number. The bank staff who served us was friendly, personable and helpful, detailing all the documentations required and guiding us through the administrative details. We left the bank smiling, with the resolve to grow our company together with Maybank.

Our banking experience actually coincides with Maybanks latest We are Here To Talk campaign. Watch this video to learn more:

If you are interested to start banking with Maybank, visit their official website for more information or just pop by one of the many Maybank branches in Singapore. The staff at the branches will be happy to talk to you!



The post Factors to consider when choosing your Business Banking Partner in Singapore appeared first on Alvinology.
NEW YORK, Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Argyle announced today the availability of Disclosure 2021. This guide includes a benchmark that explores how consistently and effectively companies communicate across their disclosures, and how closely they meet investor expectations. Disclosure 2021 also provides Argyle recommendations, and builds on ideas presented in the 2015 publication Disclosure 2020, a report developed with the objective of helping companies gain a better understanding of how their shareholder communications might be improved in both content and communication.



The Disclosure 2021 benchmark group covers representative disclosures published by 70 corporations from the S&P 500, S&P MidCap 400 and S&P SmallCap 600 Indices. These companies were selected using systematic sampling of the index lists, which were then adjusted for industry.

A complementary copy of Disclosure 2021 can be downloaded from www.argyle.company under Our Ideas.

About Argyle

We propose creative ideas and original thinking to help corporations communicate messages through enhanced disclosure documents, digital media and investor communications. Our advisory team is composed of creative, original-thinking advocates of clear disclosure with career experience in design, corporate governance, securities law, executive compensation and investor communications. For more information, please www.argyle.company.

About the DG3 Group of Companies

DG3 is a leader in environmental responsibility providing visual communications solutions in strategic geographic markets including New York, London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Sydney and Manila. DG3 provides comprehensive graphic and interactive solutions to corporate, financial services, and pharmaceutical firms worldwide. For more information, please visit www.dg3.com.
Jack Kenward has been out in The Philippines hitting the streets of with the locals and taking his camera along to capture five minutes worth of after dark cruising for the latest Hell Yeah Son edit. Get an insight into what the streets of Manila have to offer

For more from Jacks camera check out his Mainly Weekends edits, and get a dose of Essex based Hell Yeah Son while youre at it
Loyalty programs work; they are the most effective tactic when it comes to increasing customer lifetime value. In the past, many small businesses and brick and mortar companies couldnt compete with the well developed reward and loyalty programs that big box stores were bringing to the table. But, thanks to web based loyalty programs and even third party reward apps, these smaller organizations no longer have to settle for simplistic and less effective approaches, like the age old punch cards.

Examining Mobile Loyalty Programs

Why Do Loyalty Programs Work?

There is a lot of interesting psychology behind loyalty programs, which allows them to work a lot better than some other marketing strategies. Mainly, these programs thrive because of what is known as the Endowed Progress Effect. This psychological happening occurs when people are working towards a goal or objective. In terms of loyalty programs, this objective is obtaining rewards.

In essence, the Endowed Progress Effect supposes that the more points or progress that a customer or person has made, towards obtaining their reward or goal, the greater their commitment becomes. While this psychological theory gives us a lot of information as to why loyalty programs work, it also gives us some insight into how we can make them better and more effective at maintaining this commitment.

What Makes a Loyalty Program Irresistible?

Most marketing experts will suggest that there are two absolutely essential components to a successful loyalty program: how easy is it to track progress and how valuable and relevant are the rewards to your customers. A third necessity, that isnt often brought up is the creativity of your program. It should be similar, but different than what customers have seen before. Handing them another punch card to clutter their wallet may be effective, but it isnt irresistible. Your loyalty program has to have some panache.

How easy it is for customers to track the progress of their rewards goes back to the Endowed Progress Effect. They need to be able to perceive and physically see their progress towards their reward goals to stay committed. When there isnt an easy way to see this progress, it is easy for customers to be disenchanted and abandon their efforts. This is especially important with point-based loyalty programs where it isnt immediately recognizable how many more points or dollars spent will earn you the desired reward, whereas traditional punch cards achieve this very easily.

Luckily, a mobile app-based loyalty program offers a great environment where consumers can interact with their progress and see it directly. It is very simple, yet effective, to implement a progress bar on the loyalty tab of your mobile app that represents how much headway a consumer has made towards their rewards. They can even change the desired reward to see how close they are to achieving other offerings.

The second component, the types, value and relevance of your rewards, is also key. After all, if no one wants the rewards that your loyalty program offers, then no one is going to sign up. In terms of value, it is important to have different tiers of rewards. While an ultra valuable reward is often desirable and will keep customers engaged with your loyalty program for a long time, smaller rewards are equally important, as they are easier to obtain and cater to an individual who may not be interested in making that long-term commitment for a beach vacation in Aruba.

Your rewards should also be relevant to your brand, products and company. According to an MIT study that dissected a number of loyalty programs to determine what works and what doesnt, irrelevant rewards have a negative effect on the success of these programs. Sure, everyone likes a freebie, but your reward offerings shouldnt just be random things you think your consumers would want. In other words, if you are going to give away that Aruba vacation, tie it into your brand  make it an Aruba Beach [Your Brand Name Here] Experience.

Why Do Loyalty Programs and Mobile Work So Well Together?

Your mobile app is the ideal home for your potential loyalty program because the benefits work front to back. To expand, not only is the mobile environment going to help the success of your loyalty program, but conversely, offering a mobile loyalty program is going to help the success of your mobile app.

Loyalty programs simply work better in the mobile environment. It is easier for users to see their progress, which under the Endowed Progress Effect, improves their commitment to continue shopping with your company and earning those loyalty points. It also makes it easier for a user to access their loyalty account. Additionally, you can leverage the effectiveness of push notifications to notify customers when there are new rewards that they can achieve or special periods of time where spending earns them bonus reward points.

On the other end, offering a mobile-based loyalty program can have a dramatic effect on how many downloads your app receives. It creates a customer-focused incentive feature to your app that will encourage more people to hit that download button, while simultaneously attracting consumers who may not have downloaded your app before, but want to now because they are interested in your loyalty program.

The boost in usage that a loyalty program can have on your mobile app can also increase its popularity. This affects your apps ranking in the Apple App Store, Google Play and other similar app marketplaces. The higher the ranking, the more visibility your app is going to have and the more natural discovery downloads it will receive.

Conclusions

Since their earliest form, loyalty programs have had a powerful impact on a companys ability to develop hyper loyal customers. Not only are these types of customers more valuable, but they are also more active, in terms of brand promoting and word-of-mouth business. Mobile apps present a good environment to house your loyalty program due to their interactive nature. Todays consumer desires brands that are willing to reward long-term loyalty through such a program. This, in turn, can also improve your apps success, by encouraging more customers to download it and become active users of the apps features. Ultimately, this will increase its number of downloads, both natural and otherwise.
The human gut is a complex and amazing system, and the more we learn about it, the more amazed we are. It turns out
Virtual Schools

Online Charter School Loses State Attendance Audit Appeal

Ohios largest online charter school must deal with another legal setback, losing an appeal of an earlier ruling that allows the state to use the amount of time students are logged in to calculate enrollment and funding.

Last week, the Franklin County Court of Appeals decided 2-1 in favor of a late-September ruling by Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Jenifer French. The ruling involved the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT), which tried to block the state from requiring the school to provide login durations as a way of measuring how many students attend the school.

French sided with the Ohio Department of Education when she rejected ECOTs request.

ECOT, which could not be reached for comment, could not substantiate in a recent attendance audit that nearly 60 percent of full-time students were getting the minimum 920 hours of learning opportunities required by the state. That means the state could ask the school to repay more than $60 million of the $106 million it received in state funding last year.

Eight other smaller online schools also werent able to justify their reported enrollment totals, The Columbus Dispatch reported.

Education investigators have said they found numerous incidents of students allowing weeks of inactivity to pass by, followed by a brief login period, and then another extended period of inactivity, raising questions about how much schooling they are actually receiving.

ECOT has also filed an administrative appeal of the attendance audit with the Department of Education. That appeal is scheduled to be heard Dec. 5.

State lawmakers are also expected to consider the online school funding issue later this year or next year.
Student Competitions

Solve for Tomorrow Closing Applications with $2 Million in Prizes Available

Samsung's Solve for Tomorrow contest, with $2 million in prizes up for grabs, will stop accepting entries this Wednesday.

To enter, teachers must submit a project idea that explains how their students will solve a real-world problem in their community using science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM).

"Solve for Tomorrow challenges public school students in grades 612 from all 50 states and the District of Columbia to use hands-on STEAM knowledge to address real-world issues and make a difference in their local communities," according to a news release. "Teachers can go online to fill out a short three-question application and outline an issue faced by the school's community, describing how their students will apply STEAM skills to combat the challenge."

Projects that have won previous Solve for Tomorrow competitions include customized prosthetics for local veterans, a safety alert system for a local hiking trail and a wearable app designed to help protect students from car accidents.

Once applications are submitted, five finalists from each state and the District of Columbia will be selected in early December and awarded technology for their classrooms. Teachers will then submit a lesson plan.

From there, one school from each state and Washington DC will be selected as state winners. Those teams will win $25,000 in technology, including a kit to make videos about their projects to share online.

Next, 10 national finalists will be selected and their videos posted online for public voting. Those winners will receive $50,000 in technology and a trip to New York to pitch their ideas to contest judges.

Finally, "three national winners will be selected by a panel of judges and will receive a technology grant of $150,000, a donation of $20,000 to their selected NGO and a trip to Washington, D.C. to meet with members of Congress," according to a news release. "Additionally, one community choice winner will be decided via online voting [and] will be awarded $20,000 in classroom technology."

To enter the contest, visit samsung.com.
NEW YORK, Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With only 35 days until 2017, 800Fund.com wants small business owners to kick off the year right. The "Countdown to Success article series, exclusively featured on the 800Fund.com website, caters to the small to medium-sized business owner focused on a better business outcome for 2017.



The staff at 800Fund.com has written this very special, educational article series to help guide business owners to a prosperous 2017 with a wide range of content covering common business challenges and viable solutions. This series is designed specifically for entrepreneurs and small business owners who want to do more than just attend an occasional workshop or seminar to boost their business savvy.

This 35-day article series is a part of 800Fund.coms online learning initiative for entrepreneurs and small business owners. The alternative lending company believes that by offering an arsenal of free educational content, a strong support community and other resources, businesses owners have the tools that they need to establish and grow successful businesses.

The "Countdown to Success" article series will have articles focused on such topics as: business plans & planning, sales & marketing, funding options (i.e.- SBA, traditional lending, alternative lending choices & crowd funding), social media tips, business growth strategies, ecommerce, human resources and many more. The 800Fund.com "Countdown to Success" article series and educational content is both motivational and highly informative with a focus on helping small business owners make their dreams of success into a reality.

For business owners interested in reading more finance & business success articles and/or information on alternative funding services, please visit 800Fund.com.

Facebook Twitter Google+ LinkedIn Instagram Pinterest Cash Advance vs. Loan

About 800fund.com:

800Fund.com LLC is a leading online lender, working capital, merchant cash advance and short-term alternative lending solution provider for small- and medium-sized businesses, headquartered at 30 Broad Street, New York, NY.
If you have opinions about the subject matter of posts on this blog please share them. Do you have a story about how the system affects you at work school or home, or just in general? This is a place to share it.
The generosity of others can make dramatic, life-changing impacts on New Mexico State University students at our campuses across New Mexico who often just need a helping hand to realize their dreams of a world-class education and a better life.

We are thrilled to witness that kind of impact every day at NMSU, but one day stands out like no other, when hundreds of students lives are changed  Giving Tuesday.

The Giving Tuesday movement is a worldwide day of giving in celebration of generosity and philanthropy. We launched the first NMSU Giving Tuesday event last year on Dec. 1, and thanks to the generosity of many, many people and businesses, students lives were transformed across the NMSU system.

One of those is Stephanie Esparza, a 2013 graduate of Santa Teresa High School who wasnt even planning to attend college. Stephanie felt a college education was just too great a challenge, but with the encouragement of her parents and the support of a scholarship from the Hunt Family Foundation, she earned her associates degree last spring from Dona Ana Community College.

Stephanie is now pursuing a bachelors degree in public health at NMSUs College of Health and Social Services. I was inspired and deeply moved by Stephanies thoughts after she received the scholarship.

The biggest challenge that I had to overcome was myself  thinking I could not get this far in school, Stephanie said. I was the first woman in my family to attend college and had to figure out the ropes of college by making mistakes. Receiving the Hunt scholarship has shown me that I can make it through college and be great in school.

In just 24 hours last Dec. 1, we received gifts totaling $628,984. I was extremely proud that another $834,450 came from members of the NMSU Foundation board of directors, which represented 100 percent participation. Other gifts added nearly $1 million, for a total of $2,900,143. Thanks to matching funds available last year, the grand total reached $5.7 million for scholarships!

More than 80 new, life-changing scholarships were established, and our Giving Tuesday initiative drew more than 2,440 donors, including 655 who were making their first-ever gift to the NMSU system. Some of our newest donors also included current students. We welcome these new donors to our important cause!

This years Giving Tuesday event Nov. 29 will be a second chance for donors to get involved and see how scholarships help students overcome challenges. Especially exciting is the chance to help create opportunities for first-generation students and some of our states top academic achievers.

Our gracious supporters have already stepped up with the creation of 15 new scholarships for this years event.

Donations can also be matched, in some cases, to amplify their impact. For example, alumni who make their first-ever contribution during Giving Tuesday will have their gift matched by a generous Aggie donor, up to $250 per household. El Paso Electric will match scholarship contributions made on Giving Tuesday, up to $250 per household.

If 250 of last years first-time donors make their contribution during Giving Tuesday 2016, a $10,000 contribution will be made by NMSU Chancellor and Mrs. Garrey Carruthers and the NMSU Alumni Association to the General Scholarship Fund. Learn about more Giving Tuesday challenges on our website, advancing.nmsu.edu/givingtuesday.

I invite everyone to visit Giving Tuesday headquarters in the Corbett Center Student Union to experience the excitement of this awesome event. Well be there from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Come and see how giving throughout the New Mexico State University System is helping our students achieve their dreams of a world-class education and a better life!
SAN DIEGO  Recently, there have been stories about how the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump is likely to shake up the immigration debate by targeting so-called sanctuary cities.

You may know the term. These are liberal places run by Democrats where, as legend has it, illegal immigrants can go to escape deportations by federal authorities. The list of cities includes Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Philadelphia, New York and others. (Santa Fe is also a sanctuary city.)

And you have local officials like Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel advancing the legend by vowing to protect their cities  and the undocumented people who live there  from any attempt by the dastardly Trump administration to deport them.

Careful with that one. Emanuel is no friend to illegal immigrants. After pushing for deportations when he worked for two presidents  Bill Clinton and Barack Obama  and helping to keep immigration reform off the congressional agenda while serving as a top lieutenant to then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, he holds the distinction of actively thwarting the interests of the undocumented at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue.

I see three problems with the whole notion of sanctuary cities.

First, this is not nearly the tense standoff that the media would like it to be. No one is blocking the schoolhouse door.

Does anyone seriously believe that there is this mythical land where immigration law doesnt apply? Can you imagine if any of this were actually true? The marketing campaigns on Spanish-language television would call out to illegal immigrants: Move to San Francisco, and live out the rest of your days free from the worry of ever being deported! Mi city es tu city.

Just as there is no city in America that is off-limits to the Internal Revenue Service or the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the reality is that there no place in this country where illegal immigrants can hide from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Second, its true that some of these cities have lawyered up and approved carefully worded ordinances that stop police officers from cooperating with immigration agents unless certain conditions are met.

But beware of the word unless. Youd be surprised how easily these conditions can be met.

When you take a closer look, youll see that these ordinances  in addition to being non-legally binding, symbolic and largely meaningless  were also written in such a way as to allow for plenty of cooperation between local and federal authorities.

In Chicago, the statute prohibits police from providing ICE officials with access to undocumented people in custody, unless officers are acting pursuant to a legitimate law enforcement purpose that is unrelated to the enforcement of a civil immigration law. So police arent supposed to turn over illegal immigrants to immigration officials unless they are wanted on a criminal warrant or have serious criminal convictions.

Thats an awfully broad exception that could apply to a lot of people, including anyone who has ever been convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol. In fact, since the Chicago ordinance allows for cooperation to deport criminals, it should fit in nicely with what Trump seems to be planning: a targeted deportation effort aimed squarely at those illegal immigrants who have criminal records.

Dont believe the hype. Youve heard of show trials in court, or show votes in Congress. Well, many of these are show ordinances. These stunts allow liberals to feel good about themselves, and they advance the falsehood that cities and municipalities can boss around the federal government. Yet theyre not worth much.

And third, immigrant advocates worry that Trump will deny federal funding to these localities until they stop obstructing the federal government.

See above: Thats not happening. The Obama administration managed to get around these laws well enough to find and deport nearly 3 million people in eight years, including many who resided in the sanctuary cities. There are many loopholes, and cops and politicians are experts at taking advantage of them.

No one is losing funding over sanctuary cities. That would require action from Congress. And what is Congress anyway, but a collection of representatives from various localities who were sent to Washington to protect and serve the folks back home?

Even if it were serious about the funding threat, the White House would likely never get the votes to carry it out  not even from Republicans.

The myth of sanctuary cities isnt a legal concoction, but a political one. As such, it shouldnt be taken seriously.
HOUSTON, Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Orion Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:ORN) (the "Company") a leading specialty construction company, today announced a contract award of approximately $80 million.



The Companys Heavy Civil Marine Construction segment, Orion Marine Group, was recently awarded a contract for a project along the Gulf Coast of Texas for a private sector client in the downstream energy business. The project entails dock expansion and dredging services and will begin during the first quarter of 2017 with a duration of approximately 18 months.

About Orion Group Holdings

Orion Group Holdings, Inc., a leading specialty construction company, provides services both on and off the water in the continental United States, Alaska, Canada and the Caribbean Basin through its heavy civil marine construction segment and its commercial concrete segment. The Companys heavy civil marine construction segment services includes marine transportation facility construction, marine pipeline construction, marine environmental structures, dredging of waterways, channels and ports, environmental dredging, design, and specialty services. Its commercial concrete segment provides turnkey concrete construction services including pour and finish, dirt work, layout, forming, rebar, and mesh across the light commercial, structural and other associated business areas. The Company is headquartered in Houston, Texas with regional offices throughout its operating areas.

Forward-Looking Statements

The matters discussed in this press release may constitute or include projections or other forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the provisions of which the Company is availing itself. Certain forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, such as 'believes', 'expects', 'may', 'will', 'could', 'should', 'seeks', 'approximately', 'intends', 'plans', 'estimates', or 'anticipates', or the negative thereof or other comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy, plans, objectives, intentions, estimates, forecasts, outlook, assumptions, or goals. In particular, statements regarding future operations or results, including those set forth in this press release and any other statement, express or implied, concerning future operating results or the future generation of or ability to generate revenues, income, net income, profit, EBITDA, EBITDA margin, or cash flow, including to service debt, and including any estimates, forecasts or assumptions regarding future revenues or revenue growth, are forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements also include estimated project start date, anticipated revenues, and contract options which may or may not be awarded in the future. Forward looking statements involve risks, including those associated with the Company's fixed price contracts that impacts profits, unforeseen productivity delays that may alter the final profitability of the contract, cancellation of the contract by the customer for unforeseen reasons, delays or decreases in funding by the customer, levels and predictability of government funding or other governmental budgetary constraints and any potential contract options which may or may not be awarded in the future, and are the sole discretion of award by the customer. Past performance is not necessarily an indicator of future results. In light of these and other uncertainties, the inclusion of forward-looking statements in this press release should not be regarded as a representation by the Company that the Company's plans, estimates, forecasts, goals, intentions, or objectives will be achieved or realized. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The Company assumes no obligation to update information contained in this press release whether as a result of new developments or otherwise.

Please refer to the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed on March 3, 2016, which is available on its website at www.oriongroupholdingsinc.com or at the SECs website at www.sec.gov, for additional and more detailed discussion of risk factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our current expectations, estimates or forecasts.
A wide assortment of issue advocates who oppose the president-elect have reacted to Donald Trumps victory with emotions ranging from serious and legitimate concern to hysteria.

Organizations that advocate for immigrants in the country illegally are among those spreading fear that is unlikely to match reality.

Without question, Trump often spoke in harsh terms when discussing illegal immigration during both the primary and general elections.

In late August, after meeting with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, Trump seemed to sum up a view he would carry through election day by saying, Only the out-of-touch media elites think the biggest problems facing American society today is that there are 11 million illegal immigrants who dont have legal status.

He said he would have zero tolerance for those whose crimes extend beyond immigration violations. He also said he would create a deportation task force to deal with the most dangerous criminal illegal immigrants.

Considering that we already have a deportation task force known as ICE, the rhetoric sounds remarkably like the way President Obama has actually dealt with the issue  although one could hope Trump would be less likely to send mixed messages to desperate people in Central America who wind up risking everything to try to get into this country because they believe theyll be able to stay.

And Trump might have trouble beating the current presidents all-time deportation record: According to ABC News and based on government data, between 2009 and 2015 the Obama administration removed from the United States more than 2.5 million people through immigration orders. That doesnt include the number of people who self-deported or were turned away at the border by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

In November 2014, Obama issued an executive action directing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to focus on criminals, and so last year 91 percent of people removed from inside U.S. borders had been convicted of a crime. By comparison the George W. Bush administration, which was dealing with the nations most devastating domestic attack by foreign terrorists and two wars, removed about 2 million illegal immigrants over eight years.

So worries about federally approved goon squads going through neighborhoods, stopping people and asking to see their papers are wildly overblown. Those people who are in the country illegally but have managed to live without committing crimes under an Obama administration should be able to continue on the same path under a Trump administration.

Those who are attending high school or college will continue to do so, but without the protection of an executive order. (The Journal has supported DREAM legislation, which is in fact the proper way to approach the issue.) Perhaps one lesson here is that the executive order already enjoined by a federal judge is not the panacea many thought it would be.

Neither are so-called sanctuary cities or campuses. Such places do not have the power to offer true sanctuary and should not pretend to be able to do so. And the University of New Mexico would be foolish to join their ranks.

One line Trump used on the campaign trail that some cited in attempts to label him as xenophobic was that anyone who has entered the United States illegally is subject to deportation.

In fact, that is a true statement. But it is extremely unlikely that Congress would approve the money to go after an estimated 11 million people. It would be a foolish and expensive policy.

But those here illegally who commit crimes should be worried about being deported. And that goes for those already subject to deportation orders and those who blow off the expiration dates on their visas.

Meanwhile, Congress should get on with its work at passing immigration reform laws that protect our national interests, protect our borders and deal fairly with law abiding, hard working people living here whose only crime is illegal immigration status. It has kicked the can far too long.

Rather than encouraging others to live in a panic, perhaps everyone could take a deep breath and examine the totality of what Trump has said and the signals he has sent more recently. Yes, it is flip flopping, but most candidates seem to back off their more extreme points made on the campaign trail.

And no president has the power to round up and deport people en masse, as fear mongers claim is about to happen.

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.
A team of federal arson investigators worked Sunday at a Nob Hill luxury condo complex destroyed by a blaze last week that caused a reported $9 million in damage, officials announced Sunday.

The investigation was hampered by gusty winds that prevented the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives team, including 25 agents, from erecting a crane to help clear damage from the intersection at Carlisle and Central, an ATF spokesman said.

Tom Mangan, an ATF special agent and spokesman, said the cause of the fire remained undetermined Sunday.

And he called it premature to discuss any possible connection between the Carlisle blaze, which started Wednesday, and six other fire and vandalism incidents in the days since.

 A series of fires were lit at the anti-abortion ministry Project Defending Life at San Mateo and Marquette on Wednesday morning.

 Suspicious devices were left at three Starbucks coffee shops in the Nob Hill area Friday.

 And two major fires were started early Saturday morning: one at Barnes & Noble at Coronado Center between 1 and 2 a.m. and one at the Old Navy on Cutler and San Mateo. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fires, but both buildings received smoke and water damage that likely will prevent them from reopening for some time.

The FBI is investigating with help from local agencies.

Police Chief Gorden Eden and Mayor Richard Berry announced Saturday that a suspect has been taken into custody and handed over to the FBI, but as of Saturday the suspect had not been charged in connection with any of the incidents. And officials continued to withhold the suspects name Sunday.

Meanwhile, an elite group of arson investigators with the ATFs National Response Team was combing the Carlisle scene. The condominiums were under construction when the blaze started.

We are investigating a fire of unknown origin, Mangan said Sunday.

He said investigators are likely to remain on the scene until Friday.

Literally, we remove layer by layer until we get to the slab to search for evidence of arson, he said.

The ATF had not been asked to investigate the other fire scenes in Albuquerque, Mangan said. But he said ATF agents plan to work closely with local agencies as needed.

ATFs National Response Team focuses on large-scale incidents and complex investigations, he said.

The team, composed of agents from around the nation, works with local fire investigators to reconstruct the scene and identify the origin of the fire and its cause, according to an ATF written statement.

According to a news release from the ATF and the Albuquerque Fire Department, the team has investigated incidents including the 2013 explosion in West Texas that killed 14 people; a string of 10 arsons at churches in Texas in 2010; a 2007 fire in South Carolina that killed nine firefighters; and national-level scenes including the 9/11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon; the Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta; the Oklahoma City bombing and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
The cold seasons first snows are expected to accumulate in Albuquerque this week, with a first glimpse of it possibly this morning and maybe even a thicker layer of it falling overnight and into Tuesday morning, local National Weather Service meteorologists said Sunday.

The weather system bringing this moisture from the west will drop the temperatures, possibly to a low tonight of 20 degrees in parts of Albuquerque, meaning precipitation that falls in the metro area could turn to snow overnight and possibly on and off during the day. And wind could gust in the area up to 40 mph.

Were going into wintertime, and its pretty normal for this time of year, said Troy Marshall, a meteorological technician with the Albuquerque office of the National Weather Service.

Todays predicted highs for the metro area  in the mid-40s  are between 5 and 10 degrees below normal for this time of year, according to the Weather Service website.

This first wave of potential snow, which was expected to bring about 1 inch this morning and 2 inches Tuesday morning, started late Saturday night. That storm blew through the state quickly and into Texas, Marshall said.

It was followed by another weather system Sunday night into this morning, and that also was expected to blow through pretty quickly.

Another storm is on track to follow it tonight into Tuesday.

Then well have a break in the weather after these three systems go through, but well have continued cold temperatures, Marshall said.

And then, he said, Albuquerque could see another storm system that could be bringing in something Friday into Saturday.

Parts of central and eastern New Mexico are under a strong wind advisory while the northern part of the state has been pummeled with snow.

For example, the Taos area has already seen about 14 inches of snow, and more is expected on Sunday and today.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
MORE REAL ID DETAILS: Now that the state of New Mexico has had two weeks of Real ID rollout, questions about specific categories of drivers who dont have the standard documentation have come up.

(Standard refers to the most common proof of ID number: Social Security card/W-2/1099; plus the proof of ID: passport or birth certificate; plus proof of residency: two insurance/utility (no cellphone)/credit card bills or bank statements with home street address. A full list is at ABQJournal.com and at mvd.newmexico.gov.)

Taxation and Revenue Secretary Demesia Padilla, who oversees the state Motor Vehicle Division, calls these cases one-offs, as in they are just one document off the standard path to a Real ID license or ID card.

WHY ISNT MY MILITARY ID ENOUGH? Military folks have sent in questions along these lines. Jim S. emails, I am retired military, and when I originally applied for a New Mexico drivers license the MVD accepted that as proof of ID. Is the use of a military ID still acceptable? Note that military IDs no longer contain SSN. Even if it is acceptable I will probably also need proof of New Mexico residence. Please clarify.

G.B. called to ask why a military ID wasnt enough to satisfy the document requirements. And captmic asks, Will DMV accept a military ID  like a retiree  as a form of ID?

I use my military ID all the time to board planes including yesterday when I used it to board a Delta flight to Atlanta. Have used my retired military ID to go onto many bases including a high-security base in Hawaii and Kirtland. Im pretty sure I read that a military ID was Real ID-compliant but will assume New Mexico is behind the times (shocking) when I go to renew in a year. Thanks for checking.

A check of the federal register shows New Mexico, which did not come up with the core document list, is in fact following just what the federal government ordered.

Tiffany Smyth, a spokeswoman for Tax and Rev, explains that in the public commentary period Homeland Security considered such concerns and determined everyone who has a military ID should have access to the original documents, the birth certificate, Social Security card, etc., that Real ID is based on and so decided specifically not to add more documents to the list.

Padilla says because Real ID is being phased in, each government installation and agency was allowed to determine what documents it would accept in the short term, and the TSA determined military IDs were good enough to get you on a commercial flight. Real ID requirements are much more stringent.

Come Oct. 1, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security says, every air traveler will need a REAL ID-compliant license, or another acceptable form of identification, for domestic air travel. That could still include a military ID, but that has yet to be determined.

WHAT IF IVE NEVER HAD A BIRTH CERTIFICATE? One reader called because his wife, who was born in segregated Baltimore in 1927, has never had a birth certificate. And Corrine Melton called to say all she has ever had is a baptismal certificate her family received when she was born 79 years ago.

Padilla says drivers like these qualify for an exception, which Homeland Security approved as long as it is age-based, and the person is born before Dec. 21, 1945.

Drivers born before that date who have never had a birth certificate will be able to fill out an affidavit and go through a process to get a Real ID license or ID card. The hitch is Homeland Security has not approved the paperwork and process yet, and Smyth says they have no deadline to do that by.

In the interim, these drivers can get a non-Real ID driver authorization card by using, for example, their Medicare card for their proof of ID number and their Social Security card or military ID for their proof of identity. Two residency documents like those mentioned above are also required

IS MVD KEEPING COPIES OF ALL MY INFO? Mary B. called to ask that question and expressed concern about copies of birth certificates and Social Security cards floating around in the cloud in this age of database hackers.

Smyth says, The department will scan the documents and return the originals.

And thats because the Real ID Act, signed by Congress in 2005, states a state shall adopt the following practices in the issuance of drivers licenses and identification cards:

(1) Employ technology to capture digital images of identity source documents so that the images can be retained in electronic storage in a transferable format.

(2) Retain paper copies of source documents for a minimum of 7 years or images of source documents presented for a minimum of 10 years.

Assistant editorial page editor DVal Westphal tackles commuter issues for the Metro area on Mondays. Reach her at 823-3858; road@abqjournal.com; or P.O. Drawer J, Albuquerque, N.M. 87103.
Forecasters say an approaching storm system and low temperatures are expected to bring snow Monday night to the Albuquerque area.

A storm moved through the northern part of the state overnight Sunday, bringing with it more than 50 school and government delays.

A full list of closings is here.

The National Weather Service says western and central New Mexico is likely to see several inches of snow overnight.

The snow is expected to stop Wednesday and Thursday, but temperatures will remain low.

Forecasters say the snow has another shot of returning to New Mexico on Friday.
MIAMI  When 25-year-old illustrator Michelle Alfonso traveled to Cuba this year, she became the first in her family to go back to their ancestral homeland in more than a half-century  and it made her feel whole again.

Alfonso, a New Yorker, says more Cuban-Americans should make the trip, especially now that the nations longtime leader and the nemesis of many exiles, Fidel Castro, has died. She is part of a shift among many younger Cuban-Americans toward favoring engagement with the Communist-led island.

I had grown up with this mysterious Cuban culture, and now, my whole life made sense, she said.

However, she said she doesnt necessarily feel entitled to choose their future, putting her at odds with many Cuban-American millennials in Miami. The citys Cuban-American community is the center of hard-line sentiment against the Castro government, now led by Fidels brother Raul Castro.

Take Isabella Prio, 20 and a junior at Boston College, who was born in Miami. She fully expects to return to Cuba someday and help shape the islands future, though shes never been to the country where her grandfather was once president and refuses to visit until its a democracy. Castros death at age 90 could bring changes that would make that possible, she said.

Its a new chapter for us, Prio said. Its definitely in the hands of the young people to take it over. We just have to be careful about how we go about it.

A dialogue with the U.S. had begun under President Barack Obama, who visited Cuba in March. But the future of diplomacy is uncertain under President-elect Donald Trump, who has indicated he may roll back some of the warming of ties.

Guillermo Grenier, a professor of sociology at Florida International in Miami, said attitudes are changing among youth eager to engage somehow with the island.

However, how younger Cuban-Americans feel about Fidel Castro dying is kind of independent of that interest, said Grenier, a lead investigator of the FIU Cuba Poll, an annual poll of Cuban-Americans co-sponsored by the Cuban Research Institute.

The most recent Cuba Poll was taken in August. It showed that Cuban-Americans ages 18 to 39 are disenchanted with the embargo, desire expanded business opportunities and favor the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Theres been a shift of millennial Cuban-Americans, who are more open to President Obamas policies, says Cherie Cancio, 29, who was born in Miami and runs tours through a nonprofit called CubaOne to the island for young Cuban-Americans eager to explore their heritage.

Cancios father reached Florida on the Mariel Boatlift in the 1980s.

She admits that the children of exiles grapple with wanting to learn about their heritage while being respectful of their parents struggles. Many millennials want to go to Cuba but are hesitant to do so out of respect for their parents position that the Castro regime must relinquish power.

Thats why she believes in educating Cuban-Americans, while building bridges with folks in Cuba.

Still, Cancio doesnt believe that she, or the Miami-born children of exiles, has a role to play in reshaping Cuba.

I have the freedom here to support whatever policies I want, she said. I dont know I should have that freedom in another country, even if my father was born there.

Javier Gonzalez, a 21-year-old University of Miami junior, feels that Cuba is his birthright. His father came from Cuba and hasnt returned. Gonzalez also hasnt visited.

A free Cuba or nothing, said Gonzalez, who is majoring in political science, economics and aquaculture.

Gonzalez attended Belen Jesuit Preparatory School in Miami  a private school that was once in Havana, only to be seized after Castro took power and expelled from the island.

Castro himself was a 1944 graduate of the school. Gonzalez says many of his teachers knew Castro or studied with him, and the exile experience permeated daily high school life, as it did for him at home.

Each day while walking to his Latin American studies class, Gonzalez would pass the wall of martyrs, a photographic journey of all the alumni who died fighting for a higher cause, including attempting to oust Castro. Many were political prisoners under the Castro regime.

Gonzalez thinks of Cuba as his home, and someday, of going to what he calls paradise lost.

Castros death isnt equivalent to liberty, but its a step toward liberty, said Gonzalez.

When news of Castros death broke, he texted Prio, his friend. They and their high school friends who were home for Thanksgiving break knew where to meet: Cafe Versailles in Little Havana, with its signs that say La Casa del Exilio, or, house of the exiles.

Prio, who has friends at her school in Boston who questioned her jubilation over Castros death, tried to explain her feelings.

Hes not a human being, hes a monster, she said. Its perfectly acceptable to celebrate his death.

Prios grandfather, Carlos Prio Socarras, was president of Cuba from 1948 until 1952, when Fulgencio Batista organized a coup and overthrew the government. Socarras fled the country and backed Castro financially; it was the worst decision of his life, he later said.

Like Gonzalez, Prio believes she will someday go to Cuba and hopes to play a part in its rebuilding.

Said Gonzales: its not celebrating death, its celebrating the life that could be.

___

Follow Tamara Lush on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tamaralush .

___

An earlier version of this story incorrectly spelled the name of former Cuban president Carlos Prio Socarras.
FARMINGTON  A Farmington teenager recently won a state philanthropy award for raising more than $17,500 over six years from her lemonade stand for cancer research.

Earlier this month, Farmington High School sophomore Keely Stockham was presented with the Outstanding Teen in Philanthropy Award from the New Mexico Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. A ceremony was held on National Philanthropy Day on Nov. 2 in Albuquerque.

When I first started the lemonade stand, I didnt expect it to get recognition, said the 15-year-old. I never expected to get any praise for it. I just wanted to make a difference.

Stockham started the lemonade stand in 2010 after her aunt, Jenny Lee Jones, was diagnosed with leukemia. Shortly after, the teenagers mother, Elizabeth Stockham, donated her bone marrow to Jones.

I decided I didnt want anyone else to go through what my aunt went through, Stockham said.

Stockham chose to donated proceeds from the lemonade stand to the American Cancer Societys Relay for Life of San Juan County.

On the day she opened the stand in July 2010, a small number of visitors purchased 50-cent cups of lemonade outside Stockhams home on North Orchard Avenue.

That low turnout made her realize she needed to spread the word about the lemonade stand. She told friends about the stand, and her parents sent emails and posted on Facebook about the fundraiser. Stockham has also been interviewed by a Farmington radio station, and The Daily Times wrote about her efforts.

Since that first fundraiser, several businesses, organizations and community members have donated each year to Stockhams lemonade stand. She has also enlisted help from her friends and relatives over the years to run the stand.

In 2014, the lemonade stand raised its largest amount to date, $4,585.

Were very proud of her, Elizabeth Stockham said of her daughter. Weve never seen a child with such determination.

The teen has operated the lemonade stand at her home until last year, when the Dental Studio at 2401 E. 30th St. allowed Stockham to operate the fundraiser in its parking lot. She raised $3,701 in three days.

This summer, Stockham did not run a lemonade stand because she was enrolled in summer course. But she was still able to raise $500 through donations.

It was Stockhams work with the lemonade stand that led Farmington High teacher Erin Gockel to seek her out to form the schools Key Club.

Gockel taught Stockham in sixth and eighth grades at Tibbetts Middle School and remembered her as a responsible and motivated leader. Stockham was also president of the National Junior Honor Society when she was in eighth grade.

I saw her leadership skills blossom, Gockel said.

As Key Club president, Stockham leads the clubs meeting at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday before school starts. She has helped organize the clubs year-long project, which involves members volunteering at ECHO Food Bank on Tuesday afternoons.

I think (the lemonade stand) started me on a path of wanting to give as much time to my community, Stockham said.

Stockham said she plans to continue operating the lemonade stand until she graduates high school and leaves for college. She then plans to pass down the lemonade stand to a fellow volunteer, fourth grader Lauren Anderson.

I realize that Lauren is going to be the one that takes it because she really likes to help out and really wants to do it, Stockham said.

Joshua Kellogg covers education for The Daily Times. He can be reached at 505-564-4627.



2016 The Daily Times (Farmington, N.M.)

Visit The Daily Times (Farmington, N.M.) at www.daily-times.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

_____
PHOENIX  Arizona State Treasurer Jeff DeWit spent much of the summer and fall overseeing finances for president-elect Donald Trumps campaign as chief operating officer, an unpaid effort that ended as he watched Trump give a victory speech.

Now that his candidate has won, DeWit is back in Arizona full time but dogged by talk that hes going to benefit from his support by getting a post in the new administration.

DeWit wont say definitively that he wont leave. But hes not looking for a job and says hes happy being treasurer for the next two years. His wife and three daughters love Arizona, and hes not inclined to leave the state.

But that doesnt mean Trump hasnt offered some fantastic opportunities, DeWit said.

And I certainly want to do all I can to help his administration be successful and be a part of draining the swamp, quite frankly, DeWit said in an interview this week. And one of the things that excites me the most is trying to fix our broken system. I very much want to be a part of that.

DeWit first met Trump in early 2015 at a meeting of Republican state treasurers in South Carolina, before Trump announced he was running for president. He waited outside the conference hotel, settling himself up as a kind of ambassador for the treasurers in order to wrangle a chance to meet the businessman.

Im a geek and a business guy, and I grew up always admiring business leaders, the Bill Gates of the world, said DeWit, who ran for office in 2014 with no political experience and touted his own business background. And so Donald Trump, obviously, for a lot of people in my generation, my age bracket, he was a leading business figure that was always in the news, doing big things and big deals and was someone to admire.

He and Trump ended up talking for 20 minutes, and he offered to help out on a campaign if Trump were to jump in.

The emerging campaign kept in touch, speaking with DeWit every week or so, he said. By July 2015, Trump was formally a candidate, and DeWit helped set up one of his first big rallies, at the Phoenix convention center.

I picked him up at the airport, I took him to the event, was with him the whole time and took him back to the plane, DeWit said. I sat on his plane for almost an hour.

Also on the plane was a Washington Post reporter, who sat nearby as Trump urged DeWit to run in the 2016 primary against Republican Sen. John McCain. DeWit never signed on, but the Post story was the first inkling that DeWit was becoming close to Trump.

DeWit was Arizona campaign chair, went to debates, helped out the national campaign and often spoke on national news shows about his support.

Then in June, Trump fired campaign manager Cory Lewandowski after controversies on the campaign trail and amid concerns that he was unprepared to run the general election campaign.

Within hours of the Monday, June 20, firing, DeWit got a call from Trump Tower in New York.

Wednesday morning, I was in his conference room, and theyre telling me they want me to do more for the campaign, DeWit said. Later that day I was COO of the campaign, COO and CFO, essentially.

DeWit spent substantial time in New York, running the campaigns financial planning, flying home to handle treasurer business when he could.

Im approving every expense, so Im keeping track as all the money comes in, Im doing the budgeting, he said. If there was a dollar spent on the campaign I had to approve it.

Thats a lot of approving, with the campaign raising about $300 million in all.

I was trying to plan and make sure that we could get through the campaign, know exactly how much we could spend, how much could we spend on ads, he said.

It ended with a big win for Trump, one that leaves DeWit pleased he was an early backer and asked constantly whether hes leaving the state for a role in the presidential administration.

I never want to conclusively say one way or the other what I will do because you never know. One thing I will say is that Mr. Trump is a very persuasive man, he said. But my plan right now is to remain state treasurer and do the very best I can do for the taxpayers and voters that elected me.
Shortly after the Republicans stunning Election Day sweep, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack grabbed Vice President Joe Biden in a receiving line.

Vilsack had an urgent message and he sensed that in Biden he would find a receptive audience. The two politicians had served together throughout President Barack Obamas eight years in office and had known each other for decades. Both are nearing the end of long and successful political careers, built on speaking to the ambitions and anxieties of white, working-class voters who turned decisively for Donald Trump in this election.

We need to speak more directly to our folks in rural America, Vilsack recalled telling the vice president. And we have to spend time there.

Biden nodded and Vilsack kept moving, unsure whether his message  one that he had been pressing for years now  had penetrated. Their hurried exchange is a small part of a broader reckoning that is happening among Democrats as they struggle to make sense of their election losses.

Democrats have pinned their recent failings on any number of causes: websites that fed fake news to an anxious electorate; Republican-backed voter-identification laws; a racist backlash aimed at a black president and an increasingly diverse country; a sexist bias against a female commander in chief.

Others point to Hillary Clintons popular-vote victory, Obamas high approval ratings and demographic trends projecting increases in pro-Democrat minority voters as proof that the party is healthier than it appears. The American people agree with my world view on a whole bunch of things, Obama said following the Democrats defeat. Sometimes people feel as if we want to try something to see if we can shake things up.

Vilsack is among a group of old-school Democrats who are offering a far more dire perspective on the partys prospects.

Even before the president-elects surprising victory this month, Vilsack was complaining, sometimes loudly and often with little effect, that his party had essentially given up competing in large swaths of the country that it needed to win Senate seats, governors races and state legislatures.

Democrats need to talk to rural voters, Vilsack warned this summer. They cant write them off. They cant ignore them. They actually have to spend a little time talking to them.

Today, the former Iowa governor compares Democrats to a tree that looks healthy on the outside, but is in the throes of slow and long-term demise.

Basically, thats the Democratic Party as we know it, he said.

To make his case, Vilsack focuses on his home state of Iowa, which is 95 percent white and shows in microcosm many of the problems that now plague Democrats in rural America. When Vilsack won his long-shot race for governor in 1998, it was the first time Iowa had elected a Democrat to the office in 32 years.

Eight years later, Vilsack was replaced by a Democrat who for the first time in four decades had a Democratic legislature. I personally took over managing legislative races, Vilsack said. We won the House and the Senate and we had three of the of the five members of Congress.

Iowa voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012, before flipping decisively to Trump in 2016.

Today, Republicans dominate every facet of state government and control both Senate seats and three of the four House seats. To understand the depth of the problem that Democrats face, Vilsack pointed to the returns from Sioux County in the northwestern corner of the state. Trump took more than 80 percent of the vote in the sparsely populated county, giving him a 12,000 vote advantage over Clinton.

Two years earlier, Sen. Joni Ernst (R) captured a stunning 87 percent of the vote in winning the open seat that had belonged to legendary Democrat Tom Harkin.

The vast margins essentially erased Democratic gains in Des Moines and surrounding Polk County, which has a population of 434,000, more than ten times as large as tiny Sioux County. The pattern was repeated throughout rural areas of the state.

If Democrats show up in these places they are not going to win, but they are not going to get shellacked, Vilsack said. And thats the key. Its about not getting beat so badly.

Vilsacks argument has an ally in Obama, whose victory in Iowa in the 2008 Democratic Party proved that he could attract the support of white Midwestern voters. Obama often talks about the Iowa caucuses as the most satisfying political period of his career.

Its my view of what politics should be, he said in an interview with Politico this year.

After Trumps victory, Obama pointed again to Iowa, but this time he used it as a lesson to Democrats and the Clinton campaign, which had focused heavily on urban, suburban and minority voters. I won Iowa not because the demographics dictated that I would win Iowa, Obama told reporters. It was because I spent 87 days going to every small town and fair and fish fry. . . . And there were some counties where I might have lost, but maybe I lost by 20 points instead of 50 points.

Vilsacks warning, based on his experience in Iowa and his eight years traveling rural America as agriculture secretary, is that Democrats will have to do more than simply show up. He said that Democrats must build organizations with loyal memberships and the ability to deliver in Washington. Who would you rather have on your side [in Washington], the Sierra Club or the National Rifle Association? Vilsack asked. Such new groups, he added, could help offset losses in traditional Democratic bastions, such as unions.

And he called on the party to retool its message so that it can better appeal to proud, rural voters who are skeptical of government regulation and help.

As Democrats, we tend to say we have a program. We have a program to retrain workers or help with health-care costs or reduce the costs of education, Vilsack said. Heres how that is heard in some corners: Man, you must really not be able to take care of yourself. You must be really dependent. 

A better message, Vilsack said, would be built around partnering with local communities to retool economies hurt by technological change or globalization. Such a partnership, he said, would emphasize the good of the country and combine their challenges with the countrys challenges, Vilsack said. One part of the country is not stronger or weaker. Instead we are all in this together.

Vilsack said he tried out a version of his approach at a recent meeting with state agriculture secretaries and commissioners  an overwhelmingly Republican group.

He pressed them to think about the consequences for farmers if the Trump administration followed through on campaign promises and triggered a trade war with China and Mexico.

That is our number one and number three agriculture customer, he said.

He warned that mass deportations of illegal immigrants could deprive farmers of essential workers needed to harvest, process and package their crops.

The agriculture commissioners, meanwhile, had other priorities, such as curbing Environmental Protection Agency regulations on farming and eliminating the estate tax.

They get it. They know their sales are directly related to trade, Vilsack said. But we havent said, Hey guys, heres the problem. We just havent connected with them.

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The white man charged with killing nine black parishioners at a church in Charleston, South Carolina, last year will be allowed to represent himself in his federal hate-crimes trial, a judge said Monday.

This means that Dylann Roof, 22, could question survivors of the attack if they are called to testify in the case, one of two trials he faces for the massacre at Emanuel AME Church. In addition to being indicted on federal hate-crimes charges, Roof has been charged with murder and attempted murder in state court, and he faces potential death sentences in both trials.

U.S. District Judge Richard Gergels decision Monday came as jury selection is getting underway in the federal trial after a three-week delay. Jury selection was initially scheduled to begin earlier this month, but it was abruptly postponed after last-minute questions arose about Roofs ability to understand the proceedings and assist in his own defense.

On Friday, Gergel ruled that Roof was competent to stand trial, although he kept sealed his exact reasons for doing so, and hearings and filings on the matter also were shielded from public view.

There were other sealed filings over the weekend in the case, which may have reflected debate about Roofs request to represent himself. It is unclear how his decision to represent himself could affect the timetable for the trial, which is expected to last months. Gergel is expected to issue a written order later Monday, according to the Justice Department.

Attorneys for Roof have said that he had planned to plead guilty if the federal government did not seek a death sentence. David Bruck, an attorney for Roof, did not respond to a message seeking comment about Roofs decision.

Roof told Gergel that he wanted his attorneys to continue sitting at his table during the trial and act as his standby counsel, the Post and Courier newspaper reported.

I continue to believe it is strategically unwise, but it is a decision you have the right to make, Gergel said, according to the Post and Courier.

Prosecutors say that Roof self-radicalized online, absorbing violent white supremacist beliefs through the Internet, rather than from any personal experiences or associations.

After the church massacre, authorities found a manifesto online that belonged to Roof and was filled with racist characterizations of black people. It also contained images of Roof holding a Confederate battle flag and standing in front of a Confederate museum.

Authorities say they have found two handwritten manifestoes from Roof, one in his jail cell and the other in his car. They also say they located a list of churches.

Defendants in high-profile criminal cases have opted to act as their own attorneys before, in some cases disrupting the ongoing trial. Last year, a white supremacist sentenced to death for killing three people near Jewish facilities in Kansas defended himself, periodically interrupting the trial and, when jurors went to deliberate, standing up and saying Sig heil while delivering a Nazi salute.

Theodore Kaczynski, better known as the Unabomber, had sought to defend himself in court, although a a federal judge ruled he could not because of the timing of his request. He wound up confessing as part of a plea bargain that spared him the death penalty but sentenced him to life imprisonment without the possibility of release.

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WILMINGTON, Del., Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Andrews & Springer LLC, a boutique securities class action law firm focused on representing shareholders nationwide, is investigating potential breach of fiduciary duty claims against the Board of Directors of Synutra International, Inc. (Synutra or the Company) relating to the sale of the Company to Beams Power Investment Limited (Beams Power), an entity affiliated Liang Zhang, Synutras chairman, chief executive officer and holder of 63% of Synutras outstanding shares. On November 17, 2016, the two parties announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which Beams Power will acquire Synutra in a going private merger. As a result of the merger, Synutra shareholders are only anticipated to receive $6.05 per share in cash in exchange for each share of Synutra.



Andrews & Springers investigation so far has revealed that the consideration Synutra shareholders are expected to receive is inadequate. While the Company claims that shareholders will receive a premium for their shares, the deal consideration is significantly less than the $6.74 price target set by an analyst on Yahoo Finance! The current $6.05 per share consideration being offered by Mr. Zhang is currently more than 10% below that target. Our investigation has also revealed that the process leading up to the announcement of the merger appears to have significant conflicts of interest thus making the process and consideration unfair.

If you own shares of Synutra and want to receive additional information and protect your investments free of charge, please visit us at http://www.andrewsspringer.com/cases-investigations/synutra-class-action-investigation/ or contact Craig J. Springer, Esq. at cspringer@andrewsspringer.com, or call toll free at 1-800-423-6013. You may also follow us on LinkedIn  www.linkedin.com/company/andrews-&-springer-llc, Twitter  www.twitter.com/AndrewsSpringer or Facebook - www.facebook.com/AndrewsSpringer for future updates.

Andrews & Springer is a boutique securities class action law firm representing shareholders nationwide who are victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty or corporate misconduct. Having formerly defended some of the largest financial institutions in the world, our founding members use their valuable knowledge, experience, and superior skill for the sole purpose of achieving positive results for investors. These traits are the hallmarks of our innovative approach to each case our Firm decides to prosecute. For more information please visit our website at www.andrewsspringer.com. This notice may constitute Attorney Advertising.
McLEAN, Va.  Melissa Baumann lives some 850 miles from the nations capital, but when she hears President-elect Donald Trump and his supporters say they will drain the swamp, she worries she will be sucked down into the muck.

Baumann, a chemist with the Forest Service, is one of the nations 4 million or so federal workers and is watching anxiously as Trump looks to set his agenda in motion.

In terms of policy, Trump has suggested a federal hiring freeze and hinted at eliminating or sharply curtailing an entire Cabinet agency, the Department of Education.

In terms of rhetoric, he targeted the federal bureaucracy and regulations. And then theres his drain the swamp catchphrase.

Trumps allies say that was directed at lobbyists, donors and political cronies. Some federal workers fear he means a broader group.

I believe that is directed at us. And its misdirected, said Baumann, who lives in Madison, Wisconsin, where she also serves as a union officer for the Forest Service. The problems in Washington have nothing to do with the people outside the Beltway who are doing honorable work under difficult circumstances, she said.

Like most federal workers, Baumann works far from D.C., where less than 10 percent of the federal workforce is stationed, government data show. Maryland and Virginia are large federal employment centers, but so are California, Florida, Texas and Georgia.

Greg Guthrie, an information specialist with the National Technical Information Service in Alexandria, Virginia, said that after the initial shock of Trumps win, he has adopted a cautiously optimistic stance. Trump won as a champion of the working class, he reasoned, and he hopes Trump will advocate for the federal working class as well as the private sector.

Guthries co-workers are sympathetic to technologys disruption of the labor force, he said. The NTIS provides reports and research to a variety of customers. Internet search engines now fill some of that role, prompting senators to introduce the Let Me Google That For You Act in 2014 to kill the NTIS. But Guthrie said his agency has reinvented itself and now helps government agencies use big data.

Guthrie said federal workers can adapt when given the opportunity.

I dont like some of the terms Im hearing, like drain the swamp,' said Guthrie, also an officer in his union. Sometimes its couched as were these lazy, unnecessary relics. Thats not true. Were people who work hard.

Corey Stewart  who chaired Trumps Virginia campaign and serves as Board of Supervisors chairman in Prince William County, home to many federal workers  said drain the swamp was directed at the lobbying corps and Washington insiders who infiltrate the political system.

The average federal worker doesnt have much to worry about, he said, though he does expect reductions at the Department of Education, IRS and EPA, because Trump is skeptical of those agencies.

Stewart said Trumps promises to bolster defense will result in a net benefit for the capital region and the federal workforce.

He said Trump wont find much savings in the federal labor force because it has already been squeezed by budget cuts. The number of executive branch employees hasnt been this low since 1965, government data show.

Bill Dougan, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees, said that after the initial shock of Trumps victory, many federal workers are adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Dougan suspects federal workers fate will depend largely on whether Trumps inner circle is populated by establishment Republicans  even though theyve been hostile to federal workers  or wild cards like Newt Gingrich, who engineered a government shutdown as speaker of the House, and Steve Bannon, the Trump adviser Dougan says embodies an ethos to do everything he can to blow things up.

Dougan said he expects Republican attacks on federal salaries and pension benefits to continue, but hes hopeful that were going to see some appointments with some experience in government and how government works, or its going to be a real problem.

Still, he said, theres some optimism that federal workers connected to defense and the Veterans Administration could see improvements, given campaign promises to increase spending there.

But Kim Valavez, a social worker at a VA clinic in Santa Rosa, California, said the prevailing mood among workers there is fear. They worry a Trump administration may favor privatization over investing in the VA itself.

People are scared, she said. It feels like a great unknown.

Rep. Gerry Connolly, the ranking Democrat on a subcommittee overseeing the federal civil service, said he doesnt expect the GOP-controlled Congress to oppose any Trump efforts to downsize the federal workforce.

I think if anything they will be more emboldened to scapegoat federal workers than before, said Connolly, whose northern Virginia district is home to large numbers of federal workers and contractors.
President-elect Donald Trump is for now unswayed by the extraordinarily public revolt by some of his top advisers and allies over the possible choice of Mitt Romney as secretary of state and continues to see his foe as a serious contender for the diplomatic post, several people briefed on the deliberations said Monday.

Romney plans to have a private dinner Tuesday with Trump, who is said to be intrigued by the notion of reconciling with one of his fiercest Republican antagonists  even as he also weighs rewarding the loyalty of former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani with one of the administrations most prized jobs or selecting a decorated military officer in David H. Petraeus.

Trump is looking for assurances that Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee who has championed a muscular and at times interventionist foreign policy, could be trusted to defend and promote Trumps markedly different worldview in capitals around the globe, the people familiar with the president-elects deliberations said.

Giuliani has openly campaigned for the job and has told friends that he is likely to get it. But Trumps team has determined that it may be challenging and even unlikely for Giuliani to win Senate confirmation: His web of international business interests and the millions of dollars he has earned in paid speeches and consulting work for foreign entities would come under scrutiny, while Sen. Rand Paul, Ky., one of 10 Republicans on the Foreign Relations Committee, has threatened to block Giulianis nomination.

Romney and Giuliani have been seen as co-favorites to lead the State Department, but Trump this week is expanding his search to include other candidates, chief among them Petraeus, a retired Army general and former CIA director.

Transition officials said Trump has long admired Petraeus and described his candidacy as formidable, despite the baggage he would carry into any confirmation battle because of his 2015 conviction for mishandling classified information. Petraeuss public service career came to an end amid revelations that he had an affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell, and shared classified information with her.

On the campaign trail, Trump played down the significance of Petraeuss conviction, repeatedly arguing that it was a fraction of what Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton had gotten away with by using a personal email server as secretary of state.

Petraeus and Trump met Monday afternoon in New York for about an hour, with Vice President-elect Mike Pence joining them for part of the session. As the general exited Trump Tower following their session, he praised Trump, telling reporters that he showed a great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well. Very good conversation, and well see where it goes from here.

Trump later tweeted, Just met with General Petraeus  was very impressed!

Trump will meet Tuesday with Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who officials said could emerge as a candidate, although the senator has said that he is unlikely to end up in serious contention. As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Corker would oversee the confirmation process of Trumps nominee.

Trump is hiring for other key positions as well, including secretary of homeland security. He has chosen Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., one of the Hills fiercest critics of President Obamas health-care law, to be secretary of health and human services. Trump met Monday with two candidates: Frances Townsend, a former homeland security official in the George W. Bush administration, and David Clarke, the controversial sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wis. Trump is to meet Tuesday with a third contender, Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee.

The nascent Trump transition has been riven by infighting over the possible nomination of Romney, who is seen as the quintessential establishment figure and who spoke out against Trumps candidacy in unusually harsh and personal terms.

Pence and some Trump advisers are said to have argued that Romney would be a steady hand prepared to help shape relationships around the world. Trump is said to have buried the hatchet with Romney at their Nov. 19 meeting in Bedminster, New Jersey, and sees a political benefit to bringing him into the administration: silencing a rival Republican who has a big microphone and a network of wealthy donors.

But other Trump intimates have advocated forcefully for Giuliani, a trusted loyalist and brash Trump defender who developed a close bond with the candidate and is more ideologically in sync with him.

The feud spilled into the open over Thanksgiving weekend as Kellyanne Conway, Trumps former campaign manager and now a senior adviser to the transition team, attacked Romneys credentials and trustworthiness in a trio of Sunday television appearances. Conway said on CNN that she has received a breathtaking amount of messages from Trump supporters who feel betrayed to think that Governor Romney would get the most prominent Cabinet post after he went so far out of his way to hurt Donald Trump.

Conway is part of a cadre of Trump allies who are waging an unprecedented public battle against Romney in an attempt to influence the president-elects decision, sow doubts about Romney in the minds of Trumps core supporters and create an environment in which he would be a toxic nominee.

Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., one of Trumps top backers on Capitol Hill, blasted Romney on Monday on CNN as a self-serving egomaniac who puts himself first, who has a chip on his shoulder and thinks that he should be president of the United States.

And Brent Bozell, an influential conservative activist, issued a statement declaring that the very idea of Mitt Romney as Secretary of State  or any other cabinet position in a Trump administration  is a slap to his supporters.

Trump observers said the president-elect has taken a page out of his playbook for The Apprentice, his hit reality show on NBC.

Trump is pitting people against other people, seeing how it plays out, said Jeffrey Tulis, a professor of government at the University of Texas at Austin. He said Romney is being humiliated by the process but that Trump has a model of conflict between advisers and subordinates that he thinks has worked for him in his business and on his TV show. Hes very comfortable with turmoil.

Over the Thanksgiving break, as Trump relaxed with his wife, Melania, and family at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, he asked guests and friends to weigh in on the choice between Romney and Giuliani. Two Trump friends confirmed the holiday discussions, which were first reported by the New York Post.

Donald personally wasnt negative on Romney, but said he had gotten a lot of negative feedback on Romney, and Melania also had gotten a lot of negative feedback. And it seemed clear he had reservations about Rudy, said one person close to the transition, who requested anonymity to recount private conversations with the Trumps.

Joe Scarborough, the host of MSNBCs Morning Joe, reported on air Monday that Conway had committed an act of sabotage against Romney and that Trump was furious with her.

Later Monday morning, on a conference call with reporters, Trump spokesman Jason Miller would neither confirm nor deny that characterization of Trumps attitude. He said only, Ill leave that to the president-elect if he wants to add any additional commentary.

Miller added that Trump was meeting with Romney on Tuesday because the two, quite frankly, havent spent much time together, so this gives them a little more time to do so.

Conway did not respond to a request for comment and declined to speak with reporters at Trump Tower.

One associate said that although Trump likes the theatrics of it all, he has chafed at feeling pressured to nominate Giuliani.

Other Trump associates, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, poured cold water on the suggestion that Conway was freelancing.

The boss is genuinely conflicted, one transition official said. A third person, who is close to the transition team, added, I dont think Kellyanne went off the reservation. [Still,] Trump would love to have Romney work for him . . . and at the very least, he loves to have Romney grovel for the job.

Jim Manley, a longtime senior Senate aide who most recently worked for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the public approach Trump is taking is both undiplomatic and gauche.

One of the most important positions in our government is being used as a political football to settle political scores, Manley said. Of all my years of watching the confirmation process, Ive never seen anything like this.  Youve got staff who may or may not be going rogue to advance their own agenda.

Its bringing out the worst in people.

One of Trumps biggest concerns is whether Romney would advocate Trumps perspective in closed-door meetings with foreign leaders. The two men have different views on Russias aggression and U.S. trade policy, among other issues, although they have similarly aggressive postures when it comes to fighting Islamic State terrorists and cracking down on a Chinese government they see as manipulative and exploitative.

Doug Wilson, chairman of the board of advisers of the Truman National Security Project, said Trump should be certain there is a cohesive foreign policy that will be supported by all the players.

Its one thing to talk about a team of rivals, Wilson said, a reference to former president Abraham Lincolns Cabinet. Its another thing to talk about a team of rivals when you go beyond the waters edge.

Still, there is historical precedent for presidents picking secretaries of state from rival wings of their parties: President Obama selected Clinton, while former president Woodrow Wilson tapped William Jennings Bryan.

There also is the question of whether Romney would publicly apologize for his critical statements about Trump during the campaign  something some Trump loyalists are advocating as a condition of his nomination.

One Republican who is close to both Romney and Trump, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that for Romney, The danger is not apologizing. The danger is apologizing and not getting the job.



The Washington Posts David Nakamura in New York and Jerry Markon and Elise Viebeck in Washington contributed to this report.

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LAS VEGAS  Officials say a Dallas-to-Las Vegas flight forced to land in New Mexico with engine problems has arrived in Nevada after an hours-long delay.

American Airlines spokesman Ross Feinstein said Monday the aircraft started having trouble after flight 1693 took off Sunday evening.

He says the plane landed safely in Albuquerque, New Mexico and no one was hurt.

After a six-hour delay, most of the nearly 180 passengers and took off again after being moved to a new plane. Some decided to stay overnight and fly out in the morning.

The fight arrived at McCarran International Airport early Monday morning.

Crews are investigating the cause of the problem on the Airbus A321, but believe it may be a compressor surge, which can make an engine stall.
Erich Bloch, an electrical engineer who helped usher in the era of modern computing during three decades with IBM, and who later directed hundreds of millions of federal dollars toward scientific and technological innovation as director of the National Science Foundation in the 1980s, died Nov. 25 at his home in Washington, D.C. He was 91.

The cause was complications from Alzheimers disease, said his daughter, Rebecca Rosen.

The only child in a German-Jewish family, Mr. Bloch was orphaned during the Holocaust, survived the war years in Switzerland at a home for young refugees, and immigrated to the United States in 1948. He put himself through night school while pumping gas and cleaning laboratory equipment.

In 1952, he joined IBM in New York, where he established himself as a preeminent engineer in computing  and where he sharpened a competitive streak that he took to the sometimes fusty halls of government. As NSF director from 1984 to 1990, Mr. Bloch was credited with transforming the agency from a benefactor mainly of pure research into an engine of practical advancement.

He changed NSFs image, Science magazine writers Joseph Palca and Eliot Marshall observed when Mr. Bloch left office, from that of a mother hen for a brood of academic scientists to an agency with a plan for improving the nation.

Mr. Bloch was the first NSF director to come from a business rather than academic background and the first without a doctoral degree. His qualifications lay in his achievements at IBM, where he helped mastermind revolutionary developments in computing.

He was chief engineer of the companys Stretch supercomputer, so named because it stretched what were then the limits of computing. Introduced in 1961 with a $10 million price tag, it was used initially by the Los Alamos National Laboratory and the National Security Agency and was the most powerful computer at the time.

Later that decade, Mr. Bloch helped develop the IBM System/360, a family of models that are the ancestors of todays mainframes. Fred Brooks, one of two IBM colleagues who shared with Mr. Bloch a 1985 National Medal of Technology and Innovation, credited Mr. Bloch with managing the development of the computers processing chips, called Solid Logic Technology.

Thomas J. Watson Jr., who led IBM at the time, is widely regarded as having bet the company on Mr. Bloch, his colleagues and System/360 project, which cost $5 billion  twice the companys annual revenue. It became, according to the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif., the most successful computer system of all time.

These were really the Apollo astronauts of the computing field, John C. Hollar, the president and chief executive of the museum, said in an interview. They were doing things that no one had ever attempted to do before.

Mr. Blochs experience at IBM informed his philosophy at NSF, a federal agency that is the governments chief funder of non-medical scientific research. His goal, he told the publication Science in 1985, was to make sure that our own infrastructure and research is the best in the world, capable of competing with Europe, Japan and other markets.

A lot of people are upset about that kind of approach to life. They say science is international, so who cares who does it, he remarked.I say science is no more international than commerce is. . . . I think its a highly competitive field, I dont apologize for it.

Bill Harris, who served at NSF as assistant director for math and physical sciences, credited the approach with saving the NSF from possible elimination during federal belt-tightening. Mr. Bloch persuaded Reagan administration officials not only to spare it, but even to increase its budget.

Under Mr. Bloch, the NSF emphasized fields such as computer science, engineering and biotechnology. He oversaw the creation of NSFNET, a precursor to the modern Internet, and the establishment at universities of Engineering Research Centers as well as Science and Technology Centers  long-term collaborations among the public, private and academic sectors to tackle complex matters such as lasers applications and earthquake prediction and engineering.

The single investigator cant do it with a Bunsen burner, he told Science in 1986.

Mr. Blochs admirers regarded him as a powerful advocate for results in a bureaucracy that tended toward inertia. Some detractors saw him as insufficiently attentive to individual researchers pursuing questions of pure science. But, in his view, scientists have no inalienable right to funding.

If all that we are doing is the individual research grant approach to science, then I think this country is going down the drain, he told Science. Science is changing, the tools of science are changing. And that requires different approaches. Yeah, it will make some people nervous. Well, they dont have to participate in it. But that doesnt mean that the country doesnt need that approach. It does need it. And it should have started earlier, in my opinion.

Erich Bloch was born in Sulzburg, a town located in the Black Forest, on Jan. 9, 1925. His father, a businessman, and his mother, a homemaker, were deported by the Nazis and perished in the concentration camps.

I have been pretty much on my own my whole life, he told the New York Times in 1987. It wasnt easy getting started. It took a certain amount of drive and aggressiveness. I learned very early I had to do things myself for something to get done.

Mr. Bloch received a bachelors degree in electrical engineering from the State University of New York at Buffalo in 1952 before joining IBM, where he retired as vice president of technical personnel development.

At NSF, Mr. Bloch took particular interest in programs benefitting women, minorities and the disabled in the sciences. After leaving office, he co-founded a consulting firm, the Washington Advisory Group. He was a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a fellow of the nonprofit Council on Competitiveness and a past board member of Motorola.

His wife of 56 years, the former Renee Stern, died in 2004. Survivors include his daughter, Rebecca Rosen of Trumbull, Conn.; two granddaughters; and two great-grandchildren.

In recent years, an interviewer from SUNY-Buffalo asked Mr. Bloch if, looking back on his career at NSF and beyond, he would have done anything differently.

No, he replied. I did what I thought at that time was important. Revisiting that now and coming to a different conclusion is not very helpful to anyone, especially oneself. You live a life only once. You dont live it twice. You do what you think is right at the time, and you stand on that.

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With the racist words freshly scrubbed from the door of his church, the Rev. Todd Robertson searched for a Scripture reading that would set the right tone for his congregation  somewhere between hopeful and defiant.

Most of all, he didnt want parishioners at his mostly black church in Evansville, Ind., to be intimidated.

So he built Sundays sermon around Matthew 5:16, which speaks about letting light shine in dark times.

I told them we have to understand that the light must be projected during the midst of darkness, he told The Washington Post. Theres a lot of hatred in the world. And hatred begets hatred. The only thing that can drive out hatred is love.

Days earlier, that hatred was on display at his church. On the side door, someone wrote Kill all Koons. On the church van: Koons inside. Parishioners found a third hateful statement on a nearby trash can.

Evansville police are investigating the case as a hate crime. Liberty Missionary Baptist Church is the citys oldest black house of worship, Robertson said. It was built by former slaves in 1865 near downtown Evansville, a city that is 13 percent black.

No one has been arrested in connection with the vandalism, and police have not released the name of a suspect. Over the holiday weekend, investigators canvassed the neighborhood around the church and sought potential witnesses, Evansville police Capt. Andy Chandler told The Post. They are also trying to see whether any private surveillance cameras caught someone lurking on church property on Thanksgiving Day.

For the church, Thanksgiving was a day of service. Every year, Liberty Missionary opens its doors on the holiday to feed the needy. This year, parishioners and volunteers fed nearly 300 people.

The meal attracts people of all races  both those eating it and those volunteering to serve it.

The dishes were washed and the tables were put up when Robertson received a call telling him about the graffiti.

A man who lives across the street from the church reported seeing a lone person in the parking lot after the church emptied.

As word spread, Robertson learned that parishioners had found a similar message two weeks ago, written in chalk on the churchs sidewalk. But the church members who found it quickly washed it away and didnt report it.

The incidents were the first race-fueled occurrences at the church in Robertsons 17 years as pastor. Weve never had anything like this, he told the Courier-Press shortly after the incident was reported.

Still, in its 151-year history, the church has had a front-row seat to some of the citys darkest moments.

Were right downtown, were literally right down the street from the courthouse, he said. The church has been here when there was lynching downtown, and people still came to church on Sunday.

While Robertson was dismayed about the graffiti, he said it gives the church  and the city  a chance to confront racist attitudes that some thought were dark relics of Indianas past.

In order to begin to heal, you have to face it, he said. When it comes to salvation, to become saved, you have to acknowledge that you have sinned and come up short. You have to acknowledge that there is a problem.

In the 1920s, Indiana had the highest number of Klan members per capita of any state. In 1923, the city of Kokomo, 200 miles away from Evansville, drew tens of thousands of Klan members for the induction of a new grand dragon, according to the New York Times.

The ceremony, on July 4, 1923, is considered by many scholars to be the largest single Klan gathering in the nations history, according to the Times.

Things have improved in the intervening decades, Robertson said. But he said the incendiary rhetoric during the presidential campaign has brought out the worst in some  including, apparently, the person who crept onto church property Thursday night.

In nearby Morgantown, someone spray-painted a swastika and the worlds Heil Trump on an Episcopal church, according to The Post. And earlier this month, a church in Maryland was defaced with the words: Trump nation. Whites only.

Between the Nov. 9 election and Nov. 14, there were 437 reports of hateful intimidation and harassment in the United States, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Of those, the center said 89 were anti-black.

Robertson said the election, and some of incendiary things said on the campaign trail, may have emboldened racists in his city.

It seems to be a time now when things have resurrected where they may have lied dormant before, he said. But no one makes anyone do anything. Someone can say something to make [hatred] rise up, but whatever is in you is in you.

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DETROIT  The Fidel Castro that Sam Riddle and many other African-Americans admired was not the revolutionary dictator who plunged Cuba into economic ruin and held the island nation in an iron grip.

To them, he was a freedom fighter who cared about improving the lives of all Cubans, regardless of race.

Castro, who died Friday at age 90, sought out black leaders. He met with Malcolm X in 1960 in Harlem, New Yorks most celebrated black neighborhood. He also had a close relationship with South Africas Nelson Mandela.

It was Fidel who fought for the human rights for black Cubans, said Riddle, political director of the Michigan Chapter of the National Action Network. Many Cubans are as black as any black who worked the fields of Mississippi or lived in Harlem. He believed in medical care and education for his people.

The dictators efforts to achieve racial equality mean he will never be a monster to his many admirers, Riddle added. To me, hes the essence of humanity.

Castro led a rebel army to victory in 1959 over the countrys pro-U.S. Batista government. Many Cuban elites fled 90 miles north to Miami, where they spent decades in exile. After his death, many Cuban Americans in the United States celebrated.

Some of those who fled to Miami had looted Cuba  and exploited the poor and the working class, said Riddle, 70, who also teaches media at a Detroit community college. Now those are the same individuals who have twisted the story to demonize Fidel Castro in death.

Under President Barack Obama, diplomatic relations with Cuba are being reopened. President-elect Donald Trump has criticized the Obama administrations stance on Cuba and threatened Monday to terminate the U.S. detente with the Cuban government.

After the revolution, Castro declared an end to segregation. However, the number of Afro-Cubans at the top of the countrys political and economic ladder is small. They make up a disproportionate number of the urban and rural poor.

Workers with lighter skin are hired more quickly for hospitality jobs tied to tourism.

Castros actions would appeal more to anybody of color, said Lynn Reasonover, a black financial executive in Chicago who visited Cuba in August as part of a vacation cruise. Im not so sure if white America would appreciate what hes done.

Reasonover, 54, walked through parts of Havana and two other cities, speaking with Cubans. What she saw resembled parts of the United States. There were areas where progress was evident and some parts of the island where poverty stood out.

I understand what he was trying to achieve, she said of Castro. He had a deep love for his people. He had a great ideal, but I dont think one size fits all, though.

In comments made six years ago, Cubas foreign minister said the first communist Cuban delegation to the United Nations received support from Malcolm X and other black leaders and forged a lasting bond between Cuban revolutionaries and the African-American progressive people.

Cuba backed Angolan fighters who battled forces supported by the pro-apartheid South African government of the 1980s.

Castro also granted asylum to Joanne Chesimard, who was convicted in 1977 in the death of state Trooper Werner Foerster during a 1973 gunfight on the New Jersey Turnpike. Chesimard was sentenced to life in prison but escaped and made her way to Cuba, where she has been living under the name Assata Shakur.

He was a hero in Africa, Latin America and North America for those who needed freedom from oligarchic and autocratic oppression, the Rev. Jesse Jackson said last weekend in a statement.

While Castro unfortunately denied many political freedoms, he at the same time did establish many economic freedoms  education and health care, Jackson said. He changed the world. While we may not agree with all of Castros actions, we can accept his lesson that where there is oppression there must be resistance.

___

Associated Press Writer Sophia Tareen in Chicago contributed to this report.

___

This story has been corrected to reflect that the Rev. Jacksons first name is spelled Jesse, not Jessie.
You know that viral video? The one that shows people getting the results of their DNA tests? And getting emotional when they realize their prejudices against other people are actually against themselves? Yeah, that one. Well today I received the result of my own DNA test in London, and there are some equally surprising lessons in it.

DNA Test in London

My DNA test came about as a result of the video. The DNA Journey was created by my boyfriends company, Momondo Group.

They made the video to demonstrate their belief that travel opens our world, and that if everyone knew where they came from there would be less prejudice across the globe.

I love the idea and I share their belief, having seen my own prejudices wiped away with every trip Ive taken.

As a teenager I spent two summers working at summer camps in Romania. I was terrified that I would have nothing in common with the teens there.

But as soon as I arrived I learned that teenage girls, whether from California or Cluj-Napoca, like to paint their nails and talk about boys.

As Ive gotten older, Ive discovered the same common ground with people Ive encountered all over the world.

After traveling to 100 countries and more, Ive found that no language, religion, political views, race, or age could prevent my experiencing it.

All I have to do is get out of my comfort zone and interact with people who arent in my social circles at home.

DNA Test Results

As part of the video campaign, Momondo Group gave DNA test kits to a number of people so they could learn more about where they come from. They offered me one, and I accepted.

Unfortunately the actual testing process wasnt smooth. The first kit got lost in the mail, and two attempts to get replacements through the help center went awry.

After months of waiting, my boyfriend finally bought me a new one. When I went to activate it, I found that my profile page on the website had a link to where I could get a replacement for the original. Grrr.

But I got there in the end, and this morning I received an email notifying me that my results were in.

Ancestry

Before I do the big reveal from my DNA test in London, its worth divulging what I thought my ancestry was.

I knew that three of my four grandparents were of Scottish descent, with my mothers mother and fathers paternal grandfather having been born and raised in Glasgow.

I knew that my fourth grandparent was of Swiss descent, and his family came to the US in 1717. His middle name was Reese, which is Welsh, so I also figured there was some more British ancestry on his side.

The last piece of the puzzle was my great-great-great-grandmother on my fathers mothers side, who was half Red Wing Native American.

DNA Test Reveal

When I opened the email this morning, I found that I wasnt far off. According to my DNA test in London, Im 67% British, 15% Western European, 10% Irish, and 8% Other European.

While the Irish was a surprise, it wasnt a big shock given the proximity of Ireland and Scotland and the movement of people between the two over the centuries.

The biggest surprise was that I registered as 0% Native American, but that may be due to a lack of Red Wing DNA in their system (or the possibility that my family has been wrong all this time).

Lessons Learned

But more importantly, my DNA test in London revealed larger truths about the world. I purposely havent written about politics on the A Lady in London blog, even with this year being a particularly big one in both the UK and the US.

Ive agonized over whether to share my views or whether to keep them separate from my blog, and I havent felt completely comfortable with either option.

But the one thing I will say is that with all the divisiveness on both sides of the pond, my DNA test showed me that the people we often try to alienate, other, or expel from our countries may be more native to our land than we are.

Take my boyfriend and me, for example. Im an immigrant with 67% British DNA, and hes a Brit with 5% British DNA. If we kick out all the immigrants, we might have to kick ourselves out first.

The same goes for the non-immigrants. The US is a diverse country, and London is the most heterogenous city Ive ever been to.

The more Ive gotten to know people with different backgrounds from my own, the more Ive come to see how similar we are despite how little we may think we have in common.

I grew up in a conservative Christian community, but as Ive gotten older and become friends with Muslims, gays, and other people I didnt have contact with before, those I was once taught to fear or judge have shown me how little I knew about them and how many similarities we have.

And thats the beauty of opening my world. Whether through travel, a DNA test in London, or just getting to know people outside my community, it makes me aware that were all more alike than we are different.

I hope that through things like these more people can open their worlds, and the divisiveness my two beloved countries are experiencing can diminish, one person at a time.

Have you seen the video or had a DNA test? What did it reveal to you?

New here? Join thousands of others and subscribe to the A Lady in London blog via email or Bloglovin.
The rampant inflation currently tearing through world economies has had little to no effect on venture capital investing according to a new survey from PitchBook.
skim wrote:





The Police Commissioner's proposal depends on which of the following assumptions?





(A) City X experienced a drastic reduction in crime after implementing a proposal similar to that proposed by the Police Commissioner of city Y.



(B) The severity of crimes committed in any district of the city decreases when additional police officers are moved into that district.



(C) The number of crimes committed in all high-crime districts of city Y is more than triple the number of crimes committed in all low-crime districts of city Y.



(D) There are more low-crime districts than high-crime districts in city Y.



(E) Districts of the city from which police officers are removed do not experience significant crime increases shortly after the removal of those officers.





This question is part of the GMAT Club Critical Reasoning : Assumption" Revision Project. To decrease the number of crimes in city Y, the city's Police Commissioner proposed taking some police officers from low-crime districts of the city and moving them to high-crime districts of the city. His proposal is based on city Y crime data that show that the number of crimes in any district of the city decreases when additional police officers are moved into that district.The Police Commissioner's proposal depends on which of the following assumptions?(A) City X experienced a drastic reduction in crime after implementing a proposal similar to that proposed by the Police Commissioner of city Y.(B) The severity of crimes committed in any district of the city decreases when additional police officers are moved into that district.(C) The number of crimes committed in all high-crime districts of city Y is more than triple the number of crimes committed in all low-crime districts of city Y.(D) There are more low-crime districts than high-crime districts in city Y.(E) Districts of the city from which police officers are removed do not experience significant crime increases shortly after the removal of those officers.

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

(E) CORRECT.

The Police Commissioner's proposal hopes to decrease the number of crimes in city Y by shifting police officers from low-crime to high-crime districts. His proposal is based on data that demonstrate that crime decreases when additional police officers are moved into a district. However, the data do not mention anything about the effect on the districts from which the police officers were removed. The commissioner's plan is based on the assumption that the movement of police officers will not have any adverse effects on the low-crime districts.(A) While it is encouraging that a similar plan worked successfully in City X, this fact is certainly not essential for the success of the plan in City Y. The cities may be so different as to make the comparison meaningless. (B) The police commissioner's proposal is focused solely on decreasing the number of crimes in city Y. The severity of the crimes has no bearing on whether the commissioner's proposal will succeed or not.(C) The actual numerical distinction between high and low-crime areas of the city is immaterial to the commissioner's proposal. For instance, if the number of crimes committed in all high crime districts was only double (instead of more than triple) the number of crimes committed in low crime districts, the proposal could still be valid.(D) It would be practically beneficial to the commissioner's plan if there were more low crime than high crime districts in city Y. This would enable the movement of police officers to every high crime district. However, this is not necessary to achieve the commissioner's goal of decreasing the total number of crimes in city Y. Even if there were more high-crime districts than low-crime districts in city Y, police officers could still be shifted to some (though not all) high-crime districts, and thereby possibly reduce the total number of crimes in city Y.The police commissioner's proposal would not make sense if districts of the city from which police officers are removed experience significant crime increases shortly after the removal of those officers. This would at least partially, if not fully, negate the reduction in the number of crimes in the high-crime districts. This choice establishes that, in fact, the low-crime districts do NOT suffer from significant crime increases after the removal of some officers-- an essential assumption upon which the commissioner's proposal depends._________________
Current Archaeology Live! 2017 returned to the University of Londons Senate House, on 24-25 February (Friday/Saturday). We heard from the foremost archaeological experts on the latest finds and ground-breaking research, and we had an entertaining, stimulating, and enjoyable two days!

Timetable for CA Live! 2017

Archaeology Awards

The results are in, and having counted your votes, we are pleased to share the winners of this years CA Awards, as announced on Friday 24 February at Current Archaeology Live! 2017.

Archaeologist of the Year: Mark Knight

Book of the Year: Images of the Ice Age by Paul Bahn

Research Project of the Year: Rethinking Durrington Walls: a long-lost monument revealed  Stonehenge Riverside Project / Stonehenge Hidden Landscapes Project / National Trust

Rescue Project of the Year: The Must Farm inferno: exploring an intact Late Bronze Age settlement  Cambridge Archaeological Unit / University of Cambridge

Archaeological Innovation of the Last 50 Years: LiDAR, as exemplified by the New Forest National Park Authority

Every year, the Current Archaeology Awards celebrate the projects and publications that have made the pages of Current Archaeology, and the people judged to have made outstanding contributions to archaeology. These awards are voted for entirely the public  there are no panels of judges.

To find out more about the nominees in each award category, click on the links below:

Archaeologist of the Year

Book of the Year

Rescue Dig of the Year

Research Project of the Year

Archaeological Innovation of the Last 50 Years

Current Archaeology Live! 2018  save the date!

The next CA Live! conference will be held at Senate House, London, on 23-24 February 2018. We hope to see you there for another incredible two days pack full of the latest discoveries!

Previous conferences  and what to expect next year!

Neil Faulkner, Contributing Editor of Current Archaeology and Editor of Military History Monthly, guides us through a snapshot of the Current Archaeology Live! 2015 conference, which was held in February at Senate House, London.

Our previous conferences have been great successes  below are a few of your comments. We look forward to seeing you all again at this coming one!

[quote]Exceeded expectations. I was expecting a lot and got more  its good to have access to good speakers and key personnel in the projects.[/quote]

[quote]I flew all the way from Dubai for the conference and thoroughly enjoyed every presentation. It was an excellent weekend in a superb building with great biscuits.[/quote]

[quote]Ive been to every conference: I always expect to enjoy it, and I always do.[/quote]

[quote]The event exceeded our expectation. We have an amateur interest in archaeology, mainly through television, and did have a concern that the event might be overly academic. This was not borne out, and we thought that all the speakers delivered interesting sets with Time Team presentation skills  and I mean that in a good way![/quote]

[quote]The organisers are to be congratulated for putting on a stimulating and wide-ranging programme.[/quote]

[quote]It entirely lived up to my expectations. The venue was excellent; a magnificent art deco building. The awards ceremony and drinks reception (with nice pastries, rather than just crisps)  and the rock group  was an enjoyable way to close the first day.[/quote]

[quote]It was my first attendance and I was highly impressed. The organisation was very smooth and professional, the content of excellent quality and superbly presented, the venue accessible and comfortable.[/quote]

[quote]Excellent speakers and presentations. Also met up with old friends and made new ones  a friendly atmosphere.[/quote]

[quote]Event was excellent value for money![/quote]

[quote]It was very interesting to hear current updated views from the contributors, all people qualified in their own disciplines. The event was well organised and gives one the opportunity to attend a centre where like-minded people can congregate and listen to current debate on topics.[/quote]

[quote]Well-organised, well-run, and a superb range of speakers.[/quote]

[quote]I have been to every conference since they began, and the range and variety of topics has been superb I can offer no improvements.[/quote]
Excavators were repeatedly drawn to Glastonbury Abbey during the 20th century, but the fruits of their labours rarely made it into print. Roberta Gilchrist is spearheading a major project to separate archaeological fact from the rich mythology the abbey attracts.

The site of Glastonbury Abbey in Somerset is inscribed with legends that are at the heart of English cultural identity: it is popularly regarded as the burial place of King Arthur and the cradle of English Christianity, where Joseph of Arimathea reputedly founded the earliest Christian church in Britain, in the 1st century AD. These stories influenced the architectural style and layout of the abbeys medieval buildings, particularly the Lady Chapel, which was constructed on the site of the ancient church.

Just as the history and legends of Glastonbury Abbey influenced national narratives, so too did the attracted the attention of archaeologists throughout the 20th century.

Unfinished business

Between 1904 and 1979, 36 seasons of excavations were undertaken at Glastonbury Abbey, funded by the Society of Antiquaries of London and the Somerset Archaeological and Natural History Society. There were eight different directors, some of whom searched for the grave of Arthur and even the mythical Holy Grail; others uncovered important evidence for the Anglo-Saxon and medieval monastic buildings and material culture.

Despite their various agendas, all the excavators of Glastonbury Abbey had one thing in common  they failed to analyse and publish the results of their excavations. For the last decade, I have led the Glastonbury Abbey Archaeological Archive Project, which is dedicated to analysing and publishing the archive of all 36 excavation seasons. This is a collaboration between Glastonbury Abbey and the University of Reading, funded principally by the Arts & Humanities Research Council. It has drawn on the expertise of a large team of more than 30 archaeologists from across the UK and yielded a wealth of new evidence that is now available in a monograph published by the Society of Antiquaries of London, with the full data and archive reports freely accessible through the Archaeology Data Service.

Abbey archaeologists

The archaeological excavations began in the early 20th century, around the same time that Glastonbury emerged as a beacon for spiritual, creative, and occult movements in England. The first director of excavations is also regarded as a founding figure of the towns New Age community: Frederick Bligh Bond (1864-1945) was an ecclesiastical architect who undertook excavations at Glastonbury Abbey from 1908 to 1921. His credibility was questioned after he revealed his commitment to spiritualism  a belief that the spirits of the dead can communicate with the living.

In a book published in 1918, Bond revealed that his excavations at the abbey had been an extended experiment in psychical research: The Gate of Remembrance: The Story of the Psychological Experiment which resulted in the Discovery of the Edgar Chapel at Glastonbury. Automatic writing suggested to Bond that the Edgar Chapel that was built at the east end of the great church c.1500 had an apsed termination, but this feature was not confirmed by his excavations. Despite the absence of archaeological evidence, Bond showed an apsed chapel on his published plans of the Edgar Chapel and reconstructed it in the layout of the ruins on site. His use of spiritualism as an archaeological method at Glastonbury became a national controversy. The Edgar Chapel was even discussed in Parliament, leading to Bonds dismissal from the abbey.

The archaeologist most closely associated with Glastonbury Abbey is Courtenay Arthur Ralegh Radford (1900-1999), who excavated at the abbey from 1951 to 1964. He was highly respected for his ecclesiastical scholarship and known for his particular focus on Celtic monasticism. Radford was attracted to sites connected with the Arthurian legends of his native West Country, such as Glastonbury, Tintagel, Castle Dore, and Cadbury Castle. He conducted extensive excavations at the abbey and also carried out a search for the grave of Arthur and Guinevere, guided by descriptions in medieval sources. In 1963, he announced to the press (optimistically) that he had discovered the site of Arthurs grave, allegedly exhumed by the monks in 1191.

Philip Rahtz (1921-2011), the excavator of the early monastic site on Glastonbury Tor, and numerous other sites in and around Glastonbury, was highly sceptical of using archaeology to investigate mythical characters such as Arthur, describing the practice as historically misleading and trivial. Rahtz was also critical of Radfords emphasis on Early Christian archaeology, arguing that it leads to an undue emphasis on the ideological, specifically Christian, aspects of the period, influencing the choice of sites to be dug and the interpretation of the evidence recorded. My own interest in Glastonbury was sparked by Philip Rahtz, who was my undergraduate professor at the University of York. Philip sometimes claimed a belief in destiny, and he suggested that it was fate that brought us both to Glastonbury, albeit 50 years apart.

Dark Age precursor

One of the key research questions surrounding Glastonbury Abbey is the date of the earliest settlement on the site. The monks of Glastonbury claimed that their old church was the oldest in the land. In 1130, the renowned historian William of Malmesbury described an ancient brushwood church at Glastonbury. He suggested that it had been founded by missionaries in AD 166, or possibly even earlier, perhaps dating back to the time of Christs apostles. Recent study of Glastonburys Anglo-Saxon charters by Susan Kelly, a freelance historian, suggests that the earliest monastic foundation was in the last decades of the 7th century. The medieval monks, though, believed they had descended from an earlier Celtic community. This view was shared by Radford, even though his own excavations recorded nothing earlier than the 8th century.

Reassessment of the archive and associated finds has revealed new evidence for earlier occupation on the site of Glastonbury Abbey. Among the most exciting discoveries was a small assemblage of Late Roman Amphora (LRA1; previously known as Bii ware). These sherds of pottery indicate the presence of amphorae imported from the eastern Mediterranean that would have contained wine and oil. The date range of LRA1 elsewhere in the southwest of Britain has been confirmed by radiocarbon dates as around AD 450550. Fourteen sherds of LRA1 from Glastonbury were associated with a roughly trodden floor and post-pits connected with timber structures located within the bounds of an early cemetery. The condition of the sherds suggests that the floor represents an undisturbed post-Roman context, possibly associated with one or more timber halls. A radiocarbon date from a post-pit suggests a destruction date in the 8th or 9th centuries, indicating that the hall may have been in use for several centuries.

This important new evidence confirms that there was high-status occupation at Glastonbury in the 5th or 6th centuries, long before the first monastic foundation was documented. This refutes the prevailing view that Glastonbury Abbey was a secondary development to the monasteries on Glastonbury Tor and at nearby Beckery, where Philip Rahtz excavated early graves and sherds of LRA1. The new evidence emerging from Glastonbury fits with the latest research at other early monasteries: for example, recent excavations by the University of Reading at the royal monastery of Lyminge in Kent revealed that a high-status hall complex was the precursor to the Anglo-Saxon monastery (CA 284).

This is an extract from a feature published in CA 320. Click here to subscribe.
Exploring the Rothwell Charnel Chapel Project

Why were bones placed in charnel chapels, and just how common was this practice in medieval England? Work at Rothwell, Northamptonshire, is shining remarkable new light on the significance of these ossuaries. Elizabeth Craig-Atkins, Jennifer Crangle, and Dawn Hadley from the University of Sheffield explain the domain of the anonymous dead.



In the 1860s, Paul Cypher (the pen name of a local doctor and clergyman) published a dramatic account of the surprise discovery of the charnel chapel at Holy Trinity Church, Rothwell. Around 1700, a grave digger wielding his mattock suddenly found himself precipitated into a dark abyss, and one might easily imagine his consternation when the dust had subsided, and his eyes grown accustomed to the darkness, at discovering himself in this awful assemblage of past generations. The nightmarish experience of falling into a dark pit filled with human bones has since passed into local folklore. Whatever the truth of this story, or indeed the fate of the poor digger, it seems that the charnel chapel had been sealed up intact and remained untouched until its rediscovery. Thanks to this, the collection of human remains stored within holds great potential for piecing together the purpose of medieval charnel practices in England.

The Rothwell Charnel Chapel Project, based at the University of Sheffield, began with the doctoral research of team member Jennifer Crangle, who reviewed the number of charnel chapels constructed during the medieval period, the motivation behind their sudden appearance and proliferation, and their role within medieval funerary and liturgical practice. We have since focused our research on the chapel at Rothwell. This is one of only two sites in England where a medieval charnel chapel and its contents are preserved, creating a rare opportunity to understand why such ossuaries were established. Our findings are challenging much of the received wisdom about such repositories.

A rare survival

The room that prompted Paul Cyphers dramatic prose is a vaulted, semi-subterranean structure divided into two bays. It lies directly beneath the south aisle of Holy Trinity Church, which was constructed during the late 13th or early 14th century. As the south wall of the church aligns with that of the charnel chapel, it may also have been built at this time. There are faint traces of a painting on the east wall of the charnel chapel, which would have been illuminated by two windows (now blocked in) placed high on the south wall. Although too little remains of this image to identify its subject, other similar scenes in medieval churches depict the Resurrection.

The charnel chapel at Rothwell still houses a large group of disarticulated human bones. Currently, most of these are arranged into two substantial stacks located centrally within the room. Despite the movement and collapse of the piles in some areas, the bones remain in an orderly arrangement, with long bones stacked in clear layers. A large number of crania have been arranged separately on shelving running along the two long walls of the chapel.

We are aware of only one other medieval charnel chapel in England that survives in a comparable state of completeness. It is at St Leonards Church in Hythe in Kent. The Hythe and Rothwell chapels share similarities in their architecture and in the arrangement of the human remains within them. The room at Hythe is larger than that at Rothwell, but it is also partially underground and illuminated by windows.

Medieval charnel chapels

Understanding the nature and extent of medieval charnel practice in England is hindered by the poor survival of the chapels themselves and the even rarer survival of the human remains once housed within them. Knowledge of the number, nature, and dating of medieval charnel chapels has, by necessity, largely relied on documentary sources such as foundation records, churchwardens accounts, and wills. Some comprehensive archaeological studies do exist, for example the work of Nicholas Orme and Roberta Gilchrist on Exeter and Norwich respectively, but these focus on freestanding chapels located in large, high-status ecclesiastical complexes  very different from the structure at Rothwell, which is sited beneath a parish church. The focus on documented sites has resulted in some broad generalisations about medieval charnel practice. It has been concluded that chapels were rare in England and that their role within medieval religious practice was inconsistent. It is also suggested that they were typically freestanding buildings, which tended to lie north or west of a church. As no such freestanding buildings are found at parish churches, it has been assumed that the form of their charnel chapels is largely unknown.

Our research is allowing us to challenge many of these generalisations. Surveying the documentary and archaeological evidence has identified over 50 potential medieval charnel chapel sites dating from the 13th to 15th centuries, which are located in cathedral and abbey complexes, parish churches, and hospitals across England. This contradicts the suggestion that charnelling was rare in medieval England. It is also apparent that charnel chapels could take two forms  the freestanding buildings recognised in previous research and subterranean rooms as found at Rothwell. Both types of charnel chapel were constructed from the 13th century, located below ecclesiastic buildings, and intended to house human remains. They also share permanent staircases to facilitate access, windows to provide light, and other features including wall paintings, basins for holy water, and niches, presumably for candles or statues.

New opportunities

The surviving skeletal material at Rothwell provides a way to explore the role and character of charnel practice, which will form the focus of the next stages of our research project. Although the chapel may have been built at around the same time as the rebuilding of the south wall of the church in the late 13th or early 14th century, it does not follow that this was when the charnel was placed in the chapel. We have recently undertaken a programme of radiocarbon dating of the bones, providing an independent scientific basis for the chronology of charnelling for the first time in England. Five samples were selected for radiocarbon dating. These included one skull (Sample 4) with a distinctive cut to its top, suggestive of anatomical dissection. The dates we obtained, along with a short description of the unique features of each individual sample, are presented in the table.

The wide range of dates for the skeletal material, which span the late 13th century to the 19th century, is particularly notable. These confirm that no single catastrophic event killed the individuals whose remains reside in the charnel chapel. It also seems very unlikely that the ossuary was constructed to house a backlog of disturbed charnel from the local cemetery. In this scenario, the bones would pre-date the construction of the chapel itself, but none of our dates are demonstrably earlier than the chapel. Instead, there is evidence for the placement of material in the charnel chapel throughout the medieval period and also, more surprisingly, during the late 17th to 19th centuries. In the case of the skeleton with evidence for anatomisation, the late date fits with the nature of the cut: this sort of procedure was not conducted on medieval corpses, but is documented in skeletal collections of post-medieval and modern date. Sample 5 also returned a late date, and these two crania were probably placed in the ossuary after the rediscovery of the site in the 18th century. This is long after the chapel supposedly went out of use, raising new questions about how the site was perceived, and even used, during later periods.

This is an extract from a feature published in CA 321. Read on in the magazine. Click here to subscribe.
The early years of London seem both uncannily familiar and unimaginably distant. Today, no one would bat an eyelid at Tacitus description of a settlement heaving with businessmen and commerce. Accounts of reckless loans, eye-watering debt, and advice to maintain a stiff upper lip (or at least not to appear shabby) in the face of adversity reinforce a sense that some things never change. But this was also a world where slaves conducted their masters business, and opportunistic traders followed hot on the heels of the legions.

Everyday life during Britains first civil war is also under the spotlight in this issue. The chaos of King Stephens reign was memorably summed up by one chronicler who lamented that Christ and his Saints slept. But did the king and his cousins battle for power leave a lasting archaeological legacy?

In Ireland, the search has been on for aftershocks from the Roman annexation of Britain. Tantalising clusters of finds, graves of people who seem to have been born in Britannia, and coastal emporia doing a roaring trade in Roman-style artefacts suggest that not all traders waited for the legions to get there first.

Recent excavations in Lincoln castle may have uncovered traces of a rather more august visitor: King Henry II. What can table scraps reveal about feasting that was fit for a king?

Matt Symonds

IN THIS ISSUE:

FEATURES

THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF ANARCHY

Investigating Englands first civil war

The Anarchy of King Stephens reign in the mid-12th century has long attracted historians, but what can archaeology tell us about this turbulent time? Did the power struggles of the elite have any impact on the everyday lives of the masses, or was it business as usual?

The Romans in Ireland

There is no sign that the Roman Empire ever attempted to colonise Ireland, and the impact of the emergence of an imperial province in Britain is rarely explored. Yet there are a number of Roman-style finds from Ireland, and it was certainly known to the Romans  so just what interaction was there across the Irish Sea?

FINDS FIT FOR A KING?

Uncovering signs of luxury living at Lincoln Castle

Renovations at the Norman castle have unearthed a wealth of archaeology. We take a look at the Roman houses, long-lost church, and medieval banquet midden that lay superimposed within the walls of Lincoln Castle.

Reading the earliest writing from Roman Britain

Archaeologist excavating at the site of the new Bloomberg headquarters in London have unearthed 405 Roman writing tablets. Now 87 of these have been deciphered, shedding new light on debt, trade, and immigration in the city once described by Tacitus as being very full of businessmen and commerce.

NEWS

Plague and pottery: new insights into the Black Death; Excavating Llangefnis surprising cemetery; Painting Roman Bath red; Dorsets earliest burnt mound; Venus figurine found in Long Melford; Eagle-eyed archaeologists make rare find; Newgrange dog-bone sheds light on canine origins; Hunt for Henry I begins in Reading; Will the Queens Speech affect archaeology?

REGULARS

Context

Landscapes and lasers at South Downs National Park

Festival of Archaeology

A selection of regional highlights from this years celebration of archaeology

Reviews

In Search of the Irish Dreamtime; Stonehenge: Making Sense of a Prehistoric Mystery; An Archaeological Study of Human Decapitation Burials; Jutland 1916: The Archaeology of a Naval Battlefield

Sherds

Chris Catlings irreverent take on heritage issues

Odd Socs

The Friends of St Augustines
Legend has it that the Rothwell charnel chapel was discovered when a grave digger tumbled into an underground vault stacked with bones. This alarming incident brought to light a rare example of an intact medieval ossuary in England. Our cover feature explores why the dead were assembled in this manner, and how common the practice was.

Two of the dead at Portmahomack, today a small Scottish fishing village, seem to have been brutally slaughtered during a Viking attack. A major research project has pieced together the remarkable story of this settlement, and evidence for a Pictish monastery that attracted the raiders.

Archaeologists have also been examining the rise and fall of a community on the Llyn peninsula in Wales. Here, an open prehistoric settlement developed imposing defences, before fading into obscurity once more.

Ever since Sellar and Yeatman wrote their spoof 1066 and All That, it has been widely appreciated that there are two memorable dates in English history: 55 BC and AD 1066. But has this focus on the invasions of Caesar and William the Conqueror unjustly eclipsed a third memorable date? In 1016, Cnuts Vikings secured dominion over the country, but how much survives from this forgotten conquest of England?

Finally, celebrities are often said to seem shorter in the flesh, but the difference of 790 feet between Hadrians Wall and its icy counterpart in Game of Thrones must be a record. We tackle the cultural afterlife of Romes most famous border.

Matt Symonds

IN THIS ISSUE:

FEATURES

PICTS ON THE PENINSULA

Portmahomack reinvented

Known for its Pictish carved stone monuments, Portmahomack in north-east Scotland has undergone many major transformations over time. Excavations at the fishing villages church and burial ground have unravelled the settlements story from the 6th to the 16th century.

MEILLIONYDD

The life and death of an Iron Age community in Wales

The Llyn Peninsula is home to many defended prehistoric settlements, but few of these have been investigated. We take a look at ongoing excavations at Meillionydd, where seven seasons of digging have so far uncovered a quarter of the large double ringwork enclosure.

1016 AND ALL THAT

Excavating the Viking conquest of England

Fifty years before the Battle of Hastings, Cnut defeated Edmund II at Assandun, capturing England. What archaeological evidence remains of the Viking conquest 1,000 years on?

Exploring the Rothwell charnel chapel

Work at Rothwell, one of only two sites in England where a medieval charnel chapel and its contents are preserved, is giving new insights into why bones were placed in these ossuaries.

BEYOND THE ARCHAEOLOGY

The cultural afterlife of Hadrians Wall

From the Byzantine historian Procopius to Game of Thrones, how have writers over the centuries reimagined this iconic Roman frontier?

NEWS

Meeting Londiniums migrant population; Mesolithic dogs long walk; Vindolandas 2016 collection; Long barrow excavated in the Cotswolds; Halifax residents revealed; Home from Rome in Bedford?; Teeth reveal prehistoric travel; Pistil Meadow myths laid to rest; Finds tray

REGULARS

Comment

Joe Flatman excavates the CA archive

Context

Expanding a Neolithic landscape at Dorstone Hill

Reviews

Finding Shakespeares New Place; Hidden Histories; The Tale of the Axe; The Use and Reuse of Stone Circles; Roman Derbyshire; Moving on in Neolithic Studies

Exhibition

Opus Anglicanum at the V&A

Preview

Digging for Britain with Alice Roberts

Sherds

Chris Catlings irreverent take on heritage issues

Odd Socs

The Welsh Perry and Cider Society
Save the Date

Current Archaeology Live! 2016 will be held on 26-27 February 2016, at Senate House, London.

We will be releasing more information about the 2016 conference in due course, and tickets will go on sale in the coming months. In the meantime, you can find details of the last CA Live! conference below, which should give you a flavour of what to expect!

Current Archaeology Live! 2015

Current Archaeology Live! 2015 returned to the University of Londons Senate House on 27-28 February, where 400 enthusiastic delegates joined us to hear from the foremost archaeological experts on the latest finds and ground-breaking research  it was an entertaining, stimulating, and very enjoyable two days!

Archaeology Awards

The winners of the prestigious Current Archaeology Awards, as announced on 27 February as part of CA Live! 2015, are as follows:

Archaeologist of the Year:

Michael Fulford (University of Reading)

Research Project of the Year:

Maryports Mystery Monuments (Ian Haynes and Tony Wilmott, Newcastle University)

Rescue Dig of the Year:

First Impressions: Discovering the Earliest Footprints in Europe (Happisburgh Project)

Book of the Year:

The History of Archaeology (by Paul Bahn)

The awards pay tribute to archaeologys star projects and publications that made the pages of CA this year, and the people judged to have made outstanding contributions to archaeology. They are voted for entirely by the public, and there are no panels of judges. You can read more about all the nominees by clicking here.

Archaeology Fair

Once again, Current Archaeology Live! hosted a bustling marketplace of exhibitors for delegates to browse between sessions. Click here to see the stalls present.

2015 Timetable:

Our previous conferences have been great successes  below are a few of your comments. We look forward to seeing you all again at this coming one!

[quote]I flew all the way from Dubai for the conference and thoroughly enjoyed every presentation. It was an excellent weekend in a superb building with great biscuits.[/quote]

[quote]Ive been to every conference: I always expect to enjoy it, and I always do.[/quote]

[quote]The event exceeded our expectation. We have an amateur interest in archaeology, mainly through television, and did have a concern that the event might be overly academic. This was not borne out, and we thought that all the speakers delivered interesting sets with Time Team presentation skills  and I mean that in a good way![/quote]

[quote]The organisers are to be congratulated for putting on a stimulating and wide-ranging programme.[/quote]

[quote]It entirely lived up to my expectations. The venue was excellent; a magnificent art deco building. The awards ceremony and drinks reception (with nice pastries, rather than just crisps)  and the rock group  was an enjoyable way to close the first day.[/quote]

[quote]It was my first attendance and I was highly impressed. The organisation was very smooth and professional, the content of excellent quality and superbly presented, the venue accessible and comfortable.[/quote]

[quote]Excellent speakers and presentations. Also met up with old friends and made new ones  a friendly atmosphere.[/quote]

[quote]Event was excellent value for money![/quote]

[quote]It was very interesting to hear current updated views from the contributors, all people qualified in their own disciplines. The event was well organised and gives one the opportunity to attend a centre where like-minded people can congregate and listen to current debate on topics.[/quote]

[quote]Exceeded expectations. I was expecting a lot and got more  its good to have access to good speakers and key personnel in the projects.[/quote]

[quote]Well-organised, well-run, and a superb range of speakers.[/quote]

[quote]I have been to every conference since they began, and the range and variety of topics has been superb I can offer no improvements.[/quote]
Current Archaeology Live! 2016 returned to Senate House, London, on 26-27 February, for another entertaining, stimulating, and enjoyable two days! We heard from the foremost archaeological experts on the latest finds and ground-breaking research  you can see the full line up of incredible speakers in the timetable below.

Archaeology Awards

The winners of the prestigious Current Archaeology Awards, as announced on 26 February as part of CA Live! 2016, are as follows:

Archaeologist of the Year:

Roberta Gilchrist

(University of Reading)

Research Project of the Year:

Recapturing Berkeley Castle: one trench, 1500 years of English history

(University of Bristol)

Rescue Dig of the Year:

The Drumclay crannog-dwellers: revealing 1,000 years of lakeside living

(Nora Bermingham and Caitriona Moore, excavations carried out on behalf of the Department of the Environment and Department for Regional Development in Northern Ireland)

Book of the Year:

The Archaeology Caves in Ireland

(by Marion Dowd)

The awards pay tribute to archaeologys star projects and publications that made the pages of CA this year, and the people judged to have made outstanding contributions to archaeology. They are voted for entirely by the public, and there are no panels of judges. You can read more about all the nominees by clicking here.

This year also sees the return of the Current World Archaeology Photo of the Year competition  our international sister-magazine has been asking for your images of archaeological sites and artefacts abroad. The competition has now closed, and the winner and three runners-up will be displayed at the conference, on www.world-archaeology.com, and printed in the April/May issue of CWA

2016 Timetable:

Save the Date!

Current Archaeology Live! 2017 will be held on 24-25 February 2017, at Senate House, London.

Why not watch the video of the previous CA Live! conference below, and get a flavour of what to expect?

Current Archaeology Live! 2015

Neil Faulkner, Contributing Editor of Current Archaeology and Editor of Military History Monthly, guides us through a snapshot of the Current Archaeology Live! 2015 conference, which was held in February at Senate House, London.

Our previous conferences have been great successes  below are a few of your comments. We look forward to seeing you all again at this coming one!

[quote]Exceeded expectations. I was expecting a lot and got more  its good to have access to good speakers and key personnel in the projects.[/quote]

[quote]The event exceeded our expectation. We have an amateur interest in archaeology, mainly through television, and did have a concern that the event might be overly academic. This was not borne out, and we thought that all the speakers delivered interesting sets with Time Team presentation skills  and I mean that in a good way![/quote]

[quote]The organisers are to be congratulated for putting on a stimulating and wide-ranging programme.[/quote]

[quote]It entirely lived up to my expectations. The venue was excellent; a magnificent art deco building. The awards ceremony and drinks reception (with nice pastries, rather than just crisps)  and the rock group  was an enjoyable way to close the first day.[/quote]

[quote]It was my first attendance and I was highly impressed. The organisation was very smooth and professional, the content of excellent quality and superbly presented, the venue accessible and comfortable.[/quote]

[quote]Excellent speakers and presentations. Also met up with old friends and made new ones  a friendly atmosphere.[/quote]

[quote]Event was excellent value for money![/quote]

[quote]It was very interesting to hear current updated views from the contributors, all people qualified in their own disciplines. The event was well organised and gives one the opportunity to attend a centre where like-minded people can congregate and listen to current debate on topics.[/quote]

[quote]Exceeded expectations. I was expecting a lot and got more  its good to have access to good speakers and key personnel in the projects.[/quote]

[quote]Well-organised, well-run, and a superb range of speakers.[/quote]

[quote]I have been to every conference since they began, and the range and variety of topics has been superb I can offer no improvements.[/quote]
Why did this happen?

Please make sure your browser supports JavaScript and cookies and that you are not blocking them from loading. For more information you can review our Terms of Service and Cookie Policy.
Update 9.07pm: Cystic Fibrosis Ireland has described the leak to a Sunday newspaper that the HSE is unlikely to fund the CF drug, Orkambi, as "heartless".

The HSE has since issued a statement stating that to date the drug has been considered unjustifiably expensive.

The HSE expressed its disappointment at the lack of meaningful engagement by the manufacturer, Vertex, in lowering the price of Orkambi for Irish patients.

Philip Watt, CEO of CF Ireland, said thatthis news is devastating for people with cystic fibrosis.

"Our association is absolutely dismayed about this decisino and also the way it's been conveyed to us," he said.

"The HSE didn't even tell the Minister, when they issued the statement yesterday, and it's utter devastation for our parents and people with CF who would have stood to benefit from this particualr drug."

Earlier:

The HSE has hit out at the drug company Vertex for its disappointing engagement regarding price negotiations for the Cystic Fibrosis drug Orkambi.

The drug is understood to cost 150,000 a year.

According to the HSE: Considerable engagement and negotiation with the manufacturer Vertex was undertaken over a protracted period in an effort to secure a significant price reduction.

However the HSE has stated: To date the drug has been considered unjustifiably expensive and not sufficiently cost effective by both the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics (NCPE) and the HSE Drugs Committee.

The HSE went on to say that it was disappointed with the level of meaningful engagement by the manufacturer in lowering the "exorbitant price of the drug.

The Health Executive concluded by saying no decision had yet been made about whether or not it would be purchasing the drug for Irish Cystic Fibrosis sufferers.

The HSE would be assessing the recommendation of the HSE's Drug Committee together with a NCPE recommendation and other expert advice before making a decision taking into consideration the manufacturers latest price offer.
Pope Francis has formally confirmed to Taoiseach Enda Kenny that he will be visit Ireland in August 2018, during a private meeting between the two at the Vatican today, writes Juno McEnroe for the Irish Examiner.

Mr Kenny said he was privileged to have met the pope, after a a near half hour meeting in the Apostolic Palace.

Mr Kenny also said he raised his past difficulties with the church in relation clerical sex abuse, saying that stronger safeguards were now in place.

He visited the Vatican with his wife Fionnuala, chief of staff Mark Kennelly and a small Irish delegation.

Pope Francis has confirmed to Enda Kenny he will visit Ireland in Aug '18. Unclear as of yet though if he'll visit the North too  Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) November 28, 2016

The confirmation of the visit to Ireland comes after the Conference of Bishops of Ireland formally previously invited Pope Francis to come here and attend the World Meeting of Families.

Mr Kenny also discussed church state relations with the Pontiff during his private audience with him.

Speaking after to reporters, he explained: I discussed a range of other matters with him in regard to the state of the Church State relations in Ireland. I explained to him my own difficulties with the Church some years ago and I was happy to conform to him that Church State relations are in a better shape than they were for very many years. That we work very well with the Bishops and the clergy, that there are so many more safeguards in place than there were before and that. I regard these relations as being at a healthier position than they were for many years.

The two also discussed Brexit as well as climate change and youth unemployment.

Mr Kenny added: He feels very strongly that young people are the hope for the future and I explained to him that from by perspective Europe should be making its own decisions about where it wants to be in 10 to 12 years time and that Europe, having grown out of two world wars, perhaps some people may have been taking peace for granted that these are fundamental issues.
Ireland's President has rejected claims he ignored human rights concerns in a statement marking the death of Fidel Castro.

Criticism of the comments in which Michael D Higgins described the former Cuban president as a "giant among global leaders" has been unwarranted, his spokesman said.

A statement issued on Sunday said: "Any suggestion that the President neglected human rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted.

"The President has discussed human rights concerns with representatives of the government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland and elsewhere.

"In all of his speeches on human rights the President has emphasised the universality of human rights and has never shirked from the presentation of that view."

On Saturday Mr Higgins said Fidel Castro would be remembered as a giant among global leaders whose "view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet".

His spokesman added: "The President's statement clearly referred to the price paid for social and economic development in terms of civil society and the criticisms it brought. This obviously and unambiguously included the human rights organisations and activists who have always had the support of the President.

"The President made a further reference to civil society later in his statement in the context of the opportunities provided by restoration of diplomatic relations with the United States, and the response which has come from the visit of Pope Francis. The President was here referring to the release of prisoners.

Earlier, Minister of Foreign Affairs Charlie Flanagan said President Higgins was "entitled" to make his own views known about Mr Castro.

He told RTE the former Cuban leader was a complex figure with a mixed legacy.

Mr Flanagan said: "I very much respect the right, in the first instance, but also the view of Michael D Higgins.

"If you go back over the last 40 years, no one in Irish politics has done so much work or had such a level of association with Latin American politics than Michael D Higgins himself."

Speaking on the same programme, Fianna Fail's spokesman on foreign affairs, Darragh O'Brien, said Mr Higgins' statement was not as balanced as it could have been.

Nine days of national mourning have been announced in Cuba following Castro's death at the age of 90.

He took power in 1959 and introduced a one-party communist state which he ruled for nearly half a century before handing over the presidency to his brother Raul in 2008.

Meanwhile, Sinn Fein said it's leader, Gerry Adams, intended to fly to Cuba for the funeral.

Mr Adams said: "Fidel Castro was a global leader and a good friend of the Irish people.

"I am proud and honoured to travel to Cuba to represent Sinn Fein, as we remember Fidel Castro."
Published On Nov 28, 2016 06:55 PM By Raunak for Tesla Model 3

Earlier in October, Tesla had revealed that all of its vehicles, including the yet-to-be launched India-bound Model 3, will be equipped with full self-driving hardware and feature complete autonomy in the future. However, owners of these vehicles  the Model S and X, purchased post announcement  are presently not able to use some of the features of the Autopilot, courtesy the updated hardware. Now, Elon Musk (CEO, Tesla) has recently revealed via Twitter that Tesla will roll out the enhanced version of its famed Autopilot with a new avatar of its operating system (8.1), starting mid-December.

Check out this in-depth article about the whats new in the updated hardware here: India-Bound Tesla Model 3 Will Be Equipped With Full Self-Driving Hardware

For the uninitiated, Tesla revealed its most affordable offering  the Model 3 sedan  this year in April. Pre-orders began soon after its unveiling and Tesla has been accepting them from India as well, thus marking the official entry of the brand in the country. The Model 3 got overwhelming response and Tesla had received more than 1,15,000 pre-orders from around the world in the first 24 hours!

Recently, Elon Musk had revealed Master Plan 2 for Tesla and also inaugurated Gigafactory 1 in Nevada, USA, in collaboration with Panasonic for in-house production of batteries.

Recommended Read: Elon Musk Outlines Tesla's Future In Master Plan 2
Modified On Nov 28, 2016 07:32 PM By akas

Lexus will finally be setting up shop officially in India. The luxury division of Toyota is likely to launch its cars in the first quarter of 2017 and the deliveries will begin soon after as the cars are being imported as CBUs. However, the carmaker has started offering test drives to potential customers and is accepting bookings as well. Initially, two SUVs  the RX450h and LX450d  and one sedan, the ES300h, will be launched in the country. Although the automaker wants to assemble them locally in future, for now, the cars will be directly imported from Japan. Let's check out what the upcoming cars have to offer.

Lexus RX450h

The RX450h, the h in whose name stands for hybrid, is one of the most popular Lexuses in the international market. This SUV accounts for nearly 40 per cent of the total sales of Lexus worldwide. Globally, it competes with the likes of the BMW X3 and Audi Q5. However, since it is being imported as a CBU, it will be priced much higher than its rivals. It is likely to have a price tag of around Rs 1 crore. Powered by a 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine along with three electric motors, the total combined output of the SUV is 308PS. The AWD (all-wheel drive) drivetrain consists of an e-CVT gearbox. However, there isn't any mechanical link between the two Axles.

Lexus LX450d

Lexus will also introduce its mighty flagship SUV  the LX450d  in the country. Based on the Toyota Land Cruiser, it is offered with two engine options in the international market. Here, the diesel variant is likely to be launched first, followed by the petrol sometime later. The diesel is powered by a 4.5-litre V8 engine which produces 273PS and a massive 650Nm of torque and is coupled to a six-speed automatic gearbox, while the petrol variant has a 5.7-litre V8 engine under the hood which produces 388PS and 546Nm of torque and is coupled to an eight-speed automatic transmission. The LX competes with other flagship SUVs like Range Rover and Audi Q7, and is expected to be priced around Rs 2 crore.

Lexus ES300h

The ES300h will probably be the most affordable offering from Lexus in the country. It is based on the Toyota Camry and will be offered in a hybrid avatar, like the RX450h. The luxury sedan is powered by a 2.5-litre petrol engine, assisted by an electric motor, and is mated to a CVT gearbox. The sedan mainly focuses on comfort rather than performance and would mostly appeal to the chauffeur-driven ones in cities. Globally, it competes with the likes of the BMW 5-series and Audi A6. However, since its a direct import, it is likely to be priced around Rs 75 lakh, which is higher than its rivals.

Lexus cars are widely popular in the luxury car market for their reliability. In spite of being a young brand in this segment, they have a good following. However, being direct imports, they are priced much higher than their rivals and aren't a value-for-money deal. However, the hybrid drivetrains in RX and ES set them apart in their segments and will definitely attract a lot of attention.
The Fundraising Regulator has said that its board has agreed a way forward for the Fundraising Preference Service.

In the notes from the last board meeting of the Fundraising Regulator, dated to 16 November and published late last week, the regulator said the board discussed the Fundraising Preference Service in detail. The notes said that the board reached a decision agreeing a way forward for the FPS and a means of procuring it.

The note said: Finally the Board had a discussion on the Fundraising Preference Service. The Board were presented with a summary of the responses to the FPS Discussion Paper and the broad themes of the comments. The detailed discussions that followed concluded with the Board agreeing a way forward for the FPS. In addition the Board also agreed an approach for procuring the FPS.

A spokesman for the Fundraising Regulator refused to comment today, when asked what was agreed in regards to the FPS at the last board meeting.

Organisations outside of the levy able to register with regulator from December or January

The Fundraising Regulator did confirm however that a new IT system which will allow organisations currently outside of the banded levy to register with the watchdog will be in place possibly as early as December, or January.

The fee to be paid by smaller organisations looking to register with the Fundraising Regulator will be based on annual income and will be on a sliding scale, following the approach of the old FRSB.

The Regulator also confirmed it had made minor amendments to the term of reference for its Standards Committee as they relate to Scotlands independent fundraising panel.

The spokesman said: "The earlier version of the terms of reference for the Standards Committee had not fully covered representation from the devolved nations, so the following has been inserted: The Committee may also include representatives from the devolved nations. Once we have a Wales Board member in place, once we know whats going to happen in Northern Ireland and once we have had the opportunity of discussion with Scotlands Independent Panel (which arrives on 8 December), we will be able to determine how that representation will work."




Congress is expected to vote to extend government funding through March 31 this week, after their return from Thanksgiving break.

The extension will allow a Republican-led Congress to negotiate with President-elect Donald Trump on a spending package. Currently, government funding is due to run out on Dec. 9.

Even though both chambers of Congress will be led by Republicans next year, they will still need the cooperation of Senate Democrats as Republicans dont have a 60-seat majority to end filibusters.
Mortgage Consummation Bill Set To Become Law

A bill clarifying that a mortgage is consummated at closing in New York State is on the verge of becoming law. The legislation, (S.7183/Savino A.9746/Richardson) was sent to the Governor on November 16. The Governor has 10 days excluding Sundays to veto a bill after it has been sent to him or it automatically becomes a law. (N.Y. Const. art. IV,  7). This means that we should know by tomorrow morning at the latest whether or not the bill has been approved by the Governor. He is expected to approve it.

Overtime Rags Blocked

Black Friday came early for employers. In case you missed it, on Tuesday a Federal District Court in Texas blocked the Department of Labor from implementing regulations that would have increased the number of employees eligible for overtime effective December 1, 2016.
Talking Points

- Italys consumer confidence index dips to a 16-month low in November.

- The data are a further setback to Prime Minister Matteo Renzis plans to spur economic growth

- It will be volatile week for the Euro as the key Italian referendum approaches.

Both consumer and business confidence fell in Italy in November, according to official data from ISTAT, ahead of the countrys all-important constitutional referendum vote on Sunday, December 4, the key risk event for markets in December.

Italys consumer confidence index hit a 16-month low in November, dipping further to 107.9 from 108.0 in October, to remain at the lowest level since July 2015. However, analysts had forecast a worse drop to 107.6. Manufacturing confidence and economic sentiment also slipped to 102.0 and 101.4 from 102.9 and 101.7 last month, figures which were both revised down from 103.00 and 102.4 respectively.

The data present another setbacks for Prime Minister Matteo Renzis plans to spur Italys economic growth. He wants a yes vote in the referendum to get the backing to push through his program of economic reform, and has said hell resign if theres a no vote. Brussels also wants a yes vote. Without one, the ensuing political uncertainty in Italy threatens to spill over to the whole Euro-Zone, an area already reeling from the summers Brexit vote in the UK.

The Euro is rooted in fear of the anti-establishment sentiment sweeping the Western world. US President-Elect Donald Trumps win has further reinvigorated populist sentiment across Europe, and a no vote in Italy would be the latest iteration of the existential nightmare Brexit wrought on the Euro.

If the no side is victorious  and its been ahead for most of the past couple of months  also expect pressure to continue on Italian bank stocks in the FTSE MIB Index given the perilous state of the banking sector in Italy. The Financial Times reports this morning that as many as eight banks could fail if Renzi is unable to get a 'yes' vote.

However, in the words of American Bernie Sanders, another politician brimming with populist rhetoric, we cant trust the polls because we dont trust the polls. Take the news in France at the weekend that Francois Fillon has defied the odds to win the nomination of the French centre-right Republicans for next years presidential election. This is seen as Euro positive: Fillon is critical of the EU, but wants to reform the bloc from the inside rather than calling for an exit.

Read more: Risks Increasing for Euro Ahead of Italian Constitutional Referendum

--- Written by Oliver Morrison, Analyst

To contact Oliver, email him at oliver.morrison@ig.com
Washington, D. C. November 28, 2016 -- Echolocating bats are able to manipulate the acoustic projection pattern of their sonar pulse emissions -- but how they do it remains a largely unexplored mystery.

The Mexican free-tailed bat, Tadarida brasiliensis, appears to do it by adjusting the shape of its mouth cavity, aka beam forming, similar to the way humans purse their lips to create an "O" sound. While this is usual for humans, it is unusual for animals. Flying Tadarida lift their nose and lips before each echolocation pulse with a set of specialized facial muscles.

In a moment of serendipity while working on another project, Samantha Trent, a doctoral candidate working with Michael Smotherman at the Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, noticed a large group of muscles running straight down the middle of the top of the bat's skull. A set of muscles like this is quite unusual in size and location for a small mammal, so she questioned their purpose.

During the 172nd Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America and the 5th Joint Meeting with Acoustical Society of Japan, being held Nov. 28-Dec. 2, 2016, in Honolulu, Hawaii, Smotherman will present his work with Trent exploring the muscle's complex activity patterns during sonar performance, whether the muscle tissue displays necessary fast-twitch specializations to accommodate echolocation, and how manipulations of mouth shape altered 3-D beam patterns.

"It seems evident that this particular set of muscles is involved in changing the shape of the bat's mouth -- especially during echolocation," Trent said. "We think this aids the bat's ability to change the shape of its outgoing echolocation pulse beam."

To put this to the test, they used a microphone array to capture recordings from all around the bat's head to build a picture of the beam shape of sound coming out its mouth. They also recorded electrical activity from these muscles while the bats were freely echolocating to determine how these muscles are involved in producing echolocation pulse streams.

More specifically, electromyography (EMG) recordings from awake echolocating bats confirmed that the muscles in question were activated in precise temporal coordination with pulse emissions. The researchers also found that raising the bats' nose tip alone creates a small aperture and wide-angle beam, while simultaneously raising the front and side lips creates a wider aperture with a narrower beam. These results indicate that Tadarida possess a specialized neuromuscular tool for sonar beam forming.

"This type of vocal control is unique within the animal kingdom," Trent said. "It's exciting to study animals that have such special abilities and to show the public that bats really are cool, as our lab has always known them to be."

This project has several intriguing sonar applications. "[I'm] especially excited to bring engineers on board to collaborate and explore how this behavioral ability may be useful for building or improving sonar devices," Trent said.

Trent is doing her dissertation on this work, delving deeper into the neural mechanism underlying the bats' flexible vocal ability.

"We're eager to see where and how this behavior may be controlled within the brain," she noted.

###

Presentation 1aAB3, "Specialized facial muscles support sonar beam-forming by free-tailed bats," by Michael Smotherman is at 11:15 a.m. HAST, November 28, 2016 in Room South Pacific 4.

MORE MEETING INFORMATION

The 172nd Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America

The meeting is being held November 28-December 2, 2016 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

USEFUL LINKS

Main meeting website: http://acousticalsociety.org/content/5th-joint-meeting-acoustical-society-america-and-acoustical-society-japan

Technical program: http://acousticalsociety.org/asa2016fall.abstractcentral.com/planner.jsp

Meeting/Hotel site: http://acousticalsociety.org/content/5th-joint-meeting-acoustical-society-america-and-acoustical-society-japan#hotel

Press Room: http://acoustics.org/world-wide-press-room/

WORLD WIDE PRESS ROOM

In the coming weeks, ASA's World Wide Press Room will be updated with additional tips on dozens of newsworthy stories and with lay-language papers, which are 300-1200 word summaries of presentations written by scientists for a general audience and accompanied by photos, audio, and video. You can visit the site during the meeting at: http://acoustics.org/world-wide-press-room/

PRESS REGISTRATION

We will grant free registration to credentialed journalists and professional freelance journalists. If you are a reporter and would like to attend, contact Emilie Lorditch (elorditc@aip.org, 301-209-3029) who can also help with setting up interviews and obtaining images, sound clips, or background information.

LIVE MEDIA WEBCAST

A press briefing featuring a selection of newsworthy research will be webcast live from the conference on Wednesday, November 30th. Topics and times to be announced.

ABOUT THE ACOUSTICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA

The Acoustical Society of America (ASA) is the premier international scientific society in acoustics devoted to the science and technology of sound. Its 7,000 members worldwide represent a broad spectrum of the study of acoustics. ASA publications include The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America (the world's leading journal on acoustics), Acoustics Today magazine, books, and standards on acoustics. The society also holds two major scientific meetings each year. For more information about ASA, visit our website at http://www.acousticalsociety.org
A team of scientists at the Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III (CNIC), led by Prof. Francisco Sanchez-Madrid, has characterized a cell signal that impedes intercellular communication and could play a central role in biomedical strategies such as gene therapy, vaccine design, and immunotherapy. The study, published today in Nature Communications, characterizes a signal that impedes the secretion of nanovesicles called exosomes. Cells secrete exosomes as a means of intercellular communication; however, certain viruses can use exosomes as "Trojan horses" to facilitate their propagation and entry into neighboring cells.

The signal, called ISGylation, has in the past been viewed mainly as an antiviral signal, although some studies show that it can also be activated by other stimuli such as a lack of oxygen, aging, or cancer. "In these situations, the secretion of exosomes, and therefore communication between cells, can be affected by this modification," explains Dr. Carolina Villarroya.

The research team is dedicated to decoding the processes that control exosome secretion and exploring potential biomedical applications. As Dr. Sanchez-Madrid explains, "as well as acting as messengers in intercellular communication, exosomes are potential tools for gene therapy, vaccine design, and immunotherapy." Several clinical trials are underway to assess new treatments using this approach.

The Nature Communications article describes how an antiviral signal activates the programmed degradation of proteins involved in exosome degradation. According to Villarroya, this signal "marks specific proteins located in endosomes, the place where exosomes are formed. This mark redirects these proteins toward the degradation pathway and impedes exosome secretion." Sanchez-Madrid points out that this newly identified mechanism, through which cells defend themselves against infection by activating the degradation of their own proteins, "could also be exploited by external agents for their propagation."

###

The study was carried out by CNIC-UAM scientists Carolina Villarroya, Francesc Baixauli, Irene Fernandez, Maria Mittelbrunn, Daniel Torralba, and Olga Moreno, in collaboration with Susana Guerra (UAM) and Carles Enrich (IDIBAPS).
Iron occurs naturally in the human body. However, in people with Parkinson's disease it distributes in an unusual way over the brain. This is the result of a study by the DZNE that has been published in the journal Brain. Researchers headed by Professor Peter Nestor applied a special type of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allowing them to map iron levels in the entire brain -- it is the first time this is done in Parkinson's disease.

This approach could improve the diagnosis of Parkinson's and shine new light on the involved disease mechanisms.

Parkinson's is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by movement disorders and potentially dementia at a later stage. Pathological hallmarks include damage to neurons and the presence of a protein called "alpha-synuclein". However, the underlying disease mechanisms are far from being fully understood. "As yet we don't know the causes for Parkinson's. However, iron-mediated oxidative stress has been proposed as a potential pathomechanism," says Julio Acosta-Cabronero, a postdoc researcher at Nestor's lab at the DZNE's Magdeburg site and leading author of the present publication. "For this reason, we looked for ways of mapping iron levels in the whole brain. This has not been done before in Parkinson's. To date, iron analysis was limited to specific regions."

Iron is indispensable for the human metabolism. It manifests e. g. in red blood cells, enzymes and particular proteins that serve as an iron deposit. However, iron is also potentially harmful as it is able to trigger production of reactive molecular species that may cause "oxidative stress" and ultimately damage to neurons.

Mapping magnetic properties

For the current study, the DZNE researchers teamed up with colleagues from the University Magdeburg's neurology department. Together, they examined the brains of 25 persons with Parkinson's and 50 healthy subjects by using a special MRI technique called QSM, which is the acronym for "quantitative susceptibility mapping".

QSM is a quite recent development. As with conventional MRI, it is non-invasive and relies on a combination of magnetic fields, electromagnetic waves and analysis software to generate pictures of the insides of the human body. However, QSM benefits from raw data usually discarded in conventional MRI. As a consequence, QSM can probe a magnetic parameter indicating metallic presence. "QSM shows how magnetic susceptibility varies across the brain. In our study, this is mainly caused by local variations in iron concentration. The bottom line is that we are mapping the spatial distribution of iron in the brain," Acosta-Cabronero explains.

"MRI in neurodegenerative diseases has mostly focused on measuring the degeneration itself, meanwhile we know extremely little about its causes. We hope that by probing with new approaches such as whole-brain QSM, we may be able to get clues to the mechanisms of disease," Peter Nestor says.

By matching the brain scans of patients and healthy controls, the researchers were able to identify pathological changes. "In Parkinson's patients we found excess iron, as expected from previous studies, in the substantia nigra but also in extensive areas of the neocortex," Nestor says.

In contrast, standard MRI showed no significant differences between people affected by Parkinson's and healthy study participants. In addition, QSM revealed anomalies also in areas that until now have attracted little interest in Parkinson's. "There is a region in the lower brain called dentate nucleus, which is normally iron rich. Yet, our whole-brain approach indicated decreased iron content in this area in Parkinson's patients - extremely so in some individuals - highlighting how this method can open new avenues of investigation in Parkinson's disease," Nestor says.

Potential biomarkers

This approach, the neuroscientist believes, might also be suitable for clinical routine: "QSM relies on measurement data that standard MRI does not make use of. However, most clinical scanners would in principle be able to acquire and save this information for further processing. Therefore, whole-brain maps that reflect the landscape of magnetic susceptibility could potentially serve as biomarkers for disease. In other words: QSM might help to improve the diagnosis of Parkinson's and related disorders."

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Original Publication

"The whole-brain pattern of magnetic susceptibility perturbations in Parkinson's disease", Julio Acosta-Cabronero, Arturo Cardenas-Blanco, Matthew J. Betts, Michaela Butryn, Jose P. Valdes-Herrera, Imke Galazky, Peter J. Nestor, BRAIN, DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/brain/aww278

The German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) investigates the causes of diseases of the nervous system and develops strategies for prevention, treatment and care. It is an institution within the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres with nine sites across Germany (Berlin, Bonn, Dresden, Gottingen, Magdeburg, Munich, Rostock/Greifswald, Tubingen and Witten). The DZNE cooperates closely with universities, their clinics and other research facilities.

Web: http://www.dzne.de/en | Twitter: @dzne_en | Facebook: http://www.dzne.de/facebook
Any parent can tell you about the consequences of their child not getting enough sleep. But there is far less known about the details of how sleep deprivation affects children's brains and what this means for early brain development.

"The process of sleep may be involved in brain 'wiring' in childhood and thus affect brain maturation," explains Salome Kurth, first author of the study published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, and a researcher at the University Hospital of Zurich. "This research shows an increase in sleep need in posterior brain regions in children."

This contrasts with what researchers know about the effects of sleep deprivation in adults, where the effect is typically concentrated in the frontal regions of the brain.

After staying up too late, both children and adults need a period of deep sleep to recover. This recovery phase is characterized by an increase in an electrical pattern called slow-wave activity, which can be measured with a non-invasive technique called an electroencephalogram. With a large number of electrode channels distributed across the scalp, this method also detects which brain regions show more slow-wave activity than others.

Supported by a large student team, Kurth and her colleagues, Monique LeBourgeois professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, and Sean Deoni , professor at Brown University, studied the effects of 50% sleep deprivation in a group of 13 children between the ages of 5 and 12 years. The team first measured the children's deep sleep patterns during a normal night's sleep. They then re-measured on another night after the researchers had kept the children up well past their bedtimes by reading and playing games with them.

After only getting half of a night's worth of sleep, the children showed more slow-wave activity towards the back regions of the brain--the parieto-occipital areas. This suggests that the brain circuitry in these regions may be particularly susceptible to a lack of sleep.

The team also measured how this deep sleep activity correlated with the myelin content of the brain--a cornerstone of brain development. Myelin is a fatty microstructure of the brain's white matter that allows electrical information between brain cells to travel faster. It can be measured with a specific magnetic resonance imaging technique.

"The results show that the sleep loss effect on the brain is specific to certain regions and that this correlates with the myelin content of the directly adjacent regions: the more myelin in a specific area, the more the effect appears similar to adults," says Kurth. "It is possible that this effect is temporary and only occurs during a 'sensitive period' when the brain undergoes developmental changes."

Further exploration is needed before drawing any conclusions about how insufficient sleep affects early brain developmental processes in the longer term. But for now, these results suggest that going to bed too late may have a different impact on kids' brains than on adults'.

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The Jacobs Foundation, the Swiss National Science Foundation, the National Institute of Mental Health, and the Clinical Research Priority Program Sleep and Health of the University of Zurich funded the study.

Full research article: Kurth S, Dean DC III, Achermann P, O'Muircheartaigh J, Huber R, Deoni SCL and LeBourgeois MK (2016) Increased Sleep Depth in Developing Neural Networks: New Insights from Sleep Restriction in Children. Front. Hum. Neurosci. 10:456. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00456
ATLANTA--While most primary care physicians would provide some information about a medical error, only a minority would fully disclose important information about potentially harmful medical errors to patients, a new survey shows.

Most of the nearly 300 primary care physicians would provide only partial disclosure of a medical error for two hypothetical cases involving cancer diagnoses they were asked to evaluate. Most would offer only a limited or no apology, limited or no explanation and limited or no information about the cause. The researchers report disclosure by physicians in this study falls short of patient expectations and national guidelines. The findings are published in the journal BMJ Quality and Safety.

The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which primary care physicians' perceptions of event-level, physician-level and organization-level factors influence their intent to disclose a medical error in challenging situations. The strongest predictors of disclosure were perceived personal responsibility, perceived seriousness of the event and perceived value of patient-centered communication.

"The intent to disclose was not as frequent as we thought it might be," said Dr. Douglas Roblin, professor in the Division of Health Management and Policy in the School of Public Health at Georgia State University and researcher at the Center for Clinical and Outcomes Research at Kaiser Permanente Georgia. "The two vignettes gave pretty consistent findings. The majority would not fully disclose, and we were hoping for full disclosure because that is the ethical expectation."

Full disclosure of harmful errors to patients, including a statement of regret, an explanation, acceptance of responsibility and commitment to prevent recurrences, has been the standard for physicians in the United States for nearly a decade. However, researchers said there is evidence that effective disclosure often doesn't occur. An absent or poor response by clinicians can make a bad situation much worse, while full disclosure could lessen the negative impact. Understanding the factors affecting providers' tendency to disclose is important to developing effective interventions to improve physician-patient communication.

Participants in this study were primary care physicians from three integrated healthcare delivery systems in Washington, Massachusetts and Georgia, which were part of the HMO Cancer Research Network's Cancer Communication Research Center. A total of 333 primary care physicians out of 630 responded to the survey.

The majority of respondents (71 percent) had been in practice for more than 10 years, over half (55.6 percent) indicated they often questioned whether the demand of their practice was worth the toll and over a third (36.7 percent) often thought about leaving practice.

In the vignettes, physicians were asked to evaluate two difficult, but realistic, hypothetical cases: 1) a delayed diagnosis of breast cancer and 2) a care coordination breakdown that caused a delayed response to patient symptoms. Both cases involved oncology diagnoses and multiple physicians sharing responsibility for the error.

Each vignette was followed by four questions asking what the physician would be likely to say with respect to an apology, an explanation, information about the cause of the event and plans for preventing recurrences. Physicians could choose from non-disclosure, partial disclosure and full disclosure responses.

Participants also assessed event-level, physician-level and organization-level factors for each vignette. Event-level factors include personal responsibility for the event, beliefs about the seriousness of the event and predictions as to whether the patient would file a lawsuit as a result of the event. Physician-level factors include the value placed on patient-centered communication, self-efficacy with respect to communication and feelings about practice. Organization-level factors include perceived support for communication and time constraints.

The study found the majority of respondents would not fully disclose a harmful medical error in either vignette situation, providing only a limited or no apology, limited or no explanation and limited or no information about the cause. When asked what they would tell the patient about the cause of the error, 77 percent of physicians for the case involving delayed diagnosis of cancer and 58 percent of physicians for the case involving a care coordination breakdown would offer either no information or make vague references to miscommunications. In both cases, more than half would not volunteer an apology or would offer only a vague expression of regret.

Physicians would be more forthcoming in the care coordination breakdown compared to the delayed cancer diagnosis, but most would provide only partial disclosure after either of the events.

The researchers conclude that in order to make meaningful progress toward improving disclosure, physicians, risk managers, organizational leaders, professional organizations and accreditation bodies need to understand the factors that influence disclosure. This insight, which could be achieved by using vignette-based surveys, is necessary to update institutional policies and provider training.

###

Collaborators for the study include lead author Kathleen Mazor of the Meyers Primary Care Institute in Worcester, Mass., and University of Massachusetts Medical School; Sarah M. Greene of the Health Care Systems Research Network; Hassan Fouayzi of the Meyers Primary Care Institute in Worcester, Mass., and University of Massachusetts Medical School; and Thomas H. Gallagher of the Department of Medicine at University of Washington in Seattle.

The study was funded by the National Cancer Institute.
Hiroshima University scientists have identified a new species of parasite infecting an invasive freshwater fish on the subtropical island of Okinawa, Japan. The results are part of a project to find parasites that have arrived in Japan with their non-native hosts and understand the role of parasites in natural ecosystems. Tracking parasites can be one scientific method to monitor ecosystem health and attempt to conserve biodiversity.

The project began in 2012 when one of the researchers was trying to fill some of his free time. Masato Nitta, now a second-year PhD student at Hiroshima University, recognized some invasive fish in the stream that runs through the campus of the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa, Japan, the university that hosted his research team during their field studies.

"It was just for play, not for official study. I saw two of the invasive catfish and I decided to try to catch them and check what parasites they had because I was curious. When I put the parasites under the microscope, they looked a little bit strange. No one had seen these parasites in Japan before," said Nitta.

Nitta and his supervisor, Kazuya Nagasawa, PhD, from the Graduate School of Biosphere Science at Hiroshima University, returned to Okinawa in 2015 to study the parasites of the invasive vermiculated sailfin catfish in more detail. Their latest research paper announces a species new to science, two species found in Japan for the first time, and confirms the presence of the species they identified in 2012. The four species described in the research paper infect the gills of the catfish and are in the class Monogenea.

Only one species of monogenean is known to infect mammals, specifically the eyes of hippopotamus, so there is no record and little reason to suspect that the parasites pose any danger to humans directly. These foreign parasite species are most likely not a threat to Japan's native freshwater fish because monogeneans are known to be very specific to their host species and spend their entire lifecycle in a single host.

The catfish species that hosts the parasites is native to the Amazon River and likely arrived in Japan in the 1980s by way of southeast Asian countries as part of the pet trade. The fish is sometimes eaten for food in Brazil, but is considered an ornamental fish in Japan. Even in its native habitat, the catfish's normal parasitic infections are not well studied.

"I want to go to Brazil to do the work! But when I speak with local scientists, they tell me that no one can go so far into the jungle to find these fish in their natural habitat. But still, it is one of my dreams," said Nitta.

The invasive species of freshwater catfish is Pterygoplichthys disjunctivus (Siluriformes: Loricariidae). The four species of monogenean parasite described in the research paper are: Unilatus brittani, Unilatus unilatus, Heteropriapulus heterotylus (first identified in Japan in 2012), and Trinigyrus peregrinus (new species identified in 2015). The results are published in the November 2016 issue of the journal Species Diversity, published by the Japanese Society of Systematic Zoology.

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Find more Hiroshima University news on our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/HiroshimaUniversityResearch

More information about the Laboratory of Aquaculture at Hiroshima University is available on their website: http://home.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/aquacult/index.html
Project A-LEAF: "An Artificial Leaf: a photo-electro-catalytic cell from earth-abundant materials for sustainable solar production of CO2-based chemicals and fuels" receives funding from the FET Proactive 2016 call within the Horizon 2020 programme.

With nearly 8 million euros, A-LEAF is one of the biggest artificial photosynthesis research projects funded by the European Commission.

A-LEAF aims to build a photovoltaic device able to reproduce the complete process of photosynthesis to obtain clean fuels and raw materials using exclusively sunlight, water and CO2.

Coordinated by Prof. Jose Ramon Galan-Mascaros from ICIQ, the project counts with 13 partner institutions from 8 different countries. A-LEAF will start next January 2017 and will last 48 months.

The A-LEAF project seeks to respond to the world's challenge of finding new sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels. Our society has been using fossil fuels as a primary source of energy and as raw materials for synthesizing complex organic compounds with added value such as drugs, polymers or agrochemicals. The A-LEAF project aims to design, build and validate a device able to mimic this photosynthetic process as carried out by green plants. Our objective is to achieve direct transformation of water and CO2, through the action of sunlight, into oxygen and organic matter (e.g. methanol, methane). The organic products will then be used as fuels, extracting their stored energy from their recombination with oxygen back to the original feedstock (water and CO2) in an environmentally neutral closed-cycle.

Photosynthesis can be divided into several processes, including light absorption by a chromophore, charge separation and two chemical transformations: one where sunlight turns water into oxygen and releases protons and electrons; and another where these protons and electrons convert CO2 into carbohydrates, organic matter. Scientists have created artificial paltforms able to reproduce many of these sub-processes, but no integrated platform has been realized up to date.

A-LEAF is a multidisciplinary Project that brings together materials chemistry, computational chemistry, surface physics, engineering and state-of-the-art characterization techniques. The final objective of the consortium is the validation of a prototype able to transform CO2 into added-value products in a sustainable and cost-efficient way to be transferred to the European industry.

The A-LEAF project is coordinated by Prof. Jose Ramon Galan-Mascaros from the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ). The project's consortium also counts with two other groups from the ICIQ and 12 more partner institutions: ETH Zurich, Universiteit Leiden, IMDEA Nanociencia, EPFL, Technische Universitat Wien, Universitat Jaume I de Castello, Imperial College, Technische Universitat Darmstadt, Forschungszentrum Julich, Universite de Montpellier, INSTM and COVESTRO.

###

About the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ)

ICIQ is member of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology and one of the most prestigious chemistry research centres worldwide. 19 research groups work on catalysis (improvement and discovery of more efficient chemical reactions, sustainable processes and drug design) and renewable energies (water splitting, photovoltaics, transformation of CO2 into fuels and materials). ICIQ is a Severo Ochoa Excellence Centre, has been awarded 14 European Research Council (ERC) grants and 9 of their researchers are ICREA professors.
Parents need to synchronize the care for their offspring. This leads to extreme and unexpected diversity in how parents attend their nest in shorebirds, finds an international team led by Max Planck researchers. Some pairs switched duties 20 times a day, while in others one parent sat on the nest for up to 50 hours. The key factor underlying this variation is risk of predation, not risk of starvation. Surprisingly, the rhythm of nest attendance often did not follow the 24-h day.

In birds, like in humans, investment in offspring is often provided by both parents. Thereby, individuals have to synchronize their activities with those of their partner. Behavioural rhythms that arise from such social synchronization have barely been studied, especially in free-living populations. Now, an international group of 76 researchers studying shorebirds teamed up to investigate how parents divide the time they sit on the nest while incubating their eggs. This is a particularly sensitive phase of social synchronization because eggs cannot be left alone for long: they may get eaten by predators, or embryo development may be impaired due to cooling or overheating. Headed by Bart Kempenaers and his doctoral student Martin Bulla of the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, the team assembled data from 729 nests of 91 populations of biparentally incubating shorebirds in a variety of different breeding locations.

Incubation was monitored in a variety of locations using automated systems. The large scale of the study was also made possible because "We realized that many shorebird researchers were collecting relevant data without even planning to", says Martin Bulla, first author of the study. Scientists were using light-logger data to determine the birds' migratory routes. The loggers are attached to the legs and continuously record light intensity. When the bird is sitting on the nest, its legs are underneath the body, and the light-logger records darkness. "So, we could use this to infer incubation, even for pairs that were not locally monitored".

The researchers found a remarkable diversity in incubation patterns within and between species, even when pairs bred in the same area. Some pairs switched incubation duties almost every hour, whereas in others one parent sat on the nest for 24 hours and sometimes even 50 hours. The duration of these incubation bouts was unrelated to energetic demands, but depended on the risk of predation: species readily visible had shorter incubation sessions than the ones relying on parental crypsis. The cryptic species probably benefit from fewer change-overs at the nest, because these are the only times when there is activity close to the nest which might reveal its location to potential predators.

The rhythms that emerged from these incubation sessions also differed substantially. The 24h day-night cycle is the typical driver (Zeitgeber) of behavioural rhythms. However, during the summer months when most shorebirds breed, the 24-hour light-dark conditions disappear at higher latitudes, with continuous polar daylight in the Arctic. Although animals are known to use more subtle Zeitgebers such as light quality or temperature, the researchers found that incubation patterns became indeed more variable and were less likely to follow a 24h rhythm with increasing latitude. Surprisingly, incubation rhythms that defied the 24-hour day were also found at lower latitudes with dark nights. Because many shorebirds use tidal habitats for foraging, the researchers also tested the hypothesis that incubation patterns in such species follow a tidal rhythm, but this was not the case.

Ultimately, the incubation rhythms are determined by how the two parents coordinate their duties. Parental "decisions" might be related to how their internal clocks synchronize with each other. "It might sound trivial", says Bart Kempenaers, senior author of the study and director at the Seewiesen institute, "but given that two individuals are involved, each with their own rhythm, synchronization might lead to different outcomes for different pairs". But how does this synchronization work? Is one partner imposing its rhythm on the other, or are pairs negotiating and finding a compromise? Perhaps human parents know the answer.

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Original publication

Martin Bulla et al.

Unexpected diversity in socially synchronized rhythms of shorebirds

Nature, doi:10.1038/nature20563 Online Publication 23 November 2016
In a new study, researchers from North Carolina State University found that a specific neurotoxin can persist and accumulate in "marine snow" formed by the algae Pseudo-nitzschia, and that this marine snow can reach significant depths quickly. These findings have implications for food safety policies in areas affected by toxic marine algal blooms.

When algae cells run out of nutrients and start to die, they clump together and sink as marine snow. The algae and its marine snow aggregates can serve as a major food source for other forms of marine life like plankton-eating fish and shellfish. Pseudo-nitzschia is a microscopic algae that occurs naturally in coastal waters, and is of particular concern due to its production of the neurotoxin domoic acid. When domoic acid-containing Pseudo-nitzschia enter the food chain, humans can accidentally consume it via shellfish. This type of shellfish poisoning, known as amnesic shellfish poisoning, can cause neurological and gastrointestinal symptoms ranging from short-term memory loss to - in rare cases - death.

Astrid Schnetzer, associate professor of marine, earth and atmospheric sciences at NC State, wanted to know how domoic acid gets transported to depth via marine snow after a toxic algal bloom and how long it may persist. In a previous study she showed that marine snow can reach depths of several hundred meters within a few days, which contradicted previous theories suggesting that it might dissipate and dissolve long before reaching the ocean floor.

"Recent large toxic blooms off of the California coast and the attendant damage to local shellfish and the shellfish economy underscore the importance of understanding how long the marine snow remains toxic, how deep it can go and how long marine organisms are exposed to the toxin," Schnetzer says. "The fact that high levels of domoic acid can be found in marine life months after a bloom demonstrate the need for deciphering the mechanisms by which domoic acid reaches the seafloor."

Schnetzer and colleagues created their own toxic algal bloom in the lab using P. australis algae, one of the most toxic Pseudo-nitzschia species and one that blooms along the U.S. West Coast. They found that after two weeks, toxic marine snow from this algae could sink at rates of over 100 meters per day. Domoic acid did not dissipate appreciably during the sinking period, retaining up to 80 percent of its original toxicity.

"This study confirms that marine snow is a major vector in terms of getting domoic acid to depth," Schnetzer says. "Our future work will focus on the ways in which smaller organisms that feed on marine snow may be affected by the toxicity, and how that in turn can affect the larger food web."

The research appears in Harmful Algae. The work was funded by National Science Foundation grants 1459406 and 0850425 and North Carolina Sea Grant NA10OAR1040080. Schnetzer is corresponding author. NC State's Christopher Osburn, NC State and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Robert Lampe, UNC-Chapel Hill's Adrian Marchetti, University of South Carolina's Claudia Benitez-Nelson and University of Southern California Los Angeles' Avery Tatters contributed to the work.

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Note to editors: An abstract of the work follows.

"Marine snow formation by the toxin-producing diatom, Pseudo-nitzschia australis"

DOI: 10.1016/j.hal.2016.11.008

Authors: Astrid Schnetzer, Robert Lampe, Chris Osburn, NC State University; Adrian Marchetti and Robert Lampe, UNC-Chapel Hill; Claudia Benitez-Nelson, University of South Carolina; Avery Tatters, UCLA

Published: Harmful Algae

Abstract: The formation of marine snow (MS) by the toxic diatom Pseudo-nitschia australis was simulated using a roller table experiment. Concentrations of particulate and dissolved domoic acid (pDA and dDA) differed significantly among exponential phase and MS formation under simulated near surface conditions (16C/ 12:12-dark:light cycle) and also differed compared to subsequent particle decomposition at 4C in the dark, mimicking conditions in deeper waters. Particulate DA was first detected at the onset of exponential growth, reached maximum levels associated with MS aggregates (1.21  0.24 ng mL-1) and declined at an average loss rate of ~1.2% pDA day-1 during particle decomposition. Dissolved DA concentrations increased throughout the experiment and reached a maximum of ~20 ng mL-1 at the final time point on day 88. The succession by P. australis from active growth to aggregation resulted in toxic MS and based on DA loading of particles and known in situ sinking speeds, a significant amount of toxin could have easily reached the deeper ocean or seafloor. MS formation was further associated with significant dDA build up at a ratio of pDA : dDA : cumulative dDA of approximately 1:10:100. Overall, this study confirms MS functions as a major vector for toxin flux to depth, that Pseudo-nitzschia-derived aggregates should be considered 'toxic snow' for MS-associated organisms, and that effects of MS toxicity on interactions with aggregate-associated microbes and zooplankton consumers warrant further consideration.
Rochester Institute of Technology professor Moumita Das has won seed funding for cutting-edge research that explores mitochondrial DNA and intercellular cargo transport.

Das, an assistant professor in RIT's School of Physics and Astronomy, is a Scialog Fellow on two research teams supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Last April, the Moore Foundation, Research Corporation, and Simons Foundation sponsored the conference Scialog: Molecules Come to Life, which brought together approximately 50 young researchers who work at the intersection of biology and the physical sciences. The Scialog fellowship program encourages collaboration among theorists and experimentalists who propose research in promising areas considered too risky for traditional funding sources.

The three science philanthropies have awarded seed funding totaling $963,750 to six teams of 15 scientists. Das won a combined $112,000 in two awards, for her work on teams investigating "Heteroplasmy: Population dynamics of mitochondria in mammalian cells" with Daniel Needleman from Harvard University and Douglas Weibel from University of Wisconsin, Madison, and "Commoditizing advanced molecular imaging techniques" with Ibrahim Cisse from Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Megan Valentine from University of California, Santa Barbra; and Ali Yanik from University of California, Santa Cruz.

Das is a theoretical physicist who works in the field of biophysics. She is conducting computational modeling and analytical calculations to support hypotheses and predictions for both projects.

The heteroplasmy research is an emergent topic that looks at population dynamics of mitochondria in mammalian cells. Mitochondria, the powerhouse of each cell, controls energy production, initiates programmed cell death, and participates in cell signaling.

Mitochondria have their own DNA distinct from nuclear DNA. All organisms are thought to have low levels of variation in mitochondrial DNA. Changes in mitochondrial DNA are thought to be connected to a range of human health conditions, including epilepsy, heart failure, Parkinson's disease, diabetes and multiple sclerosis, Das said.

"We are studying the population dynamics of healthy and unhealthy mitochondria to see how that might control the functioning of the cell," she said. "Understanding how harmful changes in mitochondrial DNA accumulate over time and under different selection pressures can have a profound impact on our understanding of cell biology and the origins of some human diseases."

Das' second project involves molecular imaging of intercellular transport. The proper functioning of cells depends on molecular motors to carry cargo, such as organelles and vesicles, inside cells, she said. Her study of the process will support the design of a new type of imaging technique.

RIT undergraduate Kevin Ching and post-doctoral researcher Subravat Dey are working with Das to develop models and computer simulations of "molecular motors transporting cargos in crowded cellular environments." RIT undergraduate Kellianne Kornick is working with Das on the mathematical modeling of mitochondrial DNA. Ching and Kornick, both physics majors, will give talks about their research at the American Physical Society meeting in New Orleans in March.

Das and her Scialog teams will present their initial results at the next Scialog: Molecules Come to Life conference April 27-30 in Tucson, Ariz.

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CHICAGO - In the largest-ever study on screening mammography outcomes, researchers found that there is no clear cut-off age to stop breast cancer screening. The findings will be presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA). This research adds support for guidelines that encourage screening decisions based on individual patients and their health status.

Mammography is the standard imaging exam for breast cancer screening. Guidelines on what age to stop breast cancer screening have been a source of controversy and confusion in recent years. In 2009, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released new guidelines which stated there was not enough evidence to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening mammography in women aged 75 years or older.

"All prior randomized, controlled trials excluded women older than 75, limiting available data to small observational studies," said Cindy S. Lee, M.D., assistant professor in residence at the University of California, San Francisco. "There has been a lot of controversy, debate and conversation regarding the different breast cancer screening guidelines, even among major national organizations, over the past few years."

Using data from the National Mammography Database, Dr. Lee and her research team analyzed data from over 5.6 million screening mammograms performed over a 7-year period between January 2008 and December 2014 in 150 facilities across 31 states in the U.S. The research team looked at patient demographics, screening mammography results and biopsy results. Data from over 2.5 million women over age 40 were sorted into patient groups by age in 5-year intervals (40-44, 45-49, etc.).

Four standard performance metrics were calculated to evaluate the performance of screening mammography for each age group: cancer detection rate, recall rate, positive predictive value for biopsy recommended (PPV2) and biopsy performed (PPV3). Recall rate is the percentage of patients called back for follow-up testing after a screening exam. Positive predictive value reflects the percentage of cancers found among exams for which biopsy was recommended or performed. Ideal screening performances would have a higher cancer detection rate, PPV2 and PPV3, and a low recall rate.

Overall, researchers found mean cancer detection rate of 3.74 per 1,000 patients, recall rate of 10 percent, PPV2 of 20 percent and PPV3 of 29 percent. Based on increasing age from 40 to 90 years old, these performance metrics demonstrated a gradual upward trend for cancer detection rate, PPV2 and PPV3, but a downward trend in recall rate.

"The continuing increase of cancer detection rate and positive predictive values in women between the ages of 75 and 90 does not provide evidence for age-based mammography cessation," Dr. Lee said.

The findings lend support to the argument that the decision whether or not to stop screening should be informed by an individual's personal health history and preferences.

"We know that the risk of breast cancer increases with age," Dr. Lee said. "With the uncertainty and controversy about what age to stop breast cancer screening, we want to address this gap in knowledge using a large national database."

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Co-authors on the study are Debapriya Sengupta, M.B.B.S., M.P.H., Judy Burleson, Mythreyi Bhargaven-Chatfield, Ph.D., Edward A. Sickles, M.D., Elizabeth S. Burnside, M.D., M.P.H., and Margarita L. Zuley, M.D.

Note: Copies of RSNA 2016 news releases and electronic images will be available online at RSNA.org/press16 beginning Monday, Nov. 28.

RSNA is an association of more than 54,000 radiologists, radiation oncologists, medical physicists and related scientists, promoting excellence in patient care and health care delivery through education, research and technologic innovation. The Society is based in Oak Brook, Ill. (RSNA.org)

For patient-friendly information on mammography, visit RadiologyInfo.org.
Treating mice with a compound that increases the expression of an inactive protein helped them heal from injury with less scarring, according to a study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The researchers are hopeful that their findings could one day be used to help keep muscles supple during normal aging and to treat people with diseases like muscular dystrophy.

"Fibrosis occurs in many degenerative diseases and also in normal aging," said Thomas Rando, MD, PhD, a professor of neurology and neurological sciences. "It negatively impacts muscle regeneration by altering the stem cell niche and inhibiting the stem cell function. In addition, as more scarring occurs, muscles become stiff and can't contract and relax smoothly."

Rando, who is the director of Stanford's Glenn Center for the Biology of Aging, is the senior author of the study, which will be published online Nov. 28 in Nature. Former graduate student Alisa Mueller, MD, PhD, is the lead author.

Self-policing stem cells

The researchers discovered that stem cells embedded in muscle fibers do some fancy gene-expression footwork in order to respond appropriately to injury, disease or aging. In particular, the cells toggle between producing a full-length, active version of a protein that responds to external signals to divide and a shorter, inactive version of the same protein that attenuates the growth signal and prevents an overly enthusiastic response that can lead to scarring or fibrosis.

The researchers studied a protein called platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha, or PDGFR alpha, that sits on the surface of muscle-embedded stem cells called fibro-adipogenic progenitors, or FAPs. These stem cells are responsible for generating the connective tissue scaffolding necessary to support muscle development and regeneration.

PDGFR alpha straddles the cell membrane. The portion outside the cell serves as a landing pad for external signals that encourage the FAPs to begin dividing, or proliferating. The interior portion of the protein passes the signal along to other proteins inside the cell to get the ball rolling. Although some proliferation is necessary to repair an injury, an overly enthusiastic response can lead to scarring and fibrosis that inhibits muscle function. So it's imperative the cells strike the right balance in their response.

The researchers found that the cells have devised a novel, unexpected way to police themselves. The cells found a way to generate a shortened version of the protein that is missing the interior portion of its structure. This shortened version hangs out on the cells' membranes and sequesters the growth signals away from the active form of PDGFR. Without the interior part of the protein, the message to grow is stopped in its tracks.

"We've found that the cells actively regulate the production of the inhibitory form of the protein, which is very surprising," said Rando. "If they make less, the degree of fibrosis increases; if they make more, it decreases."

The cells produce the shortened form of the protein by recognizing and using a specific series of nucleotides in the messenger RNA that encodes the instructions to make the PDGFR alpha protein. The nucleotide code tells the cell's messenger RNA-processing machinery to create a shorter-than-normal message. As a result, the protein that is made from that messenger RNA is also truncated.

Artificially increasing, decreasing expression

Mueller, Rando and their colleagues used a type of small molecule called a vivo-morpholino that can bind and block access to small sections of messenger RNA to artificially increase or decrease expression of the inhibitory version of the PDGFR alpha protein. They found that increasing the amounts of the inhibitory version allowed both young and old mice to heal from injury with less fibrosis and scarring. Conversely, decreasing the amount increased the severity of fibrosis.

"We'd like to test this approach in a mouse model of muscular dystrophy next," said Rando. "Interestingly, the vivo-morpholino we used is similar to a small oligonucleotide therapy currently being tested in clinical trials to stimulate the production of proteins missing in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Perhaps we could also use this approach to reduce fibrosis in this disease."

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Other Stanford co-authors of the study are postdoctoral scholar Cindy van Velthoven, PhD; former undergraduate student Kathryn Fukumoto; and former postdoctoral scholar Tom Cheung, PhD.

The research was supported by the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research, the National Institutes of Health (grants AG043235, AG036695, AG23806, AR062185 and AG47820), the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Stanford's Department of Neurology also supported the work.

The Stanford University School of Medicine consistently ranks among the nation's top medical schools, integrating research, medical education, patient care and community service. For more news about the school, please visit http://med.stanford.edu/school.html. The medical school is part of Stanford Medicine, which includes Stanford Health Care and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford. For information about all three, please visit http://med.stanford.edu.

Print media contact: Krista Conger at (650) 725-5371 (kristac@stanford.edu)

Broadcast media contact: Margarita Gallardo at (650) 723-7897 (mjgallardo@stanford.edu)
A protein called TIGAR promotes the growth of breast cancer by altering cell metabolism in a way that could be targeted with existing drugs

(PHILADELPHIA) - How does a cancer cell burn calories? New research from Thomas Jefferson University shows that breast cancer cells rely on a different process for turning fuel into energy than normal cells. The results were recently published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

"Our finding is part of a growing interest in studying the metabolic function of cancer," says Ubaldo Martinez-Outschoorn, M.D., Assistant Professor in the Department of Medical Oncology at Thomas Jefferson University and researcher at the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson. "The better we understand how cancers thrive, the better we'll be able to cut off the energy supply they need for survival."

Dr. Martinez-Outschoorn and colleagues looked at a protein that they knew changed the metabolism of breast cancer cells. The protein TIGAR (short for TP53 inducible glycolysis and apoptosis regulator) diminished the cell's ability to create energy via the most common biochemical pathway -- converting sugar to energy via glycolysis. But it was unclear how this change in metabolism altered the cancer cell, or how the cell was getting the energy it needed to survive.

Through a series of cellular and mouse studies, the researchers demonstrated that breast cancer cells with a higher-than-normal abundance of the TIGAR protein were more aggressive and were able to grow faster than breast cancer cells that had normal amounts of TIGAR. But if the cells weren't using glycolysis to drive this growth, what were they using?

Dr. Martinez-Outschoorn and colleagues showed that when cells expressed TIGAR, they swap their metabolic pathway and become dependent on mitochondria for energy production. Interestingly, the high levels of TIGAR produced by cancer cells also changed the metabolism of the cells that surround and support breast cancer, but with the opposite metabolic effect. Rather than increase their dependence on mitochondrial energy production, TIGAR made these supporting cells dependent on glycolysis and increased tumor growth. Previous studies had shown that glycolytic supporting cells in tumors make breast cancer more aggressive.

"The fact that 70-80 percent of breast cancers show high levels of TIGAR presents an opportunity," says Dr. Martinez-Outschoorn. "There are already a number of therapies that block mitochondrial metabolism that we could use to try to 'starve' breast cancer cells."

Two drugs approved for other indications -- metformin, an antidiabetes therapy and doxycycline, an antibiotic -- are known to also block mitochondrial metabolism. When the researchers used these drugs to block mitochondrial metabolism in high-TIGAR-expressing breast cancer cells, they saw a reduction in the cancer's aggressive properties.

"Because these drugs are already approved, they have passed safety testing in humans. If they indeed help reduce tumor growth in patients, as our preliminary studies suggest, these drugs could be available to patients as a combination treatment with other drugs much sooner than new therapies," says Martinez-Outschoorn.

To that end, Dr. Martinez-Outschoorn is collaborating with Jennifer Johnson, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Medical Oncology and Adam Berger, M.D., Professor of Surgery at Jefferson on a clinical trial that will test the effect of metformin and doxycycline on breast cancers in women prior to surgery. The study will collect and analyze the tumors of patients to see if these drugs that inhibit mitochondrial metabolism might have an effect on tumor biology (clinicaltrials.gov # NCT02874430).

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Article reference: Y.H. Ko, et al., "TIGAR Metabolically Reprograms Carcinoma and Stromal Cells in Breast Cancer," J Biol Chem. DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M116.740209, 2016.

Funding: This work was supported by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), under Award Number NCI K08-CA175193, NCI 5 P30 CA-56036, Instituto de Salud Carlos III - FIS (PI13/0096) and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER).

About Jefferson

Jefferson, through its academic and clinical entities of Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health, including Abington Health and Aria Health, is reimagining health care for the greater Philadelphia region and southern New Jersey. Jefferson has 23,000 people dedicated to providing the highest-quality, compassionate clinical care for patients, educating the health professionals of tomorrow, and discovering new treatments and therapies to define the future of care. With a university and hospital that date back to 1824, today Jefferson is comprised of six colleges, nine hospitals, 34 outpatient and urgent care locations, and a multitude of physician practices throughout the region, serving more than 100,000 inpatients, 373,000 emergency patients and 2.2 million outpatient visits annually.

For more information and a complete listing of Jefferson services and locations, visit http://www.jefferson.edu.
Mental disorders and physical diseases frequently go hand in hand. For the first time, psychologists at the University of Basel and Ruhr University Bochum have identified temporal patterns in young people: arthritis and diseases of the digestive system are more common after depression, while anxiety disorders tend to be followed by skin diseases.

Physical diseases and mental disorders affect a person's quality of life and present a huge challenge for the healthcare system. If physical and mental disorders systematically co-occur from an early age, there is a risk that the sick child or adolescent will suffer from untoward developments.

Data from 6,500 teenagers

In a project financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation, a research group led by PD Dr. Marion Tegethoff in collaboration with Professor Gunther Meinlschmidt from the University of Basel's Faculty of Psychology has now examined the temporal pattern and relationship between physical diseases and mental disorders in children and young people. In the journal PLOS ONE, they analyzed data from a representative sample of 6,483 teenagers from the US aged between 13 and 18.

The researchers noted that some physical diseases tend to occur more frequently in children and adolescents if they have previously suffered from certain mental disorders. Likewise, certain mental disorders tend to occur more frequently after the onset of particular physical diseases. Affective disorders such as depression were frequently followed by arthritis and diseases of the digestive system, while the same relationship existed between anxiety disorders and skin diseases. Anxiety disorders were more common if the person had already suffered from heart disease. A close association was also established for the first time between epileptic disorders and subsequent eating disorders.

Epilepsy and eating disorders

The results offer important insights into the causal relationship between mental disorders and physical diseases. The newly identified temporal associations draw attention to processes that could be relevant both to the origins of physical diseases and mental disorders and to their treatment. In an earlier study, the same authors had already provided evidence for the relationship between mental disorders and physical diseases in young people.

"For the first time, we have established that epilepsy is followed by an increased risk of eating disorders - a phenomenon, that had previously been described only in single case reports. This suggests that approaches to epilepsy treatment could also have potential in the context of eating disorders," explains Marion Tegethoff, the study's lead author. From a health policy perspective, the findings underscore that the treatment of mental disorders and physical diseases should be closely interlinked from an early age on.

###

Original source

Marion Tegethoff, Esther Stalujanis, Angelo Belardi, Gunther Meinlschmidt

Chronology of Onset of Mental Disorders and Physical Diseases in Mental-Physical Comorbidity - A National Representative Survey of Adolescents

PLOS ONE (2016), doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0165196
With their potential for big savings through increased energy efficiency and reduced greenhouse gas emissions, interest in improving the manufacturing of superconductor wire is at an all-time high.

The U.S. Department of Energy Monday announced a $4.5 million grant to Venkat Selvamanickam, MD Anderson Chair Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Houston, to boost the advanced manufacturing of high-performance superconductor wires for next generation electric machines.

The award is one of 13 projects funded to advance technologies for energy efficient electric motors through applied research and development.

"Advancing these enabling technologies has the potential to boost the competitiveness of American manufacturers and take the development of more efficient electric machines a giant step further," Mark Johnson, director of DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, said of the nearly $25 million in grant awards. "These technology R&D projects aim to significantly improve industrial motors for manufacturing, helping companies who use these motors in manufacturing save energy and money over the long run."

Selvamanickam is one of the world's leading experts on manufacturing superconductors. He is the co-founder of SuperPower, which produces superconducting electrical wire, and has continued his research since joining the UH faculty in 2008. He also is director of the Advanced Research Hub at the Texas Center for Superconductivity at UH and manages the Advanced Manufacturing Institute at UH.

"Superconducting motors and generators made with the wire that will be manufactured using the technology developed in this program can lead to more than six billion kilowatt hours of annual electricity savings and reduce CO2 emissions by nearly a million tons per year," he said.

Superconductor devices are used in energy, health care and transportation, among other uses, and offer advantages including saving as much as 2 percent in electricity use in electric motors and generators and up to 10 percent in transmission and distribution equipment. That's because superconductors can transport electricity with little or no resistance, meaning energy isn't wasted in the electric machines and during transmission.

"Dr. Selvamanickam is recognized globally for his focus on the development of innovative manufacturing technologies for thin film superconductor wire, which has been supported by the federal government, as well as the state of Texas and private industry," said Ramanan Krishnamoorti, interim vice president for research and technology transfer at UH. "This grant will allow him to continue his work to overcome obstacles to more efficiently manufacture the wire."

The funding is part of the Obama Administration's Mission Innovation, an effort to double clean energy research and development investments over the next five years. The Energy Department last spring announced plans to fund up to $25 million in projects through the Next Generation of Electric Machines: Enabling Technologies funding opportunity, targeting technologies to boost efficiency in a cost-effective way.

Selvamanickam said the funding will enable the use of superconducting machines at liquid nitrogen temperatures, which can lead to a widespread commercialization of this technology. Until now, superconducting machines, including motors and generators, have been built for use at lower temperatures because of performance limitations in the superconducting wire. The DOE-funded program will enable overcoming those limitations.

His team was the first to manufacture thin film superconductor wire, which was used in 2008 to power 25,000 households in Albany, N.Y., and now is used by more than 200 institutions around the world for applications including wind generators, energy storage, power transmission cables, magnetically levitated trains, medical imaging and defense applications.

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COLUMBIA, Mo. - More than 22 percent of children ages 12-18 say they have been bullied in school within the last month; a significant portion of those children have disabilities. However, little research exists on how bullying rates for individual children change over time. Now, a University of Missouri researcher and bullying expert has determined that children with disabilities are victimized by bullying at a much higher rate over time than their peers without disabilities. The study also revealed that this discrepancy in victimization and bullying perpetration rates remains consistent as children age. Chad Rose, an assistant professor of special education in the MU College of Education, says this indicates that children with disabilities are not developing adequate social skills to combat bullying as they mature.

"This study points out the necessity for special education programs to teach appropriate response skills to children with disabilities," Rose said. "Schools need to further develop these programs by tailoring social development goals for each individual student to ensure they are learning the social skills that will help them prevent bullying from occurring. Prior research has shown that children with disabilities, when bullied, may react aggressively when they lack appropriate response skills. Teaching these students how to communicate more effectively with their peers and with teachers can help them react to bullying in more positive ways, as well as prevent it from occurring at all."

Over the course of three years, more than 6,500 children from grades 3-12 were surveyed about their experiences with bullying; 16 percent of the children surveyed had disabilities, specifically learning disabilities, emotional disabilities and autism spectrum disorders. Rose and Nicholas Gage, an assistant professor from the University of Florida, found that bullying rates across the board peaked in third grade, were reduced drastically in middle school and then rose again during high school. However, while mirroring this trend, bullying rates for children with disabilities remained consistently higher than those without disabilities.

"Studying how individual children are victimized by bullying over time has revealed that children with disabilities are not learning how to effectively respond to victimization," Rose said. "As children continued to mature, we expected to see that they would slowly develop social skills that would help them combat victimization and close the gap with children without disabilities, but that was not the case. Their rates of bullying victimization remained consistently higher, which shows that current intervention approaches are not effectively preparing these children who are most at-risk for bullying involvement."

Rose says that many schools have devoted less and less time over the years to teaching social skills to all students, in exchange for increased focus on common core subjects and standardized test preparation. He says schools should refocus some of their efforts on teaching important social skills, especially to children with disabilities.

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The study, "Exploring the Involvement of Bullying Among Students With Disabilities Over Time," was published in Exceptional Children.
Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is an unforgiving killer of horses, donkeys and zebras, resulting in mortality as high as 80 percent of infected animals. It causes rapid, catastrophic swelling of the brain and spinal cord, leading to severe neurological symptoms and--in many cases--sudden death. The virus can also infect humans, with similar results. The U.S. and Soviet Union both weaponized VEEV during the Cold War, prompting the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health to classify VEEV as a category B pathogen.

A research team led by the University of Maryland has exploited a weakness in VEEV's genetic code, resulting in a far less deadly mutant version of the virus when tested in laboratory mice. The new discovery could enable the development of a vaccine and other drugs to combat VEEV. The findings were published online November 16, 2016 in the Journal of Virology.

Like many other dangerous viruses, VEEV has RNA as its genetic material instead of DNA. Because a similar weakness exists in RNA viruses that pose serious health risks to humans--such as HIV, Zika, chikungunya and others--the discovery could advance the development of treatments for these viruses as well.

"RNA viruses tend to cause acute infections," said Jonathan Dinman, professor and Chair of the UMD Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, who is the senior author on the research paper. "You either fight them off quickly, like the common cold, or they overwhelm you, like Ebola."

Dinman and his colleagues exploited a mechanism known as programmed ribosomal frameshifting (PRF), which allows RNA viruses to pack a larger amount of genetic information into a relatively short sequence of RNA. By prompting an infected cell to read the same sequence of RNA in two different phases, PRF allows a virus to create two different proteins instead of one.

The researchers created a mutant version of VEEV with a disrupted PRF mechanism, which impaired the virus' ability to create a second protein from a specific section of RNA. Tests in cultured cells did not reveal a large difference in the rate of virus production. But when the researchers tested the mutant virus in laboratory mice, they saw a dramatic increase in the rate at which infected mice survived the disease.

"With some simple mutations, we compromised VEEV's ability to be a virulent virus," said Joe Kendra, a biological sciences graduate student at UMD and the lead author of the study. "This result shows that PRF might be a therapeutic target for other viruses. If we can confirm that the mutant virus confers immunity, opening the door to a vaccine, that will be very exciting."

In addition to a higher survival rate of mice infected with mutant VEEV, the researchers also noted a lower incidence of the virus accumulating in brain tissues. Dinman, Kendra and their co-authors suspect that the missing protein in the mutant virus plays a role in the virus' ability to cross the blood-brain barrier--an essential step to cause brain swelling.

"It's interesting that the virus uses PRF to survive, but we can also manipulate that mechanism to work against it," said study co-author Yousuf Khan, an undergraduate biological sciences major and Goldwater Scholar at UMD. "This is a new way to target viruses and make vaccines. It opens up a lot of new research questions."

According to Dinman, the finding is particularly encouraging in light of the challenge posed by climate change, as viral diseases begin to extend their range north beyond the tropics.

"So many of these diseases are borne by mosquitoes. Chikungunya is now established in the Caribbean, and Zika has been found in two counties in Florida," Dinman said. "These viruses are on our doorstep. But these results give us hope. Developing a vaccine takes a long time, but with a concerted effort across government and academic labs, we have a good chance."

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The research paper, "Ablation of programmed -1 ribosomal frameshifting in Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus results in attenuated neuropathogenicity," Joseph Kendra, Cynthia de la Fuente, Ashwini Brahms, Caitlin Woodson, Todd Bell, Bin Chen, Yousuf Khan, Jonathan Jacobs, Kylene Kehn-Hall and Jonathan Dinman, was published online November 16, 2016 in the Journal of Virology.

This work was supported by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (Award No. HDTRA1-13-1-0005) and the National Institutes of Health (Award No. 2T32AI051967-06A1). The content of this article does not necessarily reflect the views of these organizations.
Rich in biodiversity, with a rapidly growing economy, Malaysia exemplifies the tension between conservation and economic development faced by many tropical countries.

While recent initiatives have attempted to address conservation priorities at global and national scales, most of these focus on developed countries in temperate regions. There is a need, say experts at The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC), to develop similar strategies in developing countries, especially in biodiversity hotspot areas.

K. Nagulendran (Nagu), a third year PhD student with the School of Geographical and Environmental Sciences, led a multi-stakeholder exercise involving several hundred participants to identify conservation priorities in Peninsular Malaysia. They have produced a list of 35 ranked conservation issues within seven general themes. The aim is to influence policy-makers, practitioners and researchers and ensure conservation becomes an integral part of the development process. The results - 'A multi-stakeholder strategy to identify conservation priorities in Peninsular Malaysia' - have been published in the open access academic journal Cogent Environmental Science.

The project makes the case for the prioritisation of conservation actions in Peninsular Malaysia guided by science, in consultation with a wide range of key stakeholders. It is also important to focus collective action given the limited resources available for conservation activities.

Protecting Malaysia's wealth of biodiversity

Malaysia is part of the Sundaland Biodiversity Hotspot and is ranked 12 globally in terms of its National Biodiversity Index. Malaysia boasts a wealth of biodiversity which includes 306 species of mammals, 742 species of birds, 567 species of reptiles and over 15,000 plant species. Although the country has a target to increase terrestrial protected areas from 13.8% of total land area in 2015 to 20% by 2025, economic development has already had an impact on wildlife. The Sumatran rhino has disappeared altogether and the country has seen a steady decline in the number of Malayan tigers.

Through a series of workshops and online surveys, the objective of the research was to engage relevant stakeholders in the identification of conservation priority issues in Peninsular Malaysia; produce a list of ranked conversation issues; and test differences in priority perception among the stakeholders involved in the exercise.

The results suggest that there should be: improvements to policy and management to champion biodiversity issues; a strengthening of environmental laws and enforcement; recognition of socio-economic issues especially among indigenous and local communities; increases in funding and resource allocation; knowledge, research and development to inform decision making; a greater understanding and protection of the rights of nature and cultural heritage; a more holistic public awareness and participation to bring about change to promote conservation.

Balancing the need for economic development

Nagu works for the Malaysian Government's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. He graduated with a Masters in Environmental Management from The University of Nottingham in 2003 and has been recognised by the University for his work in the evolution of Malaysia's policies on the environment and natural resource management.

He said: "The country faces important trade-offs in its aim to conserve biodiversity while balancing the need for economic development. The project allowed us to effectively engage a broad spectrum of stakeholders - including those in powerful and influential positions. We hope this exercise can be used as a blue print for conservation priorities and policies in Malaysia and other tropical countries. By making this paper open access, it can be available to all. All of us need to understand that we can make a change and choose a lifestyle that is more harmonious with nature."

Malaysia is generally considered an example of success in its smooth transition into modern economy with an ambition to be a high income economy by 2020. Malaysians below the poverty line has been drastically reduced from 52% in 1957 (at independence) to less than 0.6% in 2014. This rapid economic development, however, has come with a cost to the environment. In 1940 almost 80% of Peninsular Malaysia was under forest cover - this figure had dropped to 44% by 2014.

While the world is losing biodiversity at unprecedented rate, the first objective of the Convention on Biological Diversity adopted in 1992 is to conserve the earth's biodiversity. The Aichi Biodiversity Targets renewed this mandate to address and halt biodiversity loss by 2020. Prioritisation of conservation approaches by identification of issues will assist developing countries with limited resources for conservation in supporting the achievements of Aichi Targets as illustrated in this paper.

The senior authors of the study are Dr Campos-Arceiz, associate professor in Tropical Conservation Ecology at UNMC, and Dr Rory Padfield, lecturer in Geography at Oxford Brookes University. Dr Campos-Arceiz said: "To generate ownership of the issues and potential solutions there is a need for inclusiveness and multi-stakeholder participation in the identification of conservation priorities. Although we will have contrasting perceptions of conservation priorities, it is important to have multi-stakeholder support and involvement to pursue our conservation agenda."

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Beaches left decimated by the severe winter of 2013/14 have still not recovered almost three years later, according to new research led by the University of Plymouth.

The study, published in Marine Geology, showed around eight weeks of storms left many beaches along the UK's Atlantic coastline in their most eroded state since records began.

Conditions since have in many cases done little to replenish exposed areas, with parts of Devon and Cornwall having only recovered around half of the sand lost during that time.

For the research, scientists examined the response at 38 natural beaches in the south West of England, ranging from semi-sheltered reflective gravel barriers to ultra-dissipative exposed sand beaches with dunes.

It showed that some beaches experienced sediment losses of up to 200 m3 for every 1m strip of beach, providing the potential to dramatically change the equilibrium state of beaches along the western side of the continent.

The current study includes data gathered up to the middle of 2015, but researchers have continued assessing the beaches at Slapton Sands in Devon and Perranporth in North Cornwall to examine whether the situation is improving.

Dr Tim Scott, who led the study alongside colleagues in the University's Coastal Processes Research Group, said: "As of October 2016, Perranporth had only recovered about half of the sand lost in 2013/14, while Slapton Sands has seen a marked and lasting shift of sand from the western end of the beach to the east. But it appears the impact of the storms that winter were so extreme at Slapton Sands, with large waves consistently from the South West, it would take a series of significant easterly wave events of similar impact to replenish what was lost. Since 2013/14, wave conditions have remained southwesterly-dominated and that is why we are seeing the current, and dramatic, effects."

Previous research led by the University - published in March 2016 - showed the 2013/14 storms were the most energetic to hit Europe's Atlantic coastline since records began in 1948. Regardless of this, it had been expected that most of the sand lost as a result of those storms would have been replenished.

However, data collected as part of the current study and more recent analysis, has shown that while there has been some recovery in the summer months since 2013/14 these have largely been wiped out in the following winters.

This has created a situation where high water shorelines are further landward at sites such as Perranporth, while communities such as Torcross - at the western tip of Slapton Sands - are left more vulnerable as the sediment protecting the sea wall remained depleted.

Dr Scott added: "Our ongoing research has shown that recovery after a severe weather event can take many years, but we are also seeing that those effects are intrinsically linked to long-term climate cycles. With the advance of climate change, it is likely we will experience more extreme and energetic storms in the future, and developing a greater understanding of coastal recovery - and any means by which we can influence it - will be essential."

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The idea behind power poses, that if you stand in a "powerful" position, broad posture, hands on hips, shoulders high and pushed back, you will suddenly feel psychologically and physiologically stronger, is intuitively appealing, especially for people without much confidence. The problem is that it's simply not true, according to University of Pennsylvania researchers Coren Apicella, an assistant professor in the psychology department in the School of Arts & Sciences, and Kristopher Smith, a fourth-year psychology Ph.D. student.

Apicella and Smith attempted to replicate the original power pose study by Dana Carney, Amy Cuddy and Andy Yap, which got much attention when it appeared in 2010 in the journal Psychological Science. The initial study reported increases in feelings of power, risk taking and testosterone and a decrease in cortisol. The Penn researchers found no support for any of the original effects, what's called embodied cognition, results they published recently in Hormones and Behavior.

"We did find that if anything -- and we're skeptical of these results, because we'd want to replicate them -- that, if you're a loser and you take a winner or high power pose, your testosterone decreases," Apicella said.

In other words, Smith said, "people might not be able to 'fake it until they make it,' and in fact it might be detrimental."

The pair started working on this study two years ago, with the aim of putting the power pose concept into a relevant ecological context grounded in evolutionary theory. They opted to use as their starting point the notion of contest winners and losers. Before a competition, animals make their bodies as large as possible, gritting their teeth, making their hair stand on edge. In some situations, humans can similarly showcase displays of confidence intended to intimidate an opponent.

"We know that hormones change in this competitive context, especially testosterone," Apicella said, referring to a well-known finding called the "winner-loser effect." "Winners experience a relative increase in testosterone compared to losers. The evolutionary theory for that is, if you just won a competitive interaction, that testosterone may be motivating you to take on future competition. If you lost, it's saying, back off, you don't want to get your butt kicked again."

With that as the backdrop, the Penn researchers brought in nearly 250 college-age males from the Philadelphia region to take part in their study. Participants provided a saliva sample to offer a baseline measure for testosterone and cortisol levels, then took part in rounds of tug-o-war. One person was declared the strong man, the other the weak man.

"They would then make a high, low or neutral power pose," Smith explained, based on a random placement into one of the three groups.

High power poses enable a body to take up more space (think of the Wonder Woman stance); low power poses constrict the area a body occupies (picture someone hunched over). While posing, study subjects viewed faces on a computer screen, the same images used in the original study, then 15 minutes later, the researchers took a second saliva sample to measure the same hormones they looked at to start.

"We didn't find any support for this idea of embodied cognition," Apicella said.

As for the potential results showing that power poses could actually cause harm, the scientists describe in their paper a series of studies in the 1970s that asked why low-ranking sparrows simply didn't fake a higher ranking. A researcher tested this by painting low-status birds' plumage to match that of the dominant birds. "The legitimate high-ranking birds persecuted the 'fakers,'" the Penn researchers wrote.

"Our study is more in line with these results," Apicella said. "This was one of several tests that didn't go in the direction predicted by embodied cognition."

The current findings are not the only to suggest that the effects of power posing are not real, adding to the evidence that has accumulated since the 2010 study. Some say the inability to replicate that first work doesn't matter, that they'll continue touting its results regardless. But to scientists working in social science fields, it makes a big difference, particularly in a landscape described as a replication crisis for psychology, one where, in an analysis of 100 published papers, only 36 percent showed replications with significant findings.

"As scientists, we care about the truth," Apicella said. "There's so much skepticism about research in general, especially research coming out of social science. Studies like the original power pose work can be harmful because they delegitimize good work."

To that end, and especially given the recent failed replications, Apicella cautions researchers continuing to work on this topic to tread lightly. "Even if power poses were found to work in the short term," she said, "we don't know if they could backfire in the long term."

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SAN ANTONIO, Texas, USA -- U.S. Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans (IAVs) with epilepsy were more than twice as likely to die between 2011 and 2015 as were similar veterans without epilepsy. A study published Nov. 11 in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report revealed that IAVs were found to have a higher prevalence of mental and physical comorbidity and to have substantially higher mortality than were veterans without epilepsy.

The study from investigators at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, the South Texas Veterans Health Care System, the CDC and several other VA facilities examined records of more than 320,000 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans receiving VA care in 2010 and 2011, and found 2,187 who met the criteria for epilepsy. Examination of mortality over the next five years revealed that approximately five times more IAVs with epilepsy died by the end of 2015 than similar IAVs without epilepsy. Because IAVs with epilepsy were also significantly more likely to have conditions such as cardiac disease, stroke, cancer and mental health conditions that may also be associated with death, a second analysis controlling for these co-occurring conditions was conducted to determine if epilepsy uniquely contributed to mortality.

"Similar to studies of civilian samples, we found that cancer, stroke and cardiac disease were strong predictors of five-year mortality. But, even after controlling for the impact of these comorbid conditions, we still found a substantial effect for epilepsy," said lead author Mary Jo Pugh, Ph.D., RN, professor of epidemiology, biostatistics and medicine at the UT Health Science Center. "After controlling for comorbidities, IAVs with epilepsy were about 2.6 times more likely to die during the follow-up period than similar veterans without epilepsy."

Causes of death were not available from federal databases at the time the study was conducted, Dr. Pugh said. Therefore the report does not speculate on cause of death such as suicidality, car accidents, heart attack, cancer and sudden unexplained death in epilepsy.

The report makes it clear, however, that deaths and comorbidities were more frequent in the highly vulnerable group of Iraq-Afghanistan veterans with epilepsy. Epilepsy is a complex condition, and the addition of these comorbidities presents health care providers with competing demands, Dr. Pugh said.

"If you have a patient who comes in and is having seizures, that is often the focus of care because persistent seizures can be life threatening and have a substantial effect on quality of life," she said. "But chronic disease management for other conditions is also needed. We need to take a holistic approach in epilepsy care. We need to take care of epilepsy and other conditions that affect patients' health, quality of life and, ultimately, mortality."

This is the first published study to examine mortality in veterans with epilepsy, and is unique compared to studies of epilepsy-related mortality in the United States. Civilian studies in the United States have consisted of small samples in localized areas, not a national population such as the population of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans, Dr. Pugh said. However, the growing availability of electronic health records nationally makes this type of study in civilian settings more feasible. Dr. Pugh is developing a plan to examine similar questions in large data sets such as i2b2 locally, and eventually with data from the Great Plains PCORnet Collaborative.

Dr. Pugh, who is co-director of the Research to Advance Community Health (ReACH) Center at the UT Health Science Center San Antonio, will present the study at the American Epilepsy Society meeting that convenes Dec. 2-6 in Houston.

###

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Researchers at VIB and Ghent University have developed a tool to diagnose Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF). Particularly common among Mediterranean populations, this genetic disease is characterized by inflammation, fever and severe pain. Because of its complex diagnosis, patients often remain untreated for many years, which can eventually lead to kidney failure. In collaboration with Ghent University Hospital and Antwerp University Hospital, VIB and Ghent University are now planning clinical trials to further validate immunodiagnosis of FMF. The study is published in the leading scientific journal PNAS.

In the Mediterranean basin, including the Middle East and Caucasus, FMF has a prevalence between 1 and 2 per 1,000 inhabitants. FMF is usually diagnosed during childhood, after which a daily, lifelong treatment is necessary. However, accurate diagnosis is complicated by a number of factors: other autoinflammatory diseases show similar symptoms, the clinical picture is often incomplete in young children, atypical signs may occur, and a suggestive family history is sometimes lacking. Wrong or late diagnosis often even leads to unnecessary surgery and, ultimately, kidney failure.

Worldwide interest

The lab of professor Mohamed Lamkanfi (VIB-Ghent University) developed an alternative for today's inadequate diagnosis, efficiently segregating FMF patients from people suffering from other autoinflammatory diseases and healthy individuals. The tool detects changes in the body's immune reaction to pyrin, a protein that is usually mutated in FMF. Following successful tests on mice, the tool has been validated in 13 patients in collaboration with physicians from Belgium and Italy.

Prof. Mohamed Lamkanfi (VIB-Ghent University): "As next steps, we are setting up clinical trials in Belgium for which we are actively seeking volunteers - both FMF patients and people suffering from related inflammatory disorders. These trials are funded by, among other parties, the European Research Council and FWO (Research Foundation - Flanders). In addition, labs from the Netherlands and Italy have already expressed interest. We are also exploring possible collaborations with industrial partners in order to make our method available as a diagnostic kit."

Patent application

The new tool could be good news for thousands of people with a Mediterranean background. However, in rare cases, FMF also affects other people. Prof. Lamkanfi and his team have expressed the ambition to start the clinical trials as soon as possible. Meanwhile, a patent application for the invention has been submitted.

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Elaine Fuchs, Ph.D., whose innovative use of reverse genetics has helped redefine the study of skin diseases and cancer stem cells, is the recipient of the 2016 Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science, officials at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) announced today.

Fuchs is the Rebecca C. Lancefield Professor and head of the Robin Chemers Neustein Laboratory of Mammalian Cell Biology and Development at Rockefeller University in New York, and, since 1988, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) investigator.

She is the 11th recipient of the Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science. Established by Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 2006, the competitive prize honors women scientists with a "stellar record" of research accomplishments who have made significant contributions to mentoring other women in science.

Prize winners receive an honorarium, meet with Vanderbilt faculty and deliver a Flexner Discovery Lecture. They also mentor Vanderbilt Prize Scholars, women who are pursuing graduate studies in the biomedical sciences in the School of Medicine.

Fuchs will receive the prize on March, 30, 2017, when she is scheduled to give a Flexner Discovery Lecture.

"Dr. Fuchs is a world leader in stem cell research and pioneered the approach of reverse genetics to decipher human diseases. In addition to her many contributions to our understanding of genetic diseases of the skin, she is an inspiring researcher who is a passionate mentor and advocate for careers in science for women," said Jeff Balser, M.D., Ph.D., President and CEO of Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and Dean of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. "I want to congratulate her as the recipient of this year's prize."

Fuchs grew up in a suburb of Chicago, majored in Chemistry at the University of Illinois, and earned her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Princeton University. As a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of the late Howard Green, M.D., at MIT, she studied the growth and differentiation of epidermal keratinocytes.

Her work there demonstrated that keratins - the fibrous structural proteins that protect epithelial cells from mechanical stress - were likely distinct proteins coming from different genes that were differentially expressed.

In 1980, Fuchs was recruited by the University of Chicago as the first woman faculty member in Biochemistry. There she was mentored by the late Janet Rowley, M.D., and Susan Lindquist, Ph.D., winner of the 2014 Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science, who died last month.

Fuchs' lab immediately set about to clone and sequence various keratin genes. It employed a reverse genetics approach, transgenic mice that expressed mutant genes, to elucidate the function of the normal keratin proteins.

One mutation resulted in a disease that resembled epidermolysis bullosa simplex (EBS), a human skin disease characterized by severe blistering. Skin biopsies from EBS patients confirmed that the disease resulted from keratin mutations.

While at the University of Chicago, Fuchs began studies that led to her current focus - how multipotent stem cells of mammalian skin give rise to the epidermis and hair follicles. After moving to Rockefeller University in 2002, her team developed a way to fluorescently tag these slow-proliferating cells.

The approach yielded insights into normal tissue formation and wound repair, and malignant transformation as well. In 2011, her lab defined how stem cells can acquire mutations that go on to initiate squamous cell carcinoma, a type of skin cancer.

Fuchs has received numerous honors for her scientific achievements, including the National Medal of Science from the National Science Foundation and the E.B. Wilson Medal from the American Society for Cell Biology. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In 2010 she received the L'Oreal-UNESCO Award in the Life Sciences. The award recognizes outstanding women scientists who also have been a source of support, motivation and inspiration for other women in science.

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For a complete list of Vanderbilt Prize winners, go to https://medschool.vanderbilt.edu/dean and click on "Vanderbilt Prize."
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Certain medications are considered high risk in elders. In a recent study of 287 individuals ?65 years who experienced a fall while hospitalized at an urban academic hospital, 62 percent of falls occurred in patients in whom high risk medications had been administered within the 24 hours before the fall.

High risk medications were often administered at higher than recommended geriatric daily doses, in particular benzodiazepines and benzodiazepine-receptor agonists, for which the dose was higher than recommended in 57 percent of cases. The hospital's electronic medical record default doses for electronic prescribing were higher than recommended for 41 percent of medications that were examined.

"Before the widespread use of electronic prescribing, physicians had to consciously determine the appropriate drug dosage for an individual. This study highlights that with electronic prescribing, default doses do matter and lowering defaults for vulnerable patient groups such as elderly patients may be an easy way to reduce inappropriate use of high risk drugs for these patients", said Dr. Rosanne Leipzig, senior clinician-author of the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society study.

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Haiti - Elections : D-1, the PNH in maximum alert





At 24 hours of the date confirmed by the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) for the publication of the preliminary results of the elections of Sunday 20 November 2016 (Monday 28 November) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19345-haiti-flash-already-more-than-1-700-minutes-in-quarantine-presidential.html Camille Edouard Jr., Minister of Justice, said he was confident that all measures would be taken to avoid spillovers after the announcement of the results and that the police will be up to its task.



It indicates that all Public Prosecutor's Offices and the Haitian National Police (HNP) are on high alert, in order to prevent, intervene and repress if necessary lawbreakers.



While recognizing the right of people to peacefully protest, he recalled that the Electoral Decree prohibited any demonstration until the results were published. He remains convinced that "the population has the maturity to understand that we are in a democracy and that we are building a Rule of law [...]"



To see the repeated demonstrations of the supporters of Famni Lavalas since the elections, in violation of the Electoral Decree and with impunity, one can only wonder about the effectiveness of these announced measures, which aim to reassure a population worried about the possible consequences and violence, that these results can cause...



TB/ HaitiLibre


















By Joginder Singh

After the British left India on August 15, 1947, as a last pot-shot, they divided India into two parts  the predominant non-Muslims part was called India and the majority of Muslim-dominated areas were named Pakistan  the idea of which was floated by the Muslim fundamentalists. When the Constitution of India was framed, it made India into a secular state, though the partition of the country was done on the basis of Muslims and non-Muslims. This led to the bloodshed of 50 million non-Muslims, who were forced to migrate from Pakistan. It included my late grandfather Natha Singh and my father Mahant Kartar Singh, my mother Lajwanti and my two sisters (the killing two of my great-grandmothers did not matter to the framers of the Constitution) who were forced to migrate almost in the clothes they were wearing.

It may look short-sighted at present, but this was the biggest sign of liberalism and it showed that India treated all alike as Indians and not only as Hindus and Muslims.

Pakistan, in its first attack on Kashmir, put all the blame on tribal Muslims. If this argument is accepted even now, how could Pakistans citizens from far-flung areas be guided into Kashmir, without the active support of the their Government? Successive Governments in India, except the present one, treated Pakistan as a spoilt child, who will realise its follies and rectify itself. This situation exactly fits the spare the rod and spoil the child . So far, India has been pampering Pakistan, despite its victories. Pakistan has been using religion in India, to create inter-religious trouble and Hindu and Muslim tensions through the Inter-Services Intelligence and the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). It is worthwhile to note that nearly one-third of the Muslim population of British India remained in India after the partition of India.

The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) 2016, published by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), found that 29,376 people died from terrorism in 2015, According to it, India, last year, had the highest number of attacks since 2000. Since independence in 1947, India and Pakistan have been in four wars, including an undeclared one, and many border skirmishes and military stand-offs. The Kashmir issue has been the main cause, whether direct or indirect, of all major conflicts between the two countries  with the exception of the India-Pakistani war of 1971, where the conflict originated due to turmoil in the erstwhile East Pakistan, which resulted in the formation of Bangladesh.

The war of 1971 was unique in the way that it did not involve the issue of Kashmir, but was rather precipitated by the crisis created by the political battle brewing in East Pakistan and the western part of that country. This culminated in the formation of Bangladesh. Following the Pakistani atrocities on the people in East Pakistan, 10 million Bengalis in the region took refuge in neighbouring India. India retaliated, first demanding an end to the atrocities and then launching an military offensive.

The Indian Army quickly responded to the Pakistan Armys movements in the west and made some initial gains, including capturing around 5,795 square miles (15,010 km) of Pakistani territory (land gained by India in Pakistani Kashmir, Pakistani Punjab and Sind. This war saw the highest number of casualties in any of the India-Pakistan conflicts, as well as the largest number of prisoners of war, when 90,000 Pakistan Army and civilians surrendered. In the words of one Pakistani author, Pakistan lost half its Navy, a quarter of its Air Force and a third of its Army. I, like millions of other Indians, was foxed as to why Indira Gandhi surrendered in 1972 to Pakistan in the agreement at Simla. This was the best opportunity to make Pakistan a lame-duck nation. It has been rightly said that, those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat.

As per a newspaper report, the return of Pakistani prisoners of war without conditions, was done as a gesture of goodwill. But the magnanimity gave an impression to Pakistan that India was a weak nation that does not the courage to even exploit its gains, let alone retaliate. Not only have there been conflicts later, but Pakistan has been using terrorists attacks to demoralise India, despite India being generous in returning its territory and 90,000 prisoners of war.

Despite being thrashed, Pakistan has been repeatedly using terrorists to attack Indians on Indian soil, to damage the social fabric of this nation, and desecrate the bodies of our soldiers. Such a nation does not deserve any mercy. Traitors of this country, meanwhile, deserve only the death sentence, or at the very least a life sentence, rather than a couple of years behind bars, after which they are out on bail. As the recent Bhopal jail-break incident showed, the accused were hardened criminals who had repeatedly got away. They had killed a police Head Constable. There were several other attacks too by them. Eventually they were gunned down.

(The writer is former Director, Central Bureau of Investigation)

Source : Daily Pioneer
Beijing : China has ordered all residents in its Muslim-majority Xinjiang province to surrender their passports in a bid to maintain social order and prevent them from moving abroad, days after the Communist nation tightened rules to suppress religious freedom in the restive region.

The northwestern Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has tightened passport regulations, requiring all residents to hand in their passports to local police for examination and management, state-run Global Times reported on Thursday.

All citizens in Aksu prefecture are required to hand their passports  private or official  to local police stations, the daily reported quoting an anonymous police officer.

Anyone who needs the passport must apply to the police station, the official said, adding that the new passport management policy is implemented throughout Xinjiang.

The Public Security Bureau in Shihezi city gave the same directive last month saying it was for annual examination purposes. Those who refuse to hand in their passports should bear the responsibility themselves if they are forbidden from going abroad, the directive said.

A resident from Kashar city, bordering Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), told the daily she received a call asking her to hand over her passport to police. She said her husbands passport application was denied by the police a few days ago.

A local official told the daily that Xinjiang government had loosened control over residents passports in 2015. The new policy is aimed at maintaining social order, he said.

The latest directive follows an order reported Wednesday, requiring all residents to report to authorities all religious activities, including circumcision, weddings and funerals.

Getting a passport is often complicated and takes more time in Xinjiang than in other provinces, given the increased threat of terrorism in the region and the governments ongoing

anti-terrorism campaign, an official in the province said.

The passport policy also comes amid steady migration of Uyghurs, Turkik-speaking Muslims to Turkey and other nations.

According to reports, hundreds of Uyghur youths have been fighting along with the Islamic State group in Syria, and China believes that the battle-hardened militants may return to cause more violence in the troubled province.

The resource-rich Xinjiang, bordering PoK and Afghanistan, has been on the boil for more than six years as the local Uyghur Muslims are upset over over the increasing settlement of Han Chinese from other provinces.

The province has witnessed some of the most deadly terrorist attacks, officially blamed on East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), which was previously linked to the al-Qaeda but now has declared its allegiance to Islamic State.

ETIM was blamed for a suicide attack on the Chinese Embassy in Kyrgyzstan in September.

Source : News 18
On reading the summary of the Yale Law School report documenting the Criminalization of the Homeless in Connecticut, I reacted with some thoughts about Santa Cruz. Both my thoughts and the news report summarizing the report I post below. Also included are links to the Executive Summary and the full report.

NOTES BY NORSE: Yale Law School eggheads and privileged pundits are just now getting around to acknowledging the basics. This is what poor people have known for centuries, Santa Cruz HUFF activists raged about for decades, and the National Law Center for Homelessness and Poverty has been issuing reports on year-after-year--the outrageous, cruel, hypocritical, and oblivious treatment of those outside.Meanwhile in Santa Cruz a wet cold winter is upon us replete with buffed up Park Ranger Bullies and Surveillance Cameras passed to the tune of $200,000+ [item #16 on last Tuesday's Council agenda] No City Council emergency funding is being released to deal with the long-declared Shelter Emergency. We hear nary a peep of protest from the local ACLU or the recycled "Brand New Council" electeds Krohn and S. Brown. There's no follow-up from the Trump-panicked protesters who surprisingly appeared en masse showed up at City Council Tuesday.There's little more than the thin promise of "more money down the road" from out-going City Council still presided over by the newly-elected "Two Minute" Mathews. After nearly two months, the "no time for public comment" Mayor has still not responded to simple requests for itemizing funding allegedly being spent on homeless services.The City Council has snubbed community activist Warming Center initiatives and proceeded to paper over the pain by assigning the ill-prepared and miniscule Association of Faith Communities with no formal input from the unhoused community that the 50-person shelter throughout December is funded to serve.Meanwhile Kevin Vogel's SCPD continues to stonewall in the face of subdued but persistent community outrage against the murder of Sean Arlt, refusing to release audio, video, and killer officer name, much less file charges against the shooter(s) for manslaughter (at the very least). And even the bright-and-shiny 21st Century policing posturing Sheriff's Department headed by Jim Hart is only releasing partial video of its latest gundown of 4"-knife wielding Luke Smith in the sacred name of "officer safety". Unable to jacket Smith with a criminal history, the spinmeisters are bemoaning "mental illness" as their latest excuse for institutionalized police brutality--a new scapegoat to cover up the same old juggernaut. And the community is supposed to heal instead of bringing the uniformed criminals to justice.City Manager Martin Bernal continues to stall on releasing Public Records documenting the surveillance devices placed, funded, and regularly used by city authorities with no local Snowden or Manning to raise the issue. Records demanded a year ago to investigate claims of race and class profiling and harassment are still tightly withheld by subordinates.Next Saturday December 3rd, Community Control of Police advocates will be gathering at the Town Clock at 1:30 PM to demand the release of records and action to hold shooters accountable.And harassment of RV dwellers sheltering themselves against blistering winter weather continues in the Coastal zone of the City and County. This in spite of the Coastal Commission's August decision turning down "Squeeze 'em Out" Scott Collins' RV ban. While the local Coastal Commission staff is "investigating" the County's unlawful issuing of citations to those whose only shelter is their RV, the staff acknowledges it is actually working to do what it did with City officials--find a way to legally ban RV's at night so as to drive the poor away.Criminalizing the poor and covering over the crimes of those who get paid to who do so is still business-as-usual in Santa Cruz.YALE LAW SCHOOL RELEASES ITS REPORTReport Documents the Criminalization of HomelessnessThe Allard K. Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic at Yale Law School has released a new report titled Forced into Breaking the Law: The Criminalization of Homelessness in Connecticut. The report examines how Connecticuts homeless residents face the threat of criminal sanctions for simply existing.The report also documents how Connecticut city ordinances, such as those prohibiting loitering, panhandling, and sleeping in public, punish people for performing necessary, life-sustaining functions, which effectively criminalizes homelessness itself. It further outlines how the criminalization of homelessness violates state, federal, and international law.The release of the report coincides with National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week and the launch of the national Housing Not Handcuffs campaign, organized by National Coalition for the Homeless and the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, which aims to end the criminalization of homelessness.Laws criminalizing activities that people experiencing homelessness must engage in to survive constitute cruel and unusual punishment and restrict fundamental civil liberties, such as free speech and privacy rights, said Hillary Vedvig 17, a student author of the report. These laws are also enforced arbitrarily and discriminatorily against people experiencing homelessness as well as against people of color, transgender people, and people with disabilities living on the street.The report also demonstrates the ways in which local ordinances that criminalize homelessness are unnecessary, counterproductive, costly, and out of line with Connecticut values. Enforcing laws that ban people from asking for money or lingering in a park square through unaffordable citations, or even arrest, does not address the root problems of homelessness, said Nate Fox of the Warburton Resource, Outreach and Collaboration Center at Center Church in Hartford, who collaborated with the Clinic on this report. Instead citations and arrests only make it harder to get back on your feet.This report sheds light on a system that, through small actions by many actors, puts Connecticuts most vulnerable people in a detrimental cycle of policing, homelessness, and poverty, added Scout Katovich 17, another student author of the report.The report documents the harms people experiencing homelessness suffer at the hands of the criminal justice system every day. People interviewed for the report described receiving citations for loitering while waiting on the corner for a shelter to open. Just for asking for a few dollars, individuals face $99 fines under anti-panhandling ordinances, according to the report.Initial contact with the criminal justice system often escalates and results in a downward spiral, students said. If people are too poor to pay their fine, they must contest the ticket in court. But those interviewed for the report faced high barriers to showing up on their court date. For instance, many people never received notice of their court dates because they did not have an address or lacked transportation to get to court.Failure to pay the fine or go to court can result in arrest and incarceration, making it even more difficult to obtain housing and employment. In this way, the criminalization of homelessness further entrenches a cycle of homelessness, poverty, and criminalization, the report argues.Even when they are not fined or arrested, Connecticuts homeless are constantly told to move, resulting in a pervasive sense of insecruity, students said. As Thomas, a man interviewed for the report who has experienced homelessness in New Britain, remarked: When they make all your activities illegal, then theres nowhere for you to go.If Connecticut is serious about criminal justice reform and eradicating homelessness, it must stop criminalizing homelessness, said Allison Frankel 17, another student author. The Lowenstein Clinic urges Connecticut cities to immediately stop enforcing laws that criminalize homelessness and encourages state and local officials to focus on policies that will put people experiencing homelessness into housing, not handcuffs.The Allard K. Lowenstein International Human Rights Clinic is a legal clinic at Yale Law School that undertakes projects on behalf of human rights organizations and individual victims of human rights abuses.On-line link https://www.law.yale.edu/yls-today/news/report-documents-criminalization-homelessness Full report: https://www.law.yale.edu/system/files/documents/pdf/news/criminalization_of_homelessness_report_for_web_full_report.pdf Executive summary: https://www.law.yale.edu/system/files/documents/pdf/news/criminalization_of_homelessness_report_for_web_executive_summary.pdf
A youth has admitted going berserk and attacking gardai after he stole live exotic animals which had been part of a wildlife exhibition at a library in Dublin.

The 17-year-old boy pleaded guilty at the Dublin Children's Court to stealing a Rhino iguana valued 1,600, a Mexican Red Knee tarantula spider which cost 85 and an Asian forest scorpion that was worth 65 from the Lucan library on July 21 last.

He also admitted attacking a male Garda sergeant as well as a male garda and a female garda on the same date at the two locations nearby on the same date.

Judge John O'Connor adjourned sentencing the youth for a probation report to be prepared and to see if the victims wanted to give impact statements. I don't know what he was on or what he was doing but it wasn't right, Judge O'Connor said, adding that it was a very serious incident.

Garda Sergeant Paul Moran said a wildlife lecture had taken place at the library and some exotic animals were on display. Afterwards the lecturer and owner of the animals David Griffin was bringing them back to his car via a lift in the building. He put the boxes in a lift but the door close and it descended to the car-park without him.

When the door opened at the bottom, the accused removed the box containing the creatures and left, said Gda Sgt Moran. They were not dangerous or poisonous, he said.

Gardai watched the CCTV footage and the teenager, who was already known to them, was contacted.

While other gardai and the owners of the exotic creatures were out searching, the youth returned the iguana and the scorpion but the tarantula was still missing. Later that day, gardai found the youth at a park in Lucan carrying a plastic box.

There was a short foot chase and he was caught at which point the spider was recovered. Gda Sgt Moran said the youth just went berserk and began kicking and lashing out at gardai.

"He kicked out and head butted a garda sergeant in the chest and his behaviour was so irrational that an incapacitant spray had to be used, Gda Sgt Moran said.

The youth, who has no prior criminal convictions, was then placed in a garda car and spat at one officer and tried to head butt a female garda. Gda Sgt Moran said the accused was out of control when he arrived at Lucan Garda station and it took an hour and a half for him to calm down.

Judge O'Connor said the incident must have been appalling for the gardai involved and the taking of the creatures was certainly not for their welfare. He described the assaults as very serious.

None of animals were harmed, the court heard.

The court was told the boy was intoxicated at the time but it was Gda Sgt Moran's belief that the youth had not just alcohol taken.

Defence counsel Damian McKeone told the court that the theft was purely opportunistic and the youth was extremely drunk at the time. He had been waiting to get in the lift when the door opened and the animals were inside on their own.

Counsel said. It was a bizarre scene - an iguana was sitting on top of a box in the lift. The youth was surprised at seeing the exotic animals on their own and carried them out, the barrister said.

Mr McKeone said a psychiatric report on the youth is being prepared in connection with another case.

The teenager, who was accompanied to court by his mother, also pleaded guilty to other theft and criminal damage incidents.

The court heard that on April 25 last he stole eight cans of lager from a shop in Temple Bar in Dublin and on a date in July he ripped up a mattress in a garda station cell. He remains on bail pending sentencing.
Independent Alliance Minister Finian McGrath has described the death of Fidel Castro as a very sad day and claimed many of the human rights abuses spoken of were exaggerated, writes Daniel McConnell, Political Editor.

Mr McGrath, who travelled to Cuba during the Castro regime, said Castro oversaw many positive developments.

He said President Michael D Higgins was correct in his sympathetic comments in a statement issued in the wake of Castros passing at the age of 90.

Mr McGrath added that the President was merely reflecting the view of a large amount of Irish people.

The Aras tonight confirmed that the President will sign a book of condolences for Castro at the Cuban Embassy tomorrow morning on Pearse Street in Dublin.

Mr Higgins has been accused of airbrushing over the tyrannical dictatorship of Fidel Castro in a statement marking his death at the weekend.

There has been an angry response to President Higgins after he described Castro as a giant among global leaders whose view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet.

A spokesman for President Higgins issued a statement to the Irish Examiner.

The Presidents statement clearly referred to the price paid for social and economic development in terms of civil society and the criticisms it brought. This obviously and unambiguously included the Human Rights organisations and activists who have always had the support of the President, the statement said.

Any suggestion that the President neglected Human Rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted. The President has discussed Human Rights concerns with representatives of the Government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland, and elsewhere, the spokesman said.

Mr McGrath said he wanted to issue his sincerest sympathies to the Cuban people.

It is a very sad day, he said adding that he totally respects the position taken by President Higgins and supports it fully.

Castros legacy in Cuba is positive one, he said.

He continued that in his view, having visited Cuba, some comments made yesterday about the extent of human rights abuse have been greatly exaggerated.

He said Castro was the product of a viscious revolution in 1947 and while Castro had his flaws like everyone else, his impact on Cuba was largely positive. He accused history revisionists of trying to re-write the story of Castros Cuba.

Mr McGrath said on RTE Radio that major progress in human rights in the past 20 years.

Of course there were times where people were not people treated in the proper way. Everybody has their flaws. There were restrictions to society in Cuba, I accept that, he said.

Human rights groups like Amnesty International said from their view, Castro was guilty of significant human rights abuses and his record as a dictator must be considered in full.

Colm OGorman, head of Amnesty International in Ireland, stopped short of directing the President directly but said the abuses under Castro were clear.

Fianna Fails Foreign Affairs spokesman Darragh OBrien also described Castro as a political giant but said the Presidents message lacked balance which he disagreed with. He said Castro had ruled unelected over a one-party state where there was no opposition.

The Presidents statement was not as balanced as it could have been. There were no elections in Cuba, a one party State. In this instance, like in others, he should be called out, Mr OBrien said.
Pope Francis will make a ground-breaking visit to Northern Ireland when he travels to Ireland in 2018, Northern Ireland's Deputy First Minister has predicted.

Within moments of the Pontiff confirming a widely-expected trip to Dublin for a global gathering of the Catholic Church, Martin McGuinness said there was "no prospect" of him not crossing the border.

"I think there is no prospect whatsoever of him coming to Ireland and him not coming to the North," he said.

Asked how why he was so sure, he replied: "Because I'm around a long time and I know how these things work."

Great news that @Pontifex to visit Ireland in 2018,I believe he would receive a very warm welcome throughout the island.  Martin McGuinness (@M_McGuinness_SF) November 28, 2016

Pope John Paul II was unable to cross the border into Northern Ireland during the last papal visit in 1979.

Instead, amid a welter of security fears and cross-community tensions, the then pope travelled as far as Drogheda, just south of the border, for a huge audience.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny confirmed Pope Francis would travel to Ireland in August 2018 after a 23-minute meeting with him in the Vatican on Monday morning.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny discussed past "difficulties" that he had with the Church during his private meeting with Pope Francis pic.twitter.com/0rYnxOmnuA  Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) November 28, 2016

Dublin is hosting the two-day World Meeting of Families, a gathering of the church.

After his audience with the Pope in the Apostolic Palace, Mr Kenny tweeted: "Pope Francis has been an important voice for the young, the poor & disadvantaged - glad he will visit Ireland in 2018."

Pope Francis has been an important voice for the young, the poor & disadvantaged - glad he will visit Ireland in 2018 pic.twitter.com/vSn16otMAA  Enda Kenny (@EndaKennyTD) November 28, 2016

Later, he told reporters: "We discussed what he might do and obviously that is a matter for His Holiness and the bishops and if that means that he also travels to Northern Ireland, then we will co-operate and assist in whatever arrangements are arrived at."
There has been a call for President Michael D Higgins to apologise for remarks he made in a statement following the death of Fidel Castro.

It included a description of the former Cuban President as a "giant among global leaders".

Mr Higgins office yesterday insisted any suggestion that the statement neglected human rights concerns was "unwarranted".

President Higgins is expected to sign a book of condolence at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse Street at 9am this morning.

A book of condolence will be opened in the Mansion House in Dublin today and tomorrow for former Cuban president Fidel Castro.

A statement issued on Sunday said: "Any suggestion that the President neglected human rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted.

"The President has discussed human rights concerns with representatives of the government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland and elsewhere.

"In all of his speeches on human rights the President has emphasised the universality of human rights and has never shirked from the presentation of that view."

On Saturday Mr Higgins said Fidel Castro would be remembered as a giant among global leaders whose "view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet".

His spokesman added: "The Presidents statement clearly referred to the price paid for social and economic development in terms of civil society and the criticisms it brought. This obviously and unambiguously included the human rights organisations and activists who have always had the support of the President.

"The President made a further reference to civil society later in his statement in the context of the opportunities provided by restoration of diplomatic relations with the United States, and the response which has come from the visit of Pope Francis. The President was here referring to the release of prisoners.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Charlie Flanagan said President Higgins was "entitled" to make his own views known about Mr Castro.

He told RTE the former Cuban leader was a complex figure with a mixed legacy.

Mr Flanagan said: "I very much respect the right, in the first instance, but also the view of Michael D Higgins.

"If you go back over the last 40 years, no one in Irish politics has done so much work or had such a level of association with Latin American politics than Michael D Higgins himself."

Speaking on the same programme, Fianna Fails spokesman on foreign affairs, Darragh OBrien, said Mr Higgins statement was not as balanced as it could have been.

Gerry Adams meeting Fidel Castro in 2001

Meanwhile, Sinn Fein said its President, Gerry Adams, intended to fly to Cuba for the funeral.

Mr Adams said: "Fidel Castro was a global leader and a good friend of the Irish people.

"I am proud and honoured to travel to Cuba to represent Sinn Fein, as we remember Fidel Castro."
Update 11pm: Junior Minister John Halligan has defended President Michael D Higgins over his praise for the regime of Fidel Castro.

The President today signed a book of condolence for the former Cuban leader "on behalf of the people of Ireland".

Mr Halligan said that that while the Cuban regime had human rights violations, it also improved the standard of living.

You have to remember where the Cuban regime came from  a terrible dictatorship of Batista, run by criminals and the mafia in America, he said.

So anything was better than that.

And if you look at their health system, their education system, their numeracy and literacy, its quite good, and I think thats what he was referring to.

President Michael D Higgins has signed a book of condolence at the Cuban embassy in Dublin for former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Writing in the book, President Higgins expressed his sympathies on behalf of the people of Ireland.

"On behalf of the people of Ireland to express their sympathies to the people of Cuba on the passing of former head of State Fidel Castro Ruiz."

He also wrote a short message in Spanish.

Here's what Michael D wrote in book of condolence for Fidel Castro pic.twitter.com/fQxMonCo6U  Sean Defoe (@SeanDefoe) November 28, 2016

It follows a call for the President to apologise for remarks he made in a statement following the death of Castro.

On Saturday Mr Higgins said Fidel Castro would be remembered as a "giant among global leaders" whose "view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet".

Mr Higgins office yesterday insisted any suggestion that the statement neglected human rights concerns was "unwarranted".

A second book of condolence will be opened at the Mansion House by the Lord Mayor Brendan Carr from 11am.
South African President Jacob Zuma is fighting for his presidency in the capital Pretoria as the ruling party's highest decision-making body considers a motion for him step down.

The meeting of the National Executive Committee of the ruling African National Congress was due to end on Sunday, but was extended so that each of the 80 members could state their position on whether or not Mr Zuma should continue as president.
Agriculture Minister Michael Creed also confirmed 23 convictions have been secured to date.

The highest number of convictions were recorded in Cork and Meath at four each, with two in Wicklow, Donegal and Roscommon since the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 was introduced in 2014. Single convictions have been recorded in Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Dublin, Galway, Kilkenny, Louth, Waterford, and Westmeath.

The most recent animal welfare case came before Ennis District Court last week where eight horses were left to starve to death on farmland.

In the case, 79-year-old bachelor farmer, Thomas ONeill must pay the department costs of over 14,000 in removing the starving horses and carcasses from his farm. Department of Agriculture official Aileen Tighe told how she came across eight horse carcasses on a farm owned by Mr ONeill. She told the court she was quite shocked at the state of the animals when first inspecting the farm in January of this year.

Ms Tighe said there were 46 horses running wild on two parcels of land owned by Mr ONeill with a number being emaciated.

Ms Tighe said she first visited the farm on January 8 on foot a complaint and saw the land was completely bare where the horses were.

There was no grass whatsoever and the horses had started to graze the bushes because no grass was available and that is something I had never seen that before.

Ms Tighe said she arranged feed for the horses and served notice on Mr ONeill concerning the horses welfare. Ms Tighe carried out a number of visits to the land in January and February.

In February, she saw eight carcasses of horses that had died in the previous month, the carcasses of two other animals that had died some time ago, and bones strewn across the land. Ms Tighe said it cost the department 14,022 to have all of the horses removed from the farm and an additional 397 for the remains of the dead horses to be removed.

In the case at Ennis District Court, Thomas ONeill of Caherea, Lissycasey, pleaded guilty to five separate animal neglect charges.

Mr ONeill  who turns 80 next month  pleaded guilty to four separate charges between January 8 or January 21 of failing to supply to the animals a quantity of wholesome food sufficient to satisfy the reasonable requirements of the animals at Phoulaphuca, Ballynacally and Caherea, Lissycasey.

Mr ONeill  who required a crutch to get in and out of court  has also pleaded guilty to permit the carcass or carcasses of an animal or part of an animal to be on the his land on February 19 at Caherea, Lissycasey. Solicitor for Mr ONeill, Daragh Hassett, said it was a very sad case and made for very grim reading.

He said Mr ONeill lives in squalor himself and has lived a life of seclusion. Mr Hassett said the Department of Agriculture acted very professionally in the case.

He said Mr ONeill has already de-stocked the lands and has agreed to lease his farm to another man.

He added: The lands have been destocked and Mr ONeill wont own as much as a cat or a dog again.

Judge Durcan said he wants Mr ONeill to fully compensate all of the money spent by the Dept in the case and adjourned the case to May 10 next for sentence.
Cork County Council has lodged an application for the development of a blueway under the Governments REDZ funding scheme.

If successful, the famed river will become the second Blueway in Cork, following on from the launch last July of the Ilen River BlueWay stretching from Baltimore to Skibbereen.

Provided REDZ approval is forthcoming, council officials say they will initiate a feasibility study examining how the project could be promoted and developed with relevant stakeholders.

Following completion of the study, a planning application will be submitted to enable delivery of the scheme.

The Blackwater, a top angling river, rises on the Cork-Kerry border and flows through the towns of Mallow and Fermoy before continuing through Co Waterford and the towns of Ballyduf, Lismore, and Cappoquin before finally entering the sea at Youghal.

Council officials said the completion of a study would ensure the local authority and all relevant stakeholders such as the National Blueway Steering Group and the county councils Tourism Directorate are shovel-ready for all future funding opportunities that may arise.

Blueways are regarded by Failte Ireland as being a significant added attraction for tourists to experience the area from the water and also to extend their stay.

A Blueway is a recreational water activity developed for use by non- motorised water activity enthusiasts.

They feature trail heads, with dedicated parking, craft loading and unloading areas, access and egress points and readily available trail information.

Cllr John Paul OShea said there is an array of voluntary groups and agencies involved in the River Blackwater who could play a vital role. We have a centre of excellence for angling in Kanturk, we are blessed to have a group like Mallow Search & Rescue based on the banks of the Blackwater and clubs such as the Fermoy Rowing Club which are all groups that should get involved in this process, he said.
The serious assault took place inside the womans flat at Hassetts Villas, Thomondgate, in the early hours of yesterday morning.

The woman, named locally as Simone Lee, aged 37, from Thomondgate, sustained burn marks to her face, neck, and torso, Garda sources said.

They could not rule out the possibility that acid may have been used, but they were also examining the possibility that boiling water was poured over her.

A 28-year-old man arrested on suspicion of attacking Ms Lee was being held at Henry Street Garda Station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.

The Garda source said he is known to Ms Lee but was not living in the flat with her.

Ms Lee was found inside her first-floor flat with burn marks, a stab wound in her back, and a deep cut to her head.

She had one stab wound to her back and she had quite a severe laceration to her forehead, said a source. The guy who apparently assaulted her was still there when the emergency services arrived at the flat.

Gardai and the emergency service first responders discovered Ms Lee lying on the floor, naked from the waist up, in a pair of wet jeans.

It looked like she had been there for some time, and according to the source, she was semi-conscious and massively hyperthermic.

The apartment block in Thomondgate, Limerick, where a woman was stabbed in the early hours of yesterday morning. Picture: Liam Burke/Press 22

Ms Lee was initially treated at the scene by paramedics and then rushed by ambulance to University Hospital Limerick, where she was in a critical but stable condition last night.

Her townhouse flat, a number of adjoining properties, and two roadway access points leading to the apartment block were sealed off ahead of a technical examination by Garda forensic officers today.

Shards of glass were visible on the street outside the flat and an upstairs window was smashed. It is believed an iron board was thrown through the window at the flat.

Gardai have yet to speak to Ms Lee but said they were keen to speak to anyone with information, and they are also investigating whether there were other people in the house during the savage assault.

Anyone with information can contact Mayorstone Garda station at 061 456980, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any station.
A recent audit of Millstreets water supply by the Environmental Protection Agency revealed that cryptosporidium  a parasite that causes gastroenteritis  had been detected on two dates in September.

The HSE said there had been no reported cases in the area of anyone suffering any illness associated with drinking infected water.

The EPA found there was no treatment facility in place to prevent against cryptosporidium during the inspection, despite the fact that an assessment of the Millstreet water supply in 2015 rated the risk of cryptosporidium as very high.

It has recommended that Irish Water should install an adequate barrier against the parasite to ensure the towns water supply is adequately disinfected at all times.

Irish Water needs to prioritise the installation of a cryptosporidium barrier in order to ensure the safety and security of Millstreet public water supply, said the EPA.

It has added the towns supply to its remedial action list because of the inadequate treatment for cryptosporidium.

The audit was carried out after the parasite was detected in the Millstreet water supply on September 20 and 28.

Three further reports of cryptosporidium were detected on dates in October since the EPA audit. Irish Water said an investigation into the cause of the infection was ongoing. It confirmed no unusual activities were found in the catchment area of the spring prior to the detection of cryptosporidium.

The EPA has instructed Irish Water to liaise with Cork County Council to ensure farm and septic tank inspections are carried out on houses near the spring.

It has also advised Irish Water to ensure the source is made secure and fenced off to prevent animal access and ensure that the gates are kept closed at all times.

The supply provides 2,200 cubic metres of water on a daily basis to a population of 3,800 in the Millstreet area.

It is mostly sourced from the Tubrid spring which is an uncovered spring source.

Although located on privately-owned land, it is accessed by members of the public who regard it as a holy well. The source is also potentially accessible to birds and other animals.

The EPA said visitors to the holy well would not realise it is the main source of drinking water for Millstreeet. Drinking water supplies for Millstreet are disinfected by chlorination and fluoridation.

Irish Water installed an ultra-violet transmittance monitor in May to collect background data but the company said a years monitoring was generally required to design a barrier for cryptosporidium. The company admitted the monitor had been offline periodically since it was installed.
The President caused controversy after describing Castro as a giant among global leaders, whose view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet.

Mr Higgins was accused of airbrushing over the tyrannical dictatorship.

However, in a move to quell the furore, a statement was issued to the Irish Examiner by his spokesman.

Any suggestion that the President neglected human rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted. The President has discussed human rights concerns with representatives of the government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland, and elsewhere, the spokesman said.

The Aras last night said the President will sign a book of condolences for Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St this morning.

Independent Alliance minister Finian McGrath described the death of Castro as a very sad day and claimed many of the human rights abuses spoken of were exaggerated.

Mr McGrath, who travelled to Cuba during the Castro regime, said Castro oversaw many positive developments, and he wanted to issue his sincerest sympathies to the Cuban people.

However, Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin last night said: The President could have been more balanced in his assessment of Castro.

He was a major historical figure but he was a very authoritarian leader who didnt accept dissent. He suppressed freedom of speech and did not tolerate political opposition. That cannot be airbrushed out of history.

Mr Martin criticised Mr McGraths comments as being over the top.

I was very taken aback by Finians comments, said Mr Martin. I think they were just not in the land of reality, to be frank. I thought he was ignoring the reality of the Castro regime, primarily because it was a failed economic regime, reliant on Russian subsidies.

The Cuban government has declared nine days of mourning for Castro. His ashes will be carried across the island from Havana to the eastern city of Santiago in a procession retracing his rebel armys victorious sweep from the Sierra Maestra to the capital.

Castros death was announced on Friday night on state television by his younger brother and successor as president, Raul.

Music fell silent, weddings were cancelled, and people wept in the streets the next day as Cubans faced their first day without the leader who steered their island to greater social equality and years of economic ruin.

However, in Miami, the heart of the US Cuban diaspora, thousands banged pots with spoons, waved Cuban and US flags, and whooped in jubilation
Vista Gold Corp. (TSX: VGZ) ("Vista", the "Company," "we" or "our") today announced the results of process area optimization studies that have the potential to enhance the project economics for the Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia. The anticipated economic improvements are the result of process flowsheet changes that are expected to produce higher gold recoveries and lower process area operating costs. Testing indicates that these objectives can be accomplished through selectively screening and rejecting sub-economic, coarse crusher product prior to grinding; resulting in opportunities for improved gold recovery through finer grinding and improved operating costs down-stream of the grinding circuit.

A conference call with management to discuss the results of the Mt Todd gold project optimization studies is scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 2:00 pm MST.

Summary of Process Area Optimization Results

Earlier this year, Vista completed an independent review of the Mt Todd gold project. The combined input of the independent consultants and the project management team resulted in additional comminution and metallurgical recovery evaluations. These evaluations assessed opportunities to selectively remove below cut-off grade material from the process circuit after crushing. This results in less material being processed in the grinding and leaching circuits. The reduction in material results in excess grinding capacity which can be used to achieve a finer grind size in the final product and a corresponding increase in gold recovery for the remaining portion of the leach feed. Achieving the finer grind size is not expected to materially change the total grinding costs. Most importantly, the higher gold recovery is expected to increase cash flow, while the leaching, cyanide detoxification and tailings management costs are expected to decrease as a result of the reduction in the volume of material processed.

We completed size distribution and assay analysis of the high pressure grinding rolls ("HPGR") crusher product. This indicates that screening the HPGR crusher product at 5/8" produces an oversize product that accounts for 15-20% of the weight, but contains only 7-9% of the gold. Subsequently, we completed test work with Tomra Sorting Solutions, Inc. ("TOMRA") at their facilities in Germany to evaluate the recovery of sulfide/quartz/calcite-bearing material using Laser Reflection/Fluorescence and X-ray Transmission ("XRT") automated sorting techniques. This test work indicates that approximately 85% of the gold in this oversize fraction can be efficiently recovered with a return of 30-40% of the weight. We expect this to translate into an 11.5% reduction in material to be processed in the grinding/leaching circuits with a 1.6% loss in gold coming from the elimination of sub-economic material from the process stream.

If there is an 11.5% reduction in material passing to the grinding circuit, we expect to achieve a final grind size of 80% passing ("P80") 75 microns ("m"), approximately 17% finer than the final grind size used in our May 2013 PFS of 90 m. Test work confirms that at a P80 75 m grind size, we can expect to achieve gold recoveries in the range of 83-84%, up from the 81.7% reported in the May 2013 PFS.

Vista's President & CEO, Frederick H. Earnest commented, "The process improvements that we have identified have the potential to generate lower operating costs and better gold recoveries without adding materially to the capital costs of the project. These improvements, coupled with the current US dollar to Australian dollar exchange rate have the potential to produce a significant improvement in project economics. We are now evaluating an update of our preliminary feasibility study."

Detailed Discussion of Metallurgical Testing Program Results

Mt Todd Deposit Geology

The Mt Todd deposit is hosted by a silicified sequence of greywackes, siltstones and shales. This host is cross-cut (nearly perpendicular to the bedding planes) by two different series of quartz and calcite veins. The injection of quartz- and calcite-rich solution provided the transportation mechanism for the gold and other sulfide minerals found in the deposit. The gold in the Mt Todd deposit is associated with the veining and occurrence of sulfide minerals, and is found only in small concentrations (likely the result of micro-fracturing) in the host rock. The quartz/calcite veining is pervasive throughout the deposit with vein thicknesses running from a couple of millimeters to several centimeters. Vein density can vary from 3-4 to 10-15 veins per meter. Selective assaying was completed to assess the presence of gold exclusively in the veins and/or sulfides compared to the host rock. Selective samples submitted to Pine Creek Labs in Pine Creek, Northern Territory, Australia indicated that carefully selected veins and sulfide samples contained 0.16-41.4 grams Au/tonne of sample compared to 0.05-0.46 grams Au/tonne of sample for the host rock. The relatively small proportions of vein/sulfide material account for the average grade of the deposit, and at the same time highlight the value of efforts to separate the host rock from the gold-bearing veins and sulfides.

HPGR Product Screen-size and Gold Distribution Analysis

In 2012, we prepared two bulk samples representative of the Mt Todd deposit using metallurgical core dispersed across the deposit (identified as M1 and M3). These two samples were sent to Thysen Krupp Industrial Solutions' HPGR testing facilities in Germany for HPGR crushing tests. A total of approximately two tonnes of material between the two composites was crushed. The HPGR crushed material was returned to Vista for subsequent metallurgical testing. Using HPGR crushed material from these two composites, we undertook studies to evaluate the amount of material and amount of gold contained in various screen size fractions. The results of this analysis are summarized in the following table. This work (including the subsequent sample prep) was completed by Resource Development Inc. of Wheatridge, Colorado ("RDi") with assaying completed by Florin Analytical Services in Reno, Nevada.

M1 Sample M3 Sample Wt% Au (g/mt) %

Distribution

Au Cumulative

Au Passing Au (g/mt)

in Screen

Undersize Wt% Au

(g/mt) %

Distribution

Au Cumulative

Au Passing Au (g/mt)

in Screen

Undersize Feed 100 0.92 100 ----- ----- 100 0.79 100 ----- ----- +7/8" 6.6 0.71 5.1 94.9 0.93 4.3 0.67 3.7 96.3 0.79 7/8" x 5/8" 13.1 0.53 7.5 87.4 1.00 11.7 0.4 6 90.3 0.85 5/8" x 3/8" 19.8 1.19 25.8 61.6 0.93 17.2 0.87 19.1 71.2 0.84 3/8" x 1/4" 12.6 0.92 12.7 48.9 0.93 12.7 0.72 11.7 59.5 0.87 -1/4" 47.9 0.93 48.9 ----- ----- 54.1 0.87 59.5 ----- -----

Based on this data and with some understanding of the minimum size requirements for selective automated sorting we determined that the 5/8" screen oversize provided a meaningful volume of material for our testing to evaluate selective sorting and rejection. This size was also selected because it is reasonable to expect that screening can be effectively achieved at this size in a full scale operation. Physical observation of the +5/8" material indicated visually identifiable portions of vein material and sulfide material. It was noted that the majority of the 5/8" material showed no visual indications of veining or sulfides.

Automated Sorting Testing

Automated sorting is employed by many industries, and in the gold sector the Coeur Kensington mine is successfully operating an automated sorting circuit to recover higher grade ore before wasting the rejects. Many different sensors are used today in sorting, including but not limited to: Optical, Laser, XRT, Near Infrared, Visible light, Electromagnetic, and Color. A sample of +5/8" oversize material was sent to TOMRA's mining sorting division for testing. Testing was performed under the supervision of Outotec personnel using XRT and Laser sorting sensors. Testing indicates that a combination of XRT and Laser sorting methods could effectively identify the material containing quartz/calcite veining and/or sulfide material for subsequent removal using automated air sorting technology. A larger sorting test is planned to verify the promising indicative results. The following table summarizes the results of test work completed by TOMRA under Outotec supervision at TOMRA's mining sorting division in Germany.

Grade % Distribution Wt % Gold (g

Au/mt) Total Sulfur (%) Gold Sulfur Average Feed (Calculated) 100% 1.98 0.84 100% 100% Average Product 35.6% 4.80 2.10 86.1% 88.6% Average Waste 64.4% 0.43 0.15 13.9% 11.4%

Grind-size/Recovery Testing

As part of the comprehensive metallurgical testing completed in 2012, we completed grind size optimization studies. Those studies indicated that a P80 of 90 m was the optimum grind size. At that time we recognized that finer grinding could result in higher gold recoveries, but the additional capital (i.e. larger mills) and power could not be justified to achieve the incremental increase in gold recovery. With the successful completion of the screening and automated sorting tests, we evaluated the relative advantages of down-sizing the mills to match the expected throughput compared to maintaining the mill size and grinding to a finer size.

As part of the recent testing, we completed grinding tests to achieve an initial product with a P80 of 90 m. This product was subsequently screened to assess the relative proportion of material at size fractions from 100 mesh to minus 400 mesh. This screen analysis indicated that 40-50% of the ground material was minus 400 mesh and 10-20% of the material was plus 200 mesh. RDi completed an analysis of the energy requirements to grind to a finer size and determined that the ball mills selected for the project in the 2013 PFS, operating with 11.5% less feed from the crushers would be able to successfully produce a product with a P80 of 75 m without any additional power demand. Based on grind-size and leach recovery work completed in 2012 and work recently completed by RDi, we expect that total recoveries in the range of 83-84% can be achieved with mill product with a P80 of 75 m.

Evaluation of Potential to Incorporate 2-Stage HPGR Crushing

In addition to the foregoing work, we prepared additional core composite samples and sent them to KCA in Reno, Nevada for additional HPGR testing. We conducted a testing program to evaluate the potential to achieve significant additional size reduction through 2-stage HPGR crushing. The objective of the program was to evaluate the potential to achieve sufficiently fine ball mill feed that even finer grinding, and hence higher gold recoveries, could be achieved. At this time we are not convinced that the additional capital and operating costs of 2-stage HPGR crushing can be justified by the results, but additional testing is contemplated.

Qualified Person

Dr. Deepak Malhotra, of Resource Development Inc., is a Qualified Person as defined under Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this news release.

Management Conference Call

A conference call with management to discuss the results of the Mt Todd gold project optimization studies is scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 2:00 pm MST.

Event Title: Vista Gold's Mt Todd Gold Project Optimization Update

Toll-free in North America: 1-866-233-5249

International: 416-642-3300

This call will also be web-cast and can be accessed at the following web location: http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=1322195&s=1&k=B2530005D32B12FE6F9AE93198FAF931

This call will be archived and available at www.vistagold.com after November 29, 2016. Audio replay will be available for 21 days by calling toll-free in North America: 1-888-203-1112, passcode 1698128.

If you are unable to access the audio or phone-in on the day of the conference call, please email questions to Connie Martinez, Manager  Investor Relations (email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ), and we will try to address these questions prior to or during the conference call.

About Vista Gold Corp.

The Company is a well-funded gold project developer. Our principal asset is our flagship Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia where we are seeking approval of our final environmental authorization and evaluating an update of our preliminary feasibility study. We also hold approximately 4.4% of the outstanding common shares of Midas Gold Corp., non-core projects in Mexico and the United States and royalty interests in Indonesia. For more information about our projects, including technical studies and resource estimates, please visit our website at www.vistagold.com.

Source: Vista Gold
Pasinex Resources Ltd. (CSE: PSE) (the "Company" or "Pasinex") today announced their third quarter 2016 financial results with a strong profitability being seen in their 50% owned joint venture company Horzum AS. The following are highlights of the Horzum AS Joint Venture company sales of direct shipping material (DSO) mined from the Pinargozu mine in Turkey for both the 9-months and 3-month 2016 periods, expressed in Canadian dollars.

3 months ended Sept. 30 9 months ended Sept. 30 Horzum AS Gross sales $ 3,413,571 $ 6,931,254 Net income $ 1,187,340 (34.8% margin ) $ 1,591,785 (23.1% margin ) Pasinex Resources Equity gain $ 593,671 $ 795,893 Net income $ 354,915 $ 66,611

Steve Williams, President and CEO of Pasinex Resources Limited commented "Our advances at Pinargozu has resulted in these great results because of several factors. The recent development of the new, larger adit has positively impacted our production capabilities since it opened in late August coupled with a sharp rise in the price of zinc from around US$0.65/lb early 2016 to around US$1.25/lb now. The joint venture company is now solidly profitable. We anticipate an even better performance over the next 12 months."

In the third quarter 2016, the Pinargozu mine produced and sold around 7,700 tonnes (wet weight) of direct shipping (DSO) material at an average rate of 86 tonnes per day, and given the average grade of 33.3% Zn this represented about 5.3 million pounds of zinc sold in the quarter. This production for Q3 compares with the first half 2016 production of about 9,300 tonnes (wet weight) of DSO product at an average production rate of 58 tonnes per day and given the average grade of 35.1% Zn amounted to about 6.6 million pounds of zinc. In total Pinargozu has now produced nearly 12 million pounds of zinc to the end of September.

The nine month all in operating costs for the Pinargozu operation were $5,339,469 which amounted to $313.23 / tonne mined in that period. However, for the three months ended September 2016, the all in costs were $1,226,231 which amounted to $158.27 / tonne mined in that period. This significant improvement in productivity reflected the use of bigger equipment and higher degree of mechanization in the mine, as a result of the new third adit which was installed in Q3. All in costs include all underground mine development and drilling costs associated with exploration at Pinargozu. Corporate management costs for both Pasinex Resources and Akmetal AS (the Turkish joint venture partner in Horzum AS) are, however, not included in this all in cost calculation.

Horzum AS has done about 2.5 km of underground development up to the end of September 2016. As well a total of 8,881 metres of drilling has been completed.

Pasinex Resources' balance sheet continues to strengthen as a result of the equity contribution from the Company's 50% investment in the Horzum AS joint venture company. Total assets have increased to $3,033,477 in September 30th 2016 versus $2,368,863 at end December 2015 and similarly shareholder equity has increased to $2,694,275 versus $1,986,962 at December 2015. For further information on the financials, please go to our website www.pasinex.com or www.sedar.com.

About Pasinex

Pasinex Resources Limited is a metals company which is a 50% owner of the high grade Pinargozu zinc mine which is in production and, under its DSO Program, is shipping directly to zinc smelter / refiners from its mine site in Turkey. The Company has a strong technical management team with many years of experience in mineral exploration and mining project development. The mission of Pasinex is to build a mid-tier zinc company based on building a large land package within a productive CRD district in Turkey.

The Pinargozu Mine is owned by, Horzum Arama Isletme AS (Horzum AS), which is a corporate joint venture between Pasinex and Turkish mining house, Akmetal Madencilik San ve Tic. AS (Akmetal AS). Akmetal AS is one of Turkey's largest family-owned conglomerates and it owns the nearby past-producing Horzum zinc mine.

Source: Pasinex Resources
Nemaska Lithium Inc. (TSX: NMX / OTC: NMKEF) ("Nemaska Lithium" or the "Corporation") is pleased to provide details of all the drilling results on the newly discovered Doris zone (see press release of September 06, 2016) on its Whabouchi lithium project. The company encountered a new lithium bearing zone in the southwestern end of the planned pit area (Figure 1). The Doris zone, contains 5 interconnected dykes and has now been confirmed on 420m of lateral extension and up to a maximum depth of 440m where it joins the main dyke. The Doris zone starts in the southwest and is open along strike to the northeast. Doris appears to run parallel to main zone which extends for 1.2km to the northeast (Figure 2).

"Our drilling to date on the Doris discovery has yielded drill holes with significant widths and grades which are similar to the main zone of the Whabouchi deposit" commented Guy Bourassa, President and CEO of Nemaska Lithium. "It will immediately impact the Whabouchi project as we intend to add it to the resource estimate and possibly the reserves of the mine. Doris is open towards the northeast, with excellent potential to add additional tonnage to the Whabouchi project, as we consider a drill program during the winter to expand and confirm its extension," commented Mr. Bourassa, President and CEO of Nemaska Lithium.

A 4,000m drill program was completed on the Doris Zone. A total of 17 holes (with more than 1 intersect per hole) having a cumulative core length of approximately 644m of mineralized intersections have intercepted the Doris zone, and have reported the following intersections:

Section Hole Name From (m) To (m) Core Length (m) Li2O (%) True Width* (m) 01+75 WHA-16-145 26.0 43.8 17.8 0.58 14.8 01+75 WHA-16-169 140.0 151.0 11.0 0.59 10.0 02+00 WHA-16-146 82.9 92.9 10.0 0.57 6.5 02+00 WHA-16-146 114.9 137.9 23.0 1.74 20.9 02+00 WHA-16-146 173.8 178.1 4.3 1.17 3.7 02+25 WHA-16-147 132.0 169.7 37.7 1.49 15.9 02+50 WHA-16-148 88.5 92.5 4.0 1.23 1.7 02+50 WHA-16-148 163.2 186.2 23.0 1.58 16.3 02+75 WHA-16-149 81.3 89.0 7.7 0.92 3.3 02+75 WHA-16-149 169.0 190.0 21.0 1.18 16.3 02+75 WHA-16-149 214.0 218.0 4.0 1.78 3.3 03+00 WHA-16-150 5.4 26.6 21.2 1.65 15.8 03+00 WHA-16-150 133.3 155.7 22.4 1.36 15.3 03+25 WHA-16-175 83.0 114.0 31.0 0.97 12.9 03+25 WHA-16-175 234.3 251.3 17.0 1.61 11.9 03+25 WHA-16-192 238.5 305.0 66.5 1.36 20.5 03+50 WHA-16-190 186.3 214.4 28.1 1.48 13.5 03+50 WHA-16-190 289.3 312.2 22.9 1.42 16.7 03+75 WHA-16-184 300.3 381.0 80.7 1.4 33.0 04+00 WHA-16-151 91.3 107.1 15.8 1.28 7.1 04+00 WHA-16-151 264.3 273.3 9.0 1.73 9.1 04+00 WHA-16-195 178.7 197.7 19.0 1.49 12.1 04+00 WHA-16-195 326.5 329.1 2.6 1.34 2.4 04+25 WHA-16-152 62.0 66.0 4.0 1.53 2.5 04+25 WHA-16-152 132.7 139.1 6.4 1.44 3.6 04+25 WHA-16-152 236.6 242.1 5.6 0.96 5.2 04+25 WHA-16-194 204.0 230.0 26.0 1.39 13.7 04+50 WHA-16-193 324.9 402.0 77.1 1.39 18.9 05+00 WHA-16-153 22.8 33.6 10.8 1.02 6.1 05+00 WHA-16-153 240.2 242.7 2.6 0.45 1.9 05+00 WHA-16-153 264.6 276.4 11.8 1.5 10.7 * True width are measured from dyke interpretation on the sections.

The Company intends to release new resource estimate in the coming week taking into consideration not only the new Doris zone, but also the results of the 17,000m of definition drilling that was recently completed on the Whabouchi mine. Likewise the feasibility study titled: NI 43-101 Technical Report Feasibility Study Update on the Whabouchi Lithium Deposit and Hydromet Plant (Revised), dated as of April 4th, 2016, as amended and refiled on June 08, 2016, will be updated.

The drilling campaign was planned and supervised by Jean-Philippe Paiement, M.Sc. P. Geo, at SGS Canada Inc. Samples were prepared by the SGS Canada Inc. laboratory in Quebec City and have been analyzed by the SGS Canada Inc. accredited laboratory in Lakefield.

A QAQC program involving blank samples (3% of the sampling stream), standard samples (3% of the sampling stream) and field duplicates (3% of the sampling stream) has been established during sampling. 5% of the mineralized samples will also be sent to ALS for pulp duplicates. The work is carried out in accordance with CIM's mining exploration guidelines.

The technical parts of this press release were prepared by Jean-Philippe Paiement, M.Sc. P. Geo, at SGS Canada Inc., qualified person under Regulation NI 43-101.

About Nemaska Lithium

Nemaska Lithium intends to become a lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate supplier to the emerging lithium battery market that is largely driven by electric vehicles, cell phones, tablets and other consumer products. The Corporation is developing in Quebec one of the most important spodumene lithium hard rock deposit in the world, both in volume and grade. The spodumene concentrate produced at Nemaska Lithium's Whabouchi mine will be shipped to the Corporation's lithium compounds processing plant to be built in Shawinigan, Quebec. This plant will transform spodumene concentrate into high purity lithium hydroxide and carbonate using the proprietary methods developed by the Corporation, and for which patent applications have been filed.

Source: Nemaska Lithium
A draft dodger in his 20s has been sentenced to a year's jail, suspended for two years, for using tattoos to evade mandatory military service, according to Uijeongbu District Court in Gyeonggi Province on Nov. 24. / Yonhap



By Hong Dam-young

A man has been given a jail term for having his body covered with tattoos to avoid mandatory military service.

Under the conscription law, men with "excessive" tattoos on their bodies are immune from duty for fear that they could upset other soldiers.

The man, 20, was sentenced to one year in prison with the term suspended for two years, the court in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, revealed Monday.

"Dodging the draft is a serious crime," said Judge Park Jin-hwan in a ruling statement. "I took into account all evidence submitted and concluded that he had his body covered with tattoos with the intention of dodging military service."

The court said the man began getting tattoos when he was a middle school student.
The best known date in English history may be 1066, but how much do you really know about the battle that destroyed Anglo-Saxon England? Tickets to English Heritages re-enactment of the Battle of Hastings this weekend are sold out, but here are 10 alternative ways to mark the 950th anniversary of William the Conquerors victory over the Anglo-Saxons.

1. Visit one of the Conquerors castles in England

When the Normans conquered England in 1066, they lost no time embarking on what is generally recognised as the biggest programme of castle-building Western Europe has ever seen. The two main castle-types that William brought to England were motte-and-bailey castles and stone tower keeps. So head to Dover, Hastings, Rochester, or Guildford this weekend to explore Englands Norman castles. See details of English Heritages top ten Norman castles here.

2. Explore the site of the Battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire

Three weeks before the Battle of Hastings, King Harolds army won a stunning victory over the Norwegians at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, fought near York on 28 September 1066. The invaders were led by warrior-king Harald Hardrada of Norway. Hardrada considered himself the rightful heir to the English throne because his predecessor Cnut had been king of England, Norway, and Denmark in the early 11th century. Some historians think this battle reduced the capacity of Harolds army to fight effectively at Hastings, leading to the Anglo-Saxons defeat, but this has been debated. Nevertheless, the Battle of Stamford Bridge certainly did distract Harold from the looming Norman threat. You cant access the main battlefield anymore, but you can reach its eastern side, and explore the town and surrounding country.



3. Search for Harolds final resting place in Essex

Harold stopped to pray at Waltham Abbey in Essex on his way from Stamford Bridge to fight William at Battle. Harold supported the abbey when he was alive, and he is said to have been buried here after his death.

4. Stay indoors and watch a documentary

If youd rather not brave the elements, you can explore Anglo-Norman England from the comfort of your own home. There are lots of documentaries about the Norman Conquest, but we recommend the BBCs The Normans, presented by medieval historian Professor Robert Bartlett. Its no longer on iPlayer, but you can access all three episodes through BBC Store.

5. Find the tomb of Edward the Confessor in London

The succession crisis in 1066 was sparked by the death of King Edward the Confessor, who died childless in January of that year. Edward was buried in Westminster Abbey and later made a saint.



6. Bring history to life at Chepstow Castle in Wales

Norman lord William FitzOsbern began building Chepstow Castle in 1067, just after the Battle of Hastings. Built in the Welsh Marches, Chepstow Castle was strategically placed to defend England from Welsh attack, while also serving as an outpost for the Norman invasion of Wales. To commemorate the 950th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings, which led to the castles creation, Chepstow Castle is holding historical re-enactments this anniversary weekend.

7. Cross the Channel to see where it all began

William the Conqueror was a powerful Norman duke. Visit his duchy today, and you can see the original Bayeux Tapestry in all its glory at the Bayeux Museum in Normandy, France.

8. Take the train to Pevensey

The Normans landed at Pevensey Bay on 28 September 1066. Duke William set up camp in an old Roman fort near the shore, before travelling east to Hastings. He later built a castle in Pevensey, the ruins of which are still visible today. Theres also a 1066-themed race on Sunday 16 October.

9. Investigate the Normans influence on Scotland

Although the Normans did not conquer Scotland, Norman influence spread north of the border in the late 11th and early 12th centuries. David I of Scotland spent his childhood in Scotland, but was temporarily exiled to England, where he spent his time at the court of King Henry I, William the Conquerors son. There he was steeped in Norman culture. When he returned to Scotland, he brought with him many aspects of the Anglo-Norman government, and granted land to Normans who knew how to implement these systems. David was buried at Dunfermline Abbey, which he established in 1128. The abbey was built in the Norman style, and you can still visit it today. It is also the resting place of King Robert the Bruce (from the French de Brus), who was descended from Anglo-Norman nobility.

10. Go Norman castle-hunting in Ireland

The Normans set sail for Ireland in the late 12th century. As much of the area fell under Anglo-Norman rule, new castles were thrown up to consolidate the invaders hold on the region. One such example is King Johns Castle in Limerick, completed around 1210 (look out for David Flinthams review of the castle in MHM 75, out 10 November). We covered the Norman invasion of Ireland in issue 17 of MHM.



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We covered the Battle of Hastings and the Norman Conquest in an in-depth special feature in issue 73 of Military History Monthly. MHM Assistant Editor Hazel Blair profiled the men on the battlefield and analysed the battle itself, while contributor Jack Watkins explored the castles built by William the Conqueror after his victory on the field. This post includes edited excerpts from those articles.
Neat tache who was he?

Once called the most powerful man in Germany, Erich Ludendorff was a prominent general in the German Army of the First World War. He was also a writer, military theorist, and ultra right-wing politician. He went to cadet school at an early age, and later attended the prestigious War Academy. He quickly rose through the ranks of the German military: in 1894 he was appointed to the General Staff of the German Army, and by 1911 he was a colonel.

He looks stern. What was he like in war?

Ludendorff was well read in military matters and put his education to use. Prior to the outbreak of the First World War, he worked on the Schlieffen Plan, Germanys plan to wage war on two fronts against France and Russia.

In 1914, Ludendorff oversaw Germanys first major action of the war: he led the German Army to victory at the Battle of Liege in August 1914, part of Germanys invasion of Belgium, which was the gateway to France. Ludendorff remembered this attack on the Belgian fortified city with great fondness, later writing:

The favourite recollection of my life as a soldier is the coup de main on the fortress. It was a bold stroke, in which I was able to fight just like any soldier of the rank and file who proves his worth in battle.

The feat won him the Pour le Merite, Germanys highest military award for bravery, presented to him by the Kaiser.



Did he always find victory easy?

Despite his strategic skill and bravery in war, one of Ludendorffs greatest victories was also one of his most difficult to achieve. The Germans had underestimated the strength of the Russian Army, and they were vastly outnumbered by their opponents at Tannenberg between 26 and 30 August 1914.

Our decision to give battle arose out of the slowness of the Russian leadership and was conditioned by the necessity of winning in spite of inferiority in numbers, yet I found it immensely difficult to take this momentous step, wrote Ludendorff.

Nevertheless, superior German tactics led to the Russians being encircled and crushed by their foe. The commander of the German 8th Army, Paul von Hindenburg, was celebrated for leading his army to victory at Tannenberg, but Ludendorff was also praised for his leading role in the battle, and the importance of his actions have since been emphasised by historians.

Ludendorff later called Tannenberg one of the most brilliant battles in the history of the world.

He sounds arrogant. Was he?

In short, yes  Ludendorff has even been accused of being a dictator. In 1916, when Hindenburg took over from Erich von Falkenhayn as Chief of Staff of the German Army, Ludendorff asked to be made Quartermaster General. Together, the two men led the Third Supreme Command, which effectively turned Germany into an expansionist military state over which Ludendorff had control.

In 1918, the Germans realised that they were about to lose the war; Ludendorff then resigned, and his power diminished. He spent the interwar period promoting the stab-in-the-back myth, blaming others for his own failure to effecively manage the German Armys supply chain.

He became involved in politics and was a vigorous supporter of the Nazi Party, participating in the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923. His relationship with Hitler was strained, but the latter was keen to align himself with the right-wing veteran, who became increasingly paranoid about the number and nature of Germanys enemies.

What did he write about?

As well as writing his memoirs, Ludendorff advanced a theory of total war (the total mobilisation of a nations forces against its enemies). He published this in 1935, just two years before he died from cancer.

This article was published in issue 72 of Military History Monthly.






Monte la Difensa

Today, when you look at the routes up Difensas crags, it is just possible to imagine small groups of highly trained mountaineers conquering them. But hosts of heavily laden troops could not succeed, could they?

They did, but not without facing almost overpowering difficulties. As one Forceman said, no fear of death, just sheer exhaustion and survival. I can still see us climbing the hill and watching the German mortars bracketing us.

There was immense artillery preparation along the whole ridge, and the Germans were alert, suspecting attack, but they remained unaware that an approach was being made from such an unlikely quarter.

The climb started at about 4.30pm on 3 December, and continued in the pitch black and icy rain throughout the night. A couple of hours respite was gained on a series of ledges several hundred feet below the crest, as the 2nd Battalion gathered itself before clambering on up a cliff the pitch of which is mostly 60-70.

By 4.30am, most of the Battalion was in a position to peer down into the darkness at what they could just make out as a mass of German troops. As one soldier said, we were so goddamn close we could smell them cooking sausage!

There they intended to pause until first light at about 6am, but a rockfall gave the Forces precarious position away prematurely. Flares shot into the air, shouts were heard, and very shortly enemy automatic weapons began to spray green tracer into the night.

Staff-Sergeant Crichlow takes up the story:

All hell broke loose. I dived for cover, and my section, who were laboriously climbing up the ledge behind me, started to crawl into position to my left They started to return the Jerries fire. In the dark it seemed that there was a kind of fort ahead of me, from which came the flashes of German machine-guns there was a quick intake of breath near me and I knew somebody was hit I kept firing my Tommy Gun at the flashes ahead of me, and then the dark forms spread to my right. Apparently, McGintys section was getting into action.

This map and extract of text appeared within the feature on The First Special Service Force in Italy in issue 72 of Military History Monthly.
In the years 58-51 BC, Gaul was conquered and added to the Roman Empire through the military campaigns of Julius Caesar and his legions. For the first time in history, tribal groups in north-western Europe were confronted with the violent expansionism of an imperial system.

Although Caesars war narrative is coloured by personal propaganda and imperial ideology, there is no doubt that the conquest had dramatic consequences for Gallic societies. The Roman writer Appian claimed that Caesar killed one million Gauls and enslaved another million out of a total population of four million.

Until recently, Caesars conquests in the northern periphery of Gaul were known only from his historical account. In the Netherlands, Belgium, and the German Lower Rhine area, the Caesarian conquest was almost totally invisible archaeologically. Direct evidence in the form of Roman army camps or battlefield locations was absent.

One of the most spectacular discoveries of Roman provincial archaeology of the past few years is the identification of a Late Iron Age fortification at Thuin as the oppidum of the Aduatuci. For the first time in northern Gaul, archaeology can identify one of the major crime scenes described by the Roman proconsul. This site was conquered by Caesar in 57 BC as part of his campaigns against the tribes of the Nervii and the Aduatuci. The fortification of Thuin (Belgium) occupies a plateau of more than 13ha and can be reached on the eastern side via a narrow, 60m-wide finger of land. Several arguments indicate this to have been the oppidum of the Aduatuci. The historical account has it that, after the sites capture, the entire population of 53,000 individuals were sold as slaves and deported to Italy:

On the morrow the gates [of the oppidum] were broken open, for there was no more defence, and our troops were sent in. Then Caesar sold as one lot the booty of the oppidum. The purchasers furnished a return to him of 53,000 persons.

The main arguments for the identification of Thuin are as follows: it was an important Late Iron Age fortification situated in the territory of the Aduatuci that did not survive into the Roman period; there is a close match with the topography described by Caesar; several gold hoards of the early 50s BC have been found and these seem to reflect a single event; finally, and most importantly, concentrations of Roman lead sling-bullets imply a Roman siege of the site.

The sling-bullets appeared in two separate concentrations: on the wall near the main entrance of the fortification, and on the far side of the Biesmelle River. Their concentration at the main rampart strongly suggests that they were used by the attackers.

These maps and extract of text appeared within the feature on Caesars Gallic War in issue 56 of Military History Monthly.
The Russian Imperial Army has been portrayed as unfit to wage a modern war. It is best known for a catalogue of disasters at the hands of the Germans, notably at Tannenberg in 1914 and Gorlice-Tarnow in 1915, and then for its sudden collapse in the 1917 revolution.

Yet General Alexsei Brusilov launched one of the most successful offensives of the First World War in June 1916  an event in sharp contrast to the failed offensives at Verdun and on the Somme.

In 1914, Russian successes against the Austro-Hungarians and a subsequent advance to the Carpathian Mountains, which threatened an invasion of Hungary, were counter-balanced by defeats at Tannenberg and the Masurian Lakes at the hands of the Germans.

The stalemate reached at the end of 1914 was broken by the Gorlice-Tarnow offensive of May 1915, which broke through the Russian defences east of Cracow and led to the Great Retreat of the Russians along the entire Eastern Front.

This rescued the Austro-Hungarians in the Carpathians, and ended the Russian threat to Hungary and Silesia. But, despite huge losses in men and materiel, the Russian armies survived and established a new line running from Riga in the north to Czernowitz in the south.

Many incompetent commanders were removed or reassigned, notably Nikolai Ivanov, who was replaced as commander of the South-Western Front by Alexei Brusilov in March 1916.

The winter of 1915/1916 allowed the Russians to rally. The Army recovered its strength, the war economy cranked up, and the munitions factories increased the production of shells. By 1916, the Russians were ready to take the offensive again. Brusilov was to play a major part in reversing Russian fortunes.

An Allied conference at Chantilly in December 1915 agreed that offensives would be launched on the French, Italian, and Russian fronts. The aim was to keep the forces of the Central Powers dispersed. The Russians were to attack by early June.

Accordingly, in April 1916, a conference of front commanders at Mogilev chaired by Tsar Nikolai and General Alekseev agreed to launch simultaneous assaults by all three fronts (Northern, Western, and South-Western). These Allied and Russian plans were disrupted by the German offensive at Verdun and the Austrian offensive at Asiago in Italy. This prompted the French and the Italians to increase the pressure for Russian action.

This was the immediate context for Russian attacks at Lake Naroch in March and on Brusilovs South-Western Front in June. Rather than attacking on a narrow front, Brusilov decided to launch simultaneous assaults with all his armies. This meant dispersion of force, not least artillery.

He was deliberately forsaking the concentrated, sustained artillery bombardment that usually preceded offensives and was designed to pulverise the enemys defences on a particular sector of the front. Both the Tsar and Alekseev opposed Brusilovs plan, arguing for the traditional approach and a concentration of Russias limited resources on a narrow front.

Making a virtue of their ammunition shortages, on 4 June 1916 the Russian artillery mounted an intense and brief but accurate and effective hurricane bombardment of the Austro-Hungarian defences.

Seeking shelter from the bombardment in their deep dugouts, the Austro-Hungarian defenders were unable to fire on the advancing Russians and, once their positions had been overrun, they surrendered in their thousands. By the end of the first day, there was a 20-mile wide by five-mile deep gap in the Austro-Hungarian line.

Brusilov had achieved the breakthrough that most commanders could only dream of during the First World War. As there were no substantial defences behind the first trench line, the Russians were able to advance very quickly during the next three days, capturing more than 200,000 enemy soldiers. The Austro-Hungarian Chief of Staff was forced to seek German assistance and to close down the Asiago offensive as he moved his divisions back to Galicia.

Brusilov lacked the reserves to sustain his breakthrough offensive. The Russian Army was not yet mechanised, still relying on horse-drawn transport, and the creaking Russian infrastructure simply could not deliver the necessary flow of fresh men and munitions needed to power a continuous advance.

The incompetence of most senior Tsarist commanders  many of them court favourites and aristocratic non-entities  remained a crucial failing throughout the war. The high command was also divided by rivalries and personal disagreements which prevented close cooperation at crucial moments.

By the time Brusilov had regrouped, been reinforced by the Guard Army (Aleksandr Bezobrazov), and resumed the offensive on 28 July, the opportunity to exploit the initial success had passed.

In an impressive feat of logistics, the Germans had transferred ten infantry divisions so as to establish a defensive line opposite Brusilov strong enough to repulse renewed Russian attacks with heavy losses. Brusilov launched another offensive between 7 August and 20 September. This reached the Carpathian Mountains, but suffered further heavy losses, then lost momentum.

The offensive finally ran out of steam in October as Brusilov exhausted his supplies and reinforcements. Blaming the Tsarist system for his inability to exploit the initial success of his offensive, Brusilov, like many others, began to think that only revolution would enable Russia to modernise and secure victory.

Dr Simon Innes-Robbins, a graduate of the University of Nottingham and Kings College London, is Senior Archivist at the Imperial War Museums. This is an extract from an article that appeared in issue 71 of Military History Monthly.
The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight has conducted thousands of flypasts at events up and down the country, taking part in over 100 airshows per year. The Flight was formed in 1957 to commemorate the RAFs defence of Britain against the Luftwaffe in 1940. It subsequently became a memorial to those who lost their lives while serving with the RAF across the whole of the Second World War, and now commemorates members of the RAF whose lives have been lost in all conflicts, past and present.



A WORKING BASE

Comprising 12 airworthy warbirds, the Flight includes six Spitfires, two Hurricanes, a Dakota, and one of only two Avro Lancasters known anywhere in the world to be capable of flight. Two Chipmunks, used as training aeroplanes, make up the full complement. Their airborne activities are certainly spectacular, but a trip to the BBMF hangar and visitor centre gives one an extraordinary opportunity to view these historic aircraft up close.

This is not just a hangar full of aeroplanes. RAF Coningsby is a working base: Eurofighter Typhoons thunder overhead, and visitors are invited to look under the skin of the historic aircraft as they are maintained and preserved by RAF engineers. Aircraft are moved around the hangar on a regular basis, and, though once produced in their thousands, each BBMF aircraft has its own story to tell.

These stories have been meticulously researched and documented, and some can be read in the visitors guidebook, but it is the personal tour of the hangar that makes a visit to the BBMF centre so special. Armed with binders full of contemporary photographs and documents, volunteer guides are equipped to share a wealth of knowledge about the aircraft and their crews.



MUSEUM WITHOUT WALLS

This is a museum without walls, explains retired Squadron Leader Clive Rowley. Clive was an RAF fighter pilot for 36 years, and he flew the Flights Spitfires and Hurricanes from 1996 to 2007. He hung up his flying gloves last year, but continues tom volunteer with the BBMF, hosting tours of the hangar and researching the history of the aircraft.

The Flights predominance of Spitfires reflects the important role these aircraft played during WWII, and their iconic status. Of the six Spitfires in the Flight, the Mark IIa P7350 is the most thrilling to behold: it is the oldest, original, airworthy Spitfire in the world, and the only one from the Battle of Britain that is still flying today.

This type of Spitfire met its match in the Messerschmitt Bf 109E, but, in general, Spitfires were able to fly faster than most of their contemporaries, and were popular among pilots and the general public. Attacked by a group of Bf 109s in October 1940, P7350 was hit on the left wing, leaving pilot Ludwik Martel badly wounded.

But both survived the war: the Spitfire was restored to flying condition for its appearance in Guy Hamiltons Battle of Britain (1968), and Martel died aged 91. On my visit, the aircrafts engine cowlings had been removed to reveal its Rolls-Royce Merlin 27l engine, as well as its petrol tank (which is positioned directly in front of the pilot, on the aircrafts centre of gravity).



SEEING DOUBLE

Clive relayed a most intriguing tale, however, when we reached the Flights C-47 Dakota ZA947. Built in the USA, the BBMFs Dakota served in Canada during WWII. But visitors are not only introduced to the aircraft on display: some aeroplanes are exhibited wearing other aeroplanes colour schemes. As such, ZA947 now resembles FZ692 Kwicherbichen of 233 Squadron, one of the first Douglas Dakotas deployed to evacuate casualties from France in the wake of D-Day.

Nursing orderlies Corporal Lydia Alford, LACW Edna Birkbeck, and LACW Myra Roberts (dubbed the Flying Nightingales by the press) were on the first three flights across the Channel, becoming the first British women to fly into a warzone on air-ambulance duties. But, carrying war supplies and ammunition on their way out, their aeroplanes were prohibited from carrying the Red Cross symbol.

Similarly, the last Hurricane ever built, the BBMFs Mk IIC PZ865, was originally painted with the inscription The Last of the Many, but this Hurri-bomber now resembles fighter ace and Canadian RAF pilot Jimmy Whalens Mk IIC HW840.

By 1944, Whalen had shot down three Bf 109s and three Japanese Navy Val Type 99s  victories he commemorated in nose art that he himself designed and applied. Whalen was killed flying another aircraft over Japanese-occupied jungle on 18 April 1944, but his original nose art is hung on a wall in the BBMF head-quarters. PZ865 thus wears a design that features three swastikas and three Japanese hinomaru (circle of the sun) symbols, separated by a clenched fist holding a lightning bolt, all of which is surrounded by a laurel wreath.



HEAVY BOMBERS

But, with a wingspan of 31m, it is Avro Lancaster B1 PA474 that dominates the hangar. (Visitors should note that this aircraft will be missing from the collection from October 2016 until spring 2017, while it undergoes servicing at Duxford.)

WWII saw the loss of 3,345 Lancs during operations, although this particular aircraft, completed in 1945, did not see any action. But it is representative of those that did, and currently wears the colour scheme of Squadron 617s DV385, Thumper Mk III, which sunk the Kriegsmarine battleship Tirpitz in 1944.

Built to fly with one pilot rather than two, these aeroplanes were designed to reduce pilot loss-rates, while dropping powerful Tallboy bombs on ever-larger targets. Looking up into the aircrafts cavernous bomb bay, it is not difficult to imagine the scale of destruction wreaked by these heavy bombers.

Impressive as these aircraft are, they come with some tragic human stories: WWII saw the loss of around 22,000 men while flying Lancs. Operations were particularly gruelling for the aircrafts Tail-end Charlie, crammed into a Perspex bubble, alone at the back of the aeroplane. Not only were these men the most vulnerable of the Lancasters crew (life expectancy was just five sorties), they were also exposed to the elements, having to deal with temperatures as low as -30 or -40.

Sergeant Rob Pierson, who was 19 when he operated the rear guns of a Lancaster during WWII, recalled, My face was exposed to the slipstream  the temperature of which plummeted the higher we went  but it was better to freeze than not to see the enemy. Stories like these breathe life into these antique flying machines, many of which were prised from the scrap-dealers hands not long after the end of the war.

Access to the hangar is by guided tour only, and the tours last an hour to an hour and a half. Most guides have some sort of military background, but tours can be adapted for novices and aircraft afficionados alike. With airworthy aeroplanes, a variety of knowledgeable guides, and ever-changing aircraft colour schemes, it is virtually guaranteed that no two trips to the BBMF hangar will be the same.

A visit is highly recommended. Entry to the visitor centre is free, and this area includes a shop and a cafe, as well as a small exhibition space with interpretative boards and a modest selection of artefacts.

There are a variety of other military aviation museums nearby, and visitors might also wish to stop off at the nearby Petwood Hotel, formerly the Dambusters Officers Mess. Its Squadron Bar is filled with a variety of objects and images relating to the Second World War history of Squadron 617, and is the ideal place to relax after a long day exploring Bomber County.



Hazel Blair

Assistant Editor

[icons icon_name=icon-money icon_size=14px] Entry to the visitor centre is free. The hangar tour is 7.

[icons icon_name=icon-envelope icon_size=14px] BBMF Visitor Centre, Dogdyke Road, Coningsby, Lincolnshire, LN4 4SY

[icons icon_name=icon-external-link icon_size=14px] www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/visiting/museums/battle-of-britain-memorial-flight

[icons icon_name=icon-phone icon_size=14px] 020 7940 6300

[icons icon_name=icon-time icon_size=14px] Open 10am-5pm Mon-Fri, and at weekends/bank holidays on 29-30 May, 30-31 July, and 29 August 2016.
In photography, timing is all  and there is no better example of the dictum than this gem of a snapshot capturing a surprising moment from ordinary London life during the Second World War.

The image shows two airmen in Luftwaffe uniform walking through the Underground. One is a corporal, the other an Oberleutnant (the highest-ranking type of lieutenant), and together they stroll with studied nonchalance, relaxed, with hands in pockets.

The men are young, broad-shouldered, good-looking, and well-groomed  and, for all they seem to care, they could be off to the pictures for a night out. Is it possible that the second of the two is even forming his lips into a carefree whistle?

They are escorted not in handcuffs, nor with any evident high security, but by a file-toting military-secretarial type whose demeanour hardly seems tense or intimidated.

Of course, what makes the photograph extraordinary, and almost comical, is the astonished reaction of the onlookers in the background.

An older gentleman in a three-piece suit and hat appears to have just turned around, and, registering what he sees, stares in open-mouthed astonishment, as if to say, Whats this? Germans? On the Tube? A second onlooker can just be glimpsed, his eloquent, widened eye peering over the shoulder of the first man.

Pilots and aircrew may have been the first German prisoners on British soil during WWII, shot down or bailed out during bombing raids. But it is unclear how common a practice it was to transport PoWs through Londons public transport system. It certainly seems astonishing to modern sensibilities.

There appears to have been a strong bond of chivalry between RAF and Luftwaffe pilots. Perhaps by treating these highly skilled warriors as gentlemen, their captors expressed the hope that they would be treated in a similar manner should they themselves be caught.



By Maria Earle

This article was published in issue 71 of Military History Monthly.
Who was he?

Mustafa Kemal was a Turkish nationalist leader and military commander. He founded the Republic of Turkey and was the countrys first president.

A revolutionary!

Did he always break the rules?

No, not always. Despite initially opposing the Ottoman Empires involvement in WWI, predicting a German defeat, he served his country well when it entered the conflict on the side of the Central Powers, and he was in command at a number of major victories.

Nevertheless, Kemals revolutionary inclinations were evident from an early age, and he joined the Committee of Union and Progress  the Young Turks  a political reform movement that overthrew Sultan Abdulhamid IIs absolute monarchy in 1908, establishing constitutional government and a multi-party parliament.

He later developed strong disagreements with the CUP, but many of their policies stuck with him, such as their commitment to social and political reform, and their rejection of monarchy and theocracy.

What did he do during WWI?

Having fought in the Italo-Turkish and Balkan Wars, Kemal really made a name for himself as a commander during the First World War, proving his strategic skill and personal bravery in his defence of Ottoman territory.

The Entente powers landed on the Gallipoli peninsula in April 1915, having failed to batter a way through the Dardanelles straits using naval power alone. The aim was to relieve the military pressure on Russia and open a supply route across the Black Sea.

Kemal led the decisive counterattack against the Anzac landings on the west coast of the peninsula, ordering his 19th Division into action piecemeal as they arrived on the battlefield after forced marches from their base on the straits. Kemal prevented the Anzacs from reaching the Sari Bair heights and breaking out across the peninsula.

Later in the year, he organised a successful defence against fresh Entente landings at Suvla Bay, cementing the battle for Gallipoli as the Ottomans greatest WWI victory.

But Kemal was magnanimous. In 1931, Kemal told Brisbanes Daily Mail that the Turks will always pay our tribute on the soil where the majority of your dead sleep on the windswept wastes of Gallipoli.

Impressive. But why did he seek an independent Turkey?

Although the Armistice of Mudros concluded hostilities between the Entente and the Ottomans on 30 October 1918, it granted the former the right to occupy any Ottoman territory if the Allies security was thought to be under threat.

Taking advantage of the ambiguity inherent in this agreement, Britain, France, Italy, and Greece proceeded to occupy strategic points in the area, including the Dardanelles and Istanbul, with a view to dismembering the defeated empire.

Unlike Sultan Mehmed V, who wanted to repair relations with Britain, Kemal condemned the heavy-handed treatment of Turkey by the Versailles powers, saying, the rights of our Caliphate and Sultanate, the honour of our government, and the dignity of our nation are being subjected to attacks and humiliation. Opposing the Sultan also aligned with his anti-monarchical politics.

In 1919, he resigned from the army and led a war of independence against

the occupying forces. He established the elected Great National Assembly at Ankara to rival the Sultans government in Istanbul, and soon after the GNA raised a National Army.

Kemals forces won a number of important battles against the foreign powers. But there were atrocities, sometimes amounting to genocide. The Battle of Marash alone saw the massacre of between 5,000 and 12,000 Armenian civilians. The powers were forced to enter negotiations in 1922, and in July 1923 both parties signed the Treaty of Lausanne. The Republic of Turkey was proclaimed on 29 October, with Kemal as its first president.

He sounds intimidating. What was he like in office?

Kemal made a number of social and political reforms during the 15 years of his presidency. He wanted to transform the predominantly Muslim Turkey into a modern, Westernised, secular state. He was a proponent of womens rights, established a common curriculum for all state schools, introduced laws prescribing Western dress, and closed all Islamic courts

But while many of his reforms were progressive, his imposition of single-party rule has been criticised, and some consider him anti-Islamic.

He died in 1938 and is still celebrated. Insulting his legacy remains illegal in Turkey.
Continuing his exploration of French military museums, this month Keith Robinson heads north to Reims.

Set high above the road from Reims to Chalons-en- Champagne, the Fort de la Pompelle forms part of the ring of fortifications built to defend Reims after Frances disastrous defeat in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. The Fort de la Pompelle, alternatively known as FortHerbillon, was part of a system of forts known as the Sere de Rivieres, named after the general who initiated the building of this belt of forts, designed to defend Reims. The defensive line comprised seven major forts and seven smaller, supporting forts, of which de la Pompelle was one.

Built between 1880 and 1883, the fort has a surface area of 2.31 hectares (5.7 acres), its dry moat was covered by two-level caponiers designed to provide flanking fire on any enemy trying to cross the moated areas. The Fort de la Pompelle was provided with six 155mm de Bange guns and four 138mm guns, as well as lesser artillery pieces and machine-guns, all serviced by an artillery company of over 270 men.

It was a working fort for 30-35 years, before technological advances appeared to make it redundant. It was demilitarised in 1913  only to be hastily reoccupied a year later.

First World War

The German offensive of 1914 captured many of the forts of the Sere de Rivieres, which were then used by them as bases. The Fort de la Pompelle was surrendered to the Germans without a fight on 4 September 1914. However, this was a short-lived occupation as, following the First Battle of the Marne (5-12 Sept 1914), the fort was retaken by the French 138th Infantry after a fierce struggle.

Thereafter, the Fort de la Pompelle remained a key point in the defence of Reims, and suffered heavily from numerous German attacks. Infantry assaults, heavy bombardments, gas attacks, mines, and tanks all failed to break the forts stalwart resistance.

This defensive effort was shared among half of the French forces, with 180 regiments having, at some time, provided the garrison. These forces included two special Russian brigades, sent by Tsar Nicholas II in 1916, which in January 1917 successfully defended against a German gas attack. A monument that commemorates the Russian involvement in defending the fort was set up in the grounds in September 2012.

By the end of the Great War the fort had been severely battered and the land around it was pockmarked with shell-holes. It was largely abandoned after the war until 1955, when it came into the hands of the City of Reims. Its remaining usable parts were converted into a museum, which was inaugurated in November 1972.

However, with the centenary of the Great War on the horizon, the City of Reims is investing large sums of money in repairing and updating the museum, the fort, and the visitor facilities here. There should be some 40% more of the site to visit, and an equally impressive increase in the number of high-quality artefacts on display.

Museum grounds

In the open ground before the drawbridge which leads to the forts main entrance stand a couple of interesting artillery pieces. The first is the Canon de 155mm GPF (or Grande Puissance Filloux) of 1917, designed by Colonel Filloux to answer Frances desperate need for modern heavy artillery; it was Frances standard heavy field-gun until WWII. The Canon de 155mm took a 43.1kg (95lb) shell, which could be fired at a rate of two rounds per minute, and had a maximum range of 19,500m.

The second artillery piece is an Italian version of the French 1913 model Schneider Canon de 105mm L field gun. The Ansaldo 105/28 was manufactured in 1918 by Ansaldo of Genoa. It had a different shield from the French Schneider, and would have required a unit of six men under the command of an NCO. This mark of field-gun remained in active service with the Italian Army until 1945.

Crossing the drawbridge and entering the museum proper, you enter the area of the troops living quarters. Half of these have now been turned into modern exhibition spaces, and good galleries they make too. They hold a good mix of material, mostly relating to the Great War.

A prototype of the ubiquitous French 75mm field-gun of 1877, often regarded as the first modern piece of artillery due to its hydro-pneumatic recoil mechanism, is on display. This rubs shoulders with a French Field Kitchen and a 1914 model Hotchkiss machine-gun, mounted on a 1916 tripod.

An example of the German 77mm FK 96n/A field-gun can also be seen. This was a very mobile piece of artillery, but once the War had settled into the trenches its lack of range  around 5,500m  became a problem. It was duly superseded by the longer-barrelled 77mm FK 16.

Great War uniforms

There are displays of WWI uniforms, including a Russian in khaki, and a special section on air warfare. One interesting display houses material relating to the French fighter-ace Joseph Guiguet, credited with five kills, from his time with Escadrille No.3 Les Cigognes (The Storks), one of Frances most celebrated squadrons.

Undoubtedly, however, the highlight of the collection is the unique collection of 560 pieces of military headgear from the German Imperial Army  the former Charles Friese collection.

The display of the helmets and caps is perhaps a little old-fashioned, and this will probably be updated, but one cannot help but be impressed by the serried ranks of headwear on show. The sheer variety of German headgear is impressive, not surprising given the fact that the individual states kept their own distinctive uniforms despite unification.

This fort is well worth a visit, both for the collections and as a grand piece of military architecture.
Presenting the subject of his new book, Lawrence of Arabias War, MHM Editor Neil Faulkner spoke to the Islam Channel about the division of the Middle East by Britain, and to a lesser extent France, in the years during and after the First World War.

Lawrence of Arabias War: the Arabs, the British, and the remaking of the Middle East in WWI (Yale University Press, 2016) is available to buy now. Click here to order from the UK and here to order from the US.

This article was published in the June 2016 issue of Military History Matters. To find out more about the magazine and how to subscribe, click here.
The name of this stunning museum is a bit of a misnomer for, if anything, it is not national but international in its scope  a fact that is certainly appropriate for the subject matter. Located on a beautiful slope in the heart of Kansas City, Missouri, this amazing structure, with its 217 -tall memorial tower and large galleries, was dedicated in 1921 and opened to the public in 1926, before what was at the time the largest crowd a US President had ever addressed in the United States.

Walking down a long, broad ramp and entering through huge brass doors, the visitor then passes over a large, plate-glass floor beneath which a field of poppies commemorates the fallen of the Great War. There are 9,000 poppies in this field, with each flower representing 1,000 dead.

The galleries are beautifully designed and full of memorabilia relating to what many at the time believed naively to be the war to end all wars. It was sadly not to be so.

EYEDEEP IN HELL

There is an unparalleled collection of uniforms, weapons, equipment, paraphernalia, and images of all of the nations engaged in that titanic struggle. Here you can see up close the Pickelhaube of the German soldier and the full coat of a Cossack cavalryman. Huge glass cases display every sort of small arm from the Mauser broomhandle and the Webley revolver to Enfields, Remingtons, and many others.

Several cases contain bright, beautifully tailored uniforms; gleaming, spiked, and plumed helmets; sparkling aiguillettes; and the lances and sabres that many cavalrymen carried into the initial phases of the war.

These were quickly rendered obsolete by the ubiquitous Maxim and Spandau machine-guns, and by the heavy guns that shattered flesh and bone and churned the fields into a muddy moonscape. Thus the 19th centurys Romantic vision of combat was quickly replaced with a 20th-century reality that placed the average soldier, in the words of Ezra Pound, eye-deep in Hell.

Nor does the collection merely display uniforms and side arms; here too are dozens of artillery pieces of all calibres and manufacture, as well as a complete Renault FT-17 tank, its left side still carrying the scar of a direct hit by German artillery.

Now this might seem enough to keep ones interest, but really it is just the tip of the iceberg, for the World War I Museum holds a treasure trove of material, some of which is truly unique, including, for example, a complete nurses uniform from Imperial Russia.

The museum also holds a pair of disparate uniforms worn by a single soldier, in their own way quite unusual. The soldier was a Dane dra ed into the German forces. He deserted, ed to America, and then joined the American Expeditionary Force to return to France as a doughboy. His German uniform tunic and cap are displayed alongside his American uniform and overseas cap.

FULLSCALE DIORAMAS

Things the experienced museum visitor will appreciate are the full and accurate explanations of each display item  a nicety too often absent from collections. Detailed full-scale dioramas recreate the environment and conditions of sections of trench for German and Allied forces, each duplicated with painstaking care for accuracy, and replete with original uniforms and equipment.

In another section of the museum, the large semicircular Horizon Theatre displays a continuous film of various aspects of the war for visitors in a viewing gallery. Between the screen and the viewers, in the vast space below, is recreated a full tableau of a section of a battlefield.

Throughout the museum are displayed original posters, war art, flags, pennants, and thousands of photographs. Of great value to students and scholars of the conflict is the exceptional Edward Jones Research Centre, which contains thousands of records and abundant research materials.

All too often overlooked are the personal papers of soldiers, sailors, airmen, and nurses of the war, but here too the museum excels, displaying a great many of these artefacts, with thousands more available to researchers.

Nor are the smaller, personal items overlooked  along with backpacks and entrenching tools are the religious medallions, good-luck charms, harmonicas, banjos, shaving kits, writing equipment, and even the rudimentary box-cameras that the soldiers carried with them into war; a sharp contrast to the daggers, trench knives, pistols, grenades, gas masks, and brass knuckles that are displayed alongside.

FROM WAR TO PEACE

Another intriguing relic is the original logbook of the RMS Lusitania (on loan from the Harry S Truman Library) whose sinking spurred the United States entry into the conflict. Close at hand are original examples of a naval mine and of the type of torpedo used to sink the Lusitania.

Evidencing the technological scope of the war are artefacts that range from carrier-pigeon baskets to field telephones, and from horse-drawn wagons, carts, and gun limbers to automobiles and aircraft. (The latter include a Fokker D.VII, a SPAD, and a Nieuport).

A remarkably large and ornately constructed complex, the museum even has two gigantic stone Sphinxes, representing Memory and the Future, on the Liberty Memorial Deck. The north lawn of the facility features a huge stone frieze, 148 long and 18 high  one of the largest such carvings in the world  illustrating the journey from war to peace.

The complex also features numerous classrooms, conference rooms, and an auditorium, all for educational use. Furthering the educational mission of the museum, there is an expanse of interactive audiovisual tables that provide a wealth of information on the conflict and its personalities.

Located just steps away are separate audiovisual booths where one can listen to recordings of period music, poetry, and reminiscences by participants in the Great War.

This is also the site for a gathering of serving officers from the nearby US Armys Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth. Officers from Australia and New Zealand met here in 2015 for Anzac Day  a centennial commemoration of the disastrous campaign for Gallipoli. In a moving tribute to the fallen, the Turkish and German officers attending the staff college joined them.

This is a facility that is far too large and extensive to be viewed and appreciated in a single visit, so the visitors entry-ticket is good for two successive days. For a good overview of the museum and listings of its special exhibits, visit the museum website: there one can also see the schedule for upcoming symposia and special events.

Frederick Chiaventone

100 West 26th Street Kansas City, Missouri 64108, USA

www.theworldwar.org

+1 816 888 8100

This review appeared in issue 74 of Military History Monthly.
The Royal Scots Greys: The regiment that caught the French Eagle.

The image of the Scots Greys charging out of the picture in Lady Elizabeth Butlers classic painting Scotland Forever! depicts one of the proudest moments in the regiments history. The truth, however, is far more remarkable than the portrayal of wild galloping horses in the picture implies.

Having missed the Battle of Quatre Bras on the eve of Waterloo, the Greys were eager to take to the field on the day of the main battle. Stationed on the Allies left flank as part of the Earl of Uxbridges Union Brigade, the Greys, to their frustration, were kept back in reserve as the rest of the Union and the Household Brigade were ordered to charge in support of the faltering British centre.

As the regiments commander, Lieutenant Colonel James Inglis Hamilton, watched the action unfold, he witnessed the Greys fellow Scotsmen, the 92nd Gordon Highlanders, beginning to fall back under heavy pressure from the French. Acting on his own initiative, he ordered his men to advance. The horses were forced to walk into the action because of the churned-up ground and the bodies of dead and dying Highlanders that littered the field.

Far from the striking image of the red-coated Scots atop their pale grey horses thundering into the French columns, the Greys fell upon the enemy at little more than a trot. One officer of the 92nd Highlanders later wrote that the Scots Greys actually walked over this column. Yet even this lacklustre charge had the effect of disrupting the French advance and rallying the Highlanders.

As the horsemen hacked and slashed their way through the enemy ranks, Sergeant Charles Ewart caught sight of the French imperial eagle of the 45e Rgiment de Ligne, the battle standard and most prized possession of any French regiment. After fighting his way through a ferocious defence and seizing the eagle, Ewart was ordered to remove the standard to the rear to prevent its recapture  it was, after all, one of only two taken during the battle.

This act made a name for both Sergeant Ewart and the regiment. Ewart was made a gentleman with promotion to ensign, while the Scots Greys acquired the nickname of the Bird Catchers. But the proudest moments in war are all too often tainted with grief and disaster  and this was no exception.

After their initial contact with the enemy, the Greys and the rest of the Union and Household brigades found themselves disorganised and advancing towards the main French lines. Their horses exhausted and their leader now killed, the British cavalry was taken unawares by Baron Jaquinots 1st Cavalry Division. The Greys retreated back to the British lines as best they could. They reformed, but played little further part in the battle.

At the end of the day, the regiment was left with 104 men dead and 97 wounded as well as losing 228 of their 416 horses. The Greys were battered and bruised, their battle ending in a disorganised retreat. But they had accomplished what few had done before  the capture of a French Imperial eagle.

Family Tree

1678: Raised as three troops of Scots Dragoons.

1681: Troops regimented to form The Royal Regiment of Scots Dragoons.

1694: Numbered the 4th Dragoons.

1707: Renamed The Royal North British Dragoons. Began to informally be call the Scots Greys.

1713: Renumbered the 2nd Dragoons.

1877: Nickname made o cial with the 2nd Dragoons (Royal Scots Greys).

1971: Amalgamated with the 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Waless Dragoon Guards).

Further information

Raised: 1678

Amalgamated: 1971 with 3rd Carabiniers (Prince of Waless Dragoon Guards) forming The Scots Dragoon Guards.

Motto: Nemo me impune lacessit (Nobody touches me with impunity), and Second to None.

Colours: Blue facings, gold lace for o cers and yellow for other ranks.

Marches: Quick: Hielan Laddie, Slow: The Garb of Old Gaul.

Battle Honours: Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, Malplaquet, Dettingen, Warburg, Willems, Waterloo, Balaclava, Sevastopol, South Africa 1899-1902, Relief of Kimberley, Paardeberg, Retreat from Mons, Marne 1914, Aisne 1914, Ypres 1914, 1915, Arras 1917, Amiens;Somme 1918; Hindenburg Line; Pursuit to Mons; France and Flanders 1914-18. Mons; Messines 1914, Gheluvelt, Neuve Chapelle; St Julien, Bellewaarde; Scarpe 1917, Cambrai 1917, 1918, Lys, Hazebrouck, Albert 1918, Bapaume 1918, St Quentin Canal, Beaurevoir, Hill 112; Falaise; Hochwald; Aller; Bremen, Merjayun; Alam el Halfa, El Alamein; No lia; Salerno, Italy 1943, Caen, Venlo Pocket, North-West Europe 1944-1945, Syria 1941, El Agheila;Advance on Tripoli, North Africa 1942-1943, Battipaglia, Volturno Crossing.
The Diehards: The 57th (West Middlesex) Regiment of Foot (now part of The Princess of Waless Royal Regiment)

Nothing could exceed the conduct and gallantry of Colonel Inglis at the head of his regiment. That is how Field Marshal Sir William Beresford, the British commander-in-chief at the Battle of Albuera, described the performance which gained The Diehards their nickname.

Originally raised in 1775 as the 59th Regiment of Foot, it was renamed the 57th a year later, and gained its county connection with West Middlesex in 1782. The regiment served with distinction in the American Revolutionary War, seeing action at Charlestown in 1776 and Halifax in 1783. But it was a generation later, on the bloodiest battlefield of Wellingtons decisive Peninsula campaign, that the regiment won its fearsome reputation and became The Diehards.

On the 16 May 1811, led by Colonel William Inglis, the battalion was in the line as Beresfords army of 35,000 British, Spanish, and Portuguese soldiers formed for battle outside the small Spanish town of Albuera. Facing them was a 25,000-strong French army under Marshal Soult intent on relieving the besieged fortress of Badajoz. The battle would be a fierce and bloody affair whose outcome would hang in the balance to the last.

The French, feigning a frontal attack on the town, pinned the Allied army in position, while the main force moved under the cover of high ground to assault the Allied right flank. The Spanish troops stationed there fought valiantly, but began to weaken under the mounting weight of French musketry. Grasping the nature of the French ruse, Beresford belatedly moved a division to bolster the faltering Spanish.

Disaster struck when a sudden torrential downpour rendered the infantrymens muskets temporarily useless. Attacks by French-Polish lancers wrought havoc in the British lines. Battalions were decimated and colours captured. The 57th, part of Houghtons brigade, moved up to support the faltering right flank. A break in the weather allowed the redcoats to once again use their muskets, and they began raking the loose formations of rampaging enemy horsemen.

In the confusion and panic that reigned on the battlefield, Houghtons men found themselves firing into the backs of the beleaguered British and Portuguese battalions to their front, obscured by the pall of smoke that hung over the field. Colonel Inglis  his horse already shot from under him and at great personal risk  stood out in front of his ranks commanding his men to Order Arms!. His action saved the lives of many men in the shattered forward battalions.

The 57th advance

Taking to the front line, the 57th formed up on the ridge of the hill, and with the other redcoats advanced in line towards a mass of French infantry who were moving forwards in a column of attack. In the ensuing fire-fight, both sides fought ferociously, neither willing to give ground. Many battalions suffered terrible casualties, and the 57th was among the hardest hit. Inglis himself sustained severe wounds when struck by French canister in chest and neck. Refusing to be carried from the field, as he lay wounded and losing blood, he was heard to cry Die Hard, the 57th, Die Hard!.

The men of the 57th did just that. As soldiers in the ranks fell, their comrades continued the grim work, rallying around the battered regimental colour. The men in the forward battalions fought themselves almost to destruction, salvation coming only when Coles 4th division hit the exposed French left flank.

The glory was the 57ths, but it had come at a terrible price. Of the 647 officers and soldiers on the field that day, 428 were reported killed or wounded  a 66% casualty rate for the action.

Afterwards, Beresford said of the battalion, Our dead, particularly the 57th Regiment, were laying as they fought in the ranks, every wound in front. Later, Marshal Soult would say of the Allied soldiers, There is no beating these troops in spite of their generals. I turned their right, pierced their centre, broke them everywhere; the day was mine, and yet they did not know it and would not run. A fitting tribute to the men of the 57th, who died hard.

Further information

Raised: 1755

Amalgamated: 1881 with the 77th (East Middlesex) to form the Middlesex Regiment

Motto: Honi Soit Qui Mal y Pense (evil be to him who evil thinks)

Colours: Yellow facings, gold lace

Marches: Quick  Sir Manley Power; Slow  Caledonian

Battle Honours: Albuera, Vittoria, Pyrenees, Nivelle, Nive, Peninsula, Alma, Inkerman, Sevastapol, New Zealand, South Africa (1879)

Regimental Family Tree

59th Regiment of Foot (1755)

57th Regiment of Foot (1756)

57th Regiment (West Middlesex) of Foot (1782)

77th Regiment (West Middlesex) of Foot

Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridges Own) (1881)

The Queens Royal Surrey Regiment

The Queens Own Buffs, the Royal Kent Regiment

The Royal Sussex Regiment

Queens Regiment (1966)

Royal Hampshire Regiment

The Princess of Waless Royal Regiment (1992)
It was the culmination of ten years of increasingly violent unrest between supporters of King Henry VI and his cousin Richard, Duke of York. Helen Cox takes us on a battlefield tour of Wakefield.

In October 1460, the exasperated Duke finally pressed his own claim to the throne and was recognised as heir-apparent  whereupon Henrys resolute Queen, Margaret of Anjou, immediately called on Lancastrian loyalists to restore the succession to their son Edward, Prince of Wales. Her supporters duly harassed the Dukes northern estates to draw him away from his power-base in London, and around 21 December, an opening skirmish was fought at Worksop between outriders of the armies converging on Yorkshire.

The Yorkists spent Christmas 1460 at Sandal Castle near Wakefield with an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 men, and the Lancastrians, with perhaps twice that number, nine miles away at Pontefract Castle. During a brief festive truce, the Duke granted a commission of array to one of his in-laws, John, Lord Neville, to recruit on his behalf; he may also have received a pledge of support from an erstwhile Yorkist ally Sir Andrew Trollope, a veteran commander in Calais.

Battle Commences

On Tuesday, 30 December 1460, the Lancastrians marched to Wakefield and deployed on a low hill just south of the city, separated from Sandal Castle by a mile of arable fields and rough common. Yorks army, swelled by a substantial muster newly arrived with Lord Neville, sallied forth to meet them  but their confident expectations of victory were soon to prove misplaced.

Contemporary details of troop deployments and the course of battle are scarce, but the armies would typically have been arranged in three wards: the main (centre), van (right) and rear (left). The Yorkist wards may have been led by their three senior peers, the Duke himself, his second son Edmund, Earl of Rutland, and their ally Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury. Facing them were Henry Beaufort, Duke of Somerset; James Butler, Earl of Wiltshire; John, Lord Clifford of Craven; and numerous other magnates including Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, and Henry Holland, Duke of Exeter (Yorks embittered son-in-law).

Hostilities may have begun when, on a pre-arranged signal, several hundred of Trollopes men launched a surprise attack on their supposed allies. With panic and disorder sown in the Yorkist ranks, battle proper was joined. Then, with Yorks army fully engaged, their enemies carefully-laid battle-plan was revealed: John Nevilles contingent entered the fray  on the Lancastrian side.

The Outcome

Within the moment of an hour (according to the Tudor historians account Three Books of Polydore Vergils English History, Sir H Ellis [ed.] Camden Society) it was over. Hopelessly outnumbered, Richard of York attempted a fighting retreat but was overcome and killed not far from Sandal Castle. Other desperate troops broke north for the shelter of the city, only to be cut down in the bottle-neck killing field enclosed by a loop of the River Calder, now known as Fall Ings. Among them was Edmund of Rutland, who was overtaken and slain by Lord Clifford near Wakefield Bridge. Up to 2,000 Yorkists died on the field for the loss of only 200 Lancastrians, while some prominent figures, including the Earl of Salisbury, were captured and beheaded at Pontefract the following day.

The Battlefield Today

The battlefield survived largely unchanged until the 18th century, but is now almost completely obliterated by urban development. However, you can still visit several key sites where the action took place  among them Sandal Castle. From the castles keep you will see to the south a stretch of open fields, which in the 15th century contained 30 acres of stoutly-fenced deer-park where Yorkist troops may have hunted in the run-up to battle. Immediately to the north was probably an encampment for men who could not be accommodated within Sandal Castles relatively small confines. Looking north-west, you can trace the line of the Calder running towards Wakefield, and see the island of Fall Ings just south of the city  on a clear day you may also spot the chantry chapel on the Medieval bridge. And half a mile north-east of the castle, a green field bounded by trees marks the site of Yorks demise  of which youll get a better view on foot.

Leave Sandal Castle and follow Manygates Lane  the same route the Yorkists took to battle in 1460. In less than half a mile, you will reach the remnant of Wakefield Green, now called Castle Grove Park  a well-preserved field of Medieval ridgeand- furrow which would have seen fierce hand-to-hand combat as the Duke strove vainly to reach the safety of his fortress. His Victorian monument stands opposite, among school railings, moved from its original position closer to where he died (slightly further north by the junction of Manygates and Milnthorpe Lanes) when the site was built on.

Walking on towards Wakefield you pass the Portobello estate, where human bones and weapon fragments (all since lost) were unearthed in the 19th century. Turning left from Manygates Lane onto the A61 Barnsley Road takes you gently uphill to the Lancastrian opening position, corresponding with the present Bromley Mount. Just beyond is Fall Ings, the site of the main Yorkist rout, and, finally, ahead on the right, the bridge and Chantry Chapel of St Mary the Virgin, where Edmund of Rutland is popularly thought to have died. Others believe the Earls flight took him further north along Kirkgate into the city proper, and that he was killed near a building called the Six Chimneys. Unfortunately this collapsed in 1941, but its location and name are preserved in the modern building erected on the same site.

This article featured in the January 2011 issue of Military History Matters. To find out more about the magazine and how to subscribe, click here.
When the war began in 1566, Imperial Spain was the worlds greatest superpower. By the time it ended, in 1609, the Spanish century was over.

The Dutch War of Independence was the defining conflict of its era. It secured the triumph of the Reformation in north-west Europe, and along the way reconfigured the geopolitics of the Continent. It also produced one of historys greatest captains, and completed the transition to a new way of war.

Maurice of Nassau, the Prince of Orange, became Captain-General of the United Provinces in 1587. A master of siege-warfare, he turned the tide of the war with the capture of Breda (1590), Zutphen (1591), Steenwijk (1592), and Geertruidenberg (1593). Four years later, in a lightning campaign, he captured no fewer than eight further towns, such that Holland had, by the end of 1597, cleared its territory of foreign troops and secured its borders.

Having reformed the army, moreover, he faced the Spanish in the open field, and won two stunning victories: at Tournhout in 1597, and at Nieuwpoort in 1600. Central to Maurices reforms were linear formations and intensive drill. Only thus, he realised, could the full potential inherent in the development of firepower be realised, for the blocky formations of the Medieval past were clumsy in manoeuvre and wasteful of manpower.

Below are the maps from the 17-page special feature on the Dutch War of Independence, seen in issue 52 of Military History Monthly.

1566: The Dutch Revolution Begins

Flemish and Dutch opposition to Spanish Catholic rule explodes in weeks of politico-religious rioting. Churches are vandalised and plundered. Conservative town councils are overthrown and replaced. Most of the local aristocracy remains loyal to Spain, but the House of Orange puts itself at the head of the Protestant forces. An Spanish army is dispatched under the Duke of Alva, and this first uprising is crushed.

1576: Spanish Fury

The Duke of Alvas campaign against the second uprising culminates in the sack of Antwerp. During several days of Spanish Fury a er the capture of the city in November 1576, 1,000 houses are destroyed and 8,000 people are killed. Military terror defeats the Flemish movement, and restores Spanish rule in Belgium.

1585: English Intervention

The Earl of Leicester leads an English army of 6,000 men to Holland. Though Leicester is granted almost dictatorial powers by the Dutch States-General, he performs badly, failing to take Zutphen. A er his death (1586), the main English army withdraws (1587), but contingents of English volunteers and mercenaries continue to serve. These play a major role in the campaigns of Maurice of Nassau.

1590: Maurices Ten Glorious Years

After the assassination in 1584 of his father, William of Orange, Maurice of Nassau succeeds him as Captain-General and Admiral-General of the United Provinces. He then embarks on a ten-year series of stunning military victories, clearing Holland of enemy troops and securing its borders between 1590 and 1600.

1604: The Fall of Ostend

Despite Maurices victory at Nieuwpoort, he is forced to withdraw from coastal Belgium: the Dutch are too exposed attempting to campaign in this region. The Spanish then put Ostend under siege. Although the Dutch lose 30,000 men, their compatriots are able to keep them supplied by sea, and the siege lasts for 3 years and 71 days, one of the longest sieges in history. The Spanish lose 60,000 men, but they eventually take the town.

1609: Twelve Years Truce

The Dutch have effectively secured their independence when a truce is agreed in 1609. However, they find themselves again at war with Spain when the Thirty Years War breaks out, though the epicentre of this titanic collision between the forces of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation is now Germany. Spain does not give formal recognition to Dutch independence until the Treaty of Munster, part of the wider Peace of Westphalia, at the end of the Thirty Years War in 1648. By now, however, the Dutch Golden Age is already under way.

These maps appeared in issue 52 of Military History Monthly as part of the 17-page special feature on the Dutch War of Independence.
Mao Zedong was born on 26 December 1893 into relative prosperity in a village in Hunan province. His father, a poor peasant and former soldier, had risen to the level of grain merchant and owned two and a half acres of land.

The young Mao disliked his bullying father, later remarking that acting meekly did little to ameliorate his fathers anger, and thus he was encouraged towards rebellion early on. A similar dislike of his teacher instilled a lifelong disregard for intellectuals, whom he would later consign to the ninth stinking category of counter-revolutionary.

Maos father arranged his marriage to a local girl, but Mao ignored her. He had to quit elementary school, but spent time in a higher primary and middle school.

His first political act came in 1911, as the Manchu Dynasty crumbled and rebellion broke out in Changsha town. Mao enlisted in Dr Sun Yat-sens army, but spent just six months as an orderly. He would later claim to have spent six months in the Changsha library, absorbing Chinese translations of Western classics.

In 1913, Mao entered a teacher training college in Changsha, where he established several student organisations. Over the next couple of years, touring Hunan province on foot, he became highly critical of Chinas past governance: the way forward, he believed, would involve amalgamating aspects of Western and Chinese thought.

By September 1918, he had qualified as a teacher, but instead of remaining in Changsha, he went to Beijing, where he became an assistant in the university library.

News of the Bolsheviks overthrowing the Russian Tsar had filtered east, and Mao came under the influence of Dr Li Dazhao and the universitys dean of literature Chen Duxiu, both Marxists and founder members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The Paris Peace Conference also influenced Mao. After 4 May 1919, Chinese students took to the streets, protesting terms that gave German concessions to the Japanese. Caught up in student activism, he gravitated even more towards Marxism.

In 1920, Mao returned to Changsha and became principal of a primary school. He also helped set up the Changsha branch of the newly formed CCP. The following year, he became General Secretary for Hunan and was one of 12 delegates to the First Party Congress. At the time, the national membership was less than 60 people; 28 years later, organised and indoctrinated by Mao, the Chinese Communist Party would conquer the largest nation on earth.

This is an extract from Tom Farrells two-part article titled Maos Red Army, featured in issue 75 of Military History Monthly.
George Butterworth in Leeds, 1913. Image: Anthea Ionides

George Butterworth was part of a group of young English composers who were making names for themselves during the Edwardian era. English classical music had languished since the 18th century, but by the 1880s there was a new movement that would produce such creative geniuses as Elgar, Vaughan Williams, and Holst.

AN ENGLISH RENAISSANCE

Many saw Butterworth as one of English musics great hopes. He was part of the second generation of composers in this new movement, at the time dubbed a renaissance, and like several of his colleagues he drew inspiration from English folk music and traditions. This renaissance was part of a larger romantic movement to imbue society with a new sense of Englishness and a connection with the past.

Butterworth and several friends spent many happy days travelling the countryside, collecting folk songs from rural populations, and writing them down before they were lost forever. He was also an enthusiastic folk dancer, belonging to the famed troupe directed by noted song collector Cecil Sharp.

Described as something of a gruff Yorkshireman (although born in London, he was raised in the North), Butterworth came from a wealthy family but struggled to find a real purpose in life. His father, Sir Alexander Kaye Butterworth, initially opposed his decision to pursue a musical career, but eventually relented, and would later regret not giving him more support.

Butterworth showed tremendous compositional ability, and his few surviving orchestral works are of high quality. He was also a noted composer of songs for voice and piano. Alas, he was dissatisfied with much of his output, and destroyed many pieces before the outbreak of the war; he was still searching for his true calling.

PRIVATE BUTTERWORTH

After some soul-searching, Butterworth enlisted in late August 1914. He declined an offer from a family friend of a safe commission, not wanting to use his social position unfairly. Instead, he joined the Duke of Cornwalls Light Infantry as a private, and, eventually, went to Aldershot for training.

He remained there for the first half of 1915, which frustrated him. Though he eventually received a commission, and was later made a lieutenant in the Durham Light Infantry, he spent the first part of the war feeling restless and bored. Finally sent to France in August 1915, he initially saw little combat. But, after a brief return to England in early 1916, he was soon back in France, and by July his battalion was on the front line.

Butterworth was level-headed and brave in battle, and was awarded the Military Cross for commanding his company with great ability and coolness at Pozieres between 17 and 19 July 1916. He seemed at last to have found the purpose that had eluded him in civilian life. He received a shrapnel wound at the end of July, but it was not serious enough for him to be sent home. Ironically, a larger wound would have saved his life.

PROMISE UNFULFILLED

In the early hours of 5 August 1916, his unit was engaged in an attack on a trench called Munster Alley. It was here that Butterworth met his fate. Brigadier-General Henry Page Croft wrote to Butterworths father, extolling his heroism:

I went up to the farthest point reached with Lieut. Kaye-Butterworth. The trench was very low and broken, and he kept urging me to keep low down. I had only reached the Battalion Headquarters on my return when I heard poor Butterworth, a brilliant musician in times of peace and an equally brilliant soldier in times of stress, was shot dead by a bullet through the head. So he, who had been so thoughtful for my safety, had suffered the same fate he had warned me against only a minute before.

Given the situation, it was not possible to recover Butterworths body. He was buried near Munster Alley. Although no sign of his grave now remains, the place where he died was named Butterworths Trench in his honour. The Thiepval Memorial nearby contains his name among the fallen. Of those dancers who were in Cecil Sharps troupe, half were killed in the Battle of the Somme.

Sir Alexander privately published a tribute to his son in 1918, the George Butterworth, 1885-1916, Memorial Volume. Containing letters, remembrances, praises, and other writings, it was distributed to his sons friends and colleagues.

Butterworth was remembered as a composer of great promise unfulfilled. His devotion to the wars cause and his heroism in battle tragically cut short his life, and has left lovers of classical music to wonder what more he might have achieved if he had returned safely.

ARTISTIC EXPRESSION

Despite the long hours that Butterworth spent in training and eventually on the front line, he did not compose any new music, and surprisingly, seems to have abandoned it completely; his diary makes no mention of music at all.Other composers at the time reacted similarly to their experiences, though some, such as Ivor Gurney, turned to writing poetry as a different form of artistic expression. Butterworth may have felt a sense of resignation, a feeling that he would not return. Or, given that he destroyed so many of his pieces before leaving home, he may simply have felt that his work was done.

He did collect some folk songs from a group of Durham miners under his command, whom he regarded as friends, despite their different social stations. The war had an equalising effect, and class distinctions were unimportant in the life-or-death situations encountered in the trenches. This egalitarianism helped break down class divides after the conflict.

Tim Rayborn

This article is from the May 2016 issue of Military History Matters. To find out more about the magazine and how to subscribe, click here.
American artist and illustrator Cyrus LeRoy Baldridge published I Was There in 1919. The book contains over 30 illustrations, sketches, and paintings made by Baldridge during his time on the Western Front.

Baldridge studied at the University of Chicago before searching out adventure as a ranch hand in Texas and joining the National Guard. With the outbreak of the Great War, he sought adventure overseas and travelled through occupied Belgium as a war correspondent.

Having taken part in the 1916 expedition against Pancho Villa in Mexico, Baldridge returned to Europe in 1917 to volunteer with the French Army as a stretcher bearer and truck driver. When the United States entered the war, he transferred to the American Expeditionary Force.

His skills as an illustrator soon saw him join Stars and Stripes, the US militarys weekly newspaper. He was also a talented cartoonist, and his cartoons and illustrations were frequently featured in Leslies Weekly and Scribners Magazine. While some of Baldridges work had obvious propaganda value, such as his sketch of French and American soldiers walking arm in arm, many of his pieces offered a more damning view of war.

I Was There spans Baldridges two years on the Western Front, capturing scenes from along the front line between Soissons and the Argonne. These works are combined with moving prose by H R Baukhage, whom Baldridge met while working as a journalist with Stars and Stripes. Baukhage went on to become a successful radio and television broadcaster during the 1940s and 50s.

Through his work, Baldridge strived to show the range of emotions experienced by soldiers fighting on the Western Front. His aim was to reveal the reality of war to people at home. Stripping away any pretence of honour, he captured the fortitude of the men who fought. In the books handwritten introduction, Baldridge lamented that the sketches do not sufficiently show war for the stupid horror I know it to be.

Baldridges sketchbook never left his side; he drew everything and everyone that surrounded him. The book is filled with candid images, including one of a little boy staring up at the sky, captivated by an aerial dogfight, and others of the French family Baldridge was billeted with in Soissons.

The illustrations seem to capture every emotion felt by the troops fighting on the Western Front. Baldridges works depict men terrified, anxious, exhausted, beaten, and victorious. Another image shows men spoiling for a fight. And his illustrations are as comprehensive as they are expressive, featuring British, American, and French troops, as well as the civilians he met and lived with. A number of pages are dedicated to the many colonial troops who fought for France, featuring sketches and paintings of soldiers from Senegal and Indochina.

After the war, Baldridge returned to America as a pacifist. During the 1920s and 30s, he travelled extensively throughout Africa and Asia, and his work was published by many popular American publications. He retired to Santa Fe to focus on painting in the early 1950s. He died in 1977, aged 88.



MATTHEW MOSS

This is an extract from an article was published in issue 69 of Military History Monthly. More of Baldridges illustrations can be viewed on-line at archive.org
In November 1854, The Times war correspondent William Russell, writing from the Crimea, reported that an attack by Russian cavalry had been repulsed, having come up against a piece of Gaelic rock a thin red streak topped up with a line of steel  a description that would later become the thin red line. Russell was describing the heroic part played by the 93rd Highlanders in the Battle of Balaclava, probably better known as the occasion of the disastrous charge of the Light Brigade.

The 93rd Highlanders had been raised in 1799 as the 93rd Regiment of Foot, drawing its recruits mainly from the remote county of Sutherland in the far north of Scotland. In Autumn 1854, the 93rd was defending Balaclava, a small village and port being used by the British as their supply base. Balaclava was of great strategic importance, and its loss could have changed the course of the entire war.

On the morning of 25 October 1854, the Russians, seeing the apparent sparseness of the British defences, sensed an opportunity to make a breakthrough and take Balaclava. They pushed forward following a fierce artillery barrage.

The 93rd, made up of about 500 men under the command of General Sir Colin Campbell, was stationed between the enemy and their target, but they had taken cover from the artillery fire behind a hill and were out of sight of the Russian forces. When he saw that between 400 and 800 Russian cavalry intended spearheading an attack on Balaclava,

Campbell moved his men back to the crest of the hill. For a time, there was silence. Finally, the Russians charged, determined to break through the British line and reach Balaclava.

Russian onslaught

With squadrons of Russian cavalry bearing down on them, the Turks on the British flanks fired a volley at random before fleeing, leaving two ranks of kilted Highlanders to face the onslaught. As bayonets were fixed, Campbell rode to the front and called out to his troops, There is no retreat from here, men! You must die where you stand.

The response from a junior officer was immediate and equally assertive: Aye, aye, Sir Colin, an needs be, well do that.

The sight of the Russians gathering speed as they thundered towards the British lines must have been awesome, but the line held firm. If anything, the Highlanders were* over enthusiastic, moving forwards as if to charge. Ninety third! Ninety third! cautioned Campbell. Damn all that eagerness. Suitably reminded of their duty, the men of the 93rd stood their ground and the Russians were met by two volleys of musket fire, one at 500 yards, the second at 200 yards. This broke up the first attack, but the Russians reformed and attacked again, this time looking to pierce the British line on its now unguarded right flank. The men of the 93rd, however, kept their discipline and wheeled to meet them, firing several more volleys at close range. This second reverse was too much for the Russians. As hundreds of men and horses went down, they retreated in disarray.

The story of the thin red line is not one of a fierce hand-to-hand battle, and it was all over in a matter of minutes. It was an example of discipline and courage in the face of the terrifying spectacle of a massed cavalry charge. Campbell confirmed his complete faith in his troops by calmly announcing later, I did not think it worthwhile to form them even four deep.

The 93rds show of courage in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds, resulted in the regiment being allowed to commemorate Balaclava on its colours, the only infantry regiment permitted this distinction. And the thin red line is remembered in both the stirring march of that name, and the painting by Robert Gibb RSA, on display at the Scottish National War Museum in Edinburgh Castle.

Although the phrase thin red line is often applied generally to the British Army, it is correctly the nickname of the regiment later known as the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders, now 5th Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland.
The Ghana Culture Forum (GCF) is to hold its maiden conference tomorrow at the National Theatre to dialogue on the way forward for the creative industry.

All the groups under the cultural fraternity are expected to participate in the forum.

The event is on the theme: 'Projecting our National Culture: The Quest for Creativity, Excellence and Relevance'.

The conference seeks to affirm the work of the forum which is centred on the common vision of upholding the cultural foundations of development and enhancing the profile, value and impact of the cultural sector.

There will be a plenary session to discuss perspectives on the challenges that confront the industry as a developing country and people as they grapple with the complex issues of advancing their national culture.

More than 500 delegates are expected to attend the conference from across the country.

The Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare, is expected to deliver an address as the special guest of honour.

Other personalities to address the gathering will include Prof Kofi Agyekum, Director of School of Performing Arts, University of Ghana, Legon, and the conference chairperson will be Togbi Edem Kwaku Ashigbey (Ing Kenneth Ashigbey) Managing Director, Graphic Communications Group Limited.

The conference will be held in partnership and support from the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts.

The Ghana Culture Forum is a membership-based civil society consultative and advocacy network of cultural practitioners, activists and organisations in Ghana.
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Johannesburg (AFP) - South African President Jacob Zuma on Monday faced the biggest challenge to his leadership since taking power in 2009 as the ruling ANC party debated his future and calls grew for him to resign.

Zuma has been hit by a series of corruption scandals and damaging court rulings this year, while the ANC suffered a sharp setback in local polls in August and unemployment has hit a 13-year high.

A weekend meeting of the African National Congress (ANC) national executive committee was extended into Monday after a rebellion led by senior government figures.

Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi all called on the president to step down, the News24 news agency reported, citing party sources.

The president, who has survived numerous scandals while in office, has been under renewed pressure since a corruption probe earlier this month unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi (right) is among ministers reportedly calling on Jacob Zuma to resign

The probe by the country's top watchdog uncovered evidence of possible criminal activity in Zuma's relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

"He is at his weakest. He is under extreme pressure," political analyst Daniel Silke told AFP.

"I don't think the ANC is ready for a very fast departure, but this is an unprecedented show of anti-Zuma support.

"We could see a warning sign to the president that his days are numbered."

'Fighting for political life'

However Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many rank-and-file ANC party members, as well as its lawmakers. He easily survived a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

Neither the ANC nor any of the three ministers reportedly calling for Zuma's head commented on Monday, as the party meeting at a hotel near Pretoria continued.

South African president Jacob Zuma has been criticised for his close relationship with the Guptas -- a business family accused of wielding undue political influence

Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for the president to resign in recent months.

The ANC, which has ruled since Nelson Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994, has seen its popularity dive, with local polls in August delivering the party's worst-ever result.

Zuma's term in office ends in 2019, but the ANC is due to elect a new party leader at the end of next year and could decide to replace him as head of state.

"There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life," analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC... no longer want him as president."

South Africa's highest court this year found him guilty of violating the constitution after he refused to repay taxpayers' money used to refurbish his private rural house.

He is also fighting a court order that could reinstate almost 800 corruption charges against him over a multi-billion dollar arms deal in the 1990s.

Economic woes

International credit rating firm Fitch on Friday dropped its outlook for South Africa from stable to negative, pointing to the country's recent political turmoil.

Zuma has also been engulfed by a power struggle with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan.

Zuma's loyalists have been at loggerheads with Gordhan, a reformist who is widely respected among international investors.

Mmusi Maimane, leader of the main opposition Democratic Alliance party, told AFP that he expected Zuma to ride out the latest bout of criticism.

"I think it will probably be a deferred decision until next year," he said.

"The ANC (has) a very difficult decision about who will succeed him and which faction that will come from because it's a deeply divided organisation."

When Zuma leaves office, the three leading possible successors are his ex-wife, African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.

The Business Day newspaper reported that many of Zuma's supporters rushed back to the ANC meeting after missing proceedings to attend a wedding near Cape Town.


Ethiopian Airlines Aviation Academy, the largest aviation academy in Africa, graduated 322 aviation professionals at a ceremony held at its headquarters last Thursday.

They included 47 pilots, 92 aviation maintenance technicians, 50 cabin crew and 133 marketing professionals.

Tewolde GebreMariam, Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Ethiopian Airlines, who congratulated new graduates, gave out diplomas to all the graduates, flight wings to graduating pilots and cabin crew.

He also presented achievement awards to graduates with outstanding academic performance.

We believe education is the greatest equalizer in the 21st Century, and Ethiopian Aviation Academy has strategically positioned itself to train the African youth in the latest Aviation technology and skills to own, manage and operate their own indigenous home-grown African Airlines to lead safe, economical and reliable aviation industry with global standards, he said.

Mr. GebreMariam said, We shall continue to scale up our capacity and continue nurturing the youth and prepare them for the 21st century African Aviation development.

Operating successfully for the past six decades since its establishment in 1956, Ethiopian Aviation Academy has significantly contributed towards alleviating the critical shortage of skilled aviation professionals.

Currently, the academy trains 1,500 youth per annum, and it envisages to enhance its intake capacity to 4,000 by 2025.

Ethiopian Aviation Academy is certified by the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority, the U.S Federal Aviation Administration, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and IATA Safety Audit (IOSA).

In its seven decades of operation, Ethiopian Airlines has become one of the continent's leading carriers, unrivaled in efficiency and operational success.

It operates the youngest and most modern fleet to 95 international destinations across five continents.
(CNS): An estimated 300 million people are living with asthma worldwide with an additional 100 million new cases expected to be added by 2025. WHO estimates that 15 million disability adjusted life years (DALYs) are lost annually because of this chronic disease that kills an estimated 250,000 people annually. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) hold the promise of reducing deaths from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) by one third by 2030 - a tall order indeed, as far as asthma is concerned.

Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) guidelines say that asthma management should be based on achieving and maintaining complete asthma control. But an increasing body of evidence suggests that asthma is under-treated and uncontrolled in many parts of the world. Achieving good control of asthma will lead to fewer exacerbations and is also associated with less airway inflammation. Good control will require stepping up treatment, especially in those patients who are more severe, and then stepping down, once good control is established.

Dr PK Thomas, a respiratory physician of Chennai, gave an overview of the status of asthma control in India during the 18th National Conference on Pulmonary Diseases (NAPCON 2016) held in Mumbai. He said that while earlier studies reported a median prevalence of 3% - more than 30 million Indians living with asthma - growing evidence suggests that this is a gross underestimate. Despite availability of reliable diagnostic tools, effective and affordable inhaled drugs, and qualified doctors, asthma remains to be poorly managed in India, with 45% of asthma patients not ever had a lung function test done. The economic burden of asthma in India is estimated to be huge: INR 4852.86 crores (INR 48.5 billion) in 2016, he said.

Dr Thomas referred to the Asia Pacific-Asthma Insights and Management (AP-AIM) India Study that highlights that asthma management in India remains very poor. Even though 91% of the patients perceived their asthma to be under complete or partial control, when analysed using GINA guidelines, none of them had completely controlled asthma, 60% had partly controlled asthma and 40% uncontrolled asthma. 64% patients believed that regular controller medication for asthma is not required and 50% had apprehensions about the use of inhaled corticosteroids.

While the key treatment for asthma is inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) therapy, only about one third of Indias asthma patients use them, with a majority preferring the oral route of medication. Even among those on inhaler therapy, 75% either overuse or underuse inhaled corticosteroids. The result is that a large proportion of patients lead a worsened quality of life.

According to Dr Thomas, poor asthma management in India is due to lack of adequate knowledge and awareness about diagnosis and treatment management of asthma. Many patients remain undiagnosed or wrongly diagnosed in clinical practice; and even those who get diagnosed are poorly or inadequately treated. There is clearly a need to change the mindset of the Indian patients and educate them that suffering is not a norm for asthma and that with proper treatment and regular use of inhaled medications, most of them can lead a near normal and healthy life.

In an exclusive interview with CNS (Citizen News Service), Dr Paul Jones, Emeritus Professor of Respiratory Medicine at St George's University London said that if asthma is not treated properly it can lead to long term damage to the lungs. However, good control of asthma is possible anywhere. ICS therapy is the cornerstone of asthma control and should continue lifelong. No Drug holidays off ICS treatment, he insisted.

Studies indicate that if a country simply gets all asthma patients to use ICS, rates of hospital admission and asthma deaths drop significantly. Recognising that proper management could entail out of pocket costs to asthma patients in countries like India, Jones said that one should remember that poorly controlled asthma results in a lot more hospital admissions, and that will cost the patient a lot more than what is needed for daily use of ICS therapy.

Asthma is a complex disease. Apart from being genetic, it can also be caused by early childhood exposure to different factors such as maternal smoking (even before the baby is born), or paternal smoking and childhood exposure to organic matter. There is some evidence that children who grow up on farms have less asthma than those who grow up in urban areas. Perhaps, one of the reasons why asthma is getting more common in urban areas is that people are now living in cleaner homes and so immune systems of children are developing differently. Smoking cessation is one life style change that, along with medication, can really help people control their asthma, stressed Jones.

Asthma in children and in adults needs to be managed and treated differently. A significant proportion of children with asthma will remit for a very long time, whereas once an adult has asthma, they have it for the rest of their lives, unless it is of an extremely mild form. The pharmacological treatment of asthma in adults and children is different too. In adults the most effective treatment is a combination of ICS and long-acting Beta-agonist bronchodilators (LABA), whereas in children treatment should be based on use of ICS alone. Use of LABA in children results in increased hospitalisations and exacerbations. Even in adults, whose asthma is adequately controlled through ICS, LABA should not be used along with ICS. Use of SMART (single maintenance and reliever treatment) with LABA alone, without use of a long-term asthma control medication, is associated with poor control and more airway inflammation as compared to control directed fixed dose inhalers.

Moreover, while adult patients need to be on ICS medication all the time, there is evidence that children can be on ICS for a durationfew months or even a year or twowhen their asthma is troublesome and then can stop the ICS if, and only if, their asthma is completely controlledno symptom at all over a long period of time, explained Jones.

Asthma, like other chronic diseases, is not curable but it is very much controllable. Persons living with asthma can lead a near to normal life just through proper asthma management. There is more realisation now that severe lung diseases like asthma and COPD are related to poor asthma control in children. So we must really focus our attention to controlling asthma in children better than before.
Professor Noam Chomsky, the renowned US academic, award-winning author and public intellectual, speaks with UpFront:

Labels Donald Trump an ignorant, thin-skinned megalomaniac

Says the most predictable aspect of Trump is unpredictability

Says those who voted for third party candidate in the election made a bad mistake

Calls Trumps positions on climate change a radical setback

Slams the medias coverage of the election: The real treachery of the media in this election was to avoid issues totally

In a wide-ranging interview with Al Jazeera Englishs current affairs show UpFront, Noam Chomsky spoke about the U.S. elections, Donald Trump and the media.

Theres never been anything like [Trump], the renowned US academic, award-winning author and public intellectual toldUpFront host Mehdi Hasan. In fact, the most predictable aspect of Trump is unpredictability. I think its dangerous. Very dangerous Its certainly extremely hazardous to have an ignorant, thin-skinned megalomaniac who sends off, you know, [tweets] at 3 AM if somebody angered him.

Asked about an interview in 2010 where he had warned that frustration and justified anger in the US could lead the country down a road similar to pre-war Germany, Chomsky said: I wouldnt compare it with Germany, adding Hitler was a sincere, dedicated ideologue. Trump isnt. He has no known ideology other than me.

He has no background at all in any political activities. Never held office, been interested in office, he added. Hes basically a showman, a strange background for a president.

On the subject of the medias coverage of the election and Trump, Chomsky said, The real treachery of the media in this election was to avoid issues totally.

Chomsky was also asked about those who voted for third party candidates Jill Stein and Gary Johnston instead of voting for Hillary Clinton. I think theyre making a bad mistake, he said. Do you vote against the greater evil if you dont happen to like the other candidate? The answer to that is yes, he added. If you have any moral understanding, you want to keep the greater evil out.

When asked about Trumps position on climate change, Chomsky called it a radical setback Trumps position is more fossil fuels, eliminate regulations, even coal, refuse the payments, promised payments to countries trying to move to sustainable energy. To claim that this is the same as Clintons programs is just madness in my view.

Some on the left, like Slavoj Zizek, had claimed Trumps election victory would shake up the system and benefit the political left in the U.S. Responding to that claim, Chomsky said, It was the same point that people like him said about Hitler in the early 30s Hell shake up the system in bad ways. Thats completely regressive.

One positive aspect of Trumps administration, Chomsky said, could be easing tensions with Russia. Anything that would reduce the growing and dangerous and severe threat of nuclear war is to be welcomed, he said. It would be a nice thing if humanity could survive.

Regarding claims by the U.S. government that Russia interfered in the elections through hacking, Chomsky said, Its possible, but its a kind of strange complaint in the United States. The U.S. has been interfering with, and undermining, elections all over the world for decades and is proud of it.

Watch the full 25-minute interview below

.
Berekum (B/A), Nov. 27, GNA - Mirikesie Nana Okoffo Darteh Kumtwie Sasraku III, Gyaasehene of the Berekum Traditional Council, has called on political parties to be mindful of who they select to man the various polling stations.

Speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, he called for the immediate removal of corrupt polling agents before the polls begin.

Nana Okoffo Darteh said that it would be difficult for the elections to be rigged if political parties selected polling agents who were credible.

"How will you achieve desirable results if you take drunkards and people of questionable character to the polling station to observe proceedings and testify accurately," he said.

Nana Gyaasehene advised various party executives to deploy sound and decent agents for the exercise and provide them with the appropriate motivation to focus on their duty.

He refuted the assertion that Berekum was a flashpoint as far as the December polls were concerned; declaring that the dear populace regarded themselves as one people, notwithstanding their political affiliations.

GNA
28.11.2016 LISTEN

Mary Aba Anokye, a 28-year-old unemployed Fante lady based in Accra, who was reported missing by her family around Monday 31st October, 2016 has confirmed, following her release, that she was kidnapped by some Ghanaians and Lebanese operating from a hideout in Tarkwa, Western Region at a place called Lebanese town within Tarkwa Subriso.

She was released on Wednesday 2nd November but due to the emotional torture and trauma, she needed to be given some time to recover in order to narrate the incident particularly, those ones she could recall.

She tells from the audio uploaded of how she was tied up, fed like an animal, manhandled and verbally abused by her kidnappers.

It would be recalled that ModernGhana recently carried a news item on the lady in question when her family made complaints to the news team.

See: www.modernghana.com/news/732275/worried-family-suspects-missing-relative-has-been-kidnapped.html

Mary Aba Anokye, according to information gathered, followed a male friend whose name she only gave as Kwame Yeboah, to the mining town Tarkwa, Western Region of Ghana to look for a job.

Sleuth checks further established that Kwame Yeboah convinced Mary Anokye and took her to a place called Lebanese Home in Tarkwa to start work but it turned out to be a hellish chamber far away from town.
28.11.2016 LISTEN

They say kings and queens Dont Die they travel --thats a belief shared by Akans in Ghana.

Where do they go then? Gordon Offin Amaniampong examines

My first visit to the Manhyia Palace (the official seat of Asantehene) in 1983 never was. I felt disappointed. Bolga Naba III Martin Adongo Abilba, who ruled from the 14th of July 1972 to October 2013, had visited our residence at Patase estate a suburb of Kumasi in the Ashanti region. The Bolga King (in the Upper East Region) was visiting his friend the Asantehene--- Otumfuo Opoku Ware II.

And when he dropped the news that he planned to go there (Manhyia Palace) with us I was so thrilled.

I was so filled with joy. I waited and kept waiting till I felt Id been waiting in vain. I dont really know what happened, but hours later my aunt Theresa Essel (now deceased) told me the visit had become abortive.

Evidently, I wasnt happy at all. It meant Id nothing to brag about. I had planned to tell my friends when school reopened---about how Manhyia looked like, about how majestic the king looked when he pulled on his traditional Kente cloth---names like Adinkra, Dwenasa, Apremo, Nsoroma, Babadua etc. had occupied my whole mind.

Id planned to tell them about the beautiful relics I saw, the handshakes and the broad smiles I received from the king, the queen and the elders. Id also planned to tell them about the executioners (Adumfuo), the courtiers, and the trumpeters, the drummers--- about the different colourful umbrellas I saw---big and small, bowl-shaped and curved in. That I saw a gigantic Fontonfrom drum that measured six feet high and about 100 widths in diameter.

Remember where theres will theres way. Going to the Manhyia Palace this time was more than easy. I made a whistle stop in Accra. I surprised my good friend Kwamina Miaful Dadzie when I showed up at his door. Perplexed, he asked me: How did you make it here Katakyie?

I flew on the broad wings of the Eagle, I told him.

There was no protocol.to be observed. No hustles and no sweats. The Manhyia Gate was wide opened for my arrival. They knew I was coming. The walls had informed them that Nana Akwasi Atokora Adwokwaa Offin-Amaniampong was coming to pay the Queen Mother (Asantehemaa) his last respect. To say fare thee well Abrewa. To tell her we still love her and she will forever be loved. To say goodbye good old Grandma and to tell her shell be immortalised.

Kumasi is still mourning. Asanteman is grieving. All the women I saw had dyed their hairssymbol for grief, pain and sorrow. Krobea Asante Kotoko Asantehene-- Otumfuo Osei Tutu II wasnt in his beautiful regalia. Yes, its time to either go red or go black. Thats the dress code (Kobene ne Birisie). He was flanked by a high-powered array of paramount as well as divisional chiefs across the empire.

The Batamhene, Baffour Owusu Amankwatia VI and Asafohene Acheamfuo Kwame Akowua, Nkonson and Kutimso divisions were all in attendance.

The inner circle of the dais stood the ceremonial macebearers who flaunted the high ornamental staff of metals before Otumfuo as retinue of linguists gathered themselves at the fringes. The trumpeters horned like peacocks. On the far right side to the king was a motionless lanky middle aged-man, whitewashed from head to toe. I asked the king: Whos this man?

Thats Komfo Aku the chief fetish priest, he told me.

He was clutched to his magic want (bodua). His whole frame was festooned with mystical trappings, charms and amulets. And who else did I see-- the fearsome Adumhene Kwaku Mensah (aka Diawuo). Back in the day if you lived in Dunkwa-on-Offin or Kumasi, the sounds of Mmentia-- trumpets made you cringe. I dreaded that name, so much as a kid no wonder I saw him here.

Eerie memory isnt it?

The paradox is that he trembled when he saw me this time (Man pass man). Ive got more powers than him. In the writers creative mind everything is possible. I can go to hell taunt Lucifer and come back unscathed. I can dine and wine with King Jesus. I can create my own characters; raise an army of lions to devour him (Diawuo) instantly. I can fly high to the sky and dive deep to the depth of the mighty ocean all in a matter of sec.

Anyway, Kwaku Mensah had the eyes of hyena tattooed on his forehead. And his torso bedecked with charms as well. The Adumhene also had a piece of traditional cloth called danta which barely covered his manhood provoking many eyes at the Manhyia.

So where do they (kings and queens) go hereafter?

To understand this lets peer back into the yester years---basically look at how the Akans and most ethnic groups in Ghana perceive life and death. In his book titled: The Finish Line author Gordon Offin-Amaniampong wrote: Life was simplified; it was glorified and was personified.

In mythology, life was portrayed as War, a Mirror, an Egg, a Shadow, etc.

Through drama, poetry and storytelling, I learned that life is like a chameleon that changes time and again. It is like a giant species that sets out on an endless journey. It is like a rainbow, it shows up beautifully in the horizon but soon it disappears. And like a beautiful flower or a butterfly it fades away in a fleeting. It is depicted as a naked light in the stormy weather.

The question is who can defy death or escape the yawning jaws of undying death (Bamua Wuo)?

Every king or queen travels to the village when s/he is invited by the Maker: The Man who sanctions life and death. Indeed, when breath flies away the body knoweth not where he goeth. Its a trip often shrouded in secrecy. Their passing is veiled. And the public only gets to know about such transitions sometimes weeks or months some may even morph into years.

On Monday November 14, 2016, the womb that bore the sixteenth occupant of the Asante Golden Stool trudged this mystery path. Asantehemaa Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem II made her final journey to the village. She was as old as a shock of corn---racking up 109 years.

According to local media reports Otumfuo Osei Tutu II the Asantehene broke the sad news to the Kumasi Traditional Council (KTC) at a meeting. Thereafter Manhyia issued a statement confirming that she passed away peacefully at her palace on Monday 14th November, 2016.

The statement also paid a glowing tribute to the Obaahemaa saying: She has been a pillar of strength and source of wisdom behind the transformational reign of his Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene.

Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem who reigned as Asantehemaa for 39 years was enstooled in 1977 as the 13th queen mother of the Asante kingdom (which dates back in 1695) after the late Nana Ama Serwaa Nyarko II who reigned from 1945 to 1977.

Time isnt precious at all, because it is an illusion. What you perceive as precious is not time but the one point that is out of time: the Now. That is precious indeed. The more you are focused on timepast and futurethe more you miss the Now, the most precious thing there is----Eckhart Tolle

Truth is we all pursue time. We focus on the past years and we also look beyond. No doubt this generation pursues time like a tsetse fly chasing a tortoise or a turtle.

But I trust the good old Grandma chose the best time. Obaahemaa will have great time with her Maker. And shell also spend good time together with her brothers, sisters and the forebears in the ancestral world.. Its a world many dread but its a world one cant pass it on or pass it over. Youve got to taste it anyhow.

Dimirifa Due Otumfuo,

Damirifa Due Asanteman,

Damirifa Due Adehyeman mma,

Mema mo due ne amanehunu.

Nanteyie Obaahemaa, Kwansobrebre!!!
Nana Obens article (What is wrong with Akans, (especially Fantis) anyway?) of 11th November got me reflecting on my recent visit to Ghana. Before I read Nanas article, I was asking myself this question, do we in the Central Region really have to continue to be the jokers of Ghana, even though others have taken over the concert party scene and are now telling stale, jejune and crude jokes?

From my recent experience travelling through the Agona, Gomoa, Asin, Twifu, Enyan and Ekumfi Districts/areas of the Central Region, I am convinced that the only jokers in the Central Region today are the people who by accident of birth call themselves chiefs and those so-called opinion leaders under the umbrella who are falling over each other to convince the people of the region that John Mahama is the best thing that happened to Ghana since Tetteh Quarshie brought cocoa from Fenrnado Po.

The last time I checked the Central Region ranked third or fourth in cocoa production in Ghana, yet the roads into and through the cocoa producing areas of Agona, Gomoa and Assin among others, are some of the worst in the country. I will leave the people of the Western Region to speak for themselves.

In addition to cocoa production, the Central Region also produces timber, copra, oil palm, citrus, tomatoes and even some gold in the Twifu area. Yet, a recent article I read on the internet claimed among other things that the Central Region is the second poorest region in Ghana. In Election 2012, the region was second in the number of spoilt and therefore, disqualified ballots, meaning again that in spite of having some of the oldest and best educational institutions in the country, the Central Region is also one of the least literate in the country.

And the reason is not difficult to find. Much of what the region produces is taxed very heavily into state coffers and taken away as raw materials, with very little value added, for the benefit of the regions citizens.

Even the Akora and Densu Rivers, the major sources of drinking water, are now being taken away from Kwanyako Water Works, to serve Greater Accra, after the government looked on unconcerned for the fishermen in that region to destroy the water in the Weija Dam, through illegal fishing practices.

Central government has invested very little in the Central Region. Instead, some selfish and myopic sons and daughters of the region helped Jerry Rawlings to destroy the poultry industry, the one viable industry that served the downtrodden citizens of the region. And of course, unlike others who never forgive insults, we rewarded him by voting massively for him in 1992 and 1996, not even his reference to Oguaa Akoto as having sanitation practices worse than his staple, the cat, could persuade us!

Following rumours I heard about one new community secondary school that was being built in the Agona District, I made an effort to find out and lo and behold, 80 percent of the contract awards for the schools that are being constructed in the Gomoa, Agona and Ekumfi areas went to contractors from the Northern and Volta Regions of Ghana! It is the same with the many half completed roads in the region. Yet there are people who call themselves contractors in those districts who apparently finance the ruling NDC from the crumbs that they receive from under their banquet tables, like constructing open gutters. How very funny can we get?

With the abject poverty of the region, it is not surprising that we also come close to the bottom of the literacy ladder. Primary education in Ghana now comes with a heavy cost. Most of the traditional high schools in the region only admit students with the best results from the Basic Education final examinations. To be able to achieve those results, parents and guardians must send their wards to the best preparatory schools, mostly located in Accra, Sekondi-Takoradi and Kumasi, supplemented by year round extra classes. When all that fails, it comes down to the nonsensical protocol admission scheme or else 2,500 t0 3,000 GHC a place, none of which the majority of the poor people in the region can afford.

This artificial poverty has been created in the region just for electoral purposes. Until the 1992 elections, the Western and Central Regions were the two regions that voted on issues. They were the kingmakers of Ghana. Since then politicians, including sons and daughters of the region, have calculated that with some pittance for our grovelling chiefs and tins of milk, sardines and a few tattered cedis, they can get the people of the region to do their bidding. After that, they never step foot in some of those districts until when they want their votes again.

As Nana Oben wrote, most of our people do not have the facilities or even the education to read this. If you were born or live in the Central Region and have the facility or opportunity to read it, pass it on to our brothers, sisters, uncles and friends who do not have them, to pass it around. Tell them that the NDC and Mahama are bad news for the region in 2017. They have deceived and taken us for a rough ride for eight years. At least Kufuor sprayed our cocoa farms without asking for party cards. He fed our kids in school and ensured that our HNIS cards actually worked.

Let us try Akufo-Addo for four years. His One District, One Factory is doable. With the resources of the region, we can demand, wood chipping factories (firewood, corn husks, tree barks, etc., are aplenty in every corner of the region), tomatoes, cassava, plantain, cocoyam, citrus, copra and coconut, can all be turned into raw materials for local operative-controlled and managed factories, to provide jobs for the teeming unemployed youths of the region. They will also provide apprenticeships for the half-educated drop outs of the badly mismanaged education system in the region.

Grandchildren and descendants of Obumankoma, Odapagyan, Oson, Egya Ahor, Nana Kwamena Ansah, John Mensah Sarbah, Kwaw Ebonyi. Asebu Amenfi, wake up and stir yourselves. Our present position is NOT where Nananom wanted us to be in 2016! Dont let their struggles be in vain.

I am not done yet.
President John Mahama has hit back at critics who say roads, hospitals and other infrastructural development do not translate into money in the pockets of Ghanaians.

The President says contrary to taunts from his detractors on his infrastructural development drive, he will continue to invest in the sector since that will support the effort towards economic growth and development.

The President said this at a rally at Bonsu Nkwanta in the Western Region, Sunday.

He said his administration has started a project to establish a polyclinic or a hospital in every district, assuring that the project will continue even if it is criticised.

He warned his critics against disparaging his infrastructure drive because, until they fall sick and are in a critical condition, they may not appreciate the importance of a hospital for instance.

Speaking in Twi, he asked, if you go to the market and buy your foodstuff, how will you bring it back home to prepare food if there are no roads? He asked his critics, adding roads are important.

The Presidents critics on infrastructure, most of whom are members of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP),base their criticism on a comment attributed to him when the NDC was in opposition.

His NPP critics say he once criticised the erstwhile John Kufuor administration for building roads when the masses were hungry.

The criticism intensified in the lead up to the recent inauguration of the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange which has been condemned by the opposition as a propaganda tool and an election year gimmick to win votes.

Meanwhile, the President says he has no doubt that he will win on December 7 to for a second term, and urged the rank and file of the NDC to remain calm.

He said God was on the side of the NDC to win this years election.

(Additional reporting by Seth Kwame Boateng).

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | George Nyavor | [email protected]
It is perhaps the most coveted elk tag in Montana and 1st Sgt. Roger Dover and Spc. Will Hikes each had one in their pockets as they headed out to hunt the morning of Veterans Day.

The Elkhorn Mountains south of Helena hold some of the finest bull elk in the state and also some of the longest odds of drawing a permit. Last year nearly 11,000 hunters applied for the 120 permits -- a 1.11 percent chance and often considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

But a law passed in 2013 allows a permit holder to transfer his or her hunting privileges to a Purple Heart recipient. When a husband and wife from Three Forks both drew they decided to do just that.

Enter Big Hearts Under the Big Sky, the charitable arm of the Montana Outfitters and Guides Association specializing in hunts for children with life-threatening illnesses, women with breast cancer and military members. The organization has donated more than $500,000 in free hunts in the last decade.

Big Hearts and volunteers in the Helena area went to work, securing permission on two ranches near Boulder and putting together lodging, guides and an outfitter to oversee the hunt. With Dover and Hikes selected by application as the lucky hunt recipients, everyone was eager for their arrival from Washington.

Dover enlisted in the Army in 1997, serving three tours in the Middle East. In 2005 while he was on patrol, an RPG struck him in the leg but fortunately did not detonate. He was transferred to Germany and then back to the U.S. for recovery, eventually changing jobs and returning to active duty.

In October 2005, Dover received a Purple Heart.

Hikes enlisted in the Army as a wheeled-vehicle mechanic. While on a 2012 deployment in Afghanistan, he was injured when a vehicle-borne IED exploded. In 2013, he returned to active duty and re-enlisted and is currently stationed in Washington.

Hikes received his Purple Heart personally from the Secretary of Defense.

The excitement of the upcoming hunt struck the service members as they drove to Montana. Both had some limited hunting experience but had never harvested an elk. They were unsure what to expect.

The Big Hearts people were amazing, Dover said. We sort of felt like rock stars being escorted around and having so many people donate their time to show appreciation for our service.

Dover and Hikes visited sporting goods stores in Helena and spoke to a class at Capital High School. As they met more people it became clear the opportunity was a special one.

Everywhere we went and told people we had 380 (Elkhorn) tags they were so excited for us, Dover said. But that started adding some weird pressure to the hunt. We knew we had a good chance to see stuff but a hunt is a hunt, and we were very nervous that morning.

Dunn Canyon Cattle Company and Mulvey Ranch opened up their properties, and that morning Dover and Hikes convened with their hunting group as they made plans over coffee.

When the sun finally illuminated the landscape, it revealed a band of elk. The hunting party split in two, and the stalk was on.

We were trying to circle them and ended up walking in right on top of them, Hikes said, his voice inflecting the surprise as he relived the final moments.

At first he could not see the bull but finally antlers appeared.

Thats when the adrenaline really hit me, he said. The bull finally cleared the way and presented a great shot and I took it. Its a really beautiful bull.

With one elk on the ground and a group of happy hunters and volunteers, Dover and his team regrouped for the evening.

We saw the cows at a distance and the next thing you know we heard a bugle, Dover said. We came up on the herd but I was getting nervous because the sun was going down. I was able to acquire the bull and get a shot off and (guide) Jim Weber was just as excited as I was.

Both hunters say they were struck by the size of the animals and opted for European mounts of the skull and antlers.

The hunt touched not only Dover and Hikes but also the many people that worked hard to put the hunt together donating food, lodging and time, said MOGA Executive Director Mac Minard, who guided Hikes.

One of the challenges with a 380 tag is that its so difficult to draw, there really is a limited outfitter presence, he said. So without a lot of the normal infrastructure like lodging we really had to enlist a lot of local help. It was just an unbelievable experience.

With the hunt wrapped up early, Dover and his wife took the opportunity to visit Yellowstone National Park; and Hikes hit the Missouri River for some fly-fishing.

Both men marveled at the adventure and say they cannot wait to return to Montana.

The experience of being around so many gracious people in Montana was just amazing for me, Dover said.

I know what my thoughts were and this just blew them out of the water, Hikes said, adding that he felt the trip was a therapeutic break. Yeah I got an elk but it was so much more than that -- it was the experience of a lifetime.
Patriotic Professional Ghana (PPG) is calling on all stakeholders in Ghana's elections including the international community to take steps to ensure peaceful and credible elections.

The group says Ghanas election fulfil its aim of ensuring that citizens participation in the governance process.

In our part of the world election periods are scary moments, with everybody sitting on tenterhooks until the final whistle is blown, mainly because of egocentrism, greed and fear of unfair election management, said the statement signed by PPGs Public Affairs Director, Ibrahim Yussif Bangsua.

Read the rest of the statement below:

PATRIOTIC PROFESSIONALS GHANA-PPG CALLS FOR PEACEFUL AND CREDIBLE ELECTIONS

Patriotic Professional Ghana-PPG is calling on all stakeholders in Ghana's elections including the international community to take steps to ensure peaceful and credible elections.

Elections all over the world are exciting events that ensure citizens participation in the governance of their country. However in our part of the world election periods are scary moments, with everybody sitting on tenterhooks until the final whistle is blown, mainly because of egocentrism , greed and fear of unfair election management.

Ghana has successfully gone through this event six times from 1992, thereby winning the accolade 'beacon of hope in Africa', PPG is, therefore, unable to understand why the 2016 version of this recurrent event is characterised by violence, ethnocentrism and official unprofessionalism.

A few days ago,the residence of the flag bearer of the opposition NPP, Nana Akufo Addo was the scene of violence between the private security of the opposition leader and supporters of the governing party. A few months ago, a gentleman lost his life in the Asawase constituency in an election-related violence, the perpetrator is yet to be subdued. Scores of violence have been reported in many parts of the country including Sunyani, Odododiodio, and Eastern Region.

In all these what is very loud and deafening is the silence of the police service and the security agencies. It is our opinion that such officious silence is undesirable. The security forces must be seen working faithfully, diligently and professionally without fear or favour.

The electoral commission of Ghana which is seen as the most experienced in Africa south of the Sahara has also come under intense criticism. In many circumstances, it has been seen singing the same song with the ruling party. This is not a healthy development since such acts compromise the credibility and integrity of the process. We believe that only a credible election would be accepted by the citizens of Ghana.

The media is expected to play a neutral role and give an accurate report, however, some of them have sidestepped their professional duty and have engaged in sensationalism and biased reports. A lot of circumspection is needed by the media to ensure that Ghana comes out of the elections peacefully.

Ethnicity, which is the quickest button to triggering conflicts has also gained deep grounds in the 2016 electoral process with the first gentleman of the land playing a key role in this regard. This is very unfortunate and must not be condoned at all.

These challenges if not expeditiously dealt with may have a dire consequence on the country.

We, therefore, call on all professionals who have a role to play, especially the electoral commission, the security agencies and politicians to exhibit the highest professionalism to ensure a peaceful and credible elections.

PPG also calls on the international community to make conscious efforts to force all stake holders to succumb to best practices in the elections.

In this regard we do not only support moves by the UK and the USA to freeze visas of politicians until the election has ended, we also call on them and all other countries to stop issuing new visas to politicians, and all major stake holders until the election has ended peacefully. This would ensure that each and every one of them works as an ambassador for peace in the elections.

As a professional body, our doors are open to the electoral commission, the security agencies, the political parties, the international community and all other stake holders in this election, to offering both technical and legal advice.

We wish Ghana a peaceful and credible election that would be accepted by all.

Long live Ghana, long live PPG.

SIGNED

Ibrahim Yussif Bangsua

(Public Affairs Director)

0501368682

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com
The New Patriotic Party parliamentary candidate for the Korle Klottey constituency, Philip Addison has intensified his campaign ahead of the December polls.

He spent time on Sunday visiting various Churches in the constituency and urging them to vote for him in the upcoming polls.

He told Citi News following his visit to the Church of Pentecost in Asylum Down on Sunday morning that he is confident electorates will vote massively for him.

Every Sunday we visit the Churches, we do about 2 or 3 of them. We are still doing the house-to-house campaign and in addition to it, we go to the Churches because sometimes, when you do the house-to-house you don't meet everybody so this is to complement the house-to-house campaign.

The NDC won the last time with about 1,200 votes which I believe we can scale. It is a swing seat, it is full of people with discerning minds. It is a very cosmopolitan constituency and people know very much what is going one and I believe this time around, they really appreciate that time and hard and that there is the need for a change, he said.

Some analysts have cast doubt on his chances due to the presence of the daughter of former President John Rawlings, Zanetor Rawlings in the parliamentary race.

But Mr Addision has said he will win the seat ahead of his competitors.

'Race for Korle Klottey'

The Klottey Korle seat is one of the few constituencies in the Greater Accra Region that will be keenly monitored due to the unique dynamics and play of politics in the area.

Philip Addison became popular after leading his party's legal team to challenge its loss at the 2012 presidential elections at the Supreme Court.

The NDC's Zanetor Rawlings, who is the daughter of Ghana's former President and founder of the party, Jerry John Rawlings.

The Progressive Peoples Party (PPP)'s Parliamentary candidate for the area, Eva Lokko, was unable to submit her nomination forms as she died in October.

Rockson Kofi Bright of the Great Consolidated Popular Party (GCPP) rescinded his decision to contest the seat and threw his weight behind the NDC candidate, Zanetor Rawlings.

CPP's Godwin Opare Addo is said to be making inroads in gaining support from the local people ahead of the elections.

Nii Noi Nortey, who fell out of the NPP after losing the primary in a controversial election, has also established a strong presence in the constituency and vowed to take the seat.



By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

Follow @jnyabor
We in Legon TEIN have observed keenly, the relentless struggle to rubbish what many within the university community view as an act of compassion and a show of good gesture on the part of Mr. Delali Kwesi Brempong, the NDC Parliamentary candidate for Ayawaso West Wogoun.

Without mincing words, I am completely shocked and dismayed at the NPP/TESCON's deliberate act of disrespect for the Ghanaian people merely in a godforsaken bid to use propaganda to create an impression of support for their unpopular presidential and parliamentary candidates.

*THE GENESIS OF THE MISREPORTAGE*

The past week till today has been a challenging one for students resident in the traditional Halls in Legon, notably Commonwealth hall, as access to water has proven difficult for students. Mr. Delali Kwesi Brempong on a visit to interact with his constituents on campus, received complaints from students regarding the sudden shortfall in water supply due to some damaged pipelines which currently is receiving attention from management.

As an immediate response to easing this burden, especially in a period such as this when students are faced with examination demands, he promised to supply them with bags of sachet water which he is currently doing.

Displeased with the rush for the water and the continuous warmth offered Mr. DKB as he is affectionately addressed, the NPP in their usual fashion resorted to using remains of punctured 'pure water' rubbers on the floor to maliciously create an impression of rejection for the same water which students themselves requested. It will interest you all to know that some students have had to themselves 3 to 4 bags of this purported 'rejected water bags'.

A visit to some rooms where the supposed 'rejection' took place revealed how some students got for themselves up to 5 bags of Mr. Delali Kwesi Brempong (DKB) branded sachet bags of water.

Interestingly, this heavenly act of good gesture by the NDC parliamentary candidate has brought great dose of relief to most students.

Clearly then, how can any rational thinking homo sappien allege disgracefully that students who have in their possession several bags of *'DKB pure water'* have rejected that same water. Excuse I to say, that even in the realm of political madness where no rational thought is involved, mad men never lie about what is physically visible.

This is not the first time Mr Delali Kwesi Brempong, a former staff of this university is extending such a gesture to students of the university. Last academic year, he donated books to the various halls of residence for use by students. Mr Brempong is also well known to provide support to the various JCRs and other student groups and associations on campus.

To think that the echelon of the NPP have successfully instilled in their young ones such distasteful mannerism of "mass lying" aimed at gaining support for their unpopular political struggle is just unfathomable. *"I CAN'T THINK FAR!"*

I absolutely cannot! Come December 7, we, the good people of our dear nation, Ghana shall punish the NPP for the deception and disrespect shown us.

It's still;

#ChangingLives

#TransformingGhana

#JMtoaso

#DKBb3ba

*Ananpansah Solomon*

*President, TEIN-LEGON*

*0207262608*
The Ghana Chapter of the Italian Business Association (IBAG) has held a dinner reception aimed at raising funds to support the needy and vulnerable in the society.

The dinner which took place at the La Villa Boutique Hotel, Osu in Accra last Friday night was participated by both Members of the association and non-Members as well as well as delegation from the Italian Embassy in Accra.

The event was organised in collaboration with the 'Italian Ladies and cooking for Charity Group' in other to help raise funds for the disables in the New Horizon School in Cantonments, Accra and MEWE Don Bosco Children's Village in Tema.

In his Speech, Nii Amaa Ollennu, the Vice President of Italian Business Association of Ghana (IBAG), said the association was committed to the welfare of the needy and vulnerable in the society, hence the need to galvanise resources to support them.

He added that proceeds from the dinner will be use to support in the training of women in vocation, addiction of brilliant but needy ones across the country, support the health and environmental conditions of selected societies across the country.

We are ever ready as a group to contribute to the national development by creating conducive opportunities for the people of Ghana in pressing issues such as education, health, promotion of good hygiene thus building of modern toilets for communities, provision waste bins etc.

'With our focus on advisory services for Ghanaian companies with business interest in Italy as well as Italian companies that are planning to invest in Ghana by sharing local knowledge of the territory acquired over the years to help new investors understand the Ghanaian/Italian market, it is our responsibility to influence positively in the lives of Ghanaians".

'We hope to create cultural exchanges between Italy and Ghana and undertake various projects and activities as part of IBAG's social responsibilities,' he said.

IBAG, a non-profit, non-political and non-religious association and supports free expression of views and opinions would collaborate with other associations and to become the voice of the business community in dealing with government institutions and bodies as well as networking and lobbying.

'We call on all who desire to invest, build and strengthen business relationships with Italian companies in Ghana and Italy to join the association to help attain strong business connections,' Mr Ollennu said.
The flagbearer of the Convention People's Party (CPP), Ivor Kobina Greenstreet has charged the people of Sissala not to vote for the two main political parties, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and New Patriotic Party (NPP).

According to him, both parties are bad for Ghana and for the electorates in the upcoming polls hence must be rejected.

He accused both parties of being the cause of the country's woes saying, they succeeded in plunging the country into economic hardship during their respective terms in office.

Addressing party faithful at Sakai in the Sissala East constituency of the Upper West region, Mr Greenstreet said the Convention People's Party is the only credible party that can meet their development aspirations.

He accused President Mahama of failing to honour his promise of tarring the major road in Tumu.

He said the President Mahama displayed gross disrespect respect when he visited the constituency in a helicopter to ask for their votes.

He said the NPP government, led by President John Kufuor also failed to ensure development in the area.



'NDC, NPP nation wreckers'

While on a campaign platform in the Northern Region last week, Ivor Kobina Greenstreet described the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and the New Patriotic Party (NPP) as nation wreckers for which reason they should be rejected at the polls.

According to him, the two major political parties have for the past 24 years failed to develop the country.

He said, everywhere we go Ghanaians are tired of all the fighting of the NDC and the NPP who are fighting to get power to steal our hope and take money for themselves and their family members

Separate the fight of these two evil monsters, two parties which are merely racketeers. Enough is enough, enough of these 24 years of hell from these monsters. Fellow Ghanaians it is time to end it.



By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

Follow @jnyabor
Two weeks ago the United States and the United Kingdom issued separate statements that threatened to revoke the visas of Ghanaian politicians who would incite violence prior and in the aftermath of the December 7, 2016 general elections. Keen observers would agree that although these countries appeared and indeed were accused by a section of the Ghanaian public of interfering in Ghanas domestic affairs, their deterrent statements appear to have calmed the violent rhetoric and the actual attack against political activists and civilians in the run-up to the elections.

Whilst acknowledging that the underlying motivation of states in the international arena is the pursuit of their national interests, it is noteworthy that the import of the statements that were issued by the United States and the United Kingdom were consistent with the international norm of the responsibility to prevent which is one of the three pillars of the Responsibility to Protect Doctrine that was adopted by the United Nations over a decade ago.

The other two pillars are responsibility to react (intervention) and responsibility to rebuild during and after violent conflicts, respectively. To be sure, the Responsibility to Protect Doctrine redefines sovereignty as shared responsibility of states and the international community to protect human rights and the rule of law. Thus, in the context of the potential threat of widespread violence in Ghana at the time, the United States and the United Kingdom behaved as good international citizens who sought to impress upon Ghanaian politicians and people to respect the rule of law and human rights. The diplomatic move by the United States and the United Kingdom should motivate the behavior of external players who have (in)direct interest in a peaceful, prosperous, and secured Ghana.

Informed readers would agree that the porous nature of the land borders of African states and the ethnic affiliations along these borders pose a major challenge to Africas international relations and national security and human security. As colonial impositions, porous land borders are partly responsible for the irresolvable violent conflicts that are dotted on the African continent. Not only are these porous borders exploited by criminal groups, and in some cases state actors, in the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and drugs, but as well, these largely unprotected boundaries are major sources of threat especially during democratic elections. In the specific case of Ghana, the two major political partiesNew Patriotic Party and National Democratic Congress are constantly engaged in the trading of accusations and counteraccusations that foreigners usually cross Ghanas borders to participate in the voting during general elections. In fact the allegation of the presence of foreigners on Ghanas electoral register is yet to be settled in contemporary Ghanaian politics.

Given the delicate nature of the lingering border and foreign voters issue, and the ramification for national and human security, the upcoming Ghana elections, in my view, provide a unique opportunity for Ghanas neighbors and partners to play a crucial external role to ensure the integrity and transparency of the elections. In other words, within the context of the norm of the responsibility to prevent (electoral disputes that could degenerate into violence), external players in Africa and beyond must be proactive in mitigating the perceived or real problem of foreign voters participation in Ghanas elections.

An immediate step forward is to initiate a regime of high level diplomatic involvement through the issuing of public diplomatic sermons that not only impress upon Ghanas neighbors to restrain non-Ghanaians from participating in Ghanas elections but also facilitating the safe passage of Ghanaians who are returning to participate in the upcoming elections. Corollary, it would serve the enlightened interest of Ghanas neighbors to adopt unilateral domestic policies that aim at ensuring the security, integrity, and transparency of Ghanas December 7, 2016 elections. Ghana should reciprocate such a diplomatic gesture in future. This is necessary in the sense that geography alone has imposed inalienable mutual security and economic interests upon Ghana, Burkina Faso, The Ivory Coast and Togo.

Aside from Ghanas immediate neighbors, regional bodies, primarily, the Economic Community of West African States and the African Union must take keen interest in preventing undue interference by foreign voters in the December 7, 2016 elections. These bodies must be seen to engender Ghanaian and international public confidence prior and during the elections in enforcing the democratic values that are embedded in their legal instruments especially the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance. In that vein, these African regional bodies must go beyond the traditional deployment of election observers to making public diplomatic efforts in partnership with Ghanas immediate neighbors to ensure that the sovereign right of Ghanaian citizens to elect their leaders is not undermined by the participation of foreign voters in the upcoming elections. In short, ECOWAS and AU have external responsibility to prevent electoral fraud and must be seen to be playing active diplomatic roles not only in Ghana but in the neighboring states to ensure a successful and peaceful electoral process.

Beyond Africa, it would not be out of order to call on France, who is a key player in view of its colonial past in Ghanas neighboring states, to take the lead among other players such as the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, United Nations as well as emerging economic powers such as China and India not only to impress upon Ghanas neighbors to ensure that Ghanas elections are protected but also to assist these countries in their domestic plans to ensuring same. In short, it may not be enough for these external players to deploy election observers without helping to secure the electoral process beyond Ghanas borders.

Ghanas elections security, like others in Africa, depends on both internal and external forces. As the Electoral Commission, political parties, and Ghanaian stakeholders work within their sovereign rights, let the external players demonstrate publicly both in words and deed their shared responsibility in ensuring the integrity of the electoral process and outcome in Ghana. As noted earlier, the Responsibility to protect doctrine offers the normative framework within which these external players could act to prevent potential chaos prior and in the aftermath of Ghanas elections 2016. When security is at stake, nothing should be taken for granted.

Edward Akuffo is an associate professor of international security and international relations at the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada.
Former President Jerry John Rawlings has described the late Cuban President Fidel Castro as a great hero and beacon of the struggle for true independence from the forces of oppression and neo-colonialism.

Cuba is mourning its revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, whose death was announced late on Friday.

Castro came to power in 1959 and ushered in a Communist revolution, defying the US for decades.

His supporters viewed him as a man who stood up to America during the Cold War and returned Cuba to the people. His critics, however, called him a dictator.

A statement signed by Kobina Andoh Amoakwa Communications Director for ex-president Rawlings stated that Words cannot describe the worth of Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz. He was proud yet humble, poor materially but rich in spirit, affable yet courageous and a great warrior of unimaginable proportions.

Arguably the greatest hero of the 20th Century, Fidel joined forces with like-minded legends including Che Guevara to create a new, resilient Cuban society that withstood decades of economic embargo and blatant aggression by the United States and its allies.

Under his leadership and despite the economic hardships imposed upon his country, Cuba was able to build educational and healthcare systems that outperformed those of the so-called advanced countries and to make Cuba a star in the arts and in sports.

Fidel loved Africa, standing by the continent in the most trying periods of his leadership. The Isle of Youth in Cuba had at its peak 3,000 Ghanaians. Hundreds of Ghanaians were educated in Cuba to become doctors, vets, agriculturists and engineers whilst our hospitals, especially in remote areas, have benefitted from the services of Cuban professors and doctors.

Cubans laid down their lives in the painful liberation struggles in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent and Africa must forever be thankful for the sacrifices of Castro and the Cuban people.

Not many nations are able to give so much of themselves and yet receive so little in return.

Castro epitomised what strong resolve and dedication can achieve. His demise is a loss to the spirit of freedom.

Our heartfelt condolences to the people of Cuba. Fare thee well, Comrade Fidel Castro!
Controversial National Democratic Congress (NDC) financier, Alfred Agbesi Woyome, says those against his recent $8 million (GH35 million) engagement with the government are jealous of him.

Woyome is defending his recent transaction with the government, which was exposed by OccupyGhana last week.

He claims the deal, sanctioned by former Transport Minister, Dzifa Attivor, was to transform Ghana into a developed country like Malaysia.

If anything, it is my critics who are intoxicated with jealousy, Woyome suggested in an interview on Joy FMs news analysis programme, 'Newsfile,' on Saturday.

The kind of thing that we want to do is not from government. You people have said why is Malaysia like this and Ghana has not done that? And your own citizens are trying better to do the things so that you can get the Malaysia, and out of jealousy and envy you spew out this which are false, he said.

The NDC financier is in a fresh GH35 million contract with government, with a promise to build a Deep Sea Port.

His new contract comes at a time when he is struggling to negotiate a repayment plan for an amount of GH51.2 million illegally paid to him by government in 2010  an amount the Supreme Court has ordered him to refund to the state.

His company, Anator Holdings Limited, signed the new $8 million agreement with Dzifa Ativor on December 15, 2015, with Woyome tasked to raise funds for the project.

The business man initially claimed to have been employed by Anator Holdings, as a financial engineer, but was reminded by the host of the programme, Samson Lardy Anyenini, that the agreement he signed was in his capacity as the Executive Chairman of the company.

He later admitted to playing a dual role as the Executive Chairman of the company and the financial engineer at the same time for a company which started business in 2005.

Mr Alfred Woyome said his company only signed a non-committal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, which does not involve a pesewa from government.

We did not force government to take any percentage out of anything., he explained.

But a member of OccupyGhana said the deal stinks and is likely to expose Ghana to some liabilities.

Ace Ankomah, a lawyer, said the shady Anator deal is in many ways similar to the Woyome, Waterville scandal in 2010 which led to the state losing a whopping GH51.2 million.

SSNIT

According to him, the seeds of the second deal were sown in 2009 with the then Finance Minister, Dr Kwabena Duffuor, signing a letter for Woyome and his company (Anator Holdings) to develop a green township.

That letter, he added, was heavily conditional with a reminder that the agreement would have to be approved by cabinet and passed by parliament after which government will have a 24% stake in a joint venture agreement.

It was non-committal in principle acceptance. This matter disappeared for a while. It started bouncing back again in 2014-2015, very similar to that of the financial engineering situation, Mr Ankomah said.

There was now a lot of smokescreen. It was no longer just the development of Green Township. It had metamorphosed into Deep Sea Port project, a whole multi-billion dollar project, with Woyome using the non-committal acceptance letter in 2009 signed by Dr Duffuor as a binding contract and demanding that government must instruct SSNIT to take up the 24% initially suggested.

In November, this year, SSNIT was directed by government to take up a 24% stake in the project, but the Trust wrote back to government requesting further and better particulars of the project.

Common Sense

An obviously incensed editor-in-chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Kweku Baako Jnr, who was on the programme, said the new GH35 million deal is hard to digest and an assault on the sensibilities of the citizens.
With just nine days to elections, the All People's Congress (APC), founded by Hassan Ayariga, has declared support for the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) and its presidential candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

At a press conference in Accra yesterday, Razak Kojo Poku, General Secretary of the party, whose flag bearer, Hassan Ayariga, was disqualified from contesting the election, announced that the National Executive Committee (NEC), the 10 Regional Executive Committees (RECs) and the majority of the parliamentary candidates of the All People's Congress declare support for Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) for the 7th December, 2016 general elections.

Present at the event was Emmanuel Carl Bartel, running mate to Hassan Ayariga.

It comes ahead of a planned press conference to be addressed by Ayariga at the Aviation Social Centre in Accra today, where it is being speculated that he will declare support for incumbent President Mahama against the wish of the majority of the members of the party.

They said the decision became necessary considering the high level of incompetence, corruption, mismanagement of the economy resulting in high unemployment rate, killer taxes, collapse of the private sector businesses and high utility bills that had been witnessed in the country since the NDC came to power about eight years ago.

The General Secretary noted that upon sober reflection, we strongly believe in the 'one district, one factory,' 'one village, one dam,' 'one constituency, $1 million as doable and feasible policies, urging Ghanaian voters to vote against the NDC and reject John Mahama.

Only Nana Akufo-Addo can offer the Ghanaian a more credible, incorruptible and transformational leadership than all other presidential candidates contesting the 2016 general election.

Even though the election is just around the corner, the APC stalwarts have indicated their intention to embark on an intensive campaign for the NPP.

According to them, Enough is enough and the trending song is 'change of incompetent John Mahama presidency and therefore members of the APC across the country should not only campaign, but also vote for Akufo-Addo and the NPP.

We shall provide Ghanaians with interesting revelations within FIVE (5) Days to the 7th December, 2016 general election that shall cause the massive defeat of John Mahama and the NDC. We are equally entreating all APC members across Ghana to campaign vigorously and vote massively for Nana Akufo-Addo, the only credible presidential candidate for the 2016 presidential election. Nana Akufo-Addo's agenda for job creation is the only solution to the socio-economic transformation of Ghana, Mr Kojo Poku posited.

Ghana has never had a history of a government being sworn in for three consecutive times, and I think Ghanaians must sit up to this and crash this syndicate of people who are all out as money grabbers, Razak declared.

The executives also described their disqualified presidential candidate, Hassan Ayariga, as an appendage of the ruling NDC.

However, we wish Hassan Ayariga (APC founder & leader) well for his personal decision to endorse John Mahama for the presidency on 28th November, 2016 at the Aviation Social Centre, the APC executives said in the statement read to the media.

Ayariga Fires Back

Hours later, Mr Ayariga issued a statement announcing the suspension of Emmanuel Carl Bartels, his running mate and the General Secretary for what he described as indiscipline and gross disrespect to the National Executive Committee and the general membership of APC nationwide.

He urged all APC members and the general public to refrain from dealing with the two suspended individuals in relation to party matters till further notice.

By Solomon Ofori


The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Marcel Alain de Souza, the Deputy Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Dr. Josephine Ojiambo, and the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for West Africa and the Sahel, Dr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, arrived in Accra on November 22, 2016 for the signing ceremony for peaceful elections, sponsored by the National Peace Council, initially scheduled on November 23, 2016. The objective of the ceremony was to get a firm commitment of the candidates to work for a peaceful and open electoral process.

They understand that the ceremony had to be postponed. They are however pleased to learn that the Presidential candidates had agreed to attend a session with the Electoral Commission on implementation of the reforms and the transparency of the electoral processes on December 1, 2016. The signing of the peace accord on that occasion will be an important public reaffirmation of the candidates commitment to peaceful elections on December 7.

The ECOWAS, the Commonwealth and the United Nations call on all the presidential candidates to commit to participate in the December 1, 2016 event, and to take the responsibility to contribute towards nonviolent, transparent and credible elections.
WASHINGTON -- The work ethic is such a central part of the American character that it's hard to imagine it fading. But that's what seems to be happening in one important part of the labor force. Among men 25-to-54 -- so-called prime-age male workers -- about one in eight are dropouts. They don't have a job and, unlike the officially unemployed, aren't looking for one. They number about 7 million.

Just what role, if any, these nonworking men played in Donald Trump's election is unclear. What's not unclear is that these dropouts, after being ignored for years, have suddenly become a hot topic of scholarly study and political debate. There's been a sea change. In the mid-1960s, only one in 29 prime-age male workers was a dropout. The explosion of dropouts strikes many observers as dire.

The "detachment of so many adult American men from the reality and routines of regular paid labor ... can only result in lower living standards, greater economic disparities and slower economic growth," writes Nicholas Eberstadt of the conservative American Enterprise Institute. "It is also a social crisis -- and ... a moral crisis. The growing incapability of grown men to function as breadwinners cannot help but undermine the American family."

A recent report from Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers echoes similar concerns. The erosion of prime-age male workers "is particularly troubling since workers at this age are at their most productive," says the CEA. Greater joblessness is linked to "lower overall well-being and happiness and higher mortality."

Why are men abandoning the labor market? (Though women's labor force participation rates have decreased, they haven't experienced the prolonged drop of men's.) One obvious reason is the impact of the Great Recession, but this effect has diminished as the recovery has continued. Besides, the rise in male dropouts dates to the mid-1960s.

Nor can it be blamed on two other trends: more men going to college and an increase in early retirement. True, both keep men out of the labor force. Still, focusing on the 25-to-54 age group should minimize these problems, because it covers many men who have finished school and haven't yet retired.

The most important cause of dropping out is declining wages for low-skilled workers, concluded the CEA study. The demand for low-skilled workers is falling faster than the supply, causing wages to drop. From 1975 to 2014, the CEA reported, wages for high-school graduates fell from about 80 percent of wages of college graduates to 60 percent.

As this happens, "more prime-age men choose not to participate in the labor force," said the CEA. Put plainly: They decide that working isn't worth the effort. As for shrinking low-wage employment, the CEA blames "technology, automation and globalization."

But dropping out also has other causes. One is the large number of incarcerated men. Although this doesn't directly affect people not in the labor force -- prisoners simply aren't counted -- it does so indirectly. When prisoners get out, their criminal records make it harder for them to find work, said the CEA.

What's more controversial -- and unsettled -- is how much, if at all, government welfare programs encourage labor force dropouts by providing an alternate income source. Eberstadt believes this is crucial, citing studies that roughly two-thirds of households with male dropouts receive disability benefits or other government aid, such as Medicaid. By contrast, the CEA argues that benefits haven't increased fast enough to explain the surge in dropouts.

What can be done to minimize dropouts? Should the Federal Reserve and the Trump administration "run the economy hot" -- the present fashionable phrase -- in the hope that faster economic growth will draw some of the 7 million into newly created jobs? Or should disability standards be tightened to force dropouts back into the labor force?

Any debate may turn on whether dropouts are "shirkers" (able-bodied men avoiding work) or "victims" (workers left behind by disability or bad luck). There's evidence of both. Eberstadt cites surveys that only 15 percent of dropouts "stated they were unemployed because they could not find work." Other surveys indicate that dropouts spend about eight hours a day "socializing, relaxing and leisure" -- watching TV, playing video games or just hanging out.

But nearly half of male dropouts report taking pain pills every day, according to a study by Princeton University economist Alan Krueger. Two-fifths of respondents said their disabilities prevented them "from working on a full-time job for which [they were] qualified." Male dropouts report they are "less happy, more sad and more stressed" than workers or the unemployed. In a society that worships the work ethic, being a labor force dropout is often a ticket to misery.

Robert J. Samuelson is a columnist for the Washington Post.
The President of the Republic of Seychelles, Mr Danny Faure, met with the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Sir Anerood Jugnauth, in the margins of the Francophone summit currently being held in Madagascar.

They reaffirmed the close relationship that the two countries share and have agreed to enhance these relations in the future.

They focused on the strengthening of economic ties so as to bring long term prospects and development for the two countries and their peoples.

In this context Sir Anerood invited President Faure to participate in the Economic Forum to be held in Mauritius on the 27th March 2017 under the aegis of the African Union.

Another point of importance which they raised during the meeting relates to the issue of substance abuse which is currently affecting both countries. Mauritius has agreed to share its expertise and experience with Seychelles and help support the countrys rehabilitation programmes.

Both leaders also reviewed the cooperation in the health sector with particular emphasis on the recruitment of Mauritian doctors for Seychelles.

Mauritius has sought the support of Seychelles in their efforts to reclaim the sovereignty of Chagos from the United Kingdom. President Faure has pledged Seychelles support to their just cause.

Sir Anerood has invited President Faure for an official visit to Mauritius next year at a mutually agreed date.
Johannesburg (AFP) - At least three South African ministers have called for President Jacob Zuma to resign, local media reported Monday, in the most serious challenge to his leadership since he took power in 2009.

The News24 news agency, citing sources in the ruling ANC party, said that Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi had called on Zuma to step down.

The clash came at a weekend meeting of the African National Congress (ANC) party, which was extended into Monday amid heated debate over Zuma's fate.

The president, who has faced mounting criticism of his leadership, came under further pressure this month when a corruption probe unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

The probe by the country's top watchdog investigated possible criminal activity in Zuma's relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi (right) is among ministers reportedly calling on Jacob Zuma to resign

But Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many rank-and-file ANC party members, as well as its lawmakers -- easily surviving a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for Zuma to resign in recent months.

"There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life," analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website on Monday.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC and alliance no longer want him as president... The countdown to Zuma's exit has begun."

ANC losing public support

The ANC, which has ruled since Nelson Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994, has seen its popularity dive, with local polls in August delivering the party's worst-ever result.

Zuma's term in office ends in 2019, but the ANC is due to elect a new party leader at the end of next year and could decide to replace him as head of state.

South Africa's highest court this year found him guilty of violating the constitution after he refused to repay taxpayers' money used to refurbish his private rural house.

South African president Jacob Zuma has been criticised for his close relationship with the Guptas -- a business family accused of wielding undue political influence

He is also fighting a court order that could reinstate almost 800 corruption charges against him over a multi-billion dollar arms deal in the 1990s.

International credit rating firm Fitch on Friday dropped its outlook for South Africa from stable to negative, pointing to the country's recent political turmoil.

Zuma has also been engulfed by a power struggle with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, while economic growth has fallen to 0.5 percent and unemployment hit a 13-year high.

Zuma's loyalists have been at loggerheads with Gordhan, a reformist who is widely respected among international investors.

When Zuma leaves office, the three leading possible successors are his ex-wife African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.

ANC spokesmen were not immediately available to comment on Monday.
The facts on the ground according to empirical observation, interrogation of electorates and all pointers put together, clearly indicate that Election 2016 is a done deal for Nana Akufo Addo and the NPP. However, President Mahama and the NDC with the Electoral Commission are desirously applying some never-ending hatched plots to rig the election in their favour.

It is on this note that I am calling on the Ghanaian prayer warriors if there are any, to take a special supplication to God on behalf of the teeming good citizens of Ghana.

With strongly unflinching desire by Mrs. Charlotte Osei to rig the election for President Mahama and the NDC, look at some of the plans and methods she has adopted.

She initially said that serializing the Pink sheets for the Election 2016 were of no importance. She was going to come out with pink sheets bearing no serial numbers which could have facilitated the rigging of the election.

The properly used pink sheets could be replaced once taken to her office and the figures probably doctored to favour the NDC and John Mahama. She was challenged and then she rescinded her decision.

Some ballot booklets bearing different serial numbers on the back of the booklets with different serial numbers on the ballot papers therein contained, were detected in the Juaben/Ejisu Constituency on Friday, 25 November 2016 according to credibly certified information reaching me in London.

Such detected ballot booklets were nineteen in number with each containing a hundred ballots or ballot papers as many Ghanaians call them. They were understood to have been taken to the Juaben Police station on the same day awaiting further explanation and clarification from the Office of the Chair of the Electoral Commission.

On Saturday 26 November 2016, Charlotte Osei ordered the Electoral Presiding Officers and the police to return the ballot booklets to Accra saying it was a mistake, the only best explanation this woman could offer.

Her plots to rig the election are many and varied. You can read about some from my previously published feature articles. Had she not decided it was pointless for the polling assistants to countersign the pink sheets thereby facilitating any rigging quest she has in mind?

Her definition for Over-vote is, when the verified persons are less than the verified ballots or some completely absurd definition of some sort. Her definition is not without ambiguity. Instead of saying Over- voting is when the number of ballot papers in the ballot box exceeds the number of verified votes cast, an over-voting has occurred, she rather comes out with some crappy definition.

She wants to behave like Dr. Kwadwo Afari Gyan who criminally reneged on his own earlier definition to conjure a classical definition for over-vote when the heat in the witness box at the Supreme Court became too unbearable for him.

Mrs. Charlotte Osei has been challenged on this but she has gone silent without coming up with any further clarifications.

As at writing, six empty ballot boxes meant for a constituency in the Western region have gone walkers. The only excuse she can offer for the missing boxes is to promise to replace them. Who stole them or how did they get missing?

This woman is diabolic, incompetent and crafty if not stupid. She thinks she can take Ghanaians for fools for all that she stands to gain personally.

Following the plots in constant application or implementation by Charlotte Osei and her outfit, President Mahama has become overly confident that he will win the upcoming election ONE TOUCH. Nonsense!!

The NDC registered their members and many foreign nationals from the surrounding sister African nations  Ivory Coast, Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso etc. using the biometric verification process same as used by the Electoral Commission.

Why should they register party members by biometric verification? They gathered the same information as the Electoral Commission does, and passed the details of all those minors, foreigners etc. they registered via that process to the Electoral Commission to feed to their electoral database. This has given the NDC about one million two hundred votes ahead of the NPPs presidential candidate hence President Mahama walking about shamelessly over-confident that he has won the election already.

I call on all the prayer warriors to fast and pray to God to make nonsense the schemes put in place by the NDC and the Electoral Commission to rig the elections.

God MUST set confusion in the camps of the NDC and the Electoral Commission. He is able to as long as we take our prayers to Him.

Why should we continue to pray that we want peace while these NDC fascists and bigots team up with that woman who is a blot on womanhood, to rig the election to continue to over-burden Ghanaians with economic hardships?

Please, prayer warriors who care about mother Ghana, who care about Ghanaians, who care about justice and who care about peace, do fast and make supplications to God entreating Him to make nonsense the schemes NDC and President Mahama and Charlotte Osei are relying on to defeat His purpose for Ghana through Nana Akufo Addo.

I count on you, oh dear Ghanaian prayer warriors to ensure that the evil schemes by Charlotte Osei in collusion with President Mahama and the NDC do not succeed.

The bible says, Seek ye shall find. Knock it shall be opened unto you and Ask, it shall be given to you

The battle is still the Lords and Change is coming like kakai to put John Mahama to flight!

Rockson Adofo
A judge at the International Court of Justice ICJ, Julia Sebutinde wants African countries who wants to pull out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to re-consider.

Burundi, the Gambia and South Africa have all served notice of their desire to leave the ICC, accusing it of unfairly targeting African leaders for prosecution.

The ICC in the past 14 years, has brought charges against Africans leaders for various crimes but according to Judge Sabutinde, who hails from Uganda, the allegation by the African countries are unreasonable.

Addressing a group of journalists who were at the Hague on the invitation of the Dutch government to stay abreast of the International Justice System, Judge Sabutinde said, the accusations that have been made against it [ICC], in my view do not make sense to me.

I sit and I take each argument and I measure it against the fact on the ground, such as the common statement, the ICC is persecuting African leaders. I take that statement and measure it against the fact.

In fact, more than three out of four cases were not instituted by the ICC, but were instituted by individual African states themselves, he said.

'African countries withdrawing from ICC'

In October this year, Gambia accused the International Criminal Court of ignoring war crimes in other countries and targeting African leaders.

Gambia's Information Minister, Sheriff Bojang, in announcing the country's withdrawal said This action is warranted by the fact that the ICC, despite being called the International Criminal Court, is in fact an International Caucasian Court for the persecution and humiliation of people of color, especially Africans, on state television.

There are many Western countries, at least 30, that have committed heinous war crimes against independent sovereign states and their citizens since the creation of the ICC and not a single Western war criminal has been indicted, a government statement said.

South Africa and Burundi also withdrew their membership from the ICC in October this year.



By: Eugenia Tenkorang & Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

Follow @jnyabor
The Secretary-General was saddened to learn of the death of Fidel Castro Ruz, former President of Cuba. An emblematic figure of the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro was prominent in Latin America and influential in world affairs. As Prime Minister, President, Commander of the Cuban Armed Forces and First Secretary of the Cuban Communist Party, his role at the helm of Cuba spanned nearly 50 years, during which he left a major imprint on his country and on global politics.

President Fidel Castro will be remembered for his leadership of the Cuban revolution and for advances in Cuba in the fields of education, literacy and health. His revolutionary ideals left few indifferent. He was a strong voice for social justice in global discussions at the UN General Assembly and international and regional forums. The Secretary-General vividly recalls meeting him during a visit to Cuba in January 2014, and was impressed by the former Presidents passion and lively engagement on a wide range of issues.

The Secretary-General extends his condolences to the Cuban people and to the family of the former President, particularly to President Raul Castro.

The Secretary-General hopes Cuba will continue to advance on a path of reform, greater prosperity and human rights. At this time of national mourning, he offers the support of the United Nations to work alongside the Cuban people.

New York, 26 November 2016
On November 25, 2016, Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Federal Republic of Nigeria H.E. Mr. Nikolay Udovichenko held a meeting with the President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, Barr. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, and members of the Council. Representatives of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia and Association of Nigerian graduates of Soviet and Russian universities "Soyuznik" also participated in the meeting.

The parties discussed the issues of bilateral cooperation between youth orgnizations of Russia and Nigeria, participation of the Nigerian delegation in the XIX World Forum of Youth and Students to be held in Sochi, Russia, in October 2017. Ambassador suggested the National Youth Council to participate in the selection of Nigerian candidates for Russian governmental scholarships scheduled for February-March, 2017.


The New Patriotic Party-led campaign for regime change has become very popular among majority of Ghanaians in the country and beyond.

The acceptance of the 'call for change' is evident in a growing anti-government attitude publicly shown simultaneously across the length and breadth of the country in the heat of the electioneering campaign for votes.

There are frequent reports of the electorate hooting at government officials and members of President John Mahama's campaign team with his long convoy of luxurious vehicles.

Over the weekend, students of the University of Ghana reportedly started chanting, We want change, We want change, when a National Democratic Congress (NDC) campaign team stormed the university campus with a truck loaded with bags of sachet water to distribute for free.

While some of the students accepted the free bags of water, many others were heard booing at the distributors while shouting the 'change' mantra until eventually the truck was said to have moved away.

Apparently, the water  embossed with the pictures of President Mahama and the NDC parliamentary candidate for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Delali Brempong, who had earlier described the students who couldn't get their names on the voter register during the limited registration exercise as underage and therefore are not eligible to vote  was sent by the party to woo the students. But it turned out to be fiasco, to the embarrassment of the candidate.

Same weekend, the Chief of Staff, Julius Debrah, was said to have visited the Accra College of Education (ATRACO) with NDC campaign team but their campaign message was obstructed by chants of We want change, We want change, by the students.

The incident went viral on social media and some of the students were seen and heard chanting for change while the Chief of Staff and his team were preaching the message of another (third) term mandate for the NDC in office.

Hardly a day passes without the social media going agog with a new video of a section of Ghanaian voters publicly jeering at the president's campaign team, with some rejecting the incumbent National Democratic Congress campaign freebies which range from John Mahama-branded detergents, sachet water, mats, wax prints, coffins, basins, head gears and other items.

Last Thursday, there were reports that President Mahama was greeted with loud chants of 'change' by a crowd when he visited the Manhyia Palace for the one-week celebration of the demise of the queen mother of Asante, Nana Afia Kobi Serwaa Ampem II.

Recently, hundreds of traders and residents of Darkuman Kokompe in Accra did the same thing when they publicly waved the change sign when the president visited the area to campaign.

The president was given an unexpected welcome by a large number of artisans and spare parts dealers who met him on arrival, with some of them hooting at him and screaming change, change, change.

There are similar reports from several parts of the country and this is happening at a time former President Jerry John Rawlings (NDC founder) has said the bad image of the Mahama-led administration could prevent the party from winning the December 7 polls.

Citifmonline last week quoted Rawlings to have said: It's most unfortunate, but the image of both the government and the party [National Democratic Congress  NDC]is as bad as what it was in the John Evans Atta Mills' period before he died, and that's not healthy at all.

The report advised President Mahama to nurture people with vision to restore hope to the party and Ghanaians.

These personalities will have to be bold and ready to think outside of the box. We have to have people who can raise the image of the party; hopefully extend it onto the Executive as well. Because quite frankly if the NDC does not, she will be fighting on the same terms as the New Patriotic Party.

How many times hasn't he [President Mahama] assured the public of dealing with corruption, and yet we are not seeing enough that will help to clear the image of the government, former President Rawlings was quoted as saying.
There seems to be controversy surrounding a poll supposedly conducted by pollster Ben Ephson on the upcoming presidential election.

Over the weekend, Statesmanonline released the results of the polls which put the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, ahead of incumbent President John Dramani Mahama with 8% clear points.

The original polls, which were alleged to have been conducted by Mr Ephson, Editor of the Daily Dispatch newspaper, is said to tip Akufo-Addo to win the December 7 election with 51.90%, nearly eight percentage points ahead of incumbent President John Dramani Mahama, with a 2% margin of error.

Its tips Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom of the Progressive People's Party (PPP) to get 1.10%, followed by Ivor Greenstreet of the Convention People's Party with 0.70%, Dr Edward Mahama of the People's National Convention (PNC) with 0.45%, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, National Democratic Party (NDP) with 0.25%, independent candidate, Jacob Osei Yeboah 0.15% and 1.80% people still undecided as to who to vote for.

The general concerns across the country which influenced the responses of the respondents, were the general hardships, high utility bills, corruption and unemployment, among other factors.

Details

As of March 3, this year, the alleged Ephson polls conducted in conjunction with some operatives of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) tipped the NPP to win the presidential election with 51.855%, while the NDC had 41.52 %; followed by another one conducted on June 15, which put the NPP at 50.9%, the NDC 42.10% and then 49.20% for the NPP and 42.25% for the NDC in an August 15 survey, while that of September 7 and November 21, gave the NPP 50.80%, 51.90% and the NDC 43.95% and 43.65% respectively.

The NPP was tipped to win the elections with five regions  Ashanti 76.0%, Eastern 57.5%, Greater Accra 51.5%, Central 50.5% and Western 48.0%  with the NDC expected to put up a strong showing in four regions  Volta78.0, Upper West 64.0%, Upper East 63.5% and Northern 55.5%.

But Mr Ephson is said to be trying hard to massage the outcome of the polls to suit President Mahama and the NDC to say that it would be a close race, but the NDC would win the presidential election with 50.2%.

Fabrication

This is what the pollster is disputing, describing the report as a total fabrication. It is not true, he rebutted.

In an interview with DAILY GUIDE yesterday, Mr Ephson denied the supposed polls emanating from his stables. He rather indicated that he's likely to release his report this week.

Even though he admitted that he had indeed conducted a poll to that effect, he wondered if those making the claims were implying also that polls that had been done which favoured Akufo-Addo were manipulated to his (Akufo-Addo's) advantage.

In the event that Ben Ephson's poll tends to predict a win for President Mahama in the upcoming election, it would be the first to put the president ahead of Akufo-Addo since all local and international polls and researches conducted so far put the NPP leader as the winner of the 2016 general election with a wide margin.

Even an international research firm from South Africa contracted by the NDC gave it to Nana Akufo-Addo.

Schemes

Sources have it that in this last lap to the elections, the NDC reportedly intends to go all out with image denting messages, including the splashing of certain posters in the Ashanti Region to create the impression as though the NPP presidential hopeful was undermining the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.

Another is also expected to emerge with Akufo-Addo promising Amoatia Ofori Panin that when elected president he would make him (Okyenhene) greater than the Ashanti monarch  just to spite the king and create disaffection for the NPP in the Ashanti Region.

The NDC has also targeted to snatch not less than 11 parliamentary seats in the region, including that of Adansi Asokwa, by funding the independent candidate there. The rest are Offinso North, Ejura-Sekyedumase, Nyhiaeso, Asante Akim North, Ahafo Ano South-East, Ahafo Ano South-West, Akrofuom, Fomena, Obuasi West and Atwima Mponua.

In the Eastern Region, the NDC is also eyeing Asuogyaman, Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Suhum, Ofoase-Ayirebi [by supporting the PPP candidate], Abirem, Fanteakwa, Lower West Akim and Akwapim South.

By Charles Takyi-Boadu


Professionals for Political Action (PPA), affiliated group to the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has organized a free health screening for the people of Santa-Maria in the Anyaa- Sowotuom constituency.

Hundreds thronged in their numbers to Santa Maria - Polo junction to have their health checked and given medicines for free.

They were screened on blood pressure, hypertension, fever, malaria, breast cancer, Glucose level,eye test and renewal of NHIS card.

Chairman and leader of PPA, Doctor Adomako Kissi urged residents at Santa-Maria in Anyaa Sowotuom constituency to vote for NPP Presidential Candidate, Nana Akufo Addo and Parliamentary candidate, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway to resolve the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) crisis to enable them get better medical care service.

He stated that as professional workers, bad governance from President John Mahama has really affected their work so they cannot sit unconcern and pretend everything is okay.It their duty now to make sure Ghanaians elect the right person for the country.

Hon. Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, member of parliament for the Anyaa Sowotuom constituency commended Dr. Kissi and his group (PPA) for providing free health screening for people in her constituency.

She also emphasized on the need for Ghanaians to vote against John Mahama for messing up the country's economy and bring hardship on Ghanaians.

Hon Shirley Ayorkor assured residents in Anyaa Sowotuom that an Akufo Addo government will revive the economy and fix the broken NHIS to benefit all Ghanaians.

Residents at Santa Maria lamented on their inability to pay for drugs that are prescribed for them when they visit the hospital and that has become a burden for them because of the inefficient of the NHIS.

Participants who were interviewed expressed their appreciation to PPA and mentioned that such exercise has brought relief to them.

Professional for Political Action (PPA) is a group of professional workers which includes, carpenters, mansions, teachers, farmers, fishermens, nurses, doctors,lawyers, bankers, journalists and many others, with the motive of helping NPP parliamentary candidates and Campaigning for Nana Akufo Addo across the country.

Img-20161126-wa0032
The founder of All Peoples Congress (APC), Hassan Ayariga has described The 2016 presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as expired goods.

Speaking to Ghanapoliticsonline.com Hassan Ayariga said that Nana Addo is 72 years and weak already with health problems.

According to Hassan Ayariga, if nana wins hes not the one going to manage this nation and since the NPP are refusing to let us know who will manage the nation if they win, we dont have to make any mistake by voting for them.

He further established that Nana Addos time is over and in an unlikely event that Nana addo wins, Ghana will go down like Nigeria under Buhari.

Nana Addos time is over. When you are expired you expired and you need to rest. Nana not a good match for John mahama, he added .

click here for the full video ..


Gov. Steve Bullock remains confident that he can secure legislative victories despite a Republican sweep of state and federal offices -- other than his own.

While much of the nation feels the recent presidential election marks a significant shift in political and national culture, the newly re-elected Bullock said he expects it to be business as usual in Helena when legislators return in January to set a two-year budget and consider new laws.

I dont anticipate much different dynamics than weve seen in the past, Bullock said in a Lee State Bureau interview about his legislative priorities for a second term.

Certainly, there are some folks that come to Helena and want to make it more about wins and losses in Helena than what were doing around the state, but by and large I think our legislators know that, especially in a 90-day period, weve got a lot of work to do and we ought to be focusing on getting that work done, he said.

Bullock continued to call for bipartisan collaboration even as he pushed for some proposals that have faced Republican opposition in the past. He listed his top priorities as funding infrastructure investments, establishing voluntary public preschool, tweaking regulations and incentives to promote a diversification of the states energy industries, expanding tax credits for apprenticeships, investing more in services that help keep seniors in their homes, expanding staff levels at Child and Family Services, establishing an office of outdoor recreation and advancing a paycheck transparency measure he hopes will help close the gender pay gap. He also has proposed three tax changes that he said will help keep the budget healthy.

While the governor said he sees his re-election as a sign that voters want more two-party problem solving, GOP legislative leaders have said they instead see the recent elections as a mandate to push harder for their agenda. Republican legislative leaders also have said they will keep campaign promises to pursue an investigation into why emails from Bullocks tenure as attorney general were deleted. Bullock said that effort would not stop him from working with legislators on other issues, a gesture he expected they will reciprocate.

The campaign is over, he said. Im optimistic that now our Legislature will actually look at whats at hand and be focused on things that Montanans expect, and thats continuing to be responsible with taxpayer dollars and move forward to make investments where we should.

As for most legislators, infrastructure investments top Bullocks list of priorities for the 2017 session.

In the 2013 session, Bullock vetoed an infrastructure funding bill for eastern Montana communities affected by the Bakken oil boom in order to keep $300 million in the bank for the states informal rainy day fund. In 2015, a bipartisan infrastructure bill died by one vote on the final day of the session because of concerns from some Republicans about the use of bonding rather than cash and specific projects they did not see as critical, such as a renovation of Montana State Universitys Romney Hall and the construction of a new Montana Historical Society building.

Bullocks 2017 Build Montana proposal suggests spending $292 million, about half of which will come from bonding for new state debt, on infrastructure and building projects around the state. It includes $25 million for Romney Hall, $19 million for the historical society project and $16.8 million for a new veterans home in Butte, as well as funding for major repairs at some schools. He has urged legislators to get the measure out of the way early in the session.

Lets make this the first thing, not the last thing, we get done because I think its an expectation of Montanans, he said.

Republican leaders have said they are opposed to anything beyond essential infrastructure like water and sewer. Bullock declined to say where he thought the bill might hit snags or what parts of his proposal would be open for compromise.

The details are what, at the end of the day, matter in addition to getting it done, he said. Until Ive actually sat down and worked with (legislative leaders), its tough to say exactly where the hard lines will be.

Many Republicans, wary of establishing new programs, had opposed Bullocks previous efforts to offer voluntary public preschool across the state. The governor has pointed out that nearly every other state has established some form of early childhood education funding, often at the behest of business leaders who point to the long term impacts on educational achievement and the economy. He said he is more hopeful for success this session, in part because of strategy changes on how to move the measure through the Legislature.

Last session it was part of the general budget bill. There wasnt a specific measure for folks to chew on and try to impact. We will be having a separate bill on that, Bullock said, also noting he worked with stakeholders to testify about the measures importance during the election and forthcoming session. Where some legislators mightve thought this was just my priority in the 2015 session, I think theyre seeing it is a priority of a lot more people than just me.

The budget Bullock proposed earlier this month leverages targeted agency spending cuts, most of which do not require legislative approval, as well as three new tax proposals to pay for some of the new initiatives even as state revenues have come in slower than predicted the last two years.

One would create a new income tax bracket for those earning more than $500,000, taxing them at 7.9 percent rather than 6.9 percent, the current maximum rate. Bullock has argued it is not fair that someone earning close to minimum wage would pay the same rate as the states top earners.

He also has proposed two new consumption taxes. One would extend the states cigarette taxes to liquids sold for electronic cigarettes. Another would tax the sale of medical marijuana at 6 percent, which has drawn criticism from some as an unfair taxation of medicine. Bullock defended both taxes, noting that while he is talking to stakeholders about the medical marijuana tax he thinks it can be a fair tax.

The consumption taxes are just a reasonable way to maintain stability in our overall revenue stream, he said.

Republicans have broadly opposed new or expanded taxes.

Bullock also has suggested a handful of changes to tax credits that could save some Montanans or businesses money. They include a tax credit for working Montanans, an expanded credit for businesses who purchase new equipment and increased credits for employers who offer apprenticeships, especially to veterans.

Wholesale, we have a fairly modernized system, Bullock said, calling his tax proposals reasonable tweaks.
Before I arrived in Ghana, my opinion of the Witch Camps was that they were in extremely rural areas, and existed in the North because that is where the smaller villages are where people have less education and exposure to the outside world. However, since starting this project I have learnt that most, if not all, Ghanaians believe in witches, including many of my friends and colleagues in the capital Accra, mainly because of strong religious and superstitious beliefs. It surprised me to hear that many travelled and educated citizens believed in the existence of witches and witchcraft in the 21st century.

But still, only in the North did these camps and the witch accusations exist. I was pre-informed that many accusations come from a death in the community, because somebody had a dream that the woman was a witch, or because there had been a string of bad occurrences or a natural disaster which could be blamed on witchcraft.

Sadly, when I arrived at the Camps, this wasn't exactly the case. Every single woman I spoke to who had been accused of being a witch had one thing in common with their story- They had become a burden to their family.

The stories often started the same. Their husband had died, and they were forced to move in with a brother, son, cousin. After a short while, this family member felt too inconvenienced by having to care for them, which would prompt them to accuse the woman of being a witch. Perhaps someone would die in the community, perhaps someone became ill, perhaps they simply lied and claimed to be sick themselves, then the relative would blame the illness or death on the woman and accuse her of witchcraft. By the next morning, through no trial but mob justice, she would be banished from the community and banished from any food, money, clothing and human rights she had momentarily before. For the rest of her life, the accused witch lives with stigma in complete poverty.

Some women I met were actually children when they first arrived at the Witch Camp, sent by their family to care for their grandmother who was banished as an accused witch. Once the grandmother had died, the grandchild would try to return to their community only to be told that they too were now banished because of fear that the witchcraft was passed through the family.

One woman called Awabu Mahama had been living in the Witch Camp for 30 years. She was around 85 years old, losing her eyesight and unable to work on the farm for the little money they pay, or walk the 30-minutes daily stretch to carry water she may need. Her roof leaked every time it rained, which flooded the floor she slept on. Of the 6 daughters Awabu has, not one has been to visit once in 30 years. She survives on the scraps and offerings of others around her in the community, the clothes they donate to her. It seems they do look out for her and try and take care of her as best they are able. I asked her; if she could have anything in the world, what would she like- She replied "Food, housing & clothes".

Many of the women wish to go back to their communities, but sadly because of the stigma still attached to them, they know that they can't. Others can't because the people who accused them of witchcraft were their only family, so they have nowhere to return to. Some have children that would like to have them home, but simply cant afford housing or transportation. Each woman has a very different and complex situation, and there is definitely not one solution for all.

The only conclusion I feel very strongly about is the mistreatment of these women hidden behind the word witch or witchcraft and the mob justice that automatically follows it. The stigma they are subjected to should rather be on the people who accuse them of being witches to hide that they are bad, morally bankrupt people who find it easier to strip a woman of all of her rights and banish her to a life of poverty and loneliness than to take responsibility and care for her in her old age.

Perhaps women in Ghana need more rights to start with, so that when their husbands die they don't become such an automatic burden to someone else. They should inherit their husbands land and money and continue to care for their children as they were.

Perhaps, as it's 2016, the government should step up and put more pressure on the situation to end, rather than avoiding the subject of Witch Camps in their campaigns for fear of losing votes. Losing votes has absolutely nothing on losing your home, your family and your human rights.

Best,

Louise

Check out Louise website here: https://www.louisewateridge.com/alleged-witches-role-in-election
The National Commission for Civic Education has organized a parliamentary debate for parliamentary aspirants of the Sekondi Constituency in the Western region.

The debate was to allow the aspirants namely Mr. Daniel Essuman (PPP), Mr. Emmanuel Assefuah (NDC), Mr. Peter Arthur (CPP) and Mr. Andrew Egyapa Mercer (NPP) to give a quick rundown of their developmental plans for the constituency.

The parliamentary candidates took turns to give a synopsis of plans they have for the constituency and reasons why electorates should vote for them and their parties to win the December 7 polls.

Issues raised and questions asked drew up from health, education, job creation and welfare of children and youth of the constituency.

Mr. Daniel Essuman the Parliamentary Aspirant for PPP expressed his belief in his party vision to create more jobs. He said his party when voted will create more jobs for teeming unemployed youth scattered in the constituency. This has been the partys primary agenda and can be fulfilled because it is evidence by the good works that the flag bearer Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom has done. This shows commitment and credibility on their path. He further disclosed that he and his party leader Dr. Nduom are in plans to construct a rice mill factory, fruit juice factory and an ultra-modern cold store in the constituency.

Education is a priority for all and the foundation to a brighter future but most times children are been deprived of it. Most schools in the constituency lack the adequate infrastructure and facilities that enhance quality learning. He will therefore work hard to provide facilities to a lot of schools mostly the deprive ones, this he said.

Mr. Essuman promised the electorates about his intention to sustain the school feeding programme. He said  the major challenge to sustain the programme was due to payment systems and the lack of funds. To ensure sustainability he will work with government appointees through proper management systems to ensure that every school and child benefits from the school feeding programme and also ensure a good payment structure.

Mr. Peter Arthur the CPP aspirant on his part said, to ensure continuity in growth he will revive the legacy of Dr. Nkrumah who had laid a better foundation for all Ghanaians. To solve the socio- economic challenge of the constituency he vowed to restore all jobs that have collapsed.

The parliamentary aspirant for NDC Mr. Emmanuel Assefuah also centered on the need of ensuring quality healthcare by supporting and financing clinics and health post in the constituency to reduce pressure on the regional hospital Effia Nkwanta. He also promised to offer open scholarships to brilliant and needy children.

Mr. Egyapa Mercer the NPP aspirant also stressed on improving the oil/ gas sector by establishing the regulatory bodies in the region. He will transfer the headquarters of GNPC on land belonging to the corporation that is Sekondi. He will also employ all means to compel oil companies to stay in Ghana to explore our resources so we can enjoy the benefits. There has not been any development in our oil/gas industries mostly because business has been upstream. He will develop a downstream and integrated oil/gas industry in Sekondi and also work with private sector companies to set up an oil/ gas refinery.
Despite a growing anxiety about its possibility, the National Media commission says social media will not be shut down during the December 7 general elections.

The Commission's Executive Secretary, George Sarpong, assured social media users that it has engaged stakeholders in government and has received assurances that a shut-down is 'not going to happen'.

Already, alternative ways to access some social media platform has been circulating on facebook, Whats App, twitter as users demonstrate uneasiness since a shutdown debate was triggered by the police.

The Inspector General of Police (IGP) John Kudalor floated it last May and said if social media becomes a tool for misinformation on election day, the police will go the Ugandan way.

Photo: John Kudalor

Voters in Uganda woke up on election day February 19 to find they were unable to access social media platforms - they had been shutdown over government fears that they would be used to spread "lies".

The NMC says it has taken note of the destructive use of the platform in the name of politics and intends to monitor users.

Mr. Sarpong explained that political posts especially audio-visual content will be checked for truthfulness. It will draw the attention of users not to further circulate inciteful materials or peddle untruths and also caution those who post non-edifying content.

The Commission is of the view that social media represents freedom of expression and a shutdown could infringe on fundamental human rights guaranteed in the 1992 constitution.

President John Mahama has also moved to assure Ghanaians, there will be no blackout of social media on election day.

John Kudalor, since the negative reception to the idea, has moved to cool off apprehensions about the ban but has refused to rule it out.

"So far, so good...whether we will shut it down or not, I don't want to go there, when we get to the bridge we will cross it but as at now, we have no intention to shut down social media if you continue to be good citizens," he has said.

There are at least 3.5million facebook users in Ghana.

Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com|[email protected]
The presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo, on Saturday led a delegation from his party to pay an official visit to the home and family of Kwabena Boadu, former press aide to the party's vice presidential candidate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia.

This evening, I visited the family of the late Kwabena Boadu, Press Secretary to my running mate, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, who passed away sadly on Thursday, November 24, 2016. I extended my deepest condolences to the family, and consoled them on their loss.

May God bless him and give his soul peaceful rest until the last day of the Resurrection when we shall all meet again. Amen! Nana Akufo-Addo stated on his official Facebook wall moments after the visit.

Akufo-Addo in a tribute, described the 29-year-old deceased as an intelligent young man with a bright future. The NPP flagbearer was accompanied by the partys National Youth Organiser, Sammy Awuku, Dr Mahamadu Bawumia, Osafo Marfo, Fadi Dabbousi and his aides.

Kwabena Boadu was reported to have died last Thursday morning in a hotel in Wa, the Upper West regional capital, where he was lodging together with Dr Bawumia and the rest of the latter's campaign team that attended regional rally the previous day.

According to reports, he was electrocuted when he was about to take his bath in his hotel room.


The Konongo-Odumasi Senior High School (KOSS) in the Ashanti Region was shut down indefinitely on Saturday by the authorities following a two-day protest by students over the transfer of some teachers of the school.

Management of the school took the decision in reaction to a threat by the angry students to burn the school.

The transfer of 10 teachers, who accused a colleague and Reverend Minister of engaging in sodomy with some of the male students, led to confusion on the campus of the school situated between Konongo and Odumasi along the Kumasi-Accra Highway.

The KOSS students accused the headmistress, Comfort Odehe of orchestrating the transfer of the teachers, who were said to have raised an alarm over the practice of sodomy in the school in recent times.

The aggrieved students, who demanded the immediate dismissal of Mrs. Odehe, poured on the streets of the campus of the school last Friday to protest amidst chanting of slogans.

They further protested on Saturday morning and threatened to set the school ablaze if the authorities fail to bring back the teachers.

Owing to the development, management of the school called the police to protect lives and property on campus, but the presence of the law enforcement officers infuriated them.

According to reports, the police were forced to fire tear gas and warning shots to disperse students.

Management of the school held a crisis meeting subsequently and took the decision to close down the school indefinitely.

The headmistress, Mrs. Odehe, who confirmed the incident, failed to give details on the matter.

The students claimed the affected teachers were being victimized unduly by the headmistress and the Board of School for voicing out concerns over sodomy involving a former teacher of the school and some students.

From Ernest Kofi Adu, Kumasi


A concerned Ghanaian Richard Asante Yeboah has petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), John Kudalor over the recent statements by Naaba Abdullai, brother of Collins Dauda, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development that he (Naaba Abdullai) and some unknown persons kill innocent people nearly every day.

Mr. Asante Yeboah has forward a copy of the petition to former Presidents Jerry John Rawlings, John Agyekum Kufuor, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, Chief Justice Georgina Wood.

Naaba Abdullai, who made the shocking revelation to Kwabena Prah Jnr on Agyenkwa FM, had vowed to deal ruthlessly with the Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong.

I Naaba, I'm a fearless person, NPP are now trying to learn how to shoot guns, but some of us have handled guns for more than 20 years now. How can you compare yourself to me. Kennedy Agyapong is just bragging, if he dare steps here on election day, he'll be arrested and beaten mercilessly. If he comes here and threatens to kill anyone, I swear we'll finish him first. He should go and teach people how to shoot in his constituencyas for us, we kill people every day. If they are ready, we are ready too. My life is dear to me, I'll not allow anyone to threaten me, the Minister's brother is quoted as saying.

Mr. Asante Yeboah, in the petition, explained that the intimidating and abusive conduct of Naaba Abdullai, brother of Hon. Collins Dauda, has gotten to its frustrating limits.

Giving reasons why the IGP should intervene in the matter, the petitioner indicated that the Brong Ahafo Regional Police Command appears to have practically vacated their constitutionally mandated role of keeping peace, enforcing the laws of the land, arresting and prosecuting people who grossly abuse and violate the constitution of Ghana.

He indicated that countless cases have been lodged at different times and occasions at several police stations against the activities of the said Naaba Abdullai in the Ahafo areas of the Brong Ahafo region.

These acts, he said, include kidnapping and abduction, death threats, assault, destruction of property, destruction of electoral materials, maiming of innocent and law abiding citizens, seizure of electoral materials, intimidating and beating of police officers, electoral officers, chiefs and other opinion leaders of the region.

It is important to note that on occasions where individual members of the community, who after suffering from the abusive conduct of the brother of the Hon. Collins decided to lodge a complaint with the police, they (the complainants) were subsequently arrested and detained in police cells for no apparent reasons.

Young professionals, including medical doctors and nurses, who were on a medical outreach programme, were abducted and robbed by Naaba Abdullai and his team of hooligans for two days and later dumped at the police station, Mr. Asante Yeboah said.

Surprisingly, the police did not question these lawless people on the matter but arrested these harmless professionals who had already sustained various degrees of injury in the hands of Naaba Abdullai and his team of Boko Haram- like operatives, according to him.

Mr IGP, the most recent is when Naaba is audibly heard on radio confessing to killing people every day and other serious pronouncement that warrant his immediate arrest and subsequent prosecution. But as has become a norm with the Brong Ahafo Regional Police Command, nothing has been done about the ugly utterances of Naaba Abdullai.

He argued that this is extremely alarming because of the quantum of unresolved murder cases in the Ahafo areas of the Brong Ahafo region.

By Melvin Tarlue
The governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Tamale north constituency Parliamentary candidate, Alhassan Suhuyini has outlined education, health, agriculture, women empowerment, youth employment and roads as his vision for the constituency.

The radio broadcaster whose popularity has overshadowed his other contenders in the 2016 Parliamentary contest has also promised to galvanize his constituents for constructive purposes should he win their mandate.

Alhassan Suhuyini exclusively in a Citi News interview described the NDC as a credible political party which stands for peace and stability and cares for the people.

He called on all NDC loyalists in the Tamale north constituency to avoid complacency and assiduously work towards attaining one touch victory on December 7.

He downplayed the Tamale north constituency incumbent independent Member of Parliament, Alhassan Dahamani's re-election bid.

Alhassan Suhuyini admitted that the NDC lost the seat in 2012 due to internal wrangling.

He quickly added that his candidature had reunited party members for which reason he is better placed than his contenders in the 2016 Parliamentary race.

I am working with my team day and night to ensure that no stone is left unturned. We don't need to entertain complacency and what we need is a victory that will leave no doubt in anybody's mind that Tamale north has returned to the umbrella and returned well.

We have a united party that is poised to recapture the seat and some of the party supporters are proud that I emerged victorious at the Parliamentary primary courtesy the expansion of our party's Electoral College.

Alhassan Suhuyini reechoed the need for renewal of President John Dramani Mahama's mandate.

In my view it will be unfair if the President is not given a second mandate with the level of development that he has carried out in his four years I am certain that he will do more when his mandate is renewed.

Peaceful elections

Alhassan Suhuyini called for insult free political campaigns to avoid anarchy before, during and after the December 7 polls.

According to him, politicians who engaged in personality attacks lacked campaign messages and should be ignored.

We should always engage on issues and personalities should not feature in our debates resulting into character assassination and personality attacks.

Media circumspection

As a Journalist, the Tamale north NDC Parliamentary candidate advocated media circumspection on elections coverage.

You cannot downplay the role of the media in our democratic experiment but I will caution that we exercise our freedom guaranteed by the constitution with circumspection.

Let us be guided by the fact that we need to entertain, inform and educate the masses but we need to ensure that we educate more to preserve our democratic credentials by doing unbiased fact checks.



By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
The Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to attend the Africa Trade Week 2016. Africa Trade Week 2016 is a new Pan- African platform for advancing intra-Africa trade dialogue among mutli-stakeholders. The main objective of the Africa Trade Week is to provide a comprehensive, integrated and inclusive platform for policy dialogue between various trade-related constituencies.

Minister Davies will participate in three panel sessions relating to the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) and the continental integration agenda as espoused in the African Unions Agenda 2063.

Minister Davies will also attend the African Unions Ministers of Trade meeting where Ministers will consider the progress of the Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA) Negotiations. The Continental Free Trade Area Negotiations was launched by African Union Heads of States and Government during the African Union Assembly held in Johannesburg, South Africa on 15 June 2015. The CFTA aims to boost intra-Africa trade and to build an integrated Africa of 1billion people and GDP of approximately 2.6 trillion US dollars

The Minister will also engage on key international trade issues such as the World Trade Organisation, Africa Growth Opportunity Act, Economic Partnership Agreement, and the implications of the Brixit, as well as international Investment landscape.

On the sidelines of the Africa Trade Week 2016 meeting, Minister Davies will meet the Ministers of Trade of Kenya, Egypt, and Nigeria to discuss the enhancement of cooperation and advancing regional economic integration in Africa.
The Minister of Communications, Dr. Edward Omane Boamah, has taken a jab at the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), for repeatedly claiming that the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) has collapsed.

According to him, the NPP is enrolling its members onto the scheme, despite claiming that it has collapsed; describing it as double standards.

The NPP has consistently accused the Mahama-led administration of starving the scheme of the necessary funds hence leading to its collapse.

They have thus promised to revive it should they be given the opportunity on December 7, 2016.

The law that introduced the National Health Insurance Scheme, (NHIS), was passed during the regime of the Kufuor administration. At the time, the NDC then in opposition, voted against the Bill, but turned around to promise a one-time premium ahead of the 2012 elections, only to fail to implement it.

But taking his turn at the 'Meet the Press' session in Accra on Monday, Dr. omane Boamah said the NPP is being hypocritical because it trumpets the supposed failure of the scheme, yet touts it as an achievement after registering its members onto the supposed collapsed scheme.

Is it not ironic that the health insurance scheme which some politicians tout as having collapsed has today become a major campaign tool for some members of parliamentand you hear them boast of the number of constituents they have enrolled onto the scheme. Which is which? Has the scheme collapsed or not? If it has collapsed, why are they being so wicked to their constituents that they will enroll them on a scheme that they believe has collapsed?

He also insisted that, the Mahama-led government has invested heavily in the scheme as compared to the NPP government which started it.

We have paid the highest amount to service providers. In 2015, we paid over one billion cedis which has increased remarkably from the very modest payments of the earlier years such as a paltry GHc183 million under the NPP government. Out-patient utilization alone stood at over GHc29 million in 2015, having increased tremendously from just above GH c9 million as at 2008. These are the facts, he argued.



By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana

Follow @AlloteyGodwin
The 2016 presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has assured the people of the Western Region that his government, God-willing from January 2017, will develop the region into an oil services hub with a first class port facility, to serve the needs of West Africa.

This, he explained, will be done by positioning the Western Region as an efficient centre for the support of the oil industry in the West African region, which will result in the relocation of the headquarters of Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC) to the region.

Additionally, Nana Akufo-Addo stated that we are going to develop a petrochemical industry here in the Western region, so we can maximize the value of the oil find. These are some of the policy initiatives and programmes we will implement to bring jobs, wealth and prosperity to the region, and to Ghana.

The NPP flagbearer also bemoaned the lack of development of the Western Region, under the John Mahama administration, since the commencement of the production of oil in commercial quantities in 2011, which has seen the nation realise some $5 billion in oil revenues.

If we, in the NPP, were in power these 5 years of the oil discovery, the face of the Western Region, and, indeed, the face of Ghana would have changed dramatically. Western Region and Ghana would have been on an accelerated path progress and prosperity with the revenues from our oil find, he added.

Nana Akufo-Addo made these known on Sunday, November 27, 2016, when he addressed yet another mammoth rally at the Sekondi Methodist Park, the venue for the NPP's Western Regional Rally.

Describing the Western Region as the base of the railway industry of our country, the NPP flagbearer indicated that a future Akufo-Addo government will leverage the country's oil revenues to complete the Accra-Kumasi-Paga rail line connections, as well as oversee a comprehensive rehabilitation of the Western Rail Lines.

This, he added, will facilitate the haulage of bauxite, manganese, cocoa, cement, iron ore and other bulk commodities, as well as the transportation of people from the region to all parts of the country.

We are going to develop a modern railway network with strong economic linkages, which open up our country, and bring economic development of our country. I am assuring you that my government will completely overhaul the Western Rail Lines to ensure this happens, Akufo-Addo stressed.

Reaffirming his commitment to the creation of a new Western North region, he explained that considering the fact that a significant proportion of Ghana's natural resources, such gold and cocoa, as well as food stuff can be found in that part of the country, the creation of the Western-North region is long overdue.

The creation of the region, he added, is to ensure a more equitable development of the region, as well as address the unwieldy size of the Western Region.

IPEP, Free SHS, Revival of NHIS

Outlining some of the other policies for the development of the region, Nana Akufo-Addo reiterated his commitment towards the establishment of the Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP), which will see every constituency receiving the equivalent of $1 million every year to deal with problems of sanitation, roads, electricity and other infrastructural needs of the constituency.

The NHIS, which he said has collapsed under the leadership of President Mahama, will receive new life and strength under an Akufo-Addo government, so we can provide healthcare that is affordable and accessible for all Ghanaians. In this regard, Nana Akufo-Addo pledged to restore the nursing training allowances in full when he wins the December 7 elections.

The Free SHS policy, he added, will be effectively implemented because we are determined to secure the future of our country. This policy, in addition, will reduce the financial burden of parents who want to provide their children with a good education.

Apart from education of the children, we are going to revive, in full, adult education so that adults who did not have the opportunity to go to school will also benefit from knowledge and education. We want to have a nation where everybody can improve on their lives and circumstances. That is what we are fighting for, and that is why we are going to restore the allowances for teacher trainees, he added.

To the Zongo communities spread across the region, the NPP flagbearer reiterated his commitment towards the setting up of a Zongo Development Fund aimed at solving basic infrastructure problems existing in Zongo communities across the country. He said that proper management of the country's public finances will allow the Fund to be established. The Fund, he assured, will be a line item in the 2017 budget to be presented by his government.

Nana Akufo-Addo also assured the tens of thousands gathered that the NPP has the men and women with the capacity, imagination and competence to bring into fruition all the plans he has espoused for the region, and as a result return the country onto the path of progress and prosperity, without discrimination.
28.11.2016 LISTEN



By Richard Kofi Attenkah

Chiefs and traditional leaders have been advised to put an end to the attitude of publicly showing or declaring their support for leaders of political parties that visit their palaces during political campaign seasons.

The advice was given by Nii Bortey Klan I, Chief of Klangon, a town along the Nungua-Ashaiman highway in the Tema Metropolitan area of the Greater Accra Region.

According to him, apart from the fact that such attitudes would reduce the respect of their subjects, and most times expose them to public ridicule, the 1992 Constitution frowns on chiefs actively getting involved in politics.

Speaking in an interview with this paper, the Klangon Mantse said chiefs, who are leaders of their respective communities with a huge support base, are highly revered in the country.

It is against this background that it is imperative for chiefs or traditional rulers to stay away from politics, to avoid the situation where they would pave the way for their subjects to openly disrespect them in the name of politics, he explained.

Nii Klangon pointed out that being is chief is an honourable and enviable title, and that not many are privileged to bear that title, and, therefore, if they have earned it, they must keep it intact to earn the respect that comes with it.

The Klangon Chief posited that if a chief involves him or herself in politics, he or she opens the floodgates for insults, humiliation and open disrespect.

He explained that 1992 Constitution is very clear on what chiefs or traditional rulers, including queenmothers, are supposed to and not to do.

He said Article 276(1) of the 1992 Constitution states that a chief shall not take part in active party politics; and any chief wishing to do so, and seeking election to parliament, shall abdicate his stool or skin.

Continuing, he noted that there are good reasons for this, adding the reality on the ground points to the fact that in modern times, traditional leaders in Ghana are unable to project the sanctity of their stool or skin, which involves organising their subjects for development, because of their involvement in partisan politics.

Nii Klangon hinted that since chiefs are the embodiment of their subjects, politically, religiously and spiritually, they are supposed to attract special reverence from their subjects, who are expected to love and serve them.

He, however, pointed out that the relevance of the chieftaincy institution, to a large extent, will be measured by the conduct of the chiefs themselves, whose contribution to democratic development, civil and environmental matters, in the country, is enormous.

The Klangon Chief opined that the respect some chiefs command in their kingdoms, and even beyond, has withered away, because they have over indulged themselves in partisan politics.

He appealed to the chiefs that, no matter how hard the politicians try to influence or entice them with money to show open support for their political parties or flagbearers, they should resist them and keep their respect.
28.11.2016 LISTEN



The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has reportedly hired workers to go round the newly-inaugurated Kwame Nkrumah Circle Interchange to pick up empty water sachets and other waste materials that have littered the place.

The idea is to ensure that the new interchange is kept clean. The Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) has also supported the idea of keeping the place clean, and has gone a step further to ban the sale of sachet water in the new bus terminal around the Interchange.

Some of the sachet water vendors protested in an interview they granted some of the television stations that they were being pushed out of business, and that the decision not to allow them to sell at the terminal should be reversed.

The GPRTU has, however, turned down the request. It is instructive to note that this is not the first time hawkers have been banned from a lorry terminal in Accra.

Indeed, the new Achimota Lorry Terminal has also banned hawkers from selling inside the station to avoid littering the place. The decision, which met initial resistance from the hawkers, has today helped to keep the place very neat.

The Chronicle, therefore, supports the action by the GPRTU at circle to also ban hawkers from using the new lorry park. It is equally a good decision by the AMA to deploy permanent staff to go round the interchange, to ensure that the place in not littered with all kinds of waste materials.

But, much as we agree to these decisions by both the AMA and the GPRTU, we shudder to say that this is not the final solution to the littering of our streets in the country.

It is common in Ghana to see passengers throwing away yogurt and water sachets, among others, from moving vehicles and cars. Any patriotic son of the land who dares rebuking these erring passengers is subjected to verbal abuse.

As we have noted in this column several times, all these are happening because we fail to educate the Ghanaian, right from the kindergarten up to the university level, as to why he or she must not litter the streets or the environment.

Hong Kong is today one of the cleanest countries in the world, because education about sanitation is impacted to the child immediately he or she starts going to school. As a result, the child grows with the idea, and would see it as a crime to litter the streets.

Ghana could have adopted the same idea by making sanitation a part of our school curricula, where every school-going child will be indoctrinated to see sanitation as being next to Godliness, and that throwing papers among others on our streets and public places is a crime.

The country may not see the benefit of this in the short term, but in the long term, Ghanaians would benefit tremendously from this decision, as the children would grow with what they have been taught in school.

Regrettably, leaders of this country have not tuned their minds to that, and rather continue to implement short term measures to address our sanitation problems, which are not yielding the desired results.

Employing people to go round picking waste materials from the Nkrumah Interchange would make the place look nice, but how long is the AMA going to sustain this? Also, stopping the hawkers from plying their trade at our lorry terminals may sound good on paper, but can same be done on our streets and other public places?

The elephant is in the room, but we are all skating around it, as if we have seen nothing. The problem of sanitation must be tackled from the grassroots, and that is the education of the Ghanaian child before he grows up to become an adult. Until that is done, the ad hoc measures we have put in place would come to nothing.
On November 28, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov received a telephone call from Foreign Minister of the Arab Republic of Egypt Sameh Shoukry.

The ministers exchanged opinions on the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, focusing on the developments in Syria, including the need to normalise the humanitarian situation and the role the UN Security Council could play at this stage.

They also discussed practical aspects of strengthening the multifaceted Russian-Egyptian cooperation.
Secretary of State Peter Stenlund will attend an international conference in Tunisia dealing with the country's economic, social and sustainable development, on 2930 November. He will be accompanied by a Finnish business delegation. The conference will introduce the country's Five-Year Development Plan and related commercial projects designed to strengthen the economy. The purpose of the visit is to show support for Tunisia and to help Finnish companies build contacts and carry out projects there. A seminar on trade relations between Finland and Tunisia will be organised in connection with the conference.

The Finnish delegation consists of ten companies and institutions representing key sectors with opportunities for cooperation in areas such as renewable energy sources, water and waste management, health technology, ICT, education and training, and agriculture.

In recent years, Tunisia has made significant progress in the democratic transition process, for instance adopting a new Constitution and conducting free presidential and parliamentary elections. Finland has supported Tunisia's transition in tangible terms by funding development cooperation projects that promote women's participation in the labour market and youth employment, among other things.
The Communications Minister wants the New Patriotic Partys (NPP) presidential candidate and his are running mate to stop spreading what he describes as lies about the Mahama-led government to deceive Ghanaians.

Dr Edward Omane Boamah said the NPP is threatened by the many achievements of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government hence the constant resort to spreading falsehoods.

Speaking at the Communications Ministry's last Meet-The-Press series before the December elections, he said the NPP front runners have been spreading falsifying information about the government on various platforms.

Nana Akufo-Addo and Dr Mahamudu Bawumia have on several occasions accused government of corruption and poor governance demanding it must be booted out of power come December 7.

However, cataloguing the "lies" the Communications Minister stated that the two claim that government has inflated the cost of some projects, which is only to cast government in a bad light, so the NPP garner votes.

Justifying the use of the platform to address the issue, he said, "we [government] owe it to the people to keep them informed."

"Lie Number 1: On December 9, 2014, Nana Akufo-Addo lied about the cost of the Kasoa Interchange and insisted it has been inflated speaking at the Alhaji Aliu Mahama Memorial Lectures.

"Not even facts from the NPP to correct the obvious misinformation from an NPP minority ranking member of parliament on Roads and Transport Committee could satisfy him," he told the press.

"Lie Number 2: On October 19, 2015, Nana Akufo-Addo lied about some $10 million spent by government to print diaries, which is false.

"Lie Number 3: On October 21, 2015, He [Akufo-Addo] claimed at a gathering in Amsterdam that government and the Electoral Commission (EC) were scheming to rig the 2016 elections. he provided no proof.

"Lie Number 4: On December 19, 2015, He [Akufo-Addo] lied at an NPP delegates congress Sunyani that all governments projects have been awarded to enrich government officials. He provided no proof."

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Abubakar Ibrahim
The opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), are battling to grab the Sekondi constituency in the Western Region in the December 7 general election.

NPP has won the seat in five consecutive elections since 1996, with Papa Owusu-Ankomah, a former Majority Leader in Parliament and Minister of State occupying the seat for the whole period.

However, the governing NDC has vowed to snatch it in the 2016 December 7 polls.

Analysts say it will be a difficult task for the NDC to win the seat, which is considered to be one of the strongholds of the NPP.

Both parties have new candidates contesting the December polls, after long-serving MP, Papa Owusu Ankomah, opted not to contest again.

He has been replaced by another lawyer, Andrew Agyapa Merker, who the residents say is a 'home boy.'

The governing NDC is also presenting Emmanuel Assifuah, an employee at the Western Regional Lands Commission, also known to have some suport in the area.

Papa Owusu-Ankomah won the seat narrowly in 2012 with 14,735 votes, to beat the NDCs candidate, Anthony Richard Cudjoe, who obtained 13,644.

But speaking to Citi FM's Samurais on constituency watch ahead of the December polls, the Sekondi Constituency Chairman of the NPP, Erasmus Baidoo Cudjoe, said the party will win the 2016 polls with a wider margin.

Samurais are Citi FM's pre-election monitory team in the Southern Sector of the country, looking at the issues that would decide the upcoming elections.

The other team, known as the Delta Squad covered the Northern part of the country.

Sekondi-Takoradi harbour

According to the NPP Constituency chairman, the gap between NPP and NDC was narrow because there was this perception that Papa Owusu-Ankomah had stayed for too long and the people wanted him to rest. After the 2012 elections, we set up a committee to investigate why our votes have been dropping and the report was that our MP has been there for so long. The people needed a change.

The new candidate we have is a home boy and with the house-to-house campaign he is embarking upon, our victory will be massive, Mr. Cudjoe reiterated.

He explained that, the NPP is still strong in the constituency because the party's Presidential Candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo won with a difference of about 3,437 votes.

We will make sure the margin increases so that Nana Addo becomes President of Ghana come 2017, Mr. Cudjoe stated.

However, the NDCs Western Regional Secretary, Joseph Nelson, is optimistic the governing party will win the seat for the first time since 1996.

President Mahama has brought a lot of development projects to Sekondi and what the people want is development. We are just waiting for the D-day to retain President Mahama in power and we will also win the seat, the NDC chairman maintained.

By: Awudu Mahama/ghelections.com/Ghana
The suspended General Secretary of the All People's Congress Razak Opoku has disclosed that his party stole the 2016 manifesto of the opposition New Patriotic Party.

This was revealed on 3FM's Sunrise morning show hosted by Winston Amoah on Monday. He was reacting to obvious rift in the party as two executives declared their support for the opposition NPP, while the flag bearer is set to endorse the candidature of the governing NDC's John Dramani Mahama.

Allegations

Razak Opoku who insists the APC manifesto was stolen from the NPP asked Winston to challenge Dr. Hassan Ayariga to deny his claims.

Ask him how come the party manifesto that all of us decided to launch; in fact I wrote 90% of the manifesto and he wrote about 10% but on the day of the launch the manifesto was a different manifesto, it was the manifesto of the NPP ask him that.

I can give you a copy of the exact copy of the exact manifesto that the APC was to launch. The manifesto that we launched on the Aviation Social Center is the manifesto of the New Patriotic Party. I dare you to ask him how come he was able to get that. Who stole the manifesto of the NPP for him and subsequently claim ownership to it?

Asked who leaked the NPP manifesto, Razak Opoku declined to provide answer only to insist that the host get that information from Hassan Ayariga.

When contacted for his side of the story, Dr. Hassan Ayariga was emphatic he would not respond to a sycophant.

If you put a sycophant in your studio and want me to respond to, I will not respond.

Earlier, Razack Opoku had laughed his disappointed presidential hopeful, Dr. Hasan Ayariga, scorning his suspension by the leader.

Who said I have been suspended? he asked I thank you very much that you did not say the national disciplinary committee has made recommendations to national executive committee but rather Hassan Ayariga who thinks that running a political party is like running a pizza business, whereby somebody can just work and say I have dismissed you. Political party is not a sole proprietorship.

Breach of Constitution

Quoting sections of their constitution, Razak Opoku maintained that all the grievance and disciplinary procedures have been breached.

Chapter 4, page 11 of our constitution clearly spells out what the processes are. Article 14 which stipulates all the disciplinary and grievance procedures by the National Executive Committee and in dealing with allegations brought against a member has been breached.

-3news.com
It is exactly 9 days to Ghana's much awaited presidential and parliamentary polls mainly between incumbent NDC and main opposition NPP.

Both parties are very optimistic of wining the December 7, polls  but the electorates will decide if President John Dramani Mahama should Toaso, to wit continue or there will be a change of government for Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to head to the Flagstaff House.

But before that, an Islamic cleric, numerologist and philosopher whose prediction on USA election was accurate has hinted a massive win for the Elephant party over the incumbent NDC.

Sheikh Ustaz Sham-una Jibril noted that the NPP's flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is going to emerge as the winner in the upcoming elections by polling 58%.

In a statement copied to Peacefmonline.com Sheikh Ustaz explained that Nana Addo is leading overwhelmingly in the spiritual realm.

Beside in the Spiritual realm the original figure of Nana Addo and the NPP is 58% while the Political figure is 53.47% to this end, a lay man on the street will be confuse, he said.

Read below his statement:

An Islamic Cleric, Numerologist, Philosopher, Psychologist and a Spiritual hacker Mallam Shamuna Ustaz Jibreel who is globally known for his accurate prediction on both local and international platforms is descending his prediction on the Elephant against the December 7th Polls.

However, the cleric who predicted win for President Buhari of Nigeria on Daily Guide dated 16th March, 2015 (http://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Cleric-predicts-victory-for-NPP-Buhari-350582) said Cleric Predicts win for NPP, Buhari and gave the actual percentages and the breakdown of state to state results, he further said the Nigeria election will have a bearing on the Ghanas election.

Beside In the Spiritual rhyme the original figure of Nana Addo and the NPP is 58% while the Political figure is 53.47% to this end, a lay man on the street will be confuse. What I am trying to put across is that due to some electoral malpractice and In- vigilant of the opposition parties instead of scoring 58% as written on the Spiritual tablet, It will reduce to 53.47% so also instead of Mahama and the NDC scoring 37.84% it will shoot to 44.96% as written in my previous article dated 26th September 2016 Prez Mahama & Goodluck Siamese twins . . . He'll Poll 44. 96% in Dec.

http://www.peacefmonline.com/pages/politics/politics/201609/293159.php

Even in our daily activities similar things happen. For example when you look at the original pay slip of Civil and Public Sector workers from the Controller and Accountant General is different from what the Cashier will give the person due to some government deduction.

As usually These Spiritual prediction is grounded in Quran Chapter 85: 19  22 which provides that And yet the unbelievers persist in rejecting the truth. But Allah doth encompass them from behind. Nay this is a Glorious Quran. Inscribed in the Tablet preserved.

It should be noted that I am the first person on the surface of the earth to Congratulate Nana Addo and his Party whiles waiting for the elections, on peacefmonline.com dated 11th July, 2016. Ive Congratulated Nana Addo as Ghanas President.

( http://m.peacefmonline.com/pages/politics/politics/201607/284986.php )

And I pledge again that I will not attend Nana Addo Investiture even if I am invited as I turn down not to attend President Buhari Inauguration in Abuja when I was invited dated 2nd April 2016  Ghanaian Cleric for Buhari Inauguration

(https://m.modernghana.com/news/608751/ghanaian-cleric-for-buhari-inauguration.html)

I strongly believe that the EC boss is chosen not only to conduct 2016 election, but rather to conduct subsequent election till her end of tenure.

So I caution the Electoral Commission of Ghana to act like the INEC of Nigeria who conducted their election with transparency without the fear of any the Military or the Incumbent government, and also the Police and Military should treat all political parties fairly with neutrality and justice. Lastly I edge John Mahama and NDC to act like Goodluck Johnathan of Nigeria who accepted defeat, congratulated and handed over power peaceful to an opposition party APC (Buhari) when the need arises.

The Real figures is in the hands of the owner (ALLAH) his words and decision are final not my Predictions.

I call on all and sundry to pray for Transparent, Credible and Peaceful Elections most especially Muslims across the world should recite Hasbunallahu wa ni`mal Wakil':     in Quran Chapter 3 vrs 173 to 174. Each person should recite 150 times daily till two weeks after election.

Note: The recitation is NOT for a victory of any Political Party, But for PEACE of the Country.


Newmont Ghana has been at the forefront of encouraging local procurement since it commenced business in 2006.

The company ensures that Ghanaian-owned companies are considered for contracts through fair and transparent processes, and holds capacity building programmes for local businesses in its Ahafo and Akyem host communities.

This makes it possible for local companies to provide business support to the mines and other businesses across Ghana.

At the 5th AGI Ghana Industry Awards, recently held in Accra, the Association of Ghana Industries honoured Newmont Ghana for its leadership role and commitment to local content development in the country.

In particular, the association recognised the company's efforts at helping build the capacity of local businesses, and promoting the procurement of goods and services from indigenous suppliers.

The AGI also lauded Newmont Ghana for advancing extensive community development programmes in its Ahafo host communities, through the Newmont Ahafo Development Foundation.

Hiring and sourcing locally is an integral part of our operations at Newmont, and we are happy that our various local content initiatives are achieving the right results, said George Brakoh, Newmont Ghana's Regional Manager Local Business.

In 2007, the Ahafo mine collaborated with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to establish an intervention known as the Ahafo Linkages Programme (ALP) to support the development of local businesses, as potential suppliers and providers of goods and services to the mine.

The programme was also aimed at supporting the development of local non-mining businesses to develop a diversified local economy outside the mining sector.

So far, we have awarded contracts to about 500 local businesses within our host communities through the ALP and other programmes, with two of the companies, Alexiboam Company Limited and Sarfpok Limited, going on to receive industry recognition for their work with us, Mr. Brakoh added.

The Ahafo Linkages Programme (ALP) has been recognised by the World Business Council on Sustainable Development (WBCSD) as Best Practice SME Linkages/Sustainability Project.

According to Mr. Brakoh, Newmont Ghana is playing a leading role in the development of a long-term national sustainable policy and supplier development programme for the mining industry, to help promote sourcing from local businesses within the mining industry and beyond.

We are working with the Ghana Chamber of Mines to support local businesses within the mining sector, and ensure that a significant portion of the industry's procurement is sourced from indigenous companies. Already, we are making strides in this regard, and the future can only be brighter, he concluded.
President John Mahama says on the back of his good works, he derserves an overwhelming re-election victory when polls open December 7.

The governing National Democratic Congress candidate, John Mahama, who pulled 50.63% in 2012 presidential elections appealed to Ghanaians to improve this margin and give him 60 percent of the votes.

'I don't want 50.7%. I want 59%, 58%, 60%" he said at a rally at Sewfi Wiaso in the Western region Monday.

He explained that a comprehensive victory will discourage the opposition from challenging the results in court as the New Patriotic Party (NPP) did in 2012.

Discussing president Mahama's search for a massive endorsement, political analyst Joe Jackson told Joy News Monday, "if he won by 60% then it is landslide. I doubt that the election will be that wide in the margins. It will be a lot more closer than that".

The highest any presidential candidate has obtained since Ghana's return to democracy in 1992 was 58.4% for the NDC candidate Jerry John Rawlings.

President Jerry John Rawlings being sworn-in

Ghana's electoral system requires that the winner must have 50% plus one, failure of which triggers a second round between the two leading candidates.

Ghana last went for a run-off in 2000 and 2008 elections, a prospect which the main rivals, the NPP and NDC are keen to avoid in 2016.

They have both predicted a 'one touch victory'.

Out of three polls published in the media, only one poll has predicted a Mahama victory.

One published by Political scientists at the University of Ghana examined 23 swing constituencies and concluded a win for NPP Presidential candidate Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

The UK-based Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) has also said the Greater Accra region will swing to the NPP.

Ghanaian pollster and Editor of the Daily Dispatch Ben Ephson has a poll pointing to a one-touch victory for the incumbent.

Ben Ephson predicts Mr. Mahama will secure 52.4% while New Patriotic Partys Nana Akufo-Addo will obtain 45.9% with the other parties claiming a meagre 1.7%.

President John Mahama has also said his own independent scientific "we have been doing our own scientific polling....the numbers are looking great and so I am confident that from what is being done scientifically, plus or minus any margin of error, we will make 50% plus".

Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com|EA
Flagbearer of the All People's Congress (APC) Hassan Ayariga has thrown his support for the presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, in the December 7 elections.

Mr Ayariga, who was one of the 10 presidential aspirants disqualified from contesting the 2016 elections, made the announcement at a news conference in Accra.

He said President Mahama and the NDC will win the upcoming elections by at least 54 per cent. The 2012 presidential candidate for the People's National Convention (PNC) justified his decision, citing the fact that the president is a man who listens despite the suffering Ghanaians are going through.

Mr Ayariga's official announcement, advertised weeks earlier, was nearly preempted by an announcement by his party's General Secretary, Razak Opoku, and Vice Chairman Emmanuel Carl Bartels, who declared support for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and its flagbearer Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

The two have since been suspended from the party.

Mr Ayariga urged all supporters of APC to campaign for President Mahama and asked the regional executives to also intensify their campaigns in that bid.

There were a number of APC supporters wielding brooms in support of their leader's choice.

-3news.com
Dr. Koos Marais, a surgeon and author of Die Keiservoel oor Namaland (The Kaiserbird over Namaland) spoke at the opening of a human rights exhibit in Cape Town this week, addressing the role that psychiatry played in the Holocaust. His book about the German occupation of South Africa also reveals the beginnings of psychiatrys collusion in the Holocaust and the precursors to apartheid. The book exposes how German psychiatrist Eugen Fischerwhose works influenced Hitlers plan for mass murderexperimented on the Khoisan people in 1906 in concentration camps at Shark Island, decapitating them, forcing female prisoners to scrape the skulls clean with broken glass and then shipping the heads to Germany for study of inferior races.

Later, South African psychiatrists helped steep their own country in racism and claimed Africans were inferior. However, while German psychiatrists have admitted to their role in the Holocaust, South African psychiatrists have yet to admit their integral role in helping design, build and maintain apartheid.

Dr. Marais detailed how Fischer traveled to German South-West Africa in the early 1900s to study the offspring of German or Boer fathers and African women in Rehoboth, present-day Namibia. Fischer claimed that each mixed-race child was physically and mentally inferior to its German father and therefore mixed marriages should be prohibited (1). Fischer's recommendations were followed, and by 1912 interracial marriage was prohibited throughout the German colonies.

Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) (www.CCHRint.org), a mental health watchdog group that organized the Psychiatry: an Industry of Death exhibit displayed free at the Castle of Good Hope, said the history of psychiatrys involvement in both the Holocaust and apartheid should be known. Dr. Marais added that contemporary society could learn from the past. I wrote my book about these events in order to hold up a mirror to society, to show the world how a small, seemingly unimportant chain of events can have serious consequences, said Dr. Marais.

The CCHR exhibit uses historical photographs and film to showcase the history of psychiatry fueling eugenics and racism and helping engineer the Holocaust and apartheid. After sixty years of silence about this, in 2010, Dr. Frank Schneider, then President of the German Society for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Neurology (DGPPN), publicly apologized for Nazi psychiatrists being primarily responsible for euthanasia, controlling the selection of those to be killed, murdering 275,000 patients and sterilizing 400,000 (2). It was psychiatrists who tested the first gas chambers before they were implemented in the concentration camps, killing millions.

In 1921, Fischer co-wrote Menschliche Erblehre und Rassenhygiene (Human Genetics and Racial Hygiene), one of three psychiatric books on racial inferiority that inspired Hitlers Mein Kampf and the scientific justification for euthanasia (3). Apartheid Prime Minister and psychologist Hendrik Verwoerd had studied in German universities during the height of such eugenics planning. His Nazi thinking was obvious in South Africas segregation and apartheid laws.

In 1997, CCHR presented an extensive submission on psychiatry and psychologys role in apartheid to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) detailing some of the German and South African psychiatrists eugenics studies that had fueled racism and apartheid.

While such atrocities seem like something of a distant past, psychiatrys influence is interwoven through the fabricate of apartheid in South Africa and the discrimination still experienced today, here and abroad, said Rev Fred Shaw, international spokesperson for CCHR, who flew to Cape Town from his home in Los Angeles to officiate the grand opening.

Rev Shaw said the submission to the TRC detailed how in the 1970s, South African psychiatrists incarcerated 10,000 blacks in secret psychiatric camps, drugging and subjecting them to painful electroshock without anesthetic. Blacks were allowed to die from easily treatable medical conditions. Those that lived were used for slave labor, funded by the apartheid government. When CCHR first exposed this in 1975, pressed by psychiatrists, the government passed a law in 1976 making it a criminal offense to report or photograph conditions in psychiatric hospitals. CCHR went outside South Africa, reporting to the World Health Organization, which investigated the camps and in 1983 reported, In no other medical field in South Africa is the contempt of the person, cultivated by racism, more concisely portrayed than in psychiatry.

In 1999, the late Lawrence Anthony, an advisor to CCHR International and representing the South African Department of Health, addressed a World Psychiatric Association (WPA) meeting saying that psychiatrists in South Africa had failed to admit any guilt or responsibility in apartheid. He stated: Unfortunately, the fact remains that without the driving forces of psychiatry and psychology, both the Holocaust and apartheid arguably may not have happened or, at the very least, wouldnt have been maintained. Psychiatrists and psychologists were not the victims of an oppressive apartheid regime, many helped build, man and perpetuate it (4).

CCHRs exhibit, which is offered free the world over in the public interest, provides facts so that people can become wiser: This information can change the course of history so it doesnt repeat itself. The objective is to secure a better and safer future for Africans by not allowing psychiatry to subvert the Khoisan and other tribal cultures and traditions, said Rev. Shaw.

(1) http://APO.af/EvnHVC.

(2) Robert H. Yolken (http://APO.af/fLcUVj), et al, Psychiatric Genocide: Nazi Attempts to Eradicate Schizophrenia, Schizophrenia Bulletin, 2010 Jan; 36(1): 2632.

(3) Robert N. Proctor, Racial Hygiene, Medicine Under the Nazis, (Harvard University Press, 1988), p. 26.

(4) Psychiatry and Apartheid, Presentation on behalf of the South African Government to the XI Congress on Psychiatry, Hamburg, Germany, 11 Aug. 1999.
A commercial court in Accra has adjourned to December 9, 2016, hearing for a case involving NDK financial services and the state over the diversion of funds by the then Ministry of Energy.

The court, Presided over by Justice Noble Jerome Nkrumah, suspended hearing following an agreement by the lawyers for both parties to that effect.

NDK filed a contempt case against the Principal Accountant and Chief Director of the Ministry of Energy for failing to heed a court order to furnish it with details of accounts of payments made in breach of payment guarantees given to NDK Financial Services.

Per the Supreme Court ruling, the two, should have filed the said accounts that were diverted to Ahaman Enterprise. Already, NDK has won an 88.5 million cedi judgment debt for 286,000 cedis initially diverted.

Meanwhile the BOG is expected to justify in court on Wednesday, why some government accounts should not be frozen to pay off debts owed NDK financial services after the company filed a garnishee case against the state.



By: Pius Amihere Eduku/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
By Albert Futukpor, GNA

Tamale, Nov 28, GNA - The Judicial Service has organised a training for journalists in Northern Ghana to equip them with the relevant skills and knowledge to cover court proceedings accurately towards educating the public on legal issues.

The two-day training, which ended in Tamale over the weekend, was also to enable the participants to master the dynamics of election-related cases so as not to heighten political tension.

It was on the theme: 'Responsible and Objective Court Reporting; before, during and after Election 2016: The Media and the Law'.

Some of the topics treated were: 'What Constitutes Contempt of Court? and 'Types of Contempt in relation to the Media', which were handled by Justice Eric Kyei-Baffour, a High Court Judge.

Nana Kwasi Gyan-Apenteng, the Chairman of the National Media Commission handled: 'Press Freedom and Responsible Journalism: Is the Media a Threat to Judicial Independence?

Justice Edward Apenkwah, a Supervising High Court Judge, Northern Region, who addressed participants, expressed the hope that the training would reinvigorate them to help keep the populace abreast of proceedings and outcomes of court cases.

Justice Apenkwah stated, 'As always, our doors are open to help you cross-check relevant facts so that your reports reflect the true picture of court proceedings'.

Mr Caesar Abagali, the Northern Regional Chairman of Ghana Journalists Association, described the training as, 'Very important in enhancing the work of court reporters'.

He appealed to the Judicial Service to regularly organise such training programmes to update the skills of journalists to serve society better.

GNA
By Elsie Appiah-Osei, GNA

Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - Going for Gold, women empowerment programme that aims at working towards women living in and around artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mines in Ghana and Tanzania, has been launched in Accra.

The partnership programme, which consists of Simavi, Solidaridad and Healthy Entrepreneurs, was in collaboration with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The five-year programme, which comes at a total cost of four million Euros, is being funded by the Dutch as part of efforts to increase opportunities for women.

Speaking on the theme:"Women's Economic Empowerment in and around Gold Mines," Mr Isaac Gyamfi, the Regional Director of Solidaridad West Africa, said for the next five years, partners would be working in carefully selected Small-Scale Gold Mines in the Western Region to improve working conditions for women within the mines.

"We will also be working closely with women in Small-Scale Gold Mining communities to improve on their status and abilities to engage in economic activities, increase their sexual and reproductive health rights knowledge.

"Through this we will create an environment in which communities, health workers and authorities will recognise women's health rights," he said.

Mr Gyamfi expressed happiness about Solidaridad's collaboration with other agencies especially when the objectives of the programme fitted into their work ethic as well as aligning fully into Solidaridad's strategic goals in the Region.

Ms Renatu Douwes, the Programmes Manager of Simavi Ghana Office, said the outcome of the programme would increase the abilities of women where their economic opportunities would be extensive.

She added that the initiative would also help in the formation of women's savings group where women would be empowered economically and work on their rights and health training.

Ms Douwes noted that the three partners would work both at the mining sector and at the community levels to ensure the empowerment in beneficiaries working conditions.

On the selection Criteria, Mr Yaw Britwum Opoku of Solidaridad, explained that only licensed Small-Scale mines with a minimum life span of five years were selected, adding that "Mining mine management being willing to invest in the programme by subscribing to standards is also a criteria", he said.

Addressing stakeholders at the launch, Mr Simon Atebia, the Technical Director of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, challenged partners to demonstrate a visible impact on the lives of the beneficiaries.

"The huge investment being made by the Going for Gold programme on a Small-Scale mining sector will be meaningless unless it demonstrates a visible impact on the lives of the beneficiaries," he said.

Mr Atebia commended partners for the laudable initiative that would empower women in the mining sector and also open up opportunities for them to actively participate in decision making process of the sector.

He pledged Government's commitment to promote responsible small-scale mining as well as support the implementation of the going for Gold programme.

Mrs Sabia Kpekata, the Programmes Officer of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, said the programme had come on board timely and would improve the capacity building of women in the mining communities.

"This initiative will also improve the working conditions of women in the sector in the country," she said.

Mrs Kpekata who admitted the challenges that confronted women in the mining sector over the years, called for collaborative efforts to curb the problem that had persisted through the reform laws, social norms and institutions that had inhibited women's participation, productivity and development.

Nana Atta Brempong III, the Chief of Bompieso, said the initiative was welcome and it would concientise as well broaden the vision of women.

GNA
Takoradi, Nov. 28, GNA - The Western Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Akuribah Yaagy, has said the Western Regional Police Command is ready to provide adequate security at the various polling stations in the December 7 Polls.

The Regional Commander said the Police was committed to ensuring a violent-free election in fulfilment of the social contract they had with Ghanaians by maintaining law and order before, during and after the polls.

He, therefore, called for a sense of collective responsibility and efforts from all stakeholders, particularly, the political parties, the Elections Management Body, the media, the clergy and interest groups, to achieve the desired outcome.

DCOP Yaagy, who is also the Chairperson of the Regional Election Security Taskforce, made the remarks at a stakeholders' meeting in Takoradi.

He urged the Electoral Commission (EC) to ensure a level playing field so that the outcome of the polls would be accepted by all and sundry.

DCOP Yaagy urged the media to be circumspect with their reportage and blacklist politicians and political activists who used intemperate language on their platforms, saying the media played a crucial role in ensuring peaceful elections in any country.

He entreated the leadership of the various political parties to advice their supporters to be law-abiding and desist from any form of electoral violence since anyone found culpable would have a 'brush with the law.'

'You should campaign on issues because elections are about the sharing of ideas and at the end of the day, Ghana will be the ultimate beneficiary,' he pointed out.

DCOP Yaagy asked the political parties that had concerns with the electoral processes to use internal conflict resolution mechanism such as the Interparty Advisory Committee to address their concerns.

He called on the religious leaders to use their pulpits to preach peace and tolerance, instead of predicting the outcome of the polls; noting that such pronouncements had the tendency of creating unnecessary tension and conflicts in the society.

Mr. Godwin Tawiah Okley, the Regional Deputy Director of the EC, assured Ghanaians that the Commission would continue to be transparent with the electoral process and ensure a level playing field for all the players.

Mr. Alphonsus Arthur, the Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education, said the Commission had been educating the electorate on the electoral law C.I 94 in its public engagements and expressed the optimism that the electorate would cooperate with the EC to ensure a smooth exercise.

Representatives of the political parties, including the National Democratic Congress, the New Patriotic Party, Convention People's Party and the Progressive People's Party, stated that they had trained their polling station agents to observe the elections and assured Ghanaians of their commitment to ensure a peaceful exercise.

Some heads of Department, Ministries and Agencies as well as the security agencies and religious organisations also attended the meeting.

GNA

By Godwill Arthur-Mensah, GNA
By Kodjo Adams, GNA

Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - Union Savings and Loans Company Limited, has attained a banking status, changing its name to OmniBank Limited.

The company acquired a provisional universal banking licence in December 2015 after meeting the Bank of Ghana's requirements in July to fully operate as a universal bank.

Speaking at the launch of the Bank, Mr Philip Mensah, the Managing Director of OmniBank said the new status would empower the financial entity to make more investments into the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector, which was currently its major client base.

He added that the Bank would also provide opportunity for customers to transfer funds through mobile money to their bank accounts and vice versa.

He said the Bank aimed to achieve one million customer accounts by 2020, be the second quartile Bank by 2020 and target GHa 3 billion deposits by 2020.

The Managing Director said the event was an evidence of the Bank's resolve to offer banking services that met the needs of prospective and existing customers with an ultimate aim of giving Ghanaians simple, affordable and convenient banking products and services.

Mr Mensah said the Bank's vision was to be the number one bank for entrepreneurs development in Africa, create value for customers, employees, communities and stakeholders with its mission to provide rapid and exceptional banking services to clients through competent employees, extensive delivery channels and technology.

He said the bank would continue to invest to develop the intelligent, hardworking, and committed employees since they were the reason for the success of the company.

He said the bank would continue to position itself as the SME bank, saying the initiative is in line with its dedication to grow the next generation of African entrepreneurs.

'To consolidate our position as a dominant universal bank, we are entering the market with the latest products, free bank account for all and freedom mobile banking to enable everyone own a bank account for free and enjoy convenient banking transactions from any mobile device,' he added.

Mr Julius Debrah, Chief of Staff commended Management of the Bank for being an indigenous Ghanaian owned bank, adding that its objective of serving the needs of entrepreneur would create job opportunities for the teeming youth in the country.

He expressed optimism that by the next five years, more Ghanaian owned banks would emerge to broaden the scope of financial institutions, urging the Bank of Ghana to licence any qualified Ghanaian owned SME to operate as bank.

A speech on behalf of the Governor of the Bank of Ghana urged Management to play its role according to the required standards of the banking industry and avoid conflict of interest.

He encouraged Management to keep to its goals and chart a path to be outstanding, strive to work diligently, thoughtfully and tactfully and avoid short-cut to success.

GNA
By Priscilla S. Djentuh, GNA

Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - Some students of the School of Social Works, Osu, have expressed displeasure over their denial from writing their end of semester paper.

They said they were denied the opportunity to write the examination despite an agreement between the Students Representative Council (SRC) and Management to extend the payment of the fees.

Mr Simon Kuwella Libalgma, President of the SRC, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said: 'Management and the SRC had an agreement for students to pay at least 50 per cent of the required fees before writing of semester exams.'

He said the SRC pleaded on behalf of the students who were not able to fufill the 50 per cent requirement by October 31 for extension of deadline of payment to the next semester and Management agreed to allow them to write.

However, on Friday November 18, Management gave notice that students were required to pay at least 70 per cent of fees before they would be allowed to write their exams.

According to Mr Kuwella, the 70 per cent requirement affects fresh students and final year students in their last/fourth semester stating that 'these students denied to write their exams are in their third semester as final year students'.

In an interview with the affected students, 80 per cent of them said they had fulfilled the 50 per cent payment of the fees required of them and only got the notification of the 70 per cent requirement later

They expressed frustration over the decision of Management to disallow them in writing their semester paper.

Meanwhile, the School's Administrator refused to comment on the issue.

Patrick Paul Ampossah, Vice SRC President said the total number of students affected were 10 and expressed concern about his colleagues.

GNA
Kampala (AFP) - The death toll has risen to 62 from weekend clashes in a traditional kingdom in western Uganda, which pitted security forces against royal guards accused of belonging to a separatist militia, police said Monday.

The streets of the western town of Kasese were empty a day after the fighting which ended when police stormed the palace and arrested King Charles Wesley Mumbere of the Rwenzururu kingdom.

"So far police officers confirmed (the) dead are 16 after two who were in the hospital succumbed to their wounds. The royal guards are 46 (dead) since Saturday," Ugandan police spokesman, Andrew Felix Kaweesi told AFP. The initial death toll given on Sunday was 55.

Fighting broke out on Saturday when police said they were attacked by the royal guards, who are believed to be part of a militia agitating for the creation of an independent republic straddling Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Brigadier Peter Elwelu of the Ugandan army told local television station NTV that the militia has been carrying out sporadic attacks against the government and civilians since 2014.

Prominent journalist arrested

"We kept on watching this group, we kept on reaching out to them. Things were not working out and we had to take a decision," he said.

Elwelu added that President Yoweri Museveni had phoned the king on Sunday morning and ordered him to disband the guards.

"We gave him an hour, it elapsed. So the president again called -- gave him two more hours (saying) 'please, sort this out'," said Elwelu.

"So we had no option, after that we had to storm the palace and get these terrorists and that is what we did."

Kaweesi said the king -- who has denied any links to the separatists -- was in custody in Kampala.

Ugandan policemen guard a checkpoint on the outskirts of Kampala, in February 2016

A Ugandan journalist who hails from the kingdom and was reporting on the violence, Joy Doreen Biira, was held overnight after being arrested in Kasese, said human rights lawyer, Nicholas Opiyo.

"Police officers took Joy to the family home in Kasese while they conducted a search to look for photographs and other evidence," said Opiyo.

"Although we (human rights investigators) have been unable to determine exactly what happened yesterday, we are concerned about the excessive loss of life."

Uganda's main opposition leader Kizza Besigye shared gruesome images circulating on social media which appeared to show dozens of bodies piled up in front of the palace gates, condemning the "massacre" on Twitter.

The Rwenzururu kingdom, of the Bakonzo tribe, is a modern one.

It began as a separatist movement of the same name when the Bakonzo -- tired of being subjected to the rule of another tribe given preference under British rule -- declared their own kingdom in 1962.

The move led to years of bloodshed until a settlement was reached in 1982 in which the movement laid down arms in return for a degree of local autonomy.

Museveni officially recognised the kingdom in 2009.

However, many in the region still feel marginalised by government and want to create their own state known as the Yiira Republic, uniting the Bakonzo and their sister tribe the Banande who have the same language and culture in neighbouring DRC. Both are believed to stem from one people known as the Ba-Yira.
The 2016 presidential candidate of the NPP has assured the people of the Western Region that his government will develop the region into an oil services hub if he is given the nod on December 7.

Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo explained that this will be done by positioning the Western Region as an efficient centre for the support of the oil industry in the West African region, which will result in the relocation of the headquarters of Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC) to the region.

Nana Akufo-Addo made these known on Sunday, November 27, 2016, when he addressed yet another mammoth rally at the Sekondi Methodist Park, the venue for the NPPs Western Regional Rally.

We are going to develop a petrochemical industry here in the Western region, so we can maximize the value of the oil find. These are some of the policy initiatives and programmes we will implement to bring jobs, wealth, and prosperity to the region, and to Ghana, he stated.

The NPP flagbearer also bemoaned the lack of development of the Western Region, under the John Mahama administration, since the commencement of the production of oil in commercial quantities in 2011, which has seen the nation realise some $5 billion in oil revenues.

If we, in the NPP, were in power these 5 years of the oil discovery, the face of the Western Region, and, indeed, the face of Ghana would have changed dramatically. Western Region and Ghana would have been on an accelerated path progress and prosperity with the revenues from our oil find, he added.

Describing the Western Region as the base of the railway industry of our country, the NPP flagbearer indicated that a future Akufo-Addo government will leverage the countrys oil revenues to complete the Accra-Kumasi-Paga rail line connections, as well as oversee a comprehensive rehabilitation of the Western Rail Lines.

This, he added, will facilitate the haulage of bauxite, manganese, cocoa, cement, iron ore and other bulk commodities, as well as the transportation of people from the region to all parts of the country.

We are going to develop a modern railway network with strong economic linkages, which open up our country, and bring economic development of our country. I am assuring you that my government will completely overhaul the Western Rail Lines to ensure this happens, Akufo-Addo stressed.

Reaffirming his commitment to the creation of a new Western North region, he explained that considering the fact that a significant proportion of Ghanas natural resources, such gold and cocoa, as well as food stuff can be found in that part of the country, the creation of the Western-North region is long overdue.

The creation of the region, he added, is to ensure a more equitable development of the region, as well as address the unwieldy size of the Western Region.

IPEP, Free SHS, Revival of NHIS

Outlining some of the other policies for the development of the region, Nana Akufo-Addo reiterated his commitment towards the establishment of the Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP), which will see every constituency receiving the equivalent of $1 million every year to deal with problems of sanitation, roads, electricity and other infrastructural needs of the constituency.

The NHIS, which he said has collapsed under the leadership of President Mahama, will receive new life and strength under an Akufo-Addo government, so we can provide healthcare that is affordable and accessible for all Ghanaians. In this regard, Nana Akufo-Addo pledged to restore the nursing training allowances in full when he wins the December 7 elections.

The Free SHS policy, he added, will be effectively implemented because we are determined to secure the future of our country. This policy, in addition, will reduce the financial burden of parents who want to provide their children with a good education.

Apart from education of the children, we are going to revive, in full, adult education so that adults who did not have the opportunity to go to school will also benefit from knowledge and education. We want to have a nation where everybody can improve on their lives and circumstances. That is what we are fighting for, and that is why we are going to restore the allowances for teacher trainees, he added.

To the Zongo communities spread across the region, the NPP flagbearer reiterated his commitment towards the setting up of a Zongo Development Fund aimed at solving basic infrastructure problems existing in Zongo communities across the country. He said that proper management of the countrys public finances will allow the Fund to be established. The Fund, he assured, will be a line item in the 2017 budget to be presented by his government.

Nana Akufo-Addo also assured the tens of thousands gathered that the NPP has the men and women with the capacity, imagination and competence to bring into fruition all the plans he has espoused for the region, and as a result return the country onto the path of progress and prosperity, without discrimination.

Story by Ghana| Myjoyonline.com | NPP Communications
28.11.2016 LISTEN

Brothers and sisters, it is election time again and Politicians are all around canvassing for votes. I am not going to go too much into the campaigns and the promises being made all over by all the parties.

My message is short and simple. I want to remind Ghanaians that they should not forget the past 8 years and what Ghana has been through.

Ghanaians should not forget the Melcolm Disaster in 2012 that killed at least nine people and injured over 70. The BBC records that Mahama said then that those responsible for this negligence will pay a price. Does anyone have any news on those who were responsible? Or what becamse of them if they were ever found? A case of lives lost; justice denied.

Ghanaians should not forget the numerous strikes public sector workers have had to embark on in recent years to almost beg for monies that they are due for services they have rendered to the nation. The countless number of strikes in recent years under the Mahama/NDC government has been a burden on the nation. Nearly every public service sector has been on strike at least once in the last year and several in the last 8 years. But what has been the grievances of these service personnel? MONEY. Lack of money to pay off months of arrears of salaries. Lack of money to improve working conditions. Yet somehow, when the government wants money for anything, anything at all, they find it. They find money to brand buses, they find money to put up huge billboards and print colourful magazines they call Green books. Money suddenly becomes abundantly available for matters important to the NDC government but not to the Ghanaian.

Ghanaians should not forget about the devastation that has been brought about by Dumsor, the destruction to lives, properties and businesses. Now Ghanaians seem to be having a break from this man-made terror. This illusion should not fool Ghanaians. The power generating machines are being pushed to operate full capacity to cross over the election period. Ghanaians should brace themselves for what lies after 7 December, irrespective of which ever party wins, but worse times ahead if the NDC wins.

Last year some celebrities demonstrated to speak their minds on the persistent blackouts, with no timetable and no warning. They were branded prostitutes and called all sorts of names by officials of the NDC and the government. Those celebrities should not forget their fight for a good cause!!

Ghanaians should not forget the rampant fires that also spread across the country the last few years, destroying lives, markets and properties. The last I read, an American company had been brought in to the country to assist with investigations and recommendations. As to the outcome of whatever transpired, no one knows. Makes you wonder if they were indeed brought in to the country.

Ghanaians should not forget the June Twin Disaster that claimed some 200 innocent lives, because government played down the effects of the perennial floods and didnt take the necessary measures to avert or reduce casualties. Various discussions that filled the radios and TVs brought the blame down to negligence. Negligence on the part of Government Ministers to ensure that the yearly occurrence of rain which almost always resulted in flooding in parts of Accra was dealt with.

Everywhere around the world people litter their environments. Thats why governments construct closed drainages and gutters and supply abundant litter bins and collection services. Non or little of this exists in Ghana. Another sad case of lives lost; justice denied.

Ghanaians should not forget the many corruption cases that have characterised this NDC government. They should not forget the create, loot and share enterprise that is flourishing under Mahama, rewarding incompetence and mediocrity.

Ghanaians should not forget how much the Ghana Cedi has devalued under this government, and how the cost of living has risen so much its unimaginable how many Ghanaians make ends meet.

Ghanaians should not forget the killer taxes and utility tariffs that have been forced on them, a direct result of mismanagement of the Ghanaian economy and incompetence of the current administration.

Ghanaians should not forget the many promises unfilled by the Mahama/NDC government in 2008 and 2012. Promises, some of which could have been implemented but havent been due to the president and his appointees busily filling their pockets and that of their families. They have no time to sit and ponder over serious national issues.

The list goes on and on and on.

People should count the lives that have and are being lost every day (not yet including those that Collins Daudas brother has confessed to), the properties and businesses that have been destroyed, and the lies that are constantly being spewed out by this NDC government to cover their acts. During this NDC era, strange things have happened. Needless deaths and plain I-dont-care attitudes from the government and his appointees on matters of great concern to Ghanaians.

Ghanaians should not forget the suffering and the heartaches theyve been through the past 8 years. They shouldnt think that the corrupt and incompetent NDC government they voted into power in 2008 and 2012 is suddenly going to turn a new leaf and start implementing the many promises they made in the last two elections and the new ones they are making this year.

We will have no idea of how much the country has degenerated until NDC leaves power and the losses are counted.

Ghanaians, do not forget. You have been through enough.

Ivy (London)
Leading automobile company, Silver Star Auto Limited (SSAL) has revived its operations in the Ashanti Region.

The company on Monday commissioned a new showroom and service centre in Kumasi and announced a free diagnosis campaign on Suzuki vehicles with a 20 percent discount on labour and genuine spare parts.

The move, the company said is in line with its vision to bring Mercedes-Benz & Suzuki vehicles as well as genuine parts to the doorstep of customers in the Ashanti Region.

SSAL is also committed to bringing the best sales and after-sales service to the region.

Located at the Prempeh 1 Street in Adum, the facility will provide sales and after-sales support on the company's products such as: Mercedes-Benz vehicles, Suzuki vehicles, Energizer Automotive Batteries and MOTUL Automotive Oils and Lubricants.

The Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr. Nouhad Kalmoni informed expectant guests at the launch on Monday of the new operation as a turning point of its presence in the Northern sector of the country, stressing that Kumasi is important for us as it happens to be the second biggest city in terms of population and Mercedes-Benz cars in operation.

With the addition of Suzuki vehicles we can now cater to a bigger portion of the population in the region. We hope to sell at least 12 units Mercedes-Benz cars, 75 units of SUZUKI and look to receive and service 50 cars a month at the workshop in the first year, he noted.

Having to drive to Accra or Tema for servicing meant a lot of hardship and anxiety along the way for the owners and to avoid this some of our customers were using unauthorized workshops / mechanics with non genuine parts for their repairs in Kumasi and now we are telling them that 'The Specialists' are here with fully qualified and trained technicians along with genuine spare parts.

Mr. Kalmoni also informed that as the company is begging its operations with passenger cars mainly and hopes this entry will pave way for the introduction of commercial vehicles such as: Buses, Vans, Tipper Trucks and Tractor Heads in the region.

Nana Adu-Asare, Amakomhene who spoke on behalf of Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II commended SSAL for such investment touting it as a positive addition to the well-established automobile industry in Kumasi and further deepens the choices available for potential and existing users of vehicles in the region.

We are particularly happy that users of the company's franchise brands would now have access to genuine spare parts and quality automobile oils and batteries at their door steps, he said

As part of activities earmarked to officially open the facility, the company has also announced a Mercedes-Benz promo dubbed: An Executive Decision where customers who buy two (2) units Mercedes-Benz C-Class will automatically get one (1) unit Suzuki Celerio saloon car for free from the 28th November to 22nd December with the offer valid whilst stock lasts and some conditions applied.



Credit: Silver Star Auto limited
28.11.2016 LISTEN

From the interactions with the public, the following are the observations and conclusions established by a reliable source monitoring the campaign for Nana Akufo Addo and NPP in the constituency.

He has discovered to his utter astonishment how many constituents, thus, the electorates, have resolved to cast their votes in the manner of Skirt and Blouse.

This skirt & Blouse is a situation where the same electorate casts his/her presidential vote for say, Nana Akufo Addo of NPP, and his/her parliamentary vote for Kofi Agyei of say, NDC, PPP, CPP etc.

Normally, we expect the same electorate to cast both their presidential and parliamentary ballots for two candidates belonging to the same party.

When queried about their motive behind such a decision, most of them said you have surrounded yourself with a few youngsters who are determined not to grant access to anyone not within your close-knitted group to approach you.

You do disregard them in everything but the few people following you. By approaching you does not necessarily mean that they are coming to fleece you of your wealth although some electorates, may come to seek financial help. Just be around and explain your circumstances to them entreating them to bear with you as better days lay ahead when Nana Akufo Addo and NPP come to power. It is all about communication.

Did you ever buy a cocoa spraying machine only for a group of five persons whereas many are those that do cocoa farming in the area and may require access to the same facility? Could you not have advised that the machine should be available to every farmer who may have the need of it as long as the machine is operable?

I do not want the public to know all the grievances expressed to the source as communicated to me but please, rush back to your constituency to do effective campaigning; reconciling with as many aggrieved electorates as you could.

Do not assume that it is a safe NPP seat so you can comport yourself anyhow towards the electorates and still win the parliamentary seat hands down. No, things can take a turn for the worse for you.

Do not make the job of those that have travelled from afar to help with the campaign to bring Nana Akufo Addo and NPP to power very difficult by certain attitudes of yours that may be harmfully obstructive to our objective.

One would normally expect a parliamentary candidate to be based in their Constituency at this critical period rather than to be motoring from elsewhere into the constituency or not going there frequently.

This message was passed on to London for publishing because of the unlikelihood of the source meeting in person with Ama Pomaa before the election scheduled for 7 December 2016.

A word to the wise is enough. We cannot fail to win this election for the suffering Ghanaian masses, for Nana Akufo Addo and for NPP so Ama, heed my advice. We do not have to take any chances but be serious and do the right things until we have been offered the victory crown.

Rockson Adofo
The Official Liquidator for DKM Microfinance, the Registrar General's Department has told Citi Business News the final list of creditors affected in the error ridden list, will be released by close of this week.

According to the Official Liquidator, 93,000 validated customer list was completed last Saturday, November 26th, 2016.

The Principal Company Inspector for the Official Liquidator for DKM Microfinance, Jones Nathaniel Ansah, earlier told Citi Business News customers who were paid less than their entitlements would be paid their monies after all the necessary corrections are completed.

Mr. Ansah was optimistic the creditors will receive their monies this week when the final list is released.

Ninety three thousand claims have been verified by PWC. They have made it known to us that it has been done but what they are doing probably is to finalize the list of payment to those creditors over there so tomorrow we are going to have those that came for their money or those that didn't come for it then will take it up from there, he said.

Background

Thousands of customers of DKM Microfinance Company lost their investments running into millions of cedis after the owners of the company invested in unapproved venture and lost their funds.

Customers of the company thronged to all the branches to withdraw their funds after the news went viral, creating a panic situation.

The Bank of Ghana confiscated the assets of the company and appointed the Registrar General's Department to commence liquidation process to refund customers of the company.



By: Anita Arthur/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana.
28.11.2016 LISTEN

Elections are critical matter for every democracy. When it is done well, peace prevails and the contrary happens. The Electoral Commission (EC) of Ghana has been mandated with the role of organizing national elections. It is of no doubt that EC is doing all it can to ensure free and fair elections.

Apart from the latest technology that EC has been trying to use, it has also taken measures as part of the electoral process to introduce new rules and regulations to ensure a successful election. Since 1992 major changes have been introduced to the electoral process. This is part of procedures to ensure credible elections which is good for our democratic process.

Even though EC always try its best effort to ensure credible polls every election year, however critical shortcomings in our election procedures came to light in the 2012 election Supreme Court hearing. It came to the surprise of many Ghanaians when the EC as a national electoral body could not come up with a clear and concise definition of OVERVOTING.

It came as a sign of relief when towards election 2016, the Electoral Commission came up with CI 94 to set things clear regarding some grey areas of the election regulations. rules on verification, overvoting, etc which hitherto were not clear have been set straight in the CI 94. The part of the CI 94 that brought me happiness is that on overvoting.

The EC definition set in CI 94 that overvoting occurs when ballot papers in ballot box at the end of the voting period is more than the number of voters verified at the polling station has settle many dissenting voices on the issue. In the past, there used to be many definitions on overvoting which did not help the matter. Reference was not made to the number of people on the voters register because common sense indicates that not everyone will turn up on election day to vote. This will reduce the possibility where there can be connivance to cast ballot for an absentee voter on election day.

Much as I was happy with the new overvoting rule, what pains me is that I did not see any regulation regarding undervoting. If there is overvoting, there is definitely undervoting. The converse of CI 94 rule on overvoting will most precisely give a clear definition of undervoting, where at the end of the voting period, the ballot papers in the ballot box happens to be less than the verified voters at the polling station.

Therefore, if overvoting has punitive measures where results from a particular polling station can be quarantined or cancelled upon further assessment, then undervoting should have equal punitive measures and even more. But as the name undervoting suggests cast ballot papers less than verified voters, it means no foreign material was added. This means the subsequent punitive measures to be applied should be different from when foreign ballot papers are added in the case of overvoting. The type of punitive should be taken in consideration to the conditions under which the undervoting occurs. If it occurs under a situation where a voter intentionally leaves the station without putting his ballot paper in the box, then undervoting under such condition will be deemed not too severe to affect the credibility of the polls of the station. Alternatively, EC should come up with official regulation binding on the voter that once verified and issued with a valid ballot paper, he or she has crossed the rubicon and cannot choose to refrain from casting the ballot. In that case there shall be a designated EC officer to ensure that voters put the cast ballot paper into the box.

If in equal veins the undervoting occurs via ballot snatching, then there can be an EC regulation to ensure that such irregularity will deemed too severe to have affected fair proceedings in which case voting at that particular polling station can be cancelled and organized again if possible. These different punitive measures for the different cases of undervoting will be based on the premise that every crime does not have the same punishment. This will help reduce the incidence of ballot snatching because perpetrators will be discouraged knowing that, after all if they perform such criminal act, elections at that particular polling station can still be reorganized by EC.

Such regulations towards UNDERVOTING especially when it occurs under the incidence of ballot snatching will have the propensity to ensure fairness and make every vote cast count with the EC bearing in mind that votes cannot only be inflated unfairly by unscrupulous means through overvoting but can also be deflated in similar manner via undervoting. It is dangerous that the EC as a national electoral body has not found a viable means to deal with ballot snatching nor has enacted any regulation to that effect.

Kofi Baidoo, Takoradi

[email protected]
The Political Science Department of the University of Ghana has stated that it sanctioned the recent polls organized by the department that found that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was likely to the December 7 elections.

A team of researchers from the department led by senior lecturer, Dr. Isaac Owusu-Mensah predicted in the report that the opposition party would record 49.9%.

The ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), the team said, also has an approval rate of 39.9%.

The Progressive People's Party (PPP), the research continued would also record 5% whiles the Convention People's Party (CPP) would likely recieve 1.7%; the National Democratic Party (NDP) 1.7% and Dr Edward Mahama of the PNC recording 0.2% respectively. He also indicated there was a margin of error of between 2 to 3%.

Three percent of the respondents to the quantitative and qualitative survey, the researchers said were not ready to vote for an independent candidate whiles 0.9% of the respondents failed to give an answer.

Related: NPP likely to win 2016 elections  UG research

NPP likely to win 2016 elections  UG research

Text message

Various persons including communicators of the NDC have dismissed the research, claiming that the department did not sanction the research.

A Lecturer at the Department, Prof Ransford Gyampo during a political discussion on the findings on GTV 24 on Saturday, 26th November, 2016 sent in a text message claiming that the Political Science department knows nothing about the research and its outcome.

He claimed that it was rather done by individuals in the department and not the department as a whole.

Dr. Isaac Owusu-Mensah, who was the leader of the team of researchers, Dr. Franklin Oduro of the Centre for Democratic Development, CDD-Ghana, Dr. Rashid Haruna, Executive Director, Development Challenge and Dr. William Ahadzi, who is the Director of Research of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) were the panelists on the show. It was hosted by George Asekere (Senior Prophet).

Prof Gyampo's claim has since enjoyed widespread publication.

We backed research

Prof Gyampo's claim has baffled many including persons in the department.

In a statement copied to Adomonline.com which was the first website to publish the findings of the research, the department expressed shock at the claims of the Professor who is also a lecturer at the Department.

According to the statement signed by the head of department, Dr Bossman Asare, the claims of Professor Gyampo are untrue as according to him the Department sanctioned and commissioned the team of researchers that undertook the research.

The University of Ghana operates with defined and respected administrative structures. Departmental research activities are undertaken with the knowledge of, or initiated by, the Heads of Department.

Members of Department may express their opinions about them but that do not represent the position of the Department.

As the Head of Department, I hereby confirm that the study was conducted by a team of researchers led by Dr. Isaac Owusu-Mensah, the Research Assistants are Teaching Assistants of the Department, who went to various constituencies across the country to collect and analyze the data, portions of a statement issued by the department read.

Dr Bossman Asare further continued that the research team included 'one of our experts on elections, Mr. A.K.D. Frempong, who has written extensively on Elections in the Fourth Republic'

The research, Dr Bossman Asare said is not new as the department has over the years engaged in numerous research programmes which outcome is already in the public domain.

Over the years, research and other programs have been directed by some senior members (faculty) in the name of the Department. Most recently were the study on Strengthening Parliament and the International IDEA forum on Expanding the Frontiers of Electoral Politics in Ghana. The Department is committed to studies of this nature because of their methodological thoroughness. This study is readily available and accessible from the research team for anyone to assess the methodology and even the constituencies selected for the study, he said.

The Political Science Department has therefore called on members of the public to disregard the claims of Professor Gyampo and other persons claiming that the department did not sanction the research.

Members of the Public are entreated to disregard any other information circulating in the media about the study. These are opinions of people who are not connected to the study.

 adomonline
The first ever Africa Trade Week opened in Addis Ababa today with the Economic Commission for Africas David Luke, urging participants to come up with solutions to unanswered questions about the Continental Free Trade Area.

Speaking on behalf of Abdalla Hamdok, ECA Acting Executive Secretary Mr. Luke said the CFTA is a bold initiative aiming to bring together 54 African countries with a combined population of more than one billion people and a combined gross domestic product of more than U.S. $3.4 trillion.

African leaders, with the CFTA, aim to, create a single continental market for goods and services, free movement of business persons and investments and expand intra-African trade, among other things. The CFTA is also expected to enhance competitiveness at the industry and enterprise levels on the continent.

He said, the questions include; how the continent can involve civil society and the African citizenry so that the CFTA has legitimacy among the people of Africa, what level of liberalization should the continent aim for at the beginning given adjustment costs, what safeguards are needed to protect the most vulnerable and those that may be driven out of business by the CFTA. For individual countries, which sectors should they liberalize, how does Africa get the details as rules of origin, technical barriers to trade sanitary and dispute settlement, among others.

Mr. Luke also urged participants to discuss how Africa can ensure the CFTA gets effectively implemented, adding the full range of key African trade policy issues should be looked at this week.

These include Africas trade relations with Asia, Europe, the United States and emerging markets; how trade can support gender equality and empowerment; perspectives from the regional economic communities and the CFTA negotiations and related flanking measures, he stressed.

He noted that relations with Asia, Europe and the United States account for massive shares of our trade currently and it is important for us to get these right.

He said that the discussions would allow actors "to examine our trading relationships with these partners and how to recalibrate them to ensure coherence with the CFTA initiative and its objectives as well as trade and gender issues and the importance of trade policy being gender sensitive.

He said the CFTA presents Africa with a critical opportunity for development, adding research by the ECA has shown that the CFTA could add up to 2.5 percent to Africas annual economic output which is around $65 billion based on data for 2014," said Luke adding: Unlike much of the commodity-driven growth that we have recently experienced, the CFTA is likely to make growth in the African economy more sustainable and inclusive."

As such, the CFTA presents us with an opportunity that we simply have to seize. But how do we do so? There are many questions that remain to be answered on how exactly to pursue this most important initiative.

Also speaking during the opening ceremony, African Union Commissioner Fatima Haram Acyl of Trade and Industry said Africa needs to bring the cost of doing business down, adding this would significantly boost trade performance with trade facilitation, which looks at procedures and controls governing the movement of goods across borders, enabling Africa to do that.

The Africa Trade Week is a historic event and the whole purpose of this week is to encourage fruitful and stimulating dialogue among all stakeholders, said Ms. Acyl, adding the African Trade Facilitation Forum, that begins Thursday, will explore ways to overcome the obstacles to trade and imports across Africa such as non-tariff barriers including quotas, embargoes, sanctions and levies.

Mukhisa Kituyi Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) gave the keynote address. He said Africa should forget about the Abuja Declaration and focus on getting investors.

To me the Abuja Declaration was important. It was a starting point towards where we are but even if there had not been an Abuja and a Lagos Plan of Action, the reasons for creating a Pan African free trade are important even from todays challenges so we have enough reasons from today apart from our inherited responsibility from Abuja, said Mr. Kituyi.

These include Africas ability to expand trade, inclusive trade has the best possibilities, the most flexible opportunities are within Africa itself, he said. Second, as the world goes towards much more refined global value chains our ability to create regional value chains, trade linkages is the first building block towards being competent in order to find a scaled-up possibility on the global value chains and third, Africas unemployed youth needs trade related opportunities and these opportunities have to be dealt with through best practices in Africa and cross boarder engagements  infrastructure that goes beyond countries , possibilities of e-trade for example that go beyond country boundaries and this is the ecosystem that can only be created under a Pan African free trade area.

One of the issues that participants will discuss is the relationship between Africa and the United States following the recent election of business magnate Donald Trump as President-elect of the US, the changing architecture of global trade, AGOA implementation, trade partnerships, the CFTA, trade facilitation and related issues.

The ATW is bringing together a broad range of participants, including senior governmental officials, representatives from RECs, civil society, CEOs and executives from the private sector, development banks, academia, international development agencies and the media, among others.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced today the appointment of Olufemi Elias of Nigeria as the Registrar of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, with effect from 1 January 2017.

Mr. Elias will succeed John Hocking of Australia, to whom the Secretary-General is grateful for his service, including his instrumental role in setting up the Mechanism and overseeing the construction of its new premises in Arusha, Tanzania.

Mr. Elias has been serving as the Executive Secretary of the World Bank Administrative Tribunal since July 2016, a position which he also held from 2008 to 2013. He was the Legal Adviser and a Director at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) from 2013 to 2016 and Senior Legal Officer at the OPCW from 2005 to 2008. He worked in legal positions at the United Nations Compensation Commission between 1998 and 2005.

Mr. Elias is an associate member of the Institut de Droit International. A member of the Nigerian Bar, he holds a PhD from the University of London, a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge and a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Arts in Jurisprudence from the University of Oxford.
The father of a deceased second-year student of the St. Stephens Senior High School at Asiakwa in the Eastern Region, Samuel Commodore, is suspecting foul play in the death of his son which occurred on Friday, November 25.

The deceased student, Boris Commodore, was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital after complaining of severe stomach pains after supper at the schools dining hall.

But the concerned father believes his son may have been poisoned by another student, following an earlier altercation between his son and the student over a girl in the school.

The deceased boys father recounted to Citi News that, he was informed that after dining the previous night, by 12 [midnight] my child was complaining of a stomach ache. So because they could not rush him to the hospital [at that moment], they were waiting for dawn to get a car.

By 3:00 am, the thing became worse; so by the time they picked the child from the school to the hospital and reached the hospital, the child was already dead, Mr. Commodore said.

The boys father narrated that, at the mortuary, he saw his dead son foaming from the nostrils; and according to him, everybody, including the mortuary attendants, were saying that these kinds of deaths are associated with poison.

He thus believes the student his son had the physical altercation with may have been behind the death, so I am suspecting by what they were saying and the previous incident that there is foul play, Mr. Commodore stated.

Police awaiting professional assessment

Meanwhile, police have been cautious in describing death as a murder.

In a Citi News interview, the Kyebi District Police Commander, DSP Marian Osei, said investigations were ongoing to determine the cause of death.

We are looking at the information that has been reported to us. That is the basis of our investigation, DSP Osei stated, and called for any other available information.

In light of the allegations of foul play and poisoning, she also stated that for someone to expressly state the reason or the cause of one's death, it must come from a qualified medical doctor's or toxicologist's report.



By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Head of Global Safety at Facebook, Antigone Davis

28.11.2016 LISTEN

It is unquestionably clear that Social media continue to serve as the worlds most patronized and preferred destination for networking, trending news, digital marketing and easy communications and exchange of ideas among people.

It has in recent years served as assemblage of communities with people expressing varied opinions on current affairs and political issues in their polity or anything that goes on around the world that affects them positively or negatively.

As a result of the fast growing numbers of people in cyberspace, who participate in one online activity or the other, Social Media giant Facebook, is seeking to address numerous concerns on the safety of users on the internet with the relaunch of the Facebook Safety Centre.

The move, according to Facebook which currently boasts of a user population of about 1.8 Billion people, is to provide a 24-hour online protection guideline for users.

The Safety Centre addresses issues relating to user information and privacy as people continue to share videos and photos of their happy moments, among others on Facebook.

This came to light when ModernGhana interacted with the Head of Global Safety at Facebook, Antigone Davis, and Akua Gyekye, Public Policy Manager, Facebook Africa.

The intervention which the team deemed timely, is also meant to check and control information sharing, reporting bullying and abuse of users.

We all know people come to share information and great moments on Facebook with the people they care about; talk of their families, friends among others, so the Safety Centre has been a tool to meet online queries and concerns of people. What we have done now is to update the Safety Centre with fast information and meeting their needs, said Antigone Davis.

She further indicated that the Safety Centre has helped Facebook to manage significant feedbacks to better serve users.

The new Facebook Safety Centre is now offered in over 50 languages across the world, so people have shared feedbacks with us in their various languages and the Safety Centre has helped to address them and met their needs. We also have a social resolution tool to enable people to avoid postings they may not like

Touching on user privacy, she said Facebook takes user privacy very seriously. Users can choose from lots of easy-to-use security tools on Facebook to add an extra layer of security to their account. For example, its Privacy Checkup gives users room to address all kinds of enquiries  it walks them through a few quick steps to help ensure that only the people they want can see their stuff. Users can also try Facebooks Security Checkup and find tools they can use to enhance the security of their account .

On false news and hoax reports widely followed on Facebook, Antigone Davis referred to a recent blog post from Facebook Boss, Mark Zuckerberg, see more here: https://www.facebook.com/zuck/posts/10103269806149061

Facebook as part of efforts to strengthen ties with the African community has joined J Initiative, a non-governmental organisation based in Ghana in a historic partnership to drive the agenda of safety on Facebook.

J Initiative is a grass roots youth and family focused, non-religious, non-governmental organization dedicated to raising awareness on issues that affect families especially women and children. J Initiative currently runs a reading program for young children.

J Initiative is composed of a group of experts and professionals who believe that every Ghanaian child should have the opportunity to learn through reading.

Throwing more light on this partnership, Akua Gyekye on the other hand stated that Facebook had depended a lot on local partnership as key to growing the brand hence the partnership with J-Initiative.

J Initiative goes into basic schools, secondary educational institutions, universities with their activities, keeping students, children active online to ensure that students also participate in online activities, Akua Gyekye emphasized.

Awo Aidan Amenya, CEO, J Initiative, who welcomed the partnership said the protection of children and young people on any social network and for that matter on the Internet is a collective responsibility for all stakeholders.

"The J Initiative is pleased to associate with Facebook especially in working on safety issues. We believe that the hallmark of an all rounded service provider is to make sure that your platform is not used to destroy other people and this we believe cannot be guaranteed by the service provider only but the end user too," Madam Amenya stated.

She went on to add that it will be appropriate and beneficial to collectively take up the responsibility to ensure that people are safe while using whichever platform they choose to use.

"I see Facebook Safety Center as a solution center for many of the concerns people have when they participate online. We see options like controlling my information on Facebook, Reporting on Facebook among others as being proactive in getting safety closer to the participants and their families," she added.

She also disclosed that the safety team would be on stand-by to provide answers to questions that may arise and also adds that,

"It has the mission of providing up to date safety information to people who use the service to be able to protect themselves and family and for us that is a plus because Facebook seem to understand the safety issues in the cyberspace
OLNEY  An Olney man has been arrested in the death of an 8-year-old girl who went missing last week.

Illinois State Police said Sunday that 53-year-old Glen R. Ramey was arrested for first-degree murder and predatory sexual assault in the death of Sabrina Stauffenberg of Olney.

The child's body was found Wednesday behind a vinegar plant on the south side of Olney, a Richland County town of about 9,000 people.

Ramey is being held at Richland County Jail pending his arraignment.

Police agencies investigating the case included Olney, Flora, Salem and Effingham.

State police did not release further details.
Paris (AFP) - Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who a US official said Monday is likely to have been killed in a French air strike, is the notorious commander of a group allied to Al-Qaeda in North Africa.

One of the world's most-wanted men, the Algerian jihadist was dubbed "Mr Marlboro" for his past involvement in trans-Saharan cigarette smuggling and is easily recognisable by his scarred face.

His Al-Murabitoun group claimed responsibility for several major attacks in sub-Saharan Africa, including Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, and is also known for kidnapping Europeans for ransom.

France and its allies have been a prime targets for west African jihadists since French forces intervened in Mali in 2013 to root out Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and other extremist groups from the country's desert north.

Past deaths denied

Al-Murabitoun was born in 2013 from the fusion of one of those groups, MUJAO, and Belmokhtar's Al-Qaeda splinter group "Signatories in Blood".

Earlier that year, Belmokhtar's group was blamed for the bloody siege of a remote Algerian gas plant in which at least 38 hostages, mainly Westerners, were killed.

The one-eyed Belmokhtar, who reportedly lost his left eye fighting in Afghanistan in the 1990s, has been reported killed several times in counter-terrorism operations.

Each time the death of the man who took up arms alongside the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) during Algeria's civil war of the 1990s has been denied.

Al-Qaeda allegiance

An audio recording attributed to another leading member of Al-Murabitoun pledged allegiance to the Islamic State jihadist group in May 2015.

But Belmokhtar reportedly quickly distanced himself from the declaration, vowing allegiance to IS's jihadist rival Al-Qaeda in what was seen as a sign of a power struggle. Al-Qaeda confirmed the allegiance in December, 2015.

Al-Murabitoun claimed an attack on the luxury Radisson Blu hotel in Mali's capital Bamako in November, 2015, in which 20 people were killed, including 14 foreigners.

AQIM said that attack was a joint operation by its forces and those of Al-Murabitoun.

The group was also behind a January 2016 attack on a hotel and restaurant popular with Westerners in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou in which 30, mostly westerners, were killed.

Belmokhtar in Libya

Reports that Belmokhtar had arrived in Libya fuelled concern that jihadists would take advantage of the political turmoil there to establish a base of operations.

In July 2016 a confidential UN report said Belmokhtar was able to travel throughout Libya with relative ease.

On Monday the US official said he likely had been killed in a strike there this month, with the support of US intelligence.
Washington (AFP) - One-eyed hostage killer Mokhtar Belmokhtar, one of Al-Qaeda's most notorious allies in North Africa, was said Monday to have been slain in a French air strike.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed a report in the Wall Street Journal that US intelligence helped France target the veteran jihadist.

The news came as French defense minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was in Washington for talks with his US counterpart Secretary of Defense Ash Carter.

But neither top official confirmed the strike, said to have taken place in southern Libya earlier this month.

The Algerian militant, commander of an Al-Qaeda-linked faction of the Al-Murabitoun group, has been reported killed on several previous occasions.

But the official told AFP the latest strike is believed to have finally hit the elusive militant, once known for kidnapping Europeans for multimillion dollar ransoms.

According to the Wall Street Journal report, citing experts and unnamed officials, the strike reflects closer US and French intelligence cooperation.

After November 2015, Islamist attacks on Paris left 130 dead, US President Barack Obama announced promised that closer intelligence cooperation with Paris would begin.

Belmokhtar became one of the world's most wanted men in 2013 after a spectacular assault on the In Amenas gas plant in Algeria left at least 38 hostages dead.

This year, his group claimed responsibility for an attack on luxury a hotel in Burkina Faso that killed another 20 people, most of them foreigners.

And reports he had arrived in Libya have fuelled concern that jihadists will take advantage of the political turmoil there to establish a base of operations.

Washington put a $5 million bounty on the 44-year-old's head, dubbing him the leader of the Khaled Abu al-Abbas Brigade, also known as the "Signatories in Blood."

In May last year, he insisted that Al-Murabitoun remains loyal to Al-Qaeda, despite another of its leaders pledging allegiance the Islamic State group.

Belmokhtar was born on June 1, 1972 in the ancient desert city of Ghardaia, 370 miles (600 kilometers) south of the Algerian capital.

'Mister Marlboro'

In a rare 2007 interview he said he joined the mujahideen rebels fighting the Soviet forces in Afghanistan in 1991 when he was barely 19 years old.

Profile of Mokhtar Belmokhtar, a key Al-Qaeda ally in North Africa, thought to have been killed in a French air strike

In Afghanistan, he claimed, he lost an eye to shrapnel and had his first contact with the group that became Al-Qaeda, eventually rising to a senior position.

He returned to Algeria in 1993, a year after the Algiers government sparked civil war by cancelling an election that an Islamist party was poised to win.

He joined the Armed Islamic Group (GIA), and thrived thanks to his intimate knowledge of the remote deserts of southern Algeria, northern Mali and Niger.

In 1998 the "Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat" (GSPC) broke from the GIA and Belmokhtar went with them.

Nine years later, GSPC formally adopted the global ideology of Saudi-born jihadist kingpin Osama bin Laden and renamed itself Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

Belmokhtar was best known as a smuggler, known by some as "Mister Marlboro" for trafficking cigarettes.

But in 2013 he emerged as the hardline leader of the "Signatories in Blood," blamed for attacks across the Sahara and the Sahel in Algeria, Mali, Chad and Niger.

The group is one of several Islamist units roaming the scarcely governed wastelands of the Sahel, smuggling goods and people and attacking Western targets.
The Komenda Sugar Factory will start production on Tuesday, November 29, although it would take up to a week to start the actual production of sugar.

Management of the company says it would require about 185,000 metric tons of sugar cane to produce for the next one years production cycle.

However, the $35.5 million company is sure of the availability of only 45, 000 metric tons of sugar cane, which will run out by April 2017.

President John Mahama commissioned the factory on May 30 this year which was supposed to provide some 7,000 jobs for people. It, however, had to close down shortly after commissioning for maintenance.

At Joy News' last visit to the site, maintenance works were still ongoing with the area around the facility all grown with weeds is yet to be fenced.

Management of the company told Joy New's Manasseh Azure Awuni that although the reopening is Tuesday, November 29, sugar production starts in December.

The Manging Director of the factory, Douglas Mensah, said they would shut the factory again for three weeks maintenance after being in operation for two months.

According to him, although the success of the factory would depend on the availability of sugar canes, he is talking to some sugarcane farmers to provide the company with their harvest with the hope that some sugar cane would be harvested after April.

In June this year, government $24.5 million Indian EXIM bank loan to help in an irrigation project to grow more sugar cane. The money is yet to be accessed but already, the company is yet to start a plantation to augment supply from farmers.

"There are other areas we are yet to discover and we are still moving. We are not denying the fact that there are challenges," Mr Mensah told Joy News.

It would take a year for the company to harvest its own sugar cane if the project succeeds.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Abubakar Ibrahim
The New Party is bewildered by the governing party's claim of being the fiercest judgment debt fighter in recent times.

Nana Akomea said such a claim is not only false but imaginary as well.

The Communications Ministry in its last meet the press series held Monday descended heavily on the opposition New Patriotic Party, accusing it of waging a campaign of lies and deceit.

The sector Minister Dr Omane Boamah was also not happy with what he said was the politicization of the judgment debt syndrome, a vehicle through which the state has lost several millions of cedis.

He said contrary to the criticism against the Mahama administration, it is one of the diligent government in recent years fighting the canker of judgment debt.

According to him, the Mahama government and its Attorney General have saved the country over $1 billion in judgment debts, some of which were potential liabilities by officers of the New Patriotic Party.

Dr Omane Boamah mentioned the Great Cape scandal as one of the judgement debt scandals supervised by the then Attorney General under the Kufuor administration Nana Akufo Addo.

He wondered why such judgment debt scandals have not found space and expression in the country's media as the Woyome judgment scandal has in recent years.

In a rebuttal, the NPP's Director of Communication said every concerned Ghanaian, not just the NPP is worried about the legendary status the judgment debt has gotten to.

He cited a Supreme Court judge who berated the government for failing to retrieve the Woyome debt, despite a court order.

Nana Akomea cited another judge who accused the government of engaging in a scheme to create loot and share the country's limited resources.

The NPP Director of Communications cannot understand how a government with such a record will turn around and claim to be the government fit to fight the judgment debt scandal.

He said the Great Cape scandal cannot be blamed on the Nana Akufo-Addo because it started in 1999, even before the NPP came into power.

He added, as Attorney General Nana Akufo-Addo followed the investigations and report by his predecessor and cannot be said to be guilty in promoting judgment debt.

He was surprised all the more that government is giving another contract to Woyome in spite of everything that has happened.

Story by Ghana|Myjoyonline.com|Nathan Gadugah
President John Mahama has said because of his faith and belief in God, the upcoming election would not go to a run-off.

He said although Ghanaians would be casting their ballot on December 7, God is the one who crowns Kings.

By Gods Grace the National Democratic Congress (NDC) will win the election, he told party supporters in Assin Brekusu in the Central Region, Monday.

With some eight days to the presidential and parliamentary elections, the two dominant parties; the governing NDC and New Patriotic Party (NPP) are rounding up their campaigns.

President Mahama and his opponent NPP's Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo have focused their campaign activities in regions considered swing regions.

The three regions are the Western, Greater Accra and Central Regions.

The two leaders are currently on the homestretch in the Central Region campaigning miles away from the other to garner the electorate's vote.

Joy News Richard Kwadwo Nyarko reported that Mr Akufo-Addo took his campaign activities to the Upper Denkyira East Constituency while President Mahama was in Upper Denkyira West Constituency.

Refresh the page for more...

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Austin Brakopowers
Two out of the six missing ballot boxes for the Electoral Commission have been found at Apowa in the Ahanta West Constituency of the Western Region.

The boxes were found by a hairdresser, Janet Opare, on Tuesday, 22nd November, 2016 at about 2:30pm.

Janet Speaks

Janet told Citi News that on Tuesday at about 2:30pm, she saw two boxes falling off from a speeding pickup heading in the direction of Agona Nkwanta.

So we did not even mind until we saw that some school kids wanted to take them. I then asked one of my female apprentices to bring them in anticipation that the owner will return for them. So I kept them in my shop until this morning when I heard on radio that some boxes were missing. I was assisted by some friends to contact you. Thats all that happened.

Some journalists took the two ballot boxes (one broken) to the Kwesimintsim police station and a call was then placed to the regional EC office.

EC confirms boxes

The Deputy Western Regional Director of the Electoral Commission Godwin Tawiah Okley after visiting the Kwesimintsim Police Station confirmed to Citi News that  the two boxes are copies of the new EC ballot boxes for the 2016 general elections.

Journalist and EC write statements

The police officer at post at the Kwesimintsim Police command directed Kwabena Amofa Akuaku, one of the journalists that assisted in transporting the boxes from Apowa to Kwesimintsim Police Station and the EC official to write their statements.

The two boxes are now in the custody of the Kwesimintsim Police Command pending further investigations.



By: Obrempong Yaw Ampofo/Citifmonline.com/Ghana
Sumbrungu (UE), Nov. 28, GNA - Ghanaians have been urged not to do anything to undermine peace in Ghana, as only God ordains leaders, and cheating and violence would not produce the right person to lead the country.

Reverend Richard Adongo of the Fountain Gate Chapel, made the call during an inter-denomination prayer service, organised by the All Believers Union, at Sumbrungu, near Bolgatanga Municipality.

He said everybody had the constitutional right to make his or her personal choice of candidates and under no circumstance should one be victimised for making his or her own preference.

Reverend Adongo said the December 7 elections was very crucial and would test the maturity of the electorate.

He entreated Ghanaians to live in peace and harmony and allow God to choose a leader of His choice for the country.

He led the Congregation in praying for all the presidential and parliamentary aspirants, the media, the security agencies and the Electoral Commission.

He expressed the need for Christians to pray feverishly for the stakeholders of the elections to prevent Satan from using them to cause trouble.

The Municipal Crime Officer of the Police Service, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Issahaku Solomon, assured the electorate that adequate security measures had been put in place by the Security Taskforce particularly at identified flash points.

He, however, cautioned the electorate to avoid unlawful acts such as the carrying of weapons, wearing of Party T-shirts and campaigning among others on the voting day.

The Presiding Member of the Municipal Assembly, Mr George Ayanore, re-echoed the need for peaceful co-existence to pave way for development.

He said political violence had affected the development of countries such as Liberia and Kenyan.

Pastor Obed Adoliyinepore, the Coordinator of All Believers Union, explained that the Union which was born in 2012 had undertaken a lot of activities including crusades and night vigils to intercede for the blessing and peace for the region and the nation as a whole.

Both the National Democratic Congress and the New Patriotic Party Parliamentary candidates for the Bolgatanga Central Constituency who were represented pledged their commitment to peace in the forthcoming general election.

GNA

By Samuel Akapule, GNA
By Caesar Abagali, GNA

Tamale, Nov. 28, GNA - The National Peace Council (NPC) has appealed to political parties and their leadership to be polite and civil in their pronouncements during campaigns.

The Revered Father Thaddeus Kuusah, the Northern Regional Executive Secretary of the NPC, made the appeal during separate functions in the Northern Region to sensitise political youth leaders, opinion leaders and other stakeholders in peace building to ensure peace before, during and after the December elections.

The programme was organised by the National Peace Council (NPC) in collaboration with the USAID and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) aimed at ensuring that the youth, politicians and the media act responsibly before, during and after the polls.

Father Kuusah said leaders of political parties must desist from making negative statements and let their followers know that no leader could be made through the blessings and predictions of traditional authorities and religious leaders but only through the ballot box.

He said political parties must have confidence in state institutions such as the police, judiciary, Electoral Commission, and NPC among others and that the electoral processes were nothing but adherence to legitimate processes required by the laws of the state.

'Thus political parties and their supporters must follow grievance procedures to address their concerns,' he said, adding that 'political parties are reminded that not everybody is qualified to vote but only registered voters and must therefore concentrate on voter education,' he said.

He advised political parties to select and train competent people to serve as agents during the polls, educate their supporters to reduce the incidence of rejected ballots and inform them to check for the EC Validation Stamp when they receive their ballot papers.

He said the upcoming election should be seen in the light of seasonal events and should not be the end of the world because a party or the wishes of some people could not be realised.

GNA
28.11.2016 LISTEN

By Hannah Awadzi, GNA

Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - Dr Ebenezer Badoe, a Neuro Paediatrician at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, says medical students will have communication training as part of their curriculum.

'Those already in practice will also be required to attend periodic seminars on communication to enhance their communication skills,' he said.

Dr Badoe said this in an interview with the GNA on the sidelines of a forum to disseminate the findings of a two-year research that sought to evaluate the impact of a community-based parent training programme for children with cerebral palsy in Ghana.

He acknowledged the absence of a proper communication strategy between health professionals in general and parents of children with cerebral palsy and said there was a programme in place to train especially medical doctors in that regard.

Dr Badoe said: 'We are working to train all medical doctors in communication, if you are a good doctor and cannot communicate properly with your client then you are not that good.'

The research is a partnership between the International Centre for Evidence in Disability (ICED) at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in collaboration with CBM, the School of Biomedical and Allied Health Sciences, College of Health Sciences, the University of Ghana and the Health Directorate of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana.

Cerebral Palsy is a non-progressive neurological disorder caused by brain injury or malformation while the child's brain is developing. It affects body movement, muscle control, muscle coordination, and sometimes the speech of the child.

A draft report of the research said that an overall level of diagnosis of cerebral palsy were very poor. 49 per cent of cases care givers claimed they had never received a diagnosis from the hospital.

Ms Emelia Gyenkel, Mother of a nine year- old with cerebral palsy, sharing her experiences with the Special Mothers Group, an association of mothers with children who have cerebral palsy, said: 'I went through hell to get a poor diagnosis of my child's condition.'

She said after several attempt to know what was wrong with my child, a medical doctor in one country's big hospital said to me: 'Your child's brain is damaged.'

Ms Gyenkel said: 'I wept, screaming loudly at the doctor, is that how you have to talk to me? Is that the best way to break news to me?'

She called on doctors to learn to communicate frankly with parents, saying some parents actually read about their children condition before coming to the hospital and there was the need for them to engage parents in an efficient way.

GNA
By Afedzi Abdullah, GNA

Cape Coast, Nov. 28, GNA - The Convention People's Party (CPP) says it is certain of winning at least five parliamentary seats in the Central Region in the December 7 Polls.

Mr Ato MacClean, the CPP Regional General Secretary, speaking in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said the Party was adequately prepared for the challenge and he would leave no stone unturned to achieve it.

Mr Maclean, however, declined to mention the targeted constituencies with the notion that certain political parties may capitalise on it to invest more resources into those areas.

Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, in 2004, won the only seat the CPP ever had in the Komenda-Edina-Eguafo-Abrem (KEEA) Constituency of the Central Region, since the inception of the fourth Republic.

He said the Party had put in place different strategies and adequately resourced its candidates to undertake grassroots engagement to canvass for votes, which would ultimately help them to achieve their target.

'In 2012 there was not much campaign done by the CPP but now we have decided to contest vigorously,' he said. 'This time around, the CPP is not going to allow the other political parties to have a field day.'

Though the CPP was not engaged in flamboyant and visible campaigning due to limited resources compared to the other parties, they were engaging voters at the grassroots, he revealed.

Mr MacClean said CPP was promising Ghanaians massive economic transformation based on a programme of social and economic development foundation, using Science and Technology to revolutionise agriculture and industry.

He said the CPP, when given the nod, would transform the economy by investing in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools to make it accessible to every Ghanaian.

This, he said, was something no political party was championing and, therefore, urged Ghanaians to vote for the CPP.

He said the CPP would revamp the railway sector and make it more viable, invest in energy and ensure that the issue of load shedding became a thing of the past.

GNA
The crime happened Tuesday but was not reported until Friday. Police said the 62-year-old victim had been contacted by a man with an Indian accent who said he represented a loan company.

After talking to him, she agreed to take a loan. But she was then warned she had bad credit and would need to post a verification payment using prepaid debit cards. She bought two cards loaded with $200 and once she had supplied the numbers on the cards, the money was stolen immediately.
By Alice Tettey, GNA

Cape Coast, Nov. 28, GNA - The Central Regional Minister, Mr Kweku Ricketts-Hagan, has debunked rumours in the Cape Coast Metropolis that all the stores at the Kotokuraba New Market have been distributed.

He said the stores would be distributed only after the new market had been inaugurated by the President on Monday, November 28, and assured the market women that the claims were false.

Rumours are rife in the Metropolis that the stores have been distributed to people mostly outside the region and that most traders of both the Kotokuraba and Kotoka markets whose stores and stalls were demolished to pave the way for the new market may not get allocations.

Mr Ricketts-Hagan, who is also the Member of Parliament for Cape Coast South, dispelled the claims when he inaugurated a number of projects in the Cape Coast Metropolis on Thursday and Friday.

They include the Amanful Catholic Boys Junior High School (JHS) which was razed by fire but was awarded on contract in 2015 through the instrumentality of the Metro Chief Executive for Cape Coast, Mrs Priscilla Arhin Korankye, who sourced for GetFund to reconstruct it.

The others are the Cape Coast Church of Christ JHS which was financed with the Assembly's Internally Generated Fund (IGF), the Oguaa ICT Centre at Chapel Hill and the Oguaa Community Library which was started by Ms Christine Churcher, a former Member of Parliament of the area, and completed by Mr Ricketts Hagan.

At separate ceremonies to inaugurate the projects, Mr Ricketts-Hagan said the residual funds for the Kotokuraba Market was being used to further expand the market to accommodate more traders and assured the people of more developmental projects.

At Amanful Catholic Boys, Mr Ricketts-Hagan urged the students to take good care of the modern school complex which had a headmaster's office, a staff common room and toilet facilities and urged the students to study hard to excel.

The Headmaster, Mr Jesus Julius Ellis, expressed gratitude to the Government and pledged to ensure the maintenance of the school to prolong its lifespan.

At the Cape Coast Church of Christ JHS, the Head, Madam Nora Nyarkoh, thanked the MCE and appealed for electricity to be extended to the school to facilitate ICT training.

At the ICT Centre the Minister said it would serve all inhabitants of Cape Coast adding that a bus would convey students to and from the centre and urged them to avail themselves to study the subject.

Osabarima Kwesi Atta II, the Oguaamanhen, who presided, commended the Government for the numerous projects it had undertaken in the Oguaa Metropolis and asked the people to support it to deliver more.

GNA
By Prosper K. Kuorsoh, GNA

Wa, Nov. 28, GNA - The Upper West Region is short of 200 security personnel to help provide adequate security for the 2016 Presidential and Parliamentary elections.

A total of 1,683 Security Personnel are required to provide adequate security during the December elections according to the Elections 2016 Deployment Plan and Crime Prevention Strategy document by the Ghana Police Service.

The document said out of the total number, the police would provide 999 personnel whilst other security agencies in the region would contribute 484 personnel bringing the available security strength to 1,483 with a shortfall of 200 personnel.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Dr. Sayibu Gariba, Deputy Upper West Regional Police Commander in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Wa said that adequate arrangements had been made for the remaining personnel to be deployed from Accra to augment the regional strength.

He said one security personnel would be stationed at each of the 991 polling stations in the region while polling stations located at flash points would receive two security personnel each.

ACP Gariba said all personnel who would be on duty on the Elections Day had already been trained and were ready to provide professional security on the Election Day.

He noted that the Regional Command had also received brochures and flyers containing information about what was expected of every security personnel on the Election Day and would soon distribute them to personnel to carry with them to their polling stations as their terms of reference.

The Deputy Upper West Regional Police Commander disclosed that the region had been zoned into four zones namely Wa Central, Daffiama-Bussie-Issa, Tumu and Lawra zones for effective mobile patrols.

ACP Gariba noted that the police had successfully escorted ballot boxes from Accra to Wa and from Wa to some of the constituencies.

He said the police and other security agencies were well prepared for the elections in the region and called for public cooperation to help make the elections successful not only in the region but the entire country.

GNA
Moree (C/R), Nov.28, GNA - Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has challenged Dr Mahamudu Bawumia to make his 170 questions available for him to answer.

Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, the running mate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Presidential Candidate, at a public lecture in September, accused President John Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for handling the economy poorly in the last eight years.

During the lecture he challenged the Vice President to answer some 170 questions bordering on the economy that he (Dr Bawumia) will provide.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur threw the challenge when he joined hundreds of enthusiastic NDC supporters to embark on a health walk at Moree, his hometown, in the Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese Constituency of the Central Region.

The Vice President, accompanied by his wife, Matilda, begun the health walk from the Moree Junction on the main Cape Coast Road as the number kept swelling as he entered the town.

The massive turnout was to drum home the fact that the Vice President indeed hails from the town and to refute the NPP claims that he does not come from the town.

In a message to the supporters, Vice President Amissah-Arthur asked the people to ignore the lies being told by the NPP and keep supporting the NDC and vote massively for President John Mahama.

Though there were other activities in the town the people of Moree came out in their numbers to join the Vice President in the walk.

They walked through some of the principal streets of the town amid drumming and dancing. The Vice President went to his family house and had a brief meeting with his relatives.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur said he had personally been doing a lot for the development of Moree.

In recognition of this, Nana Kwegya, the Chief of Moree, presented a citation to Vice President Amissah-Arthur which described him as a role model and an influential person among the people of Moree and beyond.

Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, the First Vice Chairman of the NDC, assured the youth of the country of better job opportunities under President Mahama for the next four years.

He said the foundation had been laid including the rehabilitation of the defunct state industries which would provide additional jobs for the youth.

Yaw Boateng Gyan, the former National Organiser of the NDC, asked the party's supporters to vote massively for President Mahama and all the parliamentary candidates.

GNA
Accra, Nov. 28, GNA - The Rotary Club- Spintex, has initiated a fundraising activity to construct an ultra-modern kindergarten classroom block, a library and an ICT laboratory for the Old Lashibi Tema Metropolitan Assembly School.

Jennifer D. Brock, the President of the Rotary Club, said the initiative 'is to create a better learning environment for the children in the community and by extension shape their future as the proposed block will replace a dilapidated wooden structure that currently housed the pupils'.

Mrs Brock said the fundraising launch was the first step towards raising an amount of $ 120,000 to construct the kindergarten block for the library and an ICT Centre.

She called on all well- meaning citizens and corporate organisations in the Lashibi- Tema community and beyond to support the initiative.

The Rotary Club of Accra Spintex has adopted the school and has already refurbished and stocked its existing library which also serves as a staff common room.

'Our goal is to strengthen the capacity of communities to support basic education and literacy, reduce gender disparity in education and increase adult literacy,'' she said.

She added that the club was confident the project would be executed within two years.

Madam Gertrude Owusu, the Headteacher of the school, expressed gratitude to the Rotary Club and said the provision of the facilities was heartwarming and very inspiring.

Rotary International is a service organisation that brings together a global network of volunteers who dedicate their time and talent to tackle the world's most pressing humanitarian challenges.

GNA
28.11.2016 LISTEN

By Dennis Peprah, GNA

Duayaw-Nkwanta, (B/A), Nov. 28, GNA - The plight of the physically challenged people in the Tano North District of the Brong-Ahafo Region is set to be alleviated.

The Member of Parliament (MP) in the area, Mrs Freda Prempeh promised to facilitate the release of their share of the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) in every quarter next year.

Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) under section two of the DACF Act (Act 455) are mandated to release two per cent of the fund to People living with Disabilities (PWDs).

The allocation of the fund is meant to provide the PWDs with employable skills and assistance to brave societal challenges reduce poverty and enhance their social image.

But, speaking at political party rallies at Duayaw-Nkwanta, Subonpan, Susuanso and Yamfo the PWDs expressed discomfort about the District Assembly's failure to release the fund to them for some period now.

According to them, their socio-economic condition had worsened as some of them could not pay their school fees, go into skill training and even settled their medical bills.

Mrs Prempeh expressed shock about the revelation and assured them that she would do all things possible to ensure that the Assembly paid all outstanding possibly next year.

She said any Assembly that failed to pay the fund undermined the work of the Legislature and breached the DACF Act as well.

The MP underlined the need for the people to retain her and vote for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the December 7, polls to liberate Ghanaians from unemployment and poverty.

Mrs Prempeh said an NPP government could fix the economy within the shortest possible time and make life reasonable and worth living for especially the ordinary Ghanaian.

GNA
Abura Dunkwa (C/R), Nov. 28, GNA - Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur has called on Ghanaians to have hope in President John Dramani Mahama and renew his mandate for another four years.

He appealed to the rank and file of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to close their ranks and campaign vigorously for the party to retain power.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur made the call when he addressed hundreds of NDC supporters at Abura Dunkwa in the Abura-Aseibu-Kwamankese (AAK) District of the Central Region.

The Vice President's tour of the AAK Constituency concludes the second phase of the four-day campaign of the Central Region.

The 'Touching Base' campaign tour has already taken him to Gomoa East, Gomoa Central, Agona West, Ajumako-Enyan-Essiam, Mfantsiman and Abura-Asebu-Kwamankese constituencies.

He was accompanied by Madam Ama Benyiwa Doe, a Member of the Council of State and former National Women's Organiser, Ms Barbara Asamoah, the Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Sam Garba, the Administrator of GETFund, Mr Samuel Ofosu Ampofo, the First Vice Chairman of the NDC, Mr Yaw Boateng Gyan, former National Organiser, and other national and regional officers of the party.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur stated that the NDC Government did not and would not discriminate in the provision of development projects.

He assured Ghanaians that the second term of President Mahama would be characterized by more development projects and jobs for the youth.

'The love President Mahama has for the country is unmatched and he is, therefore, determined to make it a better place for all,' he said.

Vice President Amissah-Arthur said the NDC had the majority of Ghanaians on its side and it would, therefore, not encourage any violent act as it would not contribute to the December 7 election victory.

He, however, cautioned that anyone caught disturbing the peace or engaging in violence would be decisively dealt with by the security agencies.

Madam Ama Benyiwa Doe appealed to the youth to join and remain in the NDC as it is the only political party that can guarantee their future.

She said the NDC was the only political party that gave opportunity to the youth to serve in any capacity without looking at the person's religious or ethnic affiliation or financial strength but just the ability, sound mind and intellectual capacity to work.

Mr Ofosu Ampofo, on his part, appealed to Ghanaians, especially floating voters and supporters of the NDC, to vote massively for President Mahama and all the party's parliamentary candidates for the continuity of 'Changing Lives and Transforming Ghana.'

He cautioned them against voting skirt and blouse.

GNA
Silver Star Auto Limited (SSAL) has revived its operations in the Ashanti Region by commissioning a new showroom and service centre in Kumasi.

The auto dealer has also announced a free diagnosis campaign on Suzuki vehicles with a 20 percent discount on labour and genuine spare parts.

The move, the company says, is in line with its vision to bring Mercedes-Benz & Suzuki vehicles as well as genuine parts to the doorstep of customers in the Ashanti Region. SSAL is also committed to bringing the best Sales and After-Sales Service to the region.

Located at the Prempeh I Street in Adum, the facility will provide sales and after-sales support on the companys products which include: Mercedes-Benz vehicles, Suzuki vehicles, Energizer Automotive Batteries and MOTUL Automotive Oils and Lubricants.

The Chief Executive Officer of the company, Nouhad Kalmoni, informed guests at the launch on Monday that the new operation is a turning point for the companys presence in the Northern sector of the country, stressing that Kumasi is important for us as it happens to be the second biggest city in terms of population and Mercedes-Benz cars in operation.

With the addition of Suzuki vehicles, we can now cater to a bigger portion of the population in the region. We hope to sell at least 12 units Mercedes-Benz cars, 75 units of SUZUKI and look to receive and service 50 cars a month at the workshop in the first year he challenged.

Having to drive to Accra or Tema for servicing meant a lot of hardship and anxiety along the way for the owners and to avoid this some of our customers were using unauthorized workshops or mechanics with non-genuine parts for their repairs in Kumasi and now we are telling them that the Specialists are here with fully qualified and trained technicians along with genuine spare parts, he said.

Mr Kalmoni also informed that as the company is starting its operations with passenger cars mainly and hopes this entry will pave the way for the introduction of commercial vehicles such as Buses, Vans, Tipper Trucks and Tractor Heads in the region.

Nana Adu-Asare, Amakomhene who spoke on behalf of Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II commended SSAL for such investment touting it as a positive addition to the well-established automobile industry in Kumasi and further deepens the choices available for potential and existing users of vehicles in the region. We are particularly happy that users of the companys franchise brands would now have access to genuine spare parts and quality automobile oils and batteries at their doorsteps, he said

As part of activities earmarked to officially open the facility, the company has also announced a Mercedes-Benz promo dubbed: An Executive Decision where customers who buy two (2) units Mercedes-Benz C-Class will automatically get one (1) unit Suzuki Celerio saloon car for free from the 28th November to 22nd December with the offer valid whilst stock lasts and some conditions applied.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com
A foundation member of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex socio-cultural group of the Igbos, Emma Okocha, has said that the Biafra struggle was a legitimate one, insisting that all states concerned with the demand for Biafra liberation should not shy away from the call for the emancipation of the zone.

Okocha, in Asaba, the Delta State capital, explained that though the Biafran agitators have no right to include other states which are not principally Ibo speaking states into the Biafran struggle, he said it was incumbent on leaders of other states, especially Delta, to hold a special consultation among opinion leaders before pulling out or aligning with the Biafran movement for liberation and emancipation.

[caption id="attachment_1063970" align="alignnone" width="692"] Emma Okocha[/caption]

Okocha, who authored Blood on The Niger, a book which chronicled how Asaba people were massacred during the Nigeria civil war, argued that the minorities in Delta including the Urhobos, the Isokos, the Ijaws and Itsekris would be worse off if they blatantly turn down aligning with the Igbo movement for the Biafra Republic.

He said The Itsekiris, the Urhobos and the western Igbos are already minorities in the structural arrangement of the Nigerian federation. Imagine when a principal part of that federation leaves, its going to have a serious impact on us. So, we need to sit down and think. Its not for us to just wake up and say we are not part of the struggle or we are for Biafra.

For me, let there be enough consultation, The Biafrans have no right to come here and match straight to Government House and say they are demanding for Biafra without consulting the people. At the same time I cannot say Im not part of them because the Nigerian federation will be structurally against the Midwestern people who are minorities already if a bigger part of the Southern States goes away without the Midwestern states going with them.

The 1967 Genocide: Why FG must pay war indemnity to Asaba people

Okocha further argued that To say I support Biafra or I do not, its not important. The important thing is that we need a referendum or plebiscite to decide where we belong. When is it coming like we had in Scotland? Yugoslavia was broken to pieces into Serbia and others. From USSR, you have Ukraine, you have Russia, you have Georgia and you have Belarus. So, we cant come here and say whether you like it or not, you must join us, it doesnt go like that. You cant say that.

For Anioma Congress to say they are not part of it, thats thoughtless. What is happening is that if any part of Nigeria manages to secede as the last option, I dont see how the Idomas of Benue State staying safe in the Nigerian federation if the Igbos secede and leave them for the larger Nigeria.

[caption id="attachment_1063974" align="alignnone" width="640"] Biafra agitators[/caption]

What is important for us in Delta is that we need to sit down and decide our fate. Its not for these mushroom organisations, Anioma group or Isoko group to decide, they dont understand what is going on.

READ ALSO: Igbos dont want Biafra!  Iwuanyanwu reveals what they are really after

There should be an opinion leadership conference in Asaba so that we decide where we should go because if Biafra goes without we, in Delta, joining them, it will have a serious impact on us. We cannot stay alive in another federation. As a minority already, we will be a silent minority forever.

Following the struggles which NnamdiKanu had fought with the federal government of Nigeria, Okocha said Kanu has now become the leader of the Igbo people, noting that Igbos do not elect leaders but their leaders emerge the struggles and the battles they won in their days.

Source: Legit.ng
SAN FRANCISCO  The nation's largest state bar association is overhauling ethics rules for attorneys for the first time in 30 years, and some lawyers are unhappy about a proposal that would open them up to discipline for having sex with clients.

California currently bars attorneys from coercing a client into sex or demanding sex in exchange for legal representation.

Supporters of an all-out ban say the relationship between a lawyer and client is inherently unequal, so any sexual relationship is potentially coercive. But some attorneys say it's an unjustified invasion of privacy.

The proposal is part of a long-awaited shake-up of the state bar association's ethics rules for attorneys, which were last fully revised in 1987. Lawyers who violate the regulations are subject to discipline ranging from private censure to loss of their legal license.

A state bar commission has spent months crafting and amending 70 rules under goals set by the California Supreme Court. Other changes under consideration would allow the state bar to discipline attorneys for discrimination and harassment even without a separate finding of wrongdoing. The current rule requires a final determination of wrongful discrimination in a lawsuit or other proceeding before the state bar can take action.

Still another change would bring California in line with other states by subjecting prosecutors to discipline for failing to turn over evidence they know or reasonably should know would help the defense.

"The first and foremost goal is to promote confidence in the legal profession and administration of justice and ensure adequate protection to the public," said Lee Smalley Edmon, a California appellate court judge and head of the commission revising the rules.

The sex ban has divided the rules revision commission, though similar restrictions are in place in other states. As of May 2015, 17 states had adopted a blanket sex ban drafted by the American Bar Association, according to an ABA committee that looked at implementation of the group's ban.

Like the ABA ban, California's proposal creates an exception when the sexual relationship preceded the attorney-client relationship.

At an October commission meeting, lawyer and commission member Daniel Eaton said the current rule regarding sex isn't working, and pointed to a lack of disciplinary action against attorneys as evidence.

Between September 1992 and January 2010, the state bar investigated 205 complaints of misconduct under the current sex restriction, according to an analysis of state bar data that accompanied the proposal. It imposed discipline in only one case.

The current rule also forbids sex if it causes the lawyer to "perform legal services incompetently."

A bright-line rule would provide clarity to attorneys and remove the difficulty of proving the sexual relationship was the result of coercion or negatively affected the lawyer's performance, supporters say.

"If we have a very flat guideline, it gets out of the area of subjectivity," said Andrew Servais, chair of the San Diego County Bar Association's legal ethics committee.

Opponents of the ban, including the Los Angeles County Bar Association's ethics committee, say it's unnecessary and would be struck down as an unconstitutional violation of fundamental privacy rights.

No empirical or even reliable anecdotal evidence shows a ban is needed to protect the public or regulate the legal profession, James Ham, another lawyer on the commission, said in a dissent filed with the commission.

He added, "Proponents of a complete ban cannot articulate why a lawyer should be disciplined for sexual relations with a mature, intelligent, consenting adult, in the absence of any quid pro quo, coercion, intimidation or undue influence."

The revisions commission modified the proposal at the October meeting to create an exception from the sex ban for lawyers' spouses or registered domestic partners. It also required the state bar to consider whether a client would be "unduly burdened" by an investigation of sexual misconduct if someone other than the client filed the complaint.

The bar's board of trustees approved an additional public comment period on the sex ban rule earlier this month. The rules commission has until the end of March 2017 to get the board's approval for the proposals and send them to the California Supreme Court, which will have final say on the changes.
Dear Dr. Roach: In your recent column on sleep aids, I noticed that you said nothing about nondrug preparations. Some people find that chamomile helps, as do other herbs.

I have mild Parkinson's disease with resting tremor in one arm, which makes it harder to fall and stay asleep. My neurologist recommended melatonin as a naturally occurring hormone. At what she calls a low dose (3 mg nightly), it definitely makes a difference, with no side effects that I can see.

 B.J.

A: There are many herbal products marketed as treatment for insomnia but little good evidence that they are useful, and they are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. However, most of them are very likely to be safe (the one exception is valerian root, which was shown to have more adverse effects than benefits, and can cause liver damage in some people). A cup of chamomile tea at bedtime has helped many people, anecdotally at least, and certainly is safe. Melatonin is safe, but it helps only a minority of people, in my experience.

However, it still may be worthwhile to try these, as they are safer and less expensive than most prescription drugs, and they may work.

Statins

Dear Dr. Roach: I am a male, age 73. I weigh 160 pounds and am 5 feet 10 inches tall. My total cholesterol is 202, triglycerides 44, HDL 69 and LDL 124. I exercise six days a week, jog 5 miles every day, then lift weights for one hour every day, alternating upper body and lower body. My blood pressure is 128/65 on no medications. My doctor wants to put me on drugs to lower my LDL. I do not want to be on statins. I do not smoke or use any alcohol, and have no history of family heart problems. What should I do?

 K.F.

A: There are many risks for heart disease, and looking at your information, readers might guess your risk of heart disease to be low, since your health characteristics are outstanding. However, being a 73-year-old male is itself a significant risk factor. I went to an online risk calculator (I used http://tools.acc.org/ASCVD-Risk-Estimator/) and found that your risk of a heart attack in the next 10 years is 19.6 percent. The calculator does not take into account your excellent exercise habits, which I believe significantly reduce your heart disease risk; however, 19.6 percent is a fairly high risk. Treatment with a statin would be expected to reduce your risk by 3 to 4 percent, meaning that you have about a 1 in 25 chance of not having a heart attack because of taking statins, which do have the risk of side effects.

You should talk through the decision with your doctor, who will want to know why you are averse to taking a statin. Your doctor knows that although your individual benefit from a statin is modest, if doctors can get 25 patients like you to take a statin, one heart attack will be prevented. Remember that people at highest risk for heart disease benefit from statins even if their blood cholesterol is nearly normal.

Ultimately, the decision is yours. You need to feel comfortable with it, whether that means taking the statin or not.

The booklet on abnormal heart rhythms explains atrial fibrillation and the more common heart rhythm disturbances in greater detail. Readers can obtain a copy by writing: Dr. Roach, Book No. 107, 628 Virginia Dr., Orlando, FL 32803. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 with the recipient's printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.
There were plenty of agitated and even hysterical reactions to Donald Trump's election victory, but none more surprising than the one expressed in a direct mail letter I got a couple of days afterward.

"Our worst nightmare is staring us right in the face," it declared. "The attacks will be hitting everywhere, every day." It invited me to fill out a survey. "By answering this survey today, you're drawing a line in the sand -- making it clear to politicians across America that you're not going to stand by while extremists trample our individual liberties."

Planned Parenthood? The American Civil Liberties Union? The Council on American-Islamic Relations? No, this shriek of terror came from the National Rifle Association.

Apparently, CEO Wayne LaPierre was among the smug, tone-deaf East Coast elitists who confidently anticipated a Hillary Clinton presidency. Otherwise, it's hard to explain why he would make such a point of proclaiming that the organization is "fighting gun-hating politicians" and "fighting to deny confirmation of judicial nominees who refuse to affirm that the Second Amendment guarantees your individual right to own and use a firearm."

The NRA endorsed Trump. The letter inviting me to join was obviously written and sent before his victory materialized. But it illuminates a problem that the organization and its allies will have over the next four years: how to sustain the fear and anxiety that have been so useful to them over the past eight.

As a gun owner, recreational shooter, former NRA member and longtime advocate of Second Amendment rights, I like to see cogent criticism of gun control proposals and anti-gun propaganda. But under President Barack Obama, the NRA has occupied itself sowing groundless panic and fighting imaginary villains.

Obama made it plain in his first presidential campaign that gun control was not a hill he was willing to die on. He assured gun owners, "I believe in the Second Amendment. I believe in people's lawful right to bear arms. I will not take your shotgun away. I will not take your rifle away. I won't take your handgun away."

He has repeated that position over and over. He has spent more time trying to assuage the concerns of gun owners than he spent wooing Michelle, with far less success.

But in an era in which facts don't matter, the president should have saved his breath. In 2008, LaPierre dismissed Obama's promises: "Never in NRA's history have we faced a presidential candidate ... with such a deep-rooted hatred of firearm freedoms." The NRA insisted he planned to ban all handguns, ban "use of firearms for home defense," increase federal taxes on guns and ammunition by 500 percent, and require a federal license to buy a gun.

Obama has had eight years to pursue these sinister goals. We're still waiting.

He did sign bills allowing people to carry concealed handguns in national parks and check guns on Amtrak, expanding the gun rights of troops on U.S. military bases, and preventing the Environmental Protection Agency from banning lead ammunition. His "anti-gun" proposals amount to ending the manufacture and sale (though not possession) of "assault" weapons, limiting magazines to 10 rounds and requiring background checks for all firearm purchases, not just those from licensed dealers. These changes would have a minimal impact on law-abiding gun owners.

Faced with this record, LaPierre has done the only thing he could do: lie about it. "When I said Barack Obama would come for our guns and do everything in his power to sabotage the Second Amendment, they savaged me," he said recently. "But every one of those predictions came true." Sure they did. And Adam Sandler won an Oscar.

The strategy has clearly served to frighten some gun owners and stimulate them to buy more firearms -- you know, before Obama could outlaw them. Gun sales have set records under him, and gun companies have prospered. The NRA has found that it can only gain by stoking chronic fear of draconian gun laws.

But how will it be able to do that with President Trump, a Republican Congress, GOP dominance in governorships and legislatures, and a Supreme Court that has given new force to the Second Amendment? The rights of firearm owners are more secure today than the gold in Fort Knox.

The NRA can go on depicting a dystopian nightmare in which gun owners are cruelly deprived of their right to protect themselves. But it's a house of horrors, not the real world.
A company now owned by the son-in-law of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban bought property in an industrial park promoted by the government in the countrys northwest, an investigation by OCCRP partner Direkt36 has revealed.

Istvan Tiborcz became the majority shareholder in August of WHB Ingatlan Ltd., which in March 2016 had purchased a 13,000 square meter plot of land containing a factory in the city of Komarom, according to land and company records.

WHB Ingatlan did not disclose how much it paid for the property, formerly a factory supplying Finnish telecommunications company Nokia. But company that it bought the property from, Perlos, had previously listed its value as 3.28 million (US$ 3.47 million), according to company records.

Factories for Perlos and Nokia previously on the land in Komarom had shut down between 2009 in 2014, prompting the government to step in to seek new investors. Then State Minister Peter Szijjarto, who is now Hungarys foreign minister, instructed the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency to accelerate talks with any company planning to invest in Komarom. Since then, two factories have already been set up on the site.

The sale of the property at Komarom by WHB Ingatlan raises questions about a much-publicized deal to entice South Korean manufacturing firm Woory Industrial to set up at the site. In Nov. 2014, Szijjarto announced plans for Woory to invest $38 million in Komarom, creating 150 jobs. The city of Komarom had been so certain that the deal would go ahead that a map of the industrial park the city posted online shows Woorys logo sitting on the exact location of WHB Ingatlans purchase.

Nandor Toth, the municipality official in charge of the industrial park, confirmed to Direkt36 that the property in question was indeed slated for Woory, but that he thought the company may havechanged its mind. He did not give further details.

Woory Industrial did not respond to questions from Direkt36. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it had conducted several rounds of negotiation with Woory since the 2014 announcement, but that it could not share any more details. It added that the ministry had been in contact with other potential investors, mostly in the car industry, about setting up in the park.

Istvan Tiborcz, left, and Viktor Orban (Photo: Viktor Orban's Facebook page)

occrp.org
Editor's note: TaShawn, a wife to Bolaino Akwenuke (a warlord/close associate of Tompolo) visited Warri, Delta state, last December with intentions to do mission work in villages affected by the spills. TaShawn spent four months there and was unable to do anything due to high crime in the areas.

Recently, she speaks with Bolaino Akwenuke on the current situation in the oil-rich region, which has been constantly suffering from the attacks of the militants.

Mr Akwenuke denied that former Niger Delta warlord Chief Government Ekpemupolo, alias Tompolo, is supporting the activities of the militants. Instead, he claimed that the sponsor of the Niger Delta Avengers is Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor. Akwenuke also speaks about the role of Pastor Ayo in the Dasukigate and government of Muhammadu Buhari.

Nigerian army vs militants

In life, you never know who you will meet. I say this while reflecting upon my decision to visit Nigeria last December 2015. I would have never imagined I would stumble into a man who is part of a situation that can impact so many lives in a negative or positive way depending on how this story plays out. When I arrived at the airport In Lagos last year I was escorted by the kindest man I had ever met. My travel itinerary contained plans of travel to Warri and then to visit rivers area of Delta state to help victims affected by the oil spills. We made it Warri but we never reached the rivers area due to high crime, military action and oil pipeline and facility bombings.

At the time the incidents were being blamed on Tompolo; I know this because while there I became interested in Nigerian news and we would read the local papers daily. What I did not know is the extent of involvement my host played in the situation. Nor did I know that his involvement would lead to my own.

READ ALSO: Military reportedly kills many militants in a major confrontation

Fast forwarding to today and here we are: bombings still occurring in the Delta region, Tompolo still being framed, and me assisting Akwenuke Bolaino Marho, the nice man who met me at the airport in Lagos December 2015, to tell his story of involvement; not only how he is involved but also to disclose the real culprit behind the Shell and Chevron Texaco oil facility bombings.

In one of the most recent conversations that I and Bolaino have had he mentioned that tribal tension had been on the rise and if things continued than his tribe the Urhobo and the Ijaw tribe, for which Tompolo belongs to may fight each other. As I asked him why the conversation proceeded and this is what ensued:

TaShawn: So why will your tribe (Urhobo) fight the Ijaws?

Bolaino: They are trying to frame me up, I will not fold my hands and allow people kill Americans and blame it on my organization. The only thing that will solve all this is if that pastor is arrested. Ijaw and Urhobo people are killing each other more each day in the villages, and the man who is responsible for this is going out to party.

Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, immediate past CAN president

TaShawn: Who is this man you speak of?

Bolaino: The man is the devil incarnate himself. He succeeded in making the Itsekiri and Ijaw fight endlessly in Delta state many years ago. He succeeded then and he is succeeding again. This time around the death rate from a tribal war between Urhobo and Ijaw going the way it is already will be devastating. My parents' house will be burnt to ashes and all houses in the area.

As it is now, there is already a refugee crises as Ijaw people are moving out of my area in Udu which is an Urhobo community. Some are being harassed and assaulted, and Tompolo has told me that if all this should continue we will fight each other.

TaShawn Do you want to fight Tompolo ?

Bolaino: No I do not want to fight, I want peace.

TaShawn: Have you told anyone else about this?

Bolaino: I have been telling everyone for the past few weeks how they want to give me a name that is not my own. From the FBI, CIA, to the State Department. My country, my Senator, my ministers, etc. but they are acting like imbecilas, as if they don't know A from B. They are forcing my hands. I have called the Nigerian Army. DSS. All of them. I have called the minsters I know. They pick the call and pretend to listen, and tell me they will do something about it but all the while, things are escalating.

TaShawn: How has the situation escalated and you never mentioned the Pastors name?

Bolaino: His name is Ayo Oristsejafor. He is now moving his guns and weapons from his church to Urhobo communities to fuel tribal war. They plan on blowing up a Chevron facility and putting the blame on me and my movement (MFPND). That is why I had to go to the creeks this period to plan for this. I have written about this man, there are a lot of things he has done if there is a Satan that is who he is.

TaShawn: So why are you telling me and how do you expect these agencies to help?

Bolaino: I want you to expose this man. It is the only way to end this situation. There is evidence to put him in prison, but Nigerian people are scared of him, because he is a pastor. If you can help to expose him everything will be over.. the militancy in the region, etc.

TaShawn: What kind of evidence do you have and are you sure it will stick to him?

Bolaino: I can tell you everything if you agree to help and are willing to listen. You will need to write all of this down.

TaShawn: Alright I will do what I can to help and am ready to listen...

Bolaino: Ok, firstly, Pastor Ayo is the chief sponsor of the militant group the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA).

TaShawn Are you are saying that Tompolo is not the one giving the NDA orders?

Bolaino: That is exactly what am saying. He (Pastor Ayo) sponsors them by giving weapons and ammunition. He gives them targets to bomb in the Niger Delta.

TaShawn: Now Bolaino how can you allege that a Pastor is the sponsor of such a deadly group. What proof do you have of this allegation?

Bolaino: Yes we have very strong proof of his involvement in the bombings of the Niger Delta. But we will only show the evidence to incorruptible government lawyers and we are ready to stand in a competent court of law to defend our allegations. I assure you we have corroborative evidence against this man and the media can attest to its truthfulness. I want to discuss this evidence with men and women of the press.

READ ALSO: Niger Delta militants explain why they attack oil facilities

TaShawn: Ok, what exact evidence do you have on the Pastor?

Bolaino: First and foremost the pastor uses his private aeroplane to ferry drugs and guns from America and other parts of Europe to Nigeria. He has been caught once by the Authorities, but the corrupt government of the former president of Nigeria swept it under the rug.

TaShawn: Why did the former president not apprehend the Pastor at that time he was caught?

Bolaino: The plane was purchased with money from the Government scams involving the Nigerian Army. At the time the pastor was helping with corrupt Government officials in Nigeria to launder money with his bank Eagle Flight Micro Finance Bank . They were stealing money meant for fighting insurgency in the North Eastern part of Nigeria. At the time Colonel Sambo Dasuki was in charge of ripping the army off from the inside, since he was in government at the time.

TaShawn: Please explain more in depth how these men, Dasuki and Ayo operated inside the scandal?

Bolaino: They were supposed to buy aeroplanes, weapons, and ammunition for the Nigerian Army fighting Boko Haram, but these monies were never spent on the things that were needed to be purchased.

TaShawn: Is this a factor of why Boko Haram is still at large in Northern/ Northeast Nigeria presently?

Bolaino: Yes, as a result, Boko Haram invaded the Northeast and Nigerian army men were running away from the battle field because they were not well equipped enough and they became mutinous.

TaShawn: Is that the only evidence you have?

Bolaino: No, we have more, We have evidence that he was caught once more working with Hezbollah organisation in Nigeria. They were helping him to buy weapons in South Africa when his plane was caught with over 9 million dollars. When they questioned him as to what he intended to do with that large sum of money the response was that he wanted to buy arms and ammunition from a South African defence contraction company. After the claims were investigated they were found to be false. This lead us to believe that he was preparing for secession in Nigeria if the ruling party at the time lost. Prior to that time he and others at large had tried to assassinate Mr Muhamadu Buhari, in a twin car bomb attack in Kaduna. Fortunately, Buhari survived.

TaShawn: Bolaino how did you come to learn all this information?

Bolaino: The pastor told us in an informal gathering of warlords that period that they did it because they did not want Buhari to survive; they knew that if they allowed him to contest in the election they would loose and he would win. Afterwards, the pastor came up with the BuhariBokoHaramOp. See at the time he was the leader of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) so he had a cult following and he still does to this day.

TaShawn: What do you mean by he had a cult following and exactly how did the pastor use his following to further his agenda?

Bolaino: I mean he had a mass following of pastors and their members that would do as he said with no questions asked. He started telling his pastors and their members in churches all over Nigeria that Buhari is a terrorist. That Buhari planned to Islamize Nigeria if he won.

Former Niger Delta warlord Tompolo

TaShawn: Since you say we a lot I am assuming there are witnesses other than yourself that can attest to this information you are sharing with me today?

Bolaino: Yes, we have numerous witnesses to this scandal. Myself being one of course. But Pastor Ayo and his followers did this for long, even until this day that propaganda still thrives on, hence the current disposition of my fellow warlords to Buhari. As they still honestly believe that Buhari is the sponsor of the Boko Haram. They dont know any better otherwise. But as God would have it everything they did in trying to kill Buhari or spoil his image was in vein.

At the time of the past election, it has to be mentioned that the pastor was campaigning for PDP which is the party of the former president.

TaShawn: Ok, so to back track a little you mentioned you are a warlord, but that you currently want peace; are you saying that some warlords in Nigeria are fighting for peace?

Bolaino: Yes, I am a warlord, and once again yes I and other warlords want peace to reign throughout Nigeria, as there is no reason to fight. The problem is corruption and greed. To add to my earlier information, we received word of Ayos involvement in the assassination attempt on Buhari in 2014 by a former Hezbollah operative we caught at sea after the act. He confessed to it before he died. That was when we started to connect the dots between him and the Hezbollah network in Delta state. After his candidate lost he sent a mole into the APC (opposing political party) in the person of Chief Ayiri Emami.

TaShawn: Who is this Chief Ayiri, what is his background and why did Pastor Ayo choose him as a mole?

Bolaino: Ayiri is known in Warri as a popular assassin and ritualist, so he was welcomed into the APC. Ayiri made sure to enter the APC two days after it was announced that his former party the PDP had lost the election. The APC being a party of Northern extraction did not fully understand the workings of the Niger Delta Politicians/ warlords. So it was from here on that the Niger Delta agitation was hijacked by Pastor Ayo and his cohorts. This is where everything started, this is where the story is today.

TaShawn: And what of Tompolo and how are you so deeply involved and knowledgable of all this information that no one else will speak of ?

Bolaino: Tompolo is a good man, a man that I owe immense gratitude to. He is the one that inspired me to join the Niger Delta struggle for resource control. He was always helping the poor and making them millionaires over night. It was strange because no one else in the region had ever done anything like it before. Although he was an outlaw when I first met him, he was given amnesty and I was not, so I began working with pastor Ayo and Ayiri.

TaShawn: Ayiri, Ayo, Tompolo and You are Warlords? Any other names I should know of that pertain to this story?

Bolaino: Ayiri is a warlord for all the Itsekiri people of Delta state. You have to also know that Pastor Ayo is also of the Itsekiri tribe, with the former Governors of the Delta state. Chief Ibori who was the first democratic governor of Delta state is half Urhobo and half Itsekiri. It was through his cousin Governor Uduaghan who is the immediate past governor of Delta state; he is also Itsekiri, and he is also the brains behind the whole NDA operation. He does the planning, strategizing etc. He is a brilliant man but he only uses his brilliance for evil. He is the evil genius behind all this and he is also the one who set Ibori up. Ibori is currently serving jail time in the UK. Ibori, his wife Nkoyo, and his sisters and lawyers are all serving time in the UK. They were all set up by the same people who are about to set me and Tompollo up. So I started working with Pastor Ayo.

TaShawn: Why is Ibori in jail?

Bolaino: There are newspaper articles to corroborate what I am saying. These things are public knowledge, well not all but some. They are deceiving the Deltans. Did you not hear of the Monseca law firm scandal? That indicted many prominent men and women of the world for tax evasion and financial crimes. Ibori is highly implicated in that scandal, as his name was released in the leaks. Google it. The British government intends on levelling new fresh charges against him.

TaShawn: Alright, now please tell me what you want the media and press to do? Especially the American press...

Bolaino: I have gone to British Media many times. They know all this but are afraid to do anything. Many people only hear my name but they do no know my face. I need to put a face to my name for the sake of peace to reign. I want you and others to take this issue very seriously, please. We want these things to be published everywhere in news in the US because what is happening now concerns them a lot. It is common knowledge that American and British companies like Shell and Texaco operate in Delta state. The Niger Delta Avengers have been blowing up Shell facilities, but they have not been blowing up much of Texaco facilities.

TaShawn: Do you know why it's mostly the Shell facilities being bombed?

Bolaino: Good question, yes I do. Shell operates in the Ijaw part of the Delta state, namely the Shell oil exporting tank at Forcados, In Ogulagha Kingdom. While Chevron Texaco is located in the Itsekiri part of Delta state. Texaco has an oil exporting tank farm at Ugboroda in Warri Southwest Escravos of Delta state.

TaShawn: Are you going to get to how this all escalates into Tribal conflict and future war?

Bolaino: Yes, that is where I am going to. You have to know that for many decades the Ijaws and Itsekiris have been fighting tribal war in the Delta state for long. The fight is usually on and off, and when they fight they burn down everywhere in Warri. The reason we moved to the area (my family and I) we are currently staying is because of the tribal fighting in that part of Warri we used to stay. They were always burning down houses and the house we were staying in Ogborikoko at the time was owned by an Ijaw man.

READ ALSO: Niger Delta militants threaten to shock Nigeria

So we were at risk of our house being burnt by the Itsekiris at any time. So after the former president lost the election and Ayiri switched into the APC just two days after his former party lost the election it was assumed that Ayiri had betrayed them at the federal government level of the PDP.

TaShawn: So who are the Urhobo/ Isoko preparing to fight presently?

Bolaino: Currently the Ijaws. Pastor Ayo is giving us all the weapons we need to fight.

TaShawn: So why arent you happy about this, why tell me to expose the man who is helping you?

Bolaino: He is a bad man. The reason I am angry is because he tried to kill me when I refused. If not that I am a strong man, a man of the spirits then I would be dead by now and my son would be fatherless for sure, but God Disgraced him.

TaShawn: Why are they fighting?

Bolaino: They are fighting because the pastor set us up to fight and gave the order.

TaShawn: So in Nigeria, one must fight when a Pastor gives the order because he is a warlord who hands them out weapons ?

Bolaino: Yes Jesus is God in Nigeria, anything church if you oppose it they will kill you. Do you know how many thousands of people pastors have killed in Delta State? You dont. They sent people to my house. My father and mother have relocated to other regions. Right now he is distributing Guns out to people under his boy Ayiri and others at large. He is the one (The pastor Ayo) who told the King of Aladja and Urhobo Community that God revealed to him that if he does not tell his fellow Urhobo Kings to drive out Ijaws from Urhobo land that the Ijaws will take over all of Urhobo land in the next year 2017 with the Biafrans. The Biafrans have vowed to tear Nigeria apart by January next year to fulfil Americas prediction of Nigeria breaking into pieces in 2017.

TaShawn: Do you know why he (Pastor Ayo) is doing all this?

Bolaino: He is doing all this to escape prison. Many of the people he shared federal government money with meant to fight Boko Haram, are currently in prison. They are mentioning his name in statements, and soon he will be indicted. So he is doing this in order to escape being arrested. This is what he told me before trying to kill me. He tried to kill me in his church, this is where we hold meetings and that is also where he stores the weapons for the NDA. Tompolo and I were preparing to submit all our weapons to the government, but our hands are being forced to fight one another; if this pastor is caught the bloodshed will cease.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily represent the editorial policy of Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng
- Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate claims responsibility for the attack on the pipeline around Osieta Avenue near Otu-Jeremi in Delta state

- The militants warned that they are to fight until the last man alive

- The group noted that it is open for dialogues but only with trusted people

Niger Delta militants

One of the militant groups operating in the oil-rich region, Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, has taken responsibility for the for the attack on the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) oil facility in Ughelli, Delta state.

The explosion rocked the pipeline around Osieta Avenue near Otu-Jeremi in Ughelli South local government area of the state, in the early hours of November 27, Sunday.

Aldo Agbalaja, the spokesman of the group, said it affected to register its presence and to "jolt those probably slipping into delusion back to reality."

According to the militants, its Akuma Strike Force Team brought down the 42-inch delivery line operated by NPDC/ND WESTERN in Otu-Jeremi.

READ ALSO: Niger Delta militants bomb major oil pipeline in Delta

"In the last few weeks, we have been silent and observing. The period of silence was definitely not of inactivity. As a matter of fact, it was rather a strategy session, the fruits of which shall start showing up in the coming days. However, to register our presence and jolt those probably slipping into delusion back to reality, the Akuma Strike Force Team, at about 0400 hours today, November 27, brought down the 42-inch delivery line operated by NPDC/ND WESTERN in Otu-Jeremi, the statement reads.

"The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate has also observed the calculated psychological attack recently initiated by the Nigerian security forces against our people, believing that by pursuing and arresting our people, the struggle will be defeated and our resolve would be quelled. This will not work because what motivates us is stronger than the Nigerian kind of patriotism. Once again, we proclaim that we shall fight until the last man alive.

"It has also come to the attention of the High Command of the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate that some impostors have now started a move to hoodwink the Federal Government into believing that they have what it takes to end this campaign that we have sworn to stay committed to. These conmen, grandstanding and parading themselves as the 'lords of Warri,' have forgotten that this campaign goes well beyond their purview or grasp."

File photo: Bombing of pipeline in Rivers state by Niger Delta militants NDJDG

The Justice Mandate urged the Nigerian authorities to be on guard of who it accords attention, in what it defined as desperation to get oil to flow unhindered from the regions soil.

READ ALSO: Niger Delta militants vow to reduce oil production in Nigeria

"Be wary of political jobbers whose stock in trade has always been using the struggle to profiteer. We have severally indicated how to end this, and definitely not through political jobbers and conflict merchants. If and when we have reasons to trust anybody to hold discussions with, we shall through this same medium announce the process and the persons. This is a warning for the wise," the militants added.

The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate is not taking part in the month-long ceasefire that other groups and the government reached following attacks by Niger Delta Avengers, which brought Nigeria's oil production to a 30-year low.

At the same time, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo claimed the country now loses "over one million barrels of crude oil on a daily basis."

Source: Legit.ng
- The federal government has promised to find a solution to the problems in the south east

- It expressed worry over the protests which sometimes have resulted in violence

- The government urged Nigerians to support the focus to achieve peace

There is unease within inside the presidency over the escalated agitation for Biafra that has been described as a security risk.

The Nation reports that the protests by the Indigenous People Of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualisation for a Sovereign State Of Biafra (MASSOB) has caught the attention of the federal government which has promised to find a solution to the problem.

READ ALSO: Why Delta, Idomas and other minorities should join the Biafra struggle

David Babachir Lawal who is the secretary to the government of the federation spoke at the opening of the 4th Eminent Persons and Experts Group Meeting in Abuja where he assured that the government was engaging stakeholders to bring peace to the south.

He said the government has asked governors from the south east to initiate activities that would positively engage the Biafra agitators.

Lawal also spoke about the problem of kidnapping in the country and noted that it began in the Niger Delta region before spreading to other parts of the country.

He assured that security agencies were harnessing their efforts to tackle criminality.

READ ALSO: Biafra can be attained, Igbos will not beg Buhari - Ohaneze

The secretary to the government of the federation noted that stability would bring about development and said security have been tasked to ensure peace in all parts of the country.

He noted that the level of success achieved in the fight against Boko Haram was a testament to the governments commitment to peace and urged Nigerians to support this focus.

Source: Legit.ng
My friend Dave Swinton is a Methodist minister from Des Moines, IA who recently visited the Standing Rock reservation in North Dakota in support of the DAPL protesters. His dispatches from the scene helped to spread the word about the violent police tactics being used against the protesters, including spraying people with high-pressure water hoses in sub-freezing temperatures.

Dave is now back home and back to work with his congregation at Grace United Methodist Church in Des Moines, and I talked with him about his experience at Standing Rock and his overall impressions and observations of the situation there.

What do people at Standing Rock most want the outside world to know about what is happening there?

The Natives who spoke when I was at Standing Rock wanted to be heard and believed. I had such a sense of people who have been ignored and abused over the centuriesignored when they had needs, gifts, or grievances, and abused when they had something that powerful people wanted. But those are my words. What I heard were simple statements like Water is something very sacred to us. The land is sacred, Also, All we want is clean water, why are you treating us like your enemies?

I think the people who are camping Standing Rock most want people to know that work on the pipeline is continuing even though the Army Corps of Engineers has said that they have not yet given permission to drill. The equipment has arrived and Energy Transfer Partners has said they have every intention to keep going. They believe that they have all the approval they need.

I think the Water Protectors also want people to realize how much violence has already been done. When I attended the debriefing on Monday morning, the Native man who convened the meeting told people that the destruction of the North Camp last month was much more violent. People were beaten by private security forces and attacked by dogs. The barricade of trucks was set up immediately after that attack to protect people at the Oceti Sakowin camp from police and the companys security firm.

How did the experience of being at Standing Rock compare with your prior expectations? What was most surprising about the experience?

The biggest surprise for me was how strongly I came to feel about the pipeline and the people of Standing Rock. I went up to North Dakota out of curiosity and because I wanted to spend a few days with my friend, Rob, who was traveling there to donate supplies to the protesters. I was concerned that the course of the pipeline had been moved to protect the drinking water for Bismarck, but that those some concerns didnt apply to Native people.

I was deeply moved by the prayerful and ceremonial atmosphere of the camp, especially as led by the Native men and women. We were asked to treat each other with respect, to move slowly and solemnly about the camp, to treat the food preparation areas and the fires with respect, and to refrain from drinking, violence, and cursing. I felt fortunate to hear prayers and songs in Lakota within an authentic context and not as part of a performance.

We were told that our presence and support was appreciated but people who there for only a short visit and especially who were non-Indigenous people were asked to kind of keep a respectful distance; they did not want us to barge in and ask a lot of questions, make suggestions, or try to take charge. It became a personal discipline for me to simply do what I was asked.

On Monday, when we were part of demonstrations at Wells Fargo Bank, the Federal Building, and the sheriffs office, I was just miserable. I dont like confrontation. I thought that our group should have done some things differently. And I realized that as the minister of a large church, I am used to being in charge. But, then again, when Im in charge, I complain about that all the time too. (I guess thats why I just can never be happy.)

But the biggest surprise to me is how angry I am that the local police departments are functioning as though they are the private security force for the pipeline company. Why are the people of this country who are trying to protect the earth and water treated as criminals? Frankly, if I were one of those officers, I would be angry too. I would ask why Im protecting pipes and not people. Is that really what they dreamed about doing as kids?

I havent had a chance to go back and view the press conference given by the Morton County Sheriffs Department on Monday. But I read that they emphatically denied that they even had water cannons aimed at protesters (only later to acknowledge that it was a high pressure fire hose). They said that they trained a hose only on fires, despite video proof that they aimed them at protestors for hours. They denied firing rubber bullets at the protestors, but Rob and I were on the scene and we saw the bruises and the actual bullets. The department later said that they call them some kind of sponge projectiles. So now, when they also emphatically deny using concussion grenades, it is hard to believe them. Frankly, its hard to believe anything they now say.

When we were demonstrating, most of the police were glaring at us as if they were looking for the slightest provocation to arrest us or use the tear gas gun that one officer was toting. When you are looking for the slightest provocation, you will find it. Its like the atmosphere at most peoples family Thanksgiving dinners.

What can people do to help the Standing Rock protesters?

I posted a comprehensive list of ideas and resources on my Facebook page, including how to donate, how to switch banks to put financial pressure on the banks that are financing the Dakota Access Pipeline, and more. Also check out this story from Indian Country Today that has more links for making donations to valid, trustworthy sources where the money will truly reach the people on the ground at Standing Rock.

I also would add that if people are from an area that is providing local law enforcement officers and other support to the effort to suppress the Water Protectors, then they should demand that they return. Here is an ACLU blog article with a list of departments whose officers are assisting the Morton County Sheriffs Department.

What signs of hope do you see that the situation can be resolved peacefully in a way that is favorable to the protesters? The federal government has a long history of violent suppression of indigenous peoples rights.

Sadly, I dont see anyone taking leadership right now to be a sign of hope. As long as Energy Transfer Partners categorically refuses to negotiate, how can there be any change? I wonder, too, if the Standing Rock Sioux have left enough room for negotiation. Will they accept anything but a complete halt to the pipeline, or would they stop their opposition if the pipeline could be redirected up the river past the Morton County Sheriffs office?

Other issues I want to feel hopeful about are fighting hydraulic fracking, climate change, racism toward Native peoples, and the militarization of policing. Its hard to feel very hopeful about the first two issues. But surely massive numbers of concerned people should be able to make changes in the last two. (The first two also, but jeezTrump.)

There was a Lakota phrase we heard several times at the camp that translated as, Until my last breath. I dont know that the people of Standing Rock will win this immediate fight against the Dakota Access pipeline. I pray that no one will die. But to make the kind of changes needed, people like me need to give up our fatalism. Fatalism is a luxury for those of us who arent directly affected by these issues. Like the Native peoples, we need to think in terms of generations. What we are working toward today may not be accomplished for a century or more. We may be gone, but we are doing this for our grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Do you feel like the arrival of President Trump will be a bad thing for the Standing Rock protesters? (Im not an expert on federal-tribal relations, but it seems like he might be temperamentally suited to ordering a violent response by federal forces.)

Because of Trumps authoritarianism and demonstrated ability to empathize only with over-taxed (or simply taxed) billionaires, I dont have much hope that he would do anything but exert the greatest amount of force.

However, Trump isnt the only character here. The press has been just as wretched at covering DAPL as they have been in covering Trump. They have been unwilling to dig down and find out what is true. Rather they just report on who is winning and losing. They are far too willing to accept what they are told by authorities and ignore what eyewitnesses and even video say.

And people who are unconcerned about Trumps bigotry probably also think that the pipeline, or environmental pollution, or racism, or police violence dont affect them.

For more details on how to donate to support the Standing Rock Water Protectors, check out this article.
Baazov Secures Alternative Funder for Amaya $6.7B Bid

November 28, 2016 Katie Callahan

Amaya Inc. founder David Baazov has replaced KBC Aldini Capital Ltd., a Dubai investor who denied involvement in Baazovs bid, with two Hong Kong funds in his effort to privatize the company, Bloomberg Technology reported.

Amaya is the parent company of PokerStars and Baazov is the companys largest shareholder. When Baazov submitted a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission placing KBC as an equity funder in the bid, the investment firm filed a complaint with the SEC, denying involvement.

According to Bloomberg, Baazov did, in fact, receive equity commitment letters from the other funders, namely Head and Shoulders Global Investment Fund SPC and Goldenway Capital SPC for $3.45 billion, as stated in a SEC filing Friday. The Head and Shoulders Financial Group chairman told Bloomberg in a phone interview that they would continue to support Baazov.

In this new filing, Baazov said that KBC was not part of the financing and fails to mention Ferdyne Advisory Inc., the other financier listed in the Nov. 14 release announcing the offer, Bloomberg found.

These funders, in total, will provide $4.1 billion, the bids total, excluding debts, which bring the privatization bid to about $6.7 billion.

Read the rest of the story on Bloombergs website here.
Secure end-to-end digital assessment, mid- and high-stake exam creation and grading platform shortlisted in categories International Digital Education Resource, Higher Education/Further Education Digital Resource and ICT Innovator of the Year

By: DigiExam

Contact

Livewire PR

***@livewirepr.com Livewire PR

End

-- DigiExam, short listed in no less than three 2017 BETT Award categories - International Digital Education Resource, Higher Education/Further Education Digital Resource and ICT Innovator of the Year  will be featuring its sophisticated secure end-to-end digital assessment, mid- and high-stake exam creation and grading platform on Stand G448.Proven to save staff over 40% in time spent marking allowing more time for interacting with students and improving educational outcomes, DigiExam is available as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering which now comes with LTI integration  new this year - enabling schools, colleges and universities to link it seamlessly to their Learning Management System.Considered by many as the most esteemed accolade in the industry, the Bett Awards provide a showcase of resources and companies that seek to provide educators with the information, ideas and inspiration that are fundamental to the learning process.The BETT Awards are a celebration of the inspiring creativity and innovation that can be found throughout technology for education. The awards form an integral part of BETT each year, the world's leading showcase of education technology solutions. The winners are seen to have excelled in ICT provision and support for schools, with a clear focus on what works in the classroom.Launched in 2014, DigiExam's digital assessment, exam and grading solution is used in over 1,500 schools, colleges and universities in 50 countries worldwide, including the UK, USA, Sweden, Australia, Singapore, Canada, Russia, Germany, France, Denmark, Finland, Israel, Colombia, Turkey, India, South Africa and Nigeria. Over 100,000 students have used the system and more than 400,000 digital assessments and exams have been delivered.Response from users has been extremely positive. Teachers favour DigiExam because it saves time, is secure and suitable for high-stakes examinations, auto-saves content and can be used on- and offline, so that students can start and submit their papers offline if internet connectivity drops. Teachers also like the fact that they can create, or co-create, assessments and exams with colleagues simply and efficiently, store them in their DigiExam library, re-use assessments, exams and questions, share them with colleagues and drag and drop them into new tests. Also ranked highly was the ability to co-grade whole exams or mark question by question instead of student by student, grade anonymously, auto-correct multiple choice questions, annotate text-based answers and match exam questions against a rubric they have created allowing them to measure outcomes.Students favour the platform because it enables them to download assessments and exams created by staff or by examining bodies securely to their laptops, work in a familiar environment, type their answers more quickly and efficiently and avoid being penalised for poor handwriting and presentation.Commenting on DigiExam Jeremy Sambuca, EdTech Director, The Hewitt School in New York said, "There were two key reasons why we wanted to switch to digital exams. Firstly we wanted to save our teachers time spent marking so they could focus on teaching the curriculum. Secondly we wanted to embrace a format that our students already felt more comfortable with. DigiExam has proved a real time saver for our teachers."Lars Agren, University Director, Stockholm School of Economics, Sweden, said, "The most fulfilling part of being an educator is the chance to meet and interact with students. Through digital exams and DigiExam, we're able to drastically reduce admin time and replace it with important student interaction. This is far more valuable than manual marking!For further information please visit www.digiexam.com
Randy Hedgepath, one of the most sought after interpretive naturalists in the southeast is the featured guest on the popular Tellico Village Broadcasting nature and natural history television series, Tellico Village Naturally.

By: Tellico Village Broadcasting

Randy Hedgepath, State Naturalist appears on Tellico Village Broadcasting

Contact

Keith Sanderson

***@maxapooch.com Keith Sanderson

End

-- Ray Wright, award winning station manager for Tellico Village Broadcasting announced today that the episode featuring Tennessee Parks State Naturalist Randy Hedgepath is the most recent episode of Tellico Village Naturally that is available for viewing.Per Wright, "It is due to new programming such as Tellico Village Naturally that our viewership is increasing not only among residents of Tellico Village, but among internet viewers who wish to learn more about Tellico Village, and the beautiful and interesting area in which we are located."Tellico Village Naturally is a series that is produced to showcase to its residents and viewers the natural world that is in and arround Tellico Village, which is located in Loudon County, in East Tennessee.Past episodes include a visit to the American Eagle Foundation in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. There, creator/producer, and host Keith Sanderson interviewed Al Cecere, founder of AEF about the various raptors native to the area.The show also showcased Claire Moxim and Elliot Firestone of Monroe County Friends of Animals whose group has helped rescue more than 24,000 dogs and cats. Other notable naturalists, wildlife biologists, and animal advocates have also appeared.Sanderson says, "We are delighted that Randy appeared on Tellico Village Naturally. His knowledge of the Tennessee State Parks and what they contain is breathtaking. Plus, his enthusiasm about the subject will make viewers want to drop what they are doing and join him for a hike."In the episode of Tellico Village Naturally in which Randy appears he provides an overview of the 56 state parks in the Tennessee system and then a narrative that is punctuated with images of the newest Tennessee State Park, Seven Island State Park, Fort Loudon Tennessee State Park and Historic Site, Fall Creek Falls which Southern Living Magazine named the best state park in the southeast.Among the notable attributes of Fall Creek Falls State Park is the tallest waterfall in the eastern United States is located within its boundaries. Randy also discusses the parks that he calls "His hidden gems" such as Frozen Head Tennessee State Park.According to information at the Tennessee State Parks website,Randy Hedgepath has more than 30 years of experience with Tennessee State Parks. Randy has served as a Ranger Naturalist at South Cumberland and Radnor Lake State Parks. He was appointed State Naturalist for Tennessee State Parks in 2007. A graduate of UT-Martin and former National Park Service Interpretive Specialist, Randy is one of the most sought after interpretive specialists in the southeastern United States.""Thanks to guests like Randy, both our viewership and are ability to attract regionally and nationally known guests is growing," Says SandersonTellico Village Naturally programming can be viewed in Tellico Village on Charter Cable Television channel 193. The episode can be viewed by those who don't subscribe to charter or who live outside of Tellico Village on vimeo https://vimeo.com/ 193258932 Tellico Village Broadcasting is a non-profit organization staffed by volunteers.TVB broadcasts announcements of upcoming events and produces recorded video programs related to Tellico Village people and activities. These announcements and programs are viewed on Charter Cable 193; on our website home page, and on monitors at local Tellico Village facilities.TVB is supported by and a component of the Tellico Village Property Owners Association.Our well-equipped recording and editing studio is located at 210 Chota Road; upstairs in the Public Safety Building. Our staff meetings are conducted on Tuesday mornings. Recordings are made on a scheduled basis.A breathtaking location, outstanding amenities, exciting lifestyle, and a home of your choice will help you understand why "it's better at Tellico Village." Purchase an existing home, buy an available lot and build your dream house or find a condominium or town home to start experiencing everything that is special about our community. Tellico Village homes and lots can fit everyone's price range.Tellico Village is located outside of Knoxville, Tennessee on beautiful Lake Tellico. The Tellico Village has eight neighborhoods located in two adjacent counties, Loudon (ZIP 37774) and Monroe (ZIP 37885). All the neighborhoods provide ideal locations for a new retirement home.New residents who are looking to build can take advantage of the community's preferred builders program. The eight preferred builders all have constructed numerous homes in Tellico Village, many from the early years of the community.Other new arrivals find the right home, but decide it requires a personal touch. There are five preferred remodelers who take pride in delivering professional renovations from a new bathroom to a full home redo on time and on budget.
Appoints Mr. Karl J. Boltz Former EXMIN Resources CEO as New President, CEO and Director

By: Siver Spruce Resources

Contact

CEO or COO

***@silverspruceresources.com CEO or COO

End

--announced that its Board of Directors has approved the appointment of Karl J. Boltz as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Mr. Boltz has also been appointed by the Board to serve as a Director of Silver Spruce."On behalf of fellow Board members, I congratulate Karl on his new leadership role as President and CEO and welcome him to the Board of Directors of Silver Spruce Resources Inc.," stated Chairman, Dr. Brian Penney. "I would also like to thank Mr. Stephan Jedynak for his leadership during the restructuring and turnaround process that has helped to position the Company to pursue opportunities that can enhance value for our shareholders."Mr. Boltz was the co-founding President, CEO and Director of EXMIN Resources Inc. (since merged with Sierra Metals). Fluent in Spanish, Mr. Boltz has worked for and with numerous public and private mining companies in Mexico, in various management capacities. He has over fifteen years leading and managing mining project activities with the most recent ten years concentrating on public company creation, project acquisition, funding, market development and administrative management. Mr. Boltz has provided services to the Company as the General Manager of Mexico Operations, since June 2015.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 and is preparing for its maiden drill program. Silver Spruce also retains a portfolio of uranium and rare earth element properties in Labrador.
Keeping Us safe is a national organization headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, that provides services to the families of older drivers as they become concerned about an aging parent's safe driving abilities.

By: Keeping Us Safe, LLC

Lt. Matt Gurwell (Ret.) and President Bush

Media Contact

Matt Gurwell

Founder, Keeping Us Safe

***@keepingussafe.org

8779078841 Matt GurwellFounder, Keeping Us Safe8779078841

End

-- Keeping Us Safe is excited to announce that Matt Gurwell, founder of Keeping Us Safe, LLC., has been invited to speak at this year's National Caregiving Conference in Chicago, Illinois on December 3, 2016.The goal of the conference is to connect professional and family caregivers with support and solutions, to empower them with insights and information and to entertain the attendees with engaging and enlightening presentations. The conference is also meant to spark important conversations about what supports caregivers need in our communities, workplaces and in our health care system.Keeping Us safe is a national organization headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, that provides services to the families of older drivers as they become concerned about an aging parent's safe driving abilities.A recognized thought leader in the emotional world of older driver safety, Gurwell says "It is a true honor to have been selected to participate in this conference. Caregivers, so often unknown and unnoticed, have long been the very fabric that holds our families together during some of our most difficult times. The care, support and love caregivers render to those in need is a gift that many of us simply do not possess."The foundation of Keeping Us Safe's "Beyond Driving with Dignity" program is thefor older drivers, which is a 3-hour individualized program that empowers older drivers with diminished driving skills to make the right decision to retire from driving.Gurwell, a retired Ohio State Trooper, explains that "The 'Beyond Driving with Dignity' program provides peace of mind to families and caregivers who are concerned about a loved-one's driving, bringing calm to what can be a very sensitive, emotional and sometimes divisive family issue."Gurwell adds "Caregivers are the silent heroes amongst us, always willing to provide a guiding hand or a listening ear to those in need. There is no doubt that a special place in Heaven is being held for family caregivers."The conference will take place on Saturday, December 3, 2016, at the Chicago Marriott O'Hare. More information on the conference is available at:To learn more about Keeping Us Safe's programs, please visit their website at www.keepingussafe.org . Specific inquiries made be made by email at nschuster@keepingussafe.org or by telephone at 877-907-8841.
Mauritian President advised 15,000+ graduating LPU students to bring difference in the world through education received

By: LPU

End

-- Her Excellency Dr (Mrs) Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, President of the Republic of Mauritius, chaired two-phased 7Convocation of Lovely Professional University (LPU) today. She honoured PhDs and toppers of various LPU academic programs and delivered Convocation Address. During this ceremony, 15000+ distance education students, who passed their June 2016 examinations, also received post-graduate, graduate degrees and diplomas. LPU Convocation also turned out to be momentous for Mauritius and India when the Chief Guest, President of the Republic of Mauritius, Her Excellency Dr (Mrs) Ameenah Gurib-Fakim was conferred upon honorary Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa) degree of the University. Dr (Mrs) Ameenah was conferred honorary doctorate for her ardent working towards advancement of science, technology and in recognition of her services for the society. On this occasion, Lovely Group Chairman Mr Ramesh Mittal, Vice Chairman Mr Naresh Mittal, LPU Chancellor Mr Ashok Mittal, Pro Chancellor Mrs Rashmi Mittal, Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Ramesh Kanwar and Director General Er H R Singla shared the main dais.Before making Convocation address, HE Mauritian President Dr (Mrs) Ameenah expressed her condolences and sympathies to the family members of the persons died in recent train accident in India. Admitting to be an ardent fan of energy providing Punjabi culture, HE Dr (Mrs) Ameenah began convocation address with "Sat Sri Akal" and "Mainu Punjab 'ch aa ke bahut khushi mehsoos ho rahi hai." She said: "Punjab is the melting pot of incredible India and is undoubtedly a land of lions, where bravery and courage rule the hearts of men and women alike. Moreover, the economic opportunities in Punjab are endless." Advising students, she said: "Bring difference in the world through education received at LPU. As a scientist, I am enthused by LPU's emphasis on invention, creativity and development. LPU is a citadel of learning and has all ingredients of an excellent university. Carry on this legacy of excellence which has been forwarded to you here. Knowledge can only be effective if it is applied and leads to innovation and development. Go on to deliver excellence in every field of your life. Make your parents, Punjab and Motherland proud of you."Illustrative, world renowned biodiversity scientist, Her Excellency is the first ever woman to hold the title of the President of Mauritius. Mentioning India as the land of her forefathers, she shared that India and Mauritius has so many things in common be it traditions, values or culture. She also shared: "India will continue to play a key role in the global economy and as an economic powerhouse in the South Asian region." She also wanted a kind of education in India and Mauritius under which young and ignited minds of both the countries should not leave for other countries.Prior to this, welcoming the high-profiled chief-guest HE Dr Ameenah at densely packed Shanti Devi Mittal Auditorium, LPU Chancellor shared with all how Mauritius with not much land and natural resources has risen as one of the richest countries in the African Continent, through able guidance of leaders like HE Dr (Mrs) Ameenah. Addressing students, Mr Mittal shared: "Today, Mauritius has become a center of textiles, tourism and advanced technology. Students should learn strong determination, sincerity, and hard-work from Mauritian stories of regular successes. Believe me - no dream is big enough. Just like the people of Mauritius and Her Excellency Dr Ameenah, dream big and strive to achieve the impossible."LPU students Rajeev Sobti (CSE), Harpreet Singh Bedi (Management), Sunaina Ahuja (Management), Aditi Gupta (Chemistry), Varun Kumar (Mathematics), Madhuri Girdhar (Bio-Technology), Meena Jhamat (Education), Ajay Verma (Pharmaceutics), Amandeep Bagga (Computer Applications), Shruti Shukla (Education), Harjit Ghotra (Physics), Nidhi Phutela (Management), Anil Bhardwaj (Chemistry), Vijay Kumar (Chemistry), Rahul Sharma (Management), Vishal Thakur (Physics) and others, who received Ph D degrees in their respective programs, seemed very happy and shared that their preference to join LPU Ph D Programs, indeed, proved grand.
End

-- SAINT HONORE, world renowned for its unique contemporary elegance and legendary "Parisian Style", will celebrate the UAE's 45th National Day on December 2nd with a specially-designed Limited Edition MONCEAU chronograph watch designed as a tribute to the leaders and citizens of the country.The UAE National Day MONCEAU watch will be issued in a limited edition of just 45 pieces and will be available at the brand's Paris Gallery points of sale across the country. Flying the UAE colours with pride, the UAE National Day MONCEAU Limited Edition features a dial in the four colours of the United Arab Emirates flag. The case back is engraved with a map of the country. Presented in a luxury gift case including a writing implement, this watch is a must for UAE collectors."It gives us great pleasure to issue this exclusive Limited Edition Monceau to commemorate UAE National Day and to salute the leadership and people of the UAE for their glorious achievement and progress over the years," said Thierry Fresard, President, SAINT HONORE,An ode to purity, the MONCEAU interprets French-style elegance with a most sophisticated design. Equipped with a Swiss Made quartz movement which offers a chronograph function, the timepiece features a dial with two harmoniously balanced counters: a 30-minute counter at 9 o'clock and a continuous seconds counter at 3 o'clock. The black "crocodile pattern" leather strap is finished with red top stitching. Stainless steel case, 41 mm Sapphire coating glass Case back engraved with the UAE map Quartz chronograph movement, 2 counters at 3 h and 9 h Date at 6 h Water resistant to 50m Black leather strapwith red topstitching, on deploying buckle SWISS MADE
Blueliv reassured by recent acquisition of Soltra Edge in continued effort to encourage collaboration and intelligence sharing in cyber security industry.

By: Blueliv

Media Contact

Hannah Tufts, Communications Specialist, Blueliv

hannah.tufts@ blueliv.com Hannah Tufts, Communications Specialist, Blueliv

End

-- Blueliv, a leading provider of cyber threat intelligence, today broadcast the availability of the Blueliv Threat Exchange Network, a free intelligence sharing platform supporting the industry standard STIX/TAXII threat feed protocols. The Blueliv Threat Exchange Network provides a free solution that enables users to create their own threat intelligence feed and plug it directly into their existing SIEM or IDS.Blueliv supports the threat-sharing standards used by the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Centre (FS-ISAC), the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) and other industry ISACs.Daniel Solis, CEO of Blueliv, commented "Soltra Edge blazed a trail for sharing and understanding cyber threat data at a global industry level; we resonate strongly with this, and want to continue Soltra's plight to enable the sharing of cyber threat intelligence. We're reassured by NC4's recent acquisition of Soltra Edge and believe that collectively, we can continue to enable the wider community to thrive.The Blueliv Threat Exchange Network offers malware analysts, security researchers, and the Soltra Edge user community an advanced free solution that champions our aim to encourage communication and collaboration across all sectors and amongst the professional cyber security community." Automated IOC exporter in STIX and OpenIOC format Access to the Blueliv Cyber Threat Map Full featured API that enables users to automate user experience Advanced search functionality Access to the Blueliv Malware Sandbox. Upload malware samples for detailed analysis and reverse engineering.For more information or to register, visit: https://community.blueliv.com/#!/ discover on Twitter and LinkedInBlueliv is a leading cyber threat intelligence provider with a world-class in-house Labs team. We scour the web to deliver fresh, automated and actionable threat intelligence to organizations across multiple industries to protect their networks from the outside in.Our scalable cloud-based platform turns global threat data into actionable intelligence, enabling organizations to save time and resource by improving their incident response performance and empowering their Security Operations team with real-time intelligence. Quantify and qualify malicious attack vectors with our plug and play MRTI feed; delivered in STIX/TAXII standard, integration is easy.In 2015 Blueliv achieved 'Cool Vendor' status with Gartner and is a 2016 winner of Go Ignite.Headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, the company is privately held and has received venture capital backing from Telefonica and KIBO Ventures, as well as individual investors.
LDJ Capital Attends Financial Times' Global Impact Summit: Scaling the World's Leading Solutions in Oxford, United Kingdom

Contact

david@victoriaglobal.co

09175789069 09175789069

End

-- Around 70 to 90 attendees, carefully selected from ultra-high net worth (UHNW) individuals and family offices, will be converging at Rhodes Mansion, Oxford on 28 and 29 November 2016 for this exclusive summit.Financial Times also encourages interested participants, including individual and institutional investors, philanthropists, impact investors, service providers, members and senior advisors of family office businesses government officials, academia and media to attend.David Drake, Chairman of LDJ Capital, says, "This is a unique interactive event that will bring together global delegates, investors and influencers. The event will empower delegates on the best approaches in networking and collaborating so as to turn their thoughts and ideas into actions and products that will help in solving global challenges. It is an event worth attending because it will discuss issues with global impacts."Some of the summit topics include: how proven solutions to worldwide challenges can be scaled, change shifting thinking from short-term crisis AID to sustainable development strategies, role and effects of impact investment in business strategies of investment managers, how scaling impact investment solutions can be achieved in key sectors, and how technology platforms can be used to transition regions from crisis to development, among others.Speakers at this summit will include family office and UHNW managers, philanthropists, successful businesspersons, and representatives of charitable organizations. Some of the keynote speakers include:Bill Marcus, Managing Director, LDJ CapitalKimbal Musk, Co-Founder, The Kitchen Community, and Owner, The KitchenSir Ronald Cohen, Chairman, Bridges Ventures and The Portland Trust, and Director, Social FinanceThe conference will also feature tea and coffee breaks, breakfast and lunch networking, breakout sessions, and presentations.This is one of the greatest events organized by Financial Times specifically focusing on impact investment and solutions to some of the leading global challenges. It will bring together global influencers and speakers who will demonstrate how impact investing can be used to solve some of the biggest global challenges.Attendees with innovative ideas that can solve global challenges will also get an opportunity to network with the right people that can help them turn their thoughts into action.For more details, visit:MEDIA CONTACT:THE SOHO LOFT Media Group (www.thesoholoft.com)The Soho Loft Media Group is a global financial media company with 3 divisions:THE SOHO LOFT CONFERENCES organizes up to 200+ investor-focused global summits, talks and events annually.TIMES IMPACT PUBLICATIONS produces relevant content on investing and entrepreneurship that are published and syndicated in 100+ leading online publications and growing.VICTORIA GLOBAL Communications specializes in client Investor Relations, Public Relations, Branding and Social Media Marketing.The Soho Loft Media Group is your global partner for your investment and business strategies.For inquiries, contact info@thesoholoft.com or call 212.845.9652
Phun Thomas' debut "Conscious Flow EP" is out on Ten Walls' Runemark Records.

Contact

Andrius, A&R and PR manager at Runemark Records

***@runemark.net Andrius, A&R and PR manager at Runemark Records

End

-- Latest Runemark Records release is all entangled in mystery. Starting from the man behind the production Phun Thomas himself and extending into the music of "Conscious Flow EP". It may strike as a career starter and a debut, but in essence, Phun Thomas is a continuation of more than a decade of musical production experience. Now unveiling as a new project and joining the label family with former releases by Roe Deers and the label owner himself  Ten Walls.Runemark Records founded in June of 2016 as a platform for talented artists to spread their creativity. Record label delivers top notch electronic music compositions with eclectic and underground dancefloor aesthetics. As a special addition to some of the releases come "Runemark Remarks"  special remakes by the label boss.Ten Walls is known for his high standards in music towards himself and everyone else. All compositions selected for the label have to hold high artistic value and be musically strong. "I am always searching for conception, quality, and emotion in every electronic music composition. No less important is mixing and mastering. I concentrate on everything, every little detail matters" says Marijus (Ten Walls).In the latest release Phun Thomas debuts on Runemark Records with "Conscious Flow EP". It includes two original compositions and two Runemark remixes (so called Remarks). The release is worldwide and available in all digital music stores from the 16th of November (Beatport link: www.beatport.com/ release/conscious- flow/1877706 ). A podcast (so called Runecast) from Phun Thomas has also landed on Runemark's Soundcloud page and it's totally mind blowing: soundcloud.com/ runemark/runecast- 2-phun-thomas After hearing "1001 Nights" and "Conscious Flow" the label founder got instantly inspired by the tracks. So both of them took shape as Runemark Remarks and were developed into dancefloor perfections."Close Bond" takes back to early 2000's dance floor mood and it does share that melancholic feeling. It's an early morning stomper."1001 Nights" reflects the time spent in the studio while searching for that perfect sound. -"To be specific it's the track where eastern harmonic scale meets African percussive drums. And everything's built on a western electronic music platform" declares Phun Thomas. "A very global track."Follow Phun Thomas:https://soundcloud.com/phunthomashttps://www.facebook.com/PhunThomasMusichttps://twitter.com/PhunThomasLivehttps://www.instagram.com/phunthomasliveFollow Runemark Records:https://soundcloud.com/runemarkhttps://www.facebook.com/runemarkmusichttps://twitter.com/Runemarkmusichttps://www.instagram.com/runemarkmusic
Big Dog Motorcycles, the largest manufacturer of custom bikes in the world, has made inroads into the India luxury biking sector. The company is noted for offering luxury custom bikes for the past two decades in global markets and now offers buyers in the country a chance to buy these exclusive bikes, which Big Dog claims are so unique that no two bikes are the same.

Big Dog K9 red Chopper 111 is the companys first offering in the country. This bike comes in with a whopping price tag of INR 59 lakhs  ex-showroom Delhi.

It is seen powered by an 1807cc, 45 degree V-Twin engine from S&S Superslider mated to a 6 speed transmission. Measuring 10 feet in length, the K9 Red Chopper 111 is offered to owners with an exhaustive list of customization options. The bike will be built as per customers specifications with buyers given a choice of a host of design options and accessories to include a range of seats and handle bars besides drag pipes, starter and rotor kits and a varying choice of tyre options. Accessory options also include custom seats, storage bags, grips and windshields.

Big Dog K9 Red Chopper weighs a total of 475 kgs. It gets on board features that include a 250mm rear tyre and 41mm telescopic front forks along with a steel one piece tank. Braking function at both ends is undertaken via 4 piston calipers.

Known as BigDogIsBack.com, K9 Red chopper  111 is One of One built under aegis of Kansas Motor Works. It has been brought to India by Samar JS Sodhi, founder of Big Motorcycle Company, who had been striving for years to bring this motorcycle brand to India. He has finally realized his dream and is optimistic that the K9 Red Chopper will attract a range of customers in the country.

K9 Red Chopper-111 Specifications:

Engine S&S SuperSidewinder, Overhead Valve, 45-Degree, V-Twin Displacement 111 Cubic Inches (1807 Cubic Centimeters) Bore and Stroke 4.125 Inches x 4.124 Inches Ignition S&S Single Fire Transmission Jims, 6-Speed, Right-Side-Drive, Close Ratio, Straight Cut Gears Primary Drive Diamond endless-link Chain Final Drive 1-1/8 Belt, 130-Tooth Front Brake Caliper Performance Machine, 4-piston, Differential Bore Rear Brake Caliper Performance Machine, 4-Piston, Standard Bore Rear Tire 250/40VR18 (81V) COBRA Front Tire MH90-21 56V COBRA Charging System 32 Amp Battery Deltran Battery Tender, High CCA output Curb Weight (Wet) 304 Kgs GVWR 1049 LBS Fuel Capacity  Total 14.4 Ltrs Fuel Capacity Main 13 Ltrs Oil Capacity 3 Quarts 20W-50 Frame Rake 37 Degrees Frame Tubing Heavy-Duty, 1-1/2 inch O.D. Front Suspension Telescopic, 41mm Seat Height 24.5 Inches Ground Clearance 115 mm Wheel Base 82 Inches Overall Length 108 Inches

News Release
The scrappage of notes of denominations INR 1,000 and INR 500 has taken the nation by storm. The sudden announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 8th Nov, 2016 threw citizens into a quandary and even though this would be a short-term impact, its ramifications would be felt throughout various sectors.

In the automobile sector, the scrapping of INR 1,000 and INR 500 notes has had a huge effect. In the month of November itself the bookings were down 50%. The results for December 2016 have come out and they are even more shocking for the auto makers. Vehicles sales in India are down to a 16 year low.

For Dec 2016, vehicle sales declined to 1,221,929 units. This is a 18.66% decline. India last reported these kind of vehicle sales back in December 2000. Dealerships across the country have reported a drastic dip in walk-ins and inquiries, in both urban and more particularly in rural areas. Business in Gujarat, Punjab and NCR has been more affected with buyers in these regions preferring to make payments by cash.

Customers opting for finance options also make down payments in cash which has hence brought down sales considerably. This drastic dip in demand is even more pronounced in the luxury car market. In rural areas, sales of automobiles have dipped by around 40% and are expected to go down 60% as the cash crunch continues and as most farmers prefer to make payments by cash.

To boost sales, auto dealerships have been introducing various schemes. On the spot discounts to customers and hefty incentives to company sales teams who convert inquires to sales have also been offered. The dip in sales has also prompted auto manufacturers to bring down production.

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India have stated that production is being rationalized to control inventories while Honda Cars India is also said to align production to contend with slower sales. Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai India have also cited notable dip in demand but have yet to confirm whether they will be putting brakes where production is concerned. Besides automakers, component suppliers too have been hit by demonetization and have been adjusting production to tackle the situation while the situation is worse for the second hand car market and service stations.

Earlier it was thought that demonetization will effect largely the expensive cars. But that is not the case. From affordable two wheelers to expensive cars, the entire segment has been affected. At the same time, it is to be noted that this is a welcomed move by the government and a bold step in weeding out black money. It will have adverse effects in the short term due to inconvenience caused to citizens but will be a major leap in cashless economy and Digital India and will bring about more transparency into the system in the future.
Ever wondered how thieves manage to steal motorcycles, in spite of them being locked? Well, this shocking video reveals how it is done.

Cops have managed to catch a gang of thieves stealing Royal Enfield motorcycles. One of the cop who captured this gang, has now made a video which shows how the gang used to strike and steal motorcycles. An expert in stealing motorcycles, it takes these thieves less than a minute to steal a properly locked motorcycle. Watch the video below to believe it.

This is not an isolated incident. Recently, A man has been caught on camera while stealing a new Royal Enfield Classic motorcycle parked on a roadside in Delhi. The incident takes place at about 5-30 AM. The thief takes a good look at the bike, and of the surrounding before he starts to steal. Watch the latest video.

In another incident, a gang of thieves managed to steal the newly launched Bajaj Dominar. After saving hard-earned money for two years, Shivam Arora finally managed to buy his dream motorcycle last month. It was the new Bajaj Dominar which he had purchased.

Sadly, earlier this week, on the day of his birthday, the motorcycle was stolen by a team of 4 thieves astride on two motorcycles. From the CCTV footage shared by Shivam on Youtube, it can be seen that the four goons knew exactly where his bike was parked. In the first two minutes you will see how one of the thief manages to break the handle lock with a push of his leg. A few minutes later, another goon comes and takes the bike away.

The number of such incidents are on the rise. Thieves are roaming the streets and attacking people in broad daylight. They are no longer scared of performing the theft in view of hundreds of bystanders. Below is one more incident which was caught on camera.

A motorbike parked on the side of a road in Indore and securely locked drew the attention of two passing thieves on another bike. Caught on CCTV camera, the entire episode took just 40 seconds with the pillion rider getting off the bike, surveying the parked bike and pretending to fasten his shoe lace. While all this failed to attract any suspicion, the thief went ahead and broke the ignition wire. He sat on the bike and broke the handle bar with his foot.

Motorcycle Thieves in action.

He then kick started the bike and rode off along with his partner in crime. The entire incident was accomplished with the suaveness of a seasoned bike robber who knew just the right wires to cut and the exact way in which to break the handlebar.

Also See  CCTV captures thieves stealing a cow in a Maruti Zen

The robbery has been captured on CCTV and the local police are on the lookout for the robbers. As for us, after watching this video we will surely have to find some other means of locking our parked bikes so as to ensure its safety.

Another shocking robbing event  A young student, who was standing on the side of the road, near a toll plaza on a highway in West Bengal, gets his brand new KTM RC 390 stolen in broad daylight. The entire episode has been caught on video, thanks to the CCTV installed.

The student in question, was talking on his phone when the incident happened. Oblivious of the fact that he had been the target of 4 goons riding on 1 Bajaj Pulsar motorcycle. Two of the goons got off the Pulsar, approached the student and slapped him. Before the student could realize what just happened, the goons rode off with his KTM RC 390. Watch the video below.

Not only in India, bike thefts are also common in South America. As per this latest video from South American media, a gang of thieves were specifically stealing Bajaj Pulsar motorcycles. Yes, made in India Bajaj Pulsar motorcycles are big hit in the South American market, and hence is seen in a large number on the road. Recently, police caught up with one such gang and found out how they were able to steal Bajaj Pulsar in under 1 minute. Watch the video below.
Having received name and fame for their Streety Treats food truck in North Bengaluru, four commerce students now take the food truck trend even further with Barbecue Ride India.

The food truck trend is fast gaining popularity in the country. Riding on this wave, the company founded by Arun Varma, his brother Krishna Kumar Varma and two friends, Manogna Chaudary and Syeed Mujeeb  BBQ Ride has seen their share of success. The students have previously owned three food trucks and a Tata Nano based ice cream car which has seen much response in Bengaluru instigating the team to take on new initiatives.

Barbecue Ride India offers fresh and tasty barbeques on a 500cc Royal Enfield Classic while to drive their business even further the four students have received funding to the extent of INR 10 lakhs. They have even received 7 pre-orders for these BBQ ready bikes. The team has entered into four franchisee deals in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Pune for the BBQ Bullet while they are also in talks with three others in Kolkata and are hoping to sign more deals soon.

Their customized Royal Enfield Classic receives an attached BBQ pit, a 5 kg LPG cylinder and two food grade boxes to carry meats and dry ice which keeps it fresh. The metal fabrication done on the bike is sturdy while the side car is well built and solid. The food is tasty and cooked on coal and firewood and is oil free which attracts a range of health conscious customers.

Traffic congestion in the city and finding a parking spot is the major challenge facing food truck owners but with BBQ Bullet, the team can take their business to other locations where competitors find difficult to reach.

via FnBnews
A quest to understand if and how life can endure in extreme cold -- on Earth and, perhaps one day, on Mars -- is sending a team of Georgetown University researchers to Antarctica to search for, and then sequence, ancient bacteria.

Their mission marks the first time that sequencing will be conducted on the world's seventh and southernmost continent, Antarctica. The research will take place in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, the tiny part (one percent) of Antarctica that is free of the snow and ice sheets, some three-miles thick, that blanket the rest of the continent.

During the month long expedition, a team of five -- a planetary scientist, two biologists and two DNA sequencing experts -- will travel by helicopter to and from the main U.S. research base, McMurdo Station, to the Valleys to collect ancient microbial mats, or "paleomats," that are associated with former lake beds. During these 7-8 excursions, the team will search for ancient cells and, when found, use the advanced sequencing techniques to spell out the microbes' DNA and RNA. They are bringing three pieces of sequencing instrumentation along -- two that are the size of a microwave and will stay at The Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center at McMurdo Station, and a pocket-sized nanopore sequencer to collect data in the field.

"We know very little about how life persists in extremely harsh conditions," says the project's principal investigator, Sarah Stewart Johnson, PhD, an assistant professor of planetary science in Georgetown's Department of Biology and Science, Technology, and International Affairs Program. She runs the Johnson Biosignatures Lab, which employs tools from molecular biology and organic geochemistry to search for fingerprints of life.

"It's fascinating to think about what survival strategies cells may employ when pushed to their limit," says Johnson, who was awarded a National Science Foundation grant to conduct the research.

Using advanced sequencing technologies, the project will investigate whether Antarctic paleolakes "harbor microbial seed banks, or caches of viable microbes adapted to past paleoenvironments, that could help transform our understanding of how cells survive over ancient timescales," she says.

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These bacteria may provide a riveting look back in time, says team member David Goerlitz, MS. He and Scott Tighe, a sequencing expert from the University of Vermont, who also spearheads the Extreme Microbiome Project, will be collaborating with the other three Georgetown researchers (Johnson, biology undergraduate Angela Bai, and postdoctoral fellow Elena Zaikova) in the gene discovery process.

The team will look for bacteria that persist despite the extreme conditions, says Goerlitz, who is operations director of Georgetown's Genomics & Epigenomics Shared Resource, which is headquartered at the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center.

"Our mission is to understand what it takes to detect life that is holding on at the margins -- and what that life looks like," says Goerlitz.

And what they plan to achieve will be a first.

The technology they will bring with them will allow the team to thoroughly analyze extracted DNA, as well as RNA, from a variety of field sites, maximizing sample collection from the most promising sites in real time. And with this sensitive quantification data in hand, the team can, for the first time, construct and sequence libraries at the Crary Lab in McMurdo Station.

Goerlitz has been sequencing genes at Georgetown Lombardi since 2003, and is used to taking his equipment to far-off places. In 2004, he spent six weeks in Cairo with a Georgetown oncologist to study genes involved in liver and bladder cancers, and since 2008, Goerlitz travels twice a year to Russia for an ongoing Georgetown health study in ionizing radiation.

Heading to Antarctica, however, "is the type of project every researcher dreams of. I am so very excited to use my skills and expertise in a frankly sexy project," he says with a laugh.

But he adds that there will be challenges. Among them is booking time on a very limited satellite data uplink, one that has 1/10th the capacity of a typical home wi-fi system. The team will generate data as they go, and upload it to the cloud, where it will be processed. Some samples will be carried back to the states, he says.

The techniques pioneered by the team may lend insight into how to do the same thing, but in an automated fashion, on Mars, Goerlitz says. "The Antarctic resembles Mars in its extreme cold and dryness. If simple microbes ever evolved on Mars, they might still persist today. Perhaps in the future, a Mars rover can use techniques like the ones we're using in the Antarctic to search for life."
Every year 340,000 tonnes of usable whitefish by-product are discarded into the sea. But the fisheries industry has now identified ways of halting this practice.

The fishing company Nordic Wildfish has been assisting in the development of a new technology that can make use of the entire by-product from whitefish such as cod, pollock and haddock.

Instead of discarding the heads, guts and the rest of the fish, they can all be incorporated into a hydrolysis process that separates the bones, leaving a kind of "soup" to which enzymes can be added and valuable oils and proteins extracted.

"The entire process takes place on board the trawler, which has only been at sea for two months," says Anders Bjrnerem, R&D Director at Nordic Wildfish in Norway.

"So this technology is entirely new?"

"Yes. No-one has done this before, and it's very exciting. We've already been nominated for the 2016 Innovation Prize awarded by the technical journal Teknisk ukeblad," says Bjrnerem.

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Most of a caught fish is discarded

Nordic Wildfish is located on the island of Valderya, west of Alesund, Norway, and has been working closely with the research-company SINTEF for some time to promote technological development.

"As much as 92 per cent of marine whitefish by-product is not utilised," says Bjrnerem.

"Commonly it is only the fillets that are processed to become food. This is not sustainable food production. As we approach 2050, the demand for food on this planet will increase by as much as 70 per cent due to high levels of population growth. The industry must make it its goal to utilise the entire fish," says Ana Karina Carvajal, Research Manager at SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture.

According to a report published by SINTEF in 2014, 340,000 tonnes of whitefish by-product are discarded annually. SINTEF believes that this material has major commercial potential if it can be processed to produce high quality end-products such as ingredients in animal feed and food for human consumption.

Teamwork is key

On board the trawler Molnes, whitefish by-product is processed using enzymatic hydrolysis to produce valuable proteins, amino acids and fish oils. Many technologies have been developed and adapted for installation on board the refurbished trawler.

"Excellent teamwork between researchers and the industry will enable many new systems for better exploitation of the fish to be implemented within the next two to four years," says Carvajal. "We're very pleased to see that some segments within the industry have already taken the first steps towards more sustainable food production," Carvajal says.
Walking is a milestone in development for toddlers, but it's actually only one part of the complex cognitive task known as gait that includes everything from a person's stride length to the accompanying swing of each arm. A Mayo Clinic study recently published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease found that problems associated with gait can predict a significant decline in memory and thinking.

Using the Rochester Epidemiology Project, Mayo Clinic researchers examined medical records of Olmsted County, Minnesota, residents, who were between ages 70 to 89 as of Oct. 1, 2004. The analysis included 3,426 cognitively normal participants enrolled in the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging who had a complete gait and neuropsychological assessment.

Using computerized analyses, researchers measured gait parameters, such as:

 Stride length

 Ambulatory time

 Gait speed

 Step count

 Cadence

 Stance time

 Arm swing

Alterations in several gait parameters were associated with decline in memory, thinking and language skills, and visual perception of the spatial relationship of objects. The study results also supported the role of computerized analysis because the computer tool detected modifications before impairment was detected with a standard neuropsychological test.

"The presence of gait disturbances increases with advancing age and affects the independence of daily living, especially in the elderly," says neurologist Rodolfo Savica, M.D., lead author on the study. "Computerized gait analysis is a simple, noninvasive test that potentially could be used to identify patients at high risk for cognitive decline and to target appropriate therapies."
Any parent can tell you about the consequences of their child not getting enough sleep. But there is far less known about the details of how sleep deprivation affects children's brains and what this means for early brain development.

"The process of sleep may be involved in brain 'wiring' in childhood and thus affect brain maturation," explains Salome Kurth, first author of the study published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, and a researcher at the University Hospital of Zurich. "This research shows an increase in sleep need in posterior brain regions in children."

This contrasts with what researchers know about the effects of sleep deprivation in adults, where the effect is typically concentrated in the frontal regions of the brain.

After staying up too late, both children and adults need a period of deep sleep to recover. This recovery phase is characterized by an increase in an electrical pattern called slow-wave activity, which can be measured with a non-invasive technique called an electroencephalogram. With a large number of electrode channels distributed across the scalp, this method also detects which brain regions show more slow-wave activity than others.

Supported by a large student team, Kurth and her colleagues, Monique LeBourgeois professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, and Sean Deoni , professor at Brown University, studied the effects of 50% sleep deprivation in a group of 13 children between the ages of 5 and 12 years. The team first measured the children's deep sleep patterns during a normal night's sleep. They then re-measured on another night after the researchers had kept the children up well past their bedtimes by reading and playing games with them.

After only getting half of a night's worth of sleep, the children showed more slow-wave activity towards the back regions of the brain -- the parieto-occipital areas. This suggests that the brain circuitry in these regions may be particularly susceptible to a lack of sleep.

The team also measured how this deep sleep activity correlated with the myelin content of the brain -- a cornerstone of brain development. Myelin is a fatty microstructure of the brain's white matter that allows electrical information between brain cells to travel faster. It can be measured with a specific magnetic resonance imaging technique.

"The results show that the sleep loss effect on the brain is specific to certain regions and that this correlates with the myelin content of the directly adjacent regions: the more myelin in a specific area, the more the effect appears similar to adults," says Kurth. "It is possible that this effect is temporary and only occurs during a 'sensitive period' when the brain undergoes developmental changes."

Further exploration is needed before drawing any conclusions about how insufficient sleep affects early brain developmental processes in the longer term. But for now, these results suggest that going to bed too late may have a different impact on kids' brains than on adults'.
A new study by an international team of researchers led by the University of Minnesota highlights how manipulation of 2D materials could make our modern day devices faster, smaller, and better.

The findings are now online and will be published in Nature Materials, a leading scientific journal of materials science and engineering research.

Two-dimensional materials are a class of nanomaterials that are only a few atoms in thickness. Electrons in these materials are free to move in the two-dimensional plane, but their restricted motion in the third direction is governed by quantum mechanics. Research on these nanomaterials is still in its infancy, but 2D materials such as graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides and black phosphorus have garnered tremendous attention from scientists and engineers for their amazing properties and potential to improve electronic and photonic devices.

In this study, researchers from the University of Minnesota, MIT, Stanford, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, IBM, and universities in Brazil, UK and Spain, teamed up to examine the optical properties of several dozens of 2D materials. The goal of the paper is to unify understanding of light-matter interactions in these materials among researchers and explore new possibilities for future research.

They discuss how polaritons, a class of quasiparticles formed through the coupling of photons with electric charge dipoles in solid, allow researchers to marry the speed of photon light particles and the small size of electrons.

With our devices, we want speed, efficiency, and we want small. Polaritons could offer the answer, said Tony Low, a University of Minnesota electrical and computer engineering assistant professor and lead author of the study.

By exciting the polaritons in 2D materials, electromagnetic energy can be focused down to a volume a million times smaller compared to when its propagating in free space.

Layered two-dimensional materials have emerged as a fantastic toolbox for nano-photonics and nano-optoelectronics, providing tailored design and tunability for properties that are not possible to realize with conventional materials, said Frank Koppens, group leader at the Institute of Photonic Sciences at Barcelona, Spain, and co-author of the study. This will offer tremendous opportunities for applications.

Others on the team from private industry also recognize the potential in practical applications.

The study of the plasmon-polaritons in two-dimensions is not only a fascinating research subject, but also offers possibilities for important technological applications, said Phaedon Avoruris, IBM Fellow at the IBM T. J. Watson Research Center and co-author of the study. For example, an atomic layer material like graphene extends the field of plasmonics to the infrared and terahertz regions of the electromagnetic spectrum allowing unique applications ranging from sensing and fingerprinting minute amounts of biomolecules, to applications in optical communications, energy harvesting and security imaging.

The new study also examined the possibilities of combining 2D materials. Researchers point out that every 2D material has advantages and disadvantages. Combining these materials create new materials that may have the best qualities of both.

Every time we look at a new material, we find something new, Low said. Graphene is often considered a wonder material, but combining it with another material may make it even better for a wide variety of applications.
More than 22 percent of children ages 12-18 say they have been bullied in school within the last month; a significant portion of those children have disabilities. However, little research exists on how bullying rates for individual children change over time. Now, a University of Missouri researcher and bullying expert has determined that children with disabilities are victimized by bullying at a much higher rate over time than their peers without disabilities. The study also revealed that this discrepancy in victimization and bullying perpetration rates remains consistent as children age. Chad Rose, an assistant professor of special education in the MU College of Education, says this indicates that children with disabilities are not developing adequate social skills to combat bullying as they mature.

"This study points out the necessity for special education programs to teach appropriate response skills to children with disabilities," Rose said. "Schools need to further develop these programs by tailoring social development goals for each individual student to ensure they are learning the social skills that will help them prevent bullying from occurring. Prior research has shown that children with disabilities, when bullied, may react aggressively when they lack appropriate response skills. Teaching these students how to communicate more effectively with their peers and with teachers can help them react to bullying in more positive ways, as well as prevent it from occurring at all."

Over the course of three years, more than 6,500 children from grades 3-12 were surveyed about their experiences with bullying; 16 percent of the children surveyed had disabilities, specifically learning disabilities, emotional disabilities and autism spectrum disorders. Rose and Nicholas Gage, an assistant professor from the University of Florida, found that bullying rates across the board peaked in third grade, were reduced drastically in middle school and then rose again during high school. However, while mirroring this trend, bullying rates for children with disabilities remained consistently higher than those without disabilities.

"Studying how individual children are victimized by bullying over time has revealed that children with disabilities are not learning how to effectively respond to victimization," Rose said. "As children continued to mature, we expected to see that they would slowly develop social skills that would help them combat victimization and close the gap with children without disabilities, but that was not the case. Their rates of bullying victimization remained consistently higher, which shows that current intervention approaches are not effectively preparing these children who are most at-risk for bullying involvement."

Rose says that many schools have devoted less and less time over the years to teaching social skills to all students, in exchange for increased focus on common core subjects and standardized test preparation. He says schools should refocus some of their efforts on teaching important social skills, especially to children with disabilities.

The study, "Exploring the Involvement of Bullying Among Students With Disabilities Over Time," was published in Exceptional Children.
I am sure you have all heard about the news around Facebook, Google and others cracking down on fake news distribution and monetization. Mid-November, shortly after the election, many went after fake news sites - with good reason. In fact, before election day, Google even did a fact check feature for Google News.

That being said, Google told the New York Times that they are going to crack down on AdSense publishers who distribute fake news. Google's Andrea Faville told the NY Times:

"Moving forward, we will restrict ad serving on pages that misrepresent, misstate or conceal information about the publisher, the publishers content or the primary purpose of the web property," Ms. Faville said. Ms. Faville said that the policy change had been in the works for a while and was not in reaction to the election.

A WebmasterWorld thread has AdSense publishers reacting to this news. Of course, many sites might not do extensive fact checking or may write in a way that is opinionated, which may trigger a ban. Here are some quotes from this thread:

The bigger worry is what happens to legitimate satire?

Will they ban Adwords ads to these sites too? That is taboola like chum bucket ad, eg: "5 things you should never eat" with an image of oozing egg.

The problem isn't the fake news sites. The problem is that large portions of the electorate are rather dumb and don't get their news from reputable sources. I'm not even sure if they know what reputable sources are.

It is a pretty long thread but I have yet to hear of a publisher being banned in the past week or two over fake news. Have you?

Forum discussion at WebmasterWorld.
First-time homebuyers could be hit with hundreds of dollars in additional closing costs if Toronto harmonizes its land transfer tax with the provinces, the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) is warning.

The difference could add $750 to the average home transaction and add an upfront expense that would hit first-time buyers particularly hard.

A city managers report that suggests Toronto could harmonize the municipal and provincial land transfer taxes is actually an increase, since the provincial tax is higher, said Von Palmer, TREBs chief communications and government affairs officer.

They use the word harmonization like its a break-even proposition. It is not. Its an additional $100 million (for the city), he said.

Toronto is already making $500 million a year more on the tax than the original $350 million estimate when it was introduced about eight years ago, Palmer said.

The average property transaction in the city includes about $11,000 in municipal land transfer tax, he said. That is in addition to a slightly higher land transfer fee charged by the province.

Ontario levies 1.5 per cent on property values between $250,000 and $400,000. The city report suggests raising Torontos 1 per cent tax for that bracket to 1.5 per cent.

Harmonizing the rebate for first-time buyers from the citys $3,725 to the $4,000 the province credits first-time purchasers, would not be enough to offset that difference, says TREB.

The changes that come before Thursdays city executive committee, runs counter to efforts of senior governments to protect consumers, including a doubling of the provincial land transfer tax rebate for first-time buyers from $2,000 to $4,000 earlier this month.

TREB officials will be meeting with Mayor John Torys staff on Monday but were not consulted prior to the release of the city managers report, Palmer said.

The mayor will review the report and discuss it with his colleagues, said an email from his spokesperson on Friday.

The mayor is focused on keeping this city affordable and would like to see the rebate increased for first-time homebuyers so they would not see any increased costs as is contemplated in the staff report, said Amanda Galbraith.

Under the reports proposal, an average first-time buyer would pay an additional $475 to the city, according to TREB.

This comes on the heel of a $75 administration fee that was tacked on last year to administer the land transfer tax. People didnt notice that, said Palmer.

When the city launched its land transfer tax, the average Toronto home cost about $400,000. In October, the average price, including all types of housing from condos to detached houses, had climbed to $770,480.

The city has benefited from the rise in real estate prices from an old tax system that used to go after a luxury price at over $400,000, said Royal LePage agent Desmond Brown, who said he would be appalled if the land transfer tax is raised.

Its not fair to tax home-buying transactions when the infrastructure the city wants to build benefits all homeowners, said Zoocasa CEO Lauren Haw.

Some sort of flat tax on property makes more sense. If we think it should come from properties, why doesnt it just come from the property taxes? said Haw. The reality is that property taxes in Toronto are far lower than the surrounding area.

Although it wont influence buyers in the core, the land transfer proposal could drive some consumers over the city borders, she said.

If youre in North York, or youre in east Scarborough or the west part of Etobicoke and going across the border there, can save you essentially half of your land transfer taxes, that absolutely factors in, she said.

The city managers report says that harmonizing the municipal and provincial taxes could raise an additional $77 million in 2017 and $85 million a year for Toronto.

It also suggests raising the land transfer on prices above $2 million, to 2.5 per cent from 2 per cent, and increasing the tax to 2 per cent from 1 per cent on properties valued over $40 million.

The changes could be in place as early as March 1, relatively quick compared to other taxes council is considering, such as parking levies or a hotel tax.

Toronto is the only city in Ontario with a municipal land transfer fee.

The mayor is also urging council to add tolls to the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway to raise between $160 million and $330 million annually to fund transit expansion.

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OPEC ministers flew to Moscow and officials in Vienna started another round of talks in an effort to salvage an agreement on production cuts, just as Saudi Arabia said a deal might not be necessary.

With only two days to go before ministers from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries try to finalize the first production decrease in eight years, the foundations for a deal are looking shaky.

A final round of diplomacy focused on internal divisions over how to share the cuts and Russian resistance to reducing supply, which already forced the cancellation of crucial talks with non-OPEC suppliers. Khalid Al-Falih, the Saudi oil minister, for the first time on Sunday floated the possibility of leaving Vienna without an agreement.

Al-Falihs comments came two days after Saudi Arabia pulled out of a meeting with non-members including Russia, arguing that OPEC needs to sort out its internal divisions before engaging with other producers.

Its unclear whether the minister has changed his mind about the merits of an agreement, or is trying to boost his negotiating position with Iran and Iraq. Both nations have resisted cutting their own production, but need an OPEC deal to increase prices.

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabbar Al-Luaibi told reporters as he arrived in Vienna that he was optimistic OPEC can reach an agreement acceptable to all members.

Saudi Arabia and Iran are all playing very strong negotiation tactics, said Abhishek Deshpande, chief energy analyst at Natixis SA in London. The problem for Saudi Arabia is that this isnt the 1980s and 1990s, when it could use its clout and expect others to follow. Today members like Iran and Iraq are equally strong and their agenda is to ensure they get a large market share.

Without an OPEC cut, the International Energy Agency predicts that the oil market will remain in surplus for a fourth year in 2017, which could cause prices to fall.

We expect demand to recover in 2017, then prices will stabilize, and this will happen without an intervention from OPEC, Al-Falih said in Dhahran, eastern Saudi Arabia, on Sunday, according to the Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat. We dont have a single path which is to cut production at the OPEC meeting, we can also depend on recovery in consumption, especially from the U.S.

As OPEC tries to resolve its own differences, the group is also asking other big producers including Russia to reduce output by as much as 600,000 barrel a day. The Kremlin so far resisted OPECs request that it joins the cut, offering instead to freeze production at its current level.

Talks in Vienna with non-members scheduled for Monday were cancelled last week after the Saudis pulled out. A breakfast meeting with other nations that was tentatively scheduled for Wednesday morning has also been cancelled, said an OPEC delegate.

Its not beneficial to attend the meeting with producers from outside OPEC before holding meetings within OPEC and deciding whether to cut or continue with current levels of production, Al-Falih said, according to Asharq Al-Awsat.

In an unexpected move, Algerian Energy Minister Noureddine Boutarfa, one of the architects of OPECs September accord to reduce output, and Venezuelas Eulogio Del Pino, a regular intermediary in the groups discussions, will meet in Algiers and then travel to Moscow on Monday, according to two delegates familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified as the talks are private.

In a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Irans Hassan Rouhani on Monday, the two leaders stressed the importance of OPECs efforts to cut supply, according to Kremlin statement. It didnt specify what actions Iran and Russia were willing to take.

Instead of meeting with non-OPEC producers in Vienna Monday, officials from the groups high-level committee will instead have another go at agreeing among themselves how much each member should cut. A similar effort last week proposed the group reduce output by 4 per cent to 5 per cent, but failed to resolve the question of Iran and Iraqs participation.

After several hours of discussion on Monday, the meeting hadnt reached an agreement on how to share the production cuts, according to a delegate.

Algerias Boutarfa presented Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh with a proposal for a collective cut of 1.1 million barrels a day in Tehran on Saturday. Iran had previously said it should be allowed to continue increasing production as its exports recovered from nuclear-related sanctions that were eased in January.

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LONDONPrince William has supported his brother Prince Harry who has called for restraint in coverage of his private life.

A Kensington Palace press spokesman said Monday that William absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him.

The comments were made in response to press questions after a newspaper suggested that William disagreed with Harrys decision to publicly complain about coverage of his relationship with new girlfriend Meghan Markle.

The spokesman says William supports Harrys desire to support those closest to him.

Harry took the unusual step earlier this month of confirming his relationship with Markle, an American actress, and saying he was concerned for her safety because of press harassment.

It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm, the statement from Kensington Palace read.

He knows commentators will say this is the price she has to pay and that this is all part of the game. He strongly disagrees. This is not a gameit is her life and his.

She recently visited Harry in London.

With files from USA Today

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Canadas largest importer of donor sperm has repeatedly brought semen into the country from foreign sperm banks that was not fully screened for infectious diseases  including HIV, hepatitis and syphilis  and distributed it to physicians and fertility clinics to use on patients trying to get pregnant, the Star has learned.

Newmarket-based Outreach Health Services has failed its annual safety inspections with Health Canada three times in recent years because of serious violations of legislation and regulations intended to protect Canadians using donor sperm, according to documents obtained from Health Canada.

The company received non-compliant ratings on its inspections this year, in 2011 and 2009. Fourteen of 19 violations, formally known as observations, are considered critical and major.

Many relate to incomplete screening questionnaires.

Certain health and behaviour criteria such as drug use, exposure to foreign blood or body fluids were not adequately assessed as part of the donor screening process, Health Canada spokesperson Rebecca Gilman says.

On a number of occasions, Outreach promised Ottawa it would not distribute non-compliant semen to fertility clinics and doctors until foreign sperm banks re-qualified respective donors with new questionnaires.

But not only did Outreach fail to ensure the donors were re-qualified, it went ahead and distributed their semen anyway, Health Canada documents show.

The federal government says it has received no reports of infection transmission related to the breaches.

Outreach is the same importer named in lawsuits from three Ontario women for selling them sperm from Chris Aggeles, a U.S. donor advertised as a healthy, highly educated genius but who turned out to be a college dropout with a criminal past and serious mental health problems. His sperm was used to create at least 36 children around the world, including 10 in Canada.

Outreach declined to comment for this article. It hasnt yet filed a statement of defence in the lawsuits, though it has filed a notice of intent to defend.

The company has told Health Canada it is taking steps to address the violations and ensure future imports meet Canadian regulatory requirements.

The federal government does not require sperm importers to be licensed and, as a result, its authority over the industry is limited.

In an acknowledgement that more needs to be done to protect the increasing number of Canadians turning to assisted reproduction to expand their families  including same-sex couples and single parents  Ottawa recently announced plans to strengthen and clarify the regulatory framework governing assisted reproduction. Plans call for a review of compliance tools to minimize risks associated with donor semen.

But many observers say Canada needs to go further and argue that government licensing of the industry is long overdue.

Many are also calling for changes to the 2004 Assisted Human Reproduction Act, which they consider to be woefully outdated and inadequate.

They blame the legislation, which made it illegal to compensate sperm donors, for Canadas reliance on foreign sperm banks for most of the semen used for assisted reproduction in this country. While there are no official statistics on this, many in the industry estimate 95 per cent comes from jurisdictions outside Canada where donors are paid.

But the idea of compensating donors has opponents who say this would not only commodify sperm but would also open the doors to compensating organ and tissue donors.

Opening up discussion about assisted reproduction is a political hot potato, one the former federal government avoided.

Its becoming increasingly difficult for Ottawa to ignore concerns. More headlines are appearing about the ethical, legal and health problems associated with assisted reproduction  not just with sperm donation, but surrogacy and egg donation as well.

Undertaking regulatory changes is viewed by many as the governments cautious way of starting a national discussion about what needs to be done.

Outreach Health Services president and founder Heather Brooks declined to answer any questions for this story. She will not comment because of the lawsuits involving Aggeles, her lawyer says

Health Canada says that, to date, it has received no reports of transmission of infectious disease due to insemination with semen from Outreach or any importer over the past decade.

Current regulations leave it to processors, or sperm banks, to report investigations into potential disease transmission to Health Canada. Yet Canada has no authority over foreign sperm banks from which most of the semen used in this country originates. Canadian physicians who suspect patients have been exposed to or infected by an infectious agent are required to notify the banks.

The dearth of oversight and transparency in the industry is reflected in Health Canadas inability to answer many questions posed by the Star.

The federal department says it does not collect data on how much sperm is imported into the country, the number of inseminations performed, the amount of sperm distributed by importers, the number of Canadians using donor sperm, and the number of donor-conceived children. Health Canada does say that more and more Canadians are turning to assisted reproduction to help build their families, but again does not collect data on exact numbers.

On questions about the amount of problematic semen distributed by Outreach and the number of women inseminated with it, Health Canada advised this reporter to ask the importer.

Its unclear that these women have even been made aware there was a problem. There are no requirements that they be told they received non-compliant sperm or that they be screened to determine if they contracted infectious disease from it. Outreach has advised physicians and clinics to whom it had distributed the insufficiently screened sperm to stop using it, according to the federal department.

Outreach is the only Canadian importer to have failed an annual safety inspection over the last decade, according to Health Canada. (There are currently four Canadian importers, including Outreach, all based in Ontario.)

Among its most serious transgressions is the failure to follow through on commitments to Health Canada to ensure that some donors, found in previous inspections to have been insufficiently screened, were re-qualified with new medical questionnaires. Outreach distributed their sperm to physicians and/or fertility clinics for use in inseminating patients, despite assurances it would not, government documents show.

An establishments compliance history is always considered when preparing an inspection plan. In situations where inspectors find that an establishment has not met previous commitments, the inspector may change the focus of his/her inspection and elevate risk levels on specific inspection observations, an email from Health Canadas communications branch states.

Francoise Baylis, a Dalhousie University professor and Canada Research Chair in bioethics and philosophy, says the repeated inspection failures are cause for alarm.

If a company has repeated notices of non-compliance, what confidence can the average Canadian woman have in the safety of the sperm she is using? she asks.

Brooks, a registered nurse, was formally notified of the most recent failure in an April letter from Health Canada. An inspection, completed a month earlier, involved a review of a sample of files on imports from the Denmark-based European Sperm Bank and the U.S.-based Seattle Sperm Bank.

Health Canada was especially concerned about the European imports.

This is the third non-compliant rating that Health Canada has issued to Outreach Health Services for its importation activities related to donor semen processed by the European Sperm Bank since 2009, reads the letter.

Even with all the corrective actions implemented by the European Sperm Bank, donor semen is still being supplied to the Canadian market that is not compliant with the semen regulations, it continues.

Different jurisdictions have their own screening requirements for donor semen. Canadian directives require donors to undergo lab tests and complete questionnaires when they donate, and again after their semen has been quarantined for 180 days.

The questionnaires are used to assess donors medical information and are vital to minimizing risk of infectious disease transmission, according to Health Canada. The quarantine period provides a window to see if they carry the viruses or develop antibodies to infection.

These directives are supposed to apply, even if the semen comes from other countries.

An importer that fails an inspection is responsible for taking timely corrective action to achieve regulatory compliance. If it doesnt, Health Canada has the authority to request a recall, issue a public advisory or undertake and administrative seizure. (Under the latter, frozen sperm would remain on site at the affected facility, but Health Canada would have legal control over it.)

An eight-page exit notice that accompanied the April letter to Outreach president Brooks from Health Canada points out where her company breached the regulations in its latest inspection.

Of nine observations cited, one references the Seattle Sperm Bank while all others relate to the European Sperm Bank.

The critical observation cited problems with four European donors whose files were studied, including one who tested positive for Hepatitis C. Subsequent testing came back negative, but Canadian regulations do not allow repeat tests.

The critical observation also noted some European donors were not completely assessed in questionnaires for whether they were at high risk for HIV, hepatitis or HTLV.

The single observation for the Seattle Sperm Bank, rated Risk 2, pointed out shortcomings with questionnaires and microbiological testing.

Among problems found in the failed 2011 and 2009 inspections:

Some European donors did not get required lab tests for syphilis.

A European donor answered yes to a question asking if he had knowingly been exposed to, diagnosed with, or treated for any sexually transmitted diseases including . . . HPV, herpes or genital warts.

Some donors to both banks were not completely assessed in questionnaires for whether they were at high risk for HIV, hepatitis or HTLV.

Asked what sanctions Outreach has faced for the repeat violations, Health Canadas email states:

As per Health Canadas inspection strategy, importers of donor semen are inspected annually to verify compliance with semen regulations. In the past 10 years, (Outreach) has been subject to 15 inspections, re-inspections and compliance verifications and has had to cease distribution of non-complaint semen on multiple occasions.

The Seattle Sperm Bank also received a warning letter from the U.S.-Food and Drug Administration in 2011 because significant deviations from American regulations were discovered during an inspection. Again, concerns related to inadequate screening of donors for communicable diseases.

Annemette Arndal-Lauritzen, CEO of Nordic Cryobank Group ApS, of which the European Sperm Bank is a part, says she believes there has been some sort of misunderstanding about the inspection outcomes and she is endeavoring to get to the bottom of it. Donors are tested for communicable diseases according to internationally accepted standards, she says, adding that there has never been a single case of transmission.

Seattle spokesperson Fredrik Andreasson says there was no health risk posed by sperm from his company: We do more donor screening and testing than any other sperm bank in the U.S. and the rest of the world. Health Canada has a different set of regulations from the FDA, which we adhere to.

Health Canada says that in updating the regulations it will look at what more it can do to ensure importers follow the rules.

The federal government has invited public commentary on a new regulatory framework until the end of the month and is getting much advice.

The Canadian Standards Association (CSA) has drafted new standards for health professionals who work in the field. The proposed standards, which are subject to change pending ongoing public consultation, call for improved screening of donors, including extensive genetic testing. Ottawa has said it will consider incorporating these standards into the updated regulations.

Dr. Arthur Leader, chair of a CSA subcommittee on assisted reproduction, says there is a potential for such tests to detect genetically linked mental illnesses and identify ineligible donors such as Aggeles.

The draft standards also require that potential donors medical questionnaires be checked against their medical records, another measure with the potential to identify ineligible donors.

The CSA is proposing that screening questionnaires be amended to detect emerging new diseases like Zika.

As well, the organization is proposing that some questions about infection risks be dropped from medical questionnaires because advanced laboratory testing for both viruses and bacteria is so reliable.

Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, chair of the Justice Committee, hopes his government will go further than updating the regulations and will overhaul the Act itself. Specifically, he wants to see it made legal again in Canada for men to be compensated for their sperm, giving them an incentive to donate and making the country less reliant on imports.

The Assisted Human Reproduction Act is totally outdated and is totally wrong in concept. What we have done is closed the industry in Canada and thats forcing us to import sperm that doesnt meet Canadian standards, he remarks.

Housefather expects that during the public commentary on the regulatory changes, the government will hear from many people like himself who want it to go further by undertaking a broad review of the legislation.

Port Hope mother Angie Collins  one of at least seven Canadian women known to have had babies with Aggeles sperm, imported by Outreach  plans to participate in the public commentary.

There are more and more Canadian children like my son who are the products of sperm donation and we could be doing so much more to ensure they are healthy, argues Collins, 46, who fears her 9-year-old boy is genetically predisposed to mental illness.

(Given that the semen regulations deal only with infectious disease, Outreach did not violate them when it imported Aggeles sperm.)

Collins is in favour of legalizing paid donation, but it is a contentious topic with many opponents who warn its a slippery slope. They note that Ottawa and provinces like Ontario have seen fit not to commodify blood, organ and plasma donation.

One of the guiding principles of the Canadian legislation is that trade in the reproductive capabilities of women and men should be prohibited. In other words, in Canada we dont want Canadians to sell their body bits. We understand that this can result in exploitation, Baylis argues.

She would rather see Ottawa do more to encourage Canadian men to donate altruistically by removing disincentives. This could be done, for example, by addressing uncertainties created by outdated family law, which leave donors unsure of whether they will have parental obligations  including financial obligations  to children created from their sperm.

Baylis argues that licensing of the industry would go a long way toward protecting Canadians by giving government more enforcement clout.

It should have been done long ago, she explains, noting that the 2004 Assisted Human Reproduction Act initially included licensing provisions, but much of the legislation was declared unconstitutional in 2010 and repealed two years later.

One of the clear benefits of a licensing system is that if a company like Outreach Health Services failed to meet health and safety criteria its licence could be revoked. What better way to protect the health and safety of Canadians? she says.

Prompted by its most recent failed inspection, Outreach issued halt usage and quarantine notices to all fertility clinics and physicians to whom it had distributed insufficiently screened sperm, according to Health Canada.

It also quarantined its inventory of semen from the European and Seattle banks: a total of about 1,381 units from 181 donors.

Outreach has told the federal government it plans to work with the Seattle bank to re-qualify donors using a new questionnaire that addresses deficiencies in initial screening questionnaires. Its also creating and revising standard operating procedures.

As for the European bank, Outreach is giving up on trying to get it to meet Canadian screening standards, according to Health Canada. Outreach has advised Ottawa that it is returning its imports from European and no longer plans to do business with it.

As an added safeguard, the Canada Border Services Agency will be on the lookout for imports from the European bank, Health Canada says.

As well, even though the federal government has no authority over foreign sperm banks, it has sent letters to the five remaining ones selling semen to Canada  they all happen to be American  reminding them of our regulations.

Lastly, Health Canada says it plans to re-inspect Outreach later this month to ensure corrective actions are being taken.

Meantime, the importers non-compliance status remains.

Theresa Boyle can be reached at tboyle@thestar.ca or 416-869-4915

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The practice of yoga is based on the geometry of the human body and the natural world we inhabit. Our dramatic version of the classic Pyramid Pose was inspired by the asymmetrical crystalline structure that soars above the prayer hall at Torontos Ismaili Centre. This pose requires lots of practice, so please be patient with yourself and consider each step along the way a celebration of your own sacred architecture.

1. From a standing position in the centre of your sticky mat, step your right foot forward, as if you are minding a large gap, and turn the left toes out 45 degrees. The feet should be separated left-to-right like they are standing on train tracks rather than on a tightrope.

2. First, inhale both arms skyward and then exhale as you reach your arms and torso toward the horizon, before framing the front foot with your hands. You may use yoga blocks to help you reach the ground if necessary.

3. Lift and lengthen the spine as you inhale then, maintaining the length from pubic bone to chin, exhale your torso over the front leg.

4. Turn all ten fingers to face the back of your mat and walk the finger pads towards the foot behind you until your arms straighten and your hands resemble little pyramids. Feel free to bring your blocks along for the ride. Most practitioners will stay right here for five breaths.

5. However, if your flexibility and spirit of adventure allow for it, try pivoting the back heel off the mat, rooting your fingers into the ground and lifting the back foot towards your seat by bending only at the knee. Do your best to keep the hips from shifting forward as you remove the support of your back leg.

6. Defy gravity in this daring, cantilevered shape for up to five breaths, before reverse engineering the pose and repeating on the second side.

A contemporary take on traditional architecture

When visioning the Ismaili Centre, architect Charles Correa turned the lens of contemporary design on a rich and ancient architectural tradition. According to the website of the Ismaili Centres, Its design draws upon the traditions of Islamic architecture and incorporates these in a contemporary Canadian context, reflecting the Ismaili communitys permanent presence in Canada as well as its desire to welcome others in an exchange of cultures and ideas.

YuMee Chung is a recovering lawyer who teaches yoga in Toronto. She is on the faculty of a number of yoga teacher training programs and leads international yoga retreats. Learn more about her at padmani.com.

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MONTREALA Quebec man threatened to kill his girlfriend and her son with a car bomb if his plans to join Daesh and reunite with his family in Syria were revealed to the police, the mans criminal trial has heard.

Ismael Habib is the first Canadian to face trial on charges of attempting to leave Canada to join a terrorist group after he was arrested last March by the RCMP. The charge is a recent addition to the Criminal Code of Canadaan attempt to crack down on those attempting to join Daesh, also known as ISIS or ISIL, and other outlawed armed groups in Syria and Iraq.

Habibs arrest was the result of a complaint in February 2016 by his girlfriend, whose identity is protected by a court order. She testified in a Montreal courtroom Monday that Habib was in regular contact with his Quebecoise wife and children, who were living in Syria.

Following his arrest, the girlfriend testified that she received a flurry of messages from Habibs wife, Romaissa Hammouya.

The first was a text message from a number that Habib has used to contact his family: Did you have something to do with this? Hammouya asked.

The girlfriend panicked. A few days later, she received a photograph purporting to show Hammouya and her children. It was accompanied by a question: Do you think you can win against this?

Next, there was a telephone call from a woman speaking in English who said: We saw what you did. Were going to come. Were going to fight you. Youre going to die, the girlfriend testified.

The threats came after a fairly quick courtship and cohabitation that began in November 2015 when Habib and his future girlfriend made contact on an online dating site used by Muslims. He originally explained that he was divorced and that his children were with their mother in Algeria.

After a few dates and conversations about what they wanted out of the relationship, the two moved into an apartment in Gatineau, Que., which Habib insisted be leased in her name alone.

They soon clashed over the issue of religion. The girlfriend described herself as a non-practising Muslim. Habib prayed five times a day, wore a beard and told her he wanted her to wear a veil, a lose-fitting robe known as a jilbab, to stop working because she was in contact with other men and to cut contact with her non-Muslim friends. She testified that the tensions led her to take a medical leave from work.

Habib was not working either, though he received about $1,600 from student loans and child benefit payments, the girlfriend testified.

During the days, she said that Habib followed closely news of the fighting between Daesh and the Syrian army on the internet and made no attempt to hide it when he watched propaganda videos put out by the terrorist group, including gruesome scenes showing mass executions.

But one day, when Habib was out of the apartment, his girlfriend started looking through his tablet computer and came across an online chat with Hammouya. It revealed that the couple was not, in fact, divorce.

She was devastated and confronted him. He came clean about his past and his future intentions, she told the court.

He wanted to go and join his family, the woman testified, adding that learning the truth made her fear for her security and that of her school-aged son.

Habib was more transparent when communicating with his wife and children from that point on, and the girlfriend testified that Hammouya began taunting Habib, telling him that he was wasting his time in Canada.

Rather than doing nothing, you should do your jihad there, the girlfriend recounted of one conversation, adding that Hammouya suggested he obtain a firearm and attack a police officer.

Habib also told her about a failed attempt in June 2014 to obtain a Canadian passport using his twin brothers name and government-issued identification.

The woman also came across a fraudulent passport from another country that Habib seemed to think would be the one he would use to eventually flee Canada. He had shaved his beard for the photograph.

He told her he believed his best mode of travel was by boat due to a prior criminal investigation into his activities. And Habib seemed certain that he was being monitored by the authoritiesso much so that his girlfriend testified that he began communicating in writing rather than by talking.

All of it was to achieve his single goal, she said.

The goal was to get to Turkey, to get to Syria and join his family, she told the court.

When Habib confided to his Hammouya that his girlfriend in Gatineau was aware of his intentions, he was scolded, prompting him to issue his threat.

If you report me I will put a bomb in your car, the girlfriend testified she was told.

She replied defiantly that he could do whatever he wanted to her automobile because she had insurance.

He shot back: Youll be insideyou and your kid.

It was the final straw, prompting the woman to go directly to the local police and press charges. The complaint led to a search warrant at the couples apartment and his arrest on terrorism charges.

The trial, which is scheduled to run for two weeks, continues Monday afternoon.

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OTTAWAJustin Trudeau has returned from his first visit to Africa as prime minister, but the issue of security on the continent will continue to dominate as he prepares to reveal the location for the promised UN peacekeeping mission.

It is a question that needs to be taken seriously, based on facts and engagement with our allies and our partners, Trudeau said Sunday in Antananarivo, Madagascar, where he led the Canadian delegation to the summit of la Francophonie.

Trudeau has tasked Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, who recently travelled through Africa on a fact-finding mission, with preparing a recommendation on where Canada should deploy up to 600 troops and about 150 police officers it has promised to contribute  at a cost of $450 million  to a UN peacekeeping mission.

We need to make sure that Canada is having the best possible impact and thats what Canadians expect a government to take seriously, said Trudeau, who said to expect a decision within the coming days or weeks.

That was his way of telling everyone to wait and see, but it did not stop those at the summit from raising the issue.

Michaelle Jean, the secretary-general of la Francophonie, said it was essential for the members of the organization, which includes 31 countries in Africa, to discuss how to make peacekeeping operations more effective through greater co-operation between countries and better co-ordination of their actions.

We could not discuss growth, discuss development, without evoking the necessity of also working towards more security and better stability, Jean, the former governor general, said at the closing news conference.

The Antananarivo Declaration that was reached by consensus at the summit includes a resolution reaffirming the desire of la Francophonie to encourage the participation of French-speaking personnel in peacekeeping operations deployed in French-speaking countries.

Roch Marc Christian Kabore, the president of Burkina Faso, raised his own experience with UN peacekeeping missions in Darfur and Mali, the latter being one of the countries seen as a strong contender for a Canadian mission.

Kabore said his country had negotiated with the UN to bring home some of its own troops from a mission in Darfur to deal with domestic security issues that came to a head in January with terrorist attacks on a luxury hotel and cafe in the capital of Ouagadougou.

Six Canadians were among the 30 killed in the attack, for which the Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility.

Kabore also said his government asked the UN to move some of their troops taking part in the dangerous mission in Mali  where more than 100 blue helmets have been killed since the mission began in April 2013  to areas near the border with Burkina Faso.

The challenge for African peacekeeping teams is always the issue of training and the issue of adequate equipment, said Kabore.

Earlier this month, Abu Khare, a top UN official in charge of peacekeeping logistics around the world, said Canadian combat troops and helicopters are urgently needed in Mali to protect and transport peacekeepers as they make perilous journeys to the north of the West African nation.

While the Trudeau government did not reveal the destination for the Canadian contribution, it did announce $112.8 million for international assistance projects on climate change, skills development, economic growth and the empowerment of women and security in Africa and Haiti.

That included two smaller projects dealing directly with counter-terrorism and the prevention of radicalization leading to violence, including $300,000 for greater police presence and capacity along the borders in northern Niger in order to help mitigate the spread of terrorism in the Sahel region of Africa.

Another $200,000 was allocated for a research initiative that would help develop programming to combat violent extremism in Diffa, a region in southeastern Niger that has been rocked by attacks from the terror group Boko Haram.

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A handful of women, swaddled in white towels and synthetic black robes, chat excitedly, comparing cuts and colours, as they are ferried, one by one, between hair wash stations and stylists chairs.

Its a standard sight for a chic west-end salon, save for one detail.

The women at Studio67 this morning are not the young professionals who populate the lofts and condo towers of this King St. W. and Bathurst St.-area neighbourhood.

Theyre peer outreach workers at Sistering, a womens drop-in and support organization.

Some have been homeless. Some have been sex workers. Some continue to fight drug addiction and mental health issues. Some are just one bad month away from being back on the street.

Today, though, theyre just women relaxing with friends.

This is the first time Ive ever gone to a salon with a (group of women), said Dana.

To be able to spend a day hanging out getting our hair done, its really nice and its not an experience Ive gotten.

She and most of the other women prefer not to have their last names used because of troubled pasts, Sistering said.

Dana spent close to a decade with a $300 to $400 a day crack habit, feeling isolated from the outside world.

I was suffering severely from depression. I didnt get out of bed for nine years except to smoke crack.

Once she connected with Sistering, Dana began to pull herself out of addiction and social isolation.

Shes still underhoused, stuck on a waiting list for an affordable home, paying rent she cant afford on an apartment thats practically condemned.

The last time her hair was cut, a few months ago, Dana did it herself. It was uneven. She hasnt felt right about it since.

When you dont like your hair it really sucks, she said.

A trip to the salon is a chance to get the look she wants, and an opportunity to exert control over her own life, she said.

Its a chance to say were not just addicts, were people, we have feelings and (are) able to do nice things with the ladies.

Studio67 has opened its doors to the women of Sistering one day a month since the spring, offering free hair and makeup treatments to women who, for the most part, would never be able to afford them on their own.

Our motto is, Everybody deserves to have hair they like, said salon owner Chanel Cezair. I find that its an avenue thats a little forgotten about.

Coming into work on Sistering days is a pick-me-up in dreary, busy weeks, she added.

The moment you come in youre like Ah, this is awesome.

Sistering runs a 24-hour-a-day drop-in for homeless and vulnerable women. They provide a safe space for women to stay, and promote safe drug use and safe sex, handing out condoms, clean needles, clean crack pipes.

Women can come get hot meals, shower, do their laundry. We have case workers, we have onsite psychiatrists, doctors, said Carol Danis, who runs Sisterings peer harm reduction program.

The peers, the women getting their hair done, are women who are, or have been, homeless or precariously housed.

They can relate to women on the street the way a staff person cant, said Sistering executive director Patricia OConnell. Theyve been there, theyve lived the experience, and theyre on the other side or working their way through it.

One of the peers, Jessica, held out a pair of tiny coloured brushes, showing off the dyes shes having put in her hair. Theres a dark brown, and a bright red for tone.

I think its awesome for women to get a chance to come and get their hair done, she said.

She pointed across the room to Karen, another Sistering peer, whose new hairdo Jessica has deemed awesome.

I got the Grace Jones look, said Karen, running her hand over her short-cropped hair. Ive always wanted this type of haircut.

Karen lived on the street for 15 years. She smoked crack. She was a sex worker. She has schizophrenia.

Karen works multiple jobs, now. Shes had housing since 2002. She said she considers herself more blessed than many of the other women at Sistering.

Still, a day at Studi67 is a rare and fulfilling opportunity.

For once Im in control, Karen said. Its not someone else in control of my life. For once its me.

Its a great boost to be able to walk into a high-end salon without being judged or stigmatized, said Danis.

This kind of opportunity to go to a five-star salon and have them totally cater to their hair and beauty is such a plus, she said.

They look great, theyre happy, said OConnell. One of the women from (last month) said to me, The women at Studio67 treated me so nicely. They gave me a great haircut, they gave me a cup of coffee, they treated my like a real person. That just says it all.

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Not again.

Exactly three months to the day a woman was shot dead in a back alley, a South Riverdale neighbourhood erupted with pain and shock again after Toronto emergency services were called to a home on Munro St., in the Dundas St. E. and Broadview Ave. area, just before 4 p.m. Sunday.

Police and paramedics responded to a report of five gunshots fired inside a unit on Munro St.

Inside, officers found an obviously deceased male on the second floor, Det. Murray Barnes of the Toronto Police Service told media Sunday evening.

Barnes said police would not be releasing the mans name, age or cause of death until at least Monday, but said police believe he was a resident of the unit.

I will tell you that he suffered very obvious signs of death, said Barnes.

In fact, the EMS officers made that call and left him there and backed out of the apartment.

The killing is Torontos 61st homicide this year.

As the evening wore on, some neighbours began clustering on each others front steps or sitting on the curb down the street from the scene, comforting each other.

Many said they knew the victim, who described as being in his mid-20s, but declined to be interviewed. A woman could be heard wailing and sobbing loudly in an alleyway; residents said she was the victims sister.

As the residents spoke, one name was heard over and over again  Peggy Ann Smith, the 61-year-old woman who was shot and killed in alley behind a home near Don Mount Crt. And Kintyre Ave., a street away, on Aug. 27. Police were searching for a pair of young men seen fleeing after that shooting, but it does not appear that anyone was ever charged.

Again! one distraught woman cried. Three months to the day Peggy died. How the f--- did this happen again?

Fred Beny has lived next to Munro St. for about six years. He said he came home Sunday afternoon to see the street taped off and flashing police lights.

It deeply worries me, Beny said. Im not used to living like this, wondering whens the next murder, what kind of guns, its scary.

Although Beny said he didnt hear anything this time around, he did in August  he was sitting in his living room when gunshots rang out, and went outside to see what was going on.

By the time I came out in the back alley... I went down, took a look at her, (Peggy) was dead. It was sad.

Police patrolled the area more frequently after Peggys murder, he said, but went back to normal after about a month.

It just makes me sad. Its not shocking, Beny said. Its a great neighbourhood when this aint happening.

Barnes said it wasnt clear if the two killings were linked, but police would investigate all possibilities.

In the meantime, officers were canvassing the area, speaking to witnesses and reviewing video of the incident. Barnes said the video in particular would play a huge role in the investigation.

It was daylight, so thats a huge advantage for us, he said.

Local residents remained out on the street well into the evening. One woman began hysterically screaming when several police officers walked past her.

You need to fix Toronto! she bellowed.

Get the f---ing guns off our streets!

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Former Toronto mayor John Sewell was inspired to sponsor a Syrian refugee family early last year, long before the images of little Alan Kurdi shocked the world into action.

He reached out to his neighbours in the Bathurst and St. Clair area to ask if they wanted to help. The response was overwhelmingly positive  and in July 2015 the Hillcrest Sponsorship Group was born.

Im amazed at how relatively easy it has been with our family, said Sewell, who teamed up with 20 or so others who live near Hillcrest Community School to give a family uprooted by war a chance at a new life.

The Suleymans  parents, Omar and Aleye, and their two daughters and a son  arrived in February and settled into a fully furnished apartment in the part of the city known as Little Arabia, near Victoria Park and Lawrence. The kids were enrolled in school immediately, and have thrived, he said.

The group had initially raised $40,000 to support the family who had been living in Ankara, Turkey, after fleeing their home in war-torn Aleppo. They have since collected another $5,000 to $6,000 to pay for dental care.

The months have flown by since the family arrived, but its gone shockingly well, said Sewell.

The most challenging thing for the adults has been learning English, Sewell said. But even then, they have done pretty well, with lots of ESL classes and a desire to work.

I keep comparing Omar to me, he said. You want to teach me Arabic in this age of my life, cmon!

Suleyman, who worked as a cook for some time in Turkey, had been eager to start work, and the group was able to land him jobs in short-order kitchens. But his lack of English has been a little roadblock, so private classes will continue. The group recently hired an English tutor to come to his home after work.

Its been a tremendously positive experience, said Mary McConville, one of the sponsors. Despite the challenges  like learning English, adapting to a new culture, leaving family back home, and dealing with the adjustment of leaving a conflict zone 

And what happens when the sponsorship groups year of support is over? The group has already started planning for that  with three members tasked with watching the budget.

The family has been living within the budget. Nobody is feeling shortchanged. We are going to have money left over after the year is over, said Sewell.

And even when the year is over, McConville is certain the friendship, and ties to the community will continue.

We dont think of this as before and after, she said.

We have developed strong relationships to the family and will continue to support them, she said. But in the meantime, we are trying to do whatever we can to prepare them for independence.

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Throughout his adult life, Mohamed Salih estimates hes been stopped 15 times by police across southern Ontario, including in Toronto, Peel, Kitchener-Waterloo and his hometown, London. Each time it was for no reason. Each time it was humiliating.

Since becoming a city councillor, Salih, 30, says the likelihood of being carded has lessened. He knows others who look like him  young, black  arent so lucky.

In an emotional address to London city council last week, Salih detailed the damaging effect of carding, also known as street checks, on racialized residents. His voice breaking, he spoke about his little brothers devastating realization that police had pulled over their car because the family is black, and about the difficult conversations Salih knows he will have someday with his own children about the police.

Urging his fellow councillors to take a stand against controversial police practice of carding  when police stop, question and document people not suspected of a crime  Salih invited his colleagues to be on the right side of history.

This is just another part in the chapter of equality, he said, prompting a standing ovation from city council.

Moments later, the council unanimously passed a motion calling for a permanent end to the practice of street checks in London, saying the recently revised provincial regulations are not enough to address the systemic racism behind the practice.

Its believed to be the first city in Canada to pass a motion banning street checks.

With a battle looming at the police board level, it is  for now  a symbolic statement. But London councils move illustrates how, across the province, there remain lingering concerns that Ontarios carding regulations wont go far enough to eliminate random and discriminatory stops.

Where we are at today, its been rebranded, Salih said in an interview with the Star. Its like Coca-Cola  theyve changed how much sugar, but it still will have a negative impact on the community.

Introduced in March, the provincial regulations make clear that police cannot attempt to collect identifying information from someone based on the colour of their skin or the neighbourhood they live in; a series of Toronto Star investigations has shown that carding practices disproportionately affect young black and brown men.

The provincial regulations contain new, rights-based requirements, including that officers must issue a receipt at the completion of a carding interaction with their name, badge number and information about making a complaint. The new rules come into effect on Jan. 1, meaning police services boards across the province are in the midst of developing their own policies to ensure compliance.

Yanni Dagonas, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, said in an email that the provincial regulations make clear that arbitrary collection of identifying information by the police is unacceptable.

All police services across the province must comply with the ban (on arbitrary street checks), he said in an email.

Last week, the Toronto police board passed a revised policy that goes beyond the baseline provincial requirements in some areas, including mandating three times more officer training.

But the board opted to retain the personal data collected through years of damaging and, in some cases, unconstitutional police stops, despite sharp criticism from community members who urged the board to delete the data.

Another major criticism of the provincial regulations is that exemptions could allow discriminatory stops to continue. Under the provinces new rules, officers who are, for example, investigating general criminal activity in an area are required to inform someone they stop that they do not have to provide any information.

However, officers do not have to inform the person of their right to walk away and not answer questions if the officer has reason to believe this could compromise an ongoing investigation or risk someones safety.

Knia Singh, a vocal anti-carding activist, said the regulations are a step forward in the fight against carding, but he remains concerned about the exemptions.

If an officer decides that they want to use those as a crutch to continue to arbitrarily detain people or racially profile people, thats where problems are going to happen, he said.

It will be up to members of the community to be informed about their rights and to complain when they believe an officer has not followed the regulations. Senior officers and police oversight bodies must then ensure complaints are properly investigated and that officers are held accountable, Singh said.

The province has made changes to its Police Services Act to ensure compliance with the regulations. Under these changes, any violation of the rules on collecting identifying information could be considered misconduct, Dagonas said.

But Rinaldo Walcott, an associate professor of sociology and equity studies at the University of Toronto, remains concerned that exemptions will provide too much leeway for officers to stop members of the public without cause.

This week, he was among more than 50 black academics, writers and community organizers to sign an open letter to Torontos city council and the provincial government, calling for the abolition of carding, the destruction of carding data and an immediate directive to police officers that carding cannot be used as an investigative tool.

We say reform is not enough, Walcott and other signatories write.

In London, where that message has come from city hall, the motion to ban street checks is, for now, a strong but largely symbolic one.

Next month, Mayor Matt Brown will take the message to the London police board, on which he sits, and aim to persuade board members to send the directive to London police to stop the practice.

Its not a sure bet they will follow suit. On Tuesday, 90 minutes before city council was set to meet and discuss the motion to ban carding, Londons police Chief John Pare and Jeannette Eberhard, chair of the citys police services board, held a last-minute press conference to send a message: that street checks will continue under new provincial regulations.

Lets allow our police officers to do their job under these new regulations and look for the mandatory and very public reports that will be available, Eberhard told the press conference.

The possibility of yet another bitter carding stalemate between police and a civilian board  known all too well in Toronto and Peel region  is another concern surrounding the carding regulations.

Anthony Morgan, a Toronto-based community advocate and lawyer, worries there is potential for another impasse in Toronto because the new carding policy doesnt explicitly reassert the power of the board.

Significant problems have arisen in the past out of a lack of clarity within Ontarios Police Services Act regarding where a police boards powers end and a chiefs begin. (Former community safety minister Yasir Naqvi told the Star this year this problem will be addressed in the ongoing rewriting of the Police Act.)

If it can happen once, its tough to say it cant happen again, Morgan said, referring to a bitter dispute between the Toronto police board and then chief Bill Blair that halted progressive restraints on carding.

But Howard Morton, a member of the Law Union of Ontario and former head of the provinces Special Investigations Unit, said even before the Police Act is rewritten, its already clear that boards have the authority and jurisdiction to direct a chief on carding.

Asked what will happen if the police board adopts councils ban on carding, a London police spokesperson said the service wont be speculating on the outcome of discussions that may or may not occur between the board and the chief until that has occurred.

In an interview, Mayor Brown said he wouldnt make assumptions before the police board meeting.

I think we need to let this conversation unfold, he said. This should be a powerful message from a unanimous vote that was delivered by council.

Salih says he is staying positive, but knows banning carding wont be as simple as a city council motion.

I just hope that (board members) really listen to a council that represents almost 400,000 people and unanimously said, Stop it.

Wendy Gillis can be reached at wgillis@thestar.ca .

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Three Ontario mothers are suing a Newmarket-based importer of sperm and a U.S. sperm bank for selling them semen from a donor who was advertised as a healthy genius with multiple degrees, but who turned out to be a college dropout with a criminal past and a number of serious mental illnesses.

They are among 26 mothers around the world who had babies with sperm from Chris Aggeles, 40, of Georgia. He sold his sperm between 2000 to 2014 and it was used to create at least 36 children  17 girls and 19 boys.

In Part 1 of this investigation, published earlier this year, the Star introduced readers to Port Hope resident Angie Collins, who, until now, has been the only one of these mothers to speak out and tell her story. She was also the first of 13 to turn to the courts for help.

Allegations of wrongdoing by importer, Outreach Health Services, and sperm bank, Xytex Corp., have not been proven in court.

In a statement of defence filed in response to Collins lawsuit, Xytex has denied allegations. Outreach has yet to file statements of defence though it has filed notices of intention to defend. No one from the company would comment for this story because of the ongoing litigation.

The Star has now tracked down the other two Ontario moms following in Collins footsteps. In Part 2 of the investigation, Diane and Eileen tell of how they learned their sperm donor was not the man they thought and how they worry about their childrens health. To protect the children, the mothers have asked that real names not be published, so pseudonyms have been used instead.

Diane

Like other mothers who conceived babies using sperm from Xytex donor 9623, Diane is worried about her childs genetic predisposition to mental illness.

Schizophrenia, one of the illnesses with which the donor has been diagnosed, occurs in 10 per cent of people who have a parent with it, according to the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health.

Dianes fear was particularly acute in spring 2014, immediately after learning of 9623s real name and the fact he has health problems.

Xytex had mistakenly identified donor Chris Aggeles in an email to some other moms who had used his sperm to get pregnant. The moms researched him online and found a posting from him discussing his struggles with schizophrenia.

Word quickly spread within a community of 9623 mothers who had connected through the U.S. Donor-Sibling Registry, an online forum for donor-conceived families.

Oh my God, I was in tears when I heard the news, says Diane, a northern Ontario resident.

Though her daughter, Sarah, was then only 3, Diane found herself studying the child closely for symptoms. Even normal childs play became a source of concern. Diane remembers panicking when she overheard the girl talking to her toys.

I thought, Oh my God, did he pass this on to her? I was so paranoid. It was all so overwhelming, she says.

Its always in the back of my mind when she is playing or chatting. Is she displaying any signs? I dont even know what to look for. Is there anything I can do now? What do I tell her? These are the things you ask yourself.

Diane, 45, says that if she had known seven years ago what she knows today about the fertility industry, she never would have used a sperm bank.

But back in 2009, she placed her trust in physicians and industry representatives and took her cues from them.

Her desire to be a mother was strong and her biological clock was ticking, but there was no man in her life. She discussed the dilemma with doctors.

My family doctor said sperm banks are safe, that they screen their donors. Even the fertility specialist said these people we deal with screen their donors rigorously, she recounts.

Dianes fertility clinic got its sperm from Canadas largest importer, Newmarket-based Outreach Health Services. She was directed to Outreachs website, which includes links to sperm banks and donor profiles.

At the top of the list of attributes she sought in a donor was good health.

Nobody on this planet would ever want a child who could potentially be sick. Nobody in their right mind would ever wish that on their child, Diane says, emphasizing that she is speaking not only of mental illness. Everybody wants their child to be healthy, so you are not going to pick a donor who has cancer or comes from a family with big health problems.

Dianes statement of claim in her lawsuit against Outreach and Xytex, filed last April, says she was drawn to Xytex donor 9623 because his profile showed he had a superb health history.

On a six-page health questionnaire  which asked if he or any immediate relative has any of 143 medical conditions, including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder  9623 answered no to everything except colour blindness, which his father has.

Xytexs website states that is does not corroborate the medical and social histories provided by donors. Diane says she does not recall seeing this.

The next items on her criteria list were education and achievement. Donor 9623s profile showed he was working on a PhD and had an IQ of 160, which happens to be the same as Albert Einsteins and Stephen Hawkings.

Diane also wanted a donor who resembled her, so that her child, in turn, might also. Donor 9623s profile showed him to have blue eyes and blond hair, same as her.

The photo on his profile was of a strikingly handsome young man with the chiseled features of a model. He looks very different in other photos subsequently discovered on social media. They show a man with a rounder face and brown hair.

(The Star is not publishing the profile photo at the request of some mothers who want to remain anonymous. They fear that friends and family, to whom they have shown the picture, would recognize him and make the link.)

Diane says she was suspicious of the photo because it was just too perfect.

Out of caution, she called Outreach to ask if the man in the photo and the donor were one in the same. Outreach contacted Xytex and got confirmation, she says.

Still not satisfied, Diane called Xytex herself. A (representative) confirmed, I have met this donor. He is an excellent donor. She was really pushing this particular donor. She was really boasting about him, Diane says.

The next day I ordered it (his sperm) because I trusted her, she adds.

Her daughter was born the following year.

For part 1 of this investigation, the Star uncovered public documents showing much of the information Aggeles included in his profile was untrue. Many documents came from a Georgia court where Aggeles pleaded guilty in 2005 to a charge of burglary and sentenced eight months in jail.

Medical records, submitted as evidence, show he has had diagnoses of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and narcissistic personality disorder. Court documents reveal he has described himself as having schizoaffective disorder. There is also reference to cannabis-induced psychotic disorder, significant grandiose delusions and numerous hospitalizations.

Court records show he had dropped out of college and had a difficult time holding down jobs. (He did manage to graduate with a bachelors degree last year.) They also cite a history of arrests for trespassing, DUI and disorderly conduct.

Allegations in lawsuits against Xytex and Outreach from the three Ontario mothers include failure to investigate, fraud and negligent misrepresentation. They have not been proven in court.

Xytex continues to defend itself in the various courts and has no other comment at this time, the companys lawyer Ted Lavender wrote in an email.

In an open letter posted on Xytexs website last year, then president Kevin OBrien indicated the company relies on the honour system when it comes to collecting medical and social histories of donors. Xytex has always been up front about letting would-be parents know the company does not corroborate such information, he said.

Outreach declined to comment. Aggeles and his lawyer have not responded to numerous requests for interviews.

Diane and other mothers want to see changes in the industry to improve screening and protect families.

I trusted all the professionals every step of the way, she says regretfully. Now I may have potentially given my daughter a life that I dont understand and that I really dont know how to deal with.

She describes Sarah, now 5, as a bubbly social butterfly.

Shes my world and I cant imagine a life with out her. I am so blessed. But the fact is no one would purposely want their child to be sick.

Eileen

Early one morning 19 months ago, Eileen was sipping her first cup of coffee of the day and scanning her Facebook feed when she came across a posting from another mother who had used donor sperm to conceive.

Thank God my donor isnt this (person), the other mom wrote, referencing a news story she had flagged about Chris Aggeles, a U.S. man whose sperm was used to create at least 36 children and who has turned out to have serious mental illness.

Eileen, now 45, was about halfway through the article when she was struck by something that sounded familiar. The story said the donor was working on a PhD in neuroscience engineering.

Thats when I got thinking, wait, hang on a sec. I got looking at it more closely and realized it was my donor. My jaw dropped and I just felt my stomach turn, she recounts.

She ran up the stairs of her eastern Ontario home to the bedroom of her sleeping 5-year-old son.

I started crying and apologizing to him for having inflicted all of this. As a mom, you just want the best for your child. To think, I brought this on him because of a bad decision . . .

Eileen had always thought that one day she would marry and have children, but life didnt work out that way. When she was approaching 40 and still single, she began to think about going it alone.

In 2008, a fertility doctor referred her to sperm importer Outreach Health Services to find a donor. Canada is largely reliant on foreign countries for sperm and some critics say thats because its illegal in this country for men to be compensated for donations.

She was advised by Outreach that Xytex Corp. was the largest and most reliable sperm bank, says a statement of claim in a lawsuit she filed against the two companies last April.

Eileen was comforted by Xytexs claims of rigorous donor screening. Its website declared the company to be an industry leader in reproductive services with a commitment to unsurpassed quality controls, the lawsuit notes.

Eileen studied Xytexs online catalogue of donors and found one she liked. Donor 9623 had two university degrees with a third in the works, a clean medical history, and apparently robust sperm.

A client specialist with Outreach Health Services Inc. told the plaintiff that Donor 9623 was one of Xytexs most popular donors and that he already had 10 offspring, her statement of claims says.

Indeed, he was so popular that his sperm was rarely available, she was told. So when Eileen had an opportunity to purchase some, she jumped at the chance.

A year later, she gave birth to a son.

The same day she learned of her donors mental illness, she sent an urgent email to Outreach: You need to know that there is an issue with 9623.

Eileen wanted to alert the company so it could, in turn, warn other families who had used his semen, she says.

She was perplexed by Outreachs email response. It said that Xytex was confident that there was no misrepresentation made about the donor, she recounts, repeating a line from her lawsuit.

I remember thinking, What? You mean you knew about this? What the . . .?

Her lawsuit alleges the two companies failed to concede the truth about 9623 as they pursued their commercial motives without any consideration for the safety of the plaintiff or her child.

She wasnt informed of his health problems even though Xytex pledged on its website to alert families if it learns new information about a donor . . . that is deemed medically significant.

Aggeles has since admitted that he falsified information on his donor application, according to Eileens statement of claim. It says he acknowledged fabricating his IQ and education at the urging of a Xytex official so that he would appear as a more attractive donor.

If anything, he was encouraged to tell lies, and bolster his intelligence and education levels, it charges, adding that he also lied about his mental health history.

San Francisco lawyer Nancy Hersh, who is representing many of the American mothers suing Xytex, says Aggeles made the admissions to her during an interview last year.

He also revealed to Hersh that he was given only a 10-minute physical examination during which no physical or mental health history was discussed, according to the statement of claim.

What particularly horrifies Eileen is that, at the time she learned of Aggeles health problems, she had been trying to get pregnant again, using his sperm. Her lawsuit alleges the two companies tried to sell her additional units of his frozen semen in January last year, some six months after they had been informed by other mothers of his mental health problems.

I was in active treatment to have a second child with the same sperm. The sperm bank tried to sell me units of it after this whole fiasco came out, she says incredulously. Its completely outrageous, unacceptable.

Eileen is pursuing a lawsuit because she doesnt want other parents to go through what she has.

She and Diane wants to remain anonymous in their legal challenges to protect their children, but Xytex is challenging this in court. Xytex has yet to file statements of defence in these lawsuits.

Eileen wonders if that is just a strategy to get her to drop the claim.

I dont know what to expect from this court case. I have written it off that I made some poor decisions.

Asked if she feels getting pregnant through sperm donation was a mistake, Eileen responds with a reference to 9623s glowing donor profile: No . . . well . . . if it sounds too good to be true . . .

She hearkens back to that Facebook post that first alerted her to problems with her donor. The sender also wrote: Thank God, I chose a very normal, average donor.

In making what she thought was an excellent choice in a donor, Eileen says: At least I know Im not alone.

Reporter Theresa Boyle can be reached at tboyle@thestar.ca and at (416)869-4915.

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A Toronto teen is hoping to change the lives of visually impaired people around the world with a new app that can identify virtually any object with the quick tap of an iPhone or iPad.

Anmol Tukrel, a 17-year-old grade 12 student at Holy Trinity School in Richmond Hill, has always been fascinated with technology, particularly artificial intelligence. By the time he was in grade 7, he was already teaching himself how to code.

Growing up, Tukrel often travelled to Pune, India to visit his aunt who worked at the K. K. Eye Institute, a hospital dedicated to providing eye care for people who cant afford it. That experience, combined with an internship at a startup that uses computer vision to make products for advertising firms, led him to the perfect idea for a Canada-Wide Science Fair project.

I thought I could use computer vision for a more humanitarian use, and help visually impaired people, he said.

Tukrels iPhone app, iDentifi, allows users to take a photo of virtually any object, and then describes that item in great detail back to the user. People can also take photos of text and have it read back to them, in one of 27 languages. Tukrel hopes it makes every day tasks  like picking out the can of pop you want  easier for people who are visually impaired.

Jason Fayre, the head of accessibility and assistive technology at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, tested out the app and, although there are similar apps on the market, gave it a rave review.

Im extremely impressed, especially that it was written by a grade 12 person, he said. As a blind person himself, Fayre said iDentifi would make his life in easier when trying to identify things in the kitchen.

If I dont know what a particular can of something is, being able to take a picture and have that information read back to me in great detail is very useful, he said.

It took Tukrel more than a year to develop the app, a process that involved months of painstaking research and enough code to fill a two-inch binder. He had initially planned on making his own convolutional neural network  computer speak for the data structure used to make the a program that recognizes objects. Eventually, he opted to integrate existing programs.

Tukrel casually speaks about computer vision, convolutional neural networks, and application program interfaces as though he were a university graduate of computer science  not an about-to-graduate high schooler.

Ive always liked technology, but as much as I like playing video games and using different apps, I wanted to be able to make them myself, Tukrel said.

For Tukrel, the work doesnt stop now that the science fair is over.

He has already met with various organizations to get feedback on the app, and plans on making tweaks to improve the user experience. So far, the app has been downloaded by several thousand people and is being used in 60 countries. And, its free, something Tukrel doesnt plan on changing.

I want people who are visually impaired to use it without thinking of the financial consequences of doing so, he said. We have such great technology and I think its important that everyone has access to it.

Correction, Nov. 28, 2016: This article was edited from a previous version that misspelled the name of the city of Pune.

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In the end, their religious differences didnt matter a bit.

As the Syrian refugee crisis escalated, members of Maple Grove United Church and Shaarei Beth-El Synagogue in Oakville and Mississaugas Islamic Society of North America mosque joined forces in March 2015 to do what they could to help.

They called themselves Abrahams Children Together and quickly raised $40,000 to sponsor a refugee family.

Rabbi Stephen Wise says he encountered some early resistance from a few of his congregants who questioned why they were helping a Muslim family and wondered if Muslims would sponsor a Jewish family if the situation was reversed.

But all the questions were answered when the family came to Canada and to the synagogue and spoke with our congregants. The oldest son wrote a speech in English. The mother brought her own five-layer cake, Wise recalled of the arrival of the Al Balkhi family  a couple and their five children  originally from Damascus who came to Canada in December after three years in Jordan.

The family was just overwhelmed with gratitude. They couldnt believe they were in a Jewish synagogue and its members cared enough to raise money to bring them here and welcome them to their place of worship.

Another great moment came, Wise said, when the sponsorship group found a townhouse in Mississauga for the family and volunteers loaded a big truck to move the donated furniture to their new home.

The kids were so excited to have their own rooms. They were wowed, saying this is my desk, this is my shelf, this is my bed. They set up their own furniture. This is their house, he said. When we were done, we ordered some pizza. We shared pizzas and talked about how special this moment was.

There have also been some difficult moments, however.

It took the groups volunteers several months to secure the townhouse for the family after being turned away by landlord after landlord who refused to rent to refugees.

There was a time when a volunteer escorted one of the older children to a job interview as a security guard only to be met with scorn from the employer who asked why an immigrant job-seeker had to be accompanied by a white Canadian man for something so simple.

As the private sponsorship groups one-year financial assistance is coming to an end next month, Dr. Aliya Khan of Canadians in Support of Refugees in Dire Need, which inspired the religious groups to come together, said the community is concerned about the looming Month 13 when the Al Balkhi family is expected to make it on their own financially.

We have that worry. Rents have to be paid monthly. We are planning for it. The two older boys are working and the parents are taking English classes. The mom is a very good cook and we are helping her to provide catering for our congregations, said Khan.

But these are hard working, honest people. They want to be independent and contribute to society. When you have those qualities, it becomes easy.

Asyad Al Balkhi, the eldest son, said the family is grateful for the support from the group.

We are all doing good. My siblings are in school. My other brother works in sales administration. My father is looking for a job. Everybody is happy, said the 20-year-old, who hopes to one day go to university to study business and commerce.

Khan said what has been the most gratifying for her over the past year is to see the smiles and joy on the Al Balkhi childrens faces.

If we can save one life by opening our door and giving them a bright future as opposed to death and destruction, it is all worth it, she noted.

Through other partnerships, Khans own group has also brought three other refugee families  one each from Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon  to Canada in the past year, with two other families of five still waiting in Jordan.

I will definitely do it again. Its such a fulfilling experience to see all these different faith groups coming together. We all worship the same God, love and respect, she said.

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Isidro Zarate had just watched his wife walk into a Walmart in northwest San Antonio when a fight caught his attention.

A man and woman were arguing in the parking lot crowded with Black Friday shoppers about 4 p.m. The man had grabbed the woman by the hair and was beating her.

So Zarate pulled his car up to the couple and told the man, Take your hands off her, according to police.

The man did, police say, but only to reach for his gun.

All (Zarate) did was verbally say, Take your hands off her, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus told reporters at the scene. At that point, the assailant pulled a firearm and started shooting.

One shot hit Zarate in the neck, killing him. He died in the parking lot. He was 39.

A woman riding in the car with him was hit by shrapnel or flying glass, police said, and was injured.

A stray bullet also flew through the Walmart parking lot, wounding a third woman who wasnt involved at all, McManus said. Both women are expected to recover.

Police identified the suspect as Teles Mandan Juarez, 21.

Juarez sped away from the scene but was pursued by the police departments helicopter. Police arrested him about 16 kilometres from the Walmart.

He was charged with aggravated assault and retaliation, both felonies. He could also face a murder charge.

Meanwhile, Zarates wife, Lisa Benavides, was oblivious to what was going on outside the crowded store.

Her mother had wanted to go to San Antonios annual public lighting of the River Walk for the holidays. But Benavides wanted to get a new outfit for the occasion, so they braved Black Friday crowds to make a Walmart run.

She promised to hurry as her husband circled the packed parking lot.

She quickly found an outfit, raced through the self-checkout because it was fastest, and stood at the curb with her bag. She waited in the parking lot for the familys Toyota Camry to pull up.

Instead, she saw police cars.

Curious, she inched closer to the police tape, but officers and their vehicles obscured her view.

I asked a man standing nearby what happened and they said someone got shot, she said. I asked if that was a Toyota Camry and when the cars moved, the man could see and he said yes.

I knew right then it was my car. I started running. And I went underneath the line and they said, You cant go back there, and one of the cops grabbed me and said, Who are you? 

I said Thats my husband. 

Through tears on Sunday morning, Benavides told The Washington Post that she was shocked by the outburst of violence that took her husbands life, but not surprised that his final act was to help someone.

She recalled a Teddy bear of a man who was quick to give spare change or leftover food to homeless people.

Theyd both grown up poor, and empathized with people who were struggling.

Zarate was a childhood friend of Benavidess brother. For years, he harboured a crush on the woman who would become his wife, but shed tell him, Get out of my house and stop eating my food.

She was won over by his kindness, especially by the way he was protective of her when she was a new mother and her relationship with her babys father fizzled.

He raised my oldest son since he was 8 months old, she said. He raised him like his own, even though (the childs) father wasnt in the picture.

They went on to have three more boys. Their sons are now 17, 19, 20 and 23.

Zarate was the jokester in their family  a storyteller prone to spin a tale when only a yes or a no was required. She always told him to get to the point. He needled her about taking too long at the store.

Beneath it all, he encouraged his family to be kind.

Hes always been like that, Benavides said. Even though people treat you mean, he said youve always got to be nice. And he always said youve got to help people in the long run. Its going to all come back to you.

The family is planning a funeral for Zarate, and has set up a GoFundMe page to cover expenses. The fund was nearing its $20,000 (U.S.) goal Sunday afternoon.

For Benavides, her husbands funeral will be the first big thing she has undertaken on her own in 22 years.

I dont know what Im going to do without him because we were together 24/7, she said, crying. Weve always been together. I cant believe hes gone.

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HAVANAHundreds of thousands of Cubans bade farewell to Fidel Castro on Monday, pledging allegiance to his socialist ideology and paying tribute before images of the leader as a young guerrilla gazing out over the country he would come to rule for nearly half a century.

Lines stretched for hours outside Plaza de la Revolucion, the massive plaza where Castro delivered fiery speeches to hundreds of thousands of supporters in the years after he seized power.

There, and across the country, people signed condolence books and an oath of loyalty to Castros sweeping May 1, 2000, proclamation of the Cuban revolution as an unending battle for socialism, nationalism and an outsize role for the island on the world stage.

Tribute sites were set up in hundreds of places across the country as the government urged Cubans to reaffirm their belief in a socialist, single-party system that in recent years has struggled to maintain the fervour that was widespread at the triumph of the 1959 revolution.

Many mourners came on their own, but thousands of others were sent in groups by the communist government, which still employs about 80 per cent of the working people in Cuba, despite the growth of the private sector under Castros successor, his brother Raul.

One of the first in line at Plaza de la Revolucion was Tania Jimenez, 53, a mathematician who arrived at 4 a.m. carrying a rose.

Fidel is everything to us, the soul of this country who gave everything, all his life, Jimenez said, in tears.

Sandra Aguilar, a 48-year-old doctor, said her visit to the memorial had two goals: We came to say goodbye to our commander, to reaffirm our support of the revolution, she said.

After 10 years of leadership by Raul Castro, a relatively camera-shy and low-key successor, Cuba has found itself riveted once again by the words and images of the leader who dominated the lives of generations. Since his death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have run wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel Castro, broadcasting non-stop footage of his speeches, interviews and foreign trips, interspersed with adulatory remembrances by prominent Cubans.

Inside the memorial, thousands walked through three rooms with near-identical displays featuring the 1962 Alberto Korda photograph of the young Castro in the Sierra Maestra mountains, bouquets of white flowers and an array of Castros medals against a black backdrop, framed by honour guards of uniformed soldiers and children in school uniforms. The ashes of the 90-year-old former president did not appear to be on display.

Signs read: The Cuban Communist Party is the only legitimate heir of the legacy and authority of the commander in chief of the Cuban Revolution, comrade Fidel Castro.

The scene was played out on a smaller scale at countless places across the country.

At the Jose Antonio Mella school in Ciudad Escolar Libertad, on the western outskirts of Havana, schoolkids in golden uniforms and local residents quietly lined up one-by-one to sign the oath. By late morning, there were already more than 1,000 signatures.

Across the street in a community centre, 70-year-old retiree Jose Menendez Marquez served as an honour guard as Cubans filed past the photo of Castro. He struggled to keep his chin high as tears rolled down his cheeks.

There is no one else in the world like Fidel, Menendez said. He did so many things for the Cuban people, its incredible, innumerable. He delivered us from misery, from hunger.

Over the weekend, ordinary people had largely stayed at home, off streets hushed by a prohibition on music and celebration during the nine days of official mourning for Castro. For some, particularly younger Cubans, Castros death barely registered.

Yankemell Barrera, a 20-year-old student, said Castro wasnt a strong presence in his life and that he wasnt much affected by his death, nor did he plan to go to any of the memorial events. He said studying for finals would be a better use of his time.

Even if Im obligated to go, Im not doing it, he said.

Castro died two years into the process of normalization with the United States, a country that he spent decades fighting and defying. Three months after the restart of U.S. commercial flights to Cuba after five decades, the first regular flight to the capital, Havana, touched down Monday at 8:25 a.m., setting off cheers from passengers.

Thirty-five minutes later, simultaneous 21-gun salutes sounded in the capital and in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953.

All schools and government offices will be closed for a second day of homage to Castro on Tuesday, after which a massive rally will take place on the Plaza de la Revolucion.

Its a terrible sadness. Everyones feeling it here, said Orlando Alvarez, a 55-year-old jeweller. Everyone will be there.

On Wednesday, Castros ashes will begin a three-day procession east across Cuba, retracing the march of his bearded rebel army from the Sierra Maestra to the capital. The ashes will be interred on Sunday in Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago, Cubas second-largest city.

More on thestar.com:

History will absolve me  memorable quotes from Fidel Castro over five decades

Trudeau defends statement expressing deep sorrow over Fidel Castros death

Miami Cuban celebration winds down into reflection following Castros death

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WASHINGTONOn Sunday morning, U.S. president-elect Donald Trump assured us all that a recount of the 2016 election wouldnt change the outcome and was a waste of resources. In a tweetstorm, he quoted Hillary Clinton:

Later Sunday, though, he made a real case that we should have no confidence in those same election results, alleging massive voter fraud:

Trump, of course, is pointing only to fraud that benefited Clinton; Virginia, New Hampshire and California are all states she won, and the baseless idea that illegal immigrants voted by the millions is supposed to have helped Clinton, given the fact that immigrants  and specifically undocumented ones  overwhelmingly favour Democrats.

Trump was doing this to make the case that he didnt actually lose the popular vote, which has become a Democratic rallying cry following Clintons loss. Its clearly a sore spot for Trump.

But the president-elect is also, unwittingly and amazingly, calling into question the results of an election that he won nearly three weeks ago. The logical extension of his argument is that all results should not be trusted. In effect, Trump is lending credence to the very same recount effort that he criticized as superfluous.

A caveat on all of this: There is absolutely no evidence of Trumps alleged large-scale voter fraud. And even Clintons campaign, while joining in recount efforts initiated by Green Party nominee Jill Stein, has acknowledged as much. So I am not saying that there is suddenly a real reason to doubt the fact that Trump won the 2016 election.

What I am saying is that, if the system was susceptible to the kind of pro-Clinton fraud that Trump is alleging, who is to say that it wasnt also susceptible to manipulation that might have benefited Trump? Trumps argument is that our electoral system was vulnerable to all kinds of shenanigans that could have changed the results in specific states. Why not shenanigans instigated by Russia, which experts say aided Trump during the campaign with fake-news propaganda? Or something else? There is also no evidence of this, but apparently evidence is not required for our next president to make a charge.

Trump is alleging that these shenanigans accrued to Clintons benefit, but if the U.S. system has so many holes in it, why couldnt those holes have helped Trump in the states that mattered? If illegal immigrants can vote and there was real voter fraud in states such as California, New Hampshire and Virginia, why couldnt these things have happened in circumstances and places that didnt hurt Trump? Why not in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, where Trump won the presidency by a margin of about a point or less? If the system is that shoddy, its probably shoddy everywhere.

Trump is saying that something happened  on a large scale. Hes basing this on dubious internet sources, but hes raising doubts about results of an election that made him the president-elect. Its hard to argue, from that point, that its not worth examining just how many real irregularities there are and whether they all just happened to accrue to Clintons benefit. This is the president-elect and the soon-to-be leader of the free world, after all, and his words are supposed to carry weight.

This is just Trump being Trump, of course. He is the president-elect, yes, but hes also a bona fide conspiracy theorist. (Remember how Ted Cruzs dad might have been involved in JFKs assassination?) We can no longer dismiss his fomenting of these baseless theories as some political ploy; its who he is. And hes willing to call into question anything that doesnt show him to be the clear winner. Given that he will lose the popular vote by as much as two full points, hes in desperate search of an excuse for this fact.

But in doing so, hes also calling into question his win. He cant have it both ways, and hes letting his pride get the better of him.

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On May 19, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attended a Liberal Party fundraising soiree at the home of a wealthy Chinese-Canadian.

Canadian citizens who attended paid $1,500 each for the privilege. By law, foreigners  including an unknown number of Chinese nationals who were there  did not.

One attendee, Canadian financier Shenglin Xian, was awaiting final federal approval of his plan to set up a new bank. He received that approval two months later.

Another, Chinese billionaire Zhang Bin, later contributed much of a $1-million charitable donation made to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and the University of Montreals law school.

Thats the bare bones of what happened. But since Tuesday, when news of this event was first reported by the Globe and Mail, the May 19 fundraiser has dominated the Commons.

In political circles, it has eclipsed even the election of Donald Trump.

Trudeau has been accused of selling access for cash and of breaking his own ambitious integrity guidelines.

Even the charitable foundation set up in honour of Trudeaus late father has been drawn into the fray.

In language reminiscent of the Cold War, the prime minister has been accused by Conservative MP Candace Bergen and others of dallying with Chinese Communists  what my old comic-book hero Sgt. Rock used to call ChiComs.

Over the week, all of this made my head hurt. So please bear with me as I try to sort out what, if anything, occurred that was inappropriate.

First, the event itself was legal. Maybe such meet-and-greets, where donors get to briefly hobnob with elected politicians, should be banned. But at the federal level, they are not.

The Liberals point out, correctly, that all political parties engage in this kind of behaviour in their efforts to raise money.

Did anything untoward happen on May 19 as the prime minister glad-handed his way around a room chock-a-bloc with billionaires? Id be surprised. Ive seen Trudeau in operation. Hes invariably both charming and non-committal.

Like all successful politicians, he has the knack of making whomever he is speaking to feel like the most important person in the room. But he rarely says anything of substance.

Second, what about those ChiComs? Is Trudeau really a latter day Manchurian Candidate?

Anything, of course, is possible. But while it might be ironic to find that Chinese billionaires are card-carrying Communists, it should not be surprising. The Communist Party runs China. Chinese billionaires understand this and so, I suspect, does Conservative MP Bergen.

Canada could decide to boycott China until the Communist Party has fallen. But I dont see the Conservatives calling for this.

Third, should Trudeau have hobnobbed at this event with would-be banker Xian? Xian is a long-time figure in Chinese-Canadian business circles. When former prime minister Jean Chretien led Team Canada trips to China, Xian accompanied him.

As the Star reported in 2005, the financier has a controversial past. At one point, the appeal panel of a professional association to which he belonged slapped his wrist over his business practices.

None of this stopped his rise. Last year, according to a timeline provided by the federal finance department, Xians Wealth One Bank of Canada was provisionally awarded rare schedule-one status by then Conservative finance minister Joe Oliver.

In July, two months after the Trudeau fundraiser, Xians bank was granted full schedule-one status by the federal superintendant of financial institutions.

Should Trudeau have gadded about last May with someone whose request to government was still pending? The answer is no. Did that $1,500 dinner secure Xian his lucrative banking licence? I doubt it.

Finally, the foundation. Billionaire Zhang may have made his generous donation to the Trudeau foundation because he truly admired Pierre Trudeau. Or he may have been trying to curry favour with his son. Who knows?

What we do know is that Zhang seemed to have received nothing from this contribution other than a warm glow. The donation (to what even Trudeaus critics agree is a reputable charity) didnt earn him access to the prime minister. He already had that.

Conservative interim leader Rona Ambrose says that Trudeaus action last May dont pass the smell test. And maybe they dont.

But as fans of Asias durian fruit know, smell doesnt tell you everything. While the durian smells like putrid gym socks, its flesh is succulent and sweet.

It is a reminder that things arent always as they seem.

Thomas Walkom appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

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After a week in Canada, I return home full of respect for your bilingual and multicultural society. I only wish I could find a way to have something similar in the country in which I live  Israel.

Canadians know that Israel has many features of a democracy. The very fact that Arab-Palestinian citizens like me can vote and that I was elected to the Israeli parliament is evidence of that.

But Israel defines itself as a Jewish and democratic state. The emphasis is definitely on its Jewishness. Equality and full respect for its Palestinian minority are not important parts of the Israeli definition of democracy.

I am one of the country's roughly 1.5 million Arab-Palestinian citizens. We are the remnant of the indigenous Palestinian people who survived the 1948 War and surrounding events, known by Palestinians as al-Nakba (the catastrophe). We make up about one-fifth of the country's population today, but we have been excluded from the centres of powers in Israel.

My week in Ottawa showed me concretely that what Israel calls democracy is very different from what Canadians call democracy.

During my visit to your Official Languages Commission, for example, I learned that Canadas federal government must give services in both official languages. In Israel, by contrast, even though Arabic is an official language, and 20 per cent of the population speaks Arabic, we have no official languages act and no official languages commission. Almost everything is in Hebrew  from parking tickets to court trials.

When I visited your Parliament, I saw that translation allows your MPs to use the official language of their choice. What freedom that must give! In the Israeli Knesset, all debates and documents are exclusively in Hebrew, and no translation is provided.

At the Canadian Supreme Court, I learned that Canadas Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees equality to all, and that the Supreme Court uses the charter to rectify systemic discrimination.

Systemic discrimination against Israel's Palestinian citizens is very widespread and too often condoned by the legal system. There is a law against discrimination in employment, of course, but enforcement is lax and can be easily circumvented. As a result, we are far under-represented in all the best jobs in Israel and in all public bodies and institutions. Our schools are poor and underfunded, and our average incomes are much less than those of Jewish Israelis.

At the University of Ottawa, I learned that under the Canadian Human Rights Act, it is illegal to discriminate in renting or buying housing. Unfortunately, there is no similar protection in Israel. Many Israeli apartment owners openly prevent Palestinians from renting or buying. Some rabbis publicly call for excluding Arabs from Jewish communities.

As a civil rights lawyer, who has pled cases before Israels Supreme Court, I know how little protection we have against these widespread discriminatory activities. In some cases, discrimination is actively promoted by law. For example, many Israeli communities are permitted to have admissions committees which decide who they will accept as residents. Under these laws, Palestinian citizens are routinely excluded.

I understand, of course, that Canadas record toward its minorities is not spotless.

From my conversations with Sen. Murray Sinclair, of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, I understand that Canada still has a long way to go in overcoming historical injustices suffered by Canadas indigenous population. Reconciliation is definitely needed.

At your Museum of History, I learned that Canada has systematically obliterated the aboriginal names of many landmarks and given European names instead. Israel did the same thing to us, substituting the names that we had used for centuries with new Jewish names instead.

By the end of my visit, I came to have a deep admiration for Canadas multiculturalism. Canada now has a legal framework protecting minority rights, and a culture which sees these protections as an integral part of your democracy. Canada has even officially recognized Quebec as a nation. And Canada seems to be taking first steps to reconcile with its indigenous minorities.

Many Canadians may not think Canada is perfect, but viewed from the perspective of a Palestinian citizen of Israel, your record in recognizing and overcoming discrimination and inequality looks pretty good. It should definitely be exported.

Dr. Yousef Jabareen is a Palestinian citizen of Israel. He was elected to the Israeli Knesset (parliament) on March 2015. He has a Ph.D. in human rights law from Georgetown University in Washington D.C. He came to Canada in October 2016 on a study tour organized by Canada Talks Israel Palestine, a Canadian NGO.

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For the past few days, Conservative leadership candidates, Trudeau haters and U.S. Republicans have been lashing out at Justin Trudeaus remarks on the death of the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

They have wailed hysterically that Trudeau is now an international embarrassment and that Canadas brand has been ruined because he said Cubans had a deep and lasting relationship with Castro, who he called a remarkable leader.

They are also furious that Trudeau failed to mention in his initial reaction to Castros death that the late Cuban leader was a dictator and that Cubas record on human rights has been abysmal.

Clearly Trudeau could have restrained himself a bit in his first comments about Castro. He is now rolling back some of those remarks, telling reporters on Sunday that Castro was indeed a dictator and noting that he had raised the issue of human rights with Cuban officials earlier this month when he visited the island nation.

But these critics, who are blowing his remarks way out of proportion, obviously have forgotten that Canadian prime ministers from John Diefenbaker to Stephen Harper all retained solid diplomatic and economic relations with the Castro regime.

Indeed, Canada and the U.S. have taken starkly different approaches towards Cuba dating back to Diefenbakers days. It was Diefenbaker who refused U.S. demands to break off relations with Cuba after Castro seized power in 1958 from the corrupt Batista regime and who refused to put Canadian troops on combat-ready alert as demanded by Washington during the Cuban missile crisis in 1962.

It was Conservative Prime Minister Brian Mulroney who maintained solid diplomatic and trade ties with Cuba in what has been described as correct and cordial relations.

And it was Prime Minister Stephen Harpers government that brokered the recent deal between U.S. President Barack Obama and Raul Castro, Fidels brother who now leads the country, that opened the doors to American investment and tourism in Cuba and saw Obama make an historic visit to Havana earlier this year.

During his time in office the late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau had especially warm relations with Castro. That relationship was duly noted when Castro was an honorary pallbearer at Trudeaus funeral in 2000. But while he was expanding trade with Cuba, Trudeau was also voicing deep concerns to Castro on human rights and over Cubas military involvement in Africa, especially Angola.

Since Castro came to power, Canadas positioning on Cuba has significantly diverged from that of the Americans.

While the U.S. isolated the Castro regime both politically and economically, and tried to get other nations to join in its boycott, Canada encouraged increased business and cultural ties with Cuba. Ottawa backed academic and cultural exchanges and provided foreign aid for programs designed to improve the lives of average Cubans.

Today, Canadian companies are heavily involved in Cubas mining, travel and tourism industries. And Canadians comprised the single largest group of tourists, with more than 600,000 visitors a year.

Trudeau wont be attending Castros funeral. Instead, Gov. Gen. David Johnston will represent Canada.

But Trudeau can continue to play a role in influencing Cuba to be more open to the world, to welcome more foreign investment and to allow its citizens to emigrate as they wish.

With the death of Fidel Castro and the promise by Raul Castro to step down in 2018, Cuba seems ready for big change.

Obviously, U.S. relations with Cuba, which improved under Obama, will be more hostile under incoming president Donald Trump. But long-time Castro backers in Cuba should not use Trumps hatred of Cuba as an excuse to avoid liberalization and opening the country further.

To do so would be a shame, and a setback to yet another generation of Cubans who love their country but yearn to engage and thrive in a post-Castro world.

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Bank stocks in Italy fell sharply Monday as traders reduced holdings ahead of a key national referendum on constitutional reform that could topple the government and spark major changes for Europe's third-largest economy.

Monte Dei Paschi di Siena (BMDPY) , the country's third largest lender, fell more than 7.5% in the opening half hour of trading before having its shares suspended from trading in Milan. Market regulators also approved its plans for a 4.3 billion ($4.6 billion) debt-for-equity swap that will launch later Monday and run for the balance of the week.

Shares in Unicredit, Italy's biggest lender, fell 3.96% to 1.89 each, extending the year-to-date decline to 65%. The bank is hoping to raise as much as 13 billion next year in order to shore up its finances and offset bad debts on its balance sheet.

The FTSE Italy Banks index, the broadest measure of share performance for the country's lenders, was down 3.45% by 09:30 CET in Milan while the FTSE MIB index fell more than 330 points, or 2% to 16,182.1, the lowest since September 27.

Italy's banks are staggering under a 360 billion heap of bad loans, around 225 billion of which are now classified as "sofferenze", or non-performing, a figure which matches the overall book value of equity capital held for the banking system as a whole.

However, a national plan to offload some of those debts into a so-called 'Bad Bank' fund known as Atlante has run into several roadblocks, including a lack of committed capital and concerns from Brussels that it offers banks a form of state support that is normally not permitted under EU rules.

Atlante II, a spinoff of the original fund, has said it will use 1.6 billion to buy Monte Dei Paschi's bad loans, an amount that could essentially exhaust the firepower of the newly-created fund.

All of this comes just days before Italians head to the polls to vote on a package of constitutional reforms put forward by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. The final surveys for the referendum, published by law last week, suggest voters could resoundingly reject the proposals, potentially triggering the collapse of Renzi's coalition government and fresh national elections.
Crude oil prices finished with gains of more than 2% as traders are more optimistic that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, will deliver a deal to cut production by Wednesday.

Benchmark Brent crude closed at $48.25, up 2.1%, while West Texas Intermediate crude closed with gains of 2.2%, at $47.08.

Prices jumped Monday morning as Iraq's oil minister Jabbar al-Luaibi said the country would cooperate with the group to reach an agreement that is "acceptable to all," adding that he is "optimistic" the cartel can get a deal done, according to Reuters.

"A deal may very well be likely given the lack of one would signal OPEC's diminished credibility and that several countries and OPEC officials have their reputations on the line," said Herman Wang, OPEC specialist for S&P Global Platts. "Whether the deal is merely face-saving or durable and significant is the key question."

Saudi Arabia shook traders confidence over the weekend when it suggested OPEC didn't need to reduce output to rebalance the oil market as increasing demand over 2017 will serve to drain a supply glut that has weighed on prices.

"We expect demand to recover in 2017, then prices will stabilize, and this will happen without an intervention from OPEC," said Saudi Arabia's energy minister Al-Falih, according to quotes appearing Sunday in Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat. "We don't have a single path, which is to cut production at the OPEC meeting, we can also depend on recovery in consumption, especially from the U.S."

Global Head of Commodities and Real Assets for S&P Dow Jones Indices, Jodie Gunzberg, does not see a deal heavily impacting the global fundamentals. "It may be too little too late and may actually lengthen the rebalancing because OPEC would be cutting from all time high output," said Gunzberg. "Even a fully implemented cut would leave OPEC production near historical highs."

OPEC surprised oil markets in September when it announced plans to reduce supply to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels per day, an about 5% cut to current member nations output. The organization is due to deliver that agreement on Wednesday, but progress toward finalizing each nations quotas has been hampered by resistance from the groups No.2 and No.3 producers, Iraq and Iran, who have argued they should be exempt from the deal.

"As always with OPEC, the details of the deal and how it is implemented will be key," said Wang. "That is because OPEC has no formal authority to enforce compliance. Whether non-OPEC producers choose to participate is even less within OPEC's control," he added

A production cut deal would likely push oil prices past $50 a barrel, while a failure to strike a deal could lead to a slump of as much as $10 per barrel, noted JP Morgan analysts on Monday. The bank puts the likelihood of a deal at about 60%.

WTI futures have fallen 5% since hitting a November high of $48.03 on Tuesday last week after Iraq and Iran hinted that they could be willing to accept production cuts that would ease the burden of output reduction on Saudi Arabia. Oil prices have been unusually volatile since September as traders react to often unscripted comments by OPEC delegates hinting at the waxing and waning prospects for a deal.

Saudi Arabia's insistence that the market is close to rebalancing due to growing demand is backed by analysts at Goldman Sachs, who said Monday that the oil market's tightening supported the likelihood that an OPEC deal will be struck.

"It is for that very reason (visibility over the rebalancing) that a deal on the 30th is more likely than not," Goldman Sachs noted Monday. "With oil having given up much of its OPEC related gains, risk/reward on the commodity once again appears skewed positively."

Separately, on Monday Goldman Sachs upgraded ConocoPhillips (COP) from 'Neutral' to 'Buy', tipping the U.S. oil producers to gain 20% over the next 12 months. The bank cited ConocoPhillips' attractive cash flow, claiming they will support dividend payments and debt repayment. Goldman Sachs raised the group's 12 month share price target to $54, up from $47. ConocoPhillips closed Friday at $45.75.
Schlumberger (SLB) , the world's largest oilfield services company, has signed a preliminary deal to study an Iranian oil field.

The Houston-based company, which has a market cap of $113.1 billion, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the state-run National Iranian Oil Company "for the non-disclosure of data required for a technical evaluation of a field development prospect," a Schlumberger spokesperson told TheStreet.

Under the terms of the agreement, Schlumberger can study Rag Sefid, Parsi and Shadegan fields, the Iranian Oil Ministry new website SHANA reported citing the Managing Director of National Iranian South Oil Company Bijan Alipour.

"I am optimistic with future cooperation between the two companies," Alipour said. He added that Schlumberger has a long history with the company, dating back to before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, providing the national Iranian South Oil Company (NISOC) with technical services.

The company said via email that the deal does not involve the execution of oilfield services and Schlumberger will comply with the laws and regulations of the countries where it operates.

Scott Berman, senior analyst for Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS portfolio -- which holds Schlumberger -- believes the deal will have no impact on short-term trading, but says management approached the deal in a "smart way." Iran has a "massive customer market," he says, "one that is largely untapped."

However, the deal comes as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has been highly critical of the nuclear deal with Iran, with Vice President-elect Mike Pence promising that a Trump administration would "rip up the Iran deal" in early October.

Berman noted that the deal for monitoring and research, and not execution of any services, which allows Schlumberger to "have one foot in, and one foot out the door," if relations between the countries becomes pressured.

Although there is uncertainty surrounding the United States' position on the Iranian nuclear deal, other companies are pursuing opportunities in Iran, which is also a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Norwegian oil and gas company DNO has signed a deal to study an Iranian oil field near the Iraqi border, in addition to France's Total (TOT) .

Shares of SLB closed down slightly on Monday.

This story has been updated to include comments from Action Alerts PLUS senior analyst Scott Berman.

Employees of TheStreet are restricted from trading individual securities.



Action Alerts PLUS, which Cramer co-manages as a charitable trust, is long SLB stock.
BMW is taking another stab at its battery-powered i3 sedan, an innovative electric vehicle that failed to excite consumers, at least not sufficiently to satisfy the German maker of premium automobiles.

A German newspaper reported -- and BMW didn't deny -- that a restyled i3 with more range will debut next year. The move comes at a time when BMW and the two other German automakers, Volkswagen (VLKAY) and Daimler (DDAIF) , are preparing a wave of new EV models to comply with stringent emissions regulations.

The $45,000 i3 has sold moderately in the U.S., its availability restricted to California and a few other markets. Deliveries reached about 25,000 worldwide in 2015, placing it behind Tesla's (TSLA) Model S and Nissan's (NSANY) Leaf EVs.

BMW's first battery-powered electric symbolizes the conundrum facing automakers. Tough environmental laws compel them to develop emission-free models in order to keep selling conventional vehicles, yet most consumers are deterred by costly electric technology, as well as drawbacks such as shorter than typical range between charges.

Eddie Alterman, editor-in-chief of Car and Driver magazine, gave i3 high marks for innovative construction said said it's "expensive, strange-looking, and its range as a pure EV is limited."

The first version of i3 had a range of less than 100 miles, which BMW improved to about 120 miles with a more powerful battery. BMW also added a "range extending" two-cylinder gasoline engine that allowed the car to be driven up to 160 miles, without refueling or recharging. The body is fabricated from carbon-fiber reinforced plastic, a costly process meant to keep its weight extremely light.

Todd Lassa, Detroit bureau chief of Automobile magazine, said BMW didn't build a cult following, as Tesla did for its Model S. With gasoline cheap, consumers have less interest in saving money on fuel purchases.

"The i3 is a non-starter," Lassa said. "Simply a place-holder for when BMW is ready to get serious about a sub-$50k green mobile."

According to newspaper Welt am Sonntag, which broke the story of the new i3, BMW plans to restyle the front and the rear of the vehicle, presumably leaving the basic architecture intact, while further improving the range. Even so, i3 probably won't top 200 miles in range, which lately is regarded as a consumer threshold for models such as General Motors' (GM) Chevrolet Bolt EV.

Dutch Mandel, publisher of AutoWeek, said EVs are fighting an uphill battle for consumer acceptance, which could improve as long as batteries get stronger. "We have come to understand we can live comfortably with an electric car, especially as range anxiety wanes with battery technology advancements," Mandel said.

Doron Levin is the host of "In the Driver Seat," broadcast on SiriusXM Insight 121, Saturday at noon, encore Sunday at 9 a.m.

This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held no positions in the stocks mentioned.
Question marks continue to swirl around Italy and how its referendum vote will unfold.

The political uncertainty is reminiscent of the Brexit vote from earlier this summer, but the situation isn't the same, TheStreet's Jim Cramer, co-manager of the Action Alerts PLUS portfolio, said from the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Monday.

Britain's banks are much stronger than those in Italy, he said, reasoning that the Italian banks "desperately need more help." The financial system is simply too weak.

Italy has been a huge beneficiary of the Euro currency, as well as being included in the European Union. Leaving the EU would be bad for the banks and ultimately, bad for their economy, Cramer said.

There's people from the East coming into Italy and taking jobs that many Italians would like to have, he added, which understandably makes many in the country upset.

Because the polls have proven to be so inaccurate during the Brexit and presidential election though, we can no longer trust their accuracy. But it would be smart for Italy to stay, Cramer concluded.

At the time of publication, Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS had no position in companies mentioned.
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Hans Breitenmoser worked with North Wind Renewable Energy to install solar panels at his dairy farm near Merrill earlier in 2016.
Synchrony Financial, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer financial services company in the United States. It provides credit products, such as credit cards, commercial credit products, and consumer installment loans. The company also offers private label credit cards, dual cards, co-brand and general purpose credit cards, short- and long-term installment loans, and consumer banking products; and deposit products, including certificates of deposit, individual retirement accounts, money market accounts, and savings accounts to retail and commercial customers, as well as accepts deposits through third-party securities brokerage firms. In addition, it provides debt cancellation products to its credit card customers through online, mobile, and direct mail; healthcare payments and financing solutions under the CareCredit, Pets Best, and Walgreens brands; payments and financing solutions in the apparel, specialty retail, outdoor, music, and luxury industries; and point-of-sale consumer financing for audiology products and dental services. The company offers its credit products through programs established with a group of national and regional retailers, local merchants, manufacturers, buying groups, industry associations, and healthcare service providers; and deposit products through various channels, such as digital and print. It serves digital, health and wellness, retail, home, auto, powersports, jewelry, pets, and other industries. Synchrony Financial was founded in 1932 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.
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 Prudential Financial: 210-220 E. 22nd Street SSGA Owner LLC, AIG Edison, AIG Star, AREF Cayman Co Ltd., AREF GP II Pte. Ltd., AREF GP Ltd., ASPF II - Feeder Fund GmbH, ASPF II - Verwaltungs - GmbH & Co. KG, ASPF II Management GmbH, ASPF III Scots L.P., ASSURANCE, AST Investment Services Inc., Adlerwerke CB Investment LLC, Administradora de Fondos de Pensiones Habitat S.A., Administradora de Inversiones Previsionales SpA, Aoba Life Insurance Company, Aoba Life Insurance Company Ltd., Asia Property Fund III GP S.a.r.l., Assurance IQ LLC, Assurance Intelligence LLC, BSC CP LP, Braeloch Holdings Inc., Braeloch Successor Corporation, Brazilian Capital Fund GP Limited, Broad Street Global Advisors LLC, Broome Street Holdings LLC, CB German Retail LLC, CLIS Co. Ltd., COLICO INC., Capital Agricultural Property Services Inc., Chadwick Boulevard Investment Holdings Co. LLC, Cibecue LLC, Coconino LLC, Colico II Inc., Columbus Drive Partners L.P., Commerce Street Holdings LLC, Commerce Street Investments LLC, Coolidge LLC, Coral Reef GP, Coral Reef L.P., Coral Reef Unit Trust, Cottage Street Investments LLC, Cottage Street Orbit Acquisition LLC, DICKENS AVENUE HOLDINGS VI LLC, DICKENS AVENUE PARTNERS VI Ireland L.P., DICKENS AVENUE PARTNERS VI US L.P., Dale/P Minerals Limited Partnership, Don Cesar Investor LLC, Dryden Arizona Reinsurance Term Company, Dryden Finance II LLC, EVP II GP S.a r.l., EVP II Horizon GP S.a r.l., EVP II Sprint GP S.a r.l., Edison Place Senior Note LLC, Essex LLC, EuroCore GP S.a r.l., European Value Partners GP S.a.r.l., Everbright PGIM Fund Management Co. Ltd., Flagstaff LLC, GA 1600 Commons LLC, GA 333 Hennepin Investor LLC, GA BV LLC, GA Bay Area GP LLC, GA Bay Area Investor LLC, GA Belden LLC, GA CLARENDON LLC, GA Cal Crossings LLC, GA Collins LLC, GA E. 22nd Street Apartments Holdings LLC, GA East 86 Street LLC, GA JHCII LLC, GA MENLO PARK INVESTOR LLC, GA Manor at Harbour Island LLC, GA Metro LLC, GA TRITON INVESTOR LLC, GA W Paces LLC, GA/MDI 333 Hennepin Associates LLC, GIBRALTAR BSN HOLDINGS SDN BHD, GIBRALTAR INDIA SOLUTIONS LLP, Gateway Holdings II LLC, Gateway Holdings LLC, German Retail Income CP LP, Gibraltar BSN Life Berhad, Gibraltar International Insurance Services Company Inc., Gibraltar International Service LLC, Gibraltar Reinsurance Company Ltd., Gibraltar Universal Life Reinsurance Company, Glenealy International Limited, Global Portfolio Strategies Inc., Gold GP Limited, Gold II L.P., Gold L.P., Graham Resources Inc., Graham Royalty Ltd., Green Harvest Asset Management LLC, Green Tree GP, Green Tree L.P., Greenlee LLC, Halsey Street Investments LLC, Hirakata LLC, IVP Fund GP LLC, Impact Investments Bridges UK S.a.r.l, Inter-Atlantic G Fund L.P., Inversiones Previsionales Chile SpA, Inversiones Previsionales Dos SpA, Ironbound Fund LLC, Jennison Associates LLC, Kyarra S.a r.l., Kyoei Annuity Home Co. Ltd. Kabushiki Kaisha Kyouei Nenkin Home, LINEUP LLC, Lake Street Partners IV L.P., Lotus Reinsurance Company Ltd., MC GA COLLINS HOLDINGS LLC, MC GA COLLINS REALTY LLC, MC Insurance Agency Services LLC, Manor at Harbour Island LLC, Marble Canyon LLC, Maricopa LLC, Market Street Holdings IV LLC, Montana Capital Partners, Morenci LLC, Mulberry Street Holdings LLC, Mulberry Street Investment L.P., Mulberry Street Partners LLC, Mullin TBG Insurance Agency Services LLC, MullinTBG Insurance Agency Services, National Family Assurance Group LLC, New Savanna, Northbound Emerging Manager Fund A LP, Northbound Emerging Manager Fund II - A LP, Orchard Street Acres Inc., PAI Bay Farm LLC, PAI Bayrock Groves LLC, PAI Belvidere Farms LLC, PAI Big Cypress Farm LLC, PAI Corcoran 640 Ranch LLC, PAI DeKalb Farm LLC, PAI Delano 1500 Ranches LLC, PAI Desert Falcon Farms Manager LLC, PAI Flicker Orchard LLC, PAI Good Hope Farm LLC, PAI Hawk Creek Ranch LLC, PAI Hills Valley Ranches LLC, PAI Holly Hill Groves LLC, PAI Hunt Farm LLC, PAI Jackson Bayou Farm LLC, PAI Lake Placid Groves LLC, PAI River Bend Ranches LLC, PAI Wallula Gap Vineyard LLC, PCP V Cayman AIV GP L.P., PEREF II Co-Invest 1 GP S.a r.l., PEREF II GP S.a r.l., PFI EM-Tech Fund I LLC, PG Business Service Co. Ltd, PG Collection Service Co. Ltd., PG Friendly Partners Co. Ltd., PGA Asian Retail Limited, PGA European Limited, PGI Co. Ltd, PGIM AC Co-Invest GP Pte. Ltd., PGIM AVP IV GP S.a r.l., PGIM Advisory Shanghai Co. Ltd., PGIM Agricultural Investments GP LLC, PGIM Australia Pty Ltd, PGIM Broad Market High Yield Bond Fund L.P., PGIM Broad Market High Yield Bond Partners LLC, PGIM Capital Partners Management Feeder VI LLC, PGIM Capital Partners Management Fund VI L.P., PGIM Custom Harvest LLC, PGIM DC Co-Invest GP Pte. Ltd., PGIM DC JV GP Pte. Ltd., PGIM DC Solutions LLC, PGIM European Financing Limited, PGIM European Services Limited, PGIM Financial Limited, PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives Fund II L.P., PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives Fund L.P., PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives GP LLC, PGIM Fixed Income Alternatives II GP LLC, PGIM Foreign Investments Inc., PGIM Holding Company LLC, PGIM Holdings Limited, PGIM Hong Kong Ltd., PGIM INDIA ASSET MANAGEMENT PRIVATE LIMITED, PGIM INDIA TRUSTEES PRIVATE LIMITED, PGIM IRELAND LIMITED, PGIM Inc., PGIM International Financing Inc., PGIM Investments Ireland Limited, PGIM Investments LLC, PGIM Japan Co. Ltd., PGIM Korea Inc., PGIM LTIF Berlin GP S.a r.l., PGIM LTIF Berlin MLP S.ar.l., PGIM LTIF GP S.a.r.l., PGIM Limited, PGIM Loan Originator Manager Limited, PGIM M Campus GP S.a r.l., PGIM Management Partner Limited, PGIM MetaProp Investor LP LLC, PGIM Netherlands B.V., PGIM Overseas Investment Fund Management Shanghai Company Ltd, PGIM Private Capital Ireland Limited, PGIM Private Capital Limited, PGIM Private Placement Investors Inc., PGIM Private Placement Investors L.P., PGIM QUANTITATIVE SOLUTIONS LLC, PGIM REF EUROPE SCSp, PGIM REF Europe GP S.a r.l., PGIM REF Europe Member LLC, PGIM REF Intermediary Services Inc., PGIM Real Estate CD S.a.r.l., PGIM Real Estate Capital VII GP S.a r.l., PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest GP LLC, PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest GP S.a r.l., PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest L.P., PGIM Real Estate Carry & Co-Invest SCSp, PGIM Real Estate Co-Invest Holdings LLC, PGIM Real Estate Debt GmbH, PGIM Real Estate Finance Holding Company, PGIM Real Estate Finance LLC, PGIM Real Estate France SAS, PGIM Real Estate Germany AG, PGIM Real Estate Global Debt GP LLC, PGIM Real Estate Global Master Fund GP S.a r.l., PGIM Real Estate Inmuebles II S de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate Inmuebles S. de R.L. de C.V, PGIM Real Estate Italy S.r.l., PGIM Real Estate Japan Ltd., PGIM Real Estate Loan Services Inc., PGIM Real Estate Luxembourg S.A., PGIM Real Estate MVP Administradora IV S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate MVP Administradora V S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate MVP Inmuebles IV S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate MVP Inmuebles V S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate Management Luxembourg S.a.r.l., PGIM Real Estate Mexico S.C., PGIM Real Estate S. de R.L. de C.V., PGIM Real Estate U.S. CORE Debt Fund GP LLC, PGIM Real Estate U.S. Debt Fund GP LLC, PGIM Real Estate UK Limited, PGIM Scots Limited, PGIM Securities Investment Trust Enterprise, PGIM Senior Loan Opportunities Management (Feeder) I LLC, PGIM Senior Loan Opportunities Management Fund I L.P., PGIM Shanghai Company Ltd., PGIM Singapore Pte. Ltd., PGIM Strategic Financing LLC, PGIM Strategic Investments Inc., PGIM Taronga Investor GP LLC, PGIM U.S. Agriculture Fund LP, PGIM USPF VI Manager LLC, PGIM Wadhwani LLP, PGIM Warehouse Inc., PGLH of Delaware Inc., PIFM Holdco LLC, PIIC Limited, PIISC Holdings UK Limited, PIM KF Blocker V Holdings LLC, PIM USPF V Manager LLC, PLA Administradora Industrial SRL, PLA Administradora LLC, PLA Administradora S. de R.L. de C.V., PLA Asesoria Profesional II S. de R.L. de C.V., PLA Asesoria Profesional S.de R.L. de C.V., PLA Co-Investor LLC, PLA Mexico Industrial Manager I LLC, PLA Mexico Industrial Manager II LLC, PLA Retail Fund I Blue LP, PLA Retail Fund I Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund II Aggregating Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund II LLC, PLA Retail Fund II LP, PLA Retail Fund II Manager LLC, PLA Retail Fund II U.S. Carry/Co-Invest LP, PLA Services Manager Mexico LLC, PLAI Limited, PMCF Holdings LLC, PMCF Properties LLC, PPPF General Partner LLP, PR GA SCP Apartments LLC, PRAMERICA LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY LIMITED, PRAMERICA PRECAP VI GP LLP, PRAMERICA PRECAP VI GP SCOTS FEEDER LLP, PRECO Account IV LLC, PRECO Account Partnership IV LP, PRECO III GP LLP, PREFG Hanwha Manager LLC, PREI Acquisition I Inc., PREI Acquisition II Inc., PREI Acquisition LLC, PREI HYDG LLC, PREI International Inc., PRIAC Property Acquisitions LLC, PRICOA Management Partner Limited, PRISA Fund Manager LLC, PRISA II Fund Manager LLC, PRISA II Pooled Manager LLC, PRISA III Fund GP LLC, PRISA III Fund PIM LLC, PRREF Debt Fund Manager LLC, PRREF II Fund Manager LLC, PRU 3XSquare LLC, PRUCO LLC, PRUDENTIAL CAPITAL ENERGY PARTNERS MANAGEMENT (FEEDER) LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP MEMBER LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP REIT LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP VENTURE 2 LLC, PRUDENTIAL MORTGAGE SKP VENTURE LLC, PT PFI Mega Life Insurance, Passaic Fund LLC, Pine Tree GP, Pine Tree L.P., Platinum GP Limited, Platinum II L.P., Platinum L.P., Pramerica Business Consulting Shanghai Company Limited, Pramerica EVP CP LP, Pramerica Financial Asia Headquarters Pte. Ltd., Pramerica Financial Asia Limited, Pramerica Fixed Income Funds Management Limited, Pramerica Fosun Life Insurance Co. Ltd., Pramerica Holdings Ltd, Pramerica Hong Kong Holdings Limited, Pramerica Insurance Agency China Company Ltd., Pramerica Luxembourg CP GP S.a.r.l., Pramerica PRECAP I GP LLP, Pramerica PRECAP II GP LLP, Pramerica PRECAP III GP LLP, Pramerica PRECAP IV GP LLP, Pramerica Pan European Real Estate Scots LP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital I GP Scots Feeder LLP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital I Scotland Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital II Scots Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital III Scots Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital IV GP Limited, Pramerica Real Estate Capital IV GP Scots Feeder LLP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital IV Scots Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital V Netherlands GP LLP, Pramerica Real Estate Capital V Scots Limited Partnership, Pramerica Real Estate Capital VI Scots Limited Partnership, Pramerica Scots CP GP LLP, Preco III Scotland Limited Partnership, Pru 101 Wood LLC, Pru Alpha Partners I LLC, Pru Fixed Income Emerging Markets Partners I LLC, PruVen Capital Partners Fund I L.P., Pruco Assignment Corporation, Pruco Life Insurance Company, Pruco Life Insurance Company of New Jersey, Pruco Securities LLC, Prudential 900 Aviation Boulevard LLC, Prudential Affordable Mortgage Company LLC, Prudential Agricultural Property Holding Company LLC, Prudential Annuities Distributors Inc., Prudential Annuities Holding Company Inc., Prudential Annuities Inc., Prudential Annuities Information Services & Technology Corporation, Prudential Annuities Life Assurance Corporation, Prudential Arizona Reinsurance Captive Company, Prudential Arizona Reinsurance Term Company, Prudential Arizona Reinsurance Universal Company, Prudential Bank & Trust FSB, Prudential Capital Energy Opportunity Fund L.P., Prudential Capital Energy Partners L.P., Prudential Capital Energy Partners Management Fund L.P., Prudential Capital Partners Management Fund IV L.P., Prudential Capital and Investment Services LLC, Prudential Chile II SpA, Prudential Chile SpA, Prudential Commercial Property Holding Company LLC, Prudential Equity Group LLC, Prudential Financial Inc., Prudential Fixed Income Global Liquidity Relative Value Partners LLC, Prudential Fixed Income U.S. Relative Value Partners LLC, Prudential Funding LLC, Prudential General Services of Japan Y.K., Prudential Gibraltar Agency Co. Ltd. Prudential Gibraltar Agency Kabushiki Kaisha, Prudential Global Funding LLC, Prudential Holdings of Japan Inc., Prudential Huntoon Paige Associates LLC, Prudential IBH Holdco Inc., Prudential Impact Investments Mortgage Loans LLC, Prudential Impact Investments Private Debt LLC, Prudential Impact Investments Private Equity LLC, Prudential Insurance Agency LLC, Prudential International Insurance Holdings Ltd., Prudential International Insurance Service Company L.L.C., Prudential International Investments Advisers LLC, Prudential International Investments Company LLC, Prudential International Investments LLC, Prudential Investment Management Services LLC, Prudential Japan Holdings LLC, Prudential Legacy Insurance Company of New Jersey, Prudential Mortgage Asset Holdings 1 Japan Investment Business Limited Partnership, Prudential Mortgage Asset Holdings 2 Japan Investment Business Limited Partnership, Prudential Mortgage Capital Asset Holding Company LLC, Prudential Mortgage Capital Funding LLC, Prudential Mortgage Capital Holdings LLC, Prudential Multifamily Mortgage LLC, Prudential Mutual Fund Services LLC, Prudential Newark Realty LLC, Prudential QOZ Investment Fund 1 LLC, Prudential Realty Securities Inc., Prudential Retirement Financial Services Holding LLC, Prudential Retirement Holdings LLC, Prudential Retirement Insurance and Annuity Company, Prudential Securities Secured Financing Corporation, Prudential Seguros Mexico S.A. de C.V., Prudential Seguros S.A., Prudential Select Strategies LLC, Prudential Servicios S. de R.L. de C.V., Prudential Structured Settlement Company, Prudential Systems Japan Limited, Prudential Tax Services LLC, Prudential Term Reinsurance Company, Prudential Trust Co. Ltd., Prudential Trust Company, Prudential Universal Reinsurance Company, Prudential Workplace Solutions Group Services LLC, Prudential do Brasil Seguros de Vida S.A., Prudential do Brasil Vida em Grupo S.A., Prudential/TMW Real Estate Group LLC, Pruservicos Participacoes Ltda., QMA JP EM All Cap Equity Partners LLC, Quartzsite LLC, Residential Services Corporation of America LLC, Rio CP LP, Rock European Real Estate Holdings S.ar.l., Rock Global Real Estate LLC, Rock Kensington Limited, Rock Marty GP S.a r.l., Rock Oxford S.a r.l., Rock UK Real Estate II S.a.r.l., Rockstone Co. Ltd., Rosado Grande LLC, Ross Avenue Energy Fund Holdings LLC, Ross Avenue Minerals 2012 LLC, SCP Apartments LLC, SENIOR HOUSING PARTNERS VI GP LLC, SENIOR HOUSING PARTNERSHIP FUND VI GP LLC, SHP IV Carried Interest LP, SHP V Carried Interest L.P., SMP Holdings Inc., SVIIT Holdings Inc., Sanei Collection Service Co. Ltd. Kabushiki Kaisha Sanei Shuuno Service, Senior Housing Partners V LLC, Senior Housing Partnership Fund V LLC, Sterling Private Placement Management LLP, Stetson Street Partners L.P., Strand Investments Limited, TBG Insurance Services Corporation, TENSATOR HOLDINGS LTD, TF Proveedora S.C., TMW ASPF I Verwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, TMW ASPF Management GmbH, TMW Management LLC, TMW Real Estate Group LLC, TMW Realty Advisors LLC, TMW USPF Verwaltungs GmbH, TRGOAG Company Inc., The Gibraltar Life Insurance Co. Ltd., The Keynes Dynamic Beta Strategy US Fund GP LLC, The Prudential Assigned Settlement Services Corp., The Prudential Brazilian Capital Fund LP, The Prudential Gibraltar Financial Life Insurance Co. Ltd., The Prudential Home Mortgage Company Inc., The Prudential Insurance Company of America, The Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd., The Prudential Real Estate Financial Services of America Inc., The WMF Group, Thurloe Commercial Guernsey Limited, USPF V - Verwaltungs - GmbH & Co. KG, USPF V Carry LLC, USPF V Co-Invest LLC, USPF V Investment LP, United States Property Fund VI GP S.a r.l., VIP Australia Holding Company LLC, VIP Australia Trustee Pty Ltd, Vailsburg Fund LLC, Vantage Casualty Insurance Company, Wabash Avenue Holdings V LLC, Wabash Avenue Partners V L.P., Wadhwani Capital Limited, Waveland Avenue Holdings I LLC, Waveland Avenue Partners I Ireland L.P., Waveland Avenue Partners I US L.P., Wellness Services Ecossistema De Bem Estar Ltda., Wellness Services SRL, Yamato Life, and Yavapai LLC.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Pearson: AEL (S) PTE Limited, ATI Professional Development LLC, Addison Wesley Longman Inc., Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc., Aldwych Finance Limited, Americas Choice Inc., Atkey Finance Limited, Author Solutions, Axis Finance Inc., CAMSAWUSA Inc., CTI Education Group (Pty) Limited, Camsaw Inc., Casapsi Livraria e Editora Ltda, Centro Cultural Americano Franquias e Comercio Ltda., Century Consultants Ltd., Certiport, Certiport China Co Ltd, Certiport China Holding LLC, Certiport Inc., Cogmed Systems AB, Connections Academy of Arkansas LLC, Connections Academy of Florida LLC, Connections Academy of Iowa LLC, Connections Academy of Maine LLC, Connections Academy of Maryland LLC, Connections Academy of Minnesota LLC, Connections Academy of Missouri LLC, Connections Academy of Nevada LLC, Connections Academy of New Jersey LLC, Connections Academy of New Mexico LLC, Connections Academy of New York LLC, Connections Academy of Oregon LLC, Connections Academy of Pennsylvania LLC, Connections Academy of Tennessee LLC, Connections Academy of Texas LLC, Connections Education Inc., Connections Education LLC, Connections Education of Florida LLC, Dominie Press Inc., Dorian Finance Limited, Dorling Kindersley Australasia Pty Limited, EBNT Canada Holdings ULC, EBNT Holdings Limited, EBNT USA Holdings Inc., Edexcel Limited, Edexcel South Africa Pty Ltd, Education Development International plc, Education Resources (Cyprus) Limited, Educational Management Group Inc., Educational Publishers LLP, Embanet ULC, Embanet-Compass Knowledge Group Inc., EmbanetCompass, Embankment Finance Limited, English Language Learning and Instruction System Inc., Escape Studios Limited, FBH Inc., Falstaff Holdco Inc., Falstaff Inc., GED Domains LLC, GED Testing Service LLC, George (Shanghai) Commercial Information Consulting Co. Ltd, Global Education, Global George I Limited, Global George II Limited, GlobalEnglish, Globe Fearon Inc., Guangzhou Crescent Software Co. Ltd, Heinemann Education Botswana (Publishers) (Proprietary) Limited, Heinemann Publishers (Pty) Ltd, INTELLIPRO INC., Icodeon Limited, IndiaCan Education Private Limited, Integral 7 Inc., Integrated Analytics LLC, J M Solucoes Exportacao e Importacao Ltda, K12 Learning Services LLC, Kagiso Education Pty Ltd, Knowledge Analysis Technologies LLC, LCCI International Qualifications (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., LCCIEB Training Consultancy. 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Brookdale Senior Living Inc. owns, manages, and operates senior living communities in the United States. It operates in three segments: Independent Living, Assisted Living and Memory Care, and Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs). The Independent Living segment owns or leases communities comprising independent and assisted living units in a single community that are primarily designed for middle to upper income seniors. The Assisted Living and Memory Care segment owns or leases communities consisting of freestanding multi-story communities and freestanding single-story communities, which offer housing and 24-hour assistance with activities of daily living for the Company's residents. This segment also operates memory care communities for residents with Alzheimer's and other dementias. The CCRCs segment owns or leases communities that provides various living arrangements, such as independent and assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing; and services to accommodate various levels of physical ability and healthcare needs. It also manages communities on behalf of others. As of December 31, 2021, the company owned 347 communities, leased 299 communities, and managed 33 communities on behalf of others. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee.
Fuego volcano (Guatemala): 15th paroxysmal eruption in 2015 ended, volcano back to intermittent explosions

Mon, 28 Nov 2016, 15:27 15:27 PM | BY: T 15:27 PM | BY: T

Heat signal from Fuego volcano showing the rythmic pattern of so far 15 paroxysms in 2016 (MIROVA)

Fuego volcano in calm yesterday (INSIVUMEH)

The volcano follows its remarkable cycle of paroxysms (intense eruptive phase with lava fountains and rapid lava flow effusion) at regular intervals of approx. 3-4 weeks.The latest, 15th paroxysm of 2016 so far, has ended a few days ago and the volcano is now in its relatively calm phase in between, characterized by intermittent small to moderate strombolian explosions.The past paroxysm was relatively vigorous compared to most other similar events- in other words, its effusion rate was quite high compared. It produced a strong lava fountain that rose to at least 300 m during the peak activity and several lava flows on the eastern, southern and western flanks that reached up to approx. 3000 m length.Partial collapses of the quickly deposited lava on the upper steep flanks also triggered a number of pyroclastic flows. Moderate ash fall affected the "usual" areas to the southwest including Morelia, Santa Sofia and Panimache, but there were no reports of serious damage or injuries.
AEROSPACE

WTO: Boeing received illegal tax breaks

U.S. plane maker Boeing received major illegal tax breaks from Washington state, a world trade body ruled Monday, adding that the federal government should take action to end that support within months.

The Chicago-based company and the European Union, which backs Boeings key European rival Airbus, both claimed the ruling by the World Trade Organization as a victory in a long-standing battle for contracts between the two aerospace giants.

The WTO found that the support Washington state promised to give Boeing from 2024 to 2040 amounted to prohibited subsidies. The support offered by Washington came on the condition that Boeing keeps the production of the wings for the wide-bodied 777X plane in the state, effectively excluding foreign competition. Boeing has extensive plants around Seattle.

The E.U. said the WTO had ruled that $5.7 billion in subsidies were illegal, out of a total $8.7 billion in measures that it reviewed. But Boeing called that figure excessive and said only future incentives of $50 million a year were found impermissible in the WTO decision.

Appearing to counter both, a Geneva-based trade official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter, said the ruling addressed only the legality of the measures and not the possible financial benefit that could be drawn from the subsidy.

The ruling is a part of a wider squabble involving accusations between the U.S. government and the 28-nation E.U. over support for Boeing and Airbus dating back to 2004.

E.U. Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom called Mondays ruling an important victory for the E.U. and its aircraft industry.

We expect the U.S. to respect the rules, uphold fair competition, and withdraw these subsidies without any delay, Malmstrom said in a statement.

For its part, Boeing said it expected the European bloc and Airbus to appeal the ruling, saying the WTO had found that the U.S. company had not received any benefit yet from the 777X tax rate and wouldnt until the plane is first delivered in 2020.

Todays decision is a complete victory for the United States, Washington State and Boeing, Boeing general council J. Michael Luttig said in a statement. In rejecting virtually every claim made by the E.U. in this case, the WTO found today that Boeing has not received a penny of impermissible subsidies.

 Associated Press

world ECONOMY

OECD raises forecast for global growth

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development lifted its global growth forecasts for 2017 and predicted expansion in 2018 will reach its fastest pace in half a decade as President-elect Donald Trumps planned fiscal stimulus will provide a boost to major economies.

World gross domestic product will now expand 3.3 percent next year, up by 0.1 percentage point from Septembers forecast, the OECD said in a semiannual report. The Paris-based organization sees the global economy expanding 3.6 percent in 2018, the fastest pace since 2011.

The S&P 500 Index has risen to a record high and bond yields have increased since Trump won the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 8. Trumps promises of spending on infrastructure as well as tax cuts should lift U.S. demand, spurring investment and boosting overall output once he takes office in January, increases that should also spill over into the rest of the world, according to the OECD.

Forecasts increased for all major economies in 2017.

The United States will grow 2.3 percent in 2017 and 3 percent in 2018, while the euro area will expand 1.6 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively, the OECD predicted. Growth will now be 6.4 percent and 6.1 percent in China and 1 percent and 0.8 percent in Japan, it said.

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Some of the 2016 cookbooks we intend to keep on WaPo Foods shelves. (Goran Kosanovic/For The Washington Post)

If you had never bought a cookbook before this year, the crop of 2016 could build a first-rate culinary library. But because you are reading this, you probably own cookbooks. (Come to think of it, who doesnt? Even my friends who say they never cook have some on their shelves.) Well, youll want to look through this list, too, with an eye toward replacing a few titles. Thats how impressed I am with whats on offer.

Bakers can delight in Dorie Greenspans must-have compendium of cookies and the stunning pictorials of Uri Schefts breads; Southern and Appalachian foods get star turns from Asha Gomez and Ronni Lundy. Plant-based eating advances in heroic leaps and bounds, thanks to Isa Chandra Moskowitz and to the Philly team of Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby. A few notable chefs tried to shake up the cookbook status quo by splattering a mess here and slipping in profanity there, but L.A.s Jessica Koslow managed to set herself and her work apart to better effect.

It was especially nice to see some backup singers of the culinary world, a.k.a.with authors, step out on their own, such as Genevieve Ko and Julia Turshen. If we were pressed to compose a shortlist, both their books would be on it.

And Im happiest to report the recipe collections that always draw me in the most  handsome, practical, full of dishes you have to try  come from the wisest cooks I know. They inspire and teach us.

Cookbooks are listed in alphabetical order within each category:

For bakers

Art of the Pie: A Practical Guide to Homemade Crusts, Fillings, and

Life , by Kate McDermott (Countryman Press, $35). She is the Piechiatrist, after all  a title that speaks to the bits of wisdom shared in this pages. This book is the next best thing to taking one of her classes.

Recipe to try: Apricot Pie

Better Baking: Wholesome Ingredients, Delicious Desserts , by Genevieve Ko (Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $30). Motivated to update classics with more alternative flours and less sugar, Ko has created some of the most innovative flavor combinations youll find in a baking book, such as Fennel and Currant Corn Bread; Buckwheat Almond Apple Cake; Toasted Walnut and Grape Clafoutis; Chestnut Kisses.

Breaking Breads: A New World of Israeli Baking , by Uri Scheft with Raquel Pelzel (Artisan, $35). Scheft, the force behind Lehamim Bakery in Tel Aviv and Breads Bakery in New York, has contributed mightily to the canon of bread-focused books not only for his wizard use of Middle Eastern ingredients but also for helping to create such stunning process and technique photography.

Recipe to try: Dill Bread, No-Knead Focaccia

Classic German Baking: The Very Best Recipes for Traditional Favorites from Pfeffernusse to Streuselkuchen , by Luisa Weiss (Ten Speed Press/Penguin Random House, $35). This overdue guide is a happy marriage of European craft and American sensibilities. One Weiss tip that will may come in handy elsewhere: Euro size M eggs are equivalent to large ones in the States.

(Octopus Publishing Group)

The Cardamom Trail: Chetna Bakes With Flavours of the East , by Chetna Makan (Mitchell Beazley, $30). The former Great British Baking Show finalist empowers the average home baker to experiment.

Recipe to try: Curry Onion Tart

Dories Cookies , by Dorie Greenspan (Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $35). It was worth the wait. The author always keeps her audience in mind, with clear directions and ideas for substitutions.

Recipe to try: Dorie Greenspans Peanut Butter Change-Ups

The Rye Baker : Classic Breads From Europe and America , by Stanley Ginsburg (W.W. Norton, $35). The genius of this collection is that it has the power to neutralize peoples love it/hate it relationship with such an assertive flavor. The book is geared toward serious breadmakers who wont mind seeking out unusual ingredients.

For a culture dive

The Aleppo Cookbook: Celebrating the Legendary Cuisine of Syria , by Marlene Matar (Interlink, $40). As the souks of this former world food capital lay in ruins, the chef-author links Middle Eastern foods and history.

Recipe to try: Meatballs in Sour Cherry Sauce

Curate: Authentic Spanish Food From an American Kitchen , by Katie Button with Genevieve Ko (Flatiron Books, $35). The Carolina-born chef-restaurateur, whose mentors include Ferran Adria and Jose Andres, makes Spanish food with local and widely available ingredients.

Recipe to try: Cod With Tomato Sauce and Garbanzos

My Two Souths: Blending the Flavors of India into a Southern Kitchen , by Asha Gomez with Martha Hall Foose (Running Press, $35). The authors sure hand and Kerala roots make for a stunning fusion of culinary traditions. It can be as subtle as adding nutmeg and white pepper to the batter of an angel food cake or as seamless as pork in a vindaloo-inspired gravy that can be mopped up with cardamom corn bread.

Land of Fish and Rice: Recipes From the Culinary Heart of China , by Fuchsia Dunlop (W.W. Norton, $35). You wont find a Chinese food cookbook with shorter ingredient lists than this one has  a welcome surprise for the genre. Read Sam Fromartzs article here.

Recipes to try: Spicy Chinese Cabbage; Cool Steamed Eggplant With a Garlicky Dressing

Mexican Today: New and Rediscovered Recipes for Contemporary Kitchens , by Pati Jinich (Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $30). The emphasis is on accessibility here, from one of WaPo Foods favorite authors.

Recipe to try: Stir-Fried Green Beans With Peanuts and Arbol Chilies

Preserving Italy: Canning, Curing, Infusing, and Bottling Italian Flavors and Traditions , by Domenica Marchetti (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, $23). Expect sure-handed advice with a clear and personal point of view.

Scandinavian Comfort Food: Embracing the Art of Hygge , by Trine Hahnemann (Quadrille, $35). The range of recipes steps outside the typical American casserole zone, yet it offers a level of enticing familiarity, especially with grains. The concept behind the title  how to create a good feeling around ones self, often with food and company  is not explained until youre well into the book. But you wont regret spending the time it takes to get there.

Victuals: An Appalachian Journey, With Recipes , by Ronni Lundy (Clarkson Potter, $32.50). The authors a terrific guide to the regional cuisine many Americans know so little about. Full review here.

Recipes to try: The Shacks Sweet and Savory Banana Pudding; John Fleers Buttermilk Corn Bread Soup

For people who really cook  or want to cook better

Cooking for Jeffrey , by Ina Garten (Clarkson Potter, $35). Her painstaking approach to recipe development and testing translates to easy for the rest of us. Fans will delight in the young-couple photos. The Skillet-Roasted Lemon Chicken is destined for classic status.

Recipe to try: Raspberry Roasted Applesauce

Cooking School Secrets for Real World Cooks: Second Edition , by Linda Carucci (Author House, $28). Youd be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive guide for anyone whos new to the kitchen or wants to up their game. Theres a nice balance of scientific explanation and practical tips. The authors two exercises for seasoning soup and steak may forever change the way you salt your food.

Recipe to try: Weeknight Chili

Life in Balance: A Fresher Approach to Eating , by Donna Hay (HarperCollins, 2016; $35). Just about every dish is photographed to seduce. The recipe writing skews minimal yet does not leave too much room for guessing. Full review here.

Recipe to try: Burnt Almond Shrimp With Chilies; Super Green Stir-Fry

How to Celebrate Everything: Recipes and Rituals for Birthdays, Holidays, Family Dinners, and Every Day in Between , by Jenny Rosenstrach (Ballentine Books, $30). The average cook-host whos so often stumped by party menu planning will appreciate the straightforward recipes here, as well as authors friendly writing style and party game suggestions.

Recipe to try: Cranberry-Marinated Beef Tenderloin

Pooles: Recipes and Stories From a Modern Diner , by Ashley Christensen with Kaitlyn Goalen (Ten Speed Press, $35). This is Southern chef food you can make at home; the macaroni au gratin recipe alone practically justifies the books purchase. The restaurant narrative and photos unfold at an unhurried pace.

Recipe to try: Pan-Roasted Scallops With Gremolata

Sara Moultons Home Cooking 101: How to Make Everything Taste Better (Oxmoor House, $35). Cooking is about nurturing, context. A life, the author says  and that comes through loud and clear in this collection of tips and 150-plus recipes. Read a profile of Moulton here.

Recipe to try: Creamsicle Pudding Cake

Simple: Effortless Food, Big Flavors , by Diana Henry (Mitchell Beazley, $33). This is really Thoughtful food, as it dips into many cultures and comes up with original combinations. It is a fitting addition to the London authors series of handsome, well-written and hands-on-produced cookbooks.

Recipe to try: Hard Cider Rarebit

Small Victories: Recipes, Advice + Hundreds of Ideas for Home-Cooking Triumphs , by Julia Turshen (Chronicle, $35). A cookbook cant get much handier or helpful; the author lists plenty of variations and substitutions for all types of eaters. Its handsomely styled by Turshen as well.

Recipe to try: Curried Red Lentils With Coconut Milk

The Superfun Times Vegan Holiday Cookbook , by Isa Chandra Moskowitz (Little, Brown and Co., 2016; $32). This could be the sleeper cookbook of the year, as it steers party food in the mode thats increasingly sought-after and appreciated.

Recipe to try: Peking Portobellos

V Street: 100 Globe-Hopping Plates on the Cutting Edge of Vegetable Cooking , by Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby (William Morrow, 2016; $34.99). These vegan Philadelphia chef-restaurateurs are especially adept at seasoning and saucing. From WaPoFood Editor Joe Yonan: The book aims to help readers bring those flavors home, suggesting almost two dozen pantry staples that can span various cuisines and including shopping lists for seven types of ethnic markets.

Recipe to try: Korean Soft Tofu Stew

For gift-giving and/or fun

The Asian Slow Cooker: Exotic Favorites for Your Crockpot , by Kelly Kwok (Page Street Publishing, $22). The recipes are not so exotic, in fact, but doable renditions for anyone who has a pantry full of supermarket-access Asian ingredients. Slow-cooker enthusiasts tired of chili, this ones for you.

The Bushcraft Field Guide to Trapping, Gathering, and Cooking in the Wild , by Dave Canterbury (Adams Media, $17). Practical and sized just right, for places where Google cant always be summoned. Includes a guide to whats edible for foragers and key illustrations, in addition to recipes.

Chicken: A Savor the South Cookbook , by Cynthia Graubart (University of North Carolina Press, $20). Heres a tidy roundup done in good taste; we especially like the categories of whole birds, and pieces.

Deceptive Desserts: A Ladys Guide to Baking Bad! , by Christine McConnell (Regan Arts, $29.95). The campy how-to is as inspirational for lovers of trompe loeil as it is for admirers of the entrepreneurial spirit. Read a full review here.

Everything I Want to Eat: Sqirl and the New California Cooking , by Jessica Koslow with Maria Zizka (Abrams, $40). Big props for this restaurant chef-author who apologizes for relying on some sub-recipes  those extra, time-consuming elements that can bring plans for imminent dinner to a halt. This is fun and it has a different look that doesnt alienate the average cookbook reader. Another candidate for a would-be shortlist of this years favorites.

The Short Stack Cookbook: Ingredients That Speak Volumes, by Nick Fauchald, Kaitlyn Goalen and the contributors of Short Stack Editions (Abrams, $40). This is a visually hip, color-coded compilation of ingredient-focused recipes. The emphasis is on ease, and youll find some of the most accomplished and reliable chefs and cookbook authors among the books contributors.


Snowflakes, reindeer and candy canes are back on the 2016 Starbucks holiday cups after last years plain red ones caused an uproar from critics who said that the chain was part of a so-called war on Christmas. (Joseph Pisani/AP)

The culture wars come every December, fueled by peppermint mochas and venti soy lattes. The battleground is Starbucks. Its always Starbucks, isnt it? No one is complaining that the blue-and-brown holiday cups at Caribou Coffee take the Christ out of Christmas. No one is telling the Olive Garden hostess that their name is Trump so that she will have to call out Trump, party of three!

Religion. Politics. The Bill of Rights. They all converge here, in front of a glass case full of cake pops.

The companys current foray into the headlines comes from several Trump-related incidents in stores over the past couple of weeks. On Nov. 16, a video of Miami real estate remodeler David Sanguesa berating a Starbucks employee who he claimed refused to serve him because he was a Trump supporter went viral. (A witness said that Sanguesa got angry that his coffee order took too long.) We want nothing to do with you, he told the barista, who appears to be a person of color. Youre trash.

A man who claimed to be a Trump voter was filmed accusing a female Starbucks employee in Miami of discrimination Nov. 16. (Twitter/Jorge de Cardenas)

Two days later, political consultant Tim Treadstone posted a video of Starbucks employees allegedly calling the police on a man who insisted that baristas write Trump on his cup. Operation #TrumpCup was born: Treadstone encouraged Trump supporters to go to Starbucks, give their name as Trump, and take video if the barista refused to use the name.

We have a culture war to win. Im a Trump supporter. I thought when Trump won, I might just wake up and America would be great again. Guess what, it wasnt, Treadstone told The Washington Post. Obviously, a lot of people arent happy with us, and we need to stand up for our freedom and our First Amendment.

The First Amendment protects your right to speech and expression without government interference. But it does not protect against interference by private businesses, such as Starbucks. Besides, taking customers names is not even official company policy. Its a fun ritual in our stores, said spokesman Reggie Borges, who said that Starbucks does not require employees to call out names.

The movement is an attempt to troll [Starbuckss] famously liberal baristas into being hypocritical in some fashion: to refuse to serve a customer in the same way that some opponents of same-sex marriage want to refuse service to gay couples, said Erik Owens, interim director of the Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life at Boston College.

#TrumpCup is a spinoff of a movement called #MerryChristmasStarbucks, which Joshua Feuerstein, an evangelical social-media personality, started in 2015 when Starbucks released a minimalist red cup that people criticized for being too plain  a design that Starbucks intended as a blank-slate holiday celebration for all faiths.

I felt as though a point needed to be made that we as Americans are tired of political correctness and the cultural cleansing of anything related to Jesus (i.e. Christmas), Feuerstein wrote in an email.

In a video, he encouraged his followers to go to Starbucks and give their names as Merry Christmas, so that baristas would write it on the cup. Feuersteins video alleged that Starbucks employees are instructed not to say Merry Christmas. Borges denied that: Our baristas are not provided a script or a policy around greeting customers, he said.

The movement caught on, and even President-elect Donald Trump, then one of 14 candidates in the Republican primary field, jumped into the fray.

Thats the end of that lease, he said at a rally, referring to the Starbucks in Trump Tower. If I become president, were all going to be saying Merry Christmas again, that I can tell you.



Protesters visit a Starbucks coffee shop Nov. 19 near Trump Tower in Chicago. (Tannen Maury/European Pressphoto Agency)

Ironically, instead of boycotting the business, many of the Starbucks-related social-media movements involve mobilizing people to actually spend money at a company whose views they presumably disagree with. Feuerstein said that his followers flooded Starbucks to participate in #MerryChristmasStarbucks. (He did not answer a question asking whether his message outweighed the companys potential financial gain.) Treadstone was fine with spending money there: This was never meant to be a boycott, he told The Post of his call to arms. I love Starbucks.

As many have pointed out on social media, the people who are offended by Starbucks cups are often the same people who accuse their political rivals of being too sensitive about things like the Confederate flag.

Its a transparent attempt to stir up false conflict in order to rally a certain subset of Christians against so-called liberal culture, Owens said.



Starbuckss minimalist holiday cups in 2015. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

Starbuckss holiday cups have often featured nondenominational holiday symbols, such as snowmen and stars. Those images have been politicized, too: In 2011, the company was accused of featuring a nutcracker that looked like the Guy Fawkes mask, then a symbol of Occupy Wall Street. Starbucks said it was a coincidence.

And it is not the only company to stick to bland seasonal greetings. Last years McDonalds cup was purple (!) with an image of a wreath and the phrase Welcome home. This years design features a Christmas tree, as does the Dunkin Donuts cup.

The Starbucks design is a lot spiffier this year, too. Inspired by customers who drew on last years plain red cups, the company has released elaborate but secular designs  birch trees, snowflakes and strings of holiday lights. In the most overtly Christmas cup, Santa drives his sleigh.

It would have been difficult for us to ignore the feedback from last year, and we take it in stride, both positive and negative, Borges said.

Maybe that is why a promotional video features a cup with a drawing of Jesus in the manger  a design that does not appear on any cups in stores. Still, Feuerstein and others seem pleased with the change.

Looks like the American people have been heard, Feuerstein said. And we not only saved Christmas, we elected Donald Trump as our next president and saved the country!



Starbuckss 2016 holiday cups on display at a store in New York. (Joseph Pisani/AP)

The idea that something as simple as a Starbucks cup could either save or ruin Christmas would have seemed absurd for much of the companys history. In the early days, Starbucks was almost snooty, serving espresso to people who were too good for regular drip coffee. It was distinctly Left Coast. Not to mention, it required Americans to learn Italian: The country struggled with words like doppio, venti and macchiato.

Today, Starbucks has more than 12,000 shops in the United States, and 80 percent of the country lives less than 20 miles from a grande eggnog latte.

Starbucks has a broader target, based on the ubiquity of the brand, said Derek Rucker, a marketing professor at Northwestern Universitys Kellogg School of Management. With that broader target, youre more likely to get difference of opinion.

Part of the reason Starbucks is a frequent target is because its chief executive, Howard Schultz, is outspoken about his politics. In 2013, he requested that customers not bring guns to his stores, even in states where open carry is permitted. He launched Race Together, a widely mocked attempt to start a conversation about race in stores. He endorsed Hillary Clinton for president. And just before the election, Starbucks released a green cup with an illustration of more than 100 people drawn with one continuous line  a symbol of unity as a reminder of our shared values, and the need to be good to each other, Schultz said in a news release. People thought it was the holiday cup, and a mass freakout ensued. Schultz, by the way, was raised Jewish.



One week before Election Day, Starbucks unveiled a new cup in the United States that it described as a symbol of unity. The green cup featured a mosaic of more than 100 people, including a coffee farmer and a barista. (Mark Lennihan/AP)

But other companies headed by Democrat-endorsing chief executives have not found themselves in the crosshairs nearly as much. Calls for Republicans to boycott Netflix and Costco did not take off the way that Starbucks protests have. This may be because Starbuckss history of these types of protests builds upon itself, making the brand a symbolic target for right-wing demonstrators.

The stage has almost been set, for not only consumers, but also media, to be sensitive to what Starbucks has done, perhaps more than other brands, Rucker said.

It may also have something to do with consumers relationship with the brand.

Many of us go to the same coffee shop every day, so when theres a violation, its not so easily overlooked, Rucker said. Potentially, customers are more vested in their experience there.

Coffee is a ritual, and when it gets political, it is personal. After all, your name is on the cup  except when its Trumps name instead.

Kristine Guerra contributed to this report.
Q: The border tiles in my master bath shower look horrible! The tiles are dark brown, but the color is slowly coming off, probably because of chemicals in cleaning solutions. The tiles are not flat and smooth like the surrounding tiles. Is there any way to paint them?

Fairfax County

A: Painting is probably your only option, short of replacing the tile.

Although its possible to use standard paint to coat tile if you first scuff it up with sandpaper and apply an epoxy primer, manufacturers generally warn not to do this where the tiles will be frequently subjected to water, such as on walls around a bathtub or shower.

To coat tiles on shower walls, you need specialty paint. One example thats widely available is Rust-Oleum Tub & Tile paint. This two-part acrylic epoxy comes in white and two off-white colors, Biscuit and Almond. It costs $23 on Amazon.com and is also carried by many home centers and paint stores. The packaging warns against using it on surfaces exposed to constant high humidity/water immersion such as swimming pools, hot tubs, ponds or saunas. So, assuming your shower isnt in constant use, the paint should stick.

These tiles can be restored with a specialty paint. (Reader photo)

Alternatives include Homax Tub & Sink Brush-On One-Part Epoxy ($27 on amazon.com) and Klass Kote (klasskote.com) epoxy paints, which have the advantage of coming in numerous colors, including brown. You can order these from the company websites. Youd need to buy the A and B Klass Kote components separately, starting at $16 each in the half-pint containers, the smallest size sold. If the surface, once prepped, isnt as smooth as you want the final finish to look, youd also need the two-part primer, because you can sand the primer (once dry) to create a smoother base. The company also recommends buying its Epoxy Reducer No. 500 ($9 for half-pint, klasskote.com), which can be used as a cleaner once the prep is done as well as to thin the paint and to clean up spills.

Follow package directions carefully; they differ by product. All of the paints, though, stick better to a surface that is scuffed up rather than slick. The instructions often say to scuff with sandpaper, but the texture of your trim tiles probably makes sanding impractical. Instead, use a wire brush or an abrasive cleanser and a heavy-duty scrub pad, the type thats often green and is designed for pots rather than nonstick surfaces. Rinse thoroughly and allow the surface to dry. Mix and apply the paint as the manufacturer recommends, being careful not to smear it onto grout lines. A brush about three-fourths of an inch or one inch wide would probably work best, but also have a small artist brush available for dabbing paint into recesses and whisking away drips.

Rust-Oleum warns that small bubbles may appear as its Tub & Tile paint is brushed on. If you use this product, dont keep brushing in an attempt to eliminate them. Too much brushing will keep a smooth coat from forming and isnt needed anyway, as the bubbles will go away on their own.

Once the project is done, wait the recommended time  probably several days  to use the shower. And switch to a cleaning regimen that avoids harsh chemicals. Using a towel to dry off the shower walls after each shower or series of showers is one way to prevent mildew and buildup of soap scum. A squeegee also works, but not on textured tile.

Q: My wife and I have a dining room table with a glass mirror top, but the mirror is cracked and the finish is coming off. Is there a company that could visit us, take the measurements, cut the glass and then bring it back and install it?

Alexandria

A: Mirror and Glass Center in Alexandria (703-212-7171; mirrorandglasscenter.com) can do this for you. In-home measurement costs $35, and the company also offers delivery service once the glass is cut. The price of the mirror depends on the dimensions. The oval shape adds to the cost, compared with a replacement mirror for a rectangular table.

For a table 30 inches wide and 48 inches long, a mirror a quarter-inch thick  the recommended thickness  with polished edges would cost $121.90.

Dulles Glass & Mirror (866-452-7707; dullesglassandmirror.com), which has showrooms in Manassas and Silver Spring, does not offer in-home measuring. But it has a handy pricing tool on its website, under Online Store. If you click on Custom Cut Mirror, you will see icons for various shapes, including ovals. (Mirroring for walls or tabletops is the same.) An oval 30 inches wide and 48 inches long, cut from quarter-inch-thick mirror, would cost $211 if ordered online.
Former network TV anchor Campbell Brown has always said she wanted her education-news site, The 74, to be perceived as a nonpartisan source for improving the nations primary- and secondary-school education.

But Donald Trump may have just dumped a major conflict of interest right into Browns, and The 74s, lap.

By naming billionaire philanthropist Betsy DeVos as his pick for secretary of education on Wednesday, Trump put Brown in the awkward position of covering one of her closest allies.

A foundation headed by DeVos was among the wealthy education-restructuring advocates that funded Browns website when it launched last year. DeVos and Brown  formerly an NBC News anchor and the host of a prime-time show on CNN  are also on the board of the American Federation for Children, which promotes charter-school and government-funded vouchers to subsidize private education. The AFC and The 74 co-sponsored a forum involving Republican presidential candidates last year.

All of which means The 74 would be covering the policy pronouncements and initiatives of one of the people to which it owes its existence.

News organizations sometimes wrestle with subjects and people that are close to their own interests. The Washington Post, for example, is owned by Amazon.com founder Jeffrey P. Bezos, whose company and activities are occasionally the subject of Post stories and editorials. In such cases, the connection between the paper and its owner is disclosed within the article.

But in DeVoss case, The 74s interests are more direct, overlapping and constant. As a site seeking to lead an honest, fact-based conversation free of misinformation and political spin about the United States under-18 population, its coverage of DeVos and her advocacy of school vouchers and charter schools will be inherent in almost everything it publishes.

DeVoss appointment appears to place the site, which is named for the 74 million school-age children in the United States, in much the same position as Breitbart, the digital conservative-news operation. Breitbarts executive chairman, Stephen K. Bannon, has been named Trumps chief White House strategist.

Brown referred questions about her operation to a spokesman, Dan Bank, who said the site discloses its funding relationships in a note published with stories in which the relationships are relevant.

A recent analysis by 74 writer Matt Barnum included this note: The Dick & Betsy DeVos Family Foundation provides funding to The 74, and the sites Editor-in-Chief, Campbell Brown, sits on the American Federation for Childrens board of directors, which is chaired by Betsy DeVos. Brown played no part in the editing of this article. The American Federation for Children also sponsored The 74s 2015 New Hampshire education summit.

Thats not enough, say those who oppose DeVos and the education-restructuring agenda.

Given the fact that Betsy DeVos is a funder of The 74, it is hard to see how the publication can cover her appointment fairly, said education historian Diane Ravitch, who has clashed with Brown and DeVos on policy matters before. In view of the close personal and financial ties between DeVos and Brown, Ravitch said, the site should not cover the U.S. Department of Education for the next four years.

Here's what you need to know about the man who went from Breitbart News chairman to Donald Trump's campaign CEO before his appointment as chief White House strategist and senior counselor. (Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

Brown has previously recused herself from making editorial decisions for her site about the AFC and the Success Academy charter-school network because she sits on the board of both organizations.

Bank said, however, that Brown will not need to recuse herself from coverage of DeVos, because DeVos will step down from the AFC and her family foundation will no longer be funding The 74 if she is confirmed as education secretary.

Since leaving CNN in 2010 as the host of a program originally titled No Bias, No Bull, Brown has been one of the most visible faces of a movement that seeks to challenge teachers unions while advocating for the further privatization of public education. Many of her stated positions align with those of DeVos, who has been a longtime advocate for shifting public funds from public schools to charters operated by private entrepreneurs and for taxpayer-funded vouchers that subsidize the cost of private schools.

In late 2013, Brown founded the Partnership for Educational Justice, a nonprofit group that seeks to overturn teacher-tenure laws that give underperforming teachers due process in dismissal actions. She has also been outspoken in favor of charter schools.

Upon launching her website last year, Brown acknowledged that her site would straddle the line between journalism and advocacy for a public school system that truly serves the 74 million children in this country.

She wrote at the time: I have learned that not every story has two sides. And I will not allow for false equivalency when a childs future is being compromised, regardless of the vitriol it provokes.
1 of 20 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Rolling out the black and white carpet: See photos from Capotes famous ball View Photos Celebrate its 50th anniversary with a look back at the Black and White Ball hosted by writer Truman Capote honoring Katharine Graham. Caption Celebrate its 50th anniversary with a look back at the Black and White Ball hosted by writer Truman Capote honoring Katharine Graham. Writer Truman Capote and Katharine Graham arrive at the Black and White Ball on Nov. 28, 1966. The party, held at the Plaza Hotel in New York, was hosted by the author of In Cold Blood and honored Graham, his friend and owner of The Washington Post and Newsweek. David Pickoff/Associated Press Wait 1 second to continue.

It was 1966, the best year of Truman Capotes life.

In Cold Blood, his sensational nonfiction novel about a murdered Kansas family, made him the best-known writer in America. He made $2 million and bought a $62,000 luxury Manhattan apartment overlooking the East River. He was on the cover of Life, Newsweek, the New York Times Book Review and more.

So he decided to throw a party  a huge, spectacular gathering in New York for all his friends. It was a present to himself, the ultimate reward for his boundless ambition and need for attention. But even Capote understood that it was bad form to celebrate himself. He needed a guest of honor.

Which is how Katharine Graham, then-owner of The Washington Post and Newsweek, first became a household name. Relatively unknown outside Washington circles, Graham was the perfect choice: She was influential, undemanding and grateful to be asked.

The night succeeded beyond their wildest dreams. The Black and White Ball, held exactly 50 years ago, on Nov. 28, 1966, became the most famous party of the 20th century.

The publicity and higher profile frightened me a little, and may have actually hurt me  and probably should have, given the serious, professional person I was trying to be, Graham wrote in her 1997 autobiography, Personal History. But it was also a life-changing moment.

For me, the party was just great pleasure, maybe doubly so because it was unlike my real life, she wrote. I was flattered, and although it may not have been my style, for one magic night I was transformed.

The ball was the last gasp of a social elite based on exclusivity, pedigree and privilege  and the dawn of a new social order based on buzz, celebrity and self-promotion. Half a century later, its still imitated, dissected and mythologized.



Photographers swarm Frank Sinatra and his bride, actress Mia Farrow, as they arrive at the ball. (Bettmann Archive)

Earlier that year, Capote called Graham to say that he was throwing a party for her.

Her husband, Phil Graham, had committed suicide three years earlier; Capote told her that he was giving the ball to cheer her up. Im fine, she told him, according to her memoir. Its really nice of you, but I dont need cheering up.

The two had met five years earlier, introduced by Babe Paley, the wife of then-CBS President Bill Paley and one of Capotes famous swans  the rich, beautiful wives who ruled New Yorks social world. Graham, like everyone who met the writer, was charmed: He was witty, flattering, gossipy, irreverent and exotic, with an exaggerated, effeminate manner and unbridled confidence in his own genius.

Its hard to describe Truman as I first saw him, Graham wrote. He had that strange falsetto voice for which he was so well known. He was very short, perfectly dressed, groomed and coifed. And he was a magic conversationalist  his sentences were like stories.

The two saw each other whenever Graham was in New York. In the summer of 1965, they found themselves alone on Fiat heir Gianni Agnellis yacht, where she read an advance copy of In Cold Blood. That fall, Graham hosted an A-list Washington dinner for Capote and Kansas detective Alvin Dewey, who had cracked the murder case. Capote and Graham were close enough that he persuaded her to buy an apartment in his U.N. Plaza building the following year.

Graham, then 49, originally thought that the party for her would be something small. Then Capote laid out his vision: the ballroom at the Plaza Hotel, with every guest wearing black or white, based on the Ascot scene in My Fair Lady. They would all wear masks, which would come off at midnight.

When Graham realized what he really had in mind, she was overwhelmed, but she went along with the plan because she knew how important it was to Capote. I realized that this party was more about him than it was about me, Graham wrote. I think he was tired from having written In Cold Blood and needed to be doing something to re-energize himself. I was a prop.

Why pick Graham? He couldnt single out one of the swans without disrupting the delicate social world he had built for himself, and he enjoyed playing Henry Higgins to Grahams Eliza Doolittle.

Truman knew I didnt lead the glamorous kind of life that many of his friends did, she wrote. He may have given the party for me primarily so I could see it all up close, just once. She called herself a middle-aged debutante  even a Cinderella, as far as that kind of life was concerned.



First daughter Lynda Bird Johnson, wearing a mask, arrives at the Plaza Hotel for the ball. (AP)

Conservative pundit William F. Buckley Jr. and his wife, Pat, opted for black masks. (David Pickoff/AP)

Capote planned the ball meticulously, applying his literary mind to constructing the perfect setting, mood and cast of characters. He wrote everything in a small black-and-white notebook, adding and deleting guests like chess pieces, taunting friends and enemies: Maybe youll be invited, and maybe you wont.

The ballroom of the Plaza held 540 people, and Capotes list quickly swelled to fill it. He insisted that it include the very rich, the very famous or the very beautiful. He also threw in a group of friends from Kansas and his doorman at the U.N. Plaza. As the guest of honor, Graham was allowed to invite 20 couples from Washington.

Capote didnt invite President Lyndon B. Johnson, because he didnt want to deal with the security issues. But he did invite Johnsons daughter Lynda, as well as Alice Roosevelt Longworth and Margaret Truman.

New York newspapers began speculating who would make the cut. Old friends hounded Capote for an invitation. Some loudly told friends that they were crushed to miss the party because of a previously scheduled trip overseas. One man called to say that his wife was threatening to commit suicide if they werent invited. Capote, whose mother had killed herself, put the couple on the list.

There was a slight note of insanity about the party, Graham told Vanity Fair magazine in 1996. There is just no rational reason why the whole situation escalated.

Blame social insecurity, the gnawing fear of not being good enough. Everybody who was anybody was going, and everybody else was a nobody.

The competition for the most glamorous gowns and masks began in earnest, with custom designs by Adolfo and a newcomer named Halston, who created a white mink bunny mask for 20-year-old actress Candice Bergen. Some women ordered two or more masks, and some of the uninvited ordered masks to save face.

Graham commissioned Bergdorf Goodman to copy a Balmain design: a long, white crepe gown with hematite beads around the neck and sleeves, with a mask made to match by Halston. On the day of the ball, she showed up at the salon of Kenneth, hairdresser to New Yorks most fashionable. The place was a madhouse; one employee asked Graham whether she had heard about the already-famous party.

Yes, she replied. It seems funny, but Im the guest of honor. The embarrassed employee insisted that Kenneth himself would take care of her hair, and someone else would do her makeup. I wound up looking my very best, wrote Graham, but compared with the legendary beauties at the ball, my very best still looked like an orphan.



The scene on the dance floor: Truman Capote in the center with Lally Weymouth, Katharine Grahams daughter. Graham is dancing on the left, and actress Lauren Bacall and choreographer Jerome Robbins are on the right. (Express Newspapers/Getty Images)

Much has been written about the party, thanks primarily to the striking black-and-white photos of the famous people who attended. The balls timing, just before Vietnam and the Youthquake of the 1960s split the country into Past and Future, serves as a convenient touchstone for meditations on class, fame and modern culture.

I felt as if we were in Versailles in 1788, writer John Knowles told fellow author George Plimpton. People were applauding on the street as we walked in. We had our masks on. I thought, next year itll be the tumbrels taking us out to Herald Square, but at the moment, we were the last of the aristocrats.

Held on a rainy Monday night, the ball began at 10 p.m. Capote ordered his swans to host dinners beforehand, and he and Graham went to the Paleys for cocktails before slipping back to the Plaza, where they posed for photographers and took their place in the receiving line.

Guests made their way through a phalanx of 200 photographers  more than had shown up when the Beatles stayed at the hotel in 1964. In a precursor to todays red-carpet coverage, CBS sent Charles Kuralt to anchor a live feed of celebrity arrivals: Frank Sinatra and Mia Farrow, Henry Fonda, Norman Mailer, Rose Kennedy, Andy Warhol, Claudette Colbert, Oscar de la Renta, Tallulah Bankhead, and the Maharajah and Maharani of Jaipur.

Capote and Graham stood greeting guests for two hours, most meeting her for the first time. There was music by Peter Duchin; Capote danced with Graham, Lee Radziwill and Grahams daughter, Lally Weymouth. Lauren Bacall entranced the crowd when she waltzed with choreographer Jerome Robbins. Mailer threatened to beat up former national security adviser McGeorge Bundy over the Vietnam War. The crowd was served a midnight buffet of chicken hash, spaghetti Bolognese and 450 bottles of Taittinger champagne. The last guests stumbled out at 3 a.m.

I thought it was incredibly glamorous, remembers Weymouth, who was a young bride at the time.

The party cost Capote $16,000, although the amount grew larger and larger every time he reminisced about the ball.



Graham wore a white crepe dress  a copy of a Balmain design  trimmed with slate-gray hematites and a matching mask made by Halston. (Associated Press)

Fashion designer Oscar de la Renta arrives with his future wife, Francoise de Langlade. The couple wore matching cat masks. (Associated Press)

The party was national news, with stories in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Womens Wear Daily and dozens of other publications.

Capote leaked the guest list to the Times, which published the names of all the invited  even those who did not attend, including Jackie Kennedy, Audrey Hepburn, and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. It was really a knife twist to all those who had foolishly announced that they were invited but unable to attend. It wasnt enough for Capote to exclude the impostors. He wanted public humiliation, revenge for every slight, every unkindness real or perceived.

There is a Shakespearean irony to all this: Capotes fall was swift and unsparing. After the party, he wrote little of significance. He was bitter when In Cold Blood failed to win the National Book Award or the Pulitzer Prize, which he thought he deserved. All his hopes turned to what he thought would be his masterpiece: stories about the very rich called Answered Prayers.

In 1975, Esquire published the chapter La Cote Basque 1965. The thinly veiled excerpt was so damning that one of the socialites depicted in it committed suicide; Capote was ostracized from New York society after his adored swans refused to take his calls. He was shocked by the response, mostly because he thought his society friends would forgive anything he did.

Graham was spared, mostly because Capote had always had a soft spot for those he saw as vulnerable. But their friendship became strained; Capote spent most of his time drinking, doing drugs and appearing on talk shows. He died in 1984 at 59, shunned and broken.

Graham famously went on to preside over the publication of the Pentagon Papers and the coverage of the Watergate scandal. She lived until 2001, acclaimed for her storied career and her Pulitzer Prize-winning autobiography.

The Black and White Ball, at least the myth of it, survives them both.
The U.S. Education Department on Monday released final regulations governing how states should judge which schools are doing well and which are struggling and require help, a contentious set of rules that has pitted the Obama administration and its civil rights allies against an unusual alliance of teachers unions and GOP leaders.

But for all the debate, it is unclear  given Republican Donald Trumps surprise election  whether the new rules will much matter. Trump has pledged a smaller federal footprint in public education, giving rise to speculation that his administration is likely to either rewrite the new regulations entirely, giving states more leeway to handle school accountability as they wish, or render the rules meaningless by declining to enforce them.

[Trump picks billionaire Betsy DeVos, school voucher advocate, as education secretary]

The new regulations explain in detail what states must do to comply with the Every Student Succeeds Act, the federal education law that replaced No Child Left Behind when it passed with bipartisan support last year.

Education Secretary John B. King Jr. said he could not speculate on how the incoming Trump administration might handle the regulations, but said he believes that state education chiefs and district leaders are eager to move forward with implementing the new law.

States must continue to administer standardized tests in math and reading to students in grades 3 through 8, and once in high school. But rather than judging schools solely by test scores, states now have a new opportunity to include other measures  such as chronic absenteeism or access to Advanced Placement courses  in their school ratings.

The department released draft rules in May and made several key changes in response to more than 20,000 public comments. That feedback resulted in a better regulation, King said in a conference call with reporters Monday. Weve provided increased flexibility for states and districts in some key areas while ensuring civil rights protections remained in place for our neediest students.

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate education committee and a primary architect of the bipartisan education law, said in a statement that he would have moved to overturn the earlier version of this regulation because it represented a federal overreach by the Obama administration. I will carefully review this final version before deciding what action is appropriate, he said.

The draft rules required states to identify schools in need of extra help by the 2017-2018 school year, a timeline widely panned as unrealistic; the final rules extend the timeline by a year. The new regulations also give states more time to develop their plans: They now must submit those plans to the Education Department by one of two deadlines, April 3 or Sept. 18.

The draft rules had also drawn criticism for requiring states to roll all of the data pertaining to a school into one simple rating, such as a letter grade, to give parents easy-to-understand information.

The revised rules clarify that states are only required to label schools with the categories, specified in the law itself: those in need of comprehensive intervention, including the lowest-performing 5 percent of schools and high schools with graduation rates below 67 percent; those in need of targeted support, including those with low-performing subgroups of students; and schools with no special identification. States can create more nuanced ratings if they wish, but they dont have to.

The Council of Chief State School Officers acknowledged the agency for listening to the concerns expressed by state education chiefs around the country.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, also praised many of the changes as commonsense, but said the Obama administration did not go far enough in rolling back its rules regarding test participation.

The law requires that schools ensure 95 percent of students take tests each year, and leaves it to states to decide what to do about schools that dont make that benchmark.

The draft rule gave states several options to choose from in addressing schools with large numbers of students who dont take annual standardized tests, an issue that has become a lightning rod as the opt-out movement  in which parents refuse to allow their children to take tests  has grown. But all of the options involved substantial dings to the schools rating.

The final rule gives states more flexibility, adding an option that allows states to come up with their own method of dealing with low participation, as long as it is rigorous enough to actually fix the problem.

To civil rights groups, requiring participation in tests is critical for accurately measuring students progress  and therefore accurately measuring whether schools are adequately serving the most disadvantaged children.
The Dodge Mansion in Georgetown was the scene of an alleged rape last month. It's owned by Bill Dean, chief executive of M.C. Dean, one of the countrys largest electrical contactors. (Google Maps/Google Maps)

What she wore doesnt matter. What she drank or smoked or snorted doesnt matter.

Rape is rape, and it needs to be taken seriously even when the circumstances surrounding it are murky.

Its a distinction were still having a hard time with, apparently.

The latest example: an alleged rape last month at an annual Halloween bacchanal in Georgetown.

Some people were still lingering at the $5 million home known as Dodge Mansion when at least one of them heard loud cries of distress coming from the second floor. It was 4 a.m.

One guest followed the sounds into a second-floor bedroom and found a woman on the floor, naked, crying and saying shed been raped.

[Bill Dean throws wild Georgetown parties. Now a rape is alleged at one.]

I was screaming, the 21-year-old alleged victim said in an interview with The Washington Post. She acknowledged that shed snorted cocaine before her attacker violently bit, grabbed and penetrated her. (The Post typically does not identify victims of alleged sexual violence.)

Afterward, two women  including one wearing little else besides body paint  tried to help her. At that point, witnesses said the alleged attacker burst into the room, threw one of the women against a wall and bashed the head of the other against the floor.

Police were called, and about a dozen officers filled Dodge Mansion, sequestering witnesses and taking their statements. The home is owned by Bill Dean, the rich, politically connected chief executive of M.C. Dean, one of the countrys largest electrical contractors. Police said he is cooperating with the investigation.

Everyone there knew who the alleged attacker was, but hed already fled. No charges of rape or assault have been filed against the man. Police said Monday that the incident remains under investigation.

The alleged victim told The Post that she didnt want to go to the hospital for a full examination. Instead, she went home and took a shower. But its also unclear how hard the police tried to persuade her to go the hospital.

The former Playboy model who was bashed against the floor went to the hospital about four days later and was diagnosed with a mild concussion.

And thats it. A month has gone by, and theres no sexual assault charge, no assault charge. Nothing.

So how seriously do police take sexual assault?

Three years ago, Human Rights Watch issued a report criticizing the D.C. police department for its handling of a number of rape cases, alleging that some officers didnt take claims seriously and dismissed victims who had been drinking or who couldnt recall precise details.

But the report itself wound up being criticized for its methodology, and former D.C. Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier strongly disputed its findings. MPD and the Districts entire criminal justice and victims services system, Lanier said, have been working together to improve the response to our investigation of sexual assaults.

Nevertheless, lets compare how the police responded to the Dodge Mansion incident with the response to an attack this weekend.

A young woman was at the Grand Hyatt in downtown Washington when a stranger allegedly tried to rape her. He was armed with a knife, dropped his pants and tried to press against her, according to police.

But she fought him, and he grabbed her hair so hard, it separated from her scalp. She ran away and called police. The attacker got away, too.

In this case, police did exactly what they should have done. The woman went to the hospital. Police put out a release with a picture of the man taken from a security camera, a full alert to find the assailant.

This is how our society prefers its rape victims: women attacked by strangers in public places. The truth is that only about 10 to 20 percent of rapists are strangers to their victims, according to federal statistics and crime victim surveys.

But at a Halloween party at a rich guys house, where there were racy costumes, alcohol and drugs? Where the woman knew the identity of her alleged attacker and the question of consent might be harder to pin down?

Nothing.

[Why the Stanford attackers smiling photo is more telling than any mug shot]

Weve seen this same scenario play out on countless college campuses, where young women go to parties, wind up drunk and get raped by someone they know. Those allegations of sexual assault rarely lead to a conviction or any disciplinary action at all.

The only difference here is age and income.

The woman who said she was raped at the mansion party  a 21-year-old junior at a Maryland university who told our reporter that she was still in pain two weeks later  should have been gently persuaded by police to go to the hospital.

Instead, she has essentially stopped talking to the police or even her parents about the attack.

This is the let-it-go culture of the college rape problem, transferred to a non-campus setting.

One Georgetown real estate agent offered her take on what had happened at the Halloween bash, noting that some neighbors cant believe how these girls dress at these parties. Where there is alcohol and seductive dressing, its a real formula for disaster.

This is called victim-blaming, one-percenter style.

What she wore doesnt matter. What she drank or smoked or snorted doesnt matter.

How much money an attacker makes and what it says on his business card doesnt matter, either.

Rape is rape.

Twitter: @petulad
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Blood drives Friday 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Loudoun County Fire and Rescue, 801 Sycolin Rd., Leesburg, 800-733-2767; Dec. 12, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., First Potomac Realty Trust, 45610 Woodland Rd., Sterling, 800-733-2767; Dec. 17, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Leesburg Public Safety Center, 65 Plaza St. NE, Leesburg, 800-733-2767; Dec. 20, 3-7 p.m., Rust Library, 380 Old Waterford Rd., Leesburg, 866-256-6372; Dec. 30, 1:30-6 p.m., St. James Episcopal Church, 14 Cornwall St., Leesburg, 800-733-2767.

Inova Blood Donor Center Mondays noon-8 p.m., Tuesdays 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Fridays 6 a.m.-4 p.m. and Sundays noon-4 p.m. Dulles Town Center, 45745 Nokes Blvd., Sterling. 866-256-6372 or inova.org/donateblood.

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Free hearing tests Age 18 and older. Mondays-Thursdays 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Blue Ridge Speech and Hearing Center, 19465 Deerfield Ave., Suite 201, Lansdowne. 703-858-7620. Registration required.

Hearing loss, tinnitus and Menieres syndrome support For all ages, including parents of children with hearing loss. First Fridays at 2 p.m., Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling. 703-430-2906.

Northern Virginia Resource Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Age 18 and older, second Tuesdays 10 a.m., Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. 571-258-3400.

Hearing loss outreach Free referrals. Fourth Thursdays 10 a.m.-noon, Loudoun County Workforce Center, 102 Heritage Way, Leesburg; third Thursdays 10 a.m.-noon, Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling. Free appointments: 703-430-2906 or nvrcloudoun@aol.com .

MENTAL HEALTH

Counseling for sexual violence survivors Provided by Loudoun Citizens for Social Justice. 703-771-9020.

Crisis Intervention Treatment and Assessment Center Provides emergency mental-health, substance-use and developmental services to individuals in the Loudoun community. Daily from 7 a.m.-11 p.m. 102 Heritage Way NE, Suite 102, Leesburg. Emergency services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 703-777-0320.

Crisislink Suicide and crisis intervention. Community education, a volunteer crisis response team and CareRing, a telephone outreach program for the elderly and disabled. 703-527-6016, volunteer@crisislink.org or crisislink.org.

Piedmont Chapter, National Alliance on Mental Illness Serves Fauquier, Orange, Madison and Rappahannock counties. Support group, education classes and events for people living with mental illness and their family members. First Wednesdays 7-9 p.m. Fauquier Hospital, 500 Hospital Dr., Sycamore Room A, Warrenton. 571-426-8213.

Mental health first-aid A public education program offered by the Loudoun County Department of Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Developmental Services that can help communities understand mental illness, seek intervention and save lives. Go to loudoun.gov/mhfirstaid.

Northern Virginia Chapter, National Alliance on Mental Illness A support group, classes and programs for people living with mental illness and their family members. naminorthernvirginia.org.

PREGNANCY, PARENTING

Adoptive family preservation Adoptive families discuss common experiences; registration required. Third Tuesdays 12:30-2 p.m., Ashburn Library, 43316 Hay Rd. Call 703-941-9008, Ext. 23, or email jmellario@umfs.org .

Birthright of Loudoun County Free pregnancy tests, baby clothing, transportation and support throughout pregnancy, 823 S. King St., Leesburg. 703-777-7272.

Bond Between Us A nonprofit organization that offers support to birth parents when children have been placed for adoption. Fourth Tuesdays 7:30 p.m. Call for location. 703-771-7844.

Breastfeeding support Mondays 9:30-10:30 a.m., Fauquier Hospital Family Birthing Center, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. 540-316-3588.

Dad support New and expectant fathers share ideas. First Tuesdays at 7 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Pkwy., Leesburg. 703-858-6360.

For the Childrens Sake A group for separating or divorcing parents to share advice. Four-hour session weekly. Information: 703-391-8599 or fitsfoundation.org.

La Leche League Mother-to-mother support and breastfeeding information. 10 a.m. second Wednesdays in Warrenton, 540-351-6103. Third Fridays 10:15-11:45 a.m., call for location, 703-444-7386. Second Fridays 10:15 a.m., Ashburn Library, 43316 Hay Rd., 703-829-0349; Thursdays 10 a.m.-noon, Panera Bread, 43670 Greenway Corp. Dr., Ashburn, email lllashburn@gmail.com. Third Fridays 10:15 a.m., Christ the Redeemer Church, 46833 Harry F. Byrd. Hwy., Sterling, 540-338-4637.

Loudoun Fatherhood Program Fathers discuss the joys and challenges of being a parent. Meets every other Saturday for two hours for four months; sponsored by Northern Virginia Family Service. 571-748-2796. Free.

Loudoun Nurturing Parenting Program Positive parenting techniques; children attend with parents. Registration required. Call 703-771-3973, Ext. 27, or email nurturingprogram@lcsj.org. Free.

Mothernet/Healthy Families Loudoun Program links first-time parents with medical, social and educational resources to give children a socially and physically healthy start in life. Family support workers meet with participants in homes. English-Spanish translation provided. 703-444-4477, Ext. 217 , or inmed.org.

New mother support Wednesdays 9:30-11:30 a.m. Inova Loudoun Medical Pavilion, 224 Cornwall St., Leesburg. Babies welcome. 703-858-6360.

Young parent services Support for teenage parents. Loudoun County Department of Family Social Services, 52 Sycolin Rd., Leesburg. Call for times. 703-771-5375.

Online childbirth education program Inova Loudoun Hospitals Web-based program uses animation, videos and interactive activities to guide users through the basics of childbirth, breastfeeding and caring for newborns. 703-858-6360 or thebirthinginn.org/classes.

Parenting Alone group For parents of school-age children who have lost a spouse or partner to cancer. Second Tuesdays 5:30-6:30 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital, Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. Call 703-698-2536 or email jennifer.eckert@inova.org .

Pregnancy and childbirth support Childbirth Solutions Resource Center, 8393 W. Main St., Marshall. 571-344-0438.

SENIORS

Exercise equipment Weights, treadmills, bikes and a cardio-glide. Instruction provided. Age 55 and older. Weekdays 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Leesburg Senior Center, 102 North St. NW. 703-737-8039. Free.

Fitness for people 55 and older Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 1-1:45 p.m. Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. 571-258-3400. $36, 12-visit card.

Eye care LensCrafters staff members will clean glasses and make minor repairs. Second Wednesdays 1-2 p.m. Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling. 703-430-2397. Free.

Inova Loudoun mobile van Blood pressure checks. Second and fourth Tuesdays 9:30 a.m.-noon, Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling, 571-258-3280; first Wednesdays 9:30 a.m.-noon, Leesburg Senior Center, 102 North St. NW. 703-737-8039.

Laughing yoga for seniors I mprove flexibility and balance. Thursdays 9:30-10 :30 a.m. Leesburg Senior Center, 102 North St. NW. 703-737-8039. Free.

Loudoun Adult Day Centers For seniors with physical limitations or memory loss, a safe and social environment, therapeutic activities, individualized care and respite for caregivers. Limited transportation. Sliding-scale fees. Weekdays in Leesburg, 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m., 703-771-5334; Purcellville, 571-258-3402; and Ashburn-Sterling, 571-258-3232.

Senior Outreach Services Free and confidential assistance from an Area Agency on Aging case manager. Call for an appointment or sign up at the Senior Center at Cascades. First and third Wednesdays 11 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling. 571-258-3280.

Senior Outreach Services Free and confidential assistance from an Area Agency on Aging Elder case manager. Sign up in the Leesburg Senior Center lobby. Second and fourth Thursdays 11 a.m.-noon and 12:30-4:30 p.m. Leesburg Senior Center, 102 North St. NW. 703-737-8039. Free.

Senior Outreach Services Free and confidential assistance from an Area Agency on Aging Elder case manager. Call for an appointment or sign up at the Carver Center. First and third Mondays, 12:30-5 p.m. Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. 703-737-8741. Free.

Tai chi Stretching and strengthening movements. Mondays 11 a.m. Leesburg Senior Center, 102 North St. NW. 703-737-8039. Free.

Zumba gold class Age 55 and older. Wear rubber-soled shoes and comfortable clothing; bring water and a towel. Tuesdays 11 a.m., Tuesdays and Fridays at 1 p.m. Senior Center of Leesburg, 102 North St. NW, Leesburg. 703-737-8039. $24 per month.

Zumba For people 55 and older who are learning Zumba for the first time, or those who prefer a lower-impact version. The fitness program combines Latin and international music with dance.Thursdays 11 a.m. Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling. 571-258-3280. $12.

SUPPORT GROUPS

Al-Anon Service Center of Northern Virginia A volunteer is available 24 hours with information for spouses, family members and friends of problem drinkers. 703-534-4357 or 877-339-8350. Mondays 8 p.m. Emmanuel Episcopal Church, 125 W. Washington St., Middleburg, 540-554-2747; Tuesdays 7:30 p.m. St. James Episcopal Church, 14 Cornwall St. NW, Leesburg, 877-339-8350; Fridays 8:30 p.m. Grace Episcopal Church, 6507 Main St., The Plains, 800-344-2666; Tuesdays 12:15 p.m. Warrenton Church of Christ, Route 29 N., 540-347-7448; Tuesdays 7 p.m. and Saturdays 8:30 p.m. Warrenton Presbyterian Church, 91 Main St., 800-344-2666.

Alcoholics Anonymous Various meeting times and locations in Loudoun County. 800-208-8649 or 703-876-6166. nvintergroup.org.

Alzheimers caregiver support For those who care for people with Alzheimers disease and other forms of dementia. Fourth Wednesdays 4-5:30 p.m. The Villa at Suffield Meadows, 6735 Suffield Lane, Warrenton. 540-316-3800.

Alzheimers caregivers support For those caring for people with Alzheimers disease and other forms of dementia. Second Mondays 7-8:30 p.m. Galilee United Methodist Church, 45425 Winding Rd., Sterling. 703-430-9229. galileeumc.org.

Alzheimers caregiver support Emotional, educational and social support for family members and friends of people with the disease. Third Saturdays 10 a.m. Loudoun County Area Agency on Aging, 20145 Ashbrook Pl., Ashburn. Call 703-771-5407 or email lesley.katz@loudoun.gov.

Alzheimers caregiver support group Fourth Thursdays 3-4 p.m. Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. 540-903-6831 or alz.org.

Alzheimers support First Tuesdays 10-11 a.m. Spring Arbor Assisted Living, 237 Fairview St. NW, Leesburg. 540-338-6520.

Alzheimers support First Wednesdays 4 p.m. Leesburg Adult Day Center, 16501 Meadowview Ct., Leesburg. 703-771-5334.

Alzheimers support Fourth Thursdays 3-4 p.m. Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. 571-258-3400.

Talk About Curing Autism A nonprofit organization educating and supporting families affected by autism. tacanow.org.

Autoimmune support Last Thursdays 6:30-7:30 p.m. Jackson Building, 209 Gibson St., Leesburg. autoimmunesupport@hotmail.com.

Bereaved parent support One-on-one counseling is available. Spiritual Care Support Ministry Center, 76 W. Shirley Ave., Warrenton. 540-349-5814. scsm.tv.

Bereavement support For those experiencing loss because of the death of a loved one. Age 18 and older. Third Mondays 1 p.m. Fauquier Hospital Chestnut Room, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. Sponsored by Capital Caring. 703-957-1800.

Breast cancer support Fourth Tuesdays 7-8 p.m. Fauquier Hospital Tower, Chestnut Room, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. 540-349-0588.

Breast cancer support For those with new diagnoses or starting treatment. Register if attending for the first time. Fourth Mondays 5-6:30 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. 703-858-8857.

Breast cancer support For those who have finished treatment, have had a recurrence or metastatic breast cancer. Register if attending for the first time. Fourth Mondays 6:30-8 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. 703-858-8857. Free.

Breast Cancer Support Assistance Fund Loudoun County residents who have received a diagnosis or have undergone treatment in the past 12 months are eligible to apply for financial assistance. Areas included are wigs, bras, puffs and prostheses, mammograms and medical bills, food and help with utilities, rent or mortgage, and transportation costs. The Pink Assistance Fund has been established by the Loudoun Breast Health Network. lbhn.org.

Cancer support Oncology nurses, social workers and spiritual-care providers offer education and support to patients, families and caregivers. Second Mondays 5:30-6:30 p.m. Fauquier Hospital Sycamore Room, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. 540-316-2273.

Cancer support Life with Cancer, for patients, family members and friends. Second Thursdays 7 p.m. Ashburn Presbyterian Church, Room 202, 20962 Ashburn Rd. ashburnpresbyterian.org or 703-729-2012.

Caregiver support Provides emotional, educational and social support. Encourages caregivers to maintain their personal, physical and emotional health while caring for people with dementia or other chronic illness. Fourth Thursdays 3-4 p.m. Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. 540-903-6831.

Caregiver support and resource group Wednesdays 10:30 a.m.-noon (no meeting first Wednesdays), Spiritual Care Support Ministry Center, 76 W. Shirley Ave., Warrenton. 540-349-5814. scsm.tv.

Caring for Aging Parents Support group. Confidential. Fourth Wednesdays 7:30 p.m., Family Focus Counseling Service, 20-B John Marshall St., Warrenton. 540-349-4537.

Chadd parents support For parents of children with ADD/ADHD. Fourth Sundays 3 p.m. KinderCare, 44051 Ashburn Village Shopping Plaza. chadd.nova loudoun@gmail.com .

Chronic illness support Tuesdays 10:30-11:30 a.m. Spiritual Care Support Ministries, 76 W. Shirley Ave., Warrenton. 540-349-5814 or scsm.tv.

Coffee and Conversation Support for those discouraged because of illness, bereavement, caregiving or a loved one in the military. Thursdays 10 a.m.-noon. Spiritual Care Support Ministry Center, 76 W. Shirley Ave., Warrenton. 540-349-5814.

Compassionate Friends For parents who have experienced the death of a child. First Wednesdays 7:30 p.m. St. James Episcopal Church, 14 Cornwall St. NW, Leesburg. 540-882-9707.

Creating and Connecting Two-hour art therapy and relaxation workshop for cancer patients. Every other month, 12:30-2:30 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. Call for dates. 703-858-8850.

Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance of Western Loudoun Saturdays 3 p.m. Purcellville Library, 220 E. Main St., Carruthers Room. Call 703-431-7160 or email kathy@dbsanca.org.

Drop-in grief support For those coping with a death. Second and fourth Wednesdays 1-2 p.m. St. Davids Episcopal Church, 43600 Russell Branch Pkwy., Ashburn. Sponsored by Capital Caring. 703-597-1781.

Families Overcoming Drug Addiction Support group. First and third Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. Fauquier Hospital Sycamore Room, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. myfodafamily@gmail.com or 540-316-9221.

Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth and parent support A group in partnership with Metro DC PFLAG. Fourth Sundays 4-6 p.m. Unitarian Universalist Church, 22135 Davis Dr., Sterling. 703-328-6518.

Griefshare Open to anyone who has experienced the death of a loved one. Tuesdays through Dec. 6 from 7-8:30 p.m. Purcellville Baptist Church, 601 Yaxley Dr., Purcellville. Call 540-338-0918 or email caring@purbap.org . Workbook, $15.

Griefshare Nondenominational seminar and support group. Tuesdays 7:30-9 p.m., and Wednesdays, 1-2:30 p.m. Spiritual Care Support Ministry Center, 76 W. Shirley Ave., Warrenton. 540-349-5814. Free.

Grief support Sponsored by Hospice Support of Fauquier County. Individual counseling available. First and third Thursdays 3:30-5 p.m. Hospice Support Office, 42 N. Fifth St., Warrenton. Registration required. Call 540-347-5922 or email hospicesupport@verizon.net.

Grief support Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m.-noon, Spiritual Care Support Ministry Center, 76 W. Shirley Ave., Warrenton. 540-349-5814.

Hospice support Free medical-equipment loan facility for Fauquier County residents. Especially needed are donations of wheelchairs, bedside commodes, rolling walkers, electric hospital beds, shower benches and chairs, adult diapers, lift chairs, Ensure and hospital bed mattresses. 540-347-5922.

Look Good, Feel Better For women undergoing or emerging from cancer treatment. Every other month, 6:45 to 9 p.m. ,Inova Loudoun Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. Call for dates. 703-776-2820. Free.

Loudoun CHADD support Led by Children and Adults With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Third Thursdays 7 p.m. Leesburg Town Hall, lower-level conference room, 25 W. Market St. 703-669-2445.

Lyme disease support Fourth Sundays 2-4 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Pkwy., Conference Room A and B, Leesburg. Go to natcaplyme.org or email loudounlymeadvocates@gmail.com.

Lyme disease support Third Thursdays at 7 p.m. Warrenton Church of Christ, 6398 Lee Hwy. Access Road, Warrenton. 540-347-7265 or email lymeinfauquier@gmail.com.

Lyme disease support Third Thursdays at 7 p.m. Warrenton Church of Christ, 6398 Lee Hwy. Access Road, Warrenton. 540-347-7265 or email lymeinfauquier@gmail.com.

Lyme disease support Age 18 and older. First Tuesdays 7-8:30 p.m. Carver Center, 200 Willie Palmer Way, Purcellville. Email charphealy@yahoo.com.

MADD Loudoun victim support For those who have been affected by drunken driving. Third Wednesdays 7:30 p.m. 210 Wirt St., Leesburg. 540-338-6491.

Man-to-Man Cancer Support Sponsored by Loudoun Cancer Care Center, for prostate cancer patients and their families. Second Tuesdays 6:30-8 p.m. Senior Center at Cascades, 21060 Whitfield Pl., Sterling. Call 703-858-8857 or email karen.archer@inova.org.

Menopause support Third Thursdays 6:30-9 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Pkwy., Leesburg (second floor, Patient Education Room). 703-858-8060.

Multiple sclerosis support Saturdays 10:30 a.m. Fauquier Hospital Chestnut Room, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. 540-349-2826.

Multiple sclerosis support Last Sundays 2-4 p.m. Cascades Library, 21030 Whitfield Pl., Potomac Falls. 703-771-4256.

Nar-anon family support For those affected by loved ones with addiction. Meaningful Mondays, 7-8 p.m., Galilee United Methodist Church, 45425 Winding Rd., Sterling. 703-203-9792; Wisdom Wednesdays 7-8 p.m., St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church, 37730 St. Francis Ct., Purcellville, 703-606-7125; Serenity Thursdays, 7-8 p.m. Leesburg Presbyterian Church, 207 W. Market St., Leesburg, 703-606-7125.

Overeaters Anonymous For fellowship and support. For locations and times, call 571-420-2012. oa.org.

Parkinsons support Open to those with Parkinsons disease, their family members and caregivers. First Tuesdays 1:30-3 p.m. Call for Ashburn location. 571-442-8851.

Post-partum support Second and fourth Wednesdays 1-2:30 p.m. Inova Loudoun Cornwall Campus, 224 Cornwall St., Leesburg. Call 703-909-9877 or email lamckeough@gmail.com. Registration required.

Reach to Recovery Home visit program for mastectomy and lumpectomy patients. Temporary prostheses, exercise instruction and encouragement. 703-938-5550.

Sexual assault and incest survivors group counseling Services provided by Loudoun Citizens for Social Justice and the Loudoun Abused Womens Shelter are free and confidential. 703-771-9020.

Sexual assault survivors empowerment support Sponsored by Sexual Assault Victims Volunteer Initiative. Child care available with 48 hours notice. Mondays; call for times and locations. 540-349-7720.

Spiritual support group For cancer patients, family members and friends. Third Tuesdays 6:30-8 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. 703-858-8850.

Stroke survivors and caregivers support Second Wednesdays 11 a.m.-noon, Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Pkwy., Leesburg, second floor, Patient Education Room. 703-858-6199 or jill.lieb@inova.org.

Suicide counseling Third Wednesdays 7-8:30 p.m. Leesburg Town Office, Conference Room 2, lower level, 25 W. Market St., Leesburg. 703-587-1618 or survivorsofsuicidelossleesburg@gmail.com.

Womens support Sponsored by Services to Abused Families. Tuesdays 6:30-8 p.m. Confidential location. 540-825-8876.

Widows and widowers support Third Mondays 11 a.m. Leesburg Senior Center, 102 North St. NW. 703-737-8039.

Womens cancer support Woman to Woman, first Wednesdays 6:30-8 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital Radiation Oncology Center, 44035 Riverside Pkwy., Suite 100, Leesburg. Registration required. 703-858-8850.

MISCELLANEOUS

Brain trauma survivors brown bag lunch For survivors and caregivers. First Tuesdays, noon-1:30 p.m., Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Pkwy., Leesburg, second-floor Patient Education Room. Call 703-737-3150 or email jberg@braininjurysvcs.org. Free.

Child developmental screenings For ages 2-5. Children may not be kindergarten-age-eligible. Sponsored by the Loudoun County public schools Child Find Center. 571-252- - 2180.

Cholesterol screenings Weekdays from 6 a.m.-8 p.m. Fauquier Health LIFE Center, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. 540-316-2640. Registration required. $35.

Emergency food supplies Loudoun County residents in need can receive a free three-day supply of groceries. Supplies are distributed Mondays through Saturdays by Loudoun Hunger Relief. Call 703-777-5911 or go to loudounhunger.org .

Fauquier free walk-in medical clinic Patients must call Thursdays from 12:30 to 1 p.m. to register for the clinic, which begins at 5:30 p.m. Patients are also seen by appointment Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Fauquier and Rappahannock residents only. Bring proof of address for the first visit. Patients cannot have Medicaid, Medicare or private insurance. Information: 540-347-0394 Tuesdays or Thursdays, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

Fauquier Hospital Bistro Senior Supper Club Nutritious meals and fellowship for people 55 and older. Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:30-6:30 p.m. Fauquier Hospital Bistro on the Hill, 500 Hospital Dr., Warrenton. 540-316-3588. $5.49.

HEROES (Hometown Enabling Relationships, Opportunities and Empowerment through Support) is a program for military families. A trained volunteer provides support to military members and their families, from pre-deployment up to two years post-deployment. Assistance includes financial help, job placement, family care and mental-health services. caring@purbap.org or heroescare.org.

Inova Loudoun Hospital Mobile Health Services blood pressure screenings, Wednesday 10 a.m.-noon, Lansdowne Woods, 19400 Leisure World Blvd., Leesburg. For information, call 703-858-8818 or go to inova.org/mobilehealth. Free.

Loudoun Cares information and referral help line Call 703-669-4636 for help in finding resources for county residents who are dealing with rent eviction, utility cut-offs, needed health care and employment.

Motor skill screenings Birth to 21 months. First Thursdays, Blue Ridge Speech and Hearing Center, 19465 Deerfield Ave., Suite 201, Lansdowne. Call for an appointment. 703-858-7620. Free.

Northern Virginia long-term care ombudsman Call 703-324-5861 for help in resolving complaints related to long-term-care facilities.

Road to Recovery For cancer patients who need rides to appointments. Call 410-781-6909 or email jen.burdette@cancer.org. Free. Safe sitter classes For girls and boys ages 11-14. First Saturdays except for holiday weekends. 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Inova Loudoun Hospital, 44045 Riverside Pkwy., Leesburg. To receive a Safe Sitter Certificate, students must pass practical and written tests on babysitting concepts and handling an emergency. Bring a lunch or buy lunch in the cafeteria. $70, includes handbook and snacks during the day. Registration required. Call 703-858-8818 or email charlene.martin@inova.org .

Seven Loaves Food Pantry Individuals and families can receive a three-day supply of food, distributed Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m.-noon. Go to sevenloavesmiddleburg.org or call 540-687-3489.

Tree of Life Food Pantry Serving western Loudoun County. Food is delivered Wednesdays and Saturdays. 703-554-3595.

 Compiled by Sandy Mauck

TO SUBMIT AN ITEM

Email: ldliving@washpost.com

Fax: 703-777-8437

Mail: Health Calendar, The Washington Post, 104 Dry Mill Rd. SW, Suite 101, Leesburg, Va. 20175

Loudoun County and Fauquier County health calendar
Robin Ficker, a Montgomery County Republican activist who ran a petition campaign to place term limits on the 2016 Montgomery ballot. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Montgomery County real estate developers and builders put some late financial muscle behind the successful term limits ballot initiative, according to a post-election filing with the state.

The real estate sector kicked in about $21,000 of the $25,000 in contributions collected in late October and early November by Voters for Montgomery County Term Limits. The lopsided margin of passage for Question B (70 percent to 30 percent) strongly suggests that the cap of three consecutive terms for the county executive and members of the County Council was already a done deal for voters.

[Government-loving Montgomery seems poised to adopt term limits]

Major donors included Miller & Long D.C. construction executive Evan McMahon ($5,000); Minkoff Development Corp. vice president Bradley Chod; Coakley & Williams Construction ($2,500), and FP Corporate Services ($2,000), which is listed at the same Potomac address as Foulger-Pratt, a major developer and defendant in the countys lawsuit against designers and builders of the Silver Spring Transit Center. Foulger-Pratt was general contractor on the project. Bryant Foulger, the firms managing principal, contributed $500 under his own name.

According to the filing, the term limits group spent $15,000 for online advertising and $7,000 for robocalls.

No On B, the committee that organized opposition to the ballot measure, had not filed its post-election report as of mid-afternoon Monday. It was due on Nov. 22.
District police have arrested suspects in two fatal shootings that occurred hours apart on Sunday afternoon in the Navy Yard neighborhood and near Anacostia in Southeast.

In the first shooting, police said they charged Babajide Pittman, 31, with second-degree murder while armed and assault with a dangerous weapon.

The victim, Anthony Young, 27, of Southeast, was shot about 1:45 p.m. during what police described a dispute between two people who knew each other. It occurred in the 600 block of L Street SE, on the street that runs by the Marine Barracks. No further information was divulged.

[Police, mayor decry violence in Southeast Washington]

Shortly after 4 p.m., police said Orlando Donald Silver III, 37, of the District, was shot and killed in the 1300 block of Howard Road SE. Police said they charged Marquette Tibbs, 24, of Southeast, with second-degree murder while armed.

A police report says officers found a small amount of marijuana on the suspect, along with a Smith & Wesson handgun. Tibbs also was charged with possession with intent to distribute marijuana and being a felon in possession of a handgun.

Police did not describe a motive.
A letter carrier for the Postal Service was beaten and robbed on his route Saturday evening in Northeast Washington, authorities said.

The man had finished his deliveries about 6 p.m. and was returning to his postal vehicle when two masked robbers approached in the 2300 block of Second Street NE, said D.C. police and Frank Schissler, a spokesman for the postal inspection service.

According to D.C. police, the robbers put a pistol to the mail carriers head. They ordered him to the ground, then struck him with the pistol and kicked him.

They took a variety of items, including his pants, shoes and wallet, according to a police account.

In addition, they took the bag in which he carried mail.

When he sought to flag down a passing car for help, one of the robbers fired a shot into the air, police said.

The victim ran and eventually found a police car. The robbers ran away, and no arrest had been reported as of late Sunday night.

Schissler said the mail satchel was empty when the robbers took it.

He said incidents such as Saturdays are extremely rare, considering that deliveries are made to 155 million addresses.

A reward of up to $50,000 is offered, Schissler said.
Police in Fairfax County said Ricardo Molina-Martinez fatally stabbed his wife in Alexandria (Courtesy of Fairfax County Police)

Police in Fairfax County said a woman was fatally stabbed Monday in the Mount Vernon area by her husband.

The incident occurred before dawn in the 8400 block of Diablo Court near Richmond Highway. Police said they found a woman with trauma to the upper body. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

The victim was later identified as 35-year-old Yesenia Membrano-Diaz. Police initially said the victim was 37.

Authorities also said a resident reported to them that she heard screaming outside and then saw a woman outside on the ground.

When officers arrived, they found the woman, who was unresponsive. A K-9 team, a helicopter and officers on the ground searched for the suspect.

The suspect was later found and identified as Ricardo Molina-Martinez. He is said to be in his late 40s and is the victims husband, according to police.

The D.C. region has had more than 260 homicides this year, according to data tracked by The Washington Post. Forty-three of those have been in Northern Virginia, including 13 in Fairfax County.
Police said an unidentified homicide victim in Montgomery County was wearing a shirt and shoes like these. (Montgomery County Police)

An unidentified male found in a shallow grave in Montgomery County earlier this month was the victim of a homicide, police said Monday.

On Nov. 12 at about 4:30 p.m., officers went to the 11500 block of Game Preserve Road in Gaithersburg after hikers had found a body in a grave in the woods, Montgomery County Police said in a statement.

[Human remains found in shallow grave in Maryland woods]

The cause of death remains under investigation, the statement said, but authorities said Monday that they are investigating it as a homicide and that they think the victim had been in the woods since late summer.

Police described the victim as a Hispanic male about 56 tall in his late teens to early 20s, and asked for the publics help in identifying him. They also released photographs of the style of shirt and size 8 Aldo shoes that the person was wearing when he was found.

Anyone with information may contact police at 240-773-5070, and those who want to remain anonymous may call 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).
Police in Fairfax County, Va., have identified the victim of a Thanksgiving Day killing in Falls Church. But they have been unable to locate any relatives of the man who was slain in his apartment on the holiday.

Leif Erick Ohlsson, 69, was killed at about 10 p.m. on Nov. 24 in his apartment on the 5500 block of Seminary Road, police said.

The next day, three suspects were arrested. Fredy Cisneros Agustin, 24, was charged with murder and burglary. Gabriel Coca, 31, and Jose Nasario Perez Amaya, 27, were charged with burglary. Police are still looking for Adonay Polanco Cabrera, 21, who is wanted for involvement in the burglary.

A Fairfax police spokeswoman said the suspects were acquainted with the victim and would not categorize the crime as a burglary gone wrong. The burglary may have happened after the murder, she said.

Right now, police are trying to find Ohlssons next of kin to notify them of the mans death.


John Taylor Chapman (center left, in cap) leads a Manumission tour of Old Town in November. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

The dying afternoon light was just enough to illuminate the little yellow rowhouse now for rent, which two centuries ago served the best crabs in Old Town Alexandria.

Its owner was Dominick Barecroft, a slave who bought or was granted his freedom in 1800. Just four years later, he opened his tavern and grocery, which welcomed customers of all races for the next two decades.

There are similar stories all over this city, tour guide John Taylor Chapman told the seven people who had signed up on a recent Sunday to learn about an overlooked aspect of American history.

Unlike their brethren on Southern plantations, slaves who labored in homes and businesses in places like Alexandria occasionally found ways to earn money, explained Chapman, a 35-year-old community liaison for Fairfax County Public Schools and a member of the Alexandria City Council. Sometimes, it was enough to buy their freedom. Others managed to escape slavery aboard the many ships docked at Alexandrias port.

Chapman, an Alexandria native who once headed the local NAACP chapter, has spent the past 11 months researching the lives of slaves from the city who became free. He is driven by his own family history and a desire not to let the rich past of Alexandrias African American residents be forgotten.

The result is a three-month-old company called Manumission Tours, named for the act of freeing slaves. Chapman runs the 90-minute, $10 tours on Sunday afternoons, steering customers through places and stories of enslaved sugar mill workers, carpenters and gardeners who lived and labored in the small confines of Old Town before the Civil War.

It is a small and unusual addition to the exploding world of black history-related tourism, which can be seen in the crowds that have swarmed the Smithsonian Institutions new National Museum of African American History and Culture and the steady popularity of the recently opened exhibit on George Washingtons slaves at Mount Vernon.



Mount Vernon dedicated a reconstructed slave cabin on the grounds in 2007, with a special ceremony that included descendants of the slaves who lived and worked on George Washington's estate. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post)

In Alexandria, the Northern Virginia Urban League operates a museum at the former Franklin & Armfield slave pen, where the central character in the movie 12 Years a Slave was held after his capture. A brochure on African American historic sites is in its third printing and has been flying off the shelves, said Audrey Davis, director of the citys Black History Museum, which itself has had significant visitor growth in the past few years.

These stories of slavery and enslaved people are part of everybodys story in America, said Susan Schoelwer, senior curator for Lives Bound Together at Mount Vernon, which uses George Washingtons records to tell stories of individual slaves. It in some way affects all of us.

Chapman first thought about a tour business about a year ago, when the council was debating the redevelopment of a 74-year-old public housing project known as the Ramsey Homes. He was bothered that so few city residents seemed aware that the homes were built as segregated housing for the black defense workers who flooded into the area during World War II.

Ramsey Homes history had not been talked about publicly for decades, Chapman said. If you knew the right person, and they had the time, they might be able to tell you. . . . But most of us . . . had a lack of understanding and lack of celebration of black history sites.



Alexandria's Ramsey Homes, shown above, were originally built as segregated housing for African American defense workers during World War II. (Patricia Sullivan/The Washington Post)

The nation was in the midst of a painful debate over Confederate symbols, in the wake of the 2015 shooting of African American churchgoers in Charleston, S.C. Alexandria had just ended its longtime practice of having city workers raise a Confederate flag for a private group twice a year near a statue of a defeated Confederate soldier. Months later, Chapman and his council colleagues would vote to rename the citys portion of Jefferson Davis Highway, which honors the leader of the slaveholding Confederate States of America.

Leaving City Hall after evening meetings, Chapman often saw historical walking tours headed through Old Town. They focused mostly on Colonial history. Few mentioned that Market Square was the site of slave auctions or that several lynchings of black men have been documented there.

Chapman decided to change that. Encouraged by Patricia Washington, the chief executive of the local convention and visitors bureau, and several others, he enrolled in a six-day business boot camp last summer and raised money to supplement his own funds using social-media crowdfunding.

He also began doing research in the local history collection at the Barrett Branch Library, itself the site of one of the earliest civil rights sit-ins protesting segregation. With each tour, he says, hes uncovered a bit more history, long-forgotten stories from older residents and bits of evidence of the crucial role black residents played in city life.

Chapman says hes convinced that Alexandrias location, smack between the Smithsonian and Mount Vernon, could make the city part of a route for tourists interested in African American history.

In addition to his first tour, which focuses on urban slavery, resistance and abolition, he is considering adding walking or bus tours of upper Duke Street, the location of the Franklin & Armfield slave pen, a second slave jail, a cemetery for black federal Civil War troops and a memorial to the abolitionist Edmonson sisters; black churches in Alexandria; and, more recently, the impact of gentrification.



John Taylor Chapman, left, leads a tour that talks about slave-trading depots and the culture of a town that even in pre-Civil War times had a big share of freedmen and contrabands, slaves who escaped from plantations further south and made it to Alexandria. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

I want to peel back the multiple histories of Alexandria, Chapman said. The tours will be on winter hiatus Dec. 12 through Jan. 31, then resume with a themed scavenger hunt in February.

Chapmans maternal grandfather was one of the first black taxi drivers in Alexandria, and his grandmother was a self-employed hairdresser. His great-grandparents were slaves in South Carolina, according to family lore.

As children, he and his sister Jennifer were routinely taken to exhibits and historic sites by their mother, Michele Chapman, who instilled such a love of history in him that he majored in the subject in college.

I see not only my grandparents, but folks like myself, trying to be enterprising, regardless of the time period or the rules against them, Chapman said.

On the Manumission tours, he tells the stories of freedman Moses Hepburn, who in 1850 built four brick rowhouses on North Pitt Street that are still standing and occupied; Sophia Browning Bell, a slave to the mother of a Maryland governor who managed to raise and sell vegetables at the Alexandria farmers market, thus saving enough money to buy her husbands freedom; and the Quaker proprietors of the citys Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary, whose 11 pharmacies were rumored to be stops on the Underground Railroad.



A tour group led by John Taylor Chapman, not pictured, checks out historic sites in Old Town. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

Monica Jones, 32, an African American defense contractor who grew up in Richmond, took the tour twice, in September and again in October. She had never really thought about urban slavery before.

Seeing folks able to go from being enslaved to starting their businesses  their preservation and dedication is inspiring even now, she said.

The tour starts at the Lloyd House, where slaves as young as 12 years old worked in a sugar refinery. It ends at the waterfront, where Chapman tells the story of a southbound boatload of slaves, blown off course during a storm, landing in Bermuda. Given the chance to live in freedom on the island, most chose to do so  except for one man who opted to go back to the United States and slavery.

We dont know why, Chapman told his charges. Maybe he had family he didnt want to leave behind.

The seven customers on the tour stared out at the inky Potomac as a full moon rose. They talked about what would make a person get back on a ship that would return him to captivity. Then they slowly dispersed, up the lamp-lit brick sidewalks of King Street and back into the 21st century.
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, left, has his id checked by pollworker Paige Harland before voting at the Richmond Public Library in Richmond, Va., Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2016. (Bob Brown/AP)

The states budget shortfall may be easing a bit as the economy shows signs of improvement, Gov. Terry McAuliffe said Monday after meeting with a task force of legislators and business leaders.

Im cautiously optimistic, McAuliffe (D) said after meeting with the Governors Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates. Were making progress on the budget. Were up for the year from where we thought wed be.

The group advises governors on revenue projections, and meets in private so the business executives can share internal metrics and expectations about hiring and other strategies. McAuliffe said attendees included officials from telecommunications, defense, housing, health care and other industries.

Payroll withholding is up 4.3 percent on the year, McAuliffe said, reflecting stronger job growth. Year-to-date state income is higher than budgeted, he said. We clearly dont have to cut as much as we thought it would be, he said.

The state has a shortfall of about $861 million for 2016 and 2017, and a projected gap of about $654 million for 2018. McAuliffe has already announced a round of state budget cuts. Most of the shortfall is because payroll and sales tax receipts have been lower than expected, as newly created jobs have generally paid less than those that have been lost.

McAuliffe declined to talk Monday about how the improved revenue might affect cuts and programs, saying he will unveil his proposed budget on Dec. 16.

Republican lawmakers were similarly upbeat but hesitant to speculate about how the budget might play out. We work on cash in the bank, said Del. S. Chris Jones (R-Suffolk), chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. The first four months [of the fiscal year] have been good. November has been a good month.

Not all signs are rosy, however. McAuliffe conceded that sales tax revenue remains down. There are some uncertainties, the governor said, such as a new presidential administration taking office and the potential for massive federal spending cuts under the mechanism known as sequestration.

McAuliffe, who is close friends with Hillary Clinton and was with her on election night, said he is glad that President-elect Donald Trump has talked of increasing defense spending, which would bolster one of the states biggest industries. And he said he hopes Trump follows through on promises to spend more on infrastructure.

Ive known Donald Trump for 20 years, McAuliffe said, adding that he sent Trump a letter the morning after the election. He hasnt heard back yet, although he said he has been in contact with others in the incoming administration.

Asked about Trumps claims of massive voter fraud in Virginia, McAuliffe bent forward in a hearty laugh, then straightened up. I apologize, he said. I mean, come on. We do not have one instance of that happening.

He speculated that Trump was referring to McAuliffes efforts to restore voting rights to convicted felons, but noted that only about 20,000 new felons were able to vote while Clinton carried Virginia by some 200,000 votes.

State Sen. Emmett W. Hanger Jr. (R-Staunton), co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, also expressed confidence in Virginias vote. There are gonna be allegations, he said, but be sure you got something to back it up with.
Quick Question: How can the Democrats win more elections in Wisconsin?
Mr. Bloch, right, and a colleague, Steve Dunwell, at work on the Stretch project at IBM. (Courtesy of IBM)

Erich Bloch, an electrical engineer who helped usher in the era of modern computing during three decades with IBM, and who later directed hundreds of millions of federal dollars toward scientific and technological innovation as director of the National Science Foundation in the 1980s, died Nov. 25 at his home in Washington. He was 91.

The cause was complications from Alzheimers disease, said his daughter, Rebecca Rosen.

The only child in a German-Jewish family, Mr. Bloch was orphaned during the Holocaust, survived the war years in Switzerland at a home for young refugees, and immigrated to the United States in 1948. He put himself through night school while pumping gas and cleaning laboratory equipment.

In 1952, he joined IBM in New York, where he established himself as a preeminent engineer in computing  and where he sharpened a competitive streak that he took to the sometimes fusty halls of government. As NSF director from 1984 to 1990, Mr. Bloch was credited with transforming the agency from a benefactor mainly of pure research into an engine of practical advancement.

He changed NSFs image, Science magazine writers Joseph Palca and Eliot Marshall observed when Mr. Bloch left office, from that of a mother hen for a brood of academic scientists to an agency with a plan for improving the nation.

Mr. Bloch, displays a TCM, or thermal conduction module, circa 1980. (Courtesy of IBM)

Mr. Bloch was the first NSF director to come from a business rather than academic background and the first without a doctoral degree. His qualifications lay in his achievements at IBM, where he helped mastermind revolutionary developments in computing.

He was chief engineer of the companys Stretch supercomputer, so named because it stretched what were then the limits of computing. Introduced in 1961 with a $10 million price tag, it was used initially by the Los Alamos National Laboratory and the National Security Agency and was the most powerful computer at the time.

Later that decade, Mr. Bloch helped develop the IBM System/360, a family of models that are the ancestors of todays mainframes. Fred Brooks, one of two IBM colleagues who shared with Mr. Bloch a 1985 National Medal of Technology and Innovation, credited Mr. Bloch with managing the development of the computers processing chips, called Solid Logic Technology.

Thomas J. Watson Jr., who led IBM at the time, is widely regarded as having bet the company on Mr. Bloch, his colleagues and the System/360 project, which totaled $5 billion  twice the companys annual revenue. It became, according to the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif., the most successful computer system of all time.

These were really the Apollo astronauts of the computing field, John C. Hollar, the president and chief executive of the museum, said in an interview. They were doing things that no one had ever attempted to do before.

Mr. Blochs experience at IBM informed his philosophy at NSF, a federal agency that is the governments chief funder of nonmedical scientific research. His goal, he told the publication Science in 1985, was to make sure that our own infrastructure and research is the best in the world, capable of competing with Europe, Japan and other markets.

A lot of people are upset about that kind of approach to life. They say science is international, so who cares who does it, he remarked. I say science is no more international than commerce is. . . . I think its a highly competitive field, I dont apologize for it.

Bill Harris, who served at NSF as assistant director for math and physical sciences, credited the approach with saving the NSF from possible elimination during federal belt-tightening. Mr. Bloch persuaded Reagan administration officials not only to spare it, but even to increase its budget.

Under Mr. Bloch, the NSF emphasized fields such as computer science, engineering and biotechnology. He oversaw the creation of NSFNET, a precursor to the modern Internet, and the establishment at universities of engineering research centers as well as science and technology centers  long-term collaborations among the public, private and academic sectors to tackle complex matters such as laser applications and earthquake prediction and engineering.

The single investigator cant do it with a Bunsen burner, he told Science in 1986.

Mr. Blochs admirers regarded him as a powerful advocate for results in a bureaucracy that tended toward inertia. Some detractors saw him as insufficiently attentive to individual researchers pursuing questions of pure science. But, in his view, scientists have no inalienable right to funding.

If all that we are doing is the individual research grant approach to science, then I think this country is going down the drain, he told Science. Science is changing, the tools of science are changing. And that requires different approaches. Yeah, it will make some people nervous. Well, they dont have to participate in it. But that doesnt mean that the country doesnt need that approach. It does need it. And it should have started earlier, in my opinion.

Erich Bloch was born in Sulzburg, a town on the edge of the Black Forest, on Jan. 9, 1925. His father, a businessman, and his mother, a homemaker, were deported by the Nazis and perished in the concentration camps.

I have been pretty much on my own my whole life, he told the New York Times in 1987. It wasnt easy getting started. It took a certain amount of drive and aggressiveness. I learned very early I had to do things myself for something to get done.

Mr. Bloch received a bachelors degree in electrical engineering from the University of Buffalo, now part of the State University of New York, in 1952 before joining IBM, where he retired as vice president of technical personnel development.

At NSF, Mr. Bloch took particular interest in programs benefiting women, minorities and the disabled in the sciences. After leaving office, he co-founded a consulting firm, the Washington Advisory Group. He was a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a fellow of the nonprofit Council on Competitiveness and a past board member of Motorola.

His wife of 56 years, the former Renee Stern, died in 2004. Survivors include his daughter, Rebecca Rosen of Trumbull, Conn.; two granddaughters; and two great-grandchildren.

In recent years, an interviewer from SUNY-Buffalo asked Mr. Bloch if, looking back on his career at NSF and beyond, he would have done anything differently.

No, he replied. I did what I thought at that time was important. Revisiting that now and coming to a different conclusion is not very helpful to anyone, especially oneself. You live a life only once. You dont live it twice. You do what you think is right at the time, and you stand on that.

An earlier version of this article incorrectly reported that Mr. Bloch graduated from the State University of New York at Buffalo. He graduated in 1952 from the University of Buffalo, which later joined the State University of New York.


Barbara Altman helps her son Andrew, 53, as they a walk near her Rockville, Md. home on Oct. 29. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

We have heard many reports in the past year about the spread of the Zika virus and the extreme brain damage it can cause to unborn children, but it can be difficult to understand what that means for families. As a woman who has mothered such a child for the past 53 years, let me share some of the difficulties as well as the joys of parenting a child with microcephaly.

In my sons case, microcephaly was caused by unknown factors in the first trimester of pregnancy. Andy cannot speak, and although we have tried many times, he cannot use any communication devices. He did not walk until he was 10. He has never learned to read or write or to do any math, he has never held a job and he needs 24-hour supervision to keep him safe.

He knows his name, and he recognizes his home, siblings, parents, friends and staff members at his group home and his day program. He is cooperative with dressing and bathing, feeds himself and is toilet trained.

[He had a normal-size head. CDC says Zika babies can develop microcephaly months after birth]

He is an extremely happy person and he makes a lot of happy noises, even laughing out loud, infectiously at times. He likes music, toys that make noise, therapeutic riding and going anywhere in a car. He definitely likes to hold hands and is a great hugger. He never has an angry day, and his pleasant personality can light up a room. While he doesnt make the usual contributions to society through employment, marriage or volunteering, I consider his presence a gift. Not all people with microcephaly are as impaired as he, but I am speaking from my own experience.



Barbara prepares lunch for her son Andrew, who has micocephaly. Altman doesnt know what caused her sons condition. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

At his birth in 1963, the expectations for children such as Andy were very different from today. Those with intellectual and developmental disabilities were warehoused in institutions, usually in rural areas, out of sight and out of mind.

Andy was my third child. At age 2 months, my husband and I took him to Philadelphia Childrens Hospital  we were living in Harrisburg  at the urging of our pediatrician, who was concerned about his head size. A doctor at the hospital identified his condition as microcephaly and predicted that he would never walk or talk. Because I had two older children, he advised institutionalization for Andy and said we should do it quickly, before we got too attached.

It is impossible to communicate our shock at such a plan. We were already attached and rejected the idea immediately. Fortunately, John F. Kennedy was president, and his sister Rosemarys mental retardation (to use the terminology of the time) led him to several breakthrough policies. After his inauguration, Kennedy created a panel of scientists, doctors and others to develop a plan of action.

[What this amazing mom of two girls with microcephaly has to say about Zika scare]

In a message to Congress in 1963, using the panels report as a blueprint, he outlined a new approach to intellectual disabilities. It included programs for maternity care, initiatives to move away from custodial institutions and plans for research centers. Congress passed legislation enacting many of these ideas before the year was out. However it was the emphasis on special education, training and rehabilitation proposed in the report that helped us keep our son at home.

It took another 12 years for the Education for All Handicapped Children Act to establish the right to a public education for children with disabilities. During the period before public facilities were available, some private programs provided at least self-care training for children with disabilities in their communities.



Andrew watches television as his mother prepares a meal. Barbara wants other parents to know the joys of parenting a disabled child. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Because I was a stay-at-home mom, I took care of the kids as usual. But things became harder the longer Andy didnt walk.

Although he was small at age 10  he weighed only 55 pounds  he was about 3 feet tall. It was hard to pick him up, and he was too big for a stroller. He became good at scooting on his bottom from room to room. The most difficult part was getting him upstairs to go to bed. He was not toilet trained then  still in diapers before disposable diapers.

Because he had not walked at the normal age, his hip joints didnt function properly and doctors recommended surgery. We were by then living in Maryland and able to proceed with that idea in 1974 because of a new type of institution, funded by Medicaid, which had opened in 1970. The original purpose of Great Oaks, in Prince Georges County, was to provide short institutional stays for therapy or training and return children like Andy to the community. The surgery took place, followed by recovery in leg casts for two months at home, then residence at Great Oaks for therapy for six months. The outcome was notable: He walked!

[Aging parents worry about who will care for their disabled children]

Andys time in Great Oaks also allowed me to go to graduate school. My older children were in high school and had adjusted pretty well to having such an impaired brother. Following his surgery, Andy attended a private day program in the District. Being able to walk meant it was easier for a babysitter to care for him after school. So I continued my studies and eventually got a job. Andy started public school in 1979, at age 16, four years after passage of the legislation giving him that right. He was admitted to Longview, one of the first schools in Montgomery County with a day program for special education. By that time, both of my older sons were in college and I worked full time to help defray their educational and other expenses.

And then we came upon the abyss. In 1984, at age 21, Andy was no longer eligible for public education, and there were no further public programs for someone with his level of impairment. I didnt want to give up my job, and we were fortunate to find a daily caregiver.

We hoped that new programs would be developed because the climate was changing for many with intellectual disabilities. To settle a landmark lawsuit involving abuse and neglect of children and adults in 1984, Pennsylvania officials had agreed to close the Pennhurst State School and Hospital, which was completed by 1987. This started closures of state institutions around the country. We thought it was just a matter of time before programs would be developed for this population.



Andrew lives in a group home but his parents pick him up almost every weekend. He comes home Saturday and returns Sunday. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

In 1988, I needed a hip replacement, so we enlisted Great Oaks to care for Andy again for a few months while I recovered. There were few if any group homes available, and we thought there would be no harm in a short stay. Unfortunately, Great Oaks original rehabilitation goals had gone by the wayside, replaced by the old institutional model. By that time, Maryland was closing its institutions, and residents of such places as Great Oaks were being given the first chance at the limited placements in group homes. Andy would be transferred to a group home and an accompanying day program when and if he was selected. We concluded that getting into such a program was worth keeping him institutionalized a little longer, so he remained there after I recovered.

While he was in Great Oaks, I would pick him up on Friday evenings as I came home from work.However, my happy boy cried every time he went back, so my husband was elected to take him back on Sundays. Six months stretched into a year. (The talkers and the well-behaved residents of Great Oaks were the first to leave the institution.) Finally in 1989, at age 26, Andy was offered a group-home placement with the Arc Montgomery County, a nonprofit parents organization that we had joined soon after Andys birth.

[Family carves out its own path in fight against 4-year-olds rare disease]

Since then, he has lived close by in the Rockville area, currently with four other men of varying abilities. He has lived with one of his roommates for the full 27 years he has been in a group home. We still pick him up almost every weekend, but, in deference to our age (I am 80, my husband is 83), he comes home Saturday and goes back Sunday. I make sure he toilets regularly, and I grind his food (he has developed a swallowing problem), but otherwise he entertains himself, plays with his toys, walks around the house, watches TV or takes walks with us. He is as happy to go back to his group home as he is to come to our house. As he ages, there are other health and welfare decisions to be made periodically, but for the moment he is in a very good place.

One particularly gratifying event was his attendance at our 50th anniversary party 10 years ago. He had not seen extended family for many years, and I was uncertain how they would react to him. He came with his favorite staff person from his group home. He was greeted warmly by all and he seemed to enjoy every minute of the attention. He particularly liked listening to the band.



Andrew swings on a bench with his mother. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

It was good to have him participate in a family celebration, something he wasnt always able to do as he was growing up because of the logistics (and attitudes) of the different circumstances, which meant he wasnt always accepted. While the great majority of people with disabilities can be independent, work, get around (with accessible transportation) and enjoy social activities, those who need assistance with self-care or supervision for safety make up only about 4 percent of the countrys adult population. About 52 percent are older than 65.

A very small subgroup, which includes Andy, are without the cognitive capacity to direct their lives. We have moved many people with these serious limitations out of institutions, but we havent necessarily improved all of their lives. Sheltered workshops, which provided stimulating activities for Andy for years, are now being closed. This closing is best for most clients, but for some, like Andy, it means being relegated to day programs mostly populated by the elderly or, if there is no day program available, being placed in a nursing home. While I live, I wont let that happen.

We have come a long way in treatment of those with disabilities in the 53 years of Andys life, but with the Zika virus, the number of people with more-severe limitations will be increasing at the earliest ages. It is time to reexamine what President Kennedy started and commit the necessary resources to helping  and including  everyone with limitations. They have a wide range of needs that dont stop when they turn 21.

Altman, a sociologist, is retired from the National Center for Health Statistics, where she serves as a consultant on disability-statistics issues.

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These women fight wildfires. But the scary part is the abuse, harassment, threat of sexual assault
Opposition supporters rally in Banjul on Sunday, four days before Gambias presidential elections. President Yahya Jammeh warned that anyone involved in violence or unrest during the election would be dealt with harshly. Eight opposition parties are rallied behind businessman Adama Barrow in a bid to end Jammehs 22-year rule. (Marco Longari/Agence France-Presse via Getty Images)

UGANDA

55 reported killed as rebels, army clash

More than four dozen people have been killed in fighting in a remote district near the border with Congo, Ugandan officials said Sunday, as security forces battled armed men protecting a tribal king who is accused of leading the rebels.

At least 55 people, including 41 rebels and 14 police officers, have been killed in the clashes in Ugandas Rwenzori region, police spokesman Felix Kaweesi said. Four officers and four soldiers have been wounded, he said.

The killings are an escalation of a long-running conflict between security forces and rebels loyal to Charles Wesley Mumbere, a tribal king and critic of Ugandas longtime president.

Gunfire rang out outside the kings palace in the western district of Kasese on Sunday as troops tried to disarm Mumberes guards and arrest him. Security forces overwhelmed the guards, broke into the palace and transferred Mumbere to a police post for questioning.

The operation was carried out after the rebels killed four police officers, a government spokesman said.

Mumbere is the king of Ugandas Bakonzo people, and some of his supporters reportedly have been calling for secession. Mumbere has denied any role in the attacks on police.

Kasese, where Mumbere is based, is a hotbed of opposition to President Yoweri Museveni.

 Associated Press

CONGO

Local militia accusedof killing 30 civilians

An ethnic Nande militia in eastern Congo killed about 30 civilians, mostly Hutus, on Sunday, local officials said, in an apparent escalation of deadly violence between the two groups that has flared repeatedly this year.

Joy Bokele, territorial administrator in North Kivu provinces Lubero territory, said fighters from the Mai Mai Mazembe militia attacked the village of Luhanga with guns and machetes.

Ethnic rivalries, incursions and competition for mineral-rich land have stoked conflict for two decades among dozens of armed groups in eastern Congo, including many Mai Mai  self-defense militias originally created to resist Rwandan invasions.

The Mai Mai groups take their name from the word for water in a local Swahili dialect, because some of their fighters believe that magic can turn flying bullets into water.

For the time being, we have a provisional toll of about 30 deaths and about 20 wounded, Bokele said.

Militias claiming to represent the two ethnic groups have engaged in tit-for-tat violence throughout the year that has killed dozens of civilians.

International powers fear that tensions over President Joseph Kabilas plan to stay in power beyond the end of his mandate next month could spark large-scale conflict that would feed into such local disputes. A war in eastern Congo from 1998 to 2003 killed millions, mostly from hunger and disease.

Tensions between the Hutu and neighboring communities have spiked since Congos army launched an offensive last year against the main Hutu militia in the region.

 Reuters

Turkey detains BBC, Voice of America reporters: Authorities detained two reporters working for foreign news organizations in southeast Turkey, the latest journalists taken into custody as part of the governments crackdown after a failed coup in July. BBC Turkish correspondent Hatice Kamer was detained over the weekend in the town of Sirvan while covering a copper mine collapse, the broadcaster said. She was released the next day. Voice of America said its freelance reporter Khajijan Farqin was detained in Diyarbakir.

Swiss reject plan to speed exit from nuclear energy: Swiss voters rejected a plan to accelerate their countrys exit from nuclear energy, turning down an initiative that would have forced their government to shut the last plant in 2029. The plan, promoted by the Green party, would have meant closing three of Switzerlands five nuclear plants next year. Voters shot down the initiative 54.2 percent to 45.8 percent in a referendum. The nuclear plants generate about a third of Switzerlands electricity.

7 dead, 1 missing as waves hit New Zealand boat: Seven people were killed and one person was missing after a chartered fishing boat disappeared from view in large waves at the entrance to a harbor near Auckland, New Zealand authorities said. The boat was carrying 11 people when it got into trouble in Kaipara Harbor, about 50 miles northwest of Auckland. Rescuers pulled three survivors from the water.

 From news services
What is it like to stare into the face of evil? James E. Mitchell knows.

In his gripping new memoir, Enhanced Interrogation: Inside the Minds and Motives of the Islamic Terrorists Trying To Destroy America, Mitchell describes the day he was questioning Khalid Sheik Mohammed, when the 9/11 mastermind announced he had something important to say. KSM then launched into a gory and detailed description of how he beheaded Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, Mitchell writes. Up to that moment, the CIA did not know KSM had personally carried out the murder. When asked whether it was hard to do (meaning emotionally difficult), KSM misunderstood the question. Oh, no, no problem, KSM said, I had very sharp knives. Just like slaughtering sheep.

To confirm his story, the CIA had KSM reenact the beheading so that it could compare the features of his hands and forearms to those in the video of Pearls murder. Throughout the reenactment, KSM smiled and mugged for the cameras. Sometimes he preened, Mitchell writes. When informed that the CIA had confirmed that he was telling the truth, KSM smiled.

See, I told you, KSM said. I cut Daniels throat with these blessed hands.

This is the pure evil Mitchell and his colleagues confronted each day at CIA black sites. I have looked into the eyes of the worst people on the planet, Mitchell writes. I have sat with them and felt their passion as they described what they see as their holy duty to destroy our way of life.

The world has heard almost nothing from KSM in the 15 years since the 9/11 attacks, but Mitchell has spent thousands of hours with him and other captured al-Qaeda leaders. Now, for the first time, Mitchell is sharing what he says KSM told him.

Mitchell is an American patriot who has been unjustly persecuted for his role in crafting an interrogation program that helped stop terrorist attacks and saved countless lives. He does not shy from the controversies and pulls no punches in describing the interrogations. If anything, readers may be surprised by the compassion he showed these mass murderers. But the real news in his book is what happened after enhanced interrogations ended and the terrorists began cooperating.

Once their resistance had been broken, enhanced interrogation techniques stopped and KSM and other detainees became what Mitchell calls a Terrorist Think Tank, identifying voices in phone calls, deciphering encrypted messages and providing valuable information that led the CIA to other terrorists. Mitchell devotes an entire chapter to the critical role KSM and other detainees played in finding Osama bin Laden. KSM held classes where he lectured CIA officials on jihadist ideology, terrorist recruiting and attack planning. He was so cooperative, Mitchell writes, KSM told me I should be on the FBIs Most Wanted List because I am now a known associate of KSM and a graduate of his training camp.

KSM also described for Mitchell many of his as yet unconsummated ideas for future attacks, the terrifying details of which Mitchell does not reveal for fear they might be implemented. If we ever allow him to communicate unmonitored with the outside world, Mitchell writes, he could easily spread his deviously simple but potentially deadly ideas.

But perhaps the most riveting part of the book is what KSM told Mitchell about what inspired al-Qaeda to attack the United States  and the U.S. response he expected. Today, some on both the left and the right argue that al-Qaeda wanted to draw us into a quagmire in Afghanistan  and now the Islamic State wants to do the same in Iraq and Syria. KSM said this is dead wrong. Far from trying to draw us in, KSM said that al-Qaeda expected the United States to respond to 9/11 as we had the 1983 bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut  when, KSM told Mitchell, the United States turned tail and ran. He also said he thought we would treat 9/11 as a law enforcement matter, just as we had the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania and the USS Cole in Yemen  arresting some operatives and firing a few missiles into empty tents, but otherwise leaving him free to plan the next attack.

Then he looked at me and said, How was I supposed to know that cowboy George Bush would announce he wanted us dead or alive and then invade Afghanistan to hunt us down? Mitchell writes. KSM explained that if the United States had treated 9/11 like a law enforcement matter, he would have had time to launch a second wave of attacks. He was not able to do so because al-Qaeda was stunned by the ferocity and swiftness of George W. Bushs response.

But KSM said something else that was prophetic. In the end, he told Mitchell, We will win because Americans dont realize . . . we do not need to defeat you militarily; we only need to fight long enough for you to defeat yourself by quitting.

KSM explained that large-scale attacks such as 9/11 were nice, but not necessary and that a series of low-tech attacks could bring down America the same way enough disease-infected fleas can fell an elephant.  KSM said jihadi-minded brothers would immigrate into the United States and wrap themselves in Americas rights and laws until they were strong enough to rise up and attack us. He said the brothers would relentlessly continue their attacks and the American people would eventually become so tired, so frightened, and so weary of war that they would just want it to end.

Eventually, KSM said, America will expose her neck for us to slaughter.

KSM was right. For the past eight years, our leaders have told us that we are weary of war and need to focus on nation building at home. We have been defeating ourselves by quitting  just as KSM predicted.

But quitting will not bring us peace, KSM told Mitchell. He explained that it does not matter that we do not want to fight them, Mitchell writes, adding that KSM explained America may not be in a religious war with him, but he and other True Muslims are in a religious war with America and he and his brothers will not stop until the entire world lives under Sharia law.

Read more from Marc Thiessens archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
President-elect Donald Trump gives a thumbs up to the crowd as he walks through the lobby of the New York Times on Tuesday. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Republicans are deeply concerned about ethics in government and the vast potential for corruption stemming from conflicts of interest. We know this because of the acute worries they expressed over how these issues could have cast a shadow over a Hillary Clinton presidency.

If Hillary Clinton wins this election and they dont shut down the Clinton Foundation and come clean with all of its past activities, then theres no telling the kind of corruption that you might see out of the Clinton White House, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) told conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt.

Presumably Cotton will take the lead in advising Donald Trump to shut down his business activities and come clean on what came before. Surely Cotton wants to be consistent.

The same must be true of Reince Priebus, the Republican National Committee chair whom Trump tapped as his chief of staff. When that 3 a.m. phone call comes, Americans deserve to have a president on the line who is not compromised by foreign donations, Priebus said earnestly in a statement on Aug. 18.

Priebus, you would think, believes this even more strongly about a president whose enterprises might reap direct profits for himself or members of his family from foreign businesses or governments. Priebus must thus be hard at work right now on a plan for Trump to sell off his assets.

Donald Trump has a lot of potential conflicts of interest as president  but there's no law that specifically requires a commander in chief to remove themselves from all of their business interests. The Fix's Peter W. Stevenson explains why presidents usually put their assets in a "blind trust" to avoid problems. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

[Who is the real Donald Trump (and what does he stand for)?]

The deals that she and her husband were pocketing  hundreds of thousands of foreign money, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) told the Breitbart website, the right-wing outlet once led by the soon-to-be White House chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon. Issa added that Clinton wanted her activities to be behind closed doors and did that because she doesnt know where the line is.

We can assume that Issa will press the president-elect about the dangers of doing business deals behind closed doors and instruct him about where the ethical line should be.

And it would be truly heartening to know that Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), a vociferous critic of the Clinton Foundation (Theres a connection between what the foundation is doing and what the secretary of states office is doing), plans to apply the same benchmarks to Trump.

After all, when the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was asked last August on CNN if Trump should release his tax returns, his answer was both colorful and unequivocal. If youre going to run and try to become the president of the United States, Chaffetz replied, youre going to have to open up your kimono and show everything, your tax returns, your medical records. You are . . . just going to have to do that.

I eagerly await Chaffetzs news conference reiterating his kimono policy, since he made very clear that he sees his role as nonpartisan. My job is not to be a cheerleader for the president, he said. My job is to hold them accountable and to provide that oversight. Thats what we do. Early, comprehensive hearings on the problems Trumps business dealings would pose to his independence and trustworthiness as our commander in chief would be a fine way to prove Chaffetz meant this.

Republicans did an extraordinary job raising doubts about Clinton  helped, we learned courtesy of The Post, by a Russian disinformation campaign. Does the GOP want to cast itself as a band of hypocrites who cared not at all about ethics and were simply trying to win an election?

[Trump must build a wall  against conflicts of interest]

At least some conservative voices have been raised to push Trump to divest himself of his businesses, lest he create conflicts that would, Id insist, reach far beyond anything that Clinton was accused of. The Wall Street Journal editorial page observed that the Trump familys potential conflicts span the globe and could become a daily political target. The loyally conservative paper said Trumps best option is to liquidate his stake in the company.

The Journal was joined in this view by conservative writer John Podhoretz, who asked what would happen when the Trump Organization gets an insane sweetheart deal . . . from a semi-state-run business somewhere? Impeachment, he warned, might be the only remedy.

If Trump wasnt ready to put his business life behind him, he should not have run for president. And if Republicans  after all of their ethical sermons about Clinton  do not now demand that the incoming president unequivocally cut all of his and his familys ties to his companies, they will be fully implicated in any Trump scandal that results from a shameful and partisan double standard.

Read more from E.J. Dionnes archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Our indefatigable outgoing Secretary of State John F. Kerry is engaged in a furious if implausible diplomatic effort to strike a deal with Russia to end the siege of Aleppo. He is motivated not just by the scale of the humanitarian crisis in the Syrian city but also by the prospect that the incoming president will strike a different kind of deal with Moscow, one that abandons the Syrian opposition and places the United States squarely on the side of dictator Bashar al-Assad.

The State Department is not advertising Kerrys quiet mission, following the quick collapse of the last U.S.-Russia cease-fire agreement he struck. But behind the scenes, Kerry is spearheading a process that seeks to stop the brutal bombing campaign that the Assad regime and its Russian partners are waging in eastern Aleppo, which has included the targeting of hospitals and the siege of a quarter of a million starving civilians.

Four administration officials described the effort to me as a long shot at best, but also the only chance to persuade the Syrian and Russian governments to halt the killing. We are still actively trying to push it, one official told me. We are not giving up on this. We think we need to give it a chance.

The strategy is to narrow the focus of the negotiations to cover Aleppo only, and to broaden the format to include Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and, at times, Iran. The deal would be an agreement by the Syrian opposition to separate from members of the al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, or Syrian Conquest Front (and formerly the al-Nusrah Front), whose fighters would leave eastern Aleppo. In exchange, the Assad regime and Russia would end the siege and allow aid to flow.

There have been several meetings between U.S. and Russian diplomats in Geneva to discuss the deal, and Kerry has been conducting bilateral discussions with all the players. He speaks to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov about twice a week and met with him this month in Lima, Peru. Kerry met with allies to discuss the plan this month in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

There are already multiple roadblocks. The United States and Russia cannot agree on how many Conquest Front fighters are in Aleppo. Also, theres a dispute over whether the Assad regime will determine who governs eastern Aleppo if the cease-fire holds. One senior administration official told me that Russia is simply buying time to either achieve its aims militarily or wait for the Trump administration to come in and offer better terms.

The Russians are trying to force the city to surrender, the official said. They only need 60 more days. And theyll get it.

Officials acknowledge that a frustrated Kerry still has not been given authority by the White House to bring any meaningful pressure to bear against Assad or Russia, placing him in a weak negotiating position. The prospect of Hillary Clinton being elected president gave Kerry some leverage, because she was expected to pursue a more hawkish Syria policy, officials said.

That measure of hope all but vanished when Donald Trump won the election. Why would Moscow cut a deal with Kerry when Vladimir Putin can wait two months and cut one with Trump, who campaigned on a promise to work with Russia? Trump seems to agree with Putin that the Syrian opposition cant be trusted and that Assad remaining in power is better than the alternative.

Fears about Trumps plan for Syria rose last week when the Wall Street Journal reported that Donald Trump Jr. met in October in Paris with the elements of the Syrian opposition that Assad and Russia endorse. Donald Trump told the New York Times last week he has some very strong ideas on Syria. He has spoken with Putin twice since the election about cooperation in the Middle East.

Moscow and the segment of the Syrian opposition it supports are seeking a peace deal that would cement Assads rule for the foreseeable future and label the rest of the opposition as terrorists to be destroyed. Many in Washington, including Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii), who met with Trump last week, argue that the United States should stop supporting Syrian rebels to end the war and stop the suffering.

Its a tempting prospect, but its based on flawed logic. If Trump strikes a deal with Russia and the Assad-friendly opposition, he will be able to claim success where Kerry failed. But it will be a pyrrhic victory at best. The rest of the opposition will continue fighting, and millions of Syrians will continue to resist Assads brutal rule and demand basic rights.

Even worse, the United States will have placed itself on the side of those committing war crimes and crimes against humanity, alienating most Syrians for a generation and driving them into the arms of extremists, all for a false peace. Kerry is right to work to avoid that disaster.

Read more from Josh Roginss archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
CALEDONIA  A father and his 9-year-old girl died in a crash late Friday afternoon after the car they were in was rear-ended by a pickup truck near 4 Mile and Short roads.

And police reported that the driver of the pickup, who was taken to the Froedert Hospital in Wauwatosa, was arrested on two pending counts of homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle.

Police identified the deceased as Kevin M. Dalley, 39, and Emily Dalley, 9, both of Caledonia.

A 6-year-old girl who was in the Dalley car was also injured and was transported to Ascension All Saints Hospital in Racine, police said.

The driver of the truck was identified by police as Levi G. Ruohonen, 25, also of Caledonia. Police say he has a previous conviction for operating while intoxicated.

Caledonia police and fire units were dispatched at about 4:50 p.m. to 4 Mile and Old Farm Road for a crash with possible entrapment and possibly an injured child.

Police said both vehicles were eastbound on 4 Mile when the car, a crossover type vehicle, had slowed to make a left turn into a subdivision. It was then rear-ended by the truck, police said.

Caledonia Fire Department officials said that one occupant of the car was pinned between seats but no heavy equipment was necessary to remove them from the vehicle.

Flight for Life was called to start responding toward Racine County to transport vicitms from the crash. A helicopter did not land at the scene, but was sent to land at the hospital. The Racine, South Shore and Oak Creek fire departments were also called to send ambulances to the scene and the South Shore Fire Department sent an engine company to assist.

The Oak Creek ambulance transported Ruohonen to Froedtert Hospital, the regional trauma center in Wauwatosa.

Traffic on 4 Mile Road was closed between Highway 38 and Highway 31 while crews worked at the crash scene. Wind Point and Mount Pleasant police and the Wisconsin State Patrol assisted Caledonia police at the scene.
President-elect Donald Trumps choice of Betsy DeVos as secretary of education is terrible [DeVos a top backer of school choice, front page, Nov. 24]. Ms. DeVos has a long record of working to undermine public education. But the voters in her home state of Michigan are not buying it. In 2000, Ms. DeVos and her husband backed a proposed amendment to the state constitution to allow tax aid to private schools through vouchers. Michigan voters defeated it 69 percent to 31 percent.

In 28 similar referenda from coast to coast between 1966 and 2014, millions of voters rejected vouchers, tax credits and similar gimmicks by an average vote of 2 to 1.

Diverting public funds to private schools would have serious adverse effects for the small towns and rural communities that voted for Mr. Trump. That is why Republican legislators in Texas wont pass a voucher bill.

Edd Doerr, Silver Spring

The writer is president of Americans for Religious Liberties.

President-elect Donald Trumps selection of Betsy DeVos for secretary of education made it clear that Ms. DeVos is a devotee of the misguided notion that simply by giving people a choice of schools, their children will magically do better. Just as there is no geographic cure for people with mental disorders, we cant fix students poor academic performance by moving them to another school.

The root cause of poor performance in school is poverty. However, politicians know that is an intractable problem, so they focus on bashing teachers, unions, bureaucrats, curriculums, standards and so forth so that they can hit raw nerves and score easy political points. If nothing else, the political climate has driven home the point that to win elections and bolster support, politicians need bogeymen to distract voters from seeing candidates own faults.

Until the underlying societal and economic issues are resolved, poverty will continue to drive poor academic performance. When people have decent, well-paying jobs, they are more likely to raise their children in stable households, which has proved to be the single most important factor in achieving better scholastic results.

Paul J. Deceglie, Fairfax
The Nov. 23 editorial Presidents dont prosecute said, The law enforcement system and the U.S. attorneys who investigate and prosecute federal crimes are supposed to be independent, free from interference by the White House or anyone else. That independence exists solely as a matter of custom and not of law.

The Justice Department is not an independent agency. The attorney general and all U.S. attorneys serve at the pleasure of the president, who can remove any of them from office at any time without giving any reason. As the Supreme Court recognized decades ago, that creates a relationship of here and now subservience between each of those officers and the president.

An attorney general can refuse to act in accordance with the wishes of the president but at the risk of being summarily removed from office. We learned that lesson during the Nixon administration. I share the hope that President-elect Donald Trump will act in a manner that is consistent with the tradition of noninterference with decisions to prosecute, but that is a tradition that is not supported by law.

Richard J. Pierce Jr., Washington
THE CHINESE market  1.38 billion people  has proven irresistible to many a Western corporate executive. It is entirely logical that Mark Zuckerberg, founder and chief executive of Facebook, might see Chinas 721 million Internet users as an appealing audience, on top of the 1.8 billion people in the rest of the world who already use the platform. But Mr. Zuckerbergs business logic should not blind him to the dangers of censorship in China.

According to the New York Times, Facebook has developed software that would allow a third party to suppress or censor posts from appearing in users news feeds. The software was developed to help Facebook get back into China, where it was blocked in 2009, and enjoys support from Mr. Zuckerberg. The option of third-party control might allow Chinese authorities or a partner in China to do the dirty work. Mr. Zuckerberg reportedly told Facebook employees in July at an internal forum that plans for reentering China were still nascent, but he added, Its better for Facebook to be a part of enabling conversation, even if its not yet the full conversation.

Mr. Zuckerberg has made several trips to China and clearly wants in. But his logic here is faulty. The notion that exposure to open societies in the West would change China was popular some years ago, but for the most part the state remains a paternalistic overlord, imposing a massive cordon around Internet users inside the country. The Great Firewall keeps out Facebook and others seen as undesirable. President Xi Jinping has ramped up a campaign to squeeze Western influences out of China and force the news media to become ever more a mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party. Mr. Zuckerberg should be especially wary of Chinas multipronged strategy to censor and tame social media, which includes monitoring users and flooding social media with posts of government propaganda. Chinese companies have also been adept at welcoming technology from abroad just long enough to master it and then purge the visitors, as Uber discovered.

One has to ask whether, if Mr. Zuckerberg were able to secure a toehold, Facebook would on balance be bringing more openness to China or enabling behavior that has turned the country into a thought prison. Would Facebook be living up to its core mission to make the world more open and connected or would it be adding a brick to the Great Wall of authoritarianism? How long would it be before the Chinese authorities also demanded that Facebook localize its servers, putting all information on the mainland under the watchful eye of the dissent-crushing state apparatus?

For now, Facebooks suppression software has not been rolled out and there are many hurdles to reentering China. Before taking any more steps in this direction, Mr. Zuckerberg should ask himself a central question: If Facebook accedes to the Communist Partys demands, who will change more  China or Facebook?
Radio host Alex Jones uses a megaphone to speak to crowds near Quicken Loans Arena, the venue for the 2016 Republican National Convention, in Cleveland in July. (Brian Blanco/European Pressphoto Agency)

Report: Three Million Votes in Presidential Election Cast by Illegal Aliens; Trump may have won popular vote.

 Infowars,

website of leading conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, Nov. 14

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.

 Donald Trump, president-elect of the United States, Nov. 27

Alex Jones was a powerful underground voice for the alternative conservative media, but he became a more mainstream figure in December 2015, when Donald Trump, then a Republican presidential candidate, spent 30 minutes on Jones's radio program, "Info Wars." (Erin Patrick O'Connor,Manuel Roig-Franzia/The Washington Post)

We learned last week that President-elect Trump has been turning away his intelligence briefers, leaving the tedious task of learning about national-security threats to his understudy, Vice President-elect Pence.

So where is Trump getting his information? Well, now we know. On Sunday, Trump tweeted out the wild allegations that millions of people voted illegally for his opponent. He also tweeted that there was serious voter fraud in three states that went for Hillary Clinton, so why isnt the media reporting on this?

The media wasnt reporting on this because its a load of hooey. But one media outlet has been reporting the groundless allegations, and its one that Trump relied on frequently during the campaign: Alex Joness Infowars, the radio and Internet home of the grassy-knoll crowd.

For two weeks before Trump made his allegations, Jones had been alleging this very thing, saying there was a wall of fraud and that at least five states were stolen by Clinton. Jones alleged that Trump clearly won the popular vote, asserting that in addition to 3 million illegal immigrants who voted, 4 million dead people voted.

Trump, with his mixture of the incendiary and the fanciful, invented the Infowars campaign. Now comes the Infowars presidency. Lets see what else is being promoted by the outlet where the next leader of the free world gets his news:

Pizzagate Is Real: Something Is Going On, But What? Infowars reports, asserting that high-level Washington D.C. predatory pedophiles are communicating via symbols on the menu of Comet Ping Pong, a pizza place in Northwest Washington. Notice the symbol of the ping-pong paddles and its clever resemblance to the FBI documents symbol for child love, Infowars reports.

Right! And aliens from outer space have landed in Florida  news Infowars is also currently breaking. Was Florida Fireball a UFO? Infowars asks, noting, A fireball shot through the Earths atmosphere at 11pm on Nov. 23 and citing social media for the UFO bit.

The well-informed consumers of Infowars also know that at the moment the Whereabouts of Julian Assange Remain a Mystery since the election and WikiLeaks wants people to stop requesting proof of life.

Infowars listeners and readers know, as well, that requested recounts in three states are an attempt by the Green Party to push the 2016 election into the hands of Congress. Somewhat contradictorily, this effort also means theres a Democrat Counter-Coup Against Trump in Progress. Jones warns that this is a real threat and [George] Soros is behind it, part of a soft civil war.

Joness rants would be funny if the soon-to-be most powerful man in the world didnt rely so heavily on them.

Trump, the New York Times reported, called Jones after the election to thank him for his support. Trump has been on the Jones show and praised the hosts amazing reputation; Trump adviser Roger Stone is an Infowars regular.

Trump has echoed Joness allegations that climate change is a myth, that President Obama wasnt born in America, that Muslims in New Jersey celebrated on 9/11, that Antonin Scalia was murdered, that Clinton used drugs before a debate, that globalists (read: prominent Jews) are trying to take over America, that vaccines cause autism and that Ted Cruzs father was involved in the John F. Kennedy assassination. Jones, who says he advises Trump privately, boasts that Trump repeats his ideas word for word.

As the Right Wing Watch website has documented, Jones has alleged that the U.S. government was responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks (Jones posted an old video Monday in which Trump appeared to suggest that aircraft alone couldnt have brought down the towers), the Oklahoma City bombings and mass shootings such as Sandy Hook. Jones has said that chemtrails from airplanes spread a weaponized flu, that juice boxes are part of a chemical-warfare operation to make children gay, that Justin Bieber is brainwashing children to create an American police state, that Obama murdered publisher Andrew Breitbart, that an alien force not of this world is targeting Trump, that intergalactic shape-shifting reptilian humanoids secretly control the world, and, of course, that water fluoridation is mass mind control.

Rest assured, fellow Americans: President Trump will deliver us from fluoride, juice boxes, outer-space reptiles and the 7 million dead people and foreigners who vote in our elections. Less clear is whether hell protect us from the real threats his intelligence briefers would tell him about  if hed let them in.

Twitter: @Milbank

Read more from Dana Milbanks archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Regarding the Nov. 25 World Digest item Membership talks halted with Turkey:

Turkey has been seething with unrest since Julys apparent coup attempt. Thousands of its citizens from all walks of life have been arrested and are facing lengthy jail sentences and even death. The revolution of July is undoubtedly the most inept in history. It lasted barely half a day. The cynic in me cant help wondering if this revolution wasnt stage-managed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to settle scores with his political opposition and to overturn Turkeys democratic government and implement a theocracy, which he seems to be striving for.

Turkey has also demanded that the United States extradite Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, claiming he masterminded the coup attempt, without presenting any evidence to support this claim. The United States should not honor Turkeys request. Further, Turkey should be cautioned that its massive arrests of opponents will lead to Turkey eventually becoming a dictatorship.

S. Sidney Verner, Rockville
President-elect Donald Trump, his wife, Melania Trump, and son Barron Trump board his plane headed back to New York after spending the holiday weekend in Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., on Sunday. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

President-elect Donald Trump spent Sunday ridiculing Hillary Clintons presidential campaign for joining a recount effort in Wisconsin, ending his day on Twitter by parroting a widely debunked conspiracy theory that her campaign benefited from massive voter fraud.

As his senior advisers engaged in an escalating feud over who the next secretary of state should be, Trump focused publicly on Clintons tally of 64 million votes  more than 2 million beyond what he garnered  by suggesting without evidence that millions of people illegally voted in the election.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump tweeted late Sunday, one of more than 10 tweets on the recount issue.

That accusation  spread by conspiracy sites such as Infowars.com and discredited by fact-checking organizations  gained traction among some far-right conservatives disappointed that Trump lost the popular vote.

[Fact Checker: Donald Trumps bogus claim that millions of people voted illegally for Hillary Clinton]

Republicans and Democrats react to the announcement that Hillary Clintons campaign plans to join a vote recount in Wisconsin initiated by former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein. (Bastien Inzaurralde/The Washington Post)

But Trumps embrace of the claim created even more instability around the election results from both ends of the political spectrum, with Green Party candidate Jill Stein leading calls among liberal activists for recounts in key battleground states to make sure voting fraud did not give the election to Trump.

The charges and countercharges could present a highly toxic issue for the Justice Department, including Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), Trumps nominee to be attorney general, whose tenure, if confirmed, comes amid a long-running battle over renewal of the Voting Rights Act. The two parties are already locked in fights over ballot access, with Republicans advocating ID requirements and other limitations that Democrats say are aimed at suppressing the votes of minorities and others more likely to vote Democratic.

Trump spent the Thanksgiving weekend out of the public spotlight, holed up inside his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and continuing his private deliberations about building the next administration. Kellyanne Conway, his former campaign manager and now senior adviser to the transition team, said on NBCs Meet the Press that Trump and President Obama spoke by phone for about 45 minutes on Saturday, the latest in a series of conversations the two men have had since the bitter campaign concluded.

Conway also led a remarkable rear-guard attack on 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney as a possible secretary of state, arguing that the former Massachusetts governor was disloyal to Trump and should not be considered for the post. The remarks highlighted a fierce behind-the-scenes battle within the Trump camp over whether Romney should be offered the job as a healing gesture with the establishment or instead whether a loyalist such as former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani should get the nod.

Rather than referee that dispute, however, Trumps only public proclamations came over Twitter  his favorite means of communication  beginning at 7:19 a.m. Sunday, when he lambasted the Clinton campaign for agreeing to take part in a recount of votes in Wisconsin spearheaded by Stein.

Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change, Trump tweeted.

Trump then composed five tweets quoting parts of Clintons responses at the third presidential debate, during which she blasted Trump for telling moderator Chris Wallace that he would keep you in suspense rather than outright promise to accept the election results.

At the debate, Clinton had called Trumps answer horrifying and a direct threat to our democracy.

On Saturday, Clinton campaign counsel Marc Elias said Clintons advisers had been monitoring voting patterns in critical states to see whether there were any signs of foul play, particularly in the wake of hacking of emails at the Democratic National Committee and of senior campaign officials earlier this year. Elias wrote that no evidence of wrongdoing had emerged in their preliminary review.

But once Steins campaign formally started the recount process in Wisconsin, Elias said Clintons campaign would join the effort even if her top advisers did not expect the outcome to change in any of the Midwestern states that tipped the electoral college balance to Trump.

We had not planned to exercise this option ourselves, but now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides, he said.

Clintons campaign plans to do the same if Stein, who has raised more than $5 million to help fund the recounts, follows through on plans to ask for the same process in Michigan and Pennsylvania.

[Clinton campaign will participate in Wisconsin recount, with an eye on outside interference, lawyer says]

The total margin in those three states was 107,000 votes out of nearly 13.8 million cast, with a combined 46 electoral votes among them  enough to give the race to Clinton had she won those three battlegrounds.

Clearly irritated by losing the popular vote, Trump suggested that the math to getting to the 270-vote margin in the electoral college made him come up short. It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4 states instead of the 15 states that I visited, he tweeted.

Meanwhile, the extraordinary feud over his pick for secretary of state hit a fevered pitch when Conway took to three Sunday television shows to attack Romneys credentials to be the nations top diplomat. Conway is part of a cadre of Trump confidants who are waging an unusual public battle against Romney to influence the president-elects decision.

Romneys supporters have largely counseled Trump privately, while his opponents  Conway, former House speaker Newt Gingrich and a handful of other Trump loyalists  have gone public in recent days to stoke a revolt.

Those opposed to Romney have been advocating Trump to reward Giuliani with the secretary of state position, stressing his loyalty vs. Romneys refusal to publicly say whom he voted for in the presidential race.

I dont think a cost of admission for party unity has to be the secretary of state position, Conway said on ABCs This Week, suggesting Romney went too far in questioning Trumps character and intellect during the presidential race. There was the Never Trump movement and then there was Governor Mitt Romney. He went out of his way to hurt Donald Trump.

The Conway offensive, which began Thursday on Twitter and continued in her three appearances Sunday, led the echo chamber of opposition to the former 2012 Republican presidential nominee. Gingrich said most Trump supporters could not countenance Romneys selection for any high-profile posting in Trumps new administration.

I think we would be enormously disappointed if he brought Mitt Romney into any position of authority, Gingrich said on Fox News.

Others inside Trumps orbit, particularly Vice President-elect Mike Pence, are viewed as Romney supporters, believing he has a steady hand that would benefit Trump in the turbulent world of diplomacy, according to people familiar with the dispute who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. The incoming White House chief of staff, Reince Priebus, also has a long-standing relationship with Romney since he served as Republican National Committee chairman during Romneys unsuccessful 2012 presidential bid.

Infighting over such a prominent position is not unusual. Four years ago, President Obama faced internal division over his choice to succeed Clinton as secretary of state, with one possibility being Susan E. Rice, who had been a longtime Obama confidant. Senate Democrats preferred their colleague, John F. Kerry, and eventually Obama made Rice his national security adviser and gave Kerry the State Department.

However, that internal Democratic feud played out in the traditional Washington manner  behind closed doors and in anonymous background quotes to news outlets.

Todays Republican battle has been carried out in an unusually public fashion that left some old Washington hands stunned and wondering whether this would be the new normal over the next four years.

I have never, ever, seen any aide to a POTUS or PEOTUS publicly try and box the boss in like this. Extraordinary, David Axelrod, a senior adviser to Obamas two presidential campaigns, wrote on Twitter, using the acronyms for president and president-elect.

Axelrod later questioned whether Conway was assigned the job of trashing Romney, or else it was an unbelievable breach for a staffer to do so while Trump was still making his choice.

Philip Rucker, Amy B Wang and Kristine Guerra contributed to this report.
Retired Army Gen. David H. Petraeus has emerged as a potential secretary of state pick for the upcoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump. (Photo: Anthony Behar/Bloomberg) (Bastien Inzaurralde,Osman Malik/The Washington Post)

Retired Army Gen. David H. Petraeus has emerged as a potential secretary of state pick for the upcoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump. (Photo: Anthony Behar/Bloomberg) (Bastien Inzaurralde,Osman Malik/The Washington Post)

President-elect Donald Trump met Monday with retired Army Gen. David Petraeus, a possible alternative choice for secretary of state amid an escalating feud over the position between supporters of former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who will sit down with Trump on Tuesday.



As Trumps senior advisers battled over who should fill what is considered the most prestigious Cabinet post, the president-elect will hold a second session with Romney along with another possible option, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), aides said Monday. Corker, who will visit Manhattans Trump Tower on Tuesday, chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and had suggested publicly that he was unlikely to be chosen.

But Trump is reportedly considering alternatives for the State Department as an extraordinary feud has broken out between those supporting Romney, a former Massachusetts governor considered the quintessential establishment Republican, and Giuliani, a fierce Trump backer seen by some as deserving the secretary of state post out of sheer loyalty. Romney attacked Trump in unusually harsh and personal terms during the presidential campaign.

[The Daily 202: Romney twisting in the wind offers a preview of Trumps reality-show governing style]

The fight hit a fever pitch over Thanksgiving weekend as Kellyanne Conway, Trumps former campaign manager and now senior adviser to the transition team, took to the airwaves to attack Romneys credentials to be the nations top diplomat. Conway is part of a cadre of Trump confidants who are waging an unusual public battle against Romney to influence the president-elects decision.

Another Trump backer, Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.), blasted Romney on CNNs New Day on Monday as a self-serving egomaniac who puts himself first, who has a chip on his shoulder, and thinks that he should be president of the United States. And Brent Bozell, an influential conservative activist, said in a statement that the very idea of Mitt Romney as Secretary of State  or any other cabinet position in a Trump administration  is a slap to his supporters.

Others inside Trumps orbit, particularly Vice President-elect Mike Pence, are viewed as Romney supporters, believing that he has a steady hand that would benefit Trump in the turbulent world of diplomacy, according to people familiar with the dispute who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.

Trump was angered at Conways remarks, according to a report Monday on MSNBCs Morning Joe. Trump aides declined to comment during a conference call with reporters, saying only that the president-elect is taking his time to choose the best possible candidate. Jason Miller, a senior Trump communications adviser, said Trump is meeting with Romney again because the two, quite frankly, havent spent much time together, so this gives them a little more time to do so.

The secretary of state search heated up as Trump resumed a busy schedule of transition meetings Monday at Manhattans Trump Tower after spending Thanksgiving weekend at his Florida estate. Among those dropping by today will be a candidate for homeland security secretary: Frances Townsend, a top homeland security and counterterrorism official in the George W. Bush administration. Another DHS contender  Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Tex.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee  will meet with Trump on Tuesday.

Pence, who will participate in the meetings, entered the Trump Tower lobby Monday morning and paused in front of the elevators amid shouted questions from reporters, saying only: Its going to be a busy week. Get ready. Buckle up.

Trump aides continued Monday to blast a pending recount effort in Wisconsin led by Green Party candidate Jill Stein that has been joined by Democrat Hillary Clintons campaign. Trump had spent Sunday ridiculing Clintons campaign over the issue, before ending his day on Twitter by parroting a widely debunked conspiracy theory that her campaign benefited from massive voter fraud.

[Trump pushes conspiracy theory that millions voted illegally for Clinton]

Donald Trump's senior adviser and former campaign manager took to the television airwaves on Nov. 27 to lobby publicly against former Massachusetts gov. Mitt Romney as secretary of state. But Trump is set to meet with Romney again on Nov. 29. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump tweeted late Sunday, one of more than 10 tweets on the recount issue.

That accusation  spread by conspiracy sites such as Infowars.com and discredited by fact-checking organizations  gained traction among some conservatives disappointed that Trump lost the popular vote to Clinton, though he won the all-important electoral college.

Stein has also filed a recount request in Pennsylvania and plans to do the same in Michigan, her campaign said in a statement Monday. Trumps surprise victories in the three Great Lakes states was instrumental in his electoral college win.

Miller, in the briefing, added: I really do think its ridiculous that so much oxygen has been given to recount efforts when there is absolutely no chance of the election results changing. This election has been decided. Its a conceded election.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest, who sometimes had harsh words for Trump during the campaign, went out of his way to avoid criticizing the president-elect during his daily briefing Monday. I think I would defer to the president-elects team for commentary on his tweets, Earnest said.

On the broader election fraud topic, however, Earnest said: There has been no evidence produced to substantiate a claim like that.

Earnest did take issue, however, with Trumps tweet Monday morning threatening Cubas regime in the wake of former president Fidel Castros death. Trump vowed to terminate President Obamas efforts to restore full diplomatic relations between the two nations unless Cubas communist leaders pursue unspecified changes in their approach.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal, Trump tweeted.

Abandoning the diplomatic reset with Cuba would appease Republican critics of Obamas efforts, which ran counter to U.S. policy that had aimed to drive Castro from power starting in the 1960s. But Earnest touted what he called the benefits of the policy shift, for both Americans eager to travel to the island nation and for average Cubans.

Summarily reversing Obamas policy, Earnest said, is not just as simple as one tweet might make it seem.

Petraeus arrived at Trump Tower soon after 2 p.m. Eastern time Monday but did not respond to shouted questions from reporters. Petraeus, who has been taking a wait and see approach on joining the new administration, according to a U.S. military official who speaks with him often, has emerged as a possible alternative for secretary of state amid the battle over Romney.

Petraeus returned to the lobby after his meeting with Trump and spoke briefly to reporters.

I was with him for about an hour, Petraeus said. He basically walked us around the world. Showed a great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well. Very good conversation and well see where it goes from here.

The general is one of the most influential military officers of his generation but ended his government career as director of the CIA in November 2012 amid revelations that he had an affair with his biographer.

Petraeus pleaded guilty in April 2015 to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified information in connection with the scandal  namely sharing information with biographer Paula Broadwell  and was sentenced to probation and a $100,000 fine. He could face a tough Senate confirmation process because of that history, though he has since testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee as a foreign policy expert.

Conway over the weekend had led the remarkable rear-guard attack on Romney, arguing that he was disloyal to Trump and should not be considered to run the State Department. The remarks highlighted a fierce behind-the-scenes battle within the Trump camp over whether Romney should be offered the job as a healing gesture with the establishment or whether a loyalist such as Giuliani should get the nod.

Romneys supporters have largely counseled Trump privately, while his opponents  Conway, former House speaker Newt Gingrich and a handful of other Trump loyalists  have gone public in recent days to stoke a revolt.

Those opposed to Romney have been advocating that Trump reward Giuliani with the secretary of state position, stressing his loyalty vs. Romneys refusal to publicly say whom he voted for in the presidential race.

I dont think a cost of admission for party unity has to be the secretary of state position, Conway said on ABCs This Week, suggesting that Romney went too far in questioning Trumps character and intellect during the presidential race. There was the Never Trump movement and then there was Governor Mitt Romney. He went out of his way to hurt Donald Trump.

The Conway offensive, which began Thursday on Twitter and continued in her three television appearances Sunday, led the echo chamber of opposition to the former 2012 Republican presidential nominee. Gingrich said most Trump supporters could not countenance Romneys selection for any high-profile posting in Trumps new administration.

I think we would be enormously disappointed if he brought Mitt Romney into any position of authority, Gingrich said on Fox News.

Greg Jaffe, Dan Lamothe, David Nakamura, Philip Rucker and Elise Viebeck contributed to this report.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, right, is interviewed after he and others met with family members affected by opioid abuse at the White House on Sept. 19. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post)

Shortly after Republicans stunning Election Day sweep, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack grabbed Vice President Biden in a receiving line.

Vilsack had an urgent message, and he sensed that in Biden, he would find a receptive audience. The two politicians had served together throughout President Obamas eight years in office and had known each other for decades. Both are nearing the ends of long and successful political careers, built on speaking to the ambitions and anxieties of white, working-class voters who turned decisively to Donald Trump in this election.

We need to speak more directly to our folks in rural America, Vilsack recalled telling the vice president. And we have to spend time there.

Biden nodded, and Vilsack kept moving, unsure whether his message  one that he had been pressing for years  had penetrated. Their hurried exchange is a small part of a broader reckoning that is happening among Democrats as they struggle to make sense of their election losses.

Democrats have pinned their recent failings on a variety of causes: websites that fed fake news to an anxious electorate, Republican-backed voter-identification laws, a racist backlash aimed at a black president and an increasingly diverse country, a sexist bias against a female commander in chief.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack leaves the U.S. Department of Agriculture headquarters on Sept. 20. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post)

Others point to Hillary Clintons popular-vote victory, Obamas high approval ratings and demographic trends projecting increases in pro-Democrat minority voters as proof that the party is healthier than it appears. The American people agree with my world view on a whole bunch of things, Obama said following Democrats defeat. Sometimes people feel as if we want to try something to see if we can shake things up.

Vilsack is among a group of old-school Democrats who are offering a far more dire perspective on the partys prospects.

[Tom Vilsacks lonely fight for a forgotten rural America]

Even before Trumps surprising victory this month, Vilsack was complaining, sometimes loudly and often with little effect, that his party had essentially given up competing in large swaths of the country that it needed to win Senate seats, governors races and state legislatures.

Democrats need to talk to rural voters, Vilsack warned this summer. They cant write them off. They cant ignore them. They actually have to spend a little time talking to them.

Today, the former Iowa governor compares Democrats to a tree that looks healthy on the outside but is in the throes of slow and long-term demise.

Basically, thats the Democratic Party as we know it, he said.

To make his case, Vilsack focuses on his home state of Iowa, which is 95 percent white and shows in microcosm many of the problems that plague Democrats in rural America. When Vilsack won his long-shot race for governor in 1998, it was the first time Iowa had elected a Democrat to the office in 32 years.

Eight years later, Vilsack was replaced by a Democrat who for the first time in four decades had a Democratic legislature. I personally took over managing legislative races, Vilsack said. We won the House and the Senate, and we had three of the five members of Congress.

Iowa voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012 before flipping decisively to Trump in 2016.

Today, Republicans dominate every facet of state government and control both Senate seats and three of the four House seats. To understand the depth of the problem that Democrats face, Vilsack pointed to the returns from Sioux County in the northwestern corner of the state. Trump took more than 80 percent of the vote in the sparsely populated county, giving him a 12,000 vote advantage over Clinton.

Two years earlier, Sen. Joni Ernst (R) captured a stunning 87 percent of the vote in winning the open seat that had belonged to Democrat Tom Harkin.

The vast margins essentially erased Democratic gains in Des Moines and surrounding Polk County, which has a population of 434,000, more than 10 times as large as tiny Sioux County. The pattern was repeated throughout rural areas of the state.

If Democrats show up in these places, they are not going to win, but they are not going to get shellacked, Vilsack said. And thats the key. Its about not getting beat so badly.

Vilsacks argument has an ally in Obama, whose 2008 victory in Iowa proved that he could attract the support of white Midwestern voters. Obama often talks about the Iowa caucuses as the most satisfying political period of his career.

Its my view of what politics should be, he said in an interview with Politico this year.

After Trumps victory, Obama pointed again to Iowa, but this time, he used it as a lesson to Democrats and the Clinton campaign, which had focused heavily on urban, suburban and minority voters. I won Iowa not because the demographics dictated that I would win Iowa, Obama told reporters. It was because I spent 87 days going to every small town and fair and fish fry. . . . And there were some counties where I might have lost, but maybe I lost by 20 points instead of 50 points.

[Obama never cared much about down-ballot Democrats. Until now.]

Vilsacks warning, based on his experience in Iowa and his eight years traveling rural America as agriculture secretary, is that Democrats will have to do more than simply show up. He said that Democrats must build organizations with loyal memberships and the ability to deliver in Washington. Who would you rather have on your side [in Washington], the Sierra Club or the National Rifle Association? Vilsack asked. Such new groups, he added, could help offset losses in traditional Democratic bastions, such as unions.

And he called on the party to retool its message so that it can better appeal to rural voters who are skeptical of government regulation and help.

As Democrats, we tend to say we have a program. We have a program to retrain workers or help with health-care costs or reduce the costs of education, Vilsack said. Heres how that is heard in some corners: Man, you must really not be able to take care of yourself. You must be really dependent. 

A better message, Vilsack said, would be built around partnering with local communities to retool economies hurt by technological change or globalization. Such a partnership, he said, would emphasize the good of the country and combine their challenges with the countrys challenges, Vilsack said. One part of the country is not stronger or weaker. Instead, we are all in this together.

Vilsack said he tried out a version of his approach at a recent meeting with state agriculture secretaries and commissioners  an overwhelmingly Republican group.

He pressed them to think about the consequences for farmers if the Trump administration follows through on campaign promises and triggers a trade war with China and Mexico.

That is our number one and number three agriculture customer, he said.

He warned that mass deportations of undocumented immigrants could deprive farmers of essential workers needed to harvest, process and package their crops.

The agriculture commissioners, meanwhile, had other priorities, such as curbing Environmental Protection Agency regulations on farming and eliminating the estate tax.

They get it. They know their sales are directly related to trade, Vilsack said. But we havent said, Hey guys, heres the problem. We just havent connected with them.
Around the world, concerns are mounting about Chinas unfair trade and investment practices. How Donald Trump responds could have a far-reaching impact on the global economy and financial markets.

Trump has threatened to declare China a currency manipulator, but experts say he has little legal or economic basis to take such a step. He has also threatened to impose a tariff of up to 45 percent on Chinese imports if Beijing doesnt behave, a move that could lead to a trade war and damage the economies of both nations.

Yet the president-elect is not alone in sounding the alarm about unfair competition and a playing field sharply tilted in Chinas favor. And there are plenty of options on the table if he wants to show he is tougher than his predecessor.

The American Chamber of Commerce in China, which usually is very measured in any criticism of China, complained this month about a rise in protectionism and economic hegemony, with doors closing to

foreign investment, regulations biased against foreign companies, and new national-security-related laws breeding distrust and paranoia.

The United States needs to raise its game with the Chinese to drive for a sense of urgency in dealing with these issues, the group said.

But it is not just the treatment of foreign companies in China, and their lack of access to the Chinese market, that has raised tensions.

Diplomats and experts say Chinese companies also are engaged in a state-sponsored buying spree of foreign companies in sectors identified by the government as key to an industrial modernization strategy known as Made in China 2025.

[If the U.S. withdraws, China wonders whether it is ready to lead the world]

China has been using the states vast financial resources to buy up key foreign innovations and technology, often in sectors where the Chinese economy is largely closed to foreign investment.

So as U.S. investment in China slowly declines, Chinese investment in the United States has surged, overtaking money going the other way for the first time in 2015, according to a new report by the Rhodium Group, an economic research consulting firm.

It is a similar story in Europe. Trade tensions between China and Germany have ratcheted up this year.

German Ambassador Michael Clauss talks of an unprecedented wave of complaints by German companies about the problems of doing business here and a definite rise in protectionism  at the same time China pours billions of dollars into buying German firms, including several of Germanys most innovative high-tech companies.

President-elect Donald Trump's views on China and economic policies could lead to a big increase in the price of Apple products. Find out why, and by how much. (Jhaan Elker/The Washington Post)

That has raised deep concerns in Berlin about national security and Germanys ability to innovate in the future.

This is not just an American problem, Clauss said. China has to realize these concerns are real.

In Washington this month, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission recommended changing U.S. law to bar state-owned Chinese companies from buying American businesses.

We dont want the U.S. government owning large chunks of the U.S. economy, so why do we want the Chinese Communist Party owning large chunks of the U.S. economy? asked Dennis Shea, the Republican chairman of the bipartisan commission.

[China may find Trump just as unpredictable as America has]

So what are Trumps options?

To judge China a currency manipulator under U.S. law, the Treasury Department would have to determine that it runs a significant bilateral trade surplus with the United States, has a material current account surplus, and is engaged in persistent one-sided intervention in the foreign exchange market.

Although China has by far the largest trade surplus with the United States of any country  $356 billion in 2015  its current account surplus is under 3 percent of gross domestic product, and it has actually been intervening to prop up its currency, not depress its value.

In other words, it met only one of the three criteria last year, the Treasury Department reported. It would be difficult for the new administration to direct the Treasury to say China is a currency manipulator, said Eric Shimp, who is a policy adviser at Alston & Bird in Washington and a former U.S. diplomat and trade negotiator.

Still, Shimp said, a Trump administration could initiate a broader investigation into Chinas trade practices and the state subsidies Chinese exporters enjoy.

Across-the-board punitive tariffs are unlikely, not least because they would invite Chinese retaliation that could bring down entire industries, experts said. But specific measures are possible in specific industries.

In Washington last week, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang said that problems in the trade relationship could damage the global economic recovery and that cooperation was the only right choice.

Chinese media have warned of canceled orders for Boeing aircraft, depressed iPhone sales and halted corn and soybean imports if a trade war erupts.

Nevertheless, Trump will be looking closely at the steel industry, especially with Dan DiMicco, former chief executive of the steel company Nucor, leading his transition team at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.

The Obama administration has already imposed heavy anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on some types of Chinese steel, but Shimp said broader tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports might be considered under U.S. global safeguard rules  if a Trump administration decides that rising imports have caused serious economic injury.

The harm to global industry from Chinas excess capacity in steel and aluminum are well known, said Claire Reade, senior counsel at Arnold & Porter in Washington and a former assistant U.S. trade representative for China. If Trump took action to curb this injury, China would not find itself holding the moral high ground in international public opinion. This might temper any reaction.

A blanket ban on investment by Chinese state-owned companies appears unlikely, experts say. The Rhodium Group said Chinese firms employ more than 100,000 people in the United States, and experts say there is still an appetite for investment, which can rescue indebted companies, build infrastructure and create jobs.

But experts expect greater scrutiny of who is behind the deals and where the money is coming from.

Trump prides himself on being the consummate dealmaker, and whether his dire warnings were a negotiating tactic remains in question.

Youve thrown out the bomb on tariffs  that would be a disaster for U.S. companies  but now lets use that as leverage, said Christopher Balding, an associate professor at the HSBC Business School in Shenzhen, China.

But there are risks. For one, it is far from certain that China would agree to the sort of demands Trump might make. Strengthening big state-owned companies is central to Beijings economic strategy.

The temptation for Trump to show his supporters that he is standing up to China, and Beijings desire to stand strong, means that some kind of action-reaction sequence is entirely possible.

Robert Hockett, a Cornell Law School professor, said he hopes Trump will walk back some of his more radical campaign promises about trade, as he has already done in several other policy areas.

There might well be a bit of roller-coaster ride in the first six months or so, Hockett said. But theres still reason to hope hell be sane about trade relations.

Read more:

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Syrians evacuated from Fuaa and Kafraya, two Shiite villages under rebel siege, are welcomed by pro-government forces as they arrive in Jibrin, on the eastern outskirts of Aleppo.

Dec. 19, 2016 Syrians evacuated from Fuaa and Kafraya, two Shiite villages under rebel siege, are welcomed by pro-government forces as they arrive in Jibrin, on the eastern outskirts of Aleppo. George Ourfalian/AFP/Getty Images

Images from inside the besieged Syrian city that is divided between government and rebel control.

Images from inside the besieged Syrian city that is divided between government and rebel control.

Syrian government forces seized full control of northeast Aleppo on Monday, overrunning a third of what remained of the rebel enclave and sending thousands of civilians into panicked flight.

The areas recapture brings President Bashar al-Assads troops closer than ever to realizing their biggest victory of the five-year-old civil war: retaking full control of what was once Syrias commercial capital.

The reconquered neighborhoods in Aleppo had been among the first to throw off government control in 2012. On Nov. 15, government forces launched a final push to take them back, supported by Russian warplanes and Iranian-backed troops.

By nightfall, at least 10,000 civilians had poured out of the shattered enclave  exhausted, bedraggled and often close to tears.

Monitoring groups said the rebels had lost a third of their territory in the city as district after district fell to government and Kurdish forces. The two are fighting on separate fronts to expand footholds in Aleppo, although apparently with a degree of coordination.





The Syrian army is now in control of the northern districts of Sakhur, Haydariya and Sheik Khodr, while Kurdish fighters hold a swath of land to the west. There were unconfirmed reports that some male residents of the recaptured areas had been taken to a nearby airport for interrogation.

[Darkness and fear as bombs rain down on Aleppo]

The Syrian Arab Red Crescent said Monday that at least 4,000 people had reached the Jibreen district of government-held western Aleppo. An additional 6,000 arrived in the Kurdish-controlled area of Sheik Maksoud.

Parents are fleeing with their children and the only possessions they could grab on the way out, said Pawel Krzysiek, a spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The capture of eastern Aleppo was considered in 2012 one of the armed oppositions greatest victories. Its fall  and the rebels final defeat  now seem inevitable.

The streets in their remaining districts as darkness fell were full of displaced civilians, many without possessions, searching for new homes.

Al-Watan, a government-aligned newspaper, said the army aimed to divide the remaining rebel-held territory into isolated pockets, forcing the rebels to surrender or accept national reconciliation under the terms of the Syrian state.

In other areas across the country, the United Nations has described this strategy as surrender or starve. In eastern Aleppo, it would involve deepening an already crippling siege on the tens of thousands of civilians still trapped in the middle.

[In Aleppo, Shiite militias highlight Irans influence]

The White Helmets rescue group warned of an imminent humanitarian disaster. Residents said it already had arrived. No aid shipment has reached the area since July, and civilians are surviving on shrinking stockpiles of food, reducing daily meals from three to two to one.

Eastern Aleppos rebel-run council says that at least 500 civilians have been killed and 1,500 wounded in the latest offensive. No one knows the true number of dead.

Amid intense bombardment and paltry fuel supplies, rescue workers have been unable to clear many of the blast sites, leaving broken bodies amid the rubble of homes.

The rebel council oversees hasty funerals above mass graves, often for corpses that cannot be identified because they are too badly disfigured or because there is no relative alive who can help with the identification. One rescue worker recounted watching two mothers combing through a bag of body parts for the remains of their loved ones  one was recognized by the watch on his arm, the other by the jean fragments on a leg.

[10 new wars that could be unleashed as a result of the one against ISIS]

Aleppo, in northern Syria, was once one of the worlds great cities, viewed for centuries as a symbol of cosmopolitanism and coexistence. In Syrias war, it has become a geopolitical battleground, with rebel groups backed by the United States, Turkey and Persian Gulf states slugging it out against the governments coalition of Syrian, Russian and Iran-backed troops.

Late Monday, amid reports that cellphone towers had come under the control of pro-Assad forces, it seemed that communication from many of the eastern districts had gone dark.

Zakaria Zakaria in Istanbul contributed to this report.

Read more:

The battle for Aleppo, explained

Inside Kerrys race to stop the fall of Aleppo

We live in Aleppo. Heres how we survive.

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Paul Nuttall, left, is congratulated by former UKIP leader Nigel Farage after being named as the new party leader Monday in London. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

The British political party that helped carry the nation toward an exit from the European Union picked a former top deputy as its new leader Monday to replace the firebrand Nigel Farage as he shifts to building his personal ties with President-elect Donald Trump.

The selection of Paul Nuttall, a European Parliament member, seeks to end internal turmoil within the U.K. Independence Party, or UKIP, as it tries to chart a path without the charismatic but combative Farage, who led the partys anti-E.U. attacks before Junes referendum that backed leaving the 28-nation bloc.

Farage has now turned his attention across the Atlantic, hoping to carve out a role as a chief British confidant for Trump  who shattered protocol earlier this month and suggested on Twitter that Britain should appoint Farage as ambassador to the United States. British Prime Minister Theresa May issued a terse but firm rebuke to Trumps surprise tweet.

Still, Nuttall will take over a party seen as part of the populist groundswell in the West led by the poll-defying victories of Brexit and Trump.

[Farage: Trump is a very loyal man]

Nuttalls main challenges now appear to be forging a post-Farage identity for the party and moving beyond its ultra-fringe voice in Parliament  holding just one seat in the 650-member House of Commons.

Nuttall, who was Farages top deputy and a former university history professor, beat back a challenge from another insider, Suzanne Evans, who drafted UKIPs 2015 election manifesto that included broadsides against the European Union and Britains immigration policies.

Today is the day we put the UKIP jigsaw back together, said Nuttall, 39, who set his sights on trying to lure away working-class voters now with the opposition Labour Party.

Last week, Farage warned of a seismic shock if Brexit is delayed beyond the current plans to set the break in motion this spring.

But Britains treasury chief, Philip Hammond, reiterated Thursday that there are no plans to replace its current ambassador to Washington.

It isnt for other countries to decide who we appoint as ambassadors and if I ever need any advice from Nigel Farage, Ive got his number, and Ill give him a call, Hammond told the ITV network. Tell him not to hold his breath.

Read more:

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Former French prime minister Francois Fillon, a member of the Republicans political party, on Sunday won the countrys first-ever conservative presidential primary. (Christian Hartmann/Reuters)

Francois Fillon on Sunday won Frances first-ever conservative presidential primary after promising drastic free-market reforms and a crackdown on immigration and Islamist extremism. Fillon defeated a more moderate rival who had warned of encroaching populism.

President! President! chanted the former prime ministers supporters as he declared victory over Alain Juppe in a nationwide runoff election.

Polls suggest that the 62-year-old Fillon, prime minister from 2007 to 2012 under President Nicolas Sarkozy, has a good chance of winning the presidency in the April-May election.

Fillon campaigned on promises of slashing public spending, capping immigration, supporting traditional family values and forging friendlier ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Fillon enjoyed a surprise surge in popularity in recent weeks over longtime front-runner Juppe, who also previously served asprime minister.

In a sober victory speech, Fillon promised to defend French values and said France needs a complete change of software.

Fillon, whom Juppe had accused of running a divisive campaign that catered to the far right, struck a slightly more inclusive tone on Sunday night.

No one should feel excluded from a society that I want to see more just and with more solidarity, he said.

During the primary campaign, Juppe, 71, expressed similar ideas as his rival on the economy but tried to rally conservatives around a more tolerant attitude toward Frances ethnic, religious and social diversity.

With results being reported from 96 percent of voting stations, organizers of the Republicans party primary said Fillon had 66.5 percent of votes compared with Juppes 33.5 percent.

Fillons toughest challenge ahead is likely to be far-right leader Marine Le Pen. Le Pen is running an anti-establishment campaign that particularly targets immigrants, Frances large Muslim minority and the European Union.

Socialist President Francois Hollande is expected to announce in the coming weeks whether he will seek reelection. The French left has been deeply weakened by Hollandes extreme unpopularity.

Both Fillon and Juppe are high-profile leaders of the Republicans who knocked their former boss Sarkozy  out of the primarys first round of voting a week ago. Sarkozy then threw his weight behind Fillon.

Sundays runoff came after a bruising end to the months-long primary contest, an American-style effort to end party infighting and bolster support for the partys nominee. The conservatives previously chose their candidate internally.

Fillon wants to drop sanctions against Russia over its aggressive actions in Ukraine and partner with Russia in the fight against Islamic State extremists. He insists Russia poses no threat to the West.
Awards: National Philanthropy Day Award nominees were recently announced by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Greater Madison Chapter. Recipients include: Outstanding Philanthropic Organization, Fire Fighters Local 311; Outstanding Fundraising Professional, Kristi Shepard, senior director of Major and Planned Giving, United Way of Dane County; Outstanding Business, Security Health Plan; Outstanding Small Business, Hiebing; Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser, Hal Blotner; Outstanding Individual Philanthropists, David Boyer and Joan Philip; Lifetime Achievement, The Levy Family: Irving & Dorothy Levy Family Foundation, Phillip Levy, Marvin Levy and Jeff Levy.

Wisconsins 2016 Habitat for Humanity Volunteer of the Year award has gone to Ann Wolfe of Madison. Wolfe began helping with Habitat as a volunteer and donor and then as an international volunteer.

Wolfe moved into leadership roles with Habitat for Humanity of Dane County working her way to Board president. She also leads Habitats Green Team, which oversees landscaping projects for Habitat homes.


In a military-run clinic near the front lines in eastern Mosul that receives dozens of civilians and soldiers every day, a woman who was gravely ill held a baby after receiving a botched injection in territory controlled by the Islamic State. (Emilien Urbano/MYOP for The Washington Post)

They came to the clinic in Humvees or beat-up cars, twisted in pain or far beyond saving. An Iraqi special forces soldier, his body gutted by an explosion. Four children with lacerated faces, survivors of a car bomb that had set their house on fire. Another soldier, who had stumbled into a booby trap, pale on his stretcher with a hole in his chest.

The luckier ones trudged past the facility in eastern Mosul, looking for shelter. The mortars are falling, said an elderly man, one of hundreds of people displaced by the grisly battles on this side of the city. There was no water or electricity in his neighborhood, he said, and no way to stay home.

The mortars, he repeated.



In a field clinic in eastern Mosul, two brothers injured by a car bomb are treated by Iraqi army medics. Islamic State militants have sent hundreds of car bombs to delay approaching troops, deployed snipers on rooftops and launched mortar shells with abandon into residential neighborhoods. (Emilien Urbano/MYOP for The Washington Post)

Civilian and military casualties are mounting as misery spreads in Mosul six weeks after the Iraqi army launched an offensive to capture the city from the Islamic State. Nearly 600 civilians have been killed, according to one estimate, along with dozens of Iraqs elite, U.S.-trained special forces soldiers  the vanguard fighters in the deadliest battle yet during Iraqs two-year struggle to vanquish the extremists.

The carnage has slowed the armys advance and revived debate about the wisdom of the battle plan, which envisioned Mosuls residents sheltering in their homes  a means, it was hoped, of staving off a mass dislocation and the citys destruction. Iraqi commanders say they are refraining from using heavier weapons to save residents lives, but at the cost of headway on the ground. They also say their U.S. allies are urging them to consider steps that could ease the civilian toll but also hasten a shared victory against the Islamic State in the waning days of the Obama administration  or at least show signs of progress.

Maj. Gen. Sami al-Aridhi, commander of the Iraqi special forces 3rd

Division, is one of the military leaders grappling with the governments decision, as the battle got underway, to instruct Mosuls inhabitants to stay in their homes.

If there were no civilians, we would have reached the river, he said, speaking of the Tigris, which bisects the city and now serves as a taunting reminder to the soldiers of the difficult miles to go before even half the city is theirs.

But with the Islamic State intentionally targeting civilians, any plan to evacuate them was fraught with risk, Aridhi added. If they suffer, it will be on us.

[Iraq has never seen this kind of fighting in its battles with ISIS]

The battle for Mosul was never going to be easy. Concerns about the complexity of staging such an operation in a city of more than a million people delayed the offensive for more than a year. And Mosuls symbolic value to the Islamic State, as the most populous city it has controlled, ensured its forces would not leave without a fight.

Even so, the extremists resistance has been more vicious than many feared. They have sent hundreds of car bombs to delay the approaching troops, deployed snipers on rooftops and rained down mortar shells on residential neighborhoods.

On the day Salem al-Mawla left his neighborhood in eastern Mosul two weeks ago, the Islamic State attacked the army with three car bombs and three suicide bombers, he said. He returned to his home Friday, to pick up medicine and other valuables. There are people dead in the rubble of their houses, he said. The homes that remained intact were being ransacked by looters.



Nearly 600 civilians have died in the fighting, according to one estimate. Many people died inside the city, a local official said. Their families couldnt evacuate them, and buried them in their gardens. (Emilien Urbano/MYOP for The Washington Post)

Another man, walking with a limp after fleeing the Aden neighborhood, said the army had ordered his family to leave after the Islamic State started directing mortar fire into the area Friday. Lots of people died. Too many people, he said, before gunfire erupted from a nearby apartment complex and he was forced to find cover.

Khalaf al-Hadidi, a member of the provincial council, estimated that more than 550 civilians had been killed by Islamic State militants during clashes or in coalition airstrikes. An Iraqi government health official said he could not confirm the death toll.

Many of those who died, died on their way from Mosul to Irbil, because it takes long time in each checkpoint, Hadidi said, speaking about the journey from front-line clinics to the capital of the Kurdish autonomous region. And many people died inside the city. Their families couldnt evacuate them, and buried them in their gardens.

The escalating toll and hardships in eastern Mosul appear to underscore the limits of the current strategy, which has exposed military forces to close-range firefights  with the casualties crippling some elite units  even as it leaves civilians in recently captured areas vulnerable to the Islamic States relentless shelling. Officials are also concerned about the slow advance of anti-Islamic State forces north of the city.

[ISIS has been a catastrophe for Sunnis]

Maj. Gen. Najim al-Jabouri, the head of Nineveh Operations Command, said that Iraqi commanders have been divided about whether encouraging a large-scale exit of residents would allow troops to sweep across the city more quickly or bog them down.

Some commanders, their view is that its better if we keep the people outside the city, Jabouri said. Not only would the civilians be safer, their argument goes, but then Iraqi troops could deploy heavier weapons and intensify air and artillery attacks on military sites, undermining the jihadists ability to launch punishing counterattacks.

Other commanders oppose that idea, pointing out that an evacuation would subject civilians to sniper fire and other attacks as they left and that a massive flow of refugees would increase the odds of militant infiltration.

The prospect of an exodus has alarmed officials in Baghdad, who fear it would overwhelm humanitarian organizations already scrambling to keep refugees warm and fed in camps outside the city. Officials with the aid organizations have also reacted with caution.

So far during the Mosul offensive, the army has made civilian protection central, said Lise Grande, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Iraq. Any large-scale, uncoordinated attempt to evacuate the citys civilians, she said, could put hundreds of thousands of people at grave risk going into a bitterly cold winter.



Residents flee fighting in eastern Mosul this month. The rising death toll has slowed the armys advance and led to renewed debate about the wisdom of the battle plan, which envisioned Mosuls residents sheltering in their homes to avoid a massive outflow of refugees. (Emilien Urbano/MYOP for The Washington Post)

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, together with the countrys top military leadership, has decided against a mass evacuation for now, a senior Iraqi official said, embracing instead a plan to ask residents of recently cleared neighborhoods to move temporarily to more secure areas nearby, until the threat of militant holdouts and shelling can be allayed.

The commanders reasoning: There is no place for more than a million people, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe internal discussions.

U.S. officials in Baghdad declined to comment on military advice to the Iraqi government. This is a constant effort, said Col. John Dorrian, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad. Its not something where you chisel a plan in concrete; youre constantly evaluating your progress.

A U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said the Obama administration has been working closely with Abadis government to ensure that troop movements and preparations for refugee flows were properly calibrated in response to Islamic State actions.

One step that U.S. officials are urging Iraqi leaders to take is the mobilization of a hold force that could ensure that militants dont infiltrate recently recaptured areas and prolong the battle with attacks from the rear.

Iraqi and coalition forces have already adjusted some tactics in response to the Islamic State defense measures.

In recent weeks, American officials say, U.S. planes have expanded strikes designed to crater roads in Mosul, in an effort to impede the movement of massive car bombs that the Islamic State has used to ambush local units or bases. Iraqi and U.S. officials are also racing to respond to the retaliatory shelling on cleared neighborhoods. Iraqi commanders are now relaying coordinates of mortar positions to the U.S.-led coalition so its aircraft can attempt to destroy them.

[Islamic State is driven from ancient Nimrud, where destruction is worse than we thought]

They may fire two or three, but there wont be a fourth, said Lt. Gen. Abdul Ghani al-Asadi, the head of Iraqi special forces.

The measures failed to stop the car bomb that struck Mohamed Yehyas family and landed him in the clinic, watching as doctors treated his injured wife and four children. The army had entered his neighborhood Thursday, and on Friday, the Islamic State hit back, with an attack that set Yehyas house on fire.

We thought we were secure, he said. We thought the army was in control.

Fahim and Salim reported from Mosul; Ryan reported from Irbil, Iraq.

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U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson speaks during a news conference in 2015 at the headquarters of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Washington. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

President-elect Donald Trumps vow to begin deporting undocumented immigrant criminals means confronting two of the United States biggest trading partners as well as dozens of other countries, allies and foes that have refused to cooperate on the issue or that significantly delay the repatriation process.

The State and Homeland Security departments list 23 countries as uncooperative for refusing to take back many of their citizens who came to the United States  in some cases decades ago  and have been ordered deported after being convicted of felonies.

Cuba tops the list, followed by China, Somalia, India and Ghana.

Traffic offenses, especially driving under the influence of alcohol, accounted for the largest category of convictions, followed by drug offenses and larceny.

In most cases, the immigrants, who do not hold U.S. citizenship, have no passport or birth certificate to prove their original citizenship, and their home countries refuse to issue new travel documents.





Once they have completed prison time in the United States, they cannot continue to be held pending deportation, following a 2001 Supreme Court decision that found that the United States cannot detain them indefinitely. The court ruled that they must be released within 180 days of serving their sentence, even if their home countries wont accept them.

An additional 62 countries  led by Vietnam, Haiti, Brazil, Pakistan and Senegal are accused by the U.S. government of dragging their feet in issuing travel documents. And without valid travel papers, authorities here are unable to put people on planes home.

This list includes allies such as Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Sweden and Turkey, as well as foes such as Syria and Russia.

Absent from both lists is Mexico, which has been the focus of some of Trumps most heated statements about undocumented immigrants who commit crimes.

During the presidential campaign and in interviews after the election, Trump said he would make it a priority to track down and deport as many as 2 million to 3 million undocumented immigrants with criminal records.

What we are going to do is get the people that are criminal and have criminal records  gang members, drug dealers, we have a lot of these people, probably 2 million, it could be even 3 million, he said in an interview with CBSs 60 Minutes. We are getting them out of our country or we are going to incarcerate. But were getting them out of our country; theyre here illegally.

Many immigration experts say the numbers are probably not nearly that high. In 2012, the Obama administration estimated that 1.9 million people in the country were removable criminal aliens. But that number includes people with green cards, who are legal residents, and people convicted of nonviolent crimes. The Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization, estimates that about 820,000 of 1.9 million deportable criminals were undocumented.

The State Department has played hardball twice to force repatriations, both times targeting small countries.

In 2001, the United States imposed a visa ban on government officials from Guyana, a South American country that had delayed receiving deportees. It complied within months.

In September, the State Department stopped issuing visas to government officials in Gambia, an African country with about 1,200 citizens in the United States who have final deportation orders. The following month, according to a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Gambian Embassy issued travel documents to 11 citizens.

Gambian officials say they have complied and are hopeful that the visa ban will be lifted soon.

We could not identify them, that they really were Gambians, said Hamba Manneh, a consular officer with the embassy. We asked ICE to send us another list. Weve issued travel documents, and now they are sending them back home.

Cracking down on countries that are blocking or delaying deportations can invite reciprocal measures, affecting international business, tourism and human rights, said Doris Meissner, a former commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. As a result, the State Department has tried to negotiate with countries reluctant to take back their citizens.

Typically, the country would retaliate and say, If youre not issuing visas to us, we wont issue visas to you,  said Meissner, now a fellow at the Migration Policy Institute. Or they will suspend visas they already have issued. Right away, it puts a lot of stuff into play that hurts the United States. Business travel, the transfer of executives, foreign students going back and forth, tourism.

But some lawmakers want a more forceful response. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) has accused the Obama administration of failing to use its authority to stop issuing visas as leverage to force cooperation.

Lives are being lost, the publics safety is at risk and American families are suffering, he said in a June letter to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson. It cannot continue.

Chuck Ambrose, a retired federal prosecutor in Kansas City, said he has dealt with the failure to act. In 2005, he said he prosecuted an Afghan citizen who conspired to distribute cocaine, but after his release from prison, the man was not repatriated. Ambrose said the Afghan subsequently took part in a vicious assault on a Marine, and Ambrose had to prosecute him again in 2009.

Among the 23 countries that are listed, two stuck out at me  Afghanistan and Iraq, Ambrose said. I cannot imagine two nations we would have more leverage over. . . . I think our State Department should grow some teeth, rather than flapping their gums.

In testimony before the House Oversight Committee this summer, Michele Thorne Bond, assistant secretary for consular affairs, said her staff and Secretary of State John F. Kerry raised the issue in meetings with some of the laggard countries. But she said repatriations of convicted criminals sometimes get tangled up with conflicting interests.

Cuba, she said, will consider taking back its citizens only if there are changes to U.S. policy on Cuban migration. China links its cooperation with the return of fugitives accused of criminal acts in China, but who may, in fact, have fled the country for political reasons.

Bond also noted that Chinese visitors contribute $29 billion to the U.S. economy annually, and 2,000 American families adopted children from China last year  all of which could be affected by a dispute with China.

India, too, is deeply intertwined with the United States and, for instance, sends 130,000 students here each year.

Officials at the Indian Embassy said they are willing to take back their nationals  once offered proof of citizenship.

carol.morello@washpost.com

Read more:

Tiny Gambia has a big export: Migrants desperate to reach Europe]

What will it take President Trump to deport millions and build a wall?]

Don't let Trump see a federal database of undocumented immigrants -- like me]
This undated image posted online on Aug. 31 by supporters of the Islamic State shows Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, the groups spokesman and chief strategist, who was killed in a U.S. airstrike. (AP)

For a man given to fiery rhetoric and long-winded sermons, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani became oddly quiet during his last summer as the chief spokesman for the Islamic State.

The Syrian who exhorted thousands of young Muslims to don suicide belts appeared increasingly obsessed with his own safety, U.S. officials say. He banished cellphones, shunned large meetings and avoided going outdoors in the daytime. He began sleeping in crowded tenements in a northern Syrian town called al-Bab, betting on the presence of young children to shield him from the drones prowling the skies overhead.

But in late August, when a string of military defeats suffered by the Islamic State compelled Adnani to briefly leave his hiding place, the Americans were waiting for him. A joint surveillance operation by the CIA and the Pentagon tracked the 39-year-old as he left his al-Bab sanctuary and climbed into a car with a companion. They were headed north on a rural highway a few miles from town when a Hellfire missile struck the vehicle, killing both of them.

The Aug. 30 missile strike was the culmination of a months-long mission targeting one of the Islamic States most prominent  and, U.S. officials say, most dangerous  senior leaders. The Obama administration has said little publicly about the strike, other than to rebut Russias claims that one of its own warplanes dropped the bomb that ended Adnanis life.

But while key operational details of the Adnani strike remain secret, U.S. officials are speaking more openly about what they describe as an increasingly successful campaign to track and kill the Islamic States senior commanders, including Adnani, the No. 2 leader and the biggest prize so far. At least six high-level Islamic State officials have died in U.S. airstrikes in the past four months, along with dozens of deputies and brigadiers, all but erasing entire branches of the groups leadership chart.

[Iraqi fighters facing brutal tactics from Islamic States Mosul defenders]

Their deaths have left the groups chieftain, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, increasingly isolated, deprived of his most capable lieutenants and limited in his ability to communicate with his embattled followers, U.S. officials say. Baghdadi has not made a public appearance in more than two years and released only a single audiotape  suggesting that the Islamic States figurehead is now in deep, deep hiding, said Brett McGurk, the Obama administrations special envoy to the global coalition seeking to destroy Baghdadis self-proclaimed caliphate.

He is in deep hiding because we have eliminated nearly all of his deputies, McGurk said at a meeting of coalition partners in Berlin this month. We had their network mapped. If you look at all of his deputies and who he was relying on, theyre all gone.

The loss of senior leaders does not mean that the Islamic State is about to collapse. U.S. officials and terrorism experts caution that the groups decentralized structure and sprawling network of regional affiliates ensure that it would survive even the loss of Baghdadi himself. But they say the deaths point to the growing sophistication of a targeted killing campaign built by the CIA and the Defense Department over the past two years for the purpose of flushing out individual leaders who are working hard to stay hidden.

[I thought, this is it: One mans harrowing escape from the Islamic State]

The effort is being aided, U.S. officials say, by new technology as well as new allies, including deserters and defectors who are shedding light on how the terrorists travel and communicate. At the same time, territorial losses and military defeats are forcing the groups remaining leaders to take greater risks, traveling by car and communicating by cellphones and computers instead of couriers, the officials and analysts said.

The bad guys have to communicate electronically because they have lost control of the roads, said a veteran U.S. counterterrorism official who works closely with U.S. and Middle Eastern forces and who, like others interviewed for this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations. Meanwhile our penetration is better because ISISs situation is getting more desperate and they are no longer vetting recruits, the official said, using a common acronym for the terrorist group.

This image made from video posted on a militant website on July 5, 2014, shows the leader of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, delivering a sermon at a mosque in Iraq during his first public appearance. (AP)

We have a better picture inside ISIS now, he said, than we ever did against al-Qaeda in Iraq.

The caliphates cheerleader

The first to go was Abu Omar the Chechen. The red-bearded Georgian Islamic militant, commonly known as Omar al-Shishani, fought in the Russia-Georgia war in 2008 and had been trained by U.S. Special Forces when he was in the Georgian military. He rose to become the Islamic States minister of war and was reported to have been killed on at least a half-dozen occasions since 2014, only to surface, apparently unharmed, to lead military campaigns in Iraq and Syria.

Shishanis luck ran out on July 10 when a U.S. missile struck a gathering of militant leaders near the Iraqi city of Mosul. It was the beginning of a string of successful operations targeting key leaders of the Islamic States military, propaganda and external operations divisions, U.S. officials said in interviews.

On Sept. 6, a coalition airstrike killed Wail Adil Hasan Salman al-Fayad, the Islamic States minister of information, near Raqqa, Syria. On Sept. 30, a U.S. attack killed deputy military commander Abu Jannat, the top officer in charge of Mosuls defenses and one of 13 senior Islamic State officials in Mosul who were killed in advance of the U.S.-assisted offensive to retake the city.

On Nov. 12, a U.S. missile targeted Abd al-Basit al-Iraqi, an Iraqi national described as the leader of the Islamic States Middle Eastern external-operations network, responsible for carrying out attacks against Western targets.

But it was Adnanis death that delivered the single biggest blow, U.S. analysts say. The Syrian-born Islamist militant was regarded by experts as more than a mere spokesman. A longtime member of the Islamic States inner circle, he was a gifted propagandist and strategic thinker who played a role in many of the organizations greatest successes, from its commandeering of social media to its most spectacular terrorist attacks overseas, including in Paris and Brussels.

[These images show how Islamic State dug in for a ferocious defense of Mosul]

His importance within the organization was also steadily rising. Last year, after the U.S.-led coalition began retaking cities across Iraq and Syria, it was Adnani who stepped into the role of cheerleader in chief, posting messages and sermons to boost morale while calling on sympathetic Muslims around the world to carry out terrorist attacks using any means available.

He was the voice of the caliphate when its caliph was largely silent, said Will McCants, an expert on militant extremism at the Brookings Institution and author of The ISIS Apocalypse, a 2015 book on the Islamic State. He was the one who called for a war on the West.

The CIA and the Pentagon declined to comment on their specific roles in the Adnani operation. But other officials familiar with the effort said the task of finding the Islamic States No. 2 leader became a priority nearly on par with the search for Baghdadi. But like his boss, Adnani, a survivor of earlier wars between U.S. forces and Sunni insurgents in Iraq, proved to be remarkably skilled at keeping himself out of the path of U.S. missiles.

His personal security was particularly good, said the U.S. counterterrorism official involved in coordinating U.S. and Middle Eastern military efforts. And as time went on, it got even better.

But the quality of the intelligence coming from the region was improving as well. A U.S. official familiar with the campaign described a two-stage learning process: In the early months, the bombing campaign focused on the most visible targets, such as weapons depots and oil refineries. But by the middle of last year, analysts were sorting through torrents of data on the movements of individual leaders.

The information came from a growing network of human informants as well as from technological innovations, including improved surveillance drones and special manned aircraft equipped with the Pentagons Enhanced Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System, or EMARSS, designed to identify and track individual targets on the ground.

In the first year, the strikes were mostly against structures, said a U.S. official familiar with the air campaign. In the last year, they became much more targeted, leading to more successes.

Watching and waiting

And yet, insights into the whereabouts of the top two leaders  Baghdadi and Adnani  remained sparse. After the Obama administration put a $5 million bounty on him, Adnani became increasingly cautious, U.S. officials say, avoiding not only cellphones but also buildings with satellite dishes. He used couriers to pass messages and stayed away from large gatherings.

Eventually, his role shifted to coordinating the defense of a string of towns and villages near the Turkish border. One of these was Manbij, a Syrian hub and transit point for Islamic State fighters traveling to and from Turkey. Another was Dabiq, a small burg mentioned in Islams prophetic texts as the future site of the end-times battle between the forces of good and evil.

Adnani picked for his headquarters the small town of al-Bab, about 30 miles northeast of Aleppo. There he hid in plain sight amid ordinary Syrians, conducting meetings in the same crowded apartment buildings where he slept. As was his custom, he used couriers to deliver messages  until suddenly it became nearly impossible to do so.

On Aug. 12, a U.S.-backed army of Syrian rebels captured Manbij in the first of a series of crushing defeats for the Islamic State along the Turkish frontier. Thousands of troops began massing for assaults on the key border town of Jarabulus, as well as Dabiq, just over 20 miles from Adnanis base.

[How the Islamic State has turned into a catastrophe for Sunni Muslims]

With many roads blocked by hostile forces, communication with front-line fighters became difficult. Adnani was compelled to venture from his sanctuary for meetings, and when he did so on Aug. 30, the CIAs trackers finally had the clear shot they had been waiting for weeks to take.

Records generated by commercially available aircraft-tracking radar show a small plane flying multiple loops that day over a country road just northwest of al-Bab. The plane gave no call sign, generally an indication that it is a military aircraft on a clandestine mission. The profile and flight pattern were similar to ones generated in the past for the Pentagons EMARSS-equipped MC-12 prop planes, used for surveillance of targets on the ground.

The country road is the same one on which Adnani was traveling when a Hellfire missile hit his car, killing him and his companion.

The death was announced the same day by the Islamic State, in a bulletin mourning the loss of a leader who was martyred while surveying the operations to repel the military campaigns against Aleppo. But in Washington, the impact of his death was muted by a two-week delay as U.S. officials sought proof that it was indeed Adnanis body that was pulled from the wreckage of the car.

The confirmation finally came Sept. 12 in a Pentagon statement asserting that a U.S. precision airstrike targeting Adnani had eliminated the terrorist groups chief propagandist, recruiter and architect of external terrorist operations.

The Russian claims have persisted, exasperating the American analysts who know how long and difficult the search had been. Meanwhile, the ultimate impact of Adnanis death is still being assessed.

Longtime terrorism experts argue that a diffuse, highly decentralized terrorist network such as the Islamic State tends to bounce back quickly from the loss of a leader, even one as prominent as Adnani. Decapitation is one arm of a greater strategy, but it cannot defeat a terrorist group by itself, said Bruce Hoffman, director of Georgetown Universitys Center for Security Studies and an author of multiple books on terrorism. Noting that the Islamic States military prowess derives from the more anonymous Saddamist military officers who make up the groups professional core, Hoffman said the loss of a chief propagandist was likely to be only a temporary derailment.

Yet, as still more missiles find their targets, the Islamic State is inevitably losing its ability to command and inspire its embattled forces, other terrorism experts said. The steady destruction of the leadership of the Islamic State, plus the loss of territory, is eroding the groups appeal and potency, said Bruce Riedel, a 30-year CIA veteran and a terrorism expert at the Brookings Institution. The Islamic State is facing a serious crisis.

Thomas Gibbons-Neff contributed to this report.

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Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald Dela Rosa points at a part of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) found near the U.S Embassy in Manila. (Romeo Ranoco/Reuters)

Manila police on Monday safely detonated a suspected improvised explosive device that was found in a trash bin near the U.S. Embassy, linking it to terrorism. No one was reported injured.

Early Monday, a street cleaner named Winniefreda Francisco spotted what looked like a cellphone connected by red wires to a cylindrical device and alerted authorities, according to the Associated Press. Police responded to the scene, briefly closed a major road near the embassy and detonated the item.

In a brief statement, U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Molly Koscina confirmed that a municipal employee reported the discovery of a device to embassy guards, who in turn contacted police.

We are thankful that the municipal employee and the PNP took quick and appropriate action to ensure the safety of all, Koscina said, referring to the Philippine National Police. The embassy did not provide further details about the incident or update the travel advisory for U.S. citizens heading to Manila.

Philippine authorities have offered conflicting accounts of what, exactly, was found.

Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald Dela Rosa holds a part of an improvised explosive device found near the U.S Embassy in Manila. (Romeo Ranoco/Reuters)

Senior Superintendent Joel Coronel, chief of Manila Police District, initially told local media that the item found in the garbage was just junk, according to reports.

Chief Superintendent Oscar Albayalde, head of the National Capital Region Police Office, later described it as an improvised explosive device with a blasting cap, a detonator, a cellphone and a nine-volt battery as a power source.

Albayalde speculated that there was a link between the device found Monday and a bomb used in a Sept. 2 attack that killed 15 people in the city of Davao. Both included an 81-millimeter mortar shell, he said.

In a news conference, Philippine National Police Chief Ronald dela Rosa, the face of President Rodrigo Dutertes bloody war on drugs, noted that the device found Monday was similar to bombs used by the Maute extremist group, which has links to the radical Islamic State and has been tied to the Davao attack.

Unless we get hard evidence, by analysis we can theorize this can be linked to Maute because of what happened in Davao, he said.

Despite the stated lack of hard evidence, dela Rosa called Mondays incident an act of terror and said he was mulling tighter security measures.

We will ask mall authorities to also heighten security. We may revive checkpoints, he said.

In recent weeks, Dutertes public comments have raised concerns that he plans to suspend the writ of habeas corpus or even implement martial law. Dela Rosa denied that the bomb scare would be used to justify a crackdown.

For Gods sake, the government will not use an incident that will cause panic, fear and undue harm to declare martial law, he said. We wont use our own people just to cause trouble.

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The Fairbanks Police Department has announced that their preliminary investigation shows that 22-year-old McKay Hutton is allegedly responsible for shooting three other victims before turning the gun on himself in an apparent murder-suicide in Fairbanks, Alaska, on Friday.

In an update released on the FPD Facebook page late Saturday, authorities said Hutton allegedly shot his mother, 54-year-old Linda Hutton, 22-year-old Emily McDonald and 8-week-old Teagan Hutton. Authorities said they have not yet established a motive in the case.

According to their Facebook pages, McDonald and McKay were married and recently welcomed a child, Teagan. The pair also shared several photos of themselves with a slightly older male child, but it is unclear how he is related to the couple. In the statement, police addressed questions about another child.

That childs identity is not being released at this time but he was not present during this incident and is safe, authorities said. Relationship between this child and any of the victims is still being investigated.

In one post on what appeared to be their anniversary in 2015, McKay gushed about his wife.

Baby Im lucky to find you and Tj, the most important part of my life, he wrote. I cant wait for many more years. Ive never found I person ever in my life that I could be my complete self with and now I will never be complete without you two by my side, thank you for being in my life everyday through it all. I truly understand what true love is thanks to you, thank you we are the few of the lucky ones.

In addition to multiple posts about McDonald and his family, McKay also shared a post on Facebook about defending the Second Amendment and a photo of himself in front of a Dont Tread on Me flag.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

On Friday, police responded to a call from hotel staff at the Hampton Inn regarding a suspicious circumstance, according to the initial statement. When they arrived, they found an adult male crying in the hallway before discovering the four dead bodies, all of which were inflicted by gunshot wounds.

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Police now say that the crying male is a relative of the deceased, but he was not present during the shooting and they will not release his name at this time.

All four autopsies are scheduled to take place on Monday in Anchorage, Alaska.




California police say they believe Sherri Papinis account of being abducted is credible after the 34-year-old mother was allegedly found chained and beaten on the side of a road on Thanksgiving Day, three weeks after she vanished from a jogging trail.

We currently have no reason to disbelieve Sherri Papinis story, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said, according to ABC News. She was assaulted and had injuries which she was treated for.

He added that investigators are looking into Papinis past, including her previous marriage and divorce along with any online activity, ABC reports.

Papini was found on the side of a rural road in Yolo County, California, at around 4:30 a.m. with her hands bound, Bosenko said at a press conference. She told police her captors had released her early Thursday morning, Bosenko said.

In an audio clip obtained by the Sacramento Bee, dispatchers are heard describing the woman as heavily battered and chained to something.

Papini, a mother of two, was allegedly abducted as she went for a routine jog on Nov. 2. A search for the woman ensued and Papinis husband, Keith, pleaded for her safe return.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Alison Sutton, who wrote on Facebook that she saw Papini along the roadside and called police, told Good Morning America that Papini was frantically waving what looked like a shirt.

I figured if she was willing to risk being hit by a car, she must really need help, she said.

RELATED VIDEO: New Details Emerge in Case of California Moms Abduction

Papini told authorities that her captors were two Hispanic women who had a handgun and were driving in a dark SUV, Bosenko said.

We have remained devoted to this case and will not rest until Sherris captor or captors are identified and brought to justice, Bosenko said. We are continuing to follow investigative leads and this is a critical, and active, and ongoing investigation.




Rome (AFP) - Rescuers saved some 1,400 migrants off the coast of Libya on Monday as Italy announced a record number of people arriving this year after crossing the Mediterranean, authorities said.

"It was a very difficult day but thanks to the work of the units that helped out, all of the migrants were rescued," a spokesman for the Italian coast guard, which coordinates the operations, told AFP.

The unseaworthy condition of the migrant boats and the sheer number of people packed onto them make the journey dangerous even in summer, but colder months add increased risk of hypothermia and rough seas.

Italian, Irish and charity group ships, along with commercial vessels, helped rescue the migrants from 11 inflatable dinghies and two small boats.

Authorities in Italy said Monday they had recorded a record number of arrivals by sea this year, with one month still to go in 2016.

Over 171,000 migrants have arrived, which beats the previous annual record of 170,100 from 2014. The tally does not include Monday's rescues.

The vast majority of the migrants landing in Italy come from Africa and begin their sea crossings from Libya, typically paying traffickers several hundred dollars for the journey.

With Italy's neighbours having tightened their borders, the numbers being housed in reception facilities across the country have risen to an unprecedented total of over 176,000, prompting howls of protest from some local authorities.

Many migrants arrive in Italy with the intention of travelling north, often to try and rejoin relatives, with Germany and Sweden among the popular destinations.

At least 4,690 migrants are confirmed to have died or disappeared in the Mediterranean so far this year, according to counts by the International Organisation for Migration and the UN refugee agency.
Most people know they should be saving for retirement. But finding the motivation to save can be a challenge. Consider these strategies to tuck more money away for retirement in 2017.

Save your raise. If you get a raise in 2017, aim to put at least a portion of it in a retirement account. "If you receive a raise or cost of living adjustment, increase your savings by that amount," says Justin Rush, a certified financial planner and founder of JGR Financial Solutions in Canton, Ohio. "Up until this point, you've not received that money anyway, so don't get used to living on it. Instead, save it."

[Read: 5 New 401(k) and IRA Rules for 2017.]

Invest your windfalls. When you receive a windfall of cash such as a bonus, tax refund or inheritance consider investing for the future instead of immediately spending it. "Try to complete all of your financial goals out of your salaried income, and have the bonuses go straight into savings," says Dave Grant, a certified financial planner and founder of Retirement Matters in Barrington, Illinois. You can even directly deposit part or all of your tax refund in an individual retirement account.

Qualify for tax breaks. Saving for retirement in a traditional 401(k) or IRA can help to reduce your tax bill, or you could save in a Roth account to eliminate the need to pay taxes in retirement. "Put an extra $100 into a Roth IRA or 401(k) each month in 2017 to make sure the savings happens," Grant says. Low-income retirement savers might be able to additionally claim the saver's credit.

Get a 401(k) match. Saving for retirement is easier when your employer chips in. If your company provides a 401(k) match, make sure you deposit enough in a retirement account to claim the employer contributions.

Create an emergency fund. Saving in a 401(k) plan can qualify you for tax breaks and employer contributions, but there are also good reasons to have an emergency fund outside your retirement accounts. "Just because you are saving for retirement doesn't mean that your money has to be in a 401(k) or IRA," says Pamela Horack, a certified financial planner for Pathfinder Planning in Lake Wylie, South Carolina. "You can invest in a traditional mutual fund or through a brokerage account for funds that work as emergency funds and retirement savings."

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[See: 12 Financial Terms Every Retirement Saver Should Know.]

Save $10 more. A small increase in retirement account contributions can add up to a substantial amount by the time you get to retirement. "Increasing your retirement contributions can be overwhelming, so try to make it more manageable with smaller but regular increases," Horack says. "Increase your contributions by $10 every six months. Every little bit will help you reach your goal."

Consolidate your accounts. It's difficult to know if you are saving enough or are properly diversified when you have 401(k) accounts with several different employers. "Locate any old 401(k) accounts or pensions from previous employers to be sure you have an accurate list of all your funds," Horack says. "The first step in increasing your savings is to know what you already have."

Redirect debt payments into savings. When you finally pay off your student loans, credit card debts or other past purchases, consider putting the amount you used to spend on debt payments into a retirement or savings account. "If people are paying off debt in 2017 that held a monthly payment, divert that same monthly payment into retirement savings," Grant says. "Your budget won't feel the difference, but your long-term savings goals will."

Save side job income. If a low income prevents you from saving, consider starting a money-making project on the side and using that income to save for retirement. "Forget skimping on lattes. Find a side job in your passion project and have all that income go into retirement savings," Grant says.

[See: How to Save for Retirement on Less Than $40,000 Per Year.]

Ramp up your career. If you aren't earning enough money to invest a respectable amount for retirement, you may want to start acquiring the skills that will allow you to negotiate a higher salary. "It may be necessary to spend some money and time on yourself before you are in a position to increase your retirement savings," Rush says. "Perhaps that means taking a class to learn a new skill or maybe going back to school and earning a new degree all together that enables you to secure a higher paying job."

Emily Brandon is the author of "Pensionless: The 10-Step Solution for a Stress-Free Retirement."
TOWN OF CALEDONIA  Robert Anthony Koy, a 41-year-old man from Winona, Minnesota was killed Sunday while trying to make a U-turn on Highway 33, just east of Interstate 90-94, authorities reported.

Lt. Wayne Smith of the Columbia County Sheriffs Office said Koy is believed to have been under the influence of controlled substances at the time of the crash, and he called that use by Koy a "contributing factor" to it.

The crash occurred at 2:46 p.m., and Highway 33 was closed due to the crash until 5:39 p.m., Smith said.

A sheriff's office report said Koy was driving a 2003 Oldsmobile east on Highway 33 when he turned the car into traffic to travel west on Highway 33 and was struck by an eastbound 2007 Jeep. The speed limit in that portion of Highway 33 is 55 miles per hour, Smith said.

Koy was taken by ambulance to Divine Savior Hospital in Portage, where he died, the sheriff's office said.

The Jeep was driven by a 27-year-old man from Eagan, Minnesota. He and a female passenger from Eagan were also taken to the hospital, where they were treated for injuries not life-threatening, the sheriff's office said.
From Harper's BAZAAR

We're halfway through the A Year in the Life revival, and things are starting to heat up in Stars Hollow as we go from "Winter" to "Spring." Here, some of the things we learned in the series' second episode:

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

1) Lorelai and Emily are the worst therapy partners. Emily and Lorelai have extreme highs and extreme lows. In their therapy sessions, they either sit still and quiet, or it's WWIII. At some point they even cause the therapist to start smoking. Every time, Emily uses Richard's death to convince Lorelai to keep coming back.

Photo credit: Netflix

2) Taylor is still planning crazy town festivals. The second episode opens with the town international food festival. Taylor is upset that only 15 out of the 195 countries have turned out for the big day, no thanks to Guam and Kazakhstan.

3) Logan is engaged. So, Rory and Logan are in fact just sleeping together. No strings. Which is ironic because that's somewhat how their relationship back at Yale began. But even though they're both in other relationships-Logan is engaged to a French heiress named Odette and Rory has, well, Paul-they both seem happier with each other. Will the relationship go somewhere? We're not sure, but still no Jess or Dean.

Photo credit: Netflix

4) Nothing about the town meetings have changed. The first annual gay pride parade and the slew of B-list actors that swarmed the town to film a new movie are the topics of this episode's town meeting. The drama? Well, there aren't enough gay people in the town for a parade and all the A-list actors from the movie are staying in the neighboring town of Woodbury, leaving Stars Hollow to deal with the B crowd. We also learn that Stars Hollow has a secret bar and everyone seems to know about it but Taylor.

Photo credit: Netflix

5) B-list actors are the worst kind of actors. When the B-list actors take over the Dragonfly Inn, Michele has an A-list break down realizing that the B-list actors are nothing but wannabes. He says the Dragonfly Inn should be bagging the Jennifer Lawrences of the world.

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6) Films by Kirk never get old. Where can we get one of those tees that say "a film by Kirk"?

Photo credit: Netflix

7) Rachael Ray is the new Sookie. Kind of. There's a new chef in town and it's none other than celebrity chef Rachael Ray. Since Sookie has not yet returned, Lorelai hires her second chef to replace Roy Choi, and right when it seems like Rachael is starting to fit in at the Dragonfly, Lorelai, of course, fires her. She does give great advice though.

8) Richard saw Lorelai and Luke having a long future. Richard leaves a trust specifically to be used for the franchising of Luke's diner, and though this sum of money is for Luke and his business, the fact that he even thought to leave the money for Luke means he knew Luke and Lorelai would have some kind of future together. This also means that Richard figured Luke could make more of himself and have the chance to become a successful businessman.

9) Headmaster Charleston is still scared of Paris. Rory and Paris return to Chilton for their annual alumni event, where the two have the chance to see old classmates (including Puff's leader Francie and Paris's old flame Tristan) and talk to the current students. As Rory and Paris reminisce in the Chilton hallways, they run into their old school principal, Headmaster Charleston, who is pleased to see Rory but quite terrified of Paris. We also learn that Paris is still, well, Paris, because she donated a large sum of money to the prep school.

10) Paris is super insecure. In many ways, we've already known this, but it really comes out during Rory and Paris's visit to Chilton. As soon as Paris sees Tristan, her confidence melts. She has a classic Paris breakdown and admits to Rory that not only has she had some work done (subtle nips and tucks, as she says), but there's nothing in her work briefcase. It's all a facade.

Photo credit: Netflix

11) Rory is extremely desperate for a job. After quitting Naomi's book proposal and taking an interview at a magazine, it's clear that Rory is desperate to get back to work doing something she truly loves. And though she didn't get a definite job offer, Rory decides to take matters into her own hands by tackling the magazine's vague story idea to try to win them over.

12) Rory has never had a one-night stand. While this didn't come as much of a surprise, since Rory is very much a serial dater, it's interesting that she decided to have her first one-night stand with a random man she met on the street in NYC-who was dressed in a Wookiee costume, no less. All time low? Maybe, but at least her spontaneity helped her open up to Lorelai about the mess with Logan, which Lorelai points out is "way sluttier than a one night stand."

Photo credit: Netflix

13) Therapy makes Lorelai question why she hasn't married Luke. During one of Lorelai and Emily's many therapy sessions, Emily asks the question that's on everyone's mind: Why hasn't Lorelai married Luke? Though Lorelai argues that what the two have is indeed "permanent," it's clear that Emily gets under her skin a little bit, and she starts to wonder what it is that her and Luke are doing. Are they just "booty buddies" that share a room, or are they life partners?

14) Rory's lucky outfit doesn't work. When Rory finally finds her lucky outfit, she's excited to wear it to another interview. But when she crashes and burns, it looks like her red-on-red top and skirt isn't so lucky after all.

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When Daymond John secured a $300,000 order for his upstart hip-hop clothing start-up FUBU, he was elated.

At the time, it was a big break for his clothing brand, which was little more than a basement operation. The problem was, he realized, now he had to make $300,000 worth of clothes.

He had neither the infrastructure nor the resources. So he went to the bank to get a loan. He was rejected. He went to another bank. He was rejected again.

In total, John went to 27 banks. He was rejected at all of them.

John says that, in hindsight, he wouldn't have lent himself the money. His pitch to the banks was pretty terrible: "'Hello, I am out here in these streets. And the struggle is real. LL [Cool J] is wearing my clothes and I just want to be rich!'" recounts John, speaking at Forefront, the first large-scale live event of the I Will Teach You to Be Rich community in New York City.

Dejected and without a backup plan, John didn't know what to do. That's when his mother stepped in. She took out an equity line on their home in Queens, securing John $100,000. With that money, he set up a mini-factory in the house.

Pretty quickly, that $100,000 had dwindled down to $500. John was six months late on paying the mortgage, too. He was in danger of losing his mother's house. "My lack of financial intelligence and my lack of having like-minded people around me was about to be my downfall," says John.

John's mother told him that she needed $2,000 to fix his problem. John went back to Red Lobster, hustled some biscuits and chowder, and came back with the cash, which his mother used to take out an advertisement in the local paper, "One million in orders needs financing." (John says his mother wasn't afraid to stretch the truth.)

John got 33 calls from the advertisement.

The majority were spoofs. One, however, was from Samsung's textile division. The multinational conglomerate had been watching the rising urban wear trend and wanted to use FUBU to test the market. Samsung made John an offer: They would fund his orders but he would have to make $5 million worth of sales in three years.

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John knew that wouldn't be a problem. And it wasn't. He made $30 million worth of sales in three months.

Being rejected by a bank once is tough. Coming back after being rejected 27 times? That requires a remarkable level of resilience, which, as it happens, is one of John's five "Shark points," or tips for success .

Maybe listening to your mom should be one of his "Shark points," too.







More From CNBC


After airing her sharp criticism of Donald Trumps consideration of Mitt Romney for secretary of state across the morning talk show circuit, Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway ripped MSNBCs report that Trump was furious at her for doing so.

Kellyanne went rogue at the worst possible time, Mika Brzezinski, co-host of MSNBCs Morning Joe, said during the show Monday, quoting sources at the top of Trumps transition team who said they were baffled by Conways public crusade.

BREAKING  Sources: Trump 'furious' over Conway comments about Romney https://t.co/Sd4kogEPGz  Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) November 28, 2016

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough suggested that Conway, Trumps former campaign manager and the senior adviser to his transition team, is lashing out because she hasnt been offered a job in the Trump administration.

Kellyanne doesnt have a job yet, and shes angry about that, Scarborough said.

Conway responded in a message Scarborough read on-air.

We have a response from Kellyanne Conway, he said, who says about our reporting this morning, It is sexist. She says she can have any job she wants.

Scarboroughs reporting is notable as he has personally given Trump advice regarding potential secretary of state candidates, according to the New York Times. Scarborough, a former Republican congressman who feuded with Trump during the campaign, has used his show to blast the other leading contender for Trumps secretary of state, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

Giuliani's work with foreign companies questioned  Comparing Giuliani and Clinton foundation work https://t.co/qysUaLf6Ko  Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) November 16, 2016

On Sunday, Conway appeared on multiple talk shows to voice her concern over the president-elects consideration of Romney for the top Cabinet position.

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Im not campaigning against anyone. Im just a concerned citizen, Conway said on NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday. And I am just astonished at the breathtaking volume and intensity of blowback that I see just as one person close to the president-elect.

People feel betrayed to think Gov. Romney, who went out of his way to question the character and the intellect and the integrity of Donald Trump, now our president-elect, would be given the most significant Cabinet post of all, Conway continued.

Im hearing from people who say, Hey, my parents died penniless, but I gave $216 to Donald Trumps campaign, and I would feel betrayed, she said on CNNs State of the Union.

Related: Trump aide Kellyanne Conway takes her anti-Romney crusade to TV

In a scathing speech in March, Romney, the Republican Partys 2012 nominee, unloaded on Trumps business record.

Heres what I know: Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud, Romney said. His promises are as worthless as a degree from Trump University. Hes playing the members of the American public for suckers. He gets a free ride to the White House, and all we get is a lousy hat.

Romney also refused to endorse Trump in the general election. But he met with the president-elect in New Jersey last week to mend fences and reportedly discuss the possibility of joining Trumps White House.

Im all for party unity, Conway said on CNN. But Im not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position.

On Sunday, Scarborough criticized both Conway and Giuliani, who is publicly lobbying for the secretary of state position, for trying to intimidate Trump.

Giuliani and Conway are trying to intimidate the President Elect.

How weak do they think he is?

Their lack of discretion is embarrassing.  Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) November 27, 2016

Conway fired back on Twitter.

You know better. And so does @PEOTUS, she wrote. He has my respect, loyalty, service & private counsel [because] he is brilliant, strong, resolute.

1/2: @JoeNBC you know better. And so does @PEOTUS. He has my respect, loyalty, service & private counsel BC he is brilliant, strong,resolute https://t.co/c7RLZu5gvc  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) November 27, 2016

2/2: repeating 100th time decision is his & I'll respect it. Whatever your feud w/ Rudy, no need to lump us. I already have the job I want. https://t.co/c7RLZu5gvc  Kellyanne Conway (@KellyannePolls) November 27, 2016

Decision is his & Ill respect it, she added. Whatever your feud w/ Rudy, no need to lump us. I already have the job I want.
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 Diamondback Energy, Inc. FANG 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 FANGs status as a solid momentum stock below:



Longer Term Price Change for Diamondback 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 FANG, the results are quite impressive. The company has beaten out the industry at large over the past 12 weeks by a margin of 4.4% to 2.9% while it has also outperformed when looking at the past year, putting up a gain of 26.4%. Clearly, FANG is riding a bit of a hot streak and is worth a closer look by investors.



DIAMONDBACK EGY Price



DIAMONDBACK EGY Price | DIAMONDBACK EGY Quote

Quarter EPS Estimate Change for Diamondback Energy Stock



While looking at price performance or full year earnings can be essential to understanding a momentum stock, you shouldnt forget about the current quarter EPS and the trend in estimates there. This change can signal how a stock might perform in the next earnings season which is obviously vital for momentum investors.



Right now, FANG is seeing a nice trend over the past month when it comes to this quarters earnings estimate projections. In the time frame, EPS estimates for Diamondback Energy have gone up by 8.1% compared to an industry average move of 4.1%, suggesting that not only is FANG heading in the right direction, but it is seeing an increase relative to the industry too.



FANG 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 FANG as of late too.



Over the past two months, 13 earnings estimates have gone higher compared to no downward revisions for the full year, while we are also seeing 14 upward revisions with no downward revisions for the next year time frame too. These revisions have helped to boost the consensus estimate as two months ago FANG was expected to post earnings of $1.04/share for the full year, though today it looks to have EPS of $1.39 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 FANG 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 FANG on your short list as this looks be a stock that is very well-positioned to soar in the near term.



Zacks Best Private Investment Ideas



While we are happy to share many articles like this on the website, our best recommendations and most in-depth research are not available to the public. Starting today, for the next month, you can follow all Zacks' private buys and sells in real time.



Our experts cover all kinds of trades from value to momentum . . . from stocks under $10 to ETF and option moves . . . from stocks that corporate insiders are buying up to companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises. You can even look inside exclusive portfolios that are normally closed to new investors. Click here for Zacks' private trades >>



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DIAMONDBACK EGY (FANG): Free Stock Analysis Report



To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
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 systemwe 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 Rio Tinto plc RIO 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 RIOs status as a solid momentum stock below:

Short Term Price Change for Rio Tinto

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 7.12% compared to an industry average of 3.20%, RIO 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.

Fiscal Year EPS Estimate Changefor RIO

In addition to price performance, it is also important to take a look at earnings estimate changes for the full year. This can show if RIO is poised to make a run based on fundamentals, or if the company is simply moving on speculation.

Over the past week/month, the full year earnings estimate for RIO has risen by 32.06%. On its own this is impressive, but consider that it also beats the industry average of 7.42% too. The trend is undeniably in Rio Tintos favor right now, and it suggests that the momentum might be long lasting for this stock.

Story continues

RIO 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 RIO as of late too.

Over the past two months, 2 earning estimate have gone higher compared to none lower for the full year, while we are also seeing that 2 estimates have moved upwards with no downward revisions for the next year time frame too. These revisions have helped to boost the consensus estimate as two months ago RIO was expected to post earnings of $2.07/share for the full year, though today it looks to have EPS of $2.43 for the full year now, representing a solid increase which is something that should definitely be welcomed news to would-be investors.

RIO TINTO-ADR Price and Consensus

RIO TINTO-ADR Price and Consensus | RIO TINTO-ADR Quote

Bottom Line

Given these factors, investors shouldnt be surprised to note that we have RIO 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 RIO 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>>



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RIO TINTO-ADR (RIO): Free Stock Analysis Report



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Diagnostic Odyssey

It took 18 years for Patricia Weltin to get the correct diagnosis. Her daughters have Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder involving too-loose joints that easily dislocate as well asoverly elastic, fragile skin and many complications. That long road to the right diagnosis is known as the "diagnostic Odyssey," says Dr. Christopher Austin, director of the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, part of the National Institutes of Health. With rare diseases, he says, most doctors have never seen a case, so "patients go from doctor to doctor to doctor." Now, he says, with the ease of worldwide communication, the journey to diagnosis takes an average two-and-a-half to three years. Read on for more rare disorders.

Rare diseases by the numbers

Between 6,000 and 7,000 rare diseases exist. In the U.S., Austin says, "the big problem is fewer than 500 of those have any [Food and Drug Administration]-approved treatments. So, over 90 percent of rare diseases have no FDA-approved treatment." In the U.S., a disease present in less than 1 in 200,000 people in the population is designated as rare. That figure meets the definition of the Orphan Drug Act of 1983, meant to spur clinical trials and drug development for conditions -- such as Huntington's disease, ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease (of the Ice Bucket Challenge) and muscular dystrophy -- affecting a relatively small number of people.

Progeria: accelerated aging

One of the most poignant rare diseases is Hutchinson-Gilford progeria. "Progeria affects about 16 people in the country at any one time," Austin says. "It's a very dramatic, accelerated condition where these kids die in their teens -- usually of old age." The name "progeria" is derived from the Greek and means "prematurely old," explains Mary Dunkle, vice president of educational initiatives for the National Organization for Rare Disorders. In this fatal genetic condition, children are born looking healthy but display signs of speeded aging within 18 to 24 months.

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Moebius syndrome: facial paralysis

Present at birth, Moebius syndrome is a rare neurological disorder involving certain weak or paralyzed cranial nerves. "If the 7th nerve is involved, the individual with Moebius syndrome is unable to smile, frown, pucker the lips, raise the eyebrows or close the eyelids," according to NORD's comprehensive round-up of rare diseases. Kids with Moebius may have difficulties with feeding, chewing, speech, self-esteem and more. A recent surgical procedure called the "smile operation" can help restore facial movement.

Eosinophilic gastroenteritis: allergic to food

When eating almost any kind of food puts the body's immune system in attack mode, with white blood cells invading and inflaming the digestive tracts, the culprit could be an eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorder, or EGID. People with this rare disease progressively lose tolerance for more and more types of food, which trigger vomiting, diarrhea and stomach pains. Severe EGID can lead to anemia, ulcers, malabsorption and failure to thrive in kids. Some people may need to take "food hiatuses" to heal and survive on unappealing liquid protein formula, either by drinking or through a feeding tube.

Addison's disease: salt cravings and low cortisol

Also known as adrenal insufficiency, Addison's disease occurs when the adrenal glands produce too little cortisone, a hormone that helps the body respond to stress and affects important functions throughout. Blood pressure and heart function, food metabolism and insulin balance all rely on cortisol. Low blood pressure can be life-threatening. Aldosterone, another hormone, may also be reduced. Fatigue, skin discoloration and cravings for salt and salty food are among the many symptoms. After his death, it was confirmed that President John Kennedy had Addison's disease, Dunkle points out. While author Jane Austen was speculated to have died from the disease, scientists now say that's unlikely.

Surprisingly rare

Some diseases, although statistically rare, may sound surprisingly familiar. While cystic fibrosis only affects about 30,000 people in the United States, research advances and advocacy efforts from groups like the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation have amplified the message. Sickle-cell disease, Tay-Sachs and phenylketonuria all qualify as rare diseases, Austin points out. Hemophilia is known for its royal connection, Dunkle says, but the bleeding disorder is much less common than the related but little-known von Willebrand disease. And thanks to childhood vaccinations in the U.S., infectious conditions like measles and mumps appear on the NORD rare disease listing.

N-Glycanase deficiency: first child ever

Matt Might is an apt name for the man who tracked down his son's genetic disease, called N-Glycanase deficiency, named for the lacking enzyme involved. (The New Yorker details his quest in a July 2014 story.) "He was the first child ever in the history of medicine diagnosed with this disorder," Austin says, adding that Might's global networking eventually helped connect about 30 other children with the disease. "We hear versions of this all the time now." The Human Genome Project allows scientists to uncover rare diseases, while online information and social media allow families and patients to find clues to match puzzling symptoms to possible causes.

Rare determination

With years of uncertainty watching kids suffer from serious rare diseases, it often falls on dedicated families to do all the heavy lifting, financial and otherwise. "Imagine what it would feel like if you're the parent of a child with a very bad disease," Dunkle says. "You know the time is ticking and you feel like it's all on your shoulders -- to not only take care of your child but also try to find a treatment." In 2011, as Patricia Weltin watched her daughter undergo spinal cord surgery, she decided to mobilize the 30 million Americans affected by rare disorders, regardless of the individual type, and founded the Rare Disease United Foundation.

Collectively common

Pushing for the right diagnosis and acting as "citizen scientists" -- which Weltin calls herself as she pores through medical databases and scientific journals -- are part of the rare disease experience. Isolation, unfortunately, is another. A good starting point for patient and families is NCATS' Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center. Users can link to support groups and clinical trials and talk live to genetic counselors known as GARD information specialists. "We always tell people to realize there's a worldwide community of people with rare diseases who are waiting to welcome them," Austin says.

Lisa Esposito is a Patient Advice reporter at U.S. News. She covers health conditions, drawing on experience as an RN in oncology and other areas and as a research coordinator at the National Institutes of Health. Esposito previously reported on health care with Gannett, and she received her journalism master's degree at Georgetown University. You can follow her on Twitter, connect with her on LinkedIn or email her at lesposito@usnews.com.
Out With The Bad Out With The Bad @sophie.jaffe

Detox: its been a wellness blogger-approved buzzword for long enough now that most of us have already adopted certain cleansing practices like drinking lemon and loading up on raw fruits and veggies. But as time goes on, more and more ways to rid your body of toxins are popping up (apple cider vinegar anyone?) and if were being honest, well probably try all of them. Considering many of you may haveahemindulged a bit over the holiday, with all the candy and cocktails that seem to be synonymous with Halloween, were sharing a few methods of flushing waste from your body that may not have even heard of. If youre game, read on and give them all a whirl.
If you ever kept mum as a child rather than fessing up about breaking something, youre not alone! But those moments offer a lesson for later in life: Confess and deal with the consequences of your actionsyoull usually be found out anyway! Renters sometimes have a similar instinct when something goes awry in their rentalwhether or not the mishap was their fault. The idea of telling your landlord about accidentally clogging the kitchen sink might sound dreadful, but there are certain things you need to be transparent about.

6 Things Your Landlord Needs to Know

You adopted a pet.

Maybe you didnt have a pet when you signed your lease, but after you moved in, you ran into a pair of puppy-dog eyes you just couldnt resist. Sneaking in pets because they arent allowed in the rental or to avoid paying extra fees at your pet-friendly apartment could get you evicted (really!) or slapped with a hefty fine. Pets can damage property, and landlords who allow pets usually require a pet deposit or feeor charge a slightly higher rent. Still not sold? If your landlord doesnt know about your furry companion, you could be putting your pet in danger.

You moved someone in.

Landlords screen tenants before renting to them by conducting a credit check and, sometimes, a background check. If you bring in a roommate after signing your lease, you havent given the landlord the chance to screen this person, and that could get you evicted. Even youre trying to help out a close friend, youre reliable for any damage he or she might cause. More occupants also mean more wear and tear on the property and, depending on the property and its jurisdiction, there may be restrictions on the number of occupants allowed to live in the unit.

The toilets clogged.

Or theres a leaky faucet, or theres water backing out of a drain. You could ignore those problems, maybe by using another bathroom, or you could try to fix the problem yourselfbut both approaches would be wrong. Many tenants dont report plumbing problems, afraid theyll be charged for the repair. (And yes, typically, if a plumbing problem is your fault, youll need to pay for the fix.) But the landlord is responsible for fixing all other plumbing problems.

Story continues

However, if you dont report a plumbing issue right away, and a small problem turns into a big, expensive disaster, you might be on the hook to pay whether you caused the problem or not. And you can bet the plumbing bill will now be much bigger than it would have been if you had reported the problem immediately. Who pays for rental repairs typically depends on your lease and on state laws.

Theres a new water stain on the ceiling.

A water stain on the ceiling might not seem like a big deal, and it may not be  yet. But unusual water stains often mean a leaky roof. Like a plumbing issue, the problem will continue to worsen every time it rains. A small leak thats left unattended can become a major problem. Water can seep into the ceiling and damage insulation, wiring, and framework. And thats why you need to report a water stain to your landlord right away.

You have bedbugs.

Some tenants dont want to report bedbugs because theyre afraid theyll have to pay for the extermination costs (unfortunately, renters insurance may not cover the cost to remove them). Often, the landlord pays for extermination costs anyway. The only time you pay is if theres proof you brought in the bedbugs. And unless you brought in a mattress you found on the side of the street or have bedbugs crawling all over your suitcase from your recent trip abroad, its difficult to prove fault.

You lost your key.

Okay, your landlord will probably charge you to replace your lost key. But the fee for doing this should be minimal. If youre worried that someone might find your key and use it to enter your property, youll need to pay to have the locks changed, which will cost more. But unless your address was attached to the key, the odds of someone knowing which door the key unlocks are slim.

Originally published November 28, 2016. Updated November 15, 2017.

What secrets have you told your landlord? Are there some youre still keeping? Share your stories in the comments!

The post 6 Secrets You Shouldnt Keep From Your Landlord appeared first on Trulia's Blog.
Well, wouldn't you prefer Spain?

When Britain voted in June to leave the EU, a key reason was resentment at the 3 million other EU citizens living in the UK. But of course, there are British citizens1.3 million of themliving elsewhere in the EU. And as a brief discussion last week in parliament shows, in this exchange of citizenry, Britain probably has by far the better end of the bargain.

On Nov. 24, parliaments public accounts select committee was examining the question of how health benefits would work for British senior citizens abroad and EU senior citizens in Britain after Brexit. John Crace, the Guardians parliamentary sketch writer, described the exchange:

During a question about reciprocal healthcare arrangements for foreign pensioners, the chair, Meg Hillier, asked Wormald if he had any comparative figures for Spain. Yes, he said promptly. At our last count there are 62 Spanish   Not 62,000? interrupted the Conservative Richard Bacon. 62 Spanish pensioners, said Hillier. Youre kidding me. 62 Spanish pensioners live in the UK and about 70,000 British pensioners live in Spain, replied the bewildered Wormald, who couldnt see what the fuss was about. 62? Hillier repeated incredulously. We are not the retirement place of choice, Wormald explained.

That remarkable statistic symbolizes the imbalance between the kinds of people Britain exports and imports. Foreign-born workers in Britain are slightly younger on average than their UK-born counterparts, according to a recent report (pdf) by the University of Oxford. And over the last 20 years the proportion of foreign-born workers aged 25-35 has increased sharply, while mostly falling for older age groups. For UK-born workers, its the opposite trend: The workforce has aged overall.

Those data dont distinguish EU from non-EU immigrants. However, there are some clues in a 2014 report by University College London, which found that the average age of migrants to the UK from western Europesuch as France, Italy and Spainwas 27. For migrants from the 10 central and eastern European countries that joined in the EU in 2004 or 2007, it was 26. European migrants who had arrived since 2000 were also, on average, better educated than their British counterparts.

Story continues

There arent clear figures for the average age of British migrants in the EU, but in Spain, which hosts the largest group of British migrantsestimated 310,000they are thought to be much older (paywall) and less healthy, on average, than their native counterparts. And if 70,000 are past retirement age, thats especially likely to be true.

It may be true that European immigrants have been taking British jobsbut theyve also been contributing more to the economy than they take out of it. When Britain leaves the EU, itll be paying the price.

Sign up for the Quartz Daily Brief, our free daily newsletter with the worlds most important and interesting news.

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If you're in to food, and trying all different kinds of things, Portugal needs to be next on your trip list.

While they hold tight to their traditional recipesyou can try cod a thousand different ways around the entire countrythe locals sure know how to surprise taste buds with ingredients that have been used for ages.

On a recent trip to Portugal, we met up with Andr of Taste Porto Food Tours, which turned out to be one of the best decisions of the trip. Not only did he know of all of the best restaurants that someone spending two days in the area would never know about, but he had stories and history lessons to share on every step of the tour. And, of course, he knew where the very best food could be found.

The tour itself took up an entire nightand it was 100 percent worth it. Here are many of the things we tried on the tour, plus a few other must-try dishes discovered during the rest of my trip.

Just consider this another reason to visit the 2016 Destination of the Year.

Pastis de Nata

This bite-sized custard tart (pictured above) is known around the world as one of the best foods to come out of Portugal. While there are bakeries in many more countries than just Portugal offering this sweet treat, the tarts originated in the 19th century from a group of monks living in Belm.

They sold the pastries from a small general store attached to the property's sugar cane refinery as a way to survive the convents and monasteries being shut down during the liberal revolution in 1834.

You can now find these pastries in any Portuguese bakery.

Pastis de Chaves

Veal Pastry

These flaky pastries come with a variety of fillings: veal, chocolate, chicken, tomato, egg, cod. The best place to get them may just be in Porto at a little shop call Loja dos Pastis de Chaves.

The pastries come from a northern city in Portugal called Chaves, and this bakery uses the original recipe.

Terylene Sandwich

Pork Loin Sandwich

This sandwich takes 24 hours to prepare. It has roasted pork loin and smoked hamthe former of which is cured for 20 hours with a mix of wine, tomatoes, rosemary, garlic, and chili peppers. After the meats are roasted for hours, they come together in a double bun, where the remaining juices melt right into the bread.

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Pair this sandwichwhich you can get at a restaurant on a semi-hidden alley street called Flor dos Congregadoswith sparking red wine for a culinary match made in heaven.

Coffee at Caf Guarany

Espresso

If you're looking for quirky art, great espresso, and a fancy setting, head to Caf Guarany. Here, they call a short espresso a cimbalino, in homage to the first espresso machines introduced to Portugal by a brand called La Cimbali.

You can find great espresso in every city in Portugal, and it's a common way to end a meal.

Chocolate and Lemon Eclairs

Eclairs

If you couldn't tell, chocolate and pastries are a favorite for the Portuguese. Hop and any review website and you'll find travelers pining for the eclairs from Leitaria da Quinta do Pao in Porto.

We made a stop to give the chocolate and lemon eclairs a try. Pro tip: Order extra cream to eat with the pastriesand there's no shame in eating it with a spoon.

Cheese & Charcuterie Plates

Cheese and Charcuterie Plate

Cheese and cured meats are always a good choice in Portugal. Each region has its own take on the plate, and you'll always get some bread and olives to go with your picks. Taberna do Largois run bytwo friends, Sofia and Joana, who travel the world to find the best foodsby local producers.

Don't miss out on trying Portugal's storied vinho verde (green wine) while you're here.

Sushi

Sushi Rolls

Portugal's access to the Atlantic Ocean makes it a great spot for fresh sushi. But head to Sushi Design at Farol Design Hotel in Cascais and you'll find much more than your basic spicy tuna or salmon avocado rolls.

Sushi Master Nuande Pekel mixes ingredients and presentation in a way that will redefine your expectations of the Japanese staple for years to come. Our favorite: a Hosomaki roll with breaded salmon, cream cheese, strawberry and katsuobushi with tare sauce.

Cecina de Vaca Maturada

Cecina de Vaca Maturada

Portugal really knows how to do smoked and cured meats. Of the entire trip, a plate of cecina de vaca maturada (aged cow steak) was the most memorablenot only for its vivid color and presentation, but becuase each bite was melt-in-your-mouth good.

If you want to try it yourself, head to RIB BEEF & Wine Restaurant at the Pestana Vintage in Porto.

Related Articles
Monday, November 28, the Swedish ready-to-wear giant unveiled its Holiday 2016 campaign, showcasing its festive collection for this year's end-of-year celebrations. American actor Adrien Brody takes the lead role in this short film directed by Wes Anderson.

H&M has pulled out all the stops for its Holiday 2016 campaign, signing up a star actor and director for the occasion. The clothing giant's seasonal campaign stars Adrien Brody ("The Pianist," "Midnight in Paris," "The Grand Budapest Hotel") and is directed by Wes Anderson ("Rushmore," "The Darjeeling Limited," "The Grand Budapest Hotel").

The video, which is almost four minutes long, sees Adrien Brody star as a train driver, trying to get his passengers home in time to enjoy seasonal celebrations with their loved ones. While the snowy scenery ensures a magical Christmas feel, it also leads the driver and his passengers to change their plans at the last minute.

"The winter train ride, under Wes Anderson's direction, is the perfect setting for H&M's holiday collection full of relaxed, wearable elegance. It's about mixing the informal with a sense of occasion, capturing the holiday mood for both dressing up and getting cosy with loved ones," explains Pernilla Wohlfahrt, head of design and creative director at H&M.

"This story may resonate more than ever at a time in the world where we could all do with giving a stranger a hug," adds Adrien Brody.

Although H&M puts out a festive campaign each Holiday season, its offerings are always very different from one year to the next. Adrien Brody's Holiday train ride follows Katy Perry starring as a fairy in a fantastical and humor-filled film for Holiday 2015.

Watch the "Come Together" campaign: https://youtu.be/VDinoNRC49c
By Harriet McLeod

CHARLESTON, S.C. (Reuters) - Dylann Roof, an avowed white supremacist accused of murdering nine black parishioners at a historic Charleston, South Carolina church last year, began acting as his own lawyer at his federal death penalty proceedings on Monday.

U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel granted Roof's request to represent himself at trial but told the defendant it was unwise to cast aside his seasoned attorneys.

Roof, 22, did not say why he wanted to take the lead in his case. The move could give him the opportunity to question the survivors of the shooting if they are called as witnesses.

Roof also faces 33 counts of hate crimes, obstruction of religion and firearms charges stemming from the shooting, which occurred during a Bible study session at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in June 2015.

Prosecutors, who say he planned the attack for months, are seeking the death penalty.

Gergel ruled on Friday that Roof was mentally competent to stand trial, following concerns raised by defense attorneys about their client's ability to understand the nature of the proceedings against him and to assist in his own defense.

That decision paved the way for jury selection to resume on Monday after a temporary delay this month for a competency evaluation and hearing. Then, in another twist, Gergel said he received a motion from Roof late Sunday seeking to represent himself.

In a Charleston courtroom, the judge asked Roof a series of questions to determine whether he understood the charges, the punishment he faced and the trial duties he was undertaking.

Roof, dressed in a striped gray and white prison jumpsuit, answered "Yes" or "Yes, sir."

"I find that his decision is knowing, intelligent and voluntary," the judge said.

Gergel instructed Roof's legal team to remain on standby, including lead defense lawyer David Bruck, who is considered an expert in death penalty cases.

Story continues

Once jury questioning got under way, Roof mostly responded "no" each time the judge asked if he had any follow-up questions or objections to potential jurors.

Gergel dismissed several people who expressed conflicted feelings about capital punishment or said a death sentence should always be the penalty for murder.

One woman said she could be fair and impartial but admitted being sickened by the crime, which shook the country and stoked a debate over U.S. race relations. Gergel struck the woman from serving as a juror.

Twelve jurors and six alternates will be chosen to hear testimony.

(Reporting by Harriet McLeod; Writing by Colleen Jenkins; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Steve Orlofsky)
By John Miller

ZURICH (Reuters) - Actelion Chief Executive Jean-Paul Clozel's desire to keep Europe's biggest biotech company independent after building it from scratch, means Johnson & Johnson will have to pay a steep premium if a takeover is to succeed.

The U.S. healthcare titan on Friday confirmed talks with the Swiss maker of medicines for deadly pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). While Actelion confirmed the courtship, it said there was no guarantee of a deal.

Actelion's rare-disease focus makes it an attractive target, since its drugs face less price pressure than other more widely used medicines.

Analysts estimate a deal could be as high as 250 Swiss francs ($247) per share, valuing Actelion at around $26 billion, or $6 billion more than its current price even after the share's 17 percent surge on Friday.

Having fended off reported approaches by Shire in 2015 and hedge fund Elliott Advisors in 2011, Clozel, a French-born cardiologist, has repeatedly asserted his desire to go it alone, with his three main PAH drugs and with pipeline medicines he hopes will create a broad-based biotech company.

This hard-to-get approach, coupled with the high value of recent deals in the sector, will drive up Actelion's takeover price, analysts said.

"Similar deals have been at a 40-plus percent premium and we view 240 Swiss francs as a possible floor takeout value," Jefferies analyst Peter Welford said.

Analysts at Bryan Garnier suggested a bid price of up to 250 francs.

In another recent biotech takeover, Pfizer paid $14 billion for cancer specialist Medivation, or double its pre-deal value. Switzerland's Roche in 2014 paid $8.3 billion for InterMune, a 63 percent premium.

Clozel and his pediatrician-wife, Martine Clozel, Actelion's chief science officer, own 5 percent of the company they founded in 1997. Close ties with Actelion's Swiss shareholder base suggest they can mobilize support, should an offer not live up to their expectations, Welford said.

Story continues

If J&J fails to strike a deal, a rival like Sanofi could well step in, analysts said. Actelion's PAH portfolio is a potentially nice fit for the French drugmaker's Genzyme rare disease unit.

Sanofi, which lost out to Pfizer in the battle for Medivation, has said it is still looking for deals.

A spokesman for Sanofi declined to comment on the company's possible interest in Actelion.

NEW DRUGS

While the patent for Actelion's PAH blockbuster Tracleer expired last year, Clozel's two newer PAH drugs, Opsumit and Uptravi, are expected to take up the slack.

Opsumit's annual sales are set to hit 1.9 billion francs by 2020, according to Reuters data. Uptravi sales could top 2.5 billion francs.

Clozel plans to use the cash to fund his late-stage pipeline, which includes medicines for treating diarrhea-causing clostridium difficile, as well as the multiple sclerosis drug ponesimod.

Stefan Schneider, a Bank Vontobel analyst in Zurich, doubts a deal will go through and said any sign that a potential buyer will tinker with Clozel's prized pipeline to cut costs could be a deal killer.

"We don't see how the CEO would part from the pipeline where he sees the value for Actelion to transform into the first European large-cap biotech company," Schneider said.

Actelion's shares have risen six-fold to nearly 190 francs since the start of 2012, just after Elliott tried to wrest control - on the grounds the company's stock should fetch 70 francs.

As retirement edges closer, analysts said it is possible Clozel is more receptive to handing over the reins, especially if a buyer agrees to retain Actelion's presence in Basel where the company, however successful, still plays second fiddle to giants Roche and Novartis.

"Actelion's shares have risen 400 percent based on the strength of the PAH portfolio alone," Zuercher Kantonalbank analyst Michael Nawrath said.

"Even when Clozel has always made the case for independence, it's possible a stock price at its zenith, combined with his 61 years, could prompt a change of heart."

($1 = 1.0139 Swiss francs)

(Editing by Ben Hirschler and Susan Fenton)
By Alex Dobuzinskis (Reuters) - A student drove a car into a crowd of pedestrians at Ohio State University on Monday morning and then jumped out and stabbed several people with a butcher knife, injuring 11 people, before a police officer shot and killed the attacker, officials said. Abdul Razak Ali Artan was shot and killed within minutes after plowing into the group by a police officer with less than two years on the force, said Monica Moll, director of public safety for Ohio State University. "It frankly took a piece out of everybody here at our beautiful Ohio State University that this could have happened here," Ohio Governor John Kasich said at a news conference. A U.S. government official confirmed the assailant was from Somalia, 18 years old and a lawful permanent resident of the United States. A second government source said investigators had reason to believe the attacker at the campus in Columbus was a Somali refugee. Columbus, the state capital, has a large Somali population. U.S. Congressman Adam Schiff, a California Democrat and the ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said intelligence agencies were assisting in the investigation. "It bears the all of the hallmarks of a terror attack carried out by someone who may have been self-radicalized," Schiff said in a statement. Another U.S. official told Reuters U.S. agencies are investigating the Columbus attackers background and motivations, but cannot clearly say yet whether he had any ties to suspected militant cells or groups. The attack at the Columbus campus, which was initially reported by the university on Twitter as involving an "active shooter," drew a massive response of heavily armed police. The suspect jumped the curb and used the vehicle to strike pedestrians in front of Watts Hall, Moll said. The suspect left the vehicle armed with the knife and stabbed several others, Ohio State University Police Chief Craig Stone said. "This was done on purpose, Stone said. Less than 2 minutes elapsed between the first call for help at 9:52 a.m. local time and the shots fired by campus police officer Alan Horujko, 28, Moll said. The incident follows a stabbing attack in September at the Crossroads Mall in St. Cloud, Minnesota, where a man whose family came to the United States from Somalia wounded 10 people with a knife before he was shot to death by an off-duty police officer. Authorities last month indicated the Minnesota attacker showed signs of radicalization and a Federal Bureau of Investigation special agent said his actions appeared to be "consistent with the philosophies of violent radical Islamic groups." One person was critically injured in Monday's incident, Columbus fire officials said. Eleven people were treated at area hospitals, including 10 taken by ambulance. Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center treated six victims, said Dr. Andrew Thomas, the chief medical officer. They included two with stab wounds and three others who had injuries from being hit with the vehicle. Two other hospitals received five patients, who suffered from lacerations and injuries caused by the vehicle, Thomas said. With nearly 60,000 students, the Columbus campus is the state's flagship public university. CNN aired an image from a room at the university where students had barricaded a door with stacked chairs. Columbus and university police continued their investigation with assistance from the FBI. The attack prompted university officials to warn students on Twitter to shelter in place. Ohio State lifted the order shortly before noon EST. The university campus remained open, although classes were canceled for the day. President Barack Obama was briefed on the incident by Lisa Monaco, his homeland security adviser, said White House spokesman Josh Earnest. (Reporting by Kim Palmer in Cleveland, Laila Kearney and Franklin Paul in New York, Mark Hosenball and Ayesha Rascoe in Washington and Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, Calif.; Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis and Sharon Bernstein; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Matthew Lewis)
A shooting at Ohio State University sent at least eight people to the hospital Monday, November 28, the Columbus Fire Department confirmed to CNN.



PHOTOS: Celebrity Injuries

The Columbus, Ohio, school sent a series of tweets to students and faculty urging them to take shelter Monday morning. It is unclear whether the shooting is still in progress or if the assailant has been detained. According to ABC, one suspect is dead; authorities are still searching for other possible suspects.



"Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College," one tweet read around 10 a.m. ET. Thirty minutes later, a second tweet instructed: "Wait for Police officers directions. Please contact Police / 9-1-1 only if you have information."

Celebrity Health Scares

Per CNN, one victim is in critical condition. The incident reportedly took place near Watts Hall, the university's materials science and engineering building. Police cars and fire trucks have blocked off streets surrounding the area.



PHOTOS: Celebrity Mugshots

Ohio State University is one of the nation's largest schools, with more than 65,000 students enrolled. Some have been posting photos on social media during the lockdown. In one picture, students can be seen barricading themselves in a classroom by blocking the door with dozens of desks.

Story is still developing.





Related Content:
As Americans sign up for Affordable Care Act marketplace insurance, a big question looms: How long will those plans last given President-elect Donald Trump's promise to repeal the law that created the ACA exchange?

For now, those plans are still available, and Americans who want health insurance should enroll before the Jan. 31 deadline (or Dec. 15 if you want coverage to start Jan. 1). If Congress and Trump decide to unravel the health care marketplace, it may not happen immediately.

"My crystal ball is no better than anyone else's," says Karen Pollitz, a senior fellow at the Kaiser Family Foundation. "Generally, all of the health insurance plans are written for a plan year. ... If Congress comes in in 2017 and makes some really big changes, your policy may not make it through the year."

But repealing and replacing what is known as Obamacare could be tedious, making it likely that plans chosen this month will last through 2017.

[See: 14 Important Personal Finance Dates to Mark on Your Calendar.]

About 12.7 million Americans bought health insurance last year through federal and state marketplaces, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, with 7.5 million more eligible to participate. Another 9 million Americans received insurance through the ACA's Medicaid expansion in 31 states.

The increased costs for ACA plans have received a lot of coverage. According to HHS, the premium for the second-cheapest Silver plan on the federal marketplace in the states for which data was available is up 22 percent over 2016. An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that premium changes for that same Silver plan (based on a 40-year-old nonsmoker) ranged from a decrease of 2 percent in Ohio to an increase of 145 percent in Arizona.

But the statistics may not be as meaningful as they seem. About 84 percent of ACA customers receive subsidies, which means their out-of-pocket costs will not rise that much, if at all. HHS reported that 63 percent of those using the federal marketplace could get a Silver plan for $100 or less per month.

Story continues

Plus, the statistics are averages, so you may be able to avoid higher costs by changing plans. Costs also vary by geography and age, so that a 60-year-old may pay more than twice as much as a 30-year-old.

"Those numbers are largely meaningless because there's so much variation across plans," says JoAnn Volk, a senior research professor at the Georgetown University Center on Health Insurance Reforms.

Subsidies are available for anyone making up to 400 percent of the poverty level, which is $47,520 for a single person, $97,200 for a family of four or $163,560 for a family of eight. Those with incomes below 200 percent of the poverty level are eligible for Silver plans with lower deductibles and copays.

High-deductible plans continue to be a part of the marketplace, with a maximum deductible of $7,150 for an individual or $14,300 for a family in 2017. Those also are the maximum out-of-pocket costs.

A new kind of plan offered in many areas, called a Simple Choice plan, enables consumers to receive services such as doctor visits and some drugs for a copay before meeting deductibles.

Some consumers will choose from fewer insurance companies. Aetna and United HealthCare pulled out of the federal exchange and some state exchanges. The Kaiser Family Foundation found the number of insurers in the federal exchange in 2017 will range from one in Alabama, Alaska, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Wyoming and up to 15 in Wisconsin. However, most insurers offer multiple plans.

"On average, communities will have 30 plans to choose from," says Claire McAndrew, director of campaign strategy for Families USA, a nonprofit organization that offers tools to help consumers with health care decisions. "It's not a universal experience everywhere. ... Health care is local. It really depends on where you live."

Consumers should be aware that if their current insurance plan was canceled, the marketplace will automatically enroll them in a new plan. Even if your plan is still offered, key elements, including providers, copays and lists of covered drugs, may have changed. That makes it essential to review your choice every year.

"People should not assume that their plan is the same," Volk says.

[See: Prepare Your Finances for the Holidays.]

Here are important things to know if you are enrolling in Obamacare:

Don't trust online provider directories. Call your doctors directly to find out if they accept the plan you are considering. Online directories are often outdated, and the ACA marketplace feature that lets you add doctors and hospitals to your search may not be accurate.

Look carefully at drug formularies. Many companies change how drugs are covered from year to year, or even during the year. Find out the cost for the drugs you take regularly, and even call the company to verify coverage.

Add up all the costs. It's tempting to choose the cheapest policy, but first consider how much medical care you are likely to use. For a healthy person, a high-deductible plan may be fine, but it could be an expensive choice for someone who uses more medical care. "Pay attention to detail," says Lydia Mitts, senior policy analyst for Families USA. "Don't just look at what the deductible is." The ACA marketplace offers four tiers of plans: Bronze, which is estimated to cover 60 percent of medical costs; Silver, which is estimated to cover 70 percent; Gold, 80 percent; and Platinum, 90 percent. Most people choose Bronze or Silver plans, and those tiers have the most plan options.

See if you qualify for a subsidy. Premium tax credits are provided to customers based on their adjusted gross income. If you have a variable income and you guess wrong, you can make adjustments any time during the year or settle up at tax time. If you overestimated your income, you will get a refund. If you underestimated your income, you will owe more in taxes.

Check your special cost-sharing plan eligibility. If your income is less than 200 percent of the poverty level, you are eligible for Silver plans with lower copays and deductibles. But those plans won't appear in your search if you estimate a higher income. If you underestimate your income, you will have to pay the subsidy difference, but there is no additional penalty.

Consider using a health savings account. Some high-deductible plans allow you to save up to $3,400 (plus $1,000 more if you're 55 or older) tax-free in a HSA to cover health care expenses. You can carry unused money over from year to year.

[See: 11 Expenses Destroying Your Budget.]

Know the penalty for not having insurance. The penalty for 2017 is $695 per adult and $347.50 per child or 2.5 percent of your income, whichever is higher, up to the national average annual cost of a Bronze insurance plan. Those who do not have access to affordable insurance will not have to pay a penalty.

Get in-person help. Digging through all the plans can be difficult, especially if you're not computer savvy. Luckily, you can find help in your community.





More From US News & World Report


HEIDELBERG, Germany (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel received two contrasting reactions to her immigration policy on Monday: a tearful thank-you from an Afghan boy, and a call from a party member for her to resign. More than a million migrants have come to Germany since the start of 2015, and an initial outpouring of helpfulness has largely given way to caution and concerns about integration and security. At a regional conference of Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), party member Ulrich Sauer urged Merkel - who said on Nov. 20 she wanted to run for a fourth term in next year's election - to resign. "With your truly unparalleled 'laissez-faire' refugee policy you have burdened us with something that we will not get rid of any time soon," Sauer said. "Step down now before the damage you have done becomes even greater." Moments later another CDU supporter, who helps refugees, introduced a young Afghan boy called Edris, whose father lifted him up so he could see Merkel. "I would like to thank you, Mrs. Merkel," Edris said, speaking in German. "I am very, very happy." Merkel praised him for having "learned a lot of German already" and urged him to keep practising. When Edris said he wanted to touch the chancellor's hands, she walked over and Edris wiped away tears as they shook hands. (Reporting by Reuters TV; Writing by Michelle Martin; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Gov. Scott Walker has requested federal disaster relief for growers in 10 Wisconsin counties, following killer freezing temperatures that hit those counties in May.

The request was made to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on behalf of agricultural producers in Chippewa, Columbia, Eau Claire, Jackson, Jefferson, Pierce, Polk, Sauk, St. Croix and Trempealeau counties.

The request wasnt made until now because growers had to see how much their harvests were affected by the frost and freezing temperatures the nights of May 13-14. Walkers office said.

Wisconsin producers are in need of assistance from USDA to help them deal with their losses, Walker said in a letter to Vilsack. I ask that you respond quickly with the designation so the affected producers may obtain relief.

Growers suffered losses of 30 percent or more in a variety of crops, including apples, asparagus, blueberries, hops and strawberries, Walker said in the letter.
By Zandi Shabalala LONDON (Reuters) - South Africa's key mining industry is at risk of collapse due to political unrest and labour instability which have negatively impacted investment into the country, the chief executive of the nation's biggest gold company said on Monday. Political ructions in Africa's most industrialised country including scandals surrounding President Jacob Zuma for his alleged connections to the wealthy Gupta family have caused concern among investors, putting credit ratings at risk. The mining sector, which accounts for about 7 percent of GDP, has opposed the introduction of regulations and laws that could see the powers of the mining minister increase and social capital commitments of companies rise. "Right now is the worst sentiment I've seen from an investment perspective," Sibanye Gold's Neal Froneman told Reuters on the sidelines of the Investing in African Mining seminar in London. "It's just very clear, we sit on a knife edge as an industry - it could well collapse and that means it's unlikely that Africa's potential will be realised because resources will be sterilised." The Chamber of Mines, which represents most of the industry, has said it will take the government to court over the 2016 draft of the Mining Charter which requires companies to keep black ownership at 26 percent even if they sell their stake and raises procurement from black-owned companies. The Chamber also complains that the industry that was not consulted in the draft. The Charter contains regulations meant to redress imbalances of the nation's past apartheid rule and stipulates rules for white-owned companies to sell stakes to black businesses. "The government thought that they were the boss of the industry, but they are not. They have the job to regulate," Froneman said. In 2014, South Africa's main platinum producers were hit by a record five-month strike which was narrowly avoided this year. In addition to labour instability, governance is one of the main issues plaguing investor confidence. "Investors are dependent on safeguarding their investments through proper governance, if you have questions about a country's governance and poor corporate governance then investors simply won't invest," Froneman said. Ratings agencies Fitch and Moody's on Friday kept their ratings on South Africa unchanged but Fitch cut its outlook for the economy to negative, citing political risk and low growth as concerns. Zuma, who was also told by the Constitutional Court to repay some money related to upgrades to his home this year, now faces a vote of no-confidence from his own party with at least three of his cabinet ministers turning against him. (Reporting by Zandi Shabalala, editing by David Evans)
On Nov 22, 2016, we issued an updated research report on Alaska Air Group Inc. ALK.

The companys wholly owned subsidiary, Alaska Airlines, is a leading carrier in the United States. The company posted impressive results in the third quarter with both earnings and revenues beating estimates. Both metrics also increased on a year-over-year basis. The companys traffic and capacity improved in the third quarter. Load factor remained flat with the prior-year quarter. The companys operating income, however, declined year over year. Another matter of concern is the increase in debt-to-capitalization ratio for funds undertaken in part to fund the Virgin America Inc. VA acquisition. The buyout is expected to be completed shortly.

October Metrics

Alaska Air Group posted a significant rise in air traffic and capacity for Oct 2016. Load factor increased to 84.2% from 82.3% in Oct 2015. The company recently launched new flights between San Diego and Newark, San Diego and Baltimore, Washington and Hawaii, and Portland and Newark. We are optimistic about the companys network expansion. We are also positive on the companys shareholder returns policy. However, an increase in operating expenses remains a concern. We expect the companys fourth-quarter metrics to be boosted by the Cyber Monday sale.

The company continues to face increasing competition from peers such as JetBlue Airways JBLU and Southwest Airlines Co. LUV.

Zacks Rank

Alaska Airlines carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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Cilvegozu (Turkey) (AFP) - Every morning, Syrian trucks roll up to a car park near a Turkish border crossing, ready to take a consignment of UN aid back inside the war-torn country.

But so far the cargo cannot reach the area where it is needed most -- the besieged rebel-held areas of eastern Aleppo where tens of thousands of people are desperately short of food.

The United Nations has been running the operation for the past two and a half years, sending in more than 9,000 trucks to northern Syria through two UN hubs in Turkey.

At one Turkish staging post, just north of the Cilvegozu crossing that lies barely 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Aleppo, the aid is loaded onto empty Syrian trucks, their number plates covered with paper.

Turkish driver Ibrahim said they had a duty to deliver the goods to the many Syrians suffering after five and a half years of brutal civil war.

"Last year, there was snow and ice and we came without any hesitation. We are here warm, and they are in the cold," he told AFP.

"We made sacrifices, it is risky and dangerous but we do it. They are Muslims, we are also Muslims, we are brothers."

Ramesh Rajasingham, the UN's deputy regional humanitarian coordinator for the Syria crisis, said this is "the safest and quickest way" to reach out to people in northern Syria.

Rajasingham said eastern Aleppo was in a "dire situation," and that the United Nations was pushing all key players to allow the shipments through.

"In terms of east Aleppo, we just need the green light from the people who control the roads going in because, as you know, the east of Aleppo is besieged."

He said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's ally Russia has given verbal support, and rebel groups have given written confirmation they will provide guarantees of security.

After receiving the final formal confirmation from Russia and the Syrian government, "we will move very rapidly".

Story continues

With the Damascus regime pressing on with its blistering offensive, around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in eastern Aleppo have faced serious food and fuel shortages.

No aid has entered the city's devastated eastern neighbourhoods since government troops surrounded them in July.

And in a major blow Monday, rebels lost all of the northern districts in their strongholds as the army made significant advances in its offensive to recapture the entire city.

- 'Thorough screening process' -

The UN Security Council adopted a resolution in July 2014 to allow the crossing of humanitarian assistance after difficulties faced by UN agencies in accessing affected populations in Syria.

UN agencies, in cooperation with international and local charities, provide assistance to Syrians in selected districts in areas accessible from Turkey including Idlib, Hama and Latakia, as well as parts of Aleppo province not affected by the fighting in the city.

UN officials say one million people live in 20 besieged areas in Syria that are militarily encircled with no access for humanitarian assistance, and another four million live in areas with no predictable or regular access.

The aid operation begins well before dawn in Cilvegozu, where Turkish trucks chartered by UN agencies wait to hand over their cargo.

Every vehicle is carefully screened to ensure it does not carry unsolicited items. Turkish customs authorities check the driver's paperwork and the truck is X-rayed.

"The process starts very early in the day," Jean-Luc Tonglet, officer-in-charge at the UN Monitoring Mechanism, told AFP. "The screening process is rather thorough.

"It is a process that takes 15 minutes for every single truck. If you have a convoy of 20 trucks it takes 2.5 hours."

Then starts the loading process.

Manual labourers carry sacks and boxes to Syrian trucks as UN monitors look on, to make sure for example that no people are being smuggled across.

Finally the trucks are on their way, eventually -- hopefully -- providing some relief to those in need.
The original shrine to a Viking-king-turned-saint has been discovered in Norway, archaeologists say.

The Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) announced Nov. 11 that its researchers had discovered the foundations of a wooden church where the body of King Olaf Haraldsson was taken immediately after he was declared a saint in 1031. St. Olaf, as he is now known, conquered and consolidated Norway in 1016 but held on to rule for a little more than a decade before his power was threatened by Canute I, king of Denmark and England. Olaf died in the Battle of Stiklestad in 1030.

Now, archaeologists say they've found a key location in the king's posthumous journey from martyr to Norway's patron saint. [25 Grisly Archaeological Discoveries]

A saint's grave

A 3D model of the central excavations of the remains of St. Clement's Church in Trondheim, Norway, as seen on Oct. 18. The stones are the foundation of the church, which has long been in ruins. Kirke/church at Sndregate 18/10 by nikunorway is licensed under CC Attribution

The site is in Trondheim, where Olaf was buried after his death in battle. After locals began circulating stories about miracles credited to the dead king, his grave was opened, and his body was found to be miraculously well preserved, according to church teachings. The local bishop declared him a saint and reinterred his body in St. Clement's Church.

It's this church that NIKU archaeologists believe they have now uncovered. They found stone foundations, and even a small rectangular platform made of rock on the building's east end, believed to be the base of the church's altar. This altar may have been the High Altar of the church built over St. Olaf's new grave.

"This is a unique site in Norwegian history in terms of religion, culture and politics," excavation director Anna Petersen said in a statement. "Much of the Norwegian national identity has been established on the cult of sainthood surrounding St. Olaf, and it was here [where] it all began!" The pope would confirm St. Olaf's local canonization as a saint in 1164.

Founding history

Olaf's remains were later moved to a larger church in Trondheim, upon which Nidaros Cathedral was built, according to NIKU. Begun in 1070 and completed in 1300, the ornate cathedral still stands today (though it has been badly damaged by fire several times and almost completely rebuilt and restored).

Story continues

Utgravningsomrade Sndre gate 19/10 by nikunorway on Sketchfab

Along with foundations and an altar, the ruins believed to be the original St. Clement's Church also include a small well that may have been considered holy, Petersen and colleagues reported.

King Olaf had a winding path to sainthood. According to the Catholic Church's history, he was born around 995 and was a Viking raider as a young man. He was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church in 1013 and began his attempt to consolidate Norway in 1015, clinching his rule in 1016. In 1024, English Bishop Grimkell (who would be the first to declare Olaf a saint, in 1031) presented a religious code at Olaf's behest, establishing the Church of Norway.

However, Olaf's run in power crumbled soon after, when the then-king of England and Denmark, Canute I, resolved to reconquer Norway. Olaf was forced to flee to Russia in 1028; he returned in 1030 to try to win back the throne, but died instead. Some contemporary sources report that he was murdered or unceremoniously killed in an ambush. The Norse saga Heimskringla, which was written 200 years after the fact, tells a more valorous tale of the king leading an army into battle and dying in hand-to-hand combat, with Thorir Hund, one of the leaders of the resistance to Olaf's reign, delivering the final death blow.

Original article on Live Science.

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Amazon has sold more that 5 million units of its Echo smart speakers since introducing the device two years ago, according to a new report from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners. 2 million were sold in the first nine months of this year alone.

Consumers who down own an Echo primarily use it as a internet-connected speaker for music and radio listening. Over 30 percent also use it to request specific information from Amazons Alexa assistant, and smart home control is also increasingly being used.

Our research shows that more than half of Echo owners use the device as more than a voice-controlled music speaker, said Consumer Intelligence Research Partners co-founder Mike Lowitz. Users report asking about weather and news, and increasingly controlling other connected devices.

Amazon has been looking to broaden the Echo user base with the Echo Dot, a smaller and cheaper version that works best in conjunction with existing speakers or stereo systems. The company introduced the Echo Dot earlier this year, and has been selling it for as little as $39.99 ahead of the holidays.

However, Amazon is also getting increased competition, most notably from Google. The search giant introduced its own smart speaker, dubbed Google Home, this summer. Google Home is looking to take on Amazons Echo by tapping into Google services and closely aligning with Googles Chromecast streaming adapter.

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Following a decade of continuous growth, MIFA, the International Animated Film Market of Frances Annecy Festival, is aiming for even more expansion in 2017 in dimension, duration and activities.

MIFA, already the biggest dedicated animation market in the world, attracted 2,800 participatants in June 2016, up 4.5% vs. 2015. 370 buyers, distributors and investors (1.5% above 2015) and 1,200 companies (up 4.7%) attended the event.

The increasing number of participants, the riches of the program and decisionmakers attendance throughout the Annecy Festival week have motivated the organisation to extend MIFA 2017 to four full days, from Tuesday June 13 to Friday June 16, giving delegates the opportunity for more networking, MIFA announced in a statement.

The main MIFA exhibition area will now have over 1,000 square meters of floor space, including a welcome zone and areas for public organisations and schools, as well as a space for technical companies and recruiting studios.

This reorganisation will free up the ground floor space for the conferences, previously based at the Chambre de Metiers, which will now unspool at the Imperial Palace hotel, MIFAs main venue, the statement added.

The next edition will also see the launch of MIFA Campus, aimed aimed at sparking contacts between industry professionals and emerging talent, mainly dedicated to students and young talent from emerging countries in animation.

MIFA Campus will offer workshops and presentations with an editorial line to encourage a greater understanding of the sector as well as the possibility of meeting well-know industry names.

By facilitating contact between talents and professionals, MIFA is now positioned not only as the leading trade market for animation, but also as a springboard and an invaluable source for studios whose growth is highly dependent on attracting the best profiles, said MIFA head Mickael Marin.

Starting at Mifas 2017 edition, the MIFA Campus will complement the recruitment sessions, scheduled for June 14-16.

Story continues

The Annecys market is also launching a new session, Meet the Publishers, aimed at producers and book publishers.

For the 2017 edition, MIFA opened on Nov. 7 the call for short, feature film, TV series and transmedia projects, which can be submit online until Feb. 1.

Last year, 411 projects from all over the world registered for MIFA  of them, 15 were projects from the U.S. Market. Finally, some 30 projects were selected, presented at the festival, pitched at the market and won awards in some cases.

The MIFAs Pitch Sessions, an opportunity to talk up projects before an audience of producers, distributors and financers, will run June 14-15 in 2017.

Most of the projects pitched in the past finally get made, according to Geraldine Bache, MIFA head of projects.

Some examples include TV series: Frederic Martin and Baptiste Lucas Mouss & Boubidi, a prize winner in 2006, broadcast by France 3 in 2009, and Javier Galans Spain-France co-production I, Elvis Riboldi, a winner in 2014, set for completion in 2017.

Animated feature projects that won prizes at MIFA encompasses Jung and Laurent Boileaus 2009 winner Approved for Adoption, distributed by Gkids in the U.S. in 2013, and Ebsen Toft Jacobsens The Great Bear, which won in 2008 and was released in 2011 in theatres in Denmark, Norway and France.

In line with its continuous growth, Annecys MIFA is teaming for the first time this year with Buenos Aires Ventana Sur market to launch a new Ventana Sur sidebar Animation!, showcasing seven feature films and six TV series projects. A jury will select two winning projects  a series and a feature  that will form part of the MIFA Pitches program in 2017.

Related stories

French TV Animation: Top Shows at Annecy's Mifa

Annecy-Showcased 'Heart of Darkness' Moves To Rio

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Anthony Michael Hall could be spending some time behind bars after an alleged altercation that occurred between him and his neighbor outside their condominiums in Playa del Rey, California, in September.



In a complaint filed with the Los Angeles County courts and obtained by ET, the 48-year-old actor faces felony charges of "battery with serious bodily injury." A spokesperson at the district attorney's office tells ET that if found guilty, Hall could spend a minimum of three years in a state prison.

FLASHBACK: Molly Ringwald Was Worried She Wasn't Pretty Enough for The Breakfast Club

The DA's office also notes that while Hall has been charged, he has not yet been booked, and will likely have a recommended bail set of $80,000.

One of Hall's neighbors tells ET that the alleged altercation occurred over an open gate at the complex. "A gate in the complex was open, somebody else walked through it and that's where the whole gate thing started," the resident, who did not want to be identified, says, adding that the actor was yelling and was told to "calm down."

"He was obviously off the rails," the neighbor adds.

EXCLUSIVE: Shailene Woodley Passionately Defends Environmental Issues Following Arrest

According to the resident, Hall confronted two of his neighbors, one of whom is claiming that Hall injured his wrist and back during the incident, and had to go to the hospital for treatment.

As for Hall's whereabouts, the resident notes that he has been back to the complex but only "very briefly to pick a few things up and then leaves very quickly.



"He tries to do it very stealthy so nobody sees him," the neighbor continues. "We've seen him twice picking things up."

This isn't Hall's first run-in with the law. In 2011, one of his neighbors made a citizen's arrest after the actor allegedly was yelling at people in the complex, pounding on doors and tearing up plants, TMZ reported at the time. When the cops arrived, they took Hall into custody and booked him on suspicion of disturbing the peace.

Story continues

PHOTOS: What the Cast of The Breakfast Club Looks Like Now

In 2009, a judge also ordered Hall to stay away from ex-girlfriend Diana Falzone after he allegedly stalked her in New York.

Hall is best known for his roles in Weird Science, The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles.

Reporting by Steve Wilks.

WATCH: Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy Don't Want a Breakfast Club Remake

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Madison residents could be entitled to lower property insurance rates, thanks to the insurance industry itself.

The Insurance Service Organization (ISO) has given Madison Class 1 fire protection status, a designation shared by only three other cities in Wisconsin, and one of just 204 out of 47,000 municipalities in the nation to be so designated.

The Madison Fire Department, Madison Water Utility, Dane County 911 Communications Center and the city of Madison joined together in announcing the designation on Monday.

"The public's ongoing investment in a progressive fire department, a robust and reliable water utility and a responsive, technologically advanced emergency communications center is now paying off by way of lower property insurance rates," said MFD spokeswoman Cynthia Schuster.

Most insurers use the ISO classification system when determining premiums, so local residents could get lower rates.

The new classification for Madison takes effect on Thursday. The city scored 91.48 out of a possible 105.50 when the ISO looked at the three areas figured in: fire department, water supply and emergency communications.
ivanka donald trump

Across the country, Americans disturbed by Trump's campaign rhetoric are boycotting companies doing business with his family.

A number of boycott campaigns, most notably #GrabYourWallet and The Donald J. Trump Resistance (DJTR), have popped up in the last month. As of November 28th, the #GrabYourWallet campaign has over 7.6 million impressions on Twitter (including retweets and likes) and The DJTR has over 39,000 likes on Facebook.

The majority of the targeted retailers, including Nordstrom and Sears, are continuing to sell clothing and home furnishings by Ivanka Trump and the president-elect.

This is no surprise to Robert Passikoff, the founder of Brand Keys, a marketing research firm that has studied Trump's brand power for the past 25 years.

"The boycott is an ideological reaction," he tells Business Insider. "Brands don't tend to do well when they involve themselves with ideologies."

Although Passikoff says there's no historical model to compare the Trump boycotts to (i.e. people not buying products connected to a brand that now has the US presidency), we can look to Trump's nationwide brand power over the past few years for some answers.

Brand Keys continually surveys consumers nationwide about Trump, with each sample around 1,800 people. To gather its data for its Trump surveys, the firm asks people how much they think particular products are worth (both with and without Trump's name).

Though Brand Keys normally conducts client-funded research, these surveys are part of an ongoing internal study. Passikoff says the firm did not track the political affiliation of its survey respondents until Trump declared his candidacy, but that there have been equal numbers of partipants who identify as Republicans, Democrats, and Independents since he entered the running. The following percentages  which span more than two decades  are therefore not completely non-partisan, but nonetheless offer insight about Trump's brand.

Story continues

Before Trump declared his candidacy, the overall added value for Trump's brand was 25%. This means if an apartment complex normally sold at $1,000 per square foot, it could sell for $1,250 per square foot with Trump's name on it. Passikoff says A-list celebrities like Derek Jeter typically have an added brand value of about 15%.

After Trump entered the race, his brand power decreased 20% for products like suits, ties, and jewelry, but increased for branded items geared toward wealthier Americans, like country clubs and luxury condos. When The Washington Post leaked audio of Trump making lewd comments about women in October, that percentage plunged to 8%.

But following the election, Trump's brand power increased 35% across every category.

"His name has more power now than ever," says Passikoff, who predicts the boycotts will do minimal damage to retailers' bottom lines and long-term reputations. He says that might not be the case for retailers that appeal to millennial voters  the majority of which didn't vote for Trump.

A photo posted by Mary Rickert (@themaryellencollection) on Mar 22, 2016 at 4:15pm PDT

Only six retailers have stopped selling Trump products in the recent past. Macy's dropped Donald Trump menswear in 2015 after he said many Mexicans are rapists or criminals (but the company has kept Ivanka Trump products). On November 12, Shoes.com announced on Twitter that it was removing Ivanka Trump shoes from its inventory.

"We understand and your voices have been heard. We have removed the products from our website," Shoes.com tweeted to #GrabYourWallet supporters at the time, but the tweet was later deleted (the retailer later made a statement that the shoes weren't selling well). The other companies  Bellacor, Wayfair, Zulily, RueLaLa, and Stein Mart removed Trump merchandise soon after the election. Some cited dwindling sales; others didn't provide an official statement.

Some retailers that felt pressure from the boycotts have confirmed they will continue to carry Trump products. In an email sent to Nordstrom employees on November 21, co-President Pete Nordstrom wrote, "Every single brand we offer is evaluated on their results  if people dont buy it, we wont sell it." And since customers keep buying Ivanka Trump merchandise, it's not worth it for the company to drop her line, Fortune reported.

A photo posted by Ivanka Trump (@ivankatrump) on Nov 4, 2016 at 12:45pm PDT

Shannon Coulter, a brand and digital strategist who started the #GrabYourWallet hashtag in October, believes that supporting Trump products will damage retailers' reputations in the long run.

After Trump's win, she and other anti-Trump Twitter users made a Google Doc spreadsheet listing 49 retailers that do business with the Trump family. It includes information about Trump inventory carried by businesses along with contact information.

If these retailers choose to remove Trump products, it will prevent damage for their brands, Coulter says. She points to Christian Dior stores, which chose to fire creative director and designer John Galliano in 2011 after he made racist remarks in public.

The Dior brand, worth an estimated $20.2 billion, was able to ride out the controversy because it immediately dropped Galliano after a wave of public criticism.

"Dior didn't want its brand associated with racism," Coulter says. "If a company like Nordstrom chooses to continue selling the products of someone [Ivanka Trump] who passionately campaigned for the KKK-endorsed candidate who likes to grab women by the genitals, that's going to have implications for the Nordstrom brand whether company executives like it or not."

The DJTR campaign is a similar effort to #GrabYour Wallet. Started by New York Daily News senior justice writer Shaun King, it calls for a boycott of various companies, founders, and CEOs that financially supported the Trump campaign and sell his family's products.

"We must make our money stand for the values and the people that we believe in. Otherwise, we are funding the very oppression, bigotry, and discrimination that we claim to hate," The DJTR website reads.

Even though Trump threatened to enact racist, sexist, homophobic, and xenophobic policies on the campaign trail, it will be difficult to tarnish his name. It is latched onto one of the most powerful brands in the world.

Coulter says she and the anti-Trump movement will continue to boycott.

"As for backing down, no," she says. "No plans to do that at all."

Correction  An earlier version of this story did not detail the political affiliation of Brand Keys' survey participants. The firm only did so after Trump declared his presidential candidacy.

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UK-based insurance giant Aon plc AON announced an agreement to acquire Admix  a leading health and benefits brokerage and solutions firm in Brazil.



The company is looking to reap growth opportunities from the steadily growing private health insurance market in Brazil with this buyout. The partnership with Admix will deepen Aons reach in the region by doubling its presence over there. It will also help Aon to better serve clients in Latin America and around the world.



The company is optimistic about spreading in Brazil which is considered one of the most lucrative healthcare markets in Latin America. Better standards of living are pushing up healthcare expenditure in that country.



Aon has been upfront in adopting inorganic growth strategies like acquisitions and partnerships. Last month, the company agreed to acquire cybersecurity specialist Stroz Friedberg Inc. which provides insights to help insurers expand and create new cyber offerings.



Last June, the company tied up with AXIS Insurance, a business segment of AXIS Capital Holdings Limited. The deal will allow Aon's Architecture and Engineering (A&E) Advantage program to provide professional liability insurance to architecture and engineering firms with billings of up to $7.5 million, thereby enhancing its professional liability portfolio and paving the way for more client acquisitions.

AON PLC Price

AON PLC Price | AON PLC Quote

In Aug 2014, Aon Risk Solutions acquired a Lima, Peru-based Grana y Asociados. This is a provider of comprehensive advice and professional assistance for risk management to individuals and businesses globally.



These acquisitions have been supported by the companys smooth cash generation from operating activities. For the first nine months of 2016, cash flow from operations increased 14% year over year to $1.48 billion and free cash flow increased 24% year over year to $1.3 billion over the same time period.



We expect to hear news of further acquisitions from the company given that it continues to generate cash flows which helps it fund its purchases. The company expects to deliver double-digit free cash flow growth in full-year 2016, reflecting further progress in its near-term goal of $2.4 billion of free cash flow for 2017.



Aon carries a Zacks Rank # 3 (Hold).



Investors may consider players like Alleghany Corp. Y, Arch Capital Group Limited ACGL and First American Financial Corporation FAF. Each of these stocks carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here .

Story continues

Alleghany delivered positive surprises in three of the last four quarters, with an average beat of 20.52%.



Arch Capital beat expectations in each of the last four quarters, with an average beat of 9.27%.



First American Financial delivered positive surprises in each of the last four quarters, with an average beat of 14.32%.

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People gathered outside the Cuban embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Monday, November 28, to pay tribute to the Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, who died on Friday.

Cuban officials posted on Facebook about the endless stream of people signing a memorial book and about the crowds outside the embassy to pay their respects.

The Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara was a prominent figure in the Cuban revolution and worked alongside the Castro brothers.

Castro became Cuban president in 1959 and held power until 2008 when his brother Raul took over. Castro had not made many public appearances in recent years, but images circulated in September 2015 of him meeting Pope Francis. He also issued a fiery statement after US President Barack Obamas visit earlier this year, the first by an American president in decades. Credit: Twitter/Resentidocomun via Storyful
For nearly half a century, Art Basel has connected the international art community by way of visual and sonic treats. The premier show, which has since expanded its reach past Basel to both Hong Kong and Miami, will occupy Miami Beach from Dec. 1-4. Aside from the various galleries and exhibits to see, a performance from Kendrick Lamar and the debut of a Pusha T and Adidas shoe line will also take place. To make the most of this year's Art Basel, Billboard has scoped out the best places to stay, dine, and enjoy any down time in between the show's many offerings.

WHERE TO STAY

Nobody curates a stay in Miami like famed hotelier Ian Schrager. Since its launch two years ago, his centrally located Miami Beach Edition Hotel has become a sort of Grand Central for Basel. Their series of VIP events this week include the "Pink Party," hosted by LA's Haas Brothers with Thugf***er, Doc Martin, Nicolas Matar and Ahmed Hashim, and a fish fry with Kehinde Wiley and Lauryn Hill. Don't mope past the art-filled halls of this gem if you don't get into the exclusive parties though -- go to their bowling lanes, favored by Leonardo DiCaprio and Rihanna, and knock down some pins with specially designed Mickalene Thomas, Kehinde Wiley or Olivia Steele bowling balls. (Rooms start at $480/night, 2901 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach).

GRAB A DRINK

Wynwood, Miami's one-time warehouse district, now covered in murals painted by world class graffiti artists, is filled with fun bars and restaurants, but none as chill as Wynwood Yard. Food trucks that serve culinary masterpieces frame a fully stocked bar which anchors the open-air, year-round playground for Miami's creative class. For Basel, The Dream Lab activation @ We are Miami:Wynwood will be presenting an evening of spoken poetry, workshops and installations before Miamian Sol Ruiz Tribu takes the stage with her special mix of traditional jazz, blues and Cuban salsa. It's a perfect way to creatively ease into a hectic week. (Tuesday November 29th 4-11pm. 82 NW 29TH St.).

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WHERE TO TAKE IN ART LIKE A LOCAL

The RUBELL Family Collection pioneered the Miami art scene with their brilliant collection and relentless prescient instinct for the artists that are making great contemporary art. This year they have three distinct exhibits: "High Anxiety," featuring new acquisitions from Kathryn Andrews, Secundino Hernandez and John Waters among others. "New Shamans/Novos Xamas" which brings together emerging and mid-career artists from Brazil. And "Video Art in Latin America," a preview of the upcoming Getty Research Institute's massive show "Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA" which will will tour more than 70 cultural institutions across Southern California. A visit to the Rubell is the best way to stay ahead of the curve. (November 30, the exhibitions at RFC are open to the public admission fee is $10.95 NW 29th Street).

FAST EATS BETWEEN EXHIBITS

Your glam art fair isn't half as fun when you're hangry. Located in the heart of South Beach underneath the HI Miami Beach Hostel building, locals will be stopping at Taquiza on Collins for the perfect carnitas tacos made with the specialized house heirloom blue corn nixtamalized tortillas. Make sure to grab a la endulzada sweet iced espresso to keep you cool on on your way to the next event. (1506 Collins Ave, Miami Beach).

FANCY DINNER SPOT

Food & Wine Best New Chef 2016 and James Beard Semifinalist Bradley Kilgore will feed you Miami at Alter. Using only the finest locally sourced seafood and meats along with seasonal fruits and vegetables, he casually creates one perfect dish after another in his unassuming Wynwood spot. Along with his meticulously diverse wine list that has everything from stellar classics to artisanal growers, reservations are a must, otherwise frequent guest, Taylor Swift, might get your table. (Serving the 5 & 7 course tasting menus only during AB/MB 223 NW 23 St. Reserve here).

WHERE TO DANCE

Miami nightlife veterans have teamed together to create the ultimate nightclub experience in ORA. Opening especially for Basel, ORA will be hosting a weeklong set of events in its luxurious and artful space in South Beach. Sip vintage champagnes among the Banksys and Murakamis that decorate the walls. On Saturday December 3rd, ORA hosts Treats Magazine and Hwood Group's Blind Dragon pop-up, featuring an art pop-up curated by Powerhouse and Phillipe Guggenheim, with a live performance by D.R.A.M. Entry with RSVP here. (2000 Collins Avenue).
UPDATED, 4:53 PM: Chuck Parker, executive director of the Art Directors Guild, just released a statement blasting Joe Musso for saying hell boycott the unions upcoming awards show, where Musso was to have received a Lifetime Achievement Award. We regret that Mr. Musso has exploited the occasion of the ADG Awards recognition of his artistic achievements to malign the leadership and orderly governance of this organization, Parker said, noting that Mussos protest in no way reflect the views of the ADG.

Musso, defending his right to protest, said that it is the right of all union members to dissent.

I am not in any way, shape or form attempting to malign the governance or the membership of the Art Directors Guild, Musso told Deadline. And Im not refusing the award, for which I am deeply honored. I just dont want to be in a position where my appearance at the awards show could be seen as endorsing the conduct of a person who was repudiated by two-thirds of the membership.

Stressing that dissent is not contrary to union values, he said that the union should look at all sides of an issue and then let the membership vote accordingly.

PREVIOUSLY, 2:01 PM: Famed production illustrator Joe Musso is boycotting the upcoming Art Directors Guild Awards, where he was slated to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award. In an email to the guilds members, Musso, whos running for president of the union, said he wont show up to receive the honor to protest a Service Award thats also being presented to Scott Roth, the guilds former longtime executive director.

It was because of Mr. Roths long, troubling history with the guild, too numerous to list here, that almost two-thirds of the members chose to remove him from his position as our executive director this past June, Musso wrote. As such, I must respectfully decline to participate in this event or any other such ceremony which would appear to endorse the conduct of our former executive director. I feel that this would exacerbate old wounds and send the wrong message to the majority of our members who do not share the same opinion as those select few on the Art Directors Council.

Story continues

Roth was voted out of office in June in an election mandated by the U.S. Department of Labor  an historic first for a Hollywood union. Like the top executives of the industrys other major unions, Roth had been hired by his guilds board of directors and served at its pleasure continuously since 1997. The Labor Department, however, determined that Roth was an officer of the IATSE local and not an employee as defined by the Labor/Management Reporting & Disclosure Act, and therefore had to stand for election by the unions members every three years.

Roth lost the subsequent election in a landslide to veteran production designer Chuck Parker, 547-322.

Since then, the DOL has also ordered the guild to re-run last years election of the unions other top officers. Acting on a complaint from a member, the DOL found flaws in the way the electronic balloting was conducted, and told the guild to re-do the election or face a federal lawsuit.

In that election, which took place last December, candidates loyal to Roth were swept into office including the guilds current president, Nelson Coates; vice president Patrick DeGreve; treasurer Oana Bogdan; and recording secretary Thomas Wilkins. Theyre all seeking re-election on a slate called One 800.

Musso heads a slate of candidates called Best 800 that supported Parker in his campaign to oust Roth, and seeks to unseat the incumbent officers. Other candidates on Mussos ticket include Jim Wallis, running for vice president; Cate Bangs, running for treasurer; and Patty Klawonn, running for recording secretary.

Since we have now been given a second chance to change our governance, Musso said in his email, I sincerely request that you carefully consider this matter when you cast your vote for president.

Musso is being honored by the guild for his more than 50 years in show business. Over his long career, he worked with Alfred Hitchcock, John Huston, Steven Spielberg, Clint Eastwood, Blake Edwards, Mike Nichols, Norman Jewison and Richard Brooks. His many credits as a production illustrator include The Hateful Eight, The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, Monk, Flags Of Our Fathers, Vanilla Sky, Basic Instinct, Dick Tracy and Whos Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?

He also served as president of IATSE Illustrators and Matte Artists Local 790 for 30 years prior to its merger into the Art Directors Guild in 2008.

The guilds awards show will be held February 11 at the Hollywood & Highland Center. Ballots in the guilds officer election will be counted on December 16.

Related stories

Art Directors Guild Honors Four With Lifetime Achievement Award

Rene Lagler To Receive Lifetime Achievement Award From Art Directors Guild

Art Directors Guild Will Re-Run 2015 Officers Election To Avoid Federal Lawsuit
Early-'00s hip hop fans were in for a treat earlier this year when Murder Inc.'s own Ja Rule and Ashanti kicked off their reunion tour, bringing the days of "Mesmerize" and "Always On Time" to venues across the nation. Carrying on their reunion, Ja and Ashanti have linked up once again for "Helpless" off The Hamilton Mixtape, the pair's first collaboration in almost a decade.

The soul-injected ballad opens with Ashanti taking on the role of Eliza from the hit Broadway production, as she sings about falling head-over-heels for the musical's titular protagonist. "One week later, I'm writing a letter nightly, now my life gets better every letter that you write me," the songtress coos. "Laughin' at this girl, cuz she wants to form a harem... No, I ain't sharing."

Ja Rule later chimes in as Hamilton, rhyming that despite his lack of money, "acre of land, a troop to command, a dollop of fame," his love for her is undeniable.

In an interview with Conan earlier this month, Lin-Manuel Miranda revealed that he thought of Ja Rule and Ashanti when writing the song, and predicted that the collaborative track will give listeners "the feels."

Listen to "Helpless" below.
Miami (AFP) - Astronauts may experience blurry vision and impaired eyesight after long spaceflights due to changes in spinal fluid that occur while in microgravity, researchers said Monday.

Nearly two-thirds of astronauts have reported problems with their eyes after spending months at the International Space Station, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

According to lead researcher Noam Alperin, professor of radiology and biomedical engineering at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, "some of the astronauts had severe structural changes that were not fully reversible upon return to Earth."

The problems includes flattening at the back of their eyeballs and inflamed optic nerves, which can lead to far-sightedness.

Researchers initially thought that the problems were due to changes in the way blood is distributed in the body in microgravity, with more fluid lingering around the head area than would be typical on Earth where gravity pulls it downward.

Alperin and colleagues studied before and after brain scans on seven astronauts who had spent multiple months at the orbiting space station, and compared them to nine astronauts who made short trips up and back aboard the US space shuttle, which was retired in 2011.

They found that long-duration astronauts had significantly more cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain.

This fluid typically helps cushion the brain and spinal cord while circulating nutrients and removing waste materials.

On Earth, this spinal fluid system is designed to accommodate changes whether a person is sitting, standing or lying down. But in space, "the system is confused by the lack of the posture-related pressure changes," Alperin said.

Longterm space flyers also had "significantly increased post-flight flattening of their eyeballs and increased optic nerve protrusion," said the findings.

Alperin said the research offers the first quantitative evidence cerebral spinal fluid plays a direct role in visual impairment syndrome.

Story continues

NASA is currently studying ways to counteract these eye problems, as the US space agency works toward sending people on months or years-long missions to Mars by the 2030s.

Retired NASA astronaut Clayton Anderson said he did not experience any problems with vision after his five month stint in space in 2007.

"It appears -- from additional NASA studies performed at Johnson Space Center in Houston -- that I have a special protein sailing through my body, that does not allow this phenomenon to occur," Anderson wrote on quora.com.

"Protein question still being researched, I believe," he added on Twitter.
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian Olympic gymnast Lisa Skinner was fitted with a head brace on Monday after fracturing a vertebra when she fell during an aerial routine with Cirque du Soleil in Brisbane. Skinner, 35, also broke her arm and briefly lost consciousness after falling during a hoop routine at least three meters off the ground on Sunday, her mother said. Anne Skinner told a Brisbane radio station that her daughter was fitted with a halo brace to keep her head and neck still. "It will take 6-12 weeks to heal, but her arms and legs work, which is the main thing," Anne Skinner told River 94.9 on Monday. Lisa Skinner, who had toured previously with Cirque du Soleil, was a member of the Australian gymnastics team in the 1996, 2000 and 2004 Olympics. She won gold at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. Sunday's performance was temporarily stopped as she was taken to hospital but later resumed. (Reporting by Reuters TV; Writing by Julie Noce; Editing by Patrick Johnston)
Sydney (AFP) - Foreigners in Australia on working holidays face paying a 15 percent levy on every dollar they earn after the government Monday compromised on a controversial "backpacker tax", dumping plans for a higher rate.

Canberra had initially sought a revenue-raising 32.5 percent tax for seasonal workers from January 1 under a proposal first flagged in the 2015 budget, but the move was met with an outcry from farmers and tourism operators.

They feared it would deter tourists from choosing the country as a destination, with some 600,000 backpackers heading to Australia every year, many finding work picking fruit.

Currently, like other workers, backpackers do not start paying tax until their annual income exceeds Aus$18,200.

Farmers complained bitterly that the levy could affect labour supply at harvest time and the government in September watered down its plans to 19 percent.

That led to a political stalemate with the Labor opposition, the Greens and independent crossbench senators demanding 10.5 percent, in line with New Zealand.

But Treasurer Scott Morrison said a compromise had now been reached with key crossbenchers who hold the balance of power in the upper house Senate with legislation set to be introduced on Monday.

"Today the government will be working to put in place a bill which will propose 15 percent on the backpackers' arrangement," he told reporters, voicing confidence the government now had the numbers to steer it through parliament this week.

Farmers were grateful the issue looked set to be resolved.

"It has been a painful process but we wholeheartedly welcome the announcement that a compromise rate of 15 percent has been reached," said National Farmers Federation chief executive Tony Mahar.

"We now ask that the Senate expedite passage of the relevant legislation to provide the long needed certainty to the sector and allow businesses to start rebuilding backpacker interest in on-farm jobs."

Labor's agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon argued that 15 percent was still too high.

"All backpackers do is look at the headline rate," he said. "They look at New Zealand at 10.5 and Australia at 19 or 15 and they decide to go to New Zealand."
(Reuters) - U.S. authorities said on Sunday they had no plans to forcibly remove activists protesting plans to run an oil pipeline beneath a lake near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in North Dakota, despite telling them to leave by early December. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the federal land where the main camp protesting the Dakota Access pipeline is located, said last week it would close public access to the area north of the Cannonball River on Dec. 5 On Sunday, the agency said in a statement that it had "no plans for forcible removal" of protesters. The statement said anyone who remained would be considered unauthorized and could be subject to various citations. It also said emergency services might not be adequately provided to the area. "The Army Corps of Engineers is seeking a peaceful and orderly transition to a safer location," the statement said. "This will reduce the risk of harm to people in the encampments caused (by) the harsh North Dakota winter conditions." A representative for the agency could not be immediately reached on Sunday to provide further clarification on its plans. Organizers told a news conference on Saturday at the main protest site where about 5,000 people are camped that they had no intention of moving. There are smaller camps on land not subject to the planned restrictions, including an area south of the Cannonball River where the Corps said it was establishing a free-speech zone. Demonstrators have protested for months against the $3.8 billion Dakota Access Pipeline, owned by Energy Transfer Partners LP, saying it poses a threat to water resources and sacred Native American sites. The companies say the pipeline would carry Bakken shale oil more cheaply and safely from North Dakota to Illinois en route to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries. The 1,172-mile (1,885-km) project is mostly complete except for the segment planned to run under Lake Oahe, less than half a mile (0.8 km) north of Standing Rock. The Obama administration in September postponed final approval of a permit required to allow tunneling beneath the lake, a move intended to give federal officials more time to consult with tribal leaders. The delay also led to escalating tensions over the project. Last weekend, police used water hoses in subfreezing weather in an attempt to disperse about 400 activists near the proposed tunnel excavation site. (Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Peter Cooneyand Peter Cooney)
As a young political firebrand, Fidel Castro railed against two adversaries: Gen. Fulgencio Batista, who had seized control of Cuba in a 1952 coup, and the United States, whose influence on Cuban affairs Castro deeply resented. It took seven years, but Castro and a band of revolutionaries ousted Batista in January 1959. The U.S. remained a bitter foe throughout his life.

Castros death at age 90 was announced late Friday by his brother Raul, 85, to whom he ceded power in 2006 after undergoing complicated abdominal surgery for a still-unexplained illness.

Since then, the younger Castro has presided over a historic thaw in relations between Cuba and the U.S. In December 2014, the nations announced steps to re-establish diplomatic ties. In March, Barack Obama became the first sitting U.S. president to visit Cuba since 1928; he has called on the U.S. Congress to end a failed 52-year trade embargo against Cuba. As the changes unfolded, the ailing elder Castro was mostly silent and rarely seen.

With his trademark beard, military fatigues  and, until the mid-1980s, the ever-present Cohiba  Castro held fast for decades to the image of the strapping revolutionary. Though his enemies were quick to note occasional signs of declining health, he appeared fit and feisty well into his 70s, relishing any opportunity to muse aloud before a captive audience for six or seven hours. Every speech was a chance to boast about his regimes successes  a vaunted education system, cradle-to-grave social programs, free medical care  and to blame its failures on the American imperialists.

Castros Cuba was a one-party state with a virtual one-man government. He served simultaneously as president of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers, first secretary of the Communist Party and commander of the military.

Castro demanded complete loyalty and brooked no dissent. His government controlled the media and jammed radio and TV signals to prevent outside broadcasts from reaching the island. Cubas universities, he explained, are available only to those who share my revolutionary beliefs. His enemies were imprisoned or, especially in the early days, executed. The Cuban people regarded him with a mix of fear and admiration that sustained his hold on power for longer than any political figure of his time....

At first celebrated as a hero in Cuba, Castro quickly alienated the U.S. government as he moved to nationalize commercial and agricultural industries. He confiscated thousands of acres of farmland, outlawed foreign land ownership and seized property owned by Cubans and American corporations. The U.S. quickly severed ties and enacted the trade embargo. Disillusioned middle- and upper-class Cubans who first supported Castro fled the island, mostly for South Florida. Castro, meanwhile, nursed a budding friendship with the Soviet Union. ...

That bond grew stronger as relations with the U.S. grew increasingly hostile. First there was the CIA-sponsored Bay of Pigs invasion, a failed attempt by exiles to reclaim the island in 1961. By the end of the year, Castro had declared himself a Marxist-Leninist and Cuba a communist nation. The next year, the world was brought to the brink of nuclear war when the U.S. learned that Castro had agreed to let the USSR install missiles in Cuba.

For three decades, the Soviets showered Cuba with billions in economic and military aid. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, that aid terminated abruptly, plunging Cuba into poverty. But Castro made other friends. He maintained and strengthened trade relationships with many U.S. allies, and cultivated friendships with leftist leaders like Venezuelas Hugo Chavez, who provided billions in oil and other subsidies until his death in 2013.

By then, the ailing Castros rambling anti-American missives had stopped appearing in the communist-run newspaper, Granma. His long public absences gave rise to frequent rumors of his death, openly celebrated by his enemies in the aging South Florida exile community. In Cuba, meanwhile, Raul Castro eased restrictions on travel and allowed Cubans greater access to cellphones and the internet. Increasingly, they are allowed to own and sell property and to run their own businesses, giving them a taste of a life they couldnt afford on state salaries that average $25 a month.

In April, Fidel Castro rallied to speak at the Communist Party Congress. Dressed in a blue Adidas track suit that had replaced the olive-drab fatigues as his health declined, a frail Castro appealed to Cubans to fight without truce to preserve the communist ideals they have largely abandoned as self-defeating or irrelevant. Maybe this is the last time I will speak in this hall, he said, and it was.

The ever-resilient Castro turned out to be mortal after all. His revolution survives him  but for how long?
Mark Fields

There are two key issues in the US auto industry at the moment.

Number one: SUVs and pickups are selling like crazy. US sales this year could equal or top 2015's record of 17.5 million, driven largely by consumer demand for crossovers and pickups.

Passenger cars are another story. Sales have been weak, leading some automakers, notable Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, to back off from US production in order to use that manufacturing capacity to build more trucks.

Moving the assembly of those vehicles to Mexico, where many automakers have or are constructing plants, is an appealing solution.

But Donald Trump attacked these plans during the election, even though his preferred target, Ford, has been operating in Mexico since the 1960s. As a candidate, he threatened to slap a 35% tariff on vehicles built in Mexico coming into the US.

Number two: Automakers are up against rising fuel-economy standards. The Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) requirements for the large automakers selling vehicles in the US are suppose to rise to 54.5 mpg by 2025  a goal that federal and regulators think is unlikely to be met, and that the automakers have been lobbying against.

Hard to come up with grand bargain

You can probably see where this is going. Trump wants to make trouble for the automakers on the North American Free Trade Agreement front, demanding that they stop outsourcing production south of the border. But if his EPA shapes up to be as corporation-friendly as many suspect, the carmakers stand a pretty good chance of getting a CAFE break.

They'll love that. But given that major car companies are investing $24 billion in Mexico, according to Bloomberg, they're going to hate whatever inflexibility a Trump administration imposes on them.

Ford Kentucky Plant

There really isn't an easy way to deal with this, resolving the two big issues to everyone's satisfaction. Auto labor costs are not going to decline in the US to anything that even vaguely resembles what they are in Mexico, where a worker will be paid $10 an hour while a US worker could get close to $60.

Story continues

Auto manufacturing jobs are also skilled-labor positions, and employers have to pay for that skill, depending on the market they're operating in. The calculations that US carmakers are being compelled to confront is the meager profits of smaller passenger cars versus the fat profits of trucks and SUVs; they'd like to use their costly US labor force to build their most profitable vehicles.

The linkage with the CAFE debate is of course that building a lot of trucks and SUVs  the vehicles that consumers wants  runs counter to meeting the CAFE goals. So automakers would like to catch a break there, so that they can bank as much money as possible now, while the US market is booming at gas prices are low.

This suggests that although a love-hate relationship with Trump may persist, there could be some horse-trading that takes place.

NOW WATCH: Trump said he prevented a Ford factory from leaving the US  but the company says the move was never planned





More From Business Insider


Ottawa (AFP) - A Lincoln MKZ sedan dubbed Autonomoose and two other self-driving vehicles hit the road in Canada Monday in the country's first test of the technology on public roads.

Ontario is one of the top jurisdictions in North America for auto assembly and the province is hoping to grab some of the billions of dollars being spent to develop vehicles that can travel without a driver touching the steering wheel, accelerator or brakes.

Minister of Transportation Steven Del Duca said Ontario wants to be a "world leader in automated technology."

The first three 10-year pilot projects will be led by the University of Waterloo, auto manufacturer Erwin Hymer Group and software developer BlackBerry QNX.

But officials told AFP they hope more groups will follow.

They noted that Chrysler, Ford, General Motors, Honda and Toyota, as well as truck manufacturer Hino already have assembly plants in Ontario.

The province predicts autonomous cars will eventually lead to fewer collisions, reduced traffic congestion, increased fuel efficiency and less air pollution (35 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Ontario are emitted from cars and trucks).

Autonomous vehicles are being tested around the world, but in North America there are few places where regulations permit it.

Those that do, such as California, have put restrictions on driving the vehicles on public roads.

Ontario regulations announced in January note that a driver must sit behind the wheel ready to take over at all times during testing.

Each of the three Ontario pioneers have proposed testing different autonomous vehicle technologies, which combine visual sensors, radar and sonar to detect road conditions and obstacles.

Some of the tests may include driving on icy roads or in snow storms.
By travel stocks I mean hotel stocks like Marriott MAR, Hilton HLT and Wyndham Worldwide, online hotel booking companies like Priceline PCLN and Expedia EXPE, recommendation sites like TripAdvisor and other players facilitating or indirectly involved in the travel business.

MARRIOTT INTL-A Price

MARRIOTT INTL-A Price | MARRIOTT INTL-A Quote

The segment has suffered the brunt of terror attacks, Brexit uncertainties and the stronger dollar, which combined to contain hotel demand for much of the year. The question, then, is whether the weakness will continue (for these or other reasons), or is it time to look beyond these issues to more positive indicators perhaps?

PRICELINE.COM Price

PRICELINE.COM Price | PRICELINE.COM Quote

Another segment that benefits from travel demand is airlines and as it turns out, companies like Southwest LUV, American Airlines AAL, Jet Blue JBLU and Delta also share the terror and Brexit issues. They are also saddled with rising labor costs and declining air fares.

SOUTHWEST AIR Price

SOUTHWEST AIR Price | SOUTHWEST AIR Quote

Low oil prices have been a positive, however -- on the one hand increasing consumer disposable income, and on the other supporting airlines profitability. Its a different matter that capacity additions seem high in response to the rising demand, which is impacting air fares.

Disappointing Metrics

STR data for October 2016 indicates that occupancy rates are down In Europe, Middle East and Central/South America. Asia and the U.S. were flattish.

As far as the average daily rate (ADR, or "pricing") is concerned, there were declines everywhere except in the Americas.

Revenue per average room (revPAR) also wasnt encouraging, declining in Europe, Middle East and Central/South America but flattish in Asia and up 1.9% in the U.S.

From the above, it appears that the domestic market is the best place to search for growth. But according to STRs updated outlook for 2016 and 2017, things could be turning for the worse. The firm says that while growth in supply and demand will be in equilibrium in 2016 at 1.6%, demand will decelerate slightly to 1.5% next year with supply accelerating to 2.0%.

Story continues

The occupancy rate will go from flat to down 0.5%. The supply-demand mismatch will also impact pricing for hoteliers. As a result, ADR growth will go from 3.1% to 2.8%, also impacting the RevPAR.

The numbers indicate that demand is not about to get stronger. And indeed, 2017 estimates for some hoteliers are trending down. Mariott for example saw a 6-cent decline in the last 30 days, with Hilton down 8 cents and Expedia down 18 cents. Other estimates can also start trending down in the coming days.

Is It All Bad News?

While growth isnt expected to accelerate in the near term, the domestic market and China/Asia are likely to be moderately positive. So people already invested in the space may want to hang on. Heres some more data that investors with a longer investment horizon may cheer at.

According to Director General and CEO of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Alexandre de Juniac, Septembers growth in passenger demand was healthy. Importantly, this rebound from August weakness suggests that travel demand is showing its resilience in the aftermath of terror attacks.

"We must, of course, be ever-alert to the ongoing terror threat. And overall the industry is still vulnerable to being buffeted by rising geopolitical tensions, protectionist political agendas, and weak economic fundamentals. This will still be a good year for the airline industrys performance, but our profitability will continue to be hard-won.

Investors can find opportunities in both the fastest growing countries of China and India.

In China, there is a restriction on foreign ownership of aircraft and airports. But investment opportunity exists as parts suppliers to aircraft companies and designers of airports according to Dezan Shira and Associates.

The opportunity in India is opening up with the Modi government publishing the countrys first-ever Civil Aviation Policy allowing the privatization of airlines and up to 100% FDI in Indian airlines companies among other things. But the segment is necessarily heavily regulated because of its relation to national security and also heavily taxed. There is also mounting pressure for India to join the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that seeks to get member countries to offset the environmental impact of future air traffic growth. India has managed to stay out of this to date, if it decides to join, there can be cost escalation.

Travel can be for both business and leisure although a recent study from Priceline says that people are generally more open to mix the two these days, i.e. extend the business trip to enjoy the destination.

Also, McKinsey finds that business travel in Asia is rather different from other parts of the world. The worlds biggest business travel market with a 38% share worth a trillion dollars in annual spending is characterized by greater choice to individual travelers.

On the basis of a survey of 2,500 business travelers in China, India, Indonesia, Japan and Singapore and interviews of 19 corporate-travel managers, the study finds that 69% of respondents are able to choose their airlines, either from a preapproved list or without restrictions of which 11% have no constraints on either provider or price. Similarly, 74% of respondents said they have the same degree of freedom in picking a hotel, of which 9% said they have no restrictions whatsoever.

On the other hand, companies at times incentivize employees to accept cheaper travel options. So the distinction between business and leisure type travel is less evident here. Business travelers in Asia generally prefer convenience over all else and are therefore very inclined to order online using mobile devices and through online booking agents.

According to the latest Visa-sponsored GBTA BTI Outlook  China 2016 H1, China has overtaken the U.S. as the largest business travel market in the world. Moreover, it is also one of the fastest growing (10.1% growth in 2016 followed by 9.8% growth in 2017). Domestic spend is 95% of total spend. The report also mentions the estimated U.S. growth rate for 2016 of 1.9%.

The GBTA BTI Outlook  India report says that the country is currently the 10th largest business travel market in the world, forecasted to grow 10.7% this year and 10.2% in 2017 and assume the sixth position by 2019. Domestic spending will grow 11.5% and 10.3% in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Outbound travel will be slower, growing a respective 3.1% and 9.0%.

According to the Visa-sponsored GBTA BTI Outlook  Western Europe, the region will see 6.3% growth in 2016 followed by 6.8% growth in 2017. Germany leads the region and in addition to the UK, will see higher growth rates.

Summing Up

The travel market has few good opportunities at the moment (Instead see: the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here). But it isnt all doom and gloom either. If youre in the segment for the longer-term, it makes sense to hold on. But this isnt the time to make fresh investments and a wait-and-see approach to Asian opportunities may be a good idea.

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Early this week, Azealia Banks revealed that shes deleting her social media profiles because she cant fk it up this time now that she has a deal to sign. She made her comeback on Facebook this Thanksgiving weekend to respond to haters for the ill-wishes theyve been giving her.

On Sunday, Banks started her rant by writing on Facebook that there are people who are wishing for her demise, and that this stuff haunts me all the time. Then, she did a quick follow-up post where she clarified that nothing about her will change unless people change the way they look at her. She even pointed out the difference between her haters who see her like a demon and her fans who see her as a human and a girl.

The 25-year-old artist also expressed how she wished she could finally get some appreciation when she wrote that she is yearning for her day in the sun. In another post, Banks addressed her haters again, telling them they should not disregard the nice things she does and says.

The outspoken recording artist then asked why she is not accepted for who she is in the industry. She questioned this because most nuts a men are accepted at work, while she has to be fixed to be accepted. In the end, Banks wrote that she needs a vacation from this mess.

As Banks echoed her craving for acceptance on Facebook, many of her fans showed their support for her and even agreed with her sentiments. One fan wrote: I am a fan from another country and support you if it means anything to you. I dont know what they want from you but I believe you have a built in instinct to re-align no matter how harsh they treat you. So keep your head up, cutie pie. Another commented: Youre window is here love its been a bumpy road but accept it! We believe in you.

Banks new Facebook rant comes days after she compared herself to Kanye West for being very vocal on different issues plaguing the country. The 212 hitmaker even admitted that shes been secretly in love with Kim Kardashians husband because of such similarities.

Story continues

Azealia Banks

Photo: Getty Images/Cassandra Hannagan

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By Subrata Nagchoudhury KOLKATA (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Police in eastern India have rescued 13 babies and discovered the skeletons of two infants in raids on homes for the elderly and mentally disabled, as a probe into a suspected international human trafficking ring widened on Monday. Ten infants, all under one year old, were found on Friday in a home for the mentally disabled run by a charity in the impoverished district of South 24 Parganas in West Bengal. While in another raid in the neighboring district of North 24 Parganas, the remains of two infants were found in office premises of a charity which ran an adoption center. The raids come after the discovery of three newborn babies on Nov. 21 hidden inside cardboard biscuit boxes in a locked storeroom in a nursing home, where women would come to deliver or have an abortion. Rajesh Kumar of West Bengal's Crime Investigation Department (CID), said 18 people had been arrested for taking the newborn babies and trafficking them for adoption in India and overseas. "It is a huge network of NGOs, nursing homes, doctors and middlemen dealing in illegal adoption and baby trafficking that the police have busted. Our men are now building on the huge leads they have already got in this case," Kumar, CID's Additional Director General said on Monday. Initial investigations revealed that unmarried girls and women who visited the clinics for an abortion were persuaded by staff to give birth and sell their babies. The police did not give a price, but local news reports said the mothers were given 300,000 rupees ($4,380) for a boy and 100,000 rupees ($1,460) for a girl. Babies were also stolen from women who delivered at the clinics, but who were told by staff their children were stillborn. Some were even given the bodies of stillborn babies preserved by the clinics to dupe parents, police said. The babies were then smuggled in biscuit containers to adoption centers, homes for the mentally disabled and elderly people, where they were kept until their adoption was organized. Those arrested included the owners of the clinics, midwives, doctors, owners of the charities, as well as court clerks who are accused of forging documentation for the babies. BABIES, SKELETONS, FOREX FOUND South Asia, with India at its center, is one of the fastest-growing regions for human trafficking in the world. Gangs sell thousands of victims into bonded labor every year or hire them out to exploitative bosses as domestic servants, or sectors such as farming and manufacturing. Many women and girls are sold into brothels. Following last Monday's raid on the nursing home in Baduria, 80 km (50 miles) from Kolkata, interrogation of clinic staff led police to conduct over 20 raids in what police say appears to be a highly organized human trafficking racket. They included a swoop on the offices of an adoption center run by a charity in Machlandapur, 25 km (15 miles) away, where police on Friday found the skeletal remains of two infants, who are suspected to have died there while awaiting sale. The same day police also found ten babies lying on a sheet on the ground on the second floor of a charitable home for mentally disabled people in Behala. The infants showed signs of malnourishment and some had chest and skin infections. Kumar said one of the doctors arrested on suspicion of involvement in the baby smuggling racket had over $3,200 in U.S. dollars, euros and Hong Kong dollars in his possession, suggesting the infants were being sold overseas. "The seizure of this foreign currency is a definite indication that the racket may have its tentacles spread into foreign countries and foreign couples who were interested in baby adoption," he said. One of rescued infants has been reunited with its parents, who had been told by clinic staff that their baby was stillborn, he said, adding that police were trying to locate other parents as well as those who had adopted the children. Senior government officials said the rescued babies were being treated at government hospital. "I have asked the South 24 Parganas district child welfare officer to look into the case and arrange for proper care and upkeep of the babies," Sashi Panja, West Bengal's Minister for women and child welfare told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. (Reporting by Subrata Nagchoudhury. Writing by Nita Bhalla, 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)
It acquired the business for a lower price.

OCBC's private banking unit Bank of Singapore has recently completed the acquisition of the wealth and investment management (WIM) businesses of Barclays in Singapore and Hong Kong for a lower price than what was on the deal signed in April.

To recall, BOS announced in the said month that it had bought Barclays' private bank business in a US$320 cash deal. However, it has announced that the resulting purchase price was only at US$227.5m, set at 1.75% of the assets under management transferred upon completion of the deal.

As of April this year, Barclays' WIM business has about US$17.5b AUMs, of which only US$13b was transferred to BOS.

The bank's CEO Bahren Shaari said the acquisition of a private bank with about 75% of the AUM transferred is but a big success to the group.

"A big part of the team is happy and ready to join the big Bank of Singapore family of close to 1,600 employees. The Barclays WIM Singapore and Hong Kong team have shared with us that their clients were more than convinced about the capabilities and competencies of Bank of Singapore," he said.

He furthered,"One key driver was the fact that we have organically grown the AUM from US$22 billion in 2010 to US$62 billion this year. The good growth is a testimony to the strengths of our products, people and brand, as well as the support from OCBC. This acquisition comes at an opportune time as the Asia Pacific (excluding Japan) is expected to overtake Western Europe to be the second wealthiest region in 2017."

With the acquisition, Shaari noted that the group have the one of the largest teams of close to 400 experienced bankers to serve ultra-high net worth individuals and high net worth individuals in its core markets.





More From Singapore Business Review


Bravo

Its safe to say Olivia Flowers has been killing it on the Halloween front this year. Over the weekend, the Southern Charm cast member went out with Kathryn Dennis and Taylor Ann Green, and the gals looked stunning in their edgy, Goth-inspired costumes, which, for Olivia, included a black corset, skirt, knee-high boots, and dark lipstick. Olivia decided to take things in a more colorful direction for the October 31 holiday, emulating the late Olivia Newton-Johns aerobics style for her 1981 hit
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Bearing Resources Ltd. (BRZ.V) ("Bearing" or the "Company") announces that it has entered into a letter of intent (the "LOI") with Li3 Energy Inc. ("Li3"), which provides Bearing with the exclusive right to negotiate in good faith for a period of 15 business days (the "Exclusivity Period"), an agreement to acquire Li3 or its assets (the "Proposed Transaction"). Under the terms of the LOI, the anticipated consideration to be paid by Bearing would be the issuance of 16,000,000 common shares of Bearing and the assumption of the debts and liabilities of Li3 in an aggregate amount not to exceed US$1.7 million. Other than the right to negotiate exclusively with Li3 during the Exclusivity Period, the LOI is non-binding. Completion of the Proposed Transaction remains subject to a number of conditions, as detailed below.

About Li3 Energy, Inc.

Li3 is a public company incorporated under the laws of Nevada with its shares quoted on the OTCQB. Li3's principal asset is a 17.7% interest in a joint venture company (the "JV Company") which in turn holds the Maricunga lithium brine project located in Chile (the "Maricunga Project"). The other partners in the JV Company are Minera Salar Blanco ("MSB"), as to 32.3%, and Lithium Power International Limited (ASX:LPI) ("Lithium Power"), as to 50%. Under the terms of the joint venture, Lithium Power has agreed to fund exploration and development costs with both Li3 and MSB having a free carry until the completion of a definitive feasibility study.

The Maricunga Project is regarded as the highest quality pre-production lithium project in Chile, with characteristics comparable to the world-leading Atacama lithium brine deposit (which sits at the bottom of the global lithium cost curve). The salar is located 170km north-east of the mining town of Copiapo and 250km from the Chilean coast. In addition, it is adjacent to International Highway 31, which connects northern Chile and Argentina.

The Proposed Transaction

The LOI provides that Li3 shall work exclusively and in good faith with Bearing until December 14, 2016 towards satisfactory completion of due diligence and negotiation of a definitive agreement (the "Definitive Agreement") for the Proposed Transaction. Completion of the Proposed Transaction is subject to a number of conditions precedent, including: the negotiation and execution of a Definitive Agreement, completion of satisfactory due diligence by the parties, the absence of a material adverse change with respect to the Maricunga Project, approval of the Proposed Transaction by the boards of directors of Bearing and Li3, receipt of applicable regulatory and shareholder approvals including approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

Jeremy Poirier, Bearing's President and CEO, commented, "We are excited about the execution of this LOI and working with Li3 to negotiate and execute a definitive agreement for the transaction. We believe the Maricunga Project, and particularly the terms of the joint venture with Li3 having a full carry to the completion a definitive feasibility study, offers an excellent opportunity for our shareholders."

Luis Saenz, CEO of Li3 Energy Inc, stated: "We are delighted to enter into this transaction with Bearing Resources. It has been a key objective of Li3 to be listed in a recognized exchange where the significant potential of lithium has attracted interest. The Bearing team is well positioned to grow from Li3's shareholding in the Maricunga project to provide value to our shareholders."

The Proposed Transaction described herein cannot close until all of the conditions have been satisfied and there can be no certainty that the Proposed Transaction will be completed, either as presently proposed, or at all.

The Company also announces a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") offering of up to 2,500,000 units (the "Units") at a price of $0.40 per Unit for gross proceeds of up to $1,000,000. Each Unit will consist of one common share in the capital of the Company and one half of one share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.80 for a period of twelve months from the closing of the Private Placement. The net proceeds of the Private Placement will be used to fund costs incurred in connection with the Proposed Transaction and, assuming closing of the Proposed Transaction, the repayment of certain of the debt held by Li3 which will be assumed by the Company. Completion of the Private Placement remains subject to approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

About Bearing Resources Ltd.

Bearing Resources Ltd. is a Canadian based company focused on exploration for precious and base metals in North America. The Company's strategy is to identify, explore, and develop mineral deposits with a magnitude of size and grade to be of interest to mid-sized and larger mining companies. The Company will carry out all aspects of exploration and development from grass roots prospecting to feasibility studies. Projects will be acquired through both staking and acquisition. From time to time, the Company may option projects to external exploration companies in an effort to focus both financial and human capital on other internal projects.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD



Signed "Jeremy Poirier"

Jeremy Poirier, Director President and CEO



FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Jeremy Poirier - President and CEO Bearing Resources - Telephone: 1- 604-722-9842

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.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements"(collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, without limitation, statements relating the future operating or financial performance of the Company, are forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "potential," "possible," and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will," "may," "could," or "should," occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements in this press release relate to, among other things: the execution of a Definitive Agreement for the Proposed Transaction, the completion of the Proposed Transaction, the benefits of the Proposed Transaction to shareholders of Bearing and the completion of the Private Placement. Actual future results may differ materially. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the respective parties, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: completion of satisfactory due diligence by each of Bearing and Li3, negotiation and execution of a Definitive Agreement, approval of a Definitive Agreement by both Bearing and Li3's boards of directors, the absence of a material adverse change in the Maricunga Property, receipt of all necessary regulatory and shareholder approvals and the ability to find suitable investors for the Private Placement. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release concerning these times. Except as required by law, Bearing does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law.

SOURCE: Bearing Resources Ltd.
Many were left scratching their heads Sunday when Donald Trump claimed, with no evidence, that he would have won the popular vote if millions hadnt voted illegally.

The unfounded claim was odd, as Trump was apparently questioning the validity of the election he just won. But Democrat Hillary Clintons commanding lead in the popular vote appears to have annoyed Trump, who appears set to win with 306 votes in the Electoral College.

Where does he come up with this stuff?

The theory appears to have originated in a tweet that got picked up by conspiratorial websites and was soon after plastered across several major sites in the right-wing blogosphere. And though its been repeated frequently, no evidence has been put forth so far to support it.

Most reports cite a pair of tweets from someone named Gregg Phillips, whose Twitter page describes him as the founder of VoteStand, an online election fraud reporting app. Within five days of the general election, Phillips claimed to have verified that more than 3 million noncitizens voted.

Completed analysis of database of 180 million voter registrations. Number of non-citizen votes exceeds 3 million. Consulting legal team.  Gregg Phillips (@JumpVote) November 11, 2016

We have verified more than three million votes cast by non-citizens. We are joining .@TrueTheVote to initiate legal action. #unrigged  Gregg Phillips (@JumpVote) November 13, 2016

Phillips, a former deputy human services commissioner for the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, also claimed that VoteStand and True the Vote, another group that purports to be a voters rights organization, built a database of 180,000,000 voters and tagged noncitizens over the past six years.

Story continues

Alex Jones Infowars, Breitbarts Milo Yiannopoulos and other partisan websites picked up the story. Jones is a prominent conspiracy theorist who has even gone as far as to question the Sandy Hook massacre. Trump went on Jones radio show during the campaign, and Jones claimed after the election that Trump called to thank him. Trump himself has a long history of making wild claims of voter fraud.

So far, however, Phillips has refused to let the media see his data, saying that he fears the media will spin the information. On Monday morning, True the Vote released the following statement defending its claims:

True the Vote absolutely supports President-elect Trumps recent comment about the impact of illegal voting, as reflected in the national popular vote. We are still collecting data and will be for several months, but our intent is to publish a comprehensive study on the significant impact of illegal voting in all of its many forms and begin a national discussion on how voters, states, and the Trump Administration can best address this growing problem.

The rumor-debunking website Snopes investigated Phillips claim and concluded that there is no evidence whatsoever to support it. Snopes noted that Phillips had argued that Obamacare opened up the gates for millions of undocumented immigrants to register to vote illegally.

Based on these past statements, it seems likely that Phillips case that three million non-citizens voted in the past election is related to his claim that illegals are registering to vote via Obamacare, wrote David Emery of Snopes. In the absence of supporting data, however, he has really made no case at all. The three million non-citizens figure may just as well have been plucked out of thin air.

Trump himself made similarly unfounded claims about both Obamacare and voter fraud. Maybe some of the dead voters who helped get President Obama elected can be brought back to life after signing up for ObamaCare, he tweeted in 2013.
Land swaps between two countries arent always a peaceful process, as Europe knows all too well after centuries of warfare. But Belgium and the Netherlands decided to defy bloody historical tradition and exchange land without firing a single shot. How cordial.

On Monday, top officials and royalty from the two EU neighbors met to sign a formal swap of territory at their border. It doesnt add up to much new turf  the Netherlands will only acquire about 25 acres from its neighbor, according to DutchNews.nl. But the land-swap will resolve a lot of jurisdictional and legal issues that gave each country small headaches for years.

As part of the agreement, Belgium will give their Dutch neighbors two uninhabited parcels of land, Presquile de Lllal and Presquile dEijsden, which dot the border on the Maas River. The Netherlands will return the favor, giving Belgium a small swath of land called Presquile Petit-Gravier. The Maas river was straightened in 1961, leaving these pieces of land on the wrong side of the border from their respective home countries. They subsequently turned into isolated enclaves of illegality where criminals and drug dealers could thrive, Dutch broadcaster NOS reported; Belgian police could only reach the land by boat and with permission from the Dutch government, giving criminals plenty of getaway time.

Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders and his Dutch counterpart Bert Koenders signed the land-swap treaty on Monday. If both national parliaments approve the treaty, Belgium and the Netherlands can officially redraw their maps in January 2018.

The treaty signing was very cordial. This unique border treaty is an example of our excellent cooperation with the Belgians, Koenders said. We showed today that the Netherlands and Belgium can succeed as good neighbors in adjusting borders in a peaceful way.

This is the second land swap between the neighbors in 175 years. The land swaps before that, like Belgiums bloody 1830 revolution to gain independence from the Netherlands, didnt go as smoothly. Its just nice to know theyve buried old grudges.

Photo credit: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images
I am Kerry Burgess. This is what I think.
Paris (AFP) - Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who a US official said Monday is likely to have been killed in a French air strike, is the notorious commander of a group allied to Al-Qaeda in North Africa.

One of the world's most-wanted men, the Algerian jihadist was dubbed "Mr Marlboro" for his past involvement in trans-Saharan cigarette smuggling and is easily recognisable by his scarred face.

His Al-Murabitoun group claimed responsibility for several major attacks in sub-Saharan Africa, including Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, and is also known for kidnapping Europeans for ransom.

France and its allies have been a prime targets for west African jihadists since French forces intervened in Mali in 2013 to root out Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and other extremist groups from the country's desert north.

- Past deaths denied -

Al-Murabitoun was born in 2013 from the fusion of one of those groups, MUJAO, and Belmokhtar's Al-Qaeda splinter group "Signatories in Blood".

Earlier that year, Belmokhtar's group was blamed for the bloody siege of a remote Algerian gas plant in which at least 38 hostages, mainly Westerners, were killed.

The one-eyed Belmokhtar, who reportedly lost his left eye fighting in Afghanistan in the 1990s, has been reported killed several times in counter-terrorism operations.

Each time the death of the man who took up arms alongside the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) during Algeria's civil war of the 1990s has been denied.

- Al-Qaeda allegiance -

An audio recording attributed to another leading member of Al-Murabitoun pledged allegiance to the Islamic State jihadist group in May 2015.

But Belmokhtar reportedly quickly distanced himself from the declaration, vowing allegiance to IS's jihadist rival Al-Qaeda in what was seen as a sign of a power struggle. Al-Qaeda confirmed the allegiance in December, 2015.

Al-Murabitoun claimed an attack on the luxury Radisson Blu hotel in Mali's capital Bamako in November, 2015, in which 20 people were killed, including 14 foreigners.

Story continues

AQIM said that attack was a joint operation by its forces and those of Al-Murabitoun.

The group was also behind a January 2016 attack on a hotel and restaurant popular with Westerners in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou in which 30, mostly westerners, were killed.

- Belmokhtar in Libya -

Reports that Belmokhtar had arrived in Libya fuelled concern that jihadists would take advantage of the political turmoil there to establish a base of operations.

In July 2016 a confidential UN report said Belmokhtar was able to travel throughout Libya with relative ease.

On Monday the US official said he likely had been killed in a strike there this month, with the support of US intelligence.
Four dances. That's all it could take to kickstart Los Angeles's ballet community, when the L.A. Dance Project takes the stage at the Theatre at Ace Hotel on Dec. 9 and 10, marking the company's first performance since its founder, Benjamin Millepied, returned to Los Angeles after a two-year stretch as the dance director of the Paris Opera Ballet. He and wife Natalie Portman currently are expecting their second child, and Portman is in serious contention for an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy in Jackie.

Millepied, 39, still is getting settled into L.A., having only just come back about five months ago; he puts me on hold at one point during our conversation to direct some movers. When he returns, he describes his time at in Paris as trying. He had friction with the general direction and diversity of the Ballet, as well as the dancers and the press, who accused him of trying to change the Ballet's storied tradition too quickly and too dramatically.

Read more: 'Black Swan' Choreographer Benjamin Millepied Stepping Down as Paris Ballet Dance Director

After all that, Millepied says he couldn't be happier to be back in Los Angeles, running a small company of his own making. "It's a new start," he says, sounding relieved. "It's not just that I'm coming back to L.A. and running a company again, but rather running it with two years of experience now at a large institution. It was decision of, rather than joining an existing organization, building mine with a specific vision and ambition. So this show is really a way to celebrate this new beginning."

Millepied has a history with Los Angeles. While serving as the principal dancer at the New York City Ballet from 2002 through 2011, he also choreographed and appeared as "The Prince" in Darren Aronofsky's 2010 feature Black Swan, starring Portman (who won an Oscar for her work on the film) and Mila Kunis as dancers in New York. While on set, he began a romance with co-star Portman, and the two married in Big Sur in 2012. By that time, Millepied had started the L.A. Dance Project, which he ran from 2011 until taking the job at the Paris Ballet in 2014.

Story continues

"L.A. is the place that inspires me," says Millepied. "It's the place where I feel that things are possible. The environment isn't saturated. The environment is welcoming. And this is the time to do it."

It's not an easy time for the performing arts. An August 2016 study by the National Endowment for the Arts found that millennial audiences (specifically 18- to 24-year-olds) were attending fewer performing arts events than 10 years ago. But Los Angeles, led by Millepied and like-minded creators such as Yuval Sharon (who in 2012 founded experimental opera company The Industry), has proved a dynamic arena for exciting and progressive performances. Millepied collaborated with Sharon on 2014's Invisible Cities opera at Union Station.

Read more: Christie's Fall Preview and L.A. Dance Project Take Over UTA Artist Space

For the L.A. Dance Project's performance at the Ace - Dec. 10 also is the gala fundraiser for the company - Millepied will present his broadminded approach through four dances with a diverse range of ideas. An acclaimed dance by young Israeli choreographer Roy Assaf, "II Acts for the Blind," will kick off the evening, followed by "After the Rain" by legendary English choreographer Christopher Wheeldon. Millepied will then present "Homecoming," which will feature Millepied and New York City Ballet's Janie Taylor dancing to a live performance by Rufus Wainwright from his album Days Are Nights.

"I met him at a dinner in New York, but I love those songs," says Millepied of how he began to work with Wainwright. "I was inspired by them. It's no more than pure dance between two people. I think the songs have a strong quality - almost an old film, Fred Astaire quality. It's rare to have the songs like that feel right for the type of dancing that I do, and these certainly did."

The evening will close with a work called "On the Other Side." Set to music by Philip Glass and performed in front of an artwork by L.A. artist Mark Bradford, the dance will "probably" be the last time Millepied takes to the stage. "I'm planning to close the program with my last piece for the company," he says.

Getty Images

Working with Bradford will add to Millepied's long history of working with fine artists from Olafur Eliasson and Barbara Kruger to Sterling Ruby - and living in L.A. will expand this side of his choreographic practice.

"I love the artists who live here," he says. "There are people like Peter Shire, John Baldessari and Ruby - I just discovered the work of Jason Rhoades. There's an approach to the way conceptual artists develop and create their work in a way that I think will be very interesting to choreographers. It's very inspiring to me to think about these elements that create work that can be more than just dancing to music."

Millipied also hopes to lead the L.A. Dance Project with a philosophy that allows maximum latitude for creators. "One thing that I want to ensure with the company is, you give choreographers and artists more time to collaborate," he says. "Regular dance companies are giving choreographers less and less time to create their work, and I want to bring an environment that is conducive to the creative process. That means more time, that means a little bit of a more laid-back environment. More space. It's very important that [the choreographers in the company] make not just more of the same, but propose new ideas."

L.A. is setting itself up as a new dance capital, he notes, citing the program at the Colburn School, where he serves as artistic adviser, as a top incubator for young dancers. "Just a few days ago Dance Magazine wrote about Colburn program as the best in the West," he says. "[Director] Jenifer Ringer has been giving a lot of time and energy to bring great dancers to be trainers at Colburn."

As for the audience, Millepied says that there is an energetic following for the performing arts in L.A. He expects to feel that energy when he steps out on the stage in December. "I love the audience that we have here," he says. "The hunger for dance. I hope we keep on this momentum. We'll grow our public in the next few years. It's up for grabs; we just have to take it, and I'm certainly committed to it."

Read more: Natalie Portman: Jackie Kennedy Was "Encyclopedic in Her Knowledge of What Was Going On" | Actress Oscar Roundtable
Old-time brands such as Baker's used to be one of the only options for baking with chocolate.

But today, the baking aisle is likely to carry numerous types, from unsweetened to semisweet to white. You also may find high-end products that have cocoa contents of 70 percent or more.

So how do you know which baking chocolate to pick up?

The right type to use in your cooking depends on the recipe. But experts say you can usually skip the most expensive option.

Unless a recipe specifies high-percentage chocolate, stick with chocolate in the 54 to 60 percent cocoa range," says Alice Medrich, author of Seriously Bitter Sweet (Artisan, 2013). "Otherwise youll have to adjust other ingredients."

Heres what else you need to know about baking chocolate to make delicious holiday treats:

Type Description Best for Unsweetened Chocolate Also known as bitter chocolate, it doesn't have sugar, flavorings, or added fat. It's composed only of chocolate liquor (the ground-up nibs) or the roasted and hulled cocoa beans (a paste that is solidified into bars).



Any recipe where you want a strong chocolate flavor, especially brownies and fudge. It also makes tasty hot chocolate. Bittersweet and Semisweet Chocolate Technically, they're the same. And if they have similar percentages of chocolate, they can be used interchangeably in recipes. Both types are made with sugar and at least 35 percent chocolate liquor.



Brownies, cakes, and other baked goodies. They're also good melted into dips, sauces, cake glazes, and hot chocolate. Cocoa Powder Unsweetened chocolate liquor that is processed to remove most of the fat, then ground into cocoa powder. You can buy natural or Dutch-process, which has been treated with alkali to make it darker and less acidic. Brownies, genoise, and chocolate sauce. Natural or Dutch-process cocoa can be used interchangeably as long as the recipe doesn'At call for baking powder or baking soda. Baked goods that call for baking soda require natural cocoa or the batter might not rise.



Milk Chocolate Milk chocolate is made with at least 10 percent chocolate liquor plus at least 12 percent milk solids (including milk, cream, and condensed milk) with added sugar, cocoa butter, and butterfat. Look for 32 to 45 percent cocoa for a more chocolaty flavor.



Snacking. 70-Percent-Plus Cocoa High-percentage chocolates have less sugar and more chocolate liquor (at least 70 percent) which makes the flavor more intense. But higher-percentage chocolate can soak up liquid in a batter, resulting in drier brownies and cakes, grainy mousses, and curdled ganaches.



Snacking and in recipes calling for higher-percentage chocolate. White Chocolate White chocolate has none of the cocoa solids that make up the dark stuff, only the fat. By definition, it's at least 20 percent cocoa butter, 14 percent milk solids, and no more than 55 percent sugar. Vanilla and other ingredients are added. But check the ingredients to be sure you're getting real white chocolate; don't buy anything that has fats other than cocoa butter, such as palm oil, says Maricel Presilla, a chef and the author of "The New Taste of Chocolate," (Ten Speed Press, 2009).



Fruity desserts. Think cranberry and white chocolate chip cookies. Pastry chef Anna Markow of Amali in New York City says the subtle, sweet flavor balances the acidity in fruit. Cocoa Nibs The crunchy pieces are hulled, roasted, and crushed cocoa beans. When ground, the nibs turn into the liquor and butter used to make all forms of chocolate.



Seasoning and baking. They add a sharp chocolaty taste and crunchy texture to baked goodies. They'Are also a great ice cream topper.

Story continues

Melting and Storing Baking Chocolate

For safer melting: Chocolate burns easily, so use a double boiler or improvise by placing a metal bowl over a pot of simmering water. Be careful that water doesnt bubble up into the chocolate during melting. Even a tiny splash can make it gritty and grainy. Break bars into smaller pieces for quick and even melting, and stir until shiny and smooth. The quick and easy way to go: Zap it in the microwave.

Store it right: Keep chocolate in a cool, dry spot; heat and moisture can cause discoloration or affect baking results. You can also double wrap chocolate and store it in the fridge or freezer. Dark chocolate can last for years; milk chocolate and white chocolate should be used within a year because of their milk content. All chocolate can pick up odors, so dont keep it near anything stinky.

If You Don't Have . . .

Swap in . . .

1 ounce of semisweet chocolate

1/2 ounce of unsweetened chocolate plus 1 tablespoon of sugar 1 ounce of milk chocolate 1 ounce of semisweet plus 1 tablespoon of sugar 1 ounce of unsweetened chocolate 3 tablespoons of unsweetened natural cocoa powder (not Dutch-process) plus 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter or vegetable oil 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder 1 ounce of unsweetened chocolate (reduce fat in recipe by 1 tablespoon) 3 tablespoons of Dutch-processed cocoa powder 1 ounce of unsweetened chocolate plus 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda (reduce fat in recipe by 1 tablespoon)





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Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this website. Copyright  2006-2016 Consumers Union of U.S.
By Esha Vaish and Maiya Keidan

(Reuters) - European industrial equipment supplier Loxam SAS has made a takeover approach to rival Lavendon Group (LVD.L), setting the scene for a bid battle for the British firm which has provided aerial work platforms for Harry Potter films.

Shares in Lavendon, which last week received a 348-million-pound bid proposal from Belgian equipment supplier TVH Group, jumped as much as 7.7 percent on Monday to a two-year high of 220 pence.

That is well above TVH's proposal of 205 pence per share in cash, suggesting investors are hopeful of a higher offer.

Loxam said its proposal was also in cash, but did not disclose the value.

Analysts said Loxam had made several acquisitions in recent years and Lavendon would fit well into its portfolio. TVH said last week buying Lavendon would help it expand its specialised equipment rental business.

Although TVH's proposal had by Friday won the backing of investors holding about 16.9 percent of Lavendon shares, the British firm's board had not backed it.

Lavendon, which gets nearly half of its revenue from the construction industry, asked its shareholders last week to take no action on TVH's proposal, citing concerns over execution risk and potential business disruption.

Analysts linked this to a lack of support from M&G, which is Lavendon's largest shareholder with a stake of 18.65 percent, according to a Nov. 22 filing. A spokeswoman at M&G declined to comment.

Panmure Gordon analyst Adrian Kearsey said he expected Lavendon investors to seek around 215 pence to 220 pence a share. The company's house broker Peel Hunt has a target price of 275 pence.

Lavendon on Monday asked shareholders to take no action on Loxam's approach.

Hedge fund firms Sand Grove Capital Management and MVN Asset Management increased their stakes in Lavendon after TVH's bid proposal last week.

($1 = 0.8041 pounds)

(Reporting by Esha Vaish in Bengaluru and Maiya Keidan in London; Editing by Susan Thomas and Mark Potter)
By Huw Jones

LONDON (Reuters) - Regulators should complete work on their new bank capital rules without diluting them, otherwise it would be harder to draw a line under the financial crisis, a global central banking official said on Monday.

Claudio Borio, head of the monetary and economic department at the Bank for International Settlements, a forum for central banks, said the balance sheets of some lenders have still not been wiped clean of bad loans nearly a decade after the financial crisis began.

That crisis prompted world leaders to introduce tougher bank capital requirements, known as Basel III. Regulators will seek to complete Basel III at a meeting of the 28-country Basel Committee, which sets the standard for global regulation, on Monday and Tuesday in Chile.

Chile has been an observer on the Basel Committee since 2014 and the head of its SBIF banking regulatory body Eric Parrado told reporters in Santiago on Monday that he was hopeful a deal would be struck this week.

"The spirit is pretty collaborative," he said. "We are optimistic that in these two days an agreement will be reached."

Remaining elements of Basel III face stiff opposition from European Union policymakers, who are concerned they will bump up capital requirements and crimp lending.

"Prudential authorities should complete the financial reforms without delay, notably Basel III," Borio told a meeting of the EU's European Banking Authority on Monday.

"And in the process, they should not succumb to the pressure to dilute standards and should redouble efforts to repair balance sheets," Borio added.

Despite Borio's pleas, the draft proposals originally aired by Basel are widely expected to be rolled back after field tests showed they would lead to big hikes in capital for some lenders.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney and the EBA both expect the remaining Basel rules to be scaled back significantly in parts.

EU financial services chief Valdis Dombrovskis has threatened to boycott the rules in the bloc if they increase capital requirements significantly. That would jeopardise an international approach to bank capital rules that was reinforced after the financial crisis.

Story continues

Dombrovskis struck a more conciliatory tone on Monday, saying the EU was entering the talks in Chile with a view to reaching a "balanced solution".

Julie Dickson, a senior banking supervisor at the European Central Bank, said in Frankfurt on Monday the Basel Committee had a track record of getting agreement and she was hopeful that would happen this time.

(Additional reporting by Anthony Esposito in Santiago, Marilyn Haigh in Brussels and Andreas Kroener in Frankfurt; Editing by Susan Thomas and Meredith Mazzilli)
Thanksgiving didnt get in the way of Blac Chynas weight loss goals.

Two weeks after the 28-year-old reality star welcomed her first daughter, Dream Renee, with fiance Rob Kardashian, Chyna proudly announced on Saturday that she was down 23 lbs. since giving birth. On Sunday, she headed out with her 4-year-old son King Cairo to visit Santa Claus  and put her shrinking body on display.

Chyna documented getting her son ready to meet Kris Kringle on Snapchat. Sporting a light pink jumpsuit with embellishments around her waist that showed off her curves, she left their home hand-in-hand with King and even added some videos from the ride to the mall.

Once there, the mother-son duo posed for a photo with Santa.

@Kingy and I have been Nice all year not Naughty at all! Chyna captioned the photo.

The model then stepped into a light-up booth and confirmed her claims and judged her nice for the year.

Told yall, she said.

Despite looking forward to gaining weight during her pregnancy, Chyna is well on her way to achieving her weight loss goals. Shes been openly updating fans on her numbers, including a post on Saturday sharing she had dumped 23 lbs. so far and was 39 lbs. away from her ideal weight.

During her pregnancy she charted her weight, telling fans she wanted to gain 100 lbs. and then snap back into shape.




The Black Lives Matter movement mourned the death of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro in a statement Sunday, saying they were similarly on a revolution to create a world of freedom and peace. The statement hailed the authoritarian dictator and staunch U.S. adversary who ruled Cuba for almost 50 years as an ideal revolutionary leader because of his insistence that healthy food, clean water, healthcare, paid vacations and education were all requirements of any humane society, while the freedom of oppressed people remained prevalent in the U.S. among people of color in places like North Dakota.

As Fidel ascends to the realm of the ancestors, we summon his guidance, strength, and power as we recommit ourselves to the struggle for universal freedom. Fidel Vive! the statement said.

Titled Lessons from Fidel: Black Lives Matter and the Transition of El Comandante, the statement said group members were indebted to the Cuban revolutionary leader for providing a space where the traditional spiritual work of African people could flourish. The Black Lives Matter movement cited Castro providing resources to the desperate people of Haiti after an earthquake in 2010 left more than 300,000 dead, and his attempting to support the black people of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, while the U.S. government left us to die on rooftops and in floodwaters, as examples of Castros dedication toward the plight of black individuals.

Although no leader is without their flaws, we must push back against the rhetoric of the right and come to the defense of El Comandante, read the statement.

The U.S. government allotted more than $1 billion in resources aimed at either killing or removing Castro from power in Cuba, according to Al Jazeera. Castro, who's socialist initiatives were responsible for thousands of Cubans fleeing the island nation, thwarted all such attempts throughout the terms of 10 U.S. presidents before his old age and a serious illness forced him to abdicate his power to his brother, Raul Castro, in 2006, the Miami Herald reported.

Story continues

Members of the Black Lives Matter movement thanked Castro for harboring activists in Cuba like Assata Shakur, a former Black Panther convicted of killing a police officer in New Jersey in 1973. After escaping prison in 1979, Shakur was granted political asylum from Castro and is currently living in Havana, Cuba, on the FBIs Most Wanted List with a $1 million bounty on her head. The statement also thanked Castro for providing safe haven for Michael Finney, Ralph Goodwin and Charles Hill, who were all members of the Republic of New Afrika, a militant group that attempted to convert the southern U.S. states of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina into a detached nation solely for African Americans.

Roughly 40 percent of Americans said they supported the Black Lives Matter movement, while about 30 percent of those who were familiar with the group said they didnt understand its goals, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted between Feb. 29 and May 8.

The movement, which was created in 2013, burst into the national spotlight amid the shooting the 2014 police shooting of Michael Brown. About 59 percent of black Americans think that Black Lives Matter can ultimately be effective in bringing racial equality, while only 31 percent of those with a bachelors degree believe the movement will inspire inspire change.

A petition that was created in July asking the White House to formally recognize Black Lives Matter as a terrorist organization has received 141,444 signatures.

Related Articles
By Trevor Hunnicutt

NEW YORK, Nov 28 (Reuters) - A top bond investor for BlackRock Inc, the world's largest asset manager, is bargain-hunting in Europe as investors fret over a coming vote that may shake Italy's government.

Rick Rieder, BlackRock's chief investment officer of global fixed income, said on Monday that he has been scaling up exposure to European banks and other financial stocks that have been beaten up by jittery markets.

A Dec. 4 Italian constitutional referendum has rattled investors, who worry the result could unseat Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's government and stoke a banking crisis.

"Some of the banks and financials in broader Europe have traded at cheaper levels because of the 'risk'," Rieder told Reuters. "We have definitely added some banks and financials because we think they've gotten reasonable."

He also said he is still holding exposure to Italian government debt, too, though at lower levels than in the past.

Italian banking stocks have lost more than half their value over the last year and they fell 3.9 percent on Monday, while Italian government bonds underperformed a wider rally in fixed income.

A JPMorgan Chase & Co research report distributed on Monday predicted Italian sovereign debt will continue to underperform in the next several days but recommended buying the bonds "right before the vote."

The bank's report also said Italian banks could have a "knee-jerk sell-off" if the referendum fails but added the shares already reflected "a lot of negativity."

BlackRock's Rieder said he is conservatively positioned given the risks, but added fears over the stability of European banks may have gone too far.

"We think that is somewhat overstated," he said. "It's making a series of assumptions. One is that Renzi resigns. Two is that you're giving up on any plans to help stabilize the banking system. And both of those are big assumptions."

BlackRock, which manages more than $5.1 trillion in assets, warned earlier on Monday that a widely forecast "No" vote in the referendum on proposed changes to the country's constitution could nonetheless delay "fixes to the country's sick banking system." (Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Sandra Maler)
By Tim Hepher and Alwyn Scott

GENEVA/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) expressed confidence on Monday that a World Trade Organization ruling against a Washington state tax break for its 777X jetliner would be overturned on appeal, claiming to have the upper hand in the latest round of a long trade dispute placing it at odds with European rival Airbus (AIR.PA).

The WTO ruled that a preferential rate on its main aerospace business tax, which was tied to a decision to produce the new aircraft within the state, was a prohibited subsidy and should be withdrawn within 90 days. However, it rejected a similar EU complaint levelled against six other measures.

"In total, the EU claimed that Boeing had received $8.7 billion in subsidies. This claim was rejected by the WTO, which found future incentives totalling no more than $50 million a year to be impermissible," Boeing said in a statement.

"The WTO found that to date Boeing has received no benefit from the 777X (tax) rate incentive and will not until 2020, because the first airplane will not be delivered until then."

Both sides have the right to appeal against the ruling. The U.S. Trade Representative said it was reviewing the report together with officials from Washington state.

"After any appeal we fully expect Boeing to preserve every aspect of the Washington state incentives, including the 777X revenue tax rate," Michael Luttig, Boeings general counsel, said in the company's statement.

Boeing's external legal adviser on the trade dispute, Robert Novick, co-managing partner of law firm WilmerHale and a former U.S. trade official, said the WTO appellate body had a record of reversing prohibited subsidy findings.

Explaining its decision, the WTO said Washington lawmakers agreed in 2013 to extend and amend existing tax breaks, delaying their expiry from 2024 to 2040, on condition that "a manufacturer" took a decision to place a "significant commercial airplane manufacturing program" there, and then kept it there.

Story continues

Europe had argued this could only mean Boeing's 777X.

A WTO panel agreed that this effectively made the aid contingent on placing 777X production including the aircraft's massive wings in Washington state, but Boeing said any aerospace firm could qualify for the state tax breaks.

Boeing estimated the banned aid at $50 million a year in tax savings, starting when the first 777X jet is delivered in 2020.

"$1 billion over 20 years is not enough to distort the market," Boeing spokesman Tim Neale said.

The EU Commission estimated the total prohibited aid at $5.7 billion as Airbus called for a new global pact on industry aid.

(Editing by Bate Felix, Greg Mahlich)
Montreal (AFP) - Canadian manufacturer Bombardier announced Monday the delivery of its first CS300, purchased by Latvian carrier Air Baltic which plans to start flying the jetliner on December 14.

It marks the company's move from development into commercialization of the new aircraft.

Able to carry up to 160 passengers, the CS300 is the longest of Bombardier's CSeries jetliners, which were designed to compete with the workhorses of the aviation market, the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737.

The first off the assembly line, the smaller CS100, was delivered to Lufthansa in July.

Air Baltic said it plans to put the first 20 CS300 jetliners it has ordered into service flying between Riga and Amsterdam.

The CSeries is Bombardier's first foray outside business and regional passenger aircraft into the category of medium-range jets, which also promise reduced fuel costs and emissions.

Its Can$5.4 billion development, however, has been plagued with delays and cost overruns.

Delays in the delivery of Pratt & Whitney engines for the CSeries caused the latest hiccups, resulting in Bombardier delivering only seven instead of 15 aircrafts this year.
John F. Kennedy hobnobbed with plenty of superstars during his presidency, but perhaps one of his most famous friendships was with Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack. In the new book JFK and the Masculine Mystique: Sex and Power on the New Frontier, author Steven Watts takes a closer look at this relationship, and how the two men influenced ideas of masculinity in the Camelot era.

On the night before his inauguration, Kennedy took a moment to thank Sinatra for his work on his campaign, particularly for spearheading the nights concert that featured big names like Ella Fitzgerald, Gene Kelly and Nat King Cole. Sinatra was said to have organized the show and even bought out Broadway theaters that night so performers could make their way to the stage in D.C. He performed himself  renditions of That Old Black Magic and You Make Me Feel So Young  and when he was in the audience, he sat in the presidential box, right next to Kennedys wife, Jacqueline.

Were indebted to a great friend  Frank Sinatra, Kennedy said. You cannot imagine the work he has done to make this show a success.

Clearly, the incoming president had a great deal of respect for Ol Blue Eyes  and that adoration went both ways.

For starters, both had tons of power in their own rights, but lusted after the sort of influence the other held.

There was a joke at the time that ended up having a lot of truth to it, that in a way, Kennedy wanted to be Sinatra and Sinatra wanted to be Kennedy, Watts says.

According to Watts, for Sinatra, that was the public approval and respect that Kennedy had earned in Washington, while Kennedy longed for the glitz and glamour of Sinatras life in Hollywood. The two also bonded over the pursuit of women, Watts wrote.

It was Sinatra who introduced Kennedy to Marilyn Monroe, among other celebrities, after Kennedy attended the Sands shows in Las Vegas in 1960 on a campaign break. According to Watts, it was after this introduction that Kennedy and Monroe began their relationship, even spending a night together during the Democratic National Convention. The morning after said night, Monroe was making knowing comments about the time she had just spent with the nominee of the party, Watts shares, adding, Kennedy was everything the Rat Pack envisioned themselves to be, and vice versa.

Story continues

Sinatra would invite Kennedy to his shows in Las Vegas, bringing him on stage and then back to their hotel suites for post-concert parties. On the campaign trail, Kennedy extended a stop in California so he could spend two nights at Sinatras Palm Springs home. For Sinatra especially, the respect an association with Kennedy could provide was unmatched.

Sinatra took the bait hard, the book reads. Helping Kennedy succeed would provide a kind of legitimacy that even Hollywood could never bestow.

He also liked to boast about his association with Kennedy, Watts says, even going as far to label the room in his house where Kennedy had slept with a sign that read JFK Slept Here.

At the 1960 Democratic Convention, fittingly held in Los Angeles, the Rat Pack morphed into the Jack Pack. The night Kennedy was nominated, Sinatra was watching nearby at the Marion Davies mansion in Beverly Hills, alongside Joe and Bobby Kennedy and brother-in-law Peter Lawford.

When Kennedys nomination was announced, Watts writes that Sinatra was exuberant. He said: Were on our way to the White House!

However, their friendship wasnt built to last. After Kennedy had been in the White House for about a year-and-a-half, their warm relations started to fizzle. Sinatras rumored connections to the mob led those in the White House to start to view him as a political liability, Watts says. Bobby Kennedy, in particular, started to discourage the relationship. Kennedy began to distance himself from Sinatra, and things came to a head after Kennedy decided to stay with Bing Crosby, rather than Sinatra, during a visit to Palm Springs in 1962. This last-minute change came after Sinatra had spent a significant sum in preparation for Kennedys visit, creating a helicopter landing pad and accommodations for the Secret Service, according to Watts.

Though things turned sour between the two, that didnt stop Sinatras heartbreak at Kennedys assassination: He reportedly cried for days after his death, according to his daughter Nancy.

By 1970, Sinatra had swung to the right and was endorsing Ronald Reagan for governor of California.

JFK and the Masculine Mystique: Sex and Power on the New Frontier is available now.




By Marcelo Teixeira

SAO PAULO, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Brazil's new-crop cocoa production is poised for a recovery after a steep fall in the previous season due to drought, according to estimates from an analyst and the main local industry association.

The recovery will lead local processors next year to pare back the large volume of imports that they booked this year to supply the local industry.

According to the AIPC, the association which represents cocoa processors in the country such as Olam, Cargill and Barry Callebaut, Brazil should produce around 200,000 tonnes of cocoa almonds in 2016/17 (Oct-Sept) compared to 150,000 tonnes in the previous season.

Broker and consultancy INTL FCStone sees the new crop at 211,000 tonnes versus 140,000 tonnes previously.

Brazilian cocoa producers usually harvest a first crop from November to February and then a second crop from April to August, although younger plants produce the whole year.

Brazil's cocoa industry has an installed capacity to process 275,000 tonnes, among the five largest processing centers in the world, but usually grinds around 240,000 tonnes.

"Imports for this year are all booked, at around 80,000 tonnes, all from Ghana," AIPC executive director Eduardo Bastos said. The industry should reduce that volume by half next year, according to him.

But Bastos and the local processors would like to see a much larger output.

Brazil was once the world's largest producer, with a peak of 435,000 tonnes in the 1985/86 crop. But the spread of the devastating Witches' Broom fungus killed thousands of trees and reduced average production to below 150,000 in 2000.

Industry and government officials, along with farmers' associations, discussed a plan this week in Brasilia to increase cocoa output to 300,000 tonnes in five years and to 400,000 tonnes in 10 years.

"There is a market rationale behind the plan. We expect a global consumption of 5 million tonnes by 2020. So, we will need 700,000 tonnes more. Someone will have to produce that and Brazil could help," said Bastos.

Story continues

Expansion would take place mostly in Bahia and in the Amazon state of Para, where cocoa trees are seen as a way to help restore deforested land.

INTL FCStone cocoa analyst Fabio Rezende, however, said it would be difficult for Brazil to resume its past status of large exporter. Despite the plans by the industry and the government, he does not see much response from farmers.

"We see a much more vigorous expansion in other countries in the region, particularly Ecuador and Peru," he said.

(Additional reporting by Roberto Samora; Editing by Reese Ewing and Chizu Nomiyama)
London (AFP) - Poland's prime minister called Monday for a Brexit "compromise" and said Europeans in Britain and Britons in Europe should not be "made to feel like hostages" as she kicked off a landmark trip to London.

Britain's shock vote in June to leave the European Union sparked fear among the 800,000 Poles living in Britain, particularly following a spate of xenophobic attacks after the referendum.

Prime Minister Beata Szydlo pledged Poland would be a "constructive partner" in potentially fraught divorce negotiations, but said London had to set out a clear vision when formal talks begin by the end of March.

"We need a good compromise which gives both our countries the best possible options for economic and security cooperation," she wrote in The Daily Telegraph newspaper.

"But the initiative for determining British ambitions and expectations as to the future level of cooperation with the EU has to come from London."

In an article published ahead of talks with Prime Minister Theresa May in Downing Street, Szydlo pressed Britain not to use migrants like her UK-based compatriots as a bargaining chip in the negotiations.

"One thing is certain: millions of UK citizens living across the EU, and millions of EU-27 citizens living in the United Kingdom, should not be made to feel like hostages," she wrote.

"That means we have to guarantee... their right of residence."

- Call for calm -

Szydlo and her defence, interior, finance and foreign ministers attended an inaugural British-Polish summit on Monday, which included a reception for members of the Polish community in Britain.

They discussed a range of issues, including the deployment of 150 British soldiers to northeastern Poland, and Russian action in Ukraine and Syria.

In a joint press conference afterwards, Szydlo said she understood why May could not guarantee the rights of Europeans living in Britain until similar assurances were extended to Britons across the EU.

Story continues

While stressing that the issue was a priority for Poland after Brexit, she said: "Of course, these guarantees would need to be reciprocal."

With Poles representing one of the largest minority groups in the UK, Poland has taken a cautious approach to Brexit and last week President Andrzej Duda urged politicians to tone down their rhetoric.

"I propose a glass of cold water to cool emotions, so that in the end it doesn't turn out that we all lose -- both the EU and the UK," Duda told Bloomberg.

Both May and Szydlo stressed their warm relations during Monday's summit.

"I firmly believe that if we all approach Brexit in the same constructive and positive manner, then we can secure the right outcome for the United Kingdom and for our European neighbours too," May said.

Poland's foreign and interior ministers flew to London in September following the murder of a Polish factory worker in Harlow, northeast of London.

The June 23 referendum on EU membership was followed by a spike in the number of attacks against foreigners and two Polish police officers were deployed in Harlow following their compatriot's murder.
Exploring British Columbia's Vancouver

By 2019, its estimated there will be 182,000 job openings in Canadas tech sectorand no Canadians to fill them. Better-known for maple syrup, snow-capped mountains, and head-of-state heartthrob Justin Trudeau, Canada is also home to a vibrant tech sector that is crying out for workers. And Donald Trumps unlikely presidency may already be helping Canadian tech firms fill those spots.

On the night of Nov. 8, as many Americans realized that Trump was going to be elected president of the United States of America, a flood of hundreds of thousands of visitors crashed Canadas immigration website. People were presumably looking for ways to relocate to Canada and escape whatever Trump has in store for the four years ahead.

But in fact, Americans accounted for just half of the surge in visits to the immigration websitevisitors from other parts of the world made up the other half. But why?

Options for foreign workers looking to emigrate are narrowing. Junes Brexit decision in Britain was based in on a desire to tighten the UKs border and restrict its flow of immigrants. Indeed, the future of the European Union, the worlds largest trade zone, is in question as anti-immigrant, right-wing parties in the Netherlands and in France seem poised for victory in 2017. In the US, on top of vowing to build a wall with Mexico and deport immigrants, Trump has promised to clamp down on the H-1B visas that bring 85,000 skilled international workers into America each year.

Meanwhile, across Canada, 71,000 tech companies are responsible for over 7% of Canadas economic output and 5.6% of Canadas total employment. Meanwhile, across Canada, 71,000 tech companies are responsible for over 7% of Canadas economic output and 5.6% of Canadas total employment: Technology now typically employs more people than mining, oil and gas, and forestry sectors combined. Canada, with its reputation for tolerance and openness to diversity and immigration, has been called one of the worlds last safe harbors. Add an almost unlimited demand for skilled workers across the country, and its easy to see why Canada could become the next hub for the globe-trotting workforce.

Story continues

Donald Trump has definitely been a topic of conversation here in Seattle, says Dan Gunn, chief executive officer of VIATEC, a Canada-based community organization and 16,000 square-foot technology accelerator. In the days following the US election, Gunn was spending time in Seattle for Startup Week. There are questions about what Trump means for tech and for tech workers in the States. Highly skilled workers from around the world, particularly visible or religious minorities who had their sights set on moving to the US, might look to Canada for opportunities instead.

As head of VIATEC, Gunn helped build a thriving technology sector in Victoriaa small Canadian city of about 350,000 people located on an island just to the north of Seattle. Once known mainly as a sleepy government town and destination for retirees and tourists, Victoria is now home to a thriving tech scene that has attracted everyone from global giants like Amazon and Schneider Electric to game developers such as Kixeye and a Change.org satellite office.

Just like the rest of the Canadian technology sector, Victorianicknamed Tectoriahas plenty of job openings. Canada is growing, a thriving innovation sector, and advanced technology has become the number-one industry in Victoria, Gunn says. Nearly 900 companies employ over 23,000 people here. And theyre always hiring.

Across Canada, the need for workers is currently so great that a number of employers and industry organizations have banded together with the Canadian government to launch Go North Canada. The initiative is an attempt first and foremost to lure some of the more than 350,000 Canadians who work in Silicon Valley (as well as Canadians in other parts of the US) back home.

Canadian companies are currently looking to fill three different kinds, of roles: technical talent, experienced sales and marketing talent, and people in leadership roles who have experience scaling up companies, says Heather Galt, vice president for human resources at Communitech, an Ontario technology-startup hub, who is helping promote the Go North Campaign across Canada. Galt says that Canada can often offer a better quality of life compared to working in the US: It has better schools, lower commute times, and a stunning natural environment.

The Trudeau government has also announced a new strategy to make it easier for companies to recruit foreign tech talent. Compared to the H-1B visa process in the US, which can take about six months to set up, it normally takes nine months or more for foreign tech workers to receive a Canadian work visa.

Dealing with red tape is the number-one obstacle to bringing foreign talent to Canada, says Noah Warder. Warder leads operations at Sendwithus, a Victoria-based startup that builds tools for email marketing. Its much easier to bring Canadians north of the border, he says.

While its still too early to determine whether or not Justin Trudeaus new immigration strategy will make it easier to recruit foreign workers, the prospect of Canadas attractive tech scenenot to mention its equally attractive outdoor wonderlandshould give many foreign workers something to dream about.

You can follow Nevin on Twitter at @Nevin_Thompson. Learn how to write for Quartz Ideas. We welcome your comments at ideas@qz.com.

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In the weeks following the election of Donald Trump, white nationalists who feel emboldened by the results have used a favorite word, cuck, to insult political figures and opponents they deem as weak and ineffectual in the political realm.

For those unfamiliar with the term, here are a few important points on the origin and backstory of the insult.

The Dictionary Approach

First things first, cuck is not a word recognized in dictionaries. The term is a shortened take of cuckold which is defined as a man whose wife is unfaithful. The implicit message there, then, is that anyone called a cuck is someone perceived as emasculated.

Roots In Racism

Many have noted that the use of the word also has a racist background that fits well in the world of alt-right white nationalist vernacular. While "cuck" has been around since the 13th century, the term has gained some relatively new cultural importance through pornography. Cuckold pornography is a variety in which a poorly endowed white man watches his wife have sex with another man (and frequently this other man is a black man), according to Urban Dictionary.

2016

Which now brings us this years election, when the word was used freely and has been combined with the word conservative to create cuckservative to take down conservative politicians. The alt-right and white nationalists who favor protecting American white dominance have employed the term to attack politicians like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who they viewed as a weak and effeminate leader. While political leaders like Bush are willing to apologize for offensive language, others like Trump are not and will double down on offensive remarks, if necessary. To them, the masculinity displayed by Trump is exactly what is needed to harken America back to a time when whites were more expressly dominant and were not threatened in the political sphere by growing minority groups.

Related Articles
Quito (AFP) - British police have received a genetic sample from Wikileaks founder Julian Assange for Swedish prosecutors to use in their rape investigation against him, an official said Monday.

British authorities took the sample from Assange in Ecuador's London embassy where he is taking refuge, the South American country's chief prosecutor Galo Chiriboga said.

Assange, 45, has been in the embassy since 2012 to avoid being sent to Sweden where he faces the rape allegations, which he denies.

He fears Sweden would extradite him to the United States to answer for the leaking of diplomatic cables by his whistleblowing website, which embarrassed Washington.

An Ecuadoran state attorney questioned Assange at the embassy on November 14 on behalf of a Swedish prosecutor who was also present.

On that occasion, "Mr. Assange presented a document stating that he had already handed over the DNA sample to the British police," Chiriboga told reporters in the Ecuadoran capital Quito.

"Therefore Sweden will now have to request that DNA sample from the British police."

He said Ecuadoran prosecutors would send the official transcript of Assange's evidence from the November 14 hearing to Swedish authorities "in mid-December."
Lyle Denniston, Constitution Dailys Supreme Court correspondent, looks at an upcoming historic constitutional moment for the British legal system: the United Kingdom Supreme Court decision on Brexit.

Protests against Brexit In London

Americans with an interest in constitutional history might sense some similarity in what is unfolding now in the mother country. Britain, going through the Brexit process (ending its membership in the European Union), is making some new constitutional history. It is having what might be called its own Marbury v. Madison moment.

Recall that, in 1803 in the Marbury case, the U.S. Supreme Court set itself up as the ultimate interpreter of the American Constitution, declaring that it is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. And, in that phrase, law meant binding constitutional law.

For centuries, the final arbiter of what is constitutionally allowed or forbidden in the United Kingdom was the House of Lords, the upper chamber of the national Parliament. The Lords Appellate Committee was the final appeals court, the equivalent of a supreme court at the top of the judiciary. (Britain, unlike the U.S., does not have a single written constitution. But it does have what it calls a constitution, which is made up of an amalgam of legal sources and traditions, the most significant being cases that set binding precedents.)

Seven years ago, Britain transferred the House of Lords judicial authority to a new Supreme Court for the United Kingdom. That tribunal, with 11 justices, is steadily making its way toward being a strongly independent referee between the Crown and Parliament.

Even a passing knowledge of English history is a reminder that kings and queens  that is, the Crown  have jousted with Parliament for governing supremacy since at least the 1600s. The Crown remains a sovereign power, but actual sovereign authority is shared with Parliament. The British today speak of ultimate sovereignty residing in the Queen in Parliament.

Story continues

Kings and queens, before they were challenged by Parliament, had final legal power through what has been known as the royal prerogative. The Crown, in other words, was the very embodiment of law.

But, in one of the most famous episodes in English constitutional history, Sir Edward Coke, the Chief Justice, boldly told King James I in 1610 that the Crown did not have the authority to override or annul a law enacted by Parliament.

That very episode is now being cited as a specific constitutional precedent in one of the most significant tests yet for Britains young Supreme Court. That will be on display, starting a week from Monday, when all 11 justices assemble to begin what are expected to be four days of hearings.

The case before them is formally titled Miller & Dos Santos v. Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union. It is popularly known as the Article 50 (Brexit) Case.

This, too, is a constitutional dispute between the Crowns remaining royal prerogative and the power of Parliament. Queen Elizabeth, of course, is the embodiment of the Crown, but her prerogative power in the British government is exercised on her behalf by her first ministerthat is, the Prime Minister, currently, the Conservative Partys Theresa May.

The core issue in the Brexit case is disarmingly simple: Does the Prime Minister, exercising the royal prerogative in the field of foreign relations, or does Parliament, using its power to change domestic legislation, have the authority to take the specific step that will trigger Britains exit from the European Union, to carry out the British peoples purely non-binding referendum vote in June to leave? (Technically, the issue is who can invoke Article 50 of the basic European Union treaty, which is the only door through which a Union member country can withdraw, by setting in motion a two-year exiting process.)

The current constitutional battle began early this month. In a ruling on November 3, Britains High Court  the tribunal just below the UK Supreme Court  sided with Parliament, declaring its paramount authority over British law in the domestic sphere. The ruling, citing the 1610 episode involving Sir Edward Coke and King James I among a multitude of other authorities and precedents, found that allowing the Prime Minister to use the Queens prerogative to trigger Britains exit from the EU would infringe on Parliaments legislative supremacy.

Heres why, according to the ruling: by joining the EU, with Parliaments approval under a 1972 law, Britain became bound to obey the terms of a series of EU treaties that required Britain to make its own laws conform to the demands of EU provisions imposing legal duties and creating a series of legal rights. (A prime example of a legal right was the option to travel freely across the borders of all EU countries. In fact, the Article 50 lawsuit was filed by two individual Britons to protest the potential loss of such legal rights as a result of Brexit.)

But with the withdrawal from the EU, those provisions and the duties and rights they created would cease to exist for the British people. That, the High Court concluded, would mean that the Prime Minister had been empowered to scuttle all of the EU provisions, and that would amount  as a constitutional matter  to overriding domestic law to which Parliament had given its consent. Thus, the three-judge panel decided, only Parliament could take the step of initiating Brexit. It could do so under its supreme legislative authority  superior to the Crown prerogative.

That is the ruling that the government of Prime Minister May has now appealed to the UK Supreme Court, setting the stage for next weeks hearings, leading to what is surely going to be a historic decision.

The Prime Minister has reportedly drawn up a simple, three-line legislative bill that she and her aides believe would be sufficient to deal with the court ruling, if that ruling were to be upheld by the UK Supreme Court.

However, the Supreme Courts Vice President, Lady Brenda Hale, gave a lecture on constitutional principles in Malaysia six days after the High Court ruling, and suggested that it might take a major overhaul of the 1972 law that Parliament had passed to authorize EU entry in order to satisfy constitutional norms. Those remarks have stirred a secondary controversy in Britain, focusing on how much disruption the Article 50 case may bring about as the branches of the national government sort out what they can do about Brexit.

One clear winner, even at this point, though, is the British judiciary. Even if the UK Supreme Court were to overturn the High Courts decision, the judges clearly have become major players in the UK constitutional drama.

Legendary journalist Lyle Denniston is Constitution Dailys Supreme Court correspondent. Denniston has written for us as a contributor since June 2011 and he has covered the Supreme Court since 1958. His work also appears on lyldenlawnews.com.

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LONDON (Reuters) - Britain and Poland are keen to come to a reciprocal agreement over the future of their citizens following Britain's exit from the European Union, Prime Minister Theresa May's spokeswoman said on Monday. May will meet her Polish counterpart in London on Monday, with one of the main issues of discussion likely to be the future of the more than 800,000 Poles living in Britain. "As we leave the EU there will be a whole range of issues to address and settle, and clearly access to welfare system will be one of those issues that needs to be looked at," she told reporters. "I think what you do see from the prime minister and the Polish prime minister is a desire to provide reciprocity to British citizens and Polish citizens and other citizens in Europe," she said, adding that both sides were "keen to provide certainty for people". (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper, Editing by Kylie MacLellan)
By Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May discussed defence, security and trade with Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo on Monday as Britain looks to strengthen ties with a key ally before it leaves the European Union. The summit, attended by several senior ministers from both countries, focussed on the bilateral relationship rather than Brexit negotiations but May also updated her Polish counterpart on Britain's preparations. "The UK and Poland have been close allies in the EU and we plan to be even closer allies once the UK has left," May told a news conference following the meeting. May, who plans to kick off two years of divorce talks with the EU before the end of March, said Britain had made significant progress on preparing for those negotiations since her last meeting with Szydlo in July. She reiterated her plan to guarantee the post-Brexit rights of the 3 million EU nationals in Britain, as long as the 1 million Britons living in the EU are given the same treatment, and said she hoped an early agreement could be reached on this. There were an estimated 831,000 Poles in 2015, an increase of 750,000 on the number in 2004, according to Britain's Office for National Statistics, and there has been a spate of xenophobic attacks on them since Britain's June Brexit vote. Szydlo said the rights of its citizens living in Britain was Poland's top priority for Brexit, but discussions on this would take place after the formal exit process has begun. "Together we have to reach in negotiations solutions that will be most beneficial, and most of all acceptable, for both EU citizens ... as well as for British citizens. These negotiations will be held between the EU and Britain," Szydlo said. Poland joined the European Union in 2004 and has been one of Britain's closest allies in calling for reform of the bloc. Szydlo's government has seen Britain as a focus of its foreign policy in the EU since it came to power last year, in contrast to the previous centrist cabinet's emphasis on Germany. "The United Kingdom is a strategic partner for Poland and I deeply believe that we will deepen our relations in the coming months and years," she told the news conference. May said as part of its Brexit negotiations, Britain would have to look at justice and home affairs arrangements it had entered into as part of its membership of the EU, such as European policing agency Europol. The two leaders also discussed their commitment to NATO, and May said Britain would deploy 150 troops and several armoured vehicles to north east Poland in April next year to deter Russian aggression by helping secure NATO's eastern flank. "We have agreed to work towards the first UK-Poland bilateral defence treaty and to strengthen ties between our defence industries," she added. (Additional reporting by Paul Sandle, Michael Holden, Elizabeth Piper, William James and Marcin Goettig, Editing by Stephen Addison and Pritha Sarkar)
By Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May discussed defense, security and trade with Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo on Monday as Britain looks to strengthen ties with a key ally before it leaves the European Union. The summit, attended by several senior ministers from both countries, focused on the bilateral relationship rather than Brexit negotiations but May also updated her Polish counterpart on Britain's preparations. "The UK and Poland have been close allies in the EU and we plan to be even closer allies once the UK has left," May told a news conference following the meeting. May, who plans to kick off two years of divorce talks with the EU before the end of March, said Britain had made significant progress on preparing for those negotiations since her last meeting with Szydlo in July. She reiterated her plan to guarantee the post-tertiary rights of the 3 million EU nationals in Britain, as long as the 1 million Britons living in the EU are given the same treatment, and said she hoped an early agreement could be reached on this. There were an estimated 831,000 Poles in 2015, an increase of 750,000 on the number in 2004, according to Britain's Office for National Statistics, and there has been a spate of xenophobic attacks on them since Britain's June Brexit vote. Szydlo said the rights of its citizens living in Britain was Poland's top priority for Brexit, but discussions on this would take place after the formal exit process has begun. "Together we have to reach in negotiations solutions that will be most beneficial, and most of all acceptable, for both EU citizens ... as well as for British citizens. These negotiations will be held between the EU and Britain," Szydlo said. Poland joined the European Union in 2004 and has been one of Britain's closest allies in calling for reform of the bloc. Szydlo's government has seen Britain as a focus of its foreign policy in the EU since it came to power last year, in contrast to the previous centrist cabinet's emphasis on Germany. "The United Kingdom is a strategic partner for Poland and I deeply believe that we will deepen our relations in the coming months and years," she told the news conference. May said as part of its Brexit negotiations, Britain would have to look at justice and home affairs arrangements it had entered into as part of its membership of the EU, such as European policing agency Europol. The two leaders also discussed their commitment to NATO, and May said Britain would deploy 150 troops and several armored vehicles to north east Poland in April next year to deter Russian aggression by helping secure NATO's eastern flank. "We have agreed to work towards the first UK-Poland bilateral defense treaty and to strengthen ties between our defense industries," she added. (Additional reporting by Paul Sandle, Michael Holden, Elizabeth Piper, William James and Marcin Goettig, Editing by Stephen Addison and Pritha Sarkar)
The Chiefs will likely surpass the Broncos in the AFC West

The Denver Broncos were one play away  like three times  from moving into second place in the AFC West. The Denver Broncos were one scoring play away (twice,) from beating the Kansas City Chiefs and moving into second place for the AFC West title.

The Denver Broncos were a smart Gary Kubiak decision away from probably winning on Sunday night. But they didnt  and now they have to live with the consequences: Out of the playoffs as the Miami Dolphins happily leap into the sixth seed. The Broncos defense didnt come through when Trevor Siemian finally showed up against one of the NFLs top secondaries. What a shame.

So now, the Broncos prepare for a grueling schedule: They visit the 2-9 Jacksonville Jaguars next week. Then they visit the surprising Tennessee Titans. A home game against the New England Patriots will then come into place  followed by a road game against Kansas City and a home game against Oakland in Week 17.

Can the Broncos win out? Yes. Will they? Probably not. You have to think theyll go 3-2 or 4-1 at best, and that yet may not be enough to get them into the playoffs.

To think Brock Osweiler is enjoying his $72 million contract and laughing at his old team. Hes part of that Super Bowl 50 winning team, and his Houston Texans are probably going to the playoffs.

In the NFL, you cant win every game. You cant win the Super Bowl every year. But when you have this much talent, you have to at least make the playoffs.

At this point, Broncos fans should eliminate the Super Bowl or bust, label and actually hope this team can make the playoffs. Right now, the Miami Dolphins look like they want it more.

The post Broncos face big challenge after crushing loss to Chiefs appeared first on Cover32.
- By Jonathan Poland





Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio) on airlines at the start of the century:









"If a capitalist had been present at Kitty Hawk back in the early 1900s, he should have shot Orville Wright. The airline business has been extraordinary. It has eaten up capital over the past century like almost no other business."







Yet, Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A)(NYSE:BRK.B) made three very interesting airline stock purchases, as disclosed in a recent 13F filing.

The company bought 21,770,555 shares of American Airlines (AAL) at $36.61 for a total investment of more than $797 million. It bought 6,333,923 shares of Delta Airlines (DAL) at $39.36 for a total investment of $249.3 million. In addition, it bought 4,533,013 shares at $52.47 of United Continental (UAL) for a total investment of $237.8 million. Added up, Berkshire Hathaway invested north of $1.3 billion in the leading airline companies that have a collective market capitalization of $82.6 billion, or less than 1.0% of the total portfolio.

All in all, this is a very small investment for the company, both from an assets under management standpoint and from an industry specific one. It is not as though Buffett's team of money managers are going all in on airlines, but it raises the question as to why buy at all? Surely it is not to get the annual reports or a proxy vote. Rather, it is to make money.

From a numbers standpoint, it makes no sense at all. Why not just buy the S&P 500 index funds Buffett has touted for years to individual investors? For Berkshire to see a similar rise in the market value of these three airlines, they would have to grow substantially and considering the recent numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Transportation, I do not think it is possible within a timeline that helps Buffett reach his benchmark performance goals.

Story continues

Airfares since the 1990s

While many are encouraged that President-elect Donald Trump has proposed as much as $1 trillion in infrastructure spending on "our highways, bridges, tunnels, airports, schools, hospitals," as he announced the day after the election, this will not make airlines more profitable or people fly more. We already have heavy traffic in the skies. Just visit the Franklin Delano Roosevelt memorial in Washington, D.C. and watch the number of planes that fly into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport every day.

Two questions are tied together in my mind.

How long will the price of oil stay low? Will the current level of profitability last?







American Airlines earned over $10 billion in the last two years, but for the decade they only earned $1.5 billion. Delta is a similar story with more than $16 billion in the last three years, but only $3.4 billion for the decade. In fact, United is the only one of these three to end the decade with more net earnings than the last three years. None have a particularly strong track record for growth in earnings per share and book value, mainly because they all have issued a ton of new shares in the last decade.

What I am trying to say is that these new stock purchases do not look very Buffettesque!

Alas, you only get paid on the future of a company's performance, not on its past.

My take remains the same, small airlines are better than big ones and that will remain the case. Unless Trump plans on tightening regulation on the airline industry, preventing new ones from being formed and giving small ones undue costs of capital for compliance sake. Could this happen? Maybe. It is unlikely as the barriers to entry are already fairly high.

Again, most of the best routes are taken by big airlines. These airlines will have a really hard time charging more while simultaneously allocating capital to either fly more routes or have more planes fly existing routes. Both seem like a nightmare to shareholders. Scaling an airline is not the same as any other consumer driven business. And I did not even get into the potential effects on flight cancellations due to climate change and storms.

The punch line is that just because Buffett is buying airlines does not mean you have to as well.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any of the stocks mentioned in this article.

Start a free 7-day trial of Premium Membership to GuruFocus.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.






Donald Trump speaks on June 16, 2016 at Gilleys in Dallas, Texas. (Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)

Business leaders in Texas are looking forward to the Trump administration.

The Dallas Feds latest Texas manufacturing report released Monday showed a sharp rise in business activity and optimism during November.

There is a great deal of optimism from our customers that the new pro-growth and lower-tax focus by the incoming administration will be a positive change from the past eight years, said one executive in the fabricated metal business. (Emphasis added.)

We continue to be very busy, which is normal for this time of year but still a good thing and we are thankful for it, said a printing industry executive.

Adding: I would like to think that business will remain steady now that the election is over and a pro-business candidate will be president. There is so much government interaction, interference and added cost that businesses have to endure that any positive change to reduce that impact will be a huge benefit. Time will tell and hopefully its not a long time that is required. (Emphasis added.)

The reports general business index rose to 10.2, indicating expansion in business, after almost two straight years of negative readings. This report had closely tracked the declining fortunes of many in the oil and gas business in the region.

The manufacturing outlook hit 8.8, the fifth-straight month of positive readings.

Source: Dallas Fed

This report follows last Wednesdays consumer sentiment survey from the University of Michigan, which showed sentiment rose following the election.

The initial reaction of consumers to Trumps victory was to express greater optimism about their personal finances as well as improved prospects for the national economy, said Richard Curtin, chief economist for the survey.

As weve noted, some economists have argued that survey-based economic reports should be more closely tracked in the coming months given that these will provide a better view on how consumers and businesses are reacting to Trumps election than backward-looking data like the jobs report.

Story continues

Of course, playing into the consumer sentiment readings was likely a sense of relief from some that the election is finally over, with Curtin adding last week, The upsurge in favorable economic prospects is not surprising given Trumps populist policy views, and it was perhaps exaggerated by what most considered a surprising victory as well as by a widespread sense of relief that the election had finally ended.

In Mondays Dallas Fed survey, a similar sentiment  or something like that  certainly resonated among some business leaders.

As one manufacturing executive said bluntly, We are looking forward to the end of the disastrous socialist policies of the last eight years.

Please reduce the regulation, taxes and government interference so we can compete globally. We hope the new administration makes good on its promises and, if so, it will increase our business expansion, hiring and investments.



Myles Udland is a writer at Yahoo Finance.

Read more from Myles here; follow him on Twitter @MylesUdland
Oil prices have been volatile lately flipping between hope and despair regarding a likely output curb/freeze deal at the formal OPEC meeting in Vienna on November 30. Though Iraq and Iran were reluctant to cut oil output initially, Iraq finally gave its approval (read: Inverse Oil ETFs in Focus as Iraq Threatens OPEC Deal).

Investors should note that this is the third time this year that the investing world is looking forward to this deal as oil price has been reeling under acute pressure for long. In the past, such attempts were made in Doha in April and in Algeria in September (read: 3 Country ETFs Soaring on Hopes of Oil Output Curb).

But all hopes went down the drain as the OPEC top-brass Saudi disagreed to the deal mainly citing Irans lack of participation. In fact, Iran has been boosting production since international sanctions on it were lifted in January. This is because Iran was producing below its capacity and pre-sanctions levels since 2011 while the other countries raised their output limit to record levels.

However, in September-end, OPEC indicated that it will cut production to 32.5 million to 33 million barrels a day in the November meeting. OPECs estimated output in October was 33.6 million barrels a day. This implies that a 900,000 barrel cut would take OPEC output to the mid of that reduced range, as per Bloomberg.

Arguments in Favor of the Deal

In the current scenario, a $1 rise in oil price would push up Iraqs revenues by $1 billion a year. So, with Iraq giving the green signal, the question now moves to Iran. At the September meeting in Algeria, Iran expressed intentions to reach its pre-sanction levels of over 4 million. With that production level now reached, Iran should not be a significant barrier to the agreement.

Apart from this, there are several market watchers who see OPEC creeping toward an output curb deal at the end of the month to put an end to the two-and-half year long suffering in the oil patch. Among the non-OPEC members, Russia wants to a freeze (not reduce) in its output and would like to see the OPEC deal materializing in the near future. Head of commodity research at Citigroup expects the deal to see the light of day.

Story continues

Arguments Against the Deal

That being said, we would like to note that there are analysts who believe that Iranian oil output and exports may be hurt with the U.S. president-elect Trump having pledged to tear up the nuclear agreement with Iran at the time of his campaign. So, previewing this fate, Iran might not agree to the output cut deal.

Moreover, Saudi Arabia stayed away from prearranged talks with non-OPEC nations including Russia on November 28 due to rising differences on the allocation of share of supply cut. The meeting has in fact been called off now. In its place, the OPEC arranged another internal meeting to sort out its own issues. As a result, United States Brent Oil BNO dropped over 2.9% on November 25 while United States Oil USO plunged about 3.2% on November 25.

Time to Buy Oil ETFs Even if OPEC Doesnt Cut?

Goldman Sachs believes so. Even if the OPEC doesnt agree to clinch a deal, Goldman anticipates a deficit in the second half of next year. So, according to the bank, an output cut deal would weigh on OPEC for a maximum of six months because OPEC can arrive at its regular production level by the second half of next year.

But investors should note that if OPEC manages to cut a deal and boost oil prices, U.S. shale oil production will likely gain traction. This in turn can bring back the oversupply into the market again and weigh on oil prices. So, like several other analysts, even we believe that an OPEC deal would lead to a spike in oil prices in the near term. Things are however pretty unclear for the long term. Only rising demand can save oil from this uncertainty (read: ETFs to Watch as IEA Forecasts Weaker Global Oil Demand).

If this was not enough, a rising greenback in the wake of a likely Fed rate hike next month and Trumponomics may hurt overall commodity investing including oil.

Projection of Near-Term Oil Price

Presently, crude is hovering around $45 a barrel. As per an article published on The Wall Street Journal, an well-articulated deal may shoot up the price to a $55 a barrel level while drag it down to the $40 mark if OPEC disappoints again. However, there are analysts who expect a big rally in oil prices even if OPEC reaches an agreement.

What Should Be Your Take on Oil ETFs?

Overall, sentiments are mixed and oil is expected to move sideways till the meeting. While products like USO and BNO give investors exposure to a bullish play on oil, they can play any dip in oil prices with inverse oil ETFs like ProShares Short Oil & Gas ETF (DDG), ProShares UltraShort Bloomberg Crude Oil ETF(SCO) and DB Crude Oil Double Short ETN (DTO). Direxion Daily Energy Bear 1X Shares ETF (ERYY) can also come to investors rescue in an oil price slump (read: Oil to Stay "Lower for Longer"? Short Oil & Energy ETFs).

Want key ETF info delivered straight to your inbox?

Zacks free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis, as well as top-performing ETFs, each week. Get it free >>



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Bangui (Central African Republic) (AFP) - The latest clashes between rival armed groups in the Central African Republic have left 85 dead, a government official said Monday, in what the UN warns is a worsening situation.

"This figure is confirmed," said presidential spokesman Albert Mopkem, referring to a toll provided by Adama Dieng, a UN special envoy for the prevention of genocide.

Nearly half the population needs humanitarian assistance, according to the United Nations which has appealed for $399 million from donors to cover the country's aid needs next year.

The latest deaths in the town of Bria, 400 kilometres (250 miles) northeast of Bangui, were amplified by 76 wounded and nearly 11,000 people being displaced in battles between factions of the former "Seleka" Muslim rebel group last week, Dieng said.

The Central African Republic is struggling to emerge from a civil war which erupted in 2013 following the overthrow of former president Francois Bozize, a Christian, by a Seleka coalition.

The government is trying to bring together 14 armed groups under a disarmament deal in the former French colony. But militias have flourished in the power vacuum left by a weak state.

Fighting is taking place between the Popular Front for the Renaissance of the Central African Republic (FPRC) and the Union for Peace in Central Africa (UPC).

The two factions are fighting for control of taxes levied on Fulani herders during the current seasonal migration.

Condemning the latest violence, Dieng's statement warned of "the risk that it could result in reprisal attacks and rapidly escalate".
CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - A Canadian CF-18 fighter pilot was killed on Monday when his single-seat jet crashed in a training area near Cold Lake, Alberta, the country's military said. "The name will not be released until next of kin are notified," the Department of National Defence said in a statement. "A flight safety investigation will be conducted to determine the cause of the incident." In a tweet, the Royal Canadian Air Force called the crash an accident, but did not elaborate. The defense department said there were no other casualties. The incident happened near the community of Cold Lake, which is close to the neighboring province of Saskatchewan and is home to 4 Wing Cold Lake, the busiest fighter base in Canada, according to the defense department. The pilot involved was from 4 Wing and crashed his CF-188 Hornet at about 11 a.m. in the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in Saskatchewan, said Captain Mat Strong, public affairs officer for the base. A defense department spokeswoman said helicopters were dispatched following the incident. The base, used to train Canada's fighter pilots, attracts international crews to its annual air combat exercise, Maple Flag, according to the department. In July, a plane crashed in Cold Lake during a military air show, killing the pilot. (Reporting by Ethan Lou and Nia Williams; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Steve Orlofsky)
* TSX down 27.2 points, or 0.18 percent, at 15,048.24

* Eight of the TSX's 10 main groups were lower

TORONTO, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Monday as railroad, energy and financial names lost ground, offsetting gains for the materials group as base and precious metals prices rose.

At 10:53 a.m. EST (1553 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index fell 27.2 points, or 0.18 percent, to 15,048.24.

Last week, the index advanced 1.4 percent, extending its rally since the U.S. election.

The most influential movers on the index included railroad stocks, with Canadian National Railway Co falling 0.9 percent to C$89.37, and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd declining 1.3 percent to C$199.33.

The energy group fell 0.5 percent amid volatility in crude oil ahead of a meeting this week of major oil producers.

U.S. crude prices were up 2.1 percent at $47.03 a barrel, recouping earlier losses as the market reacted to the shaky prospect of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries being able to agree output cuts at a meeting on Wednesday.

Financials fell 0.3 percent as bond yields declined and investors awaited fourth-quarter results this week from some of Canada's major banks.

Sun Life Financial Inc fell 1.1 percent to C$52.48, while Bank of Nova Scotia was down 0.2 percent at C$72.75.

The recent surge in bond yields had supported the financial sector. Higher bond yields reduce the value of insurance companies' liabilities and increase net interest margins of banks.

Just two of the index's 10 main groups rose.

The materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, added nearly 1 percent, with Barrick Gold Corp gaining 1.2 percent to C$20.25 and Teck Resources Ltd climbing 1.6 percent to C$35.41.

Zinc soared to a nine-year high and lead hit a five-year peak as reports of more infrastructure investment in China and signs of strong property investment in the world's top metals user sparked heavy buying.

Copper prices advanced 1.1 percent to $5,942 a tonne, while gold futures rose 0.9 percent to $1,189.2 an ounce.

(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
TORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, criticized for fondly remembering Fidel Castro without mention of his human rights record, defended his comments on Sunday and said the late Cuban leader had been a dictator. Trudeau sparked fury and online mockery after he referred to Castro as a "remarkable leader" and expressed his sorrow at the Friday death of "Cubas longest serving president". Many were quick to point out that Castro suppressed dissent and there was no option for other leadership on the island nation under his regime. On Sunday, Trudeau said the statement was simply meant to recognize the passing of a former head of state of a country that Canada had longstanding ties with, and not to gloss over unflattering history. The fact is Fidel Castro had a deep and lasting impact on the Cuban people, Trudeau told reporters in a televised news conference at a Madagascar Francophonie summit. He certainly was a polarizing figure and there certainly were significant concerns around human rights, that's something I'm open about and that Ive highlighted. Trudeau said he had raised the issue of human rights during an official visit to Cuba earlier this month. Asked whether he thought Castro was a dictator, Trudeau said: Yes. Some Conservative opposition lawmakers on Sunday urged Trudeau to boycott Castro's funeral while other contenders for the Conservative's leadership criticized his comments. The prime minister's office said no decision had yet been made on who would be representing Canada at the funeral. Castro was an honorary pallbearer at the 2000 funeral of Trudeau's father, former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, who was the first NATO leader to visit Cuba back in 1976. Trudeau's initial statement, which was markedly more positive than most Western leaders, sparked a backlash on Saturday, especially among some U.S. Republicans and Cuban exiles in the United States. Canada has long been one of Cuba's closest western allies, maintaining ties after its 1959 revolution. During his November visit, Trudeau said that Canada would maintain its relationship with Cuba even if that put it at odds with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has threatened to reverse the U.S.-Cuban detente. (Reporting by Amran Abocar; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
Evil Geniuses Kenneth K-Brad Bradley is Capcom Cup bound (Michael Martin)

Capcom has released an updated version of the Capcom Cup 32-player bracket, replacing two previously qualified players who are unable to attend.

The official #CapcomCup 2016 bracket is live! Check it out here: https://t.co/D48z5HVidY  Capcom Fighters (@CapcomFighters) November 28, 2016

Evil Geniuses Kenneth K-Brad Bradley and Fujimara Yukadon Atsushi have replaced Brazilian Felipe Misterio Carvacho and Hong Kongs Tse Tse4444 Wa Ping, respectively. Misterio was unable to attend due to alleged visa issues. It is unclear at this time why Tse4444 (who was one of five players on the bubble to qualify for Capcom Cup) could not compete this weekend.

For Yukadon, this is the miracle he needed to get into Capcom Cup. He finished third at Evo 2016 but was unable to win an event on the Capcom Pro Tour, nor could he string together enough quality finishes to put him in the running to qualify via the Global Leaderboard.

Capcom might have to replace even more players before all is said and done. Shortly after Capcom revealed their updated bracket, Belgium player Younes CCL Iazaar tweeted he would not be able to attend Capcom Cup. He did not specify why and it is not clear which player will take his spot.

However, one scenario appears to be Yukadon replacing a spot on the Global Leaderboard, thus opening a spot on the CPT Asia Regional Leaderboard to Jonny HumanBomb Cheng.

Oh well looks like I won't be playing @XianMSG, I can't go to capcom cup after all I'm so sorry everyone @CapcomFighters  Younes lazaar (@aws_ccl) November 28, 2016

Yahoo Esports created a mock bracket showing the possible seeding for Capcom Cup last week. Weve updated it with K-Brad and Yukadon seeded according to the players standings on the Global Leaderboard. Some first round matches have been changed, while others remain the same.

Story continues

Capcom Cup kicks off December 2 at the Esports Arena in Santa Ana, CA. It then moves to the Anaheim Convention Center on December 3 as part of Sonys PSX conference.





Michael Martin is ready to step up and fill in for Capcom Cup should he be needed. Follow him on Twitter @Bizarro_Mike.
Photo credit: WB

From ELLE

Happy Gilmore Month! On November 25, our favorite mother-daughter duo returns in Netflix's Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. To celebrate, we're counting down until the bingefest begins, revisiting the show's best moments, debating Rory's boyfriends, and going all-out Gilmore every day for 25 days. On our final day, Demi Adejuyigbe, one-half of the podcast 'Gilmore Guys,' gives us his take on what should happen to these beloved characters.

Today, after eight seasons and 157 episodes across 16 years, Gilmore Girls will finally comes to an official end. As blessed as we are to get an ending dictated by the woman who gave us a beginning, it's going to be bittersweet to leave the people of Stars Hollow behind... but what if we don't have to?

Amy, you're busy going full steam ahead on production of your next show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. We're all very excited to see what tricks you've got up your sleeve and what rabbits you can pull out of your many hats, but not if it means making Stars Hollow disappear! If you're interested in keeping your lovely little storybook corner of the world alive, feel free to hand the keys to the kingdom over to me, a man of questionable taste who only finished watching the whole series a few days ago. Here are my few ideas for characters who deserve their own spin-offs:

LANE KIM AND ZACH VAN GERBIG

Lane and Zach are rock stars second and parents first. How can they juggle work and family? Can they truly have it all? Of course they can... with a little help from their kids! This series sees the Osbournes of Stars Hollow taking to the road with Steve and Kwon acting as roadies for their parents. You can only imagine what sort of hijinks (and child labor violations) ensue when these little scamps gotta stack some amps!

MICHEL GERARD

With Lorelai presumably off living in wedded bliss with Luke, and Sookie presumably off hosting some sort of great baking show (perhaps of the British variety), it's up to Michel to keep the Dragonfly running in tip-top shape if the customers don't drive him crazy first! Each episode finds Michel and his unflappable staff wrestling to satisfy the Dragonfly's various clientele. What happens when a perky couple drives Michel to his whits end? What happens when Cher stops by for a weekend getaway, not knowing her biggest fan runs the town inn? Better yet, what happens when Tobin insists on dropping by?

Story continues

EMILY AND RICHARD GILMORE

The passing of Edward Hermann means we can't follow Emily and Richard's lives past season 7but it doesn't mean we can't follow their lives before season one. Don't you wanna see what Emily (Alia Shawkat) and Richard (James Spader with expensive Benjamin Button CGI) got up to before landing in Hartford and starting a family of their own? This series follows Richard Gilmore as he rises in the ranks of the Yale School of Management with his fiancee Pennilyn, only to have his world turned upside-down when Emily (mumbles a made-up last name) comes into his life.

PARIS GELLER

When Paris starts working at one of Connecticut's finest hospitals, she comes to blows with the staff and is eventually fired for her intense and abrasive nature. Being blackballed by the medical community makes it hard for Paris to get a job... until she decides to create her own. She opens the Geller Clinic for those who need an expert opinion, and specializes in solving puzzling cases that come her way using her crack team of doctors and her wits. Is that partially the summary for House? Yes. But what is Paris Geller's future if not just Extreme House?

KIRK GLEASON

Photo credit: WB

Kirk's technical specialties lie in his complete lack of specialties- nobody in town has had more jobs than him, and nobody has a resume that is better stacked for taking on a variety of different dirty jobs. Kirk needs a spin-off series that finds him working a temp agency, getting different assignments every morning and failing them or succeeding in a spectacular fashion by the end of the week. One week, Kirk is working as the foreman on a construction project until the building eventually collapses. Another week, Kirk becomes a librarian, only to silently mess up their organization by domino-toppling the shelves like a lost Buster Keaton film! His OSHA nightmares are our Netflix dreams! You can go ahead and green-light this one for 10 seasons MINIMUM!

MISS PATTY

Miss Patty's life is such a rich tapestry of incredible stories woven together and threaded through the background of Gilmore Girls, it would be completely underwhelming to try and only tell one- so let's get a series that tells all of them! Each season could be a retelling of her life through Patty's narration, like a less fanciful The Princess Bride, or a more consistently-good-iful How I Met Your Mother. A Patty anthology series gives us the chance to live in the great heyday of Hollywood, as recanted vividly through the character who has undoubtedly lived the most. We'll finally get to hear (and see) about the time she danced in a cage for Tito Puente.

TAYLOR DOOSE

What if House of Cards took place in a small town instead of America's capital? What sort of ruthless and underhanded chicanery occurs in the political process when nobody really cares what happens? And what secrets are Taylor hiding, since no one in the town has ever met or heard of any partners of his? Doose has always maintained an image that law and order are the only things he cares about... but what sort of dark secrets lie beneath?

MADELINE AND LOUISE

If Gilmore Girls is a Shakespearan tale of Rory's growth into adulthood, then Madeline and Louise are its Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. But I don't want to see them deadI wanna see the entire show again from their point of view. Spring Break, the Bangles concert, graduationwe'd get to see it all from the perspective of the girls who float through life like an endless party. Most importantly, we'd get an answer as to where they went after season 4.

APRIL NARDINI

What would Bones be like if everybody hated Bones?

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Vietnamese volunteer Nguyen Thi Huong was just 17 when she was severely injured by an American cluster bomb. She would have died that day if it weren't for a fateful encounter with an unexpected saviour: Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.

The cigar chomping Cuban's surprise appearance on the battlefield in 1973 during the height of the Vietnam War cemented an enduring romance between the Cold War-era allies.

After his death Friday at the age of 90, Castro has been lionised in Vietnam, with teenagers and seniors alike displaying an outpouring of grief.

Huong belonged to a legion of diehard volunteers on the side of the communists during the brutal conflict.

She was behind the front lines in newly liberated central Quang Tri province, filling craters, when an American cluster bomb exploded near her, sending searing shrapnel into her body.

She lost so much blood that she fainted on the side of the road and said she would have died had Castro not come by in a convoy.

"I was trying to cover the bleeding wound with my hands. Before I fainted on the highway, I vaguely saw a tall westerner with a beard, taking me to his car," 60-year-old Huong told AFP from Quang Tri province.

It was the trip to a nearby hospital in his car that saved her life, she said.

"I considered him a second father. Without him, I would have died 43 years ago," Huong, now a farmer, said through tears.

"I am so sad at the news of his death."

Huong's battlefield tale is among many that have entered the annals of communist Vietnam War-era folklore.

Nguyen Dinh Bin, a Spanish-speaking former deputy foreign minister who sometimes translated during Castro's visits to the nation, often recounted the story.

But it also illustrates the remarkable relationship between two communist nations, separated by 15,000 kilometres (9,300 miles) but bonded by ideology and a once fervent animosity towards Washington.

- 'Milestone' visit -

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The Vietnam War ended with a stunning victory for the North two years after Castro's visit, with the Americans defeated and the country unified.

His appearance on the frontlines of Quang Tri province, where he famously raised a battleflag, was a classic piece of theatre, helping to rally north Vietnamese morale and poke the "Yanqui" enemy they both loathed.

He received a rock star welcome on the trip. Cheering Quang Tri residents lined the streets for several kilometres to greet the bearded Cuban leader, dressed in bush attire to meet communist soldiers.

"Castro's visit to Quang Tri brought a lot of fame for Vietnam, and confirmed our legitimate right to the land there," historian Pham Xuan Nam told AFP.

"It was a milestone, affirming that Vietnam and Cuba were great brothers and comrades," he said.

It was a relationship that remained steadfast long after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.

Castro visited Vietnam twice more in 1995 and 2003 -- even as Hanoi's relationship with long-time Cuban foe, the United States, warmed.

Cuba also funded infrastructure projects in Vietnam and paid for post-war recovery efforts even as coffers drained back home under Castro's hardline communist economic policies.

Vietnam's President Tran Dai Quang was the last head of state to visit Castro on November 16, just 10 days before his death.

And on Castro's final trip to Vietnam in 2003, he reportedly sat with legendary war general Vo Nguyen Giap, chatting and laughing beneath a portrait of former Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin. Giap died in late 2013.

And while Castro is reviled by many at home and abroad who accuse him of being a despot with little tolerance for dissent, in Vietnam he is widely revered, especially among war veterans who saw him.

"I'll never forget his words, saying that the revolutionary flag he was holding in his hand would surely be in Saigon one day," said Le Van Hoan, an 85-year-old retired communist party member who was in the crowd that day with many who cried as the Cuban spoke.

"Castro's visit was an honour and a great encouragement to thousands of people and soldiers in the area."
When Celia Cruz returned to Guantanamo to perform for American troops in 1990 -- 30 years after she left her beloved Cuba -- she knelt, kissed the ground and said: "I have kissed the earth in name of all the Cubans in exile."

Until the time of her death to cancer in 2003 at 77 years old, the Cuban icon, whom Castro famously denied entry to Cuba to bury her mother in 1962, remained a dignified symbol of Cubans separated forever from their country. Cruz's two visits to the American naval base in Guantanamo were the closest she got to returning home. During one of those visits, she grabbed a handful of Cuban soil from the other side of the fence and kept it in a jar until her death.

It's buried with her.

Cruz's longtime manager and estate trustee Omer Pardillo Cid, 44 -- himself a Cuban exile from a different generation -- spoke exclusively with Billboard about what Fidel Castro's death would have meant for Cruz.

I was in Colombia with Celia's traveling exhibit and in the middle of a concert by [Cuban artist] Amaury Gutierrez when I heard the news of Castro's death. I've never been so nervous in my life. My fingers trembled so much they couldn't find the keyboard. Obviously, as Catholics, we aren't celebrating someone's death, but we are celebrating what could be the future of our country. It's been over 50 years of dictatorship, and this person was the root of it all.

I was born in Cuba and left at 10 years old, leaving my mother behind. People who aren't Cuban don't understand our pain.

I think Celia could be relieved if she were alive today. Relieved because we're staring a new chapter. I'm not sure what she would have done, because the only thing Celia had left to do was return to Cuba.

Celia died in 2003, and at one point I asked her, "Do you feel the need to go back to Cuba?"

And she said: "Emotionally, I want to go back. But never under Castro's dictatorship. I will take the Cuba I have in my heart with me."

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Back in 2000, when Celia was 74, she was already sick when she recorded the album Siempre Vivire. Angie Chirino, Willy Chirino's daughter, wrote a song for her called "Por si acaso no regreso" (In Case I Don't Return). It was a perfect song for Celia. When she sang it in the studio, it was the fist time I ever saw Celia cry at a recording; she realized she truly was never going back.

Celia left Cuba on July 15, 1960. She was going to tour with La Sonora Matancera in Mexico, and Rogelio Martinez, the director of the band, said, "I don't think we're coming back." At the time, of course, everyone thought the Castro regime wouldn't last.

Then in 1962, Celia's mom died, and when Celia requested permission to go bury her, the Cuban embassy denied her the visa. That's when she said, "If I can't return to bury my mother, I'll never return."

I've always thought that if they had allowed Celia to bury her mother, the story of Celia and Cuba would have been very different. Remember, Celia was Cuba's most famous artist; it would have been very important for the government to have her on their side.

Celia actually met Castro on two occasions. One time was at the home of the editor of Bohemia magazine. This was pre-revolution. Celia was singing at the piano, and Castro was already well-known. When he arrived, everybody got on their feet and went to say hello, but she stayed behind, next to the pianist. They asked her if she wasn't going to greet him as well, and she said: "No. There's something about that man that I don't like."

Then, in 1960, they hired her to perform at Teatro Blanquita. The night of the show, they told her Fidel was sitting in the first row and they wanted her to dedicate a song to him, "Cao cao mani picado."

"I didn't bring the music," she said.

She didn't want to bow to him. She told me he was sitting to the left, and she sang all night facing right.

Honestly, he never did anything against her. She just didn't like him.

Celia was never political, and she never sang political music. But she never hid her opinion either.

I would venture to say that when you mention Cuba anywhere in the world, the two names that come to mind are Fidel Castro and Celia Cruz. She represented the Cuban exile with dignity: a poor black woman who left Cuba and conquered the world.

Celia's love for Cuba was so big. And because she couldn't return, it became even bigger. Celia represents a free Cuba. Everywhere she went, she was the exiles' flag.

Some three years before she died, we went to San Francisco, and a very old Cuban woman, she was 96 years old, came up to Celia and said: "Please, let me touch you. I'm going to die soon and I can't return to Cuba. But if I touch you, I will feel I touched my Cuba."

It's one of my most cherished memories of her.

--As told to Leila Cobo
BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Monday it had lodged a protest with Singapore after Singaporean armored troop carriers were seized by Hong Kong customs en route back from Taiwan, as a state-owned newspaper warned against Singapore's "hypocrisy". The nine troop carriers were impounded in Hong Kong last week, sparking a rebuke to Singapore from China's foreign ministry about maintaining military ties with self-ruled Taiwan, which China considers a breakaway province. "China has already made representations over this to the Singapore side," Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a regular press briefing on Monday. China had also "demanded" that Singapore abide by Hong Kong's relevant laws and cooperate with the Hong Kong government to handle relevant follow-up work, he added. Hong Kong, a former British colony, returned to Chinese rule in 1997. China always opposes countries which have relations with China also having "any form of official exchanges with the Taiwan region, including military exchanges and cooperation", Geng said. China has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since 1949, when Mao Zedong's Communist forces won the Chinese civil war and Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists fled to the island. Beijing has vowed to bring Taiwan under its rule, by force if necessary. China says Taiwan is part of "one China", ruled by Beijing. The Global Times, China's nationalist state-owned tabloid, warned that Singapore's "hypocrisy" over its military relationship with Taiwan could harm its relations with China. "It is no longer reasonable for Singapore to continue... any kind of military exchange with Taiwan," said an opinion article in the paper, written by a commentator identified only as Ai Jun, which is a homonym for "love the army". Singapore and Taiwan have a longstanding military relationship that began in the 1970s and involves Taiwan being used as grounds for Singaporean infantry training. Beijing has grudgingly tolerated this agreement since the China and Singapore re-established diplomatic relations in the 1990s. The incident with the armored troop carriers "adds to the suspicion" that Singapore is working against the "one China" principle, said the paper. (Reporting by Michael Martina; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Nick Macfie)
BEIJING (Reuters) - Activity in China's manufacturing sector likely held onto a modest expansionary trend this month, a Reuters poll showed, as industrial firms continued to benefit from higher producer prices and a recovery in demand.

The official manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) is expected to come in at 51.0 in November, which would be the fourth straight month of expansion, according to the median forecast of 36 analysts polled by Reuters.

The index hit a two-year high of 51.2 in October as a housing and infrastructure spree has fueled stronger demand and higher prices for building materials, boosting sales for related companies from engineering firms to property agents.

Data on Sunday showed profits at industrial companies rose 9.8 percent in October from a year ago, higher than the rate in September, primarily on the back of strength in high-polluting heavy industry.

Factory activity in China started to pick up in August, buoyed by a government infrastructure building spree and a housing boom, as well as a loose monetary policy.

Most analysts say the economy will face fresh challenges next year as stimulus wears off and a housing boom slows, though they say the government will likely rely on fiscal measures and refrain from further broad loosening measures.

October's survey of manufacturers had shown a slightly improved performance by small and medium-sized companies, but large companies fared better as they benefit more from government-directed stimulus measures such as increased infrastructure spending.

The official manufacturing PMI data will be released on Dec. 1, along with the official non-manufacturing PMI.

Activity in China's services sector in October expanded at the fastest pace since December 2015. Beijing has been counting on a strong services sector to pick up the slack as it tries to shift the economy away from a dependence on heavy industry and manufacturing exports.

The Markit/Caixin PMI, a private gauge of manufacturing activity which focuses more on small- and mid-sized firms, is also due on Dec. 1.

Story continues

Analysts expect it to fall to 50.8, compared with the previous month's reading of 51.2.

(This version of the story corrects the release date to Dec. 1 from Nov. 1 in paragraph 8)

(Reporting by Elias Glenn and Wang Jing; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
London (AFP) - The Brexit vote has shaken the City of London but will not destroy it despite creating uncertainty, the newly-installed Lord Mayor of the financial hub told AFP.

Speaking at his offices opposite the Bank of England, Andrew Parmley spoke of his concerns about attracting high-skilled workers and how City firms will be able to do business in the European Union after Britain leaves.

"Storms come around but we weather them every time," 60-year-old Parmley, the City's 689th Lord Mayor in eight centuries, said in an interview at his official residence Mansion House.

The Lord Mayors rule over the Square Mile, an area with 8,000 residents which every day hosts some 450,000 employees, mainly in the financial services sector.

Parmley officially took up the post on November 11 in an environment that he said presented "some challenges", following Britain's vote on June 23 to leave the EU.

The referendum result was a shock for the City, raising fears that it could lose its top-flight global status alongside New York.

- 'Big concern' on euro clearing -

The main concern for the City is the loss of passporting rights, a money-saving mechanism that allows financial products approved by a single regulator in a member state to be sold in the entire European Union.

Losing this advantage could push some companies to move at least some of their activities to continental Europe in order to be able to continue to do business.

"Some businesses have undoubtedly made plans to relocate," Parmley said, although he added there have been no major announcements as "most people are still waiting".

Five months after the referendum, the government has not given any detail on its plan for future ties between Britain and the EU, except to say it wants British firms to have maximum access to the EU's single market.

Prime Minister Theresa May has promised to invoke Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty -- the formal procedure for leaving -- by the end of March.

Story continues

Until then, patience will be of the essence.

"We'd like things to accelerate a little bit, we'd like greater clarity, greater certainty as to what the government is offering us," Parmley said.

City officials are working with the government "to test the water, to see the direction of travel", defending the interests of the 17,000 companies that operate in the City and Britain's other main financial centres.

But Parmley admits it is "very unlikely" that passporting could be retained in its current form.

He hopes the government "can give us something that looks like passporting or we can find a way to ease business with our colleagues in Europe".

Another concern is about being able to attract the international mix of employees working for City firms.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan has talked about the possibility of special visas for the British capital, while Parmley said only that there had been talk of "a range of regional visas".

He said the City's other "big concern" was over euro clearing -- an intermediary role between buyer and seller of financial products denominated in euros.

The business is estimated to account for 83,000 jobs in Britain, according to the Financial Times.

Cities like Frankfurt, Paris or Amsterdam have been outlining ambitions to take market share from London.

But Parmley said they could not compete in terms of infrastructure and London's draw as a place to live.

He was installed in a grandiose ceremony that brings crowds of tourists to the City every year, and he believes the City's traditions will prove resilient in adversity.

And the outlook is not all downbeat. One scenario after Brexit, he said, was for the City to orient itself more at emerging markets "that we may have neglected".
Australias great natural wonder this year endured its largest-ever die-off, scientists have confirmed.

The story began in May 2016, when Australian researchers released a study indicating 35 percent of the northern and central parts of the Great Barrier reef were dying in a process known as coral bleaching, caused by climate change and an abnormally strong El Nino climate disruption in 2015.

But on Monday, scientists decided those figures werent depressing enough and released a grim update: They now believe the rate of coral bleaching is significantly higher, with 67 percent of coral dying this year in the worst-affected areas, according to new research. In one of the worst-hit areas, Lizard Island off Queensland, 90 percent of the coral has died.

Coral bleaching isnt just bad for the environment  its also a blow to the economy. Great Barrier Reef tourism employs over 70,000 people and generates $5 billion in income for Australia each year.

This isnt the first time Australias natural wonder has been under the gun. It survived mass bleaching events in 1998 and 2002 due to sustained warm ocean temperatures. But the 2016 bleaching event is much worse, according to scientists.

We had bleaching here in 2002, Anne Hogget, a Lizard Island research station director told the BBC. We thought this was bad at the time, but this has blown it completely out of the water.

Mounting concerns drove one magazine to publish a high-profile obituary for the Great Barrier Reef. But that obituary may have been premature.

Its not too late for the Great Barrier Reef, and people who think that have a really profound misconception about what we know  about coral resilience, Kim Cobb, a professor at Georgia Tech told the Los Angeles Times in October. We know from past research that corals are able to recover from the brink of death.

Scientists expect the northern Great Barrier Reef region will take 10 to 15 years to recover. But if the world cant tackle climate change (and the next U.S. president seems to have other plans), experts worry a fourth massive bleaching event could happen before the reef has recovered.

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Its not all doom and gloom, however. The southern portion of the Great Barrier Reef escaped with minor damage, the researchers noted, while another section in the north escaped the most severe damage, likely protected by an upwelling of colder waters from the Coral sea.

The Australian government created The Reef 2050 Plan to respond to its natural wonders dire straits. The plan outlines concrete management measures to preserve the reefs long-term health.

But climate change may turn the reefs preservation into an uphill battle in the future. The Great Barrier Reefs three bleaching events all occurred while global temperatures have risen by just 1 degree C above the pre-industrial period, said Terry Hughes, director of the ARC Center of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies. If global sea temperatures continue to rise, scientists warn of potentially devastating results.

Were rapidly running out of time to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Hughes said.

Photo credit: STR/AFP/Getty Images
Closing in on ISIS, Libyan forces retake a ghost town by the sea View of an area controlled by Islamic State (ISIS) militants, seen through a sniper hole in Sirte, Libya, in September 2016. (Photo: Manu Brabo/MeMo for Yahoo News)

While the world's attention has been focused on the Iraqi army's war to recapture Mosul from the Islamic State, another bloody battle against Islamic militants is nearing a climax 1,500 miles to the west in the Libyan city of Sirte.

For six months, troops of the interim Libyan Government of National Accord, backed by American warplanes and advisers, have been fighting street by street to retake the city, the last major stronghold of the Islamic State on the Mediterranean coast. ISIS militias, squeezed into a few blocks of the city, defend themselves with suicide car bombs, booby traps and hit-and-run sniper attacks. An estimated 3,650 government troops have been killed or wounded in the operation named "Impenetrable Wall."

Photojournalist Manu Brabo entered Sirte in mid-September and found it like a ghost town, filled with the shells of buildings damaged in the fighting of the Libyan civil war of 2011 and the battles over the last two years. The only signs of life were the distant sounds of the pickup trucks of the Libyan forces  and the shooting. (Text by Jerry Adler/Yahoo News and Manu Brabo)

Here are some of his haunting images of this ancient city by the sea.

Photography by Manu Brabo/MeMo for Yahoo News

_____

See more news-related photo galleries and follow us on Yahoo News Photo Tumblr.
Donald Trump made a major play for coal miners and producers throughout the 2016 campaign, loudly denouncing the anti-coal policies of the Obama administration and Hillary Clinton. He promised to reopen abandoned mines and rejuvenate the declining industry.

"We're going to get those miners back to work ... the miners of West Virginia and Pennsylvania  and Ohio, Trump said last spring. They are going to be proud again to be miners."

Related: Obama Leaves Trump With a Tough Choice: Big Oil or Big Corn?

The number of coal mining jobs has declined, falling from 84,600 shortly after President Obama took office in March 2009 to just 56,700 early this year, according to the Department of Labor. Trumps plea to voters in major mining states paid off handsomely and helped him to score critical wins in the battleground states of Pennsylvania and Ohio, while coasting to victory in Kentucky, West Virginia and the rest of coal country.

Whether Trump and the GOP are capable of reversing trends that are hurting the coal industry  including natural gas production from fracking that is driving down energy costs, increased mechanization of coal production that eliminates jobs, and strict government regulations on carbon emissions  remains to be seen.

In the short term, however, Republican policy making could have an adverse effect on rank and file coal miners, retired miners, and their families. While the issues at hand are relatively narrow, they are critically important to tens of thousands of mining families throughout Appalachia who are struggling to make ends meet.

Black lung disease. For years, coal miners and their families were rebuffed by mining companies in attempting to collect compensation for disabilities associated with respiratory problems developed by inhaling coal mine dust. The biggest problem was that by law the burden of proof fell to the disabled miners, their families or survivors to demonstrate that the miners respiratory problems were real and directly related to years of work in company mines.

Story continues

Related: King Coal McConnell Wants to Scrap Obamas Carbon Plan

But as the health and science website STAT reported Monday, that all began to change with enactment of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Under an obscure miscellaneous provision added by the late Democratic Sen. Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia, the burden of proof was abruptly shifted from the disabled miners to the mining companies themselves.

In effect, if a miner had spent 15 years or more working underground for a company and could prove that he or she had developed a respiratory disability, then it was presumed to be black lung associated with employment at the mine. And unless the company could somehow prove otherwise, it would be responsible for providing disability benefits to the miner or his survivors.

Often the person whose job it is to do the convincing loses, Evan Smith, a lawyer for the nonprofit Appalachian Citizens Law Center who has handled many black lung cases, told STAT. In 2009, just prior to enactment of Obamacare, 19 percent of claims for black lung benefits were successful. By last year, the share had jumped to 28 percent.

Now, however, many in coal country may have reason to worry. Trump and House and Senate GOP leaders have vowed to make the repeal of Obamacare one of their first acts in January. If the Republicans carry through, Byrds black lung provision would likely be washed away along with the provisions for subsidized health insurance plans and expanded Medicaid for low-income Americans.

The Miners Protection Act. Congress is trying to address the crisis of failing pension and health benefits in the coal mining industry before the end of the year, but a clash of views between Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Senate Democrats may jeopardize enactment of the legislation.

Related: The Pros and Cons of Obamas New Carbon Rule

Those benefit plans were severely underfunded as a result of the Great Recession and a major downturn in the industry, as coal companies declared bankruptcy and reneged on their obligations to current and former employees. In the latest bit of bad news, the benefit fund of Patriot Coal informed 12,500 retirees last month that their health coverage would end on Dec. 31, according to Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV), a chief sponsor of the emergency rescue legislation.

More than 10,000 other retirees are likely to experience a similar fate next year, according to Manchin and 27 other Democratic co-sponsors of the legislation. Additionally, the pension fund that these miners and their widows rely on for lifes basic necessities will reach the point of no return shortly thereafter, the lawmakers said in a letter earlier this year.

The proposed emergency legislation cleared the Senate Finance Committee by a vote of 18 to 8 in September. It would borrow from a mine cleanup program created by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act to boost union health and retirement plans with an estimated $220 million a year.

But the legislation has run into a serious roadblock after McConnell, the Republican majority leader and champion of Appalachian coal companies, questioned why the emergency funding would be targeted exclusively to unionized coal workers, and not to non-union miners, as The New York Times editorial page reported Monday.

The current version of the bill would transfer funds from the abandoned mine land program to the United Mine Workers of America 1974 Pension Plan to prevent its insolvency. That would protect an estimated 89,000 pensioned miners and family members and 22,000 workers.

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colin kaepernick

Colin Kaepernick caused a stir with some remarks he made about Fidel Castro, the former leader of Cuba, last week during a conference call with media before the San Francisco 49ers' Week 12 game against the Miami Dolphins.

Miami Herald columnist Armando Salguero got into an exchange with Kaepernick when he asked why Kaepernick wore a shirt in August with an image of Malcolm X and Castro with the words "like minds think alike."

Kaepernick said that while the shirt was in support of Malcolm X, it showed Malcolm X's willingness to meet with people of different cultures and ideas and keep an open mind.

"One thing Fidel Castro did do is they have the highest literacy rate because they invest more in their education system than they do in their prison system, which we do not do here even though were fully capable of doing that," Kaepernick said, according to Salguero.

After the 49ers lost to the Dolphins on Sunday  during which Kaepernick was frequently booed by Miami fans  Kaepernick clarified his remarks on Castro (via ESPN's Nick Wagoner):

"What I said was I agree with the investment in education. I also agree with the investment in free universal healthcare as well as the involvement in him helping end apartheid in South Africa. I would hope that everybody agrees those things are good things. And trying to push the false narrative that I was a supporter of the oppressive things that he did is just not true."

Kaepernick said of the T-shirt: "I can understand the concern, but for me, what I said was that was a historic moment for Malcolm. I'm not going to cut out pieces of Malcolm's life. In 1960, when they met in Harlem, that was a historic moment."

Kaepernick's comments during the media conference came before Castro's death on Friday. Kaepernick said that playing in South Florida, which has a large Cuban population, two days after Castro's death was "very unique circumstances."

NOW WATCH: The science behind those super powerful T-shirt cannons you see at baseball games





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Lakely invited each panelist one by one to join him on the stage, introducing each panel member until all four were lined up on stage.

With the introduction behind him, Mr. Lakely signaled the beginning of what he said would be an "amazing positive and happy program" which would delve into the "an earthquake of an election." In Lakely's words: "We are here tonight to talk about the earthquake of an election on Nov. 8th."

Jim Lakely, Director of Communications at The Heartland Institute, welcomed guests to the European Crystal Banquet, 519 W. Algonquin Rd., Arlington Heights, commenting that it was the kind of venue Donald Trump would appreciate being at. A brief history followed of the move The Heartland Institute made in the summer 2015 to its headquarters at 39 Arlington Heights where freedom and liberty are respected, having been located in the corrupt City of Chicago prior to the move for 32 years. Lakely further stated that The Heartland Institute is a non-partisan, non-profit, free-market think tank that doesn't support political candidates.

JOE WALSH, radio host at AM560 The Answer, president of Walsh Freedom

DAN PROFT, radio host at AM560, senior fellow at Illinois Policy Institute

KATHLEEN MURPHY, communication director at Illinois Opportunity Project

PATRICK HUGHES, co-founder of Illinois Opportunity Project

JIM LAKELY (moderator), director of communications, The Heartland Institute

When seated on the stage, Jim Lakely proceeded to direct each question to a specific panel member, after which the other panels members were invited to jump in at will to add their thoughts.

Jim Lakely's first question was directed to Dan Proft. In doing so, Mr. Lakely referred to how Dennis Preager, a radio talk show host on WLS AM, spoke about the two presidential choices available to American voters. It was a choice between two candidate. On one door was Man Eating Lion. On the other door was Maybe Man Eating Lion. The people choose Trump, the Maybe Man Eating Lion. In jest Lakely referred to Trump's maim of hair.

Question 1:

Did American voters in the Midwest and Rust Belt just save the American experiment -- dodge the bullet -- from forces on the Left to save Western civilization?

Dan Proft believes that we have, to some extent, halted the onslaught of the Left. Proft, in a light-hearted way, questioned the nature of Lakely's question: "How did we go from low expectations to talking about saving Western civilization?" Proft credited Victor David Hanson of National Reviewas recognizing early on Trump's winning message, how the elites, wherever they may function in society, are worse than you think they are. A plus is that Trump comes into office without owing the establishment anything.

Joe Walsh was quick to add his opinion about the Trump victory: "This election was about the uprising of us, regular Americans, against a broken political establishment. It had zero to do with the Republican Party. It was against the elites. In agreement with Proft, Walsh doesn't believe Trump owes the Republican Party a thing as an outsider. Walsh spoke of going to Washington, D.C. with the same spirit of an outsider to serve in the House.

Patrick Hughes spoke about the Supreme Court and what a Hillary win would have meant had she been able to fill the vacancy created by the death of Justice Alito and possible other retirements. Presently under attack is free speech, abortion rights, the 2nd amendment, etc. With good, solid Supreme Court appointments our Constitutional principles can be reset, as justices now up in their 80's, and who ascribe to a Living Constitution, choose retirement during a Trump presidency.

Dan Proft, ever the scholar, warned that the election of Trump was only the beginning, as elections are but the means to policy ends. It was a big election for Trump. Not even Trump could stop Trump. He did try and couldn't. Proft was not charitable to House Speaker Ryan and other Republicans legislators who did nothing to help Trump. As such, Republican legislators in both the House and Senate must have their feet held to the fire, for there will be policy fights. There must be no doubt that Trump is the new sheriff in town.

Joe Walsh likewise harbored strong feeling about holding Republican feet to the fire. Paul Ryan was scorned by Joe in Ryan's refusal to help Trump in his election bid, which held true of the Republican Party as a whole. It was because of Trump that Ryan could resume as speaker. As Walsh warned: "We won a battle, but the war continues. We still have a long way to go." As many conservatives realize, "We are losing the battle over American values." As Walsh related, "Had it not been for 12,000 votes in 3 states -- Michigan, PA, and Wisconsin -- Trump would have lost."

Question 2:

It's crazy out there. What happening on the streets of America right now?

Directed to Kathleen Murphy, Kathleen wasn't about to blame the entire millennial generation. Not all are protesting and not all are protestors. Those who are are being fueled by the mainstream media, college professors, social media, etc. Millennials came of age during this century's Great Depression. They have not experienced market-made success, but instead see government as a way to improve life. 46% believe their future will not be as good as their parents. Only 16% feel their lives will be better. 1/3 of Millennials live at home with their parents; only one in three are unemployed. But the protestors are hypocrites. All would have been fine had Hillary won, but anger attributed to shock over how people could possibly have voted for Trump has fueled the protestors. Trump, as president elect, is not acceptable to the protestors, and anyone who voted for Trump is labeled a racist. It is, however, the protestors who are the intolerant ones. For the protestors, Trump's win gives them the license to disregard the rule of law and reality. In regard to those who were shocked that women voted for Trump, Murphy had this to say, "Why would many women choose not to vote for a criminal?

Pat Hughes spoke about his16-year old daughter and how selecting a college is close at hand. In light of what has been happening at colleges in the aftermath of Trump's victory, more and more colleges have been crossed off by Hughes because they have given in to students who have seemingly been traumatized beyond the ability to function over the election of Trump. The University of Michigan has brought in puppies for students to pet. Hillsdale College was mentioned as an exception, but not all college-age students can attend Hillsdale. Hughes predicted that the protestors will look back on this time in their lives and regret their actions. Accordingly, Hughes believe the radicals of today will grow up. Hughes is more worried about radical feminists Noted was how difficult it is for a woman to be a conservative, and how they are shamed for being so.

Dan Proft spoke about what is happening to young people today in college situations and equated the problem to a "lack of self-awareness." Students believe they have a Constitutional right not to be offended and to be shielded from words that they do not wish to hear. Such opinions must he recognized and combated. In regard to Hillary, the firewall for Hillary's win was supposed to be college educated women and Rust Belt states. In the end Hillary only won 51% of women.

Joe Walsh chimed in to explain how a Trump victory was possible in what is a divided country. Trump won because of 112,000 votes in three states. Hillary couldn't bring out the young, single women, or the blacks she needed in her camp to win; however, they are still out there. Walsh admitted that he completely under estimated how bad a candidate Hillary was. No one likes her, not even Bill! She was an extremely flawed candidate. This election was a wake-up call for Democrats. Walsh believes such a mistake won't happen again

Dan Proft, in expanding upon the comments by Walsh, reiterated how the Democratic Party has now become a Coastal Party and Illinois. The election of Donald Trump ushered in a schismatic shift in power. Republican now hold two-thirds of state legislative bodies, along with 33 state governorships. Proft hopes that some of the good working state models will be adopted by Trump at the federal level.

Pat Hughes sees positive momentum going into 2020, if polices are enacted that provide positive results for the American people. It is essential that we start now to build our coalition so the momentum is there in 2020 to continue and expand Republican control.

An article to follow will feature Question 3: How important milestone was it by breaking the Democratic Super House majority. Will it be more of the same or is there some chance for needed reforms to be enacted? and Question 4: What is the Alt-Right and should we be afraid of it?
Ottawa (AFP) - Justin Trudeau will not attend Fidel Castro's funeral, the Canadian prime minister's office said Monday, after he was rebuked for calling the late Cuban strongman and family friend a "remarkable leader."

Instead, Governor General David Johnston will represent Canada at the commemoration in honor of the former Cuban president in Havana Tuesday evening.

Trudeau described Castro after his passing as "a legendary revolutionary and orator."

His kind words for Castro, however, were sharply criticized by the opposition and American conservatives who said he was praising a cruel dictator.

Pressed on the matter, Trudeau acknowledged the opposition's concerns, saying: "He certainly was a polarizing figure, there certainly were significant concerns around human rights."
Crude oil prices have been volatile for the past six months, hitting a high near $54 a barrel in June and a low of around $43 a barrel in early August. The price for benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude Monday morning is about $46.50 a barrel, and where it goes from there depends on the outcome of a meeting of OPEC oil ministers scheduled for Wednesday in Vienna.

Over the weekend, Saudi Arabia cancelled a meeting scheduled for Monday with Russia after the Saudis failed to reach an agreement with other OPEC members regarding a production cut. Hard words from some of the world's largest oil trading houses may have helped focus the cartel's attention on the importance of reaching an agreement to limit production.

ALSO READ: The Worst Companies to Work For

Torbjorn Tornqvist, CEO of Gunvor Group, told the Financial Times:

We think Opec will reach an agreement. However, if they walk away without a deal the market will punish that result possibly [by] $10 a barrel or more.

That is exactly what Saudi Arabia and the other OPEC members want to avoid, but they don't often act like it. The CEO of Italian oil major Eni's trading group said:

Recent Opec positions seem to indicate a serious attempt to restore co-ordination. [But] we expect some short-term turbulence in the oil market, especially in the case of no agreement."

ALSO READ: 5 Very Safe Dividend Stocks to Buy Now and Hold Forever

We've cited these sentences from before, but they bear repeating because this has been the crux of OPEC's internal divisions for decades:

In theory, the negotiations turn on mundane issues including claims for exemptions and the use of members' own production data versus estimates from "secondary sources" to establish baselines from which to cut.

In reality, the negotiations are about the profound issue of sharing out oil revenues and diplomatic, military and economic power, which is what makes progress so difficult.

WTI for December delivery traded up about 0.7% Monday morning at $46.38 a barrel, and Brent crude traded up about the same amount at $47.58 a barrel. Both spiked to about 35 cents more than that briefly. Volatility rules for the next couple of days, at least.

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Havana (AFP) - While Cuban-Americans partied in the streets of Miami after Fidel Castro died, dissidents in Cuba stayed home, fearing more repression though some hope his brother Raul will enact reforms.

The wild celebrations in Florida, where many Cubans have fled since the 1959 revolution, contrasted sharply with the subdued reaction of government critics who endured his iron-fisted rule on the island.

The Ladies in White movement called off a regular protest on Sunday "out of respect" for those who mourn Castro and to avoid being accused of committing acts of "provocation," said the group's leader, Berta Soler.

The group was founded in 2003 after Fidel Castro's regime imprisoned 75 dissidents who were the women's husbands or sons. While all have since been released, the group has marched almost every Sunday, dressed in white.

Fidel Castro already transferred power to his brother Raul after falling ill in 2006, and Soler predicts that the communist regime will not change with the death.

"It will be the same Cuba with one dictator instead of two. The dictator Fidel Castro died and the dictator Raul Castro remains," she said, adding that she expects the repression to "intensify."

Police officers who were posted, as usual, outside the group's headquarters left in the afternoon as it became clear no demonstration would take place, Soler said.

A picture of Castro featuring one of his speeches was placed across from their house about six months ago.

"It's to remind us that Fidel is present," Soler said, wearing a white shirt, white trousers and white shoes while fielding calls from journalists.

- Change thanks to Trump or Raul? -

Her husband, Angel Moya, is hoping that US President-elect Donald Trump will take a harder stance against the government than Barack Obama, who restored diplomatic relations with Raul Castro.

"We are hopeful that this new US administration will at least firmly condemn the Cuban government, condemn it for its repeated human rights violations," said Moya, 52, who served almost eight years in prison.

Story continues

Trump called Fidel Castro a "brutal dictator" after his death and his advisers said he would strike a "better deal" with Cuba, but his incoming administration has yet to indicate what it will do about the diplomatic detente.

But other dissidents see Fidel Castro's death as an opportunity for change on the island.

"Initially there will be more controls and repression, but eventually he or whoever succeeds him will have to start serious, deeper economic and political reforms," said Jose Daniel Ferrer, one of the 75 former prisoners. "I think it's a matter of time. How long? I think in one or two years"

Ferrer, who lives in Santiago de Cuba, said protests would not be held by dissidents in the eastern city, where Fidel Castro will be laid to rest next Sunday.

Raul Castro has implemented modest reforms that have slightly opened the government-controlled economy and in 2010 he released the last 52 of the 75 dissidents who had been jailed in 2003.

He has vowed to step down in 2018, but the one-party system has remained firmly in place.

Marta Beatriz Roque, one of the 75 people detained in 2003, said Fidel's passing could prompt Raul Castro to enact more changes.

"Raul has a freer hand to do things that he couldn't do before... out of respect for his brother," Roque said from her home in Havana, where a signed picture of former US president George W. Bush hung on a wall.

She was watching television in her home on Friday night when Raul Castro appeared to announce his brother's death.

"I am not happy about the death of anybody -- even if it was the devil," Roque said.
Photo credit: undefined

From Esquire

Fidel Castro-the infamous Cuban leader who reigned for nearly half a century, brought the Cold War to the West in 1959, and nearly pushed the world to nuclear war-has died at age 90 after several years of declining health. His death was announced via Cuban television.

As the New York Times notes, Castro was in power for longer than any other living national leader other than Queen Elizabeth II and became "a towering international figure whose importance in the 20th century far exceed what might have been expected from teh head of state of a Caribbean island nation of 11 million people."

However, in the midst of his continued efforts on his Communist revolution, he had to step aside to tend to his health in 2006, ceding the majority of his younger brother Raul (now 85) before formally resigning two years later.

Castro controlled every part of Cuba's existence, from the color of Cuban soldiers' uniforms to sending men to prison. Opinions of the power-wielding Cuban leader were split, with some viewing him as a ruthless tyrant and dictator; others, an impassioned, fiery revolutionist. President Obama's visit to Cuba in 2016 was the first by a sitting American president in almost a century, though Castro made his distrust of the United States evident all through his life. He became a symbol of defiance of American power and rebellion.

Exiles and their descendants reportedly took to the streets of Little Havana in Florida to celebrate Castro's death.

"I regret that this criminal never faced a tribunal for all the crimes he committed against his own people," Orlando Gutierrez, founder of the opposition Cuban Democratic Directorate in Miami said, according to the BBC. "This is a man who leaves a legacy of intolerance, of setting up a family-run dictatorship, which had no tolerance for anyone who thought differently, who set up a vicious totalitarian regime where people were persecuted for the most slight deviation from official ideology."

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Havana (AFP) - In hundreds of schools, hospitals and public buildings, Cubans signed a "solemn oath" on Monday to defend the revolution following the death of communist leader Fidel Castro.

Instead of leaving messages in books of condolence, Cubans were invited to endorse the "concept of the revolution" defined by Castro in a speech in 2000, six years before illness forced him to hand power to his brother, Raul.

"We will keep fighting for these ideas. We swear!" says the oath to which Cubans signed their names, three days after Castro died at age 90.

"The signature shows the desire of Cubans to make this socialist revolution irreversible," said retired lieutenant colonel Rigoberto Cerolio, 80, at a school in Havana.

While Cubans lined up to sign the oath across the island, hundreds of thousands flocked to Havana's Revolution Square to pay tribute to Castro at a memorial installed inside the monument to independence hero Jose Marti.

Leonardo Guijarro used his iPad to record the memorial, which consisted of white roses flanking a picture of a young, black-bearded Fidel in military fatigues during the guerrilla war.

Guijarro may have immortalized the moment with a modern gadget and worn Adidas sneakers, but the 22-year-old university history student shared the firm belief and desire of other Castro supporters that his revolution will live on after his death.

"Fidel has died but he is still with us," he said after he filed past Castro's picture.

"There's a Fidel in every Cuban citizen," said Guijarro, who like many recalled that Castro brought free education and health care to the island after ousting dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959.

- 'Like a father' -

Several generations of Cubans streamed past the memorial: stylish university students, veterans in military fatigues, boys and girls in school uniforms, couples pushing strollers, retirees consoling each other.

Story continues

While dissidents label Castro a dictator who jailed or forced detractors into exile, for "Fidelistas" he could do no wrong.

"He cared for Cubans like a father who cares for his children," said 52-year-old economist Norma Maria Diaz la Torre, whose husband wrapped his arm around her shoulder as she cried after viewing the portrait.

"Everything he did was for the good of the people," she said.

Her spouse, 58-year-old engineer Leonardo Sarria, said Castro's death will change nothing.

"If we give up one iota, we will no longer be Cuba," he said.

Luis Rene Allouis, a 22-year-old sociology student with a crow tattooed on his chest, said he was ready to defend the system against any coup attempt.

"I would take an AK-47 and go to the mountains, like Fidel," Allouis said, recalling Castro's guerrilla war against Batista's regime.

- 'Just struggle' -

Some from the older generation said Castro liberated Cuba from a terrible era under Batista.

"Abject poverty, lack of opportunities, prostitution: That was Cuba. It was a disastrous society," said Angel Ierselo, an 80-year-old writer.

"We are convinced that Fidel's struggle was a just one, incredibly just, and we will follow the same path," Ierselo said.

Augustin Fivale Hernandez, 80, and his wife, Elsy Vanela, held hands with teary eyes as they left the memorial.

Fivale said they were blue-collar workers before the revolution but "everything changed" after 1959.

He was a messenger in Cuban television and his salary went up.

"I was nobody. I knew nothing. With Fidel I was able to study. I retired as a unit boss in television," Fivale said.

Like the government, the couple blames the country's economic troubles on the decades-old US embargo.

"(Fidel) made so many great promises and fulfilled them. If he didn't fulfill them it was the blockade's fault," Vanela said.

- No mistakes -

While President Raul Castro has implemented modest economic reforms, Fidelistas see them as an extension of the revolution and are confident that he will continue his older brother's legacy.

"Raul doesn't have the same stature but he has learned. The other one (Fidel) was more energetic, he is smoother, but deep down they're the same," said Alicia Rodriguez, 66, a retiree who worked in the distribution of medicine.

Jose Carlos Perez, a 19-year-old studying to teach English, was disappointed that Castro did not lie in state or that the urn holding his ashes was not put on display.

"I wanted to see him because he is the country's most important figure," he said.

Among Fidelistas, nobody could name a single mistake by their icon.

Said 67-year-old retired seamstress Alba Rodrigo: "I don't think he has done anything bad."
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / CV Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: CVSI) a pharmaceutical development and health and well-being products company, announced today that it will be presenting at the 9th annual LD Micro Main Event on Tuesday, December 6 at 2PM PST / 5PM EST. Joseph Dowling, CFO of CV Sciences will be presenting, as well as meeting with investors.

"We are excited to discuss with investors the exciting growth opportunities CV Sciences is pursuing," said Mr. Dowling. "Our pharmaceutical development efforts with our lead product, CVSI-007, are encouraging and we look forward to providing an effective solution to treat the unserved multibillion dollar market for smokeless tobacco cessation," he added.

The LD Micro Main Event is the largest independent conference for small/microcap companies and will feature 240 presenting names.

View CV Sciences' profile here: http://www.ldmicro.com/profile/CVSI

News Compliments of Accesswire.

About CV Sciences, Inc.



CV Sciences, Inc. (CVSI) operates two distinct business segments: a drug development division focused on developing and commercializing novel therapeutics utilizing synthetic CBD; and, a consumer product division focused on manufacturing, marketing, and selling plant-based CBD products to a range of market sectors. CV Sciences, Inc. has primary offices and facilities in Las Vegas, Nevada, and San Diego, California. Additional information is available from OTCMarkets.com or by visiting www.cvsciences.com.

About LD Micro

LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into an event platform hosting several influential conferences annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event).

In 2015, LDM launched the first pure microcap index (the LDMi) to exclusively provide intraday information on the entire sector. LD will continue to provide valuable tools for the benefit of everyone in the small and microcap universe.



For those interested in attending, please contact David Scher at david@ldmicro.com or visit www.ldmicro.com/events for more information.

Story continues

Contact:

INVESTOR RELATIONS:

Robert Haag

IRTH Communications

1-866-976-4784

CVSI@irthcommunications.com

SOURCE: CV Sciences, Inc. via LD Micro
And here are the highlights of Singapore's first fintech festival.

Singapore charges three people following the alleged fraud which wiped $5.6b off the Singapore stock exchange. Malaysian John Soh Chee Wen and Singaporean Quah Su-Ling are accused of being the "masterminds" behind a plot that involved using over 180 trading accounts to inflate the share prices of three companies, authorities said. Get to know the full story here.

The city-state's sovereign wealth fund GIC appointed big data expert Michael Recce in the newly created role of chief data scientist last month to work in the GIC Data and Analytics Department. Recce, a former associate professor at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, is based in Singapore and is focusing on collecting publicly available data and analyzing them for patterns. Check out the full story here.

Startups and all things fintech were given a special week-long culmination as Singapore celebrates the first ever Singapore FinTech Festival. The festivals purpose was to bring the global financial community together in Singapore through a number of workshops, conferences, startup competitions and award ceremonies. Check out the highlights of the event here.





More From Singapore Business Review


It is hard to believe that almost sixteen months have passed since Jon Stewart gave up the anchor chair on The Daily Show in July 2015. (Hey, that's almost one month for each of the 16 1/2 years he was host). Fans missing that epic run of sharp-witted political humor can now relive the glory days in a new history of the show.

The Daily Show (The Book): An Oral History (Grand Central, Nov. 22) by Chris Smith, a contributing editor at New York, is a comprehensive telling of the story of the show from when Stewart took over in 1999 to the present in the style of other great TV oral histories like James Andrew Miller's Live From New York, about Saturday Night Live and Those Guys Have All the Fun, about ESPN.

Everybody talked - from producers to production assistants to the famous ex-correspondents (Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Samantha Bee). Stewart even contributed the introduction. But this isn't a sanitized history. There's plenty of warts and all (and some fun hijinks as well).

It's also a smart look at the business of TV and how 24-hour news channels and the rise of conservative media have changed our political culture. Indeed, The Daily Show (The Book) stands right alongside the other classics as one of the best books about TV to be published in 2016.

It's also really, really fun. Here's ten great tidbits from the book.

1. Craig Who?

This is about The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Craig Kilborn's two-year run from 1996 to when Stewart took over in January 1999 is almost totally absent from the book except as a counterpoint to the greatness of what came later (which is a shame because in its time Kilborn's version was well-liked by critics and fans) and to introduce writers and producers serve who hated Stewart and serve as the books's villains (besides the usual suspects like Roger Ailes, Jim Cramer, etc.)

2. Thank you Stone Phillips.

Pre-Colbert Report, Stephen Colbert based his early character on NBC host Stone Phillips. Explains early executive producer Madeleine Smithberg: "Stone Phillips deserves a "created by" credit. We studied his listening-face expressions, we studied the different ways he put his fist to his chin, we studied his self-aggrandizing the way he inserted himself into the story."

Story continues

3. Steve Carell's debut went badly. (Also he rides a motorcycle).

When Steve Carrell's first piece aired in 1999, the producers and production assistants in the control room were unimpressed. "All of us were saying, "Who is this guy? He's just like, fat Brian Unger," recalls then production assistant (and later executive producer) Rory Albanese. As an aside to this story, Carell's wife Nancy revealed that back in their Second City days in Chicago his transportation of choice was his motorcycle. Steve Carell doesn't really seem like a Harley kinda of a guy, does he?

4. Jon Stewart can be tough and ruthless.

One of the most surprising things in the book is how tough and ruthless Stewart could be in defense of the show. Nice guy Stewart being tough is a recurring theme. Two examples: When he first took over The Daily Show in 1999, Kilborn's writers hated him and told him he couldn't change their jokes anymore.

"After a weekend of pacing and smoking and having tremendous Lincoln-Douglas Debates on the couch by myself," Stewart recalls how he reacted: "I basically told them to f-- off. "You work for me. And if you don't like the direction, I get it. Don't work here."

A second story: Ben Karlin was one of Stewart's first hires in 1999 (as head writer) and later became executive producer. He was Stewart's his right hand man and his alter ego. By 2010, though, Karlin had gotten married and after a decade on the show was burned out. Colbert wanted him to come to The Colbert Report. Karlin, personally felt closer to Colbert as a friend. The end didn't go well. "Given the history of our relationship," recalls Karlin, I was kind of thinking that it would be something we would plot out over a period of several months. I remember Jon just saying, "No, I think its' better to just cut it clean." Cold.

5. Drugs at Saturday Night Live vs. drugs at The Daily Show.

Elliott Kalan, head writer: "Our work ethic and the SNL work ethic were very different. For a long time the SNL philosophy was, "People have to loosen up and get crazy and that's when the crazy ideas come out." Our feeling was, "It's so hard to make this show. Why would you we make it more difficult" by staying up late and doing drugs.

6. The Daily Show vs. Dateline.

Field producer Kahane Corn Cooperman's husband worked at Dateline from 1996 to 2005. When he left the show he told her, "When I first started at Dateline, we were the news and you guys were the jokes. And then by the time I left, you guys were the news and we were the joke."

7. Stephen Colbert's advice to other correspondents: "Check your soul at the door."

Rob Corddry and Ed Helms call it "invaluable" advice for doing the kind of field pieces the show was famous for. "When you're in the field you're in the character of a correspondent. You are going to suck them dry like a lamprey until you get everything you can out of this interview," explains Colbert. "That behavior has to be cold-blooded. What you're doing might get on you - the badness of what you are doing - and you don't want to get it on your soul."

8. John Oliver wears Men's Wearhouse.

Oliver thought his first day in July 2006 was going to be slow, so slow he hadn't even had his suits shipped yet, but at 9 a.m. on the first day he got an assignment (it was the day George Bush was caught on a hot mic saying "Yo Blair" British Prime Minister Ton Blair). He needed a suit. And quick. Rob Corddry told him to go to Men's Wearhouse. "It was trousers and a jacket that didn't match," he recalls.

9. Jon Stewart has no regrets about the infamous gutting of Crossfire or Jim Cramer.

Two of the most famous Daily Show-related segments were when Stewart went on CNN's Crossfire and ripped the show ("it's hurting America") and he took CNBC's Mad Money host Jim Cramer to task for offering bad stock advice before the 2008 recession. Stewart makes no apologies for either. "I thought there was something true and absolutely crucial about the conversation" with Cramer, he says. Adds writer Jason Ross, "If there's anything The Daily Show was an antidote to, it was the culture of talking on TV without any accountability."

10. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert almost left in 2012.

Stewart was negotiating a new contract in 2012. He wanted time to make a movie [Rosewater]. The negotiations were going fine until Viacom chairman Phillippe Dauman got involved. First, he took a hardline over money with Colbert, who was also negotiating a new deal, so Colbert and Stewart decided to negotiate in concert. Dauman didn't want Stewart to do the movie. Stewart quit. Colbert was ready to go with him. After a tense weekend, Dauman caved (pretending it was other executives who had taken a hardline). But one interesting tidbit: Colbert says he was ready to sign for four years (through the 2016 election) but at the last minute Viacom wanted only two. Colbert called the decision "head scratchy" but he signed. It turned out to be fortuitous. "Thank god they said no to four years," he recalls, "if they had taken our offer, I would not have been available to over for Dave."
London (AFP) - Riders for the British food courier service Deliveroo are taking legal action on Monday to demand workers' rights in a new challenge to the so-called gig economy.

In a test case that follows a court victory by Uber cab drivers, the application is being made by the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain on behalf of a group of riders in Camden, north London.

Deliveroo pays the riders either by the hour or per delivery and they are currently classified as independent contractors, meaning that they do not have rights such as the minimum wage or paid holidays.

IWGB is making the case to the Central Arbitration Committee, a labour law watchdog, in an attempt to establish collective bargaining rights for the turquoise-and-grey clad "Roomen" and "Roowomen".

"It will be the first collective bargaining agreement in the gig economy," Jason Moyer-Lee, the union's general secretary, told AFP at a meeting earlier this month to encourage some of the company's estimated 8,000 riders in Britain to sign up to the campaign.

If the case for the Camden riders is successful the decision could be applied to other parts of the city.

"With today's application the IWGB is striking once again at the exploitative underpinnings of the so-called gig economy. People want basic employment rights," he said in a statement on Monday.

But the company earlier this month said that the union was not representative of the views of the "vast majority" of its riders across the country and would not accept their application for union rights.

"Deliveroo is proud to be able to offer flexible, well-paid work that fits around riders' other commitments," the company said.

- Uber case leads the way -

Since its London launch in 2013, Deliveroo has expanded into 68 cities across Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East.

Its model is simple. It partners with restaurants that do not have delivery services, charges the customer a 2.50 delivery charge and takes a commission fee from the restaurant.

Story continues

In August, it secured $275 million in funding to boost its growth internationally, in a deal that valued the company at more than $1 billion.

"We want to be recognised as workers, so we have rights such as the national minimum wage, the right to protection against discrimination, and paid holiday," said Billy Shannon, an 18-year-old rider in Camden who is taking part in the campaign.

"I feel like I am being exploited by Deliveroo," said Shannon, who earns 3.75 per delivery.

The move follows a similar landmark case brought by Uber drivers.

A British employment court last month ruled that Uber drivers were not self-employed and should therefore be paid the national living wage. Uber is appealing the ruling.

"The tribunal decision holding that Uber drivers are, in law, 'workers' is very important," said John Hendy, a senior lawyer representing IWGB.

"But those working in the gig economy will never see a significant improvement to their terms and conditions without being represented by a union in collective bargaining," he said.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Delta Air Lines said on Monday it was banning a disruptive supporter of Donald Trump from all future flights after a video showed the passenger going on an expletive-filled rant in support of the President-elect.

The video posted on Facebook by another passenger showed the disruptive passenger standing in the aisle of a flight from Atlanta to Allentown, Pennsylvania, yelling and insulting fellow passengers who were supporters of presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

Delta on Saturday apologized for the incident and said the passenger should not have been allowed to continue on the flight.

Delta Chief Executive Ed Bastian on Monday said that had staff witnessed firsthand what was shown in the video, there is no question the passenger would have been removed from the aircraft.

"He will never again be allowed on a Delta plane," Bastian said in an internal memo to employees posted on Delta's website.

The incident occurred several minutes into the flight, the passenger who posted the video told The Morning Call, an Allentown newspaper.

Delta is refunding passengers aboard the flight the cost of their tickets, Bastian said.

"The heightened tension in our society means that now more than ever we must require civility on our planes and in our facilities," Bastian said.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Andrew Hay)
Delta CEO Ed Bastian

Delta Air Lines has barred a passenger who went on an expletive-laced rant in support of President-elect Donald Trump on Flight 248 from Atlanta to Allentown, Pennsylvania, on November 22.

"This individual displayed behavior that was loud, rude and disrespectful to his fellow customers," Delta CEO Ed Bastian wrote in a memo to employees. "He will never again be allowed on a Delta plane."

In addition, Bastian said Delta will refund the tickets for passengers on the flight.

A video of the incident, which shows a passenger standing in the aisle of the aircraft hurling expletives at his fellow passengers, has been making its way around the internet over the past few days.

Delta was criticized in the immediate aftermath of the incident for failing to remove the disruptive passenger from the flight.

However, Delta later issued an apology:

"We are sorry to our customers who experienced this disruption. We have followed up with the teams involved and all agree that this customer should not have been allowed to continue on the flight. Our responsibility for ensuring all customers feel safe and comfortable with Delta includes requiring civil behavior from everyone. The behavior we see in this video does not square with our training or culture and follow up will continue so we can better ensure our employees will know they will be fully supported to make the right decisions when these issues arise."

In the memo, Bastian agreed that the passenger should have been removed from the flight.

"After questioning the customer, our team members made the best decision they could given the information they had and allowed him to remain on the flight. However, if our colleagues had witnessed firsthand what was shown in the video, there is no question they would have removed him from the aircraft."

Delta Air Lines declined to comment when asked by Business Insider whether barring the passenger was an overreaction to the incident.

Story continues

Here's Delta CEO Ed Bastian's memo:

Thank you for the amazing job you did running our operation and taking care of our customers during the busy Thanksgiving holiday. At Delta, we strive to deliver a safe and reliable product while providing a customer experience that is second to none. You come to work every day prepared to serve our customers and to take care of each other while also dealing with the unexpected.

As you may have heard by now, last week a video began circulating around the internet showing a disruptive passenger on board a Delta flight. This individual displayed behavior that was loud, rude and disrespectful to his fellow customers. After questioning the customer, our team members made the best decision they could given the information they had and allowed him to remain on the flight. However, if our colleagues had witnessed firsthand what was shown in the video, there is no question they would have removed him from the aircraft. He will never again be allowed on a Delta plane.

Part of being a reliable travel partner and a servant leader is acknowledging our mistakes so we can learn from them and respond more effectively in the future. Delta has apologized to the customers onboard that flight. We are also refunding those customers the cost of their tickets.

I also want to make sure all of you know we have your backs. The heightened tension in our society means that now more than ever we must require civility on our planes and in our facilities. We must stay true to Delta's core values and treat one another with dignity and respect. We also must remain committed more than ever to the safety of our customers and our crew members. We will not tolerate anything less.

Again, thank you for all you do.

Ed

NOW WATCH: Delta Air Lines just announced a brand new class for the frugal business flyer





More From Business Insider


VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Diamond Fields International Ltd. (DFI.V) ("DFI" or the "Company"), announces that offshore marine bulk sampling operations conducted by International Mining and Dredging Holding (Pty) Limited ("IMDH") recovered 26,965.45 carats from its ML 111 concession.

The diamonds were recovered during 62 days of bulk sampling with, respectively, mv Ya Toivo on the water engaging in exploratory trenching activities over the period of July 10 to September 10, 2016, and the mv Explorer executing vertical drill sampling operations over the period from July 21 to August 18, 2016, with the mv DP Star also assisting in support activities.

The diamonds were exported to Antwerp and, after minor losses from check-weigh reconciliation and cleaning, 26,912.20 carats were rendered available for sale. Of the diamonds made available for sale, 8,975 carats have been sealed in Antwerp for future sale. The remaining 17,936.52 carats were sold at a reported sales value of US$4,731,348.17 or $263.78 per carat.

DFI is presently in discussions with IMDH with respect to various commercial matters arising from the IMDH shipping and mining contract, including the foregoing lots and auction process, and will update the market when possible.

DIAMOND FIELDS INTERNATIONAL LTD.

SIGNED: "Sybrand van der Spuy"

Sybrand van der Spuy, CEO and Director

Contact: Earl Young at +1 214 566 3709

Website: www.diamondfields.com

The Company's public documents may be accessed at www.sedar.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements:

Statements in this release that are forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties concerning the specific factors identified in Diamond Fields' periodic filings with Canadian Securities Regulators. Such forward-looking information represents management's best judgment based on information currently available. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Diamond Fields does not assume the obligation to update any forward-looking statement.

SOURCE: Diamond Fields International Ltd.
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Digital Ally, Inc. (DGLY) ("Digital" or the "Company"), which develops, manufactures, and markets advanced video surveillance products for law enforcement, homeland security, and commercial applications, today announced that it will be presenting at the 9th annual LD Micro Main Event on Tuesday, December 6 at 2:30 PM EST at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles, CA. Stanton E. Ross, Chief Executive Officer, and Tom Heckman, Chief Financial Officer, will be presenting, as well as meeting with investors.

The LD Micro Main Event is the largest independent conference for small/microcap companies and will feature 240 presenting names.

View Digital Ally, Inc.'s profile here: http://www.ldmicro.com/profile/DGLY

News Compliments of Accesswire.

About Digital Ally, Inc.

Digital Ally is a leading global designer, manufacturer, and innovator in the growing field of digital technology. Digital Ally is the only company serving the military, law enforcement, fire, emergency medical services, and the commercial fleet industries that is capable of providing the complete end-to-end hardware and software solution. The company's product lines include in-car audio/video recording equipment, body-worn cameras, cloud and local server software and storage solutions. Digital Ally products are sold by domestic direct sales representatives and international distributors worldwide. Digital Ally is headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas. For news and information please visit www.digitalallyinc.com or follow us on Twitter @digitalallyinc and Facebook www.facebook.com/DigitalAllyInc.

About LD Micro

LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into an event platform hosting several influential conferences annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event).

In 2015, LDM launched the first pure microcap index (the LDMi) to exclusively provide intraday information on the entire sector. LD will continue to provide valuable tools for the benefit of everyone in the small and microcap universe.

Story continues

For those interested in attending, please contact David Scher at david@ldmicro.com or visit www.ldmicro.com/events for more information.

Contact:

Name: Dan Reynolds

Phone:913-814-7774

Email: dan.reynolds@digitalallyinc.com

SOURCE: Digital Ally via LD Micro
By Devidutta Tripathy and Manoj Kumar MUMBAI/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Digital payment providers in India have mobilised hundreds of extra workers to enrol small merchants and offered their services for free, betting that severe cash shortages will prove to be the opportunity of a lifetime. Signing people up, however, may be the easy part. Getting shops and customers to change their reliance on cash permanently will involve convincing people like Mohammad Javed, a 36-year-old meat shop owner in New Delhi. Working out of a bustling market in the capital, he is surrounded by banks and ATM machines, but says he does not know how to use a credit card machine, let alone a mobile wallet. He says business has dropped since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's shock move on Nov. 8 to ditch higher value banknotes, but Javed does not believe mobile app providers offer a solution to his problem - or to his customers. "We don't have knowledge or resources to open a mobile wallet or card-swipe machine, and our customers who pay 100-200 rupees ($1.46-$2.92) are not interested either," he said. Javed's reluctance is a reality check for the likes of Paytm and smaller rival MobiKwik, which have gone into promotional overdrive since Modi's announcement. The prime minister, whose government supports digital payments, brought in demonetisation to crack down on the shadow economy and improve tax collection. "Why should India not make a beginning in creating a 'less-cash society?'," he said on Sunday, "Once we embark on our journey to create a 'less-cash society', the goal of 'cashless society' will not remain very far." PROMISING SIGNS The companies say results have been promising so far. Paytm, backed by Chinese Internet giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd , has added 700 sales representatives since Nov. 8, taking its number of agents to 5,000. The company, which has 4,500 full-time employees, plans to double the number of agents to more than 10,000, as it aggressively expands its network. It says it has nearly doubled the number of small merchants signed up to its services to 1.5 million in the last few weeks and added eight million clients to the 150 million it had before the banknote ban. MobiKwik, whose backers include U.S. venture capital firm Sequoia Capital and American Express , said it had increased its agent base to more than 10,000 from about 1,000 before the Modi move. Merchants on its platform have risen to 250,000 from 150,000 previously, and chief executive Bipin Preet Singh said they were aiming for a million in up to two months. It has added 5 million accounts since Nov. 8, bringing the total to 40 million. But challenges loom. Credit Suisse estimates more than 90 percent of consumer purchases are made in cash, as millions still do not have bank accounts. Those who do have bank cards mainly use them to withdraw from cash machines. Sales of cheap smartphones have boomed in recent years, but internet networks remain patchy, especially in rural India. Financial literacy and technology usage also remain low. Dillip Kumar Agrahari, a vegetable seller in a Mumbai suburb, recently signed up to Paytm but does not know how to operate a smartphone. He hopes switching to digital payments will improve his business as the cash crunch drags on, but says he will have to depend on a cousin to help with accounts. Many businesses have traditionally opted for cash transactions because they are hard for the tax man to trace, given sales taxes are typically at least 10 percent. Mangal Singh, a furniture store owner, said nearly 80 percent of his business was transacted in cash, even though he accepts credit card payments. "We are working on wafer-thin margins," he said. "If we are asked to pay 12.5 percent tax and other charges, we will have to close down our shops." Concerns also remain about the infrastructure for mobile payments, as customers or merchants from one platform cannot transfer payments to another. MobiKwik said it had started offering wallet-to-wallet transfers, though not all rivals were on board. WHEN WILL PROFITS COME? The challenges raise questions about whether the business models of mobile payments providers are sustainable. Paytm recently slashed fees until Dec. 31, from a system of fees that ranged from 1 to 4 percent, with the most lucrative coming from telephone and utility bill payments. MobiKwik is not charging fees until March 2017. The closely-held companies are loss-making. Paytm Chief Executive Vijay Shekhar Sharma said the company expected to reach profitability in two years, without giving details. MobiKwik's co-founder Upasana Taku said they hoped to become profitable in mid-2018. Fitch Ratings believes that once the cash crunch subsides, some merchants and customers will go back to business as usual, using notes to pay for transactions. "I would expect some amount of behavioural changes," said Fitch analyst Saswata Guha. "We're still not sure if this shock per se is incentive enough for them to completely change the way they do things." ($1 = 68.1384 Indian rupees) (Additional reporting by Sudarshan Varadhan; Editing by Rafael Nam and Mike Collett-White)
The Discovery-owned American Heroes Channel is bringing the Civil War from 2D to 360 degrees with a virtual reality experience.

The cable network's short VR segment Civil War: Letter From the Trenches, from Cream 360 and Discovery VR, is a companion piece to Blood and Fury: America's Civil War, a TV series set to debut Dec. 14 and transport viewers to tumultuous battles like Bull Run, Fredericksburg and Gettsyburg from a soldier's point of view.

Set in 1865, Letter From the Trenches tells the story of a Confederate cadet dodging enemy fire on a muddy battlefield and uses a host of immersive sight and sound techniques to go beyond the surround sound experience you get at the local multiplex.

For example, The VR segment brings viewers into the cadet's perspective by custom-rigging Go Pro cameras in production with Entaniya fish-eye lenses so viewers experience bullets whizzing by their ears and explosions lighting up the battlefield.

But Cream Productions' co-founder and CEO David Brady told The Hollywood Reporter convincing 3D audio was required to complement the visuals to ensure the VR experience is truly immersive. So Cream added more gunfire and explosions during production of the TV series to ensure war sounds reverberate around the battlefield when viewed via a VR headset.

And they mixed in spatial audio in postproduction so viewers can sense, for example, where battlefield fire is coming from, and where it needs to be returned. Brady said the enhanced visuals and audio should have viewers turning and looking to see the directional source of dialogue, bullets and explosions, including from cannonballs streaking across the sky.

"Above you there's cannonball contrails, and those are spatially directed so you can follow with your eyes as your ears tell you where they are going," Brady explained.

"The effect is to hopefully make the viewer turn their heads to see all of this," he added.

The VR experience from American Heroes Channel is available on DiscoveryVR.com, or via the Discovery VR apps for IOS, Android and Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Samsung Gear VR, powered by Oculus.

Read more: Military Channel to Rebrand as American Heroes Channel
Photo credit: undefined

From ELLE

Donald Trump, the president-elect who sailed into office not on the tides of a democratic process but on the back of the Electoral College, is now falsely claiming that he won the popular vote, too. But only if you "deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally - Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 27, 2016

Unlike CBS, which struggled to formulate a coherent headline in these difficult times, let's be very clear: This is a lie. Hillary Clinton is currently up in the popular vote by over two million votes. There is no evidence of the kind of widespread voter fraud that Trump is referring to.

How a news organization should not frame Trump's completely bogus claim in headline. https://t.co/9M2PL0jz19 - Michael Calderone (@mlcalderone) November 27, 2016

As ProPublica, a non-profit news organization, rehashed on Twitter over the weekend, it dispatched over 1,000 people to monitor the vote on Election Day. "We saw no evidence the election was 'rigged' no matter what Stein or Trump say," it tweeted. ProPublica said it solicited tips from 400 journalists and 120,000 citizens nationwide. It had 600 people watch social media for reports of voter fraud and had experts on hand to analyze the endless stream of results. Based on all that, "[w]e saw plenty of problems: Long lines, broken voting machines, incorrect poll books, confusion [about] voter ID laws." But, it added, "we saw no reason to doubt the results."

But we saw no reason to doubt the results. There  was  no  widespread  voter  fraud. /6 https://t.co/ulzmUb9onU - ProPublica (@ProPublica) November 27, 2016

There are plenty of problems with our elections that need addressing. Disproving conspiracy theories shouldnt become one of them. 15/15 - ProPublica (@ProPublica) November 27, 2016

It seems our very sensitive president-elect has been in a tizzy ever since Green Party candidate Jill Stein stepped forward last week to fund a recount of the results in three key swing states. Over the weekend, the Hillary Clinton campaign announced it would back her effort. And so while you were trying to eat away the pain of this election season over Thanksgiving, Trump went on the offensive and let loose a stream of tweets to criticize the Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton, especially, for not accepting the results of the race.

So what gives? Is this some bruised-ego-induced rant? Is it proof of a rather dictatorial taste for sowing confusion and mistrust in our democracy? Is it an attempt to distract us all from this deeply reported and terrifying New York Times story about his many conflicts of interest around the world? Or, is it all that and simply, horrifyingly, this?

Don't get distracted by Trump's tweets. Do get ready for a big federal push to make it harder for people to vote. - Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) November 27, 2016

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President-elect Donald Trump threatened Monday to distance the U.S. from Cuba if the Cuban government refuses to make a better deal than the agreement President Obama struck to normalize relations between the countries. His comments put the future of the relationship in doubt just days after the death of longtime Cuban strongman Fidel Castro.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal, Trump said on Twitter.

Obama worked to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba late into his term in office. Under the new terms, Americans can travel freely to Cuba and bring some Cuban goods to the U.S. However, aides to Trump have hinted there could be a reversal of that policy.

Theres going to have to be some movement from Cuba in order to have a relationship with the United States, Reince Priebus, Trumps incoming White House Chief of Staff, said on Fox News Sunday. He cited freeing political prisoners and ensuring religious and political freedom as important steps. Weve got to have a better deal, he said.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Monday that the death of Fidel Castro will not impact the efforts to normalize relations between the two nations.

I wouldnt expect any impact on the kind of progress that were committed to making on our end to begin normalizing relations with Cuba, Earnest said.




President-elect Donald Trump departing his estate in Palm Beach, Fla., on Nov. 27. (Photo: Reuters/Joe SkipperRTSTKVJ)

Donald Trump debuted a new hat to help cement his status as the president-elect of the United States and show he is confident in his future title after slamming election recount reports on Friday.

Swapping out his campaigns signature Make America Great Again hat, Trump sported a red cap with USA printed on the front and the number 45 on the side  presumably a nod to his future status as 45th president of the United States  while leaving Palm Beach, Fla., on Sunday.

Throughout Trumps campaign, the MAGA slogan was prominently featured on a majority of supporter merchandise that flew off shelves nationwide, including the popular $25 cap, which is available in red, white, and camouflage. Following the Republican candidates win on Nov. 8, the MAGA hat reportedly sold out instantly, but it has since restocked.

Donald Trump wearing his signature MAGA hat at a campaign rally in Alabama last year. (Photo: Getty Images)

The USA hat is not yet available on Trumps official campaign website, but, if added, it would likely sell out as fast as the MAGA cap. Trump will be officially sworn into office as the nations 45th president on Inauguration Day on Friday, Jan. 20.





Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f299011%2f07c0be3e3d0f4109bdd83901ec751084

Just in: Donald Trump has a new hat.

With great power, comes great fashion responsibility  thus, the president-elect, known for sporting large red caps featuring his campaign slogan: "Make America Great Again," decided to switch things up before he takes office.

Though Trump's new bright red cap delivers a shorter message, it still includes his beloved massive lettering and a patriotic feel.

SEE ALSO: Donald Trump is selling a $150 Christmas ornament

According to the New York Post, Trump debuted his presidential hat, which simply says, "USA," outside Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida on Sunday afternoon.

Trump was also sure to personalize his headgear by having the number 45 stitched on the right side, to likely remind the world he is to become the country's 45th president.

Smooth.

Overall, the people on Twitter were torn over the fashion choice. Some were pro-USA hat, and even hope to add it to their Christmas lists...

@MadWorldNews I want A new Trump hat! It is magnificent #Trump45 USA  pam enns (@usaforamericans) November 28, 2016

Nice hat Donald! Trump unveils new cap with an embroidered number to remind everyone hes about to become Americas 45th president   Shona  Trump (@ShonaLovesTrump) November 28, 2016

But others were definitely not feeling it...

Story continues

Trump is out here wearing a hat that says USA on the front, and 45th on the side lmao. He's such a asshole  Cameron Granger (@OhhSolo_) November 28, 2016

Trump's new presidential hat is exactly like the old one, it's red, it says 'USA' and exists so that his weave won't get blown off outdoors  Will  Menaker (@willmenaker) November 28, 2016

In case you need a refresher, here's Trump's original statement-making hat that started it all:

Image: AP PHOTO/JAE C. HONG

Now we shall sit back and wait to see if he'll sell a $150 "USA" hat ornament before the holidays.

BONUS: Trump is president, but at least you can get high in four more states
From December 2, Dubai will begin its transformation into an outdoor art museum with the launch of the "Dubai Street Museum" project in the Satwa district.

Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has given the official go-ahead, Emirates News Agency reported, for a public art project that "seeks to highlight Dubai's unique identity, values and aspirations."

Phase 1: 2nd of December Street

A five-year project, the first stage of the initiative will see 16 local and international artists create murals along the Satwa district's 2nd of December Street, previously known as Al Diyafah Street and renamed in 2011 to mark the 40th National Day of the United Arab Emirates.

Artists whose work is already starting to appear on buildings, according to local media What's On, include Emirati artist Ashwaq Abdulla, who was commissioned earlier this year to produce seven sculptures -- one for each of the emirates -- for the Four Seasons Abu Dhabi hotel. The experimental, multidisciplinary Lithuanian artist Ernest "Zach" Zacharevic is also adding his own touch to the street. A selection of art students from UAE universities will be invited to contribute to the project alongside more internationally-recognized names, yet to be announced.

Next steps

Dubai's inland exclave of Hatta will also be one of the key locations of the Dubai Street Museum project. The Dubai media office recently announced the region will undergo an AED1.3 billion tourism plan to "boost the area's social and economic attractiveness as a world-class environmental tourist destination." Other areas where the Dubai Street Museum will be implemented have been chosen due to their high populations and tourism potential to ensure maximum exposure for the artworks.

The Dubai Street Museum is being run by Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the country's media office, in partnership with Dubai Municipality.
The white supremacist accused of shooting nine African-American parishioners at a historically black church in South Carolina will act as his own attorney in federal court, defying the recommended practice of relying on counsel.

U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel reluctantly granted accused gunman Dylann Roofs request Monday morning. Many people were surprised that he (or anyone) would choose to go it alone in a death penalty trial.

Richard J. Bonnie, a professor of law at the University of Virginia, said the Supreme Court acknowledged that in most cases it wont be in the best legal interests of clients to represent themselves, particularly given the lack of familiarity with legal procedures and the nature of their rights.

In a capital case, you cannot imagine the stakes being higher or the risks being greater, Bonnie told Yahoo News, referring to cases in which there is a potential death penalty. In general, this does not happen very often in the criminal process at all and certainly only a small percentage of capital cases.

But there are two distinct reasons defendants in federal cases have the right to represent themselves, and a slew of reasons as to why they might do so.

Fred Smith, a visiting professor of law at Emory University, cited the Judiciary Act of 1789, which expressly allows people to represent themselves in federal criminal cases.

A white supremacist gunman kills nine black churchgoers during a Bible study session at a historic, predominantly black church in Charleston, S.C. (Photo: Jason Miczek/Reuters)

At the time the law was passed it wasnt particularly shocking because this practice was widely available in the colonies prior to the American Revolution, Smith told Yahoo News. It was available for most crimes in British tradition as well.

Smith, who specializes in federal judiciary and constitutional law, said Roof also has a constitutional right to represent himself. In 1975, during the case Faretta v. California, the Supreme Court ruled that under the Sixth Amendment, people have the right to self-representation regardless of whether they are in federal or state court.

Story continues

According to Smith, the right was widely available at the United States founding and it was present in a lot of state colonies as well. Another argument, he continued, is that implicit in the right to counsel is surely the right to not have counsel. In other words, if you have a positive right (such as the freedom to speak as guaranteed by the First Amendment), then you also have a negative right (freedom not to speak, guaranteed by the same amendment).

Really, one way of framing the question is, Does someone have a constitutional right not to have a lawyer who they dont want forced upon them during a criminal trial? Smith said. When you frame it like that, the rationale starts to make sense.

Authorities said that Roof spouted off racist epithets at the six women and three men he killed at Charlestons Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in June 2016. Three people survived the attack.

Federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Roof has pleaded not guilty and will now have to personally make that case to jurors.

What is often the case when a client decides to represent himself is that what preceded it was tension or disagreement between the attorney and the client about how to defend the case, Bonnie said.

In 2008s Indiana v. Edwards, the Supreme Court ruled that just because defendants are competent enough to stand trial when represented by counsel does not mean they are competent enough to represent themselves.

On Friday, Judge Gergel ruled that Roof, 22, was competent to stand trial following a 16-hour hearing behind closed doors earlier in the week. Bonnie said it seems likely, in light of the courts ruling Monday, that one of the reasons  and perhaps the main reason  the competence evaluation was conducted was to determine whether he could make the decision to represent himself.

Colin Miller, a professor of law at the University of South Carolina, said its exceedingly rare, especially in murder cases, for defendants to represent themselves.

My guess might be that by representing himself, the jury might get to see more of him as a person and might, therefore, empathize with him and spare him the death penalty, Miller said to Yahoo News.

Roofs attorneys, including his previous lead counsel, David Bruck, will now serve as stand-by counsel. They will be able to assist Roof and take over the defense if the defendant realizes that hes in over his head.

Miller also said that this opens up the possibility of an appeal if Roof is convicted.

You could imagine a case where Dylann Roof is convicted and he says, Even though I asked to represent myself, I wasnt competent to represent myself, Miller said. The judge shouldve denied my motion, and therefore I deserve a new trial with competent counsel.
Eddie Murphy attends the 20th Annual Hollywood Film Awards on Nov. 6, 2016, in Beverly Hills, Calif. (Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, in which Captain Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the Starship Enterprise crew travel back in time to the present  circa 1986  to collect two humpback whales, which are key to helping them solve an alien crisis in the 23rd century. Despite having arguably the silliest premise in the history of the Star Trek franchise, The Voyage Home was  until J.J. Abrams 2009 reboot  the most profitable movie in the series. It might have been even more of a cash cow, if a certain A-lister had  as initially planned  taken part in its eco-conscious action.

Related: President Obama Picks His Sci-Fi Favorites, Talks Love of Star Trek

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, screenwriter Steve Meerson adds his take on a story thats circulated before about a Star Trek IV role for Eddie Murphy in his and co-writer Peter Krikes original treatment, which had a role for the Beverly Hills Cop star as a Berkeley astrophysicist who assists Kirk and Spock in their mission. As Meerson tells it:

It was always the same story that got approved, but the original draft included a part for Eddie Murphy, Eddie was on the lot at Paramount at the time and arguably was the biggest star in the world. They had told us he was a huge Star Trek fan.

Related: William Shatner Credits Star Wars for Star Trek Revival

When Murphys deal eventually fell through, the script was rewritten to feature Catherine Hicks Dr. Gillian Taylor, who eventually served as Kirks de facto love interest in the sequel. As such, Murphy never got a chance to strut his stuff in a genuine sci-fi venture  unless, of course, you count 2002s The Adventures of Pluto Nash. And, well, the less said about that one, the better.

William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, 1986. (Photo: Paramount/ Everett Collection)

To read about Murphys fleeting involvement in Star Trek IV, as well as the debate over who deserved writing credit for its finished script, check out the full THR article.

Eddie Murphy had the best response to the movies that make him cry:
Egypt denied media reports that alleged the presence of its military units in Syria. The countrys foreign ministry said Sunday Egypt does not intervene in the internal affairs of other countries.

These claims only exist in the imagination of those who promote them, the ministry reportedly said in a statement, adding that such an intervention would require public legal measures.

The statement did not refer to any specific media outlets behind the claims but most reports cited As-Safir, a Lebanese daily which reported last week that Cairo sent a military unit of 18 pilots to an air base in the west-central Syrian city of Hama earlier in November. The report was based on well-informed Arab sources who said the unit was joined by four senior military officials upon arrival.

Citing sources close to the operation, As-Safir reported Cairo will deploy a large contingent of troops to Syria in late January 2017 to participate in operations not limited to air support at Hama airbase.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said last week he supported the Syrian military.

Our priority is to support national armies, for example in Libya to assert control over Libyan territories and deal with extremist elements. The same with Syria and Iraq, he reportedly said in an interview with Portuguese broadcaster RTP. Our stance in Egypt is to respect the will of the Syrian people, and that a political solution to the Syrian crisis is the most suitable way, and to seriously deal with terrorist groups and disarm them, the former army chief added.

Related Articles
TUNIS (Reuters) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to grant loans to Tunisia worth 400 million euros for youth and infrastructure projects, the Tunis government said on Monday. The deal will be signed during an international investment conference in Tunis on Tuesday, the prime minister's office said in a statement. It quoted EIB President Werner Hoyer as saying the money would be provided for projects targeting youth, children, and schools, as well as a bridge project in the northern city of Bizerte. The projects will have an "immediate impact", it said. The statement added that the EIB had made a commitment to provide a total of 2.5 billion euros worth of funding to the North African country, without giving details. Tunisia's economy has been hit by social unrest and militant attacks following a 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, leaving many young people frustrated at a lack of economic opportunities. Earlier on Monday, Tunisia's government said it was planning to issue a Eurobond worth 1 billion euros in January as it seeks funding to cover its deficit. (Reporting by Tarek Amara; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Catherine Evans)
Eight Indonesians were sentenced to between 15 and 18 years in prison by a Malaysian court for the hijacking of an oil tanker last year, an official said Monday.

The tanker MT Orkim Harmony was carrying around 6,000 tonnes of petrol worth an estimated $5.6 million when it was commandeered by the eight men on June 11 last year.

The tanker was en route from Malaysia's western coast to the port of Kuantan on the east coast.

Six of the pirates were sentenced to 15 years in jail and five strokes of the cane, while the other two were handed 18-year jail sentences, a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency official told AFP.

He said that the Indonesians pleaded guilty after they were charged on Sunday in the southern state of Johor, neighbouring Singapore.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Center, said the shipping community hailed the punishment.

"We welcome the tough punishment. It will send a strong signal to potential pirates that crime does not pay," he told AFP.

The eight suspects had eluded security forces by escaping from the tanker on a lifeboat under cover of darkness, Malaysian authorities said at the time, after warships were scrambled to hunt down the men.

The tanker's 22 crew members were mostly unscathed except for an Indonesian sailor who was treated for a gunshot wound to the thigh.

The hijackers subsequently washed up on Vietnam's southwestern Tho Chu island on a lifeboat claiming to have had an accident at sea about a week after the hijack.

But they were taken into custody after local officials discovered they were carrying large sums of cash, and were accused of hijacking the MT Orkim Harmony oil tanker.

The Indonesians pirates were extradited to Malaysia early Sunday after being held by Vietnamese authorities for almost 18 months.
(Reuters) - Activist investor Elliott Management disclosed a stake of more than 4 percent in Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH.O) and urged the IT services provider in a letter to consider shaking up its board as one of several steps to boost shareholder value.

Cognizant said it had an "introductory discussion" with Elliott after receiving the letter on Monday morning.

"The company intends to review the letter carefully and will respond in due course," Cognizant said.

Shares of Cognizant, which disclosed in September that it was investigating possible violations of U.S. anti-corruption laws, were up 7 percent at $56.95 in late afternoon trading. Up to Friday's close, the stock had fallen 11 percent this year.

"We believe that Cognizant can achieve a value of $80$90+ per share by the end of 2017, representing upside of 50-69 percent in just over a year," Elliott Senior Portfolio Manager Jesse Cohn said in the letter to Cognizant's board.

Elliott has led several successful campaigns to squeeze value out of companies it considers to be undervalued.

Qlik Technologies, Riverbed, Informatica and Compuware sold themselves to private equity firms after Elliott invested.

Elliott said Teaneck, New Jersey-based Cognizant should consider a $2.5 billion share buyback, acquisitions and initiate a dividend, among other measures to boost its shares.

The hedge fund also sought changes to Cognizant's board, saying that more than half of the company's directors had been in their position for at least nine years.

"... Given the sustained share price underperformance at Cognizant, we believe directors with new experiences, skills and perspectives would be welcome," Elliott said.

The hedge fund had succeeded in pushing U.S. identity theft protection services company LifeLock Inc (LOCK.N) to sell itself. Antivirus software maker Symantec Corp (SYMC.O) said last week that it would buy LifeLock for $2.3 billion.

Mentor Graphics Corp (MENT.O), which recently agreed to be bought by German engineering group Siemens AG (SIEGn.DE), was also under pressure from Elliott after the fund reported an 8.1 percent stake in Mentor in September and said its shares were deeply undervalued.

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Cognizant said earlier this month that some senior managers may have participated in or failed to take action to prevent making "potentially improper payments".

The disclosure hit the company's shares but they have since recouped most of the losses.

(Reporting by Laharee Chatterjee and Rishika Sadam in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Ted Kerr and Maju Samuel)
(Adds union statement, share performance)

SAO PAULO, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Embraer SA said on Monday that unions for workers at most Brazil-based operations approved collective bargaining agreements providing for an average 5 percent pay raise next year, with the exception of one metalworkers union at the aircraft maker's largest factory.

Embraer said unions in the southeastern Brazilian cities of Botucatu, Gaviao Peixoto, Sao Paulo, Sorocaba and Taubate had agreed to the deal granting a one-time fixed bonus of 4,000 reais ($1,175) per worker and a 5 percent raise starting in January 2017.

Workers in Sao Jose dos Campos, where the company makes commercial jets, have approved terms of the deal, but the union has not yet signed. In a statement, the union, known as Sindmetalsjc, said Embraer had already failed to meet an item in the agreement.

"That stance by Embraer is a total disrespect to workers," Herbert Claros, the union's president, said in the statement.

Shares shed 0.6 percent to 16.80 reais, extending losses this year to 45 percent.

($1 = 3.40 reais) (Reporting by Brad Haynes; Writing by Bruno Federowski and Guillermo Parra-Bernal; Editing by Peter Cooney)
At least eight people were reportedly injured at Ohio State University in Columbus on Monday, November 28. This video shows emergency crews on campus while the situation was developing.

The attacker was reportedly killed by police. Credit: YouTube/Alex Chutkan via Storyful
A fine of $5,000 or less will be imposed.

A new requirement on mandatory retrenchment notifications will take effect from 1 January 2017. The tripartite partners have issued an advisory to guide employers on complying with this requirement.

Under the Workforce Singapore Agency Act, employers will need to notify the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) of retrenchments within 5 working days after they provide notice of retrenchment to affected employees, if 5 or more employees are retrenched within a 6-month period beginning 1 January 2017.

Failure to notify within the required timeline is an offence and may be liable on conviction to penalties, including a fine not exceeding $5,000. More details are contained in the advisory.

These notifications will provide more complete and timely retrenchment information, to better enable Workforce Singapore (WSG) and the Taskforce for Responsible Retrenchment and Employment Facilitation to assist retrenched local employees find alternative employment and relevant training to enhance their employability.









More From Singapore Business Review


LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / EnWave Corporation (TSX-V:ENW.V), the global leader in vacuum-microwave drying announced today that it will be presenting at the 9th annual LD Micro Main Event on Thursday, December 8th at 8 AM PST / 5 AM EST. John Budreski, Executive Chairman of EnWave and Brent Charleton, Senior VP of Business Development will be presenting, as well as meeting with investors.

Samples of "Moon Cheese," an innovative, healthy and all- natural cheese snack product will be distributed to demonstrate the power of EnWave's patented REV technology

The LD Micro Main Event is the largest independent conference for small/microcap companies and will feature 240 presenting names.

View EnWave's profile here: http://www.ldmicro.com/profile/ENW.V

News Compliments of Accesswire.

About EnWave Corporation:

EnWave Corporation, a Vancouver-based advanced technology company, has developed Radiant Energy Vacuum (REVTM) - an innovative, proprietary method for the precise dehydration of organic materials. REV technology's commercial viability has been demonstrated and is growing rapidly across several market verticals in the food and pharmaceutical sectors. EnWave's strategy is to sign royalty-bearing commercial licenses with industry leaders in multiple verticals for the use of REV technology. The company has signed sixteen royalty-bearing licenses to date, opening up eight distinct market sectors for commercialization of new and innovative products. In addition to these licenses, EnWave has formed a Limited Liability Partnership, NutraDried LLP, to develop, manufacture, market and sell all-natural cheese snack products in the United States under the Moon Cheese brand.

EnWave has introduced REV as the new dehydration standard in the food and biological material sectors: faster and cheaper than freeze drying, with better end product quality than air drying or spray drying. EnWave currently has three commercial REV platforms:

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nutraREV which is used in the food industry to dry food products quickly and at low-cost, while maintaining high levels of nutrition, taste, texture and colour; powderREV which is used for the bulk dehydration of food cultures, probiotics and fine biochemicals such as enzymes below the freezing point, and quantaREV which is used for continuous, high-volume low-temperaturedrying.

Two additional platforms, bioREV and freezeREV, are being developed as new methods to stabilize and dehydrate biopharmaceuticals such as vaccines and antibodies. More information about EnWave is available at www.enwave.net.

About LD Micro:

LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into an event platform hosting several influential conferences annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event).

In 2015, LDM launched the first pure microcap index (the LDMi) to exclusively provide intraday information on the entire sector. LD will continue to provide valuable tools for the benefit of everyone in the small and microcap universe.



For those interested in attending, please contact David Scher at david@ldmicro.com or visit www.ldmicro.com/events for more information.

Contact:

Name: Jeremy Hellman

Phone: 212-836-9626

Address: The Equity Group

800 Third Avenue, 36th Floor

New York, NY 10022

Email: jhellman@equityny.com

SOURCE: EnWave Corporation via LD Micro
Athens (AFP) - Greece and its European creditors are "very close" to an agreement that would open the way to vital debt talks, EU economy commissioner Pierre Moscovici said Monday.

But first, Moscovici said on a two-day visit to Athens, the Greek government had to complete an ongoing audit of its latest fiscal reforms to enable a "package deal" on further structural changes and debt talks.

"I think we are very close to an agreement... if we are capable of concluding the review, then we must absolutely open...debt talks," he told Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras.

"It cannot be done... in just one meeting, but (there needs to be) a sequence which leads to a global agreement," he said, referring to a eurozone ministers meeting on December 5 at which the debt issue is expected to be discussed.

"We need to reach a staff-level agreement by the end of this week... it's absolutely doable," Moscovici then told reporters.

Greece's budget for 2017, to be approved by parliament on December 10, includes extra taxation on cars, fixed telephony, pay TV, fuel, tobacco, coffee and beer.

Greece's leftist-led government is desperate to reach agreement with the creditors on the new fiscal measures before the end of the year in order to secure a pledge of debt relief, hoping it will kickstart the ailing economy.

Athens is also hoping that a deal will persuade the European Central Bank to include Greek sovereign debt in its asset purchase programme, known as quantitative easing or .

Without debt relief, the ECB will not grant Greece access to QE, and without this, the country will not be able to return to borrowing markets by early 2018, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said Monday.

Greece's debt will grow to 315 billion euros ($334 billion) or around 180 percent of output this year, according to the Greek finance ministry.

ECB executive board member Benoit Coeure, who is also in Athens, on Monday said there were "serious concerns" about the sustainability of Greece's crushing debt.

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"All stakeholders in the Greek adjustment programme realise that there are serious concerns about the sustainability of Greek public debt," Coeure told an Athens conference.

"We are looking forward to a solution that can reassure markets," he said, one that would "allow the full involvement of the IMF in the programme (to) enhance the programmes credibility."

The goal is to "ultimately restore market access for Greece before the (present EU bailout) ends in July 2018," Coeure said.

The International Monetary Fund has said it won't join the latest bailout -- Greece's third since 2010 -- until it sees a concrete plan from the Europeans to substantially cut the debt burden.

Despite strong opposition by Germany, Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem has said "short-term debt measures" could be discussed in December.

Moscovici on Monday told the Ethnos daily that "the conditions are adequate" to allow the issue to be raised at next month's ministerial meeting.
Brussels (AFP) - The European Union and Moldova on Monday reaffirmed close ties which they said would not be affected by the recent election of a pro-Russian president.

Socialist Party leader Igor Dodon won hotly disputed polls last month in an East-West tug of war over the future of the Soviet-era satellite of just 3.5 million people, wedged between Romania and Ukraine.

Flanked by Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip, EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn said close relations were "deeply rooted" in trade and cooperation, and Brussels was committed to helping Moldova push through political and economic reforms to benefit all its citizens.

Referring to Dodon's election, Hahn said: "We can already say today we will respect the final result ... and we look forward to cooperating with the new president."

He stressed that the 28-nation EU expected the government and the new president to continue the reform process and that the bloc would back such efforts.

For his part, Filip said that "the citizens of Moldova have spoken ... now we need to get over this electoral period and start working."

Ties with the European Union were based on an association agreement which "is beneficial for our people. We are committed to its implementation and let there be no doubting that commitment," Filip told reporters through an interpreter.

He dismissed speculation that Moldova might change course, insisting and said any change of partners was "out of the question."

Moldova signed the EU association agreement in 2014 and half of its exports now go to the bloc.

Russia bitterly opposed the accord and responded with an embargo targeting Moldova's crucial agriculture sector.

Dodon's victory coincided with a similar outcome in EU member Bulgaria, prompting concern Moscow was regaining influence in its Soviet era backyard.
Countries across Europe are taking precautions to prevent a bird flu epidemic after highly infectious cases of the disease have appeared in multiple areas. Officials in Finland found cases of avian influenza in wild birds on the Aland Islands in the Baltic Sea Thursday. On Saturday, authorities in the Netherlands killed 190,000 ducks after the virus struck. Wild ducks in Northern France were slaughtered in an effort to contain a highly infectious strain of the flu Monday.

"A first case of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 was confirmed on Nov. 26 in a commune of Marck, Pas-de-Calais, on 20 wild ducks used as callers for waterfowl hunting," France's farm ministry said in a statement Monday.

France has the largest poultry stock in the European Union. An outbreak of bird flu in southeastern France earlier this year decimated poultry flocks and stopped much of the country's output.

Highly pathogenic strains of bird flu, though rarer, are greater cause for concern than low pathogenic strains. They are often fatal for birds, spread more easily and rapidly and have a higher rate of mortality upon infection. In 2015, a highly pathogenic outbreak swept 21 states in the U.S. and affected more than 50 million birds, driving the price of eggs up by 80 percent. The disease was last detected in the U.S. in June 2015.

RTSGBE4

Photo: Reuters

The effect of avian flu on poultry populations and the economy aren't the only dangers of such an epidemic. Though it is rare, the disease can be transmitted to humans from an infected bird, causing symptoms ranging from low-grade fever to pneumonia or an altered mental state and seizures. Transmission from person to person is even rarer. The mortality rate for a human with bird flu is 60 percent, according to the World Health Organization.

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"Because of the possibility that avian influenza A viruses could change and gain the ability to spread easily between people, monitoring for human infection and person to person transmission is extremely important for public health," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement about the virus on its website.

Related Articles
By Liana B. Baker, Koh Gui Qing and Julie Zhu

SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK/HONG KONG (Reuters) - Canyon Bridge Capital Partners, a buyout fund that agreed to acquire U.S.-based chip maker Lattice Semiconductor Corp for $1.3 billion earlier this month, is funded partly by cash originating from China's central government and also has indirect links to its space program, Chinese corporate filings show.

Reuters, in a review of about a dozen filings from China's state-run corporate register, has established that the financial investment in Canyon Bridge originates from Chinas State Council, the top decision-making body of the government. This link could draw more U.S. regulatory scrutiny over the Lattice deal on concerns that technology gained through the purchase could be used by China's military, according to analysts who follow the chip industry and monitor foreign investment review decisions by the U.S. government.

"It is a red flag," James Lewis, a researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said of Canyon Bridge's links to the Chinese state. "It's not a deal killer, but deals like this sometimes run into roadblocks."

Portland, Oregon-based Lattice makes programmable chips known as "field programmable gate arrays" that allow companies to put their own software on silicon chips for different uses. It does not sell chips to the U.S. military, but its two biggest rivals - Xilinx and Intel Corps Altera - make chips that are used in military technology.

Shares in Lattice fell as much as 4.8 percent in early Monday trade, but had recouped losses by nearly midday to be down 2.7 percent.

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a U.S. government body that conducts security reviews of proposed acquisitions by foreign firms, has yet to sign off on the agreement. How CFIUS judges the potential military applications of Lattices programmable chips will help determine if the deal goes ahead or not, industry analysts and CFIUS experts say. CFIUS declined to comment for this story.

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The Lattice deal is one of the largest attempted by a Chinese-backed firm in the U.S. semiconductor sector. It is unclear if CFIUS will block the purchase, but a rejection would deal another blow to the Chinese, who have invested a record $200 billion in overseas acquisitions this year. The United States, Germany and Australia have scuttled Chinese takeover bids in recent months due to concerns they may serve China's national security interests over their own.

Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, Canyon Bridge was formed recently with Lattice being its first announced deal. It describes itself as a "U.S.-based private equity buyout fund focused on providing strategic capital" to technology companies, according to its website. It counts Ray Bingham, an executive chairman of Cypress Semiconductor Corp, chairman of Flex Ltd and an Oracle Corp board member, as one of its co-founders. Bingham could not be reached for comment.

The only investor in Canyon Bridge is a unit of China Venture Capital Fund Co Ltd, according to a filing made by Lattice to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last Tuesday. The China Venture Capital Fund is a unit of China Reform Holdings Corp, according to the website of China Reform Holdings. For a graphic, click http://tmsnrt.rs/2gegSQc

A Reuters review of Chinese corporate filings dated June 16 this year shows that Chinas State Council is the only shareholder in Beijing-based China Reform Holdings. Reuters was unable to determine if China Reform Holdings has another source of financing.

China Reform Holdings, on its website, states the government holds the investment through the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC), a special unit under the State Council responsible for supervising and managing the country's non-financial government-owned enterprises.

Reuters could not determine if the ownership structure has changed since the filing.

SASAC did not respond to a fax and telephone calls for comment.

Canyon Bridge and Lattice declined to comment for this story. Canyon Bridges legal adviser on the Lattice bid, Jones Day, had said publicly that Canyon Bridge had "limited partners with funding coming predominately from the China Reform Fund." Limited partners are investors in private equity funds. China Reform Fund is a unit of China Reform Holdings.

China Reform Holdings declined to comment and China Venture Capital Fund could not be reached for a comment. Jones Day declined further comment.

According to its 2014 annual report that was published last year, China Reform Holdings is positioned to "invest in strategic emerging industries related to national security and the lifeblood of the national economy."

Chinese corporate filings also show that China Reform Holdings is a shareholder in China Aerospace Investment Holdings Ltd. via a separate unit, Guoxin International Investment Corp Ltd. Guoxin International, which was created in 2012 to help Chinese state-owned companies expand within China and abroad, could not be reached for comment.

China Aerospace Investment is the main investment manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), which develops and launches all Chinese rockets, satellites, manned spacecraft, and space stations as well as all strategic missiles and other weapons, according to CASCs website.

China has been working to develop its space program for military, commercial and scientific purposes. Beijing has said its space program is for peaceful purposes.

While indirect, those ties between China Reform Holdings, China Aerospace and a U.S. company that makes technology with potential military applications will likely get attention from U.S. regulators, according to CFIUS experts.

"It doesn't mean they won't get cleared, but they will get a harder look from CFIUS if the acquiring company is state backed than if it was a private backed company," said Paul Marquardt, an attorney with Cleary Gottlieb who specializes in CFIUS actions.

China Aerospaces corporate filings and annual report did not detail the size of Guoxin International's stake in the firm, except to show that at the end of 2015 Guoxin was one of as many as 19 shareholders, and that it held a 20 percent stake.

A source close to the deal who was not authorized to speak on the record said that Lattice and Canyon Bridge would disclose all sources of Canyon Bridge's capital in filings with U.S. regulators.

The proxy statement on the proposed Lattice bid, which will have more details of the offer, has yet to be filed.

(Additional reporting by Matthew Miller in BEIJING and Greg Roumeliotis in NEW YORKl; Editing by Carmel Crimmins and Edward Tobin)
New York (AFP) - Experts and elected officials on both sides of the political aisle on Monday dismissed Donald Trump's claim that "millions" of Americans voted illegally on Election Day, as efforts expanded to organize recounts in swing states.

The Republican billionaire's victory on November 8 saw him clinch the crucial Electoral College count, which determines the presidency, but lose the popular vote to rival Hillary Clinton by more than two million ballots.

Cloistered in his Florida resort for the long Thanksgiving weekend, the 70-year-old tycoon who has never previously held elected office took to Twitter to indulge in one of his customary tweet storms.

On Sunday, before returning by private jet to New York to resume interviews with potential cabinet appointees, he claimed he would have won the popular vote if it were not for "the millions of people who voted illegally."

"Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California -- so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias -- big problem!" he followed up later.

Trump, who spent the campaign warning that the result might be "rigged," is now -- with his aides -- pushing back hard as the Green Party works to secure recounts in three states which Trump won: Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The campaign of Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who won a tiny fraction of the vote in each state and where Trump beat Clinton by thousands of votes, said voters had filed recount requests in more than 100 (out of 9,163) precincts in Pennsylvania -- promising that more would follow.

The party requested a statewide recount in Wisconsin on Friday and plans to request a recount in Michigan on Wednesday, the campaign said.

- 'No evidence' -

But observers deny any evidence of widespread fraud.

And few expect any change in the outcome of the vote, which former secretary of state Clinton conceded to Trump in an early-hours phone call on November 9.

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Meanwhile, Trump increased his Electoral College vote count to 306, compared to 232 for Clinton, after Michigan certified its election results -- and his victory there.

Republican, Democratic and independent lawmakers dismissed Trump's claims as totally unsubstantiated.

Some experts warned they set a dangerous precedent by potentially undermining trust in democracy or confidence in his leadership.

"I have not seen anything in the millions, I don't know what he was talking about," Republican Senator James Lankford told CNN.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said "there has been no evidence produced to substantiate a claim like that."

Clinton's campaign has said it would join the process, but has also indicated it so far sees no evidence of hacking or vote tampering.

Bernie Sanders, who ran against Clinton for the Democratic nomination, called Trump's remarks "unfounded nonsense" that showed Republicans wanted to make it harder for people including minorities to register to vote.

- Discord -

In New Hampshire, deputy secretary of state David Scanlan told AFP that isolated instances of voter fraud "show up in every election" but that the 2016 ballot had run "very smoothly."

But the dispute roils what has already been a rough transition period, as Trump continues to hold back-to-back meetings with people he is considering for cabinet posts.

Trump has picked Georgia Representative Tom Price, a robust critic of President Barack Obama's health care reform law, to serve as health secretary, and plans to make a formal announcement as early as Tuesday, US media reported.

And his Vice president-elect Mike Pence told reporters to expect "a number of very important announcements" on Tuesday, fueling speculation of more cabinet posts to be revealed.

Trump threatened to end the thaw in US relations with Cuba, following the death of Fidel Castro, unless Havana makes concessions on human rights and opening up its economy.

Discord has flared in the Trump camp over the pick for secretary of state, the most prestigious job in the cabinet -- in particular over the candidacy of Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee.

Other potential candidates are outspoken former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani; David Petraeus, the celebrated general who later resigned as CIA director and pleaded guilty to showing classified material to his mistress; and Bob Corker, a Republican lawmaker and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Trump met Petraeus on Monday, and was to meet Romney for a second time on Tuesday, in addition to a planned meeting with Corker.

"Very impressed!" tweeted Trump of Petraeus just minutes after the general left the building, having described their conversation as "very good."

Romney was one of Trump's most outspoken critics during the campaign, and Trump aide Kellyanne Conway declared, in an unusual statement by a senior political aide, that she had received "a deluge" of concern from supporters about him.
If you think dinosaurs are amazing and unusual, you may want to take a closer look at your own mammalian family tree  it's brimming with extinct animals that are just as bizarre and fascinating as a duck-billed and crested hadrosaur, or a frilled and horned Triceratops.

A new, illustrated "field guide" to extinct prehistoric mammals describes the range of warm-blooded creatures of all sizes that roamed the Earth millions of years ago, and they're stranger and more spectacular than you might imagine.

In "The Princeton Field Guide to Prehistoric Mammals" (Princeton University Press, 2016), author Donald Prothero, a research associate in vertebrate paleontology at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, introduces readers to an array of real-life, but seemingly fantastic, beasts  extinct mammals. [In Images: 'Field Guide' Showcases Bizarre and Magnificent Prehistoric Mammals]

Mammals first emerged during the dinosaur age, with the first so-called "true mammal"  a tiny, shrew-like creature  appearing about 160 million years ago. The group later came to dominate the planet, after the nonavian dinosaurs died out. Over time, mammals diversified into a wide range of forms, many of which can still be seen today, in their living relatives.

There were sizable carnivores: enormous and long-legged hyenas, saber-toothed cats with blade-like incisors, toothed whales larger than any swimming the oceans today, and the so-called "bear otter," which was about the size of a modern tiger.

Even more massive than the carnivores were some of the plant eaters, such as hornless rhinos with necks like a giraffe's, giant ground sloths and towering mammoths. Other extinct mammals sported peculiar ornamentation: impressive tusks that curved downward (or sharply upward), mouths that resembled shovels, or oddly shaped bony structures sprouting from the fronts of their skulls, in addition to the horns protruding from the tops of their heads.

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Prothero recently spoke with Live Science to explain how this book not only spotlights some of the most charismatic mammals in the fossil record but also represents the ways that scientists group these animals together. Anatomical studies and recent innovations in molecular biology are providing a clearer picture than ever before of how these amazing animals and their modern descendants are related.

(This Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.)

Live Science: How did you get involved with this book project?

Donald Prothero: I've worked on fossil mammals almost all my life, since I started as a paleontologist in the early 1970s. I saw that the Princeton series had a field guide to dinosaurs and was planning one for pterosaurs, but had no title for fossil mammals  which, in many ways, is actually the more interesting topic! So I decided that was something that needed to be done. I contacted the publisher at Princeton and told them I was interested, and they were interested, too.

Live Science: When it comes to paleontology, the general public usually thinks of dinosaurs as the "rock stars" of the fossil record. How could a field guide to prehistoric mammals change that?

Prothero: We do see people interested in mammals already  saber-toothed tigers and mammoths and giant rhinoceroses. I'm trying to tap into that and point out that there's a huge array of unfamiliar but equally bizarre and fascinating creatures that we have in the mammal fossil record  in many ways, even more bizarre than dinosaurs.

Live Science: How does one put together a "field guide" to extinct animals?

Prothero: You obviously can't have a true field guide for creatures that are extinct. "The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs" is more of a catalog of all the extinct dinosaurs  but there are only a couple hundred species of dinosaurs that are known, and there are more than 20,000 species of extinct and living mammals! I realized I couldn't do what Greg Paul [author of "The Field Guide to Dinosaurs"] did, because there are way too many fossil mammals. So I had to be very selective in how I went about approaching this; I really focused on the interesting and the unusual ones in each family. [12 Amazing Saber-Toothed Animals]

Live Science: What was the biggest challenge of making those selections?

Prothero: It was trying to decide how much weight to give this and how much weight to give that. For example, in terms of diversity, rodents are by far the most abundant vertebrates on Earth; they were more abundant than dinosaurs by an order of magnitude. But I don't think I could get an audience too excited about 700 species of rodents. So I chose to give the rodents just a highlight or two, and indicated how I could not do them justice.

When you look at a modern mammal field guide, it would be dominated by rodents and bats. Those are the things that are most common today, and you'd only see three pages on large mammals. But in the fossil record, it's actually the opposite  large mammals are well preserved, and they're also much more interesting to most lay readers, so that's what I focused on. And there are a lot of them, and there are a lot of things people don't know about them. [In Photos: Mammals Through Time]

null Mary Persis Williams

Live Science: Describe the world of prehistoric mammals. What kind of ecosystems did they inhabit, and how were their environments different from the world as we know it today?

Prothero: Two-thirds of fossil mammal history was in the age of dinosaurs. Back in the late Triassic, it was just little rat-sized creatures hiding in the dark and the vegetation. It was a greenhouse planet with no ice anywhere at all, very high sea levels and very warm climates  all of which favored dinosaurs, and mammals had to live with the fact that they were in a world with a great reptilian overlord.

But when the nonbird dinosaurs vanished 66 million years ago, the world opened up to mammals. It was still a greenhouse planet in the early age of mammals  there were still tropical rainforests all the way to Montana and North Dakota. Even above the Arctic Circle, there were alligators and crocodiles, and there were lots of mammals as well.

But then that planet changed in the course of its climate over the last 50 million years, and the greenhouse world of the dinosaurs gradually vanished, got drier and colder in various phases through the latter part of the age of mammals, until the last 2 million years, where we've been in ice ages ever since.

Live Science: The book is full of illustrations representing so many kinds of extinct mammals. How do paleoartists reconstruct what these animals may have looked like in life?

Prothero: From the bones, you can be pretty confident of the shape of the body, and the amount of muscles they had in various places  that's fairly well established by just doing basic animal anatomy. And most groups have living descendants, so you can base it on that as well, and also what kind of fur they might have had. Coloration is simply a matter of taste. So, it's a mixture of things that we're confident about, based on evidence, and things which are really artistic license. [Image Gallery: Evolution's Most Extreme Mammals]

null Mary Persis Williams

Live Science: Have recent discoveries changed how paleontologists view the mammal family tree?

Prothero: There was what was called the cladistics, or the classification revolution, in paleomammalogy, in the 1970s and 1980s. By the 1990s, we had sorted out a lot of the relationships between living and extinct mammals at a level that had never been possible before cladistics came along.

Over the same period of time, molecular biology made huge breakthroughs. By the end of the 1990s into the early 2000s, we had very powerful molecular evidence for how mammals were related  and most of that confirmed what we already decided was true based on anatomy.

Now there are mammal groups that are based on molecular evidence only, because we don't have any anatomy to support them yet. I felt it was time to go ahead and put that in the book, to show that this is where the state of research is as of today, that we really have a very different perspective on how all of these things are related.

For example, there's good evidence that ties elephants together with things like manatees  a lot of anatomical and fossil evidence first, and when they started doing molecular biology, it was even more strongly supported.

But then, molecular studies add things like tenrecs, which are these insectivorous mammals from Madagascar, and golden moles, and aardvarks, that you would never cluster with things like elephants, because they don't have any anatomical reasons that connect them.

So that group has been called on evidence from molecules only, the "Afrotheria," because they all seem to have origins in Africa. But we've yet to find any anatomical character that ties an aardvark and a tenrec and a golden mole and all these other things to elephants and manatees. [Wipe Out: History's Most Mysterious Extinctions]

Live Science: What do you hope that readers will get out of this field guide?

Prothero: It's a fun book to flip through, is the first thing. It's full of amazing and bizarre creatures, many of which have never been illustrated  or adequately illustrated  in any book for a lay audience.

And there are a lot of new discoveries here. We found many, many more weird mammals than they've ever heard of before. There are other books published on fossil mammals, but now they're grossly out of date, both because they use old-fashioned classification schemes that are now obsolete and because they don't catch up with what we now know, all the newer discoveries about these mammals. Even people who think they know something about fossil mammals will find there are surprises.

"The Princeton Field Guide to Prehistoric Mammals" was published Nov. 15.

Buy Prehistoric Mammals on Amazon.com >>>

Original article on Live Science.

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By Andrew Callus and Leigh Thomas PARIS (Reuters) - France's center-right rallied behind free market reformist Francois Fillon as its candidate for president on Monday after a snap opinion poll showed him clear favorite to beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen in an election showdown next year. Fillon, a former prime minister who vowed to change France's "software" with an assault on public sector spending, moved one step closer to the Elysee by securing a resounding victory over Alain Juppe in the Les Republicains primary vote on Sunday. The ruling Socialists, meanwhile, sought to quell talk of a fallout between deeply unpopular President Francois Hollande and his prime minister, Manuel Valls, over which of them should seek the party ticket in their primary set for January. Opinion polls show, though, that whoever does run for the Left is likely to come a very distant third behind Fillon and the National Front (FN) leader Le Pen in the election's first round next April. Fillon, 62, easily saw off Juppe, another former prime minister, by securing two-thirds of the vote on Sunday. "When a candidate wins with a score of that size - two thirds - it creates a natural momentum, a center of gravity and a unifying force," Bruno Ratailleau, a Fillon ally and senator from western France, told RTL radio. Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy, who was ousted in the first round of the conservatives primary, and Juppe had both been given far better odds of winning the ticket at the start. Both men rallied behind Fillon after his triumph. GLIMMER OF OPPORTUNITY But Fillon's hard-line reform plans - cutting public spending by 100 billion euros over five years, scrapping a tax on the wealthy and pushing the retirement age to 65 and cutting public sector jobs - hand a glimmer of opportunity to Hollande and his Socialists, and the broader French Left. His plans also set him apart from the anti-euro, anti-immigration, more pro-worker policies of Le Pen. Fillon is solidly pro-European while Le Pen says she would seek a Britain-style referendum on European Union membership with a view to leading France out of the bloc - something which, if it happened, could sound the death knell for the union. By contrast, his socially conservative views such as his deep reservations about abortion and gay marriage could win him votes at her expense in a traditionally Catholic, if formally secular, country. Under the leadership of Le Pen, who took over from her father Jean-Marie in 2011, the FN has switched from an economically liberal, pro-small business party to one that promises to lower the retirement age and guarantee France's generous welfare safety net. Fillon's social and economic policies could also push more centrist voters towards the left - if there was a rallying candidate. Fillon, an admirer of late British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, pledged on Sunday to introduce radical change. "I will take up an unusual challenge for France: tell the truth and completely change its software," Fillon, a racing car enthusiast who lives in a Loire valley chateau, told supporters. French voters are angry about unemployment - stubbornly high at 10 percent - and fearful after a wave of Islamist militant attacks. Next year's presidentials in the euro zone's second-largest economy are shaping up to be another test of the strength of anti-establishment parties in Western countries after Britain's vote to quit the EU and the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president. DIVIDED LEFT After five torrid years in power, marked by high unemployment and security worries caused by the attacks, the Socialists and the broader left are deeply divided. Though close aides expect Hollande to run despite his deep unpopularity there are signs Valls is considering his own bid to challenge his boss for the Socialist party ticket in a primary due for next January. The Elysee and the government sought to paper over the cracks when the two men met on Monday for lunch. A presidential source said their two-hour meeting had been "very cordial" and workmanlike but gave little clue of their exchanges regarding the Socialist primary. Valls was quoted by an aide as saying that given the security threat neither side sought a "political confrontation" now. Government spokesman Stephane Le Foll sought to dismiss media speculation of a possibly damaging Valls-Hollande contest. "To those who say there could be a primary election with the president and prime minister, I say there won't be a primary between the president and the prime minister," Le Foll told Europe 1 radio. The left's headaches do not end there. Valls's former economy minister Emmanuel Macron has launched his own campaign targeting centrist voters, while firebrand left-winger and former Socialist party member Jean-Luc Melenchon has also set off independently on the campaign trail. A Harris opinion poll on Sunday had each of these rebels winning more than 13 percent of votes each in next April's first round of the presidential election, while either Hollande or Valls would be in single figures. In the same poll, Fillon and Le Pen were seen coming top in the first round with 26 and 24 percent respectively. In the resulting second round run-off, Fillon was seen winning with 67 percent to Le Pen's 33. (Additional reporting by Elizabeth Pineau; Editing by Brian Love, Richard Balmforth, Anna Willard)
(Reuters) - U.S. Republican President-elect Donald Trump holds more meetings on Monday and Tuesday as he continues to form his administration before taking over from Democratic President Barack Obama on Jan. 20. He was scheduled to meet with the following people, according to his transition team: MONDAY FRANCES TOWNSEND * A former adviser on homeland security to former U.S. President George W. Bush PAUL ATKINS * A former commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission * Member of Trump's transition team overseeing independent agencies, including the SEC. KATHLEEN WHITE * A former head of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, now with the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a free-market think tank. * Has been mentioned as a possible chief of the Environmental Protection Agency. DAVID PETRAEUS * Retired four-star general and former director of the CIA under President Barack Obama until his resignation in 2012 over an extramarital affair, after which he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge for mishandling classified information * Has been reported as a possible pick for secretary of state. DAVE STEWARD * Chairman of World Wide Technology Inc, an information technology and supply chain logistics firm described as one of the largest African-American-owned businesses in the United States. SCOTT PRUITT * Republican attorney general of Oklahoma* Reported to be a possible candidate to head the Environmental Protection Agency. DAVE CLARKE * Sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin * A strong Trump supporter, Clarke, who is black, had criticized protests that erupted in Milwaukee after a 23-year- old man was shot and killed by police in August. JOHN ALLISON * Former CEO of regional bank BB&T and former CEO of the Cato Institute. * Reported to be under consideration to head the U.S. Treasury Department. SANDEEP MATHRANI * Chief executive officer of Chicago-based real estate investment firm General Growth Properties Inc TUESDAY MARSHA BLACKBURN * Republican congresswoman from Tennessee. PETE HEGSETH * Veterans advocate who was formerly executive director of Vets for Freedom and a former counterinsurgency instructor in Afghanistan. MARION BLAKEY * President and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America and former CEO of the Aerospace Industries Association, a defense industry trade group. * Former Federal Aviation Administration administrator under President George W. Bush BOB CORKER * Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman, Tennessee Republican MIKE MCCAUL * House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security chairman, Texas Republican LOU BARLETTA * Republican congressman from Pennsylvania, member of the House Committee on Homeland Security MITT ROMNEY * Republican presidential candidate in 2012 who was highly critical of Trump during the election * Considered a potential pick for secretary of state (Reporting and Writing by Eric Walsh; Editing by Susan Heavey)
Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party opened its first congress in seven years Tuesday as the 81-year-old seeks to fend off opponents while talk of who will eventually succeed him mounts.

The election of members of Fatah's parliament and its central committee beginning Friday will signal the direction the oldest Palestinian party will take at a time when Abbas is weakened by his own unpopularity and internal dissent.

Abbas, whose position as party head is not threatened at the congress, will give an address at 6 pm (1600 GMT) on Tuesday. Some 1,400 delegates are expected.

While the ageing leader has said he has no intention of stepping aside anytime soon, talk of who will eventually succeed him as Palestinian president has intensified. He has not publicly designated a successor.

Some analysts see the congress as an attempt by Abbas to marginalise political opponents, including longtime rival Mohammed Dahlan, currently in exile in the United Arab Emirates.

Jibril Rajoub, a former intelligence chief, current head of the Palestinian Football Association and Fatah central committee member, said it will also provide an opportunity to update the party's structures.

"The system from the 1960s no longer works in 2016," he told AFP.

"We have to take into account the current circumstances. The current system was created when we were in the diaspora and we are now on national soil. It was put in place at a revolutionary stage. Now we have a state."

Saeb Erekat, Palestine Liberation Organisation secretary general and Fatah central committee member, said the congress will allow the party to "choose leaders for the next stage."

- Stalled peace efforts -

But the congress also comes at a difficult time for the push to create a Palestinian state, with the cause having been overshadowed by other crises in the region.

The incoming Donald Trump administration in the United States has also signalled its policies will be far more favourable to Israel, likely vetoing UN Security Council resolutions on the conflict it opposes.

Story continues

Peace efforts have been at a complete standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.

Israel is concerned that US President Barack Obama may take some sort of action related to the conflict before he leaves office in January, but his intentions remain unclear.

In an op-ed published in the New York Times on Tuesday, former US president Jimmy Carter called on Obama to recognise a Palestinian state before his term is up.

The congress also comes with Fatah and its Islamist rival Hamas, in power in the Gaza Strip, still deeply divided. Fatah dominates the Palestinian Authority, which runs the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Israel has prevented dozens of Fatah members in Gaza, which is under an Israeli blockade, from attending the conference, said party spokesman Mahmud Abu al-Hija.

Israeli authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israel controls all borders of the Palestinian territories apart from the Gaza-Egypt frontier.

Abu al-Hija said an objective of the congress, due to run at least five days, is to determine how to act in the face of stalled peace negotiations.

Peace initiatives being promoted by France and Arab nations will be discussed, as will the possibility of introducing a UN Security resolution against Israeli settlement building in the West Bank.

Fatah is the main component of the PLO, created in 1964 in Jerusalem, which brought together the main Palestinian nationalist movements of that time.
* Indian IT firms fear tougher U.S. visa regime under Trump

* Indian firms to accelerate U.S. acquisitions, hiring

* More focus on automation, cloud computing, AI

By Sankalp Phartiyal and Euan Rocha

BENGALURU, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Anticipating a more protectionist U.S. technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) , Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the U.S., their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The U.S. currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.

"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and U.S. businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the U.S.

Story continues

"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the U.S. and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.

ACQUISITIONS

Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big U.S. and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying U.S. companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.

"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including U.S.-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a U.S. cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more U.S. acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

OFFSHORING & AUTOMATION

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero."

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

"The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.

(Reporting by Sankalp Phartiyal and Euan Rocha in BENGALURU and MUMBAI, with additional by Arno Schuetze in FRANKFURT; Editing by Ian Geoghegan)
By Sankalp Phartiyal and Euan Rocha

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Anticipating a more protectionist U.S. technology visa program under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the U.S., their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The U.S. currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa program, have many expecting a tighter regime.

"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and U.S. businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive program would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the U.S.

"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the U.S. and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.

Story continues

ACQUISITIONS

Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big U.S. and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying U.S. companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.

"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including U.S.-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a U.S. cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more U.S. acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

OFFSHORING & AUTOMATION

In a broader shift from labor intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero."

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

"The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.

(Reporting by Sankalp Phartiyal and Euan Rocha in BENGALURU and MUMBAI, with additional by Arno Schuetze in FRANKFURT; Editing by Ian Geoghegan)
While Cuba may officially be in national mourning for the death of Fidel Castro, many Cuban-Americans in Miami and elsewhere have been hitting the streets in celebration to mark the end of an era.

Jubilant Cubans poured into Miami's Little Havana over the weekend, blasting car horns, dancing and singing following the death of the revolutionary leader.

Castro's death comes not long after the signing of a historic agreement that restored relations with the US and opened the country to US visitors in a pact led by US President Barack Obama.



In a timely coincidence, US carriers like American Airlines and JetBlue also launched historic direct flights connecting the US to Havana on Monday.



Want in on the celebrations? Here are a few popular Cuban dishes to help get you in the spirit:



Ropa Vieja

Known as the national dish of Cuba, ropa vieja is perhaps one of the best ways to show solidarity with the Cubans. Shredded flank steak is cooked in a tomato-based sauce and is often served with black beans, rice, plantains and fried yuca.





Cubano sandwich

You could be forgiven for thinking that the Cubano sandwich, and not ropa vieja, is Cuba's national dish given its namesake and its popularity and ubiquity throughout America. You could call it the Cuban version of the all-American grilled cheese sandwich, with the addition of tangy dill pickles, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, ham, and griddled white roll instead of sliced bread.



Fried plantains or platanos maduros

A staple of Cuban cuisine, fried sweet plantains are a popular accompaniment to savory main Cuban dishes.



Cuban black bean soup

As its color would suggest, black bean soup is thick and rich, spiced with the warmth and savory flavors of onions, garlic, oregano and cumin and deepened in flavor by the addition of a smoked ham hock. Unlike its Mexican counterpart, Cuban-style black bean soup is typically void of chili peppers for a milder flavor.





Mojito

What's a Cuban fiesta with mojitos? The official drink of Cuba, the mojito is the fresh combination of white rum, cane syrup or sugar, lime juice, soda water and sprigs of mint served in a highball glass.
By Sue-Lin Wong DANDONG, China (Reuters) - A labor agent sat in his bus on a recent frigid morning, waiting to cross the "Friendship Bridge" at China's main border post with North Korea. He had come to pick up migrant workers and take them to jobs in factories and restaurants in China. The single-lane bridge in the border city of Dandong is the main gateway for international trade into isolated and heavily sanctioned North Korea and it has grown unusually quiet of late, traders and businessmen in the city of 2.5 million people say. "I used to bring at least 40-50 North Korean factory workers and waiters across at least once a month but it's less frequent now," said Liu, the labor agent, who did not want to give his full name. "I don't think China wants them to come and work here anymore." Their numbers have, indeed, been dropping of late, said Lu Chao, Director of the Border Study Institute at the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, a Chinese government think-tank. "China has been cutting back the number of workers from North Korea it allows in by tightening checks on potential visiting workers and making the paperwork more difficult," Lu said. "Theres still a flow of workers coming into China. But if theres a new round of tougher sanctions, no doubt well see a further drop in the number of workers coming from North Korea to China, Lu said. Estimates of North Korea's overseas workers vary greatly but a study by South Korea's state-run Korea Institute for National Unification put the number as high as 150,000, primarily in China and Russia. They send back most of their wages - as much as $900 million annually - through official North Korean channels. Asked about the flow of North Korean workers into China, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Monday: I am unaware of the situation you mention." It's not just the flow of workers that is drying up. Interviews with Chinese traders and business owners in Dandong reveal commerce with North Korea has become squeezed to an unprecedented degree as Beijing tries to thwart Pyongyang's accelerating nuclear and missile programs. China's position, Geng said last week, is that U.N. sanctions "should not have a negative impact upon the livelihoods in North Korea or humanitarian needs. KEEP FROM COLLAPSING China has long been North Korea's lifeline. Beijing's primary calculus about its nearly friendless neighbor has been to keep it from collapsing, and thus removing a buffer between China and South Korea, home to 28,500 U.S. troops.China sends a vast range of products into North Korea from Dandong, the main international gateway to the isolated state, including oil from a pipeline that passes under the Yalu River. The North mainly exports coal through Dandong and other Chinese ports for badly needed foreign exchange. China is the only buyer of its coal, according to U.S. officials. But Beijing signed onto tough international sanctions imposed in March after North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test, including cutting off much of the coal exports. Beijing is now close to approving new sanctions with the four other veto powers of the U.N. Security Council to further cut North Korea's coal exports, diplomats said on Friday. North Korea's repeated nuclear and missile tests have raised the stakes considerably in North Asia, stoking talk of U.S. allies Japan and South Korea acquiring their own nuclear arsenals. Beijing could come under more pressure from President-elect Donald Trump and his more hawkish national security team to pile more pressure on North Korea because no country has the leverage China has. When it comes to squeezing North Korea, the Friendship Bridge is where the rubber hits the road. Around 80 percent of trade between China and North Korea flows across it. EARNING HARD CURRENCY Dandong's main truckyard was almost empty at mid-morning last Wednesday, a far cry from just a few months ago when trucks queued for hours to cross the bridge. "It's never been this tense," said Wang who sells tractors and trucks to North Korean businesses. Like others interviewed in Dandong, he asked only to be identified by his last name. While U.N sanctions aim to starve North Korea of hard currency for its nuclear weapons program, they have had a chilling effect overall on trade. "We're not exporting banned goods, but the sanctions have hit our North Korean business partners so they aren't spending the way they used to," Wang said. "It feels like I'm the one being punished." Trade all along the China-North Korea border has slowed in recent months, said Li Zhonglin, director of the College of Economics and Management at Yanbian University. "Even above-ground, legal trade has been hit - that's unavoidable," he said, because businesses were being cautious in the current climate, holding out for when tensions ease. Around seven years ago, Dandong was home to more than one thousand coal trading companies, a coal trader in northern Shandong province told Reuters, but that number has now dropped to only two dozen. Traders say they also got spooked after the U.S. Justice Department in September slapped sanctions on the Dandong Hongxiang Industrial Development company and its chief executive, Ma Xiaohong, a prominent businesswoman and government official. The DOJ accused her company of channeling U.S. dollars to North Korea for its nuclear weapons program. "She was dubbed the richest woman in Dandong, a government official. If they can get her, none of us are safe," said one Korean-Chinese trader. RETAIL CONSUMER One thing that hasn't suffered much is North Korea's appetite for retail consumer products. Every morning, North Korean traders gather at Huamei, Dandong's wholesale electronics market, buying everything from second-hand desktop computers to the latest fitness tracking watches. They will bring their stash back across the Friendship Bridge to resell in the ever-growing "black markets" that have emerged across North Korea, as the Communist state's grip on the economy becomes looser. "They come and buy everything," said a vendor who was selling earphones and selfie-sticks on a counter that displayed both a Chinese and a North Korean flag. "Anything you can get in China you can get in North Korea if you pay the right price." (Additional reporting by Meng Meng and the Beijing newsroom; Editing by Tony Munroe and Bill Tarrant.)
A fund that trades under the ticker CUBA is seeing a remarkable spike after Fidel Castros death last week.

The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund, Inc. (CUBA) was the first fund to invest specifically in companies exposed to and operating in the Caribbean region, including Cuba, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Dominican Republic, Mexico and Costa Rica. Shares of CUBA soared over 12% on Monday.

The fund has seen similar surges in recent years: Shares of CUBA spiked as much as 35% on Dec. 17, 2014, in response to President Barack Obamas announcement that the US would begin to normalize relations with Cuba. Shares are up 8% this year and up 14.4% since going public in 1994.

Tom Herzfeld founded his Miami-based eponymous boutique investment management firm Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors in 1984. The companys Cuba division manages the publicly traded closed-end fund called The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund, Inc.

While there have been conflicting views about the future of US-Cuba relations, Herzfeld said Castros death ushers in a new era departing from the hostile and tense dynamic of the past. Cuba is already different today than before his death and will continue to be different every day going forward. Every day now America and Cuba will be closer and closer, Herzfeld told Yahoo Finance.

Im viewing this change very positively. By the time Mr. Trump is sworn in, well have a clear view of the the Cuban governments new policies, he said.

This attitude is surprising, given the president-elects hardline stance and explicit threat to end the relationship entirely. He tweeted on Monday:

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2016

Though Herzfeld agrees with Trump that the new regime must make changes toward political freedom and democracy, and most importantly release the remaining US political prisoners in Cuban prisons, he said Castros death may be the tipping point for US-Cuba relations. He said hes hopeful that the Cuban government will acquiesce to pressures from the international community to allow more economic and religious freedoms for its citizens.

Story continues

It Trump were to cut ties with the island, there would be a massive reversal of the recent developments under Obama, who has loosened trade and travel restrictions as well as reopened embassies in both countries. Congress, however, has refused to lift the economic embargo entirely.

There are still a lot of cracks with fully entering Cuba, but there are a significant amount of American companies  both public and private  that are doing business there, he said.

Bullish on Cubas future

Having analyzed and done business with companies exposed to Cuba for four decades, Herzfeld said US-Cuba relations will only evolve from here. I believe there is a massive opportunity that cant be missed. We will transition to a more direct investment strategy for our clients once were permitted to do  I think that will be sooner rather than later, Herzfeld said.

CUBAs top holdings include construction company MasTec (MTZ), Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL), homebuilder Lennar (LEN), Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCLH) and Latin American airline company Copa Holdings (CPA).

The fund is focused on infrastructure stocks because the entire country of Cuba needs to be rebuilt and modernized, Herzfeld said. Specifically citing companies like Watsco (WSO), the largest distributor of air conditioning in the US, and Cemex (CX), a Mexican multinational cement company, hes looking at companies that will literally pave Cubas path forward.

The once-inaccessible Cuba is now a hot tourist destination, with 700,000 Americans having visited the island last year. And Herzfeld only sees the appetite growing from here.

Tourism is the largest industry for Cuba, so rebuilding the country is important, he said. Its a bright future for Cuba and its people and the economic sector will grow enormously. Whats past is past and we cant change that. But we should all look toward the future. I anticipate rapid growth of Cubas middle class  both professional and blue collar workers  who will develop their own businesses.

Many Cuban-Americans in his community in Miami are rejoicing at Castros death. He says many are looking to go back not just to visit and have a home there but also to engage in business. Herzfeld himself even has what he calls a reserve team ready to spring into action, comprised of advisors who had been consulting with him but could join full-time and on-the-ground in Cuba.

Despite the uncertainty looming over the fate of Cuba and the US, Herzfeld is steadfast in his bold assertion that the best is yet to come for the relationship (and his company). Herzfeld named his son, Erik, president of the company last year, but says he has no plans to retire as things are getting more interesting around here.

See also: What you need to know about traveling to Cuba after Castros death

Melody Hahm is a writer at Yahoo Finance, covering entrepreneurship, technology and real estate.

Follow her on Twitter @melodyhahm.
Photo credit: AP Photo

From Cosmopolitan

Photo credit: AP Photo

Fidel Castro, who led a rebel army to improbable victory, embraced Soviet-style communism and defied the power of 10 U.S. presidents during his half century rule of Cuba, has died at age 90.

With a shaking voice, President Raul Castro said on state television that his older brother died at 10:29 p.m. Friday. He ended the announcement by shouting the revolutionary slogan: "Toward victory, always!"

Castro's reign over the island-nation 90 miles (145 kilometers) from Florida was marked by the U.S.-backed Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961 and the Cuban Missile Crisis a year later that brought the world to the brink of nuclear war. The bearded revolutionary, who survived a crippling U.S. trade embargo as well as dozens, possibly hundreds, of assassination plots, died 10 years after ill health forced him to hand power over to Raul.

Castro overcame imprisonment at the hands of dictator Fulgencio Batista, exile in Mexico and a disastrous start to his rebellion before triumphantly riding into Havana in January 1959 to become, at age 32, the youngest leader in Latin America. For decades, he served as an inspiration and source of support to revolutionaries from Latin America to Africa.

His commitment to socialism was unwavering, though his power finally began to fade in mid-2006 when a gastrointestinal ailment forced him to hand over the presidency to Raul in 2008, provisionally at first and then permanently. His defiant image lingered long after he gave up his trademark Cohiba cigars for health reasons and his tall frame grew stooped.

"Socialism or death" remained Castro's rallying cry even as Western-style democracy swept the globe and other communist regimes in China and Vietnam embraced capitalism, leaving this island of 11 million people an economically crippled Marxist curiosity.

He survived long enough to see Raul Castro negotiate an opening with U.S. President Barack Obama on Dec. 17, 2014, when Washington and Havana announced they would move to restore diplomatic ties for the first time since they were severed in 1961. He cautiously blessed the historic deal with his lifelong enemy in a letter published after a monthlong silence. Obama made a historic visit to Havana in March 2016.

Story continues

Carlos Rodriguez, 15, was sitting in Havana's Miramar neighborhood when he heard that Fidel Castro had died.

"Fidel? Fidel?" he said, slapping his head in shock. "That's not what I was expecting. One always thought that he would last forever. It doesn't seem true."

"It's a tragedy," said 22-year-old nurse Dayan Montalvo. "We all grew up with him. I feel really hurt by the news that we just heard."

But the news cheered the community of Cuban exiles in Florida who had fled Castro's government. Thousands gathered in the streets in Miami's Little Havana to cheer and wave Cuban flags.

Fidel Castro Ruz was born Aug. 13, 1926, in eastern Cuba's sugar country, where his Spanish immigrant father worked first recruiting labor for U.S. sugar companies and later built up a prosperous plantation of his own.

Castro attended Jesuit schools, then the University of Havana, where he received law and social science degrees. His life as a rebel began in 1953 with a reckless attack on the Moncada military barracks in the eastern city of Santiago. Most of his comrades were killed and Fidel and his brother Raul went to prison.

Fidel turned his trial defense into a manifesto that he smuggled out of jail, famously declaring, "History will absolve me."

Freed under a pardon, Castro fled to Mexico and organized a rebel band that returned in 1956, sailing across the Gulf of Mexico to Cuba on a yacht named Granma. After losing most of his group in a bungled landing, he rallied support in Cuba's eastern Sierra Maestra mountains.

Three years later, tens of thousands spilled into the streets of Havana to celebrate Batista's downfall and catch a glimpse of Castro as his rebel caravan arrived in the capital on Jan. 8, 1959.

The U.S. was among the first to formally recognize his government, cautiously trusting Castro's early assurances he merely wanted to restore democracy, not install socialism.

Within months, Castro was imposing radical economic reforms. Members of the old government went before summary courts, and at least 582 were shot by firing squads over two years. Independent newspapers were closed and in the early years, homosexuals were herded into camps for "re-education."

In 1964, Castro acknowledged holding 15,000 political prisoners. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans fled, including Castro's daughter Alina Fernandez Revuelta and his younger sister Juana.

Still, the revolution thrilled millions in Cuba and across Latin America who saw it as an example of how the seemingly arrogant Yankees could be defied. And many on the island were happy to see the seizure of property of the landed class, the expulsion of American gangsters and the closure of their casinos.

Castro's speeches, lasting up to six hours, became the soundtrack of Cuban life and his 269-minute speech to the U.N. General Assembly in 1960 set the world body's record for length that still stood more than five decades later.

As Castro moved into the Soviet bloc, Washington began working to oust him, cutting U.S. purchases of sugar, the island's economic mainstay. Castro, in turn, confiscated $1 billion in U.S. assets.

The American government imposed a trade embargo, banning virtually all U.S. exports to the island except for food and medicine, and it severed diplomatic ties on Jan. 3, 1961.

On April 16 of that year, Castro declared his revolution to be socialist, and the next day, about 1,400 Cuban exiles stormed the beach at the Bay of Pigs on Cuba's south coast. But the CIA-backed invasion failed.

The debacle forced the U.S. to give up on the idea of invading Cuba, but that didn't stop Washington and Castro's exiled enemies from trying to do him in. By Cuban count, he was the target of more than 630 assassination plots by militant Cuban exiles or the U.S. government.

The biggest crisis of the Cold War between Washington and Moscow exploded on Oct. 22, 1962, when President John F. Kennedy announced there were Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba and imposed a naval blockade of the island. Humankind held its breath, and after a tense week of diplomacy, Soviet leader Nikita Krushchev removed them. Never had the world felt so close to nuclear war.

Castro cobbled revolutionary groups together into the new Cuban Communist Party, with him as first secretary. Labor unions lost the right to strike. The Catholic Church and other religious institutions were harassed. Neighborhood "revolutionary defense committees" kept an eye on everyone.

Castro exported revolution to Latin American countries in the 1960s, and dispatched Cuban troops to Africa to fight Western-backed regimes in the 1970s. Over the decades, he sent Cuban doctors abroad to tend to the poor, and gave sanctuary to fugitive Black Panther leaders from the U.S.

But the collapse of the Soviet bloc ended billions in preferential trade and subsidies for Cuba, sending its economy into a tailspin. Castro briefly experimented with an opening to foreign capitalists and limited private enterprise.

As the end of the Cold War eased global tensions, many Latin American and European countries re-established relations with Cuba. In January 1998, Pope John Paul II visited a nation that had been officially atheist until the early 1990s.

Aided by a tourism boom, the economy slowly recovered and Castro steadily reasserted government control, stifling much of the limited free enterprise tolerated during harder times.

As flamboyant as he was in public, Castro tried to lead a discreet private life. He and his first wife, Mirta Diaz Balart, had one son before divorcing in 1956. Then, for more than four decades, Castro had a relationship with Dalia Soto del Valle. They had five sons together and were said to have married quietly in 1980.

By the time Castro resigned 49 years after his triumphant arrival in Havana, he was the world's longest ruling head of government, aside from monarchs.

In retirement, Castro voiced unwavering support as Raul slowly but deliberately enacted sweeping changes to the Marxist system he had built.

His longevity allowed the younger brother to consolidate control, perhaps lengthening the revolution well past both men's lives. In February 2013, Raul announced that he would retire as president in 2018 and named newly minted Vice President Miguel Diaz-Canel as his successor.

"I'll be 90 years old soon," Castro said at an April 2016 Communist Party congress where he made his most extensive public appearance in years. "Soon I'll be like all the others. The time will come for all of us, but the ideas of the Cuban Communists will remain as proof that on this planet, if one works with fervor and dignity, they can produce the material and cultural goods that human beings need and that need to be fought for without ever giving up."

Cuba's government announced that Castro's ashes would be interred on Dec. 4 in the eastern city of Santiago that was a birthplace of his revolution. That will follow more than a week of honors, including a nearly nationwide caravan retracing, in reverse, his tour from Santiago to Havana with the triumph of the revolution in 1959.

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Havana (AFP) - With his rugged rebel look and seductive charisma, Fidel Castro was known not only as a giant of 20th century history, but also as quite the ladies' man.

Rumors of Castro's sexual prowess abounded in Cuba even before his days as a black-bearded guerrilla leader hiding out in the mountains.

And those tales lasted straight through his nearly five decades in power, even until his death on Friday at age 90.

Some said he had thousands of women. The New York Post put the figure at a stunning 35,000 in a 2008 article, a figure that came from an unnamed former official.

Journalist Ann Louise Bardach wrote in a 2009 book that Castro told her he had fathered "almost a tribe" of children.

But it is difficult to separate truth from legend.

Castro himself rarely talked about his personal life, despite his famous volubility.

"Private life, in my opinion, should not be an instrument for publicity or politics," he said in 1992.

He reportedly had a taste for blondes, seducing a string of American, German and Italian women in the 1950s and 1960s.

In 1959, just after seizing power, Castro had an affair with a young German woman, Marita Lorenz, who says the CIA hired her to assassinate him.

She lost her nerve, flushed her poison pills down the toilet, and ended up spending their rendez-vous at the Habana Hilton making love with him instead, she said in a 1993 interview in Vanity Fair.

Castro had a mysterious power over her from the day she met him as a wide-eyed 19-year-old, she said.

"When Fidel talks to you, he talks to you very close. He looks right in your eye," Lorenz said, recounting how he immediately swept her off her feet.

"Nothing hit me as hard as this ever -- like a ton of bricks. He didn't let me completely undress. He was the sweetest, tenderest. I guess nobody ever forgets their first lover."

- Powerful women -

Historians say Castro had at least seven children by three women.

Story continues

Rumors of secret affairs and more children abound.

Castro had little patience for the American-style political family.

"Politically speaking as a revolutionary, I refuse to mix my family with politics. In truth the idea of first ladies seems to be ridiculous," he told US filmmaker Oliver Stone in a 2003 documentary.

In the film, he revealed he was never in fact married to Dalia Soto del Valle, the green-eyed blonde, 15 years his junior, he shared his life with from the 1980s on.

He met the former school teacher in 1961 during a massive literacy campaign launched by his new government, and had five sons with her: Alejandro, Alex, Antonio, Alexis and Angel.

According to Castro, his only marriage was in 1948, to Mirta Diaz-Balart, a philosophy student from a wealthy family.

They had a son together, Fidelito, who is today a 67-year-old nuclear physicist.

The marriage unravelled when Castro was imprisoned after staging a failed attack on the Moncada army barracks in 1953 -- the start of his revolutionary career.

Languishing in prison, he learned she had accepted a job at the interior ministry, where her brother was a high-ranking official. Outraged, he divorced her in 1954.

He had meanwhile begun an affair in 1952 with Natalia "Naty" Revuelta, a pretty blonde who was also married.

Together they had a daughter, Alina, in 1956.

She fled Cuba in 1993 and now lives in Miami.

Castro also reportedly had another son, Jorge Angel, from a 1955 affair with Maria Laborde, an activist in his movement.

One of the most influential women in his life was Celia Sanchez, a fellow rebel who was his confidante and personal secretary -- and possibly more -- until her death of cancer in 1980.

Except Alina, all Castro's known children still live in Cuba, where they are largely kept out of the media spotlight.
HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila's conduct is to be reviewed by the parliamentary ombudsman for a possible conflict of interest in government funding for a state-owned nickel mine, the watchdog said on Monday. Complaints were made after Finnish media reported last week that the engineering company Katera Steel, owned by Sipila's relatives, had received a half-million-euro order from the state-owned nickel company Terrafame shortly after Terrafame unexpectedly received a cash injection from the government. Sipila has denied any impropriety and on Sunday told reporters that he had not been aware of the Katera order when the financing decision was made. His office has also asked another watchdog, the government's Chancellor of Justice, to review the case. "The financing decision was based on proposals by Terrafame and the Ministry for Employment and the Economy. There was nothing about subcontractors in them," he told the broadcaster YLE in a radio interview. Sipila, a millionaire businessman with a background in telecommunications, added that he had given up all his business activity before entering politics to avoid conflicts of interest. The order was made just weeks after Sipila's center-right government proposed about 100 million euros ($109 million) of new funding for the former Talvivaara nickel mine. The government took over the mine last year, and founded Terrafame to run it, after production problems, environmental damage and a drop in nickel prices pushed its owner, Talvivaara, into a debt restructuring. The decision to provide more money marked a U-turn for the austerity-minded government, which said in May that it would start closing the mine if a private investor was not found by the end of the year. The state has so far injected about 500 million euros into the mine. (Reporting by Tuomas Forsell; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Five aid trucks carrying food and medicine arrived in the regime-besieged town of Madaya in the Damascus countryside on Monday, November 28.

The delivery by the Syrian Red Crescent, International Red Cross and United Nations reportedly coincided with aid trucks being given free passage into the rebel-besieged pro-regime towns of Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province.

The last aid delivery to Madaya took place two months ago in a similar reciprocal deal that enabled a convoy to also reach the same Idlib enclaves. Credit: YouTube/War Media via Storyful
By Andrew M. Seaman (Reuters Health) - Pregnant women who get the flu, or a flu vaccine, are not increasing their baby's risk for an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a new study suggests. Researchers analyzed data on 196,929 children born from 2000 through 2010 in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California healthcare system after at least 24 weeks gestation. During follow-up periods ranging from two to 15 years, 1.6 percent of the children were diagnosed with ASD. Among the mothers of that 1.6 percent, fewer than 1 percent had the flu while pregnant, and about 23 percent had gotten a flu vaccine. Neither influenza infection nor vaccination during pregnancy were tied to children being diagnosed with ASD, the research team reports in JAMA Pediatrics. "Our data showed pretty convincingly that there was no association with influenza at any time during pregnancy and autism in the child," said senior author Lisa Croen, of Kaiser Permanente Northern California in Oakland. "Were not recommending that any changes be made to the vaccination policy," Croen told Reuters Health. "We are encouraging women to get vaccinated to get while pregnant." Previous studies looking at possible links between influenza during pregnancy and ASD had produced mixed results, Croen and her colleagues note in JAMA Pediatrics. And until now, they add, no studies had looked for links between ASD and flu vaccines, which are recommended for pregnant women. People with ASD may have social, communication and behavioral challenges that may cause them to interact, learn and behave in ways different from most people, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A second study published in the same journal also found no link between vaccines against influenza A (H1N1) - sometimes referred to as swine flue - during pregnancy in 2009-2010 and complications later in life for over 60,000 Danish children. The results support the overall safety profile of the vaccine, write the researchers, who were led by Anders Hviid, of the Statens Serum Institute in Copenhagen. They support the World Health Organization's recommendations that pregnant women should get a flu vaccine. While the CDC recommends that everyone over 6 months of age receive a flu vaccine, it's especially important for some people - including pregnant women - who are more likely to experience complications from the virus. "The flu in pregnancy is dangerous," said Dr. Loralei Thornburg, a high-risk pregnancy expert at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York. "We know that women who have the flu do much worse and we know their babies do worse." Pregnant women with influenza may be at an increased risk for premature labor and delivery, according to the CDC. There is also a greater risk of birth defects in their babies. "There have been a lot of fears about vaccines, but the data suggest they are effective and dont increase the risk of autism and other perinatal complications," said Thornburg, who was not involved with the new studies. "The benefits strongly outweigh and risks or theoretical risks that weve seen." SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2fJUsZD and http://bit.ly/2fJY1Pw JAMA Pediatrics, online November 28, 2016.
Forget chocolate  theres now a CHEESE advent calendar this holiday season

We thought the holiday season couldnt get much better when we learned about the cheese hot glue gun that now existed in the world. Could there be a more perfect Christmas gift? We didnt think so  until we heard of a little something called a cheese advent calendar. Yep, you read that correctly. A cheese advent calendar, because 2016 was a tough year and we all deserve it.

A genius food blogger from London named Annem Hobson is to thank for this latest cheese creation. Youd think someone in industrialized society would have thought of it before, but apparently Annem is the Cheesy Chosen One destined to make all our dreams come true.

Shes working hard to make the cheese advent calendar available in 2017, so visit the website cheeseadventcalendar.com to sign up for the updates. And start using the hashtag #cheesenotchoc to let all your friends and family know that the world as we know it is about to change.

WE DID IT!!! Over 1000 people want the cheese advent calendar!! Let's make this happen  #cheesenotchocpic.twitter.com/0gcDV1k4X1  So Wrong It's Nom (@SoWrongItsNom) November 28, 2016

Isnt Annem lovely? Isnt she a modern-day hero? If youre impatient and youd like to make one of your very own, she walks you through the very easy process that allows you to enjoy the rest of your days knee-deep in cheese.

The post Forget chocolate  theres now a CHEESE advent calendar this holiday season appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Residents of the Lilley Lodge Assisted Living Facility in North Pole, Alaska, couldnt wait for 22-year-old nursing assistant Emily McDonald to bring her newborn daughter into the center.

But that day never came to pass.

On Friday, the young mother, who was still on maternity leave, was the victim of a murder-suicide at the hands of her husband, McKay Hutton, 22, according to the Fairbanks Police Department. Hutton also fatally shot their infant daughter, eight-week-old Teagan Hutton, and his own mother, Linda Hutton, 54, before turning the gun on himself.

Im just in shock, McDonalds longtime employer, Lilley Lodge owner Terry Ann Gainer, tells PEOPLE. I dont think it has set in yet. They seemed so happy.

Police responded Friday to a call from hotel staff at the Hampton Inn about a suspicious circumstance, according to Fairbanks police.

Officers who arrived on the scene found an adult male crying in the hallway before discovering the four dead bodies inside one of the rooms, according to the Fairbanks police.

The man crying in the hallway has since been identified as a family member, say police, who add that a preliminary investigation shows he was not there during the shooting. Authorities have not yet released his name.

A single firearm was recovered in the room, say police, who are withholding the make, model and location of the gun.

Authorities are awaiting the results of autopsies that were performed on the four victims on Monday, Fairbanks Police Department Public Information Officer Yumi McCulloch tells PEOPLE.

On Thanksgiving night, just hours before the shooting, Gainer says she saw a picture McDonald had posted on Facebook of her young son from another relationship and her infant daughter.

Then the next day Emily and the baby were gone, she says. It just boggles the mind.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

In the days following the murder-suicide, police are still working to determine motive.

Story continues

The million dollar question is why they were in that hotel room, says Gainer. They had a lovely little home nearby.

Gainer met McDonald five years ago when she hired her to work at her assisted living facility. She became a great part of our family. She was like one of our own, Gainer says.

The residents McDonald cared for  by helping bathe and dress them  adored her and are devastated by her loss, says Gainer. She was so kind-hearted and loving, she says. She had a gentle spirit. Thats why I hired her.

While McDonald was private, she and Hutton, whom she wed in November 2015, seemed very happy together, says Gainer.

I remember how excited she was to tell me she was having a little girl, she says. She was such a good mom. She was so devoted to her children. She loved her children.

Gainer says she has no idea what led Hutton to allegedly shoot McDonald, their baby and his mother. In hindsight, she recalls photos of the family taken at the hotel and posted on Facebook just before their deaths  and finds the photos disturbing.

They look so somber, she says. They dont look happy at all. She was always smiling and laughing. When I saw those afterward, I thought, Something was happening.

As happy as they seemed, no one really knows what goes on behind closed doors.

Anyone with more information about the individuals involved should contact Detective Avery Thompson at 907-450-6549 or send an email to asthompson@fairbanks.us.
By Emma Batha LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - After escaping years of sexual slavery, Jennifer Kempton could not look in the mirror without being taken back to her dark, traumatic past. On her neck was tattooed the name of one of her traffickers along with his gang's crown insignia. Above her groin were the words "Property of Salem" - the name of the former boyfriend who forced her into prostitution nine years ago. "Slaves have been branded for centuries and it's just evolved into being tattooed. It's happening all over the world," said Kempton who suffered horrific brutality during six years working on the streets of Columbus, Ohio. Today the tattoo on her neck has been transformed into a large flower "blooming out of the darkness". Three other brandings have been masked with decorative, symbolic motifs. Two years ago Kempton, now 34, set up a charity called Survivor's Ink to help others who have escaped enslavement get their brandings covered up or removed. "It was very empowering for me so I wanted to pay forward that liberation to other girls in my area who had been branded like cattle, just like I was," Kempton told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Most requests for help come from women in the United States, but the grassroots project increasingly receives applications from other countries including Canada, Britain, Australia and Croatia. Some of the stories are very disturbing. Kempton said they recently helped a woman in Britain whose mother had carved the word 'whore' into her leg when she was a child and sold her. Every time the word faded it was recarved. Globally some 4.5 million people are trapped in sexual exploitation, according to the International Labor Organization, generating an estimated $99 billion in illegal profits a year. SOLD AND RESOLD Kempton says there is a major misconception that women trafficked into prostitution are brought in from poor countries. In the United States an estimated 80 percent of women trafficked into prostitution are U.S.-born citizens, Kempton said, ahead of the Trust Women conference in London this week which will focus on human trafficking and slavery. Kempton wants tougher penalties for traffickers and improved training for police to better identify and help victims. She is also an advocate of an approach adopted by Canada and some European countries which criminalizes men who buy sex rather than the women trafficked into prostitution. Describing her downward spiral, Kempton refers to a dysfunctional background in which she was raped at the age of 12. In her 20s, after a series of abusive relationships, she thought she had finally met her "Prince Charming". But he soon got her addicted to heroin, put her on the streets and plied her with crack cocaine so she could work longer hours. At one point she was kidnapped by armed men who locked her in a hotel room to have sex with a stream of men. After escaping to her "boyfriend" she discovered she was pregnant with his child, but when her body grew and her earnings shrank he sold her to a couple of drug dealers. After the birth she was sold again "to the most violent gang in Columbus". The turning point came in April 2013 after a brutal rape. During a prolonged attack she was beaten beyond recognition and raped with a knife. As she fled the house bleeding she begged two men for help but they laughed and locked their door. "The sound of the door locking just echoed in my mind. I was locked out of society, I was not seen as worthy of help," said Kempton. Afterwards she tried to hang herself, but the rope snapped. In her despair, she heard a voice telling her she had a purpose in life "and it wasn't to die in the basement of a crackhouse". Survivor's Ink has so far provided grants to help around 100 women cover up their slavery brandings. "It's always amazing to see the look on their face when they no longer have to look at this dehumanizing mark of ownership and violence," Kempton said. "Sometimes I'll get a call a few days later with someone just bawling their eyes out saying 'Oh my gosh, I can actually look at my body. It's my own again.'." (Editing by Belinda Goldsmith; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, which covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org to see more stories.)
LONDON (Reuters) - Philip Clarke, the former chief executive of Tesco , will not face charges from the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the accounting scandal that rocked Britain's biggest retailer in 2014, his lawyer said on Monday. David Corker, partner at CorkerBinning, told Reuters he had received a letter from the SFO informing him that Clarke would not be prosecuted. "It has been decided not to initiate criminal proceedings on the grounds there is insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction," said the letter. The SFO declined to comment beyond stating its investigation into Tesco was continuing. Clarke was sacked as Tesco CEO in July 2014 after three years in the top job. Last month three former senior executives of Tesco accused of fraud and false accounting were told they would face trial next September. Christopher Bush, who was managing director of Tesco UK, Carl Rogberg, who was UK finance director, and John Scouler, who was UK food commercial director, were charged by the SFO in September with one count of fraud by abuse of position and one count of false accounting. The SFO said the alleged crimes occurred between Feb. 1 and Sept. 23, 2014. Tesco issued a statement to the Stock Exchange on Sept. 22, 2014, saying that during its final preparations for a results announcement it had identified a 250 million pound overstatement of first-half profit, mainly due to booking commercial deals with suppliers too early. The discovery led to the suspension of eight senior members of staff including Bush, Rogberg and Scouler, sent Tesco's shares tumbling and plunged the company into the worst crisis since Jack Cohen founded the business nearly 100 years ago. The profit overstatement, identified three weeks after Dave Lewis took over as CEO from Clarke, was later raised to 263 million pounds. Clarke not facing charges could have implications for the SFO deciding whether to prosecute Tesco itself. The former CEO was seen by lawyers as the most likely route amongst the suspects to charges for Tesco Plc as a group or for a deferred prosecution agreement, a type of plea bargain. The other three suspects charged all worked for the UK arm. (Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Sandra Maler)
PARIS (Reuters) - The use of coal, oil and gas to generate power in France jumped nearly 40 percent last month to compensate for a slide in nuclear and hydropower production, network operator RTE said in its monthly report on Monday. France, which typically depends on nuclear power for more than 75 percent of its electricity needs, is heading into winter with reduced nuclear capacity after safety watchdog ASN ordered a dozen reactors to be shut down and checked. RTE said nuclear power production fell 16 percent in October from the same period a year ago while hydropower output tumbled a record 21 percent year-on-year to 3,096 gigawatt hour (GWh), its lowest level since 2009. As a result, France turned to coal, oil and gas to compensate for the shortfall, RTE said, pushing fossil fuel power generation up 37 percent from a year earlier to 5,061 GWh. Fears about low nuclear power supply during the peak demand months over winter pushed French and European power prices to record highs this month and forced utility EDF to cut its production forecast for 2016. Wind and solar power generation also rose during October, by 7 percent and 15 percent respectively from 2015. RTE said although France remained a net power exporter in Europe during the month, exports fell 89 percent from October last year to 552 GWh year-on-year, the lowest since February 2012 when there was a cold snap. It said France was a net importer of electricity from the United Kingdom for the first time since then. (Reporting by Bate Felix; editing by David Clarke)
By Jim Forsyth

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - More than 1,000 mourners, including police from across the country, attended the funeral on Monday of a San Antonio police officer fatally shot this month in his squad car during a routine traffic stop outside the city's police headquarters.

Benjamin Marconi, a 20-year veteran of the San Antonio police force, was killed at age 50 in a Nov. 20 ambush attack. He was remembered as a dedicated officer who wanted to help others.

"Detective Marconi, we are forever grateful for your watch. He was a friendly dear brother and he was a friend to so many who served this city so well," said Betsy Buhler, a pastor at Community Bible Church, which held the funeral.

Floral arrangements with Marconi's badge number also adorned the church in San Antonio.

Suspect Otis McKane was arrested without incident a day after the shooting and charged with capital murder, which can bring the death penalty in Texas.

McKane, 31, apologized to the officer's family in comments to reporters after being arrested, saying he had "lashed out at somebody who didn't deserve it" in anger over a child custody dispute.

The detective was shot twice in the head as he wrote a traffic ticket after pulling over another motorist. Authorities said McKane then stopped his car behind Marconi's vehicle, walked up and shot the detective through the window.

His death came roughly four months after five police officers were killed by a black gunman in a racially motivated ambush in Dallas that stoked concerns about officer safety and fueled a simmering debate about the role of race in U.S. policing.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz and Jim Forsyth; Editing by Will Dunham and Marguerita Choy)
Banjul (Gambia) (AFP) - Gambia showcased Monday its homegrown solution to the problem of fraud and illiteracy at the ballot box: voting with marbles.

At a press conference in the capital, Banjul, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) displayed three metal drums representing the three presidential candidates contesting a December 1 election in this tiny west African state.

Voters enter a private area that is curtained off where they drop a marble into one of the three drums that are painted with the party colours and emblems, and a bell rings confirming a vote has been cast.

"It's unique and we are very proud of it," said IEC vice-president Malleh Sallah, explaining how the Gambian Public Works department dreamt up the idea six decades ago.

Electoral officials say the system all but eliminates spoilt ballots and allows illiterate Gambians to vote more easily, while ensuring only one vote is cast per person.

Sawdust or sand is sprinkled on the bottom of the barrel so that no second sound is heard.

On Thursday President Yahya Jammeh is hoping to return for a fifth term in power but is facing an unprecedented surge in support for the opposition.

Adama Barrow, representing a coalition of opposition parties, is posing the greatest challenge to Jammeh's rule, while Gambian Democratic Congress (GDC) candidate Mama Kandeh is standing as the third candidate.

The country has around 880,000 eligible voters.
General Motors Companys GM Cadillac brands annual vehicle sales in China crossed the 100,000 mark on Nov 25, 2016. With this, retail sales across China as of Nov 25, 2016, marked a 54% year-over-year increase. Thus, the brand emerged as the fastest growing luxury car brand in the Chinese market.



General Motors expects that its products, dealers and the Cadillac brands global transformation will aid the achievement of its goals. Cadillac focuses on expansion of its product portfolio and dealer network, alongside improving customer service.



General Motors continues to launch new products in order to attract more customers. This year, the automaker has introduced two mainstream luxury models, the CT6 prestige sedan and XT5 luxury crossover. These vehicles will be produced at Cadillacs new facility in Shanghai. The automaker expects these vehicles to complement Cadillacs other models, including XTS luxury sedan and ATS-L sport sedan.



Cadillac offers vehicles under all major luxury segments like the mid- and large-sized luxury sedans, medium-range luxury sedans, and midsize luxury SUVs. The brand will also launch the Cadillac CT6 plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) this year.



GENERAL MOTORS Price

GENERAL MOTORS Price | GENERAL MOTORS Quote

Zacks Rank



General Motors currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).



Other well-ranked companies in the auto space include Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. ALSN, America's Car-Mart Inc. CRMT and Rush Enterprises, Inc. RUSHA.



Both Allison Transmission and America's Car-Mart sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.



Allison Transmission has a long-term growth rate of 11%.



America's Car-Mart has a long-term growth rate of 45.50%.



Rush Enterprises, carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), has a long-term expected growth rate of 15%.



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Germany announced Saturday it is launching a probe into Nazi influence on its post-war central government at the cost of 4 million euros ($4.2 million). The investigation will run till 2020, with nearly 1 million euros from the budget allocated just to uncover Nazi influence on the German chancellery.

The announcement comes even as numerous other investigations are already looking into various ministries and institutions to uncover the influence of Nazi networks on government agencies following World War II. Twenty such probes have already been completed.

The newest probe will look into the governments post-war recruitment and the mentality of the political culture, Germanys culture ministry reportedly said in a statement.

A government report published in October this year found that nearly 77 percent of officials employed in the justice ministry in 1957 were once members of the Nazi Party. A controversial figure among these officials was former Nazi magistrate Eduard Dreher. In 1968, Dreher drafted a law ending nearly all probes into Third Reich figures in addition to causing problems for Nazi hunters.

A key figure in this new investigation is West German official Hans Globke, the chief of staff to the first chancellor after the war, Konrad Adenauer, from 1953 to 1963. He was also one of Adenauers closest confidants. Local media reports said Globke was responsible for recruitments during his time as chief of staff.

He was also a senior official in the interior ministry during Adolf Hitlers regime. Globke helped in preparing the anti-Semetic Nuremberg laws and the Jewish code which was implemented in Slovakia under the Nazis. It is unclear if Adenauer, who was mayor of Cologne during the Nazi regime, will also be investigated.

However, the investigation will prove to be difficult as many files carrying tip-offs on former Nazi officials in post-war Germany are still classified, or in some cases, destroyed by German secret services.

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Berlin (AFP) - Francois Fillon, frontrunner to become France's next president, has sparked unease in Germany with his friendly attitude toward Russia, which could make him an uncomfortable ally for Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Fillon secured the nomination of the French conservative Republicans on Sunday with a resounding victory over his more moderate challenger Alain Juppe.

Opinion polls currently predict that he would handily beat far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen in the knock-out finals of next May's presidential elections.

That in itself is cause for relief in Germany, France's traditional core EU partner, which has been rattled by the US election of Donald Trump, the Brexit vote and the rise of right-wing populism in Europe.

"Any French president who is not Marine Le Pen is good news for the German government," said Stefani Weiss, analyst on European issues at think tank the Bertelsmann Foundation.

There are other reasons why a Merkel-Fillon duo at the heart of Europe should at first glance be a good fit.

Both are from the conservative political family and rooted in the Christian faith, he a Catholic and she a Protestant.

The Frenchman's pledges to drastically shake up the economy and slash state spending are welcomed by the German government, which staunchly preaches austerity and balanced books.

- Thorny issues -

Fillon, a self-professed Thatcherite, is depicted in Germany like a French version of former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who drove home painful social welfare reforms in the early 2000s.

While deeply contested in those days, the policies of Schroeder, a Social Democrat, have since been credited with bringing down unemployment and making the German economy more competitive.

But scratch a little deeper, and stark differences emerge between Fillon and Merkel, from their attitudes towards gay rights -- Fillon opposes gay marriage -- to their visions on how Europe should be run.

Story continues

The French former prime minister sees a bloc piloted by individual states rather than by Brussels, while Germany is content to let the European Commission police certain issues, including the level of state deficits.

On the thorny subject of refugees and migration, Merkel wants a quota system in place for each EU member to take their share of asylum seekers.

This might be a tough sell for Fillon, who has argued that France has a "problem linked to Islam".

But most crucially the two differ on foreign policy, and on how Russia should be handled.

Fillon, accused by his critics of being too close to President Vladimir Putin, has called for the lifting of sanctions that were imposed after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.

He believes the EU and United States "provoked" Russia by expanding NATO's presence into eastern Europe.

Fillon has also urged an alliance with Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime against the Islamic State group.

- Germans 'prefer Juppe' -

These positions differ with those of Merkel, who has kept the phone lines open to Putin but adopted a firm approach against Russia's encroachment in Ukraine.

She is worried by Trump's admiration for Putin, has condemned Russian bombing of Syria's Aleppo as "inhumane and cruel", and refused to rule out imposing further sanctions on Moscow.

"In the diplomatic arena, there may be problems between Fillon and Berlin, with the first issue being policies vis-a-vis Russia," said Barbara Kunz of the Study Committee on French-German Relations.

Kunz said all this meant that, "even if no one is saying it openly, the Germans prefer Alain Juppe".

A member of the chancellor's party, speaking on condition of anonymity, agreed on this point, saying that the former prime minister's less hardline profile is a "better Merkel-fit".

Norbert Roettgen, who heads the German parliament's foreign affairs committee, also said that "there is no doubt that there is a major difference" between Fillon and Germany's position on Russia.

"It's not just about Ukraine, but also about whether Europe can remain a whole, a free continent" or is once again divided between a "free Europe and a zone of Russian influence", he told AFP.

"Sanctions are precisely the expression of a united rejection of Russia's position, which holds that might is right," he added.

"We have a fundamental disagreement on the issue of Russia and we need to speak about this with Francois Fillon."
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's highest court has rejected an appeal filed by a man known as the "bookkeeper of Auschwitz", who was sentenced last year to four years in prison for his role in the murder of 300,000 people at the Nazi death camp. It said it rejected the appeal of Oskar Groening, 95, who was convicted in July 2015 of aiding and abetting the murders, as well as appeals filed by several other people who argued that Groening should have been convicted of the more serious charge of being an "accomplice" to murders. "The conviction is therefore now legally binding," the Federal Court of Justice said in a statement. It said it took the decision in September but only made it public on Monday. German Justice Minister Heiko Maas welcomed the decision. "It is never too late for justice," Maas said in a statement. "When it comes to the legal processing of Auschwitz there can also never be an end." Groening, a former Nazi SS officer, did not kill anyone himself while working at the camp in Nazi-occupied Poland, but the lower court ruled that he helped support those responsible for mass murder through various actions, including by sorting bank notes seized from trainloads of arriving Jews. Hans Holtermann, Groening's attorney, told Reuters there was no possibility of a further appeal, but he was studying whether to file a complaint with Germany's constitutional court given that Groening had been under investigation since 1977. "We think that should have been taken into consideration," he said. The trial went to the heart of the question of whether people who were minor participants in the Nazi atrocities, but did not actively participate in the killing of 6 million Jews during the Holocaust, were themselves guilty. The now frail Groening admitted moral guilt but said it was up to the court to decide whether he was legally guilty. During the trial he said he could only ask God to forgive him as he was not entitled to ask this of victims of the Holocaust. Legal experts said the court's decision could set a precedent for the case of Reinhold Hanning, another former SS officer who was convicted in June for his role in the murder of at least 170,000 people at the concentration camp. The Federal Court of Justice said it had not yet received any appeal relating to his case. A spokeswoman said an appeal was likely still being considered by federal prosecutors. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal in Berlin and Elke Ahlswede in Frankfurt; Editing by Alison Williams)
Photo credit: Netflix

From ELLE

Gilmore Girls fans have been obsessing over the show's Netflix revival since the moment it was announced, looking for closure about things like who Rory ended up with and creator Amy Sherman-Palladino's infamously mysterious Final Four Words.

You might thinks fans would be satisfied now, but since A Year in the Life raised as many questions as it answered, the internet is already calling for more. Is that in the cards though? Sherman-Palladino says yeah, it's possible...maybe...IDK...\_()_/.

"We really had a very specific journey in our minds and we fulfilled the journey," she told The Hollywood Reporter about the possibility. "So to us, this is the piece that we wanted to do. And the whole thought about, is there more, is there more, is there more-this has to go out into the universe now. We've got to put this to bed. And then whatever happens, happens."

So, Sherman-Palladino is remaining deliberately vague about Gilmore Girls future, but at least one cast member hasn't been afraid to publicly support the idea of bringing the Stars Hollow band back together (yet) again.

"It's been nice to do it every year," Scott Patterson (aka Luke Danes) told The Hollywood Reporter. "Maybe every two years, do a three-month thing, do four more chapters. It was easy to do. It was fun. It was really rewarding and people got a sense that if this was going to be the last thing that we now have some closure."

So if Netflix says no to more Gilmore Girls, maybe fans can switch gears and petition for a Luke Danes spin-off (but only if Kiefer Sutherland will agree to guest star, of course).

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gilmore girls netflix michel lorelai

Netflix's "Gilmore Girls" revival, "A Year in the Life," was meant to give the cult TV show the ending it never quite got in its last season when its creator, Amy Sherman-Palladino, was no longer on the show. But one actor says that his character's storyline was shortchanged.

In one major storyline, Michel (Yanic Truesdale) was considering leaving Lorelai's (Lauren Graham) Stars Hollow hotel, the Dragonfly Inn, for greener pastures in New York City. In a bid to keep him and realize her own dreams of expanding the business, Lorelai repeated a move she made in the original series when she needed money to send Rory (Alexis Bledel) to a private high school and asked her mother for another loan.

Producers probably felt fans would assume that meant Michel would stay, but it was never addressed again on the Netflix series. But according to Truesdale, he and Graham did shoot a scene that wrapped up the story.

"There was this scene that got cut because the show was too long," Truesdale told Business Insider recently. "That was a big moment for Michel and Lorelai where they go and they buy that other place to do the spa."

It should be noted that Truesdale hadn't seen the completed series when he spoke to us, so he was unsure about how the plot would play out.

"Now that that scene is not there, I dont know what you are left with with that storyline," Truesdale said. "Thats very unfortunate because that scene was very pivotal to all of that."

But fans may be able to see the scene in the future. Truesdale said producer Warner Bros. has plans to make it a bonus on the revival's potential DVD release.

"Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life" is currently streaming on Netflix.

NOW WATCH: The 7 best TV shows on Netflix you've probably never heard of





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An 8-year-old girl was abducted from her front porch in a small southern Illinois city while she waited for a church bus  then sexually assaulted and murdered  one day before Thanksgiving, authorities say.

Sabrina Stauffenbergs body was found near a vinegar plant Wednesday night, hours after she vanished, the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

On Sunday, police arrested 53-year-old Glen Ramey in connection with Sabrinas death, PEOPLE confirms. He was taken into custody around 2:20 a.m. on Sunday and charged with first-degree murder and predatory sexual assault.

She was standing on her front porch, waiting for the church bus. She was on the phone with her grandma at the time, Denise Haley, a friend of Sabrinas family, told the News-Democrat. She was telling her grandma that the church bus hadnt come.

Sabrinas grandmother hung up and called the church to ask why the bus was late. When she tired to call Sabrina again, there was no answer, Haley said.

Haley told the News-Democrat that Ramey had been dating one of Sabrinas relatives.

Ramey has not yet entered a plea and is being held at the Richland County jail. Online records show that his bail has not been set.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

He is named as a defendant in several orders of protection filed by multiple women in both 2014 and 2016, the News-Democrat reports. He is not listed on the Illinois sex offender registry.

Haley started a GoFundMe page to help the girls family in the wake of Sabrinas death.

In Haleys initial post on the page, she wrote: Last night this little girl was taken too soon. Although details are slim and our whole community is grieving such a horrific loss nothing can compare to what the family is experiencing.

Haley described the little girl as loving.

She trusted everybody, Haley said. She loved to play outside. She just learned how to ride a bike, so she loved riding her bike.
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Global Self Storage, Inc. (SELF), a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and operates self storage facilities, has been invited to present at the 9th Annual LD Micro Main Event investor conference being held December 6-8 at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles, California.

Mark C. Winmill, Global Self Storage's president and chief executive officer, will present on Tuesday, December 6 at 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time, with one-on-one meetings held throughout the day.

The LD Micro Main Event is the largest independent conference for small and microcap companies and will feature 240 presenting companies.

For those interested in attending, please contact David Scher at david@ldmicro.com or visit www.ldmicro.com/events for more information.

News Compliments of Accesswire.

About Global Self Storage

Global Self Storage, Inc. is a self-administered and self-managed REIT focused on the ownership, operation, acquisition, development, and redevelopment of self storage facilities in the United States. The company's self storage facilities are designed to offer affordable, easily accessible, and secure storage space for residential and commercial customers. It currently owns and operates, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, nine self storage properties located in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, South Carolina, and Ohio. For more information, go to http://ir.globalselfstorage.us or visit our self storage customer site at www.globalselfstorage.us.

About LD Micro

LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into an event platform hosting several influential conferences annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event).

In 2015, LD Micro launched the first pure microcap index (the LDMi) to exclusively provide intraday information on the entire sector. LD will continue to provide valuable tools for the benefit of everyone in the small and microcap universe.

Story continues

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information presented in this press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning the company's plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events, future revenues or performance, capital expenditures, financing needs, plans or intentions relating to acquisitions and other information that is not historical information. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "believes," "expects," "estimates," "may," "will," "should," "anticipates," or "intends," or the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy. The company may also make additional forward-looking statements from time to time. All such subsequent forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, by the company or on its behalf, are also expressly qualified by these cautionary statements. All forward-looking statements, including without limitation, the company's examination of historical operating trends and estimates of future earnings, are based upon the company's current expectations and various assumptions. The company's expectations, beliefs, and projections are expressed in good faith and it believes there is a reasonable basis for them, but there can be no assurance that the company's expectations, beliefs, and projections will result or be achieved. All forward-looking statements apply only as of the date made. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements which may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Certain information contained herein has been supplied by third parties. While the company believes such sources are reliable, the company cannot guarantee the accuracy of any such information and does not represent that such information is accurate or complete.

Contacts:

Global Self Storage, Inc.

Mark C. Winmill

President and Chief Executive Officer

mwinmill@globalselfstorageinc.com

1-212-785-0900, ext. 201

Liolios Investor Relations

Michael Koehler

SELF@liolios.com

1-949-574-3860

SOURCE: Global Self Storage, Inc. via LD Micro
On Nov 22, 2016, we issued an updated report on GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. GOL.

The companys net profit in the third quarter of 2016 compared favorably with the loss incurred in the prior-year quarter. Revenues, however, declined on a year-over-basis. The company also saw a decline in traffic metricrevenue passenger kilometers (RPK)  the measure of revenues generated per kilometer per passenger. Available seat kilometers (ASK)  the measure of an airline's passenger carrying capacity  decreased on a year-over-year basis. However, the companys load factor improved by 120 basis points (bps) in the reported quarter. Despite the decline in performance metrics, we are positive on the fact that the companys long-term debt has decreased from year-end 2015. We are also optimistic about the changes in the companys existing fleet with improved in-flight offerings.

October Metrics

The company reported a decline in traffic and capacity for the month of October. Passenger count declined too. However, load factor impressed with an improvement of 50 bps for the month of October.

The company continues to face challenges like the strong U.S. dollar and economic slowdown in Brazil and Latin America. However, we are positive on the companys revised outlook for 2016. Operating margin is expected at 6%, which is at the higher end of the previous guidance of a range of 4% to 6%. Moreover, fleet size is anticipated to be reduced further in 2017, which in turn, should improve capacity utilization. Total supply is now expected to decline 8% instead of a range of 58%.

The company faces tough competition from peers like Copa Holdings CPA, LATAM Airlines LFL, and Delta Air Lines Inc. DAL.

Zacks Rank

GOL Linhas currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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Alphabet Inc. GOOGL owned Google is already a major subject of scrutiny in Europe and the matter has started to spread to Asia as well.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Google is in the process of settling taxes with the Indonesian government. Google senior executives and Indonesian tax officials have been meeting since September and negotiating the same.

As part of the settlement, Google may pay back taxes and fines and revise its profit calculation methodology in the country. In September, a senior tax official had stated that Indonesias tax agency was planning to bill Google for five years of back taxes and associated fines and the company might have to pay over $400 million for 2015 alone if found guilty.

The tax office believes that PT Google Indonesia has paid less than 0.1% of the total accumulated taxes as of 2015. It raided the companys regional headquarters in Singapore, Google Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. in September after it refused to be audited in June.

According to a Bloomberg report, the settlement may come as early as next week.

Indonesias Push to Extract Taxes

Indonesia is pressing on multinationals such as Google, Apple AAPL, Twitter TWTR and Yahoo YHOO to pay taxes and also trying to bring in billions of dollars stashed abroad through a tax amnesty rolled out in July. The government is also working on cutting the corporate tax rate from 25% to 17%.

The broader ambition is to narrow the budget deficit and boost infrastructure spending. Thailand and Australia are also working on cracking down on multinational tax avoidance.

ALPHABET INC-A Price

ALPHABET INC-A Price | ALPHABET INC-A Quote

Googles Tax Woes in Europe

In January, Google reached an agreement with U.K. tax officials to pay nearly $190 million in British back taxes and make changes in the style of calculating its UK tax bill.

The UK settlement was followed by further investigation. Officials raided Googles French headquarters in May searching for evidence of "aggravated tax fraud" and money laundering as Google paid just $1.76 billion as back taxes there.

Story continues

Within weeks after this raid, Spanish officials raided Googles Madrid office in search of similar evidence.

To Conclude

Google is embroiled in a legal battle across practically all continents. Apart from being a huge drain on resources, these have earned it a bad name on privacy concerns, anti-competitive concerns, patent infringements and what have you.

Nevertheless, the company has had extraordinary success in the courtroom and with government officials around the world. But the developments are worth keeping an eye on and remain an overhang on the shares.

Zacks Rank

Currently, Alphabet has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Shares of Alphabet have been steadily treading higher on a year-to-date basis. The stock generated a return of 0.29% compared with the Zacks Internet Services Market gain of 0.22%.





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A bubbling flood of molasses that sent a towering wave of goo down the streets of Boston in 1919, catching everything from horses to humans in its sticky grasp, killing 21 people, injuring 150 more and flattening buildings in its wake. Now, scientists have figured out why the deluge of viscous sweetener was so deadly.

Cool temperatures may have caused the spilled molasses to flow more slowly, complicating attempts to rescue victims and to begin recovery and cleanup, researchers report in a new study.

On Jan. 15, 1919, shortly after 12:40 p.m. local time, a giant storage tank 50 feet (15 meters) tall and 90 feet (27 m) wide on Boston's waterfront at the Purity Distilling Co. collapsed in the city's crowded North End, according to newspapers at the time. It released more than 2.3 million gallons (8.7 million liters) of molasses. [The 10 Weirdest Spills in Nature]

The wave from the flood, which reached about 25 feet (7.6 m) tall, oozed at more than 50 feet per second (15 m/sec), the researchers of the new study said. It took just moments for the molasses  a standard sweetener at the time  to engulf Boston's Commercial Street area.

According to a report from The Boston Post from 1919, "Molasses, waist deep, covered the street and swirled and bubbled about the wreckage ... Here and there struggled a form  whether it was animal or human being was impossible to tell. Only an upheaval, a thrashing about in the sticky mass, showed where any life was ... Horses died like so many flies on sticky fly-paper. The more they struggled, the deeper in the mess they were ensnared. Human beings  men and women  suffered likewise."

How molasses flows

Scientists began investigating the science of this disaster this year, after undergraduate students produced a video about the flood in May. "To gather relevant details about the flood and its aftermath, I've read hundreds of pages of historical accounts and contemporary newspaper articles, studied century-old maps of buildings in the area, and even called the National Weather Service to request historic meteorological data," lead study author Nicole Sharp, a Denver-based aerospace engineer and fluid dynamicist, said in a statement.

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The scientists also investigated the properties of blackstrap molasses, focusing on how temperature affected its rate of flow. "The goal is to take our knowledge and understanding of highly viscous spreading flows and apply that to the Boston Molasses Flood," Sharp said in the statement. [The Mysterious Physics of 7 Everyday Things]

The researchers found that at the time of the collapse, the air temperature would have been around 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius). The molasses, however, had arrived from the Caribbean to top off the tank only two days before the flood, and was likely a balmy 50 to 68 degrees F (10 to 20 degrees C) when it was first delivered. Boston winter temperatures would have cooled the molasses down, but it would still likely have been a few degrees warmer than the surrounding air, Sharp said.

Once the tank collapsed, the molasses started flowing quickly over the waterfront. The scientists found that temperature could greatly influence molasses's viscosity, or the degree to which it resists flowing.

"Temperatures dipped just below freezing the night following the accident," Sharp told Live Science. "Based on our data, it's possible the viscosity of the molasses increased by a factor of four or more due to that drop in temperature. That does not sound like such a big difference, but the high viscosity of the molasses was a major factor for rescue work."

For example, "a group of men were trapped in a nearby firehouse when the molasses knocked the building off its foundation and caused the upper floor to collapse atop them," Sharp said. "Reaching them took hours, and one of the men, George Layhe, grew so exhausted fighting against the molasses hour after hour that he ultimately drowned when he could no longer hold his head up."

Tank failure

The tank had its share of issues even before the disaster.

"The molasses tank was originally built in December 1915 under the direction of a manager, Arthur Jell, with no technical background," Sharp said. "The tank leaked throughout its short lifetime, and the response of United States Industrial Alcohol's management to the comments and complaints about the leakage was to paint the tank brown so that the leaks were less noticeable." (United States Industrial Alcohol was the parent company ofthe Purity Distilling Co.)

"As an engineer, one of the things that struck me about the whole affair was the lack of professional ethics involved," Sharp said. "We engineers have a professional and a moral obligation to ensure that what we design and build is safe. People's lives and livelihoods are at risk if we fail. The Boston Molasses Flood is a reminder of what can happen when corners are cut and when warnings about a structure's failing integrity are ignored."

Sharp hopes to figure out what was going on in the tank prior to its collapse. "Two days before the rupture, warm molasses was pumped into the bottom of a tank of cold molasses," she said. "Historical accounts say that the tank walls 'groaned' after such deliveries, presumably due to the mixing between the warm and cold molasses. That's a problem I'd like to simulate using computational fluid dynamics, both to try and address the rumbling described by accounts and to have a clearer idea of what temperature the molasses might have been at the time of the disaster."

The physics of the Boston Molasses Flood are relevant to other accidents that affect the public, including industrial spills or breaking levees. However, the main goal of this work is education.

"Ultimately, I hope that by shedding some light on the physics of a fascinating and surreal historical event, our work can inspire a greater appreciation for fluid dynamics among our students and the public," Sharp said.

Sharp and her colleagues Jordan Kennedy and Shmuel Rubinstein, both at Harvard University, detailed their findings today (Nov. 21) at the annual meeting of the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics in Portland, Oregon.

Editor's Note: This article was updated to correct the temperature of the molasses when the disaster happened.

Original article on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
* Minister wants primary surplus target of 2.5 pct of GDP

* Urges lenders to sort out differences, conclude review

* Greek officials see pre-Christmas Eurogroup meeting

* ECB's Draghi: still concerns on Greek debt sustainability (Adds Moscovici comment, paragraph 6)

By George Georgiopoulos and Francesco Guarascio

ATHENS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Cutting budget surplus targets after 2018 would help Greece lower taxes and become more competitive, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said on Monday as he urged international lenders to conclude a vital bailout review and grant Athens debt relief.

Tsakalotos told a conference that Greece's targets for its primary budget surplus - which excludes debt servicing costs - could be cut to 2.5 percent of national output beyond 2018 from 3.5 percent, a proposal that European lenders have rejected.

"Some countries say that Greece's biggest issue is not its debt but competitiveness," Tsakalotos said, referring to comments by German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble last week . "If Greece's problem is competitiveness, I can't think of a better measure than reducing its surpluses.

"My proposal is the following: Let's agree to lower the primary budget surplus target to 2.5 percent from 3.5 percent and the Greek government will ensure that the full one percentage point difference will be allocated to tax relief for small and medium-sized companies ... to boost competitiveness."

ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure told delegates at the same conference that Athens must stick to the terms of its rescue programme to pass the review.

After a meeting in Athens with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, EU Commissioner for Economic Affairs Pierre Moscovici tweeted later on Monday: "Long discussion with Tsipras. Good progress made in the second review. Need to see staff level agreement ahead of Monday's Eurogroup!"

Despite pre-election promises to end austerity, Tsipras signed up to a third bailout and more belt-tightening in July last year. Tsipras was later re-elected on promises to protect Greek pensions, wages and labour rights.

Story continues

SNAG IN TALKS

Negotiations between Athens and its creditors hit a snag last week due to differences on fiscal targets, and energy and labour reforms that are part of Greece's second bailout review.

A long-standing rift between the European Union and the International Monetary Fund on medium-term fiscal targets has also clouded Greek hopes for a swift conclusion of the review.

Greece's negotiating stance on labour reforms is in line with its bailout, but the EU is making concessions to convince the IMF to stay on board, Tsakalotos said. The fund has yet to decide whether it will participate financially in the bailout.

"Without concluding the second review there will not be a solution on debt and without this solution we won't be able to be included in quantitative easing," he said.

"Without quantitative easing the Greek government won't be able to tap markets in late 2017, early 2018."

Greece is excluded from the European Central Bank's programme of buying up sovereign debt of euro zone nations because it has not completed the review. Lenders have not decided whether its debt load is sustainable.

ECB chief Mario Draghi said there were still concerns about the sustainability of Greece's public debt.

Tsakalotos said there has been progress on short-term debt relief measures, expected to be the focus of talks among euro zone finance ministers - known as the Eurogroup - on Dec. 5. But Athens is also awaiting talks on medium- and long-term debt relief after that meeting, he said.

Two Greek officials said an extraordinary Eurogroup meeting was likely before Christmas to sort out remaining differences with the IMF. One of the officials said he expected an initial agreement on reforms on Dec. 5, and a final deal with the IMF two weeks later on debt relief and fiscal targets beyond 2018.

"The worst scenario would be a new delay," the official said, noting that with new elections looming in Germany next year, negotiations would get more complicated if no deal is reached before the end of 2016.

(Additional reporting by Lefteris Papadimas, and Francesco Canepa in Frankfurt; Writing by Renee Maltezou; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Greenbriar Capital Corp. (the "Company" or "Greenbriar") and its CEO, Jeff Ciachurski, the leader in public company renewable energy investment returns, highlighted by the sale of Western Wind Energy to Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners in 2013 for $420 Million after only raising $70 Million in shareholder equity, today launches, with the goal of becoming the largest online discussion in renewable energy and renewable energy investments, an online forum for all renewable energy investment discussions at www.8020connect.com. This is particularly timely from Greenbriar's standpoint due to the fact that Governor-Elect Dr. Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico, has been an outspoken advocate of renewable energy projects, like the one we have under development in Montalva, Puerto Rico under a US $1.9 Billion Master Power Sales Agreement.

Greenbriar has joined the 8020 Connect network, and invites all our shareholders to become members with us. 8020 Connect (www.8020connect.com) is the investment industry's newest social network, developed to deliver corporate information to shareholders, investment industry experts, and like-minded investors, while enabling these member groups to interact with each other and with our corporate management team.

Our commitment to shareholders is to always deliver accurate, timely, and transparent information about our goals and achievements. We value our shareholders and want to communicate as often as possible with everyone, no matter what level of share ownership.

Through the 8020 platform, we can communicate our corporate message and update our project advancements to all shareholders and investors. The 8020 Connect social media component provides us direct interaction with our shareholders, allowing us to answer your questions and inquiries directly or in group forums, with full transparency.

The 8020 Connect network will also allow us to expand our audience exponentially to interested investors and industry experts worldwide. You can help by informing and educating other like-minded investors about our company.

Story continues

We invite you to join the discussion and engage with us through transparent, valuable information and dialogue on our company at the 8020 Connect network by accessing the following link button - Corporate Profile: https://www.8020connect.com/greenbriar-capital-corp

Greenbriar has 13,824,227 common shares outstanding, and holds over USD $2 Billion in power sales contracts.

About Greenbriar Capital Corp.

Greenbriar Capital Corp. is a leading developer of renewable energy and sustainable real estate projects. With longterm, high impact, contracted sales agreements in key project locations and led by a successful industryrecognized operating and development team, Greenbriar targets deep valued assets directed at accretive shareholder value.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

"SIGNED"

Jeffrey J. Ciachurski

President, Chief Executive Officer and Director

The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the accuracy or adequacy of this release. 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 forwardlooking statements. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, constitute "forwardlooking statements" and include any information that addresses activities, events, or developments that the Company believes, expects, or anticipates will or may occur in the future including the Company's strategy, plans or future financial or operating performance and other statements that express management's expectations or estimates of future performance.

Forwardlooking statements are generally identifiable by the use of the words "may." "will," "should," "continue," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "intend," "plan," or "project" or the negative of these words or other variations on these words or comparable terminology. These statements, however, are 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, implied by or projected in the forwardlooking information or statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from these forwardlooking statements include but are not limited to: risks related to the development and potential development of the Company's projects, conclusions of economic evaluations, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, the availability of tax incentives in connection with the development of renewable energy projects and the sale of electrical energy, as well as those factors discussed in the sections relating to risk factors discussed in the Company's continuous disclosure filings on SEDAR. There can be no assurance that any forwardlooking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, the reader should not place any undue reliance on forwardlooking information or statements. Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to revise or update these forwardlooking statements after the date of this document or to revise them to reflect the occurrence of future unanticipated events.

SOURCE: Greenbriar Capital Corp.
KHARTOUM (Reuters) - Unidentified gunmen have kidnapped three workers from the United Nation's refugee agency in Sudan's restive Darfur region, a local official told Reuters on Monday. The three workers, one Sudanese and two Nepalese, were kidnapped from Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state and were taken to an unknown location, said West Darfur government spokesman Abdallah Gar al-Nabi. Security forces were working to retrieve them and locate the culprits, he added. An official from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) declined to comment. Security remains fragile in Darfur, where mainly non-Arab tribes have been fighting the Arab-led government in Khartoum, and the government is struggling to control rural areas. Some 300,000 people have been killed in Darfur since the conflict began in 2003, the United Nations says, while over 2.5 million have been displaced. The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir in 2009 and 2010 on charges of war crimes and genocide in his drive to crush the Darfur revolt. (Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz; Additional reporting by Lin Noueihed in Cairo; Writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Lin Noueihed)
San Franciscos Municipal Transportation Agency  also known as MUNI  was hacked Friday, forcing the shutdown of several light-rail ticketing machines. The hackers reportedly left behind a message on computer screens at MUNI stations, reading: You Hacked, ALL Data Encrypted. Contact For Key(cryptom27@yandex.com)ID:681 .

The trains, however, were not affected.

Theres no impact to the transit service, but we have opened the fare gates as a precaution to minimize customer impact, MUNI spokesman Paul Rose told CBS. Because this is an ongoing investigation it would not be appropriate to provide additional details at this point.

According to the BBC, the unidentified hackers demanded 100 bitcoins ($73,000) in ransom, indicating that it was a ransomware attack, which typically involves covertly installing a malware on a computer system. Similar attacks have, in recent years, targeted several hospitals across the country.

I was like, is this part of Black Friday deal, or something? an unnamed passenger told CBS, referring to the fact that many ticketing machines had a handwritten note reading free entry taped over them.

Although the ticketing machines were back up by Sunday afternoon  as confirmed by MUNI in a reply to a tweet  it is not yet clear if the hack has been contained.

I think it is terrifying, another passenger who chose to remain anonymous, told CBS. I think if they can start doing this you know here, were not safe anywhere.

In a recent survey of over 500 IT companies in four countries, including the U.S., 40 percent of businesses surveyed acknowledged having been attacked by ransomware. In the U.S., the most recent incident took place in February, when the Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center was forced to pay $17,000 in ransom to hackers who seized control of the hospitals computer systems.

Story continues

In a statement released earlier this year, FBIs cybercrime division warned against victims paying ransom to hackers to retrieve their data, arguing that doing so not only emboldens current cyber criminals to target more organisations, it also offers an incentive for other criminals to get involved in this type of illegal activity.

FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director James Trainor said at the time: Paying a ransom doesnt guarantee an organisation that it will get its data back  weve seen cases where organisations never got a decryption key after having paid the ransom.

Related Articles
Port-au-Prince (AFP) - Haiti's interim leader Jocelerme Privert on Monday called for calm before preliminary results from the first round of the Caribbean country's presidential election are released later in the day.

"Resorting to acts of violence can only spoil the fruits of the beautiful day we had on November 20," Privert said at the presidential palace in Port-au-Prince, referring to the vote held earlier this month.

The election was a key step in restoring constitutional order in Haiti, where former president Michel Martelly's mandate expired after the results of last year's first round poll were annulled amid widespread claims of fraud.

Nearly 6.2 million people were eligible to vote in the impoverished nation, parts of which are still struggling to recover from a devastating hurricane.

Of the 27 candidates who ran for president, four have already claimed victory in the first round in statements that have been criticized by the international community.

Leading candidates for president include Jovenel Moise, a wealthy Haitian backed by Martelly, and Jude Celestin, candidate of the opposition LAPEH.

"My compatriots, our country is living through a dramatic moment. It needs a social cooling off, it needs calm, serenity, peace and tranquility," Privert said.

"My brothers and sisters, I invite you all to use the means of recourse set forth in the electoral decree and constitutional provisions to defend your legitimate rights," he added.

Haitian law offers candidates the opportunity to challenge the results from the presidential and legislative election in electoral courts.

Final results will then be published December 29, according to the calendar set out by Haiti's Provisional Electoral Council.

Any candidate who wins more than half of the votes cast will be the victor. Otherwise, a runoff is set for January 29.

Haiti's election was originally held in October 2015 but the results were eventually scrapped amid opposition protests after an independent commission found massive fraud.

Story continues

The invalidation of the results prevented Martelly, a popular singer elected in May 2011, from transferring power to a successor chosen by popular vote, as required by the constitution.

The legislature chose Senate chief Jocelerme Privert as interim head of state -- initially with a three-month mandate -- but new polls were delayed amid civil unrest and political infighting.

The first round of the presidential election was scheduled again for October 9 this year but was delayed after Hurricane Matthew pummeled the country a few days before.
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch will no longer sign contracts to supply countries outside of NATO's influence because it has become too difficult to obtain government approval for such deals, news agency DPA reported on Monday. The company, one of the world's best-known gunmakers, will in future only sell to countries that are democratic and free from corruption and that are members of NATO or NATO members' partners, DPA said, citing company sources. It said this change in strategy would rule out deals with countries such as Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Brazil, India or even NATO member Turkey. Heckler & Koch did not respond to requests for comment. Its HK416 assault rifle is said to have been used to kill Osama bin Laden and its G36 rifle is standard issue for armies across the globe. However, German restrictions on arms exports to the Middle East have weighed on its business, contributing to a 90 percent collapse in operating earnings last year. The company sued the German government last year for failing to approve a deal to supply Saudi Arabia with parts needed to make its G36 assault rifle. The deal had been approved in 2008 despite concerns about human rights abuses in the Gulf kingdom, but the German government changed its approach on arms exports two years ago. German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel has sought to curb sales of tanks and small arms in particular since taking office late in 2013, arguing that guns such as assault rifles were the weapons of choice in civil wars all over the world. Selling weapons is highly sensitive in Germany due to the country's World War Two history. It is the world's fifth- biggest exporter of major arms, according to the SIPRI research institute, and the industry employs about 80,000 people. Heckler & Koch, which listed some of its shares on Euronext via a private placement last year, also came under pressure last year when some of its former employees were charged with breaching laws on trade and weapons of war by selling arms destined for four Mexican states. (Reporting by Maria Sheahan, additional reporting by Sabine Siebold; Editing by Susan Fenton)
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., November 3, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Dave Lutz, head of Exchange Traded Funds at JonesTrading, has a quick guide to what traders are talking about on Monday:

US stock futures are pulling away from all-time highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit new highs four straight times last week.

Crude oil is little changed ahead of the meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC countries to discuss production levels. Oil fell by about 2% on Friday after reports that Saudi Arabia was abstaining from discussions with non-OPEC members because there was no internal OPEC road map yet.

Here's Lutz:

Good Morning! US Futures retreating from Fridays all-time highs, with the Russell 15day streak in jeopardy as it drops 40bp as overbought conditions, falling Oil prices, and some disappointing retail sales figures all weigh. A Sea of red in Europe, with the DAX off 90bp as Euro Banks are getting hit for 1%, with all eyes on those embattled Italian financials  The FTSE MIB is off 1.4% today, leading exchanges to the downside. FTSE is off 70bp as Telecom and Fins weaken, but the Miners are holding recent gains. Volumes are light across the continent, with most exchanges trading 20-30% light to averages. In Asia, the stronger yen pressed Nikkei 40bp lower - Aussie lost 60bp - South Korea climbed 20bp as Samsung jumped on chatter of a split, Shanghai climbed 50bp, while Shenzen only gained 10bp on link headers.

There was a Strong bid to JGBs for most of the overnight, helping press German and US Yields down 4bp  but headers from Feds Fischer and OECD on Trumps infrastructure plans have selling resuming in Treasuries, with Yields nearing overnight highs now. The Euro had a good bid on French Elections, but that has evaporated as the march toward Dollar parity continues. There was a Sharp Bid to Ore and Steel in China, each gaining 6%, and that has metals jumping: Zinc up 3%, Nickel 2% and Copper 1% higher. Even Gold is reacting, gaining nearly 1% from oversold conditions. WTI is all over the map, currently down 50bp ahead of Wednesdays Opec meeting in Vienna, while Natty gas has a 3% bid into Expiry today as NOAA sees Below-normal temperatures next week.

Story continues

Ahead of us today, we have ECB's Draghi Speaking at European Parliament in Brussels at 9am  at 9:50 Bank of England Bond-Buying Operation Results hits, and 10:30 brings Dallas Fed Manf. Activity. ECBs Draghi speaks again at 11am, and at 2:30 Natty gas Contracts Roll. We will also be getting headers from the Non-OPEC Meeting today, as well as headers coming from some of the big hedge Funds presenting at the Robin Hood Conference.

NOW WATCH: Scientists have discovered why American honey bees are turning into zombies





More From Business Insider


Shares of Barclays BCS were down nearly 2.3% in late-afternoon trading Monday after the companys sale of its wealth and investment management business in Singapore and Hong Kong failed to raise as much cash as was expected.

The British banking giant offloaded these operations for about $225 million to Singapores Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. (OCBC). When the deal was originally announced in April, Barclays indicated that it was expecting to fetch around $320 million from the sale.

Barclays Singapore and Hong Kong business currently has about $18.3 billion worth of assets under management, and it was valued as high as $500 million at one point. The deal was fixed at 1.75% of assets under management, and when some clients decided to stick with Barclays or move to other banks, the overall value of the sale was reduced.

Despite this sales, Barclays claims that it is still committed to Asia. The bank maintains offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, China, India, and Japan, although it did cut jobs and exit several smaller markets in the continent.

In a post on the companys website, Barclays CEO Jes Staley applauded the sale and asserted its importance for the banks continuing goal to trim its non-core businesses.

This is another example of the great progress we have made this year in Barclays Non-Core, as we aim to reduce risk weighted assets to 23 billion in 2017 and reintegrate the remainder of the unit back into the Group, Staley said.

Barclays said that the sale will result in a nearly $1 billion pro forma decrease in risk weighted assets.

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trump

President-elect Donald Trump tweeted Sunday, without evidence, that he would have won the popular vote if "millions" hadn't voted illegally.

The statements came in response to Hillary Clinton's campaign announcement it would join a recount effort in Wisconsin. Trump's allegations of voter fraud originated in conspiracy theory circles, and have been debunked, but there's nothing in the law preventing the nation's next leader from trafficking in falsehoods.

As a candidate, Trump had a penchant for playing it loose with facts.

According to Politifact's Truth-O-Meter, 231 of the 331 statements Trump made during his presidential campaign  nearly 70% of what they examined he said  was deemed either "Mostly False," "False," or "Pants On Fire."

Many of those false statements were attacks directed at his opponent, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who PolitiFact found was wrong on 26% of the statements it examined.

Legal experts say that ambiguity is one reason politicians almost never bother suing each other for not telling the truth. Because of their celebrity, people like Trump and Clinton have much more to lose by hauling their opponents into court for libel suits they stand to gain.

"It's just not worth it," Stephen Solomon, associate director of the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at NYU, tells Business Insider.

'Actual malice'

The truth is, people can sue anyone or any company if they feel they've been defamed or slandered. For everyday folks, they need to show the statements were wrong and published with negligence. But public figures are the subject of more scrutiny, so their burden of proof also includes "actual malice." They have to prove the libelous claim was made on purpose or with reckless disregard for the truth. "That's very hard to prove," Solomon says.

The logistics of suing someone are another issue. As much as politicians want to preserve their image, lawsuits are incredibly expensive and time-consuming, Solomon adds. Even if the defamed party wins, the election will be over by the time the court reaches a verdict. The defamation will have done its damage.

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What's more, there could be untold damage to the politician's reputation for them having brought the suit.

Undecided voters could also see the move as a sign that the candidate is too petty for political office. But the larger drawback is that the suit will inevitably lead to a discovery process, in which the politician would have to divulge private information they want to keep secret. If the politician's goal is to maintain their image at all times, discovery could end up doing more damage than if they'd never brought the suit at all.

It's happened before

Some local politicians still see the value in pursuing defamation cases.

In 2010, Iowa senator Rick Bertrand filed a defamation suit against his opponent Rick Mullin and the Democratic Party for a TV ad that claimed Bertrand was once a "salesman for the most unethical company in the world" (the pharmaceutical company Takeda). It claimed the company sold a dangerous sleeping drug for children.

Bertrand claimed the ad lied in tying him to a drug he "did not carry in a division of the company [he] never worked for." He won the case in 2012  $31,000 from Mullin and $200,000 from the Democratic Party. In 2014, however, the Iowa Supreme Court overruled the decision on the grounds of free speech. Chief Justice Mark Cady said the case did not meet the threshold for actual malice.

That's why defamation suits among public figures are so rare, and between politicians even more so. It's also why certain pieces of news, like Donald Trump's threat to sue the New York Times in October or Melania Trump's August threat to sue 10 other news outlets, are somewhat misleading. In most cases, the threats are empty.

Legal experts (and, deep down, perhaps the politicians themselves) know the gain is minimal, and solely monetary. Smarter politics is knowing how to work the court of public opinion.

"That's been the political tradition back to the time of Washington," Solomon says. "Campaigns have often been nasty and vitriolic, and they rarely give way to libel suits."

NOW WATCH: How to spot these telltale signs that someone is lying to you





More From Business Insider


Ginella Massa broke diversity barriers in Canada by becoming the first woman to anchor a news segment while wearing a hijab. However, she is ready to shift the attention towards more progressive opportunities for women in hajibs, tweeting on Thursday that she was ready to bring the focus back to the important news stories she reports instead of what shes wearing.

The Canadian news reporter, who filled in for an anchor on Torontos CityNews network on Nov. 18, was already the first video journalist to report the news while wearing her hijab. However, her latest anchoring stint drew more attention than expected.

Massa, who started working for CityNews in February 2016, told The Guardian that she hadnt even realized that she made history by wearing her hajib on air until her assignment editor brought it to her attention.

As much as I knew it was important, I didnt expect the reaction that I received. My phone hasnt stopped buzzing for the last week, she said, noting that she still shes still received a few unpleasant messages from opposers on social media despite receiving an overwhelmingly positive response from viewers when she first appeared wearing her hijab back in January 2015.

I think in Canada, we are sometimes a little smug because we are such a multicultural and accepting country, we often like to act like we dont have to worry about hatred and racism here, but it does exist, she said during an interview with Huffington Post.

Massa hopes that her anchoring stint will help change the perception of women working in hijabs in more countries than just Canada, specifically in the United States where President-elect Donald Trump has caused a widespread fear among the Muslim community.

Ive talked to many women who are journalists in the U.S. who work behind the scenes and theyve told me that they face multiple challenges trying to get on air, Massa said. Theyve been told because of their hijab, thats not going to happen. That makes me really sad because theyre being held back by someone elses idea of what the public can or cannot handle.

Story continues

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Massa said she hopes her anchoring stint helps dispel Muslim stereotypes and contributes to more opportunities for women in headdresses and changes the way people respond to hajibs in general.

"If we really want to tap into our diverse communities and tell their stories, then we need to have those people represented," she said.

Related Articles
Getty Image

Hillary Clintons kept an understandably low profile since losing the election to Donald Trump. Her campaign team will join in recount efforts in every state where a petition is successfully filed by Jill Stein. However, Clinton will likely distance herself from these efforts and maintain her current routine of shying away from the limelight unless someone happens to catch her in dog-walking mode. This provides a nice transition for Clintons first post-election follow on Twitter, and those honors go to none other than Snoop Dogg. Writer Stefan Becket nabbed some screenshot evidence.

Hillary Clinton's most recent follow pic.twitter.com/EDZdsBpcMQ  Stefan Becket (@becket) November 28, 2016

Not only did he notice that Hill Dog followed Snoop Dogg, but it also appears that this was a follow-back scenario. Those instances of noticing celebrity follow are always the coolest moments of Twitter. I bet even Hillary gets a little giddy at times like these, and how could one not follow Snoop back? Most of us will never know this dilemma.

It appears this was a followback. More as this develops. pic.twitter.com/CVOWvWpS8W  Stefan Becket (@becket) November 28, 2016

However, this wasnt technically the first time shes surfaced on Twitter since the election. On Thanksgiving Day, Hillary popped onto the social media site to thank her supporters for posting these heartwarming signs in her Chappaqua, NY neighborhood.

I was greeted by this heartwarming display on the corner of my street today. Thank you to all of you who did this. Happy Thanksgiving. -H pic.twitter.com/b69mW3Oqbf  Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 24, 2016

Snoop partially (sort of) blamed himself in the aftermath of Hillarys surprising loss, but he should rest assured that many factors were to blame. Theres no one reason why Hillary wasnt the winning candidate, and perhaps the Democrats will listen to Michael Moore next time around. It couldnt hurt.
If want all of your holiday gifts to arrive by Hanukkah (starts on Dec. 24) or Christmas this year, you'd better finish your gift shopping soon. Check out the year-end gift-shipping deadline information below for FedEx, UPS, and the U.S. Postal Service, as well as details on Free Shipping Day and more.

And be sure to follow our tips for safely shipping holiday gifts and find out whether expedited shipping is worth the splurge.

FedEx

For shipping within the U.S.:

Dec. 12: Last day to ship via FedEx SmartPost

Dec. 16: Last day to ship via FedEx Home Delivery and FedEx Ground

Dec. 20: Last day to ship via FedEx Express Saver

Dec. 21: Last day to ship via FedEx 2Day and FedEx 2Day A.M.

Dec. 22: Last day to ship via FedEx Standard Overnight, FedEx Priority Overnight, and FedEx First Overnight

Dec. 23: Last day to ship via FedEx SameDay City (standard)

Dec. 25: Last day to ship via FedEx SameDay City (Priority) and FedEx SameDay

Shipping deadlines for packages headed to Puerto Rico and Canada, Mexico, and other international destinations vary. See FedEx's Holiday Shipping 2016 for more information.

UPS

For shipping within the U.S.:



Dec. 19: Last day to ship UPS 3 Day Select (for delivery on Friday Dec. 23)

Dec. 21: Last day to ship via UPS 2nd Day Air (for delivery on Friday Dec. 23)

Dec. 22: Last day to ship via UPS 2nd Day Air (must use Saturday Delivery option for packages to be delivered before Christmas Day) and UPS Next Day Air (for delivery by Friday Dec. 23)

Dec. 23: Last day to ship via UPS Next Day Air (must use Saturday Delivery option for packages to be delivered before Christmas Day)

For international shipping deadlines and other holiday-related information, such as pick-up and delivery schedules, see the Holiday Shipping with UPS website.

U.S. Postal Service

For mail and package shipping within the U.S.:



Dec. 20: Last day to send packages via First Class Mail

Dec. 21: Last day to send packages via Priority Mail

Dec. 23: Last day to send packages via Priority Express Mail

Story continues

The deadline for shipping packages internationally, including to overseas military bases, varies based on the destination. But in most cases, the deadlines are fast approachingin some cases, as soon as Dec. 1. It may even already be too late to send parcels to certain locations overseas using less-expensive postal delivery options.

Visit the U.S. Postal Service holiday site for more information.

Amazon.com and Other Online Retailers

Online retailers and shopping websites are experiencing record volumes this holiday season, so it's important to check their specific ordering deadlines if you wish for your gifts to arrive by Christmas daya Sunday this year.

The cut-off date for ordering items on Amazon.com with free shipping within the contiguous 48 states of the U.S. is Dec. 16. Orders for gifts to be shipped with standard shipping must be completed online by Dec. 19.

The cut-off dates for ordering items to be shipped with two-day shipping is Dec. 22. In select cities, Amazon offers one-day shipping, but online orders must be completed by Dec. 23.

Also in select cities, Amazon offers same-day or even 2-hour delivery (via Prime Now). But procrastinators must complete their orders by Dec. 24 at 9:30 a.m. and 9.45 p.m., respectively.

All expedited shipping methods are free with Amazon Prime memberships.

Ordering and shipping deadlines are obviously a few days earlier for Amazon customers in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and international locations.

For more information, see Amazon's Holiday Ordering and Return Deadlines for the U.S. as well as the general Shipping Rates & Times section of Amazon's customer help and support site.

You'll find similar online ordering and holiday gift-shipping deadline information for these online retail sites:

Free Shipping Day

More than 600 online merchants will be participating in Free Shipping Day on Dec. 16, offering hundreds of items that will purportedly arrive by Christmas Eve.

For other holiday shopping tips, visit Consumer Reports' Holiday Gift Guide.





More from Consumer Reports:

Top pick tires for 2016

Best used cars for $25,000 and less

7 best mattresses for couples





Consumer Reports has no relationship with any advertisers on this website. Copyright  2006-2016 Consumers Union of U.S.
Rumors of an impending deal that could mend ties between the Vatican and the Peoples Republic of China has drawn ire from a senior Chinese Catholic in Hong Kong, who said that Pope Francis would be betraying Jesus Christ in his eagerness to build bridges with Beijing.

Cardinal Joseph Zen, who was bishop of Hong Kong for over six years, told the Guardian that any deal between Beijing and the Vatican would be a surrender on the Holy Sees part, as the state controls the appointment of bishops through the China Catholic Patriotic Association.

Maybe the Pope is a little naive, he doesnt have the background to know the communists in China, Zen told the Guardian, suggesting that the pontiff might have conflated the persecuted communists in his native Latin America and the persecutors who have killed hundreds of thousands in China.

Read More: Celebrating Faith in Chinas Underground Churches

The Chinese Communist Partys control over appointments to the clergy is a central point of contention between Beijing and the Vatican. Relations between the two have been tense at best since diplomatic ties were cut in 1951. In 2011 alone, the Chinese government-sanctioned Catholic Church had ordained at least three bishops against the Vaticans wishes.

You can start a new church, but dont call it a Catholic church, Cardinal Zen told TIME in 2011, in reference to Beijings control over the Chinese Catholic Church.

China is officially atheist and the party strictly controls religious activities. A large network of secret churches, both Catholic and Protestant, exists in parallel with their state-recognized counterparts.

[The Guardian]
- By Mark Yu





Last week, Hormel (HRL) delivered its fourth-quarter and fiscal full-year 2016 results. The $18.98 billion packaged goods company reported a 2.8% sales growth to $9.5 billion for the year and reported an outstanding 29.7% profit growth to $890 million.

Hormel's shares closed 2.63% up on the same day of the earnings announcement, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index closed 0.22% up.









"We had a strong finish to fiscal 2016, achieving record earnings for the fourteenth consecutive quarter.

"Three of our five business segments delivered sales, volume, and earnings growth, again demonstrating our balanced business model. Refrigerated Foods and Jennie-O Turkey Store both had excellent quarters with growth coming from value-added, branded products and improved market conditions. Grocery Products enjoyed a strong quarter aided by the inclusion of the JUSTIN'S(R) specialty nut butter business in addition to strong results from SPAM(R) luncheon meat and SKIPPY(R) peanut butter.

"Specialty Foods sales declined, primarily due to the divestiture of Diamond Crystal Brands in May, while sales of MUSCLE MILK(R) protein products were strong.

"Specialty Foods earnings decreased primarily due to increased advertising. Our International segment had a tough quarter as the team continues to work through challenging market conditions in China.

"Fiscal 2017 will mark the 51st consecutive year we have increased our dividend, an accomplishment few other companies can claim," Snee said. "Effective in the new fiscal year the annual dividend will be $0.68 per share, a 17 percent increase." -Jim Snee, president and CEO







Outlook





"In fiscal 2017, we expect to generate organic sales growth consistent with our long-term goal of five percent coupled with mid-single-digits earnings growth. (5)

Story continues

"Taking all these factors into account and considering the previous three years of strong double digit earnings increases, we would have expected our fiscal 2017 earnings guidance range to be $1.71 to $1.77 per share.

"However, after excluding earnings from the Farmer John divestiture of approximately 3 cents per share, we are setting our fiscal 2017 earnings guidance range at $1.68 to $1.74 per share." - Jim Snee, president and CEO







The fiscal year 2017 outlook remains in bounds with Hormel's recent sales growth historical figures with an anticipated 4.27% earnings per share (EPS) increase after delivering a 29% EPS growth in 2016.

Valuations

Hormel had a trailing 12-month price-earnings (P/E) of 21.9 times (industry median: 19.8), price-book (P/B) multiple of 4.26 times (industry median: 1.7) and price-sales (P/S) ratio of 2 times (industry median: 1) (1). The company also had a trailing dividend yield of 1.62% and a 36% payout ratio.

Hormel paid its 353rd consecutive quarterly dividend on Nov. 15.

Performance

Hormel had a five-year total return of 21.5%, while the S&P 500 index had 16.3% (2). The company underperformed the index year to date with -7.8% versus 10.45%.

(10-K Filing)

Hormel

Hormel is a 125-year-old meat and food producer who saw its sales and profits grow by 3.9% and 13.8% to $9.5 billion and $890 million, respectively, over the last five years

The company is primarily engaged in the production of a variety of meat and food products and the marketing of those products throughout the United States and internationally (3).

Hormel operates a wholly-owned subsidiary, Hormel Foods International Corp., to perform as the parent business in countries like Australia, Canada, China, Japan and the Philippines.

Hormel can classify its products into four categories: perishable (53%) of total fiscal 2015 sales, poultry (18.6%), shelf-stable (18.4%) and miscellaneous (10%) (4).

(Earning Release)

Hormel has five business segments: Grocery Products, Refrigerated Foods, Jennie-O Turkey Store (JOTS), Specialty Foods and International & Other.

(Annual Report)

Grocery Products

Grocery products accounted for 17.7% of total fiscal 2016 sales with $1.68 billion. This segment consists primarily of the processing, marketing and sale of shelf-stable food products sold predominantly in the retail market (6).

Hormel's Grocery Products portfolio features items such as Skippy peanut butter, Skippy P.B. Bites, Hormel chili, the SPAM family of products, Hormel Compleats microwaveable meals, Hormel bacon toppings and Hormel Mary Kitchen. Also included in this segment's portfolio are Herdez and CHI-CHI'S salsas and foods and Wholly Guacamole dips.

The segment grew 4.1% in 2016 and delivered an operating margin of 15.9%, the second highest among the five business segments.

(Annual Report)

Refrigerated Foods

The refridegerated foods segment accounted for 48.8% of total fiscal 2016 sales with $4.6 billion. This segment consists primarily of the processing, marketing and sale of branded and unbranded pork and beef products for retail, foodservice and fresh product customers (7).

Trusted brands in the segment include all-natural Hormel Natural Choice meats, Hormel Cure 81 hams, Hormel pepperoni, Hormel REV wraps, Hormel refrigerated entrees, Hormel side dishes, Hormel Black Label bacon, Hormel Gatherings party trays and Lloyd's barbeque ribs. In 2015, the company acquired Applegate, the number one brand of natural and organic meats.

The segment grew 6.3% in fiscal 2016 and delivered an operating margin of 12.6%, compared to 9.7% in fiscal 2015.

(Annual Report)

Jennie-O Turkey Store

Jennie-O accounted for 18.3% of total fiscal 2016 sales at $1.74 billion. This segment consists primarily of the processing, marketing and sale of branded and unbranded turkey products for retail, foodservice and fresh product customers. Jennie-O Turkey Store is one of the largest turkey processors and marketers in the world, offering over 1,500 products distributed in more than 20 countries (8).

The segment grew 6.4% in 2016 and delivered an operating margin of 18.9%, compared to 16.9% in 2015.

(Annual Report)

Specialty Foods

Specialty foods accounted for 9.9% of total fiscal 2016 sales at $939 million, compared to $1.1 billion in 2015. This segment consists of the packaging and sale of private label shelf stable products, nutritional products, sugar and condiments to industrial, retail and foodservice customers, including the results of Diamond Crystal Brands (DCB), CytoSport/Century Foods International and Hormel Specialty Products (HSP).

According to Hormel, the segment reported decline in sales and profits primarily due to the divestiture of Diamond Crystal Brands in May. Sales in specialty food segment grew -14.9% in 2016 and delivered an operating margin of 11.8%, compared to 8.5% in 2015.

(Annual Report)

International & Other

The final segment accounted for 5.4% of total 2016 sales with $511 million. This segment includes Hormel Foods International. International operations grew -4.4% in 2016 and delivered an operating margin of 15.3%, compared to 14.6% in 2015.

Cash, debt and book value

Hormel had $415 million in cash and $250 million in long-term debt as of Oct. 30, representing a 0.06 debt-equity ratio. Hormel also had 43% of its $6.37 billion assets in intangibles, while having a book value of $4.45 billion.

Cash flow

(Earnings Release)

In 2016, Hormel grew its cash flow from operations by 0.08% to $992.8 million. The company's outstanding profit growth was offset by an increase in working capital cash flow that led to the minute cash flow growth. Capital expenditures for the year was $249.3 million, leaving the company with a free cash flow of $743.6 million. This is compared to $866.4 million in 2015.

Hormel also paid $384.4 million, or 51.7% of free cash flow, in dividends and buybacks, while having a three-year average free cash flow payout ratio of 42.4%. Hormel also reduced its debt by $185 million.

Conclusion

(Hormel Business Margins, Morningstar and Recent Earnings Release)

As observed, not only was Hormel able to deliver steady low to mid-single digit billion-dollar annual sales, but the company also outstandingly managed to grow its profits throughout the decade by improving its margins.

Hormel also has a strong balance sheet with a good amount of intangibles. Valuations indicate the company is currently selling at a premium compared to its peers.

(Google Finance)

Analysts at Edward Jones and Credit Suisse give the stock a buy and outperform rating. Using the five-year historical earnings multiple, its EPS forecast for fiscal 2017 and a 20% margin indicates a value of $31 a share.

In summary, Hormel is neither a buy nor a hold.

Notes

(1) GuruFocus data.

(2) Morningstar data.

(3) 10-K filing.

(4) Annual filing: The Perishable category includes fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, wieners, guacamole and bacon (excluding JOTS products).

The Poultry category is composed primarily of JOTS products; Jennie-O Turkey Store (JOTS).

Shelf-stable includes canned luncheon meats, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, stews, chilies, hash, meat spreads, flour and corn tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, peanut butter and other items that do not require refrigeration.

The Miscellaneous category primarily consists of nutritional food products and supplements, sugar and sugar substitutes, dessert and drink mixes, and industrial gelatin products.

(5) Earnings release (further commentary on FY 2017 outlook by Jim Snee):

"Grocery Products is positioned to deliver an excellent year aided by the inclusion of Justin's specialty nut butters and contributions from branded products such as Skippy peanut butter and Herdez salsas. Jennie-O Turkey Store should benefit from favorable grain prices and increasing demand for Jennie-O branded products. We anticipate continued low input costs for our value-added products in Refrigerated Foods in addition to positive momentum in both retail and foodservice channels."

"We expect the International segment to show growth through increased exports and improved results from our China business."

"Specialty Foods is expected to show year-over-year sales and earnings growth net of the Diamond Crystal Brands divestiture and will benefit from continued strong results from Muscle Milk protein products."

(6) 10-K filing: This segment also includes the results from the Company's MegaMex Foods, LLC (MegaMex) joint venture.

(7) 10-K filing: This segment includes the results of Applegate Farms LLC (Applegate) and Affiliated Foods (Farmer John, Burke and Dan's Prize).

(8) Annual Report.

Disclosure: I do not have shares in Hormel.

Start a free 7-day trial of Premium Membership to GuruFocus.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.






ROME (Reuters) - India's JSW Steel Ltd (JSTL.NS) has joined one of two investor groups vying to take over Italy's loss-making Ilva steel plant, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Monday.

The steel firm owned by billionaire Sajjan Jindal has signed an agreement with Italian state lender CDP, businessman Leonardo del Vecchio's holding company and steelmaker Arvedi to make the bid, the source said.

A second source said the Indian firm had confirmed its interest in joining the bid, but did not know if a formal agreement had been signed.

JSW Steel, one of India's top domestic steel producers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Italy's government has been trying to find a bidder for the plant, Europe's largest by output capacity, since taking it over last year in a bid to save jobs and clean up its polluting factories.

Judges put key parts of it under special administration in 2012 following accusations it had caused serious health problems in the surrounding Puglia region in southern Italy.

The world's largest steel producer Arcelor Mittal (ISPA.AS) has also offered to buy Ilva, in a joint bid with Italy's Marcegaglia.

Neither bidder has said how much they would offer for the plant, but a source familiar with the matter told Reuters in June the CDP-led group would probably bid between 500 million and 1 billion euros ($1.06 billion).

The sale is now expected to be completed in early 2017. Officials from the Italian environment ministry had been due to deliver their verdicts on the bidders' proposals by Nov. 13.

($1 = 0.9449 euros)

(Reporting by Massimiliano Di Giorgio; Additional reporting by Promit Mukherjee in Mumbai; Writing by Isla Binnie; editing by Crispian Balmer and David Evans)
JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia's police chief said that a rally to be held by Muslim groups on Friday calling for the ouster of Jakarta's Christian governor would be "super peaceful" and confined to a park to help prevent a repeat of protest violence earlier this month. More than 100,000 Muslims, led by hardliners, took to the streets on Nov. 4 to protest against Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, who is accused of insulting the Koran. One person was killed and more than 100 were wounded when the protest, the biggest in the city in recent years, briefly turned violent, and police fired tear gas and water cannon. Indonesia has the world's largest Muslim population and is home to Christian and Hindu communities. National Police Chief Tito Karnavian said authorities had agreed with organizers that the rally would be held in a park in central Jakarta, rather than on streets running through traffic-clogged central Jakarta. "We will prepare everything, so we hope everything will be orderly and super peaceful," Karnavian told a news conference. In a sign of greater coordination between authorities and protest organizers, Muslim leaders also attended the news conference. Habib Rizieq, the head of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), a hardline group backing the recent rallies, said it wanted the governor to be arrested immediately but pledged the demonstration would be peaceful. Karnavian said he hoped that other groups, such as trades unions, would delay protests planned for the same day and that no third party would try to disrupt the demonstration. President Joko Widodo has blamed "political actors" for fanning violence without naming anyone and the police chief has also said some demonstrators may try to use the rallies to storm parliament. The trigger for the recent religious tensions was a comment that Jakarta governor Purnama, the first Christian and ethnic Chinese in the job, made about his opponents' use of the Koran in political campaigning. Police have named Purnama a suspect in the blasphemy probe. He faces up to five years in prison if found guilty. Police have concluded their investigation and given the dossier to the Attorney General's office, which will decide whether to proceed. Purnama, popularly known as Ahok, is running for re-election in February against two Muslim candidates. He denies any wrongdoing but has apologized for his comments. (Reporting by Agustinus Beo Da Costa; EDD)
CHARLOTTE, NC / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) is a biopharmaceutical company developing adult stem cell therapies for a range of neurodegenerative diseases, with an initial focus on Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). The company has a proprietary technology that uses a novel differentiation protocol such that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are converted into neurotrophic factor-secreting cells (MSC-NTF cells, NurOwn). BrainStorm then returns the MSC-NTF cells to the patient at or near the target area for treatment.

In July 2016, BrainStorm reported top-line data from a Phase 2 double-blind, placebo controlled multi-center study with NurOwn for the treatment of ALS. The company is currently in the process of finalizing the full data analysis from this trial and plans to submit the results for presentation at a medical conference during the first half of 2017. I believe results for the Phase 2 study were very positive; yet, the stock has not reacted accordingly and there seems to be continued investor confusion around the story. In the meantime, additional studies are being planned to advance NurOwn into multi-dose and registration trials.

The recently completed Phase 2 study took place at three prestigious medical centers in the U.S.: The Mayo Clinic, the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and the Massachusetts General Hospital. To give investors a better sense of the data and the path forward for Brainstorm, I decided to speak with one of the Principal Investigators from the Phase 2 study, Merit E. Cudkowicz, MD, MSc. Dr. Cudkowicz is a Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, Chief of Neurology at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and Director of the ALS Multidisciplinary Clinic.

BioNap (BN): Hello Dr. Cudkowicz. Thank you very much for taking the time to speak with me today! Before we get into the data, I wanted to start with your quick thoughts on where we are in the treatment of ALS today and the challenges that practicing neurologists like yourself face when treating ALS patients?

Dr. Merit E. Cudowicz (MC): ALS is notoriously difficult to treat. We do not have a lot of good options available today. One of the major challenges is the heterogeneity of the patients. Patients progress at all different speeds, some rapidly decline over only a few years while others slowly deteriorate over a decade. Either way, the disease is almost always fatal.

BN: Let's talk about the utility of a cell therapy for ALS. There seems to be some confusion and trepidation over cell therapies in the U.S., even autologous cell therapies derived from bone marrow. People do not seem to understand what that means, what the process is for making a product like NurOwn, or whether or not this is even a feasible concept to get past the U.S. FDA. You've dosed patients with NurOwn. What are you experiences with the harvesting of the cells and the transplantation back into patients?

MC: We have not had any significant issues that would limit uptake, and we've dosed over a dozen patients at MGH. Physicians and patients are looking for any option to treat ALS. We want to try anything that can help with this devastating disease. For physicians, we want something that has a mechanism to succeed. Be it cell therapy or some other approach, if it is scientifically valid, we are going to give it a chance.

BN: Any anxiety from patients over the process? NurOwn involves a significant number of injections - I believe 24 IM plus one IT - for the patient to take.

MC: Many of these patients are experienced with injections, so that is not a problem, and it's a very small needle. Plus, we are analyzing the data and looking at the potential to reduce the number of injections. For example, we think the efficacy is coming from the intrathecal (IT) injection, which presents us the opportunity to potentially eliminate the multiple intramuscular (IM) injections into the arms. In past studies, we administered NurOwn via unilateral or bilateral IM injections into the arms, plus an IT injection. If we can eliminate the multiple IM injections, administration becomes far more efficient for the physician and tolerable for the patient. Additionally, administering drugs via IT injection is standard practice for neurologists and anesthesiologists, so we do not see any meaningful issues here.

BN: Before we get into the efficacy data from the Phase 2 trial, let's talk about safety, because that really was the primary endpoint. This is obviously a challenging population to treat. I'm impressed that 92% of the subjects dosed with NurOwn completed the study. What were your experiences with NurOwn based on the safety and tolerability of the therapy?

MC: So far it is very good. We do not see any side effects or adverse events that would limit uptake or our ability to move forward with advanced studies. As I noted above, we are looking at potentially eliminating the IM injections to increase efficiency and tolerability to the patient.

BN: Is there anything that gives you concern about moving NurOwn into Phase 3, specifically keeping in mind that the company expects this to be a multi-dose protocol?

MC: No, on the contrary, we are quite excited about the opportunity to move forward with a multi-dose protocol.

BN: Let's talk about the response rate in the Phase 2 trial, or more specifically, the responder analysis. There was obviously a great response immediately after transplantation. The data show a 74% response rate for week 2 and a 54% response rate after week 4. In both of these instances, the improvement equated to a 100% improvement in slope (ALSFRS-R score) compared to pre-treatment. First question; are these types of stark improvements common in ALS patients?

MC: No, not at all. I've been treating patients with ALS for over 25 years and we very rarely see instances of 100% improvement. Patients will ebb and flow and the disease has periods of stabilization and then rapid decline, but improvement is very rare in ALS. The trajectory is almost always downhill. We do not see this type of response on riluzole.

BN: I've read your 2010 paper in ALS (Castrillo-Viguera et al., 2010). It seems clear that this type of improvement in ALSFRS-R score is clinically meaningful, but is it meaningful from a time point perspective? What type of sustained benefit in improvement - or even disease stabilization - is clinically meaningful?

MC: Any period of improvement for the patient is meaningful because progression can often be rapid and fatal. So the longer we can keep a patient from deteriorating, the better chance we have to increase life expectancy. The goal is to keep the patient ambulatory and off a respiratory, so if we can delay this, it is surely meaningful to the patient.

BN: In this regard, by the end of the 24-week study, the separation of the NurOwn subjects from the placebo group was no longer statistically significant. Are we simply dealing with the fact that NurOwn cells are only active for a few weeks?

MC: We know the cells are active and produce neurotrophic factors for a period. Exactly how long we are still analyzing. I am excited about the biomarker data and the evidence that MSC-NFT cells, in fact, do what we say they do. That said, more studies are needed to perfect the dosing schedule.

BN: Do you think that subsequent transplantations of NurOwn would elicit a more durable response, and if so, how many more transplants are necessary and when do you think it makes sense to administer the second or third, and so on, doses of the product?

MC: In the upcoming Phase 3 study we plan to treat the patients every two months for a total of three treatments. We are optimistic that if we continue to administer cells that produce neurotrophic factors we will see a durable response. We plan to conduct additional biomarker analysis in this trial to further quantify this effect, but NurOwn very much is a therapy, much like a pill. If you take one pill, the effect may only last one day. Almost all therapies require subsequent dosing and it is logical to believe that we will see an improved response with follow-up treatment.

BN: I'm intrigued by the fact that patients with the most rapidly declining ALSFRS-R score during the run-in period seemed to respond better to NurOwn than "slow progressors." The company defined anyone with a pre-treatment slope  -2 as a "rapid progressors," and surprisingly these patients had an overall response rate far superior to the "slow progressors." The data was statistically significant versus the placebo group after weeks 2 and 4. Is this simply a result of how the disease ebbs and flows, or is there something mechanistically you think is going on in these patients?

MC: I think it is a combination of the ebbs and flows of the disease and also the fact that these are the patients that we can show a benefit in for such a short trial. It is easier to show a benefit in a population with a rapid progression compared to a patient that does not change. So there may not be anything from a mechanism standpoint with these patients, it's just the fact that to show a difference, a patient needs to have a change in status.

BN: I find most interesting the biomarker analysis that the company did. This is a procedure, although so far that looks very safe, a neurologist like yourself still needs to evaluate on a patient by patient basis. Treated patients saw increased levels of neurotrophic factors in the CSF, such as VEGF and HGF, and decreased levels of inflammatory markers such as MCP-1 and SDF-1. Is this something feasible to monitor to see if patients are responding to the cell therapy?

MC: Absolutely! We are looking for ways to treat ALS patients and the better we can understand if the treatment like NurOwn is working, the more likely we will be to initiate therapy. If the cell therapy is working, we can continue to administer to patients. If not, we can try alternative treatment options, but right now we do not have a lot of options, so the potential to try something like NurOwn and then monitor the patient for biological effect almost in real-time is very exciting.

BN: If the Phase 3 study works and the safety data continues to look good, is NurOwn a "no-brainer" in your view?

MC: Well, like I said, we do not have many options available today, so I'm excited about moving forward into the next set of studies. We do not have any hesitations at this point and the results so far are very encouraging.

BN: Thank you Dr. Cudkowicz!

MC: You are very welcome!

Conclusion

BrainStorm stock is looking extremely interesting to me at this level. The recently reported top-line data from the Phase 2 ALS program with NurOwn demonstrated clear proof-of-concept and a follow-on Phase 3 multi-dose program is currently being planned in the U.S. I think the next steps will be very interesting because, if BrainStorm can succeed in turning ALS into a chronic disease through maintenance doses of NurOwn, they are sitting on a blockbuster.

The opportunity to reduce the number of injections to only one IT every two months really increases the applicability of the product in my opinion. That's superior dosing to many of the world's best-selling biologic drugs. In the meantime, the initiation of the Phase 3 program and the presentation of the full Phase 2 data in 2017 have the potential to act as catalysts to drive the - meaningfully undervalued - shares higher.

Investor concerns over an imminent massive dilutive offering are misguided. BrainStorm entered October 2016 with $11.2 million in cash on hand and burned only $0.3 million in the entire third quarter. The company will likely need cash at some point in the future, as will the majority of small-cap biopharma companies, but the company looks to have an adequate runway and some flexibility today. This is a name worth taking a serious look at.

----------

Please see important information about BioNap, Inc. and our relationship with BCLI in our Disclaimer.

BioNap holds no position in shares of BCLI.

SOURCE: BioNap, Inc.
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Lundin Law PC, a shareholder rights firm, announces a class action lawsuit against Impax Laboratories, Inc. ("Impax" or the "Company") (IPXL) concerning possible violations of federal securities laws between February 25, 2014 and November 3, 2016 inclusive (the "Class Period"). Investors who purchased or otherwise acquired shares during the Class Period should contact the firm prior to the January 9, 2017 lead plaintiff motion deadline.

To participate in this class action lawsuit, click here. You can also call Brian Lundin, Esquire, of Lundin Law PC, at 888-713-1033, or e-mail him at brian@lundinlawpc.com.

No class has been certified in the above action yet. Until a class is certified, you are not considered represented by an attorney. You may also choose to do nothing and be an absent class member.

The complaint alleges that during the Class Period, Impax made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: that the Company was engaged in conduct that would trigger investigations of possible collusion of generic drug pricing by the antitrust division of the U.S. Department of Justice ("DOJ") and the Connecticut Attorney General; that the DOJ investigation and the underlying conduct would likely result in criminal charges against Impax for collusion of generic drug pricing; that the Company lacked effective internal controls over financial reporting; and that as a result of the above, Impax's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When this news was announced, shares of Impax fell in value, causing investors severe harm.

Lundin Law PC was founded by Brian Lundin, a securities litigator based in Los Angeles dedicated to upholding the rights of shareholders.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in certain jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.

Contact:

Lundin Law PC

Brian Lundin, Esq.

Telephone: 888-713-1033

Facsimile: 888-713-1125

brian@lundinlawpc.com

http://lundinlawpc.com/

SOURCE: Lundin Law PC
ATHENS, GREECE / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Diana Shipping Inc. (DSX) will host a live conference call and webcast to discuss the results of the third quarter 2016, to be held Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 9:00 AM Eastern Time.

Live Event Information

To participate, connect approximately 5 to 10 minutes before the beginning of the event.

Date, Time: November 29, 2016 at 9 AM ET

Live Webcast: www.investorcalendar.com/IC/CEPage.asp?ID=175331 or www.dianashippinginc.com

The webcast archive will be available at www.investorcalendar.com or www.dianashippinginc.com.

About Diana Shipping Inc.

Diana Shipping Inc. is a global provider of shipping transportation services through its ownership of dry bulk vessels. The Company's vessels are employed primarily on medium to long-term time charters and transport a range of dry bulk cargoes, including such commodities as iron ore, coal, grain and other materials along worldwide shipping routes.

SOURCE: Investor Calendar
BEIJING, CHINA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Fuwei Films (Holdings) Co., Ltd. (FFHL) will host a conference call to discuss the results of the third quarter 2016, to be held Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 8:00 AM Eastern Time.

Live Event Information

To participate, connect approximately 5 to 10 minutes before the beginning of the event.

Date, Time: November 29, 2016 at 8 AM ET

Toll Free: 877-407-9205

International: 201-689-8054

Replay Information

The replay will be available beginning approximately 2 hours after the completion of the live event, ending at midnight Eastern on December 29, 2016.

Toll Free: 877-481-4010

International: 919-882-2331

Replay ID#: 10160

About Fuwei Films

Fuwei Films conducts its business through its wholly owned subsidiary, Fuwei Films (Shandong) Co., Ltd. ("Fuwei Shandong"). Fuwei Shandong develops, manufactures and distributes high-quality plastic films using the biaxial oriented stretch technique, otherwise known as BOPET film (biaxially oriented polyethylene terephthalate). Fuwei's BOPET film is widely used to package food, medicine, cosmetics, tobacco, and alcohol, as well as in the imaging, electronics, and magnetic products industries.

SOURCE: Investor Calendar
At least one trader is counting on a bounce in Eli Lilly by Christmas.



OptionMonster's market scanner shows that 1,200 December 72.50 calls were purchased for $0.58 while 1,200 December 64 puts were sold for $0.50 on Friday. Volume was above the open interest in both strikes, showing that these are new positions.



This combination trade is especially bullish because a rally would boost the price of the long calls while decreasing the value of the puts that were sold . But the opposite will occur if the stock drops, and the trader will be on the hook to buy shares if they fall below $64 by expiration. (See our Education section)



LLY rose 1.65 percent to $69.12 on Friday but is down 13 percent in the last three months. The drug company's next quarterly report is scheduled for pre-market hours on Jan. 31.



Overall option volume was about average in LLY on Friday, with calls eclipsing puts by a narrow margin.





More From optionMONSTER


Iran's military announced Saturday it could consider building naval bases on the coasts of Syria and Yemen, two strategic ports currently engulfed in conflicts in which Tehran is involved.

Iranian Major General Mohammad Hussein Bagheri told a gathering of senior naval commanders that reinforcing the country's coast was crucial for repelling enemy ships and maintaining regional influence. The general also raised the possibility of foreign naval bases in strategic locations.

One day, we may need (naval) bases on the coasts of Yemen and Syria, and we need the necessary infrastructures for it under the international maritime law, Bagheri said, according to Iran's Tasnim News Agency. The bases "could be 10 times more efficient than nuclear power," he added.

He used Iran's current naval deployment in Oman as an example for possibly deploying a fleet in the Indian Ocean. Bagheri then called on navy commanders to develop the force's technological capability concerning satellites, cyberspace and drones.

The meeting came one day prior to Iran's international navy day. Iran's leadership marked the occasion by praising the country's maritime military force and highlight the importance of its presence overseas.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani told a cabinet session Sunday that the Iranian navy was crucial to defending the nation during the Iran-Iraq War fought in the 1980s. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei also commemorated the navy.

Our country has long maritime borders and a long history of seafaring. Thus, the power and capability of the Islamic Republics Navy should be in line with the merit and level of the Islamic Establishment and the countrys history, Khamenei said Sunday in a meeting with Iranian naval commanders and officials, according to Tasnim News Agency.

Iran has moved to increase its regional influence in recent years. Its support for Syrian President Bashar Assad against a network of rebel groups in Syria and backing of Houthi rebels against exiled Yemeni President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi in Yemen has angered its Middle Eastern rival power Saudi Arabia as well as the U.S.

Story continues

In January, Tehran was freed from years of international economic sanctions thanks to a multilateral nuclear treaty signed by President Barack Obama and leaders of five other countries. The deal freed billions in previously frozen Iranian assets.

Related Articles
By Idrees Ali WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A small Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard vessel pointed its weapon at a U.S. military helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, two U.S. defense officials told Reuters on Monday, an action they described as "unsafe and unprofessional." The incident is the latest in a series of similar actions by Iranian vessels this year, but the first reported since Republican Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 8. During his campaign, Trump vowed that any Iranian vessel that harassed the U.S. Navy in the Gulf would be "shot out of the water," if he was elected. Trump is due to take office on Jan. 20. There was no immediate Iranian comment on the incident. Trump's transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the incident took place when a Navy MH-60 helicopter flew within half a mile (0.8 km) of two Iranian vessels in international waters. One of the vessels pointed a weapon at the helicopter, the U.S. officials said. "The behavior by our standards is provocative and could be seen as an escalation," the officials said. At no point did the crew of the helicopter feel threatened, they added. It was not immediately clear what type of weapon was pointed at the U.S. aircraft. Years of mutual animosity eased when Washington lifted sanctions on Tehran in January after a deal to curb Irans nuclear ambitions. But serious differences still remain over Irans ballistic missile program, and over conflicts in Syria and Iraq. A number of similar incidents have taken place this year. In September, a U.S. Navy coastal patrol ship changed course after an Iranian fast-attack craft came within 100 yards (91 meters) of it. "When they circle our beautiful destroyers with their little boats and they make gestures at our people that they shouldn't be allowed to make, they will be shot out of the water," Trump said at the time. (Reporting by Idrees Ali; Additional reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Bill Rigby and Jonathan Oatis)
By Suleiman Al-Khalidi AMMAN (Reuters) - Iraq is at risk of partition and the worst sectarian bloodletting since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion if Shi'ite paramilitary units get involved in the fight against Islamic State for Mosul, a senior Sunni Iraqi politician said on Monday. Iran-backed, Shiite-led Popular Mobilization forces, or Hashid Shaabi in Arabic, who are supported by the Shi'ite-led Baghdad government want to play a bigger role in the offensive to regain Islamic State's last major city stronghold in Iraq. But Khamis Khanjar, also a businessman who financed a 3,000 strong predominately Sunni Turkish-trained force known as the Nineveh Guards Force, says it should lead the offensive - alongside the Iraqi army - and take control of the city after the militants are driven out. "Everyone is looking for salvation from Daesh...but after Daesh is defeated a new dangerous phase will begin if the United States and the government do not address Sunni grievances. This could threaten the future of the Iraqi state," Khanjar said in an interview in Amman. "The fear for the future of the country, the threat, is more than any other time." The city of Mosul is already ringed to the north, south and east by Iraqi government forces and Kurdish peshmerga forces and Iraq's U.S.-trained Counter Terrorism Service breached Islamic State defences in east Mosul at the end of October. Khanjar, who has close ties with regional powers Turkey, the Gulf and Jordan and aspirations to lead the Sunni community, said the consequences of Hashid Shaabi entering the city would be catastrophic "The fear is the repeat of the same massacres and ugly violations committed by the Hashid Shaabi," Khanjar said. International human rights groups and the U.N. Human Rights Commissioner have accused Hashid Shaabi of abuses against Sunni civilians in towns and villages retaken from Islamic State. Hashid Shaab leaders deny that their groups mistreat civilians. They say the missing men were Islamic State militants killed in battle. Khanjar said the Nineveh Guards Force, which is mainly drawn from the Mosul area, was ready to fight. "They are present in the thousands," said Khanjar who met the forces and their commanders recently adding their presence would assuage widespread fears of revenge. He said the failure of the Baghdad government to support the force and lack of U.S. support was a mistake that fuelled suspicions that Sunni concerns were not being addressed in the Mosul campaign. Some of Iraq's top Sunni leaders would be meeting in Amman this week to chart a political strategy to present to key Kurdish and Shi'ite political parties, he said. Sunnis, who dominated Iraq under Saddam Hussein, accuse Shi'ite leaders of marginalising them through sectarian policies, allegations Baghdad's Shi'ite-led government denies. The politician said he supported a federation in which Sunnis, Shi'ites and Kurds could all run their own parts of the country without a formal break up. "All the laws make the complexion of the state a religious Shi'ite one, where Sunnis are more marginalized so we have no solution but to go to autonomous regions to protect us or else partition," Khanjar said. (Editing by Anna Willard)
By Ulf Laessing MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Islamic State has arrested dozens of Mosul shop owners accused of raising food prices in the nearly besieged city, to tamp down discontent as a U.S.-backed offensive closes in on the group's last major stronghold in Iraq, residents said on Monday. The arrests took place on Sunday morning in Bursa, a commercial district in the western part of the city, said a witness who asked not be identified as Islamic State punishes with death those caught communicating with the outside world. About 30 shop owners in the area were arrested and taken away blindfolded to unknown destinations, he said. The Sunni hardline group is relentlessly cracking down on people who could help the biggest ground offensive in Iraq since the U.S-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003. Most of the people executed previously in Mosul were former police and army officers, suspected of disloyalty or plotting rebellions against the militants' rule. The arrest of the shop owners is meant as a warning to retailers to refrain from price hikes that would cause unrest in the city. Some 100,000 Iraqi government troops, Kurdish security forces and mainly Shi'ite militiamen are participating in the assault on Mosul, with air and ground support from a U.S.-led international military coalition. Six weeks into the campaign, troops have so far entered about a quarter of the city on its eastern outskirts, but are moving slowly to avoid civilian casualties and have yet to enter the half of the city on the west bank of the Tigris River. More than a million people are still believed to live in parts of Mosul under the control of the fighters, who seized the largest city in northern Iraq as part of a lightning advance across a third of the country in 2014. Retail prices rose in Mosul last week after Popular Mobilisation, a force of mainly Iranian-backed pro-government Shi'ite paramilitaries, cut the road linking the Iraqi and Syrian parts of the "caliphate", Mosul's main supply route. The Shi'ite groups are attacking militants deployed between Mosul and Tal Afar, 60 kilometers (40 miles) to the west, trying to complete Mosul's encirclement, with the army and Kurdish security forces controlling access from the other three sides. '1,000 MILITANTS DEAD' The Iraqi military estimates there are 5,000-6,000 insurgents in Mosul, dug in amid civilians to hamper air strikes, resisting the advancing troops with suicide car bombs and sniper and mortar fire that also kill civilians. Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, believed to be somewhere near the Syrian border, has told his fighters there can be no retreat from the city. Iraqi special forces have killed nearly 1,000 militants so far, Major General Abdul Ghani al-Asadi, a commander of elite counter-terrorism troops told Reuters. Some 74,000 civilians have fled Mosul so far, and the United Nations is preparing for a worst case scenario which foresees more than a million people made homeless as winter descends. A Reuters correspondent in eastern Mosul saw civilians fleeing fighting in one of the districts. "Daesh fighters are going around on foot from house to house while the army fights them," said a man called Bashar. "All civilians are leaving the area, shops are closed," he said, standing next to his two veiled wives, seven children and 70 year old mother. In the nearby Aden district, recently recaptured by the elite counter terrorism troops, people came out of their house to greet officers, the Reuters correspondent reported. "We are so glad that Daesh is gone," said a retired civil servant standing in front of his house, referring to Islamic State by an acronym. "We will stay here but we haven't had water or electricity for two weeks," he said, echoing a general concern among residents about shortages adding to their hardship. (Writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Patrick Markey and Peter Graff)
When radicalized Germans head back home from fighting with the Islamic State group or other terror groups in the Middle East, their extreme ideologies tend to stick with them, a new report shows.

Just one in four jihadists who return to Germany after fighting with ISIS end up cooperating with law enforcement, while roughly half of those returning stay loyal to the terror groups they supported. The findings, reported Monday by the German newspaper Die Welt, were conducted by three German security agencies.

The report found that roughly 850 people left Germany to fight in Syria. Just 274 of those people who were between the ages of 13 and 62  returned to Germany after leaving and about half of them were still devoted to their extremist cause. Most were radicalized through friend groups, mosques or internet propaganda and about 61 percent were born in Germany, while other ISIS supporters came from Turkey, Syria, Russia or Lebanon.

Radicalization happens predominantly in concrete social spheres, the study states.

Radicalization in the Western world reached unprecedented levels last year with future fighters fleeing from all over, including the United States, to join the ISIS effort. Between July 2015 and June of this year, German authorities noted 49 people leaving to go fight with ISIS. The year prior saw as many as 100 people leaving each month.

National Security Advisor Susan Rice said Sunday on "CNNs Fareed Zakaria" that more than half of the territory controlled by ISIS in Iraq has been taken back by the U.S.-led coalition and major cities would soon fall.

The Iraqi Security Forces inside of Iraq have taken back about 55 percent of the populated territory that ISIL originally seized back in 2014, Rice said, using an acronym for the terror group favored by the administration of President Barack Obama. They have now, with our support and that of our 68-country coalition, encircled Mosul and theyre beginning to move into parts of Mosul.

Related Articles
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel's air force targeted gunmen linked to the Islamic State group in Syria overnight, the army said Monday, after they fired on an Israeli soldier in the occupied Golan Heights.

"Overnight the (Israeli air force) targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the Islamic State as an operations centre along the border in the southern Syrian Golan Heights," an army statement read.

It said the building was the "base for yesterday's attack," which was believed to be the first such direct assault by jihadists on Israeli soldiers in the Golan Heights since Syria's civil war began in 2011.

The army said Israeli soldiers were targeted Sunday with machinegun fire and mortars and shot back. The air force then bombed the vehicle carrying the gunmen, identified as members of the Yarmouk Martyrs' Brigade, a Syrian rebel group that pledged allegiance to IS.

Four of the militants were killed, with no Israeli soldiers injured.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the soldiers who "successfully repelled an attempted attack."

"Our forces are prepared on our northern border, and we won't let (IS) elements or other hostile elements use the cover of the war in Syria to establish themselves next to our borders," he said in remarks relayed by his office.

Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres (460 square miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

The two countries are still technically at war, though the border had remained largely quiet for decades until 2011.

Since then regular stray missiles have landed in Israeli border areas, but rebel groups and Syrian government forces have largely avoided directly targeting Israeli forces.

Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.
DailyFX.com -

Talking Points

- Italys consumer confidence index dips to a 16-month low in November.

- The data are a further setback to Prime Minister Matteo Renzis plans to spur economic growth

- It will be volatile week for the Euro as the key Italian referendum approaches.

Both consumer and business confidence fell in Italy in November, according to official data from ISTAT, ahead of the countrys all-important constitutional referendum vote on Sunday, December 4, the key risk event for markets in December.

Italys consumer confidence index hit a 16-month low in November, dipping further to 107.9 from 108.0 in October, to remain at the lowest level since July 2015. However, analysts had forecast a worse drop to 107.6. Manufacturing confidence and economic sentiment also slipped to 102.0 and 101.4 from 102.9 and 101.7 last month, figures which were both revised down from 103.00 and 102.4 respectively.

The data present another setbacks for Prime Minister Matteo Renzis plans to spur Italys economic growth. He wants a yes vote in the referendum to get the backing to push through his program of economic reform, and has said hell resign if theres a no vote. Brussels also wants a yes vote. Without one, the ensuing political uncertainty in Italy threatens to spill over to the whole Euro-Zone, an area already reeling from the summers Brexit vote in the UK.

The Euro is rooted in fear of the anti-establishment sentiment sweeping the Western world. US President-Elect Donald Trumps win has further reinvigorated populist sentiment across Europe, and a no vote in Italy would be the latest iteration of the existential nightmare Brexit wrought on the Euro.

If the no side is victorious  and its been ahead for most of the past couple of months  also expect pressure to continue on Italian bank stocks in the FTSE MIB Index given the perilous state of the banking sector in Italy. The Financial Times reports this morning that as many as eight banks could fail if Renzi is unable to get a 'yes' vote.

Story continues

However, in the words of American Bernie Sanders, another politician brimming with populist rhetoric, we cant trust the polls because we dont trust the polls. Take the news in France at the weekend that Francois Fillon has defied the odds to win the nomination of the French centre-right Republicans for next years presidential election. This is seen as Euro positive: Fillon is critical of the EU, but wants to reform the bloc from the inside rather than calling for an exit.

Read more: Risks Increasing for Euro Ahead of Italian Constitutional Referendum

--- Written by Oliver Morrison, Analyst

To contact Oliver, email him at oliver.morrison@ig.com



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 IG.
japan prime minister shinzo abe ivanka trump

Ivanka Trump's involvement in her father's political career is already creating the potential for major conflicts of interest.

The daughter of Donald Trump has joined the president-elect in conversations with the leaders of countries including Turkey, Argentina, and Japan, The New York Times reported in an in-depth look at Trump's potential conflicts of interest president.

Trump has said that Ivanka, along with her brothers Eric and Donald Jr., will take control of the Trump Organization when he becomes president. While her brothers' business ventures have been almost entirely connected to the Trump Organization, Ivanka has become famous in her own right through her fashion lines.

The three children are all on the president-elect's transition team, which is currently deciding who will serve in Trump's administration.

Ivanka's meetings with these world leaders blurs the line between the Trump family's politics and business, as it puts her in a position to influence international policies and relationships that could be beneficial for her family's businesses. As the Trump child with the most visible retail brands, she arguably has the most to gain or lose in the overlap of business and politics under Trump's presidency.

Take, for example, Turkey. Ivanka Trump has long been involved in Trump Towers Istanbul, conducting discussions with the Trump Organization's business partner in the project, Mehmet Ali Yalcindag, in 2008, and attending the towers' opening celebration in 2012.

After Donald Trump's proposal to ban all Muslim immigrants, the president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, called for the removal of Trump's name from the building. Later, following Trump's support of Erdogan's jailing of nearly 50,000 people following a failed coup, calls to rename the towers ceased.

Story continues

In a call between President-elect Trump, Ivanka, and Erdogan following the election, Trump reportedly said that both he and his daughter admired the Turkish leader, as well as Mehmet Ali Yalcindag. In that way, it was a phone call that bridged business and politics, removing any supposed wall between Trump and his children.

Ivanka and her brothers have also met with leaders outside of their political roles as a members of the transition team. The three met with Trump Organization's long-time business partner in the Philippines, Jose Antonio  who was appointed by the country's president, Rodrigo Duterte, as special envoy to the US  in Trump Tower following the election, to discuss new real estate ventures, the New York Times reported.

ivanka trump jared kushner election day voting

Currently, the relationship between the US and the Philippines is an often uneasy one. Philippines President Duterte's campaign has killed more than 2,500 people since he took office in late June, according to police reports, with most deaths tied to the politician's crackdown on drugs in the country. There have been demands to prosecute Duterte in the International Criminal Court for these killings, a threat that the politician said in a speech on Monday was "bullshit."

Trump has said, as president, he has little interest in his business and plans to separate himself from the company, handing control over to the next generation. While most politicians on state and national levels have strict rules to prevent conflicts of interest, is not illegal for President-elect Trump to make political decisions that benefit himself and his family's business, though it would be seen as highly unethical.

Even if the president-elect does manage to separate himself from his business during his time in office, his inclusion of his children in the transition is already raising red flags.

"We are in the process of vetting various structures with the goal of the immediate transfer of management of The Trump Organization and its portfolio of businesses to Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric Trump along with a team of highly skilled executives," the Trump Organization said in a statement to Business Insider. "This is a top priority at the Organization and the structure that is ultimately selected will comply with all applicable rules and regulations."

While all three Trump children are involved in the Trump Organization, Ivanka Trump's personal brand has the potential to be hardest hit by her continued entanglement with her father's politics. Anti-Trump customers are calling for a boycott of Nordstrom, Macy's and other retailers due to the companies' refusal to ditch Ivanka Trump's fashion lines.

Last week, Ivanka Trump's fashion brand published a public letter saying it was separating Ivanka's personal social media channels from the brand's. Beyond that, however, there is no evidence that Ivanka will remove herself from the fashion company as she serves on her fathers transition team.

NOW WATCH: Trump makes baseless claim that he lost the popular vote only because 'millions' voted illegally





More From Business Insider


Even a heartthrob like James Marsden has a celebrity crush that can make him blush.

On The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the Westworld star admitted that he's had a "massive crush" on Dame Helen Mirren for years, but never met the 71-year-old actress.

EXCLUSIVE: Ryan Reynolds Shares Secret to His Chemistry With Helen Mirren

Marsden did, however, spot her on a flight to Rome and "followed her" to baggage claim. "In a very creepy, voyeuristic way, I took a photo of her," he confessed.

Mirren just so happened to also be a guest on Monday's episode of Ellen, but the 43-year-old actor told DeGeneres that he was too shy to speak to her. "I was avoiding her backstage because I didn't want her to know I was stalking her," he quipped.

DeGeneres then gave Marsden an early Christmas present and had Mirren come out onstage to greet her admirer with a kiss, which got him "very red."

He even walked off with the Oscar winner before returning to his interview with DeGeneres. "I had to give her my digits real quick," he joked. "You get one shot in life. That was my shot."

WATCH: James Marsden Does a Spot-On Impression of Matthew McConaughey

Marsden also shared that he turned down a shot at a role in the first Magic Mike movie. "I was struggling with the idea of me prancing around in a thong," he said. "I have some regrets."

Proving that he has what it takes to portray a male stripper, Marsden danced with the show's resident DJ, Twitch, to Ginuwine's "Pony." Needless to say, the audience went wild.



Marsden isn't the only one to sneak a photo of a fellow celebrity while traveling. Check out the selfie Neil Patrick Harris snapped of Bill Murray while on an international flight:

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JusticeJamesWilson500

James Wilson

These days, many Americans have heard the term Electoral College thrown around in conversation. Like the groundhog every February, the Electoral College sticks its metaphorical head out every four years. For some, the term evokes warmth; for others, contempt. But what exactly is it and why does it play a significant role in the American political system?

The Electoral College is the mode by which the country officially elects the President of the United States. It is a system that was designed in the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia during the summer of 1787, and one of its chief architects is a man known to few Americans.

James Wilson was born in Scotland in 1742 and arrived in Pennsylvania in his early twenties; he later became eventually a delegate to the Second Continental Congress and signer of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Eleven years later, he returned to the same room where he signed the Declaration in order to participate in the Constitutional Convention, once again representing Pennsylvania. The summer of 1787 would be the pinnacle of his professional career.

A supporter of a strong, centralized government, Wilson joined the likes of James Madison and another Pennsylvania delegate, Gouverneur Morris, as the leading advocates for revamping the system of government in the United States. They were also the major speakers in the early part of the Constitutional Convention, dominating the opening weeks of the proceedings with calculated and strong arguments.

Undoubtedly, Madison was the faction leader; prior to the Convention, he wrote out the various problems of the Articles of Confederation in Vices of a Political System, and arrived early to Philadelphia with a plan of government already sketched out  the Virginia Plan. The part of the plan pertaining to the executive branch caused much discussion, but was not detailed or specific about how large or what powers the branch would have. Madison himself was uncertain about the executives scope and structure.

Story continues

James Wilson was not.

Wilson, in early June, called for the executive branch to be filled by a single magistrate who would fill the position with vigor, dispatch, and responsibility. For Wilson, the doctrine of separation of powers was entirely essential if the new framework of government was to succeed. Each of the branches of government needed independence from one another, not simply in their functions and interactions with one another, but also in their selection. It is here where Madison and Wilson differed: the Virginia Plans Seventh Resolution stated that a National Executive be instituted; to be chosen by the National Legislature for the terms of years. In Wilsons mind, this was a clear violation of the separation of powers. Having a branch of government actively participate in the election of another branch would ensure that the executive would be chained to the interests of the national legislature. Instead, Wilson recommended that the executive be elected by the people, a proposal that other delegates saw as unrealistic and not worthy of consideration.

The backdrop of the Constitutional Convention, its important to note, was the issue of representation. How were the people and the states going to be represented in this new framework? It was an issue that Wilson was passionate about, as he believed that the power of the new government should reside in the people  not in the states, which held power under the discredited Articles of Confederation.

The issue of representation eventually leaked into the discussions on how the executive branch was to be elected. The primary conflict, however, did not include the people as a whole, who were mainly an afterthought. Instead, it was a titanic struggle between delegates who wanted the power of electing the executive placed in the national legislature, and delegates who wanted the state legislatures involved. Wilsons suggestion that the people elect the executive branch brought the afterthought to the fore. In fact, at the time, Madison noted that there was a considerable pause in the room after Wilsons recommendation, and even Wilson himself believed that the plan was not likely to succeed. But it did plant a seed for later.

It was not until September 6 that the Electoral College was largely built and agreed upon. The Committee of Eleven handled the unsettled business from the rough draft of the Constitution. Between September 6 and 7, the delegates agreed upon a four-year term for the President, who had to be a natural-born citizen. The President could also be reelected without term limits. The next day, the delegates agreed upon the power of treaty-making for the President, and agreed that the President could be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors.

In the end, the Electoral College was just one in a series of compromises that the Framers of the Constitution made to ensure its completion. Much like the other compromises, the Electoral College was a mixture of population-based and state-based principles, which ensured the inclusion of the people, albeit indirectly, in the mode of electing the President. The true intention of the Electoral College was shattered almost immediately with the unforeseen rise of political parties.

While many Americans today may feel ambivalent about the Electoral College, it was never considered to be a perfect feature of the Constitution. But despite its imperfections, it was the best the Framers could create and support. Its also a reminder of Benjamin Franklins last speech at the Convention  read by Wilson due to Franklins poor health  in which the great philosopher declared his consent to this Constitution because I expect no better, and because I am not sure, that is not the best. Franklin agreed to this Constitution with all its faults because he thought a general Government necessary for us, and there is no form of Government but may be a blessing to the people so as long as it was well administered. It was a reminder that the Constitution starts with We, the People.

Matt Riffe is a museum programs demonstrator at the National Constitution Center.

More Electoral College Stories on Constitution Daily

Close election causes another Electoral College debate

Dont expect Electoral College drama on December 19

Who are the Electors in the Electoral College?
New Delhi (AFP) - At one end of a backstreet in downtown Delhi a group of women hold a vigil to demand rapists be executed, while at the other acolytes of a spiritual leader arrested for sexual assault demand his release.

Anyone seeking a glimpse of the bewildering range of issues animating voters in the world's largest democracy should stroll past parliament and head a few hundreds yards north to Jantar Mantar.

Here on any given day, everyone from retired generals to landless widows can be seen holding forth in a tree-lined avenue tucked behind some of the city's swankiest hotels and most famous landmarks.

Some protests attract crowds in their thousands while other causes are championed by lone campaigners who hand out leaflets to curious passersby.

A stone's throw from India's corridors of power and fenced off with barricades, Jantar Mantar carries echoes of Speaker's Corner in London or the Occupy movement's takeover of McPherson Square in Washington.

But as the smell of freshly-cooked dosas and other street food wafts down the road, mingling with the smoke of hand-rolled bidi cigarettes -- it has a uniquely Indian aroma.

The mishmash of malcontents includes some who turn up day after day for years and others who camp out overnight to air their grievances.

A veteran demanding reforms to army pensions poisoned himself to death in early November and in 2015, a farmer hanged himself from a tree in front of horrified onlookers.

Santosh Singh has been protesting here for four years to persuade authorities to return land that he says was effectively stolen by his own family by declaring him dead.

Singh says his family destroyed all his records and then told the authorities he had died because they wanted his land for themselves.

"The media is witness to the fact that I'm alive," Singh told AFP when asked what motivated him day after day.

- Show of strength -

Anjit Kumar, an official in the Aam Aadmi anti-corruption party who is a regular visitor in support of a string of causes, says Jantar Mantar is a good place to catch the eye of journalists milling around parliament.

Story continues

"You can show your strength there," he said.

Civil protests have a rich history in India, with Mahatma Gandhi's campaigns of non-violence, such as the 1930 Salt March, playing a vital part in shaping opposition to British colonial rule.

In the early 1990s, protestors in Delhi used to be able to march up and down Rajpath, the thoroughfare which sweeps past the presidential palace and major government ministries that were built by the British.

But authorities then began imposing restrictions, eventually designating Jantar Mantar as one of the few places where protestors could gather.

Local historian Sohail Hashmi said it was shameful politicians had shunted their critics into a sidestreet.

"Those mass mobilisations on Rajpath were an opportunity for the people to communicate their anger directly to the government. Now it's no longer possible to do anything more than have a symbolic protest," said Hashmi.

"How can a government, an elected government, refuse to meet people who have brought them to power?"

While ministers and lawmakers rarely deign to visit, the ranks of outside broadcast vans attest to the media's appetite for the protestors' stories.

- Drum for Trump -

When Donald Trump won the US presidency, cameramen were on hand to capture a group of ultra-nationalist Hindus celebrate by banging drums.

Some campaigners are less interested in publicity but rather want to demonstrate commitment to a cause, whatever the personal sacrifice.

One group of women has been campaigning for nearly four years to demand the death penalty for anyone convicted of rape, including minors, since a deadly gang-rape on a bus in Delhi in December 2012.

Some initially quit their jobs but "life became very difficult to manage and they had to go back to work," said one of the protestors who comes in the evenings after a day in the office.

Further down the line is an equally passionate group whose demand is for the release of Asaram Bapu, a self-proclaimed Hindu godman or guru, who has been in custody since 2013 on charges of sexual assaulting a 16-year-old girl.

Several hundred of the 75-year-old Bapu's supporters clashed with police in May -- one of the rare occasions when Jantar Mantar's general culture of lively but peaceful protest degenerated into violence.
Jessica Chastain in Miss Sloane (Photo: EuropaCorp USA)



In the new drama Miss Sloan, Jessica Chastain gives one of 2016s most fearsome lead performances as a D.C. lobbyist determined to take down her former firm in a battle over a controversial gun-regulation bill. Under the steady stewardship of director John Madden, Chastain delivers a magnetic movie-star turn that keeps the material on track even when it hits some far-fetched pot holes, and it could launch her into next years Best Actress Oscar race. Its not, however, a surprise to find Chastain reconfirming her status as one of cinemas most formidable actresses. Even at the young age of 39, her resume is as impressive as any in Hollywood. In celebration of her work in Miss Sloane, we look at back at five of her previous triumphs.

5. Mama (2013)

Chastain goes goth to compelling effect in this supernatural horror movie. Sporting severe black hair and arm tattoos, she plays a punk-rock bassist who winds up as the foster mother for two haunted girls whove been found in a forest cabin where theyve lived, alone, for years. Eventually left to care for the children by herself  a situation complicated by the fact that they have a relationship with a supernatural being known as Mama  the actress evokes her dont-tread-on-me characters slow maternal development with understated grace. Shes the dramatic calm in the materials eventual paranormal storm.

4. Crimson Peak (2015)

Director Guillermo Del Toros gothic romance concerns a young American (Mia Wasikowska) who marries an Englishman (Tom Hiddleston) and moves to his gone-to-seed family estate, where he lives with his imperious sister (Jessica Chastain). What follows are horrifying revelations regarding long-buried secrets. Its Chastains mysterious, menacing sibling  equally desperate, vengeful and insane  that truly breaths life into this supernatural saga. Thats most true during a memorable sequence in which she feeds Wasikowskas heroine porridge in bed, her every calculated word and gesture laced with unnerving malevolence.

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3. Miss Julie (2014)

Ingmar Bergmans favorite leading lady Liv Ullmann directed this criminally under-seen 2014 adaptation of August Strindbergs 1888 play. Chastain stars as a wealthy counts daughter, who, over the course of a night, tries to seduce her valet (Colin Farrell). Confined to only a few locations, the film is a taut, twisted portrait of class and sexual warfare. Chastains performance most ably stands out for its bold, fevered intensity  its the work of an actress capable of nuance even when playing material to the hilt.





2. The Tree of Life (2011)

Chastains breakthrough performance (which she hasnt watched since, because the process was so emotional) came opposite Brad Pitt in Terrence Malicks 2011 masterpiece The Tree of Life, as the mother of three young boys growing up in a southern suburb. Cast as the light, nurturing force in her childrens lives  contrasted with Pitts more turbulent, demanding father and husband  Chastain is a figure of both symbolic heft and three-dimensional humanity. That she manages to fulfill both duties with equal skill speaks to her greatness as an actress, and helps root Malicks grand, era-spanning drama in complex, intimate emotion.





1. Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

Director Kathryn Bigelows follow-up to her Oscar-winning The Hurt Locker earned Chastain a Best Actress nomination, despite the political controversy that swirled around the project. Playing a CIA analyst determined to bring Osama bin Laden to justice, Chastain exudes a ferocity far removed from her Tree of Life turn. Whether her character is overseeing the brutal enhanced interrogation of captured terror suspects or sparring with superiors about her role in the international manhunt, Chastain is the charismatic center of Bigelows hot-button geopolitical thriller.




Jill Stein

Green Party nominee Jill Stein is filing requests in Pennsylvania to start a recount of votes in the presidential election, Politico reported on Monday.

Recount requests were filed in more than 100 precincts in the state, Politico said, citing the Stein campaign.

The move comes three days after Stein initiated a recount in Wisconsin, a process former Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign agreed to participate in. Stein has also pledged to file for a recount in Michigan.

Donald Trump narrowly won all three states over Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, clinching Trump his Election-Day victory. Trump won Pennsylvania by a margin of about 71,000 votes out of more than 6 million cast.

All three states would need to flip Clinton's way in order to overcome Trump's margin of victory in the Electoral College.

However, such an outcome seems unlikely  elections officials in Wisconsin said on Monday they expect the recount to uphold Trump's victory in the state. Officials in the Obama administration have said there is no indication that the election results were influenced by hacks, a theory Stein cited as motivation for her recount efforts.

Reuters contributed to this report.

NOW WATCH: Trump makes baseless claim that he lost the popular vote only because 'millions' voted illegally





More From Business Insider


After tangling over details of their divorce settlement for the past three months, Amber Heard and Johnny Depp are days away from finalizing it, her lawyer says.

The settlement documents are being finalized and will be signed this week, Heards attorney, Pierce ODonnell, tells PEOPLE in a statement.

Heard was awarded $7 million in the settlement this past summer, and announced she would donate all of the money to her two favorite charities  the American Civil Liberties Union, with a focus on battling violence against women, and Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, where she has volunteered for 10 years.

But the exes have been at odds over which of them would give the money to charity.

A rep for Depp previously announced that he would make payments directly to the Childrens Hospital and ACLU on Heards behalf. A member of Heards team rejected Depps payment plan, saying in a statement, If Johnny wishes to change the settlement agreement, we must insist that he honor the full amount by donating $14M to charity, which, after accounting for his tax deduction, is equal to his $7M payment obligation to Amber. The rep added that Depp should make the payment in a lump sum rather than in installments.

WATCH: Amber Heard Calls Out Johnny Depp for Using Charity Donation as His Tax Deduction

Johnny is obligated by the settlement to pay Amber, and she in turn will honor her pledges to Childrens Hospital and the American Civil Liberties Union, says ODonnell. Ambers commitment to protecting victims of domestic violence and helping sick children is her lifes work.

ODonnell also addresses Heards recent appearance in a video about domestic violence for the #GirlGaze Project. The actress, who during her divorce claimed that Depp had verbally and physically abused her, fought back tears as she shared her personal story in the video. Heard never mentions Depp by name, and is prohibited from addressing allegations about him under her settlement agreement.

Her recent PSA on domestic violence does not violate her settlement agreement with Johnny, says ODonnell. She will continue to lend her voice to the rising chorus of women speaking out about this terrible scourge on the American family.




donald trump cleveland october 2016 campaign rally AP_16297009038652

President-elect Donald Trump took to Twitter on Sunday to complain that illegal voters cost him the popular vote in the 2016 election.

"In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," Trump said.

However, a political scientist who's likely behind Trump's assertion that "millions" of people illegally voted said "there is no way" they could explain how democratic candidate Hillary Clinton won the popular vote with a margin of more than 2.2 million votes (and growing).

Trump's baseless tweet made waves a day after Clinton's campaign said it would join vote recount petition efforts initiated by independent candidate Jill Stein. Stein has cited Russia's alleged hacking of Democratic Party email servers as one reason to recount votes in the swing states Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, and her campaign has raised more than $5 million to pay for legal and filing fees.

Marc Elias, the Clinton campaign's legal counsel, wrote in a Medium post on Saturday that while there's no "actionable evidence" of voting machine hacking or "attempts to alter the voting technology," her campaign intends "to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides."

Trump has since called Stein and Clinton's recount petitions a "scam".

However, if millions of illegal ballots were cast, as Trump believes, then the validity of his election as president would be questionable, given that he narrowly won the Electoral College by 107,000 votes.

Fortunately for Trump, voting experts say his claim is implausible.

Where Trump's illegal 'millions' come from

voting machine

Business Insider asked the Trump campaign multiple times to verify the source of his claim that "millions" voted illegally, but we did not receive a response.

However, the figure almost certainly comes from a contentious September 2014 study of non-citizen voters  people who are legally prohibited from voting, but presumably do so anyway  that Trump has cited at rallies throughout his campaign, including one on October 22, 2016, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Story continues

The study, which was peer-reviewed and published in the journal Electoral Studies, leaned on self-reported data from a 100-question, internet-based survey run by the Cooperative Congressional Election Studies (CCES). (The organization is funded by National Science Foundation grants and is led by researchers at Harvard University and Stanford University.)

In 2008 and 2010, the CCES surveys asked respondents about their citizenship status, and if they were registered to vote.

Jesse Richman, a political scientist at Old Dominion University, and two colleagues used data from these and other questions to ask how many non-citizens  people not born in the US, or have not yet endured the country's grueling naturalization process  might have voted in and possibly affected the outcome of elections.

The team focused on survey responses from after the 2008 presidential election, which was one of the largest voter turnouts in history. The researchers estimated that a maximum of 25.1% of non-citizens were registered to vote, and up to 11.3% illegally cast a ballot. Focusing on a population of 19.4 million non-citizens that year, Richman and his colleagues wrote "the number of non-citizen voters [...] could range from just over 38,000 at the very minimum to nearly 2.8 million at the maximum."

With such a wide and unreliable range, Richman and his team made an "adjusted" rate of verified voting at 6.4% of all non-citizens voting. The researchers called this their "best guess" of the actual voting rate, based on the CCES survey data and other studies of voting behavior.

"The adjusted estimate of 6.4 percent for 2008 is quite substantial, and would be associated with 1.2 million non-citizen votes cast in 2008 if the weighted CCES sample is fully representative of the non-citizen population," the authors wrote, noting that many votes could influence an election.

But the numbers differ wildly from other analyses, which indicate that non-citizen voting is extraordinarily rare; in fact, one national investigative reporting project determined that only 56 non-citizen were cast from 2000 through 2012.

Thus, Richman and his team  even though they noted their preliminary study's major limitations  met heated criticism from other researchers as popular websites like Breitbart, which has published articles with white nationalist themes, promoted the research to conservative audiences.

John Ahlquist and Scott Gehlbach, two researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, tore into the study and its conclusions at the Washington Post's Monkey Cage blog. They cited the confusing nature of the CCES survey questions, extremely small sample size (less than 100 self-reported non-citizens in 2008, out of 32,800 subjects), and other steep limitations of the analysis.

Michael Tesler, a Brown University political scientist, argued at the same blog that respondents whom the CCES followed over the years showed signs of error  namely, reporting being citizens one year and non-citizens 2 years later, possibly at a rate of 71%.

While Richman and his colleagues responded to these and other criticisms, three researchers criticized his team's work in the same journal in July 2015. Their rebuttal says the initial study was "almost certainly flawed" and provided "a biased estimate of the rate at which non-citizens voted in recent elections", ultimately concluding "that the rate of non-citizen voting in the United States is likely [zero]."

Despite these criticisms, Richman says he stands by the work.

"I believe that there has surely been some non-citizen participation in the 2016 election," Richman told Business Insider in an email. "The 2016 CCES will hopefully include follow-up questions to verify the citizenship status of self-reported non-citizens. This should help get at the issues raised by our more perceptive critics."

Why Richman says Trump's claim is not plausible

recount

If there was any independent political science researcher who could back up Trump's victimizing claims, it'd be Richman.

But he doesn't.

"I don't think that participation has been anywhere close to the level required to account for the entirety of Clinton's nation-wide popular vote margin," Richman told Business Insider.

Richman pointed us to a post he wrote at his university-hosted blog, which extrapolates his team's work in 2014 to the 2016 election.

In the post, Richman lays out why it's not plausible that non-citizen voter fraud could explain how Trump lost the popular vote by millions of ballots:

"The basic assumptions on which the extrapolation is based are that 6.4 percent of non-citizens voted, and that of the non-citizens who voted, 80 percent voted for Clinton and 20 percent voted for Trump. [...]

"As of this writing Trump is 2,235,663 votes behind Clinton in the popular vote. [...]

"If the assumptions stated above concerning non-citizen turnout are correct, could non-citizen turnout account for Clinton's popular vote margin? There is no way it could have. 6.4 percent turnout among the roughly 20.3 million non-citizen adults in the US would add only 778,524 votes to Clinton's popular vote margin. This is little more than a third of the total margin."

Richman went on to write that, while it's plausible non-citizens contributed to Clinton's margin of victory, it's "not at all" plausible that non-citizen voters could explain his loss.

"Even if we assume that 90 percent voted for Clinton and only 10 percent for Trump, a more than fourteen percent turnout would be necessary to account for Clinton's popular vote margin," Richman wrote. "This is much higher than the estimates we offered. Again, it seems too high to be plausible."

Business Insider sent Richman's post to Trump's campaign, asking for comment, but we haven't heard back.

Update (December 5, 2016): After this post was published, readers pointed out that Judicial Watch  a conservative legal interest group (which fueled controversy over Clinton's private email server)  hosts a PDF of Richman's full study, and that Richman links to the group's file in his Nov. 28 blog post at Old Dominion University.

However, in a series of emails to Business Insider, Richman asserted his academic independence and lack of any affiliation t0 the group.

"I have never had any ties with Judicial Watch, nor do I have any such ties today. I have never received any funding or other support from Judicial Watch, nor am I soliciting any funding from them," Richman told Business Insider in an email. "I linked to Judicial Watch merely because they posted a PDF that is outside of the journal paywall which makes it more feasible for people to read the study."

NOW WATCH: Trump makes baseless claim that he lost the popular vote only because 'millions' voted illegally





More From Business Insider


That Antarctica  a region that contains enough ice to raise sea levels across the globe by over 200 feet if it melts completely  is in trouble due to climate change is no longer news. However, exactly when global warming will push this fragile region beyond the point of no return is not entirely clear  although if the raft of studies whose results were published this year are anything to go by, its likely to happen sooner than later.

Now, a study accepted for publication in the journal Geophysical Research Letters has unearthed another worrying finding  the Pine Island Glacier, which is already known to be one of the fastest melting glaciers in Antarctica, is breaking apart from inside out.

The study, based on analysis of satellite images of the region, revealed that the rift that led to a 225-square-mile iceberg breaking off from the glacier in mid-2015 originated nearly two years earlier in the centre of the ice shelf.

127663_web

Photo: NASA/Nathan Kurtz

The rift formed at the very base of the ice shelf nearly 20 miles inland in a region where the ice had thinned compared to the surrounding ice shelf.

Rifts usually form at the margins of an ice shelf, where the ice is thin and subject to shearing that rips it apart, lead researcher Ian Howat from Ohio State University, said in a statement released Monday. However, this latest event in the Pine Island Glacier was due to a rift that originated from the center of the ice shelf and propagated out to the margins. This implies that something weakened the center of the ice shelf, with the most likely explanation being a crevasse melted out at the bedrock level by a warming ocean.

This is not the first time researchers have seen signs of how precarious the situation in West Antarctica is. Last month, for instance, two new studies conducted by researchers at NASA and the University of California, Irvine, revealed that glaciers in West Antarctica were retreating at an unprecedented rate due to warm water circulating beneath the ice shelf.

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The Pine Island Glacier, which is believed to have been thinning for at least 70 years, is particularly vulnerable because it slopes downward inland, leading to the creation of valleys that lie below sea level.

The really troubling thing is that there are many of these valleys further up-glacier. If they are actually sites of weakness that are prone to rifting, we could potentially see more accelerated ice loss in Antarctica, Howat said. This kind of rifting behavior provides another mechanism for rapid retreat of these glaciers, adding to the probability that we may see significant collapse of West Antarctica in our lifetimes.

Related Articles
Kim Kardashian is not leaving her husband Kanye Wests side. (Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for Harpers Bazaar)

Kim Kardashian is nursing Kanye West back to health. The reality star has been sleeping by her husbands side and helping to feed him while hes in the hospital for exhaustion, a source close to the rapper exclusively tells Us Weekly.

Kim has been amazing, the insider tells Us. She knew he couldnt keep going the way he was. She has been by his side through all of this, helping to feed him and laying by his side.

PHOTOS: Kim Kardashian and Kanye Wests Sweetest PDA Moments

The Keeping Up With the Kardashians stars nurturing behavior echoes that of her sister Khloe Kardashian, who stuck by her ex Lamar Odoms side as he recovered from a near fatal drug overdose last year. All the Kardashian women stick by their men, the source notes.

PHOTOS: Kim Kardashian and Kanye West: The Perfect Match

As previously reported, the Fade rapper, 39, was admitted to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles on Monday, November 21, after he reportedly started behaving erratically while at his personal trainers home. The health scare came hours after West canceled the remainder of his Saint Pablo Tourfollowing a bizarre 15-minute rant against Beyonce, Jay Z and Hillary Clinton at a Sacramento concert.

PHOTOS: Kanye Wests Most Outrageous Moments

Since then, Kim, 36, has shown nothing but support for her hubby of two years, and even spent Thanksgiving in the hospital with him. Kim wouldnt leave his side except to see the kids, the source tells Us, referring to the couples children, North, 3, and Saint, 11 months. Shes been at the hospital all the time. Kim has been keeping a very close watch on him and not letting people disturb him. All kinds of people have called and sent flowers, but shes being very careful about not letting him get wound up and making sure he rests and recovers.

The Selfish author, meanwhile, has stepped out of the spotlight since she was robbed at gunpoint inside her private residence in Paris early last month.




Kim Kardashian has been by Kanyes side in the hospital, and were not surprised

In news that shouldnt come as a surprise to anyone, Kim Kardashian has been by Kanyes side in the hospital ever since the rapper was admitted to the hospital for exhaustion shortly after canceling the rest of his Saint Pablo Tour. US Weekly reports that a source who is close to West says his wife has been a constant presence while he recovers at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Kim has been amazing, the source told Us Weekly. She knew he couldnt keep going the way he was. She has been by his side through all of this, helping to feed him and laying by his side.

A photo posted by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Aug 2, 2016 at 9:01am PDT

Obviously, its been a rough few months for the couple, with Kardashian still trying to recover from the horrifying robbery in Paris in October that prompted her to take a break from public appearances and filming Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Reportedly, the 36-year-old reality star also spent Thanksgiving with West at the hospital, only leaving to spend a little time to attend her familys holiday gathering at Kylie Jenners home.

Kim wouldnt leave his side except to see the kids, the source said of Kardashian and Wests children, North and Saint. Shes been at the hospital all the time. Kim has been keeping a very close watch on him and not letting people disturb him. All kinds of people have called and sent flowers, but shes being very careful about not letting him get wound up and making sure he rests and recovers.

2016 MTV Video Music Awards - Arrivals

Back in April, West shared the secret of his marriage to Kardashian with Vanity Fair, telling the mag, One of the keys to happiness in our marriage is were allowed to be ourselves. Based on the way West openly gushes over his wife and kids, wed say that mutual support seems to also play a major role in their relationship.

Hopefully, having his wifes nonstop encouragement will help West get back to a healthy place as soon as possible.

The post Kim Kardashian has been by Kanyes side in the hospital, and were not surprised appeared first on HelloGiggles.
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Knightscope, Inc., developer of advanced physical security technology utilizing autonomous robots and analytics, announced today that it will be presenting at the 9th annual LD Micro Main Event on Wednesday, December 7, 2016 at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles, CA. William Santana Li, chairman and chief executive officer, Knightscope, Inc. will be participating in a fireside chat as well as meeting with investors at 6:30pm.

To date, over 2,000 potential investors have indicated investment interest exceeding $60 million to date in Knightscope's potential mini-IPO. Progress can be tracked here: https://www.seedinvest.com/knightscope/series.c

The LD Micro Main Event is the largest independent conference for small/microcap companies and will feature 240 presenting names.

News Compliments of Accesswire

About Knightscope, Inc.

Knightscope is an advanced security technology company that utilizes Software + Hardware + Humans to provide its customers with new groundbreaking anomaly detection capabilities. In an increasingly volatile world, we are developing one of the most important technologies to come out of Silicon Valley that will empower the public and private sectors to proactively build stronger, safer communities, ultimately saving money and lives. Crime has a $1 trillion negative economic impact on the U.S. every single year and our long-term mission is to cut it in half. Schedule a demo in California and learn more at www.knightscope.com.

About LD Micro

LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into an event platform hosting several influential conferences annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event).

In 2015, LDM launched the first pure microcap index (the LDMi) to exclusively provide intraday information on the entire sector. LD will continue to provide valuable tools for the benefit of everyone in the small and microcap universe.



For those interested in attending, please contact David Scher at david@ldmicro.com or visit www.ldmicro.com/events for more information.

Story continues

Knightscope Media Contact:

Name: Stacy Dean Stephens

Phone: (650) 924-1025

Address: 1070 Terra Bella Avenue, Mountain View, CA 94043

Legal Disclaimer: Knightscope, Inc. ("Knightscope") is "testing the waters" to gauge market demand from potential investors for an Offering under Tier II of Regulation A. No money or other consideration is being solicited, and if sent in response, it will not be accepted. No sales of securities will be made or commitment to purchase accepted until qualification of the offering statement by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission") and approval of any other required government or regulatory agency. An indication of interest made by a prospective investor is non-binding and involves no obligation or commitment of any kind. No offer to buy securities can be accepted and no part of the purchase price can be received without an offering statement that has been qualified by the Commission. A Preliminary Offering Circular that forms a part of the Offering Statement has been filed with the Commission, a copy of which may be obtained here: https://www.seedinvest.com/knightscope/series.c

SOURCE: Knightscope, Inc. via LD Micro
Authorities identified Abdul Razak Ali Artan as the suspect who barreled his car into a crowd at Ohio State University before getting out and attacking people with a knife in Columbus, Ohio, on Monday morning. Here is what we know about him so far:

What did he do?

Artan, who was shot and killed by a police officer on Monday, drove a car over a curbside and into a crowd of people near a classroom building. He then got out and began stabbing people with a butcher knife. Eleven people were injured in the attack and taken to the hospital. A motivation has not been established, but according to the Associated Press, police are investigating whether the attack was an act of terrorism.

Who was he?

Artan was a student at OSU, who was born in Somalia and living in the U.S. as a legal permanent resident. In a short August interview with OSU campus newspaper the Lantern, Artan said he had just transferred to the university from Columbus State Community College and was having trouble finding a place to pray.

I wanted to pray in the open, but I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media, he said. Im a Muslim, its not what the media portrays me to be. If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I dont know what theyre going to think, whats going to happen.

The piece listed Artan as a third-year student majoring in logistics management. Officials at Columbus State confirmed Artan had attended the school and graduated with an associate of arts degree, the New York Times reported. He graduated cum laude and was on the colleges deans list in 2015.
donald trump peace sign

Welcome to Finance Insider, Business Insider's summary of the top stories of the past 24 hours.

As President-elect's Donald Trump's transition rolls on, more and more attention is being paid to possible selections for a variety of high ranking positions, and meetings that might help decide these appointments.

On Monday, Trump is meeting with an ex-bank CEO who wants to abolish the Federal Reserve and return to the gold standard. And in related news, Business Insider's Josh Barro has a theory about the fight in the president-elect's team over former Wall Streeter Mitt Romney.

In economic news, Texas executives can't wait for the end of Obama's "disastrous socialist policies." The Mexican peso's crash is hurting some US companies. And there could be an unexpected side effect of Donald Trumps infrastructure spending.

The "final nail in the coffin" may be coming for the Federal Reserve's freedom. And the Bank of Japan has become the biggest whale in Japan's stock market.

In deal news, it turns out the Chinese government is behind a major deal for a US tech company. Elliott Management has a new target. Samsung might split itself in two. Time Inc shares skyrocketed after a billionaire reportedly offered to buy it.

And OPEC is making a last-ditch bid to save the oil deal the markets want.

In Wall Street news, Standard Chartered is preparing to cut 10% of its corporate, institutional banking staff. And Silicon Valley Bank is thinking about removing names from resumes to prevent unconscious bias against job candidates. Here's why New York City has two economic centers  Midtown and downtown.

Lastly, this is how you persuade a VC to give you millions.

Here are the top Wall Street headlines at midday

We're now approaching what is traditionally a strong period for US stocks  The US S&P 500 stock index has been on a tear in recent weeks, adding a nifty 6.22% from the lows of November 4.

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MORGAN STANLEY: These 12 stocks have the most downside  Morgan Stanley has released its list of "Global Secularly Challenged Stocks," identifying a total of 81 stocks that have "exposure to longer-term secular challenges, and where the risk-reward is unfavorable."

"In the history of Europe, nationalism has always meant wars"  With financial markets poised to react to the pivotal Italian constitutional referendum on December 4, consensus suggests that a yes vote to the reforms will be positive for asset prices and a no represents a sell signal.

KRUGMAN: Trump is the "worst man we could have made president"  Paul Krugman, the Nobel-winning economist and New York Times columnist, on Monday went after President-elect Donald Trump once again.

Four charts that show China's accelerating debt problem  China's debt to GDP ratio keeps rising.

Tesla is entering the solar business at a risky time  Solar has generally been a difficult business, and that isn't looking to change under President-elect Donald Trump.

Stephen Leroux told us how he rescued one of the world's most iconic champagne houses from extinction  It was 1985, and bottles of Charles Heidsieck champagne were flying off the shelves.





More From Business Insider


PRISTINA (Reuters) - Five people were arrested in Kosovo on Monday on suspicion of throwing petrol bombs at the Turkish consulate in the southern town of Prizren. Police said no one was injured and only minor damage was caused. The motive was unclear, as Turkey is a major investor in Kosovo and has been one of the biggest supporters of its independence since it seceded from Serbia in 2008. Kosovo media reported that before the attack, a group of people torn down Turkish flags that had been put up across the town together with Albanian flags. Ethnic Turks account for 5 percent of the population in Prizren. Kosovo and neighboring Albania on Monday celebrated a Flag Day holiday marking the 104th anniversary of Albanian independence from the Ottoman Empire. Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj condemned the attack. "The relations between Kosovo and Turkey are excellent and will not be damaged by any vandalism or isolated act," he said in a statement. Turkish firms run Pristina airport and an electricity distribution company, while a construction group has won contracts worth $2 billion to build sections of highway. (Reporting by Fatos Bytyci; Editing by Ivana Sekularac and Mark Trevelyan)
(Adds details, background)

KUWAIT, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Kuwait plans to buy 28 Boeing F-18 Super Hornets, a military official said on Monday, 10 days after the U.S. State Department notified Congress of the possible sale of 40 of the warplanes to the Gulf Arab state.

Major General Lafi al-Azmi, chief of the military's Armament and Procurement Authority, also said Kuwait planned to return a number of outdated F-18s in its inventory as part of the purchase deal, the official Kuwait News Agency reported.

He added that details of the sale would only be disclosed after it is officially signed.

"Given Kuwait's proximity to turbulent locations, we certainly need effective military equipment," he was quoted as saying, in apparent reference to wars in Iraq and Syria.

The fighter aircraft are increasingly important to Kuwait amid rising regional tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, whose struggle for regional pre-dominance underpins wars and political tensions across the Middle East. Kuwait, an ally of Saudi Arabia, is also part of a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

Boeing, Northrop Grumman Corp, Raytheon Co and General Electric Co are the prime contractors for the proposed sale.

(Reporting by Ahmed Hagagy and Reem Shamseddine; writing by William Maclean; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Larry Wilmore is returning to TV.

Three months after Comedy Central canceled The Nightly Show, Wilmore has signed a multiyear overall deal with ABC Studios, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Under the pact, Wilmore will develop material for his own projects as well as supervise others and work with ABC Studios in targeting upcoming talent for the studio.

The deal brings Wilmore back to ABC Studios, where he executive produces the studio's ABC hit Black-ish. Wilmore originally was set to serve as showrunner on Black-ish, which he developed alongside creator Kenya Barris. He exited the ABC family comedy to host Comedy Central's The Nightly Show. In addition to Black-ish, Wilmore also co-created and exec produces HBO's Issa Rae critical darling Insecure, which was recently renewed for a second season at the premium cable network.

Read more: 'Nightly Show' Canceled; Larry Wilmore "Saddened" by "Unblackening" at Comedy Central

"I'm excited beyond words to be back at ABC and look forward to this creative partnership. Disney took a chance on me as a young writer years ago and so I'm thrilled to return to the Mouse House. I hope my room still looks the same," Wilmore said Monday in a statement.

In addition to Black-ish and Insecure, Wilmore's credits include Fox comedies The Bernie Mac Show and The P.J.'s.

"We're thrilled to welcome Larry Wilmore back to ABC Studios. We worked closely with Larry while we were developing Black-ish and are looking forward to what's coming next from this incredibly talented writer-producer," said ABC Studios president Patrick Moran.

Wilmore is repped by UTA, 3 Arts and Hansen Jacobson.

Speaking with THR in August, days after his Nightly Show exit, Wilmore opened up about his interest in returning to the scripted landscape and signing an overall deal at a studio. "When I talk about scripted, that's what I mean, half-hour and getting back into that world. I really love storytelling. It's really something that I miss. As much as I love doing this, I really love storytelling as well. I'll probably be doing something like that more immediately," he said. "I'd love to set up shop somewhere and develop projects - film, TV, digital - would be a fun thing to do. And I love mentoring people, too, and working with Kenya Barris [on Black-ish] and then being able to go somewhere else again."

Read more: Larry Wilmore Opens Up About 'Nightly Show' Early Exit, Saying Farewell and What's Next
SAN DIEGO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / The Shareholders Foundation, Inc. announces that a lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on behalf of certain purchasers of shares of Supreme Industries, Inc. (NYSE MKT:STS) over alleged Violations of Securities Laws by Supreme Industries.

Investors who purchased shares of Supreme Industries, Inc. (NYSE MKT:STS) have certain options and for certain investors there are short and strict deadlines running. Deadline: January 3, 2017. NYSE MKT:STS investors should contact the Shareholders Foundation by e-mail at mail@shareholdersfoundation.com or by telephone +1(858) 779 - 1554.

The complaint accuses the defendants of violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. More specifically, the plaintiff alleges that the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that the backlog figure from the third quarter of 2015 was a result of the timing of several large orders placed in that quarter, that the backlog figure for the third quarter of 2016 would not be close to the backlog figure of the third quarter of 2015, and that as a result, defendants' public statements about Supreme Industries' business, operations and prospects were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

According to the complaint, following an October 21, 2016 press release, conference call, and report announcing that the lower backlog comparison is due to two large fleet replacement orders and the timing of an annual fleet account order received during the third quarter of last year and that the circumstances surrounding the backlog of the third quarter of 2015 was unique, the value of Supreme Industries, Inc. (NYSE MKT:STS) shares declined significantly.

Those who purchased Supreme Industries, Inc. (NYSE MKT: STS) shares should contact the Shareholders Foundation, Inc.

The Shareholders Foundation, Inc. is a professional portfolio legal monitoring and a settlement claim filing service, which does research related to shareholder issues and informs investors of securities class actions, settlements, judgments, and other legal related news to the stock/financial market. The Shareholders Foundation, Inc. is not a law firm. The information is provided as a public service. It is not intended as legal advice and should not be relied upon.

Story continues

CONTACT:

Shareholders Foundation, Inc.

Michael Daniels

+1 (858) 779-1554

mail@shareholdersfoundation.com

3111 Camino Del Rio North

Suite 423

San Diego, CA 92108

SOURCE: Shareholders Foundation, Inc.
It looks like Lea Michele and Jonathan Groff finally got the chance to catch up with each other.

After not seeing one another for quite a long time, the close friends were recently reunited in New York City when Michele flew from the Los Angeles set of Scream Queens to the Big Apple to celebrate Thanksgiving with her family.

Michele  who plays Hester/Chanel #6 on the FOX series  took to Instagram to share a couple of photos from her meeting with Groff. The caption for both pictures revealed how much she missed the actor, who currently plays King George III on the Broadway production of Hamilton.

Michele and Groff have been friends for roughly a decade now. According to the Daily Mail, the two first met when they were both cast on the Broadway musical Spring Awakening in late 2006. Michele played the role of Wendla Bergmann in the musical, while Groff originated the role of Melchior Gabor.

The two then reunited on TV when Groff was chosen to play Jesse St. James on Glee. Jesse was introduced as a love interest to Micheles Rachel Berry in the latter part of the shows freshman run, and ultimately became her husband at the end of the series.

Groff described his friendship with Michele in an interview with Four Two Nine last year. I never went to college, but I imagine [my relationship with Lea is] like when you bond with someone in college, he said. We were on a very wild ride together during those Spring Awakening days. Plus, we werent who we were yet. We were still figuring out who we were, like you do in college. We were having such a deep and intense experience doing that show together. So we developed  and continue to havea very intimate friendship that can only happen when youre that age and youre not who you are.

What do you think of Michele and Groffs friendship? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Lea Michele

Photo: Reuters/Danny Moloshok

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BERLIN (Reuters) - The head of Germany's foreign affairs committee, an ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, called on Monday for Berlin to impose sanctions on Russia because of its supporting role in the war in Syria. The Syrian army and its allies announced the capture of a swathe of eastern Aleppo from rebels on Monday in an accelerating attack that threatens to crush the opposition in its most important urban stronghold. Norbert Roettgen, a lawmaker in Merkel's Christian Democratic (CDU) party, and Greens parliamentarian Franziska Brantner said that the West must act immediately in view of the Syrian-Russian attacks in eastern Aleppo. "The EU must at least impose sanctions on the Russian henchmen of these atrocities," they wrote in a statement. "It's not acceptable that those responsible for war crimes fly to Munich or Paris to do their Christmas shopping while women and children are dying in Syria," they added. The leaders of the United States and five European countries discussed their concerns about Syria during a meeting in Berlin on Nov. 18 but did not talk about imposing Syria-related sanctions against Russia that have been sought by the Syrian opposition. Roettgen and Brantner said while sanctions would only work slowly, Russian President Vladimir "Putin would have to take their effects into account in his calculations on the consequences of his actions in Syria." A spokeswoman for the German foreign ministry said on Monday that an immediate humanitarian ceasefire was necessary in Aleppo for the sake of the people there. "This tragedy must end. The regime and its supporters, above all Russia and Iran, bear the biggest responsibility for that," the spokeswoman said. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Michelle Martin; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Actress Leah Remini has harsh words for Scientology, the controversial religion she left in 2013.

On Monday, she appeared on the Today show, to promote her upcoming show Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, which delves into ex-members stories. She told Savannah Guthrie what motivates her to speak out: Im not a big fan of bullies, so it is part of who I am, and I was a fighter in the church, this is what they taught me, and so Im going to continue my fight, but Im on the right side of that fight now.

Both in her upcoming show and her 2015 book, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology, Remini accuses Scientology of abusing its members. The church has consistently denied the allegations and labeled the accusers liars. Remini responded to that on Today: People are talking about their experiences [in Scientology] of physical abuse and mental abuse, and to be called a liar and victimize victims is not OK with me.

Remini also addressed how Scientology manages to keep its membership, in light of these allegations of abuse. She told Today that its due to the risks of leaving, saying, People say, Why not just get up and leave? Well, youre leaving everything youve known, youre giving up your whole life, because that is what it takes to be a Scientologist.

Remini is the latest high-profile Scientology member to leave and publicly criticize the church. In 2009, writer/director Paul Haggis broke from the religion, but other notable actors like Tom Cruise and John Travolta remain members.

Find out which Jonas Brother was recently busted with pot, below:
Leah Remini scientology today AE series

Leah Remini is demanding the Church of Scientology pay her $1.5 million for allegedly trying to ruin her reputation and interfere with her upcoming A&E documentary series, "Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath."

"I'm not going to get a dime," Remini said on the "Today" show Monday of her monetary demand from the Church of Scientology.

"I mean I've given millions to the church and they've amassed three billion dollars. So I think that speaks for itself," the actress continued. "I also think that it says a lot about the organization, how they respond to their critics. It's not just me. It's anyone who's spoken out. Everyone is called a liar. Everyone's called an apostate. Everyone's called the same thing and I'm in good company."

Previous reports state that the Church of Scientology has been trying to get Remini's series pulled from the air since August. It has allegedly issued letters to executives at A&E and parent company ABC attacking Remini.

In response, Remini's lawyer issued the $1.5 million demand to the organization for trying to damage Remini's reputation and her contract with A&E.

Scientology issued a statement to "Today" calling Remini's request "extortion."

An A&E spokeswoman told Business Insider it had no comment on the alleged attempts by Scientology to have the A&E series pulled from airing. At any rate, the show will go on: "Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath" premieres on Tuesday at 10 p.m.

Remini has been no stranger to battling Scientology. She has been very outspoken about her time with the religion for years now, including on her TLC reality series "It's All Relative" and her highly rated "20/20" special last year on ABC.

Watch Remini's interview on "Today" below:

NOW WATCH: 7 famous people reveal why they are Scientologists





More From Business Insider


Leah Remini is continuing her highly publicized battle with Scientology.

The 46-year-old actress appeared on the Today show on Monday, where she talked about her new A&E docuseries, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, and why she's been so vocal after leaving the religion in 2013. Prior to her headline-making departure, Remini was raised a Scientologist.

"I'm not a big fan of bullies," Remini tells co-anchor Savannah Guthrie. "It is a big part of who I am, and I was a fighter in the church. This is what they taught me, and so, I'm gonna continue that fight, but I'm on the right side of the fight now."

WATCH: EXCLUSIVE -- Watch Leah Remini Take on Scientology in First Trailer for New Docuseries -- 'Fight for Your Family'

"I just want to send a message that I'm not gonna sit back and let it go on," she adds, going on to claim that "people are talking about their experiences of physical abuse, mental abuse."

"To be called a liar -- to victimize victims -- is not OK with me," she continues. "It's for the victims. It's for the people who have spoken out, but it's also for people who maybe just don't have the strength to fight, or feel like they don't have a voice. I just want to give people strength."

The former King of Queens star also explains why it's "not easy to just walk away" from the church of Scientology.

"The dedication it takes to be a Scientologist is a lot," she says. "It's not easy to just walk away. Most people say, 'Why not just get up and leave?' Well, you're leaving everything you've ever known. You're giving up your whole life, because that is what it takes to be a Scientologist. And then you're gonna be losing your friends and family, because most of them are Scientologists."

The Church has repeatedly denied all of Remini's allegations, including claims made in her book, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology. "It comes as no surprise that someone as self-absorbed as Leah Remini with an insatiable craving for attention would exploit her former faith as a publicity stunt by rewriting her history with it, including omitting that she was participating in a program to remain a Scientologist by her own choice, as she was on the verge of being expelled for her ethical lapses," the Church said in a previous statement to ET.

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Remini also responds to criticism that she's speaking out against her former religion for money during her Today interview.

"I'm not gonna get a dime," Remini claims. "I've given millions to the church ... and I also think that it says a lot about the organization -- how they respond to their critics, and it's not just me, it's everyone who has spoken out."

Remini admits she has daily doubts about her decision to continue to speak out against Scientology.

"It's not an easy thing to do, but it's the right thing to do," she says. "I feel like this is the path that I'm supposed to be on at this time in my life."

WATCH: Leah Remini Claims Nicole Kidman's Daugher Called Her a 'F**king' Supressive Person

Last week, Remini appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, when she talked about "the repercussions to speaking out" after leaving Scientology.

Watch below:

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Little noticed by the outside world, Libyans have almost succeeded in achieving a long-awaited victory over the Islamic State. For months, bolstered by air strikes from their international allies, local militias have been tightening a ring around IS forces in the coastal city of Sirte. The jihadis have been corralled into an area of less than one square kilometer. The battle is all but won.

Youd think that Libyans and their friends in the international community would be thrilled. Actually, though, theres little sense of triumph to be detected anywhere.

The reason is simple: Victory in Sirte, however welcome, will have little positive effect on the countrys power vacuum. When the Islamic State first conquered the city in June 2015, many observers hoped that the threat would serve as a rallying point for Libyas myriad warring factions. The need to strike a resounding blow against the Islamic State, it was thought, would finally provide the catalyst for unity.

It didnt work out that way. Instead, Libyas competing power centers  from Field-Marshall Haftar and his government in the East to its rival internationally-backed government in Tripoli to the countrys extremist Grand Mufti Sadiq al-Gheriani  have tried to exploit the threat of the Islamic State to advance their own agendas. Each group knew full well that merely appearing to engage the Islamic State would garner international support and strengthen its claims to legitimacy. So far, none have proved willing to redeploy serious resources and manpower to combat a threat they perceive as secondary to their domestic opponents.

Meanwhile, Western powers were so keen to engage the target that they neglected to consider their own-long term interests in Libya as embodied by the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), a special initiative established by the UN Security Council. The aim of UNSMIL was to integrate various Western interests into a cohesive policy to fight terrorism and human trafficking while persuading Libyan politicians to back the restoration of a truly national government. Paradoxically, though, some of the countries that originally backed UNSMIL  such as France and the United States  ended up creating obstacles to its work. Either in response to the UNs lack of results or from a sense that it hasnt done enough to protect their interests, they have teamed up with individual Libyan armed groups to pursue isolated counter-terrorism goals such as assassinating terrorist leaders. By forming brief alliances of convenience with people like Haftar and others, they empower them to continue operating outside of the UNs attempts at stabilization and unification, seriously undermining its work by removing a major incentive to cooperate.

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Given these circumstances, its a miracle that Sirtes liberation is at hand. The Western powers and their Libyan allies would be much better off had they achieved this goal as the result of a comprehensive, multilateral, carefully thought-out policy. Instead the operation has been an entirely ad-hoc affair. It was launched earlier this year by an alliance of militias who felt threatened by Islamic States gradual encroachments on their territory. Their strategy of encircling the city and gradually tightening the noose around the Islamic State positions was initially successful, but quickly racked up heavy casualties and ground to a halt. It took months before the government could organize the U.S. air-strikes, Italian medical and humanitarian assistance, and British front-line support which have made victory possible.

Moreover, though the operation now appears to be on the brink of success, its still too early to celebrate. While the anti-Islamic State forces may have breached the jihadis bastion, the environment that spawned the threat in the first place persists. The state is powerless, the economy is dysfunctional, and the country is plagued by violence and instability, making Libya a breeding ground for numerous other threats to itself, its neighbors, and the surrounding region.

The loss of its Sirte headquarters wont even mean the eradication of the Islamic State from Libya. The jihadis maintain a number of cells across the country, and have attempted to smuggle fighters out of Sirte throughout the battle so that they can return to fight another day. If the Islamic State does indeed lose Sirte, it is likely to return to a more traditional style of terrorism by targeting population centers, police academies, and militia bases with suicide attacks. The chaos will allow the Islamic State to sow discord and seek alliances with local or regional jihadist groups until it once again regains the ability to capture territory.

But its not just terrorists who benefit from the general anarchy. So, too, do those who make a living in Libyas shadow economy. The country has a long-established smuggling industry, which until recently was focused on exporting heavily subsidized domestic goods, such as gasoline and sugar, to neighboring countries. But since the traditional economy remains paralyzed, human trafficking and arms trading have expanded dramatically. Tribes, militias, and criminal groups are herding hundreds of thousands of refugees through the Libyan Desert, launching them on dangerous trips across the Mediterranean to Europe. Meanwhile, weapons from the Qaddafi regimes arms depots have made their way across North Africa, cropping up in conflicts from Mali to Syria.

A civil war like Libyas, where no side can gain a decisive advantage, should eventually grind to a halt as the supply of money, armaments, and young men willing to fight dries up. In Libya, however, external powers such as the United Arab Emirates and Turkey continue to fund and arm their favored factions, thus artificially prolonging the turmoil. The countries of the West are the only external forces still capable of exerting a positive influence. But they are squandering their leverage as they continue to approach Libya policy in a unilateral and piecemeal fashion, as dramatized by their handling of the conflict around Sirte.

Sirtes liberation, and the emancipation of its 80,000 inhabitants from Islamic State rule, is undoubtedly a welcome development in a land where positive news is in short supply. But we should guard against premature euphoria. Even as the battle has raged on in Sirte, Libyas factions have been preparing for what they see as the truly decisive battle in the war to claim control over the country. In the near future, we may see an evolution of the civil war from a constellation of local conflicts to an all-out war for control between two alliances that have heavy artillery and airpower at their disposal.

To contain this threat, the international community must rally around the UNSMIL and work toward a genuine power-sharing agreement. On a domestic level this means credible engagement with community and tribal leaders, militia commanders, faction leaders, and key institutions such as the Central Bank and the National Oil Company. On an international level, this means enforcing the arms blockade and ensuring that the UN is the sole channel for international diplomacy with Libya. This requires the political will to reconcile the competing interests of Russia, individual EU states, the U.S., and regional powers such as Egypt, Qatar, the UAE, and Turkey. Unless the international community can create and maintain a comprehensive policy for returning stability to Libya, the liberation of Sirte risks becoming little more than a blip in the countrys descent into endless civil war.

In the photo, a GNA fighter fires a rocket-propelled grenade launcher towards Islamic State positions in Sirte on August 16.

Photo credit: STR/AFP/Getty Images
You've probably seen the TV ads: turn your unneeded life insurance policy into cash.

These "life settlements" serve policyholders who no longer need their life insurance for any of various reasons. Maybe the children have grown, the spouse has died, or investments have grown large enough to provide for survivors.

Or perhaps the policy is too expensive to maintain because premiums have gone up.

Typically, the policyholder can convert a portion of the benefit into cash. The original policyholder no longer has to pay premiums, and the buyer then gets the death benefit after the seller passes away.

In a typical life settlement, the seller gets 20 to 25 percent of the policy's death benefit, says Lingke Wang, co-founder of Ovid, a life settlement startup based in San Francisco that serves both policyholders and investors.

"For a $500,000 policy, this amounts to $100,000 to $125,000, which is a substantial amount of money for a retiree," he says.

[See: 7 of the Best Stocks to Buy for 2017.]

But although a cash infusion can be a lifesaver for a policyholder in a financial crisis, a life settlement is not always a good option, says Richard Myerson, president and CEO of The Myerson Agency in Los Angeles.

"In our practice, this comes up every few months," he says. "When it does, we actively try to find a way for the family to maintain the policy."

"People who no longer need their life insurance policies are the ideal candidates, such as parents whose children are financially independent and who have no debts or other financial obligations to worry about," says Amy Danise, insurance expert at personal finance site NerdWallet. "If there's no one who would truly benefit from the life insurance payout if you were to die, perhaps you no longer need the policy."

The groundwork for this industry was laid more than 100 years ago with a U.S. Supreme Court decision that life insurance was property that could be transferred just like a parcel of land. But the market didn't take off until the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s, when "viatical settlement" firms began offering to buy policies from patients likely to live two years or less.

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As AIDS patients started living longer, the industry became less profitable and broadened in to the life settlement industry by offering deals to policyholders likely to live longer than two years.

Though the industry may be seen as ghoulish, a Senate committee found that life settlements average four to eight times as much as policyholders can receive by taking their policy's cash value. Though the buyer does better if the seller dies sooner rather than later, a seller can enjoy some benefit from the policy while still alive.

Most states regulate the industry and require that life settlement brokers be licensed. The industry is small, with its trade group, the Life Insurance Settlement Association, reporting that $1.7 billion in policies were purchased in 2015. The most likely seller is 65 or older and has a policy with a death benefit of at least $100,000.

[See: 11 Tips for the Sandwich Generation: Paying for College and Retirement.]

Generally, these deals involve some type of permanent insurance that lasts until the policyholder's death, rather than term life policies that end after a given period, since a buyer would not get a death benefit if the seller lived beyond the term. However, term policies with a provision to be converted to permanent policies can be eligible as well, Myerson says.

Garrett Hurley, financial advisor with Brix Wealth Management in New York, has found life settlements work best for people who own universal life policies. These are a type of permanent insurance that have a relatively small investment component designed to eventually help pay premiums.

The typical life settlement user, he says, is aging couple short on money for medical costs or long-term care.

"The strategy has practical application when a client no longer needs the insurance coverage, believes the capital to be more valuable while they are living, and who has significant liquidity concerns that cannot be addressed through other assets," he says.

Hurley says these settlements are not appropriate for policyholders with dependents, those who can afford the premiums, and those who find the death benefit would be more valuable to the family than the life settlement proceeds.

But there's a serious drawback. Cash received in a life settlement is taxable as a capital gain or income while a death benefit is tax free, Myerson says.

"The calculation of possible taxes payable on the sale of a policy is fairly complex and could have both ordinary income and capital gain consequences," Myerson says. "Care must be taken in evaluating the potential for taxes prior to completing a sale."

Sale proceeds, he says, are based on factors like the policyholder's life expectancy according to actuarial tables, the size of the policy and premiums, the buyer's borrowing costs and profit margins.

Myerson says he often finds a client a better alternative, such as a home equity loan or a reverse mortgage -- converting the home to cash and leaving the life insurance policy in force.

Not surprisingly, life settlement deals often favor the buyer over the seller, Hurley says, and many experts recommend getting a financial advisor or insurance broker familiar with the industry to evaluate the offer.

[See: 20 Awesome Dividend Stocks for Guaranteed Income.]

"Consumers can be at a disadvantage here because they'll have no experience at evaluating what their policies are worth," Danise says. "It's like selling a diamond ring that you haven't had appraised. You wouldn't do that, would you? Consumers can gain better footing by using a life settlement broker who will shop around for the best offer."





More From US News & World Report


You've probably seen the TV ads: turn your unneeded life insurance policy into cash.

These "life settlements" serve policyholders who no longer need their life insurance for any of various reasons. Maybe the children have grown, the spouse has died, or investments have grown large enough to provide for survivors.

Or perhaps the policy is too expensive to maintain because premiums have gone up.

Typically, the policyholder can convert a portion of the benefit into cash. The original policyholder no longer has to pay premiums, and the buyer then gets the death benefit after the seller passes away.

In a typical life settlement, the seller gets 20 to 25 percent of the policy's death benefit, says Lingke Wang, co-founder of Ovid, a life settlement startup based in San Francisco that serves both policyholders and investors.

"For a $500,000 policy, this amounts to $100,000 to $125,000, which is a substantial amount of money for a retiree," he says.

[See: 7 of the Best Stocks to Buy for 2017.]

But although a cash infusion can be a lifesaver for a policyholder in a financial crisis, a life settlement is not always a good option, says Richard Myerson, president and CEO of The Myerson Agency in Los Angeles.

"In our practice, this comes up every few months," he says. "When it does, we actively try to find a way for the family to maintain the policy."

"People who no longer need their life insurance policies are the ideal candidates, such as parents whose children are financially independent and who have no debts or other financial obligations to worry about," says Amy Danise, insurance expert at personal finance site NerdWallet. "If there's no one who would truly benefit from the life insurance payout if you were to die, perhaps you no longer need the policy."

The groundwork for this industry was laid more than 100 years ago with a U.S. Supreme Court decision that life insurance was property that could be transferred just like a parcel of land. But the market didn't take off until the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s, when "viatical settlement" firms began offering to buy policies from patients likely to live two years or less.

Story continues

As AIDS patients started living longer, the industry became less profitable and broadened in to the life settlement industry by offering deals to policyholders likely to live longer than two years.

Though the industry may be seen as ghoulish, a Senate committee found that life settlements average four to eight times as much as policyholders can receive by taking their policy's cash value. Though the buyer does better if the seller dies sooner rather than later, a seller can enjoy some benefit from the policy while still alive.

Most states regulate the industry and require that life settlement brokers be licensed. The industry is small, with its trade group, the Life Insurance Settlement Association, reporting that $1.7 billion in policies were purchased in 2015. The most likely seller is 65 or older and has a policy with a death benefit of at least $100,000.

[See: 11 Tips for the Sandwich Generation: Paying for College and Retirement.]

Generally, these deals involve some type of permanent insurance that lasts until the policyholder's death, rather than term life policies that end after a given period, since a buyer would not get a death benefit if the seller lived beyond the term. However, term policies with a provision to be converted to permanent policies can be eligible as well, Myerson says.

Garrett Hurley, financial advisor with Brix Wealth Management in New York, has found life settlements work best for people who own universal life policies. These are a type of permanent insurance that have a relatively small investment component designed to eventually help pay premiums.

The typical life settlement user, he says, is aging couple short on money for medical costs or long-term care.

"The strategy has practical application when a client no longer needs the insurance coverage, believes the capital to be more valuable while they are living, and who has significant liquidity concerns that cannot be addressed through other assets," he says.

Hurley says these settlements are not appropriate for policyholders with dependents, those who can afford the premiums, and those who find the death benefit would be more valuable to the family than the life settlement proceeds.

But there's a serious drawback. Cash received in a life settlement is taxable as a capital gain or income while a death benefit is tax free, Myerson says.

"The calculation of possible taxes payable on the sale of a policy is fairly complex and could have both ordinary income and capital gain consequences," Myerson says. "Care must be taken in evaluating the potential for taxes prior to completing a sale."

Sale proceeds, he says, are based on factors like the policyholder's life expectancy according to actuarial tables, the size of the policy and premiums, the buyer's borrowing costs and profit margins.

Myerson says he often finds a client a better alternative, such as a home equity loan or a reverse mortgage -- converting the home to cash and leaving the life insurance policy in force.

Not surprisingly, life settlement deals often favor the buyer over the seller, Hurley says, and many experts recommend getting a financial advisor or insurance broker familiar with the industry to evaluate the offer.

[See: 20 Awesome Dividend Stocks for Guaranteed Income.]

"Consumers can be at a disadvantage here because they'll have no experience at evaluating what their policies are worth," Danise says. "It's like selling a diamond ring that you haven't had appraised. You wouldn't do that, would you? Consumers can gain better footing by using a life settlement broker who will shop around for the best offer."

Jeff Brown spent nearly 40 years as a newspaper reporter, columnist and editor, including 20 years writing about investing, personal finance, the economy and financial markets. He spent 20 years at The Philadelphia Inquirer and has been freelancing since 2007.
This weekend, Lil Wayne was scheduled to headline the SummerFall festival in Willemstad, Curacao. The New Orleans rapper unexpectedly canceled his appearance at the last minute, and there have been conflicting reports about why he pulled his performance.

According to TMZ, Wayne's team told festival organizers that he would not be performing because he suffered from a seizure in Miami on Friday, November 25, one day before he was scheduled to take the stage. His representatives later denied this claim, citing "breach of contract" as the real reason he backed out of the show. Despite the explanation from Wayne's camp, the festival organizers maintained that they had fulfilled all contractual agreements.

In 2013, Wayne revealed that he has epilepsy, and has suffered from multiple seizures throughout his life. He shared the news shortly after suffering from a near-fatal seizure that left him in an induced coma. He endured two widely publicized medical emergencies earlier in 2016, one of which forced his private jet to make an emergency landing in order to reach paramedics. Throughout his career, Wayne and his team have downplayed his health issues, and insisted they are not a result of his frequent use of lean.

Read the statement from the SummerFall organizers in full below.

Continue Reading On PigeonsandPlanes

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Lindsay Lohan is back to writing after releasing her memoir in October. The Mean Girls star is spending her vacation in Bali, Indonesia, but one couldnt count this as a total getaway since the actress herself revealed that shes penning a new book while enjoying some time away.

On Sunday, Lohan took to Instagram to share with her millions of followers snaps from her Bali trip. In one of the photos, Lohan could be seen lying on the grassy ground of Seseh Beach Villas  a contemporary-styled private resort fronting the turquoise water of the Indian Ocean. Based on her caption, Lohan is enjoying the silence there, since it is helping her with her writing. For the former Disney child star, the moment of silence leads you to greatness with a lot of stories to tell.

In another picture, Lohan is joined by a friend in seizing a moment of peace and serenity. She also revealed in her caption that shes writing a true story. She also shared a pic of the resort and left her fans some words of wisdom for the day, saying that they should appreciate the beauty of all the good things in life.

Prior to her vacation, Lohan uploaded a video apology on Instagram after failing to show up in the town of Kettering. Lohan was supposed to attend an event there to turn on the Christmas lights of the towns big tree. The Daily Edge learned that the Kettering Borough Council repeatedly tried to contact Lohans management until Thursday, but they failed to get a response.

In her video apology, Lohan explained that she couldnt visit the town because of her busy schedule, but she said that she really appreciated the offer they extended to her. Hi everyone in Kettering, its Lindsay Lohan. I really wanted to make it there to light the tree, but with my busy schedule I wasnt able to, and I appreciate the offer. Happy Holidays, Lindsay says in the clip.

Despite her apology, British politician and a Member of the Parliament Philip Hollobone told the BBC that Lohans no-show was a big disappointment. He also pointed out that they were really hopeful that Lohan would come to their town. "I think that when you're an international celebrity who says you're going to do something then people expect you to do it. I think most of us thought that she wouldn't actually come but I think there was a little bit of all of us that hoped she would, Hollobone added.

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Meanwhile, it seems that Ariana Grandes fans are still not done hating on Lohan after the London-based actress trolled the Side-to-Side songstress for wearing too much makeup in the photos she shared on social media. In Lohans latest posts, Arianators are still flooding the comments with too much drugs remarks among other negative statements.

Lindsay Lohan

Photo: Reuters/Suzanne Plunkett

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The last time the mysterious British producer Burial released new music was all the way back in 2013 with the fantastic Rival Dealer, showcasing a stark change in direction, toying with other sounds. Revealing more of what he was capable of as a producer, there was something transformative about the EP, mostly doing away with those signature click-clack percussion he's so well known for in favor of grandiose textures and melodies.

While he's put a big focus on texture as a producer, Rival Dealer saw him pushing that element of his sound to the forefront. With Young Death / Nightmarket, Burial has pretty much removed everything but the texture, resulting in his most ambient release to date. There's always been an ambient moment or two on his releases, but both tracks here are purely atmospheric in a way that only Burial is capable of providing.

Listen to "Young Death" and "Nightmarket" below.

Continue Reading On PigeonsandPlanes

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Cockroaches are known for their superior survival skills, but it seems these bugs have another evolutionary advantage when it comes to the mating game: Male roaches can grow bigger testicles, if need be, to woo a mate.

A new study finds that Madagascar hissing cockroaches can adopt different strategies to win females, either evolving as a "lover" with bigger testes or a "fighter" with larger horns.

Roaches compete for females in various ways, with two main approaches being to defend a female by force, or to sneak past larger males to mate. Based on these two strategies, the researchers think that males from two species of giant cockroaches from Madagascar evolved different physical characteristics based on their tactics for winning a female. [Gallery: Out-of-This-World Images of Insects]

"These cockroaches are acting like red deer in the rut, competing for females by combat, but if they don't have the size and strength to win fights outright, they can try and sneak mates," study lead author Kate Durrant, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom, said in a statement. "A male cockroach seems to be adapted to be either a lover or a fighter, and what's interesting is that they do this before they become fully adult, at the final moult."

Durrant and her colleagues used 3D-scanning technology to precisely measure males from two different types of giant hissing cockroach species: the flat-horned cockroach, Aeluropoda insignis, and the wide-horned cockroach, Gromphadorhina oblongonota. The high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (CT) scans allowed the researchers to determine each roach's body length, body volume and the size of their "horns."

These body measurements were then compared to the cockroaches' aggression levels when fighting rival males, and the size of their testes  a sign that the roaches have more of an investment in mating.

Story continues

The researchers found that the flat-horned cockroach, which is small, with short horns, was nonaggressive and had large testes. These "lover" roaches were more likely to avoid fighting by mating with females behind the backs of larger males. Wide-horned cockroaches, in contrast, were larger and heavily armored with big horns, but with smaller testes  "fighter" roaches.

"These observations support sperm competition theoretical predictions but require field observations of natural mating systems in these relatively poorly known organisms for confirmation," the researchers conclude in the study.

The trade-off between lover and fighter strategies is also seen within each cockroach species, the researchers reported in the study. In other words, individual males with smaller horns typically had larger testes to compensate, the scientists said.

The study was published online Nov. 7 in the journal Scientific Reports.

Original article on Live Science.

Editor's Recommendations
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Luna Innovations Incorporated (LUNA), announced today that it will be presenting at the 9th Annual LD Micro Main Event on Wednesday, December 7th at 11:30 AM PST / 2:30 PM EST at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel in Los Angeles, CA. My Chung, president and Chief Executive Officer, and Dale Messick, Chief Financial Officer, will be presenting, as well as meeting with investors.

The LD Micro Main Event is the largest independent conference for small/microcap companies and will feature 240 presenting names.

View Luna's profile here: http://www.ldmicro.com/profile/LUNA

News Compliments of Accesswire.

About Luna

Luna Innovations Incorporated (www.lunainc.com) is a leader in optical technology, providing unique capabilities in high speed optoelectronics and high performance fiber optic test products for the telecommunications industry and distributed fiber optic sensing for the aerospace and automotive industries. Luna is organized into two business segments which work closely together to turn ideas into products: a Technology Development segment and a Products and Licensing segment. Luna's business model is designed to accelerate the process of bringing new and innovative technologies to market.

About LD Micro

LD Micro was founded in 2006 with the sole purpose of being an independent resource in the microcap space. What started out as a newsletter highlighting unique companies has transformed into an event platform hosting several influential conferences annually (Invitational, Summit, and Main Event).

In 2015, LDM launched the first pure microcap index (the LDMi) to exclusively provide intraday information on the entire sector. LD will continue to provide valuable tools for the benefit of everyone in the small and microcap universe.

For those interested in attending, please contact David Scher at david@ldmicro.com or visit www.ldmicro.com/events for more information.

Contact:

Name: Dale Messick, CFO

Phone: 1.540.769.8400

Address: 301 1st Street, SW, Suite 200, Roanoke, VA 24011

Email: IR@lunainc.com

SOURCE: Luna Innovations Incorporated via LD Micro
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fstory%2fthumbnail%2f29252%2fhippo-attack

A man driving his truck across a bridge made the terrible mistake of trusting that a hippo was friendly toward humans.

Wikus Ceronie, a 26-year-old welding inspector, was crossing a bridge in Kruger National Park during a drive from Mozambique to South Africa on Friday. Ceronie tells Latest Sightings that he noticed the hippo on the bridge, but assumed that it was used to humans because there were people walking in the nearby vicinity. Ceronie was very wrong.

Almost immediately upon noticing the truck, the hippo charged the vehicle, leaving the front end of the truck with significant damage. The hippo briefly tried to bite the truck, then walked away as if nothing ever happened.

Fortunately, Ceronie was not injured in the encounter.

Cackling albino kookaburra is either laughing with you or right at you

All I want for Christmas is this Mariah Carey and My Chemical Romance mashup

Yoda warns about the dangers of seagulls in a new 'Star Wars' Bad Lip Reading

Robert De Niro flaunts his foul mouth in first trailer for 'The Comedian'
In a run-up to tonights Gotham Awards sponsored by the Independent Film Project, nominees Kenneth Lonergan and Casey Affleck  writer-director and star, respectively, of the multiple nominee Manchester by The Sea  answered questions about the seriously adult drama, which has benefitted from a major kick into awards season from both critics and ticket buyers. NBC Today show contributor Dave Karger asked, and fielded, questions after a screening of the film for press and industry people hosted by Amazon Studios/ Roadside Attractions.

On the development of the story, Lonergan (You Can Count On Me) said he conceived the brooding film as a tale of three people in a seaside Massachusetts village, before narrowing it to the character played by Affleck, a man who returns to Manchester several years after a family tragedy, only to find he has been made guardian of his 16-year-old nephew. Questioners seemed focused on what drives an artist to immerse himself in such dark material, which has been a hallmark of Lonergans work for both film and theater.

Considering the question, Lonergan mulled for a few seconds and then answered, I didnt know if I had the right to make a movie about such grief, and the search for grace in the wake of life-changing events. Once he accepted it, he said, and worked his way through to an ending, he knew only that such grief deserved respect.

Once I know the ending, I know I have an idea for a film, he added. He shared drafts with close colleagues, looking for the kind of feedback I know not to use. The two friends acknowledged a kind of reversal of typical roles during the shooting of the film: I was trying to get the job done, Affleck said, while Kenny was obsessing over every detail.

One of the films most talked-about scenes comes near the end, in a gripping confrontation between the former spouses played by Affleck and Michelle Williams. One questioner asked if the scene, which has a raw emotional power, had been improvised. Answered Affleck, No, it wasnt improvised. Kenny writes in a way thats so conversational (but) with real precision that only works if you find the rhythm of it. He also noted that improvisation is sometimes a way of letting the actor off the hook.

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I asked Lonergan, a highly regarded playwright (This Is Our Youth) if he had considered developing the story as a play, rather than a movie. No, he replied, arguing that the town plays an essential character in the film. Theater is not at its best in capturing outside environments, he said, before quickly adding that there are obvious exceptions.

Both men were asked to describe the best and worst aspects of shooting a film by the ocean in the dead of winter. Lonergan recalled the pleasures of returning to his home at dawn after a night of shooting. Affleck was slightly more ambivalent. After every shoot I went home to my moms house, he said. I guess that was the best and the worst of it.

Related stories

'Manchester By The Sea' Named Best Film By National Board Of Review

Gotham Awards: 'Moonlight' Scores Best Feature & Screenplay - Winners List

'Lion' Takes Big Share Of Thanksgiving Weekend; 'Manchester' & 'Loving' Show Gusto - Specialty Box Office
DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / With Western Rim's rental apartment homes featuring cutting-edge design and state-of-the-art appliances, prominent real estate developer Marcus Hiles has brought luxury living to thousands of Texans. In addition to providing residents with affordable yet upscale conveniences, he presents revolutionary amenities that elevate daily life and lower monthly expenses in an eco-friendly way. While there are many simple tips people can follow to reduce their utility bills (such as unplugging idle electrical devices and using less water by turning sink valves half-way off), Hiles offers something even better and more effective: the special, upgraded advances that come standard in the residences built by Western Rim Property Services, which make saving money effortless.

With careful planning, all of Marcus Hiles' exquisite communities throughout the Lone Star state are created in harmony with nature to conserve power consumption and keep monthly costs down. Elegant extra-tall, dual pane windows minimize air conditioning requirements during summer by utilizing a layer of argon gas. Highly effectual weather stripping maintains tight seals to prevent drafts, a common culprit of extra energy usage. Programmable thermostats and 16 SEER HVAC systems set the perfect temperatures year-round, allowing for reduced heating or cooling needs during times away from home or during sleeping hours, thereby significantly cutting electric bills while delivering optimal comfort. Other architectural details that help with climate control include attics lined with reflective TechShield radiant barrier sheathing; the process redirects the suns intense rays and blocks up to 97 percent of its produced warmth. Full depth cellulose insulation in attics and walls is not only exceptional at preventing intrusive noise, but with the professional installation techniques implemented on Hiles' properties, cellulose forms air-tight closures and limits convection, providing yet another method for decreased reliance on central air and heat. Cellulose is especially helpful for keeping expenses low during winter, as a University of Colorado School of Architecture and Planning study proved that it loses 26.4% less heat over time versus traditional fiberglass insulation.

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Some of the upgraded amenities found within Marcus Hiles' deluxe rental units are the ENERGY STAR stainless steel Whirlpool brand appliances. Manufactured to expertly perform with reduced power consumption, the environmentally sound kitchens boast spacious refrigerators and sleek microwave and oven ranges with contemporary style and flawless efficiency. These products are the highlight of an impeccable space for refined gourmet chef-quality cooking - and all while demanding less energy and costing residents less to operate every month. A voluntary program instituted by the Environmental Protection Agency program, ENERGY STAR has successfully reduced power and costs to consumers across the U.S. for two decades, and the trusted standard in green living is found in Hiles homes across Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin, Houston and San Antonio.

Marcus Hiles, Fort Worth real estate development authority and philanthropist, is the Founder and CEO of Western Rim Property Services who has spent more than three decades satisfying the public need for high-end rentals. A champion of many ecological causes, Hiles has personally contributed to the improvement of public parks and lakes by donating more than 59 acres of parkland. His ongoing campaign to expand the canopy of shade trees is a prominent component of his ecological objectives: 2,500 trees are planted by his company annually, which are expected to remove roughly 75 tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year.

Marcus Hiles - Chairman & CEO of Western Rim Property Services: http://www.MarcusHiles-News.com

Western Rim Property Services- Marcus Hiles - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Western-Rim-Property-Services-Marcus-Hiles-1013270532051763/

Marcus Hiles (@marcus_hiles) - Twitter: https://twitter.com/marcus_hiles

Marcus Hiles - Western Rim Properties - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-0OBq1LCu8

Contact Information:

MarcusHiles-News.com

marcus@marcushiles-news.com

SOURCE: Marcus Hiles
During an interview on the FOX Business Networks Varney & Co. Monday, conservative author Mark Steyn discussed former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Steins efforts to recount votes in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Obviously its hypocritical. You must get whiplash defending the Democrats in the media because 20 minutes ago it was Trump who was delegitimizing the entire Democratic process in the United States by hinting that there could even be funny business going on. Now the Democrats are part of it, he said.

The British author and comedian called Steins efforts dangerous, because its not likely shell emerge victorious in those states after a recount.

Youre basically moving us into real banana republic territory where the people cannot express their preference at the ballot box because it will all be finagled with a lot of mumbo jumbo afterwards, he said.

Steyn also agreed with host Stuart Varneys stance that identity politics was a losing issue of the last election. He said he believes Trump won the election because people were tired of being treated on the basis of skin color or sexual preferences.

Still, he said the country has a long way to go to move past barriers that still separate the American people.

Bernie Sanders big campaign advisor just said the other day that they dont need Howard Dean at the DNC because they dont need a white man. A day after that Hillarys super PAC honcho tweeted that Bernie Sanders is a white supremacy. These are the two coolest guys in the Democrat Party and they are just old white dead irrelevant white men, he said.

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BOSTON (Reuters) - Massachusetts next year will require ride service companies including Uber[UBER.UL] and Lyft to perform the strictest background checks in the United States on all of their drivers, according to a deal reached with the companies on Monday.

The new rules would require the companies ensure that the independent drivers who provide taxi-like services pass state background checks, including their criminal records, and require that they not be registered sex offenders, state officials said.

"The safety and security of the riding public is our top priority, and I am pleased this agreement will set a national standard for the most comprehensive state background checks for TNC drivers in the country," said Governor Charlie Baker, using an acronym for "transportation network companies," the label Massachusetts uses to describe Uber Technologies Inc, Lyft and similar companies.

The rules require that the companies begin the background checks for all drivers operating in the state by Jan. 6 and complete them by April 3. That is a year earlier than they would have been mandated by a state law on ride-sharing companies passed this summer.

"We were pleased to reach an agreement with the Baker Administration that maintains the high safety standards we have always observed while keeping modern transportation options like Lyft available across the state," said Lyft spokesman Adrian Durbin.

Existing taxi companies have complained that the services, which allow riders to use smartphone apps to summon drivers, are able to undercut their prices because they are not bound by strict local licensing and safety rules.

An Uber driver in Kalamazoo, Michigan, earlier this year was charged with killing six people in a shooting spree.

Uber representatives could not be reached for immediate comment.

(Reporting by Scott Malone; Editing by Alan Crosby and Andrew Hay)
The Islamic States genocide on Iraqs Yazidi community continues as security forces discovered two mass graves filled with bodies near Mosul on Sunday. Kurdish Peshmerga forces found the graves, which had at least 18 people buried in them, along with identification cards in the Shababit junction area in northwestern Iraq, according to reports. Officials said Islamic State members apparently used a bulldozer to cover the graves with sand.

Mahma Xelil, the mayor of Sinjar, said the two latest Yazidi grave sites accounted for the 28th and 29th Yazidis mass graves discovered by security forces since the Islamic State took over the Sinjar area in 2014, Reuters reported. Xelil said the grave site total would most likely add up to more than 40 as Kurdish forces continue to push Islamic State militants further out of Mosul and the surrounding areas.

The Yazidis accounted for about 400,000 people, however, since the Islamic State invaded Sinjar, thousands of people have been captured, enslaved and killed, leading the United Nations to rule the Islamic States attack on Yazidis a genocide. In March, the Obama administration also formally called the Islamic States attack on Yazidis and other religious groups in Iraq a genocide.

The Yazidis, whose religious beliefs combine aspects of Islam, Zoroastrianism and Christianity, is just one of the many groups facing wipe-outs by Sunni extremists. Shiite Muslims and Christian populations surrounding Mosul have also faced the Islamic States brutality.

Although the Islamic State has lost about a third of the territories occupied in Iraq and Syria, in part due to U.S.-backed airstrikes against jihadist militants, some 3,500 people, mostly women and children, are believed to still be in captivity in various areas under the Islamic States control, the Office of Kidnapped Affairs in Duhok said in a statement. Eighteen captives reportedly escaped from Tal Afar in northern Iraq after Shiite forces regained control following invasions in areas south and west of the town.

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The media is having a cow over Donald Trump. Theyre worried that the President Elect is not going to stand by the time-honored tradition of allowing the press full access to the White House or, even worse, that hes going to blacklist them, as he did to the Washington Post and others during the election.

CNNs Christiane Amanpour took the press corps Trumpphobia a loony step further last week, saying the former real estate mogul represents an existential threat to the media. Shes apparently fearful that theyre all going to end up in handcuffs, in cages, in kangaroo courts, in prison  and then who knows? Here is my advice: Take a Xanax, Christiane.

Not to be outdone, the New York Times is afraid that rich people are going to drown the media in frivolous libel suits. No kidding. In Billionaires vs. the Press in the Era of Trump, Emily Bazelon tries to make a case for a Trump-led legal assault on Americas much heralded freedom of the press.

While I agree that holding the federal government accountable is laudable, it looks to me like the media elite have their heads so far up their biased behinds that they cant see that many Americans are far more concerned about holding them accountable. Ironically, thats exactly what much of the litigation sited in Bazelons story is about.

This isnt some mass conspiracy dreamed up by Trump and his powerful friends to squelch the media and turn our nation into a police state. On the contrary, its an attempt by a few courageous individuals to stop journalists (Im being kind here) with questionable ethics from hiding behind some twisted, self-serving interpretation of the First Amendment.

Bazelon complains that this manipulation of the law is happening at a bad time for the press, which she sees as a victim suffering from falling revenue and mounting public disaffection. No wonder. A 2015 Gallup survey found that just 40% of the public trust the media to report the news fully, accurately and fairly.

Story continues

Funny that the coastal elites who run Americas vaunted media machine never even stop to consider that maybe, just maybe, theres good reason for that mistrust. The question on the minds of many if not most Americans is, if the media is supposed to keep Washington honest, then whos going to keep the media honest?

In any case, lets take a closer look at the libel suits that Bazelon points to as evidence of a Trump-led billionaire legal assault intent on eroding Americas free press.

First we have Hulk Hogans $140 million verdict that ultimately put Gawker Media out of business. In posting a secret sex tape of Hogan, Gawker publisher Nick Denton apparently took a calculated risk that a First Amendment defense would trump invasion of privacy and defamation claims. Also that he had a bigger war chest than Hogan.

What he didnt count on was billionaire venture capitalist Peter Thiel changing the equation and bankrolling the suit. All Denton had to do to avoid his demise was to take down the sex tape, but he arrogantly refused, and now hes bankrupt. What bearing that has on the medias noble pursuit of government oversight, I have no idea.

Meanwhile, a jury found that Rolling Stone and reporter Sabrina Rubin Erdely defamed University of Virginia administrator Nicole Eramo in A Rape on Campus, a story that turned out to be more fiction than fact, and awarded her $3 million in damages. Im still searching for the billionaire bully in the story. If you find one, be sure to let me know.

Next up is a libel suit between Idaho billionaire Frank VanderSloot and left-leaning Mother Jones over Pyramid-Like Company Ponies Up $1 Million for Mitt Romney. Mother Jones won the suit, but the judge partially supported VanderSloots claim and admonished the online site for mudslinging in her written opinion.

In addition, the current version of the article has been amended to include, get this, five paragraphs or 334 words of updates and corrections. While VanderSloots suit could not overcome the high bar of willful malice in the case of libel against a public figure, the initial story clearly had more than a few inaccuracies, to say the least.

Bazelon complains that the trial cost Mother Jones $2.5 million to defend, but misses the point that the site probably could have avoided litigation by employing some journalistic integrity instead of rank political bias.

Which brings us to Trump. The only media-related libel suit that Trump actually did file in the past 30 years was against Univision over its cancelling of the Miss Universe pageant. They settled out of court. He also sued author Tim OBrien over his book, TrumpNation: The Art of Being the Donald, and lost. OBrien did work for the Times at the time, but that had nothing to do with the suit.

All this fear-mongering is just another example of why Americans distrust the media. Instead of attacking and being fearful of a movement they clearly dont understand, media elites should take a good hard look in the mirror and consider that maybe theyre the problem and Trump is the solution, not the other way around.

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Meghan Markle & Priyanka Chopra are BFFs and we want in on their squad, please

Over the holiday weekend, while you were hanging with family or waiting in an airport for your flight, actresses Priyanka Chopra and Meghan Markle became BFFs. OK, they were already friends, having met at a luncheon for women in television and became fast friends, but their Thanksgiving selfie seems to seal the deal. The Suits and Quantico stars dinner, which also included filmmaker Mubina Rattonsey was somewhere in Los Angeles  we dont know the restaurant, but it looked very cozy with candlelight and cocktails. Basically, it looks like the perfect place to hang with your friends and catch up on holiday gossipor maybe even Markles beau Prince Harry?

Girls just wanna have fun.. @meghanmarkle @mubinarattonsey #LAlife A photo posted by Priyanka Chopra (@priyankachopra) on Nov 25, 2016 at 7:41pm PST

In the photo, taken from Chopras Instagram, the women are dressed super casually with Chopra in a flannel shirt and Markle in distressed jeans and neither seem to be wearing much more than a slick of lip gloss. Clearly, they are the type of friends every woman needs  someone that you can just call up and say meet me in twenty minutes and dont bother with the eyeliner. (Although knowing Los Angeles traffic, it could probably be an hour with time to do your makeup and hair, but who are we to judge?)

It is so great seeing these two together. They became friends earlier this year at a party thrown by Elle and it was friendship at first sight. Chopra is apparently a fan of Suits, too! When asked about a future collaboration between the two, Markle was enthusiastic this summer. I would love to work with her on a film one day! I told her specifically that my dream is to work with her on a Bollywood film because I think it would be so much fun  she said I should do it!, she told Indian news outlet PTI in an email interview.

We would be way into that, BTW, ladies.

With my babes. @anderson_markus & @priyankachopra #NYC #sergio #honeybunnies @sohohouse #capedcrusader A photo posted by Meghan Markle (@meghanmarkle) on Aug 7, 2016 at 12:25pm PDT

These two may not get to see each other often since both have popular shows and Chopra is getting ready for the Baywatch movie, but lets hope we see them together again soon. Good buds are hard to find.

The post Meghan Markle & Priyanka Chopra are BFFs and we want in on their squad, please appeared first on HelloGiggles.
The bad blood between President-elect Donald Trump and comedian Rosie ODonnell could get worse in the wake of ODonnells tweet intimating Trumps youngest son, Barron, is autistic.

Trumps wife, Melania, reportedly is threatening to sue. TMZ reported Monday, Melania has hired Charles Harder, who sent a letter threatening to sue over a video captioned, Barron Trump Autistic? #StopTheBullying, which was tweeted out by ODonnell.

"The video allegedly seeks to 'stop the bullying' of Barron Trump. Not true ... The video did instigate further bullying by Rosie O'Donnell and others," the letter says.

Barron, 10, is seen yawning and grimacing on the video, shot during Trumps victory speech in the wee hours Nov. 9 and also during the president-elects victory speech at the Republican National Convention, another late-night performance.

Harder wants whoever posted the video to delete it and issue an apology.

TMZ said Melania Trump is outraged.

ODonnell claims she was just curious about Trumps son because her daughter, Dakota, 3, is autistic, CBS News reported. She said on her website her comment had nothing to do with the president-elect.

I feel Trump is a clear and present danger, she wrote. But this autism subject  had nothing to do with Donald.

She also said: When I saw the anti-bullying video that mentioned Barron, it spoke to the symptoms many ASD [autism spectrum disorder] kids have. It was educational and informational. These symptoms so many do not understand  I thought  how amazing if, if it is true.

ODonnell was flamed for tweeting the video:

The Trump-ODonnell feud began in 2006 when Trump decided against firing Miss USA Tara Conner for drug use, underage drinking and sexual activities. ODonnell criticized the decision on The View, and called Trump a snake oil salesman and attacked his sexual history. Trump then called ODonnell a real loser and a woman out of control, threatening to sue her for saying he went bankrupt.

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When ODonnell announced her engagement in 2011 to Michelle Rounds, Trump tweeted he felt sorry for Rosies new partner in love, again calling ODonnell a true loser.

ODonnell tweeted back, Wow, u r an ass.

Trump also slammed ODonnell for undergoing weight-loss surgery in April 2014 and called her crude, rude, obnoxious and dumb when it was announced she would return to The View that July.

Trump again took after ODonnell during the first Republican presidential primary debate in August 2015 when he was asked about the obnoxious names he has called women. He interjected, Only Rosie ODonnell.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton added her 2-cents in September.

Since the election, ODonnell has put up numerous posts warning about the dangers Trump poses.
Photo credit: Mercedes-Benz

From Road & Track

If there's one automaker that has been a tireless booster of diesel passenger cars in the U.S. market, sticking with them through thick and thin-nearly every model year, for decades-it's Mercedes-Benz. They're arguably part of the brand's heritage in the U.S.; back in the early 1980s, four out of five vehicles Mercedes sold in this country were diesels. So it's a little shocking to hear the automaker is even considering giving up on diesels in the U.S. market.

This past week at the Los Angeles auto show, Matthias Luehrs, vice president of sales and product management at Mercedes-Benz Cars, told Car and Driver that in Europe, customers are still asking for diesels. There, the diesel-model share is down just 1 percent within a growing market-meaning the absolute demand is growing. But in the U.S. and Canada, he conceded, demand for diesels, which the automaker has badged as BlueTec in the recent past, is low and continuing to fall-to the degree that it warrants a reality check. "Here we have to look at that and see if it makes sense as such to offer diesels in the future," said Luers, who called abandoning U.S. diesels entirely "a theoretical option."

"We have not come to a conclusion, but we obviously always develop cars and offer vehicles according to customer demand," Luehrs added. The automaker is seeing decreased U.S. interest in diesels not just for passenger cars but for crossovers, too, he said, so it has launched an analysis to see where-and if-Americans do want diesels. "Obviously we're doing a lot of market research in the U.S.," he said. "We'll expect analysis and results next year."

In the meantime, the automaker is pushing ahead with efforts to get its GLS350d crossover certified for U.S. sales. Then next year-perhaps depending on what the brand sees as demand-models with the new-generation 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine could arrive, according to Luehrs. Mercedes-Benz USA declined to confirm a timeline for those cars.

Story continues

"We are confident in most of the cases that we will get the diesel certification," said Luehrs. "We're working on that."

Given Mazda's very recent decision to enter the U.S. diesel market next year, with a so-called Skyactiv-D engine available in its 2017 CX-5, not every automaker deems diesels a lost cause. In the interest of choice, we hope Mercedes-Benz sees a future for them stateside.

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(Adds comments from Zepeda, CNH president, paragraphs 9-11)

MEXICO CITY, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Mexico's oil regulator announced on Monday a final list of 17 oil companies representing a dozen countries that have pre-qualified to bid on the country's first-ever deep water oil auctions, set for Dec. 5.

The highly anticipated tenders include an auction to pick a partner for Mexican national oil company Pemex to develop its promising Trion field, as well as 10 separate deep water fields, including four clustered around Trion just south of Mexico's maritime border with the United States.

All the fields are in the country's territorial waters in the Gulf of Mexico, in the Perdido Fold Belt and the Salina basin along the southern rim of the Gulf.

The pre-qualified companies constitute a total of 15 bidders, eight of which successfully sought to pre-qualify as individual operators while seven consortia did so as well.

The pre-qualified individual bidders are Australia's BHP Billiton, Britain's BP, China's CNOOC, the United States' ExxonMobil, Malaysia's Petronas , Mexico's Pemex, Norway's Statoil and France's Total.

The seven consortia are Atlantic Rim and Royal Dutch Shell ; Eni and Lukoil; Murphy, Ophir , Petronas unit PC Carigali and Sierra Offshore Exploration; PC Carigali and Sierra; Statoil, BP and Total; Total and ExxonMobil; and Chevron along with Pemex and Inpex Corp.

The later consortium marks the first time Pemex has sought to tie up with another oil company in the hopes of jointly developing an exploration and production project.

Juan Carlos Zepeda, president of the oil regulator known as the CNH, said it will not be known until Dec. 5 whether the pre-qualified firms will bid on Trion or the other deep water blocks up for grabs.

"It's a large number of bidders," said Zepeda.

"We have companies that are competing as individuals and as consortia, and some of them are even participating in more than one consortium," he said, adding that about half of Mexico's prospective oil resources are located in the Gulf's deep waters.

Zepeda emphasized that companies are barred from bidding more than once on the same project.

The auctions will mark the fourth phase of the so-called Round One tender, a major part of an energy reform launched in 2013 that ended the decades-long monopoly enjoyed by Pemex and aims to reverse a dozen years of declining crude output. (Reporting by David Alire Garcia; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Steve Orlofsky and David Gregorio)
More than three decades after the cult sci-fi classic The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension was released in theaters, MGM wishes to produce a new television series of the characters with Kevin Smith at the helm and in conjunction with Amazon Studios. But first, MGM is taking a trip to the courtroom to sort out rights.

MGM has filed a complaint in California federal court against Earl Mac Rauch, who wrote the 1984 film about a neurosurgeon/rock star who saves Earth from malevolent aliens, and Walter Richter, who directed the picture that stars Peter Weller, John Lithgow, Jeff Goldblum and Christopher Lloyd.

Rauch and Richter "have now asserted in multiple letters to Plaintiffs that they, not Plaintiffs, supposedly own the exclusive right to produce and distribute a Buckaroo Banzai television series," states MGM's lawsuit. "There is now a substantial controversy between the parties with great immediacy. MGM seeks to develop its new television series without Defendants' interference. Accordingly, Plaintiffs bring this action to seek a declaration of the rights and legal relations of the parties with regard to Buckaroo Banzai."

The 1984 film left off with a tease in the form of a message where audiences were told, "Watch for the next adventure of Buckaroo Banzai - Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League."

The sequel never came, and Richter has spoken up in the years that followed of how "the paper trail for the rights is almost impossible to follow," with properties being passed around in corporate transactions and a proposed Warner Bros. animated version being squashed because of the clouded title.

Through the lawsuit, MGM says Rauch and Richter have been aware since at least 2008 that it was pursuing a television series based on Buckaroo Banzai, and in 2011, the writer and director asserted ownership rights. MGM repudiated the claim, and it would hardly be the last time the two sides would trade letters on this topic.

Story continues

This past July, defendants' agent Mark Lichtman would again claim ownership, not only in letters to MGM that informed the studio that his clients "are moving forward with their projects regarding Buckaroo Banzai," but also to Amazon Studios and Smith's agents at WME. In response, MGM demanded that Rauch and Richter cease and desist from interference.

Then in August, defendants' attorney Kenneth Keller delivered a five-page letter to MGM's counsel, Robert Rotstein at Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp.

"We are not claiming the limited rights which MGM might own with respect to the single motion picture, Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, although as is discussed below, there are certainly serious questions even as to the chain of title with respect to that picture and MGM's rights associated with it," wrote Keller. "What my clients own are the overall rights to the world of Buckaroo Banzai, and all of the characters, themes and ideas associated with that world."

Keller went on to explain that in 1981, MGM entered into an agreement with Rauch's loan-out company for a single episode, but nearly a decade earlier, the script writer had created characters, successfully pitched Richter and had sketched out five stories - "The Strange Case of Mister Cigars: A Buckaroo Bandy Mystery"; "Lepers From Saturn - A Buckaroo Banzai Adventure"; "A Buckaroo Banzai Thriller - 'Find the Jet Cart,' Said the President"; "Shields Against the Devil - A Buckaroo Banzai Thriller"; and "Forbidden Valley."

It's further reported in the letter that in 1981, Richter and others met with an MGM executive and pitched him the entirety of Rauch's Buckaroo Banzai adventures, leaving a copy of "A Buckaroo Banzai Sampler."

"Critically ... MGM passed on the opportunity to option or obtain any rights in Mr. Rauch's larger property, including the other four episodes which he had written to the point or any other rights to the world of BUCKAROO BANZAI," continued Keller's letter. "The Agreement itself specifically defines what MGM was contracting to acquire - a screenplay (based on a single episode of Buckaroo Banzai) and two revisions - and the rights associated with that screenplay."

Naturally, in MGM's lawsuit filed by Rotstein, the studio takes a different view.

MGM contends that the services of Rauch and Richter were provided on a "work-made-for-hire" basis," or alternatively, that it was assigned "all exclusive rights under copyright to the screenplay and motion picture, and the characters, plots, themes, dialogue, mood, settings, pace, sequence of events, and other protected elements therein."

The lawsuit adds that MGM and its predecessors had creative control over the Buckaroo Banzai project and contributed copyrightable elements.

MGM also is asserting that Richter violated a publicity provision of his contract by talking to one film website about MGM's lack of rights to the property. Additionally, Richter and Rauch are said to be in breach of this provision via statements made on Facebook.

At the moment, though, MGM is merely seeking declarations from the court that Rauch and Richter can't prevent a Buckaroo Banzai television series, that it owns the copyrights, that Rauch has signed away rights to literary materials submitted in connection with Buckaroo Banzai and that defendants are barred by statute of limitations and estopped from asserting any ownership rights.

Read the full complaint here.
tank man tiananmen square

Microsoft's Chinese chatbot Xiaoice is wildly popular  just don't ask it about Tiananmen Square.

The conversational two-year-old Chinese-speaking bot won't talk about certain controversial political topics, even refusing to talk to users if they persist in their attempts.

Alongside the iconic protests, Xiaoice also won't discuss US president-elect Donald Trump, Chinese president Xi Jinping, the Communist Party, and the Dalai Llama.

These restrictions were first spotted by China Digital Times, and also tested out by CNN.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that the bot censors certain subjects, saying in a statement: "Were committed to creating the best experience for everyone chatting with Xiaoice. With this in mind, we have implemented filtering on a range of topics."

When asked about Tiananmen by China Digital Times, Xiaoice responded: "You know very well that I cant respond to that, boring." When China Digital Times persisted, it cut off communication entirely: "Unable to communicate with you, blacklisted!"

CNN asked it about Donald Trump, and it innocuously replied: "I'm just a random observer."

"Am I stupid? Once I answer you'd take a screengrab," it said in response to questions about Xi Jinping and the Communist Party.

While this filtering might seem alarming to Westerners, it is an unavoidable cost of doing business in China. The country has a heavily censored internet, restricting its citizens' access to information on certain subjects and entire websites using the infamous "Great Firewall of China."

Story continues

Foreign companies that do work in China are forced to agree to its demands or face being banned entirely. In 2010, Google stopped censoring its Chinese search results after a series of cyberattacks  and was subsequently blocked in the country. (It remains banned there today.)

And Facebook, which is currently banned in China, has reportedly built a tool that would automatically censor certain topics in a bid to be unbanned. Several employees allegedly quit in protest over its development.

Xiaoice was launched in 2014, and is a smash hit with Chinese users. It has 20 million registered users, The New York Times reported in 2015, with many turning to it for companionship when feeling lonely.

Microsoft's attempts to launch a chatbot in English-speaking markets have been less successful. In March 2016, it released "Tay"  an English-speaking chatbot that emulated the jokey speech patterns of a millennial, and learned from its interactions with users.

But the experiment descended into farce after Tay "learned" to be a genocidal racist, calling for the extermination of Jews and Mexicans, insulting women, and denying the existence of the Holocaust.

tay microsoft genocide slurs

The company subsequently apologised, deleted its tweets and took the bot offline permanently.

NOW WATCH: What those tiny rivets on your jeans are for





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A decision by Hampshire College to stop flying the American flag on campus led hundreds to protest at the Massachusetts school this weekend.

The election of Donald Trump as President led some students to lower an American flag that waved above the campus to half-mast, New York magazine reports. Later, an individual lit the flag on fire just days before Veterans Day, and the college president soon called for the removal of all flags on campus.

That decision stoked anger among members of the Amherst, Mass. community, particularly among military veterans. On Sunday, veterans groups led a demonstration on the campus where hundred gathered and waved flags in protest. Several local officials spoke at the rally, according to MassLive.com.

A spokesperson for the college told MassLive.com that the schools president spoke with a veterans group before the rally.

President Lash listened respectfully to the views of the veterans, and explained that the Hampshire College community includes a wide range of views including employees and students who have served or are currently serving in the U.S. military, said spokesperson John Courtmanche.

[MassLive.com]
Two men were charged Monday with stealing rare pygmy marmosets from an Australian wildlife park as a baby was reunited with her mum and the hunt continued to find dad.

Three of the monkeys, the world's smallest, were snatched from their enclosure at the Symbio Wildlife Park south of Sydney on Saturday, with police and zookeepers launching a desperate bid to locate the suckling infant.

There were fears it would die if away from its mother for more than 24 hours while keepers also worried its twin would perish because their mother was too stressed to feed.

After a tip-off from the public, two men, aged 23 and 26, were arrested and charged Monday with dealing with the proceeds of crime.

Police found the unnamed four-week-old infant in the men's car and a 10-month-old female, Sophia, at another address. But the father, Gomez, remains missing.

It was not clear why the monkeys, which are native to South America and usually about 20 centimetres (eight inches) tall, were taken, but Symbio park manager Matthew Radnidge said there would have been a financial motivation.

"But in terms of value, an animal has a value of whatever someone perceives, so within the zoo and wildlife park industry, no money ever changes hands with these animal transfers," he told ABC radio.

Sydney's Daily Telegraph said marmosets, also known as thumb monkeys, were in demand on the black market as pets, commanding prices of up to Aus$5,000 (US$3,700).

The wildlife park said the hungry and scared baby had been reunited with its mother and sister.

"Mum cradled the baby straight into her arms and bub immediately began to feed," the park said on its Facebook page.

"Early observations this morning are promising, with two bright eyed twins observed on mum's back -- so a great result."
Photo credit: Instagram

From Cosmopolitan

Halima Aden is flawlessly breaking down barriers in the pageant community: Over the weekend, the 19-year-old made history as the first contestant in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant to wear a hijab throughout the competition and a burkini during the swimsuit round.

And needless to say, she looked absolutely stunning.

Halima Aden makes history as the first woman to compete wearing a burkini during the Miss Minnesota pageant @StarTribune pic.twitter.com/QEJWToIFC1 - Leila Navidi (@LeilaNavidi) November 27, 2016

Halima Aden starts off Miss Minnesota USA's swimsuit segment to big cheers from the crowd. Announcer: "She's making history tonight." pic.twitter.com/OUvbHv6xct - Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 27, 2016

The Somali-American teenager, who was born in a Kenyan refugee camp and moved to America when she was just 6 years old, ultimately made it to the pageant's semifinals Sunday. But as she told multiple sources both before and after the pageant was over, despite not winning, she hoped her participation would serve as a reminder that beauty comes in many different forms.

"A lot of people will look at you and will fail to see your beauty because youre covered up and theyre not used to it. So growing up, I just had to work on my people skills and give people a chance to really know me besides the clothing," she said in an interview with KARE-11. "Be who you are. Its easy to feel like you have to blend in, but it takes courage to live your life with conviction and embrace the person that you are."



Halima Aden with her top 15 trophy. First person to wear hijab to Miss Minnesota USA pageant. Hear from her tonight on @kare11 pic.twitter.com/1fBRFJkjf3 - Ellery McCardle (@ElleryTV) November 28, 2016

Halima Aden, who made semifinals tonight, does post-pageant interviews while in her evening gown. pic.twitter.com/cuNHvjxVQa - Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 28, 2016

Even more importantly, Aden also hoped her participation in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant might help change America's perception of Muslim women and help fight the rampant Islamophobia taking root in this country. It's worth noting that Aden lives in St. Cloud, Minnesota, which was recently the subject of an episode of This American Life that centered on the city's intense xenophobia. As the episode explains, St. Cloud is home to a large number of Somali refugees - and possibly just as many false misconceptions about Islam and those who believe in it.



Story continues

"The people that are doing bad things, they dont represent an entire group, Aden said in an interview with ABC. "I feel like Im here to bust those misconceptions and stereotypes of Muslim women."



Follow Gina on Twitter.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi projects a stern, unbending public image. But the strain of leading the most dramatic and disruptive political change introduced in India for a generation seems to be getting even to him.

I know that forces are up against me, he said, his voice cracking with emotion, in the aftermath of his sudden move on November 8th to junk Indias two largest denomination rupee bills overnight, launching shock therapy for the countrys cash-driven shadow economy. They may not let me live, they may ruin me, he added darkly, because their loot of 70 years is in trouble.

That sounds dramatic, but the scale of Modis gamble invites hyperbole. The sudden scrapping of the Rs500 and Rs1000 notes  worth roughly $7 and $15 respectively, and accounting for nearly 90 percent of the value of cash in circulation  has plunged Indias economy into chaos. For two weeks, newspaper front pages have pictured long lines snaking around banks, as rich and poor alike queue up to exchange old notes for new. 80 billion dollars has been deposited so far. The final total will be much higher.

Strict limits on cash withdrawals have left hundreds of millions short of funds, and the government has been issuing almost daily clarifications to the replacement process, aiming to help those badly affected, from farmers and hospital patients to brides-to-be, unable to marry for lack of cash to pay wedding bills. Meanwhile, according to economists, the big-time criminals and corrupt businesses who were the ostensible targets of the new policy may be least affected by its fallout.

Criticism over haphazard implementation is growing louder. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of the opposition Congress party attacked the move in a rare speech last week, describing it as a monumental management failure and legalized plunder of the common people.

But whats really remarkable is, despite the chaos, how popular the move has been. Indians are not known for their quiet suffering, often taking to the streets to protest far less sweeping political changes than these. That a measure this intrusive has been met with little more than mild grumbles is unusual, to say the least. Modi trusted his instincts that both the boldness of the move, and perhaps even the pain it introduced, would win him support. Here he has been proved right. Indias anger runs deep over ill-gotten wealth, and the cast of villains who represent it in the public mind: the bribe-taking policeman; the inexplicably wealthy politician; the real estate developer who asks for half the price of a house again in cash.

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Psychologically, this is seen as a slap in the face of the all the cronies and the corrupt, which pleases the middle class so much, explains Rajiv Kumar of the Centre for Policy Research think tank in New Delhi. For once those who got rich by all the wrongs means have gotten their comeuppance, and people are delighted.

All this speaks to Modis finely-tuned populist instincts. After his landslide 2014 election, many analysts hoped the new prime Minister would rejuvenate a struggling economy by pushing structural reforms that were effective but unpopular, such as removing cumbersome labor laws or privatizing sclerotic public sector banks. He proved reluctant to do so, skirting controversial policies in favor of grand symbolic gestures, including a national campaign to sweep up Indias squalid streets.

Now, however, he has picked as the defining battle of his premiership a measure of questionable effectiveness but remarkable popularity, especially given the massive inconvenience it is still causing. If that public sentiment holds, Modis gutsy (and arguably reckless) move will secure a remarkable political victory.

While demonetization came as a shock, the problems of what is widely known as black money are only too familiar. India is one of the worlds most cash-dependent nations. Estimates suggest the grey economy accounts for between a fifth and a quarter of gross domestic product. Only a tiny fraction of workers pay income tax. Sectors such as real estate and jewelry retail, not to mention the funding of political parties, rely extensively on illicit cash.

Whether Modis shock-and-awe effort will clear any of this up is less clear. His backers argue the move will wipe out stockpiles of dirty money, jolting illegal activity back into the formal economy. They claim the difficulties of getting cash will push millions to use digital payments, boosting e-commerce. Further unspecified anti-corruption reforms in future will then stop the same black money problems recurring all over again once new notes are in place.

Many economists are doubtful. Serious racketeers and criminals rarely keep large cash holdings, instead parking it in real estate or stashing it in banks abroad. Legitimate traders and small holders  who tend to be strong supporters of Modi  do hold stockpiles, however. The minor entrepreneur, the shopkeeper, the farmer will be hurt by this, says Pranjul Bhandari, an economist at HSBC in Mumbai. And even among the bad guys, the risk is you catch the minnows, but the big fish escape. 

Effective or not, the policy is going to force the economy to take a short-run hit. Bhandari thinks output may fall by as much 1 per cent next year. Ambit, a Mumbai-based broker, predicts a more dramatic fall, bringing growth close to zero over the next few quarters. Either way, India risks losing, albeit temporarily, its recently-won position as the worlds fastest growing major economy.

This is by far the most sweeping change in currency policy that has occurred anywhere in the world in decades, Harvard Universitys Larry Summers wrote in a blog post this week. But all that pain, he argued, would deliver little: Corruption will continue, albeit with slightly different arrangements.

Given all this uncertainty, why did Modi do it? India loves a conspiracy theory, and rumors have spread that the prime minister was motivated by narrow electoral calculations. Modis Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party faces a run of vital regional elections over the next six months, including in Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state. All political parties rely on off-the-books money to fund campaigns and pay workers, so the BJPs campaigns will take a hit. But given its large financial resources, the theory went, it might be better able to absorb the damage than its rivals, giving it an advantage.

There is more than a grain of truth to this, but the more important political calculation stems from anxiety over Modis previously wishy-washy approach to corruption. Rooting out graft was his signature campaign issue in 2014. A leader of unquestioned personal integrity, he remains seized by the issue. Did you vote for me to abolish corruption? he asked rhetorically during his emotional press conference earlier this month. If you asked me, should I do it or not? .

Despite that, until now, his record was mixed. The mega scams that besmirched Indias reputation under its previous government have stopped. But Modi has done little to demonstrate that Indias wider plague of routine bribery and endemic rule-bending is being brought under control. Earlier measures, including a black money amnesty, were low profile, and only moderately successful.

This created a risk. Rival politicians were unlikely to castigate his government for its failure to introduce disruptive structural reforms, as economists might have hoped. But those same rivals were very likely to attack the BJP for doing too little on black money, as Modi discovered when he was handed a surprise defeat by an anti-corruption party in elections in New Delhi last year. A bold, far-reaching step was needed to ram home his governments bona fides. Demonetization was perfect.

In this, Modis approach closely resembled that of his counterpart Chinese President Xi Jinping, whose anti-corruption drive against corrupt officials is widely viewed as questionably effective and politically driven, but is enduringly popular with the public.

Whether that support continues in Modis case now depends less on whether demonetization actually works, and more on how quickly banks lines shorten and ATMs fill up. If opinion does turn, it will be a serious blow to Modis leadership, although not a fatal one. But given the stoic public reaction thus far, it it is more likely that Modi will be rewarded. Finally, Indias public has the Prime Minister they thought they voted for in 2014: a populist strongman taking dramatic measures on corruption. It is clear they like what they see.

Photo credit: CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP/Getty Images
Podgorica (Montenegro) (AFP) - Montenegro's parliament on Monday voted in a close ally of longtime leader Milo Djukanovic as the country's new premier, despite a boycott by opposition parties.

Former spy chief Dusko Markovic replaces Djukanovic, who announced following elections in October that he would step down as premier after more than 25 years at the helm.

Markovic, 58, pledged to complete the small Balkan country's accession to NATO and speed up the path to EU membership, despite opposition from pro-Russian groups.

The new premier has the support of a narrow majority -- 41 MPs in the 81-seat parliament -- made up of his Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), a small social democrat party and ethnic minority groups.

Opposition MPs did not attend Monday's vote, refusing to endorse the election results until an investigation is completed into mysterious events surrounding polling day.

The October vote was marred by the arrest of a group of Serbians accused of planning anti-government attacks in Montenegro, and Djukanovic accused pro-Russian opponents of involvement in an alleged plot to "execute" him.

The Democratic Front, the country's main opposition bloc, denies this and said the arrests were DPS propaganda.

The Democratic Front openly calls for closer ties with Russia and Serbia and is against membership of either the EU or NATO, calling for a referendum on joining the US-led military alliance.

Other opposition groups have more nuanced positions -- some are pro-EU but would also like a referendum on NATO.

Markovic rejected such a referendum and said he wanted parliament to ratify joining the alliance "without delay".

NATO invited Montenegro to become a member in December, a decision that has upset traditional Slavic ally Russia.

Markovic said his government would also "try to overcome misunderstandings in our relations with historic ally Russia".

- 'Simply nonsense' -

Story continues

Born in July 1958, Markovic graduated from a Serbian law faculty and, like Djukanovic, began his political life in the Communist party when Montenegro was part of Yugoslavia.

Djukanovic became premier in 1991 and the bond between the two men was cemented five years later when Markovic supported the PM's decision to break with Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic.

The decision would lead to Montenegro's independence a decade later.

Markovic's allegiance allowed him to climb the ladder of power and hold key ministerial positions and, for 12 years, the post of national intelligence chief, making him a feared man.

Analyst Daliborka Uljarevic, director at the Centre for Civic Education, said the choice of Markovic as premier "leaves open the possibility" of Djukanovic returning to power.

Twice before, in 2006 and 2010, he stepped down from the premiership, but on both occasions he stayed party leader and returned to power two years later.

Djukanovic is still head of the DPS and is expected to remain powerful in the country of 620,000 people.

Analysts have suggested his latest withdrawal was a result of pressure from the West over his grip on power -- the DPS has topped all elections in Montenegro since 1991.

Although weakened, it remains largest party in the country and Djukanovic as its leader will be able to "keep a crucial influence on decision making," Uljarevic said.

Could Markovic escape the tutelage of his patron? He could be a less divisive figure among the opposition and appears better placed to rally the support of smaller alliances hostile to Djukanovic.

"He has the authority... and is the best and only choice to ensure control of the situation and party unity," said a DPS party source.

Like Djukanovic, the name of the new prime minister was quoted in a cigarette trafficking inquiry. The case, later dropped, related to a tobacco factory in his northern hometown of Mojkovac.

He described the accusations as "simply nonsense".

"If I had the money I would invest instead in a branch of the economy which is closer to the man I am, who appreciates nature, lakes and rivers," Markovic said.
PODGORICA (Reuters) - Montenegro's parliament endorsed on Monday a new cabinet led by a former head of the secret police who pledged to lead the country's accession to NATO and European Union. Dusko Markovic, 58, deputy leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS) is one of the most trusted allies of Milo Djukanovic, the party leader. The DPS emerged as the single strongest party in Montenegro's 81-seat parliament after an election on Oct. 16, but it lost its majority. To form the government it secured support of parties that represent national minorities. Forty-two deputies of the ruling coalition voted for the new cabinet. Thirty-nine opposition deputies boycotted the session in a protest over election day arrest of a group suspected of having planned to kill Djukanovic. The state prosecutor has accused Russian nationalists of being behind the group while opposition parties had said the suspected plot was fabricated and accused Djukanovic of using the security services to help extend his quarter century of dominance over Montenegro. "The cabinet that you will vote for today will take us to NATO," Markovic told the parliament when presenting his program. Markovic pledged to cut an unemployment rate standing at 18 percent at the moment, to continue with big infrastructure projects and build new power production capacities. His Finance Minister Darko Radunovic, former CEO of the Prva Banka bank, will have a difficult task to cap the rising debt now standing at 65 percent of national output. The Adriatic republic of 620,000 people has strong economic and traditional ties with Russia, another predominantly Orthodox Christian country. But relations cooled in recent years especially after Montenegro introduced sanctions against Russia, embracing EU policies. (Reporting by Petar Komnenic; Writing by Ivana Sekularac)
Warning: Spoilers for Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life

The Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life ending raised a number of questions among fans: namely whether the show will come back for even more episodes.

Netflixs Gilmore Girls revival ended with the much-hyped final four words that creator Amy Sherman-Palladino had originally planned, with Rory revealing to her mother that she is pregnant. Although the dialogue is what Sherman-Palladino had intended to finish the shows original run, the cliffhanger ending has provided countless theories for viewers who might not be ready to say goodbye to the girls just yet.

When asked about the possibility of more episodes of Gilmore Girls at Netflix, Sherman-Palladino told The Hollywood Reporter that she was waiting to see how the new episodes went over with audiences.

We really had a very specific journey in our minds and we fulfilled the journey, she said. So to us, this is the piece that we wanted to do. And the whole thought about, Is there more, is there more, is there more?this has to go out into the universe now. Weve got to put this to bed. And then whatever happens, happens.

Bringing the show back for a second run at Netflix would involve a lot of coordination among the very busy cast and executive producers. But Scott Patterson, who plays Luke Danes, seemed more enthusiastic about the prospect when asked about it earlier this year.

Itd be nice to do it every year, he told The Hollywood Reporter. Maybe every two years, do a three-month thing, do four more chapters. It was easy to do. It was fun. It was really rewarding and people got a sense that if this was going to be the last thing that we now have some closure.
By Helene Durand

LONDON, Nov 28 (IFR) - JP Morgan has hired Robert Chambers from Credit Agricole to work on its financial institutions syndicate desk, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

Chambers will replace Alaoui Zenere, a vice president on JP Morgan's financial institutions bond syndicate, who relocated to New York earlier this month to work on the bank's North America equity capital markets desk.

Chambers will work alongside Dimis Theodorou.

He joined Credit Agricole in September 2014 as an assistant director on the syndicate desk covering financial institutions.

Before joining Credit Agricole, Chambers was a senior analyst in VTB Capital's fixed income syndicate team.

(Reporting by Helene Durand; editing by Sudip Roy, Julian Baker)
LAGOS (Reuters) - South Africa's telecom group MTN (MTNJ.J) has met with Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to discuss a possible initial public offering and how it wanted to structure the share sale, the head of Nigeria's SEC told Reuters.

SEC director general, Mounir Gwarzo, said MTN had discussed the possibility of issuing various classes of shares to targeted investor groups. He said the telecom firm was looking at three different classes, which would be new in Nigeria.

Gwarzo said the commission was willing to support the share sale as long as it was within local laws and advised the telecom firm to ensure retail investors were protected.

MTN is the largest mobile phone operator in Nigeria with 57 million subscribers, and the country accounts for about a third of its revenue.

Africa's biggest mobile phone operator MTN Group has said it aims to listing its Nigerian unit during 2017, subject to market conditions, part of an agreement with the Nigerian government.

In June the telecom firm said it would list its local unit on the Nigerian Stock Exchange after agreeing to pay a reduced fine of $1.7 billion in a settlement with the Nigerian government over unregistered SIM cards.

Gwarzo said the company was yet to submit a formal application for the share sale, he told Reuters.

MTN Nigeria has appointed Stanbic IBTC Capital, Standard Bank of South Africa and Standard Advisory London, and Citigroup Global Markets, as joint transaction advisors and global coordinators, with Stanbic acting as lead issuer.

(Reporting by Chijioke Ohuocha, editing by Louise Heavens)
MTV's senior leadership team is losing another new-ish member.

Head of originals Michael Klein is stepping down from his post after an eight-month run. The former Conde Nast executive's departure was announced Monday via an internal memo from new MTV president Chris McCarthy (read that below). Klein's replacement is expected to be announced as early as Tuesday.

The news comes a month after MTV president Sean Atkins stepped down after a year in the post. He has since been replaced by VH1 and Logo president McCarthy, who will now oversee three all three of the Viacom networks.

Read more: MTV Taps Conde Nast's Michael Klein as Head of Programming

Klein took over for Susanne Daniels in March after the executive exited for YouTube in July. He oversaw all of MTV's original programming - scripted and unscripted - as well as development and creative across MTV and its related brands.

Klein came to MTV from Conde Nast, where he served as exec vp programming and content strategy for its digital channels. His credits there included ID's Vanity Fair Confidential, Travel Channel's Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations and Man v. Food; as well as TLC's What Not to Wear and Miami Ink.

Klein is the latest executive departure at MTV, which in 2015 saw president of programming Daniels exit for a similar post at YouTube and MTV Networks Music and Logo Group president Van Toffler leave in February of that year after a 28-year run at the company. MTV reality head Lauren Dolgen also left just four months ago after a 19-year run at the network.

Since McCarthy took over MTV, he has been busy cleaning house and slashing unscripted programming which he feels no longer fits the cable network's brand. Gone are unscripted series Down to Earth, Prison High, Acting Out, Almost Impossible Game Show, Air Sex as well as Stupid Man, Smart Phone.

The news comes as MTV has seen its viewership dwindle in an era where nabbing the elusive millennial viewer has become one of the bigger challenges in a changing TV landscape where live tune-in is no longer considered the norm.

Story continues

McCarthy's internal memo to staff about Klein's departure follows:

Hi everyone,

Hope you had a restful Thanksgiving break. I wanted to let you know that Michael Klein has decided to leave the company. We've been discussing his role these past few weeks, and it's clear he signed on to the job under different circumstances to pursue a different strategy. I understand and respect his decision, and the work the development team has done in the past year. I want to thank Michael for helping me get up to speed, and for his efforts on behalf of MTV.

Many thanks to the development team for its continued hard work, commitment and creativity in the meantime. We'll have news to share soon about new leadership for programming and development. I'm confident that together we'll continue to break new ground, connect with our young audience, and elevate our brand.

For the moment, please join me in thanking Michael and wishing him the best of luck.

Chris
Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fcard%2fimage%2f299001%2fscreen_shot_2016-11-28_at_12.46.44_pm

Your average granola bar simply won't cut it for a Mars-bound astronaut.

NASA food scientists are in the process of developing a new "food bar" (that's seriously what they call it) that astronauts will be able to eat for breakfast every morning while on missions to deep space destinations like Mars or the moon.

At the moment, NASA astronauts have a variety of good tasting  but mostly questionable looking  options for breakfast and other meals on the International Space Station. If NASA crews start flying to the red planet as planned sometime in the 2030s, however, that variety won't be viable.

SEE ALSO: 'Mars' series trailer is like something from the future

The space agency's Orion capsule, the craft designed to take people to and from Mars eventually, has a limited amount of room onboard. NASA is always striving to save weight for missions to orbit and beyond for a simple reason: heavier spacecraft need more propellant and are more difficult to launch to space.

This is where the food bars come in.

Scientists have created four bars  banana nut, orange cranberry, ginger vanilla and barbeque nut - that could be used as meal replacements for astronauts on a journey to orbit the moon or even heading as far as Mars.

When you have 700 to 900 calories of something, its going to have some mass regardless of what shape its in, so weve taken a look at how to get some mass savings by reducing how were packaging and stowing what the crew would eat for breakfast for early Orion flights with crew, Jessica Vos, deputy health and medical technical authority for Orion, said in a statement.

When you think about multi-week missions in Orion, having just one package for breakfast items for crew will help us limit the space we need to store them.

The space agency has a history of using food that is already widely available to people around the country.

Story continues

Tang, for example, was developed by General Foods, but NASA flew it to space for the first time when John Glenn became the first American to orbit Earth in 1962. Astronauts on the Space Station still use powdered drinks today, NASA said.

But the Tang model won't work for this newest food challenge.

Theres no commercially-available bar right now that meets our needs, so weve had to go design something that will work for the crew, while trying to achieve a multi-year shelf-life, said Takiyah Sirmons, a food scientist at NASA, said in the statement.

Beyond just creating a nutritious bar, NASA managers also need to take crew morale into consideration to figure out how often they can ask astronauts to eat these bars on long trips. (For lunch and dinner, Orion astronauts will be able to select from items that are similar to what Space Station crew members eat.)

Eating is one of the most basic human experiences, and having access to food you enjoy eating when you're far from home is a key component of creating some kind of normalcy in an extreme situation.

Crewmembers on the Space Station, for example, tend to have fun with their food. Astronauts like sharing photos of their space tacos and burgers, even if they look pretty gross to the average Earthling.
By Ingrid Melander PARIS (Reuters) - Depending on who you ask, center-right presidential nominee Francois Fillon is either the perfect candidate to defeat the National Front, or the man whose economic radicalism will let France's far right pose as protector of working class rights. The French presidential election, with a first round in April and a run-off in May, is on course to turn into another test of the rage of Western voters against traditional elites, after Britain's shock vote to quit the EU and the U.S. election of Donald Trump as president. Pollsters predict Fillon, a former prime minister who clinched the nomination of his Les Republicains party on Sunday, will face the far National Front's Marine Le Pen in the run-off, casting him as the champion of the entire establishment against a surging far right that wants to follow Britain out of the EU. But Fillon, a staunch Catholic conservative on social policy who models himself after Britain's Margaret Thatcher on economic issues, is hardly typical of the French ruling elite, presenting unexpected challenges for Le Pen, but also opportunities. On the one hand, Fillon won some of his best results in the primaries on Sunday in National Front (FN) strongholds. His social conservatism and tough stance on immigration steal some of the far right's thunder. Le Pen's personal approval ratings fell on the day. On the other hand, Fillon's hardline economic reform plan, which includes raising the retirement age, increasing the sales tax and lengthening working hours, could give Le Pen a chance to win over working class and even center-left voters with an appeal to economic principles seen as traditional in France. Which of these two sides of Fillon's platform will be more important to voters could decide whether France follows Britain and the United States in delivering an election surprise that overturns the established order. The anti-migration, anti-Europe FN, which bills itself as the protector of the working classes, hit at both angles on Monday with the launch of its online campaign under the hashtag #TheTrueFillon. "Francois Fillon in power would bring a terrible economic and social decline for families and for middle-class and working-class French," Le Pen's campaign director David Rachline said in a video sent to party supporters and posted on his Twitter feed. The online campaign targeted Fillon's plans to shrink the public workforce, the sort of criticism that might normally come from the left. But attacking simultaneously from the right, it questioned his credibility on immigration, calling him the "the establishment's new star". Pollsters had expected the center-right would nominate a different former prime minister, the more traditional centrist Alain Juppe, setting up a conventional battle between the center and the far right. The mild mannered Juppe might have had an easier time attracting center-left votes in a future run-off against Le Pen. But Fillon's late surge in the nomination contest saw him easily dispatch Juppe, creating a new dynamic. The first survey published after the primaries, by Harris Interactive, sees Le Pen qualifying for the run-off and losing it to Fillon. But it showed her attracting just 24 percent of the votes in the first round, behind Fillon's 26 percent, her lowest rating in months. "Part of the FN electorate wants more protection from the state. But there is a part of the FN electorate that is very right wing, traditionalist, and Fillon can encroach on that electorate," said Sylvain Crepon, a specialist on the FN at the French university of Tours. "A GREAT CANDIDATE"? Jerome Fourquet of Ifop pollsters said that while the FN had scored its strongest increase in regional elections last year amid the traditional Catholic electorate, surveys Ifop did on the first round of the primaries showed that those traditional Catholic voters who took part in the primaries massively backed Fillon. The Les Republicains primaries were open to all voters. According to Fourquet, the small number of FN voters who took part backed Fillon ahead of Juppe or ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy, who was eliminated in a first round earlier this month. In the Var area, a National Front stronghold where Le Pen's campaign director Rachline is mayor, Fillon attracted 79.4 percent of the votes in the second round of the primaries, compared to 66.5 percent nationwide. Opinion polls, which had failed to predict Fillon's victory in the primaries until just days before the vote, are likely to evolve as the presidential campaign heats up and voters look in more detail at Fillon's economic reform plans. A survey by Odoxa showed that Fillon is doing well among voters with high-end jobs but struggling with working-class voters and public officials who are open to Le Pen, a weakness that could become a real issue for him during the campaign. A majority of leftwing voters, wary of Fillon's economic and social views, would not turn up to polling stations at all in the case of a Fillon-Le Pen second round, the poll said, a further difficulty for him. "I voted for Fillon because he will never get leftwing voters on board," 68-year old pensioner Denis Achard, an FN voter, said as he took part in the primaries on Sunday, tactically voting for the candidate he thought would be the easiest target for the FN. Under the leadership of Marine Le Pen, who took over from her father Jean-Marie in 2011, the FN has switched from an economically liberal, pro-small business party to one that promises to lower the retirement age and guarantee France's generous welfare safety net. Fillon's victory in the primaries risks exacerbating the tensions between that line, backed by Le Pen and her deputy Florian Philippot, and a pro-business, anti-big state line spearheaded by Le Pen's niece Marion Marechal-Le Pen. While Philippot told Reuters Fillon is a "great candidate" for the FN because of his economic plans, Marechal-Le Pen raised the possibility of him being a tougher candidate to beat. "We should have been alerted by the signals he sent to the Catholics and the non-mainstream right," French media quoted her as saying. (Additional reporting by Simon Carraud in Paris and Jean-Francois Rosnoblet in Frejus; editing by Peter Graff)
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Some 960 members of the Canadian military reported being victims of sexual assault in the last year, and 27 percent of women in the armed forces have been sexually assaulted during their career, Statistics Canada said on Monday. The landmark survey, commissioned by the military, found 1.7 percent of regular force members of the military had been sexually assaulted in the last 12 months, nearly double the 0.9 percent rate of sexual assault among working Canadians. According to the Statistics Canada survey, 840 military members reported unwanted sexual touching, 150 reported sexual attack, and 110 sexual activity without consent in the 12 months before the survey was conducted. The survey, which garnered more than 43,000 responses and a 61 percent response rate among regular force members, found that women were four times more likely than men to report being sexually assaulted in the last year. Women make up about 15 percent of Canada's armed forces. Chief of Defence Staff General Jonathan Vance said the results of the survey were both expected and sobering. "Harmful sexual behavior is a real problem in our institution. We know it, and we are trying to tackle it head on," Vance told a news conference. "I'm more motivated than ever to eliminate this behavior and the perpetrators from our ranks." Vance launched Operation Honor, a military program to address sexual offenses, in 2015 after an external investigation said the Canadian Armed Forces had an underlying sexualized culture hostile to women and gays. Western militaries are increasingly coming under scrutiny for their handling of sexual offences. A Pentagon report in May said sexual assaults in the U.S. military are still underreported. The Canadian survey showed female victims were far more likely to be sexually assaulted by someone in authority, with 49 percent of women assaulted in the last 12 months identifying a supervisor or someone in a higher rank as the perpetrator. In contrast, 56 percent of male victims identified a peer as the perpetrator, the report showed. Eight in 10 respondents reported seeing or hearing inappropriate sexual or discriminatory behavior, including jokes, unwanted comments, sexually explicit material being shared or displayed, insults, or pressure for dates or relationships, the report found. (Reporting by Andrea Hopkins; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
YENAGOA, Nigeria (Reuters) - Vandals have attacked a crude pipeline operated by Nigeria's state oil firm NNPC and independent Nigerian firm ND Western in the restive Niger Delta, a community leader said on Monday. "The incident led to fire outbreak," Paul Etaga, chairman of Ughelli south council area said, when asked about a claim by a militant group called Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate of an attack of the pipeline in Out-Jeremi, Delta State. Nigeria's crude production, which was 2.1 million barrels per day (bpd) at the start of 2016, fell by around a third in the summer following a series of attacks since January by Delta militants who want a greater share of the country's energy wealth to go to the impoverished southern oil-producing region. Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, which has claimed previous attacks, said in a statement it had carried out the attack at about 4am on Sunday and "brought down the 42 inch delivery line operated by NPDC/ND Western in Out-Jeremi". There was no immediate information on the impact on Nigeria's oil production. The fields in the area - Utorogu, Ughelli East, and Ughelli West - produce an average of 17,000 bpd of oil and condensate. According to Wood Mackenzie data, oil production from the fields feed into the Trans Forcados Pipeline, which itself was closed due to other militant attacks. [nL8N1DH429] The statistics office said last week third-quarter oil production stood at 1.63 million barrels per day, down from 1.69 million and 2.2 million barrels assumed for the budget.[nL8N1DM1JG] (Reporting by Tife Owolabi; additional reporting by Libby George; Writing by Chijioke Ohuocha; editing by Susan Thomas)
Nina Dobrev had a sunny Friendsgiving in Cabo and now we have crazy summer envy

Okay, were over fall. Canadian actress, Nina Dobrev had a sunny Friendsgiving in Cabo, complete with bikini fun, turkey and wild adventures.

The Vampire Diaries actress and alum, might not be American, but that doesnt mean she doesnt celebrate Thanksgiving. In fact, the 27-year-old actress took a trip to Cabo, Mexico with some of her closest friends to enjoy the holiday weekend and gobble some turkey in the process.

Friends are the family you choose. Happy ThanksGiving from all of us to all of you.  #CaboGobble #TurkDownForWhat2016 #MissingTwoKeyPlayers @hillaryharley @newyearscake, Dobrev captioned her group dinner photo on Friday.

Friends are the family you choose. Happy ThanksGiving from all of us to all of you.  #CaboGobble #TurkDownForWhat2016 #MissingTwoKeyPlayers @hillaryharley @newyearscake A photo posted by Nina Dobrev (@ninadobrev) on Nov 25, 2016 at 12:16pm PST

After enjoying a big feast with her friends, Dobrev ventured out into the waters of Cabo and let her adventerous side come out.

Not too shabby for my first time. #BackDive #FlyBoard #CaboGobble, the actress captioned her epic fly board experience on Saturday.

Not too shabby for my first time. #BackDive #FlyBoard #CaboGobble A photo posted by Nina Dobrev (@ninadobrev) on Nov 26, 2016 at 6:09pm PST

Dobrev even posted a video from the crazy sea adventure proving she really has no fear.

Found my sea legs A video posted by Nina Dobrev (@ninadobrev) on Nov 26, 2016 at 6:15pm PST

Things got a little bananas on the open ocean for this crew!

Going Bananas #CaboGobble A photo posted by Lane Cheek (@cheeklane) on Nov 26, 2016 at 9:26pm PST

In addition to going out to sea, Dobrev and her rowdy squad toasted to Thanksgiving weekend with lots of drinks and bar fun.

Things got all turned around down here. #cabogobble, one of her friends wrote on a goofy group picture.

Things got all turned around down here. #cabogobble A photo posted by mark kassen (@markkassen) on Nov 27, 2016 at 8:12am PST

Dobrev ended the weekend of sun-filled fun by posting a cute group photo on Sunday, and man do we have some serious #SquadGoal envy.

Story continues

Sunday Funday #CaboGobble Style A photo posted by Nina Dobrev (@ninadobrev) on Nov 27, 2016 at 10:11am PST

Can we get in on this Friendsgiving trip next year Nina? Please?!

The post Nina Dobrev had a sunny Friendsgiving in Cabo and now we have crazy summer envy appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Food Network

Before Chopped, Top Chef, Cutthroat Kitchen, Cupcake Wars and the multitude of other cooking competitions that ride the cables came along, there was the pioneer for the format, Iron Chef. The Japanese show mixed celebrity judges, expensive ingredients and borderline absurd theatricality to become a cult hit before hitting Food Network in an American version in 2005. That stayed on the air for a decade before quietly being shuffled off the schedule, with the last new episode aired in 2014. But it appears Iron Chef is coming back.

If youre unfamiliar with the format, somehow, one of a stable of celebrity chefs is picked by a guest chef to square off in a sixty minute lightning round of cooking, themed around a secret ingredient. Theyve got to get five dishes plated in that hour, and a panel of judges, usually a mix of food writers and Food Network hosts, judge who delivered the best meal. Paired with Alton Browns color commentary, its a fairly amusing show. But after 205 episodes, obviously it could use some freshening up.

Called Gauntlet, details about how that freshening up will happen are a bit thin. Nonetheless, considering that this will be a reboot of a remake that was a reboot of a remake , theyll need to come up with something that stands out. The plan is to bring the revival out spring of 2017, so well see what they have planned soon enough.

(via Variety)
NEW YORK  Millions of Americans made their way back home Sunday after a long Thanksgiving weekend, facing minimal stress and strain as they traveled by air, rail or road.

Federal Aviation Administration data showed most U.S. airports with delays of 15 minutes or less Sunday afternoon. A large volume of passengers at LaGuardia Airport, in New York, and windy conditions at New Jerseys Newark International Airport, led to slightly longer delays, the FAA data showed.

Lines at airline counters and security checkpoints were short and flowing quickly at New Yorks Kennedy Airport. Passenger Susan Merced said she overestimated her travel time, budgeting more than two hours to pass through security before her flight to New Orleans.

At Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, security lines were fairly long at 7 a.m. Sunday but subsided by afternoon, said David Mould, a spokesman for Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. Lines at Atlantas Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and Clevelands Hopkins International Airport were long but moving smoothly.

The Transportation Security Administration anticipated screening about 2.5 million passengers on Sunday, about 500,000 more than an average weekday, spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said. Air travelers were moving through security checkpoints at airports across the nation quite smoothly Sunday afternoon, Farbstein said, noting that the agency brought in additional officers on overtime to handle the influx of passengers.

In New Hampshire, Gerry Mandelbaum, owner of Amoskeag Black Car company, in Manchester, said travelers seemed in good spirits as his drivers shuffled them to and from the airport.

So far, everyone Ive talked to sounds pretty good, and I would have a good sense of that because I do have a lot of stressed customers, Mandelbaum said. Todays been an especially busy Sunday. Id say were 20 to 30 percent over normal today.

Story continues

At a rest area in Hamilton Township, New Jersey, Harry Forsberg, of Trenton, expressed thanks that the traffic wasnt as bad as hed expected.

There were a lot of cars obviously, but no one cut us off or flipped us off. It was a holiday miracle! he said with a laugh.

Forsberg, who works for an engineering firm, said Monday may be tough. You just know everyone will be dragging on Monday. Thanksgiving is a great holiday, but it tires you out.

It wasnt smooth everywhere.

In California, the National Weather Service warned travelers about heavy winds and potential blowing snow on busy Interstate 5. Weather specialist Bonnie Bartling said wind gusts could reach 70 mph at the Grapevine mountain pass north of Los Angeles on Sunday.

Washington state got more than 2 feet of snow in 24 hours. Besides driving problems, officials said there could be an increased risk of landslides.

Travelers in Oregon faced a winter storm warning for the Cascades from Sunday afternoon until 6 p.m. Monday.

State police in Connecticut said 51 people were arrested on driving-under-the-influence charges and troopers issued nearly 900 speeding tickets during a five-day holiday crackdown. One person was killed and 42 others were injured in nearly 400 crashes, they said.

AAA had estimated 48.7 million Americans would travel this Thanksgiving week.

___

Associated Press writers Jessica Gresko in Washington, Holly Ramer in Concord, New Hampshire and Bruce Shipkowski in Hamilton Township, New Jersey, contributed to this report.
SELLERS: Robert and Mimi Oshodin

LOCATION: Los Angeles, CA

PRICE: $50,000,000

SIZE: 9,329 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Los Tiempos, one of Los Angeless most storied and iconic mansions, in the historic and historically prosperous Windsor Square neighborhood and long owned by the illustrious and influential Chandler family, has come up for sale with an eye-popping and publicity assuring price tag of $50,000,000. Current listing details show the 9,329-square-foot residence, a registered historic cultural monument, sits on a painstakingly groomed .83-acre corner parcel with six bedrooms  four family bedrooms and two staff bedrooms  and a total of eight bathrooms.

According to the always informative Paradise Leased blog, the decidedly grandiose and lavishly embellished Beaux Arts-style residence was designed by architect J. Martyn Haenke and built in 1913 for physician turned real estate developer Peter Janss whose eponymous company developed parts of Monterey Park, Boyle Heights and Yorba Linda. In the mid-1950s, after a succession of owners, the stately estate was acquired by Norman and Dorothy Buff Chandler, he the scion and publisher of the L.A. Times and she a tireless philanthropist who contributed vastly to Los Angeless arts and culture scene. It was the Chandlers who gave the mansion its clever and enduring name, Spanish for The Times, and during their residency they frequently entertained hordes of Hollywood heavy weights and hosted a handful of U.S. presidents including Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard M. Nixon.

Los Tiempos remained in the Chandler family until July 1997 when it was sold for $2.025 million to internationally renowned L.A.-based interior designer Timothy Corrigan, who grew up in neighboring Hancock Park and once told late and saucy comedienne Joan Rivers on her television show Howd You Get So Rich? that hed done up homes for Madonna and Sarah Jessica Parker. Mister Corrigan sold the estate in November 2006 for $8.07 million to Courtney and Joseph Handleman, the latter an heir to a music distribution company. Alas, the Handleman-Callahans, whod somewhat famously sold their previous home in the guard-gated Summit development in the mountains between Beverly Hills and Studio City to a then melting down Britney Spears for $6.75 million, later claimed they were misled by the sellers and their real estate representatives about the shabby condition of the property. They initiated an ugly, years long and ultimately fruitless legal dispute in which they claimed, according to reports, the sellers failed to disclose faulty water pipes, leaky roofs, black mold, raw sewage and dangerous wiring that cost them nearly $3 million to repair.

Story continues

After exhausting their financial resources on a variety of repairs and restorations, the Handleman-Callahans put the property up for sale in the spring of 2012 for $11.25 million. (Mister Handleman, who reportedly suffered from a range of health issue and ailments, died in an apparent suicide the day after the legal fracas was settled in July 2012.) When the estate was re-listed in the fall of 2013 the asking price had plummeted to $10.6 million and, after a flirt with foreclosure, the estate was finally sold in June 2014 for $9.5 million to its current owner, Nigerian furniture manufacturing tycoon Robert Oshodin and his wife Mimi. At the time of the Oshodins purchase, the mansions living and entertaining spaces included an oak paneled entrance gallery with carved wood fluted Corinthian columns, a ballroom-scaled formal living room also paneled in oak, a baronial formal dining room sheathed in painted and gilt-trimmed mahogany, and a paneled library with marble fireplace surround. A spacious sun room with a trio of arched glass doors opened to a tented loggia alongside a swimming pool set into a thick carpet of lawn. The Oshodins, who quickly embarked on a renovation of the property, ran afoul of some of the more preservation-minded neighborhood residents when they painted the mansion a bright white that naysayers accurately screeched and hollered was garish and out of historic character and compromised the integrity of the residence. The Oshodins were eventually persuaded to have the mansion re-painted a more dignified and historically accurate buff color.

Current listing descriptions, which are strangely almost identical to those from when the estate was sold in 2014, state the storied estate underwent a multiyear restoration and upgrade that included the addition of a home automation system, a camera-equipped security system, new plumbing and electrical, a new roof and copper gutters, new landscaping and a new irrigation system. Interior refinements included the addition of carved custom cabinetry throughout and 400-year-old French limestone floors in the expensively outfitted kitchen that opens over a large center island to a breakfast room and sitting area with fireplace. A pool house, torn down by a previous owner, was reportedly re-built by the Oshodins in the tradition of the original structure and the property also includes a detached three-car garage topped by additional living space.

As it turns out, another mansion in the neighboring Hancock Park that was also long owned by a member of the Chandler family and is in need of a complete restoration and upgrage was recently sold for $5.75 million to ABC Studio president Patrick Moran.

Photo: Google

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(Reuters) - North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple ordered an emergency evacuation on Monday for protesters at the main camp near the Dakota Access Pipeline due to "harsh winter conditions," his office said in statement.

Demonstrators at a camp on land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in southern Morton County, who oppose the $3.8 billion pipeline, were ordered to leave the area immediately and not return, according to an executive order signed by Dalrymple.

"Winter conditions have the potential to endanger human life, especially when they are exposed to these conditions without proper shelter, dwellings, or sanitation for prolonged periods of time," the executive order said.

It added that the area in which the camp is situated is "not zoned for dwellings suitable for living in winter conditions."

Most of western and central North Dakota are under a winter storm warning, according to the National Weather Service, which said the area would experience heavy snow through Wednesday.

Demonstrators have protested for months against plans to run the Dakota Access Pipeline, owned by Energy Transfer Partners LP, beneath Lake Oahe near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation, saying it poses a threat to water resources and to sacred Native American sites.

The companies say the pipeline would carry Bakken shale oil more cheaply and safely from North Dakota to Illinois en route to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries.

The 1,172-mile (1,885-km) project is mostly complete except for the segment planned to run under Lake Oahe, less than half a mile (0.8 km) north of Standing Rock.

The Obama administration in September postponed final approval of a permit required to allow tunneling beneath the lake, a move intended to give federal officials more time to consult with tribal leaders. The delay also led to escalating tensions over the project.

Police last week used water hoses in subfreezing weather in an attempt to disperse about 400 activists near the proposed tunnel excavation site.

(Reporting by Timothy Mclaughlin in Chicago; Editing by Chris Reese and Leslie Adler)
Washington (AFP) - President Barack Obama will not attend Fidel Castro's funeral, the White House said Monday, demurring on the question of who would lead the US delegation.

"The president will not be traveling to attend the funeral of Fidel Castro," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

Obama has sought to thaw tensions with Cuba, but stopped short of meeting Castro during a landmark trip to Havana earlier this year.
From ELLE

Obama's final turkey pardoning wasn't the only thing that made folks get emotional this Thanksgiving. On Thursday morning, POTUS posted this touching Facebook message about his experience in the Oval Office, and what it's been like to see his daughters grow into "funny, smart, humble, and extraordinary young women." Along with his heartfelt words, Obama also added in some throwback photos of the family. Eight years ago when the president first took office, Sasha was 7 and Malia was 10.

"Today, my family will join Americans across the country in sitting down together to give thanks for the good in our lives. This will be the last time we celebrate Thanksgiving in the White House.

For me, this house has served as the backdrop to the tough decisions and trying times that often characterize the Presidency. But it's also been home it's where Michelle and I have watched our daughters grow into the funny, smart, humble, and extraordinary young women they are today.

And when I look back over the years, what strikes me most about my girls is that, despite the challenges that have come their way, they have remained extraordinarily kind. They treat people with the respect and understanding that all of us deserveno matter who we are, where we come from, who we love, or what we believe. It's that bedrock belief in decency that can only come from an inherent optimism about the road ahead. And it's what I find in all the young people I meet when I travel the country and the world.

So today, as we gather to spend time with the people who matter most, let's take some time to remind our children why we are so thankful for them. Because of them, I feel more certain than ever thatno matter what lies aheadAmerica will always be shaped by those who strive to be kind, giving, and fearless about the future. I'm grateful for that."

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Following the identification of Ohio State University attacker Abdul Razak Ali Artan, social media sites flooded Monday with questions regarding the religion and ethnicity of the 18-year-old who was shot dead by authorities after injuring nine in a car-and-knife attack on campus. Police are investigating whether the attack was related to terrorism.

Artan was reportedly an Ohio State University student and permanent legal resident who originated from Somalia. It's unclear when he moved to the U.S.

Artan spoke of his religion in an issue of the university magazine The Lantern. "I wanted to pray in the open, but I was kinda scared with everything going on in the media. I'm a Muslim, it's not what the media portrays me to be. If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I don't know what they're going to think, what's going to happen. But, I don't blame them. It's the media that put that picture in their heads," Artan told reporter Kevin Stankiewicz.

The Council of American Islamic Relations, the largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization in the U.S., announced they would hold a press conference late Monday about the attack with local Somali-American leaders. Over 45,000 Somalis live in Ohio, according to the Somali Community Association of Ohio, 99.9 percent of which are Muslim.

"The suspect has tentatively been identified as a man of Somali heritage," the Council of American Islamic Relations's press release said.

Artan's name quickly spread through social media, with some users prematurely pointing to a connection between the attacker's background and his motive.

Recent terror attacks in California and Florida were carried out by Muslim men who had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group and President-elect Donald Trump has blamed Muslims for terrorism in the U.S. But President Barack Obama and other leaders have urged Americans to not blame all Muslims for the violence carried out by a few.

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"If we fall into the trap of painting all Muslims with a broad brush, and imply that we are at war with an entire religion, then we are doing the terrorists' work for them," Obama said in June after a mass shooting in Orlando.

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The suspect in the attack at Ohio State University on Monday told the student newspaper in an August interview that he was kind of scared to be seen reciting his Muslim prayers in public.

If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I dont know what theyre going to think, whats going to happen, he told the newspaper.

The suspect, Abdul Artan, who was killed by police responding to an attack on the Columbus campus, was profiled in the newspaper, the Lantern, for a series called Humans of Ohio State.

Authorities said Artan drove a vehicle into a crowd and used a butcher knife to attack people before a police officer shot and killed him. Eleven people were treated at a hospital for injuries that do not appear to be life-threatening.

In his Lantern interview, Artan, described as a third-year in logistics management, discussed his religious faith.

Heres what the Lantern says is a direct quote from him:

I just transferred from Columbus State. We had prayer rooms, like actual rooms where we could go pray because we Muslims have to pray five times a day.

Theres Fajr, which is early in the morning, at dawn. Then Zuhr during the daytime, then Asr in the evening, like right about now. And then Maghrib, which is like right at sunset and then Isha at night. I wanted to pray Asr. I mean, Im new here. This is my first day. This place is huge, and I dont even know where to pray.

I wanted to pray in the open, but I was scared with everything going on in the media. Im a Muslim, its not what the media portrays me to be. If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I dont know what theyre going to think, whats going to happen. But, I dont blame them. Its the media that put that picture in their heads so theyre just going to have it and it, its going to make them feel uncomfortable. I was kind of scared right now. But I just did it. I relied on God. I went over to the corner and just prayed.
UPDATE: 12:44 p.m. EST  An attack on the Ohio State University campus Monday resulted in stab wounds and a victim being hit by a car, a school spokesman told the Associated Press. It was unclear who carried out the attack or why. Up to 10 people were injured, CNN reported.

UPDATE: 12:04 p.m. EST  Although Ohio State University lifted its shelter-in-place warning motivated by an active shooter situation Monday, police officers said people should continue to avoid the Lane Avenue garage on campus, according to the Lantern. Authorities confirmed to NBC-4 that the suspect was dead and eight people were hospitalized.

UPDATE: 11:42 a.m. EST  Ohio State University lifted its lockdown after about an hour and a half after it first alerted students to reports of an active shooter on campus Monday. "Scene is now secure," it wrote on Twitter.

Buildings closed included Watts, Fontana, Smith, Celeste, Evans, Arps, Ramsmeyer and MacQuigg, according to the update.

UPDATE: 11:32 a.m. EST  Lawmakers near to and far from Ohio State University took to social media Monday to react to news of an active shooter situation that reportedly wounded at least seven people.

UPDATE: 11:24 a.m. EST  As an active shooter situation continued to develop Monday, Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center issued a statement to NBC-4 that it was "collaborating with local authorities to understand what has happened and to manage the situation." The center remained open as usual despite a lockdown on campus.

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"Law enforcement will continue to have a visible presence on campus," Ohio State's department of public safety wrote on its webpage. "All academic classes on the Columbus campus have been canceled for the remainder of Monday, November 28, 2016."

UPDATE: 11:14 a.m. EST  Highway exits near Ohio State University were closed Monday after the school issued an alert about a shooting that sent at least seven people to local hospitals, 10TV reported. Police have handcuffed two people on the Columbus campus but have not sent out any updated information on social media.

UPDATE: 11:05 a.m. EST  One suspect in the active shooter situation Monday at Ohio State University has died, according to NBC-4.

UPDATE: 11:04 a.m. EST  Schools in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington were on lockdown Monday as police investigated reports of an active shooter at the nearby Ohio State University, Superintendent Paul Imhoff tweeted. Concerned parents could call the school district for more details.

UPDATE: 10:59 a.m. EST  If confirmed, the active shooter situation at Ohio State University Monday would be the first campus shooting since Nov. 17, according to Everytown. The last incident occurred at a St. Paul, Minnesota elementary school. In that case, a gun was discharged, but nobody was wounded.

UPDATE: 10:51 a.m. EST  Two of the seven people reportedly transported to the hospital in wake of an active shooter situation at Ohio State University were stable, the Associated Press reported Monday. The FBI was on the scene.

You can see a live stream of coverage from Ohio State University's campus here.

UPDATE: 10:45 a.m. EST  Fire department officials confirmed to NBC-4 Monday that seven people have been taken to the hospital after an active shooter situation at Ohio State University.

The Ohio State police department tweeted that students and staff should continue to shelter in place and contact them only with information about the incident.

UPDATE: 10:39 a.m. EST  Police at Ohio State University were converging Monday around Watts Hall, home of the materials science and engineering department, in light of an active shooter situation.

WSYX ABC 6 reported that three people were shot. An unidentified Ohio State professor told NBC-4 that one of his peers was "slashed with a machete."

UPDATE: 10:30 a.m. EST  Ohio State University put out a second emergency alert Monday as its active shooter situation continued to unfold. At 10:20 a.m. EST, the school told students and staff to "continue to shelter in place in north campus area" and to "follow directions of police on scene."

Shortly afterward, Ohio Gov. John Kasich tweeted that he was praying for the college community.

No reports of shots fired or injuries have been verified.

UPDATE: 10:27 a.m. EST  At least one person appears to have been injured Monday in Ohio State University's active shooter situation. Student newspaper the Lantern tweeted that its reporters saw "at least one body bag" on campus, while WSYX ABC 6 reported "at least three people were shot."

No injuries have been confirmed. The school is still on lockdown.

UPDATE: 10:19 a.m. EST  Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, tweeted Monday that he was closely monitoring reports of an active shooter on campus at Ohio State University. After issuing a Buckeye Alert just before 10 a.m. EST, police began sweeping the area near Watts Hall, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Original story:

Ohio State University issued an emergency alert Monday morning warning of an active shooter on campus. "Run Hide Fight," it wrote on its website. "Watts Hall. 19th and College."

No shots were confirmed to have been fired, though unverified reports were rolling in on Twitter:

Ohio State, which has its main campus in Columbus, has more than 60,000 students. In September 2015, the campus police released an active shooter response training video on YouTube. In it, students are urged to "scatter and run" and then call 911, letting the dispatchers know they're on Ohio State's campus..

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

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UPDATE: 4:02 p.m. EST -- Police are investigating whether an attack Monday at Ohio State University was related to terrorism. Nine people were injured with one in critical condition after Abdul Razak Ali Artan hit a group of people with his car before stabbing them with a butcher knife on the university's campus. Artan was reportedly killed by police Monday afternoon.

UPDATE: 3:41 p.m. EST -- A man reportedly responsible for Monday's attack on Ohio State University's campus discussed his faith with the university's student newspaper in August.

"I wanted to pray in the open, but I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media. I'm a Muslim, it's not what the media portrays me to be," he told The Lantern. "If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I don't know what they're going to think, what's going to happen. But, I don't blame them. It's the media that put that picture in their heads so they're just going to have it and it, it's going to make them feel uncomfortable. I was kind of scared right now. But I just did it. I relied on God. I went over to the corner and just prayed."

Artan was described as a transfer from Columbus State and a third-year student in logistics management. He was reportedly killed by police Monday after attacking the campus.

Artan was born in Somalia and it's unclear when he moved to the U.S. He was a legal permanent resident.

Original story:

Police killed an attacker on the Ohio State University's campus Monday. Abdul Razak Ali Artan was killed by police after law enforcement and university officials declared an active shooter situation at the school, NBC News and ABC News reported.

Police did not officially identify the attacker. Columbus police told local station NBC 4 that the suspect had died at 11:03 a.m. EST. The station reported that two others were handcuffed and escorted out of a parking garage and into a SWAT car.

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Artan was an 18-year-old Somali man, according to CNN. A man by that name is listed as having graduated from Columbus State Community College in 2016.

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone told reporters that the suspect drove a vehicle over a curb on campus, hitting pedestrians before exiting the car with a butcher knife. He was then shot by a police officer.

The attack ended with multiple people injured from stab wounds and a victim being hit by a car, a school spokesman told the Associated Press Monday afternoon. Local news station WSYX ABC 6 had previously reported that three people were shot. An Ohio State professor told NBC 4 that someone had been slashed with a machete.

Fire department officials confirmed that eight people had been taken to the hospital with one in critical condition and seven in stable condition, according to NBC 4. The university's student newspaper The Lantern tweeted that at least one body bag was seen in front of Koffolt Labs at 10:22 a.m. EST. Engineering professor David Wood told NBC 4 he saw a body covered in a sheet outside of the labs.

Ohio State University issued an emergency alert Monday morning about an active shooter situation on its campus. "Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College," the university posted on its website. The university issued a second alert at 10:20 a.m. EST, urging students and staff to "continue to shelter in place in north campus area." Police gathered at Watts Hall, where the school's science and engineering department is housed.

The shelter in place order was lifted shortly after 11:30 a.m. EST and police declared the campus secure. Ohio State's Wexner Medical Center announced they were treating four victims, none with life-threatening injuries.

All classes at the university were canceled for the remainder of Monday. "Law enforcement will continue to have a visible presence on campus," the department of public safety wrote on its website. Ohio State has a total of 66,046 students on its campus, according to the university website.

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By Jessica Resnick-Ault

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices gained more than 2 percent on Monday in volatile trading after falling as much as 2 percent, recouping losses as the market reacted to the shaky prospect of major producers being able to agree output cuts at a meeting on Wednesday.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures <CLc1> settled up $1.02, or 2.21 percent at $47.08 a barrel. Brent crude <LCOc1> rose $1.00, or 2.12 percent, to $48.24 a barrel.

In post-settlement trading, oil futures pared gains after Reuters reported that OPEC experts did not agree on the details of a deal to cut output.

Trading was choppy after prices tumbled more than 3 percent on Friday as doubts grew over whether the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would reach agreement to help curb a global supply overhang that has more than halved prices since 2014.

"Through Wednesday, trade will be very headline-driven," said Tony Headrick of CHS Hedging. "Comments coming out of pre-meetings, particularly from Iraq this morning, are really a driver today."

Market watchers expected prices to remain volatile until OPEC's Wednesday meeting offers the market a definitive answer as to whether OPEC and non-OPEC producers can agree on cuts.

"You're going to see a flattening out of positions closer to Wednesday," said Gene McGillian at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. Traders with long positions in the market may be reluctant to sell for fear of missing out on an upside if there is a production cut that triggers a rally.

After a cut is announced, sellers could emerge as oil rallies toward $52 a barrel, he said. "You don't fade at 47 or 45, because you're risking a loss on momentum if they do have an agreement."

On Sunday, Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said the oil market would balance itself in 2017 even if producers did not intervene, and that keeping output at current levels could therefore be justified.

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The statement stoked simmering disagreement between OPEC and non-OPEC crude exporters such as Russia over who should cut production by how much.

By Monday, OPEC was scrambling to rescue the deal, with analysts warning of a sharp price correction if they fail. Prices spiked as Iraq's oil minister said the country would cooperate with the group to reach an agreement "acceptable to all".

A meeting scheduled for Monday between OPEC and non-OPEC producers was called off after Saudi Arabia declined to attend, while concerns over the feasibility of a deal pushed the crude oil volatility index <.OVX> close to a nine-month high.

Others warned that even if some form of output restriction is announced after producers meet in Vienna on Wednesday, the details matter greatly.

"Do not take an announcement of a headline cut of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) at face value. It could still imply an OPEC production level considerably in excess of 33 million bpd, depending on developments in Libya and Nigeria and the speed and rigour of compliance," David Hufton, managing director of brokerage PVM Oil Associates Ltd said in a note.

Even if a cut is agreed, oversupply may not end soon.

The U.S. oil rig count rose by three last week, and Goldman Sachs said that "since its trough on May 27, 2016, producers have added 158 oil rigs (+50 percent) in the U.S.".

(Additional reporting by Libby George in London, Henning Gloystein in Singapore and Yuka Obayashi in Tokyo; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Chizu Nomiyama)
Danielle Brooks is usually outspoken about loving her body and encouraging her social media followers to do the same, but even she has moments of self-doubt and self-consciousness.

The Orange Is the New Black star, 27, shared a video on Instagram on Sunday in which she recounts an experience that tested her confidence.

I just left the gym, and as most people know I take my shirt off when I go to the gym, Brooks says in the video. I had my shirt off and this lady walks in and she looked great with her shirt off. So immediately Im like, Oh no. I started to lose my confidence.

The actress said she suddenly wanted to put her shirt back on  and then questioned why she was feeling this way.

I realized Im comparing myself to this woman, and I was like, Why just two minutes ago I was feeling great and now Im not? And I realized the reason I was feeling so great was because I was comparing myself to yesterdays Danielle, she continues. And todays Danielle is better than yesterdays. Thats why I felt so good.

Ladies, dont compare yourself to nobody, says Brooks. Just be a better you.

Brooks shared another body positive post earlier on Sunday, in which she says its okay to have indulged over Thanksgiving weekend.

This is just a cute memo to all the girls (and guys) out there who feel like they overdid the Thanksgiving meal(s), who feel like binging or are in the mirror tearing themselves apart no need, she wrote on Instagram. Love your body at every stage. Ive been there before, racking my brain about my appearance feeling guilty and ugly after that Turkey Day Meal. Im here to say dont. And if you did overdo it, hit the gym tomorrow, dance in the mirror, drink a gallon of water and chill out. But dont beat yourself up. Only one body, love it.

WATCH: Danielle Brooks On Why She Loves Taystee

Brooks previously shared a proud belly-baring photo in August, and explained why she started working out with her shirt off in July 2015.

Story continues

Ive always wanted to do this but have felt shameful and have told myself until my body is perfect Im forbidden,  she wrote on Instagram at the time. Today my inner being told me to turn up the notch on my self-love. I should not be ashamed of my body. Im not a walking imperfection. Im a goddess.

The actress also starred in a Lane Bryant campaign last month, and has candidly shared her excitement about seeing the posters around N.Y.C.

How exciting to walk into a subway station and see your self on an ad, she posted on Instagram. Thank you God. Thank you Lane Bryant. Thank you team! Im so grateful. #AlwaysDreamBig.




If you missed out on big discounts Thanksgiving weekend, youre not out of luckyet! Retailers are slashing prices on Cyber Monday, giving shoppers a chance to skip the lines at the mall.

Online diamond jeweler Blue Nile (NILE) is looking to lure shoppers with steep discounts on engagement rings, wedding rings and other fine jewelry. So far, it seems to be doing the trick. Harvey Kanter, Blue Nile CEO and president, told Yahoo Finances Seana Smith in the video above that the holiday season is off to a robust start.

It started out strong, but like I always say, we never really know until were through week three, said Kanter. Its a long road in front of us to get through this holiday season, and its a really important part of the year. [The next three weeks] mean everything for the quarter, and thats why they call Black Friday the kickoff, because, in fact, most consumers will get engaged in the next couple of weeks, so its really critical for Blue Nile.

According to Adobe Digital Insights, Cyber Monday is expected to be the biggest online shopping day in US history, with more than 122 million Americans estimated to spend a total of $3.36 billion. Thats up more than 9% from a year ago.

With the overall increase in online shopping and more people feeling comfortable buying fine jewelry online, Blue Nile is looking to build on its previous years successes. We continue to look for growth in traffic and revenue, and were excited about the opportunity to overachieve the 500,000 consumers who have already bought an engagement ring from Blue Nile.

Blue Nile reached a $500 million deal to be bought by private-equity firms Bain Capital and Bow Street in November. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017.
Hate speech is on the rise in Germany, according to a new study published by the Germany Ministry of Justice.

The figures, first published in Germany's Sueddeutsche newspaper on Monday, show a dramatic increase in hate speech, both anti-immigrant and anti-Semitic propaganda.

The Ministry of Justice Ministry said last year it carried out 5,700 criminal investigations into accusations of hate speech, a 130 percent increase on 2014; 2,300 of those cases were based on online hate speech, compared to 500 such cases a year earlier.

Hate speech, defined as incitement to hatred or violence against segments of the population, is illegal under the German constitution.

Read more: "Xenophobia" Named Dictionary.com Word of the Year

The Ministry of Justice cautioned that, due to a difference in survey methods, it is not possible to make a direct comparison with earlier years. The overall trend, however, seems clear. 2015, the year in which German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced her controversial open-border policy for refugees fleeing the war in Syria, was also the year in which hate speech bloomed in German online.

The study showed a 20 percent increase in "dissemination of propaganda" banned by the German constitution, including such things as Holocaust denial or the use of the swastika.

Incidents of anti-Semitism more than tripled compared to 2014, with 2,083 cases recorded. But they were dwarfed by cases involving hate speech directed at immigrants, foreigners or Muslims in Germany, which numbered 6,330, a year-on-year increase of 139 percent. The increase in criminal investigations, however, did not translate into a similar spike in prosecutions. The Ministry of Justice said it had to dismiss 9,400 cases because no perpetrator could be found, often because they were an anonymous poster online. There were 2,500 prosecutions for hate-speech crimes in Germany in 2015, a figure on par with previous years. The increase in criminal investigations may in part be due to an increased willingness to report hate speech or for police to pursue cases.

Story continues

Read more: Meet the Breitbarts of the World

The figures appear to suggest that anti-immigrant hate speech is more common online than anti-Semitic or neo-Nazi propaganda, which tends to be more an offline phenomenon in Germany.

Germany is holding national elections next September and for the first time in decades a far-right party, the newly founded Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) is nearly certain to enter parliament. Though few give the AfD much chance of winning power, the surprise election of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and the U.K.'s Brexit vote to leave the European Union, have many mainstream parties fearful of an upset.

Merkel, who is running for a fourth term as chancellor, used a recent speech to parliament to condemn extremists online and fake news sites that she accused of "falsifying opinion."

Read more: German Chancellor Angela Merkel Urges Vigilance Against Fake News as She Runs for Re-Election
REUTERS - Oil futures jumped on Monday after heavy falls in the previous session, reflecting volatility as OPEC officials try to salvage a deal to cut crude production ahead of a long-anticipated formal meeting of the group's ministers on Wednesday.

The 14-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries announced a preliminary deal in September to cut oil output to 32.5-33.0 million barrels per day (bpd) from a record 33.64 million bpd now, to bolster perennially low prices.

Although doubts existed over whether the organisation, including regional foes Saudi Arabia and Iran, could agree on the mechanism of a cut, many market watchers believed last week a deal would be struck if only to save the group's credibility.

But the chances of an agreement declined over the weekend after Saudi Arabia said oil markets would balance next year even without an OPEC deal and a meeting with non-OPEC producers such as Russia was cancelled, sparking shuttle diplomacy to smooth differences before Wednesday's Vienna gathering.

Analysts' forecasts for oil prices now vary widely.

With a realistic but significant deal struck, prices could reach $60 a barrel, according to the most optimistic forecast, or barely approach $50, according to the most bearish prediction.

Should OPEC fail to strike a deal, prices may briefly fall to the low $40s but return to current levels, according to the most bullish forecast, or slide downwards to $40, opening the door to $30 a barrel, according to other predictions.

IHS ENERGY: MOST IMPORTANT OPEC MEET SINCE 1973

"OPEC is under intense pressure to deliver on their previous promise to cut production by around 1 million b/d to 32.5-33.0 million b/d. However, a deal will be extremely challenging to deliver given political differences between members ... An agreement of some sort is more likely than not to emerge this week, as there are intense financial, political and credibility pressures on OPEC to strike a deal even if it is flawed."

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SEB: CHANCE OF OPEC CUT DECLINED SUBSTANTIALLY

"(Saudi Energy Minister) Khalid al-Falih on Sunday said that demand will recover and prices will stabilize in 2017 even without an intervention by OPEC. In our view this is clearly an effort by al-Falih to prepare the market for a no-cut outcome in order to avoid too much of a sell-off in case of an announcement of a no-deal.

"...If OPEC this week announces that there will be no cut we expect the oil price to trade down to $43-44/b but we don't expect it to stay there all that long. It'll likely revert back towards $48/b where it has averaged since the start of June."

COMMERZBANK: OIL AT $40 IF NO DEAL

"OPEC is currently producing roughly 700,000 barrels per day more than is needed. If OPEC's present production level were maintained, this would remain the case until mid-2017. The market would then be balanced only at the end of 2017, assuming that OPEC does not further increase its output. Yet experience in recent months shows that this is unlikely, especially since Libya and Nigeria are likely to grab every opportunity to raise their currently subdued production to a more normal level.

"If OPEC really does decide on Wednesday not to implement the production cut that has been promised for the past two months, oil prices can be expected to fall towards the $40 per barrel mark."

PVM: A CUT FROM WHICH LEVEL?

"OPEC's current production is 33.6 to 33.8 mbpd. Once the dust settles it is less the size of the cut and more the actual production level that it could imply that really matters. Do not take an announcement of a headline cut of 1 mbpd at face value. It could still imply an OPEC production level considerably in excess of 33 mbpd, depending on developments in Libya and Nigeria and the speed and rigour of compliance."

JBC: RUSSIA'S INTENTIONS IN DOUBT

"Russia's possible intention to contribute to a coordinated effort to curb the crude supply overhang remains in doubt despite statements by its energy minister and deputy suggesting that a freeze at current production levels would in effect be equivalent to a cut of 200,000-300,000 b/d. This latter volume is more or less in line with our expected annual supply growth for 2017 of 220,000 bpd but with the recent surge in October, Russia has in fact already reached this higher production level, indicating that any freeze would simply be just that  holding production steady at the recent strong level."

LAST WEEK:

BANK OF AMERICA MERRILL LYNCH: "DEAL HIGHLY PROBABLE"

"Should OPEC just deliver a half a million barrel deal, we see prices staying around the current levels. For prices to firmly break over $50/barrel, OPEC would have to deliver a 1 mln bpd cut announcement ... Oil may drop to $40 a barrel if the cartel cannot agree to cut."

DNB MARKETS: "$40 BY CHRISTMAS IF NO DEAL"

"Saudi Arabia does not seem very happy about the prospect of another year of oil prices below $50 per barrel and we believe all the cartel members are aware that unless a deal is reached the oil price could fall to $40 by Christmas."

CAPITAL ECONOMICS: "FACE-SAVING AGREEMENT LIKELY"

"In the case of a strong credible deal, with participation from a number of large non-OPEC producers we could see prices go into the high 50s. On the other hand, if there is no deal we could see prices slump to below $40."

ABN AMRO - "75 PCT CHANCE OF CUT"

"If OPEC surprises with a larger cut, or can make sure that non-OPEC producers like Russia would also cut production, then the impact can be bigger and a jump towards $55-60 range can be seen. However, the risk of a disappointment is much bigger. A real failure could push prices below $41 a barrel which would open the way towards the 2016 lows of around $30."

MACQUARIE - "DEAL HAS A 60 PCT CHANCE OF SUCCESS"

"We are reiterating our call that the OPEC deal has a 60 percent chance of success on Nov. 30 with a low $50 price range on success and low $30 on failure.

"If OPEC fails, they will be The Boy Who Cried Wolf, Bill Buckner and the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight all rolled into one. Additionally, OPEC would lose jawboning power immediately and be on its way to dissolution while members are locked in a crude production arms race."

COMMERZBANK: "CUT BUT NOT GROUND-BREAKING"

"No ground-breaking agreement on production caps or cuts should be expected from the OPEC meeting. The oil market is likely to remain oversupplied for some time yet even after the OPEC meeting, especially since U.S. oil production will soon start rising again."

GOLDMAN SACHS: "CUT WITH 33 MLN BPD CEILING"

"For the purpose of our oil price forecast, our base case is now that an OPEC production cut will be announced and implemented with OPEC production at 33.0 million bpd in 1H17 and a Russia freeze at 11.6 million bpd.

"Normalizing inventory levels will generate backwardation by 2Q17 and leads us to raise our 1Q and 2Q17 WTI price forecasts to $55/bbl from $45/bbl and $50/bbl previously. We however reduce our 3Q and 4Q17 forecasts to $50/bbl (from $55/bbl and $60/bbl previously) on an expected resumption in OPEC production growth and a U.S. shale supply response to the 1H17 rally."

BARCLAYS: "FACE-SAVING CUT"

"Now, with extra supply on the market a deal looks much more challenging to achieve. At the same time, a stronger dollar and far lower oil prices mean the pressure to turn the tide might be even more intense now than in Algiers. Should a credible deal prove out of reach, only the normal uptick in winter demand could save the market from declining further."

JULIUS BAER: "CUT BUT NOT MEANINGFUL"

"We continue to believe that a meaningful agreement to cut production is very unlikely. More recently, OPEC production has risen to new record levels, showing that petro-nations are in need of cash flows to plug budget deficits. The common denominator for negotiations remains small and any deal would enter rough waters shortly after signature. Historically, sacrificing oil revenues has been too bitter a pill to swallow for most petro-nations."

PVM OIL ASSOCIATES: "CUT BUT A FUDGE"

"A failure to agree some sort of deal would be such a disaster that it is almost unthinkable. Having built up expectations it would be suicidal to end the meeting in disarray. It is also equally difficult to believe either that Iran/Iraq or the Saudis will completely capitulate ... The most likely outcome is therefore some sort of gruyere type fudge, thinly covered in chocolate but delivered with conviction as a breakthrough."

MORGAN STANLEY - "CUT WITH GROUP QUOTA"

"If OPEC fails to announce any agreement come Nov. 30, there could be a sharp correction in prices, which OPEC knows. Therefore, our base case remains a group quota (similar to 2012) that lacks country specifics or leaves several notable exemptions given the disagreements."

PETROMATRIX - "CUT/FREEZE WITH SAUDI JAW-BONING"

"A supply freeze does not seem much in pure mathematics but if it comes with convincing statements that defacto it brings spare capacity to zero, then it will allow the market to price a greater risk premium...

"Given that OPEC seems to want a price range of $55/bbl to $60/bbl it is likely that if a deal is confirmed next week, it will also come with statements to convince the markets that a new policy era is starting."

SOCIETE GENERALE - "REASONABLE TO EXPECT 500,000 BPD CUT"

"At this point, still without any details, our initial 'back of the envelope' calculation for a real crude output of 0-0.5 million bpd is still reasonable. If we take the 0.25 million bpd midpoint as the real cut, and adjust our new forecasts, we would get a 0.25 million bpd global stockdraw in 2017."

(Reporting by Apeksha Nair in Bengaluru and Sabina Zawadzki and Amanda Cooper in London; Editing by Dale Hudson and Mark Potter)
NASA's inclusion of a lesser-known, 13th Zodiac sign in an online children's publication earlier this year sent shockwaves among horoscope followers. The addition, a serpent-bearing sign known as Ophiuchus, reportedly joined the traditional dozen signs based on an error in the ancient Babylonian's astrological calculations. Zodiac enthusiasts with birthdays between Tuesday and Dec. 17 can call themselves Ophiuchans.

Like the other 12 signs of the Zodiac - Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces, the seldom-recognized Ophiuchus is a constellation of stars with symbolic roots in ancient Greek mythology. Ophiuchus is often depicted as a muscular man holding a snake, an animal that came to symbolize wisdom and healing. One story says Ophiuchus is a depiction of Asklepios, child of sun god Apollo and a mortal mother. Another says it represents the ill-fated Laocoon who was killed by snakes at the behest of the ancient gods after he attempted to warn Troy about Greece's ploy to hide soldiers in a wooden horse in order to enter the city.

Ophiuchus is unique among the Zodiac signs as it is the only one associated with a real person. Asklepios was associated with the Ancient Egyptian physician Imhotep, who lived in the 27th Century BCE. Others astrologists make connections between Ophiuchus and Joseph from the biblical Book of Genesis.

While Ophiuchus may be new to mainstream horoscopes, its serpentine imagery has been correctly used correctly as the Rod of Asklepios and incorrectly as the Staff of Caduceus in medicine for quite some time. The former image's likely association with medicine likely stems from the treatment of a parasitic worm called Dracunculus medinensis, which doctors would remove from a patient's skin by making an incision and slowly winding the creature on a wooden stick.

Despite the controversy, a number of both astrologers and astronomers have rejected the change in the horoscope. Initial reports said the change was due to the wobble in the Earth's axis that has shifted the planet's position in relation to the sun throughout the 3,000 years since the Zodiac was conceived. Western astrologists, however, did in fact take this factor into account, according to astronomer Parke Kunkle. NASA also rejected any claims that its work has any bearing on astrology. Whether the traditional horoscope has changed or not, there has never been a proven relation between astrology and the human traits or terrestrial events.

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Ophiuchans, according to astrologists, are natural truth-seekers and architects. They favor bright colors, are envied by many and are well-liked by authority and father figures. The lucky number associated with the sign is 12. For believers, Ophiuchus' entry affects the traditional dates of other Zodiac signs, which are now as follows:

Capricorn: Jan. 20 - Feb. 16

Aquarius: Feb. 16  March 11

Pisces: March 11  April 18

Aries: April 18  May 13

Taurus: May 13  June 21

Gemini: June 21  July 20

Cancer: July 20  Aug. 10

Leo: Aug. 10  Sept. 16

Virgo: Sept. 16  Oct. 30

Libra: Oct 30.  Nov. 23

Scorpio: Nov. 23  Nov. 29

Ophiuchus: Nov. 29  Dec. 17

Sagittarius: Dec. 17  Jan. 20

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BUENOS AIRES  Todo Cine Latino, the speciality label of Paul Hudsons Outsider Pictures, has acquired U.S. rights to Colombias 2016 Oscar submission Alias Maria, in a co-acquisition deal with Strand Releasing on a title put forward by its makers as part of Colombias ongoing peace process.

The deal with Todo Cine Latino was closed by Hudson and Eric Schnedecker of UDI, the Paris and L.A.-based sales company which is handling Alias Maria. Todo Cine Latino will look to build word-of-mouth via festivals throughout the Spring, then release theatrically in the rest of the U.S. throughout the Summer before bowing on digital streaming site todocinelatino.com, Hudson said.

Opening Colombias 2015 Cartagena Festival for its world premiere and then playing Cannes Un Certain Regard, Alias Marias U.S. sale builds on other deals  Fox TV for Latin American pay TV rights, Sophie Dulac Distribution for France  on a title which is no ordinary film; or at least it is seeing no ordinary distribution.

Produced by Bogotas Rhayuela Cine, in co-production with Argentinas Sudestada Cine and Frances Axxon Films, and directed by Jose Luis Rugeles, Alias Maria chronicles the inhumanity and tragic consequences of Colombias armed conflict, as seen through the eyes and fate of a 13 year-old  but just pregnant  guerrilla soldier. According to guerrilla practice, pregnancy demands abortion but Maria first hides then determines not to terminate her pregnancy.

Alias Maria was released Nov. 12 2015 in Colombia as Colombias president Juan Manuel Santos led negotiations with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to formally end 50 years of a civil war bloodbath that killed 220,000 people, displacing several million more. On June 30, the same day as Brexit, Colombias government and Farc rebels signed a cease-fire. In an Oct. 2 referendum, Colombians voters narrowly rejected a peace deal with the Marxist guerrillas. In mid-November, Santos and FARC signed a revised peace accord.

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Such momentous events cannot but impact filmmaking in Colombia in a region where cinema has often functioned as the regions social conscience. At Julys Bogota Audiovisual Market, nearly half the films presented, some 27 titles, worked through the countrys huge sweep of post-conflict traumas, questions and debates on how Colombia should move forward.

For over 50 years, all the media has overwhelmed us with images, an excess of a devastating reality, said Alias Maria director Rugeles.

The peace process determines Alias Maria distribution; it also heavily influences how it was made as a film.

Rugeles said he set out to show a desolate everyday panorama, the combatants human side, seen through Marias eyes.

So, in an early sequence, when Marias camp is attacked, a hand-held camera hugs close to Maria as she and other child soldiers begin a forced march along a slippery stream then up muddy scarp slopes out of the jungle.

As the films screenplay was written, the director conducted more than 60 interviews with girls and women who had fought for the guerrilla. Other scenes, as when FARC medics check if the girls soldiers are pregnant, have the force of documentary. Alias Maria also addresses patriarchal pressures on the female soldiers: Maria is expected to obey her boy friend not only because he is her superior officer but also a man.

The peace process doesnt finish with the signing of the agreement, it begins with it, Duran argued.

A film made to remind spectators of the inhumanity of war  Maria is required to abort, whether she wants to or not; desertion is punished with death  Alias Maria may well also be screened to demonstrate the humanity of the FARC combatants, embodied in Maria herself.

We wanted to show what day-to-day life was like for the guerrilla, said Rugeles. Duran added that Rhayuela is working with the United Nations to screen Alias Maria in early December to ex-FARC combatants and civilians in the zones which will welcome the guerrilla as part of its integration into civil life. The film can allow people to see the guerrilla as human beings and victims since many were recruited underage, he added.

Alias Yineth, a Rhayuela documentary made about an ex-FARC member, recruited at the age of 12, will be completed by March or April.

Alias Maria was topical before the referendum in Colombia, Outsiders Hudson added. He went on: The question for me is how do you bring a nation together that has been fighting so long, and how do you change the mentality of generations that have been impacted by the fighting and the violence? Alias Maria reveals this through the eyes of a young girl who is also a guerrilla fighter.

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Philippine police safely detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) found in a trash can meters away from the U.S. Embassy in Manila Monday.

Police said the bomb was similar to the device that killed at least 14 people when it exploded at a teaming night market in the southern city of Davao on Sept. 2, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reports.

National Capital Region Police Office chief Superintendent Oscar Albayalde told the Inquirer that the 81-millimeter mortar inside the package was the same found in Davao. If it had exploded, he added, it could have affected everything within a 100-meter radius.

The device was discovered by a street sweeper early morning local time who contacted local authorities.

Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the attempted bombing.

We are thankful that the municipal employee and the PNP took quick and appropriate action to ensure the safety of all, said U.S. Embassy Press Attache Molly Koscina in a statement on Monday.

READ: Statement from U.S. Embassy Press Attache Molly Koscina on recovered IED. | via @CecilVillarosa pic.twitter.com/jRrnbmE3it  GMA News (@gmanews) November 28, 2016

After the September bomb attack on Davao City, President Rodrigo Duterte placed the Philippines under an indefinite state of national emergency, which gave the police and armed forces special powers to suppress any and all forms of lawless violence.

Philippine National Police Chief Ronald dela Rosa told reporters in a press briefing that he would consider reinstating checkpoints in Manila as a security precaution. We will ask mall authorities to also heighten security. We may revive checkpoints, he said.

Dela Rosa said that militants from the Maute group, whose members were allegedly behind the Davao bombing, likely planted the device Manila. On Sunday, about 19 members from Maute group died during a Philippine army offensive in the southern province of Lanao del Sur, Agence France-Presse reports.

[Philippine Inquirer]
MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday hit out at what he called "bullshit" Western threats to seek his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his role in a bloody crackdown on drugs. Police figures show Duterte's campaign has killed more than 2,500 people since he took office on June 30, about three-quarters in police counter-narcotics operations, and the rest believed to be the victims of vigilantes or druglords eliminating rivals or silencing those who could implicate them. An ICC prosecutor last month said the Hague-based tribunal might have jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrators of Philippines killings. "You scare me that you will jail me? International Criminal Court? Bullshit," Duterte said during a speech. He scolded the United States for what he called hypocritical threats to try him in the ICC, to which Washington itself is not a signatory. He did not specify when the U.S. threat was made. U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a news briefing on Monday that he was not aware of any such threat. The United States chose not to sign the Rome Statute to protect former President George W. Bush, Duterte said, without elaborating. "America itself is threatening to jail me in the International Criminal Court," Duterte said. "It is not a signatory of that body. Why? Because at that time, they were afraid Bush would face it." For months, Duterte has been ridiculing concerns that extrajudicial killings could be taking place in his drugs war, and the United States, European Union and United Nations have been the preferred targets of his comments. The brash former mayor and prosecutor said lawyers in Europe were "rotten," "stupid," and had a "brain like a pea." This month, Duterte said he might follow Russia's move to withdraw from the ICC, describing it as "useless." He believes the West has failed to comprehend the gravity of the Philippines' methamphetamine problem and has said he was ready to "rot in jail" to achieve his goals. There is nothing wrong with threatening to kill bad elements, he said on Monday. "I will never allow my country to be thrown to the dogs," Duterte said. "I said, when I was a mayor, 'If you destroy my city with drugs I will kill you.' "Simple as that. ... When was it a crime to say, 'I will kill you' in protecting my country?" (Additional reporting by David Alexander in Washington; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Richard Chang)
Ottawa (AFP) - A Canadian CF-18 Hornet fighter jet crashed near Cold Lake Alberta on Monday, killing the pilot in what was described as a training accident.

A rescue helicopter was dispatched to the scene at an air weapons range.

Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan, who was in the House of Commons when the news broke and appeared shaken, told reporters: "Regrettably the pilot has been lost and a next of kin has been notified."

"I just got off the phone with (the chief of the defense staff) General Jonathan Vance and our prayers go out to the families," he added.

Cold Lake is home to a tactical fighter squadron and training units.

The accident comes less than a week after Canada announced plans to order 18 Boeing Super Hornet fighter jets while seeking offers to update the rest of its aging combat fleet.

Canada's current fleet of fighter jets is more than three decades old and was scheduled to be retired in 2020, but could now see a decade more of service.

The 18 new Super Hornets will help fill a "capability gap" and allow Canada to meet its NATO and NORAD security obligations, Sajjan said last Tuesday.

They are to be deployed from 2018 as the government awaits offers on a longer-term fleet replacement.
Pope Francis will visit Ireland in 2018, Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny said Monday, becoming the first Pontiff to visit the country since Pope John Paul IIs tour in 1979.

Kenny confirmed the visit after a 20-minute audience with the Pope at the Vatican, the Guardian reports. Kenny issued the formal invitation during that meeting.

The Pope will travel to Ireland for the World Meeting of Families scheduled for August of 2018. Kennys Vatican trip is seen as a bridge-building exercise after he attacked the Catholic leadership in 2011 over the child sexual abuse scandals.

Pope Francis has been an important voice for the young, the poor & disadvantaged  glad he will visit Ireland in 2018 pic.twitter.com/vSn16otMAA  Enda Kenny (@EndaKennyTD) November 28, 2016

Kenny was accompanied by Emma Madiganthe Irish ambassador to the Holy Seeand his wife Fionnuala.

I was happy to conform to him that Church/ State relations are in a better shape than they were for very many year, Kenny told the Irish Independent. That we work very well with the Bishops and the clergy, that there are so many more safeguards in place than there were before and that I regard these relations as being at a healthier position than they were for many years.
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis urged scientists Monday to be in the vanguard of protecting the environment, in a speech critical of politicians yet to show "concrete will" in implementing global climate agreements.

The remarks at a symposium whose attendees included the British physicist Stephen Hawking, an avowed atheist, may have been directed at US President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump threatened to pull the United States out of the COP21 Paris Agreement, that binds countries to national pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, during a bruising election campaign.

Francis said it had fallen to the scientific and Christian communities to join together "in the shared goal of protecting our common home, threatened as it is by ecological collapse".

Such an alliance was possible because both "work free of political, economic or ideological interests" albeit using different approaches.

In contrast, "international politics has reacted weakly  albeit with some praiseworthy exceptions  regarding the concrete will to seek the common good," he said.

"The submission of politics to a technology and an economy which seek profit above all else, is shown by the 'distraction' or delay in implementing global agreements on the environment," he added.

During the race for the White House, Trump repeatedly told crowds of rustbelt and southern voters -- factory workers, coal miners and oilmen among them -- that he would tear up climate agreements.

As far back as 2012 he had tweeted: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make US manufacturing non-competitive."

Since being elected, however, Trump has said he is "open minded" about whether to support global accords.

The pope, who did not refer to Trump or any other politician by name, wrote a papal letter on the environment last year in which he said rapid action was needed to save the planet from ruin.
By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis urged national leaders on Monday to implement global environmental agreements without delay, a message that looked to be squarely aimed at U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Addressing a group of scientists that included theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking, the pope gave his strongest speech on the environment since the election of Trump, who has threatened to pull out of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change. "The 'distraction' or delay in implementing global agreements on the environment shows that politics has become submissive to a technology and economy which seek profit above all else," Francis said. Francis, who wrote an encyclical, or papal letter, on the environment last year, took a swipe at those who dispute that climate change is caused by human activity, criticizing "the ease with which well-founded scientific opinion about the state of our planet is disregarded". During the campaign, Trump called climate change a hoax. Last week he appeared to soften his stance, telling The New York Times he was keeping "an open mind" and that there might be "some connectivity" between human activity and global warming. But days later, Reince Priebus, Trump's designated White House chief-of-staff, told Fox News that the president-elect still believed climate change was mostly "a bunch of bunk". In his speech, the pope said scientists should "work free of political, economic or ideological interests, to develop a cultural model which can face the crisis of climatic change and its social consequences". A U.S. withdrawal from the pact, agreed to by almost 200 countries, would set back international efforts to limit rising temperatures that have been linked to the extinction of animals and plants, heat waves, floods and rising sea levels. Francis called for "an ecological conversion capable of supporting and promoting sustainable development." He said humans could not consider themselves "owners and masters of nature, authorized to plunder it without any consideration of its hidden potential and laws of development". In his encyclical last year to the world's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics, the pope called for swift action to save the planet from environmental ruin and urged world leaders to hear "the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor". (Additional reporting by Roberta Rampton in Washington; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis will visit Ireland in August 2018 for the World Meeting of Families, Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny said on Monday after meeting the pontiff in Rome.

Alongside a photo of him and Francis laughing, Kenny wrote on Twitter: "Pope Francis has been an important voice for the young, the poor and disadvantaged -- glad he will visit Ireland in 2018."

The Vatican, which has yet to confirm any papal travel plans even for 2017, did not comment on the news.

A Vatican statement said the two had held "cordial discussions" on a wide range of subjects, including the migrant crisis, "political and institutional" challenges in Europe and youth employment.

Kenny told the Irish Times the meeting had been "completely relaxed and very friendly".

It was a far cry from the animosity between Ireland and the Holy See in 2011 when Kenny slammed the Vatican for "dysfunction, disconnection and elitism" in its failure to tackle clerical child sex abuse.

That came a week after a report in Ireland accused the Roman Catholic Church of failings in its handling of abuse allegations against 19 clerics in the diocese of Cloyne, southern Ireland.

The Vatican responded by recalling its envoy to Ireland and closing its embassy in Dublin. It was only reopened in 2014.

This time, though, Kenny was full of praise for Francis, who, on a US visit last year pledged "the zealous vigilance of the church to protect children and the promise of accountability for all."

Kenny said: "I did refer him to his own comments in America when I think he was very clear about members of the clergy who abused children and his statement on that was quite clear and very strong. I agreed with him 100 percent."

Kenny also said the pair had discussed the possibility of the pope visiting Northern Ireland.

However, some political voices have expressed concern about the pope visiting at a time when Ireland may hold a referendum on whether to legalise abortion, suggesting he could be tempted into commenting on the subject.
By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis will make the first papal trip to Ireland in nearly 40 years, the country's prime minister said on Monday, amid signs he could also become the first Roman Catholic pope to visit Northern Ireland. The Argentine-born pontiff confirmed the visit in 2018 to Prime Minister Enda Kenny during a meeting at the Vatican in which the Irish leader tried to put an end to years of difficult relations between the Vatican and Dublin. The late Pope John Paul visited the island in 1979 but could not go north because of violence between Protestant loyalists who want the province to stay in the United Kingdom and Catholic nationalists who want it to unite with the Irish Republic. A delicate power-sharing agreement between the two sides in 1998 ended three decades of violence that cost over 3,600 lives. Despite some continued activity by militants, security would now be much less a problem than before that peace deal. "We discussed what he might do ... and obviously if that means that he also travels to Northern Ireland, then we will assist in cooperating in making whatever arrangements," Kenny told reporters after his meeting with the pope. In Northern Ireland, UTV television quoted Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness as saying, "I think there is no prospect whatsoever of him coming to Ireland and him not coming to the north." The province's most famous Protestant leader, the late Presbyterian preacher Ian Paisley, once railed against John Paul as the antichrist. But after the 1998 Good Friday agreement, he turned around and agreed to become the province's first minister and share power with his onetime Catholic foes. His successor as first minister, Democratic Unionist Party leader Arlene Foster, said she would be willing to meet the pope if he travels to Northern Ireland. But she said in a statement the invitation must come from the British Foreign Office. Kenny indicated he believed Francis, who will attend a worldwide meeting of Catholic families in Dublin, would also go to the north. He would need an invitation from local authorities and at least the tacit agreement of the British government. "This is a pope who has visited places that people did not expect him to visit," Kenny said. "He is deliberately moving the Church towards the people and particularly towards those who are poor and dispossessed." The Catholic Church's once blanket influence on politics and society in Ireland has plummeted in recent years in the wake of a series of clerical sex abuse scandals. In 2011, Dublin stunned the Vatican by closing its embassy to the Vatican, bringing relations between the once ironclad allies to an all-time low. The closure followed a row earlier that year over the Irish Church's handling of sex abuse cases and accusations that the Vatican had encouraged secrecy. Ireland was the only major country of ancient Catholic tradition without an embassy to the Vatican until a scaled-down embassy was reopened in 2014. In a defeat for the Church and the Vatican, Ireland backed same-sex marriage in a referendum last year. (Additional reporting by Conor Humphries in Dublin; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Nov 28 (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

* Tata Steel Ltd is plotting an investment spree that could pump 100 million pounds ($124.7 million) a year into its British steelworks - only eight months after hoisting a "for sale" sign over the former Corus empire. http://bit.ly/2fme0Vo

* Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is working on a secret plan to keep British businesses in the single market for at least two years after the country leaves the European Union. http://bit.ly/2fmfZJh

The Guardian

* About 160,000 UK households are to face higher energy bills in the new year after the collapse of GB Energy Ltd . http://bit.ly/2fUeoqs

* The Equality and Human Rights Commission has written to the UK political parties asking them to tone down their Brexit rhetoric. http://bit.ly/2fEM9Ox

The Telegraph

* Ladbrokes Coral Group PLC is reportedly weighing up a bid for Australia's largest bookie, Tabcorp Holdings Ltd in a deal that would cost the betting giant more than 2 billion pounds. http://bit.ly/2gMMnF9

* Clydesdale Bank Chief Executive David Duffy has 'no concerns' on his ability to execute a Williams & Glyn's Bank Ltd (IPO-WILL.L) deal. http://bit.ly/2gAaioi

Sky News

* Sky News can reveal that executives from companies including Facebook, Citymapper and Love Home Swap will be appointed to Sadiq Khan's business advisory board. http://bit.ly/2gvrRZn

* Sky News understands that The People's Trust, a new investment trust, will publish its approach to stewardship on Monday with a declaration that performance-related awards should be replaced by shares that form part of executives' basic salary and must be held for at least seven years. http://bit.ly/2fGmwgq

The Independent

* Nigel Farage has announced plans to apologise to the American people on behalf of Britain for criticisms made of Donald Trump during his presidential campaign. http://ind.pn/2fFrMRE

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* Nigel Farage has hinted he will back far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen in next year's French presidential election. http://ind.pn/2fnIE0F

($1=0.80 pounds)

(Compiled by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
Now that Suits has wrapped up shooting their sixth season, star Meghan Markle is ready to spend some free time with her friends.

The actress hit the town in Los Angeles on Saturday night with her pals, Quantico star Priyanka Chopra and filmmaker Mubina Rattonsey, for a girls' night out.

Chopra took to Instagram to share a snapshot of the trio, which she captioned, "Girls just wanna have fun."

Girls just wanna have fun.. @meghanmarkle @mubinarattonsey #LAlife A photo posted by Priyanka Chopra (@priyankachopra) on Nov 25, 2016 at 7:41pm PST

WATCH: Meghan Markle Wraps Up Season 6 of 'Suits' Days After Returning From Vacation With Boyfriend Prince Harry

Markle recently wrapped up filming on her USA drama just days after her boyfriend, Prince Harry, kicked off his official royal tour of the Caribbean.

The two have been dating since October and Markle recently got back from spending time with her royal beau across the pond, where she got to meet his brother, Prince William, and William's wife, Duchess Kate.

WATCH: Prince Harry's Girlfriend Meghan Markle Met Prince William and Kate Middleton During London Visit

While Markle has been enjoyed her time off, Prince William has been busy denying tabloid reports that he disapproved of his brother's recent statement confirming his relationship with the 35-year-old actress.

Earlier this month, Prince Harry released a statement condemning racist and denigrating media attacks on his girlfriend. It was reported that his brother was not comfortable with Harry's comments, however William has since staunchly rejected such rumors.

"The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him," a representative for Kensington Palace said in a statement to ET.

WATCH: Prince Harry Condemns 'Sexism and Racism' Against 'Girlfriend' Meghan Markle

According to the British publication, The Telegraph, a source close to the family said that the brothers would not release a statement like that "without talking to each other," adding that they discussed the comments Harry released, "extensively in advance of it being put out."

Story continues

For more on Harry's statement regarding the harassment Markle has faced since their relationship went public, watch the video below.

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Prince William is shutting down tabloid rumors claiming he had an issue with his brother, Prince Harry, publicly defending his girlfriend Meghan Markle earlier this month. In a statement, Prince William said he supports his brother and understands why Prince Harry felt compelled to comment on his budding relationship with Markle.

According to USA Today, rumors have been swirling in British media that Prince William disagreed with Prince Harry releasing a statement via Kensington Palace asking the public to give his girlfriend some privacy. The outlet reported that Prince William supposedly felt his siblings remarks on the romance went against the royal norms of not commenting on their romantic and private lives.

However, Kensington Palace said in a statement Monday that Prince William had no issue with how his brother handled things. The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him, the statement, via E! Online, read.

Earlier this month, Kensington Palace released a statement on behalf of Prince Harry confirming that the 32-year-old was dating the Suits actress. The statement also lashed out at the media over its intense coverage of the 35-year-old Hollywood star.

Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markles safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her, the statement read. It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm. The British royal went on to say that he hoped the media coverage of his girlfriend would pause.

Although Markle and Prince Harrys romance has garnered a lot of attention, the love birds apparently arent letting that put a damper on their holiday plans. Us Weekly reported that now that Markle has finished filming Season 6 of Suits, she plans to spend some time with her royal beau. A source told the publication that after Prince Harry wraps his Caribbean tour on Dec. 4, he and Markle will take a trip together. It will be a one-week trip, the source said. There are just a few details left to finalize.

Story continues

Prince William Meghan Markle statement

Photo: Getty Images

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Nope, Quantico, Im not going there with you.

This weeks episode doubles as the fall finale, and theres a rather large revelation in its final moments: During a fist fight with an anonymous member of the Citizens Liberation Front, Alex pulls off her aggressors mask only to find that shes been beating up her onetime fiance, Ryan.

RELATEDQuantico Moving to Mondays in January  Get Details

What we will likely learn once the ABC drama returns in the new year: Ryan is still a white hat, and hes either still under the deepest of covers for the CIA or FBI or PTA or whatever. What I would like to happen: Ryan is actually a bad guy, and hes one with staying power.

Wouldnt it be awesome if, all this time, Captain America with the pretty eyes was actually a nefarious agent working a very long, super dangerous con? And unlike Liam last season, hes smart/sane enough not to get caught? That way, Alex would have to outwit an enemy who has intimate (bow-chicka-wow-wow pun intended) knowledge not only about every aspect of her life, but also about everything she knows  and everything the people she works for know.

Then again, I fell for the Drew-is-the-bad-guy fakeout last season, so what the heck do I know?

RELATED Once Upon a Time Recap: One Crazy Twist After a Mother!

Read on for the highlights of ODENVY.

THE UNKINDEST CUT | In The Farm timeline, Alex and Ryan are about to get it on at the safehouse. But their clandestine nookie is interrupted by a call for Ryan from Nimah, which irks Alex: Wheres Shelby been, and why are they now meeting separately with their handlers, she wonders? Nimah gives her no real answers; after Alex leaves, Ryan makes it clear that he wants to tell his lady that hes been tapped for the AIC. But Nimah shuts that down and asks who else he thinks mightve gotten recruited for the secret group. They discuss Sebastian (who, we learn, has been sleeping in Leighs old room), Harry, Leon and Dayana.

Story continues

Meanwhile, the lesson of the week concerns cutting people you love out of your life if their inability to accept your cover story will endanger your mission. Burn the bridge with the one person who never lets go, Owen tells his students as he dismisses them for Thanksgiving. God bless us, every one! But Owens one person is about to burn a bridge with him: Though he pays lip service to wanting to be closer with Lydia, he takes the very first opportunity to sneak through her bag when he thinks that list of his enemies is on it. But its a trap, and she catches him in it. You made your choice, she tells him, preparing to leave The Farm. But before she goes, she gives him the answers he seeks: There was no conspiracy to oust him from the field, You just got burned by something you did. Ouch.

In a similar moment of Real Talk elsewhere, Alex confronts Shelby about avoiding her, and thats when Parrish learns that Shelby is in the field and Alex is being yanked from the mission. You didnt cut it, Alex. You failed, Shelby says to her best friend, a burn which is right up there with Clueless Youre a virgin who cant drive. When Miranda later assures Alex that she has a job at the FBI, Alex turns her down and says shell get to the bottom of AIC on her own, thanks.

RELATED Secrets and Lies Recap: Family Feud

AMERICAS BLOODIEST HOME VIDEOS | Ryan gets a text that asks him to be at a certain place at a certain time. When he gets there, another text tells him to kidnap a man and take him to another location. Hes later beckoned to another meet-up, this one with Dayana and Leon. And thats when we find out that theyve all been recruited  and their test was to get that random guy to a secret location (Ryan), to kill him (Leon) and to clean up the mess (Dayana). But the AIC also took video of the whole thing. Now we can trust you, the group texts the trio, because if you betray us, we will destroy you.

Too bad that shortly before all of this, Ryan proposes to Alex at the safehouse, and she accepts. Even if I have to lie for a living, I have to know I can come home to the truth, and that truth is you, he tells her before sliding the ring on her finger. They kiss exuberantly. And there are so few moments of pure joy on this show, I roll around in Alex and Ryans happiness like a Labrador in a fresh rain puddle.

Quantico Recao SEason 2 Episode 8

WHAT ELSE IS HARRY HIDING? | Harry spends the holiday with Charlotte, who is the sister of Elliott, the guy Harry told Sebastian about a while back. As it turns out, Charlotte is also Harrys handler. They talk shop; its all very vague, and he gives her a coded message she tosses into the blazing fireplace when her husband comes back into the room.

Later, that husband catches Harry leaving it he middle of the night without saying goodbye. They make vague reference to something that happened involving Elliott. When the husband questions what Harrys going to do about [whatever theyre talking about], he replies, Your father-in-law is a very powerful man. The husband responds, Well, that doesnt mean he should get away with it. (Side note: Its refreshing to see Harry a little more relaxed and maybe a little more truthful (?) than normal.)

RELATEDConviction: ABC Opts Against Ordering More Season 1 Episodes

FOOLED YA! | In the present, an Army general arrives at the FBI and makes a plan to bomb the building the terrorists are in. But Shelby asks her to hold off for a while, because Alex is in the building and can save the planet again. (Or something along those lines.)

Inside the building, Alex, Sebastian, Harry, Leon and a bleeding Dayana make their way to the roof, where theyre going to disarm the remote detonator for the biological weapon. But when a group of the terrorists gets in their way, the Farm team decides to crawl over them through the ventilation ducts. I know all of these people weigh 100 lbs., but the bad guys would still hear them, no? Leon stays with Dayana, and the other three get crawling. But Sebastian accidentally (or is it?) drops the canister of gas theyre going to use, and as it plummets down through the very tall building, Harry demands that Sebastian admit that hes actually AIC and is sabotaging their mission on purpose.

Alex stops their arguing, and when they get to the roof, she realizes that the biological weapon is aimed inside the building, not outside. Its a suicide failsafe, not a WMD, she says

TWIN PARADOX | If youre wondering about the Nimah/Raina situation that started at the end of the previous episode, heres how it resolves. Nimah spends most of the episode explaining how America is broken and freedom is a ruse, and how the CLF is the only way to get at the truth and lots of other very crazy-sounding militant speak. But even though it breaks her heart to do so, Raina cannot join her sister in the terrorist organization.

Nimah leaves her twin in one room and goes out to report to other CLF members in another: Shes not one of them, I told you. Keep her in there until this is over. Then Nimah sobs. I literally have no idea what is going on here.

RELATEDThe Goldbergs Getting a 90s Spinoff at ABC, With Bryan Callens Gym Teacher

DONT WALK AWAY MAD | Alex and her group get outside, which naturally ends in hand-to-hand combat with CLF members. Thats when she realizes whats up with Ryan, who takes advantage of her shock to toss her behind a laser barrier thatll detonate the WMD if she crosses. Everyone will die, he says, just to drive it home, then puts his mask back on and walks away.

Now its your turn. What did you think of the episode? Sound off in the comments!

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When Rachael Ray does Christmas, she does it big.

The talk show host wasted no time decorating for the holidays once Thanksgiving had ended, showing off her efforts on Instagram on Sunday. One gorgeously decorated Christmas tree would be impressive considering the turn around time  but no, Rays seasonal decor included six (!) fancy firs in all different shapes and sizes.

The grandest display in what appears to be Rays Lake Luzerne home in upstate New York is a winter white-themed tree with snowflake ornaments, silver doves and plenty of fake snow. All decked out! she captioned the photo, #christmas.

RELATED: Rachael Ray Says Her Grocery Lists Are Serial-Killer StatusSee Her Handwritten Notebook

Inside the charming cabin was also a more modest tree with elf toppers, Christmas character ornaments and a multi-colored knit tree skirt. And it wouldnt be Rays house without a little foodie flare. The furniture designer adorned two matching trees with mini ornaments made to look like liquor bottles and tins of caviar.

WATCH THIS: Christmas Craft Ideas from Soleil Moon Frye

But her smallest and yet most adorable display came in the form of two tiny trees that are more Charlie Brown-inspired than Kardashian Kristmas-esque. Ray hung white lights and colorful baubles on the sparse branches and accompanied them with beautiful wooden horses. We can practically smell the chestnuts roasting from here.




* United Wa State Army blacklisted by U.S. over drug trafficking

* Mine run by armed group in "Wa State" is a major producer of tin

* Top smelter Yunnan Tin indirectly buys big quantities of Wa tin

* Many international companies list Yunnan Tin as a supplier

* Sourcing tin from mine puts firms at risk of sanctions breach

By Yimou Lee and Joel Schectman

YANGON/WASHINGTON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - From a remote corner of northeastern Myanmar, an insurgent army sells tin ore to suppliers of some of the world's largest consumer companies.

More than 500 companies, including leading brands such as smartphone maker Apple, coffee giant Starbucks and luxury jeweller Tiffany & Co, list among their suppliers Chinese-controlled firms that indirectly buy ore from the Man Maw mine near Myanmar's border with China, a Reuters examination of the supply chain found.

The mine is controlled by the United Wa State Army (UWSA), which the United States placed under sanctions for alleged narcotics trafficking in 2003. The seven companies extracting tin from the mine are all owned or controlled by Wa military and government leaders, Wa officials and people with close ties to UWSA leadership told Reuters.

This potentially puts companies, which also include industrial conglomerate General Electric, at risk of violating sanctions that forbid "direct or indirect" dealings with blacklisted groups, according to a former and a serving U.S. official and lawyers with expertise in sanctions enforcement.

Several sanctions experts said the U.S. government was unlikely to fine companies who unwittingly used the Myanmar tin. Still, it may force them to shift to new suppliers, they said.

A Treasury Department spokeswoman said U.S. sanctions "generally prohibit U.S. companies from engaging in any direct or indirect transactions or dealings with individuals or entities" on a blacklist, but declined further comment on specific circumstances.

The situation illustrates the difficulties facing multinationals in monitoring supply chains that have grown increasingly complex.

Story continues

Following a 2012 U.S. regulation, companies have spent billions of dollars scrutinizing whether certain minerals used in their products come from mines controlled by armed groups in Central Africa.

But the regulations do not require them to assess the origins of minerals from other conflict zones.

Apple, Tiffany and GE, and other companies contacted by Reuters, said that to fulfil those regulations they looked to an audit programme designed by the industry group Conflict Free Sourcing Initiative (CFSI).

A CFSI programme director said the group was "aware of tin exports from Myanmar to other countries and of security and human rights issues in Myanmar". The group said it was updating its audit requirements to include "a broader definition of conflict-affected and high-risk areas".

Tin supply chain expert at monitoring group Global Witness, Sophia Pickles, said companies must not wholly outsource due diligence responsibility to a scheme that has exclusively focused on central Africa.

"Companies, not schemes, bear the primary responsibility for ensuring that supply chains are responsible," she said.

CIVIL WAR

Most of the tin mined globally is used as solder in electronics, for making batteries and plating.

The Man Maw mine roiled the global tin market when huge quantities of high grade ore were discovered around 2013. Annual production is now estimated at about 33,000 tons of tin concentrate, more than a 10th of global output of the metal.

The mine is controlled by the UWSA, the strongest of the myriad armed groups that have kept Myanmar in a state of near-perpetual civil war for decades. Reuters visited the remote mine last month, the first international media organisation to do so.

Interviews with officials running the mine, UWSA leaders and executives at Asian tin suppliers, together with an examination of public disclosures of suppliers made by companies in regulatory filings, indicate Wa tin likely ends up in an array of products made by U.S. and other international companies.

Tin from Man Maw provides revenue critical to the survival of the self-proclaimed Wa State and its rulers, who have refused to disarm or participate in Myanmar's peace process.

"There are dozens of trucks carrying tin ore to China every morning," the head of the Wa territory foreign affairs office, Zhao Guo An, told Reuters. "Tin mining is the pillar of our economy. It's the biggest source of income."

While Washington has lifted most sanctions on Myanmar, some have been kept in place, including those aimed at the UWSA. The group and several of its leaders are blacklisted under the Kingpin Act over accusations of trafficking in heroin and methamphetamine. UWSA leaders deny involvement in narcotics, saying the accusations are a smear by political opponents.

Peter Kucik, a former senior sanctions advisor at the U.S. Treasury Department, said the findings highlighted the need for thorough due diligence.

"The facts suggest potential sanctions risk for the parties involved," Kucik said.

Two companies in Apple's supply chain, the world's No. 1 tin producer Yunnan Tin Co Ltd and leading Taiwan-based solder maker Shenmao Technology, told Reuters that some tin they bought was from the Wa mine.

Mandy Gan, a tin analyst from China's leading mineral research company, Asian Metal, and another tin expert, both of whom visited the UWSA mine this year, said many other Chinese smelting firms supplying global consumer goods makers also bought tin from the Man Maw mine.

Sanctions experts said even the indirect use of the tin might be considered a violation of U.S. sanctions law, which does not require authorities to prove intent. A U.S. government official involved in Myanmar policy consulted on Reuters' findings said the government was likely to investigate any ties to the UWSA.

Still, Washington-based sanctions attorney Erich Ferrari said it was unlikely the Treasury Department would initiate an enforcement action against companies for an issue so deep in the supply chain. Once the ties were publicized, however, authorities could impose penalties if the companies did not wind down the transactions and find new suppliers, he said.

SUPPLY CHAIN

The chain connecting some of the world's best known brands with a mine in one the most inaccessible corners of Southeast Asia has many links.

One key intermediary is state-owned Yunnan Cultural Industry International (YCII), based in Yunnan, southwestern China, which said in a statement on its website that it enjoys "a long-term, stable strategic partnership" with the UWSA statelet.

YCII declined several interview requests.

YCII is, in turn, a major supplier of tin to the world's top producer, Yunnan Tin, also based in Yunnan.

Yunnan Tin supplies many companies, including big contract manufacturers such as Foxconn Technology Co and, indirectly, Pegatron Corp, whose clients include Apple. It also supplies major solder makers such as Shenmao Technology, also a supplier to Pegatron.

"Myanmar is not considered a conflict-affected area by CFSI...As long as smelters present a certified sourcing document, that's acceptable for us," said Tim Lin, an executive overseeing sourcing at Taiwan-based Shenmao, who said about a quarter of its supply of the metal came from Yunnan Tin.

In the last two years, Yunnan Tin has also shipped more than 12,000 tons of metal to the United States, according to shipment data from U.S.-based trade tracking company Panjiva.

More than 500 publicly traded companies in the United States say their suppliers use tin from Yunnan Tin or Yuntinic Resources, its San Mateo, California-based division, according to a review of the supply chain disclosures consumer companies make to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Two members of Yunnan Tin's board, vice chairwoman Yang Yimin and secretary and vice general manager Pan Wenhao, confirmed in interviews that a "portion" of the company's tin came from the UWSA-operated mine.

"We certainly buy tin indirectly from Myanmar," Pan told Reuters. "We don't specifically pay attention to where they source their materials from."

Yunnan Tin mixes the Wa tin with metal from mines in central and southwestern China, said Pan, before processing it into products such as tin paste.

That means it is impossible to say for certain which shipments from the company contain Wa tin, but Pan estimated Yunnan Tin's purchases from the mine account for about a third of its total annual tin consumption, or at least 16,500 tons.

Apple said in a statement it worked with suppliers to help them meet stringent standards, "and those who are ultimately unable or unwilling to comply are removed from our supply chain".

"While we have no evidence of illegal tin from Myanmar in our products, we'll continue to investigate, address any issues we find and do all we can to raise standards and protect human rights," it said.

Foxconn said it "enforced stringent supplier management requirements in accordance with international and local conflict minerals legislation and has proactively communicated these requirements to our suppliers".

It added that less than 1 percent of its tin was procured from Yunnan Tin, all of which was used in products for a "single, non-U.S.-based customer".

Pegatron Corp said it carried out "annual due diligence on suppliers and encourage them to source from validated conflict-free supply chains".

"Pegatron will continue working with customers and international organizations to investigate and source minerals responsibly," the company added.

FROM JEWELLERY TO APPLIANCES

Companies that sell consumer products in the United States are required by the Dodd-Frank Act to publish their suppliers of tin and other minerals.

Among the companies listing Yunnan Tin, Tiffany said one of its suppliers had indirectly sourced a "very small amount of tin" from the Chinese smelter for use in silver solder for jewellery and hollowware.

The company added that, as Yunnan Tin was certified as conflict-free by the CFSI, "use of this smelter by our vendors is consistent with our Conflict Minerals Policy".

Starbucks said small amounts of Yunnan Tin metal, sourced from second or third party suppliers, went into the ovens in its coffee shops.

The company had received no information indicating it was using minerals from Myanmar, a spokeswoman said, but was pushing suppliers for more detailed sourcing disclosures.

A GE spokesman said the company strived to use ethical sourcing in its mineral supply chain, adding it had "noted the concerns raised by Reuters and will address them through our internal process and with our external partners".

A spokeswoman from discount retailer Target said in a statement it was "committed to responsible business conduct".

"We take these allegations very seriously, and we are looking into this," the statement said.

(Additional reporting by Antoni Slodkowski in Yangon, JR Wu in Taipei, Jussi Rosendahl in Helsinki and Helena Soderpalm in Stockholm, Paul Carsten in Beijing and Sijia Zhang in Hong Kong; Editing by Alex Richardson)
By Yimou Lee and Joel Schectman YANGON/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - From a remote corner of northeastern Myanmar, an insurgent army sells tin ore to suppliers of some of the world's largest consumer companies. More than 500 companies, including leading brands such as smartphone maker Apple , coffee giant Starbucks and luxury jeweler Tiffany & Co , list among their suppliers Chinese-controlled firms that indirectly buy ore from the Man Maw mine near Myanmar's border with China, a Reuters examination of the supply chain found. The mine is controlled by the United Wa State Army (UWSA), which the United States placed under sanctions for alleged narcotics trafficking in 2003. The seven companies extracting tin from the mine are all owned or controlled by Wa military and government leaders, Wa officials and people with close ties to UWSA leadership told Reuters. This potentially puts companies, which also include industrial conglomerate General Electric , at risk of violating sanctions that forbid "direct or indirect" dealings with blacklisted groups, according to a former and a serving U.S. official and lawyers with expertise in sanctions enforcement. Several sanctions experts said the U.S. government was unlikely to fine companies who unwittingly used the Myanmar tin. Still, it may force them to shift to new suppliers, they said. A Treasury Department spokeswoman said U.S. sanctions "generally prohibit U.S. companies from engaging in any direct or indirect transactions or dealings with individuals or entities" on a blacklist, but declined further comment on specific circumstances. The situation illustrates the difficulties facing multinationals in monitoring supply chains that have grown increasingly complex. Following a 2012 U.S. regulation, companies have spent billions of dollars scrutinizing whether certain minerals used in their products come from mines controlled by armed groups in Central Africa. But the regulations do not require them to assess the origins of minerals from other conflict zones. Apple, Tiffany and GE, and other companies contacted by Reuters, said that to fulfill those regulations they looked to an audit program designed by the industry group Conflict Free Sourcing Initiative (CFSI). A CFSI program director said the group was "aware of tin exports from Myanmar to other countries and of security and human rights issues in Myanmar". The group said it was updating its audit requirements to include "a broader definition of conflict-affected and high-risk areas". Tin supply chain expert at monitoring group Global Witness, Sophia Pickles, said companies must not wholly outsource due diligence responsibility to a scheme that has exclusively focused on central Africa. "Companies, not schemes, bear the primary responsibility for ensuring that supply chains are responsible," she said. CIVIL WAR Most of the tin mined globally is used as solder in electronics, for making batteries and plating. The Man Maw mine roiled the global tin market when huge quantities of high grade ore were discovered around 2013. Annual production is now estimated at about 33,000 tons of tin concentrate, more than a 10th of global output of the metal. The mine is controlled by the UWSA, the strongest of the myriad armed groups that have kept Myanmar in a state of near-perpetual civil war for decades. Reuters visited the remote mine last month, the first international media organization to do so. Interviews with officials running the mine, UWSA leaders and executives at Asian tin suppliers, together with an examination of public disclosures of suppliers made by companies in regulatory filings, indicate Wa tin likely ends up in an array of products made by U.S. and other international companies. Tin from Man Maw provides revenue critical to the survival of the self-proclaimed Wa State and its rulers, who have refused to disarm or participate in Myanmar's peace process. "There are dozens of trucks carrying tin ore to China every morning," the head of the Wa territory foreign affairs office, Zhao Guo An, told Reuters. "Tin mining is the pillar of our economy. It's the biggest source of income." While Washington has lifted most sanctions on Myanmar, some have been kept in place, including those aimed at the UWSA. The group and several of its leaders are blacklisted under the Kingpin Act over accusations of trafficking in heroin and methamphetamine. UWSA leaders deny involvement in narcotics, saying the accusations are a smear by political opponents. Peter Kucik, a former senior sanctions advisor at the U.S. Treasury Department, said the findings highlighted the need for thorough due diligence. "The facts suggest potential sanctions risk for the parties involved," Kucik said. Two companies in Apple's supply chain, the world's No. 1 tin producer Yunnan Tin Co Ltd <000960.SZ> and leading Taiwan-based solder maker Shenmao Technology <3305.TW>, told Reuters that some tin they bought was from the Wa mine. Mandy Gan, a tin analyst from China's leading mineral research company, Asian Metal, and another tin expert, both of whom visited the UWSA mine this year, said many other Chinese smelting firms supplying global consumer goods makers also bought tin from the Man Maw mine. Sanctions experts said even the indirect use of the tin might be considered a violation of U.S. sanctions law, which does not require authorities to prove intent. A U.S. government official involved in Myanmar policy consulted on Reuters' findings said the government was likely to investigate any ties to the UWSA. Still, Washington-based sanctions attorney Erich Ferrari said it was unlikely the Treasury Department would initiate an enforcement action against companies for an issue so deep in the supply chain. Once the ties were publicized, however, authorities could impose penalties if the companies did not wind down the transactions and find new suppliers, he said. SUPPLY CHAIN The chain connecting some of the world's best known brands with a mine in one the most inaccessible corners of Southeast Asia has many links. ((For a GRAPHIC, click on: http://tmsnrt.rs/2giJmcq)) One key intermediary is state-owned Yunnan Cultural Industry International (YCII), based in Yunnan, southwestern China, which said in a statement on its website that it enjoys "a long-term, stable strategic partnership" with the UWSA statelet. YCII declined several interview requests. YCII is, in turn, a major supplier of tin to the world's top producer, Yunnan Tin, also based in Yunnan. Yunnan Tin supplies many companies, including big contract manufacturers such as Foxconn Technology Co <2354.TW> and, indirectly, Pegatron Corp <4938.TW>, whose clients include Apple. It also supplies major solder makers such as Shenmao Technology, also a supplier to Pegatron. "Myanmar is not considered a conflict-affected area by CFSI...As long as smelters present a certified sourcing document, that's acceptable for us," said Tim Lin, an executive overseeing sourcing at Taiwan-based Shenmao, who said about a quarter of its supply of the metal came from Yunnan Tin. In the last two years, Yunnan Tin has also shipped more than 12,000 tons of metal to the United States, according to shipment data from U.S.-based trade tracking company Panjiva. More than 500 publicly traded companies in the United States say their suppliers use tin from Yunnan Tin or Yuntinic Resources, its San Mateo, California-based division, according to a review of the supply chain disclosures consumer companies make to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Two members of Yunnan Tin's board, vice chairwoman Yang Yimin and secretary and vice general manager Pan Wenhao, confirmed in interviews that a "portion" of the company's tin came from the UWSA-operated mine. "We certainly buy tin indirectly from Myanmar," Pan told Reuters. "We don't specifically pay attention to where they source their materials from." Yunnan Tin mixes the Wa tin with metal from mines in central and southwestern China, said Pan, before processing it into products such as tin paste. That means it is impossible to say for certain which shipments from the company contain Wa tin, but Pan estimated Yunnan Tin's purchases from the mine account for about a third of its total annual tin consumption, or at least 16,500 tons. Apple said in a statement it worked with suppliers to help them meet stringent standards, "and those who are ultimately unable or unwilling to comply are removed from our supply chain". "While we have no evidence of illegal tin from Myanmar in our products, we'll continue to investigate, address any issues we find and do all we can to raise standards and protect human rights," it said. Foxconn said it "enforced stringent supplier management requirements in accordance with international and local conflict minerals legislation and has proactively communicated these requirements to our suppliers". It added that less than 1 percent of its tin was procured from Yunnan Tin, all of which was used in products for a "single, non-U.S.-based customer". Pegatron Corp said it carried out "annual due diligence on suppliers and encourage them to source from validated conflict-free supply chains". "Pegatron will continue working with customers and international organizations to investigate and source minerals responsibly," the company added. FROM JEWELRY TO APPLIANCES Companies that sell consumer products in the United States are required by the Dodd-Frank Act to publish their suppliers of tin and other minerals. Among the companies listing Yunnan Tin, Tiffany said one of its suppliers had indirectly sourced a "very small amount of tin" from the Chinese smelter for use in silver solder for jewelry and hollowware. The company added that, as Yunnan Tin was certified as conflict-free by the CFSI, "use of this smelter by our vendors is consistent with our Conflict Minerals Policy". Starbucks said small amounts of Yunnan Tin metal, sourced from second or third party suppliers, went into the ovens in its coffee shops. The company had received no information indicating it was using minerals from Myanmar, a spokeswoman said, but was pushing suppliers for more detailed sourcing disclosures. A GE spokesman said the company strived to use ethical sourcing in its mineral supply chain, adding it had "noted the concerns raised by Reuters and will address them through our internal process and with our external partners". A spokeswoman from discount retailer Target said in a statement it was "committed to responsible business conduct". "We take these allegations very seriously, and we are looking into this," the statement said. (Additional reporting by Antoni Slodkowski in Yangon, JR Wu in Taipei, Jussi Rosendahl in Helsinki and Helena Soderpalm in Stockholm, Paul Carsten in Beijing and Sijia Zhang in Hong Kong; Editing by Alex Richardson)
The Tennessee school bus driver charged in the Nov. 21 crash that killed six elementary school students had multiple complaints lodged against him in the preceding days, according to Hamilton County Department of Education records obtained by PEOPLE.

Johnthony Walker, 24, has been charged with six counts of vehicular homicide, Chattanooga police spokeswoman Elissa Myzal tells PEOPLE. He is currently in Hamilton County Jail on $107,500 bond. He has not entered a plea and his first court appearance is Tuesday, Myzal says. Information about his attorney was not immediately available.

According to an email sent by Woodmore Elementary School Principal Brenda Adamson-Cothran on Nov. 16, five days before the crash, Six students reported that the bus driver of the red bus (366) was swerving and purposely trying to cause them to fall today.

The documents include two written reports by students about Walker. One student alleged, He drives to fast, and it feels like the bus is going to flip over. The student accused Walker of stopping the bus intentionally when students were in the aisle, causing students to hit their heads.

Another student wrote, The bus driver was doing sharp turns and he made me fly over the next seat We need seat .

According to the documents, Walker had complained that the students were not listening to him, which prompted Carlis Shackelford, a Behavior Specialist with the school district, to board his bus on Nov. 2.

According to a memo written by Shackleford, Driver stated that he did not care about the students and proceeded to tell the students he did not care about them.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

The memo also states that Walker said he has another job and driving this bus was just a part time job for him.

Last week, National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Christopher A. Hart said in a news conference that Walker had taken on a second job at an Amazon center and that the agency is looking at whether fatigue perhaps played a role in the crash, reports the The Tennessean.

Story continues

Another email written by Cothran, on Nov. 11, states, On Tuesday, , the driver, in my opinion, was driving way too fast when he pulled out of our school.

Police allege Walker was speeding and driving recklessly when he lost control of the bus, according to an arrest warrant obtained by PEOPLE.

It was Walkers second traffic collision while driving a school bus in as many months, according to state records.

His license was previously suspended for more than a year for failure to show proof of insurance, beginning in March 2014, and it was reinstated on March 28, 2015, a Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security spokeswoman confirmed to PEOPLE.

According to a toxicology test, Walker did not have drugs or alcohol in his system, according to a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman.

Walker had no criminal history in Tennessee prior to his Monday arrest, according to the TBI.

The victims have been identified by their families and multiple published reports as Zyaira Mateen, 6, DMyunn Brown, 6, Keyonte Wilson, 8, Zoie Nash, 9, Cordayja Jones, 9, and Zyanna Harris, 10.




Republican billionaire Donald Trump has already assumed the role of president-elect, interviewing potential cabinet members and setting up his staff  but another twist in the seemingly never-ending 2016 election has now opened up a far-off possibility that could lose him the White House.

Green Party candidate Jill Stein raised millions of dollars last week to request ballot recounts in the states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, which all backed Trump. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton wont become the next president of the United States if the recount in the Badger State awards her a surprise victory, but if the same outcome occurrs in Michigan and Pennsylvania, the election could be officially reversed.

Stein has vowed to push for recounts in each state ahead of the Dec. 13 deadline by which electoral college disputes must be settled, though Pennsylvanias strict requirements could prove difficult to overcome. If voters send in the thousands of affidavits needed to demand a recount there and Clinton takes Trumps Electoral College votes in each state, she will have 278 electoral votes to Trumps 260  just above the 270 threshold to win the presidency.

Stein posted a live video on Facebook Sunday urging Pennsylvania voters to participate in the recount process so the state can mandate the process ahead of the approaching deadline. Meanwhile, the Clinton campaign wrote in a Medium post titled "Listening and responding to calls for an audit and recount" that it will participate in the recount in states where the Green Party is spearheading the process  as affected campaigns normally do.

RTX2SFCZ

Photo: Reuters

"This election cycle was unique in the degree of foreign interference witnessed throughout the campaign: the U.S. government concluded that Russian state actors were behind the hacks of the Democratic National Committee and the personal email accounts of Hillary for America campaign officials, and just yesterday, the Washington Post reported that the Russian government was behind much of the 'fake news' propaganda that circulated online in the closing weeks of the election," Clinton staffer Marc Elias wrote. "We feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself."

Story continues

Trump blasted the recount efforts on Twitter, alleging millions of ballots were casted in the election illegally and suggesting voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California despite a lack of evidence.

It would be unprecedented for Clinton to take the presidency from Trump, as recounts normally do not yield changes to the results large enough to flip the result of an election. A recount has never reversed the result of an American presidential election, though 3 out of 27 recounts since 2000 have awarded reversals in state and local elections (each time to a Democrat).

A group of computer experts noted irregularities in each state where Stein is calling for a recount. The Clinton campaign noted there wasn't any proof of a cyberattack, but if systems were indeed compromised, the recount results could deliver the White House to Clinton. As FiveThirtyEights Carl Bialik writes, "hackers could have modified vote totals by more than the usual amount that recounts changed vote totals."

If the results go unchanged, Trump will become president on Jan. 20.

Related Articles
Russian propaganda new style

A recent reportcited by The Washington Post from PropOrNot, an anonymous group claiming to include foreign policy, military, and technology researchers, provides evidence that 200 distinct websites, Facebook groups, and Youtube channels have been spreading baseless Russian propaganda to at least 15 million Americans.

While PropOrNot chooses to remain anonymous, citing concerns that Russian agents will retaliate against them, their methods claim to uncover some connections that merit consideration.

The report draws on a wealth of reports from a wide variety of media outlets that explored the "fake news" and conspiracy theory-driven reports that flooded newsfeeds around the US during the election cycle to identify which sites merely post dishonest stories for ad revenues, and which sites actively parrot Russian propaganda.

By simply googling excerpts from Russian state-run media outlets, the report finds a myriad of sites that parrot the Kremlin's propaganda verbatim, often weaving the disinformation in with larger conspiracy theories.

One example of obviously false information making the rounds in the Russian-aligned web comes from Canadian journalist Christian Borys, who posted photos US F/A-18s painted like Russian jets for a training exercise. In this tweet, Borys makes it clear that this practice is "standard training" procedure, so US pilots can better simulate combat against potential foes in Russian-made jets.

The U.S is painting their F/A-18's to match the paint schemes of Russian jets in #Syria. Standard training, but interesting nonetheless. pic.twitter.com/FVN6tMj2Ji  Christian Borys (@ItsBorys) October 6, 2016

The innocent tweet got picked up by Russian-aligned blogs and Youtube channels with outrageous headlines suggesting the US painted these jets to bomb civilians in Syria and then blame Russia.

Story continues

Numerous blogs and Youtube accounts ran headlines like "!!BOOM!! USA Caught Repainting Fighter Jets to RUSSIAN COLORS!!!" or "IS OBAMA PLANNING DRASTIC 'FALSE FLAG' ATTACK IN SYRIA?"

Borys tried to refute the story with the facts surrounding the picture, but sites like RT continued to print the rumor even after the famous fact checker Snopes addressed the story and named it patently false.

Similar stories, about Hillary Clinton's health for example, have made their way around the internet thanks to the power of Russian-run and Russian-aligned media.

NOW WATCH: Watch the US Coast Guard seize a narco sub laden with $73 million worth of cocaine





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By Andrius Sytas and Gederts Gelzis RUKLA, Lithuania/MUCENIEKI, Latvia (Reuters) - In early November, 34 Syrian and Iraqi refugees boarded buses heading for Germany from Lithuania, the country where they had been resettled. No one expects them to return. Only a tiny number of refugees from war in the Middle East have been sent to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, among the European Union's poorest countries. The Baltic states were nobody's first choice. "When we left from Turkey to Greece, our final goal was Germany or Holland," said Mohamed Kamel Haj Ali, 52, once a shopkeeper in Syria, who for the time being still lives in Rukla in Lithuania. "But the land route from Greece was already closed, so we had no choice but to enter the relocation program, which brought us here." Seventy-two out of the 90 Syrians and Iraqis resettled to Lithuania from Greece or Turkey, and granted refugee status under its EU quota, have since left, according to official figures. "The ones who left (for Germany) said they left Syria out of fear of death from bombs, but here they feared they would die from hunger," said Haj Ali. "So they took the risk and left." Under EU rules, refugees are forbidden to work or claim refuge in other member states. Some destroy their identity documents after leaving the Baltics, in the hope of claiming refugee status anew in richer countries like Germany. But Haj Ali, who is in touch with some of the refugees who took the buses from Lithuania to Germany, says things are better there. "They are satisfied living in a German refugee center, and are receiving everything they are entitled to," he said. More than half of the 63 refugees given asylum in Latvia under its EU quota have left, according to an estimate by the Latvian Red Cross. The European Union is struggling to implement its 2015 agreement to share 160,000 refugees across 28 member states. Only about 7,500 have been resettled so far. Poland has refused to accept its quota of 7,000, and Slovakia has called for the scheme to be scrapped. "We can't hold them here by force," said Rihards Kozlovskis, interior minister of Latvia. MEAGER BENEFITS, FEW JOBS In the Baltic states, benefits are limited. Lithuania pays a refugee family of two parents and two children 450 euros a month for the first six months. After that payments are halved. Ilmars Latkovskis, head of the Latvian parliament's Citizenship, Migration and Social Cohesion Committee, said that to make it attractive to stay, benefits would have to be boosted "to a level which would be very unpleasant for our own population, which is not that well-off". Neighboring Estonia provides free accommodation for two years in addition to financial benefits. Not one of is allocated 77 refugees is missing, its interior ministry said. The Baltic countries have little history of immigration, so refugees lack community connections and there are few jobs. "Why do you take us for relocation if you don't have a place for us?" said Qassem, 37, a Syrian working as a translator at Latvia's Mucenieki refugee reception center. Qassem, who did not want give a surname, said he knew only one other refugee with job. Haj Ali, who has only just won refugee status, said he too planned to leave for Germany with his wife and two adult children unless he could find work and affordable housing in Lithuania before the six-month deadline when his benefits will be halved. Despite the re-migration westwards, the European Commission sees the relocation scheme as a success, said Giedrius Sudikas, spokesman for the commission's office in Lithuania. "If they move to another country, they cannot apply for work, they cannot reside there, they cannot receive benefits," he said. "And if they are apprehended in another member state, they will have to be returned to the state of relocation. These are important safeguards." (Additional reporting by David Mardiste; Editing by Andrew Roche)
Texas Highways are Already Dominated by Huge 18-wheelers Imagine a Semi-Truck thats Up to 175 Feet Long

DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / In Texas, semi-trucks can be no longer than 59 feet, including the trailer. In many motorists' minds, this is plenty long enough. As a state with some of the heaviest truck traffic in the country, Texas highways are already dominated by huge 18-wheelers. Now imagine a semi-truck thats up to 175 feet long. It may sound ridiculous, but it is reality in Australia.

Known as road trains, these supersized semis are actually banned in many parts of Australia. In the Outback, however, they are frequently used to cross sparsely populated terrain to deliver freight to the more densely populated urban areas along the coast.

Prior to the vehicle age, people who wanted to ship goods across the Australian continent did so on camelback or by sailing along the coast. However, this was a costly and time-consuming process. With a road train, semis can haul freight across thousands of miles within a few days instead of the weeks it would take to ship by water.

American semi-trucks typically weigh up to 40 tons and have a maximum length of 80 feet depending on the state. In Australia, road trains can be up to 175 feet long - and length is unlimited for road trains that travel private roads, such as those found in large mining operations. A fully loaded road train can weigh up to 220 tons.

Furthermore, road train drivers can remain at the wheel for up to 21 hours straight. The Australian Road Train Association - an industry advocacy organization - recommends road train drivers restrict their driving time to 14 hours at a stretch.

Road Trains Around the World:

Although the term "road train" is sometimes used in the U.S. to describe a semi with a triple trailer, road trains usually refer to the longer combination vehicles used in Australia. These mega semi-trucks also operate in parts of Mexico, Canada, and Argentina. In the United States, just a handful of states, including Idaho, Oregon, Montana, and parts of Ohio and Indiana, permit semis with three trailers to operate.

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Eberstein & Witherite, LLP: Texas Truck Accident Lawyers:

If you or a loved one has been injured in a semi-truck crash, call the 1800 Truck Wreck Lawyers at Eberstein & Witherite, LLP 24/7 to speak to an experienced tractor-trailer accident lawyer about your case. Lawyers are available to speak to you today. You can reach us through our online contact form, or by calling 1-800-TRUCK WRECK (1-800-878-2597).

Media Contact:

Lucy Tiseo

Eberstein & Witherite, LLP

Phone: 800-878-2597

Email: lucy.tiseo@ewlawyers.com

www.1800truckwreck.com

Connect with Eberstein & Witherite on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter

SOURCE: Eberstein & Witherite, LLP via Submit Press Release 123
Robert Wolf

Fox News is bringing on a top Democratic fundraiser and ex-President of UBS Investment Bank who advised President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Business Insider learned on Monday that Robert Wolf will join Fox News and Fox Business as a daytime and primetime contributor, providing political commentary mixed with economic analysis.

A Fox News spokesperson confirmed the network had hired Wolf.

A Democratic fundraiser for John Kerrys Presidential run in 2004, and an adviser to Clinton, Wolf frequently touts his close ties to Obama, who appointed him to serve on the Economic Recovery Advisory Board and the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness among other positions. Indeed, Wolf is on the board of the Barack Obama Foundation, and has even vacationed with the president.

During the 2016 campaign, Wolf frequently appeared on business television, attracting the attention of Clinton campaign chair John Podesta as a potentially strong surrogate on economic issues. Wolf attempted to make the case to fiscal conservatives that they would be better off with Clinton than now-President-elect Donald Trump.

"A lot of the business community will support the secretary because her business policies are better," Wolf told The Hill earlier this year, noting an independent analysis that showed how Trump's plan would result in a $10 trillion revenue loss for the US economy.

Wolfe also said he enjoyed appearing on Fox News, arguing that too few Democratic officials attempted to get in front of conservative audiences.

"Im working on the shows on Fox, and to date its been great," he told The Hill.

He added: "I think its important that people who may not necessarily align with a lot of Hillarys views at least hear her views in a very solid and honest approach, because I actually think when they listen to her views on the economy...I think we have a chance to change a lot of what I would say the center-right Republicans and independents minds."

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Rockridge Capital Corp. (RRC.V) ("Rockridge" or the "Company") announces that Robert McMorran has resigned as a director. To fill the vacancy caused by the resignation, the Company wishes to announce that James Walchuck has been appointed as a director of the Company. The Company wishes to thank Mr. McMorran for his services as a director of the Company.

Mr. Walchuck (BSc., PEng) is a mining professional with over 36 years of national and international experience in the minerals industry, including work in North America, Slovakia, the UK, Ghana, and Tanzania. Mr. Walchuck was the Manager Mining for Barrick at the Bulyanhulu Gold Mine in Tanzania from 1999 to 2002. There he oversaw the building of a multi-million-ounce, high-grade underground mine in 24 months and achieved over 2 million man-hours without a lost-time accident. Prior to his 6-year involvement with Bulyanhulu (first as Sr. Project Manager with Sutton Resources, then as Manager Mining for Barrick), Mr. Walchuck was Manager of Mining and then Manager - Corporate Operations for Royal Oak Mines. This was preceded by a 5-year term as Chief Mining Engineer for Tarkwa Goldfields in Ghana. Recently, Mr. Walchuck was CEO and a director of Encanto Potash Corp. A member of the Professional Engineers of Ontario for 36 years, Mr. Walchuck holds Bachelor Degrees in both Science and Engineering.

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

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.

SOURCE: Rockridge Capital Corp.
Multiple boats packed with Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar were turned back by Bangladesh border guards Monday, despite appeals by the country's opposition to provide shelter to the persecuted Muslim minority.

Thousands of desperate Rohingya from Myanmar's western Rakhine state have flooded over the border into Bangladesh in the last week, bringing with them horrifying claims of gang rape, torture and murder at the hands of Myanmar's security forces.

Eight boats attempting to cross the Naf River separating Rakhine from southern Bangladesh were pushed back on Monday after six were refused entry on Sunday, head of the board guards in the Bangladeshi frontier town of Teknaf, Colonel Abuzar Al Zahid, told AFP.

"There were 12 to 13 Rohingya in each of the boats," Zahid said.

Dhaka says thousands more are massed on the border, but has refused urgent international appeals to let them in, instead calling on Myanmar to do more to stop people fleeing.

In the past two weeks, Bangladeshi border guards have prevented more than 1,000 Rohingya, including many women and children, from entering the country by boat, officials told AFP.

Bangladesh's main opposition leader Khaleda Zia late Sunday joined a growing chorus of political parties and hardline Islamist groups in the Muslim majority country calling for the Rohingya to be given shelter.

At least 30,000 have been internally displaced in Rakhine and many have tried to reach Bangladesh over the last month despite heightened border patrols, and sought refugee amongst the Rohingya refugee population that already live on the Bangladesh side.

Samira Akhter told AFP by phone that she reached an unofficial refugee camp in Bangladesh on Monday, after fleeing her village in Rakhine state with her three children and 49 others.

"The military killed my husband and torched our home. I fled to a hill along with my three children and neighbours. We hid there for a week," said Akhter, 27.

Story continues

Dudu Mia, a Rohingya leader in the camp, said at least 1,338 had arrived in the community since mid October.

Violence in Rakhine -- home to the stateless ethnic group loathed by many of Myanmar's Buddhist majority -- has surged in the last month after security forces poured into the area following a series of attacks on police posts blamed on local militants.

A UN official said last week Myanmar is engaged in "ethnic cleansing" of Rohingya Muslims, as reports emerged of troops shooting at villagers as they tried to flee.

But Myanmar's new civilian government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, has rejected the allegations.
Former Massachusetts governor and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is reportedly headed to New York early this week to meet with President-elect Donald Trump for further discussions about the key position of Secretary of State in the nascent Trump administration. At this point, Romneys decision to keep himself in the mix for the job is, to say the least, surprising.

Thats because Romney, in the past week, has come under unremitting assault on multiple fronts from a top Trump aide, a prominent surrogate, and a media company that was, until recently, run by Trumps chief White House strategist.

Related: Trump Cant Make America Great If He Kicks the Medicare Can Down the Road

There is, to be sure, considerable fence-mending that would need to happen for Romney to work successfully with Trump. As the most recent GOP nominee, Romney came out decisively and loudly against Trump during the Republican primaries, referring to the former reality television show star as a phony, a fraud who was playing the American public for suckers and who has neither the temperament nor the judgment to be president.

There is a current of thought in the commentariat that suggests Trump might simply be stringing Romney along in order to maximize the humiliation that ultimately handing the job to someone else would inflict. However, taken at face value, Trumps decision to consider Romney for the top appointment in his cabinet looks like a willingness to try to move past the acrimony of the primary elections.

But while Trump seems ready to move on, others in his inner circle seems far less willing to forgive and forget -- particularly when Trumps most dogged defender during the worst days of the primary -- former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani -- in known to want the job badly.

On Thanksgiving, Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway posted a tweet saying that she was receiving deluge of social media & private comms re: Romney Some Trump loyalists warn against Romney as sec of state. In a follow-up, she pointedly suggested that being loyal to the president should be a key factor in filling the role of secretary of state.

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Related: Looks Like Most Voters Disagree With Trump on Just About Everything

Then, she made the rounds of the talk shows on Sunday and continued to bash the former Massachusetts governor, both for his treatment of Trump in the primary and for his losing 2012 presidential campaign. (He lost spectacularly, she noted.)

Im all for party unity, but Im not sure that we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position, Conway said on CNN. We dont even know if Mitt Romney voted for Donald Trump. She called the resistance to Romney among core Trump supporters breathtaking in scope and intensity.

Later, in an appearance on NBC, Conway said appointing Romney to run Foggy Bottom would be a betrayal of Trumps voters.

"People feel betrayed to think that Gov. Romney, who went out of his way to question the character and the intellect and the integrity of Donald Trump, now our president-elect, would be given the most significant Cabinet post of all, secretary of state, she said.

Related: Trump Is Starting to Sound Like the Backtracker in Chief

That Conways evident misgivings are playing out on such a public stage is remarkable, in that she presumably still has the ear of the president-elect, and could make her concerns known to Trump in private rather than by publicly attacking Romney.

But Conway was not the only high-profile Trump surrogate going after the former Massachusetts governor. Trump surrogate and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich suggested Trump might not be able to trust Romney to carry out his wishes if he gets the job.

You have to list out all the things he said and think, Is this guy really going to be loyal? Gingrich said. But also, you know, Gov. Romney wanted to be president, not secretary of state, and you have to ask the question: When he goes overseas, is he going to be the secretary of state for President Trump or is he going to be Mitt Romneys own secretary state?

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, also an occasional Trump surrogate during the campaign, said that a Romney appointment would be a real insult to Trumps supporters, and said that he shouldnt even be considered without making an apology in which he he goes to a microphone in a very public place and repudiates everything he said about Trump during the campaign.

Related: Why Trump Should Welcome an Election Recount

Meanwhile Breitbart News, the organization formerly operated by Steve Bannon, CEO of the Trump campaign and now chief White House strategist and senior counselor to Trump, has been highlighting criticism of Romney for several days, including gleefully noting that he finished a distant fourth when the website asked its readers to rank potential secretary of state picks.

With the knives so plainly out for him, for Romney to make another trek to Trump Tower to talk about taking the secretary of state job can be tacked up to one of two things: either patriotism backed by extraordinary optimism, or utter desperation for the job.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Ronan Farrow has moved from hosting a daytime program on MSNBC to chasing after nuclear vapors in Washington state.

In a report slated to air on NBCs Today tomorrow morning, Farrow will take viewers inside the Hanford Nuclear Site in southeastern Washington, a facility with a record of providing lackluster safety for the workers who toil there each day. Theyve got multiple Olympic-size swimming pools full of the deadliest, the most toxic material, said Farrow during a recent interview. There are serious safety problems. He believes he is one of the first national reporters to gain access to the facility as well as get reaction from the U.S. Department of Energy, which supervises the site.

The assignment finds Farrow trying to shine a light on topics like the ones he talked about on Ronan Farrow Daily, an MSNBC experiment that gave an hour a day to an exceedingly bright host who had to master the nuances of TV even as he worked to build an audience that, ultimately, proved hard to find. MSNBC cancelled the program as part of a bigger shift to bring more breaking-news coverage to its daytime schedule. Now, the 28-year-old correspondent is contributing longer segments to Today, NBC Nightly News and MSNBC, but with more worn shoe leather under his feet.

Theres nothing like being at the desk for breaking news, said Farrow. But its also rewarding being in the field and having the time to get to the bottom of a story.

Since arriving in the world of TV-news, Farrow has made a point of trying to cover stories he considers underreported by national news outlets In recent months, the Yale Law School graduate and founder of the U.S. State Departments Office of Global Youth Issues, has examined a number of them, ranging from how college campuses handle sexual-assault allegations to voter ID laws, and, more recently, to Google getting involved in the fight against terrorist-organization ISIS.

Its not what everyone does. Its not what our competitors always do,he noted. But it goes way back to me as a viewer craving these kinds of stories. Theres so much B.S. out there in the media world. Its nice to just have really well-reported truths and the time to get them right. Farrow has carved out a unique role contributing special investigative pieces, and were thrilled to provide a platform for his work on Today,' said Noah Oppenheim, the NBC News senior vice president and executive in charge of the morning-news franchise.

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The role also allows him to keep more attention on the stories at hand and less on himself. Farrows education is notable, but so is his background. He is the son of actress Mia Farrow and his MSNBC debut came with a bright spotlight that often focused on other issues related to his family. The scrutiny is something out of my control, he told Variety in 2015. Its not the easiest thing to deal with, Ill be completely honest, but there are a lot of worse crosses to bear.

To get the story of the Washington state nuclear facility, Farrow and producers were fortunate enough to come into contact with a large number of workers who told us some pretty illuminating details, he recounted. Indeed, a whistleblower first tipped him to new developments. He also acknowledged strong reporting on the Hanford site by Suzannah Frame, the chief investigative reporter at Seattle TV station KING. Shes putting a lot on the line herself, he said.

Viewers may well be upset by what they learn. I was surprised by just how many workers have made credible claims that they have been hurt at this site and the years of internal government studies that back up their claims, Farrow noted. It raises bigger questions about the system of government contracting being used here, and whether it can contain threats like this.

The stories he brings to NBC News now are not the easiest to get on the air, he said. Its a long process, he noted, involving verifying the accounts of sources who are often putting themselves a risk to talk about things that have gone awry. Its not glamorous. Im in the edit room a lot. Im talking to sources a ton and Im running around the country a ton, he said. The reward, he noted, comes in hearing from state legislators or college executives who tell him the reports have spurred them to try to make changes to policy.

He expects to continue to seek out issues that havent gotten much play in the national news media, and hopes to be tipped to them by viewers. The whole concept behind the series is to crowd-source ideas, so I await the internets wisdom, he said. Theres also a long-in-the-works book project that examines Americas funding of foreign armies and militias and the consequences that result. Farrow said he recently spent a week embedded in Kabul with a warlord turned top Afghan official, who showed up to interviews accompanied by a giant reindeer. Its probably safe to say that hasnt gotten much news coverage, either  at least, not yet.

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This is roughly how much money Rory spent flying back and forth to London during Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life

There are many things to love about Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. There are so many things to love, if we were to list them out right now we might as well just go ahead and re-binge all four episodes! However, with that being said, there was one thing that we didnt really love  okay, love is the wrong word. Lets say, we were slightly confused by it: How the HECK did Rory pay for all those transatlantic flights?

Admit it. Thats bothering you too.

When we meet Rory Gilmore in the future, she is a writer (dreams come true!) but shes in a current writer situation that many of us have faced before in our writer lives: freelancing. Theres nothing bad with freelancing  and in truth, I did it myself for almost three years. If youve freelanced before, you know that while the pay is often times very good, it is also very sporadic. If youre a freelancer, half your time is spent writing, and the other half is spent politely begging asking people to pay you for your work. Its fun!

We learn that Rory has written for places like The New Yorker, and The Atlantic, and Slate, and those are all very good, cool places to write for! But as she confesses during the first episode, Winter, shes got some irons in the fire but nothing lined up right now. That means, no steady income. The book proposal with Naomi Shropshire is coming along nicely, but shes only doing it on spec, and spec = no $$$.

SO HOW IS RORY FLYING BACK AND FORTH TO LONDON AT THE DROP OF A DIME? Flights are EXPENSIVE.

As soon as the first ~new~ episode of Gilmore Girls, Winter, opens, Rorys just gotten off a flight from London (she gives Lorelai a Princess Charlotte spoon, remember??). Shes only in Stars Hollow for the night, and then she leaves, again (never specified if its to head to Europe or not). Theres a little time jump, because next thing you know theyre at Friday Night Dinner and Rory is showing up, not with Lorleai. Then Rory is in Europe with Logan (oy). Then shes back home. In one episode alone, it appears as if Rory has flown five times!

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For funsies, lets just look at the prices of some flights, shall we? Living in Stars Hollow, Rory is probably flying in and out of Hartford International Airport, and she was probably flying around this December-ish time, so those are the flights I searched. Spoiler alert, there are no direct flights from Hartford to Heathrow in London, so these flights are not only expensive, but also long!

OMG. And Rory bought FIVE of them.

We see her jetting back and forth across the globe in Spring, too. At the beginning of the episode, she gets on a flight. Then she comes back home. Then Naomi dissolves their working agreement, so okay, Rory only takes one roundtrip flight. BUT STILL. Heres what flights on the first day of Spring for 2017 look like (since idk when Rory actually flew across the Atlantic Ocean). These are still just one way fights:

Now lets add this up. Lets not go with the cheapest fight, nor the more expensive  lets pick the middle, $1,535. Times that by SEVEN. How much does it cost to buy seven different one-way flights?

$10,745

This is still not including all the flights we didnt see her take. Who KNOWS how long shes been flying back and forth (cough*to have an affair with Logan*cough).

The internet is wondering how Rory afforded all these flights, too, and many suggest that it was actually Naomi who was paying for themor even Logan. But lets not forget about the time Rory was like, I think Ill get on a flight tomorrow.

three

This happened after she was done with Naomi, and more than likely Logan was not footing the bill for this spur of the moment trip.

Do you know how much it costs to get on a flight tomorrow? This is how much Id pay if I suddenly decided I needed to go to London tomorrow:

Rory mentions multiple times throughout all four episodes that she is broke. BROKE. Broke 30-somethings DO NOT take upwards of HALF A DOZEN flights to London. Correction Broke 30-something freelance writers do not take half a dozen flights to London. So either Rory has been really good with her spending and saving accounts, or shes got airline miles shes not telling anyone about, or she just knows exactly where to find the cheap international flights.

Girl, tell us your secrets.

The post This is roughly how much money Rory spent flying back and forth to London during Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Moscow (AFP) - Prominent Russian rights activists said Monday that torture is widely used in a northern penal colony, citing fresh allegations after claims from a jailed opposition member serving a sentence there.

Ildar Dadin, who is serving two-and-a-half years in penal colony No 7 in Karelia region, earlier this month in a letter smuggled out to his wife accused guards of beating him.

"Many ex-convicts and relatives of victims confirm the information given by Dadin on regular torture, humiliation and beatings in the Karelia colony," said rights activist Lev Ponomaryov at a press conference where relatives of other convicts spoke.

"The most common torture technique is stretching, when both legs are stretched out at the same time," said Larisa Geliskhanova, mother of another prisoner.

She said Dadin's allegations "are word for word what my son Zelimkhan has lived through."

"My son had all his ligaments torn," she added.

Dadin, 34, was sent to the colony after being convicted late last year for repeatedly protesting without permission: the first peaceful protester sentenced to jail time under Russia's controversial recent legislation.

Dadin said in his letter that guards beat him four times on his second day at the colony, put his head in a toilet bowl in the isolation cell, hung him up in handcuffs and threatened him with death.

Russia's federal penitentiary service (FSIN) denies wrongdoing. A deputy chief of the service said Monday that Dadin was a "talented imitator" while rights activists who support him "had not a single true and confirmed fact" of torture.

Rights activists, however, say there is corroboration.

"Seven or eight other people confirm what Dadin claims," anti-torture activist Igor Kalyapin, who visited him this month, told Interfax. "I saw the object from which he was suspended in handcuffs and I saw the wounds left from the handcuffs."

Story continues

Another attendee, Zhanetta Gabzayeva, said his son "was hung from his feet and hit with a hammer until he passed out."

Dadin's jailing was condemned by international rights groups. Russians have also picketed the penal service headquarters in Moscow to protest the use of torture in the country's prisons.

Last week a European Parliament resolution called for Dadin's "immediate and unconditional release" and urged Russia to "carry out a thorough review of its penitentiary system with a view to undertaking a deep reform."

It also called for targeted sanctions against individuals responsible for mistreating Dadin and other activists.
South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics will discuss plans to boost shareholder value on Tuesday, following increased pressure by a U.S.-based hedge fund and a new report alleging the company may consider dividing itself in two.

Market analysts have long speculated that a split would help Samsung family heirs increase their control of the company. On Monday, the Seoul Economic Daily reported that the South Korean conglomerate will discuss its plans -- including the one about splitting -- on a conference call on Tuesday morning.

Activist fund Elliott Management floated the idea of fracturing the company in October, and also called on the firm to pay out $26 billion to shareholders in a special dividend. Elliott owns a 0.6 percent stake in Samsung.

Samsung's call to investors comes during a tumultuous time for the company, which is still reeling from the recall and eventual scrapping of its new Galaxy Note 7 smartphone. The withdrawal, due to the gadget's tendency to overheat or catch fire, will cost the company $5.2 billion over three quarters. The company also ordered a recall 2.8 million washing machines in November.

Samsung has not confirmed whether it is considering the split.
By Se Young Lee

SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said it will disclose plans to boost shareholder value on Tuesday - a move that comes amid pressure from U.S. fund Elliott Management to split the company in two and provide more in payouts.

The U.S. activist hedge fund, which owns 0.6 percent of Samsung, called on the South Korean tech giant in October to divide itself into a holding vehicle for ownership purposes and an operating company, as well as pay out 30 trillion won ($26 billion) in a special dividend.

The Seoul Economic Daily, citing an unidentified source, reported on Monday the firm will say it plans to consider a split. Samsung declined to elaborate further on Monday on its plans, although it said last month it is considering buying back more shares.

A split in two has long been a subject of market speculation with analysts noting that such a move could help the Samsung Group founding family heirs to boost their control of the world's top maker of smartphones, memory chips and televisions.

"It's difficult to argue with the logic of Elliotts proposals," said David Smith, head of corporate governance at Aberdeen Asset Management Asia. "A simpler structure is certainly preferable, and yes most would agree they can afford to pay out more.

"What is important is that these changes should benefit all involved, including family, group, and minority shareholders, he said.

Samsung is also keen not to alienate investors at a time when it is reeling from a disastrous withdrawal of the fire-prone Galaxy Note 7 smartphone that the firm projects will cost 6.1 trillion won in profits over three quarters.

Its offices have also been raided by prosecutors as part of a widening political scandal involving a confidante of President Park Geun-hye.

Samsung said it will hold a conference call at 9:30 a.m. local time (0030 GMT) on Tuesday to discuss its plan.

Other measures proposed by Elliott, which unsuccessfully challenged a controversial 2015 merger of two Samsung Group affiliates, includes the return of at least 75 percent of free cash flow to investors and the appointment of some independent directors.

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New shareholder return plans would also follow a tightening of control by de facto Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee, who took over the reins after his father and Samsung patriarch was incapacitated following a May 2014 heart attack.

Samsung Group has sold non-core assets and pushed through a merger of two affiliates in 2015 to consolidate stakes in key affiliates under a company controlled by Jay Y. Lee and his two sisters, as the founding family moves to secure a stable transfer of control.

Lee also recently became a board member at Samsung Electronics.

"Even if Samsung Electronics does not comment on specifics such as the timing of a split ... the firm will at least say it will implement ownership structure changes in a reasonable manner," HI Investment said in a report on Monday.

($1 = 1,169.1800 won)

(Reporting by Se Young Lee; Additional reporting by Anshuman Daga; Editing by Stephen Coates and Edwina Gibbs)
By Jim Finkle

(Reuters) - The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency said on Monday it had contained a cyber attack, which disrupted its ticketing systems and forced it to offer free service to some customers during the Thanksgiving weekend.

The agency, known widely as Muni, said it was the victim of a ransomware attack on Friday that affected internal computer systems including email, but had no impact on safe operation of transit services.

The agency disabled fare gates from Friday to Sunday "as a precaution to minimize possible impacts to our customers," Muni spokesman Paul Rose said in an email on Monday.

Muni said on its website that "the situation is now contained and we have prioritized restoring our systems to be fully operational.

It was the latest high-profile intrusion with ransomware, a pernicious type of computer virus that scrambles data on infected machines, sometimes making it impossible for organizations to deliver critical services.

Attacks have increased sharply over the past year, with criminals targeting hospitals, police departments and other providers of critical services in the United States and Europe. Criminals typically charge a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands of dollars or more to provide digital keys that restore systems to normal.

U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation spokesman Prentice Danner said the agency was "in contact with Muni officials," though he declined to say if the FBI had launched a formal investigation.

The San Francisco Examiner reported that someone claiming to be the attacker informed the newspaper of a $73,000 ransom demand.

Reuters was unable to confirm details of the extortion demand or determine if payment had been made.

The attack disrupted ticket-selling systems, causing kiosk screens to display the phrase You Hacked, ALL Data Encrypted, according to the Examiner.

(Reporting by Jim Finkle in Boston; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Bill Trott and David Gregorio)
Hurricane Otto was the strongest storm to hit the Atlantic this season. These satellite images show the storm moving through the Caribbean between November 21 and 25.

Otto made landfall in Nicaragua on November 24, bringing up to 228 mm (9 inches) of rain to the coast. The storm caused the death of at least nine people in Costa Rica, and forced over 6,000 to evacuate. Credit: Youtube/Nasa.gov via Storyful
DUBAI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - State oil company Saudi Aramco aims to almost triple its chemicals production to 34 million metric tons per year by 2030, a senior company executive said on Monday.

"In chemicals, our equity capacity, across our global operations, is expected to grow from 12 million metric tons per year to 34 million over the same period," Abdulaziz al-Judaimi, the company's business line head for downstream, said in a speech at a conference in Dubai.

Over the same period Aramco's global refining capacity is set to rise to 8-10 million barrels per day (bpd) from more than 5 million bpd currently.

The company's refining capacity has grown as it has invested heavily to raise its oil production capacity to 12 million bpd.

Developing petrochemicals is part of the kingdom's Vision 2030 economic reform plan announced this year which aims to diversify the economy away from oil.

Aramco has been integrating its refineries with petrochemical infrastructure as it develops its downstream business and expands its trading of refined products.

The integration will help it to maximise value from its hydrocarbon base, diversify feedstock and chemical products, which is key to Aramco's plans to diversify its operations.

Aramco this year initiated the Middle East's first mixed-feed cracker at its Sadara Chemical Company, an 80 billion riyals petrochemical joint venture with U.S. company Dow Chemical.

It is also expanding its PetroRabigh facility, Rabigh 2, a joint venture with Japan's Sumitomo Chemical. That facility is integrated with a refinery on the Red Sea coast.

In 2014, former Aramco CEO Khalid al-Falih, who is now chairman of the company and Saudi energy minister, said Sadara and PetroRabigh would take the company's total chemicals participated production capacity to more than 15 million tonnes per year.

"Next year, nine out of Saudi Aramco's 15 refineries will produce chemicals, with conversion rates that can go to 20 percent of the total crude processed," Judaimi said.

The company has also set up ARLANXEO, a joint venture with Germany's Lanxess, which Judaimi said offered growth prospects.

(Reporting by Reem Shamseddine, David French and Maha El Dahan,)
Scott Eastwood and his mystery woman hit Sydneys Bondi Beach. (Photo: AKM-GSI)

Scott Eastwood isnt one to suffer in silence. On Nov. 27, the 30-year-old actor and model took aim at the paparazzi for a photo that caught him in mid-water splash fight with a beautiful brunette on Bondi Beach  but he did it by poking fun at himself. The photo in question was one of a series that ran showing Clint Eastwoods son cavorting through the surf and sand last Thursday (Australia doesnt do Thanksgiving) with the mystery woman.

Most of the shots were of the pair laughing and romping about, but this one in particular caught Eastwood at a rather unfortunate moment: pretty much leering at the woman with his tongue sticking out (not his best look). Oh, also, his hand is headed right for her butt.

Thank you Sydney paparazzi for trying to capture my playful side, but instead making me look like a total creep. Can't a guy have an innocent splash fight in peace? At least let me put my tongue away next time. #creep #30s #oldguyshit #loveit A photo posted by Scott Eastwood (@scotteastwood) on Nov 27, 2016 at 12:01am PST

Thank you Sydney paparazzi for trying to capture my playful side, but instead making me look like a total creep, he began. Cant a guy have an innocent splash fight in peace? (To be fair, that doesnt seem like a completely unreasonable request.) At least let me put my tongue away next time. He hashtagged the shot with more humor, including #creep #30s #oldguys**t #loveit. In less than 24 hours, the snap garnered more than 115,000 likes  not that its hard to see why.

Later in the afternoon, Eastwood and his lady friend returned to the beach, where they were joined by a group of pals. By that point, however, she had tossed on a few more layers of clothing, so the pictures werent nearly as enticing for the paps. His six-pack was still on full display, though, so at least there was that.

(Photo: AKM-GSI)

(Photo: AKM-GSI)

Eastwood is currently in Australia shooting Pacific Rim: Maelstrom  and also meeting some lovely ladies, it seems. Well have to wait and see whether she sticks around and these two are photographed together again, but something tells us that if they are, Eastwood will make an extra effort to keep his tongue out of view.




I can understand firing Patrick  but getting him thrown into jail? Thats just throwing salt in his wound.

VIDEOSScandal Season 6 Gets January Premiere Date  Watch the Explosive Trailer

Then again, Eric had plenty of reasons to feel both salty and wounded on Sundays Secrets and Lies, as new details about his brothers (and sister-in-laws) wrongdoings came to light. Heres a rundown of all the new info. we learned this week:

* Melanie allegedly ordered Carly to leave Johns retirement party, according to Neil, which is how he learned that Patricks wife was running the best little whorehouse in Texas North Carolina. (Bonus detail: Thats what he and Carly were allegedly discussing in the parking garage when Liam walked by.)

* And Melanie didnt start at the top, either. She was apparently arrested for solicitation 10 years ago, which seemed to take Patrick by surprise. In fact, he was in such deep denial that he went as far as to accuse Cornell of Photoshopping Melanies mugshot. (Bonus revelation: Melanie may have been sleeping with the Warner family lawyer to *ahem* work off their debt.)

* Eric theorized that Melanie and Patrick, a lethal combination of desperate and broke, were the ones blackmailing him via Kate.

* John got lightheaded when Eric showed him the blackmail letter, but was it because of his (possible) cancer or because hes the one who sent the letter? (That certainly seems likely, given that Erics tracking software lead him straight to dear ol dad!)

Are you working on any new theories after Sundays episode? (Next week is the two-hour finale, so this is pretty much your last chance to guess who killed Kate.) Drop em in a comment below.

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(Reuters) - Self-driving cars, including those backed in part by the phonemaker BlackBerry Ltd , have been approved for testing on Canadian public roads in the country's first such program, the government for the province of Ontario said on Monday. Automated vehicles from the University of Waterloo and the Erwin Hymer Group auto manufacturer have also been approved for testing, Ontario said in a statement. Ontario, home to nearly all of Canada's auto industry, launched the programme on Jan. 1, but had no applicants in the first half of the year. The province's auto sector has struggled as investment shifted to less expensive jurisdictions, and the government has sought to attract higher-paying research and development work. Canada is a late-comer compared with parts of the United States, where Alphabet Inc's subsidiary Google has been testing self-driving prototypes since 2009. BlackBerry's QNX software development subsidiary and the University of Waterloo will work with Ford Motor Co's Lincoln cars, while Erwin Hymer Group will test one of Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz vans, according to Ontario. It was not immediately clear when the cars will hit the roads. The Ontario Ministry of Transportation said it was up to the applicants when they want to begin their tests. (Reporting by Ethan Lou in Calgary, Alberta; Editing by Matthew Lewis and Jonathan Oatis)
IRVINE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces the filing of a class action lawsuit against StoneMor Partners L.P. ("StoneMor" or the "Company") (STON). Investors who purchased or otherwise acquired StoneMor shares between January 19, 2012 and October 27, 2016 inclusive (the "Class Period"), are encouraged to contact the firm prior to the January 20, 2017 lead plaintiff motion deadline.

If you purchased StoneMor 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 via e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.

There has been no class certification in this case. Until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. You may choose to take no action and remain a passive class member.

According to the complaint, during the Class Period StoneMor made false and misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: that the Company's reported non-GAAP financial metrics were materially misleading and concealed the truth about the Company's true financial condition; and that the main purpose of StoneMor's regular debt and equity offerings were to pay distributions to unitholders instead of pay down indebtedness under the Company's revolving credit facility as publicly stated; and that as a result of the above stated, the Company's statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. On September 2, 2016, the Company announced that it would restate its financials to correct various errors. On October 27, 2016, StoneMor cut its distribution by half. On November 9, 2016, the Company announced that it needed to "amend its Form 10-K for [the] fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, and its Forms 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended June 30, 2016 and March 31, 2016." When this news was disclosed to the public, shares of StoneMor fell in value causing investors harm.

If you wish to learn more about this lawsuit, or if you have 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 joon@khanglaw.com.

This press release may constitute Attorney Advertising in certain jurisdictions.

Contacts

Joon M. Khang, Esq.

Telephone: 949-419-3834

Facsimile: 949-225-4474

joon@khanglaw.com

SOURCE: Khang & Khang LLP
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / The following statement is being issued by Levi & Korsinsky, LLP:

To: All Persons or Entities who purchased Synutra International, Inc. (SYUT) stock prior to November 18, 2016 .

You are hereby notified that Levi & Korsinsky, LLP has commenced an investigation into the fairness of the sale of Synutra International to Beams Power Investment Limited. Synutra's Chairman and CEO, Liang Zhang, is the spouse of Beams' sole shareholder, Ms. Xiuqing Meng, which currently owns approximately 63.5% of Synutra's outstanding shares. Under the terms of the transaction, Synutra shareholders will receive $6.05 for each share of Synutra stock they own. To learn more about the investigation and your rights, go to:

http://zlk.9nl.com/synutra-international-syut

or contact Joseph E. Levi, Esq. either via email at jlevi@zlk.com or by telephone at (212) 363-7500, toll-free: (877) 363-5972. There is no cost or obligation to you.

Levi & Korsinsky is a national firm with offices in New York, New Jersey, California, Connecticut, and Washington D.C. The firm's attorneys have extensive expertise and experience representing investors in securities litigation involving financial fraud, and have recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for aggrieved shareholders. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.

CONTACT US:

Levi & Korsinsky, LLP

Joseph Levi, Esq.

Eduard Korsinsky, Esq.

30 Broad Street - 24th Floor

New York, NY 10004

Tel: (212) 363-7500

Toll Free: (877) 363-5972

Fax: (212) 363-7171

www.zlk.com

SOURCE: Levi & Korsinsky, LLP
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz LLP, a class action law firm dedicated to representing shareholders nationwide, is investigating a potential breach of fiduciary duty claim involving the board of directors of MAXIMUS, Inc. (MMS).

If you are a shareholder of MAXIMUS and are interested in obtaining additional information regarding this investigation, free of charge, please visit us at:

http://pjlfirm.com/maximus-inc/

You may also contact Robert H. Lefkowitz, Esq. either via email at rl@pjlfirm.com or by telephone at 212-725-1000. One of our attorneys will personally speak with you about the case at no cost or obligation.

Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz LLP is a law firm exclusively committed to representing shareholders nationwide who are victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty and other types of corporate misconduct. For more information about the firm and its attorneys, please visit http://pjlfirm.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

SOURCE: Purcell Julie & Lefkowitz LLP
By Ron Bousso and Dmitry Zhdannikov

LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) is considering selling out of its oil fields in Iraq as part of its global $30 billion (24.18 billion pound) asset disposal programme, industry sources said on Monday.

Shell is seeking to slim down its vast oil and gas portfolio following the $54 billion acquisition of BG Group in February, which transformed it into the world's top liquefied natural gas trader.

With oil prices having slumped since 2014 the company wants to focus on business areas with the highest returns such as LNG and deepwater oil production in Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico.

A spokesman for Shell in London declined to comment.

The Anglo-Dutch company, which has been present in Iraq for over a century, has found only limited financial benefits in recent years from its involvement in Iraq's oil production, where it is paid in crude oil but has limited say on production strategy, the sources said.

However, Shell continues to see value in developing its gas business in Iraq and is not interested in selling those interests, the sources said.

Iraq accounted for around 4.4 percent of Shell's total oil and gas production in 2015, according to its 2015 annual report.

The move to sell the oil interests highlights the difficulties Iraq faces in its efforts to increase crude output as foreign oil companies such as Shell have found the terms of the production service contracts unappealing.

The Anglo-Dutch is the operator of the giant Majnoon field near Basrah in southern Iraq which started production in 2014.

Iraq signed contracts with a large number of oil majors around six years ago as it emerged from years of sanctions and internal conflict.

Baghdad initially wanted to rival Saudi Arabia by reaching production of over 10 million barrels per day (bpd) but red tape, corruption and poor infrastructure was blamed for delaying projects, which resulted in oil output projections being halved.

National output has nevertheless recently risen sharply to around 4.7 million bpd as some projects started paying off. Iraq has been pushing the foreign companies including BP (BP.L), Lukoil(LKOH.MM), Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), Shell and China National Petroleum Corp [CNPET.UL] to increase their investments to give it further production gains.

Story continues

Shell holds a 45 percent interest in the Majnoon oil field that it operates under a technical service contract that expires in 2030, according to its 2015 annual report. Malaysia's national oil company Petronas (PETR.KL) holds a 30 percent stake in the field while the Iraqi government holds the remaining 25 percent.

Production from Majnoon averaged 206,000 barrels per day in 2015.

Shell also has a 20 percent interest in the West Qurna 1 field, which is operated by Exxon.

(Editing by Greg Mahlich)
Per reports published by Reuters, integrated energy major Royal Dutch Shell plc RDS.A is in talks to divest its onshore operations in Gabon. This divestment is part of a $30 billion divestment plan of the company following BG Group buyout. The deal was completed in February.

Per sources, the potential bidders for the Anglo-Dutch groups assets are the world's largest private equity fund  Carlyle Group, and independent European oil and gas company, Perenco. Also, they believe that the bids for the Gabon fields could be worth around $700 million.

Shell plans to make divestments of as much as $30 billion by exiting operations in five to 10 countries. It has, however, made relatively slow progress in this regard as the oil price rout dampened buyer enthusiasm for deals at the prices Shell is targeting. In 2016, Shell sold or agreed to sell around $6 billion of assets.

The Anglo-Dutch groups divestment plans are targeted to weather the more than two-year downturn in oil prices and to improve its financials post the BG Group acquisition.

Headquartered in Hague, the Netherlands, Shell is one of the largest integrated oil and gas companies in the world. It explores for and extracts crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. It has interests in chemicals as well as power generation and renewable energy. The company has been operating in Gabon for more than 50 years and operates the Rabi Kounga and Gamba fields in the country.

Shell currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), which implies that the stock will outperform the broader U.S. equity market over the next one to three months.

ROYAL DTCH SH-A Price

ROYAL DTCH SH-A Price | ROYAL DTCH SH-A Quote

Other well-ranked players from the broader energy sector include Braskem S.A. BAK, Ultra Petroleum Corp. UPLMQ and McDermott International Inc. MDR. All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Story continues

In the last four quarters, Braskem posted an average positive earnings surprise of 105.5%.

Ultra Petroleum, on the other hand, posted an average positive earnings surprise of 65.91% in the last four quarters.

In the last four quarters, McDermott posted an average positive earnings surprise of 250.00%.

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The British Film Institute and Radio Times, one of the U.K.s leading TV listings magazines, have teamed up to create the BFI and Radio Times Television Festival. The event, set to be the largest public television festival in the U.K., will take place April 7- 9 at BFI Southbank.

The festival will have more than 30 events, including talks with some of the biggest names in British broadcasting; exclusive U.K. and international previews; rare archive screenings; book signings; family programming; and a fiendishly tricky TV quiz.

The festivals line-up includes appearances from British TV stars such as Monty Pythons Michael Palin, Sherlock creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, and The Durrells actress Keeley Hawes, as well as a tribute to comedy actress Victoria Wood with guests including Julie Walters.

There will be premieres of the new season of The Durrells, and an exclusive look at new Sky series Guerrilla, starring Freida Pinto, Babou Ceesay and Idris Elba, who is also executive producer. Pinto and Ceesay will attend the premiere of the series, which has been created by John Ridley, the Oscar-winning adaptor of 12 Years a Slave.

There will also be appearances from Walter Iuzzolino, the mastermind behind Channel 4s streaming service Walter Presents, and childrens authors Jacqueline Wilson (Hetty Feather, Tracy Beaker), Michael Morpurgo (War Horse) and Judith Kerr (The Tiger Who Came to Tea, Mog). The full program will be announced in February.

The festival will kick off with Palin being inducted into the Radio Times Hall of Fame, taking the audience on a journey through his life, from Monty Pythons Flying Circus to travel series Around the World in 80 Days. There will also be a screening of East of Ipswich, which Palin wrote in 1987: a bittersweet drama about a teenagers first sexual experiences on a seaside family holiday was described by Palin as the nearest Ive come in fiction to the autobiographical.

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Gatiss and Moffat will be interviewed on April 9. Gatiss: From League of Gentlemen to Sherlock will see Gatiss take the audience on a tour of his favorite television moments. Later in the day Moffat will also be inducted into the Radio Times Hall of Fame, when he will discuss his career with comedian Frank Skinner  from the early days of Press Gang and Coupling through to his work on two of the biggest shows on U.K. TV, Doctor Who and Sherlock.

Friends and colleagues will come together to share their memories in Victoria Wood: A Tribute, a session that will be full of fun, warmth and memorable clips. Guests include Walters and Piers Wenger, controller of BBC Drama. There will also be a screening of two examples from both ends of Woods career: Two Creatures Great and Small (1981), Woods first starring vehicle, sharing top billing with Walters, and Victoria Wood at the Albert Hall (2002), which captures all her brilliance as an award-winning stand-up performer.

The festival will also celebrate the hugely popular medical drama Call the Midwife with a panel event that offers an insight into how a frayed news clipping or long-forgotten medical development can trigger a storyline. Heidi Thomas, creator of the hit TV series, will share the production secrets of the show, from research to filming, alongside executive producer Pippa Harris and members of the Call the Midwife cast.

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A top Sikh militant commander was recaptured by police in the Indian capital Delhi on Monday, a day after he was freed in a dramatic jailbreak by a gang wearing police uniforms.

Harminder Singh Mintoo, who heads a Sikh separatist group, was arrested on the outskirts of Delhi some 200 kilometres (124 miles) from the high-security prison in Punjab where he had been remanded on terror charges.

"He was caught near Delhi early Monday and will be brought to Punjab," A S Chahal, a senior local police official, told AFP.

Four other inmates who also escaped during the breakout -- members of a local criminal gang jailed for murder -- are still at large, Chahal added.

Mintoo, leader of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) -- a militant group fighting for a Sikh homeland in Punjab -- was arrested in 2014 and was in jail awaiting trial for terrorism offences.

He was freed in an early morning raid on Sunday by at least 10 armed men wearing police uniforms. They stabbed one guard and opened fire before fleeing with the prisoners in cars.

Three policemen were injured in the assault, which prompted a massive hunt for the fugitives.

A woman was killed on a highway a few miles from the prison when police opened fire on her car after the driver allegedly failed to stop at a checkpoint.

Police later said she had no connection with the escapees.

A 2.5 million rupee ($36,000) reward was offered for information on Mintoo's whereabouts. It was not clear if the bounty had played any part in his recapture Monday.

Three top prison officers were sacked or suspended following the jailbreak.

Sunday's raid was the second major prison break in India in less than a month.

In October eight Islamist militants escaped from a jail in central Madhya Pradesh state. They were gunned down hours later in a shootout.

The Sikh separatist insurgency in Punjab largely waned in the late 90s, but several groups remain committed to the Khalistan movement and dozens of alleged Sikh militants are in prison.

The bloody campaign -- launched in the 1970s -- claimed more than 20,000 lives, mostly civilian.
New role for JSOC. In the final weeks of his presidency, President Barack Obama has expanded the powers of the president to target and kill suspected terrorists across the globe, handing the incoming Trump team tools to wage war that no president has held before.

Most significantly, the power and reach of the Pentagons most secretive special operations outfit will grow under the plan. The Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) has long been a precise tool employed by regional military commanders, but the White House has allowed the command to create a new multiagency intelligence and action force, according to the Washington Posts Thomas Gibbons-Neff and Dan Lamothe. The group will be designed to take JSOCs targeting model  honed over the last 15 years of conflict  and export it globally to go after terrorist networks plotting attacks against the West.

The new task force will bypass regional combatant commanders with a chain of command that runs through Special Operations Command, effectively putting it on the same level as U.S. Central Command, Pacific Command, and others. Some are questioning whether that command structure, in addition to the potential for overlapping responsibility with the CIA, will trigger a round of turf wars within the national security bureaucracy.

Target Somalia. The Obama administration has also expanded the U.S. militarys power to go after al-Shabab Islamist militants in Somalia, claiming that strikes on the group now fall under the rules of armed conflict that Congress hurriedly authorized against al Qaeda in the days after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. American aircraft have been launching an increasing number of airstrikes in Somalia in recent months, calling them self-defense operations meant to protect U.S. military advisors in the field with Somali government forces.

The New York Times Charlie Savage, Eric Schmitt, and Mark Mazzetti report that the executive branchs stretching of the 2001 war authorization against the original Al Qaeda to cover other Islamist groups in countries far from Afghanistan  even ones, like the Shabab, that did not exist at the time  has prompted recurring objections from some legal and foreign policy experts. There has been a debate within the administration for years whether specific al Qaeda leaders within Shabab should be targeted, or the group at large.

Story continues

Counter-ISIS meeting. Defense Secretary Ash Carter will meet with French Minister of Defense Jean-Yves Le Drian at noon on Monday at the Daughters of the American Revolutions Constitution Hall in Washington, where theyll hold a bilateral meeting to discuss mutual security concerns including the ongoing counter-ISIL campaign according to the Pentagon. The two have met four times over the past five months, most recently at the NATO Defense Ministerial meeting in Brussels last month.

France and U.S. team up. If its a Monday, that must mean that the Pentagon believes al Qaeda operative Mokhtar Belmokhtar is dead. Again. The North African terrorist leader has been declared dead several times over the past several years  only to rise from the ashes  but this time, the Wall Street Journals Gordon Lubold and Matthew Dalton report, U.S. officials think they got him.

If the strike this month was successful, it would represent a culmination of efforts by the U.S., French and other allies to capture or kill Mr. Belmokhtar. It would also reflect the extent of new military and intelligence cooperation between the two countries, U.S. and French officials said. The U.S. contributed intelligence to add to what French officials already knew about Mr. Belmokhtars whereabouts in anticipation of this months strike, U.S. officials said.

Raqqa. In the fight against ISIS, the big fight looming on the horizon is the groups de facto capital of raqqa, in Syria. But as FPs David Kenner writes, the fight will be more complex than those for Fallujah, Ramadi, and even Mosul.

An ongoing war between Americas two main allies in northern Syria means that liberating Raqqa is going to take more than Washingtons capacity for brute force. The United States has backed an operation by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to retake the city, which announced its offensive on Nov. 6 and has since captured dozens of villages outside Raqqa from the Islamic State. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced that rebels sympathetic to Ankara, who have clashed with the SDF over the past several months, also aim to liberate Raqqa.

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

Serbia

Theres intrigue and scandal in the Balkans following Serbias deportation of 20 people suspected of planning a coup in neighboring Montenegro to install a pro-Russian government. A source tells the Guardian that Russian security council chief Nikolai Patrushev apologized to Serbian officials for what he characterized as an unsanctioned plot connected to Russian intelligence. The Serbian government was further rocked by the uncovering of a plot to assassinate Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic shortly after Patrushevs visit. Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic says he believes that criminal gangs had been paid to carry out the attack but wouldnt say who ponied up the cash or directed the plot.

Syria

Turkey says the Islamic State used chemical weapons against Syrian rebels its backing in the fight to take back territory from the group. The Turkish military announced that Islamic State fighters fired a rocket containing an unspecified chemical gas which affected 22 rebel fighters near the Syrian town of Al Rai. The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has previously accused the group of using sulphur mustard weapons in both Syria and Iraq.

Forces fighting for the Assad regime have made key gains in rebel-held eastern Aleppo. Al Jazeera reports that the regime captured the Jabal Badro and Baadeen districts of Aleppo after capturing the district of Hanano days before. The gains on the ground come amid an increase in Russian and Syrian bombing of Aleppo. Many residents of the opposition enclaves have been trying to flee but are worried because, in the words of the networks reporter Osama bin Javaid, the bombing has relentlessly targeted anything that moves.

Iraq

Frustrated at the slow pace of fighting against an Islamic State enemy thats tenacious and dug into Mosuls urban landscape, some Iraqi military officials now want to change tactics to allow for looser rules of engagement, according to the Wall Street Journal. The plan for the liberation of Mosul was premised on urging civilians to shelter in place within the city rather than green lighting an exodus from the city which could cause logistical problems. But the jihadist group has exploited the presence of civilians in the city to constrain the use of artillery and airstrikes, leading some to question whether a call to flee the city is warranted.

Iraqs parliament has taken a controversial step, recognizing private militias as an official part of Iraqs government and armed forces. The predominantly Shia and Iranian-backed militias joined the fight against the Islamic State shortly after the fall of Mosul to the jihadist group in 2014 as Iraqs formal military melted away and lost ground. The militias, however, have proven controversial among Iraqs Sunni minority for what human rights groups say is a campaign of sectarian killings, abuse, and human rights violations. Sunni members of parliament boycotted the vote to pass the law and called it a threat to an inclusive, unified Iraq.

Iran

Irans armed forces chief of staff Gen. Mohammad Hossein Bagheri has floated the possibility of Iran one day establishing naval bases in Syria and Yemen, the AP reports. Bagheri said the move would require creating new infrastructure but called it ten times more important than having nuclear weapons, saying that it creates deterrence. Iran has no naval bases abroad and while its professional navy often carries out port visits around countries bordering the Indian Ocean, its efforts to operate farther away in places like the Atlantic have proven more difficult.

Pakistan

Pakistan has a new army chief, but dont expect a lot of changes with a new man in charge. Reuters reports that Lt. Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa will take over as army chief from Gen. Raheel Sharif. Bajwa has kept a low profile throughout his career with few clues as to his policy inclinations but Defense Minister Khawaja Asif says that Bajwa likely wont be a radical departure from his predecessors.

Photo Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images
By Abdiqani Hassen BOSASSO, Somalia (Reuters) - Hundreds of pro-government Somali forces began moving toward the port town of Qandala on Monday for an offensive against Islamic State fighters who seized it last month, Qandala's mayor said. The forces include militia fighters, soldiers from the semi-autonomous region of Puntland and fighters from the same clan as Abdiqadir Mumin, the Somali insurgent leader who has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, Somali security officials said. "We and our forces left Bosasso today with the intention to capture to Qandala, which is now only 100 km (60 miles) away from us. We shall keep on moving until we liberate the town," Jamac Mohamed Khurshe told Reuters. Bosasso is a major Somali city. There were at least 400 clan fighters, an official added, but he did not know the size of the other two components of the pro-government forces. Mumin and his men splintered from al Shabaab, a much larger Islamist insurgent force that is fighting the Western-backed Somali government to impose a strict interpretation of sharia law. No evidence has yet emerged of major operational ties between Mumin's men and Islamic State in the Middle East. Qandala is the first town Mumin's men took since emerging as a rival force to al Shabaab a year ago. Residents in villages along the road to Qandala said Mumin's men planted numerous bombs along the route. (Reporting by Abdiqani Hassan; Writing by Katharine Houreld; Editing by Alison Williams)
Update: President Park Geun-hye was impeached due to accusations of influence peddling, making her exit soon likely.

South Korea's gross domestic product (GDP) is $1.4 trillion (nominal), which puts it in 11th place among world nations. Due to trouble at Samsung, the country's largest conglomerate, worries about military and cyberattacks from North Korea, and a scandal that may push its president out of office, its economic health is at risk.

Behind China and Japan, South Korea is Asia's third largest economy, and it trails Canada and Brazil by very modest numbers. The economy is large enough that trouble would ripple to other countries.

ALSO READ: The Worst Companies to Work For

Samsung's revenue is nearly 20% of the country's GDP. It is fighting to shrug off a number of problems. According to Bloomberg:

Samsung Electronics Co. and heir apparent Jay Y. Lee are facing rising pressure from investors for broad change at South Koreas most valuable company.

Samsung executives and Elliott Management Corp. have been talking with investors in the U.S. and Korea to sound out opinions on the activist investors proposals to overhaul the Suwon, South Korea-based technology giant, people familiar with the matter said. Shareholders are voicing dissatisfaction with the status quo after Samsungs smartphone battery crisis that will cost at least $6 billion and has seen its offices raided twice as part of a widening political scandal in Korea.

ALSO READ: The Most Dangerous Cities in America

The presidential crisis could bring the government to a halt. According to Reuters:

Hundreds of thousands rallied in central Seoul on Saturday for a fifth week of protests against President Park Geun-hye, in the largest ongoing series of demonstrations in the country since the 1987 movement to democratize South Korea.

Park's presidency has been rocked by allegations that a close friend used her ties to the leader to meddle in state affairs and wield improper influence.

Story continues

Prosecutors investigating the case have indicted her friend, Choi Soon-sil, and are seeking to question the president about her role in the scandal.

North Korea continues to agitate with threats of missile attacks. One such action would rock the economy.

How important is South Korea's place in the global economy? As a major supplier of consumer electronics, cars and heavy industry production, very.

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Momentum Pictures has acquired North American rights to Stephen Dorffs country music film Wheeler, with plans for a Feb. 3 release in theaters and on demand.

Wheeler contains original music and score written and performed live by Dorff, who also co-wrote and produced the film with director Ryan Ross. Additional cast and live performers include Kris Kristofferson, Bobby Tomberlin, and Audrey Spillman.

Varese Sarabande Records will release the official soundtrack when the film opens on Feb. 3. The single Pour Me Out of This Town, co-written and performed by Dorff, is available now on all digital services.

Wheeler follows an aspiring musician from Texas, who travels to Nashville with the lifelong dream of trying his hand at country music. Dorff used prosthetic makeup so he would not be recognized.

We set out to make a unique film about the journey of a country musician pursuing his dreams in Nashville, Dorff said. Our goal was to create an authentic experience for audiences by having me infiltrate the music scene in full makeup and prosthetics as the character, Wheeler. When we met with Momentum Pictures, they immediately embraced the film and impressed us with their enthusiasm and ideas.

Bobby Tomberlin, Mickey Raphael, and Derek Vanderhorst executive produced the film. Wheeler was shot on location in and around Nashville, including historic country music venues like the Bluebird Cafe. Current Westworld makeup department head Christien Tinsley (The Passion of the Christ) and his team provided the makeup effects.

Dorffs credits include Blade, American Hero, and Sofia Coppolas Somewhere, which won the Golden Lion for best picture at the 2012 Venice Film Festival.

The deal was negotiated on behalf of Momentum Pictures by Sejin Croninger and by Paradigm on behalf of the filmmakers.

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Ohio State University officials put out a campuswide alert Monday morning over reports of a school shooting. Authorities said at least eight people were injured and transported to area hospitals, with one in critical condition.

"We heard a lot of sirens. I was in class and everyone got a text message at the same time for the emergency alert," OSU senior Anthony Falzarano, 22, told CNN. "Someone said they heard popping right before we got the alert, but I didn't hear it. We are in a shelter-in-place right now in the building next door."

Columbus Police said one suspect had been killed. The identity of the shooter was unknown. School officials tweeted to students: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College."

"Continue to shelter in place in north campus area. Follow directions of Police on scene," authorities tweeted.

Ohio State, with nearly 60,000 students enrolled at its main Columbus campus, is one of the nations largest universities. As various reports on Monday's chaotic situation continued to pour in, social media users were attempting to piece together the still-volatile situation.

"The first thing I heard were screams," student Cydney Ireland told ABC News. "Probably five seconds after that there were three gunshots and it sounded like a handgun. And I've never seen anything like it. Everybody was running in any direction they possibly could."

Gun violence has been a central area of the nation's political dialogue. Most recently, two students were injured in a school shooting outside Linden-McKinley High School in Columbus on Oct. 13. In October 2015, a visibly disturbed President Barack Obama addressed the nation on school shootings.

"Somehow this has become routine. The reporting is routine. My response here at this podium ends up being routine, the conversation in the aftermath of it ... We have become numb to this," Obama said.

Story continues

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Baghdad (AFP) - Five gunmen, some of them wearing suicide belts, attacked the Iraqi city of Samarra on Monday, killing at least four members of the security forces, officials said.

"A group from the Daesh terrorist gang tried to infiltrate Samarra and forces confronted them and killed them," the Joint Operations Command said in a statement, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group.

Samarra, which lies 110 kilometres (70 miles) north of Baghdad, is home to a major security headquarters and to an important Shiite shrine where a 2006 bombing touched off two years of sectarian bloodletting.

At least four members of the Iraqi security forces were killed and one wounded in the attack, the JOC and other security officials said.

Security officials said the assailants came from the western bank of the Tigris, crossed it on a boat and attacked a building belonging to the Salaheddin provincial council.

A curfew was briefly slapped on the city as security forces combed the area for any additional attackers.

There was no immediate claim for the attack but officials in Samarra blamed it on IS, which is fighting to defend its Iraqi bastion of Mosul against a huge government offensive.

The "inghimasi" attack, a term for jihadist operations in which gunmen, often wearing suicide vests, intend to sow chaos and fight to the death rather than achieve any military goal, fits a recent pattern of IS attacks.

The group has launched a series of spectacular diversionary attacks on targets outside Mosul in the past six weeks, including in Kirkuk, Rutba and Sinjar.
An ancient Anglo-Saxon cemetery with more than 80 rare wooden coffins containing skeletons has been unearthed in England.

Earlier this year, archaeologists were investigating the ground around a river in the village of Great Ryburgh in eastern England, ahead of the construction of a lake and flood defense system. During an excavation, they started finding graves arranged in rows.

"We had no idea it [the cemetery] was going to be there," James Fairclough, an archaeologist with the Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA), told Live Science. [See Photos of the Rare Wooden Coffins and Cemetery]

Based on broken pieces of pottery found in the dirt used to fill the graves, Fairclough and his colleagues determined that the cemetery dates back to the early Anglo-Saxon period, from about the seventh to ninth centuries A.D.

In the late sixth century A.D., St. Augustine was sent on a mission by the pope to convert the pagan Anglo-Saxon kings to Christianity and thus spread the religion throughout Britain. And this newly discovered cemetery appears to be Christian. The burials were arranged along an east-west grid and had no grave goods two features that are typical of Christian cemeteries from that period, Fairclough said. The whole cemetery covers an area about 100 feet by 65 feet (30 by 20 meters), and the excavators also found the remains of a timber structure, likely a church or chapel.

Wood is biodegradable, so it often disappears in the archaeological record. Evidence for wooden coffins usually appears as a stain in the ground. But at this cemetery in Norfolk, thanks to some special environmental conditions, many of the wooden coffins remained intact.

Fairclough explained that the local water in the river close to the site runs over a lot of chalky rock, making it alkaline. And when that river water mixed with the more acidic sand where the cemetery is located, it created a neutral, waterlogged environment to preserve the coffins.

Story continues

The archaeologists found 81 coffins made fromoak trees that had been split in two lengthwise and hollowed out. According to MOLA, these are the first dug-out coffins of this era to be excavated by archaeologists.

Six plank-lined graves, which were dug into the ground and lined with timber planks, were also found. These graves are thought to be the earliest known examples of their kind from Britain. The archaeologists said they haven't yet figured out the relationship between the two different burial types at this cemetery.

"These rare and exceptionally well-preserved graves are a significant discovery which will advance our understanding of Middle-Saxon religious beliefs and rural communities," Duncan Wilson, chief executive of Historic England, the organization that funded the excavation, said in a statement. "This cemetery has been revealed because, under the current system, archaeological surveys are required before work on a sensitive site starts. This site has immense potential for revealing the story of the community who once lived there."

Fairclough said further analysis of the skeletons could reveal more information about the individuals buried at the site, such as their gender, age and even family connections.

Original article on Live Science.

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The man suspected of driving his car into a crowd of Ohio State University students before attacking them with a butcher knife was recently profiled in the school newspaper's "Humans of Ohio State" feature.

The suspect was identified by campus police in a press conference Monday afternoon as Abdul Razak Ali Artan. Artan was a Somali refugee who came to the US legally with his parents in 2014 after living in Pakistan for seven years, according to law enforcement officials cited by NBC News.

The Lantern, Ohio State University's student newspaper, appears to have profiled Artan on his first day at OSU in August 2016. Artan told the paper that he had just transferred from Columbus State Community College, and that as a practicing Muslim he "wanted to pray in the open, but I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media."

"I'm a Muslim, it's not what the media portrays me to be," he said, according to a print edition of the publication posted online.

He continued:

"If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I don't know what they're going to think, what's going to happen. But, I don't blame them. It's the media that put that picture in their heads so they're going to just have it and it, it's going to make them feel uncomfortable. I was kind of scared right now. But I just did it. I relied on God. I went over to the corner and just prayed."

A Columbus State Community College spokesman told Vice News that Artan had just transferred to OSU from the college and had no disciplinary issues while he was a student there.

Artan was fatally shot by campus police officer Alan Horujko on Monday morning, OSU police said.

NBC initially reported that Artan was 18, but The Lantern article says he was in his third year of a logistics management degree. Police said they are working to confirm his age.

NOW WATCH: Watch the Trump protest that shut down parts of New York City





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Aleppo (Syria) (AFP) - Syria's rebels lost all of the northern neighbourhoods of their stronghold in east Aleppo on Monday, as the army made significant advances in its offensive to recapture the entire city.

The regime gains have prompted an exodus of thousands of desperate civilians, some fleeing to districts held by the government or Kurdish forces, others heading south into areas still under opposition control.

"The situation is disastrous," said Ibrahim Abu Al-Leith, a spokesman for the White Helmets rescue group in the Ansari neighbourhood.

"There is mass displacement and morale is in the gutter," he said, his voice cracking with emotion.

"People are sleeping in the streets. They don't have anything to eat or drink, but neither do we," he told AFP.

The loss of eastern Aleppo would be a potentially devastating blow to Syria's rebels, who seized the area in 2012.

The opposition has steadily lost territory since Russia intervened to bolster President Bashar al-Assad in September 2015.

On Monday, government forces seized the Sakhur, Haydariya and Sheikh Khodr districts, and Kurdish fighters took the Sheikh Fares neighbourhood from rebels, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said.

"This is their (the rebels') worst defeat since they seized half the city in 2012," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The advances left all of northeast Aleppo under government control.

- Hungry civilians -

Syria's White Helmets warned on Monday they had no more fuel reserves for rescue vehicles.

In a video statement, the group urged "all humanitarian, aid, and medical organisations to immediately intervene to put an end to the humanitarian disaster" facing civilians in besieged Aleppo.

Nearly 10,000 civilians have fled the east, the Observatory said late Sunday, with about 6,000 moving to the Kurdish-held Sheikh Maqsud neighbourhood and 4,000 to government-held west Aleppo.

Story continues

Kurdish officials published a video they said showed civilians crossing a field to Sheikh Maqsud, where local forces helped people cross a makeshift barrier.

Syria's Kurds are officially aligned with neither the government nor the rebels, but the opposition views them as effectively allied with the regime in its efforts to recapture Aleppo.

Hundreds of civilians were also fleeing south to the remaining rebel-held districts with little more than the clothes they wore, an AFP correspondent said.

People in southern neighbourhoods were donating blankets and other items to the new arrivals, who had travelled on foot, exhausted, cold and hungry.

The United Nations said it was "deeply concerned" about civilians in the east, where international aid is exhausted and food stocks are desperately low.

The UN has appealed for access to the east many times, but has failed to secure the necessary guarantees to enable aid deliveries.

"In terms of east Aleppo, we just need the green light from the people who control the roads going in because, as you know, the east of Aleppo is besieged," Ramesh Rajasingham, the UN's deputy regional humanitarian coordinator for the Syria crisis, told AFP.

- 'Turning point' -

The government advances mean the regime now controls at least a third of eastern Aleppo, just under two weeks into its renewed bid to recapture the city.

State television said the army had captured the key Suleiman al-Halabi pumping station, which controls water supplies to government-held west Aleppo and has periodically been shut by rebels.

Three people were killed and 29 wounded in rebel fire on western Aleppo on Monday, state media said.

Regime bombardment of eastern districts killed 18 civilians, Abdel Rahman said.

The government assault of heavy air strikes, barrel bomb attacks and artillery fire has killed at least 247 civilians in east Aleppo, according to the Observatory.

Rebel fire into the government-held west has also killed at least 27 civilians, among them 11 children, since November 15, it says.

Syria's Al-Watan daily, which is close to the government, said the next stage would be "to divide the remaining (rebel-held) area into... districts that will be easily controlled and to capture them successively".

But British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson called for an immediate ceasefire in Aleppo, saying the assault "is threatening a humanitarian catastrophe".

More than 300,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the conflict began with anti-government protests in March 2011.

Syria's deputy foreign minister on Monday denounced accusations by "western" countries that it has used chemical weapons in the conflict as "a campaign of lies".

Faisal Muqdad was speaking at the annual conference in The Hague of countries belonging to the Chemical Weapons Convention.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said government forces seized the strategic eastern Aleppo district of al-Sakhour on Monday in a wider advance that has driven rebels from a third of the rebel-held area in recent days. Rebel sources could not immediately be reached for comment about the report that confirmed an earlier report by the Syrian military. "It is the biggest defeat for the opposition in Aleppo since 2012," Rami Abdulrahman, Director of the Observatory, told Reuters. "The opposition has lost more than third of the area it controlled in Aleppo city during the big advance," he said. (Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Hundreds of people left the besieged town of Khan al-Shih southwest of Damascus on Monday under a deal with the Syrian government for safe passage to other rebel-held areas, a monitoring group said. The Syrian government, helped by Russian air power and Iran-backed militias, has steadily quashed armed opposition to its rule in the remaining pockets of resistance around the capital using a series of army offensives and evacuation agreements. Damascus describes the deals as reconciliation or settlement agreements, but rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad say they involve the forcible displacement of whole communities from opposition areas after years of siege and bombardment. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the civil war, said 10 buses had left Khan al-Shih for rebel-held Idlib province, but that it was unclear if they were carrying fighters themselves or only their families. As part of the deal, around 1,450 rebels and 1,400 relatives are due to leave the town, the British-based Observatory reported. The process will require 42 buses, in addition to nearly 25 ambulances for injured civilians and fighters, it said. Local sources in Khan al-Shih told Reuters earlier that 3,000 people, half of them fighters, were expected to evacuate the suburb, most of them on Monday. The United Nations estimates 12,000 people have been besieged in Khan al-Shih, where a Palestinian refugee camp is located, for years. Heavy clashes and air strikes have rocked the area during the past month until the evacuation deal was agreed last week. Khan al-Shih is the only town not controlled by the government along a major supply route between Damascus and government-held territory in the southern province of Quneitra. In previous such deals, insurgents have been allowed to keep light weapons. Rebels in Khan al-Shih handed in their heavy weapons on Sunday as part of the deal, state-affiliated media and the Observatory said. Syrian state-run Ikhbariya TV, broadcasting from near Khan al-Shih on Sunday, said 3,000 to 4,500 remaining people would be taken back into government-controlled areas, citing sources within the local administration. Syria's Minister of National Reconciliation Affairs, Ali Haidar, whose department administers the agreements, could not immediately be reached for comment. Haidar has previously said such amnesties are "a workable model to bring security and peace" after more than five years of war. The conflict pits Assad, supported by Russia and Iran, against an array of mostly Sunni rebel groups, some backed by Turkey, Gulf monarchies or the United States. (Reporting by Ellen Francis in Beirut, additional reporting by Kinda Makieh in Damascus; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
Beirut (AFP) - President Bashar al-Assad is determined to retake Syria's second city Aleppo to deal a decisive blow to the rebels ahead of a possible change in US foreign policy, analysts say.

Assad's regime has in recent months been pressing a series of offensives to seize control of the devastated city's east, which has been in rebel hands since 2012.

The latest assault made a major breakthrough on Saturday when government forces seized the largest of the city's opposition-controlled neighbourhoods.

For Assad's regime, taking Aleppo would be "one of its greatest victories", Middle East expert Mathieu Guidere says, stressing the city's "extraordinary historical, political and geopolitical prestige".

"It was one of the first cities to be taken by the armed opposition," he adds.

Syria's former economic capital and industrial hub lies at a strategic commercial crossroads near the border with Turkey.

The city has been roughly divided since 2012 into a rebel-held east and a government-controlled west.

Fabrice Balanche, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, says the regime retaking east "Aleppo would be a turning point" as it would then control "the five largest cities in Syria".

Assad's forces already control the capital Damascus, the central cities of Homs and Hama and the coastal city of Latakia.

Bringing Aleppo under their control would also give regime forces a better chance at taking back the northwestern province of Idlib, which is almost entirely held by rebels and jihadists.

- 'Balance of power' -

Bassam Abu Abdallah, an analyst close to the Damascus regime, says east Aleppo's fall would "tip the balance of power in the conflict".

Regime forces have since July 17 besieged east Aleppo, where some 250,000 civilians face severe food and fuel shortages and nearly all hospitals have been damaged by bombardment.

Story continues

"The aim is to push these (rebel) groups towards a scenario like in Homs," Abu Abdallah says, referring to Syria's third city where rebels were defeated in 2014 after two years of regime siege and bombardment.

The current offensive will either lead to a truce or to rebels being evacuated towards other opposition-held areas in Syria, he says.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment of the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shells and barrel bombs.

Analysts say the relentless bombing also aims to push war-battered, hungry residents to turn against the armed opposition.

More than 4,000 civilians fled rebel-held districts into regime-held areas this weekend in the first exodus of the kind in east Aleppo since 2012.

Assad's regime "can only take back a territory if its population no longer backs the rebels", Balanche says.

The government regaining control of Aleppo would mark the end of fighting on a major battlefront in a war that has killed 300,000 people since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

- Upper hand in talks -

Rebels would then control pockets of territory only in the southern province of Daraa, the birthplace of the uprising, and near Damascus where they have lost their previous bastions of Daraya and Moadamiyeh al-Sham.

A defeat in Aleppo would mean rebel groups "are no longer able to maintain the population under their control or protect them", Guidere says.

Balanche says the insurgents losing Aleppo would show the "opposition is incapable of a major military success" and dash its hopes of presenting itself as a viable alternative to the Damascus regime.

Aleppo's fate will be key in any resumption of stalled peace talks to end the five-and-a-half-year war after three failed attempts at UN-brokered dialogue this year.

Guidere says the regime would have the upper hand and "tend to want to negotiate even less" if it seized east Aleppo.

US president-elect Donald Trump taking up office in less than two months' time and a possible subsequent change in American foreign policy could also give Assad the advantage.

If Damascus controls both the capital and Aleppo in January when Trump arrives in the White House, "he may say replacing the regime is categorically out of the question", Guidere says.

Balanche agrees: "We know Trump doesn't really want to invest himself in Syria. If Aleppo falls... it will no longer be worth supporting the opposition."
AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson

AT&T has officially unveiled its new streaming TV service launching November 30 called DirecTV Now.

There's a lot to unpack here, so let's make it as simple as possible.

DirecTV Now will let you stream live television from networks you typically find on cable and satellite over the internet to your smartphone, tablet, computer, or set-top box like an Apple TV. It's very similar to Dish's Sling TV service.

DirecTV Now plans start at $35 per month for 60 channels and go all the way up to $70 per month for 120 channels. You can also add HBO for an extra $5 per month each. You can try any package for free for seven days.

AT&T is offering the 100-channel package, which is normally $60 per month, for $35 per month for a limited time. It's unclear when that promotion ends.

The company hasn't listed which channels are included in each package, so we're not sure yet what you get for each tier of service. However, there's a major hole in the offering: DirecTV Now won't have channels from CBS or Showtime. AT&T says it is still negotiating with those networks to bring them to DirecTV Now.

DirecTV Now works on several devices, with more coming in 2017. At launch, it'll work on Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Android, iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Chromecast (iPhone only), some LeEco and Vizio TVs, and computers running Internet Explorer, Chrome, or Safari web browsers. Roku support is coming in two to four weeks.

AT&T mobile customers will be able to stream as much video from DirecTV Now as they want without it counting against their data plan. AT&T will also give you a free Apple TV if you pay for three months of service for any of the packages in advance. You'll get a free Amazon Fire TV stick if you pre-pay for one month of service.

DirecTV will continue to offer its traditional satellite TV services. DirecTV Now is not a replacement. It's meant to be used over any internet connection without extra equipment.

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T-Mobile US Inc. TMUS the fastest growing wireless carrier in the U.S.  has been accused of dodgy accounting practices by the CtW Investment Group.

Non-GAAP Figure Issues

Present Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules allow companies to report non-GAAP performance metrics. However, since non-GAAP measures are generally presented as per the discretion of management, companies are required to show a reconciliation statement detailing the exact reasons for the difference between the GAAP and the non-GAAP numbers. CtW group claims that T-Mobile US has provided inadequate details on the same.

The CtW groups claims are largely focused on the revenue estimates adopted for accounting of T-Mobile USs Equipment Installation Plans (EIP). Additionally, T-Mobile US has been held accountable for providing a lower amount of credit loss allowance while in reality, its customers have been unable to meet their contractual obligations. Thus, by disregarding the credit risks associated with the EIPs, T-Mobile US may have inappropriately boosted its profits. Notably, shady accounting practices relating to EIPs have been a concern for investors in the wireless industry. T-Mobile US rival Sprint Corp. S has also been facing similar issues.

Other Concerns

CtW group also claims that T-Mobile US has not disclosed the amount spent on spectrum licenses in its cash flow statement, boosting its periodic cash flow in the process. Additionally, T-Mobile US may have also manipulated the cash flow statement by shifting some of its customers in the installment plan system to the phone lease system.

Our Take

Recently, T-Mobile US has been fast gaining traction as a wireless carrier in the U.S. In order to pose a challenge to bigger rivals like Verizon Communications Inc. VZ and AT&T T, the company needs to invest further. However, investors give utmost importance to earnings and hence deceitful accounting practices may dent the companys ability to draw investments.

Story continues

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Taraji P. Hensons life hasnt been the same since Cookie.

The Empire actress discussed how the character has wrecked her personal life in a one-on-one interview with Ryan Reynolds as part of Varietys Actors on Actors.

Youre walking down the street and theyre just like, Hey Cookie  maybe I didnt want the world to see how I looked today, maybe I wore these sweats yesterday, Henson said. It was fine until Cookie came, I was okay under the radar, I could go to Target. I never saw that coming. I go from this normal life to having to find a house on a private gated road, its crazy.

Henson, who also stars in the upcoming movie Hidden Figures, said she has tried disguising herself using wigs and sunglasses, but nothing has stopped the Cookie-crazy fans from finding her.

In the interview, she also talked with Reynolds about the impact of social media on their lives and how it has changed the way their films are marketed.

Ive only had it (social media) a year and a half and I applied it specifically for Deadpool, because as soon as as Deadpool was greenlit, I got Twitter, I got Instagram, I got Facebook, Reynolds said. The social media game for Deadpool was such a huge part of the marketing, I mean a lot of the stuff we shot, marketing materials, were just on my iPhone, just dicking around at my house or on set.

Reynolds added that the reach of social media helped create a huge groundswell of excitement for the film before it even came out.

We would do billboards that were just ridiculous, but we only do one of them. You put that image on Twitter or Instagram or Facebook, and its as though that billboard was in every city in America.

Listen to the rest of the interview during the Actors on Actors premiere on Jan. 3, 2017 at 7 p.m. PT on PBS SoCal KOCE, presented by The Venetian Las Vegas.

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A 47-year-old Moonah man was placed in police custody on November 28 following a 14-hour siege. Tasmania Police said the incident occurred in Maple Avenue, Moonah, and was sparked by a report that someone had been attacked by a dog.

Police said the man surrendered to police without incident, is not injured, and that no officers were injured despite the man allegedly firing upon several responding officers during the police response.

The man, armed with a firearm, barricaded himself in his residence and police spent 14 hours negotiating with him before successfully peacefully resolving the incident, police stated.

The video shows police and emergency services waiting at the scene, overnight.

Investigations are continuing. Credit: Twitter/Ben Hay via Storyful
London (AFP) - India's Tata Steel said on Monday that it has agreed to start exclusive talks for the sale of its speciality steel assets to metal processing firm Liberty House.

The unit, which has activities mostly in Britain but also in China, employs 1,700 people and produces specialised steel for the aerospace and automotive industries, as well as the oil and gas sector.

However, Tata Steel gave no update on the future of the rest of its UK assets -- including Britain's biggest steel plant at Port Talbot in Wales.

Earlier this year, Tata Steel decided to offload its loss-making British assets, blaming the move on a global oversupply of steel, cheap imports into Europe from countries including China, high costs and currency volatility.

"Tata Steel UK today announced the signing of a letter of intent with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its speciality steels business for an enterprise value of 100 million ($125 million, 118 million euros)," it said in a statement on Monday.

The activities comprise several assets in South Yorkshire in northern England, including an electric arc steelworks in Rotherham, a steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth.

The business also includes service centres in Bolton, in the north west, and Wednesbury in central England, as well as two facilities in the Chinese cities of Suzhou and Xi'an.

Today's announcement is in line with the overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio," said Bimlendra Jha, chief executive of Tata Steel UK.

"This is an important step forward in seeking a future for speciality steels and we have reached this stage thanks to the efforts of employees, trade unions and management."

Tata Steel in May sold its loss-making European long products division to investment firm Greybull Capital, who renamed it British Steel.
Halima Aden made history over the weekend by wearing a burkini and hijab during the Miss Minnesota USA pageant.

The competition saw a series of firsts from the 19-year-old, who became the first fully-covered Muslim woman in the contest, and the first contestant to wear the burkini during Sundays semi-final swimsuit round. The teenager, who was born in a refugee camp in Kenya before moving to the U.S. at the age of six, did not win the pageant, but she told CBS that she hopes her participation helped combat misconceptions about Islam.

For a really long time I thought being different was a negative thing. But as I grew older, I started to realize we are all born to stand out, nobody is born to blend in, Aden told CBS. How boring would this world be if everyone was the same?
Tens of thousands of people turned out Monday for nationwide protests against India's controversial ban on high-value banknotes, which opposition party organisers say has caused a "financial emergency".

India is still reeling from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's shock decision nearly three weeks ago to pull 86 percent of the currency from circulation overnight, triggering a chronic shortage of notes in an economy that operates almost entirely on cash.

Around 25,000 people took to the streets of the eastern city of Kolkata, capital of West Bengal state, whose left-wing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has warned of "riots and epidemics" if the ban continues.

An estimated 6,000 more turned out to protest in Mumbai, India's western commercial hub, police said.

But many ordinary Indians say they support the scheme if it forces the rich to pay their taxes by making them bank undeclared income. Only a handful of states observed a call for a nationwide protest strike.

"We are protesting against the undeclared financial emergency imposed by the government and the hardships people across the country are facing because of this illegal decision," said Manish Tiwari of the opposition Congress party.

"The decision to demonetise high-value currency was done without any authority and legislation and is clearly illegal."

Owners of the banned 500 and 1,000 rupee ($7.30, $14.60) notes have until the end of the year to deposit them in a bank, and can only directly exchange a small number for new currency.

But authorities have struggled to print enough new notes to meet demand and economists say the ensuing cash crunch will hit growth.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, a respected economist, said last week it would shave at least two percentage points off growth, which topped seven percent in the first half of the financial year.

"I do not disagree with the objectives but it is a monumental case of mismanagement," the Congress party lawmaker told parliament.

Story continues

"The way demonetisation has been implemented, it will hurt agricultural growth and all those people working in the informal sector."

Over 90 percent of transactions in India are conducted in cash and many of the country's poorest have no access to banking.

Many have been left without enough cash to buy food or daily essentials, while farmers have been unable to buy seeds and small traders say business has fallen off a cliff.

Nonetheless Modi has repeatedly defended the scheme, accusing its detractors of being tax evaders and urging all Indians to switch to non-cash payment methods.
Texas has confirmed its first locally transmitted case of Zika, health authorities confirmed on Monday.

The state has been preparing for the possibility of local cases for some time. The person infected lives in Cameron County and is not pregnant. The woman was confirmed by a lab test to have the virus despite no recent travel to anywhere with ongoing Zika transmission.

Florida has also reported locally acquired cases, with over 235 people contracting the virus from local mosquitoes.

We knew it was only a matter of time before we saw a Zika case spread by a mosquito in Texas, said Dr. John Hellerstedt, Texas Department of State Health Services commissioner in a statement.

Responders are working to confirm where the person contracted the virus. The health department reminded women who are pregnant not to travel to places where Zika is spreading, like nearby Mexico. So far Texas has reported 257 confirmed cases of the virus from travel and sexual contact.

We still dont believe the virus will become widespread in Texas, said Hellerstedt. But there could be more cases, so people need to protect themselves from mosquito bites, especially in parts of the state that stay relatively warm in the fall and winter.
BANGKOK, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Thailand's military government will complete an auction in 2018 for expiring oil and gas contracts held by Chevron Corp and PTT Exploration and Production, the country's energy minister said on Monday.

Earlier, the government said it planned to open bids for the contracts in March 2017 and that the auction would be completed by September 2017.

"We have to admit that we can't open bids in March 2017 but will try to do it in 2017. The auction will be completed in 2018," Energy Minister Gen. Anantaporn Kanjanarat told reporters, citing a delay in the approval of the petroleum act as the reason.

Chevron's Thai unit holds concessions to operate the Erawan gas field. PTTEP operates the Bongkot gas field. Contracts for the two offshore fields are due to expire in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

They have combined production of 2.2 billion cubic feet per day, or 76 percent of output in the Gulf of Thailand.

PTTEP, Thailand's largest oil and gas explorer, has said it will bid to operate the Bongkot field.

The military government delayed a bidding round of concessions for 29 onshore and offshore blocks in early 2015 due to criticism of the contract terms from politicians and activists.

The bidding round was originally planned for 2011 but was on hold after devastating floods that year and then a political crisis that culminated in a military coup in May 2014.

(Reporting by Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Writing by Orathai Sriring; Editing by David Evans)
Warning: This recap for the Swear episode of The Walking Dead contains spoilers.

On The Walking Dead, Rachel and Cyndie, from the nearby Oceanside community, find a washed-up character from Season 6. And, spoiler alert: That character is Tara Chambler. After pretending to be unconscious, Tara follows Cyndie back to her village. Along the way, Tara is nearly killed by Oceanside citizens, but Cyndie steps in to save her.

Having barely escaped with her life yet again, Tara tries to explain to Oceansides elders how she found them. She tells them about what happened to her on that bridge with Heath, and, in a flashback, we see that the only thing more annoying than sand in your boots is walkers in the sand. Tara escaped those walkers when she fell off the bridge, which brings us back to the present when she washed up on shore and was discovered by Rachel and Cyndie.

Before Tara could escape the Oceanside community to get back to Alexandria, she also had to convince them she wasnt a threat.

I come from a community. And thats really what it is. We live with each other. We help each other. We have walls, houses, Tara says. I have a girlfriend I want to get back to. And weve done things  Just like you.

Eventually, it is decided that two members of Oceanside will go with her back to Alexandria, but, somewhere along the way, Tara decides to make a run for it. Shes nearly shot again, but, for a third time, Cyndie shows up to save her. She also helps her get across that pesky bridge covered in walkers.

But, unfortunately, when Tara gets back to Alexandria, Eugene was there with the sad news that her girlfriend had been killed.

The Walking Dead airs on Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.

Watch: The Walking Dead recap in which Maggie pays tribute to Glenn

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.
SPOILER ALERT: The recap for the Swear episode of The Walking Dead contains storyline and character spoilers.

Theres good news, and terrible, horrible, no good, very bad news in this sixth episode of The Walking Dead Season 7: We finally catch up with Tara and Heath  hooray  but we also learn that Negan and the Saviors are not only way more brutal than we thought, there are also way more of them than we thought.

Were Supposed To

A young girl named Rachel is quite enthusiastic about stabbing a bloated walker she and an older girl named Cyndie find near the beach. Rachel spots another body on the beach and runs off to make her next kill, but Cyndie yells for her to stop, just before she stabs a woman  Tara!  in the head. Taras still alive, but unconscious, Cyndie points out. We still gotta do it, Rachel insists, but Cyndie says they dont, not if people dont find out. Rachel says shes not a snitch, but shes ticked off about not getting to make another kill, so she says she wont help Cyndie, either.

Cyndie drags Taras body to a secluded spot on the beach and brings her bottles of water, something wrapped in a cloth, and a spear. When Cyndie walks away, Tara opens her eyes and downs the water. She unwraps the cloth to find a dried fish, and when she spots Cyndie leaving the beach, she grabs the spear and follows her.

You Choose You

Heath and Tara are still on their supply run in the RV, and Heath is dejected about the fruits of their labor for the last two weeks: eight rusty cans of okra and a bottle of aspirin. Rule No. 1 of scavenging is, theres nothing left in this world that isnt hidden, Tara tries to reassure him. We just have to find it.

Hes also still wigged out about the attack on the Saviors outpost, and the realization it forced him to make about just how dangerous the world, and people, are outside the walls of Alexandria. If its you or someone else, you choose you, Heath says, but Tara doesnt believe he really means that.

Story continues

They move on to a new location to look for supplies and happen upon a bridge thats been barricaded on one side. Its littered with cars and tents and tarps strung up on wire and a kiddie pool with dead plants in it, as if a group of people had tried to carry out a plan. Heath and Tara spot a giant mountain of sand on the bridge, and just as Heath sees a big pile of spent bullet casings at the bottom of it, Tara pulls something out of the pile that sends the whole thing raining down on them. It also frees dozens of walkers, who are now trying to snack on them. Very quickly, theyre each surrounded by walkers, and Heath disappears behind a tarp. Did he really choose you and abandon Tara, who is now being backed into the edge of the bridge by walkers? As she yells out for her friend, she tumbles over the side of the bridge and into the river below.

Where Are All the Men?

Back at the beach, Tara has followed Cyndie through a woodsy area and into a little gathering of cottages. She sees women carrying baskets, kids playing, lookouts on platforms, and things covered in camouflage material. Everyone, mostly adult women, is mostly dressed in drab browns and dark greens, and Tara sees they also have a large storage shed packed with guns of all sizes. Before she can understand what is happening, the women run for the artillery shed and pick up guns, and the first shots are fired at Tara. Luckily for her, theyre all pretty terrible shots, and she runs away from them and into a woman with a gun. Tara knocks her down, takes her gun, but doesnt shoot her. She runs off again, but this time runs straight into Rachel, the kill-happy tween, whos pointing a gun right at her. Tara drops her spear, but Rachel says, Doesnt matter, were supposed to.

Cyndie comes to the rescue again to spare Taras life, but the whole community of nearly all women has gathered around her, all pointing guns at her. The groups leader, an older woman well soon meet as Natania, is listening as Tara tries to explain she meant no harm and will happily be on her way, but the next time we see her, shes handcuffed to a radiator inside an office with a picture on the wall that indicates shes at the Oceanside Cabin Motor Court. Natania, Kathy, and Beatrice (the woman Tara chose not to shoot earlier) talk to her, revealing they have a system of bells and air horns they use to keep their hidden community safe. Tara tells them she fell off a bridge, into a river, which carried her to the ocean and the beach. Natania tells her they usually shoot people on sight to further insure their safety, but they paused with her because Cyndie, Natanias granddaughter, likes her, and because she spared Beatrices life. But if they let her go, they have no guarantee she wont run and tell other people about their community.

Yeah, thats a pickle all right, Tara replies.

Related: The Walking Dead Star Sonequa Martin-Green Says the Women Want to Rectify This Wrong

That night, Kathy gets Tara from the Oceanside office, and leads her through the woods to another cabin. The table is set for dinner, and Natania asks her if she likes fish, because fish stew is whats on the menu. The table includes Natania, Tara, Beatrice, Kathy, and Cyndie, who explains Rachel to Tara, saying shes never had to kill a living human yet. Cyndie has, and shes a good shot. Dinner begins, and Tara scarfs down the meal so quickly that Kathy asks when she last ate. Natania talks about their endless supply of fish being a perk of living near the ocean and she asks Tara if shed like to stay with them, permanently. Tara could put down roots, she says, and theyd be sure their community remains a secret. Tara had told them shes been living in random places since the apocalypse began and that she traveled with a friend, so Natania offers to help find him and let him move into the community too. That prompts a question.

I never thought Id be asking this, but where are all the men? Tara asks, and when all the women bow their heads, she continues, All of them?

Natania explains they got into a skirmish with another group of survivors, and they lost all their men, as well as Cyndies mom and 11-year-old brother.

After that, we decided to protect ourselves no matter what, Natania says. No matter who we crossed, we would kill on sight. We left our old home with just the clothes on our backs. And then we found this place. We would stay hidden. And we would stay alive. She goes on to say she knows Tara probably thinks theyre monsters, but she hopes their honesty will spark Tara to be honest with them. She had previously also told them she worked on a fishing boat, which they knew was a lie. So she comes clean about living in a community, with walls, where she has a girlfriend that shes anxious to return to. (Oh, no, we forgot  she doesnt know about Denise, or Glenn, or Abraham). She tells them, without sharing the name of the group, that her people have also done things to survive, taking out a whole group of survivors who lived at a satellite station. The look that passes among the other women suggests they know exactly who shes talking about.

Tara suggests the Oceanside community could team up with her community, an idea thats immediately shot down. Tara tells them they cant go on forever assuming everyone is their enemy. Sooner or later, youre gonna need a friend, she tells them. Cyndie tries to agree with Tara, but her grandmother cuts her off. All Natania will agree to is sending someone with Tara to find Heath and continue on to her community to scope it out.

The next day, Tara leaves, with Beatrice and Kathy, to head back to the bridge where she last saw Heath. People getting together thats how the worlds gonna be the world again, Tara says to Natania on her way out. But the trip turns deadly, quickly, as the women lead Tara through the woods and start shooting at her. She runs away, but Beatrice catches up with her and points her gun right at Tara, tearfully telling her she has nothing left, that the group her friends attacked, the Saviors, have already killed them. Tara says no, her people killed the entire outpost, but Beatrice says there are more Saviors and more outposts. She tells Tara they cant be stopped; they lined up all the men and all the boys who were older than 10 and shot them in the head. And we tried to fight, just like you, Beatrice says. They won. Finally, one night the women and children still alive left, running away to the eventual safety of Oceanside.

We are not gonna let you lead them back to us, Beatrice tells Tara, just as shes about to kill her. Cyndie interrupts to save Taras life for a third time, and she gives her a backpack of food and water, and a spear, and says shell lead her back to the bridge. They get there, and Cyndie stays to help Tara survive the walkers and get to the other end of the bridge. Just as Tara makes it, she looks back to see Kathy and Beatrice have arrived to drag Cyndie back home.

Tara then remembers what really happened at the bridge before her trip down the river to Oceanside. Heath had briefly disappeared behind a tarp, but came right back to help her out of her walker jam. She yells to him that shes coming to help him  hes surrounded by them too  and then she tells him theyre in this together. I know, he yells, before she goes into the water.

Now back at the scene, Tara walks along the road and spots Heaths broken glasses on the ground. Next to them, she sees there are what looks like fresh tire tracks in the grass. Maybe that was you, she mumbles. Then she spots something in the grass, a white security badge or pass with the letters PPP written on it. I hope that was you, she says.

We Can Square This

Tara heads towards home, walking through fields, and seeking temporary refuge in an old boat and in a gift shop. She eats more of that salted dry perch Cyndie packed into the go bag for her, and finds that her new friend also included a present: a bracelet made of seashells.

Finally, Tara is walking down the road just outside the Alexandria gates, smiling, wearing a pair of bright sunglasses she got at the gift shop. Eugene spots her through binoculars, and by the time he opens the gates to greet her, hes crying, as the bearer of so much heartbreaking news.

Sitting on the floor in Denises medical office, Tara is playing with a doctor bobblehead when Rosita tells her shes sorry. Tara tells her the same thing, and then an angry Rosita tells her they dont have to just sit there. She wants to square things, and she wonders if Tara has any leads on where they can replenish their gun supply. She doesnt care how dangerous the acquisition would be, Rosita says. We can make this right. We have to.

We cant, Tara answers. I didnt see anything like that out there.

Zombie Bites:

* In TWD comics, theres a group of survivors who live near the beach in Virginia, and their community is referred to as Oceanside. Readers have yet to see the community or its residents, and theyre introduced in issue 139 (the most recent issue released is 160), which puts them at a different point in the comics timeline than were currently at in the show (not that that means anything mashups). What we do know is that, as Natania and her people do, the Oceansiders in the comics also live off the ocean, and they eventually become a part of the trading system that includes Alexandria, the Hilltop, the Kingdom, and the Sanctuary.

* Nobodys evil, they just decide to forget who they are, Cyndie tells Tara, who assures her, Some people are evil, Cyndie. Ive seen it.

* That instrumental song playing as Tara makes her way back to Alexandria: Dirty Threes Everythings F*****. Sounds about right.

* The Oceanside crew refers to walkers as bobbers.

* Is Heath dead or alive? Those tire tracks near his broken glasses suggest he might have been taken, but ultimately, the answer to his fate might be tied to actor Corey Hawkinss availability and the success of the 24: Legacy reboot hes starring in on Fox in February.

* Natania tells Tara she and her people fled from the Saviors with nothing but the clothes on their backs. So how and where did they get that big cache of guns?

OK, Dead-heads, lets hear your reactions to Swear. Our questions: Why didnt Tara tell Rosita about the Oceanside community and their big supply of guns? Is she trying to protect the Oceanside women, or protect Rosita from making a dangerous mission to procure those weapons for Alexandria? How long do you think itll be until we inevitably see those Oceanside women again? Were you surprised about this new intel on just how widespread the Saviors murderous ways are? And what do you think happened to Heath?

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on AMC.
Elizabeth Holmes

Theranos and its CEO, Elizabeth Holmes, are being sued by investors who claim Holmes lied about the company's technology as the startup raised funds.

The lawsuit, filed in California, names two shareholders who are seeking class-action status. They include Robert Colman, a co-founder of Robertson Stephens, the San Francisco investment bank.



The lawsuit claims that Holmes knew the company's technology  advertised as being able to use a finger prick's worth of blood to test for diseases  didn't work when she pitched it.

Theranos declined to comment on the suit. The company is also facing a lawsuit from one of its major investors, lawsuits filed by patients, and a breach-of-contract lawsuit by Walgreens.

Walgreens is looking for $140 million in damages, claiming that Theranos misled it about how far along its blood-testing technology was when they struck a partnership. Walgreens, which had operated Theranos Wellness Centers where people could have their blood tested in some of its stores, terminated its relationship with the company in June.



In the past year, the company has faced questions about the accuracy of its finger-prick blood tests, been told by a government agency that one of its labs posed "immediate jeopardy" to patients, had Holmes get barred from the lab-testing industry for two years, and seen partnerships like the one with Walgreens fall through.

In October, Theranos shut down all of its lab operations, pivoting to focus solely on the company's miniLab technology. The pivot cut 340 positions and closed its Wellness Centers where blood tests were performed.



"The once-vaunted company is in disarray and the value of its securities are in a freefall," the newest suit claims, though it doesn't provide a current valuation on the shares.

Story continues

The shareholders named in the lawsuit are Colman and Hilary Taubman-Dye.

Colman bought his stake through an investment in a Lucas Venture Group fund, a venture-capital fund. Taubman-Dye acquired her shares for $19 apiece on SharesPost, a market for private-company shares. She tried to back out of the purchase after The Wall Street Journal first raised questions about the validity of the technology in October of 2015.

The filing includes a table noting Theranos' share price through October 2015:

Screen Shot 2016 11 28 at 5.42.31 PM

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Kurdish media said on November 28 that more than 8,000 civilians had arrived in the Kurdish-controlled Sheikh Maqsoud area of Aleppo after leaving east Aleppo neighborhoods where the Syrian Army had advanced.

Reuters quoted a phone call with one Kurdish commander, who said 6,000-10,000 had fled into Kurdish-controlled areas in the past two days.

Kurdish media reported that thousands had also arrived to Bustan Basha and Hallak in northeast Aleppo. Kurdish forces and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said these two areas had been claimed by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

The Syrian state broadcaster SANA reported the advance by the Syrian Army into several rebel-held areas of east Aleppo.

This video was shared by a Kurdish outlet and is described as showing east Aleppo locals arriving to Sheikh Maqsoud on November 28. Credit: YouTube/ANHA via Storyful
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Salih Muslim, joint head of the Syrian Kurdish PYD party said on Monday that between 6,000 and 10,000 civilians had fled to Aleppo's Kurdish-controlled Sheikh Maqsoud district from areas of the city where pro-government forces advanced in recent days. "Civilians are flooding to these areas which are safer than the others ... Until now between 6,000-10,000 people fled to the area and the YPG (Kurdish militia) and the other people are receiving them, keeping them in the area," he told Reuters by phone. (Reporting by Angus McDowall; Editing by Catherine Evans)
A Twitter account claiming to belong to a seven-year-old girl, Bana Alabed, and her mother, Fatemah, has been tweeting live updates from Aleppo, the epicenter of Syria's brutal civil war.

The account, first created in September 2016, shows the harrowing reality civilians in Aleppo face daily. The account has already racked up a substantial 145,000 followers on the social media platform.

On Sunday, Bana tweeted that the house she was staying in was bombed and that she witnessed people dying as a result.

Tonight we have no house, it's bombed & I got in rubble. I saw deaths and I almost died. - Bana #Aleppo pic.twitter.com/arGYZaZqjg  Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) November 27, 2016

In another tweet posted on Saturday, Bana wrote that it had been a "difficult afternoon" in east Aleppo, and posted a video that seems to show smoke billowing out from a building in the area.

Aleppo has been a hotbed of conflict throughout the Syrian civil war as multiple groups fight for control of what was once Syria's most populous city. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his Russian backers have launched a scorched-earth offensive on Aleppo in an effort to wipe out rebel holdouts in the city.

The Syrian regime and its Russian backers also stand accused of launching airstrikes that hit hospitals, schools, and local rescue centers, though Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin have insisted that the offensives have only targeted militants.

Story continues

Civilians in Aleppo increasingly face food, healthcare, and education shortages as the fighting drags on. Russia has announced brief pauses in bombing the city, but has not coordinated with UN aide convoys to allow food in.

In October, the US suspended bilateral talks on Syria with Russia after the bombing of humanitarian aide convoy headed to the city by Syrian or Russian jets.

"Please allow [food] for the thousands starving here. Why is it a problem?" Fatemah Alabed tweeted on Friday.

Allow in food. Just allow, just.... Please allow it for the thousands starving here. Why is it a problem?. - Fatemah #Aleppo  Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) November 25, 2016

On Monday, pro-Assad forces announced that they had wrested control of a large swathe of eastern Aleppo from rebel forces in a major offensive that hopes to crush the opposition, but will also bring more destruction to city.

The latest tweet from the account was posted on the same day Syrian government forces captured part of eastern Aleppo, and seems to respond to Assad's latest advance.

"[W]e are on the run as many people [were] killed right now in heavy bombardments," the tweet, written on Monday by Fatemah, read.

It continued: "We are fighting for our lives. [S]till with you."

Message - we are on the run as many people killed right now in heavy bombardments. We are fighting for our lives. still with you.- Fatemah  Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) November 28, 2016

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Johannesburg (AFP) - South African President Jacob Zuma on Monday faced the biggest challenge to his leadership since taking power in 2009 as the ruling ANC party debated his future and calls grew for him to resign.

Zuma has been hit by a series of corruption scandals and damaging court rulings this year, while the ANC suffered a sharp setback in local polls in August and unemployment has hit a 13-year high.

A weekend meeting of the African National Congress (ANC) national executive committee was extended into Monday after a rebellion led by senior government figures.

Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi all called on the president to step down, the News24 news agency reported, citing party sources.

The ruling party gave no official comment after the prolonged national executive meeting but promised a press conference at 2:00 pm (1200 GMT) on Tuesday.

The president, who has survived numerous scandals while in office, has been under renewed pressure since a corruption probe earlier this month unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

The probe by the country's top watchdog uncovered evidence of possible criminal activity in Zuma's relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

"He is at his weakest. He is under extreme pressure," political analyst Daniel Silke told AFP.

"I don't think the ANC is ready for a very fast departure, but this is an unprecedented show of anti-Zuma support.

"We could see a warning sign to the president that his days are numbered."

- 'Fighting for political life' -

However Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many rank-and-file ANC party members, as well as its lawmakers. He easily survived a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

Neither the ANC nor any of the three ministers reportedly calling for Zuma's head commented on Monday, as the party meeting at a hotel near Pretoria continued.

Story continues

Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for the president to resign in recent months.

The ANC, which has ruled since Nelson Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994, has seen its popularity dive, with local polls in August delivering the party's worst-ever result.

Zuma's term in office ends in 2019, but the ANC is due to elect a new party leader at the end of next year and could decide to replace him as head of state.

"There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life," analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC... no longer want him as president."

South Africa's highest court this year found him guilty of violating the constitution after he refused to repay taxpayers' money used to refurbish his private rural house.

He is also fighting a court order that could reinstate almost 800 corruption charges against him over a multi-billion dollar arms deal in the 1990s.

- Economic woes -

International credit rating firm Fitch on Friday dropped its outlook for South Africa from stable to negative, pointing to the country's recent political turmoil.

Zuma has also been engulfed by a power struggle with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan.

Zuma's loyalists have been at loggerheads with Gordhan, a reformist who is widely respected among international investors.

Mmusi Maimane, leader of the main opposition Democratic Alliance party, told AFP that he expected Zuma to ride out the latest bout of criticism.

"I think it will probably be a deferred decision until next year," he said.

"The ANC (has) a very difficult decision about who will succeed him and which faction that will come from because it's a deeply divided organisation."

When Zuma leaves office, the three leading possible successors are his ex-wife, African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphone par

osa and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.

The Business Day newspaper reported that many of Zuma's supporters rushed back to the ANC meeting after missing proceedings to attend a wedding near Cape Town.
Photo credit: Facebook

From Cosmopolitan

A civil rights group has called for more police protection of mosques after several in California received letters that praised President-elect Donald Trump and threatened Muslim genocide.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, said the same handwritten, photocopied letter was sent last week to the Islamic Center of Long Beach, the Islamic Center of Claremont and the Evergreen Islamic Center in San Jose, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.

The letter was addressed to "the children of Satan" and it was signed by "American for A Better Way." The L.A. area mosques received it Wednesday and the San Jose mosque on Thursday.

"There's a new sheriff in town - President Donald Trump. He's going to cleanse America and make it shine again. And, he's going to start with you Muslims," the letter states, according to CAIR. "And, he's going to do to you Muslims what Hitler did to the jews (sic)."

Photo credit: Facebook

Hussam Ayloush, executive director of CAIR-LA, said people at the L.A. County mosques were disheartened by the hateful letters and added that the "irresponsible, hateful rhetoric" of the Trump campaign has fueled "a level of vulgarity, vile hatred and anger among many self-proclaimed Trump supporters."



"I'm not saying (Trump) created racist people," he said. "He normalized it. While he might say he's not responsible, and I respect that, I remind President-elect Trump that he has a responsibility to act as a president for all Americans."

San Jose Police Department spokesman Sgt. Enrique Garcia said police have opened an investigation and are treating it as a "hate-motivated incident."

Photo credit: Facebook

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BOISE, ID / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Thunder Mountain Gold, Inc. (TSX-V: THM; OTCQB: THMG) (the Company), is pleased to announce that on November 9, 2016, Judge Jason Scott, Fourth Judicial District, State of Idaho, issued a final Judgment dismissing with prejudice all claims and causes of action that were or might have been asserted in Idaho State Gold Company II ("ISGC II"), LLC vs. South Mountain Mines, Inc. ("SMMI"), Thunder Mountain Gold's wholly-owned subsidiary, pursuant to a negotiated settlement between the Company and the plaintiff.

This final Judgment dismissed the contractual claims and any related claims filed by ISGC II against SMMI regarding the Owyhee Gold Territory LLC (OGT). OGT was the entity created to operate the Company's South Mountain Project pursuant to an Operating Agreement (Agreement) as reported by the Company in November 2012. This final judgment also dismissed SMMI's counterclaims against ISGC II. Terms of the Settlement Agreement are as follows: (i) SMMI will manage and retain 75% ownership in the OGT, with ISGC II retaining 25% ownership but no management control; (ii) OGT will be managed by SMMI under a new operating agreement signed by both parties, and will exist as a holding company, with the real property assets (and certain delineated personal property) taken out and advanced by SMMI under a standard Mining Lease with Option to Purchase Agreement; (iii) OGT will retain a capped five-million dollar ($5,000,000) Net Returns Royalty, paid quarterly at 5% of the net profits of the project when it begins producing, which is credited to ISGC II; (iv) and a $5,000 per year lease payment due to OGT. The lease purchase option is triggered, and ISGC II's 25% interest in OGT terminates upon the payment of $5,000,000 to OGT.

Eric Jones, Thunder Mountain CEO and President commented: "The Settlement is a fair and reasonable resolution for Thunder Mountain Gold and its shareowners, and allows the Company to move the South Mountain Project forward. We are pleased that we can now focus on obtaining new capital to advance the Project through feasibility studies and into production if warranted, without the burden of litigation wrongfully and incorrectly impeding such activities."

Story continues

Regarding Thunder Mountain Gold, Inc.

Thunder Mountain Gold, a junior gold exploration company founded in 1935, owns interests in base and precious metals projects in the western U.S. The Company's principal assets are The South Mountain Project, located on private land in southern Idaho, just north of the Nevada border, and their Trout Creek Project - a grass roots gold target in the Eureka-Battle Mountain trend of central Nevada. For more information on Thunder Mountain, please visit the Company's website at www.Thundermountaingold.com.

U.S. Securities Act of 1933

This press release does not constitute an offer of any securities for sale or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any securities.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the beliefs of management and reflect the Company's current expectations. The forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions, which could change materially in the future. By their nature, forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such factors include the risk that the Company may not fully advance the South Mountain Project contemplated in this press release. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is provided as of the date of this press release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required in accordance with applicable laws.

Cautionary Note to Investors

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") permits mining companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only those mineral deposits that a company can economically and legally extract or produce.

For further information, please contact:

Thunder Mountain Gold Inc.

Eric Jones, President and C.E.O.

Email: eric@thundermountaingold.com

Phone: (208) 658-1037

Jim Collord, Vice President and C.O.O.

Email: jim@thundermountaingold.com

Phone: (208) 658-1037

SOURCE: Thunder Mountain Gold Inc.
Tim Kennedy sat down with exclusively with MMAWeekly.com to talk about a number of serious issues beyond his fight career. Kennedy weighed in on the recent U.S. presidential election that produced President Elect Donald Trump, and his take on the situation might surprise you.

A decorated member of the United States Army Special Forces, the outcome of the election determined whether or not Kennedy would re-enlist in the military, and he explained in his interview what influence the election had on him and what direction he took following its result.

TRENDING > Tim Kennedy Draws Suspended Kelvin Gastelum for UFC 206

This is a rather enlightening interview, as Kennedy delved deep into the ways that being such a high-level member of the military has affected Kennedy and his family, both personally and professionally, which includes Kennedy being named on several terrorist kill lists.

It is a reminder of the service and sacrifice of Kennedy and countless others who serve their country.

(Subscribe to MMAWeekly.com on YouTube | Photo courtesy of Tim Kennedy)

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(Reuters) - Time Inc <TIME.N>, the publisher of Time, People and Fortune magazines, has rejected a takeover bid from billionaire investor Edgar Bronfman Jr., the New York Post reported on Monday.

Bronfman offered $18 per share, the Post reported, representing a premium of 30.4 percent to Time Inc's Friday close and valuing the publisher at $1.78 billion.

Time Inc's shares jumped 18 percent to $16.05 on Monday.

Bronfman, who is a managing partner of private equity firm Accretive LLC, made the bid along with Russian-born billionaire Leonard Blavatnik, the founder of holding company Access Industries, and Israeli businessman Ynon Kreiz, the Post reported.

Bronfman, a former chief executive of Warner Music Group, has a long history in the media and entertainment world. His family made its fortune from Seagram's, once the largest distiller of alcoholic beverages in the world.

A spokeswoman for Time Inc declined to comment. Access Industries did not immediately respond to a request for comment, while Bronfman could not immediately be reached.

Time, like many publishers, has been hit by a decline in print ad sales as advertisers spend more on other media and readers increasingly move online.

Digital advertising has been the lone bright spot for the company, with revenue rising 63 percent in the latest quarter.

Up to Friday's close, Time's shares had fallen 12 percent this year and about 42 percent in the last two years.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sai Sachin Ravikumar)
Yahoo Finance is tracking the stocks youre following, based on your Yahoo Finance ticker searches.

Time Inc. (TIME)  The company has reportedly turned down a buyout offer from Edgar Bronfman to acquire it for $18 per share. The New York Post reports that Bronfman teamed up with Israeli businessman Ynon Kreiz and Access Industries to bid for Time.

Barclays (BCS)  The bank sold its wealth and investment management business in Singapore and Hong Kong for $225 million to Singapores Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. Barclays was hoping to raise $320 million from the sale.

Amazon (AMZN)  The online retail giant is on investors radars on Cyber Monday. Amazon has slashed prices on its Echo, Kindle and Fire TV stock, as well as other hardware, in an effort to attract shoppers. The company is expecting a record-breaking number of orders this year.

Panera Bread (PNRA)  Wedbush downgraded Panera Bread to neutral from outperform and kept its price target on the stock at $220 per share.

UPS (UPS)  The packaging companys CEO David Abney said Black Friday weekend shipping met the companys expectations. UPS maintains its forecast of 14% growth in deliveries to a record 700 million for the holiday period.

Walt Disney (DIS)  Disneys Moana raked in $81.1 million during Thanksgiving weekend. Its the second largest Thanksgiving debut ever, behind Frozen, for the Wednesday to Sunday period.
Shares of Time Inc TIME gained over 15.7% in morning trading Monday after the company reportedly rejected a takeover bid from billionaire investor Edgar Bronfman Jr. The offer proposed an $18 per share buyout, which was more than 30% higher than the stocks Friday close and would value the publisher of Time, People, and Fortune magazines at $1.78 billion.

Bronfman, the managing partner of private equity firm Accretive LLC, joined forces with Ukraine-born American billionaire Leonard Blavatnik and Israeli-American businessman Ynon Kreiz to make the offer on Time Inc.

Time is one of many traditional publishers that have been hurt by a changing media landscape. Print ad sales continue to be sluggish as more and more advertisers chase readers that have moved online. Shares of TIME were down 12% year-to-date at Fridays close.

Nevertheless, traditional publishers should not be counted out of todays evolving media world. Companies like Time Inc are finally learning how to adapt; the companys lone highlight in its Q3 earnings report was its impressive digital advertising revenue growth of 63% (Time Posts In-Line Q3 Earnings, Revenues Miss).

For now, not much else is known about the offer or Times reasons for rejecting it. One thing we do know is that Bronfman and his group do not have any experience with magazines, which would leave the companys future uncertain if a buyout does take place.

Investors should keep their eye on this stock if follow-up bids begin flowing in.

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Today in weird news, Rashida Jones was once attacked by Michael Jacksons pet chimp

Its easy to forget that due to her famous Dad, she was living the celebrity life well before she was given a part on The Office. In a recent interview, Rashida Jones admitted that Michael Jacksons chimp attacked her back in the day, which was probably an indicator that she was truly someone special. While suffering from a chimp attack is kind of scary, were happy that Jones seemed to be slightly honored by the event. (I mean, its not every day that you get to be in the presence of Bubbles.)

Of course, the attack wasnt anything truly serious. The actress, who recalled the event on Desus & Mero, said that the famous chimp just drew a bit of blood after biting her finger.

He was wearing a little fulloverall jumpsuit and a striped shirt, she said. To pretend he was a human.

Weirdly enough, Jones still has a tiny scar from the incident.

He also looked me dead in my eye. While he was biting me, she continued.

I was trying to punish him because he threw something at me. And I, like, hit him on the head and said, No! because I had seen Michael trying to punish him before.

We guess this is a good time to remind everyone not to mess with monkeys  even monkeys who have a bit of training. Were guessing that Jones was at the Neverland Ranch due to the fact that her father, Quincy, produced a few of Jacksons most memorable albums.

You can watch the interview here:

Looking back, Jones doesnt think that Bubbles has any regrets over what happened. These days, Bubbles is living a tamer life at The Center For Great Apes, a popular sanctuary in located in Wauchula, Florida. While theres a myth that Jackson left money for Bubbles in his will, the sanctuary notes that these claims arent true.

Were hoping that the incident hasnt given Rashida Jones a lifelong fear of chimps. All in all, it seems pretty terrifying!

The post Today in weird news, Rashida Jones was once attacked by Michael Jacksons pet chimp appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Photo credit: Philadelphia Police Department

From Cosmopolitan

Photo credit: Philadelphia Police Department

While parents were busy preparing Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, a four-year-old toddler who was reportedly playing with a family gun shot a two-year-old cousin, who is now in critical but stable condition.

According to the Philadelphia Media News Network, chief inspector Scott Small told reporters, "the mother was preparing Thanksgiving dinner when the two kids were playing with the gun." Rachel Santiago and Omar Laboy-Vega - who local news outlets report are the two-year-old's parents - face criminal charges in connection with the incident.

When Philadelphia police arrived at the scene on Thursday afternoon, the two-year-old was discovered to have gunshot wounds in his chest and finger, reports the Washington Post. He was immediately rushed to a hospital, where he remains in critical but stable condition.

In 2016 alone, more than 600 children younger than 12 have been killed or injured in gun-related incidents according to the Gun Violence Archive, and the Washington Post reports that at least 50 toddlers have shot people this year.

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Tom Holland, Daisy Ridley (Photo: Michael Stewart, Matthew Eisman/Getty Images)

By Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter

Tom Holland, who is playing Spider-Man in next years Spider-Man: Homecoming, is in negotiations to join Daisy Ridley in Lionsgates post-apocalyptic thriller Chaos Walking.

Doug Liman is directing the project, an adaptation of the best-selling YA novel by Patrick Ness.

The story takes place in a world where all women have been killed by a germ and all living creatures can hear one anothers thoughts in a stream of images, words and sounds called Noise.

Holland would star as a boy forced to flee his town with his loyal dog and who comes upon a strange sight: a girl (Ridley).

Oscar-winning screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) worked on the script as did Jamie Linden (Money Monster).

Doug Davison, who produced the Liman-directed Tom Cruise starrer Mena, is producing alongside Allison Shearmur (Rogue One, Cinderella).

Holland made his feature debut with the tsunami drama The Impossible and made a splashy superhero debut as Peter Parker in this years Captain America: Civil War. Earlier in November he signed on for a key role opposite Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon in the period drama The Current War.

He is repped by WME.
Despite what you might have read about the election of Donald Trump killing the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, Prophets of Rage guitarist Tom Morello writes in a new essay for The Guardian that the real reason the TPP has been defeated was not thanks to The Donald, but thanks to The People. "If not for the constant pressure from activists and civil society groups, the TPP would have become law long before the recent U.S. election," writes Morello, who co-authored the op-ed, along with fellow celebrity activist Evangeline Lilly and Fight for the Future campaign director Evan Greer.

The trade agreement that was ratified in February between twelve Pacific Rim countries and the U.S. after seven years of negotiations became a talking point in the presidential election, with Republican president-elect Donald Trump vowing to overturn and tear up the plan, and Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton saying she was against it, after formerly saying she supported it. The Obama administration announced last week that it would abandon efforts to pass the agreement through Congress.

"The reports are rolling in: the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is dead. If you read the obituaries, most news outlets seem to agree that the cause of death was simple: the election of Donald Trump, who railed against the deal during his campaign. But the pundits have the story wrong," the trio writes in the essay posted on Monday (Nov. 28).

"The real story is that an unprecedented, international uprising of people from across the political spectrum took on some of the most powerful institutions in the world, and won. Sure, Donald Trump - and Bernie Sanders' - campaign focus on the TPP elevated US awareness about the pact, a wide-reaching international agreement negotiated by the Obama administration. But no single politician killed this deal."

The three activists said that the "massive global deal [that was] negotiated in secret with hundreds of corporate advisers" locked out the public and would have "handed multinational corporations like Walmart, AT&T and Monsanto extraordinary new powers over everything from the wages we earn, to the way we use the internet, to the safety of the food we feed our children."

Story continues

Morello and Lilly participated in some of the Rock Against the TPP concert series organized by Fight for the Future and Firebrand Records earlier this year. The eight concerts featured a rotating line-up of artists including Morello, Talib Kweli, Anti-Flag, Lilly, Jolie Holland, Dead Prez, Jello Biafra, La Santa Cecilia and others.

"Tom and Evangeline have been fantastically outspoken about so many important issues in the past," Greer relates to Billboard. "When I organized the Rock Against the TPP tour and realized the impact it would have, they were the first two I reached out to."

Greer, whose non-profit has also staged protests in the past aimed at making sure the internet continues to "hold freedom of expression and creativity" at its core, says the TPP would have become law way before anyone even envisioned Trump's unlikely presidential bid if not for the grass roots work of activists in the U.S. and other impacted countries. Those activists pushed back over their objections to multiple provisions in the deal for years, until the deadline to ratify came down to the wire during the U.S. election.

"There was a decade of groundwork put in by an incredibly innovative and scrappy band of organizers around the world to bring this down," Greer says. "With a lot of people feeling hopeless right now and feeling like there's nothing we can do to make this world better and that we're headed for a dark and dangerous time, it's important for people to know that there are ways we can come together."

Perhaps now is an "incredibly inspiring" moment where activists of all stripes can seek out unprecedented levels of cooperation to make the world a better place, Greer argues. Because after all, she says, real change has always come "from the bottom up," not the top down.

"Now more than ever, it's crucial that Americans understand how the TPP was really defeated," the trio writes in The Guardian. "An organized and educated public can take on concentrated wealth and power and win. With four years of new battles ahead of us, this is a story we must commit to memory, and a lesson we must take to heart."

Click here to read the full essay.
Tony Martell, founder and chairman of the T.J. Martell Foundation, the music industry's largest foundation for leukemia, cancer and AIDS research, has died at the age of 90. Martell passed away Sunday (Nov. 27) at his home in Madison, New Jersey.

Martell was a longtime label exec and A&R man who worked with Electric Light Orchestra, Joan Jett, Ozzy Osbourne, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Isley Brothers and others over a career that spanned from the 1960s to the 1990s; his highest post was president of CBS International Records.

Yet there's no question that the Foundation -- which has raised more than $270 million for scientific research at hospitals in the United States -- is his greatest achievement. He launched it in 1975 to as a promise to his 19-year-old son T.J., who died after a two-year battle with leukemia. Martell originally promised to raise $1 million for cancer research, which took three years to fulfill. But, he told Billboard in 2015, his philanthropic quest was far from over. James F. Holland, T.J.'s physician, "took me around to several patients to more or less lay a guilt trip on me," Martell recalled. One of those patients told him something that convinced him to keep at it. "He said, 'You can live 30 days without food, seven days without water. But you can't live 60 seconds without hope.'"

In the decades since, the organization has become the music industry's largest foundation of its type, its annual ceremony a longtime staple of the industry calendar. Martell spoke at the Foundation's 2016 event -- on Oct. 18, just five weeks ago -- saying proudly, "We have some big news tonight." He went on to say that leukemia is no longer the number-one killer in childhood diseases, thanks in part to the work of the Foundation.

Martell is survived by his daughter Debbie Martell of Florham Park, NJ. His wife of more than 65 years, Vicky, passed away in February of this year.

"Tony's smile, energy and incredible devotion will be missed beyond words. We will work even harder now to keep his memory and dream alive and one day finding a cure for the diseases that he spent his life fighting," reads a statement on the organization's website.

Memorial plans will be announced soon.
Comedian and political satirist Harry Shearer (The Simpsons, SNL) is currently developing a new series about President-elect Donald Trump entitled Too Soon? The half-hour, weekly satire will detail Trumps time in the White House.

I wanted to do this to start what I think is a future, if not the future, of topical sketch comedy, Shearer said. With Donald Trump now set to be President, this could be comedy gold for the next four years. Shearer is no stranger to political humor, though his last POTUS-related series, Nixons the One, worked straight from the Nixon Tapes, using them as the script for his portrayal of the soon-to-be-impeached president. Nixons the One ran on My Damn Channel on YouTube in the U.S., and Sky Arts in Britain. Too Soon? is being shopped for TV.



Shearer released a sneak peak of the upcoming series last week, created by John MacInnes and Remington Scott of MacInnes Scott. The video features a fictionalized encounter of Trump and President Obamas first meeting, in which they discuss Abraham Lincolns desk in the oval office, Obamas bookshelf, and more. Both Obama and Trump are voiced by Shearer, and the animation is done using performance capture software generally used to make video games.

Were taking video game technology and using it to create non-gaming content  TV, movies, music videos  across all media platforms, whether thats 2D, or 3D virtual reality, MacInnes and Scott said.



Watch the clip below or click here.

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A transgender person was shot after leaving a bar in Philadelphias Overbrook section Sunday night. The 21-year-old victim was shot in the hip and taken to a nearby hospital where he remains in stable condition. Police are now seeking two male suspects in the crime.

The unnamed victim told police that he was leaving a bar in the area when two men followed him outside, CBS Philadelphia reported. After walking about two blocks, one of the men fired his gun and hit him.

Based on ballistic evidence, we know at least five shots were fired from a small caliber, semiautomatic weapon, Chief Inspector Scott Small told CBS Philadelphia. We dont have a motive for the shooting at this time.

Police are unsure if the victim was targeted due to his gender identity or for another reason and were hoping to gain additional information from nearby security cameras.

In February, a transgender woman named Maya Young was killed in Philadelphia after being stabbed multiple times. Young was the first transgender person to be killed in the city in 2016. She was found in Philadelphia's Frankford section and taken to a nearby hospital, where she later died. A man and woman were arrested for the killing in March, though a motive for the attack was not given.

RTSNT7O

Photo: Reuters

Homicides of transgender people across the United States reached an all-time high in 2016. As of Nov. 10, at least 24 transgender people had been murdered. In 2015, 22 transgender people were killed. The National Coalition of Anti-Violence programs classified all but four of the deaths in 2015 as hate crimes.

Hate crimes are considered more serious offenses than crimes not motivated by bias or hate under Philadephia law. The Ethnic Intimidation Act covers any crime or intimidation based on race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, sexual orientation or gender and gender identity.

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When the final U.S. election results rolled in early in the morning of Nov. 9, many Canadians were left worrying about what President-elect Donald Trump could mean for the future of their country  perhaps none more than Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The two leaders could not be more different. Trump, known for his mean-spirited tweets, misogynistic comments, and skepticism of climate change, has grabbed global headlines with his collection of anti-immigrant positions like building a wall on the Mexican border, temporarily banning Muslims from entering the United States, and deporting millions of immigrants who live illegally in the country. In stark contrast, Trudeau, a self-proclaimed feminist who is famous for shirtless photographs, celebrates Canadas ethnic diversity at every turn, including personally welcoming some of the 30,000 Syrian refugees his country has accepted since late 2015.

And beyond the massive divergence in worldview and personality between the two North American leaders, a Trump presidency is likely to undermine much of Trudeaus own platform at home. Trump has trashed free trade and vowed to tear up the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) unless Canada and Mexico agree to renegotiate the pact. He has likewise promised to back out of the Paris climate agreement  a deal that Trudeau has firmly backed. Relations between Ottawa and Washington could also further strain over defense, where Canada has long failed to live up to the 2 percent of GDP spending obligations under NATO. For a country like Canada that has long depended on the political and economic stability of its southern neighbor for its own prosperity, a Trump presidency could be very bad news.

But all is not lost for Canada. The U.S. president-elect is sure to sow his fair share of chaos around the world, and its unlikely that Trudeau and Trump will see eye to eye on most issues. But if Ottawa can show flexibility and ingenuity on the fly, Trudeau will be able to find some major silver linings from Trumps shake-ups that could ultimately benefit Americas neighbor to the north.

Despite centuries of strong relations between Ottawa and Washington, clashes over personality, political ideology, and governing priorities between president and prime minister have been surprisingly common. And yet the two countries have always found ways to work together. The United States is Canadas largest trading partner, and Canada jostles with China for that status in America, with nearly $2 billion in daily bilateral trade between the two neighbors. Meanwhile, Ottawa and Washingtons cooperation on a host of issues from aerospace defense to border management has made their partnership one of the strongest in the world. The strength of these ties was on display shortly after Trumps victory. Although presumably privately disappointed with the result, Trudeau made the customary congratulatory call to the president-elect and invited Trump to visit Canada at his earliest opportunity. No Canadian prime minister, not even one with the star power of Trudeau, can afford to turn his back on a U.S. president.

Looking ahead, the most serious area of contention between Trudeau and Trump is trade. Some $31 billion in imports and exports cross the U.S.-Canada border every month. The Ambassador Bridge, linking the cities of Detroit in Michigan and Windsor in Ontario, carries more goods in any given year than Americas total annual trade with the United Kingdom. But the president-elect is no fan of NAFTA and stumped on improving or scraping the trade deal, which he said came at the expense of American workers. Trudeau has said he is open to renegotiating NAFTA. Although Canadas opposition parties have criticized him for that, Trudeau is not without leverage of his own in future dealings with Trump. According to Canadas finance minister, Bill Morneau, the jobs of some 9 million Americans depend on trade with Canada, and Canada is the No. 1 trading partner for 35 U.S. states.

If Trump does scrap NAFTA, which came into effect in 1994, Canada could have a safety net. Ottawa and Washington ratified their own bilateral free trade deal in 1989, which may come back into force if NAFTA is torn up. The vast majority of Canadas trade within North America is with the United States, not Mexico. And a thicker U.S.-Mexico border  complete with a wall  may divert more trade north. This could be good news for Canadas shrinking auto industry, which is losing ground to Mexico on exporting cars to the United States. Mexicos automobile production has doubled in a decade, and it now builds more cars than Canada.

But like many U.S. allies that are now apprehensive about Trump, Ottawa will have to hedge the United States. Canada signed a major free trade deal with the European Union in October that will eliminate most tariffs on goods. The deal appeared on the brink of collapse in its final moments, which prompted some anguish in Canada precisely because it would have left Ottawa with fewer alternatives to the United States. On the sidelines of the recent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru, Trudeau continued trade talks with Pacific Rim countries that signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership, like Japan, and that are now looking for economic contingencies. Ottawa has also promoted increased trade with China and India as a means to protect Canada from the risks of being overly dependent on exports to its southern neighbor.

This thinking isnt new. Trudeaus predecessor, Stephen Harper, championed a pipeline to take Alberta oil to Canadas Pacific coast for export to Asia in order to diversify the countrys energy markets. And in 1961, Prime Minister John Diefenbaker started selling large quantities of Canadian wheat to China, over Washingtons objections, due in part to frustration with the United States own subsidized wheat sales. A protectionist President Trump may well push Canada into new markets that decades from now will prove to be lucrative for Ottawa.

Trumps scorn for combating climate change, which he called a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, presents yet another obstacle for Trudeau. Fighting climate change was a major platform in Trudeaus election campaign, and it has featured heavily in his rhetoric since. Canada sent more than 300 delegates to the 2015 U.N. climate change conference in Paris, more than double the size of the American delegation. Moreover, Trudeau announced in October that Canadian provinces have until 2018 to put a minimum price on carbon emissions. Several provinces have already done so or will have programs up and running by January 2017.

But although Trumps anti-climate change agenda may be harmful to the environment and undercut Trudeaus global advocacy to curtail carbon emissions, it could actually benefit the Canadian economy. On the campaign trail, Trump promised to revive the Keystone XL pipeline, which would deliver crude oil from the Alberta oil sands to Nebraska. Obama scuttled the project in 2015 after years of stalling that eventually soured relations with Harper, and despite Trudeaus vocal environmentalism, he and his Liberal Party are supporters of the pipeline. Moreover, the prospect of a new market comes as Canada is in search of an economic boost. Slumping oil prices have rolled back the countrys once-thriving oil patch. The oil-rich province of Alberta is stuck in recession, with the Conference Board of Canada, a nonprofit research center, estimating that business investment in the oil and gas sector fell by the equivalent of $13 billion in 2015.

Finally, its likely that a Trump presidency will burnish Trudeaus image at home and around the world. Canadas prime minister has already spent his first year in office painting himself as a defender of liberal values and globalization  elevating Canadas profile on the international stage in the process. The comparison with Trump will only highlight Trudeaus liberalism and further his claim to the mantle of the worlds standard-bearer on pluralism and inclusivity. And Canada, which competes with the United States for high-skilled immigrants to keep its population growing and its workforce stocked, may also begin to appear as a more attractive destination. Such a shift would be a long-term gain for Canada.

Regardless of what happens between Trudeau and Trump, the key will be to keep their personal disagreements from spilling over. At a Camp David summit in 1965, then-President Lyndon B. Johnson famously grabbed Prime Minister Lester Pearson by the lapels and shook him over comments Pearson had made about U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. Trudeaus father, Pierre, didnt like his American counterpart, Richard Nixon, and the feeling was apparently mutual, with the U.S. president referring to the prime minister as an asshole in the Nixon tapes. Despite this, the pairs managed to forge steadfast, if unspectacular, working relationships. Pearson and Johnson signed the Auto Pact in 1965, which removed tariffs on automobiles  a centerpiece of cross-border trade. And although relations between Canada and the United States were tepid under Nixon and Trudeau, with little of note accomplished, the pair preserved professional and pragmatic relations between their two countries, hosting one another at state functions.

How well these episodes might serve Trudeau is difficult to predict, in part because Trump has provided so little insight into how hed like relations with Canada to develop. The president-elect, for his part, has said little about Canada but did tell a reporter in September 2015 that he loves the country and had no plans to build a wall along the U.S.-Canada border.

Its not much, but its a useful reminder for Canadians that they wont be the ones primarily afflicted by Trumps character flaws or the brunt of his policies. Regardless, Trudeau will still have to work with Trump, of course. As Pearson explained to then-French President Charles de Gaulle in 1964 about the United States, To live alongside this great country is like living with your wife. At times it is difficult to live with her. At all times it is impossible to live without her.

Canada may be entering one of those difficult times in its relationship with the United States. But with some luck and skill, even this rough patch might turn out OK.

Photo Credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is a beloved figure throughout Canada, but he's had to walk back recent comments about former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Trudeau eulogized Castro in an official statement Saturday, calling him a "remarkable leader" who "made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation."

Critics argue that Castro was a brutal dictator who left his country impoverished. The prime minister's statement was met with immediate backlash, causing him to defend his remarks.

"I have a personal recollection of the reaction when a long-time political figure of a particular country passes away, however polarizing they may have been for certain people," Trudeau said at a news conference Sunday, according to the Toronto Sun. The paper speculated that Trudeau was referring to his late father, Pierre Trudeau, who also served as Canada's prime minister.

The prime minister made the remarks during a trip to Antananarivo, Madagascar, where he was leading the Canadian delegation to the summit of la Francophonie. "Canadians know that I always talk about human rights, including here yesterday, including with Raul Castro two weeks ago and wherever I go around the world," Trudeau added.

[READ: Prince George refused to high-five Justin Trudeau.]

Further, when asked point-blank if he thought Castro was a dictator, Trudeau responded in the affirmative.

But that didn't stop the Twitterverse from skewering the international heartthrob. Users spawned the satirical hashtag #TrudeauEulogies and snarked about what he might say about other "controversial" historical figures:



Osama Bin Laden was certainly a controversial figure, but his contribution to airport security is unparalleled. #TrudeauEulogies

-- Deplorable Michael (@Beezer1776)

November 27, 2016

Today we mourn the death of Jeffrey Dahmer, who opened his home to the LGBTQ community and pushed culinary boundaries. #trudeaueulogies pic.twitter.com/aF9W5Stnk5

Story continues

-- Rep. Steven Smith (@RepStevenSmith)

November 27, 2016

Let us remember Jack the Ripper as a great benefactor who worked tirelessly to get female prostitutes off the streets. #trudeaueulogies

-- Natalie Faulk (@NatalieFaulk)

November 27, 2016

While Hitler & the Nazis could be tough on their enemies, they also showered them with free lodging & train rides #trudeaueulogies

-- Nick Gillespie (@nickgillespie)

November 27, 2016

"We mourn the passing of Henry VIII. A man who always kept his head, while all around were losing theirs" #TrudeauEulogies

-- Gavin John Adams (@gavinjohnadams)

November 26, 2016

If nothing else can be said for Hannibal Lecter, at least he had great taste in people. #TrudeauEulogies

-- Prufrock (@Kansokusha10)

November 26, 2016

We mourn the death of Vlad the Impaler, who spearheaded initiatives which touched the hearts of millions. #TrudeauEulogies #trudeaueulogy pic.twitter.com/z1pznoHj7P

-- Conservosaurus (@conservosaurus)

November 26, 2016

We mourn the loss of Judas Iscariot. Remember his ambition & business acumen. Nothing got in his way. Not even friends. #TrudeauEulogies

-- clakklaa (@clakklaa)

November 26, 2016

With his innovative urban renewal program, Pol Pot bravely confronted the pressing challenge of overpopulation. #trudeaueulogies

-- Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter)

November 26, 2016

Today we mourn the loss of Norman Bates, a family man who was truly defined by his devotion to his mother. #trudeaueulogies

-- Mike Hogan (@tsnmikehogan)

November 26, 2016

Today we remember Pablo Escobar's advances in spurring youth interest in pharmacology.#TrudeauEulogies

-- Chris Magill (@cmagill)

November 26, 2016

"Today we mourn painter and animal rights activist, Adolf Hitler. His death also highlights the need for suicide awareness"#TrudeauEulogies

-- Curtis (@FowlCanuck)

November 26, 2016

As we mourn Emperor Caligula, let us always remember his steadfast devotion to Senate reform. #trudeaueulogies

-- J.J. McCullough (@JJ_McCullough)

November 26, 2016

Kim Jong il will always be remembered fondly for his leadership and contributions on climate change. #trudeaueulogies pic.twitter.com/aMoAC2vssm

-- Albertaardvark (@Albertaardvark)

November 26, 2016

"Mr. Stalin's greatest achievement was his eradication of obesity in the Ukraine through innovative agricultural reforms." #TrudeauEulogies

-- Melissa Lantsman (@MelissaLantsman)

November 26, 2016

"While controversial, Darth Vader achieved great heights in space construction & played a formative role in his son's life" #trudeaueulogies

-- Jason Markusoff (@markusoff)

November 26, 2016

It is with a heavy heart that we mourn the passing of Saddam Hussein. His advancements in chemical research live on. #trudeaueulogies

-- Mikhail Menuck (@MischaMenuck)

November 26, 2016

You can follow Rachel Dicker on Twitter or reach her at rdicker@usnews.com.
Jason Miller, communications director for President-elect Donald Trumps transition team, urged the media Monday to focus on issues of both voter fraud and illegal immigrants voting rather than an election recount that he dismissed as nonsensical and a shiny object.

Millers comments came on the transition teams daily press call when he was asked about a series of tweets Trump sent on Sunday asserting that he won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally. His campaign has provided no evidence for the claim, and outside experts say it has no merit.

Trump made his comments in response to news that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clintons campaign is participating in a recount of the voting in Wisconsin that was requested by Green Party candidate Jill Stein. The recount can take place with or without Clintons involvement, but she has the right to have observers present, and evidently intends to exercise it. Clinton campaign general counsel Marc Elias said the campaign would also participate in recounts of Pennsylvania and Michigan if Stein is successful in initiating them.

Steins recount push came after a group of computer science experts said they detected statistical anomalies in voting patterns in those states that possibly benefited Trump. Other experts have dismissed these claims and Elias has said the Clinton campaign has found no evidence of irregularities. Trump won in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, and Clinton would need to flip the results in all three  considered extremely unlikely  to change the outcome in the Electoral College.

On Twitter, Trump dismissed the recount as a Green Party scam. He went on to allege there was serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California, all states won by Clinton. Trump is not requesting recounts in those states. His comments were widely discounted because there is no independent evidence that large numbers of people voted illegally. The claim seems to have originated as an Internet conspiracy theory.

Story continues

Jason Miller speaks to the media in the lobby of Republican president-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower. (Photo: Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

During Mondays transition team press call, Miller was asked if he had any evidence of illegal voting in the three blue states. Thanks for bringing that up, Miller replied, but answered instead by attacking Clinton for backing a recount. He pointed out that Clinton initially conceded the election to Trump. He added that Elias, her campaigns general counsel, has called for North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory to concede and stop contesting his reelection loss even though it was by a much smaller margin.

I really do think that its been ridiculous that so much oxygen has been given to a recount effort where theres absolutely no chance of any election results changing. This election has been decided. Its a conceded election, Miller said.

In support of Trumps assertions, Miller cited reports of people who were improperly registered to vote  including a disputed Washington Post article from 2014 that cited data showing more than 14 percent of noncitizens indicated they were registered to vote in polling conducted for a study in 2008 and 2010. He also pointed to a Pew Research study from 2012 that found approximately 24 million  one of every eight  voter registrations in the United States are no longer valid or are significantly inaccurate and that approximately 2.75 million people have registrations in more than one state.

So, all of these are studies or examples where there have been issues of both voter fraud and illegal immigrants voting, said Miller. So, if this much attention and oxygen is going to be given to a completely frivolous throwaway fundraising scheme by someone like Jill Stein, then there should be actual, substantive looks at the overall examples of voter fraud and illegal immigrants voting in recent years. And so thats the broader message that I think should be taken away here.

Pressed by reporters, Miller did not cite any specific evidence of illegal voting, as distinguished from improper registrations. Asked if there was a chance Trump would push federal or local officials to investigate voter fraud when he takes office next January. Miller said it would be inappropriate for him to speculate about potential investigations, but he reiterated his view voter fraud is a concern that merits attention and press coverage.

Obviously, I do think that its an issue of concern, the fact that theres a concern that so many  voted who were not legally supposed to, Miller said, before adding, I think theres a responsibility from members of the media  to give an appropriate level of attention to some of these different concerns  as opposed to just chasing the shiny object of the Jill Stein recount effort, which is really just a way for Ms. Stein and the Green Party to make money.

Steins campaign claims to have raised over $6.3 million to file for recounts in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. The campaign initially said they would need to raise about 2.5 million dollars collectively for all three states for filing costs. Stein and her campaign have not responded to multiple requests for comment from Yahoo News about Trumps criticism of the effort.
Brussels (AFP) - Geopolitical events including the election of Donald Trump and Britain's Brexit vote are the main reasons for the current economic uncertainty, European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi told EU parliamentarians Monday.

"Looking at the recent events, it is quite clear that geopolitical uncertainty has become the major source of uncertainty for the months to come," Draghi warned the European parliament's economic affairs committee.

The ECB president highlighted in particular the decision by British voters to leave the European Union and the risks which the referendum result poses for European economies.

Draghi admitted it was difficult to predict the precise economic implications of Brexit, as these will "notably depend on the timing, progress and final outcome of the upcoming negotiations. "

It is therefore important "to have clarity on the negotiation process as soon as possible in order to reduce uncertainty," he added.

The arrival of US President-elect Donald Trump, a proponent of protectionism, also raises numerous questions on future policy of the world's biggest economy.

After a strong initial reaction by financial markets, which fell in the face of both events, the subsequent recovery "leads us to the conclusion that markets have been more resilient than one would have expected a few years ago," said Draghi.

However, these changes "are quite profound and are going to affect the reality of not only the coming months but the coming years," the ECB chief added.

He said EU members had made "enormous progress" on financial stability and urged them to maintain the single market and "continue strengthening this foundation of our union".
Last week, Donald Trump advisor Stephen Moore, who has built his career advocating tax cuts for the rich and the privatization of Americas welfare state, said something startling to congressional Republicans. He said Republicans are no longer the party of Ronald Reagan. Just as Reagan converted the GOP into a conservative party, Moore reportedly declared, Trump has converted the GOP into a populist working-class party.

What does that mean? On its face, it seems fairly clear. Trump says he opposes NAFTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership and will prevent companies from leaving the US. During the campaign, he came out against overhauling Medicare and Social Security. Hes called for new spending on infrastructure. In each case, he ostensibly supports government intervention in the economy, which runs counter to the gospel of Reagan.

But when you dig further, the policy shift looks less dramatic. Its extremely unlikely Trump will prove able to renegotiate NAFTA. His infrastructure proposal consists not of government spending but of tax credits to investors. Georgia Congressman Tom Price, who Trump is reportedly considering for Secretary of Health and Human Services, supports turning Medicare into a voucher program. Trump is also reportedly planning income and business tax cuts that would overwhelmingly benefit the rich. In other words, Trumps plan looks a lot like the old Republican Partys plan: Shrink government programs and let the rich pocket the difference.

Recommended: How to Deal With the Lies of Donald Trump

Moreover, personnel, as the cliche goes, is policy. If Trump really wanted to break from Reaganite economics, why did he choose Mike Pence, an orthodox economic conservative, as his running mate and head of his transition team? Why is he taking advice from Stephen Moore?

Theres a different way of understanding the transformation that Moore describes. Its less about policy than rhetoric. It struck me as I was reading J.D. Vances beautiful memoir about his Appalachian upbringing, Hillbilly Elegy. What makes Vances book so striking is not the problems he describes: deindustrialization, drug addiction, single motherhood, a definition of masculinity that inhibits academic achievement. William Julius Wilson and Charles Murray made their reputations dissecting these ills 30 years ago. What makes Vances book so arresting is that the people hes describing are white.

Story continues

Its not that working class whites didnt suffer from these maladies in the 1980s. They clearly did, though perhaps not as starkly as they do now. But in the public discourse of the Reagan era, such problems were generally attributed to African Americans. They were attributed, in other words, to a population that did not vote for Republicans, and whom Republicans often slandered in their search for white votes. When Reagan denounced welfare queens and the strapping young buck who used food stamps to buy steak, everyone assumed he was talking about blacks.

Recommended: The Electoral College Wasn't Meant to Overturn Elections

Reagan era conservatives made two arguments about the pathologies of the inner city. First, that they were the result of culture, not economics. The root problem was family breakdown. Second, that because the problem was cultural, government programs aimed at helping the underclass would either prove ineffective, or downright counterproductive. The best thing the government could do was to exhort poor African Americans to get and stay married, and to abolish programs like Aid to Families with Dependent Children that made it easier for them to avoid doing so.

In this sense, Vance is something of a Reaganite. He describes his Appalachian friends and neighbors with deep affection. And he suggests that, at the margins, smart public policy might improve their lot. But he defines their problems as more cultural than economic. In the books introduction, Vance describes a young man and his pregnant girlfriend who hold decent jobs at a local tile factory. Their atrocious work ethic gets them both fired. Vance describes food stamp fraud, white welfare queens and liberal state legislators whose efforts to eliminate predatory lending would actually harm the poor people theyre designed to help. He acknowledges the decline of manufacturing jobs. But to hear him tell it, the biggest problem facing the white working class is the feeling that our choices dont matter.

Trump never speaks this way. In fact, he speaks less about personal responsibility than any Republican presidential nominee since Reagan. Hes the anti-J.D. Vance. Vance wants blue-collar whites to blame multinational corporations less for their woes. Trump blames them more than any Republican nominee ever has. Vance cautions that government cant save Appalachia. Trump, by promising a crackdown on immigrants and outsourcing, vows that it will.

Recommended: Donald Trump Has Broken the Constitution

This is the real shift Trump is bringing to the GOP. Under Reagan, Republicans demanded personal responsibility from African Americans and ignored the same cultural problems when displayed by whites. Under Trump, Republicans acknowledge that whites exhibit those same pathologies. Trump, for instance, spoke frequently during the campaign about drug addiction in white, rural states like New Hampshire. But instead of demanding personal responsibility, Trumps GOP promises state protection. Unlike Vance, who speaks about his poor white neighbors in the way Reagan-era conservatives spoke about poor blacks, Trump-era conservatives describe the white working class as the victims of political and economic forces beyond their control. Sounding a bit like Jesse Jackson defending the black underclass in the 1980s, Trump Republicans say that what the white underclass needs today is not moralistic sermonizing but government assistance and cultural respect.

In recent months, many readers have turned to Hillbilly Elegy in hopes of understanding why white working class voters flocked to Trump. Implicitly, Vance offers an explanation. But his explanation is disturbing. His Appalachian and rust belt neighbors, Vance suggests, want easy answers. They want someone else to blame. By ditching the language of personal responsibility, Trump has created a Republican Party able to tell them what they want to hear. He has done so even as his administration begins implementing a policy agenda that redistributes wealth upwards. This the new GOP populism that Moore describes. God help us when J.D. Vances neighbors realize its a scam.

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Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump this week will meet with retired U.S. General David Petraeus and U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, as well as hold a second meeting with 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, Trump's transition team said. Trump will meet with former CIA Director Petraeus on Monday, and with Corker and Romney on Tuesday, Trump aides told reporters on a conference call. All three have been floated as potential picks to be Trump's secretary of state. (Reporting by Steve Holland and Emily Stephenson; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
New York (AFP) - Donald Trump held talks Monday with David Petraeus, one of America's most celebrated generals who subsequently resigned from the CIA in disgrace, as the president-elect narrowed his contentious search for a secretary of state.

The retired general, who served as commander in Iraq and Afghanistan before a stunning fall from grace for leaking classified material to his mistress, told reporters that the meeting lasted around an hour.

Trump "showed a great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities," Petraeus said, describing their conversation as "very good."

"We'll see where it goes from here," he told reporters at Trump Tower.

Trump himself was also positive, tweeting "Just met with General Petraeus--was very impressed!"

The 64-year-old scholar-warrior, who told the BBC last week that he would serve in the cabinet if asked, led the US surge in Iraq from 2006 to 2008, before heading US Central Command and leading NATO forces in Afghanistan.

He took over the CIA in 2011, but resigned in 2012 after coming under investigation for giving classified information to his biographer Paula Broadwell, with whom he was having an affair.

In 2015, he was put on two years' probation and fined $100,000 after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified information -- facts that could pose a problem to getting Senate approval as America's top diplomat.

On the campaign trail, Trump railed against the FBI's decision not to prosecute rival Hillary Clinton over her "extremely careless" handling of classified emails, by saying Petraeus had been punished for less.

- Other contenders -

On Tuesday, Trump is also scheduled to meet Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Republican senator from Tennessee, and for a second time, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller said the president-elect had met a number of well qualified candidates, but declined to say how close he may be to a decision on the secretary of state vacancy.

Story continues

"He's going to pick the person that he thinks will do the absolutely best job," Miller told reporters.

The quest for America's next top diplomat has sparked infighting in the Trump camp, with some loyalists bitterly opposed to Romney, who was one of the president-elect's most outspoken Republican critics during the campaign.

Top aide Kellyanne Conway -- unusually for a senior political aide -- spoke out publicly about Romney's shortcomings, saying she had received "a deluge" of concern from supporters and stressing his past animosity towards Trump.

The 2012 Republican presidential candidate called Trump a "fraud" and a "conman," and refused to endorse him.

Some Trump supporters have instead pushed for outspoken Rudy Giuliani -- mayor of New York on September 11, 2001 -- to fill the vacancy -- despite scrutiny over business dealings that could pose conflicts of interest.

Picking Romney could instead reassure the Republican establishment and US allies worried about Trump's foreign policy.

Trump last week moved to broaden his cabinet base beyond mainly older white men by nominating South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley -- whose parents are Indian immigrants -- as US ambassador to the United Nations.
Sheriff David Clarke of Milwaukee County, Wis., salutes the audience before a speech at the National Rifle Association convention in May. (Photo: Mark Humphrey/AP)

Donald Trump is meeting with Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke at Trump Tower on Monday afternoon as he seeks to fill out his remaining Cabinet positions.

Clarke, who has called the Black Lives Matter movement vile and slimy, is reportedly in the running to lead the Department of Homeland Security and its 240,000 employees, who span immigration enforcement, the U.S. Secret Service, the TSA and other functions.

Clarke, who ran for sheriff as a Democrat, has become a hero in the conservative movement in recent years for opposing the Black Lives Matter movement and efforts to reform the criminal justice system. In a fiery July speech at the Republican National Convention, Clarke brought the crowd to its feet as he chanted Blue Lives Matter, a reference to police uniforms. He celebrated the acquittal of a Baltimore police officer in the death of Freddie Gray during the speech.

These are truths that are self-evident to me, and which I practice, and they are the truths that Donald Trump understands and supports, he said. Donald Trump is the steadfast leader our nation needs.

Clarke is currently in charge of about 250 officers and is the author of a soon-to-be-released memoir called Cop Under Fire. In it, he argues that U.S. citizens suspected of terrorism should be treated as enemy combatants and tried in military tribunals, not U.S. courts, according to a summary of the book in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Clarke proposed creating a new federal agency to track down homegrown terrorists that reports directly to the White House.

Like Trump, Clarke has occasionally had an adversarial relationship with the press. When questioned about a claim in his upcoming memoir by local reporter Daniel Bice, Clarke responded by email: Bice your obsession with me is an illness and you are in need of professional help. He said the reporter reminded him of attempted presidential assassin John Hinckley Jr., who stalked actress Jodie Foster. Make sure you quote me on this Bice, he added.

Story continues

David Clarke addresses delegates at the Republican National Convention in July. (Photo: Carolyn Kaster/AP)

Trump is also reportedly considering Rep. Mike McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, for the Homeland Security position, and is meeting with McCaul on Tuesday. On Monday, he also met with Frances Townsend, a Homeland Security official under George W. Bush, and earlier this month, Trump met with Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, another contender for the role. Kobach was photographed holding a sheet of paper apparently revealing some plans for the department, which included barring all Syrian refugees from the U.S. and reinstating a registry for visitors from high risk countries.

Clarke first gained national attention as a dissenting voice to the bipartisan criminal justice reform movement. Ideologically diverse reformers, including President Obama and the conservative Koch brothers, sought to roll back mandatory minimum penalties for nonviolent offenses and better integrate ex-felons into society to reduce recidivism. The reformers argued that the U.S. should not imprison so many people  a bigger share of its population than any other country  for both societal and financial reasons.

Clarke argued that this was the thinking of elites who did not have to deal with the consequences of crime in their neighborhoods  a claim Trump has made, as well.

I think this whole criminal justice reform social engineering experiment is very misguided, and in the end the consequences are hurting good, law abiding minority communities, Clarke told Yahoo News in an interview last year. When I hear someone say theres too many people locked up, I say, Whats the right number?

Clarke said the best way to reduce crime is to improve job opportunities and education for poor people while cracking down on criminals, including drug offenders. I dont think you artificially lower prison rates by watering down crime and by normalizing criminal behavior, he said.
kellyanne conway donald trump

President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly furious over comments his former campaign manager Kellyanne Conway has made about Mitt Romney, who is under consideration for the secretary of state post in his Cabinet.

Conway suggested Sunday that Trump supporters felt "betrayed" by the consideration of Romney for the post. Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts and 2012 Republican presidential nominee, had been one of the most vocal critics of Trump during the 2016 election.

Two high-level sources on Trump's transition team told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" that the president-elect was "furious" that Conway went rogue at Trump's expense "at the worst possible time." Aides are reportedly "baffled" by Conway's comments and concerned that "instead of driving Trump's message," Conway is "pushing her own agenda," according to the report, which was laid out on air by hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.

One top aide described Conway's behavior as "dangerous."

Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus, the incoming chief of staff in Trump's administration, is also reportedly frustrated with Conway.

Conway responded to the MSNBC report by calling it "sexist" and saying she could have any job she wanted in a Trump administration.

Conway continued her public attacks on Romney over the weekend, telling CNN on Sunday that while she hoped Romney would be a gracious secretary of state if selected, his aggressive criticism of Trump during the primaries did not sit well with the president-elect's supporters.

"It's just breathtaking in scope and intensity the type of messages I have received from all over the country," Conway said. "The number of people who feel betrayed to think that Governor Romney would get the most prominent Cabinet post, after he went so far out of his way to hurt Donald Trump  there was the Never Trump movement, and then there was Mitt Romney."

She added: "If President-elect Trump chooses Mitt Romney as his secretary of state, or whomever he chooses, that will have the full support and backing of all of us. I respect the brilliance and judgment and sheer instincts of President-elect Trump to form his Cabinet as he wishes. But I felt compelled to come forward on behalf of the people who were weighing in."

Story continues

Romney is reportedly Trump's top pick for secretary of state, but the infighting over Romney's potential appointment has reached a boiling point inside Trump's camp. Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani of New York is also under consideration, as are former CIA Director David Petraeus and Sen. Bob Corker.

Trump will meet with Petraeus in Trump Tower on Monday. He'll meet with Corker and Romney again on Tuesday, his transition team said.

Watch the 'Morning Joe' report below:

BREAKING - Sources: Trump 'furious' over Conway comments about Romney https://t.co/Sd4kogEPGz  Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) November 28, 2016





More From Business Insider


President-elect Donald Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, reportedly sent an approving message to the mastermind behind the Bridgegate lane closures shortly after he resigned from his position amid the scandal.

According to an email obtained by The Washington Post, Kushner wrote to former Port Authority official David Wildstein on Dec. 7, 2013: Just wanted you to know that I am thinking of you and wishing the best. For what its worth, I thought the move you pulled was kind of badass.

Kushner, a key player on Trumps presidential transition team, appeared to be referring to the 2013 lane closures on the George Washington Bridge that froze traffic for days in a long-running ordeal that came to be known as Bridgegate.

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available now on iOS and Android.

Talking Points Memo reports that Wildstein previously worked for Kushner as the anonymous blogger for PolitickerNJ.com. Wildstein later confessed to masterminding the Bridgegate scheme. Earlier this month, two former allies of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie were convicted of plotting to close the lanes as part of a revenge plot against a Democratic mayor who wouldnt endorse the Republican governors 2013 re-election bid.

RELATED VIDEO: 5 Things to Know About Jared Kushner

Kushner Companies spokeswoman Risa Heller told The Washington Post that Kushners email was a poorly worded way of Jared trying to cheer up an old friend.
By Steve Holland and Melissa Fares NEW YORK (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump stepped up his search on Monday for a new U.S. secretary of state, with the focus on David Petraeus, a former U.S. military commander in Iraq whose mishandling of classified information led to his resignation as CIA chief in 2012. "Just met with General Petraeus--was very impressed!" Trump said on Twitter shortly after Petraeus, a retired general, left an hour-long meeting with the Republican winner of the Nov. 8 election at Trump Tower in Manhattan. Trump's consideration of Petraeus, who has also been mentioned as a contender for the top job at the Pentagon - adds a new layer of drama to his unusually public deliberations over the top diplomatic job for his administration. Petraeus, who led international forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan, was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $100,000 last year for the unauthorised removal and retention of classified information. He admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012. Petraeus said after meeting Trump that the New York businessman "basically walked us around the world" in their discussion. "He showed a great grasp of the variety of challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well," Petraeus told reporters. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, plans to hold talks with Mitt Romney on Tuesday in his second recent meeting with the 2012 Republican presidential nominee. A Republican source close to the transition team said it had appeared late last week that Trump was leaning toward choosing Romney as his secretary of state but that the appearance of Petraeus at Trump Tower suggested the president-elect was still undecided and casting a wider net for the position. U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are also in the mix for the job of America's top diplomat, Trump aides say. Frances Townsend, a national security aide during the administration of Republican President George W. Bush, also met Trump on Monday. PETRAEUS TROUBLES Petraeus' past mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to Trump offering him a top government post, said a source who has advised the transition team on national security. That is despite Trump harshly criticizing Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the election campaign for using a private email server while she was secretary of state. Trump often compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against Clinton, who was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but never charged with any offence. "Just based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received a lot more punishment," said a source who has advised the transition team on national security. Among the Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said. Giuliani is favoured by loyalists who worked on the election campaign. Kellyanne Conway, his campaign manager, has said Romney would cause a backlash among his supporters. Ideological conservatives hope Trump picks John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded, but some in the Trump camp do not want too many senators coming into the Cabinet, the source said. Trump arrived back in New York on Sunday after several days in Florida for Thanksgiving. He caused a stir on Sunday when he alleged on Twitter that serious voter fraud had occurred in the presidential election in New Hampshire, Virginia, and California - states won by Clinton - but provided no evidence to back his assertion. The White House said on Monday there had been no evidence of widespread election fraud in the presidential contest, and all three states rejected Trump's allegation. New Hampshire's deputy secretary of state, David Scanlan, said: Theres no evidence that weve seen that supports claims like that. Voter fraud does occur, but it occurs in isolated instances. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla called Trump's allegations unsubstantiated and Virginia Commissioner of Elections Edgardo Cortes said they were unfounded. (Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington and Julia Harte in Washington; Writing by Alistair Bell and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney)
By Steve Holland and Melissa Fares NEW YORK (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump stepped up his search on Monday for a new U.S. secretary of state, with the focus on David Petraeus, a former U.S. military commander in Iraq whose mishandling of classified information led to his resignation as CIA chief in 2012. "Just met with General Petraeus--was very impressed!" Trump said on Twitter shortly after Petraeus, a retired general, left an hour-long meeting with the Republican winner of the Nov. 8 election at Trump Tower in Manhattan. Trump's consideration of Petraeus, who has also been mentioned as a contender for the top job at the Pentagon - adds a new layer of drama to his unusually public deliberations over the top diplomatic job for his administration. Petraeus, who led international forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan, was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $100,000 last year for the unauthorized removal and retention of classified information. He admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012. Petraeus said after meeting Trump that the New York businessman "basically walked us around the world" in their discussion. "He showed a great grasp of the variety of challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well," Petraeus told reporters. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, plans to hold talks with Mitt Romney on Tuesday in his second recent meeting with the 2012 Republican presidential nominee. A Republican source close to the transition team said it had appeared late last week that Trump was leaning toward choosing Romney as his secretary of state but that the appearance of Petraeus at Trump Tower suggested the president-elect was still undecided and casting a wider net for the position. U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are also in the mix for the job of America's top diplomat, Trump aides say. Frances Townsend, a national security aide during the administration of Republican President George W. Bush, also met Trump on Monday. PETRAEUS TROUBLES Petraeus' past mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to Trump offering him a top government post, said a source who has advised the transition team on national security. That is despite Trump harshly criticizing Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the election campaign for using a private email server while she was secretary of state. Trump often compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against Clinton, who was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but never charged with any offense. "Just based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received a lot more punishment," said a source who has advised the transition team on national security. Among the Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said. Giuliani is favored by loyalists who worked on the election campaign. Kellyanne Conway, his campaign manager, has said Romney would cause a backlash among his supporters. Ideological conservatives hope Trump picks John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded, but some in the Trump camp do not want too many senators coming into the Cabinet, the source said. Trump arrived back in New York on Sunday after several days in Florida for Thanksgiving. He caused a stir on Sunday when he alleged on Twitter that serious voter fraud had occurred in the presidential election in New Hampshire, Virginia, and California - states won by Clinton - but provided no evidence to back his assertion. The White House said on Monday there had been no evidence of widespread election fraud in the presidential contest, and all three states rejected Trump's allegation. New Hampshire's deputy secretary of state, David Scanlan, said: Theres no evidence that weve seen that supports claims like that. Voter fraud does occur, but it occurs in isolated instances. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla called Trump's allegations unsubstantiated and Virginia Commissioner of Elections Edgardo Cortes said they were unfounded. (Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington and Julia Harte in Washington; Writing by Alistair Bell and Roberta Rampton; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney)
GettyImages 624669954 2

President-elect Donald Trump on Monday threatened to scrap efforts taken by President Barack Obama aimed at slowly normalizing relations between the US and Cuba.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal, Trump wrote on Twitter.

Trumps warning came just days after the death of Fidel Castro, the communist island dictator who held power for decades.

Warming relations with the communist island had been one of Obamas top priorities in his second term.

In late 2014, Obama moved to end the decades-long freeze in relations with Cuba. In 2015, the two countries announced they would reopen embassies and restore diplomatic relations.

Reince Priebus, the incoming chief of staff to Trump, told Fox News on Sunday that Trump would demand certain changes be made by the Cuban government.

Repression, open markets, freedom of religion, political prisoners  these things need to change in order to have open and free relationships, and thats what President-elect Trump believes, and thats where hes going to head, Priebus said.

NOW WATCH: How to move to Canada and become a Canadian citizen





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President-elect Donald Trump (Photo: CBS via Getty Images)

President-elect Donald Trump warned Monday that he would terminate U.S. diplomatic and economic outreach to Cuba unless Havana undertakes unspecified steps to benefit its people, Cuban-Americans and the United States.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal, Trump said on Twitter.

The president-elects comment came two days after Trump greeted Fidel Castros death with a statement that notably did not repeat campaign-trail promises to roll back President Obamas historic outreach to Cuba. Since Election Day, Trump has seemed to soften some of his hard-line campaign promises, leaving it unclear exactly what hell do on issues like Cuba when he takes office on Jan. 20.

Trump did not spell out what a better deal would look like, though Republican critics of Obamas strategy have underlined that his approach has not led to greater political and religious freedom in Cuba, while economic reforms have come slowly and fitfully.

On Sundays Meet the Press, Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway said, The major priority now is to make sure Cubans in Cuba have the same freedoms that Cubans here in America have, which is political, religious and economic freedom, make sure those political prisoners are finally released into freedom. She also said the Trump administration wanted to ensure that Cuba extradites American fugitives to face the law.

But Conway declined to spell out what specific steps Trump would take, or whether he would keep some parts of Obamas approach in place. None of that has been decided, she told moderator Chuck Todd.

Obama has taken Cuba off the U.S. government list of state sponsors of terrorism while easing restrictions on U.S. citizen travel to Cuba and on economic relations generally, and the two Cold War foes have reopened embassies in their respective capitals. The Obama White House has worked to make his approach irreversible, and aides privately predict that Trump wont crack down on Americans traveling to Cuba or Cuban-Americans sending money to their relatives there.

But many of Obamas steps came by executive action, meaning that Trump could decide to roll them back when he takes office on Jan. 20.
This Immigrant Doctor Is Reimagining Health in the American City

The curious, expectant goats standing at the door of a barn at Ayers Brook Goat Dairy in Randolph, Vermont, might be Full Sun Companys cutest customers. The floppy-eared herd munches on feed mixed with oilseed meal that is a by-product of Full Suns production of cold-pressed, non-GMO canola and sunflower oil. Reports on the quality and quantity of the goats milk, which is used to make the Vermont Creamery products that stock the dairy case of Whole Foods Markets, have been given the thumbs-up.

The results have been measurably positive since they started working with us, said Full Suns Netaka White. Theyve been able to reduce if not eliminate imported soymeal from their mixed ration.

This fall, Full Sun received $200,000 in financing from the Fair Food Fund that will help it ramp up production of its oils and meals with four presses that should be up and running in its Middlebury, Vermont, facility by late 2018. All this is good news for the beef cattle, poultry, and pork area farmers who are equally committed to avoiding GMOs.

The very recent rise in interest and demand and availability of non-GMO products was eventually going to have to get to the feed side, White said. Full Sun is the first certified non-GMO oil mill producing meal in the Northeast. Unless youre committed to the traceability and all your suppliers are committed to traceability, livestock feed could be made with just about anything, according to White.

In Vermont, where the bar for fair food is set sky-highthe state took first prize for the second year in a row in a ranking of local food productiontheres a market for high-quality livestock feed that meets the same measures of sustainability consumers have come to expect from farmers and their animals. In this regard, Full Sun represents the best of the local movement. But even farms motivated solely by the bottom line may soon be forced to consider alternative animal feeds. The question is whether at-scale alternatives will beget new environmental problems.

Story continues

Thats the problem at hand. The protein in commercial animal feed often comes from fish meal and oil made from small forage fish, such as herring or sardines, that make up the base of the marine food web. Theres a long history of this: Fish meals antecedent is mentioned in The Travels of Marco Polo, and the Norwegians were pressing oil from herring using wooden boards and stones as early as 800 A.D. Butbig surpriseweve overdone it.

In 2016, the U.S. banned sardine fishing along the West Coast for the second straight year after finding populations had declined 90 percent since 2007. Up to 90 percent of the forage fish that are hauled out of the oceans go into pet food, poultry feed, and fishmeal, as San Franciscos KQED reported.

High-protein soy and canola have been used in livestock feed at the commodity scale, and operations like Full Sun are pushing the envelope on being non-GMO, but soy has its own host of problems. Its growth has been the cause of global deforestation, and the meal can cause digestive problems for animals. So some are looking to other tiny, fatty creatures that are in far larger supply as a solution.

My effort is to restore those ecosystems by putting proteins on the market that dont destroy ecosystems, ecologist Philip Taylor and founder of Mad Agriculture told Colorado Public Radio. In his insect refinery, voracious maggots feed on ginger and other waste from a Boulder juice company. The mature bugs are dried in a hot oven and turned into pellets. His final product is 42 percent protein and 34 percent fatcomparable to fish meal.

Some studies have also found that using algae in livestock feed as a soy substitute could have positive environmental benefits. In California, biotech company Calysta, in collaboration with food giant Cargill, is building a factory that turns methane into livestock feed. The feed has been approved in the European Union for farmed fish and livestock, and Calysta is seeking approval in the U.S. toofor more than livestock feed.

We want to take it all the way to cats and dogs and potentially even humans, said the head of Calysta, Alan Shaw. Yum.

An audit by Carbon Trust found that on a large scale, the product would use 77 to 98 percent less water than soy and wheat proteins and would require almost no agricultural land. But a factory producing 200,000 metric tons of feed a year would also increase emissions of carbon dioxide, contributing to climate change.

It doesnt sound like the kind of alternative that would be attractive to Netaka Whites Vermont neighbors.

Were part of a growing network of farms and producers who are working to realign the food system here in the Northeast to rely more on local and regional sourcing, production, and markets, he said. Thats where Full Sun established its business, to be able to be one of those players.

Full Suns mission aligns with the wishes of customers who are committed to quality in every link of the food chain and who prefer not to be reliant on far-flung sources of animal feed, White said. They also opt to benefit from the intangibles at play in the cyclical nature of the local economy.

When youre working on a local scale, you know the face of the people involved in this part of the food systemthats important to them.

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Original article from TakePart
* Foreign investment has fallen since 2011 uprising

* Government says new law improves terms for investors

* Participation in projects worth $30 billion on offer

By Tarek Amara

TUNIS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Tunisia is hoping to reverse a decline in foreign investment and shake off some of its post-revolution economic malaise at a international conference that opens on Tuesday.

The two-day event is aimed at drumming up interest in projects worth some $30 billion and boosting an economy hurt by militant attacks, labour unrest and political instability.

It comes as Prime Minister Youssef Chahed's government tries to contain a fresh wave of resistance against austerity measures demanded by international creditors.

"We have to revive hope among our youth," Chahed said before the conference, in which the government says representatives from at least 40 countries are expected to take part. France and Qatar are the main foreign backers, with French Prime Minister Manuel Valls and the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, due to address the opening session.

Tunisia has been held up as the sole political success of the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, but its democratic transition has been undermined by economic uncertainty and weak growth.

The government also faces a major challenge to provide economic opportunities to young people frustrated by high unemployment and a lack of development.

Some 500 foreign companies have left the North African country due to labour protests and security problems, including several militant attacks in 2015. New foreign investment fell to 2 billion dinars ($885 million) in 2015 from 3.5 billion dinars in 2010.

Chahed's administration, in place since August, points to a new investment law that it hopes will revive the flow of foreign capital by reducing bureaucracy, taxes on profits, and restrictions on transferring funds out of the country.

FINANCIAL PARK

The conference will make the case that with its political transition essentially completed, Tunisia now needs longer-term investments to develop industries and create jobs.

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On Sunday, Chahed relaunched a $3 billion financial park and real estate development north of Tunis funded by Bahrain's Gulf Finance House, which had been suspended for five years. The project would create nearly 1,000 jobs in its first phase, he said, and showed that Tunisia was still "an attractive and competitive site for investors".

On Saturday, President Beji Caid Essebsi received a group of local businessmen who he said would launch 1.5 billion dinars ($650 million) worth of projects in Tunisia's poorest regions.

But protests against austerity measures included in the 2017 budget provide an awkward backdrop to the conference.

Tunisia's powerful UGTT union has threatened to hold a public sector general strike over plans to freeze wages, and various groups including lawyers, teachers and pharmacists are threatening to strike this week against new taxes.

Chahed said the budget was "the most controversial in the history of the country." But, he added, "we have had the courage to begin these reforms in order to balance our public finances".

(Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
Diyarbakir (Turkey) (AFP) - Campaigners paid tribute on Monday to a prominent rights lawyer who was shot dead one year ago in Turkey's biggest Kurdish-majority city of Diyarbakir, lamenting that no one had yet been brought to justice for the crime.

Tahir Elci, head of the bar association in Diyarbakir and a campaigner for Kurdish rights, was shot in the head on November 28, 2015 in broad daylight during armed clashes between Kurdish militants and police officers.

Minutes before his death, Elci had given a press statement calling for an end to violence in the restive southeast.

Hundreds attended a commemorative ceremony in Diyarbakir near the historic mosque where Elci was killed by a single bullet, leaving red carnations as tributes on a white sheet, an AFP photographer said.

Some held small portraits of the lawyer with the words "Baris Elcisi", a word play on his name that means "peace ambassador".

Lawyers from local bar associations, dressed in ceremonial garb, openly shed tears as they were joined by lawmakers from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) lawmakers.

Ahmet Ozmen, who succeeded Elci as head of the bar association, told the ceremony efforts to solve the crime would continue as he criticised the "dark forces" behind the murder.

In Istanbul, dozens of lawyers paid tribute outside a courthouse with a banner vowing "we will never forget Tahir Elci", an AFP video journalist said.

- 'A political murder' -

In an interview published in opposition daily Cumhuriyet on Monday, Elci's wife Turkan criticised the progress of the investigation.

"There is no indictment, witness or suspect. So you decide how far we've come in one year," she said.

Emma Sinclair-Webb, Turkey director of Human Rights Watch, said despite an investigation not a single suspect had materialised.

She told AFP it was a "tragic irony" that the case of Elci -- who had all his career sought justice for unresolved killings -- resembled "those he struggled for all his working life".

Story continues

The HDP also hit out at the lack of progress investigating what it has called a "political murder".

"For days, legal examinations of the scene were prevented, evidence was blacked out so who the perpetrator is remains unknown," it said.

Before he was killed, Elci had been detained briefly over a television interview in which he said the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) "is not a terrorist organisation".

He was subsequently released before the shooting and had received death threats.

The PKK is deemed a terrorist organisation not only by Turkey but also the United States and the European Union. Over 40,000 people have been killed since the PKK began its insurgency in Turkey in 1984.

In the latest clashes with PKK rebels, two Turkish soldiers were killed on Monday in Tunceli, eastern Turkey, the official news agency Anadolu reported.

Months before Elci's death, a ceasefire between PKK militants and the Turkish state had broken down and violence returned to the southeast, but the lawyer continued to call for peace.

Elci's last words in the press statement before his death were: "We don't want clashes, guns and operations in this ancient place."
DIYARBAKIR (Reuters) - Two Turkish soldiers were killed on Monday after clashing with Kurdish militants in the eastern province of Tunceli, sources said. The soldiers were conducting an operation in the region when they were attacked and wounded by members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), military sources said. They later died in hospital despite treatment, hospital officials said. The outlawed PKK has repeatedly targeted security forces, especially in the country's southeast, since abandoning a 2-1/2-year ceasefire in July 2015. Some 49 PKK militants have been killed or captured in operations over the past week, the Interior Ministry said on Monday, adding that 269 people suspected of aiding and financing the militant group had been detained. More than 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict since the autonomy-seeking PKK took up arms in 1984. It is considered a terrorist group by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. (Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by David Dolan)
Nov 28 (Reuters) - U.S. airlines are proceeding with plans to launch new flights to Cuba this week despite doubts that President-elect Donald Trump has raised about the future of ties between the countries.

American Airlines Group Inc, the world's largest airline, kicked off its first flight to Havana from Miami on Monday and intends to launch Charlotte-Havana service on Wednesday.

Its rival for Caribbean travel, JetBlue Airways Corp , has three new flights to Havana starting this week, with the first having departed from New York on Monday at 9:45 a.m. ET (1445 GMT), according to tracking website FlightAware.com.

The new service comes as Trump said in a Twitter post on Monday that he will "terminate deal" between Cuba and the United States if the communist-ruled island does not make an agreement that is better for the people of both countries.

The former Cold War foes began normalizing relations in December 2014 after 18 months of secret talks and have since restored full diplomatic ties.

They reached a memorandum of understanding that allowed U.S. airlines to start scheduled flights to Cuba after a half-century hiatus, and the Obama administration has eased travel restrictions for U.S. citizens - though general tourism remains illegal.

It was not immediately clear if Trump would target the aviation deal or other aspects of the detente. It also was unclear if there would be any impact from the death on Friday of Fidel Castro, who ousted U.S.-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista in Cuba's 1959 revolution.

"While we can't speculate, we are full steam ahead to begin service to Havana this week," said American Airlines spokesman Matt Miller. "We are proud to be the leading carrier between the U.S. and Cuba."

JetBlue spokespeople did not immediately comment on whether the airline was concerned that the incoming Trump administration would curtail its service to Cuba.

Scrapping the flights would throw a wrench in the plans of U.S. airlines, which expect an eventual payout from Cuban-Americans visiting relatives, leisure travelers desiring an experience that was once off limits, and executives buying business class fares to evaluate commercial opportunities in Cuba.

Story continues

U.S. carriers have already been flying to lower-demand destinations in the island's provinces for months so they could establish a foothold there.

JetBlue was the first company to start service, with a flight on Aug. 31 from Fort Lauderdale, Florida to Santa Clara, a city in the central part of the island with a population of about 200,000 that is known for its monument to revolutionary leader Ernesto "Che" Guevara.

(Reporting By Malathi Nayak in New York and Jeffrey Dastin in Los Angeles; Editing by Alan Crosby)
WASHINGTON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday released guidance on how companies should use incentives to get higher productivity out of workers, showing it is making good on its promise to scrutinize possibly compromising practices after the Wells Fargo scandal.

The CFPB, a consumer watchdog, and other regulators in September fined San Francisco-based Wells $185 million for creating thousands of ghost accounts. Former and current bank employees have said the bank's incentive program put extraordinary pressure on them to open accounts, while Wells Fargo executives have said rogue employees acting on their own created more than 2 million phony accounts.

After the Wells settlement was announced, CFPB Director Richard Cordray said he did not see a broader problem in the U.S. banking industry with abusive sales practices, but pledged to continue looking into the issues.

The bulletin released on Monday, which combined previous guidance in a single document, said that "risks these incentives may pose to consumers are significant and both the intended and unintended effects of incentives can be complex." It added the CFPB welcomed more dialogue and discussion about incentive programs.

Alongside opening fake accounts, employees may deceptively market products and put customers into products not in their interests in order to meet sales benchmarks or to qualify for bonuses, the CFPB said.

Since it opened its doors in 2011, the CFPB has settled 12 different cases where banks deceptively marketed add-on products to credit cards or lied to keep customers in the products, according to the bulletin.

It also has found a bank's telemarketing service provider had enrolled customers into overdraft protection services without their consent.

(Reporting by Lisa Lambert; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council is set to vote on Wednesday to impose new sanctions on North Korea for its fifth and largest nuclear test, slashing Pyongyang's export earnings by some $800 million, diplomats said on Monday. Diplomats said the council's five veto-wielding powers - the United States, China, Britain, Russia and France - had agreed to new measures, seen by Reuters on Friday, that largely target the hermit Asian state's coal export earnings. "We didn't get everything we wanted," said a U.S. official familiar with the draft resolution, though he added the proposed new sanctions were "pretty good." North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006 over its nuclear and missile tests. It conducted its latest nuclear test on Sept. 9, and the United States and China, a North Korea ally, spent over two months negotiating new sanctions. The draft text was given to all 15 Security Council members on Friday. China is believed to be the only country that now buys North Korean coal and under the U.S.-drafted U.N. resolution likely to be adopted on Wednesday it would cut its imports by some 60 percent, or $700 million on 2015 sales, diplomats said. The new sanctions would cap North Korean coal exports at $400.9 million or 7.5 million metric tonnes annually, whichever is lower, starting on Jan. 1. Over the first 10 months of this year China has imported 18.6 million tonnes of coal from North Korea, up almost 13 percent from a year ago. Coal is one of North Korea's only sources of hard currency and its largest single export item. The draft U.N. resolution would also ban exports of copper, nickel, silver and zinc, which the U.S. official said is worth about $100 million a year. STATUE BAN The draft text would prohibit the sale of statues by North Korea, which the U.S. official said had reaped contracts worth tens of millions of dollars for Pyongyang. "Pyongyang has prioritized the pursuit of nuclear weapons over just about everything else ... so we don't think this action here in New York will immediately convince the regime's leader (Kim Jong Un) to cease his pursuit of nuclear weapons, the U.S. official said. "We do note that our action will be felt and will impede the DPRK (North Korean) regime's ability to continue these program," the official said. The draft resolution would prohibit countries from selling North Korea helicopters or vessels. It calls on U.N. states to reduce the number of staff at North Korea's foreign missions and requires countries to limit the number of bank accounts to one per North Korean diplomatic mission amid concerns that Pyongyang had used its diplomats and foreign missions to engage in illicit activities. The draft text says that countries can inspect the personal luggage of individuals entering or leaving North Korea as it could be a way to transport banned items. The Security Council would blacklist a further 11 individuals, including people who have served as ambassadors to Egypt and Myanmar, and 10 entities, subjecting them to a global travel ban and asset freeze for their role in the North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The sale or transfer of luxury items to North Korea has long been banned by the Security Council. The draft resolution adds rugs or tapestries worth more than $500 and porcelain or bone china tableware valued at more than $100 to the list. (Deletes incorrect reference to statues in 12th paragraph.) (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. biofuels program, designed to boost demand for renewables in gasoline and diesel, is unlikely to meet its targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, the government said in two reports on Monday. The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the more than decade-old biofuels policy, is unlikely to meet targeted cuts to emissions by 2022 as production of second-generation renewable fuels lags, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said in a report on Monday. This is likely to fuel criticism from opponents of the program that range from Big Oil companies to environmentalists. That is largely thanks to sluggish development of the advanced fuels - including cellulosic ethanol which is produced from plant waste - that were meant to represent an increasing share of annual requirements, the GAO said. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) each year sets targets for the volumes of ethanol and biodiesel required to be blended with petroleum-based fuels. The RFS program was signed into law in 2005 in a bid to reduce dependence on foreign oil, cut greenhouse gas emissions and promote rural economies. It has been stymied by regulatory delays and an earlier-than-expected drop in transportation fuel demand. The reviews were requested by Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma, a long-time opponent of the program, in 2015, a GAO spokesman said. Their publication comes the week after the EPA set biofuels targets for 2017 and biodiesel targets for 2018 that met or exceeded the congressional targets for most fuel categories. Investment in the advanced fuel sector slowed as a result. That sector is unlikely to grow quickly enough to meet the annual production targets in the near-term, the GAO said in a second report published on Monday. Slow development of advanced fuels with fewer emissions has become one of the key criticisms of the program from environmentalists, who question the benefits of ethanol, a renewable made from corn that represents the bulk of U.S. biofuels production. The EPA in letters to the GAO agreed the program is unlikely to meet its targets. The "slower-than-anticipated pace of progress (of the advanced fuel sector) means that Congress's original goals for the program will not be met on the statutory timeline," Janet McCabe, Acting Assistant Administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation at the EPA, said in a Nov. 16 letter published with the reports. Still, McCabe defended the progress the agency has made and the development of other advanced fuels like biodiesel. A spokeswoman for the agency declined to comment further. (Reporting by Chris Prentice; editing by Diane Craft)
By Lawrence Hurley

WASHINGTON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Texas financier Robert Allen Stanford's bid to overturn his conviction and 110-year prison sentence for running what prosecutors called a $7.2 billion Ponzi scheme that bilked investors in 113 countries.

The justices left in place the imprisoned Stanford's appeal of an October 2015 ruling by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that upheld his 2012 conviction and sentence arising from one of the largest such frauds ever uncovered in the United States.

Federal prosecutors said he ran a scam for two decades that defrauded some 30,000 investors and centered on the sale of fraudulent high-yielding certificates of deposit through his Antigua-based Stanford International Bank.

They said he used investor funds to make risky investments, pay bribes and fund a lavish lifestyle including mansions, yachts and private jets. Authorities uncovered the scheme in 2009.

Once considered a billionaire but later declared indigent, Stanford was convicted by a Houston jury in March 2012 on charges of conspiracy, wire and mail fraud, obstruction and money laundering.

"I didn't defraud anybody," he said at his sentencing.

Stanford, 66, is housed in the high-security Coleman II federal prison in Sumterville, Florida. He is not eligible for release before 2105, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

The appeals court rejected his arguments that he was not competent to stand trial, prosecutors did not prove their case, the sentence was too long, and the trial judge was biased.

A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation promising high rates of return with low risk to those who invest. Ponzi scheme operators skim investor cash into their own pockets, while paying early investors with money from later investors. A Ponzi scheme requires a constant flow of new investment money or the whole thing collapses.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed related civil charges over Stanford's fraud. A court-appointed receiver has been liquidating Stanford's companies.

Story continues

In a separate Stanford-related case, the Supreme Court in 2014 ruled that investors in the Ponzi scheme can sue lawyers, insurance brokers and others who worked with him.

In September, insurance brokerage Willis Towers Watson Plc agreed to pay $120 million to settle one of the lawsuits brought by former investors.

(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Will Dunham)
Kampala (AFP) - Amnesty International on Monday denounced as "shocking" weekend clashes between security forces and royal guards in Uganda which left 62 dead, saying many victims appeared to have been executed.

The bloodshed, which took place in a traditional kingdom in the west, broke out when a joint patrol of police and troops was attacked by the royal guards in the town of Kasese.

The clashes continued into Sunday until police stormed the palace, arresting King Charles Wesley Mumbere of the Rwenzururu kingdom.

Speaking to AFP on Monday, police spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi said the intial death toll of 55 had risen to 62, including 16 police officers and 46 royal guards.

The royal guards are believed to be part of a militia agitating for the creation of an independent republic straddling Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Police said the king had been taken into custody in Kampala, with another spokesman telling NTV television that 139 royal guards had been arrested,

The violence drew a sharp reaction from the London-based rights watchdog, which said emerging evidence suggested some of the victims had been shot after their arrest.

"The full picture of the weekends events is yet to emerge, but there appears to be shocking examples of unlawful killings and a complete disregard for human rights during the arrests," said Abdullahi Halakhe, Amnesty Internationals East Africa Researcher.

"In a shocking display of heavy-handedness, many people appear to have been summarily shot dead and their bodies dumped."

Uganda's main opposition leader Kizza Besigye shared gruesome images circulating on social media which appeared to show dozens of bodies piled up in front of the palace gates, condemning the "massacre" on Twitter.

Human rights lawyer Nicholas Opiyo said researchers were still trying to determine exactly what had happened.

"Although we have been unable to determine exactly what happened yesterday, we are concerned about the excessive loss of life," he said.

Story continues

He also said Joy Doreen Biira, a local journalist covering the violence, had been arrested on charges of "complicity with terrorism" with police searching her home for photographs.

- 'Wanted to wage war' -

Brigadier Peter Elwelu of the Ugandan army told NTV that the militia had been carrying out sporadic attacks on the government and civilians since 2014.

"We kept on watching this group, we kept on reaching out to them. Things were not working out and we had to take a decision," he said.

Elwelu said President Yoweri Museveni had phoned the king on Sunday morning and ordered him to rein in his guards.

"We gave him an hour, it elapsed. So the president again called -- gave him two more hours (saying) 'please, sort this out'," said Elwelu.

"So we had no option, after that we had to storm the palace and get these terrorists, and that is what we did."

The king has denied any links to the separatists.

Speaking to AFP on Monday, Interior Minister Jeje Odongo accused him of wanting to start a war.

"From what was recovered from the palace, the weapons used and the people, you clearly see that King Mumbere wanted to wage a war against the government," he said.

- Feeling marginalised -

The Rwenzururu kingdom, of the Bakonzo tribe, is a modern one.

It began as a separatist movement of the same name when the Bakonzo -- tired of being subjected to the rule of another tribe given preference under British rule -- declared its own kingdom in 1962.

The move led to years of bloodshed until a settlement was reached in 1982 in which the movement laid down arms in return for a degree of local autonomy.

Museveni officially recognised the kingdom in 2009.

However, many in the region still feel marginalised by the government and want to create their own state known as the Yiira Republic, uniting the Bakonzo and its sister tribe, the Banande, in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.

They share a common language and culture, and are believed to stem from one people known as the Ba-Yira.
By Elias Biryabarema KAMPALA (Reuters) - Amnesty International on Monday accused Uganda of carrying out extrajudicial executions as authorities in the east African country said 62 people had died in clashes between a tribal militia and security forces in a restive western region. The fighting between royal guards of a tribal king, Charles Wesley Mumbere, and a combined army and police force occurred on Saturday and Sunday in Kasese, the biggest town in Uganda's Rwenzori region located near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. A regional police spokesman, Mansur Suwed, told Reuters on Monday at least 46 members of the king's guards died in the fighting, which also left 16 police officers dead. "In a shocking display of heavy-handedness, many people appear to have been summarily shot dead and their bodies dumped," Amnesty International said in a statement on Monday. The security crackdown had shown "shocking examples of unlawful killings and a complete disregard for human rights during the arrests ... the government must ensure that police and soldiers observe restraint and desist from extrajudicial executions," the rights group added. Paddy Ankunda, spokesman for Uganda's military, said he had no immediate comment on Amnesty's allegations. "We're preparing a comprehensive government statement which will be issued tomorrow," he said. Ugandan police were not able to be reached to comment on the allegations. Earlier on Monday, police said they had taken control of Mumbere's palace after the fighting and seized a cache of machetes, spears and petrol bombs. Security detained Mumbere on Sunday and accused his supporters of trying to create a new state in the area. The Rwenzori area has been experiencing intermittent unrest since Uganda's disputed February presidential election, which the electoral body said was won by long-ruling President Yoweri Museveni. Uganda's largest opposition party Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) got overwhelming support in the area. There has been no statement from the king, a supporter of the opposition. "The town is calm but we're still patrolling and monitoring. We have burnt down all the camps they (the guards) had established and also we've taken over the royal palace," Suwed told Reuters earlier on Monday. Police, Suwed said, had also seized a rifle, a pistol, four walkie-talkies and knives from the fighters, and increased patrols in Kasese town. Some opposition officials have said in the past the government was likely stoking the violence in the area to punish it for shunning the ruling party, a charge the government has denied. An opposition legislator from the region, William Nzoghu denied the royal guards were armed and accused the government of using excessive force when storming the king's palace. "It was madness. The action of government was real madness," he said. (Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Katharine Houreld and Toby Chopra)
London (AFP) - The British government on Monday faced the prospect of a fresh Brexit legal challenge over whether it will automatically leave the tariff-free European Economic Area when it quits the EU.

Pro-EU think-tank British Influence said there was a "strong chance" the government would be acting unlawfully if it took Britain out of the EEA as well as the European Union.

"We need judicial clarification," it said.

But British Prime Minister Theresa May's spokeswoman told reporters: "Once we leave the EU, we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA."

The EEA, which allows for tariff-free trade and free movement of people, includes all 28 EU member states as well as Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

While the EEA does not overlap exactly with the single market, the debate will play into a fierce row in Britain about what access British companies will have to European markets following Brexit.

British Influence's announcement immediately came under fire from pro-Brexit lawmakers, who said it was another attempt to undermine the result of the June referendum in which Britain voted to leave the EU.

Conservative MP and Brexit supporter Dominic Raab accused the lawyers of "coming up with new legal wheezes to try and frustrate the will of the people".

"The public have spoken. We should respect the result and get on with it, not try to find new hurdles that undermine the democratic process."

But George Yarrow, an Oxford University professor, told the BBC: "There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU".

- Brexit 'can be stopped' -

Supreme Court judges are due to hear a separate case next month on whether or not the government needs the formal consent of parliament to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the procedure for leaving the EU.

A ruling on that case is expected in January and, if the government loses, it could delay May's plan for invoking Article 50 by the end of March at the latest.

Story continues

Several senior figures including former British prime ministers Tony Blair and John Major have also said a second referendum on a Brexit deal is possible.

Blair has gone further, suggesting that Brexit could be cancelled entirely even after Article 50 is invoked if the government changes its mind before Britain officially leaves the 28-nation bloc.

Brexit "can be stopped if the British people decided, having seen what it means, the pain-gain cost-benefit analysis doesn't stack up," Blair told the New Statesman magazine.

May has promised to cut immigration from the European Union -- a central theme during the EU referendum campaign -- while also retaining as much access as possible to the EU's single market for businesses.

EU leaders have ruled out these aims as incompatible.
laSome of you probably thought that the far-right, anti-immigration U.K. Independence Party, or UKIP, would just curl up in a corner now that the people of the United Kingdom voted for Brexit and independence from the European Union.

Some of you were wrong.

On Monday, UKIP, far from deciding that it has served its purpose, picked Paul Nuttall, a member of the European Parliament, to be its new leader. He will replace Nigel Farage, who stepped down from party leadership after the Brexit vote, saying, I want my life back, but stepped back up as interim leader because his replacement quit after 18 days on the job.

Of his future in UKIP, Farage, who argued that Brexit brought about Donald Trumps upset victory in the American presidential election mere months later, said, Am I going to be a backseat driver? No. Will I support the leader of Ukip if they ask me to help? Yes.

And what does that new leader of UKIP want? Nothing less than to replace one of the two major parties in the United Kingdom.

My ambition is not insignificant, Nuttall said in a speech on Monday. I want to replace the Labour party and make UKIP the patriotic voice of working people.

The United Kingdom has long had a multi-party parliamentary system, with, traditionally, three parties  two main competitors and one strong third party  at its core. But Nuttall is not content to replace the Liberal Democrats (or the Scottish National Party, which, at present, is actually the third most represented party in parliament). He wants to propel his party to being one of the two main players.

As politics, the idea echoes whats taking place on this side of the pond. In the aftermath of Trumps win  fueled by white, working-class votes in the Rust Belt  the Democratic Party has wracked its brains to figure out how to reclaim the partys mantle as champion of the working class. Once the preserve of less-educated voters, Democrats have become the home for better-off, better-educated cosmopolitan types  much like Labour has become, UKIP says.

Story continues

Nuttall had previously said that current Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is more interested in dinner party issues like climate change than those that concern the working class, like criminal sentences that mean what they say, firm controls on immigration, and putting British workers at the top (topics and language that suggest Nuttall is speaking specifically of the white working class).

For his part, Corbyn, who is further left than many in his party, is planning to send his shadow foreign secretary to attend former Cuban President Fidel Castros funeral.

The conservative Tory party, meanwhile, already saw how difficult it can be to contain UKIP  not unlike the way in which the Grand Old Party establishment has found it difficult to deal with Trump and his supporters over the past several months. The Brexit referendum was proposed by Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron as a way to quell concern from his own party members that they might lose to UKIP. Camerons successor, Prime Minister Theresa May, is now charged with carrying out her countrys departure from the European Union.

Update, Nov. 28, 2016: This post originally said that Corbyn himself was planning to attend Castros funeral. It has since been made known that he would instead be represented by shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry.

Photo credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images
Kiev (AFP) - Ukraine's former Moscow-backed president on Monday accused pro-EU protesters who forced his ouster of provoking the 31-month pro-Russian revolt in the southeast that has claimed nearly 10,000 lives.

Viktor Yanukovych is a witness in the trial of five Ukrainian riot police who are accused of opening fire at mostly unarmed people during the February 2014 revolution that turned the ex-Soviet republic toward the West.

Yanukovych himself stands accused of treason in Ukraine.

But he fled to Russia after the bloodbath that killed more than 100 people and cannot be prosecuted by the Kiev courts.

Monday's hearings in Kiev were being held by video conference in which Yanukovych gave testimony in the southern Russian city of Rostov.

He has passionately denied ordering the now-disbanded Berkut anti-riot police force to open fire on the protesters during three days of violence in the heart of Kiev that also killed around a dozen officers.

Yanukovych began his testimony on Monday by accusing "the radicals of seizing power" and then "preparing to force their will on the people of the south and east who disagreed with what was happening in Kiev."

The industrial region is predominantly Russian speaking and often takes a more sceptical view of both the European Union and the United States.

- 'Hunting rifles' -

The protests began in November 2013 in response to Yanukovych's abrupt decision to scrap a landmark pact with the EU in favour of closer Russia ties.

Ukraine has since signed the EU trade and political association agreement and blamed Russia for plotting and backing the war in reprisal for Kiev's shift out of the Kremlin's orbit.

Russia denies the charge and accuses the US State Department of stoking the protests and trying to win over Ukraine.

But debates in Kiev rage mostly over who was responsible for the worst carnage in Ukraine since World War II. Both the protesters and the police accuse each other of opening the fire.

Story continues

A 2015 BBC documentary strongly suggested that a far-right fringe element of the protest group shot at the police in order to provoke a response and make the Berkut seem responsible for the resulting deaths.

Ukraine strongly denies the claim.

Yet Yanukovych gave credence to it by accusing civilians of seizing weapons from the interior ministry and SBU security service buildings before shooting at the police.

"And some of the people simply came with hunting rifles," he said Monday.

AFP reporters at the scene of those tragic events said most of the people had little more than metal shields to protect themselves from police sniper fire.

The festering conflict in the EU's back yard -- one of the bloodiest since the 1990s Balkans Wars -- has created tensions across eastern Europe and plunged Moscow's relations with the West to a post-Cold War low.
Hebron (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - The UN's Middle East envoy on Monday warned of a new "spiral of violence" in the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron unless daily life for its Palestinian residents improves.

Nickolay Mladenov said during a visit that while the city was the main Palestinian economic hub in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, little trickles down to those who live there.

"It is also the city with the highest rate of unemployment and poverty compared to the rest of the West Bank," he told a news conference, alongside the Palestinian governor, Kamil Hmeid.

"About 30 percent of people in all the governorate are classified as poor compared to 18 percent in the rest of the West Bank," he said in English.

"Given the spiral of violence that we saw last year," he said, there is a pressing need for a strategy "that addresses the human rights aspects of the situation here, that addresses the access to services... looks how to create more economic opportunities for people."

With 200,000 Palestinian inhabitants, Hebron is the largest city in the West Bank and the only one where 500 Israeli settlers have moved into enclaves in its heart.

They are guarded by thousands of Israeli soldiers who scan the streets from watchtowers and from behind concrete slabs.

Hmeid said that in Hebron's Old City 1,050 Palestinian families are caught between the fortified settler compounds and more than 150 army barricades, checkpoints and other obstacles.

"The Old City is entirely under siege," he said in Arabic, adding that some families "are forced every day to pass through Israeli electronic checkpoints and are body-searched every day. This includes families, women and children. This is violating their human rights."

Once a prosperous trading centre, Hebron has become a powder keg, with the ever-present threat of violence hanging in the air.

Tensions are especially high around the shrine known to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque and to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs and revered by both.

Story continues

Many attacks and attempted attacks have happened there, especially since a wave of violence broke out on October 1, 2015 in the Palestinian Territories, Jerusalem and Israel.

Since then, 241 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, a Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese have been killed, 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 died in Israeli air strikes on Gaza.
By Dan Levine and Kristina Cooke

Nov 28 (Reuters) - Faced with a barrage of lawsuits from workers demanding benefits and recognition as employees, some companies in the fast-growing 'gig economy' are looking to settle the issues through legislation.

Joseph Morelle, the number two Democrat in the New York State Assembly, said he has been talking about portable benefits with such companies, which use occasional workers to provide rides, deliveries, house-cleaning and other services through websites and apps.

He said he plans to introduce legislation early next year, which would be the first of its kind in the United States and is likely to draw scrutiny from organized labor.

In advance of that effort, online home-cleaning company Handy has circulated a draft bill, seen by Reuters, that would establish guidelines for a portable benefits plan for New York workers at gig-economy companies.

A key element of the draft bill is that it classifies workers at companies choosing to participate in the program as independent contractors rather than employees under state law, as long as the companies' dealings with their workers meet certain criteria.

Morelle would not say whether his proposed law would be based on the draft bill circulated by Handy, only that he was focused on passing some form of legislation to address the issues it raises.

"The gig economy is something more and more people will gravitate towards, and we clearly want to make sure they can get benefits," he said.

EMPLOYEES OR CONTRACTORS?

Handy, ride-hailing service Uber Technologies Inc and other companies in the vanguard of the gig economy - also known as the 'sharing' or 'on-demand' economy - have ignited a national debate about how to classify and provide benefits to people who work flexible schedules and irregular hours.

Several labor unions and some of the workers themselves have argued they should be considered employees, and therefore entitled to guaranteed wages, employer-provided insurance and other benefits. The companies have maintained their workers are independent contractors.

Story continues

Court actions brought by workers at Handy, Uber and other similar firms hoping to establish themselves as employees have not been finally resolved.

If New York lawmakers move forward, they would be the first in the nation to authorize industry-wide portable benefits, and could serve as a model for other states, particularly if a bill draws support from organized labor.

The legislation could also make it more difficult for workers at gig-economy companies to convince courts they should be considered employees.

The draft bill circulated by Handy requires participating companies to contribute at least 2.5 percent of the fee for each job to an individual account for the worker, which he or she could then use to buy health insurance or other benefits.

STARTING POINT

On its website, Handy says its "top professionals" make more than $1,000 per week. Under the terms of the draft bill, Handy would be required to contribute at least $1,300 per year for benefits for workers making $52,000 per year.

Companies would be allowed to pass along the cost to their customers. Since workers at participating companies would be classified as independent contractors, they could not join unions to collectively bargain for better benefits.

Larry Engelstein, executive vice president of 32BJ Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents thousands of janitors, said under contracts the union negotiates employers contribute an annual average of $18,000 per employee for healthcare costs.

"The amount of money that's supposed to be put into these portable benefit funds seems so meager," Engelstein said. "The actual benefit a worker is getting hardly warrants what the worker is giving up."

The SEIU is a backer of the four-year-old "Fight for $15" campaign, which aims to raise pay and expand the right to join a union for low-wage workers including fast-food servers, home care aides, airport baggage handlers and others. For the first time on Tuesday, some Uber drivers plan to join the campaign's protests.

A source familiar with the Handy proposal said it was meant to be a starting point for discussions, not a final bill.

In a statement, Handy said "it's our view we need both regulatory change to clarify the law, and we are in favor of some form of portable benefits."

Uber and Morelle declined to comment on the Handy proposal.

Morelle said he plans to draft the bill next month and introduce it in January.

(Reporting by Dan Levine and Kristina Cooke in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby)
By Dan Levine and Kristina Cooke

(Reuters) - Faced with a barrage of lawsuits from workers demanding benefits and recognition as employees, some companies in the fast-growing 'gig economy' are looking to settle the issues through legislation.

Joseph Morelle, the number two Democrat in the New York State Assembly, said he has been talking about portable benefits with such companies, which use occasional workers to provide rides, deliveries, house-cleaning and other services through websites and apps.

He said he plans to introduce legislation early next year, which would be the first of its kind in the United States and is likely to draw scrutiny from organized labor.

In advance of that effort, online home-cleaning company Handy has circulated a draft bill, seen by Reuters, that would establish guidelines for a portable benefits plan for New York workers at gig-economy companies.

A key element of the draft bill is that it classifies workers at companies choosing to participate in the program as independent contractors rather than employees under state law, as long as the companies' dealings with their workers meet certain criteria.

Morelle would not say whether his proposed law would be based on the draft bill circulated by Handy, only that he was focused on passing some form of legislation to address the issues it raises.

"The gig economy is something more and more people will gravitate towards, and we clearly want to make sure they can get benefits," he said.

EMPLOYEES OR CONTRACTORS?

Handy, ride-hailing service Uber Technologies Inc and other companies in the vanguard of the gig economy - also known as the 'sharing' or 'on-demand' economy - have ignited a national debate about how to classify and provide benefits to people who work flexible schedules and irregular hours.

Several labor unions and some of the workers themselves have argued they should be considered employees, and therefore entitled to guaranteed wages, employer-provided insurance and other benefits. The companies have maintained their workers are independent contractors.

Story continues

Court actions brought by workers at Handy, Uber and other similar firms hoping to establish themselves as employees have not been finally resolved.

If New York lawmakers move forward, they would be the first in the nation to authorize industry-wide portable benefits, and could serve as a model for other states, particularly if a bill draws support from organized labor.

The legislation could also make it more difficult for workers at gig-economy companies to convince courts they should be considered employees.

The draft bill circulated by Handy requires participating companies to contribute at least 2.5 percent of the fee for each job to an individual account for the worker, which he or she could then use to buy health insurance or other benefits.

STARTING POINT

On its website, Handy says its "top professionals" make more than $1,000 per week. Under the terms of the draft bill, Handy would be required to contribute at least $1,300 per year for benefits for workers making $52,000 per year.

Companies would be allowed to pass along the cost to their customers. Since workers at participating companies would be classified as independent contractors, they could not join unions to collectively bargain for better benefits.

Larry Engelstein, executive vice president of 32BJ Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents thousands of janitors, said under contracts the union negotiates employers contribute an annual average of $18,000 per employee for healthcare costs.

"The amount of money that's supposed to be put into these portable benefit funds seems so meager," Engelstein said. "The actual benefit a worker is getting hardly warrants what the worker is giving up."

The SEIU is a backer of the four-year-old "Fight for $15" campaign, which aims to raise pay and expand the right to join a union for low-wage workers including fast-food servers, home care aides, airport baggage handlers and others. For the first time on Tuesday, some Uber drivers plan to join the campaign's protests.

A source familiar with the Handy proposal said it was meant to be a starting point for discussions, not a final bill.

In a statement, Handy said "it's our view we need both regulatory change to clarify the law, and we are in favor of some form of portable benefits."

Uber and Morelle declined to comment on the Handy proposal.

Morelle said he plans to draft the bill next month and introduce it in January.
By Dan Levine and Kristina Cooke (Reuters) - Faced with a barrage of lawsuits from workers demanding benefits and recognition as employees, some companies in the fast-growing 'gig economy' are looking to settle the issues through legislation. Joseph Morelle, the number two Democrat in the New York State Assembly, said he has been talking about portable benefits with such companies, which use occasional workers to provide rides, deliveries, house-cleaning and other services through websites and apps. He said he plans to introduce legislation early next year, which would be the first of its kind in the United States and is likely to draw scrutiny from organized labor. In advance of that effort, online home-cleaning company Handy has circulated a draft bill, seen by Reuters, that would establish guidelines for a portable benefits plan for New York workers at gig-economy companies. A key element of the draft bill is that it classifies workers at companies choosing to participate in the program as independent contractors rather than employees under state law, as long as the companies' dealings with their workers meet certain criteria. Morelle would not say whether his proposed law would be based on the draft bill circulated by Handy, only that he was focused on passing some form of legislation to address the issues it raises. "The gig economy is something more and more people will gravitate toward, and we clearly want to make sure they can get benefits," he said. EMPLOYEES OR CONTRACTORS? Handy, ride-hailing service Uber Technologies Inc and other companies in the vanguard of the gig economy - also known as the 'sharing' or 'on-demand' economy - have ignited a national debate about how to classify and provide benefits to people who work flexible schedules and irregular hours. Several labor unions and some of the workers themselves have argued they should be considered employees, and therefore entitled to guaranteed wages, employer-provided insurance and other benefits. The companies have maintained their workers are independent contractors. Court actions brought by workers at Handy, Uber and other similar firms hoping to establish themselves as employees have not been finally resolved. If New York lawmakers move forward, they would be the first in the nation to authorize industry-wide portable benefits, and could serve as a model for other states, particularly if a bill draws support from organized labor. The legislation could also make it more difficult for workers at gig-economy companies to convince courts they should be considered employees. The draft bill circulated by Handy requires participating companies to contribute at least 2.5 percent of the fee for each job to an individual account for the worker, which he or she could then use to buy health insurance or other benefits. STARTING POINT On its website, Handy says its "top professionals" make more than $1,000 per week. Under the terms of the draft bill, Handy would be required to contribute at least $1,300 per year for benefits for workers making $52,000 per year. Companies would be allowed to pass along the cost to their customers. Since workers at participating companies would be classified as independent contractors, they could not join unions to collectively bargain for better benefits. Larry Engelstein, executive vice president of 32BJ Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents thousands of janitors, said under contracts the union negotiates employers contribute an annual average of $18,000 per employee for healthcare costs. "The amount of money that's supposed to be put into these portable benefit funds seems so meager," Engelstein said. "The actual benefit a worker is getting hardly warrants what the worker is giving up." The SEIU is a backer of the four-year-old "Fight for $15" campaign, which aims to raise pay and expand the right to join a union for low-wage workers including fast-food servers, home care aides, airport baggage handlers and others. For the first time on Tuesday, some Uber drivers plan to join the campaign's protests. A source familiar with the Handy proposal said it was meant to be a starting point for discussions, not a final bill. In a statement, Handy said "it's our view we need both regulatory change to clarify the law, and we are in favor of some form of portable benefits." Uber and Morelle declined to comment on the Handy proposal. Morelle said he plans to draft the bill next month and introduce it in January. (Reporting by Dan Levine and Kristina Cooke in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby)
By Heather Somerville

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A United Airlines flight bound for Japan experienced an engine malfunction after takeoff on Monday and returned to San Francisco International Airport, where it landed safely, airline and federal aviation officials said.

No injuries were reported from the incident involving United Flight 837, which ended when the four-engine Boeing Co 747 aircraft touched down without further incident shortly before 1:45 p.m..

A United Airlines spokeswoman, Erin Benson, said the plane was carrying 202 passengers and 15 crew members en route to Narita International Airport on Tokyo. The Federal Aviation Administration initially reported that 231 people were aboard the jet.

The landing was described as "normal" in radio communications between the flight crew and air traffic controllers, as monitored on specialist website liveatc.net.

Shortly after the landing, the pilot contacted ground controllers to explain the trouble.

"We need the fire department to take a look at our No. 2 engine because it had an indication of compressor stall and possibly some paint that came out during the compressor stall," the pilot was heard saying.

Benson also cited a stalled compressor in one of the engines as the reason for the plane's return to San Francisco, adding that the airline could not confirm media reports of smoke or fire from the incident.

She also said the pilot did not declare an emergency and that the landing followed about two hours of total flight time, including steps the crew took to dump excess jet fuel as a precaution before touchdown.

The flight-tracking website flightradar24 shows the plane flew several lengthy circuits just off the Pacific Coast west and south of San Francisco before returning to the airport to land - a sign that the trouble started soon after takeoff.

FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said the problem occurred with the "inboard engine on the left side" of the plane. He gave no further details.

Story continues

A compressor stall is a sudden disruption to the core of an engine caused by abnormal airflow. It can be caused by a collision with birds or by unusual weather, according to aviation experts.

Local ABC News affiliate KGO-TV reported that one of the engines had caught fire and was shut down soon after takeoff. Live television coverage of the plane's landing showed no sign of smoke or flames.

The 747-400 aircraft involved was manufactured and equipped with four Pratt & Whitney engines in 1999, according to FAA records, but it was not clear whether the original engines were still on the plane. Pratt was not immediately available to comment.

(Additional reporting by Dan Levine and Noel Randewich in San Francisco, David Shepardson in Washington, Jeffrey Dastin in Los Angeles and Tim Hepher in Paris; Editing by Andrew Hay and Jonathan Oatis)
IRVINE, CA / ACCESSWIRE / November 28, 2016 / Khang & Khang LLP (the "Firm") announces a class action lawsuit against Tenet Healthcare Corporation ("Tenet" or the "Company") (THC). Investors, who purchased or otherwise acquired shares between February 28, 2012 and October 3, 2016 inclusive (the "Class Period"), are encouraged to contact the Firm prior to the December 6, 2016 lead plaintiff motion deadline.

If you purchased Tenet 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 via e-mail at joon@khanglaw.com.

There has been no class certification in this case. 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, Tenet made false and misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: the Company illegally paid kickbacks to induce the referral of patients to Tenet's hospitals for labor and delivery; that Tenet defrauded the Georgia Medicaid program through this scheme; and that as a result of the above, statements about Tenet's business, operations, and prospects were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. On August 1, 2016, Tenet announced that it reached an agreement in principle with federal and state authorities that the Company would pay nearly $514 million to settle allegations that four Tenet hospitals in Georgia and South Carolina paid kickbacks for obstetric referrals. Under the settlement, two Tenet subsidiaries would plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate federal kickback laws. On October 3, 2016, Tenet issued a press release and filed a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC, announcing the Company finalized the agreement in principle announced on August 1, 2016. When this information was disclosed to the public, shares of Tenet dropped in value, causing investors harm.

If you wish to learn more about this lawsuit at no charge, or if you have 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.

Contacts

Joon M. Khang, Esq.

Telephone: 949-419-3834

Facsimile: 949-225-4474

joon@khanglaw.com

SOURCE: Khang & Khang LLP
Washington (AFP) - The American shopping orgy known as Black Friday lured more buyers this year but they spent less per person thanks to great bargains, an industry group said Sunday.

More than 154 million people made purchases during the four-day retail extravaganza that began Thursday on Thanksgiving, compared to 151 million last year, the National Retail Federation said.

Shoppers spent an average of $289.19, compared to $299.60 in 2015.

Sales over the Thanksgiving holiday, which extends into so-called Cyber Monday, are a good indicator of the health of US consumer spending.

Online sales dominated. A total of 44 percent of those who took part in the NRF survey said they had bought via the internet while 40 percent went to a brick-and-mortar store.

"It was a strong weekend for retailers, but an even better weekend for consumers, who took advantage of some really incredible deals," NRF president Matthew Shay said.

The most popular day to shop online was Black Friday itself, the day after the Thanksgiving holiday. Of those who purchased online over the four-day period, 74 percent did so on Friday, up 1.3 percent from last year.

And of the people who went to actual stores over this shopping period, 75 percent did so on Black Friday, up 3.4 percent from last year, the NRF said.

Millennials, aged 18-34, drove the increase in shopping, with eight out of ten buying something over the long weekend.

Around 56 percent of smartphone owners and 53 percent of tablet owners used these devices to assist with their shopping.

The study was carried out by Prosper Insights & Analytics with a sample of 4,330 people on November 25-26 and has a margin of error of 1.5 percentage points.
Charleston (United States) (AFP) - A US federal judge granted self-described white supremacist Dylann Roof's request Monday to represent himself at trial on charges of gunning down nine African American churchgoers last year in South Carolina.

US District Judge Richard Gergel's ruling means that Roof, 22, could cross-examine survivors and family members of those he mowed down in June 2015 during a Bible study class at the historic "Mother Emmanuel" black church in Charleston.

"I do find defendant has the personal capacity to self-representation," Gergel said.

"I continue to believe it is strategically unwise, but it is a decision you have the right to make."

Federal prosecutors are seeking to put Roof to death, and have refused to accept his offer to plead guilty to the 33 federal charges against him -- including hate crime violations that could carry the death penalty -- in exchange for a life sentence.

Roof is also facing state murder charges in South Carolina and faces the death penalty for his allegedly racially-motivated attack.

The case got under way earlier this month, but had to be postponed while the court determined whether Roof was mentally competent to stand trial.

Roof was granted the chance to represent himself shortly before jury selection began for the case. The ruling follows Gergel's ruling on Friday finding Roof was mentally competent to stand trial following a recent mental health evaluation.

Court proceedings are now focused on impaneling a 12-member jury and alternates, a process expected to take at least three weeks.

Legal experts say mistakes made by a defendant acting as his or her own lawyer -- without legal training -- can be especially damaging in a case involving capital punishment.

"I don't see any circumstance where it won't be self-destructive," said James Coleman of Duke Law School.

In the 1980s, Coleman represented the late serial killer Ted Bundy, unsuccessfully trying to appeal the death sentence handed down to Bundy after the killer served as his own defense lawyer and was convicted.

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- 'Loose cannon' -

Juries tend to react negatively to a defendant acting as his own counsel, possibly interpreting the maneuver as making a mockery of the court and the defendant's alleged crimes.

Roof will be disadvantaged in not knowing court rules and the ins and outs of legal strategy, but that may not matter to the accused killer, Coleman suggested.

"He'll be a loose cannon and basically can severely disrupt the trial," said Coleman.

"He may not care. He may be using this as his last hurrah."

Richard Bonnie of the University of Virginia School of Law said that defendants sometimes choose to represent themselves because of a fundamental disagreement with their lawyers about the essence of the defense strategy, including their feelings about receiving the death penalty.

Bonnie cautioned against assuming Roof would continue to serve as his own counsel the entire trial. Roofs attorneys, including renowned death penalty attorney David Bruck, have so far remained seated beside Roof as standby counsel, though Roof is acting alone in court as his lawyer.

The transcript of Roof's mental competency hearing last week is sealed. So it is unclear what exactly transpired during the deliberations, though his request to represent himself may have been part of the discussions.

"We don't have any way of knowing what is beneath this," said Bonnie. "How the case unfolds varies."

Jury selection resumes early Tuesday in Charleston.
Buenos Aires-based producer Ignacio Rey is priming Argentinas first ever VFX-laden live action fantasy pic Yanka y el espiritu del Volcan, a $2.5 million kid-targeted drama based on a Mapuche legend. The coming-of-age pic tracks a young girl called Yanka who in her quest to find her lost mother, comes upon some some otherworldly creatures and a volcano where she discovers that she is among the few who can tame the angry spirit lurking in it.

The feature directorial debut of ad maven Ivan Abello has been in post for some 18 months given its 300 VFX shots rendered by Fernando Siriannis Nomad VFX, a co-producer, and is expected to be completed by March for a July 2017 debut.

Weve getting a lot of interest from both local and international distributors, but were not showing it until January or February, said Rey, who has been producing a gamut of pics in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Colombia and Spain under his Sudestada Cine label with partner Gaston Rothschild. The shingles co-producing credits include Chiles Neruda, and Colombias Alias Maria, both representing their countries at the Oscars next year. Its sometimes easier to choose international projects because as a member of FIPCA, I go to scores of festivals and meet producers whose work I know and admire, he said. Its been a dream to work with Fabulas Juan de Dios Larrain [on Neruda].

Now 42, hes been producing pics since the age of 26. He credits his early start to the changes in Argentinas film law in 1994, which boosted the film fund, and the advent of digital cameras in 1996 that heralded the rise of the Argentine New Wave Cinema. Hes had to scale back on his teaching duties in Argentina and Cuba due to Sudestadas seven-to-eight projects in varying phases of production, but the advice he always gives his students is the same: You may be brilliant but to be a good producer, its more important to be persistent.

Related stories

'Lost Embrace's' Daniel Hendler Brings Second Directorial Outing, 'The Candidate,' to Ventana Sur (EXCLUSIVE)

Story continues

'Voices,' 'Luiza's Desert,' 'Clamor' Among Films From Rio 2016-17 Projects at Ventana Sur

Outsider's Todo Cine Latino, Strand Releasing, Take U.S. on 'Alias Maria' (EXCLUSIVE)
Nov 28 (Reuters) - Payment card machine maker VeriFone Systems Inc said it had extended its partnership with British payments processor Worldpay Group Plc, allowing the U.S. firm to bring its payment solutions to Worldpay's UK customers.

* As part of the deal, Worldpay, which provides platforms to allow merchants to accept payments by cards and other methods, will work with VeriFone to bring new point-of-sale (POS) products to British firms, allowing retailers to accept transactions.

* Verifone's products accept payment methods including Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay.

* Verifone, which supplies more than 29 million payment devices and terminals worldwide, recently signed a partnership with China's Alipay, helping it expand its mobile payment app service into the United States.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Sunil Nair)
According to a recent report by U.S. telecom behemoth Verizon Communications Inc. VZ Enterprise Solutions' third annual Verizon Retail Index, the average daily eCommerce traffic volumes to U.S.-based retailers on Black Friday were up 9% year over year while peak ecommerce volumes were 39% higher than 2015 levels, indicating increased consumer engagement through digital platforms. Moreover, Thanksgiving (Nov 24) drove eCommerce traffic by 10% year over year while peak eCommerce volumes were 22% higher than 2015 levels.

Verizon is known for its diversified business model, which covers varied fields like communications, technology, wireless industry, Internet of Things (IoT) along with the media video and digital platform. Toward this end, the telco recently reported heavy eCommerce (Electronic commerce) and mCommerce (Mobilecommerce) traffic on Black Friday (Nov 25), courtesy of the promotional offers.

The weekend before Thanksgiving also witnessed a moderate 15% hike in daily eCommerce traffic volumes to U.S.-based retailers compared to 2015 levels. Peak eCommerce volumes showed a 35% year-over-year rise, implying encouraging response by consumers to the deals offered by retailers. However, mCommerce traffic was down 2% year over year while peak mCommerce volumes were up 2% from a year ago.

The Verizon Retail Index specializes in consumer ecommerce traffic during the holiday shopping season. The index also tracks eCommerce traffic across Verizon's broadband networks. The index also monitors network traffic throughout the holiday shopping season, including events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

The next edition of the Verizon Retail Index will reveal digital shopping activity figures for the Nov 2627 weekend and is scheduled to be released today. The escalation in eCommerce and mCommerce traffic on Black Friday implies that the telcos efforts to expand and strengthen its digital-video network have paid off. Verizon has also been engaged in a number of digital ventures.

Story continues

Recent Events

This September, Verizon entered into a partnership with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Inc. QCOM , to develop its IoT platform, ThingSpace. Meanwhile, Verizons rival AT&T Inc. T partnered with Cisco Systems, Inc. CSCO to launch an all-in-one IoT Starter Kit. Notably, these telecom companies are looking for alternative sources of revenue to offset the decline in their legacy businesses like fixed-line services.

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By Jessica Toonkel

Nov 28 (Reuters) - The top priorities of Viacom Inc's acting president and chief executive are improving key relations with affiliates as well as the struggling media company's internal culture, Bob Bakish told Reuters at the end of his first week on the job.

Bakish, Viacom's third CEO in less than three months, is seen by many investors as a caretaker until the company is merged into CBS Corp, a deal controlling shareholders Sumner Redstone and his daughter Shari are pushing.

But the long-time head of international at Viacom appears intent on having an impact while in charge of the company.

In his first week on the job, he met with talent, as well as distribution partners and executives and employees on both U.S. coasts, including at Paramount Studios, he said in an interview last week from his yet-to-be decorated office in New York.

"The company has been through a lot and part of my job is to revitalize the culture," Bakish said. "It's about starting to create a positive buzz and having people believe we can do great things."

Bakish's focus extends beyond within Viacom. He recently met with the CEO of a major affiliate about ways the two could partner, he said. "One thing I am committed to is working to rebuild some of our affiliate distributor relationships in the U.S,"

The Redstones, who own the majority of voting shares of CBS and Viacom through their privately held National Amusements, want to recombine the two companies 10 years after they split. Both firms have set up a special committee of directors to explore a potential merger and have hired bankers as advisers.

Bakish would not comment on whether he thinks the decision to pursue a merger with CBS could change based on his work. He also declined to provide details of his strategy to turn around Viacom, which has been struggling amid declining advertising revenue and ratings.

Before he started his new role, Bakish set up a 15 person task force to identify short-term goals that can be fixed.

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Now there are nine separate committees aimed at devising strategies to meet those goals, he said.

"If you look at how the company was being run over the past few years, it was very siloed and I believe that resulted in a missed opportunity," he said.

(Reporting By Jessica Toonkel; editing by Anna Driver and Alan Crosby)
Mexico police Guerrero Ayotzinapa violence protest

During the weekend before Thanksgiving, violence in Guerrero state in southwest Mexico claimed the lives of as many as 27 people  some of them found dismembered, others gunned down on the streets of Acapulco.

On November 19, there were 10 reported killings across Acapulco. The following day, two Marines were shot outside a store in the city, once a tourist hub but now riven by deadly violence.

Near Tixtla, in the central part of the state, authorities discovered nine bodies dumped on the side of a road late on the evening of November 20.

Four bodies were found with hands and feet bound and showing signs of torture; the remains of five others were found in five plastic bags at the scene.

Grisly discoveries were not limited to the weekend. During a search on November 22 and 24, investigators found 32 bodies in 17 clandestine burial pits and nine severed heads in coolers at a camp in the central municipality of Zitlala.

The camp was found after an anonymous tip led police to the area, where they rescued a captive. The camp was located near where nine decapitated bodies were found the week before, and the heads found at the camp may belong to those bodies, authorities said.

"The discoveries are terrible," said Roberto Alvarez, the state security spokesman for Guerrero, which means warrior.

Guerrero homicide death violence killing Mexico Acapulco

State Attorney General Xavier Olea blamed the bloodshed on ongoing turf battles between the Los Rojos and Los Ardillos criminal groups. Their fight for control of the area around Tixtla in the central part of the state has intensified since the beginning of 2015.

Story continues

"Los Rojos has really broken apart and has experienced serious challenges from Los Ardillos, a group that was long present in the center in of the state but became newly aggressive about two to three years ago and has really expanded at the expense of Los Rojos," Chris Kyle, an anthropologist and professor at the University of Alabama-Birmingham who's done extensive research on Guerrero, told Business Insider earlier this year.

Both groups are responsible for extortion, kidnappings, and killings in addition to their involvement in the states drug trade. The area they are contesting has extensive opium cultivation, and the struggle there is for dominance over the production and trafficking of the drug, which produces heroin.

A man lances a poppy bulb to extract the sap, which will be used to make opium, at a field in the municipality of Heliodoro Castillo, in the mountain region of the state of Guerrero January 3, 2015. REUTERS/Claudio Vargas/File Photo

This weekend was very tough for us, however we have detained people from both groups and that has continued, Olea said in an interview on November 22.

"It is a type of violence that has been brewing in Guerrero," state Gov. Hector Astudillo said on the same day, but "there is without doubt a close fight among criminal groups" for control of the area, he added. "It is the reality that has lived in Guerrero."

Later in the week, after the discovery of the clandestine graves, Astudillo condemned what he called the wave of "barbarism and savagery," and his office said the situation was "a public disturbance caused by organized crime."

Astudillo took office just over a year ago, around the time a new federal anti-crime effort was announced. Mexico's interior minister, Miguel Angel Osorio Chong, said at the time that federal forces would reinforce and focus their attention on areas in the state with high crime rates.

While state officials have said that crime in some areas has fallen, overall Guerrero state looks poised for one of its most violent years in recent memory.

Homicides in Guerrero 2015-2016

Through October this year, Guerrero's 1,832 homicides were the second most of Mexico's 32 states, behind only the 1,893 recorded in Mexico state, which has a population more than four times that of Guerrero.

If that rate continues, Guerrero would be on track to have a homicide rate of about 60 per 100,000, close to the recent peak year of violence in the state, 2012, when there were about 68 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the Associated Press.

"The current rate, this could be the most violent year in the recent history of the state, worse even than 2012," Mexican security analyst Alejandro Hope wrote on November 23.

Organized-crime-related violence has spread throughout the state, driven by ongoing clashes between several other gangs, among them Guerreros Unidos, a group known as Los Tequileros, and remnants of the once powerful La Familia Michoacana cartel, in addition to Los Rojos and Los Ardillos.

In Acapulco, a once idyllic beach town that has been transformed into "Guerrero's Iraq" by gang violence, "it just is a mess," Kyle told Business Insider.

Killings have swept across the city, moving from neighborhood to neighborhood as the make up and interests of the actors involved shifts.

Remnants of large groups like the Beltran Leyva Organization  whose breakdown in the late 2000s helped set the stage for violence in the area and is now thought to be backed by the powerful Jalisco New Generation cartel  and the Independent Cartel of Acapulco are fighting for control of the city, clashing with groups that operate locally or have spun off from larger organizations.

Amid the killings, the state has seen several mass kidnappings in recent months.

Relatives of the 43 missing students of the Ayotzinapa teacher training college march before receiving the final report on the disappearance of their sons by members of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in Tixtla, Guerrero state, Mexico, April 27, 2016. REUTERS/Ginnette Riquelme

On November 17, about a dozen residents of the town of Ajuchitlan in the north-central part of the state were reportedly abducted. The kidnapping was pulled off by 30 armed men believed to members of a gang called Los Tequileros, which is reportedly clashing with the La Familia Michoacana.

Earlier this year, two mass kidnappings took place in northern Guerrero, one of them in Ajuchitlan. Many of those victims and some from the kidnapping this month have been freed or released, but disappearances are also common.

In an incident that continues to reverberate around Mexico and the world, 43 students from the Ayotzinapa teachers' school were abducted in Iguala in September 2014. It's thought that they were executed and their bodies disposed of, and suspicion of official complicity and of a cover up has helped galvanize popular anger.

After the blood-soaked weekend on November 19 and 20, the government said it would increase the use of joint police-military patrols in places where the violence was worst.

Acapulco Mexico beach soldiers homicides violence

Astudillo said that 200 state police, with reinforcements from Michoacan state, would be deployed to remote areas in the Guerrero mountains in search of the missing men from Ajuchitlan.

On November 25, the state government said between 500 and 1,000 federal police would be deployed to the state in two groups, one heading to localities in the north near the border with Michoacan and the other going to the center of the state, near the capital and the area where the 32 bodies were found.

A number of factors have helped drive the waves of violence that have swept Guerrero.

Extensive drug cultivation in Guerrero, coupled with its proximity to smuggling routes, have made it ground zero for cartels and other criminal groups. With the ongoing heroin epidemic in the US, the appeal of Guerrero's opium trade is unlikely to abate any time soon, Hope notes.

The multitude of criminal actors creates a complex landscape that state and federal authorities have been unable to address, and their continued reliance on mass deployments of police and troops to quell disturbances has done little to enhance the capacity of local authorities  in fact, those deployments may be inhibiting the development of that capacity, Hope says.

In many places in Guerrero where the state's presence has been lacking, locals have formed vigilante community-police groups to directly confront crime.

Mexico Guerrero violence police

Many of those groups are thought to have been infiltrated by criminals or to be working at the behest of or in partnership with criminal groups. In Tierra Colorada, a city east of Acapulco, vigilante groups are clashing with each other for control of area, leading to worries they've taken sides in the ongoing battle between gangs.

The overall underdevelopment of the state and the relative isolation its residents, many of whom are poor, also help create fertile ground for criminal activity. Communication and transportation infrastructure is weak, Hope notes, and economic development tends to cluster around Acapulco and Zihuatanejo, a city popular with tourists farther up the coast.

But, as Acapulco shows, even areas that are better off than the rest of the state are not immune to the violence that has afflicted Guerrero. Residents in Zihuatanejo shuttered many of their businesses on November 18 to protest insecurity in the area, the second time in less than a month that they had done so.

How many more deaths does the governor want before he truly understands that what is happening here is serious, asked Ricardo Sotelo Luna, a Zihuatanejo business spokesman.

NOW WATCH: These are the kind of profits Mexican drug cartels are making





More From Business Insider


Spoiler alert: Do not read until youve watched episode 6 of season 7 of The Walking Dead, titled Swear.

The Walking Dead has often been at its strongest when it breaks up the core group of survivors and follows them a few at a time. But as the seventh season nears its midway point, that formula is wearing thin. Rather than allowing the show to tell a greater variety of stories, the episodes following the aftermath of Negans bloody campfire circle have essentially told the same story over and over again. In Swear, we are again introduced to a new kind of post-apocalyptic community, and again shown how that community has dealt with the threat posed by the Saviors, whichsurpriseis not especially different from the way the ones weve already seen have. Turns out when youre confronted with an army of murderous thugs, there arent that many different ways to react.

At least Swear offers a change of scenery. The show has spent so much time in small towns and loosely forested woods that the sight of water lapping at a beach comes as a welcome change of pace (unless, of course, youve seen the seafaring second season of Fear the Walking Dead). Tara and Heath are still on the supply run they set out on at the end of season six, and theyre also under the impression that their nighttime raid on the Saviors outpost, during which they killed several people in their sleep, permanently put an end to the group. As far as they know, their greatest care is locating food and other useful items to bring back to Alexandria, where Glenn, Abraham, and Denise will be waiting to welcome them home.

Tara and Heath come upon a barricaded pier, at the end of which is a massive mound of sand. She pulls on a half-buried object, reasoning that its difficult enough to dislodge that there must be something good hidden within, but instead she inadvertently wakens a herd of buried walkers, and while she and Heath are fighting them off, she tumbles into the water and is washed away by the current.

Story continues

Tara washes up on the shores of Oceanside, where she lays apparently unconscious as teenaged Cyndie and a younger girl argue about whether or not they should kill her, as the communitys rules apparently require. Its a pointed reflection of the way Ricks group dealt with the Saviors, an act that Tara and especially Heath are still having trouble coming to terms with. Guilt and moral self-doubt are never emotions The Walking Dead has had much time for; theyre usually the provenance of weak characters who are at best a few episodes away from getting chomped. But Heath is haunted enough by the groups cold-blooded massacrein what can at best be characterized as attenuated self-defensethat it actually starts to sink in. Perhaps Rick and co. had good reason to think at the time that it was their best hope for survival. But that logic starts to skew dangerously close to the Saviors. We know that Rick and whoever else survives arent going to spend the rest of The Walking Dead under Negans thumb. But who will they be by the time they emerge?

Oceanside, named for the former motor court they inhabit, has managed to escape from the Saviors grasp, but at a terrible cost. The groups all-female composition makes it seems at first like some kind of Amazonian outpost, a yin to the Saviors hyper-masculine yang. (Say what you like about Swear; it definitely passes the Bechdel Test.) But after surviving her first encounter and being briefly welcomed into the group, Tara learns the truth from their leader Natania: there are no men because the Saviors killed them all, along with every male child over the age of 10. (Given the scattering of machine-gun cartridges back on the dock, its likely those bodies in the sand were the remnants of the Saviors mass execution.) The survivors relocated, and have stayed out of sight by killing every outsider who might stumble on their hiding place, but in doing so, theyve traded one horror for another  visiting it instead of having it visited upon them.

Swear is built around the idea of scavenging. Tara tells Heath, Theres nothing left in this world that isnt hidden, and Natania explains Oceansides survival strategy to Tara as We would stay hidden, and we would stay alive. But staying hidden isnt a passive act, or an innocent one. Cyndie seems to successfully plead for Taras life, for her to be released from Oceanside on a promise to keep the communitys existence a secret. But as shes taken into the woods, Tara comes across the body of a female walker tangled in the brush, and realizes shes been led to the site of her own execution. She gets away unharmedthis may be the Walking Dead season lightest on human fatalities, as a way of giving Glenn and Abrahams deaths time to sink inbut Heath is gone (and given that Corey Hawkins is playing the lead in Foxs 24: Legacy, unlikely to return anytime soon).

Tara makes her way back to Alexandria with a smile on her face, not knowing that the woman she loves is lying dead with an arrow through her eye socket. But even after finding out what the Saviors have done to Denise and to Alexandria, she keeps faith with Oceansideor, perhaps more to the point, with Cyndie, who defended her even when the rest of Oceansides women turned against her. Rosita, who possesses the only gun in Alexandria successfully hidden from the Saviors purge, asks Tara if she managed to find any weapons on her travels, and Tara lies to her and says no. Its the moral decision, or at least the sentimentally satisfying one, but it also feels unearned, and out of place on a show that so rarely rewards doing the right thingand one thats especially hard to absorb in light of how its built up the Saviors as the ultimate threat to the groups survival. No doubt theres a plan for the seventh season as a whole, but with it nearly halfway over, it feels like The Walking Dead is merely twisting in the wind.

Related stories

'The Walking Dead': Alanna Masterson on Tara's Secret (SPOILERS)

'The Walking Dead': Jesus and Gregory Deliver Behind the Scenes Dish (SPOILERS)

'Walking Dead' Recap: A Visit to the Hilltop Offers Few Surprises (SPOILERS)
A new group of survivors were introduced in Season 7, episode 6 of AMCs The Walking Dead. On Sundays episode, viewers caught up with Tara and Heath. The pair has not been seen since last season when they left the Alexandria group to go on a two-week mission.

The episode goes back and forth between present day and the past. Things kick off with a scene of a beautiful beach and a disgusting-looking walker  or bobber as the beach people call it  stuck in the wet sand. The voice a young girl and older girl are heard talking. The little girl spots the walker and runs up to it and kills it. The girl spots another walker further down on the beach and runs up to getting ready to kill it. The older girl stops the young girl and tells her that its not a bobber, and the person is still alive. It turns out that its Tara (Alanna Masterson). The young girl still wants to kill Tara, telling the older girl that theyre supposed to kill strangers. The older girl, however, wont let her and drags Taras unconscious body to a secluded area of the beach.

The next scene is a flashback and shows Tara and Heath (Corey Hawkins) sitting in a camper. Heath is ready for them to turn around and go back to Alexandria because theyve been on their scavenging mission for two weeks and havent found anything to bring back. Tara doesnt want to go back empty-handed because she knows the people at Alexandria are counting on them. Heath says they can go check out one more area and then theyre going back home.

Things then switch back to Tara unconscious on the beach. The older girl goes and checks on Tara, giving her two bottles of water, some food and a spear. Tara wakes up as the girl is walking away. Tara takes a few gulps of water, grabs the spear and heads into the woods after the girl. The girl doesnt know Tara is following her so she heads back to her camp, a secluded area of cabins in the woods near the beach.

As Tara is sneaking around, she sees everyone running to a shed and grabbing guns. One lady starts shooting at Tara, and Tara takes off into the woods as a group of women run after her. Tara is able to take one of the guns from one lady and knocks her out with it. Tara turns to run off, but the little girl from the beach is pointing a gun at Tara. Its revealed that the girls name is Rachel (Mimi Kirkland). Before Rachel can kill Tara, the older girl  Cyndie (Sydney Park)  steps in front of the gun and tells everyone to calm down. Tara apologizes and tells the group of women that she can just leave if they let her live.

Story continues

In another flashback, Tara and Heath go explore a deserted bridge they found. As theyre looking around Tara spots a heavy bag half buried under a pile of sand and tries to yank it out. Heath tries to stop her, but Tara pulls the bag out and the pile of sand starts to crumble revealing a horde of walkers underneath. Tara starts shooting the walkers surrounding her, but she cant get away because her leg is trapped underneath something. She calls to Heath for help, but he runs off, leaving her alone on the bridge.

The next scene is Tara handcuffed in one of the cabins in the woods. Three ladies come in and ask her where shes from. Tara lies and tells them shes from Atlanta and has been traveling with a friend for the past few years. Tara tells them they got separated on the bridge after they were attacked by walkers. The ladies dont believe Tara and want to know how she found their camp. She tells them about Cyndie leaving her the food and water and says that she pretended to be unconscious and followed the girl to their camp. The ladies tell Tara that theyre not sure about whether they should let her go because she knows too much about their camp.

Later, one of the ladies comes and gets Tara and brings her to another cabin. The lady takes the handcuffs off Tara and invites her to join them for dinner so they can talk. They want Tara to stay at their camp, and says they will go and find her friend and bring him back too. Tara is confused why they would want her male friend to stay there too since she hasnt seen any men at the camp.

They tell her that they got into a skirmish with another group and all the men in their camp were killed. They also tell Tara that they know shes lying about where she came from. Tara then explains that shes from a community thats not too far away, and there were a group of people threatening them so her people went to their satellite post and killed them all. Tara says instead of her staying and living there, she wants both groups to work together and keep each other safe. Cyndie thinks its a good idea, but her grandmother doesnt agree and thinks its too dangerous.

However, the grandmother tells Tara that theyre going to send two guides with her to help her find her friend and check out her community to make sure its safe. The next morning, Tara and her two guides head out to find Heath.

As Tara and the guides are walking, they see a walker. Tara offers to kill it but instead of taking the walker down she runs off into the woods. The guides shoot at her and Tara slips and falls into a ditch. One of the guides walk by the ditch without seeing her, and the other is near the ditch with her back towards Tara. Tara sneaks out of the ditch and attacks the woman but isnt able to get the gun from her. Suddenly, Cyndie comes to Taras rescue and stops the guide from killing Tara. Cyndie tells Tara to run. Cyndie catches up with Tara and makes her swear that shes not going to tell the Alexandria people about their camp in the woods. Tara swears and Cyndie gives Tara a backpack with water and food. She also gives Tara a spear and offers to show Tara how to get back to the bridge.

In another flashback, its revealed that Heath didnt leave Tara alone on the bridge after all. Hes seen shooting at some of the walkers surrounding Tara, but hes also trapped by walkers. Tara is trying to fight off walkers and get to Heath, but she falls over the bridges railing into the water below.

Back in the present day, Cyndie helps Tara fights through the walkers. Tara is trying to find Heath but doesnt see him on the bridge. As shes looking around she sees a walker with dreads, but when she gets closer, she realizes its not Heath. Tara continues searching for her friend and spots his glasses broken on the ground. She also sees tire marks in the dirt nearby, and starts to follow them. Tara doesnt find Heath, but eventually makes her way back to Alexandria. Shes greeted by Eugene (Josh McDermitt), whos crying. The episode ends with Tara upset and Rosita (Christian Serratos) asking Tara if she came across any places on her scavenging trip that had guns and ammunition. Tara thinks about it, but tells her she didnt see any place like that.

The Walking Dead airs Sundays at 9 p.m. EST on AMC.

The Walking Dead Season 7 episode 6

Photo: AMC

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Watching this artist create line drawings is strangely soothing

Instagram artists continue to inspire us! Meet Niels Kiene, an artist based in the Netherlands. This is one artist who is seriously giving us all the feels. Art has loads of mental health benefits, with a study saying making art helps reduce stress regardless of how skilled you are. And these line drawings have us feeling *so* inspired to make some art of our own. If being creative can help reduce stress, were definitely down to give it a try!

Whether youre planning to get into your artsy side or not, watching these pieces from start to finish will for sure blow your mind.

Watching these single line drawings is actually such an amazingly calming activity. We feel less stressed already!

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 24, 2016 at 12:46pm PST

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 6, 2016 at 10:12am PST

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 22, 2016 at 1:29pm PST

Regardless of the tool the artist is using, the art-making process is SO soothing. We could watch these forever!

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 17, 2016 at 9:48am PST

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 16, 2016 at 9:25am PST

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 10, 2016 at 11:10am PST

These line drawings pull us into such a daze. Its actually pretty trippy, but we dig it.

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 7, 2016 at 11:59am PST

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 23, 2016 at 9:39am PST

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 4, 2016 at 10:25am PDT

Niels Kiene, were bowing down. Like, holy crap, you guys.

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 2, 2016 at 11:15am PDT

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Oct 31, 2016 at 12:27pm PDT

A video posted by Niels Kiene (@salventius) on Nov 1, 2016 at 1:51pm PDT

TG for artist Niels Kiene and these epic illustrations!

The post Watching this artist create line drawings is strangely soothing appeared first on HelloGiggles.
Thanksgiving is over. As is this weekends news. Here is a taste of what happened while you were eating leftover turkey.

In separate statements, President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump struck markedly different tones on the Friday night death of Fidel Castro, ruler of Cuba for more than a half-century.

Obama said Castro altered the course of individual lives, families, and of the Cuban nation. History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him.

Trump called Castro a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Fidel Castros legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights. Trump also proclaimed Fidel Castro is dead! in a Twitter statement before ginning up a spate of rapid-fire tweets throughout the weekend criticizing former Green Party presidential candidate Jill Steins push for a vote recount in Wisconsin.

He also accused millions of Americans of voting illegally in the Nov. 8 election in claiming he had won the popular vote (as well as the Electoral College vote). Its believed defeated Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by as many as 2 million ballots.

The results from Steins recount will almost certainly not change the result of the presidential election, or of anything else, although Clintons campaign lawyers said they will participate in it. Trump, meanwhile, reportedly spent the holiday asking friends and confidants who should be the next secretary of state.

In Frances upcoming presidential elections, Francois Fillon beat Alain Juppe to become the center-right candidate in next years vote.

Meanwhile, in Russia, Putin spokesperson Dmitriy Peskovs ice dancer wife, Tatiyana Navka, performed a Holocaust themed ice dance on a reality television program. She claimed to be paying tribute to the film Life Is Beautiful.

A Ghanaian electoral commission approved monitors. The December 7 elections are expected to be unexpectedly tense.

Story continues

In Poland, a government official broke with tradition by speaking out against a state owned television channel.

In the coming days, look for whether Trump will settle on nominees to head the State Department and Pentagon. Congress returns for a lame-duck session, and House Democrats will consider whether to rename Rep. Nancy Pelosi as minority leader. And what of Steins recount? Stay tuned for the week ahead.

Photo credit: YAMIL LAGE/AFP/Getty Images
On Nov 25, 2016, shares of WellCare Health Plans Inc. WCG hit a 52-week high of $136.26 driven by strong third-quarter 2016 results. About 0.15 million of shares exchanged hands in the last trading session and the stock finally closed at $134.50, down 1.3%.

Over the past 52 weeks, the stock has gained 62.9% compared with a rise of just 5.6% and 24.04% in the S&P 500 Index and the Zacks-categorized Health Maintenance Organization Industry, respectively.



The stock price appreciation was fueled by the companys robust quarterly earnings of $1.63per share that surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 46.8%. The bottom line also improved 63% year over year on operational improvement, especially in the companys Medicaid Health Plans segment. Revenues beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by nearly 2% and grew 4.2% year over year to $3.6 billion on higher premiums.

Medicaid Health Plans segment continues to support WellCare. Membership in this segment inched up 1.1% following the acquisition of certain assets from Advicare Corp. in Jun 2016. This led to a 7% increase in premium revenues for this particular segment

In the reported quarter, WellCares operating cash inflow soared 251% from the prior-year quarter. The companys financial strength has always backed its debt servicing capacity substantially. In the last reported quarter, it repaid $100 million of the $200 million borrowed under its $850 million senior unsecured revolving credit facility.

WellCares guidance raise following third-quarter earnings outperformance also impressed investors. The company now expects adjusted earnings per diluted share in the range of $5.35$5.45 as against the range of $4.95$5.05 guided earlier.

We are also optimistic about WellCares strong inorganic growth story. Such initiatives have not only enabled the company to boost its revenue base but also ensure long-term growth through diversified operations. In Nov 2016, the company signed an agreement to acquire Universal American Corp. UAM for roughly $587 million to strengthen its position in the Medicare Advantage plans market.

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Notably, the company delivered positive surprises through out last four quarters with an average beat of 40.01%. Based on the earnings outperformance, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2016 and 2017 has been revised upward by 8.3% and 2.8%, respectively, over the last 30 days.

WellCare is expected to receive a fillip from new investments and growth opportunities that are likely to open up for the company under the Presidency of Donald Trump. This in turn should result in share price appreciation. Along with WellCare, other medical sector companies like Anthem Inc. ANTM and UnitedHealth Group Inc. UNH to name a few are also counting on a better future under the leadership of the new President..

WELLCARE HEALTH Price and Consensus

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London (AFP) - West Bromwich Albion manager Tony Pulis has lost a 3.7 million ($4.6 million, 4.3 million euros) legal action against former club Crystal Palace, a High Court judgement revealed Monday.

Earlier this year, Pulis had been ordered to pay Palace 3.7 million by a Premier League Managers' Arbitration Tribunal which found he had "deliberately misled" the south London club and described his conduct as "disgraceful".

Pulis challenged that decision in the High Court but judge Michael Burton found against him at a hearing in London, with a written ruling published Monday.

Burton said Pulis had a contract which would see him get a 2 million bonus if he kept Palace in the Premier League in 2013-14 and stayed in the manager's job until August 31, 2014.

Pulis oversaw the Eagles' successful bid to avoid relegation but did not stay with Palace until August 31.

Palace officials said Pulis had deceived them into an early payment of the bonus by saying he was "committed" to the club and "urgently needed the money early" so he could buy a plot of land for his daughter.

Burton said Palace had agreed to Pulis's request for early payment and handed over 2 million on August 12 2014, only to be told a day later by the manager that he wanted to leave. Pulis quit Palace on August 14.

Pulis, who denied "fraud", said he only wanted to leave if it was "mutually agreeable for him to leave on the eve of the new season", and that it had been "mutually agreeable".

Arbitrators, however, had concluded that Pulis made "false representations".

They decided he had not been "committed to the club", had not intended to stay until August 31 and "there was no such land transaction".

They also found he had not told the truth and "deliberately misled" Palace chairman Steve Parish "concerning his intentions".

"Mr Pulis secured early payment of his bonus from the club by deceit in August 2014," arbitrators said.

Story continues

"The day after he had secured payment of 2 million ... he dropped the bombshell on the club that he intended to leave, leaving it, as must have been his intention, in the lurch on the eve of the new season."

Arbitrators added: "By any standards his conduct (prior to and during the litigation) has been shown to be disgraceful."

Burton said he would dismiss Pulis's challenge and instead enforce the damages awarded by the arbitrators, a panel made up of three senior lawyers.
Old Havana

On Nov. 25, Cuba said a final farewell to Fidel Castro, the controversial leader who served as president for nearly 32 years before officially handing over the reins to his brother Raul in 2008.

Castros death has been met with mixed emotions, and will almost certainly signify a new chapter in Cubas history. For travelers, questions now linger about how his death will affect tourism between Cuba and the US.

The number of Americans visiting Cuba has steadily increased since President Barack Obama announced that the two countries would begin to normalize diplomatic relations in December 2014. Since then, both countries opened embassies, direct mail service returned and cruises are now stopping in the small island nation. In fact, Carnivals May 1 cruise from the US to Cuba was the first since 1959.

In 2015, 161,000 American tourists visited Cuba, up 77% from 2014. This year, 94,000 Americans visited Cuba from January to May alone. That increase in tourism is only magnified by the fact that US airlines have begun daily flights to the island. In September, JetBlue (JBLU) flight 387 took off from Fort Lauderdale Airport and landed in Santa Clara, Cuba  the first US-based flight to land in the country in more than 50 years.

In addition to JetBlue, American Airlines and Southwest also offer daily flights to Cuba. United Airlines will start flying to the island on Nov. 29, followed by Delta on Dec. 1. Spirit and Frontier Airlines plan to initiate flights in December, and Alaska Airlines will begin flying in January 2017.

After Castros death, Cuba will remain in the headlines, and many of you might be thinking about planning a trip to Cuba after all, it is the high season for tourism. I had the opportunity to travel to Cuba in April, and had a memorable and eye-opening experience. Other than the lack of Wi-Fi, there are some things you should know about the island before you go. As you plan, here are some things to remember.

Who can go:

The quiet streets of Camaguey

Before the US normalized relations with Cuba, travel to the island was only allowed under strict guidelines. Today tourist travel to Cuba is still prohibited for US citizens, which means you cant just go to Cuba to relax and sip rum and cokes on the beach. However, Americans can apply for a Cuban visa if their reason for travel fits in one of these 12 categories:

Story continues

Family visits Official business of the US government, foreign governments, and certain intergovernmental organizations Journalistic activity Professional research and professional meetings Educational activities Religious activities Public performances, clinics, workshops, athletic and other competitions, and exhibitions Support for the Cuban people Humanitarian projects Activities of private foundations or research or educational institutes Exportation, importation, or transmission of information or information materials Certain authorized export transactions.

Who determines what category you fall under? You do. When booking a trip, your airline or your travel agent will ask you to pick one of the 12 reasons for travel  its kind of like an honor system. Some of the categories are obvious, like visiting family, and some like support the Cuban people are more vague. As someone who has gone through this process, I will say that none of the border agents in either country seemed concerned with why I was traveling. With that said, its always good to travel with documentation that can back up your story, like a letter from your church, flyer for an event, or the itinerary for your conference. Border agents are also more comfortable when you can provide an address for where youll be staying.

What to know:

Plaza Vieja in Havana

1. Obtain a tourist card

Every American traveler needs a visa, a.k.a. a tourist card, to travel to Cuba. JetBlue is offering tourists cards at check-in for $50 (this does not include visas for business or journalism).

American Airlines will also have Cuba ready booths located inside and outside of security at Miami International Airport where passengers can obtain a visa for a fee. The same service will be available when the airline starts flights from Charlotte to Havana.

Another easy way to get a visa is to book through a travel agency, like Cuba Travel Services, that will get one for you.

And finally, you can apply for a visa by sending photocopies of your travel documents and payment to the Cuban Consulate.

2. Cash is king

Currently, US-issued credit and debit cards do not work in Cuba. This means that tourists need to bring enough cash to cover expenses for the entire trip.

Its important to note that Cuba uses two forms of currency, the Cuban Convertible Pesos (CUC), and the Cuban peso (CUP). CUCs are the more popular currency for travelers, and tourists can exchange dollars for them at any Cuban airport. Money can also be exchanged at Cadeca money exchanges within the city or at the front desk if youre staying at a hotel.

Know that exchanging US dollars will incur a 10% exchange fee. This fee doesnt apply to euros, pounds, or Canadian dollars, so if you want to avoid the surcharge, it might be strategic to convert your dollars to one of those currencies beforehand, and exchange it to CUCs once you arrive in Cuba.

Checked luggage thrown in a pile at Havanas airport

3. The airports are kind of a mess

US airlines are ramping up service to Cuba, but that doesnt mean the airports there are prepared for the additional traffic. In April I flew out the airport in Havana and was shocked at how chaotic the check-in process was. The lines were long, and it was hard to determine which queue belonged to which airline. When we finally got up to the counter, there was a mountain of checked luggage piling up behind the counter. It was unclear how they were going to ensure each bag would get to the appropriate destination on time. This experience taught me that its wise to avoid checking a bag if possible. And if you have to check, make sure to carry on anything valuable.

However, there is a silver lining. Over the summer, Cuba announced its working with France to modernize the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana. Officials from Aeroports de Paris, which runs Charles de Gaulle airport, will operate the airport under a concession contract, and the French company Bouygues Batiment International will handle construction. So while things might be a little chaotic now, the future of traveling to Cuban airports is looking better.

4. Choose souvenirs wisely

Cuban cigars are a luxury in the US, so its natural to want to stock up on them when visiting Cuba  but dont get out of control. According to the US Department of Treasury, travelers can bring up to $100 worth of cigars back into the US. I stuck to this rule during my trip, but when I went through customs, it was very uneventful. The agent asked what I was bringing back; I said cigars, and he didnt ask how much or how many. He just let me pass. The rule may not be strictly enforced, but its probably a good idea to follow it anyway. In addition to $100 worth of tobacco, travelers can bring back up to $400 in personal goods and souvenirs.

My eclectic accommodations in Cienfuegos

5. Stay local, bring extra toiletries

There are plenty of hotels in Cuba, but many tourists opt to stay in B&Bs for a more local feel. In Cuba, these accommodations are called Casa Particulares (guest houses), and they are available in most major cities. Every casa particular I stayed in charged about 30 CUCs a night ($30 USD), and they threw in breakfast for an extra $5. Airbnb has exploded in Cuba, and many casas can now be rented on the site. There are other listing sites as well.

The accommodations are homey and simple, so dont expect much in the way of amenities. Bring your own toiletries, including soap and shampoo, because there wont likely be any in your room. Its also a nice gesture to bring extra toiletries and necessities for locals you meet along the way. The country still rations food and consumer products, so many people still struggle getting everyday household items. Bringing along a couple extra travel-size soaps, shampoos, lotions, shaving cream, and toothpaste can be a nice way to say thank you.

6. You wont be lost in translation

I traveled to six different cities in Cuba, and language was never really an obstacle. Most of the people I met knew at least a few words in English, and were able to point me in the right direction if I asked for a certain landmark. With that said, knowing some basic words in Spanish will be extremely helpful if youre traveling to Cuba. Id suggest brushing up on Spanish verbs with the app Duolingo, and using Google Translate when you get stumped.

7. Consider travel health insurance

Cuba has required visitors to have travel medical coverage since 2010. Cuban authorities wont let you leave the country if you have outstanding medical bills, so having coverage will protect you if you have a medical emergency. Every health insurance company has different rules concerning Cuba, so its important to check your plan before you leave the country. If you book a chartered flight through a travel agency, they often include coverage in the fare. JetBlue also has a similar policy.

If you do need to buy travel health insurance, find the right plan for you by checking out comparison sites like Squaremouth or InsureMyTrip.

Brittany is a writer at Yahoo Finance. This article was updated on Nov. 28, 2016.

Read more:

Low on cash? Now there is layaway for airline tickets

This woman retired at 33 and is traveling the world without going broke

They quit their jobs to visit all 59 National Parks in one year
Stocks (^DJI, ^GSPC, ^IXIC) are slightly under pressure at the midday mark. The utilities sector (XLU) is still in the green, while health care (XLV) is leading the way down. Keith Bliss of Cuttone & Co. joins us live from the New York Stock Exchange.

To discuss the other big stories of the day, Alexis Christoforous is joined by Yahoo Finance editor-in-chief Andy Serwer and Yahoo Finances Melody Hahm.

The big winners on Cyber Monday

Its Cyber Monday, the 12-year-old e-commerce holiday, which was created for those who dont mind skipping those Black Friday lines. The shopping holiday has become so big that productivity measurably drops in the office placebut of course not here at Yahoo Finance. Amazon alone has 75,000 deals this week and expectations are for a whopping $3.3 billion in sales across all online stores.

What Fidel Castros death means for business, investors

Lets turn now to Cuba and Fridays news that Fidel Castro died at age 90. Well talk about what Castros death and Trumps election mean for American businesses in a moment. But well start with a very narrow slice of the story: the 10% pop in the price of a closed-end fund that invests in companies likely to benefit from economic development in the Caribbean, including Cuba, which also happens to be the stock ticker for the fund (CUBA).

Marijuana REIT hopes to go public this week

A marijuana REIT called Innovative Industrial Properties hopes to go public on the New York Stock Exchange this week after cutting the size of its planned IPO. The company plans to invest in properties owned by medical marijuana businesses. The NYSE approved the listing, although most pot-based businesses trade over the counter.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The death of Cuba's Fidel Castro is unlikely to slow down U.S. efforts to normalize relations with its Cold War enemy, the White House said on Monday, pointing to the economic impact of the diplomatic thaw already underway such as commercial flights and other growing ties. White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters at a daily briefing on Monday than any move to unwind the normalizing relations between the United States and Cuba over the past two years "would deal a significant economic blow" to Cuban citizens. (Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Chris Reese)
Washington (AFP) - The White House on Monday defended its decision to thaw Cold War animosity with Cuba, a policy President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to reverse in the wake of Fidel Castro's death.

"After five decades of not seeing results, the president believed it was time to try something different," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest, insisting the "opening" had "yielded important benefits for the Cuban people" and adding: "It has also yielded important benefits for the American people."

After Trump vowed to "terminate" Obama's "deal" with Cuba, the White House argued that opening a US embassy in Havana, restarting direct flights and a host of other measures were not "concessions" but instead served US interests.
David Oyelowo, 40, can point to several reasons why he loves having dogs, but the actor says one great perk about having pets is that it may actually increase your life span.

I heard a study that says having dogs can add ten years to your life. Something about the amount of bacteria they bring into the house, which means your immune system goes up, Oyelowo tells PEOPLE. But Im sure it also has something to do with the well-being dogs give you.

The A United Kingdom star, who was named one of PEOPLEs Sexiest Men Alive, lives with his three rescue dogs  golden retriever mixes Olive, 7, and Lucy, 5, and his husky Levi, 8 months  as well as his four kids and wife, actress Jessica Oyelowo.

The actor, 40, adds that having dogs is a wonderful learning experience for his young kids.

They have to walk the dogs, feed the dogs and its a means for looking outside themselves, he says.

The Queen of Katwe star also doesnt mind rolling up his sleeves and doing the dirty work when it comes to cleaning his pooches.

My favorite thing to do with all three dogs is to give them a bath outside, he says. They really love dousing me with water.

Another thing he enjoys about his four-legged friends is the love they give him when he comes home.

After a long day at work, when I walk through my front door, there is a pile of three dogs, four kids and a lovely wife who greet me, he says. They lift my spirits all the time.




Just a few days after Donald Trump was elected president, People , which has the largest audience of any American magazine, began normalizing our reality-star-president-elect, despite their promises to stand by their former reporter who accused Trump of sexual assault. People has covered Trump for many years and, thus, contributed to his fame through their consistent coverage of the Apprentice and Trumps personal and financial life . Nonetheless, from October 12 until the election, the magazine had the courage to condemn Trump and support their employee. Their current fawning coverage, however, which is garnering backlash among celebrities, sends an unfortunate message that money is valued over morals and access to a powerful man is more important than sexual assault.

I was hired as an intern at People magazine in the fall of 2004, the year that The Apprentice first aired. My cubicle was situated directly outside of the office of Natasha Stoynoffthe former People magazine reporter who bravely voiced her story about being sexually assaulted by Trump while she was on assignment for People in 2005. This story was first published on People.com on October 12, 2016, and in the printed magazine later that week. In 2011, while I was freelancing for People , my friend Natasha confided in me about the attack, but until now I have chosen to stay silent, since this is her story. People s current coverage of Trump, however, has led me to feel a need to stand up for Natasha and all women who have experienced sexual assault. We must make clear that being the president-elect of the United States of America does not excuse his behavior.

Leading up to the election, People showed integrity by strongly supporting Natasha. After the initial People.com story had run its course, follow-up stories going into further detail, including Natashas response to Trumps denial of the accusations and testimony from others corroborating her story, covered the website in days that followed. Just four days before the election, People.com featured video content of People magazine Managing Editor Jess Cagle interviewing Natasha, asking her to rehash her story and respond to Trumps offensive comments. Both Cagle and Larry Hackett, who was Managing Editor when Natasha was assaulted, publicly expressed their support for Natasha. In a statement about why they printed the story, Cagle noted, Ms. Stoynoff is a remarkable, ethical, honest and patriotic woman, and she has shared her story of being physically attacked by Donald Trump in 2005 because she felt it was her duty to make the public aware. To assign any other motive is a disgusting, pathetic attempt to victimize her again. We stand steadfastly by her. The statement was accompanied by video content of Senior Editor Charlotte Triggs explaining Natashas story with great empathy, noting that it was a terrible thing that happened to her. Triggs also made appearances on multiple television shows to tell of Natashas sorrows. On Nov. 4, several of People magazines staff posted photos of themselves with Natasha on Facebook with captions including Team Natasha Stoynoff.

Story continues

The day after Trumps election, however, Triggs, authored a story on People.com entitled, My Front-Row Seat to History: PEOPLE Senior Editor Charlotte Triggs Watches Trump Win the Presidency, featuring a photo of her cozied up to the president-elect. One week, Triggs was on camera talking about Natashas terrible experience, and the next week she was celebrating with Natashas alleged assaulter. Puff pieces quickly followed, including  27 Photos of Ivanka Trump and Her Family That Are Way Too Cute,  Melania Trumps First Lady Style: See Her Best Moments on the Campaign Trail, and a celebratory election story with the title  Hes Hired ! in the caption, referencing Trumps Apprentice catch phrase youre fired! In response to backlash over this laudatory coverage, People issued a statement on November 10: Donald Trumps win is a history-making news event that warranted the cover of the magazine. The story is not a celebration or an endorsement and we continue to stand by Natasha Stoynoff. But the claim that Trumps election was being covered as a news event and the coverage was not a celebration willfully ignores the posture of these puff pieces. This flattering coverage of their employees alleged attacker suggests that People truly cares little about sexual assault, even when the victim is their own employee who was assaulted on the job.

trumppeoplecover

Photo: People.com

By attempting to make Trump cutesy and consumable again, People casts doubt on the claim that they would never have published Stoynoffs story in 2005 if they had only known of the assault at the time. The former magazine editor said in no uncertain terms that he would have killed the story that Stoynoff had gone to Palm Beach to report. In a conversation I had with Natasha two weeks ago, she said she had the impression that the current editors felt the same way. If they claim that had they only known then what they know now, they would not have published the story of Trumps marital bliss, which was revealed to be so obviously false by his behavior toward their reporter, what is to explain the magazines current adoration of Trump and his family?

As Cagle so emphatically pointed out, Natasha did not have any ulterior motive for telling her story. But what about People s motive? Cagle admitted in an interview that Natasha was not, frankly, eager to tell this story. Cagle, on the other hand, was happy to run it. I was thrilled to run it. Why? Their about-face gives the distressing appearance that it was all to bait clicks and to sell issues, exploiting their own employees assault for profit. The People staff are not novicesthey know what will draw in readers. Now that the story has been fully monetized and Trump is elevated to the presidency, the magazine wasted no time in abandoning their reporter to wring sales out of adoring coverage of her assaulter. As one former People writer presciently predicted on Facebook following Trumps victory: They will get cozy with Melania and highlight her fashion. They will have our annual fawning Presidential Christmas interview. They will admire all things Ivanka. These things will not change It's all about money.

By publicly lauding their employees attacker, People has reinforced the dynamic it was supposedly fighting against by publishing Natashas accusations. As Natasha said in her own words, she did not come out with her story sooner because of fear that  a famous, powerful, wealthy man could and would discredit and destroy  her. In an interview with CNN about Natashas experience, Triggs said of Trump, At the time he was a hugely powerful TV star and business mogul and she knew that if she were to come forward with unflattering allegations against him that she would be in for it herself and he would retaliate against her. If Trumps status then was too powerful to risk retaliation, we can only imagine how his victims feel now, as he is about to become the most powerful person in the world. For People to retain the integrity they built by supporting Natasha, they need to rethink their current editorial approach to covering Trump. By failing to do so, they are glorifying a sexual assailant, sending the message that some men are in fact too powerful to stand up to, and encouraging other victims of sexual assault to remain silent.

Diaz is a Postdoctoral Fellow at UCLAs Bunche Center for African American Studies and Chicano Studies Research Center. She is also Assistant Professor of Communications, Cal State Fullerton. Her research looks at issues of race and gender in celebrity media. She is a former intern and freelance reporter for People magazine.

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Value investing is always a very popular strategy, and for good reason. After all, who doesnt want to find stocks that have low PEs, solid outlooks, and decent dividends?

Fortunately for investors looking for this combination, we have identified a strong candidate which may be an impressive value; Hallador Energy Company HNRG.

Hallador Energy in Focus

HNRG may be an interesting play thanks to its forward PE of 13.4, its P/S ratio of 0.95, and its decent dividend yield of 1.79%. These factors suggest that Hallador Energy is a pretty good value pick, as investors have to pay a relatively low level for each dollar of earnings, and that HNRG has decent revenue metrics to back up its earnings.

HALLADOR ENERGY PE Ratio (TTM)

HALLADOR ENERGY PE Ratio (TTM) | HALLADOR ENERGY Quote

But before you think that Hallador Energy is just a pure value play, it is important to note that it has been seeing solid activity on the earnings estimate front as well. For current year earnings, the consensus has gone up by 11.7% in the past 30 days, thanks to 1 upward revisions in the past month compared to none lower.

This estimate strength is actually enough to push HNRG to a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy), suggesting it is poised to outperform. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

So really, Hallador Energy is looking great from a number of angles thanks to its PE below 20, a P/S ratio below one, and a strong Zacks Rank, meaning that this company could be a great choice for value investors at this time.

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King of Queens star Leah Remini prepared for the debut of her new television series, Scientology and the Aftermath, by chatting about her former religion on Good Morning America Monday. The actress left the faith in July 2013 because she was worried about how Scientology would affect her daughter, Sofia Pagan.

One of the main problems Remini had with the Church of Scientology was the way they victimized victims. She told Savannah Guthrie: I'm not a big fan of bullies, so it is part of who I am. I was a fighter in the Church. This is what they taught me, so I'm going to continue my fight, but I'm on the right side of that fight now. I just want to send the message that I'm not going to sit back and allow it to go on.

Remini, 46, wants to use her voice as a celebrity to give strength to other people who are in the Church of Scientology. On her show, she will visit people who left the faith, just like she did.

It's for the victims, she said Monday. It's for the people who have spoken out, but it's also for people who just maybe don't have the strength to fight, feel they don't have a voice...I just want to give people strength and not just with this organization but with any bully. I just hope that that's what the message is.

The Church of Scientology responded to Reminis new show through a statement on their website earlier this month. Sadly, bitterness and anger are common threads through Ms. Reminis life, the note from Nov. 3 read. Ms. Remini is showing herself to be a spoiled entitled diva who still obsessively complains about such petty matters as her seating placement, limo ride, five-star hotel accommodations and the paparazzis failure to recognize her nearly a decade ago. She also inserts herself uninvited into the family matters of others. It added: Rather than take responsibility for self-inflicted problems, she is quick to blame others.

Reminis series debuts Tuesday at 10 p.m. EST on A&E.

Story continues

Leah Remini

Photo: Getty Images

Follow me on Twitter @mariamzzarella

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AMC

As expected, this weeks The Walking Dead took us to yet another new community, continuing its world-building rut by introducing a new settlement thats not likely to play into the major season arc again until the back half of the seventh season. However, the episode did bring Tara back into the Alexandria fold, and it also disposed of Heath  for now.

Is Heath dead? It doesnt seem so, as it appears he managed to escape the walkers on the bridge. How? We dont know. He couldve escaped in a car, or he could have been abducted by another group, like The Saviors. In either respect, it appears that he left behind a calling card, of sorts, containing the letters PPP.

AMC





Why leave the fate of Heath an open question rather than simply killing the character? Thats a good question, and heres my theory: Corey Hawkins, who plays Heath, had to leave the show to begin working on his new show, 24: Legacy, where hes been tapped as the lead. Its a plum role for Hawkins, who was already coming off a feature role as Dr. Dre in Straight Outta Compton and an upcoming role in Kong: Skull Island. Hes poised to be a major star, and while his schedule likely doesnt allow any additional work on The Walking Dead, it leaves the door open for a return down the line after Hawkins is more recognizable.

Alternatively, if 24: Legacy is cancelled after a season and Kong: Skull Island doesnt lead to more high-profile roles, The Walking Dead can bring Heath back again next season, or potentially the ninth or tenth season. After all, the character of Heath is still alive in Robert Kirkmans comic series, but hes a relatively little-used character in the graphic novels. If Kirkman decided to beef up the role of Heath in the comics, he then has the potential option of bringing Corey Hawkins back to reprise the role.

AMC

Its also possible that the decision has absolutely nothing to do with Hawkins himself. If the Saviors abducted Hawkins, revealing his death in a future episode could have an upsetting affect on the Alexandrians. In this scenario, perhaps, the PPP calling card that Heath left behind could be a clue to his whereabouts. The PPP hasnt been seen in the show prior to this episode, so we dont really know what it stands for yet. However, if the Saviors did kidnap Heath, the PPP could be a code similar to the A on the sweatshirt of Daryl, which is presumably some sort of classification system.

However, the answer to the mystery of Heaths fate or the PPP card probably isnt something well find out anytime soon.
Moscow (AFP) - The wife of President Vladimir Putin's spokesman faced a storm of criticism on Monday for performing a Holocaust-themed ice-dancing routine with striped costumes based on concentration camp uniforms.

Tatiana Navka, an Olympic ice dancing champion who is married to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, performed the pirouetting routine with actor Andrei Burkovsky on a prime-time celebrity skating show on Saturday.

The dancers wore black-and-white striped outfits with numbers and yellow stars for the routine, which ends to the sound of gunfire.

The routine was set to a song from 1997 Oscar-winning Italian film "Life is Beautiful," a tragicomedy about a father trying to hide the horrors of concentration camp life from his son.

The pair won maximum points on the Ice Age show on state-controlled Channel One and praise from judges, while Navka wrote on Instagram that it was one of her "favourite routines", and "our children should know and remember this terrible time."

The routine prompted a wave of discussion online and in international media.

"Have you gone mad? Smiles in prison uniforms with yellow stars! The audience erupting in applause... No taste, no, tact, no understanding," wrote viewer Mihael Ratinsky on the Channel One website.

"This is terrible, people don't understand what they are doing. This is blasphemy," wrote another viewer, Viki Reznik, in a comment to a YouTube video that had been viewed more than 89,000 times by Monday afternoon, with most reactions negative.

Britain's the Daily Mail wrote that the dancers' "beaming grins" seemed to have "little in connection with their gruesome theme," while US People magazine's site called it "troubling".

Israel's Russian-language newspaper Vesty Israel wrote on Facebook that it hoped choreographer, ice dancer Ilya Averbukh, "has enough brains not to bring this routine to Israel."

Story continues

Averbukh -- who is reportedly of Jewish origin -- angrily defended the routine to Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid, saying, "I would call all this reaction a sign of the craziness of today."

- 'Proud of my wife' -

Navka herself insisted that the camp prisoner uniform was simply part of the performance, telling Life News website: "This is our job."

She said the global reaction "means we are forcing people to think."

Asked to comment on the furore, Peskov told journalists: "I am proud of my wife, that's all I can say."

The Nazis killed some 10 million Soviet civilians and prisoners of war, some 1.3 million of whom were Jewish, according to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Head of the Moscow-based Holocaust Fund Alla Gerber said in an interview with Govorit Moskva radio station that it was "very complex" to depict the Holocaust appropriately.

"Primarily I think there must not be mockery, there must not be irony, there must not be a crooked smile."

Navka was already a popular star and television personality before marrying Peskov in a swanky ceremony on the Black Sea coast last year, but their marriage has made them one of Russia's most-watched celebrity couples.

The weekend show was not the first time ice dancers have tackled the risky topic of the Holocaust.

In the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014, Russian teen figure skater Yulia Lipnitskaya danced a routine, also choreographed by Averbukh, set to the music of Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List".

Lipnitskaya wore a red costume echoing a victim's red coat in the film in a performance that prompted a standing ovation from Putin but also some accusations of tastelessness.
Donald Trump gives a thumbs up sign as he walks with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell on Capitol Hill in Washington. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

State election officials in Wisconsin say they have found no indication that election results were or could have been tampered with, and they fully expect a recount to uphold President-elect Donald Trump's win in the Badger State, according to the Wisconsin State Journal.

Trump won Wisconsin by a narrow margin of just more than 20,000 votes. But Green Party candidate Jill Stein has led a charge to recount the votes in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.

Stein's campaign on Monday moved forward with steps to initiate a recount in Pennsylvania.

Wisconsin election officials pushed back on Stein's suggestions that fraud played any role in the result of the November 8 election.

"This was a hack-riddled election," Stein said upon filing the recount.

Separately, Trump on Sunday claimed without any evidence that "millions of people" had voted "illegally." He alleged widespread fraud in California, Virginia, and New Hampshire.

Wisconsin Elections Commission Chair Mark Thomsen, a Democrat, told the Journal that Trump's remarks were "an insult to the people that run our elections."

"I've never seen this kind of attack on poll workers and on how this system works," Thomsen said.

Ross Hein, Wisconsin's elections supervisor, told the Journal that "to access the equipment, you would have to actually get your hands on it" because the machines do not connect to the internet.

The Obama administration has also thrown cold water on the claims.

"We stand behind our election results, which accurately reflect the will of the American people," the administration said in a statement late last week.

A top lawyer for Hillary Clinton's campaign said on Saturday that the campaign would participate in Stein's recount efforts in Wisconsin, but that there was a lack of "actionable evidence" of any foul play. The campaign said it would take a similar approach if Stein followed through with efforts in Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Story continues

NOW WATCH: Trump makes baseless claim that he lost the popular vote only because 'millions' voted illegally





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Apples iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are the best-selling smartphones in the world by a significant margin, regardless of whether or not sales are measuring up to analysts guesstimates. Apples manufacturing partners still havent even come close to building enough iPhone 7 Plus supply to meet demand, and the smaller iPhone 7 is thought to be selling quite quickly as well. Strong iPhone 7 and 7 Plus sales are even more impressive when you consider the fact that Apple reused the same hardware design for a third consecutive year in 2016  people still want to upgrade to these powerful new iPhones even though they look almost identical to iPhones released all the way back in 2014.

Now, imagine what demand will be like if Apple releases a completely redesigned iPhone 8 with a new curved OLED display.

DEAL ALERT: The best Cyber Monday sale of the season is happening right now!

The Wall Street Journal published a lengthy report on Monday morning suggesting that Apple might launch a new iPhone in 2017 with a curved OLED display. Unfortunately, there arent many firm details in the report, despite its length.

A few claims stand out. First, WSJ says that Apple is currently testing more than 10 different prototypes for next years new iPhone 8, and it has not yet decided which new design will be featured on the final version of the phone. According to the papers sources, at least one of the 10+ prototypes in testing features a curved OLED display, but its not clear if that is the version of the iPhone 8 that will debut next year.

Apple has supposedly asked its suppliers to increase OLED output, and it has also requested prototypes of OLED screens that feature better resolution than ones from Samsung, in an effort to differentiate its models. This claim sounds dubious at best.

Samsungs current OLED panels feature 2K resolution. Its entirely possible that Apple is testing higher-resolution screens for its next iPhones, but there is no chance that the motivation behind upping the resolution of its displays has anything to do with Samsung or its phones. Apple has stayed with comparatively low-resolution displays on its recent iPhones  720p on the iPhone 7, 1080p on the iPhone 7 Plus  because on displays of this size, pixel count doesnt have a huge impact on image quality once you hit a certain threshold. If Apple is toying with 4K displays, interest surrounding virtual reality applications would be a far more likely explanation.

Story continues

WSJ also reiterated an earlier report from KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, suggesting that the OLED iPhone 8 will be just one of several new iPhone models that will be released in 2017. Other models will probably still utilize LCD displays, and the OLED iPhone will likely carry a higher price tag.

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See the original version of this article on BGR.com
Geneva (AFP) - Subsidies given by the US state of Washington to Boeing are illegal, the World Trade Organization said Monday, in a victory for rival aircraft maker Airbus and the European Union.

The ruling from a WTO panel is the latest blow in a drawn out trans-Atlantic battle between the aviation industry's two titans, which has seen both Airbus and Boeing score points along the way.

The WTO said that subsidies set up by Washington state to support production of Boeing's 777X jet were "prohibited" as they encouraged the use of domestic materials, fuelling trade distortions.

The panel called for the subsidies to be withdrawn within 90 days.

Airbus was represented by the European Union in the case while the US federal government fought for Boeing and Washington state because companies and regional authorities do not have standing at the Geneva-based WTO.

Boeing said it expects the US to appeal against the decision.

"After any appeal, we fully expect Boeing to preserve every aspect of the Washington state incentives, including the 777X revenue tax rate," said J. Michael Luttig, Boeing's general counsel.

According to Airbus's own estimates, Washington state has given Boeing tax breaks worth $8.7 billion (8.2 billion euros) in a scheme scheduled to run through 2040.

Boeing has dismissed those numbers, putting the benefits to date at a maximum of $1 billion.

"The 777X will not cost Boeing a single dollar to develop thanks to Washington State's taxpayers," Airbus president Fabrice Bregier said in a statement of the aircraft that is expected to be market ready by 2020.

"This cannot go on any longer. It is time for the US Trade Representative to insist that Boeing cease its anti-competitive behaviour," he added.

The WTO, which aims to create a level playing field in global trade, does not have the ability to force compliance with its rulings, but can approve retaliatory measures which in theory can pressure trade manipulators to fall into line.

Story continues

Calling Monday's ruling "an important victory for the EU," the bloc's trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said she expected the United States "to respect the rules, uphold fair competition and withdraw these subsidies without any delay."

A spokesman for the US Trade Representative said the agency was reviewing the ruling, but suggested it was ready to fight on behalf of the US aerospace giant.

"This case is a small fraction of the overall aerospace dispute, on which the WTO has found overwhelmingly in the United States' favor," spokesman Matt McAlvanah said in a statement, adding that "the US government will continue to hold the EU to account for illegal, market distorting subsidies.".

- Tit-for-Tat -

The EU has also been reprimanded by the WTO during the tit-for-tat conflict between Airbus and Boeing.

In September, a WTO panel found that Brussels had not respected a 2011 ruling ordering it to take steps to withdraw several support and subsidy programmes for Airbus.

The WTO did not put a value on those programmes but Boeing said they amounted to $22 billion worth of illegal support for Airbus development and sales.

The EU has appealed against that decision, insisting that the subsidies in question had been discontinued.

Meanwhile, a separate 2012 WTO ruling on benefits Boeing received from federal, state and local governments in the US remains a source of dispute, with a report on the issue due out in the coming months.

- A new industry-wide pact? -

Airbus Group chief executive Tom Enders described the seemingly never-ending spat with Boeing as "a ridiculous series of disputes initiated by the US."

In seeking to move past drawn-out, costly squabbles at the WTO, Enders called for an agreement "on a set of globally applicable rules for the support of the civil aircraft industry, which would benefit both sides of the Atlantic."

He noted that the battle for aviation contracts was no longer just Airbus versus Boeing.

Aircraft maker Bombardier has received massive support from the Canadian government, while Russian and Asian firms have increasingly become market players, Enders said.

"We need a global framework," he continued. "This WTO battle is a battle of the past which benefits only the armies of lawyers both sides employ for more than a decade."
A giant autoclave is ready to cook parts for the Boeing 777X wings. (Credit: Boeing)

In the latest chapter of a years-long legal battle, the World Trade Organization says Washington states tax break for production of the Boeing 777X jetliner runs counter to international trade rules.

We expect the U.S. to respect the rules, uphold fair competition, and withdraw these subsidies without any delay, Cecilia Malmstrom, the European Unions trade commissioner, said in a statement issued after todays ruling.

However, U.S. officials and Boeing executives signaled that the battle would continue. The fight over the tax breaks is part of a larger dispute between the Boeing Co. and its European rival, Airbus, with U.S. and EU officials in the middle.

Boeings general counsel, J. Michael Luttig, went so far as to claim in a statement that todays ruling was a complete victory for the United States, Washington state and Boeing.

The way Luttig saw it, the WTO rejected virtually every claim made by the EU in this case and found that Boeing has not received a penny of impermissible subsidies.

The ruling focused on the effect that tax incentives would have once 777X production starts at Boeings Everett plant in 2020. The EU complained that Boeing would receive $5.7 billion in subsidies due to the extension of the tax break. But Boeing said the incentives would amount to no more than $50 million a year, or $1 billion between 2020 and 2040.

The WTO said the reduction in Washington states business and occupancy tax, known as the B&O tax, violated trade rules because it was contingent on producing the wings and conducting final assembly of the wide-body 777X planes in Washington state. That would constitute an illegal restraint on imports, according to the ruling.

Todays ruling is certain to be appealed, just like the other WTO rulings in disputes between Boeing and Airbus. After any appeal, we fully expect Boeing to preserve every aspect of the Washington state incentives, including the 777X revenue tax rate, Luttig said.

Story continues

In September, the WTO ruled against Airbus in a different dispute involving $22 billion in loan subsidies. If the parallel disputes remain unresolved, theres a chance that the United States and the European Union could hit each other with billions of dollars worth of tariffs.

But thats not likely to happen anytime soon. For now, U.S. trade officials say theyre consulting with Washington state officials on how to proceed. One backup option could be to revise the legislation setting up the tax break, but its more likely that the issue eventually will be rolled into a farther-reaching U.S.-European settlement  or merely ignored.

This case is a small fraction of the overall aerospace dispute, on which the WTO has found overwhelmingly in the United States favor, Matt McAlvanah, a spokesman for the U.S. Trade Representative, said in a statement.

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Yasiin Bey, FKA Mos Def, is taking advantage of his newfound freedom by delivering a new album to fans. The project will be a self-titled release by Dec 99th, his collaborative project with producer Ferrari Shepard.

Set to release on December 9, of course, the album is composed of nine songs total with many of them crafted at 99 beats per minute. Bey and Sheppard have been releasing music together here and there over the past year and several of those songs  N.A.W., Seaside Panic Room and Local Time  will be included on the LP, which will release as a Tidal exclusive.

Dec 99th was created in South Africa while Bey awaited word on whether hed be allowed to leave the country. Back in January, the rapper was detained for using a false travel document, which resulted in a lengthy battle with government officials, who barred Beys exit from the country until the matter was resolved. Last week, the South African Home Affairs Department granted Bey permission to leave the country but not before banning him from ever returning. With news of his freedom came the announcement of several upcoming live performances in the U.S. that are being described as his final ones in his homeland. Although the last year has been extremely challenging to say the least, its good to see Bey able move forward with his music career.

Check out the album art and tracklist for Dec 99th below.

Via Tidal
David Sacks

Zenefits has just settled with the state of California after the company admitted earlier this year that it was selling insurance without a license and that it may have dodged some of the legal requirements when training employees for their California insurance licenses.

California announced Zenefits would pay a $7 million fine.

This includes a $3 million penalty for licensing violations, including allowing unlicensed employees to sell insurance, a $4 million penalty for "subverting" the licensing education requirements and a $160,000 payment to reimburse the Department of Insurance for investigation and examination expenses, the California insurance commissioner said in a press release (posted in full below).

This is pocket change for the once high-flying startup, which raised $500 million in its first couple of years in business, based on its fantastically fast growth projections.

But the disclosures of its licensing issues led to the sudden resignation of its founder CEO Parker Conrad, replaced by investor, COO, and Valley executive A-lister David Sacks. Since then, Sacks has been negotiating with state regulators, many of who imposed far smaller fines.

Sacks also banned the practice of drinking alcohol at work, laid off workers, renegotiated with investors and reduced the valuation of the company by half to $2 billion. He offered the remaining workers a chance to walk with severance if they didn't want to stay, fired other executives involved in the licensing issues, reorganized leadership and launched a new version of the company's main product. Zenefits offers HR software that it offers for free to customers who buy insurance from it.

Resolving these issues with the state of California, the company's home state and biggest market, end the biggest noose hanging over the company's head.

A company spokesperson tells us:

We are pleased to reach a settlement with the California Department of Insurance, which recognized our remediation efforts by suspending half the fine. We now have a clean bill of health from our lead regulator as well as 16 other states. New management has righted the ship at Zenefits. Weve moved past these historical issues, and now were focused on serving our 20,000+ customers and delivering All-in-One HR to small businesses.

Story continues

Here's the full press release.

Insurance commissioner's enforcement action against Zenefits results in multi-million dollar penalty

Zenefits agrees to comply with agent licensing and education regulations

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones today announced the enforcement action taken against Zenefits for multiple license violations has resulted in a $7 million penalty. Zenefits was charged with allowing unlicensed employees to transact insurance and circumventing insurance agent education requirements. This is the largest penalty assessed by any commissioner against Zenefits and one of the largest penalties for licensing violations ever assessed in the department's history.

A 2013 start-up, Zenefits is a San Francisco based company whose business model was to provide online HR services to businesses and then encourage those same businesses to use Zenefits as an insurance broker.

"Businesses and consumers should have confidence that anyone selling insurance to them in California is doing so in compliance with our consumer protection laws," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "Our enforcement action has resulted in Zenefits paying substantial monetary penalties for their licensing violations and ensures Zenefits complies with all of California's insurance laws and regulations or they will face additional automatic penalties and sanctions."

The California Department of Insurance launched an investigation in 2015, after receiving complaints that Zenefits employees were transacting insurance without a license. Shortly after the investigation into Zenefits' business practices and compliance began, the company announced publicly that they were not complying with insurance laws and regulations, which was followed by the resignation of Zenefits' CEO, Parker Conrad.

"In California, we value innovation and new business models, including Internet based start-ups, but we also insist that consumer protections laws are followed," said Jones. "Zenefits is an example of an Internet based start-up whose former leaders created a culture where important consumer protection laws were broken-a bad strategy that placed the company at risk and that other start-ups should not follow given our strong consumer protection laws and the Department of Insurance's rigorous enforcement of those laws."

The settlement agreement obtained by the insurance commissioner includes a $3 million penalty for licensing violations, including allowing unlicensed employees to transact insurance, a $4 million penalty for subverting the pre-licensing education and study-hour requirements for agent and broker licensing, and a $160,000 payment to reimburse the Department of Insurance for investigation and examination expenses.

In recognition of the self-reporting and remedial actions already implemented by the company, including the replacement of the former CEO, retraining of all licensed producers, and implementation of an automated process to verify that only licensed individuals solicit and sell insurance products, the settlement provides that half of the total $7 million in monetary penalties are suspended. The suspended portion of the monetary penalty will be reinstated if Zenefits fails to confirm continued compliance with licensing and regulatory mandates based on an examination of the company's business practices to be conducted in 2018."

NOW WATCH: Its surreal to watch this 2011 video of Obama and Seth Meyers taunting Trump about a presidential run





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Photo credit: YouTube

From Cosmopolitan

Black Friday strikes again! Here's further incentive to never leave your house again: Already today, two people have been killed. Yes, killed while trying to get deals on televisions.

Let's see, so far, there's all of this:

In front of a Macy's in Hamilton Mall in South Jersey, a man was shot dead and his brother was wounded in a shooting. The 20-year-old man was shot multiple times and pronounced dead at the scene while his 26-year-old brother was shot in the leg and listed in stable condition at a nearby hospital.

And then in Reno, Nevada on Thursday night, a man was shot dead in a road rage incident in a Walmart parking. KOLO reported that "there was apparently a dispute over a parking spot" between two men with weapons, and a 33-year-old man was shot dead at the scene.

And that's not all, a man was shot in a Memphis mall on Thursday, and there's just all manner of chaos around the country.

Photo credit: YouTube

According to The Daily Mail, all of this insanity is in service of spending a lot of money for a bunch of stuff nobody needs - online sales are expected to hit $3 billion for the first time ever, and online shopping might hit the equally record-breaking $1 billion. Damn, America.

Follow Laura on Twitter.

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Google is working hard on developer previews for Android 7.1.1 Nougat, but testing will soon be over as the official launch of the latest software has been set for Dec.5, according to the Australian carrier Vodafone.

The mobile network indicates its Nexus 6P model will receive a wireless update for the build NMF26F, which will take the device from Android 7.1 to Android 7.1.1 Dec. 6 . As Google branded devices receive the latest Android updates first, Nexus and Pixel devices should also be updating globally. Taking into consideration the time difference, U.S. Nexus and Pixel devices should receive the update Dec. 5.

The software should also be available wirelessly for U.S. devices, as well and through system images, provided by Google to allow for manual installation.

The current developer preview for Android 7.1.1 Nougat brings to the system App shortcuts, Googles version of Apples 3D Touch as well as design tweaks like circular app icons and a more colorful keyboard and other updates.

Android 7.1.1 is expected to be the official software that OEMs will use to update their handsets to Googles latest system version (instead of Android 7.1). However, it may be several weeks and months before unlocked and carrier models of non-Nexus or non-Pixel devices receive the update. Some devices schedule to update to Android 7.0 still have not received an update.

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In the crackdown, agencies from 27 countries mostly in Europe but including from the US and Canada, joined forces to shut down over 4,500 websites (AFP Photo/Sander Koning) (ANP/AFP/File)

The Hague (AFP) - In a massive crackdown, police and law enforcement agencies across Europe have seized more than 4,500 website domains trading in counterfeit goods, often via social networks, officials said on Monday.

The operation came as Europol, Europe's police agency, unveiled its newest campaign dubbed "Don't F***(AKE) Up" to stop scam websites selling fake brand names online.

"The internet has become an essential channel for e-commerce. Its instant global reach and anonymity make it possible to sell nearly anything to anyone at any time," Europol said.

"Counterfeiters know it and are increasingly exploiting the unlimited opportunities" the internet offers.

But Europol warned that "despite these products looking like a bargain, they can pose serious risks to the health and safety of buyers."

In the crackdown, agencies from 27 countries mostly in Europe but including from the US and Canada, joined forces to shut down over 4,500 websites.

They were selling everything from "luxury goods, sportswear, spare parts, electronics, pharmaceuticals, toiletries and other fake products," Europol said in a statement, without saying how long the crackdown took.

An annual operation run in collaboration with the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security, there was "a significant increase in the number of seized domain names compared to last year," said Europol director Rob Wainwright.

- Spotting the fakes -

As part of the crackdown, Dutch anti-fraud police arrested 12 people across The Netherlands over the past two weeks as they searched homes and warehouses.

Most of the raids were prompted by online sales of counterfeit goods on social networking sites such as Facebook and Instagram.

"This is a relatively new phenomenon in the trade in counterfeit brand names," the Dutch Fiscal Information and Investigation Service (FIOD) said in a statement.

More than 3,500 items of clothing and fake luxury goods were seized in Holland, including shoes, bags and perfumes purporting to be such brands as Nike, Adidas, and Kenzo, with a market value of tens of thousands euros.

Story continues

Publishing a guide on how to spot fake websites and social media scams, Europol warned consumers had to be on their guard.

"When shopping online, you are more likely to fall victim to counterfeiters," it said as "without the physical product to look at and feel, it can be more difficult for you to spot the differences."

It also warned that by using illicit websites online shoppers "are exposing your computer or mobile device to cyber-attacks like phishing or malware."
Facebook has reportedly developed software to suppress posts from users feeds in targeted geographic areas, a feature created to help the giant social media network gain access to China, where it is blocked. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has long been courting Chinas leaders, studying Mandarin, and talking with Chinese internet executives. How far should he and his company go in order to grow? And at what expense? The ChinaFile Editors

Clay Shirky, global network professor, New York Universitys Shanghai campus:

Facebook shouldnt do this. Although the tool, as described, copies some industry norms  Facebook would suppress messages inside China but show them outside  it comes nowhere near what Beijing would demand for re-entry. At the same time, those additional conditions would make any deal not worth the cost, either ethical or financial.

Though the U.S. press often writes as if the principal goal of Chinese censorship is blocking information from the United States, the Chinese Communist Party is far more worried about its own citizens. This is why seemingly innocuous platforms such as Instagram and Tumblr are blocked; it isnt what U.S. teenagers would post that worries the Chinese Cyberspace Administration, and those concerns would shape any Facebook deal as well.

Hiding selected posts from outside China would not meet the bare minimum of Beijings requirements for citizen surveillance. Facebook would have to keep data on those users on servers in Beijing and grant the government direct access. Offending posts by Chinese users would have to be suppressed worldwide, not just in China. (Users in Anqing would not be allowed to share posts about corruption with students in Ann Arbor.)

Thats just the geographic controls. Beijing would probably demand that censorship follow Chinese citizens internationally. They do something like this today with SIM cards, which include data headers that identify country of origin. Chinese SIMs are subjected to Chinese censorship, whether the user is in Dalian or Dusseldorf. (This is why Chinese mobile plans have such advantageous international rates; cheap roaming means users often dont bother to get local SIM cards, allowing censorship to follow them worldwide.)

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And the situation is not static. Under the bland banner of stability maintenance, social media regulations have been coordinated, onerous, and monotonically restrictive. The chop would not be dry on any contract with Facebook before it had to be renegotiated.

Against these costs, the chance that Facebook would be allowed to succeed in China is zero. As tech blogger Ben Thompson wrote about the ride-hailing service Ubers failure in the country, Ive simply seen no way that the government tolerates foreign ownership of something as foundational as transportation infrastructure. That is true of media as well, especially media Chinese citizens use to communicate and coordinate with one another.

Two decades after the ICQ messaging service launched, there is not one example of foreign social media succeeding there  not Google, not Instagram, not WhatsApp, not Twitter. The closest example, LinkedIn, is a business service with no threat of wide adoption and has roughly the same number of users in China and the U.K., a market 5 percent its size. Even Apple, selling a luxury product whose software cannot be separated from its hardware, has not been able to maintain its online services  China blocks iTunes, iBooks, and News.

The ruling Communist Party appears convinced  correctly, in my view  that freedom of speech and assembly threaten single-party rule. In addition, censorship is a good source of mercantile protection. The idea that politics differs from economics does not resonate strongly in Beijing; the ability to provide a competitive advantage to local firms is a political tool, offering the very entrepreneurs who might push for global connectivity the consolation prize of the largest market in the world.

I understand why Facebook wants this. It has traded as a growth stock since 2012, but user acquisition is slowing. Access to China would allow it to postpone that reckoning by a few years. But any Chinese presence would be token, negotiated more to reduce an irritant than to allow real access. The some conversation is better than no conversation argument Facebook has been making for years now simply wouldnt hold up under the terms demanded by the party.

Andrew McLaughlin, technology executive:

Though it has been evident for years that Mark Zuckerberg really, really wants Facebook to operate in China, Im genuinely surprised that the company appears, finally, to have made the decision to do it.

Im surprised for two big reasons:

First, Facebook will have to facilitate Chinese spying on non-Chinese users. To operate in China, Facebook will have to comply not only with the partys onerous censorship demands but also with its user surveillance requirements. Through a multi-layered latticework of necessary operating licenses, the Chinese authorities require social networks and providers of messaging services  Facebook is both  to be willing and able to turn over user data, including account details and the contents of posts and private communications.

Doing the bidding of Chinas state security apparatus will put Facebook in a position of collaboration that goes far beyond what any prominent U.S. tech company has agreed to. The contrast with Google is instructive. In 2006, Google entered China as a search engine  an internet content provider, in the taxonomy of Chinese regulators  but deliberately excluded from its China-licensed sites any services that entailed individual user data or private communications. In that way, Google subjected its China-directed search engine to censorship requirements but avoided any obligation to comply with surveillance requests from a government prone to human rights violations. (Beyond an abstract revulsion at the prospect of assisting political persecution, we had watched with horror the imprisonment of Chinese journalist Shi Tao after Yahoos Hong Kong subsidiary handed over to Beijing the contents of his email account.)

But thats not even the worst of it. The very nature of a social network means that updates and communications written by non-Chinese users will become visible to Chinese security services. A Facebook users newsfeed is the set of updates and shares posted by her/his friends, including many written by friends of friends. If a non-Chinese user has a Chinese friend  or, given how Facebook works, even a Chinese friend of a non-Chinese friend  anything that non-Chinese user posts to Facebook could potentially be read by Chinese state security. Likewise, if a Chinese user likes or comments on a post by a non-Chinese user, that entire thread becomes attached to the Chinese users account and thus subject to Chinese governmental examination.

Because of the permeable, fluid, and semi-public sharing dynamics inherent to Facebook, I can think of no technical or policy means by which the companys Chinese subsidiary could shield non-Chinese users posts, comments, likes, and shares from disclosure to Chinese state security.

Second, there is little chance Facebook can actually succeed in China. Even if the Chinese government would permit a foreign tech company to win in a space as important as social networking (and past experience strongly indicates it will not), Chinese users have exhibited strong disinterest in local Facebook knockoffs, and there is little reason to think a foreign player will fare any better.

From eBay to Amazon to Google to Uber, the Chinese governments initial red-carpet welcomes to Silicon Valley companies have invariably morphed into grinding wars of attrition in which local competitors collude with officials and regulators to ensure the foreigners long-term market failure. Plus, Facebook will have to risk surrendering a large degree of control over its Chinese service to whatever local partner ends up owning 51 percent of the licensed Chinese entity, as required by Chinese law. The experiences of other Silicon Valley entrants indicate that those kinds of joint ventures most often end in frustration and acrimony. (Its plausible, but too early to conclude, that LinkedIn will prove the exception to that rule.)

Im surprised, in short, that Facebook would risk sparking outrage and reputational damage among its non-Chinese users (for crossing a line of collaboration that would render their posts, comments, likes, shares, and private messages vulnerable to Chinese government spying) in order to take a crack at a market in which its highly unlikely to succeed.

Kaiser Kuo, host, The Sinica Podcast:

Given Chinas increasingly strict internet censorship, it should surprise no one that any re-entry by Facebook would be conditional not only on the companys acquiescing to censorship but also on its demonstrating the ability to carry it out to Beijings satisfaction. Equally if not even more troubling would be the requirement, all but inevitable, that Facebook store Chinese user data on servers in China, making that data accessible to Chinese courts and law enforcement. Even if Beijing deigns to allow Facebook a presence in China, Facebook will face a firestorm of criticism from human rights and data privacy activists.

It will defend its decision by invoking the same logic that U.S. proponents of engagement have always deployed. Some connectivity is surely better than none, which is essentially what Facebook has today: a tiny, inconsequential handful of Chinas more than 700 million internet users are regular users of platforms like Facebook or Twitter. Facebook probably wont make its case by suggesting that connecting China will bring about political change; it was, after all, suspicion of that sort of thing that got it blocked in the first place. It may instead point to the inherent good in connectedness and note the evil  mistrust and misunderstanding  that arises in its absence. All this justifies compromise.

Google faced a similar dilemma when it decided to enter China in early 2006. But the moral calculus has shifted in the intervening decade. Google may have been viewed with suspicion even then, but now  after various Color Revolutions and Arab Spring uprisings with the names of U.S. internet properties conveniently appended to them by the U.S. media  Beijing will exact far greater compromise. China blocks far more foreign websites, and blocks them more aggressively, than it did then. Chinese users have excellent alternatives: social media platforms where their friends already are. They arent clamoring for Facebook, and those who want it have little trouble hopping the Great Firewall to get to it: Nationalists bent on trolling pro-independence Taiwanese celebs hopped the wall in droves this past summer, after all. So Facebook has little leverage to speak of; it will play by Beijings rules or not at all.

Indeed, Facebooks only real card is the public relations value to Beijing of letting the company in: See? All that nonsense about censorship was clearly overblown.

But its not. One of the regrettable effects of our use of the Great Firewall as a metonym for Chinese internet censorship is that too many people equate censorship with the blocking of sites such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. In fact, the censorship of domestic Chinese sites is far more onerous and impacts a far greater number of users. That wont change with a Facebook entry.

Whatever your posture toward Facebook for its willingness to compromise on freedom of expression in the name of engagement and greater global connectivity, the unblocking of Facebook to users in the Peoples Republic of China, should it come to pass, must not be construed in any way as a loosening of censorship.

Photo credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
LAGOS (Reuters) - South Africa's telecom group MTN has met with Nigeria's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to discuss a possible initial public offering and how it wanted to structure the share sale, the head of Nigeria's SEC told Reuters. SEC director general, Mounir Gwarzo, said MTN had discussed the possibility of issuing various classes of shares to targeted investor groups. He said the telecom firm was looking at three different classes, which would be new in Nigeria. Gwarzo said the commission was willing to support the share sale as long as it was within local laws and advised the telecom firm to ensure retail investors were protected. MTN is the largest mobile phone operator in Nigeria with 57 million subscribers, and the country accounts for about a third of its revenue. Africa's biggest mobile phone operator MTN Group has said it aims to listing its Nigerian unit during 2017, subject to market conditions, part of an agreement with the Nigerian government. In June the telecom firm said it would list its local unit on the Nigerian Stock Exchange after agreeing to pay a reduced fine of $1.7 billion in a settlement with the Nigerian government over unregistered SIM cards. Gwarzo said the company was yet to submit a formal application for the share sale, he told Reuters. MTN Nigeria has appointed Stanbic IBTC Capital, Standard Bank of South Africa and Standard Advisory London, and Citigroup Global Markets, as joint transaction advisors and global coordinators, with Stanbic acting as lead issuer. (Reporting by Chijioke Ohuocha, editing by Louise Heavens)
By Elzio Barreto and Fiona Lau HONG KONG (Reuters) - Chinese photo app and mobile phone maker Meitu Inc is set to launch an up to $735 million IPO in Hong Kong that would value it at as much as $4.5 billion, IFR reported, making it among the 10 largest tech companies listed in the city. Meitu's IPO will be a rare technology sector flotation in Hong Kong and the largest from the industry since the business-to-business unit of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding went public in 2007. A successful IPO could set the stage for future tech listings in the city, bankers said. Meitu, known for its apps that let users retouch and beautify selfies and other photos, is offering shares in an indicative range of HK$8.50 to HK$9.60 ($1.10-$1.24) each, IFR, a Thomson Reuters publication, reported on Monday, citing people close to the deal. The IPO is slated to be priced on December 8. The company, which counts venture capital investors Qiming Venture Partners, IDG-Accel China and Tiger Global among its backers, declined to comment on the IPO terms. About 95 percent of its revenue comes from the sale of smartphones, where it competes with much larger players including Huawei Technologies Co, Xiaomi Inc and Apple Inc. In its preliminary prospectus in August, Meitu said it plans to use part of the IPO funds to expand its smartphone business and produce new devices, for potential acquisitions, and for marketing and research. Despite being a top global venue for IPOs, Hong Kong has failed to attract a significant number of listings from Chinese technology companies. The majority of internet startups and software makers have chosen to go public in New York, where there's a larger pool of fund managers used to investing in loss-making, fast-growing companies. "If the deal gets done well, it'll certainly open the prospect for Chinese tech companies to go for listings in Hong Kong," said a technology-focused investment banker who was not authorized to publicly discuss the industry and thus declined to be named. Tech companies may also benefit from the stock trading link Hong Kong has set up with Shanghai and Shenzhen, eventually luring Chinese retail investors more familiar with domestic internet companies to buy into those listings, the banker added. VALUATION Still, Meitu and its bankers may have a tough time convincing institutional investors to buy into the IPO because of its high valuation and lack of comparative companies listed in Hong Kong. There are only 30 technology companies with a market capitalization larger than $1 billion listed in the city, with businesses as diverse as semiconductors, hardware manufacturers and internet games, Thomson Reuters data showed. Apart from Tencent Holdings, with a market value of $239 billion, most companies are valued at less than $3 billion. "It's a very nice app, but the long term monetization plans for the business are unclear," said a Hong Kong-based hedge fund manager who doesn't plan to invest in the IPO and could not be named discussing potential investments. Between one-quarter to one-third of the shares will be sold to cornerstone investors, IFR said. That would be much lower than some of the large new listings in the city, including the $7.6 billion IPO of Postal Savings Bank of China in September that had 77 percent of its deal bought by cornerstones. Large investments by cornerstone investors hurt liquidity for IPOs once the shares start trading, as the stock is locked up for a minimum of six months. The cornerstone money can also pressure the stock as the expiration of the lock-up period nears. China Merchants Securities, Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley were hired as sponsors of the IPO. ($1 = 7.7555 Hong Kong dollars) (Reporting by Fiona Lau of IFR; Writing by Elzio Barreto; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
By Se Young Lee SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> said it will disclose plans to boost shareholder value on Tuesday - a move that comes amid pressure from U.S. fund Elliott Management to split the company in two and provide more in payouts. The U.S. activist hedge fund, which owns 0.6 percent of Samsung, called on the South Korean tech giant in October to divide itself into a holding vehicle for ownership purposes and an operating company, as well as pay out 30 trillion won ($26 billion) in a special dividend. The Seoul Economic Daily, citing an unidentified source, reported on Monday the firm will say it plans to consider a split. Samsung declined to elaborate further on Monday on its plans, although it said last month it is considering buying back more shares. A split in two has long been a subject of market speculation with analysts noting that such a move could help the Samsung Group founding family heirs to boost their control of the world's top maker of smartphones, memory chips and televisions. "It's difficult to argue with the logic of Elliotts proposals," said David Smith, head of corporate governance at Aberdeen Asset Management Asia. "A simpler structure is certainly preferable, and yes most would agree they can afford to pay out more. "What is important is that these changes should benefit all involved, including family, group, and minority shareholders, he said. Samsung is also keen not to alienate investors at a time when it is reeling from a disastrous withdrawal of the fire-prone Galaxy Note 7 smartphone that the firm projects will cost 6.1 trillion won in profits over three quarters. Its offices have also been raided by prosecutors as part of a widening political scandal involving a confidante of President Park Geun-hye. Samsung said it will hold a conference call at 9:30 a.m. local time (0030 GMT) on Tuesday to discuss its plan. Other measures proposed by Elliott, which unsuccessfully challenged a controversial 2015 merger of two Samsung Group affiliates, includes the return of at least 75 percent of free cash flow to investors and the appointment of some independent directors. New shareholder return plans would also follow a tightening of control by de facto Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee, who took over the reins after his father and Samsung patriarch was incapacitated following a May 2014 heart attack. Samsung Group has sold non-core assets and pushed through a merger of two affiliates in 2015 to consolidate stakes in key affiliates under a company controlled by Jay Y. Lee and his two sisters, as the founding family moves to secure a stable transfer of control. Lee also recently became a board member at Samsung Electronics. "Even if Samsung Electronics does not comment on specifics such as the timing of a split ... the firm will at least say it will implement ownership structure changes in a reasonable manner," HI Investment said in a report on Monday. ($1 = 1,169.1800 won) (Reporting by Se Young Lee; Additional reporting by Anshuman Daga; Editing by Stephen Coates and Edwina Gibbs)
TMC chief and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has called PM Modi a dictator, who acted like god in implementing demonetisation decision without caring about the common man.

By India Today Web Desk: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee mounted scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi as she led a protest march against demonetisation in Kolkata on Monday.

"PM suddenly came up with this decision acting like God. He never asked who needs Rs 500/1000 and made the demonetisation move," Mamata Banerjee said.

"Bazaar, cinema, Jatra (theatre) - everything got affected, but he (PM Modi) didn't care about the common people," the West Bengal chief minister said.

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READ| Mamata Banerjee leads massive protest in Kolkata, Congress takes to the streets in Mumbai

Upping her ante against the prime minister over demonetisation, Mamata Banerjee said, "There is no place for dictators like Modi in Indian democracy."

Kolkata: WB CM Mamata Banerjee takes part in TMC protest march. (Photo: @ANI_news) Kolkata: WB CM Mamata Banerjee takes part in TMC protest march. (Photo: @ANI_news)

'ROLLBACK DEMONETISATION'

Mamata Banerjee accused the Modi government of making the common man suffer due to sudden announcement of demonetisation.

"People don't have money to eat and they talk of people using mobile phones! Will the poor eat mobile phones," asked the TMC chief.

READ| Exclusive: Pakistan ready for unconditional talks with India. Will PM Narendra Modi accept the offer?

The West Bengal chief minister reiterated her demand for rolling back the demonetisation decision of the Centre.

Kolkata: TMC leaders and workers take out protest march over demonetisation. (Photo: @ANI_news)

Mamata said, "The government must roll back this decision. When the decision was announced it was November 8 and salaries had already been disbursed. But what will happen in December?"

WATCH:

In an attempt to keep the opposition parties united on the issue of demonetisation, Mamata Banerjee tried to reach out to the Left, which given a call for Bharat Bandh to coincide with Akrosh Diwas.

Congress workers take out Jan Akrosh Rally in Mumbai. (Photo: @ANI_news)

Her suggestion, which was also a veiled attack, to the Left leaders was: "In order to protest, one must take to the streets. Let me tell my CPM friends just try to do the politics on the streets."ALSO READ:

Nabha jailbreak: This is how Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested

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He had today organised a programme to sensitise the officers and staff of the Finance Ministry on use of mobile banking. He exhorted the people to go cashless.

By India Today Web Desk: Backing Prime Minister Narendra Modi on demonetisation move, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has also encouraged people to use mobile wallet.

"Going cashless is easier, it is good to use mobile wallet than carrying cash all the time," Jaitley said today.

He had today organised a programme to sensitise the officers and staff of the Finance Ministry on use of mobile banking. He exhorted the people to go cashless.

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PM Narendra Modi, on Sunday, had made a strong push to turn India into a cashless economy and said demonetisation of high value currency notes was a step forward that would rid the country of unaccounted hidden wealth and corruption.

PMO too conducted a workshop today on mobile banking for its staff. "Officers, including Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra and Additional Principal Secretary PK Mishra, conducted a workshop for the staff of the Prime Minister's Office at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg," an official release said.

"The workshop was aimed to train and initiate them in the process of mobile banking and conducting daily transactions through mobile applications such as Unified Payment Interface (UPI), e-wallets," the release said.

The officers demonstrated the process of cashless transactions and helped their staff members download relevant mobile applications on their phones.

Officials from the State Bank of India and MyGov portal were also present during the workshop.

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Kejriwal did not specify the case in which Sisodia is being framed, but said his party is ready to face anything as already many AAP MLAs have been put behind bars over the past few months.

By Mail Today Bureau: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal expressed fears on Monday that the Delhi Lieutenant Governor and prime minister's office were plotting to arrest his deputy by implicating him in a false case before next year's crucial Punjab polls, deepening a discord between the governments in the city and the Centre.

Kejriwal alleged that a committee set up by L-G Najeeb Jung to examine key decisions of the AAP government since it took power in February 2015 was looking to frame deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia. "PMO/LG target Manish through Shunglu. Plan to arrest Manish," the CM tweeted.



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The Delhi High Court said in August that the lieutenant governor is the administrative head of the Capital and the state government must consult him on all decisions. Following this, Jung formed the three member panel - comprising former Comptroller and Auditor General V K Shunglu, former Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalaswami and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Pradeep Kumar - to scan files to check "irregularities" and "infirmities" in Delhi government decisions.

Also read: Jung appreciates Kejriwal, says they share good personal rapport

Also read: How did BJP MP Mahesh Sharma manage daughter's wedding in Rs 2.5 lakhs, asks Kejriwal



JUNG'S COMMITTEE IS ILLEGAL: AAP

The AAP government has called the committee "illegal" and "unconstitutional". While the panel has not made its findings public, the CM says his sources have told him that it is trying to frame Sisodia in a false case. "The PMO and LG are making grounds to arrest Manish Sisodia before Punjab elections. Shunglu committee is deliberately trying to implicate Sisodia," Kejriwal said.

AAP is hoping to win next year's Punjab elections with the state's SAD-BJP government facing anti-incumbency and charges of corruption. Kejriwal did not specify the case in which Sisodia is being framed, but said his party is ready to face anything as already many AAP MLAs have been put behind bars over the past few months.

"You just have to write two lines based on which a case can be filed. 15 AAP MLAs have already been arrested. The court has rapped the Centre for arresting the MLAs. Despite that they are continuing with such tactics," the CM claimed.

AFTER AAP?

The chief minister also alleged that a complaint of cheating related to VK Shunglu's election as chairman of the DPS Society was pending with the Lt Governor for 18 months. "In May 2015, a complaint against him was sent to the LG's office and the Centre. Instead of taking action, the Centre and L-G called him and asked him to implicate the AAP government and in return, they will save him," Kejriwal alleged.

According to sources, in the report, the Shunglu committee has pointed out several instances of violations of laid down rules and procedures by the AAP government in taking major decisions. The L-G's office is currently examining the report and is expected to take decisions accordingly. The committee had divided the cases into three categories.

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The first category is where refinement of decisions made is possible. The second category relates to irregularities that cannot be corrected, hence terming them illegal. The third category is of appointment of officers and "arbitrary" selection of advisers and lawyers at high salaries. The battle between Jung and Kejriwal stems from Delhi's unique position as a union territory doubling as the Capital where both the L-G and police department report to the central home ministry and the local government has no say over several important departments.

The AAP, which romped to power winning 67 of the Capital's 70 assembly seats in last year's polls, has been at loggerheads with Jung after he appointed several senior bureaucrats against the wishes of the chief minister and overruled many Delhi government picks.

Kejriwal also termed the Centre's demonetisation scheme a flop and alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's arrogance and obstinacy has pushed the country 10 years back and that the measure has failed to curb black money, corruption, circulation of counterfeit currency and terror financing.

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By PTI: Photo: PTI11_28_2016_000182B Patna, Nov 28 (PTI) Arriving in shorts and vest to register his protest against delay in construction of Bettiah-Manuappa road, BJP MLA Binay Bihari was today denied entry in the Bihar Assembly for violating "shishtachar" of the House.

Not allowed entry, the BJP MLA from Lauria in West Champaran district sat on dharna in the lawns outside the assembly.

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Bihari had come in the attire to protest against the state government for not constructing the 44.325 km road from Bettiah to Manuappa via Yogapatti Ratwal despite Chief Minister Nitish Kumars announcement on it at a public meeting in 2013.

Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar raised the issue in the Assembly and pleaded Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary to allow Bihari come inside the house.

Later, the Speaker after taking details from officials informed the House that the member was not allowed to attend the proceedings in shorts and vest as it violated "shishtachar" (etiquette) of the House.

He quoted rule 29 (1) of Assembly which prohibits "ashisht acharan" (not following etiquettes) inside the House and said the present case fell in that category.

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, Leader of Opposition in Assembly Prem Kumar and a host of party legislators joined the agitating MLA.

Later, talking to reporters, Kumar attacked the chief minister and held him responsible for the MLA vowing to wear shorts and vest till the road was constructed.

Binay Bihari said he would continue with the attire in the winter months. PTI SNS KK DV

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The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".

By PTI: The Balochistan High Court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.

A divisional bench of the Balochistan High Court passed the order during hearing of review petition challenging acquittal of the 73-year-old former president by an Anti- Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.

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Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, the son of Akbar Bugti.

The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".

However, Bugti's lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former president Pervez Musharraf has failed to appear before the court.

The court ordered that the administration should ensure adequate security to Musharraf while he appears in court.

Pakistan government had allowed Musharraf to go abroad in March this year for medical treatment.

Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistan's rugged mountains of Taratani in Kohlu district on August 26, 2006.

Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistan's natural resources.

The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country.

Musharraf, who went into self-imposed exile in Dubai after being forced to resign as president facing impeachment following the 2008 elections, had returned to Pakistan in 2013 to contest elections but was implicated in several cases. He also lost in the polls.

He was not allowed to leave the country until government allowed him in March this year to go abroad for treatment following orders by the Supreme Court.

Musharraf has been facing a slew of cases, including the high treason trial since 2013 and he was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government.

Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

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By India Today Web Desk: Five days after an ATM cash van driver fled with cash Rs 1.37 crore, the Bengaluru Police have arrested his wife in connection with the incident. The police have also recovered cash worth Rs 79.8 lakhs. However, the main accused Dominic Selvaraj is yet to be arrested.

On November 23, police recovered a gun and cash Rs 45 lakh from a van that was abandoned near Vasanthnagar area. After Selvaraj was identified, Bengaluru Police launched a manhunt to track him down.



The incident took place at around 1.30 pm when the van - belonging to Logicash - had stopped at the Bank of India branch on KG road. The police had immediately flashed alert messages across the city and barricades were also put into place on various roads.

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The incident comes during a massive cash crunch in banks and ATMs following the banning of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. DCP West Division said that Selvaraj and his wife and son too went missing after the incident.

After the heist took place, Dominic's mother was also questioned by the police. She told them that her son along with his wife had shifted out of her home two months ago and were now living in a rented house in Lingarajapuram.

Also read:

Bengaluru ATM theft: Day after driver ran away with Rs 1.37 crore, Rs 45 lakh and a gun recovered

Bengaluru driver flees with Rs 1.37 crore ATM cash



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These small children, who were holding placards and flags in their hands, were spotted with a group of CPI workers.

The children taking part in the demonetisation protest with the elders.

By Rohit Kumar Singh: The Left parties, in a bid to ensure that their 'Bharat bandh' call against demonetisation had the desired impact, used small children below the age of ten during their protest march in Patna. These small children were heard shouting "Azaad" slogans during the protest march.

These small children, who were holding placards and flags in their hands, were spotted when a group of CPI workers reached the Dak Bungalow roundabout to protest against scrapping of old high value currency notes and subsequently the inconvenience being caused to the common man.

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"Hum Modi se azaadi mang rahen hain note bandi ke liye," said a minor boy. However, when India Today asked the children if they even know what 'note bandi' meant, they failed to provide answers.

"Note bandi ka matlab hai aadmi ko khane ko nahi mil raha hai," said another minor boy.

When India Today questioned some senior CPI workers, who were part of the protest against demonetisation, they tried to defend the indefensible.

"Children are worst affected due to demonetisation. Their parents are in the protest march. What is wrong if these children are shouting slogans?" defended Akash Gaurav, a CPI worker.

"We are not using children. The parents of these children are today standing in queues and when they children want food, it's obvious that they will come on the street to protest," said Amrita, another CPI worker.

--- ENDS ---
Priyanka Jagga is trying to break the triumvirate of Manu-Mona-Manveer. Will she be successful?

By India Today Web Desk: The entry of four wild card contestants in the house, has made the housemates insecure, more than ever before. They will be seen forming small groups tonight to discuss their strategies to fight them out in the Dome task. Plus Priyanka Jagga has returned with a fresh strategy. All this has raised the temperature inside the house a bit. Not that the viewers are complaining.

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Here's all that will happen in the house tonight.

Manu refuses to trust Priyanka

Priyanka Jagga, who picked up endless fights in the first week of her stay in BB 10 house, seems to have changed her strategy, post her re-entry as wild card contestant. After watching all the episodes of the show twice, she has all the information she needs to turn one contestant against the other.

Also read: BB10: Priyanka Jagga asks Manu to stay away from Mona Lisa; what is her strategy this time?

She will tell Manu that his fiancee is not comfortable with his growing bond with Mona. She will also tell him that his relationship with Mona is hampering his image outside. Manu will refuse to believe her and will tell her that she's making up things and he has no reason to trust her.

Priyanka on the other hand, will tell Manveer that he will have to maintain a distance from Mona, if he wants her to stay with him and Manu. "Either there can be Manu-Priyanka-Manveer or Manu-Mona-Manveer," she will tell Manveer. "Kiss karti hai, uske baad bolti hai doston wali kiss thi. Tigdi todni padegi." Apparently, Manveer will ditch Mona for Priyanka.

Swami Om gets a cool makeover

Lopa will decide to give Swami Om a makeover, and for a change, he will happily oblige. Swami will not flinch despite housemates making fun of him and comparing him with German Shepherd--though all in good humour.

Also read: Bigg Boss 10: Jason Shah's response to 'romancing in BB 10 house' will make you slow clap

Wild card contestants Vs nominated contestants

Bigg Boss will ask each of the wild card contestant to name one of the nominated contestants who they would like to challenge. Jason will choose Gaurav, Elena selects Nitibha, Sahil targets Rahul and Priyanka picks Bani. Manveer will be declared safe, since no one would challenge him. As part of their challenge, Bigg Boss will introduce a task called Dome, wherein the challenger will be put inside a dome with the nominated contestant. The first person to leave the dome will get nominated for the weeks eviction.

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After the announcement of Dome task, housemates will be seen making strategies. Lopa will suggest Nitibha to pee inside the dome to irritate Elena, Manu will ask her to pour wheat flour on her. Gaurav who will compete in the task with Jason will ask housemates Rohan and Mona to not give food to the challengers, so that they have no option but to come out of their domes. Gaurav will suggest Bani to psyche out Priyanka. Bani will say, "usko psyche out kaise karenge, wo to khud psycho hai."

Bani, Priyanka bitch about Mona

Inside the dome, Bani and Priyanka will be seen sharing notes on Mona. Bani will tell Priyanka that Mona is planning to save Elena, Jason and Sahil, not her. Priyanka will also share that Mona has always bitched about celebs including Bani. "TV mein saaf dikh raha hai wo kar kya rahi hai."

Will Priyanka Jagga be able to win the trust of housemates? Wait and watch.

Bigg Boss 10 airs Mon-Fri at 10:30pm and Sat-Sun at 9pm on Colors TV



--- ENDS ---
Jason Shah is dating a hot Brazilian model, and how he laughed off the possibility of a romance in BB 10 house, will give you relationship goals.

By Parmita Uniyal: Wild card entry Jason Shah is Bigg Boss 10's latest blue-eyed boy, quite literally. The UK born, Gujarati model, has more to him than just good looks (as revealed by the hot pictures from his Instagram account). Jason doesn't like to restrict himself to just one thing, and you won't believe that he balances his assignments in the glamour world with organic and goat farming. And these are just few of the things he does. The list is long.

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He is a Bollywood actor, well almost

If you missed him in Salman Khan's Partner's songDupatta Tera Nau Rang Da, you would have surely spotted him in Katrina Kaif and Aditya Roy Kapoor's Fitoor--shirtless. So if you missed him in both the movies, you surely have a reason to watch him sharing screen space with Salman and other contestants in Bigg Boss now.

Also read: Surprise, surprise! Priyanka Jagga is back; four wild card contestants to enter Bigg Boss 10

He went shirtless, a la Salman last night

He was introduced to the audience in last night's episode, as he shook a leg with Salman, shirtless, on his song--O O Jaane Jaana from Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya. He admitted that he had two left feet, but did a decent job following Salman's cue.



He considers Manu and Bani his strongest competitors

Before entering the Bigg Boss 10 house, Jason in an exclusive conversation with India Today Online revealed that Manu and Bani are two contestants he considers his strongest competition. "I think Manu and Bani are playing an interesting game, and they will prove to be the strongest competitors for me."

See pics: Model Jason Shah to enter Bigg Boss 10; you cannot miss his HOT pics



Nervous, but ready

Nervous about entering the house, Jason revealed to us that he had watched some episodes of this season and had also followed Big Brother, so he had an idea about the show, and was ready for it.

Salman is No. 1 entertainer

Jason was also full of praises for host Salman Khan, because of the way he handles his job of hosting Bigg Boss, "he's a No. 1 entertainer," he added.

'I am what I am'

The hot model says he would be undeterred by the competition and reveal his true side. "I am who I am. I will try not stuck in a league. I will take each day as a challenge."

Also read: Bigg Boss 10: Hot wildcard contestant Jason Shah is dating this Brazilian model



Romance in BB 10 house, are you kidding me?

Bigg Boss house is known for making even committed people stray, and though Jason is already in relationship with Brazilian model Daniela Poublan, how would he resist the temptation for falling in love with a housemate? "If you have seen my girlfriend, you will know I'm not going to fall for anybody," he laughs.

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On what he does for living

"I do many things, but my primary profession is modeling. I want to do acting. Hopefully, after doing Bigg Boss, I fill find a platform to enter the business. I am into organic farming also. I have a lot of things there."

So is ready for the cameras capturing all his activities day and night, without any filter? "This is the reason I signed the show. For being watched," he signed off.

--- ENDS ---
Priyanka Jagga has already started playing her game. And this time her target is Mona Lisa. At least that is what it looks like.

By India Today Web Desk: Last night's episode of Bigg Boss 10 was dhamakedar, thanks to the wild card contestants' entry.

But what made the show even more interesting to watch was aam aadmi contestant Priyanka Jagga's entry in the house. Again. Obviously.

Also read:BB10: Mona Lisa's boyfriend has THIS to say about her bond with Manu Punjabi



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Priyanka was the first contestant to get eliminated from the show. The lady spread so much negativity around that she was quickly voted out by the viewers. But now she is back. To create chaos and disturbance in the house.



She has already started gossiping about Mona Lisa and Manu Punjabi's 'friendship.' In fact, she even warned Manu that his fiancee does not approve of his relationship with Mona.

Looks like the old Priyanka has returned, and she will leave no stone unturned to destroy Manu and Mona's relationship.

After all, Manu was in 'her team,' was he not?

How can he be mingling with celebs?

It will be interesting to watch how far Priyanka is willing to go in order to ruin Manu and Mona's bond.

Bigg Boss 10 airs every Mon-Fri at 10:30 pm, and every weekend at 9 pm.



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: London, Nov 28 (PTI) Scientists have developed an eight-inch remote-controlled metal penis that may help men struggling with severe erectile dysfunction.

Developed by researchers from the University of Wisconsin in the US, the heat-activated device can be used at the press of a button in just two minutes.

The implant will help revive the sex lives of people who fail to respond to drugs like Viagra or other treatments, experts say.

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The implant is made from nitinol - also known as "memory metal" - which is a mixture of nickel and titanium. It can change shape when heated or cooled The Sun reported.

At body temperature of 37 degrees Celsius, the implant is just a couple of inches long. However, when heated to 42 degrees, it expands to eight inches.

"A shape memory alloy-based penile prosthesis represents a promising new technology in the treatment of erectile dysfunction," said lead researcher Dr Brian Le, from the University of Wisconsin.

Surgeons can make a tiny incision at the bottom of the penis and insert the implant - made from stretchy latex covered with a coating of memory metal. Attached to one end is a tiny heating coil.

The one inch metal coil can be turned on by a remote held over the groin, generating a metal field which triggers a current.

The coil then warms the implant, making it expand and fully erect. A cool flannel makes the swelling go down.

The prototype device is due to be tested on animals in the next few months but could be available in the market within a few years, the report said.

"It definitely has potential to benefit some patients," said Asif Muneer from the British Association of Urological Surgeons, describing the new device as "promising".

"There are fewer components than with existing inflatable implants and that reduces the chances of infection," he said. PTI SAR AKJ SAR

--- ENDS ---
By Siddhartha Rai: After Mail Today first reported that while the Prime Minister was pitching for a shift in economy from cash to smart money and cashless modes through his demonetisation of high value notes, canteens in BJP's own backyard at national headquarters were accepting only cash, the party seems to have woken up.

After the initial Mail Today survey on November 23, another walk through the national headquarters revealed that the canteen has finally shifted to cashless ways of accepting money such as e-wallets.

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THE FINDINGS

Also read: For Modi, change begins with office. PMO holds mobile banking workshop for staff

Also read: Fighting cash chaos: Telecom firms will not charge you for mobile banking services till December 31

Talking to common people who had come to visit the office for some or the other purpose, MT found that people welcomed the change as it gave them freedom from spending cash which was still not freely available at ATMs and banks though they also claimed that the situation had improved drastically in the past few days.

"It is good to see that the canteen has finally started using money through such ways as Paytm which is very convenient, more so, in these times of cash crunch. Also, it should have been a matter of principle for the party to have started cashless ways of payment in their own backyard since they announced the move. They should have been the first, but its good they have finally crossed the Rubicon," said Naresh Gupta from Kanpur.

Meanwhile, party leaders too welcomed the move. "In line with the PM's call, we are doing everything to move to a less cash-dominated society and eventually to a cashless society and economy. And it begins at our home. Our canteen now accepts money through e-wallets. We are committed to strengthen the PM in his fight against black money and corruption and tax evasion," said Amit Malviya, BJP's national incharge of IT and digital communication.

Earlier, a Mail Today team had visited several eateries, starting BJP's national headquarters to the Parliament canteen and those that serve key ministries located in Shastri Bhawan and Rail Bhawan, that houses the railway ministry. It was found that the only mode of transaction at all these places was hard cash.

--- ENDS ---
A few months ago, Japan had announced that its maglev in a test run had created a world record by touching 600 km per hour.

By Ananth Krishnan: China's biggest train manufacturer has announced it will build a 600 kilometre per hour "maglev" rail line that will be the country's fastest.

Months after Japan announced that its maglev (magnetic levitation) had in a test run created a world record by touching 600 km/hr, China's CRRC Corporation said it would begin construction on China's first 600 km/h maglev rail.

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The first prototype will be ready by 2020 and the test track will be in the eastern Shandong province, People's Daily reported.

ALSO READ: Indian Railways invites private players to run Maglev trains at 500 kmph



World's longest bullet train network

China has the world's longest bullet train network, which is set to reach 20,000 km, where trains run up to 350 km/hr on wheel-rails. The bullet train network doesn't use maglev technology, but runs on separate track from China's other freight and express trains.

ALSO READ: Japan's maglev train breaks own speed record at 603 kph



A proposal to connect China's two biggest cities, Beijing and Shanghai, by maglev was shelved and instead a bullet train line was built. It covers the journey - roughly the equivalent of the distance between Mumbai and New Delhi - in a little over four hours, and has been the most successful of the bullet train routes.

Maglev trains consume less energy



There are also two maglev lines in operation within cities, that operate a different "magnetic levitation" technology unlike wheel-rail where the carriages are suspended over track. Maglev trains run faster and silently. The first maglev, which opened in 2003, connects Shanghai's Pudong international airport with a city station, while the second line in Changsha in southern Hunan went into operation last year. A third line near Beijing connecting two districts is being built.

ALSO READ: After Bullet trains, Modi govt sets sights on Maglev trains



The People's Daily reported there had been concerns on the safety of maglev technology because of radiation. Xie Hailin, manager of the maglev branch of CRRC Corporation, told the paper that "electromagnetic radiation inside maglev train carriages is subject to the same limits as radiation in underground carriages".

"At the same time, compared with underground railways, mid-speed maglev trains consume less energy, cost less, and can be constructed more quickly," he said.

ALSO READ: Gatimaan Express makes us proud! But Japan's Maglev can cover the Delhi-Agra stretch in 19 minutes



What is maglev?

Maglev, which is derived from the term 'magnetic levitation', is a transport method that employs magnetic levitation to move the vehicle without touching the ground. With maglev technology, a vehicle travels along a 'guideway' using magnets to create both lift and propulsion. This reduces friction and allows vehicles to move at higher speeds.



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ALSO WATCH



--- ENDS ---
By Kamaljit Kaur Sandhu: Wrapped in warm blanket and a head gear, the two day-old baby girl is a miracle survivor. As the train chugged in every day with coal, CISF personnel deployed at the NTPC, Farakka on Sunday noticed an unusual consignment from a tower.

When the train wagon was checked, the baby was discovered who was breathing. A CISF official said, "CISF personnel on guard saved the life of a new bornbaby girl."

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It appeares that the girl child was thrown in the moving coal rake by her parent. "CISF personnel came into action and rushed the baby girl to NTPC hospital. Bruised by coal, she is undergoing treatment. The local police has been informed and is said to be investigating the case.

CISF and NTPC are extending all possible help.

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) Power generation from renewable energy sources like solar and wind has increased to 7.54 per of the total electricity generated in the country during April-September this fiscal, Parliament was informed today.

During the period, out of total power generation of 631.84 billion units (BU), 47.62 BU was generated from renewable energy sources, New & Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha.

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According to the statement, in 2015-16, total power generation in the country was 1,173.60 BU including 65.78 BU (or 5.60 per cent of total generation) from renewable energy sources.

The share of power generation from renewable sources was 5.56 per cent at 61.78 BU in 2014-15. Indias total power generation in that fiscal was 1,110.45 BU.

Government has revised upwards the target of renewable energy capacity to 175 GW by 2022 which includes 100 GW from solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 GW from bio-power and 5 GW from small hydro-power.

The total installed capacity from various renewable energy sources in the country as on October 31, 2016 is 28,279 MW from wind, 8,728 MW from solar, 4,997 MW from bio-power and 4,323 MW from small hydro power.

In another reply, the Minister told the House that total wind power generation capacity added in the country during 2015-16 is 3,423 MW and during 2016-17 (up to October 31, 2016) is 1,502 MW.

In a separate reply to the House, the Minister said, "Silicon in any form (Raw poly, ingot or wafer) is not produced in India. All cell makers currently import wafers only."

As per information received from Ministry of Commerce, 7,39,039 kg of undefused silicon wafers and 3,12,616 Kg of others were imported during 2015-16.

The Minister said that for the poly silicon available globally, rates vary from USD 11 per kg to USD 20 per kg.

He further said that government provides capital subsidy for setting up of manufacturing units for solar cells and modules and the entire value chain under Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (M-SIPS) programme.

"Solar Photovoltaic products and their value chain including Polysilicon is an eligible vertical for incentives under M-SIPS. Till date, one project with a proposed investment of Rs 13,985 crore has been received under M-SIPS where Polysilicon has been proposed to be domestically produced," he added. PTI KKS JM

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Authorities plan to have around 20 monitoring stations that will exclusively measure the levels of fine particulates PM 2.5 and PM 10.

Capital will soon get 20 new centres to monitor Particulate Matter (PM) levels which have been the biggest source of worry in the city.

By Mail Today Bureau: Delhi will soon get 20 new centres to monitor Particulate Matter (PM) levels which have been the biggest source of worry in the city's deteriorating air quality, said the government.

Authorities plan to have around 20 monitoring stations that will exclusively measure the levels of fine particulates PM 2.5 and PM 10, the dominant pollutants in Delhi's toxic air.

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WHAT WILL THESE STATIONS DO

These stations, to be set up by the state government, will differ from existing monitoring centres of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) which also measure levels of ozone, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide, among others. "The government plans to set up 20 monitoring stations across the megapolis that will only measure PM 2.5 and PM 10. These will be in addition to the stations that are already functioning and the proposed ones," an environment department official said.

Also read: World's first real-time pollution map finds Delhi among worst

Also read: Kerala youngsters bring affordable purifier to Delhi's air pollution problems

But the sluggish pace in implementing related promises made in the 2016-17 state budget, such as setting up three more fixed stations and deploying one mobile monitoring van, does not inspire much confidence on the latest proposal.

Pollution expert Anumita Roychowdhury of the Centre for Science and Environment said these stations may help in generating more data, but more needs to be done in terms of forecast and dissemination of information.

HOW WILL THEY HELP

"One can get a better picture when all the parameters are studied data generation should lead to action. And information should be made available to the public. Little has been done in that respect," she said.

Also read: Delhi smog: Is Pollution Board waiting for people to die, asks Supreme Court

PM 2.5 and PM 10 are microscopic particles, multiple times smaller than the average width of a human hair. They can damage the respiratory system and also enter the bloodstream causing further complications. The DPCC currently operates six monitoring stations, while the CPCB runs nine, although there are overlaps in terms of locations.

Another agency, SAFAR, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, operates another eight stations. There also has not been much headway in terms of installing LED screens for displaying pollution levels in real-time at major public places, although the city government had allotted Rs 137 crore for the purpose in the 2016-17 budget

--- ENDS ---

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Oxford Economics, an independent global advisory firm, has come up with an analysis according to which Delhi ranks ahead of Mumbai among top 50 metropolitan economic entities, globally.

By India Today Web Desk: Mumbai had the title of being the country's financial capital for years but according to a latest data released by Oxford Economics, the sad news for Mumbaikars is that the city has ceded its position to Delhi.

Delhi EUA GDP > Mumbai EUA GDP

Oxford Economics, an independent global advisory firm, came up with an analysis that the Mumbai extended urban agglomeration (EUA) which consists of Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Vasai-Virar, Bhiwandi and Panvel had a 2015 GDP of US $368 billion against Delhi's EUA (Delhi NCR, Gurgoan, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad) which had a GDP at purchasing power parity (PPP) of $370 billion.

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Also read: Demonetisation has brought economic anarchy: Maharashtra Congress



However, Mumbai EUA with a lower population scored over Delhi EUA in per capita terms.

Maharashta CM Devendra Fadnavis has "challenged these figures" and has refused to believe that Delhi's GDP has gone ahead of Mumbai.

"I want to challenge these figures. From figures of the Reserve Bank of India, Economic Survey of India and Maharashtra, it is evident that Mumbai is ahead in terms of GDP and financial status. The MMR (Mumbai metropolitan region) GDP is higher," he said as reported by TOI.

Also read: 26/11 anniversary: We are proud of the policemen who fought for Mumbai, says Fadnavis



Delhi 30th, Mumbai 31st globally

According to the latest data released by Oxford Economics, Mumbai ranks 31st among top 50 metropolitan economic entities globally and Delhi is on the 30th position now.

The Oxford Economics has predicated that Delhi will be at the 11th spot and Mumbai on 14th by 2030.

Also read: Mumbai: 10-month-old girl thrashed in creche by caretaker, owner arrested



--- ENDS ---
A Delhi local present at the protest said, "My daughters marriage was last week, I had so much trouble making payments for the ceremony. Did the government not think before implementing this move?".

AAP workers shout slogans during a protest march against demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

By Ilma Hasan: The Aam Aadmi Party on Monday held a public dialogue protesting Narendra Modi's move to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes in the heart of Delhi, Central Park in Connaught Place. AAP's protest was part of a nationwide protest that was held by various state governments.

OPPOSITION PROTESTS

28th November was touted to be the 'Bharat Bandh' with opposition coming together and protesting demonetisation. The bandh however got a mixed response with parties like Congress, Trinamool Congress, Aam Aadmi Party opting out and staging massive protests in different parts of the country instead.



also read: Demonetisation: 50 per cent tax on unaccounted deposits, 85 per cent if caught

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AAP leader Dilip Pandey said, "Demonisition has lead to the deaths of over 70 people. We don't see the rich in lines, it is the common man who suffers. How insentivie will Modi become to the public suffering?"

A Delhi local present at the protest said, "My daughters marriage was last week, I had so much trouble making payments for the ceremony. Did the government not think before implementing this move?". Delhi Water Minister Kapil Mishra, and HeaLth Minister Satyender Jain also attended the event, firing sharp attacks against the government.

PAN-INDIAN PROTESTS

In other parts of the national capital, the Trinamool Congress staged a protest at Jantar Mantar and Congress Youth Wing in Central Delhi.

On Monday while states like Tripura, Kerala and Bihar saw massive protests disrupting day to day activities of locals, the impact wasn't felt as much in other states. The Congress, TMC, AAP and JD(U) had backed out of the bandh citing loss of businesses and inconvenience for the people.



also read: Chaos ensues after Mamata's massive protest against demonetisation, cripples normalcy in Kolkata

--- ENDS ---
"I don't have bank accounts here nor do I have any ID proof to open one. I am a daily wage worker and earn around 400 rupees a day. But now my employer can't afford to pay me in cash", said Sonu, who helps transport goods for various factories.

By Shalini Lobo: Textile, footwear, plastic and metal industry, none spared from the demonetisation move of the ruling government. While chaos over the note ban continues within and outside the walls of the parliament, labourers in the organised as well as the well-organised sectors bear the brunt of this move.

FACTORIES WORST HIT

On the outskirts of the national capital is Bawana Industrial Area. Usually bustling with activity, labourers transporting goods from one place to another and the sound of machines always ringing in the air, the same place now lies almost deserted. Factory owners say that almost 40 per cent of their labourers have packed their bags and left for their village.

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"I don't have bank accounts here nor do I have any ID proof to open one. I am a daily wage worker and earn around 400 rupees a day. But now my employer can't afford to pay me in cash. I did not have any black money. Why am I being punished?" asked Sonu, who helps carrying goods for various factories.

also read: Delhi: AAP protests demonetisation, holds public dialogue to hear out people's grievances

Sonu is not alone. Many share the same plight. "I have to provide for my parents, 4 siblings, and my wife and child. I have the old currency in cash from my previous salary, now there is no over the counter exchange and I haven't got this month's pay yet", said another employee.

FACTORIES CUTTING DOWN ON EMPLOYEES

A micro factory which usually employs 10-12 labourers now has only 4. "My employees are packing their bags and leaving. They don't have a bank account here and I don't have cash to pay them. If they go to the bank it takes them at least 2-3 days to deposit and withdraw money. At the same time I can withdraw only 50,000 rupees at the most from my current account. How do I pay my employees and procure raw materials?" said Neeraj, an exporter.

However, factory owners do agree with the intention behind the scheme but its implementation has taken many by surprise.

"No doubt it is a good move but it has caused chaos and this just does not seem to end. Modi ji needs at least 15 years to carry forward his aim of making this a cashless society and if this move eradicates the black money in the country, then we will sacrifice. But the question is for how long?", said a factory owner who did not want to be named.



also read : Chaos ensues after Mamata's massive protest against demonetisation, cripples normalcy in Kolkata



--- ENDS ---
Though Opposition has taken the fight from Parliament to the streets across the country, the fissures have emerged in the Opposition camp.

By Supriya Bhardwaj: From last 10 days Opposition is putting a united front inside the Parliament on issue of demonetisation. Unanimously they called for Jan Akrosh Divas on November 28, however on Monday the Opposition appeared divided on the matter.

Though Opposition has taken the fight from Parliament to the streets across the country, the fissures have emerged in the Opposition camp.

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Inside the Parliament, TMC, BSP, SP and JDU leaders were not present near Gandhi statue when other opposition parties led by Congress staged a protest against the NDA government. JDU leaders were not present during the strategy meet called by Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad today morning.

Though the Opposition leaders still maintained that all 14 major opposition parties are one on the issue of demonetisation.

"The fissures have emerged in BJP and not among us. We are marching separately outside but we will strike together inside Parliament on demonetisation issue," said CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury.

NCP MP Supriya Sule added that the unity of Opposition can be seen on the floor of the house.

--- ENDS ---
The government today proposed to levy a total tax, penalty and surcharge of 50 per cent on the amount deposited post-demonetisation

By India Today Web Desk: Intensifying its black money hunt, the government tabled a Bill to amend the Income Tax Act in the Lok Sabha today to impose more tax, penalty and surcharge on deposits made after the demonetisation drive was launched nearly three weeks ago.

The amendments provide a window to black money holders by proposing to levy a total tax, penalty and surcharge of 50 per cent on the amount deposited post-demonetisation, while higher taxes and stiffer penalty of up to 85 per cent await those who don't disclose but are caught.

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The money from the scheme would be used for projects in irrigation, housing, toilets, infrastructure, primary education, primary health and livelihood so that there is justice and equality, said the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill.



The key points of the New Taxation Amendment Bill, tabled by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, are:

30 per cent tax and 10 per cent penalty on undisclosed income

33 per cent ((33 per cent of 30 per cent)) surcharge for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit scheme

75 per cent tax and 10 per cent penalty in case Income Tax authorities detect undisclosed wealth deposited

Mandatory 25 per cent of undisclosed income to be deposited in Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit scheme

Four-year lock-in period



Also read:

Centre gears up to get rid of black money, carries out regular raids



Modi must apologise for black money remark: Opposition leaders



Demonetisation will destroy black money stashed over 70 years, Centre tells Supreme Court



--- ENDS ---
Several anti-Modi slogans were raised and some sections of the crowd asked whether the Prime Minister stood in an ATM queue himself to withdraw money.

By Shalini Lobo: It's been 20 days since Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement to do away with the Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes. While the ruling party claims that the cash chaos is settling down and life is heading back to normal, opposition parties hit out today at the Modi government, slamming it through protests that were held across the nation.

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VARIOUS PROTESTS

It was a rare case of unity in display amongst the opposition parties but they were still divided on their manner of protest. While the Left parties called for a Bharat Bandh, others preffered a Jan Akrosh Diwas .

The Student Wing of the Congress, National Students Union of India (NSUI) also held a protest in the national capital today against the demonetisation scheme. Protesters were detained and taken in by the police. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) held a demonstration in Central Park, Connaught Place where AAP leaders addressed the gathering.

DIFFERENT TACTICS BY PARTIES

Several anti-Modi slogans were raised and some sections of the crowd asked whether the Prime Minister stood in an ATM queue himself to withdraw money. Both the Congress and the AAP stood away from the Bharat Bandh stating that the public was already facing a lot of difficulties and they didn't want to add to their woes. The Bharat Bandh however proved to be ineffective.

Meanwhile, three states, namely West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura called for a 12-hour shutdown.

While demonstrations were mushrooming one after the other in Delhi, a support rally was organised by the BJP Mahil Morcha by led by BJP worker Kamaljeet Sehrawat. The group marched around Cannought Place in Delhi spreading awareness on the benefits of demonetisation.

ALSO READ:

Demonetisation: 50 per cent tax on unaccounted deposits, 85 per cent if caught

Chaos ensues after Mamata's massive protest against demonetisation, cripples normalcy in Kolkata

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) Government has given "relaxation" wherever necessary on the demonetisation issue, Delhi High Court said today as it reserved its verdict for tomorrow on a petition seeking relaxation of the Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal limit for marriages.

"Relaxation has already been given wherever it is necessary," a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal told the counsel appearing for the petitioner who has also sought a direction to accept old currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 for paying fines and court fees till December end.

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Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, appearing for the Centre, opposed the plea and said the government has already given certain exemptions but some conditions were needed so that nobody can misuse it.

"We cannot have an unmeasured and uncanalised situation. We have given exemptions. For weddings, if we will not put conditions, anybody can get a marriage card printed and go to the bank to withdraw Rs 2.5 lakh," the ASG told the bench.

In his plea, petitioner Birender Sangwan has alleged that the guidelines, which seeks detailed list of persons to whom the cash withdrawn is proposed to be paid for marriage and declaration from them that they do not have a bank account, were "arbitrary".

The counsel said the cap of Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal for marriages should be relaxed as there were various "customary donations" which one gives during the wedding ceremony.

"Liberty must be given for marriages so that one can pay as per the customs. How can somebody give such an undertaking? As per the guidelines, even the priest who performs marriages has to give undertaking of not having a bank account. The parents of the bride and groom should be allowed to withdraw money from their accounts without such arbitrary conditions," his counsel said.

When he raised the issue of payment of court fees, the bench asked the ASG "what do you say about the cost or fines imposed by courts? Cant it be paid in cash in old currency notes?"

In response, the ASG said "old currency notes are accepted for paying court fees" and the government has given various relaxation on issues concerning common people. He said that new currency note of Rs 500 was in circulation and Rs 100 and Rs 500 could also be used for paying the court fees. (More) PTI ABA PPS HMP ARC

--- ENDS ---
Speaking exclusively to Aaj Tak, Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit said that the schedule of Pakistan's foreign affairs advisor Sartaj Aziz is not cast in stone and if there was an offer for talks from the host nation, then it would be accepted by Pakistan.

By Rahul Kanwal: Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit today said the Nawaz Sharif government is ready for a dialogue with India on the sidelines of the Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar next week.

Speaking exclusively to Aaj Tak, Basit said that the schedule of Pakistan's foreign affairs advisor Sartaj Aziz is not cast in stone and if there was an offer for talks from the host nation, then it would be accepted by Pakistan.

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Calling for a resumption of the stalled dialogue process between India and Pakistan, Basit said, "We can delay talks for months or even for years. But ultimately, a solution to the problems between India and Pakistan can only come through dialogue, and therefore, both nations must sit and discuss all the issues that confront them."

'Escalation along LoC not in Pakistan's interest'



At a time when heavy guns have been booming along the India-Pakistan border, Basit called for an end to hostilities and for the 2003 LoC ceasefire to be turned into a formal agreement.

ALSO WATCH



"Escalation along the Line of Control is not in Pakistan's interest. The Pakistan army is heavily deployed along the country's western borders as part of the Operation Zarb-e-Azb and it is wrong to say that the escalation is being fuelled by Pakistan. We would like that hostilities along the Line of Control come to an end and that the 2003 ceasefire understanding is turned into a formal agreement between India and Pakistan," he said.

'Democracy in Pakistan has matured'



The Pakistani High Commissioner also said that the uneventful transition from one army chief to another showed a strengthening of democracy in the country. "Pakistan's democracy has matured in a way that the era of military coups is over. An equilibrium has been set. The voice of the people and democracy is becoming stronger. There's no question of a military coup in the future," Basit said.

The Pakistan government's overtures come days ahead of the Heart of Asia dialogue to be held in Amritsar on December 3-4. So far, Sartaj Aziz is scheduled to land on the morning of December 4 and leave the same day.

But the Pakistani High Commissioner has given enough indications to suggest that there could be a window of opportunity for the two countries to resume the bilateral dialogue process, provided the Modi government is interested in doing so. The diplomatic ball is now in India's court. Will PM Modi accept?

ALSO READ: Pakistan stops import of cotton from India amid tension

ALSO READ: Pakistan Army ready to teach India a lesson: General Raheel Sharif

ALSO READ: Pakistan summons Indian envoy after 7 of its soldiers killed along LoC

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ALSO READ: India recalls 3 diplomats from Islamabad after Pakistan accused them of spying





--- ENDS ---
Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa is known for his professional and democratic credentials, but experts are of the view that despite him becoming the army chief, Pakistan's policy won't change towards India.

By Gaurav C Sawant: 'Badla for Bangladesh' was, is and shall remain Pakistan's primary policy towards India, irrespective of who takes over as their army chief or prime minister.

India must keep its powder dry and prepare to fight back terrorist organizations like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Muhammaed (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen (HM).

As Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa prepares to take over as the 16th chief of the Pakistan Army, Gen Bikram Singh, former chief of the Indian army described him as 'an outstanding professional with a positive attitude.'

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READ| Pak says focus to remain on India border under Bajwa



Lt Gen Bajwa had served under Gen Bikram Singh in Congo.

"He was one of my brigade commanders. He was commanding the South Kivu brigade. He had a very positive attitude and showed a high level of commitment. He was an outstanding brigade commander," Gen Singh added speaking exclusively and first to India Today.

INDIA CAN'T LOWER ITS GUARD

However, India should not and will not underestimate the adversary.

"The Chanakya Niti is very clear. Never underestimate the adversary. He (Lt Gen Bajwa) was Force Commander Northern Areas (FCNA) and commanded the 10 Corps (Rawalpindi). He knows the entire area opposite the Siachen glacier down to Chenab river like the back of his hand. We must wait and watch his actions but I don't see any scaling down of hostilities along the LoC,'' Gen Bikram Singh added.

Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa is seen as the dark horse winning the race. He was not seen as the first choice of the outgoing Pakistan army chief Gen Raheel Sharif.

WATCH:



"Apart from being Force Commander Northern Areas, it is also important to remember Lt Gen Bawa was also the chief of staff of the 10 Corps before being the Corps Commander. This means as Chief of Staff he had more time to understand and appreciate the deployment along the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan. That is extremely important. But more than being an old Kashmir hand, it appears that his professionalism tipped the scales in his favour," says Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, former Chinar Corps Commander.



READ| Nawaz Sharif appointed General Bajwa due to his pro-democratic credentials: Experts

BAJWA SUITS NAWAZ SHARIF

Gen Hasnain, who served along the LoC extensively including Commanding the Srinagar Corps also feels the outgoing army chief concurred on Bajwa's appointment and it wasn't just Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif's choice.

However, Gen JJ Singh, former chief of the army staff sees Lt Gen Bajwa's appointment as the next Pakistan army chief as a major shot in the arm for the civilian leadership of Pakistan.

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"Look at the changing international dynamics. The US has all but abandoned Pakistan and is India's strategic ally. The people in Pakistan don't want their army to take them down the path of death and destruction. And the Pakistan army is getting the message from the people," he says.

READ| Nabha jailbreak: This is how Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested



"Nawaz Sharif had a bitter experience with Gen Pervez Musharraf and has been extremely careful in choosing Lt Gen Bajwa. The army will continue to decide the US policy, India policy and the China policy but Nawaz Sharif has been strengthened with Gen Bajwa's appointment and the army is down a couple of notices," he adds.

'BAJWA IS SENSIBLE, PROFESSIONAL'

Gen JJ Singh was also of the opinion that being a 'sensible and positive professional' Gen Bajwa is unlikely to take Pakistan down the Kargil like disaster road like Gen Musharraf.

"Gen Bajwa doesn't appear to be an irresponsible General. He is not a commando like Musharraf. He doesn't want Pakistan to suffer because of one man's thinking and decision making. After Kargil, the Pakistan National Assembly made it very clear that Pakistan army cannot take the country on the brink of war without keeping Parliament in the loop," he adds.

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ALSO WATCH:



'BADLA FOR BANGLADESH SENTIMENT'

Gen Shankar Roy Chowdhary, former chief othe army staff, however, is convinced Pakistan army as an institution has only one thinking - 'Badla For Bangladesh' (revenge for India playing a crucial role in the Birth of Bangladesh in 1971 and splitting Pakistan into two).

"We must keep our powder dry. Pakistan army has only one institutionalized thinking; hostility towards India and revenge for Bangladesh. India would be nave to think Nawaz Sharif wants good relations with India. There is no shift in Pakistan's policy towards India," he added.

India's change in stance at the LoC - aggressive fire assault to counter ceasefire violations and foil infiltration attempts may prompt a re-think at tactical level in Pakistan but their strategic aim remains the same - target India and Indian interests in Afghanistan - either through their army or through their strategic assets - LeT, JeM and Hizbul Mujahideen.

Unless Pakistan takes credible and visible steps to dismantle the terror infrastructure aimed at India a change of guard at the political or military level means precious little.

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ALSO READ:

NIA arrests 3 suspected al-Qaeda operatives who were planning to kill PM Modi



--- ENDS ---
The boys, who live in Anna Saheb Magar slum, allegedly picked up a six-year-old girl, who was playing in the vicinity and took her to a secluded area and raped her by taking turns.

By Press Trust of India: Four boys, aged between 10 and 14, were today detained for allegedly raping a six-year-old girl in Pimpri area of Pune, police said.

On November 27 afternoon, the boys, who live in Anna Saheb Magar slum, allegedly picked up a six-year-old girl, who was playing in the vicinity and took her to a secluded area and raped her by taking turns, officials from Pimpri police station said today.

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"The incident came to light after the girl, who was traumatised, narrated her ordeal to her mother and later police were informed," they said.

A case under sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural offences) of IPC and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 was registered, officials said, adding all the four boys have been detained.

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) The government has so far generated a revenue of approximately Rs 2,779 crore from the auction and allotment of 83 coal blocks, Parliament was informed today.

"Till now, 83 coal mines have been allocated to private and public sector under the provisions of the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act 2015. So far, a revenue of Rs 2,779.36 crore (approx) has already been generated," Minister of state for Coal, Power, New and Renewable Energy and Mines Piyush Goyal said in a reply to Rajya Sabha.

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`The amount, he said, is being transferred to the respective state governments where the coal mines are located, he said.

"Revenue which would accrue to the coal bearing state government concerned from allocation of coal mines under the provisions of the said Act comprises upfront payment as prescribed in the tender/allotment document, auction/allotment proceeds and royalty on per tonne of coal production," the Minister said in a separate reply.

He further said that as no auctions were conducted earlier for allocation of coal mines, no revenue accrued to the exchequer on this account.

The three rounds of mines auction were held after the Supreme Court in 2014 cancelled the allotment of 204 coal blocks.

The fourth round of coal block auctions for the non-regulated sector was cancelled in view of the prevalent market conditions which included sharp decline in e-auction price of coal from Coal India as well as international freight on board (FOB) price of non-coking coal among other factors, Goyal had earlier said. PTI SID JM

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) Government today said it has imposed anti-dumping duty on low ash metallurgical coke originating in or exported from Australia and Peoples Republic of China.

"Anti-dumping Duty has been imposed on low ash metallurgical coke originating in or exported from Australia and Peoples Republic of China," Central Board of Excise and Customs said in a tweet.

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"ADD shall be effective for a period of 5 years from the date of publication of the above notification in the Official Gazette," it added.

Indian domestic met coke sector had made a case to the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping & Allied Duties (DGAD) for protection of the local industry from cheap imports from Australia and China.

Following this, DGAD initiated a probe in December 2015 on the scope of levying such duty.

Met coke, a key raw material for the steel sector, constitutes 40-50 per cent of the total cost of crude steel. PTI BKS JM

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) After state-owned GAIL India Ltd, Gujarat government has sought Rs 6,600 crore from the Central government to partly fund two gas pipeline projects of its firm GSPL including one taking the fuel to Jammu and Kashmir. Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) had in 2011 quoted rock-bottom tariff to win rights to lay gas pipeline from Mehsana in Gujarat to Bhatinda in Punjab and onwards to Jammu and Srinagar as well as one from Mallavaram on the east coast to Bhopal and Bhilwara in Rajasthan, but has since then struggled to begin work on laying the lines. "The Government of Gujarat in the month of October, 2016 has requested the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas to consider a capital grant of 40 per cent" for the Mehsana- Bhatinda-Jammu-Srinagar Pipeline (MBJSPL) and Mallavaram- Bhopal-Bhilwara-Vijaipur Pipeline (MBBVPL) projects, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today. While the 2,042-km Mallavaram-Bhopal-Bhilwara via Vijaipur pipeline will cost Rs 8,086 crore, 2052-km Mehsana-Bhatinda line will cost Rs 6,864 crore and 725-km Bhatinda-Jammu-Srinagar line would cost Rs 1,520 crore. In a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, he said oil regulator PNGRB has granted time extension for completion of the two projects up to December, 2017.

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Prior approaching Oil Ministry, "the Government of Gujarat had also approached the Ministry of Finance for financial support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for execution of MBBVPL project," he said in the reply.

The Oil Minister further said that "keeping in view the importance of this pipeline project, MoP&NG has conveyed its support to the request of Government of Gujarat for financial assistance from ADB to the Ministry of Finance in this regard."

In September, the government had agreed to partly fund a Rs 13,000 crore natural gas pipeline project that will take the fuel to Prime Minister Narendra Modis constituency Varanasi and the eastern part of the country.

The government is providing Rs 5,176 crore or about 40 per cent of the project cost after state-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd found it difficult to commercially justify the huge investment of Rs 12,940 crore in absence of either a firm source of gas supply or customers.

The 2,539-km long pipeline from Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh to Haldia in West Bengal and also Bokaro in Jharkhand and Dhamra in Odisha will be completed by 2020.

This was the first gas pipeline project that the government decided to fund.

Besides seeking 40 per cent funding of the projects, the Gujarat government has also asked for "grant of authorisation for development of city gas distribution networks on nomination basis on the lines of support provided to GAIL for its Jagdishpur-Haldia and Bokaro-Dhamra natural gas pipeline project," Pradhan said. (MORE) PTI ANZ ABI

--- ENDS ---
It is the first of its kind unit in India where people can buy their own private helicopter at such a low cost.

The choppers will cost Rs 1.5 crore and can run for five hours on petrol. Photo: Reuters

By Ajay Kumar: A Gurugram-based private aviation company has started manufacturing two-seater helicopters in the Aravalli ranges. The choppers will cost Rs 1.5 crore and can run for five hours on petrol.

Vivek, an official with the company, said that it is the first of its kind unit in India where people can buy their own private helicopter at such a low cost.

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"We have chosen technology used in Poland. The helicopter's engine comprises 135 horse power Rotex 92 ULS. The helicopters will be manufactured at a farm house in the area, and according to orders placed by domestic and foreign customers," Vivek said. "We have organised a live demo of the chopper from November 23-26 and another on January 12 to attract more customers," the official added.

THE FLIP SIDE

The flip side, however, is that the project is considered to be a serious threat to the environment. The Aravalli ranges have dense green cover and are a natural habitat for wild animals like leopards, hyenas and others. Moreover, two defense establishments- the Mohamadpur IAF depot and Maneser NSG camp-are situated at a proximity of just 2 and 8 km from the project, thus raising security concerns.

Despite this, the Haryana government is strangely not averse to the project, and state forest minister Rao Narbir Singh had even visited the site on Friday. The company has established its manufacturing unit in a farm house (No. E-5B at Ansal Aravalli Retreat, Raisina zone, Gair Mumkin hills). It has also constructed a runway in the farm house. The company, however, is accused of chopping hundreds of trees to change the landscape so as to construct the runway in violation of sections 4 and 6 of the Haryana Land Preservation Act.

"We have no objections for manufacturing helicopters but with the location. The hills are known for their rich population of leopards-a shy wild animal that needs peace," said Rajesh Chand Wats, RWA president of Ansal Aravalli Retreat, Gurugram.

"We have witnessed during demonstrations that the helicopter makes a huge noise that is not suitable for wild animals, and also adds to air and sound pollution. Such a practice would allow wild animals to stray into human settlements more frequently," Wats added. The said company was earlier running commercial operations of gliders from the same farm house in 2009 and the NGT had banned the practice on environmental grounds.



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THE DEADLY PROJECT



Wats added that his RWA has written letters (dated January 20, 2016) to the defense ministry as well as NGT, when the company started constructing the runway.

"We have decided to knock the NGT's door again as the project is against environment norms and also poses a security risk," Wats said.

The Maneser NSG camp and Mohamadpur IAF depot are declared restricted zones by the defense ministry and considered no flying zones. When contacted, Sohna SDM Satish Yadav told Mail Today that the company has taken prior permission from all agencies concerned and it has been asked to submit them in his office.



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) Days ahead of a key conference it hosts on Afghanistan, India has given the last of the four military helicopters to the war-ravaged country which has been trying to strengthen its air power after significant cut in presence of NATO forces.

India will host the sixth conference of Heart of Asia -- Istanbul Process, an annual gathering of major Asian and some other countries, which is aimed at encouraging security, political and economic cooperation among Afghanistan and its neighbours. The challenge of terrorism, particularly emanating from Pakistan is likely to figure in the conference.

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The Mi-24 attack helicopter was handed over to Afghan authorities on Saturday, diplomatic sources said.

Afghanistan has also been seeking Indias assistance in making functional Soviet-era helicopters and transport aircraft which were not in flying condition.

The country has been struggling to get spare parts for the aircraft and helicopters due to Western sanctions against Moscow.

Earlier, there were reports that there was an issue with the spares of the fourth helicopter. India had delivered three helicopters to Afghanistan ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Kabul in December last year, giving Afghan Air Force the much-needed lethal teeth against various militant groups like the Taliban.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is set to attend the two-day Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar from December 3 and is likely to hold a bilateral meeting with Modi on the sidelines of the meet during which issues relating to defence and security cooperation are expected to figure prominently.

The Heart of Asia conference is also likely to review the security situation in the region, besides deliberating on ways to combat threat of terrorism.

"India and Afghanistan as well as other members of HoA share a common concern about insecurity that emanates from safe sanctuaries in our neighbourhood.

"Unless we work together and with others through a robust mechanism of regional security cooperation, we will be unable to realise our shared economic interests and address our common challenges," Afghan Envoy Shaida Abdali said.

The Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process was launched in 2011 and include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the United Arab Emirates.

A number of key issues relating to trade and connectivity are likely to figure in the conference which is also being attended by Sartaj Aziz, Foreign Affairs Advisor to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. PTI MPB ZMN

--- ENDS ---
A Pakistani news channel reported that an Indian deer was found in Pakistan and handed over to the police, but it escaped.

By India Today Web Desk: It all started after India's surgical strike along the Line of Control, when Indian forces found two balloons with hate message to PM Modi. Later the Border Security Force arrested a pigeon from Pakistan for carrying a similar message.

The message that the pigeon carried was written in Urdu and read: "Modi Ji, do not consider us same people as we were during 1971 (Indo-Pak war). Now each and every child is ready to fight against India."

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Also read: BSF arrests another Pakistani pigeon carrying hate message for PM Modi



Amid a series of Pakistani objects and creatures entering India, a Pakistani news channel claimed that an Indian deer was found in their part of the land.

Jaag TV reported that an Indian deer crossed the border and was caught by locals in Sialkot. The animal was eventually handed over to the police but the police said that the deer escaped.

Video: Indian deer crosses into Pakistan, caught by locals in Sialkot, handed over to police, disappears, police claim it escaped pic.twitter.com/BGcpAwxwOK JAAG TV (@JaagAlerts) November 28, 2016



Also read: Music, pigeons, balloons, hackers: Pakistan's bizarre new propaganda game



--- ENDS ---
IndiGo's Airbus A 320 plane was flying from the national capital to Bengaluru while KLM's Boeing 787 aircraft was en route from Amsterdam to Kualampur, as per the website of Aviation Safety Network.

By India Today Web Desk: The Aircraft Accidents Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has launched an investigation into the An IndiGo Airbus A320 plane and a KLM Boeing Dreamliner aircraft near miss incident.



IndiGo's Airbus A 320 plane was flying from the national capital to Bengaluru while KLM's Boeing 787 aircraft was en route from Amsterdam to Kualampur, as per the website of Aviation Safety Network.



The Aircraft Accidents Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has launched an investigation into the matter.



Citing preliminary data from the Indian authorities, BEA said IndiGo aircraft came in close proximity with KLM plane as the required standard lateral and vertical (radar) separation was reduced. The vertical separation was reduced to 200 feet, it added.

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The incident happened on November 2 in the Indian airspace, according to French aviation regulator BEA.



Details about the number of passengers could not be ascertained.



Near miss incidents are generally described as airprox (aircraft proximity).

It refers to a situation where in the opinion of a pilot or Air Traffic Services personnel, the distance between the planes as well as their relative positions and speed have been such that the safety of the aircraft involved may have been compromised.

--- ENDS ---
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley tosay said that the government has decided to give relief on Point of Sale equipment such as the card swipe machines.

By India Today Web Desk: The Centre today removed 12.5 per cent excise duty and 4 per cent special additional duty on manufacturing of Point of Sale (PoS) machines.

Earlier, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said in Lok Sabha that the government has decided to give relief on equipment such as the card swipe machines to facilitate cashless transaction. Replying to a question, Jaitley said the Finance Ministry will shortly release a notification in this regard. The PoS machines will be free of excise duty and octroi till March 31, 2017, he said.

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ALSO READ | Demonetisation: Modi fights Opposition's inconvenience barb with cashless economy benefits



SURGE IN DEMAND FOR PoS MACHINES



Ever since the announcement regarding demonetisation, there has been a sharp surge in the demand for PoS machines from small businesses across the country. They have placed request before their banks to provide swipe or POS machines to keep pace with the demand for goods.

The swipe machines facilitate acceptance of payment from customers by swiping of their debit, credit, pre-paid cards on the PoS terminals.

According to estimates, the number of POS machines has doubled from 7.41 lakh in September 2012 to 14.96 lakh in September 2016. There has been a consistent surge in the installation of PoS machines in big cities and towns alike.

While the number of PoS machines grew at 11.6 per cent between August 2013 and August 2014 from 9.81 lakh to 10.95 lakh, it grew by 8.8 per cent in the next 12 months to 11.9 lakh in August 2015. RBI data states that the rise has been steep at 25.6 per cent between August 2015 and August 2016.

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Mumbai, Nov 28 (PTI) Dubbing the BJP-led government at the Centre as "anti-poor", Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Ashok Chavan today said his party will raise in Parliament and state legislature the issue of hardships being faced by people due to demonetization .

The winter session of Maharashtra Legislature begins in Nagpur from December 5.

Addressing a rally outside suburban collector office after the Jan Akrosh march from Kalina to Kherwadi junction in Bandra, Chavan alleged that the government had waived Vijay Mallyas loan but not that of farmers.

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"The BJP government at the Centre is anti-poor. Nine farmers have committed suicide recently, still the government has no shame," he alleged.

Chavan claimed the morcha was a a "success" as the "common man participated in large numbers".

Congress leaders were joined by NCP city unit president Sachin Ahir and their workers in the march in suburban Mumbai to protest against the difficulties being faced by the common man due to demonetization.

Mumbai unit chief Sanjay Nirupam, city Congress leaders Kripashankar Singh, Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan, Rajya Sabha member Hussain Dalwai and NCP Mumbai president Sachin Ahir spoke on the occasion.

Ahir said the ill-effects of the November 8 decision taken without any proper planning are being felt till today.

Chavan said the citizens who deposited their money in bank accounts are not able to withdraw the same. Small traders, farmers, labourers, working class have been the worst hit due to the sudden demonetization.

Rural economy has virtually collapsed, he said.

Nirupam said hawkers, shopkeepers, traders in Dharavi, Kalina, Santacruz, Kurla and Bandra extended support to the protest march.

He said Mumbai Congress had organised "Money Ki Baat" outside railway stations and banks in Byculla, Kurla, Andheri and Jogeshwari areas of the metropolis to highlight the poor implementation of demonetization.

Nirupam claimed Federation of Maharashtra, Maharashtra State Chemists and Druggists Association, Mumbai Gold Wholesale Association and taxi-autorickshaw unions in Mumbai also supported and participated in the morcha. PTI MR GK RT

--- ENDS ---
Maldives' beaches and Katrina Kaif in one frame? Yes, please!

Katrina Kaif being her hot self in Maldives. Picture courtesy: Facebook/Katrina Kaif

By India Today Web Desk: Maldives might be on a lot of people's bucket list; when Katrina Kaif plonks herself in those serene environs, even more so.

Katrina Kaif was not a celebrity known for her social-media presence. She had none, in fact, until recently, when she decided to make her fans on Facebook go crazy.

Taking it a step further, Katrina--who was in Maldives over the weekend to shoot for Harper's Bazaar Bride with Manish Malhotra--got in touch with her fans through Facebook Live (live video streaming via Facebook).

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Through her Live streaming, Kat takes us through the resort she's living in, and the room she was staying at, and the pathway that led up to the beach that also has a Japanese restaurant!

If those aren't #TravellerGoals, we don't know what are!

Anyway, get set to get really, really jealous as you witness the beauty of Katrina Kaif intermingling with the beauty of Maldives:

--- ENDS ---
The LDF called for the hartal after Prime Minister Modi denied permission to meet all-party delegation other than BJP to discuss the issue concerning cooperative banks in the state.

By Jeemon Jacob: Ruling Left Democratic Front sponsored 12-hour long hartal against demonetisation in Kerala paralysing the state.

The LDF called for the hartal after Prime Minister Modi denied permission to meet all-party delegation other than BJP to discuss the issue concerning cooperative banks in the state.

LDF organised protest marches in all centres including state capital Thiruvananthapuram. Shops remained closed and bus services were off from the roads.

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CPI(M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan led the protest march in Thiruvananthapuram.

Banks functioned normally and Sabarimala pilgrims were excluded from the hartal.

"We won't allow Prime Minister Narendra Modi to kill cooperative sector in Kerala. If Prime Minister continues with his anti-people policies, we will resist it," Kodiyeri told India Today.

CPIM leadership had directed their cadres to take all precautions not to disrupt the movements of Sabarimala pilgrims in the state.

Kerala is going to step up campaign against BJP government move to throttle cooperative sector.

As the crisis deepens over demonetisation, CPI(M) views that Modi is losing his grip.

"The common man is suffering and Prime Minister Modi is opting out of all democratic process," said Suresh Kurup, aCPI(M) legislator from Eattumanoor.

"We will continue our resistance against undemocratic move of Prime Minister," he added.

--- ENDS ---
Bharat Bandh called by the united Opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation drive has drawn mixed response. The shutdown has crippled normal life across several states.

By India Today Web Desk: After week-long disruption in the Parliament over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, the Opposition has declared a Bharat Bandh today.

Opposition parties have been trying hard to corner the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation policy. But it seems that the leaders of the Opposition are not on one opinion over their call for Bharat Bandh.



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Accusing the BJP of spreading misinformation, the Congress, however, on Sunday said it has not called for a Bharat Bandh or a countrywide shutdown today but 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' to hold protests over demonetisation.

NO BANDH, ONLY PROTEST: CONGRESS



"There will be protest rallies; we have not called for a Bharat Bandh (shutdown). Misinformation has been spread by the BJP which is ill-informed," said senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh.

Also read: Mann Ki Baat: PM Modi seeks support on demonetisation, urges farmers, small traders to go cashless



"The Bharatiya Janata Party has spread the misinformation that the Congress and other opposition parties have called for a bandh. The country is already shut from November 9, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the demonetisation move. That's why we don't want a 'Bharat Bandh'," he added.



GOVERNMENT WORKING HARD TO END CORRUPTION



Addressing a rally in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, PM Modi said while he had called for an end to corruption and black money, the opposition was rooting for the Bharat Bandh.

Also read: RBI Governor Urjit Patel breaks silence on demonetisation, says RBI taking steps to ease people's pain



"The government is working to end the flow of black money and corruption but they (opposition) are talking about Bharat Bandh," Modi said.



Here's what you need to know:



Non-BJP governed states have called for protests, many leaders have chosen to oppose bandh, including Congress party which made it clear today that they won't support Bharat Bandh and would hold protests across the country against demonetisation.

We have not called for #BharatBandh , as it causes inconvenience to people, we called for Jan akrosh divas: GN Azad,Congress #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/jyPLLTpUzW ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016 Left parties in West Bengal have called for a 12-hour shutdown after their counterparts in Kerala and Tripura announced the same.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has opposed the bandh call. She will go ahead with her rally against demonetisation as planned.

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Normal life continues in Kolkata #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/uvoqCI7w6t ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016 States like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand,Rajasthan where BJP is in power there will be no bandh. Also schools, colleges and offices in those state function properly.

Allahabad: Samajwadi party workers protest against #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/7RTOcNeYAn ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) November 28, 2016 JD(U) and TRS will not take part in Bharat Bandh called by Opposition parties.

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Watch Video

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By Javed M. Ansari : Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee, who is known to be a tough leader, ensures that every decision by her parliamentary party in Delhi is approved by her.



While several parties were seen joining the protest by the Opposition, her control over her party was evident as none of her MP's joined the protest.



The Congress, left parties, NCP and SP decided to stage an impromptu dharna against demonetisation near the Mahatma Gandhi statue.



Incidentally, Jyotiraditya Scindia had requested Derek O Brian and Sudip Banerjee to attend the dharna along with MP's of other opposition parties.

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The duo promptly dialled the Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and asked her if the issue had been discussed at the meeting of opposition leaders in the morning. Piqued at the unilateral decision Mamata asked he party MP's to refrain from the dharna by Opposition.

Also read:

Bharat Bandh : Mamata Banerjee leads massive protest in Kolkata, Congress takes to the streets in Mumbai

Bharat Bandh gets mixed response from India, West Bengal surprises with business-as-usual attitude



Parliament LIVE: You want PM to come to Lok Sabha? He will, says Rajnath Singh

Kerala fast food vendor, 70, shaves off half head, vows not to grow hair until Modi is dethroned





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Often, elephants are made to walk in religious carnivals for hours in the sun without food and water. Elderly and blind elephants are no exceptions.

By Baishali Adak: Famed temples in south India such as Kerala's Guruvayoor, which parade richly-decorated jumbos during festivals like Pooram, may lose them forever.

Union Minister Maneka Gandhi has written to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) asking for such religious institutions 'Which keep wild animals in captivity' be categorised as zoos.

In effect, they will follow all protocols mandated by the Central Zoo Authority (CZA). Apparently, these rules are so exhaustive and prohibitive - involving giving the elephants a 'naturalised environment', sufficient land for recreation, food, bathing facilities, no undue visitor disturbance, curator, veterinarian, biologist, education officer, etc. - that many may have to give up on their jumbo possessions.

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Also read: Animal rights activists ring alarm bells over treatment of elephants in Kerala

Also read: Save our jumbo: Elephants tortured, starved in the name of religion



"That was also the idea behind the move," said an officer in Gandhi's team. A technical committee of the Ministry of Environment has already passed the proposal. Now, it only awaits the nod of the minister, Anil Madhav Dave, the officer said.

NOT THE FIRST TIME

Over the past few years, there have been much hue and cry over 'extreme cruelty' meted out to elephants in the temples of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. They are led in huge processions in festivals such as Thrissur Pooram, Ezhunallathu, etc.

Often, they are poached from the forests of North-East from wild herds at a young age and sold to private buyers who hand them over to the temples. As per Project Elephant, in the year 2000, India had over 3,400 domesticated Asian elephants, 190 of which were owned by temples. By 2015, the total number of temple elephants went up to 3,500, with Kerala having the largest number of such elephants.

Also read: Gods in shackles: Documentary on elephants at law makers' doorstep



THEY ARE BEATEN WITH RODS

The Guruvayoor temple itself has close to 60 elephants. An industry on its own, an elephant is hired at a minimum cost of Rs 25,000 for 12 hours. Often, these are made to walk in religious carnivals for hours in the sun without food and water. Elderly and blind elephants are no exceptions. The huge rush of devotees, loudspeakers and firecrackers compound their trouble.

They are beaten up with rods and develop tumours and blisters all over their bodies. The letter written by Gandhi to Dave reads: "Hundreds of elephants in temples and tourist spots such as Amer Fort are exhibited to the public without having been recognised by CZA. This is gross violation of (related) Acts, and CZA turns a blind eye. Further, there are no valid (elephant) ownership certificates as under Section 42 of the Act read with the Wildlife (Stock Declaration) Rules 1973." "I, therefore, request you to issue directions to the CZA to ensure that captive elephants are exhibited only in places duly recognised by it. In places where they are already being exhibited, an opportunity may be provided to upgrade the facility in accordance with the standards set by the Recognition of Zoo Rules, 2009, within a stipulated time period. Failure to adhere to these must warrant appropriate action."



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By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) Facing five-month-old unrest in the valley, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today impressed upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reach out to the people there by initiating confidence-building measures (CBMs) as she met him here.

During the meeting in Parliament House complex, she briefed Modi on the latest situation in Kashmir Valley which has been witnessing trouble since July, sources said.

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Mehbooba, who is heading a PDP-BJP coalition government, underlined the need for reaching out to the people of the state and in this regard urged the Prime Minister to initiate state-specific CBMs, they said. The Prime Minister was supportive of her views, they added. Later speaking to reporters, the Chief Minister said the situation in Kashmir is improving. "I discussed (with PM) how we can apply balm to the wounds of the people of Kashmir and talked about keeping a peaceful environment in the valley," she said. "The situation (in Kashmir) is improving gradually. I am happy that the students sat for the exams despite all this hardship. I congratulate the parents for this," she added.

She said people of the country should visit Kashmir and allow the people to Kashmir to welcome them and provide them their services. Kashmir has been witnessing unrest since the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani in an encounter on July 8.

Though stone-pelting incidents and other such forms of violence have stopped, normal life continues to be disrupted in the valley because of the continuous shutdown sponsored by the separatists. The strike, which has been going on for last five months, has been further extended till December 1.

To questions on demonetisation, Mehbooba hailed the decision, saying it will benefit the country. "I congratulated the Prime Minister for the decision of demonetisation. This is not an ordinary decision," she said, adding "All those who have illegal money, fake currency have been hit by this move."

The Chief Minister said the people will face difficulties for some time. "Whenever there is any drastic decision, some kinds of inconvenience are caused for some time but I believe it will prove historic for the nation," she added. Contending that demonetisation move will lead to the improvement in development for the country, she said, "There was no development for the last 70 years. No proper infrastructure, hospital, roads, water etc. In the coming days the improvement of the country will be speedy because of Prime Ministers decision." PTI AKK RT AKK

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"Opening LoC for more travel and trade points would not only improve people to people contacts but will also give cross-LoC trade a further push," said "Mehbooba Mufti.

By Shuja-ul-Haq : At a time when the tension between the troops of India and Pakistan have been highest on the LoC, the Chief Minister of J-K Mehbooba Mufti today demanded opening of more travel and trade routes across the LoC to facilitate enhanced movement of people and goods on the two sides of the divide.

"The chief minister put these demands in her separate meetings with Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar today", said an official statement released by the government in Srinagar. The statement also read that the CM sought handing over of Tattoo Ground land which is under army use in Srinagar to the State Government besides revision of rent on the land used by the Army in the State.

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Also read:

Deadly confrontation has triggered a humanitarian crisis in Kashmir: Mehbooba Mufti



"Mehbooba Mufti said opening LoC for more travel and trade points would not only improve people to people contacts but will also give cross-LoC trade a further push", said the statement.

HOME MINISTER ASSURES MUFTI



As per the J-K government, Home Minister assured the chief minister that the demands and issues raised by her would be expeditiously resolved.

In her meeting with the Defence Minister, Mehbooba Mufti sought handing over of the land at Tattoo Ground, Srinagar to the State government so that the same could be used for promotion of tourism activities and creation of some space for the city, in view of the centrality of the location.

OTHER DEMANDS

She also demanded revision of rent on the land under use of the Army in the State.

The chief minister also asked for enhancement of rates of compensation to population affected by firing ranges in various parts of the State as the livelihood of many in the villages depends on the income from such pieces of land. She also requested for extension of the facility for airlifting of civilians by Air Force (including casualties like accidental cases, blast cases and suffering from terminal ailments) from the far flung areas which get cut off from mainland during winters due to snowfall and other reasons. She also sought recruitment of more youth from the State in the Territorial Army.

The Defence Minister also assured the chief minister of a speedy response on the demands raised by her.



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The first look poster of Taapsee Pannu and Akshay Kumar-starrer is out.

By India Today Web Desk: After creating waves with her superb acting in Pink, Taapsee Pannu is back with yet another author-backed role. The first look of Akshay Kumar and Taapsee Pannu's Naam Shabana is out. And going by the looks, Taapsee is set to give another power-packed performance in Shivam Nair's film.

ALSO READ: Akshay Kumar and Taapsee Pannu shoot for Naam Shabana in Malaysia

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ALSO READ: I have just one life to live and I wouldn't want to waste it on one profession, says Taapsee Pannu



Akshay, who has an extended cameo in Naam Shabana, took to Twitter to unveil the first look poster of the film, where Taapsee can be seen in an intense avatar. And just like the fans, the 49-year-old actor is fully convinced that Taapsee is going to be awesome in the film.

Taapsee was seen doing some kickass stunt in the 2015 film Baby, and her co-star Akshay is convinced that Taapsee with rock Naam Shabana too. In fact, he added, " This film belongs to you Baby!!"



Get ready to see the awesomeness of @taapsee in #NaamShabana on 31st March,2017. This film belongs to you Baby!!! pic.twitter.com/pDv3BldZea Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) November 28, 2016

It is for the second time that Akshay and Taapsee have collaborated for a film. And going by the commercial and critical success of Baby, a lot is expected from Naam Shabana. The film, which also stars Manoj Bajpayee and Elli Avram, is set to hit the screens on March 31, 2017.





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NSA Ajit Doval and IB helped police forces of Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi to nab Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo from Nizamuddin railway station.

Harminder Singh Mintoo had shaved off his beard and gotten a hair cut to avoid being identified. Photo: ANI

By India Today Web Desk: Acting on a plot that is generally seen in bollywood films, 10-12 armed men stormed the high security Nabha jail in Patiala and freed Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo on Sunday morning.

A massive manhunt began and within 24 hours, the hardened militant was arrested in Delhi.

Apart from the police of Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi, intelligence bureau and national security advisor Ajit Doval were also involved in the operation.

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READ| Nabha jailbreak: Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo arrested in Delhi



INITIAL INPUTS

Agencies made the first arrest in the case on Sunday evening itself when one of the accused of the jailbreak Parvinder was nabbed from Shamli in western Uttar Pradesh. But, the prime catch was still not in sight.

Reports of a car- suspected to have been used for jailbreak- breaking police barricades in Kaithal, Haryana suggested that the escaped terrorist Mintoo and five gangsters were moving towards Kurukshetra. An abandoned car was also recovered from Kaithal.

WATCH:





Now, it has emerged that Harminder Singh Mintoo got down from the SUV that Haryana Police spotted speeding past barricades some 20 kms short of Kurukshetra.

Mintoo took bus to carry his onward journey. He changed bus two-three times to reach Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi.



THE FINAL CLUES

But, the final clues came from the phone calls that KLF chief Harminder Singh Mintoo made to some of his relatives in Subhash Nagar, Delhi.

As soon as the calls were made, the agencies- IB and police forces of Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi- got their acts together. IB traced the call location and helped nab the KLF chief.

WATCH:



DMK's Stalin taken into preventive custody in Chennai, Congress workers clash with Jammu cops



Harminder Singh Mintoo's hide-and-seek game ended around 3 am, when he was arrested from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi, from where he wanted to flee to some location in southern part of the national capital.

MINTOO DISGUISED APPEARANCE

According to police sources, Mintoo had shaved off his beard and gotten a hair cut to avoid being identified. But, the joint team guided by NSA Ajit Doval had their plan in place that ended Harminder Singh Mintoo's run.

Mintoo was not carrying any weapon lest he attracted suspicion of a curious onlooker or security officials at public places. He wanted to make sure that he looked as one among the crowd.



However, the other five, who escaped during the jailbreak, are still on the run. But, Mintoo is the big catch for the agencies.

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READ| Nabha jailbreak: Who is Harminder Singh Mintoo

WHAT HE PLANNED

According to police sources, Mintoo had bought to ticket for Panvel, Mumbai. He was then supposed to go to Goa, from where he planned to visit Nepal.

Harminder Singh Mintoo has established a good network in Southeast Asia and Europe with the help of Pakistan's ISI.

Police recovered some cash from Harminder Singh Mintoo suggesting that he was being financed by someone. Agencies are trying to trace the people, who gave him financial support and provided him with cash.

WATCH:





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Two versions of Nabha jailbreak conspiracy have surfaced during the questioning of accused Parwinder Singh by UP Police and of KLF chief Mintoo by Delhi Police.

Parwinder Singh was arrested by UP Police in connection with Nabha jailbreak.

By Puneet Kumar Sharma, Atir Khan: Two persons have been arrested till now in connection with Sunday's Nabha jailbreak. Parwinder Singh was arrested by UP Police from Kairana in Shamli.

He is in the custody of UP Police, who believe that Parwinder Singh was the real brain behind Nabha jailbreak.

Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo`s Interrogation by UP and Delhi police results in to some confusion in the mastermind theory of the jailBreak.

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READ| Nabha jailbreak: Who is Harminder Singh Mintoo



According to Delhi Police sources, Mintoo has named Gurpreet Singh Sekhon as the mastermind of the entire conspiracy.

WHAT DID PARWINDER SAY

Parwinder was one of the armed men, who broke into the Nabha jail on Sunday morning and freed KLF chief Mintoo, another terrorist and four gangsters.

Parwinder has confessed to the UP Police that he hatched the plan to free gangsters Prema and Vicky Gondar to return a favour done to him earlier.

READ| Nabha jailbreak: Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo arrested in Delhi



According to Parwinder, escape of Mintoo and Kashmir Singh was not the part of original plot, which was hastily modified in the last 10 days of planning.

WATCH:



MINTOO GIVES ANOTHER VERSION

In Delhi Police's custody, KLF chief Mintoo has given the name of Gurpreet Singh Sekhon as the person, who planned this jailbreak.

According to Mintoo, the conspiracy was hatched two months back. But, the plan took final and full-proof shape about one month ago.

Mintoo got involved in the plan only in the final stages over the last few days. He told the Delhi Police that everything went according to the plan except that he was apprehended.

AND, THEY EXECUTED THEIR PLAN



According to the plan, Parwinder- who is a drug dealer- stole a Fortuner and Verna cars from Zirakpur 10 days ago.

Parwinder then headed for Dehradun, where all the accomplices had to gather to carry out the break in. They took four different routes and travelled in groups. They used four different cars and left their vehicles at different plances.

The attackers purchased four police uniforms to make their entry to the Nabha jail easy.

Parwinder and others 11 persons had a map of the jail and were in constant touch with Prema, Vickey and others.

As everything went according to the plan, they attacked the Nabha jail in Patiala on Sunday morning.

WATCH:



JAILBREAK AND ARREST

Around 8.30 am on Sunday, the armed men broke in the high security Punjab jail purportedly to deposit an accused in Frotuner and entered the jail premises through main entry gate.

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Once inside the jail premises, the 12 armed men started firing. They fired around 100 rounds and in the melee six of the inmates escaped.

A massive manhunt began and by the 5.30 pm, UP Police nabbed Parwinder Singh from Kairana in Shamli. He had entered Shamli from Panipat.

Parwinder was in inebriated state when he was intercepted and overpowered by three policemen. Several mobile phones, six SIM cards, four rifles and over 400 cartridges were recovered from his car.

WATCH:



Mintoo was arrested after IB traced him to Nizamuddin railways station based on a phone call made by him to one of his relatives in Subhash Nagar, Delhi.

Both Parwinder and Mintoo are being questioned further by police in respective states to ascertain the contrasting claims as to who planned this jailbreak and whether any insider was involved in this conspiracy.

ALSO READ:

Modi acted like God on demonetisation, no place for 'dictators' like him: Mamata



--- ENDS ---
Harminder Singh had received funds from unidentified person inside the jail premises three days ago. When he was arrested from the Nizamuddin railway station, Harminder Singh was carrying Rs 19,000 with him.

By Atir Khan: While the demonetisation has pushed the nation queuing up in front of banks and ATMs, Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo got enough cash inside the most secured jail in Punjab.

Highly placed sources have said that Harminder Singh Mintoo had not only full faith in the jailbreak plan but was also preparing to escape from the prison.

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According to sources, Harminder Singh had received funds from unidentified person inside the jail premises three days ago. When he was arrested from the Nizamuddin railway station, Harminder Singh was carrying Rs 19,000 with him.

Also Read: Nabha jailbreak: This is how Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested

HOW HE PLANNED TO FLEE

After the escape, he reached Delhi as per the plan and was on his way to board a train to Panvel, Mumbai. He already had bought the ticket for the journey.

Harminder Singh had planned to go to Goa from Mumbai. He is said to have cultivated strong support base in Goa, where he had stayed for 16 years.

His next planned move was to flee the country using his network in Goa to Nepal.

Now, Punjab Police are trying to find out how the money reached him inside the jail premises. Agencies are trying to identify his financers and find out what were his plans were after he fled the country.

Also Read: Nabha jailbreak: 9 lapses that led to escape of 2 terrorists, 4 gangsters

Also Read: Nabha jailbreak: Capt Amarinder alleges government's connivance







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From ignoring alerts to installing CCTV at entry gates, the Punjab Police failed miserably in ensuring security of its high-security Nabha jail.

By Satender Chauhan: On the lazy Sunday morning, the nation woke up to the shocking jailbreak in Patiala and escape of two hardened terrorists and four gangsters.

It has now appeared that several glaring mistakes were committed by the administration, which led to the escape of Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo and five other inmates from the high security Nabha jail.

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Drug dealer Parwinder Singh, who was among the intruders, was arrested from Shamli in UP on Sunday while Mintoo was nabbed by a joint team of IB and police teams of Punjab, Rajasthan and Delhi from Nizamuddin railway station on Monday morning.

READ| Nabha jailbreak: This is how Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested



Here are the nine failures, which resulted in the embarrassing incident for the security agencies:

ADVISORY/ALERT GONE FOR A TOSS

An alert issued two months back warned about how Pakistan's ISI was teaming up with pro-Khalistan groups and militants.

The advisory stated that the ISI was working with drug peddlers and gangsters in order to disrupt Punjab elections. But, despite alert having been sounded, adequate security apparatus were not put in place.

Police entering Nabha jail. (Photo: @ANI_news)

VIGILANCE FAILURE

The jail manual was not followed as identity cards were not checked at the entry gate of the Nabha jail.

The 12 armed men were let inside the jail just by looking at their police uniforms. This allowed the attackers, some of whom were said to be gangsters, enter the jail premises without any trouble.

WATCH:





CCTV INSTALLATION PROBLEM

Punjab being a border state has been considered as a sensitive state. Terrorist attacks were carried out by the gunmen from across the border at Pathankot and Gurdaspur earlier this year.

In spite of looming terror threat, no CCTV was installed near the main gate at the Nabha jail. Attackers seem to have been aware of this lapse in security. As a result, the agencies have to depend on the statements of two arrested persons, Parwinder Singh and Mintoo for the identity of the attackers.

NOT ADEQUATE LIGHT AT ENTRY

The entry gate of the Nabha jail is dimly lighted. Proper lighting at the main gate might have given the security personnel a better idea about the attackers, who claimed that they were police officials.

Bullet inside the Nabha jail campus.(Photo: @ANI_news)

NO RESISTANCE BY JAIL POLICEMEN

While the armed men fired about 100 rounds, the policemen posted on the jail campus did not return the fire.

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It has emerged that not a single bullet was fired as the attacked continued firing bullets. No security personnel tried to defend the attack on jail.

However, it is not yet clear as to how many policemen were on duty Sunday morning.

Punjab Deputy CM visiting Nabha jail. (Photo: @ANI_news)

INMATES ACTIVE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

In a shocking revelation, it has also emerged that the inmates posted updates on Facebook and shared messages on WhatsApp soon after the jailbreak.

As per the jail manuals, the inmates are not allowed to use mobile phones inside the prison. It is surprising that how the inmates got mobile phones inside the high security jail.

In one Facebook post, updated by one Shera Khubban gang, the message reads, "They can`t dare to encounter our brothers else we will not leave Badals."

It is then not a surprise that accused Parwinder was in possession of a video footage of the interiors of Nabha jail. UP Police have not confirmed the authenticity of the video recording.



Accused Parwinder Singh was arrested in Shamli by UP Police. (@shamlipolice)

NO JAMMER INSTALLED

While the prisoners got their mobile phones smuggled inside the jail, the administration failed to make sure that they did not use it.

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There was no jammer installed on the Nabha jail campus. It is learnt that jail administration was asked to send a proposal for installation of jammer, but it did not pay heed to the request.

NO COBRA FENCING

Cobra fencing is the norm around jail boundary at the outer wall to make it difficult for any trespassing from outside or jumping from inside.

There was no such protective fencing at the Nabha jail. It clearly shows negligence on part of the jail administration.

The entry gate of Nabha jail.

CRUMBLING ENTRY GATE

Nabha jail is said to be the most secure jail in Punjab. But, its main gate, which the armed men to enter the premises, is very weak and in decaying state.

Had the security personnel tried to stop the armed men, the attackers would not have found any difficulty in breaking the gate. Only a strong push could break the entry gate of what is being touted as a high security jail in Punjab.

WATCH:





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In his letter to the home minister, the Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh said that, with the elections coming close and with their chances of winning very meagre, they would try to resort to polarisation of communities.??

By Supriya Bhardwaj: In the wake of Nabha jailbreak incident, Punjab Congress President Captain Amarinder Singh has written to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh seeking immediate dismissal of the Badal government and imposition of President's Rule in the poll bound state of Punjab.

AKALI DAL POLARISING COMMUNITIES

In his letter to the home minister, the Punjab Congress president said that going by the trend of the incumbent government in the state, "with the elections coming close and with their chances of winning very meagre, they would try to resort to polarisation of communities."



Also read: Nabha jailbreak: Capt Amarinder alleges government's connivance

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Meanwhile, addressing media at Congress headquarters in Delhi, the former Chief Minister of Punjab Captain Amarinder further alleged, "There have been attempts in the past to polarise the situation in Punjab to suit Akali's political ambitions. Nabha jail, is the Punjab's most highly secured jail. The millitants broke out and one has been caught. It is obviously the strategy of the government to add more fire power behind their credentials as we approach the election."

Captain Amarinder also wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Dr Nasim Zaidi demanding imposition of the Code of Conduct in the state and to hold assembly elections under President's Rule at the earliest.



Also read: Nabha jailbreak: 9 lapses that led to escape of 2 terrorists, 4 gangsters



--- ENDS ---
By Vinayak Chakravorty: Nagesh Kukunoor is candid revealing the hard part about being a jury member of the ongoing International Film Festival of Goa.

"The truth is there is zero objectivity in art. You ask five people to select a best film, and they will come up with five different options," he says. "As a jury, we can only do our best to keep in mind that the work of cinema we are judging is someone's sincere effort. We do our best to be fair to that effort," he adds.

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Kukunoor was speaking at the sidelights on Sunday, the penultimate day of the ongoing cinema carnival. On a lighter note, though, he dismisses the problems you would associate with judging such a rich array of films.

WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE?

"You love cinema. You get your own private screenings to watch the best of world cinema. You are in Goa, being fed amazing food. If this is a thankless job, I want a lot more of this!" he laughs.

The spirit of Goa, Kukunoor tells you, is a big reason that makes IFFI work so well every year. "I take away a wonderful experience working with my jury colleagues. It's not just watching great films that made my day. We would have these insanely long conversations over dinner that would go on till late-so much so that waking up in the morning for next day's screenings would be difficult!" he laughs.

Protocol bars him from giving any sort of a hint about which film will rule on Monday, when the names of the winners are announced at the closing ceremony, but he did seem happy with the overall competition.

GOOD AND LESS GOOD

"In any competition, there will be winners and losers. We were selecting between good and less good films. I would say the nominations in the debut film category were simply fantastic this time," he says. Beyond films, what is his best reason to be in Goa? "The food," comes the prompt reply. "The cuisine here is simply fantastic," he says, adding that the jury members binged bigtime in between the long hours in a cold theatre brainstorming over the aesthetics of cinema.

Kukunoor was one of five jury members on board this time. British cinematographer Larry Smith, Yugoslav filmmaker Lordan Zafranovi and Moroccan director Leila Khilani were also part of the jury chaired by legendary Czech Republic film-maker Ivan Passer. Interacting with the press on Sunday, all members agreed the diversity on nationalities in international juries as these reiterates that cinema is a common language of different cultures, and that the jury was like a single global family when it came to taking decisions.



--- ENDS ---

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The Opposition parties, in unison, called for a Bharat Bandh they are observing today against the demonetisation of high-value currency note ban announced by PM Narendra Modi. As the bandh is getting mixed response from the people, there is a Twitter trend demanding a roll-back of the demonetisation drive.

By India Today Web Desk: The Opposition's call for a Bharat Bandh, which they are observing today, in protest against the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8, is getting mixed response from different parts of the country.

Amid this, a Twitter trend demanding a roll-back of the demonetisation drive has come up. The trend, however, is fueled by the tweets of those who support Opposition parties, predominantly the Aam Aadmi Party.

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The Opposition argues that the demonetisation drive has caused major inconvenience for the citizens, stating the many deaths of people who were standing in queues in front of ATMs and at banks, to get some cash or to deposit money/exchange old notes, respectively.

Senior Congress leader, revered Economist and former Prime Minister Mamohan Singh called the demonetisation drive a monumental mismanagement, organised loot and legalised plunder and taking a jibe at those who say demonetisation drive is for the "greater good in the future", said "in the long run, we are all dead". Check out: Manmohan-Modi faceoff: One argument at a time

Meanwhile, senior CPI(M) leader and former chief minister of Kerala VS Achuthanandan said PM Modi is worse than Muhammad bin Tughluq, a Mughal king whose decision to change currency in 14th century India led to total chaos.

Here's what Twitter is saying about rolling back the demonetisation drive.

@meerasanyal PM never promoted E payment, #DeMonetisation has boomeranged. He is trying to find a way out IndependentKapoor (@Hindigeneous) November 27, 2016

Demonetizaion is Modi's surgical strike on people's hard earned money. Roll-Back Demonetisation Join AAP (@JoinAAP) November 28, 2016

Bad idea & even worse implementation, demonetization has proved that Modi has completely failed as PM. Roll-Back Demonetisation Pratyush Mayank (@pratyushmayank) November 28, 2016

Protest in Ahmedabad against badly implemented #DeMonetisation Roll-Back Demonetisation pic.twitter.com/9Q27GG7TRM AAP Gujarat (@AAPGujarat) November 28, 2016

4r 1% black money in Currency, 99% of the #Indian'S are on t street. Where as 99% black money is #CronyCapitol

Roll-Back Demonetisation bilagundi ratikant (@bilagundi) November 28, 2016

--- ENDS ---
A small shop owner in Kerala shaved off half head and vowed not to grow his hair until Prime Minister Narendra Modi is voted out of power. This is in protest against the demonetisation drive announced by Modi. Here's his heartwrenching story.

Tea vendor Yahiya who pledged not to grow hair on his half shaved head until PM Modi is voted out of pwer. Photo: Facebook\ashraf.kadakkal

By Revathi Rajeevan: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's overnight demonetisation drive, scrapping of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 from the financial system of India on November 8, came as a shock to many. It would be wrong to say that the drive hit only those who were hoarding black money. Reports suggest that millions of lower income class people were severely hit by the move; while some struggled to feed their children, others -- daily wage workers -- struggled to get work to meet their daily expenses. There are also people, without bank accounts, who had to let go of liquid money they had saved over the years, working very hard.

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One such man is 70-year-old Yahiya, Yahikkakka for his customers, who runs a small hotel and tea shop in Kerala's Kollam.

Dr Ashraf Kadakkal, assistant professor at University of Kerala, made a Facebook post last night about the old man, narrating how the demonetisation drive hit him, and why he shaved off half his head in protest, and why he vowed not to grow his hair until PM Modi is voted out of power.

Titling his post "Mann Ki Baat from a small hotel owner to a former tea vendor," Ashraf shared the story of Yahikkakka. Here's a close translation of his Facebook post.

"My name is Yahiya. Peers call me Yahi, others prefer calling Yahikkakka. I am nearly 70 years old, a native of Kadakkal Mukkunnam in Kerala's Kollam district. I live with my wife and two daughters.

When I realised I cannot marry off my daughter from what I make from climbing coconut trees and working in farms, I sold everything I had and went to the Gulf. Nothing but a life of suffering awaited me there, a poor, uneducated man. I came back with whatever little I made. With that money, and a bank loan from Kadakkal Co-operative bank, I got my daughter married.

I found a new way to sustain myself and family by starting this RMS fast food joint.

I handle the entire hotel myself, from cooking to serving to cleaning. So I chose to wear a nightie. My customers enjoy the tasty beef and chicken fry I serve from 5 PM till midnight, and stay entertained by what they consider a ridiculous attire for a man. Had I been running this store in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, I would have been hanged.

I was living, facing one day at a time, till Prime Minister Modi announced the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

I had Rs 23,000 in cash, all in the demonetised notes. I tried my best to get it exchanged from nearby banks, stood in queues for two days. On the second day, blood sugar level dropped and I almost collapsed. Some Good Samaritans helped me to a government hospital.

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Other than the loan account at the co-operative bank, I don't have a bank account. Since all transactions at co-operative banks were frozen, I realised I cannot get it deposited anywhere.

How many days should I stand in queues to get the money I saved, my money, the money I made working hard for hours straight over the years, deposited?

When I got home from the hospital, I lit my choolah and burnt the entire Rs 23,000 in it. I then went to a nearby barber shop, shaved off half my already bald head.

I vow to grow it back only when PM Modiji, the man who, in a jiffy, burnt all my hard work and savings into ashes, is voted out of power and this country is saved.

This is my pledge and my protest."

Dr Ashraf ended his Facebook post saying, "Dear Yahikkakka, sorry for treating you like a clown all these years. Your protest is so powerful and meaningful that the bandh the strongest party in our state is conducting tomorrow."

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Talking to India Today, Dr Ashraf said, "Yahikkakka reads newspapers regularly. He has a strong stand on everything. He went to the Gulf selling whatever he had but life was hell there too. He returned to start this thattukada (small fast food joint) where a lot of people come not just to eat but also to listen to his jokes and satirical commentary on current affairs."

Ashraf also said, "Yahikkakka wears a nightie because he's comfortable in it. He asks why nightie is considered just a womenswear. He does not have an account in any other bank except a co-operative. He tried exchanging his money. When he failed he came home and burnt it and shaved his head."



Here's Dr Ashraf's Facebook post for those who can read Malayalam:







Also read:

In touching Facebook post, Kerala bank employee thanks villagers for cooperation on demonetisation

This photo of some Malayalis in queues is going viral. The reason will crack you up!

Demonetisation: Kerala church opens collection box to help people with no money



--- ENDS ---
It has been a little over two weeks since the government introduced the new Rs 2,000 note and people have already found ways to misuse the currency.

By Vishakha Saxena: It's been a little over two weeks since the government introduced the new Rs 2,000 note. And while thousands of Indians are spending their days running to banks and queuing up outside ATMs, misuse of the new currency has already begun.

From bribes to fake and photocopied (yes, you read that right) notes, this list is quite baffling. Take a look:

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1. A week after demonetisation, Gujarat police arrested two government employees for allegedly accepting a bribe of more than Rs 4 lakh. And to their surprise, they found the entire amount was paid with the new Rs 2,000 notes.

The incident had authorities scratching their heads, considering the government had imposed a Rs 20,000 weekly limit on withdrawal of currency. According to a report in the Hindustan Times, police are "at a loss to understand how the money was procured."

Read: All you need to know about the new Rs 2,000 note



2. A railway doctor and a circle inspector were arrested in Bihar two weeks ago for demanding and accepting bribes, as a result of vigilance traps. Despite the bribes going into five figures, the money recovered from the two officials consisted of new currency.

The railway doctor, it appears, couldn't take his arrest very well and was hospitalised with brain haemorrhage. His condition was said to be serious, according to a report in the Times of India.

Similar stories of officials taking five-figure bribes in new currencies have been reported from Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bhubaneswar and Bhopal.

Read: Currency seized in Thanjavur with new Rs 2000 notes, chief electoral officer says money belongs to Bank of Baroda



3. In the most serious case yet, two men were arrested with 2,000-denomination notes worth Rs 27 lakh (phew) stuffed in a bag, after a raid at Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station last week. The men were travelling from Mumbai and even admitted to carrying large amounts of cash previously.

Source: Twitter

Authorities are still trying to figure out why they were carrying so much money, and more importantly, how they procured it. According to a Times of India report, police suspect they collected the currency via back-door transactions. "A syndicate operating under the garb of money exchange agencies could also involved in the crime," it said.

Read: Watch people testing new Rs 2,000 note to see if it's waterproof



4. The Rs 2,000 notes are also quite a hit on eBay, where people have tried selling the new currency for amounts ranging from Rs 3,500 to as high as Rs 1.5 lakh. In just under 10 days, people were selling the note in exchange for hefty credit card payments and online transfers. The notes that demanded figures in lakhs were the ones termed 'lucky' for religious reasons -- like those with serial numbers ending with '786'.

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Though eBay clarified that listings on its marketplace were beyond its control, it also told ToI that no successful transactions were made for Rs 2,000 notes. That said, a quick search on the portal coughs up listings for notes ranging anywhere between Rs 2 to Rs 2,000, with this listing selling the newly released note for Rs 50,000 still live.



Read: No, Rs 2,000 note doesn't have nano GPS for tracking but it may have RFID



5. While others were taking bribes or selling the new currency for a heavy premium, some ingenious minds went for the humble photocopier to get their way around.

In a bizarre case, a man took advantage of a power cut in Tamil Nadu and duped the unsuspecting liquor vendor at the local Tasmac by producing a photocopy of the Rs 2,000 note for his day's kick of booze. Funnier (or shall we say more tragic?) still, he got away with Rs 1,800 worth of change from the vendor.

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6. If you thought such tricks were only played by adults, this next story will show you you're awfully mistaken.

Four students from Madhya Pradesh's Shajapur district photocopied the Rs 2,000 note and used it to buy milk and confectioneries worth Rs 200 at a local store. Much like the case with the tippler, the group took off with Rs 1,800 in change, as the shopkeeper never realised until the afternoon that he had been duped.

Read: Rs 2,000 note scanning app is fake, download at own risk



7. The photocopy trend claimed another unfortunate victim in the form of an onion farmer in Karnataka's Chikkamagaluru, who was handed a photocopied Rs 2,000 note by a customer. While authorities claimed it was easy to notice that the currency was a 'poorly photocopied' version, the poor farmer had no idea since he had never seen the new currency.



"?2000 fake note" has found today in chikkamagaluru at a market. NO ONE CAN CHANGE THIS COUNTRY pic.twitter.com/gqfxqs5zSe viswanadh karthik (@karthikaltimate) November 12, 2016

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"Neither I, nor they (his sons) had seen the new Rs 2,000 note until then. So they assumed it was an original note. We found it was fake later, when a friend who had got the new note from the bank compared his note with mine," he told The News Minute.

While offenders in cases above got away with cheating, some got caught in officials' nets. Two youngsters were arrested by Telangana Police -- a week after the demonetisation announcement -- for taking four photocopies of the new currency and attempting to use them. A 24-year-old was also arrested in Mumbai for trying to buy beer with a photocopied Rs 2,000 note.



8. Even as the demonetisation move was supposed to combat counterfeit notes, its fake version emerged anyway. A paan shop owner in Ahmedabad was cheated by a customer last week after he accepted the new Rs 2,000 note seeing features like Gandhi watermark and a security thread and believing it be genuine. He only realised it was a 'fake' version of the note once he took it to his supplier and compared it with the original.

Read: 8 persons arrested with fake Rs 2,000 notes worth Rs 2.22 lakh in Hyderabad



A few days before the incident, authorities arrested two men in Punjab for using computers, scanners and printers at their shop to produce fake notes. Hoping to take advantage of the fact that only a few people had managed to get hold of the original currency in their small town, the duo even believed that they didn't need to include the security features in their versions.

9. The most serious case of the new currency's misuse was discovered after police two Rs 2,000 notes with terrorists killed in an encounter in Bandipora last week. That very day Minister of State for Home, Kiren Rijiju, had claimed in parliament that, "terror funding was badly hit due to demonetisation while there is complete halt in paying money to the stone-pelters in Kashmir."



New Rs 2000 notes recovered from terrorists gunned down by Army in Bandipora(J&K) today. pic.twitter.com/l9y1xqyoemANI (@ANI_news) November 22, 2016

The recovery of new notes with terrorists also prompted former chief minister Omar Abdullah to take a dig on Twitter.

I haven't gotten my hands on a new ?2000 note but these guys didn't take long to get theirs. https://t.co/vYwOViSpfqOmar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) November 22, 2016

Also read: Rs 2,000 won't be withdrawn, printing on it not wrong: Social media rumours busted

Congress demands probe on how Rs 2000 currency note pictures went viral before announcement



--- ENDS ---
During his meeting with party legislators, Nitish said that there were people who were trying to kill him politically.

By Rohit Kumar Singh: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said that there was a concerted effort and conspiracy going on to kill him politically.

Speaking to his party legislators at the meeting of Janata Dal United in Patna on Monday, Nitish said that there was a propaganda going on that his support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi meant realignment of forces in national politics.

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It may be noted that Nitish Kumar has recently supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi's policy of demonetisation which has led to speculations that Nitish is pulling some strings to perhaps re-enter into NDA.

There were also speculations that Nitish Kumar during his last visit to Delhi had a meeting with BJP National President Amit Shah at a farmhouse in Gurugram.

DISMISSING RUMOURS



However, couple of days back Nitish Kumar had dismissed any kind of meeting with the BJP national president.

Also read: My promises are not jumlas, I deliver on what I say: Nitish Kumar

Also read: Nitish Kumar releases state's report card, says Bihar's growth rate higher than nation's



There were speculations that the Bihar chief minister had spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah on Sunday over demonetisation and extended support on the issue.

"There are few people who have made me meet Amit Shah and also facilitated phone conversation with Prime Minister Modi. These people are trying to eliminate my political career", Nitish Kumar said.

During his meeting with party legislators, Nitish reaffirmed his party's support to the Centre on the issue of demonetisation.

Also read: Nitish Kumar is not on nischay yatra but self marketing, says Sushil Modi



NITISH LAUDS MODI



He made an appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to also crackdown on benami properties and asked the Centre to impose prohibition in the country on the lines of Bihar.

Nitish has rejected speculations that his support to the Centre on surgical strikes and demonetisation meant realignment of political forces.

He reaffirmed that Mahagathbandhan was intact.



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Dehradun, Nov 28 (PTI) Normal life remained unaffected in Uttarakhand today, with schools and business establishments open, even as Congress held demonstrations at all the district headquarters in protest against demonetisation issue, as part of the Jan Aakrosh Divas observed across the country.

It was business as usual on the streets of the city which wore a busy look with the shutters of all shops open and markets full of customers.

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Traffic was normal on the streets of Dehradun, Rishikesh and Haridwar.

All educational institutions throughout Uttarakhand were also open.

Pradesh BJP spokesman Munna Singh Chauhan said the bandh was a total failure in Uttarakhand where people went ahead with the day-to-day activities without any interruptions.

"People have shown the mirror to opposition parties which had called the bandh in support of black money hoarders.

"They have also shown that they stand with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his fight againstcorruption, black money and terrorism," he said.

Vyapar Mandal state president Umesh Aggarwal thanked all businessmen for not responding to the protest call saying they have set a healthy example.

However, Congress held demonstrations at all the district headquarters in protest against demonetisation saying it had hit common people and the farmers.

"Instead of hitting terror funding agencies and black money hoarders as being claimed by the Centre, it has hit the common people who are still queueing up outside banks and ATMs for hours on end.

The sowing season is underway and farmers have no cash to buy seeds," Vice President Jot Singh Bisht said.

Claiming that BJP insiders were aware of demonetisation decision in advance, the Congress submitted a memorandum addressing the President to the district administration, demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe into alleged deposit of large sums of money by the Bengal unit of BJP.

They also asked for the probe into alleged purchase of land worth crores by the partys Bihar unit immediately before the central governments November 8 move.

However, Bisht said the party was not in support of this protest as it would add to peoples trouble who are already inconvenienced by demonetisation. PTI ALM ARK

--- ENDS ---
By Santosh Chaubey: Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry has warned India against the 'harms' of its hostile 'tendencies' against Pakistan, implying it's a 'dangerous' territory.

According to a report published in The News International, Chaudhry, in a TV programme, said, "India, with its belligerent attitude, is treading a serious path."

"Pakistan has very sagaciously reminded it (India) of such dangerous tendencies," he said. He also emphasised on the need for India and Pakistan to engage in a dialogue, adding that, "Pakistan's defences are fully impregnable and it could not be intimidated with volleys of bragging talks."

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Chaudhry's comments come at a time when Pakistan's new army chief, Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, is set to assume office on Tuesday. His predecessor, General Raheel Sharif, has had the notoriety of pushing India-Pakistan ties to a historically low point, with a war-like situation prevailing along the border between the two neighbours.

It is a well-established fact that Pakistan's army chief is its most powerful person. And now, Gen. Raheel Sharif is leaving the country's most powerful office with anti-India designs, something that reflects in statements of every Pakistani politician -- be it its prime minister or defence minister or foreign affairs minister.

If we take a cue from that, India is going to handle the same belligerent and backstabbing Pakistan as it was during Raheel Sharif's time.

Ever since the surgical strike India conducted deep inside Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir on September 29, Pakistan has violated ceasefire over 300 times and brags about the number of Indian soldiers killed in cross-border firing, to appease concerns of its internal politics. But, with Indian forces being given a free hand to give a befitting reply to any Pakistani misadventure, the scale of damage on the Pakistani side in Indian counter-firing has been manifold.

Last week we saw a glimpse of this when the Pakistani DGMO had to call his Indian counterpart for talks after India's retaliatory fire in response to an Indian soldier's beheading inflicted heavy damage on the neighbouring side. We can gauge the extent of damage by the fact that it was the first time since the surgical strike that the Pakistani DGMO had to speak to the Indian DGMO about bringing normalcy along the LoC.

--- ENDS ---
Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have been adjourned till Tuesday as Opposition members created ruckus over demonetisation.

By India Today Web Desk: After the Opposition declared a Bharat Bandh today, protests inside and outside Parliament intensified today over demonetisation with the Opposition continuing to demand Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence for a debate on the banning of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes.



Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were repeatedly disrupted and adjourned as Opposition members created ruckus over demonetisation. The deadlock, they said in both Houses, will only go after Modi attends.

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Meanwhile, according to sources, the Opposition could also raise the issue of Punjab jailbreak in Parliament.

LATEST UPDATES:



Rajya Sabha adjourned till Tuesday 11 am.

Lok Sabha adjourned for the day.



Finance Minister Arun Jaitley moves amendment in taxation Law in Lok Sabha.



Lok Sabha adjourned till 2 pm as uproar over demonetisation continues.



You want PM to come to Lok Sabha for this debate then he will and he will make an intervention: Home Minister Rajnath Singh in Lok Sabha



If you have a complaint on implementation then we are ready to debate, don't doubt our integrity: Home Minister Rajnath Singh in Lok Sabha



This deadlock can only end when the PM comes for discussion in the house: Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress in Lok Sabha



More than 70 people have died, and more than 1000 people have been injured: Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress in Lok Sabha



Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2 pm as uproar over demonetisation continues.



In a meeting attended by 18 Opposition parties, we decided to hold Jan Akrosh Diwas not Bharat Bandh. PM is responsible for Bharat Bandh: Gulam Nabi Azad in Rajya Sabha



Rahul Gandhi protesting in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue at the Parliament complex



Lok Sabha adjourned till 12 noon after protest continues over demonetisation



Rajya Sabha adjourned for 30 minutes as uproar continues over demonetisation



Let PM come and talk to us inside the house: Rahul Gandhi



Rahul Gandhi chairs strategy meeting of Congress Lok Sabha MPs

Opposition meeting ends, parties to demand apology from PM Modi for his remarks against Opposition



JD-U skips Opposition meeting

Meeting of Opposition parties underway in Parliament

Photo: ANI



PM Modi to meet senior ministers at 10:30 am



Also Read:

Bharat Bandh over demonetisation by Opposition today: Latest updates

--- ENDS ---
The Prime Minister's Office today conducted a workshop on mobile banking for its staff.

By Manjeet Negi: The Prime Minister believes that change starts from one's own backyard.

A day after Narendra Modi pitched a "less-cash" society to people and urged farmers and small traders to start using digital modes of transaction, his office today conducted a workshop in mobile banking for its staff.

"Officers, including Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra and Additional Principal Secretary PK Mishra, conducted a workshop for the staff of the Prime Minister's Office at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg," an official release said.

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ALSO READ: Demonetisation: Modi fights Opposition's inconvenience barb with cashless economy benefits

How to make cashless transactions

"The workshop was aimed to train and initiate them in the process of mobile banking and conducting daily transactions through mobile applications such as Unified Payment Interface (UPI), e-wallets," the release said.

ALSO WATCH



Officers demonstrated the process of cashless transactions and helped their staff members download relevant mobile applications on their phones.

Officials from the State Bank of India and MyGov portal were also present during the workshop.

ALSO READ: Modi shifting debate from black money to cashless economy: AAP

Cashless economy to make India corruption-free



Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday made a strong push to turn India into a cashless economy and said demonetisation of high value currency notes was a step forward that would rid the country of unaccounted hidden wealth and corruption.

"Learn the different ways to use your bank accounts through internet banking. Learn how to effectively use the apps of various banks on your phones. Learn how to run your business without cash. Learn about card payments and other electronic modes of payment," Modi said during his monthly Mann ki Baat address.

At a Parivartan rally in Kushinagar district of Uttar Pradesh, the Prime Minister once again emphasised on the need to go cashless to make India corruption-free.

ALSO READ: Just like gold, India will come out shining from this demonetisation fire: Prime Minister Modi

ALSO READ: Mann Ki Baat: PM Modi seeks support on demonetisation, urges farmers to go cashless



--- ENDS ---
By India Today Web Desk: Home Minister Rajnath Singh will lead a delegation of leaders from various parties to attend Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro's funeral scheduled in Havana on Tuesday. In his obituary on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had condoled the demise of the Cuban leader, calling him one of the most iconic personalities of the 20th century and a "good friend" of India. Meanwhile, Cubans began paying their tributes to the ashes of their late iconic leader today at the Jose Marti Memorial, located in the Plaza de la Revolucion. This marked the beginning of the funeral ceremonies which would last until Sunday. MASSIVE FAREWELL CEREMONY

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In the same square where Castro used to deliver countless speeches as the President of Cuba, a massive farewell ceremony would also be held on Tuesday.

Also read: Fidel Castro, former Cuban leader and revolutionary, dies at 90 World leaders and dignitaries would be part of the ceremony. Among the few names confirmed so far is the King Emeritus of Spain, Juan Carlos I, Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, Bolivia's Evo Morales, Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, and Ecuador's Rafael Correa. On Wednesday, the ashes of Castro would make a trip around the island so that all Cubans could bid him their last "goodbyes".

CARAVAN OF FREEDOM

The trip would take the reverse route of the "Caravan of Freedom", in which the rebels of the Sierra Maestra crossed the country from Santiago de Cuba when the Cuban Revolution triumphed in 1959.

See: Rare pictures of Fidel Castro

The remains of the former Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Armed Forces would arrive in Santiago, the cradle of the Revolution, on Saturday, when another massive tribute ceremony would take place in Antonio Maceo Square. The burial ceremony of his ashes, which was expected to be attended by his family, would take place in the Santa Ifigenia Cemetery of Havana.

Also read: Cubans to throng Revolution Square in mourning for Fidel Castro

--- ENDS ---
If someone deposits valid legal tenders (Rs 2,000, Rs 500, Rs 100, Rs 50, Rs 20, Rs 10, Rs 5) of Rs 4,000, the withdrawal limit for that person would rise by Rs 4,000 over and above weekly withdrawal limit of Rs 24,000. For current accounts, the withdrawal limit is Rs 50,000 a week for small traders.

By Press Trust of India: To encourage people to deposit valid currency notes in banks, RBI today said bank customers would be able to withdraw deposits made in current legal tender notes beyond the current limits, a move aimed at increasing currency circulation in system.

For example, if someone deposits valid legal tenders (Rs 2,000, Rs 500, Rs 100, Rs 50, Rs 20, Rs 10, Rs 5) of Rs 4,000, the withdrawal limit for that person would rise by Rs 4,000 over and above weekly withdrawal limit of Rs 24,000. For current accounts, the withdrawal limit is Rs 50,000 a week for small traders.

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DETAILS OF RBI CIRCULAR



In a late evening circular, the Reserve Bank said that it has been reported that "certain depositors are hesitating" to deposit their money into bank accounts in view of the current limits on cash withdrawals from accounts. "As it is impeding active circulation of currency notes, it has been decided, on careful consideration, to allow withdrawals of deposits made in current legal tender notes on or after November 29, 2016 beyond the current limits; "Preferably, available higher denominations bank notes of Rs 2000 and Rs 500 are to be issued for such withdrawals," the Reserve Bank said.

Also read:Demonetisation hits Parliament House too, ATMs in premise run out of cash



After the withdrawal of legal tender character of old Rs 500/1000 notes from November 9, a Rs 24,000 per week limit (including from ATM) on withdrawal has been put in place.

Additionally, RBI has also allowed banks operating currency chests to operate Chest Guarantee Scheme for Specified Bank Notes (SBNs)CGSS if they have additional space.

However, they can do so if the additional space in their existing currency chest or additional storage space at the same centre which is nearly as safe and secure as that of a currency chest.

Also read:

Minors used by Left parties during protest march against demonetisation

Requisite approval for operating CGSS will be granted by RBI Regional Office concerned, on receipt of request from any bank, it said.

Yesterday, RBI had allowed banks to park such currencies at currency chests at the district level so as to decongest the storage facility.

A currency chest operating at the point to be called Designated Chest (DC) will be required to operate a separate vault -- to be named Chest Guarantee Vault (CGV) -- as an extended arm of it, it had said.

Also read:

Chaos ensues after Mamata's massive protest against demonetisation, cripples normalcy in Kolkata

Watch the video





--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 27 (PTI) Records related to loans given to industries promoted by Gautam Adani cannot be disclosed as these are held by State Bank of India in fiduciary capacity and involve commercial confidence, the Central Information Commission has held.

The order of the Commission came on a plea by Ramesh Ranchordas Joshi who wanted to know from State Bank of India "the basis of giving huge loans to Gautam Adani Group along with the evidence that the loan was connected to the coal mines of Australia".

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"The CPIO informed the appellant that the information being sought was commercial information and held by them in trust for the third party, therefore, it could not be provided and denied information under section 8(1)(d)(commercial confidence) and (e)(fiduciary capacity) of the RTI Act," Information Commissioner Manjula Prasher noted in the order.

During the hearing before the Commission, State Bank of India claimed that Joshi had sought information of the Gautam Adani Group.

The Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of State Bank of India claimed Joshi had not mentioned any larger public interest in the matter in his RTI application which was brought in at the stage of first appeal only.

According to the RTI Act, the information, which is otherwise exempted from disclosure, can be disclosed if there is larger public interest involved.

"Therefore, even though the CPIO and the FAA (First Appellate Authority) had denied information taking exemption u/s 8(1)(d) and (e) of the RTI Act, Section 8(1)(j) also became applicable in the matter as the information sought was about third partys loan account. The appellant was not present to point out any shortcoming in the decision," Prasher pointed out in the order.

The Information Commissioner said that the appellant had sought information on the basis of giving loan to the Gautam Adani Group and information regarding the proof of the loan being connected with the coal mines of Australia.

"He had not mentioned any larger public interest in the matter, let alone substantiate in his RTI application. Further he had not requested for any copies of documents while seeking information which was added in his second appeal," she said.

Prasher said Joshi had sought third partys personal information held by the bank in fiduciary capacity involving commercial confidence.

"The Commission, therefore, holds that the information sought is exempt under Section 8(1)(d), (e) and (j) of the RTI Act," the Information Commissioner said. PTI ABS SMN SRY

--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) The Supreme Court today mulled shifting RJD strongman Mohd. Shahabuddin, facing trial in 45 criminal cases, from Siwan jail in Bihar to Tihar Central Jail in the national capital saying it is test case for the "concept of fair trial and witness protection".

"This is a case which gives a test for criminal jurisprudence on the concept of fair trial and witness protection," a bench of justices Dipak Misra and Amitava Roy said while also favouring all the pending criminal cases in Bihar to Delhi.

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The bench adjourned the hearing for tomorrow and asked the advocates to come prepared on the point of transfer of cases and accused to Delhi from Siwan.

At the outset, senior advocate Shekhar Naphade appearing for Shahabuddin said the petition filed by wife of a journalist who was killed in May has sought his transfer out of the jail in Siwan.

He said that the plea is an interested litigation and is politically motivated and just because their are allegations he should not be transferred.

To this the bench said that for the concept of fair trial he can be transferred out of Siwan jail.

Naphade said it will be unfair on his part as he will loose the visitation rights.

"We are not saying you do not have any visitation rights but we have to weigh a balance somewhere," the bench said.

The senior lawyer then said that there are no allegation against him and the only allegation is that police was not acting against me.

"There are only allegations and not a single one is against me. Let CBI investigate whether I was in custody on May 13 when the alleged murder of a journalist took place. Just I am declared hardened criminal and a victim of media trial, I cannot be allowed to move out of Siwan jail," Naphade said.

Additional Solicitor General P S Narasimha appearing for CBI filed its status report in the court and said that it will welcome if the cases are transfered to Delhi.

The bench asked the counsel appearing for Bihar government as how many cases are pending against Shahabuddin to which he said that 44 cases are pending in the state while one case is pending is neighbouring Jharkhand against him. (MORE) PTI MNL SJK RKS ZMN

--- ENDS ---
Senior Navy officers view the leaks as a matter of corporate rivalry but want to know the extent to which the submarines have been compromised.

By Ajit Kumar Dubey: The defence ministry is planning to form a joint team with France to investigate the extent of leakage of information about the Indian Scorpene submarines, six of which are under construction at the Mumbai based Mazagon Dockyards Limited.

The Indian side had formed a high level committee in September soon after media reports from Australia came out saying that 22,000 pages of information about the Indian programme had leaked out and this could compromise the safety of the classified portions of the project.

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ABOUT THE LEAK

In Australia, around 10 pages of the Indian programme were leaked and before more papers could be published by a newspaper, a court put a stay on its publication and ordered the whole material to be returned to the French firm DCNS, which is the original manufacturer of the vessels.

Also read: 10 things to know about India's most lethal Scorpene submarines



Also read: India shelves plan to expand French submarine order after Scorpene data breach



"Whatever we could access through the public reports, does not say much on the extent and the possible impact of the leakage but the bulk of the leaked report is with the French stakeholders. That is why, we want to form a joint team to look into the matter," senior sources in the defence ministry told Mail Today.

The government is in the process of determining the French partner for the investigation. "We would see whether it would be DCNS or the French government," they said. Recently, the defence ministry has informed Parliament that a committee was constituted by it to enquire into the reported leak of documents.

NO PROGRESS IN INVESTIGATIONS

"The Committee has submitted its report, which is under examination," Minister of State for Defence Sunash Bhamre had informed the Lok Sabha. Though the committee has not been able to make much headqay in its probe due to limitation of available leaked material, it was a matter of great satisfaction for the force that the leak did not happen in India and took place in Australia. Preliminary investigations showed that the leak took place in the DCNS office in France.

Also read: Anxious, but India will induct Scorpene submarine without delay



THE DAMAGE

According to reports, 22,400 pages related to Indian Navy's six under-construction Scorpene submarines were leaked by a retired French Navy Captain who was working as a subcontractor for DCNS - which is a French government-owned submarine building firm. The documents which are marked as 'restricted' are about the combat capabilities of the submarines of which the first is INS Kalvari. In Indian hierarchy of classifications, restricted-class documents comes after highly important files - marked as top secret and secret.

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Senior Navy officers view the leaks as a matter of corporate rivalry but want to know the extent to which the submarines have been compromised. India had signed the contract for these submarines in 2005 for around Rs 18,000 crore and the first boat was supposed to be inducted by the year 2011. However, due to delays the time-lines slipped by another four years and the cost also went up by another Rs 5,000 crores. Due to the leakage incident in France, the Navy and other services have started enforcing cyber security procedures more strictly to prevent any such theft of information at their end.



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) Sheela Foam, makers of Sleepwell mattresses, is planning to foray into the Middle East markets with an aim to tap Indian diaspora, and the company expects contribution from export to be in double digit over the next two to three years.

Besides, the company, which would tomorrow launch its initial public offer to raise Rs 510 crore, is also considering to have new units in Madhya Pradesh for the Central region and in Eastern UP.

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"In Middle East region, brand is registered there and we would be able to send material there. Although, transport cost for mattress is very high but fortunately for places as Dubai charges are reasonable," Sheela Foam MD Rahul Gautam told PTI.

Presently, the company has Rs 1,600 crore turnover, of which Rs 300 crore comes from its Australia-based wholly owned subsidiary Joyce Foam Pty Ltd.

The company is present in the neighbouring markets of Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

On being asked that whether the contribution from export would be in double digit in coming years, Gautam said "For sure. It would be in next 2-3 years".

However, he also added that potential of the domestic market is very high and after the implementation of GST, it would grow further.

Sheela Foam, which presently operates 11 plants, is also considering to have two more units to cater Eastern UP and central India markets.

"As we go forward, we may have one or two units, which would be catering to the markets of central India and Eastern UP," Gautam added.

After listing of Sheela Foam, promoters would have around 85 per cent shares of the company.

The company has fixed the price band at Rs 680-730 for the offer, which will remain open to bidding from November 29-December 1.

"The company will not receive any proceeds from the offer and all proceeds from the offer will go to the selling shareholder," said Sheela Foam.

Sheela Foam also manufactures foam-based home comfort products like mattresses, furniture-cushioning, pillows, cushions and sofa-cum-beds.

The company has 12 pan-India distribution network consisting of over 100 exclusive distributors, more than 2,000 exclusive retail dealers and over 2,500 multi-brand outlets. PTI KRH BAL

--- ENDS ---
By India Today Web Desk: Alia Bhatt might have maintained her single status all this while but rumours of her relationship with Sidharth Malhotra have surfaced every now and then. The two, however, have always maintained that they are "close friends".

ALSO READ: Has Alia confided in Varun about her break-up with Sidharth?

ALSO READ: Sidharth-Alia together in Aashiqui 3? Other real-life couples we want on screen



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It's been a while since Sid and Alia have been spotted together, but Sid made an exception for Shaheen Bhatt's (Alia's younger sister) birthday bash.

The Baar Baar Dekho actor, who recently returned from New Zealand, was seen coming out of the bash with friend Karan Johar. Alia and Sidharth avoided getting clicked together. While Sid made an early exit along with Karan, Alia was seen with her friend Akansha Ranjan.

Alia, who is riding high on the success of her latest release Dear Zindagi, posed with her bestie as she made her way out of the bash.

Photo: Yogen Shah Photo: Yogen Shah

On the work front, Alia's Dear Zindagi has struck gold at the ticket windows. Within three days of its release, the Gauri Shinde directorial venture has collected Rs 32.5 crore.

(Photos: Yogen Shah)

ALSO WATCH: SRK-Alia speak on relationships, love and heartbreak





--- ENDS ---
By India Today Web Desk: A picture speaks a thousand words. And given the several pictures of Sonam Kapoor with rumoured beau Anand Ahuja doing the rounds on social media, we cannot help but notice.

SEE PIC: Sonam Kapoor's rumoured beau Anand Ahuja's gift to her

SEE PIC: Sonam Kapoor makes her relationship with rumoured boyfriend Anand Ahuja public?

Although the Neerja actor has maintained that she is single, reports suggest that she is dating Delhi-based businessman Anand for quite some time. After their first public appearance at Akshay Kumar's success bash for Rustom, Sonam's sister Rhea shared a picture from a family gathering where the lovebirds were spotted holding hands.

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Recently, the fashionista was in London with Anand for a friend's engagement. The duo looked stunning, with Sonam wearing a black strapless gown and Anand donning a black suit, complete with a bow tie.

On the work front, Sonam Kapoor will be seen next in sister Rhea's Veere Di Wedding with Kareena Kapoor Khan.

--- ENDS ---
The mayor of Beppu City, Japan--famous for its hot springs--is now going to start this unique amusement park.

By India Today Web Desk: Calm and relaxed just aren't the words you'll associate with an amusement park. No, these family destinations with roller coasters and crazy rides are all about the adrenalin rush.

But there's one kind of amusement park which promises to be relaxing, even rejuvenating--and it's going to open in Japan.

Mayor Yasuhiro Nagano of Beppu City, which is famous for its hot springs, issued an online challenge last week: If the YouTube video proposing the opening of a 'spamusement' park released by his office gets more than a million views, he'll build it in his city.

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You heard that right! An amusement park with pools, saunas, and tubs full of water from Beppu City's hot springs; a park where everybody can roam around in towels, and indulge in all the fun provided by an amusement park!

The mayor of Beppu City, Yasuhiro Nagano, has announced that he'll be building this unique spamusement park. Picture courtesy: Facebook/Yasuhiro Nagano

The video that shows this prospective 'spamusement' has hit more than 1.8 million views already, and Nagano's office has announced that it will go ahead with making this dreamland a reality.



Also read: Paris will soon be home to a nudist park



And if everything the video shows is actually done, this is one place you'd love to go to. Forget indoor spas--Beppu City's 'spamusement' park will have roller coasters full of aromatic and therapeutic water to soak in, while you enjoy the thrilling ride. Even the merry-go-rounds at this place will have similar tubs!

Even the merry-go-rounds at this spamusement park are relaxing. Picture courtesy: YouTube Even the merry-go-rounds at this spamusement park are relaxing. Picture courtesy: YouTube

Seriously, this might just be the perfect balance between an adrenalin rush and the most relaxing spa experience at the same time.

Don't believe us? Take a look at this video:



--- ENDS ---
The arrested men are believed to have been involved in the planning of five different court attacks. Explosives were confiscated from the suspects' residence.

By Pramod Madhav: Following raids in several places across Madurai in Tamil Nadu, three suspected al-Qaeda operatives were arrested today by the National Investigation Agency, police said.

Police said the three allegedly planned to attack 22 top leaders of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.



also read: ISIS using 'intolerance', beef row to radicalise youth in India

INVESTIGATION AND ARREST

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Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali. While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from G R Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram.

Police said NIA raided several places on receiving specific information that suspected al-Qaeda activists were operating in and around Madurai.

The NIA had tracked their movement for 10 days before apprehending the suspects today morning.

Police are also on the the lookout for two other men, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman.



also read: Maharashtra ATS takes help of IIT students to crack whip on ISIS cyber threat, de-radicalise 24 youths

The arrested men are believed to have been involved in the planning of five different court attacks. Hoards of explosives were confiscated from the suspects' residence.

Police said the arrested suspects had made threatening phone calls to six different embassies as well.

(With inputs from PTI)









--- ENDS ---
A picture of Ajith Kumar on the sets of Thala 57 is doing rounds online.

By India Today Web Desk: Following the commercial success of Vedalam, Ajith Kumar and director Siruthai Siva are once again collaborating for an upcoming yet-untitled film.

While the team is rigorously shooting for the film, a picture of Ajith Kumar on the sets was uploaded online and has already piqued the curiosity quotient among fans.



ALSO READ: Kavalai Vendam movie review: Jiiva's film has the laughs, but where's the story?



ALSO READ: Dear Zindagi movie review- SRK and Alia are to watch out for



ALSO READ: Arrival Movie Review- Aliens arrive in the Amy Adams-starrer and leave behind a great film



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Rajashekar, an industry insider shared the picture on Twitter.



Recently, Akshara Haasan, who's playing a pivotal role in the film, joined the team in Bulgaria.



Enrout to Bulgaria!!!!! ? Akshara Haasan (@AksharaHaasan1) November 20, 2016

Tipped to be a spy thriller, the film will see Ajith Kumar as an Interpol officer, who investigates a murder in Chennai, that leads him to different parts of the world.

Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi, who has been roped in to play the bad guy, went on record saying that Ajith Kumar is the one and only superstar and that he's very excited to work with him.

Kajal Aggarwal will be playing the leading lady in the film. Directed by Siva, the film is expected to hit the screens next year.

Anirudh Ravichander is collaborating with Ajith Kumar for the second time after the commercial success of Vedalam.

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By PTI: Banda (UP), Nov 28 (PTI) Three people were killed and two others injured in neighbouring Chitrakoot district when their car hit a tree at Ramnagar-Deondha village, police said today.

The victims were returning to their village last night when the driver lost control over the vehicle and it dashed into a roadside tree, said Chitrakoot SP D P Singh.

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While Kallu Vishkarma (55), Nand Kishore (32) and Sushil (35) were killed on the spot, two others were seriously injured and rushed to a hospital. PTI COR SAB RB

--- ENDS ---
The 30-year-old Dalit and his family were accused by the village pradhan of stealing a radish from his fields.

By Press Trust of India: A 30-year-old Dalit was shot at allegedly by a village pradhan and three others who also thrashed his family members after accusing them of stealing a radish, police said today.

The incident took place on Sunday when the four accused, including village pradhan Anil, his son Nishant and nephew Sarouttem, reached Sunil Kumar's house in a car and started beating his family members, Circle Officer Bhushan Verma said.

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They accused the family of stealing a radish from the village pradhan's fields. When Kumar protested, the accused fired at him, the circle officer said.

The victim was taken to the hospital in a critical condition, the officer said.

ALSO WATCH



The police have registered a case against the four accused who are absconding.

Senior police officers have impounded the gram pradhan's car.

Security has been tightened and extra police deployed in the area, the circle officer added.

ALSO READ: I am a Dalit, said Rohith Vemula in WhatsApp video taken days before he died

ALSO READ: Dalit man found murdered in UP's Muzaffarnagar, case filed

ALSO READ: Uttarakhand shamed: Dalit man killed for arguing with upper-caste school teacher

ALSO READ: A repeat of Una: Pregnant Dalit woman, husband beaten up for refusing to remove cow carcass



--- ENDS ---
The handwritten letter referred to Muslims as "children of Satan" and called Trump the "new sheriff in town [sic]" who will eradicate the country's Muslim population and cleanse America.

By India Today Web Desk: Three California Mosques received letters threatening genocide of Muslims and that the new president-elect Donald Trump will do to Muslims what Adolf Hitler "did to the Jews".

According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the letters were sent to the Islamic Centre of Long Beach, the Islamic Centre of Claremont, and to the Evergreen Islamic Center in San Jose.

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The handwritten letter referred to Muslims as "children of Satan" and called Trump the "new sheriff in town [sic]" who will eradicate US of the Muslim population and cleanse America.

Also read: Donald Trump's Trump Tower turns into Dump Tower on Google Maps



"You Muslims are a vile and filthy people. Your mothers are whores and your fathers are dogs," the letter read. "You are evil. You worship the devil. But, your day of reckoning has arrived."

The letter advised Muslims to pack their bags and "get out of Dodge". After the threat, CAIR and US civil right groups are calling for better police protection of American mosques in California.

The letter was signed by "Americans for a Better Way" and ended with "long live President Trump" and "God bless the USA". The incident is being treated as a "hate-motivated incident" by the investigators.

Also read: President-elect Trump claims to have won popular vote, if 'illegal' votes for Clinton are deducted



Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for CAIR, said that the anti-Muslim rhetoric that came out of the presidential campaign was to blame, reported The Washington Post.

During his presidential campaign Trump had called for "a total and complete shutdown" of Muslims entering the United States.

Also watch:



--- ENDS ---
India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

By Reuters: Anticipating a more protectionist US technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) , Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

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ALSO READ | Visa fee hike discriminatory, targeted at Indian IT firms: Jaitley tells US



Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The US currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.

ALSO READ | H-1B visa issue may cause friction between India-US ties under Donald Trump



"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and US businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the US.

"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the US and Europe, around 80 per cent of whom are locals.

ACQUISITIONS

Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big US and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

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Buying US companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.

"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including U.S.-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a U.S. cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more US acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

OFFSHORING & AUTOMATION

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

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With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 per cent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero."

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

"The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend...to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.



--- ENDS ---
By PTI: Umaria (MP), Nov 27 (PTI) A 42-year-old worker was killed when roof of a coal mine caved in near here, police said today.

Shivkumar Sahu was working in the mine, run by South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL), when he got trapped following the collapse yesterday, a police official said.

The mine caved in when Sahu was making a hole overhead with a drilling machine, said Inspector R B Soni of Naurodabad Police Station, under whose jurisdiction the mishap took place.

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He was pulled out and rushed to a hospital where the doctors pronounced him brought dead, Soni said.

"We have registered a case and further investigations are on," the officer added. PTI CORR LAL RSY SAI RDS

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XCo, or Xchange Over Coffee, is little cafe in North Campus where you can go cashless--as long as you have fiction and non-fiction books in good condition.

By India Today Web Desk: Students living in university hostels across India are some of those who have been hit the hardest by the recent demonetisation move by the government. With classes held throughout the day, these kids can barely take the time out to stand in bank or ATM lines every day for their money. And this is one group that depends on ready cash for everything from daily xeroxes to food at canteens and cafes.

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But one little cafe in Delhi University's North Campus has come up with an amazing way to deal with students' cash crunch in this hour. XCo, or Xchange Over Coffee--a cafe near Miranda House--is accepting books in lieu of payment for food and beverages.

The cafe, which is popular for its cheesy burgers and Oreo shakes among other goodies, is based on the old system of barter in a new form. If you have fiction or non-fiction books you want to give away, you can take them to this cafe and get a free meal!

The cafe runs on the motton of 'Sharing is uniting'. Picture courtesy: Instagram/xco_xchange_over_coffee

23-year-old Shivam Dewan set up the cafe six months ago, and while the place did get a lot of footfall before November 8, it has increased a lot over the last few weeks. "We are an exchange shack, promoting bartering instead of buying. We accept books in lieu of money. There has been a 60 per cent rise in barter of books for coffee and meal in the past 10 days at our cafe," Dewan told Hindustan Times.

Also read: Cafe Leopold and other restaurants that have picked themselves up and gone back to business after a brush with terror

The cafe also accepts cash, which is where we suppose it gets the money to buy the ingredients. But it's the book barter that has more takers. "In fact, we have had a steady stream of people who want to barter shoes, clothes, bags, etc, but as of now we accept only books--fiction and non-fiction in good condition," says Dewan.

XOC is famous for its delicious burgers and shakes. Picture courtesy: Instagram/foodieincarnate XOC is famous for its delicious burgers and shakes. Picture courtesy: Instagram/foodieincarnate

XCo has already got a whopping 650 books this month. Dewan says that students also come to exchange books at the cafe, and many students actually do that as well. People can post lists of books to barter on the XCo website as well. If two students want to exchange books on their site, they get a redeemable coupon for food and drinks.

Clearly, at a time when ready money isn't available, nerds with stocks of fiction and non-fiction book collections can have the best of time at XCo. After all, this is just the time when this cafe's motto of 'Sharing is uniting' is all students need to get by.

--- ENDS ---

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"I'm an NRI and my work keeps me away for most part of the year. I've been away since May 2016. I've repeatedly offered my cooperation to governmental agencies in their investigations," said Naik.

By Mustafa Shaikh: Controversial preacher Zakir Naik has called the Modi government anti-Muslim. He called himself an NRI and gave work as an excuse for not returning to India. In an interview, Naik has answered some of the most frequently asked questions.

Q: Do you plan to challenge the ban in court? If yes, when?

A: Yes, the ban will be challenged as soon as possible. My legal team in Delhi and Mumbai are considering all options possible.

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Q: Why did you give donation of Rs 75 lakh to Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust?

A: IRF carries out several social programmes in education and health. It does so by donating money to several other NGOs, hospitals and educational institutions. This is done by granting scholarships to needy students and donating money to hospitals for treatment of the poor who cannot pay for expensive surgeries. IRF also runs its own free medical clinics in Mumbra, Mumbai that gives free treatment to more than 5000 patients a month. Under a similar programme, IRF donated Rs 50 lakhs to RGCT few years ago, which the trust later returned in July 2016 for reasons better known to them.

Q: Do you agree that some youths who have joined ISIS have been influenced by you?

A: No, I don't agree with that. It is atrocious even to imply that.

I am followed by more than 100 million people from across the world through television, Facebook and YouTube. Tens of thousands of people have come closer to Islam after listening to my talks and videos on topics that have ranged from misconceptions about Islam, Quran and modern science, education, women's rights in Islam, family issues, Islamic view on terrorism and jihad.

Also read:

Trouble for Zakir Naik grows after ban: NIA tightens noose, IRF staff resigns



I do agree that I inspire tens of thousands of people to come closer to Islam but every fan of mine may not do everything I say. Once a person comes closer to Islam, there are possibilities that he is exposed to other speakers as well, some of whom misguide them in the name of Islam. They encourage them to kill innocent people, which is totally against the Quran. If you listen to my talks, you will not find a single video where I have condoned terrorism or killing any innocent human beings.

"I AM BEING MISQUOTED"

I've been giving lectures for more than 20 years and there's not a single lecture where I've ever encouraged anyone to kill any other innocent human being, whether Muslim or non-Muslim. In the media and elsewhere, I am being misquoted through half sentences and out of context clips, which try to give an impression that I promote terrorism. I'm totally against terrorism. I condemn all acts of terrorism, including killing of innocent human beings, which is considered as the second major sin in Islam. Islam and Quran are totally against all acts of terrorism. And that is what I've always preached.

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It is wrong to imply that a few miscreants who joined terror groups were influenced by me. I'm sure you agree that I have good oratory skills. So if I was really spreading terror, wouldn't I have made a few lakh terrorists by now? Not just a handful? The fact is that I've always preached peace and harmony, and how to become good human beings by following Quranic tenets. In a fan following of millions, there may be a handful of anti-social elements who will go astray and take up violence. But they are surely not following what I've told them. The moment they pick up senseless violence, they cease to be Islamic and they surely lose my support.

Also read:



Zakir Naik's open letter: IRF ban a communal decision, law doesn't apply to Yogi Adityanath, Sadhvi Prachi



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Q: Theresa May was the first leader who had banned Dr Zakir Naik when she was British home minister. Why are you blaming Modi government?

A: I am not banned in UK. I have been 'excluded', which means I cannot enter UK. A ban would have meant banning my speeches on television, my NGO as well as my books, audio and video CDs. None of that has happened. My organisation and my published materials are very much in circulation in UK and doing some commendable work in spreading the message of peace in Islam. Even the exclusion in UK was politically motivated since the earlier government the Labour Party a few months ago when they were in power before myself being excluded, the head of Counter Terrorism had send a senior officer to request me to help them to reach those Muslims whom they felt were misguided.

In fact, for my work spanning over two decades and even after being excluded from UK in 2010 I've been awarded some of the highest civilian awards by several countries, like Malaysia, Dubai, Sharjah & Gambia including the King Faisal Prize for Service to Islam by King Salman of Saudi Arabia which is the most prestigious award of the Islamic World similar to the Nobel Prize for Peace. My talks continue to attract lakhs of people from all communities.

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Also read:



Full text of Zakir Naik's open letter to India: Ban timed with demonetisation to escape resistance



It is only in India, my homeland, that even after attracting hundreds of thousands of audience for several years I have been banned. Imagine I was invited twice in the last few years before the Modi government came to power to the National Police Academy in Hyderabad which is the most prestigious training institute for Indian Police to address the IPS officers. Most of the officers I addressed may yet be in service. Do you mean to say that this prestigious Institution invited a person who promotes terrorism to address the IPS officers. This ban is truly unfortunate and undoubtedly politically motivated. Like in UK where the Counter Terrorism head disagreed with the exclusion but had to give in to the then Home Secretary here in India too I am positive that the officers in NIA & other Departments after doing thorough research for more than 4 months may have surely realized that I am far away from promoting terrorism have no choice but to give in to the political pressures. More unfortunately, it is also indicative of the grim state of affairs existing in my beloved homeland since the Modi government took over two-and-a-half years ago.

Q: Why are you not coming back to India?

A: I'm an NRI and my work keeps me away for most part of the year. I've been away since May 2016. As for addressing the current controversy, I've repeatedly offered my cooperation to governmental agencies in their investigations. Till a few days ago, no agency bothered to contact me, ask me questions, send me any notice or even lodge an FIR against me. Till date there's been no contact and the only FIR lodged against me was done after the ban.

Also read:



NIA asks banks to freeze accounts of Zakir Naik, IRF



Q: The NIA has found several proofs that can link IRF to ISIS. What you like to say about it?

A: Any talks of links to Anti ISIS is pure fabrication. For the past three months, there is a concerted effort by the government and its agencies to create an air of negativity around me and label me as a hatemonger. And till date, they've not provided a single proof to substantiate their claims. That's because none exist, and all that agencies are claiming are chatter and nothing else. What I'm doing now is the same work I've been doing for 25 years. Do you really think my so called "terrorist activities" would have been hidden from multiple intelligence agencies for so long? Most of my statements quoted for banning me have been made by me 8 to 18 years ago. One needs to look at these allegations from a political viewpoint. These allegations started when the current Modi government took over and that says a lot of things.

"MODI GOVERNMENT IS ANTI-MUSLIM"

Q: Do you think Modi government is anti-Muslim?

A: I don't think, I know it is anti-Muslim. The last decade and a half has several evidences of Modi's anti-Muslim behaviour and actions. And the most recent one is the banning of IRF, while the likes of Rajeshwar Singh, Yogi Adityanath and Sadhvi Prachi flourish under him.

But why ask me, ask the hundreds of millions of Indians who will tell you that Modi is anti-Muslim. And that makes him a danger to the Indian democracy.

Q: NIA claims that IRF funded Anas, a youth from Rajasthan, who apparently joined ISIS outfit. What's your reaction to that?

A: IRF funds education of underprivileged children from across the country. It's been doing that for several years now. It gives scholarships of more than Rs 1 crore every year. Scholarships are given in the field of medicine, engineering, management studies accountancy, etc. Thousands of needy students have benefitted from it over the years.

I'm in no position to confirm or refute regarding IRF funding Anas because all of IRF's documents have been taken away after the ban. I can tell you that it is highly improper and childish to allege that IRF's scholarship money was used to "fund terror". That's not possible because the scholarship amount goes straight to the institution and not to the student. Once the student submits the fee structure of his institution, a cheque is made out in the name of the institution and sent directly to the institution.

Also read:



Zakir Naik's NGO awarded ISIS terror accused Rs 80,000 scholarship



In some cases, the student may have paid the fees by taking loans or organising money from someone if the last date was due. In such a case, IRF pays to the student's account directly. Can anyone digest the claim that IRF funds terror and out of Rs 64 crores received in past 25 years, used only Rs 80,000 for funding terror?

Q: There are allegations of money laundering by IRF in the funds received from abroad. Your reaction.

A: There is a concerted witch hunting going on with an objective of implicating me by hook or by crook. Rs 47 crore in question came from my personal account in Dubai to my personal account in Mumbai in the last six plus years. It was duly declared by me in the returns and used for lawful activities including giving gifts and loans to my family members. I don't know where is the problem in that? The media has claimed that government authorities disclosed that Dr Zakir Naik's family members have received money from Middle Eastern countries. I challenge the authorities to prove that any of my immediate family members have received even a small fraction of Rs 47 crore from Middle Eastern countries they are claiming.

Here is a perspective- every year more than 12 billion US dollars (over Rs 80,000 crores) are officially sent from UAE to India by NRIs and a majority of that amount is sent by non-Muslims. I have sent an average of Rs 7.8 crores a year back to India in the past 6 years (total Rs 47 crores). It is all official. It's the money I earned as an NRI sent back to India through official channels. What is illegal about it? There are hundreds of non-Muslims sending more than hundred crore rupees every year from UAE to India. Let me remind you that out of the list of 100 richest Indians living in the Gulf countries 80 per cent are non-Muslims.

Also read:



NIA's request to social media: Block Zakir Naik's speeches



There is another figure of Rs 64 crores that media is saying that ED is claiming that IRF collected illegally. Although I cannot confirm this figure as accurate because we don't have the documents with us anymore, it is surely an amount received by IRF in donations over the last 25 years. That is close to Rs 2.50 crore per year. Lesser in earlier years and more in later years. More importantly, what the NIA is not saying is that more than Rs 50 crores out of the total are donations received from Indians living right here in India.

IRF received about Rs 14 crores in the FCRA account over the past 15 years. Out of this, about Rs 4 crores were from NRIs living abroad. Only about Rs 10 crores were received from foreign donors in the last 15 years. All of this was duly declared to the MHA, including the amounts, the names and the addresses of the donors. So, where is the question of money laundering?

Also read:



Centre blocks Zakir Naik's websites spreading objectionable content



If the government really thinks IRF is doing money laundering, then why do they not ban and close down all the institutions we have given donations to which was published in the media. All the donations we gave to all the organizations and institutions are legal and within the framework of law. Why do they only talk about Rajiv Gandhi Trust? Why do they not close down KJ Somaiya Trust in Sion Mumbai, Nair Hospital in Mumbai Central, Devilal Memorial Trust, Association of Management Studies and many others as published in media few days ago? Why are they only after IRF Educational Trust which is managing Islamic International School? The answer is they want to misuse their power on Minorities. If they have the guts why do they not ban and close down 100 per cent of all the organizations we have funded.

Q: Has anyone promised you help?

A: By the grace of the Almighty, my work and following are spread across the world. I have received from several Muslim countries a response better than what I had expected. If it comes to that, God willing many Muslim countries will roll the red carpet for this humble servant of Allah.

Q. Have you got the passport of Malaysia?

A: The Indian media has repeated hundreds of times in the last 4 months that I was banned in Malaysia. Now it says that I have been given the citizenship of Malaysia. How can a person who is banned in a country be given a passport of that country. Both these reports are absolutely false without any proof. I'm neither banned in Malaysia nor do I have its citizenship.

Also read:



FIR against Zakir Naik: NIA raids lead to incriminating evidence



Q. Some allege that the Zakat money received by IRF is not utilized as per the Islamic law?

A: All the money received by IRF is not from Zakat. Every rupee received as Zakat is utilized as per the Islamic rules of Zakat. All donations and Zakat received are utilized appropriately as per the rules of Shariah (Islamic law) and the donors' request, if any (as long as the request is permitted by Shariah).

--- ENDS ---
On Election Day, the cemetery where Susan B. Anthony is buried had to extend its hours for those wishing to cover her tombstone with I voted stickers. Many of us thought that the endless slog would be over, not just the 16-month slog of this curdled, rancid campaign, but also the 144-year slog for a woman to be taken seriously as a presidential candidate, earn the nomination of a major political party and actually win. As a feminist roughly of Hillarys vintage, who participated in one of the most significant social movements of the 20th centurythe Womens Liberation MovementI felt we were poised to break this barrier after all these years.

Devastatingly, even though Hillary won the popular vote, in her stead we got a publicly misogynistic, racist, nationalist, massively uninformed self-styled autocrat.

Hillary was a flawed candidate, and exit polls suggest she failed to galvanize, as Obama had, African Americans, Latinos and young people. But in considering what led to this loss, lets not forget how sexism, and sometimes rank misogyny, have thwarted womens quests to lead our country.

The suffragist Victoria Woodhull was the first woman to run for president, in 1872, representing the Equal Rights Party. In 1870, the passage of the 15th Amendment had granted African-American men the right to vote, but women of all races remained disenfranchised. So Woodhull herself, thwarted by sexism, hoped to combine the campaigns for womens equality and racial equality. Today that seems more pressing yet imperiled than ever.

In 1964, Maine Republican Margaret Chase Smithwhose candidacy was an object of merriment among many in the nearly all-male White House press corpsran in the primaries against Barry Goldwater, although she didnt win a single nominating contest. She had been the first member of the Senate to stand up against Joe McCarthy and asserted in her 1950 Declaration of Conscience speech, I dont want to see the Republican Party ride to a political victory on the Four Horsemen of CalumnyFear, Ignorance, Bigotry and Smear. How prophetic.

The first African-American woman elected to Congress, the outspoken feminist Shirley Chisholm, ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1972 and won 152 votes at the convention (compared to McGoverns 1,728). She knew she didnt have a chance but wrote the next year, What I hope most is that now there will be others who will feel themselves as capable of running for high political office as any wealthy, good-looking white male. She stated, repeatedly, that sexism had impeded her more than racism: The emotional, sexual and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says, Its a girl. 

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Geraldine Ferraro, as vice-presidential nominee, was asked on Meet the Press: Do you think the Soviets might be tempted to take advantage of you simply because youre a woman? Pat Schroeder was criticized for choking up when she withdrew from the presidential race in 1987, because it would reinforce the notion that women were too emotional to govern. Carol Moseley Braun and Elizabeth Dole tried, too. Of Dole, an article in New York Times Magazine noted that her sugary Southern charm would not carry her very far and asked who wants a magnolia for president?

So now, here we are, at the end of a long campaign in which the Republican candidate has injected the body politic with massive new doses of racism, xenophobia, attacks on a free press, conspiracy theories, and a dark, soured vision about the state of the countryand, lets not forget, misogyny. While the conventional wisdom held that authoritarianism, racial prejudice and ethnocentrism were the main drivers of Trumps support, my colleague Nick Valentino at the University of Michigan and his collaborators found in forthcoming research that hostile sexism was more powerful than authoritarianism and nearly as important as ethnocentrism as a predictor of support for Trump. This was especially true for men, and voter anger multiplied the effects of sexism. The researchers concluded that sexism is a powerful determinant of voter choice in 2016.

Yes, Hillary was a flawed candidate. Her penchant for privacynot surprising given what the Republicans and the national press have put her through since 1992was her Achilles heel, leading to the use of a private email server that came to symbolize her alleged untrustworthiness. It also led her to be not adroit enough with the media. Hillary misread the country: the fury about the wages of neoliberalismwhich, yes, she embodiedthat was gripping people, young and old, on the Right and the Left. Thus, she didnt have a galvanizing progressive message that, as the Sanders campaign demonstrated, millions were hungering for, even some white men feeling theyve been left behind.
* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati received the 2022 Adepi Award

* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati listed as one of the World Intellectual Property Review's "Influential Women in IP" of 2020.

* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati listed as one of the Managing Intellectual Property magazine's "Fifty Most Influential People" of 2018.

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Blog of the Year, 20 August 2008. * ComputerWeekly IT Law and Governance, 20 August 2008.
The conference was attended by the National Council of Resistance of Iran President-elect Maryam Rajavi, and a great many internationally distinguished politicians and officials from France and other countries.

Ingrid Betancourt, the Former Columbian Senator; Fatoumata Diarra, former judge for the International Criminal Court; David Norris, senator who once ran as a candidate for presidential elections in Ireland; Marcin Swiecicki previously the Mayor of Warsaw and Sir Geoffery Robertson, the Sierra Leone UN Court president were among the speakers at the conference.

During her speech, the NCRI President-elect Mrs. Rajavi criticised the U.S.-Iran Nuclear deal, calling it disastrous for the region, as it has enhanced the terrorist activities executed by the mullahs regime. She expressed hopes that the new U.S. administration will revise this policy.

The international community must end its silence and inaction vis-a-vis the mullahs crimes in Iran and the region, she urged in her speech. Any solution seeking to end Daesh is conditional on the complete eviction of the Iranian regime from the region, particularly from Syria. The people of Iran loathe this filthy war and stand by the people of Syria.

The situation in Syria, particularly in Aleppo, was discussed at length during the conference. During the program, devoted to the Syrian crisis, many notable politicians spoke and expressed their feelings. Fadel Abdul Ghany, the director of the Syrian Human Rights Centre, was among the speakers.

Many of the Iranian regimes forces have been killed in Syria, he said. The Iranian regime is assisting Assad with logistics, arms, and personnel. They are also trying to instigate a sectarian war in the region. But they have a political goal.

The Head of Aleppo City Council, Brita Haji Hasan spoke after Mr. Ghany. Aleppo is under siege and it is being bombed and is burning, he said. He blamed Iran, Bashar al-Assad, Russia and Daesh (ISIS/ISIL) for these atrocities. The Iranian regimes crimes in Syria are very clear. They are helping Assad both logistically and physically and they are sending their extremist militias to Syria to murder the people there in a fruitless attempt to keep Bashar Assad in power.

He expressed his support for The Peoples Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) who would help defeat the Iranian regime and bring relief to the Middle East, especially war-torn countries like Syria.

Eyewitnesses of the atrocities in Iran also gave their accounts during the conference. Iman Afsahi, a 33-year-old student who had just escaped Iran in order to join the PMOI/MEK movement, told the heart-breaking story of his fathers and uncles executions by the Iranian regime. I have come here to join the movement to obtain justice for the victims of the massacres in Irans prisons, Mr. Afsahi said.

The conference also commemorated the victims of the 1988 Massacre in Iran where 30,000 people were executed in the space of just a few months, for their alleged support of PMOI/MEK. The crime remains an indisputable violation of human rights, given that even children and pregnant women had fallen victim to the oppressive regime.

Our expectation and the expectation of the people of the Middle East is that the international community stops its policy of giving concessions to the Velayat-e Faqih regime and end its silence and inaction vis-a-vis the regimes crimes in Iran and the region, Mrs. Rajavi said. Instead, we expect them to respect the Iranian peoples struggle for freedom and the desires of the peoples of the region.
In a recent article for Huffington Post, Dr. Majid Rafizadeh outlined the politics, facts and laws concerning debates over the future of Iran, and elaborated upon some of the criticism that Irans largest counter-organisations Peoples Mojahedin Organization of Iran/Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (PMOI/MEK) and National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) have received from some of the U.S. officials in recent years.

Dr. Rafizadeh praised the MEKs ability to organise themselves, despite their leader Massoud Rajavi having been sentenced to death for his early activities in the MEK, and subsequently sentenced to eight years in prison. He was released in 1979, during the Revolution. Dr. Rafizadeh quoted Patrick Clawson, the director of research at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a scholar on a matter related to Iran: Rajavi had to rebuild the organization, which had been badly battered by the Peykar experience.

MEKs association with Peykar, a Marxist-Leninist faction that allegedly hijacked the movement that MEK had started, has damaged MEKs reputation. But Dr. Rafizadeh was adamant that Peykar were the ones guilty of these crimes and criticised the broadside that Daniel Benjamin, the former State Department Coordinator for Counterterrorism, had launched against MEK. During this campaign, Benjamin criticised former U.S. officials, including Mayor Rudy Giuliani, for showing support for the Iranian grassroots organisation.

There exists robust evidence, gathered by U.S. officials, Dr. Rafizadeh wrote, confirming that the mainstream MEK was not responsible for the killing of U.S. citizens in Iran. He explained that Peykar executed not only the U.S. civilians, but also the MEK leaders, and any MEK members who refused to become part of Peykar.

Dr. Rafizadeh also elaborated on the suspicions that the U.S. Treasury Department had over MEK in 2012, holding them accountable for supplying the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) with supplies. However, the Secretary of State at the time Hillary Clinton took MEK off the list of suspects the following year in September.

Dr. Rafizadeh provided further evidence for MEKs innocence. According to a report by Dr. Kenneth Katzman, Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs, at the Congressional Research Service, he wrote, State Department reports on international terrorism till 2011 did not assert that MEK ever targeted civilians purposely.

No law violations had been found by the Treasury. Dr. Rafizadeh argued that there is no legal leg on which anyone can make the case that advocates of the MEK were or are in violation of the law, which prohibits providing material support to a listed organization. He also highlighted the support that MEK had received from the European Court that ruled in MEKs favour, and the United States who even sent John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State to Albania to thank the Albanian government for resettling the MEK members from Iraq, where they lived at Camp Liberty, under dangerous conditions.

Concluding his article, Dr. Rafizadeh urged that the government and people should look forward, based on politics, facts, and law. First and foremost, the victory of Donald Trump needs to be accepted by his opponents in the spirit of good sportsmanship. Dr. Rafizadeh argued that the real debate that needs to follow is regarding the U.S. foreign policy in Iran. He called for Iran being held accountable, especially when it comes to abuse of human rights and the Iranian governments association with terrorist groups. He stated that MEK is a key player in bringing a democratic change in Iran, instigated by the Iranian people themselves.
[November 28, 2016] Winners Announced for First Annual "Make with Ada" Programming Competition

ESE Kongress -- AdaCore today announced the winners of its inaugural Make with Ada programming competition for projects implemented on ARM (News - Alert) Cortex M or R processors. Planned as an annual event, Make with Ada aims to showcase Ada and SPARK as language technologies that can significantly improve code quality for modern embedded systems without requiring a steep learning curve for developers unfamiliar with these languages. Prizes are awarded to the projects that best meet the overall criteria of software dependability, openness, collaborativeness and inventiveness. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005192/en/ This year the 1st place prize of 5000 went to Stephane Carrez for his EtherScope monitoring tool that analyzes Ethernet traffic. (Photo: Business Wire) This year the 1st place prize of 5000 went to Stephane Carrez for his EtherScope monitoring tool that analyzes Ethernet traffic. Running on an STMicroelectronics (News - Alert) STM32F746 board (Cortex M7), it reads Ethernet packets, performs real-time analysis, and displays the results on a 480x272 touch panel. The EtherScope interface can filter the results at different levels and report various kinds of information. The 2nd place prize of 2000 was awarded to German Rivera for his framework to develop control software for the NXP cup race car. The development system is a miniature race car chassis coupled with a FRDM-KL25Z board and a TFC-shield board. The car kit also includes two DC motors for the rear wheels, a steering servo for the front wheels and a line scan camera. The microcontroller is an NXP Kinetis KL25Z chip, with Cortex-M0+ core, 128KB of NOR flash and 16KB of SRAM. The 3rd place prize of 1000 was awarded to Shawn Nock for his Bluetooth Beacons ("iBeacon") project. The target was a Nordic Semiconductor nRF51822 System-on-a-Chip (a Cortex-M0 part with integrated 2.4GHz Radio) with a custom development board. Two special prizes (Crazyflie 2.0 nano drones) were also awarded. The Robert Dewar Special Prize for dpendability went to German Rivera for his IoT Networking Stack project for the NXP FRDM-K64F board. The Lady Ada Lovelace Special Prize for inventiveness was awarded to Sebastien Bardot for his Explorer and Mapper Robot project, which uses a Nucleo F411RE board based on stm32f411re chip from STMicroelectronics.



"I've been using Ada for several years on a variety of Open Source (News - Alert) projects," said First Prize winner Stephane Carrez. "But this was my first experience with Ada on a bare metal target, and that gave me the opportunity and motivation to learn more about the Ada Ravenscar profile. Receiving First Prize for the EtherScope project was a great honor to me, and I want to thank AdaCore for sponsoring this competition. Developing Open Source software in Ada on ARM has proved to be rewarding in multiple ways." "We were delighted to see the breadth and quality of the projects that were submitted, ranging from food dehydrators to robots to electronic power supplies," said Cyrille Comar, AdaCore President and one of the judges for the competition. "It was also fascinating to see the diverse backgrounds of the entrants and the variety of ARM platforms that were used. It shows that Ada technology can help anyone build reliable and secure embedded software without severe constraints on the hardware choices."

The Make with Ada competition ran from June 20 to September 30, 2016 and attracted 38 entries. Each entrant needed to design and implement an embedded software project for an ARM Cortex M or R processor, using Ada and/or SPARK as the principal language technologies. Entrants needed to demonstrate that their system met its requirements and was developed using sound software engineering practices. Embedded systems experts Guillaume Foliard (Radar Digital Processing Architect at Thales (News - Alert)), Jack Ganssle (Principal Consultant at The Ganssle Group), Dick Selwood (Europe Editor at TechfocusMedia), Bill Wong (Technical Editor at Penton Media), and Cyrille Comar (AdaCore President) served as the competition judges. One of AdaCore's goals in sponsoring the competition was to attract entries from embedded systems developers with no previous Ada experience, to show that programmers could come up to speed quickly and productively. As evidenced in a blog entry from one of the entrants, prize winner Shawn Nock, this goal was met: "I was able to become productive in Ada in about 8 hrs (starting from zero experience). Developing the beacon in Ada (a language I don't know well) took roughly the same time as the similar functionality in C and I have more confidence in the Ada code." The Make with Ada competition is part of an overall AdaCore initiative to foster the growth of Ada and SPARK for developing embedded systems and more generally for developing "software that matters". Other elements of this initiative are the free on-line training available at AdaCore U (u.adacore.com), and the various resources for free software developers and students/hobbyists at the github repository (github.com/AdaCore) and the libre site (libre.adacore.com). Information about next year's Make with Ada competition will be available during Q2 2017 at http://www.makewithada.org/. About Ada and SPARK Ada is a modern, internationally standardized programming language with a long and successful track record in the development of high-reliability embedded systems. Its strong typing and compile-time checking help catch errors early, when they are easiest and least expensive to correct. The most recent version of the Ada standard, Ada 2012, supports contract-based programming (pre- and postconditions for subprograms), which in effect embeds the software's low-level requirements as checkable assertions in the source code. In critical systems where testing alone might not provide sufficient confidence, the SPARK subset of Ada supports mathematics-based assurance that relevant program properties are met (for example, the absence of run-time errors such as buffer overflow). SPARK can be introduced incrementally into a project, and contracts can be verified either statically (by the SPARK proof engine) or dynamically (with run-time checks). About AdaCore Founded in 1994, AdaCore supplies software development and verification tools for mission-critical, safety-critical, and security-critical systems. Four flagship products highlight the company's offerings: The GNAT Pro development environment for Ada, a complete toolset for designing, implementing, and managing applications that demand high reliability and maintainability,

development environment for Ada, a complete toolset for designing, implementing, and managing applications that demand high reliability and maintainability, The CodePeer advanced static analysis tool, an automatic Ada code reviewer and validator that can detect and eliminate errors both during development and retrospectively on existing software,

advanced static analysis tool, an automatic Ada code reviewer and validator that can detect and eliminate errors both during development and retrospectively on existing software, The SPARK Pro verification environment, a toolset based on formal methods and oriented towards high-assurance systems, and

verification environment, a toolset based on formal methods and oriented towards high-assurance systems, and The QGen model-based development tool, a qualifiable and customizable code generator and verifier for Simulink and Stateflow models, intended for safety-critical control systems. Over the years customers have used AdaCore products to field and maintain a wide range of critical applications in domains such as railway systems, space systems, commercial avionics, military systems, air traffic management/control, medical devices, and financial services. AdaCore has an extensive and growing world-wide customer base; see www.adacore.com/customers/ for further information. AdaCore products are open source and come with expert on-line support provided by the developers themselves. The company has North American headquarters in New York and European headquarters in Paris. www.adacore.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005192/en/

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[November 28, 2016]

WTFast private high-performance gaming network partners with UOL BoaCompra to offer gamers regional payment options

SAO PAULO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- UOL BoaCompra  Latin America's cross-border payments pioneer and leading provider of digital payment solutions in emerging markets  is excited to announce a new payment support partnership with private gaming network WTFast. WTFast allows gamers worldwide to connect to industry-leading multiplayer online titles even when local dedicated game servers are not available, enhancing the experience by reducing lag, latency and ping. Effective immediately, UOL BoaCompra supports regional payment options from WTFast customers in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Portugal and Turkey.

"WTFast provides a significant advantage to gamers in emerging markets, dramatically lessening lag and improving overall network stability, especially where local server support doesn't exist," stated UOL BoaCompra Managing Director Renato Bertozzo. "We're proud to help make WTFast's services accessible to customers in Latin America, and soon in Portugal and Turkey, by offering them flexible payment options that include regional credit cards, local bank transfers, cash payments and even Go4gold credits."

With a focus on esports, WTFast enhances the online experiences ofclose to a thousand online titles  including Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, DOTA 2, League of Legends, Overwatch and more  via an internet-accessible private network with game traffic prioritization and numerous custom game support options. WTFast features monthly and long-term subscriptions, with additional functionality based on subscribers' needs. For more information about WTFast, please visit www.wtfast.com.







To speak with a representative of UOL BoaCompra, please contact Mario R. Kroll or CJ Melendez at [email protected].

About UOL BoaCompra

Founded in 2004, UOL BoaCompra is an online payment company, specializing in cross-border payments, videogames and digital services. UOL BoaCompra supports more than 6,000 online titles across Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Portugal, Spain and Turkey with more than 150 available payment methods. This includes Go4Gold, a virtual currency created specifically for game transactions. More than 130 of the largest gaming companies  including Electronic Arts, Valve Corporation, Riot Games, Games Oasis, SmileGate and Bigpoint  have partnered with UOL BoaCompra to bring their games to emerging markets. UOL BoaCompra also owns and operates the independent e-sports league XLG UOL (Xtreme League). For additional information, please visit boacompra.com, go4gold.uol.com.br or xlg.uol.com.br.

Contact:

Karen Oliveira (11 3038-8277)

Daniele Godoi (11 3092-6814)

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/wtfast-private-high-performance-gaming-network-partners-with-uol-boacompra-to-offer-gamers-regional-payment-options-300368464.html

SOURCE UOL BoaCompra
[November 28, 2016] Professor Evgeny M. Dianov, Russian Academy of Sciences, Awarded 2017 John Tyndall Award

The Optical Society (OSA) and the IEEE Photonics Society today announced that Professor Evgeny M. Dianov, Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), Russian Federation, is the recipient of the 2017 John Tyndall Award, an honor endowed by Corning (News - Alert), Inc. Dianov is being recognized "for pioneering leadership in optical fiber development and outstanding contributions to nonlinear fiber optics and optical fiber amplifiers." The award, one of the top honors in the fiber optics community, will be presented to Dianov during the plenary session of the 2017 Optical Fiber Conference (OFC) Conference taking place in Los Angeles, California, USA, 19-23 March 2017. Dianov graduated from Moscow State University in 1960 and began his scientific career at the P.N. Lebedev Physics Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences (1960-1983), then worked in the General Physics Institute (1983-2006). Dianov is currently with the Fiber Optics Research Center of RAS (2006 - present). His research interests include laser physics, nonlinear optics and fiber optics, and he has published more than 700 scientific papers and patents. He received the 1974 State Prize of the Soviet Union for "Neodymium Glass Lasers." In 1994 Professor Dianov became a Full Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.



"Professor Dianov and his team began their early research in the field of low loss optical fiber with very notable results - advancing the optical design, transmission, modal characterization, linearity and dispersion of a wide-range of optical fiber compositions," said Elizabeth Rogan, CEO, The Optical Society. "Several of those advancements were first-to-the-world and possessed record performance attributes. With this award, we congratulate Professor Dianov and his decades-long passion, determination and ground-breaking research in nonlinear fiber optics and optical fiber amplifiers." Christopher Jannuzzi, Executive Director, IEEE (News - Alert) Photonics Society added, "Professor Dianov's research brought about a new field of nonlinear fiber optics, enabled by the combination of low loss optical fibers and high power ultrafast lasers. Dianov's contributions significantly advanced fiber optic technologies and we are honored to recognize his many accomplishments and impressive career."

Since 1974 Dianov has been involved with most aspects of fiber optics, including fiber fabrication technologies, fiber measurements, nonlinear fiber optics, soliton propagation, fiber lasers and optical amplifiers. The main results included new types of optical fibers such as high-strength hermetically metal-coated, dispersion-decreasing, nitrogen-doped and low-loss highly nonlinear fibers; new results in nonlinear fiber optics such as the first observation of soliton self-frequency shift, the discovery of electrostriction mechanism of soliton interaction, generation of a train of fundamental solitons at high repetition rate, the proposal and experimental confirmation of a photovoltaic model of second-harmonic generation in glass fibers; the development of highly efficient Raman fiber lasers and optical amplifiers. Dianov received the State Prize of the Russian Federation for infrared fibers in 1998 and Vavilov Gold Medal for studies of nonlinear processes in optical fibers and the development of fiber sources of radiation in visible and near IR spectral ranges based on nonlinear phenomena. The John Tyndall Award is named for the 19th century scientist who was the first to demonstrate the phenomenon of internal reflection. First presented in 1987, the Tyndall Award recognizes an individual who has made pioneering, highly significant, or continuing technical or leadership contributions to fiber optic technology. Corning, Inc. endows the award, a prize check and a glass sculpture that represents the concept of total internal reflection. The award is co-sponsored by The Optical Society and the IEEE Photonics Society. About The Optical Society Founded in 1916, The Optical Society (OSA) is the leading professional organization for scientists, engineers, students and business leaders 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. About IEEE Photonics Society (IPS) The IEEE Photonics Society is one of the world's leading technical communities in the field of optoelectronics and photonic materials, devices, and systems, with members and activities engaged in research, development, design, manufacture, and applications, as well as with the various other activities necessary for the useful expansion of the field. As part of this dynamic worldwide community, more than 100,000 photonics professionals actively organize, contribute to, and participate in Society technical conferences, journals and other activities covering all aspects of the field. The IEEE Photonics Society has 75+ worldwide chapters and is part of IEEE, the world's largest technical professional association. The IEEE Photonics Society (IPS) is the current name for the former IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society (LEOS). Learn more at http://www.photonicssociety.org. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005582/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Ethernet Cable Market to Reach $1 Billion, by 2022, Globally - Allied Market Research

PORTLAND, Oregon and PUNE, India, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Ethernet Cable Market is estimated to reach $1 billion by 2022, anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 14.3% amid during forecast period 2014 - 2022, according to new research published by Allied Market Research. Asia-Pacific dominated the market, contributing more than 35% share of the overall market revenue, followed by Europe. The demand for high speed internet and rise in data center installation activities, primarily in the industrial sector, have fueled the market growth. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140911/647229 )

Swift rise in demand for high-speed internet facility, increased application of automation across industries, and reliable performance of Ethernet cables drive the market growth. However, high installation cost and limited availability may restrict the market growth. Moreover, it is anticipated that the rise in Power over Ethernet (PoE) coupled with increase in data center installations is anticipated to fuel the global market growth. Summary of the Ethernet Cable Market Report can be accessed on the website at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/ethernet-cable-market The copper cable segment accounted for more than 50% of the overall Ethernet cable market in 2015. High speed and low cost of these cables in industrial applications led this segment to dominate the market. However, fiber-optic cable segment would grow significantly and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 20.5% during the forecast period. This is due to increase in installation of fiber-optic cables for long distance applications as many renowned companies are launching advanced technology fiber-optic Ethernet cables. Moreover, China did significant contribution in the Asia-Pacific market in terms of revenue for fiber-optic technology. Among various geographical regions, sia-Pacific has contributed the maximum revenue share in 2015 and is expected to maintain its lead further as well. This could be attributed to rise in the internet demand due to rising population and increasing industrial activities. Moreover, high number of oil & gas industries in the Middle East use Ethernet cables for various applications and this is also expected to support the market growth.



Asia-Pacific is also projected to be the fastest growing region throughout the analysis period as China has the highest demand for fiber-optic cables due to high-speed internet demand and various security reasons. Moreover, enhancement in industrial development and increase in expenditures in emerging markets (such as Latin-America and Middle East) to satisfy the exponentially growing economies in these countries have strengthened the market growth. Technological advancements for cost-effective and long distance applications in these nations offer a lucrative opportunity for the Ethernet cable market growth. Key findings of the Ethernet Cable Market:

In 2015, copper cables segment led the overall Ethernet cable market revenue, and it is projected to grow at a CAGR of 14.3% during the forecast period.

Broadcast application segment is expected to exhibit rapid growth, owing to the rise in media and telecast activities.

Currently, Asia-Pacific leads the world Ethernet cable market and it is expected to continue this trend further owing to the swift rise in internet demand from several countries including China , Japan , and India .

leads the world Ethernet cable market and it is expected to continue this trend further owing to the swift rise in internet demand from several countries including , , and . China leads the overall Asia-Pacific Ethernet cable market with more than one-third of the market share.

The key players in the Ethernet cable market focus on expansion of their business operations in emerging countries with acquisition and expansion as a preferred strategy. The major players profiled in this report include Belden Inc., General Cable Technologies Corporation, Nexans, SAB Brckskes GmbH & Co. KG, Siemon, Schneider Electric, Anixter Inc., Siemens AG, Hitachi, Ltd., and Prysmian Group. Read similar market research reports on Semiconductors at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/semiconductor-and-electronics-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:

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CHARLESTON -- A woman who didn't show up for court was sentenced to prison time for not following probation requirements from convictions related to driving with a revoked license.

Rhonda K. Adams, 46, whose most recent address on record is on North 10th Street in Mattoon, still faces a pending charge that accuses her of not reporting to jail as ordered.

Adams received new sentences for earlier convictions for which she was originally placed on probation. The 18-month prison terms in the two cases were ordered to run at the same time.

She was placed on probation for convictions for obstructing justice and driving while license revoked.

In 2011, Adams pleaded guilty to a charge alleging she gave a false name to police during a traffic stop because she didn't have a valid license. In 2013, she received another probation sentence for driving with a revoked license.

Records in her cases indicate probation violations that included not appearing in court when required and the allegation in the pending case.

The new case accused her of not reporting to serve jail time, which had been stayed but then imposed as a sanction, on Oct. 3 of last year.

Coles County Circuit Judge Teresa Righter ordered Adams' probation sentences revoked during a hearing last month. The judge then sentenced Adams in absentia, imposing the prison sentences at a recent hearing.

Revoking the probation made Adams eligible for any sentence possible for the convictions. Each of the earlier offenses for which she was convicted, both felonies, could have resulted in a one- to three-year prison term.

Righter agreed to recommend Adams for prison system substance abuse and other counseling programs, but it will be up to prison officials to admit her into the programs.

The judge issued a no-bond arrest warrant for Adams after ordering the prison sentence.

The judge based the sentence on recommendations from Assistant State's Attorney Rob Scales and Assistant Public Defender Lupita Thompson.

Before hearing arguments on the sentence, Righter denied a request from Thompson to postpone the hearing.
CHARLESTON -- The housing market in Charleston and Mattoon, at least for the realty agencies in the area, has seen an increase in activity as opposed to recent years, according to Central Illinois Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service data.

In Charleston, the total number of closed units up to October was 189, which is a 1.1 percent increase over 2015. In Mattoon, the total number of closed units through October was 241. This is an 18.3 percent increase over the average units sold for the first 10 months per year since 2000.

According to the report encompassing this data, year-to-date sale prices in Charleston slipped from last month with the overall average falling 2.1 percent to $126,488. Median prices dipped as well, by 2 percent to $115,000. Even with a decline in the month over month, the year-to-date average price is up 6.2 percent, with median price up 12 percent from 2015, according to those numbers.

In Mattoon, the average sale price has increased 4.0 percent to $97,533 in comparison to the same period in 2015. The median price has dropped 2.8 percent to $76,500.

It is important to note that the price numbers for prior years encompass the entire year as opposed to the year-to-date sales those years.

This information was listed in a Coldwell Banker report compiling MLS data, which collects information all agencies in the area that are MLS members, at this point up to October.

While this information does make up a chunk of the housing market in the county, this data does include all of the sales in either city as it excludes sales by owners and any other sale not made by agencies who might not be MLS members.

Mike Staton of Coldwell Banker Classic Real Estate in Charleston said the data provided by the MLS still offers a good sense of the market in the area. According to numbers provided by Staton, Charleston sales made through the MLS made up 90 percent of total unit sales specifically for single-family residential units.

For Mattoon, these numbers were similar with a little over 80 percent of single-family residential unit sales going through the MLS system.

Century 21 KIMA Properties owner Kirk Swenson said, should the data covered in MLS take into account all of the sales in the area, though, the data would be a dead flat market. It is still more of a buyer's market, he said.

Staton noted that inventory of units to sell is high right now, but so far, there has been a strong enough demand of buyers to offset that.

Staton said the intention of the report is to look at more of a micro level in order to see how certain individual segments of the market are performing.

There is macro data when it comes to total sales, inventory levels and yearly average and median prices for each community, he said. However, combining the overall data for the county would dilute the information in the report, in my opinion.

Staton said it was a bit of a surprise, overall, seeing these numbers differ from that of the perception that has come from economic uncertainties at the state level.

With everything that has happened in the state economically, with the things going on at Eastern, we are kind of surprised by it, Staton said.

Donna Wood, All-American Realty broker, said while people have left the area, there is still a demand from others coming into the area for different reasons. She said overall the market has remained fairly active from her perspective.

She said this activity shows people are still moving around, whether it is moving to a smaller or a bigger home or moving outside or into the area.

Even with more negative events in the area like the layoffs hitting some people at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, the market has remained stable and strong in comparison to recent previous years, according to data.

Anytime you have significant job loss in a community, the expectation is it's going to depress the housing market, however, we have not experienced that yet, Staton said. For whatever reason, the housing market is still strong, though.

Swenson said the effects of such events could be delayed in the market. Swenson said, in general, it would be hard to quantify what effect a certain event might have on the market in general.

Staton said various things in the community and nationally play a hand in the market, which is fairly fluid.

However, in Charleston and Mattoon, the market is fairly stable like most rural-type areas, Swenson said.
This weekend the ground under the busy intersection in Fukuoka, Japan, subsided again for about seven centimeters, enough to stop the traffic. However, later the road has been opened again, Joinfo.com reports.

It was the second time this month that the road intersection was closed. On November 8, a fifteen-meter deep hole suddenly opened and swallowed the five lane road. It started with two smaller sinkholes, which merged into one. The resulting hole was 27 meters wide and 30 meters long. The crater filled quickly with water that seeped from the broken sewer pipes.

But, the problem seemed to be solved quickly. After only two days the sinkhole was repaired. The road workers had been working day and night. Exactly one week after the crater formed, the road was opened. The mayor, Soichiro Takashima, said that the ground under the asphalt is thirty times stronger.

Yet later the road started sinking again. Apparently, the sand and cement in the hole were settling to the place. The mayor has posted his apologies on Facebook, saying that he had not warned residents that the earth could sink a little.

Image: AP.
Nebraska officials are on a four-day trip to Israel to promote Nebraska beef and other agricultural products.

Lt. Gov. Mike Foley and Nebraska Department of Agriculture Assistant Director Mat Habrock arrived in Israel on Sunday and will stay through Wednesday to promote the state's agriculture industry and attend a special dinner reception at the U.S. Ambassador's residence featuring beef from Nebraska.

The dinner celebrates the arrival of the first shipment from the WR Reserve processing plant in Hastings, the only Israeli-approved kosher beef facility in the United States.

Israel earlier this year lifted a ban on U.S. beef imports that had been in place since December 2003,after a confirmed case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Washington state.

According to U.S. Department of Agriculture data, $433 million of beef products were imported by Israel in 2015, with more than 90 percent of those imports coming from South America and the rest from Europe. Nebraska hopes to claim a significant share of this beef market.
Most of your portfolio's returns will be driven by the minority of your stock picks, so a willingness to hold on to your winners long term can help you beat the market. For example, I'm up more than 370% on Align Technology (NASDAQ: ALGN), and following its third-quarter earnings, I still don't have plans to sell my stock anytime soon.
The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services has proposed revisions to the state's execution protocol that would keep secret the drugs and method of administration until 60 days before request for a death warrant.

At that time, the inmate would be notified of the drug or drugs, and quantity to be administered, according to a news release from the department.

The proposed changes come just three weeks after voters overwhelmingly did away with the Legislature's repeal of the death penalty.

A required hearing on the proposed changes is scheduled for Dec. 30 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the State Office Building, 301 Centennial Mall, Lower Level Conference Room.

The changes would allow the department to obtain available drugs and use the most current methods to administer them, said spokeswoman Dawn-Renee Smith. They could be directly purchased, obtained through the Department of Pharmacy or any other appropriate source, including a pharmaceutical or chemical compounder.

In accordance with state law, the proposal says, the director may authorize any records or information identifying a person, company or entity supplying the drugs to be confidential.

Nebraskans were decisive in their choice to maintain the death penalty and it is now our duty as elected officials to carry it out," said Gov. Pete Ricketts in a statement. "These proposed changes in protocol balance appropriate inmate notification with the flexibility to utilize various constitutionally approved drugs, so political maneuvers at the federal level cant circumvent the will of the people.

The protocol in effect now provides for a three-drug combination: sodium thiopental to render the inmate unconscious and pancuronium bromide, a muscle relaxant, to stop breathing. A third drug, potassium chloride, would stop the heart.

The state has been unable to procure the sodium thiopental and pancuronium bromide in recent years.

Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers, who has fought against the death penalty for decades, said execution procedures should never be done under the radar or in a sneaky way to keep the public from knowing about something that ought to be more transparent than anything else the state does.

The proposed protocol was released by the department after 3 p.m. Monday, and most of the people who could comment on it did not know about it or had not had a chance to look at it Monday afternoon.

Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash, who opposes the death penalty, said from what he had been told, he believed the proposal would trigger defense attorneys for death row inmates to file lawsuits on behalf of their clients based on how the new protocol would be carried out.

Ten men are on death row, and two more -- Nikko Jenkins and Anthony Garcia, each convicted of killing four people in Omaha -- could be headed to death row.

The ACLU of Nebraska sent out a statement saying it stands ready to fight any effort to cloak Nebraskas "broken death penalty" in secrecy.

"Regardless of how people feel about the death penalty, we should all agree that Nebraskans value government transparency and accountability in all matters," said Executive Director Danielle Conrad. As a state senator, Conrad voted to do away with the death penalty.

Both death penalty supporters and opponents should be able to agree that the most extreme use of state power should absolutely not occur in the shadows," she said.

Given the recent history of scandals within the Department of Corrections, this department should be making extra efforts to be transparent and accountable to the people of Nebraska."

The proposed protocol takes out a requirement that the warden be trained to conduct consciousness checks on an inmate once the first drug is administered.

The first or only drug injected must be capable of rendering the inmate unconscious, according to the proposal, and the IV team leader would reasonably verify the inmate was unconscious before administering any second or additional drugs.

According to the proposal, the drugs would be given in a quantity sufficient to cause death without "the unnecessary and wanton infliction of pain."

A chemical analysis would verify the substances at least 60 days before a death warrant is requested. The inventory of drugs would be reviewed every six months and upon receipt of an execution order from the Nebraska Supreme Court. Any expired drugs would be removed, according to the proposal.

The drug or drugs used would be determined by the Corrections director, and may be based on the availability of the drugs.

Nebraskans voted to keep the death penalty on Nov. 8.
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Lincoln police are thanking two residents who helped an officer during a fight early Sunday.

The incident began about 3 a.m. when the 28-year-old officer saw a man crossing O Street against the light. Traffic on Ninth Street had to stop at a green light to let the man cross, according to court documents.

The officer stopped to talk to the man and noticed he was slurring his speech and swaying. The man, later identified as Juma Sikeyo, 34, started arguing with the cop. When asked if he had a place to stay, Sikeyo couldn't answer, documents say.

The officer said he tried to take Sikeyo into protective custody to get him to detox, but Sikeyo began fighting. Both men ended up on the ground. Sikeyo pulled off the cop's radio and earpiece and tried punching him, documents say.

During the course of the struggle, two passersby stopped and helped roll Sikeyo over so the officer could cuff him.

Sikeyo continued to fight with the officer while walking to the cruiser, but was eventually taken to the jail on suspicion of third-degree assault on a police officer, failure to comply and resisting arrest.

Both residents left before officers could get their names, Officer Katie Flood said Monday.
The Lancaster County Sheriff's Office is investigating a report of shots fired into a home in the southwest part of the county.

People who live near Southwest 86th Street and Nebraska 33 called the sheriff's office after hearing several gunshots about 7 p.m. Sunday, according to an incident report from the sheriff's office.

One bullet went into a nearby home and hit a floor lamp, the report says.

No injuries were reported.
Rachel Pointer was 7 when she awoke to a hard thump on her window and saw her neighbor standing there, a gun to his head.

He had his sisters boyfriend standing behind him saying that I had to come out or he was going to shoot him, she said.

She crawled onto the porch of her Omaha home, and, just like that, she became a victim of sex trafficking.

Her trafficker, or pimp, told her that if she told anyone what was happening hed kill her family.

From that point on, he started selling me off to his friends for sex and sexual favors, Pointer recalled. And then there was another guy that came along that took me over.

Her second pimp introduced drugs and alcohol to keep Pointer and other young girls coming back. Her life as a sex trafficking victim continued until she was 16.

Today, Pointer is on the front lines of the fight, a liaison for the Free The People Movement in Nebraska.

One night they asked me to come out again, she recalled of the night she escaped from her old life. I went with them and they took me downtown to a location that was pretty quiet and blocked off.

At that point, I wouldve been OK with them just shooting me because I was in a really dark place, she said. But the other girl wanted drugs. Heroin was her drug of choice.

That other girl would die from an overdose, and Pointer said her traffickers told her if she kept silent about it she could leave.

They told me, Thats your warning, just leave.

* * *

The Polaris Projects definition of sex trafficking is the use of violence, threats, lies, debt, bondage and other forms of coercion to compel adults and children to engage in commercial sex acts against their will.

In Lincoln, the nonprofit I've Got a Name works to increase awareness of the problem and will host its year-end public celebration Dec. 1 at Berean Church, featuring music and a speech by the mother of a Lincoln girl who was trafficked.

My goal is to say that this really is (also) a men's issue and weve got to change peoples mindset so that this is not acceptable, said Ive Got A Name founder Robert Burton. Johns need to be prosecuted and girls need to be treated like victims.

Burton said the celebration is free but will include a call for fundraising so the group can hire another outreach director.

I try to reach as many people as I can, but I feel like Im not everywhere and if there were more people out there doing the same thing then maybe there would be less victims, said Nikki Siegel, whose salary as street outreach director at The Bay is paid by Ive Got A Name.

She works with homeless, at-risk and sexually exploited youth up to age 24 and helps girls get out of exploitative relationships, many of which fit the sex trafficking definition.

Both Burton and Siegel said the number of homeless youth in Lincoln is part of the local problem.

When we have 400 high school homeless youth, theres a very good chance they could be exploited by somebody, said Burton.

Added Siegel: Theyre bouncing around trying to find a place to stay and growing up too fast. When you have that sort of situation, theres a lot of people who can prey on the girls I work with.

Sex traffickers groom their victims, she said, establishing an emotional connection.

The traffickers might make them feel safe, feed them, cloth them and give them a place to stay and then later take advantage of that trust that they built, Siegel said.

* * *

Rachel Pointer works as case manager in a group home, and she has a message for young girls: Youre worth more.

If it makes you feel like something is wrong, something is wrong, she said. Trust your instinct, trust your gut (and) speak up.
April 25, 2014, was a monumental day for Jones Koffa.

For most couples, their wedding day is planned months to years in advance. For most couples, the wedding day -- and the many days after -- are spent together in celebration.

For Koffa, 35, he knew he wanted to marry Amelia Koffa, the woman he spent six years with. But he never thought he would marry her in Liberia on April 25 and then pack his bags to leave for America as an immigrant just hours later.

Koffa said he knew he had to make Amelia his documented spouse before leaving for America in order for her to come later. Amelia didnt join him in America until this last week when the U.S. Consulate in Monrovia, Liberia, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services granted her permission to immigrate to the United States.

Nov. 21 -- the day she arrived -- was a date that could top April 25.

From the moment I saw her, I could see something in her and I knew I would take her as my wife, Koffa said. And I knew we would succeed in life.

The Liberian couples time to succeed together had finally come. On Sunday, members of First Lutheran Church, as well as family members and close friends of the couple, gathered to recognize it.

Hanging on the door was a wooden sign: Welcome to our home! Enter with a happy heart.

The couple beamed as they were the first to cut into a cake decorated with Congratulations Jones and Amelia! Two and a half years earlier, Koffa had eaten his wedding cake at the same table without his wife by his side.

Koffas mother, Anna Furkay, stood beside the two with pride. But it hasnt always been celebration and easy times for Furkay, who fled to America as a refugee from the Civil War in Liberia.

The war destroyed much of Liberias infrastructure and separated the eight children she had to leave behind. Furkay lost two of them. One was killed in war and the other died during childbirth due to poor medical care.

She didnt know which of her family was still alive, said Megan Morrow, who has assisted Furkay in America since 2005. She didnt know where a lot of her family was until she applied for resettlement. She was literally winning the lottery when she got to come to the United States.

Morrow, assistant to the bishop of the Nebraska Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, has watched Furkay grow from working at a meat packing plant in Lexington to becoming a U.S. citizen and moving to Lincoln.

Furkays sheer fortitude and determination is something Morrow admires.

Shes just very persistent and hardworking and stubborn, Morrow said with a laugh. There are so many people who would have been so discouraged and beaten down by the circumstances.

Morrow said Furkay now has three children who have conquered the immigration process and made it to America. Another one of Koffas sisters is hoping to be able to join the family with her children soon.

Theyre not only surviving, but theyre thriving, Morrow said.

Furkay still struggles to write and read English, but gives back in the ways she knows how. When she heard of any community members who had a death in the family, Furkay was there to comfort them.

Koffa is a custodian with Lincoln Public Schools. He has helped First Lutheran Church with his brother Julius -- giving out the same school kits they received as children in Africa. Together they reach out and connect others with services they've taken advantage of at First Lutheran.

Before Koffa's hard work in America, he had to work hard to land his dream girl. Not long after they met, he told Amelia he would marry her.

"I did good, didn't I?" Koffa said to the friends he made in Lincoln as he watched Amelia walk into the airport. "I told her I would get her."

Amelia's immediate reaction to Lincoln: "It's very cold." Despite her distaste for the weather, she's ready to start her new life in her new home.

Its awesome; everyone is rejoicing, she said. "Seeing Jones with flowers in his hands and coming to me -- I was so excited. Hes a good man. He encourages me.

Reunited with the love of his life, Koffa said the possibilities are endless.

This is life, you never know wheres its going to take you, he said, smiling.
With the Senate back from its election hiatus for a brief lame-duck session, there is one thing that Republicans must absolutely not do: confirm any of the remaining judicial nominations of President Barack Obama still pending in that chamber.

We know that Obamas Supreme Court pick, Merrick Garland, wont be confirmed. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made that a central theme of the presidential campaign  that Republicans would give voters the opportunity to decide who should be on the court when they picked the next president.

To the surprise of many, Republicans senators formed a solid block in supporting McConnell and maintained this stand throughout the election. The voters have now spoken, and President-elect Donald Trump will pick the next justice.

But at last count, there were another 58 judicial nominations pending in the Senate, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. That includes seven nominations for the federal courts of appeal (four still before the Senate Judiciary Committee, and three on the floor of the Senate); 44 nominations for district court positions (including territorial courts), of which 22 are on the Senate floor; two for the U.S. Court of International Trade; and five for the Court of Federal Claims.

Mind you, Obama has already left his mark on the federal judiciary. Indeed, in his eight years in office, he has changed its character  and not in a good way. With a few notable exceptions, he has appointed some of the most liberal, ideological and radical judges to ever sit on the federal bench.

Obama has gotten 329 federal judges confirmed to lifetime appointments, representing almost 40 percent of the entire federal judiciary. When he took office, only one federal appellate court had more judges appointed by Democrat presidents than Republican presidents (two were tied). Today, Obama appointees have shifted control of the appeals courts to nine of the 13 circuits, increasing the likelihood, as The New York Times said back in 2014 that cases would end up before more ideologically sympathetic judges.

Obamas judicial confirmations include two Supreme Court appointments, one of whom, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, has the most liberal voting record of any member of the court, according to a recent analysis by The New York Times  quite an accomplishment. Former Obama Solicitor General Elena Kagan almost tied with long-time Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for second place.

Anyone who doubts the progressive ideology that drives Sotomayor should read her dissent in 2016 in Utah v. Strieff, which reads like a Black Lives Matters speech, including a reference to Ferguson, Mo. She claims that people of color are disproportionate victims of police misconduct, thereby supporting the false narrative of the Obama administration that our justice system is filled with inherent bias and discriminatory law-enforcement officers.

It is bad enough that well have to live for decades with the many judges picked by Obama throughout the federal judiciary system. We certainly dont need to add another five dozen.

Any Republican senators who have made deals with the White House on any of the pending nominees should realize that while they may have convinced the White House to nominate someone from their state who is not quite as bad as the other judges that have been confirmed, they are still only getting the best of a bad lot.

They should realize that the election of Trump and the clear choice by voters has cancelled all deals. Their oaths of office call for an absolute and unwavering duty to preserve the Constitution and the limited government it imposes, as well as the liberties and freedoms it guarantees. And that means not confirming any more judges who will damage the Constitution even more than it has already been during the Obama presidency.
The U.S. body politic is experiencing a belated case of angst over the sudden rise of fake news.

By fake news we dont stories in which the writers opinion is intermingled with reporting. We mean stories that are totally made up.

Many of those who read this page regularly and who also check in on Facebook regularly had the experience during the 2016 presidential campaign of seeing a link posted to some preposterous news story, and framed the question in their mind: Who believes this stuff?

Too many people, apparently. In the final three months of the US presidential campaign, the top-performing fake election news stories on Facebook generated more engagement than the top stories from major news outlets such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Huffington Post, NBC News, and others, according to BuzzFeed, a media website.

BuzzFeed identified 100 pro-Trump websites being run from the Republic of Macedonia, formerly part of Yugoslavia in the old Soviet Union. The incentive for the young Macedonians in the small town of Veles (pop. 45,000) was that it was a good way to make money. Advertisers pay for shares on Facebook and a U.S. user is worth four times as much as a user outside the U.S.

I started the site for an easy way to make money, said a 17-year-old who runs a site with four other people told BuzzFeed. Here in Macedonia the revenue from a small site is enough to afford many things.

American Paul Horner, who has made a living off fake news for several years, told the Washington Post, I think Trump is in the White House because of me. His followers don't fact-check anything -- they'll post everything, believe anything. His campaign manager posted my story about a protester getting paid $3,500 as fact. Like, I made that up. I posted a fake ad on Craigslist.

Occasionally the fake news stories snare someone who ought to know better. The Post reported that one of those snared by Horners fake news was Sen. Ben Sasse, who tweeted that the media should check out reports that anti-Trump protesters were paid. (Sasses staff claimed the senator was tweeting about paid organizers.)

There are several ways for people to spot fake news. The Nov. 19 Journal Star carried a story with tips, including suggestion to avoid websites that end in lo (example: Newslo) or com.co, which is a way for purveyors of fake news to masquerade as a real news source.

And allow us to toot our own horn. At the Lincoln Journal Star, journalists are held to the highest standards of accuracy. Unlike teenagers a half a world away typing on a website, we live in this community, we publish our contact information with every story. We are accountable to our readers and our sources. If we receive a complaint or a question, its thoroughly investigated.

Heres a rule of thumb: If a sensational story is not being reported by legacy news sources  what some derisively call the mainstream media -- its probably fake. Consult multiple sources.

Because of the rapid escalation of fake news in politics, some observers have concluded that America has entered a new phase of post-truth politics in which allegiance to a political tribe is more important than facts. If thats the case Americas democratic experiment is in deep trouble.
Cal Thomas' Nov. 17 column bears the headline: " We won, you lost, deal with it ." We know who won the election, Cal. It remains to be seen who the actual losers will be. This kind of "us versus them" rhetoric is not going to help. More Americans voted for Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump. He got more votes in certain specific areas. From all indications, he was supported by working class, blue collar, white voters and a surprising percentage of white women. I hope they realize they helped elect an elitist, New York billionaire who has no idea of the challenges they face.

The Republicans are now in charge of government, all the way from the federal down to the state levels. It will be interesting, and a little scary, to see if they will carry through with the policies Mr. Trump put forth in his campaign, such as the border wall which Mexico is supposedly going to pay for, the banning of Muslim immigrants, as well as withdrawing from NATO, NAFTA, TPP and more treaties and partnerships. It is going to be difficult for the division in the country to be healed but gloating that "we won, you lost" is not going to help.
I am amazed how people talk of a change needed in Washington but so frequently re-elect the same state representatives as the last election. It reminds me of the definition of insanity, namely, doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results each time. Wake up, everyone!
The Nebraska State Board of Canvassers is scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. on Dec. 5 in the Governors Hearing Room at the Capitol.

The purpose of the meeting, which is open to the public, is to certify the results of the statewide general election on Nov. 8.

Once county canvassing boards have met, local election officials will submit the certified results from local, state and federal races to the Secretary of States office. Results will be compiled and presented to the State Board of Canvassers for final approval. Only results for offices filed through the Secretary of State are included in that report.

If final certified results of a race fall within the parameters of an automatic recount, the board will order that a recount be carried out on Dec. 7.
OMAHA  The city of Omaha and its fire department are teaming up with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program to help make the holiday season memorable for less-fortunate children.

All Omaha Fire Department stations will be accepting public donations of new, unwrapped toys through Dec. 10. Those wishing to make a donation are encouraged to visit their neighborhood fire station.

A list of all fire station locations can be found on the Omaha Fire Department website at www.omaha-fire.org.

Donations can also be dropped off at the mayor's office downtown.

Donated toys should be for children between birth and mid-teens. The charity cannot to accept realistic looking weapons and gifts with food.
An Advent/Builders Sunday School class titled "Eclipsing Empire: Paul, Rome, and the Kingdom of God" will be held at 9:40 a.m. Sunday (Dec. 4) at Christ United Methodist Church, 4530 A St.

The Rev. Adrian George Edgar, author of some of the Neighborhood Garden columns in the Neighborhood Extra, will host the study in the church's Conference Room B.

This 12-session DVD and web-based study explores insights into Pauls message of the Kingdom of God, its challenge to Roman imperial theology, and the Apostles' radical relevance for today.
RACINE  A 16-year-old was charged with two felonies Monday in connection to two robberies in Racine last week.

Carlos Gonzalez, 16, of the 1900 block of State Street, robbed a Metro PCS store, 1639 Douglas Ave., and a woman in the 1300 block of Yout Street near Rojos Pub, according to the criminal complaint.

The first incident reportedly occurred at about 6:24 p.m. Nov. 22 at Metro PCS. Gonzalez and a friend allegedly rode their bikes to the store to get Gonzalez a phone.

Once at the store, an employee noticed that Gonzalez was pacing around the store, the complaint said. When the employee was completing the transaction, Gonzalez reportedly pushed the employee to the ground, grabbed money from the register and then fled the scene.

Gonzalez took about $800 from the register, according to the complaint.

The second incident allegedly occurred at about 5:50 p.m. Friday when Gonzalez and two accomplices punched a woman while stealing her handbag.

The victim reportedly told police she heard what she thought was people running and was suddenly pushed to the ground. Once on the ground, the victim was punched as many as four times, the complaint said.

The suspects, including Gonzalez, were detained after fleeing the scene.

Gonzalez faces two felony charges for robbery with use of force and two misdemeanor charges for battery and resisting or obstructing an officer.

He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 8 at the Racine County Law Enforcement Center, 717 Wisconsin Ave.

Gonzalez remained in custody as of Monday at the Racine County Jail, online records showed.
BANGKOK  Fishing boats used high-tech systems to find vast schools of fish for decades, depleting stocks of some species and leading to the complete collapse of others. Now more than a dozen apps, devices and monitoring systems aimed at tracking unscrupulous vessels and the seafood they catch are being rolled out  high-tech solutions some say could also help prevent labor abuse at sea.

Illegal fishing, which includes catching undersized fish, exceeding quotas and casting nets in protected areas, leads to an estimated $23 billion in annual losses, according to the United Nations. Meanwhile, overfishing close to shore has pushed boats farther out, where there are few laws and even less enforcement to protect workers from abuse. Slavery has been documented in the fishing sectors of more than 50 countries, according to U.S. State Department reports.

Earlier this year, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said using technology at sea could eventually mean there is not one square mile of ocean where we cannot prosecute and hold people accountable ...

However, Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, cautions that catching human traffickers goes beyond finding boats.

Technology is all about knowing where the fishing boats are on the ocean, but that does precious little for crews being physically abused and worked to the bone on those vessels, he said.

Here are some emerging tech solutions:

App for workers

Nonprofit anti-trafficking organization Project Issara is tapping into near-ubiquitous smartphones with an app that allows Burmese and Cambodian migrant workers around the world to share information about their working conditions. Their reviews reach nonprofits, governments and businesses which can monitor and learn from the feedback. Combined with a new multilingual hotline, victims of labor abuses have a safer, discreet way of seeking help.

Bar codes

A worker runs a gadget over a fish just after its pulled from the boat, giving it a bar code that creates a permanent record of where it was caught. Its a simple swipe with profound potential. Thomas Kraft at Norpac Fisheries Export established one of the industrys first bar-code systems that give each fish a tag that can provide details about location, boat, species, and weight. Hes been using the technology in locations worldwide and says it could easily be expanded to include crews on individual boats to help fight against labor abuse.

Eyes on the seas

Eyes on the Seas uses satellite trackers, radar signals, drone images, even radio signals to create a dynamic world map. Analysts using algorithms and observations can identify boats that appear to be illegally fishing in protected areas or pulling near each other to offload illicitly caught seafood. They can then contact national authorities with detailed evidence about where a boat is and what it appears to be doing. Eyes on the Seas can spot boats even if they turn off their basic safety satellite trackers, which may be a deterrent for would-be bad actors, but confidential data used in the system means it cannot be publicly available. Built by the Pew Charitable Trusts and a U.K. government satellite start-up initiative, the system is still being fine-tuned.

Global fishing watch

Like Eyes on the Seas, this tool provides a nearly-live view of fishing boats at sea around the world. But the data it uses to identify boats comes almost exclusively from Automatic Identification Systems, satellite trackers used in large vessels that are easily switched on and off. Rolled out earlier this year, Global Fishing Watch is on the web and open to the public in beta form, with tracks for 35,000 fishing boats going back more than four years. Oceana, SkyTruth and Google partnered to build the site, with support from Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation.

Tech for tuna

Cameras are recording everything that comes over the rail and onto the deck of a few dozen tuna boats loaded with motion sensors and GPS systems in the western Pacific Ocean. The goal of The Nature Conservancys project is to get the recording systems on thousands of tuna boats in the Palau longline fleet. The challenge is reviewing the video: about 800 hours of footage from each two-month fishing trip. This month the nonprofit environmental group is launching a $150,000 prize for machine-learning software that can spot turtles, shark finning and undersized tuna being illegally reeled in.
16th day of Dr KC's hunger strike: Talks with govt team stalled over IoM dean appointment row

The talks between government team and representatives of Dr Govinda KC ended on Monday without making a headway.
28 ancient idols stolen from Chandannath

Twenty-eight idols, including that of the main deity Dattatreya, were stolen from the Chandannath temple in Khalanga, the district headquarters of Jumla, on Saturday night. Some of the stolen idols are believed to be as old as 1,400 years.
Cardamom trade resumes

Large cardamom trade, which was halted following Indian governments move to demonetise 500- and 1,000-rupee banknotes, resumed from on Sunday.
Dahal to talk to Morcha before registering bill

The government has decided to talk to the Madhes-based parties once again before registering a constitution amendment bill in Parliament.
Govt representatives holding talks with Dr Govinda KC's team

A team of government representatives is holding talks with TUTH senior orthopedic surgeon Dr Govinda KC's team at the Education Ministry in Kathmandu on Monday.
Land acquisition snags as locals reject compensation offer

The land acquisition process for the Budhigandaki Hydroelectric Project has hit fresh snag after landowners of Gorkha district disagreed to the compensation rate set by the Compensation Determination Committee.
Maoists started problematic discourse on federalism based on ethnicities

With the government planning on tabling a constitution amendment motion in Parliament soon and the CPN-UML and others likely to protest it strongly,
PM not convinced amendment will address problems

Amid the delay in formally proceeding with a second constitutional amendment, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Sunday told Janajati leaders that he was not fully convinced that registering an amendment proposal would address the outstanding issues.
Rolpa shut to protest state split plan

Residents of Rolpa who have taken to the streets demanding that the district should not be split away from province-5 shut down the district on Monday.
Talks with Dr KC inconclusive

Talks between the government team and representatives of Dr Govinda KC, who has been staging an indefinite hunger strike for the past two weeks, ended inconclusively on Sunday. The meeting will resume on Monday.
Two Nepali among 3 UN workers abducted in Darfur: Sudan official

Armed men have abducted three UN refugee agency staffers, including two Nepali citizens, from Sudan's strife-torn Darfur region, AFP reported quoting a local government official on Monday.
VDC secys told to remain at their work stations

The Ministry of Local Development and Federal Affairs on Sunday directed secretaries of Village Development Committees of all the 14 districts worst affected by last years earthquake not to leave their stations until the reconstruction and rehabilitation works gain momentum.
The Speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga flagged off a group of women who will travel to a number of districts in the country as part of celebrations to mark 21 years of the women movement in Uganda.

The group was flagged off at 9am at the Uganda museum and will traverse the districts of kabale, Gulu, Kibuku, Napak, Mityana and Wakiso to preach messages of empowering women and encouraging more women to participate in the countrys political decision making.

The Executive Director of the Forum for Women in Democracy, Patricia Munabi says the tour is meant to empower women and communities to participate better in their governance, demand for gender responsive services, share learning innovations and best practices among others.

The Forum for women in democracy is a Civil Society organisation that was established in 1995 to offer a platform for Ugandan women to learn and advocate for gender equity in decision making.
Uganda is set to host the first ever Agri- business congress East Africa.

The Agri business congress East Africa is a regional platform for discussions and knowledge sharing aimed at addressing pertinent issues that are preventing the EC community from growing into a business hub.

The congress which will take place tomorrow 29th to 30th of this month at the Kampala Serena hotel is expected to host over 150 expertise across east Africa.

The board chair Uganda grain council Chris Kaijuka who are the organizers of the event says the congress will help show case modern technology inform of machines like tractors and seeds among others to the farmers who are the targeted beneficiaries of the congress.

He also says the congress seeks to improve on the market especially by linking farmers to the exporters.

The Executive Director NAADS Uganda Dr. Samuel Mugasi says Agriculture remains a key employment sector contributing to 68% of employment to Uganda and 20% of the countrys GDP but the challenge is weak value chains in the sector.

He urges the public to embrace the congress in order to strengthen value chains and create a wider market for their products.
ALBION  Kendallville is a step closer to taking ownership of the eyesore McCray Refrigerator property as the city pushes toward demolition.

The Noble County Board of Commissioners approved conveying the tax certificate for the abandoned industrial complex to the City of Kendallville Monday morning. Commissioners Dave Dolezal and Dave Abbott approved the move; Gary Leatherman was absent from the meeting at the time.

With the tax certificate, Kendallville will be able to make an expedited effort to get a tax deed, usurping ownership of the property from current owner SWGP IN LLC.

A total of $426.570.23 in back taxes are owed on the 8.6-acre property, which has been vacant for more than a decade. Most of the exterior windows are broken out and the property has become a public nuisance, attracting squatters and serving as a location for illicit activity in the city.

Kendallville had been hoping a private firm would take over the property and demolish it for the city, but the group declined because the property doesnt have enough scrap value. So Kendallville had decided to demolish the property at the citys cost.

By getting the tax certificate, Kendallville will be able to petition a county court to get a clean title to the property if the current owner doesnt pay the taxes.

They would still have the same rights as if someone had purchased it at tax sale, to raise any kind of objections, county attorney Dennis Graft said.

Kendallville Mayor Suzanne Handshoe said she didnt expect SWGP to object. The owners have been amenable in the past to allow access to the property for environmental inspections and its likely theyll be happy to be rid of the decrepit property.

The city has already contracted with a firm to do an inspection for asbestos, which is known to be one hazard in the old manufacturing facility.

Our intent is to try to secure it the best way possible and then get in there and take the thing down, Handshoe said.

Handshoe said she is meeting with the Kendalville Local Development Corp. this week to see if that firm is willing to partner and share some of the cost of the demolition.

Commissioner Dave Abbott said hes happy to see the building close to demolition. No one is getting tax revenue from it and the complex is artificially inflating the assessed value of the city.

Glad you stepped up to the plate there, Abbott said. The assessment on that (building) doesnt mean anything.
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

A clear sky. Areas of patchy fog developing. Low near 45F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

A clear sky. Areas of patchy fog developing. Low near 45F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.
ELGIN, Iowa  Vernon Henry Wedo, 88, of Elgin died Saturday, Nov. 26, 2016, at Mayo Clinic Hospital, St. Marys Campus in Rochester, Minn. Funeral services will be 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. Pauls United Methodist Church, Elgin. Burial with military honors in Elgin Cemetery. Visitation 3 to 6 p.m. Tuesday and one hour prior to services Wednesday at the church. Leonard-Grau Funeral Home and Cremation Service, Elgin, is helping the family.
ADAMS  In the end, Doreen Putzkie did the only thing that made sense to her in this presidential election.

She gave up.

Putzkie, 49, waits tables at Country Skillet, a diner on the main street of this small central Wisconsin town. On TV and in her diner, Putzkie heard nonstop chatter about the election.

She grew weary of the claims and counter-claims, the mudslinging, and perhaps most of all, the confusion about what to believe.

Putzkie, of Adams, said she votes for Democrats in most elections, including for President Barack Obama in 2012.

This time, Putzkie said she knew she would not support Republican nominee Donald Trump.

But Democrat Hillary Clinton never closed the sale. Disgusted by the campaign's tone and nagged by questions about Clinton's emails when she was Secretary of State, Putzkie decided not to vote. Her husband, who she said usually votes at her behest, didn't either.

"The important stuff didn't get brought up in this campaign," Putzkie said. "I said: 'This time, I'm not gonna do it.'"

Putzkie was part of something brewing beneath the surface in Wisconsin's farm fields and small towns. On Nov. 8 it would shock the world, making Wisconsin one of three Great Lakes states, including Michigan and Pennsylvania, to defy polls and their recent voting history by electing Trump president.

Rural Wisconsin was decisive in making Trump the first Republican to carry the Badger State in more than three decades. Thanks in part to a weak showing by Clinton, Trump won 18 rural counties that went for Obama four years ago.

Angry electorate

Adams County stretches north-to-south from Wisconsin Dells nearly up to Wisconsin Rapids, bordered to the west by Castle Rock and Petenwell lakes. Its population center is the twin cities of Adams and Friendship, which together have less than 3,000 residents.

The county has undergone recent demographic change and economic uncertainty. Supporters of both parties in Adams County described a local electorate that was overwhelmingly angry  and ready to break from the status quo, even if the direction of change is unclear.

Now local residents say they're eyeing a Trump presidency with long-odds hope, deep anxiety or both.

Local Democrats, demoralized by a string of crippling election losses, say they're frightened for what the future holds under a President Trump.

Local Republicans hailed Trump's win as a "last-ditch effort" to save their country, while admitting concerns about Trump's style. Some expect Trump to dig in and defend conservative principles as president; others say he must work with opponents.

Jody Quinnell, a local GOP activist, criss-crossed Adams County during this campaign in her vintage red pickup truck, distributing yard signs for Trump and Republican state Senate candidate Patrick Testin. Testin became the only Republican state senator in this election to defeat an incumbent Democrat, Sen. Julie Lassa of Stevens Point.

In the campaign's final weeks, Quinnell saw a contradiction. Polls predicted Wisconsin would vote solidly for Clinton. But what Quinnell saw and heard in her community was totally different.

"The polls were saying 'No, no, no.' But then I saw that enthusiasm building," Quinnell said. "I said, 'I don't know what the whole United States is doing. But I know what Adams County is doing.'"

In Adams County, a nearly 30-point swing

Harry Davis had a bottle of champagne ready to uncork at what he expected would be a Clinton victory party on election night.

But when results came in, Davis, chairman of the Adams County Democratic Party, was left wondering what changed so dramatically in his state and in his county in just four years.

Wisconsin Democrats had hoped to build off the last two presidential elections, when Obama carried the Badger State by sizable margins.

Rural Wisconsin, in large part, made that possible. Throughout rural Wisconsin, Obama fought 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney to a draw  enabling Obama to run up the vote count in the state's urban centers, Madison and Milwaukee.

This election was different. Rural Wisconsin counties swung dramatically toward the Republican nominee, and Trump crushed Clinton in rural Wisconsin by nearly 19 points. Trump ultimately carried Wisconsin by a little more than 27,000 votes.

Trump won Wisconsin's 46 rural counties, those outside the metropolitan areas defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, by more than 142,000 votes.

Adams County saw one of the biggest swings of any Wisconsin county from 2012 to 2016: a 30-point change in the margin for the Republican candidate. It went for Obama in 2012, 54 percent to 45 percent. This time it went Trump, 59-37.

The local economy, rooted in agriculture, tourism and logging, has failed for decades to yield enough good jobs, residents said.

The county's population is much older and less educated than the state as a whole, U.S. Census data show. Its unemployment rate was among the highest of any Wisconsin county in 2015.

While still overwhelmingly white, the county has become more diverse in recent years. In 2000, black or Hispanic residents made up less than 2 percent of the county's population. By 2015, that had reached 7 percent.

Quinnell said Trump's strong stances against immigrants and refugees coming into the U.S were central to his appeal. She dismisses what she describes as the liberal vision  "one big happy family all over the world"  as wishful thinking, especially while the U.S. fights terrorism.

"When you are at war  and I feel we're at war  you close your borders," Quinnell said. "There's no way to tell the good people from the bad people.

"You can't just dump them into our society and think that we've got to take care of them now."

'Trump talked, felt like them'

The turnabout in Adams County, as in many other rural counties, involved a Trump surge and an even bigger Clinton letdown.

Trump got more than 1,300 more votes in the county than Romney in 2012, while Clinton got more than 1,700 votes less than Obama  out of a total of more than 10,100 votes cast, according to unofficial results.

Some voters, including Mark Beda of rural Adams, backed Obama four years ago and Trump this time.

A self-described moderate, Beda, a 47-year-old IT worker, voted for Obama in 2012. Beda said he was encouraged by Obama's efforts to overhaul the U.S. health care system.

But years later, Beda said Obama's signature law has not made care more affordable and accessible for most people he knows. Part-way through Obama's second term, Beda said he felt it was likely he would vote for the Republican nominee in 2016.

Trump repeatedly pledged during the campaign to repeal Obama's health care law. But Beda said Trump instead should "fix" the law "to make it something that people can use ... something that is affordable."

"I think that would just be detrimental," Beda said of a full repeal. "You're not going to take it away. You just can't do that."

State Rep. Joan Ballweg, a Markesan Republican whose district includes Adams-Friendship, credited the Republican Party of Wisconsin for ramping up its visibility and campaign efforts in the county in recent years.

Ballweg described Adams County as home to many people who "have been hit harder by the stagnant economy."

"A lot of those folks feel like Mr. Trump talked like them and felt like them," Ballweg said.

Ballweg said a perception that Obama's health care law wasn't working may also have aided Trump.

But Ballweg predicted that, while Trump has a devout base of supporters, some of his voters won't follow him blindly.

"He needs to keep his promises and show how he's going to do that," Ballweg said. "People want to see the proof."

'You take it to the streets'

Steve Pollina, a longtime Democratic activist in Adams County, watched this campaign play out through the discussions between fellow veterans inside the Adams VFW hall.

Many said they were voting Trump  not out of enthusiasm for Trump but because "they thought Hillary was a crook," said Pollina, 72, a U.S. Air Force veteran of the Vietnam War.

Pollina, a retired tool and die maker, is a longtime resident of Adams who grew up in Chicago. He said some local residents' political views are affected by "a lot of resentment" about government programs, based on perceptions of who they believe the programs help.

"They thought that somebody else was getting something they should get," Pollina said.

Asked who "somebody else" refers to, Pollina said: "Minorities, mostly."

Still, Pollina said many local people voted for Obama in past years, hoping he would shake things up.

"They waited for all this change from Obama and it didn't materialize," Pollina said. "The change didn't come to them."

To some degree, Pollina faults Wisconsin Democrats and the Clinton campaign for this year's results. He said Badger State Democrats increasingly have overlooked rural areas in favor of turning out voters in Madison and Milwaukee.

Pollina said he rarely saw Clinton staffers in Adams during this campaign. In 2008 and 2012, he said an Obama campaign staffer was a frequent presence in the community.

Now Pollina admits to a pervasive anxiety about the future of the country for which he fought. Its next president, he believes, is deeply unprepared for the job.

"I've never felt this uneasy about a new president," Pollina said.

Davis was an activist in the peace movement, most recently in opposition to the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Now Davis wonders if President Trump may usher in a wave of anti-government protests  perhaps even rivaling what he witnessed in the 1960s as a college student at UW-Whitewater.

"When you can't make your voice heard, you take it to the streets," Davis said. "That's what may have to happen here."
Election officials in four western Wisconsin counties began sifting through more than 89,000 state Senate ballots Monday in what will be the first of two recounts.

Republican Dan Kapanke last week requested a recount in his bid to unseat Sen. Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, alleging mistakes were made in the more than 130 voting wards that make up the 32nd Senate District.

Shilling, the Senate minority leader, won by just 56 votes.

Meanwhile the Wisconsin Elections Commission on Monday ordered counties to begin recounting presidential votes on Thursday, providing either of the two third-party candidates who requested a recount submit the $3.5 million fee on Tuesday.

Republican Donald Trump edged Hillary Clinton by just 22,177 votes to win Wisconsins 10 electoral college votes.

Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who received 31,006 votes, requested a recount and as of Sunday said she had raised more than $6 million to pursue additional recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania, two other states where Trump won by a narrow margin.

Stein cited concerns that voting machines used in Wisconsin are vulnerable to hackers.

"After a divisive and painful presidential race, reported hacks into voter and party databases and individual email accounts are causing many American to wonder if our election results are reliable," Stein said. "These concerns need to be investigated before the 2016 presidential election is certified. We deserve elections we can trust."

Of Wisconsin's 1,853 municipalities, 813 count most of their ballots by hand. The remaining 56 percent use some combination of seven tabulating machines from three different vendors.

Voting machines are programmed at the county level, either by county clerks or by the machine vendor.

Elections Commission Administrator Michael Haas has called Wisconsins the most decentralized election system in the nation, and that tampering with the machines would require "unfettered access" to offices throughout the state.

Rocky Roque de la Fuente, an independent candidate who got just 1,514 votes, also petitioned Wisconsin for a recount, though it was unclear whether he planned to pay for it.

Clerks in Crawford, La Crosse, Monroe and Vernon county have estimated it will take between two and six days to complete the Senate recount.

About 70 percent of the votes were cast in La Crosse County, and more than a third were absentee ballots, which take more time to process as poll workers must check the names on the envelopes against voter rolls.

Dozens of poll workers began that process Monday morning.

Because of how close that race was, Kapanke is not required to pay for the recount. Those costs will have to be absorbed by each county.

It's not clear what will happen if the Senate recount is not completed before the presidential recount is supposed to begin.

Haas said some of the work for that recount, such as reviewing poll books and absentee ballot envelopes, will not need to be repeated when those counties conduct their presidential recount.

La Crosse County Clerk Ginny Dankmeyer said if that is the case, the presidential recount may only take her staff a couple of days.

Haas said he expects most counties will complete the presidential recount in about a week, though some large urban counties may take longer. Counties have a deadline of Dec. 12.

Each of the state's 72 county clerks can decide whether to recount ballots by hand or using tabulating machines, although Stein has asked a Dane County judge to order a hand recount.

Dankmeyer said La Crosse County will hand count ballots because it is faster.

Mark Thomsen, chairman of the bipartisan Elections Commission, said Monday he does not expect the recount will change the outcome of the election, and he criticized President-elect Donald Trump for claiming, without evidence, that millions of people voted illegally.

What the president says about our system is very important, Thomsen said. Someone has the bully pulpit and somebody has impact on our citizens' right to trust what happens down the block at their polling stations. I've never seen this kind of attack on poll workers and how this system works."
WINONA, Minn.  Cindy Samples, commonly known as Ranger Cindy during her nearly four-decade career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, will return to being called just Cindy when she retires next month.

Samples career has been filled with her love for nature and wildlife. Over the years, her goal has been to create opportunities for people to care about the refuge, just as much as she does.

As a park ranger of the Upper Mississippi National Wildlife and Fish Refuge and based in Winona, Samples has taught environmental education to the community through programs and field trips.

Her passion, she said, as shes shown people the beauty and surprise of the refuge for decades, is sharing nature with people so they develop a sense of wonder.

Its a refuge that in at least one way has saved her life.

An early passion

When she was 13, Samples already knew in her heart that she wanted to be involved with the environment. At the time she was visiting her grandparents in Florida and was attracted by, of all things, the hat one of the park rangers wore at a national parks program.

I wanted to wear one of those hats, too, she said.

A few years later, she found work as a Youth Conservation Corps counselor, a position that took her to Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois. Samples recalled sitting on the bank of the Ohio River and asking herself, Why is it that I love this job?

The answer, she soon realized, was right in front of her. The river, the birds, the setting sun.

I knew I wanted a career in nature. These moments gave me complete peace and joy, Samples said.

When she was in college studying environmental science, she then found teaching children about the environment was a perfect blend. She started her career in Illinois, and worked in Iowa and Idaho before coming to Winona about 16 years ago.

Samples coordinates the headquarters responsible for the Winona area of the refuge, and collaborates with other leaders along the stretch of the refuge, which starts at Wabasha and ends in Rock Island, Ill.

She is also in charge of creating interpretative signs, brochures, maps and posters, some of which are found by McNally Landing, a popular spot for educational programs and launching boats and canoes into the Mississippi backwaters.

Interpretive signs, writings and programs, she said, are the language of explaining nature, Samples said. It is a way to write that has an emotional and intellectual connection with the refuge.

Teaching wonder

When Samples works with children, the nature becomes their classroom, she said. She teaches them about a great a variety of subjects. They plant trees, go on walks, try out experiments on the river together.

One of the programs shes set up, on macroinvertebrates, involves taking children out on a boat, having them scoop out water, and pour it into a bucket. Then the kids work on a formula to figure out whether the river is healthy.

To Samples, education isnt about memorizing charts and tables, or knowing the scientific names for the abundance of species discovered the river.

I dont think the kids have to know the name for everything. I think its important they see something and care about it, she said.

Its a sense of wonder and discovery. To me, that is the most important opportunity I can provide.

She recalled one trip where a group of kids observed a bald eagle swooping down on the river, and all the ducks flying off as the eagle tried to catch them.

When they went home, they told their families what they had learned that day. To me thats powerful, she said.

We have little ambassadors for the refuge.

Not only does she bring students outside on field trips, but she also mentors students that are going into the field. During the past six years, she has mentored two students whose skillsets allowed them to land full-time jobs in the wildlife services, just as she did years before.

Healed by the river

In June 2013, Samples discovered the river was not only her lifes passion, but a great personal healer.

She had suffered a ruptured brain aneurysm, and her doctors had told her there was a chance she might never be able to work again.

By October, she had healed enough to return to work, and it was her connection with nature, she said, that made all the difference. She spent hours just sitting by the banks of the Mississippi, taking in the scenes nature played out before her.

She prayed along with the birds, which remind me of what I love, rather than what I fear.

And at the end of my prayers, they teach me how to listen.

Samples said she is grateful she can walk, talk and see. Today, she celebrates that she found, kept, and was able to finish the career she always wanted, that she can continue to watch sunsets, hear bird songs, walk on blufftop trails.

I would look at the bald eagles and think, I have a future, she said. The refuge is quiet, the river moves, and I dont have to be around people. I feel alive.

Samples guesses that shes created or led hundreds of programs, with dozens of kids participating in each one, meaning shes connected several thousand kids to nature. She said some of her students still reach out years later, thanking her for the dedication and passion she has put into helping them find their own love for nature.

Shes quick to point out that she has learned just as much from those shes worked with, who have filled her with joy as shes watched their skills grow. She hopes many she has taught have been just as inspired as she is, and have decided to pursue similar careers.

I know I influenced them, so thats a joy to me, knowing that they come back in my life, Samples said.

In retirement, she hopes to volunteer and keep working with children. She would love to continue telling her story, of her love for the river and the refuge.

I will always be connected with nature, she said. Its not just a healer for me, but for other people, too.
TOMAH  Tomah Memorial Hospital has earned a niche in the top quarter of all rural acute care hospitals in the nation, according to an industry assessment.

The evaluation, which recognizes outcomes, patient satisfaction and financial strength, was announced by iVantage Health Analytics, a national advisory and business analytic services company from Portland, Maine, and the National Organization of State Office of Rural Health, based on the Hospital Strength Index.

The recognition underscores participating hospitals commitment to continuous performance analysis and improvement, said Michael Topchik, senior vice president of iVantage Health Analytics.

Tomah Memorial CEO Phil Stuart welcomed the ranking, saying that the hospital Tomah Memorial strives for excellence, despite the challenge of being a rural health care facility.

We have been very fortunate over the years to be able to find the right mix of services while working with the right tertiary facilitates  whether that be out of La Crosse or Madison  to help support our specialty coverages, Stuart said.
In the last two years, North Dakota has lost almost half its jobs in the oil and coal industries.

The losses arent the fault of pesky environmentalists worried about groundwater contamination and global warming. Theyre the result of collapsing world energy prices.

The story of the North Dakota oil and gas industry captures the absurdity of President-elect Donald Trumps plans to remove environmental restrictions on fossil-fuel production.

Apparently, he wants us to believe a boom in production would lead to massive job growth and plunging energy prices and no negative consequences. But the story of an energy boom just around the corner is an illusion.

As in North Dakota, its not environmental restrictions that are holding back the U.S. fossil fuel industry. Its the market. Oil is readily available on world markets for $45 a barrel, less than half its price of three years ago.

At this price, it is not profitable to drill for more oil or gas in most of the areas Trump wants to open up to the fossil-fuel industry. And removing such restrictions would have an unnecessary, negative impact on some of Americas most scenic sites.

The industry will always want to drill where its cheapest. This means that if Trump allows drilling in picturesque, historic areas that are now protected, and such operations prove slightly cheaper than already blighted sites in Texas or North Dakota, then Exxon-Mobil, Shell and the rest will shift their operations to the lowest-cost area.

If we follow Trump and put a cheap price on preserving nature, then we can be assured there will be less nature to preserve. That will in no way make America great again.

The same goes for our drinking water. Fracking has been restricted in many parts of the country because of the risk to drinking water and the local environment.

If Trump is able to reverse state and local bans on fracking, he will in effect be giving oil and gas companies the right to pollute peoples farms and drinking water. Apparently, Trump and his followers dont care about peoples property rights.

But the biggest tragedy in this story is damage done to the planet through increased emissions of greenhouse gases. We all know Trump says global warming is a hoax invented by China.

Who knows or cares whether he actually believes that rising Arctic temperatures, rising ocean waters, growing deserts in Africa, droughts in California and other climate disruptions are all inventions of the Chinese. These are the problems that those of us who live in the real world have to confront.

And the problems facing our children will be much larger if we dont take serious steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This damage is in many ways irreversible. The carbon we put into the atmosphere today will stay there for hundreds of years.

Perhaps the most painful part of this story is that we are not even getting anything in return for causing this damage.

Trump is not going to create millions of new jobs with his drill-everywhere policy. He is not going to put West Virginia coal miners back to work.

In fact, his policy will probably hasten the destruction of the coal industry as it makes natural gas even cheaper.

What we are talking about is a policy with potentially enormous environmental costs with virtually no economic benefits unless you happen to own lots of stock in oil and gas companies.

Perhaps that makes it a sound like good policy for a Trump administration, but the rest of us probably care more about our kids and the planet.
When Mark Hogan took the reins at the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. last year, the states job-creation agency was under siege.

Democrats were calling for an overhaul of the agency in the wake of reports that insufficient safeguards during the agencys early years had resulted in millions of squandered taxpayer dollars. Republicans had removed Gov. Scott Walker as WEDC board chairman at his request, cut $32 million from the agencys budget and begun to phase out the agencys loan program.

Morale among staff had plummeted and anywhere from 16 to 22 employees were leaving each year.

A year into Hogans tenure, the agency has continued to move beyond the high-profile missteps of its early years. One sign: In 2016 to date, the number of staff departures is down to six.

He obviously came into a situation where it was already on the way to being fixed in terms of some of the early problems, but the perception was still that there were things that were wrong, said Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council. I think hes begun to bridge that perception gap as well.

Jerry Murphy, executive director of New North, a regional economic development group representing 18 counties in northeast Wisconsin, said that under Hogan the agency has been significantly more focused on strategy and execution than on foundation.

Its really refreshing from the field to see WEDC focused more on the work than on the transition to a new organization, Murphy said.

Hogan was participating in a trade mission to India for the past two weeks and was unavailable for an interview, spokesman Mark Maley said. But Hogan provided a statement that touted several new programs, including $600,000 for fab labs in schools across the state, $500,000 for an entrepreneur support program and a new emphasis on helping companies attract and retain talented workers.

Knowing that a solid foundation was already in place, my focus from the very beginning has been to build upon those strengths and to work with our talented staff and our stakeholders to develop strategic and innovative ways to promote economic development throughout the state, Hogan said. Those efforts and many others over the past year would not have been possible without our dedicated team of individuals who have a true commitment to public service.

The public will get a fuller picture of WEDCs progress under Hogan next spring when the Legislative Audit Bureau releases its third audit of the agency.

Dems see progress

Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, a WEDC board member, was heartened by Hogans handling of an internal discovery that the agency had been miscalculating tax credits for companies, a problem that appeared to begin under the former Commerce Department.

Hogan informed the board about it immediately and has given regular updates on the ongoing review, which so far has identified about $1 million in erroneously awarded credits.

Under his watch hes at least made an effort to work more closely with the board to address issues, Barca said. Certainly, theres no question that we are not where we were the first three years, which was constantly responding to crises and misstep after misstep.

Sen. Julie Lassa, D-Stevens Point, noted the tax credit review has focused on awards that are still open, but not those that were already closed, preventing the public from knowing the full extent of the problem. But it was a change of pace to learn about the problem upfront, in contrast with past loan defaults, which board members learned about from reporters.

Earlier this year, Hogan helped broker a resolution between Democrats on the board and agency officials who clashed over records related to more than two dozen awards for which the agency couldnt find formal documentation showing that an underwriter and agency executives had vetted the applicant. The agency agreed to cull the records for duplicates and Democrats agreed to review records related to a half-dozen awards.

Pressure to overhaul the agency dissipated last December when a national consultant advised against wholesale changes to the organization. But Democrats and liberal groups have continued to call for measures to block award recipients from outsourcing jobs. They continue to hammer the agency for not attracting enough jobs to the state.

Hes had a full year to be at the helm and understand how it works, and now board members will be looking for some results, Barca said.

Hogan praised

Hogan has been a stabilizing presence for the agency, handling problems with the temperament, discipline and rigor of a banking executive, said Dan Ariens, a manufacturing executive and WEDC board member. Hogan was previously an executive vice president/chief credit officer at M&I Marshall & Ilsley Bank and senior adviser to BMO Harris Bank.

Ariens, a Republican and Walker supporter who replaced the governor as chairman for a year, and Barca have clashed over WEDC policies, including a proposal Ariens put forward that would have gagged board members from speaking with reporters or divulging information that wasnt covered by the states Public Records Law.

After the proposal became public and faced criticism from open government advocates, Ariens said, Hogan made the decision to pull the plug, saying: Thats not what were about here.

You dont cover things up from a (banking) regulator  thats the world he comes from, Ariens said. Its healthy when WEDC can think in that unbiased, unpolitical sense of our role is to try to stimulate the economy by using as many tools as we have to promote job creation, job opportunity, job growth and business growth.

Steve Baas, vice president of government affairs for the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, said what has distinguished Hogan so far is his accessibility and availability and finding the ways to make things happen.

Coming into that kind of atmosphere which was a little bit poisonous, you needed someone with an even temperament and not very thin skin to not get caught up in the sniping, but to keep his focus on the corporations central mission, Baas said. Mark was uniquely equipped to do that.

WEDC board chairwoman Lisa Mauer, owner of industrial equipment manufacturer Rickert Industries, said Hogan has a positive rapport with both the business community and staff.

To help retain staff, the agency has conducted monthly meetings where employees can discuss anything on their minds, created a committee focused on improving employee engagement and satisfaction, and communicated through an employee newsletter.
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China Labor Watch (CLW) is an activist group based in New York. The group studies labor conditions in Chinas toy industry.

In a recent report, the group wrote: The world of toys is a heaven for children, but (it) may be a world of misery for toy factory workers.

China Labor Watch released the report this month. It tells about working conditions in four toy factories in southern Chinas Guangdong Province.

Investigators say the workers are paid wages of $300 or less per month for 174 hours of work. They say the workers make toys such as Barbie, Thomas the Tank Engine and Hot Wheels. These products are sold by Mattel, Hasbro, Disney, McDonalds, Wal-Mart and other large American companies.

China Labor Watch says the employees often work in dangerous conditions and are not well-trained.

The group says, the average working hours in these four factories are 11 hours a day, with more than 50 overtime hours a month. Overtime is time worked in addition to regular working hours. The group said overtime totals were as high as 130 hours in some factories.

The group said its information came from people who worked at the factories. These workers were secretly gathering information for the group at what researchers call relatively well-managed factories.

Chinese laws say employees may not work more than 8 hours a day. The laws permit work hours to be extended in some cases, but employers must be sure the workers do not become tired.

The report says employees sometimes worked 11 hours in a day with only a 40-to 60-minute lunch break. It said this is a clear violation of the right of workers to have adequate rest.

The report says factory managers regularly asked workers to sign voluntary overtime agreements. These agreements permit the factory to violate labor laws and regulations without fear they will be punished.

Wages too low to live on

Because the pay is so poor, almost all of the employees volunteer to work additional hours.

Worker Li Jintao told VOA: the wages are too low. My monthly salary is $360, but after deductions for social security, I make only a little more than $292 per month. Workers pay a part of their wages into a social security fund, which is used to support older people when they cannot work anymore.

Chinese laws require companies that have foreign investors to pay social security taxes for their workers. But the CLW report says none of the factories closely followed the laws. It said one factory did not pay into the social insurance or the housing fund for the workers. Another factory paid only a part of the money to some workers. The report said some factories even forced the workers to agree to give up their right to receive social insurance and housing funds.

Li left his home village at the age of 14 to work in the city. He says his monthly salary includes payment for two to three hours of overtime every day.

The 2016 minimum wage in the cities of Dongguan and Foshan is $223 per month, while the minimum wage in Shenzhen is $300 per month. The four factories examined by China Labor Watch are in those cities.

Workers at the factories earn about five percent more than the minimum wage. But Li says that is still not enough. He plans to leave his job and return to his family home.

No safety training

The report said the four factories did not give safety training to workers before they began their job. And it said they failed to give the workers safety equipment.

The report said almost all of the workers live and eat in the factories where they work. Some of the workers complained about poor-quality food. They said their sleeping areas are old and dirty and often have uncovered electrical wires.

Like many toy exporters in China, the factories China Labor Watch investigated have been examined by the International Toy Association. They are part of a program called ICTI Care, a 10-year-old program that says its goal is to protect toy factory workers.

Employers: Conditions better than ever

Mark Robinson is a spokesman for ICTI Care. He said the project does most of its work in China. He said it has examined more than 1,200 toy factories in the country. The project also operates in Vietnam, India and other countries. Robinson said it represents 66 million workers.

He says conditions in the factories are better than they have ever been. He adds that Chinese factories that are part of the program are increasing wages.

But the China Labor Watch report said the ICTI standards violate Chinas own labor rules. Li Qiang, executive director of China Labor Watch, told VOA that ICTI is an association backed by Mattel, Disney and Hasbro, which (permits) factory workers to work 72 hours a week, and even 78 hours while the factory has to fill an order.

CLW sees no improvement

Li began investigating southern Chinas toy factories as an undercover laborer in 1999. He said there have been small improvements but the overall environment for the toy industry has not improved.

Li said when he was working undercover, we worked more than 10 hours a day, and it was like a prison. Now, workers still work more than 10 hours a day.

China Labor Watch researchers say companies that operate the factories can raise wages and improve conditions and still be profitable. But they say most companies choose not to do so.

Disney, Mattel, and Wal-Mart did not answer VOAs requests to give a reaction to the report.

Disney released a statement. It said, these issues have been investigated and resolved. Disney will continue to encourage and rely on factory owners, business associates and governments to promote safe, inclusive and respectful workplaces where Disney-brand products are made.

Im Anna Mateo.

And I'm Jonathan Evans.

Correspondent Xiao Yu of VOAs Mandarin service reported this story from Washington. 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

misery  n. extreme suffering or unhappiness

assembly line  n. a line of machines, equipment, workers, etc., in a factory that builds a product by passing work from one station to the next until the product is finished

adequate  adj. enough for some need or requirement; good enough; of a quality that is good or acceptable

deduction  n. something (such as an amount of money) that is or can be subtracted from a total

social security fund  n. a fund created to pay workers when they are too old to work or are injured and cannot work

undercover  adj. done or working in a secret way in order to catch criminals or collect information

adjust  v. to change in order to work or do better in a new situation

brand  n. a category of products that are all made by a particular company and all have a particular name
Download Lesson 37

Speaking

Pronunciation

Conversation

Dr. Jill: No. It's not mine. It might be hers.

Anna: Excuse me. Is this bag yours?

Sarah: No. It's not mine. It might be his.

Anna: Thank you. Hello. Is this bag yours?

Phil: Yes, that's mine. These are all my travel things. Thank you, thank you!

Anna: Are you okay? You seem ... nervous.

Phil: Well, this is my first visit to Washington, D.C. I'm from a small town in the country. I feel a little lost.

Anna: I am from the country too! And I understand. When I first came here, I felt lost ... all the time.

Phil: So, do you like living in the country or in the city?

Anna: I like to live in the city.

Phil: Why?

Anna: The city is exciting! It has more culture than the country. There are many museums and restaurants. Every night, there is theater and music. And, there are more jobs. That is why I'm here.

Phil: Well, I agree. There is more culture in the city and there might be more jobs. But the country has more nature! It's peaceful and beautiful. There are more trees and mountains. The air is clean. You can go hiking and camping. The city is not beautiful. It's noisy and dirty.

Anna: I disagree. I think all the different buildings are beautiful. And I like to watch all the different people.

Phil: That's another thing that is different. People in the country are friendly. They always say "hello!" Here, no one says "hello." I think city people are rude.

Anna: Well, I agree. Country people are friendly. But I don't think city people are rude. I think they're just busy.

Phil: That's a good point.

Anna: Look at me. I live in the city and I said "hello" to you.

Phil: But you are from the country.

Anna: I have an idea. Let's say "hello!" to people -- to many people!

Phil: What? Why?

Anna: Well, if we say "hello," maybe they will say "hello" to other people ... Hello!

Phil: ... and they will say "hello" to more people! That's a great idea! I'm glad you found my bag.

Anna: Come on. Let's go say "hello" to people.

Anna: We don't have to agree with people. They have their opinions. We have ours. And as we like to say, you can always agree to disagree! Until next time...! Hello!

Listen to short videos and test your listening skills with this quiz.
Hundreds of thousands of Afghans have been displaced from their homes because of continuing violence in the country.

They face severe hardship as the countrys harsh winter approaches.

The United Nations calls these people internally-displaced persons. They include both those who fled their homes and those forced to return to Afghanistan from neighboring countries. The UN says more than one million people will be in this situation by the end of the year.

VOA spoke with some of the refugees. VOA learned that many of them are helped for just one month. Those who have been displaced for longer than that struggle to find help. Noor Mohammed is one of them.

"I've been here from Sangin for seven or eight years because there is war there. We have no facilities here. Look, these kids are playing in the dirt. They don't go to school - there are no health facilities. Winter is coming and we have nothing to deal with it."

Most of those at risk are women and children. International aid groups believe they are vulnerable to harm, including women like Najeeba.

The government is not helping us at all. Theyve just left us in these tents without any facilities.

The U.N. has warned that the number of Afghans displaced from their homes because of war may increase by the end of the year. But the amount of help is growing smaller as the number of refugees rises.

Im Bryan Lynn.

VOA Correspondent Ayesha Tanzeem reported this story from Kabul. 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

facility  n. something (such as a building or large piece of equipment) that is built for a specific purpose

vulnerable  adj. open to attack or harm
LEXINGTON,Neb. - A number of Lexington business owners received a leg-up recently, thanks to the Nebraska Business Development Center.

NBDC senior consultant Dr. Bob Bernier said his organization received a grant to fund a program targeted at businesses owned and operated by what are considered disadvantaged groups (women and racial minorities).

The program brought college students, professors, and NBDC personnel toLexington to work with 10 small businesses on everything from how to arrange their storefronts to long-term expansion plans.

Elida Rodriguez is the owner of Lunas Products in downtown Lexington. She started her business a few months ago because she felt shed been working for other people long enough. Why not open my own business? she wondered.

With the support of her family, she opened Lunas, which she described as offering gifts, personal items, spiritual candles, and clothing for special occasions.

Rodriguez said she was grateful to be included in the program, and was grateful to receive help.

I liked everything theyve done, she said. Im happy I got to be a part of it. Weve adjusted the displays so it pops out at the customers. I want them to feel welcomed, and people will like what they see.

It wasnt just new businesses that benefited. Longtime staple of the Lexington business community, Fascinacion, was also included.

Owner Diana Vazquez opened Fascinacion 16 years ago. She considers her business to be a general retail store, and also operates a clothing store for special occasions.

Vazquez said one of the largest benefits of her participating in the program was the opportunity to review her inventory with the help of the business students.

The students gave suggestions on liquidating stock that wasnt moving, she said.

Vazquez thinks her business has the potential to be more efficient as a result.

Taqueria Max has been around for 10 years, and the owners are looking to expand. The restaurant was founded by Humberto and Norma Avalos, and their son Max now helps with operations as well.

Norma listed Taqueria Maxs specialties as gorditas, sopes, tacos, and quesadillas. In a community with no shortage of Mexican and Central American restaurants, Taqueria Max tries to set itself apart by hand-making everything on the menu fresh each day, she continued.

The restaurants present location can be cramped at certain times of the day, and the Avalos family knows they need to move into a larger location to grow their business.

They worked with NBDC to streamline their accounting and management processes, and develop a plan to find a new location.

Charlie McPherson with NBDC out of North Platte said the goal of the program was to gauge the issues and needs for each of the businesses they worked with. He noted that the relationship will continue beyond the nearly week-long program, which ran the week of Nov. 14.

This isnt a one-and-done deal. They are now our clients, and we will continue to work with them, he said.

Ingrid Battershell, who is NBDCs Scottsbluff Center director, said part of the program was to provide financial analysis to increase profits and efficiency. Each business received their report at a dinner Nov. 17, marking the conclusion of the weeks activities.

NBDC State Director Cathy Lang said her organization worked with Dawson Area Development, the Lexington Area Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Lexington to identify businesses to work with.

An important part of the process is listening to the business owners. We didnt want to assume that things needed to be done a certain way, she said.
LEXINGTON, NEb. - Retired Lexington resident Marcia Holtz has lived through the toughest pain any parent can face, losing a child.

Her daughter died at age 39 to cancer. Holtz, the former director of the Lexington Grand Generation Center, said months after losing her daughter a minister recommended she join a support group called The Compassionate Friends.

She joined the group three-and-a-half years ago and has found an important group of support and friends, she said.

"I wouldn't know where I would be without this group. It has helped me out tremendously," Holtz said.

The group is run by volunteers who have all lost a child in their lives, she said. The Compassionate Friends of Lexington Chapter meets every third Monday of the Month (except for December) at the Great Western Bank Drive-Through Bank meeting room, located at 6th and Lincoln St.

Because chapters of Compassionate Friends aren't overly common in Nebraska, members of the group that meets in Lexington commute to the monthly meeting from Kearney, Broken Bow and the Sandhills, Holtz said.

Once a parent loses a child, not only does the person feel like the world is up-side down but the holiday seasons are never quite the same, Holtz said.

"My daughter used to like to go pick out a tree, decorate it, go shopping. We don't do that anymore," Holtz said.

For a parent who has lost a child, the Holiday season at the end of the year can be the "worst time" because everyone is happy but the parent still has a "hole in their heart," Holtz said.

One positive benefit of being involved with a Compassionate Friends group is being able to meet and talk with a group of people who don't feel uncomfortable about her talking about her daughter, because they have also lost a child, she said.

Holtz said she feels fortunate to have befriended members of the Compassionate Friends, some of whom have been involved with the group for 20 years and are trained to help parents in the early stages of their grief process.

The Lexington chapter of Compassionate Friends will host a Worldwide Candle Lighting Sunday, Dec. 11, , 6:30 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 205 East 7th St., Lexington.

The Lexington Chapter of The Compassionate Friends would like to invite the public to its remembrance program. All families and friends who have experienced the death of children are welcome.

Those attending the event are encouraged to meet in the social hall, using the south front door. Attendees are also encouraged to bring a votive candle and holder and one picture of your child or children to use during the ceremony in the chapel. A fellowship time and treats will follow the ceremony.

According to the group, The Compassionate Friends 20th Annual Worldwide Candle Lighting will seek to unite family and friends around the globe in lighting candles for one hour to honor the memories of the sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and grandchildren who left too soon. As candles are lit at 7 p.m., local time, hundreds of thousands of persons commemorate and honor the memory of all children gone too soon. The Worldwide Candle Lighting creates a virtual 24-hour wave of light as it moves from time zone to time zone.

Anyone unable to attend should feel free to light his or her own candle and have their own remembrance ceremony.

For more information please visit www.compassionatefriends.org.
LINCOLN  Students and others rallied at the State Capitol on Sunday morning to call for abolishing of the Electoral College and express disappointment in the election of Donald Trump as president.

The protest was organized by a group of students from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Nebraska Wesleyan University, according to one of the organizers, Josiah Johnson of Lincoln.

Johnson, a 19-year-old UNL student, said the protest was not about seeking a reversal of Trumps election but to call for a reconsideration of using the Electoral College to elect a president, as well as to express displeasure with Trumps hateful rhetoric during the campaign.

Johnson noted that the protest was held below a saying on the State Capitol: The salvation of the state is the watchfulness in the citizen.

The message to the Trump administration is that we are watchful and will remain watchful, Johnson said.

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee, won the popular vote against Trump, but the New York billionaire claimed wins in enough states to handily claim victory through the Electoral College. Under the Electoral College system, each state is awarded one vote for each of its congressional representatives. Electors then vote for president based on how the popular vote went in their state.

Johnson estimated the crowd at about 200 at its peak.
LEXINGTON,Neb. - At Brookdale Lexington, she is known simply as "grandma."

Her name is Gladys Milligan. On Wednesday, the dining room of Brookdale Lexington was filled with friends, family and staff there to wish Milligan a happy birthday.

Milligan, a Brookdale resident for about a year-and-a-half, turned 100 years on Wednesday, Nov. 23.

All five of Milligan's children were in attendance, as were numerous grand children and great grandchildren. Her five children are: Lester Milligan Jr., Jackie Stauffer, Janice Steele, Jim Milligan and Judy McClain.

Stauffer, her daughter, said family traveled from as far as Colorado,Kansas,Omaha and Kansas City,Mo., to attend her mothers birthday.

Brookdale staff and Milligan's children agreed that Milligan is not only still very independent and healthy, she walks with a cane and does her own chores and activities; but that she can be sassy as well.

Multiple Brookdale staff members said that Milligan likes to walk around with the use of her cane, does not enjoy large crowds and has a very firm grip she uses when she disagrees with something, such as a staff member offering assistance when she does not want it.

Stauffer said her mother used to live in Elm Creek by herself after her husband died in 1988. Milligan was a lifelong farm wife, Stauffer said.

"She likes to say, 'I'm so tough I can't die.' She has a healthy heart, she didn't smoke or drink. If you live a healthy life you might live a long life," Stauffer said.

Although it can be difficult to communicate with Milligan due to some hearing loss, Stauffer said she knows her mother knew it was her 100th birthday because "she already had her 99th birthday; she figured it out."

Some of Milligan's great-grand children serenaded her with multiple rounds of the "Happy Birthday" song and jokes, while wearing red headbands with string wire holding up the number 100 in red letters.

Tammie Hinrich, activities director at Brookdale Lexington, presented Milligan with a certificate recognizing her reaching the 100-years of life milestone.
With Chabad slated to open in Sioux Falls, SD, in the next few months, every one of the 50 states will have at least one Chabad House. And if you insist on counting D.C. and Puerto Rico, well Chabad still has you covered. Any way you dice it, anywhere you travel, whether on the mainland, in Alaska, Hawaii or Puerto Rico, youll find Chabad.

Rabbi Mendel and Mussie Alperowitz have visited Sioux Falls several times in recent months. Last March, they held a Purim event. Forty-five people attended! They were thrilled to meet other Jews and celebrate together. And they wanted to know if Chabad would finally open here, said Mendel, who hails from Bournemouth, England.

According to some estimates, their Purim turnout represented fully 10 percent of the states total Jewish population. There are likely more Jews, says Mendel, but without a functioning synagogue, and no rabbi to call their own for the better part of the last 30 years, theyve had no opportunities to meet other Jews and participate in Jewish community life. Thats going to change now.

During our visits, people told us that they were unaware of other Jews living in Sioux Falls, and Im guessing there are probably more like 1,000 Jews statewide, Mendel told lubavitch.com. He and Mussie will rent a place in Sioux Falls which has the largest concentration of Jews. But it will not be a conventional type of situation. I expect to do a lot of traveling, since there are Jews scattered everywhere.

Decades back, Sioux Falls did have a rabbi. Today, its a just under a four-hour drive to the nearest Jewish metropolis in Twin Cities, Minnesota. Now, with Sioux Falls one of the fastest growing metropolitan cities enjoying a strong economy and a budding medical community, it may also see a growth spurt in its Jewish population.

The Alperowitzs come with their two little daughters and will develop a Jewish childrens program in addition to a full range of educational and social activities, with the hopes of engaging every Jewish demographic in the area. Our objective is to ensure that Jews living in Sioux Falls have everything that they would have in any city in the country as far as Jewish community life goes, says Mussie.

At the airport in Sioux Falls, returning from one of his visits to South Dakota this past fall, Mendel was carrying a lulav and etrog. This fellow in the airport asks me whats in my box. Naturally, Mendel takes the time to explain to him that its related to the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, when Jewish people celebrate by taking their meals in these makeshift booths.

I know, the man tells him. Im Jewish.

It was, says Mendel, a providential encounter and one he looks forward to repeating often. We exchanged contact info. He was delighted to hear that we are moving to town, and he invited me to come to his house to light the menorah this Chanukah.
Country

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Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe
Editor's note: From Tuesday, 22 November 2016, Firstpost is carrying Rupleena Bose's daily dispatches from the ongoing International Film Festival of India (Iffi), in Goa. Read parts one, two, three and four.

Highlights from day five of Iffi follow: ***

The word is that almost everyone is in a hurry these days. Patience and pace are unwanted words amongst people who consume  be it news, cinema, books or music. Things must happen endlessly. Except there are places where not much really happens but you begin to find the place, its people, history simply by observing. There is usually a routine to small town life, there is beauty in living the known because within the images of everyday familiarity, there can be poetry.

Ohio Blue Tip Matchsticks, in a font that looks like a megaphone.

This is one of the first poems we read written by Paterson (played by Adam Driver), the poet  not the town of the same name where he is an NJ transit bus driver. American poet William Carlos Williams wrote a set of five books titled Paterson (1948-56) around the New Jersey town of the same name. Influenced by James Joyces Ulysses, William Carlos Williams wanted to frame a narrative around Paterson much like Joyce did for Dublin. William Carlos Williams is Paterson, the poet-bus drivers favorite writer; in moments of quiet distress he reads the poems even as he quietly goes about his routine jobs.

The bus and his perspective drive the film and the audience into observing the left out small town. Paterson has a pattern in his everyday life. He walks with the words in his head and on the screen, he rewrites his poems on the walk to the bus station. When the first ride rolls, he sets aside his notebook to drive the bus, meeting strangers and regulars who in the easy small town have the time to be a part of his narrative as the film takes us through one week in his life. He has a quietness about his demeanor that allows him to muse about the things even as his partner Laura (Golshifteh Farahani) urges him to publish his poems. But Paterson is in no hurry, he has a private relationship with time that calms him, makes him extraordinary. Every now and then, he meets other people who want to discover stories and histories of the town Paterson, like the bar owner who collects paper cuttings mentioning Paterson to put up on the board in his bar. Paterson is not Dublin yet as with people who spent their entire lives in one place  there is a need to put the city on the map even if its a map created by their own selves. Jim Jarmusch too in naming the character as the city (and vice-versa) tries to redraw the nothingness of the town with beauty.

The week in Patersons life tells us everything about introspection, imagination, routine and resilience, his characters softness charms with Adam Drivers outstanding performance.

All of Jim Jarmuschs characters through his films have been beautifully written. Words make them special, be it Coffee and Cigarettes (2004), Broken Flowers (2005) or his stunning last film Only Lovers Left Alive (2013). His characters are not necessarily real but they are people you wish you would suddenly meet in a bar or a train and strike a conversation that will change a part of you. Jarmuschs films have a distinct pace, a pace that never rushes you and for me only rewards you with a world that you become a part of and take back home waiting for him to come back with another new narrative. Only after the film ended did I notice the large auditorium of Kala Academy, which was filled with a fairly large number considering it was a midnight screening. In the receding night and the second last day of the festival it seemed like Paterson had brought two unlikely towns from across the world together in their content relationship with time.

The writer is assistant professor at the department of English at Sri Venkateswara College
One of the most powerful organisations in Kollywood is the actors' body Nadigar Sangam or South Indian Artistes Association. It is an association formed by late legend and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MGR, when the entire south Indian film industry was based in Madras (now Chennai).

On Sunday, 27 November, the current general secretary of Nadigar Sangam  Vishal  expelled former president Sarathkumar and general secretary Radha Ravi from the organisation. Last year, around this time, in a bitterly contested election, Sarathkumar and his team (who controlled Nadigar Sangam for nearly a decade) were routed by Vishal, Karthi and Nassar (their team was known as Pandavar Ani) in an election conducted under the supervision of the Madras High Court.

It was an action-packed Sunday afternoon as clashes occurred at the venue of the meeting between the rival factions. Actor Karunas' car (he's an office bearer of Nadigar Sangam) and an AIADMK MLAs SUV were damaged in the stone throwing. Later, miscreants attacked Vishals office and also damaged his car.

Sarathkumar and Radha Ravi were barred from attending the meet and the current office bearers Vishal, Karthi and Nassar were demanding that the former be held accountable for corruption issues regarding properties owned by Nadigar Sangam. Vishal said, "We have expelled Sarathkumar and Radha Ravi from the association and with the unanimous approval of the general body. A police complaint will be lodged by the association against those who indulged in violence."

Karthi said, "Sarathkumar and Radha Ravi made amendments in 2008 to the association bylaws, enabling them to become lifetime trustees. Such an amendment leads to the question  who is in charge of the trust coffers after their terms have come to an end? We have cancelled the amendments. There is no legal basis to do this and it raises a big question mark over the properties owned by Nadigar Sangam."

Sarathkumars wife and actress Radikaa Sarathkumar hit back in a series of tweets against Karthi:

Vishal said at the meeting that Nadigar Sangam had obtained permission from the Registrar of Societies to hold the meeting, which was shifted from the Loyola College auditorium to their own grounds in T Nagar. He also said that Nadigar Sangam had collected funds worth Rs 8.50 crores in fixed deposits.

Meanwhile there is support for Sarathkumar from various actors including some superstars, who are not openly coming out in support of Vishal and the others. The younger lot of stars like Suriya, Sivakarthikeyan, Vijay Sethupathi and others support Vishal along with veterans Kamal Haasan and Vikram. More drama is expected in the coming days, as the battle to control Nadigar Sangam turns nasty.
The hitherto dormant Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) accounts in nationalised banks have now sprung to life and are flush with cash in several parts of Odisha, thanks to demonetisation drive.

The post offices are also witnessing sudden upsurge of deposits of scrapped notes with inoperative accounts being made operational by account holders in a hurry.

Demonetisation has seemingly provided a lease of life to these accounts which were literally dead. Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur districts account for 3.75 lakh Jan Dhan accounts, officials said.

In Odisha, the highest percentage of 59.50 per cent of the households in Kendrapara avail banking facilities followed by Jagatsinghpur with 58 per cent, they said.

With PMJDY account holders virtually making beeline at bank counters to deposit money and activate the accounts, there has been rapid spurt in the quantum of deposits in several of these zero-balance balance accounts.

While bank personnel acknowledge activation of such dormant accounts in large numbers and the rise in deposits, they preferred to remain tight-lipped on reports of huge cash flowing into such accounts.

An official of a nationalised bank said, "There has been impressive growth in cash deposits in Jan Dhan accounts. We obviously smell foul-play. Though a ceiling of Rs. 50,000 deposit has been fixed in these accounts, we have come across accounts exceeding maximum deposit limits. The accounts with excess deposit would lose PMJDY classification. These would be converted into general savings accounts. Deposits in the accounts are largely in demonetised high-value currency notes, giving suspicion that unscrupulous elements might be using the accounts of poor and gullible to convert black money into white. We are preparing detailed list of such accounts which were inactive since day of operation."

However, cash flowed into it after demonetisation. The list of 'suspicious' accounts would be submitted to the competent authorities, the official said.

These accounts occupied less than one per cent of the total deposit base. However, it has shot up to 3 to 4 per cent since cash began flowing into them.

Post the Centre's demonetisation step on November 8, most Jan Dhan accounts are subjected to their first-ever transactions ever since they were opened. There are instances of these accounts being switched to general savings accounts. Some account-holders have also resorted to tactics depositing Rs. 49,000 to avoid PAN card submission, the officials said.

Several deposits of Rs. 49,000 were found out to have been made in such replenished accounts, said the head of a nationalised bank in Paradip.
Thiruvananthapuram: The shutdown called by Kerala's ruling LDF on Monday appeared to be total as only private vehicles plied, offices registered minimal attendances, and normal life was crippled.

While the leading national opposition parties called for a nationwide strike to protest the aftermath of the demonetisation, in Kerala the ruling Left Democratic Front government decided to organise a dawn-to-dusk shutdown.

The shutdown was called to denounce the demonetisation of high value currency which has left the cooperative banks in the state in turmoil.

Even though it was a state-wide shutdown, the organisers have left tourism activities and also the banking establishments out of the ambit of the call. They have also sought the pilgrims to the famed Sabarimala temple to be left unaffected by the shutdown.

Attendances in banks were poor, as vehicular traffic was affected.

The Pinarayi Vijayan-led government has also called the strike to protest the "rash" behaviour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who declined to meet an all-party delegation from the state which wanted to apprise him of the turmoil in the cooperative sector.

The Congress-led opposition, however, expressed strong reservations over the shutdown.

Following the demonetisation, normal life has already turned upside down in the past 20 days and to further strain it would not be an answer to the woes, the Congress said.

Instead, the party decided it would stage a sit-in in front of the Kerala Raj Bhavan.

The officials at the Indian Space Research Organisation unit in Thiruvananthapuram worked under police security, as did the IT employees at Technopark in Thiruvananthapuram and at Kochi.

On 8 November, the central government demonetised the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

Two days later, permission was withdrawn for the 1,600-odd primary cooperative societies from accepting or exchanging the scrapped currency notes, creating widespread resentment in Kerala.

The total deposits in the cooperative banks are around Rs 1.27 lakh crore, says Kerala Cooperation Minister AC Moideen.
The spat between the executive and the judiciary was the lead news in last Sunday's newspapers, again.

"Indias top judge lashed out at the Centre on Saturday over a large number of vacancies in the high courts and his successor warned of striking down any future law that would impede the judiciarys independence. Union law minister Ravi Shankar shot back by reminding how the top court 'failed' the country during Emergency and attorney general Mukul Rohtagi mentioned a 'lakshman rekha' for the judiciary," the Hindustan Times reported.

According to a Times of India report, "the bitter judiciary-government spat over judicial appointments turned more vitriolic with Chief Justice of India TS Thakur and law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad going public on Saturday in their sharp disagreements on who is responsible for the delay" in filling the vacancies.

The moot question is: what is going to be the outcome of this unsavoury tug-of-war between the top executive and the top judiciary that threatens to rip apart the very fabric of the Indian democracy?

Consider the facts. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court Collegium had recommended 77 names for appointment as judges in various high courts out of which the government of India accepted only 34 names. The "rest 43 recommendations have been sent back to the apex court for reconsideration, the attorney general had told a SC bench on 15 November.

But the Supreme Court refused to take cognisance of the reasons that the government gave for rejecting the names. We have reiterated 43 names for the appointment as judges of high courts which were rejected by the government and have been sent back for reconsideration, a SC bench comprising Chief Justice TS Thakur and Justice AR Dave said on 18 November.

The government is yet to respond to the Supreme Court stance on filling the vacancies in the high courts, though more than a week has passed. So, the sparks are flying.

The issue is serious. The Ministry of Law and Justice had released the following data on 1 July 2016,regarding existing vacancies in various high courts: the 24 high courts were functioning with just 609 judges out of the total sanctioned strength of 1,079 judges. It meant that almost 45 per cent of the positions of high court judges are vacant.

The Law Ministry report presented some glaring facts: the Allahabad High Court was making do with just 78 judges against an approved strength of 160; the Punjab and Haryana High Court has a bench strength of just 46 while the sanctioned strength is 85. The same is the story, more or less, with most other high courts in India.

The result is disastrous. According to a Ministry of Law and Justice report released on 3 March 2016, the number of pending cases in high courts as on 31 December 2014 was a staggering 31,16,492 civil cases and 10,37,465 criminal cases. The same report tells us that the number of cases pending for more than 10 years in high courts by the end of 2014 was 5,89,631 civil cases and 1,87,999 criminal cases. All these figures must have gone up significantly in the last two years since the last report was compiled.

Though the pendency of a large number of cases is due to several inter-linked factors, the absence of almost half of the sanctioned judges (it must be mentioned that even the sanctioned strength of judges in India in proportion to the population is quite low in comparison to the population-judges ratio in advanced democracies of the world) is a major contributory factor for the current crisis.

Unless the vacancies are filled up fast, the crisis is certain to implode in our face, soon.

But the question is: if the executive refuses to reconsider the recommendation of the SC with regards to the 43 names  just as the Supreme Court, earlier, declined the appeal of the executive to reconsider the same cases  there is going to be a major stalemate that will worsen the given situation.

The question is: who will have the final veto power in the appointment of judges  the executive or the judiciary?

This question has come up now after almost seven decades of Independence  because for almost the first five decades after the Independence, the executive had the decisive say in the judicial appointments till the top judiciary appropriated this power to itself in 1993 by creating a collegium comprising solely of Supreme Court judges to decide the names of the high court judges.

The Supreme Court justified its stance in 1998 when President KR Narayanan, in exercise of his powers, sought the apex courts opinion on a question of law regarding the collegium system.

It was surprising that the executive tamely gave in when its long-held powers were usurped by the SC and accepted almost all recommendations of the collegium without a murmur of protest. Though, both the Congress and the BJP ruled at the centre in the next ten years (1993-2004), no legislative measures were undertaken by either to checkmate the powers of the Supreme Court.

Just as the Supreme Court got used to its exclusive power over judicial appointments over two decades, the executive came up with the National Judicial Appointment Commission (NJAC) Act, 2014, to scrap the collegium system of appointment of judges and to provide for a commission that gave a say to the executive in the appointments. Not surprising that the Supreme Court in October 2015 struck down the NJAC Act and also the 99th Constitution Amendment Act, 2014, that had incorporated the NJAC provision into the Constitution.

In order to assuage the concerns of the executive and the legislature (a two-third majority in both houses of Parliament had passed the NJAC Act), the Supreme Court, in a decision in November 2015, agreed that the government would draft a revised Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for the appointment of judges.

This revised MoP is now the bone of contention. The executive has come up with a clause in the revised MoP to retain for itself the power to reject some or all names recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium on the grounds of national security, but the Supreme Court has refused to play ball with such a provision.

In the last two decades, the executive had sent back a few cases for the reconsideration of the collegium, but if the collegium declined to reconsider, the executive was bound to accept the names. But in the revised MoP, the government has sought the final veto power for itself to either accept or reject the SC recommendations. No wonder the Supreme Court has refused to ratify the revised MoP.

It is now to be seen who blinks first  the executive or the judiciary? If both remain inflexible in their respective positions, India is headed for a constitutional crisis.
The outgoing commander-in-chief of the Jammu and Kashmir-based Northern Command, Lieutenant-General DS Hooda, has emphasised the need to improve processes for drawing back into society Kashmiris who had taken to arms.

"Can we do something to get the boys back? That is the concern," he says, highlighting an aspect of counterinsurgency that most tough-talking militaristic minds tend to neglect, while focussing instead on 'kills' and 'catches'. Hooda, who retires at the end of the month, is keenly aware of the importance of this concern. He and the officers and men under his command have had their hands full as a new militancy has rapidly gained ground over the past year-and-a-half, and large-scale protests and unrest have kept the Kashmir Valley on the boil through the summer and autumn.

Those with a less nuanced perspective might have expected him to talk of the need for battle preparations, fortifications and reinforcements. But it is a measure of how much the army brass has evolved since the 'proxy-war'-oriented phase of the second half of the 1990s that Hooda emphasises the need to win back those Kashmiris who have at some point taken up arms.

To be sure, he has quietly gone about the core tasks of the army too; extraordinary steps have been taken since mid-September in terms of war preparedness. But Hooda has not lost sight of other priorities in what must be a multi-pronged strategy.

Local sentiment is one of the most important priorities. Each death of a local boy can have a multiplying effect. "The more (a) local is killed, (the more) you will have a reaction," as Hooda says. For more than a year now, the funerals of young militants killed in action have been highly emotional events, drawing large crowds  and inspiring fresh teenagers to become militants.

These young recruits are sometimes jolted by the less-romantic reality they confront when they leave their homes. So surrender must be made easier  and the rehabilitation of former militants into society made smooth.

The rules only allow militants to surrender at four specified points  two trade and crossing points on the Line of Control, the Wagah border, and Delhis Indira Gandhi International Airport. Hooda points out that each of those points is hazardous for those who might want to surrender. For, Pakistani officials keep a hawk-eye on those who want to cross at Wagah and the specified trade and transit points. In fact, it takes several weeks to get through the red tape of permissions that are required to use those crossing points.

The result is that many of those who actually want to surrender try and get to Nepal and then cross the border into India  or find their way surreptitiously across the Line of Control or border. But using either of those methods puts them on the wrong side of the rules. Since they cannot technically surrender thus, they can be treated as terrorists, and of course the laws for that category are daunting.

The trouble for an army commander such as Hooda is that this causes many of those who may changed their minds after getting to Pakistan to remain in the ranks of militants. And, any smart strategist knows that, even if a local militant is often less lethal than a foreigner, a local draws in the wider support of the community  and that can be a far greater challenge in a situation like Kashmir.

The general also refers critically to the post-surrender dimension of policy. "There is no rehabilitation dimension, as far as the surrender policy is concerned."

Indeed, the message that goes out from those who have surrendered in the past is that it leads to a life of social, economic and political marginalisation, shame and harassment. In many cases, special cells of the local police demand that a surrendered militant report to them regularly, and then force them to do what those cells require.

If militants felt assured that they would be protected by law-enforcers, and be able to fruitfully resume their places as respectable members of society, it might attract more militants to surrender.

For the many who realise too late that life as a militant is not as wonderful as it is made out to be, far greater room for manoeuvre to make a U-turn must be provided.
Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail on Sunday, was arrested by the police in New Delhi on Monday.

CNN-News18 reported that Mintoo was arrested from the Delhi-Haryana border. Delhi and Punjab police had conducted a joint operation.

"Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police," said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh. He said Delhi police nabbed the dreaded terrorist on the basis of inputs passed on by Punjab police.

"We passed on the information about Mintoo following which Delhi police arrested him," official said. He said a team of Punjab police will go to Delhi to bring him back.

Mintoo had made a suspicious call in the morning which was intercepted by the police. All border posts at the Delhi-Haryana border were then put on alert.

Armed men in police uniform had stormed the high-security Nabha Jail on Sunday, opening indiscriminate fire and fleeing with five prisoners including Mintoo, an accused in 10 cases.

News reports had also suggested that Mintoo had ties with the Inter-Services Intelligence in Pakistan.

Mintoo was earlier arrested by Punjab Police from Delhi's IGI Airport in 2014. He was arrested in connection with 10 cases including the 2008 attack on Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and recovery of explosives at Halwara Air Force station in 2010.

According to another report in The Indian Express, Mintoo simply decided to join the group which had conducted the jailbreak after he found out about the plan. The report said that the armed men had initially not planned to free him.

Palwinder told us that the plan was only to get the gangsters freed. But Gurpreet Sekhon had told Mintoo that they would escape on Sunday. Mintoo was keeping a watch and joined them in the jail corridor, The Indian Express quoted Daljit Singh Chaudhary, UP ADGP (Law and order), as saying.

In the wake of the incident, Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal had called a meeting of senior officials including State Chief Secretary Sarvesh Kaushal and a high alert had been sounded in Punjab with security around railway stations, airports, inter-state bus terminuses and other places of key importance stepped up.

On Sunday night, the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh, was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle  a Toyota Fortuner  was stopped at a police picket.

A self-loading rifle (SLR), three rifles and several rounds of ammunition were recovered from the SUV during the search, Chaudhary had said.

According to CNN-News18, the arrested man confirmed his involvement in the case in a statement to the police.

Following the security breach, the Punjab government suspended the director-general of police (jails) and dismissed the Nabha Jail superintendent and deputy jail superintendent and set up a special task force to look into the Nabha jailbreak incident. A manhunt was launched to trace the prisoners who escaped, the deputy chief minister of Punjab, Sukhbir Singh Badal had said.

The Punjab government also announced a reward of Rs 25 lakhs to any person providing information leading to the arrest of six escaped under-trial prisoners, ANI had reported.

Sukhbir had also added that a special investigation team under the ADGP rank officer had been constituted to look into lapses as well as any conspiracy theories surrounding the jailbreak incident.

Vineet Joshi, advisor to the Punjab chief minister, told CNN-News18 that in the next 48 hours, all the inmates who had escaped from the jail will be arrested.

Meanwhile, security agencies on Monday continued their hunt of six high-profile prisoners, including two terrorists and four gangsters.

Police and security agencies were alerted in six states, including Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. Routes towards Nepal were also being checked.

"Raids are being conducted at various places. It appears that the prisoners who escaped and their attackers went in separate directions soon after escaping from the Nabha prison," a senior Punjab Police officer told IANS on Monday.

In neighbouring Haryana, the Haryana and Punjab Police confirmed the recovery of a Hyundai Verna car from a village in Kaithal district. The abandoned car was one of the getaway vehicles used by the escaped prisoners and their attackers. "On search of the car, we recovered a police uniform and some mobile numbers. We are investigating this. The registration number plates of the car are fake," a Haryana police official in Kaithal said.

With inputs from agencies
Muzaffarnagar: The alleged mastermind in the Nabha jailbreak case Parminder has claimed that eight persons were involved in the incident and the five fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in search of a hideout, police said on Monday.

Parminder alias Penda, who was arrested on Sunday in Shamli district hours after the jailbreak in which six prisoners including Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo escaped, told police during interrogation that he was staying in a hideout in Dehradun. He claimed that besides him seven persons were involved in the jailbreak and he was in contact with them through WhatsApp.

During interrogation, Parminder said that he was also involved in narcotic smuggling in states including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab, SP Ajay Sharma said.

Parminder was accused of killing Punjab police inspector Gurudev and he was on the run, police said.

Last evening, when he was travelling to Dehradun his vehicle was intercepted by police at a check post in Kairana in Shamli district in western Uttar Pradesh, police said.

Further investigations also revealed that Parminder was also involved in theft cases.

Police said it had recovered two SLRs, three other rifles, 544 cartridges and mobile phone from his possession.
Imagine a place in India where you dont need cash to buy a packet of salt or other groceries. A place where you don't need to stand in long lines to exchange your old currency notes at a bank, or queue outside an ATM to withdraw your own cash. With the current cash crunch such a place would be heaven on earth. After all, if you too have faced currency problems, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes on 8 November, you are not alone. Almost every nook and cranny of the country is facing this issue.

But, thats not the case for the villagers of Akodara, a tiny village situated in the Sabarkantha district of Gujarat. It's around 90 kilometres from the states financial capital Ahmedabad.

ICICI Bank adopted the village in 2015. It has now virtually gone cashless using digital technology. Jotsnaben Patel, a teacher says, Here most local financial transactions happen via mobile banking, card payments and net banking instead of cash. Its Indias first digital and cashless village.

Many transactions of up to Rs 5000 happen via SMS mobile banking. A simple SMS from the buyer via the banks payment gateway; and the payment directly reaches from the buyers bank account into the shopkeepers bank account within seconds. Doing away the need to handle cash.

Each of 250 households of Akodara has a savings account, and 1,036 adults of the 1,191 total populations have savings accounts. The bank trained the villagers to adopt the technology.

A villager told Firstpost, Because of digital banking, we havent faced any inconvenience after demonetisation . Our neighboring villages have faced cash crunch issues. We use our mobile phones in four- five shops in the village to make the payments. When we used to handle cash, we used to spend it. Now we all are saving, and its become a habit.

Theres an ATM located in the village by the bank, which is used mostly by villagers from the neighbouring village of Chhadarda. After demonetisation, the villagers of Akodara did exchange their old currency notes at the bank, most people in the line were from neighbouring places, says a local shopkeeper known as Patel Bhai.

The village even has its own website: http://akodara-digitalvillage. in

The village panchayat has access to the latest price of agricultural commodities on NCDEX via an internet facility provided by the bank. The village has an almost 100 percent literacy rate, and mobile banking is done in both English as well as Gujarati.

Among other digital initiatives, Sabar Dairy, aka the Sabarkantha District Cooperative Milk Producers' Union Limited has now built animal hostels for the village. Patel Palakh Kumar Suresh Bhai, a dairy farmer says, Every villager keeps his cattle in the animal hostel. The Sabar dairy tanker comes and collects milk from the hostel in the morning. And, milk is tested on the spot. The amount is credited into the villagers account every 10 days.

This move has worked well.

Firstpost visited a few dairy farms in the Anand district, and the owners were struggling to buy fodder for their cattle due to cash crunch issues. But, the dairy farmers in Akodara bought, the fodder using their debit card with just one swipe. The dairy farmers in Anand district could not buy an adequate quantity of fodder for their cattle, which resulted in a lower production of milk. That wasnt the case at Akodara.

The village has primary, secondary and higher secondary schools, equipped with smart learning and teaching solutions like smart boards, computers, tablets and the like. A school management system to make the teachers life easy it may well be, but it also does away with the mundane task of taking daily attendance. Pinkesh Rawal, a teacher says, Now the children swipe their cards for attendance; they find this activity very exciting. The audiovisual mode of learning has increased interest in learning among students.

Theres a community-owned reverse osmosis-based water treatment plant and a WiFi tower for internet connectivity to those who want to subscribe to the service. Plus, there are three micro ATMs  at the gram panchayat, the village-level cooperative society and RO plant.

Hemant Bhai, a local taxi driver says, I drive a taxi across the state of Gujarat. I have seen every village here. In the current cash crunch, truly, the villagers of Akodara are sukhi (happy).

Firstpost sat a few feet away from the general story near the ICICI Bank branch to watch and in the matter of half-an-hour or so, we saw three transactions. The first was conducted using a mobile phone. The second was done using hard cash and the third, without any payment, carried out by an elderly lady. When asked if she uses the mobile payment option, she said, I come and buy all that I need; my son visits the shop every few days and pays the bill via his mobile phone.

When we spoke to a young lady about the cash payment (the second transaction), she replied, I'm buying a Rs 5 chocolate bar for my child. I am not going to use an SMS for such a small transaction, am I?

How Indias first digital village came into being

On 26 May, 2014, Modi took charge as Prime Minister of India. Within a year, he launched the Digital India campaign (1 July, 2015).

The campaign was committed to connect rural India with high speed internet networks, create a digital infrastructure, and improve digital literacy in the country.

ICICI Bank wanted to participate in the government initiative, along with its own goal to impart financial literacy to citizens.

ICICI Bank's CEO Chanda Kochhar said during the launch of Indias first digital village in 2015, It is the prime minister's dream that India becomes digital. When we think of the word 'digital', what comes to our minds is big countries, and big cities. India has six lakh villages; we wanted to make one village in India 100 percent digital. The village we choose was Akodara in the Sabarkatha district of Gujarat.

The decision was taken to convert one rural village into a 100 percent digital village. The bank shortlisted six or seven villages. One important criterion was the level of financial literacy of the villagers. Akodara has literacy levels of almost 100 percent. There are 1,015 literate people and 176 illiterate ones in this village with a total population of 1,191. Another important factor that worked in Akodaras favour was its animal hostel. This is Asia's first animal hostel, and was launched in 2011 by Modi when he was the Gujarat chief minister.

ICICI Bank had already set up its branch in Akodara two years ago. Within four months of setting up of the branch, the bank started working on the digital village project.

Initially, the bank had 100 accounts opened; at present, there are around 1,200 accounts and every household in Akodara has a bank account.

The bankers trained men, women and senior citizens, for mobile banking via SMS as well as imparted knowledge about financial literacy.

The bankers worked closely with the gram panchayat, agri-sale mandi and the milk sale co-operative society. This ensured that all institutions were part of the financial literacy initiative as well as the digital cashless economy initiative. By 2 January, 2015, the village had gone 100 percent digital, where almost everyone went cashless for daily financial transactions.

The banks also launched other initiatives, like school automation, WiFi connectivity, a village website, a digital screen for commodity prices at the bank branch and skills development workshops for women to learn tailoring and office administration free of cost.
The best-hated and the most feared animal in all India, whose only crime  not against the laws of nature, but against the laws of man  was that he had shed human blood, with no object of terrorising man, but only in order that he might live...

 Jim Corbett

While there is a reason for wildlife lovers in the national capital to celebrate as the forest department has confirmed the presence of a leopard around Yamuna Biodiversity Park, there is something one should really worry about. The news confirming the leopard's presence in the capital contradicts the headlines that appeared two days later on 25 November.

A leopard was beaten to death and that too brutally, by the residents of Mandawar village in Gurugrams Sohna area. The forest department officers who were present on the spot, say, the villagers didnt allow them to do their job. They took the task on themselves attacking the leopard with stones, sticks, spades and what not. I mean, really!

There is no denying the fact that it attacked eight people in the village, but how does it justify what the villagers did to the leopard? The leopard probably panicked after seeing the crowd and must have reacted; not to harm anyone, but to save herself. Shouldnt the forest department have tried harder to tranquilise it, especially when they claim to be present on the spot and were fully equipped with tranquiliser, nets and cage?

Isnt it too early to celebrate the presence of another leopard around the National Capital Region? Are we, the humans, ready for the co-existence?

And, this is neither the first time when a leopard has come out of his habitat nor is it the first that a leopard has been beaten to death by a mob. It is the failure of a system thats unable to control the situation when such circumstance arises, which eventually leads to loss of lives both the species, whether its human or the animal.

On 20 February 2015, news of a leopard death was reported in Usmanpur, the north-east area of Delhi. This was fourth such death in a row and ninth reported in between June 2014 and February 2015.

They say, A leopard cannot change his spots. So, is it we humans who need to change? But if people and large carnivores like leopards share a landscape, can coexistence between the two foster?

The crumbling of forests and wildlife habitat close to the cities is apparently becoming a grave reason behind the extermination of the wildlife. Although by and large, the local leopard population tries to steer clear of humans, at times, conflict becomes inevitable either because people simply see a leopard and create a havoc, or, because a leopard starts visiting human settlements in search of goats, cattle and even dogs since its prey is dwindling due to human encroachment.

The human-leopard conflict isn't anything new to us but we generally turn a blind eye to its repercussions. The repercussions do involve us, but it largely affects the leopards. Humans still have a shelter but the leopards, unfortunately, are fast losing it. Besides, we still take pride in mob lynching and poisoning of this otherwise harmless creature.

While Delhi has the Asola Bhati Wildlife Sanctuary in the Aravali hills and Rajasthan has the Sariska Tiger Reserve, the intervening Aravali areas in Haryana have no sanctuary or national park. The Aravali hills adjoining Delhi especially along the Gurugram-Faridabad highway connects Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary with the rest of the patchy jungle belt of Haryana and Rajasthan. It can serve as an important wildlife corridor if conserved. In my opinion, the Aravalis have been the leopards' traditional habitat. There is enough wild prey in the scrub forest. There are ravines too, which make it a perfect area for the leopards to live stealthily.

In November 2014, a fully grown leopard was attempting to pass through the Delhi-Jaipur highway, having very little idea of what was going to transpire. The next few minutes brought with it the most terrible sight when an unidentified speeding vehicle ran over the animal making it lifeless. The tragic fate of leopards had probably just started to unfold.

A month later, an adult male leopard began paying surprise visits to the villagers of Abupur in Ghaziabad district. He was seen wandering around the sugarcane fields keeping terrified villagers at bay. After a few days of sightings, the leopard's dead body was discovered in a sugarcane field near the railway track.

Just a day before that incident another leopard's carcase was found near Pachehra village in Loni, Ghaziabad.

Although any foul play was ruled out by the forest department, the animal had reportedly died because of coming in contact with high-voltage wires laid by someone.

Is it the leopard, which seems to have forgotten its territory and dares to venture in the urban settlements, or, is it the authorities who are unable to put a halt on the rising number of leopard deaths? There isn't a definite answer for the same, but ensuring a safe and rich prey base in leopard corridors is a need of the hour. The fragmented corridors need to be linked so that a larger habitat is available for the leopards giving them fewer chances of straying away from their habitats and ending up being prey to urbanisation.

A leopard probably enters a village in the search of food, especially the stray dogs, which are easy prey for them.

There is a need to educate people especially, the villagers living on the fringes of our Jungles... a leopard only needs a way to go back from where it has come... and being humans, this is a part of our duty. It's high time we realised their importance in the ecosystem.

It's a universal truth that if humans destroy wildlife and its habitat, the leopards will get even closer and that too without any prior notice. We must preserve the leopards by preserving some wilderness around us.

(The author is ex-member of Project Tiger steering committee)
Beating all expectations, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious on Monday with 851 seats in the Maharashtra municipal council polls conducted in 165 civic bodies.

The numbers caught political analysts by surprise as they were predicting a poor tally for the party on account of a combination of factors, including the state's battered cooperative banking sector post the demonetisation announcement and a series of farmer suicides.

This election was also a major litmus test for Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The demonetisation exercise, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 8 November, was expected to spell trouble for the party in the state since the announcement came at the time of poll campaign. This had triggered speculations that the party will suffer a major setback in the state. More importantly, there was an anti-BJP wave perceived to be among the voters after cooperative banks were hit hard as they were not permitted to accept deposits in old currencies or exchange new notes.

But Monday's results showed that the BJP's popularity has remained untouched by the seeming negative wave.

The prime minister also congratulated the BJP workers on Twitter.

I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

A slew of factors including demonetisation, Maratha morcha, farmers suicide and drought impact figured prominently during the campaign, besides the local factors. This time, due to the change in rules, the municipal council president will be elected directly. This was the first phase of local body polls, which was held on 27 November. The second phase of the polls will be held on 14 December, the third phase on 18 December and the final phase on 8 January. There are a total of 212 local civic bodies in the state, including municipal councils and nagar panchayats.

Political analyst Abhay Deshpande told Firstpost that usually the chief minister does not campaign for the municipal council election, however, Fadnavis went on campaign trail as he was known for his clean image. Deshpande explained that this election, the local BJP workers had to prove that the party's hold in the state is not only due to the Modi wave but also due to their grassroot connections. The NCP, Congress' stand against demonetisation worked against them, he added.

After the date of the election was announcement, Shiv Sena and BJP agreed to an alliance, but their opponents Congress and NCP went separate ways and decided to taken on the BJP-Shiv Sena solo. Till 7.30 pm Monday, BJP won 51 seats for the post of municipal council president, Shiv Sena 24, Congress 21, NCP 19 and other Independent candidates won 25 seats.

After Modi's demonetisation announcement, the semi-urban areas of Maharashtra were hit due to the restrictions on district cooperative banks, which were a major movement in the state. A majority of the farmers have accounts in these cooperative banks.

In the last week of the election campaign, Fadnavis had highlighted the benefits of demonetisation and the Centre's fight against corruption and black money. Congress and the NCP, on the other hand, campaigned highlighting the hardships faced by the common man.

Till 7.30 pm Monday, results of 3,510 seats were declared in which BJP bagged 851 seats, Shiv Sena won 514 seats, NCP 338, Congress 643, MNS 12, BSP 5, Others  708.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Narayan Rane bounced back in this election. In the Sindhudurg district, Sawantwadi, Vengurla, Malvan and Devgad municipal council polls Congress emerged as the number one party. However, the Sindhudurg results were a big blow for Minister for State (Home) Deepak Kesarkar.
There has been unwarranted fear mongering in the country post the announcement of demonetisation. However, if we take a long term view on issues, demonetization will help bring a positive change in the real estate sector. While the industry will stand to gain from the shift towards a more transparent and organised environment, there are plenty of reasons for the home buyer to rejoice. This move has placed the consumer in a remarkable position with various factors working in his favour.

Top reasons why property seekers should invest in a property today:

Lower home loans

Demonetisation has increased the flow of money into banks from the unorganised and the small scale industrial sector by compelling these sectors to deposit their savings in banks. It has opened a window of opportunity for everyone to avail home loans at significantly lower rates allowing them to fulfill their dream of owning a home.

The deflationary effect on the economy due to better liquidity will lead to price stabilisation making it a buyers market. The Reserve Bank of India will also have ample leg room to bring down the repo rates. Liquidity with the banks will help them translate the repo rate into lower borrowings for home loans. The rupee is also expected to strengthen in the consecutive months thereby increasing the purchasing power of consumers.

Restoring the stalled projects

Projects that were being delayed because of cash crunch, will now pick up speed. The cash flow with banks will also mean that industry can avail loans from banks at better lending rates than what was being offered in the past. This will be a major relief to consumers.

Investment in infrastructural development

Demonetisation will increase the percentage of money being accounted for and will therefore result in a rise in the collection of taxes. The government will have more resources at their exposure to invest in infrastructural development of the country. Providing connectivity to the consumers who have invested in affordable housing projects in town peripheries will gain from the development.

Transparent home buying process

Demonetisation has ushered in a shift to cashless economy. Card transactions are not only beneficial for customers in terms of ease of use and time saving but are also transparent in nature.

Buyers market

While demonetisation has made us all cautious of our spending, it is important that home buyers make the most of this opportunity. Home buyers looking to invest in homes financed by loans should be rest assured that this is the perfect time with all the above reasons placing them at an advantage.

The writer is MD & CEO, Tata Housing Development Company.
New Delhi: Seeking to break the deadlock, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday told Lok Sabha that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak on demonetisation if the Opposition wanted, but the rival parties demanding debate with a provision for voting remained unimpressed, forcing the House to adjourn for the second time.

A number of opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge (Cong), Sudip Bandhopadhyay (TMC) and Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), spoke as they pressed for acceptance of their demand for an adjournment motion, a condition not acceptable to the treasury benches which want a debate without voting.

With the Opposition parties firm on their stand, Singh said nobody is questioning the government's intentions over demonetisation or imputing any malafide.

He said that the government was willing to listen to the complaints and suggestions different parties have over the execution of the demonetisation move.

"As far as the Prime Minister coming to the House is concerned, if the Opposition wants he will come and intervene. I want to assure the Opposition. We are ready for a discussion," the Home Minister said during the Zero Hour, after the Opposition leaders had spoken.

The decision on under which rule the discussion would take place is for the Speaker to make, he said.

Demonetisation is a "historic, bold and pro-poor" decision, Singh said, adding that it was taken to target black money and was in national interest.

However, members of a dissatisfied Opposition rushed to the Well, forcing Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to adjourn the House till 1400 hours.

Earlier, Kharge said demonetisation had harmed the economic system, the farmers, youths, labourers and women among others who are in distress.

Maintaining that over 70 people have died due to the faulty implementation, he cited the incident of a Union Minister facing difficulty in paying hospital bills after his brother died and said it is an evidence of the crisis. Union Minister Sadananda Gowda's brother had died in Karnataka.

"There is only one way to break this deadlock. The Prime Minister should come here [to the House] and our adjournment motion be accepted," Kharge said.

Bandhopadhyay said the government must take initiative to break the impasse as people will ask what does Parliament stand for, if it is adjourned everyday.

Supporting Kharge, the SP chief said if Modi does not come to the House on such an important matter, then when he will come. Farmers are facing a lot of problems, he said.

Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav (RJD) called the decision impractical and anti-people.

An AIADMK member said the government should take initiative to ease people's sufferings, while B Mahtab (BJD) said the onus was on the Centre to take steps to break the impasse.

Anandrao Adsul (Shiv Sena) said neither 'Bharat Bandh' nor 'Aakrosh Diwas', which different opposition parties have announced for today, was visible but lamented that the recent announcement of Nabard disbursing Rs 21,000 crore to cooperative banks has not been implemented. Situation remains bad in rural areas, he said.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday hailed BJP's victory in polls to Maharashtra's local bodies as a "win for pro-poor and development politics" and thanked people of the state for placing their faith in the party.

I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

BJP on Monday emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls winning 39 municipal chief's posts of the 147 urban local bodies, dealing a blow to Congress and NCP in the keenly fought elections, whose campaign centred around issues like demonetisation.

Trends and results pouring in from around the state showed the BJP making inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds.

Polls were also held for 17 nagar panchayats on Sunday.

As per the trends available till late afternoon, BJP was ahead with its candidates winning 455 seats, its ally Shiv Sena with 187, NCP 231 and Congress 333.

In the last elections, BJP tally was 298, Sena 264, Congress 771 and NCP 916.
New Delhi: With BJP emerging as a major gainer in Maharashtra local polls, party chief Amit Shah on Monday said the results should be a "wake-up call" for the opposition parties who were "trying to mislead" people on demonetisation.

Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on #Demonetisation, a decision in national interest.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

The party on Monday emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls winning 39 municipal chief's posts of the 147 urban local bodies, dealing a blow to Congress and NCP in the keenly fought elections, whose campaign centred around issues like demonetisation.
The primary pitch and narrative of the demonetisation drive by Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to have taken a major shift to cashless economy from the initial key highlights of war against black money, corruption and counterfeit currency. Thats the inference one can draw from the PMs Mann Ki Baat speech on Sunday.

Our dream is that there should be a cashless society. This is correct that 100 percent cashless society is never possible. But we can make a start with less-cash society, then cashless society will not be a far-off destination, Modi said in the programme.

A significant part of the radio programme was devoted to the youth with the PM calling out to make the transition happen first to a less-cash economy and a cashless economy later. There was mention about black money, but the core of the talk was change to a cashless economy.

The PM urged people to start using cash substitutes like debit cards and digital wallets, saying it will make transactions cheaper and easier and in the long-term it will help India "leapfrog into a less cash-use economy at par with more developed nations."

"We are also urging banks to make a big push with PoS (Point of Sale) machines with traders so that debit card use becomes more prevalent," Modi said.

Interestingly, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor, Urjit Patel too shared his mann ki baat on the same day, after a stoic silence on the note ban and three weeks after the announcement.

In an interview to PTI, Patel urged people to start using cash substitutes like debit cards and digital wallets. The central bank governor said it will make transactions cheaper and easier and in the long term. It will help India "leapfrog into a less cash-use economy at par with more developed nations."

"We are also urging banks to make a big push with PoS (Point of Sale) machines with traders so that debit card use becomes more prevalent," the RBI governor said. The RBI is monitoring the situation on a daily basis, he said, urging people to start using cash substitutes such as debit cards and digital wallets, which will make transactions cheaper and easier, Patel said.

Clearly, the common factor in both Modis and Patels talk is migration towards a cashless society, especially targeted to the youth, rather than black money. Migration to a cashless society is obviously a good thing given that electronic banking transactions would be easier and more transparent than handing over cash. It can cut down the time taken per transaction and wouldnt require people to carry cash to wherever they go. But, as PM Modi mentioned in his programme, a good number of people are still hesitant to use their mobile or internet banking, E-wallets and Unified Payment Interface (UPI) for banking transactions. The idea of transformation to a cashless economy, though will take time in a country 70 percent of which still lives in cash economy, is welcome but one cannot deny that there has been a clear change in the demonetisation narrative by the Modi-government and in its pitch.

To understand this, take a closer look at the first press release of demonetisation announcement by the government and PMs speech on 8 November where he announced the decision to ban Rs 500, Rs 1000 notes from the banking system.

With a view to curb financing of terrorism through the proceeds of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) and use of such funds for subversive activities such as espionage, smuggling of arms, drugs and other contraband into India, and for eliminating Black Money which casts a long shadow of parallel economy on our real economy, it has been decided to cancel the legal tender character of the High Denomination bank notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 denominations issued by RBI till now. This will take effect from the expiry of the 8th November, 2016, the government release said.

The release spoke extensively on the black money issue, cited a 2010 World Bank study to say that the estimated size of the shadow economy for India grew from 20.7 percent of the GDP in 1999 to 23.2 percent in 2007 and listed the steps taken by the Narendra Modi-government in last two years to curb black money. There was no mention about change to a cashless society.

In PM Modis speech too, there was no major references on shift to cashless economy, with the major focus of the demonetisation being projected as war on black money, terror funding and corruption. To break the grip of corruption and black money, we have decided that the 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee currency notes presently in use will no longer be legal tender from midnight tonight, that is 8 November 2016 This step will strengthen the hands of the common man in the fight against corruption, black money and fake currency.

When will the cash crunch end?

On the other hand, despite three weeks after the note ban, the cash crunch continues across the country, especially in non-metros, where people are still struggling to find lower denomination notes. ATMs and bank branches are still running dry. This is despite the assurances by the government and the RBI that there is enough cash in the system to cater to all customers and the government mints are working in full capacity. But, it is doubtful that whether the assurances are reflecting on the ground. Instead of assuring again, a presser by the RBI governor Urjit Patel addressing the public to detail the cash situation in the banking system would have been far more effective.

As Firstpost has noted before, there is also a price the economy will have to pay as the cash drought is likely to have hit economic activities badly. A clear picture would emerge only after a few months though. On the other hand, it is unlikely that the actual effect of the currency ban on black money, corruption and counterfeit notes will be much given that the measure alone doesnt address the problem and would need steps beyond demonetisation. PM Modi has assured follow up steps. One needs to wait and watch. But, at this stage, there is a clear, notable shift in the demonetisation pitch.
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"Most of the people eat food in dhabas when they eat outside. Can the government inform us about a dhaba in which a person carries card-swiping machine in his dhoti?" he said.

"Many labourers became unemployed today...there are very long lines and crores of people in those lines. But it is not just that," he said.

"Does the farmer own black money when he engages in transactions for seeds, fertilisers?" he said.

"It is a reality that the farmer is an important part of the economy. That is why India does not have to beg," said a dramatic Anand Sharma in the Rajya Sabha.

"What authority do the prime minister and finance minister have so that we have to beg you for our very own money?" thundered Anand Sharma.

"You have created a condition in which you told a person that he can exchange Rs 4000...I marvel at your generosity," Anand Sharma said sarcastically in the Rajya Sabha.

"After the Uri attack and surgical strikes, we posed various questions about the army....You said we cannot ask questions about the army," said Anand Sharma.

"If you are the government, that doesn't mean India belongs to you. You have created such an environment that we cannot ask questions," he said. "If we ask questions, you start asking questions about our nationality," he added.

"Who got the benefits of your decisions?" he said. "Your government is only for those people who are your friends. You hurt those people who question you."

"If you are trying to give this impression to the country that India started fighting money laundering now, then the prime minister is living on a different planet," said Anand Sharma in Rajya Sabha.

After this statement, the Congress MPs began shouting again. Note that Anand Sharma was not interrupted even once when he was talking in the Rajya Sabha.

"But I think Anand Sharma does not know much about economics," he said. "If his claim of fight against black money is true, he would not have ignored the fact the entire country has welcomed this move by the Narendra Modi government," he added.

"In the future, inflation will be controlled when more people pay taxes," he said. "The central government will also get more resources for the welfare of farmers, labourers, youth, women in the country."

"Some people had suggested that this move should have been made public seven days before implementing it. But secrecy is most important in such issues," he said.

"The government has taken many steps against corruption. Demonetisation was a historic step against corruption. This was also a warning to the corrupt that the black money they had was useless now," he said.

"Finance Minister had informed the House only about the counterfeit money in the economy, not the money which some people have got through corruption," Goyal said in the Rajya Sabha.

"Some people just seem to be unhappy that Prime Minister Modi has taken an important step against corruption and black money," he said.

"When the government had just come to power in 2014, there was an atmosphere against corruption," Piyush Goyal said in Rajya Sabha.

"This is a step after which a person will think twice before engaging in corruption," he said. "The poor labourers will benefit the most," he added.

"Please do not hold views which the corrupt can use to free themselves," Goyal added.

"You (Congress) talked about surgical strike. We did not mention it. This is good. You have given us a certificate that we conducted precise strikes against corruption," he said.

"The country is ready to tolerate a few days of inconvenience," he said. "The entire country is with us," he added.

"And even the Election Commission won't be able to notice when someone is carrying the Rs 2000 note in one's pocket," he said.

"Several crore vegetables were just thrown away per day from markets," he said. "Who gave you the advice to come up with the Rs 2000 note? Go outside Delhi to the villages of India. Nobody will accept that note," he said.

"The farmer is unable to buy fertiliser and seeds," said SP's Ram Gopal Yadav in Rajya Sabha. "Farmers are not able to sell potatoes now. Were these potatoes made using black money?" he said.

Who gave you the advice to come up with the Rs 2000 note? SP asks govt in Rajya Sabha

"Our party will move adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha," she said, adding that demonetisation was a dictatorial and draconian step by the government.

"We told the President that he is the custodian of the Constitution. We told him to talk to the government," Mamata Banerjee said.

"Today, people are not getting access to vegetables in the markets. Children are not getting milk. People are dying," she said.

"Today, how did the non-performing assets increase in the last six months?" the Bengal chief minister said.

"After cancelling notes, there were a lot of notes needed in banks for the huge demand," Mamata Banerjee said after meeting the President.

"90 percent of blak money is in tax havens abroad," Yechury further said. "It's like the prime minister is killing the pond to kill the crocodiles, forgetting that the crocodiles can survive on land too."

"But where is this black money? All estimates say 6 percent of this black money is in cash," he said. "Black money is in circulation, in real estate...gold imports have surged in the last few days."

"We want black money controlled. We want it eliminated. The World Bank says that nearly 21 percent of the Indian economy is in the black economy," Yechury said.

"If you stop these Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, you think corruption will stop? Now, corruption will double with the Rs 2000 notes," Yechury said.

"After 26/11, we went on debating over a new law to combat terrorism. On many issues, we had agreed over how terror funding needed to stop," Yechury said.

"We want to stop counterfeit money. Locate where this is happening. Punish them. We will all support this. But this is not the way to stop it," he said.

"By this way, you are killing the poor," he said. "As Anand Sharma said, 0.02 percent of the cash is counterfeit. To take care of that, you needed to do this?" he added.

"The point is that black money is not going to go away with this. Black money is not stock, it is a flow," Yechury said in the Rajya Sabha.

"For the rest of India, it is Tarasta Bharat," he said. "People can't get their children treated at hospitals."

"In our rural population, 80.8 percent of the rural population is not covered by the banks," he said. "What banking does the prime minister want us to go to? There is Shining India with e-wallets for them," he said.

"Why are you agonising the Indian people?" Yechury said. "Agonising people is a way to tell people: I control your personal lives," he said, adding that this was a fascist move.

"People will say this Tughlaqshahi," he said. "This does not meet the objectives of what the prime minister set out to do."

"You have allowed banks to exchange notes. Bulk of Indians today are dealing with rural cooperative banks. You don't allow them to change notes...86 percent of the rural population is dependent on transactions from these banks," Yechury said.

"Don't give this exemption to political parties to spend whatever they want," Yechury said. "If you're serious about stopping corruption, stop the supply side of corruption," he added.

Laughing at Das, Patel said, "Are you kidding me? How can you allow your EAS to issue such statements. You are making a fool of yourself."

Slamming the Narendra Modi government's handling of the issue, Patel gave example of Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, who during a press conference on Wednesday said: "The new currency notes, just as the old ones, will lose colour if rubbed with a piece of cloth wet because that's the nature of the dye used. If your note does not lose colour, it's one of the signs that it may be fake."

"Abolishing black money is a move we all support, and BJP government's intention is great but you are asking people to be hungry for 50 days for a feast on the 51st day. Vo aadmi toh mar ayega, bhoj kya khayega (The person will die on the 51st day, what will he do with the feast)," says Patel.

Rajya Sabha erupted after the comment. Senior BJP leader and Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad interrupted Tiwari's speech and said that the statement, which was "atrocious", should not go in record. "No one speaks about the country's prime minister in such an atrocious way. It should not go in record,"Prasad urged the Chair.

In a dramatised speech, Congress leader Pramod Tiwari from Uttar Pradesh compared prime minister to former dictators like Gaddafi, Adolf Hitler and Mussolini. "The seat that you (Narendra Modi) occupy, has been occupied by Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru, Shastri ji, Charan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee. But the way you are working, I am forced to say that it reminds me of dictators like Gaddafi, Hitler and Mussolini."

"Modi government marched to victory in 2014 because the country was tired of scams and scandals. That was our poll promise. I request Congress to come out of the dilemma - are you in favour of the people who are hoarders and scamsters or you are in favour of a bold step that eradicates black money from the country. Narendra Modi is capable of taking very strong steps. Temporary pain for long term gain - is the buzz across India. One thing I want to assure - if your money is valid, nothing will happen to it."

"You have got a chance to discuss important things on this platform so do not waste it by mud-slinging. When it comes to people and their hatred towards our PM (the way you claim), we saw their hatred in 2014 and we will see it in 2019," Naidu says to a thundering applause.

Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu addresses Rajya Sabha and says that people across the nation are watching this Session and they are not interested in a history lesson.

As expected, the Opposition targetted the Narendra Modi governmemnt over its "ill-preparedness" and "lack of empathy" for the general public. Senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad at the end of day one requested the prime minister to appear in the House tomorrow and discuss the issue of demonetisation.

While the Lok Sabha was adjourned earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha argued and debated on topics till 6 pm on Wednesday. Chairman of Upper House PJ Kurien announced that the House will resume the same discussion (on demonetisation) from 2 pm on Thursday.

The first day of Winter Session went as expected, in fact it went better than expected.

While the Union ministers and BJP MPs are demanding an apology from Leader of Opposition in the House Ghulam Nabi Azad for his Uri remark, Congress MPs are demanding an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the demonetisation scheme.

"The nation wants to know today," he added, reminding of a news anchor famous for shouting at the panellists on his show.

"The Opposition has disappointed us and the country," he said. "I want the Congress to clarify on Azad's remark," he said.

"Those who ruled over the country for 50 years and ruined the situation of the aam aadmi and those who did not let the Parliament function are now also on the same path," said Naidu. "The prime minister will respond if needed," he said.

"They are not strong...they are not on the side of the truth, the people are not with them," Naidu further said.

"The government is ready for a discussion. We don't know what has happened with the Congress. Suddenly, they took a U-turn," said Venkaiah Naidu.

"There is a need to fix the railway infrastructure. Modiji talked about the bullet train. But there is no focus. How will the aam aadmi benefit and get safety?" said Rahul on the Patna-Indore Express tragedy.

"This is one of the biggest economic decisions in India. But the prime minister had not thought about the impact," he said. "This is some other form of the prime minister," he added.

"We are ready for a discussion. These days, why does the prime minister need to come to the Parliament? He is on a different level. He does not need to interact with his ministers," said Rahul sarcastically.

"People are complaining of deals at the back of long lines to banks. So people are suffering huge losses," he said. "Only 15 or 20 friends of the prime minister will benefit from this move," he added.

"People have told me that they are suffering a lot," said Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi outside the Parliament on the issue of demonetisation.

The Opposition members raised slogans, even as deputy chairman PJ Kurien threatened to adjourn the House. And... he did. The Rajya Sabha is adjourned till 12 pm.

Rajya Sabh and Lok Sabha will resume in a while. Meanwhile, asking his countrymen to tell their views on demonetisation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted saying, "I want your first-hand view on the decision taken regarding currency notes. Take part in the survey on the NM App."

Speaker of Lok Sabha Sumitra Mahajan, quite hassled by the way the MPs were behaving, threatened to adjourn the House. "Kyun kar rahe ho?" asks Mahajan very politely as Opposition MPs raised slogans and asked for debate over demonetisation. The protesting MPs also demanded that Modi should come to the House and make a speech.

The Lok Sabha is heading for another adjournment as the Opposition escalated their attack on the BJP government over the same issue of demonetisation. By the look of it, the Winter Session of Parliament till now has been a total washout with no constructive debate happening on the floor.

After the ruckus got out of hand, a very calm Hamid Ansari stood up and adjourned the Upper House till 2 pm.

Members could not keep it together even as the Rajya Sabha resumed proceedings at 12.32 pm.

However, an unrelenting opposition continued to raise slogans. The Speaker again appealed to the opposition to participate in the debate saying that the disruption of proceedings would not resolve the problem. "I am really pained. If you are people's representatives, you should stand by them," she said. As pandemonium continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till noon after 20 minutes of proceedings.

Ignoring the slogan shouting opposition members, Speaker allowed the Question Hour to continue amidst noise. When some opposition members tried to bring a placard, denouncing the demonetisation move, infront of Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, who was replying a question related to his Ministry, the Speaker tried to intervene and asked the MPs not to disturb the Minister. "This is not good. Everyone will be shown on TV, but don't disturb the Minister. If you want to discuss something, raise it before the government. People are in pain, tell the government. But this is not the way to highlight people's grievances," Mahajan said asking them to return to their seats.

Samjawadi Party, NCP and RJD stood in the aisles in solidarity with the other opposition members. While AIADMK members were also on the aisles raising the issue of Tamil fishermen injured allegedly in firing by Sri Lankan Navy, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi was seen busy in his seat in an intimate discussion with AAP MP from Punjab Harinder Singh Khalsa.

Opposition disrupted the proceedings of the Lok Sabha for the fourth consecutive day demanding discussion on demonetisation on a rule which entails voting forcing Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to adjourn the House for about 50 minutes soon after it assembled. As soon as the House met, members of Congress, TMC, Left parties and AAP rushed to the Well of the House demanding discussions on the demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 under Rule 56, that entails.

As BJP members also created a ruckus, an angry Kurien snapped at them. "Why should treasury benches do this? Mr Minister, why should treasury benches to this," he asked Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi.

He told Azad that he was ready to accept his notice under rule 267 seeking suspension of business. "Mr Azad, I am ready to admit your notice under 267 if only there is order in the House."

As they shouted slogans from the Well, Kurien said, "You cannot speak in the Well. Shouting in the Well is of no use. If you go back to your seats, I will give you time (to speak)."

At this point, TMC members carrying placards of "Financial Emergency" trooped into the Well, with Congress members following suit.

"He should come and listen to the pain people have faced because of his decision," Mayawati said. Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the opposition is ready for discussion on the issue but Prime Minister should come to the Rajya Sabha first. As he spoke, members of the BJP moved into the aisles raising slogans.

No sooner were the listed papers laid on the table in Rajya Sabha, Sharad Yadav of JD(U) said the government should pay a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to kin of the 70 persons who lost their lives due to hardships caused by withdrawal of 500 and 1,000 rupee notes. Naresh Agarwal (SP) and Mayawati (BSP) said Modi should be called before starting discussion on the demonetisation.

"Today they want PM Modi to address Parliament, tomorrow they will be demand a JPC on the demonetisation issue. Trust me, the opposition is just shifting the goalpost. Why are they running away from a debate? Why do they just want prime minister to speak, is the finance minister not competent enough to reply to their questions," asks Prasad.

Speaking to CNN-News18, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad attacked the Opposition on their demand of asking Prime Minister Modi to address the House of Parliament and in turn asked, "Why is the Opposition running away from debate?"

"Government wants that there should be a long and elaborate discussion so that we can explain to this country the enormous benefits of this move," Singh said. "Congress and other opposition parties are on a self-destructing course."

On the other hand, Jitendra Singh said that the Opposition was on a self-destruct course.

"Let's keep Opposition and government out of this. Let's think of the people," he further said.

"Almost 70 people have died. He must be crying for them. And I respect that," Congress leader Kapil Sibal told Times Now, clearly taking a dig at the prime minister and implying that he could not come to the Parliament because he was crying.

Speaking to the media outside Parliament, Rahul alleged that the government and the prime minister are not allowing a debate in the House. "We have filed an adjournment motion in the House and we want Modi to discuss the issue with us," says Rahul Gandhi

"Main poochna chahti hoon prime minister se ki agar unhone itna acha kaam kiya hai to vo ghabra kyu rahe hain? (I want to ask PM Modi that if he has taken a decision which is so good why is he scared?) I urge President to summon Modi and ask him to take measures to solve the problems faced by people post demonetisation move," Mayawati told the media after Lok Sabha got its first adjournment of the day.

Alleging that it sends a wrong message if prime minister keeps shying away from a debate, BSP chief Mayawati on Wednesday that a debate is a must because otherwise the BJP government looks like it has done something wrong. "Puri daal kali lag rahi hai."

Proceedings was continuously disrupted as Opposition leaders raised loud slogans against the BJP government. Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu urges Speaker Sumitra Mahajan not to adjourn the Lower House. "The debate has begun, madam Speaker. Please let the debate happen. The world is watching what Congress and the Oppostion is doing inside the House," Naidu said.

The protesting MPs, for the past half an hour, have continously made noise and tried to disrupt the Lok Sabha proceedings. Speaker Mahajan still holding solid ground.

Opposition members are trying their best to disrupt the proceedings, but BJP MPs (MJ Akbar, Jitendra Singh) are holding their ground and not giving in to the awful noise that the protesting MPs are making.

 Samajwadi Party's Akshay Yadav tore paper and threw it at Speaker Sumitra Mahajan in the Lok Sabha. This is definitely a new low for Opposition parties in the Parliament.

"I am very sorry that the RBI has been exposed to this kind of criticism which is fully justified," he added.

"It is not good that every day, the banking system comes up with some modifications. That reflects very poorly on the prime minister's office," he said.

"The national income can decline by about 2 percentage points...I feel that the prime minister must come up with some constructive proposal," said the former prime minister.

"In my opinion, the way demonetisation has been implemented will hurt agriculture, small industries and the people in the informal sector," he said.

"I want to know from the prime minister the names of countries where people have deposited their money in banks but are not allowed to withdraw it," he said.

"What has been done can weaken and erode our people's confidence in the currency and banking system," said Manmohan Singh in the Rajya Sabha.

"I say so with all responsibility that we do not know what will be the full outcome," he said. "50 days is a short period but for those who are poor, even 50 days can bring about disastrous effects. About 60-65 people have lost their lives," he said.

"Today, there are no two opinions in the country. It is important to take note of the grievances of the common people who have suffered," said Manmohan Singh.

"I do not disagree with the objectives of taking steps against terroism and black money," said former prime minister Manmohan Singh in the Rajya Sabha. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the House.

"By the day, the damage to the economy is increasing. Today, reports have come which have said that in three sectors that are biggest in exports, 4 lakh people have lost their jobs in the last one week or so," Sitaram Yechury said.

Addressing the Upper House, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said how can the prime minister say something like this? "How can the prime minister allege that Opposition parties are in favour of black money? This is wrong."

Within minutes after the Rajya Sabha began today, the opposition members were up in arms protesting against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement that those cirticising the government are not angry with the government's preparedness but the fact that they did not get time to prepare.

Slamming the prime minister for his statements on black money hoarders and his veiled attack against the Opposition, the leaders of Congress and SP and BSP created ruckus in the Upper House and demanded that Modi should address the MPs and apologise for his remarks.

"I'm sure many of us have read analysis of noted economist Lawrence Summers, former chief economist of the World Bank and advisor to Obama government who concludes that this exercise has "resulted in chaos and loss of trust" and "without new measures, is unlikely to have lasting benefits. Don't you think it is high time and right time to form a committee of our real experts and intellectuals like Arun Shourie, Yashwant Sinha, Subramanian Swamy and other top economists and intellectuals of our party and veteran Murli Manohar Joshi to help the government in this hour?"

In a series of tweets on Friday, BJP leader Shatrughan Sinha, reiterating his faith in PM Modi's intention, said, "However, I have serious concerns about the outcome, fallout and responses of the people of India and the almost united opposition in particular."

Seventh day of Winter Session and looks like this week business will take a massive hit due to ongoing protests by the Opposition

As Opposition din did not die down even after many requests by the Speaker, Mahajan adjourned the Lok Sabha till Monday (28 November) 11 am.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said that a man  Rakesh Singh  tried to jump in the Lok Sabha off the audience gallery on Friday after the House was adjourned. "Security officials overpowered him and took him under custody and he has been let off with warning," Mahajan added.

Taking the nation by surprise, the Prime Minister had on November 8 announced demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes with effect from midnight.

Latching on to media reports, Yechury sought to pick holes in the November 8 decision as he noted that 29 crore out of the 30 crore Rupay card holders have never used their cards in a swipe machine. Referring to a report on surfacing of two variants of Rs 500 currency notes, the Marxist leader also took a dig at Modi, saying it was the "Prime Minister's way" of stopping circulation of fake currency.

CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, dubbing him as 'Tughlaq' who had "gone missing" after issuing a farman (order). "Barely 20-25 percent of cash demand being met in Metros. Rural areas even worse. While Tughlaq goes missing after his firman," Yechury tweeted.

Will government's wait-and-watch technique, as far as Opposition's protests are concerned, work out in their favour? Most political observers say no because the government does not have the luxury of time. Meanwhile, Opposition leaders are still not relenting with their demand of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence in Parliament.

Opposition leaders met before Parliament session commences for the tenth day. However, the worry again is will the Opposition let the Parliament function? Winter Session will go on for 22 sittings - 50 percent of the sittings are already over - the Upper House and the Lok Sabha have still not been able to table crucial bills.

"Why is the BJP government so stubborn? Why is the prime minister not coming to debate?" Mayawati asks.

In Samba, security forces killed two militants early on Tuesday when a group of militants tried to sneak in from Pakistan through the International Border near a border outpost in this Jammu district. According to reports, the two militants were killed following a "heavy firing exchange" with the BSF.

Even as terrorists infiltrated the International Border and attacked two - Nagrota and Samba - districts of Jammu and Kashmir, there was no talk of that in Parliament. The attack in Nagrota reportedly started around 5.30 am with militants firing at a field regiment camp located in the garrison town of Nagrota near the headquarter's of army's 16 corps in the state.

Demonetisation has been the reason for Parliament washouts over ten days now since Winter Session began on 16 November. Interestingly, Parliament has not discussed anything else except note ban imposed by the Narendra Modi government since the Winter Session began.

TMC leader slammed the BJP government for deploying Army in West Bengal. Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu told Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien that the deployment was a routine exercise and casting aspersions on the prime minister is not acceptable.

Opposition: Modiji says he wants the poor to build their own homes, but what about those homes which are being broken?

If one had to compare, Rajya Sabha gets adjourned way faster and sooner than the Lower House.

Unrelenting Speaker Sumitra Mahajan continues to let MPs speak on different issues while a group of MPs continue to try to disrupt Lok Sabha. But since Winter Session has begun (16 November) members who are against the demonetisation drive have tried, and sometimes successfully, to stall Parliament.

"These photos on the walls of the Rajya Sabha, from where emanates the power of democracy, often haunt me. It has been particularly difficult these last few days to get past those photos.Till 1 December (15th day since the commencement of the Winter Session) no business has been allowed to occur in the House except on the first day when a good debate took place in the Rajya Sabha over demonetisation. Regular disruptions, chaos and high-pitched slogan shouting have resulted in complete pandemonium in the House. The continuous ruckus usually leads to the suspension of the House proceedings and, sadly, it has become a regular feature. I ask myself: is this the only alternative left to us to address the genuine grievances of the public, the states and the nation?"

"Today, the situation is that the withdrawals of the foreigners who come to India are being rationed," he said. "This has globally affected India's image," he added.

"Demonetisation created a situation that 86 percent of the currency was invalidated. Now, after one month, tens of millions of Indians are standing in queues...It is wrong to give an impression that the Opposition is opposing the prime minister's crusade against black money," Sharma said.

"The government has collective responsibility but the prime minister is the first among the equals," said Congress leader Anand Sharma in Rajya Sabha.

"In the 2G debates, we have insisted that the prime minister participates in this discussions but there is no such practice in this House that the prime minister must be here to listen to each and every member," Jaitley said.

"What is the stage we are in? Halfway through the debate, you interrupted the debate and are now raising concerns which have never been raised in the House," he told the Opposition.

"In this case, we've repeatedly said that the prime minister is going to participate in the debate," Jaitley said.

"It's obviously an important issue. The questions have to be answered," he said. "The government and the council of ministers fucntions on a collective responsibility. There is no such principle that a specific person has to answer."

"We've gone through this exercise of having a major debate which is incomplete. We have spent seven hours on the debate under rule 167," said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in Rajya Sabha.

When asked what does the Opposition want, Rahul said, "He should come and debate in Parliament and explain his decision," he said.

Targetting the Prime Minister over the issue of note ban, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi slammed the BJP government saying that the decision to scrap high denomination currency was the biggest mistake ever. "It was a bold decision - that's what Modi ji says - but bold decisions are also foolish decisions. Demonetisation was a foolish decision. Our farmers, fishermen and the poor of the society are dying, our Prime Minister does not care for any of that. He (PM Modi) is laughing and having a nice time while the people of the country are suffering. The idea behind cashless economy is that a few people and corporates will get maximum benefits from these transactions. This has damaged the nation."

Today, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi launched a full frontal attack on the prime minister and an united Opposition on Thursday observed Black Day to mark one month since the demonetisation scheme kicked in.

8 November was when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the scrapping of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. It's been a month since then and the Opposition protests have gone on unabated - both in and outside Parliament.

"It is a matter of shame that the government refused to pay tributes to the martyrs," Azad thundered, provoking the ruling party ministers and MPs, who began shouting as if Azad had just thrown something at them.

He also said that by protesting in front of the Gandhi statue, the Opposition was the one which paid tributes to the deceased.

"We have been saying for a long time that over 100 people have died because of demonetisation," said Ghulam Nabi Azad in Rajya Sabha. "But the government refused to pay tribute to the deceased," he added.

President Pranab Mukherjee has accused the Opposition of "gagging majority" in both Houses of Parliament. "Debate, dissension and decision are necessary," Times Now quoted the President as saying. "The Parliament must not be disrupted...this is unacceptable."

The Winter Session of Parliament began on 16 November. On 8 December, both the Houses  Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha  met for the 14th day but within minutes of commencing, both the Houses were adjourned. The deadlock over demonetisation has led to wastage of the Winter Session so far and considering that just one more week is left for the session to wrap up, there is little hope that the Houses will be able to pass, introduce or even debate the Bills that have been listed for consideration.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Venakaiah Naidu also termed the 'dharna' by opposition leaders near the Gandhi statue in Parliament premises as a big 'tamasha' and an insult to the Father of the Nation. "Our opponents particularly the Congress I am told are observing a Black Day. I say what they are observing is a 'Black Money Support Day'," Naidu said.

Hitting out at the Congress-led Opposition for observing a 'Black Day' against demonetisation decision, government on Thursday said they are actually observing a "Black Money Support Day".

According to Times Now, the parliamentary panel has found Mann guilty of security breach after he filmed a video entering Parliament by crossing several security layers and posted it on social media.

 As if the logjam in Parliament  for which President Pranab Mukherjee admonished both Houses  was not embarrassing enough for the country, there is now a delegation of parliamentarians from Vietnam who are going to witness what happens in an Indian Parliament.

"Govt running from debate, if they allow me to speak then you will see what an earthquake will come," says Rahul Gandhi.

Keep in mind that Vietnamese Parliamentarians are in both the Houses to witness this scene.

It's hard to decide at this point who is trying to stall Parliament. During zero hour in Lok Sabha, MPs in Lok Sabha kept raising ruckus while Speaker Sumitra Mahajan tries her best to keep the House in session.

Rajya Sabha adjourned till 14 December On Friday as the count of members in the Upper House remained 21 despite calls from the Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien, the house was adjourned till Monday. The benches remained empty while BJP and Congress leaders sparred with each other blaming each other for the non-functioning government.

According to an NDTV report Information and Broadcasting Minister Venkaiah Naidu said that Prime Minister Modi will be present in Parliament for the three remaining days of the Session and can participate in proceedings for either of the House depending on the need.

Congress is going to raise the issue of corruption charges against Kiren Rijiju. Rajya Sabha member and senior Congress leader, Anand Sharma has given notice under Rule 267 in Rajya Sabha for discussion on corruption charges against Rijiju.

"This is the first time that the government is scheming to make sure Parliament does not function. It usually is the job of Opposition to stand up and protest. However, this government is doing a pretty job of that and making sure that Parliament does not work and no one questions the ruling party's decision. Demonetisation has hurt a lot of people, but Modi government's arrogance is not allowing us to debate it in the House," a TMC member said.

BJP was reacting to Congress vice-president's claim that he has information of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's alleged involvement in "personal corruption." Rahul was speaking a joint press briefing of the Opposition after the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day amid din created by Opposition.

Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Ananth Kumar said that if Rahul Gandhi had any information, he could have revealed them twenty days ago, ""but till today he wasn't ready to make any earth-shattering revelations."

Soon after Rajya Sabha passed the amended The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill (2014) and Kurien congratulated the members over a productive day, Anand Sharma raised the issue of Rijiju and his alleged involvement in the Rs 450-crore scam. Kurien tried to maintain calm in the House by saying, "Allegation without informing the Chair cannot be allowed."

As Opposition members raised slogans and ruckus, Kurien said, "What can I do except adjourning. Both sides are indisciplined. The House is adourned till tomorrow (15 December) 11 am."

It seemed like the members in the Upper House were just waiting to pass one single Bill this Winter Session. Soon after Kurien praised the members of the Upper House for being disciplined, ruckus over alleged corruption allegations on Kiren Rijiju took the House by storm again.

Kurien: "I have given the floor to Leader of Opposition. That's the tradition. Let's follow it. Please sit down."

Senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi object to leader of opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad speaking in the Upper House. Kurien asks BJP members to sit down. Amid slogans of "Agusta Agusta" , BJP leaders demanded to know what is the topic of discussion?

"I have to adjourn.. what should I do?" asks Kurien. "This is for the first time in history of India that it's the ruling party that's not letting the House to function," says Azad.

Sources said that it was also decided in the meeting to raise the plight of farmers and common people in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and demand a loan waiver for farmers. Representatives of Congress, Trinamool Congress, BSP, SP, JD-U, CPI, CPI-M, NCP, DMK and All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) were present in today's meeting.

Leaders of various parties said the entire opposition has decided to approach the President to "complain" against the ruling party for not allowing them to speak in Parliament. The leaders said they were elected representatives of the country and had every right to speak in Parliament and it was "unconstitutional" not to allow them to speak in both Houses. Sources said time is being sought from the President till Friday and all opposition parties were ready to raise the issue unitedly before him.

Taking their protest on demonetisation to President Pranab Mukherjee's doorsteps, Opposition parties sought a meeting with the president to convey the problems caused by the measure to the common man and "over not being" allowed to speak in Parliament. At a meeting of the opposition held in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, representatives of various parties decided to raise with the President the problems of the common people, including the poor and farmers arising out of demonetisation.

Advani also added that "had Atal ji been in Parliament today, he would have been upset."

Senior BJP leader LK Advani told Home Minister Rajnath Singh to intervene and stop disruptions in both Houses of Parliament. Expressing his unhappiness, Advani allegedly said that he "feels like resigning".

Opposition leaders are scheduled to meet the President and PM Modi to push for a way to break the deadlock.

The BJPs Parliamentary Party meeting to discuss the strategy to counter the Oppositions charges against the government is currently underway. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to address the gathering.

The last day of the Winter Session of Parliament is setup for a big tussle between the government and the Opposition as both try to break the deadlock.

"Regular and continuous disruptions signify this session... The rules about displaying placards and shouting slogans were ignored by all sections of the house," Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari said in his closing statement before adjourning the house.

The Rajya Sabha on Friday concluded its winter session after an emotional speech by the Chairman as the house was adjourned sine die.

On the eve of Winter Session, two all-party meetings were convened, first by the ruling NDA and the other by Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan. At the all-party meeting Modi requested all parties for cooperation in order to make Parliament session a fruitful one.

"I hope that Winter Session will be fruitful. I expect that Winter Session will proceed in a positive way. I hope that Winter Session debate will strengthen democracy. I believe that to take the country ahead this Winter Session debate will be useful, " said Modi as Winter Session sets to begin.

"If you will put their husbands in jail, who will provide for them, who will pay for their children," Azad asked as he reiterated that Congress leader Anad Sharma's suggestion to send it to Standing Committee should be taken into consideration.

Ghulam Nabi Azad stood up as the bill was taken up for discussion and said that none of the parties are in opposition of the bill in essence. However, he said that the government's bill will "finish Muslim women" instead of saving them.

He said that a committee should reflect the nature of the House, which the list of suggestions given by Sharma does not. Sharma's suggestion did not include names from the BJP.

Jaitley said that the previous precedents show that any amendments or motions should be introduced with prior notice. He said that the Opposition's demand to send the bill to Select Committee was invalid. He also raised objection on the suggestion on members of Select Committee made by Anand Sharma.

Kurien said that the Leader of the House is a very learned advocate himself and all points raised by him are of relevance. The rule he quotes that a prior notice should be given is also correct, he said. "However, the same rule adds that the Chairman has the power to admit such a motion and which is why I cannot overrule it. It is now admitted and hence is the property of the House, only members can amend it," Kurien said on Jaitley's objection over the Opposition motion seeking triple talaq bill be sent to Standing Committee.

Roy, responding to Jaitley's objection that the Select Committee suggested by him did not reflect the nature of the House, Roy said that he had included members from all parties who were willing to send the bill to the Standing Committee. However, BJP members were not included because the government was not willing to send the bill to the committee. Roy added that if the BJP is interested in sending the Bill for further scrutiny, he has no objection to ammend the list to include its members too.

Govt requests to take up GST bill first as Dy Chairman ruled Triple Talaq bill can't be taken for passage without first building consensus in House

"If you will put their husbands in jail, who will provide for them, who will pay for their children," Azad asked as he reiterated that Congress leader Anad Sharma's suggestion to send it to Standing Committee should be taken into consideration.

Ghulam Nabi Azad stood up as the bill was taken up for discussion and said that none of the parties are in opposition of the bill in essence. However, he said that the government's bill will "finish Muslim women" instead of saving them.

He said that a committee should reflect the nature of the House, which the list of suggestions given by Sharma does not. Sharma's suggestion did not include names from the BJP.

Jaitley said that the previous precedents show that any amendments or motions should be introduced with prior notice. He said that the Opposition's demand to send the bill to Select Committee was invalid. He also raised objection on the suggestion on members of Select Committee made by Anand Sharma.

Kurien said that the Leader of the House is a very learned advocate himself and all points raised by him are of relevance. The rule he quotes that a prior notice should be given is also correct, he said. "However, the same rule adds that the Chairman has the power to admit such a motion and which is why I cannot overrule it. It is now admitted and hence is the property of the House, only members can amend it," Kurien said on Jaitley's objection over the Opposition motion seeking triple talaq bill be sent to Standing Committee.

Roy, responding to Jaitley's objection that the Select Committee suggested by him did not reflect the nature of the House, Roy said that he had included members from all parties who were willing to send the bill to the Standing Committee. However, BJP members were not included because the government was not willing to send the bill to the committee. Roy added that if the BJP is interested in sending the Bill for further scrutiny, he has no objection to ammend the list to include its members too.

Govt requests to take up GST bill first as Dy Chairman ruled Triple Talaq bill can't be taken for passage without first building consensus in House

The Winter Session of Parliament opened on Wednesday with a united Opposition mounting an assault on the government over demonetisation, saying it had led to "economic anarchy" in the country. The opposition parties also demanded a probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the alleged selective leak of information before the official announcement.

While Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day after paying tributes to nine leaders, including sitting TMC MP Renuka Sinha, the seven-hour-long debate in Rajya Sabha, however, remained inconclusive. The debate in Rajya Sabha continued till 6 pm on Wednesday before Deputy Chairman of the House PJ Kurien adjourned it till 11 am tomorrow. Kurien said that the discussion on demonetisation will be resumed on Thursday at 2 pm. "From 11am to 12 pm will be the Zero Hour and Question Hour will be from 12-1 pm," said Kurien. There were repeated demands by the opposition members that the Prime Minister should be present in the House to listen to the members.

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said Modi, who did not come to the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, should at least be present tomorrow and possibly intervene. The government rejected as baseless the opposition charge that there was "leakage" of the 8 November decision and said everyone was taken by surprise which is why there are "initial" problems.

Joining ranks over the raging issue, parties like Congress, JD(U), RJD, SP, BSP, Trinamool Congress, Left and AIADMK slammed the government, particularly targeting PM Modi, for making Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination notes invalid and said the "ill-timed" and "ill-conceived" step had severely hit the common people, the farmers and the poor.

During a discussion on demonetisation, which was taken up after suspension of all business in response to notices given by a host of opposition members, a scathing attack was made on the government which strongly defended the step as one taken in national interest and to end corruption and black money, which it linked to terror activities in the country.

Here's a quick recap of what happened today

Anand Sharma uses wit and humour to attack Modi

Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma on Wednesday demanded a probe into "selective leakage" of the demonetisation move, which he termed a "Nadirshahi farman" (autocratic order). Initiating a debate after listed business was suspended to take up a discussion on the 8 November decision to withdraw old higher denomination currency, Sharma used wit and humour to attack Modi for being insensitive to problems caused to the common man.

He asked Modi to state where he got Rs 23,000-24,000 crore, estimated by the International Money Watch Group, for his Lok Sabha elections. He also asked if cheque or credit card payments were made to organise his rally at Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh a few days ago. Alleging that the information on demonetisation was selectively leaked, he said, "Your BJP units have deposited crores (just before the 8 November decision)."

Sharma also sought to know from the Prime Minister as to "who wants to kill him", referring to the Prime Minister's speech in Goa where he had said that with demonetisation resulting in "Looting of their 70 year corrupt earnings, they will destroy me, they can kill me". "There should have been an ordinance for demonetization. But no ordinance was brought. This is a Nadirshahi farman (autocratic order)," Sharma said.

"The decision to demonetise high currency notes was leaked to a select few. Secrecy was not maintained on this issue. It was published in a Gujarati newspaper long back and even other newspapers wrote about it," said Sharma. "There should be a probe into the selective leakage of information," he said, asking: "What did the government do to prepare for effective implementation of the policy."

He also sought to know from the government which law gave it the right to impose limits on withdrawing money from peoples' own accounts. "I condemn Prime Minister's statement in Goa for mocking the people who are standing in queues. He must apologise. Please explain who wants to kill you," said Sharma posing a question to Modi. Congress will not tolerate anyone planning to harm the Prime Minister of the country, he said. "An atmosphere has been created by the government where questioning them has become a parameter to decide one's nationalism," said Sharma.

He sought to know from the Prime Minister as to from where the "15 thousand crore rupees spent on your mega election campaign come from". "Did you pay for your recent Ghazipur rally through credit card," Sharma said mocking the government for asking people to use plastic money for day-to-day expenses.

Sharma also demanded that Modi must disclose the list of those names, who are holding black money in Swiss banks. "Government has a list of those holding black money in Swiss banks. We demand that the Prime Minister must tell who all are there in the list," said Sharma. He said the government should disclose how much money left India between March and September this year and how many people invested in bullion, bought gold or forex during this period.

Sharma took a dig at the government for using the term "surgical strike" in the context of demonetization and the unplanned consequences of the move, saying, "Bina doctori padhe sab surgeon ban gaye (You became a surgeon without training or education)."

Quoting media reports, Sharma said State Bank of India  the country's largest lender  knew of the decision way back in March and a Gujarati newspaper had in April published a report of the move to withdraw Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. He demanded a probe into "how many people bought more than Rs 1 crore of foreign currency and bullion" since April. "This is a serious issue... you never kept secrecy (about the decision)," Sharma said. The "ill-timed" and "ill-conceived" move had unleashed "economic anarchy" in the country and benefited a few, he said, adding that to fight black money created by higher denomination currency, a bigger Rs 2,000 note has been brought which is similar to the paper on which 'churan' is sold and "shed colour" was brought.

"Your government is insensitive," he said adding Modi was riding a bullet train in Japan when old, women and common man were queueing up at banks at 3 am in the morning to get currency to buy their daily needs. Sharma said Modi had in his Goa speech had stated that those standing in line at banks were those involved in 2G spectrum and coal scam as well as holding black money. "I condemn the Prime Minister for calling the poor standing in the queue for his Rs 4,000-4,500, black money holders and scamster," he said.

Taking a dig at the Modi, he said someone who "changes clothes five times a day", has become Prime Minister and travels around the globe was "calling himself a sanyasi and tapasvi".

Sharma demanded that the names of persons holding accounts in Swiss bank and those revealed in the Leichtenstein and HSBC lists should be made public. The names of bank loan defaulters above Rs 5,000 crore should also be made public. While the decision had put the common man to immense hardship by way of having to stand in long queues to lay hands on valid currency to meet daily needs, the information about demonetisation was selectively leaked to the "friends of BJP," Sharma alleged. The move had branded 86 percent of the currency in circulation black money and "everyone a criminal," he said adding when Modi announced the plan it was expected that adequate arrangements would be made for dispensing new notes.

"The magnanimous prime minister allowed Rs 4,000 of old currency to be changed... what right does the Constitution give the government to place restrictions on withdrawal of ones hard-earned money," he asked, adding one has to "beg to be allowed to withdraw his own money." He said former RBI Governor IG Patel had written about the government's decision to demonetise currency in 1978 and it would be absurd to think that all ill-gotten money is kept in cash and not invested in real estate, billion, equities or foreign exchange.

Moving towards cashless economy was fine but even the most developed economies of US or Europe have not achieved that objective yet. If they had, the US central bank would have stopped printing dollars, European Central Bank won't be printing Euros and UK central banks would have stopped printing pound sterling, he said.

Stating that the government had in one stroke declared everyone a criminal, he said the government and the finance minister have stated that terrorists would have benefited if advance information on the decision was given. "Which terrorist goes to RBI with sack full of counterfeit currency to change."

After withdrawing Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, restrictions were placed even on foreign tourists who could not get their currency changed.

The Congress leader said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had informed Parliament in August that fake currency was 0.02 percent of the total currency in circulation. "If 0.02 percent by government admission is counterfeit currency, how can that be made the base to remove 86 percent of currency in circulation," he said.

An undeclared emergency has put common people in grave inconvenience, he said while crime money, ill-gotten wealth and that accrued through corruption or tax evasion is blackmoney, Prime Minister should answer if he considered money in the market, or in households, or with farmers, workers and employees was also blackmoney.

"This question arises because a message has gone that Indian economy was run on blackmoney... you decide but don't brand the whole country," he said, adding whether the cash the farmers gets for his crop or the one he uses to buy seeds or fertilizer was blackmoney. He said the move had rendered millions of agriculture workers and labourers unemployed.

Mayawati calls demonetisation ill-timed

As the debate was in progress, BSP chief Mayawati demanded the presence of the Prime Minister in the House to hear out the Opposition parties and address their concerns.

Mayawati questioned the government's preparedness for the demonetisation of high-value bank notes, accusing it of spending the last ten months on settling the black money of its people. Participating in a debate in Rajya Sabha on the demonetisation of high-denomination currency notes, she said: "The government has said that they spent ten months preparing for this decision. Ten months was a long time to prepare. If they were serious about it, they would have prepared well for all the problems that people are facing today."

"What we are witnessing in India today would not have happened had they prepared," she added. Accusing the government of supporting those close to it in settling their ill-gotten wealth, Mayawati said: "In the last ten months, the BJP government has worked to help the party supporters and big businessmen to settle their black money.

"If the government had spent ten months preparing for it, then why do they need another 50 days? There is something fishy."

"Masses are in pain. The Prime Minister must be sleeping after taking pills. The move is without preparedness and people will punish BJP in 2019 during general elections. People of five states going for elections including Manipur, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab will punish BJP," she said, adding that the poor and the middle classes were the worst sufferers. "It is an immature decision taken in haste and the whole country feels that is an 'economic emergency'," she said adding that it was like a "Bharatbandi situation."

Opposition demands Modi's presence in Rajya Sabha

Mayawati said the House should request the Prime Minister to be present and answer the members' concerns. It is "a very serious issue", she said, adding she has been observing Leader of the House and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, appears "sad".

Her demand was supported by Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, who said the PM must be present in the House to hear out the concerns of various parties.

Earlier, Kurien said he had received as many as 13 notices under rule 267 for suspension of business to take up discussion on inconvience and hardships caused by demonetisation of currency. He said there was a general consensus for discussion and the government too was agreeable, so the list of business as notified stands completely suspended.

Azad demanded that the prime minister should at least "hear out the feelings of six-seven main parties, otherwise there is a mismatch. The feelings of opposition members should be heard by PM. I demand that at least he hears them out and sit in the House at least today. We can wait for him to come."

This was objected to by DP Tripathi (NCP), who said that as Leader of the Opposition he should not distinguish between the big and small parties. Ram Gopal Yadav (who was expelled from Samajwadi Party) joined Anand Sharma to allege that information on demonetisation was "leaked" and termed it as a scam while demanding a thorough probe into it.

"A BJP leader in Punjab had tweeted on 5 November about the new Rs 2,000 note. How did this happen? This is an issue of concern. There is a scam in this. This should definitely be probed," he said, alleging further that 10 percent of the people have 90 per cent of wealth of the country and the remaining 90 per cent do not have anything.

The common people, especially the poor and the housewives were put to great hardship through this move and if elections are held today they will teach this government a lesson, he said, adding that majority of women who saved money through household savings were upset with the move.

"Elections are not fought with money power. You cannot win elections through money power. No one can win elections like that. Elections are won only by winning the hearts of people," he said.

Demonetisation of high denomination currency has created big problems to common people and and law and order situation is being created with police being deployed outside banks to control the queue.

"Do not hold elections now. If you meet and ask for votes from housewives in villages, they will beat you up with 'belan' and you will have to embalm your back with turmeric," he said, adding that you might lose elections if you hold early polls. Yadav said the entire House was against corrupt and drug money, but lamented that an impression is being created that those opposing this are against curbing black money which is erroneous.

JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav, who also sought a JPC probe into the suspected leak, said the sudden move was akin to "jumping out of a moving train". He said unlike the rich, who the PM said were standing in queue, it was the poor, handicapped and old people who were doing so to get their hands on their hard earned money. He alleged that while loans worth Rs 7,000 crore was written off today by banks including Rs 1,200 crore of Vijay Mallya and said that the prime minister has made the honesty of the country to stand in queues.

Yadav also took a dig at Jaitley saying he was sure that the Finance Minister was not part of the decision making on demonetisation, because had he been, Jaitley would have tipped him off. This remark left most members including Jaitley laughing.

Yechury renames PM as "Modi Antoinette"

CPM leader Sitaram Yechury said that of the 130 crore population in the country, only 2.6 crore have credit cards.

He took a dig at Modi and narrated the infamous quote of Queen Marie Antoinette during the French revolution who had said that people can eat cakes when they don't have bread. "We have Modi Antoinette who says 'If you don't have paper, use plastic'".

Yechury compared the Prime Minister with a Roman ruler. He said a Senator had remarked about this ruler that: "I think he knows what Rome is. Rome is the mob. Conjure magic for them and they'll be distracted. Take away their freedom and still they'll roar. The beating heart of Rome is not the marble of the senate, it's the sand of the Coliseum. He'll bring them death - and they will love him for it."

Alleging that a BJP unit in Kolkata deposited Rs 1 crore in Indian's Bank Account on 8 November, he said "prove me if I am wrong." He added that Prime Minister was advertising for Paytm while talking about cashless economy.

The CPM leader said 1/5th of the economy is black economy and people who kept black money invested it in real estate, gold etc. That is why the imports surged and stated that it was this PM only who had stated that 95 percent of the black money is stashed offshore and is in safe havens.

"PM is cleaning a pond to kill crocodiles but big crocodiles have survived and only small fishes are dying."

He also demanded that corporate funding of all political parties should stop and there should be a stystem of state funding for elections to which Kurien said "why don't you move a private members bill in this regard."

Terming the demonetisation move as "Tughlaq shahi", he said the length of queues before banks and ATMs was ever increasing and asked why the government was agonising the people. He sought an investigation into the move, saying "let there be a joint parliamentary committee" for a proper probe. "We need to know the motive behind the move" as before every parliamentary session there is some gimmick which diverts attention from other major issues.

With inputs from agencies
For an older generation of Indians, indeed South Asians, the image of Fidel Castro invokes a sense of nostalgia of a bygone era, filled with fiery revolutionaries who hoped to change the world. Castro was one of the few who succeeded. He not only overthrew the US-backed Fulgencio Batista regime, but was also able to cock-a-snook at the worlds only superpower and survive years of crippling economic sanctions.

Much of the admiration for Castro, who passed away at the age of 90 on Friday, revolved around his defiance of the US. In his early years, he survived several attempts by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to assassinate him and overthrow his regime with the help of Cuban exiles. The failure of CIA's attempts led to the myth that has grown around Castro.

Liberals were delighted with his charisma. An abiding memory of Castro is that of him embracing former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi with a warm hug, when he passed on the baton of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Chair to India during the Delhi Summit in 1983. That picture was on the front pages of all Indian newspapers the following day.

"Today, while handing over, after more than three years, the chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement to our admired Indira Gandhi and to India, that she in her historic right represents, we can affirm that we have a movement whose unity was not weakened, whose vigour has grown, whose independence has been withheld despite all the challenges it faced," Castro had said at that time.

Castro himself was fascinated by India and was a great admirer of Jawaharlal Nehru. During a 1958 visit to the UN General Assembly, when American hoteliers refused to entertain the Cuban revolutionary in any of New Yorks premier hotels, he was invited by a hotelier in Harlem to stay in The Theresa. Nehru, who was also in New York for the Assembly, went all the way to Harlem to call on Castro.

Former Congress leader Natwar Singh quoted Castro recalling Nehrus gesture: "The first person who came to see me was Prime Minister Nehru. I can never forget his magnificent gesture. I was 34 years of age, not widely known. I was tense. Nehru boosted my morale. My tension disappeared."

This friendship continued and passed on to Indira Gandhi. Rajiv Gandhi too carried on the family friendship and visited Cuba within a year of becoming the prime minister.

1983 :: Fidel Castro Hugs Indira Gandhi At The Moment of Handing Over of The Chairman's Gavel During NAM Summit pic.twitter.com/TDF9nXCPxp  indianhistorypics (@IndiaHistorypic) November 26, 2016

Soon after meeting Nehru in New York, he sent Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara to India in 1959 to meet Nehru and other leaders. A year later, in 1960, India opened its embassy in Havana. Former Ambassador to Cuba, Deepak Bhojwani, who has been posted there since 2011, said that Castro continued to have a soft spot for India. Though by this time, Castro had handed over power to his brother Raul. His fading health had forced him to remain out of the public eye, although he continued to be an important figure in Cuba.

"The older generation loved Castro, except for those who supported the old regime. But the vast majority of Cubans, including the young, continue to regard Castro as a charismatic revolutionary hero. Despite the pain caused by the US sanctions on the economy, Castros gutsy fight against its superpower neighbour is still admired by all citizens," said Bhojwani. The ambassador recalls that Castro in his earlier years had great admiration for India, for its role in NAM.

"He felt that though India was not part of the Communist Bloc, it was an important world power which could not be bullied by the Western world. He felt India stood apart from others with its independent foreign policy," Bhojwani added.

The Ambassador, however, added that Castro was rather disappointed with New Delhi for conducting nuclear tests. Castro, in his later years, became vehemently anti-nuclear and felt that the world would become a dangerous place with the proliferation of nuclear weapons. By this time, India had also changed much of its earlier non-aligned policy. "Little is known of what he felt about Indias policies now, but his regard for India remained," said Bhojwani.

Adding to this was his charismatic personality, his striking looks and the impact he made in the camouflage uniform and the beard he sported. The glamorous world of Hollywood was also not impervious to his charms, despite the fact that successive American governments saw the Cuban as Moscows plant in the region.

Right from the glamorous actress Gina Lollobrigida in the late 1960s, who photographed and interviewed the Communist leader and made headlines with her laudatory comments about Castro, liberal Hollywood has continued to be fascinated by the guerrilla leader.
By Alex Dobuzinskis

A man drove a sport utility vehicle into a crowd of pedestrians at Ohio State University then jumped out and stabbed several people with a butcher knife, injuring at least nine, before a police officer shot and killed the attacker on Monday, officials said.A U.S. government source said investigators have reason to believe the attacker at the campus in Columbus was a Somali refugee. The city has a large Somali population. Local officials declined to say what might have motivated the attack, and gave no details about the assailant, including his identity and whether he was a student at the university. The attack at the Columbus campus, which was initially reported by the university on Twitter as involving an "active shooter," drew a massive response of heavily armed police. Ohio State University police chief Craig Stone said there had been rumours of a second assailant, but police believe there was only one. The suspect jumped the curb and used the vehicle to strike pedestrians in front of Watts Hall, Monica Moll, the university's director of public safety, said at a news conference. Local media reported the suspect used a sport utility vehicle.He then left the vehicle armed with a butcher knife and stabbed several others, Stone told reporters.

An unidentified campus police officer who arrived at the scene shot and killed the suspect less than a minute after the attack began, Stone said. "The only thing that you can say based upon common knowledge is that this was done on purpose, Stone said. "To go over the curb and strike pedestrians and then to get out and start striking them with a knife, that was on purpose."One person was critically injured, a Columbus Fire Department spokeswoman said. There were differing accounts on the total number injured. The fire department reported 10, while officials at a press conference said nine. Five victims were taken to Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, said Dr. Andrew Thomas, the chief medical officer. They included two with stab wounds and two others who had injuries from being hit with the vehicle, Thomas said.

Two other hospitals received four patients, suffering from lacerations and injuries from being struck by the vehicle, Thomas said. None of the victims had life-threatening injuries, officials said.CNN aired an image from a room at the university where students had barricaded a door with stacked chairs.Columbus and university police continued their investigation with assistance from the FBI. The attack had prompted university officials to warn students on Twitter to shelter in place.

Ohio State said it had lifted the order shortly before noon EST (1900 GMT), adding that the campus was secure.The university campus remained open, although classes were cancelled for the day.President Barack Obama was briefed on the incident by Lisa Monaco, his homeland security adviser, said White House spokesman Josh Earnest. "The Columbus City Council stands united with Ohio State University," said Council President Zach Klein. "We are continually thinking about and praying for all those involved and affected by this senseless act of violence.Ohio Governor John Kasich said in a statement that state residents "thoughts and prayers go out to the Ohio State community." (Reporting by Kim Palmer in Cleveland and Laila Kearney and Franklin Paul in New York and Mark Hosenball and Ayesha Rascoe in Washington; Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Dhaka: Multiple boats packed with Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar were turned back by Bangladesh border guards on Monday, despite appeals by the country's opposition to provide shelter to the persecuted Muslim minority.

Thousands of desperate Rohingya from Myanmar's western Rakhine state have flooded over the border into Bangladesh in the last week, bringing with them horrifying claims of gang rape, torture and murder at the hands of Myanmar's security forces.

Eight boats attempting to cross the Naf River separating Rakhine from southern Bangladesh were pushed back on Monday after six were refused entry on Sunday, head of the board guards in the Bangladeshi frontier town of Teknaf, Colonel Abuzar Al Zahid, told AFP.

"There were 12 to 13 Rohingya in each of the boats," Zahid said.

Dhaka says thousands more are massed on the border, but has refused urgent international appeals to let them in, instead calling on Myanmar to do more to stop people fleeing.

In the past two weeks, Bangladeshi border guards have prevented more than 1,000 Rohingya, including many women and children, from entering the country by boat, officials told AFP.

Bangladesh's main opposition leader Khaleda Zia late Sunday joined a growing chorus of political parties and hardline Islamist groups in the Muslim majority country calling for the Rohingya to be given shelter.

At least 30,000 have been internally displaced in Rakhine and many have tried to reach Bangladesh over the last month despite heightened border patrols, and sought refugee amongst the Rohingya refugee population that already live on the Bangladesh side.

Samira Akhter told AFP by phone that she reached an unofficial refugee camp in Bangladesh on Monday, after fleeing her village in Rakhine state with her three children and 49 others.

"The military killed my husband and torched our home. I fled to a hill along with my three children and neighbours. We hid there for a week," said Akhter, 27. Dudu Mia, a Rohingya leader in the camp, said at least 1,338 had arrived in the community since mid October.

Violence in Rakhine  home to the stateless ethnic group loathed by many of Myanmar's Buddhist majority  has surged in the last month after security forces poured into the area following a series of attacks on police posts blamed on local militants.

A UN official said last week Myanmar is engaged in "ethnic cleansing" of Rohingya Muslims, as reports emerged of troops shooting at villagers as they tried to flee.

But Myanmar's new civilian government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, has rejected the allegations.
Islamabad: With new army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa set to take charge, Pakistan has asserted that focus will remain on country's eastern border with India, even as the US nudged Islamabad to keep the pledge of not allowing use of its soil for terror attacks against neighbours.

Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest army by troop numbers from Pakistan's outgoing Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif, who paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif here on Monday.

Sharif and Hussain lauded Raheel's valuable service as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life, Radio Pakistan reported.

"The military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it (under Bajwa)," Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Geo News.

"The focus will remain on country's eastern border and the armed forces backed by the nation will meet all challenges," he said.

"The legacy of General Raheel Sharif would continue in the light of the examples he set," Asif said.

The Defence Minister expressed hope that the government and military leadership will continue to work together for the betterment of the country.

General Raheel will become the first army chief in more than 20 years to step down at the end of his term. Previous army chiefs have either obtained extensions or in the case of General Pervez Musharraf, staged a coup.

Meanwhile, the United States on Sunday welcomed the appointment of the new army chief and expressed hope that the country would never allow the use of its soil for terrorism against its neighbours.

The US embassy in Islamabad, in a statement, welcomed Prime Minister Sharif's appointment of Bajwa.

"We look forward to continuing our work with Pakistan's elected leaders, with Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and with the Pakistani military to advance our shared counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism goals for Pakistan and the region, and to enable Pakistani authorities to honour their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistan's soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbours," it said.

Raheel, who is set to retire on Tuesday, was appointed as army chief in 2013 by Prime Minister Sharif at the retirement of Gen Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani.

According to Pakistani media and experts, General Bajwa's "pro-democracy credentials" and his low-profile influenced Sharif to appoint him to the powerful post of army chief superseding four top generals.

The military has been in charge of the country for more than half of Pakistan's nearly 70-year history since independence.
Aleppo: Government forces have retaken a third of rebel-held territory in Aleppo, forcing nearly 10,000 civilians to flee as they pressed their offensive to retake Syria's second city.

In a major breakthrough in the push to retake the whole city, regime forces captured six rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo over the weekend, including Masaken Hanano, the biggest of those in eastern Aleppo.

On Sunday, the 13th day of the operation, they also took control of the adjacent neighbourhoods of Jabal Badra and Baadeeen and captured three others, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Inzarat, Al-Sakan al-Shaabi and Ain al-Tall have all returned to regime hands and government forces have made large forays into Sakhur and nearby Haidariya, the monitor said.

It said government forces are "in control of most of the northern part" of Aleppo.

"The rebels have lost at least 30 percent of the territory they once controlled in Aleppo," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The regime gains came as its aircraft pounded rebel positions and amid heavy clashes between the opposition and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in the strategic Sakhur district.

Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided the city into a rebel-held east and a regime-controlled west.

Around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in the east have faced serious food and fuel shortages.

The Observatory said that nearly 10,000 civilians had fled east Aleppo overnight Saturday  at least 6,000 to the Kurdish-controlled northern district of Sheikh Maksoud, with the rest fleeing to government-held areas.

"It is the first exodus of this kind from east Aleppo since 2012," Abdel Rahman said.

Syrian state television broadcast images of a crowd of civilians including women and children gathered around green buses that it said had come to pick them up in Masaken Hanano.

One woman was shown pushing a stroller and many others carried plastic bags on their heads as bombardment was heard in the distance.

Official media said they were taken "by the army to safe areas".

Yasser al-Youssef, from the rebel group Nureddin al-Zinki, said opposition fighters were consolidating their positions in Sakhur.

Sakhur lies on a stretch of just 1.5 kilometres between west Aleppo and Masaken Hanano, now both regime-controlled.

If the regime takes control of Sakhur, east Aleppo would be split in two from north to south, dealing a further blow to the armed opposition.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment on the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shelling and barrel bombs.

On Saturday, dozens of families fled Sakhur and Haidariya as regime raids and artillery killed at least 18 civilians in several districts, the Britain-based Observatory said.

At least 225 civilians, including 27 children, have been killed since the government's latest assault on east Aleppo began on November 15.

Rebel forces also intensified rocket attacks on western districts overnight, killing at least four civilians and wounding dozens, the Observatory said.
Prime Minister Theresa Mays first official trip to India took place in the backdrop of Brexit talks. The Prime Minister was pinning her hopes on a good deal with India to shore up post-Brexit hopes. But her efforts to win the support of Indians were dashed when Modi and his top team insisted changes in visa rules for highly-skilled Indian professionals and students.

May arrived in Delhi with one agenda in the kitty  trade. But Indians on the other side were ready with a list of issues in the agenda to discuss and get a deal. Trade deal with Britain was secondary for India. Technically, UK is just one among the 28 European Union countries and India is monitoring the developments in the UK and the Eurozone. Besides Brexit, more troubles are brewing, like the rise of the far right in France, the forthcoming German elections and the Italian referendum.

As cross-border terrorism spoils the peace in Kashmir, India was looking for a strong ally in Britain to end the issue forever. They were also looking for support from the former colonial master for a firm action against fugitives hiding in Britain. India, one of the fastest growing economies, is also looking for avenues for its young population to upgrade their skills. A fair deal for it highly-skilled professionals to work in the United Kingdom is also on agenda. Indians were looking for a package, but what May put on the table was a one line agenda  trade.

The British Prime Minister also annoyed Indians by telling them to take back illegal immigrants to get a fair visa rule. Indians are not looking for any favours from Britain. Australia, America and New Zealand are now favourite destinations for Indian students. UK's loss in America's gain. The number of Indian students studying in the US has gone up to over 1,65,000 during the academic year 2015-16, a growth of 25 percent over the previous year. According to the 2016 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange, there are 1,65,918 students from India, making it the second leading country of origin among international students in the US. India accounts for one out of every six international students in the US. Approximately three-fifths of Indian students are at the graduate level and three-fourths are in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).

Even Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was pleading for May to relax rules for Indian students.

"Education is vital for our students and we will define our engagement in a shared future. We must therefore encourage greater mobility and participation of young people in education and research opportunities," Modi told May during the inauguration of Indo-UK Tech Summit. But May was firm on her strategy, which was formulated during her Home Office days. The decision to put Indian students in the net migration bracket dearly affected British universities. The rise in tuition fees, the troublesome paperwork to get visa, besides the lack of post-study opportunities deter Indian students. Their numbers are almost half now. Just 20,000 from the earlier figures of 40,000 plus.

Sir Keith Burnett, vice-chancellor of the University of Sheffield, and other members of the academic brigade in the delegation were gobsmacked and furious when May and her core team defended the visa policy instead of uttering anything to please the Indian press or the politicians.

"She just wants free trade with India," Sir Keith wrote in a blog. "Free trade means free trade, she says, good for all and nothing to do with students. She even insists that students should be labelled as migrants, which is completely potty. Even Nigel Farage didnt want that. In any case, Indians feel doubly insulted by this position."

India is a country with 65 percent of the population below 35 years and 50 percent of the population below 25. They are global citizens of the new world and ambitious to explore and attain new skills. Families will sacrifice their precious savings for the education of their children. That is why young Indians are flocking at embassies to seek visas to fulfill their parents' dreams. Some may stay abroad, but the majority will return. Who can withstand the lure of 7 plus GDP rate? When the western economies are hovering over 1 percent and 2 percent, Indians are aiming a double digit growth. They want the right skills to fuel the economy. They are looking towards Britain to acquire that because of the cultural bond and the language. They want to follow the paths of Gandhi, Nehru, Sardar Patel, Ambedkar, Ramanujan... But May and her team are letting them down.

Sir Keith and other are campaigning against this. He is co-founder of the #WeAreInternational campaign to welcome and value international students, staff and research. Over 100 UK universities are supporting the campaign.

"I will not speak of the real harm that these policies will do to cities across the UK, where students are vital drivers of the local economy. Others can speak of that. But what I want  what I need  to emphasise is how we are destroying hard-earned goodwill with a huge proportion of the worlds population. You should care about this. Your childrens jobs in the future could depend on it. So Im going to work hard to make our education the very best for potential Indian students, and make the welcome as warm as possible in Sheffield.

Sheffield students, leaders and I founded the #WeAreInternational campaign. I am damned proud of the students and staff across the UK who have joined us to show that we are still the nation that India can be friends with. And I will be working to make clear that the vast majority of Brits welcome students from India and dont think of them as migrants  91 percent, in fact, in a recent survey. I will work to build collaborations with Indian universities and companies. We will continue to work together on cures for diseases and inventions that will help to make our planet more sustainable. But I must beg, and I do beg. Please listen to India before it is too late.

The British Prime Minister also annoyed Indians by telling them to take back illegal immigrants to get a fair visa rule

Sir Keith, Lord Karan Billimoria, Modi people are appealing. But these appeals are falling on deaf years. As the world becomes a global village, mobility is a issue for global citizens. We cannot separate free movement of people from free flow of goods, services and investment.

May defended the UK's stance by insisting that the UK already had a 'good system' for applications from India. The figures show that we issue more work visas to India than [to] the US, Australia and China put together," May said. "Nine out of 10 visa applications from India are already accepted. So we have, I believe, a good system.

A good system? Britain is going to pay for that "good system". Universities are already on the brink of collapse. Trade will not help Britain to mend those faults. While Britain is barred from signing bilateral trade deals with third countries until it has left the EU, May said that there were steps that can be taken immediately to "break down barriers and make it easier to do business".

Britain and India need to "identify what more we can do now to unleash our businesses, industries, exporters and investors", she said, adding, "this does not need to wait for us to leave the EU".

In summary, the visit inks business deals worth 1.2 billion and creates 1,370 jobs. The visit also formulates a ministerial level committee to look into extradition and immigration issues. A new India-UK Urban Partnership to develop 'smart cities' was also announced.

Among initiatives to foster trade, Indian tycoons and their families are to gain access to the GREAT Club programme which provides assistance with visa-processing, while an estimated 10,000 executives are to benefit from a Registered Traveller service to speed their way past queues at UK airports. A benefit to 10,000 people in the country with a population of 1.3 billion.

Mays first mission to India contained a business delegation of 33, besides decision-makers from the government. The absence of Priti Patel, the Indian-origin International Development Secretary, was noticed by many. The charismatic ever-smiling Brexit poster girl could have opened new avenues for discussions.

During the Cameron era, the British machinery was fully geared up to engage with the Indian platoons on trade, diplomatic and cultural relations. It is always a mela time for journalists and there is no dearth of stories to file. How many stories you can file on trade and Brexit on a busy foreign mission? May is not Cameron and she has her own views and policies.

Dealing with India needs lots of preparations. Money is not a crucial factor for India or Indians, but relations are. Indian leaders, especially the present government, believe in karma. They want to do good karma for the youngsters. They will go an extra mile for that. The route to enter the heart of India is not through airports or seaports with huge cargo, but a simple candy to please the new generation.

India never lets its partners down. They are the largest democracy and they respect friendship. May missed that opportunity in her first mission. There are many lessons to learn from recent history. Even Cameron failed to convince Modi to sign a multi-billion deal for Eurofighter Typhoon jets. Modi enjoyed English hospitality at Chequers Court, but chose Frances Rafael for Indian Air Force. Because India believes in liberty, equality and fraternity. A friend in need is a friend indeed. Viva la friendship.
LONDON A seven-year-old Syrian girl, whose depictions of daily life in Aleppo have gained a large Twitter following, has sent harrowing messages describing the bombardment of her house as government forces advance on rebel-held parts of the city.Bana Alabed has amassed some 137,000 followers since joining the social media site in September, sharing videos and pictures of life during the year conflict from her @AlabedBana account managed by her mother, Fatemah. Overnight Sunday to Monday, Fatemah posted a Tweet telling her followers: "Last message - under heavy bombardments now, can't be alive anymore. When we die, keep talking for 200,000 still inside. BYE.- Fatemah".Several hours later, a picture of the young girl covered in dust was uploaded with the text: "Tonight we have no house, it's bombed & I got in rubble. I saw deaths and I almost died. - Bana #Aleppo". A following tweet posted later on Monday read: "Under heavy bombardments now. In between death and life now, please keep praying for us. #Aleppo".

Reuters could not immediately verify the events described by Bana and her mother. The Syrian army and its allies on Monday announced the capture of a swathe of eastern Aleppo from rebels in an accelerating attack that threatens to crush the opposition in its most important urban stronghold.

Contacted by Reuters, Fatemah said the family were staying with neighbours while they looked for another house. "We wait & see because right now we are fighting for life," she said in English via Twitter.

Bana's past tweets have gained responses from various users including "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling, who has sent the young girl eBooks of the best-selling series.Rowling has re-tweeted Bana's latest messages. (Reporting By Eleanor Whalley; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Richard Lough)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Choice Hotels Europe, the company behind the Comfort, Quality, Clarion and Ascend Collection brands in Europe and part of Choice Hotels International, Inc., announced that it has signed a multi-unit development agreement with GVK Enterprises, a hospitality management and development firm, to introduce and establish a hotel portfolio in Greece.

Choice anticipates that the first property under the agreement will open by the summer of 2017 under a Comfort flag in Athens, and that thereafter four additional properties will be developed on the Greek mainland and islands under the Comfort, Quality and Clarion brands.

Mark Pearce, senior vice president, international division, for Choice Hotels, said: "We are thrilled to be expanding our European portfolio to Greece, an important travel and tourism destination that has shown signs of strong recovery and positive forecasts. Choice wants to support and participate in this recovery and we have every confidence that our brands will thrive in such a dynamic market."

Comfort, Quality and Clarion brands in Greece

George Kontos, President, GVK Enterprises, said: "I'm delighted to work with Choice Hotels and bring their Comfort, Quality and Clarion brands to the Greek capital and islands. We look forward to helping them develop a portfolio of hotels that will appeal to international travelers visiting Greece for either business or pleasure. We are extremely proud to be able to bring Choice to a land filled with so much history and culture. Greece has always been one of the most popular tourism destinations and we look forward to sharing the food, hospitality and beaches with the rest of the world through the millions of guests of the Choice family."

This agreement follows several other EMEA market portfolio expansions that Choice has announced in 2016. In April, the company announced it had signed an agreement to deliver approximately 25 hotels and 8,000 rooms in UAE and Saudi Arabia by 2021. Other deals signed include establishing multiple hotels in Belgium and the co-branding of 19 properties in Germany, Austria and Hungary under the Comfort and Quality brands. Choice recently launched its upscale Ascend Hotel Collection brand in the UK and France, with Turkey to follow in 2017.

The Choice Hotels Europe portfolio of franchised hotels offers business and leisure travellers a full spectrum of options from premium economy to upscale hotels. Choice Hotels Europe franchises nearly 500 hotels across Europe that are either open or under development. Brands franchised by Choice Hotels Europe include Clarion, which is full service upper-midscale, Quality, which provides a mid-scale full service offering, and Comfort, which is a limited service, mid-scale offering and the largest Choice Hotels International brand worldwide, known for value, customer service and reliability. Choice also provides guests with an upscale, boutique hotel offering through Ascend Hotel Collection, a portfolio of independent hotels located in key cities and destinations that provide a unique guest experience.

About Choice Hotels

Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH) is one of the world's largest lodging companies. With more than 6,400 hotels franchised in more than 40 countries and territories, Choice Hotels represents more than 500,000 rooms around the globe. As of September 30, 2016, 745 hotels were in our development pipeline. Our company's Ascend Hotel Collection, Cambria hotels & suites, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Sleep Inn, Quality, Clarion, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn, and Vacation Rentals by Choice Hotels brands provide a spectrum of lodging choices to meet guests' needs. With more than 28 million members and counting, our Choice Privileges rewards program enhances every trip a guest takes, with benefits ranging from instant, every day rewards to exceptional experiences, starting right when they join. All hotels and vacation rentals are independently owned and operated. Visit us at www.choicehotels.com for more information.

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Chinese authorities detained 13 people over the collapse of scaffolding at a power plant construction site that killed 74 workers, as a preliminary investigation zeroed in on how the building company had rushed the job.

Most of the dead had been working on the interior concrete wall of a massive circular cooling tower 70 meters up when the scaffolding collapsed Thursday morning, resulting in one of Chinas most serious industrial accidents in years.

In a statement issued Saturday, the committee of the State Council, or Chinas cabinet, said early findings suggested that a shortened timeframe for the power plant project, hasty construction and mismanagement played a role in the disaster, without giving details.

Although authorities did not disclose details about the 13 detentions, the focus of the investigation has turned to the power plants operator, Jiangxi Ganneng, and a major engineering firm, Hebei Yineng, which has taken on multiple high-profile power plant projects and has a history of workplace fatalities.

Yineng has won contracts to build plants in more than a dozen provinces and in Turkey and Malaysia, according to previous interviews given by executives. In 2012, seven Yineng builders in a cooling tower in Yunnan province tumbled to their deaths after scaffolding collapsed. Three years before that, two workers died after a vehicle accidentally backed into a scaffolding support beam at a Yineng-built cooling tower in Guangdong province.

Several of the companys publicly listed telephone lines and a mobile phone number for the companys legal representative rang unanswered on Friday. The companys websites could not be opened.

State media reports said the accident occurred during a change of work shifts, possibly accounting for the high death toll. Workers had also been toiling around-the-clock in three shifts to make progress on the project ahead of the arrival of bitter winter weather, according to local media interviews with surviving employees.

The 1,000-megawatt coal-fired plant had been designated a priority project by the province, likely adding to the pressure on workers.

The deadly accident has taken on added political significance in recent days after Chinese President Xi Jinping urged local governments to hold those responsible accountable and the State Council established a special committee to investigate.

China has suffered several major work-safety accidents in recent years blamed on weak regulatory oversight, systemic corruption and pressure to boost production amid a slowing economy. Gerry Shih, Beijing, AP
Animal welfare group Anima (Macau) launched its Cats Paradise in Coloane Village on Saturday to help resolve the ongoing challenge of rescuing and effectively caring for stray cats in the region.

The reconditioned sanctuary, where approximately 180 rescued cats are currently sheltered, has three rooms that accommodate cats that have infectious diseases or are under recovery.

Anima (Macau) president Albano Martins told the Times that the cats would have adequate space in Coloane Village, saying that the shelter could house up to 500 cats.

Im very happy because at last we have cats that can happily play and have a lot of space. Some diseases will not transmit so fast [due to secluded rooms], he explained.

Martins said that the challenge has always been finding funding for this non-government association.

This year, the Macau Foundation provided MOP3.5 million for the associations operational expenses. Martins said their budget for 2017 is MOP8 million, and expressed his hope that the financial support would rise.

He shared that the group spends MOP350,000 a month to pay Animas 36 employees. Volunteers can come and help. But you know we have to have professional people, he said. Volunteers come when they want and we need to give food everyday. We are happy they come [but] it does not solve every problem, he continued.

According to Martins, Anima delivers sustenance to over 30 sites in the region to help feed strayed dogs and cats in the territory.

Another major matter he mentioned was the lack of regulation in regards to the micro-chipping of the stray animals. Martins stressed that there are more stray cats than dogs, and therefore the region should make it compulsory for cats to hold a microchip.

Many of them are abandoned animals [and] others are just lost animals. But as the law do not ask them to have a microchip, we [will] never know if the cat is abandoned or lost, he reiterated.

Martins contention is that this law should be amended. Although the group has suggested the necessary amendments to the government, he said the governments response was apathetic.

With Animas latest statistics showing that they have rescued 229 cats in the region, compared with 164 cats in the comparative period last year, he hoped that the government would wake up and see that [the group] is right.

Otherwise we cannot rescue them, he lamented, when asked what could occur if the MSAR fails to revise the law.

Carla Flores, a Macau resident who volunteered with the Cats Paradise project, said that she believes that the matter of strayed animals is important not only in Macau but around the world. She praised Anima (Macau) for the groups initiative on establishing an adequate space for the abandoned cats.

I do believe that we need more entities like this. Macau is rather small but the problem with stray animals is really big, she explained.

The recently launched Cats Paradise, which also houses rabbits, turtles and security dogs, is open to the public. Flores noted that the new center would help raise awareness of stray animals, particularly in children.

Bringing the children here really helps to convey the idea that cats, dogs, rabbits and turtles are worth protection and that they are not toys.

Flores, who has adopted two cats from Anima a few years ago, also noted that sufficient and proper space is problematic in the territory.

To be able to find the place [Cats Paradise] where we are now its a miracle to be honest. Lets hope there are more miracles [to come], she concluded.
The government is committed to the industrialization of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in Macau, the Chief Executive said on Friday.

Chui Sai On made the remarks in a speech at the opening ceremony of the First World Health Organization (WHO) Inter-Regional Training Workshop on the quality and safety of traditional medicine.

The event is organized by the WHO Collaborating Centre for Traditional Medicine (Macau), and is co-hosted by the MSAR government and WHO.

The Government Information Bureau reported that Chui emphasized how the development of the TCM sector is one of the major elements in the diversification of Macaus economy. The governments devotion to promoting the TCM sector was also noted. The governments future efforts will include ensuring Macau is positioned as an international base for quality control of TCM and as an international exchange and trading platform for the health industry. These measures will be in keeping with Macaus economic development effort as outlined in the Guangdong-Macau Cooperation Framework Agreement.

The Guangdong-Macau Traditional Chinese Medicine Industrial Technology Park, located on Hengqing Island in Zhuhai Prefecture, can take advantage of Macaus bridging and linking role with Portuguese-speaking countries, Chui said.

The WHO Collaborating Centre for Traditional Medicine (Macau) was established in August last year with help from the global health body and the Central Government. A number of agreements in relation to the development of TCM have also been signed between the Government and the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine. These steps are considered international recognition of Macaus effort to promote TCM and have created the expectation of further development of the sector in Macau in the future.
Seven people were killed and another person was missing after a chartered fishing boat disappeared from view in large waves at the entrance to a harbor near Auckland, New Zealand authorities said.

The boat Francie was carrying 11 people when it got into trouble on Saturday afternoon in Kaipara Harbour. Rescuers managed to pull three survivors from the water, who were taken to a hospital. A search for the missing person was continuing Sunday, said police Inspector Duncan Hall.

Crew members from the boat notified the coast guard that they were attempting to cross a sandbar at the entrance to the harbor at about 2 p.m., said Patrick Holmes, the chief executive of Coastguard New Zealand.

He said the coast guard raised the alarm an hour later after the boat didnt report back and could no longer be reached on its marine radio or by mobile phone.

Other boats in the area reported to the coast guard that they could no longer see the boat, although he wasnt yet clear if it had sunk. An investigation was underway.

Waves at the sandbar were about four meters high at the time of the accident, Holmes said. Sandbars are formed by sand building up on the seafloor, something which can happen at harbor entrances where the ocean meets calmer harbor water.

All sandbar crossings are dangerous. They shift with storms and tides, so the bars are not in exactly the same position, Holmes said. Because its a disturbance of the seafloor, the action of the waves becomes distorted and irregular.

Eyewitnesses told Television New Zealand that rescuers in helicopters plucked the survivors from the water and placed them on a beach, where locals kept them warm until ambulances arrived.

Police said they were still trying to establish what happened to the boat and how its occupants ended up in the harbor, which is about 75 kilometers northwest of Auckland.

Inspector Hall said rescuers recovered five bodies from the water soon after the accident. Another two bodies washed ashore at nearby beaches and were found early Sunday.

The Facebook page for Francie Charters says its boat Francie is licensed to carry up to 20 people with two crew members. It shows customers using fishing rods to catch snapper and other fish, and encountering dolphins. Nick Perry, Wellington, AP
The ninth edition of the gathering of Macanese communities held every three years was formally opened yesterday at the Sheraton Grand Macao Hotel.

For this years edition the meeting features 1,540 participants, of which 894 come from Canada, USA, Brazil, Australia and Portugal, among others.

Macau is also well represented in this edition by 646 Macau resident participants.

The opening ceremony was attended by the Chief Executive (CE), among other government officials. Chui Sai On highlighted in his speech the importance of such a community as a connection link connecting people who have been residing and working in Macau, generation after generation, giving rise to Macaus unique ethnic characteristics in language, culture, religion, customs and cuisine. The CE added that these characteristics made them a bridge for communication and exchanges between different cultures [during the past five centuries].

Jose Luis Sales Marques, president of the Standing Committee of the Council of the Macanese Communities (CCM) spoke on behalf of the organizing committee. He highlighted the efforts that have been put in by the Macanese Casas [houses] and Association around the world to keep up with the goals of the CCM, notwithstanding the challenges associated with poor economic environment in many of the hosting countries, the weight of the local cultures and language on a daily basis, generational change of guards and the limits derived by the small size of our community worldwide.

Leonel Alves, president of the General Council of the CCM, praised the local community during his speech The people of Macau, regardless of the nationality or ethnicity, are accustomed to welcoming Macanese from the diaspora in this city once every three years, he said. Alves, who is also a lawmaker and member of the Executive Coucil, added that such gatherings contribute to the strengthening of Macau as a multicultural city, proud of its diversity and able to protect its identity and history.

In Alves opinion the Macanese communities across the world have an important contribute to the projection of our city to the world.

Interviewed by the Times, Francisco Colaco Xavier, who lives in Seattle (US) and is taking part in the gathering for the first time, said: Macau used to be our little Europe where everybody knew each other and hug each other in the streets. For me this is a come back to those hugging moments and those memories from the old days. So far has been surprisingly good.
Last Friday, Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lionel Leong continued to answer questions posed by the lawmakers, during the second day of his Policy Address presentation at the Legislative Assembly. The main concerns covered in Fridays session were the employment issues of non-resident workers.

The number of non-resident workers in Macau and how their salary levels have resulted in the extensive import of workers was the matter that was discussed most thoroughly.

Au Kam San said that he is not against importing workers but he opposes abuses against a large inflow of non-resident workers. Locals have been affected by [Macaus] migrant workers related policies, [] the behaviours promoted by the government goes against the protection of the public, said Au.

Lawmaker Kwan Tsui Heng said that there are two non-Macau resident workers for every five employees. Kwan gave an example of the consequences of this ratio by saying that construction workers are earning salaries that are as low as their salaries in the year of 2010.

If we acknowledge the importance of construction workers, and if we consider that their work is demanding, why are their salaries so low? asked Kwan.

She also remarked that human resources industries have experienced a decline in their salaries that began 30 years ago, when the government, at that time, interfered in the economy and imported a great number of workers, including those working in the catering and hygiene industry.

Kwan pressed the point by asking, How much have these workers salaries improved [over the past years]? She strongly supports salary improvement for all workers and stated that she is also committed to improving the salaries of non-resident workers. They are human, they also need to live in Macau. [We] can not depend so much on cheap labour.

Kwan, like Au, also opposes the abusing over importing labour. Non-resident workers should be a supplement to the local workforce, but it is the opposite which is happening, noted Kwan.

She also pointed out that many migrant workers have acquired semi-permanent resident status under Macaus immigration policies.

Another problem addressed by Kwan referred to the number of Macau residents occupying relatively high positions in Macau companies. She suggested that the city should aim to maintain the ratio of employees at a more equitable 85 percent share of Macau residents in executive levels.

Similar topics were also raised by several other lawmakers, such as Leong Veng Chai, Chui Sai Peng Jose, and Lam Heong Sang.

In replying to the lawmakers, Leong said that Macaus average salary increased 5.4 percent since the year of 2000 until 2015. He said that starting from the second half of 2014, Macaus economy entered an adjustment period, and that employees salaries did not decrease but were in fact increased.

He then added that both the industries and the employees indicated that the employees salaries all increased.

The Secretary for Economy and Finance claims that more Macau residents have worked in Macau as managing staff. According to Leong, from 2010 until the first three quarters of 2016, there was a 47 percent increase in the number of Macau residents working as managing staff.

There is a trend for residents to move upwards, said Leong. In reply to more questions posed by lawmakers regarding issues over the citys labour force, Leong said that the government is planning on establishing an inspection system which will allow the government to collect data from resident and non-resident workers on big construction sites. Julie Zhu

Govt to research trade union law

The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lionel Leong, said that the government will research the possibility of establishing a trade union law in the region. Leongs statement came after Au Kam Sans query at the Fridays Legislative Assembly meeting. Au raised the topic, asking, When will the trade union law be complete? If you are not willing to answer the question, I hope that ALs staff can require all parities to deliver references related to the law. Triggered by Au, Tsui Wai Kwan voiced the opposite opinion saying that it is not the right time to put this law onto the agenda. Tsui countered that when the [workers] have law and weapon held in their hands, there will be people causing troubles. It is equal to the USs gun control problems.

Oil price remains high compared to rest of the world

Ho Ion Sang and Sio Chi Wai have doubts over the reasons behinds Macaus expensive oil prices.

According to the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC), the oil import price has decreased to MOP4.39 per kilogram in September this year, compared to MOP8.32 per kilogram in February last year, representing an approximate 50 percent decrease.

However, in Macau, despite this decrease, oil has always been sold for more than MOP13 per kilogram, regardless of the import price.

Macau pays MOP4.4 (per kilogram) to mainland China for importing oil. Hong Kong only pays HKD3.79, according to Ho.

Ho had questioned on why Macau residents need to suffer from the expensive oil [prices]. He also asked the secretary for an explanation of why the importing price has decreased but the selling price remains the same.

Sio Chi Wai commented that it is because of the related industry, which has been manipulating the price.

Leong said that the Macau Economic Service (DSE) has been observing the change in oil price and have been organizing meetings with the industry regularly. He claims that the authority requested the commercial chamber and oil sellers to launch a questionnaire in order to understand the reasons that contribute to the evolution in oil prices.

However, he said that this measure would not substantially increase our understanding of the changes in price. He also mentioned that, at the current stage, he expects the oil industry will, by meeting with the authority regularly, begin to understand the publics concerns about the changes in the price of oil.
SOUTH KOREAs embattled president accepted the resignation of her justice minister yesterday, the latest in a series of personnel reshuffles shes made amid a political scandal thats threatening her leadership. More on p12

PHILIPPINES An improvised bomb found in a trash bin near the U.S. Embassy and detonated by police has the same design as one used by local sympathizers of the Islamic State group in a Sept. 2 bomb attack that killed 15 people in southern Davao city, the Philippine police chief says.

NORTH KOREA is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, seen by the North as a rare comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States. The North has ordered flags outside official buildings be flown at half-staff to honor Castro, and reports from Pyongyang said that a delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castros memorial services.

INDIA Thousands of people demonstrate across India to protest the governments sudden decision to withdraw large-denomination currency from circulation, a move that has caused enormous hardship to millions of people in the countrys predominantly cash-based economy.

JAPAN An amusement park in western Japan sparks an uproar after it displayed about 5,000 dead fish in the ice at a skating rink, forcing the park to close the attraction.

AUSTRALIA Aboriginal traditional dancers with faces painted white with clay traveled from remote northern Australia to Parliament House yesterday to draw attention to rampant domestic violence in Outback indigenous communities.

TURKMENISTAN-AFGHANISTAN The presidents of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan yesterday officially opened a new railroad that will link the oil-rich former Soviet republic with Afghanistan. The first freight train has departed, carrying grain, flour and some construction materials to Afghanistan.

US Eight people were sent to hospitals yesterday with non-life-threatening injuries after an attack on the Ohio State University campus, fire and hospital officials said after the school sent a series of tweets telling students to shelter in place and to Run Hide Fight.

BRITAIN A pro-Europe think tank says it is willing to take the British government to court to try and keep the U.K. in the European Union single market once it leaves the bloc.

UNITED NATIONS The incoming secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, said yesterday that he wants U.N. peacekeepers to be better trained and more respectful of human rights, amid pressure on the organization to address a series of sexual abuse allegations.
BOISE  Dairy farmers and industry partners gathered recently in Boise for the United Dairymen of Idahos annual meeting. The group gave out awards at the event to honor dairy farmers and industry leaders who have had a significant impact on the dairy community:

Third-generation dairyman Jay Hurren, owner of Jay Hurren Dairy in Weston, won the Milk Quality Award. His family founded the dairy in 1972 and has been shipping milk to Gossner Foods for about 40 years. Hurren, his wife, Kenna, and their son Jason milk 250 cows. The dairy attributes its high-quality milk to clean corrals and equipment and monitoring the herds health and wellness.

Tom Suber, president of the U.S. Dairy Export Council in Arlington, Va., won the Friend of the Industry Award. Suber has run the organization since its inception in 1995 and plans to retire next month. During his tenure, USDEC has fostered collaborative industry partnerships with processors, trading companies, and others that significantly enhanced global demand for U.S. dairy products and ingredients.

Lynn Dean Pack of Idaho Falls was chosen as the Hall of Fame Inductee. A fourth-generation dairyman, Pack has worked in the business for 62 years. He and his wife, Cindy, started their herd of 110 cows in 1976 and downsized to a 50-cow operation in 2015. Pack has a long history of serving the dairy industry, including nearly 40 years as a member of the board of directors of the Idaho State Holstein Association. The youngest nominee to receive the ISHA Young Breeder, Senior Breeder, and Master Breeder awards, Pack has won the Premier Breeder and/or Premier Exhibitor title 14 times in the last 20 years. His herd currently boasts a BAA of 110.5, which puts him in the top one percent of Holstein breeders nationwide.
WASHINGTON (AP)  No one listened to Tom Vilsack.

As agriculture secretary during the entire Obama administration, the former Iowa governor has for years been telling anyone who will pay attention  farmers, members of Congress, even Hillary Clinton  that Democrats need a better message for rural America. And hes spent most of his tenure focusing on rural development, trying to revitalize areas that ultimately voted for Republican Donald Trump in this years presidential election.

The Democratic Party, in my opinion, has not made as much of an effort as it ought to, to speak to rural voters, Vilsack said Tuesday in an interview with The Associated Press. Whats frustrating to me is that we actually have something we can say to them, and we have chosen, for whatever reason, not to say it.

Vilsack is a longtime friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton and was close to becoming Hillary Clintons vice presidential running mate. She chose Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine instead. Clinton ultimately won Virginia but lost, deeply, in many rural areas of the country.

Vilsack says he understands why party leaders chose a different path to try for electoral victory, focusing on expanding populations like Hispanics and African-Americans who had come out in large numbers to vote for Barack Obama, the nations first black president, in 2008 and 2012.

The problem, he said, is those groups represent around the same percentage of the population as rural voters. And he says Democrats didnt have enough of a counter argument to powerful Republican themes of less regulation and lower taxes.

There wasnt an overarching theme that a person in a small town could go, Oh, theyre talking about me, Vilsack said.

According to exit polls conducted for AP and television networks by Edison Research, about 17 percent of voters in this years election were from small cities or rural areas, and 62 percent of them said they voted for Trump.

Since the election, Democrats in Congress have also been talking about how to turn around the rural vote. Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan is challenging California Rep. Nancy Pelosi for House Democratic leader, saying that the partys message needs to be heard beyond the two coasts.

We lost those voters, Ryan said last week. Weve got to find a way to get back in, and that starts with a message that resonates in the flyover states.

Vilsack says the party should have had a tougher counter-message to Trumps positions on deporting immigrants who make up some of the farm workforce and opposing trade deals that are good for agriculture.

If you have no market and no workforce, what good does it do, Vilsack said. My guess is, if you confronted the average farmer with that dilemma, theyd go, Well, let me think about that.

He said Democrats didnt do that because we didnt think wed have to, because Clinton appeared to be on track to win the election.

Vilsack is the only remaining member of Obamas original cabinet. As secretary, hes focused on rebuilding rural communities, increasing the diversity of types of agriculture, boosting innovation and research and making school meals healthier. Hes also worked to resolve civil rights claims against the department.

He said he thinks the Obama administrations work on many of those issues will hold, particularly because of millennials deep interest in food issues and because the agriculture and food industries have already adapted to many regulations.

As for his successor, he says he hopes the person has some executive experience, like being a governor as he was. He says he hasnt talked to Trump or the transition.

Rural America is now getting some attention, he says. The question is whether that will translate into positive policy.

The Democratic Party, in my opinion, has not made as much of an effort as it ought to, to speak to rural voters. Whats frustrating to me is that we actually have something we can say to them, and we have chosen, for whatever reason, not to say it. Tom Vilsack, secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture
TWIN FALLS  A girl died after the utility task vehicle she was driving rolled onto its side Friday afternoon in a parking lot near Curry Crossing.

According to the Idaho State Police, the crash occurred at about 5 p.m. in the parking lot of Clayton Homes, 21360 U.S. 30. The driver was transported to St. Luke's Magic Valley Regional Medical Center in Twin Falls, where she died from her injuries.

A minor female passenger was not transported to the hospital.

Neither the driver nor passenger was wearing seat belts, helmets, or protective gear, the ISP said.

The Idaho State Police doesn't release names of minors involved in accidents.
TWIN FALLS  A woman living near Twin Falls was shot Sunday night but further details were not being released at press time.

According to Twin Falls County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Lori Stewart, the woman was shot at about 9:30 p.m. near her home southwest of Twin Falls and was transported by ground ambulance to St. Luke's Magic Valley Medical Center in Twin Falls.

Stewart said the victim's injuries did not appear to be life threatening. Further details were not being released Sunday as to not compromise the investigation, Stewart said.
The results of the 2016 election have put the shoe on the other foot, it would seem.

During the campaign, it was now-President-elect Donald Trump declining to say that he would accept the results of the election  a move for which Hillary Clinton strongly denounced him. But as of this weekend, Clintons campaign is participating in a recount of election results spurred by Green Party nominee Jill Stein in Wisconsin and potentially other states.

Its led to claims of Clinton hypocrisy and cries of double standard. Trump summed up those claims via his preferred medium, Twitter, Saturday night and Sunday morning:

The Democrats, when they incorrectly thought they were going to win, asked that the election night tabulation be accepted. Not so anymore!

Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change

As a political strategy, it makes sense, and it feeds into Trumps claims about media bias. Why isnt the media pillorying Clinton, the argument goes, for calling into question the results of the election just like it covered his comments way back when?

But the comparison between what Clinton is doing now and what Trump was talking about doing during the campaign just isnt apples-to-apples.

First, Trump was talking about massive election fraud before it was even alleged to have happened. There is very little documented evidence of this in American politics, yet he was out there saying it could and even would happen.

Trump claimed at one point that the only way he could lose Pennsylvania was through large-scale fraud. He urged supporters to monitor the polls. And he was asked about these things when it looked like he was going to lose the race by a substantial margin.

Which brings us to the next point: The question wasnt really about Trump forfeiting his right to participate in recounts or contest a close result  it often got simplified into will he or wont he concede  but it was really about whether he would concede a race in which the margin wasnt really close.

Trump himself seemed to grasp that difference. Shortly after saying he wouldnt commit to accepting the election results at the third presidential debate, he said this at a rally:

Of course I would accept a clear election result, but I would also reserve my fight to contest or file a legal challenge in the case of a questionable result.

The comment got lost in Trumps showmanship; it came right after he said he would accept the election results before pausing and adding if I win. And it wasnt at all clear what Trump believed would be a clear election result given his prior comments about historic voter fraud. But if Trump had simply said this all along, it probably wouldnt have been a big deal.

Trump added at the same Oct. 20 rally:

That was sort of an unprecedented question. If Al Gore or George Bush had agreed three weeks before the election to concede the results and waive their right to a legal challenge or a recount, then there would be no Supreme Court case and no Gore v. Bush. ...

In effect, Im being asked to waive centuries of legal precedent designed to protect the voters.

But that wasnt really what Trump was being asked. Trump at times argued that the election was going to be stolen from him almost regardless of what the actual result showed. Thats what led to the unprecedented question. And saying he would accept the result wouldnt have actually prevented him from pursuing legitimate recounts.

Its also worth noting in this that the Clinton campaign hasnt un-conceded the election. It has said that Trump won, and it has tiptoed gently around this whole idea of a recount. It has recognized the likelihood that these recounts wont change much of anything.

Trump won the election because he carried a trio of Rust Belt states by about 1 point or less  Wisconsin by 0.8 percent, Michigan by 0.2 percent and Pennsylvania by 1.1 percent. If the shoe was on the other foot and Clinton had won by such margins, it wouldnt be outlandish for Trump to participate in recounts in one or more of those states.

But that wasnt really the Trump controversy was about.
In most cases, my review is behind the link, though a few times it leads merely to the Amazon page. If I wrote only a few words about the book, I have reproduced them directly in this post. And the books are listed, more or less, in the order I read them. Apologies if I forgot your book, each year I do neglect a few. Here goes:

Robert J. Gordon, Rise and Fall of American Growth, my review is here.

Marco Santagana, Dante: The Story of His Life.

Melancholy, by Laszlo F. Foldenyi.

Ji Xianlin, The Cowshed: Memoirs of the Chinese Cultural Revolution. The classic account of its kind, in this edition brilliantly translated and presented.

Robin Hanson, The Age of Em. Unlike any other on this list, this work created a new genre.

Benedict Anderson, A Life Beyond Boundaries.

Tom Bissell, Apostle: Travels Among the Tombs of the Twelve. Fun, engaging, and informative, worthy of the best of the year non-fiction list.

Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Gene: An Intimate History.

Srinath Raghavan, Indias War: World War II and the Making of Modern South Asia.

Benjamin Grob-Fitzgibbon, Continental Drift: Britain and Europe from the End of Empire to the Rise of Euroscepticism.

Marie Kondo, Spark Joy: An Illustrated Guide to the Japanese Art of Tidying.

Peter Parker, Housman Country: Into the Heart of England. Its already out in the UK, which is where I bought my copy.

Lawrence Rosen, Two Arabs, a Berber, and a Jew: Entangled Lives in Morocco. Superb descriptive anthropology.

Lyndal Roper, Martin Luther: Renegade and Prophet. Due out in February, the UK edition is already out. Substantive and delightful on every page.

Kerry Brown, CEO, China: The Rise of Xi Jinping.

Richard van Glahn, The Economic History of China: From Antiquity through the 19th Century.

Christopher Goscha, The Penguin History of Modern Vietnam. The best general history of Vietnam I know, and it does not obsess over the Vietnam War. Readable and instructive on pretty much every page.

Andrew Scott Cooper, The Fall of Heaven: The Pahlavis and the Final Days of Imperial Iran.

William Domnarski, Richard Posner.

Peter Laurence, Becoming Jane Jacobs.

Daniel Gormally, Insanity, Passion, and Addiction: A Year Inside the Chess World. A personal favorite, you can read this as a study in labor economics as to why people hang on to crummy jobs.

Joshua Foer, Dylan Thuras, and Ella Morton, Atlas Obscura: An Explorers Guide to the Worlds Hidden Wonders. Short descriptions of places you ought to visit, such as ossuaries, micronations, museums of invisible microbes, the floating school of Lagos, the Mistake House of Elsah, Illinois, Bangkoks Museum of Counterfeit Goods, and the worlds largest Tesla coil in Makarau, controlled by Alan Gibbs of New Zealand. The selection is conceptual, so I like it. I will keep this book.

Jean Lucey Pratt, A Notable Woman.

Ben H. Shepherd, Hitlers Soldiers: The German Army in the Third Reich.

Sebastian Mallaby, The Man Who Knew: The Life and Times of Alan Greenspan

Tim Harford, Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives.

Julian Gewirtz, Unlikely Partners: Chinese Reformers, Western Economists, and the Making of Global China.

Marina Abramovic, Walk Through Walls.

Christopher de Hamel, Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts.

Here is Arnold Klings list. Here is my list of the years best fiction.

I would describe this year as thick in wonderful, superb books, though I remain uncertain which of these is truly the years winner. So many plausible contenders! I can only promise Ill continue to cover what comes out between now and the end of the year, and apologies if one or two of those above are from late 2015.
Resentment is growing against Algerian authorities which have so far managed this burgeoning discontent with a stick-and-carrot policy that has kept a tenuous peace but not addressed underlying issues, warns International Crisis Group.

Since 2013, the politically marginal but economically crucial oil-producing areas of the Algerian south have experienced successive waves of unrest over what may appear local economic, environmental and communal issues, says the think-thank in its latest report.

Ahead of an uncertain presidential succession and given the painful consequences of low oil prices, Algeria should go beyond treating the symptoms to address governance shortcomings and include its peripheral populations in political decision-making, says the report.

The International Crisis Group (ICG) calls on Algeria to act now as the challenges are still amply manageable, rather than allow them to fester and bleed dangerously into the coming political transition.

Three separate movements in three southern cities have evolved in recent years to mobilize thousands of Algerians, both in the desert region and elsewhere in the country. The historic town of Ghardaia has seen recurrent clashes between Sunni Arabs and a Berber minority, in a rare instance of sectarian violence in an overwhelmingly Sunni country.

In the far south, the town of In Salah has given birth to the Maghrebs most significant ecological protest movement, with thousands mobilizing against shale gas exploration the government concealed.

In Ouargla, widespread unemployment has provoked unrest by local youths, who have formed a movement that demands an end to what they consider central-authority neglect.

According to ICG experts, these issues, long considered politically marginal, must be taken seriously, not only for the sake of the vast region, but also because of their growing and very real impact on the countrys political core in the north.

However, Algerian authorities continue to think in terms of handouts, repression and policing, tools which have barely kept a lid on an occasionally violent cauldron.

But Algeria, which is facing the most serious economic challenges in decades due to falling oil production and low international prices, is less and less able to substitute spending for inclusive politics and good governance.

It appears that its former strategy, which helped Algerian government secure peace in the 2000s, is no longer viable. The unrest of the last few years demonstrates that southern citizens are no longer willing to put aside their demands for improved transparency, communication and respect from their government.
Pro-Assad forces have made significant progress in the battle to take over eastern Aleppo in their latest offensives with Director Rami Abdel Rahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights stating that the rebels have lost control of all the neighborhoods in the north of east Aleppo, and this is their worst defeat since they seized half the city in 2012. Assad forces renewed their attacks two weeks ago and pro-government newspaper, Al-Watan, reported that the next phase will be to divide the remaining area into security districts that will be easily controlled and to capture them (rebels) successively. It added that the military operation will push the gunmen to turn themselves in or accept national reconciliation under the terms of the Syrian state.

Rebel forces are claiming that Damascus latest victory is due to the support it is receiving from other countries. Egypt forces are one of them according to many reports. For all the past years, we have resisted with the primitive means we have had, but today were resisting Iran and Russia, Yasser Youssef, an official from the Nureddin al-Zinki rebel group lamented. In reference to the Egyptian forces air strikes, he added that rebel groups in Aleppo are fighting armies and militias from every corner of the globe.

Some of the civilians are fleeing to government controlled areas while others prefer to head to areas still under the rebels. UNHCR spokesman Scott Craig said they are deeply concerned about the impact of the fighting on the civilian population in Aleppo as food and fuel shortages continue.

Aleppo has been a center-stage in the Syrian war and most of the once flamboyant commercial city has been turned into ruins with the some parts of abandoned due to heavy fighting.
The Kuwaiti parliamentary elections have ended with opposition parties winning around 24 of the parliaments 50. The results also showcased the arrival of 30 new MPs in the parliament and many of them have been elected on the basis of rejecting austerity measures planned by the government. Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah who had dissolved the parliament earlier in October due to regional risks and security challenges called on the newly elected MPs to uphold the trust given to them by the electorates as he wishes them luck in serving the homeland. Around 65% of eligible voters took part in the elections.

The formation of the new parliament is not expected to end the dispute between the government and the lawmakers over increasing petrol prices. Reform policies are also expected to be challenged as Ibrahim Al-Hadban, a political science lecturer at Kuwait University, opined that results could be seen as a punishment to the former parliament who did not object to the governments reform and austerity policies. Voters dealt a heavy blow to candidates from the outgoing parliament, with more than half of them not being reelected. Two of three cabinet ministers also failed in their bid for re-election.

Former Speaker Marzouq al-Ghanem, after his reelection, admitted that the country is going through a sensitive, critical and important stage while stressing the need for political stability and the prioritization of economic development.

Kuwait is trying to drastically reduce public spending and subsidies after it recorded its first budget deficit, in its 2015 fiscal year, but the move is being contested by the population. The country generates most of its income from oil and the low prices in the market are forcing the government to implement strict policies. Last years budget deficit reached KWD 4.6 billion (USD 15.3 billion).
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.
Credit: St. George's University of London

A new study has shown that surgeons in England operate significantly less often on aortic aneurysms in the population than in the US, and that the death rate here for the condition is over twice that in the States.

The results have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

An aortic aneurysm is a diseased swelling of the body's largest blood vessel. If an aneurysm is left to rupture it is usually fatal. The risk of fatal rupture increases with aneurysm size, but although there are international guidelines suggesting thresholds at which surgery should be considered, clinical practice varies considerably in different countries. The impact of this variation on a country's rate of death due to aortic aneurysms has never previously been investigated.

Researchers in Harvard and London, led by Dr Alan Karthikesalingam at St George's, University of London, looked at several national datasets for abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, comparing the rate of aneurysm repair and the diameter at the time of repair between England and the USA.

They found that for the condition of aortic aneurysm, the rates of repair (operations) in England were half that of the USA, with repair being done at a higher average diameter. The weighted mean diameter for aneurysm undergoing repair in England was 6.37 cm, compared to the weighted mean diameter at repair in the USA of 5.83 cm. International guidelines currently suggest aneurysm repair should be considered at 5.5cm in men and 5.0cm in women.

The rate of death in England from ruptured aneurysm was double that of the USA, while deaths from aneurysm-related causes were over three times more common than in the USA.

Dr Alan Karthikesalingam, Clinical Lecturer in Vascular Surgery at St George's, University of London, said: "Aneurysm diameter is the best predictor of whether an aneurysm will rupture, and the risk increases as the diameter increases. Although guidelines specify that 5.5cm is a reasonable threshold to consider surgery for infrarenal aneurysms, the risk of rupture must be balanced against personalised procedural risks, life expectancy and preference. We know there is considerable variation in international practice, with large numbers of patients undergoing repair below guideline thresholds. Deciding whether to repair an aneurysm, and selecting the best technique, involves carefully balancing the risks and is for the patient and clinician to discuss."

The data raises the question of whether English outcomes would be improved if the repair thresholds used in the USA were adopted. Dr Karthikesalingam added: "It has been suggested that the size threshold for aneurysm repair should be revisited, which might require new clinical trials."

More information: Alan Karthikesalingam et al. Thresholds for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair in England and the United States, New England Journal of Medicine (2016). Journal information: New England Journal of Medicine Alan Karthikesalingam et al. Thresholds for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair in England and the United States,(2016). DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1600931
One hundred and sixty-one children from two daycare centres participated in a study where scientists looked for viruses in their respiratory tract. The results were surprising. Credit: Tarjei E. Krogh/Samfoto

Forty-three per cent of children at two daycare centres researchers studied had at least one virus in their respiratory tract.

It's that time of year again. The temperature is creeping downward. Fingers get cold on the bike ride to childcare in the morning. Winter coats are front and centre in the closet. Keeping track of your family's rainwear and boots becomes the top priority.

Autumn not only brings the yellow leaves, it also brings mucousy, stuffy noses. And coughing. Earaches. Fever. Young children who cry and can't sleep at night. The healthy summer family begins to falter, and before you know it, you've used up all your sick days. You have to go to work. Your youngest has to go to daycare. That's just the way it is.

But when are young children really too sick to be in childcare? When they have a fever? Yes. But what if they just have green mucus and a cough? Don't know. And that's just it. It's not always easy to know. Nina Moe, a PhD candidate at NTNU, has examined some of these questions.

Many children hospitalized with respiratory infections

Moe also works at St. Olav's University Hospital in Trondheim as a paediatrician. That's where seriously sick children go when they need to be treated for more than a stuffy nose from a respiratory infection. When the infection spreads down into the lungs, children need treatment that makes it easier for them to breathe.

"Respiratory infections are the most frequent type of acute illness that gets children admitted to St. Olav's Hospital. Some children become seriously ill with as asthma, pneumonia or bronchiolitis," says Henrik Dllner, a physician at St. Olav's Hospital and associate professor in NTNU's Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health. He is Moe's advisor.

Up to four viruses in children's airways

When children are hospitalized with respiratory infections, doctors begin to look for viruses and bacteria.

"It's not like a particular disease originates from a single virus," Dllner says. "Often we find anywhere from one to four virus types in a child's airways. It can be difficult to know which viruses are just there and not causing a problem, and which viruses and bacteria are causing the illness."

Sometimes these results have a bearing on what treatment doctors provide. Dllner and Moe wanted to know more about which viruses normally healthy children have in their airways, and compare that with the viruses that seriously ill children have.

Took 343 mucus samples

Moe contacted two large childcare centres with apparently healthy children in Trondheim. The parents and employees all supported the project, and Moe took 343 mucus samples of the children over a span of two years.

A total of 161 children participated in the study. Mucus samples were taken while the children were in childcare during four fall and winter visits. The children were also clinically evaluated by a paediatrician, who listened to their lungs and checked their throat and ears. Close to 80 per cent of all the children from the two participating daycares participated in the study.

You might also like: No one wants to foot the bill for new antibiotics

Respiratory infection signs in two of three children

It turned out that that there weren't only healthy children in the childcare centres.

When are children actually too sick to go to daycare or preschool? Credit: Thinkstock

Analyses of the mucus samples showed that 43 per cent of the children had one or more viruses in their respiratory tract.

The clinical examination showed that 24 per cent had obvious signs of respiratory infection, with red swollen throats and red inflamed eardrums. Another 41 per cent had milder signs of respiratory infection, with stuffy noses and slightly affected eardrums.

Only one in three children showed no signs of respiratory infection at all.

Among the children with clear signs of respiratory infection, 70 per cent had one or more viruses in their respiratory tract. Even among children with no signs of respiratory infection, 30 per cent had viruses.

Repeat offender among viruses

All told, Moe found 13 different respiratory viruses. The common cold virus (rhinovirus) was the biggest offender.

"The rhinovirus can also cause a more severe respiratory infection in some children. We often see this virus in hospitals. But usually we find the more aggressive virus types in hospitals rather than in daycare settings," says Moe.

Before each sampling and examination, parents were asked whether the child had been sick in the last 14 days, and if the child was healthy now. Among the children reported as healthy, and who also had a normal clinical examination, 24 per cent still had one or more respiratory viruses in their mucus samples.

Moe explains that certain viruses may be present in the respiratory tract after symptoms disappear, or before a new infection, when symptoms like mucus and throat pain have not yet started.

Difficult to assess child's illness

When children have diarrhoea, they should stay home for two days after they become symptom free. The guideline is clear. For respiratory infections, the requirement is that children should be fever free and in good general condition to be in childcare.

"It's certainly difficult for parents to assess this sometimes. Parents and childcare staff share the responsibility of deciding when sick children should stay home. The child's own health is the main concern, but so is avoiding the spread of infection," say Moe and Dllner.

The study also showed that the viruses spread extremely quickly. On one visit, nearly 80 per cent of all the children in one childcare section had the same virus, while the neighbouring section had no incidence of it. The next time the situation was reversed. This pattern was particularly evident in the sections with younger children, where the incidence of viruses was higher than in the older childcare sections.

Sick children should stay home

Given this infection pattern, Dllner and Moe believe that it can be beneficial to keep children at home when they have a respiratory tract infection with a lot of mucus and coughing. This can help reduce the frequent spread of viruses in childcare centres, even if the child has no fever and is in good condition otherwise.

"For children with chronic illnesses like asthma or heart disease, it's an extra burden to attend childcare if a lot of viruses are floating around there," says Dllner.

Both Dllner and Moe stress the importance of good hygiene measures in childcare settings. They are not suggesting that the hygiene was inadequate in the childcare centres they visited, but emphasize the importance of employees consistently maintaining good routines.

"Maybe parents with children under three years old should receive more days of subsidized care benefits when their children are sick? This would make it easier for parents to stay home with children who are coughing and congested," says Dllner.

Vaccine for respiratory virus

Vaccines may offer preventive measures against respiratory tract infections. A lot of research is being done on vaccines to counter respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). RSV is the most common of the aggressive respiratory tract infections.

The challenge up to now has been that RSV and other respiratory viruses change constantly. It has been difficult to create effective vaccines that cover enough virus variants. Some researchers are predicting that we might expect a RSV vaccine in 10-15 years.

The rotavirus vaccine has led to big drop in flu among Norwegian infants since the vaccine was introduced in the childhood immunization program in 2014.

If Norwegian parents support a vaccine against RSV on a large scale, an effective RSV vaccine would have a significant effect both on hospital admissions for severe respiratory infections and on more common infections. The healthcare savings for the larger society would be significant.

More information: Nina Moe et al. Respiratory Virus Detection and Clinical Diagnosis in Children Attending Day Care, PLOS ONE (2016). Journal information: PLoS ONE Nina Moe et al. Respiratory Virus Detection and Clinical Diagnosis in Children Attending Day Care,(2016). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0159196
Women and men look at faces and absorb visual information in different ways, which suggests there is a gender difference in understanding visual cues, according to a team of scientists that included psychologists from Queen Mary University of London (QMUL).

The researchers used an eye tracking device on almost 500 participants at the Science Museum over a five-week period to monitor and judge how much eye contact they felt comfortable with while looking at a face on a computer screen.

They found that women looked more at the left-hand side of faces and had a strong left eye bias, but that they also explored the face much more than men. The team observed that it was possible to tell the gender of the participant based on the scanning pattern of how they looked at the face with nearly 80 per cent accuracy. Given the very large sample size the researchers suggest this is not due to chance.

Lead author Dr Antoine Coutrot from QMUL's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences said: "This study is the first demonstration of a clear gender difference in how men and women look at faces.

"We are able to establish the gender of the participant based on how they scan the actors' face, and can eliminate that it isn't based on the culture of the participant as nearly 60 nationalities have been tested. We can also eliminate any other observable characteristics like perceived attractiveness or trustworthiness."

The participants were asked to judge how comfortable the amount of eye contact they made with the actor in a Skype-like scenario. Each participant saw the same actor (there were eight in total) during the testing period, which was around 15 minutes. At the end of the session the researchers collected personality information about the participants through questionnaires.

Co-author Dr Isabelle Mareschal also from QMUL's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences added: "There are numerous claims in popular culture that women and men look at things differently - this is the first demonstration, using eye tracking, to support this claim that they take in visual information in different ways."

The team describe their findings in the Journal of Vision and suggest the gender difference in scanning visual information might impact many research fields, such as autism diagnosis or even everyday behaviours like watching a movie or looking at the road while driving.

More information: 'Face exploration dynamics differentiate men and women' by Coutrot et al is published in the Journal of Vision on Monday 28 November 2016. Journal information: Journal of Vision 'Face exploration dynamics differentiate men and women' by Coutrot et al is published in theon Monday 28 November 2016.
The call for improved responses is made in a paper published today by the New Zealand Family Violence Clearinghouse.

"Victims of family violence absolutely need specialist services and support to enable their safety and recovery," says author Professor Devon Polaschek, from Victoria University of Wellington's School of Psychology.

"To reduce rates of family violence, we also need to invest in a system that responds to perpetrators.

"New Zealand has no such system and responses are piecemeal, insufficient and mired in a complex web of bureaucracy."

Behaviour change programmes were too short to change the behaviour of a lifetime, and funding for people self-referring to programmes was limited, she says.

Professor Polaschek called for responses by Police, Courts, Corrections, Child Protection and non-Government agencies to be based on high quality evidence and a shared conceptual understanding, better integrated and extending beyond simply responding to crises.

"Perpetrator responses will also be more effective if more funds are invested in public education and social marketing campaigns, similar to road safety campaigns," says Professor Polaschek.

"These efforts work to change norms that enable violence, including questioning gender roles, especially what it is to be a man, a partner, and a father in New Zealand. Family violence includes intimate partner violence, child abuse and abuse of any family or whanau member."

The New Zealand Family Violence Clearinghouse is the national centre for family and whanau violence research and information, funded by Superu, managed by Auckland UniServices and hosted by the University of Auckland.

More information: Responding to perpetrators of family violence. Responding to perpetrators of family violence. nzfvc.org.nz/issues-paper-11-r  tors-family-violence
Credit: University of Nottingham

Research by a Nottingham academic has helped to shape new guidance on dealing with menopause in the workplace.

Professor Amanda Griffiths, in the University of Nottingham's School of Medicine, has conducted the largest study to date in the UK about the issue and has contributed to the new guidance being launched by the Faculty of Occupational Medicine (FOM).

The guidance is aimed at women going through menopause and experiencing the impact it has on their working lives. It also offers employers practical experience on how to improve workplace environments for menopausal women.

Professor Griffiths said: "The Faculty of Occupational Medicine's guidance draws together the latest information we have about how menopause affects some women at work. It provides straightforward suggestions about what employers and line managers can do to help, as well as tips for women themselves in how to cope.

"It is good to see that menopause is increasingly being widely recognised as a potential problem and is no longer 'taboo'. Serious problems only affect a minority of menopausal women, and even then only temporarily. But for those affected it can be very unpleasant. More awareness and some simple changes, many that women themselves have recommended, could make their working lives during this time much easier."

Dr Richard Heron, FOM President, said: "At the request of the Chief Medical Officer for England, Professor Dame Sally Davies, the Faculty of Occupational Medicine was pleased to lend its support and produce guidelines on menopause in the workplace.

"This is often a hidden health concern of working women, and it is so important that workers of all ages are better informed about how to confidently manage health issues such as this in their workplaces."

The research by Professor Griffiths found that the menopause is still treated as a 'taboo' subject in many workplaces  and that much more needs to be done to support women and help them cope with symptoms such as fatigue, poor concentration, hot flushes and depression.

Many women questioned for the study found they were not prepared for the arrival of the menopause, and nearly half had difficulties coping with symptoms at work. A similar number felt their job performance had been negatively affected, and nearly a fifth thought the menopause made managers and colleagues view them as less competent.

Four overarching issues emerged from the research as areas for possible improvements at work:



greater awareness of managers about the menopause as a possible occupational health issue for women

increased flexibility of working hours and working arrangements

better access to informal and formal sources of support

improvements in workplace temperature and ventilation

More information: The FOM guidance and accompanying infographic is available at The FOM guidance and accompanying infographic is available at www.fom.ac.uk/menopause
Credit: Imperial College London

Many school first aiders, community pharmacists and GP practice nurses overestimate the risk of fatal reaction for children with food allergy.

This is the conclusion of a new study, which also shows some health care professionals are unable to treat allergic reactions safely.

The team behind the research, from Imperial College London, asked 90 people (30 school first aiders, 30 GP practice nurses and 30 community pharmacists) to estimate the likelihood that a child with food allergy will suffer a fatal allergic reaction.

The team, who published their findings in the journal Clinical and Experimental Allergy, also asked how they would recognise and treat a life-threatening allergic reaction in children.

The results showed all three groups significantly overestimated the risk of a child dying from a fatal allergic reaction.

However despite heightened risk perception, the researchers found the study group were not able to adequately treat life-threatening allergic reactions in children.

Most of the people surveyed in the study could not correctly administer an adrenaline auto-injector device such as EpiPen.

These life-saving devices, which resemble a thick marker pen, must be used within minutes of a severe allergic reaction. They inject adrenaline into the body, which quickly reduces swelling in the throat and mouth, and allows breathing to return to normal.

One in three school first aiders were unable to correctly use the device, which is usually pressed into the thigh.

More than eight in ten (83 per cent) GP nurses used the device incorrectly, along with three in five pharmacists.

Most of the study group previously said they were very confident in using an adrenaline auto-injector.

The most common mistake was to not hold the device in place for five seconds  the time needed for the adrenaline to move into the thigh muscle. Other mistakes included not removing the safety cap or trying to inject the wrong end into the leg. Some people would have accidently injected themselves.

The team said that although the study was small, the findings suggest all professionals who may need to treat severe allergies should have mandatory training, and practise with trainer devices on a regular basis.

Heather Hanna, allergy research nurse and an author on the study from the Department of Medicine at Imperial said: "Although severe allergic reactions are rare, they can be life-threatening. The results from this study showed that many of the professionals questioned over-estimated the risk of death from these reactions. However, this over-estimation didn't result in people being better prepared  as only 40 per cent of all people in the study could correctly administer a trainer adrenaline auto-injector device."

The team said the findings surrounding school first aiders was particularly worrying, as previous studies have shown up to one in five allergic reactions in children occur in school. It's also thought that outcomes of serious reactions may be worse when they occur at school as opposed to occurring at home.

Mrs Hanna added: "There are good resources available for learning about treating allergic reactions, as well as adrenaline auto-injector trainer devices. We recommend people regularly practice using their trainer device."

Severe allergic reactions kill around one to two people per month in the UK. Most are triggered by a reaction to foods, such as peanuts, or to medicines. The reactions, called anaphylaxis, can quickly trigger swelling in the skin, lips, mouth and throat, making breathing difficult. They also cause a sudden drop in blood pressure, leading to a person becoming weak and floppy, and in some cases collapsing or losing consciousness.

Food allergies  most commonly nut allergy  are the leading cause of fatal anaphylaxis in children.

In the study, the team gave the 90 study participants potential scenarios of a child suffering an allergic reaction to food, and then asked them how they would respond.

They also asked the group to inject a child mannequin with an adrenaline auto-injector.

In the event of a severe allergic reaction, an auto-injector should be give immediately  and then an ambulance should be called, and other medication may be given.

However, in the practise scenario under half of school first aiders said they would give an auto-injector as first line treatment. A third said they would give an inhaler first, and around one in five said they would give antihistamines.

The findings echo previous research from Dr Robert Boyle, another author of the new study from the Department of Medicine at Imperial. His previous work suggested over half of mothers of children with severe allergies could not correctly administer an auto-injector, just six weeks after they received thorough training.

Dr Boyle said this stresses the need for better designed devices.

"These devices could be the difference between life and death, yet their design is not simple or intuitive enough for use in an emergency situation. We need to develop easier-to-use treatments for severe allergic reactions."

He also added that the risks associated with allergy, particularly food allergy, should be included in information leaflets and training packages for professionals and patients, in order to avoid the heightened risk perception identified in this study.

"This misperception of risk by school first aiders, pharmacists and practice nurses may lead to increased anxiety and restriction of activities for food-allergic children" said Dr Boyle.

More information: For more information, see For more information, see www.anaphylaxis.org.uk/informa  llergywise-training/ "Community healthcare professionals overestimate the risk of fatal anaphylaxis for food allergic children" by H.J Hanna et al is published in the journal Clinical & Experimental Allergy Journal information: Clinical & Experimental Allergy
Bring joy to older adults in our community who may be suffering from social isolation and loneliness this holiday season. Community partners and Missoula Aging Services offer a festive way to help support their needs. Giving trees adorned with bright tags, bows and candy canes are available to make a donation in the amount of your choice toward a service that benefits older adults in Missoula County.

Each tag on a tree gives a suggested donation amount and what it will provide. For example, $7 will provide one hot, nutritious meal delivered to an older adult who can no longer prepare their own food, through the Meals on Wheels program. Each delivery also means a friendly check-in by the volunteer who brings the meal. Other tags in varying amounts suggest donations to provide companionship to an older adult striving to live independently, or a gift that can give a family caregiver a needed break from the stress of caring for a loved one with Alzheimers.

To participate, visit any of the sites, select a tag from the tree, and follow the instructions on the back. Sites partnering with MAS include:

 Missoula Aging Services, 337 Stephens Ave.

 Subaru of Missoula, 1600 Stephens Ave., Share the Love campaign

 MSO/Hub, 140 North Higgins downtown

 Taco Sano, 1515 Fairview Ave.

 Missoula County Administration Office, 199 W. Pine St.

 Missoula Public Library, 301 E. Main St.

For more information, contact MAS, 728-7682.

***

Board members, staff and volunteers from Sparrows Nest of Northwest Montana will be spending the night of Saturday, Dec. 10, away from the comfort of their homes to raise awareness about and funds for unaccompanied homeless high school students. They will experience only one dimension of homeless, for one night. They will not experience the uncertainty of having a place to sleep tomorrow, feelings of insecurity and lack of safety that our homeless high school students endure day after day.

They will sleep outside the St. Peter Lutheran Church, 201 Wisconsin Ave., in Whitefish from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Some will sleep outside the house, on the lawn in sleeping bags, others in their vehicles; much like some of our unaccompanied homeless high school students do on any given night.

The group is sleeping out to understand for one night what homeless children in Montana experience. They hope to raise awareness surrounding the issue of unaccompanied homeless youth in the Flathead Valley and raise funds for Sparrows Nest of Northwest Montanas Whitefish and Kalispell House.

Sparrows Nest of Northwest Montana is a new organization based out of Kalispell that provides resources and safe housing for unaccompanied homeless high school students in the Flathead Valley. Their goal is to work with the community to help these students graduate from high school and become productive members of our community.

They are looking for sponsors as well as parties interested in joining them as they sleep out for our homeless high school students. For more information or to sponsor them, visit sparrowsnestnwmt.org, call 406-309-5196 or email admin@sparrowsnestnwmt.org.
Jim Van Meter arrived in Missoula around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, flying in from Denver on the last day of the Thanksgiving weekend.

Yeah, he said, standing in the chill outside Missoula International Airport. It was crazy.

But he wasnt talking about delayed flights, snowstorms or horrendous security lines.

Rather, he had spent the last week covering hundreds of miles across Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado visiting family before coming up to Missoula to meet some friends, before flying home to Dallas.

He got some snow in Oklahoma on his way to Denver to catch his flight, Van Meter said, but once at the airport all went smoothly.

It wasnt delayed, it was right on time, we caught a good tailwind and got here early, he said.

Van Meter wasnt the only passenger who experienced less-than-hectic Thanksgiving travel. In fact almost every one of the flights into Missoula International Airport Sunday was on time or early, with three in a row from Denver, Portland and Salt Lake City all landing about a half hour before their estimated arrival.

Brian Ellestad is the airports deputy director and he said Thanksgiving usually comes in third place or lower for busiest travel times in the year, at least for Missoula.

Summer is our busiest time, he said, and we do see more people on Christmas.

Rather than an increase in flights or passengers, Ellestad said Thanksgiving just brings in a different group of flyers: locals leaving town, which requires more long-term parking over the weekend.

Sherri Nienhuis and her mother Maxine Scobby were just those people: from Philipsburg, they flew to Durango, Colorado with Nienhuis husband to visit their son.

With enough time for a quick stop at Costco on their way home, Nienhuis said they were surprised at how slow the airports were, especially since it was her first time flying over Thanksgiving.

You hear those horror stories, but it wasnt too bad, she said. Maybe everyone was tired from all that turkey.

Ellestad said more seats had been offered in and out of Missoula last weekend than in previous years, but since the airlines keep specific data on how many of those seats were filled, he wasn't sure if that meant more people were coming through the airport.

Last year they probably had a very good holiday season, he said, so they added more.

***

The Transportation Security Administration anticipated screening about 2.5 million passengers across the country Sunday, about 500,000 more than an average weekday, spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said.

Air travelers moved through security checkpoints at airports across the nation "quite smoothly, Farbstein said, noting that the agency brought in additional officers on overtime to handle the influx of passengers.

According to AAA estimates, about 48.7 million people traveled for Thanksgiving last weekend, by all modes of transportation.

Even driving wasnt much busier than usual, at least from the Montana Highway Patrols perspective.

A look through reported incidents and crashes from the last five days showed anywhere from 19 incidents on Saturday to 30 incidents the day after Thanksgiving, though the Friday before, Nov. 18, had about 30 as well.

On Sunday afternoon, Federal Aviation Administration data showed most U.S. airports with delays of 15 minutes or less.

That sounded right to Kevin Bell, who took his kids, Elias and Ila, to Portland to see their grandparents. Their direct flight left Tuesday and returned Sunday.

It was weirdly quiet out there, Bell said. It was bizarre.

It was busier Tuesday than it was today, Ila jumped in, remembering heavy traffic in Portland.

Bell laughed.

It was almost too easy for Thanksgiving.
Holding open Justice Antonin Scalia's vacancy on the Supreme Court was a stated goal of Senate Republicans throughout the protracted, divisive federal elections. But it wasn't only the high court that senators neglected. There are now 94 unfilled openings on federal circuit and district courts  a vacancy rate that is impeding the delivery of justice.

Senators' lengthy absence during the election season  which followed a prolonged summer recess and a truncated September session  means that no judge has been confirmed since July 6. The election results likely will prompt yet more judges to retire or assume senior status (in which they manage reduced caseloads), which means this number could easily swell to 110 openings. Fully 13 percent of seats on the federal bench could be vacant by Inauguration Day.

With just a modicum of cooperation, Republican and Democratic senators could restore some of the judicial resources courts desperately need. There are, most notably, 20 well-qualified, mainstream district court nominees whom the Judiciary Committee approved by voice vote without dissent. A majority of them were recommended for the bench by their Republican home-state senators. They should get a final confirmation vote during the lame-duck session that began last week.

A failure to consider these nominees during the lame-duck session means the whole process will have to start over  a waste of effort exactly when the new Trump administration needs to fill a Supreme Court vacancy and create a new government. Vacancies will continue to pile up before the administration can focus on filling them; many will still be empty in 2018.

Throughout the first six years of the Obama administration, with a dearth of cooperation in the Senate, the number of judicial vacancies hovered around 90  the highest number of vacancies ever allowed to remain unfilled for so long. After Republicans captured the Senate majority two years ago, the GOP leadership pledged that it would restore "regular order" to the upper chamber. Instead, despite many promises, there were few expeditious candidate recommendations or swiftly planned nominee hearings and committee votes. The major bottleneck was the Senate floor, because GOP leaders rarely scheduled final debates and votes.

So in 2015, the Senate confirmed just one circuit and 10 district judges; in 2016, it approved only one circuit and eight district jurists before departing to campaign in late September. During the entire 114th Congress, the Senate averaged fewer than one confirmation per month.

A clear example of the difficulties such obstruction creates is the Idaho District Court, where caseloads are now 20 percent higher than the national average. The court has one active judge and an 82-year-old second judge, who assumed senior status in July 2015. The nominee to fill this post has languished 11 months.

Stalled confirmations obviously undermine the swift, economical and fair handling of cases, which erodes public respect for the confirmation system and the coequal branches of government. Drawing out the appointment process also forces talented, mainstream nominees to put their robust careers on hold  a situation that dissuades many strong candidates from contemplating the bench.

Modern Senates and presidents conventionally have accorded competent, moderate nominees a final vote. A compelling example: the Senate confirmation of Stephen Breyer to the 1st Circuit after Ronald Reagan had defeated Jimmy Carter in 1980. Republicans at least should permit confirmation votes on the 20 highly qualified, moderate district nominees who have waited months.

The courts desperately need these openings filled, and most of the nominees are capable and uncontroversial. Moreover, by the time President Trump has his administration running and confirms a replacement for Scalia, there could be 135 vacancies. This could even precipitate third-branch dysfunction at a crucial time in the nascent Trump administration. All that can easily be avoided by confirming many judges now in the lame-duck session. Both parties should work together in these final weeks of 2016 to cut down this backlog of vacancies for the good of the courts, the Senate and the country.

Carl Tobias is a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law. He wrote this for the Los Angeles Times.
Just before Thanksgiving, Jonathan Motl, Montanas commissioner of political practices, issued a ruling that found the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks violated state ethics laws by interfering in the ballot initiative to ban trapping on public lands. While the agency says it will contest the ruling, it does so at its peril. Political campaigns are no place for state agency interference and the potential for repercussions looms large.

In this case, Commissioner Motl found that Fish, Wildlife and Parks had allowed the Montana Trappers Association to use the agencys trailer with displays of furbearing animals three times in 2014 while opposing a proposed ballot initiative to ban trapping on public lands. Ultimately, whether due in part to the illegal use of state resources or not, that initiative failed to secure enough signatures to get on the ballot.

The state agency claims it didnt violate state ethics laws because none of its employees attended the events. That contention was blown away by the hearing officer and staff attorney for the Office of Political Practices, who said it would lead to the absurd result of basically allowing state employees to loan out state equipment to private individuals who could then use it for political purposes as long as the employees were not present.

The law itself seems abundantly clear that a public officer or employee may not use public time, facilities, equipment, supplies, personnel, or funds to solicit support for or opposition to any political committee, the nomination or election of any person to public office, or the passage of a ballot issue.

The state-owned trailer full of expensive displays of stuffed furbearers was labelled with a very large logo clearly identifying it as Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks State Furbearer Program while the Trappers Association posted a large banner nearby urging visitors to the trailer to Vote NO on the ballot initiative.

Trap Free Montana Public Lands, the organization backing the initiative, then filed an ethics complaint with the commissioner of political practices that ultimately resulted in last weeks finding that Fish, Wildlife and Parks did indeed violate state ethics law and levied a $1,500 fine against the agency.

Prior to last weeks ruling, however, Fish, Wildlife and Parks had changed its policy to require any private entity using state equipment to sign an agreement to not use it for campaign purposes after receiving complaints of the use of the state-owned equipment by the Trappers Association. The Trappers Association refused to sign the agreement and has not used FWPs trailer since.

Proponents of the trapping ban say the relationship between the trappers and the agency is deep and pervasive, adding, to allow one small user group to influence them to this extent, its not necessarily in the best interest of the whole public. Hard to argue with that, since the percentage of trappers compared to the rest of Montanas population is infinitesimally small. Yet, reflecting the arrogance for which Fish, Wildlife and Parks has a long reputation since it receives little or no general fund money in its $75 million budget, the agency says it will continue to be partners with that group and improve our relationship.

Sometimes, and especially in the case of government agencies, it seems like its impossible for them to admit to wrongdoing. That would appear to be the case here and intransigence by the agency in the face of the law carries with it the potential for profound consequences.

It is best to remember that government agencies do not run themselves  they are there to serve the people who pay their salaries. Moreover, they do not write laws. Executive agencies must follow the laws passed by the legislature, the only branch of government granted law-making authority by the Constitution. The legislature also appropriates funding for the agencies and its easy to see that if state agencies get involved in political activity, they may find funding cuts and significant statutory blowback from legislators displeased with actions the agency took on the political issue.

In that regard, this issue lands not in the lap of a politically appointed agency director, but right back on the governors desk. It is imperative that Governor Bullock make it perfectly clear to all his agencies, not just Fish, Wildlife and Parks, that no state resources will ever be used for political purposes again. To do less is to both abdicate his leadership position and risk serious damage to Montanas democratic processes.
"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."  Martin Luther King Jr.

"If I am not for me, who is for me; and if I am (only) for myself, what am I. And if not now, when?"  Hillel

Late in the day on Saturday, Nov. 19, in Washington, D.C., the cleanup hitter for Americas neo-Nazi movement, Whitefish resident Richard Spencer, took the stage at the most highly publicized gathering of white supremacists in years.

Emboldened by Donald Trumps violent rhetoric and his appointment of the sexist, racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic Steve Bannon as White House chief strategist, Spencer railed against the press and Jews. Nazi salutes and chants of Heil Trump! reverberated through the room.

Lets pause for a moment and reflect. It is not normal for violent hate-mongers to be paid attention and legitimized by the national media, or for presidents to welcome these people into their political folds. In fact, its downright horrifying.

In the span of an election cycle, simple decency has been tossed out and the norms for political discourse have been re-written. Our president-elect was endorsed by the KKK and has promoted violence toward peaceful protesters. His name was turned into a grotesque verb, proudly displayed on T-shirts and spray-painted onto buildings to instill fear and terror.

Every time Trump walks back a statement or disavows an egregious endorsement, leaders and commentators of all persuasions rush to call for patience. Wait and see, they say. But if we know one thing about Trump, its that he will say anything to boost his ego and appease his audience.

Instead of hanging on every word, lets review his first decisions as president-elect. Trump nominated a chief strategist who thinks women are less intelligent than men (Bannon), a national security adviser who called Islam a cancer (Michael Flynn), and an attorney general who pardoned Trumps sexual assaults on women and once called a black lawyer boy (Jeff Sessions). Shall we wait and see some more?

Our democracy is under attack by a threat more sinister than ISIS. Churning out an endless stream of Orwellian doublespeak in Breitbart News and other outlets, Bannon and friends are methodically radicalizing Americans and undermining democracy through propaganda masquerading as news. The White House is now their pulpit.

Have you ever wondered how Adolf Hitler rose to power? You are witnessing history repeating itself. What are you going to do about it?

Perhaps you are among the Trump voters who are not racists, misogynists or homophobes. You are now complicit in the actions of our president elect. It is your moral responsibility to demonstrate your convictions and hold his administration accountable. This is especially true for elected officials like Congressman Ryan Zinke, who not only endorsed Trump but worked as his surrogate. Silence is incriminating.

Less than a lifetime ago, my Jewish heritage was wiped off the face of a continent. Never again.

How do we get back to the America chosen by a majority of voters in Nov. 8's election, 1.7 million more than voted for Trump at last count?

It starts by refusing to accept todays twisted reality as the new normal. Violence of any kind has no place in our society. Its time to stay together, build a movement and hold the line.

On Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, we will elect a president who believes in an America that embraces inclusivity and morality and who champions working women and men.

There is a daunting amount of work ahead. Keep the fire burning inside of you and get busy.

Your life and country depend on it.

***

Zack Porter is a patriot who lives and works in western Montana.
BILLINGS  When Scott Lindell was rattled awake at 1:30 on the morning of Nov. 17, his first thought was that the wind was blowing really hard.

At the time he was sleeping in his pop-up camper at a Colorado campground while on a deer hunting trip.

I didnt realize how light those campers were, said Lindell, a 63-year-old Billings resident. I was being shook around.

After rousting himself from sleep and stepping outside, instead of encountering gale-force winds Lindell found a large bull moose doing battle with his sleeping chambers as another bull watched. He later discovered antler holes poking through the campers fabric right around the pillow where his head had been resting as well as a busted taillight on his pickup.

Maybe I was snoring or the odor wasnt right, Lindell said.

The bull didnt stop trying to dislodge the camper from Lindells pickup until he yelled at his nephew, Ryan Cienfuegos, who turned on his lights. Between the two yelling men and the lights, the bull moose finally wandered away.

I think they were after me, Lindell joked. Ive never had anything like that happen to me.

Lindell grew up in Colorado. He had returned to hunt mule deer with family and friends during the states fourth season in the Red Feather Lake area, west of Fort Collins along the Poudre River. He reported the bull attack to the states division of wildlife, but Lindell said they had never heard of any similar incidents.

Nobody would believe my story, he said.

Bull moose are known to be aggressive during the fall mating season, typically in the months of September and October. Female moose, called cows, are well-known for attacking hikers, especially if the momma moose is protective of a calf. But a bull moose tangling with a truck camper in November?
Mayor John Engen returned to work Monday, sending an open letter to Missoulians explaining he had been in treatment for alcohol addiction.

On the evening of October 24, I checked into a 28-day, inpatient treatment program for alcoholism, the letter begins. Im telling you this because you deserve to know that your mayor is an alcoholic in recovery. And Im telling you because my story might help someone else get her or his life back.

He confirmed in Mondays letter he would be seeking re-election next year, saying only a serious, sober me can do that. And you deserve the serious, sober me youve elected in the past.

Engen won re-election to his third term in 2013, winning more than 10,600 votes. The next candidate got just a little over 2,600 votes.

The only other candidate who has filed to start fundraising for a potential run in 2017 is Ward 2 city council representative Harlan Wells, who submitted paperwork in March.

The office of the Commissioner of Political Practices said Monday it didnt have more information on whether anyone else in Missoula has filed forms to fundraise for the election.

Filing for an official run in the mayoral election opens April 20, 2017, according to Missoula County Elections administrator Rebecca Connors.

***

Jim Lopach, a retired political science professor from UM, said despite Engens health issues, which include bariatric surgery in October 2015, Missoula is in a good spot economically and the mayor remains a very popular figure.

And with just one possible opponent so far, Lopach thought it would take a different angle to win against Engen, an ideological opponent rather than one who relied on calling out his medical issues.

In and of itself I dont think alcoholism would be a problem politically, he said. I think he would be hard to defeat even with the two health problems.

Thats unless someone comes forward with proof that Engens addiction seriously affected his work at any point, Lopach said.

But in general, he thought it was a good sign that Engen, with his surgery and treatment both, released statements himself to the public.

Its important for him  its important for his political future  that he appears to have acted quickly and forthrightly, Lopach said.

It wasn't until over a week after Engen left for treatment that his spokeswoman Ginny Merriam confirmed, in response to a reporter's question, that Engen was out of the office for "several weeks" for undisclosed medical reasons. She defended his right to privacy and said it didn't require any sort of public notice.

Engen similarly took an at-first-unexplained leave of absence for the bariatric surgery, an operation he also detailed in an open letter that was released to the public the day after his surgery.

In Monday's note, Engen thanked his friends for loving him enough to intervene in his addiction, giving him another chance at a good life.

Merriam said Engen wont be giving interviews regarding his treatment, saying the letter can speak for itself.

He has virtually no privacy left after sending out this letter, she said, confirming that Monday was his first day back at work.

***

Engen took his seat at the weekly city council meeting Monday night after Ward 6 representative and city council chair Marilyn Marler filled in as acting mayor for a little over four weeks.

At the meeting Engen kept his comments brief regarding his absence, expressing gratitude to his friends and coworkers for their kindness.

Thank you to folks around this table and around town who have been incredibly supportive and helpful and I believe in some cases have saved my life, he said.

In-patient medical treatment for chemical dependency and alcoholism is covered in the citys insurance policy, which is self-funded and administered through Allegiance Benefit Plan Management.

City employees pay $22.40 a month for insurance premiums, according to the citys website. The city itself pays $790.01 a month.

Engens letter continued, I left treatment a more compassionate man, an incredibly grateful man, a humble man. Ive learned that I cant drink safely.
STEVENSVILLE  Gary Leese remembers it as the little yellow schoolhouse.

It was just this little one-roomed building that was down there by the where the Hunting Shack is now, Leese said. Im sure that not too many people remember it anymore, but there was some history made there and some culture.

A Stevensville High School senior and Lone Rock Elementary alumna is hoping to preserve some of that history for those who follow.

Catrina Herberle has joined forces with Leese and Lone Rock School Trustee Penny Bertram to save the little yellow schoolhouses bell and create new memories for students at her former elementary school.

But first theres a little bit of history that needs to be told.

Leese believes the one-room schoolhouse was built sometime in the 1940s or maybe earlier to serve schoolchildren in what was then District 17.

Hes not quite sure just how long it lasted as a school building.

By the time Leese came to know it well, it had gone through quite a transformation and not for the better.

Ray and Doris Bell owned the property in the 1960s when Leese came with the idea that it would make an ideal place for his 4-H group to meet.

Doris wasnt so sure.

She told him they had been using it to store grain and there hadnt been any maintenance done on it for decades.

She said, You dont want to use that. Its a mess, Leese said.

But Leese wasnt afraid of a little bit of hard work. He thought his 4-H group would benefit from it too. So they convinced Doris that it was a good idea and then rolled up their sleeves to make it presentable.

He remembers that Thanksgiving in 1966 or maybe 67 when they had their first meeting there, and Doris showed up with the curtains she had made for the windows.

For a time, things went well and it became a meeting place for all sorts of wholesome events.

But then the trouble began.

Some people came by and took down the bell without asking. When they stopped by to ask Doris if they could buy it, she told them in no uncertain terms that no, it wasnt for sale and they needed to get it out of the back of their pickup right that minute.

And then someone broke in and stole the woodstove.

That was the breaking point for Doris. She called Leese at the Three Mile Store and told him that she had ordered the building burned at 2 p.m.

I ran down there as fast as I could, Leese said. We got everything out that we could. I still have two doors  one from the coat room and the other from the back porch. By 2:30, it was in flames. I was devastated.

The schools bell disappeared shortly after that.

I think she may have had it put in her potato cellar out behind her house, Leese said. It probably sat there until she died and then it was sold.

He never gave that bell another thought until a few months ago when someone called to say they believed that they had found the Lone Rock school bell at C&C Salvage and Re-purpose at Woodside.

Well, I knew that couldnt be, Leese said. To the best of my knowledge, Lone Rock never had a bell. I figured it must have been the Lower Three Mile Schools bell.

About that time, he also learned that Heberle was looking for a worthwhile senior project.

And so he suggested that creating a new home for this historic bell at Lone Rock School might be worthwhile endeavor.

She thought that giving the century-old, 24-inch bell a new life would be the perfect project for her.

The bell will proudly serve as a symbol of the commitment and dedication to excellence in education for our children, Heberle wrote. It is hoped that a new tradition of ringing the bell to celebrate kids accomplishments and special events in the community will become established.

Bertram offered to serve as Herberles mentor for the project to raise the estimated $5,000 to buy the bell, build a structure and create an interpretive center on the Lone Rock school grounds.

This century-old, 200-pound bell tone is beautiful, strong and will carry for quite a distance, Bertram said. The sound of the bell will bring back memories of all that came to school at the sound of a school bell ringing and will become a wonderful memory for future students.

It is just wonderful a past student of Lone Rock wants to put her energy and time into ensuring this bell gets a home at Lone Rock School, Bertram said.

Donations are being accepted at Rocky Mountain Bank in Stevensville and at the Lone Rock School. Heberle has also set up a GoFundMe.com page named Historic School Bell Project.

Right now the bell is being stored in a storage unit rented by Leese.

Its going to take some work to get it all cleaned and ready to be hung, Leese said. Sounds like a pretty good winter project to me.
HELENA  Rep. Ryan Zinkes team announced Monday that his wife, Lolita Zinke, will join President-elect Donald Trumps Department of Veterans Affairs landing team.

Members of the landing team will evaluate the VA and identify changes to be made in the first 100 days.

"Nothing is more near to my heart than caring for our troops. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to serve in such a crucial part of this Administration," Lolita Zinke said in a news release.

Congressman Zinke served as a Navy SEAL for 23 years. Their daughter, Jennifer, is a former Navy diver, and their son-in-law is a Navy SEAL.

Lolita Zinke said in the release that many changes need to be made to the Veterans Administration.

"As a military wife and mom, I have personally seen the challenges that our veterans and our men and women in uniform face when dealing with the VA, she said in the release. I am excited to be part of such a pivotal moment for them."

Congressman Zinke said in the release that he was confident his wife will make sure veterans remain a top priority in the Trump administration.

Lolita Zinke is a native of Santa Barbara, California, according to a biography on the Republican National Committee website gop.com. After she graduated from the California Western School of Law, she provided bilingual felony arraignment services for the San Diego Public Defenders Office. She is a self-employed estate property and asset manager.

Rep. Zinke's spokeswoman Heather Swift did not respond to questions about the appointment Monday, but said Lolita Zinke will be available to comment after she starts work on the landing team Tuesday.
UMs Kerr wins Margaret Mead Citizenship Award

The Center for a Public Anthropology named University of Montana adjunct instructor Garry Kerr the winner of the organizations Margaret Mead Global Citizenship Award.

The award honors Mead, one of the 20th centurys great anthropologists, and commends Kerrs effective participation in the Center for a Public Anthropologys Community Action Online Project and other community service. Less than 1 percent of faculty in North America who teach anthropology courses receive this award.

Center director Bob Borofsky said Kerr is to be congratulated on how he takes classroom knowledge and applies it to challenges in the real world. When addressing ethical concerns within anthropology, Kerr provides students with critical thinking and writing skills needed for active citizenship.

For more information on the award, call Kerr at 243-2693 or email garry.kerr@umontana.edu.

***

SpectrUM premieres Water exhibit

The University of Montana spectrUM Discovery Area has launched its 2016-17 statewide science tour with Water, its newest mobile exhibition.

Water, which premiered in Fort Benton Nov. 9-11, features interactive science exhibits and activities that explore the wonders of water and ecosystem science. Highlights of the exhibition include a virtual watershed sandbox, a groundwater model and spectrUMs popular erosion table. The tours first stop reached students from Fort Benton, Geraldine and Highwood and was powered by the Chouteau County PEAK Program.

SpectrUMs statewide tour is scheduled to continue Jan. 31-Feb. 2 in Lolo, Feb. 23-24 in Lakeside, March 15-17 in Stevensville, March 20-24 in Corvallis, March 27-31 in Hamilton, April 20 in Browning, and May 8-12 in Victor.

The spectrUM Discovery Area mobile science program travels statewide with hands-on science exhibits and activities guided by museum educators. According to spectrUM Director Holly Truitt, the goal of spectrUMs mobile outreach is to inspire Montanas next generation about STEM and higher education and to help power a vibrant, homegrown workforce in our state.

Committed to inspiring a culture of learning and discovery for all, UMs spectrUM Discovery Area serves more than 50,000 Montanans annually through in-museum and mobile programs. Since 2006, spectrUM has traveled exhibits and educators to 73 schools and four public libraries in 31 Montana counties, including all seven American Indian reservations. In total, spectrUMs mobile science program has served more than 52,000 people, of whom 30 percent are Native American and more than 75 percent live in rural communities.

Water is powered by the Clark Fork Coalition, the Montana Institute on Ecosystems and the Montana NSF EPSCoR Program. SpectrUMs additional sponsors include the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, NASA, the Jane S. Heman Foundation, the Martin Family Foundation, the Montana Space Grant Consortium, the Simons Foundation, the Bonneville Power Administration, GSK-Science in the Summer, Montana No Kid Hungry and the O.P. and W.E. Edwards Foundation.

For more information or to book a school visit, call spectrUM STEM Education program manager Jessie Herbert at 243-4828, or visit spectrum.umt.edu.

***

Montana Poet Laureate to read from new anthology

Montana poet laureate and University of Montana alumnus Michael Earl Craig is scheduled to read from the recently published Poems Across the Big Sky II anthology at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2, in the Turner Hall Dell Brown Room at UM.

The anthology was published by Flathead Valley Community Colleges Many Voices Press and edited by Lowell Jaeger and Hannah Bissell.

These Montana poems share the news we need to hear at this moment in our history, our shared lives, said Ken Egan, executive director of Humanities Montana. Reading this vivid, engaging, important collection, you will be brought into contact with the physical world time and time again in often surprising ways.

A 1994 UM graduate in English, Craig has published four books of poems, Can You Relax in My House, Yes, Master, Thin Kimono and Talkativeness, as well as the chapbook Jombang Jet. Besides appearing in numerous anthologies, Craigs poetry has been translated into Dutch and Chinese.

The Poetry Society of America named Craig one of 20 New American Poets in 2003, and he was appointed the Montana poet laureate for 2015-17 by Gov. Steve Bullock. He currently works as a farrier and volunteers with creative writing students at Park High School in Livingston.

As a professional farrier, Earl brings a unique set of experiences to his poetry, frequently combining highly intelligent language with the more down-home imagery of his profession and the Montana landscape where he has worked for well over a decade, said Greg Keeler, English professor at Montana State University. The effect is sometimes disturbing, often humorous and always original.

Craig will read with six other alumni: Bissell, Zan Bockes, David Cates, Sally Cobau, Carla Homstad and Karin Schalm. They will share poems and memories of the Creative Writing Program dating back to the days of Richard Hugo and Madeline DeFrees.

For more information call Schalm, UM Creative Writing Program coordinator, at 243-5267, or visit hs.umt.edu/creativewriting.

***

History professor earns top promotion

UM history professor Anya Jabour was appointed the universitys 11th Regents Professor during the Nov. 17 Board of Regents meeting in Missoula.

Regents Professor is the top rank awarded to faculty members in the Montana University System. Jabours new title is Regents Professor of History. A list of others who have received the honor is online at umt.edu/provost/about/RegentsProfs.php.

I am honored to be selected as the University of Montanas 11th Regents Professor, said Jabour. I am grateful to my colleagues and students for supporting my nomination. This recognition is especially meaningful to me because the first Regents Professor, Paul Lauren, has been such an important mentor to me."

The title is bestowed on faculty members who demonstrate unusual excellence in instruction, scholarship and service, as well as distinctive impact through their work. The rank is awarded by the Board of Regents upon the recommendation of the university president.

Jabour, who specializes in U.S. womens history, has been a professor at UM for more than 20 years, having taught a variety of courses in the Department of History; the Womens, Gender and Sexuality Studies program; the Global Leadership Initiative; and the MOLLI program.

In addition to numerous articles and essays, she has written three books, Marriage in the Early Republic, Scarletts Sisters and Topsy-Turvy. She also has edited two collections, Major Problems in the History of American Families and Children and Family Values in the Old South.

She currently is working on a biography of educator and reformer Sophonisba Preston Breckinridge (1866-1948), for which she received a summer stipend from the National Endowment for the Humanities. She also serves as a historical consultant for the PBS Civil War-era miniseries Mercy Street, which returns for its second season in late January 2017.

Jabour advises graduate students in all periods of U.S. history whose interests intersect with her specialties in gender, sexuality, race and reform. Her current and former graduate students work on topics such as marriage and divorce in the Old South, courtship and family life in the Victorian West, prostitution policies in the Progressive Era and African-American womens role in the civil rights movement.

She has received the Helen and Winston Cox Award for Excellence in Teaching (2001), the Paul Lauren Undergraduate Research Faculty Mentor Award (2014) and the George M. Dennison Presidential Award for Distinguished Accomplishment (2014). In 2013, she was named UMs Distinguished Scholar.
WASHINGTON  President-elect Donald J. Trump said on Sunday that he had fallen short in the popular vote in the general election only because millions of people had voted illegally, leveling the baseless claim as part of a daylong storm of Twitter posts voicing anger about a three-state recount push.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Mr. Trump wrote Sunday afternoon.

The series of posts came one day after Hillary Clintons campaign said it would participate in a recount effort being undertaken in Wisconsin, and potentially in similar pushes in Michigan and Pennsylvania, by Jill Stein, who was the Green Party candidate. Mr. Trumps statements revived claims he made during the campaign, as polls suggested he was losing to Mrs. Clinton, about a rigged and corrupt system.

The Twitter outburst also came as Mr. Trump is laboring to fill crucial positions in his cabinet, with his advisers enmeshed in a rift over whom he should select as secretary of state. On Sunday morning, Kellyanne Conway, a top adviser, extended a public campaign to undermine one contender, Mitt Romney  a remarkable display by a member of a president-elects team. In television appearances, she accused Mr. Romney of having gone out of his way to hurt Mr. Trump during the Republican primary contests.
BERLIN  Bar Convent Berlin, a sprawling trade show held in October in a former train station here, heralded every sort of spirit. There was a booth pouring a new German gin. There was a stand mixing daiquiris with rum from Cuba. Nearby was a new German gin. Around the corner, a Campari bar was handing out Negronis. Further down the aisle was a new German gin.

Notice a pattern? Germany, the land of beer, riesling and schnapps, has gone gin mad. In the last decade, the number of small gin distillers has exploded.

An exact figure is hard to pin down, but many here say there are now hundreds of gin makers. And the nation is giving England and Spain a run for their money in its love of the gin and tonic.
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An all-night search and rescue Saturday in Beaverhead County for a missing Billings couple came to a happy ending Sunday.

No one was hurt.

Beaverhead County Sheriffs Department received a missing person call at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday regarding the couple who went hunting. The search took place in the Horse Prairie area west of Clark Canyon Reservoir, said Beaverhead Sheriff Frank Kluesner. The search and rescue area is near the Idaho border.

The woman had not shown up for work in Billings, which activated the search and rescue effort.

About 15 Beaverhead Search and Rescue volunteers and three law enforcement officers began the all-night search. Four-wheelers, four-wheel drive vehicles and an airplane were called in to help aid the investigation.

The sheriffs department were able to locate the couple around 2 p.m. Sunday. The couple was not lost. They just didnt check in, said Kluesner.

Another lost hunting pair, a father and son, were also reported missing at about noon Sunday in the Red Rocks Wildlife Refuge Area west of Yellowstone in Beaverhead County. The Beaverhead Sheriffs Department made contact with that pair within a couple of hours. They were also unharmed and had not checked in with family.
WOLF POINT  On an unseasonably warm day in November, Ken Elliott sat in the living room of the home where he rents a basement apartment looking through photos on his laptop.

He paused on one image of his late wife, Jana, surrounded by three kids outside a grocery store in town.

Those were Janas kids, Elliott said, smiling. Thats just what Jana did. She just did everything she could to let them know she was there and she cared.

Jana Elliott, who was 56 when she died earlier this year, touched the lives of each of the children in the photo, like she did for so many in this small community on the Fort Peck Reservation in northeastern Montana.

In her sixth-grade classroom at Northside School here, every student who walked in the door knew they mattered. She gave kids rides to class and took them out to eat when school ended for the day. This year she and Ken became foster parents, bringing several children into their home before Jana died in a July car crash in Colorado.

Many kids here need extra attention, educators and social workers say. The reservation is poverty-stricken and many struggle with alcohol and drug addictions. The combination has left a foster-care gap.

Jana Elliott wasnt the kind of woman to see such problems and hope they would get better  she took action. Her absence has left a huge hole in this community, one her husband is working hard to find a way to fill.

Any time you saw Mrs. Elliott, she had kids around her, said Kathy Adkins, the principal at Northside School. "She was always glowing inside and out, and her energy impacted everyone around her."

The Elliotts moved from Colorado to the Fort Peck Reservation. Ken Elliott went first, in 2011. He does environmental and reclamation work and was assigned a project to redevelop an old refinery on the eastern edge of town. Jana moved in 2013 after their two children finished college.

The couple had no idea what to expect. They came from a well-off area in Colorado to Roosevelt County, where 28 percent of children live below the federal poverty line.

When Jana and I got here we just decided were going to do everything we can, Ken Elliott, 56, said.

It didnt take long for Jana Elliottt to get started, first substitute-teaching at Northside. She was quickly hired full-time.

Getting teachers in Wolf Point can be challenging. One year Adkins hired two teachers but they couldnt find housing and resigned before they started.

This is northeastern Montana, she said. We dont have a lot to offer people. But students need a mentor, someone who checks in with them at the beginning of the day and the end of the day.

Adkins said Jana Elliott once had a very difficult student with behavior issues. Elliott noticed the girls hair was often disheveled, so she got permission from her parents and took the student to a salon, paying from her own pocket.

That was just a normal thing, Adkins said. A lot of these kids, theyre overlooked by family or need another person in their life to show they care. Jana cared.

Soon Elliott began working with kids outside of the classroom. She and Ken Elliott took groups of kids fishing at Fort Peck and hunting on the plains near town. They made campfires and toasted smores.

One year Jana Elliott organized an Easter egg hunt at a park down by the river. Some kids who went had never seen a bridge there that marks the edge of the reservation.

Everything a parent should do she tried to do. They had never done that stuff, Ken Elliott said. The kids just loved it.

Janice LaCounte, who works at the Child and Family Services office in Wolf Point, was the one who first approached the Elliotts about signing up to be foster parents.

When I asked her, she got this big smile on her face and said Ken and I have been thinking about just that, LaCounte said.

The Elliotts sold what Jana called their forever home outside Denver and bought the biggest house in Wolf Point to have space to care for children. Ken Elliott moved out after Jana's death.

The day after the Elliotts finished their foster family certification training, they had a request to take in a baby. But what made the family special was their desire to work with children past the toddler stage. School-age kids are often the hardest to place.

A lot of families dont want older kids, said Darci Hunsaker, the family resource specialist with Child and Family Services in Wolf Point. They want babies and little ones.

Hunsaker said there are about 25 foster families in the area. That used to be enough, but shes seen a big increase in the number of children who need placements.

When Jana died, we really took at hit, Hunsaker said. We do need more foster parents.

Drugs, especially methamphetamine, have had a devastating effect on families here and around the state. Tribal chairman Floyd Azure earlier this year tied two high-profile cases involving children  a girl who was 13 months old was killed and left in a trash bin and a 4-year-old girl who was abducted  to the use of the drug.

You can criticize, but meth is so bad, alcohol is so bad, and theres no jobs and no hope. Its hard to come out of that with no hope. We dont criticize them because it doesnt do good to criticize them, Ken Elliott said. Were not here to help parents. Were here to help kids.

Statewide the number of children in the care of the state has doubled over the last five years, said Child and Family Services Regional Administrator Eric Barnosky.

In 2011, there were 1,746 children in foster care statewide. By the end of October this year, that number was 3,369. About 13 percent of those, 451 children, are in Child and Family Service's eastern region, which includes Carter, Custer, Daniels, Dawson, Fallon, Garfield, McCone, Phillips, Powder River, Prairie, Richland, Roosevelt, Rosebud, Sheridan, Treasure, Valley, Big Horn and Wibaux counties.

There were 1,103 licensed foster families in Montana. This does not include the number of unlicensed, non-paid kinship placements.

In Lame Deer, Northern Cheyenne tribal leaders said they place children in Miles City and Billings, Barnosky said. The same is happening on the neighboring Crow Reservation.

When children need to be removed from their parents and cant live with other family members, placing them with Native families on their own reservation is the offices top priority. Its also required under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act.

But the increase in children in the system means thats not always possible. Sometimes Child and Family Services staff has to drive children as far as Glendive or Billings for placement, creating a huge strain on kids and parents and staff who facilitate visitations.

CFS is working on an updated plan to increase foster family recreation, Barnosky said. Families drop out of being providers for many reasons, he said, but one of the more common reasons is the need is so great and CFS offices are too understaffed to provide support.

Theres a lot of good Native foster parents and theyre full, Hunsaker said. Having a family like the Elliotts was just one more good local option.

That the Elliotts are white and the kids in their home werent didnt matter, Hunsaker said. Jana and Ken, they just cared for the kids so much, and thats what matters most.

Ken Elliott said he and Jana often had good relationships with the parents of kids in their care. Were not trying to take them away from them. They see we take care of them. If you care for the kids, thats a universal language.

The Elliotts took in eight kids before Jana died. Two girls stayed with them almost all of the six months they were a foster family. We were just barely getting into it, Ken Elliott said.

The kids that came to them were often traumatized. One girl the family got came to them at 2 a.m. She slept until 5 p.m. the next day, ate and then slept until 8 the next morning.

Ken Elliott was realistic about what he could do for these kids.

Were a protective environment until the state can figure out whats going on. Every day they're with us is a day in the win column.

Ken Elliott could no longer be a foster parent after Jana was killed when she was hit by a car in Colorado in July. She had stopped to help someone pick up a bicycle that fell off their car and was struck by a driver who had smoked marijuana earlier in the day. The man was charged with vehicular homicide.

Elliott had stayed an extra week in Colorado to work as a chaplain at a camp.

Its just a tough deal, its just a shame, Ken Elliott said.

But he hasnt let his wifes death stop him from trying to find ways to carry out her good work.

Whats important for Jana is important for me, Elliott said. Shes not here but kids still need help.

He hopes to open a group home on the reservation that could take up to 10 children a night. Hes been talking with stakeholders in the community about possible locations for the facility.

Elliott also has a plan to get more teachers to Wolf Point. He wants to buy houses in town to give teachers who move here a place to live while they work in the local schools.

He even has a possible name for the nonprofit hed like to start  Tikkun olam, a Hebrew phrase meaning roughly repair your world.

We need a lot of repairing here, Elliott said. I want to stay long enough to figure out what I can do, Elliott said. Hopefully Ill be here for a while.
Consider the grizzly bear, while you can. Gone from California since 1924, despite gracing the state flag. Gone from Utah the year before that, when Mormon Boy Scouts stoned to death a bear called Old Ephraim. In Colorado, the last grizzly was thought to have been killed in 1952, though one more was found and killed by a bow hunter in 1979.

Now in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho there is a move to remove  de-list  endangered species protection for grizzly bears in what's called the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. These recovered bears would then be subject to a trophy hunting season should they venture  as they do  outside Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks.

De-listing is a terrible idea, motivated more by politics than science. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking a splashy mission accomplished victory by saving an important endangered species. Western conservatives would like to see grizzlies, and everything else on public lands, controlled by individual states: a bewildering Balkanization of nature.

As to the condition of the bears, after 40 long years of federal protection and intense conservation efforts Yellowstone's grizzlies have little more than doubled, to 700 or so, up from about 320 when the grizzly was declared endangered in the 1970s. (An estimated 1,800 grizzlies survive in the U.S. outside Alaska, scattered in less than 1 percent of their historic range.) However encouraging Yellowstone's slow rebound, these bears remain in jeopardy.

What science there is behind the de-listing effort purposely avoids a full examination of the risks grizzlies still face. In even the wildest parts of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, the bear's richest food sources are vanishing. Pine nuts, the single most important food for female grizzlies with cubs, are disappearing along with the whitebark pine, a victim of fire, drought, bark beetle and the warming climate. Mother bears with cubs are unable to feed on winter-killed bison, which are claimed by larger males.

Another diminishing resource grizzlies require: Wide swaths of secure, wild country, without roads. Better yet, wide swaths of wild country that are connected, so the small, remnant grizzly populations in the contiguous U.S. and Canada can intermingle.

The Fish and Wildlife Service doesnt deny the need so much as ignore it. It justifies de-listing the Yellowstone bears based primarily on the size of the population, even though its estimates are just that  a matter of sample counts and extrapolation (bears dont sit still for a census). Nor is Fish and Wildlife asking how many of the bears are females, or how old they are.

De-listing proponents go so far as to suggest grizzlies in the Greater Yellowstone area have outgrown the ecosystem. The proof, they say, is that bears are showing up where they havent been seen in years. But the real reason for the grizzlys spread may be simpler. With its food and habitat ever-diminishing, it is venturing into unfamiliar places, often closer to humans, where negative interactions get bears killed despite their endangered-species status.

Under these circumstances, trophy hunting should be out of the question; it is the worst of what de-listing would bring. Besides the obvious threat it represents, no one seems to have thought about what to do with the wounded bears that will escape  pioneer journals remind us it takes a lot of flying lead to bring down such a large animal. Bigger bears will be most  not all  hunters' prizes. What of the cubs and sub-adults that will be left behind? Younger populations are more fragile; young bears disperse widely, leading to more negative human-bear interactions.

Big game hunters and others argue that if Yellowstones bear population falls precipitously after de-listing, the federal government can come back in and declare the bears endangered again. But re-listing is a lengthy process, sometimes requiring decades, and it is highly politicized. The Fish and Wildlife Service generally doesnt list a species as endangered unless ordered to do so by a court. In the meantime, grizzly bears would keep dying, and the culture of the surviving bears would be altered further.

Yellowstone's bears aren't the only grizzly population the federal government is willing to put at risk. In the isolated million-acre Yaak Valley of northwestern Montana, there are maybe 20 or so grizzlies left  perhaps only five or six breeding-age females  and yet local Forest Service leadership supports creating and promoting a recreational trail in that territory. This new human highway, the proposed Pacific Northwest Trail, along the Canadian-U.S. border (and a known drug-trafficking interface), would bring thousands of legal users and countless unpermitted wayfarers into the heart of habitat that is supposedly committed to grizzly bear recovery.

The grizzly is the Wests, and the nations, most intriguing, complicated and sentient land mammal. It represents the gold standard of wildness, the intangible and spiritual resource that is the fabric of the American character, as Wallace Stegner famously wrote.

It will be a mistake if the federal government de-lists the grizzly over the outcry of independent scientists and, indeed, even over the doubts of the superintendent of Yellowstone National Park, Dan Wenk. The great bear deserves better. So does the great American wilderness, which like everything else is in swirling, fragmenting readjustment due to the onrush of global warming. Amid such turbulence, the best science should matter more, not less, than ever.
Fielder delays public document disclosure

Sen. Jennifer Fielder, R-Great Falls, is Mormon and works for the American Lands Council. The ultimate goal of this group is to turn our public lands into prime real estate for wealthy individuals (Wilks brothers, for example), corporations in the real estate business (Weyerhaeuser, for example), and organizations looking to acquire hundreds of thousands of acres (LDS, for example).

When the American Lands Council started, it sold snake oil, telling county commissioners that it could get public lands transferred by suing the federal government. That idea was given the death it deserved when 11 of 12 western state attorney generals concurred and released a report this year saying that boat won't float. ALC regrouped and decided what it could not get by lawsuit, it would try to get by law (pilot projects) via some bills now in the House of Representatives.

You can be informed by keeping up with public lands information on my Facebook MTpubliclands page.

In Watchdog Group Seeks Sen. Fielders Emails on Land Transfers, Flathead Beacon, Nov 1, she says an eight-month delay in fulfilling records request is due to lack of time. Fielder seemed intent on delaying disclosure until or close to her upcoming re-election on Nov. 8, suggesting she seeks to deprive the voters of Montana of information that may prove useful in casting their ballots for state senator, according to the organizations letter to Barrett. If true, all of this would be a gross violation of the meaning and intent of Montanas public records law.

 Glenn Ferren, St. Regis

'We won, get over it'

I read the letter, written by a person from Huntley, giving what he considered five options for you poor heartbroken Democrats. This letter was published in the Nov. 13 Billings Gazette. If you cannot accept this election outcome, why should we have accepted the election if it turned out the other way? My suggestion to you is to take your option number one if you are so outraged.

When Obama won, there were plenty of us who were also disheartened, but we did not riot or throw tantrums. There were some who were outspoken, however, and I do remember what the then president-elect said at that time. "We won, get over it," so, my friend, again I suggest you take your first option and "leave the country," or, as Obama said when he won, "We won, get over it."

 Ernest Jennings, Billings
The main reason for the decline is natural gas, particularly in the Midwest, where power plants burn both natural gas and coal. Once used as a spot fuel to generate electricity during peak demand, gas is now used more often because of its affordability.
The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors met in special session at 9:00 A.M. with Howard, Kelly, Sorensen, and Sauer present. Bonebrake was absent. Chairperson Sorensen presiding.

On a motion by Kelly, second by Sauer, the agenda was approved as written. Ayes: All.

The Board met as a Board of Canvassers for the General Election held on Tuesday November 8, 2016. The Board of Canvassers certified the following results to be a true and correct abstract of the votes cast in the election:

FOR PRESIDENT/VICE PRESIDENT - 19,434 total votes were cast: Donald J. Trump/Michael R. Pence received 9,584 votes, Hillary Clinton/Tim Kaine received 8,368 votes, Darrell L. Castle/Scott N. Bradley received 87 votes, Jill Stein/Amaju Baraka received 183 votes, Dan R. Vacek/Mark G. Elworth received 63 votes, Gary Johnson/Bill Weld received 748 votes, Lynn Kahn/Jay Stolba received 42 votes, Gloria La Riva/Dennis J. Banks received 7 votes, Rocky Roque De La Fuente/Michael Steinberg received 3 votes, Evan McMullin/Nathan Johnson received 136 votes and there was a scattering of 213 votes.

FOR UNITED STATES SENATOR - 19,095 total votes were cast: Charles E. Grassley received 11,157 votes, Patty Judge received 6,963 votes, Charles Aldrich received 543 votes, Jim Hennager received 371 votes, Michael Luick-Thrams received 41 votes and there was a scattering of 20 votes.

FOR UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE-DISTRICT TWO - 18,744 total votes were cast: Christopher Peters received 8,780 votes, Dave Loebsack received 9,946 votes and there was a scattering of 18 votes.

FOR STATE SENATOR-DISTRICT 44 - 3,867 total votes were cast: Thomas A. Greene received 2,019 votes, Thomas Courtney received 1,839 votes and there was a scattering of 9 votes.

FOR STATE SENATOR-DISTRICT 46 - 13,646 total votes were cast: Mark S. Lofgren received 7,662 votes, Chris Brase received 5,968 votes and there was a scattering of 16 votes.

FOR STATE

REPRESENTATIVE-DISTRICT 73 - 1,141 total votes were cast: Bobby Kaufmann received 1,120 votes and there was a scattering of 21 votes.

FOR STATE

REPRESENTATIVE-DISTRICT 88 - 3,923 total votes were cast: David Kerr received 2,127 votes, Ryan Drew received 1,788 votes and there was a scattering of 8 votes.

FOR STATE

REPRESENTATIVE-DISTRICT 91 - 13,542 total votes were cast: Gary Carlson received 7,293 votes, Phil Wiese received 6,229 votes and there was a scattering of 20 votes.

FOR COUNTY BOARD OF

SUPERVISORS-DISTRICT 3 - 18,762 total votes were cast: Scott Sauer received 10,361 votes, Nathan Reichert received 8,378 votes and there was a scattering of 23 votes. Scott Sauer was elected.

FOR COUNTY BOARD OF

SUPERVISORS-DISTRICT 4 - 18,633 total votes were cast: Nathan Mather received 9,449 votes, Kas Kelly received 9,155 votes and there was a scattering of 29 votes. Nathan Mather was elected.

FOR COUNTY AUDITOR - 14,324 total votes were cast: Leslie A Soule received 14,144 votes and there was a scattering of 180 votes. Leslie A. Soule was elected.

FOR COUNTY SHERIFF - 18,851 total votes were cast: C. J. Ryan received 11,752 votes, Michael Channon received 7,056 votes and there was a scattering of 43 votes. C. J. Ryan was elected.

FOR MUSCATINE GENERAL HOSPITAL TRUSTEE (SIX YEAR TERM) - 12,108 total votes were cast: Scott Natvig received 11,991 votes and there was a scattering of 117 votes. Scott Natvig was elected.

FOR SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION COMMISSIONER (FOUR YEAR TERM) (ELECT THREE) - 1,278 total votes were cast: Travis Glynn received 27 votes, Scott Eichelberger received 24 votes, Scott Denkman received 24 votes, Stacy Hansen received 23 votes, Jared Deahr received 17 votes, Ryan Deahr received 16 votes and there was a scattering of 1,147 votes. Travis Glynn and Scott Eichelberger were elected. Scott Denkman was not elected because he resides in the same township as another commissioner and the Code allows only one commissioner per township.

FOR AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION COUNCIL MEMBER (FOUR YEAR TERM) (ELECT FOUR) - 29,950 total votes were cast: Robert Chrz received 6,977 votes, Cindy L. Mays received 8,477 votes, Sean Olson received 7,456 votes, Lance Rowell received 6,904 votes and there was a scattering of 136 votes. Robert Chrz, Cindy L. Mays, Sean Olson and Lance Rowell were elected.

FOR AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION COUNCIL MEMBER (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 10,249 total votes were cast: Chris Wulf received 10,163 votes and there was a scattering of 86 votes. Chris Wulf was elected.

FOR BLOOMINGTON TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 896 total votes were cast: John Flake received 887 votes and there was a scattering of 9 votes. John Flake was elected.

FOR BLOOMINGTON TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 886 total votes were cast: Scott Carver received 880 votes and there was a scattering of 6 votes. Scott Carver was elected.

FOR CEDAR TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 103 total votes were cast: Bob Sywassink received 102 votes and there was a scattering of 1 vote. Bob Sywassink was elected.

FOR FRUITLAND TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (ELECT TWO) - 279 total votes were cast: Mark Yerington received 270 votes, Chris Williams received 1 vote, Gary Pickering received 1 vote, David Kennelly received 1 vote, Adam White received 1 vote, Jaime Limoges received 1 vote, Rick Honts received 1 vote, Thomas Harper received 1 vote, Tom Haynes received 1 vote and Cory Rudolph received 1 vote. Mark Yerington was elected and Thomas Harper was elected by drawing to break the tie.

FOR FULTON TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (ELECT TWO) - 292 total votes were cast: Dennis Price received 130 votes, Robert Walker received 156 votes and there was a scattering of 6 votes. Dennis Price and Robert Walker were elected.

FOR FULTON TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 200 total votes were cast: Keith A. Martz received 200 votes. Keith A. Martz was elected.

FOR GOSHEN TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 117 total votes were cast: Alan Feldman received 117 votes. Alan Feldman was elected.

FOR LAKE TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (ELECT TWO) - 320 total votes were cast: Donald Eichelberger received 183 votes, Clarence Finchum received 133 votes, and there was a scattering of 4 votes. Donald Eichelberger and Clarence Finchum were elected.

FOR MONTPELIER TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 336 total votes were cast: Maurice Strong received 323 votes and there was a scattering of 13 votes. Maurice Strong was elected.

FOR MONTPELIER TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 309 total votes were cast: Mark Fenner received 302 votes and there was a scattering of 7 votes. Mark Fenner was elected.

FOR MOSCOW TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 268 total votes were cast: Robert Beatty received 265 votes and there was a scattering of 3 votes. Robert Beatty was elected.

FOR ORONO TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 50 total votes were cast: Jerry Murphy received 47 votes and there was a scattering of 3 votes. Jerry Murphy was elected.

FOR PIKE TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 188 total votes were cast: Steven Salemink received 188 votes. Steven Salemink was elected.

FOR PIKE TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 171 total votes were cast: Alan Holcomb received 171 votes. Alan Holcomb was elected.

FOR SEVENTY-SIX TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 33 total votes were cast: Scott Eichelberger received 18 votes, Robert W. Butler received 2 votes, Gretchen Cline received 2 votes and there was a scattering of 11 votes. Scott Eichelberger was elected.

FOR SEVENTY-SIX TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 158 total votes were cast: Jane O'Toole received 155 votes and there was a scattering of 3 votes. Jane O'Toole was elected.

FOR SWEETLAND TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (ELECT TWO) - 1,026 total votes were cast: Kenneth Connor received 523 votes, Richard Leach received 497 votes, and there was a scattering of 6 votes. Kenneth Connor and Richard Leach were elected.

FOR SWEETLAND TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 625 total votes were cast: William Halling received 621 votes and there was a scattering of 4 votes. William Halling was elected.

FOR WAPSINONOC TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE - 333 total votes were cast: Brent P. Daufeldt received 330 votes and there was a scattering of 3 votes. Brent P. Daufeldt was elected.

FOR WAPSINONOC TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 15 total votes were cast: Ken Donnelly received 2 votes, Bill Frauenholtz received 2 votes, Josh Levai-Baird received 1 vote, Kory Kaalberg received 1 vote, Lawrence McNeal received 1 vote, Robert Shortt received 1 vote, Susan Deahr received 1 vote, Brad Daufeldt received 1 vote, Tim Daufeldt received 1 vote, Dean Heick received 1 vote, Thomas A. Brown received 1 vote and there was a scattering of 2 votes. Ken Donnelly was elected by drawing to break the tie.

FOR WILTON TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (ELECT TWO) - 162 total votes were cast: Trent Barrett received 157 votes, Ernie Peters received 1 vote, Fred Grunder received 1 vote, Brad Longlett received 1 vote, Robert Barrett received 1 vote and William Mach received 1 vote. Trent Barrett was elected and Ernie Peters was elected by drawing to break the tie.

FOR WILTON TOWNSHIP TRUSTEE (UNEXPIRED TERM ENDING DECEMBER 31, 2018) - 161 total votes were cast: Daniel A. Oien received 158 votes and there was a scattering of 3 votes. Daniel A. Oien was elected.

FOR THE RETENTION OF JUDGES (SUPREME COURT):

Brent R. Appel received 8,488 affirmative votes and 3,986 negative votes.

Mark S. Cady received 8,298 affirmative votes and 3,957 negative votes.

Daryl L. Hecht received 8,258 affirmative votes and 3,976 negative votes.

FOR THE RETENTION OF JUDGES (COURT OF APPEALS):

David R. Danilson received 8,348 affirmative votes and 3,508 negative votes.

Richard H. Doyle received 8,577 affirmative votes and 3,474 negative votes.

Amanda Potterfield received 8,485 affirmative votes and 3,464 negative votes.

Gayle Vogel received 8,499 affirmative votes and 3,440 negative votes.

FOR THE RETENTION OF JUDGES (SEVENTH DISTRICT COURT):

Paul L. Macek received 8,727 affirmative votes and 3,303 negative votes.

Mark J. Smith received 8,704 affirmative votes and 3,228 negative votes.

Stuart Palmer Werling received 8,541 affirmative votes and 3,475 negative votes.

FOR THE RETENTION OF JUDGES (SEVENTH DISTRICT ASSOCIATE COURT):

Phillip J. Tabor received 8,902 affirmative votes and 3,228 negative votes.

Discussion was held with Administrative Services Director Nancy Schreiber regarding two terms on the Board of Health which expire December 31, 2016. The Board directed Schreiber to advertise the openings.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:35 A.M.

ATTEST:

Leslie A. Soule, County Auditor Jeff Sorensen, Chairperson

Board of Supervisors
MUSCATINE, Iowa  Muscatine High School Class of 1951 will meet for lunch at 11:15 a.m., Thursday, Dec. 1, at the Pizza Ranch, 106 Ford Ave. All class members, spouses, and friends are welcome.
Dwayne Orville Andreas, the pocket-sized hurricane that built a sleepy soybean processor, Archer Daniels Midland Co., into a global giant, died Wednesday, Nov. 16, in a Decatur, IL hospital. He was 98.

Andreass career was as long and profitable as it was remarkable and jaded. Just last week someone again asked me if it was true that the ADM corporate jet was the only unescorted American aircraft permitted in Soviet airspace during the Cold War because it carried Andreas and his grocery sack of needed American farm goods.

True or not, the story captures the legend of the worlds soybean king. On his way to the throne, however, the federal government twice caught ADM breaking the law.

The first time, in 1978, according to the New York Times, was for fixing prices on grain sold to the Food for Peace Program. The second, in 1996, led to ADM pleading guilty to criminal charges of price fixing.

Both scandals stopped short of charging Andreas directly but the second delivered his son, Michael, to federal prison while dear old dad accepted an offer of immunity.

Thats the ADM-Andreas history most farmers know: ADM copping to criminal price-fixing charges based on secret recordings made by a company insider, later identified as Mark Whitacre, an ADM division vice president. Heres some history many may not know.

Not long after the June 1995 Federal Bureau of Investigation raid on ADMs headquarters, the Department of Justice began to see their star witness, Whitacre, dim.

The problem was that Whitacre, now an accused embezzler, had been talkingto everyone. He talked to Scott Kilman of the Wall Street Journal, Nancy Millman of the Chicago Tribune, Sharon Walsh of the Washington Post, Ron Henkoff of Fortune magazine, John Stebbins of Bloomberg News, Kurt Eichenwald of the New York Times, and, beginning in July 1996, me.

He wasnt the only one talking. In mid-1996, my fax machine began spitting out unedited FBI interview notes, yet-to-be published news stories, and something called The Watch Letter, a multi-page effort filled with insider information, gossip, and tips on the ADM case.

The Letter was written by David and Carol Hoech, owners of Global Consultants, a small Florida-based firm with deep ties to international ag markets. David, too, talked endlessly, mostly off-the-record, to journalists about ADM and Dwayne Andreas. He openly despised both.

Still, journalists talked to Hoech because he seemed to have friends, sources, and tipsters everywhere. If you wanted the number of Dwayne Andreass bedside telephone, Hoech had it. Raw transcripts of FBI interviews conducted yesterday? Hoech was your guy. Need to talk to Whitacre? Call Hoech and Mark would be on the line a minute later.

Who was this rainmaker?

After two decades of talking to Hoech, its still hard to say. He did know Whitacre, ADM, and global ag products like no one else. ADM, he preached, embodied everything wrong with American businessrigged prices, dishonest dealings, phony front groups, and contempt for customers.

Dealing with Hoech, however, was not easy. He was loud, pushy, and fearless. Shortly after we met I began to receive anonymous, threatening telephone calls from who knew.

Relax, man, Hoech would advise, thats just ADM.

A second later hed ask, Hey, man, you own a gun? He wasnt joking.

Then, on Labor Day 1996, no matter who I dialed on any of my three office lines, I always got the same person at the same place: ADM Security, this is Betty. Hoechs phones had the same problem.

Was I scared? Top to bottom. I used a neighbors telephone to call the FBI, the same FBI that had raided ADM a year earlier. No one ever called back.

Hoech, however, did. And he kept callingfor 20 years. Often Id pick up the phone to hear, Hey, brother, you OK?

David Hoech died Aug. 8, 2015, not quite two months after my family and I saw him in his comfortable home west of St. Louis. We had a lengthy, laugh-filled visit before his ailment, pulmonary disease, drained him of all color and energy. It was time to say that good-bye.

Dont worry about me, Hoech growled in my ear as he leaned heavily on me to steady himself; Im gonna outlive that little (expletive) in Decatur.

It was one of the rare times he got it wrong.

 2016 ag comm

The Farm and Food File is published weekly through the U.S. and Canada. Source material and contact information are posted at www.farmandfoodfile.com.
Les emplois a Rennes sont abondants et varies. Il y a quelque chose pour tout le monde. Que vous soyez a la recherche dun emploi []
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 []
They would ask me what actors I saw in the roles. I would tell them, and theyd say Oh thats interesting. And that would be the end of it. --Elmore Leonard, in 2000, on the extent of his input for Hollywood's adaptation of his novels
Many South African online retailers are offering big discounts on technology products as part of their Cyber Monday sales.

Cyber Monday is the first Monday after the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States and is known as a day when people are encouraged to shop online.

South Africa has joined the Cyber Monday trend, with many retailers running special promotions on their websites.

Below are several of the best Cyber Monday deals from prominent online retailers in the country.

OneDayOnly  Big savings on a wide range of gadgets.

Loot  Up to 80% off products on 28 November (see all deals here).

Raru  Deals available until 17:00.

Game  Big discounts and TVs and other tech products.

Incredible Connection  Discounts on computing products.

Vodacom  Discounted prices and a Free R10,000 online educational voucher with every deal purchase.

MTN  Upgrade to specified MTN tariff plans or sign up for a postpaid contract and receive a 50GB data bundle each month and 10,000 MTN-to-MTN minutes per month.

Esquire  Discounts on computing and tech products (prices Ex VAT).

Makro  Online sale until midnight.

Takealot  Blue Dot Sale.

CNA  Discounts on gaming and tech products.

Audico  10% off for today only.

Dion Wired  Discounts on a range of tech products.

iStore  Online-only deals on Apple products.

Sportsmans Warehouse  Discounts on tech items.
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For some reason I cant quite put my finger on, all I have wanted to do recently is go to the movies, drink and fantasize about living in another country.

Its so strange. This odd mood hit me in early November and I just cant seem to shake it. It feels like it could be with me for years to come.

The day it began coincided with the start of the Napa Valley Film Festival, so I gave into this state of mind fully for a week, taking in three or four films a day interspersed with wine tastings and happy hours to indulge both my movie-going and drinking urges.

But I had to put the foreign fantasizing on hold for most of the festival. The low-budget indie productions I favored were mostly shot in domestic locations that offered few opportunities to re-imagine my life beyond our borders.

Some of the documentaries probably included foreign settings, but I dont know for sure, as I largely steered clear of them. With the miasma settling around me, I found myself preferring make-believe to true life. I did make a couple exceptions, though, for ones made by friends or their relatives.

One of those, the closing film of the festival, turned out to perfectly suit my strange mood. Even if it hadnt been ably directed by a friends husband, its subject would have intrigued me. Called Pisco Punch: A Cocktail Comeback Story, it explained the near demise and recent resurgence of pisco, the national brandy of Peru.

I learned about the eight local grape varieties (most of which were new to me) that can be used to make the wine that is then distilled into this fascinating crystal-clear spirit. Because it is distilled only once (rather than multiple times, as with vodka) and not aged in wood (as with cognac and other brandies), the grape varietals and their terroir shine through, allowing for a lot of variation between producers.

I also found out that pisco has a strong Bay Area connection. It was a heavy favorite of miners during the Gold Rush. Pisco Punch, a delicious and surprising cocktail with many variations  as I discovered by trying a half-dozen of them (purely for research purposes, of course) at the film festival after-party  was even invented in San Francisco.

The film filled me in on Perus recent history and the economic hardships and problems it experienced as the result of sweeping agrarian reform under a military government in the late 1960s. Among other things, the reforms broke up large, thriving vineyards into failing collectives that eventually devolved into numerous tiny, struggling subsistence farms  and, in the process, disrupted pisco production as thoroughly as Prohibition in the U.S. destroyed wine.

I visited Peru on business during the 1980s, at the depths of the depression brought on by those reforms. At the time, I described Lima as what you would get if you picked up Los Angeles, shook out all the money and swept it away, then dropped the city back down  leaving nothing but grinding poverty, crime and endless urban sprawl. I couldnt wait to leave and never wanted to return.

But what a difference a few decades makes. It almost gives me hope.

With stability and a healthier economy, the country has made a tremendous comeback in the past 10 or 15 years. Pisco is also having a resurgence, championed by a young generation of dedicated artisanal producers. And truly exciting Peruvian cuisine has emerged, on a level with some of the finest cooking in the world.

The film whetted my appetite for Peru and helped me see it with fresh eyes, satisfying the part of me that is dreaming of getting far, far away from here.

Fortunately, travel to Peru will be more than just a fantasy for me in 2017. My travel companions from Cuba and I have already planned an expedition. Were heading to Peru for a culinary adventure next summer.

I confess I wasnt all that excited about the destination when we settled on it months ago, but thanks to the film, now I am. I cant wait for August.

Now I just have to figure out how to survive this strange mood for the next nine months. Please help.

I dont think sitting around reading the Peru guidebook will be enough. And after six days at the film festival, I am done with cinema for awhile. Which pretty much leaves drinking.

Anyone want to meet me for a cocktail? I hear that Morimoto makes a mean Pisco Sour.

Pisco Sour

Im hoping to move on from escapist drinking to escapist cooking sometime soon, perhaps after the Peruvian cookbook I ordered arrives. But in the meantime, in my current mood, my kitchen activities have been limited to the cocktails Im drinking to match my get me out of this crazy country travel fantasies.

Im not giving a recipe for Pisco Punch today, because I havent had time to figure out my favorite combo yet among the various options. Instead, Im offering instructions for making the Peruvian national drink, the Pisco Sour, whose recipe is more standardized.

For true authenticity, use key limes (which are often available at Mexican markets) and Peruvian Amargo bitters if you can find them (though Angostura or other bitters are fine). And dont skip the egg white, which provides the signature frothy topping. Raw eggs dont scare me in this context, but if you are leery of them, look for pasteurized ones at the market.

3 ounces Peruvian pisco

1 ounce fresh-squeezed key lime juice

3/4 ounce simple syrup*

1 fresh egg white

1 dash Amargo or Angostura bitters

* To make simple syrup, mix together 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water and heat in the microwave or on the stove until the sugar dissolves, then cool before using. Store the extra in the refrigerator (or dilute it by half or more and use it in your hummingbird feeder).

Combine the pisco, lime juice, simple syrup and egg white in a cocktail shaker (without ice). Shake vigorously until the egg white is foamy (about 10 seconds. Add ice and shake very hard for another 10 seconds, until well chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and shake a dash of bitters on top of the foam.

Betty Teller is renewing her passport this month. Tell her how you are coping at amuse-bouche@sbcglobal.net.
Hang onto your candy canes. The Santa Train is on the roll again and this year the new owners of the Wine Train decided to kick it up a notch with more rides and an upgraded experience.

Since Nov. 19, Santa Train riders can take off on an all-new 90 minute journey to Yountville and back, featuring a professionally choreographed and produced show, interactive music, new costumes and activities and a stop at a newly designed North Pole station in Yountville.

This show is going to blow people away, said Scott Goldie, owner of Brooks Street, a California-based real estate development and investment company. The company co-owns the train along with Noble House Hotels & Resorts, Ltd.

It will be entertaining from the moment you get to the station to the time you get back, Goldie said.

In past years, the trains staff had pitched in to fill Santa Train roles, entertaining the guests as they traversed up and down the valley. It had offered about 16 such Santa Trains with about 5,000 riders coming aboard each season.

Goldie said he knew the Wine Train could do better.

Other such Santa trains, such as the Polar Express Train Ride in Sacramento, are extremely popular, he said.

The Sacramento train presented a much more entertaining show, than what Napas Santa Train previously offered.

Another example  the Grand Canyon Railways Polar Express  hosts about 80,000 riders a year, Goldie said. They sell out immediately.

Riding such Santa trains becomes a family tradition, and thats our goal.

This year, the Wine Train will offer 60 Santa Train trips  from Nov. 19 to Dec. 29.

Were hoping to have at least 15,000 riders, said Goldie.

To upgrade Napas Santa Train, professional actors have been hired to entertain riders. Santa makes an appearance at the depot in Yountville and during the ride a conductor and teddy bear character entertain visitors. They are dynamite, said Goldie.

Magical wristbands featuring LED lights flash in time to the music. The North Pole has been expertly decorated by Napa High School students.

Its a first-class production, Goldie said.

Besides celebrating the holidays, a Santa Train makes a lot of sense financially, he said. This is usually a slow time of year, and extra trains during the holidays stabilizes the business cycle.

We make a lot less than on our normal business but its something cool to offer to do at Christmas time.

Santa Train tickets range from $35 for locals on up to $75 for a weekend ride. Current prices for a Wine Train ride and meal start at $141.

According to Goldie, as of mid-November, the Wine Train had already sold 6,000 tickets and counting. Thats more than all of last holiday season.

Each train can accommodate a total of 350 riders, and the Santa Train runs at 5 and 8 p.m. daily.

The newly revamped Santa Train is one improvement that Brooks Street and Noble House have implemented since they bought the train in September 2015.

This year, the ownership group also added a Quattro Vino train that stops at four wineries in the valley.

Its been very, very well received. Its typically sold out, said Goldie. Well be adding another one or two of those next year.

With a coordinated schedule, the Santa Train and the other Wine Trains are able to share the tracks, he said.

On Nov. 19, the Wine Train partnered with Sleep Trains Ticket to Dream Foundation to provide the opportunity for foster children from around the area to experience the all-new Santa Train free of charge.

Additionally, the community is encouraged to donate an unwrapped toy at any Bay Area Sleep Train location. In turn, everyone who donates a toy at designated store locations, will receive a discount voucher for tickets to ride the Santa Train.

The ride on Nov. 19 also included children from All Stars Helping Kids, Sonoma Mentor Alliance, Northern Lights School, Ricky Watter Kids, Cope Family Center, Boys & Girls Club of Napa, Aim High, United Playaz and Family Service of Napa Valley.

This years Santa Train is a whole new experience, and were thrilled to be partnering with Sleep Trains Ticket to Dream Foundations as well as the Bay Areas most deserving childrens charitable organizations, said Pat Colee, chairman and founder of Noble House Hotels & Resorts.

The Wine Train began gourmet-dining service September 1989. The railroad line was built and operated by Samuel Brannan in 1864 as a tourist railroad to take visiting San Franciscans as they arrived by ferry in south Napa to Calistoga.

The year 2014 marked the 25th anniversary for the Wine Train and the 150th anniversary for the rail corridor.

The Napa Valley Wine Train offers a 36-mile round-trip journey from Napa to St. Helena, including fine dining and wine. The business owns the tracks, which run along an easement. More than 100,000 people ride the train each year. As many as 370 people can ride the train during each 3-hour-long journey.
After overseeing a financial rescue mission in St. Helena, City Manager Jennifer Phillips is leaving to become city manager for the city of Bothell in Washington.

Pending approval of her contract by the Bothell City Council on Tuesday, Phillips will submit her resignation to the St. Helena City Council, according to a statement released on Monday. Her official last day is tentatively scheduled for early January. The city of Bothell released a statement saying she will start on Jan. 17.

I am incredibly proud of my work in St. Helena, Phillips said. This opportunity with the city of Bothell is the most exciting of my career. During my visit to Bothell I enjoyed my time with the community, saw first-hand the impressive economic development and open space preservation currently underway, met a very dedicated professional team of employees, and am delighted that the City Council has extended the offer for me to become their next city manager.

Jennifer has been an exceptional city manager for us, and I have most enjoyed working closely with her over the past two years, Mayor Alan Galbraith said in a statement. She brought focus and clarity to our financial and operational challenges, and assembled a core senior staff that serves the city well. I am confident that we can build on her accomplishments as we move forward. We wish her well in her new position.

Phillips attended an open house and underwent a public interview in Bothell on Nov. 18-19, along with five other candidates for the job. The city of Bothell released a statement on Monday in which Mayor Andy Rheaume praised Phillips and the other semi-finalists for their experience and credentials.

It was her energetic, articulate and thoughtful personality that we felt would be best to lead our city, Rheaume said.

With St. Helena City Councilmembers Sharon Crull and Greg Pitts apparently losing their seats in the recent election, Peter White will be the only remaining member of the council that hired Phillips in July 2014, during Mayor Ann Neveros tenure.

White said, I would like to thank Jennifer for all her hard work and the incredible strides she has made in re-shaping City Hall into a highly functional organization. The entire city should be proud of the current level and professionalism of staff she has recruited, which is the legacy she leaves behind. Jennifer Phillips will be greatly missed by me and I wish her well in her new position.

Phillips will earn a base salary of $179,000 in Bothell, less than the $199,000 she earns in St. Helena.

According to a statement, the St. Helena City Council will appoint an interim city manager to serve during the recruitment process for a new city manager.

Casey McConnell and Jim Coleman, co-presidents of the St. Helena Employees Association, released a statement following Phillips announcement.

SHEA thanks Jennifer Phillips for her willingness to tackle the challenges faced by the City of St. Helena and the work she has done to help overcome them, they said. We wish her the best in her future endeavors.

Pam Simpson, CEO/President of the St. Helena Chamber of Commerce also praised Phillips efforts.

Her departure is a real loss for the City of St. Helena. Her efforts to diligently sift through the mess of the citys finances and bring to council a true, transparent picture is commendable, Simpson said. Under Jennifers leadership, we now can see, with real numbers, the citys troubling financial forecast.

Jennifer has done a great job at laying out the harsh truth about our inadequate infrastructure and our exposure to potential liability. She made tough, competent recommendations and decisions that were not always pleasant or popular, but unfortunately, were necessary. This city has a tough road ahead and her leadership will be missed.

Former Mayor Nevero offered more high praise for Phillips. While serving our city, one of my stated goals was to improve the culture and capability of St Helenas City Hall, she said. Our council knew well that St. Helenas aging infrastructure, financial problems and staffing issues required a smart, creative and ethical city manager who could attract and build a capable team to handle the obstacles faced by a small town with big costs and limited income.

After extensive interviews, we hired Jennifer Phillips, who has navigated St. Helenas complicated long-standing problems with intelligence, creativity and integrity. Our city is losing a talented public servant, and she will be greatly missed.

As chair of St. Helenas Ad Hoc Revenue Task Force, Donna Hinds also worked closely with Phillips, whom she called a tremendous asset to St. Helena in so many ways.

She is well prepared, organized, and very intelligent, Hinds said. Jennifer has put in place a very impressive team at City Hall and, as a result of Jennifers management, systems have been put in place that will prevent the devastating impacts of mistakes from the past. Jennifer was making great progress toward the financial stability of St. Helena. I am hopeful a new city manager will be found that will keep the momentum of progress going. Congratulations and best wishes to Jennifer. You will be missed.

Newly elected Councilmember Geoff Ellsworth said, Jennifer Phillips brought a level of professionalism to City Hall that helped us understand the need for proper structure and oversight procedures in our administration, and we should be truly thankful for that.

Phillips tenure

Phillips was St. Helenas fourth city manager in recent years. She was preceded by Gary Broad (2011-2014), Mary Neilan (2009-2011) and Bert Johansson (2003-2009).

Phillips oversaw a tumultuous period in St. Helenas history. Most of the citys senior staff had resigned during Broads tenure, which allowed Phillips to hire high-level employees like City Clerk Cindy Black, Planning Director Noah Housh, Finance Director April Mitts, Public Works Director Steve Palmer, and Police Chief William Imboden, who was promoted from within the police department.

The new management team quickly discovered a series of financial irregularities that had occurred under previous administrations. During Broads tenure, the city had returned $1.9 million in grant funding to the Federal Emergency Management Agency without the City Councils authorization, draining the citys reserves and contributing to a major budget crisis.

There were more surprises to come, as Phillips team briefed the public on the poor record-keeping and sloppy accounting that had plagued St. Helenas flood project during the 2000s and early 2010s. City staff worked with granting agencies to research what had gone wrong and schedule a repayment plan for any misallocated funds. A forensic auditor was hired to investigate the situation.

Meanwhile, Phillips management team tightened up financial controls inside City Hall, implemented a new purchasing policy, updated the citys employee handbook, overhauled record management procedures, hired a full-time grants manager, appointed a human resources/information technology director, and brought on a new financial auditor to replace the one the city had used for 23 consecutive years.

Phillips cut the citys budget in 2015, warning that St. Helenas financial problems went well beyond the flood project. Phillips prepared a long-term financial forecast showing that the city lacked the revenue it would need to maintain basic city operations, much less repave roads, replace City Hall and the police station, and keep the citys infrastructure in compliance with government regulations.

The council appointed an Ad Hoc Revenue Task Force that recommended revenue-boosting tactics such as a sales tax, real estate transfer tax and additional hotel rooms. The council put a half-cent sales tax on the ballot, and Phillips facilitated several community presentations on the financial state of the city. She warned that the failure of Measure D would force her to propose major cuts to discretionary programs such as the library, parks and recreation.

Voters overwhelmingly passed Measure D by a 69 to 31 percent margin, but Phillips warned it was only the first step in securing the citys financial future, as she often said. Meanwhile, Phillips staff worked with a consultant on a study that recommended steep increases to St. Helenas water and wastewater rates.

Phillips was also at the center of an uproar surrounding the firing of Library Director Jennifer Baker in 2015, especially after Phillips replaced Baker with an interim library manager who was facing a felony DUI charge. Phillips quickly fired the new manager and apologized for hiring her.

Bakers defenders sharply criticized Phillips, who said privacy laws prohibited her from discussing Bakers firing in detail. Internal emails released by the city showed how the relationship between Phillips and Baker deteriorated as Phillips sought to rein in the librarys spending during a painful round of budget cuts.

Phillips later promoted Chris Kreiden to library director. Baker got a job with the Napa Valley Unified School District and recently was elected to the Napa Valley College Board of Trustees.
Chris Youngs music business foundation was built during his years as a student at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) in Murfreesboro, TN. Now, with an abundance of success and a foot that remains firmly planted in his roots, the RCA Records Nashville recording artist is giving back to the establishment that he credits for helping him get to where he is today.

This morning, Young announced the creation of an annual scholarship for recording industry students attending his alma mater. MTSU helped to give me a foundation for the music business and I want this scholarship to help other students who are looking to take a similar path, said Young.

Youngs gift will allow MTSUs Department of Recording Industry to award a yearly scholarship, starting this Fall, to a rising Junior or Senior.

Chris has remained a loyal and connected MTSU alum through the years, said Joe Bales, Vice President of University Advancement. Hes returned to perform several times in MTSUs Murphy Center as his music career ascended and remains generous with his time and talent, even donating some of his touring audio equipment and accessories a few years ago.

We cant wait to see the future superstars that emerge from the halls of MTSU, especially with the help of one of our favorite country music male vocalists!
On Tuesday, 29 November 2016, NATO Deputy Secretary General, Ms. Rose Gottemoeller will travel to Berlin to participate in the Berlin Foreign Policy Forum, organized by the Korber Foundation.

Ms. Gottemoeller will attend the panel discussion entitled: Russia and Europe: Between Confrontation, Coexistence and Cooperation. More details about the event can be found at http://www.koerber-stiftung.de/en/international-affairs/berlin-foreign-policy-forum.html.

In the margins of the Conference, the NATO Deputy Secretary General will have bilateral meetings with several German officials.

Follow us on Twitter (@NATOPress and @Gottemoeller)
NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller led the ambassadors to the North Atlantic Council in a visit to NATOs Joint Force Command Headquarters in Brunssum, Netherlands and to the NATO Airborne Early Warning and Control Force Headquarters in Geilenkirchen, Germany on Monday (28 November 2016).

In Brunssum, the Deputy Secretary General and Ambassadors were briefed on plans for NATOs multinational enhanced forward presence in the eastern part of the Alliance. In Geilenkirchen, they visited the E-3A Component: NATOs fleet of Airborne Early Warning and Control radar aircraft, also known as AWACS. NATO AWACS are essential to monitoring Allied airspace and are critical assets for NATO missions and operations. Since October 2016, NATO AWACS have supported the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL with air surveillance and situational awareness.
NATO Secretary General, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg will meet the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, Mr. Pavel Filip, on Tuesday 29 November 2016.

Media Advisory

16:45 Secretary General joint press point with the Prime Minister  Main entrance, NATO Headquarters

The press point will be streamed live on the NATO website and available on satellite on demand via Eurovision Geneva.

Still and video imagery of the bilateral meeting will be available after the event on the NATO website.

Follow us on Twitter (@NATOPress and @jensstoltenberg)
NATO navies began a countermine-warfare exercise in the Aegean Sea on Monday (28 November 2016), aimed at testing combat readiness and strengthening ties between Allies and partners.

Corvettes, patrol boats, mine hunters, fighter aircraft, and unmanned underwater vehicles are taking part in the event which will run until 4 December 2016. Dubbed NUSRET  after a famous Turkish mine layer  the annual exercise is organised by the Turkish navy. Participants will test finding and neutralizing mines, using divers, sonar as well as remotely operated vehicles. NATO has sent ships from Germany, Greece and Turkey to participate in the exercise. Other Allies are participating on a bilateral basis.

NUSRET follows exercise MAVI BALINA which ran from 22  28 November in the Eastern Mediterranean and tested international navies anti-submarine warfare skills.

Bordering both Iraq and Syria, Turkey is the NATO Ally most exposed to the turmoil in the Middle East. In response to security challenges in the region, NATO has boosted the defence of Turkey  including, since 2013, with air defence missile systems. In December 2015, NATO decided on a further package of measures for Turkey  paving the way for more patrols by AWACS surveillance planes and increased naval presence in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Turkey faces serious security challenges from many directions, NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu said. NATOs participation in the NUSRET exercise demonstrates Allies strong commitment to Turkeys security, and contributes to increased stability in the region.
Applying for national scholarships and fellowships Students interested in learning more about the Marshall Scholarship and other prestigious awards should contact Megan Friddle in the National Scholarships and Fellowships Program. Find more information or schedule an appointment through the National Scholarships & Fellowships Program website.

Two of Emory Universitys Woodruff Scholars are headed to the United Kingdom next year as winners of the prestigious Marshall Scholarship.

Noam Kantor and Emilia Truluck have proven to be accomplished researchers and student leaders at Emory, and will meet again at the University of Oxford in 2017.

Kantor, who will earn his dual bachelors and masters degree in mathematics this spring from Emory College of Arts and Sciences, plans to earn a second masters degree in math, studying number theory, from Oxford.

Truluck, who graduated in May from Emory College with highest honors with a bachelors degree in womens, gender and sexuality studies and Middle Eastern and South Asian studies, is now in Jordan on a Fulbright grant. She plans to earn a masters in Refugee and Forced Migration Studies in one year at Oxford, then obtain a masters degree in gender and sexuality from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.

Emory is proud of the well-deserved recognition of Noam and Emilia as 2017 Marshall Scholars, says President Claire E. Sterk. During their studies here, they embraced learning, discovery and volunteerism, and their continued studies will allow them to deepen their dedication to make a difference in our world.

Kantor and Truluck are among 32 U.S. students selected as Marshall Scholars this year, out of 947 applicants.

Noam and Emilia truly embody the ideals of learning in the liberal arts in the way they both push the boundaries of knowledge and discovery, says Michael Elliott, interim dean of Emory College and professor of English. I admire the diversity of their intellectual interests, and I am inspired by their deep sense of curiosity about the world.

Funded by the British government, the scholarship recognizes high-achieving scholars by covering all expenses for up to two years of postgraduate studies in the U.K. program of their choice, with the goal of nurturing future leaders and strengthening British-American collaborations.

Kantor: Applying abstract math to real-world problems

The opportunity for Kantor to effectively start his PhD at Oxford in number theory is all the more remarkable given that he says he hated number theory before Emory.

A branch of math that tries to find interesting and unexpected relationships between different sorts of numbers and to prove that these relationships are true, number theory just seemed too random to him.

But he drew attention from Emory Colleges Department of Mathematics and Computer Science  with several specialists in number theory  on a campus visit during high school, says David Zureick-Brown, an assistant professor in the department.

An arithmetic geometer, Zureick-Brown was impressed that the largely self-taught Kantor understood enough about pure mathematics to know what questions to ask. He and other professors set about recruiting Kantor, promising to teach him the more complex number theory right away at Emory.

His second semester on campus, he was in a reading course on a senior level, and by his second year, he was completing graduate level work, Zureick-Brown says. He was always very enthusiastic. He will be even more competitive after Oxford because he understands you can never have too much mathematical knowledge.

Kantor has previously earned international honors for his work. He was named a Goldwater Scholar in his sophomore year and earned high honors his junior year in the prestigious Budapest Semesters in Mathematics.

Kantor credits Emory for allowing him to pursue his passion with guidance. Specifically, he is interested in solving equations that use only whole numbers  a specific effort within number theory.

The level of difficultly of creating and proving those formulas allows him to think deeply about potential problems, such as cybersecurity or credit card fraud, and how the complexity can help keep us safe.

Now I see the structure and the beauty in it, and can see people working on my ideas in real life, Kantor says.

Kantor has proven to be an ambassador of sorts for mathematics, lecturing in courses as well as explaining his work with campus groups he joined.

His sophisticated understanding of math was complemented by studying modern Jewish thought with religion professor Michael Berger, who remembers his student as prepared and engaged both in and out of the classroom.

The course was devoted to the philosophy of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, who wrote that math and physics are not just part of a religious worldview but an integral part of understanding divine will.

Kantor continued to discuss those thoughts outside of class, and in the years that followed, incorporating the ideas in talks about Jewish life, Berger says.

Math describes a reality we cant really touch, but is the basis for our modern world, Berger says. I think Noams pursuit of math comes from a universal curiosity of the world. If something bothers him, he will keep at it until he figures it out. Hes not someone who will be satisfied with getting by.

Kantor says he felt stronger in his own Jewish faith when he engaged in its religious traditions. He worked through questions beyond math by getting involved with Hillel, the Inter-Religious Council (IRC) and his fraternity, Alpha Tau Omega.

And, he tried to show the value of those connections by spearheading an initiative to take Emorys Campus Couches program into Atlanta. For that, he coordinated installing two sofas on Peachtree Street, encouraging strangers to sit and talk to learn about each other.

Kantor puts himself in the same situation, both with Campus Couches and Table Talk  two Emory programs  and with the International Rescue Committee.

We have different values, and we shouldnt minimize that as we learn about our similarities, Kantor says. My math hero is Alexander Grothendieck, who understood that the only way to solve the hardest problems is to return to the basics. That's daring and it's something many people won't stoop to."

Truluck: Putting scholarship into action

Trulucks advisers and mentors describe her as curious  and unrelenting. Her Marshall Scholarship is a further testament to her motivation, given that she was an alternate last year and applied again for the win this year.

That determination and courage was clear to Pamela Scully, a professor of womens, gender and sexuality studies and African studies, when she learned her student had been dual-enrolled at the State University of West Georgia for her final two years of high school.

Truluck, who grew up near Savannah, lived across the state in Carrollton for the program and maintained a perfect GPA while carrying a full college class load.

Emilia is someone who is interested in the world, says Scully, who taught Truluck in both first-year and senior seminars. She is independent, and she does not give up.

Truluck, answering questions by email from Jordan, says she found her career path after becoming involved with Volunteer Emory as soon as she came to campus.

She had previously worked with immigrants learning English as a second language, but being a staff volunteer gave her new perspective working with refugees being resettled in nearby Clarkston.

That work and her studies prompted an interest in the ongoing Palestinian refugee issue and the treatment of refugees in the Middle East, particularly those who are living without the benefits of citizenship for protracted periods of time, she says.

Already conversational in Spanish, Truluck aimed to improve her Arabic language skills by spending a summer abroad at Al Akhawayn University in Morocco.

She used her language skills as a research assistant in Emorys law school with Abdullahi An-Naim, Charles Howard Candler Professor of Law. With her focus on human rights, she was also named an intern in the conflict resolution program at the Carter Center.

Her focus on Jordan happened by accident, when she petitioned to study abroad again, this time at Al Quds University in East Jerusalem. When that was denied, she ended up in Jordan for Emorys first approved program there.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that a major part of the Jordan program was exploring the treatment of refugees in the country, she says of the country that has historically served refugees from the region and is currently struggling with those fleeing Iraq and Syria.

Jordan, as a resource-poor country, heavily relies on international aid to support these refugees, so Jordan is a really interesting country for examining how international non-governmental organizations work in the field to support refugees who are both historically stateless and newly displaced, she adds.

While there, Truluck became interested in the experiences of refugee women, in particular. During her first visit, she completed a small project, comparing the street harassment of Jordanian women and Syrian women.

The surprising findings revealed the vulnerability of Syrian refugee women to harassment by other refugees, Jordanians and, disappointingly, international aid workers. The project inspired her senior honors thesis and current Fulbright work.

Emilias quest for excellence extended far beyond the classroom, says Elizabeth Fessenden, the senior program associate for the Emory Scholars Program. Her deep involvement with Volunteer Emory as a weekly service trip leader and as a Social Justice Dialogue coordinator demonstrated her desire to actually change the world. I have no doubt that she will do exactly that.

After graduation, Truluck spent her summer volunteering as a case assistant with Lutheran Services of Georgias refugee program in Savannah.

She recently completed three months of more extensive Arabic language skills at Qasid Arabic Institute in Amman while also volunteering at a United Nations school serving Palestinian refugees. Starting in January, she will spend nine months focusing on her research about street harassment.

Oxford had already allowed her to defer attending there for the Fulbright. Her time as a Marshall scholar will allow her to further study the roles of international coalitions in addressing the ongoing refugee crisis and will prepare her to work for the UNHCR, the United Nations refugee agency, she says.

Her eventual plan is to return to the United States to work on refugee policy here, something Scully says she is sure will happen.

She wants to think about a problem in order to do something. Emilia takes action, Scully says. We will know her name.
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23:45

Passengers erupted into applause as the first commercial flight from the United States to Havana in more than 50 years landed in Cuba, arriving as the island begins week-long memorial services for revolutionary leader

Fidel Castro.

Cubans saluted the packed American Airlines flight by spraying water from firetrucks above the plane as it taxed along the runway at Jose Marti International Airport in honor of the inaugural voyage.

"It was very emotional for me," said Jonathan Gonzalez, 31, a Cuban-American born in Miami who said it was his third time visiting the island.

Passengers wearing straw hats provided by American Airlines with the word "Cuba" on the back were greeted with welcome signs in various languages but no music.

The visitors are arriving at the same time that tens of thousands begin paying homage to Castro in Havana and a state-sanctioned ban on live music has hushed the capital's usually festive nightlife.

"I'm intrigued to see how the city is after the death of Fidel Castro," said Tamara Cara, 45, an education professional from Puerto Rico on the flight.
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DUBAI: US space agency NASA will work with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Space Agency to put communications capability on the UAE's Mars spacecraft Hope that will reach the Red Planet in 2021, an official said on Sunday.

Dr Gale Allen, NASA's Deputy Chief Scientist, in an interview to Gulf News said that the development is part of an "umbrella agreement" for collaboration between the two agencies.

"We want to work very closely with the UAE on any other missions going forward," Allen, who was in the UAE for the UN-UAE High Level Forum on "Space as a Driver for Socio-Economic Sustainable Development", was quoted as saying.

"For the Mars probe, one of things that is very interesting to us is an opportunity to put communications capability on the probe. The importance for us is that we really want to send humans to Mars in the 2030s," she said.

"We are looking at, possibly at some point, putting better communications up there. If we could partner and leverage the UAE Mars probe, it is certainly going to be beneficial for us," she noted.

On the agreement, she pointed out that it was an "umbrella agreement", which meant that NASAwanted to collaborate in future space exploration missions.

"The Mars probe is the first step in...collaborations, but we certainly look at this as a long-term partnership," she noted.

The Hope spacecraft will travel more than 60 million km in its nine-month journey, coinciding with the UAE's 50th anniversary in 2021.

The mission will be supervised by the UAE Space Agency and developed by Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), with support from international partners.

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The parties which participated in the Jan Aakrosh Diwas protests included the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, Aam Aadmi Party and the Communist Party of India-Marxist.

"Demonetisation may be a good move but the manner in which it was implemented has caused tremendous hardship to common people," Nationalist Congress Party chief Jose Philip D'Souza said.

Congress state President Luizinho Faleiro said that with no new lower denomination currency in ATMs and banks, the common man was facing tremendous hardship.

The Congress held a dharna near the State Bank of India's main office in the state capital.

"The economy has collapsed. There is virtually no trade going on. People cannot buy fish or groceries because they do not have small currency notes. Farmers are in distress as they cannot sell what they produce," Faleiro said.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar came out in support of the demonetisation.

"Goa is with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Like I have said, there is some hardship, but the step will be good for the future," Parsekar told IANS.

--IANS maya/mr

( 204 Words)

2016-11-28-14:14:13 (IANS)
Leaders from the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, the DMK and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) protested in the Parliament House precincts.

The protest was led by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

However, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool Congress and Janata Dal United (JDU) stayed away from the protest, which was mainly a Congress show.

Later, Samajwadi Party Rajya Sabha member Ram Gopal Yadav told IANS that his party was "kept in the dark" over the protest.

"Hamein to wahan hona hi nahi tha (We were not supposed to be there). The opposition parties had a meeting in the morning. This protest was not discussed then. We were kept in the dark," Yadav said.

However, he added that his party was with the rest of the opposition in observing 'Akrosh Diwas' (protest day).

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of the winter session on November 16 over the demonetisation that has triggered a cash crunch in the country.

--IANS mak/ahm/dg

( 216 Words)

2016-11-28-14:22:13 (IANS)
These villages, which will be spread across the length and breadth of the country, will enable villagers to use digital channels for banking and payments transactions, said bank MD and CEO Chanda Kochhar.

"The bank continues to be a catalyst to accelerate development in our country. We strongly feel that technology can play an important role in putting development on a fast lane. By leveraging technology, we converted Akodara in Gujarat from a village to India's first digital village last year.

"Its success motivates us to scale up the initiative a big way - we will now convert 100 villages across the country into digital villages," she added.

Transformed into 'ICICI Digital Villages', villagers will be able to open bank accounts using Aadhar-based e-KYC and make cashless payments to retail stores through a unique SMS/USSD-based mobile solution.

"We will create a cashless ecosystem at these villages, provide vocational training to 10,000 villagers in first 100 days and offer them credit linkages so that the villagers can start their own business ventures," said Kochhar.

The bank also said that it would also set up end-to-end merchant infrastructure that would enable the retailers at the village to accept mobile based payments.

--IANS bdc/vd

( 245 Words)

2016-11-28-18:26:16 (IANS)
Following its independent director Nusli N. Wadia's threat to take legal action against it, Tata Sons' legal counsel has written to Wadia to withdraw his his allegations calling them "misconstrued". In his three-page letter to Wadia who is an independent director on three Tata Sons group companies and also a well-known industrialist, Bharat Vasani, Chief, Legal and Group General Counsel of Tata Sons said the Special Notice issued by Tata Sons to the board of Tata Steel was not to defame Wadia. The letter to Wadia was sent on November 24 and made public on Monday. "It is denied that our Special Notice constitutes a personal vendetta against you or that it is vindictive action, as alleged or otherwise," the letter said. Wadia had earlier questioned the contents of a Special Notice of November 11, of Tata Steel and the item No.2 on the agenda 'Removal of Nusli Wadia as Director'. He took strong umbrage to six allegations in the special notice, that he (Wadia) was acting in concert with Cyrus Mistry, has been acting against the interests of the Tata Group, has been acting in a manner designed to cause harm to the Tata Group, was not conducting himself independently and acting prejudicially and that his actions could gravely jeopardise the company, its future and its employees, and that the shareholders had lost faith in him and sought his removal. "You are aware that the legal position is fairly well settled that there is no requirement, legally or otherwise, for us as a shareholder to even provide any reasons while seeking your removal in terms of Section 169 of the (Companies) Act," the legal counsel stated. Wadia is an independent director on the boards of Tata Chemicals, Tata Steel and Tata Motors for long but varying periods. The notice seeking his removal was served by Tata Sons, accusing him of backing former group chairman Cyrus Mistry who was sacked on October 24. "It is denied that anything stated in our Special Notice was intended to or has caused damage to your reputation as a professional or has caused irreparable injury, as alleged or otherwise," the letter stated. It said that even before the Board of Directos of Tata Steel could decide on convening the EGM, "you have issued the aforementioned letters, making all kinds of absolutely baseless, false and defamatory allegations against us." It further said that the company hopes that the defamation notice issued by Wadia was not an attempt to "coerce our directors and officer not to perform their fiduciary obligations to Tata Sons Limited and its stakeholders, when Tata Sons has decided to and issued the Special Notice." "Your (Wadia) relationship with JRD Tata and Ratan Tata are personal matters. You would appreciate that Tata Sons and its directors will act in the interests of Tata Sons, its stakeholders and other Tata Group companies," Vasani said. "If you have any respect for your association with JRD Tata and Ratan Tata as mentioned by you, you would seriously consider withdrawing this notice," the letter concluded. --IANS ag/hs/vm ( 525 Words) 2016-11-28-20:26:16 (IANS)
Ranbir Kapoor and Ranveer Singh's camaraderie on 'Koffee With Karan's latest episode ensured a laughter riot for the viewers. While Ranveer was his usual vivacious self, Ranbir too let his guards down and made some headline-making comments. So here are some fun moments from the show that are sure to get you through the whole week! -'Dhamakedaar' entry: The duo made sure to start the show with a bang as they were on a rampage spree inside Karan's changing room when the episode began. While KJo wondered where they were, the handsome hunks appeared holding the host's shoes in their hands and a threat on their lips. "If you say anything out of line, I will launch this (the shoe) at you," Singh told Karan Johar. -The 'bromance': While the 'Tamasha' actor opened up about his flop films and dealing with failure, the 'Bajirao' of Bollywood said that he was the 'barometer of good work' for him when he joined Bollywood, to which Ranbir, an admirer of Singh's work, replied, "It makes me happy that somebody is out there and is doing this level of work. And it's unlimited. I'm scared that this guy has no limit. He can go anywhere." -Dynamite dance performance: The two delivered a sizzling dance performance to Katrina Kaif's song 'Chikni Chameli' where Ranveer performed better than her ex-boyfriend. -Karan's desire of casting Ranveer, Ranbir, Deepika: The 'Ae Dil Hai Mushkil' director was at his best trying to pull out as many controversial statements from the two Bollywood superstars' mouths. When Ranbir mentioned about Ranveer's wish to make a film titled 'Project X' and if he would like to produce it, he rolled his eyes and said, "Nobody wants to watch a two-hero film but you are doing one (pointing at Ranveer). However, I want to make a remake of 'Sangam' with Ranbir, Ranveer and Deepika." -Koffee 'Without' Karan: On the duo's non-stop banter, the host of the show said, "This is seeming to be like 'Koffee Without Karan'" With an energy level difficult to match, the two took frequent digs at Karan giving him no chance to utter a word! From funny to entertaining to explosive, the show was one of the best of all seasons! Wasn't it?! (ANI)
Director Gopichand Malineni, who has returned after successfully wrapping up the European schedule of his upcoming Telugu actioner "Winner", says they shot a breathtaking horse racing climax sequence in Istanbul. "We shot the climax in Istanbul race course. It's a nail-biting horse racing sequence, featuring Sai Dharam Tej and the film's antagonist Thakur Anoop Singh. The whole action episode was shot under the supervision of Bulgarian stunt director Kaloian Vodenicharov, who had worked in films such as 'Baahubali' and 'World War Z'," Malineni told IANS, adding he is thrilled with the output. Before heading to Istanbul, the team shot three songs in Ukraine. "At one point, the temperature had dropped to -2 degrees. Initially, we struggled to cope with the climate but a few days later we got used to it," he said, claiming "Winner" is the first Indian film to be shot in Ukraine. "Although the makers of '2.o' had come before us, they didn't shoot there. We were told that they had taken pictures of some locations in order to recreate the same in India," he added. Out of three songs, one was shot against some scenic backdrop of Ukraine. "It's a beautiful country and I would love to revisit for my future projects. We also shot a song against city backdrop and another one in a popular pub. The best time to visit the place, we were told, is during June-July when it's summer," he said. From December 6, the next schedule of the film will commence in Ooty, followed by another one in Bengaluru. Produced by Nallamalupu Bujji and Tagore Madhu, the film also stars Rakul Preet Singh. --IANS hp/nn/vt ( 284 Words) 2016-11-28-11:54:14 (IANS)
"Nearly 80 per cent of the film has already been shot. The rest will be completed over the course of the next few weeks. The makers are planning to release the film during the Valentine's Day weekend next year," a source from the film's unit told IANS.

Also starring Megha Akash, the film has been predominantly shot in Mumbai.

The film's first-look posters were released on Sunday. Dhanush features in two avatars -- with a beard and in a clean-shaven look as well.

--IANS hp/nn/dg

( 125 Words)

2016-11-28-13:54:12 (IANS)
American television actor Blaire Underwood has praised her "Quantico" co-star and actress Priyanka Chopra and says it is fascinating to work with her. "I have had a number of conversations with Priyanka Chopra about being number one on the call sheet being the star of the show. She downplays that, but she is the main protagonist, we watch the show through her eyes and her perspective, so she is very much the star of the show and she carries it with a plum," Underwood said in a statement. "She is very gracious, she is very humble, she is always prepared, she is professional she is about her business," Underwood added. The actor says he told Priyanka that she is "emotionally full". "It's always fascinating to work with her, because she trusts her emotions and if you look in her eyes there is always an emotion in her eyes without trying to do too much," he said. Underwood, who is seen playing the role of CIA officer in the show, which airs on Star World, says "what makes this show really work is that you really get into the characters". "And she sets the tone in terms of the standard of the work we are doing, the depth of the work we're doing," he added. --IANS dc/ks/dg ( 230 Words) 2016-11-28-20:16:17 (IANS)
Exposure to tobacco smoke is toxic to the developing brain at a time when it is most vulnerable to environment input, the researchers said.

"Young children have little control over their exposure to household tobacco smoke, which is considered toxic to the brain at a time when its development is exponential," said lead author and Professor Linda Pagani from the University of Montreal in Quebec, Canada.

Parents who smoke near their children often inadvertently expose them to second- and third-hand smoke.

Abnormal brain development can result from chronic or transient exposure to toxic chemicals and gases in second-hand tobacco smoke. These compounds eventually solidify and create third-hand smoke.

In the study, the researchers found compelling evidence that suggests other dangers to developing brain systems that govern behavioural decisions, social and emotional life as well as cognitive functioning.

Anti-social behaviour is characterised by proactive intent to harm others, lack prosocial feelings, and violate social norms.

Such behaviours include aggression, criminal offences, theft, refusal to comply with authority, destruction of property and is also associated with academic problems in later childhood.

"These long-term associations should encourage policy-makers and public health professionals to raise awareness among parents about the developmental risks of second-hand smoke exposure," Pagani said.

For the study, published in the journal Indoor Air, the team examined 1,035 boys and girls born in 1997 and 1998.

Their parents reported whether anyone smoked at home when their children were aged 1.5 to 7.5 years. At age 12, their children self-reported their anti-social behaviour and academic characteristics.

--IANS rt/in/dg

( 301 Words)

2016-11-28-14:10:14 (IANS)
Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh on Sunday said he was pained by "activities and abuses" he was subjected to by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's supporters as the matter has crossed the limit of tolerance and he will now speak to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, who stood by him even against the wishes of his son. "A senior leader, while speaking against demonetisation in the Rajya Sabha, said action should be taken against me. At the time when the senior leader was speaking in the Rajya Sabha, an FIR was being registered against me in Azamgarh at the behest of a senior minister, as SSP told me. Had I not registered a counter complaint in advance, and had I not informed the IB, and had I not informed New Delhi DCP, then the Uttar Pradesh Government would have possibly arrested me on those charges," Singh told ANI. "My effigies are being burnt in Azamgarh and Lucknow; a minister of the state government is doing so to please the Chief Minister, and the Chief Minister who is the son of a person whom I call brother; in such a situation what would you feel? I am pained by such things. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," said Amar Singh, a confidante and long-time friend of the SP's national president. "Mulayam Singhji against his son's wishes stood with me publically, which is a debt on me. Hence, I don't want to hurt him, but now the matter has crossed the limit of tolerance," he added. Recalling that he had said in an interview to a news channel that the political face of Uttar Pradesh will change by October-November, close to the state polls, he said, "My statement, which I had given as a political analyst, was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji." "I had said that after observing Modiji's working style. He gives a long leverage to his political opponents, and when there is an election, he comes to the field displaying his special skills," he said. "In West Bengal, all stings against Mamata's cabinet ministers were on corruption, it's another thing that it did not have any surprising impact on the voters. Madan Mitra, a cabinet-level minister - as the matter is in the court, I will not say that Modiji and Amit Shahji got him arrested due to some malice - but he was arrested just before the elections and was not released till today," said Singh to buttress his statement on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah's style of functioning. But my statement was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," he added. Speaking to ANI on October 27 (ANI), Singh, who kept himself away from the media during infighting in the Mulayam Singh Yadav's clan and was portrayed as a villain by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, had said he might not be with CM Akhilesh, but would always be with Mulayam's son Akhilesh. "I may not be with CM Akhilesh, but I will always be with Mulayam Singh Yadav's son Akhilesh. The father of the SP and the Chief Minister are the same, and God stands as a testimony that whenever I spoke to Netaji, it was in favour of Akhilesh, Netaji also knows this truth," Singh told ANI, while responding to Akhilesh's allegations. "When I was struggling for life and undergoing a dialysis, Netaji had come to meet me and he said there was a discussion on the issue of state president and when Akhilesh Yadav replaced Shivpal Yadav as the UP SP president, even then I was blamed for it," said Singh. "When his (Akhilesh's) family was opposing his marriage, I was the only who stood by him, but today I am hurt by his words. There is no photo of his wedding, where this 'dalal' is not there," emotional Singh responded to the allegation of "dalal". "It is possible to meet Rahul Gandhi, but meeting Akhilesh is difficult. If my 'bali' (sacrifice) can solve the problem, I am ready for it," he added. (ANI)
Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he claimed that the saffron party has the maximum amount of black money.

"The maximum amount of black money is with the BJP. Before criticizing other parties, they should introspect first. As far as the Bharat Bandh is concerned, nobody has spoken about a Bharat Bandh. We have not taken any call on or for a Bharat Bandh," said Azad.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday slammed the opposition for its all-India bandh call over demonetisation, saying the country instead needed an end to evils like corruption and black money.

While addressing the BJP's Parivartan Rally in Kushinagar in eastern Uttar Pradesh the Prime Minister said, "On the one hand we are initiating steps to curb corruption, but on the other hand, a few people are talking about 'Bharat Bandh'."

He described demonetisation as a cure to the 70-year-old disease of corruption. (ANI)
In the wake of 'Akrosh Diwas' called by the Congress Party today, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Babul Supriyo on Monday alleged that the opposition parties are angry as they were not given time to hide their black money. "The opposition parties are not angry because the government was not prepared for the implementation of demonetisation. They are angry as they were not given time to hide their black money. The leaders who have stashed their money abroad are facing difficulties. The Prime Minister never said that he will remove the problems like magic. He has demanded 50 days time. He has said its initial pain for a very long-term gain. Let's move towards it," he told ANI. The Congress made it clear that it has not called for a 'Bharat bandh' today but will hold protests across the country against demonetization. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh claimed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was spreading misinformation that the grand old party and other parties have called for a 'Bharat bandh'. "The Opposition parties will hold protests across the country by observing "Jan Aakrosh Diwas", he said. The protest comes as the deadlock continues in Parliament with the government refusing to agree to a discussion in the Lok Sabha that ends in a vote. The ruling dispensation has also rejected the opposition's demand that Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak in the Rajya Sabha over the demonetisation move. (ANI)
The Congress Party on Monday said that their protest is against the Centre's attack on white money and for creating hardship for the common people. Congress leader P.C. Chacko told ANI, "The Prime Minister is an expert in misleading the people because he is now calling for a Bharat Bandh, no political party has called for any Bharat Bandh. If he is taking a step against black money, we said that any step taken by the government to curb black money we will support that. But we don't think that now the step he has taken is going to eliminate black money as it is going to create trouble and hardship to the common people only." "Prime Minister's step is not attacking black money but it is attacking the white money. The legitimate hard earned money of the ordinary people which they have deposited in the bank there is a restriction not to withdraw that. This action is against the ordinary people, the common man , artisans, daily wage owners and all this people are suffering. Last 20 days people are standing in the queue,. That is the only reason we say that we are protesting and opposing this," he added. Addressing a rally in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while he had called for an end to corruption and black money, the opposition was rooting for the 'Bharat bandh'. "The government is working to end the flow of black money and corruption but they (opposition) are talking about Bharat bandh (shutdown)," Modi said. However, parties like the Congress, Trinamool Congress and Aam Aadmi Party have said they do not support a bandh because of the huge cost involved. But they will continue their protests in Parliament and on the streets. (ANI)
The Samajwadi Party on Monday asked the BJP-led NDA regime to introspect the demonetisation move and said that 'Aakrosh Divas' is aimed at safeguarding the interests of the nation which stands extremely distressed. Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agarwal told ANI that this is not a protest called by the Congress but has been called by 17 opposition parties on board. "The opposition parties in various states have come up with their respective slogans (opposing demonetisation). So, we have called for a 'Jan Aakrosh' because India is automatically witnessing a shutdown now as the entire market is closed," he said. Agarwal further said the government will be forced to give a second thought to demonetisation in the wake of the unity among the opposition parties on this issue. "This will be the most successful 'bandh' in the history of India. The government must think about the anger of the poor, farmers and businessmen because of this move. We are not calling for a 'bandh', in fact we are saving the nation," he added. The protest comes as the deadlock continues in Parliament with the government refusing to agree to a discussion in the Lok Sabha that ends in a vote. The ruling dispensation has also rejected the opposition's demand that Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak in the Rajya Sabha over the demonetisation move. Prime Minister Modi yesterday slammed the opposition for the 'Bharat Bandh' over demonetisation, saying the country instead needed an end to evils like corruption and black money. He described demonetisation as a cure to the 70-year-old disease of corruption. (ANI)
Criminals shot dead a 12 years old Dalit boy at Ekdara village under Vibhutipur police station area in the district this morning. Police said here that desperadoes gunned down Sanjay Paswan soon after he came out of his house. The body was recovered from an agriculture field outside the village on receipt of information from local people. A pistol was also recovered from the spot. The reason behind the murder could not be ascertained immediately. The body has been sent to local Sadar Hospital for postmortem. A massive manhunt is on to nab the culprits, police added. UNI XC DH AD -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0108-1042099.Xml
Earlier, as the upper house met for the day at 11 a.m., it paid homage to Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who passed away on Saturday, and observed a minute's silence in his memory.

Soon after, the issue of 'Akrosh Divas', called by a combined opposition, was raised.

Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu raised objection to it and requested the Chair to conduct the Zero Hour as per "procedure".

The opposition members trooped to the Chairman's podium and raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Chair adjourned the house for half an hour.

As the house was reconvened at 11.40 a.m., the opposition demanded Modi's presence in the house.

Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Sitaram Yechury sought the Chair's ruling over his contempt of the house notice against Modi.

Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien, however, rejected the motion.

The opposition members again came to the well and started making noise. Kurien adjourned the house till 12 noon.

At 12 noon, the house was adjourned again till 2 p.m. as the opposition refused to relent.

--IANS mak/py/vt

( 210 Words)

2016-11-28-14:08:14 (IANS)
The lawyers of Manipur staged a protest march here today against the indefinite blockade launched by the United Naga Council (UNC) which entered the 29th day today.The lawyers carried placards which read "blockade is illegal', stop economic blockade" etc.The protest was done in a peaceful manner starting at the Cheirap court and passing through the main streets of Imphal. The UNC has, meanwhile, intensified the stir and showed no sign of withdrawing the blockade.The Manipur police personnel on November 24 arrested president of UNC Gaidon Kamei from Phiedinga, Imphal West along with UNC Secretary Information Thomas. Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh has ruled out possibility of releasing the two persons. He said police will work on the matter. The UNC had been charged of burning vehicles, attacking people and carrying out arson on the national highway. The Manipur High Court and the Supreme Court had directed the Centre and the state government to make the highway free from any sort of crime and enable people to travel freely.Some trucks carrying oil and essential commodities were brought in using Imphal-Jiribam highway and rationed in some oil depots. The oil depots witnessed long queue. Many people were waiting since the last night to get petrol. Transport services remained suspended due to inability of petrol and diesel.The Central government had been requested to take action against the NSCN(IM) and UNC for calling the blockade. As the NSCN(IM) had signed a framework with the government, the state government was reluctant to take action against NSCN (IM) and its frontal organisations, including UNC, however, the Manipur Police was compelled to take action considering the hardships of the people and the crimes committed on the highway. The Manipur Police had to release all NSCN(IM) cadres and supporters who were arrested with arms and while doing illegal activities in the state on the intervention of the Centre earlier. The Manipur government was asked by the people to upgrade two sub-divisions to full district status for administrative conveniences and the UNC has opposed any move to upgrade the two subdivisions. The chief minister clarified that there is no question of granting district status on ethnic lines. The stock of life saving oxygen, medicines in the hospitals was low and coming of medicines have also stopped. Liquid based medicines meant for children were running out of stock. Streets remained deserted as there is shortage of oil. Prices of essential commodities have reached sky high. There is shortage of medicines, food and essential commodities. Petrol is now sold at Rs 300 per litre and price of LPG has reached Rs 2500 in black market. UNI NS AD1418 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0108-1042134.Xml
The principal of a government school in Jamui district was arrested today on the charge of eve teasing a student when she was on a study tour to Rajgir two days ago. Police said here that Rajesh Kumar, principal in charge of Utrakamit Madhya Vidyalaya at Telar village under Chandradeep police station area in the district, was taken into custody when a Class 8th student of his school lodged an FIR against Mr. Kumar yesterday, accusing him of eve teasing her when she was on a study tour to Rajgir in Nalanda district. The principal is being interrogated, police added. UNI XC DH AD1427 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0108-1042152.Xml
The University of Mysore (UoM) today launcheda series of courses being organised under Global Initiative ofAcademic Networks (GIAN) wherein foreign faculties would share their expertise. Of total four courses offered under GIAN, one 'QuantitativeClimate Finance' was started today at the Vijnan Bhavan, UoM. The other three courses--'Environmental Finance', 'extensibleBusiness Reporting Language (XBRL)' and 'Introductory Course onDesign for Development' would be organised between December and March. Speaking after inaugurating the course, UoM Vice Chancellor ProfK S Rangappa said that the courses, in collaboration with foreignfaculties, were aimed at tapping the talent pool of scientists andentrepreneurs internationally. Collaborations of this kind wouldencourage students engagement and augment the country's existingacademic resources, accelerate the pace of quality reform, andelevate India's scientific and technological capacity to global excellence. He pointed that as many as 700 courses under GIAN were approvedin the year 2016 and UoM was among few prestigious institutes tooffer GIAN courses. Calling upon students to indulge in qualityresearches, he said that UoM was considered as the Centre ofExcellence across the globe and if the proposal submitted by thestudents is attractive, there were high chances of it gettingapproved, he added. Stressing the need to limit global warming by reducing the use ofgreenhouse gas emission, resource person for the course UniversityDuisburg-Essen, Germany, Professor Ruediger Kiesel felt the need forprivate financing besides government-sponsored projects. "At the Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015, 195countries adopted first-ever universal, legally binding globalclimate deal. The agreement, with global action plan to put theworld on track to avoid dangerous climate change by limiting globalwarming to below 2 degree Celsius, is due to enter into force in2020. The target includes renewable energy generation and reductionof greenhouse gas emission as important points," he added. Prof Kiesel further observed that by 2050, production ofrenewable energy would surpass coal energy and the air pollutionmenace would be addressed significantly. "There is a need to realisethe impact of air pollution on the environment. It should be takenseriously as China does." The six-day course 'Quantitative Climate Finance' will deal withEnergy Trading and Financial Services, Stochastic Valuation Methodson Clean Development Mechanism, Joint Implementation and EmissionTrading Scheme and Carbon Credit and Emission Allowances.UNI BSP MSP RSS1400 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0287-1042108.Xml
Manjeri district court, on a public interest litigation filed by different rights bodies, directed the Kerala police to keep the bodies of Maosits Kuppuswamy alias Devarajan and Ajitha alias Kaveri till Tuesday evening.

Activists and a brother of the slain militant in their petitions had claimed that the duo were killed in a ''fake'' encounter on November 24.

However, the police had claimed that the leftists had opened fire on them prompting them to retaliate.

Communist Party of India (CPI), second largest partner in CPI (M)-led ruling Left Democratic Front, the Revolutionary Marxist Party, a breakaway faction of the CPI (M), Porattam, a naxalite outfit and many other activists had expressed suspicion over the police version on the encounter.UNI PCH CS 1613

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0300-1042366.Xml
The Supreme Court today extended the interim bail of Subrata Roy Sahara till February 6, 2017 in connection with payment of money to the investors. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Tirath Singh Thakur, said we are extending the interim bail of Subrata Roy Sahara till Feb 6, 2017. The apex court directed Mr Roy to deposit an amount of Rs 600-crore by that time. Subrata Roy Sahara was in Tihar jail since March 4, 2014, till his mother's death on May 6, 2016, for not complying with the Apex Court's orders in connection with a long dispute with the market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The SEBI alleged that Roy failed to comply with 2012 apex court order which directed him to return investors more than Rs 20,000-crore with 15% interest. The money was raised by his two companies Sahara India Real Estate Corp Ltd and the Sahara Housing Finance Corp Ltd through optionally fully convertible debentures (OFCD) in 2007 and 2008. On May 6, this year, the apex court had granted four weeks' custody parole to Roy to perform his mother's last rites. Roy's mother had passed away in Lucknow on May 6 this year after a prolonged illness for over three years. Sahara, once one of India's most high-profile firms, had in the past made several failed attempts to raise the bail money using its prized overseas hotels that included the Plaza in New York and Grosvenor House in London. Sahara says it has paid more than 80 percent of the dues to the bondholders, but the market regulator, SEBI, disputes that and says the Sahara has not paid more than Rs 10,000-crore. UNI XC AKCSNU 1618 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1042348.Xml
Congress leaders led by former Minister Mula Ram this afternoon staged protest demonstration in Raipur Domana area, A BJP hold, against demonetisation as a part of countrywide call given by the opposition parties against note ban.

Shouting anti-BJP and anti-Modi slogans, the Congress activists had a face-off with the senior BJP leaders and workers of Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), who were marching in support of demonetisation issue. Both of the groups raised slogans in support of their respective parties, which raked up anger on both the sides leading to a clash.

Police contingent deployed on the spot resorted to mild lathicharge to disperse them. "We had to to use the force as timely action prevented untoward incident," Arun Gupta, SP Rural here said. He said no injury has been reported in the lathicharge while no one has been detained so far in the action.

Jammu today witnessed cold response to the Bharat Bandh call against demonetisation. UNI VBH AKC SNU 1630

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1042362.Xml
State Congress Chief Spokesperson KK Mishra said his party is not against demonetisation but its implementation. The Congress had not called for a nationwide shutdown but for taking out 'Aakrosh Rally' across the country.

He said a foot march was taken out in all the district headquarters where a memorandum was submitted to respective district collectors. In the state capital, a foot march is being taken out and a memorandum will be submitted in the name of the Governor at the Raj Bhavan.

Aam Admi Party leader Dushyant Dangi said that AAP workers had observed a fast in the state capital on November 19 to protest against demonetisation. Thus, AAP workers today staged demonstration in all the district headquarters except Bhopal in protest against the note ban.

Communist Party of India's State Secretary Shailendra Shailley said Left party workers staged a demonstration outside the Reserve Bank of India's office in the state capital. Besides, Left parties staged agitations in Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Sagar and other district headquarters.UNI BAG-PS PY 1551

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0044-1042328.Xml
West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo MamataBanerjee today accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of misusing Governmentmachinery for personal vendetta. Addressing a Pratibad Divas rally here, Ms Banerjee said, "The country cannot run on lectures. Weneed action. People are suffering. Banks and ATMs have run out of cash but thePM is giving lectures" The TMC supremo questioned, " In the coming days will the people need Modi's permissionto walk on streets? '' '' In a democracy like India, there is no place for a dictator like Modi, '' she said. '' We may die or survive, our slogan will be to remove Narendra Modi from power, " MsBanerjee said. The chief minister said, ''The Centre thinks only they have white money, rest of us arehoarding black money. People are unable to withdraw their own money from their own bank accounts. They need Modi ji's permission, '' she accused. " When people received their salaries on 8 November, they announced their decision. What willhappen in December," TMC supremo asked. '' Daily life has been hampered severely. This is people's movement not a political movement, '' the chief minister said. " We have only one demand. Roll back this arbitrary and hasty decision and do it in a planned way," TMC supremo said. She said, "You want people to go cashless? You have become faceless Modi babu." Ms Banerjee said the entire country is giving the slogan "Tanashahi nahin chalegi" '' Modi has made the announcement and now is nowhere to be found. And he wants to lead the country? '' she asked. "Every decision needs planning, instead has been totally unplanned and done in haste, "Ms Banerjee said. "People from all walks of life joined us in our march today. We will fight till theend for this political movement. Govt cannot scare us with its agencies. We areready to even lay down our lives for this cause , " she stated. Ms Banerjee also criticised the Left parties led by theCPI(M) and urged the Communist leaders to come to the streets andprotest like her. " We do not support any bandh and that is why the people did not respond to the shut, I thank the people for hitting the streets in protest but rejecting the Bandh " the chiefminster said. She also congratulated the people for not responding to the 12-hour shut called by the Left parties. Earlier in the day Ms Banerjee led a huge rally from College Square in central part of thiscity to Esplanade using microphone and voicing against the BJP led Union government at the Centre. Meanwhile, CPI(M) state secretary Surya Kanta Mishra todayaccused chief minister Mamata Banerjee of playing "double game" on the demonetization issue saying her government's opposition to the Left parties sponsored bandh was an example. After leading an anti-demonetisation Left parties rally from Moula Ali in central Kolkata to Park Circus in eastern part of the city, Mr Mishra said the Mamata Banerjee's government hadtried everything to frustrate their 12-hour band in the state. He said their many leaders and activists, who were participating in rallies for supporting the bandh, were prevented and finally apprehended across the state. Mr Mishra said if she ( Mamata Banerjee ) had really supported the anti-demonetisation movement, the government would have refrained from using police force against the Left parties ralliesin the state. Left Front chairman Biman Basu after the rally said their movement was for the people, who have been suffering after the banned of existing Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes by the Centre on November 8. He said though the bandh had witnessed mixed response, he people would realisein near future why the left parties called bandh. The CPI(M) leaders predicted more trouble for the people in near future owing to ban of notes, which created shortages of currencies of all denominations.UNI BM SJC -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-1042570.Xml
Madras High Court Bench here today expressed its displeasure over the police investigation into the fire accident at Sivakasi in Virudhunagar district that claimed nine lives and the Tamil Nadu government's failure to pay the interim compensation to the victims' families. Nine people, including patients and staff of a private Scan centre were suffocated to death, after smoke emanated from a massive fire in the nearby cracker shop engulfed the scan centre on October 20 in Sivakasi. A Division Bench comprising Justices S.Nagamuthu and M.V.Muralidaran, while hearing a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition into the fire accident on October 26 had directed the Virudhunagar Superintendent of Police to give an interim compensation of Rs three lakh each to the families of victims under the "Victim Compensation Scheme" on or before November 25. When the case came up for further hearing today, the Judges after perusing the police report, came down heavily on the investigating officials. The main purpose of the investigation is to reveal the truth and bring out the culprits responsible for the accident. But, the report shows the police are not concentrating on the purpose. The police are yet to arrest the prime accused in the fire accident case. Instead, the report has accused the officials of commercial tax, revenue and municipality of violating the procedures, the Bench said. The Judges said the case diary was not properly maintained and mandatory things are not followed in the case. They also asked the police to submit details about how many officers are probing the case. When the court asked the government side whether the interim compensation was paid to the victims' families as per its direction, the government side replied that the compensation would be disbursed soon. Expressing its displeasure over the State government's failure in paying the interim compensation before the November 25 deadline, the court sought a fresh report and adjourned the case. UNI GSM CS 1755 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0275-1042604.Xml
Uttar Pradesh Police has recommended the names of three policemen, for their daring act in arresting the hardcore criminal Parminder, who was the mastermind in the Punjab jail attack, for the President's Gallantry Awards. Inspector General of Police (Meerut Zone) Ajay Anand told reporters here today that the UP Policehas recommended the names of three policemen, who arrested Parminder yesterday, for President's Gallantry Awards. "Our personnel involved in this operation were Shehzad Ali, Deepanshu Tyagi and Rampal. We have announced cash reward for them and gallantry award recommendation," Mr Anand said. UP Police has announced a cash award of Rs 50,000 each for Shehzad Ali, Deepanshu Tyagi and Rampal for showing exceptional courage as they caught Parminder after chasing him in a market. "We overpowered him after a lot of effort, he was planning to go to Dehradun," the IG said about the motive of Parminder. The IG said large quantity of arms and ammunition were recovered from Parminder who was traveling on the SUV used during the Nabha jailbreak incident, in which 6 prisoners including a dreaded terrorists of KLF fled from the jail. Meanwhile, Parminder, who was produced in the local court here today was sent to jail on judicial custody for 14 days. Now police will take his custody for further interrogation, besides Parminder could also be taken to Punjab. However, a report from Delhi said that Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, who escaped from a high security jail in Punjab yesterday, was arrested this morning near the national capital. But still five other escaped convicts remain missing. Mintoo and the others ran away from Nabha Central Jail in Punjab when a group of armed men in police uniform stormed the prison complex early on Sunday. He was arrested in a joint operation by the Delhi Police and the Punjab Police. The Khalistani terrorist is an accused in more than 10 terror-related cases. He is the head of the Khalistan Liberation Force. Earlier, he was arrested from Delhi's IGI airport in November 2014. According to the police, he was trying to reorganise the Khalistan Liberation Front (KLF), and had developed close contacts with Pakistan's ISI.UNI MB PY SNU 1709 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0196-1042445.Xml
Police said Elevin, who had been taken away by Dominik with10 year-old son, after committing the crime, surrendered beforeBanasawadi Police Station today along with her lawyers.

Dominik, who was working as driver with a private firm, haddriven away a van along with Rs 1.37 crore cash when gunman andanother staff had alighted to attend nature's call on November 23.

He had abandoned the van with Rs 44 lakh cash and gun infront of a Women's College in the city and escaped with remaining cash. He took his wife and son to Coimbatore and tookshelter in one of his cousin's house. However, afterlearning about Police team chasing them, returned to the city and surrendered before the police. Elevin told the police that she was not aware about the whereabouts of Dominik.

Police had formed special teams and had issued lookout notice atthe Airport besides putting naka bandi to prevent him from escapingfrom the city.

Teams have been sent to Coimbatore, Andhra and Kerala states tonab Dominik.UNI MSP CNR CS 1700

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0287-1042483.Xml
Taking strong exception to BJP PresidentAmit Shah terming his government as the most corrupt one and shouldbe thrown out in the next Assembly election, Karnataka Chief MinisterSiddaramaiah today said Mr Shah had no moral right to comment on his government, Reacting to Mr Shah's remarks while addressing BJP OBC EkataMorch in the city yesterday, Mr Siddaramaiah alleged that "Mr Shahis a murderer, he escaped going to jail because Mr Narendra Modibecoming Prime Minister, otherwise he would have been behind the bars."People like him have no moral right to comment on the performancemy government," he added. He said Mr Shah was addressing the gathering along with leaderswho had currency counting machines and had no right to tell thatCongress government is fully corrupt. Mr Siddaramaiah said that defeat is certain for BJP in the nextParliament election since it had taken decision to demonetisationwithout making proper preparation and common people were forced toface hardship without any fault. Taking strong exception to BJP State President B S Yeddiyurappafor accusing his government, Mr Siddaramaiah questioned why he didnot solve the Yetinahole and Mahadayi issues when he wasChief Minister. "Mahadayi Tribunal was set up during his (MrYeddyurappa) tenure but no step was taken to solve the issue," he added. Replying to a question, Mr Siddaramaiah said that Congress hasnot given call for Bharat Bandh and it was not against scrapping ofhigh valued notes including Rs 500 and Rs 1000. 'Akrosh Divas' was held to expose the NDA government's failure to come to therescue of common man who were forced to stand in queue in front of banksand ATMs. "Congress also in favour of putting an end to black moneyand fake currency," he added.UNI MSP CNR CS 1719 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0287-1042542.Xml
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar will be on a two-day visit to Bangladesh, which will be the first ever defence ministerial level trip to the neighbouring country since its inception after the 1971 War. Mr Parrikar will reach Dhaka on November 30 to hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is also taking care of the Defence Minister's portfolio. The landmark visit by Mr Parrikar is taking place in the backdrop of handing over of two conventional submarine to Bangladesh last fortnight, a development indicative of increasing footprints of Beijing in India's immediate neighbourhood, especially in the Indian Ocean Region, which is an area of domination of the Indian Army. ''The Defence Minister, apart from holding talks with Bangladeshi Prime Minister, will also call on President Abdul Hamid and security advisor to the Prime Minister Major General (Retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddiqui,'' officials in the Defence Ministry told UNI. During the visit, Mr Parrikar will also travel to Chittagong to visit the Bangladesh Military Academy. The Defence Minister is visiting Dhaka just ahead of Ms Hasina's visit to New Delhi in December, during which a defence cooperation agreement is likely to be inked. UNI MK AE SNU 1855 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0090-1042628.Xml
In a move which can be seen as a last ditch attempt by Pakistan to make its top Foreign Policy Advisor Sartaj Aziz's visit to attend the 'Heart of Asia Conference' in Amritsar, Pakistan's High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit today said Islamabad is willing for bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the conclave. Talking to news channel Aaj Tak, the Pakistani envoy said if there was an offer of dialogue from India, then it would be accepted by Pakistan. ''We can delay talks for months or even for years. But ultimately, a solution to the problems between India and Pakistan can only come through dialogue, and therefore, both nations must sit and discuss all the issues that confront them," he said. Mr Aziz is under attack from the Pakistani media, which is questioning the decision of attending the conference in the backdrop of India's sustained campaign to isolate Pakistan internationally on the issue of terrorism. Pakistan was still smarting under the cancellation of the Islamabad SAARC summit, which had to be put off after most of the members declined to participate in it due to atmosphere not being conducive for holding such a high profile summit. UNI MK AE SNU 1831 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0090-1042675.Xml
Bihar Assembly was adjourned for the day after stategovernment presented second supplementary budget of Rs 4461.70 Croresfor the financial year 2016-17 in the House. Soon after the House assembled in its post lunch sitting, statefinance minister Abdul Bari Siddiqui presented second supplementarybudget of Rs 4461-70 Crores for the financial year 2016-17. SpeakerVijay Kumar Chaudhary adjourned the House for the day afterpresentation of the supplementary budget. Later, state parliamentary affairs minister Shrawan Kumar toldmedia persons that main opposition BJP was not interested in raisingthe issue in House as per norms. BJP was only interested in hoggingthe limelight in media, he added. " Instead of its attempt to be in media glare, BJP should extendsupport to the government in discharging scheduled business of theHouse and raise the issue of public importance as per rules", headded.UNI KKS KK 1843 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0212-1042783.Xml
The 46th meeting of State Managing Committee (SMC) under the Chairmanship of Governor of Assam Banwarilal Purohit was held at Sainik Bhawan, Guwahati today. The meeting was attended by the Chief Secretary, Assam V.K.Pipersenia, , Maj Gen A.K.Pattanaik, COS,HQ 3 Corps, Maj Gen Ravi Prasad, COS 4Corps, Maj Gen A K Jha, GOC 51 Sub Area, representatives from the Ministry of Defence, New Delhi and a large number of senior officers from Army and Civil administration. Commodore Kamalesh Chandra Choudhury (Retd), Director, Sainik Welfare, Govt of Assam, Secretary State Managing Committee gave a power point presentation on the activities of the Sainik Board during the period 2010-2016. Speaking on the occasion, Governor Purohit conveyed his appreciation to the Government for supporting the Ex-Service Men Community. He also made a fervent appeal to all to come forward and donate generously to the cause of ex-service men. He further requested the Chief Secretary to instruct the Deputy Commissioners to gear up the flag day collection as these amounts are utilized for the welfare activities of the Ex-Service Men and the war widows. Purohit also asked the Sainik Welfare Board to give proper publicity of the existing Government educational and other schemes so that the ex service men and their dependant can make the optimum utilization of the schemes. He also emphasized the need for a skilled development centres in Assam for ex-service men. During the meeting the Director, Sainik Welfare, Govt of Assam gave a presentation highlighting the steps taken to revitalize the Sainik Board and its achievements during the period 2010-2015. He also mentioned that the renovations of the Sainik Rest Houses at Dhubri and Diphu have been completed. The Sainik Rest houses at Silchar and Mangaldoi were inaugurated and the construction of the Rest Houses at Halflong and Jorhat are in the final stages and would be ready for inauguration by end of December. The Sainik Board has also set up five more Zila Sainik Offices totaling 19 to cover 27 districts of Assam. The other districts will be covered in phases. The Director further stated that the Government of Assam has set up Grievance Redressal Mechanism for the Defence personnel under the respective DC's in every District headquarters. During the last five years, the Sainik Board had provided support and assistance to 41506 individuals from the Ex-Servicemen Community, out of which 8602 was for the last year. The Director further stated that the construction of the War Memorial at the North Bank of Dighalipukhuri Guwahati is completed against a cost of Rs. 7.50 crore and was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Assam on the occasion of the Independence Day this year. UNI SG SJC -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-1042708.Xml
In the wake of Prime Minister's persistent urge to the citizens to opt for for cashless transactions to fight black money menace, the influential Vishwa Hindu Parishad today backed the 'go cashless' appeal made by Narendra Modi. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) today conducted a training workshop for its staff in mobile banking. "In the endeavour of increasing cashless transactions, PMO officials trained office staff," Prime Minister said in a tweet. At a high-level meeting with his ministers, Prime Minister also urged his colleagues to try to enforce cashless transactions. In a significant development, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) today backed Modi's appeal for cashless transactions and said it will teach its young-wing Bajrang Dal cadres to conduct mobile and e-banking. VHP's International Joint secretary general Surendra Jain described the currency ban move as a "mileteone" which has helped curb Naxalism and terror-funding and also brought down the instances of stone-pelting in Jammu and Kashmir. "The problems being faced by the public due to sudden demonetisation are also being sorted out by the Government. The cashless transactions will definitely prove to be an important tool to fight black money," Jain said. On November 25, Union Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Minister Ram Vilas Paswan had directed officials of his Ministry to achieve 100 percent cashless working in all its transactions by December 10. In a meeting with senior officials of the Ministry and public sector Food Corporation of India (FCI), the Minister reviewed "cashless working" in all transactions being made by his department. Paswan was informed that all foodgrain procurement operations of FCI are cashless and payments are being made through cheques and RTGS. Meanwhile, an official release said: "Officers, including Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra and Additional Principal Secretary PK Mishra, conducted a workshop for the staff of the Prime Minister's Office, located at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg". The workshop aimed to train and initiate them in the process of mobile banking and conducting daily transactions through mobile applications such as UPI, e-wallets etc, the release said. "Officers demonstrated the process of cashless transactions, and helped their staff download the relevant mobile apps on their phones. The workshop witnessed an enthusiastic turnout, and keenness among the participants to move towards smart banking and transaction solutions," the release said. Officials from the State Bank of India and MyGov were also present on the occasion. Prime Minister Modi yesterday in his monthly radio broadcast 'Mann ki Baat' had urged citizens to opt for cashless economy and counseled people to shift to mobile and internet banking.UNI XC AKC SNU 1800 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1042565.Xml
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav continued his opposition on the demonetisation move of the Central Government and now alleged that it has hit the women and the children most. "The demonetisation has snatched the purse of the women and had emptied the piggy banks of the children," he commented. Talking to media here after attending a marriage function of state minister Shailendra Yadav 'Lalai' here in Shahganj area, the CM said,"everyone is feeling the heat due to demonetisation and none have been spared. Whether it is senior citizen, children, poor-rich, women ,youth, students and farmers, none have been left out in the crisis," Mr Yadav said. Attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi on claiming that demonetisation will help end corruption and counterfeited currencies in the country, the CM said,"already there are reports of fake currencies coming in the market. The step is anti-people as the government has taken the decision without preparing itself leading to the problem of the masses." When asked about which party he thinks Samajwadi Party has the challenge in the assembly polls, he commented that SP is well ahead against all the parties. The CM refused to comment anything on Amar Singh about his support to the demonetisation move of the Centre and deny to react whether the infighting within the family has ended or not.UNI MB PY SNU 1859 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0196-1042385.Xml
A BSc-IT student was arrested on the alleged charges of raping a married woman andalso blackmailing her on the pretext of posting her objectionable pictures on social media, police said here today. Ulhasnagar Police today said accused Yogesh Yogi Punjabi, of Khadakpada, Kalyan has been charged under sections 376, 328, 506 of the IPC and also sections 66(E) of the IT Act. Police said on March 23 this year around 1900 hrs, he called the victim, a resident of Ulhasnagar camp no 4 under the pretext of getting her a job. He took her in a car supposed to meet his father for the job and midway gave her a laced drink and as she fell unconscious, he raped her. Yogesh also took her photographs on his mobile and threatened her if she revealed anything to anyone about the rape he would post the video of both of them along with her pictures on social media. On November 15 the alleged accused called her and showed her the video clippings and threatened her that he would inform her husband about their relations. Being fed up with his frequent calls and constant harassment, the victim filed the complaint with the Ulhasnagar Police last evening who finally arrested him last night, police added.UNI XR NV AE SNU 1921 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-1042374.Xml
''Police early this morning intercepted a car with Delhi registration number at Gangyal here and nabbed five persons,'' police spokesman here said.

He said that one person hailing from Punjab and four others from Kashmir Valley were arrested with 194 grams of heroin and cash of Rs 9.49 Lakhs.

A case under relevant sections was registered and investigation started, police added.

He added that the drug was supposed to be distributed among the known Narco Paddlers or consumers of Jammu.

Meanwhile in a separate incident a truck on way from Srinagar towards Samba was intercepted at Mansar, he added.

"One bag was found beneath the driver's seat in which around three-kg poppy straw (Bhukki) was recovered,'' he said adding that the driver identified as Tariq Kucshey of Barsoo, Tehsil Awantipora, District Pulwama, Kashmir was arrested.

A case was registered and investigation started, police added.UNI VBH PS 2144

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0421-1043123.Xml
Amid growing speculation over Chief Minister and JD (U) president Nitish Kumar`s growing proximity with BJP in view of his support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for demonetisation of high value currency notes, LJP Chief and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan today advised Mr Kumar to quit the grand alliance if he had problems with the two other allies - RJD and Congress. Talking to mediapersons on the occasion of 17th foundation day of his party, Mr Paswan said that Mr Kumar took a bold and courageous step by backing Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of demonetisation and castigated RJD and Congress for criticising note ban. He also described the opposition sponsored 'Bharat Bandh" a complete flop and thanked Chief Minister Mr. Kumar for keeping his party aloof from the agitation. He said that Mr Kumar had also won accolades from Mr. Shah for his full support to demonetisation. Mr Paswan said that any decision on the re-induction of JD (U) into NDA would be taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah as the BJP was the largest party in the ruling alliance. He said that LJP was not in a position to make any remark on the possibility of JD (U) rejoining the NDA, but everybody would be happy if the alliance was further strengthened. UNI DH RD PS 2200 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0421-1043151.Xml
The Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee today took out a 'Jan Akrosh Diwas' rally to protest against the Centre's decision to demonetise te high values notes of Rs 500/1000 denomination. Led by Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee President Ajay Maken, hundreds of DPCC workers started their march from Mandi House to Parliament beating empty canisters to express their anger against demonetisation. Mr Maken said the common people have been queuing up before banks and ATMs for hours together to draw their own money while the real black money hoarders are sitting comfortably in their homes. He said the street vendors, small shopkeepers and daily wage earners were facing hardships due to cash crunch. Mr Maken alleged that there was a big scam in the demonetisation exercise, which has badly affected honest people while the rich and the big industrialists have not been affected at all. An unending stream of Congress workers shouted slogans while beating plates and canisters, and carrying placards. The demonstrators were stopped by the police at Parliament Street. Besides Mr Maken, other prominent party leaders included were AICC in-charge of Delhi PC Chacko, chief spokesperson Sharmistha Mukherjee, AICC secretaries Mr Manish Chatrath and Mr Naseeb Singh. Former MPs Sajjan Kumar along with other leaders also were present in the demonstration. UNI SM SNU 2226 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0271-1043068.Xml
The alleged mastermind in the Nabha jailbreak case Parminder alias Paida reportedly revealed the "Master Plan", disclosing that it took a team of 14 people to successfully escape six prisoners including Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo from the prison in Punjab. Paida had paid the price for going to his home town in Uttarakhand via Shamli. In his escape plan, he had decided to slip to Nepal after staying in his home town for a few days. Meanwhile, another jail breaker KL F leader Mintoo was arrested by Delhi Police today in the national Capital. An all out hunt was still on to nab the other five fugitives who had reportedly took shelter in Karnal and Panipat, police sources informed. According to the reports, during the interrogation with the sleuths of the Shamli Police and the Anti-Terrorists Squad (ATS), Paida revealed that all together 14 people were involved in the entire plan to get Mintoo and five other criminals released from the Nabha Jail. He said that the entire planning was hatched in Mudaki area of Ferozepur in Punjab. As per the plan, four of them entered into the jail in police uniform and one acted as the accused in their custody. Five other went inside the jail as family members to meet their relatives lodged inside the prison. Four others waited on four different vehicles outside the jail, Paida revealed. He said that at the main gate, they held the jail guards and other security persons in their captivity and later entered the jail firing indiscriminately. After executing the plan, they all ran in different directions and had planned to reach Nepal through separate routes. Paida said that he did not change the number plate of the vehicle in which he escaped. His native village is near Shahastradhara near IT Park in Dehradun. He took the Shamli route after crossing Panipat. He said that some of the local policemen identified him and arrested him along with arms and ammunition used in the crime. Paida informed that all the members involved in the plan remained in touch through `Whatsapp" application. Paida revealed the names of some other members involved in yesterday's incident as Prema (a resident of Jalandhar), Harry and Gopi (residents of Batala), Baba, Mani and Bhikkhar (residents of Mudaki in Ferozpur), Channa (a resident of Hoshiyarpur), Sukkha, Gopi Gauda, one more as Baba and two others whom he did not recognise but they hail from Chandigarh. Reports said after interrogating him all through yesterday night, the Shamli Police finally produced Paida in the local court today from where he was sent to the judicial custody for 14 days. Now police will take his custody. Paida could also be taken to Punjab for further interrogation, police sources said. It may be mentioned that during the interrogation, Paida said that he was also involved in the smuggling of narcotics in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab. Moreover, he is also accused of killing Punjab police Sub-Inspector Gurudev when he was on the run earlier. Meanwhile Uttar Pradesh Police would be recommending names of two of their policemen for the President's Gallantry Awards for their daring act in arresting the hardcore criminal Parminder, who was the mastermind in yesterday's Nabha Jail break. Inspector General of Police (Meerut Zone) Ajay Anand told reporters in Meerut that the UP Ppolice would recommend the names of two policemen, constable Shahzad and Deepanshu Tyagi, who arrested Parminder, for President's gallantry award. Besides this, DGP also announced a cash reward of Rs 50,000 each to the duo.UNI MB PS SNU 2301 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1042964.Xml
To protest against the demonetisation, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee today held protest demonstrations across the Jammu region. Protest rallies were organised in Jammu and various other parts of the Province, as part of the nationwide call for 'Akrosh Diwas' over the issue of demonetisation without adequate preparation resulting in great hardships to the common people. Addressing the gathering, JKPCC Chief Ghulam Ahmed Mir lashed out at the BJP Government at the Centre for its failure on all fronts and vitiating the atmosphere of peace and harmony in the country due to its wrong and divisive policies. "Modi-led Government at the Centre has failed to fulfil a single commitment with the people and has brought miseries for the common man due to unprecedented price hike in the country,'' Mr Mir said. He asserted that the sudden announcement of demonetisation on November 8 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was a move to divert the attention of the countrymen from the real issues. "The people are not being able to withdraw and use their own hard earned money, as a result large numbers of casualties have been reported from various parts of the country on account of this decision,'' he lamented and condemned the anti-democratic attitude of the Modi Government and failure to deal with the crises. Senior vice-president and former minister Sham Lal Sharma, while addressing the gathering of protesters at Akhnoor, said that the demonetisation has broken the backbone of common people particularly the farmers and labour class. Farmers were not able to withdraw money for fertilisers and seed which would adversely affect the production of rabi crops.UNI VBH PS SNU 2338 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0432-1042975.Xml
Several thousand residents of rebel-held eastern Aleppo fled shifting frontlines, residents and a monitor said, after a rapid advance by the Syrian army and allied forces that rebels fear could split their most important urban stronghold in two.The army and its allies took control on Saturday of the large Hanano housing district, on the northeast frontline of the besieged eastern part of Aleppo. Yesterday they said they had captured the neighbouring district, Jabal Badro.The army later said it had taken a third district, Holok, and killed a large number of terrorists, the term it uses for its opponents. State media said troops and allied forces were also pushing ahead in nearby Bustan al Basha, Haydariya and Sakhour districts and making significant advances."The shelling and aerial bombing does not stop and we our neighbours decided to leave with the army approaching," said Abdullah Ansari, who fled from Haydariya to areas further south within the besieged area with his family of six.The rapid advances in the last two days, after weeks of intense Russian and Syrian air strikes, have raised fears among the insurgents that the northern part of east Aleppo could be cut off from the southern part. That would weaken their control over the east and bring more residents closer to frontlines.Capturing all of Aleppo would be a major victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad after five and a half years of fighting that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced 11 million others.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the conflict, said about 400 people travelled into government-controlled Hanano from neighbouring rebel-held districts, from where some were transferred to government-held western Aleppo.State media said at least 1,500 people in rebel-held areas had fled to state controlled territory in the biggest exodus since months of heavy bombing on rebel-held areas where few civilians had left despite several corridors the army said it opened to for them and rebels who wanted to surrender.The army had blamed rebels for holding back civilians from leaving east Aleppo, saying they were using them as human shields.Hundreds were are also crossing into an Aleppo district held by the Kurdish YPG militia, which has largely avoided fighting the Syrian government and has been spared air attacks. Rebels said the militia had also been exploiting the army advance to grab more territory.Russian news agencies, citing the Defence Ministry, said yesterday more than 900 civilians, including 119 children, had left Jabal Badro in the last 24 hours.FLEEING BOMBARDMENT"We left Hanano because of the bombardment from the Syrian army during their advance, and the chlorine gas," Muhammad, who declined to use his full name out of fear for his safety, told Reuters.He was waiting with his wife, mother and three children at a minibus stop, hoping to travel on to government-held west Aleppo. He said Hanano had contained about 200-300 families, but they had come and gone throughout the war depending on the intensity of strikes.A 13-month inquiry by the global chemical weapons watchdog and the United Nations concluded that Syrian government forces, including helicopter squadrons, were responsible for the use of chlorine barrel bombs against civilians. Syrian authorities deny having used chemical weapons in the conflict.Aleppo, which was Syria's biggest city before the war began in 2011, is divided between the government-held west and rebel-held east. UN officials say at least 250,000 people are under siege in the east.There were fierce clashes in areas adjacent to Hanano, the Observatory, rebel sources and Syrian state media said. Rebel sources say they are fighting back with difficulty in the face of sustained aerial bombardment."The revolutionary forces are reinforcing their defence lines on the edges of Hanano, steadfast in the defence of our people in Aleppo ... But the planes have destroyed everything, stones, trees and people, in a systematic policy of destruction," said Yasser al-Yousef, from the political office of the Nour al-Din al-Zinki rebel group.People are also being displaced internally within east Aleppo. Hundreds are moving south within the besieged sector to avoid being trapped in the smaller northern part should the government split it in two."Many people are being displaced from the eastern to the western neighbourhoods of besieged Aleppo. There were about 300 families which moved, but there are families who are exhausted and the army is advancing in a very big way," Ibrahim Abu Laith, an official at the civil defence rescue organisation in east Aleppo, told Reuters from the city.He said the civil defence was giving aid to those displaced, but the service was coming under extreme strain because of the bombardments and displacements. It has said its supplies and equipment are running very low, with few if any medical centres left to take people for treatment. REUTERS RSD 0609 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0435-1041761.Xml
China's Foreign Ministry said today it had lodged a protest with Singapore after Singaporean armoured troop carriers were seized by Hong Kong customs en route from self-ruled Taiwan.Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang made the comment at a regular press briefing.REUTERS VS PM1255 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0440-1041996.Xml
Norway plans to order five Boeing Co P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol planes to maintain its surveillance capacity and meet future security challenges, the NATO country's Defence Ministry said.Following an agreement in Norway's parliament to boost long-term military spending, the 9.83 billion Norwegian crowns (1.15 billion dollar) purchase will likely face only minor political opposition.Norway's long maritime border with neighbouring Russia has become a renewed focus for the country's military planners following the Russian annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region. Norway's territorial waters also stretch far into the Arctic.Neighbouring Sweden and Finland, which are not in the NATO alliance, have also expressed concerns about incursions by Russian submarines and other naval vessels."The new security situation increases our demand for situational awareness in our own vicinity. The ability to handle current and future challenges must therefore be strengthened," Defence Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide said."The introduction of the Poseidon aircraft is crucial for Norway to maintain a leading position and expertise on strategic conditions in northern areas," she said in the statement released late on Friday. The statement did not specifically mention Russia.The submarine-hunting patrol planes will replace Norway's current fleet of six P-3 Orion and three DA-20 Jet Falcon aircraft and are expected to be delivered in 2021 and 2022. Norway will also buy related intelligence equipment, the ministry said.REUTERS SDR PM1419 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1042131.Xml
The United Nations needs to make sure there is an "effective combination" of human, civil and economic rights in a world where many rights are not respected, UN secretary general-elect Antonio Guterres said today during a visit to Beijing.China's leadership has overseen a sweeping crackdown on activists since President Xi Jinping took power, including detaining or imprisoning dozens of rights lawyers in what the government says is the targeting of criminal acts.While in China in July, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on China to respect civil society.China often clashes with UN bodies and envoys over the issue of human rights, and was angered last month when the UN human rights chief spoke at an award ceremony for a prominent Chinese academic jailed for life two years ago.Speaking to reporters with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi standing at his side, Guterres, without specifically mentioning China, said what was needed was a United Nations that abides by its principles."In a world torn by war, a United Nations able to enhance diplomacy for peace," he said."In a world where so many rights are not respected, to make sure that there is an effective combination in human rights, of the civil and political rights and the economic and social rights in a balanced way," Guterres said.Wang made no mention of human rights in his comments, but said he thought Guterres would make an "outstanding" secretary general and said the world had great expectations of the United Nations."The UN is an effective platform for responses to global challenges and the central institution for international efforts to handle global affairs," Wang said.Guterres, who assumes his role on Jan. 1, praised China's role in UN peacekeeping missions and hot spot diplomacy."China can be a very important honest broker, trying to bring together some that are involved in conflict," he said. "China can play a very important role in the diplomacy for peace that the world badly needs today."While China has been deeply involved in efforts to resolve the Iran and North Korea nuclear issues, and in African problems like South Sudan, it is also stretching its wings to try to help bring peace in the Middle East. REUTERS SDR PM1558 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1042341.Xml
Germany's highest court has rejected an appeal filed by a man known as the "bookkeeper of Auschwitz", who was sentenced last year to four years in prison for his role in the murder of 300,000 people at the Nazi death camp.It said it rejected the appeal of Oskar Groening, 95, who was convicted in July 2015 of aiding and abetting the murders, as well as appeals filed by several other people who argued that Groening should have been convicted of the more serious charge of being an "accomplice" to murders."The conviction is therefore now legally binding," the Federal Court of Justice said in a statement. It said it took the decision in September but only made it public today.Groening, a former Nazi SS officer, did not kill anyone himself while working at the camp in Nazi-occupied Poland, but the lower court ruled that he helped support those responsible for mass murder through various actions, including by sorting bank notes seized from trainloads of arriving Jews.Hans Holtermann, Groening's attorney, told Reuters there was no possibility of a further appeal, but he was studying whether to file a complaint with Germany's constitutional court given that Groening had been under investigation since 1977."We think that should have been taken into consideration," he said.The trial went to the heart of the question of whether people who were minor participants in the Nazi atrocities, but did not actively participate in the killing of 6 million Jews during the Holocaust, were themselves guilty.The now frail Groening admitted moral guilt but said it was up to the court to decide whether he was legally guilty. During the trial he said he could only ask God to forgive him as he was not entitled to ask this of victims of the Holocaust.REUTERS SD PM1619 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1042384.Xml
The IS militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online as saying.

Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire on Sunday.

They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.

All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk", an IS offshoot which controls the area.

Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.

Later on Sunday, the Israeli Air Force overnight struck a compound used by the militant group inside Syria, the military said in a statement.

The attack targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the IS as an operation centre along the border in Golan Heights, Xinhua news agency cited the statement as saying.

Several fighter jets took part in the raid, dropping 10 one-ton bombs on the target.

Israel seized 1,200 sq. km of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.

--IANS py/ahm/dg

( 298 Words)

2016-11-28-17:26:15 (IANS)
Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed to Turkey that aircraft which carried out an attack on Turkish soldiers near the Syrian city of al-Bab last week did not belong to Russia, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said today.Speaking at a news conference after a cabinet meeting, Kurtulmus said "necessary steps" would be taken over last Thursday's air strike, which killed at least three Turkish soldiers and wounded ten, once flight records are reviewed.Turkey's military has said the strike was suspected to have been carried out by Syrian government forces, in what would be the first such Turkish deaths at the hands of Syrian forces since Ankara launched a cross-border incursion in August.REUTERS SDR AS1718 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1042510.Xml
Religious extremism has begun to spread to inland China from its western Xinjiang region, long considered by the government to be at the forefront of its efforts to battle Islamist separatists, the country's top religious affairs official said.China says it faces a serious threat from Islamist militants in Xinjiang, which borders central Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and is home to the largely Muslim Uighur minority group.Hundreds have died there in recent years in violence that Beijing blames on religious extremists, and the government has put in place tight controls on religion in the name of combating radicalism and maintaining stability.Extremist thought was now infiltrating China's "inland provincial areas", Wang Zuoan, head of the State Administration for Religious Affairs, told the National Congress of the Chinese Islamic Association, according to an article in the official China Daily newspaper today.The paper did not give details of the spread or mention specific provinces, but cited Wang as saying China's official Islamic clergy must be the "front line" in fighting extremism and should work to "convert" those influenced by it."We should let Muslims know the boundaries between legal and illegal religious activities, to enable them to say no to illegal activities," he told the association on Saturday.Wang also said that China must "appropriately manage the issue of Menhuan Sect Islam", referring to a Chinese-style Sufism, a mystical form of Islam, according to a statement posted on the State Administration of Religious Affairs website.China has about 21 million Muslims, only a portion of which are Uighur. Other Muslim groups, such as the Hui, are spread throughout the country, including in the western region of Ningxia and the southwestern province of Yunnan.President Xi Jinping has urged Chinese Muslims to resist illegal religious "infiltration".Attacks tied to such extremism by the government have spread beyond Xinjiang in recent years. A grisly knife attack in Yunnan's Kunming train station in March 2014 killed more than 30 people.Rights groups say that unrest in Xinjiang often stems from localised incidents that boil over into physical violence, fuelled by ethnic tension and religious and economic repression of Turkic-language speaking Uighurs.Beijing regularly denies religious discrimination against minorities in Xinjiang or elsewhere. Despite a resurgence of religious faith, officially atheist China restricts believers to a handful of recognised religions overseen by the state.REUTERS SDR AS1718 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1042524.Xml
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte today hit out at what he called "bullshit" Western threats to seek his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his role in a bloody crackdown on drugs.Police figures show Duterte's campaign has killed more than 2,500 people since he took office on June 30, about three-quarters in police counter-narcotics operations, and the rest believed to be the victims of vigilantes or druglords eliminating rivals or silencing those who could implicate them.An ICC prosecutor last month said the Hague-based tribunal may have jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrators of Philippines killings."You scare me that you will jail me? International Criminal Court? Bullshit," Duterte said during a speech.He scolded the United States for what he called hypocritical threats to try him in the ICC, to which Washington itself is not a signatory. He did not specify when the US threat was made.The United States chose not to sign the Rome Statute to protect former President George W. Bush, Duterte said, without elaborating."America itself is threatening to jail me in the International Criminal Court," Duterte said. "It is not a signatory of that body. Why? Because at that time, they were afraid Bush would face it."For months, Duterte has been ridiculing concerns that extrajudicial killings could be taking place in his drugs war, and the United States, European Union and United Nations have been the preferred targets of his comments.The brash former mayor and prosecutor said lawyers in Europe were "rotten", "stupid", and had a "brain like a pea".This month, Duterte said he might follow Russia's move to withdraw from the ICC, describing it as "useless".He believes the West has failed to comprehend the gravity of the Philippines' methamphetamine problem and has said he was ready to "rot in jail" to achieve his goals.There is nothing wrong with threatening to kill bad elements, he said today."I will never allow my country to be thrown to the dogs," Duterte said. "I said, when I was a mayor, 'If you destroy my city with drugs I will kill you.'"Simple as that... When was it a crime to say, 'I will kill you,' in protecting my country?" REUTERS SDR BL1842 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0431-1042757.Xml
Attaullah Khoghyani, a spokesman for the provincial governor said that a military operation in Pacheragam district of the province was launched by the security forces in which 30 insurgents were killed in the past 24 hours.

"During the operation one of the judges of Daesh, who was named Muftahuddin, was also killed by the security forces," Tolo News quoted Khoghyani, as saying.

He said that there were no civilian and security forces casualties in the operation.

Seven Daesh insurgents were killed and three others were injured in a U.S drone strike in Hakamina district of the province, local security officials of Nangarhar said. (ANI)
Five people were arrested in Kosovo today on suspicion of throwing petrol bombs at the Turkish consulate in the southern town of Prizren.Police said no one was injured and only minor damage was caused. The motive was unclear, as Turkey is a major investor in Kosovo and has been one of the biggest supporters of its independence since it seceded from Serbia in 2008.Kosovo media reported that before the attack, a group of people torn down Turkish flags that had been put up across the town together with Albanian flags. Ethnic Turks account for 5 per cent of the population in Prizren.Kosovo and neighbouring Albania today celebrated a Flag Day holiday marking the 104th anniversary of Albanian independence from the Ottoman Empire.Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj condemned the attack. "The relations between Kosovo and Turkey are excellent and will not be damaged by any vandalism or isolated act," he said in a statement.Turkish firms run Pristina airport and an electricity distribution company, while a construction group has won contracts worth 2 billion dollars to build sections of highway. REUTERS PS BL2045 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-1043049.Xml
Prime Minister Theresa May said today Britain she hoped to reach an early agreement on the status of Polish citizens in the country with Poland, as her government prepares to leave the European Union.May said she had reiterated her plan to guarantee the rights of Poles and other EU citizens currently living in Britain, so long as the rights of British citizens living across the EU were also guaranteed.At the first summit between the two countries, May told a news conference: "I hope we can reach an early agreement on this issue, providing certainty for Polish citizens here and British people living in Europe." REUTERS PS BL2152 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-1043127.Xml
PARIS, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- Former French Prime Minister Francois Fillon finished first out of seven contenders in the first round of the conservative primary on Sunday, knocking former President Nicolas Sarkozy out of the presidential race, early results showed.

According to results based on 9,437 polling stations out of a total 10,228, Fillon took 44.2 percent of the vote, maintaining a healthy lead against former Foreign Minister Alain Juppe, who won 28.5 percent.

Sarkozy ranked the third with 20.6 percent of the vote, leaving Fillon and Juppe in play for the second round on Sunday.

"This first round of primaries has been a remarkable popular success, it is a wave that demonstrates the incredible interest of the citizens for the future of their country," said Fillon.

The 62-year-old conservative pledged that his campaign will accelerate further to break with a five-year failure, referring to the administration of President Francois Hollande.

Fillon also paid homage to Sarkozy, in an obvious bid to woo Sarkozy's supporters. "Defeat should humiliate no one and we will need everyone."

With liberal economic ideas, Fillon has campaigned for strict measures to revive the French economy. He promised to slash 500,000 public posts, cut public spending and make the French work longer.

Juppe, 71, vowed to continue the fight. "I want to bring French voters together around credible, fair reforms," he told supporters after the release of the partial results.

"This first round is a surprise, next Sunday, as I want, will be another surprise," he added.

Building his campaign on "happy identity," Juppe portrayed himself as the country's unifier "to lead to the path of peace and hope."

He promised to restore state power, tackle mass unemployment and modernize the educational system.

With a moderate rhetoric, Juppe is seeking to win support of centrists and left-wing voters who are angry at broken promises of Socialist President Hollande and wants to block far-right leader Marine Le Pen from winning the 2017 election.

Sarkozy, who hoped to revenge himself on his defeat in 2012, came back with a pledge to listen to "the silent majority."

He had bet on his political credentials that earned him in 2007 the highest popularity ratings of any leader since Charles de Gaulle. Unfortunately, his narrative has not worked out.

Speaking to his supporters, Sarkozy acknowledged defeat and endorsed Fillon, who served as prime minister under his 2007-2012 presidency.

"I have no bitterness, no sadness, and I wish all the best for my country, for you, my fellow citizens, and for the one who will lead this country I love so much," he said.

"I hold Alain Juppe in high esteem, but I feel closer to Francois Fillon's political choices. I will therefore vote for him in the second round of the primary," he added.

Former Agriculture Minister Bruno Le Maire, who had 2.7 percent of the vote in the first round, also endorsed Fillon.

According to pollsters, a conservative candidate would easily defeat Hollande and Le Pen in the presidential race.
PARIS, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- French President Francois Hollande will make known on Dec. 10 whether he will seek a second five-year term in next year's presidential election, officials here said Tuesday.

"The president said he would give his response (on a possible presidential bid) on Dec. 10," Didier Guillaume, head of the Socialist group in the senate and a close ally of Hollande, told Public Senat television late on Tuesday.

Government spokesman Stephane Le Foll said Wednesday in an interview with news channel BFMTV that there is no doubt Hollande will launch a presidential bid, but declined to give a date for the announcement.

"It's he who will announce the date and the decision," he said.

During a recent prime-time interview, Hollande had said he would announce his decision by the end of 2016.

Traditionally, the incumbent head of state represents his party in an election, without a contest. But prospects of a primary have been raised due to Hollande's record-low approval ratings.

French pollsters predicted the Socialist leader would lose in the first round of the upcoming elections if he sought re-election.

Opinions polls also showed Hollande, who is trying to improve the country's employment rate, would lose to his former economy minister Emmanuel Macron, who has declared his candidacy.

With his economic credibility already on the line, Hollande has set reversing jobless claims as a condition to extend his stay at the Elysee Palace, betting on a better business climate and various devices he implemented to encourage hiring.

France's jobless claims dropped by 1.9 percent at the end of September compared to a month earlier, reaching the lowest level since 1996, according to labor ministry data.

France's left-wing parties are scheduled to hold primaries on Jan. 22 and 29.
ALGIERS, Nov.27 (Xinhua) -- Algerian Defense Ministry said Sunday that four armed militants surrendered to security authorities in the southern part of In Amenas near the Libyan border.

"Following the considerable counterterrorism efforts of the People's National Army, four terrorists surrendered on Sunday to security authorities in the border area of Tarat, the military operation sector of In Amenas," the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

"The terrorists were carrying four Kalashnikov submachine guns and eight full magazines," said the statement.

The statement also noted that army troops seized two Kalashnikov submachine guns, three cartridge clips and a quantity of ammunition on Saturday, following combing operations in the southernmost part of In Guezzam.

Over the last nine months, intense anti-terrorism operations in Algeria have killed more than 100 armed militants and destroyed plenty of bunkers housing weapons and bombs.
A news conference is held after the closing ceremony of the 16th Francophonie (French-speaking countries) Summit in Antananarivo, capital of Madagascar, on Nov. 27, 2016. The 16th Francophonie (French-speaking countries) Summit closed Sunday in Antananarivo, Madagascar, with a joint declaration adopted by the 80 members of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF). (Xinhua/Wen Hao)

ANTANANARIVO, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- The 16th Francophonie (French-speaking countries) Summit closed Sunday in Antananarivo, Madagascar, with a joint declaration adopted by the 80 members of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF).

Embodying this summit's theme "Shared growth and responsible development," 20 heads of state and government addressed issues including prevention of radicalization, gender equality, economic growth and environment. A total of 13 resolutions were adopted as well.

The heads of state and government have decided to set up a permanent entity dedicated to the promotion of gender equality, rights and autonomisation of women and girls.

The entity aims to assure the decision-making of women in public institutions; to advocate for ending violence against females, female genital mutilation, forced and early marriages; and to guide women and girls into professional and social life.

They reaffirmed that participation of women on an equal footing in the process of prevention, mediation and decision making is an objective and an essential means of preventing and resolving conflicts.

They also stressed their engagement to "develop efficient responses in the fields of development, education and employment, especially for women and the youth, in order to facilitate their social, economic and political integration."

During the opening ceremony on Saturday, several heads of state and government talked about the danger of terrorism across the Francophonic world. French President Francois Hollande called on the participants to reinforce cooperation in fight against Islamist radicalization.

In the final declaration, the heads of state and government of La Francophonie are "determined to work in a concrete and concerted way to reinforce cooperation in prevention of radicalization and fight against terrorism."

The declaration also includes reinforcement of legal and judicial cooperation across the Francophonic world to fight terrorism.

As for economic growth, the declaration stressed that "a global approach is necessary to foster a sustainable economic environment which allows everyone to live in conditions of dignity and equality".

The heads of states and governments are "determined to assure an effective application of the Economic Strategy" adopted at the 15th Francophonie Summit in Dakar.

They also welcomed investments that will improve participation and intergration of SME from developing countries into global markets.

As a priority strategy adopted at the summit of Kinshasa in 2012, tripartite cooperation is again mentioned in the final declaration.

Describing the low level of education as a source of poverty, the heads of state and government decided to increase the number of qualified teachers to make fundamental learning accessible for all, especially for young girls.

A large part of the declaration was reserved for sustainable development and energy for all.

The heads of state and government planned to expand cooperation within the OIF in order to, as required in the Paris Agreement, reinforce the capacity of each member country and facilitate technological transfer.

The OIF also accepted New Caledonia as associate member, and three new observer members, Republic of Korea, Argentina, Canada's Ontario. However, the Saudi Arabia is not accepted as an observer by the OIF, due to its failure of submitting a "complete application."

The OIF now has 58 members, including 4 associate members and 26 observers.

The 17th Francophonie Summit will be hold in Armenia in 2018, and Tunisia will hold the 18th Francophonie Summit in 2020 when the OIF will celebrate its 50th anniversary.
ANKARA, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- At least 11 people have died in a mine collapse on Nov. 17 in the Sirvan district of Turkey's southeastern province of Siirt, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

The bodies were found at the Madenkoy copper mine, while search and rescue teams are still working to locate five other miners trapped underground.

The mine's operating manager was remanded in custody, on a charge of negligence relating to safety regulations, two days after the accident.

Heavy rainfall is believed to have triggered a landslide that caused the mine collapse.
AMMAN, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Jordan on Sunday endorsed the 2017 state budget with an estimated spending of 8.9 billion dinars (about 12.5 billion U.S. dollars), the state-run Petra news agency reported.

The budget forecasts foreign grants to reach 777 million dinars, the report said.

Budget deficit, which after grants is expected to reach 827 million dinars, projected for 2017 represents 2.8 percent of the gross domestic product, it added.

Spending in 2017 state budget is 7.5 percent higher than 2016, it said.

Of the total spending, 1.3 billion dinars is capital expenditure that will be focused on projects in fields of energy, water, health, education, transportation and development of governorates.

Capital expenditure in 2017 is 12.7 percent higher than that of 2016, it added.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- About 85 percent of U.S. citizens think their country is now more divided than previous years, and more than half would like the incoming administration to mend the fence, revealed a poll released on Sunday.

According to the CNN/ORC poll, the number who feared division has reached its highest point since 2000, and it is also the first time the number topped 80 percent.

The survey, with 1,003 samples, also questioned whether the Trump administration, coupled with a Republican-held Congress, should incorporate Democratic policies. About 79 percent said yes, while 16 percent said no.

Referring to the election result, in which Republican Donald Trump won the electoral vote but lost the popular vote, 53 percent of surveyed said he should try to attract the support of those who voted against him, while 40 percent said he only have his supporters in mind.

Trump claimed victory to the Nov. 8 presidential election, but controversy surrounding the election has not yet ended.

Green Party candidate Jill Stein has called for a recount in the states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, an effort backed by the Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton's campaign.
KHARTOUM, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Sudan government on Sunday received the first batch of life-saving medicines in accordance with an agreement between the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and Sudan's Health Ministry on importing medicines at inexpensive cost.

"This is the first batch of life-saving medicines representing about 50 types. It is the fruit of the partnership with the international organization," Sudan's Health Minister Bahar Idriss Abu Garda said in a statement by the UNDP.

He said the agreement on expanding the procurement circle with the UN is beneficial for Sudan as it shortens the prolonged banking procedures and contributes to bringing medicines in a short time to serve the citizens.

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Marta Reudas, for her part, urged for supporting the partnership and expanding the medicines procurement circle, according to the statement.

She said that providing medicines, medical and laboratory equipment and health commodities to Sudan aims mainly to lessen the suffering of many patients, noting that they were looking forward to building further partnerships with probable donors to support this effort for the interest of the Sudanese citizens.

In March 2016, the UNDP and Sudan's Health Ministry signed an agreement on enhancing the procurement of medicines, medical and laboratory equipment and consumables to enhance the treatment of patients in Sudan.

The project constitutes an unprecedented attempt to procure life-saving medicines at inexpensive cost with the aim to treat cardio-vascular, respiratory and kidney diseases, in addition to diabetes, antimicrobial and digestive system drugs.

Sudan government has committed to fully providing the total fund of the three-year project which amounts to 60 million U.S dollars. Enditem
WINDHOEK, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Namibia's first-ever HIV/AIDS conference, scheduled on Nov. 28 to 30, will see more than 350 delegates discuss ways of containing the disease.

Scholars, health professionals and representatives of the World Health Organization, Namibia National Students Organization, UNAIDS as well the business community are among the delegates to attend the event.

The conference follows the 2015 HIV/AIDS report, launched by UNAIDS on Nov. 21 in Windhoek.

The report revealed that more than 210,000 people are living with the virus in Namibia, and more than 149,000 are on antiretroviral therapy.

According to the UNAIDS report, 18 million people are on antiretroviral therapy worldwide.

Jeremia Nghipundjwa, health director of Namibia's Erongo, said the conference provides an opportunity to build on Namibia's past achievements by sharing information on new interventions.

It will also bring together academics and researchers to share their latest studies on HIV prevention and treatment to "turn back the clock on HIV by 2030," he said. Enditem
A boy stands below a Cuban national flag at half-mast in honor of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, in Havana, capital of Cuba, on Nov. 27, 2016. The Cuban government has declared nine days of national mourning through Dec. 4 for Fidel Castro, who passed away late Friday at the age of 90. (Xinhua/David de la Paz)

HAVANA, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Cuban were working on Sunday to prepare for a national tribute to their revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro, who died late Friday at the age of 90.

The tribute will take place on Monday from 9 a.m. local time until 10 p.m., at the Jose Marti Memorial in Revolution Square in Havana, local officials told reporters. The ceremony will begin with the firing of a 21-gun salute, according to a government statement.

The Jose Marti Memorial, which will temporarily welcome Castro's remains, is at the highest point of Havana. It stands on Revolution Square, long held to be one of Cuba's most emblematic spots.

For decades, it hosted massive demonstrations in support of the Revolution and Castro gave many of his most important speeches there.

On Tuesday, the square will also host a public mass at 7 p.m. for Cubans to pay their respects.

Following that, the ashes will begin a trip of around 1,000 kilometers from Havana to Santiago de Cuba. This journey will be the reverse of the one Castro carried out, as a young guerrilla leader, in his Caravan of Liberty in 1959.

After nine days of national mourning, the ashes of the revolutionary leader will be laid to rest on Dec. 4 in the Santa Ifigenia cemetery after another mass in the Antonio Maceo Square in Santiago de Cuba.

Besides preparations for the official commemoration, across the nation, hundreds of thousands of people turned out during the weekend waving flags and chanting slogans in Castro's honour.

Sports and cultural activities will be suspended for the period of mourning, while flags will remain at half-mast. Newspapers were printed in black ink in memory of the man, who led the country for decades.
A dancer performs during a Chinese modern dance show named "Oath Midnight Rain" in Cairo, Egypt on Nov. 27, 2016.(Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)

CAIRO, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian audience has a great opportunity to closely experience the Chinese modern dance as a Beijing-based troupe performed on stage in Cairo Sunday.

The Beijing Modern Dance Company, a leading group of Chinese contemporary dance, performed in Cairo's al-Gomhoriya one of its famous performances dubbed "Oath-Midnight Rain" with over 100 Egyptian and Chinese audiences attending the show.

Exploring the choreographer's understanding of Buddhist Samsara, the show utilizes the personification of flower, bird, fish, insect and grass which are representative elements with far-reaching cultural meaning and profound symbolic significance in traditional Chinese culture.

The show is part of the 2016 China-Egypt Culture Year jointly launched by Egypt and China to mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations.

Choreographer and director of the show Gao Yanjinzi told Xinhua the idea she wants to convey through the show is that life is beautiful and should be treasured, even for the lives of a flower, a bird or an insect.

"The theme of 'Oath-Midnight Rain' is the Buddhist concept of Samsara, which is of course very different from Egyptian philosophy," she said. "But I am confident that the Egyptian audience will enjoy the performance because both Chinese and Egyptian cultures are open-minded, and it may serve as a bridge to connect the two peoples with art."

The Beijing Modern Dance company regularly performs throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, North and South America.
BERLIN, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- The dispute regarding the sources of money used to make pensions for Germany's eastern and western states will be resolved rapidly, said the minister of social affairs on Sunday.

Andrea Nahles told a German TV program in the evening that she and Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, from different governing coalition parties with different solutions, have talked over phone, and they will work to resolve the urgent problem soon.

Senior politicians from the coalition have agreed earlier the week on a timetable to gradually raise pensions in the eastern states to reach the level of those in the west by 2025.

The plan will cost a yearly 3.7 billion euros (3.92 billion U.S. dollars) by 2025, and it has been unclear as to how it would be financed.

Nahles from SPD was in favor of taxation means, while Schaeuble from CDU stood for funding from Germany's endowment insurance system.
LISBON, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- President of Portuguese state-owned bank Caixa Geral de Depositos, Antonio Domingues, resigned on Sunday, the ministry of finance said in a statement.

Domingues will remain on duty until the end of December and the person to replace Domingues will be designated soon, the ministry of finance added.

Domingues' resignation comes amid talks to recapitalize the bank, which was agreed by Portugal and the European Commission in August. The bank is set to receive an injection of up to 2.7 billion euros (2.9 billion U.S. dollars).

However, the recapitalisation plan has been delayed since a recent court ruling said the bank's team must declare their income and assets.
LA PAZ, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Bolivian President Evo Morales on Sunday compared Fidel Castro, the Cuban revolutionary leader, to the indigenous leader, Tupac Katari, who fought against Spanish colonialists in the 18th century.

"Our leader Fidel Castro ... should be considered like Tupac Katari, for facing North American domination and the capitalist system, as our grandfather Tupac Katari faced Spanish colonialism," said Morales in a public appearance in La Paz.

In 1781, Tupac Katari led an indigenous revolt against the Spanish. Leading an army of about 40,000 people, he besieged La Paz for several months before being defeated by the Spanish. He was then condemned to death and executed by being quartered, although his legend lived on.

Morales said that Castro had left behind a legacy of anti-imperialist struggle and that his anti-capitalist ideas would echo through time.

The Bolivian president and Castro maintained a close friendship, dating back to before Morales entered government and was a trade unionist.

Morales was a frequent visitor to Cuba and met with Castro regularly to seek his advice.

The Bolivian leader also lashed out at U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who released a statement condemning the Cuban leader.

""The president-elect of the United States is celebrating. I cannot understand ... the cynicism to celebrate the death of Fidel, that is the culture of capitalism," he said.
MELBOURNE, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Every child in the Victorian school system will be required to swim by the age of 12 under new government guidelines.

The curriculum overhaul, announced by the Victorian government on Monday to coincide with Water Safety Week, came in the wake of research that revealed three out of five of the state's students could not swim when they left primary school.

Under the program, schools will be required to develop their own water safety programs but will receive funding from the government to do so.

Forty-three people have died in Victorian waters in the past 12 months, up from the 10-year average of 38 while paramedics also responded to 70 non-fatal incidents.

In the same time period, drownings among people aged over 65 years went up 40 percent, prompting a separate major water safety campaign targeting the elderly which was also announced on Monday.

In order to have fulfilled the requirement, children will have to achieve Victorian Water Safety Certificate which tests their water safety knowledge, rescue skills and abilities in survival sequences, in addition to their swimming ability.

James Merlino, Victoria's Minister for Education and Emergency Services, said the new curriculum would "help save lives."

"That's why students will learn about water safety, how to float and swim as part of their physical education classes under the new Victorian curriculum from term one next year," Merlino told News Limited on Monday.

General manager of education for Life Saving Victoria, Kate Simpson, welcomed the changes, saying school was the right time to "deliver these life skills."

"We hope the knowledge and skills the children receive will transfer into adulthood and allow them to enjoy the water safely," Simpson said.
by Matt Walsh

CANBERRA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish government has yet to respond to Australia's request for Melbourne-born Islamic State (IS) recruiter Neil Prakash to be extradited, Australia's Justice Minister said on Monday.

Prakash, one of the caliphate's most prolific propaganda machines and recruiters, was arrested in Turkey earlier this month after spending months on the run, and is expected to undergo questioning by authorities not only from Turkey, but from other nations affected by his extremist recruiting.

Australian Justice Minister Michael Keenan said while they understand the nature and magnitude of the arrest, the Australian government had approached Turkey to secure Prakash's extradition to face disciplinary action in Australia.

"They're very aware of our keen interest," Keenan told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Monday. "He's obviously subject at the moment to the Turkish justice system and Turkish legal processes."

Keenan said while Australia had a vested interest in bringing the Melbourne-born man to justice, the federal government understood that Prakash's extremist influence extended well beyond Australia.

"The most important thing, of course, is that people involved in allegations of this nature face justice," Keenan said.

"But it is the case that Turkey and Australia have similar laws, and if you go and fight alongside the Islamic State, if you support these people in the Middle East, then you are committing breaches of law in many countries."

Counter-terror experts agree it could be some time before Prakash is handed over to Australian authorities, if at all.

"He would have insight into networks in other countries as well of Australia," Dr. Leah Farrall, a counter-terror expert at the United States Studies Center (USSC), said.

However, despite the prospect of having one of world's most wanted terrorists behind bars, some experts have raised concerns that Prakash could attempt to radicalize other inmates if jailed in Australia.

While he would be considered safe from the public, Dr. Clarke Jones from the Australian National University (ANU) said, as one of Islamic State's best recruiters, there was a risk he could attempt to impose extremist values on his fellow inmates.

"I have no doubt he will have a significant influence here in Australia in the prison system," Jones, a prison radicalization expert, told the ABC on Monday.

"Prison systems are notoriously porous, regardless if it's (a high security prison) or not.

"How will they stop him passing messages to others? It could be more of a risk bringing him back to our prisons. Trying to manage someone like (him) could be extremely problematic."

Prakash left Melbourne for Syria in 2013, and has been linked to a number of high-profile attempted terror attacks in Australia.

He reportedly recruited Melbourne teen Numan Haider, who was shot and killed by police after he attempted to kill two officers outside of a Melbourne police station in 2014, while Prakash was also linked to the foiled Anzac Day terror plot in 2015, in which Sevdet Besim planned to behead a police officer while a parade was underway.

There had been reports earlier in the year that Prakash had been killed in a U.S-led drone strike, but those reports were never confirmed.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China reiterated Monday that it would stick to its opening up policy and "going out" strategies, facilitating investment abroad while guarding against risks, according to a government statement.
CANBERRA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Foreign workers will continue to play a leading part in filling positions in vital services in rural Australia, Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said Monday.

In defence of the government's Temporary Skilled Work (457) visa regulations, in which foreign workers are allowed to work in Australia for up to four years, Joyce said that overseas workers are vital to the rural Australian workforce as urban-based professionals continue to shun moving out of the cities.

Using the example of doctors, Joyce said that many regional communities would have no local doctors if only Australian-educated practitioners were allowed to practice.

He said that while, in a perfect world, locally-trained doctors would be available to all Australians regardless of post code, it would simply never happen as many local doctors were unable or unwilling to move out of major cities.

Joyce said the government's 457 visa regulations hit a "sweet spot" which the opposition's planned regulations would miss.

"The first thing that all Australians would love in their town is an Australian doctor," Joyce told Guardian Australia.

"And if they can't get an Australian doctor, the next best thing is a foreign doctor. It's a real worry for people in regional Australia that if you or your child gets sick, there simply is no doctor there."

Joyce said Australian Medical Association claims that there were "too many" doctors already in Australia were misleading, and said foreign workers coming into Australia on the 457 visa were "necessary" for communities outside of major cities.

"Now the Australian Medical Association might say that there are too many doctors coming on line, but maybe they all live in (inner-city Sydney)," Joyce said.

"The only way we can attract people to many of these towns is if the business structure is complete and furnished with all the rights skills at all the right levels.

"And foreign workers are often necessary for that. People in regional towns expect that."

Joyce added that those from regional areas get upset when organizations such as the AMA makes claims that there are enough local doctors when it simply isn't true outside of the major cities.

"If doctors wanted to spread themselves evenly across the country, then we would all probably be okay," Joyce said. "But they don't."
WELLINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's biggest university has launched a new institute in China to encourage greater collaboration in innovation.

The University of Auckland's new Innovation Institute China (UAIIC) will provide access to a range of networks, research and funding opportunities in China, the university's knowledge transfer company, UniServices, said Monday.

The institute in the eastern city of Hangzhou will formally open in the first quarter of 2017 and focus on collaboration.

It will allow the university and its partners to develop stronger local relationships in China with local and central government, Chinese universities and research institutes, Chinese companies and international companies with a presence in China.

It will also provide access to a wider range of public and private good funding opportunities in China and improve market knowledge and access.

"By developing a wholly foreign owned entity in Hangzhou, China, we are enhancing our position in the world innovation ecosystem," UniServices general manager international Dr Lisbeth Jacobs said in a statement.

"It will enable a safe pathway for international clients who have a desire to undertake research in China with the University of Auckland."

University of Auckland researchers will have access to the facilities when the building was completed enabling closer collaborations with Chinese universities, government agencies and commercial partners.
MELBOURNE, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Australia's Tasmanian tourism chiefs are considering erecting signs in Mandarin to make life easier for Chinese visitors.

The island-state, the smallest of Australia's six states, has become a popular destination for Chinese visitors.

Communities along the state's east coast, which is home to tourist destinations such as the Bay of Fires conservation area and Freycinet National Park, are leading the push to introduce the signs, which they say will enhance the experience for Chinese tourists.

Mick Tucker, mayor of the Break O'Day Council which governs the state's northeast including the Bay of Fires, said visitors from China travelled to the region throughout the entire year.

"A huge population of Chinese tourists seem to be here 12 months of the year," Tucker said.

Tucker said that the region, which has a population of 6,500 that more than doubles during summer would the first in Australia to adopt the idea.

He said that the cost of erecting the sings would be minimal compared to the benefits it would bring.

"We like to think outside the square here and I think it will be paid back in spades," Tucker told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Monday.

"We don't think there's anyone else doing it that we know of."

"To make sure when they come from the other side of the world, just something they can read in their own language (is) a nice gesture."

A study published in May by the China Outbound Tourism Institute said that many Chinese tourists did not enjoy their time in Tasmania, saying many of the state's businesses and tourist facilities such as restaurants and hotels closed too early.

Leo Seaton, a spokesman for Tourism Australia, said adapting signs was one measure that could win over Chinese tourists.

He said businesses and governments could go even further with the initiative to accommodate Chinese tourists.

"In the case of hotels having Mandarin speaking staff on the front desk, Chinese food options and even Chinese channels on television," Seaton suggested.

"For airports it might be Mandarin signage for the first point of entry, very simple measures and very symbolic."
CANBERRA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- In a last-ditch effort to ensure Australia's farmers have sufficient help ahead of the fruit picking season, Australia's coalition government has agreed on a compromise which will set the nation's "backpacker tax" at 15 percent.

After a weekend of negotiations with the Senate crossbench, Treasurer Scott Morrison announced the government had accepted a 15 percent compromise, down from the current 32.5 percent tax rate.

It's expected the compromise will satisfy the crossbench, meaning the bill will pass the Senate before Parliament takes its Christmas break from Thursday.

Earlier this month, the nation's Senate committee urged parliament to pass the bill as soon as possible in order to maintain Australia's attractiveness to working holidaymakers and to secure extra harvest labor for farmers ahead of the summer season.

Australia's agriculture sector relies on the labor of backpackers, and many have argued the current rate has discouraged working holidaymakers from choosing Australia as their working holiday destination.

On Monday, the government's compromise was backed by the National Farmers' Federation (NFF) with CEO Tony Mahar urging the Senate to "expedite" the passage of the bill ahead of the fruit picking season.

"It has been a painful process but we wholeheartedly welcome the announcement that a compromise rate of 15 percent has been reached," Mahar said in a statement released on Monday.

"The NFF back to the Colbeck Review said that a rate between 15 percent and 19 percent was a fair one that would attract backpackers to the sector and be comparable with rates paid to Australian workers."

"We now ask that the Senate expedite passage of the relevant legislation to provide the long needed certainty to the sector and allow businesses to start rebuilding backpacker interest in on-farm jobs.

"In time we hope that lessons are learned so that the farm sector is never compromised in this way ever again."

Despite the government's decision to come to the table on negotiations, both the Labor opposition and the Greens have said they will maintain their hard-line position of striving for a 10.5 percent tax rate.

"The Labor party will maintain its position on the 10.5 percent," deputy Labor leader Anthony Albanese said.

Meanwhile, Greens Senator Peter Whish-Wilson said his party would be more likely to support a 15 percent tax rate if the government scraps the associated 95 percent clawback on superannuation earned by the backpackers.

"The Senate really should not be supporting this proposal on a 15 percent backpacker rate," Whish-Wilson said on Monday.

"With the 95 percent clawback on superannuation of backpackers then the effective tax rate is closer to 24 percent which is... roughly double the tax rate for backpackers in New Zealand."

"We are seeking advice on whether we can move an amendment to this new bill to cancel the superannuation clawbacks."

However, with both the government vote and the expected crossbench support, the bill is likely to pass in its 15 percent form.

Usually employed on a casual basis, backpackers help farmers pick seasonal harvests of grapes, cherries, blueberries, oranges, melons, apples and bananas, mainly in Australia's eastern states.

Without backpackers, many Australian farmers would not be able to secure sufficient help to pick enough fruit before it begins to rot.
SYDNEY, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A popular baby monkey that was stolen with its older sister and father from a wildlife park south of Sydney has been found and returned to its mother, Australian media reported on Monday.

Police believed thieves had allegedly broken into the Symbio Wildlife Park's Pygmy Marmoset enclosure late on Friday night to steal the four-week-old baby, which is too young for its sex to be identified, the Australian Associated Press reported.

The baby monkey's 10-month old sister Sofia and father Gomez were also allegedly stolen. The two younger monkeys were found on Sunday and two men have been charged, but Gomez is still missing, AAP reported.

Animal experts had warned that the four-week-old would likely die if it spent more than a day away from its mother. The baby's twin would also die because their mother was too stressed to feed, AAP reported.

The infant monkey was found in a car with two men, who are believed to be brothers aged 23 and 26, in Sydney's southwest on Sunday afternoon following a tip-off. The men were arrested and charged, police said.

The suspects have been refused bail and are set to appear in court on Monday, AAP reported.

Authorities are also urging people with information about Gomez to contact them.
By Raimundo Urrechaga

HAVANA, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- China and Latin America need to work together and learn to know each other better in order to have lasting cooperative ties that benefit both sides, said a renowned Cuban researcher on China.

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Jose Luis Robaina, a member of Cuba's International Policy Research Center, said that over the past two decades, Beijng has become a major trading partner for the region and this cooperation should be consolidated and expand.

"China and Latin America should chart their long-term cooperation with a strategic vision to diversify economic relations," he said.

The Cuban expert praised Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent speech at the 2016 APEC CEO Summit in Lima, Peru, for showing the Chinese leadership's commitment to the idea of common growth.

"China's foreign policy is based on peaceful coexistence and economic cooperation, as shown in international forums where it participates. It was evident in President Xi Jinping's speech at APEC that Beijing seeks to encourage open and inclusive trade agreements to benefit all parties," he said.

"China is seeing unprecedented internal and external expansion. That is why I believe it can move on to a new stage in its economic relations with Latin America," said Robaina, who urged the two sides to move to a broader and more diverse cooperation that leads to greater mutual development.

The expert also urged China and Latin America to think about greater joint projects for the industrial development of the continent.

"Xi's visit to the region and his participation in the APEC meeting marked a new phase in China's relations with Latin America. ... China is seen as a reliable and long-term partner," he said.

As an example, he cited important projects in which China has an active participation, including the Trans-Oceanic Railway linking the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean.

Robaina said that a fundamental premise for expanding cooperation is that both sides must have "mutual knowledge" about each other's culture and history.

"It is a must to achieve this mutual knowledge. China invests a lot to train personnel who then come to Latin America with a cultural and historical background about the region. Every year, there is also a growing interest in the region to learn Chinese and know more about China's traditions," he said.
NEW DELHI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Indian police on Monday arrested a dreaded militant commander who, along with four gangsters, had escaped from a prison in the northern Indian state of Punjab Sunday.

"Militant outfit Khalistan Liberation Force's chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was caught near Delhi's border in the early hours of the day. Four other gangsters, however, remain missing," a senior police official said.

The arrest came following a tip-off by police from the neighboring state of Haryana that Mintoo was trying to go to Delhi from where he had planned to flee to Nepal, the official said.

Mintoo and four other gangsters had escaped from the Nabha jail in Punjab early Sunday morning after some 10 armed men dressed in police uniforms broke into the prison and fired 100 rounds of ammunition at prison guards, injuring two of them.

The Khalistan Liberation Force is an insurgent group that is part of the Khalistan movement to create a Sikh homeland called Khalistan via armed struggle. The group appears to have been a loose association of scattered Khalistani groups.

Mintoo was arrested by police from Delhi airport in November 2014. The 47-year-old is an accused in multiple terror-related cases across India. Others are well-known criminals mostly involved in running criminal gangs, the official said.

A massive manhunt has been launched to track down the four others who escaped from the jail, the official said.

This is the second major jailbreak in recent times. In October, eight "highly dangerous" members of the banned Islamist group Students' Islamic Movement of India escaped from a high security jail in the central city of Bhopal. Hours later, police claimed to have killed them in a gun battle.
NEW DELHI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- India's opposition parties Monday called for nationwide protests over the government's demonetization move.

The country's main opposition Congress party held protests in various states against the sudden scrapping of currency notes of higher denominations and its impact on the common people, but stayed away from the shutdown call by the Communist parties.

Even regional parties like the Trinamool Congress in the eastern state of West Bengal, Bahujan Samaj Party in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh and anti-graft Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi have said they do not support a shutdown in view of the huge costs involved.

In West Bengal, one of three states where the Communist parties have a presence, there has been virtually no impact of the shutdown call as schools, offices and factories were open. However, in the southern state of Kerala ruled by the Communists, public transport was off the roads.

All the opposition parties are demanding an end to the hardships faced by the common people in the wake of the ban on currency notes of 500 rupees and 1,000 rupees (75 U.S. dollars and 15 U.S. dollars respectively) and an apology from Modi for the decision.

The Indian government has slammed the protests. "The opposition should be directing its anger at black money but unfortunately it is doing the reverse," Indian Minister Ananth Kumar told the media in the national capital this morning.

The government says the people have overwhelmingly backed the cash ban move to curb the menace of black money and corruption and that the inconvenience caused will ease within 50 days.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President-elect Donald Trump claimed on Sunday that he would have won the popular vote if millions of people didn't vote "illegally" on Nov. 8, the Election Day.

"In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," Trump wrote on Twitter.

"Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California -- so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias -- big problem!" Trump twittered hours later, but again did not present any evidence. His Democratic rival Hillary Clinton won all the three states.

U.S. election law experts quickly rejected the president-elect's claims as farfetched, while the fact-checker PolitiFact said Trump's claim was highly suspicious.

"Trump is the first winning candidate to question the legitimacy of the process that gave him the White House," Timothy Naftali, a history professor at New York University, was quoted by local media as saying.

Trump's latest claim came after Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein requested a vote recount.

On Saturday, Trump said Stein's move was a "scam," accusing her of using the recount "to fill her coffers with money, most of which she will never even spend on this ridiculous recount." However, he did not give any evidence for such an allegation.

Stein filed for a vote recount in the state of Wisconsin Friday, and promised to ask for the same in Michigan and Pennsylvania next week. She won approximately 1 percent of the vote in each of the three states.

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's campaign said Saturday that it will join Stein's effort to make sure the vote recount is "fair to all sides."

Trump won all three states by a narrow margin in the presidential election, leading his major rival Democrat Hillary Clinton with just over 100,000 votes in all three states.

Clinton is now ahead in the popular vote by about 2.2 million votes, though Trump won the Electoral College by beating Clinton in key battleground states like Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida.

The Obama administration has repeatedly denied any major voter frauds, stressing that the election results "accurately reflect the will of the American people."

U.S. electors will meet on Dec. 19 to certify the votes of the Electoral College.
SHANGHAI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- European countries, including France, Italy and Spain, are buying more goods from China's cross-border e-commerce retailers.

In a report released Sunday, eBay revealed that its Chinese sellers saw average sales annual growth of 300 percent in France, Italy and Spain during the past three years.

As issues related to marketing, logistics and languages are no longer weighing down sales, many Chinese sellers are shifting their attention to the European market, according to Zhou Haiying, director of the eBay Chinese mainland international trade department.

Specifically, European buyers are interested in China-made electronic communication products, clothing, home decoration supplies, computers and industrial instruments

According to the report, the number of Chinese eBay retailers selling to France, Italy and Spain has increased by 45 percent from July 2015 to June 2016, with the quantity of products increasing by 65 percent.

There are 259 million online buyers among the 530 million Internet users in Europe. The B2C e-commerce market in Europe is predicted to be worth 625 billion euros by the end of 2016, according to Ecommerce Europe.
WELLINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Seven men from three Pacific island nations were among the eight killed in a weekend boating tragedy in the north of New Zealand, the New Zealand Police said Monday.

A Police statement identified the men -- aged 31 to 59 -- as four Tongans, two Cook Islanders and a Samoan, who were part of New Zealand's Pacific island population.

One of the men -- Taulagi Afamasaga, 59, from Samoa -- was still missing, but was presumed drowned, said the statement.

The search would continue for the missing man.

The eighth man to die was skipper Bill McNatty.

Three men survived the accident after being thrown into rough seas, with two reportedly plucked from the water by a rescue helicopter and one making it to shore.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) has launched an investigation into the cause of the accident, which happened Saturday just outside the Kaipara Harbor, north of Auckland.

"There are a number of people we need to interview. We also need to work around the family arrangements for those who lost their lives in this tragic accident. This is not an easy time for those families," TAIC chief investigator Captain Tim Burfoot said in a statement Monday.

The group of 10 Pacific island men had reportedly hired McNatty and his charter boat, which was capable of carrying 20 people, for a fishing expedition.

Questions were being raised Monday as to why none of the men were found to be wearing life jackets and why McNatty had decided to cross one of the most dangerous stretches of water in New Zealand in bad weather.

The Kaipara Harbor is said to be the largest natural harbor in the southern hemisphere, but shipping long ago abandoned it as a port because the harbor entrance is notoriously dangerous and has claimed many wrecks.

The entrance, known as the Kaipara Bar, is narrow and its shifting sands make it unpredictable.
File photo shows people take part in a protest in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Dec. 16, 2015. They blamed the government for a sluggish economy and alleged corruption. (Xinhua)

CAPE TOWN, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- International rating agency Moody's has kept South Africa's sovereign rating at Baa2, which is two-notch above sub-investment with a "negative" outlook.

"The negative outlook on South Africa's Baa2 government bond rating reflects risks related to the implementation of structural reforms aimed at restoring confidence and encouraging investment, upon which Moody's bases its expectations for a gradual growth recovery and debt stabilization in coming years," the agency said in a statement late Friday.

The negative outlook also recognizes the downside risks associated with political uncertainty and low business confidence as well as the challenging external environment characterized by low growth, investment and trade, Moody's said.

South Africa's rating would likely be downgraded in the absence of fundamental structural reforms supporting higher and sustainable medium term growth, the agency warned.

Continued accumulation of public debt and contingent liabilities in terms of GDP would also put downward pressure on ratings, said Moody's.

Finally, political infighting impeding the government's ability to implement key structural reforms and contributing to protracted low business confidence would also be negative, the agency said.

While a rating upgrade is unlikely, Moody's would change the outlook from negative to stable if the government would undertake structural reforms that would bring the economy on a path of higher and sustainable growth and stabilize the general government debt and contingent liabilities relative to GDP ratios, the agency said.

Boosting business confidence through reforms in the areas of labor markets, electricity, and state-owned enterprises would be credit positive, it said.

Earlier in the day, another rating agency Fitch changed South Africa's outlook from stable to negative, while affirming its Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at "BBB-", which is one notch above sub-investment.

South Africa has been racing to avert a sovereign rating downgrade to "junk" status that would raise its borrowing costs and deter investment.
File photos shows Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe (C) inspects troops of the Zimbabwe Defense Forces in capital Harare, Zimbabwe, August 14, 2012. (Xinhua)

HARARE, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe said Zimbabwe remains grateful to China for its continued technical support to the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF).

The state news agency New Ziana reported that Mugabe described China as Zimbabwe's all-time ally when he was speaking at the graduation of 56 officers from the Joint Command and Staff Course at the Zimbabwe Staff College over the weekend.

"The People's Republic of China, Zimbabwe's all-time ally, has continued to render technical assistance to the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, through the secondment of its highly professional staff to the Zimbabwe Staff College," Mugabe said.

The Joint Command and Staff Course had 56 students drawn from the Zimbabwe National Army, Air Force, President's Office, Republic Police, Prisons and Correctional Services as well as SADC Defence Forces.

Mugabe said the Staff College would widen its catchment area on the next enrollment.

"It has always been my government's wish to see the college enrolling more students from SADC and beyond, as doing so will further enhance our existing cooperation as African states, while at the same time nurturing mutual trust among the defence forces," said Mugabe.
WELLINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Non-tariff measures (NTMs) in Asia-Pacific economies are costing the region's exporters 790 billion U.S. dollars a year, said a report from a New Zealand economic think-tank out Monday.

The amount was triple the total costs associated with simple border tariffs, said the report by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER).

The study, commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, focused on the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group of economies.

Because APEC economies were looking to develop global value chains, the NTMs had the effect of driving down living standards and limiting business competitiveness, said the report.

Non-tariff measures were policies aside from border tariffs put in place by governments to limit imports or increase their price, NZIER deputy chief executive John Ballingall said in a statement.

"Common examples are quotas, technical standards and animal welfare measures. Some are for legitimate public policy purposes, such as protecting consumers from dangerous products or protecting animal or plant safety," said Ballingall.

"But many are blatantly protectionist in nature -- designed to shield domestic industries from foreign competition," he added.

NTMs were costing New Zealand exporters about 5,9 billion U.S. dollars a year.

"New Zealand's primary sector exporters bear the brunt of APEC economies' NTMs. The dairy sector alone faces NTMs within APEC of 2.7 billion U.S. dollars per year," said Ballingall.

"Our beef and horticultural sectors suffer too, facing additional costs of 770 million U.S. dollars and 310 million U.S. dollars respectively each year."

"There is growing recognition amongst firms, policymakers and researchers that much more needs to be done by governments to address the high costs of NTMs."

The report said APEC was "likely to be the driving force behind further trade liberalization and regional economic integration in coming years."

It made economic sense for policymakers to reduce the accumulated transaction costs as much as possible without compromising legitimate policy objectives.

"The aim should be to remove the grit from APEC's economic engine, allowing it to run more smoothly," it said.

Ballingall said the priority should be on NTMs that were most trade-distorting and inefficient.

"But even the most well-intentioned or legitimate NTMs can be costly. Even a small decrease in the costs of NTMs in the APEC region would improve APEC businesses' competitiveness and lower the costs of doing business. Ultimately this will benefit consumers through cheaper prices for traded goods and services," he said.
HOUSTON, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- One person was killed and three others injured late Sunday afternoon in a shooting incident in Baton Rouge, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana.

The shooting occurred about 5:30 p.m. local time (2330 GMT) at the United Plaza Boulevard in Baton Rouge, and three people were sent to the hospital, one after being hit by gunfire and the other two after being hit by the suspected shooter's vehicle, according to the state's English daily, the Times-Picayune.

A police source said that it is believed a man and a woman were traveling together in a car. The man allegedly shot the woman and pushed her out of the vehicle. EMS staff and some passers-by were trying to help the woman, then the suspect drove his car into the crowd and started shooting, injuring three people.

Louisiana State Police confirmed that the gunman, who killed the woman and fled the scene, was later shot and killed in a shootout with police officers on Sunday night.

Police have begun investigating the cause of the shooting.

This is the second shooting incident in the state on Sunday, which also saw a shooting in the state's largest city of New Orleans earlier Sunday morning, which left one person and nine others wounded.
MANILA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Skirmishes between the government troops and a local terror group in the southern Philippine province of Lanao del Sur continued with death toll of the militants reaching to 19, the military said on Monday.

Spokesman of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said 13 soldiers on the government side had been injured in the renewed clashes with the Maute Group, now occupying the town of Butig.

"The number of casualties may still go up at the end of the operation today," he said.

The military started pursuing the local bandits, numbering to about 300, after they occupied an abandoned municipal hall in Butig on Nov. 26.

Although the terror group brought the flag of Islamic State (IS) and pledged their allegiance to the terror group, Padilla said it did not mean that there was already IS presence in the country.

Maute group is an armed IS-influenced militant group composed of former Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels and allegedly foreign fighters led by Abdullah Maute, the alleged founder of Dawlah Islamic or IS based in Lanao del Sur.

The Maute group was blamed for a series of bombings and robberies in the southern Philippines, including the Sept. 2 blast in Davao City that killed 15 and injured 70 others.
DAMASCUS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Syrian government forces have gained control of the northern section of the rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo city in northern Syria, a monitor group reported on Monday.

Neighborhoods such as Enzarat, Babdien, Halak, Sakhour as well as Masaken Hanano and Jabal Bado, in addition to large parts of Haidariyeh, have come under government control in eastern Aleppo, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which says it relies on a network of activisits on the ground inside Syria.

Thousands of civilians have relocated to government-controlled areas in Aleppo over the past three days, amid a wide-scale military showdown in eastern Aleppo.

On the government side, Syrian national TV has aired several interviews with civilians who have reached government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, with people blaming rebels for the dire humanitarian situation there.

The interviewees accused rebels of previously preventing them from leaving Aleppo. They also spoke of hunger they have been suffering from over the past four months, the same period when government forces laid siege to eastern Aleppo to force the hands of rebels and flush them out of the city.

Government forces have intensified shelling on rebel positions in eastern Aleppo over the past 10 days to break their defense lines and prepare for a ground incursion.

The firepower has led to the destruction of rebel defenses, mainly the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, the Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham, and the Nour Addien Alzinki Movement.

The capture of Masaken Hanano, the largest rebel-held neighborhood in eastern Aleppo, and the Sakhour neighborhood, has enabled the Syrian army to isolate neighborhoods in northeastern Aleppo from the central and southern ones.

Military sources said the rebels in eastern Aleppo are in a state of confusion as a result of government military advances.

The Syrian army says it will press on with the operation until all rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo are recaptured.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The 10th Congress of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles (CFLAC) and the ninth Congress of the Chinese Writers Association (CWA) will convene in Beijing on Wednesday.

The meetings will last four days and will be attended by a total of1,500 representatives from the mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

The ninth congress of the CWA will include more online writers, freelance writers and young writers compared to previous meeting, said He Jianming, vice chairman of the CWA at a press conference on Monday.
ISTANBUL, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- At the heart of Istanbul lies the Topkapi Palace, a must-see to tourists from around the world for its rich trove of treasures collected during a period of some 400 years as Ottoman Sultans' residence.

Among the antiques are thousands of Chinese porcelain pieces made during China's dynasties of Song (960-1279), Yuan (1206-1368), Ming (1368-1644), and Qing (1644-1911), the largest collection of Chinese ceramics outside of China.

The first recorded use of the Chinese wares in the palace was in 1457 at the circumcision ceremonies for Fatih Sultan Mehmed II's two sons, Bayezid and Mustafa, Turkey's Hurriyet daily reported back in 2013.

All the wares are silent witnesses to China's interactions with Turkey and the region during the ancient Silk Road period.

"We first established our relations with China through the merchants during the ancient Silk Road period which connected the entire world," said Umit Kiler, deputy president of the Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association.

For Irem Calisici, an academician from Dokuz Eylul University based in Izmir, western Turkey, the unique Chinese porcelain collection in Topkapi is the "most striking evidence" of the diplomatic and commercial relations existing between the Ming Dynasty and the Ottoman Empire.

Citing the record, she noted in an article that the two great empires had sent emissaries to visit each other, establishing a cultural recognition on top of diplomatic ties.

During the course of history, however, the bond was broken now and then.

"Today, thanks to the Belt and Road initiative this connection is going to be reestablished," Kiler told Xinhua.

Sitting on both ends of Asia, China and Turkey have voiced their readiness to revive the ancient Silk Road, along which the links are expected to extend from China to Central Asia and the Middle East, and then on to Europe via Turkey.

In China, President Xi Jinping put forth the Belt and Road initiative three years ago, seeking to connect trading partners along the ancient Silk Road through land and sea routes.

Under its Middle Corridor plan, Turkey's project for the modern revival of the ancient Silk Road, a transport network will in the end connect Beijing with London.

"Turkey will again play an important role in connecting London with Beijing through the new highways and railways," said Kiler. "Turkey is ready and very determined again to bridge the two edges of the world."

Both China and Turkey are harboring dreams of growing stronger and more prosperous in the years to come, laying a solid foundation for closer bilateral cooperation.

Beijing and Ankara have signed a memorandum of understanding on harmonizing their Belt and Road and Middle Corridor projects, and both Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang and Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Turkey this month for further discussions on their integration.

Turkish leaders, for their part, pledged to advance cooperation on key projects like an already-agreed-upon high-speed rail linking Kars in Turkey's east with the western Turkish city of Edirne, and the construction of a third nuclear power plant in Turkey.

The Middle Corridor plan and the Kars-Edirne rail "will help China to knock the door of Europe, contributing to the revival of modern Silk Road," said Altay Atli, a research associate with the Asian Studies stream of the Istanbul Policy Center at Sabanci University in Istanbul.

Kiler, of the Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association, suggested that Turkey and China could develop "significant partnership" as well in the fields of mining, agriculture and animal husbandry.

He also raised the idea of a joint China-Turkey university in Turkey, for the benefit of peoples to learn each other's language to "interact more."

Kiler referred to Turkey's huge imbalance in trade with China, the biggest problem in bilateral economic ties.

In Atli's opinion, the reality should not be accepted as "something very bad."

"About 40 to 45 percent of Turkish production is still dependent on foreign products," he told Xinhua. "Turkey can still take the advantage of importing products from China."

Atli noted that the gap was shaped in 1990s, when "Made in China" products started to dominate the Turkish market.

He argued that as China has launched the Belt and Road project, Ankara should reposition its trade relations with the country without waiting for it to increase its import from Turkey.

A new action plan for China has been submitted to the Turkish minister of economy and will be announced soon, Atli noted.

"Both Turkey and China need concrete projects rather than talk about the gap between China and Turkey's import rates," he remarked. "Even if China's import would increase 100 percent, Turkey would still sell one and buy five."

He also suggested the introduction of modern Chinese art and literature to the Turkish people, rather than focusing on China's ancient forms of art like calligraphy, kungfu and tea ceremony, to present a better cultural exchange between the two countries.

"Turkish people need to know more about Chinese modern art and the modern lives of Chinese young people, how they live, what they buy or watch, and what they read," Atli said.
JERUSALEM, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli Air Force struck overnight between Sunday and Monday a compound used by Islamic State (IS) militants in Syria, according to a military statement.

The attack targeted an abandoned United Nations building that has been used by IS militants as an operation center along the border in southern Syrian Golan Heights, the statement said.

Israel's Ynet news site reported that several fighter jets took part in the raid, dropping 10 one-ton bombs on the target.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The compound was a base for a shooting attack on Sunday, in which IS militants fired at Israeli soldiers from a machine gun-mounted truck. Israel quickly responded with an airstrike, killing four gunmen in the vehicle.

It was reportedly the first confrontation between Israeli soldiers and IS militants.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China Monday urged Singapore to strictly adhere to the one-China policy after nine Singaporean armored vehicles, reportedly used in military drills in Taiwan, were seized by Hong Kong customs last week.

"The Chinese side has lodged representations with the Singaporean side," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing, adding that China has demanded that Singapore abide by the laws of Hong Kong and cooperate with the government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in handling the matter.

Geng said the Chinese government strongly opposes any official interactions between Taiwan region and any country that has established diplomatic relations with China, including military exchanges and cooperation.

"We demand that the Singaporean government adhere to the one-China policy strictly and sincerely," said the spokesman.
MOSCOW, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- More than 3,000 civilians, half of them children, have left the rebel-held eastern Syrian city of Aleppo on Sunday and Monday, according to the Russian military.

All of them are being placed in humanitarian centers deployed in cooperation with the Syrian authorities, said the Russian Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in Syria on Monday.
WINDHOEK, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Key ministries in fisheries, environment, transport, minerals, petroleum and energy from Namibia, Angola and South Africa, will meet in the coastal town of Swakopmund, Namibia from December 8 for the Benguela Current Commission (BCC) Ministerial Conference.

Communications Consultant, Talitha Jario on Monday said as the highest policy-making body of the BCC, the Ministerial Conference will play a pivotal role in assessing the challenges surrounding the implementation of the BCC's 2015-2019 Strategic Action Programme (SAP).

Jario said as part of this closed Ministerial Conference, approximately 100 participants including development partners, key industries and foreign diplomats will assess the possibilities of unlocking transboundary potential and economic opportunities in the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) Region.

Furthermore, the ministries will develop policy actions and guidance with sustainability at the core.

"Since its inception as a regional entity, the conference has focused on transboundary issues. Policy directives have included guidance on issues including capability development for the region, sharing and exchanging data, along with joint boundary surveys," Jario said.

Meanwhile, this year's meeting will also include the official handover by the current Chairperson of the Ministerial Conference, Victoria de Barros Neto from Angola, to the Namibian Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources, Bernard Esau.
LUSAKA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Zambian President Edgar Lungu's office on Monday expressed concern over the nullification of ruling party parliamentary seats after being petitioned by opposition candidates following the August 11 general elections.

The ruling Patriotic Front (PF) has lost a number of parliamentary seats after courts ruled in favor of opposition candidates who petitioned the results on allegations of fraud. Among those who have lost their parliamentary seats include two ministers.

But presidential spokesperson Amos Chanda said the president was concerned over the manner some judges were handling matters of election petitions.

"Judges are members of society, they live within societies. The do not live on Jupiter or Mars. Their actions must be in tune with justice for all. They must not create a situation where the legislature or executive doubts them," he said on a live interview on state television, the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation.

He said Lungu does not want the judiciary to be entangled in politics, adding that judges should not be seen to be acting in a partisan manner.

"The courts must stay away from politics. Elections are not won in court. It is in their interest to stay away from politics. Justice must be seen to be done," he added.

Zambia held general elections on August 11 but the outcome has resulted in petitions of the results from both the ruling and opposition parties. About 70 parliamentary petitions were filed in courts after the elections compared to 68 petitions filed after the 2011 elections.

On the other hand, the country's leading opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema also petitioned the presidential results.

Although the petition was thrown out by the Constitutional Court, he is still challenging the matter in court.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China Monday urged Japan to act prudently in military and security fields and avoid unsettling regional stability.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a routine press briefing in response to a question regarding Japan's plan to install an advanced U.S. missile defense system, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)

According to Japanese media reports, Tokyo plans to set up a panel to discuss ways to reinforce its missile defense system.

"We were concerned about the news reports. China's position on the deployment of the THAAD is very clear and remains unchanged," Geng said.

Japan's military and security activities are watched closely by its Asian neighbors and the international community because of its history, he said.

"We hope Japan [will] play a constructive role in boosting regional peace and stability, not to the contrary," said the spokesperson.

Calling the current Korean Peninsula situation "complicated and sensitive," he urged parties concerned to solve related issues through political and diplomatic channels.
DAMASCUS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Syrian government forces are now in control of nearly half of the rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo city in northern Syria, a military source told Xinhua on Monday.

Government forces and allied fighters have so far captured 20 out of 45 sq. km of rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo, the source said on condition of anonymity.

He added that all of the northern section of eastern Aleppo has come under government control, after the northern part of eastern Aleppo was isolated from its south.

As a result of a broad offensive launched recently, Syrian government forces have recaptured the neighborhoods of Sakhour, Sheikh Khuder, Sheikh Fares, Bustan al-Basha, Baibdien, Slaiman al-Halabi, Halak, Inzarat, Ayn Tal Jabal Badro, and Masaken Hanano in eastern Aleppo.

Thousands of civilians have fled to government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, following the advance of the Syrian army.

Meanwhile, Syrian national TV has aired several interviews with civilians who have reached government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, with people blaming rebels for the dire humanitarian situation there.

The interviewees accused rebels of previously preventing them from leaving Aleppo. They also spoke of hunger they have been suffering from over the past four months.

Government forces have intensified shelling on rebel positions in eastern Aleppo over the past 10 days to break their defense lines and prepare for a ground incursion.

The firepower has led to the destruction of rebel defenses, mainly the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, the Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham, and the Nour Addien Alzinki Movement.

The capture of Masaken Hanano, the largest rebel-held neighborhood in eastern Aleppo, and the Sakhour neighborhood, has enabled the Syrian army to isolate neighborhoods in northeastern Aleppo from the central and southern ones.

Military sources said the rebels in eastern Aleppo are in a state of confusion as a result of government military advances.

The Syrian army says it will press on with the operation until all rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo are recaptured.
ABUJA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A total of 30 Boko Haram fighters were killed in a clash with troops in Nigeria's northeastern state of Borno over the weekend, a local official said on Monday.

Saeed Salisu Sambo, head of Gwoza local district in Borno State, told Xinhua the terrorists met their Waterloo in the hand of Nigerian troops when they attempted to ambush a convoy of local officials who were traveling from an area known as Pulka to Maiduguri, the state capital, early Saturday.

He said the Boko Haram fighters detonated an Improvised Explosive Device and followed with sporadic gun shots which was repelled by the Nigerian troops. The gun fight took place along the state's Bama road, according to the district official.

"The troops pursued and dealt with the armed attackers with military precision," he added.

The Borno State has been a stronghold of the extremist group Boko Haram and has been frequently raided in the past six years. In past months, the Nigerian government has launched several military operations to eliminate the terrorist threat.

Boko Haram, which seeks to impose strict Islamic law in northern Nigeria, has been blamed for some 20,000 deaths and displacement of more than 2.6 million people since 2009.
PHNOM PENH, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen on Monday called on Europe to take in refugees fleeing bloody conflicts in the Middle Eastern countries, saying that the Europe must be responsible for violence in the Middle East.

"I urge the European countries to accept those refugees, providing them decent stays and jobs. This is your responsibility because you have supported the U.S. policy on the matter of color revolution in the Middle East," he said during the opening ceremony of the 9th Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) in northwestern Siem Reap province.

He said that the U.S.-launched color revolution in the Middle East had left severe devastation to those countries, killing millions of peoples, and forcing millions to flee their birth countries.

"Many people are still killed in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Yemen every day, as numerous refugees are risking their lives to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe," he said.

Meanwhile, the prime minister also called for an international conference on anti-terrorism in order to show joint commitment to fight against terrorism and to find out the root of terrorism.
SINGAPORE, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) conducted an air defence exercise entitled "Exercise Vigilant Shield 2016" on Monday, said the Ministry of Defence in a press release.

The ministry said the exercise demonstrated the Air Defence Task Force's capabilities in responding to potential air threats with a 24/7 networked air defence system.

Chief of Air Force Major-General Mervyn Tan visited the exercise at Singapore Air Traffic Control Center and witnessed the coordinated response to a simulated hijacked aircraft that was headed towards Singapore.

Tan noted the successful conduct of this exercise demonstrated RSAF's robust networked air defence system and the tight inter-agency linkages with RSAF's partners.

This year's exercise involved about 400 participants from RSAF, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and the Singapore Police Force. RSAF also deployed assets such as the F-15SG fighter aircraft, AH-64D Apache helicopter, I-HAWK, SPYDER and RBS-70 Ground-Based Air Defence systems, said the ministry.
A train running on Chongqing-Wanzhou high-speed railway stops at Chongqing Changshou North Station, southwest China, Nov. 28, 2016. The first high-speed railway running through China's Three Gorges reservoir region started operation Monday. The 247-km-long railway connects Wanzhou City, where the Three Gorges is located, and Chongqing Municipality. (Xinhua/Zhang Yi)

CHONGQING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The first high-speed railway (HSR) to pass through the region best known for the Three Gorges reservoir started operation Monday.

At 7:06 a.m., the train left Chongqing North Station on a 247-km journey to Wanzhou City, where the Three Gorges is located, and Chongqing Municipality.

Currently, 21 pairs of trains will undertake the journey every day.

With a designed speed of 250 km per hour, HSR travel cuts the journey from Wanzhou to Chongqing from four hours to one and half hours. Travel between Wanzhou and Chengdu is halved to three and half hours as the new line is connected to the section between Chengdu and Chongqing.

Construction of the railway started in 2013. It has seven stations, and bridges and tunnels account for 71 percent of the railway's total length

Liu Zheng, an official with Chengdu Railway Bureau, said the Chongqing-Wanzhou high-speed will help development in the Three Gorges region as well as the Yangtze River Economic Belt.

Onboard the train, He Chuanyou, 45, is on his way to work in Wanzhou.

He usually goes home to downtown Chongqing every weekend, and the three-and-half-hour drive costs him 700 yuan (101 U.S. dollars), including gas and highway toll.

"Now, I can arrive home in one and half hours for only 100-odd yuan," he said.

Yi Xiaoguang, head of Chongqing Academy of Macroeconomic Research, said the HSR line has injected energy into development of the Three Gorges reservoir area, which is one of the nation's poorest regions.

Last month, a Hong Kong-headquartered watch makers announced it was going to establish a factory in Dianjiang County, Chongqing, with planned production capacity of 10 million high-end watches annually. Sales are expected to generate 1 billion yuan every year.

"The HSR line is a key reason why firms choose our county," said Yao Hong, a planning official with the county government.

According to Yao, the county has welcomed projects valued at more than 5 billion yuan this year thanks to the upcoming operation of the railway.

HSR is also a hit with tourists, as it passes Changshou Lake, Wanzhou Waterfall and the Three Gorges.

According to railway authorities, another high-speed railway line, which is being built between Wanzhou and Henan's provincial capital Zhengzhou, will be connected to the current Wanzhou-Chongqing line after operation, with more in the pipeline, such as the one between Chongqing and Xi'an, to be interconnected.
ADDIS ABABA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) meeting in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, is expected to examine 37 requests for inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

During its meeting from Nov. 28 to Dec. 2, the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) also examines five nominations for inscription on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.

The representatives of 24 States Parties to UNESCO's Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, who form the Committee, will also examine issues concerning intangible heritage in emergency situations caused by conflict or natural disaster.

It will envisage safeguarding measures that can be applied in such cases and consider the role intangible heritage can play in restoring social cohesion and supporting reconciliation, according to the UNESCO.

Ten years after the Convention entered into force, the Committee will examine creation of a monitoring instrument to measure its impact and progress achieved.

The List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding currently features 43 particularly vulnerable elements of the living heritage.

It helps States Parties to the Convention rally international cooperation and assistance to ensure the transmission of these cultural practices with the agreement of the communities concerned.

The Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity presently number 336 inscribed elements.

It aims to enhance the visibility of communities' traditions and knowledge without recognizing standards of excellence or exclusivity, said UNESCO.

The nominations for 2016 for the Representative List of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity include China's "The Twenty-Four Solar Terms", knowledge in China of time and practices developed through observation of the sun's annual motion.

"The Oromo Gada system, an indigenous democratic socio-political system," a request by the meeting's host country, Ethiopia, is among the nominations for 2016 for the Representative List of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

The Committee will furthermore review seven programmes proposed for inclusion on the Register of Best Safeguarding Practices.

Twelve elements are already featured on the Register, which seeks to promote programmes, projects and activities that reflect optimally the Convention's principles and objectives.

UNESCO's 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage has been ratified by 171 States Parties to date.

The Committee meets annually to implement the Convention and examine requests for inscription on its various lists.
MADRID, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Spanish Civil Guards on Monday arrested four people suspected of organizing an illegal immigration network used by the Islamic State to transport fighters from Turkey into Europe.

The Spanish Interior Ministry said that two of the arrests were made in Coruna in northwest Spain and two in Almeria in the southeast of the country.

In relation to these arrests, security forces are investigating any Spanish connections of two suspected extremists detained in Salzburg, Austria after entering Europe through the Greek island of Lesvos with a group of 200-odd Syrian refugees in October 2015.

With these arrests, the Spanish Interior Ministry said security forces have arrested 168 suspected extremists since Spain was placed on a level four (high) alert in June 2015.
Qin Yuhai, former deputy director of Henan Provincial People's Congress Standing Committee, is sentenced to 13 years and six months in prison for accepting bribes at Zibo Intermediate People's Court of Shandong Province in Zibo City, east China's Shandong Province, Nov. 28, 2016. (Xinhua)

JINAN, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Qin Yuhai, former deputy director of Henan Provincial People's Congress Standing Committee, was sentenced Monday to 13 years and six months in prison for accepting bribes.

The sentence was handed down by Zibo Intermediate People's Court of Shandong Province.

The court also imposed a fine of two million yuan (289,600 U.S. dollars) on Qin and ordered all his illicit gains to be confiscated.

The court found Qin guilty of seeking benefits and accepting a "huge amount of bribes," in excess of 20.86 million yuan, while serving as Party chief of Jiaozuo City, Henan; vice governor of Henan; head of the provincial public security department; and deputy director of Henan Provincial People's Congress Standing Committee.

The court ruled that Qin's acts were graft, but added that his voluntary confession, remorse and the fact he returned his illegal gains to the authorities were taken into consideration when deciding on a verdict.
NANJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and Vietnamese police arrested 29 fugitives in a six-month joint operation, they announced at a wrap-up meeting Monday.

Chinese police detained nine Vietnamese suspects in China while the Vietnamese side caught 20 Chinese suspects in Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Public Security (MPS).

The campaign, the second of its kind, ran from April to September this year. Another will begin in January and run until June.

The cooperation exercise will be used as a successful example of how to detain fugitives on the run, according to the MPS.

The first joint campaign between November 2014 and July 2015 resulted in the detention of 47 fugitives.
KATHMANDU, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Sherpa porter was killed and a British climber injured during an expedition to Mount Ama Dablam in an avalanche triggered by a mild earthquake on Monday.

According to Director at Department of Tourism Durga Datta Dhakal, the deceased has been identified as Lakpa Thindu Sherpa, a local of Pangboche village in eastern Nepal. British national Ciaran Hill sustained injury in the incident.

The 6,812-meter Mount Ama Dablam is located in Nepal's eastern Solukhumbu district. It is regarded as one of the most beautiful mountain on the planet, but technically most difficult for climbers.

"Sherpa breathed his last on the spot whereas the injured British climber has been airlifted to Kathmandu for treatment," Dhakal said.

The avalanche occurred on Monday while a 13-member expedition team along with Sherpa guides and high altitude porters left for Camp III from Camp II to scale the mountain.

A 5.6-magnitude quake, recorded in the border area of Solukhumbu and Ramechhap district, was felt in many parts of country. However, no damages were reported so far.

Ganesh Pant, warden at Sagarmatha National Park, told Xinhua, "The weather has worsened in Khumbu area since Sunday noon. However, no other damages in infrastructures have been reported so far."
KHARTOUM, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Unidentified gunmen have kidnapped three workers of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Sudan's West Darfur State, a local government spokesman said on Monday.

An armed group on Sunday intercepted a UNHCR team in Geneina, the capital of West Darfur State, and kidnapped three workers, Abdalla Mustafa Jar El-Nabi, West Darfur State's information minister, told Xinhua over the phone.

The workers -- one Sudanese and two foreigners -- were taken on a four-wheel drive vehicle to an unknown destination, he added.

He further noted that security measures were tightened to identify the kidnappers and determine the whereabouts of the hostages.

Sunday's incident is the latest in a series of abductions of UN humanitarian workers and peacekeepers in Darfur by armed groups and bandits, usually for ransom.

The Sudanese government says it refuses to pay any ransom to kidnappers.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China expressed concern Monday over the detention of a large number of Chinese citizens in the Philippines during a crackdown on online gambling, and urged the Philippine government to handle the matter fairly and in accordance with the law.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a press conference when responding to a report that the Philippine Immigration Bureau detained a large number of Chinese nationals last week suspected of being involved in online gambling at a casino complex north of Manila.

"Some of the detainees have already been released, and the rest are waiting further investigation," Geng said.

The Chinese embassy demanded the Philippines properly settle the issue, accelerate identity verification, release those with legal identities as soon as possible, and guarantee the safe, humanitarian treatment of the detainees, Geng said.

He said that China always requires Chinese overseas to abide by the laws and regulations of local countries and not to become involved in such activities as illegal gambling that may endanger them.
MOGADISHU, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- About 26 Al-Shabaab militants were killed and several others were wounded in fresh fighting between the insurgents and Galmudug State forces in Harardhere town in Mudug region of central Somalia, officials said on Monday.

Security Minister for Galmudug State in Somalia Osman Isse Nor told reporters that the militants were defeated during the fighting, noting that their attempt to revenge and rob locals failed.

"Our forces killed 26 terrorists and more others were injured, Galmudug State forces are part of the battle and supports the locals to fight Al-Shabaab in east of Mudug region," Isse said.

He called on the Somali government and the African Union peacekeeping troops to help locals and Galmudug State forces in the fight against Al-Shabaab.

Independent sources say there are casualties on the locals who are fighting with the militants. The militants had cut off the communication in the area before launching the attack early Monday.

This is the second time in a week that heavy fighting is taking place in Mudug region as the insurgents face resistance from the locals to collect levy from the locals who are livestock farmers.

Al-Shabaab militants have not commented on the latest military victory by the Galmudug State.
TIKRIT, Iraq, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least five policemen were killed on Monday when suicide bombers of the Islamic State (IS) group attacked the city of Samarra in Iraq's northern central province of Salahudin, a provincial security source said.

The attack took place in the afternoon when five suicide bombers infiltrated to the city of Samarra, some 120 km north of Baghdad, and attacked a security checkpoint in the northern part of the city, sparking heavy clashes with the troops, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

At least five policemen were killed and another wounded, the source added.

Authorities in the city imposed curfew, blocked the entrances and tightened security measures the troops, and allied paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units carried out a search operation in the city looking for the suicide bombers, the source added.

Terrorist acts, violence and armed conflicts killed 1,792 Iraqis and wounded 1,358 others in October across Iraq, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq said.

Many blame the current chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups, such as the IS, on the U.S., which invaded and occupied Iraq in March 2003.
LHASA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Dressed in traditional brocade finery, a young Tibetan woman welcomes her guests with true Tibetan hospitality: Barley wine, white silk hadas and her bright smile.

Her guests, a group of tourists from north China's Inner Mongolia, will spend one night at Dekyi's house to enjoy typical Tibetan food and spend a night under the rafters of an authentic Tibetan home.

College graduate Dekyi, 24, chose not to follow her brother and sister, who both work in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Instead, she returned to Weiba, a tiny village outside of Lhasa, and converted her family's two-story courtyard into a homestay, which she called "Lhasa Family."

The stone, clay and wood house features rooms painted in warm colors with Tibetan paintings and textile hangings.

She also turned one of the larger rooms into a gallery to display her family's collection of antiques and objects d'art, such as musical instruments, agricultural tools and art.

"I love to show my guests around this room, and tell them about these objects and share stories about my family," Dekyi explained.

Dekyi wanted to create a comfortable, welcoming space where tourists feel at home.

One guest said she was really made to feel at home. "We eat what they eat every day and do what they do. I feel no distance from their life at all," she explained.

As the number of tourists to Tibet has increased, Lhasa Tourism Bureau responded by rolling out measures to support homestays and guesthouses, and now more and more Tibetan families are opening their doors to tourists.

It is estimated that about 600 guesthouses will open over the next five years.

While guesthouses offer tourists a chance to experience Tibetan culture firsthand, they also bring more opportunities to Tibetans.

Dekyi has hosted nearly 700 tourists since her guesthouse opened in February.

"I have made friends with people from different countries and know more about the world thanks to the stories they shared. They made this once quiet house lively and our lives more diverse," she said.

For Dawa, 64, who also runs a guesthouse in Weiba, said his life has taken a turn for the better since he opened his doors to tourists in July.

"In the past, my family's life solely relied on farming and in winter, there was nothing to do. We only made 20,000 yuan (2,891 U.S. dollars) a year. But now, we can make over double that thanks to the guesthouse."

Kunga, who manages a larger resort-style guesthouse named "Kyishod Khangsang" in Lunzhub County near Lhasa, has created jobs for his neighbors.

He employs 49 people at his guesthouse, where tourists can try on traditional Tibetan costumes and learn how to make butter tea and local food.

He said he plans to open a space to display Tibetan cultural items, from pottery to thangka to wedding rituals.

"This will give tourists a more all-round experience of Tibetan life and customs," Kunga said. And more locals will be able to find jobs close to home.

According to official statistics, about 21 million Chinese and foreign tourists visited Tibet in the first three quarters of 2016, up 20.4 percent year on year.
RAMALLAH, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A draft resolution against Israeli settlements will be submitted to the UN Security Council (UNSC) within days, the Palestinian foreign minister said on Monday.

Riad Malki told the official Voice of Palestine that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered the submission of the draft resolution to the UNSC before the end of the year.

All parties concerned will be informed, in particular the Arab Quartet, which consists of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain, as well as the Non-aligned Movement, he added.

The resolution needs nine votes in favor to be passed, provided that non of the permanent member states opposes.

The issue of settlements is a thorny issue in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and a reason for the freezing of the peace talks between the two sides.

Malki also condemned statements by Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman in which he called expanding settlements in the West Bank in the wake of the recent fires in Israel for which he blamed the Palestinians.

Israel will seek pretexts to build more settlements, he said, calling on the international community to undertake its responsibilities toward this issue.

The Israeli Public Radio reported that Lieberman toured Halmish settlement in the West Bank and said that 17 of the total fires ignited in Israel were intentionally initiated and that the reaction should be the expansion of the settlement construction in the West Bank.

Regrading a French initiative to hold a peace conference, the top Palestinian diplomat said that French peace envoy Pierre Vimont is on a tour to several Arab states to brief them on the efforts to hold the international conference.

He highlighted that the Palestinians are holding contacts with the French side and are being briefed on the outcome of Vimont's tour.

He mentioned that it is not clear if the U.S. will participate in the conference that is expected to be held at the level of foreign ministers in Paris next month.

Paris hosted an international ministerial meeting on June 3, which was attended by the foreign ministers of 25 countries, including four Arab states. It debated the revival of the stalled peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.

The peace talks between Israel and Palestine have been stalled since April 2014. The U.S-sponsored talks that lasted for nine months achieved no tangible results.
Soldiers of the Iraqi army enter Bartella village after they defeated the Islamic State militants in Bartella village, about 20 km east of Mosul, northern Iraq on Oct. 22, 2016.(Xinhua Photo)

TIKRIT, Iraq, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least five policemen were killed on Monday when suicide bombers of the Islamic State (IS) group attacked the city of Samarra in Iraq's northern central province of Salahudin, a provincial security source said.

The attack took place in the afternoon when five suicide bombers infiltrated to the city of Samarra, some 120 km north of Baghdad, and attacked a security checkpoint in the northern part of the city, sparking heavy clashes with the troops, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

At least five policemen were killed and another wounded, the source added.

Authorities in the city imposed curfew, blocked the entrances and tightened security measures the troops, and allied paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units carried out a search operation in the city looking for the suicide bombers, the source added.

Terrorist acts, violence and armed conflicts killed 1,792 Iraqis and wounded 1,358 others in October across Iraq, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq said.

Many blame the current chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups, such as the IS, on the U.S., which invaded and occupied Iraq in March 2003.
DAMASCUS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Syrian army captured on Monday Slaiman al-Halabi water station, the main station for feeding the northern city of Aleppo with drinking water, state news agency SANA reported.

Maintenance workers have already started repairing the station in eastern Aleppo and it will become operational as soon as possible, according to the report.

The station was under rebels' control, and they have repeatedly cut off the water from the government-controlled parts west of Aleppo, before it was damaged by the battles.

This comes as the Syrian army and allied fighters continued to advance Monday in rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo, as part of a major military campaign that has resulted in capturing nearly half of the rebel controlled areas in the city.

SANA said the Syrian forces recaptured the housing units of the Scientific Research area as well as the Sakan al-Shababi residential neighborhood in eastern Aleppo on Monday.

Meanwhile, an audio recording of one of the rebel commanders in Aleppo went online Monday, in which the unnamed man was accusing other commanders of abandoning their positions in eastern Aleppo.

Thousands of civilians have fled to government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, following the advance of the Syrian army.

Syrian national TV has aired several interviews with civilians who have reached government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, with people blaming rebels for the dire humanitarian situation there.

The interviewees accused rebels of previously preventing them from leaving Aleppo. They also spoke of hunger they have been suffering from over the past four months.

Government forces have intensified shelling on rebel positions in eastern Aleppo over the past 10 days to break their defense lines and prepare for a ground incursion.

The firepower has led to the destruction of rebel defenses, mainly the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, the Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham, and the Nour Addien Alzinki Movement.

Military sources said the rebels in eastern Aleppo are in a state of confusion as a result of government military advances.

The Syrian army says it will press on with the operation until all rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo are recaptured.
SARAJEVO, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Sarajevo International Airport served some 750,000 passengers in the first ten months of this year, an increase of 8 percent year-on-year, local media reported on Monday.

According to Armin Kajmakovic, director of the Sarajevo International Airport, the airport currently hosts 12 airline companies, linking Sarajevo with 13 destinations.

"In August(this year), we set a new record for the number of passengers served by one month with 118,350 passengers," said Kajmakovic.

He emphasized that the airport expects 800,000 passengers in the whole year, which will break another record.

Considerable efforts were also made in bringing new airline companies, Wizz Air's Sarajevo-Budapest and Qatar Airways's Sarajevo-Doha airlines are supposed to be introduced in early 2017.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Compared with the state sector, China's private businesses are vulnerable in terms of property rights, but that may change as new policy expands the safety net.

On Sunday, a guideline on property rights was issued, the first by the central authorities. It seeks to ensure uniform, legal protection for all kinds of property rights for all individuals and entities.

Securing property rights will raise people's sense of wealth security, foster positive expectations and confidence and raise the impetus for entrepreneurship and innovation, according to the guideline.

Although China has been gradually improving its property rights protection system, incidences of state power infringing on private assets and illegal seizure of non-public assets still occur.

The flawed system has, to some extent, undermined the confidence of private investors. The problem has been aggravated by the slowing economy, and, as the private sector regularly contributes more than 60 percent of China's GDP growth and provides over 80 percent of jobs, the time is ripe for change.

Chang Xiuze, a macroeconomic researcher with the National Development and Reform Commission, blames the drop in private capital investment on a lack of confidence in the business community, especially among private businesses.

Although fixed asset investment by private companies increased 2.9 percent from January-October, the rate was much lower than the 8.3-percent growth of overall fixed asset investment. Historically, these two indicators usually moved in tandem. In contrast, state-sector investment was up by 20.5 percent.

Sunday's guideline should help restore confidence. It promises that open cases that remain unresolved for historical reasons will be dealt with appropriately, and an accountability system shall protect against questionable court rulings.

The decision to see irregular actions in the past in a historical and dialectical perspective would set entrepreneurs' minds at rest and encourage investment, according to Chang Peng'ao of Peking University law school.
Photo taken on November 28, 2016 shows Ms. Ellen Magrethe Loej, Special Representative of the United Nation's Secretary-General and Head of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) holding her final news conference in South Sudan's Capital Juba. (Xinhua/Gale Julius)

JUBA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The head of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on Monday urged South Sudanese to transcend ethnic divisions and build national identity in the aftermath of intensified ethnic targeted killings.

"South Sudanese should unite in working toward creating the national identity of this country. I thought you fought for years for one independent country and not 64 independent countries," UNMISS chief Ellen Margrethe Loej told journalists in Juba in her last press briefing.

Loej also expressed concern over the deteriorating security situation in the greater part of Equatoria region where the government troops are battling the Sudan People's Liberation Army-in opposition (SPLA-IO) led by ousted First Vice President Riek Machar.

"The situation is not very good. And unfortunately as we speak, we are seeing a very fragile security situation in the Equatoria. I recently went both to Yambio and Torit and it was heart wrenching to hear that in Torit they were not able to take care of their farms," she said.

South Sudan on Friday accepted the deployment of the much-awaited 4,000 strong Regional Protection Force (RPF) without conditions in the aftermath of the UN Security Council resolution.

Loej also revealed that the UNMISS encountered several challenges in its peacekeeping mission particularly at the height of the renewed July clash and the Protection of Civilians sites (PoCs).

"There have been plenty of challenges both on the external and internal front. The challenge has been that there is no peace in South Sudan. We have had difficulties in moving both from the government side and SPLA-IO side," she disclosed.

"The government thought we were too close to the SPLA-IO at the height of the fighting. And the SPLA-IO thought we were too close to the government. In reality what we have tried to do is to be impartial in the conflict," she revealed.

"July was another challenge where UN basically was caught in crossfire and had difficulties in providing the necessary protection for those in need. Unfortunately the PoCs have also been politicized by some people," she added.

It was important that the international community while trying to meet the humanitarian needs of the South Sudanese, should also not forget to assist with some of the development needs.
DUBAI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The tourism authority in the emirate of Sharjah of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Monday it is preparing to welcome as many as 200,000 Chinese visitors to the emirate by 2021, UAE state news agency WAM reported on Monday.

The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) stated that China is a "major international source market" for tourism and commerce.

SCTDA Chairman Khalid Jasim Al-Midfa said "taking into account the Chinese market's distinctive characteristics and focusing on Sharjah's strengths and unique cultural tourism offerings, we are confident that we will continue to see the upward trend of this market in Sharjah."

Hotels in Sharjah have hosted over 75,000 Chinese visitors during the first three quarters of 2016, showing a 75 percent year-on-year growth, according to data revealed at a recent SCTDA workshop held in Urumqi, China.

Since January 2015, Sharjah-based budget airline Air Arabia has been flying directly from Sharjah to Urumqi, the largest city in Western China. In addition, Dubai-based Emirates Airline, the international carrier of the UAE, has added earlier in May Yinchuan and Zhengzhou as its fourth and fifth destination in mainland China.

"Our recent workshop with our partner Air Arabia in the north-western Chinese city of Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was another part of our Chinese strategy aimed at achieving this growth," said Al-Midfa.

He added that "the increased initiative to attract visitors from China has been boosted by the UAE's new Chinese visa-on-arrival regulation, and other new initiatives by the authorities and stakeholders to attract more visitors."

During its Urumqi visit, the delegation also discussed new flight opportunities. As of now, Air Arabia is the only outbound tourist carrier from this region and is running at high capacity, suggesting there is further potential from the region. Air Arabia arranged the meetings and workshops with their key agents, among other outbound tourism providers.
Liu Yunshan (R), a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, meets with a Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) delegation led by Abelardo Alvarez Gila, a member of the Secretariat of the PCC Central Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Liu Yunshan, a senior official of the Communist Party of China (CPC), met with a Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) delegation in Beijing Monday.

The delegation was led by Abelardo Alvarez Gil, a member of the Secretariat of the PCC Central Committee.

During the meeting, Liu, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said he was deeply saddened by the passing of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, who died on Friday aged 90.

Liu lauded Fidel Castro's outstanding contribution to China-Cuba friendship.

Despite the distance keeping the two countries far apart, common ideals and beliefs bind them together, Liu said.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, and Raul Castro, first secretary of the PCC Central Committee, have reached important consensus on deepening relations between the two parties and the two countries, Liu added.

The CPC is ready to work with the PCC to expand cooperation and deepen their sharing of experience on state governance in a bid to create a new prospect for China-Cuba friendship, Liu said.

Alvarez expressed appreciation at the deep condolences from the CPC and the Chinese people at the death of Fidel Castro.

He called on the PCC and the CPC to strengthen their sharing of experience on state governance and to ensure improved development of bilateral ties.

The Cuban delegation is visiting at the invitation of the CPC.
MANILA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's administration on Monday reaffirmed the country's commitment to the China-initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno told reporters that the Philippines is "ready to subscribe" this year and next year.

"Definitely, we want to be a member of the AIIB," he said.

The previous Philippine administration has approved the country's participation in the AIIB.

The indicative paid-in capital of the Philippines is 196 million U.S. dollars, payable in five years or 39 million U.S. dollars per annum.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China welcomes the World Trade Organization(WTO) dispute settlement body's appointment of Chinese national Zhao Hong as a new member, a commerce ministry spokesperson said Monday.

Zhao Hong was elected one of the seven members of the body on Nov. 23, along with newly-elected Kim Hyun-chong from the Republic of Korea, to join five others from the United States, Belgium, India, Mauritius and Mexico.

The dispute settlement body makes decisions on international trade disputes, adjudicated by the WTO.

Zhao Hong, a doctor of law, serves as deputy director of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, and worked for the commerce ministry from 1996 to 2015.
Yu Zhengsheng (R, front), chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), meets with representatives of the 10th National Congress of Chinese Muslims in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)

BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Senior Chinese leader Yu Zhengsheng on Monday urged the Islamic Association of China (IAC) to continue to make contributions to ethnic solidarity, religious harmony and social stability.

Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), made the remarks while meeting with representatives of the 10th National Congress of Chinese Muslims, which was held in Beijing from Saturday to Monday.

He said that the Islamic circles of China should advocate the fine traditions of patriotism, being law-abiding, inclusiveness, and adapting itself to the socialist society of China.

Yu called on the IAC to lead Islamic clergy and believers in China to follow the country's religious policies, to increase the law-abiding awareness, and to resist and guard against religious extremism.

Yu congratulated the success of the congress and spoke highly of the work of the IAC over the past five years.

More than 370 people from across China attended the congress, which elected the new leadership of the IAC, chaired by Yang Faming, a renowned Imam from Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.
ADDIS ABABA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The eleventh session of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritages opens in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa on Monday.

The meeting, which gathered close to 650 delegates to the east African nation, will focus on traditional songs, rituals, celebrations and know-how.

During the five-day session, from November 28 to December 2, representatives of 24 States Parties to UNESCO's Convention for Intangible Cultural Heritage will examine five nominations for inscription on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.

Two of the five nominations are from Africa, including Botswana's use of Moropa wa Bojale ba Bakgatla ba Kgafela and its associated practices and Uganda's Ma'di bowl lyre music and dance. The others are from Cambodia, Portugal and Ukraine, according to a press release on the UNESCO website.

Meanwhile, the representatives will also examine 37 other requests for inscription on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

China's Twenty-Four Solar Terms, knowledge of time developed through observation of the sun's annual motion, is one among the 37 requests proposed for the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Ethiopia's Oromo Gada system, an indigenous democratic socio-political system, is also among the nominations for 2016 for the Representative List of the Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

In his opening remarks, Ethiopia's President Mulatu Teshome, said that his country, endowed with rich and distinctive cultural values, is an ideal place to host the meeting.

The president also called on the global community to protect vulnerable intangible cultural heritages from extinction.

Francesco Bandarin, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Culture, also said that one of the issues the committee will examine is the effect of conflict and natural disaster on intangible heritages.

The Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritages in its 10 years of service has inscribed 336 elements as Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
by Maria Spiliopoulou

ATHENS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos on Monday called on the EU members to provide more support to refugees, accelerate the refugee relocation program from Greece and Italy and send more experts to assist in the assessment of asylum requests.

In statements to the press in Athens, he said that Greek authorities are taking the necessary measures to improve the living conditions in reception centers, in particular after the fire which broke out at Moria hotspot on Lesvos island last week, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

A 60-year-old refugee and her six-year-old grandson lost their lives due to a cooking gas canister explosion in early Friday.

Avramopoulos' remarks were made shortly after Fire Brigade extinguished another fire which broke out at a refugee hospitality center in Kilkis in northern Greece on early Monday.

A wooden structure used as a school for refugee children and three tents were burnt from the blaze. No injuries were reported this time. According to the fire service, the blaze was most likely caused by a short-circuit.

The Greek government has pledged to take measures to decongest accommodation facilities and improve living conditions, but also calls on other EU countries to offer more aid to handle the crisis.

More than 62,000 people are stranded in Greece since last spring, after the closure of borders along the Balkan route to central Europe, according to Athens' latest official account.
HANOI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam will hold a day of national mourning for Fidel Castro on Dec. 4 to express condolences and gratitude to the revolutionary leader of Cuba, who died late Friday at the age of 90.

The decision was made on Monday by the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee (CPVCC), the National Assembly (NA), the president, the government and the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee based on the special relationship between Vietnam and Cuba, said a statement by Vietnamese foreign ministry.

Also on Monday, CPVCC General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and many senior officials paid tribute to Castro at the Cuban embassy in capital Hanoi.

Mourning the loss with Cuban ambassador to Vietnam Herminio Lopez Diaz, Trong conveyed deepest sympathy to the party, state and people of Cuba and the leader's family.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang wrote on the book of condolences that "Fidel Castro is a great and close friend, a comrade and brother of Party, State leaders and people of Vietnam during the past 50 years."

"The burning passion and great courage of the revolutionary leader left a strong impression on those who had the honor to meet him, including me", Quang wrote.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc wrote "The life and revolutionary career of leader Fidel Castro is a great symbol of the spirit of resilient and brave struggle for national independence and freedom of Cuba as well as the liberation movement and struggle against imperialist and racial discrimination for peace and justice in the world."

The Cuban embassy's book of condolences commemorating Castro will remain open til Dec. 4.
GARISSA, Kenya, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's security officers have recovered deadly arsenal weapons buried outside a commercial residential house in Bula Sagare in the outskirts of Garissa town near the Somali border.

Northeastern Regional Coordinator Mohamud Saleh said on Monday that the weapons which included an AK 47 riffle, 210 rounds of ammunitions, improvised explosive devices, a hand grenade, and a fully loaded suicide bomber jacket were recovered on Sunday night.

Saleh said a member of the public stumbled on the weapons that were buried underground in a plastic container following heavy rains that have been pounding the area.

Saleh said that informant later reported the matter at the Garissa police station where officers moved swiftly and on arrival discovered the deadly weapons.

Saleh said no arrest has been made so far but added that the police are following leads that will lead to arrest.

"With the help of members of the public we have been able to preempt several attacks and recovered weapons that could have caused mass destruction," said Saleh.

He added that this is the third time in Garissa town that the security apparatus have recovered such huge arsenal thanks to intelligence that involved members of the public volunteering information to security agencies.

Salel who was flanked by top regional and county security officers said that some of the weapons were so deadly and could bring down a storey building or destroy the Tana Bridge.

"We are not yet out of the woods yet. With the current rains pounding many parts of the region, the terror groups are able to cross the border and travel long distances to perpetuate their heinous crimes," he added.

The East African nation blames Al-Shabaab terror group for a string of attacks and kidnappings in Kenya. The Kenyan government says the kidnappings threaten tourism, a key source of revenue for the country.
WARSAW, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A poll showed that 58 percent of Poles are opposed to changes in the Polish abortion regulations, Polish Press Agency reported Monday.

A total of 27 percent of respondents are in favor of liberalizing Poland's abortion law, and only 7 percent are in favor of tightening it, according to a survey by pollster CBOS.

At the same time, 58 percent of respondents supported a series of "black protests" held earlier this year against initiatives to make Poland's abortion law more restrictive, the poll showed. Twenty-six percent of those polled said they opposed these protests.

Seventeen percent of Polish women and 6 percent of men declared they dressed in black to show solidarity with the protesters on the days the protests were held, according to CBOS. Four percent of the women polled and 2 percent of the men said they actively joined the protests.

CBOS carried out the survey from Nov. 4 to 13 on a representative sample of 1,019 respondents.

The black protests were organized to protest Parliament's plan to completely ban abortion. The Law and Justice-backed measure threatened jail time for women who broke the law.

Furthermore, it would make it illegal to freeze embryos or to fertilize more than one egg at a time, measures aimed at curbing in vitro fertilization.

As a result, the Polish society is split into two groups: conservative pro-life supporters and progressives that either support the existing consensus or want to liberalize the current abortion law.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with United Nations Secretary-General designate Antonio Guterres in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met United Nations Secretary-General designate Antonio Guterres in Beijing on Monday, vowing stronger cooperation with the UN and firm support for its work.

Calling the UN the "most universal, representative and authoritative inter-governmental international organization," Xi said it has played an irreplaceable role in addressing global challenges.

Countries around the world expect the UN to play a greater role as the international situation develops, Xi said.

"The UN should uphold the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, safeguard international peace and security, promote common development, and, in particular, implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change," Xi said.

He called on the UN to take care of developing countries' interests, and give more voice and do more for such countries.

Guterres, on a China trip from Monday to Tuesday, said he appreciated China's support for his election as UN chief. He was appointed by the UN General Assembly in October to succeed Ban Ki-moon as UN secretary-general.

China has become an important pillar in the UN cause and multilateralism, said the 67-year-old Portuguese.

This year marks the 45th anniversary of China's restoration to its seat in the UN.

Hailing China-UN cooperation over the past years, Xi said China will continue to join and back UN cooperation in various areas, support UN work and multilateralism, and uphold international order with the purpose and principles of the UN Charter at the core.

Xi proposed facilitating China-UN cooperation by allowing for the leading role of high-level exchanges, and pushing forward progress in implementing China's measures to support the UN, which he announced when visiting UN headquarters in September 2015.

The measures included offering 2 billion U.S. dollars to set up a fund to support South-South cooperation, and establishing a permanent peacekeeping police squad and a peacekeeping standby force of 8,000 troops.

Guterres said Xi's proposals to back UN work at the UN summit last year were inspiring.

China has made a great contribution to world peace and development by initiating the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), participating in UN peacekeeping operations and mediation, as well as helping other developing countries, said the UN chief designate.

He pledged stronger cooperation with China in boosting world peace, stability and prosperity.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi also met with Guterres on Monday.

Guterres will start a five-year term on Jan. 1, 2017. He was prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002, and served as UN High Commissioner for Refugees from 2005 to 2015.
TOKYO, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Bird flu cases have been detected at two poultry farms in Japan, though it is not clear yet how pathogenic the cases were.

Some 40 chicken in a farm in Japan's Niigata prefecture were found dead Monday. All five of the chicken sent for a test were found positive for bird flu, according to the Niigata government.

The government said that further tests are being conducted and all 310,000 chicken at the farm would be culled immediately if the strain is found highly pathogenic.

The government has also asked farms within 10 km of the affected poultry farm to stop sending out eggs and poultry.

Bird flu cases were also found at a farm in Aomori prefecture in northeastern Japan. Nine ducks at the farm tested positive for bird flu, though it is not clear yet whether the strain is highly pathogenic.

Japan's environment ministry has recently raised the country's bird flu alert to the maximum level 3, as highly pathogenic H5N6 strain has been found in wild birds in multiple prefectures.

Japan culled some 200,000 chicken in 2015 following an outbreak of highly pathogenic bird flu in Okayama prefecture, western Japan.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China is moving closer to its goal of building an all-round moderately prosperous society by 2020, inspired by the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Tuesday marks the fourth anniversary of the Chinese dream concept, and remarkable progress has been made in state governance, reform and development, as well as domestic and foreign affairs, under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core.

NEW ECONOMIC MOMENTUM

The Chinese economy has demonstrated great stability and resilience, providing a solid foundation for the country's drive to complete the building of an all-round moderately prosperous society by 2020.

Figures speak for themselves. China's GDP grew 6.7 percent year on year in the first three quarters this year; China's producer price index, which measures costs for goods at the factory gate, ended a 54-month straight decline in September; the country has also seen rising figures in investment, industrial output and corporate revenue.

Over the past years, the Chinese economy has gained new momentum, and growth in emerging and high-tech industries has accelerated. The country has seen nearly 15,000 new enterprises registered on average each day.

Quality economic growth has been boosted by China's economic restructuring. Statistics show that the added value of the tertiary sector accounted for 52.8 percent of the country's GDP in the first nine months of this year, up 1.6 percentage points year on year, while energy consumption per unit of GDP fell by 5.2 percent.

The Chinese dream goes hand in hand with the Chinese people leading happy and satisfying lives, and China has strived to enable more people to benefit from the country's development.

China has carried out various measures to improve people's livelihoods, such as household registration reform, investments in rural education and subsidies for the disabled.

This year the central and provincial governments earmarked a record high of over 100 billion yuan (around 14.5 billion U.S. dollars) for poverty relief.

At the same time China, amid stagnant global growth and a rise in trade protectionism, has embraced the world with more confidence and an open mind.

From the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to the Hangzhou G20 summit and Lima APEC meeting, Chinese wisdom has pointed the direction for world development.

ROADMAP FOR CHINESE DREAM

To pursue its dream, the country must ensure it is on the right track.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC in late 2012, new concepts, ideas and strategies for state governance have been formulated, with an overall approach that emphasizes development in several areas: economy, politics, culture, society, and ecology; the strategic layout of the "Four Comprehensives"; the "five development concepts" as engines of growth; and improving peoples' well-being.

"These new concepts, ideas and strategies have become increasingly well-developed, practical and widely supported; they offer fundamental guidance, a clear direction and strength for us to pursue the Chinese dream," said Xin Ming, a professor with the Party School of the CPC Central Committee.

Among these new concepts, ideas and strategies, the "Four Comprehensives" creates pathways to realize the Chinese dream.

To build an all-round moderately prosperous society, the country has to maintain steady economic growth and fight a tough battle in poverty relief.

Comprehensively deepening reform is a driving force to achieve the objectives of the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020) and beyond. Completely implementing the rule of law will bring equality and justice to the people.

Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core has strived to forge over 80 million Party members into role models and pioneers. Governing the Party strictly provides a fundamental guarantee for realizing the Chinese dream.

At the Fifth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee held last year, the central authorities proposed five development concepts: innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing.

One year on, these concepts have become voluntary practices for central departments, localities, enterprises and individuals.

According to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, 546 companies on the exchange with innovation at their core increased net profits 44.3 percent year on year in the first nine months of 2016, significantly higher than the average profit growth in other Chinese enterprises.

Under the five development concepts, the Chinese economy is moving from a "black economy" to a "green economy," and from an industrial heavy economy to the "new economy."

INNOVATION-DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT

In certain landlocked villages in northwest China, it has been difficult for fruit farmers to sell their produce due to a lack of highways, but the situation has changed at Xinhe village in Gansu Province thanks to an online sales platform launched one year ago by former soldier Kang Weiqi.

"It feels like dreaming, and I can not believe it," Kang said. His trade volume has reached 8.7 million yuan, something he never thought possible.

Innovation has gained momentum in China. Kang is the epitome of the young Chinese who have started up businesses over the past few years.

In a town in western Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, a part-time recruitment platform created by a group of young people in May 2015 has brought great changes.

The platform has over 20 million student users and an estimated value over 100 million yuan. Currently more than 4,000 young entrepreneurs have started their businesses using the platform, and the town has over 780 startups.

Such changes could not be made without people's aspiration for a better life and support from the government.

As China gets closer to achieving national rejuvenation than ever, unprecedented difficulties and challenges remain. There are over 50 million people living in poverty; people expect more fairness and justice; and the anti-corruption drive continues unabated.
WARSAW, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Polish President Andrzej Duda and his German counterpart Joachim Gauck visited the headquarters of the NATO Multinational Corps Northeast in Szczecin, northwestern Poland, on Monday.

The visit included a meeting of the two presidents, a presentation on the Corps and a tour of the command post.

"The Multinational Corps Northeast in Szczecin functions well and fulfills its role connected with the implementation of undertakings made during the NATO Summit in Newport and in Warsaw," Duda said.

He underlined the intensification of the unit's actions were visible as well as raising its readiness status from Low to High Readiness Force Headquarters.

"I am sure that the policy of Germany and Poland in the defense area are very close to each other," Gauck said during the press conference.

He added: "This multinational corpus is playing an important role in ensuring the security in the times, when both politicians and the society have fears regarding security of Europe."

Gauck also emphasized the fact that ensuring safety and security is still an important task for NATO, as both presidents declared intensification of cooperation in this field.

Following the decisions of the NATO summit in Newport (2014), the Multinational Corps Northeast in Szczecin is raising its readiness status from Low to High Readiness Force Headquarters.

The main task of the unit is to respond to security challenges occurring on NATO's eastern flank, with a special focus on Poland, the Baltic states, Slovakia and Hungary.
KIGALI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Government of Rwanda and the Kingdom of Netherlands Monday inked a financing agreement worth 30 million euros towards support of Rwanda's basic infrastructure projects in districts.

The grant is expected to contribute to the achievements of Rwanda national targets of poverty reduction and economic development.

It is in line with the long-term partnership between Netherlands and Rwanda in the area of decentralization in general and local economic development in particular since 2007, according to officials.

"This support fits in well with Rwanda's development programs and country system, the results of this collaboration will contribute to poverty reduction and connect local communities to economic opportunities," Frederique de Man, the Ambassador of Netherlands to Rwanda said.

Claver Gatete, Rwanda's Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, said priority will be given to income-generating and economic infrastructure projects, while all projects will be selected based on the District Development Plans.

"In line with Government's decentralization policies and strategies, the project will allow local government to implement local priorities, thus making them also more responsive to the specific local needs and enhancing local accountability," he said.

Local economic development strategy has been adopted by the government of Rwanda to guide districts in the process of developing their local economies through wealth and job creation.

In order to fulfill this mandate districts see the need to invest in infrastructure that makes their cities attractive for people and private investors.

Eligible investments are those infrastructure projects that fit the districts own contexts, align to their economic potentialities and development plans such as market infrastructure, irrigation, community based post-harvest facilities, road infrastructure, agricultural infrastructure (terraces) drainage, solid waste management, water and sanitation, access to energy among others.

All the 30 districts of Rwanda will benefit from this grant with main focus to poorest and densely populated districts, officials said.

Local administrative entities Development Agency (LODA) as a government institution mandated to coordinate the financing of development projects in decentralized entities will manage the funds.

Netherlands interventions are in Decentralization and Governance, Private Sector Development, Justice, Reconciliation, Law and Order Sector, and water & sanitation.
BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Chen Zhenggao on Monday urged an "immediate and comprehensive" safety overhaul in the construction industry, after a deadly construction site disaster at a power plant in eastern China.

There will be "zero tolerance" to major potential safety hazards and irregularities, Chen said at a specially convened meeting on work safety at construction sites.

Tight deadlines, inadequate labor and building materials, as well as poor management cause hidden dangers, Chen said.

While demanding that enterprises put their house in order, he urged the ministry's local branches to set up leading groups for work safety to strengthen supervision and inspection.

Coal mines, traffic, dangerous chemicals, fireworks, power and heating supply sectors were also cited as areas in need of more attention, China's top work safety watchdog said Sunday.

A platform being constructed for a cooling tower at a power plant collapsed in Fengcheng, Jiangxi Province, on Thursday morning, killing 74 people.
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VIENTIANE, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Laos is known as a source and to a lesser extent a transit country for human trafficking, with the main destination country for Lao migrants being Thailand, according to information revealed at the National Capacity Building Conference to Counter the Global Threats of Human Trafficking, Smuggling of Migrants and Organized Crime, opened Monday in Lao capital Vientiane.

Data showed that there are about 300,000 non-documented Lao migrants in Thailand, the Institute for Legal Support and Technical Assistance (ILSTA) was quoted by Lao state-run online newspaper Vientiane Times.

Like other countries in the Mekong subregion, the Lao demography is prevalently composed of youth, and job opportunities are limited.

Legal labor migration opportunities are scarce, difficult to access and are not adapted to demand, forcing people to seek other channels and become non-documented migrants. Non-documented workers are extremely vulnerable and statistics of case files demonstrate a clear nexus between illegal migration and human trafficking.

Combating human trafficking, smuggling of migrants and organized crime is a huge task as the geographical structure comprising long, natural porous borders, delimited often by forests, rivers or mountains provide an advantage for people seeking profits through organized crime activities.

Language barriers and the absence of functional international cooperation mechanisms hamper effective investigations and exchange to counter transnational crime, said ILSTA.

The new dynamism of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) is forging closer economic ties between ASEAN member countries and increasing cross border flows. One-stop shops and simplified border procedures are reducing the number of controls within the AEC borders and is likely to increase illegal flows and strengthen crime networks.

While ASEAN ministerial meetings address organized crime and human trafficking on a political level, all Mekong subregion countries are seriously challenged to respond effectively to these crimes, reported Vientiane Times.

The conference organized by the ILSTA aims to raise awareness of human trafficking, smuggling of migrants and organized crime and providing a platform to foster national and international networks and cooperation between judiciary and relevant law enforcement agencies in the region in order to counter organized crime.

Trafficking in human beings and smuggling of migrants has become one of the most profitable activities of organized crime groups worldwide. It is estimated that in the Asia-Pacific region alone, some 11.7 million people are in forced labor, according to Vientiane Times.
GENEVA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The pilots of a Swiss International Airlines plane turned back a airplane shortly after take-off after hearing an alarming noice from the right side of the aircraft, Swiss local newspaper Tribune de Geneve reported Monday.

According to the newspaper, the noise sounded like an explosion and seemed to emanate from the plane's right engine.

This prompted the pilots to do an about-turn over Lake Constance and return to Zurich airport from where the plane had just taken off.

The plane, which was travelling from Zurich to Vienna, Austria, on Monday morning, was carrying 167 passengers.

The passengers were able to take another flight once they had landed safely back in the northern Swiss town, the newspaper reported.

An investigation will be opened to determine the causes behind the noise, it added.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) holds talks with Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 28, 2016. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- China is willing to work on development planning and strategies with Laos to cooperate in major areas, including railways and development zones, Premier Li Keqiang said Monday.

Li made the remarks during talks with Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, who is on a four-day official visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Li called on both countries to take a leading role in major projects, such as railways as well as economic and development zones, to advance cooperation on production and investment.

Thongloun said the Laos-China railway is of great importance to Laos, and his country will spare no efforts to promote it.

The China-Laos railway, a key project of the Belt and Road initiative, has a length of 414 km, with over 60 percent as bridges and tunnels, linking the Mohan-Boten border gate in northern Laos with capital Vientiane.

Construction started in late 2015, and the project will take five years with a 37.4 billion yuan (5.4 billion U.S. dollars) investment.

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin told reporters after the talks that the Chinese government is committed to forging ahead with the project.

During the talks, Li also encouraged China and Laos to enhance cooperation and share experiences in several areas, including agriculture,processing agricultural produce, poverty-reduction, finance and defense.

On the political front, Li said Laos is a good neighbor, and that China would continue its friendly policy towards Laos and firmly supports Laos in its development path, to jointly safeguard regional peace, stability and prosperity.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of dialogue between China and ASEAN.

Holding the ASEAN presidency this year, Laos successfully held the East Asia leaders' meeting, and played a positive role in cementing China-ASEAN relations, Li said.

Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of ASEAN.

China firmly supports the construction of the ASEAN Economic Community and ASEAN's central role in regional cooperation, Li said, adding that China will participate in ASEAN commemorative events.

China hopes Laos will continue to work for the steady and healthy development of China-ASEAN relations, the premier said.

Calling China "a sincere friend and brother of Laos," Thongloun hailed the sound development of Laos-China relations.

He said Laos is willing to use this year's 55th anniversary of diplomatic ties with China to better integrate development strategies with China and deepen cooperation in infrastructure, finance, agriculture and development zones.

After the talks, the two prime ministers witnessed the signing of cooperation deals on economy and trade

Thongloun arrived in China on Monday, at Li's invitation.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A top aid to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump raised eyebrows among other Trump advisors, revealing a deep divide within the team as crucial spots in the incoming cabinet are yet to be filled.

Trump was "furious" over his former campaign manager Kellyanne Conway's remarks on Sunday that questioned state secretary contender Mitt Romney's loyalty, MSNBC reported Monday.

The network also quoted two other top aides to Trump as saying they were "baffled" over Conway's action.

"I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position," Conway reportedly told CNN.

She defended her comments later by tweeting that she had voiced her concern directly to the president-elect, who has her "respect, loyalty."

Romney's nomination as the top U.S. diplomat was strongly opposed by some Trump supporters, as the former governor of Massachusetts had been openly critical of Trump during the election cycle.

Proponents of Romney say having him on the team would be seen as a sign that Trump is willing to mend fences with former adversaries.

Other high profile posts in the next administration that remain vacant include the Pentagon chief, for which retired general James Mattis is said to be a top contender.
KUNMING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- A six-nation joint operation to crack down on rampant drug crimes along the Lancang-Mekong region has seized 12.7 tonnes of narcotics, arrested 9,927 suspects and confiscated a huge number of firearms over three months, Chinese police said Monday.

Also seized were 55.2 tonnes of chemicals to be used in drug manufacturing, police announced at a ceremony held in southwest China's Yunnan Province to mark the end of the latest anti-doping joint operation launched by China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Police said the coordinating command center set up by the six nations played a key role in sharing information to help police conduct raids. In one prominent case, 1.73 tonnes of ice -- crystal methamphetamine -- was seized in Myanmar due to a tip-off from Thai intelligence officers. It was the biggest ever ice trafficking case in Myanmar.

The 5,000-km waterways of the Lancang and Mekong rivers, crossing the territories of the six nations, were notorious for drug trafficking due to lax law enforcement, spawning many armed-drug syndicates. Since 2013, joint patrols by Lancang-Mekong countries have become commonplace, putting checks on drug crimes.

Liu Yuejin, deputy director of China's National Narcotics Control Commission, said the nations will step up joint campaigns, and work closely on investigation, evidence gathering and exchange, joint trials, and the transfer of suspects, as the cooperation continues.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- One suspect in the Ohio State University (OSU) shooting was killed as at least nine people were injured, local media said Monday.

WCMH, a local TV station, cited police sources as saying the suspect involved in an active shooter situation on the campus of OSU is now dead, while nine victims are currently being treated.

The Columbus Fire Department was previously quoted as saying that at least one of the wounded was in critical condition.

OSU tweeted that "scene is now secure," and that "area around 19th and College Ave is closed."

The identity of the suspect and how the person was killed is unclear.

OSU tweeted earlier that an active shooter was on campus, telling students to "run, hide, fight." A large police presence was seen on the campus.
Peter Thomson (L), president of the 71st General Assembly of the United Nations, and Hungarian President Janos Ader, attend a press conference after the opening ceremony of the Budapest Water Summit 2016 in Budapest, capital of Hungary, on Nov. 28, 2016. The Budapest Water Summit 2016, with the motto "Water connects", got underway on Monday, attended by nearly 1,800 participants. (Xinhua/Attila Volgyi)

BUDAPEST, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Budapest Water Summit 2016, with the motto "Water connects", got underway on Monday, attended by nearly 1,800 participants.

Hungarian President Janos Ader, sponsor of the gathering, warned that water was the world's most endangered resource and had to become the top issue of political thinking and actions.

Satisfactory water supplies are vital to agricultural and industrial output alike, he said, adding that between now and 2030 water consumption will grow by 30 percent.

He called for innovating thinking and as many experimental programs as possible together with the funding to keep these programs running.

Ader noted that farming required 70 percent of all water used, although only 15 percent of arable land was irrigated. However, he went on that 15 percent produces 40 percent of all farming yields.

Climate change and water were interlinked, he said, underlining that if there is a shortage of water, cities could become depopulated.

Peter Thomson, president of the 71st General Assembly of the United Nations, in addressing the summit, pointed to the link between sufficient water, and peace and security. He quoted OECD (the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) data predicting that the global demand for water will increase by 55 percent by 2050. Water is key to sustainable development, he said.

The UN has declared access to water to be a human right, Thomson said, meaning that people everywhere needed to be supplied with adequate drinking water and that waste-water everywhere needed to be treated.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon sent a video message calling for management of water as a resource to achieve sustainable development. He appealed for the dissemination of best practices as widely as possible.

Managing Director and World Bank Group Chief Financial Officer, Joaquim Levy, warned that water shortages triggered conflict and migration, and had a huge economic and social cost.

The three-day Water Summit is made up of six thematic plenary panels focused on implementation of the sustainable development goals related to water.

In addition, there will be a science and technology forum, a youth forum, a civil forum and a women's forum.

A statement is expected to be adopted on the final day of the event.

A Sustainable Water Solutions Expo is being held on the sidelines of the summit. It focuses on sustainable, innovative, and pro-environment drinking water production and water treatment.

This is the second Budapest Water Summit which is organized by the Hungarian government in cooperation with the World Water Council. The first Water Summit was held in 2013.
TEHRAN, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Russia will sign an agreement in the near future to remove visa requirements for travelers on package tours, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi was quoted as saying by Press TV on Monday.

"Iran and Russia are due to abolish tourist visa requirements under certain conditions but they have not signed and implemented (an agreement) yet," Qasemi said.

He said that many more steps must be taken before Tehran and Moscow reach necessary agreements.

Iran and Russia have stepped up their efforts to increase tourism cooperation in recent months.
JERUSALEM, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Monday that Israel will not allow a new "front of terror" in the Golan Heights, a day after Islamic State (IS) militants clashed with Israeli soldiers.

"There have been attempts to attack our forces," Netanyahu informed a meeting of his Likud faction, referring to the shooting and mortar attack launched by IS militants near the Israeli-Syrian border on Sunday.

"We will not allow radical Islam to open a front against us in the Golan Heights," said Netanyahu, adding that Israel "will not allow any drizzle (of assaults), and if necessary, we will attack the enemy."

On Sunday, IS militants fired at Israeli soldiers from a machine gun-mounted truck.

Israel quickly responded with an airstrike, killing four gunmen in the vehicle.

In addition, Israel's Air Force struck a compound used by IS militants in the southern Syrian Golan Heights overnight between Sunday and Monday.

Reportedly, it is the first confrontation between Israeli soldiers and IS militants.
A picture taken from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights shows a loaded missile launcher used by members of an armed group in the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, at an abandonned UN base at the Quneitra border crossing, on November 28, 2016.(AFP Photo)

JERUSALEM, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Monday that Israel will not allow a new "front of terror" in the Golan Heights, a day after Islamic State (IS) militants clashed with Israeli soldiers.

"There have been attempts to attack our forces," Netanyahu informed a meeting of his Likud faction, referring to the shooting and mortar attack launched by IS militants near the Israeli-Syrian border on Sunday.

"We will not allow radical Islam to open a front against us in the Golan Heights," said Netanyahu, adding that Israel "will not allow any drizzle (of assaults), and if necessary, we will attack the enemy."

On Sunday, IS militants fired at Israeli soldiers from a machine gun-mounted truck.

Israel quickly responded with an airstrike, killing four gunmen in the vehicle.

In addition, Israel's Air Force struck a compound used by IS militants in the southern Syrian Golan Heights overnight between Sunday and Monday.

Reportedly, it is the first confrontation between Israeli soldiers and IS militants.
A vehicle of Syrian pro-government forces drives past damaged buildings on November 27, 2016 in the Masaken Hanano district in eastern Aleppo, a day after they resized it from rebel fighters. (AFP/Xinhua)

DAMASCUS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Syrian government forces are now in control of nearly half of the rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo city in northern Syria, a military source told Xinhua on Monday.

Government forces and allied fighters have so far captured 20 out of 45 sq. km of rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo, the source said on condition of anonymity.

He added that all of the northern section of eastern Aleppo has come under government control, after the northern part of eastern Aleppo was isolated from its south.

As a result of a broad offensive launched recently, Syrian government forces have recaptured the neighborhoods of Sakhour, Sheikh Khuder, Sheikh Fares, Bustan al-Basha, Baibdien, Slaiman al-Halabi, Halak, Inzarat, Ayn Tal Jabal Badro, and Masaken Hanano in eastern Aleppo.

Thousands of civilians have fled to government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, following the advance of the Syrian army.

Meanwhile, Syrian national TV has aired several interviews with civilians who have reached government-controlled areas in western Aleppo, with people blaming rebels for the dire humanitarian situation there.

The interviewees accused rebels of previously preventing them from leaving Aleppo. They also spoke of hunger they have been suffering from over the past four months.

Government forces have intensified shelling on rebel positions in eastern Aleppo over the past 10 days to break their defense lines and prepare for a ground incursion.

The firepower has led to the destruction of rebel defenses, mainly the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, the Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham, and the Nour Addien Alzinki Movement.

The capture of Masaken Hanano, the largest rebel-held neighborhood in eastern Aleppo, and the Sakhour neighborhood, has enabled the Syrian army to isolate neighborhoods in northeastern Aleppo from the central and southern ones.

Military sources said the rebels in eastern Aleppo are in a state of confusion as a result of government military advances.

The Syrian army says it will press on with the operation until all rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo are recaptured.
Shiite fighters from the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation) advance from an area near Qayyarah towards the village of Tal Um Jadaan, southwest of Mosul, on November 26, 2016, during an ongoing operation against Islamic State (IS) group jihadists. (AFP/Xinhua)

MOSUL, Iraq, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi security forces in Monday continued their clashes against the Islamic State (IS) militants and seized more ground in and near the city of Mosul, after nearly six weeks since a major offensive was launched to drive out the extremist militants from their last major stronghold in the country, the Iraqi military said.

In eastern Mosul, the commandos of the Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) fought heavy clashes with the IS militants and managed to completely clear the districts of al-Qahira, Masarif and Amin, a statement by the Iraqi Joint Operations Command (JOC) said.

The number of districts that have been completely freed by the CTS commandos reached so far 23, the statement said.

The troops inside Mosul have met stubborn resistance from the extremist militants, who are fighting in small groups and moving quickly throughout the districts in the eastern side of the city, locally named the left bank of the Tigris River that bisects the city.

The extremist groups frequently infiltrated behind the advanced CTS forces using tunnels or sneaking through dozens of houses and buildings.

In southeast of Mosul, the Iraqi army freed the villages of al-Gaser and al-Egiedat, some 15 km southeast of Mosul, after defeating the terrorist militants who fled their positions, the statement added.

Also in the day, the predominantly Shiite Hashd Shaabi units freed the villages al-Salam, Tal Mfeilka and al-Turkomaniya near the IS-held town of Tal Afar, some 70 km west of Mosul,

The presence of the Hashd Shaabi units near Tal Afar enabled them to cut off the IS supply routes from the west side of Mosul, and allowed both the paramilitary units and other Iraqi and Kurdish security forces to entirely isolate and surround the city Mosul.

On Tuesday morning, the paramilitary units began their advance to encircle the town of Tal Afar, preparing for the next stage to free it from the IS militants.

The units' presence in the whole area in west of Mosul would also enable them to secure the border areas between Iraq and neighboring Syria and would cut off the IS supply routes between Mosul and the Syrian city of Raqqa, the capital of IS self-declared caliphate.

On Friday, a report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said that after more than a month of military operations against IS militants in Mosul, some 72,990 civilians have fled their homes in the city and its adjacent districts and the number went up every day.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Oct. 17 announced a major offensive to retake Mosul, the country's second largest city.

Since then, the Iraqi security forces have inched to the eastern fringes of Mosul and made progress on other routes around the city.

Mosul, some 400 km north of Iraqi capital of Baghdad, has been under the 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.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (R) and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin hold a press conference after their meeting following the third summit of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) in Tehran, Iran, on Nov. 23, 2015. (Xinhua/File Photo)

MOSCOW, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani discussed over phone on Monday efforts of world main oil producers to cap output ahead of a upcoming OPEC meeting this week, the Kremlin said.

Both sides noted fundamental importance of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) taking measures to restrict oil production as a key factor in stabilizing the global market, the Kremlin said in a statement.

OPEC reached a preliminary agreement to curb oil production in September and will meet in Vienna, Austria on Nov. 30 to formalize the deal. However, disagreements have reportedly persisted among producers on details of the plan.

Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Saturday that OPEC countries should first reach a consensus within the organization before non-OPEC producers join the agreement.

According to the minister, Moscow is in talks about a crude oil output freeze with other non-OPEC countries, in particular with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Mexico.
A Yemeni man inspects the damage on a street following clashes between pro-government militants, loyal to President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, and Shiite Huthi rebels on November 22, 2016 in the country's third-city Taez. (AFP/Xinhua)

SANAA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Shiite Houthi group and its ally of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party declared on Monday the formation of "national salvation government," according to an official statement posted on Houthi-controlled state Saba news agency.

The move was taken unilaterally away from their foes of Saudi-backed Yemeni exiled, but internationally recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The decision was approved in an official decree released by the Houthi-Saleh join governing council, known as the Supreme Political Council, which ordered the decree to be published on the official gazette.

The new government is headed by Abdulaziz Saleh bin Habtour and 42 ministers, including the information ministry, foreign ministry, defense ministry and interior ministry.

The move came the same day the United Nations envoy to Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed arrived at the Yemeni southern port city of Aden to meet President Hadi to push ahead the peace process between Hadi's camp and its rival Houthis-Saleh camp.

The UN roadmap, which was largely rejected by Hadi for not being based on the UNSCR 2216, called for naming a new vice president after the withdrawal of the Shiite Houthi rebels from the capital Sanaa and other northern provinces and handing over all heavy weapons to a third party.

The UN plan also suggested forming a new government that will include the two-warring sides and will not be led by Hadi who would transfer his power to the new vice president.

But in the 2216 resolution, the Security Council demands that the Houthis withdraw from all areas seized during the latest conflict, relinquish arms seized from military and security institutions, cease all actions falling exclusively within the authority of the legitimate Yemeni government and fully implement previous Council resolutions before moving ahead to form a new joint national unity government between the two warring sides.

The situation in Yemen has deteriorated economically and politically since March 2015, when war broke out between the Shiite Houthi group, supported by former President Ali Abdullash Saleh, and the government backed by a Saudi-led Arab coalition.

Houthis and Saleh's forces hold most of Yemen's northern regions while government forces backed by Saudi-led military coalition share control of the rest of the country including seven southern provinces.

The civil war, ground battles and airstrikes have already killed more than 10,000 people, half of them civilians, injured more than 35,000 others and displaced over three millions, according to humanitarian agencies.
Students from the University of Havana gather outside their school to pay tribute to the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, in Havana, Cuba, Nov. 26, 2016. Aged 90, Castro passed away late Friday night. (Xinhua/Joaquin Hernandez)

by Matthew Rusling

WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- After the death of Cuba's decades-long leader Fidel Castro, it remains unknown what U.S. president-elect Donald Trump's policy toward the island nation will be. The incoming U.S. president may toughen the U.S. stance on the Latin American nation, but he may be softer than others in the GOP, experts said.

Trump is expected to install a cabinet of hardliners, who will take a tougher stance on issues such as terrorism. But it remains unknown what steps he will take toward Cuba after Castro's death.

"Trump has appointed hardliners to his administration so he may well reverse Obama's policies in Cuba unless there are improvements in political and religious freedom. He may seek to negotiate the issues and drive a harder bargain in terms of Cuba opening up its economy," Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua.

Cuba has repeatedly urged the United States to lift the five-decade-long trade embargo against the Island nation.

"Trump could impose new restrictions on travel to Cuba. But he probably will keep the loopholes on educational and cultural travel because that had been in place for a number of years," he said.

"The key thing to watch will be flights to Cuba. That is where the greatest opening took place and it is the ones where companies already have invested the most," West said.

Indeed, in December 2014, in the most sweeping change in U.S.-Cuban relations in five decades, U.S. President Barack Obama announced plans to normalize ties with Cuba in a move that has sparked much controversy in the United States.

The move came decades after the U.S. severed ties with Cuba in 1961, shortly after Cuban leader Castro launched a revolution. The two countries had been at loggerheads ever since, with tensions boiling over on a number of occasions.

But the last two years have seen improvements in U.S.-Cuban diplomatic, social and commercial ties, with the U.S. opening an embassy in Cuba, flights from the U.S. to Cuba increasing, and some U.S. businesses expanding into the island nation for the first time in five decades.

"Given the interest from both business and average Americans about improving tourism and trade between Cuba, I could see some symbolic changes to policies-perhaps more scrutiny of reasons for traveling to Cuba-but not a rollback," Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua.

"While Trump has indicated that he would be stricter than Obama on Cuba, he also chose a much more moderate path compared to others in the GOP on continuing to normalize relations with Cuba. If Castro's death serves as a turning point for some of Cuba's political and economic reforms, it may even allow Trump an opportunity to further moderate his stance on Cuba," he said.

"It is worth noting that many in the Cuban American community were for Bush or Rubio, so he may not feel as beholden to that group compared to past GOP presidents," he added, referring to former GOP candidates Gov. Jeb Bush and Sen. Marco Rubio.

Given Trump's statements that he wants to get out of the way of businesses, tightening the screws on Cuba would be a contradiction to this approach-though it may be a way to hold GOP orthodoxy on this issue, Mahaffee said.

"However his background as a developer of hotels, casinos, and resorts may guide his instincts on this issue in favor of further investment in Cuba," he added.
This picture illustrates the pieces of land exchanged by Netherlands and Belgium.

THE HAGUE, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Belgium and the Netherlands signed a treaty to exchange pieces of land along the Meuse river border.

Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Bert Koenders and Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders signed the convention for adapting the border in the presence of royal couples of both countries.

"This unique border agreement is an example of our excellent cooperation with the Belgian people. We have showed today that the Netherlands and Belgium succeeded, as good neighbors, can adjust borders in a peaceful way," said Koenders.

According to Reynders, the border treaty symbolizes the excellent state of the Belgian-Dutch relations.

This is the second border adjustment between the Netherlands and Belgium in 175 years.

The current border was established in 1843 and followed the deepest point of the Meuse river. Adjustment was necessary because in 1961 the winding banks of the river were rectified for navigation purposes. As a result, parts of Belgian territory were attached to the Dutch riverside and vice versa.

As these parts of land were suddenly located on the "wrong" side of the border,they were not accessible by road from their own country, which led to small regions of lawlessness.

According to Dutch broadcaster NOS, Belgian police officers, for example, could only reach one of the currently Belgian peninsulas by boat or via a detour, and only with the consent of the Netherlands. According to complaints by local residents,this had led to nuisance caused by illegal parties,drug dealers and sex tourists in the area.

Although there are neither people living nor buildings on the peninsulas,adjusting the border situation still is a lot of work, said Theo Bovens,commissioner of the King in the Dutch province of Limburg.

Ministries of both countries such as water boards,land registry agencies and three municipalities will be involved in the land swap.

In preparation to this treaty, a memorandum of agreement was signed on June 23 this year. If the parliaments of both countries adopt the treaty next year,the border correction will take effect on Jan. 1, 2018.
Law enforcement officials are seen outside of a parking garage on the campus of Ohio State University as they respond to an active attack in Columbus, Ohio, on November 28, 2016. (AFP PHOTO/Paul Vernon)

WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- One suspect in the Ohio State University (OSU) attack was killed as at least nine people were injured, local media said Monday.

WCMH, a local TV station, cited police sources as saying the suspect involved in an active shooter situation on the campus of OSU is now dead, while nine victims are currently being treated.

The Columbus Fire Department was previously quoted as saying that at least one of the wounded was in critical condition.

OSU tweeted that "scene is now secure," and that "area around 19th and College Ave is closed."

The identity of the suspect and how the person was killed is unclear. OSU tweeted earlier that an active shooter was on campus, telling students to "run, hide, fight." A large police presence was seen on the campus.
Democratic presidential candidateHillary Clinton(R) and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump hold the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, theUnited States, Oct. 9, 2016. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The Jill Stein campaign of U.S. Green Party has filed a legal petition in the Pennsylvania state court Monday as voters filed recount requests in more than 100 precincts, according to a statement.

"The campaign expects recount requests to be filed in many more precincts in the Keystone State in the coming days," the campaign said in the online statement.

The recounts in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, which the Stein campaign has applied for on Friday, will start as soon as this week.

Stein's team is also expected to request a recount in Wisconsin no later than Wednesday.

The push for recounts in the three key battleground states that ultimately decided the outcome of the presidential election has won the backing of the Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, but was bashed by the Republican President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump twitted earlier that Stein's bid was a "scam."

According to Stein's website, she intends to raise seven million U.S. dollars for recount costs, and any surplus will be used to "promote voting system reform."

She has raised 6.3 million dollars as of Monday.

Pennsylvania state law requires three voters in each precinct must submit an affidavit requesting a recount for that precinct.

As Michigan is expected to officially certify Trump's victory in the state Monday, recount needs to overturn results in all three states in order for Clinton to win the presidency.

Trump's total vote lead over Clinton in the three states is about 100,000.

Related:

Rift among Trump transition team revealed by top aid comment

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (R) and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump hold the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, the United States, Oct. 9, 2016. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu) Full story

Trump says could have won popular vote, blames voter fraud
UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The UN resident coordinator in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Tapan Mishra, has taken part in a joint mission with the government and humanitarian agencies in the country to visit some of the areas hardest hit earlier by devastating floods, a UN spokesman said here Monday.

Nearly 12,000 families in the North Hamgyong province whose homes were destroyed have since moved into new homes, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

"International organizations have been providing food, shelter, medicine, and water and sanitation relief, among other items," Dujarric said.

"In response to a special request by the government, some agencies have also contributed towards roofing for the new homes and public institutions such as nurseries, kindergartens, schools, health clinics and hospitals," he said.

The floods have left 133 people dead and another 395 missing, according to a UN report given by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The official news agency KCNA said in an earlier report that the floods were caused by the strongest storms and heaviest downpours since 1945.

While nearly 12,000 families in northern DPRK have moved into new houses three months after devastating Typhoon Lionrock destroyed their homes, the United Nations is reporting that this "massive effort" still needs additional support so damaged water networks can be repaired and essential medicines and nutritious foods can be provided.

Local authorities in North Hamgyong province say that repairs were made to 17,698 households, including 11,928 new homes built for families, UN officials said.

At the end of August, Typhoon Lionrock struck northern DPRK, damaging many lives and property, and bringing the cost of the response to be 29 million U.S. dollars, according to Flood Emergency Response Plan.

To date, humanitarian agencies in DPRK have raised only 12 million U.S. dollars.
by Raimundo Urrechaga

HAVANA, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of Cubans on Monday paid heartfelt tribute to the legendary revolutionary leader Fidel Castro in a solemn and tearful ceremony at Havana's Revolution Square.

The tribute is part of a national period of mourning for the leader who ruled Cuba for nearly half a century, and is considered to have continued the legacy of national hero Jose Marti, whose memorial stands in the square.

Average Cubans, as well as government and communist party officials, filed past photographs of Castro dating from the late 1950s, when the young commander led the overthrow of Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista.

Mourners were silent, tearful or weeping as they paid tribute to Castro on a sunny morning in Havana. Many children, men and women cried, while others acknowledged the late leader with a military salute.

"I have been here since 3 a.m. because I want to salute Fidel one last time. We must continue with great conviction what he did for the Cuban people," retiree Cila Miret told Xinhua.

Miret met Castro in 1960, during a rally the former president held at the same square where today thousands bid him farewell.

"Fidel always wanted to be with the people, and I remember he hugged me and kissed me as he did to hundreds of people that were there that day," she added.

People of all ages were lined up around the square to pay their respects to the man who so influenced the lives of millions in this Caribbean nation.

"The best tribute to Fidel is to carry on his ideas. He gave his life so that all Cubans could have basic rights, like education and health," said high school student Carlos Martinez, who was standing in line along with a large number of his friends.

Many of those in line held pictures of Castro, while others brought flowers or simply a Cuban flag as a way to show their affection for the late leader.

"I will defend Fidel's ideas and legacy until my last breath, because he was a man that gave our nation and people back their dignity," said Teresita Gonzalez, a public-sector employee.

Others underscored Castro's unique personality, and his impact on global politics and international affairs during the Cold War era of hostile relations with the United States.

"He stood out from the rest of the leaders around the world and turned Cuba into a model of solidarity, social justice and international cooperation," said Sofia Rodriguez.

While Castro passed away at the age of 90 late Friday night, his ideas will endure for many years to come, many of those paying tribute indicated.

"I decided to bring my two-year-old daughter, because they (the children) are the future of Cuba. I want her to see and understand who Fidel was and what she can do to help the revolution continue," said Yanet Ricardo, as she was about to enter the memorial, with her child in her arms.

The tribute will continue through 10 p.m. Monday, and on Tuesday.

Leaders across the globe have expressed their condolences and admiration for one of the great figures of the 20th century, whose leadership brought unprecedented development to this corner of the Caribbean.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The first U.S. commercial flight from the United States to Cuba's capital city of Havana landed in Cuba on Monday amid uncertainty of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's Cuba policy.

American Airlines, one of the world's largest airlines, launched its first commercial flight to Havana from Miami, Florida on Monday and reportedly planed to launch another flight from Charlotte, North Carolina to Havana on Wednesday.

Apart from American Airlines, JetBlue Airways also launched its first flights to Havana from New York, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.com.

In August, a JetBlue Airways flight with U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx on board landed in Santa Clara, Cuba, making it the first U.S. airliner to land in Cuba in 50 years.

The new U.S. flights to Cuba came as Trump threatened to "terminate" the agreement made by American and Cuban governments to normalize relations.

"If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal," said Trump in a Twitter post on Monday.

December 2014, in the most sweeping change in U.S.-Cuban relations in five decades, U.S. President Barack Obama announced plans to normalize ties with Cuba in a move that has sparked much controversy in the United States.

From then on, the Obama administration announced new amendments to sanctions on Cuba, further easing travel and business restrictions on the island country.

The U.S. Transportation Department in June approved six domestic airlines to begin scheduled flights between U.S. cities and Cuban cities other than Havana. In August, final approval was granted to eight U.S. airlines to fly to Havana.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- The first HIV vaccine efficacy study in seven years has begun in South Africa to test whether an modified vaccine candidate can provide effective protection against the AIDS virus, the U.S. National Institutes of Health said Monday.

The study, called HVTN 702, aims to enroll 5,400 sexually active men and women aged 18 to 35 years, making it the largest and most advanced HIV vaccine clinical trial to take place in South Africa, where more than 1,000 people become infected with HIV every day.

"If deployed alongside our current armory of proven HIV prevention tools, a safe and effective vaccine could be the final nail in the coffin for HIV," Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health and a co-funder of the trial, said in a statement.

"Even a moderately effective vaccine would significantly decrease the burden of HIV disease over time in countries and populations with high rates of HIV infection, such as South Africa."

The experimental vaccine regimen being tested in HVTN 702 is based on the one investigated in the RV144 clinical trial in Thailand that was found to be 31.2 percent effective at preventing HIV infection over the 3.5-year follow-up after vaccination.

The new vaccine regimen has been adapted to the HIV subtype that predominates in southern Africa and a smaller initial trial involving 252 people has found that it was safe for the study participants and induced comparable immune responses to those reported in RV144.

The new trial, to be conducted at 15 sites across South Africa, aims to test whether it will provide greater and more sustained protection than the RV144 regimen.

Volunteers will been randomly assigned to receive either the investigational vaccine regimen or a placebo. All participants will receive a total of five injections over one year, and results are expected in late 2020.

"HIV has taken a devastating toll in South Africa, but now we begin a scientific exploration that could hold great promise for our country," said HVTN 702 Protocol Chair Glenda Gray, president and chief executive officer of the South African Medical Research Council.

"If an HIV vaccine were found to work in South Africa, it could dramatically alter the course of the pandemic."
This file photo taken on Feb.21, 2013 shows A United Airlines jet takes off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. (AFP PHOTO/KAREN BLEIER)

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- An engine fire prompted a United Airlines flight return to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on Monday afternoon.

SFO spokesman Doug Yakel said UA flight 837 "experienced some kind of engine issue and had to shut down one of its four engines" shortly after taking off from the airport for Tokyo, Japan, on 11:36 a.m. local time.

Witnesses reportedly heard the sound of an explosion and saw flames emanating from one of the Boeing 747's engines on the left side, and the plane then circled above the airport for more than an hour before returning safely to the ground.

No injuries were reported among 202 passengers and 15 crew members on board the plane.
A tourist takes photos of stone sculptures at Jianling Mausoleum, the tomb of Emperor Suzong of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), in Liquan County, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Nov. 27, 2016. The ancient tomb sculptures occupy a very important position in the history of Chinese art, its distinctive style features directly from Chinese traditional culture, especially in the Tang Dynasty. (Xinhua/Tao Ming)
Court dismisses ILP application

In his judgement which was delivered in the Hall of Justice, Port-of- Spain, Rahim indicated that in the Courts view, an ordinary reading of the legislation demonstrates that the qualifying criteria for the election to the office of councillor is that of the age of majority and registration within the electoral area at the date of qualification and not residence. Making reference to the provisions contained in Rule 66 of the Registration Rules made under the Representation of the Peoples Act, Rahim said the Court was also of the view that, the material facts as put forward by the applicant (ILP deputy leader Sunil Ramjitsingh) failed to set out an arguable case with a realistic prospect of success, namely one that is sound in logic and in law on this issue. The judge furthered that the law clearly sets out that the qualification for an elector to be a candidate in an electoral district is registration in the electoral area and not necessarily registration in the electoral district. Rahim also indicated that the fact that different addresses for Ali were stated on company forms and a WASA (Water and Sewerage Authority) bill, is grossly insufficient in the Courts view even assuming that other evidence of residence is likely to become available. The judge said that with the applicant having failed to demonstrate an arguable case with a realistic prospect of success in relation to the non-qualification of Ali as a candidate on the basis of his residence, the applicant also failed to demonstrate an arguable case with a reasonable prospect of success (in case one does exist) that to permit Ali to remain as a candidate is, irrational or procedurally improper. Rahim added that as a consequence of the Courts ruling, it is unnecessary to consider the discretionary bars to the grant of leave, namely delay and alternative remedy.

The application for leave will therefore be dismissed, he concluded.

Opposition Leader and UNC political leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Opposition senator Gerald Ramdeen appeared for Ali.

ILP political leader Rekha Ramjit appeared for Ramjitsingh.

Speaking with reporters outside of the Hall of Justice after the ruling, Persad-Bissessar said, The court has already ruled in a manner that affirms and confirms what is our view all along. She said on the issue of costs, Rahim has asked that submissions be done on or before December 15 in writing.

Ali said, I am excited. I am happy.

I would like to thank God. He also thanked Persad-Bissessar and the UNCs legal team for supporting him. Ramjit expressed disappointment after the ruling but remained optimistic about the results of todays elections.
Woman sues car company for injuries in accident

Trisha Cavita Beharry, 31, of Fyzabad, stated in her lawsuit that she is a health and safety officer and, on March 24, 2014, she was inspecting an elevated water tank to check for rust on the compound of Southern Sales and Service Company Limited, when one of the companys drivers, who did not have a motor vehicle drivers licence, attempted to move a vehicle from the companys wash-bay area.

Represented by attorney Asaf Hosein, Beharry stated in documents filed in the San Fernando High Court, that at the time, she was standing in a shallow drain about four feet from a tank-stand with her back to a wall when the driver of the vehicle suddenly lurched forward and violently collided with her.

Beharry stated in her lawsuit that she was pinned to the ground after she fell to her knees.

She further stated that at the time of the incident, the driver was not the holder of a drivers licence.

And, as a consequence, there was no policy of insurance for the vehicle as required by the Motor Vehicle Third Party Risk Act.

Beharrys lawsuit contended that she suffered injuries to both knee joints and scars to the legs. She had to undergo surgery and and stayed in hospital for three nights.

She still suffers from muscle weakness, stiffness and, what her medical doctors have described as, decreased range of motion. She pointed out in her lawsuit that she could no longer participate in sporting activities.

But far from such, Beharry also stated in her lawsuit that since the incident, she has not been able to perform her job as a safety officer.

She is the holder, according to her lawsuit, of a Masters degree in Health, Safety, Security and Environment; Bachelor of Science degree in Occupational Safety, Health and Environment from the University of Greenwich.

Hosein contends in the lawsuit on Beharrys behalf, that the car company allegedly permitted the driver to take control of the vehicle, though he was not the holder of a drivers licence. He is also claiming special and general damages for Beharry.
Roget seeks apology, compensation from Moonilal

In a pre-action protocol letter from Rogets lawyers dated November 9, the union leader claimed that he suffered much inconvenience, embarrassment, emotional hurt, distress, ridicule and damage to his reputation. Roget is demanding a written and public apology within 14 days of the date of this letter and compensation in the sum of $500,000.

The letter stated that on November 26 and November 30, 2015 respectively, at two political meetings in San Fernando, Moonilal mentioned Roget, together with other union leaders by name, in which he implied that Roget had corruptly failed to address and/or advocate any issue concerning the working class or actions of the Peoples National Movement (PNM) government affecting the working class because he was part of an alliance with the PNM government. The letter also claimed that Moonilal accused Roget of lacking integrity and honour because he had hypocritically accepted $15 Million to remain silent on matters affecting the working class. In the 2015/2016 budget presentation, Finance Minister Colm Imbert announced that Government would allocate $15 Million in 2016 to assist the Labour Movement in building capacity and for providing technical and training support.
Shot candidate may not be able to vote

Up to last evening Roberts remained at the San Fernando General Hospital having underwent an emergency surgery late Saturday night.

Roberts was shot in the chest on Saturday at about 5.45 pm, while campaigning on the tray of a pick-up van along Ramdass Road, Palo Seco.

At the time, Roberts was in the company of a group of supporters who assisted him when he collapsed on the van bleeding from his chest.

He was rushed to the Siparia Health Facility and then transferred to the hospital where he is recuperating.

Although he was stable condition, police suggested that it will not be wise for him to leave the facility (to vote) at this point. Roberts, a contractor of Beach Road, Palo Seco.

Police investigators are unable to confirm whether or not the shooting was politically motivated.

An arrest is yet to be made and officers of the Santa Flora Police Station are investigating.
Shot prison officer recovering

Sources told Newsday yesterday that Naresh Toll, who was shot in both his legs last Tuesday, remains at hospital under the supervision of doctors, but is said to be in a stable and responsive condition.

While he is being monitored, Newsday was told that there has been no evidence of Toll suffering any permanent damage.

According to reports, Toll, a prison officer with 20 years service, was at his DVD store, which he operates out of his home on St Croix Road, Barrackpore, when, at about 7.30 pm an unknown gunman walked into the store and asked for him.

When he approached, the gunman whipped out a firearm and shot him in both legs before running off.

Toll was rushed to the Princes Town District Health Facility, then transferred to the San Fernando General Hospital where he remains warded under guard.

No motive has yet been established for the shooting.
Boy, 17, shot dead in Couva

Dead is 17-year-old Servol student, Elijah Samo Lewis. He was shot and killed on Saturday at about 6.30 pm while along Cemetery Street Extension, off Carli Bay Road, Perseverance Village in Couva.

Lewis, originally from Freeport, was in the Couva district to attend a prayer service at the home of one of his friends. Relatives recalled that Lewiss mother, Judy Cuffie, was walking on her way to the said prayer service when she observed a group of people surrounding the body of a shooting victim. Not wanting to see the graphic display of the deceased, she opted to walk on the other side of the road.

Mommy passed around the road because she did not want to see whose body it was, Cuffies daughter Elesha told Newsday.

She did not know it was Elijah.

She even asked a resident further up the road how people could be liming around a body so. He responded, But Moms, that is your son lying down there. She ran to see him and that was it. Elesha is also the twin sister of Lewis. The circumstances in which Lewis met his death continue to baffle the family, his sister said. She explained that moments before his demise, Lewis, together with a female and male friend, had gone to purchase soft drinks and cigarettes from a shop.

Relatives learnt that having purchased the items, the trio saw an armed young man from the area.

The gunman started playing with and pointing the weapon at Lewis head.

The gunman first pulled the trigger but the loaded weapon failed to discharge. The gunman repeated his action, but this time the gun discharged shooting Lewis once in the head. He fell and died instantly while the shooter ran off.

Yesterday Elesha insisted that her brothers death was no accident but rather a deliberate act. My brother did not deserve to die like that because he was not on anybody (meaning he did not interfere with others). Elijah was very loving and helpful. Anything you asked him for, he would have given it to you even if it was his last, Elesha said.

A few months ago, Lewis relocated to Cunupia where he was staying at the family home of his female friend.

Elesha admitted that since he relocated, his behaviour had changed dramatically and, on numerous occasions, she tried to guide him on the right path.

An autopsy is expected to be performed this morning at the Forensic Sciences Centre, St James.
Official at Egungun Festival: All African people should pay respect to ancestors

He made the call following the conclusion of this years annual Egungun Festival held at the Queens Park Savannah, opposite Presidents House in Port-of-Spain yesterday.

In an interview with Newsday, Folami said, It is important that we celebrate the ancestors because without them there is nothing. Folami also added that he hoped within the next five years, attendance at the event grows to 10,000 people. The festival was held between 6am and noon yesterday.

The event saw its members forming a circle and chanting and singing as the Egunguns (Yoruba masqueraders connected with ancestor reverence, or to the ancestors themselves as a collective force) danced around the circle, stopping at different people who then touched the ground in their honour.

Baale Agogo Ifa Osemeji of Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria delivered the feature address.

Every year each family should do this, Osemeji said. If African people were doing this in Trinidad, we would have been flying high. But I guess we all became Christians, Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims, Folami said.

A group of approximately 27 people turned out to pay homage to their ancestors. This years festival was done in honour of late pioneer of the tradition in TT, Iya Omi Yemi Aina Olomo.

The festival, it was said, was done in remembrance of the ancestors, in a quest to synchronise the future and the past to harmonise our present. We are making sure on behalf of the African people of TT, whether they like us or dont like us, that we do what we have to do to bring alignment and balance from the east, the west the north the south, from the earthly realm to the cosmic realm. Mother earth is the key, Folami said.

He said because the family structure was destroyed, people were now having family reunions to rediscover lost family ties. This, he said, was one of the most important things happening within the African community in TT at the moment.

Lost family ties, he said, could be found when African people go for divination (the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown by supernatural means).

We expect the Savannah to be filled one day, maybe next five years, with 10,000 people, he said.
Labour Minister hails Govt Printery Credit Union

The philosophy of the GPCU is financial stability, service to members, cooperative corporation, ongoing education, and distribution to members through non-discrimination, the minister observed.

She noted GPCU is ideally positioned to assist in the development of the peoples sector, and can also have a social impact on youths who are the future generation.

Baptiste-Primus said the social intervention can have a positive influence on youths, keeping them away from criminal activities.

She urged union executives to provide continuous education and exposure to developments in the local, regional and international movement.

In addition to the training seminars conducted by your credit union, institutions such as the Cipriani College of Labour and Cooperative Studies conduct ongoing programmes in the field of cooperative studies and credit union management which you must make available to your membership perhaps via scholarships added Baptiste-Primus.

She encouraged present pioneers of GPCU to build products and service offerings with the youths in mind.

Baptiste-Primus emphasised, Look at your product and service offerings and examine how best it can be re-engineered to adapt to the growing needs of the GPCU membership and to attract young technological and entrepreneurial members who are quick to examine the products on the market before making selective choices of what is available. The credit union is an integral part of the financial sector as well.

Baptiste-Primus said the credit unions financial intervention can reduce poverty and impact on the diversification of sectors.
Lok Sabha disrupted, adjoiurned again over demonetisation

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) The Lok Sabha was disrupted again on Monday with the opposition insisting for a debate on demonetisation under the adjournment motion.

The first adjournment came soon after the house met, when Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's attempts to run the Question Hour failed, and it was adjourned till 12 noon amidst din.

When the house re-assembled, the Speaker allowed the members to speak on the November 8 decision to demonetise old Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes.

Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge described the situation an "economic clutter".

"Poor people are worst affected... They can't take money out of their own accounts. This is an economic clutter," he said.

"We support stopping black money, but not the way it has been done and the atmosphere that has been created," Kharge said, urging the Speaker to allow the debate under the adjournment motion.

However, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the decision was taken after much deliberation and in the nation's interest.

He also assured the house that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will come and make his intervention in the debate.

"This is a fight against black money and the whole nation has supported it. I also want to clarify, start the debate... If members want the Prime Minister to come, he will come, and if needed he will intervene," Singh said.

The opposition members, however, kept raising slogans like "adjournment motion shuru karo" (start adjournment motion).

With the opposition members creating a ruckus, the Speaker adjourned the house till 2 p.m.

--IANS

ao/py/vt
Kejriwal targeted BJP MP over child wedding

New Delhi, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 NI Wire

The Chief Minister of Delhi targeted the BJP MP daughter's wedding and raised questions about managing and making wedding in Rs 2.5 lakhs after demonetisation issue on Monday.

On the decision of demonetisation of government Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal asked to MP Mahesh Sharma that how did he managed the marriage expenses in Rs. 2.5 lakhs after demonetisation.

Kejriwal said, BJP MP Mahesh Sharma's daughter wedding. Is he making all the payments in cheque? Is he managing the marriage in Rs 2.5 lakhs? How his notes were exchanged?

The Aam Aadmi Party is against of the decision of demonetisation after which Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes got banned.

Whereas Bharat Band is called by the opposition on Monday in protest against the demonetisation announcement.

To exchange or deposit long queues have been seen outside banks and ATMs after the November 8 announcement of Government decision of banning Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes.

There is also a shortage of new currency notes and its implementation for which people are facing problems regarding their household and daily needs.

--with agency inputs
American men are too self-conscious: Lea Seydoux

France,Cinema/Showbiz,Hollywood, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

null

Paris, Nov 28 (IANS) French actress Lea Seydoux has suggested that she would be open to the idea of dating a man from the US, but she thinks they are prone to spending "too much time at the gym".

Asked if she would date an American man, Saeydoux said: "Yeah, of course, why not? But I don't find them very ... there is something not so sexy about American men. They are too self-conscious and they spend too much time at the gym."

The actress's family are part of the French establishment, but she believes that her privileged background has held her back in some respects, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

The 31-year-old told Esquire magazine: "In France, it's hard to become someone on your own. Even if you are a superstar, they will always say, 'Yeah, but you come from that world.' It's difficult to have ambition if you live in Paris."

Seydoux, who featured in the James Bond film "Spectre", was introspective as a youngster and would even ponder whether life was worth living.

--IANS

dc/nn/

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Modi Acknowledged Big B's effort

New Delhi, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 NI Wire

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi acknowledged the Bollywood's Megastar Amitabh Bachchan for his contribution on "Swachh Bharat Mission" on Sunday.

On Twitter, Modi shared an audio file, in which he is heard reciting a Amitabh's poem.

The Prime Minister tweeted on Sunday, A special message from Amitabh Bachchan on Swachh Bharat and after that Amitabh Bachchan re-tweeted to thank Modi.

Amitabh Bachchan tweeted that, My most gracious and respectful thanks to the honourable Prime Minister Mananiya Shri Narendra Modi-ji, for acknowledging my small contribution.

The poem by Big B based on the accomplishment of the Swachha Bharat Mission (Clean India Mission) has words which shows his contribution towards this mission.

Swachh Tan, Swachh Mann, Swachh Bharat Mera parichay these words clearly indicated the Megastar contribution.

This mission was an agenda of BJP for 2014 elections and after becoming the Prime Minister Modi officially launched this mission on 02, October 2014 from Rajghat, Delhi. Over three million government employees and school and college students participated in that event.

The Prime Minister also selected some public figures like Sachin Tendulkar, Kapil Sharma, Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Shashi Tharoor, and many others to promote this event. So when everyone is paying contribution in this mission, Big B also gave his contribution and Modi thanked him.

This campaign brought changes in India and worked as a change after its launch for the people of the country.

--with agency inputs
Dhanush's Tamil film might release in February, 2017

Tamil Nadu,Cinema/Showbiz,Southern Cinema, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chennai, Nov 28 (IANS) Dhanush-starrer upcoming Tamil romantic actioner "Enai Noki Paayum Thota", directed by Gautham Vasudev Menon, is set to hit the screens during the Valentine's Day weekend next year, a source said.

"Nearly 80 per cent of the film has already been shot. The rest will be completed over the course of the next few weeks. The makers are planning to release the film during the Valentine's Day weekend next year," a source from the film's unit told IANS.

Also starring Megha Akash, the film has been predominantly shot in Mumbai.

The film's first-look posters were released on Sunday. Dhanush features in two avatars -- with a beard and in a clean-shaven look as well.

--IANS

hp/nn/dg
ATMs new 'sweet spot' for cyber criminals in India: Report

Delhi,National,Technology,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) At a time when people are making serpentine queues at ATM kiosks to withdraw cash owing to demonetisation, a new report said on Monday that cyber attacks on ATMs will rise in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region in 2017.

"We have seen a big focus on ATM attacks in the APAC region, including in India. ATMs in underdeveloped countries are particularly vulnerable as those countries still have old ATM software and are running Windows XP. This makes them the perfect target for an easier score," US-based cyber security company FireEye claimed in its "2017 Security Landscape-Asia Pacific Edition" report.

Recently, some premier Indian banks blocked debit cards that were compromised (the numbers ran into millions) in one of the financial sector's biggest data breaches.

The State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and YES Bank were among banks which reported several of their customers' debit cards being compromised following a malware-related security breach in an ATM network. The SBI blocked nearly 600,000 debit cards.

This came on the heels of malware attacks and cyber threats that affected countries like Japan and Bangladesh this year.

"With the continued rise in ransomware activities across the globe, religious organisations may unexpectedly become a target of cyber criminals in 2017, adding that much of the threat activity in the Asia-Pacific region is from China," FireEye continued.

While talking about investments in security that organisations will make in 2017, FireEye predicts organisations making significant investments in the form of orchestration and automation in 2017.

"Organisations seeking to simplify everything in 2017 will set their sights on integration. A single pane of glass for all security needs will drastically improve the organisation's security posture and show companies the true value of all the products they have acquired," the report noted.

In general, the proliferation of cyber-physical systems and the Internet of Things (IoT) would present new opportunities for adversaries to abuse their connectivity and cause disruption at scale for a bigger payoff.

"The combination of tools such as ransomware with more formalised illicit software-as-a-service (SaaS) franchised business models will become a more attractive and lucrative option for criminals with the proper skillsets and motivations," FireEye pointed out.

Recently, a hacker group called Cobalt targeted ATMs across Europe and remotely attacked the machines using malicious software that manipulated the systems which led the machines to automatically dispense huge amount of cash.

--IANS

sku/na/vt
Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2 p.m.

Delhi,National,Politics, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) The Rajya Sabha on Monday saw repeated adjournments in the pre-lunch session and was finally adjourned till 2 p.m. amidst pandemonium by the opposition.

Earlier, as the upper house met for the day at 11 a.m., it paid homage to Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who passed away on Saturday, and observed a minute's silence in his memory.

Soon after, the issue of 'Akrosh Divas', called by a combined opposition, was raised.

Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu raised objection to it and requested the Chair to conduct the Zero Hour as per "procedure".

The opposition members trooped to the Chairman's podium and raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Chair adjourned the house for half an hour.

As the house was reconvened at 11.40 a.m., the opposition demanded Modi's presence in the house.

Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Sitaram Yechury sought the Chair's ruling over his contempt of the house notice against Modi.

Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien, however, rejected the motion.

The opposition members again came to the well and started making noise. Kurien adjourned the house till 12 noon.

At 12 noon, the house was adjourned again till 2 p.m. as the opposition refused to relent.

--IANS

mak/py/vt
Tobacco exposure ups behavioural issues, dropout rates in children

Canada,Lifestyle/Fashion,Health/Medicine, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Toronto, Nov 28 (IANS) Children exposed to tobacco smoke in early childhood adopt anti-social behaviour, engage in proactive and reactive aggression, and face conduct problems at school, even drop out at age 12, a research has showed.

Exposure to tobacco smoke is toxic to the developing brain at a time when it is most vulnerable to environment input, the researchers said.

"Young children have little control over their exposure to household tobacco smoke, which is considered toxic to the brain at a time when its development is exponential," said lead author and Professor Linda Pagani from the University of Montreal in Quebec, Canada.

Parents who smoke near their children often inadvertently expose them to second- and third-hand smoke.

Abnormal brain development can result from chronic or transient exposure to toxic chemicals and gases in second-hand tobacco smoke. These compounds eventually solidify and create third-hand smoke.

In the study, the researchers found compelling evidence that suggests other dangers to developing brain systems that govern behavioural decisions, social and emotional life as well as cognitive functioning.

Anti-social behaviour is characterised by proactive intent to harm others, lack prosocial feelings, and violate social norms.

Such behaviours include aggression, criminal offences, theft, refusal to comply with authority, destruction of property and is also associated with academic problems in later childhood.

"These long-term associations should encourage policy-makers and public health professionals to raise awareness among parents about the developmental risks of second-hand smoke exposure," Pagani said.

For the study, published in the journal Indoor Air, the team examined 1,035 boys and girls born in 1997 and 1998.

Their parents reported whether anyone smoked at home when their children were aged 1.5 to 7.5 years. At age 12, their children self-reported their anti-social behaviour and academic characteristics.

--IANS

rt/in/dg
Blac Chyna drops more than 10 kg after baby

United States,Cinema/Showbiz,Lifestyle/Fashion,Hollywood, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Los Angeles, Nov 28 (IANS) Model Blac Chyna has lost 10.43 kg since giving birth earlier this month.

The model and her boyfriend Rob Kardashian welcomed daughter Dream two weeks ago and Chyna is working hard to lose the baby weight, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

"39 lbs go away! Lost 23 lbs (10.43 kgs) so far! Goal 130 post-baby weight," Chyna posted on Snapchat.

When some people accused her of having surgery to aid her weight loss, she said: "So I posted a picture of my belly yesterday and the only reason it got that flat, you guys, is from breastfeeding and breast pumping and from my body already being small before my pregnancy. And for everybody that... yeah, sorry, try again. Not surgery guys."

Chyna isn't the only one who wants to shed the post-baby weight, as Rob has admitted he needs to lose weight too.

"I need to get back on it now because our baby is here. It's time for me to lose this damn weight already," Rob said.

--IANS

ks/nn/dg
Opposition protests in Goa against demonetisation

Goa,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Panaji, Nov 28 (IANS) Opposition parties, including those aligned to the Left, staged token protests in Goa on Monday against the demonetisation of high value currency.

The parties which participated in the Jan Aakrosh Diwas protests included the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, Aam Aadmi Party and the Communist Party of India-Marxist.

"Demonetisation may be a good move but the manner in which it was implemented has caused tremendous hardship to common people," Nationalist Congress Party chief Jose Philip D'Souza said.

Congress state President Luizinho Faleiro said that with no new lower denomination currency in ATMs and banks, the common man was facing tremendous hardship.

The Congress held a dharna near the State Bank of India's main office in the state capital.

"The economy has collapsed. There is virtually no trade going on. People cannot buy fish or groceries because they do not have small currency notes. Farmers are in distress as they cannot sell what they produce," Faleiro said.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar came out in support of the demonetisation.

"Goa is with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Like I have said, there is some hardship, but the step will be good for the future," Parsekar told IANS.

--IANS

maya/mr
Edhi foundation in crisis as donations plummet

Pakistan,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Human Interest/Society, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Islamabad, Nov 28 (IANS) After the death of legendary social worker Abdul Sattar Edhi in July earlier this year, the donations of his Edhi Foundation have gone down, Dunya News reported on Monday.

Faisal Edhi, the son of Abdul Sattar Edhi, said at an event in the port city of Karachi that the foundation was going through a tough time since the death of his father and having trouble in conducting the rescue and relief work, said Dunya News.

Faisal Edhi also requested Pakistanis, based inside and outside the country, to help them in the time of crisis and in keeping the mission begun by Edhi going. He also said that despite all the tough time, Edhi's mission never ended.

--IANS

ahm/dg
Cubans to pay tribute to Fidel Castro from Monday

Cuba,Politics, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Havana, Nov 28 (IANS) Cubans will pay tribute to the ashes of their late iconic leader, Fidel Castro, for two days, starting Monday morning, at the Jose Marti Memorial, located in the Plaza de la Revolucion.

This would mark the beginning of the funeral ceremonies which would last until Sunday, December 4, Efe news agency reported.

From Monday 9.00 a.m. local time through Tuesday at noon, people would be able to visit the memorial to pay tribute and bid their last "goodbye" to the leader of the Cuban Revolution, who died on November 25.

In the same square where Castro used to deliver countless speeches as the President of Cuba, a massive farewell ceremony would also be held on Tuesday.

World leaders and dignitaries would be part of the ceremony.

Among the few names confirmed so far is the King Emeritus of Spain, Juan Carlos I.

The presidents of Cuba's allied countries are expected to attend the ceremony as well -- Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, Bolivia's Evo Morales, Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, and Ecuador's Rafael Correa.

Former presidents, who had maintained a close relation with the late leader were also expected to be present at the funeral -- the Brazilian Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva, the Argentine Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and the Uruguayan Pepe Mujica.

On Wednesday, the ashes of Castro would make a trip around the island so that all Cubans could bid him their last "goodbyes".

The trip would take the reverse route of the "Caravan of Freedom", in which the rebels of the Sierra Maestra crossed the country from Santiago de Cuba when the Cuban Revolution triumphed in 1959.

The remains of the former Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Armed Forces would arrive in Santiago, the cradle of the Revolution, on Saturday, when another massive tribute ceremony would take place in Antonio Maceo Square.

The burial ceremony of his ashes, which was expected to be attended by his family, would take place in the Santa Ifigenia Cemetery of Havana.

--IANS

in/
'Additional CRR stipulation necessary in view of excessive liquidity'

Delhi,National,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) The Finance Ministry on Monday backed the RBI directive to banks regarding additional cash reserve ratio (CRR) saying the step had become a necessity in view of excessive liquidity in the system post-demonetisation.

"The step had become necessary in context of excessive liquidity in the system to soften the declining bond yields. It was also due to unusual outflow of hard currency from India," Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das told media persons.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday announced additional cash reserve ratio (CRR) for banks, according to which the banks have to maintain an incremental CRR of 100 per cent on the increase in net demand and time liabilities (NDTL) between September 16, 2016 and November 11, 2016.

The additional CRR directive is effective from November 26.

Simply put, CRR was the percentage of the total deposit that banks have to keep with RBI.

The central bank reiterated that the CRR continues to remain at four per cent of outstanding NDTL.

The RBI will review the incremental CRR on December 9 or earlier.

Post-demonetisation of high-value currency, there has been a surge in bank deposits in relation to the expansion of bank credit, leading to large excess liquidity in the system.

"The magnitude of surplus liquidity available with the banking system is expected to increase further in the fortnights ahead," the RBI said.

As a result, the RBI has decided to absorb a part of this surplus liquidity by applying an incremental CRR as a temporary measure.

The increased liquidity is due to the return of invalid notes into the banking system by way of deposits by account holders.

According to RBI, the incremental CRR will absorb only the excess liquidity while leaving sufficient funds with the banks to lend to productive sectors of the economy.

The central bank also said that it has revived the Guarantee Scheme to enable deposit of banned notes with it or at currency chests and get immediate value.

This measure should also facilitate banks' compliance with the incremental CRR.

--IANS

mm/ahm/dg
Ahan Shetty a star in waiting: Karan Johar

Maharashtra,Cinema/Showbiz,Bollywood, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Mumbai, Nov 28 (IANS) Filmmaker Karan Johar says actor Suniel Shetty's son Ahan, who is reportedly in London for a special training for his debut film, is a "star in the waiting".

Ahan, who is the brother of actress Athiya Shetty, will be soon making his acting debut in Bollywood with filmmaker Sajid Nadiadwala.

Karan praised Ahan on Twitter on Monday.

"In full on training mode... A star in the waiting. Introducing Ahan Shetty. Congratulations to Sajid Nadiadwala and Suniel Shetty," Karan captioned a photograph which featured Ahan.

Suniel also welcomed his son to the "beautiful world of films" and asked him to stay "grounded".

"God owes us nothing but gives us everything. Always stay grounded Ahan. Welcome to the beautiful world of films. Always there for you. Papa," Suniel tweeted.

--IANS

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Delhi to host 'green' photography festival

Delhi,National,Art/Culture/Books,Environment/Wildlife, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) At a time when the debate around pollution and environmental degradation is at its peak, an upcoming photo exhibition titled "Habitat Photosphere" will take a look at the issue through the aesthetic prism.

The exhibition would be held at the India Habitat Centre and at Jor Bagh and Mandi House metro stations for a month, starting December 1.

The photography festival that aims to bring into focus sustainable development and environmental awareness was curated and conceptualised by renowned art connoisseur Alka Pande.

The exhibition will feature Pande's animation work on River Ganga, artist Ashim Ghosh's light-based installation titled "Illume on view", while Swiss artist Ursula Biemann would be showcasing a video work called "Deep Weather".

In addition, at the Jor Bagh Metro station, authors Kavita Singh Kale and Santosh Kale would be showing images from their graphic novel project called "17 Seen Unseen" that was published for young adults commissioned by Unesco's 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

"Photosphere is a concept and an umbrella which addresses the seminal concern of sustainable development in the world using democratic and immediate medium of visual culture, namely photography.

"We are a festival with a green conscience evoking the bhaav (emotion) of sustainable developments across all genres of photography.

"The exhibition will act as a sign-post for the nation, urging them to ruminate on environmental issues -- a matter of critical importance, through the lens of photography," said Photosphere's Artistic Director Pande.

--IANS

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Foreign workers crucial to Australia's vital services

Australia,Health/Medicine,Diaspora,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Canberra, Nov 28 (IANS) Foreign workers will continue to play a leading part in filling positions in vital services in rural Australia, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said on Monday.

In defence of the government's Temporary Skilled Work (457) visa regulations, in which foreign workers are allowed to work in Australia for up to four years, Joyce said overseas workers were vital to the rural Australian workforce as urban-based professionals continue to shun moving out of the cities, reports Xinhua news agency.

Using the example of doctors, Joyce said that many regional communities would have no local doctors if only Australian-educated practitioners were allowed to practice.

He said that while, in a perfect world, locally-trained doctors would be available to all Australians regardless of post code, it would simply never happen as many local doctors were unable or unwilling to move out of major cities.

Joyce said the government's 457 visa regulations hit a "sweet spot" which the opposition's planned regulations would miss.

"The first thing that all Australians would love in their town is an Australian doctor," Joyce told Guardian Australia.

"And if they can't get an Australian doctor, the next best thing is a foreign doctor. It's a real worry for people in regional Australia that if you or your child gets sick, there simply is no doctor there."

--IANS

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Court tells Kerala cops to preserve Maoists' bodies

Kerala,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Terrorism, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Manjeri (Kerala), Nov 28 (IANS) Amid a controversy over the gunning down of two alleged Maoists, a court here on Monday asked the authorities in Kerala to preserve their bodies until Tuesday evening.

The court said it will deliver its verdict by Tuesday evening.

The court issued the instruction while hearing a petition filed by several human rights activists and the brother of one of the killed Maoists, who claim that this was a fake encounter, unlike what is claimed by Kerala Police.

Police said it was only after the Maoists opened fire that they retaliated and shot the two dead.

Incidentally, a court in Kozhikode had earlier asked police to preserve the bodies until Monday evening, following which they have been kept in the mortuary of the state-run Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

Monday is the fifth day since the Kerala Thunderbolts -- an elite commando force of the state police -- during a patrol in the deep forests of Nilambur, reportedly shot dead the two ultras, Koppam Devarajan and Ajitha alias Kaveri.

After the incident, the Communist Party of India (CPI) -- the second biggest ally of the ruling Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government -- criticised the killings, after which various human rights activists took up the issue.

The local media houses here also received a call from a person identifying himself as a Maoist, who said that this is a case of fake encounter.

Senior BJP leader V. Muraleedharan, in a statement on Monday, asked the Communist Party of India-Marxist to end playing hide and seek on the issue.

"Whenever such incidents happen in other states, the CPI-M is the first to react by saying that it is a fake encounter. For the first time, this has happened here, but even Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is silent.

"All he said is that information is still coming in. He should break his silence," said Muraleedharan, a former state BJP chief.

The Kerala government has announced a crime branch police probe into the incident.

The Congress party has demanded a judicial probe into the killings.

--IANS

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Opposition called Bharat Band, protesting against demonetisation

New Delhi, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 NI Wire

The Government is now facing the protest of the opposition on the decision of demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes.

Opposition parties started their protest against this issue, near Mahatma Gandhis Statue in Parliament House complex.

Both the houses, Rajyasabha and Loksabha faced confusion over this issue. Many leaders from different party came here and supported the opposition in their protest.

Opposition announced earlier that they call November 28, Bharat Band for showing their protesting against demonetisation.

The Congress, The DMK, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India-Marxist protested from outside Parliament.

The Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi led the protest over the ban of the old currency issue of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 and raised the problems of the people in depositing, withdrawal and exchange of money.

To make the strategy against this issue the opposition parties organised a meeting in the Parliament House earlier and after that they gathered and started their protest from Monday morning.

After the announcement of demonetisation on November 08 the both houses of Parliament regularly seen the adjournments from the beginning of the winter session on Novemeber 16.

Due to demonetisation country is facing problems because of the shortage of the money and its distribution and this is the main agenda of the protest of the oppositon.

--with agency inputs
Trains stopped, shutdown begins in Bihar

Bihar,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Patna, Nov 28 (IANS) Several trains were halted in Bihar as the Left parties and others on Monday began a nationwide shutdown to protest demonetisation, police said.

The supporters and workers of the Left parties including the CPI, CPI-M, CPI(ML) and other parties stopped over a dozen long route trains at Patna, Gaya, Jehanabad, Bhagalpur and Muzaffarpur railway stations.

"Several trains were halted to enforce shutdown," a police officer said. Roads were also blocked at various places across the state.

However, ruling parties of the grand alliance in Bihar -- the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Congress -- have decided not to join the shutdown, but to stage protest march against demonetisation.

While another ruling party Janata Dal-United of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has decided to keep away from both the shutdown and protest against domenetisation.

Infact, Nitish Kumar has repeatedly publicly supported demonetisation that prompted BJP President Amit Shah on Sunday and Lok Janshakti Party chief and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan to thank him.

"The state administration has made elaborate security arrangements in view of the shutdown," said a senior government official.

The Left parties enjoy a strong support base in over a dozen districts in Bihar.

--IANS

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Pakistan court issues arrest warrant against Musharraf

Pakistan,Immigration/Law/Rights,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Politics, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Islamabad, Nov 28 (IANS) A Pakistani provincial court on Monday issued arrest warrant against former President General Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Bugti.

A divisional bench of Balochistan High Court passed the order during hearing of a review petition challenging acquittal of the former President by an Anti-Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.

Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, son of Akbar Bugti.

The counsel of former President Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded in the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".

However, Bugti's lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former President has failed to appear before the court.

The court ordered that the administration should ensure provision of security to the former President while he appears in court.

Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistan's rugged mountains of Taratani in Kohlu district on August 26, 2006.

Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistan's natural resources.

The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country.

--IANS

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Top Trump aide bashes Romney

United States,Politics, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New York, Nov 28 (IANS) Top aide Kellyanne Conway says she'll support whomever US President-elect Donald Trump nominates for Secretary of State, but it appears she cannot help lobbying against Mitt Romney.

"People feel betrayed to think that Governor Romney -- who went out of his way to question the character, intellect and integrity of Donald Trump,... -- would be given the most significant cabinet post of all,..," Conway said Sunday on NBC's Meet The Press.

In a string of television interviews, Conway referred to Romney's attacks on Trump as "fraud" and "phony," and stressed the opposition to Romney's potential nomination by numerous Trump backers, reported USA today.

She told NBC, "I'm reflecting what the grassroots are saying."

Conway, however, also said the decision belongs to one person -- Trump -- and she would back his choice.

"We're all for party unity," Conway said on ABC's This Week, but she added that "I don't think a cost of admission for party unity has to be the Secretary of State position."

Trump has interviewed Romney for the job. A prominent Trump campaign supporter, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, is also seeking the State Department post.

There are others in the mix, officials said, including John Kelly, a retired general, and Sen. Bob Corker.

There was also talk of retired general and former CIA Director David Petraeus, though he pleaded guilty in a case involving the sharing of classified information.

--IANS

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Opposition got little support from Uttar Pradesh on Bharat Bandh

Uttar Pradesh, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 NI Wire

Opposition called Bharat Bandh on protesting against the announcement made by the Prime Minister on demonetisation from near Mahatma Gandhis statue in Parliament House Complex but they only got a little support from Uttar Pradesh on Monday.

Opposition is protesting against demonetisation of old Rs.500 and Rs.1000 notes and raised problems of people due to the shortage of new currency.

In Uttar Pradesh, the workers of Samajwadi Party protested at railway tracks in Allahabad and Kanpur. Whereas, all the major and large markets have no effect of protest and are remained open.

The Congress also showed its protest against demonetisation at some places in Uttar Pradesh.

An official said, protests have been reported from Chandauli, Mainpuri, Etawah, Kanpur, Agra, Allahabad, Mirzapur, Unnao and Bhadohi and no annoying activities were reported from these places

As most traders said that they had no instructions from their central leadership and excused them from the whole day closing.

Whereas, in Barabanki, Firozabad, Sambhal, Amroha, Rampur, most districts of western and eastern Uttar Pradesh were also seen open.

In Lucknow, major markets like Hazratganj, Aminabad, Bhoothnath, Gole Market and Narahi remained open and this shows that the protest doesnt get a big support from Uttar Pradesh.

--with agency inputs
Opposition leaders held for protesting against note ban

Tamil Nadu,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chennai, Nov 28 (IANS) Opposition party activists were arrested on Monday in Tamil Nadu for protesting against the demonetisation of 500 and 1,000 rupee notes.

DMK Treasurer M.K. Stalin, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee President S. Thirunavukkarasar and CPI-M Tamil Nadu Secretary G. Ramakrishnan were among those taken into custody.

Educational institutions, shops and other offices worked as usual across the state.

Speaking at the protest venue, Stalin said the DMK was not opposed to the November 8 demonetisation but was against the hardship caused to the common man in the wake an unprecedented cash crunch.

Thirunavukkarasar accused the central government of implementing the demonetisation scheme without any proper planning.

--IANS

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When Dev Patel spent an hour looking in mirror

United Kingdom,Cinema/Showbiz,Hollywood, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

London, Nov 28 (IANS) British actor of Indian descent Dev Patel says he spent an hour looking at himself in the mirror for his role in his latest film "Lion".

Patel told Empire magazine: "It required an energy shift. I'm a super-hyperactive kind of dude and the role required a level of stillness. Saroo had this emotional pain, this weight. I spent eight months prepping and it was all a process of introspection.

"I travelled around India on trains to get a feel of what it would be like, I wrote diaries, I visited orphanages. Garth would get me to stare in the mirror for an hour. It's amazing what you can see when you stop for a moment and really try to look inside yourself."

He landed the role after a gruelling six-hour audition in which he worked through the entire script with director Garth Davis and "lost his mind" at the end, reports femalefirt.co.uk.

"At the end of it, Garth said, 'Before you go, I'm wondering if you could just scream?' I was like, 'What do you mean?' He said, 'I want you to roar like a lion. Let go of emotion and completely purge the pain you'd feel in Saroo's situation. You don't have to do it.'

"And I was like, 'Of course I have to'. So I did and I completely lost my mind. I was jumping in at the deep end," he said.

--IANS

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Demonetisation not in public interest, says Akhilesh

Uttar Pradesh,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Lucknow, Nov 28 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Monday again targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, saying the decision had caused great inconvenience to all sections of the society.

Talking to media persons on the sidelines of a private event in Jaunpur, he said be it the working class, poor, students, farmers, woman, middle-class and the rich, all were facing huge problems.

"The Modi government has snatched the purse of women," he added while dismissing the Union government's claims of checking fake currency by this decision. "All talks by the Modi government to check graft and take on black money are a sham," he said.

"The decision to demonetise Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes was taken without any preparation and is not in public interest," he added.

Akhilesh Yadav, however, refused to respond to pointed queries on his party's MP Amar Singh openly siding with Modi over demonetisation.

--IANS

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Subrata Roy's parole continues, asked to pay Rs 600 crore by February 6

Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Sahara Chief Subrata Roy will continue to remain on parole as Supreme Court on Monday asked him to deposit Rs 600 crore by February 6 next year as the group submitted the road map for returning Rs 11,036 crores in next two and half years.

Asking Sahara to deposit Rs 600 crore, the bench of Chief Justice T.S.Thakur, Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice A.K.Sikri asked why don't they reverse the road map to start depositing Rs 1,000 crore per month for refunding Rs 24,000 crore of more than three crore investors.

Besides Ray, the parole of his son-in-law Ashok Roy Choudhary and Sahara's Director Ravi Shankar Dubey too has been extended.

Sahara group's two companies - Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Ltd (SHICL) -- had raised the money, through optionally fully convertible debenture, from about 3.3 crore investors in 2008 and 2009.

The apex court by its August 31, 2012 order directed the SIRECL and SHICL to return the investors' Rs 17,600 crore with 15 per cent interest.

Perusing the road map for depositing money in SEBI Sahara Refund account for returning investors money by the market regulator, Justice Gogoi said: "If you don't do it we will seriously consider appointing a receiver ..."

The court was told that Sahara has deposited Rs 1,200 crore ever since Roy was released on parole on May 6 to perform the last rites of his mother. Senior counsel Kapil Sibal, appearing for Roy, told the court that so far they have deposited Rs 11,000 crore with the market regulator and there is a balance of Rs 11036 crore.

However, Sibal told the court that Sebi put the balance figures at Rs 14,000 crore.

As he tried to suggest that some of the properties auctioned by the market regulator were at a low price and could have been sold at a higher price, the bench observed: "(Every time) either you come saying they (Sebi) are selling dirt cheap or someone else comes offering higher price and it continue like that.

"We have not restrained you from creating assets, we have restrained you from alienating them", the court observed as Sibal said that their "hands were tied" and even they wanted, they can't do anything.

Sibal had expressed the haplessness of Sahara group as a lawyer told the court that her client has deposited the money for a flat in one of its housing projects but there was nothing on the ground.

The next hearing is on February 6.

--IANS

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Nabha jailbreak: Terrorist Mintoo arrested from Delhi

Delhi,National,Terrorism,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi/Chandigarh, Nov 28 (IANS) Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested from Delhi in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Monday morning.

According to senior officials of the Special Cell, Mintoo was arrested from a Delhi railway station.

"He was arrested after he made contact with one of his relatives in Subhash Nagar. The intercepted phone call helped in the arrest," a senior officer of the Special Cell told IANS, requesting anonymity.

The arrest was made within 24 hours of the sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday in which two terrorists and four gangsters escaped after the prison was attacked by armed men.

The officer also said that Mintoo would be produced in a local court here and shall be handed over to the Punjab Police on transit remand.

On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who helped in the jailbreak, was arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district.

--IANS

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ICICI Bank to convert 100 villages into digital in 100 days

Maharashtra,National,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Mumbai, Nov 28 (IANS) Private sector lender ICICI Bank on Monday said it will transform 100 villages into digital villages in as many days to enable villagers go in cash less banking and payments transactions.

These villages, which will be spread across the length and breadth of the country, will enable villagers to use digital channels for banking and payments transactions, said bank MD and CEO Chanda Kochhar.

"The bank continues to be a catalyst to accelerate development in our country. We strongly feel that technology can play an important role in putting development on a fast lane. By leveraging technology, we converted Akodara in Gujarat from a village to India's first digital village last year.

"Its success motivates us to scale up the initiative a big way - we will now convert 100 villages across the country into digital villages," she added.

Transformed into 'ICICI Digital Villages', villagers will be able to open bank accounts using Aadhar-based e-KYC and make cashless payments to retail stores through a unique SMS/USSD-based mobile solution.

"We will create a cashless ecosystem at these villages, provide vocational training to 10,000 villagers in first 100 days and offer them credit linkages so that the villagers can start their own business ventures," said Kochhar.

The bank also said that it would also set up end-to-end merchant infrastructure that would enable the retailers at the village to accept mobile based payments.

--IANS

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Friday no more weekly holiday for high madrassas in Assam

Assam,National,Politics,Religion,Education, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Guwahati, Nov 28 (IANS) The Assam government has decided to discontinue the weekly holiday on Friday in some of government-run high madrassas in the state, said Health & Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday.

Sarma said that the state Education Department has already issued instruction to those madrassas to function like other schools on Friday.

The minister said it came to his notice only recently that some madrassas observe weekly holiday on Friday.

"It was recently that during a meeting with education officers, I found this strange thing that the government-run high madrassas in three districts, including Lakhimpur, Naogaon and Morigaon, observe holiday on Friday," the minister said.

"We know that official weekly holiday in Pakistan and Bangladesh is on Friday, while in India, the United States and Europe, Sunday is the weekly holiday," he said, adding that there cannot be two rules for holiday.

"I know that the government allows one or one-and-half-hour break to people, who believe in Islam, to offer Namaz on Friday. But there is no holiday on Friday as such. Even when the assembly is in session, we follow the same practice," he said.

The Education Department has already instructed that the practice will be discontinued and there will holiday on Sunday and not Friday. The erring headmasters of those madrassas will be suspended, it warned.

Former minister and Congress leader Siddique Ahmed, however, slammed Sarma over the decision and said that the minister wants to say that Muslims are second class citizens in Assam.

"Sarma is saying that Assam is not Pakistan or Bangladesh, meaning Muslims are second class citizens in Assam. The Muslim community will boycott Sarma," Ahmed said.

"He (Sarma) is trying to divide the people of the state on religious lines and pitting one community against the other," Ahmed added.

--IANS

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CPI-M stages protect in Himachal over demonetisation

Himachal Pradesh,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Shimla, Nov 28 (IANS) CPI-M activists staged protests here on Monday while the state's ruling Congress sought immediate relief to the common man from the chaos the central government has created owing to demonetisation of high-value currency notes.

In a memorandum submitted to Governor Acharya Devrat here by Congress leaders, led by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, as part of the 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas', they said the central government has failed to provide relief to the farmers and workers, and even the common man was hit hard.

However, buses and trains plied normally across the state. Shops, restaurants and eating joints were also open.

Government offices and educational institutions also functioned normally and there was no report of violence anywhere in the state, a police official told IANS here.

Slogan-shouting Communist Party of India-Marxist activists staged protests across Shimla, creating traffic chaos at several places.

CPI-M state secretary Onkar Shad said farmers and small traders were worst hit with the demonetisation.

State Congress chief Sukhwinder Sukhu said the party had already protested on November 24 over the mess created in the whole country after demonetisation.

--IANS

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Divided opposition protests demonetisation across India (Roundup)

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Opposition parties took to the streets all over the country on Monday to denounce the scrapping of high value currency but the protests were largely symbolic barring in a few states.

Monday also saw the first two instances of vandalization, in Manipur, of banks by clients after they were stopped from withdrawing Rs 24,000 citing a cash crunch.

The Left called a 'Bharat Bandh' against both the November 8 demonetisation and the widespread currency shortage. Most other political parties marked it as "Aakrosh Diwas".

Life was badly hit in Left-ruled Kerala and Tripura while Left activists partly halted rail and road traffic in Bihar. The protests in West Bengal were dominated by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who vowed to oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi from politics.

"I appeal to everybody, take a vow -- either I will die or live, but remove Modi from politics. There is no place for dictators like you, Modi babu," Banerjee told a massive rally in Kolkata.

She asked Modi to take back his "disastrous decision" of banning the old Rs 500 and 1,000 notes, saying it had caused widespread misery and some 80 deaths in the country.

Normal life was crippled in Tripura in response to a 12-hour shutdown called by the Left that shut government and private offices, educational institutions and shops. Most banks were open - with permission.

Almost all vehicles went off the roads. Train services were affected.

The shutdown appeared to be total in Kerala. Only private vehicles plied, offices saw minimal attendance and normal life was crippled. In Kerala too, banks were allowed to remain open.

The strike evoked a mixed response in Bihar. Normal life was hit in some rural areas, but urban areas were largely unaffected. Train and road traffic was disrupted in some places.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress did not join the shutdown but staged protests. The Janata Dal-United of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar kept itself away from both the strike and demonstrations.

In New Delhi, the Congress described the demonetisation as the "biggest scam in independent India" and asked Modi to apologise for the "mess" he had created.

Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said "Modi has brought the entire country to a standstill and demonetised the whole country".

In most states, opposition activists and leaders staged noisy protests.

In Chennai, police arrested DMK leader M.K. Stalin, state Congress President S. Thirunavukkarasar and CPI-M leader G. Ramakrishnan along with their supporters. But life was otherwise normal in the state.

Stalin said the DMK was not opposed to the demonetisation but was critical of the hardship it had caused to the common man.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the scheme had flopped vis-a-vis its stated objectives.

"The entire scheme is a flop," he said, adding Modi's ego had put the entire nation into misery and pushed back the economy by a decade in just 20 days.

At a separate venue, the AAP accused Modi of shifting the debate from black economy to cashless economy and said the demonetisation decision had turned from a "Tughlaki farman" to a "Talibani farman".

In Manipur, angry customers vandalized two SBI branches after the bank refused to let them withdraw Rs 24,000 each from their accounts citing a cash crunch. A policeman was injured in the violence.

The 'Bharat Bandh' evoked little support in Uttar Pradesh, where both the Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) and the ruling Samajwadi Party are bitter critics of demonetisation.

Samajwadi Party workers protested on rail tracks in Allahabad and Kanpur. But major markets by and large remained open.

"The BJP says the opposition has called a Bharat Bandh but the fact is the BJP itself has done a Bharat Bandh by demonetising high currency notes," BSP leader Mayawati said.

In Odisha, opposition activists staged noisy protests in many cities and towns. But the ruling BJD has welcomed the demonetisation move.

Led by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, leaders from the Congress, CPI-M, CPI, DMK and RJD protested outside Parliament. Both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha were again adjourned on Monday.

--IANS

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NSUI members attempt to march to Parliament House, held

Delhi,National,Politics,Education, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Hundreds of NSUI activists and supporters were detained on Monday when they tried to march to Parliament House and gherao it to demand waiving of educational loans and deferring of payment of admission fee till March next year.

Around 1,000 National Students Union of India (NSUI) supporters from across the country marched towards Parliament House -- where the winter session of both the houses of Parliament is on since November 16 -- to gherao it but were detained by police and taken to Parliament Street police station.

"We demand waiving of educational loans of students. If the government can waive outstanding loan dues worth crores of rupees of capitalists, it can certainly do it for students," NSUI President Amrita Dhawan told IANS.

"We demand that since students are going through a severe cash crunch (after demonetisation), they be exempted from paying admission fee till March next, or else allowed to use old currency notes," she said.

The Centre had banned old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 from November 8 midnight.

The protesters said demonetisation had left people penniless and the note ban was not in public interest.

Congress leaders Anand Sharma, Deepender Singh Hooda, Ahmed Patel and Randeep Surjewala were among those who addressed the protesters and accused the Centre of apathy towards public misery after demonetisation.

"This note-ban is nothing but an attempt to draw people's attention away from the government's failures. During its 2014 general election campaign, the Bharatiya Janata Party had promised to create two crore jobs if it came to power. However, only two lakh jobs have been created till now since May 2014," Amrita Dhawan said.

"The Centre is indulging in self-glorification by renaming central schemes and structures, while the people are forced to stand in queues for long hours to get their own money," the NSUI leader added.

A memorandum meant for Prime Minister Narendra Modi was submitted by protesters to officials concerned, which termed the demonetisation authoritarian and violation of the Constitution.

--IANS

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Allegations misconstrued and defamatory, withdraw them: Tata Sons' lawyer to Wadia

Delhi,National,Immigration/Law/Rights,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Following its independent director Nusli N. Wadia's threat to take legal action against it, Tata Sons' legal counsel has written to Wadia to withdraw his his allegations calling them "misconstrued".

In his three-page letter to Wadia who is an independent director on three Tata Sons group companies and also a well-known industrialist, Bharat Vasani, Chief, Legal and Group General Counsel of Tata Sons said the Special Notice issued by Tata Sons to the board of Tata Steel was not to defame Wadia.

The letter to Wadia was sent on November 24 and made public on Monday.

"It is denied that our Special Notice constitutes a personal vendetta against you or that it is vindictive action, as alleged or otherwise," the letter said.

Wadia had earlier questioned the contents of a Special Notice of November 11, of Tata Steel and the item No.2 on the agenda 'Removal of Nusli Wadia as Director'.

He took strong umbrage to six allegations in the special notice, that he (Wadia) was acting in concert with Cyrus Mistry, has been acting against the interests of the Tata Group, has been acting in a manner designed to cause harm to the Tata Group, was not conducting himself independently and acting prejudicially and that his actions could gravely jeopardise the company, its future and its employees, and that the shareholders had lost faith in him and sought his removal.

"You are aware that the legal position is fairly well settled that there is no requirement, legally or otherwise, for us as a shareholder to even provide any reasons while seeking your removal in terms of Section 169 of the (Companies) Act," the legal counsel stated.

Wadia is an independent director on the boards of Tata Chemicals, Tata Steel and Tata Motors for long but varying periods.

The notice seeking his removal was served by Tata Sons, accusing him of backing former group chairman Cyrus Mistry who was sacked on October 24.

"It is denied that anything stated in our Special Notice was intended to or has caused damage to your reputation as a professional or has caused irreparable injury, as alleged or otherwise," the letter stated.

It said that even before the Board of Directos of Tata Steel could decide on convening the EGM, "you have issued the aforementioned letters, making all kinds of absolutely baseless, false and defamatory allegations against us."

It further said that the company hopes that the defamation notice issued by Wadia was not an attempt to "coerce our directors and officer not to perform their fiduciary obligations to Tata Sons Limited and its stakeholders, when Tata Sons has decided to and issued the Special Notice."

"Your (Wadia) relationship with JRD Tata and Ratan Tata are personal matters. You would appreciate that Tata Sons and its directors will act in the interests of Tata Sons, its stakeholders and other Tata Group companies," Vasani said.

"If you have any respect for your association with JRD Tata and Ratan Tata as mentioned by you, you would seriously consider withdrawing this notice," the letter concluded.

--IANS

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Lt Gen A.K.Bhatt new DGMO

Delhi,National,Defence/Security, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Monday approved appointment of Lt. Gen. A. K. Bhatt as the Indian Army's new Director General of Military Operations.

He will replace Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh who moves to Mathura as commander of the army's 1 (strike) Corps.

The cabinet panel also approved the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs to appoint Lt. Gen Shokin Chauhan as Director General of Assam Rifles on deputation basis for a period of two years with effect from the date of his assumption of charge or till his retirement from the Army or until further orders.

--IANS

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Polls for over 10,000 panchayats in Gujarat on December 27

Maharashtra,National,Politics, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Gandhinagar, Nov 28 (IANS) Elections for members of 10,318 panchayats in Gujarat, including sarpanches or village heads, as well as by-elections for vacant panchayat seats elsewhere will be held on December 27, the Gujarat Election Commission announced on Monday.

State Election Commissioner Varesh Sinha said the votes will be counted on December 29.

The manual voting -- and not through electronic voting machines -- will be held at 24,454 polling stations in 91,002 wards. Of the nearly 1.89 crore eligible voters, 98,64,234 are men and 90,22,758 women.

There are over 14,000 gram panchayats or village-level bodies in the western state.

Though panchayat elections are held without election symbols and not on party basis, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Congress have pulled out all stops to ensure candidates backed by them are elected as sarpanches.

These would be the major elections after the crucial district and taluka panchayats as well as nagar panchayats elections held last December.

Thanks to the statewide Patel agitation for reservation, the BJP suffered the first-ever electoral jolt in those December elections after the exit of Narendra Modi from the state politics to become the Prime Minister in 2014.

The Congress, which has been out of power in the state since 2002, sees a ray of hope for the crucial assembly polls due in December 2017.

Besides the Patel agitation led by Hardik Patel of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), Gujarat also witnessed a major Dalit agitation in the wake of public flogging of four youngsters in Una village in Saurashtra region.

And now, the opposition party expects that the public suffering due to Centre's November 8 demonetisation will help it.

The BJP claims to control a majority of the panchayats, while the Congress maintains the situation is quite different now.

State BJP spokesman Bharat Pandya told IANS: "The panchayat polls are not contested on party symbols, but 70 to 80 per cent panchayats have our sarpanches."

"Modi, as Chief Minister, had called all village sarpanches thrice to Gandhinagar, which itself was unheard of. Besides, our government drastically increased financial grants to panchayats. They had never felt so empowered earlier under the Congress," Pandya said.

Congress leader Manish Doshi said: "Look at the suffering of villagers and you will know that the state government has done little except make announcements."

"When our party rules with a brute majority in district and taluka panchayats, do you think the lowest rung of the Panchayati Raj Institutions is with the BJP or rather go with candidates supported by the BJP?" Doshi asked.

"The results will show. The panchayat elections were due in October but the ruling party was reluctant to hold them till now," he added.

--IANS

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Delhi Police arrest four wanted criminals

Delhi,National,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Delhi Police has arrested four persons wanted in several criminal cases, including murder and attempt to murder in south Delhi, police said on Monday.

The accused have been identified as Rohit Choudhary, 29, a resident of Aaya Nagar; Ravi, 29, a resident of Karol Bagh; and Anil Kumar and Rajesh Kumar, both 30-year-old and residents of Dakshinpuri, police said.

On a tip-off, their car was intercepted by a Special Staff team in Dera village on Monday morning.

Four pistols, 72 live cartridges, 20 mobile phones and a car they stole from Greater Noida area were recovered from their possession.

"Rohit Chaudhary graduated from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College of the Delhi University. He was also active in student politics during his college days. Later, he came in contact with anti-social elements and took to the wrong path," Deputy Commissioner of Police Ishwar Singh said.

Anil Kumar earlier ferried school children in his cab. Later, after coming in contact with some anti-social elements, he started committing crimes.

Rohit and Anil had a reward of Rs 50,000 on their head. They had been declared 'Proclaimed Offenders' by a city court, Singh said.

Ravi who learned Monographic Designing but could not earn enough money, started committing crimes with some anti-social elements in Karol Bagh area.

Rajesh Kumar worked with a CGHS dispensary in Pushp Vihar, but he committed a murder in 2006. He later met Rohit, Anil and Ravi in jail and joined their gang, police said.

--IANS

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Petroleum, Skill Development ministries ink MoU

Delhi,National,Business/Economy,Education, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) and the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) on Monday signed an MoU to scale up skill development in hydrocarbon sector, an official release said.

"The MoU was signed by Petroleum Secretary K.D. Tripathi and MSDE Secretary Rohit Nandan in the presence of Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy," release said.

Speaking on the occasion, Dharmendra Pradhan said as his ministry is gearing up for new avenues that Petroleum & Natural Gas sector will open up for the country, there is tremendous focus on sourcing skilled workforce to make the plans successful.

"The partnership with MSDE through this MoU signing will help MoPNG to develop a ready workforce for Exploration and Production, Pipeline & Transportation, Refinery & Marketing and service providers going forward.

"We are investing back into our sectors and for the country's brighter future," he added.

Rajiv Pratap Rudy, welcoming the contribution from the hydrocarbon sector, said: "The hydrocarbon sector has tremendous potential for employment generation, and hence it is vital to develop a skilled workforce to meet both current and future needs."

The petroleum ministry has set up the Hydrocarbon Sector Skill Council (HSSC) with representatives from the government, public and private sector to address the skill development needs of this sector.

Both ministries will develop globally-benchmarked workforce for this sector and will create better economic opportunities for the youth through skill development programmes.

--IANS

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India to host scholars from Brazil, South Africa

Delhi,National,Diplomacy,Education, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) A tri-national alliance of developing nations spread across three continents got a fresh lease of life on Monday with the launch of a fellowship programme for scholars from Brazil and South Africa.

Supported by the Ministry of External Affairs, the Research and Information System (RIS) for Developing countries, a think tank headed by former Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran, will be hosting two scholars each from Brazil and South Africa for an IBSA (India, Brazil, South Africa) Fellowship Programme lasting from three to six months.

Preeti Saran, Secretary (East) in the External Affairs Ministry, while launching the programme, said that IBSA has been acknowledged as a successful example of South-South cooperation.

She said that there were several issues on which the three countries could work better.

The programme will see scholars from Brazil and South Africa doing research on South-South cooperation across a range of issues in India. RIS has set up a committee that will select the scholars from the applications it has received.

Speaking at the launch, Shyam Saran said that IBSA represented three emerging economies that are also three major democracies.

"The fellowship programme will provide a platform for scholars from Brazil and South Africa to study new challenges like SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN) and the Paris (Climate) Agreement (signed at the end of last year)," he stated.

Conceptualised in 1999, the IBSA became a reality with the Brasilia Declaration in June 2003 signed by the Foreign Ministers of Brazil, India and South Africa.

India will host the next IBSA summit in 2017. Of the five IBSA summits held till now, South Africa hosted the last one in 2011.

--IANS

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NIA arrests four suspected Al Qaeda activists in Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chennai, Nov 28 (IANS) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday arrested four suspected Al Qaeda activists - three from Tamil Nadu's Madurai and one from here, said police.

Police alleged that the four suspects had plans to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 21 other leaders.

The arrested men -- identified as M. Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali (all of Madurai) and Dawood Sulaiman from here -- also allegedly issued threats to several embassies in India, police said.

Temple town Madurai is around 420 km from here.

According to police, Sulaiman, who works in an IT company here, was picked up based on the information given by the three men picked up from Madurai.

--IANS

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Haryana orders probe why Nabha jailbreak escapees not intercepted

Punjab,National,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chandigarh, Nov 28 (IANS) The Haryana government on Monday ordered a probe into the lapses by state police who did not intercept the escapees of Sunday's sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in neighbouring Punjab.

With security agencies tracing the movement of the jailbreak escapees, who included two terrorists and four dreaded gangsters, and pointing out that they moved towards Haryana, the Haryana government has launched an investigation into how the escapees were able to go past the security barricades set up at various places in Haryana, including the state's border with Punjab, to intercept them.

Haryana was put on high alert after 10-12 armed men attacked the Nabha jail, 100 km from Chandigarh, and freed two terrorists and four gangsters. However, the main escaped terrorist, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) leader Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested from the Nizamuddin railway station in New Delhi while he was ready to board a train to Mumbai.

Home Secretary Ram Niwas said on Monday that an investigation team has been constituted by Director General of Police "to look into the reasons for failure of police personnel posted at naka (barricade) set up in Kaithal to intercept the escaped inmates from Nabha Jail".

"Disciplinary action will be taken against the erring police personnel," he said.

Two cars, a Hyundai Verna and a Hyundai i20, which were used by the attackers of the Nabha Jail and were used by the jailbreak escapees to flee, were recovered from different parts of Haryana.

The Uttar Pradesh Police had on Sunday evening arrested gangster Parvinder Singh near Shamli in western UP and recovered weapons from him. Another getaway vehicle, a Toyota Fortuner SUV, was recovered from him.

The Delhi Police's Special Cell arrested Mintoo, who had trimmed his bread and hair to change his appearance and travelled by car and bus to reach Delhi via Haryana.

Ram Niwas said that nakas had been set up in the state to intercept the escaped inmates, including Mintoo. "The Haryana and Delhi Police had swung into action immediately after getting information in this regard from Punjab," he said.

--IANS

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Amarinder demands CBI probe into Nabha jail break

Delhi,National,Politics,Defence/Security, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Blaming Punjab government for the Nabha jail break in which two Khalistani terrorists and four gangsters escaped, state Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded a CBI probe into it, saying he doesn't have faith in the Punjab Police.

"I do not have any faith in the Punjab Police doing the enquiry. This matter should be given to the CBI to have an independent enquiry as to how a break-in can take place into a high security jail. A fair investigation would not be possible under the Punjab Police.

"I blame Mr. Badal (Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal) fully. This is done by them and they have done it with the objective of further provoking tensions in view of the elections," he said.

Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested at a railway station in Delhi on Monday morning, within a day of his escape from the high security prison along with another terrorist and four gangsters after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men.

Singh has written to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh seeking immediate dismissal of the Badal government and imposition of the President's Rule in Punjab in the wake of the Nabha jail break incident.

In a separate communication, he has also written to Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi urging imposition of the code of conduct without further delay and holding of the assembly elections under President's Rule.

Singh also pointed out that the four gangsters who had escaped along with the Khalistani terrorist from the jail belonged to Muktsar and Jalalabad area from which the Badals hailed.

--IANS

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How BJP MP managed daughter's wedding in 2.5 lakhs: Kejriwal

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Mahesh Sharma following his daughter's marraige and asked did he managed the marraige expenses in Rs 2.5 lakhs post demonetisation.

"BJP MP Mahesh Sharma's daughter wedding. Is he making all the payments in cheque? Is he managing the marraige in Rs 2.5 lakhs? How his notes were exchanged?" Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Kejriwal asked.

The AAP has been protesting against the central government's demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes.

The opposition has called for Bharat Band on Monday in protest against the November 8 announcement.

Serpentine queues have been witnessed outside banks and ATMs, as many anxious people waited for hours to deposit or exchange their spiked currency notes or obtain cash.

--IANS

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Shutdown call evokes partial response in Telugu states

Andhra Pradesh,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Hyderabad, Nov 28 (IANS) The nation-wide shutdown called by the Left parties over demonetisation of high value currency notes evoked partial response in Telugu states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Monday.

Shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in some areas while there was not much impact elsewhere.

The services of state-owned Road Transport Corporation (RTC) was near normal in both the state.

The activists of the opposition parties staged protest at RTC depots at many places since early morning, however, the bus services by and large remained unaffected.

Activists of Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), Congress and YSR Congress Party staged sit-in at RTC depots. However, the employees union stayed away from the shutdown.

Main opposition YSR Congress and Congress clarified that they have not called for 'Bharat Bandh' but were only participating in protests against the people's sufferings due to demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

The Left parties exempted banks from the strike call.

Congress and CPI workers were arrested by the police at RTC bus depot in Kadapa town of Andhra Pradesh when they staged a sit-in and tried to prevent buses from plying.

YSR Congress Party leader Bhuma Karunakar Reddy and others were arrested when they held a protest demonstration at RTC depot in Tirupati. The left parties took out a rally in the temple town and raised slogans against the central government.

The activists of opposition parties also staged protests in Nellore, Guntur, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and other towns in Andhra Pradesh, where TDP-BJP alliance is in power.

In Telangana, ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) was not participating in the shutdown.

The Left parties and Congress staged sit-in since morning at RTC depots at various places including Khammam, Karimnagar, Jagtiyal, Suryapet and Sircilla.

The Left parties plan to take out a rally in Hyderabad, while Congress, which is observing it as 'Akarsh Diwas' would be forming a human chain at the regional office of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in Hyderabad to highlight the problems faced by the people.

Some schools in Hyderabad declared holiday as a precautionary measure. Osmania University, Kakatiya University and Jawaharlal Nehru Technology University (JNTU) postponed their examinations.

--IANS

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Left parties'sponsored shutdown cripples life in Tripura

Tripura,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Agartala, Nov 28 (IANS) Life crippled in Left ruled Tripura on Monday as a Left Front sponsored 12-hour shutdown observed in the northeastern state to protest against demonetisation of higher currency notes by the BJP led central government.

The dawn-to-dusk strike was called by the Communist Party of India-Marxist led Left Front as part of the Left parties' all India agitation against the demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes.

Government and semi-government, private offices, banks, educational institutions, shops and business establishments were remained closed due to the strike.

All types of vehicles, except security forces, remained off the roads.

Aircrafts in-between Agartala, Guwahati, Kolkata and New Delhi have been plied as usual.

Train services between Tripura and rest of the country were affected as the Left party workers blocked several trains in different locations in the state.

"There is no untoward incident reported from anywhere in the state. The shut down remained peaceful across the state," police spokesman Uttam Kumar Bhowmik told IANS.

Opposition parties including Trinamool Congress and Congress have opposed the shut down instead they have decided to organise protest rallies on the same issue in the evening.

The BJP workers led by local leaders held several rallies in different parts of the state opposing the strike and urged the people to maintain normalcy all across.

"As part of the all-India agitation against the Centre's November 8 demonetisation, we have urged the people of Tripura to observe the 12-hour strike across the state, The strike was total, successful and spontaneous," Tripura Left Front convenor and former Lok Sabha member Khagen Das said.

Das, a former Health and Revenue Minister in Tripura, said the people, especially the poor, farmers, unorganised workers, daily labourers, small and medium traders are the worst victim of the Modi government's demonetisation decision.

--IANS

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My next few announcements will surprise everybody: Tamannaah

Tamil Nadu,Cinema/Showbiz,Southern Cinema, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chennai, Nov 28 (IANS) It has been a phenomenal year so far for actress Tamannaah Bhatia with three back-to-back hits. Thrilled with the response to all her projects, she said the films she has in her kitty will surprise everybody.

"Unfortunately, I can't talk about my upcoming projects yet but I'm sure when announced they will pleasantly surprise everybody. A lot of people, including my fans, will be really happy to know I'm going to be part of these films," Tamannaah told IANS.

Out of the three films she did this year, she stunned everybody with her performance in "Dharmadurai" and "Devi". Her other release "Thozha" was a successful venture.

Asked how she savored the success, she said: "I've been part of the biggest hits and flops. Over the years, I have realised that it takes a great team for a film to succeed. Although this success does add pressure, it will only push me to choose better content."

Tamannaah admits it was a conscious decision to do a film like "Dharmadurai" where she wasn't required to look glamorous or romance the hero.

"It was a very conscious decision and it worked. We did 'Dharmadurai' on a very small budget and it was different but I wasn't sure if it will be accepted or not. Thankfully, it was very well received and my performance even earned me an award recently," she said, and added her personality enables her to easily slip into both glamorous as well as author-backed roles.

"I'm fortunate enough to pull off glamorous as well as strong, character-driven roles. This is exactly why audiences accepted me in 'Dharmadurai' as well as 'Devi'," she said.

In "Devi", Tamannaah played her career's first leading role. She says its success has been overwhelming.

Does the success of "Devi" prove audiences are finally open to women-centric films?

"No matter what kind of film one makes, it boils down to whether it's good or not. Unlike regular commercial films, most of these women-centric films are made on smaller budget and when they succeed, the profits are bigger," she said.

She also firmly believes both kinds of films - commercial, hero-driven and women-centric - will survive and can co-exist.

She is currently shooting for Simbu-starrer Tamil film "Anbanavan Asaradhavan Adangadhavan".

--IANS

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Demonetisation may exacerbate public health crisis

Delhi,National,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

null

A spate of deaths due to hospitals refusing to accept invalid currency notes has come to attention after Prime Minister Narendra Modis announcement invalidating 86 per cent of Indias currency on November 8.

Unlike government-run hospitals, private hospitals have not been allowed to use defunct Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, potentially affecting 58 per cent of Indians in rural areas who opt for private healthcare (68 per cent in urban areas), according to National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) data.

In Noida, an infant died after a hospital reportedly asked for an advance of Rs 10,000 and then refused to take old currency notes.

An 18-month old baby died in Visakhapatnam as the parents didn't have money to buy medicines, and a year-old infant in Mainpuri, Uttar Pradesh, died after reportedly being denied treatment by a local private doctor as his parents didn't have money to pay for his treatment.

Despite multiple requests, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on November 17 that private hospitals would not accept old notes because that would encourage misuse of old currency.

Patients who had travelled away from their home states were particularly caught unaware by the move and faced a serious shortage of cash.

IndiaSpend met 52-year-old Mahavir Malhar and his wife from Jharia, Jharkhand, staying on the footpath outside Mumbai's Tata Memorial Hospital, a leading referral hospital for cancer patients nationwide. A labourer who earned Rs 200 every day before coming to Mumbai to address his wife's ear cancer, Malhar had no usable cash.

"We do not have cash to buy meals or even tea," said Malhar. Although treatment at Tata Memorial Hospital is free, and the hospital accepts old notes, staying in Mumbai is expensive for the couple. Since the note ban, their sons, also labourers, have not been able to send them money because of long lines at local banks.

"They are also daily wage earners and standing in a line for the whole day means loss of income," said Malhar. The couple now depends on the free meals provided by the hospital and charitable trusts.

As noted, more than half of India's population depends on private healthcare, despite the fact that private healthcare cost the poorest 20 per cent of Indians more than 15 times their average monthly expenditure, according to a 2014 NSSO survey.

Other markers of India's dependence on private healthcare:

-- Up to 86 per cent of the rural population (717 million people) and 82 per cent of the urban population (309 million people) are without health expenditure support.

-- Indians spend eight times more in a private hospital than a government hospital, according to an analysis of National Health Accounts (NHA) 2013-14 data by The Hindu. The report estimated that households spent Rs 8,193 crore in government hospitals, an eighth of the Rs 62,628 crore spent in private hospitals.

-- As much as 69 per cent of health expenditure in India is private (out-of-pocket) -- the highest proportion in the world -- according to NHA data. Out-of-pocket expenditure is the share of expenses that patients pay to the healthcare provider without third-party insurance or government-subsidised treatment.

-- Of 930,000 doctors in the country, only 106,000 work for the government. This means there is one government doctor for every 11,528 people, according to the National Health Profile 2015 report.

-- About 81 per cent sanctioned posts of specialist medical professionals in community health centres were lying vacant, according to a 2015 rural health statistics report.

Therefore, the government's decision to not allow private hospitals to accept old notes will restrict access to healthcare for a significant section of Indians.

Post-demonetisation, the Maharashtra government's toll-free 108 helpline -- the 247 emergency ambulance services number -- is also reporting complaints against private hospitals refusing to accept cheques.

Lack of cash is making patients prioritise their cash needs, and health issues tend to be pushed back on family priority lists, reported private practitioners from urban centres.

"There has a been a drop of 25-30 per cent in patients coming to our private out-patient (OPD) department," said Manish Motwani, bariatric surgeon at Aastha Healthcare, Mumbai. He attributed the drop to a fall in non-emergency cases.

"There was a 40 per cent drop in my patients in the OPD the next day of demonetisation; now the drop is of 10-15 per cent, but some of my other colleagues are seeing a drop of 50 per cent in the number of hospitalisations," said Pradeep Gadge, a Mumbai diabetologist. Many doctors said they were allowing patients known to them to pay later.

There has also been an increase in the number of patients in government hospitals, where treatment is largely free or at nominal charges. "We have seen an increase in the number of patients in our primary healthcare centre since the currency ban," said Amol Bhusare, medical officer at Pallam, a small town east of Mumbai. Bhusare said two of his patients who had gone to a private diagnostic centre for a CT Scan at nearby Nanded city were turned back for bringing old notes.

Akhilesh Yadav, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, requested Modi and Jaitley to allow Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes at private hospitals and medicine shops till November 30.

"As Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 were banned in haste, those undergoing treatment at hospitals and nursing homes are facing a lot of problems," said Yadav. "I, therefore, request you to intervene and allow private hospitals, nursing homes and medicine shops to accept these notes till at least November 30."

A few hospitals have pleaded that they be allowed to accept older currency. Mumbai's Bhatia Hospital wrote to the Prime Minister the day after his initial note-ban announcement. "We are one of the oldest charitable hospitals in Mumbai and requested (that) at least charitable hospitals be allowed to accept older notes," said Rajeev Boudhankar, CEO of Bhatia Hospital. He said no patient has been turned away. They are accepting payments through other means, including cheques, although three cheques have bounced.

(In arrangement with IndiaSpend.org, a data-driven, non-profit, public interest journalism platform, with whom Swagata Yadavar is principal correspondent. Devanik Saha is with the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex. The views expressed are those of IndiaSpend. Feedback at respond@indiaspend.org)

--IANS/IndiaSpend

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A nail-biting horse racing climax for 'Winner'

Tamil Nadu,Cinema/Showbiz,Southern Cinema, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chennai, Nov 28 (IANS) Director Gopichand Malineni, who has returned after successfully wrapping up the European schedule of his upcoming Telugu actioner "Winner", says they shot a breathtaking horse racing climax sequence in Istanbul.

"We shot the climax in Istanbul race course. It's a nail-biting horse racing sequence, featuring Sai Dharam Tej and the film's antagonist Thakur Anoop Singh. The whole action episode was shot under the supervision of Bulgarian stunt director Kaloian Vodenicharov, who had worked in films such as 'Baahubali' and 'World War Z'," Malineni told IANS, adding he is thrilled with the output.

Before heading to Istanbul, the team shot three songs in Ukraine.

"At one point, the temperature had dropped to -2 degrees. Initially, we struggled to cope with the climate but a few days later we got used to it," he said, claiming "Winner" is the first Indian film to be shot in Ukraine.

"Although the makers of '2.o' had come before us, they didn't shoot there. We were told that they had taken pictures of some locations in order to recreate the same in India," he added.

Out of three songs, one was shot against some scenic backdrop of Ukraine.

"It's a beautiful country and I would love to revisit for my future projects. We also shot a song against city backdrop and another one in a popular pub. The best time to visit the place, we were told, is during June-July when it's summer," he said.

From December 6, the next schedule of the film will commence in Ooty, followed by another one in Bengaluru.

Produced by Nallamalupu Bujji and Tagore Madhu, the film also stars Rakul Preet Singh.

--IANS

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Unocoin launches bitcoin app on iOS, Android platforms

Karnataka,Business/Economy,Technology, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Bengaluru, Nov 28 (IANS) Bengaluru-based Unocoin on Monday launched bitcoin mobile app for both iOS and Android platforms that will allow consumers to buy, sell, send, receive and store bitcoin at one place from any remote device.

Bitcoin is a digital currency not produced by any government or statutory authority. It is generated by encryption techniques using peer-to-peer technology to operate.

"We built this app from the ground up, using our very own public API to ensure security and ease of use," said Abhinand Kaseti, co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of Unocoin, in a statement.

Unocoin also released its point of sale (POS) app on both App Store and Play Store to enable physical stores to accept bitcoin as a mode of payment about six months ago.

"The app will include the buy and sell pairing for BTC/INR, mobile/DTH (direct to home satellite programme) recharge, SIP (systematic investment plan) access," the company said.

--IANS

anuj/na/vt
Panasonic Eluga Tapp: Good performance at modest price (Tech Review)

Delhi,Business/Economy,Technology, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) The sub-Rs 10,000 smartphone market, currently dominated by Chinese vendors, now offers striking features at competitive prices. Tapping into the same strategy, Japanese player Panasonic has launched the Eluga Tapp smartphone.

The device comes with an add-on security feature, 'Android for Work', which allows users to segregate the business apps from personal apps while protecting their personal data.

Priced at Rs 8,990, the Eluga Tapp is in tough competition with Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus and Meizu M3 Note.

Here is what works for the device.

When it comes to aesthetics, Eluga Tapp features minimalistic design and is not too fancy. Panasonic has tried to keep the design simple and clean.

At just 138 grams, Panasonic Eluga Tapp feels lighter in hand than the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 and Meizu M3 Note.

Be it browsing the web, watching videos or playing games, everything was smooth on the device. However, the full-HD display of Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus -- in the same price segment -- projected sharp colours on the screen.

The 1.25GHz quad-core processor in the Eluga Tapp is capable of smooth multi-tasking and ran various productivity tasks and apps, including Gmail and YouTube, with ease. Unless you push the smartphone to its limits, you will hardly notice a difference in performance.

The fingerprint sensor also worked fine in unlocking the device within seconds.

The 8MP auto-focus rear shooter is better for shooting when there is enough light and does not work well under low-light conditions. Clicking pictures with gestures also worked fine.

Once charged, the device can keep you connected for a day with moderate usage and can last for almost two days if you are using it just for calling, messaging and slight social media use. For heavy users, carrying a portable power bank will be advised.

Eluga Tapp addresses consumers' 24/7 connectivity needs with dual-SIM and 4G/VoLTE fast connectivity, ensuring a reliable and fast connection. Call quality was also good and we did not encounter any issues.

What does not work?

If there are heavy apps running in the background, the transition between apps was not smooth and we encountered delay while switching between them, which can be forgiven considering the price.

We found the build quality of Meizu M3 Note better than Eluga Tapp. The rear snapper also missed out detail while capturing images.

Conclusion: Like Panasonic's other affordable smartphones, Eluga Tapp is one of decent performing devices that comes bundled with specifications good enough for daily use.

(Anuj Sharma can be contacted at anuj.s@ians.in)

--IANS

anuj/na/ky/sac
Jadeja swells India's lead to 71 runs (Lunch Report)

Punjab,Sports,Cricket, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Mohali, Nov 28 (IANS) Leftie all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja produced a career best Test score of an unbeaten 70 to pull India to 354/7 in their first innings, giving them a vital 71-run lead, at lunch of the third day of the third Test match here on Monday.

England scored 283 runs in their first innings.

Resuming at 270/6, Jadeja's highest Test score pulled India to a sizeable lead. India scored 84 runs from 30 overs in the morning session of the play losing only a wicket.

Jadeja was supported during the first session by Jayant Jadav unbeaten 26. Together they put on a crucial and unconquered 53-run eighth-wicket partnership.

The only wicket to fall for India in Monday's first session was Ravichandran Ashwin's (72), who was caught by Jos Butler off the bowling of Ben Stokes.

The Ashwin-Jadeja partnership began the proceedings sedately and safely guided India past the 300-run mark.

But Ashwin perished just after, in the 95th over, with the score at 301, trying to drive only managing a thick edge that was lapped up at point by Butler.

England didn't look like breaking the Ashwin-Jadeja pair, but a moment's mistake ended their seventh-wicket association at 97 runs.

--IANS

sam/vt
Fathers boost daughters' maths, sons' language skills

India,Lifestyle/Fashion, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) A father's love can have a special influence on young adults, while it can boost the maths grades of the teenage daughter, it may improve the language skills in the son, researchers said.

The study found that fathers from low-income families support their teenagers in ways that result in greater optimism, self-efficacy, and, ultimately, higher achievement at school.

This is even true for men with low levels of education or those who were not proficient enough in English to help their children with their homework.

"Low-income fathers affect their adolescents' beliefs about themselves and their future, and these beliefs influence their achievement by increasing their determination...," said Marie-Anne Suizzo from the University of Texas in the US.

These positive effects extend to both sons and daughters, albeit in different ways, the study said.

Experiencing their father's warmth first influences daughters' sense of optimism and then spills over into their feeling more determined and certain about their academic abilities. This in turn leads to better math grades.

There is a more direct link between the father's involvement and teenage boy's belief in their ability to succeed on the academic front.

Fathers' involvement with teenage boys' belief in their ability to succeed on the academic front, results in heightened self-confidence and their success in English language, arts classes, the researchers explained.

Counselors and educators should encourage fathers to communicate warmth and acceptance to their children, because of the positive influence these emotions have on their well-being, Suizzo suggested.

In the study, published in the journal Sex Roles, the team analysed 183 sixth-graders from low-income, ethnic minority families. They asked about how optimistic and motivated they were about their schoolwork, and how their experiences were with their fathers.

--IANS

rt/in/vt
Children illegal images circulated by some Twitter users

New Delhi, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 NI Wire

null

It is reported that, on the social site Twitter the illegal images of children are circulated and swapping by some of its users to harass or sexually abuse them.

The images of young girls are circulated on Twitter to promote them as child pornography, which are in their school uniforms or in swimsuit and which are harmless; it is said in a report of BBC on Monday.

BBC quoted Joseph Cox, a freelance Journalist who is writing for Motherboard said, Some have been taken by the girls themselves. It's not clear whether they have then sent them to a boyfriend who's uploaded them... others appear to have been ripped from their social media sites.

It is also found that some Twitter users are making unrestricted or explicit comment on them and doing trade of these same pictures by asking each other.

When asked from Twitter on this issue it clearly states that its policy on these type of issues when they found any of such content they firstly remove it from their site without any notice and they ban permanently these such users for such of these type of work.

Twitter also stated that they are working with authorities and organisations including the Internet Watch Foundation in the UK to prevent the exploitation of children and also they do not tolerate child sexual exploitation.

In report quoted by an American woman, There was a minimum 14,000 accounts involved in the creation, distribution or re-tweeting of child porn, and added that the victims are girls as young as five, and definitely under 15.

A forum called Jailbait in 2011 also had similar issues and it was closed by Reddit.

Such type of offences were ridiculous and to prevent these offences are very disgusting.

--with agency inputs

null
Pakistan's new army chief has no social media account: ISPR

Pakistan,Indo-Pak/Pakistan,Technology,Defence/Security, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Islamabad, Nov 28 (IANS) Pakistans army chief-designate Lt. Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa has "zero presence" on social media and any accounts under his name are fake, the army's media wing has clarified on Monday.

"#COAS designate Gen Qamar Bajwa has zero presence on social media. All Facebook / Twitter & other social media platforms IDs & accounts on his name are fake," Lt-Gen Asim Bajwa, head of the military's media wing, the Inter-Services Press Relations, said.

The announcement came just a day after Lt. Gen. Bajwa was appointed as the country's new chief of army staff, succeeding General Raheel Sharif, who retires on November 29.

The army's spokesperson announced that a formal change of command ceremony will be held on Tuesday at the army's general headquarters in Rawalpindi to welcome the incoming chief.

--IANS

ahm/vt
Opposition protests at Mahatma statue in Parliament complex

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Opposition parties on Monday staged a protest against the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes near Mahatma Gandhi's statue in Parliament House complex as both the houses witnessed pandemonium over the issue.

Leaders from the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, the DMK and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) protested outside Parliament.

The protest was led by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

Earlier, the opposition parties held a meeting in the parliament HOuse to chalk out their strategy over the issue.

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of the winter session on November 16 over the demonetisation that has triggered a cash chaos in the country.

--IANS

mak-bns/py/vt
Working with Nivin was dream-like, says Gautham

Tamil Nadu,Cinema/Showbiz,Southern Cinema, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chennai, Nov 28 (IANS) Debut director Gautham Ramachandran describes the experience of working with actor Nivin Pauly nothing less than a dream. The duo has teamed up for upcoming yet-untitled Tamil remake of Kannada thriller "Ulidavaru Kandanthe".

"Working with Nivin has been nothing short of a dream. The entire unit was in love with him. Throughout the shoot, he was so accommodating, involving and extremely friendly," Gautham told IANS.

After the rage of the 2015 Malayalam film "Premam" in Tamil Nadu, this will be Nivin's first Tamil outing.

Gautham says the "Premam" frenzy has gone beyond Tier 1 cities and multiplexes.

Recalling an incident while shooting with Nivin, he said: "When we were shooting in Thoothukudi, Nivin was mobbed by hundreds of fans. We had to seek police protection to continue shooting. I understand if a similar incident happened in Chennai, but I was shocked to see he had such a fan following in a small town."

The film, which is inching closer to completion, also stars Natarajan Subramaniam, Shraddha Srinath and Lakshmi Priyaa Chandramouli.

Although some reports claimed that the film might use yesteryear hit film's title "Avargal", Gautham denied it.

"We did consider the title 'Avargal', but since it's already out we might not use it. We are planning to come up with something new and easily relatable," he said.

The next schedule of the film commences in Kolkata from this week.

--IANS

hp/nn/vt
US spent less this Thanksgiving weekend than last year

United States,Business/Economy, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Washington, Nov 28 (IANS) US consumers spent about $44.5 billion during this Thanksgiving weekend, slightly below a year ago, the country's largest retail trade association said on Sunday.

More than 154 million consumers shopped over Thanksgiving weekend, from Thursday to Sunday, two per cent above the 151 million shoppers last year, Xinhua news agency quoted the National Retail Federation as saying.

"It was a strong weekend for retailers, but an even better weekend for consumers, who took advantage of some really incredible deals," NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay said.

"In fact, over one-third of shoppers said 100 per cent of their purchases were on sale," he said.

Average spending per person over Thanksgiving weekend totalled $289.19, about 3.5 per cent lower than $299.6 last year, making the total spending 1.56 per cent lower than the last year, said the NRF.

Stronger sales were expected in the rest of the holiday season as less people have finished their holiday shopping compared with last year.

"With mid-season shopping behind us, it's not too late for retailers to tweak their online and in-store strategies to help increase traffic and see a big payoff during the last few weeks of the holiday season," Shay said.

The total retail sales in this year's holiday season from November to December were expected to reach $655.8 billion, 3.6 per cent higher than the last year, better than the average level of 3.4 per cent since 2009, because stronger US economic fundamentals have driven income gains, said NRF in October.

--IANS

py/vt
Punjab jailbreak: Terrorist Mintoo arrested in Delhi (Fourth Lead)

Delhi,National,Terrorism,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi/Chandigarh, Nov 28 (IANS) Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested at a railway station in Delhi on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from a high security prison in Punjab.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KCF) leader was nabbed from the Nizamuddin railway station by the Special Cell of Delhi Police, Special Commissioner of Police Arvind Deep told IANS.

"He was arrested between 1 and 2 a.m.," Deep said. "He had reached Delhi by changing a number of buses and was headed from Nizamuddin to Panvel (in Maharashtra)."

His plan was to then travel to Goa and from there flee the country, said a senior police officer on the condition of anonymity.

According to the officer, Mintoo, after his escape, entered Haryana, where he took a bus from Kurukshetra to Panipat and then boarded another bus to reach Delhi.

An earlier report said the arrest followed a joint operation by Punjab Police and Delhi Police.

Asked if this was true, Deep said the Punjab Police had "alerted us that Mintoo might go towards Delhi.

"So we formed several teams which kept vigil at strategic locations. He was spotted by our men at the Nizamuddin station."

The arrest happened within 24 hours after Mintoo, another terrorist and four gangsters broke out of the Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday morning after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men.

Punjab Police officials had said on Sunday that the escaped prisoners had fled towards Haryana.

Mintoo was arrested in 2014 with 10 cases against him. The other terrorist who escaped on Sunday was Kashmir Singh Galwadi.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said a report had been sought from the Punjab government and promised the Centre's assistance to nab those on the run.

"The Home Ministry has been doing whatever needs to be done," Singh said in Delhi.

"This (jailbreak) is a state subject and the Home Ministry has already sent advisories to states in this regard. The state (Punjab) government is looking into the matter," he said.

Mintoo would be presented in a court in Delhi and handed over to Punjab Police on transit remand.

On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who carried out the sensational jailbreak, was caught in Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh.

The attackers, dressed in police uniform, breached the prison security around 9 a.m. and fired at least 100 rounds during the well-planned attack that lasted barely 10 minutes.

After the jailbreak, a police team shot dead a woman travelling in a car which failed to stop at a barricade.

--IANS

aks/mr/py
IS, Israel clash for first time near Golan Heights

Israel,Defence/Security,Terrorism, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Jerusalem, Nov 28 (IANS) Israeli forces reportedly killed four Islamic State militants in Syria in the first direct clash between the country and the jihadi group, the media reported.

The militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online.

Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire early on Sunday.

They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.

All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk," an IS offshoot which controls the area.

Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.

Israel seized 1,200 sq. km (460 sq. miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.

--IANS

ahm/vt
Modi must be tried for looting people's money: Anand Sharma

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy, Tue, 29 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) Congress leader Anand Sharma on Monday demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi should be held accountable and tried for "looting people's money".

The Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha was reacting to the government's move to introduce a bill in the Lok Sabha to amend the Income Tax rules and coming up with an income disclosure scheme called the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) 2016.

"Let Lok Sabha consider the bill, then we'll take care whenever it comes to Rajya Sabha. They cannot enact it as a law before it is passed by Rajya Sabha," Sharma told IANS.

"Modi is looting people's money, and now he is trying to be generous. First banks collapsed, then people's money was looted, and they were forced to put it in banks. Illegally people were denied access to their own hard-earned money. Now, he is trying show generosity by starting this Jan Kalyan Yojana," he added.

"The prime minister must be held to account and tried for looting people's money."

His Lok Sabha colleague Gaurav Gogoi said: "It is another scheme allowing those who have unaccounted money to be legalised. While the poor is suffering and is unable to withdraw their hard-earned money, those who have got black money are being allowed a way out."

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to amend the Income Tax rules, levying a tax of 60 per cent on undisclosed income or investment or cash credit deposited in the banks.

The government has also come up with an income disclosure scheme called the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) 2016 which allows people to deposit money in their accounts till April 1, 2017, by paying 50 per cent of the total amount -- 30 per cent as tax, 10 per cent as penalty and 33 per cent of the taxed amount, that is 10 per cent, as Garib Kalyan Cess.

--IANS

sid/vd
India's trade deficit with China rises to $53 bn

Delhi,National,Politics,Business/Economy,Diplomacy, Tue, 29 Nov 2016 IANS

New Delhi, Nov 28 (IANS) India's trade deficit with China rose to $52.69 billion in 2015-16, from $48.48 billion in the year before, Parliament was informed on Monday.

Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told the Lok Sabha in a written reply that during the April-September period of the current fiscal, the deficit stood at $25.22 billion.

"Increasing trade deficit with China can be attributed primarily to the fact that Chinese exports to India rely strongly on manufactured items to meet the demand of fast expanding sectors like telecom and power," she said.

She also said that as India and China are both members of the World Trade Organisation, any trade restrictions imposed requires to be WTO compliant.

No blanket ban can be imposed on China, or any other member country, under the WTO framework, she said.

In a separate reply, the minister said that the government has not yet decided on granting relaxation of sourcing condition in the single brand retail sector to three companies.

"Only 3 companies have sought relaxation of sourcing condition. No decision has been taken by the government in this regard," Sitharaman said, without disclosing the names of the companies concerned.

Under Indian foreign direct investment (FDI) norms, proposals involving foreign investment beyond 51 per cent are required to source 30 per cent of the value of goods purchased from within India.

--IANS

bc/vd
Cuba begins official tribute to Fidel Castro

Cuba,Politics, Tue, 29 Nov 2016 IANS

Havana, Nov 29 (IANS) Thousands of Cubans gathered at Revolution Square here to pay tribute to the late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, who passed away on Friday at the age of 90.

The people of Cuba walked through the square's memorial to national hero Jose Marti on Monday and filed past photographs of Castro, Xinhua news agency reported.

Cuban Communist Party leaders, as well as top government officials and senior military officers, maintained an honour guard in front of an image of Castro, who was popularly known as "El Comandante".

The ceremony began at 9.00 a.m. (local time) with a 21-gun salute, shot from the Cabana Fortress, as a tribute by the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) to Fidel.

South African President Jacob Zuma will also attend the funeral and has ordered that the South African national flag be flown at half-mast at all stations in South Africa on Tuesday.

Following Castro's death, Cuba declared nine days of national mourning.

The tribute at Revolution Square will extend through Tuesday after which, Castro's ashes will embark on a 1,000 km journey around the island, so that all Cubans could bid him their last "goodbyes".

The trip would take the reverse route of the "Caravan of Freedom", in which the rebels of the Sierra Maestra crossed the country from Santiago de Cuba when the Cuban Revolution triumphed in 1959.

The remains of the former Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Armed Forces would arrive in Santiago, the cradle of the Revolution, on Saturday, when another massive tribute ceremony would take place in Antonio Maceo Square.

The burial ceremony of his ashes, which was expected to be attended by his family, would take place in the Santa Ifigenia Cemetery of Havana.

--IANS

vgu/
Death toll in Mozambique tank explosion rises to 96

Mozambique,International, Tue, 29 Nov 2016 IANS

Maputo, Nov 29 (IANS) Health authorities said that death toll in the fuel tanker truck explosion in Mozambique's Central Tete province had reached 96, media reports said.

"8 out of 47 patients receiving treatment at the provincial hospital are still under intensive care. All of them are children," Xinhua news agency quoted Celma Issufo, a doctor in a local hospital.

"The prognosis for most patients is good, but there are still some troubles for them to go through," said Issufo.

The inquiry commission created by the Council of Minister to investigate the causes of the explosion is in the scene, left with only a week to release its report.

The Council of Minister said accountability will be charged in case it is found that there are criminal faults in the explosion.

On October 18, a tanker truck was en route transporting petrol to Malawi from Mozambican port city of Beira. It blew up when local residents were gathering around the vehicle to buy fuel.

--IANS

vgu/
Netherlands, Belgium sign border adjustment treaty

Netherlands,Politics,Diplomacy, Tue, 29 Nov 2016 IANS

The Hague, Nov 29 (IANS) Belgium and the Netherlands signed a treaty to exchange pieces of land along the Meuse river border, media reports said.

Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Bert Koenders and Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders signed the convention for adapting the border in the presence of royal couples of both countries.

"This unique border agreement is an example of our excellent cooperation with the Belgian people. We have showed today that the Netherlands and Belgium succeeded as good neighbours and can adjust borders in a peaceful way," Xinhua news agency quoted Koenders as saying.

According to Reynders, the border treaty symbolizes the excellent state of the Belgian-Dutch relations.

This is the second border adjustment between the Netherlands and Belgium in 175 years.

The current border was established in 1843 and followed the deepest point of the Meuse river. Adjustment was necessary because in 1961 the winding banks of the river were rectified for navigation purposes. As a result, parts of Belgian territory were attached to the Dutch riverside and vice versa.

Although there are neither people living nor buildings on the peninsulas, adjusting the border situation still is a lot of work, said Commissioner of the King in Dutch province of Limburg Theo Bovens.

Ministries of both countries such as water boards, land registry agencies and three municipalities will be involved in the land swap.

If the parliaments of both countries adopt the treaty next year,the border correction will take effect on January 1, 2018.

--IANS

vgu/
A Moroccan court has postponed to early December decision on the case of two teenage girls found kissing each other in Marrakech in October, reports say.

The two girls aged respectively 16 and 17 were charged late October with licentious or unnatural acts with an individual of the same sex after being caught kissing and hugging on a rooftop.

They appeared on Friday November 25 in the court for hearing. The defense noted that if found guilty they may face between six months and three years in prison.

They denied what was in the police report, namely that they had a homosexual relationship, and said their relationship was friendly, lawyer Rachid al-Ghorfi told AFP.

They had been detained, at Boulamharaz prison, one week before being freed on bail, reports say. They has decimated by the two teenage girls, Nidal Azhary, co-founder of Union Feministe Libre (UFL) noted.

UFL, a civil society organisation for women advocacy has been slammed their arrest.

The girls have been charged under Article 489 of Moroccos penal code criminalizing sexual deviancy between two people of the same gender, reports say.

They are the first case of homosexuality concerning female addressed by justice in the North African country.
The Islamic state group (IS) Friday claimed credit for the check point attack that killed 12 soldiers in the restive province of North Sinai.

A number of caliphate soldiers attacked a checkpoint belonging to the apostate Egyptian army in the Sabeel village, southwest of Arish city, and the following clashes using light and medium weapons were able to kill 15 of the checkpoints elements, the militant group said.

A group of heavily armed men and a suicide car bomb attacked November 24 a military check-point manned some 30 soldiers. The early death toll was put at 8 by Egyptian authorities but the figure was later increased to 11 by another official who spoke under condition of anonymity.

Another medical source according to Reuters claimed that four more bodies were found the following day of the attack, putting the figure at 12.

12 other soldiers have been reported wounded in the attack. One soldier has been also reported missing.

Egyptian security forces have been facing insurgency form terrorist group since 2013  the year current president al-Sisi deposed democratically elected Islamist President Mohamed Morsi.

The insurgency has caused loss of around 500 troops. Egyptian authorities claimed they have been able to eliminate more than 1,000 Islamists.
Tunisia will be hosting an International Investment Conference in Tunis from Tuesday, seeking support and investors to revamp its ailing economy.

According to Fadhel Abdelkefi, Minister of Development, Investment and International Cooperation, the conference is an opportunity for the North African nation to present its major infrastructure projects to international investors in order to provide promising job opportunities to the Tunisian youth.

The conference will make the case that after holding free elections and introducing a new constitution, Tunisia has essentially completed its political transition.

More than 140 projects worth nearly 30 billion euros will be showcased, Abdelkefi said.

World Bank, European Investment Bank, African Bank of development and majors partners will also take part at the conference.

The emir of Qatar Tamim ben Hamad Al-Thani and the French and Algerian prime ministers, Manuel Valls and Abdelmalek Sellal are expected for the family picture.

The idea is to get out of the conference with Tunisia back on the map of the investment in the Mediterranean, Fadhel Abdelkefi explained.

In his words, Tunisia is highly competitive. It has already attracted more than 3,500 (foreign) companies that produce in Tunisia, export; use the logistics () a deep and qualified employment pool.

After its revolution, Tunisia sought aid from foreign donors to support its balance of payments and state budget, but Abdelkefi said it was now more interested in long-term investments that would develop industries and create jobs.

The country has been the target of several high-profile militant attacks in the last several years, including attacks on foreign tourists.
The terminator. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Its been a bad 20 days for Barack Obamas legacy. Donald Trumps election threatens the presidents signature health-care law, financial reforms, Clean Power Plan, and nuclear agreement with Iran, among many other policy achievements. But before this weekend, one Obama legacy item that appeared (relatively) safe was his decision to open up diplomatic relations with Cuba.

That policy had consistently garnered majority support in public-opinion polls. In fact, most Americans think Obama hasnt gone far enough in normalizing relations with the Communist island  telling pollsters that theyd support an end to the Cuban embargo. Even Cuban-Americans, who have historically been a key constituency for Americas hard-line stance toward the Castro regime, came around to Obamas way of thinking by the end of 2015.

Whats more, the American people didnt just approve of Obamas Cuba policy  they also didnt care about it that much. Which is to say, the issue quickly became obscure enough for the far right to forget all about it.

And then Fidel Castro died.

Now, conservative commentators are turning their fire on Justin Trudeaus love of communism; Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz are calling on Trump to get tough on Cuba; and the president-elect has presented Raul Castro with a 140-character ultimatum.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2016

There are a few remarkable aspects to this missive. For one, it appears that American diplomacy will no longer be conducted around negotiating tables but, rather, over Twitter (perhaps, to discuss especially sensitive matters, Raul Castro can slide into Trumps DMs). For another, there is no single deal for Trump to terminate. Obamas Cuba policy consists of a series of incremental measures that opened up relations between the two nations, including the removal of Cuba from Americas list of states that sponsor terrorism, and the reopening of the U.S. embassy in Havana.

Whatever Trump does or doesnt mean by his tweet, the fact the soon-to-be leader of the free world is using his Twitter account to question the integrity of American elections and unilaterally declare radical shifts in U.S. foreign policy, is troubling. (There are more dangerous things to normalize than Americas relationship with Cuba.)
To the victor go the smiles. Photo: Chesnot/Getty Images

Former French prime minister Francois Fillon won the French Republicans presidential nomination on Sunday, beating out Bordeaux mayor Alain Juppe. Fillon is an outspoken admirer of Margaret Thatcher and ran on a platform of massive economic reform, tougher immigration restrictions, and traditional, socially conservative values. His rival was an avowed moderate and promoted a multicultural vision of France.

Alain Juppe concedes defeat in French rightwing primary. Promoted moderate, multicultural vision of France. Clearly didn't match zeitgeist  Katy Lee (@kjalee) November 27, 2016

Now Fillon will likely go up against Marine Le Pen and her infamous far-right National Front party in next years presidential election. Le Pen is running on a staunchly anti-immigration and antiEuropean Union platform.

Fillons win  in what was the Republicans first-ever American-style primary contest  represents a potentially significant shift to the right for France, as well as the continuation of what has become something of a global political trend. Le Pen has been effusive in her praise of Donald Trump, and Fillon ran on campaign rhetoric that sometimes seemed to mimic Trumps Make America Great Again slogan.

My campaign has been understood, he said. France will not stand for its decline. My ambition is to lift up the nation to be the best version of itself.

France is well behind the European average in terms of employment and economic growth, and Fillon has run on promises to reform the countrys economy, even boasting policy positions that sound distinctly un-French: lengthening the work week from 35 to 39 hours, pushing the retirement age to 65, and eliminating 500,000 jobs from Frances famously robust public sector.

Fillon also supports strict immigration quotas as tensions between immigrants and the rest of the French population continue to grow, and he has fashioned himself as the man who can defeat terrorism  he literally wrote the book on Beating Islamic Totalitarianism.

Also like Trump, Fillon is perceived as being sympathetic to Russian president Vladimir Putin. He has said that France should ally itself with Putin and the regime of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad against ISIS.

While Trumps election in the U.S. and the surprise triumph of Brexit in the U.K. has forced France to come to terms with the possibility of an unprecedented victory by the radical right, Fillon securing the nomination may complicate Le Pens path the presidency. In many ways, Fillons views overlap with Le Pens, but he is a much easier candidate for many to stomach. Supporting the Republicans comes with much less of the political risk and social stigma that backing the fringe National Front would entail.

The third party in all of this is the ruling Socialist Party of sitting president Francois Hollande, but the socialists are widely seen as unlikely to hold on to the presidency. Hollande will end his first term next year as the least popular president in more than 50 years and with his party out of favor throughout the country.
Fake news is the easiest of the problems to fix. Photo-Illustration: SelectAll

My favorite story about the internet is the one about the anonymous Japanese guy who liberated Czechoslovakia. In 1989, as open dissent was spreading across the country, dissidents were attempting to coordinate efforts outside the watchful eye of Czechoslovak state security. The internet was a nascent technology, and the cops didnt use it; modems were banned, and activists were able to use only those they could smuggle over the border, one at a time. Enter our Japanese guy. Bruce Sterling, who first told the story of the Japanese guy in a 1995 Wired article, says he talked to four different people whod met the quiet stranger, but no one knew his name. What really mattered, anyway, is what he brought with him: a valise full of brand-new and unmarked 2400-baud Taiwanese modems, which he handed over to a group of engineering students in Prague before walking away. The students, Sterling would later write, immediately used these red-hot 2400-baud scorcher modems to circulate manifestos, declarations of solidarity, rumors, and riot news. Unrest expanded, the opposition grew, and within months, the Communist regime collapsed.

Is it true? Were free modems the catalyst for the Velvet Revolution? Probably not. But its a good story, the kind whose logic and lesson have become so widely understood  and so foundational to the worldview of Silicon Valley  as to make its truth irrelevant. Isnt the best way to fortify the town square by giving more people access to it? And isnt it nice to know, as one storied institution and industry after another falls to the internets disrupting sword, that everything will be okay in the end  that there might be some growing pains, but connecting billions of people to one another is both inevitable and good? Free speech will expand, democracy will flower, and well all be rich enough to own MacBooks. The new princes of Silicon Valley will lead us into the rational, algorithmically enhanced, globally free future.

Or, they were going to, until earlier this month. The question we face now is: What happens when the industry destroyed is professional politics, the institutions leveled are the same few that prop up liberal democracy, and the values the internet disseminates are racism, nationalism, and demagoguery?

Powerful undemocratic states like China and Russia have for a while now put the internet to use to mislead the public, create the illusion of mass support, and either render opposition invisible or expose it to targeting. The paid bureaucrats in the Communist Partys 50-cent army flood debates on Chinese social media and message boards with nationalist propaganda. Russias armies of trolls smear critics, spread propaganda, and sow paranoia  both nationally and abroad, as when a cache of leaked emails from the Democratic National Committee drowned real news in innuendo and conspiracy.

Its not only state actors who use the internet for illiberal ends. In Myanmar, where internet use has exploded from one to 20 percent of the population over the past two years, fake news about Muslims has correlated with a surge in anti-Muslim protests and attacks on local Muslim groups, reported BuzzFeeds Sheera Frenkel. Here in the U.S., racist, misogynistic, and anti-Semitic trolls on Twitter harass journalists critical of Trump while a brigade of bots sing his praises under each of his tweets. On Facebook, a host of fake and misleading news sites has spread an epidemic of misinformation and propaganda.

Not all of this activity is motivated by hatred. Some portion of the illiberal rhetoric online is inorganic, funded or Astroturfed by third parties like Palmer Luckey, the 24-year-old virtual-reality wunderkind who admitted this summer to funding a political-action committee dedicated to shitposting in favor of Trump. Some is driven purely by the close-margin math of hucksters: Write a fake viral article and sell ads for miracle erectile-dysfunction cures. And some portion is motivated by genuine if misguided grievances, manipulated and accelerated through social media, which favors a politics that relies on fearmongering and heightened emotion, as appeals to tribal identity. This can lead to vital movements for justice. It can also lead to a man who called Mexicans rapists being elected president.

Silicon Valley is, slowly, coming to terms with the way its products have enabled the revival of illiberal populism around the world. Only a week after the election, Twitter finally introduced some simple anti-harassment tools that its users had been requesting for years. Its not encouraging, by any means, that were reduced to begging powerful CEOs to institute changes to their popular products for the sake of democracy. At Facebook, frustrated employees formed a secret working group aimed at dealing with fake news; eventually, Zuckerberg declared that the company would take several concrete steps to address it. A week later, the New York Times reported that the company had been working on a censorship tool in an effort to reenter the Chinese market.

But the recent panicked focus on fixing the fake news problem itself seems inadequate, reliant on the belief that merely by ensuring that hoaxes and lies are unable to circulate on social networks, we can return to civil public discourse. That misinformation plagues our politics is a symptom of a larger, more existential problem: The tech industry has disrupted the public sphere and has shown neither the interest nor the ability to reconstruct it. No matter what Facebook might believe, there is no turnkey algorithmic solution that will ensure a perfect civic network. It will always be possible for people who take advantage of networks dumb nature  their inability to distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate traffic  to flood them with junk.

Is it possible to encourage productive, meaningful speech online without regulating the speech itself? A stronger public sphere might emerge if the power of the few companies that determine the dissemination of news and ideas were greatly reduced. If Facebooks effective monopoly on online distribution were broken, a new set of ways to report and share news could arise: a social network where the sources of articles were highlighted rather than the users sharing them. A platform that makes it easier to read a full story than to share one unread. A news feed that provides alternative sources and analysis beneath every shared article. We cant believe that merely connecting people is enough to enable freedom. But if we abandon the air of inevitability that has surrounded the expansion of the internet and the politics weve too long presumed it enables, we may find that it still is a fantastic tool for democracy  in concert with a strong free press; transparent, independent institutions; and the old-fashioned democratic value of arguing with your neighbors to their faces, rather than with their Twitter accounts.

*This article appears in the November 28, 2016, issue of New York Magazine.
Following Britains decision to leave the European Union this year and (as of now) the strength of the U.S. dollar, now is the perfect time to shop never-before-as-affordable British gifts from U.K. department stores like Selfridges or Harrods. The most deal-savvy thing to do is shop in pounds (just try clicking over to a U.S. version of the sites below and youll see the difference); what youll need is a forwarding service. A site like Skypax charges a minimal one-time sign-up fee of 12 (about $15), provides a UK address for you to then fill out as your delivery address on British websites, and then forwards packages on to you at standard shipping costs. The website provides a calculator, but shipping prices generally hover around $30-40, so it makes the most sense to buy items that are discounted much more than that (you wouldnt use the hack to save $25 on Harney & Sons, for instance). It even stores and groups packages together to make the service really worth your while. Note that the links we provide may kick you over to the U.S. site because of your IP address  switch the currency back to GBP to get the best rate.

The Strategist is a new site designed to surface the most useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Some of our latest conquests include the best notebook, black T-shirt, fashion-editor-approved jeans, toothbrush, and apartment decor. Note that all prices are subject to change.

If you buy something through our links, New York may earn an affiliate commission.


Heres a primer on what to get the clotheshorses and accessory addicts in your life  from designer socks and slippers to a comfortable party dress, a modern pocket watch, and more.



Socks $32 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Socks Down Under

Designed by a painter now based in Brooklyn; sewn one sock at a time in her native New Zealand. $32 at Penn Friends Buy

Cap $36 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Art Hat

Fashion items with words on them are usually a risky gift  but not in this case. $36 at Poketo Buy

Blue Jamuse Socks $45 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Delightful Socks

The quintessential little luxury of cashmere socks can actually be improved upon when you add cute winking eyes. $45 at La Ligne Buy

Crossbody Saddle Bag $79 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Bright-Red Saddle Bag

It feels very 12 little girls in two straight lines, but in an elegant way. $79 at Kenneth Cole Buy

Potter Apron Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Hedley & Bennett Potters Apron

So that friend who took up ceramics can throw at the wheel without getting clay all over her culottes. Buy at Amazon Buy Buy at Amazon Buy

The Napsack $160 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Pendleton Onesie

A wearable sleeping bag (for campfires, sitting around the house on a Sunday) made in collaboration with outdoorsy brand Poler Stuff. $160 at Poler Stuff Buy

Tack Sling $199 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Backpack-Totebag Hybrid

Created by SSCY with the bike commuter in mind. The Tack Sling can hold unwieldy items like a bike wheel. $199 at S S C Y Buy

Photo: Courtesy of the vendors

Protest Gear

A bundle of Planned Parenthood sweats, a Human Rights Campaign cap, an Emilys List tee, and ACLU and Everytown hoodies ($212).



Gloves $275 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Flashy Gloves

Of 1 00 percent bright-red lambskin, made in Italy. $275 at Armani Buy

Trail Runner $295 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Kanyes Art Directors Sneakers

Forget the impossible-to-buy Yeezys. Justin Saunders, whom Kanye calls the Taste God, designed these Trail Runners. $295 at JJJJound Buy

Sequin Dress Gigi Hadid $295 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Comfortable Party Dress

The easygoing gal sparkles in Gigi Hadid for Tommy Hilfiger sequined dress. $295 at Tommy Hilfiger Buy

Mountain Pass x Danny Davis GLX $380 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Mountain Boots

Designed by snowboarder Danny Davis with a Gore-Tex liner, these are the Stan Smiths of snow boots. $380 at Moosejaw Buy

GucciGhost Leather Wallet $420 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Arty Wallet

Artist Trevor Andrew designs his first official collection since becoming the GucciGhost. $420 at Bergdorf Goodman Buy

Tods Gommino Driving Shoes $330 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors A Classic Suede Shoe

Not necessarily new, but no one does driving shoes better than Tods. $330 at Matches Fashion Buy

Bezel Set Diamond Band $470 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors A Bunch of Diamonds

In just the right size ring for stacking, but theyll look as amazing on their own. $470 at Greenwich St. Jewelers Buy

Wild Thing Sandals $785 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Not an Ivanka Trump Sandal

Join the resistance by supporting Aquazzura, the first shoe company to sue Ivanka Trumps brand for copying its Wild Thing shoe. $785 at Barneys Buy

Strip-Trimmed Wool Peacoat $3,150 $3,150 Photo: Bobby Doherty/New York Magazine Fierce Peacoat

Gucci embellishes your average double-breasted wool winter jacket with military-like stripes down the sleeves and a teeth-baring panther on the back. $3,150 at Mr Porter Buy

Emergency $18,970 Photo: Courtesy of the vendors Cast Away Watch

This watch has a dual-frequency Personal Locator Beacon that sends alerts and guides rescue missions. $18,970 at Breitling Buy

*This article appears in the November 28, 2016, issue of New York Magazine.

If you buy something through our links, New York may earn an affiliate commission.
Halima Aden. Photo: kinglimaa/Instagram

A Somali-American teenager became the first contestant to wear a hijab and burkini during the Miss Minnesota USA pageant over the weekend.

Halima Aden, 19, competed against 45 women for the Miss Minnesota USA, KARE-11 reports. Aden, who was born in a Kenyan refugee camp and moved to St. Cloud as a child, wore her hijab throughout the pageant, as well as a burkini during the swimwear competition of the event. The St. Cloud State University student placed in the top 15 of the pageant but unfortunately didnt make it into the top 5, according to ABC-7.

Halima Aden makes history as the first woman to compete wearing a burkini during the Miss Minnesota pageant @StarTribune pic.twitter.com/QEJWToIFC1  Leila Navidi (@LeilaNavidi) November 27, 2016

Halima Aden starts off Miss Minnesota USA's swimsuit segment to big cheers from the crowd. Announcer: "She's making history tonight." pic.twitter.com/OUvbHv6xct  Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 27, 2016

However, winning was never Adens No. 1 priority. Instead, she was more concerned with busting stereotypes and misconceptions of Muslim women, and inspiring other women to embrace themselves and their differences. A lot of people will look at you and will fail to see your beauty because youre covered up and theyre not used to it, so growing up I just had to work on my people skills and give people a chance to really know me besides the clothing, Aden told KARE-11.

Miss Minnesota USA just started at Ames Center. Halima Aden, 19, of St. Cloud, introduced herself in black gown. pic.twitter.com/KlaPGEzSQI  Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 27, 2016

Pageant officials were reportedly supportive of Adens choice to compete fully covered. Denise Wallace, the director of Miss Minnesota USA and Miss Minnesota Teen USA, told ABC-7, The organization continues to evolve as women evolve. The Miss Universe organization is proud to be the forefront of the diversity of beauty.
Photo: Getty Images

New Yorks Sex Diaries series asks anonymous city dwellers to record a week in their sex lives  with comic, tragic, often sexy, and always revealing results. This week, a 38-year-old broker amazed by how much sex post-divorce life has to offer: single, straight, Williamsburg.

DAY ONE

8 a.m. Im in an Uber to work. It was a big weekend: two dates, two hookups. Im finally single, off antidepressants  and its all coming together. I went on antidepressants after my divorce. Two years ago, my now-ex-wife left me for someone she met in acting class.

11:45 a.m. Monday therapy! My shrink is all about embracing bad behavior, i.e., sleeping around. She says being a man-whore is helping me transition into healthy, single living. About that: I slept with both my dates this weekend.

3 p.m. I tell my partner (we do apartment sales together) that one of the women from the weekend mentioned she had an STD. It was totally taken care of and I was at no risk of catching it, especially with a condom (which I ALWAYS use). My buddy and I agree an STD handled with class is not a deal-breaker. We decide that most people probably have STDs and probably lie about it, which is far grosser. I wonder if HE has an STD. Speaking of, I should get a physical.

3:30 p.m. I was faithful to my wife for ten years  Im just sowing my oats. Things have changed so much since I was last single. Everyone is having sex: You dont have to work half as hard for it. Especially out here in Williamsburg. Im honestly not sure if thats a good thing or a bad thing.

9:30 p.m. I watched some TV and ordered soup dumplings. Big week coming up. Better sleep while I can!

DAY TWO

1:30 p.m. Ive been out with a wealthy couple for several hours looking at back-to-back apartments. I dont envy this guy. His wife keeps making fun of his style, or lack of style. She also made a dig about his bonus not being good enough, and believe me, this guy did okay. Did I check out her ass? Of course I checked out her ass. It was nice. Not nice enough to be mean to her husband. But yeah, nice.

7:30 p.m. Meeting a woman I rented an apartment to about three years ago when we were both married. Lets call her Lana. We follow each other on Facebook and noticed both divorces and  I asked her out. Im sitting at a wine bar in Williamsburg waiting for her arrival. Its an expensive place. Dating is bankrupting me  you even have to be rich to date in New York!

7:45 p.m. Lana looks great and smells great. Her hair is wet and her cheeks are cold as she kisses me hello; Im turned on by both. Apparently, shes just come from spinning under water (or something like that).

8:45 p.m. I think Lana is not into me because she only ordered one glass of wine, moved on to water, and said something about a late call with her L.A. office. I smell bullshit. Its okay. Shes a little pretentious.

11 p.m. Catching up on all the online dating, texting, post-sex follow-ups, etc. Its tiring. Id trade it all in for a real relationship, but I know that will come in time. I would not trade it in to be back with my ex-wife. I really fucking hate her. We dont speak or see each other at all.

DAY THREE

9 a.m. I have early showings around my neighborhood, which is convenient, as well as a lunch date with one of the girls from the weekend, the one I like the most right now.

1:30 p.m. Showings were successful. Looks like I wont have to worry about my dating budget. Heading over to Scalino in Greenpoint to meet Eva for lunch. Eva is a freelance food writer. She claims to be bisexual, but she also said shes never had sex with a woman. Oh, Brooklyn. I remember her saying she was turned off by my line of work, which hurt my feelings. My therapist suggested bringing it up at lunch.

2 p.m. I ask her what she meant by real estate being a turnoff, and she tells me her mom did real estate and that it seems like a shady business. My reply: Only as shady as you make it. Im not shady. I never tell lies. (That is the truth, by the way.)

I go on to tell her that it was kind of a rude thing to say, but that Im past it. She halfheartedly apologizes, jokingly saying something like, Oh, get over it! I think I can get over it.

3 p.m. Were both done with work for the day so I invite Eva over to see my place. When we had sex over the weekend, it was drunken sex at her Greenpoint apartment. She was a lot more fun to be around that night, but Im still enjoying her company.

3:30 p.m. Were drinking beers. I kiss her on my couch and she kisses right back. We both know why were here. We start fooling around. Im excited to go down on her because I didnt get to do that the night we had sex. I go down on her for a while. She has a great scent about her. Its part fresh soap and part, I dont know, pretty lady. She tells me shes about to come and thats when I know to really get the fingers going with the tongue. I have one finger deep inside her and Im sucking and licking her clit. She comes. Loudly! Nice.

4 p.m. We end the sexy-time after that and Im fine with it. Really glad I pleased her. Shes all dressed and ready to go home. I hope to see her again. I still feel a little unsettled (or is it insecure?) about the real-estate comment. And her dismissal of my feelings. But mostly  all good.

DAY FIVE

9:30 a.m. At the office doing loads of paperwork. Eva and I texted a little last night. This afternoon Im taking the ferry to Dumbo to meet someone I met on Election Night. We were at the same bar. I asked for her number, but not her last name, so I have no idea who this person is really. Its refreshing not to Google-stalk someone but also unnerving. Lets call her Whitney.

12:35 p.m. Ferry to Dumbo. Im really loving Brooklyn life.

1:15 p.m. Whitney is already waiting at the bar of the restaurant with a glass of wine. She is a knockout! We get right into talking. She is also divorced and has a young child. She is an actress, which scares me because of the PTSD from my wannabe-actress wife banging her wannabe-actor boyfriend. Actresses are scary. I dont know. Is it just me? Why couldnt she be a teacher?

2:45 p.m. The date is over. I give her a kiss on the cheek good-bye. Im not sure. She talks a LOT. And, this might sound really wrong to say, but she kind of had bad breath. We were sitting pretty close-up at the bar. My ex-wife used to say women who dont eat have bad breath. Was that it? Well, well see if she gets in touch.

7 p.m. Im still texting with Eva, which is nice. I never heard back from the other girl I slept with last weekend, the one with the STD who handled it with class. Not a good sign for my sexual talents, but Im just not going to think about it. Eva invited me to a party shes having with a bunch of foodie friends tomorrow night. Sweet! I line up my brother to come with. Hes married with kids but still a good wingman on occasion.

DAY SIX

9:30 a.m. Taking my nephews to swim class at the Y. I love them so much. Cant wait to have kids of my own. Hoping I meet the one soon.

12:30 p.m. More family time at my brothers place. He really hit the jackpot with his wife, Carrie. I love her like a sister and they are truly, genuinely happy. Carrie gave up on setting me up a few months ago. I wasnt crazy about the two girls she introduced me to (one was way too young, the other I wasnt attracted to). They love hearing my dating stories. Lots of ear muffs on the little ones these days!

1 p.m. I go home to chill, planning to meet Eva at her apartment for the party around eight.

9 p.m. The party is pretty empty. Its more of an Instagram-fest than a party. Lots of snapping of apple pies. Theres a green-matcha pie everyones going crazy for, but Im not interested in tasting it. I guess its a bring your own pie party  Eva didnt mention that. I brought wine (and my brother). Im drinking plentifully.

9:45 p.m. My brother is happy to do anything not involving Legos so hes having a ball, but Im pretty bored. I ask Eva for a second alone in her bedroom. She says shell meet me there.

10 p.m. We just had the quickest fuck against the wall of her bedroom. We basically kept all our clothes on and I threw her against her wall (but nicely). She locked the door. It was extremely hot. Who wants pie?!

11:30 p.m. My brother and I are stuffed, drunk, and small-talked out. Good night, weird food bloggers and expensive baked goods. I tell Eva Ill text her in the morning.

DAY SEVEN

11 a.m. I havent slept this late in forever. Mild hangover  egg and cheese must happen now. On the way out of my building I text Eva about how sexy she looked and how much I enjoyed the pie. Yes, I used a wink emoji.

11:20 a.m. She texts a bunch of winks right back.

3 p.m. Hangovers make me depressed. I dont really like being single. Does anybody? (Seriously, does anybody?) Again, I dont think Eva is the one. My gut says nah. But who is? Ill keep looking. Shes out there somewhere.



Want to submit a sex diary? Email sexdiaries@nymag.com and tell us a little about yourself.
Photo: Tom Kelley Archive/Getty Images

In late October, Victorias Secret did something strange. To promote the broadcast of its upcoming fashion show, the brand released a series of photos that showcased one of its star models, Jasmine Tookes, wearing a $3 million diamond-encrusted bra. Tookes was flanked by a hairstylist in one shot, and knelt atop a velvet couch in another. It was what one might expect from the bra behemoth until you looked closely at the second photo. There, the onlooker could see thin rows of stretch marks cupping Tookess thighs. The Today show christened the photos as unprecedented. Cosmopolitan mused that it was progress after speculating if the release was really unintentional. It was all so revolutionary  not only was Jasmine Tookes, the centerfold of unattainable beauty, afflicted with stretch marks, but Victorias Secret actually deigned to show them.

Every frightening story needs a formidable boogeyman, and for the story of skin, the big, bad monster is the stretch mark. A pimple has a shelf life, wrinkles appear later in life, but stretch marks  those cankerous streams of broken elastin that pucker plots of flesh  arrive early and stay forever. And oh, theyre really ugly. At least thats what weve been told. Why else would we make martyrs out of Tookes and Victorias Secret for promoting them, indirectly or not?

But it shouldnt be that way. A stretch mark is one of lifes most common conditions. Studies estimate that up to 90 percent of pregnant women, 70 percent of adolescent girls, and 40 percent of adolescent males will develop the marks. So ubiquitous are stretch marks to the human experience that youre more likely to run into someone who has them than you are to encounter a coffee drinker. For women especially, stretch marks overwhelmingly appear at times that emphasize femininitys wake  puberty and pregnancy. It is the one marker of femininity, perhaps, that escapes the gaze of socially constructed norms.

Its funny then, that something so natural and measured against any other standard, so inconsequential, could strike such a bold spark in the constellation of skin anxieties. History tells us that many of the skin conditions that are vilified today once illuminated unforeseen health quandaries in more primitive times. Dull skin, for example, could lay the signs of internal organ failure; inexplicable rashes, on the other hand, might point to an infection. Theres no beacon in history that clarifies why stretch marks earned their inauspicious reputation. But like any socially driven stigma thats both feckless and irrational, the denouncement of stretch marks began long ago, and naturally, it was directed at women.

Jasmine Tookes for Victorias Secret. Photo: Courtesy of Victoria Secret

My sixth-grade teacher introduced me to ancient Egypt. In class, there were many talks about the Fertile Crescent and its abundance of art, artifacts, and books, but none surrounding the small stone jars that were the familiar companion of wealthy new mothers. These jars were forged to resemble its intended recipient  a naked woman, either standing or squatting, caressing her swollen belly. Inside the jars would store an oil, or ointment of some degree  one of historys first documented stretch-mark creams.

In fact, ancient texts are rife with rudimentary stretch-mark remedies. In the preserved volumes of Soranus of Ephesus, the first-century gynecologist who practiced along the Mediterraneans major coastal cities, a recipe to protect the skin covering a womens enlarged abdomen is plotted. Mix oil from unripe olives and myrtle, Soranus suggests, for toned skin. Even the famous poet Ovid dealt a hand in the stretch-mark shame shuffle. In Amores, he envisioned a woman so driven to preserve her pristine body that she orchestrates an abortion: Can it be possible that, simply to avoid a few stretch marks, youd make your womb a bloody battleground? the poet wonders, simultaneously inflicting both question and insecurity.

Theres no need to bury your nose in verse to encounter the global terror of stretch marks in current times. A Google search churns over 11 million results. The vast majority hammer on chords of fanatical self-hate  a compounding legacy of a narrative stacked over a couple of millennia. How to get rid of stretch marks and similar derivatives draw top SEO rankings on Googles main page. And yet, in sharp contrast to the frenzied tenor embodied in these Google results, stretch marks remain virtually invisible within the images we consume the most.

In 1991, Annie Leibovitz was tasked with photographing Demi Moore for Vanity Fair. Moore was seven-months pregnant at the time and agreed to weather the day-long shoot to reap the rewards of promotion for her upcoming movie. Leibovitz conjured the shoot with tepid enthusiasm in Annie Leibovitz at Work, detailing how their day was swept up in gowns and jewels worn by Moore, punctuated by an interlude where she was shot wearing a black lace bra and panties.

At the end of the day, Leibovitz, who had worked with Moore several times before, prepared a few additional shots for her personal collection. It was then that Moore removed all of her clothing and clasped her bare breasts and underbelly, alternately, with her right and left hands. Her gaze focused on something unseen in the background. There Moore was, a 1990s rendition of Botticellis The Birth of Venus.

Of course, the image was too awesome to go unpublished. It became one of Vanity Fairs most celebrated covers and the clarion call for pregnancy-body positivity. Dozens, if not hundreds of magazines followed suit. Whats missing from the equation though, is the presence of stretch marks. Recall that up to 90 percent of women develop them over the course of a pregnancy. However, these marks have been erased from the triumphant narrative of the pregnant body in media and pop culture. The undulating current of assailing the female form is part of a powerful stream, indeed.

A vintage stretch-mark cream ad. Photo: Courtesy of Palmers

Around the same time I was learning about ancient Egypt in school, I was growing stretch marks of my own. I hated them because I knew they were ugly. I knew they were ugly because I had heard about these unwelcome streaks of flesh before. The word was passed down from a friend, who relayed a conversation she overheard between her mom and her girlfriend. Or maybe it was a commercial, an ad on TV, or the neighborhood know-it-all who was allowed to read Teen. Point is, 12-year-olds are well-versed in body insecurities, too.

My stretch marks lapped around my breasts. My boobs werent even that big, really, so the marks felt cosmically cruel. And treating them was exhausting. From time to time, I plopped into the local Rite Aid to spend a portion of my babysitting earnings on miracle creams. Id rub the lotion with a nervous sense of seriousness and hoped that my dedication might eventually pay in dividends. Id squint my eyes and swear Id caught wind of improvement, only to realize that the marks looked more of the same. In hindsight, I wish Id have spent less money. In hindsight I wish Id have talked to Dr. Brooke Jackson, a dermatologist.

She would have told me that I wasnt the tarnished ghoul I conceptualized in the mirror. Im always super conscious, particularly with young girls, about putting this into perspective, she told me on the phone last week. It is very, very common. Reality is, teenagers get stretch marks because theyre growing. You can be a little skinny ballerina and still have stretch marks.

And those creams? They dont do a thing.

You see, the skin-care industry is a lot like the Wild West: Unexplored expanses in science and skin-care maladies tempt companies with the promise of lucrative profits, and since the FDA only investigates cosmetics after they hit store shelves, a lot can slip through the cracks. While regulations prohibit cosmetics from laying claim to skin enhancements like stretch-mark reduction, many companies get around this by performing terminology acrobatics. Palmers, one of the larger stretch-mark cream manufacturers, puts it this way on each of its packages: helps reduce appearance of stretch marks. The key word being appearance. In other words, this cream wont cure your striped legs or chest, but it certainly might look that way.

But doesnt moisturized skin always look better? One would think so, and its there that cosmetics companies attempt to cash in. Dont be fooled, Dr. Jackson warns. All of those creams are moisturizers. A stretch mark is not caused by dry skin. Will it make your skin look a little more hydrated? If it looks hydrated, will it look smoother? Yes. Is it going to affect the pathophysiology of the stretch mark? No.

Bio-oil is one of the many companies currently marketing stretch-mark creams

Stretch marks are an internal event, rendering topical solutions utterly useless. They form when collagen, the support system for skin, wears thin. This happens during periods of rapid growth (such as puberty) or weight gain (pregnancy, for example). The resulting fissures are scars that lay underneath the lower layer of the dermis. Because the root of stretch marks are buried beneath skin, only a laser can etch a noticeable difference in treatment. There are multiple lasers on the market today that, when administered by a physician, can address the individual needs of different skin tones (until recently, most lasers would severely damage, or prove ineffective for darker skin colors). The process requires multiple, painful sessions, and even then might only deliver a marginal improvement.

But if a stretch mark is the written code on your body documenting moments of growth and maturation, why erase it? Besides, a thing couldnt possibly be that ugly if its been a part of us all along.
If you wanted to know how to use proper grammar, would you.. look at an Ann Coulter tweet?

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ann coulter is not a celebrity

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that's where you're wrong!



In 2015, Coulter had a cameo as the Vice President in the made-for-TV movie Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!.

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my mistake, how could i forget!

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Lmao she is pathetic

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omg the idea of ann coulter being vp is TERRIFYING but then again pence is also nightmare fuel sooooo

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EXCLUSIVE: Kellyanne breaks out her bathing suit while on a break from Team Trump https://t.co/ImnfQQwjRm pic.twitter.com/CSOCECYWZP  Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) November 28, 2016

Ann Coulter and Kellyanne can both disappear

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great just great

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Non taken.



The order is completely unintentional. I found a tweet, I added it to the post.

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You should edit it to move Lebron's tweet above hers, since he's a relevant celebrity.

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On one level I totally get where you're coming from but I think the reminder that she, and others like her, are hateful hypocrites is important. She'd be the first to complain that the left is politicizing a tragedy if he had used a gun but since this fits her narrative, she's happy to bring politics into it as soon as possible.

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ugh

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I'm sorry, I hope she's okay!

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She might have been on lockdown. I texted my friend who goes there like 5 hours ago and she just responded back a few minutes ago. Have you checked to see if she was on social media?

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sending love and prayers your way, hope shes okay! <3

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hope you hear back soon!

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omg i am so sorry, i hope she is alright. i have 3 cousins that go to OSU :( thank god they were able to leave campus very quickly

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I wish this would change things but I've gotten to the point where I'm well past hoping. The US basically celebrates these mass acts of violence with how easy we make them.



It's so gross, we should have fucking long sense been past the ability for this to happen in the first place.

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we normalize the shit out of it. it's terrifying.

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honestly, it would have to take a mass shooting on wall street to change things.

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i don't think so tbh



white children were gunned down in an elementary school by a white guy and still, nobody cared. i don't think any event could be a catalyst for change at this point

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I don't even think a mass shooting at NRA headquaters would do it. I honestly think we're beyond hope when it comes to gun control.



Edit: I take back this comment, my stupid fucked up brain wouldn't let go of this comment and I've decided I was wrong.



I think there's ONE thing that would do it, just one. A shooting LIVE at the Oscar/Grammys by a white male shooter, but it would have to be live and have to be a white male shooter



With those specific details in place, I think that would do it. Gun control would finally happen. I think that's the only thing in the world that could gte gun control to actually happen.



Edited at 2016-11-29 12:17 pm (UTC)

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i doubt it

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He didn't use a gun tho. Just a car and knife. So gun control wouldn't prevent this exact attack.



But the fact that no victim died yet is probably because he didn't use a gun.

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interesting how they never act like this when it's white male shooter which has been the dominant force behind mass shootings for the better part of this year and every year before it

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Yep. Like the asshole who killed those sorority girls. And the kid who wanted to start a race war by opening fire in that church. Hell, Columbine. The list goes on.

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this is not true.

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whiteness isn't just about skin color. i mean, i know you're a bigot so this won't make a difference to you. but when we call out white people there's definitely more involved than skin color

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ain't you tired, theqinra?

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their automatic rebuttal to that is that those shooters are democrats. its predictable af.

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I save this video for a rainy day tbh.

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Wow Jimmy Carr managed to be utterly repugnant while shitting on Ann coulter.

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lmfao at peyton manning that was so random

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Holy shit I would never be able to recover from this lolol

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it's almost as if people can care about multiple things at once.. weird

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Lol. Love this response.

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Normally, when white men go on a terrorist killing spree, i.e. every other day in America, cops don't kill them, nor people start attacking their religion and white apologists start with the "mental illness" crap. So, please, save your comment.

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ikr. it's annoying how whenever something like this happens people already talking the bigots and ~stay safe all my X friends without even talking about the event itself/terrorism/mass shooting or the actual victims

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you're an islamophobe. log off.

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Yep. I still remember how shaken I was by Columbine. I was 13, already being homeschooled because of violence in my own middle school clear across the country a year earlier, and yet there had never been another news story that hit so close to home for me. (Despite there being a news story about a kid being kidnapped by a family member from my elementary school on a day I'd been there. Somehow that didn't affect me at all.)

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Yeah I was just thinking about this earlier. When my friend at school told me about this today after class, the first thing I said was "oh, really?" As if he had just told me a dog ran by outside or something. I was really taken aback, like how the fuck can I be so blase about this?? It's sickening and really sad that I guess I've been conditioned to expect to hear about shit like this happening.

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My friend goes to school there but she was thankfully unharmed. She told me he was wielding a machete out in the halls and attacking people with it jfc

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So apparently he used a knife and was a legal citizen, all which will go over a lot of people's heads

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I think he was a permanent resident, not a citizen but yeah he was a student there and he used a knife which is why everyone that was attacked is expected to survive but obviously all the NRA assholes will ignore that.

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ah, my bad. if my reading comprehension in an article is not great you can be sure most others are a lot worse

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People on social media are harping on about how OSU is a gun-free zone and still a mass attack happened. like they're conveniently overlooking the fact that if the attacker had a gun, there would have been atleast a couple of casualties.

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i didn't think it was a shooting? he hit people with cars and then stabbed them, i believe?

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I think the story is that a fire alarm was purposefully pulled, sending people outside. He drove his car through the crowd of people before hitting something, then got out of his car and started stabbing people. Shortly thereafter an OSU police officer shot him. I'm pretty sure there were no fatalities (except the assailant), just injuries.



Edited at 2016-11-28 10:10 pm (UTC)

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It wasn't a shooting. He was apparently attacking people with a knife.

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and hitting people with his car.

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Royal Dutch Shell is considering exiting its positions in Iraqi oil fields, according to industry sources cited by Reuters.

Shell, which declined to comment, is the worlds top liquefied natural gas producer, and is only exiting its oil field assets in Iraq, not its gas field assets. Iraq accounted for 4.4 percent of Shells total oil and gas production in 2015.

The fields in question are the Majnoon field, in which Shell holds a 45 percent interest, and the West Qurna field. Majnoon produces an average of 200,000 barrels per day, according to Shells website.

Industry sources say that Shell has reaped limited financial benefits after being in Iraq for more than a century, because it has limited control over the production strategy, but its likely that Shell is focused on exiting its Iraq position as part of a larger divestment strategy on a global scale.

Just a week ago, Shell announced that it was considering a partial divestment of its $3 billion Norway business---a belt tightening measure aimed at reducing its debt load after its massive $54 billion BG Group acquisition. Shareholders are apparently pressing the oil major to speed up its colossal $30 billion divestment plan, which was supposed to wrap up by 2018, with $6-$8 billion expected to be cut in 2016.

Other North Sea assets were also on Shells chopping block recently, with Shell taking bids last month for its Buzzard field, valued at $2.2 billionan asset it acquired during its purchase of BG Group.

Between January 2015 and May 2016, Shell has laid off over 12,000 employees, in part due to its merger with BG group, and in part due to the lower oil price environment. At the end of 2015, Shell employed 90,000 people worldwide.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
We have a week which starts with cartel controversy, and concludes with Nonfarm Friday. Somewhere inbetwixt, we get the small matter of an OPEC meeting in Vienna. With that in mind, hark, here are five things to consider in oil markets today.

1) Back at the end of September, in the aftermath of the meeting in Algiers, we said here: 'two scenarios seem likely from Novembers meeting at this point: the cartel is going to fall back into old habits, and Saudi is going to have to do the heavy lifting for a cut. Or a constructive path forward is beyond reach, and the cartel dissolves into chaos once again'. Two days to go, and these two scenarios still appear in the balance.

2) In a signal that the situation is dissolving into chaos, the Algerian and Venezuelan oil ministers are on their way to Moscow to push for non-OPEC involvement, after the cancellation of a meeting today between OPEC and non-OPEC members.

The meeting was canceled after Saudi pulled out of the talks, apparently because it wants an OPEC deal in place before engaging with non-OPEC producers. Azerbaijan's Minister for Industry and Energy says OPEC wants non-OPEC producers to cut output by as much as 880,000 bpd. The chart below highlights key non-OPEC producers who are likely to be leaned on for their cooperation.

(Click to enlarge)



3) While the OPEC heavyweights of Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran slug it out to see who cuts production and who doesn't, spare a thought for the smaller members of OPEC. Gabon's oil export revenues are based on a volume of 200,000 bpd, while Indonesia's oil exports are only a little bit higher at ~230,000 bpd.

Combined with Ecuador, the three OPEC members have exported an average of ~850,000 bpd this year. To put this in context, Saudi Arabia exports eight times this volume.

(Click to enlarge)



4) The chart below presents a different angle on the whole Saudi vs. Iran dispute. While Iran is targeting a production freeze around current levels (3.69 million bpd according to secondary sources, 3.92mn bpd based on direct communication), the chart below highlights (from OPEC secondary sources via Bloomberg) how Saudi production is in fact up over 2 million barrels per day since the start of 2011, while Iranian output is flat over the same period. In this context, Iran's request to keep production the same seems fairly reasonable. Related: The Economy Needs Higher Oil Prices  Goldman Sachs

(Click to enlarge)



5) Finally, the chart below is pilfered from this CNBC article on OPEC - driven by our ClipperData. It highlights the growing prominence of Iranian oil into India this year. This is due to a combination of factors: not only because Iranian production is rebounding after the lifting of sanctions, but also because of rising demand from India. Exports from the three countries below now account for nearly a half of all Indian crude imports.

(Click to enlarge)



By Matt Smith

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Goldman Sachs is known to make outlandish calls on crude oil. First came a forecast of $200 a barrel back in March 2008, which fell flat on its face within months. The second was a call of $20 a barrel made in September 2015: To be fair, though crude did not actually make it to this catastrophic low, it did come down to $27 a barrel. It was close.

Now, in a recent report, analysts including Damien Courvalin at Goldman have turned tactically bullish, forecasting $55 a barrel for the first half of 2017, up from their earlier forecast of a range-bound market between $45 and $50 a barrel for that period.

However, they have not upgraded their annual average of $52.5 a barrel for next year. While the first halfs forecast for 2017 has been upgraded, the forecast for the second half of next year has been downgraded from $55-$60 a barrel to $50 a barrel, as the bank expects OPEC to resume production and U.S. shale oil supply to increase.

(Click to enlarge)



Even without the OPEC production cut, Goldman sees the second half of next year tip over to a deficit. Hence, the bank believes that a production cut by OPEC will not hurt them for more than six months, as they can return to their normal production by the second half of next year.

With greater confidence that the global oil market can finally shift into deficit later next year, we now believe that there is a strong rationale for low-cost producers to deliver a swift production cut to normalize inventories, the analysts said, as cited by Bloomberg.

Lets examine the possibility of a deal on November 30 and the likely effect on oil prices.

The future of oil prices, at least in the short-term, hinges on the OPEC meeting in Algiers. Related: The Economy Needs Higher Oil Prices  Goldman Sachs

The initial signs point to an all-out effort by OPEC to secure a deal. Initially, though, both Iran and Iraq had objections to the 4-4.5 percent across-the-board production cut proposed by Algeria for all members, barring Libya and Nigeria. Nevertheless, the cartel has been able to convince Iraq to go ahead with a cut of some magnitudepotentially the 4 to 4.5 percent cut.

"At the end of the day, we are probably going to get about a million barrels a day of cuts from OPEC and that's going to drive the market into deficit," Bart Melek, the head of commodity strategy at TD Securities in Toronto. ''We are seeing communications from Iraq that they would be happy to participate," reports The Business Times.

That only leaves Iran, which is still not on board with the formula.

On the production front, Iran has reached 4 million barrels a day. Previously, Iran had said it would come to the table for talks only after reaching its pre-sanction level of production.

However, the new President-elect in the U.S. had promised to tear up the nuclear agreement with Iran during his campaign. And while the Iranians are not acknowledging the threat to the deal, the uncertainty is palpable.

"There's just no way the Iranians are going to agree to this," Again Capital's John Kilduff told CNBC. "I think they see a horizon, potentially, where their oil production and exports get disrupted again by the new Trump administration  so why would they agree to any sort of cut at all right now?" Related: Obamas Last Regulations To Impact Oil, Gas And Mining

Among the non-OPEC nations, Russia has agreed to freeze production, but is not willing to cut production. Russia is attempting to convince OPEC that even a freeze by Russia is equivalent to a production cut, because Russia had planned to increase production in 2017.

While theres actually nothing new from Russia today, Moscow is changing its rhetoric to show its commitment to a deal, said Alexander Kornilov, an analyst at Aton LLC in Moscow. The new wording shows Russia is trying to convince OPEC partners, reports Bloomberg.

OPEC will announce a deal (or no deal) at the end of the meeting on November 30, which should give a small pop to oil prices if favorable. The markets, however, will be keen to look at the numbers in the subsequent months to analyze whether the OPEC members and Russia adhere to their production quotas or whether there is blatant cheating.

Though a pop above $52 a barrel in WTI is not inconceivable, sustenance and a huge rally is unlikely, regardless of a cut.

By Rakesh Upadhyay for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
A fresh explosion at a pipeline operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company has confused locals and security forces, with no one certain it was a militant attack. In fact, according to security force sources quoted by Nigerian media, the burst was a result of a fault in the pipeline.

Even so, an investigation is being conducted by the Joint Task Force, which was deployed in the Delta when the militant attacks began. A spokesman for the JTF said the explosion was not a deliberate attack. To further confuse matters, however, a spokesman for a local community, the chairman of the Ughelli South council, told media that the security forces are pursuing the perpetrators of the deed.

Media note that the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, one militant group that has been getting increasingly active, operates in the Delta state where the explosion occurred.

At the start of this month, the NDGJM claimed responsibility for another bombing in the Delta state of the Effurun-Otor pipeline, which was also operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company. That attack came shortly after federal president Buhari said that the central government would invest US$10 billion on infrastructure projects in the Niger Delta as part of the effort to end the violence there.



Related: Japan Is Aggressively Buying Up Oil And Gas Around The World

The NDGJM came into the spotlight in September, with a bombing of another NPDC pipeline, again in the Delta state. In August, the Niger Delta Avengers, the most prominent militant organization in the Delta, agreed to a truce with the government, but later broke it, resuming attacks and claiming the presence of military forces in the Niger Delta were the reason for the renewed violence.

Given their focus on the Delta state and infrastructure operated by the NPDC, the NDGJM is the most likely group behind the latest explosion, provided the investigation confirms it was the result of deliberate actions.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
There's a threat to the future of Democracy, which I believe is highly dependent upon alternative media casting light on truth and challenging the Top Down establishment's lies, distortions, false claims and omissions.

That threat is manifesting as a fake news perpetrated by the mainstream media, which claim to be fighting fake news and propaganda.

OpEdNEws has been listed, by an anonymous website, registered using a proxy registrar to maintain anonymity, among 200 sites they claim are Russian propaganda sites.

That would not be significant if the Washington Post had not featured a headline article citing this anonymous website, propornot.com. I consider this pathological journalistic malpractice. It's really worse than that. This latest salvo by the mainstream media appears to be an attack against alternative media, an effort to kill alternative news voices.

OpEdNews is not alone. Many progressive, left of liberal sites are being listed, such as counterpunch, wikileaks, nakedcapitalism, thiscantbehappening, PaulCraigRoberts, antiwar, BaltimoreGazette, blackagendareport, consortiumnews, globalresearch, truth-out, truthdig, whatreallyhappened

And libertarian/conservative websites are also listed: Drudgereport, prison planet ronpaulinstitute.

An Observer article, Clinton Distraction Circus Hits Panic Mode Over Russia And 'Fake News', suggests this is a ploy of Hillary Clinton's pathetic campaign team, saying,

" Panic over "Fake news" is being manufactured by Clinton partisans as another attempt by mainstream media outlets to avoid accountability and responsibility in elevatingDonald Trump, and improving their coverage to better reflect the issues Americans actually care about."

"A part of this "fake news" narrative as merged with the Russian propaganda narrative. The Washington Postpublished an article on November 25 in which they interviewed the Executive Director of a new website, PropOrNot, who claimed, without any supporting evidence or describing their methodology, that the Russian Government circulated pro-Trump articles before the election. The blacklist the site has come up with include progressive outlets Counter Punch, Truth-Out (which Clinton Campaign Chair John Podesta received newsletters through his email from), Truth-Dig, and others, alleging the journalists at these publications committed treason. Based on these publications making the list, PropOrNot's criteria for Russian propaganda includes any dissent to corporate mainstream media.

"We strongly suspect that some of the individuals involved have violated the Espionage Act, the Foreign Agent Registration Act, and other related laws, but determining that is up to the FBI and the DOJ," notes the PropOrNot website. InfoWars and other conservative media outlets were cited as well. Though these sites often publish inaccurate stories, the mainstream media does as well (the Washington Post published an allegation that Russia poisoned Hillary Clinton so she collapsed on 9/11), and these sites are based in the United States, funded U.S. sources, and many of them pre--date Putin.

As a Clinton Campaign strategy, blaming Russia didn't work in the general election, but now these same Clinton propagandists are pushing anti-Russia narratives as a smokescreen to push false narratives, without having to provide actual evidence to substantiate their claims. The enigma of Russia provides a convenient source for these conclusions."

There are questions about who's behind this new McCarthyist red-baiting 2.0 combined with the narrative that's evolving on fake news.

I believe this is extremely dangerous to alternative media, to journalists, journalism and democracy.

Google has announced it will de-monetize ad revenues for websites that are accused of providing fake news. Facebook is also involved in "dealing" with "fake news sites." That is a huge threat to all alternative media. Who decides who or which site is a fake news or propaganda site? According to the Washington Post, some anonymous site which does not define the criteria it uses is who. This is dangerous.

The WaPo and the NYTimes, even NPR are going after fake news sites like McCarthy went after people they accused of being communist sympathizers. Now WaPo is going after websites that criticize the US government's policies on Russia. The First Amendment is under greater threat than perhaps any time since the early colonial days when people were charged with sedition.

These are dangerous times in so many ways. We really don't know if these efforts are originating with sleaze ball Clinton campaign people, as the Observer article suggests, or whether this is a strategy by neocons and neoliberals to silence alternative media on moth ideological sides which question the establishment's narrative.

Or/and this could be a strategy by the MSM to get rid of their competition, the Bottom Up alternative media that more and more of the people are believing instead of the Top Down sources. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have both mistreated the mainstream press. Imagine if the messaging onslaught the mainstream media is echoing-- that the Russians and the fake news purveyors corrupted the election-- actually works. If they take down all the sites on the propornot list, they will have silenced many of the major voices questioning the story the mainstream media has been supporting. That silencing will make it much easier for Trump, for the neoliberal, failed Democratic leadership to sell their story and their narrative.

I don't have an answer on what to do about this. Maybe you do. That's part of makes the Bottom Up alternative media so essential to the future of Democracy. YOU get a voice in the conversation.
"I don't understand why Fidel doesn't allow free elections in Cuba. After all, he'd win hands down every time."

I remember how astonished I was when the young spokesperson at the U.S. I ntersection in Havana pronounced those words about 20 years ago. But I had heard her correctly. Despite being a U.S. diplomat, she was admitting that Fidel Castro was extremely popular with Cubans. Her concession contradicted the official U.S. position repeated incessantly since 1959 -- and regurgitated mindlessly by U.S. commentators last weekend on the announcement of the comandante's passing.

The young diplomat's recognition of Fidel's popularity was confirmed for me again and again as I visited Cuba repeatedly since 1997. That was the year of my first trip there with the Greater Cincinnati Council of World Affairs. Two years later, I and a colleague led a group of Berea College students to the island for a month-long January Short Term study of the African Diaspora in Cuba. Subsequently, while teaching in a Latin American Studies program sponsored by the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities, I visited the island perhaps eight times as the term-abroad program for U.S. students brought them there each fall and spring. Then three years ago, I returned to Cuba to teach a Berea College summer term there. I'll return with a similar program next May.

All that experience has given me a love for Cuba and Cubans -- and a deep appreciation for the Fidel Castro as one of the most important political figures of the 20th century. Few (outside the United States) would disagree with that evaluation.

But there's another dimension of Fidel's person that strikes me as important in these days of widespread religious fundamentalism. As a theologian, I have come to see him as the era's most theologically sensitive political leader. (My evaluation includes people like Jimmy Carter. Of the two, Fidel was far better informed.) As such he calls friends of revolution everywhere to take theology seriously as an instrument of human liberation from narrow Christian supremacist understandings of faith.

That particular observation is based on a close reading of Dominican Friar, Frei Betto's book Fidel and Religion (F&R) published in 1987. The volume was a product of interviews between Betto and Fidel carried on over a period of 23 hours in the 1980s. On its publication, F&R sold more copies in Cuba than any previous publication.

In Betto's work, Fidel highlights the convergence of communism and Christian doctrine. He also expresses his appreciation of liberation theology, and explains the superiority of Cuban democracy to that practiced in the United States. His observations give the lie to our young diplomat's claim that Cuba lacks free and democratic elections.

Fidel on Communism & Christianity

Read for yourself what the comandante says about coincidences between communism and Christianity. (All page references are to Frei Betto's F&R. New York: Simon and Schuster, Inc. 1987).

"There are 10,000 times more coincidences between Christianity and communism than between Christianity and capitalism" (33).

"I believe that Karl Marx could have subscribed to the Sermon on the Mount" (271).

". . . (F)rom the political point of view, religion is not, in itself, an opiate or a miraculous remedy. It may become an opiate or a wonderful cure if it is used or applied to defend oppressors and exploiters or the oppressed and the exploited, depending on the approach adopted toward the political, social or material problems of the human beings who, aside from theology or religious belief, are born and must live in this world" (276).

". . . (I)f (the Catholic bishops) organized a state in accord with Christian precepts, they'd create one similar to ours. . . All those things we've fought against, all those problems we've solved, are the same ones the Church would try to solve if it were to organize a civil state in keeping with its Christian precepts" (225).

(Referring to Catholic nuns) "The things they do are the things we want Communists to do. When they take care of people with leprosy, tuberculosis and other communicable diseases, they are doing what we want Communists to do. . . In fact, I've said it quite publicly. . . that the nuns were model Communists. . . I think they have all the qualities we'd like our Party members to have" (227-8).

Fidel on Liberation Theology

"I now have almost all of Boff's and Gutierrez's works" (214).

"I could define the Liberation Church, or Liberation Theology, as Christianity's going back to its roots, its most beautiful, attractive, heroic and glorious history." (245)

"It's so important that it forces all of the Latin American left to take notice of it as one of the most important events of our time" (245).

"We can describe it as such because it can deprive the exploiters, the conquerors, the oppressors, the interventionists, the plunderers of our peoples, and those who keep us in ignorance, illness, and poverty of the most important tool they have for confusing, deceiving and alienating the masses and continuing to exploit them" (245).

"He who betrays the poor betrays Christ" (274).

Fidel on Cuban Democracy

(Referring to the U.S. system) "I think that all that alleged democracy is nothing but a fraud, and I mean this literally" (289).

"It cannot be said of the so highly praised Western governments that they are generally backed by the majority of the people. . . Let's take Reagan, for example. In his first election, only about fifty percent of the voters cast their votes. There were three candidates, and with the votes of less than 30 percent of the total number of U.S. voters, Reagan won the election. Half the people didn't even vote. They don't believe in it" (289).

"An election every four years! The people who elected Reagan . . . had no other say in U.S. policy . . . He could cause a world war without consulting with the people who voted for him, just by making one-man decisions" (290).

"In this country . . . the delegates who are elected at the grass-roots level are practically slaves of the people, because they have to work long, hard hours without receiving any pay except the wages they get from their regular jobs" (290).

"Every six months they have to report back to their voters on what they've done during that period. Any official in the country may be removed from office at any time by the people who elected him" (291).

"All this implies having the backing of most of the people. If the Revolution didn't have the support of most of the people, revolutionary power couldn't endure" (291).

"In other words, I believe -- I'm being perfectly frank with you -- that our system is a thousand times more democratic than the capitalist, imperialist system of the developed capitalist countries. . . really much fairer . . ." (292).

"I'm sorry if I've offended anybody, but you force me to speak clearly and sincerely" (292).

Conclusion

But what about Fidel's nearly 50-year reign as President of Cuba? And what about the puzzle of my diplomat-friend? If he's so popular, why didn't Castro run for president the way U.S. candidates do?

I asked my friend Dr. Cliff Durand about that when he recently visited our home. Cliff is emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Morgan State University, and the founder of the Center for Global Justice in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. He has been leading trips to Cuba every year for the last twenty years, and holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Havana. He's the most informed USian I know about things Cuban.

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From RT



Fidel Castro

(Image by barbarapijan.com) Details DMCA



Fidel Castro dedicated his life to resisting empire and the ocean of injustice and oppression inflicted in its name. His death marks the end of the man, and the birth of a legend that will endure for centuries to come.

Such is the legacy that Fidel leaves behind; it is impossible to fully comprehend the sheer magnitude of the role he played in breaking the chains of millions across the Third World, both literally and figuratively, in defiance of the racist conceit of apologists for imperialism. From leading a revolution in 1959 that succeeded against the odds in toppling the pro-Washington dictator, Fulgencio Batista, he went on to not only make history but mold and shape it thereafter.

When at 30 he first came to world prominence as leader of the Cuban Revolution, rolling into Havana on a captured tank under a blazing Caribbean sun, the long beards, hair, and anarchic energy and courage that he and his comrades carried cemented their place as harbingers of a new chapter in the development of the much maligned Global South. With daring, courage, and belief, they proved it was possible to break the chains of exploitation, injustice, and degradation that had scarred the lives of so many generations before them, forging in their place a future of justice, human solidarity, and dignity.

In 1959, Dwight D. Eisenhower was sitting in the White House and Barack Obama's birth still lay two years ahead. Ten US presidents and many assassination attempts could not defeat Fidel Castro -- this over the course of a life during which he remained a man of unflinching principle and indomitable will in his commitment to the ideals that drove him and his comrades to emancipate the Cuban people from the economic and geopolitical clutches of Washington.

Evidence that the flame of defiance and revolution never went out despite his advancing years was provided by the rebuke he delivered to Obama in response to his address to the Cuban leadership and people during his state visit to the island earlier this year. Fidel's reply to the President's patronizing lecture on democracy and human rights came by way of a 1,500-word letter in the country's official newspaper, the 'Granma.' In it, he reminded the Cuban people, Obama, and the world at large of the history of mendacity that had informed not only Washington's relations with Cuba, but also Africa, where Obama traces his own ancestral origins.

As Castro wrote: "Nobody should be under the illusion that the people of this dignified and selfless country will renounce the glory, the rights, or the spiritual wealth they have gained with the development of education, science and culture." He went on, "I also warn that we are capable of producing the food and material riches we need with the efforts and intelligence of our people. We do not need the empire to give us anything."

Even towards the end of his life, he was under no illusions when it came to rapprochement with Washington. How could he after his long experience of its role in trampling the rights, lives, and dignity of millions of human beings, the vast majority of them people of color, across the world? How could he retreat for a moment from his unwavering stance against imperialism and the slavery it had inflicted on its victims?

The magnitude of the shadow that Fidel cast over global events for half a century is testament to the fierce attachment to internationalism that underpinned his worldview. No greater tribute was there to that internationalism than Cuba's role in defeating apartheid in South Africa. Though conveniently omitted from the official history of the anti-apartheid struggle that predominates in the West, the truth of Fidel Castro and Cuba's indispensable role cannot be denied. Indeed, none other than Nelson Mandela went to his grave saluting it.

As Mandela said when he visited the island in 1991, just a few weeks after being released from captivity on Robben Island: "The Cuban people hold a special place in the hearts of the people of Africa. The Cuban internationalists have made a contribution to African independence, freedom, and justice unparalleled for its principled and selfless character."

The deployment of thousands of Cuban troops to Angola in the 1970s and 80s, their success in breaking the myth of white supremacy in confronting and defeating US and Western supported apartheid South African troops, stands as one of the most powerful examples of international solidarity the world has witnessed.

In truth, there are so many examples of Fidel's unwavering stance in solidarity with the oppressed against their oppressors that it would take an entire book to list them all. Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba, Nelson Mandela, Malcolm X, Che Guevara, Camilo Cienfuegos, Bobby Sands, Ben Bella -- the roll call of legendary revolutionaries and freedom fighters who have come and gone in Fidel's lifetime marks by itself a tribute to his legacy, and the tempestuous period he lived through.

Yet, perhaps the most important aspect of Fidel's legacy is the way he transformed the lives of millions of Cubans in the realms of education, healthcare, and sustainable development, albeit truncated by a decades-long US trade embargo inflicted on the island and its people with the objective of bringing it to its knees. However, even through the "special period" of the 1990s, when after the demise of the Soviet Union, Cuba stood alone as a socialist country and society in a sea of global capitalism, the revolution survived.

That it did was testament to the society it had produced, one in which its people understand the difference between sharing what you have left over, and sharing what you have.

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Duluth, Minnesota (OpEdNews) November 27, 2016: A consortium of news-media outlets that includes ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox, NBC, and the Associated Press pays a company to conduct exit polls. The company is Edison Research. Larry Rosin, a graduate of Princeton University and the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, is the company's co-founder and president.

After the election Rosin published a remarkable piece at Edison Research's blog titled "The hidden group that won the election for Trump: Exit poll analysis from Edison Research" (dated November 15, 2016).

http://www.edisonresearch.com/category/election-polling/

Rosin says, "While most voters did have a favorable view of one of the two major candidates, an astonishing 18% of the electorate told us they had an unfavorable opinion of Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. And this is the group that won the election for Trump."

Rosin notes that "had those [voters] with a negative view of both candidates split evenly, Clinton would have won rather easily. However, . . . this 'Neithers' group broke strongly to Trump 49% to 29%."

According to Rosin, the "Neithers" group pushed Trump over Hillary in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Florida, and North Carolina, providing him with his margin of victory in the battleground states.

As you may have surmised by now, Rosin says, "The 'Neithers' are more likely to be men (61%)" and white (78%).

But the exit polls also revealed something else about the "Neithers" group. Rosin says, "One of the most intriguing aspects of the "Neithers" is that a significant portion of those who were unfavorable to both Clinton and Trump were favorable to President Obama. Nearly half of those who didn't like either of this year's two major candidates do have a favorable view of President Obama -- and a significant portion of this group voted for Trump."

Unfortunately, the exit poll responses do not tell us how the "Neithers" voted in the 2012 presidential election.

Disclosure: No, I was not interviewed in an exit poll. But I had and still have unfavorable views of both Hillary and Trump, and a favorable view of President Obama. However, in my case, I viewed Hillary as the lesser of two evils, and so I voted for her.

Evidently, the "Neithers" did not like either Hillary or Trump much, but they tended to view Trump as the lesser of two evils.

Of course President Trump may shortly disabuse them of that impression.

However, because the "Neithers" didn't like him much, they may not be unhappy to be disabused of that impression about him.

In the meantime, we should note that Rosin's careful analysis of the exit-poll interviews has not received much attention from the news-media outlets who pooled their money to pay his company to conduct the exit interviews.

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From Robert Reich Blog

Democracy depends on a free and independent press, which is why all tyrants try to squelch it. They use seven techniques that, worryingly, President-elect Donald Trump already employs.

1. Berate the media. Last week, Trump summoned two-dozen TV news anchors and executives to the 25th floor of Trump Tower to berate them for their reporting about him during the election. For 20 minutes he railed at what he called their "outrageous" and "dishonest" coverage. According to an attendee, "Trump kept saying, 'we're in a room of liars, the deceitful dishonest media who got it all wrong,'" and he called CNN a "network of liars." He accused NBC of using unflattering pictures of him, demanding to know why they didn't use "nicer" pictures.

Another person who attended the meeting said Trump "truly doesn't seem to understand the First Amendment. He thinks we are supposed to say what he says and that's it."

2. Blacklist critical media. During the campaign, Trump blacklisted news outlets whose coverage he didn't approve of. In June he pulled The Washington Post's credentials. "Based on the incredibly inaccurate coverage and reporting of the record setting Trump campaign, we are hereby revoking the press credentials of the phony and dishonest Washington Post," read a post on Trump's Facebook page.

After the election Trump agreed to meet with the New York Times and then suddenly cancelled the meeting when he didn't like the terms, tweeting "Perhaps a new meeting will be set up with the @nytimes. In the meantime they continue to cover me inaccurately and with a nasty tone!" (He then reversed himself again and met with the Times.)

3. Turn the public against the media. Trump refers to journalists as "lying," "dishonest," "disgusting" and "scum." Referring to the journalists at his rallies, Trump said, "I hate some of these people," adding (presumably in response to allegations of Vladimir Putin's treatment of dissident journalists) "but I'd never kill 'em."

He questions the press's motives, claiming, for example, that The Washington Post wrote negative things about him because its publisher, Jeffrey Bezos, a founder of Amazon, "thinks I would go after him for antitrust." When the New York Times wrote that his transition team was in disarray, Trump tweeted that the newspaper was "just upset that they looked like fools in their coverage of me" during the presidential campaign.

4. Condemn satirical or critical comments. Trump continues to condemn the coverage he's received from NBC's "Saturday Night Live." In response to Alex Baldwin's recent portrayal of him as overwhelmed by the prospect of being president, Trump tweeted that it was a "totally one-sided, biased show -- nothing funny at all. Equal time for us?"

When Brandon Victor Dixon, the actor who plays Aaron Burr in the Broadway musical "Hamilton," read from the stage a message to Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who was in the audience -- expressing fears about the pending Trump administration for the "diverse group of men and women of different colors, creeds and orientations" on the cast -- Trump responded angrily. He tweeted that Pence had been "harassed," and insisted that the cast and producers of the show, "which I hear is highly overrated," apologize.

5. Threaten the media directly. Trump said he plans to change libel laws in the United States so that he can have an easier time suing news organizations. "One of the things I'm going to do if I win ... I'm going to open up our libel laws so when they write purposely negative and horrible and false articles, we can sue them and win lots of money."

During the campaign, Trump specifically threatened to sue the Times for libel in response to an article that featured two women accusing him of touching them inappropriately years ago. Trump claimed the allegations were false, and his lawyer demanded that the newspaper retract the story and issue an apology. Trump also threatened legal action after the Times published and wrote about part of his 1995 tax return.

6. Limit media access. Trump hasn't had a news conference since July. He has blocked the media from traveling with him, or even knowing whom he's meeting with. His phone call with Vladimir Putin, which occurred shortly after the election, was first reported by the Kremlin.

This is highly unusual. In 2000, President-elect George W. Bush called a press conference three days after the Supreme Court determined the outcome of the election. In 2008, President-elect Obama also meet with the press three days after being elected.

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No immediate shift in military policy under the new army chief: Khawaja Asif

ISLAMABAD: There will be no immediate shift in Pakistans military policy under the new army chief, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Sunday.



Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa will replace Chief of Army Staff Raheel Sharif when his three-year term ends on Tuesday, a rare example of a smooth transition in a nation where army chiefs have a history of clinging to power.



General Raheel has proved popular with ordinary Pakistanis but during his tenure relations between the army and the Nawaz-led government have often been tense.



Relations abroad have also frayed, with the United States and Afghanistan complaining of a lack of action by Islamabad against Afghan Taliban, while a stand-off with old foe India over Kashmir has soured relations.



Bajwa was one of several high-ranking candidates put forward for the job by the army but little is publicly known about him or his ideological stance on key issues, including relations with India or how to tackle foreign-funded terrorists.



Asif dampened any expectations that Bajwa would immediately push for a radical policy shift. The military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it, Asif told the governments all-time favourite TV channel. The legacy of General Raheel Sharif would continue in the light of the examples he set, Asif added.



Security in Pakistan has vastly improved during General Raheels tenure, but the country remains vulnerable to external strife, with terrorist groups holed up in Afghanistan carrying out major bomb and gun attacks. In recent months a hospital, a mosque and a police training college have been targeted.



The United States on Sunday issued a statement welcoming Bajwas appointment and said it wanted to assist Pakistan with its domestic and regional counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism efforts.



In a statement, the US embassy in Islamabad also said it wanted to help Pakistani authorities to honor their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistans soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbors.



India has tried its best to isolate Pakistan after an Indian Army base in Indian-held Kashmir came under attack in September in which 18 soldiers were killed. New Delhi pointed fingers squarely at Pakistan as usual.



General Raheel will become the first army chief in more than 20 years to step down at the end of his term. Previous army chiefs have either obtained extensions or in the case of General Pervez Musharraf, staged a coup.



A minister said General Bajwa was chosen because of his low-key approach and a belief by Nawaz Sharif that he would shun the limelight, in contrast to his predecessor, while ceding more policy space to the government.



With inefficient governments in power, the army always gets a chance to play a big role in politics, including dominating foreign policy strategy on key areas such as relations with India, Afghanistan and the United States.



Zahid Hussain, a security analyst, said that heightened tensions with India, kept inflamed by fierce cross-border shelling in Kashmir, means in the short term the army was likely to maintain a tight grip on foreign policy issues related to India.



Since the tension is so high, Nawaz (Sharif) is not in a position to maneuver out of that, Hussain said.



Bajwa, who was first commissioned in the army in 1980, has served in Kashmir and other regions bordering India but it is not clear if he will take a less hawkish approach to Pakistans historic foe.



General Bikram Singh, a former head of Indias army who served with Bajwa in the Congo as part of a United Nations peacekeeping force, praised Bajwas conduct as a soldier during their time in Africa.



In the international environment, his performance was professional, outstanding, Singh told India Today TV channel.
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The mathematical (and other) thoughts of a (now retired) math teacher,
AIMS logo. Credit: University of Birmingham

(Phys.org)A team of European astronomers led by Benard Nsamba of the University of Porto in Portugal has developed a new tool for asteroseismic modeling of stars capable of deriving fundamental stellar parameters. The Asteroseismic Inference on a Massive Scale (AIMS) tool allowed them to obtain essential information about both components in the nearby binary HD 176465. The results were published Nov. 17 on the arXiv preprint server.

AIMS is an asteroseismic modeling tool developed to estimate stellar parameters and credible error bars. It is a state-of-the-art instrument based on a grid of evolutionary models generated using another tool called Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA).

AIMS, like other asteroseismic inference tools, matches model parameters to observed individual oscillation frequencies or ratios of characteristic frequency separations and spectroscopic parameters such as effective temperature and metallicity. It uses a Bayesian approach to find the probability distribution functions of stellar parameters.

"With a set of models, theoretical frequencies for each model, classical and seismic constraints, AIMS [quite easily] derive[s] stellar parameters. This is done through comparing models with observables in order to obtain the best matching model," Nsamba told Phys.org.

To check capabilities of AIMS, Nsamba and his team decided to conduct an independent modeling of each star in the binary system HD 176465. It is one of a few binary systems with solar-like oscillations detected separately in both components. These oscillations play critical role for understanding stellar structure and evolution.

AIMS allowed the researchers to obtain precise fundamental stellar parameters of HD 176465, including mass, radius and age of both stars.

According to the paper, HD 176465 A is slightly smaller than the sun with a mass of about 0.94 solar masses and a radius of 0.92 solar radii. Its derived age is 2.8 billion years. HD 176465 B was found to be 2.5 billion years old with a mass of 0.92 solar masses and a radius of approximately 0.88 solar radii.

The results show that HD 176465 B is some 500 million years younger than previously thought, while other parameters of both of the stars are in accordance with earlier measurements carried out using different tools, including MESA.

"These results are in agreement when compared to previous studies carried out using other asteroseismic modelling techniques and gyrochronology," the paper reads.

Moreover, the scientists also found that metal abundances of both HD 176465 components are similar. They assume that both stars were formed from the same molecular cloud with approximately the same chemical composition.

"In addition, assuming the binary was formed from the same molecular cloud, we were able to show that the binary has the same heavy element abundance and same age within. This was achieved through independent modeling of each of the components without putting any prior constraints on the age of the system," Nsamba noted.

The team hopes that future space missions such as NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and ESA's PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars (PLATO) might provide more precise asteroseismic data for similar binary systems. That could significantly improve our knowledge about stellar evolution and asteroseismology.

More information: Asteroseismic modelling of the Binary HD 176465, arXiv:1611.05698 [astro-ph.SR] arxiv.org/abs/1611.05698 Abstract

The detection and analysis of oscillations in binary star systems is critical in understanding stellar structure and evolution. This is partly because such systems have the same initial chemical composition and age. Solar-like oscillations have been detected by Kepler in both components of the asteroseismic binary HD 176465. We present an independent modelling of each star in this binary system. Stellar models generated using MESA (Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics) were fitted to both the observed individual frequencies and complementary spectroscopic parameters. The individual theoretical oscillation frequencies for the corresponding stellar models were obtained using GYRE as the pulsation code. A Bayesian approach was applied to find the probability distribution functions of the stellar parameters using AIMS (Asteroseismic Inference on a Massive Scale) as the optimisation code. The ages of HD 176465 A and HD 176465 B were found to be 2.81  0.48 Gyr and 2.52  0.80 Gyr, respectively. These results are in agreement when compared to previous studies carried out using other asteroseismic modelling techniques and gyrochronology.

 2016 Phys.org
The magnetic field lines that confine a high-temperature plasma and the liquid metal shower divertors, as seen from above through a cross-section. Credit: Dr. Junichi Miyazawa

In a magnetic field confinement fusion reactor, we maintain the high-temperature plasma through the magnetic field lines by floating the plasma apart from a vessel. However, there forms inevitably a location where the plasma hits. In such a place, in order to receive the heat from the plasma a heat absorption device called the divertor is mounted. In current plasma experimental devices, including the Large Helical Device (LHD) at the National Institute for Fusion Science (NIFS), a solid divertor is typically used, where the plasma is guided to a plate or block composed of carbon or tungsten and those plates or blocks are cooled by water. In the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), too, a solid divertor composed of tungsten blocks that will be cooled by water is being adopted.

The solid divertor, because it suffers wear from being struck by high temperature plasmas, requires frequent maintenance. At NIFS, the helical-type fusion reactor, for which design research is being advanced, has the special characteristic of good prospects for steady operation. Conversely, because the structure is three-dimensional and complicated, how divertor maintenance will be undertaken is becoming a difficult technological issue.

In the future fusion reactor, the quantity of heat that the divertor will receive will grow larger, and there is concern that the heat flux will surpass the ITER design value substantially, which is approximately 20 megawatts per one square meter. As a divertor that will bear this extremely high heat flux, methods using liquid metal have been proposed and considered for more than 40 years. The idea has been to receive the high heat flux with the flow of melted lithium, tin, and other liquid metals. If the flow velocity can exceed several meters per second, then the divertor can withstand the fusion plasma's high heat flux. On the other hand, because particles that have been converted into neutral gas from a plasma stop on the divertor, the role of exhausting those gases to the outside is thus demanded. In particular, regarding the helical-type fusion reactor with its complicated structure, there had been no suggestion of the idea of a liquid metal divertor where high heat resistance and evacuation performance are compatible.

The research group of Professor Junichi Miyazawa, Professor Akio Sagara, and others, all of the National Institute for Fusion Science, constructed a new type of liquid metal shower divertor system that evacuates plasma as neutral gases before arriving at the vessel. They aimed a fine jet stream of liquid metal lined up in a shower condition at peripheral areas of the high-temperature plasma. They utilized tin, which is excellent for low vapor pressure and for being inexpensive, and also for safety.

(left) The liquid metal shower functions as a shielding wall for plasma, (right) it is almost transparent for neutralized plasma. Credit: Dr. Junichi Miyazawa

In this new method, they placed the apparatus at intervals in just ten places inside the toroidal confinement device (see Figure 1). In this way, maintenance becomes much easier to perform. Conversely, the area which the plasma may contact decreases, and then the heat load is greatly increased. If we utilize high-speed liquid metal flow, then this will become a countermeasure.

Because high-temperature plasma moves along the magnetic field lines, in placing the liquid metal at a slant, a strong wall is formed through which the plasma cannot pass. (See Figure 2 to the left.) The plasma neutralized on the surface of the liquid metal shower passes through the interstices of the shower toward the rear face, and thus effective evacuation is possible. (See Figure 2 to the right.)

The liquid metal shower can bear an extremely large heat load that exceeds by approximately ten times the value tolerated by the recent ITER divertor. Even with such a high heat load, we have learned that if we use a liquid metal flow of 4 meters per second then the high heat load can be easily blocked. As shown in Figure 3, because there is the important characteristic in which when plasma touches the shower one time, it does not strike the vessel.

In the liquid metal shower divertor, a stable flow over a length of a few meters is necessary. The flow is accelerated by gravity, and when the diameter becomes thin the surface simultaneously becomes unstable, drips fall, and spray is generated. As a device that receives heat, this is not desirable. In order to suppress the speed by the gravity, we inserted an object that would become resistance against the flow inside the liquid. In the internal resistance, we use wire and tape, or a chain. Which is best will vary depending upon the variety of the fluid and the desired flow speed. When there is internal resistance, because the high temperature area and the low temperature area will easily become agitated, we also anticipate the effect which lowers the highest temperature and suppresses the evaporation of the liquid metal.

Credit: Dr. Junichi Miyazawa

In this new procedure, compared to procedures utilized to date which used carbon and other solids, together with heat-resistant performance growing by more than 10 times, it may be anticipated that high evacuation performance will also be achieved. Further, there are no restrictions against device longevity from wear caused by plasma, and device maintenance becomes easy. Because the helical fusion reactor has a complicated three-dimensional structure, it is believed that using liquid metal in the heat-receiving device will be problematic. But according to this research, it has been indicated that this will be possible.

These research results were presented at the 26th International Atomic Energy Agency conference held October 17-22 in Kyoto, Japan.

Regarding the divertor that is expected to bear the extreme high heat load in the fusion reactor, there had not yet been an answer. This research will provide a breakthrough regarding this difficult problem, and will be an important step toward achieving the future fusion reactor.

Regarding this research, we have developed a technology for stabilizing a flow that exceeds several meters. (The patent application is currently under review.) The liquid flow, such as drinking water that flows from taps and fire truck water, is a conventional phenomenon. But in the ways of using liquid flow many possibilities are hidden. In particular, in a stable and long flow of liquid, from the fields of agriculture and chemistry to the fields based on our lives such as the humidifier and interior decorations, there are a wide variety of applications. Even as a topic of academic research, water is captivating. If attention is drawn to the utility of liquid flow by this research, we may anticipate further activities in related research fields.

Provided by National Institutes of Natural Sciences
Credit: TasfotoNL/iStock

Early this year, Rachel Slaybaugh attended a campus mixer on technological innovation. When she introduced herself as a professor of nuclear engineering, other attendees would pause and ask for clarification. She remembers, "People were like, 'Wait. What? You're from where?'"

"I don't know if you've noticed," she would reply, "but the nuclear industry is a little behind in terms of innovation."

The nuclear energy sector is often perceived as a last-century industry. But that is changing. A growing market of venture-backed startups signals that we are on the verge of a nuclear do-over.

Despite a turbulent history, the allure of nuclear energyelectricity production on a massive scale with minimal emissionsremains attractive. Its low emission rate is why the United Nations International Panel on Climate Change recommends doubling the world's nuclear capacity by 2050.

Nuclear energy as an effective strategy to combat climate change, along with the fascinating physics of nuclear fission, is what drew Slaybaugh to the field in the first place. "I keep going back to the numbers for safety and impacts," she says. "Even without considering climate change, just look at the public health impact of air pollution. I just can't come to any answer that isn't nuclear."

Yet the bulk of the 100 nuclear reactors currently operating in the U.S., which continue to produce about 20 percent of the nation's energy, are reaching retirement age, and energy market forces don't always favor nuclear.

In June, California's Pacific Gas and Electric utility announced plans to shutter its long-controversial Diablo Canyon reactor within a decade. The reason cited was not environmental issues or safety concerns, but economic: the aging reactor can't compete price-wise with other energy sources. "It's ironic that as environmental groups switch to pro-nuclear or at least neutral on nuclear, existing nuclear plants are closingnot because of increased public backlash, but because of distortions in the electricity market," Slaybaugh says.

"I'm very pro-renewables, but production tax credits are paid to some resources that don't emit air pollution and not others," she continues. "That doesn't make a lot of sense."

Many realize that for nuclear energy production to have a future, the entire industry needs an overhaulincluding how regulatory structures and energy markets are constructed, as well as how nuclear reactors are designed, financed and built. The need for industry-wide modernization is clear even in highly partisan Washington, D.C., where lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are largely in agreement that the nuclear sectorone of the most heavily regulated industries in the worldneeds to be more accommodating to new ventures.

Likewise, training a new nuclear workforce will also need an overhaul. That's why, with a sense of urgency and favorable political tailwinds, Slaybaugh launched a nuclear innovation bootcamp. Held in August, the two-week bootcamp hosted 25 university students from around the world and encouraged them to envision what "new nuclear" would look like. Slaybaugh collaborated with Third Way, a D.C.-based centrist think tank working on nuclear energy-related issues, along with the Nuclear Innovation Alliance industrial consortium, to develop the curriculum for the two-week course.

Rachel Slaybaugh, assistant professor of nuclear engineering. Credit: Noah Berger

"One of the reasons it makes sense to have this bootcamp at Berkeley," says Todd Allen, a nuclear energy expert and senior visiting fellow at Third Way, "is because there is a culture of innovation. One of the Department of Energy's first incubators, Cyclotron Road, is located at the Berkeley Lab. The Bay Area has all of the pieces that could support something like this."

The atomic age

The golden age of nuclear began immediately following World War II, when the federal government started pouring research and development money into commercial nuclear reactor designs.

In 1951, in a concrete building nestled in the sagebrush scrub plains of eastern Idaho, scientists working at the National Reactor Testing Station (now part of the Idaho National Laboratory) flipped the switch on the first reactor designed to convert heat derived from splitting uranium atoms into electricity. During its first flickers of life, the reactor lit up four 200-watt lightbulbs, kicking off a decade of pioneering research and engineeringfollowed by four decades of controversy and catastrophic technological failures.

By the late 1950s, the first large-scale commercial nuclear reactors came online across the country. In 1960, the Atomic Energy Commission estimated that the nation would be powered by thousands of nuclear reactors by the year 2000.

"Back in the day, the philosophy was that commercial deployment had to be done as quickly as possible," says Per Peterson, nuclear engineering professor and the college's executive associate dean. "We became competent in building and operating water-cooled reactors for submarines. And then we got locked into that one kind of technology."

Despite early developments using other reactor designs and fuel configurations, the industry settled on that single designwater-cooled reactors, also known as light-water reactorsas a universal standard. The time and money involved in the nuclear regulatory permitting process made deviating from the accepted design prohibitively expensive.

Light-water reactors produce electricity by creating steam to spin a turbine. The solid fuel, usually uranium arranged in rods that need replacing roughly every four years, is cooled by pressurized water. An accident at a light-water reactor can release radioactive materials as fine particles. With high pressure steam, these particles can leak from a reactor building, as in the high-profile accidents at Chernobyl and Fukushima.

"The consequence space for severe accidents is pretty substantial with this type of reactor," Peterson says. "Therefore, it took a lot of effort to develop extremely reliable active systems to provide cooling, low leakage and high-pressure containment structures, which make these reactors more expensive. So they were built bigger and bigger to achieve economies of scale."

"In the end, that didn't seem to work too well," he says.

Research team next to the Compact Integral Effects Test facility they built to study models of molten sal effectiveness. From left, James Kendrick, Christopher Poresky, Charalampos Andreades, Per Peterson. Credit: Peg Skorpinski

In 1979, a reactor at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania had a partial meltdown because of valve failure and human operator error, resulting in the evacuation of 140,000 people. Following the accident, anti-nuclear sentiments became a foundation of the country's budding environmental movement, raising questions about the safety of nuclear facilities and what to do with the growing pile of spent nuclear fuel rods.

Over the next 30 years, the vision from nuclear's early daysof thousands of reactors pumping out emissions-free energywas tempered by economics and politics.

A design problem

Despite the grim outlook for growth, Slaybaugh became curious about a career in nuclear engineering as an undergraduate at Penn State in the early 2000s. She was initially interested in physics when she happened to get a work-study assignment at the university's research reactor.

In graduate school at the University of Wisconsin, she began studying the Boltzmann Transport Equation"a single equation that describes where all of the neutrons are in a nuclear system," Slaybaugh explains. "Anything in a nuclear system starts with where all of the neutrons are, so it lets you figure out everything else."

Working with the equation can be challenging, so Slaybaugh developed expertise in creating algorithms and software to solve the equation faster and more efficiently, which ultimately can be applied to designing and modeling new nuclear technologies.

"Truly predictive modeling will end up making it a lot more feasible, affordable and practical to ask questions about what's going to happen in new reactor design scenarios," Slaybaugh says. "I also have this serious concern about best practices and quality: You want to make sure that the codes you are using in nuclear systems work."

"Fundamentally," Slaybaugh says, "I make the tools that other people use to do analysis. So I get really excited about making better hammers so that other people can make better houses." Slaybaugh, recently appointed by the Secretary of Energy to the Nuclear Energy Advisory Committee, also works with the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN), a group organized by the Department of Energy to provide guidance on technical, regulatory and financial issues facing this emerging "advanced nuclear" industry.

Advanced nuclear is the umbrella term used to describe novel research on smaller reactor designs that incorporate alternative nuclear fuels and cooling systems. Some advanced designs reuse existing nuclear waste as fuel; or use fuel that does not require enrichment, which reduces security concerns associated with nuclear energy.

"The big thing is that the government is making national lab resources available to private companies in a way that it wasn't before," Slaybaugh says. "If you are a nuclear startup, you can only go so far before you need to do testing, and you are not going to build a nuclear test facility, because that is hard and expensive. But now you could partner with a national lab to use their experimental resources. I've been talking about how to set up a pathway from universities for this kind of research."

Over the past year, Third Way, a supporter of Slaybaugh's nuclear innovation bootcamp, published a number of reports and white papers defining the advanced nuclear industry. They found 48 projects and startup companies working on advanced nuclear energy technologies, worth over $1.3 billion, all over the U.S. and Canada.

One of those projects is led by Per Peterson's research group at Berkeley. Following his Ph.D. research in mechanical engineering at Berkeley, Peterson began designing passive safety systems for light-water reactors, with an eye toward replacing and greatly simplifying the active safety systems the industry had originally adopted.

"Back in 2002," he says, "the U.S. launched an international effort on advanced nuclear technologies called Generation IV. This got us thinking about what we wanted to see in advanced nuclear technologies, beyond just passive safety."

Those experiences led Peterson to conceptualize entirely new designs. "Now the majority of my research relates to advanced reactors cooled by molten fluoride salts, which have undergone major advances since molten salts were first studied for reactor applications starting in the late 1950s," he says.

Molten-salt reactors are cooled by fluoride salts that liquefy and remain stable at high temperatures. They do not need to be pressurized like light-water reactors do, reducing the probability of large-scale accidents.

"Molten salts are fantastic heat-transfer fluids; they have enormous volumetric heat capacity, which means they are remarkably compact. This puts you in a position to design reactor vessels to have limited service life, to be replaced multiple times during a life of a plant," Peterson says. "As soon as you focus on limited service life, you are in a very different space in terms of innovation and upgrading old components."

Named to the Department of Energy's Blue-Ribbon Commission on America's Nuclear Future in 2010, Peterson also contributes to the national discussion about new nuclear regulatory standards. "Here we are just 10 years after NASA launched its Commercial Orbital Transport Services program to fund startup companies like SpaceX, and massive change has occurred with the idea that private-sector startup companies can be significantly more nimble and still work in areas requiring high levels of technical sophistication."

Drawing inspiration from successes from other heavily regulated industries, Peterson says, is what keeps him optimistic. "There is the potential for rapid innovation to occur, and we can make major changes in nuclear technology. This is what we need to be working on this coming decade."
Women in North Darfur discuss the UNs 1325 resolution during a workshop in 2012 arranged by UNAMID (a joint peace operation between the UN and the African Union). Credit: UNAMID/Flickr

How can gender perspectives be coaxed into a world of male researchers? The gender group at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) did it by knocking on doors and demanding new ways of thinking.

On the global agenda, war and peace was primarily something that pertained to men, at least up until 1995, when the United Nations's fourth women's conference in Beijing addressed the integration of gender equality issues in all aspects of politics and planning. Twelve areas in need of measures were described, one of them being "Women and armed conflict". Women should participate in peace negotiations, was one of the conclusions. Women living in conflict situations are to be protected.

"A seed was sown in Beijing," says Inger Skjelsbk.

The same year as the women's conference took place, she started as a graduate student of psychology at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). The institute was established in 1959 by Ingrid Eide and Mari Holmboe Ruge among others, researchers with strong ties to the women and peace movement. But since then the gender perspectives had disappeared from PRIO, according to Skjelsbk.

The psychology student was interested in how gender is constructed, and wondered:

"Is there a difference between men and women when it comes to war and peace? Are women more peaceful?"

Skjelsbk does not think there are intrinsic differences making women more peaceful than men; she thinks the essential factor is that men and women bring different experiences into e.g. peace processes.

The topic for her thesis became women and experiences of war, and when she had completed her thesis, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted PRIO with a desire to initiate research on gender and conflict. Skjelsbk became a natural part of this work, her first contribution being gender perspectives training within the UN system. And the institute kept following up. Skjelsbk got funding for a PhD on women's experiences after the Balkan wars. She got a lot of support from the leadership at PRIO: a gender perspective on war and conflict was something they wanted to pay attention to. But she was not convinced herself.

"This was so marginal in the late 1990s. Studying this felt a bit like committing academic suicide."

The feeling of loneliness on the field of gender and war/peace also had practical consequences for Skjelsbk.

"Every e-mail, letter, report  anything that had to do with women  ended up in my mailbox."

The snowball effect

At the end of the 1990s, she met Torunn L. Tryggestad, who was working as a researcher at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI) at the time. They realised that they shared the same interest in gender perspectives in armed conflicts.

"I became more and more interested in the topic, but I was working on completely different things and had problems getting institutional support for the fact that this was an interesting direction to go," says Tryggestad.

The two of them decided to apply for funding for a series of seminars from the Research Council. The application was granted, and in 1998, Skjelsbk and Tryggestad invited international scholars on the field to participate in discussions on topics related to women and peace. The snowball had started rolling.

In 2000, The United Nations Security Council passed resolution 1325 on women, peace, and security. Here it was established that women should participate in peace processes, that sexual violence should be stopped, assailants should be prosecuted, and that the UN's peacekeeping work should include gender perspectives.

For the first time in UN's history, the Security Council took a stand on issues related to women's role and experiences in armed conflict.

In Norway, the resolution was quickly followed up by supporting the UN's work, but the government also began thinking about initiating its own measures.

At PRIO, the leadership finally saw their chance to strengthen the gender competence at the institute. Helga Hernes, political scientist, women's studies scholar, politician, and diplomat, had recently retired from her position in the diplomatic service when Skjelsbk contacted her in 2005 and asked her to come work at PRIO.

Tryggestad was also lured over from NUPI, and together with Hernes, she set to work on a new task: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wanted an action plan on Women, Peace and Security. And they wanted it fast.

From December 2005 until the launch on 8 March 2006, Tryggestad gathered threads and experiences for the written material whereas Hernes pulled a few strings at the authorities with the help of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' own capacity who handled comments and suggestions from the Ministry.

"I went to the Minster of Defence, I went to the Minister of Justice I could do these things because I'd been a diplomat and a state secretary," says Hernes.

Thus, the contributions came quickly and the world's first action plan on the topic became a success.

"I think we succeeded well! Both Sweden and the United Kingdom called us on the phone, the Netherlands suddenly there was huge interest," says Hernes.

Knocked on doors

Internally at PRIO, the trio popularly referred to as the Gender group challenged their colleagues.

"We picked out researchers whom we thought had interesting projects and knocked on their doors and asked: If you were to apply a gender perspective on what you're currently working with, what would it be?" says Skjelsbk.

Significant scholars such as Henrik Syse took the challenge offhand and gave a lecture on gender and ethics.

Wenche Iren Hauge investigated demobilising of soldiers in Guatemala. She went back there and specifically interviewed female soldiers. It provided new perspectives entirely.

By including gender perspectives in research on mines, researcher Hilde Wallacher demonstrated how women might be of particular help during mine search, since they move across larger areas than men in their daily work.

And demining teams consisting only of women work better than teams only consisting of men. All-women teams have almost no accidents, they are more careful. Employing women for this type of work also has major consequences for the local communities, since women to a larger extent than men put money back into the local communities.

Demystifying gender

"Researchers as well as others tend to get a little stuck and do things the same way they always have. When discussing with others you get new ideas," says Tryggestad.

"These were people working with relevant issues such as health in Africa. It was easy for them to see that these perspectives were relevant," Hernes continues.

According to Tryggestad, many were surprised that they hadn't thought about the gender perspectives before, as they often seem so obvious when you become aware of them.

"I've also thought about that a lot  why isn't there more research on this? It is so obvious! It is relevant, and you obtain new knowledge by seeking women's experiences."

Skjelsbk wants to demystify gender perspectives.

"Many people are afraid of not being politically correct when talking about gender, particularly in a global perspective. Thus it's important to make it practical, not dogmatic."

She says it has been useful to work with this topic within the institute sector.

"In the institute sector you have to make everything tangible. We're theoretically heavy, but we work towards both academia and clients. We meet the user of the knowledge we generate in various contexts, which is very instructive."

Tired of applications

At the same time, the sector has its challenges. Despite the success with the action plan, the Gender group at PRIO had no long-term funding. There were no major funding programmes into which their research fitted. They had to apply for new funding every year, which was frustrating, according to Tryggestad.

"We've spent a lot of time writing grant applications. Even though we couldn't know, for my own part, I've just reckoned that it would be long-term."

And the funding kept coming in, although Tryggestad still remembers a phone conversation with the programme coordinator at the Research Council where she presented a desire to apply for funding from the gender research programme.

"We were told 'yes, we're open for all types of applications, but I advise you to read the programme description'. What was said between the lines, I think, was that there was no point in applying."

According to Skjelsbk, there was little room for global perspectives on gender in the Research Council's portfolio.

"I find it strange that there haven't been any long-term funding mechanisms promoting global challenges on gender equality. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs probably hasn't provided sufficient pressure and funding, and at the same time, many of the gender and women research communities have become very Nordic or Norwegian. We've been a bit homeless. But I think that is about to change."

To Skjelsbk this uncertainty is the reason why she's now working at the Department of Psychology at the University of Oslo and not at PRIO.

"You get so tired of having to apply for funding every year. It's a structural problem."

Dangerous involvement

In 2015, PRIO's Gender group was finally granted a large pot of money, with project funding for four years (FRIPRO). The institute now has eight major projects in which gender perspectives are central. And on a global scale, the interest in these issues has exploded, according to Tryggestad. This is particularly the case with the topic that Skjelsbk started working on nearly twenty years ago: sexualised violence in armed conflicts.

Tryggestad herself recently gave a course for UN's peace negotiators in an attempt to make them bring the 1325 resolution out in the field. But there is still a long way to go. Many women still contribute to political processes at the risk of their own lives.

"There are a lot of threats and violence against women who are actively involved in politics. There has been a lot of focus on helping women who have been victims of violence or rape, and there has been much focus on the empowerment of women. But we need to look at the strong links here in order to move a step further," says Tryggestad.

"Unless women's position in society and the respect for women is strengthened, we won't be able to prevent violence against women. Unless we combat violence against women we won't succeed in empowering women and activate them politically."

Provided by KILDEN
Researchers have discovered that life under the ice, like this on Russia's Lake Baikal, is vibrant, complex and surprisingly active. Credit: Alexey Trofimov

As long as ecologists have studied temperate lakes, the winter has been their off-season. It's difficult, even dangerous, to look under the ice, and they figured plants, animals and algae weren't doing much in the dark and cold anyway.

But an international team of 62 scientists looking at more than 100 lakes has concluded that life under the ice is vibrant, complex and surprisingly active. Their findings stand to complicate the understanding of freshwater systems just as climate change is warming lakes around the planet.

"As ice seasons are getting shorter around the world, we are losing ice without a deep understanding of what we are losing," said Stephanie Hampton, a Washington State University professor and lead author of a study published in the journal Ecology Letters. "Food for fish, the chemical processes that affect their oxygen and greenhouse gas emissions will shift as ice recedes."

"A lake doesn't go to sleep when it's covered with a blanket of ice and snow," said Liz Blood, program director in the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research. "While winter's lower temperatures and light levels may force lake life into a slower mode, algae and zooplankton are still abundant.

"What will happen if lake ice cover decreases in warming temperatures?" she said. "These results are a significant step in understanding what may be far-reaching changes for lake ecosystems."

Ice clarity and algae growth

Fresh water is fundamental to society. We use it for drinking, manufacturing, energy production, irrigation and fish - a particularly important protein source in the developing world. Global warming is expected to change what we value in fresh water, as a study co-authored by Hampton last year found lakes warming around the world.

The new study finds that what happens in the winter can have a substantial effect on what happens during the rest of the year. This is especially true for lakes that let in a lot of sunlight, stimulating the growth of algae and zooplankton on the underside of the ice. These in turn serve as food sources for fish at the start of their growing season.

"In some lakes where the ice is really clear and there's not very much snow cover, there can be a lot of photosynthesis and a lot of productivity," said Hampton, who has extensive experience studying Lake Baikal in Russia, the world's deepest lake. "So there were some lakes in this study where the productivity in winter actually exceeded the productivity you would see in summer."

'Unique little microecosystem'

Hampton said her Russian colleagues have seen "a unique little microecosystem" under the ice, with filaments hanging down from the subsurface.

"It's interesting to think about these lakes that get a lot of light through the ice," she said. "Russian researchers who spend a lot of time on Baikal remind us that when you get ice, now you've got a new habitat. It can be a vast habitat extending across the entire lake."

Marine biologists have documented a key role of sea ice in supporting polar food webs.

Milla Rautio of the Universite du Quebec a Chicoutimi fetches a water sample through the winter ice at Lake Saanajarvi in Finland. She and other researchers have found that life under the ice in fresh water is vibrant, complex and surprisingly active. Credit: Heather Mariash

"Under sea ice, you see the growth of foods higher in beneficial fatty acids and contributions as high as 30 percent to overall annual productivity," said Oregon Institute of Marine Biology's Aaron Galloway, a coauthor who was a postdoctoral fellow at WSU when the study began.

But until this study, freshwater scientists "were not able to make any sort of estimates like that at all," said Hampton.Investigations of frozen freshwater bodies were just too spotty. Indeed, the International Society of Limnology's Plankton Ecology Group, which has been highly influential in aquatic science, has developed a theoretical model of lakes incorporating the interplay of plankton, nutrients, temperatures and mixing. But in 2011 the group said, in effect, that winter was being overlooked.v

"It was a pretty strong statement about how little we know about winter," said Hampton.

140 sets of measurements assessed

So she and her fellow lake ecologists posted a request for data on a listserv of professional colleagues, expecting maybe 30 responses. They got 140 responses from researchers with measurements of various winter conditions, like plankton and nutrient levels, that could be compared to summer values.

Their findings varied a lot, often depending on whether a lake was covered with clear ice or covered with snow that blocked most light.

"In some cases, we know that zooplankton under ice are really important for seeding the populations that will take off in the summer and grow to be more abundant," said Hampton. In other cases, there may be algae consuming large amounts of nutrients under the ice so the summer algae have less for their own growth.

Effects of climate change

Climate change stands to introduce another set of considerations.

"A number of things are changing, with climate change, that actually affect the characteristics of the ice itself," Hampton said. The ice season can be shorter. There can be less snow, which will let in more light. Or there can be more rain during ice formation, making the ice cloudy.

Predicting these changes, she said, "will not be straightforward."

Regardless, lake scientists will need to break out their winter gear.

"Overall, this study tells us that limnologists no longer have any off-season," Hampton said. "No more down time, especially as we're losing ice so rapidly."
Aerial photograph of a forest in Connecticut (left), and bare-earth lidar image beneath the vegetation (right) showing archaeological remains. Credit: UofConn/Katharine Johnson

Oklahoma's Beaver River is an incredibly historic place. Anthropologists estimate that as early as 10,500 years ago, human beings hunted bison in the region. Being without horses, the hunter-gatherers would funnel herds into narrow, dead-end gullies cut into the hillside by the river. Once there, they would kill them en masse, taking the meat and organs and leaving the skeletons behind.

Sadly, no visible trace of this history remains in the region today, thanks to weathering and erosion. But according to a recent story released by NASA, the same technology that powers the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission has made the ancient history of this region visible for all to see.

Having launched back in September of 2016, the robotic spacecraft OSIRIS-REx is scheduled to rendezvous with the Near-Earth Asteroid Bennu in 2023. The purpose of the mission is to obtain samples of the carbonaceous object and return them to Earth, thus helping scientists to get a better understanding of the formation and evolution of the Solar System, as well as the source of organic compounds that led to the formation of life on Earth.

Once it reaches Bennu, it will rely on light-detection and ranging (aka. lidar) to map the asteroid and help the mission team select a landing site. This technology uses one or more lasers to send out short pulses that bounce off of nearby objects. The instrument then measures how long it takes for the signal to return to get an accurate assessment of distance and generate topographical information.

The OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter (OLA) instrument was designed by Teledyne Optech, a company that has worked with NASA many times in the past. Their work includes the laser instrument that was used by the Phoenix Lander to detect snow in the Martian atmosphere back in 2008. And more recently, it was used by an archeological research team in the Beaver River area to create a detailed picture of its past.

Using an airborne version of the Teledyne Optech lidar device, the team was able to create a 3-D model of the surface. They were also able to generate as a 'bare-earth" version of the area that showed what the land looked like without all of the concealing features  i.e. rocks, trees and grass  that hide its past.

In so doing, they were able to figure out where they should dig to find evidence that the region was once a major hunting ground. As Paul LaRoque, vice president of special projects at Teledyne Optech, explained, this process allowed the archaeologists to "see structures or features that were so overgrown that they wouldn't be obvious at all to someone on the ground."

This sort of process has also been used by other archaeological teams to make major finds, like uncovering the lost "Ciudad Blanca" (aka. the "City of the Monkey God") of Honduras. This ancient Mesoamerican settlement, which is believed to have been built between the 1st and 2nd millennium CE, had remained the stuff of legend for centuries. Despite multiple claims by explorers, no confirmed discovery was ever made.

But thanks to a joint effort by archaeologists from the University of Florida and the Houston-based National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping, an archaeological team was able to create images that stripped away the lush rainforest to revealed multiple structures  including pyramids, a plaza, a possible ball court, and many houses.

Lidar was also used by a research team from the University of Connecticut for the sake of studying the dynamics between human settlement and the historic landscape of New England. Using publicly available data, they were able to peer beneath all the current vegetation to detect the remnants of stone walls, building foundations, abandoned roads and what was once cleared farm land.

The revealing look at Beaver River is one of 50 stories that will be released on Dec. 5th, as part of a NASA Spinoff publication. Each year, Spinoff profiles about 50 NASA technologies that have transformed into commercial products and services, demonstrating the wider benefits of America's investment in its space program. Spinoff is a publication of the Technology Transfer Program in NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate.
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Former U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew congratulated an Arab leader for declaring a holy war against Israel and promised to help him influence President Ronald Reagan in a letter asking for millions of dollars to be funneled into a secret bank account for his use, according to a previously-unseen letter obtained by Lead Stories. (Read the full letter below)

Agnew praised Saudi Crown Prince Fahd bin Abdul Aziz for his "clear and courageous call to Jihad" in August 1980, which was a response to Israel declaring Jerusalem as its capital days earlier.

"My congratulations to Your Highness on the clear and courageous call to Jihad," Agnew wrote. "The action of the Israel Knesset on Jerusalem had to be the final provocation. Your Highnesses affirmative action stirred the world."

It's no historical secret that Agnew, who likely would have become the U.S. president had he not resigned as vice president in a kickback scandal in 1973, earned commissions for helping American businesses land Saudi contracts in the mid-1970s, but letters found in Agnew's private papers by collector Gregg Schneider reveal how he used anti-Israeli sentiment for profit.

Agnew told Prince Fahd, who was running Saudi Arabia at the time and would become king two years later, "the Zionists" forced him from the vice presidency because they feared he would succeed Richard Nixon, who resigned the presidency in August 1974 amid the Watergate scandal. Agnew said U.S. Attorney General Elliot Richardson told him about the Jewish conspiracy "to drive me out."

"He said that I could not be trusted to act properly in the middle east -- meaning the October war, which was raging at the time. Nixon was helpless at the time cause of his own Watergate problem, which I was not involved in. Therefore, I was framed and driven from office. The reason was that the Zionists in the United States knew that I would never agree to the continuance of the unfair and disastrous favoring of Israel and they had to get me out of there so I would not succeed Nixon - who they knew would be forced out also."

Agnew pleaded for immediate financial help from the Saudi Royal family, complaining that "Zionists have orchestrated a well-organized attack" that "bleed me of my resources to continue my effort to inform the American people of their control of the media and other influential secotors (sic) of American society."

The disgraced vice president said he had become "financially disabled" and "I do not have any resources left to continue the fight and they are near to attaining their objective to silence me."

Agnew offered a money-laundering scheme that would allow him to reap $200,000 a year for the next three years, enough for him to "mount a counter-offensive" against the Zionists.

"What I propose is to request from Your Highness a three year, interest free loan - in the amount of two million dollars. The loans would be made to Agea Management and Investment Company, a Leichtenstein corporation owned by trusted friends. I would have the use of the interest from the loan for three years. The entire principal would be returned after the three years. The company would pay me the interest as consulting fees, which would have no connection with Saudi Arabia. The U.S. would not be able to embarrass or investigate in any way because the Swiss laws of secrecy would prevent any inquiry beyond my legal receipt of the interest as consulting fees."

If Prince Fahd didn't like that route, Agnew said he was open to "any other idea that would give me about 200 thousand dollars a year for the next three years."

"I do so want to continue my fight against the Zionist enemies who are destroying my once great nation and impeding the peace efforts in the entire middle east," Agnew wrote.

Agnew then offered "my services" as a direct informal contact with Ronald Reagan, who was then three months away from being elected president.

"This contact should be made prior to the election, if it is to be most fruitful. Reagan and I are good friends, and his wife, Nancy is a good friend of my wife and me. She has an impact on his thinking." "Should Reagan be elected, it is entirely possible that I will be given a quiet O.K. to do some secret diplomacy. He respects my knowledge of foreign policy, and my five years of experience in the middle east and Asia. Although he has had great Zionist pressure on him, his (sic) is a fair-minded person who can be educated to the true facts."

He closed by offering his congratulations for Prince Fahd's declaration of a holy war on Israel.

Prince Fahd apparently granted Agnew's wish. Agnew sent him a "thank you" letter on September 16, 1980.

"It is difficult for me to find the right word to adequately express my gratitude for the prompt response from Your Highness to my urgent communication left in Taif. When one is under steady attack from relentless enemies and false friends turn aside, one learns the rarity and value of true friends. That Your Highness, despite enormous pressures on him, has the compassion and can take the time to assist an old friend in time of crisis is evidence that the true spirit of Islam is not only preached but practiced by the Saudi Royal Family."

Agnew's private papers also include a reply from Prince Fahd.

"It is indeed my pleasure to express to you my gratitude for the sincere and friendly feelings you have shown," Prince Fahd wrote. "I truly appreciate your genuine concern in enhancing the cordial relations that exist between us, and which we strive for its further development with our sincere friends."

Eight years later, he got a boost from Vice President George H.W. Bush, who was weeks away from being elected president when he sent a letter to King Fahd on Agnew's behalf. For that, read: History Uncovered: Secret Letter Shows How Presidency Can Profit Friends

Dr. Salim Yaqub, a University of California-Santa Barbara history professor, explored Agnew's business dealings with the Saudis in his just-published book Imperfect Strangers: Americans and Arabs in the 1970s.

"In a nutshell, from 1974 on he ran an international consulting firm devoted to helping companies win contracts with foreign governments," Dr. Yaqub told Lead Stories. "Although I believe Agnew was sincere in opposing Israeli policies, he tried to turn those views to his own business advantage. In 1976, he encouraged the Saudi government to reward his anti-Israeli efforts by funding them directly and by awarding contracts to his clients."

Yaqub said the newly-found Agnew letters were "considerably more urgent" than earlier correspondence with the Saudis that he found while researching his book.

Read the three pages Agnew sent to Prince Fahd on August 25, 1980:

Also see: History Uncovered: Secret Letter Shows FBI Director Using Leaks To Target Political Opponent

Two years after Lead Stories exclusively reported on these documents, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow presented them in her show. Maddow, however, incorrectly stated the documents has never been published -- as Lead Stories did so in November 2016.
WARRENSBURG  A Warrensburg woman was charged with felony aggravated driving while intoxicated Sunday night following a traffic stop on Elm Street, police said.

Lori A. French, 36, of Sanford Street, was arrested after an 8:30 p.m. stop by State Police, authorities said.

She was found to be intoxicated, and had a 15-year-old in the vehicle with her, police said. Under state law, driving drunk with a child 16 or younger is a felony.

French was arraigned and released pending prosecution in Warrensburg Town Court.
QUEENSBURY  Three New York City men were jailed Saturday after a traffic stop led to the seizure of cocaine and marijuana, police said.

The three were in the area to visit a relative at one of the state prisons in Fort Ann, and were arrested after a traffic stop on Gurney Lane around 3 p.m. Saturday, police said.

Troopers stopped the vehicle for not having a front license plate, and smelled marijuana in the vehicle, police said. A search turned up cocaine and marijuana, according to State Police.

Charged with fifth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony, were Jahan Parchment, 20; Reginald Dempsey, 26; and Mark Brantley, 29, all of the Bronx, police said.

All three were arraigned and sent to Warren County Jail for lack of bail.
FORT EDWARD  The holiday season pulled into the local Amtrak station slightly before 1 p.m. Sunday led by by a pair of Electro Motive Division GP20C locomotives.

Behind the two 56-foot long, 2,000 horsepower locomotives were 14 cars, stretching almost 1,000 feet, all brightly lit and carrying the logo of the Canadian Pacific Railroad.

Were glad that Canadian Pacific has been stopping here since 1999, said Supervisor Mitch Suprenant, who spoke along with Mayor Matt Traver and Dood Pantry coordinator Kristine Geer.

Their speeches, and the presentation of a $4,000 check, came after the train finally pulled in and opened its stage car, ending a long wait for the huge crowd that blocked East Street.

The crowd grew steadily from 11:30 a.m. on and hundreds of people cheered when a train pulled in just before 12:30. But it was just a practice run, because it was the regularly scheduled Amtrak train.

A short while later, flashing lights and the crossing bells signaled the arrival of the brightly lit Holiday Train, with its speakers playing Let It Snow.

The train pulled up, stopping in the center of the East Street rail crossing and the crowd, comprised mainly of parents and their children, many wearing Christmas hats and sweaters, surged forward. They backed up as a fog machine rolled its gray fog out of the performance car and the front of the car came down.

Santa Claus was already there, sitting by the station handing out candy. A light rain started to fall as musical guests Kelly Prescott and the Doc Walker band started to play.

What a beautiful day it is, band member Chris Thorsteinson said laughing. Were from Winnipeg, Manitoba, where winter was invented.

Thorsteinson and the rest of Doc Walker is just coming off its Echo Road tour, promoting the bands best of CD. Like the other headliner on the train, Prescott, CP Holiday Train veteran, Prescott, Doc Walker is a well-known country band north of the border.

Were from small towns, Thorsteinson said. We know how important something like this is to a town like yours.

Long-time resident John Godfrey said the train is indeed important to Fort Edward.

I remember when it came through at night with all the lights lit, he said. And its so good that the food pantry gets the donations.

The train had started the day in Saratoga Springs, after arriving Saturday, and made the 16-mile run to Fort Edward before heading north to Ticonderoga, Port Henry, Plattsburg and Rouses Point.

When the train left, volunteers from the Fort Edward Soup Kitchen faced the task of transporting hundreds of pounds of donated food and counting the monetary donations given by visitors that will go on top of the $4,000 presented by Canadian Pacific.

This is our largest food collection, said Jim Austin, who has attended 17 of the 18 CP Rail stops in Fort Edward and helped coordinate the food collection. This should carry us a while, through the holidays and into next year.
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This was revealed by the Principal Company Inspector for the Official Liquidator for DKM Microfinance Jones Nathaniel Ansah.

He mentioned that the list has 93, 000 customers. He said they finished preparing the list on Saturday, November 26, 2016.

In an interview with Accra-based Citi FM, Ansah said the creditors who were paid less than they were entitled would be paid their arrears after the needed corrections are made.

READ ALSO: Agitated customers of DKM threaten to sue DKM

Ninety three thousand claims have been verified by PWC. They have made it known to us that it has been done but what they are doing probably is to finalize the list of payment to those creditors over there so tomorrow we are going to have those that came for their money or those that didnt come for it then will take it up from there, he said.

Thousands of customers of DKM Microfinance Company lost millions of cedis after they invested in the DKM Microfinance. This was because the Microfinance company invested into unapproved venture and lost the funds.
The new regulation is to ensure a well-functioning foreign exchange market and to further develop the foreign exchange market within the financial system of Ghana.

Below are the new rules

1. Publication of Foreign Exchange Auction Calendar

The BOG will publish an auction calendar for the foreign exchange market on quarterly basis. The calendar will be published one week preceding the quarter on the Bank of Ghana website and on the BOG Page cpurl://ts.cp./Apps/Auctions on Reuters Terminal to enable market participants to adequately plan. The announcement shall list the date and time, auction volume target, settlement and other information. Annex I provides a sample auction announcement.

2. Eligibility

Participation in the auction is restricted only to the Authorized Foreign Exchange Dealing Banks.

3. Eligible Currency and Quotation Convention:

a) The auctions shall be limited to purchase or sale of the United States Dollar (USD) against equivalent value in the national currency  Ghana Cedi (GHS). b) The quotation of rates for bids placed in the auction shall indicate the equivalent value in the national currency (Ghana Cedi/ GHS), expressed against one unit of the USD quoted up to 4 decimal places. Example of the rate quotation for bid is 3.9805

4. Auction Schedule and Frequency:

a) The FX auction shall be held fortnightly as per the announced quarterly calendar by the BOG on Wednesdays with settlement on T+2. In the event that a national holiday falls on Wednesday the auction will be held on the next business day.

5. Bidding Process:

a) Authorized Banks shall submit their bids via a secured BOG Page cpurl://ts.cp./Apps/Auctions on Reuters Terminal or through a designated email in the approved format provided by the BOG. Annex II of these regulations provides the format.

b) Each bank is permitted to submit a maximum of [3] bids in the auction, quoting their desired amount and at their freely determined exchange rate as per quotation convention.

c) The minimum bid size is US$500,000 and in multiples of US$250,000, and expressed in numbers. Maximum bid size of a single bid shall not exceed ten percent (10%) of the announced auction target. The cumulative volume of all bids from any single bank shall not exceed twenty percent (20%) of the announced target for the auction.

d) Bids with incomplete or missing information or submitted after deadline shall not be accepted.

e) Bids exceeding the maximum single bid amount or lower than the minimum bid amount shall not be accepted. BOG reserves the right to reject the bid placed at the lowest exchange rate in the case of a sell-auction and highest exchange rate in the case of a buy-auction if bids of any bank exceed the cumulative volume limit.

f) Each bid is final and is irrevocably binding on the bidding bank. Once a bid has been submitted, no request for changes will be entertained by the BOG.

6. Allocation Methodology

a) The multiple-price auctions would be fixed volume format; the auction cut-off rate would clear the target volume offered in the said auction, accepting bids on best price principle.

b) The amount rule would require that not less than 25 percent of the auction target is allocated.

c) The general principle followed would be that the amount accepted at the auction be kept close to the announced volume, probable variance of not more than 10 percent of auction target.

d) The under-fulfillment of the auction is only if the bids are clearly out of the market or outside the 2 percent price range of the previous trading session or if in case of weak demand; however, the rule 6 (b) would still be adhered.

7. Auction Committee

a) An auction committee comprising of BOG staff appointed by the Governor shall oversee the conduct of the auction and decide on the cut-off, guided by the allocation methodology in paragraph 6.

b) Only authorized BOG officials may be present at the time of the auction allocation process. Details of individual bids of banks will be kept confidential.

8. Communication of auction results to the market

a) FX Auction results will be published on the BOGs Page cpurl://ts.cp./Apps/Auctions on the Reuters Terminal at 11.45am, on the day of the auction. b) Please see Annex III for the format of Auction Results

9. Confirmation and Settlement of Trade:

a) Unless otherwise announced, the settlement period for the auction shall be T+2. This is to alleviate liquidity planning for banks and to move the FX market to the international standard of spot settlement.

b) FX dealers of the successful banks shall call BOG Dealing Desk via the Reuters Dealing System to confirm and conclude trades for accepted bids to facilitate STP settlement.

10. Other Provisions

a) All the foreign exchange regulations will apply to foreign exchange funds acquired or sold at the auction.

b) In particular, the banks are reminded to comply strictly with the regulations in respect of foreign exchange exposure limits as prescribed by the BOG.

c) All Authorized Foreign Exchange Dealer Banks shall also comply with the provisions of the Code of Conduct for the Interbank Foreign Exchange market in Ghana.

d) These regulations shall be reviewed as and when the BOG deems it necessary.
I have been privileged to visit about three prisons in the country: the Medium Security prison in Nsawam (Eastern region), the and the Ho Central Prison in the Volta region.

As at the times of my visit, the had a population of 3,362 male and 67 female inmates; the Tamale Prison housed 461 male and 9 female inmates; while the Ho Prison contained 521 male and 11 female inmates.

Throughout these penitentiaries, the challenges were similar: over-congestion, inadequate feeding, poor sanitation, dilapidated facilities. These are all issues that are meant to be the responsibility of the government, which owns and controls these prisons. But the solutions have not been forthcoming for years, and the little that is done has not been enough to improve conditions.

On November 22, I visited the Ho Central Prison in the Volta region.

The Minister of the Interior, Prosper Douglas Bani - with an entourage of top security officials like the Inspector General of Police, John Kudalor, Prisons Director, Mr. Emmanuel Adzator, NADMO Coordinator, Brigadier General Vib Sanziri, took his peace campaign message to the region and the prisons was clearly one of the places he had to go. As part of the media contingent I was there to report.

The Ho Central Prison is located at the Wader quarters along the residency road, opposite the Ho Municipal Hospital, where most people would refer to as Ho-Bankoe. It is a heavily-walled facility, with four flags erected in front, decorating a spacious car park.

We arrived at the Prison around 3pm in the afternoon. The Prison officers were already in parade at the entrance of the yard waiting for the Minister to conduct an inspection on them while the entourage waited patiently before we had to enter. It was the norm, a necessary protocol practice.

Then came the Borborbor (ewe traditional dance) drum beats and songs performed by a traditional troupe to welcome the Minister and his entourage.

Finally, it was time to enter. I suddenly became nervous, my body bathed in goose-bumps, my feet turning cold, as we made our entry. The environments depressing features became visible, steadily sinking in. We saw all 521 male inmates just as we entered, overcrowded at the central part of the Prisons yard.

After one of the inmates had welcomed us in their local Ewe dialect with a prayer, they went ahead to communicate the problems they face as prisoners.

An inmate spoke with so much passion when he addressed a very notable concern of theirs, the selective nature of the process that results in amnesty for prisoners - he said that most inmates deserving of the Presidential Prerogative of Mercy are still behind bars because of the unfair process of selection. He spoke so eloquently that I believe he could easily pass for a P.R.O for a corporate institution or a presenter at a media house, yet here he was, his talent wasting away in Ho because of a mistake hed made in his life. He had been incarcerated 10 years for the crime of theft.

The Prison Director, Emmanuel Adzator told the prisoners that he is looking forward to seeing many of them reform. Addressing the problem of congestion, he noted that it isnt a challenge exclusive to only the Ho Prison. He assured them that the feeding challenge was the subject of government concern, with an effort being made to solve it. He said he was very happy prisoners are being given a chance to exercise their voting rights, entreating all of them to exercise their right to choose the next President of the Nation.

It was now the turn of the Interior Minister to interact with them. He walked from his seat and entered where the inmates were (there was a half wall dividing the contingent from the inmates) to interact with them.

I am very happy to be with you here this afternoon, I consider most of you to be my brothers but it is unfortunate you are here and you are here because of the laws of the country. The government is not interested in keeping anybody here, it is not easy for me anytime I have to see you, he said.

He urged them to be prayerful and to exhibit good conduct while under incarceration.

Mr. Bani assured them of Government's commitment to improving the living standards in the prisons across the country. He informed them of Government putting up an 800 unit Remand Prison block in Nsawam to ease the congestion. There are also courts in there so you don't have to go all the way to Accra to be tried, he added.

It was time for us to leave to see the females, but before we left, the Officer in charge appealed to the Minister that the usual trend which was inmates coming back to the prison a few months after their release has subsided because of the quality of counseling they take them through, so the government should employ more counselors and religious heads to effectively counsel the inmates.

Hopefully this will stop another "trend" I have heard of, where inmates would grow farms or rear livestock in prison only to be released when its close to harvest season. And so they go home only to deliberately commit a crime that would bring them back to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

The female prison is a few minutes walk from the males. The gate at the entrance is not as huge as that of the males, and Im thinking its because the women are not perceived to be as dangerous as the men. During my first ever visit a female prison, I tried so hard to hold back my tears and I was hoping for the strength to endure the palpable pain here as well.

Their yard is not as big as the males' but its definitely better kept. You are met with a big blue barrel of water which I heard serves as a source when the taps are not running. The compound has an assembly hall, kitchen, toilet and bath as well as one big room where all eleven female inmates of the prison sleep.

They were smartly dressed with their long blue dresses, white tops and their blue scarves, seated calmly awaiting our arrival. The first woman I saw brought tears in my eyes. She was a 34- year old pregnant woman almost due judging from how distended her stomach was.

I was inquisitive enough to ask what crimes this innocent women had committed. The officer in charge, was kind enough to also assist me with my findings, hmmm, this pregnant woman went stealing with the husband, she's supposed to pay 3,600 or serve four years imprisonment, she confined. I wanted to know further so I enquired of her husband and she said he is at the male prison.

The second woman I saw was just 18 years old and she was also in prison for stealing and thus serving 3 years. I shook my head knowing how difficult it would be for her to be dwelling with these older women.

The third I enquired was a Nigerian caught trafficking a Ghanaian child and she's serving 10 years in prison, her sentence was the highest. Now enough of the interrogation, I needed to listen to what the minister had for them and their pleas.

One of them (Ama) was ask to start with a prayer which she said powerfully, then added her own plea to the minister.

Minister we are very happy you have joined us here today, I know I have wronged society but I would plead you consider me. My husband is blind and I am not physically stable myself, my children are young and there is no one to take care of them, please consider me, she pleaded.

On behalf of her colleagues, she asked the minister to help the female prison with a flat screen TV, refrigerator and a fan, these three things were their main concerns apart from the fact that they wanted to go home.

Once again, I asked what she had done and I was told she fought with a woman she suspected her husband was having an affair with and she hurt her really bad.

They took turns to introduce themselves and when they were done, the minister spoke.

My sisters, I have just two things to say today. I have heard your pleas and next week you will get your television, with the fridge and fan I will work on it for you to have it as soon as possible, he assured them.

They clapped in excitement to show appreciation to his kind words. It was time to go but one woman caught my attention. She was sitting at the back quietly; she neither smiled nor participated like the others. So I wanted to know what had brought this innocent-looking young girl there and what I found out will surprise you.

Named Kabillah, I learned she ended up here after she was with a group of men that had robbed a business tycoon at Pig Farm in Accra.

According to the officer, the inmate was the one holding the weapons distributing them to her gang. She was only 19 years old.

Goodbye my sister, can you please dash me two cedis? One of them asked with pity.

I looked inside my purse and gave her 10 cedis, she jumped with joy and said akpe meaning thank you in Ewe language.

I stood close to the main entrance but I could see their kitchen, their rooms and their surroundings, it was very kept, unlike the other prisons I had visited.

When will they go home and reunite with their families, I quizzed myself as we made our way outside for our next meeting.
According to the Daily Post News, Allen had voluntarily came out for soul saving at the church.

It was at this point that she repented from her sinful ways.

She now preaches the gospel of God to other prostitutes, encouraging them to give their lives to Jesus Christ.

The church where she got delivered put up a post on Facebook where the testimony was shared.

It reads, Ninsiima Allen (25 years old) from Wakaliga was a prostitute.

She came for #77DOGS, was convicted by the Holy Ghost, repented and gave her life to Jesus Christ.

She went back to the lodges where she had been practicing the prostitution and preached to the people there, testifying that she is now born again and free.

Allen, however was afraid that she could have contracted HIV/AIDS. She was counseled by one of our ministers here and got the boldness to go for an HIV test. To her joy, she found that she was HIV negative.

She was set free from prostitution and the bondage of fear. Glory to God.

ALSO READ: Kenyan prostitutes now issue receipts for sex
Some pundits had argued that Hammer and Teephlow could not produce that hit song to shoot the artist to stardom despite the numerous and great collaborations with bigwigs like Obrafour, Kwaw Kesse, Edem and Sarkodie. Abrantepa.com reports.

They asserted that both Hammer and Teephlow were frustrated as a result and had to call it quits.

But speaking to Abrantepa on Radio Univers mid-morning show, Brunch2Lunch, Hammer said Teephlow was well groomed and ready for the market. He intimated that the Fante rapper had a hit and graduated like all the artistes he groomed.

Hammer further expressed that the rapper earned nominations with "The Warning" which featured Sarkodie and recognition of such nature cannot be overlooked.

Teephlow is very responsible. He is ready. He was quite respected. He didnt have a commercial hit but he had a hip-hop hit with The Warning which was nominated in the VGMAs and 4Syte Music Video Awards. So I think he had a hit. The commercial azonto hit bridges the gap between the old and the young. The hip-hop is mainly for the youth. Hip-hop cant be a commercial Ghana hit, he said.

Hammer is known for nurturing Obrafour, Kwaw Kese, Tinny, Edem and many others. His prime expectation of persons he mentors is an exhibit of discipline which will cement their stay in the music industry. To him disciplined Teephlow is prepared for the music industry.

He reasons those who belong to the school of thought that Teephlow was not able to reach that appreciable height are using Edem as the yardstick.

The confusion is because of Edem. Edem is the first person I really managed. When Obrafour blew, he was not with me; he was with Abraham. He didnt have a hit when he graduated. Same as Tinny and Kwaw Kese With Edem, people said they couldnt finance him because economically, it was risky so Edem pushed me to manage him. Edem is the reason I became a manager, he noted.
The former UN Secretary-General in a Facebook post said that irrespective of his ideologies he was ready to secure the independence of his nation.

Today I mourn the loss of a friend, the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Securing the welfare of the Cuban people and ensuring the independence of his nation shaped much of Fidel Castro's thinking and many of his actions.

Whether one shared his political views or disagreed with them, Fidel Castro was one of Latin America's most remarkable leaders. In the course of his long life, he overcame countless adversities and rarely chose the easy and comfortable path.

Castro came to power after overthrowing corrupt American-backed Fulgencio Batista.

"The commander in chief of the Cuban revolution died at 22:29 hours this evening," the president announced on national television.

Havana plunged into mourning Saturday and celebrations erupted in Miami at the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, whose iron-fisted rule defied the United States for a half century.

One of the world's longest-serving rulers and among modern history's most striking personalities, Castro survived 11 US administrations and hundreds of assassination attempts.

Castro crushed opposition at home from the moment he took power in 1959 to the day he handed over to his younger brother Raul in 2006 amid a health crisis.

READ ALSO: Cubans surprised at the death of Fidel Castro

For defenders of the revolution, he was a hero who protected ordinary people from capitalist domination.

To opponents, including thousands of Cuban exiles living in the United States, he was a cruel communist tyrant.

After surviving the failed Bay of Pigs invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis, a suffocating US embargo and the Cold War itself, Castro lived to see the restoration of diplomatic ties with Washington last year.
He said, "Words cannot describe the worth of Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz. He was proud yet humble, poor materially but rich in spirit, affable yet courageous and a great warrior of unimaginable proportions."

A statement from the office of Mr Rawlings said, "Arguably the greatest hero of the 20th Century, Fidel joined forces with like-minded legends including Che Guevara to create a new, resilient Cuban society that withstood decades of economic embargo and blatant aggression by the United States and its allies.

Read more:Kofi Annan hails Castro for securing the welfare of Cubans

"Under his leadership and despite the economic hardships imposed upon his country, Cuba was able to build educational and healthcare systems that outperformed those of the so-called advanced countries and to make Cuba a star in the arts and in sports.

"Fidel loved Africa, standing by the continent in the most trying periods of his leadership. The Isle of Youth in Cuba had at its peak 3,000 Ghanaians. Hundreds of Ghanaians were educated in Cuba to become doctors, vets, agriculturists and engineers whilst our hospitals, especially in remote areas, have benefitted from the services of Cuban professors and doctors.

"Cubans laid down their lives in the painful liberation struggles in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent and Africa must forever be thankful for the sacrifices of Castro and the Cuban people.

"Not many nations are able to give so much of themselves and yet receive so little in return.

"Castro epitomised what strong resolve and dedication can achieve. His demise is a loss to the spirit of freedom.

"Our heartfelt condolences to the people of Cuba. Fare thee well, Comrade Fidel Castro!
The pageants announcer said Aden, 19 was making history .

The college student was born in a refugee camp in Kenya, and moved Minnesota as a young child.

Through the competition she also wore her hijab.

On Facebook, she posted an image of herself on stage at the pageant with the caption: '"Be You" was what my aunt always told me. And tonight I finally realized what she meant. This has been such a fun experience ! Thank you so much to everyone who came out and cheered."

While she didn't win, she told ABC news that was not the point in her taking part. She saw the show as a way to spread a message. While the USA is awash with Islamaphobia, Aden said "The people that are doing bad things, they dont represent an entire group...I feel like Im here to bust those misconceptions and stereotypes of Muslim women.

After the shock US election results, there has been a spike in hate crimes against people of colour in the USA, and Muslims. Social media was full of reports of Muslim women expressing their fears of going out in their hijab.

Before the event she told Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) the pageant was about "being confidently beautiful, so I didn't think that I should allow my hijab to get into the way of me participating."

She was one of 45 women competing for the title, over the weekend. While she made it to the semifinal round consisting of 15 contestants, she did not advance to the final five.

What is the burkini?

The burkini and burka have been under attack across the western world. The burkini is a full-body wetsuit that covers the torso, limbs and head and is worn by some Muslim women. This year it sparked international debate as in France officials in up to 30 towns on the Mediterranean coast banned women from wearing it on beaches. However in August a high court of France said the ban should be suspended.
Below is the full statement from Martin Amidu: THE LOOTER GOVERNMENT AND THE LOOTEE WOYOME KNOW AMIDU HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LOOTED PUBLIC PURSE: BY MARTIN A. B. K. AMIDUI heard Alfred Agbesi Woyome, accuse me on Citi News on 24th November 2016 at the 5.30 pm news of having ordered or authorized the Ministry of Finance to pay him part of the GHC51.2million unconstitutionally looted by the incumbent Government for Woyome. I also heard him allege that I ordered or authorized a September 2011 payment of the loot which the Ministry of Finance paid to Woyome by transfer into his accounts. These spurious allegations are untrue and symptoms of mental exhaustion and stress coming from the lootee of the public purse.The fact that I had nothing to do with the authorizations written to the Ministry of Finance to pay any portion of the looted public purse to Woyome was already determined finally in the declarations made by the Supreme Court on 29th July 2014 against the looter Government represented by the Attorney General and the lootee Woyome with Austro-Invest Limited.The looter, the incumbent Government of Ghana, itself set up the Commission of Enquiry Into Payments From Public Funds Arising From Judgment Debts & Akin Matters (2012/C.I 79) of a sole Justice of its own choice. The independent Justice and his Commission found that I had nothing to do with the looted public purse. The looter Government accepted the recommendations of the report of the Commission as disclosed by the White Paper On The Report of The Commission of Enquiry.(2012/C.I. 79) at pages 3 and 4. The Commission of Enquiry commended me so highly that the incumbent looter Government which set it up, probably in the hope of finding anything against me, disgracefully tried to interfere with the Commissions findings and recommendations commending my honesty and integrity in the matter.I also heard Woyome speaking on his own behalf and on behalf of this incumbent looter Government accusing me of having something to do with interest payments on the looted monies which the Chief State Attorney Samuel Nerquaye Tetteh recommended through Amma Gaisie, the Solicitor General, to me in a memorandum dated 3rd November 2011 for approval and which I refused to approve with instructions that the matter be resolved in the Court. But the same Commission of Enquiry appointed by this very incumbent looter Government did not find that I had anything to do with the proposed interest payments as I was indeed the person who aborted that attempt further to loot the public purse.The Commission specifically found and established that: i. Either through inadvertence or pure mischief through connivance, both the Chief State Attorney, Samuel Nerquaye Tetteh who was charged with the defence of the suit in the trial court,did not scrutinize the process filed before them with judicious eyes. The bank accounts of Mrs. Nerquaye Tetteh, the wife of the Chief State Attorney, was later found by the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) to have ballooned by the payment into it of the sum of GHC400, 000.00 by Alfred Agbesi Woyome after the deal had become successful. (See page 3 of the White Paper whose findings and recommendations were reluctantly accepted by the looter Government at page 4 thereof).In addition to the decision and order of the Supreme Court dated 29th July 2014, the recommendations and findings of the Commission of Enquiry have become binding judgments of the High Court unless reversed under the Constitution. One would, therefore, have expected that if the lootee Woyome was not the surrogate of the incumbent looter Government, then the incumbent Government would have come to my defence because it accepted the Commission of Enquiry Report in a White Paper. Instead, in his interviews on television and radio, the President continues to accuse me of falsehood and goads Woyome and his Ministers on to insult me via the electronic media for defending the Constitution.It is clear where the incumbent Governments support lies in the Woyome matter. The lootee, Woyome, and the incumbent looter Government succeeded in their aim to do whatever it took for the Supreme Court to reverse its decision and order dated 16th November 2016 in preventing me from examining Woyome orally on oath on 24th November 2016. Woyome did not only file an application to discharge or reverse the order for his examination at 9.52 am on the 23rd November 2016. He followed this up by filing at 1.30 pm an application for the stay of proceedings to disable me from examining him the next morning. It was not accidental that the Government which argued against my application to examine Woyome orally on oath on 10th November 2016 was this time round made the 2nd Respondent in surrogate Woyomes applications. Common sense makes such tricks quite obvious to the ordinary person.Woyomes outbursts on Citi News and other radio stations appear to be contributions of someone who is mentally exhausted, extremely tired, and frustrated, and his comments ought to be ignored. However, the files on this loot of the public purse by the incumbent Government for its lootee and surrogate, Woyome, are in Government custody and one expects a dignified Government to have told the public by now that its surrogate is pathologically adverse to the truth, especially when he associates me with any payments of the looted public purse or any proposed interest. The incumbent Government knows this is untrue, as its own Commission of Enquiry has found.I have responded to similar spurious allegations of complicity in the loot in the media and on my website, martinamidu.com in the past, but the media and the public are being hoodwinked by Woyomes outburst and the incumbent Governments overwhelming silence to set the records straight. The fact remains that the people of Ghana are enduring economic hardships now because of this incumbent looter Government of the public purse.I entreat fellow citizens once more to read between the lines and come to their own justified conclusion that the only way the Republic and the people of Ghana can get their looted Woyome money back is to vote out this kleptomaniac looter Government and President on 7th December 2016. My constitutional mandate has been to pursue the refund of the looted monies as ordered by the Court. But every single Ghanaian can also stand against the ongoing looting of the public purse. Use the representative democratic process and vote this looter Government out to have our GHC51.2million loot from Woyome back soonest after voting this President out on the 7th December 2016 elections.Citizens, you have a choice to make. How much longer will we hear stories of inadvertence, mischief and connivance by an incumbent Government that strips the Republics coffers bare so that ordinary Ghanaians must suffer financial hardship? PUT GHANA FIRST and let us get our looted money back by voting the incumbent looter Government out on 7th December 2016.Protect Ghana and the government purse by voting for a new President.Martin A. B. K. Amidu27th November 2016
At the meet the press series in Accra on Monday, Dr Omane Boamah accused Nana Addo of conniving with Great Cape Company Limited.

Dr Omane Boamah said, the companys attempt to dupe the state was made known out of a "dispute between Ghana National Petroleum Agency and Great Cape Company Limited."

He noted that "In 1978, the former contracted the latter to supply 200,000 tonnes of cement. Along the line, the contract was abrogated and full and final settlement paid according to a letter written by then-Finance Minister Mr Richard Kwame Peprah, and you find this in the judgment. Shockingly, the Great Cape Company Limited brought a frivolous application to hoodwink the state and the taxpayer. Unfortunately, Nana Akufo-Addo came to their aid.

"On 3rd October, 2011, three years after leaving office [as Attorney General] Nana Akufo-Addo wrote a letter to support the Great Cape Company in furtherance of its illegitimate claims on government and the taxpayer. He wrote: It is disconcerting to find that public record keeping has fallen into such straits that the files on this matter cannot be found either in the Ministry of Justice or in the Ministry of Finance. Be that as it may, it will be unconscionable on the part of government if its poor record keeping is used to defeat legitimate claims of its creditors. The letter is available [but] Nana was certainly wrong. Great Cape Company did not have any legitimate claim to make. Great Cape Company Limited, on the contrary, was trying to hoodwink the state and the taxpayer and he unfortunately and incompetently fell for it."

According to him, "On 21 October 2016, just about a month ago in the judgment delivered by his Lordship Eric Kyei Bafour on this matter ably defended by Attorney General Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, His Lordship concludes: On the whole, the plaintiff, who bore the burden of proof at the end of the trial, his claim remained unproved and unimpressive while the evidence of the defendants showed plaintiff had attempted to hoodwink them to make a further payment. In conclusion, plaintiffs claim is dismissed in its entirety.

"I will exercise my discretion and award cost of GHS 50,000 in favour of the defendant. The judge says the plaintiff was trying to hoodwink the state. A former Attorney General, three years after leaving office, was writing in support of Great Cape Company that was trying to hoodwink the state."

Dr Boamah however asked, "How on earth did Nana Akufo-Addo, a former Attorney General and a member of the Ghana Bar Association, write to support the Great Cape Company Limited to hoodwink the state and the taxpayer?"

But Communications Director of the NPP, Nana Akomea however, denied claims by Omane Boamah. He said Nana Addo was not the Attorney General who paid Great Cape the judgment debt,.
According to him, "We are committed to retrieving every pesewa and we also defending. Under President Mahamas administration no such issue [of judgment debt] has occurred."

Speaking at the meet the press series in Accra on Monday, he said "Mahamas record in fighting judgement debts is superior to the New Patriotic Partys."

Dr Omane Boamah said, "President Mahamas government has fought cases of judgment debts and potential judgment debts more vigorously than previous governments. In less than four years we have successfully defended and saved Ghana over one billion dollars and these include cases involving Balkan Energy Ghana Limited, Sweater and Source, China Jinlin among others. In tackling the problem head on, President Mahama set up the sole commission of inquiry to investigate payments from public funds arising from judgment debts."

At present, the Supreme Court has granted an application filed by former Attorney General Martin Amidu to cross examine Woyome.

However, Woyome said the Supreme Court erred in its ruling allowing former Attorney General Martin Amidu to cross examine him.

But Omane Boamah added that, "President Mahamas unwavering to retrieving every pesewa paid illegally to any individual including Mr. Alfred Agbesi Woyome, entities or countries continue unabated. President Mahama has demonstrated the will to protect the public purse and this finds expression in the over one billion dollar saving achieved just because the Attorney Generals department adhered to his publicly known that they should defend such cases and indeed has been defending them."

Background

Woyome was paid GH51.2 million after he claimed he had incurred losses for financially engineering 1.1 billion Euros for the CAN 2008 tournament and other government projects.

However, the Auditor-General's report released in 2010 said the amount was paid illegally to him.

The report resulted in nationwide controversy, with operatives of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) who were in government during the CAN 2008 tournament claiming Woyome did no work to be paid that whopping sum of money.

The then Attorney-General, Mr Joe Ghartey, said Woyome was contracted to help in raising money for the construction of the stadia but he failed to meet the deadline.

The then NPP government, he said, had no choice but to abrogate the contract with Woyome.

In 2009, when the NPP had left office, Woyome went to court and claimed that his contract had illegally been terminated and demanded a judgement debt from government.

The Attorney-General in Prof. Mills administration, Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu, who failed to defend the state, rather negotiated with Woyome for him to reduce his demand on the government.
The fruit juice became associated with the NPP after the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) sought to mock the NPP's flagbearer, Nana Akufo-Addo, by posting a picture of him sipping the fruit juice on Facebook.

The NPP, however, capitalised on it in solidarity with their party leader.

Mr Alhassan Yakubu, the Ashanti Regional Director of NCCE had since warned that taking the Kalyppo drink to polling stations could spark violence.

He told Pulse.com.gh that "The CI 94 which is regulating the presidential and parliamentary election says that nobody on Election Day should do anything that will identify him or her with any political party such as wearing party paraphernalia, T-shirt, cup or doing anything that will portray your political colour.

"I am coming from that background that for this year 2016, You and I know that Kalyppo, it is Nana Addo who has been using Kalyppo to propagate his party.

"And the law says that do not do anything that will identify you on the polling day. So why carry Kalyppo that will identify you?
He said, "Let me warn everybody, journalists and all others, God has revealed to me the evil plans of the NDC.

"They [NDC] have gone in for ritual monies and anybody who will take money from the NDC to do their bidding in the elections will lose his or her life. Whether the NDC wins or loses they will go to where they performed the rituals and thanked them. Some of those who will take their moneys will die through road accidents, especially."

In an interview on Accra-based Accra FM, Rev Owusu Bempah said, "The 2008 elections, I prophesied that people were going to lose their lives after the elections."

"Nobody listened to me and after the elections we all saw what happened. Several accidents, with several people dying, happened," he said.

Read also:
Take pictures of your vote to let everyone and yourself aware that you voted, and that you voted for the PPP. So that if there is a dispute, we will know here we voted for the PPP so that we can question where our votes are, Dr Nduom said in Fante while addressing a rally at Kwesimintim on Sunday during his three-day campaign tour of the Western Region.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Police Service has indicated that voters may not be allowed to take their phones into the voting booth on the day of the election.

Director General of Police in charge of Operations Christian Tetteh Yohuno said the move is to prevent voters from capturing votes with their phones.

He believes that this is part of measures to ensure and peaceful and credible polls on December 7.
Yaw Adomako Baafi believes Ephson does not come close to credible individuals who conduct pre-election surveys and hence his recent survey should be ignored.

Pollster Ben Ephson has predicted that President John Dramani Mahama will secure a first round victory in the 2016 elections.

He said his latest poll indicates that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate will win by 52.4% while the New Patriotic Partys Nana Akufo-Addo will secure 45.9%.

The other parties, he said, will claim a meagre 1.7%.

But speaking to Accra FM on Monday, the NPP communicator said: If he uses his paper to write about nutrition issues, it will serve him better than what he is doing. We want serious pollsters from the University of Ghana and other places, not Ben Ephson. Who is he when it comes to pre-election surveys?
He mentioned that the achievement of a 100 percent digital migration by the NDC government is a great feat.

He was speaking at the Meet the Press series held in Accra on Monday. He explained that to finally achieve this government will distribute one million set up boxes nationwide after the migration is completed.

Ghanas quest to migrate from analogue television broadcasting to digital is in its final stage of construction and we are finalising processes to support our universal access obligation efforts by distributing one million set up boxes. This is because every citizen is entitled to the better picture, sound quality and interactivity that digital television broadcasting provides.

Simply put, President Mahamas government is bringing DSTV, apologies to their competitors, to your home, irrespective of your social and economic background, he added.

The government started the process a few years ago to switch television broadcasting platforms from analogue transmission to digital. Despite the promises give on this transmission, the deadline for the completion of this process has been postponed a number of times.
The pressure group mentioned that SSNIT will do so by acquiring a 24 percent shares in Woyomes Anator Holding Company Limited.

This was contained in a press statement issued by OccupyGhana on Monday. The deal according to the pressure group is to build green townships in Ghana.

It mentioned that this concept, at the time, was allegedly to provide solar power and 20,000 houses for some Urban Renewal Project, which was to be replicated and adapted to agriculture, mining or manufacturing communities. It made fantastic and unsubstantiated claims of providing 12,000 permanent jobs and 30,000 construction jobs for two years, and would lift over 200,000 people above the poverty line, including residents and workers on the project.

However the statement mentioned that the deal is silent on this alleged 24% stake in a joint venture. The question to be asked is why the Framework Agreement fails to mention such a critical material particular? These are the matters that have led us to conclude that the Framework Agreement is illegal and a nullity, at the very least, on the ground of material non-disclosure.

OccupyGhana therefore called on government and the other stakeholders in the deal to make the agreement public.

We call on the government to declare publicly that it is not bound by this illegal Framework Agreement. We call on the government to publicly renounce and repudiate that document, as well as all other steps that have been taken on the back of it. We call on SSNIT not to consider, even for a moment, to use the pension funds of Ghanaians to fund this latest phantom Woyome project.

The statement finally called on all Ghanaians to demand a level of accountability from the various government figures for transparency.

"If Ghanaians do not arise to occupy their democratic space, public officials, either through negligence or complicity, will engage in shady and dodgy deals that would cost the nation money that we do not have and should not be spending, OccupyGhana said.

Below is OccupyGhanas full statement:

OCCUPYGHANA PRESS STATEMENT

OCCUPYGHANA WARNS SSNIT AGAINST FUNDING NEW WOYOME DEAL

OccupyGhana has noted that its last Press Release on the above-matter has been met with silence from government officials, and two farcical denials of there even being an agreement: one by Woyome and another by Mr. Selby, the Chief Director of the Ministry of Transport. We have rebutted this by posting the agreement on our website.

Our further review of the documents since that Press Release reveal even more disturbing facts that Ghanaians must know about, one of which is this: The Government has issued a directive to SSNIT to use our pension funds to acquire a 24% stake in this phantom Woyome project.

The documents in our possession show that sometime in 2009, in a scheme similar to the Stadium matters which led to the first scam, Woyome managed to convince government officials that he could establish what he called Green Townships in Ghana. This concept, at the time, was allegedly to provide solar power and 20,000 houses for some Urban Renewal Project, which was to be replicated and adapted to agriculture, mining or manufacturing communities. It made fantastic and unsubstantiated claims of providing 12,000 permanent jobs and 30,000 construction jobs for two years, and would lift over 200,000 people above the poverty line, including residents and workers on the project.

Woyome managed to get the Finance Minister at the time, Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, to write a letter dated 15th December, 2009 to in principle accept participation stake holding of 24% in the joint venture.

That letter was, however, clear that the Government was going to subject the proposal to further discussion with relevant stakeholders, leading to formal negotiations towards a definitive agreement. The letter was also clear that a final position on all aspects of the project would only be arrived at after discussions with all stakeholders, subject also to Cabinet and Parliamentary approvals.

It appears to us that this matter cooled off for several years while Woyome battled us in court over the GH51.2M that was unconstitutionally and fraudulently paid to him. By the time Woyome re-surfaced in 2014, what was a Green Townships project had transformed and ballooned into a huge Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project designed to do practically everything under the sun: electricity, deep sea ports, roads, railways, hospitals, factories, agriculture, mining, archaeological findings. You just name the project, and Woyome was going to do it.

On 19th August 2016, Woyomes consultant, Albert Essamuah Associates Limited, now claiming to have been appointed as the Governments consultants (and we are yet to see evidence of any such appointment), wrote to the Chief of Staff demanding the latter to issue an urgent directive from your august office, to SSNIT through its Board Chairman, to take up the 24% stakeholding of the Government of Ghana in the Project SEZ on behalf of the people of Ghana. This letter also revealed that when the construction of the Port commences the value will escalate to over US$25 Billion.

Although this letter was disingenuously silent about the value of the alleged 24% stake that SSNIT was to be directed to acquire, what is apparent is that either SSNIT or the Government was expected by Woyome to fork out a colossal 24% of US$25B for that acquisition.

That is a whopping $6 billion!

So, what Dr. Duffuor had clearly stated as an in principle acceptance with several approval conditions was, after the illegal Framework Agreement was signed between Woyome and Dzifa Attivor, being represented to the Chief of Staff as a firm commitment to acquire a 24% stake in the phantom project.

We are satisfied to note that the Chief of Staff asked for a legal opinion from the Attorney-General, not on whether or not Ghana had committed to acquire that 24% stake (which would be false), but on whether the government could issue the directive to SSNIT as demanded by Woyome. An opinion dated 30th September 2016 and signed by Dr. Dominic Ayine, Deputy Attorney-General stated that the Chief of Staff can issue directives with respect to SSNIT to take up the 24% stake in the Project, but subject to compliance with the investment guidelines established by the National Pensions Act (2008). We are satisfied that this opinion did not bind SSNIT to taking up the alleged 24% stake. However, we are concerned that in one part of the opinion, it is stated that this is a proposed stake as opposed to an actual stake, while another part claims that Government has accepted the proposal [to take a 24% stake in the project] per the letter from the Ministry of Finance dated December 15, 2009

As pointed out above Dr. Duffuors letter of 15th December 2009 was heavily qualified, and none of the conditions contained in it had occurred. There is no obligation on Government to take that undefined 24% stake. Yet, this was now being packaged almost as a done-deal, and being foisted on SSNIT.

This is how Woyome works. That is how he ended up claiming and collecting GH51.2M from Ghana for no work done. The 19th August 2016 letter from his consultant betrays this, and we are horrified that our government and its officials are tolerating this obvious scam for even a day.

We must also point out that the Framework Agreement entered into between the Government and Woyomes Anator Holding Company Limited, is silent on this alleged 24% stake in a joint venture. The question to be asked is why the Framework Agreement fails to mention such a critical material particular? These are the matters that have led us to conclude that the Framework Agreement is illegal and a nullity, at the very least, on the ground of material non-disclosure.

We call on the government to declare publicly that it is not bound by this illegal Framework Agreement. We call on the government to publicly renounce and repudiate that document, as well as all other steps that have been taken on the back of it. We call on SSNIT not to consider, even for a moment, to use the pension funds of Ghanaians to fund this latest phantom Woyome project.

In the coming days, we will show to Ghanaians even more shocking aspects of this matter. If Ghanaians do not arise to occupy their democratic space, public officials, either through negligence or complicity, will engage in shady and dodgy deals that would cost the nation money that we do not have and should not be spending.

Yours, for God and Country,
This renewed salvo came a few days after declaring a truce in the dirty war of words Fani-Kayode embarked with the Ondo State governorship aspirant where they traded words, calling each other derogatory names.

The war of words had taken a different dimension when the two of them went personal, insulting their parents and wives and at a time, according to the enfant terrible and self-acclaimed nemesis of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), some well meaning Nigerians intervened and he declared an end to the battle.

But this renewed attack on Ibrahim by Fani-Kayode stemmed from allegations that after losing the PDP ticket to Eyitayo Jegede, Ibrahim publicly campaigned for the eventual winner of the election, Rotimi Akeredolu.

Read what Ibrahim posted on his Twitter handle:

'ONLY Akeredolu possess the right mentality, competence, readiness and moral amplitude to lead Ondo State. #OndoVotesAkeredolu #OndoDecides.'

'Dear PDP supporters & the entire people of Ondo State, VOte Barr. Oluwarotimi Odunayo AKEREDOLU. VOTE APC #OndoVotesAkeredolu #OndoDecides.'

And after the election and the declaration of Akeredolu as the winner, Ibrahim fired this:

'I had no doubt that Jegede would lose as Femi Fani-Kayode was supporting him. If you want to win any election, pay Femi not to support you.'

Not one to be brow-beaten, Fani-Kayode went back to his Twitter and declared that Ibrahim sold his party for money, calling him a Judas.

Read what he wrote here:

'The biggest Judas in Nigerian politics today is Jimoh Ibrahim. He sold his party for money. He lives like Judas and he will end like Judas.'
Identified simply as Blessing, the suspect was apprehended on Sunday, November 27, in Akpachi community in the Otukpo area of the state, Daily Post reports.

ALSO READ: Female kidnapper nabbed while attempting to abduct two siblings

According to the reports, Blessing was offering some children canned drinks, biscuits and milk, meant to be used as bait when his luck ran out.

A resident of the area reportedly spotted him and raised an alarm which quickly drew an angry mob who descended on him and beat him to a pulp.

Daily Post reports that the suspect confessed to the crime during the beating.

However, there are reports that during the interrogation, Blessing claimed to be a native of Akwa Ibom State who lost his way returning from Port Harcourt where he attended a teaching training.

ALSO READ: Female kidnapper who pretended to be a mad woman escapes death in Osun
Punch reports that the mother of the children, Suliyat Azeez who has a hairdressing shop in the Okokomaiko area of Lagos State, had employed Grace as an apprentice just one day before she abducted her two young children, Kafayat who is six-years-old and four-year-old Farouk.

It was gathered that Grace fled with the children on Friday, November 25, 2016, less than 24 hours after she resumed apprenticeship at their mothers workshop on Ora Street, PPL bus stop, Okokomaiko.

The children were said to have returned from school on the fateful day and went to their mother's shop who was away at the time.

The suspect was said to have claimed she was going out to buy food and asked the children to accompany her but she however absconded with them.

It was learnt that nobody had Grace's contact, phone number or knew her place of residence.

The tearful mother narrated what actually happened:

The girl came to my shop on Wednesday and said she wanted to learn hairdressing. I asked who her guarantor was because she said she came alone.

She said she stayed with a friend in the area and she would have come with her, but the friend had gone to work.

On Thursday, she returned and bought soft drinks and biscuits to celebrate the commencement of her apprenticeship. I even shared the drinks with people. That was the day she started working.

On Friday, I planned to go to her place of residence, but I had to first attend a meeting of hairdressers in the community.

When I returned from the meeting around 4pm, I was told nobody knew where she went to with my children and we started searching for them. I believe she hypnotised my children.

The father of the children, Fatai, said the family had reported the incident at the Ojo and Okokomaiko police divisions but efforts at finding the children had been abortive.

The girl just identified herself as Grace. She should be about 20-years-old. My wife couldnt collect her phone number because her phone (Suliyat) was faulty.

She just decided to admit her because the girl asked for help. We dont know any of her relatives and friends.
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According to Punch, the suspect, Joseph Onuoha, confessed that the syndicate headed by one Toronto, are sent out daily in batches looking for victims to they dupe.

The 40-year-old Onuoha told RRS operatives that Toronto, who is now at large, personally trained the members of the syndicate and also rewarded them based on their successes.

Anytime we hit jackpot, we would divide our loot into five parts. Toronto would take two parts. Two of us in a team would share two and we would share the remaining part to others.

Our office in Ajegunle has been busted by the police. Toronto, as I was told, has relocated to somewhere in Surulere. Whenever we have issues with the police, he comes around to secure our bail.

Onuoha was arrested alongside three other suspects for allegedly swindling members of the public of various sums of money.

He alongside the others, Kenneth Umukoro, 36, Uba Utokcha, 41 and Ikechukwu Okeke, 25, were arrested at different locations in connection with three cases of fraud in Maryland, Ojodu Berger and Ajegunle between Tuesday and Thursday last week.

The suspects, according to the police, were arrested after they picked up a lady, Chinwe Ibeh, in a vehicle at the Ojota area of the state and defrauded her.

Narrating how she was duped, Ibeh told the RRS men that she was going to Ojodu Berger from Ojota when Umukoro, driving an ash colour Toyota Camry 1997 model with number plate, SMK 886 DK, stopped at the bus stop to pick her.

He picked another passenger on Kudirat Abiola Way. We were still on Kudirat Abiola Way when the new passenger started a conversation in French language with the driver.

The driver pleaded that he wanted to take the new passenger to the customs office on Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, where his goods were seized.

At the office, the driver, a man that claimed to be a customs agent, a pastor and the goods owner brainwashed me into releasing my Automated Teller Machine card and led me to withdraw the last N9,000 from my account.

After this, the pastor prayed for me and told me to go home and get more money. When I got home, I came back to my senses and told my husband about the incident.

A few days later, my husband and I were standing at the Maryland bus stop when I saw the same Toyota Camry with same number plate and a new driver.

However, sitting beside the driver was the former driver that lured me into the fraud, pretending to be a passenger. I alerted RRS officers stationed at Maryland, who arrested them.

The State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Dolapo Badmos, who confirmed the arrest of the suspects, warned members of the public to be wary of spurious deals.
Mr Tyeopev Terna, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for the Police Command in the state, confirmed the arrest of the suspects in Jos.

The commands image maker said the arrest of the suspects, whose names remained withheld, followed a complaint by a family of the deceased, Mr Lawi Dabwen.

He said we have the three suspects in our custody and we shall try them before a law court, even though we are still investigating the incident.

He added that the three suspects who reside at Kapil village were alleged to have committed the crime at 6 a.m. on Nov. 25 in the area.

The PPRO urged the public to be conscious of the activities of criminally-minded persons and alert the police whenever they suspected any strange movement.

This, he said, became necessary in order not to fall victim of people of questionable character.
The suspect, Sunday Adeshina, reportedly flogged a 14-year-old SS3 student identified as Onyinye Nwakaeme, on the head for being unable to give the correct answers to the questions he asked in class, Daily Post reports.

ALSO READ: Teacher flogs student to death in Ibadan

The teenager who is a student of Great Esteem Private Secondary School in Ijeshatedo area of Lagos state told newsmen,

We were taking Economics class that day and I was busy copying note. I had just returned from my fathers burial. Being behind schedule, I used every available time to copy my notes because I had a lot to write.

The teacher saw me and called me out with some people, claiming that we were making noise and asked us to explain what he had been teaching. I didnt get the question right because I was really not paying attention to him. Out of anger, he started flogging me.

He flogged me to the point that I was bleeding on my head and he didnt stop. Even when the proprietor asked him to stop, he was fierce and wanted to flog me more.

Daily Post reports that Onyinye returned to her school with her siblings the next day to find out what could have led to the brutal treatment but Adeshina was nowhere to be found.

The family of the victim subsequently reported the case at the Ago police station so the necessary actions could be taken in dealing with the teacher.

Onyinye added, I got home and reported to my parents about the inhumane treatment he gave me in the school and some of my older siblings went to school with me to address the issue. On getting there, he was absent from the school until the day was over.

We decided to report at Ago police station to take necessary measures and arrest him because the school was unapologetic. They spoke rudely to my family and asked us to go to any length whatsoever to fight them.

According to the reports, the management of the school suspended Onyinye indefinitely following the incident.

The family of the victim are reportedly demanding a reinstatement of the teenager but the owner of the school identified as Pastor Rotimi Olu Joseph has refused, claiming that Onyinye's family stormed the school premises with thugs.

He said, We gave the girl suspension because it shows that she is not fit to be in the same environment with us. If they can take laws into their hands, then their ward has no place in the school.

Except they write to the school that she will be of good conduct, she will not be reinstated.

ALSO READ: Teacher beats pupil to death

Meanwhile, Daily Post reports that following his arrest, Adeshina insisted that it remained his obligation to beat or punish erring students, refusing to take responsibility for his actions.
News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Omole, a resident of 35, Olaleye Street, Oko-Oba, Agege area of the state, was arraigned on a one-count charge of rape.

The police prosecutor in the case, Inspector Simeon Ihuoha, told the court that Omole had lured the girl into his room under the prtext of sending her on an errand but instead forcefully had carnal knowledge of her.

The girl was said to have reported the assault to her parents who reported the matter to the police, leading to the accused arrest and subsequent arraignment in court.
Read her story here:

"My name is Nora, a 41-year-old married woman. I have four sons and one daughter who is the last child and baby of the house.

My daughter came when I had almost lost hope of having a female child and she became my best friend and confidante.

I love my daughter so much and can even give my life for her. My husband, , also dotes on her without pampering her.

His family too also love her a lot and they take turns in having her over for holidays but all that has changed as my husband's younger brother, , a 30-year-old man raped my daughter when he came to visit us two weeks ago.

The painful thing is that the family wants me to keep quiet about the abuse of my baby so that its name would not be brought into disrepute.

They have been mounting pressure on me and my husband not to report the case to the police because it would ruin their reputation.

Ndubuisi too seems to agree with them and has been begging me to play down the rape and should not do anything to escalate the matter.

But my family members are not thinking in that line as they want me to take up the case or they would do it on my behalf.

Nora."

The teaser for the day was:

How Nigeria voted:

I will make sure I hand him over to the police - 43%

I will treat it as a family matter - 15%

I will personally kill him - 7%

No amount of pleading will make me shield him from the law - 36%
The Acting Director-General NAFDAC, Mrs Yetunde Oni, disclosed this on Monday, November 28, at a stakeholders meeting in Minna.

She added that the laboratory will be built on a mobile truck.

"The mobile van will be able to move from town to the hinterland to test packaged water, drugs, farm produce and other items in order to safeguard the health of the nation," she said.

Oni, who was represented by Dr Abubakar Jimoh, Director, Special Duties of the agency, said that "we have being to China to see how the mobile testing van was being operated.

"So we are making arrangements and considering our terrain to see how it will work in Nigeria.

"We are hopeful that after our study we are going to use the mobile van to tackle fake and counterfeit products," she said.

However, she said that the agency is working with the Nigeria Export Promotion Council to ensure that the countrys export products meet international standards.

Earlier, Mr Anikoh Ibrahim, the State Coordinator of NAFDAC, said that the agency is working towards ensuring zero tolerance on the issue of circulation of fake and counterfeit drugs and other unwholesome products in the country.
The civilians were being escorted by troops from 121 Task Force Battalion.

I must commend the gallantry of the troops led by the patrol commanders of the 121 Battalion, Captain S. Suleiman, and Lt. N. Ayuba, Chairman, Caretaker Committee of Gwoza Local Government Area, Hon. Saeed Salisu Sambo said according to PR Nigeria.

The incident happened at about five kilometres into Bama town, at about 10 a.m. on Saturday after leaving Nguro-Soye. The insurgents detonated an IED, followed by sporadic gunshots which were repelled by the soldiers.

More than 30 insurgents were killed by the rocket launcher fired by troops. I vividly saw them running away, as the military engaged them in response, he added.

ALSO READ: 2 suicide bombers kill at least 9 in IDP camp
According to Vanguard, Ogbeh said the government solidly backs the Ebonyi Governors ban on sale of foreign rice in the state.

The Minister said this while on an official tour of Ettem Amagu Rice Farm in Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi state.

Ogbeh said Governor, I hear you banned the sale of foreign rice in your state; God bless you for it

I also hear you invited young men to come back from Lagos and work here. God bless you also for it. They will be happier here in this state than living under the bridge or substandard accommo-dations in Lagos and Abuja.
According to him, the people of the state have benefited tremendously from the NYSC Health Initiative for Rural Dwellers (HIRD), calling on the scheme to sustain the programme.

We are all aware that the second edition was a success at Chikun Local Government Area in October 2016, the tempo should be sustained, the governor urged.

Besides, El-Rufai advised the scheme to also sustain its partnership with the state Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on the Keep Kaduna Green.

We desire to plant 3 million trees between now and next year to fruition. The initiative will ensure a healthier environment for the citizens of the state.

He assured that his administration would ensure fulfilment of the statutory functions of the NYSC to ensure that objectives of the scheme were achieved.

The governor also tasked the corps members on the relevance to acquaint themselves with the culture and values of the communities they would interact with during the serve year.

The state NYSC Coordinator, Prince Momoh said 2,178 corps members, comprising 1,143 male and 1,035 female, had been registered.

Momoh commended the state authorities and security agencies for ensuring that facilities and safety at the orientation camp were provided.

He assured that corps members would be guided on policies of the scheme especially the entrepreneurship training, stressing that camp rules would be strictly implemented.
Also, he said the sect does not recognise him as the Governor of Kaduna.

Speaking to journalists on Sunday, November 27, El-Rufai said the group was outlawed by the state government because its leader Sheihk Ibrahim El Zakzaky and members refused to respect constituted authorities.

He said the state received the report of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry that looked into the clashes between the IMN and army which concluded that the IMN poses a threat to the peace, security and good governance of Kaduna State.

"The IMN does not recognise the constitution of Nigeria, they do not recognise Buhari as president of Nigeria, they do not recognise me as the Governor of Kaduna state. Because they have their governor, yes, they had, I think he was killed during the clash," El-Rufai said.
On Sunday, November 27, 2016, IPOB also alleged that the Army is carrying out ethnic cleansing in the name of security.

According to Vanguard, the group challenged the military to use the same force being used in the South-East to fight Boko Haram.

The Spokesman of the group, Emma Powerful, in a statement said The military has exhibited the greatest level of cowardice by denying that they did not shoot and kill peaceful IPOB protesters.

The blood of the people they killed will continue to hunt them. They are restless and that is why they are denying the evil and senseless killings.

Adding that The Indigenous People of Biafra condemns the relentless denial of the killing of the members of IPOB by soldiers and other security agencies.

The denial that they did not shoot and kill peaceful IPOB protesters means that the entire Nigerian Army pretended that it did not see the barbaric crimes committed against members of IPOB during the peaceful demonstrations in Biafraland.

Prominent leaders and countries in the world and those who dont have the videos for the killings should go online and watch the heinous crime against the peaceful members of IPOB during the peaceful rallies and demonstrations in all the Biafra cities of Aba, Onitsha, Owerri, Igweocha (PH), Calabar, Uyo, Asaba, Enugu, Bayelsa and other cities.

IPOB also offered to give the Nigeria Army copies of the video evidence showing how its men shot at protesters.
The attack occurred on Sunday, November 27, in Ughelli, Delta State.

The group claimed the attack via a statement released by spokesperson, General Aldo Agbalaja.

The statement reads:

In the last few weeks we have been silent and observing. The period of silence was definitely not of inactivity; as a matter of fact, it was rather a strategy session, the fruits of which shall start showing up in the coming days.

However, to register our presence and jolt those probably slipping into delusion back to reality, the group said in a release it issued to announce the havoc it has wreaked on the pipelines.

The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate has also observed the calculated psychological attack recently initiated by the Nigerian security forces against our people, believing that by pursuing and arresting our people the struggle will be defeated and our resolve would be quelled.

This will not work because what motivates us is stronger than the Nigerian kind of patriotism. Once again, we proclaim that we shall fight till the last man alive.
Ejesieme gave advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos.

The Customs spokesmen described demurrage as a whirlwind that blows no one any good.

There is need for us to check arrangements that tend to induce demurrage and save our country the much-needed investment capital.

Most Customs agents and shippers try to cut corners by false declaration of cargoes, thereby exposing their cargoes to undue delays that lead to demurrage, Ejesieme told NAN.

He said that monies paid as demurrage by the shippers (importers and exporters) to foreign shipping operators found their way out of the country.

Ejesieme advised shippers and their representatives to help in trade facilitation by making genuine declaration of cargoes.

It is not to our (Customs) advantage that cargoes are delayed; not even to the advantage of shippers too, the Customs spokesman said.
The IPOB leader made the comments through his lawyer, Ifeanyi Ejioffor, The Sun reports.

I have been battling with forces of darkness both physically and spiritually since I was arrested. They came with many strategies just to trick me into signing off my quest for Biafra and gain my personal freedom, Kanu said.

Little did they know that I am more intelligent and determined; I refused all their offers because the freedom of my people, Biafrans, is paramount to me and their freedom is the freedom of Nnamdi Kanu. The pains and agony of all Biafrans are the pains and agony of Kanu.

Prominent leaders, countries in the world and those who dont have the videos of the killed Biafrans in their possession should go to YouTube and watch the heinous crime committed by the Nigeria Government and her security agencies against peaceful members of IPOB during peaceful rallies and demonstrations in all the Biafra cities of Aba, Onitsha, Owerri, Igweocha (Port Harcourt), Calabar, Uyo, Asaba, Enugu, Bayelsa and other numerous cities.

The senseless killing of Biafrans is the senseless killing of Nnamdi Kanu. The cry of the Biafran youths is the cry of Nnamdi Kanu. The joblessness of Biafrans after university is the joblessness of Nnamdi Kanu.

The impoverishment and subjugation of all Biafrans is the impoverishment and subjugation of Nnamdi Kanu. The child abuse of Biafran children by the Hausa/Fulani cattle herders is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The illegal detention of Biafrans in several prisons both overseas and Nigeria is that of Nnamdi Kanu. The sexual harassment of our young ladies while seeking for jobs after graduation is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The raping and killing of our mothers and sister in our farmland by the Hausa/Fulani cattle headers is also that of Nnamdi Kanu. The untimely death of Biafrans due to bad road situations in Biafra Land is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The cries of our parents living in the riverine areas they call South/South due to the environmental damage caused by Shell in our land is also that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The seizure of goods and sleepless nights and pains of all the Biafrans importers in the hands of the Hausa/Fulani, Yoruba customs and Police is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The stress that Biafrans pass through while traveling for 8 hours to Lagos and Abuja International Airports before they gain access to travel abroad which in most cases take many lives in the process while traveling is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The heartbreak of Biafran business men and women, importers and petty traders in Lagos State due to intentional fire outbreaks caused by haters of Biafrans, in their business places in Lagos and another part of Nigeria is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The cry of the Biafran families that lose their children in Malaysia, Indonesia, China, and India and other parts of the world due to immigration and police intimidation is that of Nnamdi Kanu. The death of Biafrans, those trying to cross Sahara Desert and Mediterranean Sea to Europe in search of greener pastures is that of Nnamdi Kanu.

The fake promises of all the politicians in our villages and towns in (Biafran land) who promise and deceive our parents during election but always failing them after being voted into power and all these problems that affect all Biafrans are the problems of Nnamdi Kanu too.

I want to say, thank you, thank you to our mothers from, Akwa-Ibom, Cross Rivers, Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Ebonyi, Enugu, Anambra, Imo, Abia states. I am grateful for all our mothers because you gave birth to these great men and women of honour, those sons and daughters that always protest for my release under the Sun and rain. My thanks to all the fathers too who allowed their children to join (IPOB meetings) across Biafra Land, he added.

ALSO READ: IPOB says its mandate is from God
Mr Issa Aremu, the union's General Secretary, made the appeal in a press statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Kaduna.

Following the trend in other states, the Edo assembly recently approved a pension benefit for a residential building worth N200million for immediate past governor of the state, while N100 million was approved for his Deputy among other benefits.

We appeal to former Governor of Edo state, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole to make a positive difference by not collecting the life pension benefit as approved by the state assembly.

Comrade Oshiomhole had beaten the governors to good governance as evidenced by his globally acknowledged record of achievements as governor of Edo state.

He should therefore not join the former governors on unjust pension that is unnecessary and unsustainable in a recession.

Edos governance report since 2008 points to Nigerias renewed optimism.

Indeed we have witnessed a renaissance which defeats the old pessimism according to which nothing would work.

Aremu said the former governor must show a difference, by shunning such offers which may revert the esteem in which Nigerians view him.
THE GUARDIAN NEWSPAPER

Labour leader seeks pay rise to cushion recession

A Formal National Vice President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Issa Aremu has said that for the country to come out of recession the government must immediately increase workers salaries.

Akeredolus election, triumph of power rotation in Ondo

The race to the Alagbaka Government House of Ondo State has been won and lost. The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu (SAN) breasted the tape ahead of others. But the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state and its candidate, Mr. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) said yesterday that it was not yet over.

My June 12 story, by Tony Anenih

Twenty-three years after the annulment of June 12, 1993 presidential presumably won by the late Chief Moshood Kashimawo Abiola, one of the principal actors, Chief Tony Anenih at the weekend stated briefly his side of the story.

VANGUARD NEWSPAPER

FG to import crude oil from Niger Republic, plans 1,000-km pipeline

Against the challenges in moving crude oil from South-South Nigeria to Kaduna Refinery and Petrochemical Company (KRPC), the Presidency has turned to Niger Republic for supply of the commodities to bring KRPC into full operation.

Ondo Election: PDP, AD kick as INEC names Akeredolu Gov-elect

WITH 244,842 votes, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN, of the All Progressives Congress, APC, was, yesterday, declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as the winner of Saturdays governorship election.

Senate makes U-turn, drops already cleared Buharis nominee

TWELVE days after the Senate cleared Chief Okoi Ofem Obono-Obla, Cross River, South South, as a non-Executive Commissioner on the governing board of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, it has made a dramatic turn by dropping his name from the list of successful nominees sent to President Muhammadu Buhari.

THE NATION NEWSPAPER

One dead in Ibadan as fuel tanker bursts into flames

One person died yesterday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, when a fuel-laden tanker burst into flames on the Lagos-Ibadan highway.

Akeredolu: change is here

Ondo State Governor-elect Oluwarotimi Akeredolu yesterday promised not to fail the people when he assumes office on February 24.

Troops kill 30 suspected insurgents

Troops of the 121 Task Force Battalion in Pulka, Borno State, yesterday killed 30 suspected insurgents as they attempted to ambush a convoy of Gwoza Local Government officials.

THE PUNCH NEWSPAPER

Mixed reactions greet Akeredolus victory

Several hours after the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Rotimi Akeredolu, was declared as the winner of the Ondo State governorship poll, the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alliance for Democracy and Social Democratic Party have neither conceded defeat nor congratulated him.

Apprentice absconds with employers children day after resumption

An apprentice, identified only as Grace, has allegedly absconded with the two children of her employer, Mrs. Suliyat Azeez, in the Okokomaiko area of Lagos State.

Lagos residents waste three of 10 years in traffic  Report
Workers in the company allege gross abuse of local laws and sharp practices being perpetrated by the Nigerian subsidiary of the company, Weatherford Nigeria, against them.

A source at the company, who spoke under condition of anonymity, said the firm has carried on with many anti-Nigerian policies such as mass sack on flimsy excuses and appointment of a foreigner as Country Manager in clear violation of Nigerian Local Content Act, which is one of the significant developments aimed at localizing management and control of oil and gas industry.

The source said apart from the fact that there were many qualified Nigerians capable of running the firm as Country Manager, the foreigner who was appointed, Manuel Hernandez from Venezuela, came into Nigeria via Business Visa and has been working as an expatriate without the necessary work permit.

Going down history of the firm, the source said a Nigerian, Femi Thomas was appointed as Country Manager of the company and was there for about two years before he was redeployed as Vice President for Africa, while another Nigerian, Femi Akarikiri was appointed to succeed him, only for the said Akarikiri to be demoted after just a year in office and replaced with Hernandez.

According to the source, The first issue is that this is not an industry where you can claim there are no qualified Nigerians for the job because oil and gas industry in Nigeria is fully sophisticated. Number two is that for the fact that you have had Nigerians in that position, the position has been nationalized and so you cannot go back and revert to say that you now need to bring an expatriate.

The third issue is that you lay off a lot of Nigerians because you claim the industry is bad and you have no money to pay but yet the question is how can you afford to pay expatriates if you have laid off Nigerians who earn a fraction of what the expatriates earn?

By the time you look at that picture, what you see is a company that does not have any commitment to Nigeria or any respect to the ideals of the country. They want to get paid, they want to drill for oil, they want to make money, but where is the growth for Nigerians in that process? The average Nigerian employee in the company earn less than $1,000 a month, but the average expatriate earns $20, 000 a month or more. How can you afford one expatriate if you lay off Nigerians on the basis that you cant afford to pay them, the source queried.

Already, the source said the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has been notified of the development, but that there was great need to raise alarm over mass sack of over 100 Nigerians and other deliberate plot of the company against Nigerians for prompt action by the Nigerian government and other key stakeholders.

Another credible source, who equally does not want to be named, said as part of the plot to sideline Nigerians from the management of the company, the said Akarikiri was demoted from Country Manager to sales role in a market where there is nothing to sell, adding that the development was purely orchestrated to eventually fire him.

He added that in another scheme to disguise the actual intention of sidelining Nigerians in the affairs of the company, a Nigerian who was on international assignment in Ivory Coast was brought in on the promise of being attached to the said Hernandez, but he was surprisingly moved to Port Harcourt and put in a lesser role from what he was doing in Ivory Coast.

He said the expatriates that were purportedly fired alongside Nigerians were offered jobs in other countries, while Nigerians were left with nothing.

The truth is this same company has been sued in the past by former directors for sham board practices and as we speak, there are a number of others contemplating suing them. Well meaning Nigerians should be careful of doing business with them and they should not be allowed to continue to benefit where they are shortchanging Nigerians," the source said.
The party, in a statement by its state Publicity Secretary, Mr Okelo Madukaife, described Akeredolus victory as prosperous for Ondo State and the people.

We have always pictured that victory was a whiff away for Ondo, for salaries of workers and for discipline in governance.

Our party chose the right candidate and as well had the right mission for governance.

We urge Akeredolu, in the spirit of our partys understanding of governance, to translate his campaign policies, particularly as they affect agriculture and other productive sectors that have been ignored before now.

The victory should stand as warning against the idea of profiting from factionalisation of political parties, it said.
According to a report by Leadership Newspaper, the National leader of the All Progressive Congress (APC), sent the message to Akeredolu on Sunday, November 27, 2016.

In a statement signed by his media aide, Tunde Rahman, Tinubu congratulated Akeredolu and the people of Ondo State.

The statement reads: "Following the announcement by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with regard to the governorship elections in Ondo State,

"I extend congratulations to Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu SAN on the outcome of the election and for his perseverance and persistence in seeking that office.

"I must also congratulate the people of Ondo State for their generally exemplary conduct on election day and for demonstrating their will to shun the regressive politics of yesterday by returning to the progressive brand of politics that has been the trademark of the people of that state.

"I congratulate all party members in the state, particularly the party leadership in the Southwest. He stated.

ALSO READ: Buhari felicitate with Akeredolu on victory
Dogara said this in his congratulatory message to Akeredolu on his victory at the Governor elect of Ondo state.

The Speaker also called on Akeredolu to ensure that he delivers the dividends of democracy to the people who voted him.

He also commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies for conducting a free and fair election in Ondo state.

ALSO READ:Group lauds INEC over successful polls

According to Punch, Dogara said The election of Akeredolu and the APC in Ondo State is a clear indication of the popularity of our political party.

I would like to congratulate my learned colleague on his victory, and also commend our great party, the All Progressives Congress, for a thorough and successful campaign.
The Senator, who was suspended recently by the Ogun state chapter of the PDP, said such action will fail.

Kashamu also said he is not afraid of any sanction because he knows he is fighting for the rights of the people.

According to Punch, he said No one should mistake the pronouncements of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court over the Ondo State PDP governorship ticket as their judgments on the partys national leadership crisis.

Kashamu said No one is afraid of any sanction so long as we know that we are fighting to protect the interest of our people.

A political party is a congregation of people with a common goal yet with various interests. In every political setting, people align and realign with the bloc or group where they feel their interest is better protected and guaranteed.

If your bloc or group wins, it does not mean you should seek to emasculate the other because you never can tell what would happen tomorrow.

I wish to advise that no one should mistake the verdicts of the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court over the Ondo State PDP governorship ticket as their pronouncements on the national leadership crisis.

They are two separate issues that I hope we can still resolve amicably. Anyone talking of sanctioning any member of the party for fighting to protect his interest does not wish the party well.

Is anyone saying that if tomorrow the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court rule in favour of any of the national leaders, he should send all those in support of the other out of the party when all the 36 states are polarised along the lines of Senators Sheriff and Makarfi? No. That is not the spirit of party politics and participatory democracy.
Frank made the comments after Anenih said, on Saturday, November 26, that he stopped former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar from becoming president.

Frank made his comments in a statement released on Sunday, November 27.

The statement reads:

It is high time Chief Anenih told the world the kind of legacy he is leaving behind in all his years in politics. Baba Anenihs desperation to remain in the corridors of power made him force former Goodluck Jonathan to run again in 2015 when he knew he [Jonathan] couldnt win.

Chief Tony Anenih has lost the moral right to talk about former Vice President Atiku Abubakar or any other Nigerian for that matter seeing that he is one of the reasons Nigeria and especially the Niger Delta region is where we are today.

What has Anenih done for the Niger Delta where he comes from? Instead of using his position to help the Niger delta and Nigeria at large to find lasting solutions to its numerous challenges, he chose to support third term agenda.

Under his watch as Minister of Works, N300bn disappeared into thin air. As NPA chairman, what positive contribution did he make for the benefit of Nigeria? Even in the South-South where Anenih comes from, Atiku a Northerner has touched peoples lives positively in terms of job employment more than Anenih will ever do in his life time.

Anenih is not called Mr. fixer for no reason, he helped put Nigeria and Nigerians in the fix we find ourselves today.
Speaking at the 50th-anniversary celebration of Ajayi Dahunsi Memorial Baptist Church, Ilasa, Lagos, he urged everyone to love one another, The Guardian reports.

According to him, there is no way Nigeria can be united without love, God's kind of love.

We need to go back to Gods kind of love. In love, there is no wickedness. There is no hatred. Love binds things together. We should not continue to emphasise things that divide us but things that unite us because we have no other land we call ours. We are to live together. This is not possible except by love", he said.

Ayokunle, who was the guest minister at the event, also addressed the recent killings in Southern Kaduna.

He said that these killings are carried out by known people, adding that these killings are a form of religious cleansing.

In his words, I saw people from Gidan Waya and Godogodo communities who have been displaced by the Fulani. Their villages have been taken over and the Fulani now live there. We see that as religion cleansing because the people of Godogodo and Gidan Waya are predominantly Christians. The Fulani, who are predominantly Muslims, are armed with guns, yet nobody is arresting them. This is most disturbing. I wonder why the government refers to people it knows as unknown gunmen.

The people that came to visit me on the issue at the National Christian Centre said they know the perpetrators and that they live among them. And when they left for Kaduna, they met seven of their community members in a pool of blood", he added.

The CAN president also called out to the government to do better at protecting its citizens.

We have a government. It should take action, rather than addressing the issue on television, claiming everything is in order when we know it isnt. The law enforcement agencies should not look the other way in Kaduna; they should care about the souls wasted daily, because none of them in government or uniform wants to be killed in the same manner. Government is to defend the people, protect them and give them opportunity," he stated.

ALSO READ: CAN calls for concerted efforts to stop killings in Kaduna

On November 25, 2016, at least four people were killed, while several houses were torched in a recent attack on Mile One and Paskori villages in Tafan District, in Jemaa Local Government Area of southern Kaduna State.
Immediately, the man who bears an uncanny resemblance to the popular depiction of Jesus Christ began to trend on Twitter with the hashtag, #Jesusinnairobi.

Unfortunately, not everyone was excited about this playful Internet trend as some people took to Jesus look-alike's Facebook account to send threats.

As a result, the Son of God look-alike, whose real name is Daniel Christos from Australia, posted a response via Facebook.

In his words, "I arrived in Kenya less than 2 weeks ago from Ethiopia and have been welcomed with so much enthusiasm like I've never experienced before in my life. In fact it's been so extreme that it's been a little overwhelming. Every single corner I walk on in Nairobi I have noticed someone either taking a photo or video while hundreds of times a day I hear people calling out "Jesus!". Kenyan people in general have been very friendly and loving. Until I find this photo of me circulating online. I feel a little concerned by this person's comments. I don't know who wrote it and I don't know if it was just a joke or if they were serous, but it has made me a little uncomfortable to walk in the streets of Nairobi.

I shouldn't have to respond to such close minded nonsense but a quick message to whoever posted the photo and comment... I AM NOT JESUS! I HAVE NEVER PRETENDED TO BE. I am a traveller who has come to your country as a visitor, i would hope that one day if Jesus does return you treat him with a little more respect than you have treated me.

To everyone else, you are a beautiful people, I love you!"

He also had an interview with local TV station, Kenya NTV.

In the interview, he reveals more about himself, his decision to walk barefoot, grow out his beard and hair.
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!
A drop in oil revenues prompted the draft law to end both early retirement and retirement after 32 years of contributions to a pension fund regardless of age.

Retirement age for all Algerians will be 60, under the reform due to come into force in January.

Protests have been banned in public places in Algeria since 2001.

Police arrested several demonstrators and tore up banners held up by trade unionists chanting the national anthem, the correspondent said.

"I was roughed up by police and wounded" above the eye, school director Abdelmalek Zegada said.

Protesters said that many others had been held up at security checkpoints outside the capital and prevented from joining the gathering.

"Police beat up teachers, doctors and workers," said Um Abdelkader, a teacher. "We're all shocked."

Opposition lawmaker Nadia Chouitem said she was sad to see "so much violence".

Fellow parliamentarian Smain Kouadria accused the state of sliding into the behaviour of a "totalitarian state" in the face of "legitimate" demands.
President Yahya Jammeh seized power in a 1994 coup and has targeted opponents and several of his own ministers, while surviving multiple attempts to remove him from power.

In the months prior to the December 1 vote, a former minister, an ex-ruling party MP and two journalists with the state broadcaster are among those who have been detained, often without a clear reason.

Jainaba Bah said she still doesn't know why her husband, former junior foreign affairs minister Mamadou Sajo Jallow, has been in custody since early September and denied access to a lawyer.

"My personal view is that he has been arrested because I have declared my support for the UDP (opposition party)," she told AFP by phone on Saturday from Sweden.

Her husband, a longtime ambassador to the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, was taken away by the security services on September 2 after his house was burgled and official documents taken.

But his family has been told he cannot be released until he produces a passport and collects signatures from various officials, tough conditions to meet while he is behind bars and his wife has fled to Sweden.

"I can't sleep," Bah said, describing the "whole range of things that might be possible from the stories I have heard about," referring to alleged abuses committed in The Gambia's notorious prisons.

Allegations of torture and rape, especially in Banjul's Mile Two prison, are common.

Isatou Touray, a leading women's rights campaigner and a member of the opposition coalition that is fielding a single candidate against Jammeh this election, says such arrests have become familiar.

"This has been the norm in the Jammeh regime. You can never predict whether a minister is going to be there for three months or even three days," she said at a rally in a village outside the capital.

"He is the alpha and omega of everything," she added.

Calls to the interior ministry by AFP about Jallow's case went unanswered on Sunday.

Opposition gaining confidence

Those who opt to leave the government are also at risk, especially deputies who have joined the Gambia Democratic Congress, a grouping of mostly former ruling party officials.

Tina Faal, formerly of the ruling Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction (APRC), was detained for three weeks in August despite already being on bail over a separate theft case. No reason was given for her re-arrest.

"They told us that they have documents they want to hand over to her. But they did not disclose their identities to us," a family source told AFP at the time of the men that descended on her home.

Meanwhile most of the top officials from the leading opposition United Democratic Party remain in jail, serving three-year sentences for holding protests.

They were arrested while calling for political reform on April 14 or at a subsequent demonstration over the death of UDP official Solo Sandeng in custody.

Touray, the women's rights campaigner, believes this has galvanised huge street rallies observed across the country, unprecedented in a nation where political expression is discouraged.

"The people can no longer tolerate the human rights abuses and all the difficulties that they are facing," Touray said.

For young Gambians, the wave of arrests has only pushed some closer to a confrontation with the authorities.

"Our leader Ousainou Darboe was picked up just metres away," said one young man openly wearing a T-shirt of the opposition coalition near a mosque in Banjul.

"I am standing here, so many people will be worried about me. They will be worried I will be picked up but I don't care about that anymore."

President Jammeh told UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to "go to hell" when he demanded an enquiry into deaths in custody in April, and has also described dying while being detained or during an interrogation as "really common".

Press freedom

Beyond the political sphere, journalists are also routinely arrested, with several detained during the sensitive weeks ahead of the election.

Momodou Sabally, the director-general of Gambia's state television and radio broadcaster, and his colleague Bakary Fatty were taken away earlier in November.

Sabally and Fatty broadcast images of the opposition when Jammeh's wife was due to appear, according to Human Rights Watch.

This week Sabally was charged with "economic crime", negligence of official duty, abuse of office and spreading false information.

The final charge, denounced as overly vague by rights activists, is often used against journalists.
A Police statement identified the men aged 31 to 59 as four Tongans, two Cook Islanders and a Samoan, who were part of New Zealands Pacific island population.

One of the men, Taulagi Afamasaga, 59, from Samoa was still missing, but was presumed drowned.

However, the search would continue for the missing man.

It said that the eighth man to die was skipper Bill McNatty.

Three men survived the accident after being thrown into rough seas, with two reportedly plucked from the water by a rescue helicopter and one making it to shore.

The Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) has launched an investigation into the cause of the accident, which happened on Saturday just outside the Kaipara Harbor, north of Auckland.

There are a number of people we need to interview, we also need to work around the family arrangements for those who lost their lives in this tragic accident.

This is not an easy time for those families, TAIC chief investigator Capt. Tim Burfoot said in a statement.

The group of 10 Pacific island men had reportedly hired McNatty and his charter boat, which was capable of carrying 20 people, for a fishing expedition.

Questions were being raised on Monday as to why none of the men were found to be wearing life jackets and why McNatty had decided to cross one of the most dangerous stretches of water in New Zealand in bad weather.

The Kaipara Harbour is said to be the largest natural harbour in the southern hemisphere.

However, shipping has been abandoned long ago, because the harbour entrance is notoriously dangerous and has claimed many wrecks.
"A group of armed men kidnapped yesterday three UNHCR workers, two Nepalese and a Sudanese, from Geneina," the capital of West Darfur state, state government spokesman Abdelah Mustafa told AFP.

"Police are searching for the kidnappers."

UNHCR officials were not immediately available for comment, but its spokesman in Khartoum told AFP by text message that a meeting was underway to discuss the "urgent incident".

A resident from Geneina told AFP that the gunmen came in a 4x4 vehicle.

"I saw some armed men ordering the three UN employees to get into their vehicle. They then drove off quickly," he said on condition of anonymity.

"The incident happened near the main mosque of Geneina," the resident said.

Darfur has been engulfed in a deadly conflict since 2003 when ethnic minority black tribes took up arms against President Omar al-Bashir's Arab-dominated government.

As part of its counter-insurgency strategy the government turned to "Janjaweed" militias recruited from Arab tribes, and who have since been incorporated into official paramilitary units.

Experts say that militias in search of resources often turn on each other, and sometimes against the government even as Khartoum insists that violence in Darfur has ebbed.

Sunday's abduction of UNHCR staffers is not the first in Darfur as several foreign and Sudanese aid workers have been abducted in the region over the years.

At least 300,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced in Darfur since the conflict first erupted in 2003, the UN says.
Assad's regime has in recent months been pressing a series of offensives to seize control of the devastated city's east, which has been in rebel hands since 2012.

The latest assault made a major breakthrough on Saturday when government forces seized the largest of the city's opposition-controlled neighbourhoods.

For Assad's regime, taking Aleppo would be "one of its greatest victories", Middle East expert Mathieu Guidere says, stressing the city's "extraordinary historical, political and geopolitical prestige".

"It was one of the first cities to be taken by the armed opposition," he adds.

Syria's former economic capital and industrial hub lies at a strategic commercial crossroads near the border with Turkey.

The city has been roughly divided since 2012 into a rebel-held east and a government-controlled west.

Fabrice Balanche, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, says the regime retaking east "Aleppo would be a turning point" as it would then control "the five largest cities in Syria".

Assad's forces already control the capital Damascus, the central cities of Homs and Hama and the coastal city of Latakia.

Bringing Aleppo under their control would also give regime forces a better chance at taking back the northwestern province of Idlib, which is almost entirely held by rebels and jihadists.

'Balance of power'

Bassam Abu Abdallah, an analyst close to the Damascus regime, says east Aleppo's fall would "tip the balance of power in the conflict".

Regime forces have since July 17 besieged east Aleppo, where some 250,000 civilians face severe food and fuel shortages and nearly all hospitals have been damaged by bombardment.

"The aim is to push these (rebel) groups towards a scenario like in Homs," Abu Abdallah says, referring to Syria's third city where rebels were defeated in 2014 after two years of regime siege and bombardment.

The current offensive will either lead to a truce or to rebels being evacuated towards other opposition-held areas in Syria, he says.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment of the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shells and barrel bombs.

Analysts say the relentless bombing also aims to push war-battered, hungry residents to turn against the armed opposition.

More than 4,000 civilians fled rebel-held districts into regime-held areas this weekend in the first exodus of the kind in east Aleppo since 2012.

Assad's regime "can only take back a territory if its population no longer backs the rebels", Balanche says.

The government regaining control of Aleppo would mark the end of fighting on a major battlefront in a war that has killed 300,000 people since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

Upper hand in talks

Rebels would then control pockets of territory only in the southern province of Daraa, the birthplace of the uprising, and near Damascus where they have lost their previous bastions of Daraya and Moadamiyeh al-Sham.

A defeat in Aleppo would mean rebel groups "are no longer able to maintain the population under their control or protect them", Guidere says.

Balanche says the insurgents losing Aleppo would show the "opposition is incapable of a major military success" and dash its hopes of presenting itself as a viable alternative to the Damascus regime.

Aleppo's fate will be key in any resumption of stalled peace talks to end the five-and-a-half-year war after three failed attempts at UN-brokered dialogue this year.

Guidere says the regime would have the upper hand and "tend to want to negotiate even less" if it seized east Aleppo.

US president-elect Donald Trump taking up office in less than two months' time and a possible subsequent change in American foreign policy could also give Assad the advantage.

If Damascus controls both the capital and Aleppo in January when Trump arrives in the White House, "he may say replacing the regime is categorically out of the question", Guidere says.
Hatice Kamer was detained on Saturday while reporting on a mine disaster in the Kurdish-dominated Siirt region of the southeast that left 11 miners dead and five missing, BBC Turkce (BBC Turkish) said in a statement on its website.

It said she had been held overnight at the Siirt police headquarters and was in a good condition. BBC Turkce added that there was still no explanation over why Kamer had been detained.

Kamer is a board member for the association of journalists in southeast Turkey. As well as BBC Turkce, she works for German broadcaster Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR).

BBC Turkce said that she had been looking to talk to relatives of the miners at the copper mine, which collapsed late on November 17. Rescue efforts are still continuing at the mine.

Dozens of journalists have been detained in Turkey under the state of emergency in the wake of the July 15 failed coup.

Critics say the scope of the crackdown goes far beyond measures against the suspected coup plotters and is targeting any critic of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

According to the Platform for Independent Journalism website, there are now 145 journalists behind bars in Turkey, which is ranked 151st of 180 countries in the 2016 World Press Freedom index published by Reporters Without Borders.
Viktor Yanukovych is standing as a witness in the court case of five Ukrainian riot police who are accused of opening fire at mostly unarmed people during the February 2014 revolution that turned the ex-Soviet republic toward the West.

Yanukovych himself stands accused of treason in Ukraine.

Monday's hearings were being held by video conference, with the Ukrainian prosecutor and the accused officers in Kiev and Yanukovych giving testimony in the southern Russian city of Rostov.

Yanukovych has passionately denied ordering the now-disbanded Berkut anti-riot police force to open fire on the protesters during three days of violence in the heart of Kiev that also killed around a dozen officers.

He began his testimony on Monday by accusing "the radicals of seizing power" and then "preparing to force their will on the people of the south and east who disagreed with what was happening in Kiev."

The industrial region is predominantly Russian speaking and often takes a more sceptical view of both the European Union and the United States.

The protests began in November 2013 in response to Yanukovych's abrupt decision to scrap a landmark pact with the EU in favour of closer Russia ties.

Ukraine has since signed the EU trade and political association agreement and blamed Russia for plotting and backing the war in reprisal for Kiev's shift out of the Kremlin's orbit.

Russia denies the charge and accuses the US State Department of stoking the protests and trying to win over Ukraine.

But debates in Kiev rage mostly over who was responsible for the worst carnage in Ukraine since World War II. Both the protesters and the police accuse each other of opening the fire.

jpegMpeg4-1280x720A 2015 BBC documentary strongly suggested that a far-right fringe element of the protest group shot at the police in order to provoke a response and make the Berkut seem responsible for the resulting deaths.

Ukraine strongly denies the claim.
Envoy Ould Cheikh Ahmed said he was heading to Riyadh and Kuwait "to prepare for a new round" of talks, as he left Muscat late Saturday after discussions with representatives of Yemen's Shiite Huthi rebels and their allies.

Riyadh has been the base of Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi since the rebels forced him to flee his country in March 2015 and prompted Saudi Arabia to lead an Arab coalition in a military campaign against the insurgents.

The UN envoy was to meet Hadi "within two days" in the southern Yemeni city of Aden to receive the government's response to his peace proposals, Foreign Minister Abdel Malek al-Mekhlafi told AFP.

Hadi flew to Aden on Saturday for a surprise visit to the port city which is serving as Yemen's temporary capital since coalition-backed loyalists recaptured it from the rebels.

Ould Cheikh Ahmed, quoted by Oman's official ONA news agency, said he found "a lot of seriousness" in talks with representatives of the Huthis and their allies from the party of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

The envoy also said he had been in contact with US Secretary of State John Kerry who "sees a historic chance to achieve peace in Yemen".

A previous round of peace talks held in Kuwait collapsed in August.

A 48-hour ceasefire declared by the coalition ended last Monday with little success in reducing violence in the war-torn country.

Both parties traded blame for the numerous violations of the ceasefire that came into effect after Kerry intervened.

It was the latest international attempt to end a conflict which the United Nations says has killed more than 7,000 people and wounded nearly 37,000 since March last year.

The Huthis overran the capital Sanaa and other parts of the impoverished country in September 2014.

A Yemeni official said Sunday 12 civilians were killed when a coalition air strike hit two makeshift wooden houses sheltering displaced families in the western province of Hodeida.

The official said the raid late on Saturday had apparently targeted the two houses "mistakenly", adding that a rebel position 300 metres (yards) away was untouched.

The coalition has been strongly criticised over the high number of civilians killed in its air strikes.

In northwest Yemen, the sources said, 40 soldiers and 22 rebels have been killed since Friday in heavy clashes for control of a road linking the Red Sea port city of Midi and nearby Haradh.

Elsewhere, two women were killed in rebel bombing of the southwestern city of Taez, military officials said.
No fewer than nine people were injured on Monday, November 28, after a shooting at Ohio State University, with the Columbus campus still on lockdown and on alert, multiple reports said.

According to the school those hurt in the attack were injured by methods including stabbing and by motor vehicle, Wall Street Journal reports.

The universitys emergency management service earlier urged students and staff to shelter in place.

"Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College," the service said in a tweet.

"Continue to shelter in place. Avoid area of College," another tweet from the service said.
Trump, in a series of tweets on the recount, condemned Clintons support to the votes recount efforts by Green Party nominee Jill Stein for Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Stein has raised over six million dollars crowd-funding in hopes of securing a recount in the three key states won by Trump in the Nov. 8 presidential poll.

The Democrats, when they incorrectly thought they were going to win, asked that the election night tabulation be accepted. Not so anymore!

Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in, he said.

Trump recalled Clintons reaction when he hinted at the third and last presidential debate that he would keep Americans guessing over whether he would accept the election outcome.

That is horrifying. That is not the way our democracy works; been around for 240 years. Weve had free and fair elections.

Weve accepted the outcomes when we may not have liked them, and that is what must be expected of anyone standing on during a general election.

I, for one, am appalled that somebody that is the nominee of one of our two major parties would take that kind of position, he quoted Clinton as saying.

Trump said Clinton also, at a campaign rally, slammed him, saying: He said something truly horrifying  he refused to say that he would respect the results of this election.

That is a direct threat to our democracy.

The president-elect further quoted Clintons concession speech where she urged her supporters to accept the result of the election.

We have to accept the results and look to the future, Donald Trump is going to be our President.

We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead, he quoted Clinton as saying.

Trump said in the votes recount efforts in the three states, money and time would be wasted.

So much time and money will be spent  same result! Sad.

Trump, who trails Clinton with about two million popular votes, claimed that he won the popular votes, alleging that millions of people voted illegally.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally

It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in three or four states instead of the 15 states that I visited.

I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!

He also alleged voter fraud in favour of Clinton in other states, which were not reported.
The name of Douglas Elmendorf will not likely be immediately recognizable to every reader.

The name of Douglas Elmendorf will not likely be immediately recognizable to every reader.

Hes one of the people who make government work  a bureaucrat. At the moment he heads the Congressional Budget Office. And his current situation gives us an idea of what we are getting for our money from putting the Republicans back in power.

The conservative magazine National Review recently quoted Gregory Mankiw, who chaired the Council of Economic Advisers under George W. Bush, about Elmendorf: Someone recently said to me that the CBO director is not really a player in the political game. He is more like the referee. That analogy sheds light on why Doug is the right person for the job. What do you want in a good referee? Competence and impartiality. Doug has demonstrated both. He is a superb economist and, over the past six years as CBO director, has shown himself to be scrupulously nonpartisan.

For instance, when President Clinton proposed a health care reform program in the early 1990s, a panel of which Elmendorf was a part provided budget estimates showing that the program would cost more than Clinton claimed. It helped undercut the credibility of the Clinton plan and helped lead to its defeat by Congress.

The Congressional Budget Office, which Elmendorf directs, provides Congress with estimates of the cost of legislation. The CBO is one of several rare agencies in D.C. that the two parties have normally treated as sacrosanct  agencies with bipartisan legislative oversight that are expected to give Congress information it can trust. Besides CBO there are the Joint Committee on Taxation and Government Accountability Office.

Many measures that Congress processes come with price tags. Congress needs to know how much these bills will cost before they vote on them. The CBO estimates those costs for Congress.

Elmendorf is an opponent of something called dynamic scoring, which is basically adjusting estimates of the cost of legislation up or down to accommodate political interests. The sponsor of a bill would want the estimate to be fairly low. Its critics would want a high estimate. Dynamic scoring would taint the traditional trustworthy reputation of CBO.

Republicans, fresh off their election victory, are blocking Elmendorf from being reappointed director of CBO because of his opposition to dynamic scoring.

Interestingly, this is a problem Nevada has faced in the past. At one time, the job of estimating the cost of state programs belonged to the governors budget office. As a result, when a governor proposed a new or expanded program (or even a reduced program), he also controlled the budget estimates, and frustrated state legislators were often angered by governors who adjusted their estimates to get the program approved by the legislature. By the time the estimates proved flawed, the program was already operating and the lawmakers had to make sense of it by allocating additional funds.

For instance, at the 1985 Nevada Legislature, Gov. Richard Bryan proposed raising the payment level of Aid to Dependent Children. As it happened, the welfare division, which administered the program, had told the governors budget office that the monthly recipient level would likely be 15,400 a month, but the governors budget estimated a caseload of 13,500.

The legislature trusted the governors estimate and six months into the new budget, the program was running a deficit of a million dollars a month. Nevadas lawmakers eventually created the state Economic Forum, made up of tax and economic experts, to give independent budget estimates to the legislature so the lawmakers need not rely on the governor, at least on the broad revenue figures. Thats essentially what the Congressional Budget Office does  provide reliable estimates that do not tailor figures to the needs of partisan leaders.

That the new Republican majority is seeking to get rid of a figure who has a reputation for standing up to budget tampering is alarming. In 2002 and thereafter, a GOP presidential administration ordered up intelligence claims like they were ordering burgers and fries at a driveup window and got us into an unnecessary war.

Now Republicans in Congress want a CBO chief from whom they can order whatever estimates can be tailored to their partisan needs.

Dennis Myers is an award winning journalist who has reported on Nevadas capital, government and politics for several decades. He has also served as Nevadas chief deputy secretary of state.
The Family Museum will hold its annual WinterFest from noon-5 p.m. Dec. 4. Each family participating will receive one free photo with Santa, courtesy of Walgreens on Devils Glen in Bettendorf. Admission is free with the donation of a nonperishable food item or monetary donation to a local food pantry. Holiday displays include a 300-square foot train set, and a Silvestri Art Manufacturing Company-designed holiday scene that was displayed the former Petersen Harden Von Maur store windows in Davenport.
Caretakers of the historic Butterworth Center mansion in Moline have begun a leaded glass restoration project that also is providing a learning experience for students at the Davenport Community School District's Creative Arts Academy.

An 11-foot window that was part of a 1917 remodeling project at the mansion was beginning to bow because the lead that holds individual glass panes in place sags with time.

The window is being restored at Glass Heritage, 3113 Hickory Grove Road, Davenport, and the process is being documented by 10 juniors and seniors under the direction of Clint Balsar, visual and communication/media arts teacher.

"I call this project-based learning," Balsar said. "They will work harder on this than anything else, and it is something they will remember forever. It is real. It is a real client with real deadlines. It's an authentic educational moment."

The students have designated jobs  director, assistant director, camera operators, audio engineer and grips who haul the equipment.

The equipment  which Balasar described as "not very public school traditional"  was purchased through a grant from the Scott County Regional Authority. It includes quality cameras, recorders and wireless microphones.

The biggest challenge is the scheduling  getting students from one place to another. "It takes the traditional school day and sets it on its ear," Balsar said.

The idea of involving students came from Gretchen Frick Small, Butterworth Center's program director. She wanted to document the project for the center's archives, and the collaboration would be a way of furthering the center's mission of education.

Not only are the students learning how to create a documentary, they are seeing "another type of job in the art field  glass restoration," she said.

The window with a colored glass depiction of a kneeling knight in the upper center is expected to be finished next month.

It is the first of many that will be reworked. "We're going to do about seven windows a year for five to eight years," Small said.

The Butterworth Center mansion at 1105 8th St. was built in 1892 for Katherine and William Butterworth. Katherine was the granddaughter of John Deere, for whom the multinational corporation is named, and William was the third president of Deere & Co.

In 1951, Katherine established a trust called the William Butterworth Foundation to maintain the home after her death as a place where artistic, charitable, cultural and educational area nonprofit groups could meet for free.
Clinton police continued Sunday to investigate an unattended boat recovered by a barge crew.

Police went to the scene of a barge docking area Saturday at the 1500 block of South 2nd Street, where a recovered boat had no occupants. A search for missing persons was conducted but stopped when it grew dark.

The search resumed from 8:30 a.m. until 4 p.m. Sunday.

Assisting Clinton police were Clinton, Fulton, Illinois and Camanche, Iowa fire departments, Clinton County Emergency Management, Emergency K-9 Operation  Search and Rescue, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and Big River Rescue out of the Quad-Cities.

Many local businesses provided refreshments of volunteer search-and-rescue workers.

Anyone with information about the investigation should contact Clinton police at 563-243-1458.
After eight years as chair of the Scott County Republican Party, Judy Davidson will not seek another term.

Davidson said she will remain on the Iowa GOP State Central Committee but will turn over day-to-day operations of the county party to a successor, who is expected to be chosen in late January. County chairs serve two-year terms.

In an interview Tuesday, Davidson said the chair's duties are many and, especially during election years, they take up more than a 40 hours a week -- quite a commitment for an unpaid position.

"I want to be able to go on a vacation," Davidson said with a laugh, adding she wants to volunteer in other parts of the community, not just in the political realm.

Davidson concedes she does, in fact, take vacations. But, often, they're working breaks that still involve checking email and responding to concerns. At home, she said, it is not unusual to rise at 2 a.m. to deal with a party matter. Davidson, who likes to chart party progress by citing arcane voting and registration statistics, is known to dwell on details.

Since taking the reins in 2009, she has led a party that has strengthened its organization and profile. Its fall fundraising dinner, named after Ronald Reagan, is a must-attend for elected officials across the state and frequently draws hundreds of guests and top-flight political names. Mitt Romney, Marco Rubio and, most recently, Vice President-elect Mike Pence have been guests at the dinner.

In the interview, Davidson praised volunteers and core staffers, who also are unpaid, for working together to help the lift the county party.

On the heels of a successful election cycle for the GOP in general, Davidson said this week, the local party is stronger financially, as well as organizationally. Nearly all of its precinct posts are filled. The county party also has narrowed the Scott County Democrats' registration edge from roughly 8,500 in 2008 to 4,400 currently.

Iowa's larger counties are often a challenge for Republicans, and Scott County is no different. The county's Statehouse delegation is mixed. Also, Scott County hasn't voted for a Republican for president in decades. And even with Donald Trump's victory across Iowa, Hillary Clinton won Scott County (something Davidson said will continue to gnaw at her). Still, it was only by about 1,200 votes, far less than the 12,000-vote win President Obama scored here four years ago.

Jeff Kaufmann, the Iowa GOP chair, said that of the state's larger counties, Scott County presents more opportunities for Republicans than others.

"A large part of that has been enhanced because of Judy Davidson," he said. He noted that he appointed Davidson to lead a panel to review its caucus procedures, as well as party rules extending from the caucuses to the conventions.

Davidson thought about stepping down four years ago, but stayed on after Gov. Terry Branstad asked her. She and other party leaders faced down a challenge from insurgents in 2013, a reflection of the split in the state party at the time.

Davidson declined Tuesday to say who might be interested in running to replace her as county party chair in January.

A nominations committee, which will report to the party's central committee, is taking nominations for chair and other executive positions through Dec. 20. The group will then make recommendations to the central committee, though anybody can place their name in nomination at the central committee meeting, which will be Jan. 30.
Clinton police identified on Monday two men reported missing over the weekend after an unattended boat was recovered by a barge crew.

According to a news release from Police Chief Kevin Gyrion, the missing men are Tyler Steeg, 22, and Keegan Rasmussen, 22, both of Clinton.

Police went to the scene of a barge docking area Saturday at the 1500 block of South 2nd Street, where a recovered boat had no occupants. A search for missing persons was conducted but stopped when it grew dark.

The search resumed Sunday and again Monday, though on Monday Capt. Steven Kopp said officials were treating the operation as a "search and recovery," he said.

The Clinton Fire Department was on the river Monday conducting a surface search and will continue this week as weather conditions permit. The incident remains under investigation.

Assisting Clinton police were Clinton, Fulton, Illinois and Camanche, Iowa fire departments, Clinton County Emergency Management, Emergency K-9 Operation  Search and Rescue, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and Big River Rescue out of the Quad-Cities.

Anyone with information about the investigation should contact Clinton police at 563-243-1458.
Officers were on scene Monday at the Kraft Heinz plant construction site in north Davenport to investigate possible theft, police Capt. Brent Biggs said.

Officers were dispatched around 8:18 a.m. to the Kraft plant construction site, 2300 Slopertown Road. Over the weekend, several construction trailers were broken into, Biggs said.

Although some of the trailers were broken into, nothing appeared to be taken, Biggs said, adding it was unknown Monday afternoon what was actually missing until inventories are conducted.

Kraft Heinz announced plans a year ago to build a new facility in the Eastern Iowa Industrial Center in north Davenport.

Progress has continued this month on construction of the $203 million facility, with the city of Davenport contributing $10 million over 15 years through tax increment financing. The facility will replace an aged plant on Rockingham Road in Davenport.
As a member of the U.S. Army, Leonard Chubb repaired helicopters in Vietnam from June 1968 to June 1970.

He came home and became the owner and operator of Chubb Water Wells Inc. in Crawford, Neb., about 100 miles south of Rapid City.

But his time spent in Vietnam plagued him physically for the rest of his life, including a rare fatal liver cancer that the Department of Veterans Affairs refused to say was connected to his military service in Asia.

After fighting health problems related to the defoliant Agent Orange for several years, including having stents placed in his heart twice, hepatitis C and diabetes, things later became even more serious.

In March 2013, doctors from the Department of Veterans Affairs diagnosed Chubb with liver cancer and booked him to see an oncologist for an appointment two months later.

Chubbs wife, Becky, said her husband was feeling run down and had little energy, but still had enough fire to hound the VA until it agreed to send him to the Minneapolis VA. That facility sent him on to the Mayo Clinic to determine if he was eligible for a liver transplant.

A transplant wasnt an option, however, until the cause of Chubbs liver cancer could be determined.

Back at the VA, a doctor from Asia diagnosed his liver cancer as stage four cholangiocarcinoma, prevalent in the doctors native Thailand.

There was no cure.

Cholangiocarcinoma is caused by parasites from raw or poorly cooked fish that live in a persons bile duct, sometimes for decades before any problems arise. The parasites, if discovered early, can be killed with medication, but left untreated, the body attempts to wall off the organisms, causing inflammation and scarring.

By the time symptoms begin  including jaundice, itchy skin and weight loss  most patients are only months from death.

An Associated Press story published this year on Veterans Day said the VA acknowledges that about 700 patients have been diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma over the past 15 years. Claims by more than 300 of those veterans have been rejected, mainly because the VA requires proof that the illness is as likely as not linked to their time in the service.

Chubb had a drain tube inserted to his bile duct and was sent home from Minneapolis. During a return trip two months later, doctors inserted a new drain tube and sent him home with orders for chemotherapy to slow down the cancer.

He died Nov. 23, 2013. His wife wants to get the word out about his illness in case anyone else may be suffering in the same way.

Leonard had to stop working in his last month and received disability from the VA for Agent Orange-related illnesses, but even on his death certificate, it does not say cholangiocarcinoma, Becky said. This is a disease that has got to be acknowledged, and the veterans need to be made aware so they can get pre-screened for this. These guys, who served their country with no questions asked, being told they have to wait months to be seen by a doctor is just not right.
General from Federal Guard Service appeals his detention in bribery case

Context Russian Federal Guard Service General arrested on suspicion of law violations

MOSCOW, November 28 (RAPSI) - General Gennady Lopyrev, who heads the Federal Guard Service (FSO) in Caucasus region, has appealed his detention amid bribery allegations, Lopyrev's lawyer Ruslan Zakolyuzhny told RAPSI on Monday.

The lawyer wants Lopyrev who pleads not guilty to be placed under house arrest.

Lopyrev was arrested on Friday following an internal check conducted in the FSO units in Caucasus region. Later in the evening, the 94th Garrison Military Court ruled to put him in detention until January 23.

Investigators claim that Lopyrev took bribes from businessmen for protection during signing and execution of government contracts on construction and repair works.

Russian media outlets reported earlier that the case may be connected with the construction of the Olympic venues in Sochi.
Ukraines Prosecutor General accuses former president Yanukovych of treason

MOSCOW, November 28 (RAPSI) - Ukraines Prosecutor General Yury Lutsenko on Monday accused former president Victor Yanukovych of treason claiming that he was involved in violation of the countrys territorial integrity.

Lutsenko made this statement prior to the beginning of the ex-presidents interrogation in connection with killing demonstrators during the protests in central Kiev in 2014.

Moreover, Lutsenko said that Yanukovych is liable for a 1.8 trillion hryvnia damage (about $70 billion) caused to Ukraine.

The case against 'Berkut' riot police officers is pending in the Svyatoshinsky District Court of Kiev. Yanukovych who has been living in Russia since escaping Ukraine agreed to testify by video-link from the Rostov Regional Court. The questioning had to begin on November 25 but was adjourned.

The political crisis erupted in Ukraine in late November 2013 after the government announced that it had halted the countrys association with the European Union. Protests, called Euromaidan, swept across the country and led to violent clashes between armed activists and law enforcement officers in late 2013 and early 2014.

Fighting between radical anti-government protesters and police culminated in mass riots on February 18, 2014.

On February 20, fire was opened on protestors. Over 100 people died those days on both sides, according to RIA Novosti.

Ukraine's authorities claim 'Berkut' officers to be blamed for the shootings.

Russia says that militants of Right Sector, a far-right Ukrainian group banned in Russia, may have been behind the attack.

Ukraine went through a regime change on February 22, when President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country and Euromaidan activists rose to power in Kiev.

In early 2015, it was reported that the Ukrainian Prosecutor Generals Office brought charges against Yanukovych in absentia and addressed Russia with a request to extradite the former president. Yanukovych is suspected of organizing a criminal group, abuse of power, embezzling state property and other offenses. The Russian Ministry of Justice then claimed he had not received any documents on extraditing Yanukovych to Kiev.

On June 6, Russia declined to extradite Yanukovych, the Prosecutor Generals Offices spokesman Alexander Kurennoy told journalists.

A motion for provisional arrest and detention of Yanukovych filed by Ukraine was considered and dismissed in accordance with Article 3 (Political offences) of the 1957 European Convention on Extradition, he said. Ukrainian authorities were informed about this decision, Kurennoy added.




Yanukovych says he did not give order to shoot at protesters in 2014

MOSCOW, November 28 (RAPSI)  Former Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych said he did not give order to law enforcers to use fire arms against protesters when testifying about the events in Kiev in late 2013 and early 2014.

According to Yanukovych, everything was being done to reach a compromise with protesters, who gathered on Kievs central square Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square).

The bloodshed had been provoked by radicals manipulated by others, Yanukovych stated.

The Ukrainian ex-President testifies via a video link in a criminal case against former Berkut riot police officers (the unit was disbanded in February 2014) examined by a Kiev district court.

The Ukrainian Prosecutor Generals Office suspects Yanukovych of the same crimes allegedly committed by former Berkut officers; however, his case is subject to separate criminal proceedings.

Speaking during a break in hearings on Monday, Ukraines Prosecutor General Yury Lutsenko accused former president Victor Yanukovych of treason claiming that he was involved in violation of the countrys territorial integrity.

Moreover, Lutsenko said that Yanukovych is liable for a 1.8 trillion hryvnia damage (about $70 billion) caused to Ukraine.

The political crisis erupted in Ukraine in late November 2013 after the government announced that it had halted the countrys association with the European Union. Protests, called Euromaidan, swept across the country and led to violent clashes between armed activists and law enforcement officers in late 2013 and early 2014.

Fighting between radical anti-government protesters and police culminated in mass riots on February 18, 2014.

On February 20, fire was opened on protestors. Over 100 people died those days on both sides, according to RIA Novosti.

Ukraine's authorities claim 'Berkut' officers to be blamed for the shootings.

Russia says that militants of Right Sector, a far-right Ukrainian group banned in Russia, may have been behind the attack.

Ukraine went through a regime change on February 22, when President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country and Euromaidan activists rose to power in Kiev.

In early 2015, it was reported that the Ukrainian Prosecutor Generals Office brought charges against Yanukovych in absentia and addressed Russia with a request to extradite the former president. Yanukovych is suspected of organizing a criminal group, abuse of power, embezzling state property and other offenses. The Russian Ministry of Justice then claimed he had not received any documents on extraditing Yanukovych to Kiev.

On June 6, Russia declined to extradite Yanukovych, the Prosecutor Generals Offices spokesman Alexander Kurennoy told journalists.

A motion for provisional arrest and detention of Yanukovych filed by Ukraine was considered and dismissed in accordance with Article 3 (Political offences) of the 1957 European Convention on Extradition, he said. Ukrainian authorities were informed about this decision, Kurennoy added.
Yanukovych summoned for questioning as suspect in shooting of protestors in 2014

MOSCOW, November 28 (RAPSI)  Former Ukrainian president Victor Yanukovych has been summoned to the Chief Military Prosecutor's Office for questioning on December 5 as a suspect in the case over using fire arms against protesters in Kiev in late 2013 and early 2014, the Prosecutor Generals Office of Ukraine announced on its website on Monday.

The Ukrainian prosecutors suspect Yanukovych of the same crimes allegedly committed by former Berkut officers; however, his case is subject to separate criminal proceedings.

The political crisis erupted in Ukraine in late November 2013 after the government announced that it had halted the countrys association with the European Union. Protests, called Euromaidan, swept across the country and led to violent clashes between armed activists and law enforcement officers in late 2013 and early 2014.

Fighting between radical anti-government protesters and police culminated in mass riots on February 18, 2014.

On February 20, fire was opened on protestors. Over 100 people died those days on both sides, according to RIA Novosti.

Ukraine's authorities claim 'Berkut' officers to be blamed for the shootings.

Russia says that militants of Right Sector, a far-right Ukrainian group banned in Russia, may have been behind the attack.

Ukraine went through a regime change on February 22, when President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country and Euromaidan activists rose to power in Kiev.

In early 2015, it was reported that the Ukrainian Prosecutor Generals Office brought charges against Yanukovych in absentia and addressed Russia with a request to extradite the former president. Yanukovych is suspected of organizing a criminal group, abuse of power, embezzling state property and other offenses. The Russian Ministry of Justice then claimed he had not received any documents on extraditing Yanukovych to Kiev.

On June 6, Russia declined to extradite Yanukovych, according to the Prosecutor Generals Offices spokesman Alexander Kurennoy.

A motion for provisional arrest and detention of Yanukovych filed by Ukraine was considered and dismissed in accordance with Article 3 (Political offences) of the 1957 European Convention on Extradition, he told journalists. Ukrainian authorities were informed about this decision, Kurennoy added.
Russia to ratify treaty on mutual assistance in criminal matters with North Korea

MOSCOW, November 28 (RAPSI)  President Vladimir Putin has submitted an agreement on mutual legal assistance in criminal matters between the Russian Federation and the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea to the State Duma for ratification.

The agreement was signed in Pyongyang on November 17, 2015 with an aim to develop the international legal framework of cooperation between Russia and North Korea in this area.

According to the explanatory note attached to the document, the parties commit to provide legal assistance to each other in investigations, litigations, and other legal proceedings relating to criminal matters on the reciprocal basis and subject to the compliance with the treatys provisions.

The note points out that the treaty introduces rules different from those set in the Russian legislation. The treaty envisages that assistance can be denied in case the provision thereof infringes on sovereignty, security, public order or other material interests of the requested party. Russias Criminal Code does not contain this ground for denying legal assistance.

Besides, the treaty envisages rules regulating basic human and civil rights, among them guarantees to requested persons. Therefore, the treaty is subject to ratification.
KHARTOUM: Unidentified gunmen have kidnapped three workers from the United Nations refugee agency in Sudans restive Darfur region, a local official told Reuters on Monday.

The three workers, one Sudanese and two Nepalis, were kidnapped from Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state and were taken to an unknown location, said West Darfur government spokesman Abdallah Gar al-Nabi.

Security forces were working to retrieve them and locate the culprits, he added. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) declined to comment.
Kathmandu, Nepal: In a dramatic move, coordinator of Naya Shakti Nepal, Baburam Bhattarai and Chairman of Federal Socialist Forum- Nepal (FSF-N) Upendra Yadav have stood in a same ground over the issue of constitution amendment proposal that is being tabled in the parliament by the government within few days.

Both Bhattrai and Yadav have issued a joint statement on Monday stating that their serious attention has been drawn toward the constitution amendment proposal forwarded by the government.

The joint statement is taken importantly as it is issued in the mean time when there was a speculation that both Bhattrai led Naya Shakti Nepal and Yadav led FSF-N are going to be united for a single party.

Our serious attention has been drawn toward the amendment proposal and we have a demand that amendment should end the existing prevailing discriminations on the basis of caste, class, culture, language, religion, region and sex, reads the statement.

The constitution should be amended by guaranteeing federalism with federal rights, states the statement. The demand of guaranteeing federalism with federal rights is taken importantly though it is not specified in the statement.

Earlier, some Madhes based parties had demanded that the federal state should have the right even to be separated from the state.

Autonomy, self-governance, federal judiciary, fully proportional parliament, directly-elected President, proportional representation in state mechanisms, multi-language policy and many others should be guaranteed while amending the constitution, reads the statement.

If the constitution is amended excluding the issues, the current problems of the country would not be resolved, the two leaders have said. Any other move except our demands will drive the country toward conflict, confusion and instability instead of peace, development and stability, reads the statement.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat

KATHMANDU: Minister for Foreign Affairs Prakash Sharan Mahat on Monday held a meeting with his New Zealand counterpart Murray McCully, in Wellington, New Zealand on Monday.

The two ministers were engaged in an hour-long talk in the first ministerial level meeting between the two countries.

Minister Mahat expressed that they had an interesting and important talk.

Mahat further informed that they had discussions related to extension of mutual relations, cooperation, aid, educational grants among others.

According to Mahat, the New Zealand Minister said he could help Nepal by providing educational grant and scholarship and also help in animal farming, agriculture and dairy industry in the country.

During the meeting, Foreign Minister McCully said New Zealand was also interested in investing and cooperating in hydropower in Nepal.

Meanwhile, Mahat drew McCullys attention to a problem of Nepalis that they needed to go to India to get visas of New Zealand.

In response, McCully answered that his country would cooperate with Australia in this regard.RSS
Kathmandu, Nepal: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the only constitutional right watchdog of the country, has on Monday urged the Nepal government to save the life of agitating senior orthopedic surgeon of the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital (TUTH) Dr Govinda KC.

Issuing a press statement, the NHRC has urged the government to address the demands of Dr. KC through the talks. The government should be sensitive towards protecting ones life notwithstanding the form of protest, The NHRC has stated in the statement.

The NHRC has made the urge in the mean time when Dr. KCs fast-into death strike has entered into 15th day on Monday. The government had formed a talk team on Saturday, but the team has did nothing to end the strike despite meeting with the talk team formed on behalf of Dr. KC.

The Commission has closely been monitoring the health status of Dr KC, ; a letter was also written to the Ministry of Health on Sunday urging to pay attention to his health condition, the NHRC has stated in the statement.

The NHRC has also stated further in the statement that its monitoring found that the striking doctors heartbeat is fluctuating and immune power is also decreasing.
Kathmandu, Nepal: As the talks between the government team and the team formed on behalf of senior professor at the Institute of Medicine (IoM) Dr. Govinda KC bear no fruits on Sunday, talks is being continued on Monday as well.

The governments talk team headed by Shanta Bahadur Shrestha, secretary at the Ministry of Education, and Dr Senendra Raj Uprety, secretary at the Ministry of Health and the team formed on behalf of Dr KC under the leadership of Dr Jivan Kshetry, which includes Dr Leison Maharjan, Dr YP Singh, Dr Ranjan Sapkota and Dr Sagar Pokhrel held talks about six hours on Sunday.

But, the talks bear no fruit after government team did not agreed on the demands forwarded by Dr. KC including the demand of resignation of the vice-chancellor of Tribhuvan University and the IoM dean.

Though the condition of Dr KC is worsening day by day, the government team has been insisting that they are not in position to address the demands put forth by Dr. KC.

Dr. KCs hunger strike has entered on 16th day on Monday. This is 10th fast-unto-death strike of Dr. KC demanding reform in the medical sector.


Financial Review

Rodrigo Duterte has done what his predecessors have failed to do. EUGENE HOSHIKO

Kavi Chongkittavorn Over the coming weeks, the transitional foreign policy team of Donald Trump has to make a crucial decision: will the president-elect attend next November's ASEAN-US Summit in Manila? Mr Trump's decision will have far-reaching repercussions for US policy in Asia. It will also affect the Philippines, the current ASEAN chair and America's oldest ally in the region. If everything goes according to plan, Mr Trump will travel to Southeast Asia to take part in the summit. Mr Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, has used this platform and related summits during his two terms to strengthen ties with ASEAN. The grouping has been seen as a fulcrum around which the global powers can meet and network both formally and informally. This year's summit in February was an extraordinary event, and became a symbol of Obama's successful engagement with ASEAN leaders. His "pivot" policy has also augmented the US's commitment to peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. by

A Chinese missile frigate during exercises in the South China Sea. Maritime disputes with Beijing are being dealt with bilaterally. AP

By attending the Philippines-hosted ASEAN-US Summit, the new US administration would also send a strong signal that Washington still values strategic and security ties with Manila. President Rodrigo Duterte has suggested several times in recent months that he would like his country to distance itself from the US. He also says he wants to scale down the scope of joint US-Philippines military exercises, and even scrap the new agreement on enhanced security cooperation concluded last year under the Aquino administration.

If the new US president decides to skip the trip next November and focuses instead on domestic or other issues, the ASEAN-US relationship will quickly deteriorate as other major powers compete for influence in Asia. Most importantly, Trump will miss the opportunity to meet with other leaders from East Asia, who will join the leaders-only security forum known as the East Asia Summit (EAS). After the EAS expanded in 2011 to include the US and Russia, the former has dominated the agenda, pushing strategic issues such as counter-terrorism and climate change. In recent months, the regional political and security landscape has shifted in response to growing anxieties about the new direction of US politics. Any indication that the US is paying less attention to the region would severely damage its credibility. Regional Security Without Trump, other EAS leaders will fill the vacuum and set the EAS agenda, especially on issues related to a new regional security architecture. It is an open secret that China and Russia are actively promoting their own comprehensive security arrangements.

After Mr Duterte's visit to Beijing last month, the Philippines' relationship with China has improved dramatically. This is despite the July decision by The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration on the South China Sea. Neither side discussed the verdict during the visit; instead they chose to dwell on the future of trade, investment and joint cooperation and development in the disputed maritime areas. By addressing maritime disputes bilaterally with China, Mr Duterte has done what his predecessors have failed to do: return to ASEAN's long-held position that territorial battles must be settled bilaterally and that other aspects of joint cooperation can be engaged with under the framework of the ASEAN-China relationship. Salt to the wound Adding salt to the wound, the expected demise of the Trans-Pacific Partnership , a US-led high-end free trade agreement, has demoralised its Asian signatories, especially the four ASEAN members - Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia and Singapore - who placed their faith in the US economy.
China is making sure that the world knows what it can do. It has test-fired a giant missile while the United States sent 700 naval patrols to South China Sea. Will the United States and China face off in the next WW3?

China has become the most recent country to test fire its hypersonic missile. According to reports, a Chinese J-16 strike fighter fired the giant missile earlier this month. The long-range test reportedly destroyed the target drone successfully.

China Fires Hypersonic Missile

According to the Daily Mail , experts looked into the launchs picture and concluded that the missile measured 19 feet long and 13 inches in diameter; furthermore, the weapon is said to be able to hit targets as far as 300 miles.

This is a big deal, wrote Jeffrey Lin and P.W. Singer , who looked into the images of the J-16.

This missile would easily outrange any American (or other NATO) air-to-air missile.

Reports are that the size would put into the category of a very long range air to air missile (VLRAAM) with ranges exceeding 300 km (roughly 186 miles), likely max out between 250 and 310 miles.

US Sends Hundreds Of Naval Patrols

On top of Chinas test of power comes reports of American military vessels and aircrafts doing more than 700 patrols. The military carried out patrols in the disputed South China Sea. Information came from Chinas only state-backed institution focused on researching on the waters.

China could possibly set up an Air Defense Identification Zone in the South China Sea if the U.S. continues to intensify patrols and low-altitude spying in the region, the Economic Times quoted Wu Shicun, president of the think tank.

China has been vocal about the warning the U.S. about intervening in the South China Seas affairs.
Human Rights Watch - November 18, 2016

(New York) a Ten years after signing a peace accord, successive Nepali governments have failed to deliver on its central human rights promises, Human Rights Watch said today. The international community, and particularly the United Nations, should press the government to fulfill its pledges as victims wait in vain for information about missing family members and accountability for crimes committed during the war.

The Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) of November 21, 2006, brought an end to Nepalas civil war, which was started in 1996 by the Communist Party of Nepal a Maoist. The war claimed more than 13,000 lives. Both the Maoists and government forces committed serious human rights abuses, including enforced disappearances, torture, extrajudicial killings, and sexual violence.

aThe ceasefire agreement ended armed conflict, a landmark for a country torn apart by violence and war,a said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. aBut the promises of accountability for abuses and the resolution of thousands of disappearances have been broken by Nepalas main political parties, all of which have taken turns at leading the government in the last decade.a

The long civil war left a political gap that led King Gyanendra to reassert monarchical autocracy and suspend the constitution on February 1, 2005, with the support of the military. The authoritarian approach and serious human rights violations led to a peopleas movement to oppose the monarchy. Nepalas political parties formed an alliance, and together with the Maoists, made a commitment to democracy and human rights under the 2006 peace deal.

One of the key undertakings under the peace accord was to investigate and bring to justice those responsible for human rights violations committed during the war. Yet, all the political parties appear to have forgotten those promises, and the victimsa families are still waiting.

Devi Sunuwar is still demanding justice for the killing of her daughter Maina, then 15. Soldiers detained Maina in February 2004, though the army vehemently denied it at the time. Under sustained pressure from the international community, including from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the army finally proceeded with an internal inquiry and military prosecutors brought three soldiers allegedly responsible before a court martial.

According to army records, the accused were only charged with minor offenses of using improper interrogation techniques and not following procedures during the disposal of Mainaas body. They were sentenced to six months in prison, effective from March 2005. Since they had already spent that time confined to barracks during the period of investigation, the officers were set free. aThe government is protecting murderers,a Sunuwar told Human Rights Watch. aBut I will keep fighting till I get justice.a

Arjun Lama was abducted in May 2005, in broad daylight and in front of many witnesses by men known to be Maoists. Although the exact circumstances of his death are not yet known, his body was partially exhumed at a spot identified by witnesses who said they saw his murder. Agni Sapkota, a Maoist leader accused in the case, was denied a visa to visit the United States in June 2010, but the government has yet to take any action on the case. The National Human Rights Commission has secured the exhumation site but fears that because it is not guarded, his remains are not safe.

After much faltering, a truth-seeking commission and a disappearances commission were established in 2015, but were slow to get under way. The legislation undergirding the commissions is deeply flawed as it allows for amnesty for certain crimes, creating space for those responsible to escape justice. The law has been criticized by international experts, including OHCHR, and has been struck down twice by Nepalas Supreme Court. But the authorities have not amended the legislation to bring it into line with either the Supreme Courtas orders or international law.

By September 2016, the two commissions had received nearly 59,000 complaints relating to wartime abuses, according to sources close to the commissions.

In a cynical move designed to provide further shelter for the abusers, the then-prime minister, Khadga Prasad Oli, signed an agreement in May 2016, with the other main political parties agreeing to withdraw all wartime cases before the courts and to provide amnesty to alleged perpetrators. This agreement was a clear statement that regardless of the Supreme Court directives, all political parties are actively working against accountability and justice.

An unrealistically short statute of limitations on reporting sexual violence has served as a serious bar to women and girls reporting rape, Human Rights Watch said. Social stigma and lack of medical and legal support have suppressed their testimony. Survivors say that they continue to feel a deep sense of injustice at being left out of reparation and reconciliation mechanisms.

In addition to accountability for wartime cases, Human Rights Watch noted that many other obligations under the peace agreement remain unfulfilled. The pledge to end discrimination based on gender, caste, class, ethnicity, and membership in other marginalized groups remains deeply contested, and power continues to rest among traditional elites. Demands to restructure the state to invest more power in marginalized communities, a central pledge of the agreement, led to months of economic blockade and many deaths in the countryas southern districts between September 2015 and February 2016. Talks designed to remedy these grievances remain stalled.

aThe war was brutal, and Nepalas political leadership should not forget that injustices need redress,a Adams said. aNepali political leaders should stop sweeping war crimes and justice issues under the rug, and instead live up to the incredibly brave promises made under the CPA.a

A significant success of the peace accord was the demobilization and rehabilitation of child soldiers from Maoist forces. By early 2010, an estimated 3,000 Maoist soldiers who had joined as minors were reintegrated into civilian life through a government program assisted by the UN.

The UN and Nepalas donors have an important continuing role to play, Human Rights Watch said. The UN had a large and significant presence in Nepal through a dedicated Office of the High Commission for Human Rights and the UN Mission in Nepal to enforce and monitor the agreement. Although the Nepali government applied considerable pressure to restrict full operation of the two offices, both provided important independent reports on the implementation of the peace agreement. However, the Nepali authorities, in December 2011, forced OHCHR to shut down its operations.

aThe United Nations played an important role in bringing about the peace and in ensuring that both sides abided by the main planks of the peace agreement, including on human rights,a Adams said. aThe UN and Nepalas donors have a continuing obligation toward the victims of Nepalas conflict to ensure that government delivers on its commitment to justice.a
New Age, November 27, 2016

Shahnaj Begum in front of her house at Nishchintapur, Ashulia. a Solidarity Centre

Stone eye sheds tear

aMY LEFT eye is made of stone, but it still sheds tear,a Shahnaj squeezed her eye to prove it to us.

On December 2013, Hamid, a local labour organiser and I were sitting in her room in Nischintapur, Ashulia a listening to her rage, her frustration, and her stories of survival. With her unparalleled wit, she talked about being the only one-eyed woman in the village. Her story is not different from those of other injured workers. She survived the fire, but the physical injury and trauma continued to follow her.

She was a folder in the finishing section of Tazreen Fashion Ltd. The night of the fire, she had jumped through a window of the burning factory, saved her life but got herself seriously injured. Later, she lost sight in the left eye. In order to prevent complications, her physician at the Islamia Eye Hospital advised her an ocular prosthesis. Following an enucleation, the doctors at the facility replaced her natural eye. She believed that the surgery was not performed properly. She feared that she would lose sight in the other eye as well. Her family seemed annoyed with her since all she talks about was her blurred hazy, unclear vision sight. But the ophthalmologist thought otherwise and suggested that her compromised vision may be symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder. The darkness she had encountered during her time inside the burning factory was returning to her. The momentary relapse of her eye-sight was a flashback to that moment. She relived that moment and her world become dark.

Shahnaj refused to accept her physicianas diagnosis.

I have no expertise to approve or disapprove her claim that she was slowly losing her vision. What I want to insist that this clash of subjective truths, lived experience of the worker with biomedical truth, needs to be acknowledged when assessing an injured workeras claim. In the context of an exclusively compensation-based model of aindustrial disastera response, the struggle to amove on with livea and cope with the trauma have become dependent on the way workeras monetary compensation claims are processed, accepted or rejected. An inadequate compensation or no compensation means workeras grievances are not heard, their experience of surviving a horrific fire is denounced.

Quantifying Injury

ON JULY 2014, Shahnaj had considered making a claim for compensation under Chapter XII of the Labour Act or filing a civil suit for damages against the employer. She met a labour lawyer at a public protest in front of the National Press Club. According to him, Shahnaj was eligible for filing a claim; however, her injury will not qualify her for a permanent disablement.

Section 151 of the Labour Act (2006, 2013) suggests that the amount of the compensation depends upon the gravity of the injury and the nature of disablement. If there is a permanent loss of earning capacity, ie the worker cannot perform any kind of work ever again, then there is permanent, total disablement amounting to Tk 1,25,000. This could be in the form of loss of a hand, a foot, both eyes or a combination of injuries specified in Schedule I of the Labour Code that amounts to a loss of earning capacity of 100 per cent or more.

She only had lost one eye.

The lawyer told her that she may be considered for 50 per cent disablement. Shahnaj was trembling with anger as she was recounting her experience of filing claim with the labour court, aThere is a fixed price for our eyes written in the book!a She thought it was morally distasteful to negotiate the worth of her eye sight in the courtroom and temporarily abandoned the idea of going to court. I earnestly agreed with her. This particular quantification of workers injury is in other words legalised expression of existing class inequality.

Feminising victimhood

MEANWHILE, her family turned their back on her. When she was earning, no one raised a voice to her. Now, she is just an extra mouth to feed. Her spinal injury prevented her from returning to factory. Desperate in her situation, she had reconsidered taking legal actions. The labour lawyer she had earlier worked with also mentioned the possibility of taking her case to the High Court, even gave her contact number of a human rights lawyer.

Probably in the first week of January 2015, I got a call from Shahnaj. She had already made her appointment with the human rights lawyer. She wanted labour leader Shahidul Islam Sabuj and I to accompany her to the meeting since alawyers speaks a lot of Englisha and she was aunfamiliar with boro loker (elite) Dhaka.a

The meeting started with optimism. The human rights lawyer shared our anger and frustration with the labour law. He was very supportive of the possibility of a petition that would open up the possibility of amending the existing compensation clause in our labour law.

We provided him with Shahnajas file. He said, aBring me a rather compelling case. She had only lost one of her eyes. In order to argue that law needs to be changed, I need rather convincing case, a perfect victim.a

We flinched.

He read our discomfort and disappointment, and tried to explain his comment, aI am not suggesting anything. It is society. The judges would better empathise with a young woman amputee with children, and no one to support.a

These gender stereotypes posed particular challenges for workers demanding compensation. In the eyes of lawyer in question, it seem impossible to call attention to Shahnajas undeniable suffering without reproducing images of passive female victimhood.

The meeting ended rather abruptly. Shahnaj with her sharp tongue and quick wit responded to our awkward silence, aThey all have their apet victim (posha victim).a Some even travel abroad with the favourite one. I am sometimes favoured in these programmes in front of the press club or at round-tables because I am the only one who had lost vision, but I am not young, or docile. I ask too many questions.a She paused, aBut donat think journalists are any different. They search for perfect victim too.a

To provide medical care for the injured workers, some NGOs and labour organisations developed short- and long-term relief and rehabilitation projects funded by global brands (for example, Caritas Bangladesh is implementing a rehabilitation project with direct funding from C&A Foundation, a sister concern of Dutch retailer, C&A that outsourced from Tazreen Fashions Ltd). In this project-based landscape of activism targeted to mobilise resources and organise campaign for compensation generated gendered stereotypes. A victim apparently had to be seen to be continuing to suffer in afeminine way,a as if the violence of the night of the fire would lose gravity otherwise. In public events, they have to recollect and relive the horror of the night for their audience.

Four years later, Shahnajas words proved true. She is now blind, still a hard-working woman, persistently seeking her right to reparation. In the years that followed the fire, she constantly navigated legal and other bureaucracies negotiating such continued feminisation of victimhood.

I read this feminisation of victimhood as a consequence of an exclusively compensation model of aindustrial disastera response. This is a model that precludes any ethical consideration of quantification of injury or putting an end to this perpetual cycle of victimhood.

Saydia Gulrukh, who worked in Nischintapur in search of Tazreenas missing workers as part of a research collective Activist Anthropologist, is an assistant editor at New Age.
In what can only be described as The Hunger Games meets Dance Dance Revolution, the full theatrical trailer has just arrived for Russian post apocalyptic thriller  , aka Dance To Death. And, yes, it is exactly as described on the tin: A world where, following mass devastation, the powers that be forcibly gather a group of young people to train for a televised dance competition in which the losers will die a grisly death for the amusement of the masses.

It is a deeply silly premise and one that I'm not sure is helped or made even more silly by the obvious seriousness - and money - that's been thrown into its making. We shared a trailer for this one a few months back and it's now been followed by a full theatrical trailer. Which sadly includes very little actual dancing. Take a look below.
[Updated with full trailer]

Austria's Stefan Ruzowitzky took home a Best Foreign Language Film Oscar for his 2007 effort The Counterfeiters and in a career already notable for taking some dark turns Ruzowitzky appears to be taking his darkest yet with the simply titled Hell (Die Holle).

A dark and brutal crime thriller, Hell follows Ozge - a young Turkish woman driving taxi in Vienna who witnesses a murder that may very well be the latest attack by a blossoming serial killer. With the killer knowing he's been seen Ozge herself becomes a target, making a bad situation much, much worse.

A first teaser has just arrived in the lead up to the film's Austrian release and it is already abundantly clear that Ruzowitzky is not holding anything back here. In the lead up to production the director promised the toughest Austrian thriller of recent years and it appears he has delivered on that front. Take a look below!


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      1  2022    2  290,9  ,   18%     2021    36,6%       .
 "Oregon Death Penalty: A Cost Analysis" | Main | Interesting and exciting sentencing week as SCOTUS gets back to work 

November 27, 2016

AP report provides confusing non-answer as to "What is the future of U.S. prisons under Trump administration?"

The quoted question in the title of this post comes from the headline of this AP article. Because there are a number of strange and confusing elements to this AP piece, I am not sure it does even a reasonable job trying to answer the question it poses. I will explain some of my concerns with this quirky piece after quoting it at length with some highlighting of key phrases and passages:

The population of American prisons is likely to rise for the first time in nearly a decade with President-elect Donald Trumps promise to detain and deport millions of immigrants who are in the country illegally and his selection of tough-on-crime Sen. Jeff Sessions to the nations highest law enforcement post. If so, one of the prime beneficiaries would be the private companies that operate many of the nations prisons. The stock market seems to agree. A day after the election, CoreCivic Co., formerly Corrections Corporation of America, saw the biggest percentage gain on the New York Stock Exchange with shares climbing 43 percent. Shares of Geo Group, another private prison company, also jumped 21 percent. The federal prison population had been trending down for nearly a decade when the Obama administration announced in August that it would phase out its use of some private facilities. The announcement followed a Justice Department audit saying private facilities have more safety and security problems than government-run lockups. The policy change did not cover private prisons used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, though federal officials have said they are considering phasing out private contractor immigration facilities. Trump, however, said during his campaign that the nations prison system was a mess and voiced support for private prisons. I do think we can do a lot of privatizations and private prisons. It seems to work a lot better, Trump told MSNBC in March, though he didnt offer any details on what that might mean for the federal prison system. Immigration and Customs Enforcement holds up to 34,000 immigrants awaiting deportation. Forty-six of the roughly 180 facilities in which ICE holds those immigrants are privately run, with about 73 percent of detainees held in the private facilities, the agency says. Trump was saying during his 100-day plan that mandatory minimums for people re-entering the country would be set at two years -- thats going to require a longer-term need for beds, said Michael Kodesch, a senior associate with financial services firm Canaccord Genuity Inc. Immigration detention centers are particularly profitable for private prison companies because they command a higher rate for each inmate bed, he said.... Sessions, Trumps pick for attorney general, was among a handful of Republican senators blocking a bipartisan bill that would reduce lengthy sentences for low-level drug offenders. McLaurine Klingler, a spokeswoman for Sessions, said no one on Sessions staff was immediately available to talk about his feelings on the DOJs use on private prisons. CoreCivic spokesman Jonathan Burns said the company doesnt take positions on proposals, legislation or policies that would determine the basis of an individuals incarceration or detention. He said the company instead works to educate lawmakers on the benefits of public-private partnership generally and the solutions CoreCivic provides.

I likely would need to write a few law review articles to unpack all the hash in this AP report, but the second highlighted passage above reveals a big part of the mess that this article reflects. Specifically, the AP article suggests that "private companies ... operate many of the nations prisons"; But folks at ACLU note here that "for-profit companies are responsible for approximately 6 percent of state prisoners, 16 percent of federal prisoners, and inmates in local jails in Texas, Louisiana, and a handful of other states." In other words, private companies actually operate a very small percentage of the nation's prisons.

As the AP article hints, Prez-Elect Trump and his administration might want to grow rather than shrink reliance on for-profit companies for incarceration. (Even if true, it would matter a lot whether Trump would want just the federal system or also state systems to make greater use of private prisons.) But Trump's comment praising privatization seems based on a (sound?) view that the very best private prisons might function more effectively and efficiently than the very worst public prisons responsible for our current mass incarceration "mess." So, even if Prez-Elect Trump and his administration were to make a huge commitment to, say, doubling the use of private prisons nationwide, that commitment alone would not itself make it "likely" for the "population of American prisons ... to rise" in the coming years. (Indeed, given the incarceration reform measures enacted in key states at the same time Trump was elected president, I am inclined to predict that it is more likely we will see some declines in the population of American prisons in the coming years.)

Finally, though it is true AG-designate Jeff Sessions was opposed to federal statutory sentencing reform throughout 2016 while serving as Senator Sessions from Alabama, his departure from the Senate might now make it more likely that some form of federal statutory sentencing reform gets passed by Congress in 2017 or 2018. This is true not only because Sessions may get replaced in the Senate by someone at least slightly more likely to support federal statutory sentencing reform, but also because opposition to reform by a number of Senators in 2016 was based in part on a desire to preclude Prez Obama from having a legacy criminal justice reform achievement. Once Prez Obama is out the door and the (toxic?) symbolism of his affinity for sentencing reform is just a recent memory, I think some (modest?) form of federal statutory sentencing reform is likely to make it through Congress before too long.

November 27, 2016 at 04:27 PM | Permalink

Comments

@Doug. I like you. I read your blog. I respect your legal expertise. But you have the worst political horse sense of anyone I am acquainted with.

You wrote, "but also because opposition to reform a number of Senators in 2016 was based in part on a desire to preclude Prez Obama from having a legacy criminal justice reform achievement. Once Prez Obama is out the door and the (toxic?) symbolism of his affinity for sentencing reform is just a recent memory, I think some (modest?) form of federal statutory sentencing reform is likely to make it through Congress before too long."

This is fantasy. Yes I know among a certain kind of liberal everything the Republicans do is based upon stigginit but come on.... Do you really think that Bill and Ken hate reform simply because it has Obama's name on it? Congress might pass some type of bill that the press then labels "reform" but it's not going to be the type of reform that would please most liberals; it's going to be the type of reform that will make federalist dance.

Posted by: Daniel | Nov 27, 2016 6:31:06 PM

Hey Daniel, when you speak of "political horse sense" do you mean "seeing complicated issues in an uniformed, vapid partisan short-sighted way"? If so, I plead guilty to not having this kind of equine instincts. But, candidly, I think my political perspective on these matters is much more sophisticated and informed than you give me credit for, and I suspect your own partisan bias shapes your nuance-free views.

For starters, during the Obama era from 2009 to 2016, how many statutory sentencing reforms were passed by Congress that "would please most liberals"? Notably, the Dems had control of all elected branches for 2009 and 2010, and the only sentencing reform they enacted was the weak/incomplete Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 which changed the 100-1 crack/powder statutory provision to 18-1. That reform, though better than nothing, should not have pleased many liberals, especially given that Obama campaigned on a promise of equalizing crack/powder sentences. And, thereafter, from 2011 to 2016, not a single significant federal statutory sentencing reform made it through Congress despite the fact that the Obama admin claimed such reform was a priority starting in 2013.

So, even if we just compare future prospects for reform to what got done in the last eight Obama years, it would be hard for sentencing reform to be worse in the Trump era unless/until many important GOP leaders in Congress --- e.g., Grassley, Cornyn, Ryan, Lee, Paul, Cruz, Sensenbrenner, Labrador --- completely reverse course and disavow what they have said in recent years about the need for drug sentencing reform. Critically, save for Sessions and a few other (effective) GOP opponents like Tom Cotton, nearly every important GOP leader in Congress has express some measure of support for statutory sentencing reform. I doubt Trump and his minions will be eager to have such reform enacted in the "first 100 days," but I predict we will get something better than the FSA of 2010 before the end of 2018.

Moreover, lots of GOP folks have been calling for mens rea reform, which I believe is more important and more consequential than some of the sentencing tweaks that have been the obsession of most Dems since 2013. I strongly believe that TRUE liberals ought to be advocating for potent mens rea (sentencing) reform even more than for statutory tweaks to mandatory minimums because mens rea issues cut to the heart of criminal responsibility and serve as a critical legal/judicial check on prosecutorial powers.

I could go on and on, but let me just close by noting that Senator Tom Cotton, arguably now the most important/powerful opponent of sentencing reforms in Congress as of Jan 2017, made much of the Obama legacy when voicing opposition to the SRCA. Indeed, his last points started this way: "In the discussion over the Sentencing Reform & Corrections Act, there is much talk of legacy, and in particular the legacy of President Obama after he leaves office...." That was the basis for my comment which you find lacking in sense. Were you aware of this comment?

Posted by: Doug B. | Nov 27, 2016 7:18:46 PM

Doug, the problem with sentencing reform isn't Obama. The Republicans couldn't convince their own to go along with their plan. What Obama did was symbolic - nice rhetoric, little action. So his exit doesn't change the situation.

With republicans coming into the presidency and majorities in both houses of Congress, it will be difficult to blame democrats for non-reform.

Posted by: Paul | Nov 27, 2016 8:56:49 PM

I can't speak for liberals, but I see mens rea reform as giving wider latitude to executives to grift without accountability. After a subprime financial crisis resulted in no criminal prosecutions of any high level executive, the idea that white collar crime is overcriminalized is nonsense. Syracuse TRAC data says white collar prosecutions are down. While there may be more regulations and laws, they are not actually being used to incarcerate anyone.

The problem is mass incarceration of poor and minorities, not an overcriminalization of executives.

Posted by: Paul | Nov 27, 2016 9:02:51 PM

Paul, both comments reflect the kind of liberal tripe about criminal justice reform that leads me to be especially eager to blame Dems for the current ugly state of affairs even after eight years of Obama. Let me explain, with four points on statutory sentencing reform and two on mens rea reform:

1. Prez Obama won in 2008 in a landslide that gave him larger majorities in Congress than any Prez in modern history. Did he use this power to move forward with any significant sentencing reform? He campaigned on a promise he would do something in this space, and 2009-10 was the time to put up or shut up. Prez Obama and fellow Ds decided to shut up (save for the weak FSA, which arguably thwarted other momentum for more meaningful federal drug sentencing reform).

2. After the 2010 election, the federal reform terrain became more challenging with the GOP leaders in House/Senate. But that same 2010 election begat the Right on Crime movement, which has praised and fostered major sentencing reforms in red states like Texas and Georgia and Kentucky. Had Obama really wanted to do something circa 2011-12, he could and should have reach out to red state Govs with a "conservative" track record on sentencing reform.

3. With continued support from younger voters and minority voters, Obama wins big in 2012 and could use his new (mini-)mandate to turn hard to sentencing reform throughout his second term. But again, he mostly shuts up on this front until finally giving a speech to the NAACP in 2015.

4. If we look past statutory reforms and focus on executive branch actions (e.g., DOJ's SMART on CRIME programs) and on judicial and Sentencing Commission appointments/actions, the Obama era sentencing reform record starts to look a lot better. But I have been here focused on statutory reforms during the Obama era and to give Obama a pass for his lack of success here is just partisan tripe in which the failings of a leader is always attributed to the ill-will of the opposition. I do not play that game: rather, when a leaders fails to lead effectively in a certain area, I blame the leader first.

A. What evidence do you have of executives "grifting without accountability"? For starters, when an executive "grifts" he can/will be sued by shareholders and subject to regulatory sanctions with or without any criminal law involvement. If our civil and regulatory laws are working as they should, grifting results in accountability of all sorts even without federal prosecutors ever getting involved. Adding fundamental bedrock limits on the application of federal criminal to our criminal statutes should not change this dynamic, nor should it prevent going hard after any and every intentional "grifter."

B. Mass incarceration is a product of lots of forces, including watered-down mens rea requirements at sentencing. A drug dealer involved only in the intentional sale of 500 grams of powder cocaine can still be sentenced for 500 KG of crack if/when a co-conspirators is making a big sale down the street. Sound mens rea reform would limit this problem and lots of others that contribute profoundly to the "mass incarceration of poor and minorities." True liberals should understand this, and especially should appreciate that making it easier for federal prosecutors to go after executives will, practically speaking, always end up making it easier (and more common) for federal prosecutors to go after poor and minority defendants.

I could go on and on, but I will be content to just encourage everyone to look far beyond the facile tripe peddled for too long in this arena by the party elite (especially by the law-breaking Clinton wing of the Democratic party).

Posted by: Doug B. | Nov 27, 2016 10:32:48 PM

"law-breaking Clinton wing of the Democratic party"

trolling

Posted by: Joe | Nov 27, 2016 11:48:40 PM

For-profit detention centers hold 16% of federal prison inmates, which works out to about 22,000 people at any given time. But that number doesnt include immigration detainees. For-profit detention centers hold 70% (!) of immigration detainees, which works out to about 25,000 people at any given time. Trump plans to dramatically ramp up immigration enforcement. The necessary consequence will be that for-profit prisons will see a huge increase in demand. That is why investors are betting on for-profit prisons. If I lacked a moral compass, I do that too.

Not only will we see more immigration detainees, we will likely see more federal prisoners as well. Trump has indicated his support for mandatory-minimum sentences for illegal re-entry cases, cases that make up a huge percentage of the federal docket. Per Trumps proposal, defendants with no criminal history will be subject to a 2-year min-man; defendants who have committed a prior felony -- any felony -- will be subject to a 5-year min-man. If that is made law, the federal prison population will balloon. Without exaggeration, Trumps min-man plan would result in tens of thousands of extra years of prison time. To make that a little more concrete, let's assume that Trump ramps up immigration enforcement to 2011 levels. That would result in nearly 40,000 illegal re-entry prosecutions per year. Those defendants in 2011 received on average a 14-month sentence. Even if not a single one of those defendants had a prior felony on their record, a 2-year mandatory minimum would add over 30,000 years of prison time. I doubt Congress will pass sentencing reform. But if they do, it will likely be a compromise in which sentencing reform is passed along with new mandatory-minimum sentences. The net result will still be a massive increase in the federal prison population. This doesnt even include the thousands of extra years of prison time that will result from DOJ's return to using min-mans in all drug cases.

You can lament what Democrats have failed to get done. But youre kidding yourself if you think things will improve with Republicans in control. If you care about mass incarceration at the federal level, its going to be a depressing, bleak four years, even if mens rea reform (and the 50 federal prisoners it will help per year) passes.

Posted by: Bleak | Nov 27, 2016 11:52:02 PM

Bleak:

1. Your immigration analysis is spot-on, and I agree that private prisons are a "smart" investment for anyone who believes Trump will keep his all his immigration campaign promises. That said, Trump has already shown a willingness just in his first few weeks as Prez-Elect to back off many campaign pledges. Moreover, as I stressed above, Prez Obama almost entirely ignored his campaign promises on sentencing reform throughout his first year in office AND throughout 8 years never got close to following up his most forceful 2007 campaign rhetoric calling for sentencing reform.

2. I will be surprised to see the 2017 Congress pass new MMs for immigration offenses without reducing MMs in other arena (e.g., drugs). Critically, as noted above, many GOP leaders in Congress have supported reduced reliance on MMs. Of particular importance, House leader Paul Ryan and Senate leaders John Cornyn (GOP whip) and Dick Durbin (Dem whip) have all been vocal supporters of sentencing reform. I would hope and expect that, if they even seriously consider new immigration MMs, it would be coupled with reductions in other MMs. And because all current drug/gun MMs are generally much longer than Trump's proposed immigration MMs, a bill that creates new immigration MMs while reducing other MMs would likely result in a net reduction in the federal prison population ESPECIALLY if the reduced drug/gun MMs were made retroactive.

3. I would eagerly bet just about any commodity you choose, Bleak, that things will improve in the next four years, but my prediction/bet here is based on forces largely outside the control of inside-the-beltway folks. Specifically, state level marijuana reforms have already begun to drastically reduce low-level drug arrests in many jurisdictions and has cut the federal marijuana prosecution levels by more than 50%. In addition, I continue to believe younger voters and minority voters --- the most critical voters for both establishment parties to pursue as the look to 2020 and beyond --- will be an even more effective and potent voice for criminal justice reform in the next four years. And, 2016 initiative reforms to non-capital sentencing provisions in states like California and Oklahoma should provide still more evidence for smart, forward-looking politicians that "smart on crime" policies are political winners if/when crafted effectively and without the usual right/left polarization.

In many aspects of my life, I tend to be more optimistic than is likely healthy. But, ironically, given the terrible Clintonian track record on crime and punishment (despite the lawbreaking done by the Clintons themselves), I think my Trumpian optimism has some reasonable foundation at least when compared to what we might have expected from a resurgent Clinton wing of the Dems. Moreover, and perhaps most importantly, if Dems truly are interested in sentencing reform, Senate leaders Schumer and Durbin should make such reform a 100 day priority come 2017. Done wisely, I think a modest federal statutory sentencing reform bill could get to the desk of Prez Trump before the start of the 2017 golf season inside the Beltway.

Posted by: Doug B. | Nov 28, 2016 8:44:12 AM

"I can't speak for liberals, but I see mens rea reform as giving wider latitude to executives to grift without accountability."

Accountability to whom? Prosecutors who can pass on a Spitzer structuring or Corzine's crimes? This is bogeyman argumentation.

Posted by: federalist | Nov 28, 2016 10:52:11 AM

Doug, Joe is calling you out as trolling. Funny that--for a guy who should have his own troll title--trolling by annoyance.

Posted by: federalist | Nov 28, 2016 10:53:44 AM

"trolling by annoyance"

trolling with the homeboys

Posted by: Joe | Nov 28, 2016 12:54:00 PM

@Doug

No, I mean political horse sense in differentiation between what you hope Congress will do and what Congress is actually going to do. I actually agree with your point about Dems failures. I don't agree, however, that this failure creates a bold opportunity for Congress to promote reform now that the Republicans can get credit for it. It does the exact opposite. The only reason there was any passion for reform in Congress was because Republicans could hold it as a chit to extract concessions from Democrats. Now that this incentive has been removed reform efforts (in any meaningful sense) are DOA.



"I would eagerly bet just about any commodity you choose, Bleak, that things will improve in the next four years, but my prediction/bet here is based on forces largely outside the control of inside-the-beltway folks. Specifically, state level marijuana reforms have already begun to drastically reduce low-level drug arrests in many jurisdictions and has cut the federal marijuana prosecution levels by more than 50%. In addition, I continue to believe younger voters and minority voters --- the most critical voters for both establishment parties to pursue as the look to 2020 and beyond --- will be an even more effective and potent voice for criminal justice reform in the next four years. "

HA HA HA HA. You sure know how to write a joke, Doug.



Posted by: Daniel | Nov 28, 2016 2:40:32 PM

:one of the prime beneficiaries would be the private companies that operate many of the nations prisons:

No kidding.

Posted by: Mike O | Nov 29, 2016 8:05:38 AM

Post a comment
"Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California," President-Elect Donald Trump fumed on Twitter yesterday, "so why isn't the media reporting on this?" Easy answer: Because it didn't happen. Spreading Trump's statement, a dangerous conspiracy theory and convenient lie, would be irresponsible. As such, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla had some choice words for Trump, denying the claim of voter fraud in his state as "unsubstantiated" and "absurd," all the while schooling Trump in propriety.

The President-Elect made his claim after learning democratic rival Hillary Clinton would join Green Party candidate Jill Stein's recount effort in Wisconsin. As the popular vote margin won by Hillary Clinton grows, Trump launched the baseless allegation that he would have "won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."

Padilla was having none of that. His succinct statement in response to Trump's storm of tweets:

"It appears that Mr. Trump is troubled by the fact that a growing majority of Americans did not vote for him. His unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a President-elect."

Ya burnt.

As liberal California politicians form a bulwark against the coming Trump administration, Padilla previously issued a condemnation of Trump's appointment of Steve Bannon, the Chairman of conspiracy-peddling website Breitbart Media, for the job of chief strategist and senior council. "With the appointment of Steve Bannon as chief strategist Mr. Trump is effectively giving white supremacists and anti-Semites a seat at the table," Padilla wrote. "While the Trump campaign ran on a platform that emphasized immigrant bashing and an open flirtation with the Alt-right, Bannon will likely seek to make these policies a reality."

Related: SF Supervisors' Resolution: Climate Change Is Real, LGBT Rights Can't Change, And Black Lives Matter


A flight bound for Tokyo that took off from SFO at noon Monday had to turn around and make an emergency landing back at SFO after flames were seen coming out of one of its engines. As CBS 5 reports, United Flight 837, bound for Tokyo's Narita Airport, had to circle off the California coast for over an hour to burn off fuel before landing at 1:35 p.m.  and one can imagine that was a harrowing hour or so for the passengers.

A witness on the ground in San Bruno, Sam Smith, tweeted that he saw flames shooting 10 to 20 feet out of the jet's engine and he heard a loud boom.

The @united flight out of @flySFO had flames coming out of left side engine, made loud bang noise, and then looked like it was going to land  Sam Smith (@SISmith89) November 28, 2016 @nbcbayarea @united @flySFO don't have pictures. I'm in San Bruno, plane was at a low altitude - 10-20 ft flame out of engine for 2 seconds  Sam Smith (@SISmith89) November 28, 2016

The Chronicle spoke to Smith, who said, "It was super crazy. It was just a really weird thing to see happen and it was so loud. There were a couple bangs."

United has not confirmed the report on the flames, however a spokesperson for the airline told the Chronicle they were looking into a "mechanical issue" on the aircraft, which is a Boeing 747.

Below, some raw video from CBS 5 of the plane making its emergency landing.


Though most people who celebrated Thanksgiving in San Francisco had a lovely time (I did, didn't you?), not everyone was so lucky. At least two Thanksgiving Day meals in San Francisco ended in violence, police activity, and arrests.

It was 8 p.m. on the 400 block of Serrano Drive, which is in Park Merced when one of the altercations occurred. According to the San Francisco Police Department, a 28-year-old man and a 25-year old man engaged in a "family dispute...during dinner."

Suddenly, police say, the elder man interrupted the Thanksgiving feast, got up from the table, and "got a knife from the kitchen and stabbed" the younger man.

The knife wielding man fled on foot, police say, but patrol units later tracked him down and he was arrested. The injured man was transported to San Francisco General Hospital for treatment of his injuries, which police say are not life-threatening.

Less than an hour and a half later, a second celebration was interrupted, this time by a trigger-happy diner. In that case, police say they were called to the 700 block of Burrows Street, in the Portola, at 9:29.

When they arrived, they learned that a 30-year-old man pulled out a gun as he dined with two women, aged 22 and 43. The women, police say, "felt uncomfortable so [they] decided to leave." The man appeared to take offense at this, and pointed the gun at them before firing it into the air, according to the SFPD.

He then fled the scene, police say, but was later taken into custody and booked under suspicion of "Negligent Discharge of a Firearm." According to the SFPD, no one was injured in the gunfire.
San Francisco Uber drivers are gearing up for a strike tomorrow as part of a nationwide labor-protest seeking a livable wage. Reuters reports that the action is being organized by Fight For $15, a group seeking union representation and a $15 minimum wage for a coalition of workers across the country.

Tuesday's protest is set to take place in 340 cities, according to the group's website, and will include fast-food workers and airport employees in addition to ride-hail app drivers. "Everyone says the gig economy is the future of work," Denver-based Uber driver Justin Berisie told CNN, "but if we want to make that future a bright one, we need to join together like fast-food workers have in the Fight for $15 and demand an economy that works for all."

In SF, that protest will reportedly manifest as drivers picketing at SFO while holding signs reading "Your Uber Driver is Arriving Striking."

This will not be the first San Francisco protest by Uber drivers seeking better wages. In January of this year a group staged a "honk in" in front of the company's SF headquarters following an announcement that Uber would cut fares 12 to 27 percent. "We work 80 hour weeks $600 after all fees," read signs taped to cars. "Uber makes $60 billion and calls us 'golden drivers.' No more abuse, enough is enough!, stop the greed."

In conversation with Reuters, Berisie put it another way. "Someone who lives in America and goes to work every day, that person deserves a decent living."

San Francisco International Airport is one of 20 airports Fight For $15 intends to target tomorrow, with organizers writing that action is especially important now following the recent election. "Newly-elected politicians and newly-empowered corporate special interests are pushing an extremist agenda to move the country to the right," the group explained in a statement. "Thats why were taking to the streets on November 29th  our four-year-old Fight for $15 will not back down! Any efforts to block wage increases, gut workers rights or healthcare, deport immigrants, or support racism or racist policies, will be met with UNRELENTING OPPOSITION."

So if you're looking to hail a ride from SFO tomorrow maybe try Lyft? Or, heaven forbid, a taxi  they can use the business.

Related: Airbnb Reportedly In Talks With Labor Union, Will Endorse 'Fight For $15'
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Nutcracker Key West returns! This enchanting holiday production will be performed December 10th to December 18th at the Tennessee Williams Fine Arts Center. Eight public performances are scheduled, with professional dancers from around the world joining 60 of our own community performers to retell this beloved holiday tale.

Key Wests local lore and maritime history set the stage with the story opening in 1864 at the Christmas party of the mayor of Key West. The adventure continues, taking our young heroine, Clara, through a fight with the rooster king, battles with sailors and a trip to the coral reef where she floats over the wreck of the Atocha in a diving bell.

Beautiful period costumes, special effects and delightful new scenic enhancements contribute to the production, delighting audiences both young and old.

The principal dancers in this years production are Camila Ferrera , dancing the role of the Sea Star Fairy with Nurlan Abougaliev as her Cavalier.

Nurlan Abougaliev originally from Kazakhstan, danced professionally with the Russian National Ballet, Moscow City Ballet and Ballet Internationale prior to joining Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and attaining principal status.

He has toured extensively throughout the world and taught for many major dance academies, including Ballet East of Florida, Pittsburgh Youth Ballet, and Lan Yang Ballet, Taiwan.

Camila Ferrera was born in New Jersey, trained at The School of American Ballet and in 2011 she was accepted into the American Ballet Theatres Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School (JKO). While there she performed at the Metropolitan Opera House with American Ballet Theatre, and was awarded

The ABT National Training Scholarship. In 2014, Ms. Ferrera joined the Joffrey Ballets Studio Company and in 2015 was promoted to the main company.

Exciting soloists join Camila and Nurlan. Among the men are, Benjamin Rabe , a company member with Rochester City Ballet. An exciting performer, he has a huge vocabulary of movement. He will be dancing the Egret King and the Shark, as well as the Fighting Fish variation. During his career he has performed in works choreographed by Balanchine, James Kudelka, Christopher Wheeldon, David Palmer, Septime Webre and Edwaard Liang.

Brent Whitney is the founder and co-artistic director of The Traverse City Dance Project and has danced with Milwaukee Ballet, Ballet NY, and the Key West Contemporary Dance Company, among others. This will be his 5th season dancing for Nutcracker Key West!

Alex Scupinari danced with Petit Ballet in Curitiba, Brazil, before attending the School American Ballet in the United States on a full scholarship. He has performed with Los Angles Ballet, and toured with many companies including Ballet NY, Ballet San Jose, and Sacramento Ballet. He is currently the co-artistic director with Petit Ballet in Brazil, and is looking forward to visiting our city, and adding his talents to the production.

The holiday gift for the whole family, Nutcracker Key West continues to create lasting impressions on audience members young and old. In 2015 Nutcracker Key West was honored to become the only permanent production at Tennessee Williams Fine Art Center! The tradition will always continue!

Tickets can be purchased on Keystix.com with a special family night rate on Wednesday Dec 15th.
NASA International Space Station On-Orbit Status 23 November 2016. NASA

Six International Space Station crew members are heading in to the Thanksgiving holiday with human research activities and orbital lab maintenance.

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson is the most experienced crew member in space right now getting ready to spend her third holiday season on orbit. Today, she stowed the tools used for space plumbing work done on Tuesday putting the Waste and Hygiene Compartment, the stations toilet, back in service after a leak was discovered.

She and her new crewmates, Oleg Novitskiy from Roscosmos and Thomas Pesquet from the European Space Agency, are in their first week aboard the space station. They are getting used to their new home in space and familiarizing themselves with station emergency gear and procedures today. Whitson is beginning her third mission aboard the orbital complex while Novitskiy is starting his second mission. Pesquet is on his first mission and is Frances fourth astronaut to visit the space station.

The rest of the crew members, including Commander Shane Kimbrough and Flight Engineers Sergey Ryzhikov and Andrey Borisenko, are beginning their second month in space.

Todays science work included collecting breath samples to help doctors understand how living in space affects bone marrow and blood cells. A new device that indirectly measures an astronauts intracranial pressure is being checked out today while the crew is also conducting eye exams.

On-Orbit Status Report

Marrow Air Sampling: The crew performed their first Marrow air sampling collection today. A breath sample and ambient air sample were collected and stowed for return on a later flight. The Marrow investigation looks at the effect of microgravity on the bone marrow. It is believed that microgravity, like long-duration bed rest on Earth, has a negative effect on the bone marrow and the blood cells that are produced in the bone marrow.

Fluid Shifts Cerebral and Cochlear Fluid Pressure (CCFP) Checkout: The crew performed a checkout of the CCFP that arrived on the 48Soyuz vehicle. The crew configured the device and performed a functional checkout including setup and data transfer in advance of the integrated Baseline Data Collection measurements tomorrow. The CCFP device is being evaluated as a method for indirectly measuring Intracranial Pressure (ICP). The CCFP comprises a headset onto which is mounted an air-flow sensor which measures the amount of air pushed from the ear canal or drawn into the ear canal when the Tympanic Membrane (TM) moves. By this method, volume displacements of the TM as small as a nanoliter (110-9 L) can be measured by the CCFP. The scientists will take the CCFP data collected inflight and compare it to data collected on the ground to identify any difference in the ICP during the different flight phases and then include that with the rest of the Fluid Shifts measures to correlate the Fluid Shifts phenomenon to ICP changes.

OnBoard Training (OBT) ISS Emergency Hardware Fam and EMER Mask review: The crew performed a review and practice session for donning Emergency masks and practicing purge technique. They also performed a familiarization session with the emergency hardware to ensure they are familiar with the locations of equipment and the positions of valves used in emergencies. The crew identified some deltas from the expected locations and reported those to the ground specialists so that the documentation can be updated.

Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Stowage Wire Kit Installation: The crew continued the activities to install the JEM Stowage Wire Kit. This Kit makes additional stowage available in the area under the JEM Airlock (JEMAL). Todays activities included removing the closeout panels and installing protective panels over the shell heaters. The crew installed wire frames in the area directly below the JEMAL and moved four 1.0 Cargo Transfer Bags (CTBs) into that location. The crew will be scheduled later to install additional wire frames and CTBs deck locations forward and aft of the JEMAL.

Eye Exams: The crew will be performing routine eye exams using Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and fundoscopy hardware. OCT hardware is used to measure retinal thickness, volume, and retinal nerve fiber layer. Fundoscope exam is performed to obtain images of the retinal surface.

Mobile Servicing System (MSS) Operations: Overnight, the Robotics Ground Controllers walked-off the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) from Mobile Base System (MBS) Power Data Grapple Fixture (PDGF) 3 to the MBS PDGF1. They unstowed Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) from MBS PDGF 2. These activities are in preparation for Robotic External Leak Locator (RELL) operations planned to start Monday 28-November.

Todays Planned Activities

All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

KORREKTSIYA. Logging Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake

Dose Tracker Data Entry Subject [Paused]

Dose Tracker Historical Documentation Photography

Regeneration of Micropurification Unit () 2 Cartridge (start)

JEM Stowage Wire Kit Installation to JPM1D7 Preparation

Checkout of a spare Condensate Pumping Unit ().

Verification of -1 Flow Sensor Position

ARED Handover Video Review

Soyuz 732 Samsung Tablet Recharge, Initiate

Fluid Shifts CCFP Baseline Setup

Soyuz 732 IRIDIUM phone recharge, setup, start charge

Fluid Shifts CCFP Functional Checkout

 732 IRIDIUM Phone Charging  Battery Status Check

Soyuz 732 IRIDIUM Phone Charge, Terminate Charge, Teardown of the Setup

ISS Crew Adaptation

MOTOCARD. Experiment Ops

In flight Maintenance WHC Stow

JEM Stowage Wire Kit Installation to JPM1D7

Cleaning Nikon camera Digital Image Sensor

EveryWear iPad application password setting

Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (RGN) WSTA Fill

Fluid Shifts Hardware Battery Installation

-1 Temperature Check (pos. 308).

Health Maintenance System (HMS) OCT Setup

Public Affairs Office (PAO) High Definition (HD) Config Columbus Setup

KORREKTSIYA. Logging Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake

PAO Preparation

 Maintenance

Date /Time Sync on 6 RS still cameras to the station time

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) in Columbus

Health Maintenance System (HMS)  OCT Exam

-1 Temperature Check (pos. 308).

OTKLIK. Hardware Monitoring

Health Maintenance System (HMS) OCT Stow

Integrated Emergency Procedure Review

IMS Update

Soyuz 732 Samsung Tablet Recharge, Terminate

Dose Tracker Data Entry Subject

Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ)

Fundoscope Setup

On-board Training (OBT) ISS Emergency Hardware Familiarization

Health Maintenance System (HMS) Fundoscope Prep

ESA Active Dosimeter Mobile Unit Swap

KORREKTSIYA. Preparation for the Experiment

Health Maintenance System (HMS) Eye Exam  Fundoscope

Intermodular TORU Test with Mated Progress 433

URISYS Hardware Setup

Health Maintenance System (HMS) Fundoscope Tear Down and Stow

Completed Task List Items

AstroPI Vis Power On

MD Print Removal and Stow

MobiPV Battery Recharge

Ground Activities

All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

4B3 Battery reconditioning

SSRMS Walkoff to MBS1 and Unstow SPDM

Three-Day Look Ahead: (plans may change due to WHC R&R replanning)

Thursday, 11/24: Fluid Shifts, CBEF, PEPS Inspect, Storytime

Friday, 11/25: CIR MDCA maintenance, WHC maintenance, Eye Ultrasound, MARES EPM HD Install, COL HTV gather, Aquapad

Saturday, 11/26: Housekeeping, Crew Off Duty, HRF Collection

QUICK ISS Status  Environmental Control Group:

Component  Status

Elektron  On

Vozdukh  Manual

[] 1  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV1)  On

[] 2  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV2)  Off

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab  Standby

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3  Operate

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab  Operate

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3  Idle

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA)  Standby

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA)  Standby

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab  Off

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3  Full Up
Wed, 26.10.22 - 12:09

Another blast of heat at the end of the month is likely to break the record in Spain With only a few days left in...
The Sprudgie AwardsThe Only Awards In Coffeeare back for an astonishing eighth annual season, and the worldwide nominations process begins today. Fill out your nominations ballot by clicking here now, or simply use the Google form embedded below. Read on for more information about the award categories.

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Each year since the launch of this website in 2009, weve given out the Sprudgie Awards honoring the best and brightest in specialty coffee in the following categories:

Best New Cafe  Honoring the most outstanding new coffee bar to open in 2016. Past winners include Paramount Coffee Project (Los Angeles), Scandinavian Embassy (Amsterdam), Intelligentsia Logan Square (Chicago), Pergamino Cafe (Medellin), Milstead & Co. (Seattle)

Notable Roaster  Honoring progressive, delicious, and exemplary coffee roasting around the world. Honored brands may be brand new or longstanding. Past winners include Heart Coffee (Portland), Small Batch Roasting Company (Melbourne), Drop Coffee (Stockholm), Blue Bottle Coffee (Oakland), Verve Coffee Roasters (Santa Cruz), and Tim Wendelboe (Oslo).

Best Coffee Writing  Outstanding original coffee journalism honoring individual authors, published during the previous calendar year. Past winners include Matt Perger (Barista Hustle), Alexis Madrigal (The Atlantic), Dr. Lisa Knisely (Bitch Magazine), Erin Meister and Liz Clayton (Serious Eats: Drinks), and Oliver Strand (NYT Style Magazine Online).

Notable Producer  Honoring excellence in coffee production across the coffee-growing world. Past honorees include Aida Battle (El Salvador), Rachel Peterson (Panama), the individual growers of the Ethiopia Commodities Exchange, Gilbert Gatali (Rwanda), Orang Utan Coffee (Indonesia), Emilio Lopez Diaz (El Salvador), and Tim Wendelboe & Elias Roa (Colombia).

Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence  The most hallowed of all the Sprudgie Awards, honoring individual achievements for the betterment of coffee. Past winners include Markus Reuter, Andre Kruger, and Thorsten Keller, Jim Karr, Gerra Harrigan, Marcus Boni, Kyle Glanville & Charles Babinski, Aleco Chigounis, and Stephen Vick.

Other annual awards include the Sprudgie for Best New Product, Nicest Package, Best Coffee Video or Film, Best Coffee Subscription, Best Coffee Magazine, and this years newest awards, Best Coffee Podcast and Finest Coffee Event.

Nominations for the 2016 Sprudgie Awards are accepted until Sunday, December 11th at 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time. Following this well host an open public vote on nominees from all categories, leading up to our awards feature in early January.

Vote! Share! We cant wait to see who you pick to make the shortlist for the Eighth Annual Sprudgie Awards.
Algiers, Nov. 27, 2016 (SPS) - Sahrawi Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamed Salem Ould Salek affirmed Saturday that Moroccos withdrawal from the Arab-African Summit shows clearly the isolation of the Moroccan occupation at the African and Arab levels, underlining that the Moroccan behaviour didnt serve at all the Arab-African rapprochement.

In a press conference at the embassy of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) in Algiers, Mohamed Salem Ould Salek, also member of the national secretariat of the Polisario Front, said that the withdrawal of Morocco from the Arab-Africa Summit shows, without the shadow of a doubt, the isolation of the Moroccan occupation at the Africa and Arab plans.

He said that the novelty, in the Malabo Summit held last Wednesday, was Moroccos isolation at the Arab level, underlining that Moroccos behaviour serves neither the cohesion nor the cooperation between the two continental organizations as it is part of an agenda which aims at spreading contradiction and inconsistency within the African Union.

Sahrawi minister said also that if Africa has once again reiterated, in Malabo, its commitment to the values and principles on which the organization was founded, nearly all the Arab Leagues countries didnt pay any attention to the decision of the Moroccan Kingdom, described by several delegations as infantile and arrogant.

On this occasion, he lamented the fact that some Arab countries repeat, concerning Western Sahara, the same mistake that they made when they opposed the independence of the Mauritanian people who were greatly supported by Africa in the face of the Moroccan expansionist ambitions. (SPS)

062/090/700
Standardbred Canada is seeking submissions for its 2016 Media Excellence Awards, to be presented at the O'Brien Awards ceremony on January 28, 2017.

There are three awards: Outstanding Written Work, Outstanding Video, Film or Broadcast, and Outstanding Photograph.

Submissions for award consideration must pertain to some aspect of the Canadian Standardbred racing industry. Submissions for 2016 must have been published or broadcasted for the first time, between November 1, 2015 and October 31, 2016.

The program is aimed at honouring those who have, through one piece of exceptional work, covered Canadian harness racing in a manner that is extraordinary and of broad national appeal.

The deadline for all submissions is Thursday, December 1, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. (EST) All submissions and inquiries should be directed to:

Kathy Wade Vlaar

Industry Marketing

Standardbred Canada

2150 Meadowvale Blvd.

Mississauga, ON

L5N 6R6

[email protected]

905-858-3077 (Ext. 207)

For more details on the criteria for the awards, click here.

To see a list of past winners of the Media Excellence Awards, click here.

You can check out last years winners here:

Outstanding Written Work

Been There, Bought the T-Shirt: The Relevance of Trademark Race Calls was published in Trot Magazines February 2015 issue, and written by Melissa Keith, of Lower Sackville, Nova Scotia. The story is about race announcers, their trademark race calls and memorable race calls.

Outstanding Video, Film or Broadcast

ErinoakKids and video production partner Fresh Sox produced Sydneys Story, a feature about harness racing fan and owner Sydney Weaver, an ErinoakKids client, who was honoured at their annual Pride & Joy Awards in October. The Pride & Joy Awards celebrate the achievement, determination and legacy of the extraordinary children and youth that they serve. Sydney was selected as the Centres "Branching Out" recipient because of her advancement in extra-curricular activities -- namely harness racing and writing, and this video was created to tell Sydneys story at the awards.

Outstanding Photography

Frances Lunds photo of a horse in the driving rain in the Gold Cup and Saucer Post Parade at Red Shores Racetrack & Casino at Charlottetown Driving Park was taken on August 22, 2015. The rain and lightening threatened all night and Frankie, a resident of Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, captured this shot of Brad Forward and Crombie A as they were introduced under the spotlight in the record downpour (the race had to be rescheduled for the following afternoon). This image was later published in Atlantic Post Calls on September 11, 2015.
Check Six and Manhattan Beach, the winners of the $35,000 elimination divisions last week, head a fast field of three-year-olds in Dover Downs signature event, the $314,600 Hap Hansen-Progress Pace on Monday, November 28.

The card will kick off with a 4:30 p.m. first-race post time.

Yannick Gingras drove the Ron Burke-trained Check Six to victory last Monday in the first of two $35,000 elims. The bay colt is owned by Weaver Bruscemi, Bill Switala, Jim Martin and Burke Racing. Check Six recently won his Breeders Crown elim, a division of the Bluegrass Stakes and his Pennsylvania Sire Stakes final.

The other Hanson Progress elim was an impressive victory for John McGill and Brian Carseys Manhattan Beach, driven by former Dover Downs regular Matt Kakaley. The well-bred pacer came into his own during the recent Breeders Crown with a third in his elim and a second-place finish in the $500,000 final at the Meadowlands Racetrack.

Brad Grants Easy Lover Hanover, whose five-race win streak in Ontario ended with a second-place finish in his Progress Pace elim, will start from Post in the final. Easy Lover Hanover was a $25,000 supplement to the event. Last winter, prominent Ontario trainer Ben Wallace lost his stable of horses in a disastrous fire. Grant, who is one of Wallaces owners, then purchased Easy Lover Hanover early this year at the Meadowlands sale for $70,000 and the gelding has already won 14 races and more than $150,000 in purses

A second supplemental starter in the $314,600 final is Peter Blood and Rick Berks Boston Red Rocks, trained by Steve Elliott and with Tim Tetrick handling the reins. Boston Red Rocks was last seasons U.S. Harness Writers Associations Two-Year-Old Colt of the Year. Although having finished in the top three in 13 of his 18 races, three of his five wins have come since September, including the $160,200 Matron at Dover.

Reinsman David Miller will be in the bike for Jeff Snyder and Geoffrey Lyons well-travelled Lyons Snyder. Third last week, the Jimmy Takter trainee was second in a Breeders Crown elim and in a Little Brown Jug elim.

Brittany Farms homebred Western Fame, also trained by the Takter Stable, finished second in the Matron, and second in the Little Brown Jug, is teamed with driver Mark MacDonald.

Corey Callahan will drive JK Will Power, conditioned by David Smith and owned by Bendis, Pollack, Hauber and J. Piatt II. The colts major victory came in the Jennas Beach Boy at Hoosier Park two months ago.

Saddled with Post 8 is Fashion Farms homebred Katies Rocker, trained by Jim Campbell with Andrew McCarthy piloting. The gelding finished strongly in last weeks elim closing from sixth in mid backstretch to a strong second.

The $314,600 Hap Hansen Progress Pace is the 10th race on the 15-dash program.

(With files from Dover Downs)
Baptist Minister Dr. James F. Linzey Speaks to a Unified Multi-Racial Congregation in Los Angeles



LOS ANGELES, Nov. 28, 2016 / LOS ANGELES, Nov. 28, 2016 / Standard Newswire / -- Southern Baptist minister Jim Linzey returned to the Los Angeles to speak to a multi-racial congregation for the first time since the passing away of Evangelist Verna Linzey. Global Covenant Church, known as The Los Angeles Mission, was where revival had broken out under Verna Linzey's ministry from 2012 to 2014. Rev. Alice Hodges, who spearheaded a Morris Cerullo crusade in Japan years ago and is the wife of Pastor Gary Hodges, solemnly spoke about the passing away of Verna Linzey who died from heart failure on Veterans' Day, November 11, 2016 at Naval Medical Center San Diego.

Photo: James Linzey speaking to the multi-racial congregation at Global Covenant Church in Carson, California, which is in the greater Los Angeles basin. High-resolution version available upon request.

African Americans, Filipinos, Caucasians, and Japanese believers gathered in a packed out house to hear Dr. James F. Linzey speak about Verna Linzey's ministry, the meaning of truly being born-again in a troubled society, and how offering God's unconditional acceptance to one another and not judging is a conduit for God's saving grace to redeem man from his sins.

Fighting erupted outside the house when a young male adult, who evidently wanted to disrupt the meeting, attacked Pastor Gary, pushing him down. Dr. Linzey called for several of the men of the congregation to assist Rev. Hodges who then counseled and calmed the young man. The meeting continued peacefully as several members filmed the message.

Dr. Linzey, chief editor of the Modern English Version and managing editor of the New Tyndale Version, began his message with the reading of John 3:1-16, culminating with, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16, MEV). He then recounted the salvation experience of the Army Private at Fort Lee, Virginia, who was a priest in the Church of Satan, who gave his heart to Christ. Dr. Linzey issued a challenging message to consecrate their lives to Christ. Several people requested prayer afterward. A visiting minister invited Dr. Linzey to appear on Christian television, which will be announced soon, and an invitation was given to continue speaking monthly at this "Los Angeles Mission."
Hijacking Christmas Turns Ugly

Contact: Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, 212-371-3191, pr@catholicleague.org

NEW YORK, Nov. 28, 2016 /Standard Newswire/ -- Bill Donohue (photo) comments on three examples of Christmas being hijacked to make a cultural statement, some of which are offensive:

Those who want a new twist on the traditional creche can buy a 10-piece Hipster Nativity scene that features Joseph sporting a lumberjack beard taking a selfie; baby Jesus and a peace-flashing Mary, holding a Starbucks cup, are included. The three wise men show up on Segways holding Amazon boxes full of presents; there is also a cow draped in a sweater with a "100% Organic" seal on it.

This depiction is more trendy than it is offensive.

A gun-rights activist in Columbia, South Carolina has hijacked Christmas to make his case defending the Second Amendment. It is the work of the Palmetto State Armory. Billboards are being displayed in several South Carolina cities, all of which feature assault weapons or shotguns, cribbing from Christmas themes and songs. "Do you hear what I hear?" and "All I want for Christmas is you" are two examples.

This depiction is more offensive than it is trendy.

Reality TV star Brandi Glanville posted a Facebook picture of herself squatting over baby Jesus, posing as if she were giving birth to him. It didn't go over with the public, which is why she deleted it from her Facebook and Instagram accounts.

However, Glanville refused to apologize. Instead, before she deleted the photo, she said, "Why is everyone so butthurt? I guess cause I'm an Atheist this doesn't bother me in the least bit. But seriously why should people need to 'respect' this religion while this religion is so disrespectful to everyone else? Get over yourselves. Seriously." She then tweeted, "People need to chill the f*** out and take a joke."

There is nothing trendy about this depiction, but it is egregiously offensive. It is also quite revealing. Glanville reasons that because she is an "Atheist" [notice she capitalizes her master status], it doesn't bother her that Christians are offended. Why would it? After all, that was exactly her point.

Not all atheists, of course, are haters, but increasingly many are. Glanville's stunt, and her response to critics, move her toward the top of the line.

Contact Glanville's agent: alec.shankman@abramsart.com
The essential component of totalitarian propaganda is artifice (het toepassen van kunstgrepen. svh) . The ruling elites, like celebritie...
CHAIRMAN of the People`s Democratic Movement (PDM) Doug Parnell, has urged the ruling party to stop spreading fear and inciting segregation among the populace in an attempt to gain political mileage.





Parnell was at the time speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, November 17 at the party`s headquarters.





The PDM`s Chairman said: "We`ve noticed that this Government is going around putting fear into the minds of the expatriate voter in the country, by saying if you vote for the PDM the PDM will send you home.





He made it clear that the PDM is a party that recognizes the importance of unity.





"We are an inclusive party, thats why the name of our party is the People`s Democratic Movement.





He blazed the PNP administration for making the lives of expatriates difficult by imposing exorbitant work permits fees on them.





"But it has really been over the last four years of the PNP government that has sought to hunt down and try to make the lives of expatriate people living in this country unbearable. They`ve increased work permit fees, PRC fees; it has become very difficult for these persons to find a way to live in this country legally, because its very expensive.





"The cost for the expatriate person, whether you`re from Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Haiti, United States  wherever, has gone up considerably under the PNP government.





"I recall in 2001, I believe, it was where we had the very same Minister of finance and at the time he was Leader of the Opposition; he tried to shut this country down because the PDM had a small increase in work permit fees.





"So they have increased fees on the very population they claim we`re trying to race out if we get elected.





"Our promise to all persons is that we will treat you fairly; we will treat you lawfully and humanely; we are not the party thats going to go and hunt people down who are here legally, or try to target a certain class of people.





"Thats not us and the fear-mongering that the PNP is using, especially in the Haitian community, they should put a stop to it.





Parnell called on the population to be wary of those who spread falsehood.












Retaining a top-level executive at a company is being one of the difficult tasks in todays Internet age. On Monday, the vice president and MD of GoDaddy India, Rajiv Sodhi has submitted his resignation to rejoin Microsoft for leading the Cloud and Server business, starting from December. Earlier, Sodhi was working Vice President and Managing Director, GoDaddy at internet domain registrar, GoDaddy India and Australia from 2012.

My focus is to lead the company to drive internet adoption amongst SMBs in India and bridge the digital divide in the country. We achieve that through driving massive awareness on mass media and online channels, localizing our offerings for the market and providing the best customer care 24/7, Sodhi says.

Under his guidance, the domain seller has started several projects, products and services in regional languages in India targeting small business around the country. These services were majorly in Hindi, Tamil and Marathi to enable more small businesses (SMB) across India to build strong online presences. With the launch of such products, GoDaddy has become Indias first domain provider to offer its services in regional languages to target locals.

Prior to joining GoDaddy, Sodhi was a Microsoft employee as the Director  India SMB, Cloud and Software Sales through Distribution and Reseller Channel Management. He had been at Microsoft from 2002 to 2012, before joining GoDaddy. He was responsible for channel-led sales, and geographic expansion of the cloud business which was in its nascent stage during those years.

Now, after joining Microsoft again in December, Sodhi will be predominantly responsible for leading the companys cloud business and compete with AWS, who is its primary competitor in the cloud space in India. Microsoft has also built robust cloud technologies, like Azure, Sharepoint and other Exchange or server solutions.
To prevent illegal wildlife trading, the UN General Assembly resolution came up last year, which was reestablished in September this year. The resolution acknowledges the basis legal agenda provided by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Prime aim behind the effort is to improve international support to counter against trafficking of protected species. This is a global agreement among the governments. This is intended to make sure that global trade in specimens of different species never becomes a reason behind their extinction. In fact, the animals like tigers and lions are also in danger.

However, according to the reports, the statistics of apes in Thailands prominent wildlife zones is definitely not significant. These reports clearly indicate that there are serious concerns over Thailands interest in prohibiting the unlawful animal trading, especially the apes. In fact, it is claimed that the nation lacks impacting laws and regulations to stop illegal trading of the native and non-native apes.

A survey was conducted over 57 facilities in entire Thailand, which found 51 orangutan apes. However, the record is available there only for 21 orangutans in the 2014 International Studbooks of the Orangutan1. International Studbook of the Orangutan1 conducts studies regarding the origin, birth, migration and demise of different species in zoos or other wildlife attraction centers over the globe.

The count of non-native apes found in that survey in Thailand was also quite greater in comparison with the records as per legal imports. According to the CITES or its database, only five orangutan apes have been imported to Thailand since 1975. Moreover, there was no mention regarding the existence of any Western Gorilla or those furry gibbons witnessed during the survey. Such scenarios indeed raise concerns over the existence of these species or their survival.
LOS CABOS, Mexico (Reuters) - China on Monday offered $43 billion to the IMF's crisis-fighting reserves, rounding off a global push to nearly double the Fund's war chest to $456 billion to help protect countries from fallout from the euro zone debt crisis.

China's contribution was part of a pledge by Group of 20 countries made in April to supply the International Monetary Fund with extra firepower.

"These resources are being made available for crisis prevention and resolution and to meet the potential financing needs of all IMF members," said IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde.

"They will be drawn only if they are needed as a second line of defense" when other IMF loans have been depleted, she said in a statement during a Group of 20 summit in Mexico.

The leaders of BRICS nations -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- said earlier that they "agreed to enhance their own contributions to the IMF" but had insisted that the money be used only after existing funds were depleted.

According to a chart published by the IMF, Brazil, Russia and India each pledged $10 billion, while South Africa offered $2 billion. G20 host Mexico also contributed $10 billion.

"Countries large and small have rallied to our call for action, and more may join," said Lagarde, who said total pledges had reached $456 billion -- "almost doubling our lending capacity."

The BRICS sought to tie the loans to long-delayed reforms that would give the developing world more say at the Washington-based Fund by boosting their voting power as shareholders.

"These new contributions are being made in anticipation that all the reforms agreed upon in 2010 will be fully implemented in a timely manner, including a comprehensive reform of voting power and reform of quota shares," the BRICS leaders said in a joint statement.

In their public remarks in Los Cabos, Chinese officials declined to discuss sums and stressed the need to implement IMF quota reforms agreed in 2010.

"If the quotas are not commensurate with the relative economic weight of the different countries, then it has to be changed," said He Jianxiong, director general of the international department of the People's Bank of China.

Growth of the emerging countries, which has far outstripped that of the rich world in recent years, made it "only natural that the quotas should be shifted from developed economies to developing economies," he told reporters.

The five BRICS nations represent 43 percent of the world's population and about 18 percent of global economic output. They have about $4 trillion in combined reserves, with the lion's share held by export powerhouse China.

Emerging economies have long demanded more say at institutions like the IMF to reflect their growing clout. Their frustrations have grown with the likely delay in implementing the 2010 deal that would boost their voting power and make China the third-largest voting member of the IMF.

The Chinese central bank's He indicated that Beijing still has to win over a skeptical public on the need for China, which still has hundreds of millions of poor people, to help bail out European countries with higher standards of living.

Describing money loaned to the IMF as an investment and a useful foreign reserve management tool, he said "it is actually a good investment in terms of safety, liquidity and yield."

Indeed, the PBOC emphasized in an unusually detailed statement on its website later that such pledges would not necessarily be drawn down. The comments appeared aimed at addressing domestic criticism that China should not be helping out more prosperous countries.

For instance, China had promised to buy $50 billion in IMF bills when the fund expanded in 2009, the central bank said, but to date had only actually purchased $5.7 billion worth.

"The increase in capital is not free aid. It's the IMF borrowing from China on the basis of guaranteeing safe and reasonable returns," it said.

"China's holdings of IMF bills are safe and with normal interest payments so far. Participating in the increase of IMF capital conforms to China's interests and China's international status and international responsibility."

The big emerging economies are also seeking more influence in the world economy by planning wider use of currencies other than the dollar and euro. The BRICS statement on Monday said the five leaders had "discussed swap arrangements among national currencies as well as reserve pooling."

BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors were instructed to study the swaps and pooling arrangements and relevant internal legal issues and report to next year's BRICS leaders' summit in South Africa, the statement said.

"The pool is mainly a preventative measure," said He.

Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega told reporters the plan to pool reserves "will increase confidence by making sure there is more ammunition available if there is a problem."

The BRICS' contributions to the proposed pool will be decided by size of each country's foreign exchange reserves, Mantega said. (Additonal reporting by Krista Hughes, Kevin Yao and Lucy Hornby in Beijing)
tech2 News Staff

It made headlines back in August this year and now the possibility of Apple setting up its $1 billion data centre to run its services (for European users) seems a bit dicey. Little did anyone know that Apple's grand plan to set up a data centre in a tiny village called Athenry would see so much opposition, not so much from its own people, but from the European Union (EU), which has been after the Cupertino company with pitchforks ever since.

And now there are some more problems. According to Bloomberg, the citizens of Athenry are with the idea of Apple setting up a data centre near the village. While this would bring in plenty of jobs, this would also give Apple plenty tax benefits, one that the company has been enjoying for more than a decade now.

Wind back to the time when the EU slammed a $1.1 billion tax bill on Apple and it is clear to see why many other tech giants wanted to have a slice of the pie. According to the previous report from Reuters, the Apple investigation was opened in 2014 which was much before Apple announced that it was to set up a data centre in Ireland (and Denmark). The Commission told the Irish government that tax rulings it agreed to in 1991 and 2007 with the iPhone maker amounted to state aid and might have broken EU laws. So this is little to do Apple's data centre and more to do with Apple as whole.

Ireland has been allowing for these special tax rules (sweetheart deals) for companies for years and the reasons for the same would be creating more jobs, which is fair. But it's just that the EU was left out of it and now its biting back. In fact, the European Commission (EC) clearly stated that it was Apple's home country, the US, which inspired them to take the first step. It was a US Senate report in May 2013 revealing the tech giants deal with the Irish government to rule a big slice of its global earnings untaxable that prompted the EC to launch its own inquiries the following month.

While Dublin is seeking to protect a tax regime that has attracted many multinational companies (that bring plenty of new jobs). The European Commission decision has also angered Washington, which accuses it of trying to grab tax revenue that should go to the United States. Thanks to the back and forth, the people of Athenry are starting to lose hope, because it has been a year and there have been plenty of delays with Apple yet to make its first move at setting up its data centre in the Derrydonnell Forest. At the time of its announcement, the Cupertino giant promised that the project will also provide an outdoor education space for local schools, as well as a walking trail for the community.
tech2 News Staff

The European Space Agency Investigation into the botched Schiaparelli lander has located a cause for the failure of the space probe. The ESA has revealed details on the investigation, and the preliminary evidence points to a second long false reading in the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) on board the spacecraft. The sensor measured the maximum measurement, which fooled the craft into thinking that it had already landed, and triggered a premature release of the on board parachute, firing of the brake thrusters and release of the back shell.

Computer simulations confirmed the behaviour of the spacecraft based on the erroneous readings. David Parker, ESAs Director of Human Spaceflight and Robotic Exploration said "This is still a very preliminary conclusion of our technical investigations. The full picture will be provided in early 2017 by the future report of an external independent inquiry board, which is now being set up, as requested by ESAs Director General, under the chairmanship of ESAs Inspector General."

However, the mission was not entirely without use. Some information from the Schiaparelli lander was beamed to spacecraft in orbit around Mars and land based telescopes. The Exo Mars and Mars Express orbiters, and the Giant Metre-wave Radio Telescope in India received this data from the spacecraft. The data has been passed on to European researchers for further analysis. The measurements are expected to increase understanding of the Martian atmosphere.

The Giant Metre-wave Radio Telescope at Khodad, Pune, Maharashtra was the last to maintain contact with the ESA Schiaparelli craft before the lander crashed into the surface of the red planet.
Rehan Hooda

Update: A spokesperson from Facebook has issued a statement stating that the company is working with ISP and Operator partners to test Express Wi-Fi at multiple locations. This empowers the operators, ISPs and local entrepreneur-retailers to offer quality internet to their town, village or region. Facebook further adds that Express Wi-Fi customers can purchase fast, reliable and affordable data packs via digital vouchers to access the internet on Express Wi-Fi network to make a sustainable economic model for everyone involved.

Facebook is currently testing a new internet infrastructure "Express Wi-Fi" in partnership with BSNL in rural areas to provide 'affordable' internet to people who don't have access to the cheap internet or in some cases, no internet at all. According to the vague details published on the "Express Wifi" page by Facebook, the company is working with carriers or mobile operators, internet service providers and local entrepreneurs to help increase the connectivity of internet in these remote locations. Facebook has been testing this service since an unspecified amount of time, but the company plans to expand this service in other regions.

Going Local

The decision to involve local entrepreneurs where they may or may not invest to help set up the infrastructure in their area is quite brilliant actually. This will give local business owners good incentive to invest so they can tap the untapped potential of the community by bringing them online.

This works perfectly in line for Facebook as the company is trying to connect the next one billion people to the internet where almost 30 percent of that number will come from India. The organic growth can't be driven by a company or ISPs or government that effectively. Instead local businesses and entrepreneurs can give the boost needed to the adoption of latest technologies. Facebook focused on the local adoption push recently where the company pointed out that it will concentrate on helping businesses connect with new potential customers.

Problems, Deja Vu?

This will obviously benefit both the businessmen in remote areas as well as Facebook with new customers on the platform with all the user data that they can gather for advertising and revenue. But the main issue is that there is no clarity on anything, right from the implementation, test locations, tariff details or the openness of the platform. In fact, while digging for the details of the program, we are directed to Internet.org, which was immensely criticised for its disregard to the openness of the internet.

One interesting thing that we found was the that it was possible that company was working on Express Wifi as an alternative to the Internet.org or Free Basics if the plan did not work out. This is reaffirmed by the initial reports of the company working with BSNL in partnership from January 2016 as reported by Business Standard. According to the report, Facebook was looking in investing in Wi-Fi hotspots to provide the internet to the masses. The company was working in partnership with BSNL and has bought bandwidth from BSNL in in 125 rural areas for three years. This means that the company is going to test a lot of plans for future Internet services if the plan does not work out.

I visited other existing implementations of Express Wifi online and found that the company has already implemented in Nigeria. The website, by appearance, gives the same ominous deja vu; the language used is "Add your website to Free Basics" under the "Get Involved" heading at the bottom of "Express Wifi by Facebook" page. The absurdity is that while looking at existing Express Wifi details, the company plans "Fast, Affordable, and Reliable Wi-Fi" along with a 14-day free trial with a daily limit of 100MB per day.

The confusing thing is that the company points out that "you can access the entire Internet" while immediately below the title, Facebook mentions "Free Basics." I tried signing up, and the signup page relies on your full name and mobile number.

From Internet.org to Drones to Express Wifi

Facebook has long been working on newer ideas to connect people together by providing them access to the internet. The initial layout of the plan started with Internet.org which was built to function like the '0' platform launched way back in 2013 by Wikipedia in partnership with Aircel. The company tied up with Wikipedia to launch 'Wikipedia Zero' to provide people free access to information online. This later expanded to Facebook and other websites on Aircel India network.

Internet.org was rolled out later after the popularity of the concept where Facebook tied up with Reliance to provide free access to certain sites while the users had to pay to access the entire internet. Airtel launched its Airtel Zero platform after the introduction of Internet.org. Facebook rebranded the effort to 'Free Basics' which received a massive outlast as it was a huge blow to net neutrality. TRAI banned zero rated plans entirely, stopping any mobile operator from putting discriminatory pricing to access different websites on the internet.

The latest effort by Facebook is Project Aquila, where the company is using solar-powered drones which use laser technology to beam the internet to remote places while staying airborne. The Aquila drone took flight in late July this year and crashed a few days back after structural failure. The company has ordered an investigation to check the design flaw and improve the design for the next drone. Express Wifi is the latest attempt by the company in India to connect people with 'free' or 'affordable' internet.

Google is not slacking

Google, the rival internet giant to Facebook, is not sitting idle when it comes to attempts at tapping the largest potential market of new users for its services. The company started test runs of Project Loon, a project to provide connectivity to remote and rural areas using balloons. It quickly scaled up to launching 20 balloons every day in 2014 testing the system. The project has continued to evolve to this date with regular upgrades to LTE, testing in newer locations with tests in India earlier this year.

The company took the same path as Facebook with tests done using drones as part of Project SkyBender earlier this year. Google also revealed that it is testing technologies that can easily beam the internet directly to your homes which involve a fixed Fibre beaming station in the areas where fibre connections are expensive. The company confirmed that it is testing multiple technologies and not limiting to one technology.

More recently, the company launched Google Stations, which in principle is almost like what Facebook is trying to do with bringing local entrepreneurs and ISPs to provide Internet infrastructure and connectivity. But one important factor is that the company does not restrict the internet to a particular set of websites that you can access. Instead, Google limits the time of free usage, allowing the user to buy more time to use the entire internet without any limitations. Google Station is perfect for towns or villages set near railway stations. This project was the evolution of Google's plan to provide high-speed internet to major stations across India using RailTel.

Moving ahead

Both Facebook and Google are experimenting with various technologies to be the first on to crack the vast Indian market. The Indian market is essential because that would directly impact the long-term growth for both the companies. One thing to note is that both companies are working on similar lines, experimenting with Drones or tieing up with local entrepreneurs, ISPs and carriers.

However, the most important factor that both the companies, especially Facebook, has to take care is to maintain and nurture the core principals of internet, particularly Net neutrality. Instead of repacking same old wine in a new bottle, they should focus on ideas like Open Cellular which can truly be disruptive. Repackaging the same old idea will not work because if they do so, the resulting backlash can have lasting impact regarding its ambitions to establish its foothold in untapped portions of Indian market.
Nimish Sawant

The fake news problem is real. The year's US Presidential Elections have proven that on many occasions. According to a Buzzfeed investigation, it was found that the 20 top-performing fake stories generated slightly more than 8.7 million shares on Facebook to just 7.4 million from major news websites, in the three months before the election.

Facebook and rise of fake news in the US

This phenomenon is not something that is going to go away overnight. Since Facebook is completely dependent on algorithms to determine what is trending news, many a times it fails to distinguish between real and fake news or sarcastic news sources. While that is just one aspect causing the rise in fake news, another aspect is the users themselves.

Not everyone bothers checking multiple sources when they come across some fake news. With number of people sharing such news on the rise, it leads to these news hitting the trending topic section in no time. Again, the US Presidential elections proved this to be true where everyone was in their own echo-chamber, being fed news which would appeal to their worldview.

This NPR reporter actually got in touch with one such fake news creators, whose story received half a million shared on Facebook. NPR learnt from publisher of the fake news site, that the reasoning behind the site was 'to infiltrate the echo chambers of the alt-right, publish blatantly or fictional stories'.

Rohingya Muslim persecution in Myanmar

Now a latest story from Buzzfeed claims how Facebook's fake news culture may unknowingly be leading to a rise in the anti-Muslim sentiment in Myanmar. Unlike other countries, Myanmar provides a completely unique case study. In the sense that the country has gone from having just 0.2 percent Internet penetration in 2010 to close to 20 percent by 2016. A growth that has been unprecedented, in terms of population proportion, anywhere else.

Of the 11 million people, close to 9.7 million are on Facebook. That again is a massive proportion of Internet users also being Facebook users. Add in Facebook's fake news phenomenon to the mix and the rise of extremist Buddhist groups to the fray, and you have a disastrous recipe for the minorities such as Rohingya Muslims in the country.

Rohingya Muslims, who form 4 percent of the population of Myanmar, have faced prosecutions over the years. More recently, they were the subject of extreme violence just last month, which left around 70 dead and completely burnt villages. The Buzzfeed report points to how mobilisation of fringe extremist elements on Facebook could also have assisted in this violence. There has also been a rise in news which demonise the Muslim community in Myanmar  articles which get quickly shared online and have a high possibility of going viral.

Ashin Wirathu, who leads a group of extremist monks called the 'Ma Ba tha' movement, though denies his association with the lynch mobs, is quite well known in Myanmar for his anti-Muslim sentiments. He uses Facebook extensively to spread his message. Some of those include boycotting Muslim businesses and call for Muslims to be expelled from Myanmar. For someone having 190,000+ followers, Wirathu is certainly an influential personality.

And with digital literacy still nascent in Myanmar, such Facebook accounts could certainly boost in the spread of fake news, as long as their purpose is served.

Reddit CEO messing with pro-Trump commentators

Facebook isn't the only channel which is used to spread fake news. The front-page of the internet can give a massive boost to news stories, and make them go viral, thanks to the active Reddit community. If a story hits the top of any popular sub-reddit, that can amplify the story whereby it is pushed onto other social media platforms as well.

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman got himself into a soup for trying edit and later restore user comments on a pro-Donald Trump-supporting sub-reddit. He replaced the comments addressed to his handle (u/spez) with that of the the moderators of r/the_donald.

The reason being that Huffman was irritated with /r/The_Donald supporters abusing him over a fake 'Pizzagate' story. Reddit had banned a community board dedicated to discussing a conspiracy theory involving US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The Pizzagate conspiracy alleged that Hillary and her campaign chief were involved in a child abuse ring operating out of a pizza restaurant in Washington DC. This fake story had real details of a pizza outlet, whose owner claimed he had been receiving death threats.

This move by Huffman, allegedly motivated by a fake news powered sub-reddit, has been under fire from the Reddit community. Specially for community-driven platforms such as Reddit, where you have moderators to oversee things, if the CEO decides to 'troll the trolls' as he puts it, it certainly leaves a bad precedent.

Long way to go

These are just three instances of how the spread of fake news is touching upon multiple aspects. The rise of far right groups on social media is an immediate result. Possibility of targeting minority communities whose voices may get drowned out in the din created by fake news is quite high. Unlike with legit news, fake news are created keeping the virality prospect in mind. Back in the day, it used to be celebrity death hoaxes. Fake news was the preserve of satirical websites such as The Onion or Faking News. Now, the tables seemed to have turned somewhat.

The Macedonian teenagers who were responsible for a lot of fake news around the US Presidential elections time, were least bothered by ideology. They realised that pro-Trump news had a higher chance of going viral vis-a-vis pro-Clinton news, so they went ahead with it.

Facebook and Google have announced measures to tackle fake news. Sites such as Snopes, FactCheck, are also helping. But don't expect the fake news phenomenon to be eradicated anytime soon.
tech2 News Staff

India has been a strong market for Samsung, for sometime now. But looks like he Note 7 fiasco hasn't just benefited its arch-rival Apple, but also Google. According to an Economic Times report, Google has managed to capture 10 percent of the premium smartphone segment, which means the Pixel smartphones got a good head-start.

The report explains that Google has shipped 33,000 units of the Pixel to India till the end of October. This gave it the third spot in the phone segment that costs more than Rs 30,000. In October, Apple enjoyed 66 percent market share while Samsung fell to 23 percent. Google ensured it isn't late to the party and its new Made by Google phone didn't take too long to reach the Indian shores. The device was available for pre-order in early October with exchange offers and no-cost EMIs, and by 25 October it went on sale.

A Google India spokesperson told the news site, "We are very enthused by the feedback from Indian customers and the initial response for Pixel has been extremely positive and in line with our expectations. Pixel is Googles take on the total user experience as we envision it  bringing the best of Googles software, such as the Google Assistant, with hardware that really brings the experience to life."

In terms of specs, the Pixel brings a 5-inch Full HD AMOLED display and the larger Pixel XL comes with a 5.5-inch QHD AMOLED display. The Pixel gets a smaller 2,770mAH battery while the larger one gets a 3,450mAH battery. The devices sport an aluminium and glass build and the 12.3MP camera has been given a rating of 89 on DXoMark which is the highest on any smartphone camera. The camera features an f/2.0 aperture with the sensor producing large 1.55m pixels.

For people who want to switch from an Apple device, Google s also offering a seamless transfer tool along with an adapter. It will make it easier to move contacts, calendar, photos, videos, music, SMS messages, iMessages and more. The list of specs also includes a Snapdragon 821 quad-core processor with 2.15GHz clock speed, 4GB of RAM, 32GB and 128GB fixed storage options, a 12.3MP rear camera with phase detection and laser guided autofocus and an LED flash, an 8MP front camera with an f/2.4 aperture, USB Type-C and a fingerprint scanner.
tech2 News Staff

ICICI Bank has announced an undertaking under which the bank will transform 100 villages in 100 days. The financial institution has decided to convert all of the 100 villages into 'ICICI Digital Villages' which is in line with the bank's effort to arrange digital ecosystem across the country. The bank is contributing its part in resolving the ongoing chaos after the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes along with the introduction of new notes.

According to ICICI, these villages will be spread all across the country without any pattern or correlation. The bank will allow the facility of e-KYC verification which can be done using the Aadhar card to open new bank accounts without the need for physical documents, simplifying the main difficulty for most users who don't have a bank account as of now.

The bank will also impart vocational training to over 10,000 underprivileged villagers, especially women, to help them earn a living along with the formation of self-help groups. ICICI will also extend credit facilities to encourage the trained villages who want to try and open up self-employment options. This commitment comes right after ICICI turned one village in Gujarat into India's first 'digital' village in Akodara in Sabarkantha.

"ICICI Bank continues to be a catalyst to accelerate development in our country. By leveraging technology, we converted Akodara in Gujarat from a village to Indias first digital village last year. Its success motivates us to scale up the initiative a big waywe will now convert 100 villages across the country into digital villages. We will create a cashless ecosystem at these villages, provide vocational training to 10,000 villagers in first 100 days and offer them credit linkages so that the villagers can start their own business ventures," added Chanda Kochhar, CEO and MD for ICICI Bank.

The bank will also provide USSD and SMS-based mobile services to enable transfer of money, receive alerts, statements and also making payments for things such as retail stores or mobile recharge shops.

The bank has taken additional measures to provide end-to-end digital ecosystem for a commercial activity as an end-to-end measuring, tracking and payment for milk cooperative society and its members. The company will also set POS (Point-of-Sale) machines at fertiliser and seed outlets for cashless transactions.
tech2 News Staff

Japan has been an important hub for technology. But the past few year have not been very fruitful for the country due to unforeseen natural disasters, but a strong will has kept the nation going. It recently announced a plan to build the world's fastest and efficient supercomputer. Called the Artificial Intelligence Bridging Cloud Infrastructure or AIBC, it is due for completion next year. According to reports, the new 130-petaflops supercomputer will cost $173 million.

The AIBC will be a huge advancement for supercomputing and will greatly advance AI research as well as provide processing power for various companies, startups, and academic institutions. It will be constructed at the University of Tokyo's Kashiwa Campus and like most active supercomputers, it will likely run on a Linux operating system. Currently the most advanced and powerful supercomputer in the world is China's Sunway TaihuLight which can perform 93-petaflops, followed by the 33.86-petaflop calculating Tianhe-2. Once completed, the AIBC will be the fastest in the world as well as be almost 10-times faster than Japan's current fastest supercomputer, which runs at just 13.5-petaflops.

"As far as we know, there is nothing out there that is as fast ," Satoshi Sekiguchi, a director general at National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), told Reuters.

In case you are interested, here is a list of the top-five supercomputers in the world:

Sunway TaihuLight 93.01-petaflops (China)

NUDT Tianhe-2 33.86-petaflops (China)

Cray Titan 17.59-petaflops (U.S.)

IBM Sequoia 17.17-petaflops (U.S.)

Cray Cory 14.01-petaflops (U.S.)

Fujitsu Oakforest-PACS 13.55-petaflops (Japan)

Fujitsu K computer 10.51-petaflops (Japan)

Cray Piz Daint 9.77-petaflops (Sweden)

IBM Mira 8.58-petaflops (U.S.)

Cray Trinity 8.10-petaflops (U.S.)

The cost of the new computer is likely be mitigated by allowing companies to rent time on the supercomputer for their own use. The announcement of the supercomputer comes after Japanese PM Shinzo Abe called for Japan's governmental and private sectors to work more closely together to put the country at the forefront of new and growing technological markets. AIBC will be utilised to help research and development of self-driving cars, medical applications, robotics, and more. The primary goal however will be to calculate the capacity of the supercomputer to accelerate aspects of artificial intelligence research, including deep learning which will teach machines high-level abstract thinking like of a human being.

While major tech companies are bidding to create this machine, there are a number of technical challenges to overcome in order to create the AIBC. Power will be one of the biggest hurdles as the AIST wants the computer to run on less than 3 megawatts of power which is five-times less than the current fastest. There is also a plan to use cutting-edge liquid cooling techniques to maintain the temperature of supercomputer.
tech2 News Staff

After the LG G5 with modular design, reports about the G6 have started surfacing online. Adding to the string of leaks and rumours, a new report suggests that the upcoming LG device will feature iris scanner and a payments method.

According to a Korea Herald report, the company plans to launch the device with possibly both the above mentioned features in early 2017. At the Korea Electronics Show held in October, the company had showcased the all-in-one module that will acts as both iris scanner and camera. It is believed that the inclusion of this technology may help the company position the device better compared to its competitors.

Meanwhile, we've been hearing about the non-modular design for the G6. However, there is the possibility of the G6 coming with modular accessories. Moroever, we've also been hearing about a removable battery for the device.

Adding to the features list that could help the company set its product apart from others, or at least at par, reports also talk about a new payments system allegedly called LG Pay. It will be along the lines of Samsung Pay, employing the Magnetic Security Transmission solution. This is unlike the previous report around the LG universal payments card. However, for now, let's take all of this with a pinch of salt. Meanwhile, you can check out our LG G5 review.
hidden

German trains-to-turbines group Siemens is well placed to do business in the United States, regardless of whether President-elect Donald Trump backs fossil-fuels at the expense of renewable energy, its CEO told a newspaper.

"The good thing is that we can offer everything. Steam power plants that are powered by coal, state-of-the-art gas-fired power plants, wind energy, we can build solar parks and the necessary link to the power grid," Joe Kaeser told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) in an interview. Siemens employs 50,000 people and makes $22 billion in revenues in the United States, its single biggest market, accounting for a quarter of its total sales.

"It should pay off that Siemens has built up local production and engineering in the United States a long time ago." Global renewable stocks fell following Trump's election victory, fuelling concerns about the long-term prospects of the industry in the United States.

Siemens earlier this month said it planned a public listing of its $15 billion healthcare business, its most profitable, and Kaeser told FAZ that there was not much work left to do to make the unit ready for a stock exchange flotation. "We have a lot of practice," Kaeser said, pointing to lighting group Osram, which was spun off by Siemens in 2013 and in which it still holds a 17 percent stake.

Chinese chipmaker Sanan Optoelectronics last month confirmed it had been in "preliminary contact" with Osram after reports that it was interested in buying the lighting group lifted the German firm's shares. Asked whether selling its stake to a Chinese suitor was an issue for Siemens, Kaeser said: "China is the world's largest lighting market. That should not be ignored lightly."

Reuters
An Ohio State University student plowed a car into a campus crowd, then jumped out and started stabbing people with a butcher knife before being shot dead by police Monday morning, officials said.



Nine people were taken to hospitals after the ambush, and one was in critical condition. The incident was initially reported as an "active shooter" situation, but the suspect did not shoot anyone.



A police officer was on the scene within a minute and killed the assailant. "He engaged the suspect and eliminated the threat," OSU Police Chief Craig Stone said.



Law enforcement officials told NBC News the suspect's name is Abdul Artan, an 18-year-old student at the university. He was a Somali refugee who left his homeland with his family in 2007, lived in Pakistan and then came to the United States in 2014 as a legal permanent resident of the United States, officials said.



The motive was unknown, but officials said the attack was clearly deliberate and may have been planned in advance.

A Somali who was a permanent legal resident of the US attacked at least 10 people at Ohio's state university before being gunned down. NBC news (via iOwntheWorld ) reports:Oh, they know it was "lone wolf" jihadism that motivated the monster, who should now rot in hell for what he did. As always, their refusal to acknowledge the possibilities is galling.

Labels: Africa, anti-americanism, immigration, islam, jihad, pakistan, terrorism, United States, war on terror
Copyright  2021 New Nation. All Rights Reserved by thedailynewnation.com
Syrian forces capture key Aleppo area from rebels

Syrian soldiers seized the area of Masaken Hanano at the weekend

Reuters, Beirut :

The Syrian army and its allies drove rebels from a strategically important area of eastern Aleppo on Monday, the army and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, in an accelerating attack that threatens to crush the opposition in Aleppo.

One rebel official denied the report that al-Sakhour had fallen, an advance that would cut the rebel-held eastern districts of Aleppo in two, while another said the situation was not yet clear. The Observatory said rebels had lost control of more than a third of eastern Aleppo in recent days.

Citing a military source, Syrian state TV said the army and its allies had seized the entire Sakhour area and were working to clear it of mines. Backed by allied militiamen, the army has been advancing into eastern Aleppo from the northeast since last week, making steady gains over the weekend.

A fighter on the government side in Aleppo said the army and its allies had now driven a wedge through eastern Aleppo, leaving a corridor for rebels to quit the northern part for the south. "In the coming hours, the rest of the northern sector will be taken," the fighter told Reuters, declining to be identified because he is not an official spokesman.

Capturing rebel-held eastern Aleppo would be the biggest victory for President Bashar al-Assad since the start of the Syrian uprising in 2011. Aleppo is the most important urban stronghold of the uprising.

Observatory Director Rami Abdulrahman said government forces were now in effective control of a swathe of eastern Aleppo stretching north from the al-Sakhour neighborhood, having seized a third of eastern Aleppo in recent days.

"It is the biggest defeat for the opposition in Aleppo since 2012," he told Reuters. Abdulrahman said the army and its allies were now in control of an entire swathe of eastern Aleppo stretching north from al-Sakhour. Part of the northern area was seized by the Kurdish YPG militia, which is hostile to the rebel groups in eastern Aleppo and advanced into the rebel-held territory from the Kurdish-controlled Sheikh Maqsoud district, Abdulrahman said.

Backed by the Russian air force, the Syrian army and its allies have been gradually closing in on rebel-held eastern Aleppo this year, besieging it before launching a fierce assault in September.

Through a series of so-called "settlement" agreements and army offensives, the Syrian government, backed by Russian air power and Iranian-backed militias, has been steadily suppressing armed opposition to its rule in the capital city's suburbs.

Rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad and his government say the deals are part of a strategy to forcibly displace whole populations from opposition-held areas after years of siege and bombardment.

The United Nations estimates 12,000 people have been besieged in Khan al-Shih, where a Palestinian refugee camp is located, in the Damascus suburbs for years. The last month has seen heavy clashes and air strikes there, ending this week with the evacuation deal.

Khan al-Shih is the only town not controlled by the government on a major supply route from Damascus to government-held territory in the southern province of Quneitra.

The army will start the transfer of insurgents and their families from the town to rebel-held Idlib province on Monday, according to a statement from a military news service run by the Lebanese group Hezbollah, an ally of Assad.




Why Alia Bhatt is missing Shah Rukh?

While Shah Rukh and Alia Bhatts Dear Zindagi continues to wow audiences and critics alike, the films prime star Alia Bhatt has started to miss her Jug AKA Dr Jehangir Khan i.e Shah Rukh Khan.

During a promotional event, when Alia was asked about her experience of working with a star as big as Shah Rukh, she said, It was a magical experience working with him. Personally, Ive learned a lot from him which I dont want to share with anybody. I am really missing him today.

The 23-year-old went on to add, For the past couple of week, we were so busy in promoting the film. So Shah Rukh, I am really missing you.

Remembering her shooting days with Shah Rukh in Singapore, Alia said, We didnt have so much time while shooting for Dear Zindagi. We went for dinner at a Mexican restaurant where we played all Bollywood songs while having dinner. We have lots of beautiful memories of shooting Dear Zindagi.
Shahriar gets `UN Momentum for Change 2016` award

Director of the Center for Energy Research of United International University Shahriar Ahmed Chowdhury is seen to receive \'UN Momentum for Change 2016\' Award at a ceremony held recently in Morocco.

Staff Reporter :

The Director of Centre for Energy Research of United International University Shahriar Ahmed Chowdhury achieved the "UN Momentum for Change 2016" award. He was awarded for the project "PV DC Peer-to-Peer Smart Village Grid" at CoP 22 in Marakkesh, Morocco.

The research pilot project (ShakibAli Matabbor Kandi village of Jajira Upazilla of Shariatpur district) is the world's first peer-to-peer network to allow energy to be shared between private solar installations.

Bi-directional metering devices allow users to buy and sell electricity via the local power grid. Households that do not have their own solar installation can purchase electricity from their neighbours. The project has enabled the trading of electricity among the households in rural off grid areas having solar home systems and also without solar home systems. The expansion of solar energy in the village is reducing fossil fuel consumption and facilitating the inhabitants' access to electricity thus reducing carbon emission and support climate change mitigation.

The research project was Co-funded by World Bank and IDCOL, A Bangladesh-German start-up company SOLshare provided the technology and implemented the project and NGO UBOMUS is operating the research pilot project at Shakimali Matborkandi village of Shener Char Union of Jajira upazilla of Shariatpur district. (GPS Co-ordinates of the implemented project site: 23.33180, 90.26893).
Bangladesh College Teachers Association staged a demonstration in front of the Jatiya Press Club on Monday in protest against killing of a teacher of Phulbaria Degree College in Mymensingh.
Suu Kyi calls off trip to Jakarta

Pressure grows over Rohingya Muslims

An Indonesian wearing a mask depicting Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi and carrying a picture of her Nobel Peace Prize taking part in a protest in front of the Myanmar Embassy in Jakarta,

The Wall Street Journal :

Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi called off a trip to Indonesia on Monday after protests there over her country's renewed crackdown on its Rohingya minority, a flare-up of violence that has killed dozens of people and exposed the limits of her authority over the military.

Foreign affairs spokesman Kyaw Zaya said the protests, including another set for Friday in Jakarta that is also expected to touch on the Rohingya crisis, contributed to Ms. Suu Kyi's decision to postpone her visit, which was planned for that same day.

Adding to the tensions, Indonesian police in recent days arrested several alleged Islamic State sympathizers they say were suspected of planning bomb attacks on several buildings in Jakarta, including the Myanmar Embassy.

The Rohingya, like the vast majority of Indonesians, are Muslim.

Hundreds have fled the northern reaches of the state of Rakhine since the purge began in early October, after a group of militant Rohingyas attacked security outposts in the area, killing nine police and seizing firearms.

Satellite images released this month by U.S.-based Human Rights Watch, and video footage smuggled out by Rohingya activists, show villages in the area around Maungdaw being torched as the stream of refugees grows.

Aid agencies and journalists have been barred from the area, where more than 150,000 people have now been left without food or medical care as the Myanmar armed forces conduct what they describe as "clearance operations." At least 69 insurgents have been killed, authorities say.

The crisis is the worst since 2012, when Buddhist mobs attacked some of the 1.1 million Rohingya living in Rakhine, who are subject to travel and work restrictions in addition to being denied citizenship in Myanmar, also known as Burma.

The U.S., which recently dropped its last remaining sanctions against Myanmar, says it has raised concerns with the government. The State Department called last week for an independent investigation and "open media access."

Presidential spokesman Zaw Htay this month accused Rohingya militants of burning their own villages to darken Myanmar's international reputation, and denied allegations from Rohingya activists that soldiers have raped Rohingya women. He has said any other country would take action if insurgents had raided outposts and stolen weapons.

Ms. Suu Kyi, who formally serves as state counselor rather than president, has taken a cautious approach. Speaking in Japan this month, she said that blame shouldn't be cast until all the facts are known.

Some international researchers say Ms. Suu Kyi's silence is providing a free hand for the Myanmar army to clear and burn villages, with the goal of forcing entire communities over the border to refugee camps in Bangladesh.

A regional official with the U.N.'s refugee agency, John McKissick, called it a campaign of ethnic cleansing while experts at the International State Crime Initiative, a research center based at Queen Mary University of London, accuse Ms. Suu Kyi's government of mimicking the previous military regime by turning a deaf ear to allegations of human-rights abuses.

The reality, though, is that the former Nobel Peace Prize winner, who came to power last year after a landmark election, still faces constraints.

Under Myanmar's new constitution, the army retains control of the Defense and Interior ministries and border control, meaning her government must share power with the armed forces.

That leaves her with a dilemma: Whether to hold her tongue about her former captors' treatment of the Rohingya and face a worsening humanitarian crisis, or speak out and risk damaging the working relationship that she has developed with Tatmadaw, as the armed forces are known.

Some analysts point out that she isn't powerless. Ms. Suu Kyi has a strong international support, having spent years under house arrest, and could likely influence the military if she chooses to do so.

"There is a symbiotic relationship between Ms. Suu Kyi and the military. She needs them to govern effectively, and the Tatmadaw needs her to help legitimize itself to the rest of the world," said Richard Horsey, a Myanmar analyst and consultant based in Yangon.

Going against the army could prove politically unpopular, too. There is a strong anti-Muslim sentiment in Myanmar, fanned by Buddhist nationalists who argue that Islam is gaining too much ground too quickly. They have become more vocal since the Oct. 9 attack on the police outposts.

Meanwhile, researchers say the situation in Rakhine is worsening as Bangladesh turns back people attempting to cross the border.

Penny Green, director of the International State Crime Unit and a professor of international law, says the current round of repression echoes previous crackdowns in 1977-78 and 1991-92, when hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled Myanmar.
US renews call for transparent probe

The United States has reiterated its call for a full, formal and transparent investigation into violence in Burma's Rakhine State and laid emphasis on international community's participation for finding a solution there.

"We call for a full, formal and transparent investigation into the situation there," US Ambassador in Dhaka Marcia Bernicat told reporters on Monday.

She observed that no one had access to that region for sometimes and it is important to get that access for humanitarian support to the people there and to know what is going on inside Burma. The US Ambassador was responding to questions at DCAB Talk in the city arranged by Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh (DCAB). DCAB President Angur Nahar Monty and general secretary Pantho Rahman also spoke.

Earlier on November 15, Director, Press Office of the US Department of State Elizabeth Trudeau said they are concerned by reports of a spike in violence in Burma's Rakhine State and are following the situation closely and attempting to get reliable information about developments there.

The US Ambassador to Burma Scot Marciel, along with a visiting delegation of officials from the State Department as well as other US agencies, held a previously scheduled bilateral dialogue with the Government of Burma in Naypyidaw The US delegation stressed the need for the government of Burma to facilitate a "credible and independent investigation" of these allegations to improve transparency and information sharing, and to provide access for both media as well as humanitarian aid, according to US Department of State.

Bangladesh also expressed deep concern at the continued deteriorating situation in the Rakhine State of Myanmar due to ongoing actions of the Myanmar Armed Forces causing dire consequences to the people and its implications for Bangladesh.

On November 23, Ambassador of Myanmar to Bangladesh Myo Myint Than was called to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to meet Ambassador Kamrul Ahsan, Secretary (Bilateral & Consular) who conveyed government's concern. Secretary (Bilateral & Consular) informed the Ambassador that desperate people from the Rakhine State are entering into Bangladesh due to humanitarian situation seeking safety and shelter across borders. Ahsan requested the Ambassador to request his Government to take urgent appropriate measures so that Muslim minorities in the Rakhine State are not forced to seek shelter across the border.

Bangladesh urged Myanmar to take urgent measures to bring back normalcy in the Rakhine State so that those who have already crossed and those who are waiting to cross the border, along with the internally displaced people can go back to their villages without fear and with safety and dignity to pursue their normal life.

Despite Bangladesh's Border Guards sincere effort to prevent the influx, thousands of distressed Myanmar's citizens including women, children and elderly people continue to cross border into Bangladesh.
Writ seeking entry of Rohingyas

Staff Reporter :

A writ petition has been filed with the High Court (HC) seeking directives on the government to allow Rohingya people of Myanmar to enter Bangladesh as they are passing a crisis moment in their country.

Abu Yahia Dulal, a Supreme Court lawyer, filed the petition praying to open the Bangladesh-Myanmar border temporarily so that tortured Myanmar citizens can take shelter in Bangladesh. He said in the petition that the repressed citizens of Myanmar should be allowed to enter into Bangladesh on humanitarian grounds.

Abu Yahia told the reporters that the High Court may hold hearing on the writ petition today.

Home Secretary, Inspector General of Police, DG of Border Guard Bangladesh and DG of Bangladesh Coast Guard are in the defendants list.

Police and Army of Myanmar jointly diving eviction against Rohingya people in the Rakhine State of the country. They are being killed, raped and tortured by the State machineries. Rohingyas' presence in Bangladesh border have been increased after eviction drive was launched. But Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) is pushing back Rohingyas while they are trying to enter Bangladesh. It is only mounting humanitarian crisis.
3 probe bodies formed

Staff Reporter :

The authorities on Monday formed three separate committees to investigate into the emergency landing of VVIP Flight BG 1101 carrying Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to Hungary.

The Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry, Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) and Biman Bangladesh Airlines separately formed the committees, officials said.

Shapan Kumar Sarkar, Additional Secretary of Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry, will lead the probe body formed by the Ministry, said Civil Aviation Minister Rashed Khan Menon at a press conference in the Secretariat in Dhaka.

Capt Fariduzzaman will lead the three-member investigation committee formed by the CAAB while Capt Fazal Mahmud, will lead the Biman's four-member probe body.

"The committees have been asked to submit their report by December 1," Shakil Meraj, General Manager of Biman told The New Nation on Monday.

The probe body formed by CAAB has been asked to submit its report within seven working days.

The aircraft of Bangladesh Biman, Boeing 777-300 ER carrying Prime Minister with a high-level delegation, had to land in Turkmenistan's capital Ashgabat due to some mid-air technical complications.

After completing repair work, the Prime Minister's flight finally took off for Hungarian capital Budapest around 6:37pm from Ashgabat after a delay of more than four hours and landed in Budapest around 11:05pm Bangladesh time on Sunday.

The aircraft 'Ranga Probhat' took off from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka around 9:14am on Sunday.

Sheikh Hasina left for Budapest on a four-day bilateral visit in conjunction with Budapest Water Summit 2016.

The aircraft reached Dhaka around 2:00pm on Monday.
BD to seek $50m compensation from RCBC

Philippines President skips meeting with Dhaka team

Staff Reporter :

Bangladesh would seek $50 million compensation from Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) of Philippines for laundering the $81 million stolen from Bangladesh Bank's reserve account held with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

The funds were transmitted online to four private accounts at a Manila branch of the RCBC and they later managed to withdraw the fund with the help of some RCBC officials.

"Definitely, we would seek from RCBC to release some money," Bangladesh's ambassador to the Philippines John Gomes came up with the statement in an interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Sunday.

"In the Senate hearing, they had informed (the public) that if RCBC was made liable, they would take it to their board to compensate (Bangladesh) with $50 million. This amount was very clearly mentioned," he said.

"RCBC said if they were made liable, they would put it up to the board," Gomes said, reiterating his stand that the Yuchengco-controlled bank was liable for not stopping the release of the stolen funds despite a so-called "stop payment" order conveyed to it subsequently.

"Now this is one of our main points. It was discussed in the Senate and they had given us a sort of a commitment that they will put this up to the board and let the Senate know. Now that they have been made liable-because of the fine [imposed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas] and the cases filed against their officials-definitely we would seek for RCBC to release some money," the Ambassador said.

Bangladesh has so far recovered $15 million of the funds which was voluntarily turned over by casino junket operator Kim Wong to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) after the scandal broke.

A high-level Bangladesh delegation is now in Manila to press for the return of missing Bangladesh Bank funds that were laundered in the Philippines.

Gomes said the visiting Bangladeshi delegation led by Law Minister Anisul Huq will officially convey its government's gratitude to the Philippines for efforts to recover the missing funds and prosecute those who were guilty for aiding and abetting the crime.

The delegation also includes the attorney general, central bank governor, Ministry of Finance Secretary and a parliamentarian.

The delegation was scheduled to meet with Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday. But the meeting was not held as the President had reportedly been skipped the meeting, reports Daily Inquirer.

"The President was supposed to meet with senior Bangladeshi officials at 2:30 pm, but he had to skip the meeting "due to pressing matters that demand the President's immediate attention," said Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella Abella.

Abella said the representatives of the Bangladeshi government had met with the appropriate heads of agencies to discuss their concern regarding the stolen $81 million from the Bangladesh bank, which was laundered in the Philippines

The Bangladeshi delegation met with Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III as well as Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II to get the latest developments on cases filed against officials of RCBC and money changer Philrem Service Corp., which facilitated the conversion of the funds into local currency.

Gomes said the Bangladeshi delegation would also meet with Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and BSP Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. during their four-day visit.

An investigation by the Philippines Anti-Money Laundering Council showed the transfers occurred February 5. Shortly afterward, a bulk of the money was moved to another RCBC account whose owner then sent the funds through a remittance company to two Philippine casino companies. The remittance company also made cash deliveries to a certain Weikang Xu.

The anti-money laundering council later moved to freeze the funds and filed criminal complaints against RCBC branch manager Maia Santos-Deguito and the supposed owner of the four RCBC accounts where the stolen Bangladesh funds were deposited, before the Department of Justice in Manila.

The council alleged that Deguito approved the opening of the four RCBC accounts on May 15 last year based on what appeared to be fake documents of the owners, who were later also able to withdraw some of the funds in one of the largest money-laundering scandals in the Philippines.

The funds were withdrawn up to February 9 when the Bangladesh Bank already alerted RCBC and asked for a stop payment on February 8.
Phulbaria tense, Sec 144 imposed

500 sued: Many flee home amid fears of arrest: Probe body formed

Staff Reporter :

Around 500 unnamed people were sued and Section-144 was imposed in the Phulbaria municipality area of Mymensingh district on Monday morning following the Sunday's violence that killed a teacher of Phulbaria Degree College and a fish trader.



The upazila administration on Monday imposed Section 144 for an indefinite period from the Phulbaria municipal area to Valikajan in the wake of the yesterday's widespread violence.



The Section 144, which has been enforced from 9am on Monday, will stay in force until further notice, an official of Phulbaria upazila administration said.



A case has been filed against around 500 unnamed people in connection with violence and launching attack on cops



Sub-Inspector Rafiq of Phulbaria Police Station, filed a case accusing 400 to 500 people on Sunday night, said Rifat Bin Rajib, officer-in-charge of the police station.



Following the incident, many students and locals of the Phulbaria municipal area have fled their homes amid fears of arrest, residents.



"The situation is tense. People are fleeing because of the heavy movement of law enforcers," said a villager of the area.



Hazrat Ali, brother of dead Safar Ali, who was also killed in Sunday's violence, filed an unnatural death case with Phulbaria police station. On Sunday, Abul Kalam Azad, a teacher of the Botany Department of the college and Safar Ali, 70, a fish trader, were killed and 100 others injured as police clubbed the protesters indiscriminately.



Meanwhile, Abul Kalam Azad, an associate professor of Botany Department of the college, who was killed in the Sunday's violence, was buried at his family graveyard at village West Kadirpur in Nandail upazila amid tight security.



His namaz-e-janaza was held at Furkania Madrassa premises amid tight security.



The teachers and students of the college and locals have been continuing their agitation demanding nationalisation of the college for the last few months as it has all the facilities similar to that of the government colleges.



When contacted Syed Nurul Islam, Superintendent of Police of Mymensingh district told The New Nation on Monday that the situation is now under control.



"We hope the situation will improve further," he said.



When contacted Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid on Monday said a three-member probe body led by Shamsul Huda, Director of Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education has been formed to investigate the incident.



"I'm saddened over the death of a teacher. Shamsul Huda is now visiting the spot to investigate the incident. We have taken the issue seriously," he added.



Bangladesh College Shikkhok Samiti staged demonstration and took a protest rally in front of the National Press Club in the city yesterday demanding exemplary punishment to those involved in killing the teacher.
Strictly follow rules in women repression cases

Surendra Kumar Sinha

BSS, Dhaka :

Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha has asked officials concerned to strictly follow section 31 (a) of Women and Children Repression Prevention Act-2000 while dealing with cases under the law.

In a notice signed by High Court Division Registrar Abu Syed Diljar Hussain, the Chief Justice said, according to sub-section 3 of the section 20 of the act, a tribunal shall complete the adjudication within the period of one hundred and eighty days from the date the case was filed.

"According to section 31 (a) of the act, if the tribunal fails to dispose of the case within


Iraqi forces say 1,000 IS fighters killed in Mosul

Iraqi soldiers take cover during operation against Islamic State militants in the frontline neighbourhood of Intisar, eastern Mosul.

Reuters, | BARTELLA, Iraq :

Iraqi special forces battling to clear Islamic State from eastern Mosul have killed nearly 1,000 militants but fighting has slowed as troops face a mobile enemy hidden among thousands of civilians in the city, a top commander said.

Six weeks into a major offensive, Iraqi forces have captured nearly half of eastern Mosul, moving from district to district against jihadist snipers, suicide attackers and car bombs.

Elite Iraqi troops, known as the "Golden Division", are the only brigades to have entered Mosul from the east, with Iraqi army, federal police

and Kurdish Peshmerga units surrounding the city to the north and south. Shi'ite militias are trying to complete the encirclement from the west.

The U.S.-trained Counter Terrorism Service unit breached Islamic State's defenses at the end of October, but has been slowed by the militants' mobile tactics and concern over civilian casualties preventing the use of tanks and heavy armor. Major General Abdul Ghani al-Asadi, one of the commanders of the special forces, said troops had adapted their tactics, surrounding one district at a time to cut off the militants' supplies and protect civilians. "Progress was faster at the start. The reason is we were operating before in areas without residents," Asadi told Reuters in Bartella, on Mosul's outskirts.

"We have arrived in populated districts. So how do we protect civilians? We have sealed off district after district." He said around 990 militants had been killed in fighting in the east so far. He would not say how many casualties there were among government special forces.

"We have made changes to plans, partly due to the changing nature of the enemy ... Daesh (Islamic State) is not based in one location, but moving from here to there," he said.

"Tanks don't work here, artillery is not effective. Planes from the coalition force and the air force are restricted because of the civilians." The Iraqi government has asked civilians in Mosul to stay at home during the offensive, as humanitarian organizations say they cannot cope with an influx of hundred of thousands of people displaced from the city. More than one million people are believed to remain in the city, the largest in northern Iraq.


If Assad can bomb people with Russia`s help, the West should help to bomb Assad

Syrian government forces appear to have taken the final move to take eastern Aleppo, which may in turn bring the decisive victory to President Assad's bid to defeat the rebels and end the war.



Without a strategy in place, the west appears ready now to accept president Assad to continue in power betraying the Syrian people fighting for their rights and abandoning them to be killed by the despotic regime.



The government forces have captured a key part of eastern Aleppo, splitting rebel-held territory on November 28. Both state TV and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the district of Sakhour had fallen to the Syrian army.



The Syrian army and their allies launched a major offensive to retake control of Aleppo in September. Thousands of civilians have left rebel-held eastern Aleppo districts after a weekend of heavy fighting. Hundreds of families have also been displaced within the besieged area.



Retaking the whole of Aleppo, Syria's second largest city, is a key aim of the Syrian regime in its fight against rebels. State TV quoted a Syrian military source as saying that government forces are continuing their advance in eastern neighbourhoods of Aleppo.



The east of Aleppo has been held by rebel factions opposed to President Bashar al-Assad for the past four years. In the past year, Syrian troops have broken the deadlock with the help of Iranian-backed militias and Russian air strikes Russia says its air force is active in other parts of the country, but not operating over Aleppo.



The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said as many as 10,000 residents fled to government-controlled western areas and a Kurdish-run northern district. Syrian state media put the number at more than 1,500, while Russia said that 2,500 civilians had left. Government forces captured Sakhour neighbourhood, splitting the rebel-held area into two. Some 250,000 people are believed to remain in eastern Aleppo, where food and medical supplies have all but run out.



Aleppo was once a place of culture and commerce, with a jewel of an old city that was on Unesco's list of world heritage sites. Now, the five-year civil war that rages in Syria has left much of it destroyed and divided roughly in two, with President Bashar al-Assad's forces controlling the west and the rebels the east.



Aleppo matters because it is one of the few major urban areas to be held - in this case partially - by the rebels. Before the war the city was Syria's great commercial centre, and it thus represents a key strategic and psychological prize. As long as parts of the city are held by the rebels, it is a thorn in the government's side. But if captured by government forces it would be an important step in ensuring Russia's main strategic goal: the survival of a pro-Assad state with effective strategic depth, making President Assad a factor that would have to be dealt with in any future peace arrangements.



This is why Russian forces have been operating in support of the government of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria for a year. Their impact has been significant. When they arrived, there were fears that government forces were close to collapse. This position has largely been reversed. It is the Syrian government - while still fragile - that is now on the offensive with a brutal bid to recapture the whole of the city of Aleppo.



Initially seen by US analysts through the prism of recent Western military involvements in the region, many pundits were quick to dismiss the Russian effort as likely to fail. The Russian military, it was said, was not up to expeditionary warfare. Russia would quickly find itself bogged down in a Syrian quagmire. This myth was quickly dispelled, as the Russian army proved effective enough to plan, execute, and sustain such a large operation. Unlike Syria and Iran, its main aim is to continue fighting while negotiating to the point that no true rival for Assad remains, leaving no viable alternatives for the West to look up to by 2017 or 2018.



Even the United States was compelled not just to deal with Russia as a diplomatic equal but also to shift its own stance towards the Assad government to one - that for all the obfuscation - falls well short of its long-time insistence that President Assad had to go, as the essential pre-condition for any negotiated settlement. All of this was due to the Russian military operation.



The West and the United Nations are not doing anything effective to discourage Russia to help Assad in killing Muslims only to have control over the land of Syria. The people of Syria are not important. When Russia is so active to help Assad, then why the West should not bomb Assad to save the Syrian people, who are mostly Muslims.


The Undead Archives

I have finally salvaged my pre-Blogger TDR archives and added them into Blogger. They are almost totally in the form of one giant post for each month. And the formatting strayed from the originals. Sorry. But historians everywhere can rejoice that this treasure trove of my thoughts is restored to the world.
I should be getting back later today. Had a very nice Thanksgiving in Providence with my brother and his family. I got to visit his office for the first time (he's a psychotherapist). A beautiful peaceful room downtown in what used to be an enormous mansion. I took some pictures I'm very eager to look at on the computer.

I'm in Albany today; I would really like to do a photo project in Albany. It's a very picturesque city, and has an unusual flavor I can't quite out my finger on. I've never been good at urban photography, though, nor am I good at street photography. There's no reason for a stop in Albany except I love to stay at the recently restored Renaissance Hotel; a total indulgence on my part. The dogs stay locally in Albany when I travel east. They're going to get the spa treatment this morningmore important now because my new house doesn't have a bathtub and I have yet to experiment with trying to bathe them in the shower. I don't imagine that going very well.

The Hotel used to be known as the DeWitt Clinton Hotel. Lots of history here, and worth a visit. (Google it.)

Tonight I host my writing group at my house. It's a very small group, so far, but I'm nervous all the same.

Something to think about for tomorrowbecause I'll be writing about ithow much do you tend to "work" a scene, place, or idea? I have two tendencies when I encounter a "photo opportunity" (don't like that term, but at least it communicates the idea). Both tendencies are bad, more or less, and I've had to work to overcome them. More manana. Checkout is in 20 minutes and I've got to get packed and outta here pronto.

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.

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)

Featured Comments from:

David Raboin: "How much urban photography have you done in your life? You might be better at it than you think. I never fancied myself as an urban photographer. For years, all I cared about was nature, landscape, and my aerial work. Then, after I had kids, I suddenly didn't have time for serious nature photography anymore. I took up street photography simply because it was there. Outside my hotel room, no matter the weather, photo possibilities lurked.

"At first, I was terrible, timid, and had no ideas. However, I soon discovered that many of my nature photo skills translated to the urban environment. I'm no Bruce Gilden, I'm still shy of strangers, but I'm getting more bold and less awkward every outing. The biggest surprise is I love doing street photography now, and I never pictured myself as that type of person. Now days, I enjoy taking a photo of an interesting person in the city as much as stalking up on a bull elk in Yellowstone.

"You should stop categorizing yourself and give 'urban photography' a try. Do what you know, take your camera out when the light is nice and see what happens. Understand that your first few outings will yield terrible pics. Growth hurts only a little. Learn from your mistakes and sooner than you think you'll be coming home with great results."
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.
Numerous residents told HUD they didnt want to move. Dont do this. Its wrong, man, one resident told them. You dont know what were going through because you're not from here, said another, noting he has lived in Cairo since the 1950s and doesnt intend to live elsewhere. Stop moving our people out of town. Build something new here.
PANKEYVILLE  Truitt Clements has crisscrossed a lot of fields lately. Clements, who was shooting navigation lines recently in a 70-acre field in Saline County, has seen farm drainage tiling take off in a big way.

The demand is as big as weve ever seen, Clements said.

A lot of tile is being put under farmland across the state. According to the University of Illinois, more than 10 million acres have been tiled  35 percent of the states cropland.

Satellite technology and instant yield feedback are partly responsible for the boom in tiling, Clements believes. While combining their crops, farmers get a much better idea how productive  or not  some parts of fields were.

With GPS and yield monitors in the combines, they knew that that hole down there didnt produce much, he said. But then they saw the money they were losing. They could visually see that.

He said farmers who have installed tile are reporting average yield increases of 30 percent.

We hear a lot of reports from farmers where 30 percent is just the starting point, Clements said. One thing about the tile is, it increases your yield, but it makes your fields and yield more consistent year after year, which makes it more appealing.

A lot of these fields have been farmed wet most of their lives, and theres a lot of compaction. Tiling warms the soil up, dries it out and lets the farmers get on the soil to work it, and theyre not compacting. It doesnt change the soil type, but it really changes the soil consistency.

Bill Fals is a believer. The Gallatin County farmer has experienced the value of the practice for more than 15 years.

Its a paying proposition, Fals said. Its worked out real well. I would say in some years it has increased yields by 40 percent.

Like many growers in Southern Illinois, Fals must deal with wet springs many years. Tiling has helped him get into the fields earlier.

We never could get the ground worked right in the spring, he said. I decided that instead of buying more ground, Id fix up what I had. We get in a little bit earlier in the spring and get away from compaction. It helps dry out your soil.

Tiling boom

Steve Baker, owner of tile manufacturer Springfield Plastics Inc., has been busy with the growing demand. The past five years have seen increased business for the company, based in Auburn.

We have been pleasantly surprised at the strength of 2016, given the low commodity prices, Baker said. Many farmers understand now that you cannot farm in todays environment without eliminating risk. The demand has been giving us a nice surprise.

The drainage risk is so significant today that you have to take care of that problem. You have $600 anhydrous, but thats not worth a darn if you dont have drainage.

Kim Bickett, who operates Ridgway-based Bickett Farm Tiling with his brother, Tim, sees investing in tile as a no-brainer. The benefits far exceed the initial cost, he believes.

Tiling allows the whole farming system to work together, Bickett said. The soil will accept fertilizer, rain and crops better. Its a good tool as far as an investment for your whole picture. Fields that need to be tiled are too wet; theyre not utilizing the fertilizer well.

One of his customers harvested one tiled field and barely made a tack in it, Bickett said. He went to the next field and couldnt even harvest his crop because there was so much water in the soil.

Drainage drawbacks

There is, however, a shadow hanging over the tiling boom. It comes at a time when farmers and ag groups are concerned about nutrient loss.

While a number of researchers are taking a look at the link between drainage tile and nitrogen runoff into watersheds, there is relatively scant results about the effect of tiling over decades.

I dont think we really know, said Lauren Lurkins, director of natural and environmental resources for Illinois Farm Bureau. We do know that when we move water off our fields, we lose more nitrates.

Management practices intended to minimize nutrient runoff  such as cover crops and wood chip bioreactors in tiled fields  have gotten renewed interest in recent years. Still, concerns remain about nitrate movement.

Many tiles were put in to reduce topsoil erosion, Lurkins said. We helped take care of a phosphorus or erosion issue, but may have created a different issue. But weve come a long way.

Springfield Plastics has ongoing research projects on bioreactors, saturated buffers and other edge-of-field practices that dont take land out of production.

Baker said payback comes relatively soon, even with low commodity prices. Cost of drainage tile installation can range from $800 to $1,400 per acre. Depending on the farm, tiling can pay for itself through increased yields in five or six years.

The increasing cost of seed and other inputs make the practice necessary, Baker believes.

Input costs have gone up over the last five or six years. You cant afford to put that high input cost in and lose it in one rainstorm, he said. Theres not a soil out there that doesnt need drained.
The fields at Clemson Universitys Edisto Research and Education Center are lined with more than cotton, peanuts, soybeans, watermelons and other South Carolina cash crops.

The 2,400-acre research farm in Barnwell County is a digitally connected network where high-tech sensors keep a watchful eye on soil moisture and nutrient content. An unmanned aerial vehicle hums above fields scouting for insects and disease. Hay is weighed as its baled to map fertile spots in the field. A variable-depth peanut digger automatically adjusts blade depth to maximize yield recovery of peanuts. Small weather stations inform irrigation systems. A digital ear tag monitors the health of bulls.

These emerging technologies under development at the Edisto REC are the tip of the iceberg for a growing precision agriculture program aimed at improving farm profits, eliminating waste, conserving water and protecting the environment.

High input costs, increased demands on water and low prices on agricultural commodities force us to look at more efficient ways of doing business, Edisto REC Director John Mueller said. Thats what precision agriculture is all about: lowering costs and maximizing yields while reducing our environmental footprint.

The program has grown in recent years with investments from the S.C. General Assembly, as well as from the university, which has hired more precision ag engineers at the Edisto research station, invested in a new high-tech sensor laboratory and hired an Extension precision ag expert to teach farmers how to use this new technology to their advantage.

This is about investing in the future of South Carolina agriculture, Mueller said.

No more shooting in the dark

Bamberg County farmer Richard Rentz approached Edisto REC irrigation specialist Jose Payero at a recent field day to request installation of a weather station on his property. Payero is installing weather stations and soil-moisture sensors at farms across South Carolina and developing the online platform that will allow farmers to use the collected data to conserve water and energy. Payero aims to arm farmers with farm-specific data that will allow them to make more informed irrigation decisions based on rain forecasts, soil type and crop yield expectations.

Right now, were just shooting in the dark on our irrigation, said Rentz, who irrigates roughly 150 acres of a 700-acre farm. Id like to save a little water, save a little power and save some money. Its a significant expense.

The sensors and weather stations connect wirelessly to transmitters that will send data to a password-protected website Payero is developing for farmer access. Data from the sensors also could be sent to an automated irrigation system Payero is developing that would activate if soil moisture dips below desired levels.

Over-irrigation can be costly and cause soil erosion, chemical runoff and nutrient leaching, Payero said. Under-irrigation stresses crops and reduces yield. Periods of drought, meanwhile, have made water availability more scarce, while persuading more farmers to invest in irrigation systems, said Payero, who works at the universitys Edisto Research and Education Center in Blackville.

Water is one of our most important issues going forward, he said. The population is growing. The demand for food is rising. But we are not making more land, so we need to make our land more productive while protecting our water resources.

It is not unreasonable to expect that society will continue to demand farmers to produce more crops with less water, especially in areas where water resources are scarce and where competition is increasing between irrigation and alternative water users like environmental, municipal and industrial use, Payero said. Farmers will only be able to respond to this challenge if they are equipped with the knowledge and the tools to make better water management decisions.

Sensor-based irrigation is a proven method. Edisto REC horticulturalist Gilbert Miller introduced sensor-based irrigation to melon and vegetable growers several years ago and demonstrated a 50 percent savings on water usage. His system uses sensors to measure water content in the soils root zone. When soil moisture dips below a certain level, the sensors will activate a drip-irrigation system.

The Edisto REC is developing and demonstrating a variety of new technologies aimed at conserving water and other farm inputs, like fertilizers, to both increase crop yields and minimize the effect of production practices on the environment. These technologies include irrigation scheduling using weather data, irrigation automation, sensor-based irrigation, subsurface drip irrigation and variable-rate irrigation. Application of these technologies could save the state an estimated $7 million annually just in pumping costs while significantly reducing water application.

Edisto REC scientists have secured externally funded projects of more than $2.3 million during the past three years. These include improved irrigation management, space-based technology to determine hydrological properties of soil, Intelligent Center Pivot irrigation systems, subsurface drip irrigation systems, innovative cropping practices to enhance crop resilience to drought, online calculator and crop coefficients for irrigating row crops, refining NASAs space-based GPS technology for site-specific irrigation management and helping growers adapt to climate variability and climate change through enhanced farming practices.

Millions in savings

Approximately 9 million tons of nitrogen is applied in cotton, corn and wheat fields annually in the United States for crop management. The nitrate form of nitrogen moves freely into surface and ground water, and is a significant source of water contamination. Just a 10 percent reduction in nitrogen usage would save growers over $200 million, and Edisto REC engineer Ahmad Khalilian and doctoral student Phillip Williams have developed algorithms based on optical sensors to help growers reduce nitrogen applications.

Averaged over three years, the Clemson sensor-based algorithms applied 48 percent less nitrogen without affecting crop yields, compared to farmers methods. Even a 20 percent reduction in nitrogen usage could save U.S. cotton, corn and wheat growers more than $1.8 billion annually.

Per their sensor-based nitrogen-management plan, Khalilian and Williams plant one nitrogen-rich strip of cotton to determine maximum, or target, yield. That determines the amount of nitrogen needed to reach desired yields. They then use optical sensors to measure nutrient content within the plant and have released a smartphone app and written the algorithm that will tell farmers how much nutrient to apply and exactly where to apply it to reach maximum yields.

In on-farm trials the past two years, Williams showed savings as high as $60 an acre.

A new variable-rate nitrogen applicator, meanwhile, will distribute nitrogen only in the areas of fields where it is needed. Khalilian, post-doctoral fellow Ali Mirzakhani Nafchi, and Young Han of the department of agricultural and environmental sciences, are developing a GPS-based electro-mechanical controller, which could be retrofitted on growers existing piston pumps for changing the flow rate of the pump automatically from zero to pumps full capacity, allowing for the spread of nitrogen in variable rates through a field.

Crop harvest can be improved with precision-ag technologies as well. An automated peanut digger developed by Clemson University agricultural engineers could save growers $19 per acre or more by reducing yield losses due to inaccurate digging depths, research shows. The technology utilizes depth gauges that are used to automate the diggers hydraulic top link that controls blade depth. Doing so maintains a steady digging depth throughout a field regardless of soil texture or moisture, a unique and important feature for the variable clay and sandy soils in the Southeast.

If you grew two-ton peanuts, it wouldnt matter if you didnt dig them properly, said Clemson Extension agent Andrew Warner, who has been developing the patent-pending technology with Clemson agricultural engineer Kendall Kirk, peanut technician James Thomas and Amadas Industries engineers.

Kirk also is working with students to develop sensor-based technology that will track yield in hay fields.

Hay is the No. 3 commercial crop in the United States, yet it is does not have a broadly implemented yield monitor, said graduate research assistant Perry Loftis, who is working with Clemson agriculture engineer Kendall Kirk to rectify that.

Along with former graduate student Guy Ramsey, they have developed two technologies that enable growers to map high- or low-yielding sections of a field. This information can prevent farmers from over- or under-applying fertilizers in blanket applications.

One technology installs on a round hay balers hydraulic kicker and weighs round bales as they are ejected from the machine. The other uses ultrasonic sensors that mount on the tongue of any baler and continuously measure height of the windrow  a row of cut and raked hay  as the harvester rolls through the field. Windrow height can be correlated to hay yield.

Most growers blanket single rates of fertilizers over fields, not accounting for high-yielding spots that pull more nutrients from the soil, Kirk said. As a result, the best spots in a field may underperform the following year because they are nutrient-deficient, he said. Conversely, these blanket fertilizer treatments lead to over-application in parts of the field that, for varying reasons, do not produce strong yields. Yield monitors can improve that by allowing for variable rate applications throughout a field.

What you are doing is maximizing profitability while reducing environmental impact, Kirk said.

Yield-monitoring systems cost an estimated $5,000, Loftis said. If the technology increased yields just 1 percent on average or reduced input costs by 2 percent, the average U.S. hay farmer would recoup investments on the technology in the first year, he said.

Fast-paced R and D

The Edisto REC is able to design, build and test these technologies quickly with the opening last year of a high-tech sensor laboratory. With the equipment in the lab, Clemson researchers can rapidly develop precision-agriculture technologies that once would take weeks or even months to build, test and refine. Products built here could save growers hours scouting fields and monitoring animal health, as well as reduce unnecessary pesticide applications or irrigation.

With the new machines installed at the Edisto REC, engineer Joe Mari Maja can build a variety of interface boards, controller system boards and Internet of Things products that allow technologies to collect and exchange data. He is working with Clemson entomologists, agricultural engineers and agronomists to design and build circuit boards and sensors he has designed to be used in fields, on agricultural equipment or on an unmanned aerial vehicle.

Maja, a sensor engineer, is fitting his UAV with intelligent agri-tronics devices, sensor-based technologies can be used on UAVs to collect a wide range of crop data quickly to help farmers improve soil quality and eradicate pests and diseases. The UAVs allow for much quicker crop monitoring; a UAV can analyze a 10-acre field in less than five minutes, work that takes a person days or weeks to complete, Maja said. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently issued the university a Blanket Area Public Agency Certificate of Authorization that allows Maja to fly a small UAV weighing less than 55 pounds anywhere in the United States. This expands a previous FAA license that allowed Maja to fly a UAV for research purposes only at limited locations in South Carolina.

I believe the applications for this are very diverse, said Maja, who has a background in computer engineering. Like many of the technologies being developed at the Edisto REC, UAVs will be game changers in precision agriculture, allowing growers to be more productive, more cost efficient and better stewards of our environment.

Scott Miller is a media specialist with Clemson University Public Service and Agriculture.
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By Trend





Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev offered condolences to Irans President Hassan Rouhani over heavy casualties caused by a railway crash in the country.

I was deeply saddened by the news of casualties caused by a railway crash in Semnan province, the president said.

On behalf of the people of Azerbaijan and on my own behalf, I extend my deep condolences to you, the families and loved ones of those who died and the people of Iran, and wish the injured soonest recovery, the president added. May Allah rest the souls of the dead in peace!
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko embarked on an official visit to Azerbaijan on November 28, Azertac reported.

A guard of honor was arranged for the President at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport decorated with the national flags of the two countries.

The Belarussian leader Nicolas Maduro was welcomed by Azerbaijani Deputy Premier Yagub Eyyubov and other officials.

Lukashenko is set to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for face-to-face talks and expanded-participation negotiations.

The two leaders are expected to discuss the state and prospects of advancing Belarusian-Azerbaijani relations, including trade and economic cooperation, work on joint cooperation projects, interaction in the area of investments, agribusiness, and sport.

A number of international documents will be signed after the talks. The Belarusian head of state is also expected to meet with Azerbaijani Prime Minister Artur Rasizade.




By Trend





Libya is not going to participate in OPEC oil cuts for the foreseeable future, according to the statement published on the website of the countrys National Oil Corporation (NOC).

NOC chairman Mustafa Sanalla has explained this with the dangerous economic situation in Libya.

Sanalla said Libya's oil production had more than doubled since the lifting of force majeure at Oil Crescent ports in September?, and that he hopes the use of blockade tactics in Libya to achieve political objectives would soon be a thing of the past.

Libyas oil can be a force for unity if it is allowed to flow freely, he said. Nearly all Libyans oppose blockades because they harm all of us. The important thing now is that all Libyans should benefit from increased revenues. This will be the real test of whether we can pull through our current political crisis and keep our oil flowing.?

In September, OPEC producers agreed during the informal meeting in Algiers to cut down the oil output to 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from current production of 33.24 million bpd.

How much each country will produce is to be decided at the next formal meeting of OPEC on Nov. 30 in Vienna.
By Trend





Israels president Reuven Rivlin has met with members of the international group, which is engaged in extinguishing wildfires in the country, including the employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Azerbaijan, the ministry told Trend Nov. 27.

At the meeting Reuven Rivlin expressed appreciation for the courage shown in fighting the wildfires, the ministry said.

In accordance with the order of Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev, amphibious aircraft BE-200CS is helping to extinguish the wildfires in Israel.








Saudi Arabia-based Almajdouie Logistics Company (MLC) recently planned, executed and managed the complex move of a retired MD90 aircraft from Jeddah International Airport to Riyadh.



In collaboration with the Saudi Arabia Airlines, MLC technicians and engineers; specialising in the field of heavy transport, designed the transportation plan for its final destination at the Saudi Special Forces Training Centre, said a statement from the company.



To prepare for the journey estimated to take eight to 10 days, MLC conducted a series of road tests before preselecting a route that would take the twin-engine, short- to medium-range, single-aisle commercial jet airliner, along approximately 1200 km of roads over five days safely, it said.



The challenging move had to overcome the height limitation of the aircraft when placed on the trailers (exceeding 5.5M). In addition, the cargo had other obstacles, such as the sphere shape and the location of the tyres, making it difficult to leash to the trailers.



Mohamed Ashfaq, heavy lift manager in the Eastern Region, said: We had to redesign the trailer by removing the beams and fabricating a special saddle, to reduce the height of the cargo to less than 5.5 m to meet the bridge maximum clearance of 5.5 m.



The successful move of the 43 m aircraft weighing 40 tonnes was another fine example of the ingenuity of our team and the collective contribution we avail to our clients, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
PwC, one of the worlds leading professional services firms with offices across the region, has entered into an agreement to acquire NSI DMCC, an industry-pioneering technology consulting firm headquartered in Dubai, UAE.



The acquisition of NSI will complement PwCs digital transformation capabilities and enhance its ability to deliver innovative solutions across all channels, platforms and devices, a statement said.



The acquisition further enhances PwC Middle Easts ability to deliver a suite of cross-industry, cloud-based front-office solutions to the marketplace.



Since 2010, NSI has helped organisations across the Middle East accelerate the adoption of cloud computing. With over 60 staff, NSI assists organisations by supplying experienced technology consultants, solution architects, developers, and project delivery personnel. NSI has forged a very successful working relationship with Salesforce.com, becoming Salesforces largest implementation partner in the Middle East region.



Commenting on the announcement, Hani Ashkar, territory senior partner at PwC Middle East said: Were delighted to welcome NSI to PwC. Adding NSI means that we are now leaders in the important and growing customer experience market in the region; and this cannot come at a better time for us as we look to roll out the full suite of innovative solutions to solve some of our clients most important problems and in doing so, help transform our region.



Through this acquisition, we are now uniquely positioned to bridge the strategy to execution gap with innovative solutions that create measurable value for our clients, supported by our business transformation capabilities. PwC is one of the largest Salesforce partners globally and this acquisition will help further cement PwC as the leading Salesforce Partner for businesses in the region, Ashkar added.



Ali Hosseini, CEO of NSI said: We are thrilled to be joining forces with PwC in the Middle East. NSIs deep technology skills coupled with PwCs scale and experience allow us to expand on our footprint to become the uncontested market leaders and deliver a stronger and more comprehensive digital and business transformation offering to the Middle East marketplace.



With the acquisition of NSI, PwC Middle East will be able to offer digital transformation services, customer experience and CRM solutions and cloud, web and mobile applications, the statement said.  TradeArabia News Service
Dubai has launched a new open-air museum project, a public art venture that will see international and local artists working together to create distinctive public artworks across the emirate to highlight Dubais unique identity.



Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has approved the Dubai Street Museum project, a new public art venture that seeks to highlight Dubais unique identity, values and aspirations.



Spearheaded by Brand Dubai, the creative arm of the Government of Dubai Media Office (GDMO), in partnership with Dubai Municipality, the project will see international and local artists working together to create distinctive public artworks across the emirate.



Sheikh Mohammed reviewed the project at a meeting held at the Government of Dubai Media Office. The project is inspired by his vision to transform Dubai into an open-air museum, and promote aesthetic excellence and innovation.



Speaking at the meeting, he stressed the importance of preserving the UAEs heritage so that it becomes a source of inspiration and learning in the quest for greater achievements.



Sheikh Mohammed also emphasised on the need to find creative ways of preserving Dubais heritage and exploring innovative approaches to strengthen the relationship between our society and its roots.



Sheikh Mohammed was briefed by director general of the Government of Dubai Media Office Mona Ghanem Al Marri about the different components of the Dubai Street Museum project as well as the murals that will be painted on buildings in various streets across Dubai in partnership with Dubai Municipality and with the support of government, semi-government and private entities.



Sheikh Mohammed was also briefed on the phases of the project that will be implemented over five years in select areas of Dubai. These areas have been chosen on the basis of key factors that include the density of population and the number of visitors, so as to ensure the maximum visibility for the artworks.



Hatta will be one of the key places where the Dubai Street Museum project will be implemented. The artworks to be developed for Hatta will be aligned with the historical context and physical environment of the region. This will support Hattas comprehensive development plan announced recently to enhance its position as a culture and tourist hub.



Sheikh Mohammed also gave the go-ahead for the 2nd of December Street project, the first initiative of Dubai Street Museum. The project will bring together 16 international and local artists to paint murals on 16 buildings located along the 2nd of December Street in Dubai.



He said that the historical significance of the 2nd of December Street makes it an ideal location for the first series of murals to be created under the Dubai Street Museum project.



Art students from prominent UAE universities will actively participate in the project and provide support to the commissioned artists.  TradeArabia News Service
The International Halal Accreditation Forum (IHAF) recently convened for its first General Assembly meeting in Dubai, UAE, setting in motion the official activation of the worlds first global Halal accreditation network.



The General Assembly has approved a number of resolutions including a recommendation for IHAF to forge a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Laboratory Accreditation Co-operation (ILAC) and International Accreditation Forum (IAF) in order to explore collaboration in maintaining global standards in Halal conformity assessments.



This will play a vital role as the membership application of interested Halal accreditation bodies can be supported by their existing membership in ILAC and IAF.



Halal accreditation bodies monitor the entities involved in testing, certifying and verifying Halal products, ensuring that all standards are enforced to give assurance to the consumers that each Halal product is safe, of high quality and full compliance with the Islamic Sharia. IHAF, on the other hand, will ensure that these Halal accreditation bodies strictly and consistently adhere to the principles of Islamic law.



During the meeting, Mohammed Saleh Badri was officially appointed as the secretary-general of IHAF. Badri was selected based on his extensive experience in the field of accreditation and conformity assessment including his previous role as the director general of the Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology (ESMA).



At the General Assembly meeting, Dr. Rashid Ahmed bin Fahad, UAE Minister of State and Chairman of Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology (ESMA), was appointed as chairman of the IHAF while Peter Unger, President Emeritus at American Association for Laboratory Accreditation, was appointed as vice-chairman.



Dr Rashid Ahmed bin Fahad said: The first-ever General Assembly meeting of IHAF is a historic event that would serve as a vital pillar of the Islamic economy. This Forum would contribute to further spur growth in the Halal industry as the latest official reports indicate that the global market for Halal products is growing rapidly.



Speaking at the General Assembly meeting, Dr Rashid Ahmed bin Fahad estimated the size of the market and trade in Halal products at more than $1.9 trillion (Dh.97 trillion) in 2015, and is expected to rise to $3 trillion in 2021 (Dh11.01 trillion), with food and beverages accounting for more than 60 per cent.



Mohammed Saleh Badri, Secretary-General of IHAF, said: We will continue to bring more and more international partners on board, ensuring exchange of expertise and creating a vivid standard for the Halal industry in various parts of the world. This would enhance co-operation amongst various stakeholders, and enable them to better understand and implement Halal standards for food and non-food products.



During the meeting, a number of committee appointments were announced. Kylie Sheehan, General Manager Operations at Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand, was appointed as chairperson of the technical affairs committee.



Brahim Houla, Accreditation Services Manager at GCC Accreditation Centre, will serve as chairperson of multi-lateral recognition arrangement committee. Amina Mohamed Hassan, Directorat Emirates National Accreditation System (ENAS), was appointed as chairperson of marketing and media committee.  TradeArabia News Service
World Travel Market London 2016 was the most successful ever with a joint-record attendance of 51,500 and the highest number of exhibitor invitees and buyers in the events 37 year history.



The new-look three-day event with extended opening hours from 10am  7pm was well received by the global travel industry with 51,444 senior industry executives in attendance  a 4 per cent increase on last year, reveals unaudited figures. The increase takes total participant numbers back to the level of 2014  a record for the event which launched in 1980.



Furthermore, the key benchmark of exhibitor invitees and WTM Buyers Club members in attendance were also at record levels.



Exhibitor invitees  senior industry executives invited by exhibitors on the first day of WTM London to discuss business deals - were up 9 per cent to 14,140.



WTM Buyers Club is the leading business club for senior travel industry decision makers with direct purchasing responsibility. The number of pre-qualified buyers from the WTM Buyers Club that attended the event stood at 9,714 - a 6 per cent increase on WTM London 2015.



Total visitor numbers (excluding press, ministers, ministers aides and students) stood at 31,951  a 5 per cent increase on WTM London 2015.



More than 865,500 on-stand connections took place over the three days of WTM London 2016 (November 7  9) leading to more than 2.5 billion ($3.1 billion) in industry deals being negotiated and signed.



Furthermore, more than 3,000 of the worlds media were in attendance  the highest number for more than 10 years - making the WTM International Press Centre the largest recurring press operation in the UK. The WTM International Press Centre was moved to the exhibitor floor for the first time to put the media at the heart of the event.



World Travel Market London senior director Simon Press said: WTM London has grown at an unprecedented rate in recent years making it the event where the industry conducts its business.



More than 2.5 billion in industry contracts were agreed at WTM London 2016 with more than 9,700 buyers conducting 865,500 meetings with 5,000 exhibitors.



The record number of participants, exhibitor invitees and WTM Buyers Club members is testament to the success of the new-look three-day WTM London and demonstrates all the key decision-makers and those with purchasing responsibility attend WTM London.



Audited figures of WTM London 2016 will be available in the New Year.



WTM London 2017 will take place at ExCeL, London between November 6  8. - TradeArabia News Service
Aviareps, a global airline and tourism representative, arrived in Kuwait yesterday (November 27), at the Kuwait Crowne Plaza Hotel where it kicked off the second leg of its Aviareps Middle East Travel Caravan 2016.



The Aviareps Middle East Travel Caravan is a calendar of travel industry networking events that brings together some of the worlds leading destination, aviation and tourism brands under the one roof with opportunities for the partners to meet directly with the regions leading travel agents and travel industry decision makers. Following the Kuwait event, the Aviareps Travel Caravan will continue to Saudi Arabia, where it will hold similar events in Riyadh on November 29 at the Holiday Inn, and Jeddah on November 30 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel.



The first leg of the Aviareps Middle East Travel Caravan kicked off in Dubai on October 16, before heading to Doha in Qatar and Muscat in Oman.

Attending the inaugural Kuwait event were over 80 leading Kuwaiti travel industry professionals. Destination brands participating in the event included: Philippines Department of Tourism (PDOT), Slovenia Tourism Board (STB), Korean National Tourism Organization, Visit California, Californias Orange County Visitors Association (OCVA), and Kyoto Convention and Visitors Bureau (KCVB). Other participating brands included Cebu Pacific Airlines, Qatar Airways, Union Hotels (Europe), Happy Tours (Slovenia), Seawings (UAE), AYABEX (Japan), FlexibleAutos International, Royal Caribbean International, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, and Costa Cruises, to name a few.



Glenn Johnston, general manager, Aviareps Middle East, said: We are extremely excited to bring the Aviareps Travel Caravan to Kuwait. The demand from destinations and tourism entities around the world wanting to reach out to the Kuwaiti outbound travel market - one of the worlds top average daily spending markets - has been growing year on year. Its great to see our caravan of participating partners grow even from just last month - such is the interest in the Kuwait outbound market.



Johnston added: As a result of the Aviareps Travel Caravan the Kuwaiti travel agents have formed new international business contacts and generated new business opportunities, the participating destinations and companies have also generated new business ties with Kuwait and have learned more about the specific needs and demands of Kuwaiti travellers, and travellers from Kuwait will now have more holiday package choices and destinations made available to them. It has been an overwhelming success and win-win situation for all involved.



The Aviareps Middle East Travel Caravan is a unique travel and tourism industry event, in that it is open to the participation of all national, regional and city tourism promotion boards, airlines, hotels, travel service companies and tour operators seeking to meet with the leading outbound tourism decision makers of the Middle East. Co-participants are provided with a platform to showcase their offerings through a series of one-to-one meetings, with the day culminating in an evening dinner event.



In addition to the two Aviareps Travel Caravans conducted in the Middle East each year, Aviareps conducts similar activities in various markets around the world including the UK, Germany, and South Africa among many others. - 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.
One of Donald Trumps most consistent campaign promises was to unleash the nations energy industries. From digging coal to drilling for oil, the president-elect promised growth and a repeal of federal regulations.

The promises resonated in Wyoming, particularly in the coal industry, where there is fear that federal limits on emissions will kill the commodity.

When Donald Trump won the election, many focused on how he could bring about change in coal, with most agreeing that while a president cannot fix market challenges, he could have an impact on the Clean Power Plan.

In a recent conference call and report, UBS, an international financial firm, looked at how the president-elect could keep his promise to repeal the CPP. In short, its not that simple.

What happens next really depends on the D.C Circuit Court, which is currently considering the plan, analysts said.

The Clean Power Plan is a federal rule by the Environmental Protection Agency on carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. Its goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emission 32 percent from 2005 levels.

Opposition to the plan led to a stay on its implementation until a court has decided the issue.

Coal producers are concerned that the plan will be a boon for natural gas, which is already an increasingly competitive force in the electricity market.

Most agree that the Clean Power Plan would contribute to a significant long-term decline in the coal industry. Projections from the Energy Information Agency predicted that coal would decline by 26 percent by 2040 under the plan.

However, if the case is still in court when Trump takes office on Jan. 20, the new president will likely ask the court for a stay to allow the new administration a chance to revise current rules, Tom Lorenzen, an expert on federal environmental rules for the law firm Crowell and Morning, said during the UBS conference call.

There is likely a push to keep that from happening, he said.

My guess is that we have some battles going on inside the D.C. Circuit at the moment, where the pro-EPA judges, those who want to write an opinion upholding the rule, are working feverishly to get that decision done and push it out before Jan. 20, Lorenzen said. The liberals on the court will want to get a decision on the books to lay down some markers before the Trump administration.

If the D.C. Circuit has rejected the rule  then the new EPA and the Department of Justice will probably do nothing, Lorenzen said. They dont need to. The rule has been invalidated.

Allies of the plan, like the Sierra Club, the state of New York and the Center for Biological Diversity are likely to turn to the Supreme Court if the rule is overturned, he said.

Whatever the courts decision, opponents will have 90 days to appeal to the Supreme Court, where deliberations on a decision could take up to half of Trumps first term, Lorenzen said.

However, whether the plan goes through in its existing form, is reworked or is completely discarded, the CPPs stay in court has likely helped coal in the short run.

The near-term impacts to coal are largely, already underway, said the UBS report following the conference call. We see this as particularly slowing deployment of coal to gas transition.
Have an event, trend or general energy happening youd like to see in the Energy Journal newsletter? Send it to Star-Tribune energy reporter Heather Richards at heather.richards@trib.com. Sign up for the newsletter at www.trib.com/energyjournal.

This week in numbers

Oil prices: West Texas Intermediate (WTI) $47.94, Brent (ICE) $48.92

Natural gas prices: Henry Hub $2.75, Wyoming Pool $2.59, Opal $2.62

Coal's winter

Coal is predicted to outcompete natural gas this winter. Cold temperatures and rising natural gas may make coal the main player in the electricity market, according to the Energy Information Administration.

It comes down to the cost of producing coal versus natural gas, according to the EIA. By the Administration's projections, coal will cost about half what natural gas will by February.

Alpha and Contura respond to fraud allegations

In a complaint filed in West Virginia, the state's Department of Environmental Protection claims that Contura Energy and Alpha Natural Resources execs failed to report $100 million in liabilities during their bankruptcy proceedings.

When Alpha Natural Resources emerged from bankruptcy, many celebrated the company's exit plan. A newly formed company, Contura Energy, acquired the Wyoming assets from Alpha. Environmentalists were pleased with the deal because Contura promised to replace self-bonds.

The company denied the implication that they had committed fraud.

However, if West Virginia regulators push the issue beyond the filed complaint, court battles may be on the horizon for the leaders of Contura, which now runs the Eagle Butte and Belle Ayre mines in Campbell County.

Down with CPP

Analysts and experts are still in a tizzy, figuring out how president-elect Donald Trump can do away with the Clean Power Plan, an EPA rule that he has promised to repeal.

The plan is working its way through the legal system and may end up in the Supreme Court.

Revisiting the bust

With the holidays around the corner, the Star-Tribune revisted some of the people affected by the energy downturn. Though signs of a rebound in oil, gas and coal leave many hopeful, some people have since changed their lives, leaving industry behind.

Pavillion meeting

Wyoming regulators will hold a public meeting Dec. 8 on the recently released Pavillion study.

After years of investigation, the final report, released earlier this month, states that the community's water supply was not polluted by fracking in the nearby gas fields. The state's findings contradict earlier reports by the Environmental Protection Agency that link water contamination and gas development in the small community.
Roast beef at

the Elks

Wednesday Night Special at Casper Elks Lodge is hot roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy, vegetable and roll. All you can eat for $7, children 5 to 12 are $3. Serving from 6 to 7 p.m. or until gone. Members, significant other and guest accompanied by a member. For more information, call 234-4839.

Steak feed at Elks

Friday Night Steak Feed at the Elks, sirloin steak with all the fixins. Cost is $7 per person. Serving from 6 to 7 p.m. or until gone. Members, significant other and guest accompanied by a member. For more information call 234-4839. Stay and play games for the Family Game Night in the Elks library.

Stop by during

Art Walk

ART321/Casper Artists Guild invites you to stop by during the December Art Walk this Thursday, Dec. 1, 5 to 8 p.m. We are featuring three great exhibits during the month of December, all opening with the art walk and on display for the month.

In our main galleries you will enjoy two beautiful exhibits by two talented local artists well known to most of you, Shawn Rivett and Elizabeth Lugg.

Also featured in the main gallery is our December exhibit, RED, with artwork submitted by various artists. Truly something for everyone to enjoy.

And besides all that, we will have our Holiday Bazaar featuring items for your Christmas shopping. Many items by many different artists. The Holiday Bazaar opens with the art walk on Dec. 1 and will be on display Dec. and 3 during regular gallery hours.

Also remember to visit our Art321 gift shop that is always filled with beautiful items just waiting for you. What a great way to do some Christmas shopping.

Friday memorial honors Empey

A memorial celebration for longtime Casper College educator Tom Empey will be held in Casper this Friday, Dec. 2, 2016, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center. There will speakers from various areas of Toms life and interests as well as a video presentation of photos of Tom and words of former students, and an open microphone for those wishing to say a few words about Tom Empeys influence upon their lives. He died Nov. 9, 2016, in Salem, Oregon.

Christmas light

show open

The light show at 3148 Whispering Springs is up and will run nightly from 6 to 10 p.m., and until 11 p.m., on Friday and Saturday. We are collecting items for Joshuas Storehouse at the display. There are a total of approximately 50,000 lights all choreographed to popular Christmas music, and free to view and listen to. Just tune your radio to 98.1 FM and enjoy. Thank you and merry Christmas from the Wagners.

Mixed media workshop at Art 321

Something Special workshop is set at Art 321 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., this Saturday, with Cynthia Weed instructor. Fee is $60 members, $90 non-members and open to all levels. Join us for this fun and energetic workshop, where you will play and create multimedia piece of artwork.

Scandinavian bake sale Saturday

From lefse and kringle to tea rings and stollen, the women of Our Saviours Lutheran Church will hold their annual Scandinavian Bake Sale this Saturday, Dec. 3. The doors open at this popular event at 9 a.m., in the Fellowship Hall (basement) of the church, 318 East 6th Street. This sale traditionally sells out, so get there early for the best selection. There will be lots of goodies for sale: lefse, Swedish tea rings, kringle, Danish kringler, rosettes, rusks, krum kake, sandbakklse, flat brod, jule dake, stollen, anadama bread and more, as well as a variety of candy and cookies. Stay and enjoy a cinnamon roll and coffee, and good conversation.

The funds raised will be used for a variety of projects which have included support for homeless students, scholarships for seminary students, childrens Christmas books for our Adopt-A-Family program, and other help for those in need. For more information, you can call the church office at 237-9087 or on the web, www.oslwyo.org, or our Facebook page Osl.casper .

Holiday peace

on Saturday

American Buddhist Monk, Gen Kelsang Rinzin returns to Casper this Saturday, Dec. 3, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Healthy Life Studio in the Sunrise Shopping Center, 4200 S. Poplar St. to present teachings of the Buddha that are relevant to the holiday season. The Buddha gave profound, yet simple and easy teachings on the nature of inner peace, joy and happiness. This class includes a guided meditation, the teaching, a Q & A and fellowship. Everyone of any religion or no religion is welcome. We are a friendly, diverse group. No need to pre-register. Just show up! A $15.00 donation is requested. Questions? Call Joe at 315-1987.

Senior dance Saturday

Senior Dance is scheduled this Saturday, Dec. 3, at the Eagles Hall, 306 N. Durbin St., with music by SwingSounds. Entry at north parking lot door, also additional parking across the street and the entire corner of the parking lot at A and Durbin Sts. Admission $5, under 15 free, dancing from 7 to 10 p.m., with potluck snacks at 8 p.m., and door prize drawings at 9 p.m. Come on down and enjoy the evening.

Robbie Daniels  235-5130

AAUW combines Christmas parties

The annual AAUW Christmas Party will be combined with the AAUW Readers Group luncheon on Tuesday, Dec.6, at noon at the Parkway Plaza. Participants will order from the menu. A Storybook Friendship, will be presented by Robin Broumley about the books of Rodello Hunter as well as the story of their long-time friendship. Parking at the rear of the building is recommended. For more information or to make a reservation by Dec. 1, please call Diane at 277-1712.

AAUW collects middle school books

Casper AAUW (American Association of University Women) will have a Christmas no-host luncheon Tuesday, Dec. 6 at noon at the Parkway.

Casper AAUW is again participating in the Casper College Books in a Bag project, collecting new books for students, this year focusing on books for middle school age children (6th, 7th and 8th grade). The books need to be delivered to the college library by Dec. 2.

For further information on the luncheon, contact Diane Dressen, 277-1712 or dianedressen@gmail.com

St. Anthony school craft fair

St. Anthony Tri-Parish School, 1145 W. 20th St., is holding its annual craft fair from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., on Saturday, Dec. 10. Enjoy dozens of vendors, beautiful decor, and breakfast and lunch options.

Beekeepers host honey potluck

December meeting of the Natrona County Beekeepers will be a honey-themed pot-luck celebration at the Beldens house, 2116 Fontenelle, 6 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 8. All are welcome, please bring a dish to share and beverage of choice. For more information, details and a map to the house, see the NCBA web site. www.ncbees.org

Photos with Santa

Oil City Harley-Davidson is offering photos with Santa (on his Harley) from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., on Saturday, Dec. 10. All kids and pets are welcome. Photos are free with a donation to an Oil City Harley-Davidson local charity. We are happy to be carrying on this tradition of bringing Santa in on a Harley. Our Santa firmly believes that a sled just doesnt cut it.

We will be collecting donations of unwrapped new toys for the Toys for Tots program and pet food for the Casper Humane Society.

Republican women host brunch

Natrona County Republican Women will gather for a Christmas Brunch from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2016, at 426 West Yellowstone. Parking is available at the corner of Elm and Ash. There is no charge. Reservations are encouraged and can be made by calling 307-215-9749 (leave message) or ncrwmember@gmail.com on or before Dec. 8, 2016. Bring a covered brunch dish and an ornament for exchange. The business portion of the meeting will be election of new officers for 2017-18. This is a social gathering and all members are encouraged to bring a guest. Natrona County Republican Women meetings are open to all Republican women. Please bring a non-perishable food item for donation to Joshuas Storehouse.

Parkinsons support Dec. 13

Rocky Mountain Therapy is offering a Parkinsons Support Group. Join us on the second Tuesday of each month at Rocky Mountain Therapy, 2546 East 2nd Street, Building 500 at 5:30 p.m.

This support group is open to anyone with Parkinsons or caring for someone with Parkinsons. Our next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 13, our guest speaker will be Dr. Cozier, with Wyoming Neurologic Assoc. To RSVP call 577-5204 and ask for Jerri or Shannon. To find out more about Rocky Mountain Therapy please visit our website at www.rockymountaintherapy.org. Were looking forward to seeing you at our next meeting.
Tuesdays support meetings

Alcoholics Anonymous: 6:30 a.m., 917 N. Beech; 8:30 a.m., 500 S. Wolcott; 10 a.m., 328 E. A; noon, 500 S. Wolcott; 2 p.m., 917 N. Beech; 5:30 p.m., 1124 Elma, Imitate the Image Church; 7 p.m., 520 CY; 8 p.m,. 328 E. A, closed; 8 p.m., 917 N. Beech. Douglas: 7:30 p.m., 628 E. Richards (upstairs in back). Unless otherwise noted, all meetings are open. Casper info: 266-9578; Douglas info: (307) 351-1688.

Narcotics Anonymous: Noon, 500 S. Wolcott, 12-24 Club; 7 p.m., 15th and Melrose, at the church. Web site: http://www.urmrna.org.

Board members receive national awards

Charged with guiding the operations, development, and vision of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming, four of the organizations board members  Matt Cassel, 25 years; Susie McMurry and Mary Lynne Shickich, 15 years, and Michele Trost-Hall, 10 years  will be honored for their commitment to the Club at the Annual Meeting to be held from noon to 1:15 p.m., at the Wolcott Galleria, 136 S. Wolcott.

They will receive National Service to Youth Awards from the Boys & Girls Club of America.

The 47th Annual Meeting of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming is the Boards opportunity to review the past fiscal year through year-end reports, install new officers, and launch the strategic plan for the new fiscal year.

28th annual Festival of Trees set

The 28th annual Festival of Trees benefiting Special Olympics Wyoming starts at 6 p.m. Tickets are $50 per person or $75 per couple and available at the door.

The Festival of Trees is an auction of fully decorated Christmas trees, wreaths, stockings, and items donated by individuals or local businesses. The event begins at 6 p.m. with a silent auction, cocktails and hors doeuvres. The live auction begins at 7 p.m. and lasts until approximately 9 p.m.

For more information or to purchase Festival of Trees tickets, contact special events manager Erin Gamroth at 235-3062 or specialevents@specialolympicswy.org

Learn Windows 10

The Natrona County Library will offer a Windows 10 class at 6 p.m. Learn how to navigate Windows 10, including the updated Start menu, Action Center, and more. Feel free to bring your Windows 10 device with you to follow along. Call 577-READ ext. 2 or email reference@natronacountylibrary.org for more information.

Latin Club meets

Wish you had taken Latin in school or had paid better attention when you did? You are welcome to join the Latin Study Club at Mount Hope Lutheran School, 2300 Hickory. This friendly group of language enthusiasts meets on Tuesday nights at 7 p.m., to study Latin, free of charge. We will pick up where we left off last year, Chapter 4 of Wheelocks Latin, 7th edition. Noli timere!

Mount Hope Lutheran School admits students of any race, color, and national or ethnic origin.

NARFE meets

Casper Chapter #358 of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) will have a business meeting at noon. The program will be given by a representative from Blue Cross Blue Shield. Following the BC/BS presentation, we will have our business meeting at which time election of officers will be held. All members are urged to attend.

Teen Book Club

A teen book discussion, sponsored by the Natrona County Library, will be held at 6:30 p.m., at Metro Coffee Co. This months novel is Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld. The group is open to teens in grades 9-12. Participants receive a free drink at Metro, courtesy of the Friends of the Library. To participate, pick up a copy of Afterworlds in the Librarys Teen Zone. The Teen Book Club meets the last Tuesday of every month and new members are always welcome. Call 577-READ ext. 101 for more information.
After more than a week of searching, the Natrona County coroner has found a sister of the Vietnam veteran set to be be buried Tuesday morning near Casper. The sister plans to attend the funeral at the state veterans cemetery and will accept her brothers flag.

Coroner Connie Jacobson said she spoke with the sister Sunday night and that the sister will fly into Casper from southern California on Monday evening.

Last week, Jacobson asked for help finding family members of Stephen Carl Reiman, a homeless Navy veteran who served during the Vietnam War. Reiman died Nov. 17 in Casper, shortly after moving to Wyoming from California for unknown reasons.

The sister, Diane Reiman, hadnt heard from her brother for at least two years, Jacobson said. The sister began to cry on the phone during their brief conversation, Jacobson said.

Shes relieved and grateful that hes going to have a decent burial with honor, Jacobson said. Im just glad its all coming together. And maybe shell get some answers.

Diane Reiman didnt know why her brother had come to Wyoming but said he worked as a firefighter in Casper for a few years during the late 1970s or early 1980s. His years in Casper were some of his best, Diane Reiman told Jacobson.

Jacobson found Diane Reiman through Facebook and sent her messages about her brother. Jacobson also contacted the veterans daughter-in-law, who wanted to come to the funeral with her daughter  Reimans only grandchild  but couldnt afford the trip.

Jacobson received dozens of phone calls and emails from people across the country who wanted to help find the veterans family. She said she didnt expect such an outpouring but hopes Reimans story will raise awareness about homeless veterans.

One of the reasons I did this was to raise community awareness that we have homeless vets in our own communities, she said. They deserve the same recognition and honor that any other vet would get.

Services for Stephen Carl Reiman are planned for 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery in Evansville. The public is welcome. Flowers can be sent to Bustards Funeral Home, 600 CY Ave.

Casper police, along with Mills and Evansville police, will escort Reimans casket from Bustards Funeral Home to the cemetery. The escort will begin about 9 a.m. Tuesday and will follow the route outlined on its Facebook page. The Wyoming Patriot Guard Riders also planned to ride with the escort.

Reiman took a three-day bus ride from a community for homeless veterans in Long Beach, California, and arrived in Sheridan on Nov. 8. A few days later, Reiman was taken to a Sheridan hospital from the motel where he was living. He was then taken to Wyoming Medical Center in Casper, where he died of an illness on Nov. 17.

Jacobson said Reiman previously told a doctor that he had depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and alcoholism. His symptoms worsened after his only son died in combat in Iraq, he told the doctor, and had been unable to keep a job.

About a tenth of people who were homeless in Wyoming in 2016 were also veterans, according to the most recent survey by the Wyoming branch of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. On one night in January 2016, there were 87 homeless veterans living in the state  the lowest number in the past five years.
The Wyoming Veterans Memorial Museum might face cuts as the states Military Department looks to reduce spending during the economic downturn.

A plan presented to the Casper museums three employees calls for one position to be eliminated and another to be reduced to half-time.

Military Dept. spokesman Maj. Tom Blackburn said no decisions have been made and the plan was proposed to employees solely in the interest of transparency.

What this information was, was being transparent with that team, Blackburn said. Its a recommendation. Its not saying, This is for sure what were going to do.

Museum director John Goss said the museum would remain open regardless of any budget cuts.

Were dealing with an old story, Goss said. The state is tightening its belt on money, and of course were a state agency.

But Goss said the state was mandated to provide a veterans museum and officials could not shut it down regardless of whether they reduce funding for employees or programming.

Blackburn said the proposed plan to reduce staffing at the museum was better described as a salary balancing rather than a budget cut.

The assistant curator position was intended to be a half-time position, he said, and they were now paying that person for 40 hours of work each week.

There were funds they were able to dip and provide the necessary funds to pay that position as a full-time, Blackburn said. But with the balancing of the salaries, that recommendation could affect that.

The museum could also employ a contracted employee to assist with exhibits and museum operations. Blackburn said that position was also not included in the intended staffing plan for the museum.

Blackburn emphasized the importance of the museum to Wyoming and said officials welcomed public feedback on proposed changes to the museums operations.

Were hoping to continue this dialogue about the museum, Blackburn said.

Blackburn said that like other state agencies, the Wyoming Military Department had been asked to cut 8 percent from its budget. The Veterans Museums annual budget is currently $441,565.
A 9-year-old Colorado girl died Thursday evening in a T-bone crash west of Cheyenne, according to the Wyoming Highway Patrol.

Makayla Grigg, of Littleton, was a passenger in a Ford Taurus being driven by Kendra Grigg, 15, who had an instructional permit license and was driving legally, a news release said.

According to the release, the Taurus entered the intersection of U.S. Highway 30 and the Interstate 80 off-ramp at exit 358 about a mile west of Cheyenne, failing to yield to a Ford F-150 pickup traveling west on U.S. 30. The car broadsided the truck, which was driven by Brandon Houseman, 35, of Cheyenne.

Kendra Grigg and Phillip Grigg, 45, were taken by ambulance to Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, where they were treated and released.

Kaytlyn Grigg, 5, was taken by helicopter ambulance to Denver Childrens Hospital, where she was hospitalized.

Houseman was not hurt.

Everyone involved in the crash was wearing a seat belt. Driver inattention is being investigated as the cause of the crash, which marked the 103rd highway death in the state for the year. At this time in 2015, there had been 138 such fatalities.
Im afraid I missed the conference of white supremacists in Washington recently.

I was hosting my daughters bat mitzvah.

But I have a pretty good picture of what happened, because luckily  for me, if not for the gathering of alt-right leader Richard Spencers National Policy Institute at the Ronald Reagan federal building.

Attendees shouted heil and Lugenpresse, a Nazi term that means lying press. Some of the few hundred attendees applauded mention of the Daily Stormer, a neo-Nazi website. Reality TV personality Tila Tequila tweeted an image of herself and others giving a Nazi salute and the misspelled words Seig heil!

White nationalists and counter-demonstrators clashed violently in the street outside the gathering in downtown Washington, and, as The Washington Posts John Woodrow Cox reported, inside and outside a family restaurant, Maggianos, in northwest Washington.

The scenes seemed as if from another time and another place, but in Donald Trumps America, they are here and now. And if Trump doesnt do something more forceful to disown his neo-Nazi hangers on, they will continue their brazen march into the mainstream.

The New York Times quoted Spencer at the conference saying that we have a psychic connection, or you can say a deeper connection, with Donald Trump in a way that we simply do not have with most Republicans.

Weve crossed the Rubicon in terms of recognition, Spencer said, arguing that America was, until this last generation, a white country designed for ourselves and our posterity. It is our creation, it is our inheritance, and it belongs to us.

Politico quoted Spencer saying the alt-right was a head without a body and the Trump movement was a body without a head. Now, I think, moving forward, the alt-right can, as an intellectual vanguard, complete Trump.

The Los Angeles Times quoted Spencer saying Trumps election was an awakening and that were not quite the establishment now, but I think we should start acting like it.

The white nationalists are emboldened by Trumps selection of Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) and Stephen K. Bannon to top jobs in his administration.

Bannon, who boasted that the Breitbart News outlet he ran was the platform for the alt-right, was praised lavishly by Spencer. And The Posts David Weigel quoted Spencer saying Sessions  tapped to be attorney general  is eye-to-eye with us on immigration. (Sessions has tried to restrict legal immigration.)

Shortly after the election, Trump said his supporters who were harassing Muslims and Latinos should stop it.

But they arent stopping. In the past few days, a city park in Brooklyn was defaced with swastikas and the message Go Trump! while an Arab American Uber driver in Queens filmed another driver shouting at him: Trump is president so you can kiss your [expletive] visa goodbye, scumbag.  Theyll deport you soon.

While the white nationalists were meeting in Washington and clashing with protesters, Trump was engaged in a Twitter fight with the cast of the Broadway musical Hamilton. Trump demanded the actors apologize for urging Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who attended the show, to uphold our American values and to work on behalf of all of us.

Rather than quarrel with that unobjectionable message, perhaps Trump could listen to the George Washington character in Hamilton sing One Last Time:

Like the scripture says:

Everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree

And no one shall make them afraid.

This passage, from Micah 4:4, is in Washingtons letter to the Jews of Newport, Rhode Island, in 1790. The rabbi recalled these words during my daughters bat mitzvah this weekend.

Happily, Washington wrote, the government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support.

Continued the first president: May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants  while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid.

Please read Washingtons words, Mr. President-elect, and repeat them to Richard Spencer and his ilk as you brush off the white nationalists riding on your coattails.

There is room for cooperation on much of Trumps agenda. But cooperation is difficult, if not impossible, when a president gives sanction to bigotry.
Spokane, Washington-based Twigs Bistro and Martini Bar is heading to Tucson in what will be its most ambitious and farthest-flung restaurant in its 15-year history.

The chain, which has a location outside Portland, Oregon, and another 15 miles outside of Salt Lake City, Utah, is heading to Tucson Mall. Twigs will take up residence in the 8,700-square-foot space that has stood empty since Brio Tuscan Grille called it quits in spring 2013.

Weve looked at the Arizona market for a long time, in Phoenix and Scottsdale and Gilbert, and we had an opportunity that came about at the Tucson Mall, said owner Trevor Blackwell, whose company has worked in the past with Tucson Mall owners General Growth Properties.

Weve got a good relationship with them, and they are a good partner of ours, he said.

Tucson will be Twigs 10th location and its largest. Blackwell said most of their restaurants run between 6,500 and 8,000 square feet.

Construction barricades and a big coming soon sign went up weeks ago around the cavernous building at 150 W. Wetmore Road, directly behind The Cheesecake Factory and next to the REI outdoor store. Demolition will begin in mid-December, and Blackwell estimates it will take three months for the build-out that will include expanding the bar, installing new flooring, redesigning the dining room and creating smaller private dining spaces.

It will have a completely different feel, Blackwell said.

Twigs could open by late March or early April.

Blackwell and his wife, Jayne, and father, Jeff, started Twigs in 2001 at a mall in Spokane. The family had operated a number of fast-food restaurants, but Blackwell said they jumped at the chance to create a bar/restaurant concept in the malls food court.

The name was inspired by a designer doodling a drawing of the bar on a cocktail napkin. The design included twigs and tree limbs shooting out of the bar. The name stuck.

Twigs serves a regional American menu that includes everything from a wasabi pea-crusted Ahi made with sashimi grade yellow fin tuna as an appetizer to pork osso bucco and crab mac and cheese on the dinner menu, alongside pastas and pizzas, including a Polynesian with mango chile sauce and shredded Kalua pork.

Twigs drink menu includes 36 signature martinis and a host of craft cocktails and wine.

Blackwell said Twigs restaurants are mostly established in so-called medium markets like Tucson and we seem to do well in those areas.
The building that for decades was home to American Meat Co. on Tucsons south side will soon have new life as an indoor food court and neighborhood market.

The Common Group, developer of several south-side restaurant and retail rehab projects, plans to hold a soft opening for American Eat Co. & Market in February.

The 8,000-square-foot project at 1439 S. Fourth Ave. will house six restaurants, each with their own fully equipped kitchens; a bar and a coffee shop; and a neighborhood market and meat counter.

A common dining room will be big enough for nearly 250 diners, and restaurant operators will range from newcomers on Tucsons food scene, to food trucks looking to expand to brick and mortar, to longtime restaurateurs wanting to try out a new concept or menu without incurring the startup cost of opening a new restaurant.

Tenants, selected through an application process that closes on Dec. 1, will have their own kitchen and counter space. Rents will be set depending on the size of the space, and utility costs will be split between the owners and tenants. Operators will sign one-year leases so that they are not tied into anything long-term.

In some ways, American Eat Co. will serve as a restaurant incubator, where ideas are tested and rejiggered until they work. Tenants will be responsible for the back of house  kitchen and cooking  while The Common Group will run the front, including hiring and paying servers and other staff to bus tables and take care of customers.

If they have a new concept or a new menu, they can test it out here, said Guillermo Gallegos, who founded The Common Group in 2014 with fellow south-side native Jesus Bonillas Jr. And if they like it, they can stay.

The Common Group held an open house last week for prospective tenants, giving a dozen or more tours of the space that will undergo $1.2 million in renovations. Plans call for creating an industrial urban feel with polished concrete floors, small tables made with repurposed dump-truck tire rims, rebar railing accents and bare Edison-like lights hanging from open ceilings.

One end of the building will have a private dining room in a space designed to look like a New York City alley. Repurposed metal and wood will be used throughout to lend a gritty urban feel.

Counters will use refurbished wood that resembles butcher blocks the Islas family used for decades at its popular neighborhood butcher shop and market.

American Meat Co. had stood on the corner of South Fourth Avenue and East 25th Street for 62 years. The Islas brothers, Reuben Francisco Sr., Alejandro, Joaquin, Filiberto and Oscar, opened the shop in 1953 and ran it until the 1990s, when they turned it over to their children.

The shop was popular in the Barrio Santa Rita Park, a place where families would get pork and beef needed to make Christmas tamales and beef tripe used in Christmas and New Years menudo.

The Islases had been there ever since we moved into the neighborhood and that goes back to 1960, said Angie Quiroz, president of the Barrio Santa Rita Park-West Ochoa Neighborhood Association, who said neighbors didnt want to see the space remain vacant.

But they also didnt want someone from the outside coming in to do something that didnt benefit the community, she said.

This group is homegrown. They grew up in the area. Theres a connection with that, Quiroz said. Its exciting because they are very young, they have a lot of spirit and they know the community.

Bonillas said they bought the building two months ago for $250,000 with no clear plans about what to do with it.

Over a months span, the idea evolved from commercial kitchen for food trucks to the food court.

Its an idea that Susan Fulton, president of the Tucson Originals association of restaurants, praised in part because it defies food court wisdom.

Oftentimes when its a food court, like in a mall, its just a bunch of chains, said Fulton, who owns Gourmet Girls Gluten Free Bakery/Bistro, 5845 N. Oracle Road. The concept of having different local restaurants where people can browse around at different kinds of food is wonderful. Its a great idea; I love it.
Asked to speak at a Christian church several months ago, Gil Shapiro of Freethought Arizona jokes that he needed smelling salts.

The invitation came from Dan Grossenbach, a volunteer teacher of an apologetics class at Catalina Foothills Church, a congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America.

In the class, Grossenbach, 40, teaches Christians how to better explain and address challenges to their faith. That means studying world religions, discussing moral issues and exploring key points of Christianity.

We were going to cover secular humanism, and I thought it would be great to have a real live secular humanist there, Grossenbach says.

A friend had made him familiar with the op-ed columns Shapiro, 68, often writes for the Arizona Daily Star.

A friend passed (his articles) along and said, Check this out. Look at this nonsense, Grossenbach says, laughing and clapping Shapiros shoulder.

Dont touch me, Dan, Shapiro deadpans.

The two laugh.

They hadnt expected friendship as a byproduct of their partnership.

In August, Shapiro presented What a Secular Humanist Wants Christians to Know during Grossenbachs class. The next week, Grossenbach gave a rebuttal and then opened up the floor for questions to Shapiro.

On Sunday, Nov. 27, Shapiro will return the favor, giving the Freethought Arizona stage over to Grossenbach for the groups monthly gathering. He will start a debate with Shapiro on whether Christianity is the best explanation for reality.

Again, rebuttals and questions will follow.

The goal here is not to win.

There is the religious point of view and the secular point of view, and there will be some things where we cant move on our position, Shapiro says. But there will be some things that we can. The first step is really understanding each other better.

Thats why Grossenbach reached out to Shapiro  a move that he admits could be risky with its potential to confuse some believers.

For me, that type of conversation just makes my faith stronger, and it just helps me figure out how to make a case from my side, says Christy Sterling, a member of the church who attended both classes. I definitely understand where (Gil) is coming from more.

Grossenbach and Shapiro both agree that a worldview  whether tinted by Christianity or secularism  should be able to withstand criticism.

I think the most honest approach is if you are going to believe something, you want it to be a belief or a fact that has survived all the criticism you can think of, Shapiro says.

What Dan is doing is saying, Tell us where were going wrong. Give us your best shot, and if Christianity is still standing after that barrage, then its worth believing.

It goes the other way, too.

But this kind of conversation has to happen civilly  a model Shapiro and Grossenbach are representing in their presentations.

As Christians, we are motivated by no greater purpose than bringing attention and fame to our God, Grossenbach says. While we dont expect anyone to change in response to our actions or our arguments, we do hope God uses us to bring more people closer to him.

At the same time, Freethought Arizona wants the opposite.

It would be a benefit for all human beings to think like secularists without any superstition and just think rationally, says Stephen Uhl, a Freethought Arizona board member. If we could all get on the same rational page and get on without superstition and blind faith, it would be easy for us to be unified and work together.

And yet Grossenbach and Shapiro remain partners  friends, even  in this pursuit of civil conversation.

I think Gil and I get along pretty well, and its cool when you strongly disagree on issues ... and are able to not only get along with each other, but have convinced the leaders of our respective groups to endorse and support it, Grossenbach says.

Before Shapiro spoke at Catalina Foothills, Grossenbach ran it by lead pastor Steve Ingino and other leadership. Shapiro, likewise, accepted the invite with the approval of the Freethought Arizona board.

I know its surprising to think we would do that, but thats actually what we think is helpful, says executive pastor Paul Utnage. Too often people are not talking to each other, and therefore we make a lot of assumptions.

Grossenbach decided to accept the validity of the Bible and follow Jesus Christ after drifting away from his Protestant rearing. A federal investigator, he conducted a personal inquiry into Christianity, listening to arguments for and against the faith.

I was emboldened by the evidence I saw bringing me back to Christianity, he says.

Shapiro, on the other hand, left his Jewish upbringing. He began wrestling to reconcile the Holocaust and anti-Semitism with Gods promise to Abraham in the Hebrew Bible to protect his people, the Jews.

Conversion, while not impossible, would take some convincing for both men.

We would love to see it happen, Shapiro, a retired podiatrist, says. I mean, Dan would love to see me get on my knees and accept Jesus as my lord and savior and confess my sins, and Im in!

Its not too late, Grossenbach cuts in, laughing.

Shapiro continues.

And I would love him to say, Hes got a point there, and on the big spectrum there are some people who will change their minds, Shapiro says.

But even if that doesnt happen, the partnership is worth it  especially in this post-election climate, they say. This is about respecting differences, not compromising values.

They agree on this: Too much is lost when people forget how to disagree well. Information. Good solutions. Civility.

Thats why, after this next presentation, theyre open to continuing the conversations on specific subjects or with other Tucson faith leaders.

We are seeking clarity over agreement, Grossenbach says. At least let us understand. There are so many things and values that we both agree on, like helping the poor and being good stewards of the environment, things we can work together on. But were not necessarily going to agree on the nature of God or if God exists. We think we have to agree all the time, but we dont. We can get along just fine. ... And I think thats what we did, right?

On this, Shapiro agrees.
As if a trip to the ER isnt traumatic enough, many U.S. emergency-room patients end up with major unexpected costs, a new study says.

Yale University researchers looked at 2.2 million ER visits made by patients younger than 65 nationwide between early 2014 and late 2015.

Nearly one-quarter of the patients who went to ERs within their health insurance networks were treated by an out-of-network doctor and ended up with unexpected expenses, the study found.

According to the findings, out-of-network emergency doctors charged up to 800 percent of Medicare rates, while in-network emergency physicians were paid around 300 percent of Medicare rates.

Patients were presented with an average bill of about $622, and potentially much more, if their insurer only covered in-network rates, the researchers reported.

Many patients would be hard-pressed to pay such a bill, the researchers said.

They estimated that 47 percent of Americans could not cover an unexpected $400 expense without incurring credit-card debt or selling assets, according to the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Most patients with health coverage go to in-network emergency rooms and rightly expect to be treated by in-network doctors, said study co-author Zack Cooper, an assistant professor of public health and economics at Yale.

Our study shows that nearly a quarter of people who visited in-network emergency rooms were exposed to potentially major costs. This is just wrong and we must do better. People should not face financial ruin from medical bills they cannot reasonably avoid, Cooper said in Yale news release.

Based on the findings, Coopers team believes that state policies on surprise out-of-network billing are inadequate and the federal government has taken no action on the issue.

The researchers suggested that hospitals should be required by law to sell an emergency care package that includes physician services and facility fees.

The hospital would then staff its own emergency room and pay the doctors directly.

However, two groups representing ER doctors took issue with the findings.

Dr. Rebecca Parker, president of the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), said the conclusions from the new study are based on claims data from a large insurance company, which (is) not identified and not available for examination, showing the lack of transparency by the health insurance industry.

Most emergency physicians prefer to be in-network, as long as insurance companies pay fairly, Parker said in an ACEP statement.

Besides calling on insurance companies to release more transparent data, she believes that state and federal policymakers need to ensure that health insurance plans provide fair payment for emergency services and provide adequate rosters of physicians.
The mid-1920s in Tucson were a time when someone living near the corner of what is now Elm Street and Campbell Avenue might say, I think Ill start a rodeo.

And then actually do it.

The Tucson rodeo and parade, one of Tucsons longest standing traditions, was the brainchild of Frederick Leighton Kramer, who cleared a field on his property in 1925 in what is now the historic Catalina Vista neighborhood, put up bleachers for 3,000 spectators, and offered $6,650 in prize money to the cowboys of the day.

Back in that day, the rodeo site was on the very outskirts of Tucson, northeast of where the University of Arizona put its footprint. Catalina Vista, now officially designated as a National Register Historic District, lies between Grant Road and Elm Street, and Campbell Avenue and Tucson Boulevard.

Kramer passed away in 1930, but the rodeo  now in another part of town  and his legacy remain. When the neighborhood was developed as Catalina Vista Estates and streets were named, the main street heading north from Elm Street leading to the trademark circular park on Waverly Street was named after him.

Even today, residents are preserving whats left of his presence in the neighborhood.

Last year, his home on Elm Street  which at points in its existence was a school for girls and a kindergarten run by Catholic nuns  was demolished to make way for a new housing development. The home had been empty and in disrepair for more than a decade when it was torn down, never having made it into the National Register of Historic Places that would have prevented its demise. But neighbors raised money to salvage hundreds of the distinctive green porcelain roof tiles from the home and used them to roof a ramada in Tahoe Park, a place in the neighborhood where residents always have and still can enjoy some solitude or time in the sun.

Thats whats good about this neighborhood, said Alison Hughes, president of the Catalina Vista Neighborhood Association. It pulled together to raise the money to put that ramada up.

Other portions of Kramers 170-acre spread in the neighborhood were split up over the years to make way for the neighborhood development in the 1940s and later. The stables and other buildings have been converted to homes, including one that is painted bright blue and stands as a symbol of the neighborhoods history. What is said to be Tucsons first built-in swimming pool remains in use on the property.

Through the years, residents have come and many have stayed.

Elda DuPont is 93 years old and has lived in Catalina Vista since 1953 when she moved in with her husband, Bill, a little more than a dozen years after the area was planned for development, named and advertised as a neighborhood scientifically planned to conform with the Tucson of tomorrow. As homes were being built and residents were moving in, the neighborhood was annexed into the city of Tucson in 1946.

Given the chance, DuPont can recall street by street and house by house who lived where, how many kids were in those families and who worked where. Her home was literally the edge of town at the time.

My husband was in the fire department and you had to live in the city, DuPont recalled. That was as far as you could go. There were no roads just kind of a path that was all dirt.

DuPonts uncle, Al Hubbard, built her home, one of an estimated 20 he built in the neighborhood which features the work of some of Tucsons most prominent architects and homebuilders including Josias Joesler and Arthur Brown. The homes are an array of Tucson architecture with a significant number of adobe houses, pitched roofs, some tiled, some not. The homes range in size. Some even have basements, not a common trait of the architecture of today.

Like many of Tucsons historic neighborhoods, present and past residents are of the whos who of Tucson history with names like Drachman, Jacome, Estes, Mansfield and Kinerk. There were mayors and prominent business people, some famous just in Tucson and some beyond.

A book, Tucsons Catalina Vista: The Neighborhood and Some of Its People by Bill and Kay Bigglestone, chronicles the neighborhoods history.

Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood and a long-time advocate of womens rights lived in the neighborhood from 1950 until she died in 1966. Her son, Stuart, lived next door. The book quotes a Tucson Citizen news story in which Sanger was quoted as saying Arthur Brown did the perfect house for me  I do not care for boxes or square rooms. And when I look out the windows, I do not want to see the ground. I want to see sky and trees and flowers.

One of Tucsons most notorious residents, Joseph Bonanno, took up residence in Catalina Vista in 1974, which brought a level of curiosity to the neighborhood. Residents knew he was there. They knew his reputation as a Mafia crime boss. They witnessed law enforcement agents rummaging through his trash looking for evidence to convict him of a crime.

But to them, Bonanno was just a charming neighbor.

If you didnt know his reputation and you met him, you wouldnt think anything about it, said Dave Sunderman, who was 10 years old when his family moved there in 1948. He still lives in the home where he grew up.

Bonannos presence at Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church, which sits just south of the neighborhood on Campbell Avenue across from the UA medical school, was just a part of going to church, Sunderman said.

The ushers would always sit in the back and Joe would sit in a section on the edge with his arm over the edge of the pew, Sunderman said. That was his spot. And his guards would be in the back with the ushers.

He was a very handsome man, very charming, DuPont recalled.

Suzi Deurloo grew up in Tucson and knew of the neighborhood. Attending nearby Salpointe Catholic High School meant she would hang out with friends at Tahoe Park, which is at the southeast corner of Norris Avenue and Edison Street, a block south of Grant Road and a block east of Campbell.

All the Salpointe kids used to play hooky and have lunch here, Deurloo said. Theyd go to The Bone and get something to eat and bring it here, she said, referencing the nearby Lucky Wishbone fried chicken establishment.

When the opportunity presented itself, her family bought an adobe home in the center of the neighborhood.

Even before moving in, her family had history in Catalina Vista. She said her grandfather, Jim Kane, was the champion all-around cowboy in the 1927 rodeo held on the Kramer property.

Because of where my house is, we always get a kick out of saying that grandpa won the rodeo, Deurloo said. Her home backs up to where the rodeo was held.

Deurloo happened upon her future home when she stopped by during an estate sale 22 years ago.

I walked in the house and started shaking really hard. I think I was shaking because I was meant to be there, she said. There was no for sale sign or anything but I asked them if they wanted to sell the house.

The owner said he was planning to list it for sale, but she talked him out of it and her family bought the home.

It was built by architect Henry Jaastad who would be Tucsons mayor from 1933 to 1947, and whose architectural work includes the facade of St. Augustines Cathedral, the old El Conquistador Hotel, what is now Safford Middle School, Dunbar School and some of the buildings at Tucson Medical Center.

For the most part, the house maintains its original structure with the exception of the ceramic tile the Deurloos have installed. Theres been a remodel of the kitchen. The beamed ceilings, tiles over the fireplace and the mission doors at the entrance are Jaastad originals.

Our house was at the end of his career and we think he was pretty smart, Deurloo said.

But its not just the homes that keep Deurloo and others in the neighborhood. Its the people.
As an elementary school teacher in Amado in the 1970s, Lisa DiGiacomo would push the desks to the edges of her classroom after the last bell, making space for impromptu dance lessons in a part of Pima County where artistic outlets were few and far between for many.

I really felt like there was a need, she said of those years. The children didnt have a lot down there.

DiGiacomo, now 62, started dancing as a young girl in Texas, and would eventually learn under some of the leading lights of classical ballet in the United States, including Frederic Franklin and George Zoritch.

In Southern Arizona, she found a way to put those years of learning and practice back to work, an endeavor her husband, Guy DiGiacamo, has been a part of since its earliest days.

From the informal setting of her classroom, what are now the Ballet Continental Dance Company and Young Artists Community Ballet Academy of Dance moved into the historic Continental School nearly four decades ago.

Pima County owns the nearly century-old structure near Green Valley, where Lisa and Guy are the principal tenants. The school has grown to roughly 140 students and the company has around 20 members.

With parents and other close family needing more of their time, and the physical demands of dance getting more challenging, Lisa and Guy, who serves as president of the companys board, have started handing over the reigns to the next generation.

Nicholas McClain, a former student and Sahuarita native, took over the academy in the summer, and this Decembers production of The Nutcracker will be the first with performers taught by a new director.

Lisa remains the creative director of the company, which puts on The Nutcracker and other productions, and likely will continue in that role for several more years. However, the plan is to eventually let McClain, 34, take over the entire operation  with Lisa on hand as a mentor of course.

Its been in my heart forever. I founded all this stuff, Lisa said of the school and company. Its my baby still, and I wanted it to go the right person.

McClain, who started dancing at the school when he was 8 years old, said he hopes to carry on the heavy emphasis on classical ballet that was so important to him as a young dancer.

Hes also juggling a full-time job in Tucson, as well as an online business program with the University of Phoenix.

Its critical from the arts perspective, he said. Something that can expose people to a different side of the world that they might not otherwise have gotten a chance to experience or see.

I do want to focus on clean technique and classical technique, and ensuring the dance company remains a classical ballet company, he said.

That focus is what has kept longtime student Erika Schmidt coming back. Schmidt, 18, is now a University of Arizona freshman, but still involved in the company. She said Lisa, universally known to students and parents as Ms. Lisa, has become a second mother.

Its kind of a dying art. So I feel that giving students the experience of classical ballet and being in a performing company is very important to keeping the art alive, she said, adding that she thinks McClain is a good candidate for maintaining that tradition.

Parents Leslie Righetti, who has two daughters at the school, and Susanne McQuade, who has one, said the school has also been an invaluable resource, one that they didnt necessarily expect to find in a rural setting like Continental.

Righetti praised the school for being committed to a small community to provide the arts, provide access to the arts.

As to the transition underway, McQuade said she expects it to be seamless, though she said she does appreciate McClain transitioning to email newsletters and other evidence of his tech proficiency.

The reason I think (Nicks) such a good person to lead is that he really sees the same vision, she added. Its a very classical, beautiful vision of ballet that I believe they share.

The companys production of The Nutcracker will run from Dec. 2-4 at the Sahuarita Auditorium. More information can be found at balletcontinental.com
The man South Tucson police shot and killed early Friday was identified Monday as Carlos Valencia, 26.

At about 3:45 a.m. Friday, South Tucson police officers responded to a call regarding a man behaving erratically at the Gospel Rescue Mission, 312 W. 28th St., said Police Chief Michael Ford.

They located Valencia after he left the mission and attempted to arrest him when he became combative, Ford said.

Officers pepper-sprayed Valencia and tried to subdue him with a taser, but he continued down 29th Street, after which he charged the officers and physically attacked them, police said.

One of the officers discharged his firearm, striking Valencia, Ford said.

Valencia was taken to Banner-University Medical Center, where he died several hours later, Ford said.

Police had identified Valencia, but were waiting to notify next of kin before releasing his name.

Shortly after, a sheriffs deputy on his way to assist with the investigation into the shooting collided with another vehicle on West 29th Street between South Ninth and 10th avenues, causing the deputys vehicle to flip over in front of the Valencia Market, Ford said.

The deputy and the occupant of the other vehicle were treated for their injuries and taken to a hospital.

The Pima County Sheriffs Department is handling the investigation into the shooting, said Deputy Ryan Inglett, a spokesman.
College Prep Academy students raise $700

Fifteen high school students from the Arizona College Prep Academy have raised $700 to donate to a local cause.

The fundraising was part of a philanthropy project with the Southern Arizona Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals.

The students also got to learn about philanthropy, fundraising and charity.

The students decided to focus on decreasing the stigma associated with mental illness.

The money they raised went to the Teen Outreach Pregnancy Services postpartum depression program.

50 teams to compete in Wilson Lego meet

Wilson K-8 School in Oro Valley is hosting a Lego League Tucson regional tournament on Dec. 3.

About 50 Southern Arizona teams will compete at the schools campus, 2330 W. Glover Road, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

This years challenge is called, Animal Allies, and competitors are charged with using their scientific skills to help animals.

Six get Rotary character awards

Six high school students have been given character awards by the Kino Rotary Club of South Tucson.

They are:

Jennifer Pelayo Garcia, STAR Academic Center.

Noor Mohamed, Desert View High School.

Patrick Robles, Sunnyside High School.

Cyndi Lewis, Baboquivari High School.

Daniel Escobar, Pueblo Magnet High School.

Sierra Flint, PPEP TEC High School.

The awardees were each given a certificate of recognition and a $25 gift card. The rotary club will also donate $25 to a charity of each students choosing.

The club established the character awards program in 2011 to honor local high school students who are role models in their schools and communities.

Foothills speech team admitted to elite club

The Catalina Foothills High School speech and debate team has been admitted into the National Speech and Debate Associations elite 100 Club.

The team, led by mentors Angela Hill and Taylor Johnson, had to earn enough points for the membership.

It had a strong showing at the 25th Mountain View Speech and Debate Tournament, where several students won individual medals.
Its no secret that schools in lower-income communities face additional challenges and tend to struggle more, but a new data analysis shows that some schools in the state, including some in the Tucson area, are beating the odds.

The average graduation rates at more than 80 high-performing Arizona schools in low-income communities were nearly as high as high-performing schools in higher-income communities, an analysis commissioned by A for Arizona, an education nonprofit , showed.

Some of the Tucson-area schools considered to be beating the odds are: Academy of Math and Science, Amerischools Academy, Presidio School and Carrillo K-5 Magnet, C.E. Rose and Drachman elementary schools in the Tucson Unified School District.

The ones that succeed in low-income areas are hugely tied to their communities, said Lisa Graham Keegan, the organizations executive director and former state schools chief. Its unbelievably difficult work, but its replicable.

In 2014, the education nonprofit identified 86 high-performing, low-income schools and wanted to see how those schools compare to the rest of Arizonas public schools. A for Arizona commissioned an independent data firm to collect and analyze all publicly available education data in Arizona.

Some of the findings include:

While graduation and dropout rates were similar, low-income students in high-performing schools were not going to college at the same rate as high-income students;

Large numbers of high-performing schools are still in high-income areas;

Better-performing schools are growing faster than worse-performing ones;

Teacher retention at high-performing schools is at an optimal level of about 10 to 15 percent.

A for Arizonas mission is to take whats working in those schools and replicate the success in other low-income schools.

So what do the exemplary low-income schools have in common? Very little in terms of instructional pattern, but a lot in terms of culture, Keegan said.

The 86 Arizona schools shared high expectations for staff and students, high levels of community outreach, and frequent assessment and targeted intervention, she said. The staff of those schools were also found to be spending extra unpaid time working toward those goals.

But Keegan said she realizes its not fair to expect people to work for free. Its kind of missionary work at that point.

The way other schools in the state can replicate the culture that fosters success in low-income schools is to empower teachers and leaders, she added.

You really have to empower the people who teach others because schools are much more than an exactly perfect curriculum or instructional methodology, she said. They are cultures. They are communities.

CaRrillos success

At Carrillo K-5 Magnet School downtown  an A-rated school both by the state and A for Arizona  groups of fourth-graders were filling in the outlines of monarch butterflies with red, orange and yellow colored pencils.

Right about now is when monarch butterflies migrate to Mexico, said Elsmarie DeMars, a visual-arts teacher at Carrillo. DeMars, who has been at the school for 11 years, tries to tie in what the kids are learning in social studies or science classes into art classes.

Im incorporating all these things in when I can, she said.

Partnerships and collaboration among teachers are a big part of the reason Carrillo has seen the success it has, despite the challenges its students face, said Lori Conner, the schools principal.

The school, which serves about 290 students, has a free and reduced lunch rate of 71 percent, she said. Nearly 80 percent of Carrillos students are Hispanic and didnt make the diversity requirements ordered by the court in TUSDs desegregation case.

But Carrillo, unlike six other TUSD schools that also did not make the requirements, did not lose its magnet status, which comes with additional funding that enables some programs, such as the visual-arts class, in part because its students are excelling academically.

The key to Carrillos academic performance lies in the schools community, which includes teachers, staff and families, Conner said. It helps that the school is smaller; shes also been at Pistor Middle and Safford K-8 schools, and the size of those schools made it hard to get to know every kid.

Both the teacher and student attrition rates are fairly low  Carrillo started the school year with just two teacher vacancies in a time where TUSD as a district was facing hundreds.

Everyone knows each other, she said. Everyone is accountable for each other.

While the fourth-graders were coloring their hearts out in art class, Carrillos fourth-grade teachers were taking that time to talk to one another at the professional learning community, a room designated for teacher collaboration.

The teachers sat down with a representative from the Pima County School Superintendents Office for a debriefing on the fourth-graders assessment from the day before. They were analyzing their mistakes and giving feedback.

Teacher leaders are critical for schools success, said H.T. Sanchez, TUSDs superintendent. By teacher leader, he said he means teachers who step up from their teaching duties to also help inexperienced or struggling teachers.

At Carrillo, Sanchez said he has seen those teacher leaders. The school, alongside Drachman and C.E. Rose, also has a heavy focus on early literacy and a deep understanding of each child by the teachers.

Carrillo and Drachman, which are close in distance and share attendance boundaries, are relatively small schools. But C.E. Rose has about 900 students, which the superintendent said is an indicator that bigger schools can have individual connections with their students, too.

But those three schools success isnt easily replicated, he said he realizes. Many other TUSD schools with similar demographics do not excel as much even with great teachers.

The primary challenge is identifying people, he said. Great teacher leaders often do not want to be principals or administrators, nor can they just be picked up and moved around to struggling campuses to transform them.

I really think we all need to do a better job in identifying those teacher-leader types and figure out how we can encourage them to take those secondary roles of teaching their peers more seriously, he said.
Three months ago, your humble columnist had the misfortune of reporting the nearly unthinkable: Due to the fallout from a bitter fight over traffic bollards in Tucsons Winterhaven neighborhood, some residents were contemplating a holiday light strike, in which their homes would be conspicuously dark while the rest of the neighborhood pulsed with its famous blinding Christmas lights.

The Road Runner can now happily report that a good old-fashioned neighborhood election, which roughly coincided with the far more divisive presidential election, has calmed tensions and given the neighborhood a path back to harmony.

I think it will be fine, said James Kaucher, a resident and attorney for the Winterhaven board.

There is a sense that people are putting out their lights, getting their houses together for lights, said Jill Hawkins, a critic of the bollards and member of a safety committee tasked with resolving the controversy. The sort of tension does seem to have gone away.

Before we go into the results of the election, lets recap the controversy: In October 2015, many residents were surprised to learn that traffic bollards had gone up on East Kleindale Road at its intersection with North Christmas Avenue.

That $3,000 modification came after enough nearby residents signed a petition requesting a change, which was intended to address speeding motorists on Kleindale. However, some original signers said they had been deceived about what they had signed, and subsequently signed a counter-petition to have the bollards removed.

After months of bitter back and forth, the safety committee polled residents and came up with a handful of proposals that would eventually be put to all residents.

Those proposals were as follows:

Remove the bollards and generally return the intersection to its original state with some additional signage and other minor modifications.

Turn the intersection into a roundabout.

Turn the blocked off section into a park.

With a razor-thin three-vote margin, the first option cleared the 90-vote majority threshold and avoided a runoff, according to a copy of the Nov. 14 results. The roundabout got 19 votes, and the third option got 56.

There are a few remaining steps, including clearing plans with the Tucson Department of Transportation, but the bollards are certainly coming down.

Hawkins described the results as delightful.

Though Kaucher previously said the bollards were a way to address speeding along Kleindale and other safety issues, and that taking them down could present legal problems for Winterhaven, he said that with the vote the neighborhood has spoken.

If people still have issues, Im sorry, he said.

Perhaps more important than the vote or the bollards are the lessons to be drawn from the episode, which saw shouting matches at meetings, 911 calls and threats of leaving Winterhaven.

The work of the committee and the effort to develop proposals based on neighborhood input showed the importance of people with different viewpoints coming together, Kaucher said.

Its a really good lesson of what happens when people dont talk to each other and make assumptions, he added of the controversy. When people talk to each other, it really does help clear the air.

Kaucher and Hawkins agreed that Winterhaven, with its decades-long history and strong neighborhood identity, might require a little more care than other neighborhoods when making changes. Per city rules, neighborhood-led road-safety improvements need to be signed off on by 60 percent of nearby residents. However, the strong reaction to the bollards suggest that wider involvement may have been appropriate.

Everyone has an interest in that part of the neighborhood, Kaucher said.

Anything like that that radically affects Winterhaven should have to be put before all of Winterhaven, Hawkins echoed.

Not just something like this where a small group of people can upend Winterhaven as a beautiful neighborhood.

The neighborhoods holiday lights officially turn on Dec. 10.

DOWN THE ROAD

Overnight bridge work at Interstate 10s Craycroft Road crossing will shut both left lanes starting Tuesday evening.

Between 9 p.m. Tuesday and 5 a.m. Wednesday, crews will build shoring for a temporary construction bridge. The Arizona Department of Transportation advises drivers to slow down and exercise caution.
America is now a nation where acts of political violence are so predictable that for months before an assailant broke into the San Francisco home of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and attacked her husband, Paul Pelosi, last week, experts have warned such an incident was likely.
Help India!

By IRNA,

Riyadh : The International Islamic News Agency (IINA), the media wing of the 57-member Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), will soon undergo a major face-lift in order to play an effective role in highlighting Muslim causes and bolstering Islamic unity.

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We have appointed a specialized company to restructure IINA and have begun the long process of rebuilding the agency, OIC Secretary- General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu told Arab News.

The IINA restructuring is part of a 10-year action plan approved by the emergency Islamic summit in Mecca, he added.

Earlier, addressing a sendoff given to former IINA Director General Abdul Wahab Kashif, the OIC chief commended the support of Saudi Arabia and other OIC countries to the agency.

He noted Kashifs role in establishing IINA and steering the agency through difficult times.

Erdem Kok, who replaces Kashif, spelled out his plan to strengthen IINA, matching international standards.

We have a three-phase strategy to develop IINA. First, restructuring; second, improving news production; and third, expanding to visual coverage, he told the Saudi Press Agency.

Former brand and marketing director of Turkeys Cihan news agency, Kok looked bullish in taking up the challenging job. He wanted to change the internal system to have a sound foundation to build on.

Kok spoke about the challenges in the fast-developing news industry and stressed the need to adopting new strategies to cope with modern developments.

We are planning to have a faster news production and distribution system, he added.

The new IINA chief intends to expand cooperation with news agencies in OIC member states.

We will provide a common platform for these agencies to work together to protect the interests of Muslim countries, he said, adding that IINA will recruit qualified journalists as part of the restructuring plan.

Kok said his agency would focus more on analytical reports and feature stories rather than breaking news.

Well prepare analytical reports on various events in the Muslim world and supply them to news agencies in OIC countries, he said.

At present IINA distributes news and reports in Arabic, English and French to newspapers, radios and televisions in different parts of the world.

The Qatar News Agency carries IINA news to at least 700 subscribers in the Arab world, Europe and America. IINA also sends its news bulletins by email to news agencies of Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Russia and the Central Asian countries.

Kashif, who worked as IINA director for 20 years, explained the difficulties he had to face in running the agency. Ezzat Mufti, assistant OIC secretary-general for political affairs, and Muhammad Subaihi, director general of Islamic States Broadcasting Organization (ISBO), commended Kashifs efforts to develop the news agency.

Saudi Arabia presented a paper at the last meeting of the OIC information ministers in Jeddah on strengthening IINA and ISBO and the conference approved the proposal.

Koks appointment was within the framework of IINAs restructuring process.

IINA was established in 1972 with the aim of enhancing and preserving Islamic cultural heritage and strengthening ties among Muslims all over the world.
Help India!

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter

Malappuram: A week after the brutal murder of Muslim convert P Faisal, the police on Sunday arrested eight RSS activists.

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The suspects were arrested by the special investigation team led by Kondotty Circle Inspector Muhammed Haneefa.

The arrested have been identified as Pullani Vinod, 39, Pullani Sajeesh, 32, Pulikkal Haridasan, 30, Shaji, 39, Chanath Sunil, 39, Kalathil Pradeep, 32, Pallippadi Lijesh, 27 and Kottayil Jayaprakash.

According to the police, the accused belonged to a local Hindu right-wing organisation and included kin of the victim. Police have also started probe into the conspiracy behind the murder.

However, the police are still searching for the people who committed the crime. 32-year-old

Faisal had converted to Islam six months ago and was brutally hacked to death at Farook Nagar in Kodinhi, during the early hours on November 19.

Faisal P, alias Aneesh Kumar, son of Ananthan Nair, of Kodinhi, was found dead by the roadside at about 4 am by local residents. An auto rickshaw, which he had used for his transportation, was found abandoned by the dead body.

Faisal had received threats even from his family members after he accepted Islam.

Faisal, who is fondly known as Unni, returned home only four months ago after working in the Gulf for a year.
Help India!

By Pritam Singh Tinna, TwoCircles.net

For the past few weeks, most of the attention towards Punjab has been regarding the upcoming elections, and whether the incumbent Badal government will win another term or not.

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But for the Dalit residents of village Jaloor, district Sangrur, election talk can wait for now. For the past few years, the Dalits of this village have been trying, to claim what is rightly theirs but it seems that the authorities are also hell bent on denying them to same.

This village has in total 600 families out of which 200-250 families are Dalits. Even though the village land constitute os 2,300 acres, all Dalit families are landless.

There is a land of 50 acres, categorised as Panchayat land. According to Zameen Prapti Sangharsh committee, an organisation that has been working with the Dalits of this village, one-third of this land is reserved for Dalit households. However, in the past the local authorities have tried to auction this portion of land, against which the Dalit families protested. The authorities also tried to sow paddy on this portion, so Dalit families cut the crop towards the end of September this year.

Following the struggle to claim the land, the Dalits of the village protested outside the SDM office on October 5. However, when they reached the place, almost 50 upper caste drunken men came with axes and were conspiring to attack Dalit families.

The information about the possibility of this attack was given to the SDM and the police workers were given orders to ensure safety of Dalit families. But the police workers did not enter the village along with Dalit families. Things got worse when the upper-caste villagers pelted the Dalits with stones and bricks.

But what was more shocking, was that there was an announcement in the local gurudwara, following which the attacks on Dalits intensified.

Upper caste Individuals picked some of the Dalits, who were then taken to the house of Gurdeep Baban (The prime accused) house and beaten up. Videos of this were filmed shared on the social media. The vehicles belonging to the Dalits were also destroyed.

The prime target of this attack was the house of Balwir Singh and Balwinder Singh, leaders of the Dalit movement. The attackers did not even spare the 70-year-old mother of Balwinder Singh.

Mata Gurdev Kaur, who was alone in the home, was attacked and her leg was chopped off. She later died in a hospital while being treated.

Finally, when the police decided to act, they arrested the Dalit men instead of the upper castes.

Tejinder Singh, SHO, Lehra threatened Balwir Singh. He told him, It seemed that your mother would die and it would become a cause of insult for you in the village. The villagers had gone to kill your college-going child Kamal. Now get a room for your child somewhere outside and we would get the matter solved.

However, the very next day the ostracisation of Dalits started. It was announced through the Gurudwara speaker that a fight had started with churhas and chamars of the village, and that nobody would give chara to Dalit families to feed their animals . Nobody would enter the farms of Dalits and people violating the orders would be fined Rs 8,000. The diktat also said that all flour mills and schools would henceforth be closed for Dalits.

A temporary Sfayi karmachari , Darshan Kaur has been working in the school for years was asked not to come again by the school authorities .

While in Jail, Balwinder Singh wrote about the incident and said that the root cause of all this problem is Brahminism. whatsoever religion one may enter into, this caste arrogance does not go, even when sitting in the house of God ( Gurudwara ) one may recite sarbat da bhala; even when one(upper caste) tastes Amrit from the same bowl, they are not willing to give equality to Dalits. The most disappointing here is what happened in Gurudwara, against the children of Guru Ravidaas ji. Day and night announcements were made . Shri Akal Takht should take notice that Gurudwaras shall not be used against the ones who have given so many sacrifices and who are oppressed everyday. Gurudwaras should become the guards of people.

The death of Mata Gurdev Kaur has ignited the protests again in the region. Kamal deep Jhaloor, son of Balwinder Jhaloor said, My grandmother Mata Gurdev kaur has now become an Icon for the people of Punjab. Protests demanding the arrest of the killers of Gurdev Kaur are being taken place and last week, we protested in front of the house of Parminder Singh Dhinds, Finance Minister of Punjab.

Balwinder Jhaloor, who is now out of jail, said the protests will continue until the demands of the Dalits are met. Given that elections are round the corner, it remains to be seen how the political parties will handle the situation.
A handwritten statement of apology, has appeared on the Twitter account of model and American Music Awards host, Gigi Hadid, this morning following an outburst of criticism on social media. This came after the star impersonated incoming First Lady, Melania Trump, during her hosting of the ceremony on Sunday night. The outrage was caused by a skit of Mrs. Trump which made reference to her alleged copying of Michelle Obama's speech in the summer.

The Apology

A photograph of a hand written statement on Hadid's Twitter account made clear to her followers that the impersonation was "done in good humour and with no bad intent." Zayne Malik's other half continued on to express that she too has "been the centre of a nationally televised comedy skit that poked fun at [her] actions" and that she was able to see the humour behind it.

Hadid acknowledged that Melania would understand the nature of television and show business and "the way shows are written and run. I apologise to anyone that I offended and have only the best wishes for our country. Respectfully, G." signed the model, ending her statement.

Where did it come from?

The skit at the music awards was derived from an incident in the summer when Melania took to the stage during the first day of the Republican National Convention. The wife of Donald Trump faced accusations of plagiarism following criticism that her speech bore similarities to that of Michelle Obama's convention speech in 2008. Melanie's speech, written with the help of a team of speechwriters, brought down the house and included themes of inclusivity, honesty and hard work.

Mr Trump's campaign manager Paul Manafort claimed there was "no cribbing of Michelle Obama's speech." Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, said he did not blame Mrs. Trump for the speech to which Donald Trump referred to as "absolutely incredible." Since the allegations, the two women of the White House have sat down together and chatted about the challenges of raising a family in the most watched house in America, the suspected copying never to be mentioned.
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After 'pizzagate' comes arrests of Norwegians involved in pedophilia, some of those involved are lawyers and politicians, according to Norwegian police. The cases include rape, trafficking, and production of photos and videos of child abuse.

History of pedophilia and sexual abuse in politics

In 2015 British police launched "operation hydrant", and investigated about 1400 celebrities, politicians and personalities, suspected of child abuse and pedophilia. The scandals in the world of politics do not stop there, after the death of "big Cyril", a member of the British parliament, has been revealed he abused hundreds of children.

The allegations came after his death, and other politicians were involved. Credibility comes not only by the number of victims and their reports but, from a member of the same parliament, Geoffrey Dickens, who prepared a dossier some 30 years ago. At the time the politician told his family members that the dossier he was preparing would "blow the lid off of the pedophile ring and perhaps take down powerful, famous sex abusers who had infiltrated the highest reaches of British life". Margaret Thatcher's government is accused of covering up a large amount of reports and documents that connected important politicians to the pedophile ring. Not to mention entertainers and anchors Rolf Harris and BBC's Jimmy Savile.

Convicted sex offender Epstein flew powerful friends to his 'orgy island'

Perhaps the most disgusting of all in the United States, is the case of Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender, pedophile and a billionaire, friends with the most powerful people on the planet, including: Tony Blair, Naomi Campbell, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Michael Bloomberg, Richard Branson and other powerful figures.

Although "pizzagate" has not been proven yet, one troubling fact is certain, Bill Clinton flew in the "Lolita express" 26 times. What makes this shocking, is the fact that these flights were to his private island, an island known to have held orgy parties involving minors. It is also very probable, by witnesses accounts given to police, that Epstein arranged orgies for hishigh-profilee friends in order to blackmail them later.
Its no secret that every Republican in Congress opposes any environmental protection based on their denial that climate change Science is anything more than a scam perpetrated by China (Trump), liberal conspiracy not settled in science (Rick Perry), ignorant chemists Carbon dioxide is not a harmful gas; it is a harmless gas .. there isnt even one study which shows it is dangerous (Michele Bachmann), and bad science These global warming studies [are] a bunch of snake oil.(Sarah Palin). Of course the same people who prefer a Biblical guide to science based evidence as a guide to policy use cell phones and advanced medicine but the harm they do isn't funny.

Blocking Government programs which are supported by scientific discoveries mean long-term damage to the environment and people's health as well as the U.S. leadership in science and technology.

Sciences outlook very poor indeed under Trump

Republicans and the President Elect alike have made no secret of their intention to overturn all President Obama's executive orders. Some will take time to change, but there is a little used law which they can use to make wholesale changes very quickly. While many people feel that science cant be badly harmed by a single term with a science skeptic in The White House, the scary reality is that this is not a short term threat which will pass with a more enlightened administration.

This is more like a Supreme Court appointment which effect changes that last decades because the expected reversal of many of President Obamas executive orders on pollution control and other evidence-based policies based can be made permanent!

Sciences lasting peril from CRA's threat

President Obama signed about 200 executive orders and those, along with the 2-3,000 regulations established each year by Federal Agencies can not only be reversed in the short term but permanently blocked.

Republicans using the little known Congressional Review Act can block agencies from later issuing regulations which are substantially the same as those it kills. In other words, applying the CRA to those regulations would allow Congress to not only reverse pro-environmental rules but also prevent them from being reestablished during a subsequent administration.

Thats right, not only can a Republican Congress and President reverse all science-based orders and rules, they can also make it illegal to reinstitute them at a later date. You can bet that the incoming administration knows all about the CRA because a top Trump advisor, Newt Gingrich, drafted the law.

According to the November 25 issue of Science (the Journal of the AAAS) some of the top priorities among those wishing to use the CRA to reverse and permanently block rules on school nutrition standards, fracking, Arctic drilling, overtime pay rules, and even regulations on e-cigarettes (last week one was spectacularly seen catching fire in a man's pocket at Grand Central Station - NYC).

The CRA has only been used once since it was adopted in 1996 but that's because of the threat of Presidential veto.

With both Congress and The White House in anti-science agreement, we could see a wholesale banning of scientifically-based policy making and a return to rules set by arbitrary political considerations or, worse yet, religious beliefs.

With the U.S. perhaps permanently banned from many evidence-based policies the country could see a rapid and dangerous decline in scientific Education and research with experts leaving the country, as happened when CERN captured the worlds top theoretical physicists and applied scientists because the U.S. stopped development of the Texas-based super collider. Given the religious rights influence on the Republican Congress we should also expect to see a move away from contraceptive research and womens health issues.

(NOTE: disclaimer, I am a long-time member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science - AAAS)
New Zealand award-winning Theme Park - Rainbows End was more than a little scary when the Power Surge ride stopped and left some of the riders hanging upside down. Dangling up in the air after an employee shut down the ride were thrill seekers that included Children who were "left hanging in their harnesses," report Stuff NZ.

Theme Park in New Zealand confirms ride stopped

According to a statement quoted by the press Chris Deere, the chief executive for Rainbows End, said there had not been any malfunction and it had been stopped by an employee of the park as the school children riding on the Power Surge were "spitting." The operator had stopped the ride which temporarily left the passengers stranded - some of them upside down - according to witnesses.

The operator then manually lowered the big ride to the ground. Deere assured the public that the ride is functional and working and still safe.

Rainbow's End tweeted that the children had been warned about spitting before the ride was shut down.

@NZStuff The ride did not malfunction, was stopped mid-cycle and lowered manually due to children spitting, having ignored previous warnings  Rainbow's End (@RainbowsEndNZ) November 28, 2016

There were several comments on Twitter where people agreed that the children were unruly and the park did the right thing.

@RainbowsEndNZ @NZStuff Good on you Rainbows end. The right call was made.  Danger Johnson (@KiwiRigger) November 28, 2016

This was not a breakdown but they can happen

There were some nervous moments as Theme Park rides that break down can cause injury or even death.

In February 2008 the New Zealand Herald reported that 21-year-old park worker Michael Ross Stuart died whilst working on the Ferris Wheel. Firefighters had to rescue a woman who got trapped and suffered injuries on the log flume ride in 2012. The worst was a death in 1990, where an accident as a result of operator error resulted in the death of Thomas Wayne Hemi, a 19-year-old.

The operator forgot to attach the Bungy cord to his feet and he later died from his injuries.

The Theme Park has been awarded many times, and in 2015 was a finalist in the Tourism Industry Awards in the categories of "Visitor Experience" and "Business Excellence" The people left dangling upside down on a ride described on the Rainbows End Website as "not for the timid" and "aggressive," might not agree with the accolades in terms of "Visitor Experience." Then again, those being spat on would not have enjoyed the experience either.

Spitting is culturally offensive in New Zealand

Spitting is considered socially taboo across many of the world's cultures. New Zealand's Southern Institute of Technology warns students that spitting is considered extremely "offensive." Apart from being offensive, the act of spitting is also unhygienic and can spread diseases, some of them serious and life-threatening - such as Viral Meningitis.

See video of the park rides below
If anything good was to ever come out of "Sister Wives" that would be the news that Meri has found happiness with a new love and is getting ready to marry the man! Meri, who is the first of the "Sister Wives" for Kody Brown, was the only wife who was legally married to him for decades. A while back Meri agreed to a divorce to help Kody navigate a dilemma with another wife and that divorce has now come back to bite him.

Divorce bites Kody back?

Meri divorced Kody on paper only so that he could legally marry Robyn and adopt her kids from a previous relationship.

She stayed on as a "Sister Wive" and nothing was suppose to change, but something did. Even before Meri got this divorce she was unhappy in this plural marriage. With a divorce under her wing, Meri set out to explore the possibility of another relationship.

Meri lost in the shuffle

Once Robyn was brought into the family bringing Kody's wife count from three to four, Meri started to see things differently. She was tired of vying for Kody's attention and this was one unhappy woman in a marriage of polygamy. She was so unhappy that she was scammed online in a catfish scandal when thinking she was being wooed by a man. The person turned out to be a woman looking for some inside juice on the Kody Brown and his four wives.

The scandal became headline news and not only was Meri heartbroken after thinking she found real love online, but she was mortified for falling for this scam. Jump ahead to November and Meri has been away from the family an awful lot, but for good reason apparently.

A man all her own!

Reports today have Meri falling in love with a real man, one who is interested in her and only her.

She is now being treated the way she deserves by her new beau, whose name has not been revealed. Not only is Meri in love, but this unnamed man, who hails from Hawaii has asked for her hand in marriage, so the rumors say.

Meri has now found happiness, but she's not out of the woods yet as the people she is closest to in life may turn their backs on her for leaving the Brown family clan.

She is worried that her sister wives won't attend her wedding, but her real concern about possible no-shows for her wedding day is her only daughter Mariah, according to the Hollywood Gossip.

Meri gets kudos!

There's not many fans of "Sister Wives" that are applauding Meri for taking a chance at real happiness after being put on the back burner as a wife for decades. Kody Brown is often seen as a perpetual teenager who is driven by his libido and not by much else.

Living life as the "Sister Wives" do seemed to have some positive aspects to it way back when the show first started. There were plenty of people to share in the child rearing and household chores back when they all lived in one big house before wife number four came on board.

Back then Kody and his three wives not only shared one abode, but the women were very much like best friends.

Kody like teenager driven by his libido

It was when Kody took Robyn on as his fourth wife that things changed on "Sister Wives." He was like a teenager chasing after Robyn and ignoring his other three wives in the honeymoon stage of the relationship. This is when the fans got to see the underlying reasons that Brown enjoyed his polygamy life so much. Jealousy ran rampant and the other wives weren't happy campers. The Hollywood Gossip refers to Kody as the "douchiest devil that ever was." That pretty much sums up what Meri will be leaving behind to finally live the life she deserves if she does marry the man from Hawaii!
A maglev train arrives at a station in Shanghai. [Photo/IC]

As China Railway Rolling Stock Corp Ltd recently launched a 600 kilometer per hour maglev project and China Railway Construction Corp Ltd set up a maglev subsidiary, debate over maglev technology is hot again, t he People's Daily reported.

Maglev is a transport method that uses magnetic levitation to move vehicles without making contact with the ground. With maglev, a vehicle travels along a guideway using magnets to create both lift and propulsion, thereby reducing friction by a great extent and allowing very high speeds.

The world's first maglev line was launched in Shanghai in 2002, connecting a metro station to Shanghai Pudong International Airport. With speeds of up to 430 kilometer per hour, its 30-kilometer route takes less than eight minutes to travel.

Compared to other types of urban rail transportation, maglev trains have strong climbing ability and can achieve high speeds. However, they also have some disadvantages, such as a hefty price tag, no commercial operation, and low compatibility with China's current railway system, said Sun Yongfu, former vice-minister of the Ministry of Railway.

Some said maglev is too noisy and has high electromagnetic radiation and is burning money. However, those maglev projects planned or built in China are low and medium speed maglev projects, with a top speed of less than 100 kilometer per hour, the newspaper said.

The Changsha Maglev Express in central China's Hunan province, China's first domestically built maglev line that uses homegrown technology, started trial operation on May 6. The line, with a total investment of 4.6 billion yuan, stretches over 18.5 kilometers and achieves a top speed of 100 kilometer per hour.

Beijing is also currently building a low-speed maglev urban rail route - the S1 line - which will start in northern Beijing's Haidian district, pass through Shijingshan district and end in Mentougou district in the city's western outskirts. The 11-kilometer line will become operational by the end of next year.

Compared with subways, the low and medium speed maglev have low energy consumption, low noise, a short construction period and low cost.

Experts predicted that future low-speed maglev projects will primarily aim to link large cities with their satellite cities, as well as suburbs to downtown areas. They will also be used in second- and third-tier Chinese cities as a substitute for subways.

"The maglev technology we mastered has changed. The Shanghai maglev line was almost imported from Germany, but the Changsha Maglev Express was completely made in China," said Xie Hailin, general manager of Railway Maglev Transportation Investment & Construction Co Ltd.

"Though maglev is not included in the medium and long term development plan for domestic railway system, we cannot rule out the possibility that the country will build another high-speed maglev line between key routes such as Beijing-Shanghai, or Beijing-Guangzhou," Xie added.
KUNMING - A senior Chinese insurance regulatory official Monday called on Asian countries to increase cooperation, particularly to regulate insurer solvency standards.

Chen Wenhui, vice chairman of China Insurance Regulatory Commission, told a regional regulatory workshop, in southwest China's Yunnan Province, that Asia has become an important part of the global insurance industry, with market share rising from 20 percent to 30 percent of the world's total in the past decade.

Asian nation's insurance markets are very similar, operating in comparable environments, facing the same challenges and having common aspirations, Chen told officials from ten countries including Thailand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Laos and the Philippines.

He said China was open to sharing experiences and cooperating with Asian countries on solvency regulation.

Unlike the banking sector, insurers around the world are governed by different sets of solvency standards, such as Risk-Based Capital popular in the United States, and the Solvency II Standard Formula in Europe.

China has developed its own standard -- China's Risk-Oriented Solvency System assesses insurer solvency based on risk, rather than business-size as with the previous system. China's current system is considered by peers as a system that balances business growth and risk avoidance, and as being more applicable to developing markets.

Chen proposed that Asian countries establish a long-term dialogue to participate effectively in global standard setting, to help insurance capital move across the borders and to coordinate risk.
Religious extremism has started to spread into inland provincial areas from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, according to China's top religious affairs official, who urged the China Islamic Association to step up services for Muslim migrants and lead the fight against extremist thoughts.

Wang Zuo'an, head of the State Administration for Religious Affairs, said at the National Congress of the China Islamic Association on Saturday that the infiltration of extremist thoughts into the eastern and central areas deserves close attention.

"(The Islamic clergy) should stand in the front line in the fight to curb religious extremism ... and put in time and energy to convert the mindset of those people influenced by extremist thoughts," he said.

The association opened its three-day 10th National Congress on Saturday, with members of the clergy convening in Beijing to elect new leadership and revise its constitution. More than 370 representatives from 31 provincial areas are taking part.

Wang said the association should use the internet to make clear the nature of the harm of extremism to Muslims. It should also encourage the use of popular Islamic readings to satisfy the religious demand of their congregations, and refute misinterpretation of the Quran, he said.

"We should let Muslims know the boundaries between legal and illegal religious activities, to enable them to say no to illegal activities," he said.

The country has seen a growing trend of Muslims migrating from the west to eastern and central areas for the purposes of business, employment and study, he said.

"The association should help local Islamic associations provide religious services ... and step up the training of local clergy," which sometimes is in short supply, he said.

It should also target illegal publications and the spread of extremism through the internet.

Guo Chengzhen, vice-president and secretary-general of the association, said in a work report at the congress that the association should dig deep into doctrines and canons that are in line with social harmony and progress.

The interpretation of the Quran, and curbing the infiltration of extremist thought, will be a top priority for the association in the next five years, he said.

The association is also looking to develop ties with Islamic organizations in countries along the Belt and Road Initiative, and to establish platforms on bilateral cooperation and services, he said.

There are 26 countries with dominant Muslim populations along the initiative's routes, and the association should conduct exchanges with international Islamic organizations and countries as the country pushes the initiative forward, Wang said.

China has a total Muslim population of more than 20 million and more than half live in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, according to the national demographic census in 2010, the latest census of its kind.
[Photo provided to China Daily]

Chinese All Digital Publishing Group Co Ltd, one of China's largest digital publishing groups, recently announced its plan to lead the country's emerging ACG (animation, comic and game) industry in the next 10 years.

The Beijing-based company plans to invest 250 million yuan ($36.76 million) to acquire a 13.51 percent stake in video-sharing website AcFun and spend another 250 million yuan for a 20 percent stake of Shanghai-based game firm MorningTech.

ACG, rooted in Japan, and which has millions of fans in China, is fascinated with er ci yuan (a two-dimensional world) created by animated titles, comic books and video games.

"China's ACG industry is in a golden era now, with a rough market value of hundreds of millions yuan," says Tong Zhilei, the chairman and president of Chinese All.

He says ACG will dominate Chinese culture consumption in the future.

A report by iResearch shows that China's ACG fans will touch 81.99 million by 2017. And a report by Citic Securities also shows that the market value of ACG, currently between 200 and 250 billion yuan, could surge to 500 billion yuan.

Meanwhile, with the Chinese All investment, AcFun could reach more users and let more people learn about the "bullet-screen" culture, says Liu Yanyan, the CEO of AcFun.

Bullet screening, popular in Japan, allows viewers to type comments on screen as a form of online communication while watching a movie, or a television drama. AcFun is one of China's earliest websites to introduce this kind of screening, which now is popular among youngsters.
US President-elect Donald Trump, 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and many Chinese may have one thing in common. None of them is fond of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement, but for vastly different reasons.

Clinton, when secretary of state, called TPP the "gold standard", but she opposed it during the campaign in order to win more union voters.

Trump seems more consistent. He announced on Nov 21 that a top priority for his administration is to withdraw from the 12-nation TPP, which he has repeatedly called "a potential disaster for our country".

For many Chinese, the death knell sounded by Trump is welcome news because they finally don't have to listen to President Barack Obama say: "The United States, not countries like China, should write trade rules."

Such words sound not only humiliating to many Chinese, but also ridiculous and hypocritical.

Why on earth would anyone think China, with a fifth of the world's population, should not be represented in writing global trade rules or any global rules? For Obama to think like that is akin to wishing that all the red states in the US should be banned from voting in the Nov 8 election.

Excluding China from making global rules and norms reveals a zero-sum and anti-democratic mindset, not to mention that China, rather than the US, is now the world's largest trading nation.

The fact that Obama has constantly used TPP as a US foreign policy tool in its rebalance-to-Asia strategy altered the true meaning of the free trade agreement. The TPP before the Obama administration was never meant to be a geopolitical game.

TPP's economic benefits are controversial to say the least. Some US economists who studied the documents carefully concluded that the economic benefits to the US are quite limited, in contrast to the praise heaped on it by US officials in lobbying Congress and the US public in the past year.

Some multinational corporations may be the winners from TPP, but many US workers and communities vulnerable to free trade agreements are likely to suffer. Over the years, the US government has done a poor job to help them, and Obama has not successfully assured them this time.

The opposition to TPP among Americans is so strong that at a rally on Nov 17 by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and his supporters near Capitol Hill, many held anti-TPP plaques and claimed that it was Sanders' movement that brought an end to TPP.

In the past week, some in the US have made a last-ditch effort for TPP by arguing that the death of the treaty will give China an opportunity to advance its influence, and more specifically the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), reflecting the same zero-sum approach Obama had in selling TPP.

At the 27th China-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade in Washington last week, Vice-Premier Wang Yang, US Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker, US Trade Representative Michael Froman and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and other officials all talked about the rapid growth of bilateral trade and investment relations and more importantly, the huge potential ahead.

With such a prospect, there is no reason for China and the US not to pursue a win-win game that will benefit their peoples, but instead try to exclude the other in pushing forward their own multilateral trade deal as the Obama administration exhibited in TPP.

People close to Trump, such as former CIA director James Woolsey Jr, have indicated that the next US administration might join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and even the One Belt One Road initiative.

Though nothing is sure, this is an encouraging signal, suggesting that the Trump administration may pursue more win-win cooperation with China instead of politicizing a trade agreement, a regional infrastructure investment bank and efforts to build connectivity whenever they are initiated by China.

Indeed, ditching the zero-sum mentality and pursuing win-win cooperation is the only right choice for both China and the US.

Contact the writer at chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com
NAIROBI - Kenya and Uganda on Monday launched the Northern Economic Corridor Master Plan that provides the blueprint for the development of infrastructure that interconnects the East African region.

Kenya's Ministry of Transport Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development, Infrastructure Secretary Francis Gitau told a forum in Nairobi that the corridor will link Kenya's sea port of Mombasa to Uganda, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.

"The Northern Economic Corridor has several large bottlenecks in logistics which cause inefficiency of logistics and therefore hinders growth in the region," Gitau said.

"The aim of the master plan is to ensure that landlocked countries that depend on Kenya's sea port can easily and conveniently access the rest of the world," Gitau said during the International Seminar on the Northern Economic Corridor.

"When fully implemented, the master plan will reduce the cost and time of travel between the East African countries," he said. The transport corridor will have multimodal options including road, rail, waterway and a pipeline.

The master plan also includes development of infrastructure to link agricultural and industrial production zones with key domestic and external markets.

Government data indicate that total import and export freight from the Mombasa port will hit 61 million tons in 2030, which is 2.3 times the current amount.

"We therefore need to upgrade the Northern Economic Corridor because it will handle most of the cargo," he said.

The Kenyan official said that intra-Africa trade remains low compared to that of the rest of the world due to poor infrastructure links.
BEIJING - China Monday urged Singapore to strictly adhere to the one-China policy after nine Singaporean armored vehicles, reportedly used in military drills in Taiwan, were seized by Hong Kong customs last week.

"The Chinese side has lodged representations with the Singaporean side," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing, adding that China has demanded that Singapore abide by the laws of Hong Kong and cooperate with the government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) in handling the matter.

Geng said the Chinese government strongly opposes any official interactions between Taiwan region and any country that has established diplomatic relations with China, including military exchanges and cooperation.

"We demand that the Singaporean government adhere to the one-China policy strictly and sincerely," said the spokesman.
China is willing to work together with Laos to initiate major cooperative projects in areas including railways and economic development zones, Premier Li Keqiang said on Monday.

Li made the remarks while meeting with Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith in Beijing.

Witnessed by the two leaders, China and Laos signed two cooperative documents on border trade and joint development of an economic cooperative zone.

According to Li, the two countries should enhance cooperation in areas including production capacity, investment, agriculture, finance and national defense, adding that China would like to connect the country's development strategy with Laos.

China hopes that Laos could make continuous efforts for the healthy and steady development of China-ASEAN ties, Li said.

The railway project linking Laos with China is of great importance to Laos, and the Lao government will push for the implementation of the project, Thongloun said.

"We have already met three times since I assumed office seven months ago," Thongloun told Li. The two leaders had a discussion for the first time in July during the Eurasia leaders' meeting in Mongolia. They also met in September during Li's official visit to Laos.

Liu Zhenmin, vice-foreign minister, said that during the meeting, Li and Thongloun exchanged ideas on areas including agricultural products, trade, finance, and production capacity cooperation.

China agreed to help Laos improve the country's infrastructure to boost interconnection, Liu told reporters after the signing ceremony.

This is Thongloun's first China visit after taking his post in April. He paid an official visit to China in August 2011 when he was Lao deputy prime minister and foreign minister. Thongloun will meet with President Xi Jinping on Thursday.

The four-day visit will also take Thongloun to central China's Hunan province.

Starting from the 1980s, many Hunan natives went to Laos to seek business opportunities. They started from scratch in the hardware industry and gradually grew into influential forces in industries like motorcycle, motorcycle parts, supermarkets and mobile phone sales, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

According to the economic and commercial counselor's office of Chinese embassy in Laos, Chinese investors have currently invested in 764 projects in the country in industries such as mineral products, agriculture, electricity, artifacts, tourism.

Among these projects, 552 were funded by Chinese companies, while the two countries invested in 212 of the projects. China has become Lao's biggest source of foreign investment.

Contact the writer at anbaijie@chinadaily.com.cn
China is asking the Philippines to deal as soon as possible with the detention of Chinese citizens suspected of working illegally for an internet gambling website, Foreign Ministry Geng Shuang said in a daily news conference on Monday.

More than 1,000 Chinese people were detained in a recreational park in the province of Pampanga on Friday during an operation to crack down on illegal internet gambling carried out by the Philippines' Bureau of Immigration and the Department of Justice, according to the Chinese embassy in the Philippines.

Embassy officials arrived at the scene on Friday night to deal with the incident.

Some of the Chinese people detained have been released, while others are waiting for further questioning, Geng said, expressing concerns over the case.

According to Geng, the Chinese embassy in the Philippines has asked the Philippines to properly accommodate the detainees, speed up the process of verifying their identification and release those with legal identification as soon as possible.

China will continue to closely follow the incident, he said.
THE HAGUE - Belgium and the Netherlands signed a treaty to exchange pieces of land along the Meuse river border.

In accordance with the treaty, the peninsulas Presqu'ile de L'llal and Presqu'ile d'Eijsden (0.04 square km) will be given to Belgium in exchange for the peninsula Petit Gravier. As a result, the Netherlands will become about 0.1 square km larger.

Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Bert Koenders and Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders signed the convention for adapting the border in the presence of royal couples of both countries.

"This unique border agreement is an example of our excellent cooperation with the Belgian people. We have showed today that the Netherlands and Belgium succeeded, as good neighbors, can adjust borders in a peaceful way," said Koenders.

According to Reynders, the border treaty symbolizes the excellent state of the Belgian-Dutch relations.

This is the second border adjustment between the Netherlands and Belgium in 175 years. The current border was established in 1843 and followed the deepest point of the Meuse river. Adjustment was necessary because in 1961 the winding banks of the river were rectified for navigation purposes. As a result, parts of Belgian territory were attached to the Dutch riverside and vice versa.

As these parts of land were suddenly located on the "wrong" side of the border, they were not accessible by road from their own country, which led to small regions of lawlessness.

According to Dutch broadcaster NOS, Belgian police officers, for example, could only reach L'llal by boat or via a detour, and only with the consent of the Netherlands. According to complaints by local residents, this had led to nuisance caused by illegal parties, drug dealers and sex tourists in the area.

Although there are neither people living nor buildings on the peninsulas, adjusting the border situation still is a lot of work, said Theo Bovens, Commissioner of the King in the Dutch province of Limburg.

Ministries of both countries such as water boards, land registry agencies and three municipalities will be involved in the land swap.

In preparation to this treaty, a memorandum of agreement was signed on June 23 this year. If the parliaments of both countries adopt the treaty next year, the border correction will take effect on Jan 1, 2018.
DUBAI - The tourism authority in the emirate of Sharjah of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said on Monday it is preparing to welcome as many as 200,000 Chinese visitors to the emirate by 2021, UAE state news agency WAM reported on Monday.

The Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) stated that China is a "major international source market" for tourism and commerce.

SCTDA Chairman Khalid Jasim Al-Midfa said "taking into account the Chinese market's distinctive characteristics and focusing on Sharjah's strengths and unique cultural tourism offerings, we are confident that we will continue to see the upward trend of this market in Sharjah."

Hotels in Sharjah have hosted over 75,000 Chinese visitors during the first three quarters of 2016, showing a 75 percent year-on-year growth, according to data revealed at a recent SCTDA workshop held in Urumqi, China.

Since January 2015, Sharjah-based budget airline Air Arabia has been flying directly from Sharjah to Urumqi, the largest city in Western China. In addition, Dubai-based Emirates Airline, the international carrier of the UAE, has added earlier in May Yinchuan and Zhengzhou as its fourth and fifth destination in mainland China.

"Our recent workshop with our partner Air Arabia in the north-western Chinese city of Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was another part of our Chinese strategy aimed at achieving this growth," said Al-Midfa.

He added that "the increased initiative to attract visitors from China has been boosted by the UAE's new Chinese visa-on-arrival regulation, and other new initiatives by the authorities and stakeholders to attract more visitors."

During its Urumqi visit, the delegation also discussed new flight opportunities. As of now, Air Arabia is the only outbound tourist carrier from this region and is running at high capacity, suggesting there is further potential from the region. Air Arabia arranged the meetings and workshops with their key agents, among other outbound tourism providers.
WASHINGTON - At least eight people were injured in a campus shooting in US Ohio State University, the local fire department said Monday.

One of the wounded were in critical condition, while two were stable, local media quoted the Columbus Fire Department as saying.

Ohio State University tweeted earlier that an active shooter was on campus, telling students to "run, hide, fight."
The UK developers of the Airlander 10 hybrid airship, which is the world's largest aircraft, are pitching their supersize creation at the Chinese market to tap increasing demand for passenger and cargo transportation.

The vehicle, which at 92 meters is 15 meters longer than an Airbus 380 superjumbo, made its maiden flight in eastern England this summer. The aircraft, which uses airship, fixed-wing and helicopter technology, can stay airborne for about five days, according to its makers, Hybrid Air Vehicles.

Stephen McGlennan, HAV's chief executive, is heading to China for 10 days, during which time he will give a keynote speech at the leading business school, Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business. He will also meet representatives from companies in the air, oil and gas, logistics, and tourism sectors.

McGlennan told China Daily: "Airlander is a game-changing large aircraft which will revolutionize aspects of the commercial markets for remote cargo and passenger transportation."

He said it could contribute to China's One Belt, One Road initiative, which is designed to increase global trade and prosperity.

"There is already considerable interest in Airlander from China and the wider Asian region," McGlennan said.

The aircraft combines aerodynamics and lighter-than-air technology to create a hybrid that maintains its shape due to the pressure stabilization of the helium inside the hull. It does not need an airport to take off or land, so is capable of delivering cargo to remote locations.

HAV says it can be used for surveillance, communications, delivering aid and even passenger travel.

The Airlander 10 flew for the first time in the UK this year, and will continue its flight test program in 2017. The company spent more than 120 million pounds and nearly 20 years on getting to the current stage, McGlennan said.

His team plans to fly the aircraft to China by the end of next year.

Christopher Bovis, professor of business law at the Business School at the University of Hull, said hybrid aircraft offer innovative transport solutions.

"China is the place and market to test such products and could pioneer the introduction of the Airlander 10 into commercial use within the near future," Bovis said.

McGlennan said he is eager to ensure China gets to see what his aircraft is capable of.

"I want to take this aircraft to China to show the customers there that this is a practical aircraft which can do the job they want doing. I believe they want to see it in action," he said.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Dianne Feinstein has claimed that the CIA hacked her staffs computer during a dispute over a committee report on waterboarding. This accusation from Feinstein has fueled a harsh response from others in Congress, including Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.

Theres an incredible arrogance to me that the CIA thinks they can spy on a committee that is providing oversight for the CIA, and I think its a real, very serious constitutional breach. This cannot happen in a free country, said Senator Paul last Thursday outside the Senate chamber.

Senator Feinstein had spoken out on the Senate floor last week to make the claim that The CIA did not ask the committee or its staff if the committee had access to the internal review or how we obtained it. Instead, the CIA just went and searched the committees computers.

Feinstein suggested that the CIA violated the committee-members fourth amendment rights of search and seizure, and that legal action should be taken.

This is a major accusation to throw at the CIA, as the consequences of being caught spying on a Senatorial committee are sure to be harsh should Feinstein put forward evidence of wrongdoing.

CIA director John Brennan immediately denied Senator Feinsteins accusations, telling NBC, The CIA was in no way spying on the committee or the Senate.

Brennan also spoke with the Council on Foreign Relations, and said as far as allegations of CIA hacking into Senate computers- nothing could be further from the truth. We wouldnt do that. I mean thats, thats, thats just beyond the scope of reason.

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina commented on the accusations, saying Heads should roll, people should go to jail, if its true Im going to get briefed on it. If it is, the legislative branch should declare war on the CIA, if its true.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi praised Feinstein during her weekly press briefing on Thursday morning.

I tell you, you take on the intelligence community, youre a person of courage, and she does not do that lightly. Not without evidencewhen I say evidence, I mean documentation of what it is that she is putting forth, said Pelosi.

The CIA and its director are facing a mountain of criticism from congress. There is a good chance that the justice department will get involved in the investigation into the supposed hacking, as Feinstein is accusing the CIA of clearly violating the law.
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Vientiane, November 27 (VNA)  The freshly-concluded visit to Laos by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong has contributed to strengthening the friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries, said a senior Lao official.



Sounthone Sayachak, head of the Lao Party Central Committee's Commission for External Relations, highlighted outstanding attainments of the visit during an inclusive interview to Vietnam News Agency correspondents. She said the visit is a success.



At talks and meetings between Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Lao leaders, the two sides discussed how to continue increasing the special solidarity between the two countries.



The two sides signed seven cooperative documents and issued a nine-point joint statement, focusing on continuing to develop the Laos-Vietnam ties in an effective manner and bring benefits to both countries people.



During the three-day visit, the Party chief visited and delivered a speech to lecturers and students of the Laos National University, which was broadcast live both on Lao and Vietnamese national televisions for the first time, the Lao official said.



In his speech, he always emphasised the solidarity, friendship between the two countries, she added.



Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong left Vientiane on November 26, concluding his official three-day visit to Laos at the invitation of General Secretary and President of Laos Bounnhang Volachith.

VNA/VNP


iStock/Thinkstock(SYDNEY) -- The Australian government has settled on a "backpacker tax" for working visitors from overseas.

The government will support a 15 percent tax rate on the hundreds of thousands of backpackers that travel to Australia every year, according to BBC. It's lower than the 2015-proposed rate of 32.5 percent, which was opposed by tourism industries and agriculture companies that worried it would turn off tourists who often assist on farms for work.

Backpackers in Australia currently do not pay a tax unless their yearly income exceeds $18,200.

The 15 percent rate was a compromise between the 19 percent rate suggested by the government and a 10.5 percent rate by independent senator Jacqui Labie who had the support of other parties, BBC reports.

Treasurer Scott Morrison said the tax rate would cost the Australian budget $120 million over four years.

Copyright  2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Hanoi, November 28 (VNA)  Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, President Tran Dai Quang, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and many senior leaders of the Party, State, National Assembly and Government paid tribute to Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro Ruz at the Cuban Embassy in Hanoi on November 28.



Fidel Castro, former First President of the Cuban Communist Partys Central Committee and President of the State Council and Council of Ministers, passed away on November 25 (Havana time) at the age of 90.



Mourning the loss with Cuban Ambassador Herminio Lopez Diaz, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong conveyed his boundless sorrow and deepest sympathy to the Party, State and people of Cuba and the leaders family.



Writing in the funeral book, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong recalled the late leaders famous saying For Vietnam, Cuba is willing to donate blood, and affirmed the solidarity of Vietnam with Cuban people.



Meanwhile, President Tran Dai Quang wrote on the funeral book that Fidel Castro is a great and close friend, a comrade and brother of Party, State leaders and people of Vietnam during the past 50 years.



The burning passion and great courage of the revolutionary leader left a strong impression on those who had the honour to meet him, including me, he wrote.



Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc led a Government delegation, including Deputy PMs Vuong Dinh Hue and Trinh Dinh Dung, paid a floral tribute to the Cuban leader.



The PM wrote: the life and revolutionary career of leader Fidel Castro is a great symbol of the spirit of resilient and brave struggle for national independence and freedom of Cuba as well as the liberation movement and struggle against imperialist and racial discrimination for peace and justice in the world.



For Vietnamese people, Fidel Castro is a close and loyal friend who made great contributions to the foundation, enforcement and development of the fraternal ties, comprehensive cooperation and mutual trust between Vietnam and Cuba. He accompanied Vietnam during the hard years of the struggle for national independence and reunification as well as the national construction and development, wrote the PM.



The same day, various delegations from ministries and sectors, representatives from embassies and international organisations and individuals who have studied and worked in Cuba, paid homage to the revolutionary leader at the Cuban Embassy.



The Cuban Embassys funeral book commemorating Fidel Castro will remain open until December 4.

VNA/VNP
Vietnam Airlines, Saigon Beer-Alcohol-Beverage Corporation (Sabeco), Quang Ngai Sugar JSC, Truong Hai Auto Corporation and Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) are all floating on the OTC market and are on investors radars.  Photo baodauthau.vn

HA NOI  Shares of many big enterprises have become hot commodities in recent days on the over-the-counter (OTC) market as investors bet on yet to list companies to be superstars on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM).

The success of State-owned companies such as Hanoi Beer Alcohol and Beverage Corporation (Habeco) and Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) when debuting on the UPCoM has buoyed trade on the OTC market.

Vietnam Airlines, Saigon Beer-Alcohol-Beverage Corporation (Sabeco), Quang Ngai Sugar JSC, Truong Hai Auto Corporation and Vietnam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) are all floating on the OTC market and are on investors radars.

According to big brokers, the stock prices of these companies have increased in the past month because of rapidly rising demand.

A share in Vietnam Airlines costs about VN40,000 ($1.78), a rise of 79 per cent over its IPO price of VN22,300 in November 2014.

The national flag carrier has been quiet since its IPO after 99 per cent of its 49 million shares for sale were collected by two banks, Vietcombank and Techcombank. Its recent price hike was attributed to the listing success of ACV whose stock price has shot 64 per cent in the first week of trading, from VN25,000 per share on Monday to nearly VN41,000 yesterday.

ACVs price is also 180 per cent higher than its IPO price in December 2015.

Vietnam Airlines early this week asked its shareholders to register their ownership by the end of this month to serve its registration on the UPCoM in December.

This investment wave on the OTC focuses on State-owned enterprises which have made initial public offerings, Nguyen Huu Minh, director of EPS Investment Consulting Joint Stock Company was quoted by au thau (Bidding) newspaper as saying.

Minh said investors were looking to shares of equitised State-owned enterprises on the OTC and betting on prices rising once they are listed. In addition, the new regulation which forces equitised companies to trade on the UPCoM after an IPO has eased investors concerns over listing delays.

Prices of Habeco have also soared 94.5 per cent since its debut on October 28, shooting from VN54,600 per share to VN106,200 on November 25.

Investors expect similar success will be replicated in other shares on the OTC.

Shares of Quang Ngai Sugar, Truong Hai Auto and Petrolimex have also advanced in recent days. Shares of Truong Hai Auto are valued at VN90,000 a share while that of Quang Ngai Sugar were bought at VN82,000 and Petrolimex at VN30,000.

As State-owned enterprise equitisation is speeding up and the Government puts many market support policies in practice, analysts predict trading on the OTC market will continue to be buoyant in the future.  VNS
The 14th Vietnam Expo will take place at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in HCM City from November 30 to December 3.  Photo vietnamexpo.com.vn

HA NOI  The 14th Vietnam Expo will take place at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in HCM City from November 30 to December 3.

It is expected to draw the participation of businesses from more than 20 countries and territories, including Indonesia, South Korea, mainland China and Taiwan.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, with the sponsorship of Mobifone, the event will provide a platform for businesses to meet, expand and promote trade and investment.

Indonesia is the country of honour at this years expo, sending over 60 businesses to display modern technology products at the event.

The South Koreas state businesses and provincial trade organisations, such as the Bucheon Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and representatives of Incheon, Suwon and Daejeon authorities will be among those present. Nearly 100 Korean businesses will introduce their latest technologies, services and products at the expo.

The event will also see the introduction of hardware tools and eco-friendly technologies. VNS
LOS ANGELES  Brad Pitt has been cleared after a probe into allegations he mistreated one of his children in a mid-air altercation, the FBI said on Tuesday.

The claims centered on an alleged incident with his 15-year-old son Maddox in September on a flight from France to Los Angeles. Pitts wife Angelina Jolie claimed he had struck the boy.

"In response to allegations made following a flight... carrying Mr. Brad Pitt and his children, the FBI has conducted a review of the circumstances and will not pursue further investigation," the agency said in a statement. "No charges have been filed in this matter."

The announcement marks Pitts second vindication over the incident, two weeks after Los Angeles social workers cleared the 52-year-old of wrongdoing following interviews with the couple, their children and witnesses.

Jolie, 41, filed for divorce in September, citing irreconcilable differences. She is seeking sole custody of their six children.

Pitt, who won a best film Oscar for producing 12 Years a Slave (2013), has been in contact with all six of the couples children and is seeking joint legal and physical custody.

The reunions were supervised by a therapist as part of the couples temporary custody agreement  mediated by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services  which was recently extended.

Under the agreement Jolie had physical custody of the children  three of whom, including Maddox, are adopted  at a rented LA house.

The A-listers  given the celebrity moniker "Brangelina"  wed in France in August two years ago, but had been a couple since 2004.

AFP reached out to Pitts representative, who declined to comment. AFP
HCM CITY  Painters under 40 years old are encouraged to participate in a painting contest launched by the HCM City Fine Arts Association in co-operation with The V Art and Galerie Nguyen this week.

The event, Vietart Today 2016, aims to help young artists from anywhere in the country develop their professional careers.

We hope our contest will be a bridge to connect young artists, galleries and collectors and create opportunities for winners to introduce their art at home and abroad, said veteran artist Uyen Huy, a member of the events advisory board.

The organisers invited Dr Ildegarda E. Scheidegger, former deputy director in Tribal and Asian Art of the Sothebys Zurich, Switzerland office, to join the jury. She works as an independent art publisher, curator and artist manager.

The jury also includes curators Thanh Kieu Moeller of Singapore and Julie Lam of Canada, collector Oliver o Ngoc of Luxembourg and painter Tran Thanh Canh, head of the associations Club of Young Artists.

Submissions should include no more than 20 paintings and be at least 60cmx60cm in size in oil, lacquer, acrylic or mixed media. The painters biography should also be included.

Participants should send their works before December 6 to the organising board at the email infor@thevart.com .

Twenty collections of paintings will be chosen for the final round on December 10. The works will be displayed at The V Art and Galerie Nguyen.

A jury and a group of collectors invited by the organisers will vote and choose the winners.

The organisers will present a first prize worth VN2.5 billion (US$110,000), including 100 million ($4,500) in cash, a tour to Singapore and a five-year exclusive contract with The V Art and Galerie Nguyen.

Second and third prizes are worth a total of VN2.5 billion. Consolation prizes will also be given.

The awards presentation ceremony is expected to take place in February.  VNS
HCM CITY  Vietnamese and South Korean artists will present a dance programme honouring women at the HCM City Opera House on Monday.

The Myth of Woman programme is organised by the HCM City Union of Friendship Organisations and the HCM City Ballet Symphony Orchestra and Opera (HBSO).

Directed by Jung Sun Goo, the performance will include seven chapters featuring a story of a woman from her childhood, youth, motherhood and old age.

The story will include dance performances choreographed by South Korean dancer Chun Yoo Oh.

She created the moves based on poems praising the beauty of women by Vietnamese and Korean poets like Ho Xuan Huong and Hwang Jin Yi.

The dancer will also perform the routines together with dancers from the South Korea-based Mulmatdol Dance Group and the HBSO Ballet, while Korean soprano Cho Hae Ryong will present poems on stage.

Chun graduated from Ewha Womans University in South Korea, where she obtained a PhD in art. Then she studied analysis of movement at the University of Surrey in the UK.

From 1991 to 2004, she worked as a professor at Seowon University in South Korea and choreographed major shows.

She has choreographed and danced in Ariang Saigon at the citys Opera House in 2014, and Cross-Bow and Promise to 800 in 2015, both based on Vietnamese historical stories.

The programmes music is a blend of Korean, Vietnamese and Western styles by Korean composer Kang Sang Goo.

Kang will play piano along with the Vietnamese an bau (monochord) player Le Hoai Phuong and clarinetist ao Nhat Quang, and the Korean gayageum (Korean string instrument with 12 strings) player Ha Sera and percussionist Kim Ji Hye.

The Myth of Women will begin at 7.30 pm at 7 Lam Son Square in District 1. Free tickets are available at the venue.  VNS
By Phuong Mai

HCM CITY  Tet (Lunar New Year) is usually the busiest season for the Vietnamese film industry, with a clutch of new movies releasing to entertain audiences during the long holiday.

Action movie star and producer Hoang Phuc has taken on a new role as director and has wrapped up filming of an action-comedy flick called Luc Van Tien: Tuyet inh Kungfu (Luc Van Tien: Kungfu Hustle).

Phuc and his crew are now working on post-production for a Tet release.

The movie is based on Luc Van Tien, the 19th century epic of the same name by Nguyen inh Chieu.

It tells the story of the love between the poor but talented Luc Van Tien and wealthy girl Kieu Nguyet Nga.

Though they live in feudal times, they face down hardships to consummate their love.

I added some details to the film to make it contemporary, but the storys significance about the power of true love, bravery and justice is eternal, Phuc, who also wrote the script, said.

I spent VN12 billion (US$538,000) on the film to ensure production quality.

He cast Vietnamese-German action actor Andy Long, who has played minor roles in Jackie Chan films, as Luc Van Tien.

He signed up local martial artists to co-ordinate the movies fight scenes to make them authentic.

I believe my film will bring truly fight scenes and beautiful images of Vietnamese landscapes to audiences, Phuc said, adding it was shot on beautiful locations in Binh Phuoc, Ba Ria  Vung Tau and Long An provinces.

Private studio Song Vang (Golden Waves) will release its comic fantasy Rung Xanh Ky La Truyen (Magical Forest) for the New Year.

It tells the story of a man who lives in a forest with mysterious creatures.

From its trailer, it appears to be a Vietnamese version of Tarzan.

It has been written and directed by actor Khuong Ngoc, popular for movies and TV series like Thien Menh Anh Hung (Blood Letter) and Scandal.

Ngoc said, Though I have a lot of experience in making films, it was the first time I challenged myself as a scriptwriter and director.

The film stars Meritorious Artist Hoai Linh and famous comedians like Thu Trang and Tien Luat.

To interpret our ideas on screen, we uses new filming technologies, Ngoc added.

A Song Vang spokesperson said a lot of money has been spent on 3D effects for the film.

Four other films will also be ready for a Tet release.

One of them is horror film Loi Nguyen Gia Toc (Family Curse), a co-production by private channel Style TV and filmmaker ang Thai Huyen.

The rest are comedies: Chay i Roi Tinh (Run First) by Namcito and Bao Nhan, Nang Tien Co Nam Nha (A Pretty Woman) by veteran Tran Ngoc Giau, and Vali Tinh Yeu (Love Suitcase) by Bui Minh Hoang.  VNS
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong visited the central Laos province of Bolikhamsai which borders Viet Nams Nghe An and Ha Tinh central provinces on Saturday.  VNA/VNS Photo Tri Dung

VIENTIANE  Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong visited the central Laos province of Bolikhamsai which borders Viet Nams Nghe An and Ha Tinh central provinces on Saturday.

According to Secretary of the provincial Party Committee and Governor of Bolikhamsai, Kongkeo Saysongkham, the province recorded a GDP growth of 8 per cent with per capita income of $41,900 per annum. In 2016, the province had 225 licensed investment projects worth 130 billion kip ($16 million) in total.

Currently, Bolikhamsai has set up partnerships with Nghe An, Ha Tinh, a Nang and a number of other localities of Viet Nam.

Sixteen Vietnamese firms are investing in Bolikhamsai, mostly in mining, restaurants, hotels and agricultural product processing.

Party General Secretary Trong said he hoped Bolikhamsai and Vietnamese localities, especially those along the shared border, would strengthen co-operation and mutual support in all fields, contributing to the development of Viet Nam-Laos relations.

He announced the construction of a high school as a present to Bolikhamsai. He also took part in a thread tightening ceremony, a traditional practice in Laos to pray for peace and prosperity.

Trong paid a floral tribute to Xixomphon Lovanxay, one of the first members of Laos revolution, at his monument.  VNS


ANTANANARIVO  Leaders of more than 80 countries, among them President Tran ai Quang of Viet Nam, wrapped up the 16th Francophone Summit yesterday in the capital of Madagascar, calling for resolution of disputes by peaceful means.

Participants at the two-day summit ratified the Antananarivo Statement and 13 resolutions, and discussed the orientation of the community in the fields of peace, security, anti-terrorism, language diversity and culture, economic cooperation, sustainable development, among others.

During the two-day event, participants discussed measures to promote equal growth and responsible development, thus contributing to peace and stability among the member nations, as well as the world.

They discussed implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and commitments of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, suggested specific measures to accelerate implementation of the Strategic Framework of the Francophonie for 20152022, the Francophones youth strategy, and the Francophonie Economic Strategy, with a focus on empowering women and youths.

The leaders suggested the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF) strengthen its support to prevent and settle conflicts, reinforce peace and promote compliance with international law, including the principles of solving disputes by peaceful measures.

They also expressed their concerns over the situation in the East Sea and noted recent regional progress, calling for restraint on the part of concerned parties and the settlement of disputes on the basis of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

They also welcomed efforts to maintain peace, security, stability and freedom and safety of navigation and aviation in the region.

The Summit admitted New Caledonia (France) as an associate member and Argentina, the Republic of Korea, and Ontario (Canada) as observers, raising its total number of members and observers from 80 to 84.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam must be able to produce large amounts of multivalent vaccines in the coming years, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said.

He made the statement due to the fact that by 2019, the country will no longer receive aid from the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) for 5-in-1 combination vaccines as part of the national Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI).

Viet Nam is one of few countries in the region able to produce vaccines for humans, the Ministry of Health said, with 11 out of 12 vaccines for the EPI produced in the country.

However, the vaccines were all monovalent.

This calls for autonomous mass production of multivalent vaccines in the country, especially the acellular 5-in-1 combination vaccines, which will replace the 5-in-1 Quinvaxem vaccines that have been provided by GAVI.

To produce large amounts of multivalent vaccines, industrial factories for large-scale vaccine production are needed, according to representatives from the health, finance and science and technology ministries.

These facilities should be managed by a government agency, PM Phuc said during a meeting with other leaders last week. The agency should consist of experienced officials familiar with vaccine research and technologies, he said.

He said the Government would invest in developing core technology to produce multivalent vaccines.

An import-export policy consistent with international standards and Viet Nams conditions should be developed alongside the research, he said.  VNS
HA NOI  Dilapidated houses and new buildings with illegal extensions of steel frames have become a headache for local authorities in Ha Noi, with the buildings at high risk of fire and difficult for firefighters to access.

A recent survey conducted by the Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper, found dilapidated houses with illegal extensions on streets in Hoan Kiem Districts Old Quarter, including Hang Buom, ao Duy Tu, Hang Bac, Hang Ngang and Hang ao streets.

The same problem is found in old residential buildings around the city, such as in Bach Khoa Ward of Hai Ba Trung District.

Even in new buildings in Trung HoaNhan Chinh and Nam Trung Yen in Thanh Xuan and Cau Giay districts, apartment owners illegally extended living areas with steel frames.

A construction inspector of Hoan Kiem District said dilapidated houses with illegal extensions were a perennial problem and hard to deal with.

Tran Tien Dung, vice chairman of the Peoples Committee of Bach Khoa Ward, said some buildings in the ward had been built decades ago. Due to the need for additional accommodation, many apartment owners illegally extended their living areas with steel frames, he said.

Dung also admitted that the committee had failed to deal with the problem so far.

Dung said the Housing Renovation and Development Joint stock company would take responsibility for monitoring new residential buildings.

A representative of the company told Tien Phong (Vanguard) newspaper that apartment owners had not been forced to remove the steel frames because the owners said they installed them to prevent theft and to prevent children from falling from balconies.

Short-term solutions

Pham Tan Long, vice chairman of the Peoples Committee of Hoan Kiem District said the committee had ordered 18 wards in the district to inspect all houses, karaoke shops, pubs and restaurants to ensure they met fire safety requirements.

Any violations would be strictly punished, he said.

The districts construction inspector said in the short term, some wards had set up task forces to respond in case a fire occurred in small and narrow alleys.

Lieutenant Colonel Pham Trung Hieu, head of fire-fighting Instruction and Direction Office under the Ha Nois fire-fighting Prevention and Control Department said houses located in narrow alleys in the Old Quarter were hard to reach for firefighters.

Thus, they asked local authorities in the Old Quarter documents to instruct people to exit for emergencies, he said.

Statistics from the office said there were 30 small streets in the Old Quarter that firefighter teams could not reach. The office also said houses in the small street were illegally extended with steel frames, causing more difficulties for firefighters.

Pham Sy Liem, former Deputy Minister of Construction blamed the problem on the poor management of authorised agencies over the past time.

He added that there was a need for tightened supervision from authorised agencies to stop other people illegally extending their living areas with steel frames.  VNS
HOI AN  Too many hydropower projects, poor environmental impact assessments of their dams, and overexploitation of sand are haunting Hoi An City and surrounding areas.

The above-mentioned factors, combined with poor management by local officials, have caused and worsened serious land erosion in the Vu Gia-Thu Bon River Basin, experts, researchers and officials said a meeting on Thursday.

The meeting was attended by staff of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Man and Biosphere, UNESCO, and Cham Island Managing board.

They stressed the importance of natural sandbanks and ensuring sustainable development of Hoi An City.

The 32km Vu Gia-Thu Bon River basin has seen serious erosion due to the change of flows from the riverhead, washing away large tracts of land on both banks for a 500m stretch.

The latest report on the situation shows annual erosion has been swallowing between 2m-10m of land in four communes of Hoi An City, while the river itself has moved 140m southeast from its position 40 years ago.

Chu Manh Trinh, a team leader of the Cham Islands Marine Protected Area, said businesses had been exploiting a huge amount of sand in the river basin, and big hotels and resorts were being constructed on the sandbanks.

We carried out field trips along the river and found numerous boats docked to mine sand. They are like sharks swallowing lucrative meat. Hundreds of tonnes of sand are dredged for construction every day, Trinh said.

We even discovered a big pipe system installed under the sandbanks to dig for sand. Some sandbanks have completely collapsed, leaving a channel in the middle, he said.

Trinh said a huge resort, which is under construction on the Hen sandbank in the river basin, could destroy the river basin area.

Bui Thi Thu Hien of the IUCN said rapid development of hydropower plants on the river negatively impacted the sandbanks and the livelihood of millions in the basin.

Many hydropower plants in Quang Nam Province were built without any consultation with or feedback from neighbouring provinces and downstream areas, while investors and management agencies neglected to draw up detailed flood control plans, Hien said.

She said experts with the Japanese International Co-operation Agency (JICA) had revealed that environment impact assessments were not carefully done before building hydropower plants and other structures.

For instance, construction of the ak Mi 4 hydro-power plant in Quang Nam Province caused a clean water deficit during every dry season in a Nang City.

She said a Quang Nam-a Nang joint committee on integrated management of the river basin was established, but separate operations by Quang Nam and a Nang resulted in poor water management and worsening erosion.

At Thursdays meeting, a Nang and Quang Nam administrations okayed a joint-management agreement on the river basin and coastline.

According to Tran Thi Hong Thuy, director of Cham Island Maritime Protection Centre, the river basin belongs to the Cham Island-Hoi An World Biosphere Reserve of over 33,000ha.

She said human activities and poor control at the Vu Gia-Thu Bon riverhead had badly affected the ecology of the area recognised as a World Biosphere Reserve in 2009.

A terraced hydropower plant system on the river, illegal exploitation of sand, ore mining and overuse of chemicals by industrial parks, factories and households have polluted the river, threatening the marine ecology system, Thuy said.

Increasing construction of resorts and hotels on the river banks and sandbanks  included in the buffer and core zones of the World Biosphere Reserve are  will lead to extinction of marine creatures, coral reefs and seaweed around Cham Island, she warned.

Nguyen Su, former Party secretary of Hoi An City, said the destruction of sandbanks in the river threatened the sustainable development of Hoi An  a UNESCO-recognised World Heritage site, as it targets to become the nations first eco-city.

Su also protested the reinforcement of sandbanks and riverbanks by concrete buildings. He warned that without tender management of the river basin, Hoi An City and the Cham Island World Biosphere Reserve will be badly damaged.

According to Nguyen Chu Hoi, a researcher of environment and coastal resources at the National University, said an integrated watershed and coastal management approach from ridge to reef was needed in the Vu Gia-Thu Bon river basin.

He said the development of irrigation projects and hydropower plants had limited water flow from the river basin, causing serious erosion of beaches in Hoi An City.

He said a vast stretch of the Cua ai Beach near Hoi An had gradually disappeared over the last 10 years, and erosion on the river banks of Thu Bon was threatening the very existence of the heritage city.  VNS
HCM CITY  The HCM Citys Department of Transport has drawn up a plan to put advertisements on all buses operating on 136 routes around the city after eight months of piloting the plan on 171 buses on 10 routes.

Twenty seven companies and brands, mostly from Viet Nam and Japan, participated in the pilot plan to advertise cosmetics, food, sauces and pharmaceutical products.

Koa-Sha Viet Nam Ltd Company is the official agency executing the pilot projects of bus ads in HCM City that began in March.

After eight months of piloting, revenue from bus ads reached VN14.6 billion (US$646,000), according to the Department of Transport.

Under the new plan, the department is calling for more companies, particularly those providing tourism and industrial products, to run ads on buses.

Earlier, the Department of Transport had worked with the Koa-Sha Viet Nam Ltd Company to conduct a survey on the public opinion of commuters and companies using bus ads. Most of the respondents said they agreed with the idea and that bus ads that have eye-catching colours would attract the attention of commuters.

Meanwhile many transport companies said bus ads would increase the satisfaction of commuters because they make buses look more appealing.

Le Hoang Minh, deputy director of the Department of Transport, said his department had submitted a plan to expand bus ads to the municipal Peoples Committee for approval.

If approved, all the remaining subsidised buses (1,986) will have ads on them, which would bring in more than VN113 billion ($500,000) in revenue every year, Minh said.

For subsidised buses, the ads revenues will be added to the city budget. Meanwhile, for buses that are not subsidised by the city government, all the ad revenue will belong to the bus companies, who will use the funds for bus maintenance, according to Minh.

However, the city currently lacks consistent regulation on the activity.

In addition, a number of buses are now seriously deteriorated, causing many hurdles for bus ad designs and execution.

In the long run, the city would have to establish an agency to manage and supervise bus ad activity, Minh said.

Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen of the Centre for National Strategy and Policies Research, said bus ads were a good idea as they brings more funding for the city budget and attract more commuters to use public transport.

It is a waste of time and money to delay the plan to put ads on all the buses, Nguyen noted.

Bus ads had been banned in HCM City for more than 10 years.

The new plan aims to earn more income for bus companies, thus reducing dependence on state subsidies.

With buses gaining in popularity among commuters, students and even a number of foreigners, local businesses will benefit if their products and services are advertised on buses.

With the expected cost for advertisers of VN33-50 million ($1,460-2,200) per square metre, the city could earn more than VN100 billion ($4,400) from ads featured on 3,200 buses each year.  VNS
HCM CITY  HCM City Peoples Committee and Viet Nam Fatherland Front last Saturday honoured 113 individuals and 25 groups, clubs as well as associations in the city for their noble contributions to life in the city.

Their contributions also help build one city with civilisation, modernism, love and a good quality of life, Nguyen Thanh Phong, chairman of the city Peoples Committee said at the honouring ceremony.

They include seniors, workers, teachers, young people, nuns, monks and retired doctors.

Their silent and noble contributions need to be honoured because they are done from the heart. These people are the seeds that cultivate goodness in life. Phong said.

The 138 individuals and groups, typically, volunteer to raise orphans, help poor people as well as people with disabilities. They also provide free heath examinations and treatment, teach children with cancer as well as poor kids, and collect rubbish in canals.

Charity food groups in Districts 1, 2, 11, 12 and Binh Thanh provide free food to poor people.

Free health examination and treatment by clinics are set up by war veteran associations in Go Vap District and nuns in Phu Nhuan District.

Pham Van Luong, 50, of the northeastern coastal province of Quang Ninh, moved to the city in 1991 and works as motorbike repairer in District 1. He has repaired motorbikes for free for people with disabilities.

Martial arts instructor, Le Hoang Mai, of Tan Binh District teaches martial arts for free for workers at industrial parks and export processing zones and poor students.

Moreover, many of them help former addicts or prostitutes who come back from rehabilitation facilities and fight against crime as well as drug traders in their localities.

A team of motorbike taxi drivers in District 2, which was set up by the district Labour Union in 2008, for instance, helped seize more than 300 robbers.

Some of those honoured were people with disabilities who are perseverant to overcome their disabilities and get success in life.

Vu Cong Hao, 27, of Tan Phu District, is one of these people. He is the first visual impaired person to graduate from the city College of Culture and Arts.

Currently, he is learning music education at the city Conservatory of Music while teaching music to children with visual impairment at Thien An and Nhat Hong shelters in Binh Thanh District.

At the honouring ceremony, Vice President ang Thi Ngoc Thinh said that they were commendable models and their humanistic and wonderful activities should be spread to make society better and kinder.

The city should continue discovering and honouring other people doing humanistic and wonderful activities, the vice president added.  VNS
The southern province of Kien Giang is building five provincial-level hospitals, with a total investment capital of over VN5.5 trillion (US$250 million).  VNA/VNS Photo Ngoc Minh

KIEN GIANG  The southern province of Kien Giang is building five provincial-level hospitals, with a total investment capital of over VN5.5 trillion (US$250 million).

The facilities consist of a 1,200-bed general hospital, a 200-bed tuberculosis hospital, a 400-bed cancer hospital, a 100-bed psychiatry hospital, and a 400-bed obstetrics and paediatrics hospital.

According to the provincial Department of Health, once operational the hospitals will markedly help reduce the current overload from the current 24.4 beds per 10,000 people to 26 beds by 2020.

Kien Giang is short of 600 doctors to meet the target of nine doctors for every 10,000 people in 2020.  VNS
HA NOI  Though animal diseases have been under control so far, Viet Nam faces a high risk of epidemic outbreaks because of unfavourable weather conditions, an agriculture ministry official has said.

The animals immunity is low because of weather conditions, so they are vulnerable to diseases, he said.

Speaking at a meeting held last weekend to review disease prevention and control in livestock and aquatic species in 2016, Pham Van ong, director general of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Developments (MARD) animal health department, called for increased vigilance to prevent outbreaks among cattle and poultry, especially of those that get transmitted to humans. At the meeting, ong also set the agenda for 2017.

Since the start of this year, bird flu has been reported in 14 communes and districts across eight provinces, said Nguyen Ngoc Tien, head of animal epidemic division in the animal health department. The number of poultry that had to be culled is 18,300.

Both the number of communes that reported bird flu and the number of poultry culled have decreased two-fold compared with the previous year, Tien said.

At least 2,740 cattle have been infected by the foot and mouth disease, across 60 locations in 12 provinces.

Tien said animal diseases have been kept in check as strategies to control epidemic threats and outbreaks have been implemented in 60 of 63 provinces and cities. However, irregular veterinary services, lack of funding and not getting instructions on time pose challenges to the effort to prevent diseases, he added.

ong said all animal health staff at local levels should be proactive at disease prevention work and must coordinate their activities with farmers and local authorities. The animal health sector must also increase efforts to teach safe practices in raising cattle and poultry.

He also suggested that the ministry should submit and get approved a national programme on disease control and prevention for the period 2016-20.  VNS
THUA THIEN HUE  Police in central Thua Thien-Hue Province yesterday seized 1.3 tonnes of animal organs without clear origin being transported from central a Nang City to Quang Tri Province for consumption.

At about 3pm yesterday, traffic police in Thua Thien Hue Provinces Thuy Phuong Commune pulled over a truck for regular inspection and found 26 foam boxes containing animal organs.

Each box contained 50kg of animal organs.

The truck driver, Nguyen Quang Vinh, in a Nang City failed to show papers of origin for the goods.

He admitted he was hired by a woman only known as Xuan in the same city to transport the cargo to a customer in central Quang Tri Province.

Xuan allegedly told him the boxes contained fish from the sea.

The police have transferred the seized animal organs to the provincial Animal Veterinary Department.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam Standard and Consumers Association (VINASTAS) has issued an official statement, apologising to consumers, fish sauce producers, distributors and management agencies over its now-discredited misleading reports on the toxicity in fish sauce.

On October 17, VINASTAS announced the results of a survey it conducted nationwide, however, the survey team had "not exercised reasonable prudence and there was confusion on its part over the terminology of arsenic as defined in the Viet Nam Encyclopedia, according to an official release on the organisations website.

On behalf of the survey team, VINSTAS in its statement also apologised for the consequences of its false reports, which had adversely affected consumers and many traditional fish sauce makers and distributors.

It also pledged to hold offending individuals accountable and review its professional code of conduct to avoid such mistakes in the future, the statement read.

In Vietnamese, arsenic and arsenic trioxide (As2O3) are frequently erroneously called by the same name  "thach tin" in Vietnamese  which should be used to refer to the inorganic latter only.

Inorganic arsenic is highly toxic while organic arsenic, which is present naturally in traditional fish sauce, is safe for human consumption, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Health stated.

An investigation by the Ministry of Industry and Trade concluded that VINASTAS survey was sponsored by external enterprises, hence its independence was compromised. The reliability of the reports was also questioned for its careless and inconsistent methodology and execution.

The propagation of false information is an offence under Food Safety Law, which prohibits the publication of misleading information on food safety which caused public anxiety and damage to producers and businesses (Term 12, Article 5).

On October 18, the association published on its website a story titled Nearly 85 per cent of fish sauce samples of 88 enterprises fail to meet standards. The story contained misleading information, according to which 95.65 per cent of traditional fish sauce samples contained arsenic that was higher than permitted, simultaneously implying that industrial fish sauces were safe.

Last week, 50 newspapers and media outlets were slapped with a total fine of VN1 billion (US$44,400) for running the survey and were ordered to publish corrections.  VNS
ALEPPO  Government forces retook six rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo over the weekend, forcing nearly 10,000 civilians to flee as they pressed their offensive Sunday to retake Syrias second city.

In a major breakthrough in the push to retake the whole city, regime forces on Saturday captured Masaken Hanano, which had been the biggest rebel-held district in eastern Aleppo.

On Sunday, the 13th day of the operation, they also took control of the adjacent neighbourhoods of Jabal Badra and Baadeeen and captured three others, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Inzarat, Al-Sakan al-Shaabi and Ain al-Tall have all returned to regime hands and government forces have made large forays into Sakhur and nearby Haidariya, the monitor said.

It said government forces are "in control of most of the northern part" of Aleppo.

"The rebels have lost at least 30 percent of the territory they once controlled in Aleppo," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The regime gains came as its aircraft pounded rebel positions and amid heavy clashes between the opposition and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in the strategic Sakhur district.

Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided the city into a rebel-held east and a regime-controlled west.

Around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in the east have faced serious food and fuel shortages.

The Observatory said that nearly 10,000 civilians had fled east Aleppo overnight Saturday -- at least 6,000 to the Kurdish-controlled northern district of Sheikh Maksoud, with the rest fleeing to government-held areas.

"It is the first exodus of this kind from east Aleppo since 2012," Abdel Rahman said.

- Regime sights on Sakhur -

Syrian state television broadcast images of a crowd of civilians including women and children gathered around green buses that it said had come to pick them up in Masaken Hanano.

One woman was shown pushing a stroller and many others carried plastic bags on their heads as bombardment was heard in the distance.

Official media said they were taken "by the army to safe areas".

Yasser al-Youssef, from the rebel group Nureddin al-Zinki, said opposition fighters were consolidating their positions in Sakhur.

"We are strengthening our positions to defend the city and residents, but the aircraft are destroying everything methodically, area by area," he said of a regime campaign of air strikes.

Sakhur lies on a stretch of just 1.5 kilometres (less than a mile) between west Aleppo and Masaken Hanano, now both regime-controlled.

If the regime takes control of Sakhur, east Aleppo would be split in two from north to south, dealing a further blow to the armed opposition.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment on the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shelling and barrel bombs.

On Saturday, dozens of families fled Sakhur and Haidariya as regime raids and artillery killed at least 18 civilians in several districts, the Britain-based Observatory said.

At least 225 civilians, including 27 children, have been killed since the governments latest assault on east Aleppo began on November 15.

- IS chemical attack -

Rebel forces also intensified rocket attacks on western districts overnight, killing at least four civilians and wounding dozens, the Observatory said.

Such attacks have killed a total of 27 civilians since the offensive began, among them 11 children.

The United Nations has a plan to deliver aid to Aleppo and evacuate the sick and wounded, which rebel factions have approved but which Damascus has not yet agreed. Guarantees are also needed from regime ally Russia.

Once a commercial and industrial hub, Aleppo has seen some of the worst fighting in Syrias nearly six-year war.

The conflict broke out in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests, and has since evolved into a complex war involving different factions and foreign powers.

On Sunday, the Turkish army said that 22 pro-Ankara Syrian rebels were hit by a chemical gas attack from Islamic State group jihadists in northern Syria.

The Turkish army is backing the Syrian fighters in an unprecedented cross-border operation it says is targeting both IS and the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) militia, which Ankara considers to be a "terrorist" group.

The YPG is a key component of a US-backed Arab-Kurdish alliance fighting to oust IS from its de facto Syria capital of Raqa, after the jihadist group overran large parts of Syria and Iraq in 2014.

Syrias war has killed more than 300,000 people and displaced more than half the population.AFP
Gibraltar Road Shows in Morocco

The Gibraltar Tourist Board and the Finance Centre Department will be holding a series of high profile events in Morocco between 27th November and 1st December.

The activities will take the form of tourism roadshows, similar to those habitually organised by the GTB in the UK, and include breakfasts, business and finance presentations, B2B opportunities and presentations on the destination.

Minister for Tourism, Gilbert Licudi and Minister for Commerce, Albert Isola , will be leading the local delegation.

The event will include a series of presentations in Marrakesh, Casablanca and Tangier at which a cross-section of Moroccan tourism representatives, travel agents and members of the business community will be invited to attend.

The Moroccan press will also be asked to cover the events.

Mr Licudi said: This is a wonderful opportunity to promote Gibraltar and all it has to offer as a destination both for leisure and for business clients.

It is important that we establish fluid commercial and business links with Morocco. We have substantial historical links with the North African country and also have direct air links with Tangier and Casablanca which can assist in developing further business ties.

This will open up new markets for the benefit of both the tourist and finance industries on both sides of the Strait.

Minister Isola added I am particularly keen on exploring avenues where Gibraltar and Moroccan financial services firms can work together in mutually beneficial areas of business. Ours is very much a step forward in beginning to highlight what Gibraltars financial services sector has to offer and I am delighted that we are also able to support the Gibraltar Tourist Board."
WATERLOO -- A Waterloo teen was injured in a Sunday night shooting that led to the search of a home.

Tyran Collins, 17, suffered gunshot wounds to the hand, side and behind and underwent surgery at UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital, according to Waterloo police. Officers said his injuries dont appear to be life threatening.

Details werent available, but police said the Collins arrived at the hospital by private vehicle shortly before 7 p.m. Sunday. Officers believe the shooting happened in the 700 block of Kern Street. Police found cash in the street.

About an hour after the shooting, police surrounded a home at 749 Kern St. in what led to an hours-long siege. A woman with a toddler and an infant were evacuated early on. Officers believed someone was still inside, and the police departments tactical team was called in.

Police addressed the house with a loudspeaker several times and fired about half a dozen tear gas canisters into the home before finally entering around 12:15 a.m. Monday. No one was inside the house, police said.

No arrests have been made in the shooting.
WAVERLY  A search for a missing Bremer County man over the Thanksgiving holiday has ended with the discovery of his body.

Douglas Bruns, 55, of rural Waverly, apparently died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and no foul play is suspected, according to the Bremer County Sheriffs Office. An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the official cause of death.

Authorities were contacted about Brunss disappearance on Thursday. On Friday, his vehicle was found near a public river access in the 2800 block of Road C-33 , and the search that followed included dogs and an airplane, deputies said. Brunss remains were found at about 10:30 p.m. Friday.

The Bremer County Sheriffs Office was assisted by the Chickasaw and Fayette County sheriffs offices K-9 units, Iowa State Patrol, the Bremer County Medical Examiner and Bremer County Emergency Management Agency.
UPDATE: Neil Theobald is on the campus of UNI today. We will have a story on the visit soon, but wanted to share pictures of his visit.

CEDAR FALLS  One of three finalists hoping to become the University of Northern Iowas 11th president will be on campus today.

Neil Theobald is the first candidate identified by the Iowa Board of Regents.

Theobald currently is a professor at Temple University in Philadelphia. He served as the universitys president for about four years, resigning from the position in July.

According to Insider Higher Ed, Theobald resigned after a tumultuous several weeks in which the universitys board had planned to fire him after a vote of no confidence, in part because he dismissed the schools provost following a large financial-aid cost overrun.

His resignation effective Aug. 1 allowed him to keep serving as a professor. He is on a one-year sabbatical with full salary and benefits, according to Philadelphia newspapers.

Theobald is a professor of education who has written books and articles on school funding policies.

Theobald met Monday with a UNI presidential search committee that interviewed him earlier. He has a full schedule of events today to learn about and meet people on campus. It includes a public forum at 2:30 p.m. in the Old Central Ballroom of Maucker Union.

The public forum will be streamed live on the UNI presidential search website, where video of it will be posted.

All three remaining candidates will visit campus this week on successive days.

The search committee will hold what is expected to be its final meeting Monday to discuss the candidates, and then will discuss the finalists with the Board of Regents.

The regents will hold 90-minute interviews with the finalists Tuesday, Dec. 6, and are expected to name the new president that day.

The search committee initially looked at 46 applicants. It interviewed six semi-finalists in November and selected four finalists from that group. The fourth candidate withdrew.

More information about the candidates and the candidate visits is available at http://www.iowaregents.edu/.
EVANSDALE  Mayor Doug Faas isnt draining the swamp. Hes draining the lake to keep it from becoming a swamp.

Faas said the city has been draining Meyers Lake this fall in an attempt to improve the shoreline to make it more accessible to the public, to fix floodgates and check out a relief conduit for damage.

Theres a number of reasons were draining the lake, he said. One is rehabilitation of its north shore, along the park on the north side of the lake.

Years back there was a great amount of riprap on the shoreline, Faas said  large boulders, which became overgrown with volunteer trees. That made the shoreline inaccessible to most people and unsafe for those who tried to climb the craggy shoreline to fish.

You couldnt get near the shoreline, he said. It made it inaccessible for all intents and purposes for just about anything  questions about kids crawling on the rock and twisting their ankles and maybe falling down. It was unsafe and really not approachable for people with disabilities.

The lake was partially drained, cleared of trees and much of the larger riprap pushed into the water for fish habitat.

That shoreline was dangerous and this makes it much more attractive and easier to maintain, Faas said. Benches will be installed on an adjacent recreational trail and the shore will be made accessible to people with disabilities.

That work is being funded by a $75,000 grant of state Resource Enhancement and Protection funds, to start addressing this to rehab it back into more of a natural condition, Faas said.

They took a lot of riprap and shoved it into the water and we removed quite a bit too, he said. Then were going to resurface and reshape this shoreline, so you can essentially walk right down to it, or  itll be handicap accessible  roll a chair right down to it. Just trying to make the whole shoreline more accessible.

The shoreline is being reseeded where the rocks were removed.

A lot of people wanted to be able to get up here, do some fishing or just sit here and enjoy the scenery, Faas said. Quite frankly, they couldnt before  volunteer willow trees over 20 feet tall, just all kinds of ugly vegetation, poison ivy and everything else. And you couldnt maintain it because you couldnt get into the rocks to knock it down.

Evansdale worked through the Iowa Northland Regional Council of Governments and was selected from among 100 applicants statewide for the REAP grant, Faas said. The program is now emphasizing restoration of natural areas.

The lake will be restored to its normal level once work is completed, Faas said.

The REAP grant was awarded earlier this year, but a wet, rainy summer made it difficult to do that work until recently. He noted a dry October and November, after September flooding, provided an opportunity to do the work.

The weir and gate at the southeast corner of the lake is being repaired and replaced, so we can better control the level of the lake during flood events, Faas said. When we know flooding is coming we can drop the lake pretty fast to get some capacity in here, or we can keep it sealed.

A 36-inch pipe goes to a floodgate on the south side of U.S. Highway 20/Interstate 380, between the lake and the Cedar River, which is closed during floods so the river doesnt back up into the lake, or open to allow rain water to drain into the river during low periods. That pipe is being inspected by a television survey to check for any structural damage. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wants it inspected, but the city hasnt been able to do that for years.

Faced with multiple tasks regarding the lake, We decided if we were going to start draining it, lets do it all once, Faas said.
Good morning, Cedar Valley! It's Monday, Nov. 28, 2016.

Today's forecast: A 20 percent chance of showers after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 55. Breezy, with a south wind 8 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph.

Tonight: A 20 percent chance of rain before midnight. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 36. Southwest wind around 8 mph.

Today in the Cedar Valley:

--- The Waterloo City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.

--- The Waterloo Board of Education meets at 6 p.m. at the Education Service Center, 1516 Washington St.

--- The Cedar Falls Board of Education meets at 7 p.m. at the Administration Building, 2001 First St.

--- Cedar Valley Christmas is 7:30 p.m. at Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center, Cedar Falls. Area choirs sing Christmas carols with the audience joining in on some. Proceeds go to the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Cedar Valley. Tickets are $5. To order, go to www.cedarvalleyclubs.com/events.
DES MOINES  Gov. Terry Branstad has named Mark Lowe as the interim director of Iowa Department of Transportation.

Lowe, who has been director of the DOTs Motor Vehicle Division since 2009, will take the seat left vacant by former director Paul Trombino III. Lowe begins Tuesday as interim director, according to a Monday news release.

Lowe, 50, was an associate and later shareholder with Hopkins and Huebner PC in Des Moines before entering state government.

He has a great background and experience for the job and the Governor thinks hell serve very well for the department in the interim, Ben Hammes, Gov. Terry Branstads spokesman, said Monday.

Branstad eventually will appoint a permanent director, but a timeline has not been set, Hammes added.

The more important job we have in front of us is making sure we get the right person, he said.

The position has been posted and Hammes said it could involve a nationwide search.

Trombino, 50, announced his resignation earlier this month after spending about six years as the DOT director. He made about $147,000 annually as DOT director.

The department, which employs more than 2,600 people, is in the midst of growth in statewide freight traffic  the number of large trucks on Iowas primary roads has grown by 123 percent over the past three decades  and infrastructure updates, including the overhaul of the Interstate 80 and Interstate 380 interchange, among other major projects.
Cuban despot Fidel Castro  a folk figure to some despite considerable evidence to the contrary  died Friday after leading a regime that spanned the administrations of 10 U.S. presidents.

Castro has been lauded for providing free education in Cuba, which has a 95 percent literacy rate, as well as free medical care. But it came at the expense of a moribund economy with an average per capita income of $24, and essential liberties. Political dissidents were routinely imprisoned, if not executed.

More than one million Cubans fled the island nation after his revolution, many risking their lives to do so.

Cuba was a client state of the Soviet Union, which propped him up with a $5 billion annual subsidy in return for his military adventurism.

That connection also brought the world to the brink of nuclear war in October 1962 after U.S. spy planes took reconnaissance photos indicating construction of bases in Cuba for Soviet intermediate-range nuclear missiles.

The Cuban Missile Crisis led President John F. Kennedy to impose a naval blockade, putting U.S. military forces on alert, while demanding Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev remove the missiles. After 13 tense days, the U.S. agreed to remove its missiles from Turkey and not invade Cuba, while the Soviets dismantled their missiles in Cuba.

However, that didnt end Castros mischief on behalf of Moscow. Cuban troops were dispatched to Nicaragua, El Salvador, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia, Angola and Ethiopia.

In 1983, the Reagan administration invaded Grenada concerned its leftist government was constructing an airfield to support communist insurgencies in Central America. The government was ousted in a battle that killed 19 U.S. and 24 Cuban soldiers.

Castro, the son of a wealthy sugar plantation owner, came to power in 1959. At the University of Havana, he led student protests en route to earning a law degree, and fought in an unsuccessful rebellion in the Dominican Republic in 1947.

In 1953, he turned his attention to overthrowing Fulgencio Batista, one in a long line of corrupt Cuban military dictators. Castros followers attempted to capture the Moncada barracks in Santiago de Cuba by rushing its arsenal. He mistakenly attacked the barbershop instead and was arrested along with his brother, Raul, and others.

Nevertheless, July 26, 1953, is memorialized as the start of the revolution because Batista  at the behest of a bishop  spared the Castros lives and a year later gave the Castros amnesty.

In December 1956 the Castros, Argentine doctor Ernesto Che Guevara and 80 others left Mexico for the eastern mountains of Cuba, where they launched a guerilla campaign against Batista, who ordered his troops to kill Castro. They repeatedly claimed to do so, yet Castro emerged alive, creating a legend.

New York Times reporter Herbert Matthews interviewed Castro in the mountains, writing: He has strong ideas of liberty, democracy, social justice, the need to restore the Constitution, to hold elections, adding to a false allure.

As for relations with the United States, Castro told Matthews, You can be sure we have no animosity toward the United States and the American people.

After Batista fled Cuba on Jan. 1, 1959, Castro took power and had 500 members of the regime shot to death with photos for the world to view. He confiscated $1.8 billion in property owned by American interests without compensation. In 1960, he nationalized the oil refineries and U.S.-owned banks. The U.S. countered by imposing an embargo on trade, except for food and medicine.

On Jan. 3 1961, Castro told the U.S. to reduce its embassy staff from 60 to 18. President Dwight Eisenhower broke diplomatic relations entirely.

On April 17, 1961, with Kennedy in office, 1,500 Cuban fighters  supported by the CIA  invaded the Bay of Pigs, expecting U.S. air support that never materialized. They were either killed or captured.

The CIA was more subtle in subsequent efforts to undermine Castro  plots to make his beard to fall out and a poison pen to kill him, among them prompting Castro to create a museum exhibit to CIA futility

In1980, amid problems at home, Castro allowed 125,000 Cubans to leave the island in the so-called Mariel boatlift an armada of boats, rafts and inner tubes that often met with tragic results. Castro later used the boatlift as a ploy to empty his prisons and mental institutions.

Castro gave up the reins to his brother, Raul, in 2006 due to an unexplained illness. When President Obama reopened relations with Cuba last year, he was unimpressed, stating, We dont need the empire to give us anything.

As for Castros legacy, biographer Georgie Anne Geyer got it right in 1991: The Cuban regime turns out to be simply the case of a third-world dictator seizing a useful ideology in order to employ its wealth against his enemies.
Born and raised in southwest Iowa, I grew up on our family hog, soybean and corn farm. As a child, I was taught by my parents the values many Iowans share: hard work, service and sacrifice.

From day one, I made a commitment to you to bring our shared values to Washington, and to do so I complete a 99-county tour across our great state each year to hear directly from Iowans.

Over the past year, I have traveled to every corner of our state, visiting farms, agribusinesses, hospitals, schools, manufacturers, small businesses and more. Along the way, I was able to visit with thousands of Iowans and hear their questions and ideas at town meetings and roundtable discussions. Time and again, I heard from Iowans who want to have the freedom to raise their families and grow their businesses without overwhelming interference and regulation from the federal government.

All across the state, we see the real consequences federal overreach. In Iowa County, I heard how the harmful Waters of the United States rule was creating confusion for family farmers that prohibited them from actually farming. Manufacturers in Buchanan County told me burdensome federal regulations were crippling their ability to grow and create jobs. At town meetings I held in Cerro Gordo County to Mills County, I heard how rising Obamacare premiums were deeply cutting into the paychecks of Iowa families.

From many of the conversations I had, it was clear the bureaucrats in Washington do not know better than Iowans what is best for our state. Seeing firsthand the effects these reckless intrusions have on the lives of Iowans reinforces my commitment to rolling back unnecessary and costly rules and regulations so our businesses are able to create jobs and folks can keep more of their hard-earned dollars.

Rather than an overbearing bureaucracy too focused on creating red tape, Iowans simply want a federal government that will focus on keeping Americans safe, properly care for our veterans and help grow an environment where businesses can thrive and jobs are created.

I have received many questions and heard great concern from Iowans about the quality and timely care our veterans receive. These men and women have selflessly sacrificed in defense of our freedoms. Yet, unfortunately, all too often we see a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs that fails to provide the important and necessary services to our veterans. I share in Iowans growing frustration over the VAs failures and remain committed to serving as a voice for our tenacious heroes.

Moreover, although we do face many challenges as a state and a country, my travels across Iowa over the last year have made me confident we are up to the task. I continue to be inspired by the hard-working attitudes and good-hearted values of the Iowans I meet who are committed to working together to find commonsense solutions to the issues at hand.

As we head into the new Congress with a new president, I look forward to taking all of the feedback I have received from Iowans on this years 99-county tour and translating it into action to ensure a government that works for all Iowans and all Americans.
Ridgeway Place

RANDY BEARBOWER

WATERLOO  My mother-in-law is an assisted living resident at Ridgeway Place in Waterloo. It is a great facility with excellent staff. On Nov. 22 the owners, Franciscan Ministries corporate office, announced the facility was no longer profitable and would be closing on Feb. 14. So now 74 elderly people will be kicked out of their homes during the holiday season and expected to find another place to live during the coldest months of the year.

I certainly do not expect businesses to lose money for extended periods of time, but you would think a reasonable amount of transition time (six months) would be more humane. What kind of society have we become that treat our elderly this way? After the announcement, my wifes heart was broken when she heard a 103-year-old resident say I have been here 15 years. This is my home. Where will I go?

Yes, we will abide and find our loved ones another place to live. Im certain over the years Franciscan Ministries has done good things in the name of God. This was not one of them. Shame on them.

Ridgeway Place

CANDACE TIX

WATERLOO  I was appalled at the news of Ridgeway Place closing. This is a beautiful facility. It is home for many, employment for many, but a very historic building. What is happening in todays society? Is corporate greed taking precedence over small business? I know this building was to be bought by Mercy Medical Center. Staff had been waiting to see what was happening. Months have passed and apparently this place was just thrown under the bus.

How can this company feel good giving such a short notice in winter to the elderly who have resided here for years? Its an intense process to find housing for these residents. The stress and strain you have put on them and the employees is overwhelming. If management knew this, why did they wait so long to deliver the news?

The timing is so inappropriate. Holidays are supposed to be joyous. This happy family is devastated. Their families have to deal with this horrible decision. Pray for them.

Thanks for help

MARILYN SALYER

CEDAR FALLS  I am fairly bursting with pride at the country I have been shown recently. Several people have held doors open for me. Last week I drove a friend to a doctors appointment. A family of four helped me get her into a wheelchair. While the dad rolled the chair into the office, his two children held the door open.

I suspect mom had a hand in the children later bringing a cup of cold water for my friend. These children are seeing great examples being set. The day of that very blustery wind I was having trouble keeping my trunk lid up and a young woman hurried over and held the lid up so I could load the trunk.

You can be sure I said thank you each time. Your kindnesses were much appreciated.
At My Book, The Movie

Ronlyn Domingue's "The Mapmaker's War"
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LEXINGTON, KY, November 28, 2016 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Dr. Jane Penelope Johnson, PhD, Freelance Writer, Poet Laureate, and Songwriter, has been recognized as a Distinguished Professional in her field through Women of Distinction Magazine. Dr. Jane Penelope Johnson, PhD will be featured in an upcoming edition of Women of Distinction Magazine's Top Women in the Arts edition in 2016/2017.



Going by her penname of 'Penny Johnson', Dr. Jane Penelope Johnson, PhD, has dedicated her entire career to the art of writing and poetry. Beginning as a young girl, at the age of 10, she began focusing on her talents, and was quickly recognized by her parents, teachers, and local community in Kentucky where she grew up. Going on to pursue her craft in college, she graduated from the Famous Writer's School in Westport, Connecticut in 1967 and continued to excel in the field. Today, she is an accomplished Freelance Writer, Poet Laureate, and Songwriter who is known internationally for her work.



Over the course of her career, she has written numerous poems, many of which cater to patriotism and her affinity to her Christian ways. She was named Most Admired Woman of the Decade and International Woman of the Year, was included in the 500 Greatest Genius Laureates of the 21st Century, received a Presidential Award from President George W. Bush, was honored with The Emily Dickinson Award for her poem, 'The Wedding'. Several of her published works having included 'Anthology, Treasured Poems of America', 'A Penny for Your Thoughts', and 'A Song for Peace'. Her poem, 'The Beginning or the End?', was a semi-finalist at The North American Poetry Open. Her poem, 'Shout it Out-Immortal Verses about the Birth of Jesus Christ', was published worldwide. Some of her poetry has also been turned into song lyrics.



"Much of my writings have been inspired by my beliefs," Johnson noted, who is also an active Christian Counselor.



Authoring her first book in 2004, 'A Penny for Your Thoughts', which was published through Author House, presents many inspiring poems, versus that include topics on nature, love, life, death, philosophy, and religion.



Presented with an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from London, England in 1993, Johnson enjoys being active with numerous organizations, including serving as a member and advisor to the International Society of Poets. She is also a member of National Author Registry and Famous Poets Society.



About Women of Distinction Magazine:

Women of Distinction Magazine strives to continually bring the very best out in each article published and highlight Women of Distinction. Women of Distinction Magazine's mission is to have a platform where women can grow, inspire, empower, educate and encourage professionals from any industry by sharing stories of courage and success.



Contact:

Women of Distinction Magazine, Melville, NY

631-465-9024 [email protected]



# # #
Nov 28, 2016 | By Benedict

Thanks to a 3D printed titanium leg implant made by Texas company 4WEB, Queensland resident Callum Harewood has been able to continue his active surfer lifestyle following a horrific motorway accident. Without the 3D printed implant, Harewood may have lost his leg.

On an innocuous February morning in Warana, Queensland, electrician Callum Harewood crashed his van on the motorway, rolling the vehicle and suffering numerous injuries. As well as breaking vertebrae in his neck, the electrician suffered bruising to his brain, nerve damage to his arms, and several smashed bones in his right leg. He was taken to the nearby Nambour Hospital, but medical staff feared that the right leg would have to be amputateda 15cm section of bone was missing, and several of the missing pieces were still scattered at the scene of the crash. Fortunately, a team of tech-savvy doctors were on hand to offer Harewooda keen surfer in his spare timea better option than amputation. With a 3D printed titanium implant, surgeons would be able to save the patients injured leg.

Using a metal 3D printer, medical staff were able to save Harewoods leg by printing a custom, 15cm implant to replace the missing piece of bone. According to Dr Kevin Tetsworth, Harewoods orthopedic surgeon at the Royal Brisbane & Women's Hospital, the electrician was one of six patients to receive similar treatments at the hospital in the past year. Callum had a terrible injury, Tetsworth recalled. There was so little bone left. Some of it was lost on the street and there would have been dead and really dirty fragments of bone. The result was a 15cm missing section and nothing to put screws into. Part of his cartilage was missing too.

The life-changing 3D printing process was actually a collaborative effort between doctors at the RBWH and some helping hands from the USA. After admitting Harewood, staff at the Queensland-based hospital quickly took scans of the patients injuries, before sending them on to 4WEB, a Texas-based company, whose medical engineering team were able to fabricate a 3D printed titanium implant based on the exact physiology of Harewoods injured right leg. This implant replaced some of the missing cartilage and supported a bone graft.

4WEB Medical, based in Frisco, Texas, offers a range of 3D printed implant services, and recently received FDA clearance for a 3D printed lateral spine truss system for patients with severe back injuries. The company had previously created other 3D printed, patient-specific implants for Australian hospitals through its partnership with LifeHealthcare, its Australian healthcare partner.

Callum Harewood is recovering after receiving a 3D printed titanium implant

Harewood himself, the man who has benefited most from the procedure, has admitted that he didnt even know that this kind of 3D printing technology existed. Id never heard about 3D printers being used in medicine like that, he said. Id seen some basic artwork from a 3D printer but I had no idea they were up to using titanium to make parts of your body. Its pretty incredible what has been done.

According to Tetsworth, this 3D printed titanium implant was really Harewoods only option that involved keeping his legsomething the Queensland resident was keen to do in order to maintain his active surfer lifestyle. Without a custom-made implant, it would have been impossible, the doctor explained. Nothing off the shelf would have worked and he would have had a mid-femur amputation.

For Harewood, the 15cm titanium implant has had a huge impact on his life, but Tetsworth believes that medical 3D printing applications like this can only get better. For example, the most advanced implants available at present are highly bio-compatible, which means that the fabricated implants allow and encourage the organic regeneration of bone, with the 3D printed scaffold eventually dissolving away in a manner that is entirely harmless to the body. If researchers continue to perfect this technology, implants could someday become almost totally non-invasive.

After 30 years in surgery, Tetworth believes that the profession, with its growing acceptance of revolutionary technologies like 3D printing, is entering one of its most exciting eras. Im very jealous of doctors entering medicine now, the doctor said. They will be able to do things I can only dream of.

The 3D printed titanium implant developed by 4WEB

Harewood was released from hospital in September, but still has to undergo a long period of rehabilitation before he can return to his previous way of life. The patient has not yet been able to return to work, but has been able to take short walks without the use of a wheelchair or crutches. Although the road to recovery is a long one, Harewood is simply grateful to have retained the use of his legs, and looks forward to the day he can put them to their best use: surfing.

Considering the options, Im ecstatic and relieved that something could be done to save my leg, Harewood said. I used to surf a lot and Im hoping to get back into the water at some stage. The bottom line is, Im very lucky not to be paralysed and I still have my leg because of this technology. Its been life-changing surgery.

Posted in 3D Printing Application

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Nov 28, 2016 | By Tess

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) has recently released The Advanced Manufacturing Roadmap, a plan which will help Australian manufacturing businesses and industries to better adapt to changing technologies and overall changing markets. The plan, which was written in partnership with industry, government, and researchers, places an important emphasis on additive manufacturing or 3D printing technologies, which are already a significant disruptive force within the manufacturing industry.

More specifically, The Advanced Manufacturing Roadmap highlights certain major growth opportunities and lays out the means by which manufacturers can advance their processes in order to capitalize on these opportunities. These means include an increased focus on pre-production processes, such as design and R&D; value-adding services; more sustainable manufacturing processes; and of course, low volume/high margin customized products.

The overall goal of the roadmap is to help bring Australias manufacturing into the future so that in 20 years it will have transformed into a highly integrated, advanced, and expert-focused environment.

As CSIRO Chief Executive Dr. Larry Marshall explains, The Advanced Manufacturing Roadmap is the compass that guides out excellent science to deliver the breakthrough innovation needed to re-imagine Australian advanced manufacturing. Australian science can turn disruptors and increased globalization into opportunities for value creation right here at home. Whether it's 3D printed sternums to save lives, or 3D paper weaving to help Australian SMEs break into global value chains - or as the great Billy Hughes said 'science will guide the manufacturer into greener pastures."

Of course, fully transforming and evolving the manufacturing industry will require many big changes and above all will require a number of technological innovations on the part of public and private research communities. Certain areas which have already begun to open new doors within the manufacturing sector, such as 3D printing, sensors, advanced materials, robotics, augmented and virtual reality, to name but a few, will have to be significantly advanced in order to really make them viable on a nation-wide scale.

An important part of realizing this vision will involve industries and businesses investing further in these advanced technological fields and effectively helping to develop new knowledge, skills, and practices in collaboration with each other. As CSIRO Manufacturing Director Dr. Keith McLean emphasizes: The industrial landscape is changing fast. We need to start evolving with it. Australian manufacturing has a strong, high-tech future.

In addition to these points, The Advanced Manufacturing Roadmap also encourages businesses to increase their participation in global value chains; to improve their workforce with people with digital literacy, leadership, and STEM capabilities; to diversify their workforce in terms of gender, age, and ethnicity; and to focus more on business-to-business collaboration.

Overall, CSIROs Advanced Manufacturing Roadmap has the aim of transforming Australias manufacturing sector by making it more technologically advanced, more skilled, more eco-friendly, and overall more effective. "Industry needs to lead this transformation. CSIRO has the expertise, experience, and business network to help guide them," added Dr. McLean.

According to CSIRO, The Advanced Manufacturing Roadmap is just the first in a series of roadmaps aimed at the Australian Federal Governments Industry Growth Centres.

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by Carol A. Westbrook

Jurgis Daugvilla (1923-2008) was an artist, and a master carver of wood sculptures in the tradition of Lithuanian folk artists. He was a neighbor, and a friend of my husband, Rick, a third-generation Lithuanian. Richard, he would say, Your house is at the crossroads of our town. You should have a Kryzius in your yard.

Kryzius (pronounced kree'-jus) means cross, and refers to the tall, totem-pole-like wooden carvings which appear as roadside shrines throughout Lithuania. The tradition goes back to pagan times, when they were used to mark sites of cult offerings, especially at crossroads and burial grounds. The monuments featured folk carvings, with peaked roofs for protection from the elements. When Christianity arrived at the end of the 14th century, the pagan monuments were topped with crosses, allowing for their preservation by converting them into emblems of faith. Every region in Lithuanian had its particular cross-making traditions, incorporating folk symbols,

pagan cults, geometrical shapes and religious icons.They were found throughout the countryside, but especially at crossroads and cemeteries, continuing in the pagan tradition.

Christianity did not halt this tradition, but politics did. Because of their significance as a national and religious symbol, many of these crosses were destroyed during the Soviet occupation, 1944-1990. The famous Hill of Crosses in northern Lithuania became a symbol of peaceful resistance, as crosses were added while the Soviets attempted to remove them, bulldozing the site at least three times. In 1990 there were 55,000 crosses on the hill, and today there are over 100,000. The Kryzius remains an important symbol of Lithuanian nationalism, and new ones have begun to re-appear across the landscape.

Jurgis, himself a Lithuanian who immigrated to the US in 1949, remembered this tradition of woodcarving, and sought to perpetuate in his adopted country. Jurgis, like many of the immigrants, was welcomed into Chicago, and eventually hemade his way to our town of Beverly Shores, Indiana, which also houses many residents of Lithuanian descent. Jurgis produced a number of carvings in the Lithuanian folk style, and some are visible throughout the town, including door and window ornamentation, and Kryzius's.

Yes, Jurgis was right. Our home was at the crossroads. We needed a Kryzius, and Rick commissioned Jurgis to create one for us.

Our Kryzius, shown above, has a religious carving on each of the four sides. In this view you can see the weeping Christ on the right, while the Blessed Virgin Mary is on the left. St. John Nepomucene faces the lake to the north (not shown). Rick requested an image of his family's patron, St. Rochas (aka St. Roch, or St. Rocco). His family's original surname, Rakauskas, is the Lithuanian word for Rock, which comes from the same root as Rochas, while the saint's August 16 feast day is almost on Rick's birthday. In our Kryzius, St. Rochas is in the panel which looks

toward our house (shown on the left). This saint is usually depicted lifting his tunic to show the plague sore on his leg; our panel does not include his usual companion, a dog. The top of our Kryzius features angels supporting the peaked roof, which is topped by a wrought-iron cross.

There are two other Kryzius's in Beverly Shores. Both were carved by Daugvilla and are located near a junction or crossroads. The Kryzius in Daugvilla's yard, also near a crossroads, is simply carved in the folk tradition and is topped with angels holding a cross.

The third Kryzius, on the right, is elaborately carved with three tiers. The face seen from the road shows a saint with a crown or mitre, holding a sheaf of grain. I don't know the saint's identify, though I'd like to think it is St. Arnold, Bishop of Metz, the patron saint of beer. The upper tier shows the crucified Christ, and the elaborate roof is, of course, topped with a crucifix. Note, too, the intricately carved door and entryway to this house, also created by Daugvilla.

Our town is very proud of these historic reminders of its Lithuanian heritage, which celebrate its close ties to our natural surroundings on the Indiana dunes, and the religious freedom that we all enjoy.

Jurgis Daugvilla was well-known in the arts community of Chicago, and especially highly regarded by the Lithuanians. In 1999 he was awarded the Cultural Prize of the Lithuanian Community, the highest honor an artist can receive in the world wide diaspora of his countrymen. He died in 2008.

This story will be featured in the December 2016 edition of Sand Tracks, a publication of the Association of Beverly Shores Residents.  Carol A. Westbrook
John Weeks in Open Democracy:

The iconic slogan Yes, we can! inspired the wave of enthusiasm that swept up millions of Americans during the presidential election of 2008 and carried Barack Obama to the White House. If that slogan epitomized the beginning of the Obama presidency, he had an equally iconic ending: the first African-American president shaking hands with the first president-elect in at least 100 years endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan.

In November 2008 Barack Obama won the presidency with almost 53% on a voter turnout of 58%. The winning percentage was the highest since 1988 and the turnout the largest for 50 years. The first non-white president took office on a surge of enthusiasm exceeding any since Franklin Roosevelt in 1932 (by comparison John Kennedy went to the presidency with less than half of total votes and a winning margin of 0.2 percentage points).

The enthusiasm for Obama arose from fervent hope for specific changes: 1) a universal, affordable health system; 2) the end of two disastrous wars (Afghanistan and Iraq); 3) economic recovery from the worst collapse in 80 years; and 4) action against banks and bankers to prevent a recurrence of the collapse.

To fulfil these hopes, Obama had majorities in both houses of Congress, 58 of 100 Senators (largest majority of any party in 30 years) and 257 seats in the House (most since 1992). By any measure the new president enjoyed an overwhelming majority. Under some circumstances the Republican minority in the Senate could prevent voting, but a determined and bold president could force votes within the arcane Senate rules.

More here.
by Maniza Naqvi

Shared a wooden bench at Union Station. Sat side by side. I hunched. Waiting for Red Caps to come get us. Take us to our tracks. To our trains. Mama GiGi and I. Police in black riot gear with dogs, eyed us, loitering nearby. And around us, more of us. With strollers, carry-ons and backpacks, attached. Thanksgiving travelers. People moving like lines of refugees stumbling along, on and on.

Her train departing at 3.30 to Norfolk, Virginia beach. Mine before hers to NYC. She turned to me and talked and talked. And I with my eyes on this and that watched a clock and listened and listened keeping a look out for a Red Cap. She: All my love. All honey. Mama GiGi.

Long hair flowing flaming volcanic lava red, under a floppy red suede hat. A silver cross hung at her chest. Pale white wrists, red scabs. Pant suit. Fire engine red. Also. Crimson nail polish. To match. Bare feet in sandals. A scarf of old glory draped around her neck. Rhinestone encrusted sunglasses. By her side a tote bag full of pill bottles in Ziploc bags.

Mama GiGi talked and talked. Each sentence preceded by the words, my love. I listened on. And on. Mama GiGi, a pastor of her own church: Treasures of the Heart. She gave me her card. Her daddy was mafia. Her mother a drunk. And. So. She'd been dropped. She said. She'd been a lap dancer, a crackhead, a Heroin addict. She'd aborted two babies at age 15. Born Catholic. She'd left all that. To be born again. An addict again. For Jesus.

She'd found Jesus. Hymns in her, abounded. Jesus had saved her. Founded, the lost. The dropped. Picked her up. Lifted up an addict and a whore. You're looking at a miracle, she said. I said, that's way too easy. I'm looking at America.

Oooh! She cried. Oooh! She kissed my hand. Stroked my face. Gave me a hug. Overcome. Camp-pained, for Jesus and Trump, I did. She said. Get it? Spelling it out for me. Camp pained. For Jesus and for Trump. For my struggles. Made poster signs for em both. Held em up proudly, road side. Lots of appreciative honking. Uh Huh. Praise Jesus. Lots of cussin' and abuse. Well that's fine too. Thank you! Did it for Jesus. And for Trump. God bless. She'd hollered after them down the road. The honkers, the hooters, the cussin' abusers.

She asked me my name. Oooh. That's nice. Pretty. Where was I from? She began to cry. Holocaust. She said. She'd been there. To the Holocaust museum. She showed me a photo on her Iphone. She'd taken of a photo there. Of Muslims. A couple. They had hidden a Jewish family. It's so small. She said. Oooh. Oooh. She mewled. It should be ten feet tall.

The whole Mall, she said, my love, is just a big mausoleum to the dead. Why? Why dwell on death? My love. Why? Wars, the Native Americans, the Jews, the Africans. A big mausoleum. The mall of mausoleums. I asked Who's next?

She cried. My love, Honey she said, it's going to be alright. Oohh! Oooh! It's not how many days you live. But how you live those days. Is there a storm coming? Mama GiGi? I asked. She said, honey, it is here. My love. This is the storm.

Oooh! Oooh! Honey! Don't you worry! We'll get through it. It's not how many days you live. But how you live those days. She'd camp pained for Trump for her two aborted babies. She'd dropped them but in heaven, Jesus would pick them up and she would be united with them. She had been promised that. I went wrong at 16 and I'm all right at 60. Jesus has me. I'm beautiful! Thank God for under wire bras she said. You're looking at a miracle. She said. I said, that's way too easy. I'm looking at America itself.

She talked and talked and talked about Solomon, and David, and Goliath, and Ezkheil, and someone who had dropped a baby. Or picked up a dropped one. About death, and death, and death. Talk about beauty, only beauty, she said. It's not how many days you live. But how you live those days.

She'd voted for Trump for her babies. She'd been to Jerusalem where an orthodox Jew had spat on her but she had forgiven him. She had gone there to help orphans, and the elderly. And to tell them that Jesus was coming. She'd gone to Colombia and loaded up on drugs and brought them to America in her body. But Jesus had cleansed her. Picked her up entered her heart and body. Karen and Candy, needed to have a pajama party with Melania, bring her to the heart of Jesus. She said. Ooooh! Ooooh! She had cried, when she saw Hillary on TV. She looked so sad, so sick. All those years trying to please daddy, whose little girl was never good enough!

Hillary talked about her mommy. Trump he talked about his daddy. And America? It voted between Mommy and Daddy. Said, Mama GiGi. America, it picked daddy. Daddy won.

She'd spent twelve nights in a tent at 17th and Constitution. In a Spiritual God sent for born-agains. Jesus had come for her. Picked her up.

My Red Cap arrived. And as I left for my track and train I heard her loop back, to the beginning again with the next bencher. My love, honey, the tent at 17th and Constitution. Side by side, Mama Gigi and I, had sat. Shared a wooden bench. I hunched. At Union Station.
by Katrin Trustedt

Much has been written by now in attempt to explain the outcome of the recent US presidential election. Some recent interventions pitted the Democrats' identity politics against economic issues and have charged the Left with neglecting hard economic realities by focusing on supposedly marginal or imaginary problems. Such an opposition misses the point, however, that the relevant economic questions are inherently connected to problems of identity. Didier Eribon, collaborator of the late Michel Foucault (one of the presumed champions of identity politics), gives a compelling account of this connection between identity politics and economics in his 2009 book Retour a Reims. Revisiting the social and political situation of his upbringing in Reims, Eribon describes how processes of economic downgrade are intertwined with complex processes of re-identification. When he returns to the working class upbringing that he had escaped to become the Parisian gay intellectual he is now, he finds that his relatives and their peers  who had always been voting for the Communist Party and who had built their social and political identities around it  have shifted towards voting for the Front National.

The decision to vote a certain way and the entire social and political subjectivation underlying this decision cannot be traced back to a given political stance or factual economic interests, but is instead indebted to a complex dynamic of identification and demarcation. In order to explain the striking shift in the milieu of his upbringing, Eribon foregrounds not just the considerable economic hardship the working class has endured in France, but more importantly, the fact that this economic hardship has been ignored in the past decades by the left party under Francois Mitterrand (with many parallels to the Democrats in the US, the Labour Party under Tony Blair in the UK and the Social Democrats under Gerhard Schroder in Germany). The way that his relatives, like so many others, have turned away from a strong allegiance with the Left is connected to a feeling of being hurt in a particular way. Not only has their economic status deteriorated, but the degradation also has remained unacknowledged.

This leads to what might best be described with a German term that is especially hard to translate: Krankung, a state of being offended, hurt, or indignant that is marked by a certain subtlety. It is the reaction to a perceived neglect, insult, or degradation that goes, however, more or less unnoticed. Krankung is not an insult that is retaliated, even if only in words, but is rather a silenced and silently endured suffering as Freud has defined it. The blow to one's self-esteem is unaccounted for, there is no open conflict or even recognition of this silent wound, so that it grows in the dark. That's what gives this momentous affect its long-lasting impact and dangerous dynamic.

As a result, Eribon describes how his mother, like her peers, then attempts to set herself apart from people who can be depicted as having an even lower status, mostly immigrants from North Africa, following the front lines offered by the Front National. The attempt at using demarcations to assure one's own status is, of course, not specific to any group. As Eribon describes, part of becoming an intellectual, displaying interest in art, and even  ironically  reading Marx can also implicitly be an act of distinguishing oneself from those of the ignorant working class. Such signals of setting oneself apart, of course, do not go unnoticed, but rather in turn fuel the dynamic of offense.

Now it seems like many on the Left are in some way filled with indignation by the results of the recent election. The ideas and programs offered by the Democrats did not prevail, but instead have evoked a hostile reaction. The new political expertise of polling, claiming to find out how a certain group votes, is, as it turned out, not neutral. Not only were many of the predictions plainly wrong, but they also seem to have missed the complex dynamic of political subjectivation and thereby many voters who don't see pollsters as neutral. As an effect, the political consultants may have failed to notice large groups of people who were potentially voting for a certain candidate without saying so to the pollsters, which thus directed attention away from those groups and thereby in turn increased the gap between segments of society. The ever-growing political technique surrounding the polling process is not one that externally observes a fixed system, but actually influences the facts that it is supposed to convey. Now people ask questions like How could a candidate who was so poll-driven ever hope to look like a leader? Not only did all this professional polling machinery not succeed, but it ironically seems to have been one of the main factors in achieving a result opposite to the anticipated one by deepening the sense of disconnected worlds.

The age of post-truth politics seems in some way to be a reaction to technologies of truth production and the complexity of a world that are perceived as offensive. Freud described  however contested in the details  that the general narcissism of man underwent three major blows at the hands of science: The first was when it realized that our earth was not the center of the universe, but only a tiny speck in a world-system of a magnitude hardly conceivable [] The second was when biological research robbed man of his peculiar privilege of having been specially created [] But man's craving for grandiosity is now suffering the third and most bitter blow from psychoanalytic research, which is endeavoring to prove to the ego of each one of us that he is not even master in his own house.

In a complex globalized world, the potential blow comes less from scientific research telling us about the world and more from the world views that are already reactions to the offenses of a complex and contingent world  reactions that aim to reduce complexity and offer simple solutions. An uncanny feeling persists that not only the technology you think you command may very well be commanding you and your very own thoughts; but that what you think you know may be completely irrelevant or even rejected with hostility outside of your particular circle; and that the other side of the conflict you are struggling with may not be what you understand it to be or subscribe to remotely the same conflict lines or even use the same language as you do. The post-truth phenomena thus seems to be an effect of a retraction from a reality that  in its neglect of the offense it poses  seems especially offensive. As such, this situation offers endless new potentials to offend and to being offended. The complex dynamics that Eribon describes  the subtle but long-lasting lines of dealing and taking offense, involving economic and class distinction just as well as issues of cultural and sexual identity  show that we cannot afford to play one off against the other if we want to exit the spirals of offense.
Sindre Bangstad in American Ethnologist:

On the occasion of the publication of Columbia University anthropologist Lila Abu-Lughods article, The Cross-Publics of Ethnography: The Case of the Muslim woman, in the November 2016 issue of the journal, we have invited Norwegian anthropologist Sindre Bangstad to interview Abu-Lughod on fundamental issues underlying her work as a feminist anthropologist, a public intellectual, and an ethnographer of the Middle East and Islamophobia. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the publication of Abu-Lughods landmark ethnography Veiled Sentiments, which has inspired an entire generation of scholars and students to rethink their understanding of gender, power, and poetics. I thank Lila and Sindre for sharing their conversation with the readership of the journal. Niko Besnier, editor

Sindre Bangstad (SB): You and I met in 2014 because we had both turned, as anthropologists, to address a disturbing public issue: Islamophobia. This opened us up to forms of hostility that our earlier ethnographic work in Muslim communities, yours in Egypt and mine in South Africa, had not. In your article in the November issue of AE, The Cross-Publics of Public Ethnography, you consider what anthropologists can bring to contentious public debates. You confess that your most recent book, Do Muslim Women Need Saving? took you out of the comfort zone of our discipline. Id like to talk with you about the meaning of this transition to what Ive explored as public anthropology in a series of interviews in my forthcoming Anthropology of Our Times: An Edited Anthology in Public Anthropology. You prefer to call it public ethnography, following Didier Fassin. Id like to talk about your early work first.

More here. [Thanks to Nadia Guessous.]
by Max Sirak

We live in an uncertain world. We hate to admit it, but it's true. So true, in fact, physicist Max Born wrote, as quoted by Leonard Mlodinow, Chance is a more fundamental conception than causality. (The Drunkard's Walk) This idea probably sits poorly with most of us, quantum physicists aside, for two reasons.

The first is because causality, on a local level, the me-and-you level, is something easy to observe. I can take a full glass of water, knock it over, and cause it to spill. You can go turn on the stove, touch it, and cause your hand to burn. These and thousands of other experiences like them prove our agency in the world.

The second is because it's scary. It's a big, indifferent world out there. It sits in a bigger and more indifferent solar system, which in turn rests in an even bigger and more indifferent galaxy, which itself is part of a bigger and more indifferent universe, one of many in the grandest and most indifferent structure of all, the multiverse.

And, because of the salience of our experiences and the immensity of our universal setting, we don't feel great about uncertainty. Instead of making friends with this fundamental truth and learning the best ways to work with it, we actively strive to do everything in our power to rail against it.

Whatever Gets You Through The Night

On a global level  there's religion with its partisan deities and eternal lives. The former a response to cosmic indifference, the latter a response to impermanence. There's science with its supreme belief in the powers of knowledge and reason. If only we could know more, then we could figure it all out, and be safe. There're nations believing security rests with being bigger and more powerful.

And, on a personal level  there are things we do in our own lives in the name of assurance. As children we're told to get good grades, participate in extracurriculars, and get into good colleges. Then we get good jobs and save money. We go to the doctor and dentist to stay healthy. We marry and start families so we have people to come home to. We make plans for this weekend, next month, and next year.

All of this we do in order to feel safe. Except there is a huge difference between feeling safe and being safe. Don't get me wrong, taking care of ourselves, building careers, having families, and planning our futures are fine. They bring us joy.

But it's important to remember the fundamental nature of our reality. No matter what we build, no matter how we spend our time, security is a myth. There are no guarantees. We might not make it home from work today, wake up tomorrow, or get to go on that vacation we've been planning for months.

There's a reason Sterling Archer's third biggest fear is what it is.

Great, So We're All F'd In The A?

I don't mean to be a Debbie Downer or Gloomy Gus. That's not what I'm about. I just want to be clear on our initial conditions. It's no one's fault. It's not like any of us got a say in the fundamental laws ruling existence. They were here before we were born. They will be here after we die. But, there are strategies we can adopt and practices we can incorporate to make our journeys more pleasant, or failing that, less painful.

It starts with outcomes. Specifically, how we relate to our expectations and the level of our emotional attachment to them. Oscar Wilde wrote, The secret of life is to appreciate the pleasure of being terribly, terribly deceived. (A Woman of No Importance) Because, it's a delusory world and we're going to be wrong. A lot.

However, instead of realizing this, we persist in falling in love with our ideas of how the future should be. Forgetting how little we control and entirely over-estimating our influence, we go on attaching ourselves and our emotions to specific events. Which, as it turns out, is an incredibly precarious precipice.

There is danger in thinking, Once I get my new job, I'll be happy. Or, Everything would be better if I could just find a nice guy/girl to settle down with. Or, This is going to be a complete waste of time unless my team wins. In each of these instances we're staking a portion of your wellbeing on ends largely outside our authority.

Maybe you don't get the job. Or, perhaps you do, only to find out you're actually worse off. Maybe you never find that guy or girl to settle down with. Or, you do, and guess what, everything isn't better. Turns out, playing house has its own set of challenges. Maybe your team doesn't win. Maybe in the seventh game of the World Series your teams ties it up in the eighth, only to lose in extra innings. All these things can happen.

All these things have happened. To me.

Here's What I've Learned

The genuine amount of things we direct are precious few. We have our actions, addictions notwithstanding. We have our thoughts, save being stuck in feedback loops. And both of these pale in comparison when pitted against the mind-rending amount of things beyond our governance.

That's why it's so crucial we exercise our dominion when and where we can. And, the most important place we can do this, when it comes to quality of life, is in our expectations. We probably can do more to affect the quality of our lives by controlling our expectations than we can by doing virtually anything else. (Barry Schwartz, The Paradox Of Choice)

To date, the best way I've found to heed Schwartz's advice is a combination of a Stoic technique and something I learned from Jack Canfield. The Stoics taught a practice of negative visualization, letting ourselves go and imagining the worst case scenario. Canfield teaches the importance of managing our reactions to events. Put them together and you get what amounts to an Oreo of Insight, a delicious ancient Greek cream filling sandwiched between two Canfield cookies.

It starts with creating an opportunity for choice. The idea being, when we become aware of our severe emotional attachment to a desired outcome, we need to stop. We slam on our mental emergency breaks and do a 180. Don't keep fantasizing about all the good to come from the conclusion we want. Spend some time imagining the horrors of it all going to shit. This way, we've at least created some sort of template for dealing with the aftermath. Either way.

Enjoying Your Philosophical Cookie

The first step, as always, is awareness. We need to able to recognize when we're significantly attaching emotions to an outcome. The best signal to look for within is palpable excitement. Feeling way jazzed and happy when imagining things going a certain way is a dead giveaway.

Next, as unpleasant as this may be, it's time to practice some negative visualization. And, honestly, I'm not saying this just because I happen to be a writer, but it really, really is best to do this exercise in writing. The action of putting thoughts into words and words onto a page relieves psychological tension.

So we write. List all the atrocities of things not going our way. We don't censor ourselves. In fact, it's better to keep asking, And then what? with a macabre curiosity. This is our Nightmare List.

Now it's time to retrace our steps. Starting from the moment when we'll eventually learn the results of whatever we're anticipating and working backward, what benefits have we enjoyed up to now? What happiness have we experienced? What fun have we had? What pleasures have we been fortunate enough to revel in? Again, the And then what? is a useful question to keep at hand. This is our Joy Index.

Okay, that's it. We're done. All we can do is wait. It's up to Clotho and her sisters now. We're in the best position we can be in. We've controlled what we can to the best of our ability and we know the results are bound up in forces much larger than us.

BOOM  the moment of truth. Hey look, we got lucky and won! We got our desired end. It's time to celebrate. Orwe didn't. Despite our best efforts, things didn't work out. But now, instead of wallowing in despair and sinking into a mire of grief, we're prepared.

We've got our Joy Index. We know the chain of events leading up to the unsatisfying response wasn't all for naught. There were pleasures along the way. The steps to get here weren't miserable or wasted. And, we've got our Nightmare List, which means we've at least spent some time considering this possibility. We can take even more solace in the fact our imaginings are likely to be way worse than how it will actually be.

In The End

Is this a dolled up recipe to gild the pain of losing? Yes. But, given the uncertain nature of our existence, the lengths we go to pretend it otherwise, and how emotionally invested we get in results we don't control, I thought this might be a good thing to put out into the world.

Consolation isn't a bad thing. It's actually the second best thing. Next to winning. It's just, chances are, the dice won't always roll the way we want.

*******

You can see Max's work here. You can listen to his podcast here. You can find him on Twitter here
Has holiday traffic and shopping mayhem wound you up tighter than a bright red bow?

For a truly refreshing getaway, minus the cars and crowds, head toward the rolling hills of West Marin for a holiday road trip. Here you'll find such seasonal charms as a weekend-long holiday craft fair at the historic Dance Palace in fun and funky Point Reyes Station; enjoy tastings of freshly uncorked bubbly at Heidrun Meadery; and take holiday cooking classes or tours at the Fork, the culinary education center of the famed Pt. Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company.





Point Reyes Station Holiday Crafts Fair

The Dance Palace Community & Cultural Center in rural Point Reyes Station rings in the holiday season with the 44th annual Holiday Crafts Fair, Dec 57. With a special focus on West Marin-made handcrafted items and gifts by more than 40 artisans, the fair is a one-stop shop for all your gift-giving needs, including ceramic art, clothing, fiber arts, glasswork, herbs, metal work, jams, jellies, jewelry, oils, ornaments, paintings, soaps, toys, and more. // December 5-7, Point Reyes Station, dancepalace.org





(Lacey Bediz)

Heidrun's Champagne-Style Honey Mead

"From flower to flute" is the motto of West Marin's unique meadery, Heidrun, located just outside Point Reyes Station. Producing brut dry, naturally sparkling varietal meads made exclusively from honey, proprietor Gordon Hull and his small team of merry meadmakers use traditional French methode Champenoise to add happy bubbles to each bottle while pursuing a refined objective: Creating a light, delicate and refreshing wine that boasts the subtle exotic aromas and flavors found only in the essence of honey.





Heidrun is celebrating the holidays with an open house on Saturday, December 10 from 11am to 4:30pm. The event coincides with the release of their Point Reyes Wildflower estate varietal sparkling mead. Released just once a year, the estate varietal is limited to just 600 bottles from the 2016 honey harvested from the meadery's own hives. Flower nectars from native Northern California coastal chaparral as well as non-native eucalyptus contribute herbal (read: sage-like) nuances. Visitors are welcome on a reservation-only basis for tours. Drop-ins are welcome for tastings. // 11925 Highway 1 (Point Reyes Station), heidrunmeadery.com





(Ben Davidson)

Tours and Farm-Fresh Cooking Classes at The Fork

Set high in the grassy hills above Tomales Bay, the sprawling, 714-acre Giacomini Ranch is home to the esteemed Giacomini Dairy, producers of Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese and operators of the Fork, a culinary education center dedicated to food education through farm tours and culinary classes.





In addition to private tours and tastings ($25-$65 per person, six-person minimum) available weekdays or weekends, on December 9 they will offer a "Bubble & Bites" course ($105 person) with Gloria Ferrer (of Sonoma sparkling wine fame) and Jennifer Lutrell, who will showcase their take on West Marin's wide and varied farm-to-table renaissance. You'll also be able to enjoy their award-winning cheese. Plus, a gift certificate to the Fork's monthly Farm Dinner ($75 per person, BYO wine or beer), would make a great gift for the foodie in your life. Reservations are required and space is limited. // pointreyescheese.com
What to know about the Noem rallies in Sioux Falls Wednesday
IndexBox has just published a new report World: Tin  Market Report. Analysis And Forecast To 2020.

This report has been designed to provide a detailed analysis of the global tin market. It covers the most recent data sets of quantitative medium-term projections, as well as developments in production, trade, consumption and prices.

Global tin exports have been on a steady decline since 2012, amounting to 4,043 million USD in 2015. Before that export values fluctuated from year to year. According to IndexBox estimates, Indonesias exports continued to dominate the global tin market. In 2015, tin exports from Indonesia totaled 1,154 million USD, which accounted for a 29% share of global exports. Malaysia, Singapore, Peru, and Bolivia were the other key global suppliers of tin in 2015, with a 44% combined share of global exports.

Malaysia (+9.8% per year) and Bolivia (+4.7% per year) were the fastest growing exporters from 2007 to 2015. Malaysia significantly strengthened its position in terms of global exports of tin, growing its share from 7% in 2007 to 15% in 2015.

Singapore (15%, based on value terms), USA (14%), Japan (11%), Germany (8%), and the Republic of Korea (6%) were the leading destinations of tin imports in 2015. Imports to the USA grew at a pace of +2.1% per year from 2007 to 2015. By contrast, Singapore slightly contracted its imports of tin over the same period. The USAs share of global imports increased by +3 percentage points, while the balance of key importers maintained stable share sizes.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 REPORT DESCRIPTION

1.2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

2.1 KEY FINDINGS

2.2 MARKET TRENDS

3. MARKET OVERVIEW

3.1 MARKET VOLUME AND VALUE

3.2 CONSUMPTION BY COUNTRY

3.3 MARKET OPPORTUNITIES BY COUNTRY

3.4 MARKET FORECAST TO 2020

4. PRODUCTION

4.1 PRODUCTION IN 2007-2015

4.2 PRODUCTION BY COUNTRY

5. IMPORTS

5.1 IMPORTS IN 2007-2015

5.2 IMPORTS BY COUNTRY

5.3 IMPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY

6. EXPORTS

6.1 EXPORTS IN 2007-2015

6.2 EXPORTS BY COUNTRY

6.3 EXPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY

7. PROFILES OF MAJOR PRODUCERS

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EnviroSuite's European Launch

Sydney, Nov 28, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Pacific Environment Limited ( ASX:PEH ) is pleased to advise the establishment of a European presence to support new business primarily in the European and UK markets for its EnviroSuite SaaS platform.



The launch is being enabled by a new agreement with world leading odour and air quality consultancy, Odournet Group ("Odournet"). PEH has an existing collaboration agreement with Odournet which has yielded specific opportunities for EnviroSuite and has led to significant commercial wins with wastewater authorities including Thames Water in the UK and Lageres in Spain.



PEH and Odournet have now entered into a Sales Agency Agreement which gives EnviroSuite access to Odournet's network of offices and clients through Europe, UK, India and Brazil and incentivises the Odournet team to support EnviroSuite sales across the globe.



Mr Ton van Harreveld, the founder and CEO of Odournet will be retained to provide leadership to an EnviroSuite Europe business unit, driving market awareness and sales of EnviroSuite in the geographies served by Odournet. Ton and his team have identified a significant pipeline of EnviroSuite opportunities in Europe and the UK that the EnviroSuite team and partners are now pursuing. Significant opportunities generated by other partners, notably BlacktoGreen, are also being pursued.



Mr Chaim Kolominskas, a senior executive of the EnviroSuite team who has been instrumental in on boarding new customers and sales partners globally, will be a key member of the EnviroSuite Europe team to support Odournet and a European partner network.



Mr van Harreveld, Odournet's founder, said:



"Through active technical and commercial collaboration to date, Odournet has developed a growing confidence in EnviroSuite such that we are now making it a key pillar of our business. The powerful and innovative EnviroSuite SaaS platform is a great fit for our consulting and services work. We believe our customers and industry networks will respond favourably to EnviroSuite's ability to provide better regulatory, business efficiency and community outcomes."



Mr Robin Ormerod, MD Pacific Environment, said:



"We are delighted to be leveraging Odournet's four decades of industry knowledge, global technical leadership, commercial experience and client relationships throughout the world, most notably in Europe, India and Latin America.



"Importantly, this is not a standing start. Odournet's assistance in Europe has already produced new customers and a growing pipeline of new business. This progress has provided the confidence to move forward under a formal Sales Agency Agreement."



About EnviroSuite



EnviroSuite is a unique cloud-based solution addressing a range of operational management and environmental compliance issues across the resources, ports, hospitals, heavy industry and government sectors. EnviroSuite is the result of seven years of research development work and provides a range of predictive, real-time and historical analysis and reporting. Over 25 blue-chip clients have relied on EnviroSuite's mobile-enabled, modular and scalable platform since 2011. EnviroSuite was the 2015 winner of the Built Environment category at the Australian Technologies Competition and was also a finalist in the Mining Technology category.





About EnviroSuite Limited





EnviroSuite Limited (ASX:EVS) (FRA:57P) is an environmental management technology company that has developed a leading Software-as-Service platform which translates data into action in real-time.

Using proprietary algorithms built on more than 30 years of environmental consulting experience, Envirosuite's platform provides a range of environmental monitoring, management and investigative capabilities.

Envirosuite's platform is used worldwide by a range of clients in the mining, oil refining, transportation and water management industries and by governments looking to regulate industry in accordance with community well-being.

To learn more, please visit: https://www.envirosuite.com


Chairman's Address to Shareholders

Sydney, Nov 29, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Horizon Oil Limited ( ASX:HZN ) ( HZNFF:OTCMKTS ) is pleased to provide the company's Chairman's address and CEO's presentation to shareholders.



In the 2016 year, the Company enjoyed the strong underlying operating performance of its Block 22/12 and Maari oil fields.



Shareholders will note that production and sales increased year-on-year to over 1.35 million barrels of oil, generating revenue of US$76 million. The beneficial impact of the low operating costs of the Company's production assets, US$12.90/bbl in 2016, and its oil price hedging policy led to EBITDAX of US$54 million in a depressed oil price environment.



The board and management continued an aggressive and deliberate response to continued low oil prices which reached their low point in January this year.



Capital expenditure was reduced by 68% to US$24.5 million and continues to be reduced. Operating costs were further reduced, particularly in Block 22/12.



Similarly, the Company continued its debt reduction program through the year, repaying 25% of both the convertible bonds and senior debt from cash reserves, and thereafter further reduced the debt levels with the successful refinancing of the remaining convertible bonds in September 2016 with a US$50 million subordinated secured debt facility from our major shareholder IMC. The loan required issuing 300 million warrants to IMC which, if exercised will serve to repay the debt. In that case there will be dilution to shareholders of 18.7%, which we consider to be acceptable in the current market. As a result of that facility, the Company's near term borrowingrelated obligations were greatly reduced and average debt maturities were extended approximately 3 years.



The Company's exposure to future oil price volatility has been mitigated by hedging in excess of 1 million barrels of oil to March 2018 at prices between US$50 and US$56/bbl, locking in revenue of US$56m.



These actions, together with the strong underlying high margin oil production, have greatly enhanced the certainty and stability of the Company's future cashflow and facilitate the continued reduction of the Company's net debt from free cashflow.



As demonstrated by the key performance measures, Horizon Oil's production over the last 3 years has exceeded 1.3 million barrels of oil per annum and, while clearly affected by the fall in oil prices, the Company has continued to generate revenue and net operating cashflow at robust levels. Production and income levels will be sustained into the future, taking into account the material cost recovery oil entitlement in Beibu Gulf, China which began in April 2016.



Financial year highlights



Performance



- 3% increase in production from prior year to 1,354,982 barrels, 13% increase in sales to 1,376,069 barrels at an average realised price (inclusive of hedging) of US$55.19 per barrel, generating revenue of US$76.0 million



Production



- Combined production rate of Maari and Beibu Gulf fields ~3,900 bopd net to Horizon Oil at year end



- Cumulative gross oil production since commencement, as at 30 June 2016: Maari field 31.6 million barrels; Beibu Gulf fields 12.3 million barrels



Profit & Loss



- An underlying profit of US$3.0 million, excluding the impact of US$147.5 million non-cash impairment writedowns. Impairment charge primarily results from low oil price and brings carrying values inline with the recent independent valuation ranges



- EBITDAX of US$54.0 million



Capex



- Capex spending was reduced by ~68% from prior year to US$24.5 million, US$17.5 million of the spending was related to finalisation of development work in New Zealand and an appraisal/development well in China



Debt



- Horizon Oil and its major shareholder, IMC Investments Limited, executed a subordinated secured nonamortising debt facility of US$50 million to refinance the remaining US$58.8 million convertible bonds, subject to shareholder approval.



- Early redemption of US$21.2 million of 5.5% convertible bonds in the year, realising a US$1.2 million gain



- Net debt at 30 June 2016: US$131.8m (US$128.3 net of capitalised transaction costs)



Key achievements 2016



- Robust revenue and cashflow maintained, resulting from strong production performance from China and New Zealand fields



- Effect of low oil prices significantly mitigated by oil price hedging program and onset of cost recovery oil entitlement in Beibu Block 22/12



- Further material reductions achieved in field operating costs, exploration and development capital expenditure and net G&A expense



- US$80m in convertible bonds repaid from cash and a US$50m subordinated, non-amortising loan from IMC



- Planning for WZ 12-8E field development in Beibu advanced to FEED stage



- Good progress on advancing large gas and condensate resources in Papua New Guinea towards commercialisation



Priorities for 2017



Corporate



- Continued focus on reduction of overall gearing levels



- Maintenance of low capex profile and G&A over the course of FY17



Block 22/12, offshore China



- Optimise production from existing well bores and continue to reduce operating cost



- Progress Beibu Gulf Phase II development plan for the WZ 12-8E oil accumulation, integrating WZ 12-10-1 and WZ 12-3-1 discoveries, with aim of submission of Overall Development Plan in early 2017



Maari/Manaia, offshore New Zealand



- Further optimisation of oil production through workover program following completion of the Maari Growth Projects Program



- Complete repairs to field water injection system and to fatigue crack on cross member of wellhead platform



- Finalise insurance recoveries in relation to facility repairs and upgrades associated with the FPSO Raroa's mooring system



PDL 10 (Stanley), PRL 21 (Elevala/Tingu/Ketu), onshore Papua New Guinea



- Progress arrangements for sales of Stanley gas to regional PNG industrial consumers, while refining project costs



- Progress feasibility study for the Western Province-based greenfield mid-scale LNG project - "Western LNG", while monitoring other gas commercialisation opportunities in the region. Key specific objectives are:



-- Advance pipeline and liquefaction components design



-- Investigate market opportunities for LNG



-- Commence planning to finance project



To view the address and presentation, please visit:

http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/E94O5S53





About Horizon Oil Ltd





Horizon Oil Limited (ASX:HZN) (OTCMKTS:HZNFF) is an ASX-listed petroleum exploration and production company, with a geographic focus on the Asia-Pacific region. The company currently produces over 4,000 barrels of oil per day net from its fields in New Zealand and China, which generated over US$80 million in net operating income after operating expense for the year ended 30 June 2015. Further development candidates remain in and around these producing fields.

Horizon Oil maintains prudent policies of oil price hedging and loss of production insurance to ensure that sufficient cash flow is generated to meet the funding requirements of its growth program.

The company holds a large undeveloped reserves and contingent resource position in Western Province, onshore Papua New Guinea. These are liquids-rich gas resources and reflect Horizon Oils strategy to focus on Asian gas for growth. Gas constitute about 2/3 of the reserves and resource base. Commercialisation pathways for the gas are emerging.

Although Horizon Oil anticipates continuing strong cash generation over the medium term from its existing producing fields, these developed reserves account for only 10% of total reserves and resource base. The focus going forward will be on new field development, funded largely from existing production cash flow.


Celebrates Shopee's First Anniversary

Perth, Nov 29, 2016 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Flexiroam Limited ( ASX:FRX ) is pleased to announce that its wholly owned subsidiary Flexiroam Asia Limited ("Flexiroam") has signed a partnership agreement with Shopee Mobile Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. ("Shopee").



Shopee is the number one mobile marketplace in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, where everyone can browse, shop and sell. It is a platform tailored for Southeast Asia, making online shopping easy, secure, and fuss-free through its strong payment and logistical support.



Flexiroam will be participating in Shopee's first anniversary celebration as a sponsor. As an official partner, Flexiroam's brand and logo will be featured on Shopee's marketing channels, including its mobile app and social media platforms.



Shopee has over 25 million app downloads and 65 million listings across seven markets with sales turnover of US$1.8 billion (A$2.4 billion) annualized Gross Merchandise Value (GMV). With Shopee's presence in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, Flexiroam anticipates a significant rise in brand visibility across the region. Currently, Shopee has over 20 million users in the Southeast Asia region and Taiwan, which can be leveraged by Flexiroam to increase brand awareness and also broaden its user base.



Regional Managing Director of Shopee, Ian Ho adds, "We are pleased to partner with Flexiroam, the leading provider of global roaming services for Shopee's first anniversary campaign. With a customer first focus, we take great pains to identify partners who can offer services that would also benefit the over 2 million Shopee users in Malaysia. We hope that this partnership will be the first of many fruitful collaborations between both parties. Flexiroam's exclusive giveaways will be featured in both website and app throughout our campaign."





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
A roundup of our favorite recent tax fraud cases.

Brandon, Miss.: Preparer Kushauntia Jones, owner of Mobile Express Tax and Accounting Service, has been sentenced to 20 years in jail after pleading guilty to tax evasion and computer fraud.

In June 2015 the Mississippi Department of Revenue began investigating Mobile after noticing numerous irregularities on income tax returns the company prepared. Investigators spoke with Jones, who was unable to explain the questionable returns and was unable to provide any documentation that she relied on in preparing the returns.

The only explanation she was able to offer was that she suffered a computer problem that may have incorrectly populated certain fields on the returns.

Investigators then spoke with numerous Mobile clients and found that they were unaware of the fraudulent returns submitted on their behalf. Investigators also determined that Jones would prepare a written return with the proper information and would present the correct return to the taxpayer for their signature and records.

Jones would then e-file a fraudulent return to the Mississippi Department of Revenue and the U.S. Treasury where she would increase the amount of the refund owed to the taxpayer. Jones would then direct the state and federal government to deposit the additional funds into her business account.

Investigators found that for 2013 and 2014 Jones had illegally collected more than $300,000 in overstated refunds, that she used the funds for personal expenses, and that she failed to claim the amount on her personal income tax returns.

Xenia, Ohio: Preparer Robert Coates, 42, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release and been ordered to pay $445,450 restitution to the IRS for filing false claims for income tax refunds, according to published reports.

Between January and July 2012 Coates filed false claims for income tax refunds with the IRS and filed fraudulent returns on behalf of individuals referred to Coates by other taxpayers or for those who responded to a flyer Coates distributed in and around Xenia, according to cited IRS information.

Coates enticed individuals to allow him to file their returns by explaining that they would receive a refund even if they did not work or were receiving disability payments, the IRS reportedly added. Unbeknownst to the taxpayers, Coates reportedly included fraudulent amounts of income in the form of household help income to maximize the Earned Income Tax Credit and generate a refund. In addition, news outlets said, Coates included fraudulent amounts of qualified educational expenses to generate a refundable education credit.

Coates reportedly filed these returns knowing that the household help income amounts and qualified education expenses were fraudulent and the claimed income tax credits and refunds were fraudulent. He collected his fee by diverting a portion of the income tax refund into one or more bank accounts that he controlled, reports added.

In total, Coates reportedly filed at least 170 false income tax returns for the 2011 income tax year, causing a tax loss of $445,450, of which $167,422.63 was directed into his bank accounts.

Phoenix: Preparer Paula Anthony has been convicted of multiple charges in a fraud scheme that authorities told news outlets netted more than $312,000.

The IRS reportedly said that the fake returns contained taxpayers names and personal information along with fabricated reported wages, but inflated federal withholdings to generate a large refund.

Sentencing is Feb. 13, reports added.
What is a Language Processing Disorder?

A language processing disorder (LPD) is an impairment that negatively affects communication through spoken language. There are two types of LPDpeople with expressive language disorder have trouble expressing thoughts clearly, while those with receptive language disorder have difficulty understanding others.

One person with a language disorder might find it difficult to speak extemporaneously or outline what they are thinking, while another person might struggle to understand what others are saying, to follow directions, or to maintain attention.

You know the feeling: Youre in the middle of telling a great story when suddenly the word youre looking gets stuck on the tip of your tongue. Or youre 10 minutes into a conversation before you realize you havent taken in a word the other person is saying. For most people, these brief mental slipups can be annoying, but for someone with an expressive or receptive language disorder, they can be a constant reality. And the cumulative effect of a lifetime of communication difficulties can be devastating.

Language disorders are more common than you may think. Experts estimate that up to 5 percent of children in the United States have some type of language disorder  though many remain undiagnosed  and currently more than 1 million children are receiving special education specific to language disorders in the U.S. public school system.

If a language disorder isnt caught early or is misdiagnosed, it can create wide-reaching complications in a persons life  complications that often extend from childhood to adulthood. Social situations, for example, can be challenging for someone with either a receptive or an expressive language disorder. Difficulties with self-expression or with comprehension of what others are saying can cause someone to withdraw or endure being ostracized. In severe situations, a child with a language disorder may become so frustrated at his inability to make himself understood that he lashes out at adults or other children  earning him the label of bully or problem child.

[Self-Test: Could Your Child Have a Language Processing Disorder?]

Types of Language Processing Disorders

There are two types of language disorders: expressive and receptive. People with expressive language disorders have a difficult time expressing their thoughts. Those with receptive language disorders struggle to understand what others are saying or to follow a conversation. Its also possible to suffer from a combination of expressive and receptive language disorders.

Language disorders are most often developmental, like other learning disabilities. However, they can also start to manifest as a result of a neurological illness or a traumatic event affecting the brain, such as a stroke or a head injury. When language disorders are caused by specific damage to the brain, theyre referred to as aphasia.

Symptoms of Language Processing Disorders

While language disorders vary widely from person to person, the condition usually follows general developmental patterns and guidelines. For starters, when a child is born with a language disorder, he or she is often a late talker, with other symptoms usually appearing before age 4. Though language disorders are sometimes diagnosed in those with intellectual disabilities, they most often appear in those with average or above-average intelligence  though those with language disorders may find they have trouble demonstrating that intelligence to the outside world.

If a language disorder is mild, its symptoms may be difficult to detect. The person may just appear a little spacey or even shy. Look for the following basic symptoms that may indicate a language disorder. If you notice these symptoms in yourself or your child, talk with your doctor or the staff at your childs school.

Someone with an expressive language disorder will:

Have a limited vocabulary for their age

Use a lot of filler words like um, or use stuff and things instead of more specific words

Confuse verb tenses

Repeat phrases when telling a story or answering a question

Frequently say sentences that dont make sense

Have trouble learning new words

Feel like words are constantly stuck at the tip of their tongue

Often seem frustrated by their inability to communicate thoughts

Someone with a receptive language disorder might:

Seem disinterested in conversations or social situations

Have difficulty following directions

Often misunderstand what is asked and answer or act inappropriately

Have difficulty getting jokes

Seem shy or withdrawn

If someone exhibits symptoms from both lists, its possible he or she has a combination expressive/receptive language disorder.

[What Do Language Processing Disorders Look Like in Adults?]

Diagnosing Language Processing Disorders

If youve noticed some of the above language processing disorder symptoms and think you or your child may have a language disorder, the next step is to get a professional evaluation. Language disorders can be frequently misdiagnosed  they are often misidentified as ADHD, autism, or even just laziness  so its important to work with someone who is familiar with speech and language development.

You have a few options. If youre worried about a child who has yet to attend school, you can get a free evaluation through your states Early Intervention (EI) program. If a language disorder is identified, EI staff will help you develop an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP), which supports your child until age 3. An IFSP lays out what services your child should receive and what parents and specialists expect the progress to look like. Parents are a key component in developing and executing IFSPs, so educate yourself and prepare to advocate on your childs behalf.

If your child has already started school by the time you notice language delays, you can seek support from the public school system  even if your child is enrolled in private school. You can formally request that the school conduct an evaluation with a speech therapist at no cost to you. If the school feels there is no need for an evaluation or that your child is developing within normal ranges, they can deny your request. If this happens, you will receive a written notification that the school has denied your request along with information on your options. At this point, you can request a hearing to appeal the schools decision or work with a private speech and language specialist. Even if the school provides an evaluation, you have the right to work with a private specialist if you choose. This option is often more expensive, but it does offer advantages, such as more flexible scheduling and individualized attention.

If you suspect you or another adult has a language disorder  whether developmental or as the result of a brain injury  its still best to act quickly. Its important to seek a diagnosis from a professional trained in language disorders; if youre unsure where to start, your primary care physician should be able to refer you. If cost is an issue, consider looking into local universities, which may provide free or low-cost evaluations for adults as part of their speech-language training program.

Most speech therapists test for language disorders in similar ways. Its important for you or your child to be tested in the language with which youre most comfortable  even if its not the language you speak on a daily basis. Difficulty with a second language is not necessarily a sign of a language disorder. A pediatric speech therapist should interact with and observe your child in various situations, as well as interview you to determine if your communication skills may be contributing to a childs language delays. For an adult diagnosis, your speech therapist may interview your partner or other close family members to get a sense of how your language skills affect your interactions. They may also try different therapy methods, to gauge how you or your child responds and begin to determine an effective treatment strategy.

Treatment Options for Language Processing Disorders

If the speech therapist finds that you or your child has a language disorder, she will work with you to set up a treatment plan, which usually includes speech therapy. If the language disorder has negatively affected the patients social and academic growth in dramatic ways  which is more likely the older they are at the time of diagnosis  its possible that psychotherapy will be recommended as well.

Starting speech therapy early is the best way to handle language disorders, but if you think either you or your child was delayed in getting the help you need, dont despair. Countless studies have shown that as many as 70 percent of patients respond to speech therapy, and while the rate of success is higher for young children, most older children and even adults achieve good results when working with a skilled speech therapist.

[How to Treat Language Processing Disorders]
Only 25 per cent entrepreneurs have a defined second line of management, according to an Ascent-EY report, titled How ready are entrepreneurs for the journey of scalable growth? The report was released at the first experiential learning conclave, themed Growth. Disruption. Entrepreneur, hosted by Ascent, a peer-to-peer platform for entrepreneurs.

It was unveiled by Harsh Mariwala, Chairman, Marico, and Founder, Ascent; Uday Kotak, Executive Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank; and Pinakiranjan Mishra, Partner and National Leader  Retail and Consumer Products, EY.

According to the report, although driving scalable growth is challenging, it is not impossible. Entrepreneurs often feel stretched in all directions as the business starts growing, and at times they find themselves in uncharted territories. While the journey is interesting, it is a lonely one for the entrepreneur.

The report stressed on the importance of entrepreneurs focussing on and investing in building capabilities around the discussed seven key drivers right from the beginning of the venture. It is never too late to relook at some areas where dedicated attention is needed to accelerate growth going ahead.

Also, being part of support groups will help entrepreneurs to build insights and resolve challenges, develop innovative solutions, build connections and, more importantly, have companions on their growth journey.

Commenting on the report, Harsh Mariwala said, We are proud to partner with EY and hope that entrepreneurs across India, as well as globally can gain valuable insights from the report. For me, the biggest and most interesting take away is the fact that investment in different processes which support customer centricity, leadership planning and operational efficiency, has a multiplier effect on the business and provides disproportionately higher returns to the entrepreneur.

The report aims to understand entrepreneurs readiness for scalable growth and the challenges they face in doing so across seven parameters  customer, leadership, people, operations, finance and transactions, risk management, and technology.

Pinakiranjan Mishra added here, Entrepreneurs need to understand that achieving growth is not enough; it also needs to be scalable for long term sustainability and success. Amongst the seven drivers of the growth maturity model, they seem to be doing quite well in understanding customers and managing operations. Entrepreneurs will also need to focus on the other five drivers in order to be successful.

The report found that people who invest in these seven drivers see a higher financial success as compared to others. For instance:

 Companies that offer customer-centric solutions (75 per cent respondents) have twice the average revenue size of companies that do not have such solutions

 Companies that have set up a strong second line of management (25 per cent respondents) have 3.5 times higher average revenue size compared to companies who do not have a second line of management

 Companies who have a total rewards mechanism (10 per cent respondents) have 15 per cent higher employee productivity when compared to companies who do not have total rewards

 Companies who segregate core and non-core activities (75 per cent respondents) have approximately four times higher average revenue size vis-a-vis companies that do not segregate

 Mid-sized companies who have investors on board register 1.7 times higher growth compared to companies who do not have investors

 50 per cent of the companies with a strong corporate governance structure (10 per cent respondents) have managed to attract external investors, as opposed to approximately 10 per cent companies who do not have a corporate governance structure in place

 Companies who used technology to drive growth have registered three times higher average revenue size compared to companies that do not use technology.

Ascent, with EY as its Process Partner, announced the winners of the Ascent Awards 2016, recognising their own members in three categories:

Entrepreneur of the year: Sanjaya Mariwala, OmniActive Health Technologies

Business Innovation of the year: Atul Tibrewala, Cartridge Junction (India) Pvt. Ltd.

Growth Strategy of the year

Early Growth Stage: Siddharth Upadhyaya, My Fitness Wallet Pvt. Ltd

Mid Growth Stage: Chaaya Baradhwaaj, BC Web Wise Pvt. Ltd.

High Growth Stage: Vikram Bhatt, Enrich Salon

The Ascent Conclave 2016 brought together the countrys best thought leaders, change-makers and innovators and the speakers included Uday Kotak (Kotak Mahindra Bank), Ronnie Screwvala (Founder, Unilazer Ventures and Swades Foundation), Vijay Shekhar Sharma (Founder, PayTM), Falguni Nayar (Founder, Nykaa), Ashish Hemrajani (Chief Executive Officer, BookMyShow), Sandeep Singhal (Co-founder, Nexus Venture Partners), Neeraj Kakkar (Chief Executive Officer, Hector Beverages), and Sasha Mirchandani (Chief Executive Officer, Kae Capital).
DJUBO, the fastest growing hotel tech product company in India now partners with Stayzilla, the largest homestay aggregator. DJUBO is the first direct API integration partner of Stayzilla.

DJUBO have relationship with 1400+ hotel clients within a year of its launch wherein Stayzilla is the widest network of accommodations in India with 55,000+ listings across 4500+ destinations.

DJUBO has its clients across 120 cities of India and manages more than 5,000 room nights every single day. Its client list ranges from 5 star hotels like Piccadilly Group, Palaces of India and Tree of Life luxury Resorts to 4 star chains like Sanda Group to 3 star chains like Stride Group, Summit Group, UNA Group, Leisure Group along with hundreds of independent and character hotels.

Typically DJUBO clients witness growth in revenues of 30%-40% within a short duration of adoption. However their full revenue potential needs better services in turn leading to better reviews and feedbacks for which DJUBO is continuing to innovate.

Stayzilla.com - the platform caters to both home owners and travelers looking for differentiated, unique stay experiences. Stayzilla offers special selective community feature on the app that matches hosts and guests by their preferences and shared interests.

Tarun Gulati, co-founder, DJUBO said, DJUBO and Stayzilla are trying to bring the long tail hospitality businesses and entrepreneurs online. While Stayzilla is solving their demand through their online portal which has the largest number of listings in India, DJUBO is trying to help them manage their rates, inventories across all such online portals and also helping them manage day to day operational tasks. DJUBO is also trying to innovate on the financing for such hotels as well as managing their online reputation and many such announcements are on the way.

Yogendra Vazupal, CEO, Stayzilla said, Stayzilla is extremely happy to partner with DJUBO as their first official API integration partner for direct connectivity with Stayzilla properties because DJUBO through its tech offerings helps these accommodations manage their property, bookings, invoicing, check-ins, checkouts and also rate and inventory through a real time cloud based smartphone and web based app. Together Stayzilla and DJUBO are a natural fit to help bring the long tail hospitality industry online in India.
Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd., one of Indias leading paint companies has released a new campaign for the Impressions range of High Definition paints starring their brand ambassador Shah Rukh Khan.

Kansai Nerolacs Impressions range is the first of its kind premium interior emulsion in India that comes with a high definition colour technology setting it apart from competitors. The ad highlights the common practice of inviting people home to win them over.

The ad film opens with Shah Rukh Khan and his wife, standing in front of their neighbours car frowning at the scratch they have made on it. Shah Rukh leaves an apology note under the wiper of the car mentioning his apartment number.

SRKs wife objects, confused about why he is doing so, to which he confidently replies Ghar Bulake toh Dekho... (Let us invite them over and see.)

The irate neighbours, whose car had been damaged, barge into Shah Rukhs home demanding an explanation, but stop dumbstruck by the beauty of the walls of Shah Rukhs home painted with Kansai Nerolacs Impressions range.

The neighbours cant help but admire the gorgeous interiors of the house. The colours stand out radiantly with every shade in high definition. As the neighbours walk around admiring the beautiful walls, Shah Rukh offers to pay for the damages to their car.

However, the neighbours are so overwhelmed by the beauty of the walls that that they cut Shah Rukh off midsentence refusing to take money for the repairs adding that the apology was more than enough. The ad ends with the two couples engaged in light-hearted conversation as Shah Rukh smiles indulgently at his wife reiterating, Kaha tha na, unhe ghar bulaake toh dekho...

Speaking about the new TVC, Mr Anuj Jain, Director, Decorative Division, Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd, said Our homes are the backdrop for celebrations and the true reflection of our character

We culturally gravitate towards inviting people we want to please or build lasting relationships with, to our homes. A key factor that influences this decision is the appearance of our homes.

An impressive home multiplies our confidence manifold. This is where Nerolacs Impressions range of high definition paints for home interiors works its magic.

Nerolac Impressions has been winning hearts with its beautiful high definition finish and unmatched brightness thanks to a special technology that incorporates Micro Embedded Brightness Boosters in the paint. This ensures a lasting premium finish giving home owners the confidence, that no matter what the situation, their home stands resolutely behind them, looking lovely as ever!

The Ghar Bulaake toh dekho campaign reiterates this assurance that using Nerolac Impressions will brighten your home and life, giving you the confidence to take on difficult situations with ease.

Shah Rukh Khan, brand ambassador Kansai Nerolac Paints, said, Endorsing Nerolacs Healthy Home Paints range has been a pleasure. From leading the paint industry in adopting Low VOC and No Lead added paints, to introducing cutting edge technology for better performance and an unmatched finish Nerolac continues to understand and respond to evolving consumer needs.

Nerolac Impressions range of paints with its high definition finish satisfies consumers deep rooted desire for a home that sets itself apart and is widely appreciated. The TVC was fun to work on and conveys simply how using this product can help you overcome tricky situations with elan.

Mr. Surjo Dutt, National Creative Director, FCB Ulka said, "I looked at the new campaign as an opportunity to open doors and extend a warm welcome to the world to come and experience the magic of Nerolac Impressions HD paints; hence the thought Ghar Bula Ke To Dekho.

What better way to reach out to the audience than narrate a story that they can relate to? So there! We have the incident of a car scratch, and I am sure most of us have felt the agony of that at some point or the other. This is where HD paints work its charm to turn an adverse situation around and change impressions for the better. SRK of course leverages our objective and adds to the effectiveness of the TVC."

Client: Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd

Duration of Films: 35 sec

Creative Agency: FCB Ulka

Ad Director: Razneesh Ghai (Razy)

Chief Creative Officer: Swati Bhattacharya

Creative Team: Surjo Dutt, Donovan Dsouza, Priyanka Surve, Romit Nair, Rajdatta Ranade

Account Management: Kulvinder Ahluwalia, Sharon Picardo, Sayantani Ghosh

Account Planning: Saad Khan, Samhita Mishra, Shireen Bhat, Anushka Singh

Films Team: Alpa Jobalia, Stanley Christian
ABOF.com announced the launch of Indias first athleisure fashion brand, SKULT, in October which is exclusively available on its portal  abof.com. This brand is in partnership with actor Shahid Kapoor, who has built an iconic reputation amongst Indias youth. SKULT, built on the principle of Fashion meets functionality and Design meets Innovation, is an evolved style of athleisure which draws inspiration from all around the world but adapted for Indian sensibilities and body types.

abof.com has taken this street-wear hybrid trend to next level with the launch of SKULT which stands for Shahid + Cult. SKULTs athleisure collection is unconventional, highly voguish, yet easy to carry and more importantly reminds consumer something about Shahids personality in each of its piece. Given the high energy launch and its unique collection, the brand has already generated a large hype and of curiosity.

Skult, the eccentric brand confided Laqshya Solutions, the Outdoor specialists to reinforce the brands stature louder and wider. The task in hand was to bring the message of the campaign live along with creating a lasting impression of the brand with its TG.

Laqshya has done a brilliant job in making SKULT reach out to the malemillennials in Bangalore, Mumbai, Goa, Chandigarh, Guhuwati, Mangalore, Surthkal & Manipal with a heavy focus and skew towards the E-Commerce shoppers universe. A lot of insights were put in place to arrive at the pockets that would have the best of impact on the potential customers. Abof along with the agency worked on a task to cover this huge young and mobile turf that are busy, always on the go and are open to out of box approach. The creative on display was Skult showcasing its brand ambassador Shahid who is admired and most loved by the youth and who very closely resonates the cult attitude.

With the strategy in hand, abof had to reach out to the specialized youth centric pockets who prefers shopping at the tip of their fingers. With prime focus on the multiple touchpoints that guaranteed the most impactful congregation of TG to identifying the crucial Arterial routes that were part of their daily routine, Laqshya mapped the media units in place to get the best picture to reach out on scale and influence. Laqshya cleverly handpicked the panoramic sites which could magnify the campaigns reach and would help spread the brands message.

The selected media units looked compelling with the brand message Skult by Shahid Kapoor in a brilliant black & white creative that were scattered across the key markets at all prime locations to create the unmissable outdoor view. The Media units deployed for the outdoor plan were intelligently planned keeping in mind the TG movements. The communication kept hitting them on every arterial routes superimposing the brand. The month long campaign has already created a lot of buzz amongst the TG and with each passing day, the noise is becoming louder.

Speaking about the campaigns success, Mr. Naresh Bhandari, Senior VP-Laqshya Solutions said, the campaign is undoubtedly the most talked about campaign on Outdoors these days. By creating exclusive and larger than life portrayal of the brand, the campaign has been successfully grabbing eyeballs. Our team has delivered a plan thats high on notice ability and impact. With a month to go, the brand will enjoy a very good brand salience.

We are extremely excited to partner with Shahid Kapoor in creating Indias first athleisure fashion brand. The early response is very positive", said Ashim Chatterjee, Chief Marketing Officer, abof.com. We were happy to partner with Laqshya for the launch of the SKULT brand," said Ashim Chatterjee, Chief Marketing Officer, abof.com. The Laqshya team helped us select the best outdoor sites in different cities which have helped amplify the launch, he added.
Singapore office will tap rising interest from Asian investors in equity crowdfunding

Move follows partnership with UOB and SassCorp in Singapore

OurCrowd, a global leader in equity crowdfunding, announced today that it has opened an office in Singapore, its seventh worldwide, to serve the growing community of Asian investors interested in funding early stage high-growth companies. It has appointed Denes Ban, a successful entrepreneur and technology executive, as Managing Partner Asia and head of OurCrowds Singapore Management company.

The move follows OurCrowds announcement earlier this year that it has partnered with United Overseas Bank (UOB) and Sassoon Investment Corporation (SassCorp) to pursue equity crowdfunding for startups and SMEs in the region. OurCrowd also received a formal license to begin operating in Singapore from the Monetary Authority of Singapore in August 2016.

Asia is one of our fastest growing markets and following our launch in Singapore, we will be looking to take OurCrowd further into the ASEAN market, said OurCrowd CEO Jon Medved. Our business in Asia has grown five times since 2014, both in terms of the number of investors on the platform and investment dollars committed on our platform.

Medved added that OurCrowds Asian funding now represents over half of the funding recently invested on the site.

He added: Asia more broadly, and Singapore in particular, is becoming a globally-recognized financial hub for the next generation of innovative technology companies. We expect to tap into exciting new deal flow, as well as bring more and more Asian investors to join us in funding global technology companies.

In just over three years, OurCrowd has established itself as a major international force in the equity crowdfunding industry, investing over US$320 million from its "crowd" of 16,000 accredited investors in its portfolio of 100 companies and five funds, which span major investment sectors including Mobility and Transportation, Machine Learning, Cybersecurity, Digital Health, Agtech, Big Data, and Robotics.

Denes Ban said: We are excited to be operating in Singapore, which is fast becoming a leading global fintech center. We look forward to strengthening our winning team of UOB and the Sassoon family by adding new Singapore partners, investors, and portfolio companies. At this months MAS Singapore Fintech Festival, OurCrowd portfolio company BioCatch won the Global Fintech Award from among 200 competing companies and received a S$150,000 cash prize. OurCrowd also partnered with UOB and KPMG to organize a pitch fever session at the Festival for entrepreneurs, corporate partners and investors.

Medved and Ban will outline future plans for their activities in the region at a cocktail event today in Singapore for over 100 investors, hosted by Mr. Victor and Mrs. Michelle Sassoon.

About OurCrowd: OurCrowd is the leading global equity crowdfunding platform for accredited investors. Managed by a team of seasoned investment professionals and led by serial entrepreneur Jon Medved, OurCrowd vets and selects opportunities, invests its own capital, and brings companies to its accredited membership of global investors. OurCrowd provides post-investment support to its portfolio companies, assigns industry experts as mentors, and takes board seats. The OurCrowd community of almost 16,000 investors from over 110 countries has invested over $320M into 100 portfolio companies and funds. OurCrowd has already had nine exits to date: two IPOs and seven acquisitions. To join OurCrowd as an accredited investor, visit http://www.ourcrowd.com and click Join.

About United Overseas Bank: United Overseas Bank Limited (UOB) is a leading bank in Asia with a global network of more than 500 offices in 19 countries and territories in Asia Pacific, Western Europe and North America. Since its incorporation in 1935, UOB has grown organically and through a series of strategic acquisitions. UOB is rated among the worlds top banks: Aa1 by Moodys and AA- by Standard & Poors and Fitch Ratings respectively. In Asia, UOB operates through its head office in Singapore and banking subsidiaries in China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, as well as branches and representative offices. UOB plays an active role in the community, focusing on art, children and education. It has, over more than three decades, held the longest-running art competition in Singapore, the UOB Painting of the Year, which has since been extended across Southeast Asia. In recognition of its contributions to the arts, UOB was conferred the Singapore National Arts Councils Distinguished Patron of the Arts Award for the eleventh consecutive year in 2015. UOB also encourages its employees across the region to be involved in its regular volunteer activities. This includes the annual UOB Heartbeat Run which is held in China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

About Sassoon Investment Corporation: SassCorp is the family investment holding vehicle of the Sassoon family. Headquartered in Singapore, it has offices in Los Angeles and Jakarta, and is focused on investment and operations across Southeast Asia and the United States and is invested in the retail, F&B, technology, real estate and education sectors.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161127005069/en/

Press:

Singapore

Catherine Ong, +65 96970007

cath@catherineong.com

or

Ronald Chong, +65 91721180

ronald@catherineong.com

or

U.S/Europe

Leah Stern, +44 747 0196826

leah@ourcrowd.com

or

Israel

Estee Yaari, +972-50-200-7072

estee.yaari@ourcrowd.com

or

For Press Materials

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Expanded agreement to bring new point-of-sale technology to United Kingdom customers

(TRUSTECH Stand #LER D 027)-- Verifone (NYSE:PAY), a world leader in payment and commerce solutions, has today announced a partnership extension with Worldpay, a leading payments company with global reach. The agreement will see continued delivery of Verifones payment and commerce innovation to Worldpays UK customers enabling them to offer the latest point-of-sale (POS) solutions, and creating a seamless payments experience.

This extended partnership builds on Verifone and Worldpays long-standing collaboration. It will also expand Worldpays current deployment of Verifone products, which are already used by thousands of businesses across the U.K. Under the agreement, Worldpay will work with Verifone to bring new POS technology to the market such as the VX690 portable device, a flexible solution that enables Wifi, GPRS and 3G-enabled connectivity. The VX690s ability to roll over between Wifi, GPRS and 3G ensures constant connectivity for merchants and its larger, clearer screen allows for a better presentation for value-added services.

Verifones solutions are capable of accepting a variety of payment methods including recent innovations such as Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay, giving consumers a frictionless POS experience. Worldpay and Verifone will also be working together to bring P2PE compliant solutions to U.K. retailers and deliver new multi-communication devices to customers.

June Felix, President Verifone Europe said: We are delighted to be strengthening our partnership with Worldpay. Verifone is perfectly positioned to help Worldpay assist their clients in growing their businesses. We are truly excited to work with Worldpay to drive greater value and a richer in-store experience to consumers. The 3-in-1 capabilities offered by the VX690 solution reduces the complexity and cost of handling three separate products that are needed today. 

Dave Hobday, Managing Director, Worldpay U.K. said: Worldpays aim is to help our customers grow by offering them reliable and secure ways to accept payments across all channels. We are pleased to be extending our partnership with Verifone, enabling our customers to access the very latest POS solutions, enabling them to sell more.

Providing our customers with the most secure and seamless payment technology is at the heart of our strategy. Becoming the first acquirer to offer a PCI P2PE Version 2 listing for our Worldpay Total omni-channel solution which will soon include Verifones VX820 device has been a key focus for the business. By working closely with partners like Verifone we aim to provide retailers with best-in-class security whilst relieving the burden of compliance.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for VeriFone Systems, Inc.

This press release includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current expectations or beliefs and on currently available competitive, financial and economic data and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements herein due to changes in economic, business, competitive, technological and/or regulatory factors, and other risks and uncertainties affecting the operation of the business of VeriFone Systems, Inc., including many factors beyond our control. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those associated with: successful execution of our partnership with Worldpay, execution of our strategic plan and business initiatives and whether the expected benefits of our plan and initiatives are achieved, short product cycles and rapidly changing technologies, our ability to maintain competitive leadership position with respect to our payment solution offerings, our assumptions, judgments and estimates regarding the impact on our business of the continued uncertainty in the global economic environment and financial markets, our ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses into our business and operations, our ability to protect against fraud, the status of our relationship with and condition of third parties such as our contract manufacturers, distributors and key suppliers upon whom we rely in the conduct of our business, our dependence on a limited number of customers, the conduct of our business and operations internationally, our ability to effectively hedge our exposure to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, and our dependence on a limited number of key employees. For a further list and description of the risks and uncertainties affecting the operations of our business, see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our annual report on Form 10-K and our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date such statements are made. Verifone is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise.

About Verifone

Verifone is transforming everyday transactions into opportunities for connected commerce. Were connecting payment devices to the cloudmerging the online and in-store shopping experience and creating the next generation of digital engagement between merchants and consumers. We are built on a 30-year history of uncompromised security with approximately 29 million devices and terminals deployed worldwide. Our people are known as trusted experts that work with our clients and partners, helping to solve their most complex payments challenges. We have clients and partners in more than 150 countries, including the worlds best-known retail brands, financial institutions and payment providers.

Verifone.com | (NYSE: PAY) | @verifone

About Worldpay

Worldpay is a leading payments company with global reach. We provide an extensive range of technology-led payment products and services to over 400,000 customers, enabling their businesses to grow and prosper. We manage the increasing complexity of the payments landscape for our customers, allowing them to accept the widest range of payment types around the world. Using our network and technology, we are able to process payments from geographies covering 99% of global GDP, across 146 countries and 126 currencies. We help our customers to accept more than 300 different payment types.

www.worldpay.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161127005034/en/

Verifone

Matt Tapsell, +44 (0)7920 378670

Head of Communication EMEA

matt.tapsell@verifone.com
Get AfricaFocus Bulletin by e-mail! Format for print or mobile Africa/Global: Overcoming the Shadow Economy AfricaFocus Bulletin

November 28, 2016 (161128)

(Reposted from sources cited below) Editor's Note "Knowledge of beneficial ownership of companies and bank accounts is fundamental, both to ensure taxation and also to prevent and prosecute crime and the money laundering that so often is associated with it. ... Corporations, trusts, and foundations are creations of the state--and as such, they have no inalienable rights. They are created to facilitate societal welfare, and to ensure that they do so, they need to be globally regulated--regulated in ways which ensure full knowledge of beneficial ownership and full compliance with all tax laws." - Joseph Stiglitz, in testimony to European Parliament Panama Papers inquiry Joseph Stiglitz and Mark Pieth decided to research and write their report on the policy implications of the Panama Papers, after resigning from the commission set up by the government of Panama on the issue. Their protest was against the failure of Panama to agree to publication of its own report, and that government's lack of will to engage in a transparent investigation. The Stiglitz-Pieth report has been hailed as a clear roadmap for global policy action on tax havens and illicit financial flows. Recognition of the need for such action has been growing rapidly around the world, fueled by exposures such as the Panama Papers and a host of other similar smaller exposes. But the authors stress that the road ahead will be difficult because of entrenched opposition. It will be made even more difficult by recent political developments favoring forces hostile to financial transparency and friendly to tax evasion and kleptocracy, most significantly the U.S. presidential election. Nevertheless, it is clear that the demands for curbing the drain of wealth into secret jurisdictions will continue, and that this is an essential front in movements for social justice and human rights. Lives saved or lost depend on how much can be "clawed back" from this global kleptocratic system to invest in urgent human needs, including health and education. On this front, Africa has provided an example worth wider global recognition and emulation, in a multitrack mobilization to "stop the bleeding," involving international and national government officials, civil society networks, investigative journalists, accounting and legal professionals, and others. This AfricaFocus Bulletin contains brief excerpts from testimony by Stiglitz to the European Parliament on his key conclusions. The full 25-page report is available at http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/iez/12922.pdf However, the bulk of this AfricaFocus Bulletin consists of a guide to priority resources on illicit financial flows and the Stop the Bleeding Africa campaign, including short videos, articles, reports, and more. This was compiled by Chris Root for the US-Africa Network and is also available on the USAN website: http://www.usafricanetwork.org Other key resources written as part of USAN's support for the Stop the Bleeding campaign include: "Top 10 Questions About Illicit Financial Flows and Africa," prepared by Anita Plummer (http://tinyurl.com/zz4xr53)

and "From #BlackLivesMatter to #StopTheBleeding Africa," written by Emily Williams and William Minter for Praxis (http://www.kzoo.edu/praxis), available at http://www.africafocus.org/docs16/iff1609.php For previous AfricaFocus Bulletin's on illicit financial flows and related issues, visit http://www.africafocus.org/intro-iff.php ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Announcement for those attending the African Studies Association conference in Washington, DC, December 1-3, 2016 Your AfricaFocus editor will be on two roundtable discussions: Friday December 2, from 1:002:30pm

"The Panama Papers and Stop the Bleeding Africa: Implications for US-Africa Relations"

Group Discussion (new format for AfricaNow! session)

Chaired by Bill Fletcher, Jr., and including Imani Countess, Anita Plummer, Emily Williams, and me

Location: Maryland A and Saturday, December 3, from 8:30-10:15 am

Roundtable: "Digital Tools of Dissent: Black Youth, Social Media and Social Justice" (Sponsored by the Association of Concerned Africa Scholars)

Chaired by Anita Plummer, with presentations by Msia Kibona-Clark, Phiwokuhle Nmyando, James Pope, Emily Williams, plus me as a discussant.

Location: Delaware A ++++++++++++++++++++++end editor's note+++++++++++++++++ European Parliament, 2014-2019 Committee of Inquiry into Money Laundering, Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion Exchange of views with Professor Joseph E. Stiglitz Wednesday, 16 November 2016 [Excerpts. Full transcript at http://tinyurl.com/zz4ytq7] In our report, Overcoming the Shadow Economy, Mark Pieth and I present foundational principles for all countries in setting nationally appropriate regulations. The intention of our Report was not to present concrete legislative proposals, but rather to show the magnitude of the task before the international community, and to argue that the international community needs to take a comprehensive approach, going well beyond those embodied in standard practices today. I will now explain these principles and a more detailed set of recommendations can be found in the Shadow Economy report. Secrecy has to be attacked globally--offshore and onshore. There can be no places to hide. The collection and exchange of information related to taxation, ownership, and illicit activities is a shared global responsibility. While the traditional gatekeepers of this information are financial institutions, addressing secrecy effectively will mean tackling the entire industry that facilitates secrecy--including the legal firms that have played a pivotal role in the creation of the web of corporations. Knowledge of beneficial ownership of companies and bank accounts is fundamental, both to ensure taxation and also to prevent and prosecute crime and the money laundering that so often is associated with it. Tax preferences are a privilege and not a right. Tax free zones provide opportunities for money laundering, and those operating in such zones should be held to a high standard. Corporations, trusts, and foundations are creations of the state--and as such, they have no inalienable rights. They are created to facilitate societal welfare, and to ensure that they do so, they need to be globally regulated--regulated in ways which ensure full knowledge of beneficial ownership and full compliance with all tax laws. Complexity contributes to lack of transparency. Those seeking secrecy understand this, and create complex webs of corporations and trusts, to make it more difficult for enforcement agencies to trace flows of illicit funds and to identify the true beneficiaries of illicit activities. This has two implications: (a) The international community should do what it can to impede the creation and maintenance of these complex webs; and (b) to effectively fight for transparency--to detect true beneficial ownership-- requires resources beyond those available to enforcement agencies. In our Report, we suggest concrete ways that this may be done. Transparency is a global public good, requiring global efforts. To facilitate these efforts, every country must maintain publicly searchable registries of the beneficial owners of each corporation, trust, foundation, or other entity. But even if such searchable registries are not made fully publicly accessible, they should be accessible by law enforcement agencies. These financial centers (both onshore and offshore) are creations of globalization--and should not be allowed to engage in regulatory and tax arbitrage. Doing so undermines the positive effects of globalization. If secrecy-havens serve as centers for tax avoidance and evasion or in any way facilitate corruption or illicit activities, they are acting as parasites, and should be cut off from the global financial community. What matters is not just passing laws and regulations, but enforcement. In the report, we elaborate on specific recommendations for legislative action, but emphasize that merely passing laws is insufficient. ... While the United States preach about the vices of the offshore centers, within their own borders there are pockets of secrecy where these bad practices continue. Although the United States recently adopted a Treasury rule (FinCEN) requiring financial operators to report the beneficial owner(s) of legal entity customers by 11 May 2018, this reporting is to government authorities only and no personal knowledge is necessary to verify the identity of the beneficial owner, only documentation. Additionally, the United States has yet to implement country-by-country reporting. There is a bill in Congress that requires this reporting through disclosures to the Securities and Exchange Commission, but it is still strongly opposed by business. And now with President Trump in office, the future of that bill is highly uncertain. Having said this, though, the major players--US and EU countries-- are key in tipping the balance toward transparency. These countries can effectively force others to comply with their standards, simply by threatening to cut off access to their financial system. And in fact, many in the United States have been calling for the government to break off all connections with jurisdictions not conforming to the global standards (even secrecy jurisdictions within their own territories), effectively shutting down all secrecy-havens. There is a widely shared perspective that these havens only exist because the United States and Europe have looked the other way--influenced by their own one percent. These major players have yet to pull the trigger, partly due to the delay in putting their own houses in order. Resources about Illicit Financial Flows from Africa US-Africa Network http://www.usafricanetwork.org / http://tinyurl.com/jsyg8el [Compiled September 2016] Tax Justice Network Africa, "Tax evasion" VIDEO 6 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PtNeR03PmQ

Talk by Alvin Mosioma, founding Director of Tax Justice NetworkAfrica: "More resources are flowing out of African countries than are flowing in These are deliberate economic designs We need to do something about it." March 2014. The Panama Papers: Victims of Offshore VIDEO 4 minutes https://panamapapers.icij.org/video/

Short case studies of bribery, arms deals, tax evasion, financial fraud, and sex trafficking revealed in the Panama Papers. Corporate taxes lost to Uganda exceed the country's health budget (starts at 2:06 in video). By International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The Power of Tax VIDEO 3.5 minute

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijtOErKjPMg

The case of Zambia Sugar shows how companies avoid paying taxes and the impact this has on the Zambian government and people. By ActionAid International. July 4, 2013. Stop the Bleeding campaign theme song VIDEO 4 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nDPKiWSTXI

Winner of 2016 Honesty Oscar for Best Song. Featured Artists: Livesoul, Synik, Pauline & The Kids; Credits: Music producer: Cutty Beats (for Legendary Africa); Creative Director: Briggs Bomba; Executive Producer: TrustAfrica Stop the Bleeding  Africa IFF Campaign Declaration and Call to Action

http://stopthebleedingafrica.org/sign/

The Campaign's statement critiques both illicit financial flows from Africa and methods corporations and individuals use "to illicitly siphon wealth from the continent [that] are perfectly legal yet illegitimate and unjust." The Demands encompass actions needed by both international institutions and African governments. More Resources 1. Overview: The problem of illicit financial flows from Africa Stop the Bleeding  Curbing Illicit Capital Flows VIDEO 16-minute https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lenH1SaOcIA

A summary of the findings of the High Level Panel report by several members of that panel. The video also highlights the significance of African civil society organizations working on this issue. By United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. The Panama Papers  What They Mean And Why They Are Important For Africa

http://www.taxjusticeafrica.net/en/2016/06/2487/

By Jason Braganza, Tax Justice Network-Africa Deputy Executive Director, June 6, 2016. Poverty Amidst Plenty: How Africans Are Robbed Of Benefits Of Mineral Wealth

http://tinyurl.com/z5uobfc

By Kwesi W. Obeng, Tax Justice Network-Africa Policy Lead in charge of Tax and Extractives, June 23, 2016. Report of the High Level Panel on Illicit Financial Flows from Africa REPORT

http://tinyurl.com/pxocw2z

Report of Commission chaired by Thabo Mbeki, commissioned by the African Union/United Nations Economic Commission on Africa Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, February 2015.(126 pages) Viewing #SwissLeaks through a Different Lens http://tinyurl.com/hw8tarc

A project of Financial Transparency Coalition and Christian Aid. The significance of illicit flow of money from Africa secretly deposited in offshore banks, considered as a proportion of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Measuring Corruption in Africa: The International Dimension Matters http://tinyurl.com/hb2gcwd

By United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, April 15, 2016.(124 pages) Corporate Tax is a Feminist Matter

http://tinyurl.com/jury7l2

By Maria Hengeveld. September 12, 2016 2. Cases of illicit financial flows from Africa Zambian miners paying more tax than mining company AUDIO PODCAST 5 minutes

https://youtu.be/uDo42IzCoSs Continent of Secrets: Uncovering Africa's Offshore Empires GAME http://tinyurl.com/jaro779

An online game about corporate profits from Africa going to offshore tax havens revealed by the Panama Papers. Hovering over each country shows examples. International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) Panama Papers Project

https://panamapapers.icij.org/

Browse for reports on revelations from the Panama Papers about illicit financial flows from Africa involving oil and gas, diamonds, other natural resources, and safari operators. Finance Uncovered

http://www.financeuncovered.org/home-1/blog/

Blog contains reporting on Africa about global financial flows, especially such issues as tax abuse, corruption, and money laundering. A Few Examples of Illicit Financial Flows cited in AfricaFocus Bulletins, 2013-2015

http://www.africafocus.org/docs15/iff1507.php Examples compiled by AfricaFocus, including Lonmin in South Africa,Philia (oil) in Congo (Brazzaville), mining companies in Sierra Leone, Swiss oil trading companies, Equatorial Guinea, South African diamonds, Nigerian oil, Zambia and the cost of tax avoidance, trade mis-invoicing, fisheries and forests, and tax havens. Liberia/Global: Financial Secrecy at Work http://www.africafocus.org/docs16/iff1606.php South Africa: Disappearing Diamond Revenue http://www.africafocus.org/docs14/dia1406.php Africa/Global: Accounting Tricks with Coca-Cola http://www.africafocus.org/docs16/coke1602.php Africa: Tax Tricks, Mobile Phones, and Beer http://www.africafocus.org/docs15/td1510.php The West African Giveaway: Use & Abuse of Corporate Tax Incentives in ECOWAS REPORT

http://tinyurl.com/pqu9x9e

By ActionAid International and Tax Justice Network-Africa, August 2015.(20 pages) 3. The international politics of stopping illicit capital flows Making Violence Visible: From #BlackLivesMatter to #StoptheBleeding Africa

http://www.kzoo.edu/praxis/making-violence-visible/

By Emily Williams and William Minter. Published by PraxisCenter, September 20, 2016. One year after Addis Ababa, rich countries blocking UN from working on tax, again

http://tinyurl.com/gvw252f

By Pooja Rangaprasad, Policy Coordinator for the Financial Transparency Coalition (FTC), and Christian Freymeyer, FTC's Press & Digital Media Officer. July 21, 2016 Why It Really Matters and The Hypocrisy of Immediate Reciprocity http://www.swissleaksreviewed.org/#why-it-matters

A project of Financial Transparency Coalition and Christian Aid Interview with Clark Gascoigne of the FACT Coalition by Sonali Kolhatkar VIDEO 17 minutes

https://vimeo.com/180932643

Gascoigne discusses the issue of tax havens, with the example of the Apple corporation tax payments to Ireland, and the loss of taxes in the U.S. due to tax havens. September 2016. The Shape of Battle to Come: Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) from Africa SLIDESHOW

http://tinyurl.com/jspfnfa

[Click on first presentation to download slideshow.]

By Dereje Alemayehu, Chair of the Global Alliance for Tax Justice, August 2015. 4. Organizations working on tax justice in Africa and elsewhere Tax Justice Network Africa

http://www.taxjusticeafrica.net/en/home/

A network of 29 members in 16 African countries established in 2007 and a member of the Global Alliance for Tax Justice Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TaxJusticeNetworkAfrica/ Stop the Bleeding

http://stopthebleedingafrica.org/

Campaign of six African-based civil society organizations to end illicit financial flows from Africa

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StoptheBleedingAfrica Campaign song video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nDPKiWSTXI FACT Coalition

http://thefactcoalition.org/

Washington, D.C.-based coalition lobbying and researching about tax evasion and avoidance, incorporation transparency, and anti-money laundering issues in the United States. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FACTCoalition Subscribe to listserv: http://tinyurl.com/huxd7s8 Global Alliance for Tax Justice

http://www.globaltaxjustice.org/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/globaltaxjustice Financial Transparency Coalition

https://financialtransparency.org/issues/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FinancialTransparencyCoalition 5. Other sources covering illicit financial flows and Africa Africa Focus: Illicit Financial Flows and Tax Justice http://www.africafocus.org/intro-iff.php

Links to Africa Focus bulletins with coverage of this issue; approximately monthly bulletins, beginning in June 2015. Tax Justice Network  Africa

http://www.taxjusticeafrica.net/ Global Financial Integrity

http://www.gfintegrity.org/ 6. Background readings Special issue of Association of Concerned Africa Scholars Bulletin, "Africa's Capital Losses: What Can Be Done?," Fall 2012(62 pages) http://concernedafricascholars.org/bulletin/issue87/, particularly: "Plundering a Continent" by Raymond Baker http://tinyurl.com/hw9zckr "Rich Presidents of Poor Nations: Capital Flight from Resource-Rich Countries in Africa " by Leonce Ndikumana and James K. Boyce http://tinyurl.com/zaad6kq "The Benefits of Country-by-Country Reporting" by Richard Murphy http://tinyurl.com/gpsfn4o Secret Offshore Deals Deprive Africa of Billions in Natural Resource Dollars

http://tinyurl.com/jn5tuvu

By Will Fitzgibbon July 25, 2016. The Panama Papers show politicians and mining, oil and gas interests benefit from secrecy and dubious multimillion dollar transfers. Still racing towards the bottom? Corporate tax Incentives in East Africa

http://tinyurl.com/hthr9dj

By ActionAid International and Tax Justice Network-Africa, June 2016. The Looting Machine: Warlords, Oligarchs, Corporations, Smugglers, and the Theft of Africa's Wealth BOOK

by Tom Burgis. London: William Collins, 2015. http://amzn.to/2gsbAEw

For understanding how the connections between Africa and the international partners in the system of illicit financial flows work, this book should be your first stop. Treasure Islands: Uncovering the Damage of Offshore Banking and Tax Havens BOOK

By Nicholas Shaxson. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. http://treasureislands.org/the-book/

An overview in very readable language. 2011. Prologue and part of chapter 1 can be read for free on Google books. Top Ten Books on Illicit Financial Flows, Tax Justice, and Africa http://www.africafocus.org/iff-books.php

The ten best books on this subject selected by William Minter, editor of AfricaFocus. Acronyms and Abbreviations about Illicit Financial Flows http://tinyurl.com/zqlshk5 AfricaFocus Bulletin is an independent electronic publication providing reposted commentary and analysis on African issues, with a particular focus on U.S. and international policies. AfricaFocus Bulletin is edited by William Minter. AfricaFocus Bulletin can be reached at africafocus@igc.org. Please write to this address to subscribe or unsubscribe to the bulletin, or to suggest material for inclusion. For more information about reposted material, please contact directly the original source mentioned. For a full archive and other resources, see http://www.africafocus.org
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he Narendra Modi government at the centre has come up with a new announcement, furthermore; a 10 per cent penalty will be levied on the undisclosed income and surcharge called Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGK) Cess at the rate of 33% of tax. A decision has already been taken to demonetise higher denomination currency notes on 8th November, 2016 by the ruling NDA government under the leadership of Modi. For any change to happen, some trouble will continue which has to be faced by the common man only.

In the last general election, corruption was the agenda which gave NDA government a massive majority. Having coming to power on this major issue, Modi government was in pressure to demonetised big currency of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes. However, it introduced the much higher denomination note which is double the amount of last higher demonetised note. Already, fake Rs. 2000 notes have been hit the market and found in the circulation. Some notes were found in possession of deceased terrorists too. Nothing seems to have changed for the people in corruption industry, what has changed is the common mans life. It has become worst; they are struggling every day in bank queues to manage one single note.

Strangely, the opposition parties called for a bandh against demonetisation. Why PM is talking only about black money, corruption or demonetisation. The basic issue is cash crunch that is the root cause of all the inconveniences at present. The government should tell why the new Rs. 500 note is not available even after 20 days of demonetisation? Let the people who are unaware about the banking system and its benefit of keeping money in the circulation for India know that if demonetisation was to help poor then there was no need at all to issue 4/8 times higher valued bank notes. No government in the universe really work for the poor. If the concern was to take action, against the wrong doers in the society, the government is empowered with all mechanism to take appropriate action to weed out the criminals without making common man suffer. Many died while standing in queue outside banks, many committed suicide and bank staff landed in stress.

Finally, why the rich who have swindled the public money via bank loans to the tune of Rs.1.14 lakh crore is still unrevealed to the public, why? Is it to protect the poor? CBI have investigating money laundering cases against many politicians and businessmen for years without causing any harm to the accused, whereas poor stealing just few hundred are beaten to death in some cases. Is the government for the poor? Let all be excused, but India cannot grow with Plastic Money/Mobile apps operated by private sector but only through sound rupee  the Indian Legal Tender.

Anyway, now the government came up with new theory aimed at providing a window to black money holders by proposing to levy a total tax, penalty and surcharge of 50 per cent on the amount deposited post demonetisation, while higher taxes and stiffer penalty of up to 85 per cent await those who dont disclose but are caught. With the ban on Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes now more than two weeks old, the government has proposed new rules to tax black money that is being unearthed.

The old notes must be deposited in banks by the end of the year. Deposits over Rs. 2.5 lakhs will come under the scrutiny of tax officials. Those who acknowledge that they have placed black or previously untaxed money in their accounts will pay a 60 per cent penalty in addition to taxes. A disclosure scheme called the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) 2016 allows people to deposit money till April by paying 50 per cent of the total amount  30 per cent as tax, 10 per cent as penalty and 33 per cent of the taxed amount that is 10 per cent  as Garib Kalyan Cess. So the taxes and levies will equal nearly 50 per cent of the deposit.

Twenty five per cent of the money that remains after taxes will be available to the account holder. The other 25 per cent or rest of the black money thats being converted will be used by the government for four years in a special new fund that will be called as the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana and will be used to fund welfare schemes. No interest will be paid to the owner for this. Further, the declarants have to deposit 25 per cent of the undisclosed income in a scheme to be notified by the government in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India. The money from the scheme would be used for projects in irrigation, housing, toilets, infrastructure, primary education, primary health and livelihood so that there is justice and equality, said the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill. For those who continue to hold onto undisclosed cash and are caught, the existing provisions of the Income Tax law will be amended to provide for a flat 60 per cent tax plus a surcharge of 25 per cent of tax (15 per cent), which will amount a levy of 75 per cent. Besides, if the assessing officer decides he can charge a 10 per cent penalty in addition to the 75 per cent tax.

For money that is unearthed in raids, taxes and penalties will take nearly 85 per cent of the amount, leaving 15 per cent with the owner. (For cash, whose source can be identified, the penalty will be 30 per cent along with the regular tax rate; for money whose origin cannot be explained, the penalty will double to 60 per cent). The new proposal was brought to parliament on Monday by the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. It is almost certain to be cleared in this winter session of parliament because it is being considered by the Lok Sabha, where the government has a huge majority.

Anyway, future is uncertain as no one can guarantee corruption free country. Earlier Rs. 500 note was the least bribe currency now its 2000/-, the dimensions are changed, rest everything is at it ease. We cannot criticize the government whom we have elected. Now, just because they have been elected and sent to parliament nobody gives them rights to ignore peoples views, complaints or indulge in corruption or ask people to shut their mouth and wait for next elections. If this is the only way common man can have their say (by just casting their vote) let that be more frequent every year or even biannually. Passing Jan Lokpal Bill has become the biggest challenge to the Government and BJP being ruling party is least interested in supporting it. The issue of strong Lokpal has already being dumped in cold storage! Politicians are servants of people who elect and send them to Parliament to make laws. It is the citizens right to ask their servants why the Jan Lokpal Bill is not being passed. But under this new Government rule, all those who ask questions are called anti-national.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@afternoonvoice.com)
A government hospital in Mumbai has become the new destination for affordable and advanced radiotherapy facilities for cancer treatment.

The man behind the transformation is Dilip Nikam, Associate Professor and Head of Department of Radiotherapy and Oncology at the Governments Cama and Albless Hospitals, Grant Govt. Medical College and JJ Group of Hospitals.

It has been my endeavour to convey to my patients and relatives that in government hospitals too, you can have the state of art machinery and can get the best possible treatment, 36 year-old Nikam, who hails from Osmanabad district in Marathwada, said.

Nikam said he convinced higher authorities in the government for need of better infrastructure for cancer treatment and then went on to set up a state of the art department for cancer treatment.

As cancer treatment is becoming more and more expensive day by day, many cancer patients cant afford treatment at private hospitals. Cancer is treated with multi-modalities including surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Not many hospitals have radiotherapy facilities due to huge initial investment. In Mumbai, Navi Mumbai and Thane, there is no linear accelerator radiotherapy facility available in government-run hospitals except the Tata Memorial hospital, he claimed.

Advanced radiotherapy techniques like intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), image guided radiotherapy (IGRT), volumetric arc radiotherapy (V-MAT) and Respiratory gating are now available at the Cama and Albless hospitals free of cost under the Rajiv Gandhi Yojana and at minimal cost compared to private hospitals, for others, he said.

Nikam who has worked with Dr S H Advani, a pioneer in medical oncology and Dr B C Goswami, Director, Government Super-speciality Oncology Hospital at Guwahati, said after he joined in 2007 as Registrar, he decided to work for poor and illiterate patients, specially from rural areas, who cant afford costly treatment.

In the facility we have created at the Hospital, around 70-80 poor and needy cancer patients are treated daily, he said.

Over 20000 patients are registered per year at the OPD counter of our Oncology department, Nikam added.

Besides, we have arranged cancer awareness camps and early cancer detection camps in remote areas where facilities are not easily assessable. The camps were held in Beed, Osmanabad, Jammer, Jalgaon, Nagpur, Yevatmal, Solapur, Sendri, Kundhe (Bhiwandi) and Shahapur, Nikam, who was honoured by Maharashtra Chief Minister for his work, said.

Nikam claimed he has developed a new treatment protocol for painful skeletal metastasis and also diagnosed the rare clinical disease Birt-Hogg-Dubey syndrome clinically.

With guidance by experts from Europe, I treated the patient successfully, he added.

Nikam received an appreciation letter from the Additional Chief Secretary, Public Health Department in 2012 after Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the United Nations visited Cama and Albless Hospitals and was very impressed by the work at the Department and hospital.

At a time when most doctors are chasing careers with private hospitals for descent earnings, I chose to serve with the government hospital, added Nikam.
North Korea began three days of official mourning on Monday for late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, remembering him as a close friend and heroically in a joint struggle against US aggression.

Flags flew at half-mast at official buildings across the country as a mark of respect for the revolutionary icon, despite a relationship that was often warmer in rhetoric than reality.

In the Pyongyang subway, commuters in one station crowded around a glass case containing a Castro obituary published by the ruling party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun.

Alongside a picture framed with a black border and showing a head-and-shoulder shot of a bearded Castro in full military dress, the obit recalled his visit to North Korea in 1986 when he met founder-leader Kim Il-Sung.

It noted that the Cuban leader was awarded the title of DPRK (North Korea) Hero for his efforts to strengthen relations between two countries fighting in the outposts of the anti-US, anti-imperialist struggle.

Kim Hong-Chol, 76, a retired literary researcher in Pyongyang, said he clearly remembered Kims visit.

He was a great revolutionary. Until the last minute he supported and defended our revolution, and fought intensely for anti-imperialist independence and against America, Kim said.

Asked about the historic restoration of Cuba-US diplomatic relations last year, Kim said Havana had acted tactically for Cubas revolutionary benefit.

Ordinary North Koreans usually express only officially-sanctioned views when questioned by foreign news organisations.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un sent a condolence message on Castros death, calling him a close friend and comrade of the Korean people.

An official delegation led by senior Kim aide and vice chairman of the ruling Workers Party Central Committee, Choe Ryong-Hae, left for Havana today to attend memorial events.

Castro only made the one visit to the North.
Suzi Pratt/WireImageTone Loc apparently fainted on stage Saturday night during a show in South Dakota, but he quickly recovered.

The veteran rapper was performing his classic Wild Thing on the I Love The 90s tour when he collapsed, TMZ reports. He returned to complete his set at the Premier Center in Sioux Falls, and his spokesperson tells TMZ that he's feeling better. He fell while dancing and was assisted off stage by security guards.

Loc, born Anthony Terrell Smith, also passed out on stage in 2009 in Pensacola, Florida, and 2013 in Des Moines, Iowa.

Vanilla Ice, who also performed on the show, tweeted that the Funky Cold Medina MC is OK. Tone Loc is fine and doing great, he commented. Thanks for you guys' concern. He got lightheaded and dizzy, Dehydrated."

The I Love The 90s tour also features Salt N Pepa, Kid N Play, Coolio, All 4 One, Color Me Badd, Kool Moe Dee, Rob Base, and Young MC.

Copyright  2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The Union Home Ministry on Monday accorded sanction to National Investigation Agency to file chargesheet against the Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others for the Pathankot terror attack in January this year. Seven security personnel were killed in the attack.

NIA had recently sought prosecution sanction against the JeM chief, his brother Abdul Rauf and two handlers involved in the attack.

A formal request was sent to Union ministry of home affairs seeking prosecution sanction under sections 18, 20 and 28 of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, Explosives Act and various sections of IPC, including murder, criminal conspiracy, waging war against India so that a chargesheet can be filed against them.

Officials say that NIA will now soon file a chargesheet against Azhar and these three claiming that Azhar had hatched the conspiracy to attack strategic IAF base in Pathankot in first week of January 2016 with an intention to kill Air Force personnel and destroy the assets.

India has been continuously making efforts to get the UN Sanctions Committee to Azhar and had submitted a dossier listing out his terror activities since 1993, which specifically mentioned him as one of the handlers of the Pathankot terrorists.

However, India has been facing a hurdle in the matter as China has collaborated with Pakistan to block New Delhis proposal to ban Masood Azhar.

Following the attack on the Indian Air Force Base in Pathankot killing seven Indian military personnel, India called on the United Nations for immediate action to list Azhar under the al-Qaida Sanctions Committee.

According to reports, 14 out of 15 countries were willing to designate Azhar but China alone decided to go against all the others in the bid.
Poland`s prime minister called Monday for a Brexit compromise and said, Europeans in Britain and Britons in Europe should not be made to feel like hostages as she kicked off a landmark trip to London.

Britains shock vote in June to leave the European Union sparked fear among the 800,000 Poles living in Britain, particularly following a spate of xenophobic attacks after the referendum.

Beata Szydlo pledged Poland would be a constructive partner in potentially fraught negotiations to set the terms of Britains divorce from the EU, but that London had to set out a clear vision for its post-EU future.

We need a good compromise which gives both our countries the best possible options for economic and security cooperation, she wrote in Mondays Daily Telegraph.

But the initiative for determining British ambitions and expectations as to the future level of cooperation with the EU has to come from London.

Five months after the Brexit vote, Szydlo pressed London not to use migrants like her UK-based compatriots as a bargaining chip in the negotiations.

One thing is certain: millions of UK citizens living across the EU, and millions of EU-27 citizens living in the United Kingdom, should not be made to feel like hostages, she wrote.

That means we have to guarantee their right of residence. Szydlos comments came ahead of a crunch summit between the two governments, expected to focus on defence policy  such as the deployment of 150 British soldiers to north-eastern Poland  and foreign affairs including Russias actions in Ukraine and Syria.

Ahead of the meeting, May praised the contribution the Polish community had made to Britain.

I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship with Poland, rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it, she said in a statement.

Todays meeting puts beyond doubt the common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship and the benefits it brings.

May has repeatedly said, she remains committed to Europe despite voters deciding to withdraw from the EU, a process the British premier has said she will formally begin by the end of March.

She has promised to curb migration from the bloc and has said the UKs approach to EU citizens currently residing in the country will depend on how Britons abroad are treated in the negotiations with Brussels.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28, 2016  A longtime ally of the Obama administration has been chosen as the new chairman and CEO of the Farm Credit Administration.

President Barack Obama appointed Dallas Tonsager to the position last week but the selection was announced today. Tonsager, who was appointed to the FCA board last year, replaces Kenneth Spearman, who has held the job since March 2015.

Tonsager is currently board chairman of Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation. He previously served on the boards of FCA and FCSIC from 2004 to 2009 during the George W. Bush administration.

Tonsager was also the USDAs under secretary for Rural Development during Obamas first term, but resigned that post in early 2013. Before that, he co-chaired the departments transition committee in 2009 after co-chairing Obamas first farm and rural campaign committee in 2008.

Tonsagers term as FCA chairman and CEO expires in 2020. Barring unforeseen circumstances, the incoming Trump administration will not have an opportunity to name a chairman until then. Trump, however, will have the chance to fill a seat on the board to replace Spearman. That appointee will require Senate confirmation.

A native of South Dakota and 1976 graduate of South Dakota State University, Tonsager was president of the state Farmers Union from 1988-1993 and state director of rural development from 1993-2001 during the Bill Clinton administration.

Not an Agri-Pulse subscriber? Get our Daily Harvest email and Daybreak audio Monday through Friday mornings, a 16-page newsletter on Wednesdays, and access to premium content on our ag and rural policy website. Sign up for your four-week free trial Agri-Pulse subscription.





Tonsager has also been a member of the advisory board of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the executive director of the South Dakota Value-Added Agriculture Development Center.

The lame duck appointment by Obama is similar to the approach used by the Bush administration in 2008. In May of that year, Bush appointed Illinois native Leland Strom as FCA chair and CEO. He remained in that capacity until Obama named Jill Long Thompson to the same role in November 2012.

#30

For more news, go to www.Agri-Pulse.com
WASHINGTON, Nov. 27, 2016 - Lawmakers return this week to their lame duck session while President-elect Donald Trump is expected to resume naming members of his incoming administration. Trump has yet to announce any of his key nominees for agriculture, including Agriculture and Interior secretaries and the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Reince Priebus, Trumps future White House chief of staff, said on Fox News Sunday that the president-elect was trying to select for his cabinet the best people possible  for all Americans. Meanwhile, the Agriculture Departments handling of civil rights complaints will come under scrutiny on Thursday at a hearing scheduled by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The hearing stems from a finding by an independent agency, the Office of Special Counsel, that half of the complaints against senior managers at USDA had not been acted on within the legally required time frame. On Nov. 21, the chairman and ranking Democrat on the committee, Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and Elijah Cummings, D-Md., wrote Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack demanding data and internal and external reports on the handling of Equal Employment Opportunity complaints filed during his tenure. According to the lawmakers letter, the Office of Special Counsel concluded that while USDA took corrective actions, the department only partially resolved the wrongdoing. The biggest unfinished business for the lame duck session is to pass a continuing resolution to keep the government operating into March. The CR that is currently funding the government will expire Dec. 9. House Speaker Paul Ryan said in disclosing plans for the March extension that it would allow Trump to have a say as to how spending is allocated in 2017. Meanwhile, lawmakers as early as this week could take up a possible conference report on the 2017 defense authorization legislation. The measure has been held up over a House provision that would bar the sage grouse from being listed under the Endangered Species Act. Do you find the information on Agri-Pulse helpful? See even more ag and rural policy news when you sign up for a four-week free trial Agri-Pulse subscription.

On Wednesday, the Farm Foundation will sponsor a forum on the shape of the next farm bill. The event will feature widely divergent views on the bill represented by Chuck Conner, president and CEO of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives; Scott Faber, vice president of government affairs for the Environmental Working Group, and Daren Bakst, agricultural research policy fellow for the Heritage Foundation. Few people in Washington have a deeper knowledge of farm bill issues than Conner. He played a major role in coordinating agricultural policy in the last Republican administration during development of the 2002 and 2008 farm bills. Heres a list of agriculture- or rural-related events scheduled for this week in Washington and elsewhere: Monday, Nov. 28 4 p.m. - USDA releases Crop Progress report. Tuesday, Nov. 29 Agricultural Retailers Association conference and expo, Orlando, Fla. Wednesday, Nov. 30 9 a.m. - Farm Foundation forum, The Next Farm Bill: What are the Agendas? National Press Club.



10 a.m. - House Natural Resources Committee hearing on pending bills, including HR 5129, to authorize recreational use of federal lands, 1324 Longworth. 11 a.m. - USDA releases Farm Sector and Household Income Forecast 3 p.m. - USDA releases Quarterly Agricultural Export Forecast. Thursday, Dec. 1. 8:30 a.m. - House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady speaks at Heritage Foundation forum on tax reform, 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE. 8:30 a.m. - USDA releases Weekly Export Sales report. 9 a.m. - House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on USDA handling of sexual harassment and gender discrimination complaints, 2154 Rayburn. Friday, Dec. 2 Comment period closes on FDAs voluntary sodium reduction guidelines. #30 For more news, go to: www.Agri-Pulse.com
Aiken, SC (29801)

Today

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. A few sprinkles possible. Low 53F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. A few sprinkles possible. Low 53F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph.
+4 Repurposed life: New film tells story of local building that is part of SRS history A building constructed more than 90 years ago in a community that no longer exists is the subject of a new documentary film made by George Wingard.

Hawthorne is gone, but its not forgotten.

The former rural community in Aiken County is the subject of a new documentary that will be shown during the Arkhaios Cultural Heritage and Archaeology Film Festival later this week.

The premier of Reconstructing Hawthorne is scheduled for Thursday at the Coligny Theatre on Hilton Head Island.

Its a simple story that reminds you of an earlier time, said George Wingard, administrative manager for the Savannah River Archaeological Research Program.

Wingard teamed up with Charleston-based multimedia content producer and director Patrick Hayes to make the 26-minute movie about Hawthorne, which was in an area that became a part of the Savannah River Site, or SRS.

In the early 1950s, after the federal government acquired the land it needed for SRS, thousands of people had to leave their homes and find somewhere else to live.

Wingard had worked previously on various projects that documented what happened in towns such as Ellenton and Dunbarton.

We knew Hawthorne had existed from the maps we had seen, but nobody we asked knew anything about it, Wingard said.

In 2008, Wingard and his colleagues met George Heath, an elderly man who wanted to see the site of his former home at SRS. He got to visit the location, and later he became an Archaeological Research Program volunteer after expressing an interest in the work it was doing.

One day, Mr. Heath mentioned Hawthorne, and it caught our attention, Wingard said. We asked him what he knew about Hawthorne, and he said, Thats what I call the place where my family lived. 

Wingard also introduced the Archaeological Research Programs staff to one of his childhood friends, Henry Brown.

Mr. Heaths family was a farming family, and Mr. Brown was from a family of farm laborers, Wingard said. When they were kids, they ran around in the woods, played in the creeks and worked in the fields together in the Hawthorne area.

Only about 75 people lived in Hawthorne.

There was one main building in a central place, and the Masonic Lodge, the post office and a store were in it, Wingard said. Mr. Heaths grandfather was one of the mail deliverers.

By 1899, the Masonic Lodge was gone, and Hawthorne lost its post office in 1924.

We used Mr. Heath and Mr. Browns recollections, photographs, old photos and old maps to do what the name of the film implies, reconstruct Hawthorne, Wingard said. We wanted to get the story down before it was lost.

Not much remains of Hawthorne.

It didnt have any paved roads or sidewalks, and the building where the one store was located was torn down at some point, Wingard said. There are only a few brick piers left that held up houses.

But thanks to the new film, Hawthorne wont ever completely disappear.

We have a nice record of it now for future generations, Wingard said. Its also kind of way to thank Mr. Heath because we love him. He washes off artifacts for us, he helps us in the field and he answers our questions. This is something that he and his family will be able to watch and cherish.

Reconstructing Hawthorne is Wingards second film. He and

Mark Albertin of Scrapbook Video Productions in Augusta directed and produced the award-winning documentary Discovering Dave: Spirit Captured in Clay, which has been accepted for the iFilmmaker International Film Festival in Spain in December.
New Book on Assyrian Genocide Published

(AINA) -- A new English book titled 'Year of the Sword - The Assyrian Genocide, A History' has been published by Prof. Joseph Yacoub, an emeritus Professor at the Catholic University of Lyon, France. The book is an English edition of the French book published last year and titled "Qui s'en souviendra ?: 1915 : le genocide assyro-chaldeo-syriaque."

The Armenian genocide of 1915 has been well documented. Much less known is the Turkish genocide of the Assyrian (also known as Chaldean and Syriac) people, which occurred simultaneously in their ancient homelands in and around ancient Mesopotamia -- now Turkey, Iran and Iraq. The advent of the First World War gave the Young Turks and the Ottoman government the opportunity to exterminate the Assyrians in a series of massacres and atrocities inflicted on a people whose culture dates back millennia and whose language, Aramaic, was spoken by Jesus. Systematic killings, looting, rape, kidnapping and deportations destroyed countless communities and created a vast refugee diaspora. Hundreds of thousand Assyro- Chaldean-Syriac people were murdered and a larger number forced into exile.

The 'Year of the Sword' (Seyfo - The Sword) in 1915, as Assyrians recall the events, was preceded over millennia by other attacks on the Assyrians and has been mirrored by recent events, not least the abuses committed by Islamic State.

Joseph Yacoub, whose family was murdered and dispersed, has gathered together a compelling range of eye-witness accounts and reports which cast light on this 'hidden genocide'. Passionate and yet authoritative, his book reveals a little-known human and cultural tragedy. A century after the Assyrian genocide and the treat of so-called Islamic State (IS), the fate of this Christian minority hangs in the balance in its ancestral homeland of Syria and Iraq.

Here are some selected reviews of the book:

"Yacoub's work is essential reading and sheds light on a dark chapter of twentieth century Middle Eastern history that has been deliberately silenced." -- Vicken Cheterian, Webster University, Geneva, author of Open Wounds: Armenians, Turks and a Century of Genocide.

"This book is intended for multiple audiences: the survivors of the communities themselves, as an account by a descendant of victims; academics, journalists and others dealing with the Middle East; and a wider public interested in Middle Eastern Christians. The diaspora communities include well over half a million people, so this alone is a very substantial audience. I think it is definitely an original contribution. To the best of my knowledge the literature on the massacres and persecution suffered by these communities is very limited, certainly compared with the Armenian dimension" -- William Harris, Professor, Department of Politics, University of Otago, author of Lebanon: A History, 600-2011.

"Yacoub's work is essential reading and sheds light on a dark chapter of twentieth century Middle Eastern history that has been deliberately silenced." -- Vicken Cheterian, Webster University, Geneva, author of Open Wounds: Armenians, Turks and a Century of Genocide.

"This important and revelatory book tells of the biblical race which has suffered genocide twice within a century: over half were destroyed by the Ottoman atrocities of 1915, and now their descendants in Mosul and elsewhere are being put to the sword by ISIS. The Assyrians today deserve more than our pity - they need our protection." -- Geoffrey Robertson QC, human rights barrister, Doughty Street Chambers, and author of An Inconvenient Genocide.

"Meticulous and moving, Year of the Sword documents the forgotten horrors that befell the Syriac-speaking Christians of the Ottoman Empire. This is a book for all times, but especially our own, when the Middle East's distinctive ethno-religious diversity is again under the threat from violence and forced migration. Readers will be sobered and better informed thanks to Yacoub's efforts." -- Christian Sahner, Research Fellow in History, St. John's College, University of Cambridge, and author of Among the Ruins: Syria Past and Present.
November 28, 2016

As the number of casualties from the train collision in northeast Iran on Nov. 25 climbed to 49 dead and 103 injured, 20 lawmakers have moved to sign a motion to impeach the minister of roads and urban development.

Four carriages derailed and two caught fire in the crash, which took place 250 kilometers (155 miles) east of Tehran, in the province of Semnan. The accident happened when a passenger train hit another that had stopped near Haft-khan station.

President Hassan Rouhani immediately ordered an investigation into the cause of the crash. Moreover, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a Nov. 26 message asked Iranian officials to find the root cause of the incident and prevent any repetition of such an occurrence.

Rail transport in Iran has been the safest mode of transportation compared with air and land transport. However, the country has faced difficulties in modernizing its aged rail network due to economic sanctions imposed over its disputed nuclear program. In recent years, Iran has increased its investment in rail transport, and Rouhani's government boosted allocations for the development of the rail sector by 12.8% for the fiscal year ending March 20, 2017.

The latest train crash again brought to the surface an ongoing quarrel among political factions. On Nov. 27, Sadegh Zibakalam, a political activist and a professor at Tehran University, raised the question, Why do Iranian officials not resign when deadly incidents take place? Writing for Arman daily, he compared the reactions of officials in Iran to fatal crashes with those of their counterparts abroad. Officials in developed [governing] systems are accountable for their actions. Lack of accountability is the problem we face in Iran, wrote Zibakalam.

However, in reaction to this accident, the head of Iranian Railways, Mohsen Pourseyed Aghaei, actually did resign. On Nov. 27, Aghaei tendered his resignation, saying, The obvious fact in the collision of the two trains is that a failure had occurred that involves the railway management, and for this reason I submitted my resignation to minister of roads and urban development, which he accepted.

Meanwhile, judicial authorities in Iran arrested three railway employees as part of an investigation into the collision. Semnans Prosecutor-General Heydar Asiabi said Nov. 26 that the head of the railways command and control center for northeast Iran, the head of the track control center and the individual in charge of the shift at the center when the collision occurred have been arrested.

In addition, Iranian lawmakers on Nov. 26 started collecting signatures for an impeachment motion against Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi over the train accident. The motion is to be presented to parliament Speaker Ali Larijani on Dec.4.

The Conservative Kayhan daily accused Akhoundi of incompetence and wasting resources. The officials of the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, and specifically the minister, have again stuck to the old excuse of human error as the main cause of the accident to downplay their own incompetence, the daily reported Nov. 26.

On Nov. 27, in another sign of the broader intensification of political infighting in recent months, Mahmoud Sadeghi, a Reformist member of parliament, was briefly arrested at his home by judicial authorities due to questions he had raised about the personal bank accounts of the head of the Iranian judiciary. On Nov. 14, Sadeghi called on judiciary chief Sadegh Larijani to publicly divulge his personal bank account statements to put an end to rumors about alleged corruption within the judiciary.

Larijani denied the accusations and criticized the president and the parliament speaker  his brother  for not taking measures against the accusations by the MP [member of parliament].

In other news, another high-profile accident occurred in Iran on Nov. 27. A helicopter belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) crashed into the Caspian Sea, killing all five people onboard. The chopper was sent to the region to rescue a Khazar Exploration and Production Company employee who was suffering from a heart condition.

According to IRGC spokesman Ramezan Sharif, the crash took place shortly after a Mil Mi-17 helicopter was dispatched to an oil rig located 20 kilometers (12 miles) off the port city of Amirabad in the northern province of Mazandaran.
November 28, 2016

On one front, opposing sides have joined forces to fight the Islamic State (IS). The enormous differences among the de facto allies reflect how much each sees IS as an existential threat, and the importance they attribute to Iraq. While US warplanes carpet bomb positions of the group in Mosul and its surroundings, Iraqi security forces, Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Units and Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga all advance.

Iranian military commanders from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), though outside the spotlight, lead the Popular Mobilization Units and are keen to achieve a victory that could be built upon in the broader regional strife. Yet, they arent the only Iranians on the Iraqi front. A group of Iranian Kurdish separatists opposed to the Iranian government is reported to be fighting alongside the Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga, the armed forces of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which is also an ally of Iran. The Iranian Kurdish group is made up of several movements, including the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) and the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (KDPI).

A special forces team from our peshmerga forces, tasked with clearing land mines and other explosives, has been deployed to the front line against IS outside Mosul, said KDPI spokesman Loughman Ahmadi in an interview with Al-Monitor. In his telling, It is a national duty to defend all parts of Kurdistan, and IS is currently posing a threat to [Iraqi] Kurdistan. He added, Our peshmerga forces have more than 70 years of military experience. We have not received any military training by anyone except our own instructors. We are not under any umbrella. Our special forces are helping the peshmerga forces of the KRG.

A Sept. 8 report by the Associated Press quoted Hussein Yazdanpanah, a commander of the military wing of the PAK, as saying that his group has received military training and support from the United States as part of the international program to back Kurds in the war against IS in Iraq. Yazdanpanah added that the fight against IS "was never an alternative to their struggle" against the Iranian government. The KDPI spokesman added in his interview with Al-Monitor, Iran sees us as one of its main enemies and would take every opportunity presented to attack us. The IRGC's ground force commander stated previously that Iran will attack members of our party and our peshmerga forces wherever and in whatever country they can.

A senior Iranian official who spoke on condition of anonymity told Al-Monitor that Tehran has voiced its concern in a message to KRG President Massoud Barzani, without giving further details. Another Iranian official who asked not to be identified revealed that the Iranian message was direct and pointed: Tehran wont tolerate any threat to its border or any attempt to infiltrate our territories. The KRG will be held responsible for any threat from their side, and this will have dire consequences on our relations. The Iranian official emphasized that Iran wants to maintain good relations with its Kurdish neighbors, but added, We are looking forward to seeing the same eagerness from their side. Its not acceptable to see terrorist groups at large and even taking part in the war on terror when they themselves are terrorists.

On Nov. 7, a top military adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was quoted as having warned the KRG against cooperating with a Saudi agenda of arming Kurdish separatists fighting the Iranian government. Rahim Yahya Safavi, who previously served as the commander of Irans IRGC, said, We warn the Barzanis against allowing the Saudi consulate to supply arms to anti-Iranian [groups] in Northern Iraq. He added that the Barzani family should not forget they are indebted to Iran," saying, "The Iraqi Kurds should be mindful that if they enter political games against Iran, then they should not expect any more help from Tehran.

A KRG statement dismissed the Iranian claims and warned that they could damage bilateral ties. The statement read, We declare here loud and clear that all the remarks by Yahya Rahim Safavi are incorrect and baseless. It stated that the KRG hopes that Safavis words do not reflect the official position of the Iranian government, with which Erbil has a joint security committee in which issues of concern should first be discussed. The statement went on that the KRG was surprised by Safavis comments, as no such issues had been discussed in the joint committee.

Even though Safavi is known for his controversial stances, its important to understand the reasons behind the Iranian concern over the activities of Kurdish separatist groups on the other side of the border. The Islamic Republic fears that these groups could be exploited by its enemies to create a nightmare on its borders and even within the country. An Iranian military source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, Iran is right now facing several threats, one from [IS] and the other from the separatist groups, and unfortunately these threats are coming mainly from the western borders. Therefore, Iran will do whatever possible on the ground to prevent the destabilization of its national security. But [our] friends are also expected to play a positive role and not give our enemies the chance to hit us in the back.

The history of Kurdish separatism efforts is putting those concerned about Iranian national security on high alert. Indeed, it is not only Iran that is concerned, but also Turkey  and this is one of the main reasons that the two nations have come together in the last few months. The memory of the Simko Shikak revolt between 1918 and 1922 and later 1926, the 1946 establishment of the Republic of Mahabad in western Iran and separatism in the aftermath of the 1979 Islamic Revolution all point to similar dynamics: Separatism flares when there are international or regional shake-ups, or when the country is going through transitions. These years in the Middle East are a time of change and it might be that the momentum gained by the Syrian Kurds as they grew closer to announcing their regional government in Rojava before the Turkish intervention produced such a chance.
November 24, 2016

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  It appears that Russia is seeking to assume a greater role in the Middle East, through sensitive dossiers, most notably the one related to Israeli soldiers who have gone missing in the Gaza Strip. This comes in light of a declining US role in the region, particularly in the Palestinian-Israeli settlement.

During a press conference with his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Nov. 10 that Russia expressed its readiness to bring back the Israeli soldiers that went missing in the Gaza Strip. He thanked Medvedev for his willingness to assist in an important humanitarian issue, namely the return of the bodies of Oron Shaul and Hadar Goldin. Shaul and Goldin were killed during the Israeli war on Gaza in summer 2014.

While Russia is trying to assume an important role in the missing Israeli soldiers dossier, Hamas has remained silent and refused to make any statements or disclose any information on the missing Israeli soldiers in Gaza, as leverage against Israel to demand the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Al-Monitor tried to learn about Hamas stance toward Netanyahu's statement, but Hamas spokespeople at home and abroad refused to make any comments on the issue.

Ibrahim Salah, the director of the office of Hamas' international relations officer Mousa Abu Marzouk, told Al-Monitor, The movement decided to not make any comments on this issue.

Hamas Spokesperson and Palestinian Legislative Council member for Hamas Mushir al-Masri said Nov. 14 during the commemoration of the death of Ahmed Jabari, a prominent leader of Hamas military wing, Netanyahus attempt to avoid striking any deal in the future and to find out what the resistance has  through security and media subterfuge and international interference  will lead nowhere with Hamas.

Masri added, The Israeli soldiers detained by the Palestinian resistance can only be released through negotiations with [the resistance factions] and by meeting their conditions.

Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades has been secretive in regard to the Israeli soldiers they detain. Al-Qassam Brigades revealed Jan. 13 their secret security shadow unit tasked with securing Israeli prisoners.

Wisam Afifeh, the editor-in-chief of Hamas Al-Risalah newspaper  which published chapters of a book titled Freeing Gilad: The Secret Back Channel by the co-director of the Israel-Palestine Center for Research and Information, Gershon Baskin  told Al-Monitor, Netanyahus statement on Russias expected role in the negotiations over Israeli soldiers with Hamas is of significant importance. Throughout the previous stage, Israel required that silence prevails over negotiations about prisoners, out of fear that it would turn into a public opinion issue inside Israel and lead to the formation of a front that would pressure the Israeli government, which has benefited significantly from the Shalit experiment in the negotiations.

In regard to Netanyahu's statement, Afifeh said, Israel is now ready to negotiate with Hamas over the prisoners release. It is a message to Israelis at home that [Israel] has not neglected the soldiers left behind in the 2014 Gaza war. It is trying to pressure Hamas with a large number of mediators and to lure [the movement] with the formation of potential political and security channels with these mediators later on.

On Russias success to open negotiation back channels with Hamas, Afifeh said, Russia is a big country and an efficient stakeholder in the region. It is in its interest to be an alternative to former parties  such as the United States  after the attempt to reach a political settlement between Israelis and Palestinians was over. This is at a time when the internal political conditions prevent Egypt from being a mediator in the negotiations, especially in their early stages. Thus, Russia will seek to pressure Hamas through Iran, Turkey and Qatar to learn about the fate of Israeli soldiers, as a first step in the negotiations process.

The editor-in-chief of Palestinian local newspaper Felesteen, Iyad Qarar, told Al-Monitor, Russia will not be able to strike a prisoners swap deal, given the previous experiments and many other considerations. Most importantly, one ought to mention that Hamas believes that a mediation by the Egyptians and Germans will be more forceful, because they will address the basic conditions that Hamas had set and that Israel has not met with regard to the Shalit deal.

During the negotiations, on June 26, Israel had asked Turkey to pressure Hamas to learn about the fate of its soldiers in the Gaza Strip, while Hamas required the release of all prisoners, who were freed as part of the Shalit swap deal and rearrested following the deal, before the start of any new negotiations with Israel.

Ali Dahbour, an expert on Israeli affairs with the Gaza-based Shehab news agency, told Al-Monitor that Egypt will not be able to pull the rug from under the Russians feet, given the strong ties between the Russian and Egyptian regimes. He said that the Russian presence in the Middle East and Mediterranean Sea and the Russian-Iranian ties allow Russia to lay the first stone of the back-channel negotiations with Hamas over Israeli soldiers in Gaza.

On the expected time limit to conclude a swap deal between Hamas and Israel, Dahbour said, The way toward a swap deal is more complex than we ever imagined and it will drag on, particularly since the Israeli society seems more unyielding regarding any deal with Hamas. It is not easy [for Israelis] to make concessions in favor of Hamas with regard to the soldiers dossier. The negotiations lasted for five years and four months before the Shalit swap deal was reached.

Political analyst Husam Dajani told Al-Monitor, The Russian-Hamas ties are good, particularly since Hamas is seeking to promote ties with the East. Russia seeks to further strengthen ties with Israel, and this is why it will make efforts to resolve the issue of the Israeli soldiers in Gaza.

Russia's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Mikhail Bogdanov met Aug. 16 with Khaled Meshaal, the head of Hamas political bureau, in Doha to discuss developments related to the Palestinian cause, namely the Palestinian split and Arab peace initiative, which signals the beginning of a clear Russian role in the Palestinian cause.

Russia may eventually be able to open the way for the first round of negotiations, as a mediator between Hamas and Israel, through back channeling to bring back Israeli soldiers from Gaza. Yet, it is too early to speak of a mediator to conclude an anticipated swap deal between both sides and of the time needed to reach such a deal.
November 28, 2016

AL-HAWL CAMP, Syria  Amid the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) advance toward areas controlled by the Islamic State (IS), thousands of Syrian civilians have fled the cities of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor in the east of the country, where IS proclaimed its caliphate in June 2014.

Abdul Sattar, who hails from the IS-controlled town of al-Bukamal, which lies southeast of Deir ez-Zor, told Al-Monitor how he was stuck for 18 days with his wife and three children in the desert surrounded by mines. They had to walk to Rajm al-Salibi, which is located in the countryside of Hasakah and under the control of the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG).

Abdul Sattar preferred not to disclose his full name to protect his family members who are still stranded in al-Bukamal. When we decided to escape, we knew we would be facing death. We were dead there, and we could die any minute now, he said.

He described his decision to escape as bold, saying, We seldom heard the news there. I heard a month ago that the international coalition started the Raqqa battle. I got excited and decided to escape at the beginning of the month with my family."

On Nov. 5, the SDF started Operation Euphrates Wrath with the participation of 30,000 Arab and Kurdish fighters to expel IS jihadis from Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, IS most prominent strongholds in Syria, with the support of the US-led international coalition.

But Abdul Sattars hardships, along with other displaced families, did not end once they arrived at Rajm al-Salibi. Abdul Sattar was stuck at the border for 20 days. Those escaping IS-controlled areas to al-Hawl camp, which is located in Hasakah province and was established on March 24, are subject to precautionary security measures by the YPG aimed at preventing any IS members from infiltrating.

Manal from Deir ez-Zor told Al-Monitor that she had to sell her furniture and her Tefal cooking pans to secure the amount required by the person securing her escape, as the transportation and smuggling fees have increased.

Manal, who refused to reveal her full name, said, The person securing my escape asked us for $2,000. We did not have that amount of money, so we decided to sell our house and furniture to secure that sum.

Manal now lives in a tent in al-Hawl camp with her husband, two daughters and a young baby. The tent measures about 4 square meters (43 square feet) and is divided in a space to sleep and sit, and has a small kitchen. They were given mats, three blankets and three sponge mattresses.

We are five people, but we were only handed provisions for three. It gets really cold at night and the blankets cannot keep us warm. We went from bad to worse, Manal said. I had a big kitchen and a dining room. Now we are eating and sleeping in the same space.

Thousands of displaced persons face harsh conditions in al-Hawl camp with the cold weather and the absence of health care, medicine and drinking water.

Yerevan Hussein, the director of al-Hawl camp and coordinator of foreign relations at the camp, said that the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is working on expanding al-Hawl camp.

The UNHCR is working to accommodate 100,000 displaced people and refugees and is erecting 10,000 additional tents because the camp receives two batches of refugees on a weekly basis, and each batch ranges from 300 to 500 refugees, she told Al-Monitor.

When asked about what problems camp management faces with the increasing number of people fleeing, Hussein said, Many families are sleeping in the open as they await to be handed a tent. Hospitalization and medicines are provided by the Kurdish Red Crescent and no international organization is offering any help.

Dr. Rezan Moussa, a volunteer with the Kurdish Red Crescent who works in al-Hawl clinic, told Al-Monitor, The medical staff is very limited. We are offering medical care to people whose cases are urgent, but those we cannot help are being transferred to hospitals in Hasakah.

The medical staff in the camp consists of a general practitioner, nurses, pharmacists and a laboratory expert. An ambulance has been allocated for the transportation of patients, and the clinic has five rooms that have been converted into a medical care service point.

Asked about the major challenges facing their work, Moussa said, There is a shortage of medicines, and epidemic diseases are spreading rapidly.

He said the cases they are facing are mostly upper and lower respiratory tract infections and urinary tract infections. Add to this infectious diseases such as mange  among other skin diseases  liver infections and jaundice.

For his part, Abdul Hamid, who hails from the city of al-Mayadeen in Deir ez-Zor province and has been living in the camp for a month now, told Al-Monitor, Those secretly escaping the grip of the militant group [IS] are people who refused to pledge allegiance to the group. But those who pledged allegiance decided to escape and when caught will inevitably get killed.

Suad, a lady in her mid-40s from the city of Raqqa, had just arrived at al-Hawl camp after she finally decided to run from the land of hell, as she put it. She said the residents of Raqqa are living in a ghost town. Life is suspended there until further notice.

According to al-Hawl camp management officials who talked to Al-Monitor, the number of people displaced from Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor has risen significantly over the past few weeks following the start of the Raqqa battle, and their number is expected to rise to 100,000 displaced persons and refugees from Syrian and Iraqi areas.
November 28, 2016

The veil of mystery has yet to be lifted over an alleged airstrike on Nov. 24 against Turkish-backed opposition rebels in northern Syria that left at least four Turkish soldiers dead and several others wounded. The incident, which under normal circumstances would have led to a torrent of indignant chest thumping by Turkish leaders, appears to have been quietly buried, with no mention of it in todays headlines. Its absence prompts the question, Why?

The strike was said to have been carried out near the town of al-Bab. The Turkish General Staff issued a statement the day of the attack in which it said the Syrian air force had been responsible for the assault, but did not specify the area that had been bombed. If the Turkish claim is accurate, it would be the first time that Syrian regime forces have engaged in a hostile action against Turkey since its forces entered northern Syria in August to battle Islamic State militants and the Syrian Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG). The Syrian government has not commented either way.

Of note, Nov. 24 marked the first anniversary of the downing of a Russian jet by Turkey over the Syrian-Turkish border, prompting speculation that Moscow had engineered the affair as an act of revenge. Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus, however, told a news conference today that Russian President Vladimir Putin had confirmed that the aircraft that carried out the attack did not belong to Russia. These assurances were likely relayed during two telephone calls that took place between Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Nov. 25 and 26.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a respected monitoring group, has a different explanation for the attack. It said its information points to an IS suicide bombing. The Wall Street Journal reported that the jihadists had claimed responsibility for the Turkish deaths via one of IS' media arms.

Officials from the US-led coalition fighting IS seemed to back this version of events. The [coalitions] air operations has no indication of a flight, a coalition official told Al-Monitor on strict condition of anonymity. A Turkish official who also requested anonymity insisted to Al-Monitor, however, that a Czech-manufactured aircraft had struck the Turkish forces.

Regardless of who was responsible for the attack, the fatalities highlight the growing risk Turkey faces as it becomes more deeply embroiled in the Syrian morass, with no clear strategy other than to halt the Syrian Kurds advance. The YPG is the US-led coalitions top partner in the battle against IS in Syria, but the groups close links to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is fighting for Kurdish autonomy in Turkeys predominately Kurdish southeast, has set off alarm bells in Ankara. Once the battle against IS ends, so the Turkish argument goes, the YPG will join forces with the PKK and turn its guns on Turkey.

For nearly a month now, Turkey and its proxies, a hodgepodge of Arab and Turkmen rebels, have been seeking to prevent the YPG from seizing al-Bab. With Russia's apparent blessings  which are vital because Russia controls the skies over much of northwestern Syria  Turkish-backed forces have come within striking distance of the town. So too, however, have the Kurdish and regime forces.

The Syrian regime is bent on keeping the rebels out of al-Bab because it would give them a strategic bridgehead to Aleppo. Meanwhile, Turkey is determined to keep the YPG out because it would allow them to link up Kurdish cantons to the east and west of the Euphrates River.

The coalitions policy, one official summed up for Al-Monitor, is, that no moves without coordination" in and around al-Bab. "Move without coordination, then the consequences are yours. That goes for Turkey and the [YPG led-] Syrian Democratic Forces. A coalition spokesman recently confirmed that the coalition was not supporting Turkish moves to capture al-Bab.

As for Russia, its intentions regarding al-Bab remain unclear. As the official who spoke to Al-Monitor on strict condition of anonymity put it, The Turks may need to learn that a deal with the Russians is not a deal with the regime. They may also need to learn something Omer Taspinar, a senior non-resident fellow at the Brookings Institution, recently said: The remains of martyred Turkish soldiers being returned from [Turkeys mainly Kurdish] southeast is dramatically different from martyred Turkish soldiers being returned from Syria.
November 23, 2016

Turkey and Israel appointed ambassadors Nov. 15 as part of a normalization of ties. Israel appointed Eitan Na'eh as ambassador to Turkey, while Kemal Okem was named Turkey's ambassador to Israel. The two countries agreed on June 28 to resume relations after a six-year rupture sparked by an Israeli assault on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish ship carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, on May 31, 2010. It seems certain that their agreement to resume relations will affect Hamas' ties with Ankara.

Khaled Meshaal, head of Hamas' political bureau, had visited Ankara on June 24, three days before Turkey and Israel announced their reconciliation. On the day the Turkish-Israeli agreement was made public, Hamas issued a statement expressing its gratitude to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his support to Gaza and for official and popular Turkish efforts to aid Palestinians in Gaza and ease the siege against them. Hamas also said that it looked forward to Turkey's continued support of the Palestinian cause.

Husam Badran, the Qatar-based official spokesman for Hamas, told Al-Monitor, Hamas-Turkish ties are solid, built on a strong foundation. They depend on Turkish official and popular support for the Palestinian cause. Palestine has a special intellectual and historic prestige in the eyes of the Turks, thus Hamas-Turkish ties will not be negatively affected by Turkey's foreign relations with various parties. Although Hamas, first, believes that the normalization of ties with the Israeli occupier does not serve the interest of our people, Turkish policy considers the lifting of the siege on Gaza a priority for which great efforts are being made.

Yossi Melman, a security expert with ties to the Israeli security establishment, said on Nov. 5 that Israel had expressed its disappointment to Ankara that members of Hamas continued to operate in Turkey, although Israel had asked that they be expelled and their offices closed.

Said el-Haj, a Palestinian researcher in Turkish affairs based in Istanbul, told Al-Monitor, Hamas-Turkish ties have always been non-strategic and have not included any financial or military support, neither before nor after the Israeli-Turkish deal. They differ from Hamas' previous ties with Iran or current ties with Qatar. The Turkish support for Hamas has been limited to the political [and in the] media.  Thus, their ties will not be affected much by the exchange of ambassadors or despite the tacit Hamas-Turkish understanding to expel from [Turkish] territory some Hamas leaders, such as Saleh Aruri, a member of Hamas political bureau. This understanding remained out of the media and preceded the Turkish-Israeli deal.

Haj, who has contacts in Ankaras decision-making circles, added that a resumption of Iranian support as an alternative to Ankara is not an option for Hamas, noting, Hamas-Iranian ties are not at their best. He added, This is due to Irans deteriorating reputation among Hamas' popular base given its negative role in the wars in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. Also, Iran is not eager to restore ties with Hamas as before, although it has communicated with Hamas second- and third-tier leaderships. Iran can dispense with Hamas following its expansion in the region.

One potential cause of concern for Hamas in terms of the Turkish-Israeli rapprochement is if the two states improve relations beyond the mere exchange of ambassadors and move toward closer ties. Israel's Channel 2 had an exclusive interview with Erdogan Nov. 20, and the day before, a Knesset delegation met in Istanbul with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and parliamentarians from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to discuss possible cooperation. The Israelis were also in Istanbul to take part in events related to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly's annual session. Earlier, on Oct. 13, Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz became the first Israeli Cabinet member since the rapprochement to visit Turkey, where he met with his counterpart, Berat Albayrak, an Erdogan son-in-law.

An AKP leader who spoke to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity said, The Turkish-Israeli rapprochement will have no negative impact on Hamas-Turkish ties. Ankara does not mix its foreign ties. Having ties with Israel does not mean that relations with Hamas should be cut or vice versa. The outcome of any Turkish-Israeli rapprochement [on the Palestinians] will be evident in [subsequent] Turkish support for the Palestinians.

Former Mossad director Efraim Halevy told Yedioth Ahronoth on June 30 that Hamas stood to benefit from the Turkish-Israeli agreement because it would open the door to easing the blockade on Gaza, allow the entry of goods and construction materials to build a power plant and hospital, and raise the standard of living in Gaza.

Ahmed Youssef, former political adviser to Ismail Haniyeh, deputy head of Hamas' political bureau, and who has good channels of communication with the AKP, told Al-Monitor, The exchange of ambassadors between Ankara and Tel Aviv is an internal Turkish affair, and we do not interfere in other countries' internal affairs. This is although such a move could result in providing Gaza with Turkish humanitarian aid. Also, the close Hamas-Turkish ties cannot be negatively affected by the Turkish-Israeli rapprochement. As for Hamas-Iranian ties, they are complicated given the complexities of the Syrian dossier. The restoration of Hamas-Iranian ties depends on a solution to the Syrian crisis and is not connected to the Turkish-Israeli rapprochement.

Hamas' regional and international relations are not strong enough to allow it to take an assertive position opposing the Turkish-Israeli rapprochement, a move that in any regard would risk angering its closest ally, Erdogan, who has preserved close ties with Hamas leaders. At the same time, Hamas is hoping for some sort of breakthrough subsequent to the resumption of full relations between Turkey and Israel, in part to avoid embarrassment in the eyes of Palestinians and Arabs for having an ally that pursues ties with what it calls the Israeli enemy.
November 28, 2016

The political mercury in Turkey is expected to hit record highs in April, when the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) plans to put a crucial constitutional amendment on a referendum. Given the current political and social trends, the electorate is highly likely to approve the amendment and mark Turkeys transition to an executive presidency regime  President Recep Tayyip Erdogans biggest dream.

To come true directly in parliament, this dream requires support from at least 367 deputies in the 550-member legislature. The AKP, however, holds only 317 seats, which brings up the referendum option. For that, too, the AKP needs support from the opposition since constitutional amendments require the approval of at least 330 lawmakers to be put on a referendum.

For years, the AKP had sought to forge a political alliance to advance the amendment plan. The opportunity finally came in the wake of the July 15 coup attempt in the form of rapprochement with the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). In October, the MHP pledged support for the presidential system provided that its political sensitivities were taken into account. The AKP moved fast to draw up a draft and in mid-November submitted the text to the MHP. The two parties are now expected to jointly finalize the draft.

If materialized, the transition from a parliamentary to presidential regime will have a profound impact, both politically and socially, in Turkey. First and foremost, the country would abandon a system that has meshed with its social structure and political traditions for decades.

Turkish democracy has long been a flawed one, with the state dominating society, tight government control of freedoms, personality cults around leaders and a long-lasting military tutelage. Nevertheless, the country has sustained some sort of representative democracy as a political tradition dating back to Ottoman times. Since 1876, the year the first constitution was proclaimed, this tradition has rested on the parliamentary system. Barring periods of military rule, when the constitution was suspended and parliament temporarily dissolved, the parliamentary system has remained the essential form of governance  and not as some fluke of history, but as a choice grounded on tangible reasons.

In the Ottoman era, the parliamentary system was the means of power-sharing between the Sublime Porte and other social and political powers, ensuring representation for a society of diverse ethnic and religious groups. In Republican times, it became the basis on which a relative balance was sought and partially achieved at the countrys major fault lines  between secular and devout, Alevis and Sunnis, and Turks and Kurds.

The tradition is well rooted, and, in earlier years, the charismatic leaders of the center-right, Suleyman Demirel and Turgut Ozal, who also floated the idea of a presidential system to sustain their power, faced serious resistance and failed to forge ahead.

Today, however, the situation is dfferent. The combined seats of the AKP and the MHP are enough to take the presidential system to a referendum. Erdogan seems confident that any proposal to that effect will win popular approval, which, given his steady popular support, is very much possible.

Obviously, abandoning the parliamentary system would amount to the burial of a relatively pluralist political tradition in favor of a relatively majoritarian system. This, in turn, is likely to accelerate the authoritarian shift that has been under way in Turkey for some time. In other words, the three main problems plaguing the country today  Erdogans personalization of power, tendencies of power concentration and quest to build an authoritarian democracy model  are likely to deepen fast.

The constitutional amendment draft the AKP submitted to the MHP contains ample evidence to that effect. Unlike presidential systems in democratic countries, which are based on the principle of a strict separation of powers, the AKPs draft rests on the idea of the unity of power, embodied in the president. The president, for instance, is entitled to appoint half of the judges of the Constitutional Court, the Council of State and the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors as well as the chief prosecutor of the Appeals Court. Given Turkeys partisan traditions and the skewed relationship between judiciary and politics, this means that the top echelons of the judiciary would be shaped under the presidents tutelage.

Under the draft, executive power is naturally transferred to the president. The president, however, is not only entitled to run domestic and foreign politics and approve laws, but is equipped with some super powers that transcend into the legislative realm. The president can issue legislative decrees and even has the authority to dissolve parliament.

Yet, the most critical element that paves the way for a subordinate legislature is the one that allows the president to remain at the helm of a political party, an issue that Erdogan has insistently highlighted and even held as a top priority. Under Turkeys existing electoral laws, the electorate votes for party tickets with multiple parliamentary candidates in broad electoral districts. The candidate lists are drawn up at party headquarters, mostly by the party leader. So, a president-party leader who has drawn up the list of candidates will inevitably become the political boss of the parliamentary group that emerges from the elections. In other words, the president will be the leader of the majority or at least the biggest party group in parliament and, thus, the de facto leader of the legislature.

All those draft provisions point to a system in which the governing party controls the state, or rather, a political party and the state become one. Back in 1935, Turkey experienced the most rigid version of this model  the legal one-party system  and knows very well what it means.

In sum, the presidential system proposal offers a prospect in which popular approval is seen as the sole source of legitimacy, universal values are played down and the concentration of power in a single hand is embraced as the ideal order. And all this comes as an institutionalized and permanent new structure and not any transient and reversible situation. Ankaras mounting tensions with the European Union, controversial appeals to reinstate the death penalty and talk of joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization should be all seen in the same context.
November 28, 2016

Turkeys Kurds are calling on US President-elect Donald Trump to follow up on the remarks he made in his July 21 interview with The New York Times: It would be ideal if we could get them [Kurds and Turks] all together.

What policy he plans to follow on Turkey-Kurdish relations is a matter of intense curiosity in the region.

For the moment, the only clue Turkeys Kurds have to assess Trumps intentions is what he said in that interview: Im a big fan of the Kurdish forces. At the same time, I think we have a potentially  we could have a potentially very successful relationship with Turkey. And it would be really wonderful if we could put them somehow both together.

Which Kurds does Trump adore so much? No doubt, he is talking about the Syrian Kurds of the Peoples Protection Units and the Womens Protection Units, who fearlessly took on, with the support of the international coalition, the Islamic State (IS). What we dont know is if Trump has the same sentiment about Turkeys Kurds. There are undeniable links between the Kurdish movement in Turkey and the Syrian Kurds Trump admires. Naturally, this admiration will influence his attitude toward Turkeys Kurds.

In the Times interview, when David Sanger asked Trump, And whats your diplomatic plan for doing that, Trump gave a superficial response: Meetings. If I ever have the opportunity to do it, meaning if I win, we will have meetings, we will have meetings very early on.  Very early on. I think its a natural. I think its a natural. I mean, we have two groups that are friendly and they are fighting each other. So if we could put them together, that would be something that would be possible to do, in my opinion.

Hisyar Ozsoy, the deputy co-chair for foreign relations for the Peoples Democratic Party, said Kurdish leaders cant yet predict the path Trump will take because his transition team is not yet finalized. Of course we expect Trump to support freedom and democracy in the Middle East conflict. But if he continues with his pre-election stance of not giving priority to human rights, that would make us uncomfortable, Ozsoy told Al-Monitor.

Gunes Murat Tezcur of the Kurdish Policy Studies program at the University of Central Florida said that although Trump declared that he will adopt a balanced attitude similar to Obamas for relations between Turkey and Kurds in terms of Syria, Tezcur believes Trump wont be focusing all that much on the Kurdish issue in Turkey. Tezcur added that he doesnt expect Trump to spend much effort on Turkey, whose Kurdish policy has returned to a terror paradigm.

In the meanwhile, noting that the US is not in a position to turn its back on Turkey or the Kurds, We expect Trump to actively try to fulfill his words of bringing [President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan and Kurds together, Hisyar Ozsoy told Al-Monitor. The US must persistently counsel Turkey not to treat the Kurds as an enemy, but as a partner. Kurds are not obsessed with Erdogan as a person. The problem is not only with Erdogan. There is a new ruling clique in Turkey, and the entire world must support those struggling against the mistakes of this bloc.

Vahap Coskun of Dicle University thinks the Justice and Development Party (AKP) believes Trump will not be paying much attention to violations of human rights in Turkey. So how can Trump watch out for Turkeys sensitivities while supporting the Democratic Union Party (PYD), which Turkey sees as a terror organization, at the same time? Trump will want to succeed in Mosul and Raqqa in a short time. This goal may compel Trump to launch initiatives to end the conflict between his two field allies, the PYD and Turkey, Coskun told Al-Monitor.

So what do Kurds expect from Trump? Coskun replied, Some Kurds think Trumps business acumen could be an opportunity and he could terminate the problems between Turkey and the Kurds. Other Kurds, however, think Trumps political inexperience could make matters worse. Of course, Kurds in general hope the US will be more generous with its support to preserve Kurdish gains in Syria. Similarly, if an independence issue arises in Iraqi Kurdistan, we expect the US to support it also.

Kurdish businessman Sahismail Bedirhanoglu agreed with Coskuns assessments. The Kurds expect Trump to intervene to put an end to clashes in Turkey that are getting out of control, he said.

We are asking Trump to take action to achieve peace between Erdogan and the Kurds. But unless Washingtons own relations with Turkey dont improve, there will be less likelihood of Trump's putting pressure on the AKP to solve the Kurdish issue, Bedirhanoglu told Al-Monitor.

Bedirhanoglu has been involved in many initiatives to solve the Kurdish issue and believes the balancing act of the United States between the Kurds and Turkey cannot be sustained under current conditions. The US is trying to keep Turkey, Kurds and Arabs happy all at the same time. Kurds are involved in the struggle against IS. Turkey is also in that struggle, but they are not allies. This is a very important dilemma that the US has to overcome. Trump cannot decide to be friends with one of the actors in the field while opposing the other. It is essential to end strife between these two actors, he added.

Bedirhanoglu said Erdogan and the AKP cannot keep up their current policy against the Kurdish movement. The same is true for the Kurdish movements stance against the Turkish state. It is easier to end a war that will not have a winner: As both sides cannot sustain this war, a US move to end the conflict may get positive responses both from the Kurds and Turkey, Bedirhanoglu said.

Bedirhanoglu believes the only way Turkey can restore its image in the West is through a dialogue with the Kurds. A new peace process could, therefore, be a major public relations gain for Turkey in the West, and Erdogan is well aware of it.

However, while addressing the Nov. 23 meeting in Istanbul of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation, Erdogan made it clear that he is not that interested in such public relations when he said, If the West calls someone a dictator, in my book that person is the right person.

Ozsoy thinks Erdogans current policies will inevitably mean a confrontation with Trump. Trump could opt to improve ties with Turkey in the first few months of his term. They may even have a fake honeymoon. But the Middle East policies of Turkey and the US contradict each other. This is not an issue that can be solved with a few good meetings between the leaders. Turkeys interventions in Iraq and Syria and its flirting with Sunnis are bottlenecks in the US Middle East policy. These bottlenecks will not disappear because Trump has taken over, Ozsoy said.

Mehmet Emin Kardas, the chairman of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Turkey, Turkeys version of Massoud Barzanis Kurdistan Democratic Party, said they see US Republicans as more inclined to a solution of the Kurdish issue than Democrats and that he had favored Trump from the outset. Kardas said he has sent a letter of congratulations to Trump.

The letter said, Mr. President: We are in the 21st century and Kurdish people are still devoid of their freedom and rights. More than 50 million Kurds spread over 600 square kilometers in the Middle East are still without a state, living as captives of occupying states. We Kurds hope that you as the President of the United States will support oppressed and victimized people.

We dont know if Trump has seen this letter. But people of diverse opinions and tendencies whom we spoke with agree that the path Trump takes will determine whether Turkeys anti-Kurdish policies will change.
November 28, 2016

After absorbing the shock of Donald Trumps election to the presidency of the United States, it is time for the Palestinian Authority (PA) to get practical. President Mahmoud Abbas has put together a steering committee to prepare for Trump entering the White House and outline the PA's initiatives in the United Nations over the coming year.

The members of the committee include Saeb Erekat, a member of the Fatah Steering Committee who was also responsible for negotiations with Israel; Maen Areikat, who was the PLOs representative in Washington; and Husam Zomlot, who is slated to replace Areikat in the American capital. Noted Americanologists who will be advising the team include Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour; former UN ambassador and relative of late PLO leader Yasser Arafat Nasser al-Qudwa, who is considered close to Abbas; politician Hanan Ashrawi; senior Fatah leader Mohammad al-Shattiyeh, who Abbas is rumored to be planning to make his deputy during the upcoming Fatah conference; and senior Fatah official Azzam al-Ahmad.

The team was asked to prepare an opinion paper on how well the PA is prepared for the challenges posed by the new US administration. They were also asked to prepare daily position papers, based, among other things, on the analyses of Palestinian advisers who live in the United States and teach at universities there.

Palestinians are wondering whether Trump will really rely on the advice of his Jewish son-in-law Jared Kushner when it comes to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Top PA officials followed Trumps interview with The New York Times with considerable consternation. In it, Trump indicated that it is possible his son-in-law will play a significant role in this area. What concerns the Palestinians most is that they have no idea what Trumps Jewish son-in-laws opinions on the issues are and whether he can be objective. They have bad memories of the Clinton administrations emissary to the region, Dennis Ross, who they never considered a fair intermediary because of his Jewish origins.

We have been forbidden from talking with any US representatives and from saying anything about Trump, one senior Palestinian official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. According to him, Abbas imposed this blanket ban on all senior PA officials and Fatah members, who are scheduled to convene Nov. 29 in Ramallah. When presenting Fatahs plans for the coming year, these senior Fatah officials are only to call on the new president to embrace the two-state solution, just as all the previous American presidents have done since the founding of the PA.

Speakers at the conference were warned in no uncertain terms that they must be careful not to express any positions critical of Trump and his administration, even on the matter of moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem. There is a real concern that Trump could form a negative opinion of the Palestinian leadership before he is even sworn into office.

According to the same Palestinian source, Abbas has already scolded Mansour for comments he made in Washington on Nov. 13. Mansour warned that if the Trump administration decides to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, as the president-elect said he would do during his campaign, the PA would make his life miserable. He then stated that such a decision will be perceived as an act of aggression against the Palestinians, and threatened, "If they do that, nobody should blame us for unleashing all of the weapons we have in the UN to defend ourselves, and we have a lot of weapons in the UN.

These arent the kind of things to say now, especially after we all learned not to make the redhead angry, said the Palestinian source.

As far as the Palestinian team is concerned, the big questions are whether the next president will play an active role in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Will he follow in the footsteps of his predecessors by trying to advance various diplomatic moves? Will Trump be objective about the conflict, especially considering the strong feelings about Muslims he expressed during the campaign?

The Trump team believes that the new president will be in over his head trying to keep his promises to American voters about the economy, immigration and changing attitudes toward his government. As such, he will not obsess over the Palestinian issue like his predecessors George W. Bush, who put together the Road Map, and Barack Obama, who forced the parties into failed negotiations.

Al-Monitor has also learned that the committee has been tasked with preparing plans to continue the PAs efforts to establish a Palestinian state in 2017. Senior Fatah officials told Al-Monitor that based on conversations they've had with Abbas, they were led to believe that the Palestinian leader will not rest until he sees some diplomatic achievement for his people. Only then, they say, will he announce that he is handing the reins of government over to his successor.

Senior Palestinian officials are preparing to find ways to get around Trump and help Abbas achieve his objective. So far it seems that Frances efforts to convene an international conference have led to no serious results, but Europe and Russia could perhaps provide enough backing for the Palestinians to help defend themselves if Trump moves against them. Right now, the steering committee does not know how far Trump will go. Its our $60 million question, the Palestinian source said.
November 28, 2016

Constant fighting in Yemen is crushing its people with suffering that will change the shape of their society for many years to come.

On Nov. 15, US Secretary of State John Kerry announced a cease-fire agreement between the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthi rebel group.

The cease-fire agreement only mentioned the Saudi-led coalition and the alliance between the Houthis and ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh. It excluded the internationally recognized Yemeni government led by Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. The agreement included a request to Hadis government to participate in a unity government with the Houthi-Saleh alliance. Later the same day, Hadis foreign minister, Abdel-Malek al-Mekhlafi, stated that his government was not interested" in such an agreement.

With the stagnation in the process of ending hostilities and the lack of willingness of all warring parties to engage in a peace deal, the country is at risk of falling into an abyss. Yemen has been on the United Nations' List of Least Developed Countries in the world since the list's creation in 1971. Prolonging this devastating war threatens to keep Yemen in that position for a long time to come.

Yemen has been considered a poor country for most of its modern history, but its humanitarian conditions have been at their worst since the outbreak of the conflict. The already-dismal situation there suffered a major blow when Saudi Arabia  with a 10-country coalition including the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Morocco  intervened in March 2015 to fight Houthi territorial expansion in Yemen. The rebel group seized the capital of Sanaa in September 2014.

Saudi Arabia expected to make short work of its operation, but the fighting continues today.

Yemen entered this war as an extremely impoverished country with severe economic problems driven by decades of political chaos. Yet international organizations have worked toward establishing a sustainable humanitarian development process. All the successes of development policies in Yemen and economic reform that were introduced by the International Monetary Fund in 1996 following the civil war in 1994 have not only been dismantled during the current vicious war, but will also be difficult to restore and build on in any future postwar recovery plan.

After any destructive conflict comes a reconstruction phase; for this phase to succeed and establish a solid ground for sustainable peace, there is a crucial need for an adequate labor force. But the current humanitarian situation in Yemen draws a very bleak image of the countrys future, with its education and health sectors failing.

Yemen is unable to provide health care for a large share of the population. More than half of its health facilities are out of service or only partially functioning, leaving Yemenis to fall prey to war injuries and diseases that have been all but forgotten in the developed world, such as dengue fever and cholera. The World Health Organization said the number of cholera cases in Yemen doubled in less than two weeks, exceeding 4,000 by mid-November. In addition, the International Committee of the Red Cross estimates more than 6,000 Yemenis have lost one or more limbs during this war, adding to the number of disabled people in Yemen, which was estimated at 2 million in 2014.

Yemen's small labor force, estimated at 4.2 million people in 2013-2014, must sustain the country's 21 million people and carry the burden of reconstruction with a plan to integrate more and more people into the labor force by offering more jobs. This remains a challenge with the country's continuing brain drain and the low level of education among its labor force. About 70% of Yemen's workers have nothing more than a primary education.

Yet literacy is one sector that has improved in Yemen. In 2015, 30% of Yemen's population was illiterate  less than half the percentage reported in 1994 (63%). That compares with 2015 rates, for example, of 51% in Ethiopia and 9% in Oman. Yemen also has a big gender gap when it comes to education and even bigger issues when it comes to the quality of schools and higher education. Less than 8% of the labor force holds a university degree.

During the war, 1.8 million students were unable to go to school either because their schools were destroyed or occupied by internally displaced persons or because the students themselves became displaced or were recruited into the different warring militias. About 60,000 students had to leave private schools for public ones, indicating that the war has affected all segments of Yemeni society.

Yemeni universities have been open only intermittently during the conflict. Many teachers were imprisoned or dismissed from work by the Houthi rebel group, had to leave their jobs or the country, or were striking to protest not being paid.

Many of the countrys best-educated millennials  the engine of Yemens future  have been steadily leaving the country in the past five years of political unrest to look for better opportunities elsewhere. All these factors pose a great challenge to any postwar recovery plan and any progress in humanitarian development.

The road to recovery for Yemen is a long one, but it must start with a cessation of hostilities to begin to heal the devastating human cost of this war. Putting Yemens future first by providing better health care and working to regain the Yemeni brainpower that fled the country should be the No. 1 priority of its political elite before the damage becomes irreparable.
publix 20 midtown

The signs for Publix has gone up in downtown Birmingham as the store prepares for opening.

(Courtesy 20 Midtown)

The downtown Birmingham Publix has pushed back its opening date due to some unexpected delays.

The Publix at the intersection of 3rd Avenue South and 20th Street South was scheduled to open Wednesday, but the store is still tweaking some finishing touches and won't be quite ready to open then, according to developer Dick Schmalz.

"Publix is making every effort to make their store perfect, and small changes on the interior have and are being made," Schmalz said. "We hope to know the exact opening date by the middle of December. I expect their opening to be before the middle of January."

The Publix anchors the massive three-building development in downtown Birmingham. The 36,000-square-foot store will have a full-service pharmacy, and it will have 75 apartments on top of it, which have begun pre-leasing.

RGS Properties' Schmalz and Scott Bryant of Scott M. Bryant & Co. are developing 20 Midtown, the $100 million-plus development spanning three buildings, the first phase featuring a Starbucks, the development's leasing office, AT&T retail space and a Chipotle Mexican Grill.

Demolition is nearing completion on the third building and the developers are finalizing their construction schedule, Schmalz said.

"As soon as we finalize our construction schedule we'll be able to finalize the agreements with our retail tenants," Schmalz said.

The third building, which is across the street from the Publix building, is by far the largest building in the project. It will have 41,000 square feet of retail and office space on the first floor and 242 units above it, including some two story lofts, though the apartment composition could change. It will include a courtyard and landscaped pool on the fourth floor.

Tammy Cohen of Cohen Carnaggio Reynolds is the architect. Martin Smith of SRS Real Estate Partners is managing leasing the retail space.
Every workplace has its challenges, just as every worker struggles to find his or her place in the workforce.

But employers nationally are seeing more of a need for what are called "soft skills," and schools and job trainers are working to fill those gaps.

Simply put, soft skills are those intangible abilities that can be the difference between success or failure. They encompass everything from arriving on time, dressing appropriately and a positive attitude, to workers being able to adapt, pitch in during a crisis or simply perform duties in spite of setbacks.

In the next month, the Housing Authority of the Birmingham District will offer a soft skills workforce development program to residents living in Southtown Court and Loveman Village. The job training will be available to hundreds of families through the Alabama State Black Chamber of Commerce.

The two areas were chosen as they are being redeveloped with modern homes and green space, officials say, as Loveman Village is slated for a $80 million redevelopment. But HABD President/CEO Michael Lundy said the job training is just as important as better housing.

"We want to give our residents the tools they need to build a better life for themselves and their families," he said. "Financially and socially stable families are just as essential to healthy communities as attractive new developments."

Jerry Mitchell, the chamber president and CEO, said the training will involve communication skills, critical thinking and how a person can adapt into a work environment. Participants will go through five different workshops.

Mitchell said some soft skills are simply what you might call "emotional intelligence" - being adaptable, problem solving and the ability to employ critical thinking skills.

What can an employee do, for example, in an office where the supervisor "yells across the room" to get a point across? Or how does she learn to manage time when given several different tasks to perform before the end of the day? With a tightening labor market, some of that training that might normally have been part of the workload for a veteran employee must be learned "on the fly."

"It's not something that usually taught in academic settings," Mitchell said. "You have to remind people that conclusions can be drawn about how people dress, or when you show up for work late."

According to the Wall Street Journal, a recent LinkedIn examination over a year's time developed a list of sought after skills, such as communication, organization, punctuality, creativity and having a friendly personality.

Beyond the outward skills are the ability to work within a team and navigate interpersonal relationships.

By why the sudden demand for these skills? Pamela Satcher, a career resource specialist at Gadsden State Community College, said one reason can be found, paradoxically, in the rise of communication technology. As people have more ways to communicate with each other long distance, some skills for up-close interaction may be withering.

"Communication skills are the biggest need," she said. "For example, millennials are used to texting, they don't really verbalize things. And the ability to deal with conflict and adapt to change is needed.

"Things like that can be the difference between getting a job and keeping a job," Satcher said.

But unlike the core abilities needed to work, soft skills are easily attained through training, she said.

"It's not rocket science," she said. "Often times, people just don't realize the importance of it. But it is something you can learn. Anyone can learn to communicate."
The son of suspended Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore was arrested this weekend in Etowah County for two miscellaneous charges.

Caleb Elisha Moore, 26, of Gallant, was arrested Friday, according to Etowah County Sheriff's spokeswoman Natalie Barton.

Moore was arrested for hunting without permission and hunting over bait. Both are misdemeanors.

The land owner came into the Etowah County Sheriff's Office to make the complaint and signed the warrants, Barton said.

Moore has faced numerous charges on eight occasions in Florida and Alabama over the last five years. In 2015, he was arrested in Troy for drug possession. He has also faced charges of driving under the influence in both Alabama and Florida, and three drug-related arrests in Baldwin, Pike and St. Clair counties in Alabama.
N.C. Murder.jpg

Phoebe Morgan, 46, and Eugene McDonald, 54

(Tuscaloosa Metro Homicide)

A man and a woman from Tuscaloosa County are behind bars in connection with a North Carolina murder that stemmed from a custody battle.

Phoebe Morgan, 46, and Eugene McDonald, 54, were taken into custody Friday, Tuscaloosa County Metro Homicide Unit investigators announced today. Both were sought in the Nov. 20 slaying of Gary Spitzer in Pink Hill, N.C., said Capt. Gary Hood.

Morgan lived in Alberta City off of 25th Avenue East; McDonald lived in Southfork Trailer Park in Duncanville. Tuscaloosa homicide investigators, working with the Lenoir County Sheriff's Office and the Pink Hill Police Department, helped carry out search warrants in the probe. A vehicle believed to be involved in the murder was also seized.

Morgan's daughter, Katey Millican, was arrested in Pink Hill last week, according to North Carolina's WNCT 9 television station. Millican was charged with felony conspiracy to commit murder after Spitzer, her ex-boyfriend, was found dead at his mobile home that Sunday evening. Authorities told the television station the 56-year-old Spitzer and Millican were involved in a custody battle over their 3-year-old daughter.

Morgan and McDonald are being held at the Tuscaloosa County Jail awaiting extradition.
Family members of a young man shot to death in Hoover said they are heartbroken over the slaying, and still aren't sure what happened.

Howard Hardy, 24, died at his girlfriend's apartment at Ashby at Ross Bridge. Investigators say the gunfire followed an argument between Hardy and his girlfriend's stepfather.

"It's just a sad situation for my family, especially for my mother," said Hardy's sister, Miles College student Jacquise Hardy. "That was her oldest, and her only son."

The shooting happened just before 10:30 a.m. Hoover police spokesman Lt. Keith Czeskleba said officers were dispatched to the scene at 10:25 a.m. on a report of a person shot.

When they arrived on the scene, Hardy was found wounded inside the apartment. Hoover medics pronounced him dead on the scene. The 45-year-old suspected shooter had fled the scene.

Dispatchers issued a lookout bulletin for him, and he was taken into custody a short time later by Bessemer police. His name has not been released.

Hardy, who is the grandson of retired Fairfield police Deputy Chief Beverly Hardy, was at the apartment visiting his girlfriend when he got into a physical altercation with his girlfriend's stepfather and shots were fired.

Czeskleba said there were other family members inside the apartment at the time of the shooting, and they have all been questioned by Hoover police.

Police said the results of their investigation will be presented to the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office to determine the appropriate charges. "This case is yet another sad example of individuals and their inability to resolve conflict without physical violence,'' said Hoover police Capt. Gregg Rector.

The shooting death is Hoover's third homicide in 2016, with the last slaying happening eight months ago on March 16. "One is certainly too many and the tragic taking of another's life is always just heartbreaking,'' Rector said. "We'll work hard on this case, however, to give it the resolution it deserves."

Hardy had two children - a 1-year-old son, and a 5-month-old daughter. He graduated from Fairfield High Preparatory School, and then attended Alabama State University for two years before leaving school to come back to the Birmingham area.

His sister said he worked at Walmart, and just recently had asked for extra shifts so that he could make Christmas extra special for his two children.

"He was a great father, and he just wanted the best for his family,'' Jacquise Hardy said. "He had a good heart, and was just overall a good young man."

She said last saw her brother on Saturday, less than 24 hours before he was killed, and never dreamed it would be for the last time. "We were all shocked when we received the news,'' she said. "We did not see this coming."

Jacquise Hardy said she and her brother had their differences, as all siblings do, but said they were exceptionally close. "He always had my back and I always had his,'' she said. "I want people to know my brother was a special person. He died protecting his family."
President Obama will sign a public proclamation in January designating portions of the Civil Rights District in downtown Birmingham as a national historic monument, according to informed sources.

The signing, which is allowed under the Antiquities Act of 1906, is slated to occur in Washington, D.C.

The footprint of the historic area will include the A.G. Gaston Motel, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, 16th Street Baptist Church, Masonic Temple, Bethel Baptist Church, Kelly Ingram Park, and the 4th Avenue business district.

The area will be declared a national historic monument, rather than a national park because it is being created by presidential public proclamation. National historic parks may only be created by the U.S. Congress.

In March, Rep. Terri Sewell introduced a legislation to create a Birmingham Civil Rights National Historic Park with the aim of securing bipartisan support. The bill, however, is stalled in committee.

Sewell will presumably continue to push for Congressional approval of the national park designation, despite the presidential proclamation.

In October, during a visit to the district to Birmingham and Anniston by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis, Brent Leggs, senior field officer for preservation division for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, told AL.com that while national parks and national monuments are created differently, they are treated the same by the National Park Service.

The national monument proclamation is expected to ignite federal funding for the renovation of the A.G. Gaston Motel, located at 1510 5th Ave. North, as well as providing park rangers, technical assistance and marketing support designed to spur visitation to the area, Mayor William A. Bell has said.

The motel, which was built in 1954 and is owned by the city, has been closed since 1986 and is significant disrepair. The city deeded a small portion of the motel--as little as 20 feet--to the federal government, essentially the Department of the Interior and the National Park Service. In order to qualify for federal funding, the National Park Service must own at least a small a small portion of the project.

Motel renovations will include a restaurant, classrooms, retail space and archival area for the Institute.

The National Park System says it received over 292 million visits to its sites in 2014, adding that those visitors spent $15.7 billion in areas within 60 miles of the park, and contributed 277,000 jobs (108,000 of which were in the hospitality industry--lodging, restaurants, and bars, according to the NPS).
An Alabama fifth-grade teacher arrested last month for public drunkeness after a City Council meeting has returned to the classroom following a 10-day suspension without pay.

Shanna Ozbirn

Red Bay High School teacher Shanna Ozbirn is scheduled to appear in the city's municipal court Friday for a hearing on two "violations" of Alabama law: public intoxication and possession of prohibited liquor.

"People in the community were concerned and watching to see what we were going to do," said Franklin County Schools Superintendent Gary Williams. "We thought it was best for the employee and for us to take some kind of disciplinary action. We'll monitor the situation as we go forward."

Red Bay police arrested Ozbirn after the Oct. 17 council meeting. Police said at the time that Ozbirn appeared to be under the influence during the meeting and was arrested before she could leave once the meeting ended.

Williams said Ozbirn completed a rehab that lasted about two weeks before she returned to the classroom Nov. 17.

"The reports I get say she's doing better," the superintendent said.

Williams said the 10-day-suspension was leveled because of a previous incident involving a Red Bay teacher that set "precedent."

"That teacher got the same suspension for a DUI that also wasn't on school property," Williams said. "We used that same disciplinary action because we felt like we needed do something and wanted to be fair with everybody."

Ozbirn also was a member of the city's Park and Recreation Board, but she resigned the position after her arrest.

While she didn't contribute a story the week she was arrested, Ozbirn was a freelance writer for the Red Bay News. She wrote about the bi-weekly council meetings.

The town, located in Franklin County, has a population of about 3,000.

Ozbirn teaches fifth-grade math at Red Bay. The school educates children in grades Kindergarten through 12th.
A suspect is dead following an attack at Ohio State University that injured at least nine people.

Police said the male suspect drove a vehicle over the curb outside Watts Hall at around 9:52 a.m. local time, striking some students. He then exited the vehicle and began slashing people on the sidewalk with a butcher knife. Officers arrived on the scene within a minute and shot the suspect.

The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene. He was later identified by NBC News as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, an 18-year-old OSU student. Artan was a Somali refugee who left his homeland in 2007 before traveling to Pakistan and then the U.S. in 2014 as a legal permanent resident of the United States, officials said.

Nine people were taken to the hospital, eight in stable condition and one in critical condition.

Police said it appears the attack was "done on purpose" and was not an act of random violence.

A school-wide emergency alert went out around 10 a.m. advising students of an active shooter at the Columbus campus and asking them to stay in place.

"Run, hide, fight. Watts Hall. 19th and college," the notification said. "Run, hide, fight," are terms used by the Department of Homeland Security in connection with an active shooter situation.

The shelter in place was lifted at 11:34 a.m. ET though the university cancelled all classes for the day.

It was later determined the gunshots were likely from police.

President-elect Donald Trump issued a statement about the incident.

"Watching the news unfold at Ohio State University. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the students and administration," Trump said. "Excellent job by the Ohio State University Emergency Management Team in immediately notifying students and faculty via social media.

"Thank you to all the first responders who reacted immediately," Trump added.

This story will be updated as more information is available.

Earlier:

The shooter was reported at Watts Hall, the materials science and engineering building. Almost 60,000 students attend Ohio State.

Police and other emergency personnel are on the scene. ABC News is reporting the FBI has also responded. Officials have closed all exits from Ohio Highway 315 leading to the campus, as well as several other local roads to OSU. Area schools are also on lockdown.

Reports from the scene said seven or eight people have been transmitted to the hospital. Two are listed in stable condition but the status of the others is not known, according to the AP.

Images from the scene show students sheltering in place.

Ohio State students shelter in place after reports of shooting on campus; at least 8 people transported to hospitals https://t.co/iAc9wtDP4U pic.twitter.com/gvbn4TA1Db  CNN (@CNN) November 28, 2016

Ohio Gov. John Kasich has also issued a comment.

Ohio's thoughts and prayers go out to the Ohio State community. Be safe, listen to first responders. https://t.co/5qtfH3Fb6d  John Kasich (@JohnKasich) November 28, 2016

At least seven people taken to hospital after active shooter report at Ohio State: https://t.co/UhZfIwaybZ pic.twitter.com/spt4BMFYkD  CBS 2 News (@CBS2Boise) November 28, 2016

Buckeye Alert: Continue to shelter in place. Avoid area of College. More information to follow.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

Buckeye Alert: Continue to shelter in place in north campus area. Follow directions of Police on scene.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

Buckeye Alert: Continue to shelter in place in north campus area. Follow directions of Police on scene.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is leading president-elect Donald Trump by more than 2 million votes, according to the most-recent election results.

The Cook Political Report, a non-partisan group tracking election results, has Clinton with 64,654,483 votes, or 48.2 percent, compared to Trump's 62,418,820 votes, or 46.5 percent. Other candidates received a combined 7,192,036 votes or 5.4 percent.

Trump, however, won the Electoral College - and the presidency - by winning 306 Electoral College votes compared to 232 for Clinton. A nominee must win 270 Electoral College votes to win the election.

Initial indications were Trump won 290 electoral votes but on Monday, officials in Michigan announced the Republican nominee had won the state and its 16 Electoral College votes.

The razor-thin margins in some key states has led to Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein initiating a recount request in Wisconsin, where Trump edged Clinton by a little more than 22,500 votes. Stein said concerns over a cyberattack influencing the outcome prompted her request; the recount could begin as soon as today.

Stein, who has raised more than $6 million to fund her efforts, has also called for recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania. Trump won Michigan by 10,704 votes and Pennsylvania by slightly more than 68,000.

Clinton's campaign has indicated it supports Stein's efforts.

"Now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides. If Jill Stein follows through as she has promised and pursues recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan, we will take the same approach in those states as well," Clinton campaign general council Mark Erik Elias said. "Regardless of the potential to change the outcome in any of the states, we feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself."

The recount has drawn the ire of the president-elect.

"In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," Trump tweeted. "It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4 states instead of the 15 states that I visited. I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!"

Critics said there is no indication of widespread voting by undocumented immigrants.

If election results stand - and all indications are they will despite the recount - Clinton will become only the fifth candidate in U.S. history to win the popular vote yet lose the Electoral College, joining Al Gore in 2000, Andrew Jackson in 1824, Samuel Tilden in 1876 and Grover Cleveland in 1888.

Electors meet in their respective states on Dec. 19 to cast their official ballots. Efforts to have electors break party pledges or even state law and not vote for Trump are underway. One petition on Change.org calling for a Clinton electoral revolt has amassed almost 4.7 million signatures.
Authorities say a husband and wife from Washington, D.C., have been arrested and charged with killing the woman's stepfather in New Jersey.

Prosecutors in New Jersey say that Lewis Norwood and Daphne Conklin Norwood were arrested last week in Alabama. They are charged with killing 58-year-old William Blackwell outside of his home in Ewing Township, New Jersey, on Oct. 23.

The couple was arrested in Enterprise and were awaiting extradition back to New Jersey.

Lewis Norwood was being held on $1 million bail and Conklin Norwood on $750,000. It wasn't immediately clear if either had an attorney to comment on their behalf.

Mercer County prosecutors didn't release a motive or additional details on the investigation
GRANDPARENTS DAY

4 year old Eric Bloomston takes a break from eating his sandwich to watch his grandmother Rosalyn Bloomston look at his surprise gift he made her for Grandparents Day at Jewish Community Center.It was a hand key chain. (02/23/2001-NEWS STAFF/JERRY AYRES-SOUTH ZONE-MICHELLE GUFFEY/REPORTER. GRANDPARENTS DAY. )

(bn)

A case filed earlier this year has reignited the debate about grandparents' rights to visit their grandchildren.

In the civil case filed in August, both sets of grandparents are suing their son, or son-in-law, for the opportunity to see their grandchildren.

The case began with both sets of grandparents filling petitions for grandparent visitation. The father, represented by attorneys including William Bradford, Amber Ladner, Frank Hanson, and Marshall Smith, has asked Jefferson County Circuit Judge Bentley Patrick to dismiss the case.

The final ruling in the case is set to take place on December 2, at 8:30 a.m.

This year, Gov. Robert Bentley signed into law a new grandparent visitation bill that gives some grandparents the right to see their grandchildren, nearly five years after a similar law was deemed unconstitutional. The new law repeals the Alabama Grandparents Visitation Act, which was enacted in 2010.

The new law sets out criteria for grandparents who wish to file a petition against their grandchildren's parents. The grandparents must have "clear and convincing evidence" to show the court that the children would be harmed without grandparent visitation, according to the law.

Grandparents can file a visitation petition if their grandchildren fall into one of the following categories: Children born out of wedlock, children whose parents have divorced, children whose parent or parents have died, and children whose parent or parents' paternal rights have been terminated.

The petitioner, or grandparent, must show a "significant and viable relationship" with the grandchildren they are wishing to visit. To establish that relationship, the law says the child must have lived with the petitioner for at least six consecutive months either with or without a parent present; the petitioner must have been the caregiver to the child for at least six consecutive months; or the petitioner must have had frequent or regular contact with the child for at least 12 consecutive months that resulted in a strong and meaningful relationship with the child. All criteria must have taken place within three years of filing of the lawsuit.

The grandparent must have established to the court a viable relationship with the children and that visitation is in the best interest of the child for visitation to be granted.

"As a matter of public policy, this act recognizes the importance of family and the fundamental rights of parents and children," the law says.

"...this act balances the constitutional rights of parents and children by imposing an enhanced standard pf review and consideration of the harm to a child caused by the parent's limitation or termination of a prior relationship of a child to his or her grandparent."

The grandparent petitioning for visitation must cooperate with the parents if visitation is granted.

All three children in the current lawsuit before Judge Patrick are minors, according to court documents. Their mother, the defendant's late wife, died in 2014.

In a court document filed by the defense, Bradford said that the Alabama Grandparent Visitation Act (GVA) is unconstitutional because "...it fails to give sufficient weight to the presumption that the decision of a fit parent is in the best interests of the child, and further allows the court to override the parent's presumptively correct decision based on the court's own substituted judgment of best interests."

The document also said, "Although the wording of the GVA was amended in 2016, neither the process nor the analysis has changed. The statute still comes down to a determination by the court that visitation is in the best interest of the child, thereby allowing the court to override a parental decision and substitute its own determination of the best interests of the child."

In a document filed by the Guardian ad Litem, or the attorney representing the best interests of the children, John Bodie, the children are "members of a non-traditional family under the Alabama Policy Institute", because of the death of their mother. Under the new law, the children's grandparents have a right to file a visitation petition because one of the parents is deceased.

Both sets of grandparents have spent "substantial amounts of time" with the children, according to the document, which created "strong emotional attachments" between the grandparents and the children. The grandparents associated with the children nearly every day, documents said.

Records state the children believe their father is depriving them of contact with their grandparents. Bodie said the children's rights were infringed on when their father denied them the rights to visit their grandparents.

Wendy Crew, an attorney representing the maternal grandparents, said, "I'm not going to comment on the merits of this case, however we are looking from a position on this case that children have a right to know their family."

Attorneys for the defendant and for the paternal grandparents did not respond to comment by the time of publication; this post will be updated if comment is received.
A list of the largest private companies in each state reads like a who's who of the business world: Dell (Texas); Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. (Vermont); Nationwide Insurance (Ohio); LLBean (Maine); and Publix Supermarkets (Florida.)

There are other names on the list, however, that might not be as well-known. Alaska's largest private company is Arctic Slope Regional Corporation; Indiana's is Biomet. Allegis Group Inc. is Maryland's largest privately held company; Ergon is Mississippi's.

Each of them landed on 24/7 Wall Street's list of each state's largest privately held companies. The information in the rankings came from PrivCo, which also provided annual growth rates based on each company's most recent three fiscal years.

Alabama's largest privately held company likely falls into the category of a non-household name, though its products and services are used by many.

Birmingham-based EBSCO Industries has revenue of about $2.7 billion, making it Alabama's largest privately held company. The company's annual growth rate is a healthy 5.5 percent.

EBSCO's products and services are varied, ranging from steel joists, fishing lures and LED signs to databases, merchandising displays and publishing. The company is also involved in real estate development and insurance services.

Welcome to Monday's Wake Up Call. Let's see what's going on:

Obama, Trump talking

Overcoming years of a strained relationship, President Barack Obama and president-elect Donald Trump are speaking "regularly," Trump's adviser Kellyanne Conway said.

Conway said the discussions have covered a range of topics, including, most recently the Obama administration's Cuban policy. The two disagree on many issues, Conway said, but the discussions have been productive.

The men met in the Oval Office in the days after Trump's upset of Obama's former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Delta apologizes for passenger's pro-Trump rant

Delta Airlines is apologizing for not removing a disruptive passenger from a recent flight.

A video of the incident shows the man standing in the aisle of the plane, yelling and using a profane term to describe supporters of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. He went on to tell the passengers if they didn't like Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 presidential race it was "too bad."

Delta said it was sorry the incident happened and it was ultimately responsible for "ensuring all customers feel safe and comfortable."

Feds won't forcibly remove pipeline protesters

The Army Corps of Engineers said it won't forcibly remove protesters demonstrating against the Dakota Access oil pipeline.

Officials had sent the chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe a letter saying all lands north of the Cannonball River would be closed Dec. 5, leading to speculation the protesters camping in North Dakota would be removed from the site.

In the letter, however, the Army Corps said protesters who remain at the camp after Dec. 5 will be trespassing and subject to prosecution.

CNN's Castro oops

CNN had an oops in its coverage of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro's death on Saturday.

The network's pre-written obit was published with editor's notes indicating it should be changed if President George H.W. Bush, 92, passed away before Castro.

The story said: "One Castro or another has ruled Cuba over a period that spans seven decades and 11 U.S. presidents. Fidel Castro outlived six of those presidents, [[[NOTE: change to seven if George H.W. Bush dies before Castro]]] including Cold War warriors John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan."

CNN made a similar mistake in 2004 when it published a Castro obit, despite the Cuban leader still being alive. That death announcement referred to him as a lifeguard and movie star, lines taken from former President Ronald Reagan's obituary.

Until tomorrow.
Abdul Razak Ali Artan has been identified as the suspect in today's knife attack at Ohio State University.

Here's what we know about Artan:

Who is Abdul Razak Ali Artan?

Artan is an 18-year-old Ohio State student who lives near the campus. He is a Somali refugee who left his homeland in 2007 before traveling to Pakistan and then the U.S. in 2014 where he had legal permanent resident status.

What happened today?

Artan allegedly drove a vehicle over the curb outside a student building at around 9:52 a.m. local time today, striking some students. He then exited the vehicle and began slashing people on the sidewalk with a butcher knife. The incident prompted an active shooter alert and a campus-wide lockdown. The school remained locked down for more than an hour and classes for the day were cancelled.

It was later determined the gunshots were likely from police.

Police kill Artan

Columbus, Ohio police said they arrived within minutes of the report. Artan was shot and killed by police at the scene. Police later said the attack "appeared to be on purpose." It's believed Artan acted alone though police are still processing the scene.

Reports from the scene

Those on the scene said Artan remained quiet throughout the attack, which occurred in front of the Watts Hall, home to the materials science and engineering programs

Nine people were injured in the attack; eight were listed in stable condition, one was in critical condition. Four more people were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

President-elect Trump responds

"Watching the news unfold at Ohio State University. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of the students and administration," Trump said. "Excellent job by the Ohio State University Emergency Management Team in immediately notifying students and faculty via social media.

"Thank you to all the first responders who reacted immediately," Trump added.
Trump_Sessions_1.JPG

Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., left, looks on as Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a national security meeting with advisors at Trump Tower, Friday, Oct. 7, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

Some lawmakers in coastal Alabama believe that Gov. Robert Bentley should fill U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions' vacant seat with someone from the southern part of the state.

Sessions, 69, a Republican from Mobile, has served four consecutive terms since being elected in 1996. The state's other longtime senator, Richard Shelby, hails from Tuscaloosa in the west-central part of the state.

Sessions is vacating the seat after President-elect Donald Trump named him as his choice for U.S. Attorney General. The nomination needs Senate confirmation, which won't take place until after the Jan. 20 inauguration.

"It would be good to have someone from south Alabama," said Sen. Rusty Glover, R-Semmes, who isn't seeking the post. "(The potential choices for Bentley) will all be qualified, north or south. I would like see some of those guys mentioned from down here."

Said Rep. Chris Pringle, R-Mobile: "That's an important consideration."

Added Rep. Randy Davis, R-Daphne: "Naturally, we would hope that would be part of the decision that the governor could consider in that Jeff's work here when he was U.S. Attorney gave him the strong understanding of the region, the economics of the region and the population of the region."

Sessions grew up in tiny Hybart in Alabama's Black Belt region southwest of Montgomery. He attended high school in nearby Wilcox County.

Sessions, in the 1970s, moved to Mobile where he practiced law before President Ronald Reagan tapped him as the U.S. Attorney for Alabama's Southern District in 1981. He served in that post for 12 years before returning briefly to Mobile to continue private practice. He was elected Alabama Attorney General in 1994.

Two years later, Sessions ran and won the Senate seat. He continues to call Mobile home.

William Stewart, professor emeritus of political sciences at the University of Alabama, said an appointment from the coastal area "would certainly be justified."

But he noted that there is no custom in Alabama that calls for senators to be representative of widely varying sections of the state. From 1897-1907, Alabama was represented by senators who both lived in Selma - John Tyler Morgan and Edmund Pettus.

Stewart also said that very few statewide officeholders have come from coastal Alabama, aside from recent years when voters elected Democrat Don Siegelman of Mobile.

But the region, in the past 30 years, has seen a transformation thanks to a surge in growth occurring mostly in Baldwin County. The county is Alabama's fastest growing and its sugary-white sand beaches remain the most popular tourist attraction in the state.

Steve Flowers, a political columnist and commentator from Troy, said that regionalism is a powerful concept in Alabama elections, especially statewide where "philosophically, you won't have a difference in opinion" among candidates but that someone's home roots might surface as a political force.

"(Voters) will say that 'he's one of us' or that 'he might be a drunk and a crook, but by golly, he's our drunk and crook,'" Flowers said. "People tend to vote for someone from their neck of the woods in a statewide race, especially in a crowded field."

Flowers, meanwhile, said that Bentley's choice could be at an immediate political disadvantage. First, the appointment could taint the new senator's reputation as coming from a scandal-tarnished governor. Second, Flowers said, the new senator will be consumed with Washington, D.C. matters during the initial months of the Trump administration.

"That person has to hit the ground working and they will have a full plate," said Flowers. "In the meantime, there will be 10 people running around from Gulf Shores to Huntsville shaking hands and while (the new senator) will be stuck in Washington having to vote on things."

Stewart agrees that an interim appointment could put the new senator at a disadvantage.

"However, if he or she is able by Election Day to point out tangible rewards from even a short tenure as a U.S. Senator, the positive would outweigh the negative," Stewart said.

Alabama history sometimes doesn't bode well for interim appointees. In 1978, following the sudden death of Senator Jim Allen, Gov. George Wallace appointed Allen's widow Maryon Pittman Allen to succeed her husband. She lost a special Democratic primary to fill the remaining two years of her husband's term to Donald Stewart of Anniston.

Meanwhile, there are questions about what an appointment might mean given the unknowns on how long that person might serve in the Senate before faced with an election.

Bentley could call for a special election sometime in 2017, or he could wait and have the Senate election pushed back until the next regular election in 2018. The governor, right now, isn't saying.

Sen. Trip Pittman, R-Montrose, said there could be legislation drafted in the upcoming legislative session to carry over the Senate election to 2018.

But that election could be difficult since prospective senators could also opt to run for governor in 2018. Bentley isn't running for re-election.

As for where the new senator should come from, Pittman said geography doesn't matter.

"It's good to have people with ties all over the state of Alabama," said Pittman. "But ultimately, it's about the best person to do the job for Alabama."
For girls and women from the Perna caste, entering the sex trade is a normal next step after marriage and childbirth.

New Delhi, India  When Sita* comes home in the morning, her husband is usually still asleep. She has worked through the night, selling sex on the highways tracing Delhis periphery, but she will bathe, cook breakfast, and get the children ready for school before getting some rest herself.

Here, in a tumble-down corner of Najafgarh, a patch of urban villages stitched into the Indian capitals fraying hem, what Sita does for a living is no secret. Sita belongs to Perna caste, and among the women and girls of this acutely marginalised community, entering the sex trade is a usual next step after marriage and childbirth.

My first child died shortly after being born. When [my second-born] daughter was around one year, thats when I started this work, she says. Married in her mid-teens to a Perna man she hadnt met before, she estimates that she was 17 when she became the sole earner in her young family.

Now in what she guesses to be her late 20s, Sita still leaves the Perna basti (settlement), each night with other women from the community to tout for customers in random places: bus stops, lay-bys and parks far from their own neighbourhood and out of view of the police. They travel in a group, sharing the rickshaw fare and the risk of assault.

We try to get it done quickly, Sita explains. They conduct encounters in cars or hidden outdoor nooks. While one woman is with a client, a friend will make sure to stay within shouting distance. Each client pays between 200 rupees and 300 rupees ($3-$4.50). In a night, the women can expect to make as much as 1,000 rupees ($14.60), or as little as nothing.

Born into poverty

Leela*, a mother of four in her late 30s, has known since she was very little that her community was engaged in what is termed intergenerational prostitution. Unlike Sita and many others, she only entered the sex trade when she was widowed, and moved back to Dharampura locality in Najafgarh, her childhood home.

For her, it was the natural path for a woman looking for work: her own mother died young, but she remembers that her aunties used to go out at night.

Husbands herded goats, or didnt work at all. I dont know why. You can say it is the traditional way, she says. But it is less a ritual than a remedy for an inherited economic need. This work is our compromise. Its our way to make a living, Leela explains.

A Perna woman is born into poverty, into a marginalised caste, and shes female  so shes already thrice oppressed, says Ruchira Gupta, the founder of the anti-trafficking NGO Apne Aap, which has been working with the Najafgarh Perna community for more than five years.

As soon as she gains puberty, she is married, and after the first child, the husband pimps his wife. And she cant resist  she only has this community. She feels she has no path of escape. She is consumed for eight or 10 years, and then she is asked to put her daughter into prostitution.

Gupta explains that girls who resist prostitution are often physically abused by their in-laws, who expect their sons wife to contribute to the family finances. Leelas own daughter  now a stay-at-home mum living elsewhere in Najafgarh  moved back in with Leela for a short period to flee her new familys pressure to start sex work.

They were threatening her, We will tear your clothes, we will put you on the streets naked,' Leela says.

With Apne Aaps backing, she was able to convince an informal community court that her daughter should be allowed to make the choice independently. But one NGO worker explains: We dont often meet women as courageous as [Leela].

Sita pre-empts suggestions that her husband or in-laws pressure her into the work she does, saying: Its my own choice, and pointing out that recently, her husband has found regular work as a driver and earns at least as much as she does.

But even in the absence of coercion, choice is a fraught concept in a community which is not only economically and socially marginalised, but historically excluded from the rights and freedoms of citizenship.

An historic disadvantage

Zoom out from this small community at the edge of Indias capital, and the Pernas become just one dot among many thousands, scattered on the map of what a 2008 government-commissioned report described as the most vulnerable and disadvantaged sections of Indian society.

These are the DNTs, or Denotified and Nomadic Tribes of India, who are still more commonly recognised in mainstream society under their colonial-era classification: the Criminal Tribes.

Historically itinerant traders, entertainers, and folk-craft practitioners, DNT communities are often compared with the Roma in Europe. Like gypsies elsewhere in the world, whose lifestyles made them difficult to bring under state control, the wanderers were regarded with suspicion by Indias British rulers.

After the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871, a raft of castes were notified, that is, branded hereditary criminals, alienated from traditional sources of income, and made vulnerable to a range of state-sanctioned abuses.

Following Indias independence in 1947, the stigmatised tribes were denotified, but these communities have been unable to shake what academic Meena Radhakrishna calls their historic disadvantage.

Welfare programmes have been offered to the most marginalised communities  those social groups classed as the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Tribes (STs).

But even officially eligible DNT communities, such as the Pernas, who are recognised as SC, often do not gain access to these opportunities.

It is difficult for these people to stake a claim to the government programmes because of the stigma of being labelled as ex-criminal tribes, says Subir Rana, an anthropologist who has spent time among the Pernas of Najafgarh.

Not only has their past taught the community to be wary of the state, but their alienation from mainstream society has meant many of them are ignorant of their rights.

For example, getting a caste certificate  the necessary proof of eligibility for benefits  is difficult when many community members hold barely any government identification of any kind.

When Apne Aap began a campaign for improved documentation, only four or five individuals in the Perna community had certification of their SC status. With NGO intervention, this number has swollen into the 30s  but, workers say, it has been a struggle.

Government always tries its level best to reach these people, says BK Prasad, Member-Secretary of the temporary National Commission for Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes, but even these people have to come to the government. Most of the time, these people do not come.

He recognises that DNTs may require a special approach.

An earlier DNT commission, responsible for the 2008 report, issued a slew of suggestions for government, centring on the recommendation to address the needs of DNTs separately from other disadvantaged social groups. Upon release the report was, in the words of civil servant and consultant to the commission Pooran Singh, put into the almirah [closet].

The new Commission is making a priority of addressing a deep information gap: at this point there is zero reliable, countrywide demographic information on denotified communities, a state of affairs which gives credence to Ranas sense that they have become the lowest of the low; they are invisibles.

While the first order of business is the creation of a comprehensive list of DNT communities, the ultimate goal, according to Prasad, is that they should be mainstreamed into society in a way that is not too much of a change for them.

Mainstreaming will be a trickier proposition for DNT communities that have found their way into the sex trade. Once you become associated with a trade like this, it is very hard to integrate, says Anuja Agrawal, a sociologist who has studied DNT communities involved in intergenerational sex work.

Giving up [sex work] happens only when a very concerted effort is made; when other opportunities then become available.

First signs of change

Back in Najafgarh I speak to a young woman from the Sapera caste, a DNT community traditionally involved in snake-charming and wedding-drumming, who describes the stigma that follows her Perna neighbours.

She has nothing bad to say about them, she explains. Its their occupation. How will they survive without it? But, she concedes, general caste [non-DNT] people get angry that they do such kind of wrong work.

Apne Aaps field workers report that Pernas are ignored, avoided and barred from certain shops.

Prasads proposal is to remove young girls from their familial contexts: If we can wean children away, get them admitted to [state] residential schools  because beyond a certain age, slowly, slowly, they will follow their parents. Children imbibe what is happening around [them].

He adds: This change will happen slowly. It is true that everyone who is educated up to high school does not get a job. He estimates that if 10 percent try for a new sort of life, perhaps 2 percent will succeed.

This mirrors Ruchira Guptas approach.

Now 14, Leelas younger daughter is on one of several Apne Aap scholarships to a private boarding school. She has already progressed further in her education than anyone else in her family. Her classmates dont know much about her background but they know whats relevant: shes bright, and a really good dancer.

I meet her when she is home for a weekend. She is a gazelle of a girl, as nice as Leela, with a gently teasing sense of humour she practises on me, in English, over WhatsApp. Unlike her mother, who never went to school, or her older sister who dropped out to become a wife, she wont marry until shes in her 20s, Leela says.

My daughter says when she gets a job, well go away, says Leela. For her family, its the first glimpse of an alternative path.

Leelas children  the schoolgirl and the housewife  are not the only signs of a gradually broadening field of options.

Nowadays, Sita tells me, its becoming normal to send your daughters to school: Thats the first stage.

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals.




With Trumps presidency, Edward Snowden may be compelled to leave Russia the way he entered it.

So, this is where matters stand between a serial liar and a serial truth teller: the former is the US President-elect Donald Trump, while the latter, Edward Snowden, remains holed up in self-imposed and now precarious exile in Russia.

Beyond his many other manifest sins, Trump is busy stocking his regime with mostly old, white, male, right-wing fanatics who share many of his manifest sins, including his overt racism and zealotry.

Meanwhile, the young man who risked his freedom and his life to tell the truth by providing the world with proof that the vast, unchecked machinery of the surveillance state  which scoffs at territorial boundaries, as well as domestic and international law  is trained almost exclusively on the very citizens its allegedly supposed to protect.

These must be turbulent times for Snowden. Like you and me, he has witnessed the tragic, inhumane fate visited upon another youthful truth teller who also dared to reveal some of the surveillance states deepest secrets to his fellow citizens because his conscience demanded it.

Since August 2013, Chelsea Manning has been imprisoned for revealing the hidden truth about how war is waged ruthlessly against far too many innocents and about the remorseless soldiers and politicians who wage it with impunity.

Clearly, her will to live life confined to a prison cell for the next 32 years  often in solitary confinement  is ebbing. Spared execution, Manning has twice tried to kill herself. Absurdly, she now faces further discipline for attempting to do something by her hand the US military wanted to do by its hand  extinguish her life.

Changing tide

Surely, Snowden knows that the Doomsday clock is inching towards 12 oclock not only for an insecure world, but for himself as well.

He knows that Trumps pick for CIA chief, veteran congressman and rabid NSA cheerleader, Mike Pompeo, wants the traitor shipped back to the US quickly, tried perfunctorily, and executed swiftly.

[Snowden] should be brought back from Russia and given due process, and I think the proper outcome would be that he would be given a death sentence, Pompeo told a television host in February.

Apparently, the congressmans Wild West-like notion of due process is meting out a death sentence to Snowden after what will certainly amount to a token show trial.

Of course, in February, the earths geopolitical axis was such that Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama werent sharing a shot of vodka or horseback rides in the rustic Russian countryside.

Snowden is expendable. If he's part of the price Putin might be obliged to pay to win more than just Trump's admiration. by

In this frosty context, reminiscent of the Cold War, Snowden, the former NSA spook, was a welcomed, if not useful, asset to the Russian leader, who was a KGB spy himself in the bygone, but not forgotten, Soviet era.

While alarming, Pompeos predictable, politically charged rhetoric could be dismissed at the time as, well, predictable, politically charged rhetoric.

Eight months later, the geopolitical axis shifted unexpectedly and breathtakingly. Trumps once inconceivable victory will reverberate  to borrow Donald Rumsfelds cockeyed vocabulary  in unknown and known ways.

Still, Snowden must know that the budding bromance between Trump and Putin  nurtured before, during and after an election that possibly saw Russias security services tilting the scales in the Manhattan Mussolinis favour  will likely mean that Pompeos vengeful hopes could be realised sooner rather than later.

Snowden must also know that the Trump-Putin bromance is the natural consequence of the ties that bind: money and mutual authoritarian pathologies.

Expendable asset

The pending rapprochement between these two temperamentally unalike, but otherwise like-minded figures  if it comes  will have other direct and perhaps immediate consequences for Snowden.

First, Snowdens value to Putin as a real or symbolic slap to Americas haughty face will have run its profitable course.

Putin doesnt strike me as a sentimental politician prone to keeping qualified promises to offer safe haven to an ex-American spy who has not only lost his propaganda currency, but who may be a thorny impediment to a new and recalibrated relationship Moscow is seeking to establish with Trump.

Snowden is expendable. If hes part of the price Putin might be obliged to pay to win more than just Trumps admiration, then Im sure the Illya Kuryakin lookalike (please see The Man from U.N.C.L.E) will promptly pay it and deliver Snowden to Pompeo via a direct flight from the Kremlin if need be.

Earlier this month, Snowden acknowledged the possibility that Putin could send him packing, but insisted that unenviable prospect didnt worry him because he has been reassured that Russia doesnt extradite human rights defenders. My goodness.

I dont worry about it, Snowden said . Its possible. It would be crazy to dismiss the idea of this guy who presents himself as a big deal maker [Trump] as trying to make a deal.

But American progressives are certainly worried that Trump will play lets make a deal with Putin.

Like Snowden, they can read the ominous tea leaves, and have appealed to Obama for a presidential pardon as a means to repatriate their lonely hero via the express lane and to shield him permanently from the Trump regimes bloodlust.

Obama has rejected their pleas, insisting that he cannot pardon Snowden, even if he was remotely inclined to do so.

OPINION: Edward Snowden  Whistle-blower or traitor?

With few options left, Snowden may be compelled to leave Russia the way he entered it  with a mixture of subterfuge, tradecraft and the aid of journalists who became superstar scribes after he trusted them with his trove of downloaded secrets from what writer James Bamford famously dubbed as The Puzzle Palace.

If he is able to get out of Russia with a little help from his friends  preferably, one suspects, before Trumps inauguration  Snowden will then have to search for another country, led by another amenable politician prepared to grant him sanctuary while snubbing a peevish president-elect.

Reportedly, Snowden has already made asylum requests to 21 countries . Most of them said no. If someone, somewhere finally says yes, there will still be hellish logistical and diplomatic challenges to overcome.

Ultimately, if Snowden is abandoned by Putin and he fails to move to another, more agreeable zip code in time, he, like Manning, may soon call a jail home for life or he could be killed by the country that, like Manning, he took an oath to serve.

Andrew Mitrovica is an award-winning investigative reporter and journalism instructor.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Donald Trump might be a fan of private prisons, but they are costly and abusive.

Azadeh Shahshahani is Legal and Advocacy Director with Project South and a past President of the National Lawyers Guild.

Before the recent elections, it looked like the United States was on its way to do away with private prisons.

In August, the US Department of Justice announced that it is cutting ties with prison corporations, stating: They simply do not provide the same level of correctional services, programs, and resources; they do not save substantially on costs; and  they do not maintain the same level of safety and security.

Subsequently, and following sustained advocacy by human rights organisations for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to follow suit, Jeh Johnson announced that DHS will also review its continued reliance on private corporations.





After all this controversy, one of the prison companies, the former Corrections Corporation of Americas (CCA), even changed its name to CoreCivic in an attempt to rebrand itself.

But once Donald Trump was announced the winner of the presidential election, there was no longer a need for rebranding.

Stock prices for the two largest private prison corporations skyrocketed at the prospect of a president who has made it clear that he is a fan of private prisons.

Trump has also vowed to lock up even greater numbers of immigrants, which will further feed the private prison industry. Currently, 73 percent of detained immigrants are held in facilities operated by corporations.

Locking up more immigrants, and expanding the private prison sector, would mean more taxpayer money spent on maintaining a failed system with a documented atrocious record of abuse, aimed at cutting corners to maximise profits and shortchange detained immigrants and workers.

US private prisons and abuse

CCA first initiated the idea of operating prisons for a profit in the early 1980s. According to one of the co-founders, the corporation was modelled on the idea that one could market prisons just like you were selling cars, or real estate, or hamburgers.

The founders, who were politically well-connected, took advantage of the harsher sentencing laws and the booming prison population, which surpassed the states designated budgets for building new prisons.

The US first contractedwith CCA in 1983 to house immigrants. In 1986, CCA went public, stating that it is more aptly suited to run large prisons because its use of electronic surveillance would mean that it can operate with less staff than the public sector would have needed. In fact, CCA and other prison corporations often present themselves as cost-effective alternatives to the public sector and claim that they generate benefits for local economies.

In its frantic search to imprison this many people, the administration is reportedly even planning on relying on privately operated facilities that were formerly used by the Bureau of Prisons and which were due to close because of substandard conditions. by

But studies have shown that private prisons, in fact, do not save money and may cost more than prisons operated by the government. In some communities, such as Hardin, Montana, the financial arrangements with prison corporations have actually hurt the fiscal standing of the locality.

Abuse in such facilities has also been well-documented. Just earlier this year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) tried to force-feed a hunger striker, Alaa Yasin, in the CCA-run Stewart Detention Center in Georgia.

Yasin is a stateless Palestinian who was unlawfully held by ICE at Stewart, the second largest immigration detention facility in the US. He was on a hunger strike for three weeks in April and early May to protest his illegal detention.

According to US Supreme Court precedent, since his deportation was not reasonably foreseeable, the government should have let him out much earlier. Instead, the government kept him detained and attempted, without success, to obtain a court order to force-feed him. Even after Yasin agreed to eat on his own, he was still put in solitary confinement.



OPINION: A dismal day for human rights in the US

Detained immigrants at Stewart protested the human rights violations they face through uprisings in summer 2014 and fall 2015. Advocates have long called for this facility to be shut down, along with the many others operated by private corporations.

This is partly driven by an arbitrary congressional quota in place for detention of immigrants. On a daily basis, ICE is required to maintain 34,000 immigration detention beds. This quota does not exist in any other law enforcement context.





The quota itself can be attributed to the lobbying power of the prison corporations. According to a report by Grassroots Leadership, 58 percent of the $16,789,000 lobbying by private prison corporations from 2008 to 2014 was in quarters when they lobbied the Congressional Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, which decides on the quota.

Substandard conditions

Per the most recent news, the detained immigrant population will likely jump to 47,000 by June 2017, the highest number that ICE has ever held.

In its frantic search to imprison this many people, the administration is reportedly even planning on relying on privately operated facilities that were formerly used by the Bureau of Prisons and which were due to close because of substandard conditions.

This lack of care for detained immigrants has had tragic consequences; at least 165 people have died in immigrant detention since 2003. One of these men was the 39-year-old Roberto Medina Martinez who died of a treatable heart infection while detained at Stewart.

Medinas death could have been prevented were it not for the governments negligence. An investigation following his death showed that the physician was systematically failing to conduct the required review of the medical examination information, thereby jeopardising the health of the entire detained immigrant population.

OPINION: US criminal justice system  Turning a profit on prison reform?

One month after Medina died,the physician left and the facility (at the time, the largest immigration detention centre in the country) was left without any doctors for more than three years.

Earlier this year, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention visited various detention centres in the US and were able to interview currently detained immigrants. The Working Group recently released their preliminary findings; in them, it calls on the US government to reduce detention, end its use of private detention facilities, and end mandatory detention, among several other recommendations.

We should act to ensure that the administration heeds these recommendations, immediately cuts ties with private corporations, and shuts down corporate-run immigrant detention centres.

Azadeh Shahshahani is the Legal and Advocacy Director with Project South and a past president of the National Lawyers Guild.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Police and militia clash after government says King Mumberes guards were training with separatist group.

The death toll from a weekend of fighting in western Uganda has risen to 62 after clashes between police and a militia loyal to a tribal king, according to regional police.





An initial 55 deaths had been reported on Sunday.

So far we managed to kill 46 of the royal guards and we also arrested 139 [guards], regional police spokesman Mansur Suwed told the Reuters news agency.

He said the number of police killed had risen to 16 from 14 after two officers died from their wounds.

Police arrested King Charles Wesley Mumbere on Sunday and accused his supporters of trying to create a new state in the area near the border with Democratic Republic of Congo.

Mumbere has distanced himself from the cause. However, the authorities accuse his royal guards of training in the mountains beside separatist militia forces to attack government installations.

The situation is volatile. Several of our guards have been killed after the government gave an order to disband the royal guards immediately, which is not easy, Clarence Bwambale, Rwenzururu kingdom spokesman, told the AFP news agency from the palace where he and the king were, as heavy shooting echoed in the background.

The king spoke to the president [Yoweri Museveni] this morning and he gave him two hours to disband the royal guards, which is impossible. Now the army and police have raided the palace and attacked the royal guards he said, with a large explosion heard in the background.

OPINION: The Allied Democratic Forces  Moving beyond popular narratives

We have told the government the kingdom is not involved in the creation of Yiira republic, which wants to break away [from Uganda], and that the royal guards are not involved.

Local media reported that Ugandan journalist Joy Doreen Biira, who works for neighbouring Kenyas KTN news organisation, was arrested in the region on Sunday and that her whereabouts were unknown.

Separatist aspirations

Earlier this year President Museveni ruled out any form of secession in the Rwenzori region.

He told the Daily Monitor newspaper: I want to state categorically that Uganda will not lose even a piece of her land to the creation of the so-called Yiira republic.

The Rwenzururu kingdom is a traditional monarchy based near the Rwenzori mountains which straddle Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and its members are mainly the Bakonzo people  also found in both countries.

The monarchy started out as a separatist movement of the same name when the Bakonzo declared their own kingdom in 1962.

The move led to years of bloodshed until a settlement was reached in 1982 in which the movement laid down arms in return for a degree of local autonomy.

Museveni officially recognised the kingdom in 2009.

However, unrest has continued to simmer in the complex ethnic and political conflict, as many in the region still feel marginalised by authorities in distant Kampala.

Some in Uganda, with the support of their fellow Bakonzo in the DRC, have taken up arms and are agitating for the creation of the Yiira Republic which would cover territory in Uganda and part of North Kivu in the DRC.
Eight boats carrying Rohingya refugees have been turned away by Bangladesh as thousands amass on the border.

Multiple boats packed with Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar have been turned back by Bangladesh border guards despite appeals by the countrys opposition to provide shelter to the persecuted Muslim minority.





Thousands of desperate Rohingya from Myanmars western Rakhine state have flooded over the border into Bangladesh in the past week, bringing with them horrifying claims of gang rape, torture and murder at the hands of Myanmars security forces.

Eight boats attempting to cross the Naf River separating Rakhine from southern Bangladesh were pushed back on Monday after six were refused entry on Sunday, Colonel Abuzar Al Zahid, the head of the border guards in the Bangladeshi frontier town of Teknaf, told AFP

There were 12 to 13 Rohingya in each of the boats, Zahid said.

Dhaka says thousands more are massed on the border, but has refused urgent international appeals to let them in, instead calling on Myanmar to do more to stop people fleeing.

In the past two weeks, Bangladeshi border guards have prevented more than 1,000 Rohingya, including many women and children, from entering the country by boat, officials told AFP.

Bangladeshs main opposition leader Khaleda Zia late on Sunday joined a growing chorus of political parties and religious groups in the Muslim majority country calling for the Rohingya to be given shelter.

Torched our home

At least 30,000 have been internally displaced in Rakhine and many have tried to reach Bangladesh over the past month despite heightened border patrols, seeking refuge in Rohingya camps across the Bangladeshi border.

READ MORE: Myanmars Rohingya brace for more attacks in Rakhine

Samira Akhter told AFP by phone that she reached an unofficial refugee camp in Bangladesh on Monday, after fleeing her village in Rakhine state with her three children and 49 others.

The military killed my husband and torched our home. I fled to a hill along with my three children and neighbours. We hid there for a week, said Akhter, 27.

Dudu Mia, a Rohingya leader in the camp, said at least 1,338 had arrived in the community since mid October.

Violence in Rakhine  home to the stateless ethnic group loathed by many of Myanmars Buddhist majority  surged in the past month after security forces poured into the area following a series of attacks on police posts blamed on local fighters.

A UN official said last week that Myanmar is engaged in ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims, as reports emerged of troops shooting at villagers as they tried to flee.

Earlier this month, Human Rights Watch condemned Myanmars torching of three Rohingya villages.

The rights group urged the UN to investigate the destruction of 430 buildings in the northern Maungdaw district between October 22 and November 10.

But Myanmars new civilian government, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, has rejected the allegations.
Local authorities say at least 34 civilians killed by Nande ethnic militia in attack on camp for displaced people.

At least 34 civilians have been killed in a bout of ethnic violence in the Democratic Republic of Congos eastern region, authorities said, after a week of soaring tensions.





Sundays attack by the Mai-Mai Mazembe, a Nande ethnic militia, targeted a camp for displaced people in the Hutu village of Luhanga, local official Joy Bokele told the AFP news agency.

They started by attacking the FARDC [DR Congo military] position. While they were attacking the FARDC, another group was executing the population with bladed weapons or bullets, Bokele said.

Bokele added that one of the attackers was killed in the clashes.

Tensions between the Nande and Hutu have been running high in the troubled east of the country, shaken by two decades of fighting over land, ethnic tensions and mineral riches.

The Nande accuse Congolese Hutus of supporting Rwandan rebel group, the FDLR. The Hutus say they are looking for land where they can settle for farming and accuse the Nande of trying to expel them.

READ MORE: DRCs mobile courts deliver justice to remote areas

Sundays attack is the worst inter-communal violence in a year. Dozens of people have died since the start of the year in fighting between the Nande and the Hutus.

If the army had not intervened, there would have been many more dead, a military source said.

Wreaked carnage

The militia was searching for members of the Hutu community and wreaked carnage before burning down the village entirely, said a local rights group, the Centre for the Promotion of Peace, Democracy and Human Rights (CEPADHO). The attackers were there for more than an hour.

The UN mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, or MONUSCO, said a peacekeeping force in the area had heard gunshots and was quickly deployed and neutralised the attack, killing one of the attackers.

The UN mission said 15 people were wounded and had been evacuated.

CEPADHO called on the government and the UN mission to take urgent action to prevent further ethnic violence.

The Mai-Mai Mazembe made threats against the Hutus during the week, demanding that they leave the area or risk a purge, peace centre added in a statement.

A representative for the Hutu community group also called on Congos government and the UN peacekeeping force to take steps to secure the safety of the regions Hutu population.

North Kivu has been the scene of repeated clashes for nearly two decades, and hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced.
Targeted bombing of hospitals and civilian areas in Aleppo cited as evidence of atrocities by the Syrian military.

A group of lawyers in Germany is planning to launch a case against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad for alleged war crimes committed by his forces and foreign allies in the Syrian province of Aleppo.

The lawyers on Monday presented a criminal complaint against Assad, which they are submitting to German federal prosecutors.

German law allows international prosecutions on the principle of universal jurisdiction, under which countries can pursue foreigners for crimes committed abroad.



Government forces target makeshift hospitals in Aleppo

The lawyers cited reports from the human rights organisation Amnesty International and individual accounts by asylum seekers in Germany in arguing there is overwhelming evidence of multiple atrocities committed by Assads forces against civilians in Aleppo between April and November.

Were experiencing genocide in Aleppo in slow motion, German attorney Mehmet Daimaguler said.

He cited the targeted bombing of hospitals, cluster bombs used on civilians, and forced expulsion.

UN human rights chief Zeid Raad said in October the governments siege and bombings of rebel-held east Aleppo constituted crimes of historic proportions, which have caused heavy civilian casualties amounting to war crimes.

He also said the case should be referred to the International Criminal Court.

READ MORE: Aleppo faces starvation amid continued bombardment

The prosecution bid came as Syrian rebels who had controlled all of the east of the key northern city Aleppo lost a substantial portion of their territory to a major government offensive backed by Russian air strikes and foreign fighters.

Russias Defence Ministry said on Monday that Syrian government troops captured 10 neighbourhoods and more than 3,000 buildings from rebels in Aleppo.

The ministry said in a statement that more than 100 rebels laid down their weapons and withdrew from the Syrian citys eastern suburbs. The ministry also said government forces had pushed the rebels from al-Qadisia, which it described as the key neighbourhood of eastern Aleppo.

The governments push  backed by thousands of Shia militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran, and under the occasional cover of the Russian air force  has laid waste to Aleppos east.

Thousands of residents have fled to safety in government and Kurdish-controlled areas of the city.
Reports say at least three cabinet ministers turn against South Africas beleaguered president in a scheduled meeting.

South Africas scandal-plagued President Jacob Zuma faces a no-confidence vote by the ruling ANCs National Executive Committee (NEC), with at least three of his cabinet ministers turning against him, local media reported.

The NEC, which is meeting in the capital, Pretoria, is the only body in the ruling party that can remove its leader, besides its five-yearly congress.

It extended a scheduled weekend meeting into a third day on Monday after Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom proposed the no-confidence motion on Saturday, the Afrikaans-language daily Beeld said.





Two more cabinet members  Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi  have since joined Hanekom in asking Zuma to step down, News24 reported.

One senior ANC official, who asked to remain anonymous, said Zuma would probably manage to survive the latest attempt to dislodge him by the growing number of ANC figures unhappy with his leadership.

Even if theres secret ballot, hes still likely to get the numbers, the official told Reuters news agency.

Al Jazeeras Tania Page, reporting from Johannesburg, said while the ANC had confirmed the extension of the meeting into a third day, it had not publicly announced the reason behind that decision.

The ANC has definitely taken an unsual stance to extend the meeting, but as these are traditional closed-door meetings, the reports of Zuma facing a no-confidence vote are based on local media reports alone.

READ MORE: I do not fear prison, says Zuma

However, we can see that the cumulative effect of intense pressure on Zuma has now started to show the rather deep fractures and cracks in the ANC.

The president, who has faced mounting criticism of his leadership, came under further pressure this month when a corruption probe unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

The probe by the countrys top watchdog investigated possible criminal activity in Zumas relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

But Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many rank-and-file ANC party members, as well as its lawmakers, and easily survived a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

Scandal-plagued presidency

His presidency has been plagued by scandal and the nations anti-graft watchdog this month asked for a judge to investigate alleged influence-peddling by a wealthy family Zuma has called his friends.

Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for Zuma to resign in recent months.

Zuma has denied any wrongdoing.

The ANC, which has ruled since Nelson Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994, has seen its popularity dive, with local polls in August delivering the partys worst-ever result.

Zumas term in office ends in 2019, but the ANC is due to elect a new party leader at the end of next year and could decide to replace him as head of state.
With hospitals destroyed, winter weather setting in and food running low, people in east Aleppo are running out of time.

Hamza Abduljabbars gnarled hands wipe the dust off the dashboard of his white Isuzu minibus.

Back hunched from decades sitting behind the wheel, Abduljabbar still wakes up each morning at 6am to check on his vehicle  the windows of which have long since been blown out by nearby air strikes  when his rounds of east Aleppos Fardous neighbourhood would normally have begun.

Everything is dusty these days. The bombing never stops, he says. Anyway, theres no fuel, so the car just sits here. Five years of war and five months of siege have aged the 45-year-old father of three well beyond his years. He hasnt worked in months.

Government forces, backed by Russian air power and allied militias, began a new push last week to take control of the whole of Syrias second city, the latest offensive in the uprising-turned-war that has killed more than 400,000 people and forced nearly five million Syrians out of the country in search of safety.

The renewed bombing campaign has killed more than 400 civilians and allowed the government to take over the strategic Hanano housing district  which could effectively enable government troops to split the rebel-held east in two.

The rebels have failed to break the siege and are losing territory, and the international community has failed to send in supplies or aid, said Abduljabbar. My family and I are surviving day to day here under the barrel bombs and the planes. Theres nowhere else to go.

READ MORE: Syrias Civil War Explained

The situation in the besieged, rebel-held neighbourhoods of east Aleppo has gone from terrible to terrifying to now barely survivable by human beings, UN humanitarian chief Stephen OBrien told the UN Security Council during his monthly briefing earlier this week.

Food rations pre-positioned in the city by the World Food Programme before UN access was cut off in July ran out on November 13, and aid workers have said that people in the citys east are just days away from starvation.

My family and I are surviving day to day here under the barrel bombs and the planes. Theres nowhere else to go. by Hamza Abduljabbar, east Aleppo resident

Food in local markets is scarce and prices have skyrocketed. Fuel and cooking gas are hard to come by in most areas. Theres no flour, no bread. Most of the bakeries have been destroyed and those that still stand are closed because there isnt any supplies, said Samah al-Ahmad.

The 32-year-old mother of four says that the only time she leaves her home in al-Ansari area is to scavenge for basics such as sugar and powdered milk.

Essentials such as salt, which three weeks ago cost 76 cents a kilo, now cost nearly $10 a kilo. The price of one kilo of sugar has jumped to well over $13. Baby formula, nearly impossible to find these days, is about $10 a package. Just three weeks ago the same package cost less than $2. One kilo of meat  a rare commodity  is upwards of $40.

All of the appliances in Samahs home have been piled into a corner. There hasnt been any electricity for months and every household chore is done by hand. The latest bombing has been particularly cruel, said Samah. There is no safe place here any more.

Samahs husband, injured in an air strike last month, is bedridden. I cant go to the hospital to get medicine because most have been destroyed  Those that still function lack some of the most basic medicines.

There are no fully functioning hospitals in east Aleppo. The last operating medical facility was partially destroyed by an air strike on November 19, leaving up to 275,000 people without access to surgery or specialised care.

The 30 doctors who remain in the city operate in underground facilities and are running low on even the most basic of supplies  including antibiotics, IV fluids and blood bags.

They are rationing basic supplies  If someone comes in for emergency care after a bombing and [the doctors] fear that more serious patients might soon be arriving, they might hold off on using anesthesia and save it for a patient who is in greater need, says Elise Baker, a Syria researcher with Physicians for Human Rights.

As supplies continue to dwindle, doctors have reportedly begun using half-doses of antibiotics in an effort to conserve what little resources they have left.

The government blockade on the citys rebel-controlled eastern neighbourhoods, in place since July, has forced doctors to cut corners that just shouldnt be cut, says Baker, the effects of which could have lasting implications.

Weve heard anecdotally that people are developing resistance to antibiotics  using half-doses increases antibiotic resistance, which is a problem that will extend well beyond the end of the conflict.

As food and fuel quickly run out and winter weather sets in, Abduljabbar believes its only a matter of time before Aleppo becomes Syrias next Daraya.

There will be a solution in the regimes favour and the city will be under the regimes rule whether the rebels want it or not. But it wont be easy, he says

READ MORE: I live in Aleppo, under siege

Government forces and members of Lebanons Hezbollah armed group surrounded and blockaded Daraya, the rebel-held Damascus suburb, for four years until August when, due to increasing pressure on the ground  only one UN aid shipment had been let in since the beginning of the siege  rebel fighters agreed to give up their heavy weapons and be transferred to the opposition-held province of Idlib.

But while the government and its allies certainly have the upper hand in Aleppo, according to Sam Heller, Syria analyst and fellow with The Century Foundation, its not clear what the endgame will look like just yet.

The regime will not accept a partially autonomous opposition zone in half of the city, and so its pushing for a conclusive victory. But the bussing evacuations that have taken place elsewhere have only been arranged on a much smaller scale, and in areas that were already mostly subdued militarily, says Heller.

The UN estimates that there are nearly 8,000 rebel fighters in besieged east Aleppo, 900 of whom are members of Jabhat Fateh al-Sham  the al-Qaeda-affiliated group formerly known as al-Nusra Front.

Nothing like this has happened in an area of the size and complexity of east Aleppo, and, with multiple major armed factions inside, it seems unlikely any deal will be coordinated easily or smoothly.

By the time the Daraya deal took place in August, the suburbs population  once nearly a quarter of a million  was down to 8,000 people. There were only 800 rebel fighters.

Both the Syrian government and its Russian and Iranian backers understand that waging an assault on an urban area the size of east Aleppo will be a long and bloody battle, according to Yezid Sayigh, a senior associate at the Carnegie Middle East Center. It took them years to take Daraya, says Sayigh. East Aleppo is far bigger and far more difficult an area to take.

Theyre going to focus on siege tactics to basically engineer a political deal in which the opposition agrees to surrender some of its heavy weapons, while certain categories of fighters are allowed safe passage to other rebel-controlled areas.

With two months to go before US President Barack Obama hands over the reins to President-elect Donald Trump  and even then, there is a high likelihood that Trumps Syria policy will play even more into the hands of Assad and Putin than Obamas  Russia and Assad arent pressed for time.

Why would they take high risks or risk high casualties? asks Sayigh, if starve-or-surrender policies have already proved successful in places such as Daraya and Moadamiya.

Humanitarian corridors unilaterally declared open by Russia over the summer saw few people leave Aleppos besieged east. Damascus and Moscow blamed the rebels for holding civilians hostage, while rebels and civilians in east Aleppo said the safe routes werent actually all that safe.

If there was a real desire by people to leave, more people would have crossed by now, says Sayigh. People may still be able to hold out for a while.

Earlier this week, families attempting to escape form east Aleppo via the Kurdish-controlled neighbourhood of Sheikh Maqsoud were forced back by gun fire.





Whether it is by siege-and-starvation or military might, the loss of east Aleppo will come at a terrible human cost, according to Heller. But it will also be a major symbolic defeat for the Syrian opposition.

A Syrian opposition that had lost its foothold in the countrys largest city will become a mostly rural insurgency, contesting Syrias periphery instead of its main population centres and loci of control. But thats pretty well where we are anyway. So the question is whats next.

Sitting in her first-storey apartment under a blanket to protect herself from the cold, Samah, frail and anxious, believes that the fall of east Aleppo is only a matter of time.

The international community is witnessing massacre after massacre  the rebels are losing neighbourhoods  its only a matter of time before the regime takes the east, she says.

Whether it is cleaning the house or fetching water from a mosque down the street, she works from the moment she wakes until the moment she goes to sleeps to keep herself from thinking. She is worn to the bone. She is exhausted.

In the meantime though, well continue to suffer. It really doesnt matter any more to me [who controls the area] as long as I can get food for my family and have a safe place to live. As long as the fear and the horror end.

Follow Zouhir al-Shimale on Twitter: @ZouhirAlShimale

Follow Dylan Collins on Twitter: @CollinsDyl
Fighting continues in the town of Butig, two days after the Maute Group took over a local town hall.

Government troops have killed at least 11 members of a rebel group in the southern Philippines that has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, the military said, sending local communities fleeing as a battle raged on Sunday.

The Maute Group, one of a handful of small armed groups behind years of unrest in the south, had since Saturday occupied parts of a municipality in Lanao del Sur and were holed up in an abandoned town hall.

At least four soldiers were wounded in the clashes and there were unconfirmed reports that the group had raised an ISIL flag in the hall, said Marine Colonel Edgard Arevalo, a military spokesman.

The relentless pounding of Maute Group positions in Butig, Lanao del Sur. @ABSCBNNews Thank goodness for earplugs. pic.twitter.com/MuucE0k3I5  Chiara Zambrano (@chiarazambrano) November 27, 2016

Al Jazeeras Jamela Alindogan, reporting from Manila, said that the fight was ongoing with the town of Butig beseiged and about 200 members of the Maute Group there.

The leaders of this group are believed to have some foreign fighters who are also a part of this siege, Alindogan said.

They also took control of a high school and a mosque in the same town, now half of those residents have already fled and half of them remain to be stuck in that village, this is an operation that is expected to last for days.

The military has not given an estimate for the number of displaced but local media reported an exodus of as many as 16,000 people from the area. Though the Philippines is predominantly Catholic, many people in the south are Muslim.

READ MORE: Inside Abu Sayyaf  Blood, drugs and conspiracies

The Maute group is one of several armed organisations in the Mindanao islands that have pledged allegiance to ISIL.

Maute came from a name of a clan that is very influential and powerful in Boutig, Al Jazeeras Alindogan said. President Rodrigo Duterte has said in the past that they would like to talk to the Maute Group, but the military has already named them as a terror group.

The group, once described by the military as a small-time extortion gang, attacked a remote army outpost in Butig in February, triggering a week of fighting that the army said left six soldiers and 12 fighters dead.

The black ISIS flag at Butig Town Hall. High school, madrasa, some houses held by Maute Group members as defense vs AFP forces @ABSCBNNews pic.twitter.com/DWgO0t06iB  Chiara Zambrano (@chiarazambrano) November 26, 2016

The group also beheaded two employees of a local sawmill in April, according to the military.

Three members of the Maute group were arrested last month, accused of a September bombing that left 15 people dead in Davao, Dutertes home town and Mindanaos largest city.

Government forces captured a Maute training camp in the town in June after a 10-day gunbattle that killed four soldiers and dozens of fighters, according to an army account.
Philippines president blasts calls for his trial at the international criminal court over bloody crackdown on drugs.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte denounced what he called bulls*** Western threats to seek his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his role in a bloody crackdown on drug dealers.

In a speech on Monday, Duterte, who has been accused of ordering extrajudicial killings in his anti-narcotics campaign since taking office in June, scolded the US government for what he called hypocritical threats to try him in the Hague-based tribunal, to which Washington is not a signatory.

Dutertes war on drugs has been linked to more than 2,500 deaths over the last five months.

READ MORE: Rodrigo Duterte vows to abstain from cursing others

The United States chose not to sign the ICCs Rome Statute to protect former President George W Bush, Duterte said, without elaborating.

America itself is threatening to jail me in the International Criminal Court, Duterte said. It is not a signatory of that body. Why? Because at that time, they were afraid Bush would face it.

US state department spokesman, John Kirby said in a news briefing on Monday he was not aware of any such threat.

An ICC prosecutor last month said the international court may have jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrators of Philippines killings.

You scare me that you will jail me? International Criminal Court? Bulls***, Duterte said during a speech.

For months, Duterte has been ridiculing concerns that extrajudicial killings could be taking place in his drugs war, and the US, EU and UN have been the preferred targets of his comments.

Duterte, a former mayor and prosecutor, said lawyers in Europe were rotten, stupid, and had a brain like a pea.

WATCH: Rodrigo Duterte  The Presidents Report Card

This month, Duterte said he might follow Russias move to withdraw from the ICC, describing it as useless.

He said the West has failed to comprehend the gravity of the Philippines methamphetamine problem, adding he is ready to rot in jail to achieve his goals.

There is nothing wrong with threatening to kill bad elements, he reiterated on Monday.

I will never allow my country to be thrown to the dogs, Duterte said. I said, when I was a mayor, If you destroy my city with drugs, I will kill you.'
Harminder Singh had been sprung from prison in Punjab state along with four other inmates a day earlier.

A top commander of a Sikh armed group was recaptured by police in the Indian capital Delhi a day after he was freed in a dramatic jailbreak by a gang wearing police uniforms.

Harminder Singh Mintoo, leader of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF)  a group fighting for a Sikh homeland in Punjab  was freed in an early-morning raid on Sunday by at least 10 armed men.

They stabbed one guard and opened fire before fleeing with the prisoners in cars. Three policemen were wounded in the assault, which prompted a massive hunt for the fugitives.

On Monday, Mintoo was arrested on the outskirts of the capital at a train station about 200km from the high-security prison in Punjab state, where he had been remanded since 2014 on terrorism charges.

READ MORE: 1984 anti-Sikh riots  Calls for justice in India

He was caught near Delhi early Monday and will be brought to Punjab, A S Chahal, a senior local police official, told AFP news agency.

Four other inmates who also escaped during the breakout  members of a local criminal gang jailed for murder  are still at large, Chahal added.

A $36,000 reward was offered for information on Mintoos whereabouts. It was not clear if the bounty played any part in his recapture.

Punjabs deputy chief minister had said state police were investigating conspiracy between terrorists and gangsters to disturb peace in Punjab before elections.

Four officials, including the Punjab prison chief and jail superintendent, were suspended or sacked following the jailbreak.

Armed campaign

Punjab was in the grip of an armed conflict for more than two decades after the 1970s after several Sikh groups launched an armed campaign for an independent Sikh country.

The violence peaked following the 1984 storming of Amritsars Golden Temple  the holiest shrine in Sikhism  by the Indian army to flush out armed fighters.

The military operation angered Sikhs, resulting in the assassination of Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh guards and thousands of Sikhs taking up arms to avenge the sacrilege.

More than 20,000 people, mostly civilians, died during the late 1990s unrest in Punjab.
At least 10 killed after residents take up arms against fighters for trying to impose tax in central Galmudug region.

At least 10 people were killed and dozens of others wounded in fighting that erupted over a tax dispute between al-Shabab and armed residents in Somalias central state of Galmudug.

The clashes on Monday started after al-Shabab members, who control the port town of Harardhere, tried to impose taxes on its residents.

Security forces also reportedly backed the locals in clashes with the fighters in Dumaaye village and other areas near Harardhere.

IN PICTURES: Exclusive  Al-Shabab moves in on central Somalia

The Associated Press quoted resident Ahmed Mohamed as saying 10 people, including six fighters and four residents, were killed in the fighting.





The DPA news agency quoted Osman Isse Nur, a regional security minister, reporting 30 deaths, including those of 26 al-Shabab fighters.

Harardheres inhabitants, who are already struggling economically after losing hundreds of livestock in the current drought, dismissed the demand for taxes, leading to fighting between the two sides.

DPA also quoted an anonymous senior official as saying locals took up arms against al-Shabab fighters who want to loot their resources, including livestock.

Villagers ambushed al-Shabab members travelling near Harardhere on Monday afternoon, and destroyed one armoured vehicle, another resident told AP on condition of anonymity.

WATCH: Somalia: The Forgotten Story

He also said fighters burned down homes in Dumaaye.

Civilians have rarely resisted al-Shabab, which carries out executions to impose its authority.

More than 22,000 peacekeepers are deployed in Somalia in the multinational African Union force.

Despite being ousted from most of its key strongholds in south and central Somalia, al-Shabab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks against the Somali government and African Union forces across large parts of the horn of Africa nation.
With winter approaching, the UN renews calls for emergency supplies as over 1,000 people escape fighting in Mosul daily.

Pushing his way through dozens of people, Iraqi teacher Umar Salah carries four bags containing 15 blankets and pots of food through the gate of a camp overcrowded with civilians who fled ISIL in Mosul.

Soldiers only occasionally open the gate to allow civilians to bring supplies to relatives inside, as authorities struggle to accommodate some 1,000 people fleeing the fighting every day since Iraqi forces launched a campaign to expel the armed group.

US-backed Iraqi government troops and Kurdish security forces have launched the biggest battle in Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion to drive ISIL fighters from Mosul, the groups last major bastion in the country, many times larger than any other city the fighters have held.

The UN is asking donors to fund winter kits for 1.2 million people  preparing for a worst case scenario that much of the citys population may have to flee. Seventy-two thousand have fled so far, and winter has brought freezing temperatures.

The Kurdish authorities are requiring fleeing civilians to stay in camps even if they have family outside, so that males can be checked for ties to ISIL. Relatives crowded out front, bringing blankets and pillows.

My relatives have ice on their tent at night, said Salah, as he waited for his cousins and their five children to pick up the bags. They dont get enough blankets so I brought them from my house.

Salah escaped Mosul for Kurdish-held Erbil, 60km east of the city, when ISIL swept through the area in June 2014. The rest of his family fled two weeks ago.

Males who have been displaced have to hand over their ID cards on the day they arrive.

I want to stay with my family in Erbil, but they keep us here, said a young man, who gave his name only as Hisham, standing in front of a tent with his veiled wife and baby.

I have been waiting for three weeks, he said.

Creating space in de-mined fields

The two main camps, Hasan Sham camp hosting 10,800, and the nearby Khazer camp home to 29,000, are full.

The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR started work on Sunday on another camp nearby, clearing the ground of landmines to set up 1,600 tents. Government workers are also setting up more blue tents at the Hasan Sham camp.



Battle for Mosul: Shortage of medical care

UNHCR told Al Jazeera in the lead up to the Mosul offensive that setting up camps in advance was impossible as it was feared tents would be stolen. Finding suitable land for the camps had proved a major challenge.

The UN has opened another camp in Tikrit, south of Mosul, while near Tal Afar in the west, a flashpoint town where thousands of people have fled, another camp will be launched this week, the UNHCR said.

Expecting a longer stay as the battle drags on, many families bring in stoves and kitchen utensils. With soldiers turning back most people at the camp gate, dozens threw their bags over the fence.

Parents were registering children to attend schools inside the camps, often their first opportunity for regular schooling in years.

Children lost two years because schools were closed under Daesh or taught only Islamic law, said a teacher who gave his name as Ali, who was using the Arabic acronym for ISIL.

Having himself fled ISIL, he applied to work in the camp schools. His own village is only 500 metres away, but the army has not opened it to civilians yet because the frontline is still too close.

The children need to go back to school while we wait here.
Khartoum  A dramatic increase in the price of medication, fuel and electricity in Sudan has spurred calls for civil disobedience over social media and on the ground across the country.

On Sunday, life came to a standstill on the streets of Khartoum, as Sudanese citizens responded to a call for three-days of civil disobediene. Some neighbourhoods in the capital saw limited movement of vehicles and pedestrians. Universities and schools were largely effected by the strike, as the majority of students stayed home, forcing some schools to cancel the school day.

The new decision, which caused the increase, is a huge disaster, local pharmacist Hatim Aldaak told Al Jazeera. This will affect many citizens, especially the poor, because, as you know, the percentage of the poor in Sudan is very large.

READ MORE: On the streets of Sudan: Dreaming of riches and apples

Protests against austerity measures are not new to Sudan. In 2012, another patch of austerity measures sent protesters on to the streets. Rising fuel prices in 2013 generated public outrage.

A popular protest in September of that year took a bloody turn, as security forces cracked down on protesters killing 200 people.

You cannot imagine the reaction and emotional effect it has on us when someone comes into the pharmacy to buy medicine and asks for the price and tells us they can't afford it. by Hatim Aldaak, pharmacist

Over the past two weeks, protests and strikes have been calling for the government to reinstate subsidies, which were removed earlier this month.

Medication prices increased between 150 and 300 percent, according to local pharmacists and press.

You cannot imagine the reaction and emotional effect it has on us, when someone comes into the pharmacy to buy medicine and asks for the price and tells us they cant afford it and they then leave with the medicine still on the shelves, said Aldaak.

The cuts are reportedly part of wider austerity measures that have been implemented to address the countrys foreign currency crisis and fiscal deficit.

As part of the plan, the Central Bank of Sudan (CBOS) stopped providing foreign currency for the import of medicine, and announced a financial incentive for the exchange of US dollars at banks and official bureaus. This has raised the amount of the official exchange rate.

The lift of subsidies was also implemented on fuel and electricity. Amna Sayed, a 42-year-old mother and tea lady says she is struggling in every way. It is not just the medications; I can barely send my two children to school. Transport alone is too expensive now and so is food. I sell tea, and even before these increases I hardly managed to get by, Sayed told Al Jazeera.

Shop owners, such as Mohammed al-Amin, are similarly struggling. A 50kg of sugar went up from 510 Sudanese pounds [$78] to 580 [$89], and a 10kg packet of flour went up from 65 Sudanese pounds [$10] to 85 [$13].

Most notably, 100kg of beans went up from 1700 Sudanese pounds [$262] to 2100 [$324], beans  which is the most consumed meal, al-Amin told Al Jazeera, complaining that he is struggling to sustain his sales.

The government has defended its decision, saying it will focus on expanding medical insurance to those most in need. The prices are expected to be fully implemented in January, however, local pharmacists are already feeling the effects.

Hundreds of pharmacies protested the decision by participating in a strike on November 19 in the capital Khartoum. Many have taken to social media to mobilise. Last week, a Facebook group titled Sudan: Civil Disobedience on Sunday November 27th, 2016 amassed close to 150,000 members in less than seven days. Using a hashtag that in Arabic translates to restore medicine subsidy, others on social media shared messages of heartbreak and called on government to return the subsidies.





Since 2011, following the split of South Sudan, Sudan has been struggling to recover from the loss of three-quarters of the countrys oil exports. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommended that the Sudanese government gradually introduce such measures to address its crippling economy.

Prior to the split, Sudan experienced substantial economic growth driven by oil exports and foreign direct investment, with nominal gross domestic product (GDP) per capita more than quadrupling between 1999 and 2010.

But Sudans growth was too heavily reliant on oil. When oil export revenues dropped and austerity measures introduced, the country entered a depression, losing more than 15 percent of its GDP in 18 months.

Meanwhile, in an effort to provide medicine to those affected, many in Sudan and the Sudanese diaspora have begun collecting money and medicine online to make donations.

UK-based Lena Omer along with her sister Rayan Omer and two friends launched a fundraising page. You could call it a virtual pharmacy, to some extent. People are donating money through digital platforms, Omer told Al Jazeera, stressing the participation of youth and their mobilisation through social media.

Because we have the power to help those who cant help themselves, we couldnt turn a blind eye to this and decided it was the human thing to do to create a fundraiser.

With reporting from Aya Elmileik
Two Nepalese and one Sudanese UN staff taken to an unknown location by unidentified gunmen.

Unidentified gunmen have kidnapped three workers from the United Nations refugee agency in Sudans restive Darfur region.

The three workers  one from Sudan and two from Nepal  were kidnapped on Sunday from Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state, and were taken to an unknown location, Abdallah Gar al-Nabi, West Darfur government spokesman, said on Monday.





UNHCR officials were not immediately available for comment, but its spokesman in Khartoum said a meeting was underway to discuss the urgent incident.

A resident from Geneina said the gunmen came in a 44 vehicle.

I saw some armed men ordering the three UN employees to get into their vehicle. They then drove off quickly, he said on condition of anonymity.

The incident happened near the main mosque of Geneina.

Sundays abduction of UNHCR staff is not the first in Darfur.

Several foreign and Sudanese aid workers have been abducted in the region over the years.

READ MORE: Sudan accused of chemical weapons attacks in Darfur

Darfur has been engulfed in a deadly conflict since 2003, when ethnic minority black tribes took up arms against President Omar al-Bashirs government.

As part of its counter-insurgency strategy, the government turned to the Janjaweed recruited from Arab tribes, who have since been incorporated into official paramilitary units.

Analysts say militias in search of resources often turn on each other, and sometimes against the government even as Khartoum insists that violence in Darfur has ebbed.

At least 300,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced in Darfur since the conflict began in 2003, according to the UN.

Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes and genocide charges related to Darfur, which he denies.

Sudan also wants UN peacekeepers who have been deployed in Darfur, a region the size of France, since 2007 to leave.
Iraq is at risk of partition and the worst sectarian bloodletting since the 2003 US-led invasion, if Shia paramilitary units get involved in the fight against ISIL for Mosul, a senior Iraqi politician warned.

Iran-backed Popular Mobilisation forces, or Hashid al-Shaabi in Arabic, are supported by the Shia-led Baghdad government and want to play a bigger role in the offensive to regain ISILs last major stronghold in Iraq.

But Khamis Khanjar, a Sunni politician and businessman who financed the 3,000 strong Turkish-trained force known as the Nineveh Guards Force, said it should lead the offensive, alongside the Iraqi army, and take control of the city after ISIL is driven out.

READ MORE: Iraqi militiamen sever ISILs key supply line to Syria

Everyone is looking for salvation from Daesh [the Arabic acronym for ISIL]  but after Daesh is defeated a new dangerous phase will begin, if the United States and the government do not address Sunni grievances. This could threaten the future of the Iraqi state, Khanjar said, in an interview with Reuters news agency in Amman, Jordan.





The fear for the future of the country, the threat, is more than any other time.

Mosul is already ringed to the north, south, and east by Iraqi government and Kurdish Peshmerga forces and Iraqs US-trained Counter Terrorism Service breached ISILs defences in east Mosul at the end of October.

Khanjar, who has close ties with regional powers Turkey, the Gulf states and Jordan and aspirations to lead the Sunni community, said the consequences of Hashid al-Shaabi entering the city would be catastrophic.

International human rights groups and the UN Human Rights Commissioner have accused the Shia militia of abuses against Sunni civilians in towns and villages retaken from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

The fear is the repeat of the same massacres and ugly violations committed by the Hashid al-Shaabi, Khanjar said.

WATCH: Iraqs parliament passes law legalising Shia militias

Hashid al-Shaabi leaders deny their groups mistreat civilians.

Khanjar said the Nineveh Guards Force, which is mainly drawn from the Mosul area, was ready to fight.

They are present in the thousands, said Khanjar, who met the forces and their commanders recently, adding their presence would assuage widespread fears of revenge attacks.

He said the failure of the Baghdad government to support the force, and lack of US support, was a mistake that fueled suspicions that Sunni concerns were not being addressed in the Mosul campaign.

Some of Iraqs top Sunni leaders will meet in Amman this week to chart a political strategy to present to key Kurdish and Shia political parties, he said.

READ MORE: Turkey warns Shia militias fighting ISIL for Iraqi town

Sunni Muslims, who dominated Iraq under Saddam Hussein, accuse Shia leaders of marginalising them through sectarian policies, allegations Baghdads Shia-led government denies.

Khanjar said he supported a federation in which Sunni Muslims, Shia Muslims, and Kurds could all run their own parts of the country, without a formal break up.

All the laws make the complexion of the state a religious Shia one, where Sunnis are more marginalised so we have no solution but to go to autonomous regions to protect us  or else partition, Khanjar said.
Syrian army captures large parts of eastern Aleppo from rebels as thousand flee fighting on the frontlines.

The Syrian army and its allies announced the capture of a large swath of eastern Aleppo from rebels in an accelerating attack that threatens to crush the opposition in its most important urban stronghold.

The army captured the Sakhour, Haydariya and Sheikh Khodr neighbourhoods on Monday, while Kurdish forces took the Sheikh Fares district from rebels, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Rebels have lost most of the northern neighbourhoods in besieged east Aleppo, it added, as the army pushed an offensive to retake the whole of Syrias second city.





Kurdish forces in Aleppo are not officially allied with Bashar al-Assads government in Damascus, but the opposition regards them as cooperating with the government in an effort to recapture the city.

The rebels have lost control of all the neighbourhoods in the north of east Aleppo, and this is their worst defeat since they seized half the city in 2012, said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman.

Syrian state news agency SANA reported the capture of Haydariya and Sakhour as it looped footage showing some of the thousands of civilians who have fled east Aleppo in recent days as loyalist troops have advanced.

The army renewed an operation to retake eastern Aleppo nearly two weeks ago, hoping to deal the opposition a potentially devastating blow.

Yesterday was the worst day weve witnessed since the war started. More than 1,500 families have fled to the regime-controlled west of the city. The bombing is horrific, Ibrahim Abu Leith, Aleppo-based spokesman for the Civil Defence, told Al Jazeera.

The city, which was Syrias biggest before the start of a civil war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people, is divided between the government-held west and rebel-held east, where UN officials say at least 250,000 people remain under siege.

READ MORE: German lawyers seek criminal case against Syrias Assad

Al Jazeeras Osama Bin Javaid, reporting from Gaziantep on the Turkey-Syria border, said the condition on the ground was very fluid.

There has been a lot of displacement in many directions from various neighbourhoods, he said.

Thousands have left to get away from the frontline. People close to the advancing government forces and Kurdish fighters have opted to go to them. But the bulk of the movement has been towards the central parts of besieged Aleppo, towards areas held by the rebels.

Rebels in Aleppo have lost at least 30 percent of the besieged east since Saturday, as frontlines continued to cave in after nearly five months of siege.

Drone footage released on Monday by SANA shows an ariel view of east Aleppos Jabal Badro neighbourhood after it was retaken over the weekend by pro-government forces.

Syrias Al-Watan daily, which is close to the government, said the army was advancing quickly.

It said the next stage of the operation would be to divide the remaining area into security districts that will be easily controlled and to capture them successively.

The advance would then push the gunmen to turn themselves [in]  or accept national reconciliation under the terms of the Syrian state.

East Aleppo-based journalist Zouhir al-Shimale told Al Jazeera that there was a constant collapse as rebel-held neighbourhoods continue to fall to government forces.

Civilians besieged for months in the east have faced serious food and fuel shortages.

The Observatory, which relies on a network of informants in the country to monitor the war, said that nearly 10,000 civilians had fled east Aleppo overnight on Saturday  at least 6,000 to the Kurdish-controlled northern district of Sheikh Maksoud, with the rest fleeing to government-held areas.

It is the first exodus of this kind from east Aleppo since 2012, Abdel Rahman said, calling it the biggest defeat for the rebels in Aleppo since then.
Attacker shot dead while eight people taken to hospitals with stab wounds and being struck by a car.

A suspect has been shot dead by police following an hours-long lockdown on the Ohio State University campus that left eight people injured.

The university went into lockdown on Monday morning when the attacker, identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, drove into a crowd at the university.

Officials confirmed Artan, 18, was a permanent and legal US resident and a student at the university.

Ohio State police said the attacker purposely drove over a kerb and into pedestrians before getting out of the vehicle and stabbing people with a butchers knife.

He exited the vehicle, and used a butcher knife to start cutting pedestrians, said Craig Stone, chief of police at the university.

Our officer was on scene in less than a minute and he ended the situation in less than a minute. He engaged the suspect, and he eliminated the threat, Stone added.

Ben Johnson, a spokesman for the Ohio State University, also confirmed the suspect was shot dead, before adding that injuries in the attack included stab wounds and being struck by a vehicle.

UPDATE 1/2 : Shelter in Place lifted. Scene is now secure. ALL classes are canceled on Columbus campus for the remainder of the day.  OSU Police (@OSUPOLICE) November 28, 2016

Earlier, the universitys website warned students there was a gunman on the campus and they should run, hide, fight.

An earlier tweet from the university said: Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.

Run, hide, fight is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; Hide, get silently out of view; or Fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter, if your life is in imminent danger.

The university in Columbus followed up with another tweet that said: Continue to shelter in place in north campus area.

Television footage showed students leaving school buildings as Rebecca Diehm, spokeswoman for the Columbus fire department, said eight people had been transported to a hospital.

One was in critical condition, and the rest were stable, she said.

A student, Joseph Noll, said he heard a fire alarm, but no shooting, and also said a car had driven into the crowd.

I was right there, and there was no one shot, he told WBNS, a local Columbus TV station.

Someone did run over a crowd of people with a car. I just heard some screams, and I saw people running. And everyone just fled the scene immediately.

Ohio State is one of the largest universities in the US, with roughly 60,000 students on the main campus in Columbus, which sprawls across more than 770 hectares.
Spokesperson for President Hadi says move shows disregard for Yemeni people and international community.

Yemens armed Houthi rebels and their political allies have formed a new government, the rebel-run state news agency Saba reported, in what appeared a blow to UN-backed efforts to end 20 months of war in the country.

The Supreme Political Council, a body through which the Iran-backed Shia rebels have been ruling parts of Yemen, announced the new government on Monday.





The [Council] meeting stressed that the government, which was formed amid the difficult conditions experienced by the country, is tasked with putting in order the internal situation and confronting the aggression, Saba news agency reported.

The Council noted that this comes amid the intransigence of the aggression and its [Yemeni] mercenaries to move within the framework of a national solution  to spare the country further bloodshed and destruction.

Rajeh Badi, a spokesperson for the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, said the move showed a disregard not just for the Yemeni people, but also for the international community.

Its been over a year and a half since the Houthi militias coup, no one in the international community has recognised the entities they have formed, Badi added.

Diplomats had hoped the Houthis, who control the capital Sanaa, would hold off on putting together a cabinet of their loyalists and instead form a unity government with their Yemeni foes.

The Houthis, who control territory with more than half of Yemens population, previously said forming a government with their allies did not mean abandoning the UN-sponsored peace process.

READ MORE: Yemens children struggle to study amid war

Meanwhile, Yemeni security and medical officials said at least 13 civilians were killed on Saturday in an air strike by the Saudi-led military coalition near the western port city of Hodeida.

The air strike hit two houses in rural areas northeast of the rebel-held city, and the dead included women and children, according to a medical official at al-Thawra hospital.

More than 7,000 people have been killed and nearly 37,000 wounded in the 20-month conflict, according to the UN.
The case against Assange is as political as it is legal; where does it go from here? Plus, Kenyas election influencers.
UF lecturer Kole Odutola will read a letter today addressed to Nelson Mandela.

The letter is what Odutola would say to Mandela if he were alive today.

When you remember the dead, it is not for the dead, the Yoruba lecturer in the department of languages, literatures and cultures said. It is really for the ones alive. The ears of the dead are the eyes of the living.

Organizations at UF will host the third-annual Mandela Day today at noon in Pugh Hall to commemorate the life and legacy of Mandela, a South African politician who led the anti-apartheid movement.

The event is being put on by the Center for African Studies, the African Student Union and the Bob Graham Center for Public Service, wrote Agnes Leslie, the outreach director for the Center for African Studies, in an email.

Faculty and students will speak about Mandelas legacy and how it carries over today, Leslie said. After the speeches, the group will march while singing and dancing to the site of a tree that was planted outside Grinter Hall during the first Mandela Day. The group will continue to perform as a tribute to Mandela, she said.

Odutola said he was recruited for the event from his former students who knew about his passion for African issues.

He contacted about six South African women, who either admired or were upset about Mandela and had them write letters, which he will read.

UF history professor Paul Ortiz, who helped organize the event, will speak about Mandelas role as a leader in social movements.

Mandela was a believer in mass action, which helped gather global attention about the apartheid, he said.

Ortiz remembers the massive support across the U.S. for the anti-apartheid movement while he was in college. His speech will discuss the movements roots, successes and Mandelas role with it.

He was seen really in many ways as the leader of a movement in exile, Ortiz said. The anti-apartheid movement was something we could support. It was also something where it really taught a lot of us what a democratic social movement could be, how powerful it could be, how inspirational it could be.

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For UF professor Stephen Craig, Thanksgiving dinner provided more than a whiff of homemade food  it was a breath of fresh air following a divisive election cycle.

The weeks following the election of Donald Trump as president have been marked, in some circles, by apprehension and public outcry  some of which carried over onto Gainesvilles streets and onto UFs campus.

But at Craigs dinner, like many others, politicking was a no-go, an ironic circumstance considering Craig teaches politics, voting behavior and public opinion at UF.

My brother, who was hosting, posted a sign saying that anyone who started talking about either politics or religion would be banished from the house and forced to eat outside, Craig, who celebrated Thanksgiving with family in St. Petersburg, Florida, wrote in an email. I was definitely ok with that.

UF psychology and Spanish senior McLaine Pleasants, whose house is often divided by political ideology, managed to dodge uncomfortable post-election discussion, too.

We have some die hard conservatives and some die hard liberals, the 21-year-old wrote in an email. But what we have in common is that family comes first.

Pleasants, who does not affiliate with any political party, said she finds it hard to change other peoples minds, especially when debating politics.

A lot of times people have extremely strong opinions, but are completely closed-minded to actually hearing the facts or doing their own research, Pleasants said.

Yousef Alghawi, a UF political science junior, avoided political banter for different reasons.

The 21-year-old said discussing the election with his predominately Muslim family is difficult because he said Trumps campaign rhetoric has incited hate and fear toward Muslims living in America.

Alghawi, although not religious himself, said he is frustrated that his 16-year-old brother is treated with disrespect by peers simply because of his faith.

Its something that we dont talk about, and we didnt talk about at Thanksgiving, but its there  and it honestly impacts almost every moment of our lives, Alghawi said.

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Instead of banishing post-election talk, UF marketing junior Emily Fodor embraced it. In the end, as her mostly conservative family members spoke in oddly calming tones about it all, the 20-year-old said she was pleasantly surprised.

Instead of getting offended by divisive remarks, especially those with misogynistic undertones, Fodor said she listened and learned from what her loved ones shared.

Besides a few comments surrounding the credibility of the women who spoke out against Trump (for sexual assault), it was a productive conversation, she said.
Early Saturday morning, Pedro Luis Perez screamed until he lost his voice.

At about midnight, as the UF political science and history senior prepared to go to sleep, his phone lit up with a notification he had been waiting 10 years to receive: Fidel Castro is dead.

Raul Castro, the brother of the former Cuban dictator, announced the news Friday night and declared nine days of national mourning.

But in Miami, where scores of Cubans have escaped from Castros communist reign, Perez joined thousands of his compatriots in celebration. He got out of bed and headed to Versailles Cuban Restaurant in Miami, where the chanting crowd took over two street blocks.

The Wicked Witch of the Caribbean is dead, one sign read.

Since Castro fell ill in 2006 with an undisclosed digestive illness, Perez, 21, said he knew the dictators death was not far away.

During his time leading Cuba, Castro was accused of human-rights violations including executing thousands of opponents, imprisoning tens of thousands of people and denying basic political freedoms.

Perez prayed to God to be in Miami when it happened so he could rejoice with his community.

His family came to the U.S. in 2004 after his mother won Cubas visa lottery, he said.

In Cuba, she was a dentist who struggled to provide for her family on the equivalent of $20 a month. She took a job cleaning bathrooms in a downtown Miami SunTrust Bank building, leaving behind more than a dozen relatives to give Perez a better life.

But over the weekend, he sang the Cuban National Anthem through the night with more than 1,000 others who shared his hope that all Cubans could soon have a better life.

With Castros death, Perez hopes to see a democratic Cuba.

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Its the snake without the head, he said.

  

After the announcement of Castros death, police patrolled the streets of Cuba, discouraging any demonstrations. When Perez called his grandmother in Cuba to tell her the news, state-run media didnt report on it, and the countrys four television channels played movies, he said.

When he spoke of the celebration, his grandmother worried the government was monitoring their call.

To Lillian Guerra, a UF Cuban and Caribbean history professor, its a sign of a system of governance set in stone.

Since the transition of power to Raul Castro in 2006, the Cuban military has awaited Castros death and prepared to maintain the communist partys hold on the state, she said.

Military generals have already started laying plans to retain power in the coming decades, seemingly cementing the countrys fate.

Its going to surpass and survive Rauls death, she said. That has been set in stone.

  

When she heard the news, Elizabeth Pantaleon thought of her grandfather  and the sleepless nights he spent awaiting Castros death.

After immigrating to Miami from Cuba in the 1960s, her grandfather would stay up late almost every night before he died in April, just to see if Castro was still alive.

Pantaleon, the vice president of the UF Cuban American Student Association, said she wishes he could have seen the day.

It was a feeling of disbelief because (Castro has) always just been there since I was a child, the 22-year-old UF international studies senior said.

She remembers hearing stories about the torture Castros government caused her great-grandfather, who was jailed and tortured for 30 years because he refused to give up his butcher shop.

The prison guards would randomly pull him from his cell, put a bag over his head and act as if they would shoot him. Though he was eventually released, the psychological toll would later lead to his death, she said.

Pantaleons family is not celebrating the death of a human being, she said, just the end of an era.

Its getting a sense of closure and justice, she said. This makes people feel lighter.

  

When Stefanie Perez and her family heard about Castros death, she felt hope: hope for the end of tyranny, hope for the future.

At 10 months old, Perez left Cuba with her family for Fort Lauderdale after her mother won a visa in a lottery. Her parents left behind their own siblings and parents to give themselves a better life in a free land.

A friends phone call Saturday morning woke Perez to the news of Castros death. The UF applied kinesiology and physiology junior rushed to her parents.

While some traveled to Miami to celebrate, Perez and her parents followed along on TV.

Despite the sense of relief, Perez couldnt shake the irony: While Cubans in the U.S. celebrated, those living in the country could not.

I dont think just because of his death were going to see an immediate response, the 20-year-old said. Its a step forward for freedom, but its going to take a while.

Two people wave Cuban flags as they are driven down Bird Road in Miami on Saturday night. People were either passing by or parking at La Carreta, a Cuban restaurant, to celebrate and cheer on the death of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
Protestors against the Dakota Access pipeline have been told to leave their camp by Dec. 5 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Although they said its to protect the protestors from confrontations and illness due to the harsh winter conditions, taking away their right to protest will actually do more to harm them. The people who are most affected by this are the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe; they will have a lot more problems in the future if the pipeline is built without interference. The protestors must be allowed to voice their concerns until they are heard.

Mainstream news outlets often forget its not only how they present an issue that could indicate bias, but their choice of what to cover or spend time on can also reveal what they think is important. According to Slate, Police reportedly responded with tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and, despite below freezing temperatures in the area, water cannons. This kind of brutality against protesters is terrible and should be exposed. However, TV outlets will only give a brief mention of it. What had the potential to be a major issue in the 2016 election wasnt, because if the media isnt going to cover it, candidates have no reason to take a stand on it. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Sen. Cory Booker have been among the few who spoke out on the injustices happening at the protests.

The act of relocating the protestors to free-speech zones only serves to move them to a place that makes it more convenient for the people building the pipeline. The whole point of a protest is to make people stop and think  to inconvenience them. Moving to a free-speech zone allows the people who would benefit from the pipeline to tune them out.

This holiday season, many are failing to acknowledge the fact that the government, to this day, fails to protect Native Americans. While they may be content to wear a headdress at a music festival or encourage kids to draw Indians as decorations on Thanksgiving, they dont otherwise concern themselves with anything about Native Americans. Their issues are largely ignored.

The pipeline should not be allowed to go through culturally significant territory. While critics would say rerouting the pipeline would be expensive, perhaps this is something that should have been considered in an earlier stage of planning the pipeline. It did not have to come to this. There also could be potential contamination of the water. According to CNN, the pipeline would go under the Missouri River, which worries opponents who are concerned about what will happen if the pipeline ruptures.

Those who have a financial interest in the pipeline being constructed might think its better to have a pipeline rather than transport by train or truck. However, the best option is to not tap into that natural resource at all. However, if they absolutely must get the oil, they have to consider the people living in the area.

On top of all of this, the pipeline would fuel dependence on nonrenewable resources that contribute to climate change. Its a bandage that doesnt solve the actual problem. The U.S. needs to invest more in renewable resources.

The lack of media coverage means independent outlets like Democracy Now!, which recently had a journalist arrested for covering the protests, have to pick up the slack. Its embarrassing that a story that has had such a massive protest isnt talked about more. Journalists need to hold the Dakota Access pipeline builders accountable. As a country that has historically neglected Native American populations, its time to take note and stop pushing them around. Its their land, and it should be protected.

Nicole Dan is a UF journalism and political science junior. Her column appears on Mondays.

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(BUSINESS WIRE)-- As China's leading maritime exhibition, China Maritime  The 7th International Offshore Engineering Technology & Equipment Exhibition (CM) will be held on March 20-22, 2017 at New China International Exhibition Center in Beijing, concurrently with the 17th China International Petroleum & Petrochemical Technology and Equipment Exhibition (cippe2017).

In recent years, the Chinese government is increasing support for maritime exhibitions especially after Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed the One Belt, One Road Initiative, which was echoed later by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, who called on the construction of a maritime silk road linking China and the ASEAN countries to stimulate hinterland development. ...



Source : http://me-newswire.net//news/19126/en...
WASHINGTON  A request by the IRS for user data from a bitcoin exchange highlights simmering tensions between compliance and customer privacy for financial institutions and will test how those demands are balanced in the young field of cryptocurrency.

Under a procedure called a John Doe summons, the IRS this month asked a federal court in California to approve its request for Coinbase to turn over records on any user who had made digital currency transactions between 2013 and 2015.

At issue is the indiscriminate nature of the request. Coinbase has accumulated nearly 5 million users, according to its website  which could mean the company might be forced to turn over financial records on millions of U.S. taxpayers.

In the past, the IRS had targeted a number of banks with John Doe summonses. The requests were broad, but did not ask financial institutions to turn over information on every single one of their accountholders as the IRS is now demanding Coinbase do, industry lawyers said.

"It's much broader in scope than anything that's been issued to the banks," said Carol Van Cleef, a partner at the law firm of BakerHostetler.

Digital currency supporters are concerned that in addition to any genuine tax cheats, the IRS could hoover up the transaction data of a wide swath of innocent Coinbase users.

"If you're using bitcoin to buy politically incorrect books, the government's going to have a history of all your transactions," said Jerry Brito, the executive director of the cryptocurrency think tank Coin Center.

To support his case, IRS agent David Utzke argued in the filing that all bitcoin users are by nature suspect, because cryptocurrency transactions do not require third parties  including companies like Coinbase  to report them to the government.

"Tax noncompliance increases in the absence of third-party information reporting," said Utzke. "This experience is a reasonable basis to believe that members of the 'John Doe' class [the Coinbase users] may have failed to comply with the internal revenue laws of the United States."

Coinbase  a company whose know-your-customer and transaction monitoring practices have chafed hardcore bitcoin users  said it would appeal the summons if it gets approved in court.

"Our general tack is to work with law enforcement's reasonably targeted and lawful requests for information," said Juan Suarez, the counsel at Coinbase. "This is a very, very broad request for all information on customers over a three-year period."

Though the John Doe summons procedure can allow the agency to go after unnamed tax evaders, it cannot be used toward an investigation of "specific taxpayers," according to the IRS's own internal revenue manual.

In 2015, for instance, the IRS asked Bank of America and Citibank to turn over records on customers who held accounts at BBIL, a correspondent bank in Belize the agency suspected of facilitating tax evasion schemes.

"A John Doe summons cannot be used to conduct a 'fishing expedition,' " said P. Faisal Islam, a compliance and anti-money-laundering consultant for fintech companies, citing the IRS's own language.

Here, Islam added, "it would seem like a fishing expedition because [the IRS] hasn't established, A, that Coinbase has users that engage in tax avoidance; or, B, that Coinbase has primarily engaged in bitcoin transactions for the purpose of tax evasion."

But some argue that the IRS is on solid ground to ask for the records of bitcoin users, because it needs to get a better sense of how prevalent the use of the digital currency for tax avoidance purposes is.

The IRS has "two different things in mind," said D.E. Wilson, a partner at the law firm Venable. "One is to try to gain a sense of the size of the market, and the other is get a sense of what percentage of that market is filing tax returns, disclosing their digital currency transactions."

Wilson added: "That's not fishing. That's trying to get a handle on the market."

The IRS is under pressure to crack down on bitcoin tax evasion. In a report dated September, the Treasury's Office of Inspector General had criticized the agency for not committing enough resources to fighting tax evasion schemes committed through the use of a digital currency.

"IRS management needs to develop an overall strategy to address taxpayer use of digital currencies as property and as currency," the watchdog urged.

In 2014, the IRS announced that it considered bitcoin a form of property for tax reporting purposes. This means that every time someone sells (or spends) bitcoin at a profit, they are liable for a capital gains tax on that transaction, which needs to be reported.

As a result, digital currency watchers are questioning whether the IRS's request might be an attempt to go after both people using bitcoin as a tax-evasion tool, and those who have  inadvertently or not  failed to comply with the complicated reporting requirements related to bitcoin's classification as property.

"The IRS has a habit of spreading out its compliance activities across all levels of income," said Wilson. "If you applied that theory to what's going on here, you're likely to see the small trader as well as the large trader be caught somewhere along this system."

But others hope the IRS will not focus its attention on those types of penny ante tax reporting violations.

"If in the course of their investigations they turn up that somebody bought $5 worth of bitcoin and they cashed it in for $10," said Brito, "I would be very surprised if the IRS [brought] in this person."

Coinbase may face an uphill battle fighting the summons. According to an annual report to Congress by the IRS's Taxpayer Advocate Service branch, in the year that ended in May 2015, 96% of lawsuits appealing summons enforcements were successfully fought off by the agency.

"Taxpayers and third parties rarely succeed in contesting IRS summonses due to the significant burden of proof and strict procedural requirements," the 2015 report said.

This request could therefore drive bitcoin users  many of whom are attracted to the digital currency's privacy features  away from companies like Coinbase, a licensed money transmitter in 35 states that offers currency conversion and storage services.

"They may not want to use a third-party service to conduct transactions," said Brito. "They might use a service like Coinbase to acquire bitcoin  but not as a wallet."
Hillary Clinton would have to win a clean sweep of recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania in order to overturn the election, and even her team concedes flipping one state is unlikely.

Nevertheless, the Clinton campaign is officially contesting the outcome of the 2016 presidential election. There is no other way to describe joining Green Party candidate Jill Steins effort to get recounts in the three states.

After the third presidential debate when Trump indicated he might not accept the outcome, Clinton said, that is a direct threat to our democracy. Thats when she thought she would win. Clinton is seemingly a passive participant in the recount effort, but after her attacks on Trump, she couldnt exactly go all in. That doesnt mean Stein is a stalking horse for Clinton, but this certainly allows the former secretary of state to challenge the outcome without appearing to threaten democracy.

Clinton campaign lawyer Marc Elias said in a post on Medium, now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides. If Jill Stein follows through as she has promised and pursues recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan, we will take the same approach in those states as well.

Or, translated: Not our idea, just along for the ride. But if it makes Hillary president, bonus.

It would have to be all or nothing for Hillary to become the first woman president. If just two states flip to Clinton, Trump still wins. For instance, suppose the two most populous states switch and Hillary wins Pennsylvanias 20 electoral votes and Michigans 16, that would bring her to just 266 and Trump down to exactly 270. A two-state scenario that includes Wisconsins 10 votes means even less.

Elias acknowledged this is a long shot, noting even the closest contest of Michigan, well exceeds the largest margin ever overcome in a recount.

As of this writing, Stein has raised $5 million on her way to $7 million for the three-state recount. Well know soon enough how much of that came from Clinton donors.

My book Tainted by Suspicion: The Secret Deals and Electoral Chaos of Disputed Presidential Election covers the four most controversial election outcomes; the 1800 Electoral College tie, the 1824 corrupt bargain, the 1876 Hayes-Tilden dispute and the 2000 Florida fiasco, plus two honorable mentions, 1888 and 1960.

Initially, I thought 2016 most resembled 1888, when Grover Cleveland won the popular vote but it didnt matter since Benjamin Harrison carried such a large electoral vote win of 233 to 168. Similarly, Clintons popular vote win barely matters considering Trumps 306 to 232 Electoral College triumph.

With the pending recounts, 2016 more closely resembles the aftermath of the 1960 election. Richard Nixon graciously conceded the race and looked like a good winner. But in light of strong evidence of voter fraud in Illinois and Texas, the Republican National Committee established a National Recount and Fair Elections Committee in Chicago on Nov. 23, 1960. RNC Chairman Thurston Morton demanded recounts in 11 states. Litigation ensued, though it never went as far as in 2000. Its near certain that the RNC wouldnt have carried out such an extensive effort if the outgoing vice president opposed it. Nixon though was wise enough to keep his fingerprints off.

Likewise, Clinton doesnt have to look like a sore loser because the Green Party (at least publicly) is carrying the ball on this.

This is not a repeat of 2000, when it was reasonable to believe a recount might change the result. Nevertheless, in that case Al Gores campaign was directly contesting only the state of Florida. Hillary is contesting the outcome in three states.

This is a scam by the Green Party for an election that has already been conceded, and the results of this election should be respected instead of being challenged and abused, which is exactly what Jill Stein is doing, Trump said Saturday.

Solely blaming Stein was wise since there is no evidence to suggest Clinton spearheaded the recount effort or, separately, the petition with almost 5 million signatures calling on the Electoral College to go rogue and elect Clinton.

Given her drive to shatter the glass ceiling, only to see her own dream shattered, its reasonable to at least inquire if Clinton could be playing larger role than appears as a final gasp at attaining the office which she believes she is entitled.

Fred Lucas is the author of Tainted by Suspicion: The Secret Deals and Electoral Chaos of Disputed Presidential Elections (Stairway Press, 2016). He is the White House correspondent for The Daily Signal.
Until a week ago Professor J. Alex Halderman of the University of Michigan was pretty much unknown outside the world of cyber-security, in which he holds a place of distinction as an academic expert on security problems concerning elections in the U.S. and other countries. But this technical expert has put himself on the way to becoming a household name since he reportedly advised the Clinton campaign team that they should request recounts of the presidential balloting in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania because of suspicion that Russia had hacked into their computerized voting systems and affected the outcomes. Jill Steins petition for a recount of the Wisconsin balloting includes an affidavit from Professor Halderman, which Stein cites as the sole basis of belief that irregularities occurred in Wisconsin that support her petition for a recount. So what does Professor Halderman say in his affidavit?

The one point on which Professor Halderman lays the greatest stress is that he, Professor J. Alex Halderman, is a really, really big expert in cyber-security. Exhibit A in the affidavit is Haldermans CV, which is long and impressive (especially since he only received his Ph.D. in 2009).

The second point that Halderman stresses is that during 2016 there were various breaches of cyber-security, such as the breach of the DNC e-mail archive, that were apparently intended to affect the U.S. presidential election. Reports of these breaches constitute Exhibits B-F of the affidavit. It should be noted that only Exhibit D and Exhibit F concern alleged or suspected breaches of actual voting equipment. Exhibit D concerns a breach of the Illinois voter registration database that resulted in the theft of voter information data, and an attempted, but apparently unsuccessful, breach of the voter registration database in Arizona. (Please note that Wisconsin, where the recount is being sought, was not one of the states reportedly breached, and that neither Illinois nor Arizona were among the states Halderman reportedly recommended for recounts.) Exhibit F concerns an anonymously sourced report from DHS about attempts, apparently unsuccessful, to breach voting systems in as many as 20 unnamed states.

Haldermans third point is that the very nature of many electronic voting systems renders them susceptible to compromise, not by internet hackers, but by the insertion of malicious software on-site. This part of the affidavit is not accompanied by evidentiary exhibits.

Haldermans fourth point concerns speculation about how a foreign power intent upon affecting a U.S. presidential election would go about it. According to Halderman, after conducting advance espionage on election equipment at many actual voting sites, the foreign power would then rely on polling data to determine which states would have close electoral margins, and then spread malware into voting machines in some of those states. This point in Haldermans affidavit is also not supported by any evidentiary exhibits.

Now this omission is peculiar, because state polling data from the days and weeks before the election is abundantly available, and it could easily be shown that certain specific states were indeed expected to be very close. So why, after overwhelming the Wisconsin Elections Commission with evidentiary exhibits that have no direct relevance to the process of casting, recording, and tabulating votes, did Halderman fail to provide evidence to support the plausibility of his speculation about what the hypothetical cyber-attackers actually might have done to affect the election?

Well, this uncharacteristic lapse of thoroughness creates an obscurity in Haldermans affidavit that is convenient for his case, because the states that the polls predicted would be very close do not include Wisconsin or the other two states where Halderman has recommended that recounts should be sought. On Monday, November 7, four polls in Florida (29 electoral votes) averaged to an exact tie (all data comes from the RCP site). Three November 6 polls from Ohio (18) gave Trump an average advantage of .3%. Three polls in Nevada averaged to an advantage of .7% for Clinton. Three polls in North Carolina (15) averaged to a one-point advantage for Clinton. Professor Halderman has not suggested that any of these four states (of which the closest went to Clinton) should be investigated for possible hacking, although according to his scenario they would have been among the most likely targets.

Meanwhile, in Wisconsin, for which Halderman has advised a recount on the grounds that it was a likely target for hacking, two polls published on November 5-6 gave Clinton an average advantage of 7%, suggesting that Clinton had the state safely in the bag. In Michigan, three polls published on November 6-7 averaged to an advantage of 2.7% for Clinton (two of them had Clinton ahead by 5%). On November 5 two polls in Pennsylvania gave Clinton an average advantage of 3%. Therefore, a hypothetical saboteur would not have concluded, on the basis of pre-election polls, that Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania would be among the most closely decided states. (And as it turned out, the most closely decided state, by far, was New Hampshire, which Halderman also did not recommend for a recount. I wonder why.)

I have no reason to doubt that Professor Halderman possesses expert knowledge of computers and the technical means of compromising their security. His expertise in how to actually affect a national 50-state election is much less clear, and not supported by any evidence he presents. Perhaps most importantly, Professor Haldermans speculative and conveniently omissive affidavit gives me the impression that his expert advice is not rendered in good faith. Maybe there is a job for him at MIT alongside the distinguished Professor Jonathan Gruber.
Melissa Francis of Fox Business grew up a free-market conservative in Los Angeles. As told in her 2012 book Diary of a Stage Mother's Daughter, her engineer father tucked her into bed the night the family gathered to watch her first appearance on Little House on the Prairie.

"Yes, you can be the first lady president. Or whatever you want. Whatever makes you happy. That's what is so great about our country. It's a free society with a free market  "Someday I will tell you about Adam Smith and The Wealth of Nations[.]  [I]t's about the Invisible Hand."

Missy Francis worked from age one through high school as an actress. At Harvard College, she earned $25 an hour as a tech assistant at the business school, but not before making do with a food prep job in the kitchen beneath Eliot House. She never worked less than 40 hours a week her junior and senior years. Chopping veggies and teaching MBA kids about the internet, and a paid internship at PBS, resulted in a substantial $15,000 savings when she left college for the $6.10/hour entry-level world of TV news in Maine.

The economic path from Little House to TV news is partly the subject of Missy's book. On the surface, hers is a story of determination. But as the title says, there's an antagonist. Mom is a monster, "the queen of slamming down the phone," as she did when Missy called home to tell Mom she had gotten a coveted unpaid summer internship at NBC in Washington, D.C.

"Absolutely not. Let me get this straight. You want to spend the summer living with your boyfriend a million miles away  instead of going on auditions, and I'm footing the bill for the whole thing? Ha! You've got a lot of nerve!" And with that, the phone went dead.

Getting to know the monster's explosive anger  she seized 13-year-old Missy by the shoulders and threw her downstairs, headfirst  is just the beginning of understanding the conflicts in this story. We never really know why Mom wants to destroy her daughter, but the struggles Missy endures to finally escape the villain are worthy of classic literature. The final act reveals an unspeakably vicious crime that Mom commits against her family. To call her a stage mother is an act of kindness.

Melissa Francis wrote this book after writing fiction, without publishing success. This true story flows in skillfully written prose, made better, no doubt, by her earlier fiction attempts. Her detail is astonishing. She surveys her new workplace deep in the basement of her college dorm:

Half a dozen women and one lone guy stood at prep stations around the room, quietly chopping, mixing, and sorting. In the center of the room, an island of burners held pots big enough to boil naughty children one by one. Blue flames licked the bottoms of the pots as white foam bubbled to the surface. On the far side, a wall of ovens radiated heat and cooked the room. A sharp scent of antiseptic cleaning fluid overpowered anything that might smell like food.

Fox News stars write books, but this is bound in authenticity, thus helping to define the star herself and bring interest to her writing skill. Her camera records everything. The extreme close-ups are raw, the editing fast. The stage mother's daughter sails through her prepubescent successes buoyed by Mom, both on top of the world.

"When Mom and I worked together, we were an unbeatable team. 'The other kids wasted their gas' was the rallying cry I invented for auditions."

Fading slowly in the background is her older sister, beautiful and smart. The monster claws both girls. Missy is badly injured but survives; her sister claws back and doesn't. One circle of family conflict hell is how to prevent the monster from digging too deep. Another is how Missy tries to save her sister once she sees that the wounds have damaged her sister's underlying young adult mentality.

The other sphere of conflict is with Dad, the third victim. Though a voice of common sense when the girls are little, he becomes dependent on their presence as a shield against Mom and helpless as they all are against the ferocious onslaught. A self-made man from the South Side of Chicago and successful entrepreneur, he is defeated, but eventually he recovers.

To watch Melissa Francis challenge, cajole, tease, and charm her TV colleagues and guests, one would not think "Valley Girl." Viewers may be surprised that her upbringing was in Porter Ranch, deep into the San Fernando Valley; in the studios and lots and on locations for LA shoots; in Thousand Oaks, where she rode her chestnut mare; at Magic Mountain; in her brand new red BMW convertible, a 16th birthday present. In the conflict between personal consumption and personal achievement, we know the outcome for her: straight As, career success, family of her own.

How did she get free-market religion? It's not the subject of the book, but economic survival hovers over everything, as does the commercial imperative behind TV programming, the benefits and pressures of industriousness, and playing to win. What gives this book its edge is the evil consequence that comes with money in the wrong hands. There is real psychological and financial danger in families. The book's life lesson is that family conflict can make you strong if you can handle the pressure and have the confidence to achieve your goal of escaping.
Recent news reports have observed that a lot of published scientific papers are worthless and not true, with initial claims turning out to be false. This is particularly worrisome where newly invented medicines are concerned. The problem also affects published results in fields as diverse as psychology and global warming. We ask whats wrong? The problem seems to be that the system known as peer-review is not doing its job properly.

The process of peer review is a cornerstone of scientific integrity, the guarantee of quality in a scientific research paper. Catch phrases like holy grail come to mind. When a researcher accomplishes something, the concluding step is to publish the results in the scientific literature. Enroute to publication, the paper must undergo peer review.

The author(s) of the scientific paper decides to send it to a particular journal for consideration, and then the peer-review process begins. The editor sends the paper to other scientists who are the peers (equally-capable scientists) of the author, and active in the same research area. Upon reading the paper, each such reader sends back to the editor a review with comments and suggestions for improvement of the paper. The reviewers remain anonymous relative to the author, to avoid softening of criticism that might be due.

Based on that input, the editor either accepts the paper for publication, sends it back to the author for revision, or rejects it outright.

Most of us professional scientists have experienced all three outcomes at various times. By far the most common is to be asked to clarify some technical points, or to pay attention to some overlooked paper in the literature that has bearing on the topic. After revising the text to conform to the criticism of the reviewers, the paper customarily goes forward for publication.

Because of that process, another scientist reading the journal has confidence that the papers published in it are reliable, and subsequently uses that information to influence the direction of his or her own research. The peer review process is the best way known to scientists to advance their professional disciplines. Without the checks and balances of such a process, the scientific literature would deteriorate into just another news outlet, a cluster of press-releases and advertisements.

Most academics are evaluated on the basis of their published papers, and often a major criterion of being promoted is a count of the number of peer-reviewed papers a professor has. That translates into both prestige and salary, and hence there is built-in pressure upon a junior faculty member to generate many papers. The slogan publish or perish is well known in academia. This practice holds across all academic disciplines, including history, psychology, social sciences, literature -- not just sciences like chemistry, biology or physics.

Some journals are more prestigious than others, and there is strong competition to have a paper published in a more prestigious rather than in a lesser journal. For example, the hardest journal to get a physics paper accepted into is Physical Review Letters, and a professor who gets even one paper published there during his/her whole career is very proud of it. Biochemistry, medicine, geology, history, and so on each have a hierarchy of journals. The New England Journal of Medicine is Americas most prestigious medical journal.

The public is oblivious to all this, and only hears about peer review as the certification of validity among scientists. The perception is ironclad that a community of scientists is self-disciplining, and truth will surely emerge from the process over time. Nearly all government agencies share this perception, and courts of law routinely defer to their judgment on scientific questions, never examining the underlying research.

For the peer-review system to work effectively, everybody in the loop has to be scrupulously honest. The authors must have reached their conclusions honestly, based on valid data; and be striving to present new information accurately to readers. The editor must select unbiased reviewers to conduct the peer-review. The reviewers must be objective, guarding against letting their own biases creep into their evaluations. When all this happens, a paper eventually gets published that adds an incremental advance to the field.

However, human beings are imperfect, and hence the peer-review process doesn't always work ideally. The very essential elements of integrity and trust can easily be lost at several stages. Authors are sometimes blind to their own mistakes; and peer-reviewers can be variously misinformed, hostile, or motivated by hidden agendas. Editors might have their own narrow views about what they want in their journal; they can select certain reviewers to obtain negative or positive evaluations. When things go wrong, bad information gets unduly promoted. The history of peer review is not unblemished.

Some very bad examples clutter the history of science. In the late 18th century, about when oxygen was discovered, Priestley in England and Lavosier in France each controlled a major journal, and were bitter opponents who suppressed disfavored papers. Phrenology, which measured the skull to detemine mental processes, was widely taught. In the early 20th century, papers promoting Eugenics were welcome in journals of the social sciences. The geological theory of Plate Tectonics was ridiculed and dismissed from the 1920s to the 1960s. A more recent horrible example is the way the opioid medicine Oxycontin got approved and accepted in the medical community, only being discovered to be highly addictive through very adverse experience.

In the field of global warming/climate change, the package of leaked Emails known as Climategate (2009) revealed extensive manipulation and deception in the peer review process. That was laid out very explicitly in American Thinker most of a decade ago. Climategate also revealed numerous other ways in which the peer review system was corrupted.

Paraphrasing Winston Churchill: peer-review is the worst system for assuring scientific quality except for every other system that has ever been tried.

Thomas P. Sheahen holds B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is Director of the Institute for Theological Encounter with Science & Technology, based in St. Louis.
President M. Nixon is not generally admired as a fountain of profundity. But attention should be paid by sore political losers to this pithy remark: "You've got to learn to survive a defeat. That's when you develop character." Among those who would profit from heeding the remark are the daily protesters of the election of Donald Trump as president of the U.S., Green Party candidate Jill Stein, The New York Times, and now Recep Tayyip Erdogan, president of Turkey.

On November 24, 2016, the Parliament of the European Union in Strasbourg voted by 471 to 37 and 107 abstentions to halt talks concerning Turkey's accession to membership of the EU. President Erdogan, both pre-emptively and after the decision of the E.P., declared that the vote had no value at all. At the meeting in Istanbul on November 23, 2016 of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, he first declared that "this vote has no value at all, no matter what result emerges." Erdogan is the latest on the list of sore political losers.

The majority in the European Parliament was critical of the "disproportionate repressive measures" taken by Turkey in response to the attempted coup to overthrow the government, a coup that failed, on July 15, 2016. Erdogan's ongoing response has been vigorous and brutal. More than 130,000 state employees have been fired, 40,000 have been jailed, 375 organizations including news outlets were shut down, and more controls were put on the media.

All people, officials and police, accused of being linked to Fethullah Gulen, supposedly the mastermind behind the attempted coup, though he has lived in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania since 1999, were dismissed. Gulen, the 75-year-old Turkish preacher and writer and founder of a supposedly moderate Muslim movement, has denied his involvement in the coup, which has led to the purge of his supporters.

In a somewhat provocative manner, since he knew it would be an action uncongenial to the EU, Erdogan said he would support the return of the death penalty if the Turkish parliament voted for it. He also imposed a state of emergency that is likely to be renewed.

The vote of the E.P. was nonbinding, but it is an indication of opinions likely to be exchanged at the meeting of the foreign ministers of the EU in December 2016, when the application of Turkey to become a member of EU will be debated. For fifty years, Turkey has expressed such interest; it has been an official candidate since 1999, and accession negotiations were started in 2005 but have not proceeded with all deliberate speed.

The decision of the foreign ministers on EU membership will inevitably be related to the solution of the massive migration problem confronting Europe. On November 2, 2015, an agreement was reached between the two sides to stem the flow of irregular migrants and refugees to Europe over the Aegean Sea. Turkey would return migrants not in need of international protection. Turkey currently hosts 2.7 million refugees.

In return for Turkey's promise to control or limit the flow of migrants, the EU on March 18, 2016 agreed to grant the country the initial sum of 3 billion euros in 2016 and 2017, and a further 3 billion euros in 2018, to cope with the refugees.

The agreement also dealt with the wish of Turkey to obtain visa-free travel for its citizens into Europe and called for discussion of Turkey's application to continue. Turkey agreed to an arrangement on halting the flow of migrants. This has been partially successful; in 2016, only 171,000 crossed the sea into Greece, compared with 740,000 in 2015.

The United States as well as the EU must be concerned with the issue of Turkey in view of Turkey's membership in NATO, Turkey's unique geo-strategic position in both Euope and Asia (97% in Asia), and its relations with the Muslim world. Turkish forces are the second largest army in NATO and thus could add to Europe's security though it contributes only 1.5 % of its GDP to defense. The Trump administration will be particularly concerned by Turkey's threat to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, of which China and Russia are members.

Therefore, a number of problems, cultural, religious, and geographic, confront the EU directly and the U.S. indirectly. Already the issue is complicated since 10 million Turks live in Europe.

The insuperable problem is that democracy in Turkey is being reduced. Instead of becoming, like Israel, a democratic, pluralistic society in the Middle East, Turkey has, under Erdogan, become more illiberal, with power centralized in the presidency, tension between military figures and Islamic fundamentalists, denial of minority rights, and inadequate provision for the rights of women. Its economy is suffering; GDP per capita is less than half the EU average.

Moreover, Erdogan has threatened to allow Muslim immigration to European safe havens and to open Turkey's borders after the E.P. vote. He has also accused the West of providing a safe haven for the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has engaged in an insurgency for 30 years.

At this point, it is doubtful that conditions are in place to allow visa-free travel for Turks in Europe. Even more important, it is unlikely that Turkey is genuinely interested in a structured and high-level dialogue concerning membership in the EU. The Trump administration and the EU leaders should call for major changes in Turkish political behavior before they assent to Turkish membership of the EU.
According to this story in Politico, the Obama administration is going to arrogantly ignore the results of the election and seek to implement 98 new regulations from a dozen differernt agencies. At least 17 of those regulations are considered "economically significant," meaning they will have an impact on business of at least $100 million.

The good news is that Donald Trump and the GOP Congress will be able to cancel or repeal all of them.

Regulations on commodities speculation, air pollution from the oil industry, doctors Medicare drug payments and high-skilled immigrant workers are among the rules moving through the pipeline as Obamas administration grasps at one last chance to cement his legacy. So are regulations tightening states oversight of online colleges and protecting funding for Planned Parenthood. Also moving ahead are negotiations on an investment treaty with China and decisions by the Education Department on whether to offer debt relief to students at defunct for-profit colleges. The Department of Transportation may also go ahead with a ban on cellphone calls on commercial flights and a rule requiring that most freight trains have at least two crew members on duty. Some agencies are pulling back, fearful that Trump and the GOP-led Congress will use a seldom-invoked legislative tool to permanently wipe out their 11th-hour regulations. For example, the Interior Department has failed to release a long-awaited rule to protect streams from coal mining pollution  and indications are it might never issue it. But other agencies have signaled full steam ahead despite the threat of Republicans consigning their work to oblivion, in a dynamic that will be crucial to deciding how much of Obamas legacy survives the ascendant Trump era. "As I've mentioned to you before, we're running  not walking  through the finish line of President Obama's presidency, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy wrote agency employees the day after the Nov. 8 election. Thank you for taking that run with me. I'm looking forward to all the progress that still lies ahead." As many as 98 final regulations under review at the White House as ofNov. 15 could be implemented before Trump takes office. Seventeen regulations awaiting final approval are considered economically significant, with an estimated economic impact of at least $100 million a year. Miffed congressional leaders are warning the agencies to halt their work on so-called midnight regulations, specifically objecting to Obamas call earlier this year for audacious executive action. In a letter to agency heads on Nov. 15, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and every House committee chairman cautioned them against finalizing pending rules or regulations in the Administrations last days. Should you ignore this counsel, please be aware that we will work with our colleagues to ensure that Congress scrutinizes your actions  and, if appropriate, overturns them.

President Obama has increased the regulatory burden on American business more than any other president in history. Just last year, his rules added $22 billion to the cost of doing business, making a grand total of more than $100 billion in additional costs in seven years.

And according to the Heritage Foundation, the economic impact extends even farther:

The effects of this rampant rulemaking are widespread. Among them: higher energy rates from the Environmental Protection Agencys Clean Power Plan; increased food prices for both people and pets as a result of excessively prescriptive food production standards; restricted access to credit for consumers and small businesses under DoddFrank financial regulations; fewer health care choices and higher medical costs because of the Affordable Care Act; and reduced Internet investment and innovation under the network neutrality rules dictated by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

President Obama rarely lets an occassion pass without mentioning his commitment to creating high-paying jobs for American workers. If that's true, why does his administration create a Byzantine maze of rules that is crushing job creation? No doubt Hillary Clinton would have been worse, making any promise from Democrats to create jobs a sick joke.

All administrations seek to cement their legacy by rushing through new regulations at the end of a president's term. But after nearly eight years of record-setting rule-making, the Obama administration should have left well enough alone.
Francois Fillon just won a landslide victory as the presidential nominee for Frances Republican party.

Two days ago, the former French premier was already seen as the winner at the end-of-campaign two-hour televised debate with his rival Alain Juppe, according to an online flash poll conducted afterwards.

Fillons performance was dazzling. Juppe came out as rather stuck up and on the defensive. The first, lyrical, had presented his vision for France, a forward-looking France living with its times, yet rooted in its historical heritage and timeless values. The second, technical and tedious, appeared to be going down a to do checklist of disparate items with no real unifying thread  gender equality, the duration of the working week It seemed as if the voters had already made up their minds before even casting their ballots, judging from their jubilant faces and frantic ovations while listening to Fillon, contrasting with the more restrained applause greeting Juppe.

The candidates were, among other things, at odds over the identity of France. Juppe, reciting the globalist bible, expressed the opinion that it was her rich diversity that made France special, and that her diverse identity had to be celebrated. But Fillon emphasized that France was not a multicultural nation. And in a direct reference to Islamist militancy, he added:  When you come to someones house, you dont take it over. Its a matter of courtesy. He vowed to clarify Frances relationship with Saudi Arabia and Qatar and to dissolve all groups affiliated with Salafism or the Muslim Brotherhood. These organizations are outlawed in Egypt. Does it make any sense for France to embrace them with open arms? he pondered.

The 7,000-plus-strong crowd of the political rally was galvanized. Fillon had seemingly touched on a raw nerve. Many in France resented the battering of their national identity by a socialist government where one had to squint to spot a French minister, and where the Justice Ministry was, for several years, entrusted to a Guyana-born separatist who had once taken up arms against France. They complained that Frances interests were no longer a priority. More criminals were outside the prisons than inside; the police were regularly beaten up or shot at yet instructed not to respond to the assaults of the rabble. On the initiative of the Franco-Moroccan minister of education, Latin got replaced by Arabic, and entire chapters of the history of France had to give way to the narrative of Muslim conquests. The French no longer felt at home, no longer recognized their France, and they thought that it was not normal.

The previous era under Sarkozy the atlanticist had been none too glorious, either. It saw the reinstatement of France within NATOs military command and ensuing erosion of her political independence so jealously defended by General de Gaulle. This led France down the path of a military adventurism contrary to her best interests in Libya and Syria.

Under Sarkozy, too, several of Frances historical landmarks were unscrupulously sold to the lustful Gulf monarchies. The French, outraged but powerless, watched the jewels of their cultural heritage being removed from their nations sovereignty.

Sarkozy had also been the ardent advocate of a multicultural France during his presidency. At a 2008 political rally, he even went so far as declaring that interbreeding was an obligation and not a choice and that if Republican volunteerism did not do the trick, then the State would move to more coercive measures.

Yet it was that same Sarkozy who also declared in a great flight of theatrical rhetoric that nothing is more dangerous than a wounded identity, a humiliated identity. Admittedly, these words were addressed to Saudi Arabia, during an official trip to that country, not to France

Sarkozy was right in seeing great destructive power in a wounded identity, and this is precisely why Fillons empowering discourse electrified the audience. He had tapped into an enormous pool of pent up energy; his words were music to the ears of the crowd that chanted Fillon, Fillon! Feelings thought of as lost forever were suddenly reawakened  the belief in the greatness of France, her destiny, her identity shaped by a 1,500-year history, the pride of being French Such an emotional outburst had not been seen for a very long time, probably since the days of the great general. The patriotic flame was not dead, after all  just smoldering under the ashes, waiting for an idealistic yet strong leader capable of reawakening the spark in peoples hearts. Judging from reactions, that day seemed to have arrived. Coincidentally, that man was a Gaullist.

Todays overwhelming victory is further proof that France is ready to turn a page on her decline of recent years and embrace Fillons ambitious and uplifting project. She may have even selected her next president.
The IRS is ready to send out millions of letters to taxpayers to let them know that if they don't sign up for an Obamacare health insurance plan, they will have to pay the penalty.

Republicans in Congress are objecting to the plan because it threatens the privacy of individual taxpayers.

Washington Times:

In keeping with our commitment to taxpayer confidentiality, we will send the letters directly to taxpayers; under no circumstances will we share the identities of these taxpayers or any other protected taxpayer information with CMS or with any other entity, IRS Commissioner John G. Koskinen told Congress on Oct. 31, in documents obtained by The Washington Times. But congressional Republicans, already intent on repealing the health law, say tapping the IRS to boost Obamacare is dangerous, and risks disclosure of taxpayers secret information to others in the government. According to congressional aides, the IRS is set to dispatch the letters in two batches before key enrollment deadlines. It will send notices to 800,000 filers between Nov. 28 and Dec. 5  ahead of the Dec. 15 deadline to buy a plan in time to be covered by Jan. 1. An additional 6.7 million Obamacare holdouts will see an IRS notice in January as the administration makes a last-ditch plea for sign-ups ahead of the final Jan. 31 deadline. Draft versions of the letters warn recipients that they owed a penalty in 2015 and, unless they sign up now, will likely owe a penalty for 2017 as well. Some versions of the letter even detail the potential costs  a minimum of $695 for an adult, with the chance for a much higher penalty depending on your income. Those with higher incomes must pay 2.5 percent of their earnings. The letters say enrolling in an Obamacare exchange plan generally costs $75 per month or less once taxpayer-funded subsidies are taken into account. The campaign is part of President Obamas attempts to put his signature law on firmer footing by driving up enrollment, particularly among young, healthy people, who could stabilize premiums under the program, before he hands off his legacy item to President-elect Donald Trump. The Obama administration had hoped to be turning the fate of the law over to Hillary Clinton, who had said she would defend and build on Obamacare. Instead, the 2017 sign-up season will conclude under a Trump administration thats vowed to unravel the exchanges as part of a broader push to repeal and replace the law.

Using the IRS in this manner is pure intimidation. Getting a letter with "Internal Revenue Service" as the return address is designed to frighten taxpayers into signing up for insurance.

It is the taxpayers' responsibility to know how much they owe the government, and that includes the penalty for not having insurance. Little reminders like this from the taxman are unnecessary  unless you're the Obama administration, desperately trying to save a failed program.

Concerns about privacy may or may not be valid. But given what the IRS has done over the last seven years, Congress should keep an eagle eye on what the agency is up to.
The American media have been an indispensible ally to Fidel Castro throughout his dictatorship. That love affair continues into his death, as famous talking heads rushed on air to pay tribute to his supposed triumph over poverty, illiteracy, ill health, and capitalist oppression.

Do these people not know the reality of life in Cuba? Are they witting or unwitting propagandists for a monstrously evil tyranny? This compilation from Grabien is a hall of shame:

Forget about the murders of opponents by the thousands. Forget about imprisoning people with AIDS, and about the persecution of homosexuals. (Can anyone point out where the enormously powerful gay lobby has spoken out against Castro in the wake of his death?) Forget about the millions who fled for their lives, derided as worms (los gusanos), and especially forget about those who were drowned, attacked by sharks, or perished by thirst during the hazardous journey to these shores.

No, celebrate Castros supposed victories over illiteracy and his universal health care. And whatever you do, dont compare the general welfare of Cubans before and after the revolution. Ignore this from PBS (!) (hat tip: Andrew Stuttaford, NRO):

On the eve of Fidel Castros 1959 revolution, Cuba was neither the paradise that would later be conjured by the nostalgic imaginations of Cubas many exiles, nor the hellhole painted by many supporters of the revolution, who recall Cuba as the brothel of the Western hemisphere  an island inhabited by a people degraded and hungry, whose main occupation was to cater to American tourists at Havanas luxurious hotels, beaches and casinos. Rather, Cuba was one of the most advanced and successful countries in Latin America. Cubas capital, Havana, was a glittering and dynamic city. In the early part of the century the countrys economy, fueled by the sale of sugar to the United States, had grown dynamically. Cuba ranked fifth in the hemisphere in per capita income, third in life expectancy, second in per capita ownership of automobiles and telephones, first in the number of television sets per inhabitant. The literacy rate, 76%, was the fourth highest in Latin America. Cuba ranked 11th in the world in the number of doctors per capita. Many private clinics and hospitals provided services for the poor. Cubas income distribution compared favorably with that of other Latin American societies. A thriving middle class held the promise of prosperity and social mobility.

And this from Jay Nordlinger on Cubas glorious health care:

To be sure, there is excellent health care on Cuba  just not for ordinary Cubans. Dr. Jaime Suchlicki of the University of Miamis Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies explains that there is not just one system, or even two: There are three. The first is for foreigners who come to Cuba specifically for medical care. This is known as medical tourism. The tourists pay in hard currency, which provides oxygen to the regime. And the facilities in which they are treated are First World: clean, well supplied, state-of-the-art. The foreigners-only facilities do a big business in what you might call vanity treatments: Botox, liposuction, and breast implants. Remember, too, that there are many separate, or segregated, facilities on Cuba. People speak of tourism apartheid. For example, there are separate hotels, separate beaches, separate restaurants  separate everything. As you can well imagine, this causes widespread resentment in the general population. The second health-care system is for Cuban elites  the Party, the military, official artists and writers, and so on. In the Soviet Union, these people were called the nomenklatura. And their system, like the one for medical tourists, is top-notch. Then there is the real Cuban system, the one that ordinary people must use  and it is wretched. Testimony and documentation on the subject are vast. Hospitals and clinics are crumbling. Conditions are so unsanitary, patients may be better off at home, whatever home is. If they do have to go to the hospital, they must bring their own bedsheets, soap, towels, food, light bulbs  even toilet paper. And basic medications are scarce. In Sicko, even sophisticated medications are plentiful and cheap. In the real Cuba, finding an aspirin can be a chore. And an antibiotic will fetch a fortune on the black market. A nurse spoke to Isabel Vincent of Canadas National Post. We have nothing, said the nurse. I havent seen aspirin in a Cuban store here for more than a year. If you have any pills in your purse, Ill take them. Even if they have passed their expiry date. The equipment that doctors have to work with is either antiquated or nonexistent. Doctors have been known to reuse latex gloves  there is no choice. When they travel to the island, on errands of mercy, American doctors make sure to take as much equipment and as many supplies as they can carry. One told the Associated Press, The [Cuban] doctors are pretty well trained, but they have nothing to work with. Its like operating with knives and spoons.

Cuba was on its way to developed nation status and, as the demise of many authoritarian regimes elsewhere in Latin America shows, likely would have progressed toward democratic rights and prosperity. In fact, the rise of Miami as the American gateway to Latin America was accomplished largely thanks to the influx of Cubans. If those smart, talented, hardworking people had stayed in Cuba, they would have made Havana into the crucial link between the the American economy and Latin America.

That is what Castro cost Cubans.
We saw celebrations in Miami, but we live in a free country.

We did not see much of anything in Cuba beyond official statements. Cuba is not a free country.

Yoani Sanchez, a blogger in Cuba, described the early hours like this:

Still many in Havana have not reacted, the streets are empty in my building. Silence, she added. On that silence, Sanchez reflected: The silence extends, it is dawn, but the fear is felt in the air. Harsh days are coming." She also tweeted an image of the television hostess reporting on the event: An erratic and nervous Tv female voice-over, dressed in black, talks about reactions to Fidel Castros death. Sanchez founded Generacion Y, a blog in which she recounts how the life of a Cuban under the Castro regime that is so notorious that she won the Ortega y Gasset award and Maria Moors Cabot award. From her blog was born 14ymedio, the only independent medium that is managed by Cubans, but censored within the island by order of the Government, no Cuban can read it while he is in his country.

Also, we read via Babalu that Cuban secret police abducted the anti-communist artist Danilo Maldonado. His mother told the Diario de Cuba that her son had taken to the streets late Friday to celebrate the death of dictator Fidel Castro.

My guess is that he is not alone. There are probably other examples of young people in the street celebrating Fidel Castro's death.

The quiet street is primarily due to a call for a nine-day state of mourning announced by the dictatorship.

At the same time, I don't think Raul Castro wants people in the streets. I'm sure dictators have good memories. Every dictator in the world remembers how people in the street and food shortages ended up overthrowing Nicolae Ceausescu of Romania.

Cuba is now entering a very dangerous and interesting period.

Raul Castro could go rogue and look for an exit in exchange for lifting the embargo. He could also get harsh and clamp down out of fear.

Time will tell. We will follow daily reports from dissidents.

P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter.
Next Sunday, Italian voters will go to the polls to vote on controversial changes to their constitution. The vote will determine if far-reaching changes are made to Italy's upper chamber of parliament, transferring much of its power to the central government.

But the referendum has taken on far more importance than the reforms citizens will be voting on. When Prime Minister Matteo Renzi introduced the measure, he foolishly promised to resign if the constitutional changes were not voted in. Up to that point, ther referendum had the support of about 70% of Italians. But once Renzi made that promise, populist opposition parties pounced and successfully turned the referendum into a vote on Renzi's performance in office.

Support for the reforms collapsed, and it now appears likely that Renzi will lose his gamble, and the referendum will go down to defeat. That leaves open the possibility that a new government will be formed by the Five Star Movement and Lega Nord  two populist parties that want a referendum on Italy keeping the euro as its currency.

Needless to say, there is panic in the rickety Italian banking system, where at least eight banks could need a bailout  an impossible task with Italy carrying a debt burden of more than 130% of its GDP.

Meanwhile, the Five Star Movement, led by the Trump-like insult-throwing comedian Beppe Grillo, has become the main opposition party to Renzi's P.D. party. If Renzi follows through with his threat to resign if he loses the referendum, it may leave an opening for Grillo and other populist parties to force another vote on whether Italy should keep using the euro  thus the term "Quitaly" that defines the near certainty that Italy's rejection of the common currency would cause a continent-wide earthquake leading to the destruction of the EU.

Newsweek:

A defeat for Renzi will be read as a victory for Italys two major populist parties: the Lega Nord and the larger Five Star Movement, led by the comedian Beppe Grillo. The two parties are not allied, but both are nurtured by anti-establishment sentiment and favor national solutions to Italys problems  beginning with a return to the Italian lira. If Renzi is defeated, Lega Nord and the Five Star Movement could join forces to support a new government and hold a new referendum  this time on the euro. If Italy  one of the worlds largest public debtors  decided to go it alone, the entire European project could be dealt a mortal blow. In the age of Donald Trump and Brexit, that outcome is far from unthinkable. The issue at stake in the referendum is not inconsequential, but it should not decide the fate of Europe. Italians will vote on whether to strip the Senate (the parliaments upper house) of two-thirds of its members and much of its legislative authority, making it merely a talking shop akin to the second chamber of Germanys Bundesrat, and return some of the regions powers to the central government. Changes like these have been discussed for 30 years. The lack of movement could benefit Renzi, if voters conclude that they should not waste such a rare opportunity to do something to reform their sclerotic system. President Sergio Mattarella is impartial, but he would prefer that the reforms go forward. His predecessor, Giorgio Napolitano, is also strongly in favor of the reforms, which he sayswould be great news for Italy. But the reforms have also faced stiff opposition. Some state institutions dislike the idea of delivering more powers to the executive branch; magistrates, for example, fear a loss of judges extensive and unchecked powers. Then there are the new populists, several PD old-timers, and plenty of other establishment figures, including several former members of the constitutional court, who generally fear change. Former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, ever the opportunist, is also opposing the reforms. The opposition, as usual, benefits considerably from its simple message. To vote no is to vote against the system and all of its corruption. Who is not against corruption? Add to that rising Euroskepticism, and the result is an intoxicating political brew. Opinion polls now indicate a 5-6-point majority for No, with 20% of voters still undecided.

The chances that Grillo and the Five Star Movement will be asked to fashion a governing coalition if Renzi resigns are small. Before that happens, some sort of technocrat government will be cobbled together until elections are held in 2018. But there's no telling what will happen between now and then. Some Italian observers believe that elections could be held as early as next year, in which Grillo's Five Star Movement  started on his blog  may emerge as the leading vote-getter, or at least as a kingmaker whose support would be vital to any other party that wants to govern.

No matter what happens, the populist wave is now washing over Italy, the third largest economy in the EU, with untold repercussions that the government and people will have to deal with.
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Few things separate us as much as our views of Castro. To some, he is a great hero of socialism. To others, he was a conqueror in his own country, a brutal dictator.

Few will acknowledge that he might have been both. Castros emergence as a revolutionary figure in the late 1950s was embellished with all sorts of romantic notions as the placid 1950s were already giving way to the turbulent and idealistic 60s. Castro was an early symbol of an era that was about to explode and shatter what had preceded it.

Much is said of Castros tyranny, little of what let up to it. This is reflection, not an excuse. I have had a student who spent years in a Cuban prison for counterrevolutionary writing. I have personally known people who climbed on unseaworthy vessels to risk all and escape his regime.

Castro was not transformed into a communist, as some apologists would like us to believe. But his antipathy toward America was not totally of his own doing. Few want to look at Americas relationship with Cuba before Castro to comprehend how the natural economic and cultural ties between the two countries were stretched to the breaking point.

If you are looking for a simple saga of heroes and villains, this is not one of them.

Before Castro, Cuba was ruled by a brutal dictator, Fulgencio Batista. In the thinking of some modern conservatives, Batista was not a threat to our strategic interests. He had no interest in projecting power, and he was totally susceptible to the economic domination and bribery of American interests.

American organized crime controlled the casinos and brothels of Havana. American conglomerates controlled everything, from the telecommunications networks to the economic and agricultural systems. Cuba was virtually an American colony in what might be called the 20th-century mercantile system.

American boardrooms within a few miles of each other in Manhattan made the decisions that controlled the Cuban economy. Cuba was basically a one-crop country (sugarcane). While Cuba could produce other crops, that decision was not Cubas to make.

There was an American monopoly on oil refining in exchange for free refining of oil for Cuban use. Of course, the refined oil came from American producers, who still collected money for the raw product.

Property taxes on American industries were collected on subpar evaluations resulting from a system of corruption that resulted in American industries setting their own property values and paying bribes to do so.

The Cuban oligarchy enriched itself while the people suffered.

Castro and his guerrillas who took to the mountains were seen as heroes, fighting for the people against a corrupt oligarchy in bed with foreign exploiters.

In the history of guerrilla warfare, Castro represented the first of only two movements where guerrillas were victorious against an indigenous power.

Castro cleverly found that he could turn tables on the American conglomerates. With the help of the Soviet Union, he brought in Soviet oil, which he demanded be refined free in accord with the monopoly agreement. The American companies balked. Castro found them in violation and seized their assets.

Similarly, Castro sought to buy out the American holdings of Cuban infrastructure at the sub-par evaluations the Americans had set with the Batista regime. When the Americans claimed that everyone knew that these prices were phony, Castro said these were the prices the Americans themselves had set.

In 1959, in a meeting between Fidel Castro and Vice President Richard Nixon, Castro unveiled his plans for nationalizing the Cuban economy. Nixon was appalled, and the CIA began planning for both the invasion of Cuba and the assassination of Castro (which became known as Operation Mongoose).

Although Castro was clearly in the Soviet camp, these operations followed by an American trade embargo further cemented Cuba into the Soviet sphere of influence. Worse, it changed the strategic paradigm between the Soviets and America, as seen in the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Castro showed no flexibility in moving away from a totalitarian-style dictatorship. There was never an attempt by Castro to move toward a European-style socialism or to negotiate easing the yoke of oppression for American concessions.

As with all embargoes, the American embargo hurt Cubas poor. Elites always have ways around embargoes and trade sanctions. In 2014, the Vatican, whose own property had been confiscated by the revolution, had attempted to create an environment for negotiations to change the course of relations between the U.S. and Cuba.

American policy toward Cuba could hardly have been called enlightened, but Castro also never sought to create a more humane and liberal society. He never fulfilled the aspirations of those who originally supported his revolution.

Perhaps his passing will usher in a new era for both America and Cuba, one that is long overdue.
I was struck by the severity of the CNN headline : "Trump falsely claims 'millions of people who voted illegally' cost him popular vote." They were calling him a liar. They didn't even wait for the body of the article; they wanted people to know it in the headline.

The L.A. Times headline was identical . (Hate minds think alike?) The headlines of the New York Times , the Washington Post , and Politico are almost identical, all calling Trump's claim "baseless" or "a conspiracy theory." (Note that if you check the links now, the headlines may have changed slightly, as they sometimes do.)

Isn't it somewhat creepy when five supposedly independent news organizations run almost the exact same headline? But what's worse is, they are basically calling Trump a liar in the headlines. Have they treated the claims of any other political figure that way? Did the Times talk about Hillary Clinton's "baseless claims" that she never received any classified emails? When Obama said, "If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor," did any media outlet call that a "false claim"? When Jill Stein suggests that Donald Trump didn't win the election, did the media dismiss that as "without evidence"? No, that seems to apply only to Donald Trump. So visceral is the media's hatred of him that they can't even wait to attack him in the body of the article. They have to do it in the headline.

Is it obviously a false claim to say millions of illegals votes in the election? In states like California , illegal immigrants are given driver's licenses and simultaneously encouraged to register to vote along with citizens. We know that in a study of just nine counties in Virginia, more than 1,000 illegals were registered to vote. Another study proved that illegal aliens actually voted in Philadelphia. There are numerous other examples.

We cannot know if the vote of illegals and other voter fraud could have cost Donald Trump the popular vote, but to dismiss it out of hand, while giving a free pass to any and all claims of Democrats, gives the appearance of extreme partisanship. And the use of substantially similar headlines by five leading news organizations gives the appearance of media collusion.

It makes you wonder why Donald Trump bothers to meet with the New York Times or to play nice with the liberal media. They are trying to destroy him even before he becomes president. I hope he follows Sean Hannity's advice and denies them press passes to the White House. See how long their coverage stays overtly hostile when they are on the outside of the fence of the White House, looking in.
On November 27, 2016, Kellyanne Conway questioned Romneys loyalty to Trump and questioned Romneys judgment because of his attacks on Trump. She said Romney lost states in 2012 that Trump won and questioned what Romney has done since 2012 to warrant an important position such as secretary of state. Ms. Conway stuck the knife in, twisted it, all with a smile on her face.

CNN reported:

Kellyanne Conway says President-elect Donald Trump's base of supporters are concerned about Mitt Romney being considered for secretary of state. She says she will ultimately respect Trump's decision[.]

After Ms. Conways takedown of Romney, all deserved, I cannot see Trump appointing Romney as secretary of state. Romney did not merely criticize Trumps polices; he viciously attacked Trump personally. There is not much difference between Romneys personal attacks and Hillary and Obamas personal attacks against Trump during the campaign.

Conway is a close adviser to Trump. She ran a brilliant campaign, and it seems she was sent out to knock down Romney. I cannot believe she would have said all this without Trumps approval. This public humiliation of Romney is payback.

There is nothing special about Romneys background and qualifications that warrants his appointment instead of Rudy Giuliani as secretary of state. Romney is smart, but Rudy is smarter, and Rudy fought hard for Trumps election.

Rudy also has guts. On October 23, 1995, Rudy ejected Yasser Arafat from the Lincoln Center event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the U.N. Bill Clinton criticized Rudy, which tells us Rudy did the right thing.

Rudy also refused in 2001 a ten-million-dollar contribution from the Saudis for disaster relief because the Saudi prince blamed U.S. policies for the September 11, 2001 attack.

We all know how Rudy acted following the September 11 attack. Everyone praised him.

Romney is smart, but he lacks the toughness and courage of Rudy. Romney did not even stand up to Candy Crowley during the debate and did not respond to the cheap shots from the Democrats such as Harry Reid.

Nobody worked harder for Trumps election, especially during the weekend after the Billy Bush tape, when it seemed that everyone, including Mike Pence, went silent and dark.

There simply is no good reason to appoint Romney to the most prestigious and important cabinet office. Rudy is more qualified; more courageous; and most important, loyal. He deserves to be appointed secretary of state and will be appointed. The message from Ms. Conway is give Romney a living, but nothing important.
How does Israel benefit from its continued association with American Jewish organizations that are mainstreaming anti-Semitism by minimizing it, and arguing that people who hate Israel are not anti-Semites?

Case in point: The Anti-Defamation League's "Is Delegitimization of Israel Anti-Semitism?" panel provided well known anti-Zionists Jill Jacobs and Jane Eisner a platform to launch into tirades about evil Israel. In addition, Jacobs defended the BDS movement against accusations of anti-Semitism and criticized the American Jewish community for backing anti-BDS legislation. The ADL-sponsored event also gave free rein to the vilification of such staunch Israel supporters as former Breitbart News CEO Stephen Bannon and Center for Security president Frank Gaffney.

At this point, there's little to connect the Jewish state to ostensibly centrist American Jewish groups other than mystic cords of memory. The worm has turned, and long gone are the days when such organizations served to bolster Jewish sovereignty by way of a common, non-partisan commitment to the Zionist enterprise.

In recent years, Israel, far from unifying American Jews around a single cause, has actually been the primary source of friction among the Orthodox, Secular, Reform, and Haredi communities in the United States. As a result, donations to Israel are no longer guided by the desire to help the country's poor, hungry, or otherwise afflicted. Neither is the wish to contribute to a strong Israeli defense posture a primary motivation.

Today, it's all about politics. American Jewish organizations have morphed into appendages of one of the country's two main political parties. And with 70% of American Jews voting for Hillary Clinton in the presidential election, the vast majority of American Jewish groups take their marching orders on issues related to Israel from the Democratic Party's platform and leaders.

Clinton's loss has catalyzed the Democratic Party's turning against the Jewish state. Notably, Minnesota congressman Keith Ellison, the front-runner to be the next Democratic National Committee chairman, has a long history of anti-Israel, anti-Semitic, and extremist radical Islamist involvements and positions.

Tellingly, the aforementioned and always vocal Anti-Defamation League suddenly went mute with regard to Ellison's defamatory remarks and controversial record with regard to Israel. But facts are stubborn things: in 2014, Ellison was one of only eight members of Congress to vote against a bipartisan bill to provide $225 million to Israels Iron Dome missile system.

And let's not even talk about the good Keith X. Ellison's ties to the Jew-baiting Nation of Islam.

Here's a fast, harsh dose of reality: the vast majority of politically minded American Jews are passionate about gay marriage, the Paris climate agreement, abortion rights, raising the minimum wage, and other standard talking points from the Progressive playbook. Assimilation and intermarriage have spawned an American Jewish community that's increasingly disconnected from Israel. Malcolm Hoenlein, now in his 31st year as executive vice chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, has called this the "negative phenomenon of indifference."

As such, American Jewish groups should embrace this reality and refocus their energies on domestic issues that large swaths of the American Jewish community care about.

Out with supporting Iron Dome; in with dismantling structural racism.

As for Israel, while breaking up is hard to do, disassociating from American Jewish organizations with political agendas will deny the latter the megaphone they've been using to lambast the former every time Israeli policy strays from an increasingly hostile Democratic Party line.

I think it's safe to say that Israel, which The World Economic Forums 2016-2017 Global Competitiveness Report recently ranked as the second most innovative nation one earth, will figure out a way to move on.
Cross-promotions are an established practice in the marketing industry and these days, brands are as likely to mutually promote each other as theyve ever been. This trend isnt hard to explain as cross-promotions have been proven to work time and time again. Thats especially true when businesses are looking to increase brand awareness and arent just marketing specific products. The latest collaboration between Google and Amazon is better described as the former than the latter, but that doesnt mean these two tech giants didnt get creative.

Namely, as of today, the Google-owned navigation app Waze features voice support for Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May, stars of Amazons latest Prime Video show The Grand Tour. More specifically, Waze users can now opt to have the famous trio guide them through the busy streets of their home cities with the goal of evading as many traffic jams as possible. As anyone who has ever used the mobile app already knows, efficient navigation is pretty much the main idea behind Waze. Unlike many of its competitors, Waze prides itself on the plethora of different language options. Speaking of which, this cross-promotion certainly isnt the first of its kind that Waze has debuted. Earlier this year, the Google-owned app featured the voice of Morgan Freeman who was promoting his latest blockbuster London Has Fallen. In recent years, the likes of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kevin Hart have also lent their voices to the popular service.

Just like it was the case with all other cross-promotions of this kind, the voices of Clarkson, Hammond, and May will only be available in Waze for a limited time, with the deal between Google and Amazon set to last until February 5th. While the official announcement on the Waze Blog makes no mention of limited availability, it does seem as though the cross-promotion isnt available in all territories. From the looks of it, the voices of Clarkson, Hammond, and May are only available to Waze users in countries that residents can subscribe to Amazon Prime Video. To find out whether youre eligible to listen to this trio guide you through traffic, download the latest version of Waze, open it, go to Settings, and select Voice Language under the Sound menu. On the next screen, try to find the (US) Clarkson, Hammond & May option  which should be located near the top of the list.
Earlier this year, a startup called Otto founded by former employees of tech giants like Google, Tesla, and Apple announced that its working on self-driving trucks. More specifically, the San Francisco-based company unveiled its proprietary technology designed to turn any truck into an autonomous vehicle. Naturally, such a solution involves a whole lot of sensors and connected software, but even Ottos rumored $30,000 starting kit is cheaper than developing a self-driving truck from the ground up.

In any case, since Otto first went public with its technology in mid-2016, the company has been acquired by Uber for a reported fee of $680 million. Regardless of that, the firm continued to operate as an autonomous entity and is still headed by its co-founder Anthony Levandowski who continues to pursue the same goal  creating a simple solution for turning regular trucks into self-driving vehicles. In fact, Otto just made a significant step forward in that endeavor as CBS reports that the state of Ohio allowed the company to test its creation on public roads. Ohios officials said that Otto was permitted to conduct extensive testing of its solution as a part of the states long-term strategy to support modern transportation solutions.

The testing will start next Monday, December 5th, with one of Ottos self-driving trucks set to travel the 35-mile Route 33 stretching from Dublin to East Liberty in central Ohio. The vehicle wont be traveling in any unusual conditions, as Ohio permitted the San Francisco-based company to test it in regular traffic. Not surprisingly, one of Ottos drivers will still be present inside the vehicle during this test to intervene in case anything goes wrong. As Matt Bruning, spokesperson for the US Department of Transportation put it, public safety is obviously the number one concern when autonomous driving technology is concerned.

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The state of Ohio is also looking into installing a fiber-optic cable network and a corresponding sensor system along the stretch of Route 33 mentioned above. The ultimate goal is to make this route perfectly suitable for testing of all types of autonomous vehicles. Following the initial test of Ottos self-driving truck on Ohios public roads, the company is also slated to conduct another test somewhere along the Ohio Turnpike next week, though the Uber-owned company is yet to provide details on that experiment.
The Chinese consumer electronics manufacturer Huawei may be the third largest phone maker in the world, but the company still doesnt have a significant market presence in the United States. Nonetheless, the companys recent announcement pertaining to the Huawei Mate 9 officially coming to the US was met with a lot of attention. This flagship smartphone boasts some impressive specs that could certainly challenge high-end Android phones currently available in the country, but that probably wont happen. Namely, while the Mate 9 will indeed launch in the US in the coming months, Huawei will have trouble showcasing it to consumers as the US wireless carriers arent terribly excited by the idea of working with the Chinese OEM.

Given how wireless service providers distribute over 80% of all smartphones in the United States, their unwillingness to cooperate with Huawei is bound to hurt the companys expansion ambitions. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the likes of Verizon and AT&T are troubled by security concerns related to Huawei, as well as the companys low brand recognition in the United States. Four years ago, US Congress recommended local carriers to not use Huaweis telecom equipment due to security concerns, specifically pointing out the possibility that Beijing could use it to spy on American citizens. Not surprisingly, Huawei shunned these accusations, but that still hasnt stopped carriers from heeding the advice written in the said congressional report.

Huawei currently holds less than half a percentage point of the US smartphone market, so carriers concerns about low brand recognition certainly arent without basis. On the other hand, its not surprising that the Chinese OEM is looking to launch the Mate 9 in the US given how this is the largest market for high-end smartphones in the world. The Huawei Mate 9 retails in Europe for 699, so its expected price tag in the United States will probably amount to around $750.

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While the Chinese phone maker still hasnt disclosed the price or specific US release date for the Mate 9, the company seemingly isnt discouraged by all of the obstacles its expansion is facing. As Richard Yu, head of Huaweis smartphone division stated in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, building trust in the United States will take time, but hes confident Huawei will manage to do it. This is yet another step in the companys plan to overtake Apple and Samsung as the leading smartphone vendor in the world, which its currently planning to do by 2021.
Samsung is the largest smartphone manufacturer in the world at the moment, and one of the largest tech companies out there in general. This company had some issues with their Galaxy Note 7 handset this year, which managed to impact them financially, so it will be interesting to see what happens in the coming months, and what is the company planning when it comes to the Galaxy S8, a smartphone that many people are waiting to land. Now, as already mentioned, Samsung is a huge company, and a US hedge fund, Elliott Associates, actually suggested that the company should split into two a couple of months ago. Why is that? Well, according to them, the company is undervalued in its current form, undervalued by as much as 70% due to its corporate structure. So, why are we mentioning this again now? Well, it seems like it could actually happen in the near future, read on.

A proposal by Elliott Associates actually suggests that Samsung Electronics should split into a holding company (ownership purposes), and an operating company. In addition to that, Elliott Associates suggested that the company should consider paying a $27 billion dividend from its reserves, and since then, the company did not really offer their opinion on the matter, theyve only said that theyll consider the proposal. Well, the companys board of directors is meeting tomorrow, and will offer a formal response to Elliott Associates proposal after the meeting. That being said, a new report was published in Korea by Seoul Economic Daily earlier today, and according to that article, Samsung is actually considering splitting itself into two, which is interesting. Now, this would highly change things over at Samsung, and would require some serious planning on their part, but it could benefit them in the long run, and raise the companys value really fast actually.

In any case, Samsung is currently discussing what to do in this regard, but chances are they wont exactly do everything Elliott Associates suggests they should do, but splitting into two seems to be on the table. According to some analysts, the heir to the company, Jay Y. Lee, is quite interested in splitting Samsung into two, as it would give his family even more control over the company. In any case, stay tuned, were closely monitoring the situation, and will report as soon as we get some more info.
As its name suggests, Samsung Pay was originally designed as a simple solution for making contactless payments exclusive to Samsung-made devices. However, as the adoption rate of wearables is gradually growing, the Seoul-based tech giant is looking into more ways to bring its payment service to consumers, even if the only Samsung device they own is a smartwatch. This feature was offered by the Gear S2 last year, and Samsung also promised that its successor, the Gear S3 will continue that tradition and bring Samsung Pay to competing Android smartphones. The South Korean tech giant recently kept that promise as the Gear S3 version of Samsung Pay started supporting non-Samsung devices last week.

Unfortunately, the list of supported devices still isnt huge and as it turns out, it doesnt include the Google Pixel and the Google Pixel XL. As James Johnston pointed out on Twitter, trying to install Samsung Pay on the Pixel XL with the Gear S3 Frontier returns a generic error which states installation failed. In an official response posted by Samsung Pays verified Twitter account, the company said that the service is still not compatible with either Pixel smartphone. While it remains unclear why Samsung isnt supporting one of the most popular Android flagships of the year from the get-go, the company did state that its constantly working to expand Samsung Pay to new devices. For the time being, that response is as good as well get, though it hopefully implies that Googles latest smartphones will soon become compatible with the Gear S3 version of Samsung Pay.

Owners of the Google Pixel and the Google Pixel XL in territories supported by Samsung Pay would certainly benefit from that extended compatibility as Samsungs solution for contactless payments is one of the most convenient ones in existence. Namely, the Gear S3 version of Samsung Pay works within the Gear Manager app which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store to most Android devices running Android 4.4 KitKat and newer. Once the phone app is paired with the Gear S3, youre able to make purchases with your smartwatch without ever taking out your phone, which adds an extra level of convenience to the entire process of making purchases.
(ANSA) - Rome, November 28 - President Sergio Mattarella said Monday he had a "dream" that Italy would "grow more and more, feeling itself in a real community, all feeling that our fate is tied to each other." He said that "if our country acquires the sense of being a community, in which everyone takes on others' problems and helps each other, it will become a happier country, much more prosperous and much more respected". Mattarella spoke as he told visiting high-school students about his role as Italian president, the arbiter of political life.


(ANSA) - Rome, November 28 - Rome military prosecutors have wrapped up an aggravated fraud conspiracy investigation against six Italian military officers in the rental of three armoured vehicles from an Afghan company headed by a man with international terrorist connections, ANSA learned Monday. The armour was lighter than it was supposed to be, placing the lives of military personnel at risk, prosecutors said. The investigation was sparked by the apparent suicide of 37-year-old Captain Marco Callegaro, who was found shot dead on the night between July 24 and 25, 2010, in his office at Kabul Airport.

The Rovigo native was married with two children, and had just been on leave in Italy. The incident was ruled a suicide, although the officer's family raised doubts at to that version of events. The ensuing investigation uncovered alleged wrongdoing by the six officers, who faked the certificates on three vehicles rented from an Afghan company and destined for the senior Italian mission officer.

Callegaro worked in the administrative office that greenlit a 100,000-euro payment for the rental of the three vehicles from March 1 to July 30, 2010. This resulted in 35,000 euros of illicit profits for the Afghan company, prosecutors say.

Military police took statements from hundreds of military personnel of all ranks in both Afghanistan and Italy in the course of the investigation. A total of 28 military vehicles were seized from the Italian contingent stationed in Herat, along with four containers' worth of administrative and accounting paperwork.

Investigation sources say they uncovered a "disconcerting picture of reiterated negotiations with an Afghan company" headed by a man with connections to international terrorism, and to whom bids were steered illicitly.

Military prosecutors are ready to indict the six officers for conspiracy in aggravated military fraud.

It will be up to civilian prosecutors to investigate on possible charges of corruption and on the circumstances of Callegaro's death.


France: Elysee denies reports on reshuffle,Valls resignation

(ANSAmed) - PARIS, NOVEMBER 28 - The Elysee palace has denied overnight press reports claiming that President Francois Hollande - who is returning from a trip to Africa - planned an immediate government reshuffle, replacing Prime Minister Manuel Valls.



Furious over the premier's interview yesterday in which he discussed running against Hollande in the presidential primaries of the gauche, the head of State however sought to calm down his majority. At least half of his ministers reportedly put pressure on the president to immediately clarify with Valls. Sources close to the premier talk about an announcement for the primaries ''within the week''.(ANSAmed).




Serbia: official EIB delegation visits Belgrade To sign for a loan to upgrade judiciary building

(ANSAmed) - BELGRADE, 28 NOVEMBER - A top-level European Investment Bank Group delegation, led by EIB Vice-President Dario Scannapieco, is in Belgrade today for talks with the Serbian Government and the signature of a finance contract for the upgrading of judiciary buildings.



During the visit, EIB Vice-President Scannapieco and Minister of Finance Dusan Vujovic signed the EUR 26m second tranche of a loan totaling EUR 41m aiming to upgrade judiciary buildings. Since 2011, the bank of the European Union has financed nearly 30 projects in Serbia. This represents an investment of EUR 1.7bn, with total investment of at least double that figure, making a significant contribution to job creation and infrastructure modernization. (ANSAmed).




ROME - French jets based in Djibouti "struck and likely killed" senior al Qaeda operative Mokhtar Belmokhtar, known as the "one-eyed terrorist", in a joint US-French operation, according to US officials cited by the Wall Street Journal.



The article recalled that previous reports of Belmokhtar's death have been false, but said that this time the "caliber of the intelligence" indicated that the strike "likely was successful".



Belmokhtar was responsible for the January 2013 attack on the Algerian In Amenas gas plant.



He formerly headed al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and formed his own al Qaeda-affiliated jihadist militia.



The Wall Street Journal recalled that he "raised tens of millions of dollars for al Qaeda affiliates through smuggling and by taking European hostages and selling illicit goods".


MOSCOW - The Russian Center for Reconciliation in Moscow said on Monday that 40% of eastern Aleppo has been "liberated" by Syrian government troops.



It said there are now 12 Aleppo districts in which militants have surrendered their weapons and that civilians are receiving humanitarian aid.



Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said the intense restart of fighting since mid-November in the areas under siege, including those near Damascus and Homs, has brought "a significant increase in mass victims", including bombings on schools and medical aid teams.

Syrian government media say loyalist forces are now in control of most of the northern section of the besieged area controlled by insurgents for a long time. The government-controlled Sana news agency said Damascus' forces have entered Sakhur and Haydariya, almost succeeding in cutting into half the eastern area of the city, and extending control over the majority of the northern part of this area.

The Aleppo Media Center, a platform of journalists on the ground in the eastern area, who are close to opposition groups, claim that fighting is still ongoing in and out of Sakhur. It is impossible to independently verify the sources on the

Nearly 10,000 civilians have fled eastern Aleppo towards government-held areas or a nearby district controlled by Kurdish forces between Saturday and Sunday, according to the UK-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
ROME - Nearly 10,000 civilians have fled eastern Aleppo towards government-held areas or a nearby district controlled by Kurdish forces between Saturday and Sunday, according to the UK-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.



''At least 6,000 of them have gone to the neighborhood of Cheikh Maksoud, the others to Aleppo's government areas'', said the organization.
ANSAmed - Today's events in the Mediterranean

(ANSAmed) - ROME, NOVEMBER 28 - These are some of the main events scheduled for today in the Euro-Mediterranean area: TUNIS - conference organized with France on 'Support to Libya for Economic Integration, Diversification and Sustainable Development Programs'.



KEBILI (TUNISIA) - International Date Festival (until November 29).



(ANSAmed).




ANSAmed - Tomorrow's events in the Mediterranean

(ANSAmed) - ROME, NOVEMBER 28 - These are some of the main events scheduled for tomorrow in the Euro-Mediterranean area: TUNIS - International conference on economic investments, with vice minister Giro taking part for Italy (until 30/11) RAMALLAH - 7th Conference of Al Fatah mouvement.



ROME - EuroMed Forum organized by Confindustria.



WARSAW - EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini will be taking part in a ministers meeting on the Western Balkans. BRUSSELS - Meeting on 'qualified migrations'. (ANSAmed)
EU 2017 budget increases funds for refugees and security Italy to 'start alone' with Africa Fund

(ANSAmed) - BRUSSELS, NOVEMBER 28 - The EU budget for 2017 includes increased funding for refugees and security, and is slated for an approval vote in the European Parliament on Thursday, December 1.



The budget includes 157.9 billion euros in commitment appropriations and 134.5 billion euros in payments, which represent a 1.7% increase and a 1.6% decrease on 2016 figures, respectively.



There are 5.91 billion euros allocated for the refugee crisis and security, an increase of 11.3% on 2016.



Italian Deputy Foreign Minister Mario Giro said Italy's 2017 budget includes 200 million euros in an ad hoc Africa Fund for dialogue with African countries, aimed at tackling the migrant crisis.



"We'll start alone," he said.



"If then the EU were to also join us we would be happier".



(ANSAmed).




(by Tullio Giannotti)

PARIS - Francois Fillon has won the French center-right presidential nomination, first beating the ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy, under whom he served as premier, then his former government colleague, ex-foreign minister Alain Juppe.



Now conservatives have rallied behind Fillon, the man chosen by the Republicains as their candidate for the Elysee after a landslide victory in primary elections.



Fillon is expected to face Marine Le Pen in a runoff vote on May 7. All surveys have forecast a victory for Le Pen in the first round of presidential elections on April 23.



While all eyes in France are focusing on the right, the left is in chaos after the announcement yesterday - in an unprecedented step for a prime minister of the Fifth Republic - that Manuel Valls will probably decide to compete against his president Francois Hollande to become the progressive presidential candidate. The president is allegedly furious and is thinking about a reshuffle. Valls could be out of a job already today and Bernard Cazeneuve would allegedly replace him.



Fillon had garnered an overwhelming victory in the first round, getting twice as many votes as Sarkozy and little uncertainty surrounded the runoff. Nevertheless, he beat Juppe on Sunday with an overwhelming 67% of the vote against 33%.



His Thatcher-style speech on the economy and conservative stance on social issues proved convincing in the last week of the electoral campaign when he faced an Alain Juppe who was initially stupefied and then irritated. The mayor of Bordeaux never threatened Fillon and even appeared resigned at times, like in the latest television debate.



He could only congratulate his rival in the end: ''I wish him well, I will be beside him as of tonight'', he said. ''The France of truth and action has won'', replied Fillon, shaking Juppe's hand. The winner's first thought was for Sarkozy, then he shook hands with Juppe, a ''statesman'' and all those who ''will want to help us''.



Commentators have been pondering whether the choice of a man who is reassuring but uncompromising on social issues is good or bad news for Marine Le Pen, given the near certainty that the right will be facing the far-right in the presidential runoff vote next spring.



Turnout was even higher after last week's record at over four million voters.



But if the vote yesterday wrapped up things on the right, on the left ''Manuel Valls has aimed a nuclear missile against the Elysee'', observed political journalist Olivier Mazerolle. In an interview published on the day in which the Republicains' candidate was announced, the premier said he is ready to compete in the upcoming primaries of the gauche, also against Hollande - an unprecedented situation in the Fifth Republic.



''I have a relationship of respect, friendship and loyalty with the president - said Valls - but loyalty does not rule out frankness. Faced with the dismay, doubt, disappointment at the idea that the gauche has no chance, I want to break this automatism that would bring us to a defeat''.



Holland is ''furious'' according to sources close to the president quoted by the media and could decide a government reshuffle with Valls out of the government already on Monday.



The president has said that on December 10 he will announce whether he will run for the gauche's primaries on January 22 and 29.



But the situation has precipitated and the upcoming days are likely to be tumultuous within the majority and the Socialist party, with the right already united behind its unifier. The prospect is not encouraging: ''We can come out pulverized from the first round of the presidential'' vote, warned Valls. ''The left can die''.
Migrants: Avramopoulos, EU-Turkey agreement a priority Real solidarity, not words necessary in Europe

(ANSAmed) - BRUSSELS, NOVEMBER 28 - The EU commissioner for migration and home affairs, Dimitris Avramopoulos, told a forum promoted by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) in Athens on Monday that the EU-Turkey agreement works.



''We do everything we can to honor our engagements so that the agreement continues to work. This is our priority. We are all engaged''.



''The migration crisis'' in Europe ''is not over''. Progress has been made but there is still work to do, he said, adding that countries on the frontline have a huge responsibility but should not be left alone. ''We need real solidarity, not words, not a la carte. We need that now and in the long term''.



''There are some 8000 people reallocated from Greece and Italy, including over 1,000 in November - added the commissioner -. This is a positive trend. States need to continue to increase their offer and act quickly''. (ANSAmed)
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. While on a working visit in Antananarivo, Madagascar, Foreign Minister of Armenia Edward Nalbandian on November 26 had a meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs, Cooperation and Congolese Abroad of Congo Jean-Claude Gakosso, press service of the MFA told Armenpress.

The Foreign Minister of Congo said he remembers warmly his visit in Armenia in 2015 within the framework of the 31st ministerial conference of La Francophonie, and stated that he is happy to sign a document today the agreement of which was reached year before in Yerevan.

The Ministers discussed the development opportunities of political, economic, cultural and educational relations. In this regard, they attached importance to the formation of the respective legal framework.

The FMs exchanged views on issues related to the agenda of the International Organization of La Francophonie.

At the end of the meeting they signed a memorandum on holding political consultations between the Foreign Ministries of the two states.










YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. By demonstrating endurance in the rapidly changing geopolitical situation, Yerevan proved that it is a reliable partner, Ukrainian political scientist Oleg Sahakyan commented in AnalitikaUA.net, reports Armenpress.

The expert said the recent developments indicate that Armenia will become a crossroad point of numerous interests and can play a quite substantial role.

Speaking about the cooperation with Brussels, Sahakyan said the EU showed a special interest in establishing partnership relations with Armenia through the active preparation of signing the new framework agreement. It is a very important document, and the fact that the talks have already entered the final stage gives hope.

Referring to the topic of the establishment of trans-Black Sea transport corridor, the expert said the great interest towards the country shows that Armenia is one of the most stable countries in the region and it becomes a serious transit partner for the West and East. As of today, wider economic and political prospects are being opened to Yerevan, the expert said.
SBI's stressed asset quality and moderate capital temper these strengths.

The agency also reaffirmed its 'A-3' short-term issuer credit rating on State Bank of India apart from affirming all the issue ratings on the bank's debts.

Mumbai: Expecting the nation's largest lender SBI to fare better than its peers, global rating agency S&P on November 28 retained its long-term as well as short-term ratings on the bank with a stable outlook.

"We expect SBI performance to remain better than its public sector peers and therefore we are affirming our 'BBB-' long-term and 'A-3' short-term issuer credit ratings on the bank," S&P said in a note.

It said the stable outlook reflects its expectation that the bank will maintain its financial profile over the next 24 months. The agency also reaffirmed its 'A-3' short-term issuer credit rating on State Bank of India apart from affirming all the issue ratings on the bank's debts.

"The affirmed rating on SBI reflects the bank's undisputed market leadership, supported by a strong domestic franchise and high customer confidence," S&P Global Ratings Credit Analyst Amit Pandey said, adding, these factors translate into a good funding profile for the bank.

SBI's stressed asset quality and moderate capital temper these strengths. With over 20 per cent market share, SBI is the undisputed leader in terms of assets, loans, and deposits underpins its business position and this will only get further solidified after the bank's proposed merger with its subsidiaries, it noted.

"The strong business position also contributes to the bank's good funding profile. Consumer and market confidence in SBI remain strong as demonstrated by the bank benefiting from the "flight to quality" during the 2008 global financial crisis," the report noted.

Pandey, however, warned that like most of the other public sector banks, SBI's asset quality is also likely to remain stressed, given the tepid domestic industrial activity, subdued corporate sector profitability, and high leverage in certain segments.

Individually, he said, managing a large organisation and aligning associates' policies and asset quality recognition norms in line with its own would be a challenge. On recapitalisation, he said this will remain moderate.

"We estimate that the bank's pre-diversification risk-adjusted capital (RAC) ratio to stay 6-6.5 per cent over the next 12-18 months. We expect its earnings to remain under pressure in fiscal 2017 due to high credit costs and depressed margins," he added.
The signing of the letter of intent is in line with the company's overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio.

Tata Steel gave no update on the future of the rest of its UK assets including Britain's biggest steel plant at Port Talbot in Wales.

London: India's Tata Steel said on Monday that it has agreed to start exclusive talks for the sale of its speciality steel assets to metal processing firm Liberty House.

The unit, which has activities mostly in Britain but also in China, employs 1,700 people and produces specialised steel for the aerospace and automotive industries, as well as the oil and gas sector.

However, Tata Steel gave no update on the future of the rest of its UK assets -- including Britain's biggest steel plant at Port Talbot in Wales.

Earlier this year, Tata Steel decided to offload its loss-making British assets, blaming the move on a global oversupply of steel, cheap imports into Europe from countries including China, high costs and currency volatility.

"Tata Steel UK today announced the signing of a letter of intent with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its speciality steels business for an enterprise value of 100 million ($125 million, 118 million euros)," it said in a statement on Monday.

The activities comprise several assets in South Yorkshire in northern England, including an electric arc steelworks in Rotherham, a steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth.

The business also includes service centres in Bolton, in the north west, and Wednesbury in central England, as well as two facilities in the Chinese cities of Suzhou and Xi'an.

"Today's announcement is in line with the overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio," said Bimlendra Jha, chief executive of Tata Steel UK.

"This is an important step forward in seeking a future for speciality steels and we have reached this stage thanks to the efforts of employees, trade unions and management."

Tata Steel in May sold its loss-making European long products division to investment firm Greybull Capital, who renamed it British Steel.
I may not be with CM Akhilesh, but I will always be with Mulayam Singh Yadav's son Akhilesh, Amar Singh said.

Amar Singh said the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance and it was time for him to speak to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh has said he is pained by the unacceptable harassment that he is being subjected to by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's supporters.

He said the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance and it was time for him to speak to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, who has stood by him even against the wishes of his son.

"A senior leader, while speaking against demonetisation in the Rajya Sabha, said action should be taken against me. At the time when the senior leader was speaking in the Rajya Sabha, an FIR was being registered against me in Azamgarh at the behest of a senior minister, as an SSP told me. Had I not registered a counter complaint in advance, and had I not informed the IB, and had I not informed a New Delhi DCP, then the Uttar Pradesh Government would have possibly arrested me on those charges," Singh told ANI.

"My effigies are being burnt in Azamgarh and Lucknow; a minister of the state government is doing so to please the chief minister, and the chief minister who is the son of a person whom I regard as a brother. In such a situation what would you feel? I am pained by such things. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," said Amar Singh, a confidante and long-time friend of the SP's national president.

"Mulayam Singhji against his son's wishes stood with me publically, which is a debt on me. Hence, I don't want to hurt him, but now the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance," he added.

Recalling that he had said in an interview to a news channel that the political face of Uttar Pradesh will change by October-November, close to the state polls, he said, "My statement, which I had given as a political analyst, was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji."

"I had said that after observing Modiji's working style. He gives a long leverage to his political opponents, and when there is an election, he comes to the field displaying his special skills," he said.

"In West Bengal, all stings against Mamata's cabinet ministers were on corruption, it's another thing that it did not have any surprising impact on the voters. Madan Mitra, a cabinet-level minister - as the matter is in the court, I will not say that Modiji and Amit Shahji got him arrested due to some malice - but he was arrested just before the elections and has not been released till today," said Singh to buttress his statement on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah's style of functioning.

But my statement was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," he added.

Speaking to ANI on October 27, Singh, who kept himself away from the media during infighting in Mulayam Singh Yadav's clan and was portrayed as a villain by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, had said he might not be with CM Akhilesh, but would always be with Mulayam's son Akhilesh.

"I may not be with CM Akhilesh, but I will always be with Mulayam Singh Yadav's son Akhilesh. The father of the SP and the chief minister are the same, and god stands as a testimony that whenever I spoke to Netaji, it was in favour of Akhilesh, Netaji also knows this truth," Singh told ANI, while responding to Akhilesh's allegations.

"When I was struggling for life and undergoing a dialysis, Netaji had come to meet me and he said there was a discussion on the issue of state president and when Akhilesh Yadav replaced Shivpal Yadav as the UP SP president, even then I was blamed for it," said Singh.

"When his (Akhilesh's) family was opposing his marriage, I was the only one who stood by him, but today I am hurt by his words. There is no photo of his wedding, where this 'dalal' is not there," an emotional Singh had responded then when was called a "dalal" (agent).

"It is possible to meet Rahul Gandhi, but meeting Akhilesh is difficult. If my 'bali' (sacrifice) can solve the problem, I am ready for it," he had added then.
Assam Finance Minister said digital road map would be ready in next 10 days and in first phase, his govt intends to reduce dealing in cash.

Guwahati: Assam Finance Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said that preparation of a digital action plan was underway to make entire transaction of the state government cashless.

Informing that in the first phase they intend to reduce the dealing in cash, Sarma told reporters that digital road map would be ready in next ten days. We are committed to minimise the cash handling in the state government departments, said Sarma while asserting that it was not very difficult.

The minister said that his government has accepted the recommendation of the pay commission in principal and would implement it by April next year.

Indicating that it would bring in an additional burden of Rs. 4000 crore on the state exchequer, Sarma said that the recommendation of the pay commission has also sought to end several anomalies that existed in the pay scale of the state government employees.

Sarma said that pay commission has suggested increasing the minimum pay scale of a state government employee from Rs. 6000 to Rs. 15900. The Assam government intends to implement it from April next year, Sarma said. The pay commission has also recommended huge benefit for the retired employee and their family members, he added.

Asserting that a gap of minimum and maximum pay scale was also reduced to 8.8 per cent, Sarma said that he would be tabling the recommendation of the commission before the cabinet very soon.

Pointing out that the state pay commission has looked into all the anomalies and recommended remedial measures as well, Sarma said that there is a recommendation to adopt performance-based promotion for the state government employees.

Sarma also announced that his department has made e-tendering mandatory for all kind of procurement of Rs 20 lakhs and above.

The state government has also accepted the recommendation of the commission for centralise appointment and to merge the pay scale of district and directorate employees, Sarma said. Most of the recommendations were based on demand of employees, he added.
BJP leader Shrikant Sharma blamed Abdullah family and Gandhi family for the Kashmir issue.

New Delhi: The BJP on Sunday accused National Conference chief and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah of speaking the language of Pakistan and insulting Parliament with his remarks in which he had made light of India's claims over Pak-occupied-Kashmir (PoK).

Attacking him, its National Secretary Shrikant Sharma said Abdullah was frustrated after losing rpt losing power in the state and over the fact that it was returning to normalcy following months of unrest.

"He is speaking the language of Pakistan. He is speaking the language of terrorists like Hafiz Sayeed and Azhar Masood.

He is unable to digest the return of the state to normalcy. In his greed for power, he is doing this vote bank politics. It only shows his mental bankruptcy," he said.

Noting that Parliament has passed resolutions reiterating India's claim over PoK, he said Abdullah had insulted Parliament even though he has been a Union Minister as well as a Chief Minister.

"PoK is a part of India and sooner than later we will have our sovereignty over it," he said.

The BJP leader blamed Abdullah family and Gandhi family for the Kashmir issue, saying had they listened to the then Home Minister Sardar Patel, then the problem would not have festered so long.

Speaking at a public meeting on Thursday last, Abdullah had said PoK is not "your father's property" as he insisted that neither India nor Pakistan can capture the state's territory falling outside their control.
The dreaded terrorist would be subjected to 'intensive interrogation' when he would be brought from Delhi.

Chandigarh: Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday and was arrested by Delhi police from Nizamuddin railway station, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan, Punjab police said on Monday.

"Mintoo was in touch with associates of terror groups in Pakistan," Punjab Director General of Police Suresh Arora said this evening.

The dreaded terrorist would be subjected to "intensive interrogation" when he would be brought from Delhi, the DGP said.

"We will put him to intensive interrogation after we bring him to Punjab," he further said.

On Sunday, Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal had voiced apprehension that Pakistan could be behind the sensational Nabha jailbreak, saying the neighbouring country was "desperate to revive terrorism" after Indian army conducted the surgical strike across the LoC.

"Pak desperate to revive terror post surgical strike. Could be behind jail break," Sukhbir had tweeted.

Mintoo, who was wanted in ten terror offences, was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014.

DGP further said that Parminder Singh Pinda would also be questioned when he would be brought to the state.

Pinda was arrested Sunday evening from Kairana in Uttar Pradeshs Shamli district by UP Police.

In a sensational jailbreak, Mintoo on Sunday escaped along with five other prisoners after armed men in police uniform stormed the high-security Nabha prison in Patiala. He was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi on Monday.
Revealing that a pistol and 6 cartridges had been recovered from Mintoo, Deep added that he was also carrying some cash.

Chandigarh: Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was nabbed from Nizammudin Railway station late on Sunday.

Arvind Deep, Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) said that Mintoo had been arrested near Nizammudin parking lot late on Sunday.

"Punjab Police had suspicion about his movement towards Delhi and they contacted Delhi Police. Following intensive checking and tracking, he was arrested from the railway station last night," said the officer.

Harminder Mintoo had trimmed his beard, it was difficult to identity him. His plan was to escape from Goa via Mumbai, Deep said addressing the media.

Interrogation of Harminder Mintoo is underway. We're conducting further probe based on leads given by him, he added.

Revealing that a pistol and 6 cartridges had been recovered from Mintoo, Deep added that he was also carrying some cash.

It was a pre-planned thing. Mintoo was part of the module of escapees, Deep said.

The Special CP added that investigations were still in preliminary stage in the matter.

A team of Punjab police will take him back to the state.

It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle--a Toyota Fortunerwas stopped at a police picket.

Mintoo yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates of the jail in

Patiala, nearly 200 km from here, and bolted out with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets.

Officials said efforts are on to nab the other prisoners who managed to flee.

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014. He was wanted in ten terror cases.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh 'Gopi' after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

Among the escapees was another terrorist Kashmir Singh, according to Punjab police chief Suresh Arora.
The car was found abandoned in Kaithal, about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.

The Haryana police force was on maximum alert on Monday, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab. (Photo: PTI/File)

Chandigarh: The Haryana police force was on maximum alert on Monday, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab, even as one more abandoned car was found in Kaithal district.

Acting on inputs that some fugitives had passed through Haryana territory, the police remained on maximum alert and a vigorous search was on to nab the accused.

"We are maintaining a high alert. If any of the fugitive is found in Haryana, we will immediately nab him," IGP Karnal Range, Subhash Yadav said.

Another car was on Monday found abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.

"A car has been found in the village," IGP Yadav said, adding it was suspected to have been used in yesterday's jailbreak incident.

Another car had been found abandoned yesterday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

"Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, Kumar said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Security has been beefed up in Haryana and police force has been put on high alert after Nabha jailbreak incident at Patiala in neighbouring Punjab on Sunday.

The borders with Patiala and the adjoining borders with Ambala, Kaithal and Jind have already been sealed.

Checking is being carried out at 'nakas', Yadav said. Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.
Mintoo had escaped with 5 others from a high-security prison in Nabha of Punjab on Sunday

Chandigarh: Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was on Monday nabbed from Delhi railway station, a day after he escaped with five other inmates from Nabha jail in Patiala.

"Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police," said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh.

He said Delhi police nabbed the dreaded terrorist on the basis of inputs passed on by Punjab police.

"We passed on the information about Mintoo following which Delhi police arrested him," official said.

He said a team of Punjab police will go to Delhi to bring him back.

Mintoo along with five others had fled high-security Nabha prison in Punjab early on Sunday. The other escapees are his aide Kashmir Singh Galwadi, and four other prisoners -- Harjinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sekhon, Kulpreet Singh and Amandeep Singh.

The Punjab government had on Sunday said that an SIT probe has been ordered into the jailbreak.

Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal met NSA Ajit Doval and also visited Nabha jail. He accused Pakistan of complicity in the jailbreak, claiming that the neighbour was desperate to resume terror activities after Indias surgical strikes on terrorist camps across the Line of Control (LoC).

Meanwhile, it has come to light that Mintoo had fled jail earlier too, on March 29 this year.

According to a report in the Hindustan Times, five armed men attacked the policemen accompanying him to a local civic hospital on that occasion. While a policeman was shot at, two others suffered eye injuries after the attackers threw chilli powder at them.

The men who carried out the Nabha jailbreak on Sunday were hoping to free only four of their gang members but Mintoo and Kashmir Singh, accused in the shooting of a Shiv Sena leader, decided to join the group after coming to know of the escape plan, said another report.

This information was provided to the investigators by arrested escapee Parvinder on Sunday.

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh Gopi after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

Mintoo was wanted in ten terror offences while Gopi was tasked to target Hindu outfit leaders in 2013, which were foiled by Punjab Police, in a bid to disturb the peace in the state.

The then Punjab DGP Sumedh Singh Saini had then claimed that Pakistans spy agency ISI was making concerted efforts to use terror outfits like KLF and Babbar Khalsa to revive terrorism in Punjab, with focus on carrying out killings of prominent leaders belonging to a particular community.

To strengthen KLF, he had developed independent contacts with the foreign-based supporters and fund raisers of terrorism, the official said.

When he was in Pakistan, Mintoo worked with Babbar Khalsa International. But, but being ambitious and a good organiser, he developed independent contacts with Pakistans ISI and Europe and North America-based terrorist sympathisers and fund raisers and had planned to raise his own outfit, police had then said.

During his stay in Pakistan, he had visited Europe in 2010 to establish contacts and in June 2013, he left Pakistan for an extensive tour of Europe lasting 11 months, police had then said.
Mayawati also said that the BJP must reveal the cash deposits made for the last 10 months as well as declare land bought for its offices.

New Delhi: A united Opposition on Monday held a strategy meeting before the Parliament session to chalk out a strategy to counter the government on demonetization. In the meeting, it was decided that an apology would be demanded from the Prime Minister for causing problems to the nation through the move to ban Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes.

Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, who chaired a meeting of Congress Lok Sabha MPs, said that Modi must come and talk to the Opposition inside the House.

BJP is saying Opposition has called for Bharat Bandh, but in reality PM through his demonetisation move already did this, claimed Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati.

Mayawati also said that the BJP must reveal the cash deposits made for the last 10 months as well as declare land bought for its offices.

When the Rajya Sabha session began, uproar continued, following which deputy chairman PJ Kurien adjourned the House for 30 minutes.

The Congress earlier hit ack at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for pointing fingers at the opposition instead of rectifying his fault and said the 'Aakrosh Divas' is being observed to highlight the nation's anger due to the government's demonetisation drive.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, also rubbished reports suggesting that a 'Bharat Bandh' has been called on Monday.

"Who is calling for Bharat Bandh? We said that we will be observing 'Aakrosh Divas' and we are doing all this to show the anger which is within the common man. Is it wrong to stand for the people of the nation?" asked Kharge.

"I will say that befooling people by making irrelevant statements is not good. Instead of rectifying their fault, the Prime Minister is pointing fingers at us and this does not suit him," he added.

The opposition parties have called for a countrywide protest today against what they call the government's "mishandling" of the currency ban. Only the Left Front, which has a presence in Kerala, Bengal and Tripura, has called for a strike or 'Bharat Bandh' in the three states.

Prime Minister Modi yesterday slammed the opposition for its all-India shutdown call over demonetisation, saying the country instead needed an end to evils like corruption and black money.

Addressing the BJP's Parivartan Rally in Kasya assembly segment of Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, the Prime Minister said, "On the one hand we are initiating steps to curb corruption, but on the other hand a few people are talking about 'Bharat Bandh'."

He described demonetisation as a cure to the 70-year-old disease of corruption.
Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said no 'Bharat Bandh' has been called by the party which will hold nation-wide protests

Rahul Gandhi, Ghulam Nabi Azad and other opposition members during a protest against the demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes at Parliament house in New Delhi on Wednesday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The demonetisation exercise by the Modi government has brought a rarely seen unity among opposition parties, but they stand divided over the way they would protest against the measure tomorrow.

While the Left parties, including the CPI(M) and CPI have called a 12-hour bandh to protest against demonetisation of old high-value currency notes in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee's TMC will not join it and only hold protests.

The Congress too has decided not to go for a bandh.

Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, on Monday denied that any all-India bandh call had been given by the opposition parties against demonetisation.

Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he claimed that the saffron party has the maximum amount of black money.

"The maximum amount of black money is with the BJP. Before criticizing other parties, they should introspect first. As far as the Bharat Bandh is concerned, nobody has spoken about a Bharat Bandh. We have not taken any call on or for a Bharat Bandh," said Azad.

Senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said no 'Bharat Bandh' has been called by the party which will hold nation-wide protests as part of 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas'.

The JD(U) has decided not to participate in the protests by opposition parties on Monday or West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's proposed dharna in Patna on November 30 after its leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar welcomed the demonetisation decision.

"We have supported he Centre's demonetisation move. How can we oppose or be the part of activity like bandh which is meant to protest the issue which our party has strongly supported," Bihar unit JD(U) President Bashishtha Narayan Singh said.

"JD(U) will not be part of any agitation against demonetisation including the dharna by Mamata Banerjee on November 30 in Patna," party Secretary General K C Tyagi said.

"We have taken an ideological position in favour of demonetisation so how can we be part of any agitation seeking its roll back," Tyagi said.

Odisha's ruling BJP will also not join the protests with its leader and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik having hailed the demonetisation decision.

The opposition parties have been divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against it. While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, other opposition parties stayed away. Shiv Sena has backed demonetisation but is unhappy over the way it was causing problems to people.

Mamata's TMC and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's AAP are the only parties which have demanded a roll back of the exercise, while other parties have voiced displeasure over the way it was being implemented which was causing hardship to common people.
Jammu and Kashmir CM Mehbooba Mufti however came out in strong support of the Modi government.

Police personnel detain Youth Congress workers during a protest march against demonetization of Rs. 500 and 1000 notes, in Patna on Sunday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Opposition parties protested in various parts of the country against demonetisation on Monday.

DMK workers along with MK Stalin were taken into preventive custody by police in Chennai. In Jammu, Congress workers held a Jan Aakrosh rally and were detained by the police.

Rahul Gandhi along with other Congress leaders held a small protest at Gandhi statue outside Parliament.

Left parties, including CPM and CPI, staged a protest in West Bengal capital Kolkata. However, the Lefts call for a bandh saw little public backing in the city as vehicles continued to ply and offices remained open.

Jammu and Kashmir CM Mehbooba Mufti however came out in strong support of the Modi government. She said that while demonetisation may cause hardship to the common man for a while, in the long run it would prove to be a historic decision for the country.

Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha saw as many as three adjournments as the Opposition continued to protest over demonetisation, and demanded the presence of PM Narendra Modi in the House.

The demonetisation exercise by the Modi government has brought a rarely seen unity among Opposition parties, but they stand divided over the way they would protest against the measure.

While the Left parties, including the CPI(M) and CPI have called a 12-hour bandh to protest against demonetisation of old high-value currency notes in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee's TMC did not join it on Monday.

The Congress too has decided not to go for a bandh.

Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, on Monday denied that any all-India bandh call had been given by the opposition parties against demonetisation.

In meeting of 18 opposition parties we decided to hold a Jan Aakrosh rally, not a Bharat Bandh, said Azad.

Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he claimed that the saffron party has the maximum amount of black money.

"The maximum amount of black money is with the BJP. Before criticizing other parties, they should introspect first. As far as the Bharat Bandh is concerned, nobody has spoken about a Bharat Bandh. We have not taken any call on or for a Bharat Bandh," said Azad.

Senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said no 'Bharat Bandh' has been called by the party which will hold nation-wide protests as part of 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas'.

The JD(U) has decided not to participate in the protests by opposition parties on Monday or West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's proposed dharna in Patna on November 30 after its leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar welcomed the demonetisation decision.

"We have supported he Centre's demonetisation move. How can we oppose or be the part of activity like bandh which is meant to protest the issue which our party has strongly supported," Bihar unit JD(U) President Bashishtha Narayan Singh said.

"JD(U) will not be part of any agitation against demonetisation including the dharna by Mamata Banerjee on November 30 in Patna," party Secretary General K C Tyagi said.

"We have taken an ideological position in favour of demonetisation so how can we be part of any agitation seeking its roll back," Tyagi said.

Odisha's ruling BJD also did not join the protests with its leader and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik having hailed the demonetisation decision.

The opposition parties have been divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against it. While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally,

Other opposition parties stayed away. Shiv Sena has backed demonetisation but is unhappy over the way it was causing problems to people.

Mamata's TMC and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's AAP are the only parties which have demanded a roll back of the exercise, while other parties have voiced displeasure over the way it was being implemented which was causing hardship to common people.
Besides Pathankot attack, Azhar is also wanted for the Uri attack that was carried out by suspected JeM terrorists on Sept. 18th.

New Delhi: Home Ministry has given sanction to NIA to file a charge sheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot terror strike carried out on January 2.

After receiving sanction under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the NIA will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, and handlers of four terrorists -- Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif in the charge sheet to be filed soon, official sources said.

The four terrorists, after entering into India from Bamiyal area of Gurudaspur, had carried out the strike inside the strategic Pathankot Indian Air Force base killing eight people including seven personnel of IAF and NSG.

The fresh charge sheet will help India in building pressure on the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group under the United Nations' anti-terror laws. The previous attempts were spurned after China exercised its veto power.

The charge sheet will name only four terrorists involved in the attack as against six claimed by the NSG. According to the NIA, the terrorists, who were killed after two days of gunfight were identified as Nasir Hussain, Hafiz Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum and they were residents of Vehari (Punjab), Gujranwala (Punjab), Sanghar (Sindh) and Sukkur (Sindh) districts of Pakistan respectively.

The NIA's probe will also included looking into the phone numbers and a conversation that one of the terrorists had minutes before launching the attack besides a video message of Rauf released on Jaish-affiliated website minutes after the strike.

In the video message, which was subsequently removed from the website, Rauf had claimed responsibility for the Pathankot attack.

The charge sheet will also include evidence of linking the footprints of one of the terrorists obtained from Bamiyal besides matching of DNA sample found from a soft drink can in the hijacked car of Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.

The Pathankot terror strike had seen a joint investigation team from Pakistan also arriving in India for carrying out a thorough probe.

However, upon their return, the Pakistani team claimed that India neither shared much of evidence nor allowed it to interrogate the personnel involved in repulsing the attack.
Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said that the week-long deadlock can only end when the PM comes for discussion in the House.

New Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said in the Lok Sabha that if the Opposition is adamant that Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak in Parliament, he will do so.

The PM will come to the Lok Sabha for this debate, but he will intervene only if required, the Home Minister said.

If you have a complaint on implementation then we are ready to debate. Don't doubt our integrity, Rajnath retorted.

The Opposition, in the resolution of a joint meeting earlier, had demanded that Modi attend Parliament and apologise to the people of the country for the demonetisation move.

A vociferous Opposition in the Lok Sabha continued their protests against the government over the demonetisation issue, forcing adjournment of the proceedings till noon.

Soon after the House expressed its condolences over the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, Oppositon members, including those from the TMC and Congress, demanded that they wanted to speak on the demonetisation issue.

With Speaker Sumitra Mahajan declining their request and saying that the matter could be taken up after Question Hour, Opposition members trooped into the Well holding placards and shouting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the government.

"No placards please... No papers," Mahajan told the protesting members and also reminded them that it was against the rules.

Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said that the week-long deadlock can only end when the PM comes for discussion in the House.

Over 30 members, including from Congress, TMC and the Left parties, were in the Well while members of AIADMK were seen standing near their seats.

Amid the din, the Question Hour went on for around 20 minutes and saw four questions as well as supplementaries being taken up. With the protests continuing unabated, Mahajan adjourned the House till noon.

Opposition parties have been stepping up their protests against the government's decision to withdraw old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and are also observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' across the country on Monday.

Lok Sabha has witnessed a virtual washout of proceedings since the Winter Session started on November 16 due to the protests over the demonetisation issue.
He asked the RSS workers to work with dedication to take the country to new heights and to make the nation prosper.

Jaipur: RSS's vision, which is for the development of humanity, will be the vision of the country in future, the organisation's chief Mohan Bhagwat said on Sunday.

Addressing the volunteers in Bhilwara on Monday, Bhagwat said that RSS's vision was for the overall development of humanity and the world and this was going to be the vision of the country in future.

He asked the RSS workers to work with dedication to take the country to new heights and to make the nation prosper.

"Solution to the problems will be there when the society is made good and this is the vision of the RSS," he said.

He said that when the Sangh's work will expand, the society will grow and prosper.

"In order to unite the entire society and to develop the nation, we will have to unite our rivals and take them too along with us," he said.

Bhagwat was speaking at a function held on the concluding day of his four-day visit to Bhilwara. Other leaders and functionaries of the organisation were also present in the meeting which was attended by close to 10,000 volunteers who were clad in the new uniform.
They men were allegedly involved in threatening embassies of various countries in India, police said.

The arrested men were planning to attack 22 leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (Photo: PTI)

Madurai: In raids in several places in the city, three suspected al-Qaeda operatives were on Monday arrested by the National Investigation Agency, police said.

Police said the three allegedly planned to attack 22 top leaders of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

They were allegedly involved in threatening embassies of various countries in India, police said.

Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali. While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from G R Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram, police said.

Explosive materials were also seized from them.

Police said NIA raided several places on specific information that suspected Al-Qaeda activists were operating from South Tamil Nadu in and around Madurai.

"Explosive materials and arms have been seized from them," police said, declining to elaborate.

The trio was allegedly running the al-Qaeda unit in South Tamil Nadu. They were also allegedly involved in the explosions that took place in various courts in the country over a period of time, police added.

NIA were also searching for two other suspected al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman, they said.
Pay 50% tax on unaccounted cash, if caught it will be 85%.

New Delhi: To prevent people from using illegal ways to convert their unaccounted money after the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, the government proposed a new amnesty scheme for black money in Parliament on Monday.

Under the proposed Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana 2016 (PMGKY), all those who voluntarily declare their black money in cash and bank deposits will have to pay 50 per cent taxes (tax, surcharge and penalty) and 25 per cent of the total income declared will be locked for four years. The money will be locked in an interest-free deposit scheme for four years, to be notified by the Reserve Bank under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme 2016.

This amount is proposed to be utilised by the Centre for irrigation, housing, toilets, infrastructure, primary education, primary health and livelihood, among others, so that there is justice and equality.

In case a person doesnt declare his/her unaccounted money post-demonetisation and income-tax sleuths come to know about such cash deposits, the person will have to pay upto nearly 85 per cent in taxes under the proposed amendment.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday introduced the Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill 2016 in the Lok Sabha to ensure that people who defaulted on their taxes were subject to tax at a higher rate and stringent penalty.

The Centre said in the wake of demonetisation, there have been suggestions from experts that instead of allowing people to find illegal ways of converting black money into black again, the government should give them a chance to pay taxes with heavy penalty and allow them to come clean. This will also ensure that not only the government gets additional revenue for undertaking activities for the welfare of the poor, but also the remaining part of the declared income legitimately comes into the formal economy.

The government has also amended relevant provisions to introduce a much higher penalty in search and seizure cases. Under the amendment to Section 271AAB, the penalty will now be 30 per cent in case a person admits to having unaccounted income during search and seizure and is ready to file returns and pay taxes. It is currently at 10 per cent. The penalty would be 60 per cent in other cases. The search and seizure provisions have been amended to ensure there is fear among people about I-T raids. There were instances that since 10 per cent penalty was to be paid if unaccounted income was admitted at the time of seizure and returns were filed and taxes paid, people used to accept black money at the time of seizures. The government felt the 10 per cent penalty provision was not enough of a deterrent and evaders were misusing it, so there was need for a more stringent provision.

Revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia said the tax officials would not ask about the source of funds deposited in the banks from November 10 if the entire sum was declared under the proposed amnesty scheme. He said disclosures would enjoy immunity from wealth tax, civil and other taxation laws, but there will be no immunity from FEMA, PMLA, narcotics and black money laws. The deterrent provisions were necessary so that people have the fear of hoarding black money, Mr Adhia said. Deposits which have already been made from November 10 will be covered under PMGKY. The last date will be notified after the bill is passed, but it is likely to be December 30. PMGKY will come in as a new Chapter 9 in Finance Act 2016, he added.

Mr Adhia said this was not a retrospective amendment as the financial year was still on and people had not filed their tax returns yet. The revenue said the government will take more steps against black money after December and urged people to take advantage of the PMGKY scheme. It will be notified by the RBI in due course, he said.
Mr Sharifs foreign affairs adviser Sartaj Aziz will attend the Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar in the first week of December.

New Delhi: Chastened by the strong Indian military response at the borders, Pakistan on Monday sought to nudge India towards talks, with the move coming just days ahead of the start of the Heart of Asia conference (on Afghanistan) in Amritsar. The timing is seen as significant, considering that the Pakistan Armys hardline chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, will demit office on Tuesday, paving the way for a reassertion of authority by Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif.

Mr Sharifs foreign affairs adviser Sartaj Aziz will attend the Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar in the first week of December. On Monday, Pakistan high commissioner to India Abdul Basit told a TV channel that if India, being the host of the HoA conference, mooted a proposal for talks, Pakistan would consider it positively. He also said that as of now there was no proposal for bilateral talks (between Mr Aziz and the Indian leadership in Amritsar on the sidelines of the conference).

If India, being the host, comes forward, Pakistan will respond favourably, Mr Basit said.

Asked about the impact of the change in guard in the Pakistan Army on the civilian government in Pakistan, Mr Basit said the civil-military issue was unnecessarily given importance, and all institutions in Pakistan were in favour of democracy.

The high commissioner again spoke about Kashmir being the core issue between the two countries and the root of tensions. He also claimed Pakistan also wanted to talk about its concerns on terrorism and raise various issues with India, adding that peace can be achieved only through dialogue. Pakistan wants peace. It wants the troubles between the two countries to end. Terrorism is definitely an issue, he said.
Normal life hit in Left-ruled state with schools, colleges, shops shut and vehicles off roads.

All India Students Federation and Chhtrara Janadhikar Party activists stop a train during the Bharat Bandh called by Left parties in Patna. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Protests and shutdowns hit normal life in parts of the country on Monday as the Opposition parties upped the ante against the Centres demonetisation drive that has left millions cashless with knock-on effects for a mostly cash-based economy.

The Opposition looked divided with the Left, which has presence in Kerala, Bengal and Tripura, called for shutdowns in the three states, while others, including the Congress and the TMC, staged protests there and elsewhere in the country.

In Left-ruled Tripura, normal life remained disrupted as schools, colleges, shops were shut and vehicles kept off roads. In Kerala, normal life was hit as a strike call given by the ruling CPM-led LDF evoked a near-total response. But in West Bengal, the bandh  opposed by the ruling TMC  had little response.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, however, vowed to evict Prime Minister Narendra Modi from politics for his shock ban on Indias two largest banknotes accounting for 86% of all cash in circulation.

Mr Modis shock move three weeks ago has been followed by a spree of changing regulations for deposit, withdrawal and usage of currency, causing more chaos and confusion.

The Opposition parties, including the Congress, took out rallies at other places, including Delhi, and sought steps to ease a persisting cash crisis, but normal life largely unaffected. In Bihar, protesters stopped some trains. The protests and shutdowns did not evoke much response in BJP-ruled states. In a single disastrous decision, Modi has demonetised the entire nation. People are angry and are protesting with Congress leading the Jan Aakrosh Diwas, said Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala.

Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi took a swipe at the Opposition parties, saying their anger was over the Centres blockade of black money.

BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma termed the strikes and protests a flop. People have rejected those who support black money and corruption. Leaders behind Bharat Bandh and Jan Aakrosh Diwas are tainted and have been rejected by people, he said.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and some other party leaders protested outside Parliament. The event was, however, given a miss by MPs of other parties, including TMC, JD(U), SP BSP and BJD. These parties were seen raising slogans inside the House.

In Delhi, parties, including Congress, AAP and Left, held separate rallies and demonstrations, and accused the PM of pushing India into an unprecedented financial turmoil.

In Tamil Nadu, hundreds of workers from the Opposition parties, led by DMK, were arrested as they staged protests across the state.

Life in Bengaluru and elsewhere In Karnataka remained normal with commercial establishments, educational institutions, banks and private offices working as usual, and public transport and Metro maintaining their regular services.

In Maharashtra, the Congress and the NCP hit the streets though normal life remained unaffected. Opposition protests also happened in Haryana and Punjab. Protesters said Mr Modis move was aimed ay covering up the governments failure to deliver on the PMs promise of bringing back black money stashed abroad. The Congress and the Left parties organised protests in Hyderabad and other places in Telangana.

The bandh had no response in Meghalaya as demonstrators raised slogans against Mr Modi and held placards condemning the demonetisation drive.
Separatist militant Mintoo had trimmed his hair and beard after the escape.

Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo comes out after being produced at Patiala House Court in New Delhi on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The police recaptured top Sikh militant Harminder Singh Mintoo from a railway station in Delhi on Monday, a day after 10 gunmen stormed a high-security prison in Punjab and freed him and five others.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief was arrested in a joint operation by the Punjab and Delhi police from Nizamuddin railway station while he was trying to flee to Mumbai.

He tried to whip out a sophisticated semi-automatic pistol, but the police overpowered him, sources said. The separatist militant was sent to seven days of judicial custody after being produced before a Delhi court.

Mintoo had trimmed his hair and beard after the escape. From Mumbai, he wanted to move to Goa where some of his family members live, and then fly to either Malaysia or Germany, sources said.

He has about a dozen cases pending against him. Searches are on to nab his aide Kashmira Singh, said to be hiding in Delhi, who also escaped from Nabha jail in Punjabs Patiala district.

During searches at bus terminals and railway stations, a police team noticed a Sikh man with his beard trimmed haphazardly. He looked extra conscious, which raised suspicion. He later told the police that the jailbreak was planned and executed by his co-inmates, members of a criminal gang.

Mintoo had been deported from Thailand and arrested in Delhi in 2014 on a string of terror charges. Punjab battled Pakistan-backed Sikh militancy for a separate homeland for more than two decades till early 1990s.

The intelligence wing of the Punjab police had cautioned the state and all district police units about a fortnight ago that Pakistans Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) could try to carry out terror strikes ahead of next years Assembly elections.

The police said there could be an insiders role in the escape, which had been in the works for three months. The police is trying to ascertain if the gunmen who raided the jail had been hired by the ISI.

The Uttar Pradesh police had arrested on Sunday the jailbreak mastermind, Parminder Singh, from Kairana in the states Shamli district. The police also recovered arms and ammunition from him.

He has claimed that eight persons were involved in the jailbreak and the five fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in search of a hideout, the police said.

The SAD-BJP government has faced criticism for the jailbreak from the Congress and the AAP in Punjab where assembly elections will be held early next year.

Punjab Congress chief Amarinder said on Monday that the state government was involved in the incident. The case should be handed over to the CBI. It is a clear case of connivance, he said.

Last month eight Islamists awaiting trial escaped a prison in Madhya Pradesh before being gunned down hours later.
BJP Chief Amit Shah, however, took a swing at the opposition saying that the results are a wake-up call for them.

Mumbai: With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in a commanding position in the first phase of municipal council polls in Maharashtra, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday thanked the people of the state for placing their faith in the party and also hailed the efforts of Chief Minsiter Devendra Fadnavis.

"I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP," he said in a series of tweets.

Thanking the people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP, Prime Minister Modi said that this is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.

BJP Chief Amit Shah, however, took a swing at the opposition saying that the results are a wake-up call for them.

"BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics. Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on #Demonetisation, a decision in national interest," he tweeted.

Post the Centre's demonetisation move, voting was held in 147 municipal seats and 17 Panchayat seats on Sunday.

Early trends indicated the BJP had charged ahead and made its mark in areas that were Congress and NCP strongholds.

Of the 2,501 seats for which results have been declared, the BJP has won 610 seats while the Shiv Sena has won 402. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Indian National Congress have won 482 and 408 seats respectively.

The BJP has clearly retained the public's favour, despite the opposition's fervent claim that the ruling party would face a major loss in the polls, post the inconveniences thrust upon the masses due to demonetisation.
Shafi, who works with Dream Way cafeteria in the neighbourhood, also became the first customer of the newly-opened shop.

Dubai: In a heartwarming gesture, a 50-year-old Indian tea seller in the UAE was made guest of honour at the inauguration of a new branch of an electronic shop owned by an expatriate in Dubai.

Mohammed Shafi from Kerala was a happy man after being invited to cut the ribbon and open the new branch of the shop where he has been selling tea for the last 20 years on Al Musalla Road in Deira area.

Neelesh Bhatia, the chairman of Key Fashion Electronics Trading, draped a shawl around Shafi as a gesture of honouring him amid applause of dozens of people, including employees and guests, Gulf News reported.

Shafi, who works with Dream Way cafeteria in the neighbourhood, also became the first customer of the newly-opened shop after purchasing a mobile headphone set.

Even as the guests clapped for him, he served sweets and savouries for the guests.

"I never expected anything like this. It is so sweet of him to do this. I have not heard about people doing such nice gestures. I just want him to get more business and prosper in life," Shafi said.

He said that once he was given 15,000 dirham (Rs 2.7 lakh) for continuing the education of his son who is now an IT engineer in the UAE.

Sometimes, it is Shafi who keeps a watch on the shop and keeps the keys with him if the employees are late.
The number of encounter cases has gone up from 90,946 in 2008-09 to 105,664 in 2005-16.

The disease of encounters, or extra-judicial killings, by members of the police, security or armed forces is at least half a century old, but has now assumed epidemic proportions. In Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, the police have been on the rampage.

A report by the National Human Rights Commission of India states that half of the 2,560 police encounters reported between 1993 and 2009 were found to be false. Action was not taken against approximately 85 per cent of the culprits.

On October 31, 2016, a barbaric encounter was witnessed in Bhopal, capital of Madhya Pradesh. Incarcerated at the high-security Bhopal Central Jail, eight alleged members of the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) were said to have escaped by slitting the head constables throat (allegedly with an eating utensil), and climbing a parapet wall some nine metres high using bedsheets and ropes before climbing two more walls. It is claimed they walked at least six kilometres.

They were standing on a hillock with no escape route when the police surrounded them. Videos that later surfaced showed five of the men waving to the police, apparently trying to signal their intention to surrender.

Three days after the encounter, audio clips of the conversations between policemen at the scene emerged that seemingly indicate that they had orders to kill. How did things come to such a pass?

Ravi Nair, an internationally respected human rights activist and director of the South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre in New Delhi, recalls inquiries held 40 years ago and concludes that six factors account for the spread of encounters: the states failure to ensure prompt and fair investigations; its failure to prosecute known culprits; inefficiency and dilatoriness of Indias creaking judicial system; unaccountability to the law of the police, security and armed forces; and indifference bordering on connivance to encounters.

Indias Supreme Court is not blameless. In 2009, the Andhra Pradesh high court held: If a person goes with a gun to kill another, the intended victim is entitled to act in self-defence and if he so acts, there is no right in the former to kill him in order to prevent him from acting in self-defence.

It held that, where a police officer causes the death of a person acting or purporting to act in discharge of official duties or in self-defence as the case may be, the first information relating to such circumstance shall be recorded and registered as a first information report (FIR).

The Supreme Court promptly stayed this judgment on an appeal from the Andhra Pradesh Police Officers Association and has kept it pending all these years.

In 2014, another bench laid down 16 guidelines to be followed in investigating police encounters resulting in death.

The number of encounter cases has gone up from 90,946 in 2008-09 to 105,664 in 2005-16. In a detailed expose in Frontline (November 25, 2016), Divya Trivedi reported: Statistics released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) for 2015 show that Muslims constituted a greater share in the prison population than any other segment of people. While their share in Indias population as per Census 2011 was 14.2 per cent, their proportion in the undertrial prison population stood at 20.9 per cent. The percentage of convicted Muslims was 15.8 per cent. The percentage of Muslims among detainees was also high at 23.8 per cent. In fact, they fared as badly as dalits and the tribal people. Together, these three communities constituted 39 per cent of the population but accounted for more than 55 per cent of all undertrials and 50.4 per cent of all convicts.

Encounter cases increased in Gujarat after the pogrom against Muslims in 2002. Harsh Mander, a highly respected activist, filed a petition challenging the discharge of Narendra Modis confidant, Amit Shah, in the famous Sohrabuddin encounter case in Gujarat. An unprecedented number of 32 police officers, including six from the Indian Police Service, were jailed for cold-blooded killings in Gujarat. Predictably, Indian Kashmir tops the list. Encounters staged outside are coupled with custodial killings inside prisons.

The clime fosters the crime. Both a former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and the former Shiv Sena boss, late Bal Thackeray, approved of encounters.

Bollywood reflects social attitudes and, in turn, shapes them. It has lionised police officials who stage encounters. In two films, the hero, an inspector in charge of a police station, killed the villain who was a don. In both cases, he had the support of his colleagues. In both, they lied to the media about the cause of the deaths. The hero is a high-priced star. Small wonder, then, that encounters are not censured. There is no popular censure. People complain of delays in court and incompetence by the police.

By arrangement with Dawn
His leadership, came under further pressure this month when a corruption probe unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

Johannesburg: At least three South African ministers have called for President Jacob Zuma to resign, local media reported Monday, in the most serious challenge to his leadership since he took power in 2009.

The News24 news agency, citing sources in the ruling ANC party, said that Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi had called on Zuma to step down.

The clash came at a weekend meeting of the African National Congress (ANC) party, which was extended into Monday amid heated debate over Zuma's fate.

The president, who has faced mounting criticism of his leadership, came under further pressure this month when a corruption probe unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

The probe by the country's top watchdog investigated possible criminal activity in Zuma's relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

But Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many rank-and-file ANC party members, as well as its lawmakers easily surviving a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for Zuma to resign in recent months.

"There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life," analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website on Monday.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC and alliance no longer want him as president. The countdown to Zuma's exit has begun."

ANC losing public support

The ANC, which has ruled since Nelson Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994, has seen its popularity dive, with local polls in August delivering the party's worst-ever result.

Zuma's term in office ends in 2019, but the ANC is due to elect a new party leader at the end of next year and could decide to replace him as head of state.

South Africa's highest court this year found him guilty of violating the constitution after he refused to repay taxpayers' money used to refurbish his private rural house.

He is also fighting a court order that could reinstate almost 800 corruption charges against him over a multi-billion dollar arms deal in the 1990s.

International credit rating firm Fitch on Friday dropped its outlook for South Africa from stable to negative, pointing to the country's recent political turmoil.

Zuma has also been engulfed by a power struggle with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, while economic growth has fallen to 0.5 percent and unemployment hit a 13-year high.

Zuma's loyalists have been at loggerheads with Gordhan, a reformist who is widely respected among international investors.

When Zuma leaves office, the three leading possible successors are his ex-wife African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.

ANC spokesmen were not immediately available to comment on Monday.
Donald Trump had been paying little if any attention to the recount push by Jill Stein, who has raised millions of dollars for the effort

Trump beat Clinton in Pennsylvania by 70,010 votes, in Michigan by 10,704 votes and in Wisconsin by 27,257 votes. (Photo: AFP)

Washington: US President-elect Donald Trump said on Sunday it's "sad" Hillary Clinton is joining an effort to force recounts of votes from the November 8 election in up to three crucial states.

Trump tweeted part of Clinton's concession speech, when she told supporters they must accept that "Donald Trump is going to be our President," and snippets from her debate remarks, when she assailed the Republican nominee for refusing to say in advance that he would accept the Election Day verdict.

And it came on top of his saying it was a "scam" that Green Party nominee Jill Stein was revisiting the vote count in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Mr Trump won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday.

Clinton leads the national popular vote by close to 2 million votes, but Mr Trump won 290 electoral votes to Clinton's 232, not counting Michigan. It takes 270 to win the Presidency, and the three states in question could tip the electoral balance to Clinton in the remote event that all flipped to her in recounts.

Wisconsin officials said Friday they were moving forward with the first Presidential recount in state history. Clinton joined the effort Saturday, with her campaign attorney Marc Elias saying, "We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides."

Elias said that Clinton would take the same approach in Pennsylvania and Michigan if Stein were to follow through with recount requests in those states.

Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway noted that the President-elect hadn't ruled out the possibility of pursuing a criminal investigation into Ms Clinton's use of a private email server while Secretary of State, even if Mr Trump indicated he'd rather move past the issue.

"He's been incredibly gracious and magnanimous to Secretary Clinton at a time when, for whatever reason, her folks are saying they will join in a recount to try to somehow undo the 70-plus electoral votes that he beat her by," Ms Conway said on CNN's "State of the Union."

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a Hillary Clinton rival during the Democratic primary turned ally during the general election, defended the recount effort, telling CNN that leaders in both parties commonly request them. "No one expects there to be profound change, but there's nothing wrong with going through the process," he said.

He also suggested he would support a change to the nation's electoral college system, which allowed Trump to win the presidency despite lagging in the popular vote.

"We have one candidate who got 2 million more votes than the other candidate and she is not going to be sworn in as President," Sander said.

"And I think on the surface that's a little bit weird."

Donald Trump had been paying little if any attention to the recount push by Stein, who has raised millions of dollars for the effort since drawing a mere one per cent of the vote nationally. But Clinton's stance changed his tune.

"Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in," Donald Trump tweeted on Sunday. "Nothing will change."

He quoted from her concession speech - "We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead" - and he concluded: "So much time and money will be spent - same result! Sad."

Trump, who repeatedly challenged the integrity of the US election system before his win, earlier called the recount push "a scam by the Green Party for an election that has already been conceded."

Trump was expected to return to New York on Sunday after spending the Thanksgiving holiday weekend at his West Palm Beach estate. His transition team said the President-elect had scheduled a series of meetings Monday with prospective administration hires.

Among the jobs Trump has still yet to fill: Secretary of State.

Internal division over the position again spilled out into the open on Sunday as Ms Conway said she had personal concerns with the possibility of Mitt Romney serving as the nation's top diplomat.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker are among other prospects.

Conway noted that Romney and his allies regularly attacked Mr Trump during the campaign.

"I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position," she said.

Trump's incoming Chief of Staff, GOP Chairman Reince Priebus, acknowledged that a Romney pick would represent "a team of rivals concept."

That possibility, Priebus told "Fox News Sunday," should tell the public that Mr Trump wants to "put the best possible people together for all Americans, no matter who you are, what your religion - whatever your opinion is, he wants to move forward looking through the windshield and not the rear-view mirror."
Since his death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have been running wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel Castro.

A woman cries while embracing a friend during a gathering to mourn the death of Cuba's leader Fidel Castro, outside the Cuban embassy in Santiago, Chile, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016. (Photo: AP)

Havana: A nine-story portrait of a young Fidel Castro has joined the towering images of fallen guerrillas overlooking Havana's Plaza of the Revolution, the massive square where Cuba today begins bidding farewell to the man who ruled the island for nearly half a century.

After 10 years of leadership by Castro's younger brother Raul, a relatively camera-shy and low-key successor, Cuba finds itself riveted once again by the words and images of the leader who dominated the lives of generations.

Since his death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have been running wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel, broadcasting non-stop footage of his speeches, interviews and foreign trips, interspersed with adulatory remembrances by prominent Cubans.

"There's a genuine feeling of mourning, that's not a formality, that's not showy, that's not outward-focused, but rather completely intimate," former National Assembly

President Ricardo Alarcon said on state television on Sunday.

Ordinary people have largely been staying at home, off streets hushed by a prohibition on music and celebration during the nine days of official mourning for Castro. For some, particularly younger Cubans, Castro's death barely registered.

Yankemell Barrera, a 20-year-old student, said Castro wasn't a strong presence in his life and that he wasn't much affected by his death or planning to go to any of the memorial events. He said studying for finals would be a better use of his time.

"Even if I'm obligated to go, I'm not doing it," he said.

Tens of thousands of others, though, were expected to return to the streets Monday after 9 a.m., when simultaneous 21-gun salutes will sound in the capital and in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953. At the same moment, Cubans are expected to begin filing through the monument to national hero Jose Marti in the center of the plaza, where the government said they would "render homage and sign a solemn oath to carry out the concept of revolution expressed by the revolutionary leader."

The "concept of revolution" is a section of a 2000 speech in which Castro calls Cubans to believe in "the profound conviction that no force in the world is capable of crushing the force of truth and ideas."

The government did not say if the ashes of the 90-year-old former president would be on display inside the monument. Virtually all schools and government offices were closing during the homage to Castro, which will stretch for 13 hours on Monday and take place again on Tuesday, ending in a rally echoing those that Castro addressed on the plaza for most of his time in power.

"It's a terrible sadness. Everyone's feeling it here," said Orlando Alvarez, a 55-year-old jeweler. "Everyone will be there."

On Wednesday, Castro's ashes will begin a three-day procession east across Cuba, retracing the march of his bearded rebel army from the Sierra Maestra mountains to the

capital. Castro's ashes will be interred on Sunday in Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago, Cuba's second-largest city.
Some two million Cubans live in the United States, nearly 70 percent of them in Florida.

A large crowd reacts after Cuban musician Willy Chirino arrives to the Versailles Restaurant in Little Havana on Saturday, Nov. 26, 2016, following the announcement of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro's death. (Photo: AP)

Miami: Cuban-Americans who loathed Fidel Castro celebrated tirelessly Sunday to mark his death, dancing, singing and honking car horns for the second full day.

Crowds first spilled into the streets of Little Havana Friday night as news of the 90-year-old revolutionary leader's death in Cuba spread.

The revelry has not stopped since.

"I'm not tired of celebrating because I can't believe it. I never thought that this moment would arrive," said a woman named Delsy who declined to give her last name. She celebrated with a large crowd outside the Cafe Versailles, where exiles met in the Cold War's heyday to plot the overthrow of the Castro regime.

Some two million Cubans live in the United States, nearly 70 percent of them in Florida. The vast majority of those live in Miami and many saw Castro as a brutal tyrant.

Streets that had been closed because of the festive crowd reopened Sunday as authorities tried to restore a semblance of normality. But then they had to close them down again.

Among the cacophony of car horns, drums, loud music and singing, a chant rang out: "Fidel, you tyrant, take your brother too!"

Fidel Castro may be gone, but his younger brother Raul, 85, remains in power as president of the Americas' only one-party Communist-run state.

A rally demanding freedom and democratic reforms in Cuba has been convened for Wednesday in Little Havana.

It will coincide with the start of a four-day procession in which Castro's remains will be taken around the island of 11 million for people to pay their respects.

"The tyrant is dead but the tyranny continues," said activist Orlando Gutierrez of the Cuban Resistance Assembly.

Several blocks to the east, the popular Ball & Chain salsa nightclub offered discounts and a new drink: "Adios Fidel" (Farewell Fidel).

The place was bursting with people Saturday night. The street outside, full of Cuban restaurants and bars, was packed with late-night pedestrians and customers.

At a nearby corner, Cuban retirees sat outside, enjoying the warm and humid night as they discussed the island's future.

"Now we Cubans have hope that without Fidel, communism will fall, and if God allows it, we can return to our free country," said Vicente Abrez, 65.

However, Leticia Gallo, a 44-year-old therapist who arrived in Miami from Cuba seven years ago with a young son, doesn't believe Castro's death will immediately change much.

Still, "it's light at the end of the tunnel," she said.

A small group of women from the Ladies in White movement -- founded by the wives and other female family members of former Cuban political prisoners -- marched on Sunday on a street named for them in Miami.

An especially large crowd gathered for mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Charity, the patron saint of Cuba, where Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski led the Saturday service.

"Fidel Castro has died. Now he awaits the judgment of God, who is merciful but also just," Wenski said, urging the faithful to pray "for peace for Cuba and its people."

The Mass was solemn and the scene far from celebratory. Some women wiped away tears.

Elsewhere, many Cuban artists raised their voices. Emilio Estefan, husband of singing star Gloria Estefan, said Cuba now faces "a new dawn with a new sun full of hope."

The famed musicians Arturo Sandoval, Paquito D'Rivera and Jon Secada joined the Miami celebration.

Castro "separated our people and made us hate each other," the Cuban-born jazzman Sandoval said.

Politicians also lined up to mark the occasion.

Cuban-American Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado visited revelers Saturday afternoon, telling reporters that they "should not be criticized for celebrating"someone's death. "Understand what it means" to them, he said.

Florida Governor Rick Scott said he was joining Cuban-Americans across the country "who are incredibly hopeful for the future of Cuba."

"After decades of oppression, the Cuban people deserve freedom, peace and democracy," the Republican added in a statement.

Cuban-American Florida Senator Marco Rubio on Saturday called Castro an "evil, murderous dictator."

He said Sunday on CNN that it was "pathetic" that Obama, in a statement on Castro, had not mentioned the "thousands upon thousands of people who suffered brutally under the (Castro) regime" or who died trying to escape it.
He said that the apex courts decision would be historic.

Islamabad: Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan on Monday submitted documentary evidence in the Supreme Court of Sharif familys London apartments. The additional documents have been submitted by Imran Khans lawyer Naeem Bukhari.

Earlier, Mr Khan said that he had obtained some very important documents regarding Panama Leaks issue from Britain. He said that the apex courts decision would be historic.

On November 14, the PTI chief had submitted a stack of 689-page documentary evidence in the Supreme Court in connection with Panama Papers case.

Meanwhile, the PTI has prepared a cinema-scope documentary film detailing the corruption allegedly indulged in by Sharif family.

The PTI chief has given a go-ahead to release the first part of the film at a meeting of the partys Strategic Committee. The trailer of the film has also been issued.

Meanwhile, the Balochistan High Court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator General Pervez Musharraf in connection with the murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.
I want to make sure that everything we do does ensure Britain is a country that works for everyone, says Theresa May.

London: British Prime Minister Theresa May has admitted that the challenge of securing the best deal possible for the UK on Brexit keeps her awake at night, a media report said on Sunday.

In an interview with The Sunday Times magazine, she said that the negotiations with the European Union (EU) over Britains exit from the economic bloc had contributed to her working long into the night.

In this job you dont get much time to sleep, the 60-year-old Prime Minister said. Ms May became UKs second wonan Prime Minister after Margaret Thatcher.

Asked about her biggest anxieties and what kept her awake at night, Ms May said: Its a moment of change. Its a hugely challenging time. And we need to get on with the terms of Brexit. And Im very conscious of that.

I want to make sure that everything we do does ensure Britain is a country that works for everyone. And that we really get out there and forge a new role in the world post-Brexit.

We can make a success of it, we will make a success of it but these are really complex issues. We need to get on with the deal in terms of Brexit. We need to get the best deal possible for the UK, she said.

In one of her most personal interviews so far, Ms May said that her husband Philip John May gave her advice on her wardrobe and accessories.

Its taken a bit of adjusting for him to see people writing about what he wears and taking selfies of him, but hes getting used to it! Hes been surprised by how much interest hes had. Philip says he gets 90 per cent of the fun for only 10 per cent of the effort, she said of her husband of 36 years.
Opposition parties plan to present a motion in parliament in two-days time. Demonstrations take place in different South Korean cities. In Seoul alone, some 1.5 million people come together.

Seoul (AsiaNews)  South Korean President Park Geun-hye is close to impeachment as opposition parties prepare to present a motion in parliament in two-days time.

The motion is expected to receive a two-third majority. In addition to the votes of the opposition Democratic Party and Peoples Party, members of the presidents Saenuri party appear ready to vote for the impeachment.

Park is embroiled in a corruption scandal involving her friend Choi Soon-sil. The latter, the daughter of a cult leader (almost a guru) who is friends with the Park family, is accused of interfering in South Koreas domestic and foreign policies, as well as obtaining funding for foundations which she set up and used for personal gain.

Two days ago, another demonstration in Seoul brought together almost 1.5 million people (pictured).

Braving the snow and the cold, similar demonstrations took place in other cities bringing together about 2 million people. Other mass demonstrations took place in previous weeks.
by Weena Kowitwanij

Ordained on 13 November by Mgr Kovithavanij, archbishop of Bangkok, the new priest celebrated his first Mass yesterday in the Chapel of St Francis Xavier in Muangthong Thani. Jesus invites everyone to be prepared for anything, including a sudden death as well as a better life.

Bangkok (AsiaNews)  Fr Joseph Chonnapatra Sukkanate, who was ordained priest on 13 November, celebrated his first Mass yesterday, the Sunday inaugurating Advent.

The new priest centred his sermon on the meaning of the Gospel of the day, explaining how "Jesus invites everyone to be prepared for a sudden death, as Saint Paul says in his Letter to the Romans".

Listening and reflecting on the Sunday Mass "leads us to a good life, said Fr Sukkanate; thus we do not get angry over nothing, nor take advantage of others, but try to grow towards a peaceful and better life."

The new priest is a member of the Saint Raphael Church in Samutprakarn province (south of Bangkok). However, he celebrated his first Mass in the Chapel of St Francis Xavier in Muangthong Thani (Nonthaburi province, north of Bangkok), near the Church of Our Lady of Pieta.

In this church, Fr Sukkanate performed his pastoral service during his last year of seminary at the Lux Mundi in Bangkok. Ordained by Bangkok Archbishop Mgr Kriengsak Kovithavanij, he chose as his motto: " Through the Cross moving towards the light in Jesus Christ".

The Church of Our Lady of Pieta is run by priests from the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME). Archbishop John Nittayo began its construction on 25 November 1971. On 6 February 1974, King Bhumibol Adulaydej participated in the churchs inaugural ceremony.

Fr Sukkanate was assigned as an assistant to Our Lady of Fatima Church in Bangkok, and as chaplain for the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, who are involved in childrens social and spiritual development.
by Sumon Corraya

Twenty thieves broke in overnight on Saturday, November 26 and tied up the guards and pastor. The latter was threatened with death and had to reveal where the valuables were. In the past three years, six similar robberies of church property, and two burglaries at a convent.

Gazipur (AsiaNews) - At least 20 thieves looted the Catholic church of Mathbari in Gazipur, near Dhaka (capital of Bangladesh). On Saturday night [26 November] the criminals broke into the enclosure, and weilding knives tied up the night guards and the pastor.

Speaking to AsiaNews Fr. Vincent Bimal Rozario, the pastor, said he was awakened in the middle of the night and tried to scream, "but the thieves warned me to remain silent. They wanted to kill me with sharp weapons. They asked me where the money and valuables were. I was forced to tell them".



The robbers seized the night guards and bound their hands with ropes. To avoid attracting the attention of the faithful, they gagged them and then broke down the door. After tying the pastor up, and under the threat of death, they raided the church, taking away a camera, laptop, money to repair the tombs, two watches, a mobile phone and other goods for a value of 100 thousand taka [ 1190 EUR].

One of the guards was injured during the attack and is now hospitalized. The next morning, Fr. Bimal Rozario filed a complaint at the police station. Police opened an investigation and promised to step up surveillance of the church.



Despite assurances, the pastor is concerned about the safety of the community. In the last three years there have been six similar incidents in Church properties and two other robberies in the local convent. This is the convent where in 2014 two nuns of the Immaculate (female congregation associated with the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions) were assaulted and raped.

Msgr. Gervas Rozario, vice president of the Bishops' Conference of Bangladesh (CBCB), says: "It is very sad that robberies take place in churches. We are concerned about this incident. " According Chandon Rozario, another Catholic, "the priests and nuns sacrifice their lives for the Church. It is inhumane that they are victims of theft and persecution. I strongly condemn what happened. I ask that a proper investigation is conducted and that the perpetrators are found".



The Mathbari parish is made up of about 3500 Catholics. The church also has a girls' high school, entrusted to the sisters.
by Mathias Hariyadi

Jakarta (AsiaNews) - Indonesian police have arrested nine potential terrorists linked to the Islamic State who participated in the mass demonstrations against Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as "Ahok", governor of Jakarta, in order to generate chaos and violence. General Boy Rafly Amar confirmed the arrests last November 26: "[The] suspects were taken in Bekasi and West Jakarta, and their contacts with the Islamic State are certain."



November 4, nearly 100 thousand radical Islamists took to the streets to demand the condemnation of Ahok and the withdrawal of his candidacy for governor in elections in February 2017. The politician is accused of blasphemy against Islam will go to trial in the coming weeks. The protest, which resulted in violence, suffered the infiltration of political agitators with the aim of discrediting President Joko Widodo, an ally of the governor.



According to investigators, the project of the nine men was to steal weapons from officers during the march and fire on the crowd. The police, however, said the police spokesman, were not bearing arms that day.



Among those arrested were Saulihun, known as Abu Musaibah, a character that has favored the sending of Indonesian militants to Syria to fight with the Caliphate; Alwandi known as Aseng, who trained terrorists in a paramilitary barracks; Wahyu Widada and Ibu Aji Maulana, accused of working for the Islamic State as a bridge between Syria and Indonesia, preparing the advance of the caliphate in Southeast Asia.



Police said that there is no connection between these suspected terrorists and radical Islamic groups (such as the Islamic Defenders Front) who organized the march.



After these arrests the authorities are increasingly concerned ahead of the protests of the next December 2nd. The radical movements have announced plans to occupy the central streets of Jakarta during the Friday prayers. The agents have warned the organizers and the local inhabitants, since "it is likely that the event will be infiltrated by unknown persons ". Chief Inspector of Jakarta, General Mohammad Iriawan, said that the protest is not authorized by the authorities.
by Purushottam Nayak

The celebration is one of the most important in India. Usually, Christians come from all over the country, but this year, the rupee recall created problems. A procession with candles made its way through the streets of Berhampur in memory of Marys apparition to Saint Catherine Laboure.

Berhampur (AsiaNews)  Thousands of Christians attended the ceremony honouring Mary Queen of the Mission in the cathedral of Berhampur, Orissa. About 15,000 worshippers came from all over India, despite the difficulties caused by the rupee recall.

"Thousands of other people wanted to participate and show their devotion to Mary, said Fr Praful Nayak, pastor of the cathedral, but the elimination of 500 notes and 1000 rupees prevented them from coming to receive the Lords blessing.

The celebration took place yesterday in the shrine dedicated to the Mother of Jesus, Redeemer and Messiah. The ceremony is one of the most important events of its kind in India and Asia.

Walking in procession, the faithful carried candles in memory of the apparition of Our Lady to Saint Catherine Laboure. Fr Nayak noted that the Virgin appeared to the French saint on 27 November 1830 whilst she was praying.

"Our Lady, he said, gave Saint Catherine a mission that caused her great suffering. But she also told her that she would overcome all the difficulties, as well as the moments of discouragement and hardship."

"Our hearts, he added, are for the Immaculate Conception and for the glory of God. Our mission is the mission of the Church, which is to lead people to Christ. Mother Mary gave everyone the responsibility to be like Saint Catherine Laboure and proclaim peace and harmony."

As the sun began setting, the faithful and consecrated people  including 70 priests and 90 nuns  marched through the citys streets, accompanying the vigil with songs and prayers.

Mgr Sarat Chandra Nayak, bishop of Berhampur, emphasised Marys role in humanitys salvation. "Mother, he said, had nine months to prepare herself for the mission of giving birth to Jesus. During the wait she had high expectations. Similarly, we must prepare for the period of Advent leading to the birth of Christ."
Baghdad (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Two mass graves containing the bodies of members of the Yazidi minority, persecuted by the Islamic State (IS), have been discovered in northern Iraq in the context of the offensive launched on 17 October by the army and by Kurdish Peshmerga. A local official reported that the discovery was made "in the village of Umm al Shababik", in the northwestern region of Sinjar, between Mosul and the Syrian border.



Questioned by AFP, the mayor of Sinjar explains that the two mass graves containing nine bodies each, are about 150 meters apart. Following the "gruesome discovery" adds the official, the number of the pits found in the Sinjar area since last year rises to 29, since the forces fighting IS have taken control of the area.



Sinjar was home to the majority Kurdish speaking Yazidi communities; according to the mayor of the city 1,600 bodies have been found.



Faithful of a pre-Islamic religion, the Yazidi are regarded as heretics by the Islamic State that has reserved particularly cruel treatment for members of the minority. The jihadists have executed men and made women sex slaves.



In March 2015, the UN described the IS assault of the Yazidis an "attempt of genocide." According to community leaders, up to 3 thousand women are still in the hands of the jihadists, often used as sexual objects and sold as slaves among militiaman.



In the past Daesh militias [Arabic acronym for the Islamic State, IS] are guilty of heinous crimes, including mass murder and burial of bodies in mass graves. Since the beginning of the offensive for the recapture of Mosul, the UN has received several reports containing new allegations of atrocities committed by jihadists.
Justin Trudeau Slammed For Praising Fidel Castro

Trending News: #TrudeaEulogies Trends After Trudeau Praises Fidel Castro

Long Story Short

Following the death of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement that many feel was a bit too kind to the deceased communist dictator. The internet responded the only way it knows how  with jokes.

Long Story

After news spread of the death of Cuban revolutionary and leader Fidel Castro, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement, as world leaders are wont to do when other world leaders die. Except in this case, Trudeau sounded like he was fondly remembering an old friend rather than a communist dictator that presided over a totalitarian police state. He said that he felt deep sorrow for the passing of the larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century. He added that Castro was a remarkable leader though controversial, but who made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation.

Its no secret that Justin Trudeaus father Pierre enjoyed a warm relationship with the Castro regime while he was Prime Minister through the 1970s, and that Canadians do enjoy Cubas pristine, white-sand, American-free beaches. But even mild-mannered Canucks found Trudeaus gushing tribute to man who presided over a police state a bit much.

And so Twitter (especially conservative/right-wing Twitter) reacted the way it does best: with sarcasm and humor leavened with a healthy dose of principled outrage.

First, the outrage (h/t to CNN):

Is this a real statement or a parody? Because if this is a real statement from the PM of Canada it is shameful & embarrassing. https://t.co/lFXeqU7Ws0  Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 26, 2016

Disgraceful. Why do young socialists idolize totalitarian tyrants? Castro, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot  all evil, torturing murderers. #truth https://t.co/mYJonVK7JB  Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) November 26, 2016

Arbitrary imprisonment. Extrajudicial execution. No freedom of expression, association, assembly, movement, or press. https://t.co/skTFT2J7DL  Terry Glavin (@TerryGlavin) November 26, 2016

Fidel Castro was one of the 20th century's many monsters. We should lament only that he had so long to inflict misery on Cuba and beyond.  Garry Kasparov (@Kasparov63) November 26, 2016

And now the jokes, some of which are pretty funny:

Freddie loved the company of children & made sure the dreams of every child on Elm Street came true. #TrudeauEulogy  Justice Don Willett (@JusticeWillett) November 27, 2016

Oh, look here's some Cubans feeling enriched by Castro's love for the Cuban people. #Trudeaueulogy pic.twitter.com/A5v8R4Sf5K  Rita Panahi (@RitaPanahi) November 27, 2016

"We deep sadness and appreciation we honor Sauron, who sought to create a more unified world." #TrudeauEulogy #TrudeauEulogies pic.twitter.com/cmYyBF7EoU  Fishing With Fredo (@FishingwFredo) November 27, 2016

"While controversial, Mr. Burns will be remembered for his fight against childhood obesity." #trudeaueulogies #trudeaueulogy pic.twitter.com/qXrgPAuW3u  Corey Nut Cheerios (@CoreySchruder) November 26, 2016

We mourn the death of Vlad the Impaler, who spearheaded initiatives which touched the hearts of millions. #TrudeauEulogies #trudeaueulogy pic.twitter.com/z1pznoHj7P  Conservosaurus (@conservosaurus) November 26, 2016

We can debate Palpatine's policy, but what's undeniable is that he eliminated poverty on Alderaan in a single stroke. #trudeaueulogy  Lilith the Cat (@TehLilNinja) November 26, 2016

Today we honor Pablo Escabar, a true small business man and unlicensed pharmacist #trudeaueulogies  Deplorable Bella (@BellaPelosi) November 27, 2016

Bin Laden was charismatic leader who helped revolutionize airport security in his lifetime. #trudeaueulogies  Liars Never Win (@liars_never_win) November 27, 2016

And ouch.

#trudeaueulogies: With this, Canadians have forfeited all rights to mock or deride President Trump. pic.twitter.com/0kjggnQjpS  Leslie Eastman (@Mutnodjmet) November 27, 2016

Own The Conversation

Ask The Big Question

How badly will this damage the Trudeau and Canada brands, if at all?

Drop This Fact

At least one particularly idiotic right-wing junk news outlets is speculating that Justin Trudeau may possibly be the love child of Fidel Castro and Margaret Trudeau.
The 12 foods that top corruption by food fraud



Margaret Balfour speaks at FoodLegal's November 2016 Import/Exports Symposium

A leading supply audit specialist has identified the foods that are most commonly counterfeited in global food production.

Margaret Balfour, the managing director of Integrity Compliance Solutions, was speaking at the recent FoodLegal symposium on imports and exports, held in Sydney on 22 November 2016. She gave illustrations of her experiences in exposure of counterfeit foods and ingredients in relation to imports from China and elsewhere.

She said food fraud is driven largely by the opportunity of substituting a food or ingredient in a product when a cheaper safe alternative can be found.

According to Balfour, the following is a list (not in any particular order of importance) of the foods most likely to be fake, currently:

Fruit juices (particularly pomegranate, orange and apple juice) . Fruit juices are susceptible to being watered down before colouring and sweetener is added to make them appear more concentrated. A sorbitol analysis conducted on fruit juice is able to detect some counterfeit products by distinguishing whether the sugar in the juice is naturally occurring or has been artificially added.

. Fruit juices are susceptible to being watered down before colouring and sweetener is added to make them appear more concentrated. A sorbitol analysis conducted on fruit juice is able to detect some counterfeit products by distinguishing whether the sugar in the juice is naturally occurring or has been artificially added. Olive oil . Difficulty in assessing the origin and quality of olive oil, combined with lower production in different seasons, makes olive oil a popular food to fake. Forbes has reported that up to 80 percent of Italian olive oil is fake. Olive oil may be mixed with other oils such as canola oil or sunflower oil, or presented as virgin or extra virgin when it is in fact of a lesser quality.

. Difficulty in assessing the origin and quality of olive oil, combined with lower production in different seasons, makes olive oil a popular food to fake. Forbes has reported that up to 80 percent of Italian olive oil is fake. Olive oil may be mixed with other oils such as canola oil or sunflower oil, or presented as virgin or extra virgin when it is in fact of a lesser quality. Spices (such as oregano, pepper and saffron) . Counterfeit spices are one of the oldest types of food fraud. Spices can be watered down with other ingredients in an effort to save costs. Recently, Australian Food News reported on an investigation that found only five of 12 Australian oregano products consisted of 100% oregano. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has accepted enforceable undertakings by two firms, the products of whom included olive leaves in their oregano products.

. Counterfeit spices are one of the oldest types of food fraud. Spices can be watered down with other ingredients in an effort to save costs. Recently, Australian Food News reported on an investigation that found only five of 12 Australian oregano products consisted of 100% oregano. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has accepted enforceable undertakings by two firms, the products of whom included olive leaves in their oregano products. Coffee . A growing coffee culture and greater emphasis on single origin and ethically sourced beans has created an incentive for counterfeiters to pass off inferior coffee beans as premium. Coffee may be diluted with cheaper beans, or may be mislabelled completely. In the worst case, it may be packed with ground twigs, leaves or coloured sawdust. However, better technology is now emerging that makes it easier to test the purity of coffee and identify the type of coffee beans present.

. A growing coffee culture and greater emphasis on single origin and ethically sourced beans has created an incentive for counterfeiters to pass off inferior coffee beans as premium. Coffee may be diluted with cheaper beans, or may be mislabelled completely. In the worst case, it may be packed with ground twigs, leaves or coloured sawdust. However, better technology is now emerging that makes it easier to test the purity of coffee and identify the type of coffee beans present. Honey and maple syrup . Honey has become more difficult to produce due to numerous factors due to honey bee diseases, warmer climates and higher levels of deforestation. Fraudulent honey and maple syrup can contain added sugars or sweeteners such as corn syrup, as well as antibiotics and heavy metals.

. Honey has become more difficult to produce due to numerous factors due to honey bee diseases, warmer climates and higher levels of deforestation. Fraudulent honey and maple syrup can contain added sugars or sweeteners such as corn syrup, as well as antibiotics and heavy metals. Fish . Australian Food News recently reported the widespread mislabelling of fish in all sectors of the supply chain. A recent US study has found that up to one in five pieces of seafood had been mislabelled.

. Australian Food News recently reported the widespread mislabelling of fish in all sectors of the supply chain. A recent US study has found that up to one in five pieces of seafood had been mislabelled. Tea . Like coffee, an increased interest in different varieties of tea has opened up an attractive market for fraudsters. Cheap products can be labelled and passed off as expensive authentic Chinese tea leaves.

. Like coffee, an increased interest in different varieties of tea has opened up an attractive market for fraudsters. Cheap products can be labelled and passed off as expensive authentic Chinese tea leaves. Milk . Counterfeit milk has become more common in Asian markets due to high levels of demand. Recent scandals have seen the adulteration of milk through the inclusion of contaminants such as urea, caustic soda and melamine (the latter being a nitrogenous toxic plasticizer that artificially inflated the protein count in the milk).

. Counterfeit milk has become more common in Asian markets due to high levels of demand. Recent scandals have seen the adulteration of milk through the inclusion of contaminants such as urea, caustic soda and melamine (the latter being a nitrogenous toxic plasticizer that artificially inflated the protein count in the milk). Organic foods . With increased emphasis on promoting foods as organic, there has also been an increase in the number of foods that claim to be organic despite containing ingredients that are not considered organic. A study by the US Department of Agriculture found that over 40% of organic foods sold in the US used pesticides at higher levels than appropriate for organic foods.

. With increased emphasis on promoting foods as organic, there has also been an increase in the number of foods that claim to be organic despite containing ingredients that are not considered organic. A study by the US Department of Agriculture found that over 40% of organic foods sold in the US used pesticides at higher levels than appropriate for organic foods. Grains . The high-volume trade of grains such as rice in Asian markets has seen the use of plastics such as resin to supplement production. This presents obvious health risks if consumed regularly, and often the difference can only be ascertained by the consumer once the grain has been cooked.

. The high-volume trade of grains such as rice in Asian markets has seen the use of plastics such as resin to supplement production. This presents obvious health risks if consumed regularly, and often the difference can only be ascertained by the consumer once the grain has been cooked. Wine . Adulteration of wine is relatively commonplace. Different grape blends or other chemicals can be added to low-quality wine to give it the appearance of a higher quality product. A recent scandal saw an arrest made in the US after low-quality wine had systematically been relabelled and sold as expensive wines.

. Adulteration of wine is relatively commonplace. Different grape blends or other chemicals can be added to low-quality wine to give it the appearance of a higher quality product. A recent scandal saw an arrest made in the US after low-quality wine had systematically been relabelled and sold as expensive wines. Meat. Fake meat has been the subject of a number of controversies. There have been numerous reports of meat that has added water or colouring to make it appear to be a superior product. The background of meat can also be misrepresented. Beef can be labelled as Wagyu when it is not. Perhaps most famous was the horse meat scandal, where it was revealed that a substantial amount of horse meat had been imported into the UK after it had been labelled as beef.

Related articles

Nuclear scientists find new way to detect fake wine

Australian technologies tackle food counterfeiting in regional markets

Just because it says organic doesnt mean it is
Gilbert + Tobin will relocate its Perth office to the citys premier business precinct, Brookfield Place, occupying the top floor in Brookfield Place Tower 2.Woods Bagot have been appointed designers for the office, with the interior build commencing in early 2017 and physical relocation set for April 2017. As the firm moves, it will be replicating its open plan layout in Sydney.Perth Energy and Resources Partner, Michael Blakiston, believes the new open plan environment will support the level of collaboration required to meet the challenges and opportunities that the competitive resources market presents.We are excited to eliminate our office walls and embrace the fully-open and collaborative approach that the new layout will provide. This move will greatly enhance our ability to provide the best results for our clients, partners and people, he said.Blakiston said that the move stems from the strategic decision to strengthen the firms Perth brand.We decided to reinforce our partner ranks and relocate the office to a premier CBD location, despite the challenging market. We saw it as incredibly important to align our brand with Gilbert + Tobins east coast brand, he noted.Meanwhile, Marcus Wraight, Brookfield Property Partners head of leasing, said that as a progressive Australian law firm, Gilbert +Tobin is the perfect fit for the property.Charles Coorey, the Brookfield Relationship Partner at Gilbert + Tobin, said the decision to relocate the Perth office into a Brookfield property also aligns well with an important client relationship.The move to Brookfield Place will further foster the firms growing relationship with the Brookfield Group.
Labor frontbencher Terri Butler has hired her former law firm, Maurice Blackburn , for her defence after she was sued for defamation by a Queensland University of Technology student.According to a report from The Australian, Maurice Blackburn advised on Friday that they would accept service of legal proceedings on Butlers behalf. The MP has until December 23 to file her defence.Brisbane law student Calum Thwaites is seeking up to $150,000 in damages stemming from Butlers suggestion on national television that Thwaites is a perjurer and racist.Butler, who was once principal at Maurice Blackburn, had suggested that the student used the word niggers in a Facebook post in 2013 at a recent broadcast of ABCs Q&A program.Thwaites has been adamant he did not author the particular post, saying the account it came from was a fake account named after him.Thwaites has seen a racial hate charge filed through the human rights commission against him dismissed by Federal Circuit Court judge Michael Jarrett earlier this month.During the program, Butler said: This is the situation. And we never found out because it was not determined. I'm saying this is what the allegations were and the matters were not determined.Reminded that Thwaites has always maintained his innocence, Butler countered: He would say that, wouldn't he?In the statement of claim filed Wednesday in the Brisbane Magistrates Court, Butler is accused of causing harm and injury by falsely implying that the student is a racist bigot and perjurer.Thwaites is represented by Tony Morris QC.
CRDi

Coming courtesy of Mike via Kia-World , the image above features more than one example of the 2018 Kia K8 in near-production guise. Internally referred to as the CK, the K8 is rumored to bear the GT handle outside of South Korea. Regarding exterior design, Im afraid that few cues from the concept trickled down to the finished product. Nonetheless, the styling suits the Kia GT perfectly fine.Up front we can see massive air intakes, big headlights, and what appear to be two vents in the hood. The latter visual perk is no coincidence, chiefly because a 3.3-liter twin-turbo V6 is supposed to lurk underneath. 395 PS (390 hp) and 394 lb-ft (534 Nm) are anticipated from the T-GDI Lambda V6, as is an eight-speed automatic transmission sending drive exclusively to the GTs rear axle.Underpinned by a variation of the platform on which the 2018 Genesis G70 will be based, the long-ish wheelbase is a tell-tale sign the GT will slot between the compact executive and mid-size sedan segments. Despite the sloping roofline, theres no denying passengers have plenty of headroom at their disposal, plus an adequate amount of legroom. Im not too sure about the bling-bling chrome embellishment located where the front fenders meet with the doors, though.In places like Europe, the 2018 Kia GT is a prime candidate for diesel power. The fuel economy-focused engine could come in the form of a 2.2-literfrom the Sorento SUV . Maximum output for the oil-chugging mill is a round 200 PS (197 horsepower) and 441 Nm (325 lb-ft) of torque available between 1,750 and 2,750 rpm. Hearsay suggests a manual transmission could also make the cut.Watch this space for new info on the 2018 Kia GT as soon as the manufacturer takes the veil off its coupe-like rear-wheel-drive sedan with sporting credentials.
MQB

In this respect, the CC will be reinventing itself. When? In March 2017. Where? In Geneva, at the most important auto show of them all. The featured sketch is a teaser as to what the CCs replacement will look like. Also, observe whats written at the bottom right of the image. Arteon" is a mashup of Art and Eon. According to VW, Art describes the fastback's harmonious lines and emotionality. Eon, however, is a nod to the China-only Phideon.Positioned in the upper mid-class according to Europes car classification scheme by segments, the fastback-bodied Volkswagen Arteon will roll into dealer lots in summer 2017. Expected to be based on theplatform of the Passat B8, the Arteon will have its engine at the front, with drive sent to either the front or all wheels. So to speak, thats a yes: the sexier sibling of the Passat will be made available with 2.0 TDI and 2.0 BiTDI power.The cabin design, right down to the round-faced clock and the air vents, will mirror that of the Passat. Expected to share its wheelbase with the Passat, the flamboyant roofline of the Arteon is a tell-tale sign rear headroom will be an issue for taller fellows. To its defense, the upcoming model looks a whole lot better than the CC it replaces. Speaking of visual identity, doesnt the side of the Arteon look suspiciously similar to a concept vehicle from a year ago?Rewind to the 2015 Geneva Motor Show and yes, the resemblance between the Sport Coupe Concept GTE and Arteon is not a coincidence. If VW makes a case for it, a plug-in hybrid variant will be launched sometime in 2018. Just like the Passat GTE, the Arteon GTE could combine an electric motor and a 1.4-liter TSI for a total output of 218 PS (215 hp) and 400 Nm (295 lb-ft).
Normally, a Porsche fan contemplating the 991 line-up has clear preferences when it comes to choosing between the Turbo (S) and the GT3 RS. Well, this Neunelfer project started out by mixing the two.German tuner JP Performance took a what was probably a Turbo S (we're not 100 percent sure this is a Turbo S, but the overall point made by the car still stands) and gifted it with GT3 RS front bits. The list of Rennsport Neunelfer goodies includes the fascia, the front wings with air extractors, as well as the ducktail-like posterior element and the massive rear wing.The 3.8-liter occupying the rear section of the supercar also received some attention and we can say the same about the suspension and the wheels.And this is where the part that reaches out to Porsche 's old-school fans steps in. The turbofan wheel cover seen in the first video below, which shows the car's Essen debut, follows the air-extracting wheel design that debuted on racetracks back in the 70s - the design allows the wheels to suck air from underneath the vehicle and from inside the wheel well, thus delivering generating downforce and cooling the brakes.The retro nod goes way deeper than that and it all has to do with the wrap on the car. The attire of this Neunelfer seems to be a nod to the Porsche 935 K3 racecar Apple sponsored back in the 1980s.This also means that Porsche worshipers who are familiar with the current wrap craze , thanks to their Cars and Coffee or online presence, are covered.Given the additional carbon fiber parts we forgot to mention above and details such as the towing element buried in the nose of the machine, this is a track destined 911 project. And we can all agree on Porsches feeling at home on the circuit.
TDI

There are two main reasons for this. Number one is that the Ateca is going to become SEAT's best seller. The second has to do with the fact that every VW Group model has an avid fanbase of bolt-on fans.It looks like JE Design is the first company to offer goodies for the Ateca. But, as we've come to expect from them, the outcome is polarizing by any standards.Their Seat Ateca program starts with a few simple accessories that can be split into aero and aesthetics. A good example of the latter is the add-on the protection strip for the top of the bumper where it meets the cargo bay, available in silver or black.Meanwhile, the top of the trunk can be decorated using a rear spoiler that sticks out further than the top of the car. JE Design says that " the improved aerodynamics may also contribute to improved fuel efficiency," but we're not so sure.JE Design also tried to do something about the stance, using 30mm lowering springs designed to work with the original dampers. This is suitable for both front- and four-wheel-drive variants. And naturally, the alloys were an easy fix.This new design is a 10-spoke one available in sizes upwards of 19 inches. A set of four 8.5J x 20-inch ET45 wheels in matte black with matching 245/35ZR20 tires is available. Fans of even bigger wheels can opt for the 21-inch variant in black or graphite, and shod with 245/30ZR21 or 255/30ZR21 rubber.And finally, two types of performance exhaust are being developed. The choice is between quad 80mm diameter tailpipes, or oval tailpipes measuring 160 x 90mm. Both versions have EC approval, and are also available for all-wheel-drive versions of the Ateca.There's an engine mod available as well, for the top-end 2.0with 190 PS, which can be boosted to 190 PS and 430 Nm (317 lb-ft) of torque (400 Nm standard). This, JE Design claims, is enough to increase the top speed from 212 to 220 km/h (137 mph).
Photo by 51fifty via Wikimedia Commons.

The state of Ohio has seen a 25% increase in drugged driving crashes since 2012, according to statistics from the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT).

In 2016, the state has already tallied 3,574 drugged driving crashes, representing 33% of all impaired driving collisions. In hopes of stemming the tide, ODOT and the Ohio State Patrol are now using the states 130 freeway message signs, as well as portable highway signs, to raise public awareness about the growing problem.

The highway signs display messages alerting motorists to the increase in drugged driving crashes. They also urge people to start talking about the drug abuse epidemic. The effort is part of the states Start Talking initiative, a campaign that encourages parents and community leaders to talk to children about the dangers of drug use. Gov. John Kasich and First Lady Karen Kasich launched the Start Talking campaign in 2014.

Lives are forever changed when people make the decision to drive after taking drugs, said Col. Paul Pride, patrol superintendent for the Ohio State Highway Patrol. If you see drug activity or impaired driving, report it immediately to the Patrol by calling #677."
South Korean automaker, SsangYong, takes a leap higher to competitiveness as it plans to launch Tivoli in 2020, the first electric car model in the company's history.

SsangYong's great transformation and new branding venture aims to get its car models electrified within the next four years.

Paul Williams, SsangYong's Head Executive in UK, happily shared this wonderful news to the Brits and journalists in one of his statements. He also added that the design and the engineering teams are already in the works, testing certain prototypes in preparation for Tivoli's launching date.

For the next three years, the company plans to release three new car variants, which may feature electric power vehicle alternatives. It is also speculated that SsangYong will launch the product version of its SIV-2 model, which the company officially showcased in public during March 2016's Geneva Motor Show.

The availability of Nissan Qashqairival seems to be expected in 2019 as well, to go with the commencement of Korando model in the market around that year, Autocar reported.

Tivoli will be deployed in the market as the company's initial public offering of electric cars, followed by another two models by then. Williams also mentioned the company's intention of building a partnership with one of the well-known and bigger firms, even citing BMW as an example, according to Autoevolution's blog post.

The company is under Mahindra, which is currently looking for an automaker to collaborate with and work hand-in-hand in its journey towards developing electric cars.

Due to the high level of financial demands at stake and in store for electric car production, a strong partnership is really a necessity for the South Korean company; it seems to be playing on a small-scale level in the car manufacturing industry for now, which entails higher risk if sales after Tivoli's launching and its other electric vehicle brands does not end lucratively. Thus, having a partnership is the company's best option for now.

It remains to be seen what else the South Korean automaker has in store for us.
The worlds largest air tanker is now fighting the wildfires sweeping Israel after Global SuperTanker Services received an emergency call from the countrys government last week. The converted Boeing 747 Spirit of John Muir flew direct from Colorado Springs to Israel within 24 hours of receiving the call, according to a news release from the company. Our team is committed to providing assistance to our friends in Israel for as long as it takes to gain control of or extinguish these devastating fires, said CEO Jim Wheeler. We are prepared to stay in Israel for as long as we are needed, but we hope that the SuperTanker will provide the force multiplier to end these devastating fires in a very short timeframe.

A series of arson-caused wildfires has overwhelmed Israel over the last week and firefighting resources from all over the world have been summoned to help quench the flames. The aircraft sent by Global SuperTanker is its newest. The plane can drop 20,000 gallons of water, suppressant or retardant in varying increments and rates.
Amazon customers likely got all their packages delivered on time over the busy Thanksgiving weekend but a spokesman for the union representing pilots at ABX Air said last week it likely took a toll on those flying the 20 aircraft now leased to Amazon. Last Wednesday, a federal judge ordered 250 pilots striking against schedule-disrupting emergency flights to strap back in to make sure Black Friday and Cyber Monday went off without a hitch. ABX also serves DHL but the high-profile deal with Amazon came under the greatest scrutiny with the job action. A pilot shortage appears to be at the heart of the dispute and a spokesman for the 250 ABX night flyers said its likely to get worse.

Rick Ziebart, an ABX pilot and the spokesman for the Airline Professionals Association, Teamsters Local 1224, which represents the pilots, said ABX has a crippling staff shortage that results in demands for emergency flights to meet its obligations. ABX Airs failure to address the staffing crisis hurts our families and compromises our ability to do our jobs and meet the needs of Amazon, DHL and other customers, he told The New York Times.
A former NTSB member who is now Adjunct Professor at Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology says the FAA is overstepping its authority in banning news drone flights at the increasingly contentious Standing Rock oil pipeline protest in North Dakota. The FAA has imposed temporary flight restrictions on drone flights over the protest, which it says were put in place for safety reasons. In his regular column in Forbes, John Goglia says limiting media use of drones is not the mandate of the FAA and blocking media coverage is not a legal basis for issuing flight restrictions. Goglia extensively quotes two experts in drone law and operations who suggest other motives for the TFR in his column in Forbes.

Goglia notes that drones have been a favorite of First Nations journalists documenting what they allege to be violations of various laws by the companies installing the pipe. There are allegations that law enforcement personnel have shot down drones, which would appear to violate at least the spirit of the alleged safety basis for the TFR. The video below is typical of the videos being generated by drones at the site and was shot last week.
On a busy day at my home airport LXT I was flying in the pattern with several other airplanes ahead of me. Pilot on rollout: Traffic landing at Lees Summit be advised  there is a turkey on the runway.

Departing pilot:Impossible, Im already at 200 feet!

Gus Schlegel
Donating your time to fly for a charitable organization (more commonly known as public benefit flying) is, in my opinion, the most personally rewarding flying a pilot can do. It offers a chance for a pilot to combine a passion for flight with helping others. Public benefit flying is most commonly known for medical transportflying people, without charge, for medical care they may not otherwise be able to afford because of transportation costsbut it includes a myriad of other endeavors such as search and rescue, disaster relief, environmental protection and animal transport.

Theres no free lunch, however. A pilot engaged in public benefit flying, in virtually all cases, provides the airplaneeither as an owner or renterand pays all of the costs of the flight, including donating her or his flying time. There are very few exceptionsso few that theyre beyond the scope of this article. The bottom line is that if a public benefit flight involves flying an aircraft from one airport to another, the Federal Aviation Regulations require that the pilot pay for all of the costs of the flight.

Associated with that bottom line is a hard, cold fact of aviation, doing public benefit flying is expensive. All of the pilots I know that are involved do it as often as they can afford to do so. Every one of the public benefit flying organizations of which I am aware has far more demand for flights than it can possibly fill through the efforts of its volunteer pilots.

Not surprisingly, he cost of making public benefit flights and the high demand for them has long lead public benefit flying organizations and volunteer pilots to look for ways to make more flights at less cost to the pilots. From time to time an organization will be the happy recipient of a donated airplane that is suitable for its transport mission and is able to find donors who will pay for the cost of its operation. The organization then figures that all it has to do is have volunteer pilots fly the airplane for free. After all, businesses own airplanes and use them for transportation, they just pay the pilots; we can do sort of the same thing, other than pay the pilots, right?

Unfortunately, no. Its prohibited by the Compensation or Hire rules in the FARs. Ill go into the details and explain how and why its prohibited in a moment. Meanwhile, Im aware that some public benefit flying organizations are engaged in such operations and havent been caught. I get Hey, theyre doing it! comments and questions about setting up such operations from well-meaning people at least once a year. I point out that theres a risk of an ugly downside should there be an incident or accidentpotentially a violation for the pilot, civil penalty for the organization, unwillingness of the insurer to pay the loss because the flight was an illegal Part 135 operation and a lawsuit against the pilot that puts the pilots assets at risk.

The Regulations

To understand why a public benefit flying organization cannot own an airplane and have volunteer pilots fly it (whether paid or not) for its transportation missions requires a set-by-step trip through the FARs and the concept of compensation and for hire. Bear with me as we take the walk.

FAR 61.113 says that a private pilot may not operate an aircraft for compensation or hire. It provides certain exceptions to the prohibition that well look at. The first is for a charitable airliftwhich is defined in Part 91.146. Briefly, thats giving rides to raise money for a charity under specific circumstances that include that the flights are nonstop, take off and land at the same airport and dont go more than 25 miles awaythey are not transportation flights. The plain language of the regulations and a number of FAA interpretation letters regarding the rule make it clear that the charitable airlift exception does not apply to public benefit transportation flights. The second exception to the Part 61.113 compensation or hire rule is that a private pilot may get compensated for flying an airplane if that flight is incidental to the pilots business or employment. That exception is used legitimately by business people who use their or their companys airplanes for such things making sales calls, attending meetings and examining real estate. The important thing to note is that the airplane use is incidental to the businessit is not the primary purpose of the business. The FAA has looked at this exception to the compensation or hire rule repeatedlyif the purpose of the company is to own an airplane, flying it is not incidental to the companys business. A dentist who has a practice in multiple locations is in the business of making tooth dust. Her use of an airplane to go between her practice locations is incidental to her business. A charity that owns an airplane to further its mission of transporting sick children for medical treatment isnt using that airplane in a way thats incidental to its businessits the core reason for the organizations existence. The pilot flying the airplane cant take advantage of the compensation or hire exception.

Compensation

The FAA does not define compensation in Part 1 of the regs, it has historically used a dictionary definitionif a pilot receives something of value for flying an airplane, he or she is getting compensation. The FAA considers flying time to be valuableso any free flying time a pilot gets is compensation. Any process of making and enforcing regulations involves drawing lines to define what behavior is in compliance with the regulations and what behavior isnt. For the compensation question, the FAA has drawn a clear lineany time a pilot pays less than his or her pro-rata share of the cost of a flight, the pilot is receiving compensationits in Part 61.113(c). A pilot can split the cost of a flight, pro rata, with the passengers, but cant pay less than his share.

Lets review the cards now on the table: a private pilot has to pay his pro rata share of any flight he makes, otherwise hes getting compensated. A public benefit/charitable transportation flight involves flying passengers who are not paying anything for that flight. Because the passengers are not paying anything for the flight, the pilots share is 100 percent of the cost. And no, the public benefit flying organization cannot offer to pay the pro rata share of the passengers, it cannot become the passengers and pick up their share. The FAA has said that the language of the regulation is clearpassengers are the people on the airplane, not the organization that facilitated their flight.

Once we accept that private pilots have to pay for the total cost of public benefit flights they make in airplanes they own or rent and they cannot fly airplanes owned by public benefit flying organizations because the flights are compensation, the logical next step is note that because pilots with commercial or ATP ratings are allowed to be compensated for flying, and ask why cant they legally volunteer to fly an airplane owned by a public benefit flying organization? Its a great questionand the answer is that they can if the public benefit organization holds a Part 135 Air Taxi Certificate, the airplane is on the certificate and the pilot has the flight experience required and has completed the training and checkride(s) required to be a pilot for the certificate holder.

The analysis of a pilot with a commercial or ATP rating flying an airplane owned by a charity that exists for the purpose of using the airplane for transport requires looking at the FARs that refer to Common Carriage, which is holding out to the public of transportation for hire. Once compensation for flying is involved the FAA draws another linethis time it is level of safety. When innocent passengers are being carried on a flight where compensation of the pilot is involvedwhether the passengers paid for the flight or notthose passengers are entitled to a higher level of safety than if they are passengers where they are splitting the cost with an uncompensated pilot. The FAA is adamant in this areaits mandate is to protect innocent passengers and it steps up the safety requirements greatly once the passengers are paying for a flight (or someone is paying for it for them) and/or the pilot is being compensated.

FAR Part 119 defines common carriage and holding out to the public for hire. It requires a company that owns an aircraft primarily for the purposes of operating it and carries passengers to hold an air carrier operating certificatefor the types of airplanes were discussing, that certificate would be an Air Taxi Certificate under Part 135. There is the incidental exception that businesses can use, as I talked about above, but it doesnt apply to a company that owns airplane to carry out its mission of transporting people, pets or things in that airplane.

Safety

While many public benefit flying organizations feel that they are small potatoes in the aviation world and fly under the FAAs radar, its not the case. The FAA has violated pilots making charitable flights and receiving compensation. The guidelines the FAA follows for sanctions against pilots calls for at least a 180-day suspension of pilots certificate for violation of flying for hire regulations.

In addition, about six years ago the NTSB took a hard look at the safety record of public benefit flying and expressed concernraising the visibility of all public benefit flying organizations. The NTSB went to the Air Care Alliance (ACA), the umbrella group for all public benefit flying organizations and volunteer pilots and demanded that it take action to improve the safety level of public benefit flying operations. (Full disclosure, Ive been a member of the board of directors of the ACA for over 10 years.) The ACA reached out to all public benefit flying organizations of which it was aware with suggestions for safety improvements and teamed with the AOPA to create an interactive training program for volunteer pilots. Once the ACA had completed its actions, the NTSB expressed its satisfaction with the steps taken. However, the lasting impact is that not only do the FAA and NTSB appreciate the service of public benefit flying organizations and volunteer pilots, both agencies are paying attention to what is going on in the public benefit flying community. It behooves volunteer pilots and public benefit flying organizations to make sure they dont cross the lines on legal operations.

But Weve Just Gotten a Plane!

What can a public benefit flying organization do if it gets an airplane donated to it? How can it use that airplane legally to best carry out its transportation mission if it cant have its volunteer pilots fly it? Ive observed a number of creative, effective and completely legal practices. Most commonly, the organization sells the airplane and uses the money to support its operationsoutreach to recruit more volunteer pilots who will use their airplanes (or airplanes they rent) for flights, hire staff to take over for volunteers to coordinate flights and get the word out about their organization, pay for ground transport for patients from airport to hospital and pay for charter flights for the patients who need medical airlift (often theyll work with a local Part 135 operator to get reduced rates on charters). Organizations have teamed with a local charter operator, entered into an agreement to put the donated airplane on the operators Part 135 certificate and arranged for a reduced fee for charters when using that airplane. Im told some volunteer pilots have gone through the necessary procedures to become approved pilots on the operators certificate and are assigned as pilots for the public benefit flying charters and dont charge for those flights.

As for the volunteer pilot who is approached to make transportation flights in an airplane owned by a public benefit flying organizationyou might wish to politely decline. The free flying time may be the most expensive flying time you ever get. You dont need a violation on your record or the discovery that if you prang the airplane that the flight was an illegal 135 operation, theres no insurance and someone is coming after your hard-earned assets.

Rick Durden is a CFII and holds an ATP with type ratings in the Douglas DC-3 and Cessna Citation and is the author of The Thinking Pilots Flight Manual or, How to Survive Flying Little Airplanes and Have a Ball Doing It Vols. 1 & 2. He has been a volunteer pilot for over 25 years, is an aviation attorney and notes that this article does not constitute legal advice. My goal is to alert readers to common issues in the public benefit flying world so that pilots and organizations can avoid legal trouble. I strongly recommend that anyone with an aviation law issue contact a lawyer who works in the field and heed his or her advice after you provide the lawyer with a full disclosure of the facts.
28 November 2016 10:55 (UTC+04:00)

The Armenian armed units shattered ceasefire with Azerbaijan a total of 27 times throughout the day, Azerbaijan`s Defense Ministry reported on November 28.

The Armenian armed forces, stationed in Armenia`s Barekamavan village in Noyemberyan region, Mosesgekh village and nameless hills in Berd region subjected to fire the positions of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces located in Gaymagli village in Gazakh region, Kokhanabi, Aghdam and Munjuglu villages in Tovuz region.

The ceasefire was also violated near Chilaburt village in Tartar region, Shikhlar and Javahirli villages in Aghdam region, Kuropatkino village in Khojavand region, as well as nameless hills in Goranboy, Tartar and Fuzuli regions.

Azerbaijan's internationally recognized Nagorno-Karabakh territory was turned into a battlefield and zone of aggravated tensions after Armenia sent its troops to occupy Azerbaijan's lands. As a result, 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory stands under military occupation. For the past two decades, and despite calls from the international community, Armenia has refused to withdraw its troops and retreat within its national borders.

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28 November 2016 17:30 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

A bill on the Khojaly Genocide is being drafted in Azerbaijan in connection with the 25th anniversary of the tragedy, said Bahar Muradova, Deputy Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament.

She made the remark at a presentation of the project Study of the legal aspects of recognition at the international level crimes of genocide and ethnic cleansing in Baku on November 28.

Muradova said there are obstacles on bringing to justice those people, who committed crimes in Nagorno-Karabakh, and that should be removed. The bill will make it possible to give legal assessment to those crimes.

She said preparation of the bill began on November 20 and it will be finished within three months. The public opinion will be taken into account during the preparation of the draft law, Muradova added.

Azay Guliyev, Vice President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, addressing the event said: Azerbaijan should necessarily pass through three stages to achieve the legal assessment of the Khojaly genocide, he said.

At the first stage, the international community should be thoroughly informed about the genocide, he explained. At the second stage, international organizations and parliaments of countries should give political assessment to this crime and adopt appropriate resolutions. Finally, legal assessment to the genocide should be given and the perpetrators should be brought to court of justice.

Guliyev noted that Azerbaijan, especially the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, has already done much to implement the first stage and inform the world about the genocide; however, the work should be continued.

MP Nizami Safarov, in turn, stated that the bill will also cover extradition of criminals, who committed international crimes, their transfer to second country or to the international tribunal.

Safarov said that for the preparation of the draft law international experience, the laws of developed countries, case law and etc. is currently being studied.

Chairman of Azerbaijani Parliament's Committee on Law Policy and State Building Ali Huseynli stated that preparation of the bill to punish the criminals of the Khojaly genocide is important not only for legislation, but also for the international law in general.

Azerbaijan took serious steps in investigation of the Khojaly genocide in terms of law, he added. The Military Prosecutor Office implements serious investigations over the Khojaly tragedy and every year receives new information about the genocide.

MP Samad Seyidov also addressed the presentation, stating that Armenia - the country participating in all projects in Europe, using its funds, and continuing the occupation policy  should be brought to justice.

When Azerbaijani lands will be returned through negotiations or in other way, all these criminals should be taken to the court, the MP said.

Khojaly, the second largest town in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, came under intense fire from the towns of Khankendi and Askeran already occupied by the Armenian armed forces in 1992.

About 613 civilians mostly women and children were killed in the massacre, and a total of 1,000 people were disabled. Eight families were exterminated, 25 children lost both parents, and 130 children lost one parent. Moreover, 1,275 innocent people were taken hostage, and the fate of 150 of them remains unknown.

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 still controls fifth part of Azerbaijan's territory and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding districts.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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28 November 2016 13:17 (UTC+04:00)

By Gordon Brown

Today, the United Kingdom is united in name only. With different regions and industries desperately trying to opt out of a hard Brexit from the European Union, and Scotland even considering independence, whatever ties bind the UK together are being severely strained.

This is no temporary or passing phenomenon. The vote to leave the European Union was fueled by deep-seated public anger about the huge structural inequalities between the UKs north and the south  inequalities that, as UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond acknowledged this week, are the worst in Europe. Yet Brexit will only exacerbate Britains regional divide: as the more export-dependent north loses jobs faster than the south, post-referendum optimism will be cut short.

Since 2010, the northeast has comprised 4% of the UK population, contributed just 3% of the countrys gross value added (GVA), and accounted for only 2% of the economys new jobs. Those figures are 11%, 9%, and 7%, respectively, in the northwest; and 8%, 6.5%, and 6%, respectively, in Yorkshire and Humberside. By contrast, London and the southeast have accounted for 26.8% of population, 37.7% of GVA, and 39% of new jobs. In fact, since 2010, half of all new jobs were created in London, the southeast, and the east.

A 2016 study by University of Groningen economist Philip McCann found that the UKs regional income gaps rival the worst in Europe. Average disposable household income in the Greater London area is 60% higher than in most other regions of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Moreover, according to the latest Eurostat data, average per capita GDP (in terms of purchasing power parity) in the Welsh and Tees Valleys is, respectively, 69% and 74% lower than the EU average, placing them below Lithuania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. Overall, North England, Wales, and Northern Irelands per capita GDP levels are lower than Mississippi and West Virginias.

Regional economic policy used to be the tool for narrowing the divide. But the Northern Powerhouse initiative to revive cities in the UKs north has obscured a reduction in regional aid, which over the last six years has fallen to just 2 billion ($2.5 billion) annually. That is one-third lower than the average annual installment during the first decade of this century.

Today, as much as three-quarters of public funding for research and development is spent in the southern third of the UK, while only 7% is spent in the north. And historic infrastructure-spending gaps continue to widen: by 2020 or 2021, annual per capita transportation-infrastructure spending will reach 1,900 in London, but will be less than 300 in the northeast.

McCann argues that London is decoupling from the rest of the country, because few benefits  such as new jobs, industries, or technologies  ever flow out of the capital to other regions. This means that policies that enhance Londons economy do little for the rest of the UKs regional economies.

All of this points to a powerful conclusion: the UKs centralist, Whitehall-dominated constitution  which evolved during the First Industrial Revolution, when Londons political power was matched by the north and Midlands greater economic power  is not suited to todays world. The UKs peripheral regions, with their high levels of long-term unemployment, are losing workers. A London-centric approach is no longer of benefit even to London, which struggles with congestion, economic overheating, and a housing crisis.

If the UK continues to centralize its decision-making, regional disparities will only deepen. The UK must adopt a more balanced approach that gives each region the power to develop its economic potential and bridges the divide between the core and periphery. To this end, it is critical to reframe the constitution to incorporate regional interests and recognize that the UK is a multinational state.

Such radical change  and, to match the scale of the crisis, it must be radical  will require a nationwide discussion, which could be conducted via a peoples constitutional convention. That convention should start by examining Brexits impact on regions.

We should ask, for example, whether it makes sense to repatriate powers and financial transfers from Brussels to Westminster, or if some powers and financing should instead be devolved to the regions and nations. Where possible, regional funds and policymaking powers  including environmental regulation and oversight of agriculture, fisheries, and local social programs  should be delegated to the appropriate regional authorities, such as the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh and Northern Irish Assemblies, city mayors, and local authorities.

The convention should also look at the broader case for building a more federal UK, for codifying a new division of powers between London and the regions, and for replacing the unelected House of Lords with an elected Senate of the Nations and Regions.

As a next step, the Labour opposition should ask Prime Minister Theresa Mays government to sponsor a convention. If the government does not respond  as happened with the Scottish Constitutional Convention in 1989  Labour should lead the convention itself, and invite other political parties to participate. Constitutional reform is critical to develop institutions that meet the needs and aspirations of all parts of the UK. They cannot be delayed.

The UKs north-south divide raises issues common to all Western economies where movements promising to take back control for the people are forming, and a new identity politics is challenging moderate forces. We now must ask what surging nationalism and protectionism in an increasingly interdependent world mean for the way governments are structured.

The intellectual challenge that Britain has consistently sidestepped is how to balance autonomy with cooperation. With too much integration and centralization, calls for local control will only grow louder. If there is too little cooperation, we cannot solve economic and social challenges that require a collective approach. Only by getting the balance right can we begin to build a fairer, more united UK.

Copyright: Project Syndicate:The Disunited Kingdom

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28 November 2016 11:34 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

Azerbaijan Deposit Insurance Fund (ADIF) has so far paid compensations worth over 711.56 million manats ($409 million) to depositors of the recently closed Dekabank, Kredobank, Zaminbank, Parabank, Caucasus Development Bank, AtraBank, Bank of Azerbaijan, Ganjabank, Texnikabank and Bank Standard.

Banks Volume of paid compensations (million manats/ million USD) The share of compensation paid to the total amount of insured deposits (%) Bank Standard 424,79 96% Zaminbank 52,33 72% Dekabank 3,02 96% Kredobank 27,19 97%    1,93 92% Atrabank 14,22 97% Bank of Azerbaijan 24,15 97% Gandjabank 0,98 94% Texnikabank 120,08 98% Parabank 42,87 98%

The licenses of all the banks were revoked in 2016, as their assets were not classified in line with the law, and they didnt create adequate reserves and their aggregate capital did not meet the minimum requirements.

Some 32 banks are currently implementing their activities in the country.

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28 November 2016 11:48 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

The unique geographic location of Azerbaijan and the conditions created in the country, make it possible to become a major transit center.



Javid Gurbanov, Head of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC made the statement speaking at the Global Conference on Sustainable Transport in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan on November 27.

Gurbanov also spoke about Azerbaijan's economic successes and development of the transport sector, in spite of the occupation policy of Armenia towards Azerbaijan.

At the conference, Gurbanov held a bilateral meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister of Turkmenistan and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov.



The meeting discussed strengthening and expansion of relations between the two countries, as well as prospects of relations in the sphere of transport and transit opportunities.



The sides emphasized that cooperation in this sphere between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan has great prospects.

The Global Conference on Sustainable Transport was held in Ashgabat on November 26-27, in accordance with resolution 70/197 of the UN General Assembly on December 22, 2015 called "On the way to ensure full cooperation between all modes of transport in order to facilitate the creation of sustainable multi-modal transit corridors."

Today, the development of the transport sector is a priority for the Azerbaijani leadership.

Railways of Azerbaijan with access through the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway to Turkey made the most important link of the new Silk Road.

Moreover, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars and North-South projects contribute to the development of not only Azerbaijan but also the whole region. Today, BTK connects railways of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. However, in the future it is planned to connect railways of the Caucasus with the European railways

Earlier in May Azerbaijan signed a protocol about the joining of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC to the international railway project "Viking".

Combined transport train Viking started running in 2003. Participants in the project are Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, and in 2012 Bulgaria joined the project. The total length of the route Ilyichevsk (Ukraine) - Minsk (Belarus) - Draugyste (Lithuania) is 1,766 kilometers.

In February 2016, Ukraine and Lithuania signed a Memorandum on joining the container train Viking to the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route from Europe to China, passing through Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.

The participation of Azerbaijan Railways in the Viking project will allow extending the container train route to more distant Asian countries, an alternative route to reach Kazakhstan and China. It is expected that once Azerbaijan Railways joins the project, more freight will be transported to the Baltic region from Kazakhstan and China, and the new Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will be used to transport containers from Turkey to Ukrainian ports.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

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28 November 2016 17:41 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The next auction for privatization of state-owned properties will be held on December 27, Azerbaijan's State Committee on Property Issues reported on November 28.

A total of 115 objects of state property, including 24 joint-stock companies, 24 small enterprises and properties, 57 non-residential areas and 10 vehicles, will be offered to investors.

Most of small enterprises will be privatized together with the lands, on which they are located. These enterprises are located in Baku, Ganja, Sumgait, Shirvan, Lankaran, Balakan and other regions.

The objects put up for privatization include such enterprises as Mingachevir plant for production of sand and gravel, Sabunchu enterprise for trade and logistics, Tovuz enterprise of household services and others.

The most expensive ones among the auctioned objects will be the property complex in Balakan region with the cost of $822,000 and area of 37,602.5 square meters, non-residential areas in Binagadi ($270,000) and Sabail ($264,000) regions.

The third stage of privatization started in the framework of the decree dated May 19, 2016 by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on additional measures to improve the process of state property privatization, as well as the presidential Decree from July 19, 2016, on some measures to improve the management efficiency and accelerate privatization of state property.

Under the decree, the acceleration of the state property privatization process has been defined as an important direction of the economic policy.

The portal for privatization  privatization.az, launched in July 2016, reflects all necessary information about the facilities, their addresses, location, and even initial cost and aims at facilitation of the process. The website is available in two languages - Azerbaijani and English. Why Azerbaijan is special section available on the website explains the reasons and advantages of investing in the country.

The privatization process is designed to attract both foreign and local investors, as well as improve the business environment of Azerbaijan.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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28 November 2016 18:15 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

The construction of Star oil refinery plant owned by the Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR in Turkey required $3.9 billion so far.

Turkish media quoted General Director of the plant Ibrahim Palaz on November 28.

The total cost of the project is $5.7 billion, according to him.

"Some $3.3 billion of the total amount is financed by 23 banks. The loan agreement was concluded in a timely manner and on favorable terms, otherwise now a loan would have been 1.5 percent more expensive, which would mean an additional cost of $ 450 million. The project does not need additional financing," he said.

Palaz noted that construction work at the refinery is underway on schedule.

"Currently, the project is executed by 78.3 percent. Engineering work was carried out at 99.5 percent, the purchase by 95.5 percent and construction by 57.5 percent. The plant will be launched as planned, in April 2018," said Palaz.

The annual naphtha production volume, used by Petkim as the main raw material, will amount to 1.66 million tons at the STAR refinery.

Along with naphtha, the new oil refinery will produce diesel fuel with ultra-low sulfur to the amount of 5.95 million tons, aviation kerosene - 500,000 tons, reformate - 500,000 tons, petroleum coke - 630,000 tons, liquefied gas - 240,000 tons, mixed xylene - 415,000 tons, olefin LPG - 75,000 tons and 145,000 tons of sulfur. The refinery will not produce petrol and fuel oil.

It is planned to refine Azeri Light, Kerkuk and URALS oil at the plant.

At present, the share distribution in the project is as follows: 60 percent is owned by Rafineri Holding A.S. (100 percent owned by SOCAR Turkey Enerji A.S.), which had previously acquired all the remaining 18.5 percent share of Turcas Petrol in the project, and 40 percent belongs to SOCAR.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli



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28 November 2016 09:51 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

Isfar Sarabski, a masterful jazz pianist continues to astonish audiences worldwide.

A world-famous pianist could establish himself as one of the foremost jazz musicians and ink his name in the golden book of talented Azerbaijani youth.

A rich blend of music in his performance thrills up the souls of many music lovers. With an extraordinary sense of musical talent, Isfar Sarabski introduces Azerbaijan's rich musical heritage on different stages. For many times, his performances were accompanied by national folk instruments.

"We have a rich and unusual folklore, which seems incredible for public abroad. The audience enthusiastically applauded us. We have long past the days when nobody knew about Azerbaijan. Today our musicians share great scene with concerts in different countries, thus demonstrating our culture," said Sarabski.

"Many projects, including the synthesis of folk music with European have carried out by my colleagues. No doubt, it draws attention. We, as being art figures, are grateful to the Azerbaijani first lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva for providing of such opportunities," he added.

The City of Winds has always been devoted to jazz, even in the most difficult times of political and economic change. The East and the West musical traditions jointly sounds over decades. The most known type of Azerbaijani jazz is Jazz mugham, which includes a unique combination of Mugham and traditional American jazz.

Azerbaijani jazz has a very rich history, thanks to talented musicians and composers such as Rain Sultanov, Jamil Amirov, Salman Gambarov, as well as young genius such as Isfar Sarabski, Nurlan Novrasli, Emil Afrasiab, Elchin Shirinov and many more. A great deal of national performers are etched in the history of jazz music.

In his interview with Day.Az Sarabski stressed the development of Azerbaijani jazz over the past period..

"Azerbaijani jazz is developing year by year. It could be well seen from the international competitions, festivals, concerts of world famous jazz performers taking place in our country. Jazz has always taken a special place in our culture. Azerbaijan was announced a capital of this music genre once," said the musician.

Isfar Sarabski stressed the talent and outstanding skills of Azerbaijani people. This is not surprising. Ancient culture, gentle sun, charm of the East influenced a whole generation. An emerging of unique talents enrich the country's cultural life.

"We have extremely talented performers. A proof is the competition "I am a jazzman!", held in the framework of the Baku International Jazz festival. A while ago I also participated in this project, and now I'm a member of jury. The contestants are very young, so it's hard for me to judge who is the best. Any word can kill talent or give hope for the future. This is a very difficult job for me," said Sarabski.

The world-famous Azerbaijani pianist also spoke about his future plans. Indeed, his intelligence and hard work should be a huge inspiration for all musicians.

"Now I'm working on the album that I'm going to release this year. In addition, I have been invited to perform at concerts abroad," said the pianist.

"I spend all days long working in the studio. I usually play in different genres, trying to find something new. If you have a talent, you have to work hard to improve your skills and to become the best. I believe that people, even without much talent, but with great desire, could achieve tremendous results than those who rely only on their natural talent and does nothing for self-development," he added.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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28 November 2016 12:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

Baku hosted an event to mark the centenary of Nasiba Zeynalova, one of the most beloved Azerbaijani actresses.

Many prominent cultural and art figures paid tribute to the memory of the brilliant actress at the event held at Azerbaijans State Musical Theatre.

Prior to the event, guests enjoyed the photo stands reflecting the life and creative activity of Nasiba Zeynalova.

Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Adalat Valiyev, addressing the event, spoke about her life and career stressing the actress's great contribution to the development of national culture.

Azerpasha Nemat, the art director and director of the Azerbaijan Academic National Drama Theatre also spoke about the achievements of Nasiba Zeynalova and her contributions to the Azerbaijani theatre.

Later, the Union of Theatre Figures presented a book dedicated to the actress.

Then, a video of interview with famous actor and film director Yuli Gusman was presented. In his speech, Gusman named Nasiba Zeynalova a great actress, who brought a joy, and smile to people.

Yuli Gusman shared his memories of working with the actress in the movie "Don't be afraid, I am with you" where Nasiba Zeynalova played a cameo role.

When she was just 21, Nasiba Zeynalova already toured around Azerbaijan as part of a traveling theater group.

The legendary actress starred in 40 films and performed in dozens of plays, creating unforgettable images.

On the theatre stage, actress played the part of Jahan khala in the operetta Arsin mal alan, Sanam in O olmasin bu olsun, Kalak khanim and Malak khanim in Young at 50, Sharaf in Durna, Nargila in Gozun aydin, Zuleykha in Ulduz, Sola khanim in We know best, Asmat in Our home, our secret, Jannat in Mother-in-law, and others.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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28 November 2016 13:35 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

Truly one of the most diverse and colorful fashion shows - Azerbaijan Fashion Week -wrapped up.

The fashion show featured a number of spectacular catwalks.

The final day was remembered with a presentation of stunning outfits from such brands as SALLE DE MODE (Georgia), GUNAY MIRZA (Azerbaijan), JAMILYA MELIKOVA (Azerbaijan), ZHEREBTSOV (Kazakhstan) and LIBAS ATELIER (Azerbaijan)

Azerbaijan Fashion Week is held twice a year in November and May. More than 60 designers from Azerbaijan, Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, France and Spain participated in last three seasons.

The main purpose of the Week is to popularize growing fashion industry in Azerbaijan and give an opportunity to young and talented designers to show their work to the world. It's a place that gathers local and international buyers, press and fashion critics together.

The organizing committee of Azerbaijan Fashion Week announced winners of the contest held together with the Instituto Europeo di Design among young talents.

The winners were awarded certificates for summer classes. Moreover, they will join training in one of the most prestigious specialized universities  Instituto Europeo di Design in Italy.

Media partners of the event are Trend.az, Day.az, Milli.az, Azernews.az

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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28 November 2016 15:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Ismayilova

Baku Fashion Week ended leaving behind the series of memorable shows.

Bringing together famous designers from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan, the fashion show took place at Jumeirah Bilgah Beach Hotel.

It was a week full of inspirational designs, while all fashion collections were very unique and caught the attention of all the spectators.

The second day featured a collection of gorgeous outfits by one of the most famous Georgian designer Avtandil. The show continued with a gentle and bright collection from Azerbaijani brand "Nadit".

Then, visitors enjoyed a unique catwalk by Natavan Gallery, new Azerbaijani fashion house, which supports young talents and gives them an opportunity to present their work s at professional venues.

Amina Jafar, national designer from Georgia presented her collection of couture dresses.

Fascinating evening was closed with the collection of Turkish designer Rana by Lulu

The next day featured playful fashion collections by Azerbaijani designer Hokuma Hajiyeva and the jewelry house Levata Group.

A unique collection of jewelry "Zinet-i-Zishan" and stunning outfits from Turkish designer Selma Chilek inspire you to create your own style. Then, spectators enjoyed cozy collection from Family Look.

The fashion show will be ended with presentation of fashion collection from Ukrainian designers, Kriza and Couture de Fleur.

On the third day, fashionistas were thrilled with gorgeous collection by Uzbek label Sharq Liboslari. Besides, the fashion show featured new trends from the fashion house "The Black Dress" and Sol Atelier fashion brand.

Baku Fashion Week ended with the presentation of fashion collection by Azerbaijani brand "De Brett".

Baku Fashion Week was included in the calendar schedule of world Fashion Week, making Azerbaijan more recognizable among international designers and fashion lovers. Local designers and models will gradually reach world podiums and attract the interest overseas.

Media partners of the event are Trend.az, Day.az, Milli.az and Azernews.az

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

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28 November 2016 15:05 (UTC+04:00)

The OSCE monitoring held on the line of contact between the Azerbaijani and Armenian troops passed without incidents, Azerbaijans Defense Ministry reported on November 28.

The monitoring was held Nov. 28 under the mandate of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative on the line of contact near Azerbaijans Tartar city.

On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring was held by Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, the personal representative of the OSCE chairperson-in-office and his field assistant Jiri Aberle.

On the Azerbaijani territories occupied and controlled by Armenian armed forces, the monitoring was held by field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Ghenadie Petrica and Peter Svedberg.

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.
28 November 2016 10:05 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev offered condolences to Irans President Hassan Rouhani over heavy casualties caused by a railway crash in the country.

I was deeply saddened by the news of casualties caused by a railway crash in Semnan province, the president said.

On behalf of the people of Azerbaijan and on my own behalf, I extend my deep condolences to you, the families and loved ones of those who died and the people of Iran, and wish the injured soonest recovery, the president added. May Allah rest the souls of the dead in peace!

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28 November 2016 10:32 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Israels president Reuven Rivlin has met with members of the international group, which is engaged in extinguishing wildfires in the country, including the employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Azerbaijan, the ministry told Trend on November 27.

At the meeting Reuven Rivlin expressed appreciation for the courage shown in fighting the wildfires, the ministry said.

In accordance with the order of Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev, amphibious aircraft BE-200CS is helping to extinguish the wildfires in Israel.

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28 November 2016 11:40 (UTC+04:00)

The Internet portal In Azerbaijan (http://inazerbaijan.co.uk/) initiated by the Council of State Support to Non-Governmental Organizations under the Azerbaijani President (The NGO Council) was launched in the capital of the Great Britain.

The presentation ceremony took place at the Embassy of Azerbaijan in the Great Britain and was attended by the staff of Embassy, representatives of local youth associations and students.

Polad Mammadov, the first secretary of embassy, speaking at the presentation, underlined the importance of similar initiatives, saying that the project being realized by the organization NO Collective, would promote expansion of relations between the societies of the two countries.

Then, the NO Collective's Natalie Bais, speaking about the launch of the UK's first web portal dedicated to Azerbaijan, informed about the goal of the portal, its future works and workshops around the history, culture, tourism potential of Azerbaijan, its socio-political life , as well as interactive educational data and correspondence between the youth of both countries.

NO is a social collective that bases its performative works and workshops on investigating micro-cultures and introducing humorous artwork to a mass of seemingly un-interested viewers.

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28 November 2016 11:47 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has left for Azerbaijan on a two-day official visit, BelTa news agency reported.

The aircraft with the Belarusian head of state on board departed from Minsk National Airport.

Lukashenko is set to meet with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev for face-to-face talks and expanded-participation negotiations.

The two leaders are expected to discuss the state and prospects of advancing Belarusian-Azerbaijani relations, including trade and economic cooperation, work on joint cooperation projects, interaction in the area of investments, agribusiness, and sport.

A number of international documents will be signed after the talks. The Belarusian head of state is also expected to meet with Azerbaijani Prime Minister Artur Rasizade.

Alexander Lukashenko paid official visits to Azerbaijan in 2007, 2010 and 2013. In June 2015 the head of state paid a working visit to Azerbaijan to attend the First European Games opening ceremony.

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28 November 2016 13:38 (UTC+04:00)

By Rashid Shirinov

The issues of the cooperation in education and science were key topics of the conference entitled State and prospects of cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan in education, science and cultural fields opened in Baku on November 28.

The conference was timed to the visit of Russias Minister of Education Olga Vasilyeva to Azerbaijan. The event brought together state and government officials, representatives of the Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences (ANAS) and rectors of higher schools.

Azerbaijan's Education Minister Mikayil Jabbarov, addressing the event, spoke of cooperation in the field of education, emphasizing the importance of further expansion of bilateral ties between the two countries.

Azerbaijan at the state level pays great attention to the study of Russian language and literature. A total of 90,000 students receive education in Russian language in secondary schools of the country, Jabbarov said.

He noted that branches of two prestigious Russian universities  Lomonosov Moscow State University and Sechenov State Medical University were established in Baku with the support of the government.

The minister particularly noted the role of Russian-Azerbaijani Association for education, which is a good platform for interactions between universities of the two countries, as well as for the successful implementation of joint projects in the field of education.

Our countries are pursuing diversification of the economy, so, training of specialists in this sphere is of special importance, Jabbarov added.

Russias Minister of Education, in turn, said her country is interested in development of cooperation in education with Azerbaijan, as well as in exchange of experience in training.

The Russian minister appreciated the interest in the study and preservation of the Russian language in Azerbaijan. Increase by five percent in the number of wishing to study Russian language in Azerbaijan in 2016 is a positive factor, she noted.

Vasilyeva mentioned that about 14,000 Azerbaijanis receive education in Russian universities, 970 of which study under the quota provided by Russia.

A total of 351 people will be adopted by quota in this academic year. The numbers are impressive, but we will continue developing and coordinating our efforts in this sphere with the Azerbaijani Ministry of Education, said Vasilyeva.

Vasilyeva further spoke about the opening of the Derbent branch of Azerbaijan State Economic University, naming it a significant event.

This is the first foreign university in the territory of the Russian Federation. We hope that the activities of the branch will be effective in all respects.

Vasilyeva also informed about the plan to establish a joint Russian-Azerbaijani University of Agricultural Sciences.

The second proposal of the Russian side is about the opening in Azerbaijan a branch of university for people with physical disabilities, the minister added.

The sides also plan to create joint manuals, as well as to open under the branch of Moscow State University in Baku an additional group or a small department on learning Russian language as a foreign language, said the Russian minister.

Azerbaijan and Russia are tied by firmly based relations, which were officially established in 1992. The cultural relations between the two countries are highly evaluated. A Year of Azerbaijan was declared in 2005 in Russia, and 2006 was the Year of Russia in Azerbaijan. During these two years, the two countries held 110 special cultural events. Although Azerbaijan gained independence from USSR in 1990s, learning and speaking Russian language remain welcome in the Azerbaijani society.

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Rashid Shirinov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @RashidShirinov

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28 November 2016 14:36 (UTC+04:00)

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko embarked on an official visit to Azerbaijan on November 28, Azertac reported.

A guard of honor was arranged for the President at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport decorated with the national flags of the two countries.

The Belarussian leader Nicolas Maduro was welcomed by Azerbaijani Deputy Premier Yagub Eyyubov and other officials.

Lukashenko is set to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for face-to-face talks and expanded-participation negotiations.

The two leaders are expected to discuss the state and prospects of advancing Belarusian-Azerbaijani relations, including trade and economic cooperation, work on joint cooperation projects, interaction in the area of investments, agribusiness, and sport.

A number of international documents will be signed after the talks. The Belarusian head of state is also expected to meet with Azerbaijani Prime Minister Artur Rasizade.

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29 November 2016 10:20 (UTC+04:00)

An official welcoming ceremony was held for President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, who is on an official visit in Azerbaijan on November 28, Azertac reported.

A guard of honor was set up for the Belarus President in the square decorated with the national flags of the two countries.

The chief of the guard of honor reported to President Aliyev.

President Ilham Aliyev greeted President Alexander Lukashenko.

The chief of the guard of honor reported to the Belarus President. Then, the state anthems of Belarus and Azerbaijan were played.

President Aliyev and President Lukashenko reviewed the guard of honor. The Belarus President saluted the Azerbaijani soldiers.

State and government officials of Azerbaijan were introduced to President Alexander Lukashenko, and members of the Belarus delegation were introduced to President Ilham Aliyev.

The guard of honor marched in front of President Ilham Aliyev and President Alexander Lukashenko to the accompaniment of a military march.

The presidents then posed for official photos.

Following the official welcoming ceremony, President Ilham Aliyev and President Alexander Lukashenko have held a one-on-one meeting.

After the one-on-one meeting, Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Alexander Lukashenko have held a meeting in an expanded format with the participation of delegations.

Following the expanded format meeting of delegations of the presidents a ceremony for signing of Azerbaijani-Belarusian documents was held.



After the ceremony for signing the Azerbaijani-Belarusian documents, the two presidents made statements for press.

A ceremony to present Heydar Aliyev Order to President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko was held at the same day.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev addressed the event.

Then the head of state presented Heydar Aliyev Order to President Alexander Lukashenko.

The President of Belarus made a speech at the ceremony.
28 November 2016 18:05 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Following the initiatives of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Azerbaijani embassy in Brazil, publications of the Foundation about Azerbaijan were presented to the Brazilian Senates library named after academician Luiz Viana Filho in the Brazilian Federal Senates building, with the support of Senator Cristovam Buarque, the president of the Brazil-Azerbaijan friendship group at the Brazilian Senate.

During a presentation held with participation of Brazilian parliaments members, ambassadors of foreign countries, and representatives of the local society, information was given about the projects implemented by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in Azerbaijan and around the world in such spheres as science, education, culture, sports, social spheres, environment and others.

Speaking about the Foundations publications about Azerbaijan that have been presented to the Brazilian Senates library, Azerbaijans Ambassador to Brazil Elnur Sultanov said that this event was another contribution to the relations between Azerbaijan and Brazil.

He emphasized historical services of founding father of the modern Azerbaijan, national leader Heydar Aliyev, and noted that Azerbaijan has been developing successfully under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev.

Sultanov noted that significant projects have been implemented in various spheres, including towards promoting Azerbaijans culture around the world, advocating dialogue between cultures and religions, under the leadership of President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva.

Noting education as one of the priority directions in Azerbaijan, the ambassador brought to attention that literacy in Azerbaijan is at a level of 100 percent, and that over 3,000 new schools have been built in recent years.

He thanked Senator Cristovam Buarque for the support provided in the organization of the event and his contribution to widening of bilateral relations.

Touching upon the cooperation with the Brazilian Congress, Sultanov emphasized the significance of the official trip to Azerbaijan of a delegation led by Rodrigo Maia, president of Brazils Chamber of Deputies, on Oct. 30  Nov. 2.

Senator Cristovam Buarque, for his part, thanked the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the embassy for the publications about Azerbaijan.

Speaking about Azerbaijans ancient history and rich culture, the senator touched upon Azerbaijans development in various spheres, including its achievements in the field of education.

Buarque said that he was fascinated by the rich literary creativity and progressive ideas of Azerbaijans great poet and thinker Nizami Ganjavi.

He also noted that becoming familiarized with the works created by the poet eight centuries ago is of significance.

The senator added that he had translated the book Nizami Ganjavi. Aphorisms of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation into the Portuguese language.

Buarque expressed his confidence that the publications presented by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation will play a matchless role in conveying information about Azerbaijan to Brazilian readers.

During the event, Ambassador Elnur Sultanov presented to director of Brazilian Senates library Helena Celeste Vieira the certificate on granting the Foundations publications about Azerbaijan to the library.

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28 November 2016 20:17 (UTC+04:00)

Head of the Baku branch of Lomonosov Moscow State University, corresponding member of Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Professor Nargiz Pashayeva has met with rector of Moscow State University, Academician Viktor Sadovnichy. The meeting was held at the Fundamental Library of Moscow State University.

They discussed the issues relating to the establishment of the faculty of physics, which is the sixth faculty at the Baku branch of Lomonosov Moscow State University. Professor Pashaeva emphasized that the Physics Department of Moscow State Universitys Baku branch has five laboratories - Mechanics, Molecular Physics and Thermodynamics, Electricity and Magnetism, Optics and Atomic and Nuclear Physics.

They also highlighted the issues related to the educational process, prospects for the development and expansion of the activities of MSU Baku branch in the coming years and the establishment of a branch of the Scientific Center, which will cover fundamental research areas in the field of physics, chemistry and mathematics.

Professor Pashayeva said the opening of this Scientific Center will contribute to the development and growth of the scientific potential of students, undergraduates, graduate students, young researchers and combine the process of research and training of students. The Center will also serve as a good platform for cooperation between the scientists of Azerbaijan and Russia in the field of physics, chemistry and mathematics.

Professor Nargiz Pashayeva expressed deep gratitude to Academician Viktor Sadovnichy for assistance in developing the MSU Baku branch, including the opportunity for graduates to continue their education at Moscow State University.

They also addressed the issues of cooperation between the MSU Baku branch and high-status foreign universities, in particular the University of Oxford. Professor Pashaeva highlighted the activities of the Nizami Ganjavi Scientific Center (http://www.orinst.ox.ac.uk/research/nizami-ganjavi/home), which was founded at the University of Oxford in 2013. She stressed that the Nizami Ganjavi Center implements important long-term researches on historical heritage and culture of Azerbaijan, and also hosts conferences, lectures and discussions, conducts various training programs at the international academic level.

Nargiz Pashayeva also spoke about the British Fund. She emphasized that the fund was set up given the growing professional scientific interest in Azerbaijan and the Caucasus region in the United Kingdom and regular consultations with a number of British scientists, public figures and politicians (http://production.bfsac.org.uk/) in UK. The Fund aims to promote academic projects and fundamental researches on Azerbaijan as well as to enhance cultural and social ties.

Before the meeting, Professor Pashayeva and Academician Sadovnichy viewed an exhibition featuring a collection of paintings by Russian collector Malkevich. The collection was donated to Moscow State University by Expocenter Central Exhibition in Moscow and is now on display at the Fundamental Library of the university. The collection features about 300 works by great Russian painters Shishkin, Polenov, Savrasov, Levitan, Benua and others.

Professor Pashayeva also viewed exhibits the History Museum of Moscow State University, which was founded by MSU rector Sadovnichy in 1995. At present, the History Museum houses 3,500 exhibits and an extensive photo library.

This museum also exhibits a reduced scale model of Russian satellite Mikhail Lomonosov designed to study of transient light phenomena of the upper atmosphere of the Earth, radiating characteristics of the Earth's magnetosphere.

At the end of the meeting, Professor Pashayeva expressed gratitude to Academician Viktor Sadovnichy for the warm welcome and support of all the endeavors of the MSU Baku branch. Rector of Moscow State University Viktor Sadovnichy wished the MSU Baku branch and its rector Nargiz Pashayeva success. He also expressed his intention to visit the Baku branch next year.

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28 November 2016 13:06 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

BP and its partners in Azerbaijani oil and gas projects together with the Azerbaijani Economy Ministry extended the implementation of the local business development program for two more years.

BP Azerbaijan Vice President Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli, announced about this while addressing the event on the program in Baku on November 28, noting that the main goal of the program is to give momentum to the development of the countrys business potential.

This programme has been in the core of all our efforts aimed at supporting local companies and businesses, he said.



"Since the programme was launched in 2007 around 2000 local small- and medium-size enterprises, representing a wide range of sectors and industries, have participated in it. Around 200 of them have completed the full course, learning how they can demonstrate progressive performance through growth, development and improvement," Aslanbayli added. Thanks to the program realization, a number of the companies which participated in it, signed contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars with numerous clients.

He went on to say that BP and its partners are interested in active participation of local companies in their operations and projects in the region.

Legislative requirements have changed over time, Aslanbayli said. We have decided to extend the implementation of the program by two years and bring it in accordance with the modern standards and requirements. Azerbaijani Ekvita service consulting company will deal with the program implementation.

BP and its co-venturers are interested in increasing local participation in our operations and projects, according to him. "Our regional strategy has always had one clear target among many others  to assist Azerbaijan-based companies in developing their businesses," he said.

Aslanbayli further noted that during the next two years over one million manats (about $574.665) will be spent for the implementation of this program.

Managing partner at Ekvita Ilgar Mehti, speaking at the event said that the program is implemented only for the Azerbaijani companies.

"Joining it is free. Preference will be given to certain sectors. The program is not limited to oil and gas sector. During the project development program of business skills will be applied," he said.

Aslanbayli then added that the programme continues to be an opportunity for local businesses and companies from all sectors of the economy to learn, develop their capacity and focus on improvement. "It also remains an excellent opportunity to reach international standards and compete for supply contracts in all industries including the oil and gas industry," he said.

In turn, Deputy Minister of Economy Sahib Mammadov said that Azerbaijan is exploring new markets for the supply of its products.

"Azerbaijan produces competitive and export oriented products. If earlier we talked about the security of the domestic market, then now, thanks to the economic policies the country produces very competitive and export-oriented products. Enterprisers, meeting international standards are created, he said.

Mammadov stressed that the president pays special attention to the development of entrepreneurship.

"The economic processes taking place in the world also impacted Azerbaijan.

But thanks to the head of state policy we show resistance to these processes. We understand that we need flexible arrangements and need to speed up the process of development of business in the country, he noted.

Within the framework of the economic reforms, the country began the implementation of important projects, he said.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli



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28 November 2016 15:42 (UTC+04:00)

There are chances for the OPEC agreement on oil production cut, but its impact on oil prices will depend on the volume of cut, Arthur Berman, an independent US geological consultant with about 40 years of experience in petroleum exploration and production believes.

I think that OPEC will reach some kind of agreement this week. There is considerable economic pressure on Saudi Arabia for higher margins to meet its fiscal budget requirements, Berman told Trend by email.

The expert also noted that if OPEC ever had a strategy to stop the oil production in the US, it has not been overly successful. He reminded that US tight oil producers especially in the Permian basin have had ample access to capital especially when prices reach very low levels and investors see price upside.

Berman noted that in the past, Iran has been an obstacle to the OPEC agreement, but realistically, it cannot increase its production much more than it already has, without considerable investment in infrastructure and new drilling.

As for Iraq, it critically needs prices at or higher than current levels to maintain their fight against ISIS and to satisfy their budget needs, according to Berman.

The analyst also noted that Russia must be part of any agreement on oil production and it has signaled willingness to at least freeze the present output levels.

Meanwhile the expert stressed that OPEC is not a united front and has never been especially effective at assuring compliance among its members to past agreements. He reminded that production in Nigeria, Venezuela and Libya has decreased in the past few years due to civil unrests and economic problems.

Of the three, Nigeria is more likely to increase output while Libya's and Venezuela's problems are more systemic and long-lived, he said.

Commenting on OPEC agreements impact on oil prices, Berman noted that the agreement would increase prices by perhaps a few dollars although the market has already accommodated a few dollars into present prices in expectation of an agreement.

A lot depends on how much OPEC actually cuts, given the range that has been discussed, he said, adding that the current world production surplus is at least 1 million bpd and has shown little sustained momentum toward market balance.

According to OPECs November forecast, the world oil demand in 2016 will reach 94.4 million barrels per day. The world oil production in October, according to OPEC data, was 96.32 million barrels per day. Some 35 percent of the world liquids production comes from OPEC countries.

If the OPEC cut approaches 1 million bpd, prices will stay higher longer but if the cut is only a few hundred thousand barrels per day, higher prices will be less durable, Berman said.

The expert also noted that the US production has stopped declining and rig counts in the US tight oil plays have increased almost 20 percent since mid-September.

Higher prices will provide incentive for higher levels of production [in the US], he said.

In late September, OPEC agreed to cut its oil output for the first time since 2008. The group plans to reduce output to 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from current production of 33.24 million bpd. How much each country will produce is to be decided at the next formal meeting of OPEC on November 30.

Moreover OPEC officials were scheduled to meet with non-members including Russia on Nov. 28, but the meeting was cancelled last week after the Saudis decided not to take part. Saudi Arabia wants an OPEC deal in place before conversations with other producers such as Russia, one OPEC delegate told Bloomberg.

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28 November 2016 12:32 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

First section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Tajikistan (TAT) railway has been commissioned.

President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, addressing the ceremony to commission the railways first section on November 28, said that TAT opening provides ample opportunities for the countries of the region, as well as Europe, Asia, and the Pacific.

An 85-kilometer rail line has been constructed in Turkmenistan in the first stage of the project.

Berdimuhamedov further said the new rail line will contribute to development of economic cooperation between the neighboring countries and facilitate the supply of goods to Azerbaijan, China, India, countries in Europe and other regions.

New rail and road bridges will also be opened across the Amu Darya River in the coming days.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, in turn, said the new railway revives the Silk Road and will turn into an important transport corridor to Europe, the Pacific, and Asia.

During the ceremony, the two presidents also attended the opening of a railway terminal for the transit, storage and shipping of oil products. The terminal will make it possible to load 2,000 tons of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel per day into tankers.

The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Tajikistan (TAT) Railway, with an overall length of 400 km, is an important link in the international transport operations between the countries of Central Asia.

The TAT railway, with an estimated cost of $1.5-2 billion, is being developed as part of the Central Asia Regional Cooperation Program.

The project holds significant importance for creating new regional and inter-regional transport and communication corridors in Turkmenistan and is of strategic, political and economic importance for all participating countries.

Afghanistan shares long borders with Turkmenistan and Tajikistan (750 and 1,300 kilometers respectively).

Experts say the trade between Afghanistan and Tajikistan grew to $130 million in the last ten years. This trans-regional railroad project is likely to increase trade turnover even more.

The TAT railway project is expected to be fully operational by 2018.

The Turkmen Economy Ministry earlier reported that China, Iran, and Kyrgyzstan had expressed the interest in the TAT railway project at the start of its construction.

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Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

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28 November 2016 14:55 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

Kazakhstan will provide a platform to discuss Iran's nuclear program in 2017, said Yerlan Idrisov, Kazakh Foreign Minister.

The next September, we will provide a platform for the two-round negotiations on the nuclear program that will be a platform to reach peace and agreement between the six countries [P5+1] and Iran, noted Idrissov addressing a conference dedicated to the 25th anniversary of Kazakhstans independence, RIA Novosti reported.

The official also stated that as a country, refusing nuclear weapon of the former Soviet Union, Kazakhstan continues its efforts to ensure nuclear security both in the region and the world.

Iran and the world powers concluded a historical deal on the resolution of a long-simmering problem on Irans nuclear program in Mid-2015.

The negotiations held since 2006 resulted in the adoption of JCPOA which limits Iran's capacity to manufacture a nuclear weapon in exchange for relief from certain economic and financial sanctions previously imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council, the U.S., and the EU.

Under this agreement, Iran agreed to eliminate its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium enriched, cut its stockpile of low-enriched uranium by 98%, reduce the number of its gas centrifuges by about two-thirds for 13 years and for the next 15 years, Iran will only enrich uranium up to 3.67%.

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Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

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28 November 2016 14:47 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

The Legislative Chamber of Uzbekistans Parliament has adopted a law on combating corruption, the information service of the Legislative Chamber reported on November 28.

Acting Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev submitted a draft law on combating corruption to the Legislative Chamber as a legislative initiative in mid-October.

The law is aimed at a comprehensive legislative regulation of relations in the fight against corruption, improving the efficiency of anti-corruption measures implemented by state authorities, organizations and institutions of civil society, as well as the complete elimination of corruption in all spheres of social life, creation of intolerable situation towards all its manifestations in society by raising legal awareness and legal culture of citizens.

Adoption of the law will create additional legal guarantees to protect the rights and freedoms of citizens, will contribute to the protection from illegal encroachments on private property rights, undue interference in the activities of businesses, and as a consequence, will ensure the growth of business activity and will increase the investment attractiveness of the country, according to the report.

In accordance with the set procedures, the law on combating corruption has been submitted for consideration to the upper chamber of the Uzbek Parliament, the Senate.

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28 November 2016 15:25 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

Turkey has called on Russia to fully lift all restrictions on supplies of Turkish goods to the Russian market.

"It is necessary to lift all existing restrictions, imposed to reduce Turkish exports of food and agricultural products," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told TASS on November 28, in the run-up to the visit of Russias Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Turkey.

"Also, it is necessary to lift sectoral restrictions against Turkish companies and entrepreneurs (who forfeited the opportunity to work because of sanctions), Cavusoglu said, adding that he considers it important to "reopen the door for operations of cargo companies," which were also affected by the crisis between the two countries.

Russia banned imports of bell pepper, pomegranates, aubergines, lettuce, Iceberg lettuce, marrows and pumpkins from Turkey due to phytosanitary considerations in spring 2016 after the worsening of Ankara-Moscow ties in late 2015.

Prior to that Russia restricted imports of oranges, tangerines, grapes, apples, pears, apricots, peaches and nectarines, plums, wild strawberries, strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, cauliflower, broccoli, yellow onions, as well as frozen turkey and chicken from Turkey.

In October after the talks between the two countries presidents, the Russian government decided to allow on its market a number of Turkish agricultural products, including citrus. The embargo was lifted in respect of fresh and dried oranges and tangerines, fresh apricots, peaches and nectarines, plums and thorns.

Moreover, Cavusoglu stressed that all visa restrictions between Turkey and Russia should be lifted.

"If visa-free travel is resumed, it will have a positive impact on bilateral relations since the official contacts between our countries have been stepped up, and trade, tourism, and investment cooperation has been growing," he said.

The Turkish FM believes to develop relations, both countries should exert efforts and be creative.

Cavusoglu pointed out that Turkey and Russia had been intensifying mutual contacts lately."This week, I will be meeting with my dear counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Antalya. After that, our Prime Minister Binali Yildirim will visit Moscow upon the invitation of his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev. Next year the two countries leaders will hold another meeting," he added.

The minister mentioned that Turkey expects these contacts to facilitate the normalization of bilateral relations and help advance cooperation.

"We should not speak about how to return our relations to the pre-crisis level. We should discuss how to develop them further and bring them to new heights," Cavusoglu said.

Turkey and Russia are not just neighbors but are ages-old countries, which have together defined the "rhythm of movement in Eurasian geography for many centuries..

Relations between Turkey and Russia broke down for about seven months after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane in November 2015. However, relations have improved since the August meeting of the two presidents.

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Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

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28 November 2016 17:56 (UTC+04:00)

By Gunay Hasanova

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has ordered creation of a committee to monitor the implementation of a new model of oil contracts.

The Committee will be headed by Mohammed Faruzade, ex-Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), IRNA News Agency reported on November 28.

The Committee will monitor the implementation of the new oil contracts with foreign companies, proposed by the Ministry of Oil.

The contracts were designed specifically to increase the attractiveness of Iranian oil projects for foreign investors. Iran was engaged in the development of a new model of oil contracts, also known as Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC) for the past 3 years.

The IPC is considered to be a cornerstone of the country's plan to raise crude production to the pre-sanctions level of four million barrels per day. The contract will allow foreign companies to resume their operations in Iran, following years of sanctions that have profoundly affected Iran's energy sector, restrained its production and export of oil and gas.

Under the IPC, different stages of exploration, development, and production will be offered to contractors as an integrated package, with the emphasis laid on enhanced and improved recovery.

Iran signed the first agreement based on IPC on October 4. The Oil Ministry signed a $2.2 billion worth agreement with Tadbiri Energy Group, affiliated with the Execution of Imam Khomeini's Order Company (EIKO), which will be responsible for increasing the recovery rate of three fields (Yaran, Kupal and Marun) within a short period of time.

Before sanctions were ratcheted up in 2012, Iran was producing over 4 million barrels of oil per day. When those sanctions were lifted in early 2016, production in the country went from 2.8 mbd up to 3.5 mpd.

The country seeks to achieve the level of 4.8 million barrels per day by 2021.

Tehran currently needs some $200 billion of foreign investments for developing its upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas projects. The bulk of the new investments is planned to be attracted through IPCs.

Iran has 27 oil and gas reserves which it jointly shares with its neighbors. The shared fields roughly account for 30 percent of the countrys gas reserves as well as 20 percent of its oil reserves.

---

Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Despite the fact that homosexual sex is legal between consenting adults in Indonesia the radical group The Islam Defenders Front (FPI) raided a private gathering in an apartment complex in South Jakarta on Saturday and forced 13 arrests, at what they believed to be a gay sex party.

A 50-strong FPI mob shouting Allahu Akbar swarmed the Kalibata City apartment complex and forced local police to detain the men, whom they found shirtless and playing games The Jakarta Post reports.

The FPI were tipped off about the event via a circulated invitation and seized upon it as a chance to punish what they deem to be immoral behaviour.

FPI members boasted about the arrests on Twitter, including a photo of the detained men alongside claims they had successfully broken up the gay sex party.

With little to no retribution from the Indonesian government or police, the hardline group has gradually become more vocal and dangerous towards minority groups such as Hindus, smaller Islamic sects and the LGBT community.

In recent years members have committed violent attacks on the Ahmadiyah community, smashed up sinful bars for selling alcohol during the holy month of Ramadan and held protests that forced Lady Gaga to cancel the Jakarta leg of her tour amid safety fears.

Indonesias Association of Psychiatrists this year claimed being LGBT was a mental disorder and gay emojis were banned from popular messaging apps such as Whatsapp in February.

Source: Pink News

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Bakersfield, CA (93308)

Today

Sunshine to start, then a few afternoon clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High near 60F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Rain likely. Low 47F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 80%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch.
A tow truck driver was hit and killed while helping a stranded motorist on I-275 near Fowler Avenue early Sunday morning.

According to reports, Danny Hand, 42, died Sunday

Hand was working as a tow truck driver

Authorities say Leandro Perez hit Hand while driving under the influence



Danny Hand, 42, of New Port Richey was working for Crockett's Towing and Recovery Service.



The Florida Highway patrol said he had parked his tow truck -- with the caution lights activated -- on the shoulder of the road. While he was working on the stranded vehicle, another vehicle, driven by Leandro Perez, left the road and hit him.



Perez is being charged with DUI manslaughter.



Tow truck drivers call it a 'devastating loss.'



"This young man is dead," said Ginger Darling, a tow truck driver who advocates for safety in the industry. "He's not coming back. He was on until 10 this morning and now he's on forever. We're going to drag his chains for him and we're going to take care of his family as best we can."



She said they will keep pushing for more public awareness about 'Move Over' laws and tougher penalties for drunk drivers.



"Think of the damage you're doing, think of the heartache you're causing," she said.



Hand's friends describe him as a "fun guy".



"He was always joking around and playing, willing to help anybody, he'd give you the shirt off his back," said Shannon Cottrell.



Cottrell said Hand enjoyed being a tow truck driver because he liked to help people.



"You know, he loved to do his job by the book, didn't skip corners anywhere," she said. "I loved him with all my heart."



Tampa Bay area tow truck drivers are attaching black ribbons to their truck's to show their grief.



Hand is the third tow truck driver to be killed on the job this year in Hillsborough County.



Roger Perez-Boroto was killed in February and Troy McGuire died in October.


The man who attacked nine people with a knife and a car Monday was an 18-year-old Ohio State University student, according to law enforcement officials.

Witness said attacker had a large knife at Ohio State University

Attacker had 'crazy look in his eyes,' says witness



People on campus were urged to 'Run Hide Fight'



Officials identified the student as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, an 18-year-old of Somali descent. The man lived in the area and was using a car registered to a family member.

A U.S. official said Artan was a legal permanent resident.

The attack on campus included stabbings with a large knife and a car that was used to ram into people, said Ben Johnson, a spokesman for Ohio State University.

The victims are expected to recover.

An eyewitness explained in detail what he saw of the attack has it happened.



"He pulled a large knife and started chasing people around, trying to attack them," 20-year-old Ohio State University student Jacob Bower said. "Luckily, there were so many people, he couldn't focus on one target. I didn't see anyone get stabbed, but I saw the police officer take down the stabber. He waited till everyone was clear, and the stabber clearly wasn't stopping. (It) took three shots to take him down. (The) stabber had a crazy look in his eyes."

The Monday morning attack left nine people hospitalized and a suspect dead.

OSU Emergency management tweeted at 11:30 a.m. that the "scene is now secure" and the shelter-in-place alert had been lifted.



UPDATE 1/2 : Shelter in Place lifted. Scene is now secure. ALL classes are canceled on Columbus campus for the remainder of the day.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

Columbus Fire Department stated that nine people were hospitalized after the attack.

Classes at the campus were canceled for the remainder of Monday.

"A suspect has been shot and reported deceased. Victim injuries include stab wounds, injury by motor vehicle and other injuries that are being evaluated," the university stated.

Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

Earleri Monday, a tweet from OSU Emergency Management said there was an active shooter on the campus in Columbus and to "Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College." Only later was it learned that it was a man with a knife.



Watts Hall is a materials science and engineering building.

"Run, hide, fight'' is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; Hide, get silently out of view; or Fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.

Campus newspaper The Lantern reported that a bomb squad was on scene in addition to fire rescue and officers.



Police have told Lantern staff to steer clear from Woodruff. pic.twitter.com/IHApeAEr5V  The Lantern (@TheLantern) November 28, 2016

Anthony Falzarano, 22, told CNN he was in class at the time of the shooting.

"We heard a lot of sirens. I was in class and everyone got a text message at the same time for the emergency alert," he told CNN. "Someone said they heard popping right before we got the alert, but I didn't hear it. We are in a shelter-in-place right now in the building next door.

"There's a lot of police and fire trucks and an ambulance outside the building," he said.

Ohio State University's main campus is one of the largest in the U.S. The university has more than 65,000 students.

Information from CNN and the Associated Press was used in this report.
Describing a climate of worldwide fear and mistrust, Dictionary.com has chosen "xenophobia" as its word of the year for 2016.

'Xenophobia' is Dictionary.com's 2016 word of the year

Searches for the word spiked during Brexit, US election



Xenophobia is defined by the website as "fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures, or strangers."

The word entered the English language in the late 1800s, according to Dictionary.com. It's derived from the Greek words "xenos," which means stranger, guest, and "phobos," meaning fear, panic.

The website said events such as the "Brexit" vote, the Syrian refugee crisis, the U.S. presidential race and law enforcement violence against people of color inspired the pick, along with high numbers of people looking up the word.

On June 24, the website reported a 938 percent increase in lookups for the word "xenophobia," it said. That was the day United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, colloquially known as the "Brexit."
20-ft Surf on Oregon Coast Prompts Advisory

Published 11/27/2016 at 5:13 PM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Oregon Coast)  Big, spectacular but dangerous: that's what's in store for the Oregon coast Monday and Tuesday, as a high surf advisory is issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) in Portland. The advisory is in effect from noon Monday to 1 a.m. Tuesday, bringing 20-foot waves to beaches, and continuing with some fairly high waves through the week. (Above: Cape Kiwanda in a storm).

Seas building to around 20 feet with a dominant period of 16 to 20 seconds Monday afternoon and evening, the NWS said. Energy will be out of the west, northwest.

The NWS said the impacts of this kind of surf could include sizable beach erosion and large, dangerous sneaker waves. This is not a time to be out on most beaches of the Oregon coast.

Sneaker waves run considerably higher up the beach than regular waves and can easily knock people and pets off their feet and drag them out to sea.

A dominant period in wave height for marine forecasts refers to the time between the largest waves. If the time is short, this generally means rougher conditions while at sea. But if it is a long period like the 16 to 20 seconds in this forecast, it means these waves are bigger when they hit the beach, and there will be more of the larger waves.

There are two different predictions coming from NWS about the rest of the week. One says seas will drop to around 10 feet after Tuesday night, but another indicates combined seas will remain up around 19 or 20 feet through Wednesday, then dropping to around a still-sizable 13 to 15 feet on Thursday and Friday.

Interestingly enough, there are some small minus tides coming up, mixed with fairly large high tides. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday will see high tides around eight feet in many places around the Oregon coast  just before or after noon on those days. But there are tiny minus tides around 6 pm on Monday, and a bit later on Tuesday and Wednesday. Unfortunately, it will be dark by then.

The general weather forecast on Monday and Tuesday on the beaches is for a good amount of winds that can be uncomfortable at times, but mostly cloudy with some occasional sun breaks.

This means there should be large, spectacular waves from Monday through Wednesday, with the largest around noon on Monday and Tuesday. There will likely be somewhat big wave action through Friday, with rocky spots like Yachats, Depoe Bay, Cape Kiwanda and some areas south of Cannon Beach especially wild.

Stay off jetties at all times  no matter what the weather. During the high surf advisory for Monday, stay clear of smaller beaches like Hug Point, Gleneden Beach, Oceanside and parts of Newport and Lincoln City. Broader beaches may be safer, such as those at Seaside, Cannon Beach, Newport's Agate Beach and the larger sections of Lincoln City. See weather and tide tables. Oregon Coast Hotels for this - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours

















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Beaumont's commercial and political connections to Cuba and Fidel Castro, its onetime "maximum" leader who died Friday, span decades.

Until an economic embargo put in place in 1962 and still in effect, Beaumont-made Sunset Rice was popular among Cubans who loved American-grown long-grain rice in dishes like "congri" or "Moros y Cristianos."

Louis Broussard Jr., president of Beaumont Rice Mills Inc., traveled to Havana in 1999 with a delegation of American rice executives led by then-U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson, D-Beaumont, to try to find an opening to sell rice.

"On our last night there, we'd gone out to dinner and were going back to our hotel. When we got there, we were taken immediately to Fidel's house and he spoke to us in English at a reception," Broussard said.

It was around midnight, reportedly the time Castro liked to do business.

The delegation was served a seven-course meal, Broussard said. Castro spoke to the Americans in Spanish through a translator for the next two to three hours.

"He did most of the talking," Broussard said. "He was a very personable guy. He was tall, wore his green fatigues, just like you'd see in older pictures of him."

>> See photos from throughout Fidel Castro's life in the gallery above

Broussard said he doesn't remember what the Cubans served other than fresh goat milk, "straight from the goat." He said he declined his glass.

Broussard said Castro spoke mostly about rice and how he wanted shipments to resume. The Soviet Union had dissolved 10 years before and Cuba was importing rice from Vietnam.

Other embargoes the U.S. had imposed, notably with Iran, were lifted, but the Cuban embargo persisted.

"We need the embargo gone," Broussard said. "It's long overdue to be lifted with no restrictions. Embargoes just don't work."

Restoration of trade would jump-start the southern long-grain business for Louisiana and Texas, Broussard said.

"There's a big market right off our coast," he said. "Let's try something different."

For decades, Cuban-Americans strongly supported the embargo and politicians who kept it in place.

One such Cuban-American was Antonio Pineda, a Lamar University professor. Pineda spent two years in a Cuban prison for his role as one of the invaders at the Bay of Pigs in April 1961, a failed attempt by a Cuban exile force organized by the Central Intelligence Agency to overthrow Castro.

Pineda, who died in 1999, and 1,200 other exiles expected U.S. military support, but it did not come and he was taken prisoner, ransomed by the U.S. in 1963.

"Do not negotiate with Castro on anything," Pineda told The Enterprise in a 1994 interview. "Castro wants to receive and not give anything."

DWallach@BeaumontEnterprise.com Twitter.com/dwallach
DENNIS BRACK

The old political saying "No permanent friends, no permanent enemies, just permanent interests" came to mind recently when The New York Times reported that newly elected Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was considering efforts to find common ground with President-elect Donald J. Trump.

If Democrats were to pursue that approach, the goal would be to align with Trump on issues such as the president-elect's call for a massive infrastructure initiative that would create jobs and provide much-needed rehab for American roads, bridges and airports. Such a big-government program has appeal for Democrats and perhaps some centrist Republicans, while many conservative Republicans likely would be in the opposition camp.
A series of lane closures will be in effect this week in Chambers, Jefferson and Orange counties, according to a press release from the Texas Department of Transportation.

Closures this week:

VIDOR The right east and westbound lanes of Interstate 10 between FM 1442 and the FM 1132 will be closed Monday from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. to place concrete traffic barriers.

BEAUMONT The Pine St. exit ramp from Interstate 10 westbound will be close Tuesday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to replace a damaged guardrail.

WINNIE Interstate 10 eastbound near the Jefferson/Chambers County line will be down to one lane Monday through Thursday, from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Crews will be installing concrete traffic barriers.

Road conditions and traffic updates available on Facebook and Twitter.




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A H-E-B employee who allegedly shot and killed one fellow worker and injured three others Monday morning at a South Texas store believed everybody was out to get him, Palmview Police Chief Christopher Barrera said in an interview with mySA.com.

He was paranoid. He felt everybody was out to get him," Barrera said, adding that the suspect didn't target a specific individual.

Raul Lopez, 25, faces one first-degree felony charge of murder and three second-degree felony counts of attempted murder, Barrera said.

At around 3:15 a.m., Lopez allegedly fired 15 shots at a break room window of the H-E-B store at 1840 W. Palma Vista Drive in Palmview, about 10 miles west of McAllen, Barrera said, hitting four employees.

RELATED: SAPD: Good Samaritan fatally shot outside Northwest Side Walmart

Mario Pulido, 48, was pronounced dead at the scene. Bill Martinez, 33, and Rafael Martinez, 37, were transported to a nearby hospital in critical condition, Barrera said. Frailian Garza, 51, sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

Lopez fled the scene but later called the Hidalgo County Sheriffs Office to turn himself in, Barrera said. He drew investigators a map to find the 9 mm handgun he used in the shooting, which he had tossed in a field near his residence in Western Hidalgo County, Barrera said.

Barrera said the 25-year-old employee, who does not have a prior criminal record, did not target specific employees. Lopez intended to scare the victims, not injure them, Barrera said.

"Anybody could've been in the break room," he said.

RELATED: Two shot, one dead on the East Side Saturday night

H-E-B officials said the San Antonio-based supermarket chain is working closely with the Palmview Police Department during its investigation and looking to help its employees and their families. H-E-B spokeswoman Dya Campos said the company plans to reopen the Palmview store sometime Tuesday.

"The H-E-B family is deeply saddened by the tragic incident which occurred during the early morning hours of November 28th at our Palmview store resulting in the death of one partner and injury to three other partners, Javier Avalos, H-E-B vice president and general manager for the border region, said in a statement. As our company mourns, our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and the families of those affected."

Bill Martinez and Rafael Martinez were undergoing surgery for their injuries as of Monday afternoon, Barrera said. Garza was discharged with minor injuries.

Lopez is being held in Hidalgo County Jail on a $1.9 million bond.

Staff writer Madalyn Mendoza contributed to the report.

jfechter@express-news.net

Twitter: @JFReports
Here are eight gastroenterologists in the news this past week.

Noufal Jajeh, MD, is bringing his gastroenterology and hepatology expertise to Sidney, Ohio.

Marcelo F. Vela, MD; Stuart Spechler, MD; P. Jay Pasricha, MD, and Jan Tack, MD, among other gastroenterologists, presented on upper gastrointestinal diseases at the American Gastroenterological Association's Drug Development Conference.

Frank Nemec, MD, and Mara Posner, DO, spoke with Las Vegas Review-Journal about how microorganisms in the human gut may communicate with the brain.



Steven Cohen, MD, was named an advisor to the Beth Israel Deaconess HospitalNeedham in Massachusetts, according to Wicked Local Newton.
Here are 15 articles published by Becker's Hospital Review this month that offer insight on Medicare reimbursement, healthcare costs, capital investment strategy and more.

1. CMS releases final OPPS rule for 2017: 11 things to know

CMS released its final 2017 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment System rule, which implements site-neutral payment provisions of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015.

2. 1,600 hospitals see payment bump under value-based purchasing: 8 things to know

The Medicare Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program, established under the ACA, is intended to encourage hospitals to provide high-quality care more efficiently by adjusting payments to hospitals based on the quality of care they provide. In fiscal year 2017, more than 1,600 hospitals will receive a positive payment adjustment under the program, while about 1,300 will receive a payment reduction, according to recently released data from CMS on nearly 3,000 U.S. hospitals.

3. CMS awards new Medicare RAC contracts

CMS awarded the next round of contracts for Medicare recovery audit contractors.

4. CDI improves ICD-10 coding and reimbursement accuracy, survey finds

Clinical documentation improvement programs can help healthcare organizations with better ICD-10 coding and reimbursement accuracy, according to a new Black Book survey of more than 900 health leaders.

5. CMS to cut Medicare reimbursement to home health agencies by $130M

CMS issued its home health prospective payment system final rule for 2017, which reduces payments to home health agencies.

6. 8 changes to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule in 2017

CMS issued its update to the 2017 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule. The changes include a number of new policies that reflect a broader agencywide strategy to enhance quality, spend smarter and improve Americans' health.

7. Retired cardiologist says hospitals' quest for profits fuels higher healthcare costs

Four of the 10 hospitals that earned the largest profits from patient care services in 2013 were nonprofit, and the value of the nonprofit hospital tax exemption has grown significantly in recent years. Without action by Congress, nonprofit hospitals' earnings will continue to grow, according to a recent commentary in The American Journal of Medicine by Robert M. Doroghazi, MD.

8. CMS makes offer to clear Medicare appeals backlog: 6 things to know

In an effort to help clear the backlog of Medicare appeals, CMS offered to pay hospitals 66 percent of the net allowable amount for short-term inpatient stays in exchange for hospitals dropping their pending appeals of denied claims.

9. Fitch: ACA repeal would be credit negative for hospitals

President-elect Donald Trump intends to dismantle the ACA, a move that would be credit negative for healthcare providers, according to a Fitch Ratings report.

10. An 8-item checklist for picking the right RCM partner

Representatives from RemitDATA recently spoke with Becker's Hospital Review about areas to consider when choosing an RCM partner.

11. 5 skills CFOs should develop in the next 5 years

Healthcare organizations are transforming their traditional, insular operating structures to become more nimble and centralized. This means hospital systems need financial leaders equipped with a different skill set to achieve future success.

12. Medicare's top 15 costliest drugs in 2015

CMS recently released data identifying the costliest drugs to Medicare in 2015, and Gilead Sciences' hepatitis C treatment Harvoni topped the list.

13. CFOs name top 6 challenges in 2017

Maintaining optimal financial performance amidst regulatory uncertainty is a key challenge hospital CFOs look to tackle in 2017.

14. 3 strategies to transform your ED into an asset, not a money drain

The difficulty of optimizing emergency care without raising costs causes many hospital leaders to perceive the emergency department as a necessary evil. Identifying the best strategies for optimizing care and efficiency in the ED can be a complicated process since no two are exactly alike.

15. CFOs share key insights into their capital investment strategy

A panel of CFOs and a banking expert shared their thoughts on capital investments at Becker's 5th Annual CEO + CFO Roundtable Nov. 9.

More articles on healthcare finance:

Texas hospital closes

Northwell releases 37-point rescue plan for Brooklyn hospitals

How health systems across the US are improving price transparency
Increased competition and lower state subsidies for charity care are putting pressure on nonprofit hospitals in New Jersey, according to a recent report from Moody's Investors Service.

Increased healthcare consolidation has impacted hospitals across the nation, and this trend has significantly affected New Jersey hospitals. According to Moody's, large health systems in New Jersey have joined forces and healthcare providers in New York City and Philadelphia are using out-of-state mergers and clinical affiliations to expand their presence in New Jersey.

"Increased competition will remain a credit challenge for independent hospitals and smaller health systems as large systems within the state have formed, increasing in-state competitive pressures," said Jennifer Barr, an associate analyst with Moody's. "The ability to adjust quickly to change will be an important determinant of New Jersey hospitals' credit quality."

New Jersey hospitals will also face funding pressure in fiscal year 2017, as the state will reduce subsidies for charity care by $200 million.

More articles on healthcare finance:

Texas hospital closes

Northwell releases 37-point rescue plan for Brooklyn hospitals

How health systems across the US are improving price transparency
Legislation designed to protect consumers against emergency out-of-network medical bills has hit a wall in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and New Jersey.

This month, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania legislators tabled bills which required their respective state insurance commissioners to establish a dispute-resolution process for consumer bills arising from involuntary out-of-network medical care.

Rhode Island Bill 1158, introduced by Rep. Robert Craven Sr. (D-North Kingstown), would have given patients an opportunity to dispute out-of-network bills through arbitration. But Health Insurance Commissioner Kathleen Hittner, MD, argued the bill should assert stronger controls.



"We need to do much more than just provide a dispute process  we need to go much further in managing this process," Dr. Hittner said in a letter to House Corporations Committee Chairman Brian Kennedy.

In Pennsylvania, senators killed a bill that removed the patient from the dispute entirely and required insurers and healthcare providers to settle involuntary out-of-network bills through arbitration.

Each bills' respective sponsors said they intend to reintroduce balance billing legislation in state congress next year.

Controversial billing legislation also stalled in New Jersey this fall. Current laws prohibit insurers from billing patients for extra costs associated with involuntary out-of-network care.

The proposed Out-of-network Consumer Protection, Transparency, Cost Containment and Accountability Act limited the amount hospitals could bill insurance companies for involuntary out-of-network care to between 90 percent and 250 percent of the corresponding Medicare payment rate. This essentially prohibited providers from billing patients for the difference between the insurer's in-network payment rate and the provider's out-of-network charge.

New Jersey Bill A1952 was one of the most-lobbied bills in the last legislative session.

So far, five states have enacted laws to protect against or prohibit balance billing practices, including Illinois, California, Connecticut, Florida and New York.
Barry H. Ostrowsky was president and CEO of West Orange, N.J.-based Barnabas Health until this April, when the system merged with New Brunswick, N.J.-based Robert Wood Johnson Health System. Then he took the helm as president and CEO of the new West Orange, N.J.-based nonprofit, 11-hospital system that will reach 5 million people.

Mr. Ostrowsky earned his law degree from Knoxville-based University of Tennessee School of Law. After serving as a senior partner at Roseland, N.J.-based Brach, Eichler, he joined Livingston, N.J.-based Saint Barnabas Medical Center in 1991. He continued in his role as executive vice president and general counsel when Barnabas Health was created in 1996. Mr. Ostrowsky became president and COO in 2010 and was named president and CEO in 2012.

Here, Mr. Ostrowsky spoke with Becker's about leadership, his love of New Jersey and why he said the Barnabas-RWJ merger happened "almost seamlessly."

Question: What prompted your interest in healthcare?

Barry Ostrowsky: I was trained as an attorney. When I got out of law school, I joined a law firm and built a practice in representing healthcare clients. I saw something magical about people engaged in healthcare. What drew me to healthcare were the people who worked in healthcare. Healthcare workers are special people who are driven by a call or mission. That is attractive beyond anything I can describe.

When I was given the opportunity to transfer from the practice of law representing these people to being one of them, I took it. It's been unbelievably fulfilling over the past 25 years.

Q: What are the most lacking traits among leaders today?

BO: Leadership, of course, is something that's different than management. You can become a wonderful manager in the business sense but not necessarily a good leader.

Gaining the trust of your colleagues is crucial. If there is not trust at the most basic level, and if people don't trust that you have the best interests of others, I don't think you can be an optimally successful leader.

Leadership is built on the sharing of ideas and the respect of other people who might have different ideas. Trust is born of mutual respect. There's a saying I like that goes, "I don't think there's any topic so dangerous you can't talk about it." But there are a lot of folks who don't want to talk about certain things because they don't want others' input on them. If you're going to be a good leader, you need the trust of the people you're going to lead. The only way you get that is through a mutual respect between the leader and those he or she is supposed to lead.

Q: What do you enjoy most about the West Orange, N.J. area?

BO: I was born and bred in New Jersey, and except for three years in law school, I've been here all my life. I am a person who loves to try to recruit someone to New Jersey  I think it's a great place to live.

Geographically, we're close to New York, which I love. You could also be near a farm and ride horses. We have everything I think anyone could want.

New Jersey is still a bit of an anomaly in healthcare. We're a fee-for-service, open-access state entirely.

Q: This spring, Barnabas Health and Robert Wood Johnson Health System merged. What were the benefits and the challenges of the merger process?

BO: I've had the luxury of doing many transactions throughout my career. This was the biggest, most complex and smoothest. It involved two like-minded organizations that are similar in mission and in culture. Because of the goodwill of my management colleagues, it came together beautifully and almost seamlessly.

The benefits are clear. Prior to the merger, a consultant's report estimated the financial synergies gained from the transaction. We've already come up with 30 to 40 percent more than what was estimated. Aside from giving us financial synergies, this platform we've built allows us a very good point of departure to build a partnership with New Brunswick, N.J.-based Rutgers University, which owns two medical schools. Our partnership goal was made far more realistic because we built a larger system as opposed to doing it individually as two separate systems.

Anyone who says there's never anxiety or nervousness [when going through a merger] is not telling the truth. Our transaction required no change in institutional status among our hospitals. But there is always a natural anxiety about what's going to happen. Trying to remove that anxiety is appropriate, but you have to realize you can't remove it all. You have to encourage people to tell you their anxiety.

[Barnabas Health and Robert Wood Johnson Health System] were both successful organizations coming together, and that's a more interesting story to tell. I can't even point to something that's been disappointing.

Q: What are RWJBarnabas Health's goals for 2017?

BO: The big goal is our new partnership with Rutgers. We anticipate having an announcement on it by the end of this year, with a more definitive agreement executed by the middle of next year.

In addition, we're bringing in more of a focus on the social determinants of health. Over the next three years, we're going to be making investments in nonclinical care to help people make good lifestyle choices.
In the spirit of the Thanksgiving holiday, eight healthcare CEOs and CNOs wrote thank-you notes to front-line staff members who serve patients daily  nurses.

Joel Allison. President and CEO of Baylor Scott & White Health (Dallas): A message of thanks to all Baylor Scott & White Health nurses:

One of the best parts of my job is hearing kind words and receiving notes of praise about our staff from patients and their loved ones. It's a daily affirmation of the work of the Baylor Scott & White family. Often, the encouragement and gratitude I hear about is regarding our nursing staff  both individual nurses and our nursing team.

The praise is well deserved. Over my four decades in healthcare, I've learned that to be a nurse is to be a servant to others. There is no more noble a calling. From the most trivial of tasks to the most significant, our nurses care for patients in a way that no one else can.

In addition to hands-on care, our nurses are there to offer a warm smile or words of reassurance that many patients need to overcome whatever challenges they face. Our nurses are there long after physicians finish their rounds and friends and family have left for the evening. They are there no matter how challenging a case may be. They are there for our patients no matter what. At Baylor Scott & White, behind every award, every exceptional satisfaction score and every great outcome are our amazing nurses.

I am forever grateful to our entire nursing staff for your selfless dedication to our patients and our organization.

Eric Bieber, MD. President and CEO of Rochester (N.Y.) Regional Health: To our nurses:

Throughout my career  as both a physician and an administrator  I have been blown away by our nurses' extraordinary commitment to patients. You are the heroes at the front lines of care, providing tireless service that plays an incredible role in the outcomes and experiences of every patient. Your "patients-first" mentality, healing hands and kind hearts are the face of this healthcare system. So during this time of thanksgiving, I want to extend my sincerest appreciation for your continued service and dedication to our community. Today and every day, I am thankful for you.

Mark Frey. President and CEO of AMITA Health (Arlington Heights, Ill.): At Thanksgiving, we express our gratitude for all the blessings of our lives. We reflect on our great fortune in our families and friends and their continued health and success. We also recognize the many others whose grace and generosity have touched our lives in ways both profound and unexpected.

At AMITA Health, we are fortunate to rely on thousands of dedicated nurses who live our mission daily to provide compassionate care to those we serve in sickness and in health. You touch the lives of thousands of patients and their families every year and embody AMITA Health's commitment to delivering the most efficient, high-quality, faith-based care possible. We cannot deliver on that commitment  or even contemplate making it  without you.

I'm sure thousands of families across our region will be thinking of how you touched their lives as they gather together for Thanksgiving this week. On behalf of AMITA Health, I thank you for all that you do to give so many something to be thankful for this holiday season.

Holly Lorenz, MSN, RN. Chief nurse executive of UPMC (Pittsburgh): Each and every day, I am grateful for our nurses and caregivers here at UPMC and for the gifts that you give our patients. As chief nurse executive of UPMC, I would like to thank each of you for your passion for nursing and for the compassion you show our patients and families.

I am thankful that by working together, we are able to create the best experience and guide our patients in their healthcare journey. But especially as Thanksgiving approaches, I am thankful and proud that you have chosen UPMC for your career.

In today's hectic, busy environment, we occasionally take for granted the many sacrifices of our valued nurses. The truth is, your unwavering commitment to our patients and their care is what enables UPMC to thrive in western Pennsylvania and beyond. Your dedication to your profession and the time you sacrifice away from your loved ones during the holidays are greatly appreciated. You embody our values and the spirit of Thanksgiving.

I speak for myself and the entire UPMC leadership team when I say that we are truly grateful for each and every one of you.

Have a very happy Thanksgiving!

Denise Mihal, BSN, RN. Executive vice president and chief nursing and clinical operations officer of Novant Health (Winston-Salem, N.C.): To the nurses at Novant Health,

There are many qualities that set Novant Health apart from other organizations, but one that gives me great pride is the way you, our nurses, bring your passion to our patients. It's your dedication that our patients experience daily, in the way you serve them with compassion and creativity.

The nursing profession is truly a gift. Our patients often come to us vulnerable and afraid, with more questions than answers. As a nurse, it's our role to be their advocate, confidant and interpreter. It's an honor that they trust us and it's a privilege to care for them in their time of need.

Our performance over the past year is a testament to what we can accomplish for our patients when we work together. I am especially proud that eight of our facilities have received Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, as well as many other certifications and recognitions. That is because of you.

Caring for people in need can be exhilarating and inspiring, but it can also be exhausting. I want to offer my deepest thanks to all of you, for the amazing work you do every day to provide remarkable care throughout our communities.

You are vitally important to Novant Health's mission. Know that we would not be whole without the talent and special gifts you bring to our organization. You matter. The mission you're a part of matters. I'm honored to serve with you and I'm grateful for each and every one of you.

David Pate, MD. President and CEO of St. Luke's Health System (Boise, Idaho): As we gather with our friends and families for holiday celebrations, I want to share my gratitude for the incredible team of nurses who go above and beyond for St. Luke's and our patients.

St. Luke's nurses inspire me and make me feel very proud to be part of the extraordinary family that is our organization.

Over and over this past year, I have heard stories of the dedication and commitment of our nurses and their passion and enthusiasm. I've heard of heroics in our hospitals, clinics and community settings, service delivery above and beyond the call, and exceptional experiences delivered each and every day.

St. Luke's nurses' sustained engagement and ongoing effort to make the implementation of our common EHR system as good as it can be is a powerful example of the spirit of our nursing team and nursing leadership, and I am so very grateful for that ongoing endeavor.

And as the spouse of a nurse, the father and grandfather of sometime patients and as a periodic patient myself, it's incredibly meaningful to know that St. Luke's nursing care is delivered consistently at the Magnet level, as designated by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Thanksgiving and every day, I am so honored to be part of the St. Luke's family. St. Luke's nurses top my gratitude list.

Blessings and happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Carlos Prietto, MD. Interim CEO of Hoag Orthopedic Institute (Irvine, Calif.): It is with immense gratitude that I say "thank you." As we reflect back over the past years, we could not be where we are today without the contributions each of you make collectively here at HOI. Superior outcomes and patient-centered care is at the core of what we do and others continue to notice. We've recently been designated as a 'Best Place to Work in Healthcare,' an affirmation of the excellence and passion each of you brings to the organization.

As we embark on another new year together, let us keep our focus on our mission, vision and delivering value-based healthcare.

Shannon Richardson. Administrator of Shuksan Healthcare Center (Bellingham, Wash.): It's that time of year when articulating one's appreciation for others seems to be the thing to do! That said, my personal feelings of gratitude toward you, the heartbeat to our success as caregivers here are Shuksan Healthcare Center, is unwavering and continual year around. It is you, after all, who has chosen a career path of complete selflessness to care for others in need.

Each day, you choose to provide the best quality, compassionate and tender care for our residents; sometimes, but not always, a thankless job that can be overlooked. I am writing to you today to let you know that we see what you're doing  and we, your colleagues and the residents you serve, value and cherish you!

During this holiday season, I hope that you'll be reminded of why you chose this career path and be proud of who you are and the many positive qualities you possess. Our residents are so very fortunate to have you on our caregiving team  and I, as administrator, feel grateful as well. Thank you for choosing to share your gifts with us at Shuksan Healthcare Center.

Here's to a very happy Thanksgiving holiday to you and yours.
UMass Memorial Health Care, a four-hospital system based in Worcester, Mass., is moving forward with its plan to merge two of its hospitals: HealthAlliance Hospital in Leominster, Mass., and Clinton (Mass.) Hospital.

The system announced plans to merge the two facilities in August. The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission gave the transaction the go-ahead this month, according to the Boston Business Journal.

Tony Berry, a UMass Memorial spokesman, told the Boston Business Journal the merger "will further improve and expand services to patients, allow for the sharing of best practices, reduce wait times for outpatient and emergency care, minimize duplication and reduce the overall cost of care in our communities."

The deal still needs approval from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, according to the report.

More articles on healthcare industry transactions:

Freeman Health System to affiliate with Girard Medical Center

FTC voices concern over Wellmont, MSHA merger for 3rd time at final public hearing
From Houston-based University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center suing a biotech billionaire to a physician receiving an 18-month prison sentence for selling Oxycodone prescriptions, here are the latest healthcare industry lawsuits and settlements making headlines.

1. Physician claims innocence after admitting he administered unnecessary chemotherapy to patients

Farid Fata, MD, a Detroit-area hematologist-oncologist, was convicted in 2015 of purposely misdiagnosing patients with cancer and administering medically unnecessary chemotherapy to them. As of last week, more than 500 victims of Dr. Fata had submitted claims against him for unnecessary chemotherapy, funeral expenses for loved ones, medical bills and other expenses.

2. MD Anderson sues Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong over rights to Cancer Moonshot: 3 things to know

Houston-based University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is suing biotech billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, MD, over the ownership of the name "Cancer Moonshot."

3. House asks Supreme Court to pause ACA funding lawsuit

The House of Representatives asked the federal court of appeals for the D.C. circuit to temporarily pause a congressional lawsuit challenging the legality of the ACA's subsidy program.

4. Physician sentenced to 18 months in prison for selling Oxycodone prescriptions

On Nov. 18, former podiatrist Frederick Weintraub was sentenced to 18 months in prison for illegally selling prescriptions of Oxycodone in Rock Island County, N.Y.

5. W.Va high court overturns $1M judgement against Thomas Memorial Hospital

The West Virginia Supreme Court overturned a $1 million verdict against Charleston, W.Va.-based Thomas Memorial Hospital in a wrongful termination case brought by a nurse.

More articles on health law:

5 latest healthcare industry lawsuits, settlements

Walgreens files breach-of-contract lawsuit against Theranos

County sues current Bergen Regional hospital operator
Becker's Hospital Review has named the following female leaders to its annual list of 130 women hospital and health system leaders to know.

These 130 women, who are executives at hospitals and health systems across the nation, have established themselves as successful leaders within the continuously evolving healthcare industry.

The leaders on the list were selected based on editorial judgment and discretion of members of the Becker's editorial team, who evaluated leaders for their management and leadership skills and career accomplishments, and also read through and considered a number of nominations.

Note: Individuals cannot pay for inclusion on the list. Names are presented in alphabetical order.

Nancy Howell Agee. President and CEO of Carilion Clinic (Roanoke, Va.). Ms. Agee was named president and CEO of Carilion Clinic in 2011 after serving as executive vice president and COO since 2001. [Read more] Ms. Agee was named president and CEO of Carilion Clinic in 2011 after serving as executive vice president and COO since 2001.

Dawn Ahner. Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of Renown Health (Reno, Nev.). As executive vice president and CAO, Ms. Ahner is responsible for overseeing various nonclinical service areas, including human resources, marketing and communications, information technology, environmental services, security and strategic planning/business development. [Read more]

Lisa Allen, PhD. Chief Patient Experience Officer of Johns Hopkins Medicine (Baltimore). Dr. Allen became Johns Hopkins Medicine's first chief patient experience officer in September 2014. [Read more]

Rhonda Anderson. Senior Vice President and CFO of Ascension Health (St. Louis). Ms. Anderson has served as senior vice president and CFO of Ascension Health since October 2014. [Read more]

Suzanne Anderson. President of Virginia Mason Medical Center and Executive Vice President of Virginia Mason Health System (Seattle). Ms. Anderson was named CIO and CFO of Virginia Mason Medical Center in 2007 and added the title of executive vice president in 2013. [Read more]

Mary Alice Annecharico, RN. Senior Vice President and CIO of Henry Ford Health System (Detroit). Ms. Annecharico has more than 20 years of experience with transforming clinical and business environments through the use of technology. [Read more]

Jean Anthony, RN. President and CEO of Hills and Dales General Hospital (Cass City, Mich.). Ms. Anthony's career at Hills and Dales General Hospital spans nearly 40 years. [Read more]

Pamela Arora. Senior Vice President, Information Services and CIO of Children's Health (Dallas). As vice president and CIO of Children's Health system, Ms. Arora is responsible for overseeing systems and technology, health information management and biomedical technology and support. [Read more]

Kathy Bailey. President and CEO of Carolinas HealthCare System Blue Ridge (Morgantown, N.C.). Ms. Bailey became COO of Blue Ridge Healthcare System  now Carolinas HealthCare System Blue Ridge  in 2005 and served eight years in the role before she was named president and CEO of the health system in January 2013. [Read more]

Pamela Banchy, RN. CIO and Vice President of Clinical Informatics and Transformation of Western Reserve Hospital (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio). Ms. Banchy has worked in healthcare for 30 years, 15 of which focused on health IT. [Read more]

Jayne Bassler. President of Population Health Services Organization of Adventist Health System, Florida Division (Altamonte). With more than 30 years of experience at Adventist Health System/Florida Hospital, Ms. Bassler began her career as a critical care nurse. [Read more]

Elaine Batchlor, MD. CEO of Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital (Los Angeles). Prior to becoming CEO of Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital, which opened in 2015, Dr. Batchlor served as CMO of L.A. Care Health Plan, the nation's largest public health plan that serves the county's most vulnerable residents. [Read more]

Amy Beiter, MD. President and CEO of Carondelet St. Mary's Hospital - Tucson (Ariz.). Dr. Beiter joined Carondelet St. Mary's in 1992 as a clinician and medical director for utilization management. [Read more]

Jan Bergen. President and CEO of Lancaster (Pa.) General Health. Ms. Bergen has more than 30 years of healthcare experience, including management of hospitals, ambulatory centers and rehabilitation facilities. [Read more]

Nancy Birschbach. Vice President and CIO of Agnesian HealthCare (Fond du Lac, Wis.). Since joining Agnesian HealthCare in 1998, Ms. Birschbach has held a series of progressively advanced roles, including information security officer, director of information technology, assistant vice president of IT and  currently  vice president and CIO. [Read more]

Cindy Bo. Chief Strategy and Business Development Officer of Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children (Wilmington, Del.). Ms. Bo has more than 20 years of experience in strategic roles across the provider, payer and life sciences sectors. [Read more]

Adrienne Boissy, MD. Chief Experience Officer of Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Boissy became CXO of Cleveland Clinic in January 2015. [Read more]

Marna Borgstrom. President and CEO of Yale-New Haven (Conn.) Health System. Over the past 30 years, Ms. Borgstrom has served in various roles at Yale-New Haven Health System. [Read more]

Tammie Brailsford, RN, BSN. Executive Vice President and COO of MemorialCare Health System (Fountain Valley, Calif.). Ms. Brailsford was named executive vice president and COO of MemorialCare Health System in 2003. [Read more]

Mary Brainerd. President and CEO of HealthPartners (Bloomington, Minn.). Ms. Brainerd has held the top position at HealthPartners since 1992. [Read more]

Ruth Brinkley. President and CEO of KentuckyOne Health (Louisville). Ms. Brinkley has served as president and CEO of KentuckyOne Health since it was formed in 2012. [Read more]

Katherine Bunting, PhD, RN, MSN. CEO of Fairfield (Ill.) Memorial Hospital. Prior to joining Fairfield Memorial Hospital in 1998, Dr. Bunting spent nearly 20 years in a variety of roles at Richland Memorial Hospital in Olney, Ill. [Read more]

Bobbie Byrne, MD. Executive Vice President of Consumer Driven Health and CIO of Edward-Elmhurst (Ill.) Health. Dr. Byrne was promoted to executive vice president of consumer driven health and CIO of Edward-Elmhurst Health in July. [Read more]

Paula Carynski, BSN, MSN. President of OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center (Rockford, Ill.). Ms. Carynski was named president of OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center in July 2013, but she's been with the organization since 1985. [Read more]

Mary Ellen Clyne, PhD. President and CEO of Clara Maass Medical Center (Belleville, N.J.). As president and CEO of Clara Maass Medical Center, Dr. Clyne leads the $270 million, 469-bed hospital with more than 700 physicians and 2,300 employees. [Read more]

Karen Collins, RN. CEO of Lady of the Sea General Hospital (Cut Off, La.). At the helm of Lady of the Sea General Hospital, Ms. Collins oversees all business operations of the organization. [Read more]

Amy Compton-Phillips, MD. Executive Vice President and Chief Clinical Officer of Providence Health & Services (Renton, Wash.). Dr. Compton-Phillips joined Providence Health & Services in August 2015. [Read more]

Joanne Conroy, MD. CEO of Lahey Hospital & Medical Center (Burlington, Mass.). Dr. Conroy joined Lahey Hospital & Medical Center as CEO in June 2014. Previously, she served as chief healthcare officer for Washington, D.C.-based Association of American Medical Colleges for five-and-a-half years. [Read more]

Kari Cornicelli. Vice President and CFO of Sharp Memorial Hospital (San Diego). Ms. Cornicelli has been with Sharp HealthCare for 19 years and has more than 30 years of healthcare financial leadership experience in both the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. [Read more]

Patricia Currie. President of Central Texas Operations at Baylor Scott & White Health (Dallas). Ms. Currie currently serves as president of Central Texas operations at Baylor Scott & White, which was formed by the 2013 merger of Dallas-based Baylor Health Care System and Temple, Texas-based Scott & White Healthcare. [Read more]

Myra Davis. Senior Vice President of Information Services and CIO of Texas Children's Hospital (Houston). Ms. Davis has worked in technology and information services for more than 27 years. [Read more]

Lori Donaldson. CFO of UC San Diego Health System. As CFO of UC San Diego Health System, Ms. Donaldson oversees a budget of more than $1 billion. [Read more]

Kelly Driscoll, RN. Senior Vice President and COO of Faith Regional Health Services (Norfolk, Neb.). Ms. Driscoll joined Faith Regional Health Services in 2011 as vice president of patient care services. [Read more]

Patti Ellish. President and CEO of St. Tammany Parish Hospital (Covington, La.). Ms. Ellish began her career in healthcare in 1974 at West Jefferson Hospital in New Orleans, where she was ultimately appointed to director of nursing in 1996. [Read more]

Ann Errichetti, MD. Chief Operations and Academic Officer of Presence Health (Chicago). Dr. Errichetti is responsible for leading acute care strategy, growth and operations for Presence Health's 11 hospitals. [Read more]

Melinda Estes, MD. President and CEO of Saint Luke's Health System (Kansas City, Mo.). Dr. Estes was named president and CEO of Saint Luke's Health System in September 2011. [Read more]

Amy Floria. CFO of Goshen (Ind.) Health. Ms. Floria has more than 20 years of experience in healthcare and public accounting. [Read more]

Teri Fontenot. President and CEO of Woman's Hospital (Baton Rouge, La.). Ms. Fontenot has led Woman's Hospital, a 350-bed Level III regional referral hospital for obstetrics and women's cancer care, since 1996. [Read more]

Laura L. Forese, MD. Executive Vice President and COO of NewYork-Presbyterian (New York). Dr. Forese, a pediatric orthopedic surgeon, joined NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital in 2003 as vice president of medical affairs. [Read more]

Mary Ann Fuchs, RN, MSN, DNP. Vice President of Patient Care and System Chief Nurse Executive at Duke University Health System (Durham, N.C.). Ms. Fuchs has more than 30 years of clinical and executive nursing management. [Read more]

Nancy Gaden, RN, DNP. Senior Vice President and CNO of Boston Medical Center. Ms. Gaden joined Boston Medical Center in early 2014. Previously, she served as system vice president of patient care services and CNO of Boston-based Hallmark Health System. [Read more]

Kris Gaw. COO of Maricopa Integrated Health System (Phoenix). Ms. Gaw was appointed COO of MIHS in March 2016. [Read more]

Maggie Gill. President and CEO of Memorial Health (Savannah, Ga.). Ms. Gill has quickly ascended the ranks at Memorial Health. [Read more]

Ruby Gill, RN, BSN. Chief Nurse Executive of Kaiser Permanente Irvine (Calif.) Medical Centers. Ms. Gill, who has been with Kaiser Permanente for more than 15 years, oversees more than 800 nurses. [Read more]

Kathryn Gillette. Market President and CEO of Bayfront Health St. Petersburg (Fla.). Ms. Gillette brings a background in finance and operations to her current role, where in just over two years she has led the formation of a six hospital network, the Bayfront Health Network and spearheaded a $50 million technology and surgery system upgrade. [Read more]

Audrey Gregory, RN, MSN, PhD. Market CEO of Saint Francis Healthcare (Memphis). Dr. Gregory was named market CEO of Saint Francis Healthcare, part of Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare, in May. [Read more]

Gail Hanson. CFO of Aurora Health Care (Milwaukee). Ms. Hanson was named senior vice president and CFO of Aurora Health Care in January 2011. [Read more]

Lisa E. Harris, MD. CEO of Eskenazi Health (Indianapolis). As medical director and CEO of Eskenazi Health, formerly Wishard Health System, Dr. Harris oversees a workforce of roughly 4,470 and one of the largest safety-net health systems in the nation. [Read more]

Margot Hartmann, MD, PhD. President and CEO of Nantucket (Mass.) Cottage Hospital. Dr. Hartmann has served as president and CEO of Nantucket Cottage Hospital since October 2010. [Read more]

Pamela Hess. CFO of St. Vincent's HealthCare (Jacksonville, Fla.). Ms. Hess was named CFO of St. Vincent's HealthCare, part of St. Louis-based Ascension, in June. [Read more]

Jill Hoggard-Green, PhD, RN. COO of Mission Health and President of Mission Hospital (Asheville, N.C.). Dr. Hoggard-Green oversees Mission Hospital and Mission Medical Associates, the system's physician practice, in addition to overall system operations. [Read more]

Shelly Hunter. CFO of Mercy Health of Joplin (Mo.)/Kansas. Ms. Hunter was named CFO of Mercy Health Joplin/Kansas in December 2009. [Read more]

Sally Hurt-Deitch, RN. Market CEO of The Hospitals of Providence (El Paso, Texas). As market CEO, Ms. Hurt-Deitch helps The Hospitals of Providence system capture market opportunities for improved operational effectiveness and efficiency. [Read more]

Ann Huston. Chief Strategy Officer for Cleveland Clinic. Ms. Huston stepped into the new role of chief strategy officer at Cleveland Clinic in April 2012. [Read more]

Charlotte Ipsan, RNC, MSN. Chief Administrative Officer of Norton Women's Hospital & Kosair Children's Hospital (Louisville, Ky.). Ms. Ipsan has more than 30 years of experience in maternal, child and pediatric healthcare. [Read more]

Catherine A. Jacobson. President and CEO of Froedtert Health (Milwaukee). Ms. Jacobson joined Froedtert Health in 2010 as executive vice president of finance and strategy, CFO and chief strategy officer. [Read more]

Barbara Joers. President and CEO of Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare (St. Paul, Minn.). Ms. Joers was named president and CEO of Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare in October 2013. [Read more]

Terry Kabitzke-Groth. CNO of Aurora Medical Center Grafton (Wis.). Ms. Kabitzke-Groth has served as CNO of Aurora Medical Center since its opening in 2010. [Read more]

Patricia A. Keel. Senior Vice President and CFO of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (Memphis, Tenn.). Ms. Keel was named senior vice president and CFO of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in February. [Read more]

Kathleen Kinslow, CRNA, EdD. CEO of Aria-Jefferson Health, Executive Vice President & Chief Integration Officer of Jefferson Health (Philadelphia). Dr. Kinslow became president and CEO of Aria Health in November 2010 and was CEO of Aria-Jefferson Health when Aria and Jefferson finalized their merger in July. [Read more]

Jan Kleinhesselink, RN. Chief Quality Officer of Lincoln (Neb.) Surgical Hospital. As chief quality officer, Ms. Kleinhesselink oversees laboratory services, quality improvement, safety, risk management, infection prevention, credentialing and regulatory compliance. [Read more]

June Komar. Corporate Executive Vice President, Strategy and Administration of Scripps Health (San Diego). Ms. Komar was named corporate executive vice president of strategy and administration in 2010. [Read more]

Sue Korth, PhD, RN. Vice President and COO of Methodist Women's Hospital (Omaha). Dr. Korth brings 30 years of clinical and medical management experience to her role as vice president and COO, a position she has held since 2007. [Read more]

Anne Krebs. CFO of Butler (Pa.) Health System. Ms. Krebs joined BHS as vice president of finance and CFO in January 2001. [Read more]

Sarah Krevans. President and CEO of Sutter Health (Sacramento, Calif.). Ms. Krevans joined Sutter Health in 1999 as the organization's senior vice president of managed care. [Read more]

JoAnn Kunkel. CFO of Sanford Health (Sioux Falls, S.D.). Since taking on the CFO role in 2012, Ms. Kunkel heads the system's finance, accounting, revenue cycle and related functions. [Read more]

Phyllis Lantos. Executive Vice President, Treasurer and CFO of NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System (New York). In addition to her executive roles at the health system, Ms. Lantos also serves as an advisor on healthcare reform and financial policy implications. [Read more]

Mary Anne Leach. Senior Vice President and CIO of Children's Hospital Colorado (Aurora). Throughout her 30-year IT career, Ms. Leach has held a variety of high-profile leadership roles. [Read more]

Vivian Lee, MD, PhD. CEO of University of Utah Healthcare (Salt Lake City). A board-certified radiologist, Dr. Lee has served as the CEO of University of Utah Healthcare, senior vice president for health sciences at the University of Utah and dean of the university's school of medicine since 2011. [Read more]

Jacklynn Lesniak, RN. Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services and CNO of Cancer Treatment Centers of America at Midwestern Regional Medical Center (Zion, Ill.). Since becoming senior vice president of patient care services at CTCA in 2013, Ms. Lesniak has been responsible for the strategic direction, integration, professional practice, evaluation and fiscal operations of nursing and patient care services at the medical center. [Read more]

Carol Lovin, RN, MSN. Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer of Carolinas HealthCare System (Charlotte, N.C.). Ms. Lovin joined Carolinas HealthCare in 2007 and was named the system's executive vice president and chief strategy officer in 2014. [Read more]

Denise Majeski, RN, MSN. Vice President of Operations and Chief Nurse Executive of Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest (Ill.) Hospital. Ms. Majeski was named interim vice president of operations and CNE in June 2013 and permanently assumed the positions in August 2013. [Read more]

Stacey Malakoff. Executive Vice President, Treasurer and CFO of Hospital for Special Surgery (New York). Prior to becoming the hospital's vice president, treasurer and CFO in 1998, Ms. Malakoff held various executive positions with the hospital, including the director of reimbursement, controller and vice president of finance. [Read more]

Julie Manas. President and CEO of HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Western Wisconsin Division of Hospitals Sisters Health System (Springfield, Ill.). In addition to her role as president and CEO of HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital, Ms. Manas serves as president of the hospital's board of directors. [Read more]

Marcia Manker. CEO of Saddleback Memorial Medical Center (Laguna Hills, Calif.) and Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center (Fountain Valley, Calif.). Ms. Manker was appointed CEO of Orange Coast Memorial in 2002 and took on additional responsibilities as CEO of Saddleback Memorial in June. [Read more]

Leslie Marsh, RN, MSN. CEO of Lexington (Neb.) Regional Health Center. After taking on the CEO role at Lexington Regional Health Center, Ms. Marsh navigated the hospital through a variety of changes, including the opening of an urgent/primary care clinic and a family medicine clinic. [Read more]

Barbara Martin, RN, BSN. President and CEO of Vista Health System (Waukegan, Ill.). Ms. Martin was appointed president and CEO in 2006 and has seen Vista Health System through a growth period that included a range of multi-million dollar expansion and renovation projects. [Read more]

Patricia Maryland, DrPH. President of Healthcare Operations and COO of Ascension Health (St. Louis). Prior to her tenure as president and COO, Dr. Maryland served as the Michigan Ministry Market Leader for Ascension Health, where she provided strategic and operational leadership for St. John Providence Health System in Warren, Mich. [Read more]

Mary Lou Mastro, RN. President and CEO of Elmhurst (Ill.) Memorial Healthcare. Since becoming president and CEO in 2013, Ms. Mastro has expanded the health system's reach throughout Chicago's western suburbs, opening a number of walk-in clinics and heading development of a new a health center that will open in 2017. [Read more]

Rhonda Medows, MD. Executive Vice President of Population Health for Providence Health & Services (Renton, Wash.). A board-certified physician in family medicine, Dr. Medows oversees Providence's health plan, ACOs, payer strategy and contracting, physician services and the affiliated Pacific Medical Group in her role as executive vice president. [Read more]

Sonia Mehta, MD. CEO and CMO of Loretto Hospital (Chicago). Dr. Mehta assumed the position of CEO and CMO of Loretto Hospital in 2012. [Read more]

Anne Meisner, RN. CEO of Cancer Treatment Centers of America at Southeastern Regional Medical Center (Newnan, Ga.). Ms. Meisner has served CTCA patients for more than 20 years, including her time as president and CEO of CTCA at Midwestern Regional Medical Center in Zion, Ill. [Read more]

Susan Melvin, DO. CMO of Long Beach (Calif.) Memorial Medical Center. Dr. Melvin, a physician board certified in family medicine, was named CMO of Long Beach Memorial in 2012. [Read more]

Nanette Mickiewicz, MD. President and CEO of Dominican Hospital (Santa Cruz, Calif.). Dr. Mickiewicz has served as president and CEO of Dominican Hospital since 2006. [Read more]

Sheri Milone. CEO of Lovelace Women's Hospital (Albuquerque). Ms. Milone serves as the head of Lovelace Women's Hospital in Albuquerque, a 120-bed, 670-employee hospital. [Read more]

Tamra Minnier, RN, MSN. Chief Quality Officer of UPMC (Pittsburgh). As chief quality officer, Ms. Minnier is responsible for quality, safety and the patient experience at UPMC. [Read more]

Jennifer Mitzner. Senior Vice President and CFO of St. Joseph Hoag Health (Irvine, Calif.). Prior to her appointment as senior vice president and CFO of St. Joseph Hoag Health in 2014, Ms. Mitzner served as senior vice president of corporate services and CFO of Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, Calif., where she worked for 20 years. [Read more]

Cynthia Moore-Hardy. President and CEO of Lake Health (Concord Township, Ohio). Ms. Moore-Hardy has been at the helm of Lake Health as president and CEO since 1997, prior to which she led the hospital as executive vice president and COO. [Read more]

Elizabeth Nabel, MD. President of Brigham and Women's Health Care (Boston). Dr. Nabel has served as the president of Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Health Care since 2010. [Read more]

Siri Nelson. Chief Administrative Officer of Sutter Lakeside Hospital (Lakeport, Calif.). Ms. Nelson joined Sutter Lakeside Hospital, part of Sacramento-based Sutter Health, as CAO in 2009. [Read more]

Janice Nevin, MD. President and CEO of Christiana Care Health System (Wilmington, Del.). Ms. Nevin joined the faculty of Christiana Care in 2002 and held several roles  CMO, chief patient safety officer and chair of family & community medicine  before she was named president and CEO in 2014. [Read more]

Robin Norman. Senior Vice President and CFO of Virginia Hospital Center (Arlington). Ms. Norman began her tenure at the hospital more than 30 years ago as an accounting manager. [Read more]

Sharon O'Keefe. President of University of Chicago Medical Center. Ms. O'Keefe became president of this 568-bed academic medical center in 2011. [Read more]

Susan Peach, BSN. CEO of HighPoint Health System (Gallatin, Tenn.). Ms. Peach is a nurse by background and began her time in leadership roles early in her career. [Read more]

Karen Price-Gharzeddine, RN. CEO of San Gabriel (Calif.) Valley Medical Center. Ms. Price-Gharzeddine began her career at SGVMC in 1997 and quickly ascended the ranks to become CNO of the hospital. [Read more]

Ann Pumpian. Senior Vice President of Finance and CFO of Sharp HealthCare (San Diego). Since beginning her career at Sharp HealthCare in 1984, Ms. Pumpian has held a variety of executive positions within the health system, eventually becoming senior vice president of finance and CFO in 1993. [Read more]

Gemma Rama-Banaag, RN, BSN, MSN. CNO of Paradise Valley Hospital (National City, Calif.). After completing her nursing degree at Philippine Union College in the Philippines in 1987, Ms. Rama-Banaag made it her goal to care for others and stand as a leader in her community. [Read more]

Marsha Rappley, MD. Vice President for Health Sciences at Virginia Commonwealth University and CEO of VCU Health System (Richmond, Va.). Before accepting her current positions at the health system in 2015, Dr. Rappley served as dean of Michigan State University's College of Human Medicine in East Lansing for roughly 10 years. [Read more]

Robin Rose, RN, BSN. COO and Chief Clinical Officer of Gibson Area Hospital and Health Center (Gibson City, Ill.). Ms. Rose joined Gibson Area Hospital in 2004 as CNO before taking on the duties of COO and chief clinical officer. [Read more]

Pamela Rudisill, DNP, RN, MSN. Senior Vice President and CNO of Community Health Systems (Franklin, Tenn.). A past president of the American Organization of Nurse Executives, Dr. Rudisill joined CHS in 2014. [Read more]

Dawn Rudolph. Chief Experience Officer of Saint Thomas Health (Nashville, Tenn.). Ms. Rudolph began her duties as chief experience officer of Saint Thomas Health in 2013 after serving as the president and CEO of Saint Thomas West Hospital since 2010. [Read more]

Margaret Sabin. President and CEO of Penrose-St. Francis Health Services (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Since becoming president and CEO of Penrose-St. Francis Health Services in 2008, Ms. Sabin maintains oversight over the daily operations of the 522-bed system. [Read more]

Cheryl Sadro. Executive Vice President and Chief Business & Finance Officer of The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. Ms. Sadro joined the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston in 2014 after maintaining a career of more than 30 years of service in public accountancy and financial leadership at major, mission-based health systems. [Read more]

Ninfa Saunders, DHA, MSN. President and CEO of Navicent Health (Macon, Ga.). Dr. Saunders currently leads a nonprofit healthcare corporation that includes a tertiary teaching hospital, children's hospital, rural critical access hospital, rehabilitation facility and hospice care. [Read more]

Nancy Schlichting. CEO of Henry Ford Health System (Detroit). Ms. Schlichting, who will retire from her post as CEO of Henry Ford Health System in December, has earned many accolades since she joined the system in 1998 as senior vice president and chief administrative officer. [Read more]

Joanne Schroeder, MSN, BSN. President and CEO of South Haven (Mich.) Health System. Ms. Schroeder has dedicated more than 30 years of her career to South Haven Health System, which includes a community hospital, emergency services, outpatient medical offices, specialty clinics, home care and a wellness and rehabilitation center. [Read more]

Phyllis Sherard, PhD. Chief Strategy Officer and Vice President of Population Health of Cheyenne (Wyo.) Regional Medical Center. Dr. Sherard works to position Cheyenne Regional Medical Center for success after healthcare reform and oversees the Wyoming Institute of Population Health. [Read more]

Elizabeth Sheridan, RN. Chief Nursing Executive and COO of Inspira Medical Centers (Elmer and Vineland, N.J.). During Ms. Sheridan's 15-year tenure with Inspira Health Network, she led the implementation of a number of programs to benefit patient health, including a home food delivery program for patients with a high risk for readmissions. [Read more]

Cherie Sibley, BSN. CEO of Clark Regional Medical Center (Winchester, Ky.). As CEO of Clark Regional, Ms. Sibley oversees the 79-bed medical center, part of Brentwood, Tenn.-based LifePoint Hospital system. [Read more]

Lynn Simon, MD. President of Clinical Services and Chief Quality Officer of Community Health Systems (Franklin, Tenn.). In her post at CHS, Dr. Simon oversees clinical quality and safety as well as medical staff relations, clinical integration and physician practice management, among other responsibilities. [Read more]

Maureen E. Sintich, RN. Senior Vice President, Network CNO of Hackensack Meridian Health (Edison, N.J.). Ms. Sintich joined Hackensack Meridian Health in 2014 from Wake Forest Baptist Health System, where she served as CNO and vice president of operations. [Read more]

Bernadette Spong. CFO of Orlando (Fla.) Health. Ms. Spong came to Orlando Health in 2015 after spending a decade at Raleigh, N.C.-based UNC Rex Healthcare, where she served as CFO. [Read more]

Nancy Susick, RN, MSN. President of Beaumont Hospital-Troy (Mich.). Ms. Susick oversees the financial performance and operations of Beaumont Health's Troy campus, as well as its ambulatory, diagnostic and surgery centers. [Read more]

Marti Taylor. CEO of University Hospital, Executive Director of Richard M. Ross Heart Hospital and COO of the Heart & Vascular Center (Columbus, Ohio). Ms. Taylor knows what it means to "wear multiple hats"; since taking on the additional role as CEO of University Hospital last year, she has served in three capacities across The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. [Read more]

Karen Testman, RN. CFO of MemorialCare Health System (Fountain Valley, Calif.). Ms. Testman has nearly two decades of leadership experience in healthcare finance. [Read more]

Elaine Thompson, PhD. President and CEO of Lakeland (Fla.) Regional Health. Dr. Thompson joined Lakeland Regional Health in 2010, after serving for four years as president of Lankenau Medical Center in Wynnewood, Pa., where she led a 100-percent improvement in annual income from operations in two years; developed an academic partnership with Drexel University in Philadelphia; and established a formal diversity program, among other accomplishments. [Read more]

Karen Teitelbaum. President and CEO of Sinai Health System (Chicago). Ms. Teitelbaum joined Sinai, a four-hospital safety-net system on Chicago's South and West Sides in 2007 as executive vice president and COO. [Read more]

Diemlan "Lannie" Tonnu. Senior Vice President of Finance and CFO of the Orthopaedic Institute for Children (Los Angeles). Ms. Tonnu was appointed CFO of the Orthopaedic Institute for Children in August after 25 years of service as senior vice president and CFO of Children's Hospital Los Angeles. [Read more]

Peggy Troy, RN, MSN. President and CEO of Children's Hospital of Wisconsin (Milwaukee). Ms. Troy got her start at Children's as a nurse intern while simultaneously completing her undergraduate degree at Marquette University in Milwaukee. [Read more]

Nancy Vish. RN, PhD. President and CNO of Baylor Heart and Vascular Hospital (Dallas). Dr. Vish has more than 20 years of experience in nursing and management. [Read more]

Vivian von Gruenigen, MD. CMO of Summa Health System (Akron, Ohio). Dr. von Gruenigen was named CMO of Summa in May after seven years with the system. [Read more]

Annette Walker. President of Strategy, Providence St. Joseph Health; CEO of St. Joseph Health (Renton, Wash., and Irvine, Calif.). In her roles at Providence St. Joseph Health, Ms. Walker oversees all strategy, marketing, sales, outreach, business development and project management across the seven-state health system, formed after Providence Health & Services and St. Joseph Health joined together. [Read more]

Beth Walker. COO of Ochsner Medical Center (New Orleans). Ms. Walker got her start at Ochsner in 2002 as an administrative fellow and has remained with the system ever since. [Read more]

Kelly Wallace. Senior Vice President and CFO of Seattle Children's Hospital. In her current role, Ms. Wallace oversees finances and operations at Seattle Children's, an academic medical center serving pediatric and adolescent patients from Washington, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. [Read more]

Kate Walsh. President and CEO of Boston Medical Center. Ms. Walsh has been president and CEO of BMC for six years. [Read more]

Elizabeth Ward. CFO of University Hospitals and Clinics at UT Southwestern Medical Center (Dallas). Ms. Ward joined UT Southwestern Medical Center as CFO in 2012. [Read more]

Page West, RN. Senior Vice President and Chief Nurse Executive of Dignity Health (San Francisco). As senior vice president and chief nurse executive of Dignity Health, Ms. West oversees nursing at 39 hospitals, yet still manages to add a personal touch to the role. [Read more]

Penny Wheeler, MD. President and CEO of Allina Health (Minneapolis). Before taking the helm of Allina Health, a system spanning 13 hospitals and 61 clinics, Dr. Wheeler led the system's quality and value strategy as chief clinical officer. [Read more]



Charlotte Wray, RN, MSN. President of University Hospitals Elyria (Ohio) Medical Center. Ms. Wray was appointed president of University Hospitals Elyria Medical Center in 2015, after serving as the hospital's vice president of clinical operations, information systems and chief clinical information officer for six years. [Read more]

Beth Zachary. President and CEO of Adventist Health Southern California Region (Roseville, Calif.). Ms. Zachary has 35 years of healthcare experience at Adventist Health alone. [Read more]
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Start-ups need more support and better access to finance to expand, a recruitment company boss has insisted.

Aine Brolly, chief executive of Cpl in Northern Ireland, said that despite opportunities in the sector, many local start-ups failed to trade for a significant amount of time, with just 36.7% of businesses in Belfast surviving their first five years to 2014.

The former senior vice-president of Invest NI in San Francisco added: "Despite the challenges of Brexit and the potential impact in the longer term of US policies, there are still opportunities for business growth in Northern Ireland, not least in the knowledge economy, which is growing nearly three times faster than elsewhere in the UK.

"Indeed, more young businesses are reaching 1m in sales locally than anywhere else, including London.

"However, as a region we need to be more strategic and varied in our approach to building our economy, with support for indigenous start-ups required at key times in their development."

Her intervention came as a poll showed that almost three-quarters of young professionals intended on switching jobs within the next two years.

The surprise statistic appeared in a study conducted by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

The poll, which included Northern Ireland in its research, showed that 73% of respondents were seeking a promotion.

Clodagh Hegarty, head of the ACCA Ulster Members' Network, said: "There is no doubt that the 'job for life' is less prevalent within the modern world, and employers who don't deliver on people's high expectations risk haemorrhaging their best talent to competitors."
Content and data analytics company Sophia has been bought over by Irish data science firm Boxfish

A Belfast data company has been bought over by a major Irish data science firm that counts some of the worlds biggest brands among its clients.

Sophia has been taken on by Boxfish, a company that specialises in discovering and targeting audiences on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and more for large media companies.

Sophia is a content and data analytics company that is based at Catalyst, formerly the Northern Ireland Science Park.

It is likely that the takeover will mean additional new jobs for the business, which has said it plans on making its Belfast base a centre of engineering for the company.

Its chief executive, David Patterson explained: We couldnt be more delighted to see all the work that weve put into Sophia pay off.

We have been tremendously impressed with what Boxfish has achieved using our technology, and we are thrilled to be part of the exciting opportunities our combined company will create going forward.

Boxfish boss Eoin Dowling added: Having worked with the Sophia team for the past two years, we already had developed a tight synergy between our two companies.

Meanwhile, Larne company Eco Blast, which produces equipment used to clear and clean surfaces in industry, has landed 100,000 in fresh funding from the Halo Angel Plus Network, and is additionally set to create 10 new jobs.

The business was founded last year by Jason McKenna, a mechanical design engineer with experience in industrial engineering design.

The firm has also just secured its first major dealer, which will export and sell its products within the UK and also throughout Europe.
Ten of the 16 board members will be women, Mr Khan revealed

The Mayor of London has appointed a raft of high-flying executives to a business advisory group to help shield the capital's economy from the impact of Brexit.

Sadiq Khan has called on bosses from the world of technology, finance and retail to outline fresh ideas for driving growth amid fears that London could endure economic upheaval if Britain leaves the European single market.

The line-up includes Nicola Mendelsohn, vice president EMEA of Facebook, Jayne-Anne Gadhia, chief executive of Virgin Money, and Paul May, chief executive of cake chain Patisserie Valerie.

Mr Khan said he had handed 10 of the 16 roles to women to challenge the under-representation of businesswomen in senior positions.

Speaking at Bloomberg's UK investment summit, he said: "My high-quality Business Advisory Board will bring great insight, innovation and creativity to bear on developing ideas that increase our competitiveness and prosperity, and spread the opportunity that brings to all Londoners.

"London business is still coming to terms with the recent vote to leave the European Union and I am looking forward to working with the Business Advisory Board to strengthen London's shield against the expected blows from Brexit and to seize the opportunities to show how London is open to jobs, growth and investment."

There have been mounting fears that London's status as a global financial centre could be diminished in the wake of Brexit if firms shift operations to rival cities to maintain close trading ties with Europe.

Industry concerns have centred on whether London's heavyweight financial firms will continue to have access to the bank passporting system, which allows them to sell their products to any country within the European Economic Area.

According to TheCityUK, a so-called "hard Brexit" - where Britain leaves the single market in order to take a tighter grip on immigration - could cost the City of London 75,000 jobs.

Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the London Stock Exchange, said: "Being at the heart of London's financial community, London Stock Exchange Group is committed to supporting access to funding for British and international entrepreneurs and businesses.

"I look forward to being part of the mayor's Business Advisory Board, as it champions London's vibrant business and entrepreneurial community, supporting London's status as a world leading global financial centre and a dynamic place to do business."

The Business Advisory Board will meet four times a year, with Mr Khan chairing the sessions.
Tata Steel's imminent sale of its Speciality Steels business is expected to save jobs across the UK

Tata Steel has moved closer to selling its Speciality Steels business, a move that would secure jobs across the UK.

The Indian-owned firm announced the signing of a Letter of Intent with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of the business for 100 million.

The Letter of Intent covers several South Yorkshire-based assets, including the Rotherham electric arc steelworks, the steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth, as well as service centres in Bolton and Wednesbury.

Speciality Steels employs about 1,700 workers, who produce steel for the aerospace, automotive and oil and gas industries.

Bimlendra Jha, chief executive of Tata Steel UK, said: "The Speciality Steels business is independent of the pan-European strip products supply chain and today's announcement is in line with the overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio.

"This is an important step forward in seeking a future for Speciality Steels and we have reached this stage thanks to the efforts of employees, trade unions and management.

"We now look forward to working with Liberty on the due diligence and other work streams so that the sale can be successfully concluded. We will continue to work closely with trade unions and will communicate any material news on this issue to the employees on an ongoing basis."

Roy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community union, said: "After months of uncertainty and delay from Tata, this will be welcome news for the thousands of steelworkers whose jobs depend on the success of this business.

"Community has spent months campaigning to save these jobs and today's news is a credit to our local reps who have worked so hard to ensure the business has a viable future. We will now begin the process of working closely with Liberty to examine their plans to make a success of Speciality Steels.

"The number one priority for Community will be ensuring that Liberty have a proper plan to protect jobs and provide the long term investment necessary to grow the business. Crucial to this plan will be ensuring that the business' loyal workforce have a pension plan that provides dignity and security in retirement."

Sanjeev Gupta, executive chairman of the Liberty House Group, said: "We look forward to working with Tata Steel over the coming weeks to complete this hugely important milestone transaction.

"We recognise the world-class skills of the Speciality Steels workforce and are eager to join with them to develop the business and increase market share, both domestically and internationally using our global presence. As part of that process we will now engage fully with the trade unions and the local community. We are counting on their full support."

Liberty House and Tata Steel expect the acquisition to complete early in the first quarter of 2017.

Unite national officer Harish Patel said: "Today's announcement is welcome as we can at last see some movement towards certainty for our members.

"Our key concerns are job security for the workforce, the future of the British Steel pension scheme and what the investment plans will be from the Liberty House Group going forward.

"Of course, the devil is very much in the detail, which is why we will be asking Tata Steel to ensure that we can conduct independent due diligence on its proposals.

"As a matter of urgency, we must see security for the pension scheme to which men and women have dutifully contributed all their working lives.

"Our hard-working members, their families and their local communities have lived with a dark cloud of uncertainty hanging over them for more than a year."

A Business Department spokesman said: "Today's commercial announcement is an encouraging step forward for the future of the Speciality Steel Division which produces world-class steels for the aerospace, automotive and offshore sectors."

Gill Furniss, shadow minister for steel, said: "After months of worry, steelworkers and their families in South Yorkshire at last have some certainty over what the future holds.

"While this is welcome news, the key test for Liberty will come in the detail of their plans for investment and jobs.

"Speciality Steels has the potential for a successful future, but only if its buyer works with management, the unions and local agencies in South Yorkshire to make that potential a reality."
The BBC has been accused of failing to "take religion seriously"

A BBC broadcaster has accused the corporation of failing to "take religion seriously".

Roger Bolton, who presents the Feedback programme on Radio 4, said the BBC was "coming up short".

He told Radio Times magazine that "j ust six months after the Archbishop of Canterbury called for broadcasters to take religion seriously, it seems the BBC is doing anything but".

Bolton said that promoting "knowledge and understanding" was a key role of a public service broadcaster.

Citing reports that a "BBC revamp will counter Christian 'bias'", he added: "Perhaps it's not Christian bias we should worry about but something far more worrying when it comes to understanding and interpreting our modern world - a bias against taking religion seriously."

Bolton told the magazine: "How can young people and immigrants to this country understand the UK without learning of the crucial role Christianity has played in the formation of its political structures and culture?

"How can people feel they're being welcomed as equal citizens if we don't bother to find out about what is often the most important part of their life, their faith?

"How can we understand what's going on in the Middle East, for example, without knowing about the Shia/Sunni split?

"This is not about promoting faith, it's about promoting knowledge and understanding - surely a central role of a public service broadcaster?

"But the BBC is coming up short."

Bolton said that Songs of Praise, "one of the longest-running programmes of its kind anywhere in the world", might not be made by the BBC in future - although it would still air on the corporation.

He said: "For the 55 years of its existence this shining light of traditional religious broadcasting has been made by the BBC. But for how much longer?

"The BBC's own in-house team - along with independent producers - have been invited to tender for a three-year contract to continue to produce it, which they may not win.

"Why should viewers care? Isn't the important thing that the programme is being made, not who makes it? As a former independent producer I have a lot of sympathy with that view but, frankly, I'm more worried by the BBC's whole approach to religion."

His comments come as the corporation's head of religion and ethics, Aaqil Ahmed, leaves the BBC and James Purnell takes overall responsibility for religious programming, adding to his brief of head of radio and education.

Bolton complained that the BBC does not have a separate commissioning editor in TV for religious and ethical programmes.

"Whereas BBC News has editors for almost everything under the sun, from business and economics to the arts and sport, it doesn't have one for religion," he said.

A BBC spokeswoman said: "We take religion incredibly seriously, that's why for the first time it will be represented at executive level at the BBC, and why we are asking religious leaders to help us shape and do more across all of our diverse content - including for Christianity."
Elementary's Jonny Lee Miller thinks Benedict Cumberbatch is 'fabulous' as Sherlock in the BBC show

Jonny Lee Miller said it would be "ridiculous" to complain about being compared to Benedict Cumberbatch over their portrayals of Sherlock Holmes.

The British actor plays the famous fictional detective on Sky series Elementary opposite Lucy Liu as Dr Joan Watson, in a contemporary take on Sir Arthur Doyle's characters.

Miller, 44, insisted there was no rivalry between his show and the BBC series Sherlock, which stars Cumberbatch in the title role.

He told the Press Association: "I think (Benedict) is fabulous. I think it's a fabulous show.

"Neither of us are the first person to play Sherlock Holmes. It would be ridiculous to be tired (of comparisons).

"I think we do widely different shows. Why would I be tired of comparisons with other incarnations?

"I think the original stories are so good, they can afford many different incarnations - like Robin Hood."

Miller's Elementary co-star Liu said she used to watch Sherlock before Elementary began airing and enjoyed the relationship between Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, who plays Dr Watson on the BBC series.

"I love their dynamic," she said.

"I love their chemistry. I liked seeing something that was based in London.

"But that was a time before our show actually came on. It's nice to know they can be living in parallel universes and still be successful on their own."

Miller, who is starring in his fifth series of Elementary, said he did not predict the success of the show when he was first cast.

"I think we knew we were doing something fairly interesting and fairly different but you don't really expect any success in this business," he said.

"You have to go out there and try and make an honest piece of work."

The new series of Elementary airs on Sky Living on Tuesday, December 13 at 9pm.
Lady Justice Hallett during a rehearsal of a production of the Trial of Hamlet

Hamlet was cleared of murder on Sunday as some of the country's top legal minds went on stage alongside actors and comedians for a live courtroom drama.

Shakespeare's fictional Danish prince stood in the dock in front of real-life Court of Appeal judge Lady Justice Hallett and four top QCs, accused of murder over the violent stabbing death of Polonius.

The Trial of Hamlet saw Tom Conti, Poldark star Ruby Bentall, Meera Syal and Lee Mack take on the roles of the play's protagonists as they gave evidence both for and against the troubled royal, played by John Heffernan.

They were joined by schoolchildren taking part in programmes run by event organiser the Shakespeare Schools Festival (SSF), who performed "flashback" scenes.

The audience at Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End became the jury, aided by Outnumbered star Hugh Dennis as foreman, to clear him of any wrongdoing.

Shakespeare's best-known work sees Hamlet thrust a dagger into his murderous stepfather/uncle Claudius's chief minister as the older man spied on him from behind an "arras" - a tapestry.

But his defence team successfully claimed he acted in self-defence. Now in its third year, the show's forgiving audiences have previously acquitted both Romeo and Macbeth.

Lady Justice Hallett told the Press Association: "There are an awful lot of us who have really not wanted to be role models, but I have come to understand it's really important that people do see that women, people from modest backgrounds like mine, that they can make it through the professions.

"I think the more we do have role models around the more we can encourage children to aspire to greater things.

"And that's one of the things I love about this exercise. The SSF is all about taking children who might otherwise not have thought about the law or even doing things in a more senior level. It will give them the confidence I hope to aspire higher."

The performance raised 60,000 for the SSF, which works to bring Shakespeare to children in schools that might not otherwise have access to the theatre.

The charity has been running Shakespeare projects since 2000 and says more than 250,000 youngsters have taken part in its programmes. This year more than 1,100 schools have put on performances in 131 theatres nationwide, it said.

Conti, who played Claudius, told the Press Association: "I would never encourage children to go into my business, never ever. But I would encourage schools to involve children in the arts generally using acting and writing and all of that.

"Because it's very good for a young mind and lots of children who can be troubled can find some kind of... emotional assistance somehow in acting parts."
Sinn Fein Leader Gerry Adams said partition was stunting the potential of Ireland

Brexit has swept away assumptions about the partition of Ireland and presented a unique opportunity to press for reunification, Gerry Adams said as he launched a new Sinn Fein unity blueprint.

Under the republican party's vision for a united Ireland, there would be a series of enshrined protections for unionists, including the option of British citizenship, and the potential retention of a devolved powersharing administration at Stormont.

The party's discussion document claims "Brexit has changed everything", arguing that the UK-wide vote to the leave the EU, in the face of a majority vote in Northern Ireland (56%) to remain, has major implications for the debate about the island's constitutional future.

The paper claims some unionists, particularly "young and liberal" voters, were now willing to explore the potential of a united Ireland.

Sinn Fein said an all-Ireland vote on unification should take place in the next political term.

Under the terms of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement, the UK Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has the power to trigger a poll on unity, but only if he or she believes there has been a shift in public opinion in favour of changing the constitutional position.

Current Secretary of State James Brokenshire has said there is no evidence that Brexit has prompted such a change of opinion.

Sinn Fein president Mr Adams said it was "incomprehensible" to have one part of Ireland within the EU and one outside it.

The document was launched in Belfast and Dublin on Monday morning. Mr Adams, who penned the document's foreword, did not attend either of the launches as he is en route to Cuba for Fidel Castro's funeral.

"The Brexit referendum result has swept away many of the previous political assumptions about the constitutional, political and economic status quo in Ireland," he said.

"Ireland's political landscape, north and south, has been transformed dramatically.

"Massive uncertainties have been triggered about the implications for business, trade, jobs, social protections, educational opportunities, and future political and economic stability.

"This poses huge challenges for Irish national interests.

"For English and Welsh votes to drag the north of Ireland out of the EU against the will of its people would, like partition itself, be yet another travesty of democracy and would undermine the Good Friday Agreement.

"It is now vitally important that there is maximum co-operation to uphold the democratic wishes of the people of the north.

"Ultimately, the only realistic way to ensure this is through the unity of the island of Ireland."

Mr Adams said partition was stunting the "political, economic, social and cultural" potential of Ireland.

The paper also questioned the argument that the Irish Republic could not afford Northern Ireland, describing that as a "myth".

It challenged the level to which the UK government subsidises Northern Ireland, claiming the sum could be as low as 2.7 billion a year.

"The island of Ireland is currently administered by two states and three governments - in Dublin, Belfast and London," said Mr Adams.

"This system is wasteful, inefficient and incapable of successfully prioritising the interests of the Irish people that require an integrated vision for the island."

Among the proposals set out in the document are:

:: a new constitution for Ireland.

:: weighed parliamentary majorities to help protect unionist interests in an Irish parliament.

:: an all-island national health service free at the point of delivery.

:: expression of relationship between unionists and the British monarchy and recognition of the place of the protestant loyal orders.

Sinn Fein set out a series of steps to achieve a united Ireland. They include:

:: initiating an open and inclusive national conversation on Irish unity, involving citizens, political parties, social partners, and civil society.

:: publication of a Green Paper on Irish Unity which will identify steps and measures for a successful transition to a united Ireland.

:: establishment of an Irish parliamentary committee on reunification with the task of outlining, driving, monitoring and reviewing the transition towards unity.

:: appointment of an Irish Government Minister of State with the dedicated and specific responsibility of developing strategies to advance Irish unity and coordinating the government's all-Ireland policies.

:: co-ordination of economic planning on an all-island basis.

:: engagement by government departments north and south in joint public service provision and publish a timescale and strategy for the full integration of public services.

:: discussion with the EU Commission and institutions to examine what practical support they can give to facilitate an efficient process of reunification.
Detective Chief Superintendent Andrea McMullan, who leads the fight against drugs and organised crime

Drugs worth more than 3 million have been seized as part of a police crackdown on street level dealing.

Some 373 people were arrested, 279 of whom were either charged or reported to prosecutors, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said.

There were also 674 searches and 586 drugs seizures during the PSNI's eight-week Operation Torus initiative.

Detective Chief Superintendent Andrea McMullan, PSNI's reactive and organised crime branch, said the blitz had been a success.

"In the eight weeks of the operation we have removed over 3.3 million worth of drugs from our streets.

"This is further evidence that we are committed to tackling those involved in the illegal drug trade, both at street dealing level, and also organised crime gangs."

Operation Torus, which runs twice a year, aims to disrupt the activities of a number of organised crime gangs believed to be peddling highly addictive and potentially lethal substances such as heroin and cocaine throughout Belfast and beyond.

The latest phase of the operation was conducted from September 5 to October 31.

Cannabis was by far the most commonly seized drug, followed by cocaine, police confirmed.

DCS McMullan pledged police would continue to tackle the illegal drugs trade but appealed for community help.

"We will continue to arrest drug dealers involved in the sale and supply of drugs, disrupt the crime groups involved, bring individuals before the courts and work with communities and partner agencies to reduce the threat of harmful and illegal activity.

"Street-level drug dealing is happening across all districts throughout Northern Ireland, causing hurt and harm to communities.

"We as police will do everything that we can to tackle this issue, but we need to work in partnership with our local communities, and I encourage people to share any information, no matter how small, with us," she added.

Last week MLAs on Stormont's justice committee were told there were more than 100 organised crime gangs involved in a range of illegal activities including drug dealing.

The 138 groups include home-grown loyalist and republican paramilitaries as well as criminals from abroad.
The DUP has attacked Sinn Fein for meeting militant Palestinian group Hamas in an attempt to "wrongly glorify their own past".

In a departure from recent attempts to show a greater show of Executive unity, the DUP warned that Sinn Fein had regularly tried to use the international stage to justify its past violence.

Diane Dodds MEP also said the example of Northern Ireland showed terrorism could not win.

But Sinn Fein insisted its support of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination would not waver.

Republican contacts with groups in the Middle East stretch back decades, with the party's MEP Martina Anderson also due to visit the central West Bank city of Ramallah later this week.

In 2005, Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams met members of Hamas - the largest militant group in the region - in the Palestinian parliament and laid a wreath at the tomb of the former president Yasser Arafat.

The latest delegation to Istanbul at the weekend was headed by Sinn Fein's national chairperson Declan Kearney who met one of the main Hamas leaders, Musa Abu Marzouk, among others.

Mrs Dodds said: "These developments will not come as a shock to many. Sinn Fein have regularly sought to use the international stage to wrongly glorify their own past.

"The reality is that those they met in Istanbul have as their number one goal the destruction of the State of Israel. As recently as three weeks ago, Hamas are reported to have welcomed an attack on three Israeli soldiers at a checkpoint in Ramallah.

"Ironically this is the same place Martina Anderson intends to visit later this week, although if past experiences are anything to go by her entry may not be guaranteed.

"The Northern Ireland example highlights that terrorism does not win. Progress can only be truly achieved when all sides commit to exclusively peaceful and democratic means."

Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie said, however, it was up to Sinn Fein to decide whether to meet Hamas or not.

"What I would say to Sinn Fein is 'if you think you have influence with Hamas, use that to persuade them to stop firing rockets into Israel'."

The Upper Bann MLA, a former soldier in the Royal Irish Regiment, added: "The bottom line is that they should be persuading Hamas to give up violence and to get around a table with Israel and negotiate.

"That is what the region wants. It is in the interests of the whole world, and it is exactly what Sinn Fein did themselves."

South Antrim MLA Mr Kearney said Sinn Fein outlined its experience of the Irish peace process to senior Hamas representatives and gave an analysis of the political situation in Ireland.

"We shared our view that Palestinian national, political and civic unity should be central to future political progress and that inclusive negotiations are essential to securing a peaceful, democratic, political agreement."
DUP leader Arlene Foster would meet the Pope if he came to Northern Ireland in his capacity as head of state.

It comes after Taoiseach Enda Kenny announced a papal visit to the Republic for 2018 after a meeting with the Pope in the Vatican on Monday.

The visit will be the first since John Paul II's 1979 visit.

Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness has said it would be unthinkable the Pope would come to Ireland and not cross the border.

A spokesman for Arlene Foster later said: "Any potential visit to Northern Ireland by the Pope is a matter for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London.

"Were the Pope to visit Northern Ireland in his capacity as Head of State then the First Minister would meet him.

No such trip, however, has been scheduled.

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Earlier in welcoming the visit, the deputy First Minister said: "I think there is no prospect whatsoever of him coming to Ireland and him not coming to the North," he said.

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Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny and wife Fionnuala during a private audience on November 28, 2016 at the Vatican. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alessandra TarantinoALESSANDRA TARANTINO/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny during a private audience in his private studio at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. AP Pope Francis meets with Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny during a private audience on November 28, 2016 at the Vatican. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alessandra TarantinoALESSANDRA TARANTINO/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny (L) during a private audience on November 28, 2016 at the Vatican. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alessandra TarantinoALESSANDRA TARANTINO/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images Pope Francis laughs with Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny and his wife Fionnuala, during a private audience on November 28, 2016 at the Vatican. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alessandra TarantinoALESSANDRA TARANTINO/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images Pope Francis talks with Taoiseach Enda Kenny during a private audience on November 28, 2016 at the Vatican. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alessandra TarantinoALESSANDRA TARANTINO/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images Taoiseach Enda Kenny and wife Fionnuala with Pope Francis in the Vatican. Pope Francis meets Taoiseach Enda Kenny in Rome. Pope Francis laughs with Taoiseach Enda Kenny and his wife Fionnuala, during a private audience on November 28, 2016 at the Vatican. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alessandra TarantinoALESSANDRA TARANTINO/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images Pope Francis talks with Taoiseach Enda Kenny, left, and his wife Fionnuala, during a private audience in his private studio at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP Pope Francis talks with Taoiseach Minister Enda Kenny, right, during a private audience in his private studio at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP Pope Francis talks with Taoiseach Enda Kenny, left, and his wife Fionnuala, during a private audience in his private studio at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Taoiseach Enda Kenny, right, during a private audience in his private studio at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP A Swiss Guard enters in the Apostolic Palace before an audience between Pope Francis and Taoiseach Enda Kenny at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Taoiseach Enda Kenny, left, and his wife Fionnuala during a private audience in his studio, at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP Pope Francis attends a private audience with Taoiseach Enda Kenny, in his studio at the Vatican, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, pool ) AP / Facebook

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There has been no confirmation of the Pope's itinerary as yet. When asked how why he was so sure the head of the church would cross the border, Mr McGuinness replied: "Because I'm around a long time and I know how these things work."

RTE reported Taoiseach Kenny held a 23-minute meeting with the Pontiff in which he confirmed the visit.

After arriving in the city state, Mr Kenny wasted no time in issuing a formal invitation to Pope Francis.

An invitation was extended to Francis by the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference to visit the World Meeting of Families in Dublin in 2018.

The Irish Catholic reported Vatican sources saying the pope chose Ireland to host the conference in the hope he could make a visit.

It is understood the two men discussed a range of issues including migration during their meeting.

As they left the, Mr Kenny's wife Fionnuala said to the Pope: Hopefully well see you in Ireland.

The Taoiseach presented leader of the Catholic Church with a print of a stained glass window by Harry Clarke. In return, the Fine Gael leader received an etching of St Peters Basilica.

Rev Trevor Gribben, Clerk of the General Assembly and General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland said: "While the Vatican have yet to confirm the visit, should Pope Francis come to Ireland, as with any visitor to these shores, he would be most welcome.

"I am sure that many, many Roman Catholics both south and north of the border will be very excited and encouraged by the news that Pope Francis is likely to attend the 2018 gathering of the World Meeting of Families. If this materialises, I would hope that all other people on this island will want to join with our fellow citizens in welcoming the leader of their church to Ireland.

"Should any visit include an appropriate opportunity to travel north and visit Northern Ireland, I would trust that all in our community would take the opportunity to show due respect to such a visit. That will indeed be a sign that as a society we are continuing to develop into the kind of country that we all want Northern Ireland to be."
Families from the Justice4the21 campaign group outside Birmingham's civil justice centre

The Birmingham pub bombings coroner, hearing inquests into the deaths of 21 victims, has backed a bid for legal funding by bereaved families.

Peter Thornton, QC, one of the country's most senior coroners, said: "I commend the application for legal funding for those who are considering them."

He added: "There is a compelling case for proper legal representation."

Mr Thornton indicated he wanted the funding issue - which has led to a war of words between some of the families and the Government - to be settled by early next year.

On Monday, the coroner convened the first pre-inquest hearing into the 1974 double bombings in Birmingham, in a bid to establish the scope of the proceedings.

He also said he had neither the power nor the authority to order funding to be put in place.

On the night of November 21 1974, the IRA planted two bombs which ripped through the Tavern in the Town and nearby Mulberry Bush pubs, killing 21 people and injuring 182 others.

The botched police investigation into the terrorist atrocity led to the wrongful convictions of the Birmingham Six - one of the most infamous miscarriages of justice.

Monday's hearing was the first step in what is expected to be a lengthy inquest process, since the families won a ruling from Birmingham senior coroner Louise Hunt for new hearings earlier this year.

Mr Thornton said: "I do wish to say I support the applications of those families who wish to participate fully in these inquests by way of legal representation."

He added: "The events of November 21 1974 brought about the tragic deaths of 21 people.

"These were calamitous events and require full and fair investigation at least as far the inquest procedures may permit, under law."

The hearing at the city's civil justice centre took place amid the funding row between the lawyers of eight of the 21 victims' families and the Government.

Their solicitors, and that of a ninth family represented separately, raised the funding issue directly with Mr Thornton in a packed court room.

Among those in court was the well-known human rights lawyer Gareth Peirce, who is believed to be representing the surviving members of the Birmingham Six.

West Midlands Police, the local Police Federation, and Devon and Cornwall Police were also represented.

Mr Thornton said: "I have in mind the gravity of events, the scale of the number of deaths, the investigations to date, the complexity of the investigations and the need for the families' participation - which is very important.

"For those reasons I support the application for funding."

He expressed hopes funding would be granted - at the latest - six weeks before the provisional date for the next preliminary hearing on February 23.

He also stressed the need for the hearings to be an independent process.

The original inquests, convened in the 1970s, were overtaken by the criminal inquiry by West Midlands Police and never re-started.

The force had opposed the holding of new inquests, despite fresh evidence coming to light that police may have allegedly ignored two tip-offs of an imminent IRA attack in the city.

Lawyers for the families have been working for free, while legal teams for the police and other Government branches have been taxpayer-funded.

West Midlands Police has already set aside 1 million to cover its legal costs.

The Government had rejected a call from the families for a special funding model similar to that used in the Hillsborough stadium disaster inquiry.

Instead, Home Secretary Amber Rudd backed the relatives making an application, under existing arrangements, through the Legal Aid Agency.

However, under rules governing the UK's separate legal jurisdictions, the families' Northern Ireland-based lawyers KRW Law would need to partner with an English law firm to secure legal aid.

In court today, Christopher Stanley, of KRW Law, told the coroner such an agreement was "unworkable".

It emerged during the hearing that the West Midlands police and crime commissioner had written to the families suggesting the legal aid authorities in England and Wales meet their counterparts in Northern Ireland to see if agreement can be reached.

Mr Thornton also made a public appeal to eight families who have never made contact with the Birmingham coroner's office to do so if they wanted to be kept informed about the inquests.

Full inquest hearings are not likely to start before the end of September 2017.

Afterwards, Julie Hambleton of campaign group Justice4th21, whose older sister Maxine was killed in the bombings, said she welcomed the coroner's comments.

She added: "I will be writing to the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister to ask why are they treating our loved ones with such contempt."

The Government has said it wants all the families to be legally represented at the inquests, and had suggested a funding work-around.

A Government spokesman said: "Our deepest sympathies remain with all those affected by the horrific pub bombings in Birmingham in 1974.

"The Legal Aid Agency has been clear with KRW on a number of occasions what is needed to take this matter forward. Legal aid is a devolved matter and because KRW is based in Northern Ireland, it needs to enter into an arrangement with an English or Welsh law firm in order to receive legal aid funding.

"The LAA continues to urge KRW to do this so the families get the representation they want at the inquest."
A number of Belfast's top grammar schools have been forced to make contingency plans as teachers prepare to strike on Wednesday.

Rathmore Grammar in the south of the city will only operate its sixth form, and Year 12 mock exams will go ahead as planned. It has informed parents on its website that pupils in Years 8 through to 11 will not be required to attend school on November 30.

The letter added: "Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience the above matter might cause. You will understand that these matters are outside the control of the school."

St Dominic's in west Belfast has advised parents that the school will only be open for Year 13 and Year 14 classes if the strike goes ahead.

In a note on their website, the school urged: "Please do not send your child(ren) to school on 30th November if your child's class is not included on this list as supervision is not available. Thank you for your patience and understanding."

It is understood that Strathearn School in east Belfast will also be affected.

Northern Ireland's largest teachers' union, the NASUWT, called its members out on strike following a dispute with employers over pay.

The unions have rejected an offer of a 0% pay rise for 2015/16 and 1% for 2016/17.

The NASUWT has threatened "rolling strike action" which will commence on Wednesday with action across the Belfast and Newtownabbey area. No details have yet been announced about future strikes.

Education Minister Peter Weir has repeatedly urged the union to call the action off, saying it will be "detrimental" to pupils and union members.

He also claimed the teaching unions had initially sought an annual pay rise of 8.23%, including increments, before reducing their demands to 3%. He added there was no more money in his budget to increase teachers' pay.

Parents are advised to check with their children's schools for information about possible strike action.
ONeills 10-year sentence will be five in jail followed by five on licence.

A 41-year-old grandfather who took part in a dissident republican shooting in the Ardoyne area of Belfast was handed a 10-year sentence, half of which is to be served in jail.

Patrick Joseph O'Neill, of no fixed abode, was informed by Judge Patrick Kinney that he will serve five years in prison with a further five years on licence upon his release for the "extremely serious" gun attack.

O'Neill was one of three masked men who forced their way into the Brompton Park home of their victim in November 2010. Their target was shot several times in the legs and groin, and has been left with permanent scarring and in "chronic pain" as a result.

Passing sentence at Belfast Crown Court, Judge Kinney ruled that despite the seriousness of the offences, he didn't consider O'Neill fell into the category of presenting a danger to the public.

Judge Kinney also revealed that it has never been established which of the three men pulled the trigger that night.

The court heard the father of six and grandfather of three had a limited criminal record and had not been associated with any similar offending since the November 2010 gun attack, which was later claimed as a punishment shooting by Oglaigh na hEireann.

At least five shots were fired and a Crime Scene Investigator seized two spent bullet heads and five spent cases. They were fired from a Glock 17 pistol which stolen during a burglary at a policeman's house over four years earlier in 2006.

Judge Kinney said the incident occurred in a "paramilitary setting", adding: "Whilst there is no evidence he (O'Neill) is a member of any illegal organisation, I am satisfied his offending on the evening in question assisted the aims an illegal organisation."

A previous hearing was told that on the evening of November 15, 2010 three masked men forced their way into their victim's home before opening fire.

The victim's mother tried to defend both her and her son by arming herself with the knives, before she too was threatened with being shot. A DNA sample was later recovered from one of the knives - a brown-handled kitchen knife - and five years after the shooting O'Neill was linked to the gun attack.

When arrested last year for a totally unrelated domestic offence, DNA from O'Neill was found to match that recovered from the knife.

O'Neill subsequently pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm with intent, and unlawfully and maliciously causing grievous bodily harm, on the grounds of joint enterprise.

Judge Kinney said that whilst he accepted there was no evidence to suggest O'Neill was the gunman, he would nonetheless have been "fully aware" both of the intent of the masked men and that a gun would be used.

As he was being led away by prison staff after being handed a 10-year sentence, O'Neill gave the thumbs up to family and friends in the public gallery.

In response to the sentencing the PSNI issued a statement.

Detective Inspector Andy Workman, from Serious Crime Branch, said: As a result of forensic evidence which became available to us earlier this year, we were able to arrest and charge Patrick Joseph ONeill.

The victim sustained serious injuries as a result of this attack.

"It was an example of nameless and faceless individuals using a paramilitary flag of convenience, in this case Oglaigh na hEireann, to inflict life-changing harm on someone without any reference to a judge, jury or the normal processes of the criminal justice system.

This is not the way to deal with allegations of criminality in a civilised society in the 21st century. Police will continue to robustly investigate all such paramilitary style shootings and assaults. We would encourage victims, their families and communities to work with us so that such barbaric activity is shunned and those involved are put before the courts.
Jayne Wisener as Cinderella with panto co-stars May McFettridge and singer Gareth Gates at the Grand Opera House, Belfast

A tinseltown actress who was born in Northern Ireland has confessed she is considering moving home to start a family.

Jayne Wisener is about to star as Cinderella at the Grand Opera House in Belfast, and said her version will have a strong Coleraine accent.

Most Hollywood stars might see panto as a sign their career's on the wane, but not Wisener.

Speaking just before the start of the Belfast production, the Sweeney Todd star said: "A lot of musical theatre actors do pantos. It's a great Christmas gig."

And Northern Ireland is the perfect place to do panto, said the actress, who also played Cinderella in a 2012 production. "There is a big culture [in Northern Ireland] for the panto," she told the Sunday Times Culture Magazine. "A lot of the time, it's people's first experience of theatre, especially kids, which means they will want to go back. We need more theatre here."

She sees no reason to change her accent for the role.

"It's going to sound super-Coleraine," she said. "Cinderella is a rags-to-riches tale, so there's no reason I would have to sound posh... not that people in Coleraine aren't posh."

Wisener (29) first made her name as 'Johanna' in Tim Burton's 2007 film Sweeney Todd, alongside Johnny Depp. Since then, she's starred in Channel 4 comedy 'The Inbetweeners' and BBC Northern Ireland drama '6 Degrees' as well as doing the occasional bit of musical theatre.

She says that she feels much more "comfortable" on camera than on stage - but her family aren't always as comfortable with her on-screen roles.

Speaking of her role as a blackmailing murder victim in 2011 mini-series Injustice, she said: "I had a sex scene in that - totally awkward. Granny Wisener didn't enjoy that one."

The actress also gave an insight into her childhood in Coleraine.

"When I was small, I didn't speak to anybody," she said. "I was odd and really shy. When I got on stage, that didn't matter. I didn't have to make up my own lines."

She was spotted by a casting director in a performance of West Side Story in Derry and quit college to play Johanna in Sweeney Todd.

She then spent almost a decade in England, returning to Northern Ireland to film 6 Degrees between 2012 and 2015, and then Nick Nickleby - a modern interpretation of the Dickens classic - in 2012.

And Northern Ireland could be seeing a lot more of her.

The star - who married London banker Wayne Austin in 2012 - admitted that she is considering moving back to Northern Ireland to start a family.

"It's really hard focusing on career, career, career," she said. "You can't live your life saying 'what if' forever. Eventually, you have to start thinking about what you really want. And I really want a family."

Cinderella is at the Grand Opera House in Belfast, until January 15. For more information, visit https://www.goh.co.uk/
A funeral director who introduced life-saving equipment outside his business has hit out after a newly-installed defibrillator was vandalised in east Belfast.

Andrew Crymble (35) said the man who damaged the unit's box on the Woodstock Road had put lives at risk.

Although the defibrillator itself was not damaged, the glass front of the box containing it was smashed, meaning it had to be removed until repairs are carried out. The unit had only been installed a week ago. Andrew was in Downpatrick at the time, but actually witnessed the vandalism taking place in broad daylight yesterday afternoon, as his CCTV system allows him to view images remotely.

The defibrillator - which delivers an electric shock to someone suffering a heart attack - cost 800 and its housing another 500.

"But the cost is not important - if it saves one life, it's worth every penny," Andrew told the Belfast Telegraph.

He added that it would be back up and running soon. "God forbid if someone took a heart attack, as this is the only one on the Woodstock Road."

Andrew is part of the family firm David Crymble & Sons Funeral Directors, and after they opened new premises in October, decided they wanted to put something back into the community.

"I had a friend whose brother died a few weeks ago of cardiac arrest, and this doubly confirmed to me that I had to put the defibrillator outside the office," he added.
The flyer that has been circulated in east Belfast

Leaflets threatening people who co-operate with police have been branded a cowardly attempt to intimidate.

Flyers featuring a gunman and the union flag, stating: "All PSNI informers will be put out of this area" were distributed in east Belfast at the weekend.

PSNI Belfast commander, Chief Superintendent Chris Noble, said: "Police roundly condemn this cowardly attempt to intimidate a law-abiding community.

"Policing only works in partnership with the community, acting on those things that are of concern to the community in order to keep them safe.

"Police will continue to apply legitimate pressure to those who prey on local people and who attempt to exercise illegitimate power and cause fear."

The leaflets were placed on cars in east Belfast overnight on Friday. The PSNI said they were a "clear sign" that community policing was having an impact and vowed to "sharpen" their focus on tackling criminality in the city.

Chris Lyttle from the cross-community Alliance Party added his condemnation and urged people to continue to work with the police. "Once again we see faceless people using the cover of darkness to make threats against the community," he said.

"It is, however, vital that people continue to support and provide information to enable the PSNI to keep our community safe."

Earlier this year police hit back after posters bearing the message, 'People Should Not Inform', were erected in parts of west Belfast, Armagh and Tyrone.

Officers in Craigavon used social media to tell the community that "inform" was not a dirty word and highlighted a number of instances where information from the public had led to the apprehension of criminals.

In April, an image of a gunman beside the message, "Loose talk costs lives", and the phrase: "Whatever you say, say nothing" was painted on the 'International Wall' on the Falls Road, Belfast.

At the time, the message was slammed by the SDLP as a throwback to the 1970s and "open intimidation".
Cannabis with a street value of around 70k

Some of the illegal drugs which have been seized by PSNI officers as part of Operation Torus

More than 3m worth of drugs have been seized across Northern Ireland over the last two months, the PSNI has revealed.

The drugs were seized as part of Operation Torus - a bi-annual crackdown to tackle street-level drug dealing across the province.

Between September 5 and October 31 police recovered a total of 3.36m worth of drugs in 586 seizures.

They also conducted 674 searches and made 373 arrests - of which 279 were either charged or reported to the Public Prosecution Service.

Acting Detective Chief Superintendent Andrea McMullan, from the Reactive Organised Crime Branch, described the operation as "a great success".

"In the eight weeks of the operation we have removed over 3.3m worth of drugs from our streets," she said.

"This is further evidence that we are committed to tackling those involved in the illegal drug trade, both at street dealing level, and also organised crime gangs.

"We will continue to arrest drug dealers involved in the sale and supply of drugs, disrupt the crime groups involved, bring individuals before the courts and work with communities and partner agencies to reduce the threat of harmful and illegal activity."

She revealed that cannabis is the most common drug found in Northern Ireland.

"We're seeing the full range, but the majority of the drugs that we see are cannabis - whether that's cannabis resin, herb or plant," she said. "Then we're seeing cocaine and very small quantities of heroin - but that's in very particular communities. We're also seeing quite a few prescription drugs like Tramadol, Diazepam, Temazepam and some amphetamines."

Drug dealing, she said, was not limited to specific districts and she urged people across the country to help the police tackle the problem.

"We as police will do everything that we can to tackle this issue, but we need to work in partnership with our local communities."

"I encourage people to share any information, no matter how small, with us."

According to the PSNI, there were 5,308 drugs seizures in the year to August this year - a slight increase on the previous year - while there were 2,797 drugs-related arrests, a 5% drop on the previous 12 months.

Last week, at a Stormont Justice Committee briefing, law enforcement representatives revealed that police are fighting 138 organised crime gangs in Northern Ireland.

The groups include home-grown paramilitaries as well as criminals from abroad who are involved in a wide range of illegal activities such as drug dealing, sexual exploitation and fraud.

Some 67 gangs are under active investigation, and in recent months 28 have been dismantled.
Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster, leader of the once staunchly anti-papist Democratic Unionists, has vowed to meet Pope Francis during an expected trip to the region.

Ms Foster's welcome has paved the way for what would be a groundbreaking visit in 2018 by the Pontiff, almost exactly 30 years after her party founder and former DUP leader Ian Paisley denounced Pope John Paul II as the anti-Christ.

Her spokesman said: "Were the Pope to visit Northern Ireland in his capacity as head of state then the First Minister would meet him."

The Pope is head of state of Vatican City, a sovereign city-state within Rome.

Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said there was "no prospect" of the Pope not crossing the border, after it was confirmed he will travel to Dublin in two years' time for a global gathering of the Catholic Church.

"I think there is no prospect whatsoever of him coming to Ireland and him not coming to the North," he said.

Asked why he was so sure, he replied: "Because I'm around a long time and I know how these things work."

Pope John Paul II was unable to cross the border into Northern Ireland, where he wanted to visit Armagh, during the last papal visit to Ireland in 1979.

Instead, amid a welter of security fears and cross-community tensions, he travelled as far as Drogheda, just south of the border, where he addressed hundreds of thousands, including many from Northern Ireland.

Several years later, Mr Paisley was thrown out of the Strasbourg Parliament for heckling the Pontiff while unfolding a poster declaring the Pope to be the anti-Christ.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny confirmed Pope Francis would travel to Ireland in August 2018 after a 23-minute meeting with him in the Vatican on Monday morning.

The Irish capital is hosting the two-day World Meeting of Families, a gathering of the Church.

"If it transpires that the Pope wants to go to Northern Ireland, to any part of Northern Ireland, for a visit then we will co-operate and work with the (Northern Ireland) Executive," said Mr Kenny.

Speculation has been mounting since Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin said earlier this year Irish bishops would like the Pope to visit Northern Ireland.

"Pope Francis has this tendency to make important gestures of reconciliation ... And I suspect that when we start to talk about this trip, Pope Francis will surprise us all with some highly symbolic gesture," he said at the time.

Mr Kenny's meeting with the Pope will also be seen as a milestone in the thawing of relations between Dublin and the Vatican over recent years.

Just five years ago, amid a wave of inquiries into decades of clerical child sex abuse in Ireland, the Taoiseach branded the Holy See "a dysfunctional, elite hierarchy" which was determined to frustrate the investigations of "a sovereign, democratic republic".

The Vatican recalled its ambassador to Ireland just days after the unprecedented attack by an Irish premier on the Catholic Church hierarchy.

The Irish Embassy to the Holy See in Rome was also shut that year, ostensibly as a cost-cutting measure.

Three years later, Dublin announced plans to reopen it.

Mr Kenny said: "I explained to him my own difficulties with the Church some years ago and I was happy to confirm to him that Church and state relations are now in better shape than they were for very many years."

The timing of Pope Francis's planned trip to Ireland has already raised concerns that it could clash with a potential referendum on the country's abortion laws.

A Citizens Assembly is considering the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, which recognises "the right to life of the unborn, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother".

It will recommend possible reforms next year.

Transport, Tourism and Sport Minister Shane Ross said a papal visit would be likely to boost tourism but he voiced worries about the timing.

"I simply think that maybe there are better times to come than in the middle of a controversial political matter in which he might get embroiled," he said.

Mr Kenny said he would wait to see what the Citizens Assembly recommends, adding that a referendum would not be held in the month of August in any event.

Nichola Mallon, an SDLP MLA and former lord mayor who welcomed the Queen to Belfast, said a papal visit could help healing and reconciliation across the island.

"I'm delighted that Pope Francis will visit Northern Ireland in 2018," she said.

"The previous visit of St John Paul during the darkest days of conflict was a symbol of hope at a time when the people of Ireland needed it most.

"We've come a long way since then but we have so much ground left to travel.

"His visit to the North will, I believe, reignite reconciliation between communities across this island, providing a new imperative not only to heal the wounds of our past but to work in partnership to tackle the injustice that endures in our society."

The Alliance Party also "warmly welcomed" the expected visit.

Alliance MLA Trevor Lunn said: "Unfortunately, at the time of the visit of Pope John Paul II, the situation in Northern Ireland prevented him from coming north, but we are in a much better place now.

"The main purpose of this visit will be for the World Meeting of Families and it will be a natural extension of the visit for Pope Francis to come north, where I believe families from every community will come out to welcome him."

Archbishop Martin said the visit will be "an important gift from Pope Francis to the Irish Church and the Church globally".

His spokeswoman added that he welcomed the fact that the Taoiseach reiterated the Government's commitment to providing all appropriate arrangements.
The First Battalion of the Royal Irish Regiment is set to deploy for the first time in around six years - to Kabul in Afghanistan

The First Battalion of the Royal Irish Regiment is set to deploy for the first time in around six years - to Kabul in Afghanistan.

It is some 600km away from the troops' last deployment, in Helmand Province in 2010.

The battalion is set to serve an eight-month tour of duty in the Afghan capital, and is now preparing to leave its Shropshire base. The upcoming mission will provide support to local security forces rather than combat.

Major Dan Moore said: "What we are going out to do is essentially provide security and force protection for Nato personnel in Kabul, both within Kabul city and also within the Afghan National Army officers academy.

"This tour will be much more based on support to the Afghan National Defence Security Force, as opposed to us being in the lead - we are very much there at their request and they have the lead on security matters."
A young west Belfast man has died suddenly.

The man - who has been named locally as George (Geordie B) Bingham - was found close to the Brians Well Road area of Poleglass yesterday morning.

It is understood that he lived nearby.

The PSNI are not treating Mr Bingham's death as suspicious. Sinn Fein councillor Stephen Magennis said he was shocked to wake up so such sad news.

"It's just terrible coming into the Christmas period," he said.

"The community will be very saddened by this; we have had a number of deaths of young people over the years in the area and it's very sad to hear anything like that.

"My thoughts are with the individual and their family and friends at this point."

The area was cordoned off by police for much of yesterday.
Sinn Fein will today renew its push for another 'border poll' on Irish unity.

Just five months after the government rejected the proposal, a new document being released simultaneously in Belfast and Dublin aims to accelerate discussions.

SF president Gerry Adams, who will host the Belfast launch, said it argues for the referendum mechanism in the Good Friday Agreement to be used.

The Louth TD said it appeared recently that the position of Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin is in favour of Irish unity - "but not yet".

"Both of these leaders need to look beyond the rhetoric and embrace and develop strategies to bring about Irish unity," he said, adding that he hoped unionists would also become involved in the "widest possible debate" on the issue.

Sinn Fein has claimed that the outcome of the Brexit referendum "will transform the relations within this island and between the island of Ireland and Britain".

DUP Deputy Leader Nigel Dodds said: "Every time that republicans make their call to hold a border poll it simply serves to reinforce that behind the rhetoric lies a vacuum. Every time the issue is raised, we are told that the case for a united Ireland is overwhelming but oddly none of these brilliant arguments are ever deployed.

"Similarly, it apparently only requires persuasion for unionists to support a united Ireland, but there is never any discussion as to why this persuasion hasnt taken place up until now.

"It is perfectly possible for nationalists and republicans to have the debate about a united Ireland, but that can take place without a border poll. The fact that so few people are actually interested in having the conversation only raises the question why some people wish to highlight that failure.

"The grounds for calling a border poll are clear and they are no closer to being met than on any of the previous occasions this tired issue has been raised. The focus should be on how Northern Ireland and the Republic can work together as good neighbours and in our common interests rather than on the latest round of an intra-nationalist battle."
The Crossgar Road where a motorcyclist was killed

Press Eye Belfast - Northern Ireland 27th November 2016 The scene on the Crossbar Road in Saintfield, Co. Down, where a man died after a RTC involving a car and motorcycle on Saturday evening. Picture by Jonathan Porter/Press Eye.

Press Eye Belfast - Northern Ireland 27th November 2016 The scene on the Crossbar Road in Saintfield, Co. Down, where a man died after a RTC involving a car and motorcycle on Saturday evening. Picture by Jonathan Porter/Press Eye.

PACEMAKER BELFAST 27/11/2015 A motorcyclist in his 20s has died in hospital from his injuries after a two-vehicle crash in Saintfield, County Down, Northern Ireland. The accident, which also involved a car, happened on the Crossgar Road just after 17:30 GMT on Saturday night. Picture By: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press

PACEMAKER BELFAST 27/11/2015 A motorcyclist in his 20s has died in hospital from his injuries after a two-vehicle crash in Saintfield, County Down, Northern Ireland. The accident, which also involved a car, happened on the Crossgar Road just after 17:30 GMT on Saturday night. Picture By: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press

PACEMAKER BELFAST 27/11/2015 A motorcyclist in his 20s has died in hospital from his injuries after a two-vehicle crash in Saintfield, County Down, Northern Ireland. The accident, which also involved a car, happened on the Crossgar Road just after 17:30 GMT on Saturday night. Picture By: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press

The scene on the Crossbar Road in Saintfield, Co. Down, where a man died after a RTC involving a car and motorcycle on Saturday evening.

A 28-year-old Belfast father who died on Saturday evening following a two vehicle road traffic accident has been named as Barry Bell-Nevin.

Floral tributes have been left close to the scene at Crossgar Road in Saintfield where the motorcyclist was involved in a collision with another vehicle.

A message from his grieving partner Kat, referring to the couple's daughter, read: "Barry, you will be sadly missed by everyone.

"Look down over Charlie".

The accident happened at around 5.40pm on Saturday evening.

The victim was rushed to hospital following the crash but later died as a result of his injuries.

The road was closed for a number of hours following the incident and only reopened at 1.45am on Sunday.

Police are appealing for witnesses to come forward.

Ulster Unionist councillor Jeffrey Dudgeon said: "This is very sad for him and his family and my thoughts are with them at this time.

"There are too many road deaths in Northern Ireland and a seemingly disproportionate number of motorcyclists are killed on our roads.

"Some extra effort is needed to educate all road users to try and prevent these horrible accidents."

Barry's mother, Lorna Nevin, who lives in Ballynahinch, wrote in a death notice that she had been left heartbroken.

In the notice in today's Belfast Telegraph, she movingly wrote that "for all my life, I'll wonder why, and travel to your resting place, and tend to it with care".

The motorcyclist is survived by his mother, sisters Denise and Kirsty, brothers Paul, Aiden, Scott, partner Kat and daughter Charlie.

More than 60 people have now died on Northern Ireland's roads so far this year, roughly the same as for 2015.

PSNI Inspector Lynsey Barr is appealing for anyone who witnessed the collision to contact police in Downpatrick or officers at the Collision Investigation Unit on 101.
A veteran loyalist will be prosecuted in connection with the murders of two Catholic workmen in Belfast more than 25 years ago, it was confirmed.

Winston "Winkie" Rea is also set to face a "multitude" of other charges following a fresh investigation by PSNI detectives, a judge was told on Monday.

The disclosure was made as the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) announced its position at Belfast Magistrates' Court.

Rea, of Springwell Crescent in Groomsport, Co Down, currently stands charged with the paramilitary killings of John Devine in 1989 and John O'Hara in 1991.

The 65-year-old is also accused of two other attempted murders, including an attack on Malachy McAllister in the city in October 1988, weapons offences and membership of the outlawed Red Hand Commando terror grouping.

He had been expected to attend court for today's final decision on the case against him.

But he was excused due to continuing health issues that have led to him using a wheelchair.

With victims' relatives gathered in the public gallery, PPS lawyer John O'Neill revealed the intention is to take the case to the Crown Court.

He said: "I can confirm the prosecution will be prosecuting Mr Rea on indictment.

"That will include offences relating to the attempted murder of Malachy McAllister, the murder of John Devine and the murder of John O'Hara."

Mr O'Neill added: "There will be a multitude of counts on the statement of complaint."

The position set out by the PPS means Ray may ultimately face trial for offences other than the actual killings and attempted murders.

Rea was charged in June by detectives from the PSNI's Legacy Investigation Branch investigating killings stretching back into the Troubles. He denies the allegations.

The renewed probe came after police won a legal battle to gain access to interviews he gave to Boston College researchers behind a project on the Northern Ireland conflict.

John Devine, 37, was shot dead at his home on Fallswater Street in west Belfast on July 23, 1989.

He was sitting in his living room with his 13-year-old son when gunmen forced their way in and killed him.

Taxi driver John O'Hara, 41, was murdered at Dunluce Avenue in the south of the city on April 17, 1991.

He was en route to pick up a passenger when two masked men approached and fired several shots at his car, fatally injuring him.

Other charges currently brought against Rea include another attempted murder of an unknown male in the city's Falls Road area sometime between January 1, 1971 and February 23, 1973.

He also faces counts of membership of a proscribed organisation on dates between 1973 and 1996, possession of an AK47 assault rifle, three revolvers, a 9mm Browning pistol and ammunition with intent to endanger life.

A further charge of possessing information useful to terrorists relates to claims that between 1984 and 1986 he had documents containing the identification and address details of suspected members of the IRA.

District Judge Fiona Bagnall adjourned proceedings until January, when a date for preliminary enquiry will be fixed.

She agreed to again excuse Rea from attending the next court hearing.
Jim Allister has challenged the Assembly's opposition leaders to end Stormont's system of mandatory coalition government.

The TUV leader warned that even if Ulster Unionists and the SDLP swept to victory at the next election, the DUP and Sinn Fein would still be in the Executive.

He told his party's annual conference at the weekend that unless the UUP and nationalist party leaders "take the next step" they are "largely wasting their time".

"This is the rubicon Mike Nesbitt and Colum Eastwood have yet to cross. But they need to come to terms with the reality that abandoning mandatory coalition is essential to allowing an Opposition to become an alternative government," Mr Allister said.

"Because, as things stand, if the UUP and SDLP did so well in Opposition that they became the two biggest parties in 2021, those they had defeated could, and would, still cling to office.

"Only by embracing voluntary coalition as the sole means of forming an administration can Opposition parties and democrats obtain their objective of forming a government.

"So, I urge Mike Nesbitt and Colum Eastwood to complete their journey on the only route to providing Northern Ireland with good and stable government."

Afterwards Mr Allister admitted that major changes to the mandatory coalition system would be a matter for Westminster, but argued the UUP and SDLP could at least start the ball rolling on demands for change.

In a typically barn-storming performance, he launched a lengthy attack on First Minister Arlene Foster, deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and the Executive overall.

In particular he attacked their use of special Royal Prerogative powers to appoint new Executive press secretary David Gordon, the former editor of the BBC NI Stephen Nolan radio show, as a "super spin doctor".

And he quipped that the first task they had given him was to "get a bigger carpet" to sweep more of the "dirty business" of Stormont under it. That, he said, included the Nama property scandal, the botched Renewable Heat Energy scheme likely to cost Stormont hundreds of millions of pounds, and the murder last summer of Belfast republican Kevin McGuigan.

He said: "Let's be very, very clear. This is an Executive in the business of sweeping murder under the carpet. Kevin McGuigan was murdered by the IRA, by no-one else, by the IRA. PSNI have said it. The government panel has said it. And yet today, where is the investigation? Where are the consequences? They're under the carpet."

The Renewable Heat Incentive scheme would cost the public purse 500-600m over the next few years because there was no proper ministerial control and no cap on the amount of money which could be claimed. "But who was the minister asleep at the wheel? Arlene Foster, who shamefully did not exercise the ministerial control and oversight that ministers are there to exercise," he said. On Brexit, he said the suggestion of special status for Northern Ireland is a "nonsense". "There can be no status that keeps Northern Ireland half in and half out. We joined as one nation, we leave as one nation."
Henry Burke was last seen leaving the Zero Zero nightclub in George Street, Bath, Somerset at midnight on Thursday (Avon and Somerset Police/PA)

Police hunting for a missing 19-year-old student have found a body.

Henry Burke was last seen leaving the Zero Zero nightclub in George Street, Bath, Somerset at midnight on Thursday.

Avon and Somerset Police said the body was found in the River Avon by members of the fire service and although formal identification had not yet taken place, Mr Burke's family had been told.

"At this stage, the death is being treated as unexplained. Our inquiries are continuing," a force spokesman said.

Earlier, Em Comley, Mr Burke's girlfriend, appealed for help in finding the Bath Spa University geography student.

"I doubt this will work, but for anybody that knows my boyfriend Henry Burke and I personally," she wrote on Facebook.

"Henry has gone missing. He was out clubbing in Bath last night in a club called 'Zero Zero' and was last heard of and seen in the club at around midnight.

"He didn't return home that night and he hasn't been seen/heard from anybody since. His phone is dead. Police are now involved and doing everything we can.

"It's unlikely but if anybody knows anything then please please please let us know ASAP. I've never been so completely terrified and utterly desperate in my entire life."

In recent years, several people have died in the River Avon, including Christopher Taylor, 21, and students Sammuel Amin, 18, and James Bubear, 19, and there have been calls for improved safety measures.
Zac Goldsmith's Liberal Democrat rival for the seat of Richmond Park has criticised his campaign as "ludicrous" and "nonsense", claiming the by-election is about Brexit, not Heathrow.

Mr Goldsmith resigned in protest at the Government's decision to back expansion of Heathrow, after promising to trigger a by-election if the controversial airport expansion was given the go-ahead.

The former Conservative MP for the constituency is now standing as an independent candidate.

Lib Dem candidate Sarah Olney told the Press Association: "Zac Goldsmith's idea that this was going to be a referendum about Heathrow has turned out to be nonsense because there is no pro-Heathrow candidate standing.

"Actually, what people really want to talk about is Brexit."

Mrs Olney called his decision to resign "ludicrous".

"He doesn't need a further mandate to oppose Heathrow," she said. "He already had that twice over."

Mr Goldsmith won the south-west London constituency in 2010, and again in 2015 with a 23,000 majority, but Mrs Olney is hoping pro-Europe constituents will vote for her instead.

Richmond Park voted strongly in favour of remaining in the European Union, whilst Mr Goldsmith campaigned to leave.

Mrs Olney said in the event of her election she would vote against triggering Article 50 in an attempt to remain part of the EU.

If Parliament were to trigger Article 50, the accountant said the Liberal Democrats would seek a referendum on the terms of Britain's exit from the EU.

It is not "a case of re-running the referendum", Mrs Olney said, because "there was no clear manifesto set out for what a Leave vote would mean".

The North Kingston resident said Mr Goldsmith's failed campaign to become mayor of London, in which he lost to Sadiq Khan, is affecting his support in the area.

"I have been speaking to certain groups of voters who have voted for him before but have found it worrying the way he wanted to play ethnic groups against each other."

When asked the first thing she would do if elected MP, Mrs Olney said: "Hand in my notice."

Met with laughter from members of her campaign team, she clarified: "At my old work."

Mr Goldsmith told the Press Association: "This by-election is happening for one reason only - I kept my word and resigned on principle when my former party broke its word over Heathrow.

"Obviously the concept of a politician keeping his word is an alien one to the Lib Dems. That is largely why they have been virtually wiped out as a political force.

"There is a reason why the Heathrow villagers, whose homes will be destroyed if the third runway happens, are knocking on doors for me in this election.

"There is a reason why the Heathrow campaign groups are openly backing me, despite never having backed a candidate before.

"And there is a reason why Heathrow itself has singled me out as a barrier. All of them know I am the best bet for stopping the monstrosity of a third runway."
Polish prime minister Beata Szydlo will take part in talks on security co-operation and strengthening business and cultural links

Theresa May and Beata Szydlo will discuss Brexit and defence co-operation over a working lunch

Theresa May has confirmed plans to deploy British troops to Poland, as she and her counterpart Beata Szydlo agreed on the need to deter Russian aggression.

Some 150 troops from the Catterick-based Light Dragoons, as well as a number of armoured vehicles, will be sent to north-east Poland from April 2017, as London and Warsaw reconfirm their firm commitment to Nato's role in ensuring security in Europe, said the Prime Minister.

Mrs May said that she wanted the UK and Poland to become "even closer allies" after Britain leaves the EU and welcomed Warsaw's "constructive and positive" response to Brexit.

She announced a series of new UK-Polish collaborations across the fields of business, security, defence and academic research.

Following talks with Mrs Szydlo in 10 Downing Street, she said the UK was making "significant progess" to prepare for Brexit negotiations which she intends to launch under Article 50 of the EU treaties by the end of March 2017.

"I have reiterated my plan to guarantee the rights of Poles and other Europeans currently living in the UK, so long as the rights of British citizens living across the EU are guaranteed," said Mrs May.

"I hope we can reach an early agreement on this issue, providing certainty for Polish citizens here and British people living in Europe.

"This has been an excellent summit. We are two leaders determined to make the most of the relationship between our countries.

"I firmly believe that if we all approach Brexit in the same constructive and positive manner, then we can secure the right outcome for the United Kingdom and for our European neighbours too.

"As we embark on that new chapter, I look forward to further strengthening the relationship between the United Kingdom and Poland - two resolute and strategic allies working together for the benefit of both our countries."

Mrs Szydlo stressed that there had been no negotiations over Brexit during the Downing Street talks, as these would be a matter for the UK and the EU and would be initiated only when Article 50 was tabled.

But she said that Warsaw would insist on "reciprocity" in the rights and privileges accorded to UK citizens in Europe and EU citizens in Britain. And she said that she hoped Brexit would result in new relations between Britain and its former EU partners based on "mutual trust".

She said: "Today, we spoke about Brexit as a certain fact and outcome of a decision made by British citizens in a referendum.

"We are all wondering how this process will go. We are all trying to decide about our priorities and objectives but the negotiations will be held between the EU and the UK.

"Poland - as a member of the EU - considers it very important what objectives and what priorities will be decided. We want the new relations to be built on mutual trust.

"As for reciprocity in terms of the rights and privileges, they have to be negotiated and there needs to be the right balance. This the condition that will certainly be brought up by Poland."

Mrs May indicated that Article 50 negotiations would involve areas where the UK wishes to continue close links with EU partners, such as co-operation with the EU's Europol law enforcement agency.

"Of course there will be issues around the justice and home affairs area where we're party to arrangements within the European Union as a member of the EU at the moment (and) where we'll have to consider what the future relationship will be," she said.

"Europol is one of those, we are a major contributor to Europol. So, yes, there will be aspects where we're members of things because we're in the European Union which we'll need to consider in the negotiations that will go ahead.

"But as I have said before I want to ensure we have the best possible deal for trade, for trade with and operating within the single European market and I'm ambitious for what we can achieve from the negotiations.

"And crucially I think what's important is, it's not just what's good for the UK. Actually we want a deal that's good for Europe as well as the UK."

Mrs Szydlo thanked the UK for its response to "very sad" alleged hate crimes against Poles after the Brexit vote, including the killing of Arkadiusz Jozwik in Harlow, Essex.

The Polish PM said: "I would also like to thank for the support given by the British Government to those members of the Polish community who have suffered after the very sad incident in hate crimes in the United Kingdom.

"You reacted immediately and we continue working together in order to make sure that the Polish community is safe."

She backed Mrs May's position on the rights of Polish nationals and other EU citizens living in the UK.

Mrs Szydlo said: "From the point of view of Poland, let me reiterate that the most important thing (after Brexit) is the guarantees for the Polish citizens who are living and working in the United Kingdom.

"Of course, these guarantees would need to be reciprocal.

"It's also important what guarantees the British citizens living and working in other member states of the European Union will have."

Before their talks at 10 Downing Street, Mrs May joined Mrs Szydlo in paying their respects to Polish airmen who lost their lives in the Second World War at the Polish War Memorial in Northolt, west London.

Meanwhile, senior ministers took part in discussions on defence co-operation and strengthening business and cultural links between the UK and Poland, in what Mrs May described as the first bilateral summit of its kind between the two countries.

Poland is Britain's leading trading partner in central Europe, with bilateral trade at 15 billion last year and UK exports to Poland doubling over the past decade.

Mrs May and Mrs Szydlo agreed new initiatives to support collaboration between UK and Polish entrepreneurs and small businesses, as well as a partnership between Oxford University and Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw to establish an academic centre of excellence in the field of cyber-security.

They agreed to work towards the first UK-Poland bilateral defence treaty.

And a new forum to celebrate the UK and Poland's shared values and history will meet for the first time in Warsaw next year.

Mrs Szydlo said they had discussed the possibility of Polish being taught as a foreign language in British schools.

The two premiers agreed that sanctions on Russia must be maintained until the Minsk agreement on Ukraine is fully implemented.

Announcing plans to deploy British troops to eastern Poland, Mrs May said: "We must recognise increasing Russian assertiveness and I think it is important that we work together to deal with that."

It was important to work internationally to "put pressure on Russia" to stop indiscriminate bombing of civilians in Syria, said the PM.

Mrs Szydlo agreed: "We watch the behaviour of Russia and we believe we should be decisive and united in the EU when it comes to our relations with Russia.

"We would like our relations to be good with Russia, as our neighbour.

"But it is unacceptable for us that today Russia is an aggressive country and it is an aggressor towards Ukraine."
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New Ukip leader Paul Nuttall has set himself the aim of raising his party's share of the vote at the next general election as high as 30%.

The eurosceptic party took 13% of votes in 2015 but ended up with just one MP - Douglas Carswell in Clacton.

But Mr Nuttall said that the 27% tally achieved in the European Parliament elections in 2014 - and the 17.5 million voters who backed Brexit on June 23 - convince him that he can get Ukip's representation in Westminster into double figures in 2020.

And he said that Labour's drift away from its traditional supporters under Jeremy Corbyn and the Conservatives' uncertain approach to Brexit under Theresa May have offered Ukip an electoral "open goal".

"I genuinely believe we can turn it from 12-13% to 26-30%," said the North West England MEP, speaking shortly after his landslide victory in the race to succeed Nigel Farage. "There's so many open goals in British politics, whether it's the Labour Party with Jeremy Corbyn or a Government which I think is about to backslide on Brexit.

"My ambition is not only to get myself into the House of Commons but to get as many Ukip backsides onto the green benches as possible. That's my aim and I believe we can do that."

Ukip will be campaigning for electoral reform to ensure its Commons representation better reflects its share of votes, he said.

But even under the current first-past-the-post system, he said Ukip MPs in double figures was "absolutely realistic".

And he suggested party ranks could be swelled by more defections from the two big parties: "I have had no conversations with anyone from Labour but I'm sure there are many Labour MPs out there who feel incredibly uncomfortable at the direction that the party is taking under Jeremy Corbyn. But equally, I think there are Conservatives who will be rich pickings as we don't get the Brexit we voted for."

Widely seen as well-placed to capitalise on strong Brexit support in traditionally Labour seats in the Midlands and North of England. And he said he would be working to ensure Ukip concentrates its efforts on areas where it can win council seats and MPs.

"We have to focus our resources," he said. "In the past I think Ukip has had too much of a scattergun approach. That's going to change.

"We finished second in 40 Labour seats at the general election, and that was pre-Jeremy Corbyn. If you look at where those seats are, I don't think people in those areas will sign up to the kind of Labour Party that Jeremy Corbyn leads or are interested in the kind of things Jeremy Corbyn talks about.

"These are the people who are most affected by immigration and crime. They tend to be the most patriotic. They believe in our armed forces. We want to see British people put at the front of the queue - how can it be right that we spending 25 million a day on foreign aid when our NHS is crumbling?

"I also want us to be the party of social mobility that ensures that working class kids have the same opportunities as middle class kids."

As a shaven-headed Liverpudlian with a strong regional accent, Mr Nuttall said he would stand out from the identikit politicians who he believes have turned ordinary working voters off politics.

"One of the reasons we have had progressively lower turnouts in general elections is because since the 1980s we've had this race to the centre and all political parties have started to look and sound the same and we have had politicians with sharp suits and coiffed hair and they don't speak like me," he said. "I think what people are crying out for is a change.

"Ukip is the party of common sense and we will speak the language of working people and address the issues that affect them and not the issues that affect the Islington dinner parties."

He said he stood aside from the summer's leadership contest in the hope of "getting my life back" after a decade in politics. But he changed his mind after seeing Diane James quit as leader and possible successor Steven Woolfe involved in an altercation with a fellow MEP.

Watching reports on TV "literally with my head in my hands", he said he " felt I was watching the party I had helped grow from nothing literally fall to bits".

Mr Nuttall denied he would be overshadowed by his predecessor as leader, who has come to personify Ukip over the past decade.

"I'm my own man. I will be completely different from Nigel," he said.

But he made clear he wants Mr Farage to play a prominent role in Ukip's future.

"If we were offered a seat in the Lords, I would put Nigel on the top of the list, if he wanted to go there," said Mr Nuttall. "Or he could be honorary president if he wanted to be. I want Nigel to be front of the house, not a back-seat driver. I want him on the airwaves on a regular basis."

Unlike Mr Farage, he has distanced himself from US President-elect Donald Trump, and he did not back away from criticisms he made during the presidential campaign about the Republican's comments on women.

"I never backed Trump during the campaign and I said that some of the things he said were appalling and I continue to believe that," said Mr Nuttall. "I'm sure that many people around the country agree that some of the things he said about women were beyond the pale. I thought in many ways he had the right message but he was the wrong candidate.

"I wouldn't cosy up to him, but if the president of the US comes to London, of course I will meet him."
For us, smashing one of your 11-tonne Saracen armoured personnel carriers into the front of our family home on August 9, 1971 represented more than just the British military "muddling through".

"Muddling through" - those were the words the former Chief of the Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, used to describe the way the armed forces approached the Northern Ireland conflict, especially in the early days of the Troubles.

Looking back as the six-year-old who was woken violently by the crash of the Saracen into our front door at Number 1 Eliza Street in the Markets on that pivotal morning, I would say it was more a case of "bulldozing, blunderbuss bumbling" than simply "muddling through".

It was my first experience of the iron fist of military policy, as they careered into our house and then went searching for suspects - any suspects - they could round up and intern without trial.

They searched our house looking for the legendary Official IRA leader, Joe McCann, who had engaged in a gun-battle with troops further down Eliza Street, at Inglis's Bakery. To no avail, of course; he had eluded them.

Scanning some of the photographs taken in my area during internment, it is easy to see how heavy-handed, harsh and one-directional the Army's response was to the escalating violence across Northern Ireland.

In his new memoir, Sir Richard, at least, admits that Operation Banner - the name the military gave to its presence in Northern Ireland from 1969 onwards - was, in fact, a "campaign without a campaign plan".

He also reminds us that, with 300,000 soldiers taking part in Operation Banner from 1969 until early into this century, Northern Ireland was the longest conflict the military had taken part in its history.

The general, who was head of the Army at the time of the 1991 Gulf War, does appear to accept, albeit in an elliptical way, the harm caused by draconian military reactions to armed insurgency and the way it fuelled and prolonged a conflict which should never have broken out in the first place.

From the assault on the lower Falls in 1970 (where the Army fought, in the main, the Official IRA) to internment, the massacre at Ballymurphy (there is no other way to describe what happened on the Upper Springfield Road that day) to Bloody Sunday, the military's response only deepened support, ultimately, for the Provisionals - leading to decades of futile violence and further division.

The mis-planning, the over-reactive decision-making, the sledgehammer approach to an incipient civil war, was a disgrace. As was the immoral use of informants within not only loyalist paramilitary organisations, but also the republican movement, to carry out assassinations of political opponents and those who needed to be disposed of that were a "threat to the state".

From Pat Finucane to Stakeknife, the military dabbled in an underground, dirty war, where, often, innocent people were sacrificed to preserve the reputation of agents and informers working for military intelligence.

Yet, if you take the long view of history, Sir Richard's claim in his book - that counter-insurgency state agencies around the world can learn plenty of lessons from Operation Banner in terms of ending armed conflict - is true.

He is surely right, with the benefit of hindsight, in his memoir that even by the mid-1970s "essentially, (the IRA) was failing, unable to force a British withdrawal from Northern Ireland". Even though, as he notes in the book, that from 1975 onwards, there was a consistent majority in Britain in favour of withdrawing the troops from Ulster.

In Boots On The Ground, the general - to his credit - accepts that the military alone could not bring the Troubles to an end and that the primacy of democratic politics would ultimately win through.

With the peace process in mind, you assume, he writes: "Insurgents could be defeated militarily in the short-term, but insurgency could only be defeated by tackling its root causes.

"The military task is to create the appropriate security conditions for civilian agencies to tackle the political, social and economic causes that fuel the radical discontent. As a result, somewhat paradoxically, military 'victory' is not the ultimate objective."

Given what has happened in Northern Ireland since the peace process, particularly with Sinn Fein co-running a Stormont-based regional administration alongside the DUP, his analysis is correct.

Yes, there were controversial and lethal incidents involving the Army, which unnecessarily prolonged the agony; however, the ability to stabilise Northern Ireland and prevent it from tipping into a full-blown civil war (of the like that was going on in Lebanon at the same time) was a crucial foundation on which the peace process was later built.

Every one of the actors in the tragedy played out in this society between 1969 and 1997 can be found guilty of the crime of arriving to reason far too late ... certainly too late for the thousands of victims.

Sinn Fein has arrived at a position exactly replicating the SDLP's in the power-sharing Executive in 1974. The unionists have arrived at the same position Brian Faulkner advised them to take in that same year.

The two governments have arrived at a position where Anglo-Irish relations are the most cordial and strong in history, which I believe will survive even the Brexit break-up.

The Army, too, as Sir Richard also admits, eventually arrived at a position where it realised there was no outright military solution to bringing stability and political co-operation in a society where that was once thought to be impossible.

Just like republicans, loyalists, unionists and the London-Dublin axis, Britain made many monumental mistakes on the way.

Perhaps the next time, if ever, that they take part in another military conflict around the planet, they will take some of the lessons learnt from the streets and fields of Northern Ireland and apply them in other far more troubled parts of the globe.

You might hope, too, that other armed forces - most notably the Americans - might be studying Operation Banner's history to avoid the same mistakes. These lessons were clearly not studied and applied by George W Bush's administration in the aftermath of invading Iraq and overthrowing Saddam Hussein.

And with Donald Trump soon to be the overall head of American armed forces, you would have to doubt that they will still be learning from Britain's past politico-military errors on an island off the northwest of Europe.
UDA man Dee Coleman with police in the Shankill estate before being arrested. November 2016

UDA man Dee Coleman runs from the police in the Shankill estate before being arrested.

UDA man Dee Coleman runs from the police in the Shankill estate before being arrested.

UDA man Dee Coleman runs from the police in the Shankill estate before being arrested. November 2016

UDA man Dee Coleman runs from the police in the Shankill estate before being arrested.

This is the moment UDA extortionist Dee Coleman took to his heels to avoid being lifted by police.

The heavyweight criminal was chased around the Shankill estate in Belfast after telling cops: Im not being arrested, Im telling you now.

What followed was like a scene from The Benny Hill Show with 17 stone Coleman running around Hopewell Crescent trying to avoid being grabbed by the officers, one of whom fell over.

A magistrate gives his verdict on the incident this Wednesday, deciding whether the UDA boss is guilty of assaulting police, resisting police and disorderly behaviour.

Also sweating on assaulting police and disorderly behaviour charges are Jim Cousins, 32, from Hopewell Avenue, and 36-year-old David Jenkins of Canmore Close.

If Coleman is convicted it will add another notch on his shocking criminal record that includes a gun attack, extortion, possessing drugs, handling stolen goods, trading in counterfeit products, and possessing an imitation firearm.

Not only is the 31-year-old loyalist currently in trouble with the courts he is also in bother with the UVF.

The terror gang is investigating an incident in the Pony Club on the Shankill last weekend which led to a drinker needing six staples in a head wound.

Sources say UDA C Company second-in-command Coleman battered the well-liked man following a row involving a girl.

The attack has led to demands from locals for west Belfast UDA leader Matt Kincaid to intervene and rein in his members. Families living in the lower Shankill are also furious that another innocent resident was beaten senseless outside the Diamond Jubilee bar on Remembrance Sunday.

UDA finance officer Dopey Denis Cunningham was involved in a confrontation with the man, who was later set upon by UDA heavies, suffering a serious assault.

Unhappy with Kincaids response to the assaults, lower Shankill residents contacted Sunday Life to plead for help in exposing the bully-boys making their lives hell.

One mother said: The lower Shankill is worse now than it ever was. All the good people are moving out because it is being destroyed by the likes of Coleman and Cunningham. Matt only tolerates their behaviour because they make him so much money, but there has to come a point when even he says enough is enough.

Like Dee Coleman, UDA money man Denis Cunningham also has an unenviable criminal record. The 63-year-old was famously jailed for two-and-a-half years for reading out a UDA terror statement while wearing his glasses over a balaclava.

Terror mouthpiece Cunningham was pictured last month cosying up to a DUP delegation that visited the lower Shankill.

Meanwhile, loyalists on the Shankill have been urged by the UVF to boycott businesses with connections to local man Mark Pollock, who was convicted earlier this month of running a dirty diesel scam with republicans.

The 37-year-old is married to Becky Spence, the daughter of UDA godfather Jim Spence, whose wife Maggie Benidorm Spence owns Go Cabs on the Ballygomartin Road. The taxi firm is being targeted in the boycott as is the Berlin Bar in which Pollock often drinks.
A man hurls a rock at police near the Presidential Palace during an outbreak of violence that followed a rally in the Indonesian capital against Jakarta Gov. Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, Nov. 4, 2016.

Indonesian police said they arrested three suspected militants over the weekend who were allegedly planning to bomb the House of Representatives and Myanmars embassy in Jakarta, among other targets, and are linked to Islamic State (IS).

The arrests were connected to the Nov. 23 capture in West Java province of another suspected militant, Rio Priatna Wibowo, who was caught with explosives potentially twice as powerful as those used in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people, police said.

Two of three suspects were nabbed on Sunday by anti-terror squad Densus 88 at two locations in Banten, a province about 55 miles southwest of Jakarta. Saiful Bahri (alias Abu Shifa) was arrested in Serang regency and Hendra (alias Abu Pase) was arrested in Tangerang city, police said.

A day earlier, Densus 88 arrested another suspect, Bahrain Agam, in Aceh province. Police allege that Bahrain provided 7 million rupiah (U.S. $518) to purchase explosives.

Boy Rafli Amar, a spokesman for national police, said the three were linked to Rio, who was picked up in Majalengka, a town in West Java last, for allegedly making explosives.

During his arrest at his residence, police seized bomb-making materials including RDX (Royal Demolition Explosive), HMTD (Hexamethylene triperoxide diamini), TNT and black powder. Tests at the police forensic laboratory determined that the explosives were at least twice as powerful as the bombs used in the attacks that targeted tourist hotspots in Bali 14 years ago.

Information extracted from Rio during interrogation led to the arrests of the three other suspects, Boy said. The four were allegedly plotting to attack the Indonesian parliament, the national police headquarters, some TV stations and the Myanmar embassy. Anger has been growing in Indonesia  the worlds largest predominantly Muslim nation  over violence targeting members of Myanmars Rohingya Muslim minority in recent weeks.

Additionally, the suspects are believed to be members of the Jamaah Ansharut Daulah network, which is aligned with the Mid-East extremist Islamic State (IS), Boy told BenarNews.

Linked to anti-Ahok protest, Bahrun Naim?

National Police Chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said the four suspects, through Jamaah Ansharut Daulah, may have been part of a larger group of suspected militants that police are investigating in connection with violence that marred a huge rally against the governor of Jakarta, Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, in the Indonesian capital on Nov. 4.

The rally, which called for Ahoks arrest over alleged blasphemy toward Islam, began peacefully but turned violent as it dispersed in the evening.

There are some elements that exploited the issue and the (Nov.4) mass gathering for their own purposes. One of them is a terror group, National Police Chief Gen. Tito Karnavian told a news conference on Monday.

Boy, the police spokesman, added that Rio was associated with Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian IS leader based in Syria who was the alleged mastermind of an IS-claimed terror attack in Jakarta that killed four civilians and four alleged attackers on Jan. 14.

The allegation against Bahrun, however, has been challenged by terrorism analyst Sidney Jones, director of the Jakarta-based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), who said the attack was plotted and executed by a home-based group, whose ideological leader is imprisoned Indonesian Muslim cleric Aman Abdurrahman.
Bersih chairwoman Maria Chin Abdullah (right) hugs her sister as son Aziman Yunus looks on, following Chins release from police custody in Kuala Lumpur, Nov. 28, 2016.

Malaysian authorities Monday freed the leader of a coalition advocating clean government after holding her for 10 days under one of the countrys tough national security laws and despite international criticism over her arrest.

Following her release, Bersih chairwoman Maria Chin Abdullah described how police officers had blindfolded her as they escorted her each morning to hours-long interrogations over her grassroots movement and its connection to a U.S.-based NGO.

She also called her arrest under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (SOSMA)  which allows for up to 28 days of detention without charges  illegal.

We will take legal action against my unlawful detention, she said in a statement.

Chin was arrested on the eve of a mass protest that she and other Bersih activists were organizing in Kuala Lumpur for Nov. 19 to highlight Prime Minister Najib Razaks alleged involvement in a corruption scandal, which he has denied.

Last week Malaysian Police Inspector General Khalid Abu Bakar told a news conference that Chin was being investigated for activities deemed detrimental to parliamentary democracy and a threat to national security.

Khalid did not elaborate then but said Chin was arrested because of documents found during a raid at the Bersih offices in Kuala Lumpur, and that police were investigating possible links to the Open Society Foundations (OSF) funded by George Soros.

On Monday, Khalid declined to comment on Chins release, telling BenarNews he would soon convene another press conference on the case.

Chin was released on the eve of a scheduled hearing at the Kuala Lumpur High Court, which was to consider a Habeas Corpus writ from Chins lawyers seeking her release.

This is a victory for Maria and all Malaysians who have stood with her this past week, Eric Paulsen, executive director of local NGO Lawyers for Human Rights, told BenarNews.

Dozens of other pro-Bersih activists and supporters, as well as activists from a pro-government group  which staged a counter-Bersih rally in Kuala Lumpur on Nov. 19  were released last week from police custody but face potential charges in connection with the protests.

The police freed her because they have no grounds for her detention, Gurdial Singh Nijar, one of Chins lawyers, told Agence France-Presse on Monday.

Chins arrest and detention under SOSMA had drawn an outcry from human rights groups demanding her immediate release.

Alicia Edwards, a spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department, weighed in on Nov. 23, telling Reuters, We are troubled by the ongoing detention and solitary confinement of Maria Chin Abdullah under national security laws.

Bread with coconut jam

In her statement, Chin described the conditions under which she was held in solitary confinement.

In the morning, I was given bread with coconut jam. In the afternoon I was given rice with meat and water  same goes for my dinner, she said.

After four days into her custody and following a visit by officials with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM), she said she was finally given a mattress, pillow and blanket on which to sleep inside her windowless cell.

She was repeatedly taken for questioning at police headquarters, from morning until 6 p.m., where she was interrogated about Bersih and its links to OSF, she added.

It was the same question for 10 days; on Bersihs global movement, OSF and questions on Bersihs social media  who is the administrator, who decides the contents and who holds the password, Chin said.

Shuman Vasu and Muzliza Mustafa contributed to this report.
Zunar is joined by his lawyer, R.S.N. Rayer (right), and Penang MP Sim Tze Tzin (left) at George Town Police District Headquarters in Penang, Nov. 26, 2016.

Updated at 2:43 p.m. ET on 2016-11-28

Malaysian authorities have released cartoonist Zunar after arresting him for alleged sedition over an exhibit of his drawings in Penang state.

Zulkiflee Anwar Ulhaque, whose pen name is Zunar, was released on bail Sunday evening after a court rejected a police application to hold him for four days for questioning. The court instead granted a one-day remand. The satirical cartoonist is a BenarNews contributor.

Assistant Commissioner Mior Faridalatrash Wahid, who heads the North East district police headquarters in Penang, told BenarNews the probe is still ongoing.

Zunar, who is also facing an investigation for breaching the peace through his artwork, was told to report back to police in Penang on Dec. 27, when his bail expires.

It is possible that new charges will be filed against me. That will make it my 10th sedition charge, he told BenarNews.

The winner of the 2016 Cartooning for Peace Award is facing nine sedition charges for allegedly insulting the judiciary in tweets made regarding the conviction of former opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim in a sodomy case in February 2015. Zunar has been under a travel ban since June.

Police said Zunar was arrested on Saturday under Section 4(1)(c) of Malaysias Sedition Act and for breaching the peace under Section 504 of the Penal Code over an exhibit that opened Friday in Penangs capital, George Town.

Sedition ruling

The arrests occurred a day after a three-judge Court of Appeals panel ruled that Section 3(3) of the 1948 Sedition Act violated Article 10 of the Federal Constitution, which guarantees the right to free speech.

The ruling, in a case not involving Zunar, means that prosecutors must prove intent when charging a person with sedition, lawyers said. Prior to the ruling, prosecutors had to prove only that the offending statement was made.

It is a victory for the constitution of Malaysia and Article 10 is a victory for the people who, in a democracy, have the right to speak freely as long as they do not infringe  as long as they do not call for violence and such things, Lawyer N. Surendran, who represented Mat Shuhaimi Shafiei in the successful challenge, told reporters in Putrajaya following the decision, according to a YouTube video.

Lawyer Ramkarpal Singh, who represents Zunar, said the ruling affects all pending sedition cases.

It is a positive development, but the outcome remains to be seen. The Federal Court may overturn the decision, but I hope it wont come to that when this is a step in the right direction, he told BenarNews.

Attorney General Mohamed Apandi Ali, meanwhile, announced that the government would appeal the ruling, according to a report by Free Malaysia Today (FMT).

UMNO protest

Planned to run three days, Zunars exhibit was cancelled for security reasons three hours after it opened on Friday after a group of about 30 people, led by the Penang State leader of the youth wing of the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party, demanded that the drawings be removed.

Zunar was summoned to the police station on Saturday as officers investigated the incident, and, upon arrival, was arrested, according to his lawyer, R.S.N. Rayer.

The police later took Zunar back to the exhibit venue, where they seized his artwork.

I think this is strange. Others think so too. I was the victim, but I was the one arrested. Was it all part of some agenda, some script? That is how I see it, Zunar told BenarNews.
The question of independence for Thailands Deep South is best left to future generations, according to the spokesman for a panel representing rebel groups in exploratory peace talks with Thailands military government.

The aim of all [our] organizations is to gain independence. Thats what we have been fighting for all these years. But at a certain point we have to revise it, Abu Hafiz Al- Hakim told BenarNews in a recent interview.

We need to review about fighting for independence. Maybe self-rule, self-administration, self-determination is more realistic. But the name is not important. Most important is the content, and that the Malay Patani would have the right to live a normal life.

The 60-year-old physician, a native of Pattani province, spoke with BenarNews in Kota Bharu, the capital of the Malaysian state of Kelantan.

He is a senior member of the Patani Islamic Liberation Front (BIPP) and its representative on MARA Patani, the negotiating panel formed in May 2015, as well as its spokesman.

Other groups represented on the panel are National Revolutionary Front (BRN), the largest rebel force; two factions of Patani United Liberation Organization (PULO); and the Islamic Mujahideen Movement of Patani (GMIP).

Six BRN members and eight representatives of other groups make up the MARA steering committee, Abu Hafiz told BenarNews. Important posts are given to BRN because they are dominant, he said.

Thailands Deep South, formerly the Malay kingdom of Patani Darussalam, encompasses Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat provinces, and four districts of Songkhla.

Violent incidents occur almost daily in the region. More than 15,000 gun or bomb attacks have been recorded and more than 6,700 people killed since January 2004, according to Deep South Watch, a local think-tank.

Abu Hafiz has been involved in peace efforts for years  long before short-lived talks between the BRN and the government of then-Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra in 2013, he told BenarNews.

Exploratory talks with the Thai military government that took over in May 2014 have yet to produce any concrete outcome, and violence continues to plague southern Thailand.

But Abu Hafiz expressed surprising confidence in the process, and a willingness to accept outcomes short of independence.

BenarNews: What is the way ahead for the peace talks? What is your expectation of the time frame?

Abu Hafiz : This process is definitely a long process, not one or two years ...

When we talk to the military our aim is to consolidate the process and to do confidence-building with them. The military wont be there forever ... substantive issues will be discussed with an elected government later.

Weve learned that when we touch sensitive issues, it will break the process. In a previous dialogue, BRN brought five preliminary demands  that brought a shock. Its like you go into someones house and you say you want this, and this and this ... its not the right way. We should build confidence first, and then we move to the next step.

Thats what we are doing now. We dont expect to talk about development, economic development, education, administration. Maybe just about security. Thats why when they said they want to talk about safety zones  we agreed to talk about it. Because they are the correct people to talk about safety zones.

BN: Is the Thai government sincere?

AH: You cannot measure sincerity but you can measure commitment  the way they behave ... we look at it objectively. In the previous process ... there was no structure ... but this time around, it is well-structured. First, with the military, there is a steering committee and it is chaired by the prime minister. The second level is a dialogue team. The third level is at the 4th region in the Deep South. Back then it was only dialogue team and nothing else. So this is how we measure commitment objectively.

BN: Realistically, what do you hope to achieve at the end of the talks?

AH: First, the aim of all [our] organizations is to gain independence. Thats what we have been fighting for all these years. But, at a certain point, we have to revise it, based on the current situation, based on the worlds situation. It was OK to talk about independence in the 60s and 70s ... now people are talking about integration rather than separation ... look at the EU, look at ASEAN. Borders are no longer relevant, and now is the age of dialogue.

So when we decided to go for negotiations, we need to review about fighting for independence. Maybe self-rule, self-administration, self-determination is more realistic. But the name is not important. Most important is the content: that the Malay Patani would have the right to live a normal life, to decide their own future.

BN: Are there elements in the insurgent movement that dont support MARA Patani?

AH:  In MARA there is BRN ... but there are also BRN [members] who are not willing to talk to the military. To us, this is actually BRNs internal issue and they have to sort it out.

There are certain people within MARA that have certain links with the mainstream BRN outside. Through these links, they are in touch with each other. If one understands the nature of the BRN operation, this has happened so many times. For example, in 1991 BRN was talking with the 4th regional army, in a direct negotiation, but the negotiation was not [with] the main BRN ... only a faction of BRN militia.

BN: Does MARA Patani have control over the people with weapons in the Deep South?

AH: Ill answer you like this. MARA Patani is not a military coalition ... MARA is a political coalition. But armed groups are [part of] the individual groups [that make up MARA], in PULO and BRN ... we dont have power in these groups, but members of MARA have channels to these groups. They are communicating and we know they are communicating.

BN: What do you wish people knew about the Deep South that gets eclipsed by the violence?

AH: We want the world community to know there is a problem there ... the world community must support this peace process  not necessarily support us, but support this process. We just hope that the people of Patani are able to decide their own future. When I say Patani people  it doesnt mean the Malays and the Muslims, [but] all who are there, including the Thai minorities and Chinese.

The question of independence, in my personal opinion, is for the future generation; if they want, they can do it politically. If the people are satisfied with the outcome of the peace process the issue of independence is irrelevant.

Thats how the people of Patani are  they just want things of day-to-day life  job, education, security, religion, the right to determine their own future.
By Bob Cunningham

Aviation student Carson Blaisdell has many reasons to attend Bowling Green State University.

They include a family-like environment, small class sizes, a brand new fleet of aircraft, an on-campus airport and a family connection to Amelia Earhart.

Blaisdells great-great aunt Velva Blaisdell was friends with Earhart, and his family has the correspondence to prove it.

My aunts artifacts have been passed down through my dads side of my family, said Blaisdell, an aviation studies sophomore. Ive always had a passion for aviation, so its a big reason why I am in flight school now at BGSU.

The BG Flight Center is displaying one of the letters from Earhart, as well as Velva Blaisdells recreational pilots license from 1930, until the end of spring 2017. The license is signed by no other than Orville Wright, who was the chairman of the National Aviation Authority, the predecessor of the Federal Aviation Administration.

On Amelia Earhart letterhead dated March 14, 1936, the legendary pilot who disappeared in the South Pacific in 1937, sent her greetings to Kalamazoo, Mich.:

Dear Miss Blaisdell: Your pleasant letter of months has waited here in a disgraceful pile for a tardy answer. I have been travelling so much that I have become the worlds worst correspondent.

Through research, the Blaisdell family, which resides in Sylvania, Ohio, found out that their ancestor went to flight school around the same time as Earhart.
By Amber Stark 99

Reading. Doing. Networking. Writing. Talking to people. That is how Bowling Green State University student Saleha Azmi wants to spend her days.

Every single day I want to know I achieved something, she said.

Since starting at BGSU in the fall of 2014, Azmi has achieved quite a bit. She finished her masters in media and communication, started a masters in business administration and started the student chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW). She is also involved with the India Student Association and World Student Association and served as the vice president of the International Relations Organization, a team of scholarly students who engage in activities on campus to create awareness and initiate discussions on problems and issues of countries around the world.

So far Ive been lucky to pursue the things Im passionate about and love doing, she said. Ive always picked and chosen what Ive enjoyed.

Azmi chose to study in the United States because there is a lot of importance given to students opinions and critical thinking, which is not necessarily the case in her native India. She picked BGSU after reading about Dr. Srinivas Melkote, a professor in the School of Media and Communication.

After communicating with him via email, and getting more excited about her move, she was sad to find out that she might not get to go to the United States.

I was dejected when I didnt receive funding, she said. I mentally prepared for Plan B because [coming to BGSU] wasnt happening.

Luckily for Azmi, a scholarship came through at the very last minute. Within weeks, she had to pack up her life in India, where she was doing public relations for Bollywood and working at the ZAF Academy, a school in Uttar Pradesh that she founded with her father.

I was blessed with good opportunities, Azmi said. The students we are reaching had no access to school or education. Our purpose is to give little kids a chance to explore whats outside the world theyre living in.

This calling extended into the writing of a novel about empowerment and emancipation in India and relates to her role with AAUW.

Our mission [in AAUW] is to bring people from difference walks of life together to address womens issues like gender bias, inequity in pay, Title IX and sexual assault, she said. It felt really good to be selected for the national Student Advisory Council.

As a member of the council, Azmi provides advice on programming and events to create awareness for the issues important to the AAUW. She said being on the council has already brought more awareness to BGSU.

One day, Azmi would like to take the educational concepts shes experienced at BGSU such as creative, independent thinking, back to India. For now, shes working on her MBA and plans to graduate in August 2017.

From day one, I loved the program, she said. Im excited every morning to get up and go to school.

Coming from Mumbai, which has 20 million people, Azmi is considering a larger city than Bowling Green for her first career move.

The first thing I noticed here was the silence, she said, adding she was expecting Ohio to be similar to Chicago, because it was nearby. What I really, really love about BG is the people. They are so supportive, friendly, nice and willing to talk to you.

After graduation, Azmi has big dreams for her future, maybe even Google in Ann Arbor.

This is a time of change and adaptation toward a more egalitarian society. It is an exciting time to be in, where technological advancements are making things possible we never dreamt of, she said. We need to show more respect and sensitivity to the world. We have so many inspiring leaders, young and women, and I see my self as being a part of that wind of change, modern and forward looking.

I see myself as a woman in business and leadership, and through my work, I want to encourage and empower women and children to be leaders in their realm and domain.
By Marie Dunn-Harris

Being an active, involved student on campus takes a lot of time and dedication  not to mention keeping up with classes, jobs and internships.

Three Bowling Green State University students have been able to do all of that, along with managing a small business.

Junior political science major Jauntez Bates, senior geography major Brenden Foulks and senior accounting major Dion Brooks are the owners of Boss Up Clothing. They started the company in February because they were getting tired of paying top dollar for designer clothes.

"All of us were wearing designer clothing, but we didn't want to spend that much money on other companies when we can make our own," Bates said.

Brooks came up with the name for the company, which represents their hometown of Detroit.

"It took us weeks to come up with a name and we eventually decided on Boss Up, which is a term of endearment in Detroit," Bates said.

While most of the clothing started out being Detroit-focused, the company has sold shirts in several major cities across the United States., including Cleveland and Chicago.

"Each shirt has its own special detail, featuring that city's skyline," Foulks said.

While the owners come up with the ideas, the shirts are designed by one of their interns, sophomore graphic design major Deja White.

"She's very instrumental in the things that we do. We'll come up with the ideas, but she's the one who brings them to life," Foulks said.

Boss Up Clothing sells all of its products online, so social media has been an important part of the company's advertising.

"It's the best way to promote," Brooks said. That's how we reach people all over the country and how we promote our community service events."

For the owners, Boss Up Clothing is more than just a business. It's a way for them to make connections and build relationships with people in their community. Over Thanksgiving break, they volunteered by handing out food to the homeless in Detroit, and plan to do the same on Dec. 3 in Flint, Mich.

"We never would've made it this far without somebody giving back to us, so we want to be that helping hand for other people as well, and look nice while we do it," Bates said.

Being student leaders on campus has enabled them to have strategic ways to advertise. Bates is president of the Black Student Union, Foulks is vice president of the Black Intellect Group and Brooks is involved in ROTC and the National Association of Black Accountants.

"I think that all of us being leaders on campus, it gives us a voice," Foulks said.

"The way we market and do things revolves around us being involved already," Bates said. "We don't really care for the fame or the limelight; it's more about bringing people together."

Earlier in the semester, Foulks, Bates and Brooks wrote more than 200 letters of endearment and passed them out to women on campus.

"It was a small token of our appreciation because women buy our shirts more than anybody so we thought, why not support them as well with a letter of our appreciation?" Bates said.

Boss Up Clothing was recently featured in a video contest sponsored by AT&T. The contest sought out compelling stories about entrepreneurs told through video and words.

Senior film major Matt Henkes knew Bates through the Sidney A. Ribeau President's Leadership Academy and approached him about creating the video for the contest.

"We were already looking for a decent promo video, so it worked out well," Bates said.

The video made the semifinals and the winner was picked in a contest through voting on the AT&T website. Boss Up Clothing came in seventh place, but the exposure they received was priceless.

That experience was amazing because we put so much work into it, Foulks said.

It was great. I almost shed a tear because it really shows every aspect of what we do, Brooks said.

Two of the Boss Up Clothing owners are graduating soon, so they're starting to look into the company's future. Theyre hoping to utilize resources and students on campus who can gain experience while working for their company.

The owners also have a vision for a brick-and-mortar store in the inner city that can be a place not only to buy their clothing, but also to learn about being successful in life.

"We want it to be a place where people can hang out, learn about business and college at the same time at an early age, because we were never exposed to that," Bates said.
The Bible has been under attack in the western world for over 200 years but never more intensely than today. These attacks have taken different forms and have come from many different corners of the academic world, from philosophers, to scientists, to textual critics. In the specialized world of archaeology the attacks have increased dramatically in the past 50 years. Once a specialization filled with Bible believing individuals, the field of archaeology is now overrun with atheists and skeptics, agnostics and those committed to the destruction of the Bible as a source of true historical information.

These attacks on the Bible are a part of a sweeping movement in western culture. Spearheaded by academic elitists in the university and the public educational system, the news and popular media, and the entertainment industry, these revisionists cloak themselves with supposed objectivity, purity of motives, and the superiority of science over the "uninformed", "unscientific", religious community.

They regularly mock those who question their world-view and their conclusions by name-calling and the worst forms of anti-Bible and anti-Christian propaganda. They have powerfully infected the church by turning Bible believing Christians against the very Scripture which is the foundation of truth and life in this world. Instead of contending for the Bible, Christian academics, pastors, and lay-persons are making egregious accommodations to these destroyers of faith and truth.

In these days of intense spiritual battle, God has called ABR to step into the gap to contend for the truth and to assist the church in this critical hour. ABR is a non-profit ministry dedicated to demonstrating the historical reliability of the Bible and to give answers to questions being asked by believers and non-believers alike. We do this by using original archaeological fieldwork and research along with studies in other apologetic disciplines. We take on the bold claims of skeptics and critics. We challenge the bizarre anti-biblical propaganda that is purveyed upon the public as gospel through television and print media. We uphold the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is God's message for the salvation of all mankind!


For Immediate Release November 28, 2016 Contact: Tierra Curry, (928) 522-3681, tcurry@biologicaldiversity.org

Roger Peet, (503) 753-7027, toosphexy@gmail.com Endangered Species Mural at Standing Rock Supports Tribal Push to

Protect Water, Sacred Land From Pipeline Dakota Skipper Mural Is Tenth Installment in National Endangered Species Mural Project CANNON BALL, N.D. In support of the Standing Rock Sioux tribes campaign to protect their water and sacred grounds from the Dakota Access Pipeline, the Center for Biological Diversity and artist Roger Peet have installed a mural of an endangered butterfly at the Oceti Sakowin camp, where hundreds of tribes and allies have gathered in peaceful protest. Dakota skipper mural and photo by Roger Peet. Photos are available for media use. In addition to the threat to people, water and sacred places, the pipeline will also kill the Dakota skipper, a rare prairie butterfly protected under the Endangered Species Act. The brightly colored butterfly mural is intended as a show of support of the gathering of water protectors and to symbolize the harm the project will cause to people and wildlife. It is painted on the side of a structure built by the Shelter for the Storm project to provide shelter for indigenous media collectives during the frigid winter. It was an honor to paint this mural in the Oceti Sakowin frontline camp, and to offer it to the assembled water protectors as something bright and beautiful within the vibrant assembled communities of First Nations peoples, said Roger Peet, who leads the Centers national endangered species mural project. The struggle at Standing Rock against the Dakota Access Pipeline is native-led and native-voiced, and the protectors there are facing down police violence in defense of all species, large and small, including even the tiny but tough Dakota skipper. Dakota skippers are small butterflies with hooked antennae and thick, muscular bodies that enable a faster, more powerful flight than other butterflies. They have already lost nearly two-thirds of their original range due to loss of native prairie habitat. They are currently found only in the eastern half of North Dakota, northeastern South Dakota and western Minnesota, and are already extirpated in Iowa and Illinois. They were protected as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 2014. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acknowledged that the threatened butterflies will be harmed by construction and maintenance of the pipeline, but issued a permit that allows the butterflies to be killed and their habitat to be degraded. The Service suggested to the company and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that the butterflies be monitored and that voluntary conservation measures be taken to try to minimize the overall harm to the species. Respecting the diversity of the earths cultures and people is intrinsically connected to protecting its plants and animals, so the plight of the Dakota skipper butterfly is directly connected to the plight of indigenous cultures that will be irreparably harmed by the pipeline, said Tierra Curry, a senior biologist at the Center. The government should stop the Dakota Access Pipeline because of the threat it poses to tribal rights, to endangered species and to our collective future. The pipeline will harm 19 endangered species including the pallid sturgeon, Topeka shiner, whooping crane, interior least tern, piping plover, rufa red knot and northern long-eared bat. The structure on which the mural was painted is one of two designed and built by Oregon's Shelter for the Storm Project, coordinated by activists Esther Forbyn and Matt Musselwhite. It was framed entirely using solar power, and with timber felled and milled by hand from dead trees in communities in southern Oregon. Two indigenous media collectives will use the structures for warmth and power in the coming final stretch of the struggle against the pipeline. It's vital that indigenous voices have a warm and safe space from which to do their work, said Peet. Our work to build and decorate these structures is a small way to help amplify the native-led struggle against the bankrupt energy systems that are destroying the world.. Standing Rock and Dakota Access Background

The $3.8 billion pipeline would transport fracked crude oil from North Dakota to Illinois. On Nov. 15, rallies were held in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., for a national day of action urging President Obama and the Army Corps of Engineers to permanently halt the pipeline. This call to action from indigenous leaders in Standing Rock was in response to increased violent repression from militarized police as the pipeline company continues construction on sacred land, despite a voluntary hold by the Army Corps. On Nov. 20, militarized police endangered the lives of the water protectors by attacking them with water cannons in sub-freezing temperatures and firing rubber bullets, pepper spray and concussion grenades that injured more than 300 people. The Standing Rock Medic and Healer Council reports that a 21-year-old woman from New York City was severely injured by a concussion grenade thrown by police that shattered her arm. Endangered Species Mural Project Background

The Dakota skipper mural is the 10th installment in the Centers national endangered species mural project, which aims to increase appreciation of endangered species in communities across the country. Murals already in place include the mountain caribou in Sandpoint, Idaho; the Arctic grayling in Butte, Mont.; the monarch butterfly in Minneapolis; the jaguar in Tucson, Ariz.; the blue whale and yellow-billed cuckoo in Los Angeles; the watercress darter in Birmingham, Ala.; the pink mucket pearly mussel in Knoxville, Tenn.; and the white fringeless orchid in Berea, Ky. Upcoming murals are planned of the hellbender salamander in Conway, Ark.; and the marbled murrelet, a seabird, in Arcata, Calif. The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.1 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.
Psychiatrists need to "think out of the box" when developing a treatment plan for mentally ill patients, which includes working together with communities and respecting patients.

In other words, there needs to be a contract between psychiatry and society, says World Psychiatric Association president, Professor Dinesh Bhugra, says.

Building trust

He shares an anecdote about a holy place in Gujarat, Western India, where many people with mental illnesses go to pray because they believe if they do so they will get better.

Some years back, a team of psychiatrists and other medical and health experts set up an initiative where they worked closely with the faith healers at the site with a view to sharing their expertise and helping heal the patients.

The healers engaged closely with the religious leaders, and slowly started administering medical assistance through them. By building up the relationship, the patients, through the healers started trusting them and accepting their medical input and, in some cases, medication. This co-operative arrangement had yielded great results.

We should not feel threatened or criticise people for being different. Those are individuals who believe in what they do. We need to find ways of working with them to deliver what our patients would expect, he explains.

Working out boundaries

A key part of the contract between psychiatrists and society, says Bhugra is to work out where the boundaries are. We need to ask ourselves, what is it that society expects me to do in treating mental illness? And in return, I, as the psychiatrist, want the professional freedom to be able to get on with the work, be able to self-regulate, to have sufficient resources and to have respect for what we do.

The point is that we need to think about services  and that, rather than patients coming to us, we need to be where the patients, are. If patients go to a temple or holy mosque, we must be there, rather than saying, come to us.

But, both sides should be clear as to what is expected of each other. While we advocate for our patients, similarly, society should listen to me, and say, here is a person with expertise.
Retail giant Massmart staved off an attempt by rival retailer Pick n Pay to prevent one of its subsidiaries, Game, from operating as a supermarket at a Western Cape shopping centre.

The Constitutional Court on Friday declined to give Pick n Pay Retailers an interdict to stop Game from operating as a supermarket under its Foodco brand at the CapeGate shopping centre in Brackenfell.

This was regardless of a deal between the centres owners, Hyprop Investments, and Pick n Pay giving the retailer an exclusive right to trade as a supermarket in the centre.

"As a general proposition, however, there is no legal duty on third parties not to infringe contractually derived exclusive rights to trade because exclusive trading rights make the competitive field uneven," the Constitutional Courts majority judgment said on Friday.

"No infringement of a right to goodwill or in the legal duty to respect the right to goodwill was established in this case."

The ruling should give momentum to retailers such as Game who want to compete in various retail subsectors but cannot do so because exclusivity clauses prevent them from opening stores in certain malls.

Game began selling groceries at the centre from late 2010 and was told by Pick n Pay and Hyprop in 2014 to stop.

Pick n Pay, which is also a tenant at many shopping centres owned by Hyprop, such as Hyde Park Corner and The Mall of Rosebank, did not sue the JSE-listed Massmart.

It instead brought an interdict successfully in the courts to stop application against Masstores, saying it had "interfered with its contractual relations".

There was no contract between Pick n Pay and Masstores, but Pick n Pay said its Masstores was nevertheless liable under the law of noncontractual damages.

In his judgment, Justice Johan Froneman said: "Masstores trading as a general supermarket did not deprive Pick n Pay of its entitlement to continue trading as a supermarket".

The victory for Massmart has been hard fought, with the case previously having been heard in the High Court in Pretoria and the Supreme Court of Appeal.

"This outcome represents an important victory in our on-going effort to undo the historical reliance that entrenched grocery retailers place on lease exclusivity clauses to limit competition in shopping malls," said Massmart spokesperson Annaleigh Vallie.

"More specifically, we believe that the judgment will also significantly degrade the ability of the entrenched grocery retailers to rely on contractual and delictual arguments as a means to protect their lease exclusivity arrangements. The ruling creates a compelling context and momentum as we take our fight for free and fair competition in the grocery sector to the Competition Tribunal for the benefit of all new entrants regardless of size," she said.

Hyprop said it was considering the Constitutional Courts judgment.
Retailers have joined the banks in opposing prescriptive "one-size-fits-all" debt-relief measures, arguing that debt review and debt counselling provide a "robust framework" for consumers to seek voluntary debt relief.

The argument was made in a submission by the National Clothing Retail Federation of SA to Parliaments trade and industry portfolio committee which is considering whether legislation on debt relief is necessary. The committee expects to reach a decision before Parliament goes into recess in two weeks time.

Speaking on behalf of the federation, Foschini Financial Services MD Jane Fisher emphasised that standardised debt relief for predetermined groups of consumers such as farmers or students would foster a culture of nonpayment among these groups and drive up the cost of credit.

Where retail customers became overindebted, retailers offered personalised and customised repayment options to assist in rehabilitation. These took into account individual circumstances and included extending the repayment period, reducing the monthly repayment amount, waiving fees on highly delinquent accounts and settlement campaigns in the case of default.

Fisher said the federation would support the inclusion of the principles of the voluntary debt counselling rules system in the industrys code of conduct so that they could be used by the entire credit industry to assist with overindebtedness.

Another suggestion was for credit providers to be able to list consumers who were under statutory debt counselling or part of a voluntary debt-relief programme with a credit bureau to prevent them from becoming further indebted.

Adrian Williams, an ANC MP and chairman of the subcommittee tasked with formulating recommendations for debt relief, criticised clothing retailers for making credit too easily available. But Fisher said retailers applied low credit limits until customers established a good track record. The rate of decline of applications exceeded 50%.

DA spokesman on trade and industry Geordin Hill Lewis said he found "inexplicable" the court challenge by Foschini, Truworths and Mr Price against the legal obligation on credit providers to require proof of income when undertaking affordability assessments of their clients.

Fisher said it was often impossible to get proof of income from workers in the informal market such as street traders or from domestic workers.

Summit Financial Partners CEO Clark Gardner made an impassioned plea for amendments to the National Credit Act to allow complainants direct access to the National Consumer Tribunal and to the courts without having to obtain a certificate from the National Credit Regulator which he said was weak and ineffective. Gardner and philanthropist Wendy Appelbaum have been critical of the National Credit Regulator for its failure to enforce the act against reckless lenders.
Engen Petroleum, producer and marketer of fuels, lubricants and oil-based products, has rebranded its lubricants distribution business as Engen Oil Centre - marking its official launch of the Petronas Lubricants International (PLI) range in the market.

Engen Oil Centres comprises of a national network of approved distributors for Engen and Petronas lubricant products, and associated lubricant products.

Flagship distributor

The Engen Oil Centre franchise, previously known as The Oil Centre, is Engens flagship lubricants distributor. It opened its first branch in Port Elizabeth in 2004, focusing on small and medium-sized business customers with a full range of lubricating oils and service offerings tailored for the automotive, industrial, marine, aviation and agricultural markets.

Since then it has opened 10 more stores in major cities and towns, including Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, East London, Rustenburg, Phalaborwa, Nelspruit and Kimberley, says Keshwin Soni, new business development executive at Engen Lubricants.

New era of focus

John Kennedy, Engen Lubricants business manager says the rebranding and reinvigoration of its catalogue heralds a new era for the company, in which it will be able to focus more on its own range and that of its parent company, Petronas  the headline Formula 1 sponsor of Mercedes AMG.

The Oil Centre concept is an initiative undertaken by the lubricants division of Engen Petroleum to empower small enterprises to service lubricants customers in a proactive and efficient manner.

According to Kennedy, the Petronas Syntium brand of high-performance lubricants should especially excite South African motorists, as it is used in all Mercedes AMG cars worldwide.
The good news for the poultry industry is that the worst of the drought is over. The not-so-good news is that the full benefits may take another six months to materialise.

The bad news is that in the longer term, local producers will still have to contend with high volumes of imports plus the bottom line effect of the recently announced ban on brining.

Last week, three listed players  Sovereign Foods, Astral and Quantum  released results highlighting the precarious state of the industry. Margins and earnings were down significantly, with little recovery expected in the coming 12 months.

The larger players with strong balance sheets will survive but smaller producers are expected to close or be acquired by larger ones.

Sovereigns ability to shake off a dogged attempt by unlisted Country Bird Holdings (CBH) to get control at 900c a share will depend on its success in developing value-added markets. But as one of the smaller listed poultry firms, it is hard to see Sovereign holding out.

Marthinus Stander, CEO of CBH, says if the local industry is to survive the relationship between government and the key players, it will have to be overhauled. In a recent report to the North West government, Stander describes a relationship characterised by lack of trust, with the government particularly concerned by the absence of transformation and a belief the local industry is inefficient.

Stander believes the lack of trust is why government took such a hard position on brining and also why it was happy to sacrifice the industry to Agoa-related demands.

Citing "independent research" by a Dutch-based university, Stander argues South Africans can produce a whole slaughtered chicken for less than any EU country, less than Thailand and for almost the same cost as the US, which enjoys vast economies of scale.

"So, clearly we are excellent farmers and if we could source feed ingredients for prices similar to those paid by the USA, Brazil, the Ukraine and Argentina, we would be even more competitive," said Stander.

That the local industry is taking huge strain from imports is, says Stander, because of dumping by EU and US producers.

"US and EU consumers prefer the white meat; the rest of the chicken is considered waste and is exported to countries like SA at prices below the cost of production."
The 17th edition of the Huffington Post launched this weekend in South Africa. At the launch event in Sandton at Katy's Palace Bar, chief executive officer of The Huffington Post, Jared Grusd told attendees that the "timing of this launch is great because the world needs us more than ever. We can empower your communities to make more informed decisions about their world."

Grusd, who, although was born in South Africa, has not been back to the country until now, says the media landscape in the country is changing rapidly. There has never been a more important time for South African citizens to contribute through digital and by being local first. In this regard, we are providing blogging platforms in all the official languages of the country.

He adds that language is not only important as it allows people to express themselves comfortably, but also because the world needs a high quality of journalism. It is about giving perspective to what is happening around us and the ability to make sense of the world that is needed. Marrying worldwide journalism with products delivers what makes people want to engage with the news. It is not the access to information that is important as much as the ability to evaluate it.

In the future, he says, this will be enhanced through storytelling using innovative technology and augmented story telling. Through video we can provide perspective on the migrant issue, by showing in real time what happens when migrants land in Greece on the beach. This allows the reader to be immersed in the story.

Commenting on the partnership between the Huffington Post and Media24, chief executive officer of Media24, Esmare Weideman called the Huffington Post one of the sexiest, salient and most successful digital brands in the world today. The brand, she adds, is one that fits in perfectly with Media24s current journey from print to digital. Partnering with the Post shows how eager we are to change.

Grusd adds that the partnership with Media24 will extend beyond South Africa into the continent.

The former finance minister, Trevor Manuel, expressed the opinion that the media in South Africa does not know what the media is about. It is a difficult challenge of which language alone and communicating in one of the official languages is only part of the problem. While we might be an 11 language nation, we are not a single nation. Political parties do not speak to this reality. We need to consider where SA is now and how we talk to the issue. If not, then we fail to recognise where we come from and where we are going.

When considering the happenings abroad in the US and Europe as well as Turkey, then he says we should be scared. The world we knew in the wake of World War II is no longer there. The country and the world asks of us to be responsible, but we no longer know who we are.

Where is the media in all of this? He says too often it is about selling newspapers and not understanding what our responsibilities are. It is about the continuity of our responsibility to each other and the responsibility of togetherness and looking out for each other - to be able to talk and engage with each other and reach out across the divide. While this a big ask, he says, It is one this new platform in the country must take seriously.

A panel comprising of the DAs Pumzile van Damme, the EFFs Mbuyiseni Ndlozi and Chester the Puppet and Conrad Koch, chaired by the Huffington Post South Africas new editor-in-chief, Verashni Pillay, previously editor-in-chief of the Mail & Guardian discussed politics and social issues before the keynote address by the former finance minister, Trevor Manuel.
SA could have another fertiliser producer if a company called Kropz can raise R10bn to build a plant at Saldanha Bay to process the phosphate coming from its new Elandsfontein mine.

Kropz, a private company, has Patrice Motsepes Ubuntu-Botho Community Development Trust as its empowerment partner. The trust is partly owned by the Motsepe Family Trust and a "broad base of stakeholders" representing 100,000 people.

Kropz and Motsepes African Rainbow Capital own Elandsfontein Exploration and Mining in a 70:30 split. So far, R1.35bn has been sunk into a sedimentary phosphate deposit to the east of Saldanha.

There are legal environmental challenges, with one group challenging the Department of Mineral Resources in court over its awarding of an environmental permit to the mine.

The mine is awaiting the granting of a water use licence for which it applied in February.

Michelle Lawrence, the technical director in charge of Elandsfontein, said last week she was certain the mine would begin production in the first quarter of 2017 despite the court challenge and some local opposition to the mine, which lies between two South African National Parks land holdings and is just 15km from the tourist hotspot of Langebaan.

"Our legal counsel is of the opinion that we will not be delayed," Lawrence said.

The mine will produce up to 1.5-million tonnes of rock concentrate a year that will be trucked and shipped from Saldanha to export markets as well as to Durban and Richards Bay for domestic buyers.

The phosphate rock will be upgraded to 32% diphosphorus pentoxide, a nutrient that is needed to make fertiliser.

The intention of Kropz was to build a fertiliser plant at Saldanha at a cost of R10bn using various sources of funding that would be used just for the plant, with the mine maintaining its output of 1.5-million tonnes a year, Lawrence said.

Kropz counts as its directors Mike Nunn, who was the CEO of Tanzanite One, and Mark Summers. Lawrence declined to give more details about the ownership of Kropz apart from saying it was a subsidiary of a Luxembourg company.

Elandsfontein should produce its material at below $50/tonne delivered on ships at Saldanha. The international selling price is $75-$90, largely set by Moroccan producers.
Crowdfunding, as a way of raising money for a new venture, has become big business. From a small start in 1997 it was estimated to be an industry worth more than US$34bn in 2015 . But crowdfunding is still in its infancy and - as with any tool - it can be misused so that its potential for bringing innovations to the markets could be hampered.

We set out to research what distinguishes successful crowdfunded projects from those that do not achieve their goal. Our team from Anglia Ruskin University looked at 9,652 projects  both successful and unsuccessful  from the crowdfunding platform Kickstarter. Kickstarter is one of the largest reward-based crowdfunding platforms, having raised more than US$2bn (1.6bn) since its creation in 2008.

Because all applicants for funding through Kickstarter are required to post specific and detailed information, it meant we were able to drill down into each separate scheme and develop an overall understanding of the traits each had or hadnt got in common that enabled them to attract crowdfunded investment. We isolated six main traits that successful crowdfunding campaigns had in common.

Keys to success

Timing: Early funding and backing is key to successful crowdfunding. The more backers and funding received in the first few days of a campaign, the more likely it is to succeed. This suggests that designing a campaign to reward the early backers will lead to it being more successful. Successful projects on average raised 39% of their funding goals by the end of the first sixth of the campaign  with many securing their funding before this early limit was reached. This compares to failed projects which managed to raise on average less than 4% of their funding goal in the same time period.

Networks: It probably comes as little surprise that having large online social networks helps entrepreneurs achieve success when it comes to crowdfunding their ideas. When project proposers add an online social network link to their projects pages, they indicate that they are intentionally using their social network in order to boost their crowdfunding campaigns. The successful campaigns on our dataset had an average of 1,024 Facebook friends.

Temper your ambition: Ambition is usually perceived as a key to success for innovators  after all it takes ambition to launch a crowdfunding bid. But we identified many projects which were simply over-ambitious  as shown by the negative impact that a high funding goal has on the chances of a projects success. Projects which failed on average received less than 6% of their funding goal, with some raising less than 0.0001% of their funding goals.

Impatience: Being impatient to get off the ground increases the probability of a projects success. This may seem counter-intuitive  as one would expect that giving a campaign more time would help it succeed. But when it comes to crowdfunding, backers are impatient  they want to get the projects they support off the ground as soon as possible. In fact, they are so impatient that the shorter the declared duration of the campaign, the more likely the project is to succeed.

Kickstarter

Reputation: We identified a number of projects from entrepreneurs who had already successfully launched campaigns. This experience improved the chances of a projects success, as it increased the reputation of this creator generating trust. This is very important in an environment such as crowdfunding where the entrepreneur knows much more about the characteristics of the new product or service to be launched than the potential backers.

Reciprocity: In a virtual community, such as that created by crowdfunding platforms, we found that supporting other peoples projects could be a good way to attract support for ones own. The positive impact of reciprocity indicates that crowdfunding platforms are virtual communities  where altruistic behaviour makes innovators more likely to succeed.

Crowdfunding matters

Every single one of these characteristics was found to be significant in affecting the success and failure of the projects we looked at. We developed these features into a model which enabled us to correctly predict the outcome of more than 87% of Kickstarter campaigns.

Why does all this matter? Why should we care about crowdfunding? Crowdfunding is now a global phenomenon  around the world more and more people in more countries are using this method of raising funds to support their ideas. The map below shows the geographic distribution of the projects analysed.

Author provided

From this map two major points emerge. Crowdfunding is a global enterprise with a single crowdfunding platform raising funds in more than 100 countries. But it also demonstrates how crowdfunding is still limited in Africa and South America  the areas which may most benefit from using crowdfunding to get a good idea off the ground.

Many a massive enterprise has started small  and in a modern post-industrial landscape, using crowdfunding to bring a brainwave to life will be increasingly important in providing jobs and creating wealth.


Volkswagen earlier this month donated R2m to 11 charities and non-profit organisations. The handover was done at the Volkswagen manufacturing factory in Uitenhage.

Thomas Schaefer, chairman and MD, VW Group SA with representatives of the 11 local charities that received the R2m donation.

The Ray Mhlaba Skills Training Centre, Oosterland Child and Youth Care Centre, Missionvale Care Centre, Yokhuselo Haven, Thand'usana (Love a Baby): Babies Safe Home, St. Francis Hospice Nelson Mandela Bay, SOS Children's Village, The Extended Hand, Uitenhage Mental Health Society, Ntlemeza Primary School and SAMREC all received donations from Volkswagen.

"Volkswagen believes strongly in caring for others. These organisations work hard to care and uplift our citizens, so being able to lift a little of their financial burden is the right thing to do. I am proud that as a company we are able to assist them so that they can continue to help the communities in which they operate," said Thomas Schaefer, chairman and MD: Volkswagen Group South Africa.

The work of these charities mirrors the Volkswagen for Good initiative which has a strong focus on positively impacting education, youth development, enterprise development, health, community and wellbeing.
In another life Lynn was a sniper in Afghanistan, Damien trained paramilitary forces in Iraq and John worked undercover infiltrating drug cartels in central America.

Soldiers join war against poachers in Southern Africa.Image by: Esa Alexander

Now all three are back in action, this time fighting what they describe as a 'war' against poachers in Southern Africa as the killing of rhinos escalates into a crisis that threatens the survival of the species.

In 2008 fewer than 100 rhinos were poached in South Africa but in recent years numbers have rocketed with nearly 1,200 killed in 2015 alone.

Faced with such slaughter conservationists and government authorities have been desperately searching for ways to protect the animals - drones, tracking dogs, satellite imagery, DNA analysis, hidden cameras and even cutting horns off live animals before poachers can get to them. But the killing has continued.

Now military veterans from the US, Australia and elsewhere have been drafted to help.

"You have animals who are targeted by people using automatic weapons," said Damien Mander, a former Australian Navy special forces officer. "You cannot go to the communities and ask them nicely to stop. This is a war. We are fighting a war out there."

Mander, who spent three years serving in Iraq, is the founder of the International Anti-Poaching Foundation, which supports anti-poaching rangers through training and promotes "direct action" to protect rhino.

"The only thing that is going to buy time for [conservation] initiatives is well-trained, well-equipped rangers who are willing to go every day and risk their lives," he said.

"I was programmed to destroy. I am now programmed to protect." Lynn Westover is putting his military background to good use by running a two-day training course on a reserve in northern Limpopo. Attended by a dozen rangers and local ranch owners, the course offers a wide range of instruction from how to disarm poachers to analysing footprints and even communicating with helicopter pilots.

Westover works for Vetpaw [Veterans Empowered to Protect African Wildlife], a New York-based group that helps former servicemen to develop new careers using their military skills.

But the so-called "green militarisation" of anti-poaching work - a term for the involvement of ex-military in conservation work - has aroused strong criticism.

Libby Lunstrum, a professor at Canada's York University who specialises in poaching, said "a lot" of young men had been shot and buried in the border area with a "devastating impact on communities who are less likely to support conservation because they see park rangers as people who are killing their loved ones".
The imminent release of a global framework on digital financial services is expected to accelerate the adoption of mobile money transfer and payments in emerging markets.

Raidarmax via Wikimedia

The International Telecommunications Union focus group on digital financial services was established two years ago to find ways to help local policy makers improve financial inclusion. It will hold its final meeting in December to share its findings after consultation with more than 60 public and private organisations, including banks, mobile network operators and policy makers from more than 30 countries. The recommendations are expected to be released in January.

Scalable, far-reaching services

With 2-billion people still unbanked globally, mobile devices present one of the most affordable and simple ways to broaden financial inclusion. Although mobile money penetration rates are still low, there are a number of successful services run by mobile network operators. The poster child is Kenya's M-Pesa platform, which is now being adopted on other continents.

"M-Pesa blossomed in Kenya because banks were unfair to common people  80% were unbanked, with no access to debit or credit cards and ATMs," says Gaurav Bhandari, an associate of law firm DV Kapila & Co.

"People are now able to send money from one phone to another via SMS. It's transformed lives in Kenya."

MTN Money has also done well in many markets outside SA, especially in Uganda and Ghana. In the six months to June, MTN's Mobile Money increased subscribers 5% to 36.5-million.

Providing a framework to standardise and unify digital financial services across borders will ensure not only that competing products are interoperable, but that digital financial services are scalable and far-reaching, says the focus group. By providing a common set of standards, the new framework avoids overregulation while encouraging the broader reach of digital financial services, it says.

A recent McKinsey report expects the use of digital finance to increase the GDPs of all emerging economies 6% (3.7-trillion) by 2025. This is equivalent to an economy the size of Germany and could create up to 95-million jobs.

Challenges to adoption

Focus group chairman Sacha Polverini says telecommunications and financial services regulators, governments and central banks need to work together to identify the policy and regulatory issues preventing digital financial services from developing organically and reaching the poor.

Countries throughout the developing world, however, are finding that there are challenges in getting merchants to accept digital payments. Enabling acceptance by merchants is increasingly seen as a key element. It will help achieve digital liquidity by enabling poor consumers to spend a meaningful amount of their income into digital wallets, eliminating or reducing the need to incur cash-out costs, says Polverini.

Among the concerns raised during meetings with stakeholders are user-friendly interfaces. Not everyone can read or write, so the interface should be more graphic and intuitive. Security protocols and data protection are an issue because users are wary about cellphone transactions. "They do not always trust the security of the Wi-Fi and mobile network transmitting data," says Polverini.

Longer-lasting cellphone batteries will be key because, with the increasing number of users going mobile, the importance of a reliable and efficient energy supply increases.

International Telecommunications Union secretary-general Houlin Zhao says regulation must nurture the development of a strong and healthy digital finance sector. Given the complexity of the regulatory environment, it can often be a challenge for telecoms and financial services regulatory bodies in many emerging markets to collaborate in developing national guidelines.

"The focus group has sought to identify a clear framework that regulators around the world can use. I believe also that the work being done will contribute significantly towards reducing global poverty."
The European banking sector is bracing itself for massive change now that the revised payment services directive (PSD2) legislation has been passed by the Council of the European Parliament.

In a nutshell, PSD2 allows for, digital role players to tap into payments systems traditionally considered the domain of the financial services system. Banks must, according to the regulation, offer third-party service providers ways to access customers accounts through open APIs (application program interfaces). This paves the way for the banking sector to evolve quite dramatically, eventually allowing for different types of companies and fintech startups to offer banking services to customers.

Collapse of traditional banking infrastructure

You are actually looking at the collapse of the traditional banking infrastructure and a rebirth of banking as we know it. These bold words come from Thomas Pays, CEO of i-Pay, an electronic funds transfer (EFT) payment gateway.

He believes banks are set to lose full control over account information, a key resource which, understandably, they never wanted to share with fintech companies. As innovative and agile as new fintech start-ups are, a number of them were hamstrung by this, with banks arguably stifling innovation and the growth of the industry.

Promoting innovation

PSD2 was adopted by the European Union (EU) in order to promote innovation in the payments space, improve consumer protection, and to incorporate new and emerging payment services typically provided through digital innovation. While PSD2 is first and foremost focused on the EU,

Pays notes that this regulation will affect South African banks too. Several local banks have branches in the UK and Europe, and since these fall under PSD2 regulation  and also being on the same back-end as the banks South African systems  their whole structure would need to change in order to comply, notes Pays. He describes the impact of the regulation as a ripple effect that will eventually touch banking in as many as 67 countries.

A go-between

Here is, for example, the way PSD2 will change the online buying process. Currently, the way shopping is done online allows for a number of role players in the process, including the merchant and customer, the merchant acquirer that processes credit card payments on behalf of the merchant, card schemes such as Visa, and finally the customers bank.

PSD2 creates what is called a payment initiation service provider (PISP), a go-between which if given permission by the customer, initiates a payment bridge directly between the merchant and the bank. This is possible since PSD2 offers API access to the customers bank accounts, and it is in the role of PISP that fintech.

Customer will benefit

Who will benefit the most from PSD2? Pays believes that through the new banking ecosystem, the main winner will be the consumer, since it will not only be more convenient to transact online, but also safer. PSD2 is taking online banking infrastructure and gearing it towards an environment which is stronger and more robust  much more so than the current method of buying online with credit cards, he elaborated. The merchants too are set to benefit, since they are looking at much smaller transaction fees and more convenient ways to accept payments.

Pays believes that even though PSD2 opens the market for innovative companies, the exact type of innovation it might herald is not yet known at this stage. PSD2 is going to shock the market not just on a technological level, but also with time through the innovation it will drive. At this stage, we can only speculate how banking is going to work in future, Pays concludes.
According to the report, the initial increase in graded establishments and rooms came in May and June 2016. This coincided with the launch of the Tourism Analytics Programme (TAP), an online system that collates guest reviews on tourism facilities on travel review platforms such as Bookings.com, Agoda and TripAdvisor.

Source: TGCSA

The most significant increase in graded establishments happened in spring with a net increase of 69 new graded establishments joining the system during September and October 2016. During the same period, the TGCSA launched its coastal campaign targeted at establishments based in the coastal regions with the promise to partner with them in readying themselves for the summer holiday season.

TV partnership

The council also partnered with VIA TV channel 147 on DsTV and Ideas Magazine to produce the Ster vir my Bed reality show with local production house, Hi Mom. This 10-episode series showcased just how easy it is to transform an ordinary guesthouse, bed and breakfast or self-catering unit into a quality assured graded establishment by merely meeting the TGCSA minimum entry requirements and quality grading criteria.

Meaningful relationships

This midyear report suggests that South Africas travel and tourism industry increasingly recognises TGCSA as the official quality assurance body for tourism products in South Africa and is dedicated to helping our country achieve the highest level of quality, promote optimal value for money and give "customer expectation" the paramount position it deserves.

Chief quality assurance officer, Darryl Erasmus, says: We appreciate the industrys support and trust in our system. Our aim to develop meaningful partnerships with the industry and interact with them much more regularly is bearing fruits. Let us continue towards positioning South Africa as a quality assured destination of choice for international and domestic leisure travel and business events.
Africa's business and leisure travellers are searching for local travel, meetings, and conference options with expensive travel visas and fears of terrorism across Europe and the East. Exotic destinations are becoming a stretch on the purse-strings and looking for local destinations are fast becoming a major trend. Namibia is such a destination, with the country becoming an appealing option for the leisure and conference markets.

Swakopmund - famous jetty

Growth in arrivals

Nicolae Tambrescu, regional and domestic operations and marketing for Namibia, Africa and Middle East at Namibia Tourism Board, confirms the growth reflected by Namibian Airports Company figures for 2015 when Windhoek airport handled 773,721 passengers and 14,940 aircraft movements.

Supporting airlines are Air Namibia, South African Airlines, TAAG Angola, Airlink, Condor, South African Express and British Airways (Comair) that service routes to Johannesburg, Cape Town and Luanda, amongst others in Africa, as well as to Europe through Frankfurt Airport in Germany. Walvis Bay Airport is a second major airport in Namibia, handling over 20,000 aircraft and about 100,000 passengers in 2015, operating daily flights to Windhoek, Johannesburg, and Cape Town.

Walvis Bay Airport is undergoing a total revamp and is set to be Namibias second international airport by the end of 2016. According to Tambrescu, South African arrivals continue to increase at 12-13% annually, reaching over 500,000 in 2015.

But its not only South Africans who are realising the value of Namibia. Arrivals from Angola and Zambia account for about 700,000, whilst visitor figures from Germany, France, Italy and the United Kingdom have reached as many as three hundred thousand per annum.

A surge in corporate travel

Recent reports confirm the arrival of KLM, Qatar and Ethiopia Airlines, confirming the interest of visitors to the country. Tambrescu explains that there is an upsurge in corporate travel from SADC, but there is room for improvement. It is important to inform the consumers of various types of destinations and activities, tourism campaigns and incentives, through various communication tools and, in the past years, we have seen growth and uniformity throughout the year, positive signs for Namibia.

A playground of attractions

Dean van Rooyen, general manager at BON Hotel Swakopmund, boasts that Namibia, especially the coastal town of Swakopmund, has much to offer. Less than an hours drive from the Walvis Bay airport, the sand dunes and ocean offer a playground of attractions for corporate and leisure seekers and the historical value draws many tourists from Germany and Europe.

Namibia, Sossusvlei

With such a variety on offer, Swakop is becoming increasingly popular for conference groups, team-building, and our leisure market is growing too. Of course, we also enjoy the big-time Hollywood movie shoots. The exchange rate and unusual locations are huge drawcards for production companies.

If one has to look at exotic travel options for South Africans on our current exchange rate, we have limited choice for value  perhaps Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia or even Mauritius, but Namibia now theres a thought.
Toyota Motor Corporation will begin to sell fuel cell buses under the Toyota brand from early 2017. Having already undergone repeated field tests for practical use, the Bureau of Transportation of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government plans to utilise two of these FC buses, branded the Toyota FC Bus, as fixed-route buses.

The company plans to introduce over 100 FC buses mainly in the Tokyo area, ahead of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. In view of this, the FC buses will be sold for the first time in Japan in early 2017, so as to help increase the level of understanding by the general public of the utilisation of FC buses as a form of public transportation.

Moreover, in preparation for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the number of FC buses being introduced will increase steadily going forward. Together with this, the automaker says it aims to "engage continuously in the diligent development targeted at the expansion of the introduction of the new FC buses from 2018 so as to contribute to the realisation of a hydrogen-based society".

Energy efficiency and power supply

The Toyota FC Bus was developed by Toyota, based on the company's experience in developing FC buses together with Hino Motors, Ltd. (Hino). The Toyota Fuel Cell System (TFCS), which was developed for the Mirai fuel cell vehicle (FCV), has been adopted to provide better energy efficiency in comparison with internal combustion engines, as well as to deliver superior environmental performance with no CO2 emissions or substances of concern (SOCs) when driving.

The bus also uses a high-capacity external power supply system. With a power supply capable of a 9 kW maximum output, and a large capacity of electricity supply at 235 kWh, the FC bus can be used as a power source in the event of disasters, such as at evacuation sites or at school gymnasiums. Its electricity supply can also be harnessed for home electric appliance use.

The Toyota Group considers the use of hydrogen to be a powerful source of energy for the future. Toyota has released the Mirai FCV, while also engaging in the technological and product development of FC buses, fuel cell forklifts, as well as stationary fuel cells for use in homes.
CareerJunction has released a review on the latest salary trends in South Africa, revealing salaries currently on offer in South Africa.

Findings are based on actual salary offerings posted between April 2016 and October 2016 on CareerJunction, one of SAs leading online job boards, where over 30,000 jobs are posted monthly. The review focuses only on the top 10 most sought-after sectors in South Africa and also features handy regional salary differences (in case you're thinking of relocating in 2017) for Gauteng, the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.

The sectors covered include:

Architecture & Engineering



Building & Construction



Warehousing & Logistics



Information & Communication Technology



Design, Media & Arts



Finance



Marketing



Sales



Admin, Office & Support



Manufacturing & Assembly

Comparing salaries 6 and 12 months ago, no major changes are evident. Regionally, Gauteng remains at the forefront of market demand and therefore also remains at the top of the pay scale, especially within the Engineering, Finance and Sales sectors, where pay gaps vary from 15% to 29% between Gauteng and the Western Cape.

Digging even deeper into the data, best-paid workers across the 10 analysed sectors seem to be those in the fields of ICT, Finance and Engineering with many salaries stretching to over R50,000 monthly for senior level professionals. On the other end of the spectrum, workers in the fields of Admin, Office & Support, Manufacturing & Assembly, and Warehousing & Logistics are the lower earners, with some only earning between R3,500 and R6,000 per month.

You can view/download the full 2016 Salary Review here http://www.careerjunction.co.za/#salaryreview.




All except the country's struggling dams in the Cape provinces are on the path to recovery, the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) said on Monday.

"Over the past weekwe have been on the upward trend," said department spokesman Sputnik Ratau, adding that the latest dam level figures were being finalised and would be released on Tuesday.

"The only places that were struggling were the three Capes  Northern Cape Eastern Cape and Western Cape. On the national average we have been going up" he said.

"Our national average is now almost 50%. This means when you look at the national dam levels together you would get that percentage of capacity. It was 49.3% on Monday last week.

"Obviously, because the rains have fallen over the last couple of days, and also looking at the fact that the Vaal Dam is receiving water from Katse Dam in Lesotho as well as Sterkfontein Dam from the Free State that has created a change in the kind of figures."

In August the DWS issued a government gazette compelling municipalities to reduce consumption by 15%. Most municipalities have struggled to reach this target and some have been forced to restrict water supply in certain areas at times to prevent their reservoirs from running dry.

While Gauteng has had rainy days in the past week a heat wave this week could push up the demand for water.

Ratau said it was difficult for the department to speculate how long the restrictions on municipalities would last. He said the release of water from Sterkfontein Dam was expected to continue until December, by which time it was hoped the Vaal Dam would have sufficiently recovered.

"Restrictions must not be looked at as punitive measures. They are meant to assist us to be able to make sure that going forward we continue to have sufficient water" Ratau said.

TMG Digital
The United Nations 2016 climate change conference (COP22), meeting in Marrakech, Morocco, presented an historic opportunity to refocus the global community's attention on the need to help developing nations adapt to climate change. In no area could this be more pressing than Africa, where protecting food security and ending hunger is an urgent necessity.

Joachim Huber via Wikimedia Commons

During the COP21 last year in Paris, the worlds developed nations reaffirmed their commitment to provide at least $100 billion per year, beginning in 2020, to help developing nations combat climate change.

In the past, most funds have been used on mitigation projects - those intended to curtail greenhouse gas emissions. But there is a growing consensus that work focused on adapting to climate change is of equal importance and more funding needs to be devoted to it.

This is a step in the right direction. With 28 African countries expected to more than double in population by 2050, and 10 African countries - Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Somalia, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia - expected to grow by at least a factor of five by 2100, according to the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Africa will be hard pressed to feed itself as temperature increases drive farm production down.

Higher temperatures leads to weak output in Africa

The scientific consensus is that a temperature increase of 2Celsius would result in an average reduction of 15% to 20% in agricultural yields on the continent.

While increases in temperature and carbon dioxide can increase some crop yields in some places, experts at the US Environmental Protection Agency have noted Africa isnt among them. In fact, the opposite is true: The scientific consensus is that a temperature increase of 2Celsius would result in an average reduction of 15% to 20% in agricultural yields on the continent.

The Center for Global Developments 2011 report, Quantifying Vulnerability to Climate Change Implications for Adaptation Assistance, forecasts median agricultural productivity losses due to climate change ranging from 18% in North Africa to 19.8% in Central Africa through 2050.

The weak output in Africa, reinforced by a spike in temperatures and exacerbated by extreme climate events, could create a vicious loop of food insecurity, impoverishment, mass migration and, finally, armed conflict. Climate-related migration and conflict already are a reality on the continent, and more often than not they are related to agriculture and food.

The feedback loop

In addition to the moral imperative of feeding people, there is also an essentially practical argument to be made in favour of significantly increasing support for agricultural adaptation in Africa - the so-called feedback loop. By helping Africa boost agricultural production through improved soil management and irrigation techniques, as well as increased research on other farming techniques that respect the integrity of land, the global community also would be helping reduce greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. Thats because the improved agricultural practices, in a virtuous circle, would increase yields on poor farmland, reduce deforestation and improve the carbon sequestration capacity of cultivated soil.

Adapting African Agriculture

Currently, agriculture and Africa are the poor relations of climate finance. Adaptation, agriculture and Africa have been understudied and underfunded and their importance underestimated. In the area of agriculture, all geographic regions combined account for only 4% of public funds linked to climate change. The African continent, home to nearly 25% of the developing worlds population, receives just 5% of public and private climate funds. This is difficult to swallow when you consider that Africa is among the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, while only marginally contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.

By maintaining African agriculture and reinforcing its capacity for adapting to climate change, the international community can show its responsiveness to the life-and-death issue of African food security, while addressing the global imperative to reduce temperature increases.

Marrakech COP22 is a unique opportunity to finally position the adaptation of African agriculture as one of the highest priority subjects. Delegates to the Marrakech climate conference can help solve this problem by reallocating available climate change resources from mitigation efforts to adaptation projects in general, and to the African agriculture in particular.

For Africa and the world, it is time to consider these realities.
Amien Ahmed, director of public affairs at Kantar Public South Africa, is so focused on social, political and government research that he hasn't read a novel in five years (though he recommends Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise by Anders Ericsson, the researcher who unveiled the concept of '10,000 hours' or putting in the time to perfect a skill, as made popular in Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers). Here, Ahmed shares some of the top issues relating to this month's countrywide focus on entrepreneurship based on the recently completed Finscope study and unravels a few misconceptions for those who see entrepreneurship as a silver bullet for the country's high unemployment levels...

The latest unemployment stats, released by StatsSA last week, show the figure is now at its highest since 2003. Many punt entrepreneurship as the answer to this crisis, but Ahmed says you simply cant speak about entrepreneurship without also speaking about access to credit and how to manage finances and a business, as well as getting young people into the workplace where they can develop skills through learning by doing. In addition, entrepreneurial support must first be rendered to who are already in business. Heres why:

We speak today about millennials and their mindset, with a thesis that they want quick success and lots of money, coupled with low levels of commitment or loyalty. Ahmed says this is partly related to the fact that were moving away from the current notion of full-time employment, its all about WIIFM or whats in it for me, work-life balance away from the office and also a prevailing sense of entitlement.

Managing that millennial money mind-set

Amien Ahmed

So if youre in business, dealing with millennials, you have to consider how their way of being is likely to impact your company. They often fall into the 98 percent/2 percent trap, where youve done 98% of the work but its that shoddy 2% - where you left work early the day before a big presentation and didnt update important info  that you get judged on. Ahmed calls this a stereotype that doesnt necessarily hold true to all under a certain age, but it does seem to be the prevailing millennial mindset.

Today, we live on apps, and the state of social science in the 21st century is undeniably linked to technology. The idea of holding an arts degree without the required technological skill or basic office knowhow to put the theory into practice is now outdated. Ahmed says tertiary institutions will have to rethink what they teach, as we need a connection between social sciences and technology. The bigger challenge then isnt necessarily about understanding social science in terms of general business but rather about how best to bridge the gap between social science and technology so that young people have a better opportunity to work long-term.

Speaking of the reason most of us work, at a more basic level than feeling fulfilled for making a contribution to society  to earn money for now and for the long-term, Amien says theres no denying South Africans simply dont have a savings ethos, which impacts people at an older age where they dont have money for retirement  we need to start young, but most leave it too late, if they start saving at all. Building on this, he discussed the Finscope SA 2016 study, which falls under the Finmark Trust and United Nations Capital Development Fund partnerships Making Access Possible programme, and how it relates to entrepreneurship. Key among these is that 40% of the youngest set of respondents  those in the 18- to 29-year-old bracket  expect the SA government to provide for them. He raises two points on the topic: The first is the dependency factor  where the youth have a dependency mindset, expecting others to provide for them, the other, in the context of #feesmustfall, is about understanding that access to funds for education has more of a developmental agenda.

Thats one of the key features of the middle economy, where theres a huge battle between savings and credit and strong lines of indebtedness. This is why the UCT Unilever Aspirations report raised the issue of access to credit and not being able to move SA without it. Ahmed says credit and loans are a double-edged sword as they can either spiral you further into debt or be the basis to create employment and wealth, so you cannot have economic development without risk.

Honing in on the younger respondent set  the millennials  the survey asked for their age by education, age by employment status and age by views on who should be looking after them. Sketching the first two problems, Ahmed said South Africa has a large population of young people in that age group, with very low levels of education  90% of respondents having Matric or lower levels of education  and high levels of unemployment, as another problem.

Its all about the money

Moving on to the hot topic of unemployment then, a staggering 35% of the younger set are unemployed. Its a group with low levels of literacy, numeracy and understanding of how money works. Thats the huge challenge were dealing with: Entrepreneurship is promoted as the answer to unemployment, but how can it be when the people we expect to become entrepreneurs simply dont have the skills to do so?

Taking the argument further, Ahmed says with entrepreneurship you must have access to credit. You can access it, but what do you end up paying for it? Will you be able to make the payments, do you also have the required transport and industry knowledge to do the basics of setting up a business? There are funds available  R1.5bn  but that doesnt come with the ability to manage money. The Mail & Guardian highlights the work of SETAs and the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA), but startups tend to have a 70% failure rate in terms of paying back loans, so if you already have a business and need to take out a loan, your application is more likely to be successful. With a startup thats completely from scratch, its more likely that youll fail to repay youre loan, so youre high risk.

Take the sum of all of that and the barriers to entry start to seem like insurmountable hurdles at this stage, especially to someone looking to launch a startup. The literature shows the youth need access to credit, knowledge of how finances work, admin and managerial support, knowledge of how to turn their idea into a business and mentoring. Even in deciding to start your own business, you need to know the gaps in the market and what would be a good option. That then speaks to the whole issue of mentoring and putting the basics in place.

Entrepreneurship isnt the easy flag or silver bullet. Then theres the informal trade sector, which has become a firmly enmeshed support network or community. When desperation sets in, thats what you operate in. The end goal of a stokvel isnt for developmental goal savings, but simply to get by day-to-day. Ahmed says its a great principle, but is the loan being taken to buy property, build a house, or finance your education? That would be good credit for developmental goals. But those living in desperate poverty are taking out loans to buy basic food, as opposed to the higher income category (R30k+) borrowing to better their lives. Its about your mind-set as well as the circumstances you find yourself in. Ahmed says you almost have to fit entrepreneurship into that  what are people taking out loans for, are they even thinking of getting out of unemployment?

Young people need financial education and to get doing

The real solution thatll alleviate unemployment levels all tie back to education. The basic education provided at school is neither doing an adequate job nor reaching those who need it. First is to look at a school level, as even the private schools dont teach adequate financial management. Ahmed says we have to get people to understand how the economy works with a standard programme that runs across all high schools  not necessarily from the department of education. It could be designed by an NGO as a standard programme explaining how a bank account works, as well as the concepts of interest, loans and debt.

Second then is the need to provide a supportive infrastructure to those existing businesses in the informal sector that arent registered so are seen as high risk by creditors, and potential entrepreneurs without a bank account or proper addresses to be FICAd  without which you cant get a loan. SA is quite sophisticated in this regard as info can be triangulated between SARS and various institutions, so theres sufficient infrastructural data to hold someone accountable to find them and ensure they wont disappear into the sunset. Theres sufficient data in the system to give people provisional FICA status. Ahmed says to remove the obvious excuses to accessing money and that we need models to support these initiatives.

We need to formalise this missing middle economy that effectively runs spazas, puts food on the table and children through school, and give it greater support in identifying pockets of already existing businesses.

Ahmed is also a strong believer in learning by doing, so while better basic education is definitely an aspect of it, so is the need to get young people employed, because part of the problem is the current state of idle youth not doing anything, which snowballs into a larger societal problem. Thats why Ahmed says the debate of living wage and paying people a stipend is problematic if you dont factor in that you have to get young people working to get South Africa working.

Mentorship, support and a new-biz moratorium

At one level its a good thing as it actually gets people into the workplace and earning  even if it is peanuts, thats better than sitting at home with nothing to do, he says. Theres a dual benefit as you develop a skill and understand the nature of work, while also understanding the relationship between work and getting a salary  and if youre not happy with your salary theres a propulsion to do something about it. So we have to come up with more opportunities to get people into employment, even if its on a stipend or low-level salary.

The other critical factor is the need for a support mechanism. SA is seen as a very difficult country in which to register a business, compared to Rwanda for example, where you can have your business registered speedily, without bureaucratic obstacles. Here you need to dot every I to cut through the red tape of SARS compliance, labour legislation, workmens compensation and the like. This can be overwhelming and off-putting, which is why Ahmed proposes a two-year moratorium on compliance.

Get people to start up a business, give them the support they need but dont be too onerous on all the legislative stuff. Let them find their feet  sure, theyre not paying SARS but they werent doing so before when they were sitting at home, either. Its about creating an environment where its OK for your business to fail without the pressure of payback.

Ahmed adds African Bank is working out a model in this light, for low-income earners that provides access to credit thats carefully vetted to identify the people and small businesses that have a better chance of success.

Everybody needs to get ready for the changing world of work

In terms of decreasing unemployment in particular, access to credit is key, as is education and opportunity. Its really tough for entrepreneurs as well as freelancers, as its that much harder to get credit, because you dont have a registered business. Studies also prove that most people with life insurance, medical cover and a provident fund or retirement fund are more likely to be in full-time employment, working for a company. In contrast, people working full-time for themselves show a decline in having savings and risk protection products.

If we think about where the world is going, full-time employment working for a set employer is on the way out, with remote work and tech-based work is coming in. This is a financial issue that impacts the nature of work, in turn accidentally creating an entrepreneurial environment. Are we prepared for it? Ahmed says disruption is everywhere, not just with Uber but also the likes of Mama Money.

Soon, the nature of changing work will force us to understand how to work for ourselves. Its moving the focus beyond entrepreneurship to working from home, remotely, for yourself. Circumstances are dictating, and the corollary argument is this new challenge, says Ahmed.

Are you ready?

Click through to the Finmark Finscope website for more.
British Airways (BA) has upped its capacity to the Mother City by nearly a third for the summer season, which includes the launch of a three-times-a-week service from Gatwick.

In addition to the Gatwick services we will also be operating two extra 747-400 services from Heathrow to supplement the normal double-daily schedule. These will fly during the particularly high-demand periods from 1-9 January and 3-27 February.

During these periods we will be offering 6,345 seats a week to Cape Town, over 30% up on the capacity we flew last year. It is our biggest-ever schedule on the route, says Sue Petrie, BA commercial manager for Southern Africa.

The airline will be using Boeing 777-200s for the Gatwick/Cape Town service. These aircraft are ideal for busy leisure routes as they are configured with three cabins as opposed to our usual four, she says. Without the extra cabin, the aircraft can carry 48 customers in Club World, 24 in World Traveller Plus and 203 in World Traveller.

Were helping a little and our marketing department has run a social media campaign feature pop-up events at busy railways stations to promote the Gatwick flights, Petrie says.

Incidentally weve also upped capacity to Johannesburg, where we operate 14 flights a day using a combination of A380s and Boeing 747-400s. By expanding the A380 services to 10 a week and using specially configured 747s weve grown our premium capacity on the route by 15%, she says.
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the African continent? In order to grow, is Africa compelled to follow the same track of the West? "Africa is lagging behind the rest of the world, but this is paradoxically an advantage for the region: it approaches development differently and has already taken concrete steps to address the backlog," says Ludovic Subran, chief economist at Euler Hermes.

Ludovic Subran

Euler Hermes, a global player in trade-credit insurance, analyses the current African economic situation in a report entitled Afri-can or Afri-cant? 10 Myths to debunk on Africa. It decrypts reasons why Africa is a special continent of many resources, which will find its way of growing and becoming a key player in the global economy.

Myth #1: All African countries are the same

Most African countries have a complicated business environment - even Nigeria. However the continents driver is ranked 169th in the World Banks Doing Business 2016.

Nonetheless, there are differences among African economies in the pace of growth and level of diversification. There are three groups of countries in Africa. First, the strong links such as South Africa and Morocco with an attractive business environment, but their growth (+0.5% and +2% respectively in 2016) remains moderate, although stable.

Then the change champions, including Ivory Coast and Ethiopia. These economies record strong growth rates (7.5% and 7% respectively in 2016), pushed by their will to diversify and improve their business environment. Finally, lagging behind are countries such as Nigeria or Cameroon where change needs to be fostered, says Subran.

Myth #2: Africa only relies on raw materials

Africa has tremendous raw-material sources and is often viewed as an indispensable pool of labour for the near future. But the African economy is also a hotbed of innovation. Compared with Singapore and its 2% of GDP spent on R&D, Africa ranks lower. But this gap is going to narrow very rapidly thanks, for example, to hubs and the will to overcome the infrastructure deficit, explains Stephane Colliac, senior economist at Euler Hermes.

Each region has its own champion: Kenya (0.9% of GDP) in the west, South Africa (0.75%) in the south, and Morocco (0.8%) in the north.

This innovation effort is also reflected in the creation of technologic hubs, whose number is steadily increasing in the African continent. At present there are 24 hubs in South Africa, 11 in Kenya and 7 in Uganda. In Kenya, the technologic incubator iHub has contributed to the development of 150 companies since 2008, an evidence of its role in the growth of African economy, underlines Colliac.

Myth #3: African infrastructures are non-existent

The infrastructure gap (water, electricity, internet, transport) in Africa remains important. The example of Nigeria is striking: to fill its infrastructural gap, the country must spend USD 1900bn by 2030 - that is nearly USD 130bn a year (25% of current GDP). This gap penalises African economies and costs 2% of growth to the region every year, according to the African Development Bank.

But the development of African infrastructures is also an economic opportunity. African countries cannot finance these infrastructural investments themselves. In the long term, this should trigger significant investments in the region, that will contribute to finance the regional economy, adds Colliac.

Myth #4: Africa is isolated from the world

African foreign trade continues to grow - well, almost. In 2016, Africa is expected to lose USD 12bn exports by value (totalling USD 560 billion) because of the commodity shock. In 2017, demand to Africa should increase by USD 30bn. This is not only in the short term. Actually, by 2025 African countries should continue to open up and the continents heavyweights, i.e. Nigeria (+USD 210bn of additional exports in ten years / + USD 150bn of imports), South Africa (+ USD 140/180bn) and Egypt (+ USD 83/79bn), will see their trade with the rest of the world soar, continues Subran.

The favourite destination of African exporters remains China (27% of African exports in 2016). However, the raw material part in African exports to China has decreased from 97% in 2010 to 83% in 2015, in contrast with low-value-added manufactures (3% in 2010 vs. 7% in 2015).

Myth #5: African institutions are non-existent

Next to countries where institutions do not (or have stopped to) evolve, there are countries launching important reforms. Rwanda for example has strengthened its fight against corruption, by setting up a national anticorruption council and an entity supervising the award of public contracts. The purpose of this is to reduce the differential quality between institutions in Rwanda and those in more developed countries such as Brazil or Italy.

On the other side, the needs of public-service users are changing and the same occurs with demands for social security. Moreover, institutions have to respond differently: The digital revolution can help African institutions to skip several stages of development. South Africa, Rwanda and Ghana have already developed online public services of relatively good quality, and this is how institutions in these countries are catching up with international standards, says Subran.

Myth #6: No-one is going to finance African growth

Once the oil aftershock has worn off, Africa will resume growing at an average +3% a year. Some countries still post record growth rates higher than +5%, despite the hard shock. In addition, the financing and rebalancing of growth, including investments to be made, will be the key to a sustainable takeoff.

The mix of funding will be crucial. In addition to external resources, particularly from foreign direct investment (FDI), some countries are already able to finance at least part of their growth with budgetary resources. This is the case in South Africa, Egypt and Senegal where they account for 25% and 30% of GDP in 2016. Household confidence and investor confidence will be indispensable to collect savings, adds Subran.

Nevertheless, the way ahead will be thorny: (i) budgetary revenues make up only 14.5% on average of the African GDP, compared with 30% in developed countries; (ii) FDI is only 2% of GDP, compared with 2.4% in developed countries.

Myth #7: African consumers are not bankable

Consumption growth in Africa is well under way. In 2016, Africa reports the highest consumption growth rates, led by Cote dIvoire (+6%), Uganda (+7%) and Nigeria (+5%), compared with +1.4% in OECD countries or +2% in Pacific Asia. Consumption development in Africa is driven by the continents exploding urbanisation: by 2045, African towns will be flooded with 24 million people, compared with only nine million in China and 11 million in India," reports Colliac.

But African consumption development should follow a different path from that of developed countries. The wealth effect and internet access add to the volume growth of African consumption. Consumers in Africa are going to skip some steps and force business sectors to reconsider their approach. This is especially striking in distribution, financial services or transports: for example, 70% of Moroccans have internet access (55% in China), and 14% of Kenyans use contactless payment cards (60% of French are still and always using bank checks), says Subran.

Euler Hermes has worked out a proprietary consumption potential indicator combining these three determinants. The verdict is final: Nigeria, Kenya, Morocco, Egypt and South Africa are the leading pack, followed by Ghana, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Sudan and Congo, DR.

Myth #8: Its hard to work with African companies

Given the payment terms granted by foreign suppliers to African companies, it is undisputable that stronger confidence would free considerable resources for growth. Out of EUR 800bn of goods imported every year by Africa, approx. 60% are paid cash. If transactions were settled at 30 days, this would free EUR 40bn of working capital requirements, equal to the GDP of Tanzania, or to 1.6% of the GDP of Africa, says Subran.

This situation engenders a sort of vicious cycle for African companies. Their cash flow suffers from the multiplication of cash payments, and this makes them more exposed to possible economic risks. As for domestic trade, this calculation in a country like Nigeria generates EUR 10bn of additional cash flows: a foot on the ladder for growth-seeking SMEs.

Myth #9: Agriculture, something of the past

Agriculture is the driver of economic growth in Africa: it remains the first contributor to employment and lifts millions of people out of poverty every year. Nevertheless, what is needed is a true green revolution to accelerate the catalyst role of the farming sector, by focusing productivity, market access and technologic contents.

In terms of growth by value of agricultural exports from 2005 to 2015, Ethiopia and Ivory Coast (+30%), Kenya and Rwanda (+20%) have specialized in high-value cash crops. Other countries, such as Zambia, Senegal and Morocco, have managed to use mechanization and technology to increase agricultural productivity, highlights Subran.

Myth #10: Its hard to find entrepreneurs and talents in Africa

Education levels are increasing in Africa. In particular, access to university education in Cameroon has grown from 4.6% in 2000 to 13% in 2013. However, even in South Africa, the most proficient student, the percentage of youth entering university is only 20% by age group. Furthermore, official statistics on entrepreneurship are disappointing: in South Africa, just to make an example, only two companies are set up every 1 000 inhabitants.

These low figures mask the rampant informal entrepreneurship that is set to remain the basis for human capital development in the short term. Therefore, attention should be focused just on this entrepreneurial environment, apart from access to education. In Nigeria and Uganda for example, the towns of Lagos and Kampala have only recently reformed their registry system, a big problem for all those wishing to start business, concludes Subran.
Got a question or tip? Contact us at bizmojoidaho@gmail.com.
The Karen National Party (KNP) General Secretary Mann Kyaw Nyein pointed out that when the previous U Thein Sein government was in power the National League for Democracy (NLD) had called for repressive laws, including Article 66(d), to be abolished. If these laws continue to be enforced they might restrict the ability of media, journalists and the public to report and discuss truthful stories.

He said: The NLD called for the abolishing of Article 66(d) during the previous U Thein Sein administration. If the NLD government continues to use this article it would be as if the NLD is going back on its word.

Saw Kyi Linn, the Phalon-Sawaw Democratic Party (PSDP) General Secretary and a former Karen State Minister of Electric Power and Industry said that Article 66(d) was drafted by the former military government and it needs to be abolished because it is an obstacle on Burmas path to democracy.

He said to KIC News: No media will dare to criticise the [Burmese] government if it continues to enforce this Article. I believe it should be abolished.

U Myint Kyaw, a Myanmar Press Council member, said that Article 66(d) threatens freedom of speech and that it needs to be amended because accused people can be immediately detained and the sentences allowed against people who violate Article 66(d) are harsh.

He said: This Article needs to be amended immediately. It should not be enforced before it is amended. Journalists and citizens are suffering because of this article.

Even the Transport and Telecommunications Union Minister, U Thant Sin Maung, expressed dissatisfaction with Article 66(d) when journalists questioned him about it at the Amyotha Hluttaw (Upper House) in Naypyidaw on 23 November.

Eleven Media Groups CEO Dr Than Htut Aung and their chief editor Ko Wai Phyo were charged under article 66(d) and imprisoned by the Burmese Government on 11 November.

International organisations, news agencies, writers associations and civil society organisations have been calling on the Burmese Government to abolish Article 66(d).

Reporting by Saw Nyunt Thaung for KIC

Translated by Thida Linn

Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI
The event, held at Mae Tao Clinic in Mae Sot, attracted nearly 200 people including Burmese migrant workers and refugees. At the event, Shai Reshef, the President of UoPeople made the announcement regarding its scholarship program, accredited American online university.

We are very proud to have a special project for students from Myanmar [Burma], particularly after what they have gone through, and especially now, when their situation may be beginning to improve since repatriation has begun. We see it as imperative that these students advance their education and cultivate occupational skills in order to rebuild their futures. For this reason, we decided that I would come personally to Mae Sot to meet our students and potential applicants and to announce that we are proud to offer 50 scholarships to Myanmar students, said Shai Reshef, in the press release.

UoPeople has associates and bachelor degree programs in business administration, computer science and health science, while also offering an MBA.

Sarah Vanunu, the director of public relations at the University, told Mon News Agency that there are some basic requirements that the applicants must know before they apply.

To be accepted for admittance, the students must be over the age of 18, have completed high school and must be proficient in English. Students are welcome to apply for the scholarship after they have completed their student application and have been admitted to the university. And, admitted students will require basic internet access in order for them to download study materials and to complete weekly homework assignments, said Sarah Vanunu, adding that the program is not limited to Burmese refugees rather its for anyone born in Burma.

Vanunu went on to say UoPeople has 5 terms a year. The academic terms are 9 weeks long. Each term, a student takes one or two courses. An Associates degree is comprised of 20 courses and can be completed in two years. But a Bachelors degree is comprised of 40 courses and can be completed in 4 years.

The UoPeople, founded in 2009, is the worlds first non-profit, tuition-free, American accredited online university providing higher education globally. Some of UoPeoples partnerships include Yae ISP Law School, New York University and the University of California Berkeley. With a support network of over 5,000 dedicated volunteers; the university has enrolled students from 180 different countries.
According to Sai Harn, the head of the Tai Youth Organization (TYO) in northern Shan State, the conflict has created many problems, including human suffering, economic damage, and an adverse effect on the ongoing peace process.

We oppose any group that creates problems for our people, he said. As peace talks in the country are continuing, we want these matters brought to the discussion table. Our people have been living in a war zone for too long. We do not want this kind of thing to happen again.

Because of the fighting, our people are afraid to [go outside to] grow crops. Or even if they do have crops, it is difficult to sell them. Many roads and bridges have been bombed so people cannot travel and sell their crops.

If the people suffer, the armed groups also suffer, he added. If they have nothing, they collect from the public. If we cannot make incomes, how can we pay them?

Sai Aung Myint Oo, a representative of Shan Youth Yangon (SYY), said that the conflict affects not only civilians but also armed organizations.

If this [conflict] continues, the situation will get worse, he said. We, therefore, demand an end to all conflict in Shan State.

Meanwhile, Chinese Ambassador to Burma H.E. Hong Liang urged all parties involved in the fighting to immediately cease military operations, and start negotiating peacefully.

Clashes broke out in the villages of 105-Mile, Mong Koe and Parng Zai in Muse Township, as well as in Namkham and Kutkai on November 20 between the Burmese army and an ethnic alliance of Arakan Army (AA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA).

The fighting has compelled thousands of civilians to flee their homes. Many have crossed the border into China. According to China Radio International, more than 3,000 people are staying in makeshift shelters in the town of Wanding, while others are staying with relatives on either side of the border.

Aung San Suu Kyis State Counsellors Office updated its report on Tuesday, clarifying that at least ten people have been killed in the fighting and more than 30 injured.

Yesterday, Shan Herald reported that due to renewed clashes, thousands of residents from Muse  one of Burmas largest border trading points  had closed their shops and fled the town, leaving it eerily quiet.

By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)
Sai Myat Aung, the general secretary of the Shan Literature and Culture Association in Muse, said that due to intensified fighting between Burmese armed forces and ethnic armed groups in the area, they have decided to cancel all festivities.

Muse Township traditionally hosts one of the grandest Shan New Years celebrations with stage performances featuring music and dance. This year, Shan New Year falls on November 30.

Right now, the situation is uncertain, Sai Myat Aung told Shan Herald today. No one can take responsibility for security. If anything happens, innocent people could suffer. Thats why we decided not to hold it.

He said that, last year, two residents were arrested by an ethnic armed group during Shan New Year but no one took responsibility for the incident.

Clashes broke out on November 20 between the Burmese army and an ethnic alliance  the Arakan Army (AA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA)  an armed coalition that has named itself the Northern Alliance. Since then, thousands of people from Muse Township have fled their homes, with more than 3,000 seeking refuge across the border in China.

On November 22, Shan Herald reported that following rumors that renewed fighting would erupt, many business owners closed their shops and joined the exodus, leaving the town of Muse  one of Burmas major border trading points  eerily quiet.

Fighting continues. Clashes have broken out not only in Muse but also in other areas, including Namkham and Kutkai townships. The attacks are generally targeted at police stations and Burmese army outposts. According to Burmas State Counselors Office, at least 10 civilians are among the dead, with more than 30 injured.

By Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN)
Vitamin D: Health Benefits, Sources And How Much To Take Nutrition oi-Neha Ghosh

Vitamin D is also called the sunshine vitamin because the body produces it when exposed to sunlight. Vitamin D can also be obtained from foods and supplements to ensure adequate levels of vitamin in the body. Vitamin D has a number of health benefits that we are going to focus on in this article.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays a major role in many bodily functions, which include helping nerve, muscle and immune function, aid in the absorption of calcium, magnesium and phosphorus and building and maintaining strong bones.

Types Of Vitamin D [1]

Vitamin D is a group of compounds which come in two forms:

Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) is found in plant-based foods

Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) is found in animal-sourced foods

Health Benefits Of Vitamin D

1. Supports bone health Vitamin D plays an important role in improving bone health because it increases the absorption of minerals like calcium, phosphorus and magnesium [2]. These minerals are responsible for the growth and maintenance of healthy, strong bones, which is crucial for lowering the risk of bone diseases such as osteoporosis, rickets and osteomalacia. Adequate levels of vitamin D in the body will increase muscle strength, thereby preventing falls. 2. Aids weight loss Vitamin D is known to reduce body fat and speed up weight loss. Obese or overweight people have low levels of vitamin D in the blood. So, increase the consumption of vitamin D through foods to prevent the gaining of weight. 3. Reduces diabetes risk There is a direct association between vitamin d and diabetes risk. Vitamin D can help elevate insulin sensitivity and boost beta cell function-all of which can help manage diabetes. Healthy, non-diabetic adults should increase their vitamin D levels to prevent the risk of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. 4. May decrease cancer risk Studies show that there is an association between low levels of vitamin D and increased cancer risk. Sufficient levels of vitamin D decreases cancer cell growth and increases cell disparity. Low levels of vitamin D in the body increases the risk of cancer, especially colon cancer [1]. 5. Protects against heart disease Vitamin D reduces the risk of heart failure, stroke and high blood pressure. Low levels of vitamin D in the body increases the risk of heart attacks, stroke, heart failure and coronary artery disease. 6. Lowers depression Low levels of vitamin D and risk of depression have been directly linked. Having foods-rich in vitamin D and vitamin D supplements can significantly improve depressive symptoms. So, include more vitamin D-rich foods into your diet to lower the risk of depression. 7. Protects against respiratory infections If you are deficient in vitamin D you have a higher risk of getting autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and thyroid disease. 8. Decreases cognitive impairment Vitamin D also plays an important role in cognitive function. Low levels of vitamin D is associated with cognitive decline, which in turn affects memory function, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and dementia. 9. Decreases age-related macular degeneration risk Increased vitamin D levels in the body have been associated with a decreased risk of age-related macular degeneration. Age-related macular degeneration is an eye disease that occurs when the macular, small portion of the retina wears down, resulting in blurred vision [1]. Sources Of Vitamin D Mushrooms

Salmon, sardines and herring

Cod liver oil

Egg yolks

Milk

Orange juice

Oatmeal

Beef liver

Cheese

Recommended Daily Intake Of Vitamin A Babies below 1 year of age require 8.5 to 10 mcg of vitamin D per day.



Children above 1 year of age and adults need 10 mcg of vitamin D per day. What Happens If You Take Excess Vitamin D Taking vitamin D beyond the recommended amounts causes many side effects such as hypercalcemia, irregular heartbeat, kidney damage, dehydration, brittle bones, and so on.
Is It Safe To Take Antibiotics During Pregnancy? Basics oi-Chandana Rao

Are you an expecting mother who is concerned about your pregnancy? Do you often wonder if taking antibiotics is safe during pregnancy? If yes, then worry not, because we are here to help!

Pregnancy is one of the most sensitive phases of a woman's life, especially when it comes to her health and her baby's well-being.

A pregnant woman's body has to prepare itself for the huge task of nurturing a baby inside and then getting itself ready for childbirth, which is not a simple feat!

So, during pregnancy, a pregnant woman may experience various undesirable symptoms such as morning sickness, bloating, constipation, back pain, weight gain, swelling of certain body parts due to water retention, etc.

In addition to the physical symptoms, most pregnant women also experience mood swings, irritability, anxiety, etc., that may be caused by hormonal changes.

As we may know, antibiotics are strong medications that are prescribed by the doctors in order to help the body fight against microbial infections that can cause diseases in humans.

So, let us find out here if it is actually safe to take antibiotics or not during pregnancy.

What Are Antibiotics?

Antibiotics are medications prescribed mostly for infections and ailments caused by bacteria, virus and other microbes, for example, viral flu, yeast infections, bacterial infections, etc.

Antibiotics enter your body and they either kill the disease-causing microbes or inhibit their growth, thus treating the ailments.

Usually, antibiotics are taken for a set number of days, without skipping even a day in between, otherwise their effectiveness may reduce.

As antibiotics contain strong chemicals, they do come with certain side effects.

Antibiotics During Pregnancy

Now, pregnant women are no exceptions to diseases, just like all of us. They may develop a viral flu, yeast infections or diseases caused by bacteria at any point; and if the level of infection is too high, antibiotics may be required!

So, is it actually safe for pregnant women to take antibiotics?

Well, a research study has claimed that exposing the foetus to certain kinds of antibiotics can increase their rick of developing asthma, after the child's birth.

So, it is extremely important to talk to your doctor while taking antibiotics and also make sure that they are given in low doses, if needed at all.

It is believed that after the third trimester of pregnancy, it is relatively safer to take antibiotics but only as prescribed by the physician.

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 15:50 [IST]
KAMPALA - At least 55 people, including 14 police officers, were killed on Saturday in fierce fighting between security forces and a separatist militia linked to a tribal king in Western Uganda, a police spokesperson said Sunday.

Uganda police spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi said that 14 police officers and 41 assailants were killed in clashes between police, Ugandan military and tribal fighters in the Western Ugandan district of Kasese.

He said the tribal fighters linked to the royal guards of the king of Rwenzururu, Charles Wesley Mumbere, attacked the security forces that were on patrol in Kasese town.

"We lost 14 police officers and two soldiers injured after the militia attacked our forces that were on patrol. They threw improvised explosive devices at them," said Kaweesi.

"This is not an insurgency but rather a violent crime. We believe these attacks have a political motive," he said.

The local fighters with the support of their fellow Bakonzo in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have taken up arms to agitate for the creation of the Yiira Republic, which would cover territory in Uganda and part of North Kivu in DRC.

The security forces on Sunday stormed the palace of King Mumbere and arrested him.

The king was airlifted to the capital Kampala, where he is set to meet with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni.

Authorities in Kampala have accused Mumbere's royal guards of setting up military and training camps in the Rwenzori Mountains alongside separatist militia forces to attack government installations.

The militias reportedly run a small and self-proclaimed government, even collecting taxes from the citizens they control.

President Museveni earlier this year ruled out any creation or form of secession of the Rwenzori region.

Ugandan military on Friday killed at least eight assailants belonging to rebel group Kirumiramutima in the western district of Kabarole as they were planning to attack their military base in the area.

At least 100 people including security forces were killed in February and March this year in deadly clashes between tribal attackers and security forces in the western districts of Kasese and Bundibugyo.


An internet imagery.

KARACHI (PTI): China would deploy its naval ships along with Pakistan Navy to safeguard the strategic Gwadar port and trade routes under the USD 46 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a navy official here has said, shedding light on a plan likely to alarm India.



China and Pakistan are currently building the nearly 3,000-km-long economic corridor linking Pakistan's Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea with Xinjiang to improve connectivity between the two countries. The move would open up a new and cheaper cargo route for transporting oil to China as well as export of Chinese goods to the Middle East and Africa.



A Pakistan Navy official said the role of maritime forces has increased since the country has made the Gwadar port operational and speeded up economic activities under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).



"China would also deploy its naval ships in coordination with Pakistan Navy to safeguard the port and trade under the CPEC," the unnamed official was quoted as saying by The Express Tribune.



In the past, China has shied away from saying that it plans to deploy its naval ships in Gwadar, a move which could raise alarm in the US and India.



Experts feel that CPEC and the Gwadar port would enhance the military capabilities of both China and Pakistan, and make it possible for the Chinese Navy to easily access the Arabian Sea.



Having a naval base in Gwadar could allow Chinese vessels to use the port for repair and maintenance of their fleet in the Indian Ocean region. Such a foothold would be the first overseas location offering support to the Chinese navy for future missions.



Pakistani defence officials are keen for the Chinese navy to build up its presence in the Indian Ocean and the Arabia sea, mainly to counterbalance India's formidable naval force.



The Pakistani official also said that the Navy is considering buying super-fast ships from China and Turkey for its special squadron to be deployed at the Gwadar port for the security purpose.



"A squadron may have four to six warships," he said on the sidelines of the on-going defence exhibition, IDEAS 2016, at the Karachi Expo Centre.



The ships would be bought soon keeping in view their immediate need in the fleet, he said, adding that two defence ships have already been deployed at Gwadar.



Another official of the naval force added that Pakistan has kicked off the process of establishing the largest shipyard of the region in Gwadar. A similar ship-building project is being deliberated at Port Qasim in Karachi.



The two advanced shipyards would design and develop ships and other security equipment for Pakistan Navy.



"The existing shipyard, the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation, lacks capacity to meet new requirements of the force. Its (PNSC) performance, however, would improve in competition with the two under consideration," he said.






MUMBAI (PTI): Godrej & Boyce said it has delivered the 50th motor casing for the long range surface-to- air missile (LR-SAM) to the Defence Ministry for serial production.



The company on Friday also said it inaugurated a new facility for manufacturing rubber and composite materials for the defence sector.



G Satheesh Reddy, Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister, received the motor casing at an event here. Speaking at the event, Reddy said Godrej & Boyce has been contributing significantly towards the defence and space programmes.



"We anticipate and look forward to such significant contributions from other domestic manufacturers as well," he maintained.



Godrej & Boyce Executive Director and President Anil G Verma said motor casing would be the 180th hardware which is ready for serial production. The Godrej Group has been consistently contributing to strengthen the nation's defence and aerospace capabilities.



"For LR-SAM, we started the development (of the device) in 2010 and have over time established a set up for serial production for the same. This demonstrates our commitment towards indigenous manufacturing for defence and space programmes," Verma said.



He said the new facility inaugurated on Friday will help them enter the non-metallic side of the aerospace industry which in turn will enable them to manufacture more value-added assemblies and systems.



The facility will make rubber and composite components such as ablative lining for solid motor casings, reinforced airframe seals, conductive seals, aeroengine components, composite motor casing, sandwich panels (honeycomb/foam, ceramic matrix composite and other high-temp aeroengine parts.



The diversified Godrej Group started operations in 1897 by manufacturing high quality locks and launched Godrej Aerospace in 1985.



For long it has been supplying many complex equipment such as liquid propulsion engines for PSLV and GSLV rockets, thrusters for satellites and antenna systems to ISRO.



Godrej has also contributed to prestigious Chandrayaan and Mangalyaan missions. In the defence space, Godrej & Boyce also manufactures riveted structures, tankages, engines for IGMT-5 missiles and actuators for aircraft.



The company has contributed towards the development of famed Prithvi Missile, which uses a liquid engine and the firm has so far supplied 60 engines of these missiles.



Over the years, Godrej has invested substantially into developing the BrahMos facility with nearly Rs 100 crore being invested in setting up serial production of the missile. It now supplies six assemblies for the supersonic cruise missile.




An internet imagery.

BENGALURU (PTI): In a significant milestone for the country's military aviation sector, the upgraded Jaguar DARIN III twin-seat aircraft has received Initial Operation Clearance (IOC).



Deputy Chief of IAF, Air Marshal R K S Bhadauria, who flew the aircraft at HAL airport here recently, announced the satisfactory completion of IOC.



Test Pilot of Aircraft & Systems Testing Establishment, Wg Cdr V Prabhakaran was his co-pilot.



HAL CMD, T Suvarna Raju said the aircraft is now equipped with world class avionics system.



Congratulating those involved in achieving the milestone, Air Marshal Bhadauria said the DARIN III Upgrade was one of best upgrades in terms of data handling and overall capabilities.



The total design and development covering system requirement capture, specification preparation, software, hardware, electrical and mechanical design and development were carried out indigenously at HAL's Mission and Combat System Research and Design Centre (MCSRDC) and aircraft modification was done at Overhaul Division, added Raju.



Director (Engg and R & D),D K Venkatesh, ASTE Commandant Air Vice Marshal Sandeep Singh, and other senior executives witnessed the flight.



Besides HAL, certification agencies, trial team of ASTE and other agencies were involved in the upgrade programme.



Three DARIN I Standard Jaguars have been upgraded to DARIN III Standard by HAL.



The upgrade incorporates new state-of-the-art avionics architecture including the Open System Architecture Mission Computer (OSAMC), Fire Control Radar, Solid State Digital Video Recording System (SSDVRS), Autopilot with Alt Select & HNAV and Identification of Friend or Foe (IFF) and more.




ISRO's MOM-1

NEW DELHI (PTI): To expand inter-planetary research, ISRO is seeking scientific proposals for Mars Orbiter Mission-2, the government has said.



In a written response to a question in Rajya Sabha on Friday, Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office that looks after the Department of Space, said the configuration, objectives and scientific experiments of MoM-2 is yet to be formulated.



"A call for proposals through an Announcement of Opportunity (AO) has been made within India to seek proposal for scientific experiments for Mars Orbiters Mission-2," Singh said.



He said MoM-1 has completed 25 months in orbit and is presently functioning satisfactorily.






ISLAMABAD (PTI): Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, who has extensive experience of handling affairs in PoK and the northern areas, was on Saturday appointed as Pakistan's new army chief to succeed Gen Raheel Sharif.



Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appointed Bajwa as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) by elevating him to the rank of four-star general, officials said.



Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest army by troop numbers in a formal handover on Tuesday, when General Raheel formally retires.



Raheel in January had declared he would not seek extension. "I will retire on the due date," he had said.



There were speculation that the PML-N government would give him extension at the eleventh hour citing reasons that he was needed by the country to lead war on terror. The post of Army chief is the most powerful in Pakistan.



Pakistan's defence minister Khawaja Asif has confirmed that Bajwa was appointed as COAS and Zubair Hayat as Chairman Joint Chief of Staff Committee (CJCSC).



"May God help us in these decisions and new appointments," he said.



Bajwa was serving as Inspector General of the Training and Evaluation and has been elevated to position of four star general and appointed as Chief of Army Staff, the officials said.



He has also commanded the famed 10 Corps, the army`s largest, which is responsible for the area along the Line of Control (LoC).



As a major general, he led the Force Command Northern Areas. He also served in the 10 Corps as lieutenant colonel.



He also served with a UN mission in Congo as a brigade commander alongside former Indian army chief Gen Bikram Singh, who was also there as a division commander.



Previously, he also remained the commandant of the Infantry School in Quetta.



The new army chief has wide experience of LoC affairs due to his extensive involvement with PoK and northern areas, reports said here.



His military colleagues say he is not attention-seeking and remains well-connected with his troops.



The new army chief is from the infantry`s Baloch Regiment, which has given three officers to the post of army chief Gen Yahya Khan, Gen Aslam Beg and Gen Ashfaq Perviaz Kayani.


Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Brandon family is recovering from a scary reminder of the dangers of carbon monoxide over the weekend.

Greg Crisanti and his wife, Carrie, spent Friday evening watching a movie at home after going out for dinner.

They both had headaches, Crisanti said, adding they didnt think anything of it and decided to call it an early night.

Colin Corneau/The Brandon Sun Greg Crisanti, with wife Carrie and son Jett, shows a new carbon monoxide detector he bought for their Brandon home after a near-poisoning last week.

Thats when Jett, the couples seven-month-old son, started to fuss.

He usually sleeps through the night, but on Friday night he was up about three or four times, Crisanti said.

Being awake trying to settle the baby, both Crisanti and his wife started getting sicker and sicker.

We have a carbon monoxide detector in our home and the alarm wasnt going off, so we werent concerned thats what it was, but in the back of our minds we knew something wasnt right, Crisanti said.

Our little guy was uncomfortable, but we were really lucky he was waking us up through the night because if we stayed in the house, I dont think the outcome would have been the same.

The family left the home around 6 a.m. and went to Crisantis mothers house to call the fire department, which went to the house shortly after, Crisanti said.

As soon as they started doing the tests the alarm started going off, but we (already) had extremely high readings in our home, Crisanti said.

(The readings were) 145 parts per million and dangerous levels are around 20 (parts per million)  so it was really high.

Crisanti said they were taken to the hospital where they were monitored and given oxygen, and were feeling better about three hours later.

The leak was from a heater for their indoor pool, which is basically a furnace in their basement, Crisanti said.

They have purchased new carbon monoxide detectors, and made sure the alarm settings are correct and that they know how to test them going forward.

We feel very lucky and very blessed  it was a very scary situation to be in. Everyone should have a carbon monoxide detector for their safety and make sure its working, Crisanti said.

Risk of carbon monoxide poisoning greatly increases during the winter months, as most homes are heated by furnaces, wood stoves or other appliances that run on fuels, which can release the gas if they are not installed properly or malfunction, according to Health Canadas website.

Because carbon monoxide has no smell, taste or colour, exposure to high levels for extended periods of time can be fatal.

Health Canada recommends installing at least one carbon monoxide detector in the home, ideally outside of sleeping areas.

 edebooy@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @erindebooy
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A woman who was charged with drunk driving offences after her car rolled into a Brandon restaurant has been found unfit to stand trial.

Nancy Lyn Robertson has had her case transferred to the provinces Criminal Code Review Board.

Crown attorney Brett Rach outlined the case as a provincial court judge formally sent the matter back into the review boards hands this week.

On the afternoon of Aug. 26, 2015, Robertson had attempted to park her car in front of Kens Restaurant and Chinese Food on 18th Street.

However, the car continued slowly over the curb and through the front window of the restaurant, coming to a stop inside the business. No one was hurt as the restaurant was closed and empty at the time.

A witness who called 911 said Robertson appeared confused and told police that one side of her face was drooping.

Tests put Robertsons blood-alcohol level at double the legal limit.

She was charged with driving with a blood-alcohol level over the legal limit and impaired driving.

The impaired driving charge was later dropped, and Robertson was ultimately found unfit to stand trial on the blood-alcohol charge.

Initially, Robertson sought a curative discharge. In general, such a discharge imposes a rehabilitative sentence instead of jail.

She started counselling but was then admitted to the citys geriatric psychiatric ward.

One doctor determined that Robertson has a cognitive disorder as a result of alcohol abuse and couldnt comprehend the charge against her.

Another doctor determined that it was extremely likely her condition played a role in the crash.

Ultimately, Robertson was declared unfit to stand trial, assessed and the case passed to the review board.

Rach later explained that the case and Robertsons condition will be subject to regular review.

And so, the case remains in legal limbo indefinitely.

If Robertsons condition ever improves and she becomes fit to stand trial, the charge may proceed  she might still be determined not criminally responsible, for example, or the case may head to trial.

But that may never happen if Robertsons condition doesnt improve.

Her lawyer, Patrick Sullivan, has indicated that she currently resides in a personal care home.

 ihitchen@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @IanHitchen
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Supporters from Dakota Tipi First Nation took to the highway Saturday morning, taking a stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North Dakota.

Dakota Tipi Chief Keith Pashe led the peaceful protest on the Trans-Canada Highway near Portage la Prairie, blocking off one lane from about 10 a.m. until early afternoon, to support opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline.

We had to lend our support to Standing Rock  We got the support we needed on the highway and the community as well, Pashe said.

Submitted Protesters from Dakota Tipi First Nation and surrounding communities stand on the Trans-Canada Highway, blocking one lane of traffic, on Saturday. The protest was a show of solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in opposing the Dakota Access Pipeline.

It felt good to  show our brothers and sisters across the border that we support them that way.

For Adrienne Gabriel, Pashes daughter and a Dakota Tipi First Nation resident, it was an honour to show support for Standing Rock.

I felt proud to be Dakota, take a stand and show awareness to whats happening south of the border, Gabriel said. It felt very peaceful and positive, the atmosphere was energetic because you knew that youre standing up for a great cause.

Protesters held a pipe ceremony, Gabriel said, so that their prayers would be heard.

We prayed for our Dakota relatives at Standing Rock, so water protectors are safe and for the violence to stop  by having the pipe ceremony, we wanted our prayers to be heard, Gabriel said.

The Standing Rock Sioux and the tribes allies have been met with violence while protesting the 1,900-kilometre Dakota Access Pipeline being built across four states south of the border. The most recent clash happened on Nov. 20, with law enforcement officers spraying protesters with water, rubber bullets and tear gas.

The main camp used by those opposed to the pipeline will be closed by Dec. 5, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The protesters have stayed despite the violence and dropping temperatures.

Gabriel said her five-year-old daughter has seen some of the disturbing videos shared from the camp and wanted to show her support as well.

My daughter was sad when she watched the videos  it was something I didnt want her to see, but hearing the drums and people singing in the video made her eager to watch, Gabriel said. She knows that water is very important and she hopes that no one gets hurt. She said she hopes the Creator watches over them.

Betty Houle, who lives in Portage la Prairie, was not able to attend Saturdays protest, but did travel to the Sacred Stone Camp in August. She said its important for people to show support, even if they cant go to Standing Rock in person.

By showing solidarity from other communities and ceremonies, the spiritual bond is made stronger, Houle said. To see all the people working together from all walks of life was truly wonderful to see.

 edebooy@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @erindebooy
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Military personnel at CFB Shilo are only waiting one or two days to receive treatment for mental health care, according to the base clinics commanding officer.

Maj. Kevin Wilson admitted the base is continually evolving how to best handle mental health issues, but he explained soldiers access to care has become a point of pride.

If its urgent, it would be that day, Wilson said.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Mental health worker Vicki Sturgeon and base clinic commanding officer Maj. Kevin Wilson are part of CFB Shilos mental health care team, which offers a suite of services to soldiers needing help.

Of the nearly 1,500 military members on base, approximately 300 individuals have accessed mental health assistance at 11 Canadian Forces Health Services. Of those files, 220 are considered active.

An average of 15 people a day visit the mental health clinic, which is only accessible to Canadian Forces personnel.

The clinics commanding officer notes some of those individuals might be seeking psychosocial assistance, such as help with relationship troubles, and thus do not have a mental illness.

The depths of what we can offer our soldiers  psychological, psychiatric, addiction, social work, mental health nurse  and with almost no wait times. Its fantastic. Its a really fortunate position to be in, Wilson said.

It helps that they are in the same building as the primary care clinic. Patients can walk down the hall to a mental health worker.

Walk-in appointments are available throughout the day, from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

If issues arise after hours, military personnel can seek civilian resources like the emergency clinic in Brandon.

Wilson assumes the number of military members looking for mental health care might be higher than the civilian average because of their higher likelihood in witnessing trauma, but he believes the greater total is a testament to the ease army personnel have in getting care. They do not pay for treatment.

Fortunately, our soldiers have fantastic access, Wilson said.

The Shilo clinic offers a psychiatrist, psychologist, two addictions counselling workers, two mental health nurses and four social workers. One additional staff member splits time as a social worker and addictions counsellor.

In Wilsons three and a half years at the base, 11 Canadian Forces Health Services has not increased the amount of mental health staff, but has made improvements, such as equipping staff to provide additional forms of post-traumatic stress disorder treatment.

The clinic now has a full-time psychiatrist on staff, too.

In 2014, base officials were lectured by National Defence and Canadian Forces ombudsman Gary Walbourne after it was learned the sole psychiatrist on base had left, leaving Canadian Forces members without access to therapeutic care.

At the time, CBC reported on a combat veteran from Afghanistan, facing suicidal thoughts, who was waiting seven months for care.

Earlier this year, Walbourne told the Sun the base has since turned its mental health offerings into a good news story.

Vicki Sturgeon, a mental health nurse at Shilo for seven years, is pleased to see the stigma of mental health decreasing.

When I started here we were actively engaged in combat overseas and now were kind of dealing with the repercussions, she said, referencing soldiers now dealing with the traumas of what they experienced in Afghanistan.

Some of her work now concerns psychosocial matters, such as soldiers struggling to adapt to life at home.

She sees improvements to mental health care as gradual but ongoing, both on the base and off it.

Its not something thats happened overnight, its something thats been over the course of years, she said. Its only when you sit down now and look back when you see it.

Last week, a new report on military suicides heightened public awareness on mental health in the army.

The rate of suicide among regular-force men in the army is 34 per 100,000, compared with 13 for the navy and air force combined.

In November 2013, two Afghanistan war veterans with links to CFB Shilo died by suicide.

 ifroese@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ianfroese
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Atheist is a word that does not usually make the news. But right now it is in the news because of an atheist minister in the United Church of Canada. That story is an example of current religious controversies. And of changing religious beliefs.

An atheist in a church pulpit? Yes: Rev. Gretta Vosper does exist. The 58-year-old, self-described atheist has been a United Church minister since 1993. In 2008, she wrote a bestselling book, With or Without God: Why The Way We Live is More Important Than What We Believe.

Vosper reflects the nature of the United Church. There is no pope or bishop who could quickly stifle dissent. Instead, the church is a more open, democratic and decentralized entity.

Lets pause and define some terms. A theist is someone who has a belief in God, gods or goddesses. An atheist is someone who does not have that belief. Babies are atheists. As they grow up, children can be instructed  or not  in a belief in a deity.

Before Sept. 11, 2001, atheists were generally obscure, quiet folks. If they thought about religion, they were content to consider it as a fading but rather innocuous force in the world. The 9/11 terrorist attacks shook up that complacency.

After Sept. 11, more atheists felt the need to come out and comment on the potential for harm not just with Islam, but with any religious belief.

I dont think that day created a lot of atheists, magician and atheist Penn Jillette says, but I think it made a lot of atheists want to speak up a little more.

A robust world conversation about religion has ensued. Fuelling the discussion have been vocal atheists like entertainers Jillette, Ricky Gervais and Bill Maher, as well as public intellectuals Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Questions have been raised about religion and its connection to terrorism, to womens and gay rights, and to a global civil society.

Part of this conversation has explored the need for Islam to become a more modern faith. Books by Harris and Hirsi Ali on this topic were reviewed here earlier this year. Hirsi Alis book is Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now. Harris co-wrote his book with Maajid Nawaz, formerly a radical Islamic extremist and now a liberal Muslim. Their book is Islam and the Future of Tolerance: A Dialogue.

Back in Canada, what will be the fate of atheist minister Vosper? Right now, her case is working its way through the administration of the United Church. She could lose her job.

The firing of an atheist minister would not be surprising news. What is surprising is the support for Vosper within the church. Her Toronto congregation is thriving. Across the country, members  both lay and clergy  agree with her position. The United Church Observer magazine calls Vosper the highest-profile United Church minister on the planet.

The United Church has changed much since its founding in 1925. Major advances include the ordination of women in the 1930s and the acceptance of gay clergy in the 1980s. Canadians in general have looked to the church to affirm and nurture social progress.

Some church members view Vosper both as reflective of this tradition and as a harbinger of the future. Possible new theological notions for the church have been described as atheist, as well as non-theist and post-theist.

All religions evolve, a United Church minister writes in a letter to the Observer editor. Do you think that in 1925 we envisioned a church that would conduct same-sex marriages or ordain women and homosexuals? Rev. Gretta Vosper is a theological Darwin, ahead of her time but closer to the truth than we were before.

My husband and I have been United Church members for 60 years, another letter writer states, and we have had to recognize we are atheists too. We do believe strongly in the teachings of Jesus. But we no longer believe in a personal deity living in the sky who intervenes in our lives in response to our pleas.

How will the United Church deal with its unconventional minister? How will religions accommodate womens and gay rights? How will Islam take on the challenge of modernizing? Expect more news about these and other religious issues.

And expect more news reports to include the word atheist.

 David McConkey is an active citizen. Contact him and read previous columns at davidmcconkey.com.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After the recent United States election, many citizens of both the U.S. and Canada are shocked at an outcome that is extremely unfortunate for some women.

Prior to Nov. 8, many American women had been excited at the possibility of their first female president being elected. Indeed, Hillary Clinton being voted into the Oval Office had the opportunity to be a revolutionary moment in U.S. history.

However, there are a few fundamental reasons why many women woke up to a disappointing result following the election. While the general consensus in the 21st century is that women and men are equal in politics, and that discrimination played very little role in Clintons loss, many women and feminists would argue that this belief is quite incorrect.

The Associated Press Hillary Clinton, accompanied by former president Bill Clinton, pauses while speaking to staff and supporters in New York on Nov. 9 after losing the U.S. presidential election to Donald Trump. Despite failing to change the gender status quo in politics, Hillary Clinton has become an inspiration to all women, writes Ecole secondaire Neelin High School student Alexandria Forsythe.

Although many U.S. citizens were disillusioned with Clinton, the fact remains she is still infinitely more qualified for the position of president than Donald Trump. Clinton had served as secretary of state, and been involved in politics for many years prior to that. However, people still frequently questioned whether she had the experience required to serve as president. Even worse, despite this doubt of Clintons qualifications, the American people still managed to elect somebody with far less political experience.

In stark contrast to Clintons many years of dedicated service to Americans, Trump had pretty much zero political experience. Even worse, the one qualification that Trump had  that he was supposedly a smart businessman  was one he frequently failed at. Throughout his life in business, and despite the fact that he started out with $1 million, Trump has declared bankruptcy six times.

Clinton was also scrutinized and judged much harsher when it came to scandals coming to light during her campaign. Her email scandal followed her throughout her campaign, and deterred many voters from liking her. No matter what answer Clinton gave, she was unable to stop reporters and Republican representatives from bringing up the same tired points repeatedly. Although Clinton was wrong to use a private server for her email, the truth is that the FBI investigation found that what she did was not a crime.

On the contrary, Trump did and said many things throughout the campaign that could be considered scandalous, and also frequently made comments that offended various groups of people. However, he always seemed to recover from his scandals much quicker than Clinton, and the media seemed to just accept his flippant excuses and moved on.

So how did Trump beat out Clintons superior experience and moral compass? It seems the media was Trumps greatest ally during the campaign. It was the media that repeatedly questioned Clintons abilities and refused to let go of her email scandal. Furthermore, Trump repeatedly received free advertising when the media fixated on him. While various media condemned him and others accepted him, they all served a similar purpose to the Republican nominee when they chose to focus almost exclusively on him. In fact, Clinton was reported on alarmingly little compared to Trump, and Trumps ability to remain in the news cycle bought him more voters.

This was mirrored in Canada when Trump seemed to make our news nearly every night, yet we were only alerted to Clintons campaign when something unfortunate happened to her, such as when she became ill or more details came to light about her emails.

In addition, the media was also much more likely to focus on trivial facts when it came to Clinton, such as what her husband Bills title would be if she won the presidency.

Canadians often scoff at Americans inability to accept women in positions of power, as we tend to perceive our country as inherently diverse. However, it seems Canada may be having many of the same issues as the U.S.

Although Canada was quick to hail Kim Campbell as our first female prime minister in 1993, this title can be extremely misleading. The sad truth is that Campbell didnt win a general election as Progressive Conservative leader. She was chosen to be leader by her fellow party members following the departure of Brian Mulroney. As an election was still many months away, Campbell was given the role of 19th prime minister. Less than four months later, she lost a federal election to the Liberals by a landslide.

It is still important to point out that Campbells achievements are astronomical. Even though she didnt win an election as party leader, she still had enough qualifications to be chosen as the leader of the Progressive Conservatives at a time when Mulroneys successor was guaranteed to become prime minister.

Campbell was also vastly undermined during her term as prime minister. She was frequently referred to as inexperienced, despite her many years of cabinet experience. At the time, many people said that this inexperience is what led to her devastating defeat in the 1993 election, when in actuality it was a multitude of factors, most of which were due to her predecessor.

Since Campbells time, other efforts have been made to make Canadas government more gender equal. Just last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau caused national controversy when he followed through on his promise that his cabinet would consist of an equal number of men and women. Immediately following the appointment of several of Canadas finest women into a position of power, several people spoke up, protesting that they only wanted the most qualified people for the job. However, this is a sad protest. In order to be qualified for a cabinet position, a politician should accurately represent the views of the people who elected them. There is no guarantee that a man and a woman will have the same views on some issues.

By fulfilling this promise, Trudeau has made his cabinet look a little bit more like Canada, and helped guarantee that more female voices are heard at a political level.

It has become a mass misconception that since women have started to close the gap between themselves and men that the gap no longer exists. However, women are still underrepresented in politics. In Canada, only 26 per cent of MPs elected in 2015 were women.

This is a real issue, as a lack of women in politics means that not everybodys voices are being heard when it comes to making policy. A failure to put women in positions of power means there are fewer people representing women, and our needs and opinions can get pushed aside. Furthermore, seeing a lack of women in power can cause young girls to feel as if they dont have a chance to make it there themselves.

As a society, we need to do more to encourage women to push for political equality. However, for today we mourn Hillary Clintons chances to change the status quo, and we recognize that she has become a major inspiration to all women due to how close she came to achieving her dreams.

 Alexandria Forsythe is a Grade 11 student at Ecole secondaire Neelin High School.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Of course Canada should get out of the coal-fired energy business. You cannot credibly argue otherwise given the health benefits and reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that will result.

The government says phasing out nearly all coal power generation by 2030 will be like taking 1.3 million cars off the road. It will mean that 90 per cent of Canadas power sources are environmentally sustainable. Health groups say eliminating coal will prevent more than 1,000 premature deaths and save billions of health dollars.

The Trudeau Liberals are on the side of the angels when it comes to getting us out of coal.

They didnt start down this road. The Harper Conservatives had a plan as well, launched in 2012. The new plan speeds it up quite a bit, so the outcome will be the same but will come sooner.

From an economic and jobs perspective, Ontario wont be affected by this decision because the province got out of coal a few years ago when the provincial government shut down the last coal-fired generation plant in Nanticoke. It hasnt been an easy transition. The shift away from coal is one of the reasons electricity bills have gone up, but thats a relatively small factor  and in any case there was broad public support among Ontarians for killing coal.

In the four provinces where coal power is still a going concern  Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia  the impact is not so removed. Hundreds of jobs are on the line, so its not surprising there is some resistance. But even in those provinces there seems a recognition that the writing is on the wall for coal power generation.

Saskatchewan is the lone outlier where Premier Brad Wall is complaining the timing isnt right. The timing will never be right. And all too often timing arguments are really cover for indefinite inaction, which should not be an option when it comes to this subject.

What about the argument that Donald Trump promised to rebuild the American coal industry? Why should Canadians suffer whatever consequences emerge while our neighbour to the south  the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the world  goes on pretending climate change is really a scam perpetrated by the Chinese (yes, Trump actually said that).

Its an argument the government must be prepared for when it comes to the timing of a carbon tax. But its not that complicated when it comes to coal. Like many of Trumps promises, this one appears to be largely hot air. The U.S. coal industry has been winding down for decades.

Business and industry have largely moved on. Even if Trump intervenes, he probably cannot change that reality. Coal energy is a sunset industry, and Canada is smart to recognize that and make plans for the future instead of being stuck in the past.

 The Hamilton Spectator
Tourism will be worth over 5bn to Ireland for 2016, and details of Tourism Ireland's 2017 marketing plan to promote the country overseas are being launched today.

Tourism Ireland aims to build on this years performance and to increase overseas tourism revenue across the island by 4.5% in 2017 - growing to 5.7bn.
Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster, leader of the once staunchly anti-papist Democratic Unionists, has vowed to meet Pope Francis during an expected trip to the region.

Ms Foster's welcome has paved the way for what would be a groundbreaking visit in 2018 by the Pontiff, almost exactly 30 years after her party founder and former DUP leader Ian Paisley denounced Pope John Paul II as the anti-Christ.

Her spokesman said: "Were the Pope to visit Northern Ireland in his capacity as head of state then the First Minister would meet him."

The Pope is head of state of Vatican City, a sovereign city-state within Rome.

Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said there was "no prospect" of the Pope not crossing the border, after it was confirmed he will travel to Dublin in two years' time for a global gathering of the Catholic Church.

"I think there is no prospect whatsoever of him coming to Ireland and him not coming to the North," he said.

Asked why he was so sure, he replied: "Because I'm around a long time and I know how these things work."

Pope John Paul II was unable to cross the border into the North, where he wanted to visit Armagh, during the last papal visit to Ireland in 1979.

Instead, amid a welter of security fears and cross-community tensions, he travelled as far as Drogheda, just south of the border, where he addressed hundreds of thousands, including many from the North.

Several years later, Mr Paisley was thrown out of the Strasbourg Parliament for heckling the Pontiff while unfolding a poster declaring the Pope to be the anti-Christ.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny confirmed Pope Francis would travel to Ireland in August 2018 after a 23-minute meeting with him in the Vatican on Monday morning.

Dublin is hosting the two-day World Meeting of Families, a gathering of the Church in that month.

"If it transpires that the Pope wants to go to Northern Ireland, to any part of Northern Ireland, for a visit then we will co-operate and work with the (Northern Ireland) Executive," said Mr Kenny.

Speculation has been mounting since Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin said earlier this year Irish bishops would like the Pope to visit Northern Ireland.

"Pope Francis has this tendency to make important gestures of reconciliation ... And I suspect that when we start to talk about this trip, Pope Francis will surprise us all with some highly symbolic gesture," he said at the time.

Mr Kenny's meeting with the Pope will also be seen as a milestone in the thawing of relations between Dublin and the Vatican over recent years.

Just five years ago, amid a wave of inquiries into decades of clerical child sex abuse in Ireland, the Taoiseach branded the Holy See "a dysfunctional, elite hierarchy" which was determined to frustrate the investigations of "a sovereign, democratic republic".

The Vatican recalled its ambassador to Ireland just days after the unprecedented attack by an Irish premier on the Catholic Church hierarchy.

The Irish Embassy to the Holy See in Rome was also shut that year, ostensibly as a cost-cutting measure.

Three years later, Dublin announced plans to reopen it.

Mr Kenny said: "I explained to him my own difficulties with the Church some years ago and I was happy to confirm to him that Church and state relations are now in better shape than they were for very many years."

The timing of Pope Francis's planned trip to Ireland has already raised concerns that it could clash with a potential referendum on our abortion laws.

A Citizens Assembly is considering the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, which recognises "the right to life of the unborn, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother". It will recommend possible reforms next year.

Transport, Tourism and Sport Minister Shane Ross said a papal visit would be likely to boost tourism but he voiced worries about the timing.

"I simply think that maybe there are better times to come than in the middle of a controversial political matter in which he might get embroiled," he said.

Mr Kenny said he would wait to see what the Citizens Assembly recommends, adding that a referendum would not be held in the month of August in any event.

Nichola Mallon, an SDLP MLA and former lord mayor who welcomed the Queen to Belfast, said a papal visit could help healing and reconciliation across the island.

"I'm delighted that Pope Francis will visit Northern Ireland in 2018," she said.

"The previous visit of St John Paul during the darkest days of conflict was a symbol of hope at a time when the people of Ireland needed it most.

"We've come a long way since then but we have so much ground left to travel. His visit to the North will, I believe, reignite reconciliation between communities across this island, providing a new imperative not only to heal the wounds of our past but to work in partnership to tackle the injustice that endures in our society."

The Alliance Party also "warmly welcomed" the expected visit.

Alliance MLA Trevor Lunn said: "Unfortunately, at the time of the visit of Pope John Paul II, the situation in Northern Ireland prevented him from coming north, but we are in a much better place now.

"The main purpose of this visit will be for the World Meeting of Families and it will be a natural extension of the visit for Pope Francis to come north, where I believe families from every community will come out to welcome him."

Archbishop Martin said the visit will be "an important gift from Pope Francis to the Irish Church and the Church globally".

His spokeswoman added that he welcomed the fact that the Taoiseach reiterated the Government's commitment to providing all appropriate arrangements.
Brexit has swept away assumptions about the partition of Ireland and presented a unique opportunity to press for reunification, Gerry Adams said as he launched a new Sinn Fein unity blueprint.

Under the republican party's vision for a united Ireland, there would be a series of enshrined protections for unionists, including the option of British citizenship, and the potential retention of a devolved powersharing administration at Stormont.

The party's discussion document claims "Brexit has changed everything", arguing that the UK-wide vote to the leave the EU, in the face of a majority vote in Northern Ireland (56%) to remain, has major implications for the debate about the island's constitutional future.

The paper claims some unionists, particularly "young and liberal" voters, were now willing to explore the potential of a united Ireland.

Sinn Fein said an all-Ireland vote on unification should take place in the next political term.

Under the terms of the 1998 Good Friday peace agreement, the UK Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has the power to trigger a poll on unity, but only if he or she believes there has been a shift in public opinion in favour of changing the constitutional position.

Current Secretary of State James Brokenshire has said there is no evidence that Brexit has prompted such a change of opinion.

The Sinn Fein president said it was "incomprehensible" to have one part of Ireland within the EU and one outside it.

The document was launched in Belfast and Dublin on Monday morning. Mr Adams, who penned the document's foreword, did not attend either of the launches as he is en route to Cuba for Fidel Castro's funeral.

"The Brexit referendum result has swept away many of the previous political assumptions about the constitutional, political and economic status quo in Ireland," he said.

"Ireland's political landscape, north and south, has been transformed dramatically.

"Massive uncertainties have been triggered about the implications for business, trade, jobs, social protections, educational opportunities, and future political and economic stability.

"This poses huge challenges for Irish national interests.

"For English and Welsh votes to drag the north of Ireland out of the EU against the will of its people would, like partition itself, be yet another travesty of democracy and would undermine the Good Friday Agreement.

"It is now vitally important that there is maximum co-operation to uphold the democratic wishes of the people of the north.

"Ultimately, the only realistic way to ensure this is through the unity of the island of Ireland."

Mr Adams said partition was stunting the "political, economic, social and cultural" potential of Ireland.

The paper also questioned the argument that the Republic of Ireland could not afford Northern Ireland, describing that as a "myth".

It challenged the level to which the UK government subsidises Northern Ireland, claiming the sum could be as low as 2.7 billion a year.

"The island of Ireland is currently administered by two states and three governments - in Dublin, Belfast and London," said Mr Adams.

"This system is wasteful, inefficient and incapable of successfully prioritising the interests of the Irish people that require an integrated vision for the island."

Among the proposals set out in the document are:

:: a new constitution for Ireland.

:: weighed parliamentary majorities to help protect unionist interests in an Irish parliament.

:: an all-island national health service free at the point of delivery.

:: expression of relationship between unionists and the British monarchy and recognition of the place of the protestant loyal orders.

Sinn Fein set out a series of steps to achieve a united Ireland. They include:

:: initiating an open and inclusive national conversation on Irish unity, involving citizens, political parties, social partners, and civil society.

:: publication of a Green Paper on Irish Unity which will identify steps and measures for a successful transition to a united Ireland.

:: establishment of an Irish parliamentary committee on reunification with the task of outlining, driving, monitoring and reviewing the transition towards unity.

:: appointment of an Irish Government Minister of State with the dedicated and specific responsibility of developing strategies to advance Irish unity and coordinating the government's all-Ireland policies.

:: co-ordination of economic planning on an all-island basis.

:: engagement by government departments north and south in joint public service provision and publish a timescale and strategy for the full integration of public services.

:: discussion with the EU Commission and institutions to examine what practical support they can give to facilitate an efficient process of reunification.
Cystic Fibrosis Ireland (CFI) is calling on the Minister for Health Simon Harris to make the drug, Orkambi, available as soon as possible.

In a statement, the health service said the drug is considered to be unjustifiably expensive and will not fund the ground-breaking drug for Cystic Fibrosis sufferers.

The HSE also said it is disappointed the manufacturer, Vertex, will not lower what it has called "the exorbitant price."

CFI described the leak of the news to a Sunday newspaper as heartless and said it was disrespectful to the Health Minister and patients who have been waiting for months for a development.

Philip Watt, CEO of CF Ireland said the group has sought a meeting with Mr Harris who he said has indicated that this is not the end of the line for the drug in Ireland.

Mr Watt said: "With around 1,200 people with cystic fibrosis here in Ireland, we have the highest rate of the disease per head of population in the world. We also have some of the most severe forms of cystic fibrosis.

"It is rare that a therapy comes along that has been shown to reduce hospitalisations by up to 40% and further it significantly retards the progression of cystic fibrosis for those who stand to benefit from this drug.

"This drug would have resulted in other major savings to the HSE from both reduced hospitalisation and less reliance on other expensive CF drugs and reduced dependency on transplants."
Researchers and investors will gather for a showcase of Irish innovations of the future at Enterprise Ireland's Big Ideas event at Dublin's Helix today.

The event will be opened by the Minister of State for Training, Skills and Innovation, John Halligan.
A fire has broken out at a vacant apartment building Lower John Street in Cork city centre.

Several units of the Cork City Fire Brigade are at the scene.

The scene of the fire is close to, but separate from, the Heineken brewery in the city.

Update 9.41pm: The fire is under control and there are no reports of injuries.

Emergency Services are expected to remain on scene for the rest of the night.

Road closures and traffic diversions will remain in place, including the closure of Upper John Street.

This may affect bus routes in the area tonight and in the morning.
Nicola Sturgeon is to meet business and political leaders in Dublin as she looks to strengthen links between Scotland and Ireland in the wake of the Brexit vote.

Scotland's First Minister will visit Dublin over two days this week where she will address the Seanad, meet leading chief executives and collect an honorary patronage from Trinity College.

Ms Sturgeon will also meet President Michael D Higgins and Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan to discuss continued co-operation between Scotland and Ireland.

It follows a meeting with Taoiseach Enda Kenny and other devolved leaders at the British Irish Council last week.

The First Minister wants to expand business, cultural and political links between Scotland and Ireland under plans to strengthen relationships with EU countries.

Speaking ahead of the visit, Ms Sturgeon said: "Scotland and Ireland have a long history of co-operation based on our shared values, close historic and cultural ties and the deep links between our people.

"The relationship between Scotland and Ireland is more important than ever. I look forward to meeting with political and businesses leaders to discuss how we can work together to protect and strengthen our shared interests.

"I'll be stressing the Scottish Government's commitment to the principle of European solidarity and the benefits Scotland receives from membership of the European Single Market.

"Given the close proximity of our countries, Ireland is a strategic partner for Scotland. The opening of a Scottish Government Innovation and Investment hub earlier this year demonstrates the value we put on this relationship.

"Our hub is working on a range of issues including economic development, strengthening links on research and innovation, cooperation on energy and the development of renewable technologies and supporting government to government links.

"During my visit to Ireland, I look forward to further developing these areas of common interest to ensure deeper collaboration between our governments to deliver greater economic prosperity for both countries."

Ms Sturgeon is to visit SSE Dublin headquarters on Monday before touring Trinity College where she is to receive an honorary patronage from the Philosophical Society and talk to students.

On Tuesday she will attend a business breakfast with 120 chief executives, before addressing the Seanad.
Plans revealing thousands of plots by the Islamic State (IS) terror group to attack Europe have been discovered by coalition forces fighting the militants in Syria and Iraq, Britains top commander in the region has claimed.

Major General Rupert Jones said more than 10,000 documents and a large trove of digital data was seized after IS, also known as Daesh, were driven out of Manbij, northern Syria, in August.

He said: "If we want to keep Britain safe, we need to deal with Daesh."

Speaking to reporters at the Al-Assad air base in Iraq, he said of the find in Manbij: "I am not going to go into the details but we know that external operations have been getting orchestrated to a very significant degree from within the caliphate, critically from within Raqqa and from within Manbij.

"They were key external operations hubs. There is a huge amount of intelligence, documentation, electronic material that has been exploited there that points very directly against all sorts of nations around the world."

British security agencies are now working to analyse the plots and will be expecting fresh intelligence if the coalition retakes Mosul in Iraq in its current offensive.

"I am absolutely certain that an extraordinary amount of intelligence will come out of (there)," he said.

"It will be a labyrinth of intelligence and we need to get that into the hands of the intelligence agencies."
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The ANU School of Music is still struggling in its search for a new head after the latest candidate, Alan Lourens, the head of the University of Western Australia School of Music, declined the job.

Dr Lourens confirmed he was offered the position but he has informed his staff he will be staying in Perth.

Professor Malcolm Gillies will remain as the interim head of the ANU School of Music. Credit:Stuart Hay, ANU

An ANU spokesman said the search for a new head of the ANU School of Music was still in progress and the university could not comment further until the selection process was concluded.

The university confirmed Professor Malcolm Gillies would remain as the interim Head of School until the new head has been appointed.
Politicians, chemical and veterinary industry leaders have joined a chorus of opposition to the relocation of the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority from Canberra to Armidale.

Industry bodies are fearful of disruption, delays and a hollowing out staff expertise, while Canberra politicians have condemned a decision to move forward with a "senseless waste of taxpayer's money."

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has signed off on a $25.6 million relocation of the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) to Armidale, delivering on a Nationals election commitment.

Canberra senator Katy Gallagher labelled the move a "full-scale attack on Canberra" to uproot 175 public servants and their families due to a proposal which failed to satisfy the Coalition's own cost-benefit analysis.

"The relocation flies in the face of good governance," Senator Katy Gallagher said.
That's it for the rookie draft, and as always there an abundance of stories.

Xavier Richards - who last month played in a grand final - goes undrafted, as does South Australian youngster Jontty Scharenberg.

But Drew Petrie finds a home as expected at West Coast, one of several delisted players to find new homes, including delisted Fremantle defender Alex Silvagni, who joins cousin Jack at Carlton.
It was the one little line in a corporate presentation from asbestos exile James Hardie that revealed a lot.

"Income taxes are not currently paid or payable in Europe (excluding Ireland) or Australia due to tax losses. Australian tax losses primarily result from deductions relating to contributions to AICF," the group said, using the acronym for its Asbestos Injuries Compensation Fund.

The company pays 35 per cent of operating cash flow every year into the fund. These contributions are tax deductible.
Fremantle council has created a shitstorm by pushing back its Australia Day celebrations by two days and in doing so, propelled Australia down a path towards a moment of history nobody saw coming.

The council's ballsy, courageous and controversial decision not to hold any celebrations on Australia Day is about addressing the festering wounds of the past when it comes to the abhorrent treatment of Aboriginal people.

Mayor Brad Pettitt has been under fire since announcing the move to shake up Australia Day.

It is also about realising there are still some serious challenges about the current state of race relations in Australia.

But instead the debate shifted dramatically to an issue of our national identity.
Author and social commentator John Legge was widely known for his fierce criticism of mainstream economics and the savage inequities stoked by neoliberalism. His writing over 25 years was published in nine books, in many articles for Dissent magazine and in sharply worded opinion pieces and letters in The Age.

John Michael Legge was born in Sydney, the eldest of four brothers. His political consciousness was formed in the context of World War II and the controversy over communism in Australia.

In 1950, John's father, Jack, moved the family to Melbourne after taking a position in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Melbourne and the family settled in Greensborough.

Jack was a communist at a time when the Cold War was in full swing. John was nine when the anti-communist referendum was held and was 12 at the time of the Petrov Royal Commission (to which his father was called as a witness).

In 1953 John began Year 7 at Eltham High School where he was forced to reconcile the tensions between his parents' beliefs and community suspicions that the loyalty of Australian communists lay more with Moscow than Australia. From early on John was a voracious reader and an independent thinker. He did not find it easy to deal with anti-communist attitudes at school but was already developing reservations about the communist project.
Irina Rakobolskaya, who has died aged 96, was a member of an elite corps of Soviet women  known as the "Night Witches"  who fought in the air war against Germany from 1941 to 1945.

Unlike Soviet men, women were not formally conscripted into the armed forces. They were volunteers. But the haemorrhaging of the Red Army after the routs of 1941 saw mass campaigns to induct women into the military. They were to play an essential role. More than 8000 women fought in the charnel house of Stalingrad.

In late 1941 Stalin signed an order to establish three all-women air force units to be grouped into separate fighter, dive bomber and night bomber regiments. The order was kept secret in case it boosted the Germans' morale. Over the next four years these regiments flew a combined total of more than 30,000 combat sorties and dropped 23,000 tonnes of bombs.

Born in Darkov, a small settlement 300 kilometres from Moscow, Irina Rakobolskaya was the daughter of a schoolteacher mother and physicist father. The family moved to Moscow after her father's death and Irina was a 20-year-old physics student at Moscow State University when she volunteered for the new women's air regiments.

Although she was trained as a navigator, she took part in only 23 sorties as, much to her initial disappointment, she had been appointed to a desk job as chief of staff of her regiment  the 588th Night Bomber Regiment, whose achievements she would chronicle after the war. It was the only one of the three regiments to remain exclusively female throughout the war.
Today's Fairfax-Ipsos poll had some results that should have lovers of stable politics quaking in their boots, whilst also vomiting in pure unadulterated terror.

For a start, it showed that public support for Malcolm Turnbull continues to erode  he now has an approval rating of zero, which isn't great for a PM whose entire argument for taking in the job was to reverse his party's lousy polling  which puts enormous pressure on him to get some big results in the final sitting week of parliament.

And that could be tricky, since South Australian senator Nick Xenophon has him over a barrel on the Nationals' changes to the Murray-Darling plan, not to mention the annoying problem that the Attorney-General may allegedly have attempted to influence the then-solicitor general to assist the Liberal state government of Western Australia at the expense of the Australian taxpayer, which is a bit of a bad look.

But the Coalition's loss used to be Labor's gain, and that's not the case any more. While Bill Shorten is slowly gaining some ground, and Labor have been consistently ahead in two party terms since the election, it's not like Labor are seeing a mighty tsunami of support surge their way.
Severe thunderstorms are in prospect for each day until early next week for a wide swathe of the NSW coast.

The Bureau of Meteorology issued a warning on Monday afternoon for large hailstones, heavy rainfall and damaging winds for a region stretching from Wollongong north to the Queensland border.

However, the bureau later updated the alert to exclude the Sydney region, restricting the warning area to towns such as Lismore, Grafton, Tenterfield, Kyogle, Dorrigo and parts in between. It also dropped the alert for damaging winds.

Hailstones with a diameter of as much as 3 centimetres were reported in the Hawkesbury region during the afternoon storm.
The Turnbull Government is confident of striking a final-week deal to re-establish the construction industry watchdog, more than three years after Tony Abbott promised to deliver the policy.

As horse trading and negotiation continued with the Senate crossbench on Monday, Treasurer Scott Morrison also announced a deal to cut the backpacker tax from 32.5 per cent to 15 per cent - as proposed by Pauline Hanson's One Nation - rather than the government's proposed 19 per cent rate.

A vote on this deal, which will cost the budget $120 million over four years and raise $640 million rather than $760 million, is expected by the end of the week.

The additional $120 million cost would be dealt with in the mid-year budget update, Mr Morrison said, so that it would "wash its face" and ends an 18-month stand-off over the tax.
A damning investigation has found multinational companies are claiming billions of dollars in questionable deductions while exploiting the nation's natural riches, using accounting tricks allowed to flourish under a hands-off government approach that is dudding Australian taxpayers of royalties.

And in a stunning disclosure, the probe by Auditor-General Grant Hehir found nearly two decades had passed since a federal government audited the self-assessed royalty payments from the North West Shelf, a giant project located in the lucrative oil and gas region off the West Australian coast and jointly owned by Woodside, Shell, Chevron and BHP Billiton.

Underlining rising concerns over whether the $200 billion liquefied natural gas industry is paying its fair share of tax, Mr Hehir's report discovered a $5 billion bonanza of deductions claimed by the project in just one 18-month period.

Some of the Auditor-General's most damning criticism was reserved for a single $705 million cost deduction that helped reduce royalties owed to the taxpayer by $88 million. Mr Hehir argued the $705 million deduction may not have been technically valid.
Documents seized by the Australian Federal Police in raids on Parliament House should remain sealed and be returned to the Labor Party, according to a powerful parliamentary committee.

The House of Representatives Privileges and Members' Interests Committee on Monday handed down a report, which found the documents relating to leaks from the National Broadband Network are protected by parliamentary privilege.

The findings apply to documents seized by the AFP from a staff member for former Labor communications spokesman Jason Clare in Parliament House raids in August. Mr Clare claimed parliamentary privilege at the time and the documents were placed under seal by the Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Documents seized from the home of a Labor staffer and the office of former communications spokesman Stephen Conroy during the federal election campaign are subject to a separate inquiry.
One Nation is a very democratic party. So democratic, indeed, that its parliamentarians apparently don't discuss with each other what the party's stance might be on legislation, and then publicly disagree.

Leader Pauline Hanson was talking into the microphones of Fairfax Radio's Stephanie Borys and the Seven Network's Amelia Brace on Monday shortly before the government announced it had reached a compromise over the backpacker's tax when something of a disparity in opinion emerged.

Senator Hanson said she thought the tax should start at 12 per cent when her Queensland colleague Senator Malcolm Roberts butted in.

"Ten point five per cent, you mean," he corrected.
That's all from us for Tuesday. What happened today?

Australia will have its first female High Court chief justice from next year after Susan Kiefel was named to the top job today.

chief justice from next year after was named to the top job today. A Senate inquiry will consider the involvement of Attorney-General George Brandis in litigation about the Bell corporation wind-up in Western Australian .

in litigation about the Bell corporation wind-up in . The Australian Building and Construction Commission legislation looks set to pass this week.

legislation looks set to pass this week. MPs are planning to oppose moves to boost security at Parliament House , including fencing around the building's public laws.

, including fencing around the building's public laws. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has downplayed a possible frontbench reshuffle, not ruling out changes to his team.

Thanks for joining our coverage today and thanks to the very talented Alex Ellinghausen and Andrew Meares.

The excellent Stephanie Peating will be back with you tomorrow.
The Baird government has announced a $576 million upgrade to Nepean Hospital, including a new emergency department and more than 200 additional beds.

The beleaguered western Sydney hospital will get an additional 10 birthing suites, 12 operating theatres and double the number of chemotherapy chairs from 15 to 30, under the crucial redevelopment set to be completed in 2021.

Work will commence immediately a new and bigger emergency department, Premier Mike Baird and Health Minister Jillian Skinner announced on Monday.

Nepean's ED is currently one of the busiest in the state and worst performing in terms of wait times for patients in need of emergency treatment. Its elective surgery wait times were also the worst in the state.
A Gold Coast sugar mill has been extensively damaged after a blaze broke out early Tuesday.

Fire crews were called to Mill Road at Woongoolba after reports of a commercial structure fire just after 12.30am.

Fire crews battled to control a blaze at the Gold Coast overnight. Credit:Nine News Brisbane/Twitter

Energex was called to isolate the power as four fire crews battled to control the blaze at the two storey building.

The flames, which had caused extensive damage to the mill, were under control by 1.30am.
A fourth person has been stood down as part of the investigation into the death of Mason Jet Lee.

Last week, Child Safety Minister Shannon Fentiman revealed disciplinary proceedings had started against 12 Queensland government staff following the first stage of a review into the Caboolture toddler's death.

Of those, three officers were stood down effective immediately, with pay.

On Monday, it was revealed a fourth person was stood down.
The family of Barbara McCulkin and her two daughters have welcomed the conviction of Garry Dubois for their deaths more than 40 years after they went missing.

Dubois was found guilty by a Brisbane Supreme Court jury on Monday of Mrs McCulkin's manslaughter and the murder of siblings Vicki and Leanne McCulkin.

The 69-year-old was also found guilty of raping the two girls and guilty of deprivation of liberty.

He will be sentenced after the trial of his co-accused Vincent O'Dempsey. His trial is due to take place in May next year.
A glass explosion at a South Brisbane workplace on Monday morning has left two in hospital.

Paramedics were called to a business on Montague Road after reports a glass object had exploded just after 8am.

Credit:Glen McCurtayne

Two people were treated for minor arm and hand injuries and were transported to Mater Hospital.

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There were good indications Iranian asylum seeker Hamid Kehazaei was suffering from sepsis when he was treated on Manus Island, an inquest has been told.

Mr Kehazaei, also known as Khazaei, died in Brisbane's Mater Hospital after his leg became infected at the processing centre.

Hamid Kehazaei was evacuated from Manus Island.

The 24-year-old was treated at the facility before being taken to a hospital at Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea.

He was then flown to Brisbane after developing severe septicaemia from an infected cut.
The partner of one of three missing fisherman, Douglas Hunt, said the family is "praying for his safe return" after the air and sea searches near Fraser Island for the missing trawler were scaled back on Monday.

"I think that's keeping me strong at the moment," Ms Lee told Fairfax Media.

Missing fisherman Douglas Hunt, pictured with his partner Tracey Lee and their family of six children.

"The least I can do is have as many people praying and believing for a miracle, because as you know the situation looks really grim."

Ms Lee said her 38-year-old partner took the job to make some extra money for the Christmas period for their family of six children.
The public has one chance to farewell the former epicentre of Queensland's political power before it is gone forever.

The Queensland government's Executive Building, at 100 George Street, has been the seat of power since 1971 when it was opened by Sir Joh Bjelke Petersen.

The building has been a second home for nine premiers.

On Saturday, December 10 - also the state's Proclamation Day - a day of tours and talks will mark the blocky building's finale before it is demolished to make way for the $3 billion Queen's Wharf development.
A man convicted of raping his younger sister has been freed after the state's highest court cast doubt on the alleged victim's trial testimony.

The man, referred to as Mejia, successfully appealed his conviction after being sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for sexually abusing his sister over a six-year period in the 1990s.

Credit:Scott Barbour

On Monday Supreme Court judges Emilios Kyrou and Stephen Kaye acquitted the man, who cannot be named, of three counts of rape, seven counts of incest and five counts of committing an indecent act with a child under the age of 16.

The judges said the jury's guilty verdicts were unreasonable because there were inconsistencies in the alleged victim's evidence at trial that would have raised a doubt in the jurors' minds about her credibility as a witness.
An "extremely violent" man with a "significant history" at the high security Thomas Embling hospital is facing attempted murder charges after allegedly throwing four women off the platform at Glenhuntly railway station.

The Melbourne Magistrates Court heard on Monday that Craig Joseph Hansen, 47, who had chosen to stop taking his medication before Sunday's rampage, was being kept in a padded cell before his scheduled appearance.

Police at the scene of the attacks at Glenhuntly railway station. Credit:Seven News

But Mr Hansen refused to either speak with Victoria Legal Aid lawyers or leave his cell to appear before the court.

Police allege Mr Hansen attacked a group of five women  two of them aged in their 80s  at Glenhuntly station on Sunday morning and pushed four of them onto the tracks.
Mr di Berardino's body was found on the footpath. Credit:Twitter/@7NewsMelbourne "It has been ongoing for 46 years," he said. 'Decades-long dispute' Neighbours knew of the decades-long dispute, which one man said started before the two moved to Australia from Italy. Angelo di Berardino outside his parents home, with a photo of his late father. Credit:Neelima Choahan

Some described the 90-year-old man as a pest, who stole women's underwear from their clothes lines, peered through their bathroom windows, poisoned their plants, and had several restraining orders taken out against him. Angelo said the dispute between his father and his neighbour had escalated previously. Police at the scene in the Reservoir. Credit:Courtesy of Seven News "There has been restraining orders ... been to the courts," he said. "I have even spoken to his daughter-in-law ... nothing happened.

A black tarpaulin was put up around the scene on Monday. Credit:Pat Scala "The guy has been caught pinching underwear from neighbour's houses red-handed by their wives and it has just gone beyond." The 90-year-old man has lived alone since his wife died, and has two sons. Mr di Berardino's body was found about 1pm. Credit:Courtesy of Seven News On Monday afternoon, a black tarpaulin surrounded the area where Mr di Berardino's body lay on the footpath, as grieving neighbours and family gathered to mourn the loss of a true "gentleman".

Mr di Berardini had four children and had recently welcomed the arrival of his 13th great-grandchild. Angelo said he had received a call from his children saying his father was not well. "My mum rang my kids, they rang me," Angelo said. But it was too late by the time he arrived at the home where his father and mother had lived for more than 40 years. 'Kindest man in the world'

As evening came, family and friends gathered in the front yard of the di Berardino's low-set, brick veneer home. Angelo described his father as a loving head of the family, who had a great sense of humour. "He was a shit-stirrer, a big one," Angelo said. "He loved to drink, he loved to dance. "You could tell him anything."

A good handyman, Mr di Berardino happily helped his neighbours. "The neighbours, if they had anything broken, he would repair it for nothing. He was the kindest man in the world," Angelo said. He said his father came to Australia at the age of 19 from Abruzzo in southern Italy. He said Mr di Berardino went back to Italy seven years ago and still had family back home. Son Paul said his father was a "strong man" who could be a "pain in the arse", but someone who helped his sons when needed.

"He had a sarcastic sense of humour," Paul said. "He will be greatly missed." Family friend, Jenny Tully, said Mr di Berardino was very fit for his age and was in good health. "He was very strong," she said. "Here one day, gone the next."

Aniello Papa has lived opposite the two men for more than four decades. He described Mr di Berardino as an "absolute gentleman" who helped everyone. "I knew him very, very well," Mr Papa said. "He attended my father's funeral." Frank Parisi whose mother-in-law lives on the same street and was at home when the fight happened said he got a call from his wife about 2.30pm. "'You better go and check my mum' [she said]. I said 'why?' She said, 'Mick is dead'."
December 1 is the day when everyone is allowed to put up their Christmas tree. It's tradition, right? Bad luck to go early?

The Obamas already have their tree, but won't flip the lights switch until later this week. Boy and girl Scouts were selling fresh Christmas trees at Bunnings on the weekend. If you went by the timing of supermarkets, your tree would have been up for three months already.

Actually, the rule is, there is no rule. Only the rule you grew up with.

Monash University Professor Gary Bouma, sociologist on religious diversity, says families and individuals abide by the traditions of Christmas that they grew up with as a child at home.
A federal judge ruled on Monday that Dylann S. Roof, who was charged in the massacre of nine black worshippers at a Charleston, South Carolina, church in 2015, can represent himself in his federal death-penalty trial.

The judge, Richard M. Gergel of US District Court in Charleston, called the request by Roof, 22, "strategically unwise," but allowed him to have a lawyer present as backup.

"I do find defendant has the personal capacity to self-representation," Gergel said, according to The Post & Courier. He added, "It is a decision you have the right to make."

Roof had been represented by David I. Bruck, a noted death-penalty lawyer, who slid over from the lead chair after the judge's decision. The ruling came days after Roof was found competent to stand trial.
Paris: French voters chose a socially conservative, budget-cutting former prime minister on Sunday to lead the centre-right Republican Party in next year's presidential election. Once again, the outcome upset pollsters' initial predictions, and it paved the way for a likely faceoff with the country's far-right party in 2017.

Francois Fillon, 62, a sober, dark-suited government veteran who called for economic sacrifice, major changes in the French workplace and a crackdown on immigration and Islam, won about 67 per cent of the vote in the primary contest on Sunday, crushing his more centrist opponent, Alain Juppe, who is also a former prime minister.

French presidential elections are usually decided in two rounds, with the first round winnowing the field to two candidates. Having won his party's primary, Fillon is widely expected to be one of those two finalists in the general election in the spring.

It now seems increasingly unlikely that the current governing party, the Socialists, will produce the other. The French left is weak and in disarray after five years in which high unemployment rates and slow economic growth have barely budged.
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NSW planning minister Rob Stokes says a shift in focus is needed, away from negative gearing to housing policies that focus on equality of opportunity" and ease Sydneys affordability crisis, according to The ABC.Stokes made clear in a speech to the Committee for Economic Development last week, that he was focussed on enabling Sydney families to get a foot-hold on the housing ladder.He said more was needed than supply alone to ease Sydneys affordability crisis."Earlier this year the NSW Government was ready, willing and able to have a discussion about tax. Disappointingly our leadership on this issue fell victim to the Canberra culture that promotes opposition over consensus," he said."It's a major concern to me as Planning Minister of the most populous state, but also frankly as a dad of three young children, of increasing reports that without parental support the dream of home ownership is becoming harder and harder to obtain."Surely the focus of the tax system should be directed towards the type of housing we need. Why should you get a tax deduction on the ownership of a multi-million-dollar holiday home that does nothing to improve supply where it's needed?The ABC reported that Tim Williams, chief executive for the Committee for Sydney, had called the housing affordability issue a "national emergency"."We've doubled housing in Sydney in the last three to four years, and the price has gone up 30 per cent ... housing supply won't solve this problem, so something else is causing this problem," he said."It's entirely because of the tax incentives for home owners who have multiple homes that are squeezing poorer people out at auction."The Minister is absolutely on the button and he's very brave to raise this discussion."The Housing Industry Association (HIA) also responded, stressing that taxes charged on housing cripple affordability.Housing affordability will not be addressed by political point scoring around negative gearing or capital gains tax, said HIAs chief executive, industry policy and media, Graham Wolfe.Its a distracting and lazy debate and one where all three levels of government point a finger at each other, when its a fact that around 40 per cent of the cost of a new home is taxation.Increasing the supply of new housing is an obvious key to improving housing affordability, said. But retaining the enormous taxation burden on the cost of new homes is an anathema to addressing the problem.Its the taxes and levies that are charged on every new home that overwhelmingly defeat all attempts to reduce housing costs, said Wolfe. Yet housing, a basic requirement that all Australians should be able to access, is taxed more heavily than other parts of the economy.
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Tracker mortgages have not been made mandatory, the House Economics Committee report released last week revealed, as part of the parliamentary inquiry into the major banks.Tracker loans would mean banks committing to a set rate above the Reserve Bank cash rate, essentially tracking the rise and fall of the cash rate over time.But the report did not mandate banks offer tracker mortgages to customers, the Australian Financial Review reported.Speaking to Australian Broker, AMP Capital head of investment strategy and chief economist, Shane Oliver said, I think having tracker mortgages makes sense but I dont know whether it should be forced on the banks.The benefit of tracker mortgages I suppose is that they give some certainty to home borrowers relative to the cash rate.But he said providers of the product will want to cover the risks involved.The main risk is that the cost of funding to the bank diverges from the cash rate and they would therefore have to try and price that risk in, in setting the margin.The danger is that (the banks) come up with a margin relative to the cash rate which is overly high and therefore a home borrower then may find that they were better off sticking to the  variable rates and just seeking out the best deal they can get from the bank.Although he said the banks will offer it if theres consumer demand for it. The banks at the end of the day dont want to lose customers.Tracker mortgages could also benefit banks as Oliver said, you could argue, if the pricing is right, then it might give the bank a bit of certainty as well.If the banks decided not to pass on a cash rate reduction in full, there is the tracker rate as another option. It enables them to offer something different to their customers, he told Australian Broker.Only Auswide Bank has offered tracker mortgages so far but Oliver expects more lenders may offer tracker mortgages in the future, saying there would be a portion of the mortgage market that would find these sorts of loans quite attractive.There are reasons why it could take off  whether it will or not remains to be seen
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Shes putting in her two cents!

Legendary political performance artist Penny Arcade will stop in Dumbo next month for the American premiere of her incendiary one-woman show, after a year-long world tour. In Longing Lasts Longer, opening at St. Anns Warehouse on Dec. 1, Arcade takes on gentrification and the citys changing neighborhoods  something Brooklyn residents are very familiar with, she said.

Brooklyn is a simulation of what Brooklyn was. Its like a board game now, its not a real place, its not a real city, said Arcade, who lives in Manhattan. Its impossible not to be part of gentrification because New York City has been colonized  this has befallen all of our inner cities, invaded by a culture of wealth that creates a mall-like character.

But more insidious than yuppies buying up real estate is the way that moneyed gentry have co-opted the symbols and language of societys outsiders, said Arcade.

There is a gentrification that happens to neighborhoods but there is also a gentrification that happens to ideas, she said. Once bikers and strippers had tattoos and those tattoos were a rite of passage  now every stock broker has multiple tattoos. The word queer denoted a person who had experienced a period of societal exclusion that marked them as an outsider forever. Now people who have never had an outsider moment in their lives call themselves queer.

In her show, Arcade will share personal stories of protesting the Vietnam war and coming of age in the city, against a soundtrack of music from the last five decades. She hopes the stories will inspire young people to take up their own crusades, she said, and give them some context from someone with experience standing up to the Man.

 Longing Lasts Longer is really directed to young people. Young people need an ally and I have chosen to be that ally. The engine of evolution has always been the hunger and energy of young people with the wisdom of older people, said Arcade. And I have faith  Im part of a generation that helped stop the Vietnam war, threw Nixon out of office. I believe we can make a difference but we need to be awake and form coalitions. And thats what Longing Lasts Longer is about  its to inspire individuality and authenticity in all of us.

Longing Lasts Longer at St. Anns Warehouse [45 Water St. at Old Dock Street in Dumbo, (718) 8348794, www.stann sware house.org ]. Dec. 111, TueFri at 8 pm, Sat at 3 pm and 8 pm, Sun at 5 pm. $35$55.
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Officials will host a town hall meeting at IS 136 in Sunset Park on Nov. 28 to address reports that school workers have been telling immigrant kids to start packing their bags in the wake of Donald Trumps election.

Shortly after Trumps Nov. 8 victory, Department of Education staff began harassing students in school districts 15 and 20, which together stretch from Cobble Hill and Park Slope to Bay Ridge and Bensonhurst, according to a letter that Councilman Carlos Menchaca (DSunset Park) and school board leaders sent to Chancellor Carmen Farnia on Nov. 15.

One custodian at PS 169 in Sunset Park was overheard saying, I hope he builds the wall, and I hope they throw them over the fence, according to a school crossing guard there who asked not to be named because she did not have permission to speak to the press.

Menchaca led hundreds of Sunset Parkers in a march along Fourth Avenue on Nov. 20 to show solidarity in the wake of the election and news of the student harassment.

The upcoming meeting will include a panel discussion with local pols Rep. Nydia Velazquez (DSunset Park), Assemblyman Felix Ortiz (DSunset Park), Councilman Brad Lander (DPark Slope), and Menchaca.

Legal aides and immigration counselors will also be available to answer questions, and translators for Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic will be present.

District 15 town hall meeting at IS 136 [4004 Fourth Ave. between 40th and 41st streets in Sunset Park, (718) 9653333] Nov. 28, 78:30 pm.
Warminster boy makes Phillies nation proud with viral video from Game 1

Carson Wallace, 5, of Warminster, starred as one of the Phillies most savage fans as his celebration and taunt of an Astros fan went viral.
Yardley Friends Meeting at 65 N. Main Street in Yardley will host the documentary Organic Roots on Friday, November 18 at 7 p.m. Join director Al Johnson for a showing of this film followed by a discussion of the last 50 years of this movement. Organic foods are part of our life today and a tool in our concern for...
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...
In the sixth episode of The Walking Dead season 7, titled Swear, we finally learn what happened to Tara and Heath during their supply run. After the two get separated, Tara runs into a new community of survivors. Meanwhile, an Alexandrian is still plotting revenge against Negan. This episode is a showcase for Alanna Masterson, and she does an excellent job showing us Taras long journey to get back home.

Why Maggie and Sasha are the Perfect New Leaders for Hilltop on TWD >>>

Tara Finds a New Community

The opening of the episode introduces us to two new characters: Cyndie and her much younger companion, Rachel. They are at the beach when they discover a walker. Rachel puts it down and then spots what she thinks is a second walker. Only, it turns out to be Tara! Tara is alive but unconscious. Rachel still wants to kill Tara, but Cyndie talks her out of it. She then drags Tara to shore.

After the opening scene, we flash back to Heath and Tara as their two-week run is coming to an end. Theyre both disappointed that they have next-to-nothing to show for their time away, despite having gone farther out than they were supposed to. Heath is still clearly upset by what Team Family did at the Saviors outpost. He still feels the weight of the lives he took. Tara feels it too, but she knows they did what they had to do to survive.

Heath understands now that everyone left alive does what they need to do to stay that way but that none of them are in it together. Tara says thats bull, so Heath changes the subject. He says theyll take the day to search for supplies, but then they are going home whether they find anything or not.

In the present day, we see Cyndie leaving some water, food and a spear for Tara. As soon as Cyndie leaves, Tara opens her eyes. Shes seemingly been awake for a while and was just pretending to still be out of it. Tara waits for Cyndie to leave the beach and then follows Cyndie back to her community. Tara quietly sneaks around the community to get a better look at things. She is surprised by the lack of men in the community, as she is only able to spot women and children.

Tara is eventually discovered and has to make a run for it, as the women start shooting at her. She manages to knock one of her pursuers down, but when the woman tells Tara to just kill her already, Tara merely knocks her out. Alas, Tara is stopped by young Rachel before she can get away. Shes then quickly surrounded by the rest of the community. (I dont think it is actually said in the episode, but this community is clearly meant to represent the Oceanside community from the comics.)

Tara Makes Some New Allies (or So She Thinks)

In a flashback, Tara and Heath come to a bridge set up with a makeshift camp. They start searching the bridge for supplies but come up empty. There are large mounds of sand seemingly poured out of dump trucks. Tara spots a bag nearby in the sand, and its heavy so she assumes something must be in it. Alas, when she pulls the bag from the sand, there are dozens of walkers buried underneath. Tara and Heath take out a few of the walkers, but they get separated. Tara watches as Heath seemingly abandons her to the walkers.

In the present day, Tara is being questioned by the communitys leader, Natania. The woman explains a few ways in which they keep their community safe, and Tara is impressed. Tara lies and says that she and her friend have been on their own for the last few years. She explains that they got into trouble on the bridge and she ended up being thrown off into the water. She drifted with the current and washed up on shore near their camp.

Tara goes on to say that she followed Cyndie back to their camp so she could see if it was safe. Now she just wants to leave and look for her friend. Natania says thats a problem for them because Tara has learned a lot about their camp and thus poses a threat to them. Yet Tara didnt hurt any of their people, so even though its their policy to take out strangers on sight, they are unsure of what to do with her.

Tara is eventually invited to dinner with some of the community members, and Natania asks her if shed like to stay at their community. If Tara stays, they wont have to worry about her knowing too much about their home. They even offer to help her find her friend and say that he will be allowed to stay as well. Tara points out that there are no men in their community, and Natania explains that they got into a skirmish with another group, and all the men were killed. After that, they left their home and found this place. They stay hidden in order to stay alive.

Tara finally tells them the truth about where shes from. She explains that shes also from a community of people who look out for one another, and they have also done what they needed to do to stay alive. She says they took out some people who were threatening them and mentions the outpost. One of the women clearly knows what group Tara is talking about, but Tara doesnt notice her reaction.

Tara goes on to say that she thinks their groups can work together. Cyndie sides with Tara, pointing out that teaming up with Taras people will make them safer. Natania eventually relents and agrees to send a guide out with Tara. This guide will take Tara to look for her friend and then they can continue on to Taras home to check things out.

Quiz: Which TV Vigilante Are You? >>>

Tara Makes a New Friend

The next day, during their trek to the bridge, Tara quickly realizes that her guides are not there to help her but rather to kill her. She manages to get away from them, but one of the women catches up to her. Tara tries convincing the woman, Beatrice, to let her go, but she cannot. When Tara spoke about the outpost, the women in the group realized that Taras people fought the Saviors.

Beatrice explains that the outpost Taras group took out was just one of many. There are more Saviors, and if they learned what Taras group did, Taras people are probably dead. Tara then realizes that the Saviors are the ones who killed the men from their group. Beatrice explains that the Saviors executed every man and boy over the age of 10. The surviving members were then supposed to work for the Saviors, but they fled and eventually found a new home. Beatrice says they cannot let Tara lead the Saviors back to their new community. Just as Beatrice is about to kill her, Cyndie shows up to save Tara.

Tara runs, but Cyndie eventually catches up to her. Cyndie makes Tara swear that she wont tell anyone about their community, and Tara promises she wont. Cyndie gives her some food and water and offers to escort Tara back to the bridge. Try not to fall off this time, Cyndie says  and I love her already.

Cyndie and Heath Save Tara

Cyndie and Tara make it to the bridge, but Cyndie knows that the two women from her group will catch up to them soon enough. Cyndie will not leave until Tara gets to safety, so she says they need to move quickly. Tara wonders why Cyndie is so different from the other women in her community, and Cyndie wonders the same about her.

Cyndie and Tara cross the bridge together, taking out a few walkers here and there. Alas, they spot many more walkers coming toward them, so they decide to run on top of the cars lined up along the bridge. Cyndie takes up a position on one of the cars and starts firing at the walkers so Tara can move through them. It works long enough for Tara to get away.

In the final flashback of the episode, Heath comes back for Tara after seemingly leaving her behind. He takes out a walker to save her, and she tries to fight off the others to get to him. Heath yells at her to go, but Tara says they are in this together. They share a final look before the thrashing walkers end up pushing Tara off the bridge.

Back in the present, Tara continues crossing the bridge when she spots a walker with dreadlocks. Luckily, its not Heath. Once Tara makes it off the bridge, she looks back and sees Cyndie and her people get to safety. She then walks back to where she and Heath left their truck, but its gone. Tara sees tire tracks and hopes it means that Heath got away after they got separated.

Tara Returns to Alexandria

On her way back home, Tara takes shelter from some approaching walkers in a little gift shop. In the store, she finds a doctor bobblehead that she clearly intends to give to Denise. (Cue the sniffles.)

As the episode comes to a close, Tara finally gets back home, only to learn  albeit off-screen  that three of the people she loved are now dead. (Am I the only one disappointed that they didnt actually show us Taras reaction to hearing the news? We all know that Denise, Glenn and Abraham are dead, but it wouldve been nice to see someone who didnt watch them die react to their deaths.)

In the final scene, Rosita tells Tara that they can do something about their recent loses. She asks if Tara found anything out there that could help them fight back against the Saviors. Tara keeps her promise to Cyndie and doesnt tell Rosita about the Oceanside community.

What did you think of this episode of The Walking Dead? Were you as happy as I was to finally see Tara again? How long do you think we have to wait to learn Heaths ultimate fate? Do you think Tara shouldve told Rosita about the Oceanside group or was she right to keep her word to Cyndie? Were you surprised that the Oceanside community showed up so early in the shows timeline? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

The Walking Dead season 7 airs Sunday nights at 9/8c on AMC. Want more news? Like our Facebook page.

(Image courtesy of AMC)
Media Advisory: Engineer to discuss building bridges in Africa

UB engineering students have designed a bridge, similar to the one pictured above, for a dangerous ravine in Kenya. They are raising money to buy materials and to travel to Africa to build the bridge. Credit: Kelley Rehm.

On Monday, 100 students will discuss the other Peace Bridge, which crosses a dangerous river in Kenya

BUFFALO, N.Y.  Rural Kenya can be a dangerous place. Sure, the lions and hippopotamuses are to be feared. But so too are the swift-moving rivers that people must cross to obtain medical care, schooling and other necessities.

Sadly, drownings are common, especially during the rainy season.

UB engineering students, working with nonprofit Bridging the Gap Africa, are trying help solve that problem by designing and building a bridge to cross a river in Sultan Hamud, a town roughly 65 miles from Kenyas capital, Nairobi.

They are raising money to buy materials needed for the bridge and to cover some of their travel expenses. For more information and to donate, visit the UB Institute of Bridge Engineerings website.

On Monday, Nov. 28, the students will hear from Matthew Bowser, an engineer based in Ontario, who, through volunteering with Bridging the Gap Africa, designed and helped build a long suspension bridge in Kenya that he dubbed the Peace Bridge.

The event is free and open to the public. News media are invited to attend.

Where: Room 20 of Knox Hall on UBs North Campus.

When: 5-7:30 p.m. Note: Media wishing to interview Bowser prior to the lecture should contact Cory Nealon, University Communications, at cmnealon@buffalo.edu or 716-645-4614.

Parking: Parking is free and no tags are required after 3 p.m. in faculty, staff and student lots.

The UB students are working under the guidance of Jerome Jerry OConnor, executive director of UBs Institute of Bridge Engineering and adjunct professor in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Your colleagues

ODonnell named AAAS fellow

By MARCENE ROBINSON

James M. ODonnell, dean of the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, has been named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

ODonnell, honored in the Section on Pharmaceutical Sciences, was recognized for his distinguished contributions to the field of molecular and translational neuroscience, particularly for using modern approaches to study allosteric modulators for psychiatric disorders.

He is among 391 members who will receive the distinction on Feb. 18 at the AAAS Fellows Forum, held during the 2017 AAAS annual meeting.

The AAAS is the worlds largest general scientific society and is the publisher of the journal Science, one the worlds leading academic journals.

I have a longstanding interest in understanding the relationship between the neurochemical and behavioral effects of drugs used to treat psychiatric and neurological diseases, and have had the good fortune to work with many talented faculty, postdoctoral fellows and students, ODonnell says.

Recent collaborations with biotech companies have allowed us to advance our research toward clinical application. Im honored that this work has been recognized by my appointment as an AAAS fellow.

ODonnell was appointed the 11th dean of the UB School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in 2013. He holds joint appointments as professor of pharmaceutical sciences, and of pharmacology and toxicology.

An internationally recognized scholar, his research focuses on the relationship between the neurochemical and behavioral effects of drugs, primarily those used to treat neuropsychiatric illnesses.

ODonnell is the principal investigator or co-investigator on multiple research grants funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). He also has authored or co-authored nearly 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals, presented numerous scientific papers and is a reviewer for 25 journals, among them Brain Research, the Journal of Neuroscience, the Journal of Psychopharmacology, Metabolic Brain Disease, Neuroscience and Science.

Since 2009, he has served as associate editor of the prestigious Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, which has been publishing for more than 100 years.

He is a member of a number of scientific and professional societies, and is also a fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. He has worked on NIH review panels in the neuroscience and drug discovery areas as well, including serving as founding chair of the Pathophysiological Basis of Mental Disorders and Addictions study section.

Prior to joining UB, ODonnell held research or faculty positions at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Louisiana State University, University of Tennessee and, most recently, West Virginia University, where he served as associate dean for research in the WVU School of Medicine and assistant vice president for research in the WVU Health Sciences Center.

ODonnell earned a bachelors degree in psychology from Carnegie Mellon University and a doctorate in pharmacological and physiological sciences from the University of Chicago. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in neuropsychopharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania.
Campus News

U.N. ambassador calls Buffalo a model city for refugees

Samantha Power, U.S. ambassador to the U.N., speaks at a town hall meeting at UB on refugee resettlement as part of a daylong visit to Buffalo. Photo: Douglas Levere



By DAVID J. HILL

Before visiting for the first time on Tuesday, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations didnt know that Buffalo is known as the City of Good Neighbors. But after meeting with members of the citys thriving refugee population and seeing how theyve been supported, Samantha Power witnessed the kindness and compassion that have helped Buffalo live up to its moniker. The more than 14,000 refugees who have resettled in Buffalo over the past 15 years have helped reverse the citys decades-long population decline, while bolstering its economy and making the community more diverse. What is more American than that? Our country has a lot to learn from this City of Good Neighbors, Power said during an afternoon talk in Baird Recital Hall on UBs North Campus.

Baird Recital Hall was packed for the town hall. Photo: Douglas Levere

The U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Power has been a member of President Barack Obamas cabinet since August 2013 when the Senate confirmed her as the nations 28th ambassador to the U.N. She is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and former professor at the Harvard Kennedy School. Power began looking to visit a city with a vibrant refugee community in June, when Obama announced plans to hold a U.N. summit on the refugee crisis. Buffalo, she said, is the perfect place to examine the positive impact refugees can have on a city. Before concluding her day with a talk and Q&A at UB, Power met with city leaders, refugee resettlement agencies and refugee families, and visited the West Side Bazaar, a bustling small business incubator whose vendors are mostly refugees and immigrants. Power also pointed out the role UB plays as a diverse university that has a large enrollment of international students, a point President Satish K. Tripathi noted in his opening remarks. As a world premier public research university, UB is a truly international institution in both stature and global impact, he said. Tripathi mentioned several examples of ways in which UB faculty, staff and students are working with refugee communities locally and abroad, from UBs Community for Global Health Equity, to the School of Social Works Immigrant and Refugee Research Institute, to the Office of Global Health Initiatives in the School of Public Health and Health Professions.

President Satish K. Tripathi (left) chats with Samantha Power and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Photo: Douglas Levere President Satish K. Tripathi (left) chats with Samantha Power and Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown. Photo: Douglas Levere



It is fitting that todays discussion is taking place at the University at Buffalo, a university that ranks among the top 20 U.S. educational institutions enrolling the largest number of international students, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said. The timing of Powers visit was particularly poignant, given the anti-immigrant comments President-elect Donald Trump has made during his campaign and since being elected earlier this month. In addition, the world is experiencing a refugee crisis unparalleled since the aftermath of World War II, Power said, adding that over the course of her one day in Buffalo, some 34,000 people  or roughly the number of students and employees at UB  will be displaced. New York State is the fourth-largest recipient of refugees, and 1 out of every 3 is resettled in Buffalo, Power said. She noted that whats happening in places like Buffalo can help dispel the myths associated with refugees  namely, that they take jobs away from American workers, live off government assistance and pose a threat to U.S. security. Refugees face myriad challenges upon arriving to a new city, such as a lack of support networks and language barriers, that further complicate the transition. It is no surprise that at first refugees may lean on others for help, Power said. But what I saw today in Buffalo also echoes what we have seen across America for decades: Given a helping hand and some time to gain their footing, the overwhelming majority of refugees more than pay back the modest support that they receive.

Taking part in the question-and-answer session with Samantha Power (left) were Social Work dean Nancy Smyth (center) and UB graduate Minahil Khan. Photo: Douglas Levere Taking part in the question-and-answer session with Samantha Power (left) were School of Social Work Dean Nancy Smyth (center) and UB graduate Minahil Khan. Photo: Douglas Levere

Power spoke for about 20 minutes, then took part in a 45-minute question-and-answer session moderated by Nancy Smyth, dean of the School of Social Work, and Minahil Khan, a 2016 UB alumna who emigrated to the U.S. from Pakistan with her family when she was in grade school. Several audience members asked Power what they can do to change the anti-immigrant and anti-refugee sentiment that persists in many rural parts of the country. The human element, Power said, is the best way to break through because many refugees have powerful, moving stories of the strife they faced in their native countries. In short, she said, Nobody chooses to be a refugee.

READER COMMENT
The builders merchant industry has come together to celebrate its achievements at the annual BMN Awards.

Marking its 15th year anniversary, the BMN Awards were held on 25 November at the Hilton Park Lane Hotel in London, where 700 key industry figures gathered to celebrate excellence across the merchant sector.

This years winners were:

Website & Digital Initiative of the Year: Williams & Co

Marketing Initiative of the Year: Jewson

Training Initiative of the Year: Parker Building Supplies

Community Initiative of the Year: C&W Berry

Customer Service of the Year: EH Smith

Hard Landscaping Display of the Year: Carvers

Independent Merchant of the Year (1-10 branches): C&W Berry

Independent Merchant of the Year (11-25 branches): LBS Builders' Merchants

Independent Merchant of the Year (26+ branches): MKM Building Supplies

National Merchant of the Year: Selco Builders Merchant

Tool Showroom of the Year: CT Baker

Timber Centre of the Year: Alsford Timber

Supplier of the Year: Keylite

Trainee of the Year: Alix Haddleton, Howarth Timber

Achiever of the Year: Mike Dixon, Builders Supply Company

Branch Manager of the Year: Ben Davies, LBS Builders Merchants

Heating & Plumbing of the Year: Bassetts

Showroom of the Year: LBS Builders Merchant

Lifetime Achievement of the Year: Christine Harding

Hosting the BMN Awards was comedian and television presenter Dara O Briain, who entertained the assembled guests and presented each award to the worthy winners.

The Awards also held a charity prize draw for guests, which raised 5,800 for two industry charities  CRASH and the Rainy Day Trust  while giving away six bottles of champagne and a luxury hamper.
New Jersey rates of STDs on the rise, especially in young adults

As rates of sexually transmitted diseases are increasing across New Jersey, doctors are calling for more screening.
Insolvency and restructuring firm R3 has said UK companies are facing a perfect storm as corporate insolvencies remain at high levels. Corporate insolvencies recently hit their second highest level in a decade, as businesses contend with rising costs, mounting debts and the ongoing impact of COVID-19 and Brexit. During the third quarter of the year, government data showed that the...continue reading
Infosys, which has built its Finacle solution customised for small banks and payments in India is planning to take the platform to its global customers.
The Delhi High Court on Friday adjourned Monsanto's challenge to proceedings initiated against the company and its officials by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) earlier this year, as government co-counsel senior advocate, A S Chandhiok, was unavailable to present his arguments.

His absence though, did not stop either party from continuing their on-going tussle before the single judge. On hearing Chandhiok's unavailability, counsel for Monsanto, Ajit Warrier, highlighted CCI's continuing attempts at delaying proceedings and pressed for the matter to be heard nonetheless in order to avoid any coercive steps being taken against the company.
The Delhi High Court on Friday adjourned hearing of Monsanto's challenge to proceedings initiated against the company and its officials by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) earlier this year, as government co-counsel A S Chandhiok was unavailable.
Cyrus Mistry, who was ousted as the chairman of on October 24, is likely to have an edge at the Tata Power board meeting on Tuesday. As the last of the big six Tata Group companies heads for a board meeting, the buzz is that there wouldnt be any move to replace Mistry as the chairman of Tata Power. A source said that the numbers are not there on the board of Tata Power to remove Mistry. In fact, the attempt of the Tata camp could possibly be to block a vote of confidence for Mistry.
As the boardroom battle rages on, Tata Sons has asked Nusli Wadia to withdraw his legal notice, saying there was nothing vindictive in its resolution seeking his removal as independent director on the board of group firms.
has entered into exclusive negotiations with Liberty House for sale of its loss-making speciality steels business for an enterprise value of 100 million pounds.
Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded handing over of the case to CBI, alleging a deep-rooted conspiracy, "which has deepened" with the arrest of Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.

"Since the Punjab Police DGP Suresh Arora has already admitted to conspiracy and connivance in the matter, the case should not be probed by the Punjab Police and handed over to CBI for an independent investigation," he said.

Amarinder Singh also accused the ruling Akalis of "resorting to communal polarisation when faced with imminent defeat".

"The jail break incident also pointed to such an attempt by the state government," he alleged in a statement here.

Reacting to the arrest of Mintoo less than 24 hours after he dramatically escaped from Nabha jail in Patiala district along with five others yesterday, Amarinder warned against allowing the matter to be pushed under the carpet with the arrest of Mintoo, and called for a thorough probe.

"It is a clear case of connivance," he maintained and added that since Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, the case could jointly be probed by the CBI and the IB, with support from the Delhi Police.

"The ease of his arrest belied Sukhbir Badal's claims of a Pakistani role in the escape of the hardcore terrorist, who has about a dozen terror cases against him," said Amarinder.

"Had the whole thing been plotted from across the border, Mintoo would have by now escaped out of India, instead of waiting in Delhi to be nabbed," he further stated.

The former Punjab Chief Minister demanded "meticulous interrogation" of Mintoo by independent agencies to get at the root of the conspiracy.

"With the entire police and administrative machinery in Punjab in the grip of the Akalis, such blatant incidents of law and order breakdown were to be expected in the run-up to the Assembly polls in the state," he said.

Assembly polls in Punjab are scheduled early next year.

Expressing apprehensions of violence and possible terrorist attacks in the poll-bound state, Amarinder reiterated his demand for imposition of President's Rule to ensure free and fair elections in Punjab.

Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was on Monday nabbed from Delhi railway station.
The Unique ID Authority of India has directed all registrars and enrolment agencies associated with it to enrol applicants of CBSE's Joint Entrance Examination on priority basis.

"UIDAI has directed all its Registrars and enrolment agencies to enrol JEE applicants on priority basis," UIDAI Chief Executive Officer Ajay Bhushan Pandey said in a statement.

CBSE has made card mandatory for JEE applicants.

In its order dated November 26, CBSE said: "All the Indian citizen candidates should possess card issued by UIDAI. At the time of filling application form of JEE (Main)-2017, the candidates will have to enter their number, name, date of birth & gender which will be validated with the UIDAI's data."



UIDAI has already issued more than 108.27 crore Aadhaar numbers to the residents of India.

In the age group of 5-18 years, 24.3 crore Aadhaars (69.5 per cent) have been generated as of November 15, 2016.

"In order to facilitate Aadhaar enrolment on priority basis to the JEE applicants, UIDAI has asked all its Regional Offices to make necessary arrangement of Aadhaar enrolment facility at all its Aadhaar enrolment Centres and also at the facilitation centres in each city of examination being set up by the CBSE till the last date of application," Pandey said.

No payment should be charged by these centres from the applicants for Aadhaar enrolment, he added.
Delhi High Court on Monday reserved its order for Tuesday on a plea seeking relaxation of the Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal limit for marriages after .

The plea, which has also sought that old currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 should be accepted for paying court fees, came up for hearing before a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal.

During the hearing, the counsel appearing for petitioner said that cap of Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal for marriages should be relaxed as there were various "customary donations" which one gives during the wedding ceremony.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, who appeared for the Centre, told the Bench that government has already given relaxation and if certain conditions are not there in place, anyone can misuse it.

"We cannot have an unmeasured and uncanalised situation. We have given exemptions. For wedding, if we will not put conditions, anybody can get a marriage card printed and go to the bank to withdraw Rs 2.5 lakh," the ASG said.

Regarding the issue of payment of court fees, the Bench asked Jain, "We understand that they are accepting it (old currency) for court fees?"

Responding to this, the ASG said that old currency of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 was accepted as court fees and government has given various relaxation on issues concerning common people.

He, however, added that Rs 100 and the new note of Rs 500 are in the market and could also be used for paying court fees.

At the fag end of the hearing, the counsel for the petitioner told the Bench that some kind of liberty should be given to the parents of the bride and groom to withdraw money as per their requirements and the Rs 2.5 lakh cap should be relaxed.

"We will pass order tomorrow," the Bench said.

The High Court is hearing a batch of petitions against Centre's move announced on November 8.

The Supreme Court is also hearing Centre's plea seeking transfer of all petitions pending before various courts across the country to either the apex court or one high court. The hearing is scheduled to take place on December 2.

Last week, the high court had also made it clear that it will not go into the correctness of policy as the apex court is already seized of it, on a plea against the weekly withdrawal cap of Rs 24,000.
A day after daring daylight jailbreak in Nabha, Punjab, Khalistan Liberation Force Chief was arrested from Delhi on Monday.



Mintoo was arrested in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Special Crime Branch of the Delhi Police.





"Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police," said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh.
The Surat couple who grabbed headlines for serving just chaai and paani (tea and water) to their guests on their marriage post demonetisation, felt immensely happy when Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned them in his Mann Ki Baat radio programme on Sunday.

Daksha the bride, was overjoyed when the Prime Minister mentioned them.

"We felt extremely happy to hear that Prime Minister Modi was able to get to know about us. It seems our message has reached him. Even our family members are happy," she told ANI.

"The reason we chose tea was because our very own Prime Minister holds discussion over tea (Jis chai pe Modi ji charcha karte hain usi chai pe humne shaadi karnne ka socha)," she added.

In the 26th edition of his Mann Ki Baat programme, Prime Minister Modi yesterday said , "I used to talk about 'Chai pe charcha' during elections; never knew this will reach marriage halls," while adding, "A couple in Surat got married offering just tea.
The capital on Monday witnessed protests by Opposition parties against which caused traffic snarls in several areas.

All Left parties, including CPI(M) and CPI, took out a procession against from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar.

Due to the protest, traffic jams were witnessed on roads leading to Jantar Mantar.

Congress is also observing 'Jan Akrosh Diwas' against the manner in which move was implemented.

NSUI, student wing of the Congress, had also planned a protest march from Raisina Road to Parliament but police personnel barricaded the area and did not allow them to proceed.

Heavy police deployment was made to thwart any attempt to march towards Parliament. Water cannons were also stationed at the protest site.

While hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, senior Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said that people are suffering due to the Centre's decision.

He said that yesterday the PM in his 'Maan ki Baat' had said that there should be a cashless soceity.

"PM should know that how many people have bank accounts and use credit and debit cards," the Congress leader said.

Delhi Traffic police said that due to protest by Opposition parties, traffic was heavy at Inner circle Connaught Place.
A student seeking the is now able to get an interview slot in a week's time at the US Consulate in Hyderabad as compared to a 3-4 month wait just a year ago.

This big change has been primarily attributed to the increase in the number of interview counters by the consulate, which was deemed necessary in order to cope up with the growing pressure of visa applications, a good chunk of which consists of students.
Defence Minister dared enemies to shoot him, saying he had given up his official bullet-proof Ambassador and was using a non-bullet proof vehicle.

"The car stopped after every two days. I bid goodbye to the Ambassador and asked for a regular white car without bullet proofing. If someone wants to shoot me, shoot me. But as far as those who wish to shoot these bullets are concerned, we will not let them reach Delhi alive," Parrikar said.

The Defence Minister was speaking at an election rally in Aldona village in North Goa, 20 kms from Panaji.
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Congress workers on Monday held protests outside the residences of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and other BJP leaders across the state to highlight the cash crunch faced by people following demonetisation, on the eve of 'Bharat bandh' called by opposition parties.

Clarifying that Congress never backed 'Bharat bandh' call given by opposition parties tomorrow, the party said its workers would instead hold protests against the problems being faced by common people in procuring new currency notes.

"Congress was never associated with the Bharat bandh call. Gujarat Congress had only given a call for Gujarat bandh tomorrow, which we have decided to postpone. Instead, our workers will hold demonstrations across the state by observing the day as 'Jan Akrosh Diwas'," state unit party president Bharatsinh Solanki told reporters here.

He said new programmes would be launched against government if the ground situation on cash crunch doesn't improve within a week from now.

The party held protests in various parts of the state on Monday.

In Rajkot, at least 30 workers of Congress were detained for staging protests outside the Chief Minister's bungalow located near Nirmala Convent School.

The workers shouted slogans against and demanded Rs 100 notes in exchange of scrapped currency of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 from Rupani, who was not present in his house at the time of the demonstration.

"Congress workers gathered outside CM's residence and started demanding Rs 100 notes as part of their protest against . We have detained around 30 workers," said DCP (zone-II), Karanraj Vaghela.

Agitations demanding Rs 100 notes were also held in Ahmedabad, Morbi, Vadodara, Bhavnagar, Himmatnagar, Navsari, Anand, Bharuch, Mehsana and other towns.

In Ahmedabad, around 50 Congress workers were detained by Bopal police for staging protests outside the bungalow of former chief minister Anandiben Patel.

MLAs from the city, including Bhushan Bhatt (Khadia) and R M Patel (Asarwa) too faced similar agitations.

In Ranip area, around 30 Congress workers were detained by police for holding protest outside the residence of BJP MP from Ahmedabad (West) Kirit Solanki.
Joining the nation-wide 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' against of high value currency, ruling Congress in Karnataka on Monday held protests and rallies throughout the state against the Narendra Modi government's action.

The protest affected the functioning of both the Houses of Karnataka Legislature, now in a 10-day winter session at Belagavi, as they did not sit today in line with the decision taken by the Business Advisory Committee (BAC).

BAC had decided to suspend the sitting amid opposition by BJP, which walked out of the meeting on Friday.

An extra day of session would be held on December 3 to make up for the loss of business today.

Life in Bengaluru and elsewhere remained normal with commercial establishments, educational institutions, banks and private offices working as usual and public transport and Metro maintaining their regular services.

Official reports said barring protests by Congress, the situation in the entire state, including the districts of Mysuru, Gadag, Haveri, Belagavi, Kalaburgi, Chamrajanagar, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada and Kolar, was normal.

In Bengaluru, Congress staged a demonstration in front of Town Hall near City Market at the nucleus of the city, where State Working President R Gundu Rao, a few legislators and local leaders took part.

At the protest, Congress workers raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and carried placards against which they said has "hurt the common people".

Hundreds of Congress workers led by Rao took out a procession to Mysore Bank Circle in the heart of the city, causing major traffic snarls.

Congress workers set afire tyres in Kalaburgi and Ballari and formed human chains in Ramanagara and Mandya.

Countering Congress, BJP workers observed "Sambhram Divas" (Celebration Day) to back and distributed sweets and offered flowers to people in Mysuru, Belagavi, Chamarajnagar and Mandya and other places and raised slogans hailing Modi.

'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' did not strike chord as expected as the state has seen five days of bandhs, protests and strikes in the last four months, including one on Cauvery water issue with Tamil Nadu which was marked by large-scale violence.

Janata Dal (Secular) had made it clear it would not join the protests though, while endorsing the fight against black money, it was against the manner against which demonetisation was implemented as it was "an unrealistic decision which has been forced on the people."



In Bengaluru, various associations representing cab operators, trucks and private bus transporters and autorikshaws did not support the protest.

Police had stepped security across the state, deploying armed and reserve forces to prevent any trouble.

In Bengaluru, some 15,000 policemen were on duty, apart from platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police and City Armed Reserve.
Piyush Goyal, Union power minister, told jewellers in South Mumbai on Saturday to go cashless and assured them the government was working on reducing the costs involved in such transactions.
Hundreds of workers from various opposition parties, led by DMK, were arrested on Monday when they staged protests across Tamil Nadu against the Centre over the manner in which the was being implemented.

Besides DMK, leaders and workers of its allies -- Congress, IUML and Left parties were among those who hit the streets as part of the nation-wide protests, slamming the ban on Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes as a "war on rural poor" and causing "hardship" to the common man.

DMK Treasurer M K Stalin, state secretaries of CPI-M and CPI G Ramakrishnan and R Mutharasan respectively, along with a several workers of their parties were among those arrested when they staged protests separately in front of Central government offices and nationalised banks, police said.

Leading his party's charge here, Stalin lashed out at the Narendra Modi government for the manner in which the is being implemented, saying it had crippled almost all sectors.

"They got votes promising development, but made this sudden announcement which has crippled the development of all sectors. There are 85 crore Indians living in rural parts and the Centre has launched a war on them with this move," he said.

The Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly said eradicating blackmoney is not wrong but asked the Centre to "correct the shortcomings" in implementing the move.

"People believe that entire India suffered a tsunami on November 8," he said alluding to the sudden announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 would cease to be legal tenders.

Referring to Modi seeking a 50-day window to fight blackmoney, Stalin said that 20 days have already passed since Modi made the announcement on but the Centre had not made any effort to solve the problems, like the queues at banks and ATMs.

"Small traders, vegetable vendors, farmers and farm labourers, owners of petty shops, everybody is suffering untold miseries because of the demonetisation," he claimed.

The DMK leader said today's protest should not be seen as one being held by DMK or the Opposition but by the "people all over the country".

DMK held protests all over the state and was joined by its allies Congress and IUML. State Congress chief Su Thirunavukarasar also led a demonstration by Congress workers here.
Seeking to break the deadlock, Home Minister Rajnath Singht on Monday told Lok Sabha that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak on if the Opposition wanted, but the rival parties demanding debate with a provision for voting remained unimpressed, forcing the House to adjourn for the second time.

A number of opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge (Cong), Sudip Bandhopadhyay (TMC) and Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), spoke as they pressed for acceptance of their demand for an adjournment motion, a condition not acceptable to the treasury benches which want a debate without voting.

With the Opposition parties firm on their stand, Singh said nobody is questioning the government's intentions over or imputing any malafide.

He said that the government was willing to listen to the complaints and suggestions different parties have over the execution of the move.

"As far as the Prime Minister coming to the House is concerned, if the Opposition wants he will come and intervene. I want to assure the Opposition. We are ready for a discussion," the Home Minister said during the Zero Hour, after the Opposition leaders had spoken.

The decision on under which rule the discussion would take place is for the Speaker to make, he said.

Demonetisation is a "historic, bold and pro-poor" decision, Singh said, adding that it was taken to target black money and was in national interest.

However, members of a dissatisfied Opposition rushed to the Well, forcing Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to adjourn the House till 1400 hours.

Earlier, Kharge said demonetisation had harmed the economic system, the farmers, youths, labourers and women among others who are in distress.

Maintaining that over 70 people have died due to the faulty implementation, he cited the incident of a Union Minister facing difficulty in paying hospital bills after his brother died and said it is an evidence of the crisis. Union Minister Sadananda Gowda's brother had died in Karnataka.

"There is only one way to break this deadlock. The Prime Minister should come here (to the House) and our adjournment motion be accepted," Kharge said.

Bandhopadhyay said the government must take initiative to break the impasse as people will ask what does Parliament stand for, if it is adjourned everyday.

Supporting Kharge, the SP chief said if Modi does not come to the House on such an important matter, then when he will come. Farmers are facing a lot of problems, he said.

Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav (RJD) called the decision impractical and anti-people.

An AIADMK member said the government should take initiative to ease people's sufferings, while B Mahtab (BJD) said the onus was on the Centre to take steps to break the impasse.

Anandrao Adsul (Shiv Sena) said neither 'Bharat Bandh' nor 'Aakrosh Diwas', which different opposition parties have announced for today, was visible but lamented that the recent announcement of NABARD disbursing Rs 21,000 crore to cooperative banks has not been implemented. Situation remains bad in rural areas, he said.
Away from the India where Mother Dairies and Kendriya Bhandars feed a few  mostly employees of the Central government  much of rural India is stretched thin for access to food. As the government undertakes a series of knee-jerk policy measures to counter the adverse impacts of demonetisation, it is overlooking the severe threat that the food security of India's poor is facing from these policies.
Expansion, Modernization and Up-Gradation of Ports

Expansion, modernization and up-gradation of Major Ports in the country is an ongoing process to keep the ports abreast with new technologies and also to promote trade and cargo. 62 PPP Projects with an investment of Rs.49,049 crore are under implementation and operation. For the year 2016-17, 33 projects with an investment of Rs.9,845 crore have been taken up. Port Master Plans for 12 major ports have been prepared keeping in view the requirements for cargo handling till 2035. A total of 142 Port Modernization projects have been identified in the Master Plans.

These identified projects will be taken up for implementation in phases.

9 Fishing Harbour projects of total cost of Rs.627 crore have also been identified for implementation in convergence mode with Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairies and Fisheries. An amount of Rs.50 crore has earmarked during 2016-17 for development of landing facilities and jetties in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and navigational facilities in Lakshadweep group of Islands.

Six potential port locations have been identified, namely- Vadhavan (Maharashtra), Sagar Island (West Bengal), Paradip Outer Harbour (Odisha), Enayam (Tamil Nadu), Sirkazhi (Tamil Nadu) and Belekeri(Karnataka).

Three Coastal Economic Zones (CEZs) have been identified in Gujarat. The probable districts to be covered in these CEZs are Junagarh, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Amreli, Bhavnagar, Ahmedabad, Anand, Vadodra, Bharuch, Surat, Navsari and Valsad.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Shipping Shri Mansukh L. Mandavia in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
FM: Present Government has taken a new initiative by setting-up a modern insolvency mechanism based on the best practices in the world; Hope that it will deliver the desired results; Hands-over the Certificates of Registration to these two Insolvency Professional Agency (IPA) companies. .

The Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Shri Arun Jaitley said that the present Government has taken a new initiative by setting-up a modern insolvency mechanism based on the best practices in the world. He said that the process of setting-up of an insolvency mechanisam including setting-up of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) was done by the present Government in the shortest possible time. The Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister was speaking at the function organized by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) here today in order to give away the Certificates of Registration to two Insolvency Professional Agency (IPA) companies. .

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The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley further said that there are lot of expectations from this new insolvency mechanism and sure that it will deliver the desired results in years to come. .

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Earlier, the Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Shri Jaitley handed-over the Certificates of Registration to these two Insolvency Professional Agency (IPA) companies. .

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An Insolvency Professional Agency is a front line regulator for the insolvency professionals. It enrolls professional members, lays down standards of professional conduct for them and monitors their performance. It also redresses the grievances of consumers against its members. .

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The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has granted registration to the following two Section 8 (not-for-profit) companies to act as insolvency professional agencies (IPAs) under the IBBI (Insolvency Professional Agencies) Regulations, 2016: .

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a. Indian Institute of Insolvency Professionals of ICAI, and .

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b. ICSI Insolvency Professionals Agency. .

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With the notification of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Insolvency Professionals) Regulations, 2016, the IPAs can start enrolling the professional members from 29th November, 2016. This takes one step closer to implementation of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016. .

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PM meets a group of underprivileged students from Wardha, Maharashtra

A group of underprivileged students from Wardha, Maharashtra met Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today at New Delhi.

The students were on Delhi Tour called "Sapane Sach Huwe", organised by a service organisation.
Special Package for Steel Sector

Indian Steel Association and Indian Chamber of Commerce had sent representation to Ministry of Steel for working out a suitable comprehensive package to support steel sector. Their representations have been forwarded to Department of Financial Services.

To curb cheap imports of steel products into the country the Government has imposed the Minimum Import Price (MIP) on 173 HS Tariff lines concerning steel products vide Notification no. 38/2015-20 dated 5th February, 2016 for the period of six months.

Further MIP on 66 HS Tariff lines was continued for period of two months vide Notification No. 20/2015-20 dated 4th August, 2016 and further extended upto 4th December, 2016 vide Notification No.30/2015-20 dated 4th October, 2016. Government has imposed in June, 2015, Anti-Dumping Duty on imports of certain variety of hot-rolled flat products of stainless steel from China ($ 309 per tonne), Korea ($ 180 per tonne) and Malaysia ($ 316 per tonne).

The Minister of State for Steel Shri Vishnu Deo Sai gave this information in reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today.

YSK/Uma
Zinc soared to a nine-year high on Monday and lead hit a five-year peak as reports of more infrastructure investment in and signs of strong property investment in the world's top metals user sparked heavy buying. Zinc, used to galvanise steel, was the biggest winner as Chinese steel futures jumped to 31 month-highs, driven also by a rotation of funds into risky assets, supported by optimism over global growth into 2017.
Oil climbed as Iraqs oil minister said it pledged to cooperate with Opec to reach an agreement this week thats acceptable to all members. Futures rose as much as 3.5 per cent in New York after earlier declining. Iraqs Oil Minister Jabbar al-Luaibi said Monday hes optimistic a deal will be reached at Opecs summit in Vienna on Wednesday. Saudi Arabia previously said that the producer group doesnt necessarily need to curb oil output, after pulling out of a scheduled meeting with non-members including Russia. The Organization ...
Public sector units (PSUs) are set to make a comeback at Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) campuses this final placement season.



According to the premier institutes, confirmations from PSUs, especially from core sector have been on the rise, ahead of the final placements process that begins on December 1.



For instance, while the Indian Navy and ISRO have already completed interviews at Madras, the likes of ONGC and Coal India have confirmed participation and likely to come soon for campus placements. Among the core sectors, oil marketing companies (OMCs) like IOCL, BPCL and HPCL and heavy engineering firms like BHEL are likely to visit campuses too.



According to placement officials of various IITs, hiring through PSUs at IITs has been boosted by the Madras High Court ruling in favour of PSUs last year allowing them to pick students from campuses. Also, barring computer science, students from other streams are witnessing a growing inkling towards PSUs, especially in oil and gas and heavy machinery sectors. Most of the IITs Business Standard spoke to refused to divulge further details on names of recruiters in these sectors.



"We have established contact with several PSUs who have responded well and we have had core sectors show interest too. Two of them have already completed placements while others are expected to come soon," V Babu, Advisor for Training & Placements at Madras told Business Standard.



Since not all PSUs follow the same recruiting pattern as the private sector recruiters, IITs have urged the former to visit during the placement season that begins in December for hiring on-campus. "The PSUs may come in their own time of hiring though we requested them to maintain our placement time of December. The regular PSU recruiters will, however, be coming in December," said Debasis Deb, chairman of IIT Kharagpur's Career Development Centre.



Moreover, IITs have also upped the ante by recruiting more number of PSUs and core sector companies as against last year. "We are reaching out to more number of PSUs this year," said Shyam Nair, chairman - students placement office at IIT Kanpur, while refusing to divulge further details.



Followed by core sector and PSUs, confirmations from analytics and consulting too have seen increase over last year at IITs. "We have seen an increase in confirmations from the core sector. We have also seen an increase in number of business analytics firms coming for placements this season," Deb added.



Following the blacklisting of 31 statups, IITs had consciously decided this year on shifting their focus to other sectors, including PSUs and core sectors, which seems to be reaping results now.



"We are hopeful that PSUs will come a bit early this year. It will be a win-win situation for anybody. This time we are requesting them to come a bit early. PSUs hire in a good number usually and it is almost a dream job for students," said K Mohanty, placement chairperson at IIT Guwahati had told Business Standard earlier.
The country's crop faces the prospect of a warmer-than-usual winter. If it remains above normal during harvest, this could be a problem; presently, sowing is on.
Industry players have expressed reservations to a proposal to change the accounting year from April-March to January-December. A central government-appointed committee held meetings with industry participants, which included representatives from corporate India, banks, rating agencies and consultancy firms, last week to gather feedback on the issue. The meeting was also attended by few a officials of the Securities and Exchange Board of India and Reserve Bank of India.
has surged 17% to Rs 727 on BSE in intra-day trade after the board fixed an issue price of Rs 800 per share for of 611,986 equity shares on preferential basis.
Asserting that he has always condemned terrorism or killing of any innocent human, controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik on Monday said it is atrocious even to imply that some youth, who have joined the ISIS, are influenced by him.

"I am followed by more than 100 million people from across the world through television, Facebook and YouTube. Alhumdulillah, tens of thousands of people have come closer to Islam after listening to my talks and videos on topics that have ranged from misconceptions about Islam, Qur'an, Modern Science, education, women's rights in Islam, family issues, Islamic view on terrorism and Jihad and many others," Naik told ANI.

Asserting that he inspires many to come closer to Islam, Naik said his every follower may not do everything he says.

"Once a person comes closer to Islam, there are possibilities that he is exposed to other speakers as well, some of whom misguide them in the name of Islam. They encourage them to kill innocent people, which is totally against the Qur'an. If you listen to my talks, you will not find a single video where I have condoned terrorism or killing any innocent human beings," he added.

Naik also asserted that he has been giving lectures for more than 20 years, adding there is not a single event where he has ever encouraged anyone to kill any other innocent human being.

"In the media and elsewhere, I am being misquoted through half sentences and out of context clips, which try to give an impression that I promote terrorism. I'm totally against terrorism. I condemn all acts of terrorism, including killing of innocent human beings, which is considered as the second major sin in Islam. Islam and Qur'an are totally against all acts of terrorism, including killing of innocent human beings and that is what I've always preached," he said.

"I am sure you agree that I have good oratory skills. So if I was really spreading terror, wouldn't I have made a few lakh terrorists by now? Not just a handful? The fact is that I have always preached peace and harmony and how to become good human beings by following Qur'anic tenets," he added.

While asserting that in a fan following of millions there may be a handful of anti-social elements who will go astray and take up violence, Naik said they are surely not following what he has told them, adding the moment they pick up senseless violence they cease to be Islamic and they surely lose his support.

Refuting links of the ISIS to IRF, Naik dubbed it as 'pure fabrication'.

He further alleged that there is a concerted effort by the government and its agencies to create an air of negativity around him and label him as a hatemonger.

"Till date, they have not provided a single proof to substantiate their claims. That's because none exist and all that agencies are claiming are chatter and nothing else. What I am doing now is the same work I have been doing for 25 years. Do you really think my so-called "terrorist activities" would have been hidden from multiple intelligence agencies for so long?" he said.

Naik also said he is in no position to confirm or refute reports regarding IRF funding Anas, a youth from Rajasthan who apparently has joined the ISIS.

"I can tell you that it is highly improper and childish to allege that IRF's scholarship money was used to "fund terror". That's not possible because the scholarship amount goes straight to the institution and not to the student. Once the student submits the fee structure of his institution, a cheque is made out in the name of the institution and sent directly to the institution," he said.

"In some cases, the student may have paid the fees by taking loans or organising money from someone if the last date will be due. In such a case, IRF pays to the student's account directly. Can anyone digest the claim that IRF funds terror and out of Rs 64 crores received in past 25 years, used only Rs. 80,000 for funding terror? he added.

The controversial Islamic preacher further said the IRF funds education of underprivileged children across the country, adding the NGO has been doing the same for several years now.

"It gives scholarships of more than Rs. one crore every year. Scholarships are given in the field of medicine, engineering, management studies accountancy, etc. Thousands of needy students have benefitted from it over the years," he added.

Asserting that IRF carries out several social programmes in education and health by donating money to several other NGOs, hospitals and educational institutions, Naik said it is done by granting scholarships to needy students and donating money to hospitals for treatment of the poor.

"The IRF also runs its own free medical clinic in Mumbra, Mumbai that gives free treatment to more than 5,000 patients a month. Under a similar programme, IRF donated Rs. 50 lakh to Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) few years ago, which the Trust later returned in July 2016 for reasons better known to them," he added.

On allegations of money laundering by IRF in the funds received from abroad, Naik alleged that there is a concerted witch hunting going on with an objective of implicating him by hook or by crook.

"The 47 crore in question came from my personal account in Dubai to my personal account in Mumbai in the last six plus years. It was duly declared by me in the returns and used for lawful activities including giving gifts and loans to my family members. I don't know where is the problem in that? The media has claimed that the government authorities disclosed that Dr Zakir Naik's family members have received money from Middle Eastern countries," he said.

"I challenge the authorities to prove that any of my immediate family members have received even a small fraction of the 47 crores from Middle Eastern countries they are claiming," he added.

Stating that every year more than 12 billion US dollars (over Rs. 80,000 crores) is officially sent from UAE to India by NRIs and a majority of that amount is sent by non-Muslims, Naik said that he has sent an average of Rs. 7.8 crores a year back to India in the past six years (total Rs. 47 crores).

"It is all official. It's the money I earned as an NRI sent back to India through official channels. What is illegal about it? There are hundreds of non Muslims sending more than hundred crore rupees every year from UAE to India. Let me remind you that out of the list of 100 richest Indians living in the Gulf countries 80 percent are non-Muslims," he added.

"There is another figure of Rs. 64 crores that media is saying that ED is claiming that IRF collected illegally. Although I cannot confirm this figure as accurate because we don't have the documents with us anymore, it is surely an amount received by IRF in donations over the last 25 years. That is close to Rs 2.50 crores per year. Lesser in earlier years and more in later years. More importantly, what the NIA is not saying is that more than Rs. 50 crores out of the total are donations received from Indians living right here in India," he said.

Naik further said the IRF received about Rs. 14 crores in the FCRA account over the past 15 years.

"Out of this, about Rs. four crores were from NRIs living abroad. Only about Rs. 10 crores were received from foreign donors in the last about 15 years. All of this was duly declared to the Ministry of Home Affairs including the amounts, the names and the addresses of the donors. So, where is the question of money laundering?" he added.

The IRF chief also dared the government to ban and close all organisations funded by his NGO.

"If the government really thinks IRF is doing money laundering then why do they not ban and close down all the institutions we have given donations to which was published in the media. All the donations we gave to all the organizations and institutions are legal and within the framework of law," said Naik.

"Why do they only talk about Rajiv Gandhi Trust? Why do they not close down KJ Somaiya Trust in Sion Mumbai, Nair Hospital in Mumbai Central, Devilal Memorial Trust, Association of Management Studies and many others as published in media few days ago? Why are they only after IRF Educational Trust which is managing Islamic International School? The answer is they want to misuse their power on minorities," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Some of Australia's best minds are in India this week taking part in a conference designed to highlight the important contribution of women and boost their participation in the science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) sectors.

Australian High Commissioner to India Harinder Sidhu, who will help open the conference, said gender equality in these critical areas of research was a challenge shared by countries worldwide.

"There are many attractive careers in STEMM - the Australian Government has committed $13 million for initiatives to encourage more girls and women to pursue careers in these sectors. Australia is leading by example to increase female participation through measures under the $1.1 billion National Innovation and Agenda," Sidhu said.

A ten-member Australian delegation will take part in the first ever Australia- India-UK trilateral 'Women in STEMM' workshop in New Delhi, which has brought together scientists, research leaders and government officials from the three nations.

The workshop will address gender equality and identify practical ways to inspire young women into study and careers in these sectors, improve their participation in the workforce, and develop a new generation of leaders and entrepreneurs.

The workshop will begin a dialogue to help support international engagement to promote awareness and find solutions on gender equality issues in Australia, India and the UK.

The workshop is a part of the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF), which has helped build a strong collaborative research partnership between Australia and India over the past 10 years. The Australian Academy of Science, supported by an AISRF grant, has organised the workshop in conjunction with the Indian Ministry of and Technology, the British High Commission and the Australian High Commission in New Delhi.

The AISRF is Australia's largest international collaboration fund: the Australian Government has committed a total of $84 million up until 2019. Since it was established in 2006, the AISRF has supported more than 260 joint projects, workshops, fellowships and other collaborative activities.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned the hearing on ban on beef in Maharashtra and its export for eight weeks.

The apex court earlier on September 2 issued notice to the Maharashtra Government on this matter.

Earlier, the top court had issued notice to the BJP-led state government on a petition challenging a Bombay High Court order, permitting consumption of beef brought from states that allow cow slaughter.

The Bombay High Court had in May upheld the ban on slaughter of bulls and bullocks in Maharashtra, while making it clear that mere possession of beef of animals slaughtered outside the state cannot invite criminal action.

The High Court struck down Sections 5(d) and 9(b) of the Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act which criminalised and imposed punishment for possession of beef of animals slaughtered in the state or outside.

Around 36 beef dealers associations across Maharashtra had in August filed a petition in the top court challenging the ban.

The dealers want the court to permit the slaughter of cattle - bulls and bullocks, not cows - of more than 16 years of age. They said that after the age of 16, cattle are too old to be used for farming and other activities.

The petition has challenged the constitutional validity of the Maharashtra Animals Preservation (Amendment) Act, 2015, that bans the slaughter, possession, consumption and import of beef in the state.

In March last year, the BJP-led state government had banned the slaughtering of bulls, bullocks and cows by amending the Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act, 1976, that was challenged in the Bombay High Court.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
African oil producers throw weight behind OPEC efforts to stabilize market

The African Petroleum Producers' Association (APPA) has expressed their support to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) efforts to stabilize the oil markets, ahead of the cartel meeting scheduled next Wednesday in Vienna to implement Algiers Agreement.

The APPA "expresses its support to Algiers Agreement and joins the efforts aiming at the stabilization of oil markets of OPEC member countries," said its president Adama Toungara, Ivory Coast minister for Energy in a letter sent to Energy Minister Noureddine Boutarfa.

During the 52nd ordinary meeting of APPA Expert Committee recently held in Benins Cotonou, the member countries committed to support the OPEC member counties in their efforts to stabilize the market.

"Recognizing the repercussions of the fall in oil prices on the African countries economies and considering that the historical decision taken by OPEC in Algiers gave a real impulse to the market," the APPA member countries expressed at the end of this meeting, their "support for the OPEC process to deal with the fall in oil prices" and support "any effort of the OPEC member countries for stabilizing prices in the oil markets".

In this regard, Algeria has intensified its commitment for the implementation of the Algiers Agreement.

Energy Minister Boutarfa has thus started talks with the OPEC member countries to provide the best conditions for a consensual, just and balanced deal which will allow the implementation of Algiers Agreement.

www.opec.org
A perfect daughter to a proud father- Bindi Irwin proves it again during the Thanksgiving weekend.

The 18-year-old daughter of crocodile hunter Steve Irwin, who died in 2006 after being attacked by a stingray, continued to honour her late father's legacy while attending the 10th annual Steve Irwin Gala dinner, reports E! Online.

Before the philanthropic event, where Steve's passion for animals was felt by many, officially began, the former 'Dancing With the Stars' champion hit the red carpet with her boyfriend Chandler Powell, mother Terri and younger brother Robert.

"Tonight we will be raising funds for all of the animals that come through our doors at the Wildlife Hospital for life saving treatment," Bindi explained to her followers before stepping on stage. "Together, we're continuing Dad's legacy to protect our wildlife. Thank you for sharing this journey with us."

She even took to the Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors Instagram page to give fans an inside look into the event and also shared some moments from past, with her daddy dearest.

In between honouring the youngest change-makers or reliving all the positive work done in the past 12 months, Bindi couldn't help but acknowledge the man who started it all.

"As the #SteveIrwinGala comes to an end this year we reflect on the beautiful memories we have of the ultimate Wildlife Warrior, my Dad, Steve Irwin," she shared on Instagram. "His legacy will live on forever."

Back in September, family, friends and fans marked the 10-year anniversary of Steve's death. While the family marked the occasion in private, the lovely daughter shared a heartfelt post on the same day as Australia's Father's Day.

"You'll be my hero for my entire existence. I love you more than words can describe," she wrote with a throwback photo.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Tamil Nadu Police on Monday arrested three suspected Al-Qaeda men in Madurai, in connection with the bombings at six courts in South India.

The three men are being questioned in Madurai and they will be taken to Mysore for future investigation.

All the three men arrested were involved in bombings at six courts including Mysore, Chittoor, Kollam, Nellore and Malappuram.

The arrested men were Karim, Ayuf and Abbas Ali who functioned as Al Qaeda "base movement" in Madurai.

According to police reports, they were targeting 22 leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and two men involved in the untoward plan are absconding still.

On April 7th, three people were injured and several vehicles damaged after a crude bomb went off on the premises of district court in Chittoor town of Andhra Pradesh.

On November 2nd a low-intensity blast took place on the premises of judicial magistrate court in Malappuram, in north Kerala.

According to reports, the police recovered a pamphlet from the blast scene, which attributed the attack to "Base Movement", an outfit suspected to be involved in earlier low-intensity blasts at court complexes in Chittoor (Andhra Pradesh) on April 7, Kollam (Kerala) on June 15, Mysuru (Karnataka) on August 1 and Nellore (Andhra Pradesh) on September 12.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
General Zubair Mahmood Hayat took over as the 17th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) on Monday from the outgoing chairman General Rashad Mehmood during an official ceremony at the joint staff headquarters in Rawalpindi.

General Hayat was presented with a guard of honour at a ceremony attended by all chiefs of staff, including outgoing army chief Gen Raheel Sharif. Incoming army chief General Qamar Javedd Bajwa was also present on the occasion, the Dawn reports.

Theoretically, the CJCSC has to be the senior-most four-star officer from any of the three services - army, navy and air force.

However, since the establishment of the National Command Authority (NCA), the army has staked a claim to its leadership, because it controls the key areas of nuclear command and strategic assets.

The CJCSC is also the deputy chairman of NCA's deployment committee, which is headed by the prime minister.

General Zubair Hayat is from the artillery and was serving as Chief of General Staff (CGS) prior to taking over as CJCSC.

Given his career trajectory, General Hayat was always expected to become the CJCSC.

As a three-star general, he was previously posted as director general of the Strategic Plans Division (SPD) - which is the secretariat of the NCA - and corps commander Bahawalpur. This made him an ideal choice for the post of CJCSC, who has an almost exclusive jurisdiction over nuclear forces and assets.

His stay at the directorate and his earlier posting as principal staff officer to the army chief brought him closer to General Kayani, and he is generally seen as General Kayani's protege.

His postings as CGS and DG SPD afforded him an opportunity to work very closely with PM Nawaz Sharif and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.

During his tenure as a major general, he was general officer commanding (GOC) Sialkot and later headed the Staff Duties (SD) Directorate, whose personnel are commonly known in the army as 'paper tigers'.

Some of those who worked with him describe him as workaholic and a voracious reader. He is also said to have a very sharp memory.

General Zubair is a second generation officer. His father retired as a major general, while two of his brothers are generals - Pakistan Ordnance Factories Wah Chairman Lt. Gen. Omar Hayat and Inter-Services Intelligence DG (Analysis) Major General Ahmad Mahmood Hayat.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the wake of the protests by the opposition parties, the Central Government has decided to form a sub-committee of Chief Ministers to deal with the demonetisation issue.

This come as a united opposition is leaving no stone unturned in taking potshots at the government post the decision.

Demanding that this decision should be rolled back for not being implemented properly, the opposition parties have also alleged that this exposed the 'anti-poor' stand of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government as the general public is the worst hit.

So far, only two Chief Ministers - Bihar's Nitish Kumar and Odisha's Naveen Patnaik - have voiced their support for the Centre.

Nitish has said he supported the currency ban as he is "convinced" that it would help in the fight against black money while Patnaik has praised the move as a bold step.

The ruling BJP at the Centre is also facing the wrath of its alliance partners as the Shiv Sena has alleged that the implementation of demonetisation has not been done in an appropriate manner and said it is not only 'one party's monopoly' to end corruption.

Talking to ANI, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut wondered as to when would the long queues outside banks and ATMs in cities and rural areas of the country end.

"We also supported the Centre's demonetisation move but the middle class has been suffering due to this in Maharashtra and we are just trying to bring that in front of the government. I don't think there is anything wrong in that. The implementation is not done in the right way. Everyone is against corruption. It's not only one party's monopoly to end corruption; everyone is patriotic and wants good for the country," he added.

Moreover, the ongoing disruptions in Parliament have also posed an obstacle for the government, which is looking forward to the passage of pending bills in the Winter Session.

Meanwhile, the Lok Sabha has been adjourned for the day after witnessing repeated adjournments since morning as opposition members continued their demand for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence during discussion on the demonetisation issue.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today told the Lok Sabha that the government's intention about the decision on demonetisation is unquestionable.

Describing the decision as "historic, bold and pro-poor", Singh said the decision has been considered in the interest of the nation.

"As far as the discussion on the issue is concerned, the government is ready for a debate," he added while assuring the opposition that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be present in the House and will also speak when the discussion on the issue will begin.

Despite the Home Minister's assertion, the opposition continued with their slogans.

Uproar continued in the Rajya Sabha as well as the opposition Congress members continued to troop into the well of the House raising slogans against the government's decision.

Stating that no steps were taken to address the problems of the people following demonetisation, the opposition members have been demanding the Prime Minister to put forth his stand on the issue in Rajya Sabha.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Rajya Sabha member has said he is pained by the unacceptable activities and abuses that he is being subjected to by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's supporters.

He said the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance and it was time for him to speak to party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, who has stood by him even against the wishes of his son.

"A senior leader, while speaking against demonetisation in the Rajya Sabha, said action should be taken against me. At the time when the senior leader was speaking in the Rajya Sabha, an FIR was being registered against me in Azamgarh at the behest of a senior minister, as an SSP told me. Had I not registered a counter complaint in advance, and had I not informed the IB, and had I not informed a New Delhi DCP, then the Uttar Pradesh Government would have possibly arrested me on those charges," Singh told ANI.

"My effigies are being burnt in Azamgarh and Lucknow; a minister of the state government is doing so to please the chief minister, and the chief minister who is the son of a person whom I regard as a brother. In such a situation what would you feel? I am pained by such things. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," said Amar Singh, a confidante and long-time friend of the SP's national president.

"Mulayam Singhji against his son's wishes stood with me publically, which is a debt on me. Hence, I don't want to hurt him, but now the matter has crossed all limits of tolerance," he added.

Recalling that he had said in an interview to a news channel that the political face of Uttar Pradesh will change by October-November, close to the state polls, he said, "My statement, which I had given as a political analyst, was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji."

"I had said that after observing Modiji's working style. He gives a long leverage to his political opponents, and when there is an election, he comes to the field displaying his special skills," he said.

"In West Bengal, all stings against Mamata's cabinet ministers were on corruption, it's another thing that it did not have any surprising impact on the voters. Madan Mitra, a cabinet-level minister - as the matter is in the court, I will not say that Modiji and Amit Shahji got him arrested due to some malice - but he was arrested just before the elections and has not been released till today," said Singh to buttress his statement on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah's style of functioning.

But my statement was interpreted as if I want to displace Akhilesh to reinstate Mulayam Singhji. I have not threatened anybody, and I will speak to Mulayam Singhji," he added.

Speaking to ANI on October 27, Singh, who kept himself away from the media during infighting in Mulayam Singh Yadav's clan and was portrayed as a villain by Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, had said he might not be with CM Akhilesh, but would always be with Mulayam's son Akhilesh.

"I may not be with CM Akhilesh, but I will always be with Mulayam Singh Yadav's son Akhilesh. The father of the SP and the chief minister are the same, and god stands as a testimony that whenever I spoke to Netaji, it was in favour of Akhilesh, Netaji also knows this truth," Singh told ANI while responding to Akhilesh's allegations.

"When I was struggling for life and undergoing a dialysis, Netaji had come to meet me and he said there was a discussion on the issue of state president and when Akhilesh Yadav replaced Shivpal Yadav as the Uttar Pradesh SP president, even then I was blamed for it," said Singh.

"When his (Akhilesh's) family was opposing his marriage, I was the only one who stood by him, but today I am hurt by his words. There is no photo of his wedding, where this 'dalal' is not there," an emotional Singh had responded then when was called a "dalal" (agent).

"It is possible to meet Rahul Gandhi, but meeting Akhilesh is difficult. If my 'bali' (sacrifice) can solve the problem, I am ready for it," he had added then.
In what may irk the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), NDA constituent Shiv Sena on Monday alleged that the implementation of demonetisation has not been done in an appropriate manner and said it is not only 'one party's monopoly' to end corruption.

Talking to ANI, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut wondered as to when would the long queues outside banks and ATMs in cities and rural areas of the country end.

"We also supported the Centre's demonetisation move but the middle class has been suffering due to this in Maharashtra and we are just trying to bring that in front of the government. I don't think there is anything wrong in that. The implementation is not done in the right way. Everyone is against corruption. It's not only one party's monopoly to end corruption; everyone is patriotic and wants good for the country," he added.

Meanwhile, the government attempted to pacify a sulking opposition with Union Home Rajnath Singh stating in Parliament that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate in the debate on the move to demonetise high-value currency notes if needed.

At least 10 opposition parties are marking today as a day of protest against demonetisation, though only the Left has called for a 'Bharat Bandh' or a nationwide shutdown.

Defending his move, Prime Minister Modi said yesterday in his Mann Ki Baat address that today's strike or 'bandh' is a 'corruption bandh', fueling the opposition's demand for an apology.

The opposition leaders have been critical of the Prime Minister for branding them as corrupt or siding with the corrupt because they have questioned the implementation of demonetisation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in a commanding position in the first phase of municipal council polls in Maharashtra, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday thanked the people of the state for placing their faith in the party and also hailed the efforts of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

"I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP," he said in a series of tweets.

Thanking the people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP, PM Modi said that this is a win for pro-poor & development of BJP.

BJP chief Amit Shah, however, took a swing at the opposition saying that the results are a wake-up call for them.

"BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development . Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on #Demonetisation, a decision in national interest," he tweeted.

Post the Centre's demonetisation move, voting was held in 147 municipal seats and 17 Panchayat seats on Sunday.

Early trends indicated the BJP had charged ahead and made its mark in areas that were Congress and NCP strongholds.

Of the 2,501 seats for which results have been declared, the BJP has won 610 seats while the Shiv Sena has won 402. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Indian National Congress have won 482 and 408 seats respectively.

The BJP has clearly retained the public's favour, despite the opposition's fervent claim that the ruling party would face a major loss in the polls, post the inconveniences thrust upon the masses due to demonetisation.
Shamli [India], Nov. 28 (ANI): The Uttar Pradesh police on Monday said they arrested Parminder Singh, accused of masterminding the Nabha jailbreak, when he was travelling in a Toyota Fortuner with a changed number plate.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Saharanpur (Range) Jitendra kumar Shahi told ANI that the SUV of Parminder had a Punjab registered number plate, after they fled from Nabha alonf with Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh alias Mintoo.

"The time when they committed the crime (jailbreak), they had a vehicle number from Punjab, that was circulated to everyone but they changed the number plate of the vehicle to a Haryana number," he said.

When asked how the Uttar Pradesh police managed nab the accused, Shahi said the vehicle broke a barricade in Kaithal.

"After they broke a barrier in Kaithal with a Haryana number and that again this Haryana number was circulated among the forces. They were unaware of this fact, which led to the arresting," he added.

Parminder, a resident of Jalandhar, whom the U.P police said had escaped from jail in March this year, confessed that he was one of the persons who organised and helped Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Shamli, Ajay Sharma said during interrogation, Parminder said that he was also involved in narcotic smuggling in sates including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab.

When asked about recoveries made by police, Sharma said they have recovered two SLRs, three other rifles, 544 cartridges and wireless walkie talkies from his possession.

"Parminder was accused of killing Punjab police inspector Gurudev and he was on the run," he said adding that further investigation was underway.

Meanwhile, Parminder has been sent to a 14-day judicial remand and the Shamli Police has filed a case under Section 353,420,467,468,471 of IPC. And 25/27 Arms Act as well.

Earlier today, 49-year old Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh who escaped from the Nabha high security prison on Sunday, was caught by the Delhi police on a tip-off by the Punjab police at New Delhi railway station.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress Party on Monday said that their protest is against the Centre's attack on white money and for creating hardship for the common people.

Congress leader P.C. Chacko told ANI, "The Prime Minister is an expert in misleading the people because he is now calling for a Bharat Bandh, no political party has called for any Bharat Bandh. If he is taking a step against black money, we said that any step taken by the government to curb black money we will support that. But we don't think that now the step he has taken is going to eliminate black money as it is going to create trouble and hardship to the common people only."

"Prime Minister's step is not attacking black money but it is attacking the white money. The legitimate hard earned money of the ordinary people which they have deposited in the bank there is a restriction not to withdraw that. This action is against the ordinary people, the common man , artisans, daily wage owners and all this people are suffering. Last 20 days people are standing in the queue,. That is the only reason we say that we are protesting and opposing this," he added.

Addressing a rally in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while he had called for an end to corruption and black money, the opposition was rooting for the 'Bharat bandh'.

"The government is working to end the flow of black money and corruption but they (opposition) are talking about Bharat bandh (shutdown)," Modi said.

However, parties like the Congress, Trinamool Congress and Aam Aadmi Party have said they do not support a bandh because of the huge cost involved. But they will continue their protests in Parliament and on the streets.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, on Monday denied that any all-India bandh call had been given by the opposition parties against .

Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he claimed that the saffron party has the maximum amount of black money.

"The maximum amount of black money is with the BJP. Before criticising other parties, they should introspect first. As far as the Bharat Bandh is concerned, nobody has spoken about a Bharat Bandh. We have not taken any call on or for a Bharat Bandh," said Azad.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday slammed the opposition for its all-India bandh call over demonetisation, saying the country instead needed an end to evils like corruption and black money.

While addressing the BJP's Parivartan Rally in Kushinagar in eastern Uttar Pradesh the Prime Minister said, "On the one hand we are initiating steps to curb corruption, but on the other hand, a few people are talking about 'Bharat Bandh'."

He described as a cure to the 70-year-old disease of corruption.
Pakistan's outgoing Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Monday.

A Radio Pakistan report said that General Sharif will retire on November 29, and will hand over charge to new army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif both lauded General Raheel Sharif's valuable services as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life.

General Sharif told journalists that he would like to dedicate his post-retirement life to the welfare of the families of slain soldiers.

Back in 2013 when General Kayani announced that he would not take an extension for a second time, General Raheel Sharif was not among the favourites in the race for army chief. Even after he beat all the odds to become the chief, his detractors continued to doubt him saying he lacked intelligence and an operations background.

But he did not allow those shortcomings to become a handicap and proved everyone wrong.

The high point in his tenure was the start of Operation Zarb-i-Azb in North Waziristan against the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan in June 2014, something from which his predecessor shied away fearing a blowback. The operation is now in its last stages. He is also credited for action against militancy in Karachi and partially restoring calm in the city.

General Sharif has all along been supportive of the government, except for a statement at the corps commanders' conference last November when he expressed reservations over civilian administration's governance. The comment presented the spectacle of a row between the civilian and military leadership. He has, nevertheless, maintained strong influence over the government's foreign and national security policies.

The general garnered unprecedented popularity among the general public and on social media.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Monday said that while her party is not supporting the opposition-led 'Bharat Bandh' it opposes the method of demonetisation move adopted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"They are accusing the opposition of going ahead with the Bharat Band. They themselves have imposed the bandh by this move. We are not responsible for this," Mayawati said.

She further said that there was no preparation for this drastic step which has inconvenienced the common people.

"We do not support corruption or black money, but we are against its implementation and the entire opposition is against it. Why is he not ready to answer in Parliament? He is making comments outside," she said.

The opposition parties have called for a countrywide protest today against what they call the government's "mishandling" of the currency ban. Only the Left Front, which has a presence in Kerala, Bengal and Tripura, has called for a strike or 'Bharat Bandh' in the three states.

Prime Minister Modi yesterday slammed the opposition for its all-India shutdown call over demonetisation, saying the country instead needed an end to evils like corruption and black money.

Addressing the BJP's Parivartan Rally in Kasya assembly segment of Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, the Prime Minister said, "On the one hand we are initiating steps to curb corruption, but on the other hand a few people are talking about 'Bharat Bandh'."

He described demonetisation as a cure to the 70-year-old disease of corruption.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Monday reiterated his demanded for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence in Parliament to discuss and give an explanation on the demonetisation issue.

"Let the PM come and talk to us inside the house," Gandhi said.

Gandhi and others were protesting in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament complex.

Earlier, the opposition parties held a meeting inside the Parliament.

Justifying his demonetisation decision, Prime Minister had earlier in an event to mark Constitution Day on Friday said the people questioning his move were those who didn't get time to make any preparation.

The Prime Minister's comments provoked protests from the opposition.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Law and Justice Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Monday charged the opposition with obstructing the smooth functioning of the Parliament and said the protest called by them holds no significance as the entire nation is supporting the government's demonetisation drive.

"The Parliament is not functioning properly due the pressure of opposition. The opposition doesn't want to discuss the matter in the Parliament and is, therefore, creating ruckus," Prasad told ANI.

He further said that the government was ready for debate on the issue but the opposition parties were unnecessary disrupting parliamentary proceedings for their ulterior motives.

The Lok Sabha was earlier in the day adjourned till 2 p.m. following uproar by the opposition parties.

Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge said the prolonged impasse will end only after Prime Minister Narendra Modi throws light on his decision to demonetise high-value currency notes in the Lok Sabha.

"More than 70 people have died and more than 1,000 people have been injured. This deadlock can only end when the PM comes for discussion in the house," said Kharge in the Lok Sabha.

Retorting to the opposition attack, Union Home Minister said the Centre is ready to debate and added that the Prime Minister will speak on demonetisation if needed.

"If you have a complaint on implementation then we are ready to debate, don't doubt our integrity. You want PM to come to Lok Sabha for this debate then he will and he will make an intervention," Singh said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
United States president-elect Donald Trump has attacked the Hillary Clinton campaign for coming out in support of a recount of votes in the state of Wisconsin.

Trump, according to informed sources, reminded his one-time Democratic presidential rival that she had already conceded the elections to him, and also published remarks from the presidential debates in which she had urged all Americans to accept the poll results.

In a tweet, Trump said Hillary conceded the election when she called him just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in, and added that nothing will change.

The recount in Wisconsin has been initiated by Green Party candidate Jill Stein. Out of the millions of votes cast, Trump won by about 27,000 votes in Wisconsin, 12,000 votes in Michigan and 68,000 votes in Pennsylvania. Stein got about one percent of the vote in each of the three states.

On Sunday, according to the New York Post, Trump swapped his "Make America Great Again" hat for a sporty red pitcher cap with the number "45" stitched onto its side.

It seemed to be a not so subtle swipe at the ongoing recount efforts.

The billionaire was spotted leaving Mar-a-Lago with his security detail at around 4 p.m., less than an hour after he fired off a trio of tweets in which he blasted Stein's call for a recount in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

He donned a dark suit, white shirt and the red hat - which also said "USA" on the front.

The number "45" on the side is likely a nod to Trump's forthcoming inauguration as America's 45th president. The president elect appeared to make a point of adjusting the hat for the news cameras.

Stein has claimed to have raised USD 5.2 million to pay for re-tallies in all three states.

Independent candidate Rocky Roque De La Fuente has also requested for a recount.

Stein has maintained that she was simply testing the integrity of the American voting system following the widespread claims that Russia helped sway this year's presidential election.

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Vedanta Limited, a globally diversified natural resources company, has partnered with the State Government of Odisha to set-up a Government Medical College in Bhangabari at Bhawanipatna, Kalahandi District.

The Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik laid the foundation stone of the facility at a grand ceremony last week. The company has projected an estimated investment of Rs. 100 crore to provide infrastructural support for the project.

As a long term investor in Odisha, in August 2016, Chairman Vedanta, Anil Agarwal had committed Vedanta's support to the project of setting up the medical college, as Vedanta aims to support the development goals of its host communities.

The state-of-the-art hospital will provide easy access to medical treatments for the communities residing in the region. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2018 and the first batch of academic session would graduate from 2019-20. Improved medical and educational facilities for the community provide a stronger platform for the communities to broaden the base for an inclusive economic growth.

Bimalananda Senapati, Plant Head, Vedanta Limited at Lanjigarh, represented Vedanta on the dias, while the inauguration was attended by over 40,000 people from across the district. Policymakers from the state including Pradip Amat, Minister of Finance and Health and Puspendra Singh Deo, Minister of Urban Development accompanied the Chief Minister on stage, along with Arka Keshari Singh Deo, MP - Kalahandi, Balabhadra Majhi, MLA - Lanjigarh, Capt. Dibya Shankar Mishra, MLA - Narla, Dr. Brundha D. - Collector and District Magistrate, Kalahandi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Internet banking, Online payments and PFMS to be adopted

As a part of the ongoing efforts to move towards cashless transactions of all kind, the Ministry of Urban Development has asked all the statutory 4,041 Urban Local Bodies to shift to e-payments at the earliest. These cities and towns account for about 75% of the total 40 crore urban population in the country.

Central Government's message to the officials of these 4,041 urban local bodies was conveyed by Shri Rajiv Gauba, Secretary(Urban Development) through interactive video-conferencing. Senior officials of concerned States also participated during the half day long interaction on various aspects of ensuring cashless transactions.

State and city level officials were asked to promote internet banking (RTGS/NEFT), online banking using credit and debit cards for cashless transactions besides using Public Finance Management Systems(PFMS) developed by the Ministry of Financing for fund transfer, accounting and reconciliation up to the level of cities and towns.

Shri Gauba emphasized that all transactions relating to both income and expenditure of urban local bodies needs to be shifted to e-payment mode. These include payment of Property Tax, Professional Tax, all user charges like water and power bills, all kinds of fee and license charges, online booking of community halls, issue and renewal of birth and death certificates, registration of shops and other establishments, enrollment of library membership etc.

Expenditure to be made cashless include payment of salaries and wages to all regular and contractual employees, all contract and work relate payments, procurements, beneficiary payments like social security etc.

City governments were asked to take up necessary infrastructure and capacity building, awareness campaigns for opening of accounts for employees of all categories and their family members.

States have been asked to adopt Public Finance Management systems (PFMS) up to city level to enable transfer, accounting, reconciliation and monitoring of transfer of funds under various government schemes.

To illustrate the transaction volumes, 59 cities have collected tax revenues of Rs.1,722 cr during November so far including dues payable. These include; Ahmedabad-Rs.187 cr, Bhopal-Rs.27 cr, Chennai-Rs.80 cr, Faridabad- Rs.17 cr, Guwahaty-R.s. 14 cr, Hyderabad-Rs.208 cr, Indore-Rs.32 cr, Kakinada (AP)-Rs.20 cr, Kalyan(Maharashtra)-Rs.170 cr, Lucknow-Rs.23 cr, Raipur-Rs.17 cr, Visakhapatnam-Rs.16 cr, Amritsar-Rs.12 cr, Kanpur-Rs.30 cr, Mumbai-Rs.167 cr and New Delhi Municipal Council-Rs.84 cr.

Officials from Madhya Pradesh informed that the major 7 cities have already enabled cashless transactions and all the 378 cities and towns would do so by March next year. Uttar Pradesh and Goa have reported using PFMS up to city level and found it to be very useful.

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As India Inc supports Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi's battle against black money, the ASSOCHAM has urged the government to consider among other relief measures, increasing the cash withdrawal limits for logistic and transport fleet owners since they need hard cash for meeting expenses for crew members including truck drivers and cleaners.

Drawing inputs from various sources, a latest ASSOCHAM study on Transport and Logistics has noted that close to 10 per cent of the en route expenses of trucks on trunk routes are accounted for by drivers and other support crew for the journeys which take 7-8 days on a single trip.

The entire expenses of the drivers and other crew are to be met by cash. In the wake of the demonetisation of high value notes, the fleet owners are facing problems of operations, said the chamber.

While the fuel accounts for 52-66 per cent of the total trip expenses, another 25-40 per cent are to be accounted for sub heads like tolls, octroi, speedy clearance at check posts etc. Traditionally, all this money was required in cash.

The driver also acts as a petty cashier. The note ban has come as a bottleneck to the transport business.

The chamber has urged the government to review the cash withdrawal limit of Rs 50,000 from the current account per week and raise to minimum Rs 4-5 lakh, which is bare minimum.

Besides, the fleet owners face other problems which need to be resolved for improving the overall efficiency of the fleet owners and ease of doing business. "Faster turnaround of trucks alone in the absence of check posts may improve the operational efficiency of the road transport sector.

Presently, there are 177 inter-state check posts and 268 toll barriers on national highways. The ASSOCHAM study suggested that to promote seamless inter-state freight flows; green channel should be adopted for transit of secure/sealed containerized cargo.

About 75 per cent of trucking firms own small fleets of less than five trucks. The industry has largely been operating in an unorganised sector and has not really taken to the main stream.

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Aurobindo Pharma said that its French subsidiary Arrow Generiques SAS, announced the signing of an agreement to acquire select commercial products in France from Teva. Arrow Generiques will acquire the right, title and interest in products calcium and calcium vitamin D3, including the use of the OROCAL trademark. The transaction is subject to the approval of the European Commission. Following receipt of clearances from European authorities, Arrow Generiques will integrate these products with its existing commercial operations in France, and focus on maximizing their potential. Arrow Generiques and Teva intend to ensure continuity of the supply of the products to the market. This acquisition will enable Arrow Generiques to continue to increase its branded products portfolio and leverage its position as a key player in the drug market. Arrow Generiques is a pharmaceutical company with focus on selling generics on the retail and hospital markets in France since 2002. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Bharti Airtel announced on Saturday, 26 November 2016 that Bharti Airtel International (Netherlands) BV through its wholly owned subsidiary (Airtel), has completed the acquisition of Econet Wireless' entire 4.2% shareholding in Airtel Nigeria. As a result, Airtel's overall holding in Airtel Nigeria has increased to 83.25%.

Reliance Industries (RIL) will be in focus. In its clarification with regard to news item titled Two killed, six injured in fire at Reliance refinery, the company after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016 said there was an unfortunate flash fire in one of the units under a planned maintenance shutdown in its DTA refinery at Jamnagar. While the Reliance fire brigade extinguished the fire swiftly, this has resulted in injuries to 8 contract workers, who are being provided necessary medical treatment. Inspite of timely medical help provided by Reliance medical staff, unfortunately two of them succumbed to their injuries. All operations of the refinery continue to be normal, RIL said.

Engineering and construction major L&T announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering unveiled a high-tech spool base facilities at L&T's fabrication facility at Kattupalli in Chennai on 25 November 2016. These facilities are being employed to execute a prestigious lump sum turn key (LSTK) contract that has been bagged from ONGC for a subsea installation by a consortium of J. Ray Mc Dermott S.A., Berlian McDermott & L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering in international competitive bidding. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Bosch said that based on the proposal and action plan submitted by the company, the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board has vide its letter dated 24 November 2016, extended the abeyance order revoking the consent given to operate the company's jaipur plant for further period of three weeks upto 17 December 2016. The company would co-operate with the authorities for early resolution of the matter, Bosch said. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016. It may be recalled that the Jaipur plant of Bosch was served with an order dated 27 October 2016 by Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board revoking the consent given to operate the jaipur plant for alleged non-fulfillment of certain conditions with respect to waste water treatment and re-use of the treated water. The company, had therefore, closed the operations at the plant from 28 October 2016. Bosch at that time had put the estimated production loss at about Rs 2.5 crore per day due to closure of operations at the said plant. Jaipur plant's license was valid up to 28 February 2017, the company had said at that time.

Tata Steel announced that the company at its meeting held on Friday, 25 November 2016, decided to convene an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on 21 December 2016, pursuant to the special notice & requisition dated 10 November 2016, received from Tata Sons, promoter and principal shareholder of the company, holding 29.75% of the paid-up ordinary share capital of the company, to consider and if thought fit, to pass the resolutions viz. removal of C. P. Mistry as director of the company and removal of Nusli N. Wadia as director of the company. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Vedanta announced that the company proposes to offer rated secured redeemable non-convertible debentures aggregating upto Rs 500 crore and in this regard, the company is holding a meeting of its duly constituted committee of the board on 30 November 2016. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

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Aurobindo Pharma rose 0.24% to Rs 741.65 at 9:24 IST on BSE after the company said its French subsidiary announced the signing of an agreement to acquire select commercial products in France from Teva.

The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 60.06 points or 0.23% at 26,256.28.

On BSE, so far 9,326 shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 2.12 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 748.45 and a hit a low of Rs 739 so far during the day. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 895 on 6 October 2016. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 582 on 25 February 2016. The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 25 November 2016, declining 10.23% compared with the Sensex's 6.32% fall. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, sliding 6.25% as against the Sensex's 5.46% fall.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 58.52 crore. Face value per share is Rs 1.

Aurobindo Pharma's French subsidiary Arrow Generiques SAS (Arrow Generiques) will acquire the right, title and interest in products calcium and calcium vitamin D3, including the use of the OROCAL trademark. The transaction is subject to the approval of the European Commission. Following receipt of clearances from European authorities, Arrow Generiques will integrate these products with its existing commercial operations in France, and focus on maximizing their potential. Arrow Generiques and Teva intend to ensure continuity of the supply of the products to the market. This acquisition will enable Arrow Generiques to continue to increase its branded products portfolio and leverage its position as a key player in the drug market. Arrow Generiques is a pharmaceutical company with focus on selling generics on the retail and hospital markets in France since 2002.

On consolidated basis, Aurobindo Pharma's net profit rose 33.5% to Rs 605.64 crore on 12.1% growth in net sales to Rs 3713.58 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015.

Aurobindo Pharma manufactures generic pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. The company's manufacturing facilities are approved by several leading regulatory agencies like US FDA, UK MHRA, Japan PMDA, WHO, Health Canada, MCC South Africa, ANVISA Brazil. The company's robust product portfolio is spread over 7 major therapeutic/product areas encompassing Antibiotics, Anti-Retrovirals, CVS, CNS, Gastroenterological, Anti-Allergies and Anti-Diabetes, supported by an outstanding R&D set-up. The company is marketing these products globally in over 150 countries

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To take over operations of The Urban House Copenhagen Hostel

Cox & Kings owned Meininger Hotels and Pandox AB signed a lease agreement for a hotel in Copenhagen. The Urban House Copenhagen Hostel is currently operated by Pandox. Meininger will be taking over the operation of 1000 bed hotel on 01 January 2017. The hotel will be undergoing soft refurbishments concurrently throughout the first 12 months of operations.

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Key benchmark indices logged small gains in a lackluster session of trade. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 33.83 points or 0.13% to settle at 26,350.17. The Nifty 50 index gained 12.60 points or 0.16% to settle at 8,126.90. Both the Sensex and the Nifty hit their highest closing levels in more than two weeks. The market gained for the second day in a row today, 28 November 2016.

The Sensex rose 33.83 points or 0.13% to settle at 26,350.17, its highest closing level since 11 November 2016. The index rose 97.65 points, or 0.37% at the day's high of 26,413.99. The index fell 133.12 points, or 0.51% at the day's low of 26,183.22.

The Nifty 50 index gained 12.60 points or 0.16% to settle at 8,126.90, its highest closing level since 11 November 2016. The index rose 32.20 points, or 0.4% at the day's high of 8,146.50. The index fell 47.80 points, or 0.59% at the day's low of 8,066.50.

Closer home, the breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On BSE, 1,666 shares rose and 923 shares declined. A total of 177 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.97%. The BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.66%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 2999.73 crore, higher than the turnover of Rs 2608.36 crore registered during the previous trading session.

Among sectoral indices on BSE, the S&P BSE Auto index (up 0.46%), the S&P BSE Consumer Discretionary Goods & Services index (up 0.61%), the S&P BSE Realty index (up 1.91%), the S&P BSE Basic Materials index (up 0.76%), the S&P BSE Telecom index (up 4.04%), the S&P BSE FMCG index (up 1.23%), the S&P BSE Teck index (up 0.57%), the S&P BSE Metal index (up 0.96%), the S&P BSE Power index (up 1.74%), the S&P BSE Energy index (up 0.57%), the S&P BSE Oil & Gas index (up 1.06%), the S&P BSE Industrials index (up 0.65%), the S&P BSE Utilities index (up 1.41%), and the S&P BSE Healthcare index (up 0.55%), outperformed the Sensex.

The S&P BSE Consumer Durables index (down 1.2%), the S&P BSE Capital Goods index (up 0.02%), the S&P BSE Bankex (down 1.16%), the S&P BSE IT index (down 0.15%), and the S&P BSE Finance index (down 0.59%) underperformed the Sensex.

Index heavyweight and cigarette major ITC gained 2.08% to Rs 233.50. The stock hit a high of Rs 234.20 and low of Rs 227.80 in intraday trade.

Telecom stocks gained. Idea Cellular (up 3.33%), MTNL (up 3.57%), Reliance Communications (up 2.14%) and Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (up 3.52%) gained.

Bharti Airtel rose 5.19% after the firm said Bharti Airtel International (Netherlands) BV through its wholly owned subsidiary has completed the acquistion of Econet Wireless' entire 4.2% stake in Airtel Nigeria. As a result, Airtel's overall holding in Airtel Nigeria has increased to 83.25%. The announcement was made on Saturday, 26 November 2016.

Shares of Bharti Infratel rose 2.34%. Bharti Infratel is a provider of tower and related infrastructure and is a unit of Bharti Airtel.

Shares of most of the public sector banks dropped and private sector banks were mixed after the central bank announced measures to drain excess liquidity after the government's recent move to withdraw legal tender status of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes. Among public sector banks, Bank of Baroda (down 2.92%), State Bank of India (down 2.82%), Bank of India (down 2.72%), Punjab National Bank (down 2.25%), Corporation Bank (down 1.54%), Indian Overseas Bank (down 0.4%), IDBI Bank (down 0.44%), Canara Bank (down 0.43%) and Union Bank of India (down 2.06%) edged lower. Indian Bank rose 0.46%.

Among private sector banks, RBL Bank (up 0.91%), Axis Bank (up 0.31%), and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.07%) edged higher. HDFC Bank (down 0.32%), Yes Bank (down 1.59%), ICICI Bank (down 1.73%) and IndusInd Bank (down 2.39%) edged lower.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stated on Saturday, 26 November 2016, that with the withdrawal of the legal tender status of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination bank notes (specified bank notes) beginning 9 November 2016, there has been a surge in deposits relative to the expansion in bank credit, leading to large excess liquidity in the system. The magnitude of surplus liquidity available with the banking system is expected to increase further in the fortnights ahead, the central bank said. In view of this, it has been decided to absorb a part of this surplus liquidity by applying an incremental cash reserve ratio (CRR) as a purely temporary measure, the bank said.

The CRR remains unchanged at 4% of outstanding net demand and time liabilities (NDTL). On the increase in NDTL between 16 September 2016 and 11 November 2016, scheduled banks shall maintain an incremental CRR of 100%, effective the fortnight beginning 26 November 2016. This is intended to absorb a part of the surplus liquidity arising from the return of specified bank notes (SBNs) to the banking system, while leaving adequate liquidity with banks to meet the credit needs of the productive sectors of the economy. As the incremental CRR is intended to be a temporary measure within RBI's liquidity management framework to drain excess liquidity in the system, it shall be reviewed on 9 December 2016 or even earlier, the central bank said. The central bank has separately revived the Guarantee Scheme to enable deposit of SBN balances at the RBI or at currency chests and get immediate value. This measure should also facilitate banks' compliance with the incremental CRR, the central bank said.

Reliance Industries (RIL) dropped 0.72%. In its clarification with regard to news item titled "Two killed, six injured in fire at Reliance refinery", the company after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016 said there was an unfortunate flash fire in one of the units under a planned maintenance shutdown in its DTA refinery at Jamnagar. While the Reliance fire brigade extinguished the fire swiftly, this has resulted in injuries to 8 contract workers, who are being provided necessary medical treatment. Inspite of timely medical help provided by Reliance medical staff, unfortunately two of them succumbed to their injuries. All operations of the refinery continue to be normal, RIL said.

Tata Steel dropped 0.15%. Tata Steel UK announced the signing of a letter of intent with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its Speciality Steels business for an enterprise value of 100 million subject to due diligence and corporate approvals. The letter of intent covers several South Yorkshire-based assets including the Rotherham electric arc steelworks, the steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth as well as service centres in Bolton and Wednesbury, UK, and in Suzhou and Xi'an, China. Speciality Steels employs about 1,700 people making steels for the aerospace, automotive and the oil & gas industries. The announcement was made after market hours today, 28 November 2016.

Tata Steel UK has invested 1.5 billion of capital over the last nine years. The company's boards consider the technical feasibility and economic returns of investments when taking decisions, as well as their affordability. The company is pursuing a transformation plan to create a sustainable future for its UK strip products business. The success of this plan is likely to influence decisions on future investments.

In the current year, the company is pursuing 85m worth of capital investments covering a range of sustenance and improvement schemes. Tata Steel has recently approved schemes focused on improving manufacturing capability to enable the production of premium steels in Shotton, Llanwern, Trostre, Orb in Newport, and other downstream operations as well as environmental schemes for Port Talbot's power plant. Investments in packaging steels, electrical steels, an automotive finishing line, laser welding and next-generation coated products are in line with company's strategy to enhance premium product focus for UK strip products supply chain.

Separately, Tata Steel announced that the company at its meeting held on Friday, 25 November 2016, decided to convene an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on 21 December 2016, pursuant to the special notice & requisition dated 10 November 2016, received from Tata Sons, promoter and principal shareholder of the company, holding 29.75% of the paid-up ordinary share capital of the company, to consider and if thought fit, to pass the resolutions viz. removal of C. P. Mistry as director of the company and removal of Nusli N. Wadia as director of the company. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Meanwhile, the Sensex gained for the second day in a row today, 28 November 2016. The Sensex gained 490 points or 1.89% in two sessions from a close of 25,860.17 on 24 November 2016. The Sensex has fallen 1,580.04 points or 5.65% in November 2016 so far (till 28 November 2016). The Sensex has risen 232.63 points or 0.89% in calendar year 2016 so far (till 28 November 2016). From a 52-week low of 22,494.61 hit on 29 February 2016, the barometer index has risen 3,855.56 points or 17.13%. From a 52-week high of 29,077.28 hit on 8 September 2016, the barometer index has fallen 2,727.11 points or 9.37%. The Sensex is off 3,674.57 points or 12.23% from a record high of 30,024.74 hit on 4 March 2015.

Overseas, European markets were trading lower amid continued political uncertainty in Italy. Investors are increasingly worried over the upcoming referendum in Italy that could potentially lead to the fall of the Italian government and raise possible concerns over the recapitalization of the banking system. Most Asian stocks rose as oil prices slid on unease about this week's meeting of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members to discuss possible output cuts. Major oil producers are scheduled to meet on Wednesday, 30 November 2016, to discuss production cuts to shore up prices. But Iran and Iraq have reportedly failed to agree to a reduction, raising jitters about the Vienna meeting's outcome. US stocks hit fresh records in a shortened trading session on Friday, 25 November 2016 as investors bet on a pickup in economic growth and rising corporate profits. Investors anticipate plans by President-elect Donald Trump to cut taxes, reduce regulations and spend on infrastructure will speed economic growth. In the latest economic data, Markit's flash November purchasing manager's index stood at 54.7, down fractionally from October's 54.8.

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Key benchmark indices were trading with small gains in afternoon trade. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 71.94 points or 0.27% at 26,388.28. The Nifty 50 index was currently up 20.40 points or 0.25% at 8,134.70. The Sensex, and the Nifty, both, hit their highest level in 1-1/2 weeks.

In overseas stock markets, most Asian stocks were trading higher as oil prices slid on unease about this week's meeting of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members to discuss possible output cuts. Major oil producers are scheduled to meet on Wednesday, 30 November 2016 to discuss production cuts to shore up prices, but Iran and Iraq have reportedly failed to agree to a reduction, raising jitters about the Vienna meeting's outcome. US stocks hit fresh records in a shortened trading session on Friday, 25 November 2016 as investors bet on a pickup in economic growth and rising corporate profits. Investors anticipate plans by President-elect Donald Trump to cut taxes, reduce regulations and spend on infrastructure will speed economic growth. In the latest economic data, Markit's flash November purchasing manager's index stood at 54.7, down fractionally from October's 54.8.

Closer home, the broad market depicted strength. There were more than two gainers against every loser on BSE. 1,632 shares rose and 734 shares declined. A total of 170 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently up 0.81%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 1%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

Most capital goods stocks rose. Bharat Heavy Electricals (Bhel) (up 1.06%), Havells India (up 0.35%), ABB India (up 0.67%), Bharat Electronics (up 5.44%), and Siemens (up 1.35%) gained. Thermax shed 1.24%.

Engineering and construction major L&T shed 0.48%. L&T announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering unveiled a high-tech spool base facilities at L&T's fabrication facility at Kattupalli in Chennai on 25 November 2016. These facilities are being employed to execute a prestigious lump sum turn key (LSTK) contract that has been bagged from ONGC for a subsea installation by a consortium of J. Ray Mc Dermott S.A., Berlian McDermott & L&T Hydrocarbon Engineering in international competitive bidding. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Most public sector bank stocks dropped and private sector banks were mixed after the central bank announced measures to drain excess liquidity after the government's recent move to withdraw legal tender status of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes. Among public sector banks, Bank of Baroda (down 2.03%), State Bank of India (down 1.99%), Bank of India (down 1.57%), Punjab National Bank (down 1.67%), Corporation Bank (down 0.77%), IDBI Bank (down 0.37%), Canara Bank (down 0.47%) and Union Bank of India (down 0.52%) edged lower. Indian Bank (up 0.77%) and Indian Overseas Bank (up 0.4%) edged higher.

Among private sector banks, RBL Bank (up 1.08%), Axis Bank (up 0.84%), HDFC Bank (up 0.26%), and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.15%) edged higher. Yes Bank (down 0.05%), ICICI Bank (down 1.83%) and IndusInd Bank (down 0.89%) edged lower.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stated on Saturday, 26 November 2016, that with the withdrawal of the legal tender status of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination bank notes (specified bank notes) beginning 9 November 2016, there has been a surge in deposits relative to the expansion in bank credit, leading to large excess liquidity in the system. The magnitude of surplus liquidity available with the banking system is expected to increase further in the fortnights ahead, the central bank said. In view of this, it has been decided to absorb a part of this surplus liquidity by applying an incremental cash reserve ratio (CRR) as a purely temporary measure, the bank said.

The CRR remains unchanged at 4% of outstanding net demand and time liabilities (NDTL). On the increase in NDTL between 16 September 2016 and 11 November 2016, scheduled banks shall maintain an incremental CRR of 100%, effective the fortnight beginning 26 November 2016. This is intended to absorb a part of the surplus liquidity arising from the return of specified bank notes (SBNs) to the banking system, while leaving adequate liquidity with banks to meet the credit needs of the productive sectors of the economy. As the incremental CRR is intended to be a temporary measure within RBI's liquidity management framework to drain excess liquidity in the system, it shall be reviewed on 9 December 2016 or even earlier, the central bank said. The central bank has separately revived the Guarantee Scheme to enable deposit of SBN balances at the RBI or at currency chests and get immediate value. This measure should also facilitate banks' compliance with the incremental CRR, the central bank said.

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Most public sector bank stocks dropped and private sector banks were mixed on the BSE after the central bank announced measures to drain excess liquidity after the government's move to withdraw legal tender status of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes

Among public sector banks, Bank of Baroda (down 1.97%), State Bank of India (down 1.72%), Bank of India (down 1.44%), Punjab National Bank (down 1.21%), Corporation Bank (down 0.88%), Canara Bank (down 0.37%) and Union Bank of India (down 0.29%) edged lower. Indian Bank (up 0.89%), Indian Overseas Bank (up 0.4%) and IDBI Bank (up 0.07%) edged higher.

Among private sector banks, RBL Bank (up 0.98%), Axis Bank (up 0.66%), HDFC Bank (up 0.37%), Yes Bank (up 0.35%) and Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.1%) edged higher. ICICI Bank (down 1.67%) and IndusInd Bank (down 0.31%) edged lower.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 69.64 points or 0.26% at 26,385.98. The BSE Bankex index was down 0.5% at 21,080.13, underperforming the Sensex.

The BSE Bankex index had underperformed the market over the past one month till 25 November 2016, declining 7% compared with the Sensex's 6.32% fall. The index had, however, outperformed the market in past one quarter, sliding 4.3% as against the Sensex's 5.46% fall.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stated on Saturday, 26 November 2016, that with the withdrawal of the legal tender status of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination bank notes (specified bank notes) beginning 9 November 2016, there has been a surge in deposits relative to the expansion in bank credit, leading to large excess liquidity in the system. The magnitude of surplus liquidity available with the banking system is expected to increase further in the fortnights ahead, the central bank said. In view of this, it has been decided to absorb a part of this surplus liquidity by applying an incremental cash reserve ratio (CRR) as a purely temporary measure, the bank said.

The CRR remains unchanged at 4% of outstanding net demand and time liabilities (NDTL). On the increase in NDTL between 16 September 2016 and 11 November 2016, scheduled banks shall maintain an incremental CRR of 100%, effective the fortnight beginning 26 November 2016. This is intended to absorb a part of the surplus liquidity arising from the return of specified bank notes (SBNs) to the banking system, while leaving adequate liquidity with banks to meet the credit needs of the productive sectors of the economy. As the incremental CRR is intended to be a temporary measure within RBI's liquidity management framework to drain excess liquidity in the system, it shall be reviewed on 9 December 2016 or even earlier, the central bank said. The central bank has separately revived the Guarantee Scheme to enable deposit of SBN balances at the RBI or at currency chests and get immediate value. This measure should also facilitate banks' compliance with the incremental CRR, the central bank said.

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Key benchmark indices extended gains and hit fresh intraday high in early afternoon trade. At 12:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 72.25 points or 0.27% at 26,388.59. The Nifty 50 index was currently up 25.30 points or 0.31% at 8,139.60. The Sensex, and the Nifty, both, hit their highest level in 1-1/2 weeks.

The Sensex rose 89.38 points, or 0.34% at the day's high of 26,405.72 in early afternoon trade, its highest level since 17 November 2016. The index fell 133.12 points, or 0.51% at the day's low of 26,183.22 at onset of day's trading session. The Nifty rose 31.60 points, or 0.39% at the day's high of 8,145.90 in early afternoon trade, its highest level since 17 November 2016. The index fell 47.80 points, or 0.59% at the day's low of 8,066.50 at onset of day's trading session.

In overseas stock markets, most Asian stocks were trading higher as oil prices slid on unease about this week's meeting of Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members to discuss possible output cuts. Major oil producers are scheduled to meet on Wednesday, 30 November 2016 to discuss production cuts to shore up prices, but Iran and Iraq have reportedly failed to agree to a reduction, raising jitters about the Vienna meeting's outcome. US stocks hit fresh records in a shortened trading session on Friday, 25 November 2016 as investors bet on a pickup in economic growth and rising corporate profits. Investors anticipate plans by President-elect Donald Trump to cut taxes, reduce regulations and spend on infrastructure will speed economic growth. In the latest economic data, Markit's flash November purchasing manager's index stood at 54.7, down fractionally from October's 54.8.

Closer home, the broad market depicted strength. There were more than two gainers against every loser on BSE. 1,590 shares rose and 666 shares declined. A total of 142 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index was currently up 0.87%. The BSE Small-Cap index was currently up 0.97%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

Pharma shares gained. Cadila Healthcare (up 0.96%), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 0.06%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 0.63%), Alkem Laboratories (up 1.42%), GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (up 1.15%), and Wockhardt (up 1.75%) gained.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 0.18%), Lupin (down 0.93%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 0.48%) fell.

Cipla rose 1.53% on media reports that the company is in discussions to sell Cipla Vet, its animal health division. Several Indian buyers have submitted bids for Cipla Vet, reports added. Cipla Vet is a leading veterinary pharmaceutical exporter with a presence in over 100 countries. Cipla's move to sell its veterinary business comes in the backdrop of its overall plan to rationalize its markets and portfolio and exit non-core, low-profit businesses, reports suggested.

Strides Shasun rose 0.94% after the company said its UK-based wholly-owned subsidiary Strides Arcolab International will acquire PediaCare brand from Sweden's Moberg Pharma for $5 million plus inventory value at closing. PediaCare is an established paediatric cough, cold and allergy brand with annual sales of approximately $6 million. PediaCare will form an important part of Strides expanding consumer health care portfolio and brings with it expertise in the paediatric segment as well as a strong brand name with global potential. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Aurobindo Pharma fell 0.43%. Aurobindo Pharma's French subsidiary Arrow Generiques SAS (Arrow Generiques) will acquire the right, title and interest in products calcium and calcium vitamin D3, including the use of the OROCAL trademark. Following receipt of clearances from European authorities, Arrow Generiques will integrate these products with its existing commercial operations in France, and focus on maximizing their potential. Arrow Generiques and Teva intend to ensure continuity of the supply of the products to the market. This acquisition will enable Arrow Generiques to continue to increase its branded products portfolio and leverage its position as a key player in the drug market. Arrow Generiques is a pharmaceutical company with focus on selling generics on the retail and hospital markets in France since 2002. The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Auto stocks rose. Tata Motors (up 0.86%), Maruti Suzuki India (up 0.6%), Eicher Motors (up 0.79%) and Ashok Leyland (up 1.1%) gained. Bajaj Auto (up 1.45%), Hero MotoCorp (up 2.3%) and rose. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) (down 0.09%) and TVS Motor Company (down 0.79%) fell.

Suzlon Energy rose 1.66% after the company said it won an order for a 50.40 megawatt wind power project from a leading business house. The project consists of 24 units of S95 90m tubular tower with rated capacity of 2.1 MW. Located in the district of Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh, the project is scheduled for completion in March 2017. This order win takes the total current year order portfolio with the business house to 84 MW out of which 33.60 MW was announced earlier as a part of order wins from SMEs.The announcement was made during trading hours today, 28 November 2016.

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Strides Shasun rose 1.06% to Rs 1,091.95 at 10:14 IST on BSE after the company said its UK-based subsidiary will acquire PediaCare brand from Sweden's Moberg Pharma for $5 million plus inventory value at closing.

The announcement was made after market hours on Friday, 25 November 2016.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was down 67.76 points, or 0.26%, to 26,248.58.

On BSE, so far 9,778 shares were traded in the counter, compared with average daily volume of 67,539 shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 1,100 and a low of Rs 1,077 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 1,400 on 10 December 2015. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 848 on 29 February 2016. The stock had outperformed the market over the past 30 days till 25 November 2016, rising 14.98% compared with the 5.73% decline in the Sensex. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 13.44% as against Sensex's 5.28% decline.

The mid-cap company has equity capital of Rs 89.37 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

Strides Shasun announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Strides Arcolab International, UK has entered into an agreement with Moberg Pharma, Sweden to acquire the 'PediaCare' brand for a total consideration of $5 million plus inventory value at closing.

PediaCare is an established paediatric cough, cold and allergy brand with annual sales of approximately $6 million. PediaCare will form an important part of Strides expanding consumer health care portfolio and brings with it expertise in the paediatric segment as well as a strong brand name with global potential.

Strides Shasun's consolidated net profit rose 106.90% to Rs 74.09 crore on 36.26% rise in net sales to Rs 922.17 crore in Q2 September 2016 over Q2 September 2015.

Strides Shasun is a vertically integrated global pharmaceutical company headquartered in Bangalore.

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Acquires 50% stake in share capital of TI Absolute

Tube Investments of India announced that pursuant to the Joint Venture Agreement with Absolute Speciality Foods Chennai (Absolute) for the establishment of a joint venture company viz., TI Absolute Concepts (Tl Absolute), the Company has on 28 November 2016 invested Rs. 7.5 crore towards subscription to the equity share capital of TI Absolute and the Company has been allotted 75,00,000 equity shares of the face value of Rs. 10/- each, at par, by TI Absolute. The Company now holds 50% of the equity share capital of TI Absolute, with the balance 50% being held by the Company's JV partner.

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At least nine persons were injured and one suspect was shot dead in a stabbing incident at a university campus in Ohio in the United States, media reports said.

Police said a suspect ran a car into a group of people at Ohio State University on Monday afternoon, jumped out with a "butcher's knife" and and began slashing and stabbing bystanders.

The incident was initially reported as an "active shooter" situation, but the suspect did not shoot anyone, NBC news reported.

The suspect's name was not released, but police said he was an 18-year-old Ohio State student, a Somali refugee who was a legal permanent resident of the United States.

"This car just swerved and ran into a whole group of people," said a wtiness, who was walking down the street and saw the car hit people.

The campus, where 60,000 students are enrolled was put on lockdown for 90 minutes after the university first reported an "active shooter" in the chaos of the moment.

The motive was unknown, but officials said the attack was clearly deliberate and may have been planned in advance.

"This was done on purpose," campus Police Chief Craig Stone said.

"A police officer was on the scene within a minute and killed the assailant. He engaged the suspect and eliminated the threat," he added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Blaming Punjab government for the Nabha jail break in which two Khalistani terrorists and four gangsters escaped, state Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded a CBI probe into it, saying he doesn't have faith in the Punjab Police.

"I do not have any faith in the Punjab Police doing the enquiry. This matter should be given to the CBI to have an independent enquiry as to how a break-in can take place into a high security jail. A fair investigation would not be possible under the Punjab Police.

"I blame Mr. Badal (Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal) fully. This is done by them and they have done it with the objective of further provoking tensions in view of the elections," he said.

Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested at a railway station in Delhi on Monday morning, within a day of his escape from the high security prison along with another terrorist and four gangsters after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men.

Singh has written to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh seeking immediate dismissal of the Badal government and imposition of the President's Rule in Punjab in the wake of the Nabha jail break incident.

In a separate communication, he has also written to Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi urging imposition of the code of conduct without further delay and holding of the assembly elections under President's Rule.

Singh also pointed out that the four gangsters who had escaped along with the Khalistani terrorist from the jail belonged to Muktsar and Jalalabad area from which the Badals hailed.

--IANS

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French actress Lea Seydoux has suggested that she would be open to the idea of dating a man from the US, but she thinks they are prone to spending "too much time at the gym".

Asked if she would date an American man, Saeydoux said: "Yeah, of course, why not? But I don't find them very ... there is something not so sexy about American men. They are too self-conscious and they spend too much time at the gym."

The actress's family are part of the French establishment, but she believes that her privileged background has held her back in some respects, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

The 31-year-old told Esquire magazine: "In France, it's hard to become someone on your own. Even if you are a superstar, they will always say, 'Yeah, but you come from that world.' It's difficult to have ambition if you live in Paris."

Seydoux, who featured in the James Bond film "Spectre", was introspective as a youngster and would even ponder whether life was worth living.

--IANS

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A Delhi Police Sub-Inspector, arrested on charges of misappropriating Rs 18 lakh in demonetised currency, on Monday accused three police officers of assaulting him in custody.

Sub-Inspector Sudhir Rathi's defence counsel Pradeep Rana moved an application before Metropolitan Magistrate Sushil Kumar, claiming that the three Delhi Police officials beat up his client.

Rana told the court that his client was forced to sign blank papers and opposed any extension of his police custody. He urged the court to initiate an inquiry on his application.

But the court allowed the police to quiz Rathi for one more day but asked it to file its reply to the application and his medical report.

Rathi, posted at Kalyanpuri police station, was arrested on Sunday after he allegedly misappropriated Rs 18 lakh in old notes belonging to Bihar-based cloth merchant Amanatullah Wasim.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Assam Police are reviewing the security of some BJP leaders in view of threats from a faction of the United Liberation Front of Assam (Ulfa), a police official said on Monday.

Intelligence inputs suggest that some leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party may be targeted by the anti-talk faction of Ulfa.

The security of legislators Tapan Gogoi and Bhaskar Sarma are being reviewed, said the officer who did not want to be identified.

Some unidentified men fired at the vehicle of BJP leader Sibnath Brahma in Kokrajhar town on Sunday night and injured one of his associates.

One of the two suspected militants walked up to his vehicle and fired from close range.

"We have inputs that the anti-talk faction might target some BJP leaders. Security has been intensified across the state and the existing security of Gogoi and Sarma is being reviewed," the officer said.

"There are also inputs that armed cadres of the anti-talk faction and NSCN(K) have entered Assam," said the official.

Of late, militants have intensified extortion drive in Tinsukia and Charaideo districts.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Giving away a warning to all users across the globe, a report said that clicking on the links circulated on instant messaging app may expose and make them vulnerable to cyberattacks.

According to a report in The Sun newspaper, hackers are using simple tricks to fool people into visiting booby-trapped websites and then fleecing them.

Recently, rolled out video calling and scammers are taking the advantage of this new feature as bait to tempt people into their trap.

"If you receive an email asking you to "activate" the function by visiting a website, make sure you don't click it. Anyone who is tricked into visiting the danger pages could end up being targeted by digital criminals," the report pointed out.

Earlier this month, announcing that India now has nearly 160 million monthly active users, launched a video calling feature here which was rolled out globally. The feature is available on all platforms -- Android, iOS and Windows.

WhatsApp is available in more than 50 different languages around the world and in 10 Indian languages. Nearly 100 million calls are being made on the platform daily worldwide.

With the video calling feature, WhatsApp will now compete with Microsoft-owned Skype and Google's Duo.
President-elect Donald Trump will meet former CIA Director David Petraeus furthering speculation about a possible job as Secretary of State, media reports said.

The meeting was announced on Monday by transition team officials, the Washington Times reported.

Petraeus, a four-star general, also served as CIA director from 2011 to 2012 when he resigned after he admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, whom he had an extramarital affair with.

The other top candidates for the job are former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who have been met with criticism.

Asked if the president-elect was nearing the end of his search for a secretary of state, a spokesman said,"He'll complete that when he's ready. He's going to pick the person that he thinks will do the absolutely best job."

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid a controversy over the gunning down of two alleged Maoists, a court here on Monday asked the authorities in Kerala to preserve their bodies until Tuesday evening.

The court said it will deliver its verdict by Tuesday evening.

The court issued the instruction while hearing a petition filed by several human rights activists and the brother of one of the killed Maoists, who claim that this was a fake encounter, unlike what is claimed by Kerala Police.

Police said it was only after the Maoists opened fire that they retaliated and shot the two dead.

Incidentally, a court in Kozhikode had earlier asked police to preserve the bodies until Monday evening, following which they have been kept in the mortuary of the state-run Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

Monday is the fifth day since the Kerala Thunderbolts -- an elite commando force of the state police -- during a patrol in the deep forests of Nilambur, reportedly shot dead the two ultras, Koppam Devarajan and Ajitha alias Kaveri.

After the incident, the Communist Party of India (CPI) -- the second biggest ally of the ruling Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government -- criticised the killings, after which various human rights activists took up the issue.

The local media houses here also received a call from a person identifying himself as a Maoist, who said that this is a case of fake encounter.

Senior BJP leader V. Muraleedharan, in a statement on Monday, asked the Communist Party of India-Marxist to end playing hide and seek on the issue.

"Whenever such incidents happen in other states, the CPI-M is the first to react by saying that it is a fake encounter. For the first time, this has happened here, but even Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is silent.

"All he said is that information is still coming in. He should break his silence," said Muraleedharan, a former state BJP chief.

The Kerala government has announced a crime branch police probe into the incident.

The Congress party has demanded a judicial probe into the killings.

--IANS

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Thousands of Cubans gathered at Revolution Square here to pay tribute to the late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, who passed away on Friday at the age of 90.

The people of Cuba walked through the square's memorial to national hero Jose Marti on Monday and filed past photographs of Castro, Xinhua news agency reported.

Cuban Communist Party leaders, as well as top government officials and senior military officers, maintained an honour guard in front of an image of Castro, who was popularly known as "El Comandante".

The ceremony began at 9.00 a.m. (local time) with a 21-gun salute, shot from the Cabana Fortress, as a tribute by the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) to Fidel.

South African President Jacob Zuma will also attend the funeral and has ordered that the South African national flag be flown at half-mast at all stations in South Africa on Tuesday.

Following Castro's death, Cuba declared nine days of national mourning.

The tribute at Revolution Square will extend through Tuesday after which, Castro's ashes will embark on a 1,000 km journey around the island, so that all Cubans could bid him their last "goodbyes".

The trip would take the reverse route of the "Caravan of Freedom", in which the rebels of the Sierra Maestra crossed the country from Santiago de Cuba when the Cuban Revolution triumphed in 1959.

The remains of the former Commander-in-Chief of the Revolutionary Armed Forces would arrive in Santiago, the cradle of the Revolution, on Saturday, when another massive tribute ceremony would take place in Antonio Maceo Square.

The burial ceremony of his ashes, which was expected to be attended by his family, would take place in the Santa Ifigenia Cemetery of Havana.

--IANS

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The Delhi government on Monday launched a campaign in government-run schools against drug abuse among students, a government statement said.

The campaign, kicked off at Rani Chennamma Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya, Jahangirpuri, will create awareness among students about the drug menace using activities like poster making, quizzes, short movie screening and interactions, the statement added.

Earlier, the Delhi government launched a drive against drinking in public areas imposing heavy fines and making arrests for creating nuisance after consumption of liquor.

--IANS

vv/nir/vm

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Delhi Police has arrested four persons wanted in several criminal cases, including murder and attempt to murder in south Delhi, police said on Monday.

The accused have been identified as Rohit Choudhary, 29, a resident of Aaya Nagar; Ravi, 29, a resident of Karol Bagh; and Anil Kumar and Rajesh Kumar, both 30-year-old and residents of Dakshinpuri, police said.

On a tip-off, their car was intercepted by a Special Staff team in Dera village on Monday morning.

Four pistols, 72 live cartridges, 20 mobile phones and a car they stole from Greater Noida area were recovered from their possession.

"Rohit Chaudhary graduated from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College of the Delhi University. He was also active in student politics during his college days. Later, he came in contact with anti-social elements and took to the wrong path," Deputy Commissioner of Police Ishwar Singh said.

Anil Kumar earlier ferried school children in his cab. Later, after coming in contact with some anti-social elements, he started committing crimes.

Rohit and Anil had a reward of Rs 50,000 on their head. They had been declared 'Proclaimed Offenders' by a city court, Singh said.

Ravi who learned Monographic Designing but could not earn enough money, started committing crimes with some anti-social elements in Karol Bagh area.

Rajesh Kumar worked with a CGHS dispensary in Pushp Vihar, but he committed a murder in 2006. He later met Rohit, Anil and Ravi in jail and joined their gang, police said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation scheme has flopped vis-a-vis its stated objectives, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Monday.

"The entire scheme is a flop, it has proved a failure," the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader told a news conference here.

He said Modi's ego had put the entire nation into misery and pushed back the country's economy by a decade in just 20 days.

The demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, announced by Modi on November 8, was meant to check black money, corruption, terror funding and counterfeit currency.

Kejriwal said the scheme had failed in all the aspects.

He said black money economy had galloped since the note ban was announced and the new currency was being used for corruption.

"After November 8 corruption has increased 10 times. Many cases of bribery in new 2,000 rupee notes have surfaced. Modi has, in fact, made it easier now to take bribes," Kejriwal said.

Terrorists had already got hold of the new currency even as ordinary people across the country were struggling to get them due to a severe cash crunch caused by demonetisation, the AAP leader said.

He said that despite all the sufferings of the people, not a single penny of black money had been recovered and Rs 8 lakh crore deposited so far was the hard earned money of the people.

He said the "factories" printing counterfeit currency appeared to be working faster than the RBI printing press.

"After demonetisation, even old counterfeit Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes are being converted into new Rs 2,000 notes.

"The nation has been cheated. We demand that a case of fraud be lodged against whoever is responsible.

"The PM should declare the date from when people can withdraw their own money on their terms because it does not look like happening even after January 1."

Kejriwal said Modi was scared of facing Parliament because he feared the issue of alleged Sahara and Birla payoffs to him would be raised by the opposition.

"If he is innocent, he should face Parliament. His absence raises suspicion whether the allegations that he took bribes are actually true."

--IANS

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Mahesh Sharma following his daughter's marraige and asked did he managed the marraige expenses in Rs 2.5 lakhs post demonetisation.

"BJP MP Mahesh Sharma's daughter wedding. Is he making all the payments in cheque? Is he managing the marraige in Rs 2.5 lakhs? How his notes were exchanged?" Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Kejriwal asked.

The AAP has been protesting against the central government's demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes.

The opposition has called for Bharat Band on Monday in protest against the November 8 announcement.

Serpentine queues have been witnessed outside banks and ATMs, as many anxious people waited for hours to deposit or exchange their spiked currency notes or obtain cash.

--IANS

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At least four Islamic State militants were killed by Israeli forces in Syria, in what is being called the first direct clash between the country and the jihadi group, the media reported on Monday.

The IS militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online as saying.

Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire on Sunday.

They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.

All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk", an IS offshoot which controls the area.

Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.

Later on Sunday, the Israeli Air Force overnight struck a compound used by the militant group inside Syria, the military said in a statement.

The attack targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the IS as an operation centre along the border in Golan Heights, Xinhua news agency cited the statement as saying.

Several fighter jets took part in the raid, dropping 10 one-ton bombs on the target.

Israel seized 1,200 sq. km of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.

--IANS

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A court on Monday sent to seven days police custody Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was arrested here a day after his sensational escape from a Punjab prison.

Delhi Police told the court that they were probing his links with Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh allowed police to quiz Mintoo till December 5.

Mintoo was arrested at a railway station here on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from the Nabha prison in Punjab along with another terrorist and four gangsters.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Life was crippled in Tripura on Monday due to a Left-called 12-hour shutdown to protest against demonetisation of high value currency.

The dawn-to-dusk strike was called by the ruling Left Front led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist.

Police said more than 1,500 activists of political parties were arrested for picketing in front of government offices and railway stations.

Government and semi-government as well as private offices, banks, educational institutions, shops and business establishments were closed due to the strike.

All vehicles, except those of security forces, went off the roads.

The protest did not affect flights in and out of Agartala.

Train services between Tripura and the rest of the country were affected as Left workers blocked several trains in different locations.

"The shutdown is peaceful," police spokesman Uttam Kumar Bhowmik told IANS.

Opposition parties, including the Trinamool Congress and Congress, opposed the shutdown and instead decided to stage protest rallies on the same issue.

BJP workers held several rallies in different parts of Tripura opposing the strike.

"The strike was total, successful and spontaneous," Tripura Left Front convenor and former Lok Sabha member Khagen Das said.

Das, a former Health and Revenue Minister, said the people, especially the poor as well as small and medium traders, were the worst victim of the Modi government's demonetisation decision.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Lok Sabha was disrupted again on Monday with the opposition insisting for a debate on demonetisation under the adjournment motion.

The first adjournment came soon after the house met, when Speaker Sumitra Mahajan's attempts to run the Question Hour failed, and it was adjourned till 12 noon amidst din.

When the house re-assembled, the Speaker allowed the members to speak on the November 8 decision to demonetise old Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes.

Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge described the situation an "economic clutter".

"Poor people are worst affected... They can't take money out of their own accounts. This is an economic clutter," he said.

"We support stopping black money, but not the way it has been done and the atmosphere that has been created," Kharge said, urging the Speaker to allow the debate under the adjournment motion.

However, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the decision was taken after much deliberation and in the nation's interest.

He also assured the house that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will come and make his intervention in the debate.

"This is a fight against black money and the whole nation has supported it. I also want to clarify, start the debate... If members want the Prime Minister to come, he will come, and if needed he will intervene," Singh said.

The opposition members, however, kept raising slogans like "adjournment motion shuru karo" (start adjournment motion).

With the opposition members creating a ruckus, the Speaker adjourned the house till 2 p.m.

--IANS

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The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Monday approved appointment of Lt. Gen. A. K. Bhatt as the Indian Army's new Director General of Military Operations.

He will replace Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh who moves to Mathura as commander of the army's 1 (strike) Corps.

The new appointment come nearly two months after the surgical strike by Indian troops across the Line of Control to neutralise terrorist launching pads, which Lt Gen Singh as DGMO had announced on September 29, and as incidents of ceasefire violations from Pakistan continue along the International Border and Line of Control.

The cabinet panel also approved the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs to appoint Lt. Gen Shokin Chauhan as Director General of Assam Rifles on deputation basis for a period of two years with effect from the date of his assumption of charge or till his retirement from the Army or until further orders

--IANS

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Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested from Delhi in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Monday morning.

According to senior officials of the Special Cell, Mintoo was arrested from a Delhi railway station.

"He was arrested after he made contact with one of his relatives in Subhash Nagar. The intercepted phone call helped in the arrest," a senior officer of the Special Cell told IANS, requesting anonymity.

The arrest was made within 24 hours of the sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday in which two terrorists and four gangsters escaped after the prison was attacked by armed men.

The officer also said that Mintoo would be produced in a local court here and shall be handed over to the Punjab Police on transit remand.

On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who helped in the jailbreak, was arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district.

--IANS

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The shutdown called by Kerala's ruling LDF on Monday appeared to be total as only private vehicles plied, offices registered minimal attendances, and normal life was crippled.

While the leading opposition parties called for a nationwide protest the aftermath of the demonetisation, in Kerala the ruling Left Democratic Front government decided to organise a dawn-to-dusk shutdown.

The shutdown was called to denounce the of high value currency which has left the cooperative banks in the state in turmoil.

Even though it was a state-wide shutdown, the organisers have left tourism activities and also the banking establishments out of the ambit of the call. They have also sought the pilgrims to the famed Sabarimala temple to be left unaffected by the shutdown.

Attendances in banks were poor, as vehicular traffic was affected.

The Pinarayi Vijayan-led government has also called the strike to protest the "rash" behaviour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who declined to meet an all-party delegation from the state which wanted to apprise him of the turmoil in the cooperative sector.

The Congress-led opposition, however, expressed strong reservations over the shutdown.

Following the demonetisation, normal life has already turned upside down in the past 20 days and to further strain it would not be an answer to the woes, the Congress said.

Instead, the party decided it would stage a sit-in in front of the Kerala Raj Bhavan.

The officials at the Indian Space Research Organisation unit here worked under police security, as did the IT employees at Technopark here and at Kochi.

On November 8, the central government demonetised the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

Two days later, permission was withdrawn for the 1,600-odd primary cooperative societies from accepting or exchanging the scrapped currency notes, creating widespread resentment in Kerala.

The total deposits in the cooperative banks are around Rs 1.27 lakh crore, says Kerala Cooperation Minister A.C. Moideen.
Opposition parties on Monday staged a protest against the demonetisation of higher currency notes near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament House complex as both houses of parliament witnessed pandemonium over the issue.

Leaders from the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, the DMK and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) protested in the Parliament House precincts.

The protest was led by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

However, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool Congress and Janata Dal United (JDU) stayed away from the protest, which was mainly a Congress show.

Later, Samajwadi Party Rajya Sabha member Ram Gopal Yadav told IANS that his party was "kept in the dark" over the protest.

"Hamein to wahan hona hi nahi tha (We were not supposed to be there). The opposition parties had a meeting in the morning. This protest was not discussed then. We were kept in the dark," Yadav said.

However, he added that his party was with the rest of the opposition in observing 'Akrosh Diwas' (protest day).

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of the winter session on November 16 over the demonetisation that has triggered a cash crunch in the country.

--IANS

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Elections for members of 10,318 panchayats in Gujarat, including sarpanches or village heads, as well as by-elections for vacant panchayat seats elsewhere will be held on December 27, the Gujarat Election Commission announced on Monday.

State Election Commissioner Varesh Sinha said the votes will be counted on December 29.

The manual voting -- and not through electronic voting machines -- will be held at 24,454 polling stations in 91,002 wards. Of the nearly 1.89 crore eligible voters, 98,64,234 are men and 90,22,758 women.

There are over 14,000 gram panchayats or village-level bodies in the western state.

Though panchayat elections are held without election symbols and not on party basis, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Congress have pulled out all stops to ensure candidates backed by them are elected as sarpanches.

These would be the major elections after the crucial district and taluka panchayats as well as nagar panchayats elections held last December.

Thanks to the statewide Patel agitation for reservation, the BJP suffered the first-ever electoral jolt in those December elections after the exit of Narendra Modi from the state to become the Prime Minister in 2014.

The Congress, which has been out of power in the state since 2002, sees a ray of hope for the crucial assembly polls due in December 2017.

Besides the Patel agitation led by Hardik Patel of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), Gujarat also witnessed a major Dalit agitation in the wake of public flogging of four youngsters in Una village in Saurashtra region.

And now, the opposition party expects that the public suffering due to Centre's November 8 demonetisation will help it.

The BJP claims to control a majority of the panchayats, while the Congress maintains the situation is quite different now.

State BJP spokesman Bharat Pandya told IANS: "The panchayat polls are not contested on party symbols, but 70 to 80 per cent panchayats have our sarpanches."

"Modi, as Chief Minister, had called all village sarpanches thrice to Gandhinagar, which itself was unheard of. Besides, our government drastically increased financial grants to panchayats. They had never felt so empowered earlier under the Congress," Pandya said.

Congress leader Manish Doshi said: "Look at the suffering of villagers and you will know that the state government has done little except make announcements."

"When our party rules with a brute majority in district and taluka panchayats, do you think the lowest rung of the Panchayati Raj Institutions is with the BJP or rather go with candidates supported by the BJP?" Doshi asked.

"The results will show. The panchayat elections were due in October but the ruling party was reluctant to hold them till now," he added.

--IANS

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President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday greeted Mauritania on its National Day.

"Greetings and felicitations on the occasion of your National Day," Mukherjee said in a statement issued here.

"I am confident that our close ties will be further strengthened in the coming years to the mutual benefit of the peoples of our two countries," the President said in his message to his Mauritanian counterpart Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.

"Please accept my good wishes for your personal health and well-being, as well as for the progress and prosperity of the friendly people of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania," he said.

Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb region of western North Africa and celebrates its National Day on November 28.

--IANS

ruwa/py/vt

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The Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day minutes after lunch on Monday as it could not conduct any meaningful business amid a opposition pandemonium over demonetisation and its aftermath.

The upper house witnessed chaos and repeated disruptions earlier on the issue and the 'Aakrosh Divas' protests by a combined opposition against the government's November 8 decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

The opposition members, who have been demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence in the house during debate on demonetisation, reiterated the demand.

Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said it was for the first time that no statement has been made by the government in either of the two houses of Parliament on such an important policy matter.

"This has happened for the first time that the Prime Minister has made no statement in either house. This (issue) should be debated in both the houses," he said.

The Congress leader also demanded Modi's presence during debate in Parliament since demonetisation was his decision.

Senior Congress leader and former Union Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said the Constitution or any law did not give authority to the Prime Minister to deprive people access to their own money or property.

"Even in financial emergency, the Prime Minister can't do so," he said, adding that demonetisation was "illegal".

Sharma wanted a ruling on the issue from the Chair, but was told by Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien that it was not possible since it was under discussion in the upper house.

In response, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the Prime Minister will come to the house and reply to the discussion.

The opposition members did not listen to him and kept on shouting slogans against Modi and the central government.

The Chair then adjourned the house for the day.

Both the houses of Parliament have seen a spate of disruptions over the fiscal chaos in the wake of demonetisation since the winter session began on November 16.

--IANS

sk/tsb/vt

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The dawn-to-dusk shutdown called by the ruling Left Democratic Front in Kerala on Monday crippled normal life as only private vehicles plied on roads and offices registered minimal attendance.

The opposition Congress, however, held a protest sit-in at the Raj Bhavan here.

While opposition parties called for nationwide protests on November 28 in different states after the November 8 demonetisation, the LDF led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist announced a shutdown in Kerala to denounce demonetisation that left state cooperative banks in turmoil.

Organisers of the shutdown had left tourism and banking establishments out of the purview of the bandh call.

Movement of pilgrims to the famed Sabarimala temple remained unaffected as their vehicles were allowed to move despite the shutdown.

Attendance in banks was poor as vehicular traffic and business took a hit.

The Pinarayi Vijayan-led state government had called the strike to also protest the "rash" behaviour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in declining to meet an all-party delegation from Kerala, which wanted to apprise him of the turmoil in the cooperative sector.

In Kerala, nearly 1,600 primary cooperative banks are attached to 14 district banks, which are linked to the Kerala State Cooperative Bank. Deposits in these cooperative banks total around Rs 1.27 lakh crore, Cooperation Minister A.C. Moideen said last week.

"The situation in Kerala is going from bad to worse... the entire system here is going to collapse," said Finance Minister Thomas Issac, while launching a protest here in the state capital.

The Congress-led opposition, however, expressed strong reservations over the shutdown.

Normal life has already turned topsy-turvy in the past 20 days due to demonetisation and further straining it is not the answer to the public woes, the Congress said.

As the opposition party staged the sit-in in front of the Kerala Raj Bhavan, top opposition leaders, including former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala, courted arrest but were later let off.

Indian Space Research Organisation officials here worked under police security, as did IT employees at the Technopark here and at Kochi.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party supporters distributed sweets in Kasargode to all those who rode their vehicles amid the shutdown.

The shutdown, however, facilitated transportation of an organ for transplant from a brain dead person in Kozhikode to Kochi in almost two and a half hours, which was half of the normal time it would have taken otherwise.

A report from Agartala in Tripura, where also the Left parties are in power, said normal life was crippled in the northeastern state too due to a 12-hour shutdown to protest against demonetisation of high-value currency.

--IANS

sg/tsb/dg

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Sahara Chief Subrata Roy will continue to remain on parole as Supreme Court on Monday asked him to deposit Rs 600 crore by February 6 next year as the group submitted the road map for returning Rs 11,036 crores in next two and half years.

Asking Sahara to deposit Rs 600 crore, the bench of Chief Justice T.S.Thakur, Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice A.K.Sikri asked why don't they reverse the road map to start depositing Rs 1,000 crore per month for refunding Rs 24,000 crore of more than three crore investors.

Besides Ray, the parole of his son-in-law Ashok Roy Choudhary and Sahara's Director Ravi Shankar Dubey too has been extended.

Sahara group's two companies - Sahara India Real Estate Corporation Ltd (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation Ltd (SHICL) -- had raised the money, through optionally fully convertible debenture, from about 3.3 crore investors in 2008 and 2009.

The apex court by its August 31, 2012 order directed the SIRECL and SHICL to return the investors' Rs 17,600 crore with 15 per cent interest.

Perusing the road map for depositing money in SEBI Sahara Refund account for returning investors money by the market regulator, Justice Gogoi said: "If you don't do it we will seriously consider appointing a receiver ..."

The court was told that Sahara has deposited Rs 1,200 crore ever since Roy was released on parole on May 6 to perform the last rites of his mother. Senior counsel Kapil Sibal, appearing for Roy, told the court that so far they have deposited Rs 11,000 crore with the market regulator and there is a balance of Rs 11036 crore.

However, Sibal told the court that Sebi put the balance figures at Rs 14,000 crore.

As he tried to suggest that some of the properties auctioned by the market regulator were at a low price and could have been sold at a higher price, the bench observed: "(Every time) either you come saying they (Sebi) are selling dirt cheap or someone else comes offering higher price and it continue like that.

"We have not restrained you from creating assets, we have restrained you from alienating them", the court observed as Sibal said that their "hands were tied" and even they wanted, they can't do anything.

Sibal had expressed the haplessness of Sahara group as a lawyer told the court that her client has deposited the money for a flat in one of its housing projects but there was nothing on the ground.

The next hearing is on February 6.

--IANS

pk/vd

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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday arrested three suspected Al-Qaeda activists from Tamil Nadu's Madurai, said police.

Police alleged that the three suspects had plans to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 21 other leaders.

The arrested men -- identified as M. Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali -- also allegedly issued threats to several embassies in India, police said.

Temple town Madurai is around 420 km from here.

--IANS

vj/vd/dg

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Top aide Kellyanne Conway says she'll support whomever US President-elect Donald Trump nominates for Secretary of State, but it appears she cannot help lobbying against Mitt Romney.

"People feel betrayed to think that Governor Romney -- who went out of his way to question the character, intellect and integrity of Donald Trump,... -- would be given the most significant cabinet post of all,..," Conway said Sunday on NBC's Meet The Press.

In a string of television interviews, Conway referred to Romney's attacks on Trump as "fraud" and "phony," and stressed the opposition to Romney's potential nomination by numerous Trump backers, reported USA today.

She told NBC, "I'm reflecting what the grassroots are saying."

Conway, however, also said the decision belongs to one person -- Trump -- and she would back his choice.

"We're all for party unity," Conway said on ABC's This Week, but she added that "I don't think a cost of admission for party unity has to be the Secretary of State position."

Trump has interviewed Romney for the job. A prominent Trump campaign supporter, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, is also seeking the State Department post.

There are others in the mix, officials said, including John Kelly, a retired general, and Sen. Bob Corker.

There was also talk of retired general and former CIA Director David Petraeus, though he pleaded guilty in a case involving the sharing of classified information.

--IANS

in/

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British actor of Indian descent Dev Patel says he spent an hour looking at himself in the mirror for his role in his latest film "Lion".

Patel told Empire magazine: "It required an energy shift. I'm a super-hyperactive kind of dude and the role required a level of stillness. Saroo had this emotional pain, this weight. I spent eight months prepping and it was all a process of introspection.

"I travelled around India on trains to get a feel of what it would be like, I wrote diaries, I visited orphanages. Garth would get me to stare in the mirror for an hour. It's amazing what you can see when you stop for a moment and really try to look inside yourself."

He landed the role after a gruelling six-hour audition in which he worked through the entire script with director Garth Davis and "lost his mind" at the end, reports femalefirt.co.uk.

"At the end of it, Garth said, 'Before you go, I'm wondering if you could just scream?' I was like, 'What do you mean?' He said, 'I want you to roar like a lion. Let go of emotion and completely purge the pain you'd feel in Saroo's situation. You don't have to do it.'

"And I was like, 'Of course I have to'. So I did and I completely lost my mind. I was jumping in at the deep end," he said.

--IANS

dc/nn/

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Last week the former foreign minister of Singapore, George Yeo, resigned as the chancellor of the governments pet project, the Nalanda University, in Rajgir, Bihar. Mr Yeo apparently resigned as he felt that the universitys autonomy was being infringed upon and that he as chancellor had not been given adequate notice of the change in leadership of the university. President Pranab Mukherjee had unilaterally reconstituted the board and removed former chancellor Amartya Sen from it.
The banking system is evidently experiencing abundant liquidity, thanks to the governments decision to demonetise old currency notes of high denominations and swap them with new ones. While ordinary people struggle for cash, banks are flooded with money because deposits have swelled. According to Crisil, between November 8 and 25, funds parked by banks with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under the reverse repo facility surged 10 times to Rs 1.5 lakh crore. As a result, by Friday, the 10-year government security yield had fallen below the repo rate of 6.25 per cent  the 10-year benchmark 6.97 per cent gilt yield has been in a free fall since the demonetisation announcement. This has not only inverted the yield curve  with the longer yield lower than the shorter one  but also narrowed the differential between Indian gilts and the US treasuries which, in turn, resulted in $2.4 billion of net foreign institutional investor funds flowing out. This led to a sharp depreciation in the rupee and has made it difficult for the RBI to cut the repo rate in the upcoming monetary policy review on December 7. But while all these difficulties facing the RBI are understandable, its response to these deserves criticism.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today threatened to demonstrate outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence against demonetisation, vowing to dislodge him from the seat of power if the scrapping of high value currency notes is not withdrawn.

"The entire country is suffering. There is no money in banks, ATMS. So far 80 people have died due to the hardships caused by . But Narendra Modi is having a sound sleep and giving lectures on taking the country towards cashless economy," she told a rally here.

"Most of the people in rural areas do not have bank accounts. How will they cope up with this situation?" Banerjee said after her protest march from College Square to Esplanade.

Continuing her tirade against Modi, Banerjee said she would fight till the end against the "anti-people" decision which has imposed an "undeclared financial emergency" in the country.

"I will not stop until and unless this decision is rolled back. I had also given solutions on how to cope with this situation. But they (Centre) did not accept it.

"Whoever opposes him, he will send CBI, ED, Income Tax after them to muzzle their voices. But he can't muzzle my voice. I will again go to Delhi and raise my voice, take out protest march and if needed I will demonstrate in front of Modi's house...I will not stop until and unless he is out of power," Banerjee said.

The TMC supremo along with Trinamool Congress leaders and activists led a massive rally in the heart of Kolkata.

She lauded intellectuals for playing a vital role in protesting against the "anti-people" decision.

Banerjee herself raised slogans like "Modi sarkar hai hai" and "Tanashahi nahi chalegi".
CPI-ML activists scuffle with the police in Patna on Monday during the bandh called by the Left parties to protest against demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes. Photo: PTI
A resident says clashes between the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab and villagers in a central Somali town have left 10 people dead and dozens wounded.

Ahmed Mohamed said the clashes erupted Monday after al-Shabab fighters who control the port town of Harardhere ordered nomadic villagers to pay a tax.

He said the residents, who have lost hundreds of animals from the current drought, dismissed the demand, leading to fighting between the two sides.

He said six militants and four residents have been killed in the ongoing fighting.

Civilians have rarely resisted al-Shabab, which carries out executions to impose its authority.

It was not possible to get a comment from al-Shabab, which seeks to establish a strict Islamic emirate in Somalia and is waging an insurgency against the weak UN-backed government.

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Armed men have abducted three UN refugee agency staffers, including two foreigners, from Sudan's strife-torn Darfur region, a local government official said today.

Two Nepalese and a Sudanese national working for UNHCR were abducted Sunday in Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state.

"A group of armed men kidnapped yesterday three UNHCR workers, two Nepalese and a Sudanese, from Geneina," Abdelah Mustafa, spokesman for the state government of West Darfur told AFP.

"Police are searching for the kidnappers."



UNHCR officials were not immediately available for comment, but its spokesman in Khartoum told AFP by text message that a meeting was underway to discuss the "urgent incident".

Darfur has been engulfed in a deadly conflict since 2003 when ethnic minority groups took up arms against President Omar al-Bashir's Arab-dominated government, which launched a brutal counter-insurgency.

At least 300,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced in Darfur since then, the UN says.

Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes and genocide charges related to Darfur, which he denies.

Sudan insists that the conflict in Darfur has ended, and that it wants UN peacekeepers who have been deployed in the region the size of France since 2007 to leave.

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Delhi Police today arrested the alleged mastermind of a shoot out near Qutub Minar last year in which one youth was killed and also caught his associates who were carrying sophisticated fire arms including a carbine.

Rohit Chaudhary, the prime accused in the case, carried a reward of Rs 50,000 on his arrest, was held this morning, police said.

His accomplice Anil Kumar, who carried a reward of Rs 5,000 in connection with the shootout was caught along with him. Both of them were wanted by the police and a reward of Rs 50,000 was announced on their arrest, they said.

24-year-old Suraj Sejwal, a five star hotel employee, was killed while his friend was critically injured in indiscriminate firing by over a dozen near Qutub Minar on March 9 last year.

Rohit, Anil, Rajesh and Ravi were caught by Special Staff of South Delhi police at Dera Village More near mini stadium, around 5 AM. They were in a Scorpio that was robbed from Gautam Buddh Nagar, said Ishwar Singh, DCP (south).

Sophisticated weapons including a carbine, four .32 bore pistols, two 9 mm pistols, 72 live cartridges were also recovered from them, he said.

Rohit, 29, a graduate of Delhi University, had come in contact with some anti-social elements of Dakshin Puri and started committing crimes during his college days. Two attempts of murder cases were also registered against him at Safdarjung Enclave and Ambedkar Nagar police stations.

Rajesh who has been arrested in also a dreaded criminal with two murder, one attempt to murder and one Arms Act case against him at Ambedkar Nagar police station, said the officer.

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IIM Indore has 58 faculty vacancies followed by IIM Bangalore where 32 teaching posts are vacant, the Lok Sabha was told today.

Twenty faculty posts are vacant in IIMs located in Calcutta, Lucknow and Ranchi, Minister of State for HRD Mahendra Nath Pandey said in a written reply.

In his reply the minister also said that recruitment of posts is a continuous process and institutes recruit the faculty and non-faculty as per their individual requirement.

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Chinese archaeologists have discovered a 6,000-year-old pentagon house, first of its kind in north China's Shanxi Province, which is believed to be a tribal meeting hall or a leader's office.

The semi-subterranean house, discovered at the Neolithic ruins at Taoyuan village covered a total area of 90 square meters, with surviving walls reaching a maximum of 50 cm, said Xue Xinming, a researcher with Shanxi provincial institute of archaeology.

The walls were painted with a mixture of grass and mud inside and several holes were also found where wooden pillars were located to support the house and walls, Xue said.

A cylinder-shaped fireplace was also found underground in the house, which ancient people used for heating, cooking and lighting.

The pentagonal building was rare for that period as the prehistoric people only built structures larger than 80 square meters in the shape, state-run Xinhua agency reported.

"Such a big building perhaps was an office for a tribe leader or a public venue for meetings or worship ceremonies of a major tribe," he said.

Previously, a dozen prehistoric pentagonal buildings had been found in China, mainly located in Lingbao City, Henan Province.

The discovery is part of findings from an excavation that began in August in Taoyuan, a village in Jiade Township of Linfen's Yaodu District, to prepare for highway construction in the area, said Zheng Yuan, excavation team leader of the project, the report said.

Zheng said the total excavation area is 2,500 square meters, and aside from four house ruins, they have also discovered ruins of a pottery kiln and unearthed a variety of pottery pieces.

The excavation is important for researching society and life in the Miaodigou Culture, the most powerful period in prehistoric China, which was centered around the provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Henan, she said.

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Eight fishermen from Karaikal, about 345 kms from here, were arrested for allegedly using "banned fishing nets," while fishing off Thondi coast here today, police said.

The fishermen not only used the banned fishing nets, but also snapped the nets of a group of fishermen from Thondi, at Thiruvadanai, they said.

The Karaikal fishers were caught by the Thondi fishermen and later handed over to the police, they added.

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After three weeks since the Centre announced the demonetisation decision and two days after the banks reopened after the weekend holidays, queues outside banks and ATMs in the suburbs were found to be shorter today though citizens complained of not getting the desired amount withdrawn.

Many citizens expressed concern that they may have to continue to face the hardships owing to the cash crunch for some more days.

Archita Mishra, a resident of neighbouring Thane, said she felt short-changed by her bank as she could get only Rs 2,500 withdrawn over the counter.

"I went to the bank to withdraw Rs 24,000 and I was quite hopeful to get it as there was no rush at all today. But my hope faded away as the bank executive told me that I could get only Rs 2,500 as the bank didn't have sufficient currency in its coffers," she said, adding that the banks should put up a notice informing the people of the scenario.

OP Sharma, a resident of suburban Bhandup, said though the queues had shrunken substantially, the banks needed to adopt a supportive attitude towards the senior citizens.

"While a few banks are making separate queues for senior citizens, State Bank of India is not mending its ways as a result of which, the elderly people are forced to stand in the line under the scorching sun. This should be corrected immediately," said the retired Central Railway officer.

He said the rush at the banks had reduced substantially since the exchange of scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes was halted.

Neelam Trivedi, a Ghatkopar-based homemaker, claimed that the banks today sent the people away citing liquidity crunch.

"It's good that the huge rush and serpentine queues are reducing with the passage of days, but this is also a harsh reality that the people are returning empty-handed as the banks are unable to give them sufficient money due to the liquidity problem," she said.

Recalling how people were queueing up outside banks since the wee hours to either get their old currency notes exchanged or deposited till a few days back, Trivedi said the situation had changed now.

Goregaon resident Vinayak Sawant said, "I joined the queue at an ATM at 4 pm after seeing only six-seven people ahead of me. But, we could not withdraw more than Rs 2,000. I hope the situation will improve very soon."



As per the Reserve Bank of India, one can withdraw up to Rs 24,000 per week from their bank accounts, including withdrawals from ATMs.

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National carrier Air India, which has already firmed up its plans to induct 22 Airbus A320 neos in its fleet, would dry lease another seven such aircraft for a 12-year period.

The government-run airline, which is all set to take delivery of its first more fuel-efficient A320 neo aircraft in January next year, has recently invited bids from interested parties in this regard.

At present, budget carriers IndiGo and GoAir have these latest single-aisle planes from the European aircraft market Airbus in their fleet.

As it works on ways to turn around its fortunes, the airline is looking to ramp up the fleet with more fuel-efficient A320 neo (new engine option) planes.

"Air India intends to induct on dry lease up to seven new A320 neo aircraft powered by CFM LEAP -1A26 engines, " the carrier said in the bid document.

Air India plans to induct these A320 neos by up to 2018, it said adding the airline would be taking these planes for a period of maximum up to 12 years.

In March this year, Air India signed a pact with the Kuwait-based ALAFCO for leasing 14 A320 neos and the delivery of these planes is to start from early next year.

After turning operationally profitable in the last fiscal, Air India posted an operational loss of Rs 246.14 crore in the latest April-June quarter.

For the first time in nearly a decade, Air India reported an operating profit of Rs 105 crore in the last fiscal.

Various steps such as rationalisation of certain loss making routes, closure of overseas offline offices at certain locations, phasing out of old fleet and consequential reduction in maintenance costs have been initiated to reduce the airline's losses.

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Amnesty International denounced as "shocking" weekend clashes between security forces and royal guards in Uganda which left 62 dead, saying many victims appeared to have been executed.

The bloodshed, which took place in a traditional kingdom in the west, broke out when a joint patrol of police and troops was attacked by the royal guards in the town of Kasese.

The clashes continued into Sunday until police stormed the palace, arresting King Charles Wesley Mumbere of the Rwenzururu kingdom.

Speaking to AFP yesterday, police spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi said the intial death toll of 55 had risen to 62, including 16 police officers and 46 royal guards.

The royal guards are believed to be part of a militia agitating for the creation of an independent republic straddling Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Police said the king had been taken into custody in Kampala, with another spokesman telling NTV television that 139 royal guards had been arrested,



The violence drew a sharp reaction from the London-based rights watchdog, which said emerging evidence suggested some of the victims had been shot after their arrest.

"The full picture of the weekend's events is yet to emerge, but there appears to be shocking examples of unlawful killings and a complete disregard for human rights during the arrests," said Abdullahi Halakhe, Amnesty International's East Africa Researcher.

"In a shocking display of heavy-handedness, many people appear to have been shot dead and their bodies dumped."



Uganda's main opposition leader Kizza Besigye shared gruesome images circulating on social media which appeared to show dozens of bodies piled up in front of the palace gates, condemning the "massacre" on Twitter.

Human rights lawyer Nicholas Opiyo said researchers were still trying to determine exactly what had happened.

"Although we have been unable to determine exactly what happened yesterday, we are concerned about the excessive loss of life," he said.

He also said Joy Doreen Biira, a local journalist covering the violence, had been arrested on charges of "complicity with terrorism" with police searching her home for photographs.

Brigadier Peter Elwelu of the Ugandan army told NTV that the militia had been carrying out sporadic attacks on the government and civilians since 2014.

"We kept on watching this group, we kept on reaching out to them. Things were not working out and we had to take a decision," he said.

Elwelu said President Yoweri Museveni had phoned the king on Sunday morning and ordered him to rein in his guards.

"We gave him an hour, it elapsed. So the president again called -- gave him two more hours (saying) 'please, sort this out'," said Elwelu.

"So we had no option, after that we had to storm the palace and get these terrorists, and that is what we did."



The king has denied any links to the separatists. Interior Minister Jeje Odongo accused him of wanting to start a war.

"From what was recovered from the palace, the weapons used and the people, you clearly see that King Mumbere wanted to wage a war against the government," he said.

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Assam Public Service Commission member Basanta Kumar Doley was arrested today in connection with alleged corruption in the organisation, police said.

"We have been interrogating Doley since this morning. After we got sure of his involvement in the scam, we have arrested him," a senior Assam Police official told PTI here.

The police will produce Doley in the court tomorrow and will seek 14 day's remand, he added.

Earlier APSC Chairman Rakesh Kumar Paul, its member Samedur Rahman and Assistant Controller of Examinations of APSC Pabitra Kaibarta were arrested.

After the arrest of Paul, Doley had allegedly set ablaze a huge quantity of paper and told media that he had asked to burn non-official papers lying in his room to prevent breeding of dengue mosquitoes.

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The Congress in Arunachal Pradesh today joined the nation-wide protest against demonetisation and demanded an enquiry by a Parliamentary Standing Committee on the blackmoney stashed abroad.

Joining the 'Akrosh Diwas' protest against demonetisation, Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) asked the Centre to enhance the withdrawal limit of cash from ATMs and banks to ease public inconveniences.

Thousands of Congress workers holding placards organised joined the protest at Indira Gandhi Park here and unequivocally denounced Prime Minister Narendra Modi's move as "a political move being sold as a fight against corruption".

Addressing the gathering, former Chief Minister Nabam Tuki said that the NDA government's demonetisation move came at a time when the country was passing through a crucial phase.

"The BJP is trying to create intolerance and want to make the country economically weak. The prime minister took a hurried decision for which people are forced to suffer in remote and inaccessible areas where there are no facilities of banks and ATMs," Tuki said.

He said the current slogan of the prime minister for cashless transaction did not match with the present scenario as most of the villages in the country were without bank and ATM facilities.

"First provide all facilities and then go for demonetisation," he said and alleged that the NDA government had informed all its leaders six months in advance about the move.

He said before such a move, an ordinance should have come up and passed by both the houses of the Parliament.

Denouncing Modi's claim that the move was aimed at curbing terrorism and check blackmoney, Tuki said that there were various laws which could have been implemented to curb the menace instead of harassing the common man.

APCC President Padi Richo while terming demonetisation as 'de-Moditisation' said, "Majority of the country's population are not happy with the move and days are not far away when the people will give a befitting reply to it".

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Arriving in shorts and vest to register his protest against delay in construction of Bettiah-Manuappa road, BJP MLA Binay Bihari was today denied entry in the Bihar Assembly for violating "shishtachar" of the House.

Not allowed entry, the BJP MLA from Lauria in West Champaran district sat on dharna in the lawns outside the assembly.

Bihari had come in the attire to protest against the state government for not constructing the 44.325 km road from Bettiah to Manuappa via Yogapatti Ratwal despite Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's announcement on it at a public meeting in 2013.

Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar raised the issue in the Assembly and pleaded Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary to allow Bihari come inside the house.

Later, the Speaker after taking details from officials informed the House that the member was not allowed to attend the proceedings in shorts and vest as it violated "shishtachar" (etiquette) of the House.

He quoted rule 29 (1) of Assembly which prohibits "ashisht acharan" (not following etiquettes) inside the House and said the present case fell in that category.

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, Leader of Opposition in Assembly Prem Kumar and a host of party legislators joined the agitating MLA.

Later, talking to reporters, Kumar attacked the chief minister and held him responsible for the MLA vowing to wear shorts and vest till the road was constructed.

Binay Bihari said he would continue with the attire in the winter months.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The two candidates in Austria's longest ever presidential race clashed over the European Union, Donald Trump, and migrants as they faced off in a TV duel a week before the runoff.

Greens-backed contender Alexander Van der Bellen accused his far-right rival Norbert Hofer of stirring insecurity by threatening to pull Austria out of the EU.

Hofer of the anti-immigration Freedom Party (FPOe) has said he would call a referendum on EU membership if Turkey joined the 28-member club or if Brussels tried to centralise power further.

"The FPOe has been toying with Austria's exit for 20 years. Many politicians in Europe are worried that the mere speculation could trigger... An avalanche of right-wing populism," said 72-year-old Van der Bellen during the live debate broadcast on private channel ATV.

"The most important thing is the solidarity between member states, otherwise we won't be able to assert ourselves in the face of Russia or the United States."



But Hofer, 45, dismissed the allegations as media-led "scare-mongering".

"There won't be an 'Oexit'. I've repeatedly said that I want a positive development of the EU," he said.

While Van der Bellen stressed Austria's important relationship with its largest trade partner Germany, Hofer vowed to seek closer ties with eastern and central European neighbours and, primarily, Russia.

He denounced German Chancellor Angela Merkel for "causing serious damage to Europe" with her open-door policy, which he said has allowed hundreds of thousands of migrants "including terrorists to trek through Austria" since last year.

Hofer also attacked Van der Bellen for criticising the US election win of Donald Trump.

"It is not clever to describe a president as a rabble rouser," he said.

Van der Bellen hit back saying politicians across Europe felt "anxious" about the arrival of a US president-elect who has been accused of sexist attacks on women and threatening the rights of minorities.

Like Trump as well as other populist groups in Europe, the FPOe has boosted support by stoking concerns about immigration and what it portrays as an out-of-touch elite.

Hofer hopes to become the EU's first far-right head of state on December 4, after nearly 350 days of campaigning.

In May, he lost by a paper-thin margin to Van der Bellen, but the FPOe got the result overturned due to procedural errors. A re-run set for October was again postponed because of faulty glue on postal vote envelopes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Scientists have developed an eight-inch remote-controlled metal penis that may help men struggling with severe erectile dysfunction.

Developed by researchers from the University of Wisconsin in the US, the heat-activated device can be used at the press of a button in just two minutes.

The implant will help revive the sex lives of people who fail to respond to drugs like Viagra or other treatments, experts say.

The implant is made from nitinol - also known as "memory metal" - which is a mixture of nickel and titanium. It can change shape when heated or cooled 'The Sun' reported.

At body temperature of 37 degrees Celsius, the implant is just a couple of inches long. However, when heated to 42 degrees, it expands to eight inches.

"A shape memory alloy-based penile prosthesis represents a promising new technology in the treatment of erectile dysfunction," said lead researcher Dr Brian Le, from the University of Wisconsin.

Surgeons can make a tiny incision at the bottom of the penis and insert the implant - made from stretchy latex covered with a coating of memory metal. Attached to one end is a tiny heating coil.

The one inch metal coil can be turned on by a remote held over the groin, generating a metal field which triggers a current.

The coil then warms the implant, making it expand and fully erect. A cool flannel makes the swelling go down.

The prototype device is due to be tested on animals in the next few months but could be available in the market within a few years, the report said.

"It definitely has potential to benefit some patients," said Asif Muneer from the British Association of Urological Surgeons, describing the new device as "promising".

"There are fewer components than with existing inflatable implants and that reduces the chances of infection," he said.

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Taking a dig at the BJP which has emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray today dubbed the ruling party's performance as the "victory of old notes and not of the note ban."



"Ha notabandicha vijay nasun junya notancha ahe (This is the victory of old notes and not of the note ban)," Thackeray said in a brief statement, apparently trying to convey that BJP's political plank of demonetisation of high value tenders didn't work for the party in polls.

Out of 3,705 seats, spread over 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats, that went to polls yesterday, the results for 3,510 seats have been declared so far. Counting for rest of the seats was still on.

While BJP has won 851 seats, Shiv Sena won 514, NCP 638, Congress 643, MNS 16, BSP 9, local coalitions 384, CPM 12 and Independents 324 seats.

MNS was not a serious contender in the polls and Thackeray had kept himself away from any campaigns.

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi has termed the result as the "win for pro-poor and development politics of BJP", party president Amit Shah has said that "the result should be a wake up call for opposition attempting to mislead people on demonetisation.

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A Brazilian opposition party filed a petition for the impeachment of President Michel Temer, underlining the growing difficulties facing the centre-right leader as he tries to introduce austerity reforms.

The impeachment demand filed yesterday by the PSOL, a small leftist party, was unlikely to be accepted, so had mostly symbolic significance. The PSOL argues that Temer committed crimes by allegedly interfering in a business dispute to aid a friend in his cabinet.

Temer denies any wrongdoing in the affair.

Another impeachment request is expected from the leftist Workers' Party soon.

Temer's allies control both the lower house and Senate in Congress, meaning that even if an impeachment petition were ever put to the vote it would not pass.

However, the development is an embarrassment to Temer who came to power this year after the bitterly fought impeachment of president Dilma Rousseff, from the Workers' Party, for breaking government accounting rules.

The spat also comes as Temer is pushing a 20-year spending freeze as the first plank in reforms he says will help Brazil recover from its worst recession in decades. The Senate is slated to vote on the freeze today.
British Prime Minister Theresa May is set to face a new legal battle over whether the United Kingdom (UK) stays or leaves the European single market, the second legal challenge faced by the government over the process.

British Influence, a pro-EU think-tank, is demanding a judicial review into the UK government's assumption that membership of the European Economic Area (EEA) automatically ends, when the country leaves the European Union (EU).

Its lawyers claim the UK will not leave the European single market automatically when it leaves the EU and that the UK Parliament should decide on it.

"There is a strong chance that the UK will be acting unlawfully by taking us out of the EEA with . We consider that they have an obligation to seek urgent clarification in the courts. So we are going to be petitioning for a judicial review," said Jonathan Lis, deputy director for British Influence.

British Influence said today it is writing to Secretary David Davis to inform him that it will seek a formal judicial review of the government's position. But the UK government's stand is that the country's EEA membership ends when the UK officially leaves the EU following a referendum in favour of an exit from the economic bloc in June.

The European single market is a trade agreement that allows different countries within the EU to trade across borders as easily as they can within their own country, with no extra tariffs or negotiations.

There is a view which claims that Article 50, which deals with a country's exit from the EU, does not provide for leaving the EEA, which extends the single market's tariff-free trade in goods to countries like Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein  which are not full members of the EU.

If the courts back the legal challenge and give Parliament the final say over EEA membership, then MPs could vote to ensure that Britain stays in the single market until a long-term trading relationship with the EU has been agreed.

The legal question is focused on whether the UK is a member of the EEA in its own right or because it is an EU member.

Professor George Yarrow, chairman of the Regulatory Policy Institute and emeritus professor at Hertford College, Oxford, told BBC, "There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU. The only exit mechanism specified is Article 127, which would need to be triggered."



This latest challenge could mean a lengthy legal process, which could delay Brexit negotiations. If the courts say Article 127 does need to be triggered, there is the question of whether an act of Parliament would be needed for it to be authorised.

A UK government spokesperson said, "As the UK is party to the EEA agreement only in its capacity as an EU member state, once we leave the European Union we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA."



At the start of the month, another challenge saw the high court rule that only Parliament has the power to formally trigger Brexit. That case will be decided by the Supreme Court in an appeal to be heard next week.
British police have received a genetic sample from Wikileaks founder for Swedish prosecutors to use in their rape investigation against him, an official said today.

British authorities took the sample from Assange in Ecuador's London embassy where he is taking refuge, the South American country's chief prosecutor Galo Chiriboga said.

Assange, 45, has been in the embassy since 2012 to avoid being sent to Sweden where he faces the rape allegations, which he denies.

He fears Sweden would extradite him to the United States to answer for the leaking of diplomatic cables by his whistleblowing website, which embarrassed Washington.

An Ecuadoran state attorney questioned Assange at the embassy on November 14 on behalf of a Swedish prosecutor who was also present.

On that occasion, "Mr. Assange presented a document stating that he had already handed over the DNA sample to the British police," Chiriboga told reporters in the Ecuadoran capital Quito.

"Therefore Sweden will now have to request that DNA sample from the British police."



He said Ecuadoran prosecutors would send the official transcript of Assange's evidence from the November 14 hearing to Swedish authorities "in mid-December.
Chinese conglomerate Sany Group today signed an MoU with the Gujarat Government to invest a staggering USD 2 billion over the next five years in various energy and infrastructure projects in the state.

The pact for the proposed investment in the state was signed today in the presence of Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani at Gandhinagar after his meeting with the Chinese delegation, led by Liang Wengen, Chairman of the board, Sany Group, an official release said.

After an hour long meeting, it was decided that Sany Group would be investing USD 2 billion over the next five years. This is one of the biggest single MoU signed by any state government in India, it added.

Gujarat Industries Commissioner Mamta Verma said, "I welcome Sany Group to Gujarat and ensure all support from the Government. We look forward to timely completion of the projects and am confident that these projects will help us make Gujarat greener, smarter and future-ready".

As per the MoU, Sany Group will invest in five different projects, including development of a 1000-MW wind energy project, another 1000-MW of wind-plus-solar power generation project, setting up facility to manufacture wind turbines, developing one small size smart city and setting up a factory to produce pre-cast concrete for the mass housing projects and other real estate Projects.

As per the MoU, which was signed ahead of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit to be held next year, state government will provide necessary support to Sany Group in obtaining necessary permissions, registrations, approvals, clearance, etc from the concerned departments of the state.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will complete 11 years in office tomorrow, which the BJP has planned to celebrate through a number of programmes, including lighting 'diyas' in every house under the 62,926 polling booths across the state.

Describing Chouhan's 11 years in office as "11 years of service and welfare of the people", BJP state chief Nandkumar Singh Chauhan said, "The party will celebrate the occasion in a number of ways, including lighting 'diyas' (earthen lamps) in each and every house under the 62,926 polling booths in the state."



Besides organising 'Hitgrahi Sammelans' (beneficiaries' conferences) for a fortnight, the chief minister will be felicitated by elders and the common people at Subhash Chowk in Bhopal, he said.

"Under the able leadership of the chief minister, a large number of welfare schemes were implemented in the state for all the sections of the society, including the youth, women and girls," Nandkumar said.

Chouhan is currently serving his third term and is the only chief minister in the state's history to complete 11 years in office.

He took oath as chief minister for the first time on November 29, 2005 in place of Babulal Gaur amid turbulence in the BJP over former chief minister Uma Bharti's demand of restoration of chief ministership to her.

In the 2008 Assembly polls, the BJP under Chouhan won 143 out of 230 seats.

In 2013, the saffron party improved its tally to 165 seats amid speculations that the alleged muti-crore 'Vyapam' (admission-cum-recruitment) scam would dent its poll prospects. Congress was reduced to below 60 seats.

Chouhan took oath as the chief minister for the third time on December 14, 2013.

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An employee of the civil hospital here has allegedly committed suicide by consuming poisonous substance after he was accused of theft.

Vikram Pal (28), a resident of Achli gate, was posted as a temporary class IV employee, police said.

He found a silver chain from the bathroom when he was cleaning it.

Narinder Singh, a resident of nearby Damodar village, alleged that he had stolen the chain from the delivery ward where his wife Baljit Kaur was admitted.

In the meantime, Vikram went to his house and ended is life after consuming some poisonous substance, police said.

The relatives of deceased Vikram Pal sat on a dharna in front of emergency ward and demanded registration of murder case against Narinder Singh.

A police team led by DSP (City) Ravinder Pal Singh Dhillon and SHO City Narinder Singh pacified them and registered a case under relevant sections of IPC against Narinder Singh, police said.

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Ruling Congress in Meghalaya today staged a demonstration against demonetisation even as the Left-sponsored bandh on the issue did not evoke any response here.

State Congress President and former Chief Minister D D Lapang led the protest along with senior workers of the party wherein about 200 of them gathered at Dhanketi point here.

The demonstrators raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and held placards condemning demonetisation.

In his short address, Lapang said Modi's idea may have been good but the time, the system and the non-preparation of the NDA government has caused problems at grassroot level and added that they were not supporting black money.

He said a lot of parents were not able to cope up with the expenses at schools. Festival and marriages would be hit the hardest.

Congress will continue with its protest and a poster campaign will be launched tomorrow in the entire state, party sources said.

Zenith Sangma also lambasted the NDA government and held it responsible for the alleged "financial mess" in the country.

Meanwhile, the bandh called by Left parties did not evoke any response from the people here.

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Dubbing the BJP-led government at the Centre as "anti-poor", Congress and the NCP today hit the street in Maharashtra to protest the note scrapping decision but normal life remained unaffected with no disruption of public transport or functioning of offices and businesses in Mumbai and other parts of the state.

State Congress chief Ashok Chavan, who led the protest here, said his party will also raise the hardships caused by the decision to common people in the winter session of the state Legislature, beginning on December 5.

Addressing a rally outside suburban collector office after the 'Jan Akrosh' march from Kalina to Kherwadi junction in Bandra, Chavan alleged that the government had "waived" Vijay Mallya's loan but not that of farmers.

"The BJP government at the Centre is anti-poor. Nine farmers have committed suicide recently, still the government has no shame," he alleged.

Chavan claimed the protest was a "success" as the "common man participated in large numbers".

Congress leaders were joined by NCP city unit president Sachin Ahir and party workers in the march in suburban Mumbai to protest over the issue.

Mumbai Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam, city Congress leaders Kripashankar Singh, Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan, Rajya Sabha member Hussain Dalwai and NCP Mumbai president Sachin Ahir spoke on the occasion.

Ahir said the ill-effects of the November 8 decision, taken without proper planning, were still continuing.

The Congress also planned "Money Ki Baat" outside railway stations and banks in Byculla, Kurla, Andheri and Jogeshwari areas of the metropolis to highlight the poor implementation of demonetisation.

Nirupam claimed Federation of Maharashtra, Maharashtra State Chemists and Druggists Association, Mumbai Gold Wholesale Association and taxi-autorickshaw unions in Mumbai also supported and participated in the morcha.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dubbing demonetisation as another 'jumla' of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress today posed a set of questions to him demanding answers and said it has brought the economy and agriculture sector to a halt.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala attacked the Prime Minister for avoiding Parliament and not answering to concerns raised by elected representatives.

"Modiji has now given a new 'jumla' of tiding over the colossal crisis within 50 days. PM needs to traverse the distance from 'rhetoric' to 'reality' for the nation to progress, develop and move ahead," he said.

"By a single unwitting and disastrous decision, Prime Minister Modi has demonetised the entire nation."



Surjewala claimed the Modi government has changed the rules and directives on demonetisation 105 times in last 19 days.

"In last 19 days have seen tragic deaths of 80 innocent individuals. What was their fault? Why is ordinary Indian not permitted to withdraw his/her hard-earned money from their own account?



"Government must tell which one out of these is a thief and who, out of them, is hoarding black money? Crores of people standing in lines outside banks/ATMs are neither thieves nor black money hoarders," he said, adding that Modi must answer these questions raised.

Surjewala said Modi promised to bring back Rs 80 lakh crore of black money from abroad within 100 days and deposit Rs 15 lakh in every Indian's account, but even after a lapse of nearly 1000 days, "this has become a 'jumla'".

He said, "The Prime Minister has dealt a blow by sucking out the availability of cash, thereby bringing the entire business, enterprise and trade of ordinary people in the informal sector to a grinding halt."



The Congress leader said the entire informal sector comprising 90 per cent of India is in deep distress and paralysed on account of the demonetisation decision.

He added that the small and medium industries are shutting down with jobs being lost on a daily basis as a result of demonetisation.

The embargo on all cooperative banks, rural development banks, primary land development banks and cooperative credit societies from either changing money or dispensing new notes has hurt the agricultural economy.

"The entire country suffers from lack of any preparation whatsoever and hourly change in the rules and decisions on demonetisation," he said.

He also accused Modi of paralysing the entire agricultural economy as banks do not have cash and ATMs do not have notes and the entire country is suffering.

Surjewala said the Modi government has not demonetised the



currency but in reality has ended up demonetising the economy, the jobs, demonetising the trade and businesses, demonetising the agricultural and rural sectors and essentially demonetising the people of India.

"Blinded by the arrogance of numbers, Narendra Modi is unable to fathom the pain and anger of India's 125 crore people for wiping out their livelihood and creating a colossal sense of fear and insecurity. As pointed out rightly by former PM Manmohan Singh in Parliament, demonetisation is a case of 'organised loot and legalised plunder'," he said.

He termed demonetisation as "the biggest scam" of independent India "indulged in one stroke by a dictatorial regime causing never ending pain to the common people of India".

Hitting out at Modi for not speaking in Parliament, the Congress leader said, "He indulges in theatrics - laughing at people's misery and shedding crocodile tears when cornered, but has no time or accountability to the temple of democracy i.E. Parliament. It is time that Narendra Modi answers some important questions."



He said crores of people are standing in lines outside banks/ATMs are neither thieves nor black money hoarders and government must tell which one out of these is a thief and who, out of them, is hoarding black money?



"The truth is that Modi government has branded the entire country as 'criminals'," he alleged.

He also asked why ordinary Indians are not permitted to withdraw his/her hard-earned money from their own account as no law permits such a dictate as is being forced upon people by Modi government in violation of the Constitution.

He said demonetisation will deeply hurt the national income, lead to a decline in GDP of 2 per cent to 3 per cent, discourage private investments (which are already falling in two years of Modi government) and suck money out of the system.
Congress today lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi terming him "insensitive" for his remarks in the 'Mann ki Baat' radio programme saying he talked of moving towards a cashless society when a very small population of the country used plastic money.

"The Prime Minister, in his programme yesterday, said the youth and tech-savvy should help others in moving towards a cashless society. But, he must remember what percentage of the people uses credit and debit cards.

"People are dying due the impact of demonetisation and he makes such remarks. Modi is insensitive," Congress leader Anand Sharma told a gathering of Youth Congress workers and NSUI members in front of the IYC office on Raisina Road here, on the occasion of 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' called by the opposition parties.

"Modiji doesn't do 'Mann Ki Baat'. He only likes listening to himself and doing what he pleases," he alleged.

Modi, in his radio programme, had appealed to the people to shift to a cashless system of transactions and asked the youth to help in the process by educating the elders and those not literate.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala attacked the Prime Minister saying he must also "try to listen to the voices of those whose family members had died due to the impact of demonetisation".

"Modiji has started this problem and instead of indulging in a political slugfest with the opposition, he and his government should try to find a solution to it," he said.

Surjewala reiterated his party's stand of demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the Centre's demonetisation decision, which the Congress alleged was a "scam".

Sharma said even in the US, "dollars are used as black money but they don't suddenly remove their currency".

"Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes accounted for about 86 per cent of the currencies in circulation. Is he saying that 86 per cent of the money was black? Modi has denigrated the country by this move and he must apologise to the nation," the Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha said.

NSUI workers later attempted to take out a march towards Parliament but were prevented by the police who detained them after they tried to climb the barricade.

Youth Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring and Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda also took part in the protest.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress in West Bengal today took out a rally in the city here as part of the nationwide 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' to protest against the central government's demonetisation decision.

"We are not against the central government's intention to curb black money and corruption; we are against the lack of decisiveness and clarity in dealing with the situation. We haven't seen such a rudder-less and indecisive government in the country," state Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said.

In this he compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Muhammad bin Tughlaq, the Delhi Sultanate's infamous ruler known for his illogical and harsh policies.

Led by Chowdhury, Congress supporters organised a march from the Congress office in Bidhan Bhawan to Park Circus in central Kolkata, raising slogans against the Narendra Modi government.

"The lack of vision and immature decision have plunged the nation into total chaos, and it would continue in the days to come," Chowdhury said.

Chowdhury appealed to the Trinamool Congress government to take emergency measures for helping the common man.

"The working class people of the state are starving. We want the state government to provide them food, fuel and other necessary amenities at low cost through the public distribution system," Chowdhury said.

Chowdhury pointed out the hypocrisy of TMC's protest against demonetisation, saying "those who themselves are accused in Saradha and Narada scams can't talk big about fight against black money. Those who themselves are running a corrupt government can't talk against black money".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress and other political parties today took out protest marches and held rallies across Gujarat as part of 'Jan Akrosh Diwas' to protest hardship caused to the public due to the Centre's demonetisation move.

Congress party workers held a bike rally from Shahibaug to Lal Darwaza in old city area here with top state Congress leaders including Leader of Opposition Shankersinh Vaghela, state Congress president Bharatsinh Solanki, and party MLAs, addressing a gathering.

Members of AAP and NCP, who also held rallies here, were detained by the police.

Taking a potshot at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vaghela said the common man is struggling to withdraw his own hard- earned salary.

"Modi has done this (demonetisation) keeping in mind the upcoming state assembly elections. But (Central) government should keep the interest of public before that of party.

"Only this BJP government can create a system where police will beat you for struggling to withdraw your own money," he said.

Accusing Modi of "following the Hitler mode of functioning", Solanki claimed the Prime Minister will "give money deposited by public to industrialists whose loan defaults run in lakhs of crores".

Congress also held rallies at Banaskantha where party workers handed over a memorandum to the Collector.

A group of farmers blocked a state highway in the district, halting traffic for hours before police dispersed them. Markets in the tribal town of Naswadi in Chhota Udepur district remained closed following a call made by traders there.

NCP's Gujarat unit too staged a protest near Reserve Bank of India (RBI) building here.

Police detained around 70 party workers, including 15 women workers, saying they did not have police permission to hold the protest rally.

However, senior NCP leader Praful Patel and Gujarat NCP president Jayant Patel were allowed to go inside the RBI building to make a representation to the bank officials.

Praful Patel alleged the BJP-led government and the RBI have failed miserably to address the issue of cash crunch post demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes which was announced by Modi on November 8.

"We are with government on this fight against black money. But our contention is that people are facing immense problems even 20 days after demonetisation. Neither government nor RBI has any roadmap to deal with the problem of cash crunch. It is also unfortunate that we are not allowed to raise the issue concerning poor citizens," the former Union Minister said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A day after Prime Minister pitched for a cashless society, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Monday took a dig, saying the country has already become "cashless" due to .

He said the dream of India becoming a cashless society could only come true if there is institutional framework or arrangements to support it.

"If there are no arrangements in place, then how will this dream realise?" he wondered.

"There have to be arrangements first... In this country, over 70 crore people are earning Rs 10,000 a month (who cannot deposit the amount in banks), what will they do?

"There are no ATMs, no banks, no branches, people need to walk upto 20 kms... The country has already become a cashless society as the people don't have cash with them at the moment," Sibal said.

He said the government needs to take the states as well as the Opposition along for moving towards such a direction.

On Modi's suggestion to the people to embrace mobile banking, he asked how will the people do the transactions through mobiles when most of them are illiterate and not device-savvy.

In his monthly radio programme 'Mann ki Baat' yesterday, Modi appealed to the people to shift to the cashless system of transactions and asked the youth to help in this process by educating the elders and those not literate.

For the 8th straight day, Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha were adjourned on Monday following vociferous protests of the Opposition on the issue.

CPI leader D Raja blamed the government and the prime minister for disruption in the Houses, saying, "The government must be held responsible for this... Prime Minister must be squarely responsible for this impasse. The Opposition is demanding that the PM sits in the House during the debate (on the issue)."

Stating that Modi makes "announcement" on "this same issue" outside the Parliament, he charged that the Prime Minister "does not want to sit and listen to the debate" and "speak inside the Parliament".

Alleging that the demonetisation move has subjected the country into "unprecedented financial turmoil", he said that the decision has impacted the whole economy "adversely".

"It has already started adversely impacting the manufacturing, service, agriculture and cooperative sectors, thereby, impacting the whole economy adversely. It has subjected common people to a lot of hardship, humiliation and suffering," he said.

Noting that informal sector accounts for over 80% of the employment, Raja said not all of those engaged in the sector have access to the banking system. "We are asking the government to review its decision and allow Rs 500/1,000 notes at least till December 30 or till the alternative arrangements are done," he said, adding "the government is not with (an) open mind (with regard) to some of the policies.
A court here today directed the police not to cremate the bodies of the two Maoists killed in an alleged encounter in the Nilambur forests, but to preserve them till tomorrow evening.

The Manjeri District Court gave the direction on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by various human rights groups and the brother of slain Maoist leader Kuppuswamy Devaraj, Public Prosecutor P Suresh said.

The judge posted the matter to tomorrow and directed the police to preserve the bodies of Devaraj and Ajitha till 7 pm, he added.

The petitioners claimed that the duo was killed in a "fake" encounter in the Karulayi forest of Padukka range in the district. However, the police claimed that it was only after the Maoists opened fire that they retaliated and shot the two dead.

Devaraj, a central committee member of the outlawed outfit, and Ajitha were killed in an alleged encounter in the Nilambur forests in the district on November 24.

They were killed during search operations undertaken by a 60-member team of the Thunderbolt Force, an elite commando force of Kerala police, based on a tip-off that Maoists were camping in the area.

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Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was today sent to seven days' police custody by a Delhi Court which noted that "custodial interrogation" of the accused was required to unearth conspiracy in the Nabha jailbreak case.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh sent Mintoo to custody till December 5 after Delhi Police sought seven days' remand to interrogate him.

"I am satisfied that custodial interrogation is required to unearth the conspiracy in the case. The accused is sent to police custody till December 5," the judge said.

While seeking his remand, the police said that they needed the custody of the dreaded terrorist to know about the role of "insiders and outsiders" who assisted him and five others in fleeing from Nabha jail in Patiala.

They further said that the role of Inter-Services Intelligence and some terror organisations is needed to be probed in the case as he had also visited Pakistan.

One loaded pistol and six live cartridges were recovered from his possession, the police said, adding that he was earlier a member of Babbar Khalsa International and later floated his own group.

"About 100 rounds of ammunition were fired in the incident of jail break and two jail official were injured. He also snatched one official rifle from a jail official," the police said.

Mintoo was nabbed from a Delhi railway station, a day after he escaped with five other inmates from the jail.

The UP police last evening had arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle -- a Toyota Fortuner -- was stopped at a police picket.

He had yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates and fled with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets.

Mintoo, who was wanted in ten terror cases, was arrested by the Punjab police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014.

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Police have arrested seven members of a currency exchange gang and seized Rs 8.20 lakh in valid notes from them, a senior official said today.

The gang was allegedly involved in exchanging banned notes on commission basis for valid currencies in Peddapalli district, he said.

Acting on a tip-off about the gang, a Police Sub- Inspector, G Vijender, was sent as a decoy customer looking to exchange old notes worth Rs 11.50 lakh for new ones to one of its members, Poorna Chandra Sekhar, said K Vijayender Reddy, Deputy Commissioner of Police at a press meet in Peddapalli.

Sekhar promised Vijender to give valid notes of Rs 8.20 lakh in exchange of banned currencies of Rs 11.50 lakh and asked him come to Peddapalli railway station to complete the deal, he said.

The moment Sekhar and six of his gang members reached the spot, they were apprehended last evening, Reddy said, adding the police seized Rs 8.20 lakh in valid notes and some mobile phones from them.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 30-year-old Dalit was shot at allegedly by a gram pradhan and three others who also thrashed the victim's family members after accusing them of stealing a radish, police said today.

The incident took place yesterday when the four accused, including gram pradhanAnil, his son Nishant and nephew Sarouttem, reached Sunil Kumar's house in a car and started beating his family members, Circle Officer Bhushan Verma said.

They accused the family of stealing a radish from the gram pradhan's fields. When Kumar protested, the accused fired at him, the CO said.

He was taken to the hospital in a serious condition, he said, adding that police have registered a case against the four accused who are absconding.

Senior police officers have impounded the gram pradhan's car. Security has been tightened and extra police has been deployed in the area, the official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Chhattisgarh government today said that the Delhi High Court has no jurisdiction to hear and grant a stay on the execution of a man held guilty for murder of five persons, including two children, in 2004.

The submission was made before a bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel, which has reserved its decision on the application of the Chhattisgarh government challenging the maintainability of a petition filed by the convict.

The state government's counsel Atul Jha said that the Delhi High Court had "no jurisdiction" to stay execution of convict Sonu Sardar as the offence had taken place in Chhattisgarh.

The Delhi High Court had on March 2, 2015 stayed the execution of Sardar, convicted for the murder of five persons. Sardar, in his plea, has contended that his death warrant was scheduled to be signed on March 4, 2015.

After the execution was stayed, the state government had approached the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court's jurisdiction to hear the matter. The apex court had asked the high court to decide the state's application in four weeks.

The apex court, however, had stayed proceedings before the high court with regard to the hearing on Sardar's plea seeking quashing of the President of India and the Chhattisgarh government's decision, by which his mercy petition was turned down.

During the arguments today, the state government said that "all proceedings till date including the present one relates to a criminal offence which took place in Chhattisgarh. The CrPC governs the territorial jurisdiction. All materials in the case are based in Chhattisgarh. Even petitioner is in Central Jail, Raipur, Chhattisgarh".

Sardar, along with his brother and accomplices, had killed five persons of a family, including a woman and two children, during a dacoity bid in Chhattisgarh's Cher village on November 26, 2004. The trial court had slapped death penalty on him and the Chhattisgarh High Court had upheld it.

The Supreme Court in February 2012 had concurred with the findings of two courts below and affirmed the punishment. His mercy petiton was also dismissed by both the state government and the President of India. In February 2015, the apex court had also rejected his review plea.

Later, the convict in March 2015 has moved the Delhi High Court against the President and the Chhattisgarh government's decision.

Sardar, in his petition, has sought that his death penalty be commuted to life imprisonment on account of delay in deciding his mercy plea as well as for allegedly keeping him in "solitary confinement illegally".
As part of a nation-wide protest, Congress, AAP and Left parties today held separate rallies and demonstrations here against government's demonetisation move and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of pushing India into an "unprecedented financial turmoil".

While all Left parties, including CPI(M) and CPI took out a procession from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar as part of 'Jan Akrosh Diwas' the Congress carried out two marches to protest ban of high-value currencies which the party said piled up misery on common man.

The AAP held a public dialogue at Connaught Place where party leaders slammed the Prime Minister for "enacting a black law" and alleged that corruption has gone up since the old notes were declared defunct.

"We believe the Prime Minister has brought the country to a standstill. He has imposed 'deshbandi' (holding country hostage) with 'notebandi' (demonetisation).

"90 per cent of our people do cash transactions every day. Their lives have been hit quite hard. We are protesting against all this," CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said during the Left protest.

Attacking the Prime Minister over his absence from Parliament, where opposition MPs are demanding that he should speak on demonetisation, the Left parties called him "Narendra Maun (silent) Modi".

Addressing a press conference, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged Modi's "arrogance and obstinacy" has pushed the country 10 years back and that the demonetisation has failed to curb black money, corruption, circulation of counterfeit currency and terror financing.

Kejriwal claimed that black money and corruption have increased by 10 times ever since the ban of high-value currency and demanded that cases of cheating and fraud be lodged against those responsible in the Centre for the mess.

The Delhi Chief Minister also alleged that BJP has settled its "black money" before demonetisation move by buying land in Bihar and other states.

"Today, it has been 20 days of introducing demonetisation of high currency notes. It has completely failed to curb black money, funding to terrorism, fake notes and corruption. Demonetisation has flopped," he said while addressing a press conference.

"In comparison to October, corruption level and



generation of black money have increased by 10 times. US Dollar is legally available for Rs 70, but in black market, it is being bought at Rs 116 per USD. Gold is also being bought for Rs 30,000 per 10 gm, but through wrong channel, it is being bought for Rs 56,000," he alleged.

Congress leader Anand Sharma, addressing party workers at a demonstration, lashed out at Modi and said people are dying due the impact of demonetisation



"Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes accounted for about 86 per cent of the currencies in circulation. Is he saying that 86 per cent of the money was black? Modi has denigrated the country and he must apologise," the Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha said.

In the morning, Congress' students wing NSUI carried out a march near Parliament while in the evening, the Delhi unit of the party marched to Jantar Mantar from Mandi House area beating utensils as a symbolic move to wake up the government.
Demonetisation seems to have hit the sporting arena as well with the second edition of Pro Wrestling League being postponed from its original scheduled start of December 15 as the franchises and stakeholders need more time to re-plan and re-structure their schemes.

"Post demonetisation, the PWL franchises and the stakeholders have asked for time to re-structure and re-plan their schemes. Hence, the date of the League had to be postponed," the promoters of the PWL, Pro Sportify director Vishal Gurnani told PTI.

"The revised dates would be announced on November 30th," he added.

Meanwhile, the sources claimed that the PWL-2 is likely to begin not before the last week of December.

"The League will be re-scheduled to the last week of December. Also the players' auction, which was supposed to be held in mid-November, will now take place 15 days prior to the commencement of the tournament," the source said.

There were also plans to field eight franchises as compared to six teams in the inaugural edition, but PWL today said that there would be no addition and the number of teams competing against each other would remain six, just like last year.

However, the League will not witness the same six teams of last year as Bangalore franchise, called Bengaluru Yodhas, had pulled out.

Bengaluru Yodhas will be replaced by a franchise from Jaipur, while franchises like Delhi and Uttar Pradesh will see a change in the ownership.

"We will have six teams only, just as last year. Bangalore franchise has pulled out and a team from Jaipur will be added. The ownership of Delhi and UP have also changed," said Gurnani.

While Gurnani remained mum on why Bengaluru Yodhas would not being a part of PWL-2, a sources said that the "Bangalore franchise not having cleared its dues" is the reason behind the fall-out.

Meanwhile, the Pro Sportify director claimed that despite the dates of the tournament being pushed, top foreign and Indian wrestlers have already confirmed their participation in the League.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hailing of high value currency notes, Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan on Monday said he is optimistic that the problems related to it might be addressed in 50 days as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"I think we need to be optimistic about it. We need to support this. If we come together and work together, I am optimistic that this can be addressed in may be 50 days as the prime minister says," Gopalakrishnan said, on the sidelines of "Bengaluru ITE.Biz 2016" here.

"He (PM) is also looking for support and we need to come together and make sure that the negative impact of this is minimised and the issue is addressed as quickly as possible," he said.

Gopalkrishnan said is a good initiative to address the issues of black money and terrorist funding, but emphasised the need for strengthening of implementation and rolling out of the move.

" is a good initiative taken by the government which will address the issues of black money and terrorist funding, and also help the Indian economy moving completely to digital economy.

Of course, the implementation and how it is rolled out needs to be strengthened so that some of the issues related to rural areas and villages are addressed," he said.

Gopalkrishnan said he was positive about it as both Reserve Bank of India and the Finance Ministry have come together to address the problems.

Asked about the concerns raised by the European Union on India's decision to terminate bilateral investment treaties with 23 European countries, he said there 'is politics and business around the issue'.

He stressed on the need for the industries to work together with the government to understand the reason for discontinuance of investment treaty pacts with 23 EU countries.

"There is politics and business around this. From a business perspective we want more and more trade. I think we need to work together with the government to understand why this happened and see how this can be resolved," he said.

"I think the future is about a lot more of cooperation across geographical boundaries and nations," he added.

The EU countries have expressed concern over India's decision to terminate the bilateral investment treaties.

To a question whether he was for bilateral or multi-lateral investment treaty pacts with EU countries, Gopalkrishnan said the industry needs to work within the framework that the governments of the countries decide.

"Well, what we are seeing today is more and more bilateral treaties are happening and sometimes multi-lateral treaties have happened. So we need to work within the framework that the governments decide, but governments and industries should work together to make it happen," he said.
With the ruling JD(U) keeping away from the strike protesting demonetisation in accordance with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's support to the move, the RJD, Congress and Left-sponsored agitation in Bihar today evoked a mixed reaction.

During the day, RJD, Congress and Left parties hit the streets, with workers disrupting train services at many places even as offices and schools registering normal attendance.

Train were the prime target of strikers during the protest and services were hit at Darbangha, Madhubani, Masauri in rural Patna, Ara, Jehanabad and other places.

In Darbhanga, Ara, Masaurhi and Madhubani, CPI workers squatted on the railway tracks.

Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of East Central Railway Arvind Kumar Rajak said the normal schedule of more than a dozen trains was disrupted in different parts of Bihar due to the stir.

The protest also had its echo in both Houses of the Bihar legislature where legislators of Congress, RJD and CPI-ML raised slogans against scrapping of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes. BJP legislators countered them by raising slogans against them and in favour of demonetisation.

Despite traffic disruptions at a few intersections, road traffic was by and large normal, and attendance in offices, banks and schools and colleges remained unaffected overall.

Kumar also talked to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley over telephone today, though details of the conversation were yet to be known.

Sources in the Chief Minister's office confirmed the telephonic talk between the two leaders which is believed to be in the context of the Centre's proposed move to form a group of chief ministers on demonetisation.

However, the absence of JD(U) from the protest, in which partner parties Congress and RJD participated, raised questions whether everything was fine in the grand alliance, with some unconfirmed media reports painting JD(U)'s decision as efforts of a reunion with BJP.

Reports said that RJD chief Lalu Prasad talked to Congress President Sonia Gandhi over telephone in the presence of PCC president and minister Ashok Choudhary yesterday.

Kumar has strongly contested reports of his meeting BJP chief Amit Shah as background for supporting demonetisation.

He on Friday made it clear that the grand alliance of JD(U), RJD and Congress is for the state and on issues concerning it. He also said that on issues outside the state, "every party is privy to its own viewpoint... There is no confusion or fissures in coalition".

Kumar, who has described the demonetisation decision as "sahsik" (courageous) step to fight black money, while talking to a section of media in his Legislative Council chamber once again vouched for scrapping of high denomination notes.

He also underlined that the Centre should also hit benami properties without delay. "Any delay in hitting benami properties will not have the desired results against black money... The delay would also reflect that intention is not right," Kumar said.

Kumar also emphasised on liquor ban for more effective



fight against black money.

"If demonetisation, benami properties and prohibition are taken effectively in the country, India would definitely go past China in terms of development," said Kumar, who is also JD(U) national president.

He also addressed a meeting of JD(U) state parliamentary party late in the evening during which, party insiders said, he narrated the merits of the demonetisation decision. Kumar also rubbished reports of having a talk with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital yesterday.

JD(U) has made it clear it will not take part in the dharna by TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Patna on Wednesday seeking roll-back of demonetisation, though it is still not clear if Lalu Prasad's party and Congress would be present at the Gardanibagh dharna site to support the demand.

Outside the Bihar Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council today, bandh supporters from RJD, Congress and CPI-ML, holding placards in their hands, shouted slogans at the entrance gate as BJP MLAs, led by Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar, countered them by raising slogans in favour of demonetisation.

As the Assembly proceedings began, Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar said RJD and Congress which have records of corruption during their rule in Bihar as well as at the national level do not have the moral standing to protest against demonetisation.

He also thanked the chief minister for supporting the fight against black money.

RJD and Congress members shouted back at the BJP members and two CPI-ML MLAs Mehboob Alam and Sudama Kumar rushed to the Well of the House in protest.

The House resumed functioning only after intervention of Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary.

In the Legislative Council, former chief minister Rabri Devi and Congress MLCs raised slogans against demonetisation at the main gate, which BJP members countered by raising slogans in favour of the move.
Demonetisation of high-value currency notes is expected to have a negative impact on consumer spending, especially for luxury items including gems and jewellery, Care Ratings said in a report.

The gems and jewellery sector is likely to be impacted at least in the medium-term, the rating agency added.

Though export market and large diamantaires in the organised sector may not be impacted much, small and medium players, carrying out local trade and sourcing, are expected to feel the pinch of currency recall exercise, it pointed out.

Domestic jewellery retailers are expected to feel the heat of this move in the medium term, though the organised retailers are expected to withstand the impact of cash clean- up in a more resilient manner, the rating outfit maintained.

After a subdued demand scenario for exports of cut and polished diamonds (CPD) from India during large part of FY15 and FY16, which had also resulted in pressure on profitability margins in the industry, some signs of revival in demand have been witnessed during first half of FY17, it said.

Though export in carat volume remained largely stable, the growth is mainly led by increase in demand from the US, the world's largest diamond jewellery market.

The decommissioning of Rs 500/1000 notes may not impact the CPD industry, especially as the major market for polished diamonds lies outside India, the report said.

Also, larger organised sector players undertake most of their transactions in the US dollar, with mainly employee expenses required to be paid in Indian rupee.

However, it is expected that small and mid-size diamond polishing firms having presence in the local trade could be impacted as such trades are targeted towards smaller unorganised jewellery players who would be starved of cash following this step of the government, Care said.

Further, it said the unorganised segment comprises around 70-75 per cent of the domestic gold jewellery market, although the share of organised jewellery retail segment is growing at 15 per cent annually.

In H2CY2016, demand was earlier expected to be better due to wedding season, good monsoons and 7th pay commission implementation. However, demonetisation might impact consumer spending on luxury items, and domestic demand for gems and jewellery is expected to be muted in the near to medium term.

Even as quoting PAN had become mandatory for purchases above Rs 2 lakh, a lot of small ticket jewellery buys were being made in cash as more than 60 per cent of the demand is estimated to originate from cash-dependent rural India.

Though there was a brief spike in demand after the November 8 note ban, in the medium-term a slowdown in demand for jewellery is expected. But in the long-run, the move could turn out to be positive for organised sector, it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Eight Indonesians were sentenced to between 15 and 18 years in prison by a Malaysian court for the hijacking of an oil tanker last year, an official said today.

The tanker MT Orkim Harmony was carrying around 6,000 tonnes of petrol worth an estimated USD 5.6 million when it was commandeered by the eight men on June 11 last year.

The tanker was en route from Malaysia's western coast to the port of Kuantan on the east coast.

Six of the pirates were sentenced to 15 years in jail and five strokes of the cane, while the other two were handed 18-year jail sentences, a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency official told AFP.

He said that the Indonesians pleaded guilty after they were charged yesterday in the southern state of Johor, neighbouring Singapore.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Center, said the shipping community hailed the punishment.

"We welcome the tough punishment. It will send a strong signal to potential pirates that crime does not pay," he told AFP.

The eight suspects had eluded security forces by escaping from the tanker on a lifeboat under cover of darkness, Malaysian authorities said at the time, after warships were scrambled to hunt down the men.

The tanker's 22 crew members were mostly unscathed except for an Indonesian sailor who was treated for a gunshot wound to the thigh.

The hijackers subsequently washed up on Vietnam's southwestern Tho Chu island on a lifeboat claiming to have had an accident at sea about a week after the hijack.

But they were taken into custody after local officials discovered they were carrying large sums of cash, and were accused of hijacking the MT Orkim Harmony oil tanker.

The Indonesians pirates were extradited to Malaysia early yesterday after being held by Vietnamese authorities for almost 18 months.

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Brazilian aircraft maker Embraer is eyeing the regional aviation market, which is expected to get a big push amid the government's plans to provide air connectivity to unserved and underserved airports in the country under its UDAN scheme.

The company is actively looking to enhance its pie in the 100-seater capacity segment with its fuel-efficient E jets, a release said.

Vijaywada-based regional carrier Air Costa is at present one of the E190 customers in India.

Embraer has worked out a roadmap to introduce these jets to other customers as well as it sees "huge growth potential" in regional air connectivity (RCS) space in India, the release said.

Under UDAN scheme, the Civil Aviation Ministry has listed three categories of aircraft -- those having less than 20 seats, 21-80 seats, and 80 seats or more.

At present, ATR-72 and Dash-8 aircraft fill the segment of an 80-seat aircraft, the aircraft range is a limitation to their effectiveness in delivering increased connectivity.

"We will look forward to tap sizable portion of India's regional air connectivity space with the introduction of our E-Jets.

"Considering the need in this country our E-Jets can accommodate more cargo volume and weight, typically offering up to two tonnes capacity on top of checked baggage," Embraer Asia Pacific Vice President Mark Dunnachie said.

Embraer also said its "fuel-efficient" E Jets are more economically viable for India which will help to catlyse the growth of regional air connectivity.

"Our E-Jets offers a range that covers India end-to-end from an economic standpoint, with an average network stage length of 550 km, and a utilisation of 11.7 block hours per day per aircraft, the Cost per Available Seat Kilometer (CASK) of a 100-seat Embraer E190 aircraft can be 12 per cent to 15 per cent lower than that of an ATR-72 which has levies on fuel price VAT," Dunnachie said.

Block hours refer to the moment a commercial aircraft leaves the departure gate until it lands and reaches the arrival gate, or till its engines are working.

The second generation of E-Jets -- E-Jets E2 -- which are designed to provide better fuel economy, will offer even greater cost advantage through the all-new Pratt & Whitney Geared Turbofan engine and a reduction in direct maintenance costs, Dunnachie said.

"This cost advantage that the E-Jet and E-Jet E2 family can deliver will bring about lower fares for travellers and higher profits for airlines, making the entire aviation ecosystem a healthier and more sustainable environment," he added.

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Africas first automated container to be constructed in Morocco

A Belgian conglomerate will construct Africas first automated container terminal in Africa at Tangier MedPort, according to an announcement by APM Terminals  the Dutch company charged by the Moroccan government of overseeing large sections of the coastal areas trade capacity development.

Aswebo, Aannemingen Van Wellen, Franki Construct and Cosimco  all under the Willemen Group banner  will build the project, which was finalized during King Mohammed VIs visit to The Netherlands in March.

APM has invested 758 million euros in the upgrade, which will increase the profitability of the 30-year lease it holds on the Tangier Med 2 port complex.

The 53-hectare facility is scheduled to become operational in 2019, providing quicker access to products and markets on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar.

To win this enormous project, a team of 35 people, spread across multiple companies within the group worked together on this project for four months, said company president Johan Willeman, who also led the construction of a major port in the Belgian city of Antwerp. The complementarity of the different companies of the Willemen Group and the experience we have accumulated in port works, were crucial factors for the Employer APM Terminals to entrust the entire project to our group.

On November 7th, the group signed an agreement to construct the project  including all road and sewage works, a 1,200-meter crane beam, all utilities and a gas station  within a 662 calendar day period ending on September 1st, 2018.

Cosmico has completed two projects in the Tangier port to date and another will wrap up construction soon, the company, which has been active in Morocco since 2014, says. This new container terminal for APM Terminals is not the first project in Africa for our group, but it is by far the largest, Willeman said.

www.apmterminals.com
A Delhi court today sent former MLA Rambeer Shokeen, who has been chargesheeted along with alleged gangster Neeraj Bawana and others in a case under MCOCA, to three days' police custody to unearth the larger conspiracy.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass sent Shokeen to custody of Delhi Police after he was produced before the court.

The police told the court that accused was to be confronted with the other accused persons, including Bawana, arrested in the case.

Shokeen, who was declared a proclaimed offender by the court on August 26 last year, was apprehanded yesterday by the police.

In February this year, a court here had denied anticipatory bail to the accused, saying there was incriminating evidence showing he had played an active role in a crime syndicate.

The Special Cell of Delhi Police had chargesheeted 10 persons, including Neeraj and Shokeen, for alleged offences punishable under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) provisions.

Besides Neeraj and Shokeen, the police has chargesheeted Neeraj's elder brother Pankaj Sehrawat and other arrested members of the syndicate -- Sunil Rathi, Amit Malik alias Bhura, Naveen Dabas, Rahul Dabas, Naveen Hooda, Deepak Dabas and Gurpreet Singh in the case.

The police, which had named 163 persons as prosecution witnesses in the case, claimed that these accused were involved in several criminal cases.

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Children who are exposed to tobacco smoke at home are prone to antisocial behaviour, aggression and are more likely to drop out of school, a new study suggests.

The study by University of Montreal in Canada shows that the more children are exposed to household tobacco smoke in early childhood, the greater their risk of adopting antisocial behaviour towards others, engaging in proactive and reactive aggression, having conduct problems at school, and dropping out at age 12.

Animal studies have suggested that exposure to tobacco smoke is toxic to the developing brain at a time when it is most vulnerable to environment input.

Abnormal brain development can result from chronic or transient exposure to toxic chemicals and gases in second hand tobacco smoke.

These compounds eventually solidify and create third hand smoke. Antisocial behaviour is characterised by proactive intent to harm others, lack prosocial feelings, and violate social norms.

Such behaviours include aggression, criminal offences, theft, refusal to comply with authority, and destruction of property.

In later childhood, antisocial behaviour is often associated with academic problems, as highlighted in the study. Deviance and dropout risk are costly to society as a whole.

"Young children have little control over their exposure to household tobacco smoke, which is considered toxic to the brain at a time when its development is exponential," said Linda Pagani, professor at the University of Montreal.

"The detection of early environmental factors that influence later child well-being represents an important target for individual and community health," Pagani said.

"Parents who smoke near their children and play often inadvertently expose them to second and third hand smoke. It was already known that environmental smoke places children at risk of short- and long-term health problems," she added.

"However, now for the first time, we have compelling evidence which suggests other dangers to developing brain systems that govern behavioural decisions, social and emotional life, and cognitive functioning," said Pagani.

Researchers examined data from a longitudinal birth cohort of Quebec boys and girls born in 1997 and 1998.

The Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development is a public database administered and coordinated by the Institut de la statistique du Quebec in the US.

Every year, parents of 1,035 children from the longitudinal study reported whether anyone smoked at home when their children were aged 1.5 to 7.5 years.

At age 12, their children self-reported their antisocial behaviour and academic characteristics. Overall, 60 per cent of families reported never being exposed to tobacco smoke, while 27 per cent reported intermittent exposure, and 13 per cent reported chronic exposure.

The study appears in the journal Indoor Air.

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The first birth by caesarean section where both the mother and child survived may have taken place in 1337 in Prague, researchers claim.

Beatrice of Bourbon, the second wife and second cousin of John the Blind, King of Bohemia and Count of Luxembourg, gave birth to her only child, Duke Wenceslaus I on February 25 in 1337.

According to archival documents found by the researchers, Beatrice, a teenage queen consort, had a difficult labour.

"Beatrice most likely passed out during delivery, and was believed dead," said Antonin Parizek of Charles University in Czech Republic.

"The surgeons opened her only to save and baptise the child. The pain from the operation then likely led to her awakening," said Parizek.

At that point, shock may have saved her life by keeping her from bleeding excessively, he said.

Prague in the 14th century was a centre of European learning, and the royal court of Bohemia would have employed the leading doctors of the time, researchers said.

Beatrice recovered from the surgery and lived 46 more years.

In a Flemish rhyming chronicle likely written by a diplomat at court, the author wrote 'the duke was taken from his mother's body and the wound healed,'" Parizek told 'The New York Times'.

Other archival sources described Beatrice "being opened up without dying," Parizek said.

"The event must have been truly uncommon, as information on the medical state of royals was not made public in those times," he added.

Before this study, the earliest documented case was in Switzerland in 1500.

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Foreign students, who are selected to the coveted Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) through JEE (Advanced) or GATE exams will have to pay an annual fee of Rs 6 lakh per year.

According to officials in the HRD ministry, the issue was discussed in a meeting of the IIT council and as per the decision taken the annual tuition fee has been fixed at Rs 6 lakh per annum while suitable scholarships may be provided in certain basis.

In a bid to attract more international talent, the for the first time are planning to hold their entrance tests in Singapore, UAE, Ethiopia and Saarc nations, except Pakistan next year to select foreign students for undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

Fees for Indian students at the were earlier this year increased from Rs 90,000 to Rs 2 lakh. However, there is a total fee waiver for the differently abled and students belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and weaker sections.
A Lokayukta special court today granted interim bail to former anti-graft ombudsman Y Bhaskar Rao, who has been named in a charge sheet in a corruption case in connection with an alleged extortion racket involving his son Y Ashwin.

Justice D T Devendran granted bail to Rao after considering the interim bail plea filed by him in the morning.

The application sought interim bail so that Rao could perform rituals in memory of his mother on November 30.

Posting the case for next hearing on November 30, the court asked the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to file objections to the bail plea.

On August five, Rao was named in the charge sheet in the case, which was the first such action against a former Lokayukta in the country.

Rao, named as the seventh accused, was charged with abetting illegal gratification to influence a public servant, concealing evidence and being part of a criminal conspiracy to cover up and protect the offenders.

Ashwin is the prime accused in the alleged extortion racket that was being run in the Lokayukta office, with subsequent public and Opposition outcry causing the exit of Rao as the head of the anti-graft institution.

Governor Vajubhai Vala had given the nod to the SIT to prosecute Rao in the case, which is one of the five pertaining to the alleged extortion scandal. SIT is expected to seek governor's permission for his prosecution in the remaining cases too.

The alleged scam came to light after the then Lokayukta, superintendent of police, Sonia Narang wrote to Lokayukta Registrar about the complaint she received from an executive engineer, who alleged that someone from the Lokayukta office demanded Rs 1 crore in bribe to avoid a raid.

Resisting all attempts for his exit, Rao had resigned in December 2015 only after a motion to remove him was moved in the State legislature.

Ashwin was arrested by SIT in Hyderabad in July last year based on an FIR filed against him by Lokayukta police. After Rao's resignation, the post of Lokayukta has remained vacant as the governor had rejected the name of SR Nayak proposed by the state government.The government is yet to finalise another candidate.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four police officers, sentenced to seven years of imprisonment in the custodial death case of a 20-year-old man, today filed an appeal in the Bombay High Court against their conviction and sought bail pending hearing of their appeal.

Chandrakant Kamble, Umesh Gosavi, Sandeep Salunkhe and Kiran Pingale in their appeal claimed they had not caused any grievous physical harm to the victim and that he was assaulted by the public before he was handed over to the police.

A sessions court had in January convicted the four policemen, who were then attached with suburban Vanrai police station, for culpable homicide not amounting to murder and sentenced them to seven years in jail.

They were also convicted under IPC sections 330 (voluntarily causing hurt to extort confession) and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and fined Rs 15,000 each.

Victim Aniket Khicchi was caught by public for allegedly stealing a laptop from an exhibition in Goregaon on October 26, 2013. He was beaten up by the public before being handed over to the police. During police questioning, Khicchi fell unconscious and was taken to a hospital, but was declared dead.

The police officials in their appeal before the high court further claimed that their arrest in itself was illegal as prior sanction was not taken for prosecution. According to the policemen, they were only discharging their duties.

The high court today, however, said it cannot prima facie accept this contention and said, "In the name of discharging duty, you (police) cannot beat someone up."



The court will hear the pleas on December 7.

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The National Green Tribunal today rapped the Centre for delay in introduction of a new scrapping policy which will provide incentives for surrendering old polluting vehicles and asked it to expeditiously frame a scheme in this regard.

The green panel said more than a year has passed since its directions on "scrapping policy" which includes benefit in purchase of new cars, but nothing has been done till date except "tall claims" by the Ministry of Heavy Industries.

"You (Ministry) made tall claims before us that you are going to provide incentive for scrapping of vehicles, but did nothing. You say something before us and forget as you step outside the tribunal. We had asked you to provide scrapping procedure and propose site as well. What have you done?



"Ministry of heavy industries had assured us that it was in the process of providing methodology and incentives to those scrapping their vehicles... We direct the ministry to take clear instructions in this regard," a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said.

The green panel also directed Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh governments to hold meeting with chief secretary of Delhi government for identifying land in border areas to park vehicles banned from plying in Delhi NCR.

"This meeting should take place immediately and the minutes of the meeting should be placed on record before the tribunal on the next date of hearing," it said.

Advocate Balendu Shekhar, appearing for Ministry of Heavy Industries, informed the bench that it was in talks with the Ministry of Finance and was examining the viability of scrapping policy.

He also said the Ministry has written to the state governments to give their views on scrapping policy but no response has been received till date.

During the hearing, Delhi Development Authority (DDA) told the bench that at present two sites have been identified at Narela and Rohini which can be temporarily provided to Delhi Police for parking of seized vehicles.

To this the bench said, "We make it clear that these sites would be given on temporary basis and no permanent structure would be raised in the area. Since no transfer of land is being done to Delhi Police, hence no charges would be paid to DDA in this regard.

(Reopens LGD 35)



The NGT further directed that vehicles which are banned from plying on roads are prohibited under Environment Protection Act, 1986 and National Green Tribunal Act and not Motor Vehicles Act.

The seized vehicles should be released only after payment of Environment Compensation besides the carriage and parking charges. DDA would be entitled to the payment of 50 per cent of these charges, it said.

Reiterating its earlier order, it said all the vehicles which are non-destined to Delhi and "required to take diverted route, Delhi Police, state police and corporation shall ensure that such vehicles do not enter the national capital".

The bench directed authorities to ensure that deregistration of all diesel-powered vehicles which are more than 10 years old from plying in the city is immediately given effect.

Delhi government, DDA, police and municipal corporations were also directed by the tribunal to hold meeting and identify other sites which to ensure parking of seized vehicles.

Under the proposed scrapping policy, people would get an incentive of up to Rs 30,000 for discarding small vehicles like cars, while total benefits after taking into account the tax exemptions could be up to Rs 1.5 lakh for big vehicles like trucks, Union minister Nitin Gadkari had said earlier.

The tribunal had on July 20 asked the Ministry to take a view regarding scrapping of vehicles and publicise benefits associated with it which would be provided to people who opt for such a policy, while barring entry of 15 to 10-year-old diesel vehicles with national permits in Delhi NCR.

It had said deregistration of 15 to 10-year-old diesel vehicles in the national capital would be carried out in a phased manner, adding that diesel vehicles which are 15 years old should be deregistered first and will not get No Objection Certificate (NoC) for plying outside Delhi-NCR.

Only de-registered diesel vehicles which are less than 15 years old can get NoC for plying in select areas outside Delhi-NCR, to be decided by states where vehicle density is less, it had said.

The green panel had also asked the states to identify areas where dispersion of air is higher and vehicle density is less. It had said that the Regional Transport Officers (RTO) in Delhi will issue NOC only for those areas which have been identified by the states.
The German National Tourist Office, India (GNTO), today flagged off its annual four-city roadshow here with an expectation of eight lakh travellers from India by 2030.

Germany hosted 2.3 lakh visitors from India in 2015 and already over 2.6 lakh travellers from India have visited the country till October this year, GNTO data showed.

"We are one of the affordable European countries and have positioned Germany as a mass destination for Indian travellers. We are expecting over 2.8 lakh Indians to visit Germany in 2016. And considering the steady growth that we are witnessing, we have set a target of 8 lakh travellers by 2030," GNTO, India, Director Sales and Marketing Romit Theophilus told PTI here.

Germany, he said, is a "magnificent" destination with a plethora of scenic and natural landscapes and is positioned as a leisure hotspot targeting first-time travellers (FITs), and groups.

"We are looking at a wide range of travellers, from budget to affluent travellers mainly falling in the age group between 18-60 years. Germany, as a destination, is suited to all kinds of pockets having something for everyone," he added.

The European country also has museums dedicated to the country's leading car brands, including BMW, Audis, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche, he added.

With 50 direct flights connecting India and Germany every week, the interest of Indian travellers is growing for the European country, Theophilus said.

India is among the top 20 source markets for Germany and is expected to be among top 10 in the next five years.

"Indian travellers are among the top 20 source markets for Germany and travellers from the sub-continent are among the top 4 spenders globally spending close to 2,600 euros per person per trip. With Germany overtaking Switzerland and France as the most preferred destination for Indians for last 5 years, we expect Indian to be among the top 10 source markets in the next 5 years," he said.

The roadshow is scheduled in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and New Delhi. "We are looking to gradually penetrate deep into India to promote Germany as an attractive and affordable European destination and for this purpose, we conduct road shows every year in a mix of tier I,II and III cities," Theophilus said.

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Government has in-principle approved strategic disinvestment of loss-making subsidiary of India's largest steelmaker SAIL, Salem Steel Plant (SSP), Parliament was informed today.

SSP, a special steel unit of state-run SAIL, pioneered the supply of wider width stainless steel sheets and coils in the country.

"The government has accorded in-principle approval of strategic disinvestment of SSP in Salem district of Tamil Nadu," Minister of State for Steel Vishnu Deo Sai said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

SSP is a loss-making unit of Maharatna firm SAIL, he added.

"It has been consistently making losses for the last 5 years despite investment of around Rs 2,200 crore by SAIL under the modernisation and expansion project of SSP," the minister said.

The Salem plant can produce austenitic, ferritic, martensitic and low-nickel stainless steel in the form of coils and sheets with an installed capacity of 70,000 tonnes per annum in cold rolling mill as well as 3.64 lakh tonnes a year in hot rolling mill.

Its steel melting shop can produce 1,80,000 tonnes of slabs per annum. Besides, the plant has the country's first top-of-the-line stainless steel blanking facility with a capacity of 3,600 tonnes per year of coin blanks and utility blanks/circles.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Government today said it has imposed anti-dumping duty on low ash metallurgical coke originating in or exported from Australia and People's Republic of China.

"Anti-dumping Duty has been imposed on low ash metallurgical coke originating in or exported from Australia and People's Republic of China," Central Board of Excise and Customs said in a tweet.

"ADD shall be effective for a period of 5 years from the date of publication of the above notification in the Official Gazette," it added.

Indian domestic met coke sector had made a case to the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping & Allied Duties (DGAD) for protection of the local industry from cheap imports from Australia and China.

Following this, DGAD initiated a probe in December 2015 on the scope of levying such duty.

Met coke, a key raw material for the steel sector, constitutes 40-50 per cent of the total cost of crude steel.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
For the 8th straight day, Opposition stalled Parliament over demonetisation today, even as the government sought to break the logjam by promising that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak on the issue if a debate takes place.

Functioning of both the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha was disrupted, leading to their premature adjournment for the day.

Rajya Sabha saw three adjournments between 11 am and 2 pm, before the final adjournment for the day. Lok Sabha was adjourned twice before being adjourned till tomorrow at 2.10 pm.

In the Lok Sabha, a number of Opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge (Cong), Sudip Bandhopadhyay (TMC) and Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), pressed for acceptance of their demand for an Adjournment Motion and debate under a rule that entails voting. They also demanded presence of the Prime Minister during the debate.

In response, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the Prime Minister will speak on demonetisation if the Opposition wanted but the debate should take place, for which the rule will be decided by the Speaker.

Singh said it was clear that nobody was questioning the government's intentions over demonetisation or imputing any malafide.

Even as he was speaking, opposition members trooped into the Well and shouted slogans.

Amid the din, Singh said the government is ready for a discussion and willing to listen to the complaints and suggestions different parties have over the execution of the demonetisation move.

"As far as the Prime Minister coming to the House is concerned, if the Opposition wants he will come and intervene," Singh said, assuring the Opposition.

The decision regarding the rule under which the debate should take place is for the Speaker to make, he said.

He termed demonetisation as a "historic, bold and pro- poor" decision taken to target black money and in national interest.

However, as the uproar continued, Speaker adjourned the House till 2 pm.

Earlier, Kharge said demonetisation had harmed the economic system, the farmers, youths, labourers and women among others who are in distress.

The Congress leader said over 70 people have died due to the faulty implementation of demonetisation decision.

He cited the incident of a Union Minister facing difficulty in paying hospital bills after his brother died and said it was an evidence of the extent of the crisis. He was referring to Sadanand Gowda who faced the problem.

"There is only one way to break this deadlock. The Prime Minister should come to the House and the opposition's adjournment motion should be accepted," he said.

Bandhopadhyay of Trinamool said the government must take



initiative to break the impasse as people will ask what does Parliament stand for, if it is adjourned everyday.

Supporting Kharge, Mulayam Singh said if Modi does not come to the House on such an important matter, then when he will come. Farmers are facing a lot of problems, he said.

Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav (RJD) called the decision impractical and anti-people.

An AIADMK member said the government should take initiative to ease people's sufferings, while B Mahtab (BJD) said the onus was on the Centre to take steps to break the impasse.

Anandrao Adsul of BJP ally Shiv Sena targeted opposition parties, saying neither 'Bharat Bandh' nor 'Aakrosh Diwas', which different parties had announced for today, was visible.

He, however, lamented that the recent announcement of the Centre that NABARD would disburse Rs 21,000 crore to cooperative banks has not been implemented. The announcement had come after an unhappy Sena delegation had met the PM.

"Situation remains bad in rural areas," he said.

When the Lok Sabha met again at 2 pm after adjournment, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley rose to introduce a bill to amend the Income Tax Act allow authorities impose 75 per cent tax and 10 per cent penalty in case they detect undisclosed wealth deposited post demonetisation.

Members from the opposition parties, who were asking the Speaker to take up their adjournment motion on note ban, rushed to the Well raising slogans. Jaitley then introduced the bill amid din.

The din and slogan shouting against the government continued for another few minutes and the House was adjourned for the day, 10 minutes past 2 pm.

Earlier in the day, as soon after the House expressed its condolences over the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, Opposition members, including those from the Congress and Trinamool, wanted to speak on demonetisation issue.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan declined their request, saying the matter could be taken up after Question Hour.

Opposition members then trooped into the Well holding placards and shouting slogans against the Prime Minister as well as the government, while members of AIADMK were seen standing near their seats.

The Speaker asked them to desist from showing placards or papers in the House, reminding them that it was against the rules.

Amid the din, the Question Hour went on for around 20 minutes and saw four questions as well as supplementaries being taken up.

In the Rajya Sabha, soon after the House mourned the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and the listed papers were laid, Naresh Agrawal (SP) said nationwide protest 'Aakrosh Divas' is being observed today against demonetisation that has caused hardships to common man.
After state-owned GAIL India Ltd, Gujarat government has sought Rs 6,600 crore from the Central government to partly fund two gas pipeline projects of its firm GSPL including one taking the fuel to Jammu and Kashmir.

Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) had in 2011 quoted rock-bottom tariff to win rights to lay gas pipeline from Mehsana in Gujarat to Bhatinda in Punjab and onwards to Jammu and Srinagar as well as one from Mallavaram on the east coast to Bhopal and Bhilwara in Rajasthan, but has since then struggled to begin work on laying the lines.

"The Government of Gujarat in the month of October, 2016 has requested the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas to consider a capital grant of 40 per cent" for the Mehsana- Bhatinda-Jammu-Srinagar Pipeline (MBJSPL) and Mallavaram- Bhopal-Bhilwara-Vijaipur Pipeline (MBBVPL) projects, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today.

While the 2,042-km Mallavaram-Bhopal-Bhilwara via Vijaipur pipeline will cost Rs 8,086 crore, 2052-km Mehsana-Bhatinda line will cost Rs 6,864 crore and 725-km Bhatinda-Jammu-Srinagar line would cost Rs 1,520 crore.

In a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, he said oil regulator PNGRB has granted time extension for completion of the two projects up to December, 2017.

Prior approaching Oil Ministry, "the Government of Gujarat had also approached the Ministry of Finance for financial support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for execution of MBBVPL project," he said in the reply.

The Oil Minister further said that "keeping in view the importance of this pipeline project, MoP&NG has conveyed its support to the request of Government of Gujarat for financial assistance from ADB to the Ministry of Finance in this regard."



In September, the government had agreed to partly fund a Rs 13,000 crore natural gas pipeline project that will take the fuel to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency Varanasi and the eastern part of the country.

The government is providing Rs 5,176 crore or about 40 per cent of the project cost after state-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd found it difficult to commercially justify the huge investment of Rs 12,940 crore in absence of either a firm source of gas supply or customers.

The 2,539-km long pipeline from Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh to Haldia in West Bengal and also Bokaro in Jharkhand and Dhamra in Odisha will be completed by 2020.

This was the first gas pipeline project that the government decided to fund.

Besides seeking 40 per cent funding of the projects, the Gujarat government has also asked for "grant of authorisation for development of city gas distribution networks on nomination basis on the lines of support provided to GAIL for its Jagdishpur-Haldia and Bokaro-Dhamra natural gas pipeline project," Pradhan said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A senior traffic police officer and a member of the minority Ahmadiyya community have been shot dead in near-identical targeted attacks here in Pakistan's largest city, police said today.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Faiz Ali Shigri was gunned down and a head constable injured after gunmen riding a motorbike sprayed bullets on a police vehicle last night near Laal Flat on Rashid Minhas Road, said Gulshan Superintendent of Police Fahd.

"The gunmen targeted Shigri minutes after he left his home. Both the victims were posted in the Traffic Police Department," Fahd said.

Inspector General Sindh A D Khawaja, who visited the crime scene said that some ethnic group or outlawed organisation might have carried out the attack.

"Terrorists are hitting soft targets. Today's attack might have been retaliation for recent high-profile arrests made by police to smash terrorist networks," Khawaja was quoted as saying by 'Express Tribune'.

Meanwhile, another DSP of traffic police Zafar Hussain escaped a gun attack at University Road. Gunmen riding motorcycles opened fire on his vehicle but fled after Hussain retaliated.

In a separate incident, a 55-year-old man belonging to the Ahmadiyya community was gunned down outside his house in Kaneez Fatima Society.

A neighbour said that four gunmen riding on motorcycles targeted Sheikh Sajid Mehboob outside his house in the gated society.

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah has directed the provincial police chief to submit investigation reports, the report said.

All three incidents took place in quick succession and in close proximity of each other. And the same team of target killers might have been involved in the incidents, the report added, quoting a source.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An all-party delegation of Haryana led by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today called on President Pranab Mukherjee here for considering Haryana's appeal for implementation the Supreme Court verdict in Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal case.

After hearing them out, Mukherjee assured to sympathetically consider Haryana's appeal on SYL issue after the delegation urged him for implementation of the order at the earliest.

After meeting the President, the Chief Minister said Haryana should get its due share of water.

The State is asking for its rightful share and not Punjab's share, he said.

Khattar said while both states had been allotted equal share of 3.5 Million Acre Feet (MAF) water under the water sharing agreement, Haryana was getting only 1.62 MAF.

Since 1981, Punjab has been utilising 1.88MAF water that rightfully belongs to Haryana. He said the Supreme Court had already dismissed the proposal of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha to terminate the agreements.

Khattar said that the people had complete faith in the Constitution, and the people of the State believe that Haryana would get its rightful share of water so that maximum food grains could be produced and they could get adequate drinking water.

Ministers and leaders of other parties in the State also appealed to the President to consider favourably the interests of the people of the State.

The delegation included top BJP Ministers from the state and Congress leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda, who is a former chief minister, state Congress chief Ashok Tanwar, CLP leader Kiran Choudhry, State INLD President Ashok Arora, Leader of Opposition Abhay Singh Chautala and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Tek Chand Sharma.

Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma, Finance Minister Abhimanyu, Agriculture Minister OP Dhankar, Health Minister Anil Vij, Urban Local Bodies Minister Kavita Jain and State BJP President Subhash Barala were also present.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Haryana police force was on maximum alert today, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab, even as one more abandoned car was found in Kaithal district.

Acting on inputs that some fugitives had passed through Haryana territory, the police remained on maximum alert and a vigorous search was on to nab the accused.

"We are maintaining a high alert. If any of the fugitive is found in Haryana, we will immediately nab him," IGP Karnal Range, Subhash Yadav said.

Another car was today found abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place yesterday.

"A car has been found in the village," IGP Yadav said, adding it was suspected to have been used in yesterday's jailbreak incident.

Another car had been found abandoned yesterday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

"Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, Kumar said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Security has been beefed up in Haryana and police force has been put on high alert after Nabha jailbreak incident at Patiala in neighbouring Punjab yesterday.

The borders with Patiala and the adjoining borders with Ambala, Kaithal and Jind have already been sealed.

Checking is being carried out at 'nakas', Yadav said.

Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates yesterday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.

(REOPENS DES 35)



Meanwhile, Haryana Home Secretary Ram Niwas today said that an investigation team has been constituted by Director General of Police, Haryana, to look into the reasons for "failure" of police personnel posted at 'naka' set up in Kaithal to intercept the escaped inmates from Nabha Jail, Patiala in Punjab.

"Disciplinary action will be taken against the erring police personnel," he added.

Punjab police had said that the prisoners who had escaped from Nabha jail had fled towards Haryana.

Niwas said 'nakas' had been set up in the state to intercept the escaped inmates of the Nabha jail, including Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was arrested in Delhi.

He said that strict orders were issued to maintain continuous vigil and prevent any kind of infiltration at state borders and check posts.

He said that red alert was issued in the state the previous day and patrolling on the highways had been increased. Apart from this, malls, markets and other places with heavy footfall are also under surveillance, he added.
The Bombay High Court today pulled up the Maharashtra government over the delay in appointment of a new Advocate General and sought an explanation, observing many constitutional and statutory functions of the state were suffering for the past eight months.

A bench of Justices Abhay Oka and Anuja Prabhudesai said the inaction by government to appoint an Advocate General affects the cause of justice as well as members of public.

"It was high time that the government appointed a new Advocate General to represent the state," said the bench while hearing a petition filed by Congress MLC Sanjay Dutt.

"Many constitutional and statutory functions (of the government) are suffering due to the non-appointment of the Advocate General and it affects the cause of justice as well as the public," the bench remarked.

The judges while noting that there was a delay in filling up the post of Advocate General called upon the state to explain the same in an affidavit within two weeks.

The court granted two weeks time, instead of a month, as prayed by the state, and directed the government to file an affidavit by December 13, by which time the new AG should be appointed.

The matter has been listed 'high on board' on December 14.

Nagendra Rai, senior advocate of Supreme Court and former Acting Chief Justice of Patna High Court, appeared for the petitioner along with advocate Ashish Mehta.

Dutt sought a direction to the Maharashtra government to appoint a regular Advocate General in place of the current acting Advocate General.

Dutt's petition said the court should declare that the post of 'acting Advocate General' was unconstitutional, and that the appointment of Advocate General should be made only as per the provisions of Article 165 of the Constitution.

Dutt clarified that he was not questioning the integrity and professional capability of the acting Advocate General Rohit Deo, but said he wanted a direction to the government to follow the Constitutional provisions.

Deo was functioning as an acting AG for the last seven months, while under the Constitution no post of 'acting AG' exists, he said.

Dutt had also raised the issue in the state Legislature earlier, the petition said.

"Pending final disposal of the petition, the court may



pass an interim order directing the government to withdraw the charge given to acting Advocate General," the petition prayed.

Deo was appointed as an acting AG after the previous Advocate General Srihari Aney was forced to resign.

Aney's open support for separate Vidarbha had incurred him the wrath of political parties, including the ruling ally Shiv Sena, which are opposed to the idea of statehood for the region.
The Bombay High Court today expressed displeasure over the Maharashtra government's failure to set up State Police Complaint Authority Committee despite assurances in the past that it would be functional by October 15.

On May 23 last year, the state had announced appointment of a retired judge to head the state-level authority. It had also given names of two retired additional directors general and two Indian Administrative Services officers to be part of the authority.

While a state-level committee would hear complaints against police officers above the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), district-level committee would hear complaints against policemen below the rank of ACP.

The issue came up before a division bench of justices R V More and Shalini Phansalkar-Joshi while hearing a petition filed by the father of two boys who have been accused in a rape case.

The petition claims that the boys have been falsely implicated and that the police are hand in gloves with the complainant.

The court sought to know why the petitioner did not approach the committee with his complaint.

Additional Public Prosecutor Mankhuvar Deshmukh informed the court that committee is not yet functional.

He said there is certain dispute over salary of the committee members which is causing delay.

"We are hearing this since two years. It has been so long now. It seems like the government is not at all interested in establishing the forum (committee)," Justice More said.

The bench posted the matter for further hearing after two weeks and sought to know by when the committee would be functional.

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Holding of Board exams in Kashmir was a "deceptive attempt" by the state government to reap political gains, hardline Hurriyat Conference headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani said today, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised high attendance in the annual tests.

"Conducting examinations was purely a mean and deceptive attempt (by the state government) to achieve political gains and get the applause from the masters in Delhi..," Hurriyat spokesman said in a statement.

In his monthly radio address 'Mann ki Baat', Modi had yesterday said high participation of students in the recent Board exams in Kashmir reflected their resolve to strive for a better future through studies.

Over 95 per cent of students appeared in the Board exams which marked the resumption of educational activity in Kashmir Valley after schools remained shut for over four months due to the unrest and separatists-sponsored strike.

Nearly 40 schools were also burnt down during the unrest which began following the killing of militant leader Burhan Wani in early July.

The spokesman of Hurriyat, which has been spearhearding five-month shutdown in the valley that has also crippled studies, said education has been the prime concern of the society and every parent wants to give his wards the best possible education even at the cost of their own comfort.

"No one can afford to keep his children away from the glory of education, which not only should help them to earn their livelihood but enlighten their mind and soul," he said.

The spokesman said there is a vast network of educational institutions in Kashmir, testifying that the local youth are hardworking, passionate and focused to get to the top on their own without the crutches.

"They have touched new heights in every field and are determined to keep the pace in latest advancements but that does not mean that they have lost or fogged their vision of basic rights," the Hurriyat said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Actor Ryan Gosling said he had fun working on the musical "La La Land" with actress Emma Stone, but learning his lines, songs, dance routines and jazz piano was a lot to take in.

The 36-year-old star has claimed he was pushed to his limits on the movie set to see what he was capable of, reported Femalefirst.

"Trying to fit the keytar into my schedule of things I had to learn was pretty funny. But we were all being pushed to our limits to see what we were capable of.

"We worked for three months on, for instance, one number that happens at sunset where it starts as a scene, then it becomes a song, and then it's a dance and then it's a scene again and it all happens in one take," Gosling said.

The scene was a homage to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers's "Isn't this a lovely day (to be caught in the rain)" routine from "Top Hat", and Gosling loved getting the chance to put a new spin on the iconic footage.

"That idea, just the clever nuance of the way Fred and Ginger's characters were trying to make the best of a bad situation, we tried to subvert that lyrically in our scene. We tried to make the worst out of a good situation," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
IDBI Federal Life Insurance today launched a new iSurance Flexi Term Insurance Plan, claimimg that it is flexible, comprehensive and in-step with the changing lifestyle and needs.

The plan continues up to 80 years of age of the life insured, the company said in a release issued here.

ISurance Flexi Term Insurance Plan gives customers multiple choices within the same product, including a conversion option in the event of a critical illness, IDBI Federal Life Insurance CMO Head Products and Strategy Karthik Raman said.

* * * * * *



Elior India appoints Sanjay Kumar as CEO * Elior Group, a France-based contract food and support services provider, has appointed Sanjay Kumar as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Elior India.

He will report to Elior Group Chairman and CEO Philippe Salle. He is also a member of the Group Management Committee, Elior Group said in a statement.

Currently, Kumar is the CEO of engineering consulting services for Altran India and will leave this position in February 2017 to join Elior Group.

* * * * * *



PTCUL awards construction contract to ABB India * To meet the rising energy needs, state utility PTCUL (Power Transmission Corporation of Uttarakhand Ltd) has awarded ABB India a contract to construct a transmission substation in Khandukhal, Uttarakhand.

The substation has recently been successfully commissioned and serves to evacuate power generated from the rivers of this northern Indian state and integrate it into the national grid, the company said in a statement.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fertiliser cooperative IFFCO today said it will run a campaign to educate its 5 crore member farmers about the use of online and digital payment gateways for purchase of seeds and fertilisers.

IFFCO has already organised information seminars in Dadri (Uttar Pradesh), Palwal (Haryana) and Dehradun (Uttarakhand).

Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh and Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu were present at the event held in Dadri on November 26. On November 27, the Agriculture Minister attended a seminar in Dehradun, while the Railway Minister was present at Palwal.

The ministers addressed the farmers and encouraged them to embrace digital banking, IFFCO said in a statement.

More than 500 farmers were present in each of these seminars and about 50 farmers did their first cashless transaction at the event and bought seeds and fertilisers, IFFCO said in a statement.

"IFFCO has decided to spearhead the campaign in all our marketing zones located across the country to sensitise our farmers about the use of online and digital payment gateways and also educate them about the benefits of going cashless," IFFCO Managing Director US Awasthi said.

He welcomed the demonetisation move saying that this would help in shaping the Indian economy into a more efficient, transparent, technologically driven and cashless one.

IFFCO has initiated a pan-India outreach programme to educate farmers about the benefits of shifting towards cashless transactions through live demonstrations and interactive sessions, it added.

IFFCO has membership of 36,000 cooperatives comprising of about 5 crore farmers.

"Most of the farmers use cash to buy agri-inputs like seeds and fertilisers during the sowing season and have been facing difficulty in procuring them due to lack of knowledge about using alternative digital payment mechanisms like cash wallets, mobile and internet banking," IFFCO said.

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Days ahead of a key conference it hosts on Afghanistan, India has given the last of the four military helicopters to the war-ravaged country which has been trying to strengthen its air power after significant cut in presence of NATO forces.

India will host the sixth conference of 'Heart of Asia -- Istanbul Process', an annual gathering of major Asian and some other countries, which is aimed at encouraging security, political and economic cooperation among Afghanistan and its neighbours. The challenge of terrorism, particularly emanating from Pakistan is likely to figure in the conference.

The Mi-24 attack helicopter was handed over to Afghan authorities on Saturday, diplomatic sources said.

Afghanistan has also been seeking India's assistance in making functional Soviet-era helicopters and transport aircraft which were not in flying condition.

The country has been struggling to get spare parts for the aircraft and helicopters due to Western sanctions against Moscow.

Earlier, there were reports that there was an issue with the spares of the fourth helicopter. India had delivered three helicopters to Afghanistan ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Kabul in December last year, giving Afghan Air Force the much-needed lethal teeth against various militant groups like the Taliban.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is set to attend the two-day Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar from December 3 and is likely to hold a bilateral meeting with Modi on the sidelines of the meet during which issues relating to defence and security cooperation are expected to figure prominently.

The Heart of Asia conference is also likely to review the security situation in the region, besides deliberating on ways to combat threat of terrorism.

"India and Afghanistan as well as other members of HoA share a common concern about insecurity that emanates from safe sanctuaries in our neighbourhood.

"Unless we work together and with others through a robust mechanism of regional security cooperation, we will be unable to realise our shared economic interests and address our common challenges," Afghan Envoy Shaida Abdali said.

The Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process was launched in 2011 and include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and the United Arab Emirates.

A number of key issues relating to trade and connectivity are likely to figure in the conference which is also being attended by Sartaj Aziz, Foreign Affairs Advisor to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

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Infantry forces from member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) today started a joint training exercise in northwest China's restive Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to boost the ability of their forces to deal with emerging security threats.

The week-long exercise in Korla is aimed at improving combat ability, boost military communication and improve troops ability to deal with security threats, according to a military statement.

The participants will undergo training to test their physical ability and combat skills, it said.

The exercises will also improve cooperation, coordination and actual combat abilities.

In line with the "Shanghai Spirit" of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for cultural diversity and pursuit of common development, members of the SCO have carried out 12 bilateral or multilateral training events since 2002, it noted.

The Beijing-based SCO, an inter-governmental organisation founded in Shanghai in 2001, includes China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

India, Afghanistan, Iran, Mongolia, and Pakistan have observer-nation status in the SCO while Belarus, Turkey and Sri Lanka have dialogue partner status.

Xinjiang, which is home to the Muslim Uighur minority, has seen a spate of attacks in recent years. China has blamed the violent incidents in Xinjiang on Uighur separatists who are seeking to form a separate East Turkistan.

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Angry customers waiting for long to withdraw money vandalised two branches of the State Bank of India (SBI) in Manipur today, police said.

The SBI Manipur University branch here was vandalised by a section of customers and in the process, one policeman identified as Shyama Singh suffered minor injuries, police officials said.

In another incident, window panes were smashed and the name plate of the SBI branch at Leimakhong in Imphal West district was uprooted by aggrieved customers, they said.

Meanwhile, the nationwide protest by opposition parties against demonetisation was also carried out in the state capital.

President T N Haokip of Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee told reporters that the demonetisation had severely affected the people and put the daily wage earners to immense hardship due to lack of currency notes.

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A top UK general who was part of the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State terrorists in the Middle East today said that a large amount of intelligence had been obtained on the dreaded terror group's plans to target Europe.

Major-General Rupert Jones, the deputy commander of US-led operations against the militants, said the files had been retrieved in July by Western-backed Kurdish and Arab militias from the former Islamic State (ISIS) stronghold of Manbij, in the Aleppo governorate of northern Syria.

Jones toldsome British newspapers that an even bigger haul of data about ISIS was expected to be uncovered in the terrorists' stronghold of Mosul, in northern Iraq, which he predicted would fall by the early half of next year.

"Manbij was hugely important for external operations. A huge amount of intelligence gathered in Manbij related to threats in Europe and elsewhere," he said.

"I am absolutely certain that an extraordinary amount of intelligence will come out of Mosul. We have ramped up as a coalition our ability to gather and process all that intelligence, because it will be a labyrinth of intelligence and we need to get that into the hands of intelligence agencies," he said.

While specific plots against Britain had not yet emerged, he said he was in no doubt that ISIS, also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh, remained a threat.

"If we want to keep Britain safe, if we want to keep Europe safe, then we need to come and deal with Daesh," Jones said.

Heavy fighting continues in Mosul where Iraqi security forces began an assault to drive out ISIS nearly six weeks ago.

The upcoming struggle for Raqqa will be worse, Jones predicted.

"What we are now in the process of doing is starting the isolation of Raqqa. For as long as Raqqa is sitting there, they can orchestrate external operations. So the sooner it's liberated or the sooner Daesh are liberated from there, the better," he said.

Jones stressed that an "extraordinary amount of progress" had been made by Western-backed Iraqi and Syrian forces.

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The bandh called by Opposition parties as part of the 'Jan Aakrosh Divas' being observed across the nation against the government over the demonetisation issue received lukewarm response in Rajasthan as normal life remained unaffected.

The AAP held a demonstration at Transport Nagar in Jaipur against the demonetisation and the Centre's failure to make prior arrangements for distribution of new currency.

"Preparations should have been made before demonetising the currency notes. People are facing hardships in exchanging scrapped notes and are left with no cash-in-hand. Normal life has been badly hit," AAP leader Amit Lio alleged.

The CPI took out a march to protest demonetisation while the ABVP took out a rally against the Opposition's bandh call in the city amid tight security arrangements.

"All the markets were open and there was no impact of the bandh call here. Trading was as usual," Jaipur Vyapar Mahasangh president Subhash Goyal said.

He said the business community has welcomed demonetisation because of its far reaching impact.

"People from the trade and industry, and common men have not supported the bandh and therefore there was no impact," the Mahasangh's secretary AjayVijayvargiya.

There was no visible impact of the bandh at markets in Sikar and normal life remained unaffected.

(Reopens DES 34)



In Jaipur, CPI (M), CPI and other left parties took out an 'Akrosh' rally against the problems faced by people due to the decision of demonetisation.

The joint rally was addressed by CPI(M) leader and former MLA Amra Ram who said that rich people have faced no difficulties but the common man is facing hardship for currency and difficulties in meeting daily expenses.
Dubbing the BJP-led government at the Centre as "anti-poor", Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Ashok Chavan today said his party will raise in Parliament and state legislature the issue of hardships being faced by people due to demonetization.

The winter session of Maharashtra Legislature begins in Nagpur from December 5.

Addressing a rally outside suburban collector office after the 'Jan Akrosh' march from Kalina to Kherwadi junction in Bandra, Chavan alleged that the government had waived Vijay Mallya's loan but not that of farmers.

"The BJP government at the Centre is anti-poor. Nine farmers have committed suicide recently, still the government has no shame," he alleged.

Chavan claimed the morcha was a a "success" as the "common man participated in large numbers".

Congress leaders were joined by NCP city unit president Sachin Ahir and their workers in the march in suburban Mumbai to protest against the difficulties being faced by the common man due to demonetization.

Mumbai unit chief Sanjay Nirupam, city Congress leaders Kripashankar Singh, Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan, Rajya Sabha member Hussain Dalwai and NCP Mumbai president Sachin Ahir spoke on the occasion.

Ahir said the ill-effects of the November 8 decision taken without any proper planning are being felt till today.

Chavan said the citizens who deposited their money in bank accounts are not able to withdraw the same. Small traders, farmers, labourers, working class have been the worst hit due to the sudden demonetization.

Rural economy has virtually collapsed, he said.

Nirupam said hawkers, shopkeepers, traders in Dharavi, Kalina, Santacruz, Kurla and Bandra extended support to the protest march.

He said Mumbai Congress had organised "Money Ki Baat" outside railway stations and banks in Byculla, Kurla, Andheri and Jogeshwari areas of the metropolis to highlight the poor implementation of demonetization.

Nirupam claimed Federation of Maharashtra, Maharashtra State Chemists and Druggists Association, Mumbai Gold Wholesale Association and taxi-autorickshaw unions in Mumbai also supported and participated in the morcha.

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The Delhi High Court today granted a month's parole to INLD leader Ajay Chautala, who is serving a 10-year jail term in a teachers' recruitment scam case, for maintaining "social ties" but restrained him from taking part in political activity.

Justice A K Pathak also restricted Ajay's movement, while directing him not to leave Delhi without permission from the authorities concerned.

"The petitioner is granted one month's parole. During this period, he will not move out of Delhi and will also restrain himself from participating in any of his or other political parties' rally," the court said.

It said the relief is granted to "re-establish his ties with the society and the family members".

The court's order came on Ajay's plea seeking two months' parole to allow him "return to the mainstream".

The convict in his plea for parole filed through advocate Amit Sahni, had contended that the Delhi government's 2010 guidelines were framed to achieve the objectives of parole, to enhance continuity with family members, to maintain a minimum level of self-worth and confidence, for a positive attitude and interest in life and to protect social ties.

The advocate had argued that law was well settled that grant of parole to a convict is an integral part of correctional process.

"It is a kind of consideration granted to the prisoners to help them to come back into the mainstream of life. It is nothing but an instrument of social rehabilitation of the prisoner. Still further it is equally settled that the release on parole is expected to provide opportunity to the prisoner to transform himself into a useful citizen," the plea had said.

The Supreme Court on August 3 last year had dismissed the appeals of Ajay and his father O P Chautala challenging the high court's verdict upholding their conviction and sentence of 10 years awarded by a trial court in the junior basic trained (JBT) teachers recruitment scam case.

The high court had on March 5, 2015, upheld the 10-year jail term awarded to Chautalas and three others, saying, "The overwhelming evidence showed the shocking and spine-chilling state of affairs in the country."



The father-son duo and 53 others, including two IAS officers, were among 55 persons convicted on January 16, 2013 by the trial court for illegally recruiting 3,206 JBT teachers in Haryana in 2000.

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A 22-year-old youth from Kalyan in adjoining Thane district, who allegedly fled from home to join the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2014, had been killed, a senior police official said here today.

Aman Naeem Tandel was among the four youths from Kalyan who had left for Syria in 2014, purportedly to fight for the terror group ISIS.

"Tandel's father got a call informing about his death in Syria," the official said.

Aman's father Naeem Tandel, who lives in Govindwadi area of Kalyan, got a call late Saturday night from an unidentified number, the police official said.

Earlier this year, an ISIS video purportedly showing Aman among others and threatening to avenge the "killings of Muslims in Kashmir, Gujarat and Muzaffarnagar", had surfaced.

Aman was reportedly in touch with his family over the phone until the end of last year.

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Hitting back at BJP national President for calling his government "the most corrupt" in the country, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today accused Amit Shah of lacking "morality" to talk about his rule, saying he himself was an accused in a murder case.

"Amit Shah has no morality.....He himself was an accused in a murder case," Siddaramaiah told reporters, apparently referring to the Sohrabuddin Sheik fake encounter case.

Shah has since been discharged by the trial court which was upheld by the Bombay High Court. The Supreme Court also in August this year rejected a plea against discharge of Shah.

Siddaramaiah said, "..If Modi had not become the Prime Minister, he would have gone to jail.." and alleged that Shah had been saved by the CBI.

"....These people are lecturing us," he said.

Siddaramaiah also questioned as to "what moral right Shah has" to talk about his government being corrupt when the BJP was going to the people projecting the face of B S Yeddyurappa who, he alleged, had provided a "corrupt" government.

At an 'Other Backward Classes' rally of state BJP here yesterday, Shah had dubbed the Siddaramaiah government "the most corrupt" in the country and said the time had come for its removal and bringing BJP back to power in the state in the next elections.

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A court in Kazakhstan today convicted two men of sowing unrest around a controversial land reform and sentenced each to five years in jail.

Max Bokaev and Talgat Ayan were both arrested in April as protests against proposed land code amendments rippled across the vast Central Asian country, threatening the 27-year rule of strongman President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

The court in the western city of Atyrau found the pair guilty on charges of inciting social tensions and spreading false information during the spring protests, Kazakhstan's supreme court said in a statement.

Their sentences come after another court sentenced beer magnate Tokhtar Tuleshov to 21 years in prison earlier this month for his purported role in masterminding the protests in order to overthrow Nazarbayev.

Tuleshov was already in detention at the time of the land protests, but authorities said the businessman had "inspired and financed" them before his arrest in January.

Thousands participated in the countrywide demonstrations against amendments that would have changed the maximum length of leases on land for foreigners from 10 to 25 years.

New York-based Human Rights Watch reported that hundreds of people were detained in the build-up to a planned nationwide protest on May 21.

The same organisation last month called on Kazakh authorities to stop the trial of Bokaev and Ayan and free both men.

Nazarbayev, 76, signed off on a moratorium preventing implementation of the land reform through 2021 in a rare concession to political opposition.

Nazarbayev's reign has rarely been contested since Kazakhstan gained independence in 1991 and the strongman is the beneficiary of a flowering cult of personality.

This month the national bank announced the issue of bills worth 10,000 tenge (nearly USD 30) which will bear his image while Nazarbayev himself knocked back a proposal by lawmakers to rename the Kazakh capital Astana in his honour last week.

Land policy is highly sensitive in ex-Soviet Central Asia where many recall the privatisations of the 1990s after the collapse of the USSR with bitterness.

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Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today took a dig at Union Minister Mahesh Sharma over the expenditure incurred on his son's marriage asking if he made all the payments by cheques.

However, Sharma hit back at Kejriwal asking him to get his facts right as it was his son's marriage and not daughter's as mentioned by the AAP leader in his tweet.

Linking the marriage to demonetisation, Kejriwal questioned the mode of payment and expenditure incurred on Sharma's "daughter's" wedding.

Kejriwal tweeted, "Are all the payments for BJP MP Mahesh Sharma's daughter's wedding being done through cheque? Is Rs 2.5 lakh being spent for the wedding? How were notes exchanged?"



Sharma responded: "Please get your facts right. My son is getting married. Yes, all the payments are being done through banks."



Kejriwal had earlier demanded a probe into the lavish arrangements for former Karnataka Minister G Janardhan Reddy's daughter's marriage.

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The Delhi on Monday taunted Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying his three-day ultimatum to the Centre over demonetisation has "fizzled out" even before taking off.

On November 17, Kejriwal had said,"The government must roll back the demonetisation decision in three days. Otherwise there will be revolt."



Satish Upadhyay, BJP's Delhi chief, claimed the traders of the city have rejected the AAP's "strike call" over the issue.

"The AAP's trade wing tried to mobilise traders and disrupt business. But their provocations have been emphatically rejected by people. Kejriwal should quit or call fresh polls," Upadhyay told a press conference.

AAP termed it as baseless, saying it never backed any bandh.

AAP spokesperson Deepak Bajpai tweeted, "AAP, CPI(M), TMC, JD(U), Congress, none of the opposition parties have given call for a Bharat Bandh, I wonder who's given the call? RSS??".

Starting December 1, Kejriwal will address a series of rallies across India, including one in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi, taking his fight against demonetisation to the masses.
Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates yesterday, has been nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station here.

The militant outfit leader was arrested late last night from Nizamuddin railway station, Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police, Special Cell, said today.

"Punjab Police had suspicion about his movement towards Delhi and they contacted Delhi Police. Following intensive checking and tracking, he was arrested from the railway station last night," said the officer.

A team of Punjab police will take him back to the state.

It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle--a Toyota Fortuner--was stopped at a police picket.

Mintoo yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates of the jail in Patiala, nearly 200 km from here, and bolted out with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets.

Officials said efforts are on to nab the other prisoners who managed to flee.

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014. He was wanted in ten terror cases.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh 'Gopi' after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

Among the escapees was another terrorist Kashmira Singh, according to Punjab police chief Suresh Arora.

(Reopens DEL-10)



Meanwhile, Punjab police said as per investigations conducted so far, dreaded gangster Gurpreet Sekhon was the alleged mastermind of the jailbreak.

"Sekhon plotted the Nabha jailbreak while another gangster Prem Lahoria and Parminder Singh Pinda executed this plan," Patiala SSP Gurmit Singh Chauhan said today.

Sekhon, who was involved in murder, kidnapping, extortion cases, was among six inmtes who escaped yesterday.

Raids were being conducted at the possible hideouts of the escapees.

"It is a multi dimensional operation...Our efforts are on to track all the prisoners and also who helped them in their escape," said Chauhan, who is also a member of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to investigate the daring daylight jailbreak.

Police believed that armed men could be 10 to 12 who managed to free six prisoners.

The others who fled were Harminder Singh Mintoo, Kashmir Singh, gangster Vicky Gaundar, Amandeep Dhotian and Nita Deol.
In a swift operation, chief of Khalistan Liberation Front militant outfit Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested here last night within hours of his escape from Nabha jail in Punjab, with Delhi Police saying he was planning to flee abroad, to Malaysia or Germany.

However, high alert continued in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi as about 12 armed dreaded fugitives are still at large.

Two cars used by them in the escape have been found in Haryana's Kaithal district.

48-year-old Mintoo was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station's parking area, marking the second arrest in the sensational jailbreak case of yesterday morning in which 8 people stormed the prison to free six inmates -- two militants and four dreaded criminals.

Earlier, Parminder alias Penda was arrested yesterday in Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh, few hours after the jailbreak.

Mintoo, accused in 10 terror cases, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan, Punjab Director General of Police Suresh Arora said.

Harminder was carrying a sophisticated semi-automatic pistol along with six live cartridges when he was arrested, Arvind Deep, Special Commissioner of Delhi Police's Special Cell, told reporters here today.

"He had bought a (train) ticket for Panvel and from there he had plans to go to Mumbai and then to Goa. He had good contacts in Goa since he had stayed there for 18 years from 1989 to 2007," Deep said while giving details of the arrest effected nearly 200 km from the scene of the crime.

Finally, Harminder planned to flee to Germany or Malaysia, where he had good contacts since he had stayed there, police sources said.

He was produced before a court here which sent him to seven days' police custody.

During interrogation, Harminder said the jailbreak was under planning for the last six months and its masterminds and executors were Gurpreet Singh Sekhon and Harjinder Singh who are members of a criminal gang, said DCP (Special Cell) P S Kushwah.

Giving details of the operation, Kushwah said after



receiving information about the escape of six men from Nabha Jail of Punjab, Delhi Police was put on high alert and the Special Cell was also tasked by senior officers to develop information and apprehend them.

There was quick sharing of information by Punjab, Haryana and UP Police with their counterparts in Delhi.

Meanwhile, information was received that one of the criminals identified as Palwinder Singh alias Penda was arrested by UP police in Shamli district.

On interrogation, Palwinder disclosed that Harminder and Kashmeer Singh were dropped by him in Kaithal, Haryana. He said that they might come to Delhi, the DCP said.

Pictures of Harminder and Kashmeer were circulated through whatsapp to all the districts and an alert was also issued to all the SHOs about his presence in Delhi, he said.

Police personnel were asked to be on lookout for any suspicious movement, the DCP said.

"Personnel were deployed on probable hideout areas and checking of guest houses was undertaken. Searches were conducted at bus terminals, railway stations, etc," he said.

A police team was deployed at Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station where they noticed a Sikh man having patka on his head and a trimmed beard that looked as if it had been trimmed haphazardly and improperly, said Kushwah, adding that he was looking extra conscious which raised suspicion.

"The person bought ticket and came outside of the building and as he was moving out, he was apprehended by the police personnel who grappled with him and managed to snatch the pistol from him," he said.

A case under sections 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 186 (Obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions) IPC along with relevant sections of the Arms Act and 20 Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act has been registered at Police Station Special Cell, said the DCP.

"On the day of incident, all the men who ultimately escaped from jail were out in the open in the jail premises as a 'bhandara' was being organized at the Gurudwara in jail premises. In accordance with their plan, they reached near the exit gate of the jail at the time when the intruders in police uniform stormed the jail," the officer added.

"After escaping from the jail, Harminder, Kashmeer Singh, Gurpreet Singh Shekhon and Amandeep Singh, boarded a Toyota Fortuner. Shekhon was driving the vehicle. Around 24 kms before Kurushetra, Harminder Singh and Kashmeer Singh got down from the vehicle," Kushwah said.

They were given Rs 19,000 by Mani (Shekhon's brother).

"Both of them had hidden themselves in the sugarcane fields. Kashmeer Singh went to the nearby village and brought a pair of scissors. They cut their hair and trimmed their beard to change their appearance and boarded a jeep to Kurushetra. From Kurushetra to Panipat, they went by bus and then changed another bus to ISBT, Delhi," said Kushwah.

Sources said that Kashmeer and Harminder had separated at Kashmere Gate bus terminal in Delhi to avoid suspicion and apprehension and had decided to move separately towards Nizamuddin Railway Station with the objective of ultimately going to Goa where Mintoo had lived for 18 years, the officer added.

"Mintoo used to visit Pakistan frequently and there are reports that he had backing of Pakistan's ISI, which is being investigated," the DCP (Special Cell) said.

"He was involved in 12 terror-related cases, including the attack on Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in 2008 and recovery of explosives at Halwara Air Force Station near Ludhiana in 2010," said Kushwah.

Mintoo was earlier a member of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) which he left in year 2009 and revived Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF).

He used to operate from Thailand and Malaysia before he was arrested by police from IGI airport in 2014 after being deported from Thailand for possessing fake passport.

In Thailand, Mintoo had set up a base and was using it to mobilise funds for the banned Sikh groups, Kushwah said.

Before being arrested, he had also travelled to Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, the officer said.

Parminder, who was arrested yesterday in Shamli district, has claimed that 8 people were involved in the jailbreak and he was in contact with them through Whatsapp.

He said during interrogation that he was staying in a hideout in Dehradun and five other fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in search of a hideout, Uttar Pradesh Police said.

Parminder, who was accused of killing Punjab police inspector Gurudev and was on the run, told police he was also involved in narcotic smuggling in states including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab, SP of Shamli District Ajay Sharma said.

Last evening, when he was travelling to Dehradun his vehicle was intercepted by police at a check post in Kairana in Shamli district in western Uttar Pradesh, police said.

(Reopen DEL81)



Meanwhile, amidst opposition attack on the Akali Dal-led government of Punjab over the jailbreak incident, its Deputy Chief Minister Sukbhir Singh Badal insisted that law and order situation in the state was fine.

"No such incident took place in past 7-8 years. It an unfortunate incident. We have suspended jail superintendent and jail officers, we have dismissed them from their job," he said.

He said investigation into the matter is on and "the main conspirator has been nabbed in UP while the main terrorist who escaped (the jail) has also been nabbed in Delhi. Police is looking for others.
Protesting against demonetisation, Left parties today accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of pushing the country into an "unprecedented financial turmoil" and questioned why he was not speaking in Parliament on the issue.

During their protest here as part of "Jan Aakrosh Diwas" against demonetization, seven Left parties including the CPI(M) and CPI decried the invalidation of Rs 1000 and Rs 500 currency notes as "anti-poor and pro-corporate" and demanded that the government let people use the old notes until it makes new notes available.

"We believe the Prime Minister has brought the country to a standstill. He has imposed 'deshbandi' (holding country hostage) with 'notebandi' (demonetisation).

"90 per cent of our people do cash transactions every day. Their lives have been hit quite hard. We are protesting against all this," CPI general secretary Sitaram Yechury said during the protest.

Continuing their attack on the Prime Minister over his alleged absence from Parliament, where opposition MPs are demanding that he reply to a debate on demonetization, the Left parties questioned his "silence" on the floor of the House, calling him "Narendra Maun (silent) Modi".

Yechury claimed that while the November 8 decision has farmers and daily wage earners reeling under hardships, the stated objectives of demonetization are unlikely to be achieved.

He suggested the government ushering in Rs 2000 currency note will rather "double" corruption.

Yechury reiterated the charge that BJP and "those who had black money" were "aware" of the Prime Minister's move.

"The BJP (reportedly) purchased lands in the run up to the decision in Bihar. Those with black money had already made arrangements. How come they were aware of demonetization move?" he asked.

The Rajya Sabha member asked the government to crack the whip on those who have black money stashed in banks abroad and also act against corporate houses which have faltered on payments of bank loans.

Referring to Modi calling his predecessor Manmohan Singh as "Maunmohan Singh" during poll campaigns, Yechury said the situation was different now as Singh has spoken on demonetization in the Rajya Sabha last week but the PM was silent.

"Now it was a coincidence, when Singh spoke in Parliament, the Prime Minister was silent, (he) became Narendra Maun Modi. This is the situation," Yechury quipped.

CPI national secretary D Raja, who also addressed the protesters, echoed Yechury views saying the decision has caused "unprecedented financial turmoil" in the country and subjected people to "huge hardships, unimaginable miseries and humiliations".

"Now Modi is trying to abuse opposition parties as though



we are all protecting corruption and black money. Modi should understand the Left has been fighting black money and corruption," Raja said.

The Left leader said it is Modi who should be held responsible if the Parliament doesn't function.

Meanwhile, replying to a query about bringing funding to political parties under the ambit of RTI, Yechury demanded stopping of corporate funding to political parties.

Besides Yechury and Raja, leaders of CPI(ML)-Liberation, All India Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party, SUCI(C) and Communist Ghadar Party of India took part in the protest.
The liaison office of the first official business body set up by China to step up its investments in India was inaugurated here today amid concerted efforts by both countries to boost their trade ties.

The liaison office of China and India Business Council, (CIBC) was launched here in the capital of Hunan province, the birthplace of Mao Zedong, founder of ruling CommunistParty of China (CPC) at a ceremony attended among others by top officials of both the countries.

Though set up in 1985 by China, the CIBC remained inactive. Setting up of a liaison office in Hunan province in coordination with IndianConsulate in Guangzhou will make it active, officials said.

The revival of the CIBC is backed by China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT),country's official body which coordinates Chinese investments and businesses abroad. It was seen as significant step by China to boost its investments in India.

The ceremony was attended by Deputy Ambassador of India Amit Narang, the Consul General of the India in Guangzhou YK Sailas Thangal as well as Vice Chairman of the National CCPIT, Lu Pengqi and Chairman of the CCPIT, Hunan province, He Jian.

A Chinese official said the office eventually would coordinate investments from all over China and will also open its offices in India.

Hunan has strong trade ties with India with some of its top companies like Zoomlion, a Chinese manufacturer of construction machinery and sanitation equipment andSany heavy machinery manufacturing company which have already made investments in India.

Chinese officials said, China's investments in India amounted to USD 4.07 billon till last year though Indian officials say it is less than USD 2 billion.

But more Chinese firms evinced interest to invest in India. For its part Indian government in coordination with the various state governments is also conducting campaigns to attract Chinese investments.

The bilateral trade last year amounted to USD 71.62 billion with over USD 53 billion trade deficit in favour of China. In view of the growing trade deficit, India has been asking China to promote investments.

(Reopens FGN 12)



Outlining "enormous" investment opportunities for Chinese companies in India, which has emerged as the fastest growing economic of the world, Thangal said India has attracted FDI more than US and China.

India's massive expansion of road, rail and other infrastructure projects have offered a lot of scope for investments for China which is currently investing its huge foreign exchange reserves abroad.

"From modernisation of agriculture, food processing, which were poised for a USD 100 billion expansion by 2020 to high speed railway cooperation, India has become the most attractive destination for Chinese investments," he said.

In his address, Narang said India is the third largest economy after US and China in purchasing power.

India is also a very young country with low labour costs providing a "major pivot for cooperation between India and China," he said.

Also the Indian government has initiated lot a measures to improve the efficiency of the government and streamlined legal system making it easier to conduct businesses in India.

He also said China's expansion of investments abroad and India opening of its manufacturing for foreign investment provided a land mark opportunity for cooperation.

Wu Meng, Deputy Director General CCPIT International Exchange Department said, his organisation has set up over 177 mechanisms to promote business opportunities for Chinese firms abroad.

"China and India are big countries with lot of depth of dynamism. CIBC has been set up in 1985 and has been dedicated to provide more opportunities for enterprises from both the countries and provide all round development of business relations," he said.

"Hunan and India business cooperation is very close. CCPIT Hunan has done lot of effective work to promote business with India. CCPIT will provide maximum support to this liaison office," he added.

The meeting was followed by seminar on India-China Business and Investment cooperation in which several Indian and Chinese industrialists and officials of the Confederation of Indian Industry, (CII) took part.
Amid the continuing impasse in Parliament over demonetisation, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Monday expressed hope that the House will resume functioning smoothly in a "day or two" as the government as well as the opposition parties want discussions to take place.

"I am trying. I am repeatedly requesting as well. I hope that it (Parliament) will function. When both the parties, the ruling party and the opposition, are ready for discussion, both want discussion, under which rule it has to be done, that has to be discussed. I think in the next one or two days, it will start (functioning)," she said.

Both Houses of Parliament have witnessed minimal work after the winter session began on November 16 after a united opposition continued to disrupt proceedings over hardships caused to the people due to demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

Asked whether repeated adjournments amounted to snatching away of the rights of MPs who want to speak on important topics, Mahajan said she has been trying to conduct the Question Hour despite the noise and MPs' right to speak should not be taken away.

"That is why I am trying. Whichever MP wants to speak, their right should not be snatched away from them. That is why you might have seen that I try to run the Question Hour session. I also do not like that there is so much noise in the House and I am trying to continue with it.

"Today also I tried as some people had requested me that they want to speak on important issues in the Zero Hour. I have been trying for the last two days. Those members who come to Parliament, their rights should not be snatched away," she told reporters outside Parliament.

She said that it is an "ongoing" process to reach out to the government and the opposition parties as they too want discussion and asserted that she is also willing to take the initiative to bring everybody together and talk to them.

"Why not? I will definitely do that and I have been doing so as well. Attempts are going on. It is an ongoing process. At one point, I am quite sure that everybody will accept something...," she said.

Asked whether the decision on disallowing the adjournment motion would be revisited, Mahajan said, "Let us see. We want that House should run. For that let us see what happens. I will have to talk to both of them (government and opposition). Both of them are ready for discussion. Under which rule, all of them have to decide together. Not only one person can decide."
The Madras High Court today dismissed an anticipatory bail plea of an advocate in Tuticorin district against whom police had registered 18 criminal cases.

Dismissing the bail plea of Michael Stanis Prabhu, Justice S Vaidyanathan said, "Already law profession was under severe criticism due to activities of some lawyers in the state."



"If the petitioner is allowed to wander in the society scot-free on obtaining anticipatory bail, it will further inflict injuries in the society."



According to prosecution, Prabhu intervened into the activities of the local Bar Association leading to dispute. He along with other accused had attacked the complainant on November 20 and caused him serious injuries.

The Advocate General also submitted that Prabhu was facing several criminal cases.

"Prabhu holds a responsible post in the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and has the habit of misusing the post for his illegal and criminal activities," he submitted.

The Advocate General submitted that Prabhu was evading from inquiry by misusing his post and therefore he should not be granted anticipatory bail.

The judge said "If a doctor committed mistake, his patient will be six feet beneath the earth. If the lawyer committed mistake, his client will go six feet above earth (hanged). Some lawyers accumulate wealth through notoriety, corruption, deception, protection of despicable clients and protecting thieving clients which made Adolf Hitler to utter that I shall not rest until every German sees that it is a shameful thing to be a lawyer."



"In the present case, leniency cannot be shown to the petitioner as he has indulged in a very serious offence of stabbing the de facto complainant with machete, on account of which his intestine was made visible to the naked eyes," the judge said dismissing the anticipatory bail plea.

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The Madras High Court today directed a petitioner to approach the Tamil Nadu government on his plea for recovering two ancient golden idols which he claimed had gone missing from the famous Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur and were at present in a private museum in Gujarat.

It was the duty of the state government to recover the idols if they had been taken taken away and kept in museum outside the state, a bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice R Mahadevan said.

Holding that the matter cannot be treated as a PIL, the bench dismissed the petition filed by former minister Swaminathan of Thanjavur.

The petitioner had submitted that the golden idols of 9th century AD Chola king Rajaraja Chola and his wife were installed in the temple, also known as Big Temple, built by him.

He further said these idols were available when the consecration was conducted for the temple in 1990, but after that they 'disappeared'.

Claiming that it has come to his knowledge that these idols were now kept in a museum of a private person in Gujarat, he had prayed for a direction to the Tamil Nadu government to retrieve them.

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Maharashtra is aiming to emerge as the top destination for medical tourism through health care facilities, well-trained medical professionals and low cost of delivery, a senior official said today.

"The state aims to be the number one destination for medical tourism through state-of-the-art health care facilities, well-trained medical professionals and low cost of delivery compared to Tamil Nadu and Delhi," Principal Secretary, Tourism and Culture, Valsa Nair said at Medical Tourism Conclave here.

The Indian medical tourism industry is expected to grow from current USD 3 million to USD 8 billion attracting medical tourist from Bangladesh, Iraq, GCC, CIS region and Africa, she said.

"Our objective is to provide infrastructure, hospitals and medical facilities in Pune, Nagpur and other centres across the state," she added.

She said Maharashtra is planning to create a web platform which will provide various services and facilities to global patients seeking assistance in India.

"Apart from the Medical Tourism Council, the IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry is also looking into creating a task force which will put together its suggestions for drafting the necessary and appropriate policies for the promotion of medical tourism in the state," IMC President Deepak Premnarayen said.

He said Bangladesh and Afghanistan dominate the Indian Medical Value Travel (MVT) with 34 per cent share.

In India, medical tourists contribute less than 0.1 per cent of the nation's GDP, he said.

With a concerted effort India can target a GDP share of 2 per cent from medical tourism, he said.

However, lack of unified pricing, visa policies, and the tussle between public and private hospitals present a challenge, which needs to be addressed, he pointed out.

Growing at 20-25 per cent per annum, the medical tourism industry in India is one of the fastest growing healthcare markets across the globe, said Premnarayen, adding medical tourists from Asia, GCC, Africa and the SAARC regions are increasingly opting for India as the preferred destination for advances medical treatments and services.

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Malaysia has dismissed media reports that controversial Indian preacher Zakir Naik had been granted citizenship by the country, saying it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen.

"We don't give out (citizenships) automatically unless the person was born in the country to Malaysian parents," Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said yesterday, rejecting media reports that the Islamist preacher had been granted citizenship by the country.

"There are many processes to follow and it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen. Besides, Naik is not an important religious personality for the Southeast Asia region as we should have our own moderate model of Islam which fits the soft culture of the people here," Nur was quoted as saying by the Star online.

However, an ethnic Indian NGO, Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF), said Home Minister Zahid Hamidi had denied Naik was given citizenship, but he was silent whether he was given a Permanent Resident status.

HINDRAF alleged in a statement that Naik had been provided with immunity and support by the Malaysian government and allowed to continue his preaching that "clearly fostered the spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice towards the Non-Muslim community in Malaysia."



Muslim majority Malaysia has a 25 per cent ethnic Chinese who are mostly Buddhists and Christians and eight per cent ethnic Indians, a majority of whom are Hindus.

HINDRAF president Wayathamoorthy alleged that thousands ofMalaysian Indians still continued to live in a "stateless manner."



The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in India has charged Naik and banned his organisation Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) under section 153-A of IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), besides various sections of anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

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The Bombay High Court today directed the NIA, probing the 2006 Malegaon blasts case, to file its affidavit in response to an appeal filed by Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) challenging the discharge of eight accused in the case.

The state had moved the high court in appeal against the order of sessions court discharging the eight accused.

In April, the sessions court here discharged the eight men of all terror charges after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) submitted that the blasts were the handiwork of a Hindu extremist group.

Seven of the Hindu accused have also approached the high court seeking bail.

A division bench of Justices R V More and Shalini Phansalkar-Joshi today asked NIA to file its affidavit in reply to the bail pleas as well, within two weeks.

NIA counsel Prakash Shetty told the court that the agency has not been served a copy of the bail pleas and the ATS appeal.

The court directed for the petitions to be served to the NIA and sought its response.

The serial bomb blasts outside a cemetery near Hamidia mosque at Malegaon, near Nashik, on September 8, 2006, claimed 37 lives and injured over 100 people.

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A 30-year-old man allegedly committed suicide by hanging at his home as he was tensed over unable to pay his debts in northeast Delhi's Jyoti Nagar area, police said today.

Abu Taalim, who used to sell shoes on a cart in Gurgaon, hung himself from the ceiling last evening, a senior police officer said.

His family members alleged that he committed suicide as he could not get money despite standing in long queues. However, police ruled out this theory.

"Abu had borrowed money from his brothers and wasn't able to pay back. He was tensed as they wanted their money back. He was facing monetary issues and couldn't even manage his household expenses," the officer said.

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Medicines for arthritis is very effective for treatment of chikungunya disease which is found to be rearing its head in various parts of India, a senior doctor said today.

Dr Aravind Chopra from Centre for Rheumatic Diseases, Pune, said this at a four-day Indian Rheumatology Association National Conference (IRACON 2016) which concluded here, organisers said.

"For the chikungunya disease, the medicines for Arthritis are very effective for its treatment" said a release quoting the doctor.

In his presentation, Dr Sanjeev Ameen from Mumbai said biological medicines which are targetted at particular molecules of the affected body parts are more effective in Arthritis treatment.

More than 2000 Rheumatic experts attended the event and over 300 papers were presented about treatment of arthritis.

Retired Professor from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Dr Ashok Kumar was honoured with M N Passey Award for his contribution for treatment of arthritis, the release said.

Indian Rheumatology Association president Dr Amitha Agarwal, Secretary Dr Rajeev Guptha, Scientific Committee Chairman Dr Binoy J Paul, IRACON Organising committee Chairman Dr Ramesh Bhasi, Organising secretary Dr Padmanabha Shenoy, Dr Sreelakshmi spoke at the function.

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Home Ministry has given sanction to NIA to file a charge sheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot terror strike carried out on January 2.

After receiving sanction under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the NIA will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, and handlers of four terrorists -- Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif in the charge sheet to be filed soon, official sources said.

The four terrorists, after entering into India from Bamiyal area of Gurudaspur, had carried out the strike inside the strategic Pathankot Indian Air Force base killing eight people including seven personnel of IAF and NSG.

The fresh charge sheet will help India in building pressure on the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group under the United Nations' anti-terror laws. The previous attempts were spurned after China exercised its veto power.

The charge sheet will name only four terrorists involved in the attack as against six claimed by the NSG.

According to the NIA, the terrorists, who were killed after two days of gunfight were identified as Nasir Hussain, Hafiz Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum and they were residents of Vehari (Punjab), Gujranwala (Punjab), Sanghar (Sindh) and Sukkur (Sindh) districts of Pakistan respectively.

The NIA's probe will also included looking into the phone numbers and a conversation that one of the terrorists had minutes before launching the attack besides a video message of Rauf released on Jaish-affiliated website minutes after the strike.

In the video message, which was subsequently removed from the website, Rauf had claimed responsibility for the Pathankot attack.

The charge sheet will also include evidence of linking the footprints of one of the terrorists obtained from Bamiyal besides matching of DNA sample found from a soft drink can in the hijacked car of Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.

The Pathankot terror strike had seen a joint investigation team from Pakistan also arriving in India for carrying out a thorough probe.

However, upon their return, the Pakistani team claimed that India neither shared much of evidence nor allowed it to interrogate the personnel involved in repulsing the attack.

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The 12-hour agitation against demonetisation by Left parties and Congress today evoked minor response in Odisha, with long distance buses remaining off the roads and educational institutions closed.

However, small vehicles like auto-rickshaws plied as usual in almost all places, while the business establishments and government and private offices remained open.

Besides five left parties, Congress activists observed the 'Jana Akrosh' agitation and demonstrated in all blocks in the state while the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) activists took out a procession in Bhubaneswar, Puri and other places.

Most of the activists demonstrated in front of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) office here.

Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) President Prasad Harichandan and other senior members were detained while picketing near the RBI office.

"We had not called for a bandh, but observed the day as 'Akrosh Divas'. The bandh is as such being witnessed across the country ever since Prime Minister announced demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. There is a nationwide financial crisis," Harichandan told reporters.

State CPI Secretary Dibakar Nayak said, "We demand the people should be allowed to withdraw their money from bank. We also want that the old notes be allowed till sufficient currency notes are available to the people. Modi's decision has affected common man and farmers."



CPI-M state Secretary Ali Kishore Patnaik said the country's economy would "collapse due to the wrong" decision of the Modi government, which should allow people to use the old currency notes so that they do not suffer.

The CPI(Maoist) also extended support to the countrywide demonstration. The Malkangiri division of the outlawed outfit appealed to the people in a statement to support the move against demonetisation.

Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, however, took a jibe at the BJD government in Odisha for indirectly supporting the demonetisation move. "Initially, they supported demonetisation, but surprisingly the Odisha government has shut down schools and colleges. This is the double standard of BJD," Pradhan said.

The ruling BJD had welcomed the demonetisation move and did not participate in the protests today.

Home department officials said there was no report of any major untoward incident in the state during the agitation.

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Mizoram Governor Lt General



Nirbhay Sharma has summoned a three-day winter session of Mizoram assembly to begin from December 6.

Additional Secretary of the state assembly secretariat S R Zokhuma today said the detailed programme of the session was chalked out by the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting which was chaired by Speaker Hiphei today.

He said that two government bills including the new Mizoram Drugs Control Substances Bill, 2016 had been received while 77 questions have been despatched to different departments.

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Opposition Mizo National Front Youth workers today set on fire the copy of the recent order of south Mizoram's Lunglei district Deputy Commissioner warning closed relatives of government employees from indulging in anti-government activity including agitation.

MNF Youth president K Vanlalvena accused the Congress government in the state of acting like a military junta by suppressing individual rights and liberties of people.

Vanlalvena said that the state government had warned government servants not to participate in agitation against wine shops, and even disallowed college authorities to invite politicians to give lectures to college students.

"When Opposition leaders were not allowed to address college students, the ministers, parliamentary secretaries and the ruling legislators freely talked about politics in the colleges," he alleged.

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More than 10,000 civilians have fled eastern Aleppo in the past 24 hours as regime forces advance against rebel-held districts of Syria's second city, a monitor said today.

The Syrian

In a major breakthrough in the push to retake the whole city, regime forces on Saturday captured Masaken Hanano, which had been the biggest rebel-held district in eastern Aleppo.



Yesterday on the 13th day of the operation, they also took control of the adjacent neighbourhoods of Jabal Badra and Baadeeen and captured three others, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.



Inzarat, Al-Sakan al-Shaabi and Ain al-Tall have all returned to regime hands and government forces have made large forays into Sakhur and nearby Haidariya, the monitor said.



It said government forces are "in control of most of the northern part" of Aleppo.



"The rebels have lost at least 30 percent of the territory they once controlled in Aleppo," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.



The regime gains came as its aircraft pounded rebel positions and amid heavy clashes between the opposition and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in the strategic Sakhur district.



Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided the city into a rebel-held east and a regime-controlled west.



Around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in the east have faced serious food and fuel shortages.



The Observatory said that nearly 10,000 civilians had fled east Aleppo overnight Saturday -- at least 6,000 to the Kurdish-controlled northern district of Sheikh Maksoud, with the rest fleeing to government-held areas.



"It is the first exodus of this kind from east Aleppo since 2012," Abdel Rahman said.



Syrian state television broadcast images of a crowd of civilians including women and children gathered around green buses that it said had come to pick them up in Masaken Hanano.



One woman was shown pushing a stroller and many carried plastic bags on their heads as bombardment was heard in the distance.



Official media said they were taken "by the army to safe areas".



Yasser al-Youssef, from the rebel group Nureddin al-Zinki, said opposition fighters were consolidating their positions in Sakhur.



"We are strengthening our positions to defend the city and residents, but the aircraft are destroying everything methodically, area by area," he said of a regime campaign of air strikes.



Sakhur lies on a stretch of just 1.5 kilometres (less than a mile) between west Aleppo and Masaken Hanano, now both regime-controlled.Government forces retook six rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo over the weekend, forcing nearly 10,000 civilians to flee as they pressed their offensive to retake Syria's second city.



In a major breakthrough in the push to retake the whole city, regime forces on Saturday captured Masaken Hanano, which had been the biggest rebel-held district in eastern Aleppo.



Yesterday on the 13th day of the operation, they also took control of the adjacent neighbourhoods of Jabal Badra and Baadeeen and captured three others, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.



Inzarat, Al-Sakan al-Shaabi and Ain al-Tall have all returned to regime hands and government forces have made large forays into Sakhur and nearby Haidariya, the monitor said.



It said government forces are "in control of most of the northern part" of Aleppo.



"The rebels have lost at least 30 percent of the territory they once controlled in Aleppo," Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.



The regime gains came as its aircraft pounded rebel positions and amid heavy clashes between the opposition and forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad in the strategic Sakhur district.



Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided the city into a rebel-held east and a regime-controlled west.



Around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in the east have faced serious food and fuel shortages.



The Observatory said that nearly 10,000 civilians had fled east Aleppo overnight Saturday -- at least 6,000 to the Kurdish-controlled northern district of Sheikh Maksoud, with the rest fleeing to government-held areas.



"It is the first exodus of this kind from east Aleppo since 2012," Abdel Rahman said.



Syrian state television broadcast images of a crowd of civilians including women and children gathered around green buses that it said had come to pick them up in Masaken Hanano.



One woman was shown pushing a stroller and many carried plastic bags on their heads as bombardment was heard in the distance.



Official media said they were taken "by the army to safe areas".



Yasser al-Youssef, from the rebel group Nureddin al-Zinki, said opposition fighters were consolidating their positions in Sakhur.



"We are strengthening our positions to defend the city and residents, but the aircraft are destroying everything methodically, area by area," he said of a regime campaign of air strikes.



Sakhur lies on a stretch of just 1.5 kilometres (less than a mile) between west Aleppo and Masaken Hanano, now both regime-controlled.
One of Hungary's main Muslim organisations decried today what it said were "xenophobic" steps taken by an ultra-nationalist town mayor to preserve traditional Christian values and prevent immigration.

Asothalom, close to the Serbian border, last week banned mosque construction, the use of a muezzin at prayer times and the wearing of clothes such as the niqab and the burkini.

The Hungarian Islamic Community (MIK) said in a statement it was "shocked by the increasing xenophobia and serious Islamophobia in Hungary which has now peaked with the decree".

The steps were taken to "protect the community and its traditions from any mass settlement from outside," said Mayor Laszlo Toroczkai, who is also a vice-president of the radical-right Jobbik party.

Toroczkai gained prominence in 2015 when he filmed an action movie-style video at a fence on the Serbian border warning migrants not to enter Hungary. Asothalom has few refugees.

MIK, set up in 1990, is the oldest group representing Hungary's Muslim community, and is estimated to have 40,000 members.

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Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi today postponed a visit to Indonesia after protests there over her country's bloody crackdown on Rohingya Muslims and a thwarted plot to attack its Jakarta embassy.

Thousands of desperate Rohingya have flooded over the border from Myanmar's Rakhine state into Bangladesh in the past week, making horrifying claims of gang rape, torture and murder at the hands of security forces.

The Nobel laureate has faced a growing international backlash for what a UN official has said amounts to a campaign of ethnic cleansing.

Suu Kyi's government has denied the allegations, saying the army is hunting "terrorists" behind deadly raids on police posts last month.

Foreign journalists and independent investigators have been banned from verifying what is happening in the north of Rakhine state bordering Bangladesh.

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets last week in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, calling for the government to break off diplomatic ties with Myanmar.

On Sunday Indonesian police said they had arrested a third Islamic State-linked militant accused of plotting to bomb Myanmar's embassy in Jakarta.

Suu Kyi had been due to visit Indonesia after a trip to Singapore from November 30-December 2, but a senior foreign ministry official said the trip had been delayed.

"We postponed the Indonesia trip because of the problems in Rakhine and also northern Shan State" where the army is fighting ethnic insurgents, said deputy director general Aye Aye Soe.

"It will be arranged in the near future," she told AFP, denying that the delay was due to security concerns.

Some 30,000 Rohingya have fled their homes in Myanmar, where even in normal times they are denied citizenship, healthcare and education and have their movements severely restricted.

Dhaka says thousands more are massed on the border but it has refused urgent international appeals to let them in, instead calling on Myanmar to do more to stop people fleeing.

On Monday border guards pushed back eight more boatloads of Rohingya who were attempting to cross the Naf River to southern Bangladesh.

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Union Health Minister J P Nadda today met Nagaland Health Minister P Longon and discussed "pivotal" issues concerning expansion of National Health Mission (NHM) in the state.

He also reviewed various aspects regarding establishment of Nagaland Medical College and Tertiary Cancer Care Centre in Kohima.

"Met Sh. P. Longon, Health Minister of Nagaland. Discussed pivotal issues concerning the expansion of National Health Mission in #Nagaland," Nadda tweeted.

"Reviewed the matters relating to establishment of Nagaland Med. College & Tertiary Cancer Care Centre at Kohima," he wrote in the microblogging site.

Nadda said the Centre is committed to the "holistic" development of all northeastern states.

"NDA Government & @MoHFW_INDIA is committed to holistic development of all NE states," he tweeted.

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A Maoist sympathiser, allegedly trying to exchange banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes with the new ones worth Rs 49,000, was arrested in Chhattisgarh's Kondagaon district, police said today.

Based on specific input, the Naxal supporter identified as Paddam (46) was nabbed from Tekapal village under Mardapal police station area last night, Kondagaon Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh told PTI.

While a police team was carrying out combing operation in Mardapal and Bayanar area, around 300 kms away from here, they received information about a suspect trying to exchange demonetised currency worth Rs 49,000 in the interior Tekapal, he said.

Subsequently, security forces apprehended him and seized the cash, he added.

A native of Kudur village in Mardapal region, Paddam was wanted in seven Maoist-related incidents in the area, including abduction and murder of a villager in 2014 and attack on a police party early this year, he said.

During interrogation, he revealed that a local Maoist commander-Nirmala had given him the cash looted from the villagers and after demonetisation he was looking to dispose it off with the support of his local resources, the SP said.

Notably, police had recoveredunaccounted cash of Rs 44.25 lakh, in the denomination of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, and jewellery worth Rs 2 lakh from the possession of a man in the Naxal-affected Kondagaon district on November 11.

A local was unable to produce valid documents to explain the cash and jewellery he possessed and he was being interrogated to ascertain source of the money.

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The United Nations' incoming secretary-general said today that he wants UN peacekeepers to be better trained and more respectful of human rights, amid pressure on the organisation to address a series of sexual abuse allegations.

Antonio Guterres, who takes over from Ban Ki-moon on January 1, also said the UN needs to be more nimble and less bureaucratic.

He spoke after meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. China is one of the UN's largest financial backers, and Guterres said it could be an important peace broker in conflicts around the world.

Guterres told a conference that he wants to make sure the different parts of the UN "work for the same purpose" without duplicating efforts. He said they also need to be subject to independent public evaluation.

The UN's peacekeeping forces need to be better equipped and trained in order to avoid violating the rights of women and children, Guterres said. They also need to be able to better cooperate with regional organisations such as the African Union, he said.

The United Nations has been in the spotlight over allegations of child rape and other sexual abuses by its peacekeepers, particularly in Central African Republic and Congo.

Guterres, a former prime minister of Portugal and head of the UN's refugee relief agency, said the world faces challenges from enduring conflicts, climate change, population growth and water scarcity that are "making more and more people suffer in different parts of the world."



"We see that economic progress and technological progress have not been able to reduce inequalities and inequality is becoming an important factor in instability in the world," he said.

Wang said the 193-member UN needs to be more efficient in its governance and better able to respond to emergencies.

China is the biggest contributor of UN peacekeepers among the five veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council, having sent more than 30,000 on 29 separate missions.

President Xi Jinping said last year that China would also set up a permanent peacekeeping standby force of 8,000 troops to be deployed whenever necessary.

He also said China would provide USD 100 million in military assistance to the African Union over the next five years to support the establishment of an African standby peacekeeping force and to bolster the AU's ability to respond to crises.

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Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today lamented that "baseless political analysis" was being done for his "principled stand" on an issue, as he was backing the Centre's while his alliance partners RJD and Congress were not.

"Nowadays, baseless analysis is being done for placing a view on a political issue," he said in an apparent dig at certain media reports suggesting that he was getting closer to the BJP by supporting the .

"Efforts are on for a long time to end my political career through a sustained attack," Kumar said at a meeting of the JD(U) state Parliamentary party here.

Kumar, who is also the JD(U) president, said that he had been taking "principled stands" on issues concerning the nation from time to time.

"During the UPA rule, when the BJP-ruled states were opposing GST, I being in the NDA had supported it in the interest of Bihar and the country," he said.

The meeting was held at the residence of senior JD(U) leader and Deputy Leader of state Assembly Shyam Rajak and it was attended by party legislators of the Assembly and Council.

Seeking to clear the air, Kumar, who had led his party to sever ties with the BJP in mid-2013, said, "JD(U) will continue to struggle against the BJP-led Central government's divisive approach and attack on the federal structure (of the country) as well as intolerance."



A section of the media had reported that the Bihar chief minister's meeting with BJP chief Amit Shah at a farmhouse was a "prelude" to his support to . Some reports had also suggested that he had a talk with Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday over demonetisation.

Kumar, however, had rubbished these reports.

The JD(U) stayed away from today's nationwide strike against demonetisation, called by the opposition parties, which its alliance partners RJD and Congress supported by taking to the streets.

In his address to the JD(U) legislators, Kumar once again stressed that the demonetisation step should be coupled with an attack on 'benami' properties and prohibition for better results in the fight against black money.
The demonetisaton move was aimed at giving leverage to BJP in the upcoming Assembly elections but it is set to boomerang on the saffron party because of its ill-planning, Congress leader Kapil Sibal said today.

"The problems caused to the common people because of demonetisation will result in political advantage to Congress... The move is set to boomerang on BJP at the hustings," he told PTI.

"If we take only Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls into consideration, it is set to increase the vote bank of Congress," Sibal said and claimed that there was no doubt that the move was not economic but political in view of the coming Assembly polls, especially in UP.

The senior Congress leader said the move was taken in haste and barring "four" individuals, everyone else including the finance minister was kept in the dark and this is the reason why it has resulted in chaos.

Questioning Prime Minister Narendra Modi's aim of curbing black money and promoting e-transactions, Sibal, a former Union minister, said it is not possible in a country like India without a steep hike in its per capita income.

"The earnings of some 70 to 80 crore people here is around Rs 10,000 and they do not keep it in banks... Until the earnings are increased to 20,000 to 30,000 dollars, it is not possible... It has been achieved in Sweden only because its per capital income is 50,000 dollars," he said.

Sibal noted that till there is dialogue over important



issues like this and institutions are not allowed to function, wrong decisions are bound to be taken and claimed that this has been Modi's style of working all along.

"While taking this decision, it was not thought as to how the common people especially farmers, labourers, retailers and wholesalers will make their ends meet," he said.

"If he is so keen on curbing black money, why are the names of people having foreign accounts not being revealed," he said.

He also claimed that it was a known fact that it was BJP, among all the political parties, which makes "maximum transactions in cash".

"Do they make payments in cheques in their shakhas?" he asked.

He alleged that the "anti-people" decisions of the Modi government have created a terror-like atmosphere in which even his own ministers are not able to talk to him and added that efforts to control the media will go against BJP.

On his party's prospects in the upcoming UP polls, Sibal said Congress will play a relevant role in next government's formation.

To a question on BSP and Samajwadi Party going all out to woo Muslims, the veteran Congress leader said seeking votes in the name of community and caste was not correct.

"Whether it is Hindus or Muslims, it is not correct to seek votes in the name of community...It is right that secular forces need to unite for keeping the communal parties at bay," he said.

Asked if there will be a grand alliance like Bihar in Uttar Pradesh, Sibal said the situation in the state is different.
Amid fissures appearing in Opposition with JD(U) skipping a key strategy meet over demonetisation, BSP supremo Mayawati today rejected there is any division among the Opposition parties and said they are "united" against the issue.

"I think the government's decision to impose ban on notes was taken in haste without proper planning. This is not right. Due to this, people are facing problems and entire Opposition is united on this. There is no division and the entire Opposition is raising their voices in Parliament," she said.

The Bahujan Samaj Party leader also said the BJP government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, rather than Opposition, "have imposed" a 'Bharat Bandh' on the country,



"The BJP government at the Centre has itself imposed Bharat Bandh. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has himself imposed 'Bharat Bandh'. Our party is not responsible for this," she said.

Underlining that her party is against black money and corruption, she said the Central government's "way" of containing corruption, by imposing ban on notes in a "hurry" is "not correct" and based on "self-interest".

Stressing the people are facing hardships, she claimed situation like that of "financial emergency" has arisen in the country.

Mayawati said even after 20 days of the announcement of the demonetisation decision, there has been "no improvement" and long queues could be be seen outside banks and ATMs.

Reiterating the Opposition's persistent demand of presence of Modi in Parliament during the discussion, she asked the Prime Minister is "shying away from replying" to the debate in the House.

"Prime Minister must sit in the Parliament during the debate and must reply after listening (to the discussion). Modi did sit in Rajya Sabha for litte time but did not come back after the lunch because he knew he had to reply. Why PM is shying away from replying?" she asked.

Earlier in the day as the Opposition were observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' to protest against demonestisation, they held a strategy meet where they decided to continue their stir in Parliament till Modi replies to the debate and a JPC probe is announced in alleged leak of the decision.

Some fissuers appeared in the Opposition as JD(U) skipped a meeting of all the Opposition parties held in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad in Parliament House.

Sources said JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav had left Delhi early this morning.

The opposition parties are divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since TMC chief Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against the move.

While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, other opposition parties stayed away.

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The suspect in today's attack at Ohio State University rammed into pedestrians with a car and attacked them with a butcher knife, before being shot dead by police, officials said.

Asked if authorities were considering the incident to be a terror attack, Columbus police chief Kim Jacobs said that investigators were considering it to be a "possibility."



"About 9:52 am, a male suspect drove a vehicle over the curb... Struck pedestrians," Craig Stone, chief of police at the university, told a conference.

"He exited the vehicle, and used a butcher knife to start cutting pedestrians."



"Our officer was on scene in less than a minute and he ended the situation in less than a minute. He engaged the suspect, and he eliminated the threat," Stone added.

Nine people were transported to hospitals -- eight of them in stable condition and one critical, he said.

Jacobs said there was no indication of multiple suspects in the attack, despite witness accounts suggesting several attackers were involved.

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A militant group has claimed responsibility for the bombing of a state-owned pipeline in southern Nigeria, in what it said was a response to a military offensive against the oil rebels.

The pipeline of the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company in Delta state was blown up yesterday, in the latest attack on the country's key oil and gas infrastructure.

The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate said it staged the attack "to register our presence" and protest "the calculated psychological attack recently initiated by the Nigerian security forces against our people."



In a statement late yesterday, it vowed to continue the bombings despite a government truce offer.

Nigeria has deployed troops since July to hunt down the militants while at the same time opening peace talks in a bid to end the violence.

Since February, several militant groups have stepped up attacks on the nation's oil and gas facilities, hurting government revenues at a time of a global fall in crude prices.

The groups claim to be seeking a fairer share of Nigeria's multi-billion-dollar oil wealth for the Niger delta people in the southern swamplands -- as well as greater political autonomy.

One of the groups, the Niger Delta Avengers, announced a ceasefire in August by accepting a government truce offer. But the Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate has stepped up its attacks.

Nigeria depends on the oil sector for 70 per cent of government revenue and 90 per cent of foreign exchange.

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A special court has dismissed a criminal complaint against a BJP councillor and six public servants seeking their prosecution for allegedly cheating MCD of Rs 4 crore in a pension scheme for elderly, destitute and widows.

The court rejected a man's plea seeking lodging of an FIR against 51 persons, including Pawan Singh Rathee, Councillor from Madhu Vihar in southwest Delhi, and six government officials, due to lack of a valid sanction to prosecute public servants.

"...In complaint case filed against a public servant when there was no previous sanction the magistrate cannot order investigation by invoking section 156(3) of the CrPC. Thus the contention of counsel for complainant that at the stage of exercise of power under section 156(3) of the CrPC, sanction was not required is without merit. Once there is no previous sanction a magistrate cannot order investigation by invoking power under section 156(3) of the CrPC.

"Thus, if the law requires sanction for proceedings against public servant, the court cannot entertain a complaint against the public servants without a valid sanction for their prosecution," Special Judge Poonam Chaudhry said.

The complaint was filed by Uttam Nagar-resident Chetan Prakash against Rathee, Joint Commissioner of Anti Corruption Branch, Deputy Commissioner of MCD of Najafgarh Zone, and four other officials of MCD.

The complainant alleged that around 700 pension holders who were getting benefit of pension/stipend under the 'Old Age Destitute' scheme were not entitled to it.

It alleged that Rathee and MCD officers in connivance with some pension holders fabricated documents certifying that they were entitled to get pension under the 'Old Age/Destitute Pension Scheme' and the councillor by indulging in corrupt practices has caused wrongful loss of Rs 4 crore to MCD.

The plea further said that the destitute persons, who should actually be entitled to the benefit under the scheme, were struggling for their livelihood whereas unscrupulous persons were reaping the benefit.

It alleged that Rathee, who was the Chairman of Najafgarh Zone from 2014 to 2015, was taking half of the pension amount from the pensioners every month.

The plea claimed that it had given the complaint before to the deputy commissioner, Najafgarh Zone, South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC), but no action was taken.

The court dismissed the plea saying allegations against the seven public servants are for offences of forgery, using forged documents as genuine, cheating and criminal conspiracy under the IPC and under the Prevention of Corruption Act and "sanction to prosecute them is mandatory for proceeding against them".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Normal life remained unaffected in Uttarakhand today, with schools and business establishments open, even as Congress held demonstrations at all the district headquarters in protest against demonetisation issue, as part of the 'Jan Aakrosh Divas' observed across the country.

It was business as usual on the streets of the city which wore a busy look with the shutters of all shops open and markets full of customers.

Traffic was normal on the streets of Dehradun, Rishikesh and Haridwar.

All educational institutions throughout Uttarakhand were also open.

Pradesh BJP spokesman Munna Singh Chauhan said the 'bandh' was a total failure in Uttarakhand where people went ahead with the day-to-day activities without any interruptions.

"People have shown the mirror to opposition parties which had called the bandh in support of black money hoarders.

"They have also shown that they stand with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his fight againstcorruption, black money and terrorism," he said.

Vyapar Mandal state president Umesh Aggarwal thanked all businessmen for not responding to the protest call saying they have set a healthy example.

However, Congress held demonstrations at all the district headquarters in protest against demonetisation saying it had hit common people and the farmers.

"Instead of hitting terror funding agencies and black money hoarders as being claimed by the Centre, it has hit the common people who are still queueing up outside banks and ATMs for hours on end.

The sowing season is underway and farmers have no cash to buy seeds," Vice President Jot Singh Bisht said.

Claiming that BJP insiders were aware of demonetisation decision in advance, the Congress submitted a memorandum addressing the President to the district administration, demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe into alleged deposit of large sums of money by the Bengal unit of BJP.

They also asked for the probe into alleged purchase of land worth crores by the party's Bihar unit immediately before the central government's November 8 move.

However, Bisht said the party was not in support of this protest as it would add to people's trouble who are already inconvenienced by demonetisation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Parliament on Monday condoled the death of Cuban revolutionary leader and paid glowing tributes to him saying he was a leading light of the Non-Alignment Movement (NAM).

Castro, the former President of Cuba, passed away on November 25 at the age of 90 years.

Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha condoled the death of Castro with the members standing in silence for a brief while.

"We deeply mourn the death of Commander Fidel Castro," Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari said.

Extending deepest condolences to the Parliament, the government and the friendly people of Cuba, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said Castro governed Cuba for 47 years by sheer charisma and iron will.

"His contribution to Non-Aligned Movement and his unflinching support for India's cause on various fora will remain deeply etched in the minds and hearts of Indian people," she said in Lok Sabha.

In the Rajya Sabha, Ansari said Castro, who was Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President from 1976 to 2006, was a champion of anti-imperialism and anti-colonialism and a leading light of Non-Alignment Movement.

Castro visited India twice in 1973 and 1983 and Castro was a good friend of India, Ansari said, adding his death had caused a irreversible loss of Cuba and world at large.
A leader of the ruling PDP, an ally of BJP in Jammu and Kashmir, today hit out at the Centre's push for a cashless society, saying how would cashless transactions work in villages without even electric pole.

"I don't know how this cashless transaction will work in villages without even electric pole," PDP leader Nayeema Ahmad Mehjoor, who is also chairperson of the State Commission for Women, wrote in a Facebook post.

Mehjoor, who lived in the UK for many years during her career as a journalist, said cashless and paperless society works only when there is electricity to charge phones, ATM dispensers and other dispensers at shops.

"Yes. It is worth (a) try but works only in highly developed world like (the) UK or (the) US... We have a tradition of buying eatables daily worth few bucks for which no sabziwalla, milkman or baker has cash dispenser," she said.

Mehjoor said it was different in developed countries where groceries are bought once in a week or in bulk to last for few weeks.

"It is done in super stores paying through debit/credit card."



While recalling her recent visit to Mumbai, the PDP leader had some criticism for Jammu and Kashmir government on electricity supply front as well.

"Recently, in Mumbai I couldn't pay through debit card because most of the restaurants had no cash dispenser, not to talk of our poor state where electricity remains off for most of the day," she said.

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Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail's clothing brand Peter England aims a turnover of Rs 1,600 crore in the next four years on the back of expansion in sales network and growth in online sales.

Besides, Peter England plans to foray into South Asian markets such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

As part of expansion plans, the brand has plans to add 250 exclusive outlets in the next three years, taking the total number of such outlets to around 1,000, a top company official said.

"We would grow by 50 per cent in the next four years and it would be around Rs 1,600 crore by FY 2020-21," Peter England Brand Head Manish Singhai told PTI. Peter England has a turnover of around Rs 1,000 crore, at present.

He further said: "The brand is growing between 10-15 per cent per year (in terms of value). In the next 3-5 years, we will continue to grow as the organised sector is very small in India and there is large scope for the branded garment."



Peter England, which is present in the Middle East, would soon open stores in South Asian countries to target the Indian diaspora.

"We are now looking at Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore very actively and subject to real estate cost, we would set up distribution network there. About three years from now, we would have our stores there," he said.

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail has 16 overseas stores, of which five are in Nepal, two in Sri Lanka and remaining in the Gulf countries such as UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain.

Overseas sales contributes around 6 per cent of the total sales of Peter England and it expects it to remain same in near future as the domestic market's contribution would also grow.

Top eight metros contribute 25 per cent of domestic sales of the brand and the rest 75 per cent comes from tier-II, -III and -IV places.

The company, at present, spends around 5 per cent of its total sales on marketing and branding.

"Around 3 per cent of our turnover comes from online sales and we believe that it can go up to 10 per cent in the next 3 years," Singhai said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Poland's prime minister called today for a Brexit "compromise" and said Europeans in Britain and Britons in Europe should not be "made to feel like hostages" as she kicked off a landmark trip to London.

Britain's shock vote in June to leave the European Union sparked fear among the 800,000 Poles living in Britain, particularly following a spate of xenophobic attacks after the referendum.

Beata Szydlo pledged Poland would be a "constructive partner" in potentially fraught negotiations to set the terms of Britain's divorce from the EU, but that London had to set out a clear vision for its post-EU future.

"We need a good compromise which gives both our countries the best possible options for economic and security cooperation," she wrote in today's Daily Telegraph.

"But the initiative for determining British ambitions and expectations as to the future level of cooperation with the EU has to come from London."



Five months after the Brexit vote, Szydlo pressed London not to use migrants like her UK-based compatriots as a bargaining chip in the negotiations.

"One thing is certain: millions of UK citizens living across the EU, and millions of EU-27 citizens living in the United Kingdom, should not be made to feel like hostages," she wrote.

"That means we have to guarantee... Their right of residence."



Szydlo's comments came ahead of a crunch summit between the two governments, expected to focus on defence policy -- such as the deployment of 150 British soldiers to north-eastern Poland -- and foreign affairs including Russia's actions in Ukraine and Syria.

Ahead of the meeting, May praised the contribution the Polish community had made to Britain.

"I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship with Poland, rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it," she said in a statement.

"Today's meeting puts beyond doubt the common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship and the benefits it brings."



May has repeatedly said she remains committed to Europe despite voters deciding to withdraw from the EU, a process the British premier has said she will formally begin by the end of March.

She has promised to curb migration from the bloc and has said the UK's approach to EU citizens currently residing in the country will depend on how Britons abroad are treated in the negotiations with Brussels.

With Poles representing one of the largest minority groups in the UK, Poland has taken a cautious approach to Brexit and last week President Andrzej Duda urged politicians to tone down their rhetoric.

"I propose a glass of cold water to cool emotions, so that in the end it doesn't turn out that we all lose -- both the EU and the UK," Duda told Bloomberg.

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The troubles at Portugal's biggest bank by assets, state-owned Caixa Geral de Depositos, are deepening as its new president and six board members have quit less than three months after starting work.

The resignations come amid a dispute over a law demanding that the bank's senior officials make public their income and personal assets. The departures are at a sensitive time as the government readies a 5.1 billion euro (USD 5.4 billion) rescue plan for the bank.

Caixa Geral de Depositos informed financial regulators of the developments today. The government says the rescue will proceed as planned next year.

Analysts say poor lending practices and unpaid loans are to blame for financial difficulties at Caixa Geral de Depositos and in the Portuguese banking sector generally.

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Amid nationwide cash crunch after the sudden scrapping of high value currency by government, ICICI Bank today launched an initiative to deepen the reach of digital technologies in 100 villages in as many days.

The initiative will focus on increasing access to banking by deploying tools like e-KYC and SMS or USSS-based services, train villagers for sustainable livelihoods and provide credit linkages to enhance livelihood opportunities.

"Post-demonetisation, digitisation is the way to go and we want to give a special focus on the rural economy," Managing Director and Chief Executive Chanda Kochhar told reporters in a concall.

Claiming this is the largest such programme in the country, Kochhar said the initiative is based on a template created by the largest private bank at Akodara village in Gujarat's Sabarkantha district where it has implemented the concept of a 'digital village'.

Kochhar said a bulk of transactions in Akodara follow cashless mode now as the bank has selected to implement digital alternatives at the milk society, targeting the biggest local economic activity.

This initiative aims to replicate that model by selecting predominant economic activity of every village, Kochhar added.

She declined to share the costs to be incurred by the lender in rolling out the digitisation scheme.

Kochhar also chose not to answer queries on impact of the disruptive demonetisation exercise on her bank.

Customers are facing inconveniences at branches of all banks across the country following the Centre's surprise move on November 8 to scrap Rs 500/1000 notes to curb black money and fight graft. Most of the ATMs have no cash to dispense.

As part of the skilling which is a component of the initiative launched today, ICICI Bank will train 10,000 underprivileged villagers in vocational skills in 30-day modules, Kochhar said.

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Presbyterian Church of Mizoram Synod, the largest church in Mizoram, announced that the Synod Office in Aizawl would no longer receive demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in cash.

Mizoram Synod's Senior Executive Secretary Rev. Lalramliana Pachuau, in a circular issued to all the local churches and pastoral committees said that church collections should in future be deposited in the bank account of the Synod or transfer the money through digital transfer, cheques.

The branches and district offices under the Mizoram Synod were also cautioned not to receive demonetised notes in cash.

However, the Baptist Church of Mizoram, the second largest church in the state announced that the church continued to receive demonetised notes till today, but did not specify when it would discontinue receiving the notes.

Meanwhile the new Rs 500 denominations, which arrived at the State Bank of India Aizawl branch yesterday was distributed to other branches and other public sector and private banks.

State Bank of India Aizawl Branch Assistant General Manager Pradeep Kumar Sen said that the Rs 500 notes most probably would be dispensed by the ATMs by tomorrow.

Sen said that a large amount of Rs 100 notes also arrived along with the new Rs 500 note consignment and the arrival of Rs 500 notes was expected to ease the problem of the common people further.

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Punjab Council of Ministers led by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today met President Pranab Mukherjee and urged him not to accept any advice on the SYL canal issue that violates basic Riparian rules.

The delegation apprised Mukherjee that acceptance of such advice would irretrievably prejudice the dictates of justice and fair play and handed over a memorandum in this regard.

It urged the President that nothing should be done to deprive the people of Punjab of their legitimate rights regarding waters of rivers of the state in violation of the universally accepted Riparian principle.

Any advice or decision which violates the Riparian principle would run against the dictates of constitutional framework of the country, it said.

Seeking justice from the President as the custodian of the Constitution which fully respects the Riparian principle, the delegation impressed upon him to keep in view that the Punjab government has already filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging Section 78-79 of the Punjab Reorganization Act 1966 and seeking a decision on the river waters in accordance with the nationally and internationally accepted Riparian Principle.

Badal, his deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal, and other Cabinet colleagues informed the President that "a highly volatile situation" has arisen in Punjab following the opinion of Supreme Court upon the Presidential Reference on this issue.

This, he said, has given rise to extreme public reaction and severe unrest and anger among the residents including the farmers arising out of.

"The opinion of the Supreme Court has further caused immense stir and fear of sustained losses on all socio-economic parameters among the people of Punjab who have consistently faced the challenges of partition, the brunt of the wars with Pakistan and the period of social unrest," the delegation said.

A Punjab government statement said the state has been constantly making endeavours to meet the challenges of water scarcity, depleting water table and lack of availability of potable water.

The new development has delivered a big blow to residents of the State as they reel under the fear of non-availability of sufficient water resource.

"We have put forward our views in front of President and



believe that we will get justice from him," Badal said after the meeting.

The delegation sought Mukherjee's attention on "injustice" being meted out to Punjab on the issue of waters of its rivers.

"The unprecedented decision of the government of India to submit this legislation to President of India for reference to the Supreme Court was clearly an act of unfair play," the memorandum said, adding that no state which claimed to have a stake in the matter, like Haryana and Rajasthan, challenged the Punjab Act in the Supreme Court.

The memorandum further reads that as per universally accepted riparian and federal principles, river waters are the property of the riparian states. The Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan was concluded in 1960 to distribute river waters.

The Punjab Assembly has unanimously resolved that as there is not a single drop of water to spare, the SYL canal is neither feasible nor practicable nor should it be foisted on Punjab nor can any government in the state agree to any unconstitutional effort to loot the state of its river waters through the construction of such a canal.

Accordingly, Punjab Council of Ministers has de-notified the acquisition of the land which had earlier been acquired for the unjust purpose of constructing the SYL.

The delegation comprised cabinet ministers Adesh Partap Singh Kairon, Madan Mohan Mittal, Jathedar Tota Singh, Parminder Singh Dhindsa, Sohan Singh Thandal, Janmeja Singh Sekhon, Daljeet Singh Cheema, Anil Joshi, Surjit Singh Rakhra and Sharanjit Singh Dhillon.
The wife of President Vladimir Putin's spokesman faced a storm of criticism today for performing a Holocaust-themed ice-dancing routine with striped costumes based on concentration camp uniforms.

Tatiana Navka, an Olympic ice dancing champion who is married to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, performed the pirouetting routine with actor Andrei Burkovsky on a prime-time celebrity skating show on Saturday.

The dancers wore black-and-white striped outfits with numbers and yellow stars for the routine, which ends to the sound of gunfire.

The routine was set to a song from 1997 Oscar-winning Italian film "Life is Beautiful," a tragicomedy about a father trying to hide the horrors of concentration camp life from his son.

The pair won maximum points on the Ice Age show on state-controlled Channel One and praise from judges, while Navka wrote on Instagram that it was one of her "favourite routines", and "our children should know and remember this terrible time."



The routine prompted a wave of discussion online and in international media.

"Have you gone mad? Smiles in prison uniforms with yellow stars! The audience erupting in applause... No taste, no, tact, no understanding," wrote viewer Mihael Ratinsky on the Channel One website.

"This is terrible, people don't understand what they are doing. This is blasphemy," wrote another viewer, Viki Reznik, in a comment to a YouTube video that had been viewed more than 36,000 times on Monday, with most reactions negative.

Britain's the Daily Mail wrote that the dancers' "beaming grins" seemed to have "little in connection with their gruesome theme," while US People magazine's site called it "troubling."



The Nazis killed some 10 million Soviet civilians and prisoners of war, some 1.3 million of whom were Jewish, according to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Head of the Moscow-based Holocaust Fund Alla Gerber told interview with Govorit Moskva radio station it was "very complex" to depict the Holocaust appropriately.

"Primarily I think there must not be mockery, there must not be irony, there must not be a crooked smile."



Russian ice dancer Ilya Averbukh, who choreographed the routine, angrily defended it to Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid on Monday, saying "I would call all this reaction a sign of the craziness of today."



Navka was already a popular star and television personality before marrying Peskov in a swanky ceremony on the Black Sea coast last year, but their marriage has made them one of Russia's most-watched celebrity couples.

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Truck and bus radial tyres (TBR) import surged nearly 30 per cent in the first half of 2016-17, prompting industry body ATMA to ask the government to impose anti-dumping duty on imports from China.

In April-September period of this fiscal, 8.45 lakh TBR tyres landed in India compared with over 6.56 lakh in the corresponding period a year ago.

Import of TBRs has crossed the level of 1.4 lakh units per month in the current fiscal from 40 thousand units per month in FY 2013-14, an increase of about 400 per cent in three years, Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA) said in a statement.

"There is no reprieve from indiscriminate import and dumping of radial tyres especially TBRs from China. Such large scale imports are gravely hurting the domestic manufacturing of TBR," ATMA Chairman K M Mammen said.

The industry body has said the dumping of radial tyres from China has reached "unprecedented levels".

Most of the new investments of Rs 35,000 crore by tyre industry in India in the last 3-4 years has been directed towards setting up TBR capacities as it is seen as the growth driver for the industry, ATMA said.

"Unfortunately, dumping in TBRs is touching new highs even as domestic capacities are going on stream. With expansion in capacity, the capacity utilisation levels have come down to 60-65 per cent in TBR manufacturing from 80-85 per cent a couple of years ago," it added.

Currently, more than 40 per cent of the replacement demand in TBR is being met by imports while domestic capacities are faced with the prospects of ever declining utilisation, ATMA said.

China dominates as the source country for import of TBR in India with a share of 94 per cent in 2016-17. The country's share in total TBR import stood at 40 per cent in 2013-14, 70 per cent in 2014-15 and 90 per cent in 2015-16.

ATMA said the dumping of TBR tyres at such a large scale is also adversely affecting the interests of rubber growers in India.

"Truck and bus tyres are primary consumers of domestic natural rubber. However, domestic demand for tyres being increasingly met by Chinese imports, the offtake of natural rubber by tyre industry has been seriously impacted," it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Home Minister Rajnath Singh will lead the Indian delegation at the funeral of Cuba's revolutionary leader .

The delegation is likely to include leaders from various political parties like Congress, CPI(M), CPI and Samajwadi Party.

The team will leave for Havana tomorrow and is expected to return on Thursday evening, official sources said

The composition of the delegation is still being worked out by the Prime Minister's Office in consultation with the Ministries of the External Affairs and Home.

After two days of commemorations in Cuba's capital Havana, Castro's ashes will go on a four-day island-wide procession starting Wednesday before being buried in the southeastern city of Santiago de Cuba on December 4.

Castro died on November 25 at the age 90, after defying the United States during a half-century of iron-fisted rule and surviving the eclipse of global communism.

Castro, whose 1959 revolution toppled a dictatorship with the promise of bringing justice and equality to his Caribbean island, was a major 20th century figure.
Indian origin Canadian filmmaker Richie Mehta is currently working on his next film which will be musical.

Richie says his yet-untitled film will be a cross between Indian literature and old music.

"I am working on my next film which would be an Indian musical. It's in a very different style. I would say it's a cross between old Indian literature and old Indian music. It's trying to explore and utilise what makes mainstream Indian films so beautiful, so accessible," Mehta told PTI.

"It will be an Indian story. All actors will be from India. I am still writing it so haven't locked the cast yet," he added.

Richie is known for directing critically acclaimed films like "Amal" and "Siddharth".

He recently teamed up with Ridley Scott and Anurag Kashyap for Google, as the executive producer for the documentary "India in a Day", which was screened at the 47th edition of international film festival of India (IFFI).

Despite living abroad, the director's films have always been rooted in India. Richie says the reason why filmmakers like him, Deepa Mehta or a Mira Nair tell stories rooted in India despite not living here is because they are fascinated with what they see here in the country.

"When you're abroad, day in day out you're seeing different lifestyles. Then when you come here, it hits you in the face. You notice everything and because we are not from here, we don't take it for granted.

"When you're from here, in your day to day work you might ignore a lot of things. But when you're here for the first time, you don't. It will appeal to you. When filmmakers from outside come, they see around and find several stories."



The director says while his projects have mostly been off-beat he did try the mainstream space.

"I have worked in some mainstream films but they didn't see the light of the day. They were in pre-production or development stage but couldn't go forward. They weren't masala films but they had musical component and were more mainstream.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Escalating the fight, Infocomm has filed a complaint against some telecom operators with fair trade regulator CCI alleging violation of competition norms.

Newcomer Reliance Jio, part of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance group, has been crossing swords with incumbent operators including Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular over call connectivity issue.

Sources in the know said that has filed complaint against some telecom operators with the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

The complaint was filed earlier this month for alleged violation of competition norms and CCI is yet to take a decision on it, sources said.

The complaint also come against the backdrop of continuing fight between and incumbent telecom operators.

Sources said there is also a complaint that has been filed against Reliance Jio.

Queries sent to Reliance Jio did not elicit any response while message sent to CCI Chairman D K Sikri remained unanswered.

If CCI finds any prima-facie evidence of violation of competition regulations then the matter is referred for a detailed probe that would be done by its investigation arm -- Director General.

Reliance Jio, which commercially launched its services on September 5 and offers free voice call, had accused that incumbent players such as Airtel, Vodafone and Idea of not providing enough connectivity for completing calls even as the allegation has been vehemently denied by them.

Last month, telecom regulator Trai had recommended a total penalty of Rs 3,050 crore on Airtel, Vodafone and Idea for allegedly denying interconnectivity to Reliance Jio.
Unidentified persons allegedly decamped with ornaments and cash worth over Rs three lakh rpt three lakh from the bungalow of a Shiv Sena leader here while she along with her family was off to Aurangabad for campaigning for the local body polls, police said.

The bungalow of Sena leader Meena Maruti Rathod in Dombivali area was also ransacked and set on fire, an official attached to Manpada police station said.

The leader, who was busy campaigning in Kannad in Aurangabad district for a local body election, which is slated to be held on December 18. Her family was also in Kannad, said the official.

As per the complaint filed by Rathod, she was informed about the the incident by her neighbours, the official added.

Ornaments and cash worth Rs 3.12 lakh were stolen, police said, adding a case under relevant sections of IPC has been registered in this regard.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ruling Congress and various opposition parties on Monday staged demonstrations across the union territory as part of the nation-wide protest against the Centre's with Chief Minister V Narayanasamy saying the move has landed the common man in 'utter disarray'.

Volunteers of DMK, an ally of Congress, also held protests at various places while cadres of Left parties and Viduthalai Chiruthaikal Katchi (VCK) courted arrested trying to block a train at the railway station here as part of the protest.

Addressing protesters at a demonstration here, Narayanasamy charged that the Centre's decision to scrap high denomination currency notes had come to "dislocate the country's economy and landed the daily wage earners, the poor and other sections of people in utter disarray."



The country's economy was being 'torn to pieces' in the wake of the implementation of demonetisation, he charged.

Similar demonstrations were held by Congress workers at various other places.

DMK cadres led by the party convenor and MLA R Siva held a protest here.

Cadres of the CPIM, CPI and the VCK courted arrest at the railway station here when they attempted to picket a Villupuram-bound train, to protest the ban on Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, police said.

Slogans condemning were raised by the agitators who came to the station in a procession.
Karnataka government today launched rural Wi-Fi services in 11 gram panchayats, with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah saying such a 'digital inclusion' will give village-level entrepreneurs ready access to online market place for their products and services.

He also launched the "Grand Challenge Karnataka", an initiative under the multi-sector Start-up Policy to scout for new technologies or innovations that can offer solutions to some of the prevalent problems in the state.

At the inauguration of Bengaluru ITE.Biz 2016, an annual IT event, Siddaramaiah said with "digital inclusion becoming the most important parameter of growth and economic development", it is the intention of the government to see that the last mile connectivity is provided in all villages.

"For this we will be banking on the availability of National Optic Fibre Network up to the Gram Panchayat level," he added.

The gram panchayats benefitting from the Wi-Fi initiative include two each in Mysuru, Tumkuru, Gadag, Ballari and Kalburgi and one in Bagalkot district. The rural population in these gram panchayats can make use of the services by buying concessional Wi-Fi vouchers.

The impact of digital inclusion will be manifold which would enable village-level entrepreneurs ready access to online market place and have opportunity to explore new markets for their products and services, he said.

The chief minister also called for gender equality, saying, "it is a fact that achieving gender equality would have large economic impact. IT sector has enabled significant number of women to join the work space, but more needs to be done."



Siddaramaiah said, "Grand Challenge Karnataka aims to channelise innovations for social impact and in the process support the establishment and growth of start-ups."



He said the government has approved a proposal to set up six common instrumentation centres across the state which will provide opportunity to electronic hardware startups and MSMEs to have easy access to high quality instrumentation facilities for fine-tuning their products.

"The IT and BT department is in the process of setting up a finishing school in Animation and Visual Effects in association with Industry bodies," he said.

Siddaramaiah said government was contemplating setting up centres of excellence in aerospace, cyber security and other related areas to provide high-end skilling in areas of emerging technologies.

Government has been augmenting industrial infrastructure in two-tier and three tier cities, he added.

The state also intends to support setting up of technology business incubators in the potential areas of Internet of Things, Electronics System Design and manufacturing, Robotics, 3D Printing, Nanotechnology, Medical devices, Health technology and Clean technology, in phases across the state, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Expecting the nation's largest lender SBI to fare better than its peers, global rating agency S&P today retained its long-term as well as short-term ratings on the bank with a stable outlook.

"We expect SBI performance to remain better than its public sector peers and therefore we are affirming our 'BBB-' long-term and 'A-3' short-term issuer credit ratings on the bank," S&P said in a note.

It said the stable outlook reflects its expectation that the bank will maintain its financial profile over the next 24 months.

The agency also reaffirmed its 'A-3' short-term issuer credit rating on State Bank of India apart from affirming all the issue ratings on the bank's debts.

"The affirmed rating on SBI reflects the bank's undisputed market leadership, supported by a strong domestic franchise and high customer confidence," S&P Global Ratings Credit Analyst Amit Pandey said, adding, these factors translate into a good funding profile for the bank.

SBI's stressed asset quality and moderate capital temper these strengths.

With over 20 per cent market share, SBI is the undisputed leader in terms of assets, loans, and deposits underpins its business position and this will only get further solidified after the bank's proposed merger with its subsidiaries, it noted.

"The strong business position also contributes to the bank's good funding profile. Consumer and market confidence in SBI remain strong as demonstrated by the bank benefiting from the "flight to quality" during the 2008 global financial crisis," the report noted.

Pandey, however, warned that like most of the other public sector banks, SBI's asset quality is also likely to remain stressed, given the tepid domestic industrial activity, subdued corporate sector profitability, and high leverage in certain segments.

Individually, he said, managing a large organisation and aligning associates' policies and asset quality recognition norms in line with its own would be a challenge.

On recapitalisation, he said this will remain moderate.

"We estimate that the bank's pre-diversification risk-adjusted capital (RAC) ratio to stay 6-6.5 per cent over the next 12-18 months. We expect its earnings to remain under pressure in fiscal 2017 due to high credit costs and depressed margins," he added.

"In our opinion, lower earnings will not be sufficient to



support SBI's average loan growth. The recent capital issuances and revaluations reserve should, however, provide a fillip to the bank's capitalisation.

"Any major capital issuance such as the bank's RAC ratio improve to 7 per cent and sustains at that level could have a positive impact on the bank's capital and earnings and SACP," Pandey warned.

He also said the agency does not see any downside risk to the rating nor does it see any upside potential because it would not rate the bank above the sovereign rating and does not expect to upgrade the sovereign rating in the next 18-24 months.
The Group on Monday presented in the Supreme Court a roadmap for repayment of an outstanding amount of over Rs 11,136 crore to SEBI and proposed to clear its liability in 21 instalments in two-and-a-half years to ensure "absolute" release of its chief Subrata Roy.

The group submitted the application, along with a payment plan, seeking approval of the apex court and for "absolute" release of Roy and two directors Ashok Roy Chaudhary and Ravi Shankar Dubey once the amount is paid.

The proposed plan was placed before a bench comprising Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justices Ranjan Gogoi and A K Sikri, which asked SEBI and senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, who is assisting as amicus curiae in the matter, to respond to it.

The application also said that Roy and the two directors would give personal undertakings regarding the roadmap and "in the event of three defaults" of payment they would surrender and be taken into custody.

Giving the details, the application filed by India Real Estate Corporation Ltd (SIRECL) and Housing Investment Corporation Ltd (SHICL) through senior advocate Kapil Sibal, proposed to pay Rs 1,000 crore in equal instalments of Rs 200 crore by March 2017.

It proposed to repay Rs 2,700 crore by December next year in equal instalments of Rs 300 crore each month April onwards.

It would repay Rs 6,000 crore in six equal instalments between January 2018 and April 2019, and the remaining amount of Rs 1,436.68 crore would be cleared by July 2019.

On the SEBI Sahara Refund Account, the application said that pursuant to an apex court order, Rs 11,001.40 crore has been credited to it from time to time while the liability was Rs 24,029.73 crore.

"By deducting Rs 11,001.40 crore from Rs 24,029.73 crore, the alleged liability according to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) would be Rs 13,028.33 crore," it said while calculating the outstanding amount to be paid to SEBI at Rs 11,136.68 crore.

It said that it does not take into account the repayments made by the group to investors by cheques to the tune of Rs 1,165.68 crore and TDS deducted and deposited with Income Tax department at Rs 725.97 crore.
A 28-year-old Sanskrit professor was brutally killed by his younger brother in north Delhi's Burari area after a heated argument, police said today.

Hitesh Verma was allegedly bludgeoned to death by his younger brother, Himanshu (23), on the intervening night of November 27 and 28 at their rented accommodation, said a senior police officer.

Hitesh used to work as a Sanskrit professor at PDDAV college while the accused is pursuing post-graduation in the subject from Shivaji College, he said.

Police received a call about a body lying in a drain around 3 AM. On interrogation, it was found he had been murdered and the deceased was identified.

"When the deceased was identified, police team spoke to his brother who cooked up a story. He told police two men had barged inside their house and murdered his brother," said the officer.

However, there were loopholes in the story. Police said there was just one entrance of the house on the ground floor, where the landlord lived. However, the landlord told police that nobody had entered the house.

The door of the room where the brothers lived was locked and there were no signs of a forced entry, he said.

When police questioned Himanshu about why he didn't do anything to save his brother or why he wasn't harmed by the two attackers, he broke down and confessed his crime, said the officer.

He also disclosed he had hidden the murder weapon under his bed, which was recovered by them.

Himanshu told police his brother was a control freak and always forced him to do things that he didn't want to.

"Himanshu said Hitesh used to get his friends home and often asked him to go out. Hitesh was in a relationship with a girl and when he would get his girlfriend home, he would ask Hitesh to step out. Of late, he would often ask his younger brother to go out," he said.

Yesterday, Hitesh asked Himanshu to go out since he was expecting her but they allegedly got into a fight as Himanshu refused go out as it was cold. The younger brother lost his temper and killed his brother with a dumbbell, said the officer.

The brothers' parents stay in Jhansi. The brothers used to visit their parents every two months. The parents have been informed and they will be reaching Delhi soon, following which the post-mortem will be conducted, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Scotland Yard today launched new anti-terrorism patrols by uniformed and undercover officers in London as part of its bid to disrupt potential terrorist activity and crime.

The latest Metropolitan Police tactic, dubbed Project Servator, will involve specialist police officers deployed in Wandsworth and Lambeth boroughs of south London.

The Met stressed the new tactic was not in response to a specific threat and will be rolled out across other parts of London in coming months.

"Keeping Londoners safe is the Mayor's top priority and we know our emergency services do a great job every single day protecting our city.

"However, we cannot be complacent, which is why it is good to see the Met rolling out Project Servator to help deter and detect crime in our city's busiest areas," said Sophie Linden, London's Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime.

"I urge Londoners to remain alert and report anything suspicious to the police as they work to keep us all safe," she said.

Project Servator was developed, tested and refined over a five-year period by experts at the UK's Centre for Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI) and is already used by a number of forces, including City of London Police and British Transport Police, to disrupt those planning to carry out crimes from shoplifting to terrorist attack planning.

Uniformed police patrols will be joined by plain clothes officers who have been trained to spot tell-tale signs that a person may be carrying out hostile reconnaissance or engaging in other criminal activity.

They will sometimes be supported by specialist teams including the Dogs Unit, Territorial Support Group and the Marine Police Unit, helping create a difficult environment for terrorists and criminals to operate in.

"Wandsworth is a vibrant borough with some of the busiest transport hubs in the country and tens of thousands of commuters passing through daily," Borough commander for Wandsworth, Chief Superintendent Richard Smith, said.

"If you see something suspicious, report it. If you see police officers, take a moment to talk with them and find out how you can play you part."



"Lambeth is home to many diverse communities, iconic sites and busy town centres. The launch of Project Servator in Lambeth will help ensure that we continue to protect those communities and locations from terrorism and other crime," Borough Commander for Lambeth, Chief Superintendent Richard Wood, said.

"We cannot do this alone and I urge Lambeth's communities to report any unusual or suspicious activity they see. If you see police officers where you are, please speak with them about how you can help keep your community safe.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Shiv Sena today supported NCP MP Udayan Raje Bhosale's remarks that people will "loot and destroy banks" if the situation arising after the demonetisation move does not improve soon, saying he has voiced the concerns of people on the cash chaos.

Bhosale, a descendant of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji, while speaking at a function to pay homage to late Deputy Prime Minister YB Chavan at Sangli in the presence of several political bigwigs last week, had also said many BJP MPs and MLAs who were his close friends too have not accepted the demonetisation decision.

"Chhatrapati's anguish has represented the feelings of common man. At one time, Udayan Raje had joined BJP and was even made a minister so BJP cannot him disown him now. If the government has courage, it should challenge Udayan Raje's statements," the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

It said Bhosale has time and again voiced the concerns of people.

"After PM Narendra Modi's decision, people in rural areas have suffered a lot. Yet, no leader from rural areas is ready to speak against it. These leaders have their hands full with old notes and they are now in a piquant situation as they cannot remove that money nor can they keep it as it is," the Sena said.

"During the British rule, Indians in Satara used to loot banks and government treasury. Udayan Raje, from the same Satara has warned the government that people will loot banks to live. Will the government shoot these people?" the Sena asked.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Sheela Foam, makers of Sleepwell mattresses, is planning to foray into the Middle East markets with an aim to tap Indian diaspora, and the company expects contribution from export to be in double digit over the next two to three years.

Besides, the company, which would tomorrow launch its initial public offer to raise Rs 510 crore, is also considering to have new units in Madhya Pradesh for the Central region and in Eastern UP.

"In Middle East region, brand is registered there and we would be able to send material there. Although, transport cost for mattress is very high but fortunately for places as Dubai charges are reasonable," Sheela Foam MD Rahul Gautam told PTI.

Presently, the company has Rs 1,600 crore turnover, of which Rs 300 crore comes from its Australia-based wholly owned subsidiary Joyce Foam Pty Ltd.

The company is present in the neighbouring markets of Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

On being asked that whether the contribution from export would be in double digit in coming years, Gautam said "For sure. It would be in next 2-3 years".

However, he also added that potential of the domestic market is very high and after the implementation of GST, it would grow further.

Sheela Foam, which presently operates 11 plants, is also considering to have two more units to cater Eastern UP and central India markets.

"As we go forward, we may have one or two units, which would be catering to the markets of central India and Eastern UP," Gautam added.

After listing of Sheela Foam, promoters would have around 85 per cent shares of the company.

The company has fixed the price band at Rs 680-730 for the offer, which will remain open to bidding from November 29-December 1.

"The company will not receive any proceeds from the offer and all proceeds from the offer will go to the selling shareholder," said Sheela Foam.

Sheela Foam also manufactures foam-based home comfort products like mattresses, furniture-cushioning, pillows, cushions and sofa-cum-beds.

The company has 12 pan-India distribution network consisting of over 100 exclusive distributors, more than 2,000 exclusive retail dealers and over 2,500 multi-brand outlets.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Scientists have discovered the original Plymouth settlement dating back to 1620, where the Pilgrims first celebrated Thanksgiving almost four hundred years ago.

Researchers from the University of Massachusetts, Boston spent five weeks looking for the site of the original Pilgrim settlement.

Since the original structures were not built with bricks, the research team could not look for foundations. Rather, they had to look for "post and ground construction" - basically holes for wood, and dirt.

The researchers, led by David Landon, associate director of the university's Andrew Fiske Memorial Centre for Archaeological Research, also found 17th century artifacts - including pottery, tins, trade beads and musket balls.

They also found a calf buried whole in the bottom-most pit. Since native people did not have domestic cattle, it must have lived in the confines of the original Plymouth settlement.

According to Kathryn Ness, curator of collections at Plimoth Plantation, this discovery is huge.

"Finding evidence of colonial activity inside the original 1620 Plymouth settlement is an incredibly exciting discovery that has the potential to change dramatically our understanding of early European colonization in New England," said Ness.

"For the first time, we have proof of where the settlement was located and what kinds of items the Pilgrims owned and used," she said.

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Delhi High Court today sternly asked the city police to "cut across all political barriers" and find missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, saying there could be "something more" to his disappearance as no one can just vanish from the heart of the national capital.

Expressing concern over the whereabouts of the student who has remained untraced for 45 days now, the court also raised several questions, including why the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the injuries sustained by Najeeb was not mentioned in the Delhi Police's status report.

A bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel said if a person disappears from the national capital and remains untraced, then it would create a "sense of insecurity" in the people here and asked the police to explore all angles.

"This is the heart of India, the national capital. No one can just disappear from here. It creates a sense of insecurity in people. If he disappeared, then there is something more to that. All angles have to be explored. 45 days is a long period for someone to be underground," it said to the police which is of the view that Najeeb was "not forcefully abducted".

After perusing the status report of Delhi Police, the court asked why was Najeeb taken to the Safdarjung Hospital in an ambulance if he had no apparent or visible injuries, as this detail was missing from the police report.

It also asked why the report does not say anything about the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members allegedly of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) who are alleged to have brutally beaten him up and only mentions that the missing student had slapped one of them.

The judge questioned why the police waited till November 11 to interrogate those persons with whom Najeeb allegedly had an altercation on the night of October 14-15, prior to his disappearance on October 15 and against whom a criminal complaint was lodged on October 17.

"Cut across all political barriers. Get him back. You will get your answers at either of the two places, Jamia or JNU. No need to go to Aligarh or any other place so far," the bench told the police, which said that an auto driver has claimed to have dropped off Najeeb at the Jamia Milia Islamia University.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four persons, including a local Samajwadi Party leader, were injured in a clash over sowing in Mahuavatar village here today.

Rival factions clashed over sowing in which both the sides used firearms and sharp-edged weapons, Superintendent of Police Vaibhav Krishna said.

"Samajwadi Party's Bithara Road Assembly constituency vice president Amarjit Yadav and three others were injured in the incident," he said.

Two of the injured, whose condition was stated to be critical, were later referred to a hospital in Varanasi for treatment, the police officer said.

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Spain's Interior Ministry says police have arrested four people suspected of having links to an illegal migration network believed to have been used by the Islamic State group to move militants to Europe, including those involved in last year's Paris attacks.

A ministry statement said the four had links with the so-called "Syrian refugee route" that the Islamic group is thought to have used to get the Paris attackers to Europe via the Greek island of Leros in October 2015.

Police believe the four arrested today had contacts with two extremists arrested in Salzburg, Austria, shortly after the November 2015 attacks.

Two were arrested in towns in northwestern Spain and two others in the southeastern city of Almeria.

No details on their identities were released.

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Terming as "flop show" the nationwide strike and protest calls given by opposition parties today, BJP said people have rejected both as they have no faith in "tainted" parties behind them.

"People have rejected those who support black money and corruption and appreciated the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi against black money and corruption. The leaders behind the calls for 'Bharat Bandh' and 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' are tainted and have been rejected by people," BJP National Secretary Shrikant Sharma said.

The Congress President and the vice president are involved in the National Herald case and out on bail, he said and alleged that the Saradha scam had tainted TMC chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The Samajwadi Party is running its government in Uttar Pradesh with the support of land and mining mafias, while BSP chief Mayawati is accused of the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scam, he alleged, targeting opposition parties behind the 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' call.

Attacking Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, he said his party's MLAs are accused of various crimes and added it appears that the black money he had kept has gone waste with demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

"Any call given by such leaders was bound to flop. BJP expresses its thanks to people for rejecting these parties," Sharma said.

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Tata Steel today said it has inked an agreement with Liberty House Group, led by India-origin businessman Sanjeev Gupta, to start negotiations for sale of its UK Speciality Steels business for about Rs 854 crore.

Tata Steel UK today said it has signed a letter of intent (LoI) with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its Speciality Steels business for an enterprise value of Great Britain Pound (GBP) 100 million".

The deal is subject to due diligence and corporate approvals, it added.

The LoI covers several South Yorkshire-based assets, including the Rotherham electric arc steelworks, the steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth as well as service centres in Bolton and Wednesbury, UK, and Sozhou and Xi'an, China, it said in a statement.

Tata Steel UK CEO Bimlendra Jha said: "Speciality Steels business is independent of the pan-European strip products supply chain and today's announcement is in line with the overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio."



It is an important step forward in seeking a future for Speciality Steels and the firm looks forward to working with Liberty on the due diligence and other work streams so that the sale can be successfully concluded, he added.

"We will continue to work closely with trade unions and will communicate any material on this issue to the employees on an ongoing basis," Jha said.

Jha also revealed that the Indian steel giant is actively seeking solution to the company's structural challenges.

"Among those challenges, there is need to develop a more sustainable business in the UK as well as a self-sustaining future for the British Steel Pension Scheme," he said.

The firm on Monday also revealed plans to pursue 85 million pounds worth of capital investments covering a range of "sustenance and improvement schemes".

The British Steel Pension Scheme has been a major obstacle to the future of the Tata Steel business in the UK.

It has liabilities of more than 15 billion pounds and 130,000 members, making it one of the biggest retirement schemes in the UK.

There has been speculation in the UK media over the company's plans to retain the bulk of its steel business under the interim chairmanship of Ratan Tata.

Tata Steel's UK Speciality Steels business includes an



electric arc steelmaking and Thrybergh bar mill as well as Brinsworth narrow strip mill in Rotherham, remelt facilities and rolling mill in Stocksbridge, service centre in Bolton and Wednesbury.

Besides, it also has service centres in Suzhou and Xi'an in China.

Tata Steel UK has invested GBP 1.5 billion of capital over the last nine years. The company's board considers the technical feasibility and economic returns of investments while taking decisions as well as their affordability, Jha said.

Tata Steel UK is pursuing a transformation plan to create a sustainable future for its UK strip products business, the success of which is likely to influence decisions on future investments, he added.

Recently, Tata Steel approved schemes on improving the manufacturing capability to enable production of premium steels in Shotton, Llanwern, Trostre, Orb in Newport and other downstream operations as well as environmental schemes for Port Talbot's power plant.

"Investments in packaging steels, electrical steels, an automotive finishing line, laser welding and next-generation coated products are in line with our strategy to enhance our premium product focus for our UK strip products supply chain," he added.

Tata Steel is Europe's second-largest steel producer, with steelmaking in the UK and the Netherlands and manufacturing plants across Europe.
TCI EXPRESS, the demerged division of Transport Corporation of India, is planning to list its shares on the bourses in a month's time.

"We are waiting for Sebi approval. It (listing) should be done whenever we get that, this month next month, it should be on the stock exchange eventually," Chander Agarwal, Managing Director, TCI EXPRESS told PTI.

The company is planning to list on the bourses in a month, he added.

On the company's fund raising plans, he said, "Our cash flows are pretty strong so, we don't want to make any huge investments. We are waiting for GST to come in and after GST we would wait and watch for about a year and then we will look at any extraordinary big investments."



"However, we have about Rs 300 crore investments lined up for the next four years," he said.

The company has a turnover of about Rs 700 crore and plans to double it in the next four year's.

"In the past six months we have grown 15 per cent. We would see about the same 15-18 per cent growth," Agarwal said.

On the impact and implementation of GST in the express delivery sector he said, "GST is a boon for express delivery segment because you will have the inter-state check post removed which means that the goods will be moving faster so there will be a bigger demand for companies providing by the hour who write hours on their consignment."



When asked if the demonetisation move affected the company's business he said, "Not really. We have not taken any hit."



"This is very fantastic move by the government. I am convinced that this will be positive way for the future generations and for foreigners coming to India and invest money," he added.

Established in 1996, as one of the foremost divisions of its parent company Transport Corporation of India Ltd (TCIL), TCI EXPRESS demerged with a vision to become a leader in door-to-door express logistics player in India.

The key focus sectors for TCI EXPRESS include consumer electronics, retail, apparel and lifestyle, automobile, pharmaceuticals, engineering, e-commerce, energy/power and telecommunication.

The company has wide distribution network locally and globally with 550 owned centres at present covering more than 13,000 locations.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao today described demonetisation as a "welcome step" but added the endeavour of the Centre should eventually lead to "total revolution" in eradicating black money and corruption in the country.

He also announced certain measures for the state to cope with the situation arising out of the November 8 ban on high-value notes, which has led to cash crunch.

"If black money is to be eliminated in the country, we should move towards complete revolution. There should not be even a naya paisa of black money in the country. Whichever form black money is in, whether in the form of land, diamonds, gold, silver, foreign currency, share market, where ever it is, it should be dismantled completely.

"Then only total revolution can come in the country. When Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) takes a step in that direction, Telangana state and especially the Telangana Government would fully support him," he told reporters here after a meeting of the Cabinet.

He favoured a "clean-up" of political system with state funding of political parties so that corruption in elections can be rooted out.

"I advised the Prime Minister, political system should also be cleaned up in toto. Party accounts and the funding of elections should be done by the state. Government of India shall fund the election campaign. I also advised him to change the mode of campaign, which I did in GHMC (Hyderabad civic body) elections. My party (the TRS) went on to the streets, but I never went.

"I just addressed a public meeting. It should be like that. With expansion of TV, it is in every house. It can be e-campaign also," Rao said.

"Vulgar expenditure in parties shall go (after state funding of polls). It shall go. It shall be killed. In the process of clean-up, whole political system shall be cleaned up by the Government of India by way of bringing in very tight (electoral) reforms."



Rao said he submitted a set of suggestions to Modi during his recent meetings with him on measures to be taken for smooth implementation of note ban, particularly keeping in view the inconvenience being caused to common people.

Rao announced the State IT Department would bring in a 'TS-Wallet', a mobile application, towards encouraging people to take up cashless transactions.

The proposed 'TS-Wallet' can be used for private transactions not just Government-related transactions.

The government would open bank accounts for those who do not have one and promote cashless transactions to move towards the Centre's objective of heralding a cashless economy, he said.

(Reopens BOM23)



The state government would accept digital payments and promote cashless transactions in registrations department, VAT payments, market yards, fair price shops and milk federations, Rao said.

Rao said he urged the Centre to substantially improve penetration of banks, with at least one bank being available for three villages and ATMs more accessible. Adequate number of machines to swipe cards should be available to people, he said.

The state government would soon conduct a meeting of District Collectors on promoting cashless transactions, he said. A task force of senior officials has already been constituted to come up with a report on the issue.

Hailing the example of a Gujarat village which achieved 100 per cent cashless transactions, Rao said the Assembly constituency of Siddipet would be taken up as a model for making it 100 per cent cashless.

The state government has directed the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to increase the number of centres, where lunch is offered for Rs 5 five to the poor, he said.

Observing that the vibrant construction sector in Hyderabad has been badly hit by demonetisation, he said the state government decided to speed up its double-bedroom housing scheme for poor so that those left jobless now would be able to find work.

Saying the cash recall exercise has hit the state's revenues, he maintained the move will also have impact on ongoing development activities of his Government.

About Rs 75,000 crore was estimated to be in circulation in Telangana before demonetisation and 86 per cent of it has become obsolete following the November 8 note ban, he said, adding Rs 12,500 crore has been pumped back into the system, while bank deposits stood at Rs 32,000 crore.

Hitting out at Congress for their allegations against him, Rao said it is the Opposition party that ruled the country for long. "They are the creators of black money."



Replying to a query, he said the Telangana Legislative Assembly would be convened in December. The number of days for the session has not been decided yet.
Congress and the Left parties on Monday organised protests here and other places in Telangana as part of the 'Aakrosh Diwas' called by them to highlight the hardships faced by people following the Centre's move.

Congress leaders and workers, led by state party chief N Uttamkumar Reddy, held a protested Saifabad here.

"This protest is to highlight the great inconvenience people are facing even 20 days after the decision (of demonetising Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes) was announced," Reddy told reporters.

Left activists and leaders also took out protests at several places in Telangana over the issue.

However, public transport buses plied almost normally and shops and other commercial establishments remained open.

Educational institutions also functioned normally.
Amid rise in fraud cases through mobile banking apps over the past several months, Thai authorities today said all mobile operators will have to introduce an online fingerprint ID system for new prepaid and postpaid mobile SIM card registration.

The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), asked all existing mobile users to put their fingerprints in the system on a voluntary basis for their own security benefit.

"We urge all mobile users to participate in the system to ensure greater security of the mobile banking channel and prevent the risk of fraud, which is likely to increase in a cashless society," said NBTC secretary-general Takorn Tantasith.

Thailand has 103 million mobile subscribers, 14 million of whom use mobile banking services, he said.

Through a fingerprint enrolment process, mobile operators will scan each person's fingerprints and store the records on the NBTC's secure database server, Takorn was quoted as saying by Bangkok Post.

The NBTC's telecom committee approved the plan to use a fingerprint registration system in September.

Banks and mobile operators have increasingly been urged to boost the standards for customer authentication systems in a bid to prevent fraud through mobile banking activities -- currently one of the most popular mobile services.

The concern follows several cases of fraud committed through mobile banking apps over the past several months, the paper said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Governor of Nagaland P B Acharya



today said that with the increase in Internet users and mobile connections citizens were expecting more and more information and services online from governments and private organizations to further their civil, professional and personal lives.

"There are endless ways to utilize Information and communication technologies to provide efficient and transparent solutions to citizens," said the governor during the inaugural session of the second e-Naga Summit.

The two day summit is being organised by the State IT Department at Indira Gandhi Stadium here on the theme 'Towards making the state of Nagaland the next IT hub in South east Asia'



At a micro level, he said information and communication technologies (ICT) could be used in individual departments for handling workflow systems, access to entitlements, public grievance systems, service delivery system such as payment of bills, tax information, provision of market information, he said.

Advisor to the President of Estonia, Dr Liia, congratulated Nagaland on recently being recognised by the Computer Society of India as the top performer on e-governance. This was a boost of successful start of the Nagaland's journey towards Digital Society, she said.

Chief Secretary, Pankaj Kumar said the central government had given a decisive push to digital infrastructure and e-governance with the Digital India initiative. He said that taking cue from the central government, biometric attendance system had been introduced in Nagaland secretariat.

Citizens in Dimapur can pay their electricity bills online, a facility which is being extended to other towns, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three persons, including two women, were today found murdered and a man seriously injured after being stabbed at their home near here, police said.

Mohan, an employee of State-run TANGEDCO, his wife and their 23-year-old daughter were found lying in a pool of blood at their house in a village off Tiruppathur near here, they said.

Mohan's 22-year-old son, who was rushed to a government hospital, is battling for life, police said.

All the three deceased had sustained serious stab injuries besides wounds that looked like being inflicted by a heavy object, they said.

Police said a case has been registered a probe was on and several persons were being questioned.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At least three South African ministers have called for President Jacob Zuma to resign, local media reported today, in the most serious challenge to his leadership since he took power in 2009.

The News24 agency, citing sources in the ruling ANC party, said that Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi called on Zuma to step down.

The clash came at a weekend National Executive Committee meeting of the African National Congress (ANC) party, which was extended to today amid heated debate over Zuma's fate.

The president, who has faced mounting criticism of his leadership, came under further pressure this month when a corruption probe unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

The probe by the country's top watchdog raised accusations of possible criminal activity in Zuma's relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

But Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many party members and its lawmakers -- easily surviving a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

"There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life," analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC and alliance no longer want him as president."



Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for Zuma to resign in recent months.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
: Tube Investments of India, a Murugappa Group company, has signed a joint venture agreement with Absolute Speciality Foods, for establishment of a new firm TI Absolute Concepts Pvt Ltd, the city-based company said today.

"Tube Investments in pursuant to the Joint Venture Agreement has invested Rs 7.50 crore towards subscription of equity share capital of TI Absolute and the company has been alloted 75 lakh equity shares of face value of Rs 10 each," Tube Investments said in a BSE filing.

Following the joint venture agreement, the company now holds 50 per cent stake of equity share capital in TI Absolute while the remaining 50 per cent was with Absolute Speciality Foods, it said.

Shares of the company were trading at Rs 582 a piece downby 0.83 per cent over previous close in afternoon BSE.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
UN envoy Espen Barth Eide held separate talks with rival Cypriot leaders today to try to revive peace negotiations after "very high hopes" of a breakthrough were dashed last week.

"What we are working on is to see how we can re-establish the momentum we had, but this has to be a decision made by the leaders," Eide told reporters after meeting President Nicos Anastasiades, the Greek Cypriot leader.

"And I am trying to facilitate that, but I cannot decide it over their heads," he said.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has warned Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci against missing a "historic opportunity" for peace.

The latest UN-brokered negotiations between Anastasiades and Akinci held in Switzerland earlier this month broke up with the two sides far apart on the key elements of a land-for-peace deal.

The talks in Mont Pelerin had been aimed at sealing a breakthrough to end decades of division on the Mediterranean island.

"Since there was some very high hopes and expectations for those specific meetings, it created a downturn in the mood surrounding the talks," said Eide.

"I don't principally see any unbridgeable issues but it is also very much about how to sequence things," he said, before crossing the UN-controlled buffer zone in Nicosia to also meet Akinci.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the northern third of the island in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union with Greece.

The much-heralded talks were supposed to produce a map of the internal boundaries of a future federation on the island to pave the way for a deal by early next year.

But negotiations broke down, with each side blaming the other for the lack of progress.

Cyprus is one of the world's longest-running geopolitical disputes and has been a key stumbling block in Turkey's EU accession bid.

Turkish Cypriots made up just 18 percent of the island's population in 1974, but they currently control more than a third of its territory.

It has always been agreed that some of the territory currently controlled by the Turkish Cypriots will be ceded to Greek Cypriot control in any peace deal.

The two leaders were close on the percentage of territory to remain under Turkish Cypriot administration in a future federation.

But they remain far apart on how many Greek Cypriots should be able to return to homes they fled in 1974, with Akinci determined to minimise the number of Turkish Cypriots who would be displaced for a second time.

Greek Cypriots want these issues resolved first, while the Turkish Cypriots want all outstanding disagreements to be tabled at a summit on security that would involve Britain, Greece and Turkey.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Liberia starts expansion of Roberts International Airport to sate growing demand

Sierra Leone is set to have a new passenger terminal building and a rehabilitated runaway at the Roberts International Airport following a groundbreaking ceremony by the countrys president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

President Sirleaf expressed joy for the ground breaking of the airport, noting that Liberians could be sure that their airport would be up to standard.

Im so glad that finally we can get our airport up to standard; finally that shame  we do feel shame when we land at the airport, we feel shame because we have strangers in the plane, and they all look and say Oh! My goodness when will Liberia come of age, President Sirleaf said.

President Sirleaf pointed to resources constraint, type of weather and competing priorities such as health and education the government was confronted with as reasons for which it could not rehabilitate the airport.

But you know there were many priorities in priorities, the resources constraints, the type of weather that we have to work under, certain time of the year it is very difficult to get infrastructures project [done]. We are going to see the airport get to a place where we can all feel proud about it, President said.

The Liberia Airport Authority Board Chairman, Gbezhongar Findley, said Liberias economic growth and development greatly depended on the entry points of the country.

Today is a great day for Liberia, our economic growth and development greatly depends on the entry point of our country, Findley said. Findley said the construction of the airport comes at a critical point of President Sirleafs administration.

The projects represent the beginning to the end of her Excellencys tenure and what a better time to do that Madam President?

Today we can say to you, your efforts your time you have put into this project to make it a success, we are here today as the champion of this project we want to congratulate you, Findley added.

Chinese Ambassador, Zhang Yue said the project is financed by China Exim Bank in the amount of $50 million through a concessional loan. He noted that the run way is funded by the Saudi Fund and the Arab Bank and supported by the United States Government.

He said both projects will be respectively implemented by the China Harbor and Sino Hydro. Ambassador Zhang Yue explained that the new terminal will cover an area of more than 5000-Square meters and designed for an average annual passenger volume approximately 320,000 persons.

Ambassador Yue said this is the first time that China has offered a concessional loan to the Liberia. He furthered that the new terminal building is also a China-Liberia bilateral project while the entire airport project constitutes an outcome of multi-stakeholders cooperation.

He said from now on, we expect to see Chinese-led speed and quality. I am confident that China Harbor will present Liberia a state of the art new terminal building, he told the gathering.

The runaway rehabilitation project involves the excavation of significant sections Runaway 04-22, and asphalt pavement of these sections, rehabilitation of parts of the taxiways, airside geometric improvements including a new turn pad at the runaway end.

Citizens who turnout to witness the ground breaking ceremony could not hold their joy as people were seen expressing their smiles as they watched. Moses Besolow of Harbel has left his office to attend the ground breaking program; he described the development at the airport as internationally recognized, saying, development is gradually returning to Liberia.

At least we are getting there; our country will one day be on the map again in Africa." "We feel so terrible when we leave our country and see other international airports around Africa and the world at large, he noted.

Majay Kollie, a bystander who lives in airports vicinity thanked the government of Liberia for their interest in developing the airport.

She said she was grateful to hear that Liberia was getting on par with other countries in Africa. We are glad that our airport will now be modernized like other airports in the region.

The airport was built in the Second World War by the United States Government to serve as a base for its military activities.

After the war and until 1985, the airport was administered by Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) and the airport was a key link in the African network of Pan Am. When Pan Am ceased operations, the Government of Liberia assumed responsibilities for the operations of the airport.

The Liberia Airport Authority (LAA), which was established by the Liberia Airport Authority Act of 2009, is responsible for the managerial and operational control of all airports within the Republic of Liberia. Roberts International Airport (RIA) is the largest and busiest airport in Liberia.

The terminal project involves the construction of a brand new Passenger Terminal building at RIA. The new terminal layout will be arranged in one and a half floors. The project is financed by a US$50 million loan from the China Exim Bank and the contractor is China Harbor Engineering Company.

The first floor includes check-in hall, inspection area, waiting area, arrival hall, baggage claim, baggage handling rooms, equipment rooms and other offices.

The second floor includes waiting and departure area, commercial area, etc. After check-in, immigration, security screening on the first floor, passengers will arrive to their waiting area on the second floor by escalators, elevators and stairs.

The second floor is also for departure, divided into waiting area and commercial service areas. The waiting hall is arranged in linear so that after security screening, passengers will approach to the waiting area through the commercial area, to increase the potential airport business revenue. For each boarding gate, nursing room, smoking room, business center, shopping center, and other service or consumption functions should be considered.

Inside the terminal, it is designed to make the vision clear with no obstruction, and a transparent space is provided. The whole layout is compact, partition-free, to pursue the maximum efficiency and benefits.

The project will commence immediately after the official groundbreaking on November 21, 2016 and is scheduled to be completed in 22 months.

The runway rehabilitation project involves the excavation of significant sections of Runway 04-22, and asphalt pavement of these sections, rehabilitation of parts of the taxiways, airside geometric improvements including a new turn-pad at runway end 04, widening of taxiway fillets, grading of the runway strip, storm-water drainage improvements, runway and taxiway marking, rehabilitation of the Aeronautical Ground Lighting (AGL) system, amongst other things.

The last overlay of the runway was done in 1978. The project is financed through loans totaling $30 million from The Saudi Fund, Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA) and the Government of Liberia.

The contractor selected through a competitive bidding process is Sinohydro Corporation Ltd. The contract was signed on September 5, 2016 and duration is estimated at 10 months from date of commencement in September.

The expected outcome will be a fully rehabilitated runway at RIA, which will increase airline confidence as a safe airport for their flights. It is also intended to make Liberia fully and unconditionally compliant with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards.

www.liberiacaa.com
The UN's expert on torture was today beginning a week-long visit to Turkey following claims prisoners have been ill-treated in the wake of the July failed coup.

Nils Melzer, special rapporteur on torture, arrived in Turkey yesterday and will speak with alleged victims and inspect detention facilities, the United Nations in Ankara said.

His visit, the first by a UN torture expert to Turkey since 1998, comes a month after US-based watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW) accused Turkish police of torturing detainees.

The government has vehemently denied the claims, saying all those held over the July 15 coup are being treated fully in line with the law.

Since a rogue faction tried to oust President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from power on July 15, Turkey has arrested some 37,000 suspects, causing international alarm.

It has also imposed a state of emergency which has already been extended once.

The rapporteur will visit places of detention such as police stations, pre-trial facilities and prisons, the UN said last week, ahead of preparing a final report for the Human Rights Council in March 2018.

His predecessor, Juan Mendez, was due to visit in October but the trip was put off by the Turkish authorities -- a move which Mendez said at the time "sends the wrong message".

But the UN said the visit would be a chance to "identify and assess... Challenges related to torture and ill-treatment".

"I look forward to engaging with the Turkish government on how to meet the challenges of upholding the rule of law, promoting accountability, and fulfilling the right of reparations for victims, in particular in the aftermath of the attempted coup," Melzer said on Friday.

HRW last month cited 13 cases of alleged abuse, including torture, sleep deprivation, severe beatings, sexual abuse and rape threats among people detained.

Just over a week after the coup bid, Amnesty International said it had "credible evidence" of the abuse and torture of people detained in the sweeping arrests.

Melzer started his independent role earlier this month and currently works at the Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights.

The former Red Cross and Swiss foreign affairs official will visit several Turkish provinces, the UN said without giving further details, and he will speak with victims and their families.

He will present his preliminary findings in Ankara on Friday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The US, India, Russia and Japan should form an alliance to preserve the world peace and stability and secure freedom against radical Islam and China, a top American lawmaker has said.

In favour of the alliance, Congressman Dana Rohrabacher said India is particularly poised to grow into a world power if it adopts right policies.

Observing that his world view is similar to that of the president-elect, Rohrabacher said Japan, India, Russia, and the US share common interests, common rivals, and by working together would fashion a more peaceful and prosperous world.

"New alliances, like a grand alliance with the United States with Russia, Japan and India could well do more to preserve the peace and the stability of the world and secure our freedom - especially against radical Islam and China - than any of the old alliances could because the old alliances are not useful in meeting today's challenges-compared to what they did 40 years ago," Rohrabacher said.

"India is particularly poised to grow into a world power," Rohrabacher told the BreitBart .

"India has that kind of potential. With the right policies, India will have the same economic growth we have seen in China. Its people have incredible entrepreneurial and technological skills and talents," said Rohrabacher, who is Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee on Europe, Eurasia and Emerging Threats.

"Let's take a look at China," he said, adding that the only way to impress upon the Chinese leaders that their intimidation of their neighbours must stop is to present them with an overwhelming force and power that they know they can never match, Rohrabacher said.

"The United States is no longer in a position to do that alone," he noted.

Rohrabacher said the Asia Pacific rebalance was an attempt to meet the challenge from China, but China is now more emboldened because of President Barack Obama's pivot was so poorly executed.

"I'm trying to think of anything of substance in Obama's supposed pivot to Asia-I didn't see anything of substance at all and I am sure the Chinese did not," he said.

"Thus, if you have a President of the United States beating his chest and suggesting some major foreign policy maneuver and then there's nothing, that's going to do nothing but encourage the Chinese," he said, adding that America should embrace its position as a Pacific power through partnerships with India, Japan, and Russia.

"India and Japan are major powers in the world-right now-and their potential is enormous. If we are working with them and we have a workable coalition with them, that is something that would balance off the dynamics at play with an expanding China," he said.

"Japan has a very strong economy that is quite often overlooked, and it so often overlooked as a force in the world because it is so peaceful," Rohrabacher said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 43-year-old NRI woman from Navsari district of Gujarat successfully completed her solo car journey of 32,000 kilometre from United Kingdom to India and has expressed a desire to set up a healthcare facility in her native town.

The woman, Bharulata Kamble made this announcement at her felicitation programme held in Navsari yesterday which was organised by local civic body.

Earlier, she had made a halt at Vadodara where she was felicitated at Mayfair Atrium art gallery before motoring down to Navsari.

During her journey, she traversed across 32 countries in 57 days from United Kingdom to India to spread the message of "Save girls, educate girls".

Speaking on the occasion, Kamble said, "through this solo drive, I connected with people in 32 countries and raised funds for setting up a healthcare facility (modern hospital) in my hometown in Navsari. I have seen my grandfather die on a hospital bed due to lack of adequate medicare in Navsari."



She also is said to be the first woman to visit most countries in only 57 days (she reached India at Moreh Check post in Manipur on November 8), covering distance of over 32,000 kilometres.

Kamble drove through nine mountain ranges, three major deserts and two continents. These include 5,500 km of mountain driving reaching the altitude of 3,700-4000 metres above sea level, and driving 2,500 km through desert areas. This journey will be recorded by the Guinness Book of World Records.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two sons of a local BJP MLA surrendered along with three others before police here in connection with a case of attempt to murder against them after they allegedly got into a drunken brawl at a bar, which resulted in death of a 21-year-old man.

Rohit and Abhilash, sons of MLA Krishna Khopde, were allegedly involved in a brawl at a bar-cum-restaurant in Shankar Nagar square area of the city on November 20.

Abhilash was discharged yesterday from hospital where he was admitted after the brawl while Rohit was absconding since both of them were booked for attempt to murder, police said.

Abhilash and Rohit, accompanied by their father, walked to the Ambazari police station last night and both were subsequently arrested, police said.

Khopde is the MLA from East Nagpur constituency.

The deceased, identified as Shubham Mahakalkar was said to be the friend of the brother duo.

Rohit and Abhilash were booked under various sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 307 (attempt to murder).

Police had earlier launched a manhunt to nab them.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced demonetisation of higher old currency notes, Paytm has been exploiting the opportunity at a breakneck speed to capture and disrupt a large part of the market with its e-wallet.
Commercial Feature is a Business Standard Digital Marketing Initiative.

The Editorial/Content team at Business Standard has not contributed to writing or editing these articles.

For further information, please write to assist@bsmail.in
In 2022, two states will have cannabis legalization measures on the ballot, while an additional five have active movements attempting to bring legalization to a referendum.

Each state has its own laws governing the medicinal and recreational use of cannabis, and every business must follow the laws that govern the areas in which they operate.

Cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, but enforcement against state-legal businesses has largely been suspended and lacks congressional funding, making these markets effectively safe for the foreseeable future.

This article is for entrepreneurs who are thinking about starting a cannabis business and need to understand the regulations surrounding a complex and growing industry.

Each year, there is new legal cannabis legislation or ballot referendums positioned to open new markets to the already rapidly expanding cannabis industry. In 2022, as adult-use cannabis programs come online in the Northeast in big-market states like New Jersey and New York and the value of maturing markets out west continues to grow, more states are following suit and voting on medicinal or adult-use legalization measures of their own.

What does the cannabis industrys growth and expansion to new states mean for entrepreneurs interested in getting involved in the cannabis industry, and what are some of the biggest business opportunities available? For many small business owners, it can represent an opportunity to pivot into an international, high-growth industry just as it begins to take off.

The value of the U.S. cannabis industry

The U.S. cannabis market is projected to reach $72 billion annually by 2030, according to industry research group New Frontier Data. This projection comes at a time when cannabis remains federally illegal despite the legalization of medical marijuana by 39 states and Washington, D.C., and the legalization of adult-use (sometimes called recreational) cannabis programs by 19 states and Washington, D.C.

As cannabis-legalization movements expand into new states and some members of Congress advocate for reform and even federal legalization, the cannabis industry seems poised to continue its breakneck growth as new markets open up.

Key takeaway: The cannabis industry is a multibillion-dollar business thats poised to grow rapidly as new markets open and more states legalize both medical and adult-use programs.

States voting on cannabis legalization

Only two states (Maryland and South Dakota) are confirmed to vote on some form of cannabis legalization during the November 2022 elections; however, an additional five states have measures that will potentially be added to the ballot.

Arkansas: The Arkansas True Grass organization is gathering signatures to introduce the Arkansas Recreational Adult Marijuana Amendment of 2022, which would legalize marijuana use for adults over 21. A second measure, the Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment, supported by the Arkansas True Grass group, would also allow adults over 21 to purchase and use recreational marijuana, and offers the state a 10% sales tax.

The Arkansas True Grass organization is gathering signatures to introduce the Arkansas Recreational Adult Marijuana Amendment of 2022, which would legalize marijuana use for adults over 21. A second measure, the Arkansas Adult Use Cannabis Amendment, supported by the Arkansas True Grass group, would also allow adults over 21 to purchase and use recreational marijuana, and offers the state a 10% sales tax. Maryland: As one of the two states with a cannabis-legalization measure officially on the November ballot, Maryland voters will have the chance to pass the Maryland Marijuana Legalization Amendment. If passed, adults over 21 will be allowed to possess up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana and grow up to two marijuana plants at home.

As one of the two states with a cannabis-legalization measure officially on the November ballot, Maryland voters will have the chance to pass the Maryland Marijuana Legalization Amendment. If passed, adults over 21 will be allowed to possess up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana and grow up to two marijuana plants at home. Missouri: Not yet on the ballot, the Missouri Marijuana Legalization Initiative seeks to permit retail sales of marijuana with a 6% tax, and will also expunge the records of residents with nonviolent marijuana offenses. In July 2022, the measure failed to get the necessary signatures to be included on the ballot. The measure is short by over 1,000 signatures in two of the six congressional districts.

Not yet on the ballot, the Missouri Marijuana Legalization Initiative seeks to permit retail sales of marijuana with a 6% tax, and will also expunge the records of residents with nonviolent marijuana offenses. In July 2022, the measure failed to get the necessary signatures to be included on the ballot. The measure is short by over 1,000 signatures in two of the six congressional districts. Nebraska: In Nebraska, the Patient Protection Act and the Medical Cannabis Regulation Act received a combined 180,000 signatures, and is awaiting the certification process before its placed on the November ballot. Organized by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, the Patient Protection Act would allow patients and medical professionals to possess and use medical cannabis, while the Medical Cannabis Regulation Act would create a regulatory committee to oversee the production of cannabis and give patients a path to reliable marijuana products.

In Nebraska, the Patient Protection Act and the Medical Cannabis Regulation Act received a combined 180,000 signatures, and is awaiting the certification process before its placed on the November ballot. Organized by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, the Patient Protection Act would allow patients and medical professionals to possess and use medical cannabis, while the Medical Cannabis Regulation Act would create a regulatory committee to oversee the production of cannabis and give patients a path to reliable marijuana products. North Dakota: In North Dakota, the New Approach North Dakota group has collected over 25,000 signatures to get a cannabis-legalization measure on the November ballot. If passed, the measure would legalize the use and possession of up to 1 ounce of cannabis, 4 grams of concentrated products and up to 500 milligrams of edibles.

In North Dakota, the New Approach North Dakota group has collected over 25,000 signatures to get a cannabis-legalization measure on the November ballot. If passed, the measure would legalize the use and possession of up to 1 ounce of cannabis, 4 grams of concentrated products and up to 500 milligrams of edibles. Oklahoma: Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action is the driving force behind gathering signatures to support State Question (SQ) 818 and SQ 819. SQ 818 is an amendment to the state constitution that would guarantee access to marijuana and legalize adult use, while SQ 819 would impose a 15% sales tax on cannabis products. SQ 820 is a third measure from Oklahomans for Sensible Marijuana Laws. It would legalize marijuana for adults 21 and up, and includes a 15% tax on all recreational purchases.

Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action is the driving force behind gathering signatures to support State Question (SQ) 818 and SQ 819. SQ 818 is an amendment to the state constitution that would guarantee access to marijuana and legalize adult use, while SQ 819 would impose a 15% sales tax on cannabis products. SQ 820 is a third measure from Oklahomans for Sensible Marijuana Laws. It would legalize marijuana for adults 21 and up, and includes a 15% tax on all recreational purchases. South Dakota: This is the second state with a cannabis legalization measure officially on the ballot this November. South Dakota residents will be voting on the South Dakota Marijuana Legalization Initiative. The initiative focuses on legalizing the possession, use, and distribution of marijuana for adults 21 and over.

Key takeaway: Two states will have cannabis-legalization measures on the ballot in November 2022, while another five states are gathering, or have gathered, the required signatures for a ballot referendum.

Business opportunities in the cannabis industry

It is easy to think of the cannabis industry simply as the cultivators that grow the plant, the manufacturers that refine it into products and the dispensaries that sell those products. However, while these elements are central to the legal-cannabis supply chain, the cannabis industry is much more complex and varied than those businesses.

Cannabis businesses can be broken down into two broad categories: plant-touching businesses and ancillary businesses. Heres a closer look at each, along with some examples of the businesses in each category.

Plant-touching cannabis businesses

Plant-touching businesses include those that might come to mind when you think of the cannabis industry, such as breeders, cultivators, manufacturers and dispensaries. However, there are other plant-touching businesses that might not be so obvious, including the transportation and delivery companies that bring harvested cannabis and finished products from point A to point B.

Breeders: Breeders are focused on the proliferation of existing strains of cannabis and the development of new strains through selective breeding. They are responsible for developing the seeds used by cultivators, as well as identifying and propagating the highest-quality genetics for future generations of plants.

Breeders are focused on the proliferation of existing strains of cannabis and the development of new strains through selective breeding. They are responsible for developing the seeds used by cultivators, as well as identifying and propagating the highest-quality genetics for future generations of plants. Cultivators: Cultivators manage immense growing facilities, which are generally indoor operations stored in large buildings such as warehouses. They engage in a variety of cultivation methods to grow healthy, high-quality cannabis plants, which are then harvested and often sold wholesale to processors or dispensaries.

Cultivators manage immense growing facilities, which are generally indoor operations stored in large buildings such as warehouses. They engage in a variety of cultivation methods to grow healthy, high-quality cannabis plants, which are then harvested and often sold wholesale to processors or dispensaries. Manufacturers: Manufacturers, such as extractors, are responsible for processing harvested cannabis flower into finished products, such as concentrated extracts, edibles and topicals. Manufacturers make a wide variety of cannabis products available on dispensary shelves possible.

Manufacturers, such as extractors, are responsible for processing harvested cannabis flower into finished products, such as concentrated extracts, edibles and topicals. Manufacturers make a wide variety of cannabis products available on dispensary shelves possible. Dispensaries: Dispensaries are the distribution hubs of the cannabis industry, operating much like retail stores in other industries. Dispensaries vary in their approach to the point of sale, but they typically maintain a staff of knowledgeable people who can help guide patients and consumers to the right products based on their needs and preferences.

Dispensaries are the distribution hubs of the cannabis industry, operating much like retail stores in other industries. Dispensaries vary in their approach to the point of sale, but they typically maintain a staff of knowledgeable people who can help guide patients and consumers to the right products based on their needs and preferences. Transportation and logistics providers: Without a transportation network, the cannabis industry couldnt survive. Fleets of trucks bring cannabis flower and products from sellers to buyers and deliver the equipment cannabis businesses need to continue operations. This also includes direct-to-consumer delivery services, which are legal in certain states.

Plant-touching businesses are the most heavily regulated companies in an industry already characterized by immense oversight. To open a plant-touching business, entrepreneurs typically need to secure licenses through an application process, which can be lengthy and expensive, with no guarantee of success. Application processes for licensing vary from state to state, but there is typically a cap on how many licenses are available, similar to the way liquor licenses work.

Some states require what is known as vertical integration, in which the cultivation, processing and dispensary businesses are all managed by one company. Other states instead employ a system of specialization, in which licenses for each type of operation are kept separate and are often awarded to different companies.

Ancillary cannabis businesses

Ancillary cannabis businesses comprise all of the other types of companies in the cannabis industry. These companies are required for the support of plant-touching businesses but are not necessarily involved in the process of breeding, growing, refining or distributing cannabis products. They can include professionals, such as lawyers and marketers, as well as companies that produce packaging or machinery that can improve plant-touching businesses processes.

Professional services: Lawyers, accountants and digital marketers are all examples of professional services that are familiar to businesses in all industries. They are also crucial for cannabis businesses. Given the significant regulatory constraints and highly varied framework of rules from state to state, these professional advisors must have additional expertise focused on the cannabis industry.

Lawyers, accountants and digital marketers are all examples of professional services that are familiar to businesses in all industries. They are also crucial for cannabis businesses. Given the significant regulatory constraints and highly varied framework of rules from state to state, these professional advisors must have additional expertise focused on the cannabis industry. Packaging: Businesses that produce packaging rarely touch the plant directly, instead focusing on regulatory compliance, shelf appeal and branding. Packaging companies need to consider business needs  such as how to appeal to consumers and demonstrate company branding  as well as regulatory considerations. In many states, colorful packaging or certain approaches to branding are considered illegal.

Businesses that produce packaging rarely touch the plant directly, instead focusing on regulatory compliance, shelf appeal and branding. Packaging companies need to consider business needs  such as how to appeal to consumers and demonstrate company branding  as well as regulatory considerations. In many states, colorful packaging or certain approaches to branding are considered illegal. Equipment: There are many different types of equipment that plant-touching businesses require to get things done. For example, manufacturers use large machines to extract compounds from harvested cannabis flower to create cannabis oils and waxes. Similarly, cultivators might want to flash freeze their harvested flower for preservation during transportation.

There are many different types of equipment that plant-touching businesses require to get things done. For example, manufacturers use large machines to extract compounds from harvested cannabis flower to create cannabis oils and waxes. Similarly, cultivators might want to flash freeze their harvested flower for preservation during transportation. Construction: Cultivation facilities and dispensaries often must be built with strict adherence to state laws and regulations, so there is a significant demand for contractors that are well versed in the development of these facilities.

Cultivation facilities and dispensaries often must be built with strict adherence to state laws and regulations, so there is a significant demand for contractors that are well versed in the development of these facilities. Security: The cannabis industry relies on security for both regulatory and practical business reasons. On one hand, regulators often require specific areas to be viewable by security cameras in cultivation and dispensary facilities, as well as certain lighting and systems for monitoring the premises. Additionally, many cannabis businesses are forced to operate largely in cash because of the financial constraints posed by the ongoing federal prohibition of cannabis, making them prime targets for robbery.

The cannabis industry relies on security for both regulatory and practical business reasons. On one hand, regulators often require specific areas to be viewable by security cameras in cultivation and dispensary facilities, as well as certain lighting and systems for monitoring the premises. Additionally, many cannabis businesses are forced to operate largely in cash because of the financial constraints posed by the ongoing federal prohibition of cannabis, making them prime targets for robbery. Investment: Because cannabis businesses are largely precluded from normal financing options, private financiers  such as venture capitalists and angel investors  have entered the industry to provide funding. Family offices, which are private wealth management advisory firms that specialize in serving high-net-worth investors, are common sources of financing for cannabis businesses, and investors have relished this high-growth industry. This is especially important for plant-touching businesses that face application fees in the tens of thousands of dollars and require substantial capitalization to gain approval.

While many people are excited about the prospects of starting a plant-touching cannabis business, ancillary businesses arguably offer a lower barrier to entry. Ancillary businesses still face significant regulation compared with many non-cannabis businesses, but they dont have to vie for a license through a complex and costly application process.

Additionally, many ancillary businesses can be started by pivoting your existing business into the cannabis space or developing a new brand associated specifically with cannabis. For example, with a bit of research and networking, a digital marketer with years of experience in building websites, running social media campaigns and buying advertisements for clients could easily pivot into the cannabis space.

Key takeaway: The cannabis industry is diverse and comprises a wide range of businesses. Consider your existing skill set and how you can enter the cannabis industry with expertise under your belt.

Growth potential for cannabis businesses

There are a number of challenges facing cannabis businesses above and beyond those that startups in other industries face. Navigating these challenges in the early days of your business and building a foundation that allows you to grow and adapt as regulations inevitably change will be key to your success in the cannabis industry.

Here are some common challenges growing cannabis businesses encounter and some tips for overcoming them:

Developing the right partnerships

It is difficult, if not impossible, to go it alone in the cannabis industry. The partnerships you develop at the early stages can make or break your fledgling cannabis business.

Scott Rudder, president emeritus and founder of the New Jersey CannaBusiness Association, said that how you establish your company in the beginning is critical to its long-term success.

The best way to do it right now is hiring a consultant who can help develop your plans with you, Rudder told Business News Daily. You need to develop partnerships and relationships across the country to give your team a competitive advantage  the right processes, the right [standard operating procedures], the right security plan. Get the right local attorney and local CPA  with experience in cannabis.

Changing regulations

Its also likely that the regulations that apply to your cannabis business are subject to change, as the industry is a new and evolving space and public officials are regularly working to revamp and revise rules and regulations. Jessica Gonzalez, a cannabis and intellectual property attorney at Bressler, Amery & Ross P.C., advised to engage with an experienced attorney who can look ahead.

Given the fluctuations in regulations across the country  the best way for folks to keep apprised of what their state requires is to have a lawyer who is able to interpret the regulations and statutes, Gonzalez said. We all recognize in cannabis that the industry is always changing, so as  entrepreneurs, we need to be ready to pivot at a moments notice.

Banking, financing and insurance challenges

Banking is a particular pain point for cannabis companies. Because the federal government still considers cannabis an illegal, Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, many banks are hesitant to work with cannabis businesses for fear of losing their FDIC status or inviting money laundering charges related to drug trafficking, despite cannabiss legal status in many states.

In any other industry, you could open a business bank account and name your LLC or corporation anything you wanted, and its not an issue, Gonzalez said. But if you go to the bank and you have cannabis in your name, you may have a lot of trouble finding a banking partner. Im not saying to lie to your bank about what youre doing, but  by having weed or cannabis in the entity name, youre cutting yourself off at your knees. I always advise folks when creating an LLC or corporation to stay away from those names because it inhibits banking options and insurance options as well, she added.

Advertising and marketing restrictions

State regulations and private company policies limit how cannabis businesses can advertise themselves. Not only is advertising cannabis on the radio, television or billboards often banned, but many local marketing channels, including Facebook, make it tough by prohibiting the purchase of sponsored content for cannabis businesses.

These types of limitations mean many cannabis businesses have to rely on a combination of content marketing and more organic social media content, email marketing campaigns and in-person marketing opportunities at trade shows and industry events. Networking and word-of-mouth referrals are essential tools in a cannabis businesss marketing toolbox.

Stigmatization of cannabis

Cannabis still faces a stigma that its just about stoner culture, when in reality, cannabis patients and consumers come from a broad range of backgrounds. Avoid reinforcing the stereotypes associated with cannabis, like the head-shop vibe or the underground associations linked to nearly a century of prohibition.

Instead, work closely with community stakeholders and elected officials to be a responsible member of your community. Doing so will go a long way toward not only gaining any necessary regulatory approvals, but also broadening accessibility to your target customers, who are likely more turned off by the stigmatized trappings of the past than you might think.

There are outdated historical stereotypes of who cannabis consumers are, Rudder said. They are moms and dads, lawyers, pipefitters  it covers the gamut of who cannabis consumers are. The foundation of cannabis is as a medicine, and it will be for a very long time. Its very important for people to understand  the science side and medical side of the industry.

The consumer, whether a patient or adult-use consumer, is getting smarter and doing their own research, he added. When people start asking questions, you need to have those answers.

Key takeaway: Cannabis businesses face a lot of challenges, but by forming your company with these challenges in mind and creating the right plan and partnerships, you can overcome them.

Getting started in the cannabis industry

Starting a new business in the cannabis industry isnt for everyone, and it requires a great deal of patience, time and money. It could take a significant investment to simply get a business license. When it comes to the product, growing cannabis requires real estate and an expert team of botanists to ensure your crop is getting the maximum yield. Then you need to find the right partners and keep up with the ever-changing regulations. And all thats before you get to a storefront.

However, its possible to stay ahead of any foreseeable problems. As you learned above, with the right partnerships in place, youll have the right team to support your dream. And with some savvy budgeting practices, the financial side of starting a business will be prepared for those difficult early days. But once your operation is up and running, any entrepreneur could be at the frontier of a lucrative new business model.
Is there a role for a regulator on a state road show to attract potential investors? Ask Hemant Gordhanbhai Koshia, Commissioner, Food and Drug Control Administration of Gujarat, and he has a ready answer: "Yes, we are a regulator but we also act as a facilitator for the good people and we promote those who come with good motives."

But then, he also says they would be stern with those "who try to subvert the law or follow devious methods". In Hyderabad, the pharma hub of the south, to invite potential investors to Gujarat for the Vibrant Gujarat summit between January 10 and 13, 2017, he was quick to add: "Most people are law abiding and we must promote them." Koshia is seen by many in the industry as a dynamic official having been one of the early regulators in the country to leverage technology. For instance, a few years ago, he had put in place a system wherein all chemists and druggists would get text message alerts on their mobile phones in case a drug is recalled or is found to be fake or substandard.

Koshia was in Hyderabad on November 19, Saturday, as a member of a high-powered delegation from Gujarat, led by its Revenue Minister Bhupendrasinh Chuasama. He said while Gujarat has strengths in formulations with APIs (active pharmaceutical ingredients or bulk drugs) made largely for captive consumption, Telangana and Andhra have an edge in APIs. Within India, he sees this region as an important supplier of these crucial ingredients that go into tablets that get finally consumed.

Pankaj Kumar, Principal Secretary (Medical Education and Medical Services), Health and Family Welfare Department, who had all the statistics and new policy changes on his fingertips, said "40 per cent of drugs manufactured in the country and 28 per cent of total exports are from Gujarat." While the share of Telangana and Andhra (largely out of Hyderabad and Vizag) is little lower in term of share of pharma production, it is more or less on par in terms of share in exports. But since, formulations are value addition on a bulk drug, the share of Gujarat in value terms would tend to be more than Telangana and Andhra, which may score higher in volume terms.

In the first round of meetings, four out of 11 companies were from pharma including global pharma major Mylan. That is a good share given that the state is pitching for investors into 32 sectors.

Pankaj Kumar says the pitch is much more than that for pharma as the state industrial policy is meant to address the needs across sectors and has accordingly devised suitable policies for each sector. Giving the example of pharma, he said financial incentives in the form of capital subsidy and interest subsidy are provided apart from other elements like assistance for testing equipment. He said the industrial policy of the state is aimed at providing an ecosystem that gives competitive advantage to those operating out of Gujarat.




Anticipating a more protectionist US technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The US currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.

"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and U.S. businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the US.

"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the US and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.



ALSO READ: EB-5 - The best choice for Indian applicants with Trump as President



ACQUISITIONS

Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big US and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying US companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.

"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including US-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a U.S. cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more U.S. acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.



OFFSHORING & AUTOMATION

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero."

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

"The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.
The surprising victory of President-Elect Donald Trump has created a state of uncertainty in the minds of many Indians applying for visas to the United States. Under a Trump administration there will be major changes to immigration policy and a strong likelihood that H1-B reforms will be among the top priorities. That possibility is of major concern to many students and job-seekers who aspire to live and study in the US.

This matter was highlighted by a recent Wall Street Journal article (November 17, 2016) which quoted a leading anti-immigration campaigner as saying, "U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will likely crack down on the use of skilled-worker visas issued to Indian outsourcing firms."

Historically, the US has been the country of choice for Indian immigrants as it offers a large, dynamic economy with physical, legal and regulatory infrastructure ideally configured for young entrepreneurs. However, following the most recent US presidential election, immigrants from around the world are concerned about the challenges they may now face with regard to immigrating to the US.

With the future of many US immigration programmes uncertain, the EB-5 Investment Visa program has become a compelling choice for Indian citizens who aspire to move to the US. An EB-5 visa allows an individual to make an investment of $500,000 through a licensed regional centre to acquire a US Green Card for themselves and their family (including all unmarried children up to the age of 21).



The EB-5 investment must create and sustain ten or more American jobs for a period of two years. Once this has been demonstrated to the US Government, the investor's Green Card residency status becomes permanent for themselves and their families. Long term residency is a requirement for anyone seeking a path to US citizenship. At the end of the five-year investment period the capital can be returned to the investor (usually with a nominal rate of interest) as long as the project that the investor has chosen is successful. Done right, the EB-5 investment visa is the fastest and most secure way to obtain a Green Card.

Donald Trump's victory has taken many people by surprise. For many with aspirations to move to the US, those dreams have become far more uncertain. Fortunately, the EB-5 program is one of the few immigration programmes that have broad support among representatives of America's leading political parties. It has this support because the programme is a proven job creator. It welcomes thousands of legal immigrants from all over the world each year at no cost to the US taxpayer. EB-5 investors and applicants epitomise the type of legal immigration that President-Elect Trump supports. We believe it will continue to be the best way to immigrate to the US in the foreseeable future.

Suresh Rajan is CEO, LCR Capital Partners




Some financial firms in Britain looking for a base in the European Union after Brexit are expected to start applying for licences in Dublin by early next year, Ireland's financial services minister said on Friday.

The Irish capital, along with other financial centres in the EU such as Paris, Frankfurt and Luxembourg, are hoping that banks and other financial institutions in London will choose them as a European base once Britain leaves the bloc.

Irish financial services minister, Eoghan Murphy, said Dublin was already being approached by financial firms from London, and some have already held "pre-application" discussions for licences with the Irish central bank.

"I would be surprised if we didn't see applications getting underway towards the end of this year and very early next year," Murphy told Reuters in an interview.

"Depending on the type of application made, it's too soon to say exactly when people would start to relocate."

He was in London to speak at an Irish Funds conference to bang the drum for Dublin's financial sector.

Already home to 6,000 funds managing two trillion euros of assets, Dublin is vying with Luxembourg to become a potential outpost in the EU for Britain's 5.7 trillion pound asset management industry after Brexit.

Insurers in Britain are also looking to the Irish capital as a base, another sector the city is familiar with, along with aviation finance.

"While we have existing strengths in key areas, and it would make sense to continue developing those areas of strengths, we are also looking at new areas to answer the needs we think people are going to have after the Brexit negotiations are concluded," Murphy said.

"This isn't about taking advantage of a difficulty that the UK is in, we are not seeking an opportunity here, but we do recognise that businesses will have needs as a result of Brexit and we are here to help manage those needs."

Ireland, along with Berlin and other centres, is also courting the emerging fintech, or financial technology sector, where London has dominated in Europe.

"Everyone now has to have some engagement with fintech. That is a very attractive pull point for Ireland," Murphy said.

Reuters reported this week that Ireland has signalled to several large investment banks that it would be reluctant to host large trading operations, which are seen as posing a big systemic risk to a small country that has already suffered from a major banking crisis.

Asked if Ireland would turn down a licence application from a big bank, Murphy said, "We have had discussions with big banks and big banks are looking at Ireland."

However, it would be up to Ireland's "independent" and "well respected" central bank "to decide the level of risk they think is appropriate for the financial sector, and that's the important role that they face."

Ireland is seen by the funds sector as scoring well on the "3Ls" - flexible labour laws, overall legal system and location - but has less developed infrastructure and higher rents than in some rival financial centres in Europe.

Residential rents in Dublin are higher than Frankfurt and are rising fast, but are below Amsterdam and significantly lower than Paris.

"I find this really surprising actually when I read these pieces coming out of places like Luxembourg and Paris about infrastructure issues in Ireland," Murphy said.

Plenty of new office space and transport links to a wider selection of suburbs will be opened up in time for when financial executives would actually move to Dublin in a year or two, Murphy said.

"If you just walk around Dublin what you'll see is cranes." (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS) Irish operation Ulster Bank will pay its parent company a dividend for the first time since the financial crisis, saying on Friday that it had received regulatory approval to release 1.5 billion euros of capital.

Ulster Bank, which operates separate regulated entities on both sides of the Irish border under the same name, will pay the dividend from its operations in the Irish republic, where lenders have benefited from a swift economic recovery.

"Today's announcement signals a very important milestone and is evidence of our strengthening position," Ulster Bank Chief Executive Gerry Mallon said in a statement.

"Ulster Bank remains very well capitalised with a strong balance sheet."

The payment will also allow RBS, which had to prop up Ulster Bank with about 15 billion pounds during Ireland's banking crisis, to release trapped capital at a group level.

Ulster Bank's Core Tier 1 capital (CET1) ratio -- a measure of financial strength -- will stand at 24% after the payment, significantly ahead of regulatory requirements.

The average aggregate core ratio of the 51 main European Union lenders ahead of stress tests this year was 12.6%, with all capital requirements factored in.

In addition, Ulster's risk-weighted assets as a percentage of its total assets are at a European-leading 92%, Goodbody Stockbrokers analyst Eamonn Hughes wrote in a note, adding that this leaves "ample scope" for future payments.

The bank, which said the timing of its payment is subject to approval by the board on Nov. 29, is not alone among Irish lenders seeking to resume dividends.

Bank of Ireland, the country's largest bank by assets and in which the state holds a 14% stake, laid out plans in February for a resumption of dividends in the first half of next year but said in July that the timing could be affected by Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

Wholy state-owned Allied Irish Banks, which had a CET1 ratio of 13.3% at the end of June, said on Thursday that it is capable of paying a conservative, ongoing dividend to the state and that it is in regulatory talks over when it can restart payments. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
The Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (ISME) has today encouraged Irish consumers to buy local and support indigenous SMEs when shopping for Christmas.

The Association reminded consumers that buying goods produced, manufactured and sold locally is the easiest way to support the Irish economic recovery.

Retail sales figures for October show an annual increase of 4.1% in volume and 2.2% in value. When motor sales are excluded there was a 3.8% increase in volume and 1.8% increase in value in the year. The monthly figures show a decrease of 0.3% in volume, and 0.4% in value.

According to the ISME, the main issues facing retailers are very low margins, negative cross border trade, excessive business costs and insufficient bank credit.

CEO of the ISME, Neil McDonnell said, "Irish consumers need to support retailers and local businesses. The devaluation of sterling is having an impact on sales and on consumer sentiment."

He added, "With cross-border shopping on the increase and consumer sentiment at a 20 month low, Irish consumers need to get behind and support Irish businesses. The continued monthly decline in volume and value is a matter of concern."

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny announced Grassland Agro, Venn Life Sciences and ECOCEM France as the winners of the 2016 Ireland France Business Awards at a special gala ceremony last week in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham.

The bi-lateral trade awards have been organised by the France Ireland Chamber of Commerce (FICC) and NetworkIrlande for over 25 years.

The awards recognise excellence within the Franco-Irish business community and celebrate the outstanding work that the winning companies have made within their respective sectors and to the progression of business and investment between Ireland and France.

The high calibre of candidates across all three categories was recognised by a jury chaired by Gerry Halpenny, Senior Partner, LK Shields and comprised of Sinead Lonergan (Director France, Enterprise Ireland), Sebastien Carbon (Deputy Managing Director UK & Ireland, Ubifrance), Rory McNeill (Marketing Procurement and Communications Director, CRH), Gisele Hivert-Messeca (Directrice Ubifrance Irlande), Pierre Mongrue (Chef du Service Economique, lAmbassade de France en Irlande), Jim Rice (Chartered Engineer & Business Consultant), Niamh Breslin (IDA Europe) and Anne Marie Ronayne, (MD Terra Connecta).

The Best French Company in Ireland was presented to Grassland Agro, a company borne of a merger between the French-owned Irish Timac and the Irish-owned Grassland Fertilizers. Grassland Agro supplies specially blended commodity fertilisers and high performance products for the Animal, Soil, Fertiliser, Dairy and Hygiene sectors. The company has grown both in size and success since its inception in 2013  it currently employs a team of 100 people in Ireland and reported a turnover of over 120m in 2015.

Venn Life Sciences, clinical trial management group, was selected as the Best Irish Company in France. Headquartered in Dublin, the organisation conducts research, drug development and clinical trial management for health, medical and academic organisations. Venn has a team in excess of 200 employees across America and Europe and more than 50 of those are based in France.

The special award for Impact on Climate Change was awarded to ECOCEM France, part of the Irish company ECOCEM Materials Ltd. Founded in 2000 ECOCEM Materials produces Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBF), an environmentally friendly cement used throughout Europe. ECOCEMs GGBF product helps to lower the carbon footprint associated with concrete production and usage.

Speaking on the night, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny said, "In a world that is increasingly uncertain, it is important that all Europeans continue to work together. We are living in challenging times. Across the Atlantic, the recent Presidential election has seen unprecedented debate and new political forces emerging. And of course, one of the largest economic challenges facing both Ireland and France is the exit of a valued partner in the EU, the United Kingdom. The Irish Government is continuing to ready itself to meet the Brexit challenge. There are particularly significant implications for Ireland."

He added, "In all future negotiations following the formal notification under Article 50 to the EU, the Government will ensure that the best possible outcomes will be achieved for our citizens, for the economy, for Northern Ireland and for the Common Travel Area. The challenges that we are presented with are ones that we will face together with our French partners. At times of uncertainty we all naturally hold to that which is loyal and endures, and the Franco Irish partnership is certainly that."

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
The Taoiseach, Enda Kenny and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Mary Mitchell OConnor have today called for support for the Small Business Saturday initiative.

This is the third year of the Irish campaign which profiles small businesses and encourages consumers to shop locally and support jobs and enterprises in their respective communities.

There are over 280,000 people working in the Retail industry across Ireland with the majority of these employed in small local stores.

Small Business Saturday will take place on 3rd December.



Speaking today, CEO of Retail Excellence, David Fitzsimons said, "We are delighted to bring Small Business Saturday to Ireland again. It is about letting consumers know that by shopping local they support local jobs, businesses and local economies. We want consumers to understand that a small change in their spending can have a hugely positive impact to their local economy - 10 spent locally is worth 40 to that economy in terms of supporting employment, supported communities and giving the business the opportunity to continue to operate year round."



Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
Lufthansa is cancelling around 1,700 flights over the next two days due to a fresh strike by pilots in a long-running dispute about pay.

Last week, the German carrier cancelled nearly 2,800 flights during a four-day walkout from Wednesday that affected more than 350,000 passengers, the 14th walkout in a dispute that since early 2014 has cost the carrier hundreds of millions of euros.

Lufthansa has offered to increase the pilots' pay by 4.4 percent in two instalments and make a one-off payment worth 1.8 months' pay over a six year period.

Union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) wants an average annual pay rise of 3.7 percent for 5,400 pilots over a five-year period backdated to 2012.

VC rejected the latest pay offer from Lufthansa late on Friday.

The pilots announced on Sunday plans to strike on short-haul routes on Tuesday and both short- and long-haul flights on Wednesday. Lufthansa said it was cancelling 816 and 890 flights on those days, respectively, affecting a total of around 180,000 passengers.

The carrier has asked a labour court in Munich to issue a temporary injunction to avert the strike, with a ruling likely due later on Monday. Last week, a labour court in Frankfurt rejected a similar request for an injunction. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
Oil prices fell over 1% on Monday, extending declines from last Friday as doubts re-emerged over the ability of major producers to cut output at a planned meeting on Wednesday aimed at reining in global oversupply.

Brent crude futures were trading at $46.40 per barrel at 0035 GMT, down 84 cents, or 1.8%, from their last close.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 74 cents, or 1.6%, at $45.32 a barrel.

The falls came after prices declined more than 3% on Friday over disagreement between members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and non-OPEC exporters like Russia over which states should cut production by how much in order to curb a global production overhang that has more than halved prices since 2014.

"Further doubts about OPEC's production cut agreement saw crude oil prices tumble," ANZ bank said on Monday.

OPEC will meet in Vienna on Wednesday to decide on the details of a cut, potentially including non-OPEC members like Russia or Azerbaijan.

A meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC producers that was to be held on Monday was called off after Saudi Arabia declined to attend.

Saudi Arabia's energy minister Khalid al-Falih said on Sunday this was because no agreement within OPEC had been reached so far.

Falih said that the oil market would balance itself in 2017 even if producers did not intervene, and that keeping output at current levels could therefore be justified.

Since oil is traded in dollars, a strong greenback weighs on oil prices since it reduces costs and increases revenues for producers, especially those who operate domestically with other currencies, while it makes fuel purchases more expensive for importers that use their own currencies domestically, potentially hitting on demand. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
A Good City Has Industry : Hail the Brussels of tomorrow

Published on November 28, 2016

Story by Harold Henry Translation by: Viveka Anandane

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Far from a way back to the times of Germinal, the exhibition "A Good City Has Industry" suggests innovative ideas to re-inject industries at the heart of the Belgian capital. In relation to its future event on industrialization, Cafebabel Brussels has taken a sneak peak into the Ravenstein Galery in order to learn more.

The exhibition  A Good City Has Industry  (up to the 15th of January in the Ravenstein Galery), further to its role of optimizing Bruxels resources and wealth, has gave a new thought, in watermarks, to our relationship with the economy. Too often judged and wrongfully labelled as dirty, polluting, or intelectually poor, the industry is nevertheless the field of the future provide it is used well.

Taking roots in this assumption, the exhibition, which commissionner is Architecture Workroom Brussels (hereunder named AWB), gives us the key to understand this buried treasure. Joachim Declerck, founder and partner of AWB, explains us that :  For years, we have wanted to put the industries outside the city. We should however be proud of those industries as they are the starting points of our economy. In this exhibition, we see this idea of an organic city, where industry, for Brussels, is an inherent part of its structure. And above all, we suggest very practical solutions in order to accelerate growth in this sector. .

And that is what we like at Cafebabel as, far from making simple statements, the exhibition suggests "10 clues to build a productive city", a practical, real, and strong approach which we can only approve. For example, the creation of hybrid spaces, where living spaces are intertwined with productive spaces in order to promote the industry by gaining space at the same time.

Origin : Made in Brussels

It is not only an architectural question, but all our relationship to economy that should be re-thought through this urbanism issue. For J. Declerk, the reflexion hence goes even more beyond " Our work is also an educational one, we would like to raise citizens' awareness on tomorrow's world, to prepare the post-Made in China era to progressively come back to a circular economy. By giving a better visibility to existing industries of the city, consumers might be able to realize the necessity of those and be proud of them. In the end, we are entering a logic of re-implantation which favours a local economy to achieve a reliable and sustainable model".

Brussels has already began this work, particularly by suggesting a Canal Plan, which aims at studying and thinking about a strategy to develop the zone around the canal. We are not starting from scratch, when we see for example the slaughterhouses of Anderlecht or the Velofabrik workshop in Brussels. But the hardest part remains to be done, and it lies with us, citizens, to convert that potential. Let us not be ashamed of our industries. Let us not be ashamed of those who contribue to it and let us acknowledge that a working blue is worth as much as a white collar.

Story by Harold Henry

Translated from A Good City Has Industry : Vive le Bruxelles de demain
Christmas Ebini C&J Global

"Greetings. Many of you may have been aware of what is currently going on in the two provinces of Southern Cameroons. "

My dear brothers and sisters:

Greetings. Many of you may have been aware of what is currently going on in the two provinces of Southern Cameroons. This is a problem that was created by the francophone political elites through deceptions and mechanizations from the moment the people of Southern Cameroons in good faith and love decided to form a political union of equal partnership through the path of reunification in October 1961 with the Republic of Cameroon . Since 1972 when through an illegal referendum the federation was abolished and the people of Southern Cameroons relegated to being 3rd class citizens and every symbol of their identity as a people and a nation summarily destroyed or confiscated by the francophone administration, the people of Southern Cameroons have remained peaceful. All peaceful efforts for redress and dialogue have either been ignored or met with violent repressions, intimidation and all forms of abuses on their basic human rights. They injected a divide and rule policy to keep us apart with the belief that we will never come together to form a force of resistance. In all these actions the francophone political elites and the francophone intellectuals have misinformed you our brothers and sisters and deceived you to misunderstand the evil against southern Cameroons and southern cameroonians, pushing you to either be indifferent or take a hostile view to the claims and plight of Southern Cameroonians. This has got us to where we are today and put you, us and the entire region at a very heavy risk of a situation we might not be able to control. You can only inflict pains on a people for so long and a time will certainly come when they will stand up and say enough is enough.

I come to you to appeal to the better angels in you as a people. Hoping you will understand and hold your deceptive and abusive political elites responsible for their crimes against your southern Cameroons brothers and sisters. It is today up to you. You can stand up against evil, hold your political elites accountable so we can together avoid a sad situation or you can continue being indifferent, collaborate with the sins of your political elites and watch what will unfold. By supporting the cause of Southern Cameroons you will be saving yourselves and holding those responsible for this carnage accountable. The choice is yours. I say this to you with brotherly love.

Christmas Ebini

Washington, DC

USA
Channels of Dialogue Have Opened

ADS







Barrister Harmony Bobga, Common Law Lawyers leader.



The channels for dialogue have opened after we met the Prime Minister, Head of Government in Bamenda. Nothing concrete emerged from the consultations beyond the opening of a window of opportunities for dialogue to prevail. It is on this account that the Common Law Lawyers strike action continues while we have been directed to open up to an enlarged meeting with the Minister of State, Minister of Justice. We will be signing a Memo with the Prime Minister to include a request for the meeting with the Minister of Justice. We hope that the government will have the same open mindedness as we have. One thing which stands out is that the word federalism which we analyze as a means of having a sustainable solution to the problems we have raised is taboo to the government and we have been invited to be tolerant and we also insist that it should be a two-way traffic. Evidently, the meeting with the Prime Minister is a good beginning. He was frank and the discussions were open.







Issues Raised Will be Handled Progressively



Afuh Stephen, PEATTU Teachers Trade Union leader.



Teacher Trade Union leaders in Bamenda used the opportunity offered by the Prime Minister to articulate reasons why we did not honour the invitation by the Minister of Higher Education in Yaounde. We respect him as the Prime Minister, Head of Government and took his word for serious given that he personally came to dialogue with teachers. The issues we raised were not easy to reach a consensus on day one and it was only after stalemates and suspensions of talks to re-strategize that we finally reached an agreement with the P.M, to the effect that issues raised will be handled progressively within a time frame to be decided by a new institutional framework to be created by the government. So the strike will only be suspended when at least one of the resolutions adopted is implemented on or before 30th November 2016







Give a Listening Ear to Problems



-Ni john Fru Ndi, SDF National Chairman.







Meeting with the Prime Minister, I took up the cry of the people, especially the children who took upon themselves to erect barricades in Bamenda because they felt that their town was dirty and roads were bad. I also spoke about the problems of striking teachers and lawyers but I could not speak with authority because I am a mere leader and they were available to talk for themselves about the technicalities of their professions. That is why I asked the Prime Minister to give a listening ear to issues that are dangerous to our society. I feel sorry for those who claim that Anglophones have no problem in Cameroon.







Consultations Inspire Lots of Hope



HRH Fon Abumbi of Bafut







I insisted on the importance of dialogue when I met the Prime Minister and I left him more comfortable than before. The Prime Minister appeared very serious and committed to solve the problems of teachers and lawyers. He invited us, traditional rulers to collaborate with the government for dialogue to bear fruits.

ADS
| BY Ricki Green |

The worlds most exclusive club for discerning carnivores has launched in Australia this week, with an ad giving solace to meat loving Australians who have been cast to the side and rejected in an era of clean-eating created by McCann Queensland.

Carnivore Club teamed up with McCann Queensland to create a raw and heartfelt production with a clear message to Aussie meat-lovers  you are not alone.

Benjamin Davis, ECD, McCann Queensland and self-proclaimed carnivore, said it was a project the team were proud to be a part of if it meant they could help the many hungry, neglected and lonely Australian carnivores out there.

Says Davis: For too long carnivores have been misunderstood and much maligned for their simple love of meat. Im just glad theres a club out there to help these lovely creatures.

Finding a carnivore in their natural habitat is becoming increasingly difficult in these times of vegetarian, gluten free, soy milk, chai latte insanity. Its even more difficult for them to find true love. Thankfully Carnivore Club care deeply about these misunderstood creatures.

The video ad campaign is supported by the launch of the Meat Your Match dating website which uses a series of carnivorous compatibility algorithms (CCA) to match carnivores with their salami loving soulmate. Carnivores can meat their destiny by searching for partners which similar emotional, physical and gastronomical needs.

Chief meat eater and founder of Carnivore Club, Tim Ray said that it was Australias meat loving reputation and Carnivore Clubs desire to bring more meat lovers together, that prompted the launch of the Meat Your Match dating service exclusively in Australia.

Says Ray: Australians have shown us that they have a true passion for meat, but sometimes theyre ashamed to admit it. We want Aussies to embrace their love for meat and what better way to help them do this than match them with a compatible carnivore who shares a similar taste for charcuterie.

Lonely carnivores seeking solace in a meat loving partner can join Meat Your Match at www.meatyourmatch.com and can visit www.carnivoreclub.co to join Carnivore Club.

Chief Meat Eater: Tim Ray

Agency: McCann Queensland

Executive Creative Director: Benjamin Davis

General Manager: Phillippa Netolicky

Group Account Director: Mia Hamilton

Copywriter: Benjamin Davis & Fiona Self

Art Director: Benjamin Davis & Jackie Dewar

Account Manager: James Fewtrell

Production: Cartel Film Production

Director: Davros El Davros

Executive Producer: Damion Tiernan

Producer: Katherine Cooke

Director of Photography: Sam Scoufos

Post-Production: The Empire Post

Post Production Producer: Georgia Martin

Offline Edit: Digby Hogan

Online/Comp: Tim Baker
| BY Ricki Green |

The Torch Awards has announced David&Goliath as the 2017 Torch Awards agency sponsor. D&G will join forces with Torch to help champion the next generation of young creatives and shine the spotlight on the 2017 Grand-Winning entry.

The Torch Awards submission deadline is February 17th. Finalist teams will be announced on April 3rd. The Grand-Winning Team will be announced and awarded live at the New York Show taking place May 18th at Jazz at Lincoln Centers Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York City.

For more information on entering, download info sheet  2017 Torch Awards One Sheet.pdf

David&Goliath, the Los Angeles-based advertising agency founded by David Angelo, is dedicated to helping challenger brands outsmart and outperform the competition, and the creative agency adheres to a one word philosophy that they live 24/7: Brave. This philosophy gives the agency the courage to take on any challenge that comes before them and the power to be true to who they are while inspiring their clients to do the same. D&Gs philosophy for success will inspire the emerging young creatives entering this years Torch Awards.

As a member of the 2016 Torch Awards jury, Angelo was able to observe the competition behind the scenes, experience the young creatives pitch their ideas and deliberate with the jury panel in selecting the winning team. He experienced firsthand the extensive reach of the Torch Awards, the innovation of its global entrants and the impact on both the young creatives and the nonprofit organization.

Says Angelo: I was honored to be a judge at last years Torch Awards and was very inspired by the caliber of thinking that came from these young creatives. When the opportunity arose to be a sponsor at this years Torch Awards, we were both humbled and excited. To be part of a movement that inspires change from within is rewarding and very much a part of who we are and what we live every day.

Says Lisa Armstrong, director, Torch Awards: David Angelos dedication to championing the next generation of creatives is inspirational and was evident through his dynamic participation while on the 2016 Torch Jury. We are thrilled to have David&Goliath as the 2017 Torch Awards agency sponsor.

New York Festivals created the Torch Awards as an expression of their commitment to the development and promotion of the next generation of creative talent. The competition harnesses the power, knowledge, and experience of the Worlds Best Advertising Jury to not only promote the mission of an important international nonprofit organization, but also to help young creatives age 18-27 gain skills that will help them elevate their careers.

This years challenge is the Integrated-Mixed Media Challenge. Young creatives from around the world will have the opportunity to submit their idea for the nonprofits goal set forth in the brief.

Five finalist teams will be chosen from all the submissions received and called to New York City to pitch their campaign idea to a panel of jurors, which includes representatives from the nonprofit. To help them prepare, each team is paired with a mentor selected from the New York Festivals Jurysome of the most influential leaders within the international advertising community.
| BY Ricki Green |

WPP AUNZs specialist creative agency 1 Kent St has been appointed by Recognise, as part of a bid to remove racist clauses in the constitution and recognise Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander peoples as the first Australians.

1 Kent Sts remit includes strategy, creative and digital elements for the development of a campaign executed in conjunction with fellow WPP AUNZ incumbent media services provider, Ikon. The creative appointment was made following a competitive pitch.

Creative director Simon Collins said the 1 Kent St campaign would target all Australians, including Aboriginal and Torres Straits Islander communities.

Says Collins: The issues of indigenous rights and Constitutional change have many unique challenges, and were looking forward to being part of a movement to drive real change.

Since its inception in 2012, Recognise has driven a strong national awareness campaign resulting in national and multi-party support for change. Previous campaign work was executed by Lawrence Creative Strategy, and several members of that team, including 1 Kent St Group account director Jen Clarke, will work on this next phase of communication.

Says Tim Gartrell, joint campaign director, Recognise: Change to our Constitution can only come with the approval of a majority of voters in a majority of states. Thats why there needs to be high levels of public awareness and a very large and broad movement of support.

Succeeding at a referendum is challenging, but our Constitution needs to tell our countrys whole story. It is a major issue and one that affects us all, because it is about who we are as a nation. We look forward to working with 1 Kent St on this important national campaign.
| BY Ricki Green |

The Core Agency has secured digital duties for Cook Islands Tourism following a four-way competitive pitch, capping off an excellent year of business growth for the Sydney independent.

The agency will work alongside Dylan Harrison of The Hooligan Collective to build on the existing brand platform he has created with Cook Islands Tourism, Love a little paradise. Harrison, who has partnered with Cook Islands Tourism over the last two years on creative development and film production, together with the client, invited The Core Agency to compete for the business, given its impressive track record and digital expertise.

The Core Agency has been tasked initially with developing an immersive and compelling web experience that informs visitors about the destination, inspiring them as it showcases the true beauty of its 15 Pacific islands, and facilitates the booking process. Harrison is creative directing and producing all the films for the new site.

Says Christian Finucane, creative partner, The Core Agency: Were excited to be working with Cook Islands Tourism to highlight the amazing beauty of this unspoilt paradise. The potential for the destination in the Australian market is huge. The Cook Islands are truly a hidden gem, and we look forward to helping more people discover their next South Pacific holiday destination.

Says Karla Eggelton, director of sales and marketing, Cook Islands Tourism: We had several options following the pitch, but The Core Agency presented outstanding strategic thinking and demonstrated considerable digital expertise.
| BY Ricki Green |

Following a highly successful 14-years working on brands including Jim Beam and Canadian Club, The Works is parting ways with Beam Suntory.

During the course of one of Australias longest standing advertising relationships, the independent Sydney agency has significantly grown Beam Suntorys key brands both domestically and internationally. The agency has been recognised with multiple Australian Effie Awards, including the Grand Effie for Canadian Club in 2015, in addition to an international Effie for Jim Beam in 2013.

Says Trent Chapman, marketing director, Beam Suntory: Beam Suntory have made a decision to re-align their business globally. The team at The Works have done a fantastic job building our brands over our 14-year relationship and they leave both Jim Beam and Canadian Club in a very healthy position. Id like to thank them for their commitment and passion for our brands and wish them all the best in the future.

Says Damian Pincus, co-founder and creative partner, The Works: There arent many agencies in Australia that can boast the longevity of relationship The Works has had with the Beam family. It was one that started with a single brand, Jim Beam, and ultimately led to us become the lead global agency on the business. We also added Canadian Club, and other brands over that time.

While you never want such a successful relationship to end, a decision has been made internationally to take the business in a new direction meaning it is no longer feasible to continue our partnership.

We wish all those at Beam Suntory every continued success and we thank them all for a great ride over the past 14 years. It has been an absolute pleasure to have played such a major role in growing Jim Beam now in growth and Canadian Club in double digit growth, at a time when both categories have experienced overall sales decline.

But as one door closes another opens and we are excited about the prospect of bringing our alcohol marketing experience  which is second to none in Australia  to other brands looking to replicate the success enjoyed by Beam Suntory.

The past 18 months have been the best ever for The Works. We launched On Message, Australias first messenger based social media agency, introduced an industry leading and widely acclaimed paternity policy, cemented and grew our remit with Optus, ING Direct, Tetley and Visit Canberra, as well as winning new clients including Masterpet and University of NSW.
| BY Lynchy |

J. Walter Thompson Manila has promoted Golda Roldan to the Managing Director role. The promotion, with immediate effect, comes after two years of double-digit growth for the office.

Roldan (pictured), first joined J. Walter Thompson Manila 2006, then left in 2010 to work at Leo Burnett. She rejoined J. Walter Thompson in 2013 and was promoted to General Manager in February 2015. She is active in the industry and is currently President of the countrys 4As, and the Overall Chairman for the 20Th 4As Philippines AOY Awards taking place in 2017.

Said Roldan: I am humbled and grateful to work with an amazing team beside me. I am proud to be part of an agency who is committed to create pioneering ideas that solve human challenges and privileged to collaborate with clients who believe in what we do.

She is a rare combination of a good suit with excellent creative assessment, said Bob Hekkelman, J. Walter Thompsons Southeast Asia CEO. Her passion for people and her appetite for good creative work made the Manila office a more exciting place to work. Goldas willingness to get down in the trenches, rally her team, and extract the best work from them has resulted in a string of awards this year at the Asian Marketing Effectiveness Awards, Spikes Asia, Tambuli Awards and WARC Prize for Asian Strategy.
Prosecutors have argued throughout the trial Woutersz's state of mind at the time of the killing was linked to her extensive past use of drugs, mostly ice, while her lawyers say she had a mental illness that qualified her for a defence of mental impairment.
"But it's when those types of symptoms and reactions don't resolve with time, that you start to realise 'I'm not processing this as best as you would like, it's impacting my life and I need to seek help to learn how to manage it and recognise triggers'.
Bharti Airtel now owns 83.25% after acquiring Econets 45.2% stake, a shareholding which long caused dispute between the two companies.

The two companies have already settled all claims and disputes, which date back to before Airtel bought Zains African operations in 2010 for $10.7 billion. Econet  which owns Liquid Telecom in south and east Africa  claimed that it had the first call on the operation thanks to an agreement dating back to before Zains ownership.

Bharti Airtel has just reported flat growth for its African operations, which account for 22% of the whole groups revenue and 13% of EBITDA. The company reported $1.7 billion in sales in the six months to the end of September, up just 3% on the same period of 2015. EBITDA was 22.5% of revenue, compared with 18.9% in the same period of 2015.
Mustafa Abdul Wahid, acting executive president of the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA), told Daily News Egypt that operators face having their licences revoked in some circumstances.

Etisalat, Orange and Vodafone are the three operators that can now provide 4G services in Egypt  after a hard-fought negotiation with the NTRA  in competition with Telecom Egypt, which has had a licence for some time.

The 4G service licence obliges companies to provide good 3G service in the areas where 4G signals may be weak to ensure that all clients have access to decent communication services, Abdul Wahid told the newspaper.

He said the list of sanctions contained in the 4G licence agreement includes terms about the quality of service that companies are obliged to provide. They include deterrent penalties for companies if they go below a stipulated quality.

He said sanctions also include a fine of up to 25% of the insurance value paid by the company, amounting to 100 million Egyptian pounds ($5.6 million) each time. This fine will be payable if companies delay payment for the service or break any of the contract terms, reported the newspaper.

In theory the new licences are for unified services, allowing the three companies to provide fixed services in competition with Telecom Egypt. However, Abdul Wahid told the newspaper that the companies had not yet submitted requests to begin fixed services.

Etisalat and Orange each have 10MHz of spectrum for 4G services and Vodafone  which has a complex relationship with Telecom Egypt  has 5MHz. Not all of the spectrum is immediately available, as NTRA has to evict current users.
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 ...
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.
NIIT Imperia - Centre for Advanced Learning Institute along with IIM Calcutta has announced a fresh batch for Advanced Program in Strategic Management (APSM).

The six-month certificate program in Strategic Management is specially designed for managers who are looking to move into the roles that require them to handle strategic issues.

The eligibility for Candidates applying for the program is that they should have at least 50% marks in their graduation or post-graduation recognized by UGC/AICTE/DEC/AIU in any discipline. Professionals applying for this program should have minimum of 7 years of of work experience (full-time paid employment) post completion of their graduation.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Neeraj Sharma, Vice President, NIIT Ltd, said, "NIIT Imperia has been conceptualized with the founding thought of providing quality management education to working professionals. The Advance Program in Strategic Management, which is being offered with IIM Calcutta for the 10th time in a row through NIIT's Synchronous Learning platform, will help professionals in developing a strategic thinking mode, especially amidst great complexities".

Prof Biswatosh Saha, Professor, Strategic Management Group at IIM Calcutta, said, "We are delighted to partner with NIIT Imperia to make Advanced Program in Strategic Management available to professionals across the country using NIIT's Synchronous Learning platform. We hope that this program will help professionals shape a successful corporate career."

APSM will help candidates understand strategic landscapes of industries, including the interface with law and regulation, and institutional variation across nations. Students undertaking the program will be given 16 case studies on strategic issues & strategic thinking.

In addition to this, students need to attend 8 days of campus visit module during the program (4 Days at the beginning and 4 days at the end). Successful candidates will be given certification from IIM Calcutta.

IIM Calcutta and NIIT Imperia announce fresh batch for Advanced Program in Supply Chain Management
Oxford University Press (OUP) on Friday released Oxford Advantage, an application to help school students study better. A department of the University of Oxford, OUP has launched the app as an integrated learning solution, which it said would provide schools with a comprehensive educational tool kit.

According to Sivaramakrishnan V, Managing Director, OUP India, the app would serve as an end-to-end solution for various educational needs of the schools.

Also Oxford Advantage covers the CBSE board curriculum and the content is available both in print and digital mediums.

The app comprises lesson plans, question banks, test generator, teacher training and professional development modules, assessment tools for use in school and at home, apps for students, teachers and parents, and provision for reports. There are also features to help track the students' progress throughout the academic year, Sivaramakrishnan said.

Oxford Advantage is a product of OUP's in-house innovation designed to deliver on almost every element of modern-day school education through digitally-rich interactive learning resources combined with print content, a press release from Oxford said.

"Based on cross-disciplinary and theme-based learning modules, this solution will enable superior learning outcomes for CBSE schools in the country," Sivaramakrishnan said.

"The integrated learning solution would enable parents to stay completely updated on their child's performance and progress. Assessment reports, assignments, dashboard and notification services are available on the Oxford Advantage app that is specially designed for them," he added.

According, to the Oxford University website, Oxford Advantage resources are available for English, Hindi, Environmental Science and Mathematics for Classes 1 and 2; and English, Mathematics, Hindi, Science and Social Studies for Class 3.

The course comprises a Student's Book, Workbook, Teacher's Manual along with a Learning Management System. The programme maintains a thematic approach across levels and subjects to allow for a cohesive learning experience.

Oxford University Announces Its First MOOC In Economics
Smart Class for rural India, has been a dream come true for village kids. One such initiative that was formulated by Samsung India has proven successful for students.

Samsung Smart Classes, a scheme introduced in collaboration with Jawahar Navodaya Vidylaya by Human Resource Development Ministry promotes digital literacy among youngsters and underprivileged children in rural areas.

On Samsung's part, its success lies in being able to deliver technological solutions and gaining expertise in it.

Samsung Smart Class offers facilities such as interactive smartboard, laptops/tablet, power back up and Wi-Fi connectivity. Regular lessons in maths, science and social science are conducted. Teachers are given training to make optimum use of the class and deliver the best to students.

According to the Principal of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Chandigarh, students are performing better in the school after the introduction of Samsung Smart Class. " The number of toppers is on the rise and more students are participating in extra-curricular activities and are confident. Teachers are happy with the rising educational standards."

Samsung set up smart classes in 373 schools in 2013. It covers over 200000 students in the country and make the digitally empowered. Around 7400 teachers are trained to use the digitally interactive technology.

Recently, Sadanand Ugale, a boy from Maharashtra who was a recipient of this learning method in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Auragabad was offered a study trip to Australia, This was highlighted in Samsung's success story ads on television and other mediums.

The classroom is further updated through regular feedback from teachers and students. Digitally interactive platform also breaks the shyness and hesitance of students to ask doubts, increasing classroom discussions.

Vedanta Foundation Launches Smart Class & Science Lab Pilot Project
General Motors has launched the new 2017 Holden Barina Down Under, bringing the vehicle known elsewhere as the Chevy Sonic to the Australian market with its own unique styling.



With a face inspired by the Camaro, the new Barina was designed in Australia for the local market. It brings with it a slew of new features, including a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, as well as a rear-view camera with Rear Park Assist.

Holden is offering the 2017 Barina in two trim levels, dubbed LS and LT. Both are powered by a 1.6-liter inline-four and feature LED daytime running lights, with LT offering 17-inch alloys, enhanced interior trim and push-button ignition with passive entry.

The Barina has been awarded a 5-star ANCAP safety rating and is now reaching Holden dealers across Australia.

Photo Gallery
A Canadian startup called Girfalco has released a teaser image of an electric three-wheeler it hopes will rival the Polaris Slingshot and T-Rex.



Dubbed the Azkarra, this teaser shows that the vehicle will adopt an aggressive design with many sharp lines and pointed edges including large buttresses and rollover hoops for the driver and passenger. Just like the Slingshot, there wont be a windshield as standard.

Left Lane News reports that the Girfalco Azkarra with use a single electric motor driving the lone rear wheel. However, an Azkarra S model will also be offered with three electric motors, giving the vehicle all-wheel drive and torque vectoring.

Inside, the Azkarra will reportedly adopt a premium sound system designed for open-top driving and be highly customizable.

More about the Azkarra should be revealed when it debuts next week.

PHOTO GALLERY
The world got its first look at the latest-generation Kia Rio at the Paris Auto Show and now, weve been given a glimpse at the upcoming Rio sedan thanks to its Chinese equivalent.



Dubbed the Kia K2, the model adopts a number of unique styling touches to distinguish it from the Rio hatchback, some of which will and some wont make their way onto the Rio sedan.

Overall, the K2 adopts a more flashy design than can be expected for its worldwide counterpart, most prominently with the chrome front grille likely to be ditched in favor of a black grille for the Rio, just like the hatch. At the rear, there are unique taillights which connect to each other and a blacked-out portion similar to the Rio hatch.

The 2018 K2 measures 4,400 mm long and 1,740 mm wide, making it 22 mm longer and 40 mm wider than the outgoing model.

Inside, the similarities between the Rio hatch and K2 sedan are particularly obvious with an identical steering wheel used for both. Additionally, the 2018 K2 has the same overall center console design, including the controls for the air conditioning. One significant change between the siblings is that the infotainment screen of the K2 has been better incorporated into the dashboard.

Locally, the Kia K2 will be available with a 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine delivering 98 hp and 133 Nm of torque and a 1.6-liter with 121 hp and 151 Nm of torque. The 1.4-liter can be mated to either a six-speed manual or six-speed auto while the 1.6-liter is offered exclusively with the auto.

PHOTO GALLERY
As Daimler looks towards the future of the industry, it has revealed that it will invest up to 10 billion euros ($11 billion) into the development of electric vehicles.



At Septembers Paris Auto Show, the German company unveiled its Mercedes-Benz Generation EQ concept, providing a look at the first member of its upcoming range of EVs. Now, while speaking with German publication Stuttgarter Zeitung, company research and development head, Thomas Weber, described just how dedicated to EVs Mercedes will become.

By 2025 we want to develop 10 electric cars based on the same architecture, he said. For this push we want to invest up to 10 billion euros.

Weber asserted that three of the 10 models will be Smart models with ranges of up to 700 km (434 miles) on a single charge, reports Reuters.

The new architecture being developed by Mercedes-Benz will be used exclusively in its EQ brand and in 2019, should make its road-going debut with a production-spec version of the Generation EQ, giving the brand a rival to the Tesla Model X and upcoming Audi e-Tron Quattro.

Of course, Mercedes isnt alone with ambitious EV plans. Also at the Paris Auto Show, Volkswagen detailed its future family of EVs, starting with the I.D. Concept, set to become a production reality in 2020.

PHOTO GALLERY
The time has come for the Ford Kuga (or Escape as its called on the other side of the pond) to get its mid-life facelift, with the update becoming a part of the companys plan to strengthen its SUV line-up in Europe.



Instead of throwing a regular press launch, Ford decided to organize a huge road trip, where a fleet of Kugas would start their journey from Athens, Greece all the way up to the North Cape in Norway. The trip was then divided in 15 legs with Ford inviting us to drive the new Kuga in Finland for Leg 13, from Oulu to Ivalo and across the Arctic Circle.

As you would imagine, Finland is rather cold this time of the year, with temperatures close to -10 degrees Celcius and a whole lot of that icy white flake stuff dropping from the sky. Armed with the warmest of clothing we arrived in Oulu where the new Ford Kuga was waiting.

Looking Good

Ford has updated the looks of the new Kuga, with new lights all around and a new front grille being the most obvious changes, bringing it in line with the bigger Edge SUV that was launched a little while ago in Europe.

The range also gains two new versions: the luxurious top-of-the-line Vignale and the sporty ST-Line. The latter throws some go-faster looks into the mix but not the extra grunt you hoped for. Still though, the new ST-Line comes with a 10mm lower ride height, thicker antiroll bars and a retuned suspension, all of them aiming to make the Kuga a bit more inspiring to drive.

The end result is rather good for the Kuga as it not only looks sportier, but more characterful than its predecessor as well. Ford has also installed their latest SYNC3 infotainment system which comes with a sharper 8-inch touchscreen display, a faster voice control operation, an easier-to-use interface, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard.

All of the test cars were equipped with AWD and winter tires, which are mandatory in Finland this time of the year, leaving us with the choice of sampling the range-topping 180hp 1.5-litre EcoBoost petrol and 177hp 2.0-litre TDCi diesel engines.

This 1.5-litre EcoBoost unit is the most powerful petrol engine of the range, but Ford offers it only in conjunction with AWD and a traditional six-speed torque converter automatic gearbox, instead of the Powershift dual-clutch unit available in the diesels. The added weight of the AWD system though makes it slower than its lesser-powered 148hp manual FWD petrol sibling, which for the record tips the scales at 1579kg (3,481 lbs), more than 100kg (220 lbs) less than the 180hp version we drove.

Enough With The Details, Lets Just Go

Our driving style was largely mandated by the soft snow that covered most of our 300-mile route (around 500km) from Oulu to Ivalo. Speeds were kept low; inputs were calmer than usual and generally a more careful approach was adopted.

We started with the range-topping 2.0-litre TDCi Vignale model, which sort of checks every box in the options list, adding things on top like a different grille, quilted leather upholstery for the seats and a leather-wrapped dashboard among others.

The addition of the SYNC3 infotainment system reduced the number of physical buttons on the dashboard while the leather inside does give you a sense of higher quality but dont expect any actual differences over the cheaper models.

The 177hp 2.0-litre TDCi diesel is smooth and surprisingly quiet in its operation, especially on motorway cruising, offering 295lb-ft (400Nm) of torque from 2,000rpm which is more than enough grunt to get the Kuga going. The cabin remains a calm and relaxing place for long distances, with only a little bit of wind noise coming from the big door mirrors.

The chassis retains some of the nimbleness that characterized the original European Kuga, meaning a precise front end matched by a nicely weighted and consistent steering wheel. There is plenty of grip too, thanks to the combination of the winter tires and Fords intelligent AWD which shuffles torque between axles according to the driving conditions.

Despite having a suspension that allows for some body roll, the new Kuga allows you to build confidence quickly behind the wheel, a feature than came handy later on when a snow storm decided to keep us company.

Diesel-Petrol: 1-0

We then switched to an ST-Line with the 180hp 1.5-litre EcoBoost petrol engine and almost immediately the smaller engine made its presence known. Its not a bad engine, only one that doesnt fit the Kuga like the torquey diesels do. Ford says that peak torque remains the same (177lb-ft/240Nm) in all three versions of the 1.5-litre which reveals why the petrol engine feels like its working much harder to move the SUV.

The combination of the AWD system and the six-speed auto dont do the turbocharged four-cylinder petrol any favors either, bringing more noise into the cabin than its diesel counterparts on motorway cruises.

The sporty suspension does a good job at controlling the roll of the car without compromising the comfort too much, but the increased noise levels brought by the 1.5-litre EcoBoost makes us feel that the Kuga is a more complete family car when equipped with one of the diesel engines.

Conclusion

With the segment being flooded with new models, the Ford Kuga has a tougher than ever job. Its still one of the most enjoyable drives out there as long as you opt for one of the diesel engines. If you still insist on a petrol SUV, youll find that rivals offer a more complete package.

As for the upscale Vignale version, there is much talk about whether it represents good value. Just by looking the 34,445 price tag (around $43k in current exchange rates) of the 177hp 2.0-litre TDCi AWD PowerShift version in the UK, it sure sounds like a pretty expensive proposition, asking for 3,250 more than the equivalent ST-Line model, but to sweeten the deal, Ford also gives Vignale customers a special concierge service too.

In the real world though, where most people finance their cars, the price difference is likely to feel a lot smaller. Ford UK has a history of selling more range-topping Kugas through finance and intends on keeping the momentum going with the new Vignale editions.

PHOTO GALLERY

Ford Kuga Vignale

Ford Kuga ST-Line
Namibia tops African countries featured in Global Entrepreneurship Index; Rwanda, Botswana, South Africa fall closely behind

The inaugural Ashish J Thakkar Global Entrepreneurship Index measures entrepreneurial environments around the world and assesses each of its 85 countries against a set of criteria that spans policy, infrastructure, education, entrepreneurial environment and finance.



Of the African nations, Namibia ranks 42nd overall, Rwanda ranks 43rd, Botswana ranks 44th and South Africa ranks 46th all of which perform well on the Policy pillar but have some way to go to improve on their infrastructure and education in particular.

Of the top three African countries in the Index, Namibia and Botswana are stronger on the education pillar because of comparatively higher levels of literacy and quality in education. Both countries have made education central to their development.

Rwanda scores highly on the Policy and Finance Pillars driven by government initiatives to increase the ease of doing business. Credit is easily available and business transparency is high.

Zambia scores particularly well on the Finance Pillar (72). Primarily because of the availability of credit and a low total tax rate.

Zambia, South Africa and Rwanda, the top 3 countries in Africa on the Finance pillar, stand head and shoulders above their peers, with scores of 72, 66 and 65 respectively. This places Zambia in the top 10 of all countries globally on the Finance Pillar, just behind the USA (78).

Significant challenges exist in terms of Africas political stability, underdeveloped infrastructure, poor education and under-diversified economies. Comparatively lower scores for infrastructure are primarily driven by a lack of electrical access and the technology that comes with reliable access to energy, such as telecommunications and internet access.



Lower scores for education are due to the overall quality of education and lower literacy rates. Boosting opportunities for a quality education is imperative for increasing the regions quality of entrepreneurs and start-ups and providing a suitable workforce.

While much of Western Europe does well overall in the Index, Greece and Spain rank relatively low (34th and 50th respectively). Both nations are continuing to reel from the after-effects of the financial crisis, which have been exacerbated by poor levels of entrepreneurial opportunities.



Rona Kotecha, Executive Director, Mara Foundation said: The Ashish J. Thakkar Global Entrepreneurship Index offers a powerful insight into various elements that impact entrepreneurship globally. Whilst Mara Mentor enables and empowers entrepreneurs, the Index and its 20 policy recommendations are designed to provide a starting point for changes that can be implemented to create more effective entrepreneurial environments. This, in turn, will lead to job creation and a positive impact on economies around the world.



The Ashish J Thakkar Global Entrepreneurship Index 2016 is the brainchild of serial entrepreneur, Ashish J Thakkar, who started his first business at the age of 15. The Index is a Mara Foundation initiative that has been developed with support from independent research consultancy, Opinium, to create a wide-ranging and thorough analysis of the state of entrepreneurship globally.



Ashish J Thakkar, Founder, Mara Group & Mara Foundation said: Through the work of Mara Group over the past 20 years, I have come to recognise the immense contribution that entrepreneurs make to economies and societies around the world  particularly in relation to job creation. In recent years, however, it has become more and more apparent that governments and the private sector are simply not doing enough to support entrepreneurs in their endeavours. With the creation of this Index, we hope to provide some solid policy recommendations that will help guide discussions and improve entrepreneurial environments globally.



President Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank said: I commend Ashish J. Thakkar and the Mara Foundation for creating this timely index. It provides useful insights on how Africa can unlock the potential of its youth and boost entrepreneurship. As populations are aging rapidly in much of the rest of the world, Africa can reap the economic dividends of its growing labor force. Africa is poised to become the next center for entrepreneurship, but we must provide Africas youth with the required skills and create an environment that will enable them to become the business leaders of tomorrow.



Mo Ibrahim, Founding Chairman of Satya Capital Limited, Founder and Chair of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation said: Entrepreneurs are a great engine for development. In Africa, you need to encourage and create the right environment for their success. I really wish to congratulate The Mara Foundation for developing its important index which is a useful tool for all of us.



Richard Branson, Virgin Group Founder said: The Mara Foundation has done some great work supporting entrepreneurs all over the world. Im delighted to see their new entrepreneurship index that will help identify opportunities for business, not-for-profits and Government to work together to create the right environment for entrepreneurs to thrive and to create jobs.

www.Mara-Foundation.org
A heavily revised BMW i3 could debut in 2017, according to German newspaper Welt am Sonntag.



Reuters reports that company sources informed the local publication of a new i3 coming next year complete with an improved range and an updated design.

Apparently, the brand will install a new high-capacity battery into the electric hatchback allowing it to travel well in excess of the 300 km (186 miles) currently achievable. Just how much further the updated i3 will go isnt known but it will be an increase of less than 50 per cent.

Already this year, BMW updated the i3 with an improved battery, increasing range by 50 per cent.

Although Volkswagen and Mercedes are planning an onslaught of electric vehicles early next decade, BMWs i3 and i8 models have experienced lacklustre sales since their respective launches, suggesting the brand jumped the gun by introducing the duo to the market before there was enough demand for EVs.

PHOTO GALLERY
Photo: North Okanagan Naturalists Club

North America's long-running citizen science project gets underway again in December.

The annual Christmas bird count in Vernon takes place on Dec. 18.

Begun in 1900, the count focuses on the winter bird population, which is different from summer, as many birds leave our area for warmer climes and other species arrive from the far north, said Claude Rioux of the North Okanagan Naturalists' Club.

Information is collected by thousands of volunteer participants across North America and is used daily by biologists to assess population trends and distribution of birds. The results of all counts are submitted to Bird Studies Canada and collated for all of the continent.

The Christmas bird count is completed in a single day within a previously established 24-kilometre diameter area.

The naturalists club is inviting all interested people, new and experience birders, to take part and come equipped with binoculars or a camera.

To take part or for further information contact Peter Blokker, the North Okanagan's Christmas bird count coordinator by email: [email protected] or telephone 250-545-8297.
Photo: Contributed

Its really irritating when you cant browse to your favourite websites or collect your email. Sometimes the problem is with your computer, but not always.

Heres how to find out.

Check your modem and router

If you cant connect to any website and you cant get your email program to work, maybe the problem isnt your computer. It could be your connection.

Look at your router and modem. Are the normal lights on? If not, are the router and modem plugged into the electrical outlet?

Are the cables connected securely to the router, modem and to your computer?

If youre not sure, disconnect and reconnect the cables or reboot the equipment. Last weeks column showed you how.

Everyone should know how to do this. Did that help?

If the lights arent right, contact your Internet Service Provider for help. The problem is likely theirs to solve.



Is everything broken, or just some things?

Can you connect to anything? If you open your browser and get an error message --- or you simply get nowhere --- try a different destination.

If your start page is 123abc.com and it's down or struggling, your browser wont connect. Type a different destination into the address bar and see if you can get there.

Try http://castanet.net or http://computercarekelowna.com. Or use one of your Bookmarks or Favorites to get to a site.

If you can open something besides your start page, the problem is on the other end, not with your computer or connection.

Is your email program working? If you cant get to any websites, your email program is also down, and youve checked the modem and router, the next step is to make sure your computer is connected to the router/modem.

Is your Wi-Fi turned off? Is your Ethernet cable unplugged? Get your computer connected and try again.

If you can get email, but you cant browse, or if you can browse, but you cant get email, your connection is probably fine, and the problem is almost certainly with your computer.

If your email isnt working, make a note of the error and call your ISP. They might already be aware of a problem with their email servers.

If its a password problem, be prepared to let them change your password and let them help you update your email program with that new password.

And please write down that password and put it where you can find it again.

If your email is fine, but you cant get to any websites, your connection is probably fine and the problem might be with your browser.

What browser are you having trouble with?

A browser is the program you use to view websites. On Windows computers, the most common browsers are Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome.

If youre using Windows 10, your browser might be Microsoft Edge.

How do you know what browser youre using? The browsers logo is one big clue.

Internet Explorers is a lowercase blue e with a gold swoosh through it.

Firefoxs is an orange fox wrapped around a blue globe.

Chromes is a circle or a globe with blue in the middle and yellow, red and green on the outer part.

Edge looks like an Internet Explorer e with a Mohawk.

An easy way to get the name and the version of the browser is to visit http://www.whatsmybrowser.org/. (Obviously, you should do this while your browser is working, not when its broken.)

If you have more than one browser on your computer, try a different one. If you cant or if that doesnt work, check the settings for your computers firewall and antivirus programs. Did you accidentally block something?



Have you tried turning it off and turning it on again?

Finally, rebooting the computer sometimes clears up these problems. Its always worth a try. Not sure how? See the second item here.

If youve gone as far as you can go and still cant arrive at your intended destination, you might still have to call for help. But youll have a better idea of where the problem is most likely to be found and who you need to go to for support.

Links

How to get out of trouble.

Whats My Browser?

Why does rebooting your computer fix so many issues?

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
Photo: The Canadian Press

They came for salsa music and mojitos and ended up wandering through a city turned still and silent by nine days of national mourning for Fidel Castro.

As Cuba prepares a massive commemoration for the leader of its socialist revolution, tens of thousands of high-season travellers have found themselves accidental witnesses to history  and smack in the middle of a sombre city that's little like its usual exuberant self.

"Who knows what tomorrow or after nine days brings in terms of the country and what happens for the future," said Graham Palmer, a 36-year-old financial director from London. "And I think we will certainly look back at the airport tomorrow and feel quite privileged that we've been here."

"We picked up the (Communist Party) Granma paper from yesterday, so we've got that," said his companion, 36-year-old marketing worker Emma Taylor.

"I think we could quite even think about framing it," Palmer interjected. "It's quite poignant."

Yet they and other travellers said that in addition to the awe at being present as Cubans honour one of the 20th century's most influential leaders, there's a tinge of regret at seeing such a subdued Havana.

Many museums have closed their doors, and a state-sanctioned ban on live music has shuttered concerts and nightspots including the famed Tropicana nightclub. Old Havana these days is eerily devoid of the roving troubadours whose Buena Vista Social Club croonings normally echo through the cobblestone streets. And the 1950s classic cars that function as collective taxis are doing without the usual reggaeton at max volume.

Martin Sawicki, a 34-year-old accountant from Warsaw, Poland, said he was unable to visit the University of Havana or the Revolution Plaza, where Castro's ashes are to be on display starting Monday. Workers there have already cordoned off access to the towering monument to independence hero Jose Marti.

Meanwhile a citywide ban on most alcohol sales means those savoring Cuban cigars for the first time have to do so without the traditional accompanying snifter of rum.

"They tell us, sorry but we are not serving beer," said Sawicki. "It's a little bit annoying because we would like to have a glass of beer in the evening."
Photo: The Canadian Press

Elian Gonzalez, the centre of an international custody battle waged by Fidel Castro nearly two decades ago, returned to the public eye Sunday to praise the leader who fought to return him to Cuba.

Echoing the round-the-clock adulation on state media, Gonzalez said on government-run television that the Cuban leader's legacy will long outlive him.

It's "not right to talk about Fidel in the past tense ... but rather that Fidel will be," Gonzalez said. "Today more than ever, make him omnipresent."

Gonzalez was 5 when he, his mother and others attempted a sea crossing between Cuba and the United States in 1999. His mother died on the voyage, but he survived and was taken to Florida. A bitter dispute broke out between his relatives in the U.S., who wanted him to stay there, and his father back home.

Castro, who died Friday night at 90, made the issue a national cause celebre and led huge demonstrations demanding Elian be returned to his father. U.S. authorities eventually sent him back.

"Fidel was a friend who at a difficult moment was with my family, with my father, and made it possible for me to return to my father, to return to Cuba," Gonzalez said.

He spoke as workers spruced up the Cuban capital's sprawling Revolution Plaza in preparation for two days of tributes.

Hundreds of thousands are expected to visit to pay their respects starting Monday in the shadow of Havana's towering monument to independence hero Jose Marti and a huge sculpture of revolution leader Ernesto "Che" Guevara.

A mass public ceremony is planned at the square Tuesday.

"It is a great sorrow. Everyone is feeling it," said Orlando Alvarez, a jeweler who was fishing on the seaside Malecon boulevard in the morning. "Everyone will be there."

Cuba's government declared nine days of national mourning after Castro died and this normally vibrant city has been notably subdued. On Saturday night, the Malecon, Havana's social centre, was all but deserted, with dozens of people instead of the thousands who normally go to party there on weekends.

"I have never seen this square so quiet," Spanish tourist Miguel Gonzalez said as he took pictures of Revolution Plaza.
Photo: The Canadian Press

President-elect Donald Trump claimed without evidence Sunday that "millions" voted illegally in the national election, scoffing at Hillary Clinton's nearly 2 million edge in the popular vote and returning to his campaign mantra of a rigged race even as he prepares to enter the White House in less than two months.

Trump and his lieutenants assailed an effort  now joined by Clinton  to recount votes in up to three battleground states, calling the push fraudulent, the work of "crybabies" and, in Trump's estimation, "sad."

The president-elect himself launched a Twitter offensive that spanned more than 12 hours on Sunday, casting a shadow over the legitimacy of an election that he actually won.

"I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," he tweeted in the afternoon before alleging in an evening tweet "serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California." Trump's transition team did not respond to questions seeking evidence of the unfounded claims.

There's been no indication of widespread vote manipulation, illegal voting or hacking that materially affected the outcome one way or the other. It's that very lack of evidence that suggests Trump is likely to prevail in recounts.

Trump on Sunday tweeted part of Clinton's concession speech, when she told supporters they must accept that "Donald Trump is going to be our president," and snippets from her debate remarks, when she denounced the Republican nominee for refusing to say in advance that he would accept the Election Day verdict.

This came on top of his saying it was a "scam" that Green Party nominee Jill Stein was revisiting the vote count in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Trump won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday. His Michigan margin was a hair's breadth 0.22 per cent of the state's votes.

Clinton leads the national popular vote by close to 2 million votes, but Trump won 290 electoral votes to Clinton's 232, not counting Michigan. She could conceivably tip the electoral balance in the remote event that all flipped to her in recounts.

Trump returned to New York Sunday evening after spending Thanksgiving weekend at his West Palm Beach estate. His transition team said the president-elect had scheduled a series of meetings Monday with prospective administration hires.

Among the jobs Trump has still yet to fill: secretary of state. Internal division over the position again spilled out into the open on Sunday as Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway voiced her concerns with the possibility of Romney landing such a significant position.

Trump supporters "feel a bit betrayed that you can get a Romney back in there after everything he did," Conway said. "We don't even know if he voted for Donald Trump. He and his consultants were nothing but awful to Donald Trump for a year." She added that she was "reflecting what the grassroots are saying."

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker are among other prospects to serve as the country's top diplomat.
Photo: Kate Bouey

It appears new leaders have stepped in to help the Vernon Legion continue.

A special meeting of Branch 25 will be held at Eagles Hall on Tuesday, Dec. 6, to swear-in a new executive, according to Ron Heuman, the outgoing president of Branch 25.

At a meeting last week, no one stepped forward to run for president, vice president or treasurer leaving the future of the club in grave doubt.

Absolutely. If we don't have people stepping up, the Vernon Legion will cease to exist, Heuman said at the time.

Legions in a number of regions have run into survival problems in recent years, partly due to the loss of veterans from the Second World War and Korean War.

Heuman said the local branch did have some modern vets.

His two-year term ends Dec. 31.
If you have just started your journey in an online casino or are looking for a new site to play,...
CDC supporting Texas investigation of possible local Zika transmission

Press Release For Immediate Release: Monday, November 28, 2016 Contact: Media Relations

(404) 639-3286

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been informed by Texas health officials that Zika virus infection has been diagnosed in a resident of Brownsville, Texas, without any other known risk factors, suggesting possible local transmission of Zika virus infection. This case may be the first known occurrence of local mosquito-borne Zika virus transmission in the state. CDC is closely coordinating with Texas and local officials to increase surveillance efforts and vector control activities in this area.

State and local officials in Texas proactively issued Health Alerts in October 2016 expanding the testing criteria for Zika virus disease. They are responding rapidly to the current situation with a community-wide search for additional Zika cases, as recommended in CDCs Zika interim response plan. Residents, especially pregnant women, should take steps to protect themselves from mosquito bites. They should use an insect repellent registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) containing one of the following ingredients: DEET, picaridin, IR3535, oil of lemon eucalyptus or para-menthane-diol, or 2-undecanone, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants, use or repair screens on windows and doors, use air conditioning when available, and remove standing water inside and outside where mosquitoes can lay eggs.

Even though it is late in the mosquito season, mosquitoes can spread Zika in some areas of the country, said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. Texas is doing the right thing by increasing local surveillance and trapping and testing mosquitoes in the Brownsville area.

Zika virus spreads to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus), but can also spread during sex by a person infected with Zika to his or her partner. Most people infected with Zika wont have symptoms, but for those who do, the illness is usually mild. However, Zika infection during pregnancy can cause a serious birth defect of the brain called microcephaly and other severe brain defects in fetuses and infants.

We continue to learn about Zika virus, and we are working hard with our state, county, and local partners to find out more about Zika virus infection in Brownsville. Here is what we do know:

Zika is spread to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus), both found in Brownsville.

A pregnant woman can pass Zika virus to her fetus during pregnancy or during birth.

Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other severe brain defects and is associated with other adverse pregnancy outcomes in fetuses and infants.

A person who is infected with Zika virus can pass it to sex partners.

Many people infected with Zika virus wont have symptoms or will only have mild symptoms.

No vaccines or treatments are currently available to treat or prevent Zika infections.

As of Nov 23, 2016, 4,444 cases of Zika have been reported to CDC in the continental United States and Hawaii; 182 of these were the result of local spread by mosquitoes. These cases include 36 believed to be the result of sexual transmission and one that was the result of a laboratory exposure. This number does not include the current case under investigation in Texas.

###

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICESexternal icon
Pakistan: exports to Afghanistan decline

28 November 2016

Cement exports to Afghanistan declined 23.4 per cent YoY in October 2016, falling from 0.252Mt to 0.193Mt. Meanwhile, exports to India registered a 27 per cent YoY growth from 0.086Mt in October 2015 to 0.110Mt in October 2016. Exports to India mainly travel the Wahga border and the southern coast of India.

The All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association (APCMA) expressed its concern regarding an 11.74 per cent drop in exports to Afghanistan in the first four months of its current fiscal year (July-October 2016). They also lacked confidence in a bright future for Indian exports despite a 101.88 per cent increase in the given period. The manufacturers cited a very low base as the reason for positive results in the four month period and do no expect continued success due to tensions between the two countries.

According to data issued by the APCMA, the domestic market grew 15.88 per cent in October, but exports declined 1.96 per cent to 0.518Mta following a strong 11.79 per cent growth in the month prior. For the July-October 2016 period, local despatches grew 11.26 per cent YoY and exports recorded a 1.73 per cent growth.

A spokesman from the APCMA said that October domestic dispatches were noted at 3.008Mt, representing a 15.88 per cent growth. Total October dispatches amounted to 3.527Mt, depicting a growth of 12.87 per cent, and capacity utilisation for the month was reported at 92.77 per cent.

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Turkey: Aumund to supply Cimsa and Batisoke plants

28 November 2016

Cimsa Cimento has now ordered about 60 Aumund machines for the plants in Eskisehir and Nigde. With five kiln lines in Mersin, Eskisehir, Kayseri, Nigde and Afyonkarahisar as well as a grinding plant in Ankara and two cement packing plants in Marmara and Malatya, Cimsa is one of the leading producers in the Turkish cement industry.



By the end of this year Aumund will supply the Eskisehir plant with six central chain bucket elevators, with centre distances between 25-68m and capacities from 40-400tph. The package also comprises 10 belt bucket elevators with centre distances between 17-95m and capacities from 200-350tph. Also six Aumund 800mm pan conveyors with centre distances between 15 and 47m and capacities from 150-250tph were ordered.



In addition, Aumund will supply the Nigde plant with three central chain bucket elevators, with centre distances between 25-37.5m and capacities from 50-400tph. The order also comprises six belt bucket elevators with centre distances between 31-91m and capacities from 250-350tph and an apron conveyor.



Another 41 machines were ordered by Baticim for its plant in Soke. With the arrival of these two large orders Aumund has now sold more than 150 machines to the Turkish cement industry within one year.



Batisoke Soke Cimento will take delivery in mid-2017 of 14 central chain bucket elevators, with centre distances between 22-43m and capacities from 130-600tph. The order also comprises five belt bucket elevators with centre distances between 60-125m and capacities from 300-650tph, and 15 Aumund pan conveyors with widths ranging from 800-1400mm, centre distances between 49-146m and capacities from 300-600tph. Six sets of truck loading equipment will also be supplied.

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OpenGate Capital, a private equity firm, announced that it has completed the acquisition of Umicore Zinc Chemicals, a producer of specialty zinc chemicals, from parent company Umicore. As part of the transition process, OpenGate Capital has already completed the renaming of the business to EverZinc effective immediately.

With industrial operations in Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, China and Malaysia, EverZinc specializes in three product lines: fine zinc powders, zinc oxide and zinc for batteries. EverZinc products are sold to customers around the world for use in a variety of applications, including anti-corrosion paints, tires, pharmaceutical chemicals, ceramics and glass, and sunscreens. Headquartered in Angleur, Belgium, EverZinc generates over 400 million in annual revenue and has more than 500 employees globally.

EverZinc is yet another example of OpenGate executing on our strategy to build new value in businesses that have untapped potential, said Andrew Nikou, founder, Managing Partner and CEO at OpenGate Capital. As we look at the North American and Western European markets for new opportunities, we also examine global industry cycles and look for pockets of dislocation or stagnation.

From our first look at the Umicore divestiture, we saw a business that is an important player in a larger global zinc chemicals market that is projected to grow at a steady annual rate. We took this macro understanding, coupled it with the operational skills we have developed through our legacy investments in the European PVC chemicals market, and created an operational strategy specific to EverZincs business that will drive new value. With EverZincs global footprint, diverse industry applications and long-standing customer base, this is an exciting investment at a great time in a global market, Nikou concluded.

EverZinc has a skilled and tenured team of people and utilizes the most advanced manufacturing technology to produce a vast array of products to meet the demands of its global customer base, said Julien Lagreze, Partner at OpenGate Capital. Zinc is one of the most versatile and important compounds used throughout the world in everyday applications. We are excited to work with management to build a new phase of growth for EverZinc.

Fabien Marcantetti, a Principal in OpenGate Capitals Paris office responsible for transaction execution, commented, EverZinc is a particularly exciting investment as it expands our portfolios global footprint of operations and represents yet another dynamic industry for our operations team to manage.
Pro-immigrant groups hold a demonstration outside of a Trump property as New Yorkers react to the election of Donald Trump as President of the United States. (Spencer Platt / Getty Images)

If President-elect Donald Trump makes good on his anti-immigration stance, it won't save American jobs, say leaders of Chicago's tech startup sector. Worse, the businesses that depend on high-skill technical talent will suffer and so will the nation's competitive advantage, since foreign entrepreneurs drive innovation, jobs and the economy.

"President-elect Trump has misguided a lot of people suggesting that limiting immigration is going to keep jobs in America," said Rishi Shah , CEO of fast-growing Chicago-based health information provider ContextMedia.

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"If the Trump administration curbs talent, especially high-tech workers, companies will go and take that economic growth and shift it to other markets," Shah said. "There would be nothing worse for American workers than to curb the inflow of talent that would further grow our economy."

Many in the tech community spoke out against Donald Trump during the campaign. More than 140 Silicon Valley leaders signed an open letter opposing his policies in June.

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Immigrants founded half of America's billion-dollar tech startups, for a total value of $168 billion, according to the National Foundation for American Policy. They also created an average of 760 American jobs per company.

Among these 87 unicorns  including Chicago-area companies Avant and Mu Sigma  71 percent have immigrants in key management, production or development posts.

Without immigrants, there would be no Google, Apple, Uber, Siri, or a host of other companies that fuel the U.S. economy. The Broadway play "Hamilton" gives foreign workers a nod with the line, "Immigrants: we get the job done."

While Trump fills out his cabinet and transition team, immigrants from STEM students to startup founders are making back-up plans. Meanwhile, immigration advocates are redoubling their outreach to the incoming administration on reforms to expand the path for foreign technical talent.

A son of immigrants, Shah co-founded ContextMedia with Shradha Agarwal , who was born in India and came to the U.S. in 2006. Shah co-leads the Chicago chapter of FWD.us, a lobbying group led by Silicon Valley entrepreneurs to promote bipartisan "common sense" immigration reform.

Shah said that FWD.us has been working to raise awareness about the contributions that immigrants make to the economy. It also wants to make sure that the U.S. will be "seen as welcoming to all people regardless of their country of origin or other factors," he said.

Should the worst-case scenario happen, John Bauschard, CEO of Chicago-based startup Strike Social, a social media advertising platform, doubts he could find immediate replacements in the U.S. for his immigrant workers.

"We have to fight for talent, because these kids want to go to Google. We'll have to use off-shore talent," he said, noting that he has operations in Krakow, Poland; and Manila, Philippines.

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"You don't need to be here to write code but I would rather have people here," he said. "We need people finding apartments, eating at restaurants and paying taxes here."

Bauschard also is co-founder and chairman of Chicago-based Road To Status, a two-year-old startup that provides a TurboTax-like system to help people file immigration petitions. The day after the Nov. 8 election, he saw a 10-fold increase in traffic to its website.

While Trump's campaign focused primarily on illegal immigration, his position on legal foreign workers has been a moving target throughout the campaign.

In the current immigration vision detailed on Trump's presidential campaign website, he vows to deport millions of immigrants, curtail foreign worker visas and ensure that open jobs are offered to Americans first. No one is sure how exactly these will play out once he takes office in January.

Donald Trump's transition team acknowledged receiving a request for comment from Blue Sky, but did not respond to questions as of press time.

"I have students whose visas will be up soon," said Ellen Rudnick , adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at University of Chicago's Booth School of Business. "One student is already thinking of moving to Canada. They're all scared."

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Executives have concerns in three areas: attracting high-talent STEM students to U.S. universities and keeping them here after they graduate; filling high-tech and engineering jobs to meet growing demand; and increasing caps for various foreign worker visas, including the H-1B visa widely used by the tech and engineering industries, now limited to 85,000.

Efforts to pass a startup visa have stalled. In August, the Department of Homeland Security proposed an International Entrepreneur Rule that, if passed, could grant qualifying foreign entrepreneurs a temporary stay for at least two years and up to a three-year extension to oversee and scale their startup in the U.S. The department is reviewing public comments before it rules on the measure.

Rudnick sits on the high technology team for the bipartisan Illinois Business Immigration Coalition, which is working on immigration reform for a variety of industries. While concerns are fair about visa abuse by larger tech outsourcing firms, she said that startups don't have the cash or resources as large companies do to compete for talent in the current visa program.

"The H-1B system is flawed," Rudnick said. So is Trump's well-intended vow to give Americans priority in filling open jobs. "You can't take laid-off auto workers from Detroit and put them in tech jobs."

Also, the Immigration Coalition expects a massive shortfall in engineering talent if Trump proceeds with his proposed trillion-dollar infrastructure plan.

There's already an engineering brain drain with fewer U.S. students and current Baby Boomer-aged workers retiring, said Dave Bender, co-chair of the Illinois Business Immigration Coalition's steering committee, executive director of the American Council of Engineering Companies and chairman of the Logan County, Illinois, Republican Party.

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"Infrastructure is so technology-focused today. It's not just homegrown anymore," Bender said. "We need to have a global workforce."

Kate MacArthur is a freelance writer.

Twitter @KateMacArthur
What's it really like to work at Chicago startups and tech companies? Blue Sky's Inside Job lets people on the ground tell us in their own words.

Derrick Nadonga, 29, Sales Engineer at Maven Wave

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Maven Wave does a bunch of different things. They try to bill themselves as a digital transformation consulting company, and that's kind of a mouthful. They have a user experience department, they have a straight-up management consulting department, they have data analytics.

For me, I'm part of the Google practice, and basically, we are a Google Premier Partner. All that means is we help Google sell Google (to businesses) and implement Google.

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Google provides the product, and we provide the services for it. So we do the installation, the configuration and the training for G Suite. So that would be Gmail, Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, all that other stuff.

The last huge client that we had was Nielsen, the TV ratings people. Over the course of, I think it was eight months, we helped them go Google. And that's across more than 100 countries.

I'm there to really try to show people what life is like in the Google world, whether that's how their systems are going to integrate or how their daily user experience is going to be. It's trying to provide a tactile, a bit more nerdy view on what it's actually like to go Google.

Maven Wave found me very randomly. I got called on a Saturday by a recruiter, so it was just a little strange. But they started talking to me about why they wanted someone like me from my position  I lived most of my tech life in the Microsoft world, so they wanted to see what someone on the other side of things thought about Google stuff. And as I got to learn more about the job and what I would be doing, I actually kind of loved it.

I was born on the North Side, in Albany Park. My parents moved (from the Philippines) in the late '70s. It was kind of funny, when I was growing up, they threw my sister and me in ESL (English as a Second Language), even though we were born in Chicago. But I think they taught all the Filipino out of me.

When I went to college, I actually came into it as a graphic design major. Graphic design is super tough, super competitive. I ended up with a major in network technology.

I've done help desk stuff, a lot of very typical IT jobs. The part about information technology that I really liked is the problem solving. What I didn't really like was doing tickets every day and answering calls at 3 a.m. from our Hong Kong office.

The way I look at this job is, it's all the problem solving without a lot of the stress and heartache of making sure I'm managing tickets properly or worrying about if the server goes down. It's more pure problem solving and larger scope issues rather than, like, a hard disk is broken. I don't have to worry about someone's Excel breaking.

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The worst days that I've had here are still 100 times better than the worst days I've had at my previous jobs. The company itself is really cool, really fun. Everyone is very chill. When you go to a company, even with 150 people, there are bound to be a handful of people that you just hate, right? But I haven't seen anyone or met anyone I wouldn't want to grab a beer with after work.

Over the summer, we went to a Cubs game all together. People flew in from Canada, from New York, everywhere. We had some people from India. So they did a quarterly business update, and then we all took a trolley to Wrigley Field, and then we just went to a random bar in Wrigleyville.

A lot of work gets done, but you don't see people storming around, super stressed out. People have a relatively cool demeanor, even though they're working maybe 60 hours a week.

When I started here, I had to spend, like, two grand on clothes. We always joke that our company slogan is to dress better than Google does. We're a startup but not a startup. It's a weird mix that you wouldn't think would be possible.

As told to freelance reporter Erin Chan Ding. Stories are edited for length and clarity.
Delta Air Lines is banning for life a passenger who rudely professed his support for Republican President-elect Donald Trump and insulted those who didn't on a flight to Pennsylvania, the company's CEO said Monday.

Edward Bastian said in an internal memo that the airline is also refunding the cost of tickets for other passengers on the Nov. 22 flight from Atlanta to Allentown.

video posted on Facebook by a passenger shows a man standing in the aisle, yelling and insulting supporters of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

The man asks loudly: "We got some Hillary bitches on here?" He proceeds to clap and yell Trump's name a few times while other passengers seemingly try to ignore him, some staring at phones and tablets, others with arms folded.

Referring to Trump's victory, he says: "If you don't like it, too bad."

The Atlanta-based airline had previously apologized over the man's outburst.

Bastian said the crew questioned the man and made the best decision they could, given the information they had, and allowed him to remain on the flight.

"However, if our colleagues had witnessed firsthand what was shown in the video, there is no question they would have removed him from the aircraft," he wrote Monday. "He will never again be allowed on a Delta plane."

Allentown, Pa.  Associated Press
Airport workers went on strike Nov. 29, 2016, at O'Hare International Airport. The workers are demanding higher wages and benefits. Kisha Rivera talks about why she and hundreds of others went on strike. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Hundreds of workers at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport spent Tuesday on strike to protest low wages, but officials said it had little impact on flight operations.

The strike, organized by the Service Employees International Union Local 1, involved baggage handlers, janitors, airplane cabin cleaners and wheelchair attendants, many of whom convened for a rally in front of the airport at noon to call for a $15 minimum wage and union rights. Including supporters, the crowd swelled to 1,100, one police officer estimated.

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"We're not asking for special treatment, we're asking for decent treatment," Kisha Rivera, 41, who has worked as an airplane cabin cleaner for four months and makes the city's $10.50 a hour minimum wage, told the cheering crowd. She later corrected herself: "We're not asking, we're demanding."

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 8 O'Hare International Airport workers and union members protest Nov. 29, 2016, to call attention to their fight for a $15 minimum wage and union rights, the same day that the Fight for $15 campaign is holding protests across the country. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)

At least 30 demonstrators supporting a $15 minimum wage were detained in buses by Chicago police early Tuesday after blocking an intersection at Damen and Chicago avenues. Nov. 29, 2016. (Chris Walker / Chicago Tribune) (Chicago Tribune)

The Chicago Department of Aviation reported no flight or service disruptions.

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The strike at O'Hare was one in a series of nationwide protests held Tuesday that involved a broad swath of nonunionized workers, including airport workers, fast food employees, graduate assistants, child and health care workers and Uber drivers. The protests were organized by the Fight for $15 campaign, led by the Service Employees International Union, on the fourth anniversary of its first strike at McDonald's restaurants in New York.

While a $15 minimum wage and union rights have been the clarion call for the movement, the nationwide protests planned in 340 cities and 20 airports Tuesday also were meant to signal to newly elected leaders, including President-elect Donald Trump, that the activists would "not back down" from several social justice causes they worried were under threat.

At dawn outside a McDonald's in Chicago's West Town neighborhood, where some 200 people gathered to kick off the day of protests, people carried signs that read "Stop Killing Black People" and "No Deportations."

"We don't want to just be able to survive, we want to thrive," Adriana Alvarez, a McDonald's worker who has become a leader in the Fight for $15 effort, said to applause outside the restaurant.

Low-wage workers and their supporters start a day of strikes and protests at dawn at McDonald's at Chicago and Damen avenues. About 60 protesters were detained and cited. (Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)

At O'Hare, a long stretch of sidewalk on the departure level between terminals 2 and 3 was clogged with chanting, sign-waving protesters who hooted when cars honked in support as they drove past. Other protesters who couldn't fit were corralled closer to Terminal 1.

Some 500 O'Hare airport workers, out of about 2,000, voted to participate in the unfair labor practices strike, SEIU Local 1 spokeswoman Izabela Miltko-Ivkovich said. She estimated that's how many workers were on the strike line but that number could not be independently verified. The striking workers are employed by subcontractors Scrub, Prospect Airport Services and Air Serv, which are hired by the airlines.

Oscar Morales, 51, said it felt good to skip his noon shift and instead don the purple cap worn by all of the striking airport workers in the boisterous crowd. Morales, who works as a gate assistant collecting baggage from customers when airplanes run out of overhead bin space, said it was his first time striking and he was heartened by the turnout, which far exceeded the last strike at the airport in March when only about 60 people walked off the job, he said.

"I enjoy what I do but I just can't support a family and pay a mortgage on $10.50," said Morales, who lives with his wife and two children, aged 19 and 17, on the city's far northwest side.

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Morales said he took the airport job, which offers no health or retirement benefits and no paid sick or vacation days, when he was in critical need of a paycheck after his longtime employer shut down two years ago. Morales, a native of Puerto Rico who has lived in Chicago since he was 2, said he worked for 12 years packing orders and working in the returns department at a company that made clothing for chefs, earning $15 an hour plus benefits and a 401(k).

After the company closed, he said he searched for a job while receiving unemployment benefits for six months, but no one called him back.

Morales, who is employed by Prospect Airport Services, said the American Airlines employees who work with him were supportive.

American Airlines spokeswoman Leslie Scott said in an emailed statement that "American supports better pay for workers across the board, but does not believe initiatives should target a specific group or industry. We also respect the right of employees and workers to organize, but we do not get involved in union representation discussions with our vendors and their employees."

She also said the airline has "been working closely with its vendors to ensure there is no disruption to our operation and at this point we have not seen any impact."

United also reported no impact to its operation and said its vendors had proper staffing.

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Several arriving passengers said service seemed normal to them.

The union said O'Hare workers decided to wait until after the Thanksgiving travel rush to strike so as not to interfere with holiday travelers trying to see their families. They planned to return to work Wednesday, but if their concerns aren't addressed, "next time we have to strike we will shut down this airport," SEIU Local 1 president Tom Balanoff said.

A person who picked up the phone at Scrub said the company had no comment. Prospect and Air Serv did not respond to requests for comment.

Though fast-food workers have been the face of Fight for $15, airport workers have raised their profile this year with several protests.

In September SEIU Local 1 held a news conference announcing it had filed 80 wage theft complaints with the city and state alleging workers worked off the clock, didn't get overtime pay, or, in the case of tipped employees like wheelchair attendants, didn't earn enough tips to reach the standard minimum wage.

Workers employed by Prospect as wheelchair attendants earn $7.25 to $8.25 an hour, Miltko-Ivkovich said. Cabin cleaners, janitors, security officers and baggage handlers earn $10.50 to $12.

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A report released Tuesday by the National Employment Law Project, which supports the Fight for $15 campaign, said that low-wage workers have won $61.5 billion in annual raises since 2012, affecting 19 million people. That figure, based on what workers will receive once the wage hikes are fully phased in, includes state and local minimum wage increases as well as employer-led increases such as at Walmart and Starbucks. Two-thirds of the national gain comes from the $15 minimum wage laws enacted in California, New York, Washington, D.C., and several other cities.

As the cause gains steam, the campaign has swept more low-wage workers into the movement, including, most recently, Uber drivers, who are unusual because they are considered independent contractors.

Darrell Imani, 58, who has been driving Uber and Lyft full time for about three years, said he planned to spend Tuesday protesting rather than driving to advocate for a drivers' union.

"I love what I'm doing, it's the best job in the planet," Imani said. But while he used to make $25 to $30 an hour driving people through ride-hailing apps, his pay has dipped to about $12 an hour now that there are many more drivers on the road and less opportunities for surge pricing. That's before gas and maintenance expenses and car depreciation.

Uber, which classifies its drivers as independent contractors, said there are 30,000 drivers in Chicago and they made on average $16 an hour last year.

Tuesday's protests began with acts of civil disobedience. The protesters outside the West Town McDonald's restaurant sat on the ground at the intersection of Chicago and Damen avenues until police officers asked them to stand and led them away to buses that were waiting.

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Police said 55 protesters were detained and cited.

The protesters then moved to Northwestern Memorial Hospital to join housekeeping, transport and food service workers, whose wages usually start at less than $12 an hour, before heading to O'Hare. Some protesters popped into McDonald's for some breakfast before moving on.

aelejalderuiz@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @alexiaer
The Holiday Cookie Contest Winners are: first place Ann Gillespie's butterhorns, center; second place Laura Hill's triple ginger fudge cookies, left; and third place Margaret O'Rourke's chocolate glazed brownies. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

A near-miss, an underdog and a bit of cookie controversy were among the many behind-the-scenes stories during judging of the 2016 Chicago Tribune Holiday Cookie Contest.

In the annual contest in which we invite readers to submit their favorite cookie recipes, we again received earnest entries  some heirloom and others recently created  that impressed far more than our palates.

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First prize goes to Ann Gillespie, of Arlington Heights, for her butterhorns with multiple fillings, including the family favorite of apricot preserves and the newest addition, Nutella. Gillespie nearly missed the judging but changed her flight to get back home in time to bake in the middle of the night.

Second prize goes to Laura Hill, of Prospect Heights, for her triple-ginger fudge cookies. The underdog did not garner enough numbers during online voting to place among the top 14 finalists, but Food & Dining Editor Joe Gray exercised his Save option to elevate the cookie into the tasting. Hill, a food scientist, wrote in the essay accompanying her submission that she "wanted to create a cookie that not only paid homage to my grandmother's love of gingerbread, but one that incorporated my own love of chocolate. This cookie is not only packed full of ginger flavor, but it has a melt-in-your-mouth fudgy texture too."

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Third prize goes to Margo O'Rourke, of Bolingbrook, for her chocolate-glazed brownies  an entry that raised eyebrows of some judges. Brownies are questioned in the cookie universe, explained baking guru and cookbook author Dorie Greenspan recently, when offering advice on how to create an original cookie for the contest. Defined as a cross between a cake and a cookie, brownies, according to culinary lore, were invented in 1893 at the Palmer House in Chicago at the request of pioneering businesswoman and philanthropist Bertha Palmer. Our contest has long allowed brownies, as well as bars.

The winners in the Tribune's annual contest receive cash prizes, $250 for first place, $150 for second and $50 for third; plus each of the finalists receives a copy of "Holiday Cookies," a collection of contest recipes from previous years.

Two other finalists are recognized with honorable mentions.

Elizabeth Berland, of Buffalo Grove, earned a nod for her pillow cookies  bite-size crisp butter cookie pockets filled with chocolate. Berland shared credit with family members, including her father, Ted Berland, who wrote their entry's story. "This recipe comes from England via a friend we knew in Chicago at the Jewish Community Center," he wrote, "Ruth was what we call a survivor, shorthand for 'survivor of the Nazi genocide of Jews.' Her parents saved her by giving her up to the Kindertransport." Ted Berland recently tracked down Ruth, with whom they'd lost touch. "The pillow cookies? I haven't made them in years!" she said.

An honorable mention also goes to Danielle Pacini, of East Dundee, for her butterscotch pecan cookies. "I've always simply followed recipes, but this is the first time I've tried to develop my own," she wrote with her entry. "For this cookie recipe, I wanted to incorporate flavors of my favorite cookies that remind me of the holidays. Brown butter deepens the flavor and color of the cookie, plus the smell is heavenly. Toasted pecans add an extra dimension and are reminiscent of buttery crescents." This was not only Pacini's first original recipe, but also her first time entering a contest.

That may be the biggest challenge of our contest: creating an original recipe, with a story behind it.

D'Ona Welton, one of the contest finalists, submitted her entry, called Grandma's Southern Teacakes, in a highly decorated wooden treasure chest complete with Christmas lights and family photos inside. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

This year 62 entries received 3,096 votes by the 11:59 p.m. voting deadline Nov. 10. Then the race was on, for us to contact each finalist and for the finalists each to bake two dozen contest-worthy cookies, then deliver them to Tribune Tower during morning rush hour the following Monday. We received staggered waves of white paper boxes, colorful plastic containers and one holiday light-lit wooden treasure chest from D'ona Welton, of Flossmoor, with her grandma's Southern teacakes.

In the test kitchen, 10 judges tasted from the piles and piles of cookies brought in by finalists. The judges included the Tribune Food & Dining team, as always, plus guest adjudicator Meg Galus, executive pastry chef at Boka, Swift & Sons, and Cold Storage restaurants in Chicago. Galus, who won best pastry chef in the 2016 Chicago Tribune Dining Awards, joins a long tradition: Julia Child herself served as a guest judge in 1996.

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We tasted in one hour, our own sugar rush hour. Each cookie was identified with a number and its name, but not the baker's. We scored on a scale of 1 to 9, based on taste, beauty and originality. We had only water to cleanse our palates, and no one spit, as judges commonly do in other tastings. But we did not eat every cookie. Some were saved for photography and comparisons during recipe testing of the winners. With the final results now published, leftovers will be shared with the newsroom.

No cookie, each one appreciated as a handcrafted edible talisman and transported across the city  and some, symbolically, across generations  will be wasted.

Ann Gillespie, of Arlington Heights, took first place for her butterhorns, a rich dough wrapped around varied fillings, including raspberry and apricot jams, and a new favorite, Nutella. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

First place: Ann Gillespie

"Holiday cookies are different," said Gillespie. "They're the most joyful baking I've done."

An experienced baker, recently retired vice president at CVS Caremark and a lawyer by training, Gillespie was visiting her sister in North Carolina when she got the call that her butterhorns were finalists. She flew home early, arrived at 12:20 a.m. and baked until 3:30 a.m. in her kitchen in Arlington Heights. One batch takes about three hours she said.

Icing-drizzled golden rolls, the cookies are folded over with jewel-tone preserves peeking from the ends. "Apricot and raspberry were the two original flavors in the recipe that got passed down through my mother's side of the family, and every year when cousins would marry new people into the family, apricot has always ended up being No. 1," she said, "Although, when I added cherry a couple of years ago, that's now taken a close second."

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While Gillespie's grandmother and mother both made the cookies, it was her beloved great-aunt Violet who gave her the recipe. "The last time I saw her, I sat her down and said, 'I'm not letting you leave this kitchen until you tell me this recipe,'" she said. "That was about 20 years ago, and she died shortly after."

Gillespie makes a gluten-free version for family members with celiac disease using Cup4Cup, a flour developed by chef Thomas Keller.

"This year, I also added Nutella filling for the first time, and the kids all really like it. The adults not too much, but the kids really do," she added, laughing.

Laura Hill of Prospect Heights took second place in 2016 with her triple-ginger fudge cookies, which include candied, ground and fresh ginger. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

Second place: Laura Hill

"I won't say a lot of the rolled gingerbread cookies are a little dry, but they're a little dry," said Hill, a food scientist formerly at Kraft. "I grew up loving gingerbread cookies because my grandmother always, always made them, and it was tradition."

"But when I got older and cooking on my own I would think 'that was a great cookie, but maybe I could make it a little better,'" Hill added. "For probably my whole adult life, every time I see a ginger cookie recipe, I like to check it out."

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For her triple-ginger fudge cookies, "I think I had a pretty good ginger base," she said, "But I kept coming back to the chocolate, which gave it a fudge brownielike texture. I liked the ginger flavor and the fudge texture, so I married the two together."

When asked for advice to future cookie contest bakers, Hill said, "Get those recipes before it's too late, because once they're gone, they're gone. Even if you don't have time to make them this season, get them and hang on to them."

"But it's OK if your family doesn't like nuts or how I added the chocolate," she said. "It just means a lot to keep the old traditions alive."

Third place: Margo O'Rourke

Margo ORourke, of Bolingbrook, took third for her chocolate-glazed brownies, topped with a buttercream frosting and chocolate glaze. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

The custom of frosting the brownies grew out of necessity.

"Usually I just dip them in confectioner's sugar," O'Rourke wrote in her entry, "but at Christmastime, with velvet dresses and fancy clothes, this isn't a good idea. Instead, I top them with a buttercream frosting and chocolate glaze."

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After making two batches of her chocolate-glazed brownies, one with walnuts and another without, and submitting two dozen brownies for contest judging, she had two dozen left . "I gave some to my exercise class, I brought some to book club, I ate a bunch and put some in the freezer," she said.

And although she decided to submit brownies with and without nuts, she hasn't always included them.

"I usually didn't put nuts in because when my kids were growing up, they didn't like nuts," said O'Rourke, a retired speech pathologist and stay-at-home mom who also cared for her parents for some time.

What does she hope to find, in return, at holiday cookie exchanges? "I like those little nut cups and the Mexican tea cookies  they're called different names. It seems like every nationality has them, those melt-in-your-mouth kind of cookies."

Why doesn't she make them too? "I think I just got used to making certain ones, and people have their requests every year, but I'm trying to expand a little bit. I think I'm going to try some from the cookbook."

Cookie history

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Cookie history dates to seventh-century Persia, now Iran, culinary historians say. What we widely consider holiday cookies have a history that dates to 16th century Europe. The custom was brought to this country by immigrants in the early 17th century. But nearly every culture has a similar tradition, and they have continued to evolve. Consider our highly cited fan favorite contest winner from 2000: Mexican mice by Caryn Lerner, a cuteness convergence of Mexican wedding cake cookies decorated with sliced almond ears and Chinese-American chow mein noodle tails.

Our first Holiday Cookie Contest was held in 1986, 30 years ago. We skipped a year in 1999. That led to an outcry among readers, and the contest resumed the next year. After three decades, we still received some entries by mail this year, which were typed in by hand and the photos scanned. We can't know what our cookie contest will be like in 30 years, but we do know edible and shareable history is being made right now.

lchu@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @louisachu

1ST PLACE

Butterhorns

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Prep: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Rest: 20 minutes

Bake: 10 to 13 minutes

Makes: 48 cookies

Ann Gillespie of Arlington Heights says these butterhorns have been handed down through her mother's family. She varies the fillings with a variety of jams and the newest addition, Nutella.

3 cups all-purpose flour (or a gluten-free blend)

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2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 package dry yeast

2 tablespoons warm water

6 tablespoons half-and-half

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

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3 egg yolks, beaten

Preserves (such as apricot, raspberry, cherry or blueberry) or Nutella

Icing:

2 cups confectioner's sugar

2 teaspoons each: almond extract, milk

1 Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix (by hand or with a food processor) flour and butter until crumbly. In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water; set aside.

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2 In a separate bowl, mix half-and-half, sugar and vanilla. Add beaten egg yolks and yeast mixture; mix to combine. Combine liquid mixture into flour mixture with your hands, or pulse in a food processor, until dough comes together. Form dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and let rest, 20 minutes.

3 Divide dough into six portions; working with one portion at a time, roll each into an 8-inch circle. Cut into equal triangles. Spoon approximately 1 teaspoon preserves into center of triangles. Starting at the wide end, roll triangles into crescent shapes. Place on rimmed baking sheets. Continue with remaining dough. Bake until golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on baking sheets; move cooled butterhorns to a rack.

4 For the icing, mix confectioner's sugar, almond extract and milk in small amounts until you reach the consistency you desire. Drizzle icing over fully cooled butterhorns.

Nutrition information per cookie: 92 calories, 4 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 22 mg cholesterol, 12 g carbohydrates, 4 g sugar, 1 g protein, 4 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

2ND PLACE

Triple-ginger fudge cookies

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Prep: 30 minutes

Chill: 2 hours

Bake: 11 minutes

Makes: About 32 cookies

With her entry, Laura Hill of Prospect Heights wrote, "I wanted to create a cookie that not only paid homage to my grandmother's love of gingerbread, but one that incorporated my own love of chocolate." Her cookie with candied, ground and fresh ginger delivers spicy flavor against a chocolate background.

6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

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1/2 cup butter, softened

1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup molasses, unsulfured

1 egg

1/3 cup finely chopped candied ginger

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1 tablespoon brewed coffee, optional

1 3/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon baking soda

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1/2 teaspoon salt

For rolling:

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar

1 Coarsely chop chocolate; transfer to a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave chocolate on high, 30 seconds; stir. Microwave 30 seconds more, stir and continue heating and stirring in 10 second increments until the chocolate is melted. Set aside.

2 Cream the butter, fresh ginger and brown sugar with an electric mixer (or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment) until well blended. Add molasses, egg, candied ginger pieces and optional coffee; mix well.

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3 Add the flour, spices, baking soda and salt to the butter mixture; blend on low until dry ingredients are well incorporated. Stir in the melted chocolate until combined. Transfer the soft dough to a storage container or bowl; cover and refrigerate, at least 2 hours.

4 Heat oven to 350 degrees; coat a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.

5 Place granulated sugar and confectioner's sugar in separate shallow dishes. Roll the chilled cookie dough into approximately 1 1/2 inch balls by hand. Roll the dough balls in the granulated sugar, followed by the confectioner's sugar. Be sure to evenly coat each cookie dough ball in the two sugars.

6 Place cookies on cookie sheets; bake until the cookies just start to show cracks on the surface, 11 to 12 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes before transferring them to a rack. Allow to cool completely before storing.

Nutrition information per cookie: 106 calories, 5 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 13 mg cholesterol, 16 g carbohydrates, 9 g sugar, 1 g protein, 81 mg sodium, 1 g fiber

3RD PLACE

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Chocolate-glazed brownies

Prep: 30 minutes

Chill: 2 hours

Bake: 27 minutes

Makes: 48 brownies

"My go-to food for situations both happy and sad has always been the brownies," wrote Margo O'Rourke, of Bolingbrook, describing the saucepan version she learned as a child, cooking with her mother and grandmother. She altered the recipe to add frosting and glaze, subbing for the confectioner's sugar she usually uses but that gets on everyone's fancy holiday clothes.

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Brownie:

2/3 cup margarine or unsalted butter

3 ounces Baker's unsweetened chocolate

4 eggs, beaten

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

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1 1/3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Buttercream frosting:

1 pound box confectioner's sugar, sifted

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1 stick butter, melted

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 tablespoons milk

Glaze:

1 ounce Baker's unsweetened chocolate

1 tablespoon butter

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1 Heat oven to 350 degrees. Melt margarine (or butter) and unsweetened chocolate together in a large saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Remove from heat when melted.

2 Whisk together eggs, sugar and vanilla in a bowl. Pour into melted chocolate mixture; stir to combine.

3 In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; blend into the chocolate mixture. Add walnuts, if using. Pour into a greased and floured 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Bake, 27 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pan.

4 For the buttercream, combine confectioner's sugar, melted butter, vanilla and milk in a bowl; spread on cooled brownies.

5 For the glaze, melt together unsweetened chocolate and butter. Drizzle glaze over the frosting, covering as much area as possible. Then use a pastry brush to spread the glaze completely over the frosting.

6 Refrigerate until cool, at least 2 hours; cut into 48 squares.

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Nutrition information per brownie (without nuts): 85 calories, 4 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 11 g carbohydrates, 8 g sugar, 1 g protein, 65 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

Elizabeth Berland, of Buffalo Grove, earned a nod for her pillow cookies  bite-size crisp butter cookie pockets filled with miniature chocolate bars. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

HONORABLE MENTION

Ruth's pillow cookies

Prep: 20 minutes

Chill: 45 to 60 minutes

Bake: 12 to 15 minutes

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Makes: 36 to 48 cookies

Elizabeth Berland, of Buffalo Grove, wrote that this chocolate-stuffed cookie is named after a family friend who often exchanged recipes with her mother. Ruth survived the Holocaust when as a child her parents gave her up to the Kindertransport, a rescue effort than took refugee Jewish children to Britain between 1938 and 1940, Berland wrote. Ruth was adopted by an English couple, and her adopted mother taught her to cook, including how to make the English pillow cookies. To make the cookie, the dough is extruded with a cookie press in long strips. Then miniature chocolate bars are placed on the strip, and another strip is placed atop. Finally, the strips are cut into sections after baking, each making one cookie.

2 1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

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1 egg

2 teaspoons vanilla

Miniature chocolate bars, such as Hershey's

1 Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour and salt in a bowl; set aside

2 In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugar together with an electric mixer on low speed, 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla. Beat well. Stir in the flour mixture.

3 Roll the dough into logs about the diameter of your cookie press. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill until firm and cold, but not stiff, 45 to 60 minutes.

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4 Using a cookie press fitted with a cookie bar shape (saw tooth), press the dough in long strips onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet. (If the dough breaks, run it through the cookie press a few times to make it more pliable.) Break up chocolate bars into pieces to fit the dough strips. Place pieces 1/4 inch apart on dough strips. Extrude another strip of dough over the bars to cover completely, pressing lightly to seal.

5 Bake until edges are golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cut between the bars immediately. Cool on a wire rack.

Nutrition information per cookie (for 48 cookies): 111 calories, 7 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 13 g carbohydrates, 7 g sugar, 2 g protein, 37 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

Danielle Pacini, of East Dundee, earned an honorable mention for her butterscotch pecan cookies, which bring together the flavor of her favorite cookies. (Michael Tercha / Chicago Tribune)

HONORABLE MENTION

Butterscotch pecan cookies

Prep: 25 minutes

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Chill: 2 hours

Bake: 9 to 10 minutes per batch

Makes: about 45 cookies

Danielle Pacini of East Dundee brought together her favorite flavors in creating this cookie. "Brown butter deepens the flavor and color of the cookie, plus the smell is heavenly," she wrote. "Toasted pecans add an extra dimension and are reminiscent of buttery crescents. Butterscotch chips complement the flavor of the pecans and make the cookie super addictive."

1 1/4 cups pecans

1 cup unsalted butter

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2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

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1 egg and 1 egg yolk (at room temperature)

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/4 cups butterscotch chips

1 To toast the pecans, heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; evenly spread pecans on the pan. Bake until toasted and fragrant, 5 to 6 minutes. Set aside to cool, then chop into small pieces.

2 In a saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Whisk occasionally when it starts to bubble and foam. Watch the pan carefully, and pull from heat when the butter turns golden brown and gives off a nutty aroma. Pour into a mixing bowl to cool.

Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. >

3 Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and cornstarch in a large bowl; set aside.

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4 When the butter has cooled, mix in both sugars, egg, egg yolk and vanilla until combined.

5 Stir in the flour mixture in several batches until just combined. Stir in butterscotch chips and pecans. Cover dough; chill for at least 2 hours.

6 Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Using a 1 1/2-tablespoon cookie scoop, scoop dough onto cookie sheet and then roll into balls. Bake, 9 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on cookie sheets, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Nutrition information per cookie: 142 calories, 8 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 19 mg cholesterol, 16 g carbohydrates, 11 g sugar, 1 g protein, 90 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

More cookie recipes

"Holiday Cookies: Prize-Winning Family Recipes From the Chicago Tribune for Cookies, Bars, Brownies and More" (Agate, $24.95), a collection of recipes from the annual contest, is available at www.chicagotribune.com/holidaycookiesbook and wherever cookbooks are sold.






Alison Vesely, founder of First Folio Theatre in Oak Brook, insisted that it be fun to work there. (First Folio Theatre)

On Nov. 17, Alison C. Vesely, the 59-year-old artistic director of the First Folio Theatre in the Chicago suburb of Oak Brook, was told by her doctor that her ovarian cancer had spread to her brain and that her remaining days likely would be short. As her husband, David Rice, recalled the shocking moment, Vesely first said she wanted to go home and enter into hospice care.

"And then," Rice said in an interview Monday, "Alison told me to grab a notepad. She told me we had some planning to do."

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When Vesely died Friday, causing an outpouring of Thanksgiving weekend grief and affection from Chicago's close-knit theater community, the notepad had been filled with ideas.

The work Vesely accomplished in her final few days was on behalf of her beloved First Folio Theatre, an Equity theater company that she and her husband had created in time for the summer of 1997, after Vesely learned that the preservation-minded stewards of the Mayslake Peabody Estate (once the country home of the coal baron Francis Stuyvesant Peabody) wanted to pursue artistic uses.

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Vesely hit upon the idea of creating an outdoor Shakespearean theater  performing the Bard under the stars for an audience centered in the growing western suburbs of Chicago. She decided that she was the one to put the idea into practice.

And for the next 19 years, that is precisely what Vesely, the one and only artistic director of the First Folio, and Rice, the one and only executive director, managed to do. To date there have been more than 50 First Folio productions, including, in 2004, a memorable "Hamlet" staged, pretty much uncut, on a June night when the temperature sank into the 40s and the air did indeed "bite shrewdly," not that anyone there seemed to mind.

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 12 Branden Scala (from left) watches Taryn Reneau and Danielle Levin before a dress rehearsal for First Folio's "The Taming of the Shrew," directed by Alison C. Vesely. (Stephanie Sinclair )

Over the years, the company grew to an annual budget in excess of $500,000. Although outdoor summer Shakespeare always remained at the core of its mission, First Folio also expanded to the indoors once Vesely heard about the restoration of Mayslake Hall, a perfect venue for intimate storytelling or ghostly Victorian tales.

"The key to Alison was that she knew that nobody gets rich by doing theater, so she always insisted that there it must be fun," Rice said.

And by many accounts, there was no happier place in town for an actor or designer to work, and no kinder or more compassionate director than Vesely, who assembled a family of artists on those historic grounds.

"She would cast people who were right for the parts and could work well together," said the actor Joe Foust, a regular at First Folio for more than a decade. "And then she just nudged them along in a very nurturing kind of way."

"It was not just an artistic home, but a personal home for all of us," said the actor Christian Gray. "She kept faith in me, even when I went into rehab for alcoholism."

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Shortly thereafter, Vesely cast Gray as Jim Tyrone in the Eugene O'Neill drama "A Moon for the Misbegotten."

"She gave me the gift of confronting my demons head-on," Gray said, expressing how much Vesely could be like a mother.

Vesely, a 1979 theater graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University, and Rice, a teacher at Morris Community High School, met while the two were working at the Once Upon a Stage community theater in Lisle. Both at the time were engaged to other people. "But we both realized we were better off marrying our best friend," Rice said.

And so they did. And aside from their beloved daughter Hayley, a survivor along with Rice and Vesely's sister, Sharon Gilbert of Springfield, First Folio was the couple's great project and first love.

"Our titles really did not mean much," Rice said. "Everything we did overlapped."

First Folio is to continue into the future, Rice said, albeit with its first guiding light now dimmed.

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After a private service held Monday, a public memorial is being planned for early in 2017. The date is yet to be determined, but it will be on a Monday night.

By last request.

"Alison wanted to be sure," Rice said, "that all the theater people would be able to come."

Chris Jones is a Tribune critic.

cjones5@chicagotribune.com

Twitter@ChrisJonesTrib

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RELATED STORIES:

Our need for monsters is what drives First Folio's 'Dracula'

First Folio announces 2016-17 season







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)
Former Illinois Senate leader Emil Jones Jr. directed so much taxpayer money to Chicago State University that the struggling school was given the sardonic nickname, "Emil Jones U."

But the 81-year-old political godfather to President Barack Obama is donating papers from his long career to a more august institution: the University of Illinois at Chicago.

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It's not a case of ego, according to Jones, who noted that UIC already houses the papers of Mayor Richard J. Daley and other Chicago civic leaders and is the only public "urban research university in the city."

Jones  an old school Chicago politician who funneled tens of millions of state money to Chicago State during his career and has a $38 million convocation center there named in his honor  said he "considered Chicago State, but they are not set up to handle something like this." He talked to Chicago Inc. hours before a Monday reception marking the donation to the university.

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Among the donated papers are photographs of Jones with Obama, whom Jones first met in the 1980s and later took under his wing in the state Senate. A signed note from the president shows Jones and Obama at the White House, along with the words, "To Emil  I wouldn't be in the Oval without you, my friend!"

Pictures of Jones with Nelson Mandela, Fidel Castro and several U.S. presidents besides Obama are also part of the donation, the bulk of which consists of papers from Jones' more than three decades in the Illinois House and Senate.

Chicago State's acting president, Cecil Lucy, who is contending with 11 percent graduation rates and a financial crisis that forced the school to lay off 40 percent of the school's workforce this year, said the school was "pleased to learn of" the donation to UIC.

And Jones, whose wife, psychologist Lorrie Jones, is a professor at UIC, said Monday that he has been enjoying retirement and hopes researchers find nuggets of gold among his papers.

"Let them say what they want about me, good or bad  after I'm long gone!" he said with a laugh.
Students play on Nov. 22, 2016, on the playground at Zapata Elementary Academy in the Little Village neighborhood, close to the Hellman's factory, which can be seen in the background. Environmental activists worry that a factory expansion will bring more diesel air pollution to the area. (Nancy Stone / Chicago Tribune)

The news of a factory expansion on the city's West Side is generally a cause for rejoicing  more manufacturing means more jobs in an area that could use them.

But environmental advocates are concerned that the planned expansion of the Hellmann's mayonnaise factory in the Little Village neighborhood will bring heavy truck traffic near an elementary school, exposing children to harmful diesel fumes.

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The Little Village Environmental Justice Organization wants Unilever, parent company of Hellman's maker Best Foods, to commit to using trucks fueled by compressed natural gas (CNG) or electricity, which produce lower carbon monoxide emissions, rather than diesel.

"We are already overburdened with air pollution," said Kim Wasserman, executive director of LVEJO, who said 500 to 900 additional trucks will come to the new facility daily. "This is going to exacerbate the situation."

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Construction for the new single-story mayo factory and distribution center on a vacant site near 28th Street and Kilbourn Avenue will start early next year, according to Chicago Ald. Ricardo Munoz (22nd), who has said the facility may need as many as 60 new workers. Site preparation for the facility, an expansion to an existing factory, is going on this fall, Munoz said.

The site is near Zapata Elementary Academy at 2728 S. Kostner Ave. Wasserman said Unilever has donated $20 million to upgrade the school  but the upgrades do not address air quality concerns.

Munoz said trucks for the facility would travel on Cicero Avenue and not come through the neighborhood. But Wasserman said that her organization wants the company to promise, in writing, to keep trucks off residential streets.

A spokesperson for Unilever, parent company for such well-known brands as Ben & Jerry's ice cream and Lipton tea, said in an email that the project will require trucks to enter and exit from the main commercial road. The company also said it is increasing its use of natural gas trucks and has made the Kilbourn Avenue plant "a priority" for their use.

Wasserman said she would like to eventually see 100 percent of the trucks use natural gas or electricity.

With its industrial base and proximity to truck-heavy corridors like I-55, Pulaski Road and Cicero and Western avenues, Little Village has had a history of air quality concerns. The Crawford and Fisk coal-burning electric plants, located in Little Village and Pilsen, respectively, and shuttered in 2012, were blamed for contributing to asthma and other respiratory health problems in the region.

"They fight and fight to get rid of these old power plants and then there's another thing that comes in," said Susan Mudd, senior policy advocate for the Environmental Law and Policy Center.

Mudd said the center also is concerned about the possible construction of a distribution warehouse in the neighborhood at 31st Street and Kedzie Avenue, which could also require heavy truck traffic.

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Diesel engines create tiny particles  40 are needed to make up the width of one human hair, Mudd said. Such small particles get past a body's protective systems and are responsible for different health problems. The problem is particularly acute for children, whose lungs are still growing, Mudd said.

Mudd said that diesel trucks built since 2007 are significantly cleaner than older trucks, so newer trucks would help. Another measure that would reduce emissions is for the city of Chicago to strictly enforce its ordinance that diesel vehicles cannot idle for more than three minutes at a time  a stricture that can also be kept by individual companies.

"They can be good citizens without being required to do this," Mudd said.

The Unilever spokesperson said company policy limits idling to 10 minutes.

Munoz said his office is working to mitigate emissions by pushing Unilever to use more compressed natural gas trucks instead of diesel.

Commercial and government fleets, such as United Parcel Service and the Pace suburban bus service, have been expanding use of alternative fuels such as electricity at a faster rate than the general public, according to industry experts.

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The move is being made for environmental reasons but also out of fear of future diesel spikes. There is some dispute on how much better CNG fuel is for the environment, since leaks can release methane, a virulent greenhouse gas.

Mudd said that companies building new facilities should also use newer construction equipment  four to five years old  with diesel particulate filters.

Wasserman noted that the city has worked with other firms, such as the Ozinga construction company and Coca-Cola Bottling Co., to convert a portion of their fleets to alternative fuels. She also would like the city to mandate air quality testing, to see how new facilities affect existing conditions.

"We know there's an interest in (new facilities) in terms of community development and jobs," Mudd said. "Those do not have to come at the cost of people's additional bad health."

Orange/Brown Line mystery

Some readers have wondered why they sometimes see CTA Orange Line trains on the Brown Line.

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To make sure the CTA has enough Brown Line trains in the morning rush, some of the trains used to start from Midway Airport because there is more room to store trains near Midway overnight than in the Kimball yard, which is at the Brown Line's northern end, spokesman Jeff Tolman said.

These trains go to the Adams and Wabash stations, where they turn into Brown Line trains and continue north to the Kimball station. They then return to Midway once the morning rush is over, and that's why you may see Brown Line trains marked for Midway. The trains follow normal routing until the Harold Washington Library stop, and then are rerouted toward the airport.

So, if you find yourself on a southbound Brown Line train marked for Midway  it will still take you to the Loop, except for stops east of library. And if you want to go to Midway, stay onboard.

Metra coat collection

Metra is joining with NBC 5 Chicago to hold a coat drive at downtown Metra and BNSF stations this Monday through Wednesday.

New and gently used coats can be placed in special collection boxes at all downtown Chicago Metra stations, including Union Station, Ogilvie Transportation Center, Millennium, Van Buren Street and LaSalle Street, and at all BNSF stations. The donated coats will be given to The Salvation Army for distribution to those in need.

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Last year, Metra customers donated more than 450 coats, the commuter rail service said.

mwisniewski@tribpub.com

Twitter @marywizchicago
Chicago's Union Station is an iconic but creaky machine for moving people  equal parts Roman grandeur and rat maze. From crowded train platforms to foul-smelling air, the station regularly foists indignities on its passengers. It even metes out injury, like the one suffered by a woman whose head was bloodied by a chunk of concrete that fell from an office building above the station in September

So Wednesday's reopening of the station's former Women's Lounge  a handsomely-restored, high-ceilinged room that has been turned into an event space  is cause for celebration but demands to be put into perspective: It is one small step on the long and painfully slow road of bringing the 91-year-old station into the 21st century. And that road is full of potential potholes.

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Federal funding still must be secured for a long list of upgrades  no sure thing once president-elect Donald J. Trump replaces Barack Obama in the White House. If the improvements are not made, new structures envisioned for atop the station and the blocks around it could overtax the already-jammed facility. Amtrak, the station's owner, plans to select a developer for those structures by late April.

More is at stake here than the future of the nation's third busiest train station, which on an average weekday serves about 120,000 passengers, the vast majority of them commuters. Union Station is widely viewed as a sleeping giant that could further catalyze West Loop real estate growth and realize anew the architect and urban planner Daniel Burnham's vision for majestic train stations that would serve as grand gateways to Chicago.

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That is hardly what Union Station is now, even though it retains its grandly-scaled headhouse building on the west side of Canal Street, home to the soaring Great Hall. East of Canal, the station is crammed into the basement of an office complex erected in 1971 after Union Station's financially struggling owners allowed the demolition of the original concourse, a classically-styled, light-filled structure supported by arching metal vaults.

"Most of the criticisms of this place are legitimate," Ray Lang, president of Chicago Union Station Co., an Amtrak subsidiary, said on a recent afternoon as harried passengers squeezed down an escalator in the overcrowded concourse to their Metra trains. The commuter railroad is the station's main tenant.

The Union Station that opened in 1925 was shaped for an era that predated interstate highways, jet flight, express mail services like FedEx, and shifting gender roles that would fundamentally reshape American life. The designers were Burnham's successors, the Chicago firm of Graham, Burnham & Co., which later became Graham, Anderson, Probst & White.

The station primarily served long-distance intercity trains, not short-haul commuter trains that bring in passengers from the suburbs. It was outfitted with column-free platforms, set parallel to passenger platforms with columns, to support the profitable business of handling baggage and mail. Reflecting the social customs of the Edwardian era, the station even provided a decorous refuge for ladies awaiting their next train.

That was the genesis of the former Women's Lounge, which has been renamed the Burlington Room in honor of a vaunted rail company whose tracks extended throughout the Midwest. Its restoration was precipitated by Amtrak's $3 million upgrade of sprinklers and heating systems on the headhouse's west side. The railroad has turned that necessity into a potential moneymaker.

Back in the day, the Women's Lounge haven must have seemed like heaven, with its elegant proportions and ornate architectural detail, not to mention 12 telephone booths, paid showers and an adjacent beauty parlor. Yet by the time the station opened, flappers with boyish "bob" haircuts were challenging old norms and the women's lounge was already on its way to becoming obsolete. Only a few years ago, long after the room had been closed to the public, Amtrak used it as a storage spot for train schedules, brochures and other paper goods. A dropped ceiling concealed its big spaces and fine-grained decoration.

"We were just sort of shocked," an Amtrak official said. "It looked like the attic on top of your garage."

A meticulous restoration by Chicago's Goettsch Partners, led by the firm's Leonard Koroski, has brought back original chandeliers, French wallpaper with an exotic Asian streak, and a surprisingly earthy palette of beiges, golds and greens. As a result, the room is simultaneously in harmony with the cool imperial grandeur of the Great Hall and a respite from it  more intimate, softer, warmer, and (dare one say it these days?) more feminine.

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Deftly inserting new heating and lighting, the architects have carefully modernized the space so it can host banquets, conferences and other events. Wednesday's program will welcome Landmarks Illinois, the Chicago-based preservation advocacy group, which is giving the project an award.

Still, I had to wonder: Does the room amount to a "let them eat cake" slap at commuters  high design in the Burlington Room versus cramped conditions in the concourse? Amtrak officials say no, because the restored room is part of larger plan that ultimately will benefit passengers.

Amtrak has been shifting a variety of its functions, including the expanded Metropolitan Lounge for first-class passengers, into the headhouse. Those moves, Amtrak officials say, will allow the railroad to carve out room in the concourse so its corridors can be widened, sightlines can be opened up and street-level entrances can be made more spacious. Better ventilation and wider passenger platforms, which would be created by eliminating Union Station's outmoded baggage platforms, are also part of that vision.

Last July, this strategy inched forward when the respected global engineering company Arup was awarded a $6 million contract for preliminary design work on Union Station upgrades. Yet Mayor Rahm Emanuel and regional transportation officials acknowledged that the improvements hinge on financial backing from Washington and Springfield. At best, Amtrak officials acknowledge, the planned improvements are four to five years off.

A bigger question mark surrounds what will unfold in January when Amtrak entertains conceptual plans for Union Station, as well as land and air rights around the station, from four teams of developers and architects, including such powerhouse Chicago design firms as Skidmore, Owings & Merrill and Studio Gang Architects.

Amtrak anticipates that the plans will propose new uses for vacant floors in the eight-story Union Station building as well as additional floors that could be supported by the original foundations. The usual gamut of "mixed-use" components  a hotel, offices, residences and shops  are among the possibilities. The proposals are also likely to include plans for two Amtrak-owned parcels south of Jackson Boulevard, including one occupied by an Amtrak parking deck and a new city bus terminal called the Union Station Transit Center.

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What will the plans look like? One hint came in September when Crain's Chicago Business revealed images of a striking, slant-walled, 958-foot-tall office building designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill for one of the four competing developers, Sterling Bay. The design, which would likely replace the eyesore parking garage, could contain as much as 2 million square feet of office space.

To be sure, Amtrak's previous attempts to redevelop the station have fallen apart. But Lang, president of the Chicago Union Station Co., predicted this time will be different because the area to be developed is larger than just the station and thus more attractive to developers. Assuming the project moves ahead, questions need to be raised about its impact on the cityscape:

Will the crowded station be able to accommodate heavier passenger loads that invariably would be created by dense surrounding development? Struggling Amtrak, eager for revenue, and city officials, desperately in need of property tax dollars, hardly seem to be in a position to judge the question impartially. Density is welcome, but how much is too much?

Will the selected developer's plan seek to leave in place  or build new facilities atop  the Union Station Transit Center? The $20 million center, crisply designed by Chicago's Muller+Muller Architects, has provided a convenient pedway connection to the station for bus passengers and alleviated traffic congestion on Canal Street. It would be a travesty if the station, now open and airy, were turned into the darkened base of a high-rise.

Can redevelopment make Union Station more inviting to passersby and easier to enter from the street? Plans call for altering the alignment of the perpetually jammed Adams Street entrance, yet attention also should be directed to improving portals along Clinton Street, where the austere headhouse can only be entered from small, tightly-framed openings at the corners. Punching an entrance through the center of the Clinton facade would make the station more welcoming for the crowds pouring in from the booming West Loop.

Chicago Department of Transportation and Amtrak officials say that they have been weighing such issues for years and brush aside any concerns, particularly about overdevelopment. "We see the station improvements working in tandem with the improvements to the neighborhood," said Mike Claffey, a department spokesman. Lang noted that revenue from surrounding development could fund improvements to the station.

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That is the ideal scenario, yet commuters will have to be patient. For now, the station's frenzied commuter crush summons the architectural historian Vincent Scully's line about the reviled underground facility that replaced New York City's legendary Pennsylvania Station. The grand Beaux Arts structure was demolished in 1963 and 1964, anticipating the 1969 sacking of Union Station's concourse.

Contrasting the soaring spaces of the old Penn Station with the sordid conditions of the new one, Scully wrote that "one entered the city like a god. ... One scuttles in now like a rat."

Blair Kamin is a Tribune critic.

bkamin@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @BlairKamin
Richard Stephenson, founder of Cancer Treatment Centers of America, left, and his ex-wife, Alicia Stephenson, head into the McHenry County Courthouse on Oct. 17, 2016. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

For better or for worse, when it comes to divorce "for richer or for poorer" helps determine how much one spouse pays the other.

In an ongoing divorce trial due to resume in mid-December, the multimillionaire founder of Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Richard Stephenson, and his ex-wife Alicia Stephenson are battling over whether she needs more than $400,000 a month to maintain her living expenses.

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While the superrich duke it out over a standard of living most people will never experience, a shift in Illinois divorce law aims to reduce conflicts in dissolving marriages and establish better equity for former spouses with more modest incomes.

The policy changes are driven by attempts to correct past injustices that often left ex-wives with little money and no viable way to support themselves after years of raising children, divorce attorneys said. They mark the first major revamp of Illinois divorce law in almost 40 years.

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"If you're in a difficult relationship, nothing will eliminate the fact that people don't get along," prominent divorce attorney Pamela Kuzniar said. "But because there's a template for agreement, it helps somewhat to resolve the issues."

In the wake of the women's liberation movement, divorce law in Illinois underwent major revisions in 1977, in particular to provide for divorcing wives with little or no education or who dropped out of careers to help their spouses advance. Before that, husbands typically kept most of a divorcing couple's assets and paid sometimes negligible alimony.

The first comprehensive changes to the law since then took effect this year and reflect other cultural shifts. The new version, for example, swaps out the language "husband and wife" with the gender-neutral "spouses" because of the legalization of same-sex marriage. It also reduces the previous two-year separation period to six months.

But perhaps the biggest change is that the old grounds for divorce  like adultery, bigamy and cruelty  have largely been eliminated, moving Illinois to a no-fault divorce system that generally streamlines the process because no party has to prove fault. Wait time has been reduced to six months in cases where one spouse opposes the dissolution.

The new law also eliminated the words "custody" and "visitation," replacing them with "parental responsibilities" and "parenting time." That means parents must propose and accept an agreement on who will have the kids when, and how the parents will jointly make decisions about their children's education, religion, health and extracurricular activities.

In addition, for the first time, Illinois' divorce laws have set a formula for determining maintenance, or what used to be called alimony. Previously, divorce attorneys said, there was little consistency in how such payment levels were set, and some downstate judges tended to not award maintenance at all.

Now, for couples making a combined gross income of less than $250,000, the payer  generally the spouse with the higher income  must pay 30 percent of his or her income minus 20 percent of the recipient's income. So if a husband earns $100,000 a year and his wife $50,000, he would pay her $30,000, minus $10,000, for a total of $20,000.

The duration of maintenance was left to the judge's discretion before; now it depends on the length of the marriage.

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There's a minimum payment of $40 per month per child, and a maximum of 40 percent of combined income, and judges may still decide whether maintenance is appropriate, or may deviate from the guidelines if they see fit.

Not only has the new law made maintenance more predictable, courts are more willing to grant maintenance, and it goes on for a longer time, divorce attorney Roman Seckel said.

And rather than setting the amount of child support first and then the maintenance to get the desired overall split in income, now judges often set the maintenance by formula, then adjust child support, often downward, to reach the desired balance of income, Seckel said.

But a new formula is due to be set for child support next year as well. Currently, the guidelines call for 20 percent of the noncustodial parent's net income for one child, 28 percent for two children, 32 percent for three and so on.

In the future, support is expected to be based on the concept of shared income, which some 38 other states use. The formula estimates the amount of money needed to raise a given number of children, then determines what share parents must pay based on their income.

Parents may reduce the amount of support they pay by increasing the amount of parenting time, which may become an even more contentious issue, lawyers warned.

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For all the attempts at uniformity, though, the maintenance guidelines apply only to those who toil for combined incomes below $250,000. That means the rich, such as the Stephensons, still must either settle or fight out everything in court.

Divorcees and attorneys still complain about some aspects of the law, but the Illinois State Bar Association called it "improved" overall.

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Wealthy spouses fighting over riches attract media attention, but it's far more common for poor couples to wrestle with the increased expense of maintaining two households instead of one, said attorney Alan Hoffenberg, past president of the Illinois chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.

"It's more than a rude awakening. It's sometimes devastating," he said. "It's hard for the breadwinner to understand why they have to pay a substantial portion of their income to their spouse. That's why blue-collar cases are so difficult, because there's just not enough money to go around."

Under past changes in the law, fathers have had to pay more while also losing custody of their children, Hoffenberg said. Now, the law provides for more collaborative parenting, and more experts are recognizing that children need both parents, he said.

"The new act goes a long way to remove a lot of the acrimony in custody disputes," he said. "The pendulum is swinging back in a fairly good way."

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In general, fewer marriages are ending up in divorce court. From their peaks in the 1970s, marriage rates fell substantially in Illinois through 2013, the most recent year for which statistics are available, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Divorce rates have similarly dipped, though less dramatically.

rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @RobertMcCoppin
In 2013, a Divvy holiday bike is delivered to a station on Randolph Street in Chicago. (Scott Strazzante / Chicago Tribune)

If a sweet ride is on your wish list, be on the lookout for the candy cane-striped Divvy bike that hit the streets Monday.

People who spot the festive bike can enter for a chance to win one of five free annual memberships  valued at $99 each  if they snap a photo and post it to Instagram or Twitter using the hashtag #HOLIDIVVY, which is written on the bike's back fender. Winners can use the free membership or give it as a gift.

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The holiday bike, which was first unveiled in 2013, will be rolling on Chicago's streets until New Year's Day, Divvy said in a news release.

In its announcement about the return of the holiday bike, Divvy offered a few bike-riding tips for the winter, including wear a thin knit hat or helmet liner to keep your head warm and make sure you are visible in snowy weather by wearing bright colors.

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Also on Monday, Divvy announced it is selling discounted daily passes online for $8, down from $9.95, and annual memberships for $85, down from $99, through Friday.

The yearround bike-sharing system has more than 580 docking stations in Chicago, Evanston and Oak Park. So far this year, there have been more than 3.5 million bike trips, according to Divvy.

lvivanco@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @lvivanco
When a new state's attorney is sworn in Dec. 1 in DeKalb County, he will assume responsibility for two high-profile cases that have persisted through the administrations of the county's previous two chief prosecutors.

Richard Amato will be in charge of the Jack McCullough case, which had once been considered the nation's coldest case to go to trial and result in a conviction, and of the sex assault case against former Northern Illinois University campus police Officer Andrew Rifkin.

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Amato said Tuesday that his office will move ahead as planned with the sex assault trial, scheduled to start Dec. 12.

Rifkin was charged in 2011 with assaulting a student by then-State's Attorney Clay Campbell, who subsequently dropped the charges when evidence irregularities emerged. But Rifkin was re-charged by Campbell's successor, Richard Schmack, in 2013. Schmack, a Democrat, lost his re-election bid to Amato, a Republican, earlier this month.

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The McCullough case was scheduled to be back in court Dec. 5, but Amato will ask for more time to review it, according to McCullough's attorney, Russell Ainsworth.

"I've just started having some rudimentary meetings with staff and working on some office policies," Amato said of his preparation for taking office.

McCullough is seeking a certificate of innocence for the 1957 murder of 7-year-old Maria Ridulph of Sycamore. McCullough was convicted of the girl's murder in 2012, a case prosecuted by Campbell. However, Schmack, who defeated Campbell just weeks after McCullough was found guilty, said this year that he believes McCullough was innocent. Schmack dropped the murder charges after a judge vacated McCullough's conviction.

"I expect (Amato) will come to the same conclusion that Richard Schmack did," said Ainsworth, who, like Schmack, believes McCullough was wrongly convicted.

Amato said that he won't have access to the McCullough case file until he takes office, and did not wish to comment on it yet.

For Charles Ridulph, the brother of the young murder victim, Amato's election represents a chance to press his claim that McCullough was guilty of killing Maria. Ridulph said he has spoken about the case with Amato, but not since the Nov. 8 election.

"We met before the election and we talked for about an hour, and I told him that at some point, if he's elected, he's going to have to take a look at the case and draw some conclusions," Ridulph said.

Amato declined to comment on the McCullough case during the campaign.

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If a judge grants the certificate of innocence, it would allow McCullough, a Seattle-area retiree, to collect damages from the state, though it would not preclude him from potentially being recharged.

Ridulph maintains, though, that it is unlikely that McCullough, now 76, would be recharged with Maria's murder. But he said he planned to forward information to the incoming chief prosecutor that he thinks points to McCullough's guilt.

Amato, a private practice attorney, defeated Schmack by about 7,000 votes on Nov. 8, taking about 59 percent of the ballots cast.

Ridulph thinks the McCullough case was a factor in Schmack's defeat.

"It definitely played a role," Ridulph said. "Schmack's campaign was always about the McCullough case. He really pushed it."

Like McCullough, the Rifkin prosecution has occupied the last two state's attorneys.

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The rookie NIU police officer was charged in 2011 with sexually assaulting a freshman student at his apartment. But a judge later ruled that Rifkin's superiors at NIU, who fired him from his job, intentionally failed to disclose evidence favorable to Rifkin.

The ruling roiled the campus police, and resulted in the chief's dismissal and Campbell's decision to drop the charges. However, when Schmack succeeded Campbell, he decided to recharge Rifkin.

Clifford Ward is a freelance reporter.
Illinois law enforcement confiscated more than $319 million in property and cash from individuals over the past decade, using a system that does not require convictions  or even charges in some cases  to validate the forfeitures, according to a new study.

In a joint report issued by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and the Illinois Policy Institute, researchers detail the financial incentives for police departments and local prosecutors to seize personal property from the public. In Illinois, law enforcement agencies receive about $30 million in forfeited property each year, the study found.

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The Chicago Police Department gleans the most from the practice, with more than $79.5 million in forfeited assets between 2005 and 2015, according to the report. It conducts the most seizures, as well, which is also to be expected given the city's size and crime rate.

The Cook County sheriff's office, which took in about $6.7 million during that same time period, ranks fourth in forfeited assets behind Chicago, the Illinois State Police and a statewide drug task force.

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"Asset forfeiture in Illinois has become policing for profit," said Ben Ruddell, criminal justice policy attorney with the ACLU and the report's co-author. "Without meaningful reform that ensures transparency, this system will continue to take millions of dollars in property from people without true justice."

Under state and federal laws, law enforcement agencies can take cash, land, vehicles and other property they suspect are involved in illegal activity. The laws do not require that the owner be charged with a crime  let alone convicted  in order for their property to be permanently confiscated.

Judy Wiese, a grandmother from Rock Island County, had her 2009 Jeep Compass seized last year after she lent it to her grandson, who was then arrested on charges of driving on a revoked license. Rock Island authorities took the car and refused to return it to the woman, arguing it had been used in the commission of a crime.

The 70-year-old woman, who said she did not know her grandson didn't have a valid license, represented herself in court, where she struggled to understand the legal process and was ridiculed by the judge for not having an attorney, according to local news reports. After reading about her plight, a local lawyer offered to represent her for free because property owners involved in seizure cases are not entitled to public defenders. The car was eventually returned five months after her grandson's arrest.

In cases where property owners successfully recover their property with help from an attorney, they are not entitled to have their legal fees or court costs reimbursed. If the property is forfeited and sold, local prosecutors typically receive a percentage of the proceeds.

"There are many who believe we need to be tough on crime and that's true," said Ted Dabrowski, spokesman for the Illinois Policy Institute. "But at the same time, the laws need to be fair. Innocent people shouldn't have to live under the fear of this system."

The report also criticizes state law for not requiring law enforcement agencies to detail how a property was seized or how the forfeiture proceeds were spent. Authorities can either keep forfeited property for their own use or auction it and keep the money.

"Thus, law enforcement members have contradictory incentives," the report states. "They're tasked with fairly and honestly enforcing the law; but the more seizures and forfeitures they engage in, justified or not, the more they pad their bottom line. With tens of millions in forfeiture dollars gained by Illinois police and prosecutors annually, and with relatively little transparency about how these funds are acquired or used, abuse is all but inevitable."

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The Chicago Police Department  which confiscated about $7.7 million per year between 2005 and 2014, according to the report  uses the money for narcotics investigations and for other law enforcement purposes. Though the laws do not require a detailed reporting about how the forfeiture came about or how the proceeds were spent, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the department has external audits done to ensure the money is being used properly.

"We stand behind our efforts to ethically apply and manage all asset forfeiture funds to support law enforcement efforts within the city of Chicago," Guglielmi said.

The Cook County sheriff's office did not respond to questions about how it spends forfeiture money.

The report makes several recommendations, including changing the law so that it requires a conviction before property can be forfeited and pushing for laws that require agencies to publicly report information about how much property they seized, where and when the seizures took place, the outcome of all forfeiture cases and how the proceeds were spent.

Researchers also suggested that forfeiture proceeds be placed in the state's general revenue fund, which they said would reduce the incentive to engage in "policing for profit."

ACLU and Illinois Policy Institute intend to push for changes to the forfeiture laws during the upcoming year, a move that will bring together two organizations that traditionally place themselves on different ends of the political spectrum.

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"If our two organizations are in lockstep on this, maybe it shows that lawmakers need to take a look at the issue and address the injustices," Ruddell said.

sstclair@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @stacystclair
A winning $100,000 lottery ticket purchased in the far northwest suburbs will go unclaimed because the winner did not come forward within a year of the drawing, a lottery spokesman said.

Someone picked all five numbers on a Lucky Day Lotto Quick Pick ticket for a midday drawing on Nov. 18, 2015, according to the Illinois State Lottery spokesman Jason Schaumburg. The odds of that are one in 1,221,759, he said.

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The ticket was purchased at a Shell gas station, 4231 W. Algonquin Rd., in Lake in the Hills.

Because the prize was not claimed, the money goes into the common school fund, he said.

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The winning numbers were 03-06-19-21-32.

The gas station manager, Bragnesh Shah, told the Tribune in October that he's been letting customers know about the unclaimed prize in hopes someone would find the winning ticket.

The station earned a $1,000 bonus for selling the ticket.

"The retailers get their bonuses whether the jackpots are claimed or not," said Schaumburg, who added that records indicate the bonus was paid to the gas station the day after the drawing.

Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter.
Bellwood School District 88 school board President Marilyn Thurman has a personal connection with People Cab Co. Her sons father is a driver for the company, state records show. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)

Officials from a small, cash-strapped suburban school district have been under scrutiny this year for what critics say is excessive spending, from extensive travel, to adding friends and family to the payroll, to secretly padding the superintendent's pension.

Now, they are facing new questions about how the district has shelled out hundreds of thousands of dollars for taxi services in recent years under a no-bid arrangement.

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Since the 2011 school year began, Bellwood School District 88 has paid People Cab Co. $605,000 to shuttle homeless and special education students to and from school. More than half  or $311,000  of those expenses were authorized by the board during the past two school years alone, records obtained by the Tribune show.

Bellwood's taxi bills far outpace those of surrounding districts, state education records show.

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During the 2015 school year, the most current statewide data available, for example, Bellwood spent three times as much transporting special-needs students to school than the five neighboring school districts combined. Enrollment in those districts  which draw students from Berkeley, Maywood, Melrose Park, Westchester, Hillside and Broadview  is nearly four times larger than Bellwood, state records show.

In response to the hefty transportation bills, some school board members have called for the taxi service contract to be put out for bid, an idea that has been met with stiff resistance by the board's president, Marilyn Thurman.

In June, Thurman said that she opposed creating a contract because it would be hard to predict the needs of a population that's constantly in flux. "The number of homeless students and special ed students," Thurman said at a school board meeting, "you're not going to know that month to month."

"Are you saying that we can't get anything cheaper?" a board member, Sondra McClendon, said in response.

"You don't know if what you have now is cheaper," Thurman said.

Thurman and Bellwood's school superintendent, Rosemary Hendricks, declined to comment.

Under federal law, school districts are required to shuttle homeless students and students with serious special needs to school. Not all of those students need taxi service.

Indeed, expenses for private transportation in the district have fluctuated over the years. During the 2013 school year, the Bellwood district spent $52,000 on taxis through People Cab. The following year, the bills doubled to $100,000. And by the 2015 school year, they had almost doubled again, district and state records show.

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Under district policy, all expenses exceeding $10,000, unless otherwise indicated by state law, are required to be competitively bid. But like other neighboring districts, taxi vendors in Bellwood have not been subject to the rule because individual bills have not always met that threshold.

Board members who have questioned whether the district could save money pushed for creating an official contract for the services. In late August, the district posted a legal notice in the Tribune announcing that the superintendent's office was "accepting proposals for transportation services for the upcoming year." Applicants were given eight business days to respond.

People Cab was the only company to submit a proposal. The following month, the board was poised to vote on entering into an agreement with the west suburban company, but it was tabled at a board meeting Oct. 17 and then again Nov. 7.

The ongoing debate over the taxi services has drawn scrutiny from parents and community members as well.

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"Every time I sit in the board meeting, there seems to be questions about the People Cab services," said Sharee Becton, a lifelong Bellwood resident whose three sons graduated from the district. She recently requested invoices and a count of students for clarity on the spending.

"It brought up a red flag even more," Becton said of the bills she received. "The costs are extremely high to transport children."

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State education records show that 42 students  or less than 2 percent of the Bellwood district's total enrollment  were homeless at some point during the 2015 school year. In neighboring Maywood-Melrose Park-Broadview School District 89, which has almost twice as many students, 67 experienced homelessness. Berkeley School District 87 had the third largest number at 21 students.

In contrast, the Berkeley and Maywood districts spent a combined $47,000 that year, a fraction of the nearly $192,000 spent in Bellwood.

David Scott, co-owner of People Cab, said he charges the same rate for school districts that he does business with. "I bill all my districts the same," he said.

acaputo@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @angelaTCR
Chicago police say this boy, who was found wandering near Homan Avenue and Douglas Boulevard about 1 p.m. on Nov. 27, 2016, has been reunited with his family. (Chicago police photo)

A young boy found wandering alone in the Lawndale neighborhood Sunday afternoon has been reunited with his family, police said.

The boy, believed to be between 3 and 5 years old, was found wandering alone near Douglas Boulevard and Homan Avenue about 1 p.m. Sunday, according to a police alert issued Sunday evening. The boy couldn't tell police his name.

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The boy was identified and safely reunited with his family, police said in an updated alert Sunday evening. No criminal charges will be filed in the case, according to police.
A small fire at the Ogilvie Transportation Center was quickly doused by a sprinkler, according to a Chicago Fire Department spokesman.

The fire at the building at 500 W. Madison St. a little before 9 p.m. was put out by sprinklers, and while there was some smoke in the building, fire officials quickly declared the fire under control, the spokesman said. No one was injured, he said.

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Fire crews opened doors and used fans to air out the building.

Metra train operations weren't being disrupted because riders were able to enter and leave the train platform from exits other than the main one on Madison, said Tom Miller, a Metra spokesman. Some CTA buses were rerouted in the area because of the large Fire Department response for the high-rise.

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A few dozen people huddled near the Madison entrance until fire officials cleared the building.

Corey Tate, 28, a Forest Park resident, said he was working with at least five other people on the 32nd floor when the fire alarm went off.

"We decided it's probably not safe to stay up on the 32nd floor so we took the stairwell all the way down," Tate said. "It made my heart beat so fast. I didn't know what the heck was going on."

A traffic reporter who works at the building, also known as the Citigroup Center, said in a tweet that his office was being evacuated because of the fire, after it was declared out.
Deputy Chief Al Nagode describes the events leading to a fatal shooting by Chicago police in the 4500 block of West Washington Boulevard on Nov. 28, 2016. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune) (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)

A man who police believe shot his pregnant fiancee in the abdomen, killing their child, was later killed by Chicago police after he opened fire on officers, authorities said.

The shooting late Sunday was the fourth fatal shooting by Chicago police in 10 days. The man shot was identified as Richard Grimes, 33, of the 4600 block of West Adams Street, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

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Authorities were called to the area of Grimes' home just before 11:30 p.m. Sunday after a report of a domestic battery, according to a statement from Chicago police. The officers found a 24-year-old woman with a gunshot wound to the abdomen, and she was taken to a hospital in serious condition. Officials have not released her name.

"I don't know where this came from," said Tisa Grimes, a cousin of Richard Grimes. "I don't know if he lost his mind, but this is not the type of person he is. For him to do that, that's just not like him."

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Grimes, who was one of 10 children in his family, also was known as "Lil Earl," according to posts on social media by his family. His Facebook page said he and his fiancee had been engaged since 2007. A family member said the couple did not have a history of violence between them but did say sometimes when they argued they would shove one another.

Grimes has a long history with the justice system, according to court and jail records. That includes about 10 arrests dating to October 2000, according to Cara Smith, a spokeswoman for the Cook County sheriff's office. It wasn't immediately clear how much time he spent in state prison, but he had been placed on probation multiple times after arrests, most frequently for possession of a controlled substance. He most recently was arrested in July for driving with a revoked license.

Tisa Grimes said she knew the couple had been living together for some time.

"We known she was about to have a baby," Tisa Grimes said. "He was a fun, active person, and this is something that's just not like him."

After the initial shooting on West Adams, the man fled and officers spotted him near Madison Street and Kenton Avenue, the police statement said.

"Unprovoked (he) raises his handgun and fires a shot at our officer," then ran away, Deputy Chief Al Nagode said at the scene.

The officer called for more units, and police set up a perimeter around the surrounding blocks, authorities said. The man was found nearby, in a gangway in the 4500 block of West Washington Boulevard, Nagode said.

"In that area he again shoots at the officers," Nagode said. "The officers return fire, striking the individual."

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The man was taken to a hospital, pronounced dead and later identified as Grimes, authorities said.

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A semi-automatic handgun was found at the scene, police said.

Two officers were hurt, one of them suffering injuries consistent with a graze wound from a bullet, Nagode said.

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 5 Members of the Chicago Police Department work the scene where an offender was shot by the police after initially shooting at an officer on the 4500 block of West Washington Monday, Nov. 28, 2016 in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)

A police spokesman said the other officer was experiencing chest pains and suffered a leg injury.

It was not known at what point in the search and pursuit the officers were injured. The man may have shot a police car, which was treated as evidence.

Under department policy, the officers involved in the shooting will be placed on administrative duties for 30 days. The Independent Police Review Authority is investigating, which is routine.

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The incident was the second fatal police-involved shooting of the weekend and the fourth in 10 days.



In two of those shootings, on In two of those shootings, on Nov. 18 and late Friday , police said officers opened fire after witnessing someone shooting other people.

Surveillance video shows a foot chase between a sergeant and 19-year-old Kajuan Raye before the fatal officer-involved shooting Wednesday night on the South Side. Nov. 27, 2016. (CBS Chicago)

In the other officer-involved shooting , police said a person was shot to death Wednesday night after he pointed a weapon at a sergeant during a foot chase on the South Side. The sergeant shot 19-year-old Kajuan Raye in the back, authorities said.

An extensive grid search after Rayes shooting failed to find a gun, and Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said the next day that police "have some missing information in (their) timeline."



The sergeant was subsequently relieved of his police powers, the most serious action the department can take during an open investigation.
Seif El Sharif, 67, of Dyer, Ind., a Chicago-area strip club operator, was held on a $50,000 bond Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016, after prosecutors said he hired a thug to target three associates and "put them in the hospital." (Cook County sheriff's photo / )

A Chicago-area strip club operator was held on a $50,000 bond Sunday after prosecutors said he allegedly hired a thug to target three associates and "put them in the hospital."

Seif El Sharif, of Dyer, Ind., was arrested Friday on charges of conspiring to commit aggravated battery, according to prosecutors and court records.

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The 67-year-old, who has owned strip joints in Harvey and Bedford Park, appeared Sunday before Cook County Judge James R. Brown.

An assistant state's attorney accused Sharif of paying a "confidential source to commit battery on the three victims."

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An FBI task force that the Cook County sheriff's office is part of received information that Sharif had agreed to pay someone to harm three people, but no one was harmed, said Sophia Ansari, a spokeswoman for the sheriff's office.

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Sharif's attorney, Stuart Goldberg, told Brown the charges stemmed from a "business dispute" and are fictitious.

"In the strip club industry, when a number of people own different shares and it becomes prosperous, it can create problems," Goldberg said. "The defense theory is that he was set up."

Goldberg said his client owns Club O, in Harvey on the 17000 block of Halsted Street.

Sharif has owned strip clubs in suburban Cook County dating to 1995, according to news reports.

He did not respond to a request for comment.

echerney@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @ElyssaCherney
Democratic U.S. Rep. Danny Davis joined other African-American officials at City Hall on Nov. 28, 2016, to call for a much bigger infusion of taxpayer cash into neighborhoods that have long struggled with poverty. (Phil Velasquez/Chicago Tribune) (Phil Velasquez/Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)

In the wake of his 15-year-old grandson's murder, Democratic U.S. Rep. Danny Davis on Monday joined other African-American officials to call for a much bigger infusion of taxpayer cash into neighborhoods that have long struggled with poverty.

The West Side congressman promoted a plan sponsored by Democratic Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina that calls for 10 percent of all government funding to be spent in areas where 20 percent of the residents have lived in poverty for at least 30 years.

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"We are a unified body at every level of government," Davis said at a City Hall news conference flanked by aldermen, county commissioners, state legislators and the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

Davis decried "easy access to guns" and said "poverty also is a major contributing factor" to gun violence.

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"Poverty is an enemy, no matter what your race, gender or ethnic background," added Davis, who noted that it's an issue in which Republican U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin also is interested. Davis said that the 10/20/30 plan would apply to more Republican-voting counties in rural areas than Democratic counties that are urban.

Davis also reiterated that president-elect Donald Trump  who has said that police in Chicago need to be "very much tougher" to quell the city's rising rate of violence  called him to offer condolences last week and said, "I know you've been having trouble and problems, and I want to be helpful."

Whatever the appeal of the 10/20/30 idea, it's sure to be a tough sell at all levels of government, where many leaders have been raising taxes and looking for ways to trim costs just to stay financially afloat.

During remarks at the Saturday funeral for Javon Wilson, Davis' grandson, the congressman contended there's a problem among black youth who don't know the biblical injunction "Vengeance is mine, said the Lord." In that vein, Davis on Monday said government alone "absolutely" cannot solve the problem and African-American community groups need to do their part.

"That's also a part of the objective  try and reorganize in a very serious way the African-American community," said Davis, who added that the focus needs to be on "pushing parenting and pushing programs for youth at church, after church, after school."

Javon was fatally shot in his family's apartment in Englewood on Nov. 18 when he tried to break up a fight between his sister and another female over clothing, authorities have said. Two teens are being held without bail at Cook County Jail on first-degree murder charges. At Javon's funeral, the pastor described his death as "a clarion call to action, to do something" to address violence in the African-American community.

hdardick@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @ReporterHal
Protesters encamped in rural North Dakota to oppose the Dakota Access oil pipeline say they will not leave even though federal officials warn that access will be closed Dec. 5. (James MacPherson / Associated Press)

Reporting from Along the Cannonball River, N.D.  Opposing sides in the increasingly tense standoff over the Dakota Access oil pipeline have found little to agree on. But on this fact there is no dispute: Sometime between 3 and 4:30 a.m. on Nov. 21, a young woman demonstrating against the pipeine nearly had her arm blown off.

But agreement ends there. Depending on the point of view, the explosion that mangled Sophia Wilansky's left arm happened either because police launched a concussion grenade, or because a propane canister rigged by activists exploded in her hand.

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The horrific injury to Wilansky, who remains in a Minneapolis hospital facing multiple surgeries to save her arm, exemplifies the war of conflicting narratives over a portion of the 3.8-billion, 1,172-mile Dakota Access pipeline being built in North Dakota.

Her injury is the latest major incident in an eight-month fight to define the pipeline battle as competing values of human and Native American rights versus the rule of law, environmental protection versus public safety. Pipeline opponents fear a spill would pollute waterways and say construction would desecrate lands tribes hold as sacred.

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The explosion that injured Wilansky occurred during a 10-hour clash at the Backwater Bridge near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The standoff began around sundown Nov. 20 and continued past 4 a.m. the next day. Each side, police and protesters, portrayed the other as dangerous and violent.

Videos showed white trails of smoke, showers of orange sparks, and clouds of tear gas hanging overhead as protesters chanted "Water is life" amid urgent shouting for medical assistance.

"It was a war zone," Graywolf, 71, Southern California director of the American Indian Movement, said days later. Police, standing behind concrete barriers and looping razor wire, launched tear gas canisters, rubber bullets and beanbag and sponge rounds, and drenched protesters with fire hoses in the subfreezing temperatures.

"These are the types of things more typical of trench warfare, not protests," said Noah Morris, who treated the injured as a member of the Standing Rock Medic and Healer Council. Medics treated more than 300 "water protectors," he said. Twenty-six were sent to hospitals. Wilansky was air-evacuated to Minneapolis.

Police portray themselves as the victims of a "calculated effort" by protesters to "cause harm," saying demonstrators hurled Molotov cocktails and other objects at them. The self-proclaimed "water protectors" denied this, though some did throw bottles, and in at least one case a demonstrator picked up a smoking tear gas canister and hurled it back at the police line.

In recent weeks police have consistently portrayed the protesters as rioters, a description repeated on nightly newscasts and by local talk radio hosts, who also have begun to use the label "terrorist."

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, North Dakota authorities issued a "code red alert" warning the public "to be on alert to any suspicious activity. Rioters in the area are intent on creating an unsafe environment for the public."

The portrayal seems to be effective in the largely white towns of Bismarck and Mandan, where an estimated 1,000 residents met Saturday morning on a bridge over the Missouri River to pledge their support for law enforcement.

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Aerial drone footage from the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota shows police using water cannons against protesters on Nov. 20, 2016. (Video by Digital Smoke Signals) (Chicago Tribune)

Over the last few months, largely peaceful protesters have squared off against hundreds of militarized police wearing riot helmets and flanking military equipment designed to absorb roadside explosions in Iraq. In recent weeks, outside observers have underscored a frequent protest chant: "The world is watching."

Earlier this month, the United Nations called on the U.S. "to take urgent action on the alarming situation in North Dakota, including the criminalization of indigenous peoples in their peaceful attempts to safeguard their human rights and fundamental rights."

And last week Amnesty International alerted Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier of a new "delegation of observers to North Dakota to monitor the handling of the protests," reminding him to "take all measures needed to ensure that the treatment of demonstrators is in accordance with international human rights standards and the U.S. Constitution."

The protesters say the use of hoses, and earlier, of dogs from the pipeline company's security team attacking water protectors, evoke images of the Deep South from decades ago.

"It's like the freedom marches of the 1960s," said Strong Young Pony, 43, a member of the Chiricahua band of the Apache Nation in Arizona who worked on the triage team during Sunday's clashes.

Last week in the main Oceti Sakowin camp, which has swelled in recent weeks to more than 5,000 Native people and their supporters, traumatized demonstrators showed swollen hands and deep purple bruises suffered from the many rubber bullets fired by police. Medics reported seeing injuries to protesters' faces, thighs and groin areas.

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Police, however, accuse pipeline opponents of manufacturing stories in an effort to bring more sympathy to their cause  like their account of an incident involving a private security company's guard dog. The story of "the 4-year-old girl being bit by a dog was not true," Kirchmeier said in a heated October discussion with camp coordinator Mekasi Camp-Horinek.

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 62 Campers set structures on fire in preparation of the deadline to leave the Oceti Sakowin protest camp on Feb. 22, 2017 in Cannon Ball, North Dakota. (Stephen Yang / Getty Images)

Camp-Horninek, in turn, asked Kirchmeier why he "went on TV and said we had pipe bombs  that wasn't true." Kirchmeier acknowledged the pipe bomb allegation was incorrect, blaming it on bad intelligence.

It turned out the "weapons" were actually ceremonial pipes, according to Angela Bibens, lead attorney for the camp's Red Owl Legal Collective. "This is a profound cultural misinterpretation of what are chanupas, or peace pipes. These are sacred ceremonial objects."

On at least two occasions, the Morton County Sheriff's Department has alleged that demonstrators were carrying bows and arrows, only to acknowledge later that this also was not true.

Now the battle rages over the circumstances surrounding the gruesome injury to Wilansky, 21, a recent graduate of Williams College.

In an emotional news conference outside a Minnesota hospital on Tuesday, her father, Wayne Wilansky, unequivocally blamed police for his daughter's injury. "Intentionally an officer threw a grenade that exploded right as it hit her forearm," said Wilansky, who said his daughter told him she saw police throw a device at her. "This is not Afghanistan; it's not Iraq. We don't throw grenades at people."

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A trauma surgeon and advocate for the protesters who saw photographs of Wilansky's injury said they contradicted the police account of what happened. The photographs show "no evidence of any charring of the flesh or burnt clothing that would indicate an explosive device such as a propane canister," said Dr. Jesse Lopez, a physician of Heartland Surgical Care in Leawood, Kan., and a periodic volunteer with the Medic and Healer Council.

Police have vehemently denied their equipment caused her injury.

"The injuries sustained are inconsistent with any resources utilized by law enforcement and are not a direct result of any tools or weapons used by law enforcement," said North Dakota Highway Patrol Lt. Tom Iverson.

Yet in separate interviews, nearly a dozen pipeline protesters described the bright flashes, loud reports and concussive airwaves they believe indicated concussion grenades.

"It's kind of like you come into a vacuum," said Strong Young Pony. "You're standing still and then you have a shock wave  a movement of a wave, like a ghost  someone walking past you that you can't see," he said.

Another protester, Efrain Montalvo, 25, a representative of the International Indigenous Youth Council, said bright flashes left him temporarily blind. "It's like a white light, but then it makes you shiver," he said. "You just don't really know where you are." He described having what he called a seizure, lying prone while convulsing for 10 minutes.

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A Morton County Sheriff's Department spokesman, Rob Keller, wrote in an email that the department does not use or possess concussion or flash-bang grenades. "Our law enforcement ONLY deployed less than lethal munitions," he wrote.

North Dakota officials suggest instead that it was protesters who rigged "one-pound propane cylinders as explosives." Officials said they recovered three of the cylinders.

Sophia Wilansky, meanwhile, faces a grueling road to recovery, even if she does not lose her arm. Her father says she may not ever recover full use of it. She faces up to 20 surgeries in the coming months.

As she heals, protests will undoubtedly continue and, with them, the possibility of more clashes.

On Friday the Army Corps of Engineers ordered that the main camp be evacuated by Dec. 5. The water protectors already are saying they will not agree to this.

Tolan is a special correspondent.
CHARLESTON, S.C.  The white man accused of fatally shooting nine black parishioners at a church was allowed Monday to act as his own attorney, opening the door to courtroom spectacles at his death penalty trial, including Dylann Roof questioning survivors of the attack and relatives of the dead.

Roof's decision to represent himself comes months after he offered to plead guilty in exchange for the promise of life in prison. But federal prosecutors have refused to take the death penalty off the table in the slayings at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston. Until now, Roof has been represented by one of the nation's most respected capital defenders.

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He joins a long line of high-profile defendants who acted as their own attorneys, often with poor results. Serial killer Ted Bundy, Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammed and Army Major Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people at the Fort Hood military base in Texas, ended up with death sentences.

After firing their lawyers, Long Island Rail Road shooter Colin Ferguson was sentenced to 200 years in prison, and 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui was sent away for life.

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Defendants who act as their own lawyers generally want to bring attention to their causes and publicize their actions. That almost always runs counter to the advice of lawyers, who urge them not to incriminate themselves.

"They think they have a message and that's unfortunately what leads to these crimes in the first place," said New York attorney Tiffany Frigenti, author of an article called "Flying Solo Without a License: The Right of Pro Se Defendants to Crash and Burn" for her law school journal.

Pro se representation can also lead to uncomfortable courtroom encounters between defendants and their victims or those victims' families if they are questioned by the very person who is accused of shattering their lives.

"It can seem beneficial. Nobody believes in your cause and case more than you," Frigenti said. "But it only works that way in very rare cases  usually appeals."

With Roof acting in his own defense, there is plentiful opportunity for explosive or awkward courtroom moments. Just hours after his arrest, some of the victims' relatives attended Roof's initial court appearance and said they forgave him and would pray for him. If he continues as his own lawyer, Roof could end up questioning those same family members in court.

In approving Roof's request to act as his own lawyer, U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel also appointed his defense team to stay on as standby counsel, available for advice and assistance throughout the trial. That team includes celebrated death penalty attorney David Bruck, who slid down one seat and let Roof take the lead chair after the judge's order Monday.

Known as a hard-charging lawyer with deep opposition to the death penalty, Bruck's record is mixed. He kept Susan Smith off South Carolina's death row for sending her car into a lake with her two children strapped inside, but he could not keep a federal jury from sentencing Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death last year.

Roof's motion came the same day jury selection resumed in the case, a process halted Nov. 7 after lawyers for Roof questioned his ability to understand the case against him. After a hasty two-day competency hearing, Gergel last week ruled that Roof was competent to stand trial.

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Roof has also been found competent in state court, where prosecutors plan a second death-penalty trial on nine counts of murder.

During the juror qualification, Roof sat at the defense table occasionally conferring with Bruck. He registered few objections to jurors, agreeing with Gergel about a man's statements that the crime being in a church made it more worrisome to him and also saying a woman's death penalty views made her a good juror. Otherwise, Roof sat in his chair, sometimes looking at papers spread out before him.

Beginning Monday, 20 potential jurors per day are reporting to the courthouse for individual questioning by the judge. Seven potential jurors have been qualified so far. When 70 qualified jurors are picked, attorneys can use strikes to dismiss those they don't want, until 12 jurors and six alternates are seated.

According to police, Roof sat through nearly an hour of prayer and Bible study at the church with its pastor and 11 others before pulling a gun from his fanny pack and firing dozens of shots.

Roof shouted racial insults at the six women and three men he is charged with killing and at the survivors, authorities said. He said he left three people unharmed so they could tell the world the shootings were because he hated black people.

Associated Press
Sherri Papini, the Northern California mother missing for three weeks, was found on the side of a road on Thanksgiving morning chained and "heavily battered," according to police dispatch logs.

Authorities are continuing to investigate the circumstances of Papini's abduction and are looking for two women they believe are the kidnappers.

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The 34-year-old woman was found bound by restraints along Interstate 5 in Yolo County. Officials were called about 4:30 a.m. after Papini was able to flag down a motorist. The mother of two was treated for injuries and reunited with her husband, Keith.

The Redding Record-Searchlight quoted dispatch logs from the California Highway Patrol, which said Papini was "heavily battered" and "chained to something."

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Speaking on "Good Morning America," Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said detectives are hoping to get more information from Papini soon in an effort to find her kidnappers.

"It shows what a community can do when it works together to get the word out," he said.

Residents who had been helping with the search were relieved that Papini was found safe.

"It was just the biggest blessing, not only for the family but for the community that's been trying to find her," Sandra Oswald, a 29-year-old community organizer in Redding, told the Associated Press. "Now, it's just praying for them and her recovery."

Before Papini was found, police had filed about 20 search warrants in court related to the investigation. Many were filed under seal, the Sacramento Bee reported.

esmeralda.bermudez@latimes.com

Los Angeles Times staff writer Shelby Grad contributed to this report.
President-elect Donald Trump gives the thumbs-up as he arrive at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster clubhouse in Bedminster, N.J., on Nov. 19, 2016. (Carolyn Kaster / AP)

NEW YORK  The drama, disputes and falsehoods that permeated Donald Trump's presidential campaign are now roiling his transition to the White House, forcing aides to defend his baseless assertions of illegal voting and sending internal fights spilling into public.

On Monday, a recount effort, led by Green Party candidate Jill Stein and joined by Hillary Clinton's campaign also marched on in three states, based partly on the Stein campaign's unsubstantiated assertion that cyberhacking could have interfered with electronic voting machines. Wisconsin officials approved plans to begin a recount as early as Thursday. Stein also asked for a recount in Pennsylvania and was expected to do the same in Michigan, where officials certified Trump's victory Monday.

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Trump has angrily denounced the recounts and now claims without evidence that he, not Clinton, would have won the popular vote if it hadn't been for "millions of people who voted illegally." On Twitter, he singled out Virginia, California and New Hampshire. In another series of tweets Monday, he lashed out at a CNN reporter who had called Trump's fraud claim "baseless."

There has been no indication of widespread election tampering or voter fraud in those states or any others, and Trump aides struggled Monday to back up their boss' claim.

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Spokesman Jason Miller said illegal voting was "an issue of concern." But the only evidence he raised was a 2014 news report and a study on voting irregularities conducted before the 2016 election.

Trump met Monday with candidates for top Cabinet posts, including retired Gen. David Petraeus, a new contender for secretary of state. Trump is to meet Tuesday with Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, who is also being considered more seriously for the diplomatic post, and Mitt Romney, who has become a symbol of the internal divisions agitating the transition team.

Petraeus said he spent about an hour with Trump, and he praised the president-elect for showing a "great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there."

"Very good conversation and we'll see where it goes from here," he said. A former CIA chief, Petraeus pleaded guilty last year to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified information relating to documents he had provided to his biographer, with whom he was having an affair.

Trump is expected Tuesday to name Georgia Rep. Tom Price to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, said a person familiar with the decision, who insisted on anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss the nomination publicly ahead of the announcement.

Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who is heading the transition effort, teased "a number of very important announcements tomorrow" as he exited Trump Tower Monday night.

Pence is said to be among those backing Romney for State. Romney was fiercely critical of Trump throughout the campaign but is interested in the Cabinet position, and they discussed it during a lengthy meeting earlier this month.

Other top Trump allies, notably campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, have launched a highly unusual public campaign to warn the president-elect that nominating Romney would be seen as a betrayal by his supporters. Conway's comments stirred speculation that she is seeking to either force Trump's hand or give him cover for ultimately passing over Romney.

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Three people close to the transition team said Trump had been aware that Conway planned to voice her opinion, both on Twitter and in television interviews. They disputed reports that Trump was furious at her and suggested his decision to consider additional candidates instead highlighted her influence.

Conway served as Trump's third campaign manager and largely succeeded in navigating the minefield of rivalries that ensnared other officials. Trump is said to have offered her a choice of White House jobs  either press secretary or communications director. But people with knowledge of Conway's plans say she is more interested in serving as an outside political adviser, akin to the role President Barack Obama's campaign manager David Plouffe played following the 2008 election.

The wrangling over the State Department post appears to have slowed the announcements of other top jobs. Retired Gen. James Mattis, who impressed Trump during a pre-Thanksgiving meeting, was at the top of the list for Defense secretary, but a final decision had not been made.

Trump was also considering former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for Homeland Security secretary, according to those close to the transition process. Giuliani was initially the front-runner for State and is still in the mix. But questions about his overseas business dealings, as well as the mayor's public campaigning for the job, have given Trump pause.

Those close to the transition insisted on anonymity in commenting because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the private process.

Even as Trump weighs major decisions that will shape his presidency, he's been unable to avoid being distracted by the recount effort. He spent Sunday on a 12-hour Twitter offensive that included quoting Clinton's concession speech, in which she said the public owed Trump "an open mind and the chance to lead."

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His final tweets challenging the integrity of an election he won were reminiscent of his repeated, unsubstantiated assertions during the campaign that the contest might be rigged. Those previous comments sparked an outcry from both Clinton and some Republicans.

Clinton lawyer Marc Elias said the campaign has seen "no actionable evidence" of voting anomalies. But the campaign still plans to be involved in Stein's recount to ensure its interests are legally represented.

Trump narrowly won Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. All three would need to flip to Clinton to upend the Republican's victory, and Clinton's team says Trump has a larger edge in all three states than has ever been overcome in a presidential recount.

Associated Press
President-elect Donald Trump is for now unswayed by the extraordinarily public revolt by some of his top advisers and allies over the possible choice of Mitt Romney as secretary of state and continues to see his foe as a serious contender for the diplomatic post, several people briefed on the deliberations said Monday.

Romney plans to have a private dinner Tuesday with Trump, who is said to be intrigued by the notion of reconciling with one of his fiercest Republican antagonists - even as he also weighs rewarding the loyalty of former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani with one of the administration's most prized jobs or selecting a decorated military officer in David H. Petraeus.

Trump is looking for assurances that Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee who has championed a muscular and at times interventionist foreign policy, could be trusted to defend and promote Trump's markedly different worldview in capitals around the globe, the people familiar with the president-elect's deliberations said.

Giuliani has openly campaigned for the job and has told friends that he is likely to get it. But Trump's team has determined that it may be challenging and even unlikely for Giuliani to win Senate confirmation: His web of international business interests and the millions of dollars he has earned in paid speeches and consulting work for foreign entities would come under scrutiny, while Sen. Rand Paul, Ky., one of 10 Republicans on the Foreign Relations Committee, has threatened to block Giuliani's nomination.

Romney and Giuliani have been seen as co-favorites to lead the State Department, but Trump this week is expanding his search to include other candidates, chief among them Petraeus, a retired Army general and former CIA director.

Transition officials said Trump has long admired Petraeus and described his candidacy as formidable, despite the baggage he would carry into any confirmation battle because of his 2015 conviction for mishandling classified information. Petraeus's public service career came to an end amid revelations that he had an affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell, and shared classified information with her.

On the campaign trail, Trump played down the significance of Petraeus's conviction, repeatedly arguing that it was "a fraction" of what Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton had gotten away with by using a personal email server as secretary of state.

Petraeus and Trump met Monday afternoon in New York for about an hour, with Vice President-elect Mike Pence joining them for part of the session. As the general exited Trump Tower following their session, he praised Trump, telling reporters that he "showed a great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well. Very good conversation, and we'll see where it goes from here."

Trump later tweeted, "Just met with General Petraeus - was very impressed!"

Trump will meet Tuesday with Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who officials said could emerge as a candidate, although the senator has said that he is unlikely to end up in serious contention. As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Corker would oversee the confirmation process of Trump's nominee.

Trump is hiring for other key positions as well, including secretary of homeland security. He has chosen Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., one of the Hill's fiercest critics of President Obama's health-care law, to be secretary of health and human services. Trump met Monday with two candidates: Frances Townsend, a former homeland security official in the George W. Bush administration, and David Clarke, the controversial sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wis. Trump is to meet Tuesday with a third contender, Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee.

The nascent Trump transition has been riven by infighting over the possible nomination of Romney, who is seen as the quintessential establishment figure and who spoke out against Trump's candidacy in unusually harsh and personal terms.

Pence and some Trump advisers are said to have argued that Romney would be a steady hand prepared to help shape relationships around the world. Trump is said to have buried the hatchet with Romney at their Nov. 19 meeting in Bedminster, New Jersey, and sees a political benefit to bringing him into the administration: silencing a rival Republican who has a big microphone and a network of wealthy donors.

But other Trump intimates have advocated forcefully for Giuliani, a trusted loyalist and brash Trump defender who developed a close bond with the candidate and is more ideologically in sync with him.

The feud spilled into the open over Thanksgiving weekend as Kellyanne Conway, Trump's former campaign manager and now a senior adviser to the transition team, attacked Romney's credentials and trustworthiness in a trio of Sunday television appearances. Conway said on CNN that she has received a "breathtaking" amount of messages from Trump supporters "who feel betrayed to think that Governor Romney would get the most prominent Cabinet post after he went so far out of his way to hurt Donald Trump."

Conway is part of a cadre of Trump allies who are waging an unprecedented public battle against Romney in an attempt to influence the president-elect's decision, sow doubts about Romney in the minds of Trump's core supporters and create an environment in which he would be a toxic nominee.

Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., one of Trump's top backers on Capitol Hill, blasted Romney on Monday on CNN as "a self-serving egomaniac who puts himself first, who has a chip on his shoulder and thinks that he should be president of the United States."

And Brent Bozell, an influential conservative activist, issued a statement declaring that "the very idea of Mitt Romney as Secretary of State - or any other cabinet position in a Trump administration - is a slap to his supporters.''

Trump observers said the president-elect has taken a page out of his playbook for "The Apprentice," his hit reality show on NBC.

"Trump is pitting people against other people, seeing how it plays out," said Jeffrey Tulis, a professor of government at the University of Texas at Austin. He said Romney is being "humiliated by the process" but that Trump "has a model of conflict between advisers and subordinates that he thinks has worked for him in his business and on his TV show. He's very comfortable with turmoil."

Over the Thanksgiving break, as Trump relaxed with his wife, Melania, and family at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, he asked guests and friends to weigh in on the choice between Romney and Giuliani. Two Trump friends confirmed the holiday discussions, which were first reported by the New York Post.

"Donald personally wasn't negative on Romney, but said he had gotten a lot of negative feedback on Romney, and Melania also had gotten a lot of negative feedback. And it seemed clear he had reservations about Rudy," said one person close to the transition, who requested anonymity to recount private conversations with the Trumps.

Joe Scarborough, the host of MSNBC's "Morning Joe," reported on air Monday that Conway had committed "an act of sabotage" against Romney and that Trump was "furious" with her.

Later Monday morning, on a conference call with reporters, Trump spokesman Jason Miller would neither confirm nor deny that characterization of Trump's attitude. He said only, "I'll leave that to the president-elect if he wants to add any additional commentary."

Miller added that Trump was meeting with Romney on Tuesday because "the two, quite frankly, haven't spent much time together, so this gives them a little more time to do so.''

Conway did not respond to a request for comment and declined to speak with reporters at Trump Tower.

One associate said that although Trump "likes the theatrics of it all," he has chafed at feeling pressured to nominate Giuliani.

Other Trump associates, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, poured cold water on the suggestion that Conway was freelancing.

"The boss is genuinely conflicted," one transition official said. A third person, who is close to the transition team, added, "I don't think Kellyanne went off the reservation. [Still,] Trump would love to have Romney work for him . . . and at the very least, he loves to have Romney grovel for the job."

Jim Manley, a longtime senior Senate aide who most recently worked for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the public approach Trump is taking is both "undiplomatic" and "gauche."

"One of the most important positions in our government is being used as a political football to settle political scores," Manley said. "Of all my years of watching the confirmation process, I've never seen anything like this. ... You've got staff who may or may not be going rogue to advance their own agenda.

"It's bringing out the worst in people."

One of Trump's biggest concerns is whether Romney would advocate Trump's perspective in closed-door meetings with foreign leaders. The two men have different views on Russia's aggression and U.S. trade policy, among other issues, although they have similarly aggressive postures when it comes to fighting Islamic State terrorists and cracking down on a Chinese government they see as manipulative and exploitative.

Doug Wilson, chairman of the board of advisers of the Truman National Security Project, said Trump should be certain there is "a cohesive foreign policy that will be supported by all the players."

"It's one thing to talk about a team of rivals," Wilson said, a reference to former president Abraham Lincoln's Cabinet. "It's another thing to talk about a team of rivals when you go beyond the water's edge."

Still, there is historical precedent for presidents picking secretaries of state from rival wings of their parties: President Obama selected Clinton, while former president Woodrow Wilson tapped William Jennings Bryan.

There also is the question of whether Romney would publicly apologize for his critical statements about Trump during the campaign - something some Trump loyalists are advocating as a condition of his nomination.

One Republican who is close to both Romney and Trump, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that for Romney, "The danger is not apologizing. The danger is apologizing and not getting the job."

---

The Washington Post's David Nakamura in New York and Jerry Markon and Elise Viebeck in Washington contributed to this report.
The vast majority of Americans recently enjoyed a gigantic, mostly home-cooked Thanksgiving Day meal. So this seems like as good a time as any to point out that such meals have become an anomaly. Basic ingredients  such as, you know, turkeys, cranberries and sweet potatoes  now account for only 5 percent of U.S. food spending.

Basic ingredients also accounted for 5 percent of spending in 1999, so at least that's not on the decline. But according to the June 2016 U.S. Department of Agriculture report from which I got these numbers, prices rose faster from 1999 through 2010 for basic ingredients than for any of the other food categories  so consumers were getting relatively less of them for the money. And I've got to think that, 50 or 100 years ago, basic ingredients made up a much higher share of food spending.

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Another view of food-spending patterns comes from the Census Bureau's monthly retail sales data. Sometime soon, it appears, spending at restaurants and bars will surpass spending at food and beverage stores. That doesn't necessarily mean more people will be eating out than staying home: according to market-research firm NPD Group, 48 percent of dinner meals purchased from restaurants are eaten at home as takeout. NPD also reports that sales of prepared foods at grocery stores are up 30 percent since 2008. The overall picture is pretty clear: Americans are increasingly outsourcing the preparation of their food.

I'm a cooking-from-scratch kind of guy, and I'm tempted to assault you now with a long screed that would eventually boil down to me asserting my moral superiority. But there's obvious economic logic to putting food preparation in the hands of experts and letting those who don't get actual pleasure from cooking do other things with their time  and their kitchen space. Take it from Rob Rhinehart, co-founder and chief executive officer of the venture-capital-backed California startup that makes meal-replacement drink Soylent:

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"I think it was a bit presumptuous for the architect to assume I wanted a kitchen with my apartment and make me pay for it. My home is a place of peace. I don't want to live with red hot heating elements and razor sharp knives. That sounds like a torture chamber. However, it's not a total loss. I was able to use the cabinets to store part of my book collection."

The big problem with leaving food preparation to the experts, though, has been that up to now the experts in food preparation in the U.S. have mainly been experts in making unhealthy food addictive. The move away from making food from scratch has been accompanied by a big increase in obesity that is probably not coincidental.

So the challenge is building and sustaining a food-preparation sector that doesn't make us sick. I guess Rhinehart's Soylent is a step in that direction with its more wholesome alternative to sugar-laden protein drinks  although the fact that the stuff was literally making people sick earlier this year means it's probably not the best example. But there are lots of other newcomers to the food preparation scene, many of them also backed by Silicon Valley venture capitalists who are trying to make wholesomeness and healthiness a selling point.

Some of them are struggling. It was a story by Bloomberg's Eric Newcomer on the troubles at Munchery, a San Francisco startup that cooks and delivers meals in several U.S. cities, that got me thinking about this topic. I was going to bash Silicon Valley and its arrogant belief that it can reinvent every business, even a low-margin one with limited capacity for digitization. Plus, who the heck would want to get their meals from a venture-backed startup called Munchery?

Then I talked to my 94-year-old father, and learned that he and my stepmother have actually tried Munchery and now buy three dinners a week from a rival called Thistle that promises (and, from what my dad says, delivers) "simple, clean, whole foods made with loving hands and organic, seasonal ingredients." The aging of the U.S. population is one more reason to think the trend away from cooking for ourselves is going to continue for awhile yet. And upon reflection I have concluded that I should probably be rooting for Silicon Valley's efforts to build a food business that isn't constructed from junk instead of mocking them.

Bloomberg

Justin Fox is a Bloomberg View columnist.
An undated photo of Elfrieda Knaak. "Self immolation was attempted yesterday morning by Miss Elfrieda Knaak, 30 years old, a pretty Sunday school teacher of Deerfield, Ill., because of her faith in God and as a test of her love for a handsome married man, she told physicians last night," reported the Tribune on Oct. 31, 1928. (Handout)

Except for one little detail, the final chapter of Elfrieda Knaak's life reads like an Agatha Christie mystery novel. It was chock full of ambiguity. Cause of death? Take your pick. There were severe burns on her head, neck and face, when she was found nude in the furnace room of the Lake Bluff police station on Oct. 30, 1928. But an autopsy also showed signs of electrocution and a severe blow to the head. There were two false confessions  three, counting Knaak's claim: "I did it myself." Yet she changed her story several times before dying, four days after someone did something to the attractive 30-year-old book saleswoman and Sunday school teacher.

And that's the thing about a who-done-it. After all the false clues and dead ends, the reader learns who the culprit was, slaps his forehead and exclaims: "I should have seen that!" Knaak's case wasn't wrapped up so neatly.

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It is true that a Lake County coroner's jury found Knaak "came to her death 'by burns which appear from the evidence to be self-inflicted.'" According to the Tribune's report, the jurors heard testimony from a brother of Knaak who "told him she burned herself to prove the power of mind over matter."

That jibed nicely with Knaak's dabbling in spiritualism. On her bookshelves was "Christ in You," a prescription for mystical enlightenment. As the Tribune reported: "The opening paragraph of the 'Ninth Lesson' was marked in pencil, presumably by Miss Knaak. The paragraph follows: 'As you unfold in the consciousness of God many inexplicable things become clear. One is the purifying power of pain. ... This is the process called 'the refiner's fire.'"

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Still, the suicide theory raised as many questions as it answered.

A doctor who saw Knaak in the hospital to which she was taken raised a key issue, as the Tribune reported. "To believe her story you would have to believe these facts," Dr. Arthur J. Rissenger told private detective George Hargrave: "That she placed her right foot in the furnace and kept it there for several minutes. Then that she stood on the burned foot and put the other one in the fire after which, standing on the two injured feet, she thrust her head and arms into the fire. The pain would have been excruciating and she also would have probably fainted after the first feeling of the flames."

Those holes in the official version of the story have long framed it in doubt. "Someone else at least had a moral if not a physical responsibility for Elfrieda's burning," said her brother Alvin Knaak, city clerk of Deerfield, where Elfrieda Knaak lived.

The same thought would occur to Londoners in 1954, when a housewife's charred remains were found on a smoldering wood pile. As the Tribune's correspondent noted: "Other minds have even recalled for purposes of comparison, the 26-year-old Illinois mystery in which pretty Elfrieda Knaak, a salesman frustrated in love, supposedly burned herself to death by alternately putting her head, arms and feet into a blazing furnace."

In fact, the Lake Bluff cops looked into the possibility of an ill-fated love affair. They quickly ascertained that Knaak had some sort of relationship with Charles Hitchcock, a onetime movie actor and vaudevillian turned cop and the town's night watchman. On the surface, it didn't seem that Knaak and Hitchcock were romantically involved. "Hitchcock is no Apollo in real life," the Tribune noted. "Much of the good looks that once were his have disappeared."

Still, the timing was suspicious. Hitchcock was scheduled to be on duty the night when Knaak was found in the police station. But he'd taken the shift off, saying an ankle he'd broken earlier was acting up. A doctor who attended Knaak told the coroner's jury that Knaak said she loved Hitchcock. "Occasionally she said something about Hitchcock going back to his wife or his wife going back to him," the Tribune reported.

So some speculated that Hitchcock, fearing that the affair would cost him his marriage, lured Knaak to the police station. He had a key with which to let them in. That theory drew support from an enigmatic entry in Knaak's diary, released to the media by her brother: "Oct. 10. Went this P.M. without any sale. Called H. at 6 P.M. He said it seemed like three weeks and hoped I would come soon."

Assume that "H" was Hitchcock, factor in Knaak's movements the evening before she was found in the police station and the pieces of the puzzle seemed to fit. Instead of going home from her Loop office, she phoned her sister from Highland Park about 6 p.m. Knaak, who played piano, explained she stopped to buy a piece of sheet music, estimating she'd be home by 7:30 p.m. Instead she bought a ticket on a 6:01 p.m. train to Lake Bluff.

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The station master in Lake Bluff remembered her arriving, and the one person she apparently knew there was Hitchcock. He supplemented his income by maintaining a studio where he taught pop psychology  self-esteem improvement, effective sales strategies, elocution  and Knaak had been his student. Knowing her predilection for spiritualism, could he have exercised some kind of mental leverage that induced her to put her arms and legs in that furnace? She had said they were bonded by a "spiritual" love.

At the inquest, a detective and the state's attorney tested that theory by pounding hard when Hitchcock testified. Did he have the ability to hypnotize someone? "He said he had none, but while on the stage had encountered men who could put persons in a trance," the Tribune reported. "He named Houdini as a friend and others whom he characterized as 'mental sensitists.'"

But he said he had no idea that Knaak was in love with him. He said he never left home that night, though his wife couldn't corroborate that, having been at work herself. Still, there wasn't any physical evidence linking him to the scene of the presumed crime, so investigators considered other suspects. One was a violin teacher who either shared Hitchcock's studio or had one nearby. Nothing there, so maybe their mistake was in assuming the killer was a man. Among Knaak's effects was a letter from a "H.R. Lock," which a Mrs. H.P. Roch of Libertyville acknowledged sending.

"Not once did I think of being anything beyond being a friend until the third time you came and the way you looked at me," Luella Roch had written. "Then the next time you came you mastered me more than ever."

"Plump and comely," as the Tribune described her, Roch denied their relationship was based on anything more than a mutual interest in spiritualism. Again, a dead end. Meanwhile, the accounts of those who confessed to killing Knaak weren't believable. An Army deserter in Texas who'd been a chauffeur for a wealthy Lake Forest family claimed he did it. The evidence said no.

A self-proclaimed student of the occult sent a letter claiming credit for the killing. "The writer of this letter was no ordinary crank," the state's attorney commented. "Either he is an ingenious fictionist or else he knows something of the crime." The investigators' consensus favored the crank theory.

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So detectives and family members looked to the one person who should've known who the culprit was, according to a reporter's account:

"From the cracked lips of the dying girl came a mumbled: 'I wonderI wonder.'

"'You wonder what, (E)lfrieda?' asked a nurse as relatives bent over her.

"'I wonder why they did it,' muttered the girl.

"'Who did it?' almost shouted the nurse.

"'I can't remember,' the girl enunciated with difficulty as consciousness left her."

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rgrossman@chicagotribune.com
Alex Kierstead of Aurora during a trip to Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois. Kierstead, a student at Southern Illinois University, died in a recent fire in Carbondale. (Joseph Hein / Handout)

Friends and family are mourning the death of Alex Kierstead, a 20-year-old from Aurora who died in a house fire in Carbondale.

Joe Hein shared the house with Kierstead near the campus of Southern Illinois University, where both went to school. Hein was away when the fire happened Nov. 23.

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"I woke up to a call Wednesday morning that the house burned down. Alex was one of my best friends," said Hein, 22.

Hein said Kierstead was someone he thought would be his "lifetime friend."

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In all, four young men shared the house at 700 W. Freeman St. in Carbondale.

Carbondale firefighters were dispatched at around 4:50 a.m. Nov. 23 and found the residence fully engulfed in fire.

On Monday afternoon, the identity of the victim in the house was identified as Kierstead. Carbondale police said Kierstead was the only person in the home at the time of the fire.

They said the investigation is ongoing and that foul play is not suspected. An autopsy was conducted Friday but a report has not yet been completed.

Hein, in his senior year at SIU, left Tuesday to be with his family in Lansing for the Thanksgiving Day holiday.

Kierstead, in his sophomore year, could have left Tuesday to be with his family in Aurora. However, he decided to wait until Wednesday because someone he knew had to work and he needed a ride home.

Hein said that was Alex - always thinking of someone else.

"Alex told the guy, 'I'll wait for you another day so you can get back to your family.' Alex was one of the most caring people I have ever met," he said.

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"I was supposed to return home with Alex on Wednesday but I ended up catching a ride home a day earlier with my other roommate," Hein said. "(The loss) is really intense. I am really upset."

He said the loss of his friend is extremely tragic for a lot of people.

"Alex went out of his way to make friends every day," he said.

Hein met Kierstead two and a half years ago when he was a senior at Waubonsie Valley High School in Aurora. Hein said Kierstead at the time was interested in applying to SIU.

"We would take him in and show him around the campus. He liked SIU and he really liked the trees and hiking trails," he said.

Hein said Kierstead lived in a college dorm his freshman year and then moved into a house with him and two other students for the current school year.

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Hein said he was impressed that Kierstead had a double major studying political science and journalism. He was interested in getting a minor in philosophy and studying abroad in Morocco.

"Alex was going to see the world," Hein said.

He said the home they lived in was an old, two-story house. He said the surviving roommates met Sunday to share their grief and celebrate Alex's life.

"We told all of the happiest stories we remember about Alex - all of the great things about him. Alex taught me how to live in the moment and to be willing to experience new things because it could potentially change my life in ways that I couldn't even think was possible," Hein said.

He said they both shared a love for hiking and would regularly take hikes in Shawnee National Forest.

"We both loved hiking. We sometimes went four times a week. We practically lived in the woods - that's where I really got to know Alex," Hein said.

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Hein said SIU has provided the surviving students with living quarters in the dorms for the next three weeks, when the semester ends.

"My other roommate and I are going to find a house to rent for the second semester. As for coping, I am still in shock," Hein said.

Hein said although it was difficult, he did return to the charred house Sunday to see if he could find anything of Alex's that was not damaged in the fire.

"I went through his room. It was the most surreal thing I have ever experienced in my life," Hein said.

Hein said he was able to locate several instruments that Alex played.

"Alex was a great musician. He played drums, bass and guitar. We had a music room in the house where he had a lot of his guitars and a drum set. A lot of the guitars were buried in soot but we are going to try to clean them. He had a western guitar in a case that survived," he said.

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John Kenny graduated from Waubonsie Valley High School in 2013, three years before Alex graduated earlier this year. He was a roommate in the house who also left for the holiday last Tuesday.

"If I could describe Alex in one word it would be compassion. He was one of the most kindest individuals I have ever met. Alex was so nice and caring it would sometimes get him into sticky situations trying to help people," Kenny said.

Kenny, 21, of Aurora, remembers his friend as an "amazing artist."

"He was an amazing painter and musician," Kenny said.

He said his roommate was a special person.

"Alex could have done anything he wanted to do in life," he said.

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Waubonsie Valley Principal Jason Stipp said the school is shocked to learn of Kierstead's death.

"Our school community was saddened to learn of the loss of Alex," he said. "His carefree attitude, ability to see through life's distractions, and measure someone for who they were are things I was directly able to see in him while his principal at Waubonsie Valley. Other teachers this week have spoken of the brightness in him and how he contributed in a class setting.

"It is a reminder to us all how precious life is," he said.

Healy Chapel in Aurora is handling funeral arrangements.

Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News
Aurora police are asking the public for information about a hit-and-run crash Thanksgiving night on the city's Far East Side that critically injured a 97-year-old woman.

At about 7:55 p.m. Thursday at Asbury Drive and Saratoga Drive, a vehicle described only as "possibly a white pickup truck," veered into the same lane as a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt that had just turned southbound from Saratoga onto Asbury, the Cobalt driver told police.

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The impact of the collision sent the Cobalt backward, and it struck a 2009 Honda Accord that was parked and unoccupied on Saratoga, according to a news release from the Aurora Police Department.

The Cobalt driver, a 48-year-old Wheaton man, and a 73-year-old Chicago woman riding in the back seat were both treated at Rush-Copley Medical Center for non-life-threatening injuries, according to police. The 97-year-old woman in the front passenger seat sustained "numerous" broken bones and was airlifted to a suburban hospital after initial treatment at Rush-Copley, according to police.

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The pickup truck was last seen northbound on Asbury, according to police.

Beyond the vague description of the offending vehicle, police have no further information about the offender, according to the news release.

Police ask anyone with information about the incident to call Aurora police traffic investigators at 630-256-5330 or Aurora Area Crime Stoppers at 630-892-1000. Callers to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and qualify for a reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to any arrests.

People also can submit tips through the Aurora Police Department's free My PD mobile app.

hleone@tribpub.com

Twitter @hannahmleone
Johan O. Asiata has been charged with five counts of official misconduct, two counts of aggravated battery and one count of unlawful restraint. (Kane County State's Attorney / Handout)

Four guards at a youth correctional center in St. Charles are accused of encouraging some detainees to attack other detainees as a form of discipline, the Kane County state's attorney's office announced Monday.

The men charged live in Yorkville, Channahon, Rockford and St. Charles.

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Johan O. Asiata, Michael M. Klimek, Andre L. McFarland and Elliott J. Short, all guards at Illinois Youth Center-St. Charles, were indicted on multiple counts Nov. 22 by a Kane County grand jury.

Asiata is a former member of the Chicago Bears, playing in two games as an offensive lineman in 2010, and also serving on the team's practice squad for a while.

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In January, the guards, led by Klimek, encouraged certain juvenile residents to physically attack other residents, according to Kane County State's Attorney Joe McMahon. He said the four facilitated the attacks and stood idly by while they happened.

According to the indictments, Klimek, 40, of the 100 block of Tuma Road in Yorkville, is charged with 53 counts of official misconduct, all class 3 felonies; 18 counts of aggravated battery, each also a class 3 felony; three counts of unlawful restraint, all class 4 felonies; one count of mob action, another class 4 felony; and one count of theft, a class A misdemeanor.

State police took Klimek into custody Nov. 22. He posted $7,500 bond and was released from Kane County jail Nov. 23. He is scheduled to appear at 9 a.m. Dec. 5 at the Kane County Judicial Center.

Asiata, 30, of the 26200 block of South Rachel Drive, Channahon, is charged with five counts of official misconduct, all class 3 felonies; two counts of aggravated battery, both also class 3 felonies; and one count of unlawful restraint, a class 4 felony.

State police took Asiata into custody Nov. 23. He posted $5,000 bond and was released the next day from the Kane County jail. He is next scheduled to appear in court at 9 a.m. Dec. 8 at the Kane County Judicial Center.

McFarland, 31, of the 4500 block of Hitching Post Trail, Rockford, is charged with eight counts of official misconduct and one count of aggravated battery, all class 3 felonies.

State police took McFarland into custody Nov. 22. He posted $3,000 bond and was released from the Kane County jail Nov. 26. He is scheduled to appear at 9 a.m. Nov. 30 at the Kane County Judicial Center.

Short, 34, of the 1900 block of Oak Street, St. Charles, is charged with four counts of official misconduct and two counts of aggravated battery, all class 3 felonies.

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State police took Short into custody Nov. 22. He posted $5,000 bond and was released Nov. 23 from the Kane County jail. He is to appear at 9 a.m. Dec. 7 in at the Kane County Judicial Center.

According to the charges, there were 10 victims in the incidents, all of which took place Jan. 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 28.

The charges were reported to the Illinois Department of Corrections in late January, according to a news release from the state's attorney's office. The department asked Illinois State Police to handle the investigation. The four men were then placed on paid administrative leave, according to the state's attorney's office.

If convicted of the most serious offenses against them, each man faces a sentence of probation or between two and five years in prison.

hleone@tribpub.com

Twitter @hannahmleone
DuPage County prosecutors said Monday they are rescinding the plea deal of a Chicago man who refused to testify earlier this month in the murder trial of his friend.

The nullified plea deal means that Kenneth Bardlett, 23, is again facing first-degree murder charges in the January 2014 death of Hussein Saghir, who was shot outside a Bensenville convenience store where he was a clerk. Bardlett's friend, Stephan Russell, was found guilty of Saghir's murder in a trial that ended Nov. 18.

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Authorities say Russell and Bardlett tried to rob the Sam's Tobacco and Food Mart on the night of Jan. 19, 2014. Russell shot Saghir when the clerk tried to keep Bardlett and Russell out of the Irving Park Road store because Saghir's brother and young nephew were inside, authorities said.

Bardlett was arrested several weeks after the shooting and eventually reached a plea deal with prosecutors, in which Bardlett would receive a 20-year sentence for attempted armed robbery and, in exchange, he would testify against Russell.

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However, Bardlett, who is being held in the county jail, refused to come to court Nov. 15 when he was scheduled to testify and had to be brought forcibly. He told the judge he would not testify until he was allowed to speak with his court-appointed attorney.

When he finally did testify, Bardlett refused to answer most questions posed by prosecutors, replying to most questions "I don't know," or "I don't recall," or "If you say so." In a police interview in 2014, though, Bardlett identified Russell as the man who shot Saghir, 36.

Jurors saw the video of Bardlett's interview and also heard testimony of another accomplice, who implicated Russell. The jury deliberated about three hours before finding Russell guilty. He is awaiting sentencing and faces a 20- to 60-year prison term on the murder charge.

Bardlett would face that same sentence should he go to trial and be found guilty of first-degree murder. He could also attempt to renegotiate a plea.

His attorney, Assistant Public Defender George Ford, said Monday he had had several conversations with his client and had apprised him of the potential consequences should Bardlett not follow the terms of the plea deal. Bardlett is due back in court Jan. 18.

Clifford Ward is a freelance reporter.
A security guard working for Canadian National Railway was shot and killed near CN's intermodal terminal in Harvey. (Warren Skalski / Chicago Tribune)

A manhunt continued late Monday morning for a suspect in the weekend fatal shooting in Harvey of a railroad security guard who is being remembered by his employer as "a true professional."

Tyrone Hardin, 38, was fatally wounded Saturday while working on Canadian National Railway property in the 15800 block of West Avenue, officials said.

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The Cook County medical examiner's office listed Hardin's address as being in Riverdale. A person who answered the phone at a family member's home Monday said Hardin had been living in Indiana.

The suspect who police believe killed Hardin remained at large Monday, said Harvey spokesman Sean Howard in an email at 10:45 a.m.

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Hardin was pronounced dead at 6:25 p.m. Saturday at Advocate South Suburban Hospital, according to the medical examiner's office.

Hardin had been working as a security guard for the Hazel Crest company Gideon's 300 Security Services Inc., for a year and a half, according to a statement from company president, Lawrence Moore. The firm was contracted by Canadian National.

Moore called Hardin "a true professional dedicated to his duties" and said "his loss will be deeply felt."

Harvey police had been pursuing a stolen vehicle when it crashed in the area of 159th Street and Park Avenue. The driver got out and ran on top of a viaduct, which led to an area belonging to Canadian National, Howard said. The driver then came in contact with Hardin and shot him several times in the abdomen, the Harvey spokesman said.

After shooting the security guard, the man got on a railroad car headed south, Howard said. Around 171st Street, he jumped the rail car and ran away from the authorities.

Check back for updates.

Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter.
A Canadian National Railway police facility sits at the corner of 159th Street and West Avenue in Harvey, near where a security guard was fatally shot Saturday. (Warren Skalski / Chicago Tribune)

Police continued to search Sunday for a man suspected of fatally shooting a security guard for the Canadian National Railway Saturday night in Harvey.

The guard, who was fatally injured in the 15800 block of West Avenue in the south suburb, was identified as Tyrone Hardin, 38, of south suburban Riverdale, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office. Public records also listed an address in Merrillville, Ind., for Hardin.

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Sean Howard, spokesman for Harvey, said the incident began sometime before 6:30 p.m. Saturday with a call to police from a woman who reported her vehicle was stolen in Harvey. Driving a neighbor's car, the woman was following the man who had taken her vehicle.

Howard said the woman did not know the man who took her car, and it appeared to be a random incident.

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As police, with their emergency lights on, began following the stolen car, the driver crashed in the area of 159th Street and Park Avenue in Harvey.

At that point, the man got out of the stolen car and began running on top of a viaduct, which leads to an area belonging to the Canadian National Railway.

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

The man came into contact with a security guard and shot him several times in the abdomen, Howard said. Hardin, the security guard, was taken to Advocate South Suburban Hospital in Hazel Crest, where he was later pronounced dead.

Patrick Waldron, a CNR spokesman, said Hardin worked at the facility as a third-party contract security guard and was not directly employed by the railway.

After shooting the security guard, the suspect got on a railroad car headed south, Howard said. Around 171st Street, he jumped off the rail car and ran away from the authorities.

Several police agencies searched the area around the rail yard for the assailant. Howard said officers do not believe anyone else was working with the suspect.

In a statement, the railroad said that "multiple police agencies" were involved in the shooting investigation, and that CN is cooperating with them.

"We would like to express our sincere condolences on this tragic loss to the guard's family, friends and co-workers," CN said in the statement.

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Mike Nolan of the Daily Southtown contributed to this report.
Longtime community member Lois Bonaccorsi makes a point to Elmwood Park Police Chief Frank Fagiano (left) and Deputy Chief Andrew Hock at a "Coffee With A Cop" gathering last week. (Pioneer Press / Pioneer Press)

In the cozy atmosphere of a neighborhood Panera, one community member dished up a question on a pretty hot topic to Elmwood Park Police Chief Frank Fagiano

"One of the questions I just got was about concealed carry," the chief related. "Somebody's house is broken into, what are your rights?"

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The chief walked the citizen through the complex issues surrounding a legal gun carrier's rights.

Want to hear more? You might want to attend the department's next "Coffee With A Cop" gathering.

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The event Nov. 22, at Panera at 7400 W. North Ave., brought a small gathering of residents, taking the opportunity to join police officers for coffee (compliments of the village) and conversation.

For several years now, the department has been sponsoring such events. The concept originally grew out of Hawthorne, Calif., in 2011, where members of the police force there were looking for ways to interact more successfully with the citizens they served, according to coffeewithacop.com.

Fagiano likes the backdrop of an informal atmosphere, such as Panera, for citizens to feel free discussing issues.

Normally, "when people call police it's because something bad happened to them," he said. "In a sense, this is kind of the reverse."

Naomi George, a nearly 27-year resident of the village, said she felt comfortable in the setting. One of her concerns? Drivers respecting pedestrian rights at crosswalks.

"I have to tell you the truth  some people drive too fast. I'm concerned about that," she said.

Rita Andrews, another resident, learned about the event from the village website. "I thought, I should go to that," she said.

After chatting about the effectiveness of some traffic signs in town, she launched into a wider issue with the other people at the table, including two Elmwood Park police officers, Dave Ransom and Don Marino: "The crime in Elmwood Park has that increased through the years or is it pretty steady?"

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Across the table, Police Officer David Ransom, who grew up in Elmwood Park, was ready with an answer.

"I've been here 10 years," he said. "It's pretty much been the same in my opinion."

Lois Bonaccorsi, another longtime resident, used the occasion to renew ties with Deputy Chief Andrew Hock and Police Chief Fagiano.

"I knew Andrew a long time from the neighborhood," she said.

As for the event, she said "I think it's a wonderful thing."

Olga Brezden, a University of Illinois at Chicago student interning with the police department as part of her studies, was also sitting in.

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"I think it's a great example of community outreach," said Brezden. She said such events can provide "an icebreaker where citizens can come and ask questions."

Brezden, majoring in political science and criminal justice, said her background is eastern European. Some members of that community have related stories to her about being stopped by police and not knowing what to do. In their home countries, the citizens would step out of their cars. In the United States, that can be a no-no.

Events such as last week's are a good way for "the community to come in and learn about procedures," she said.
The defendant charged in the 2013 stabbing death of a 19-year-old Waukegan man is scheduled for trial in early February after several delays including a period during which Kevin Curtis was found unfit to stand trial.

Curtis appeared before Judge James Booras Monday morning, and both prosecutors and defense attorneys said they want to proceed with the currently scheduled Feb. 6 trial date for Curtis. The attorneys asked Booras to schedule time to complete routine pretrial motions.

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Booras set a Jan. 9 date to hear the motions.

Curtis, 29, of Waukegan, has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder in the July 16, 2013, stabbing death of a co-worker, Jacob Blum, at a Red Roof Inn on the 3100 block of Belvidere Road.

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According to police, after Curtis allegedly stabbed Blum that night, Blum was able to identify Curtis as his assailant before dying at about 12:30 a.m. on July 17 at Vista Medical Center West in Waukegan.

According to police reports, Blum was not able to tell police what led to an apparent altercation prior to the stabbing.

As a trial date was approaching last year, Curtis was examined by a local psychiatrist who found him unfit for trial, and he was sent to a secured medical facility for treatment. He was returned to the Lake County Jail earlier this year after being found fit for trial following treatment.

The case is being prosecuted by assistant state's attorneys Daniel Kleinhubert and Scott Turk, and Curtis is being represented by defense attorneys Kevin Malia and Eric Rinehart.

Both sides told the judge they are ready for trial and expect the Feb. 6 date to stand.

The motions to be heard concern routine decisions about evidence that will and will not be allowed at trial, Turk said.

In addition to the alleged identification by the victim, Kleinhubert has said Curtis was treated after the incident for a minor cut to his hand that Kleinhubert said occurred during the stabbing.

Curtis, who is being held in Lake County Jail with bail set at $5 million, faces a mandatory minimum of 20 to 60 years in prison if convicted at trial.

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jrnewton@tribpub.com

Twitter @jimnewton5
Kudos to Lake County

There have been some extraordinary things going on in Lake County that make me proud to be a resident. Two weeks ago, the Black Lives Matter movement held a banquet that was outstanding. There was standing room only, and the speaker gave a phenomenal speech. Cornell Ford held his movie premiere at the Genesee Theatre. It is so nice to see our residents doing some positive things. It's not always bad. Black Lives Matter also gave away turkeys to people who needed them so everyone could have a happy Thanksgiving. Lake County is my county.

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Statement about Social Security

There was a caller who said he was thankful for Donald Trump because he doesn't want illegal immigrants coming here and getting Social Security. Illegal, undocumented people don't get Social Security.

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Set up mobile home park

If Donald Trump has been using tax write-offs to benefit his income, I find a contradiction. Why doesn't he just pay full taxes and not do any bargaining or tax deferments? He could buy a large piece of property, perhaps in Lake County, buy mobile homes, and charge $1 for each plot of land that the mobile homes sit on. Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. Provide much needed housing for either working or low-income people.

Phony police

This is about police warning residents about people impersonating officers. I've suspected that for the last 30 years. There are a lot of people walking around in uniform impersonating cops.

Musing about migration

To all the people who say they are moving to Canada because Donald Trump was elected, don't let the door hit you where the good Lord split you. How are you going to do this, legally or illegally? You're all whining about people being in the United States illegally, so how are you going to migrate to Canada?

Lake County News Sun Twice-weekly News updates from Lake County delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Wondering about women presidents

The reason Hillary Clinton isn't the president of the United States is because she is a woman. Our country will never allow a woman be the president. She is clearly more qualified and more experienced than Donald Trump. Little American girls, you can never be the president.

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Life changed forever

Time to start thinking. How about this goofy Donald Trump? He doesn't need Air Force One. He has his own airplane. Whether he is a successful or unsuccessful president, his life is changed forever. He will have Secret Service people following him. Congratulations, Mr. Trump. Is this you wanted for the rest of your life?

Twitter @NewsSun

Editor's Note

Talk of the County is a reader-generated column of opinions. If you see something you disagree with or think is incorrect, please tell us. Call us at 312-222-4554 or email talkofthecounty@tribpub.com. For a continuously updating blog of Talk of the County comments, go to newssunonline.com/talk.
Changing times

So often in the last eight years, I've heard President Obama talk about no drama. There will be a lot of drama in the next four years. Hillary Clinton supposedly won 1.3 million more votes in the popular vote than Donald Trump. The Electoral College was a good idea in the 1700s and 1800s, when we had limited communication. But, since it's still here, I'll live with it. The one thing Trump better figure out is he will have a lot of people in his face. People have figured out not to just hang a sign across their chest and walk around in a circle.

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Agency angst

Don't believe all the hype you're reading that agencies are getting all these phone calls from immigrants. Agencies that normally got 100 calls a week are now getting 300 calls. We have millions of immigrants in Illinois. They are not all concerned about it. Maybe these calls will get these agencies to do some actual work.

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Deny deadbeat drug dealers

I'm calling regarding the comment, "Don't blame President Obama." The caller said we won't have to worry about cost of living increases to Social Security because there won't be any Social Security to collect. Let me tell you something  Social Security is not an entitlement. It is paid for by everyone who ever worked. The unfair portion is that when deadbeat drug dealers and thugs who had children nonstop die, Social Security gives their babies' mothers $1,000 a month for every child. I worked 38 years before I retired and became disabled. I paid into Social Security all my life. The deadbeats need to be trimmed from the rolls.

Words about the wall

I heard that Illinois state Rep. Will Guzzardi wants to pass a bill in Illinois so pension investments won't go to companies that might be involved in building the wall that Donald Trump is considering at the Mexican border. He said he represents a predominantly Latino district with a lot of undocumented families. Undocumented equals illegal, plain and simple. He is jumping on a bandwagon he knows nothing about. Trump is not looking at sending everyone out, just the criminals.

Shutting down shelter

Here we go again. A Chicago area shelter is shutting down. The people who live there say they can't afford rent, so they live at the shelter. Since the shelter is close to the Magnificent Mile, they say businesses should keep it open. Why do these people feel they need to be supported? That's not the real world. They should try and get a job. Problem solved without digging into everyone's else's pockets.

Lake County News Sun Twice-weekly News updates from Lake County delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Good will towards men

The spirit of the holidays is already in session. My car went down in the middle of a busy intersection in Waukegan during rush hour. Three people of three different nationalities stopped to ask me if I needed help. If that isn't the love of the holidays, I don't know what it is.

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Trump talk

This comment is for anyone who calls in to Talk of the County and says they are Latinos who do not want Donald Trump to be the president. I am a white man. I did not vote for Trump. He talks out of both sides of his mouth. How can you trust someone who talks like that? Even our overseas partners won't trust him, and rightly so. Bring on four years early.

Twitter @NewsSun

Editor's Note

Talk of the County is a reader-generated column of opinions. If you see something you disagree with or think is incorrect, please tell us. Call us at 312-222-4554 or email talkofthecounty@tribpub.com. For a continuously updating blog of Talk of the County comments, go to newssunonline.com/talk.
Vexed about the vote

For people who complain about the protests going on, while saying that there weren't protests after President Obama's election, let me remind them that Trump did not win the popular vote. He only won the Electoral College vote. Obama won both the Electoral College vote and the popular vote. Trump did not get the popular vote by over 1 million votes.

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Help Americans first

The College of Lake County is a community college. It is not a four-year university. I strongly object to my taxes being used for international students from China. That money could be better used to support the poor people of Lake County.

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Stop sanctuary cities

I want to comment on the story about pushing for Waukegan sanctuary. This story is the most disgusting story I ever read. The most disgusting thing in this country are sanctuary cities. There are no residents who need to live in fear if they are legal citizens and obeying the law. The lawlessness of the liberals placating illegal aliens is disgusting. Sanctuary cities are unacceptable.

We need some cooperation

Agreed  our local police should not be the initiator on immigration matters. However, when another unit of government puts a warrant hold on someone we have in custody, or ICE puts a hold on someone we have in custody, then we must honor the hold. Otherwise, we run the risk of another Kate Steinle losing their life because we are protecting convicted felons.

Waukegan making a mistake

Well, you can watch the real estate "for sale" signs pop up in Waukegan and surrounding communities. Mayor Motley just planted the "kiss of death" on properties. Designating Waukegan as a sanctuary city, whether it be formally or informally, is in direct violation of the laws of our country. What about all the people waiting patiently to become citizens the legal way? Do we want Waukegan to be a haven for criminals and illegals? It costs taxpayers plenty to implement accommodations for illegals. Wake up, Mr. Mayor.

Criminals alone are to blame

People who break the law live in fear of being caught. They live in fear that when caught, their punishment will separate them from their loved ones. This applies to robbers, rapists, wife-beaters and illegal immigrants. These individuals made the choice to break the law, and the resultant fear is one they and no one else created. Accept responsibility for your own actions and the result of these actions. Do not play the blame game.

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Lake County News Sun Twice-weekly News updates from Lake County delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Just more lies

Big, bold letters on Page 5 in the Nation & World section of the News-Sun stated; "Trump shifts on campaign vows." Really? Isn't that called lying, coming from a shifty salesman especially?

Sanctuary silliness

Waukegan a sanctuary city? Are they crazy? Waukegan is financially strapped as it is, not to mention high taxes. Just deport them. Illegal is illegal. We have laws in this country. That's one reason we voted for Trump. We can't afford it.

Twitter @NewsSun

Editor's Note

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Talk of the County is a reader-generated column of opinions. If you see something you disagree with or think is incorrect, please tell us. Call us at 312-222-4554 or email talkofthecounty@tribpub.com. For a continuously updating blog of Talk of the County comments, go to newssunonline.com/talk.
Lincolnshire residents likely will not be directly affected by officials' move to join a new emergency call system, but the consolidation effort  one of many happening in Illinois  could help improve 911 services elsewhere in the state, authorities said.

Lincolnshire Village Board voted in November to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with Vernon Hills, Countryside Fire Protection District in Vernon Hills and Libertyville to create a joint emergency telephone system board. The new board will begin working May 1.

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The move means village officials will no longer operate its own emergency system board, which had been in effect since the early 1980s, said Lincolnshire Deputy Police Chief Bill Price. Vernon Hills will continue to provide emergency dispatch services to Lincolnshire residents, he said.

"Residents will not see any change," Price said. "Nobody is going to see anything different on their phone bill. It will not have any direct impact on them, but parts of Illinois still do not have 911 service. A portion of the money might be pooled to get 911 service there."

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The money in question is a monthly 911 fee, usually totaling 75 cents, collected from residents' local telephone bills to pay for personnel and maintenance of the statewide emergency 911 system, Price said.

But last January, Illinois lawmakers mandated that all emergency system boards that serve populations of less than 25,000 people disband and merge with or form larger emergency system boards, he said.

An emergency telephone system board generally manages and oversees the 911 system that covers a particular area. About three years ago, Lincolnshire entered into a five-year contract that let Vernon Hills take over emergency dispatch services, Price said.

"With all the phone companies and municipalities that have their own (emergency telephone system board), which is different than dispatch, there was a move to consolidate and streamline all bill paying and money collecting, and make best use of why the legislation was passed," he said. "They want a governing body that will get the check to the state of Illinois from the phone companies."

Under the new board, Vernon Hills officials will handle administrative services, according to Lincolnshire police. All groups have signed on to the agreement, leaving officials with the work of ironing out the logistics of the new board before the group starts, Price said.

Libertyville, Lincolnshire and Vernon Hills residents already share a complex emergency dispatch network that goes through the Vernon Hills' dispatch center, said Vernon Hills Deputy Police Chief Rick Davies.

Vernon Hills handles all police calls for the three communities, he said. Countryside Fire Protection District also staffs a dispatcher at the center who is tasked with handling area fire calls, Davies said.

Libertyville fire calls are dispatched by Countryside, while Lincolnshire fire calls are transferred to the Northbrook-based Regional Emergency Dispatch Center, which then dispatches the Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection District, Davies said.

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Phil Rockrohr is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Under Illinois law, school districts must make a school available for use as a polling place if the county board or the board of election commissioners determines that it is convenient and available. The district must also ensure that the portion of the school that is used for voting is accessible to those with disabilities.

While officials with some districts, including Naperville District 203, have not pushed for change in that statute, others, including those in Indian Prairie District 204, say they should have the right to refuse to make a school available if they believe voting could compromise the safety of students.

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In recent years, especially after the Sandy Hook school shooting in 2012, schools have tried to ensure that anyone entering a school when students are present should have a clear background and a good reason to enter the premises.

Those measures conflict with the election process.

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There is nationwide debate over the wisdom of using schools as polling places that anyone can access on election day, allowing people with unknown background and criminal history access to school facilities when classes are in session.

Schools must individually take whatever precautions they believe are necessary, like designating a restroom for use by voters, making sure vehicles are not parked too close to the building, and directing security personnel to confine voters to a certain part of the building. Such measures are expensive.

Illinois state law acknowledges the challenge, encouraging school districts to close for the day or schedule a teachers institute that day to keep children out of the classroom.

State law also forbids registered sex offenders from voting in schools. If their polling place is at a school, they must vote early or mail in their ballot.

It is up to the school to hire the necessary security personnel if school is open on election day. In District 204, the bill for that security will come to $10,000 for the April consolidated election, officials have said.

Officials in District 204, which has 20 schools that are used in elections, said they have tried to work with election officials, but could not persuade them to move the polling places elsewhere.

They have pushed new statewide legislation excluding schools from being used for voting.

Their counterparts in District 203, which has 6 schools that are used as polling places, do not support that. Instead, they would favor local control over the matter. The Illinois Association of School Boards also takes that position.

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We applaud District 204 for identifying a potential problem and seeking a solution.

Schools are public buildings, but unlike others they are dedicated to a single purpose and have an elected administration to achieve their mission.

However, we also recognize that in some smaller communities in Illinois, a public school might be the only available polling place location. We also recognize that being involved in elections can be a valuable educational experience.

Some school boards and leaders may agree, some may not. As representatives of their constituents, that is their right. We agree with the Illinois Association of School Boards, District 203 and others that local school leaders are in the best position to make security decisions for the community and should be allowed to refuse to allow a school to be used as a polling place.

It makes sense that individual districts should have the final say whether any school can safely and efficiently take on this role.
A clever playwright and an actor who spends most of his stage time in priestly garb are combining their talents in "Father Zamboni's Holiday Telethon" for James Downing Theatre.

This is the second time that husband and wife Jane Allyson and Mark D'Arienzo have shared a tale of the troubles at Our Lady of the Unclean Church. Two years ago, Allyson's production of "Father Tony Zamboni's Christmas Shorts," a short play festival for which she wrote the framework about a church fire started by undetermined means, was a big hit at James Downing Theatre. So was D'Arienzo as the good priest.

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"This year, they're having a Christmas telethon," Allyson said. "There was a big tornado that came by and lifted the roof off of the Our Lady of the Unclean Church. The 40-foot steeple with a cross on top was thrown across the street and impaled the car of a rabbi." Until the roof is repaired, Father Zamboni is conducting Sunday services at the synagogue across the street.

Once again, this scenario will surround six, 10-minute holiday plays chosen from submissions by a play selection committee. Two of the plays are remounts of shows that were hits two years ago.

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Allyson's favorite short play is "The New Christmas Morning." "Two older people are opening their gifts with their children. They have an iPad and a mobile phone," she said. "They don't know what it is or how it works so the kids are trying to show them how these tech devices actually work. It is just adorable."

As for the priest in the show, Allyson revealed that Father Zamboni "is a sweet guy but he's kind of bumbling. He means well but there's always something that's defeating him and he has to overcome it."

The role of Father Zamboni is a comfortable fit for D'Arienzo.

"I first donned the sacramental garments on September 17 in the year 2000 when I became the priest for 'Tony and Tina's Wedding,'" D'Arienzo said. After that, he was a priest in "Johnny Boy's Graduation," followed by "We Gotta Bingo."

When questioned why he keeps getting priest roles, D'Arienzo said, "Apparently I missed my calling. People will walk up to me and start telling me just about anything."

That personality trait works well for Father Zamboni who is generally hoping to get audience members to join his flock. "Father Zamboni is part priest and  I won't say conman  but he definitely has a way about him that he's always looking for an opportunity to raise money, either for the church or himself," D'Arienzo said.

The fundraising telethon puts Father Zamboni in the spotlight. "He's comfortable with that but it's in a medium that he hasn't explored previously," D'Arienzo said. "Although, he was dabbling in the pray-for-view for a while. He realizes there's a number of invalids, shut-ins and people who would rather sleep in on Sunday. For $21.95, they'll come into your home and absolve you of your sins."

James Downing Theatre presents, 'Father Zamboni's Holiday Telethon'

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When: 3 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays; 1:30 p.m. Sundays, Dec. 3-11

Where: Edison Park United Methodist Church, 6740 N. Oliphant, Chicago

Tickets: $20; $15 seniors and students; $10 children 12 and under

Information: (224) 725-3696; www.jamesdowningtheatre.com
Here are five things to do in Northwest Indiana Dec. 2-8.

Take a drive through the winter lights display at Sunset Hill Farm County Park through Jan. 1 nightly from 5 to 9 p.m. At 775 Meridian Rd., Valparaiso. Admission is free, though donations are welcomed. Call 219-465-3586 or go to www.facebook.com/pcparksandrec/.

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The annual Madrigal Dinner at Chesterton High School will be held Dec. 2-4. Times are 7 p.m. Friday; 4 and 7 p.m. Saturday; 2 and 5 p.m. Sunday. At 2125 S. 11th St., Chesterton. Tickets are $30. Call 219-983-3730.

Holly Days  featuring lit-up streets, carolers, a live Nativity, and free train rides  will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 2 in downtown Valparaiso and Central Park Plaza. Admission is free. Call 219-464-8332.

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Valparaiso University Chapel of the Resurrection hosts the annual Christmas Concert at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 2 and 5 p.m. Dec. 3. At 1600 Chapel Dr., Valparaiso. Tickets are $10-$15; free to students, faculty and staff. Call 219-465-5000 or go to www.valpo.edu/center-for-the-arts/calendar/.

The Historical Society of Ogden Dunes presents: Tea at the Hour Glass House Museum at noon and 3 p.m. Dec. 4. At 8 Lupine Lane, Ogden Dunes. Tickets are $15. Call 219-762-1268.

Do you have something going on we could include in Five Things to Do? Email your item, with time, date, place, price and contact information to wweber@tribpub.com at least two weeks before the event.
Marines Tom Vogel (left) of Schererville and Bob Welk of Merrillville greeted parade attendees during the recent Veterans Appreciation Day Parade in Hammond. A short ceremony followed the parade of 73 floats. (Sue Ellen Ross / Post-Tribune)

The annual Veterans Appreciation Day Parade, sponsored by the city of Hammond, has grown since its inception three years ago.

This year's trek down 173rd Street to Hessville Park included 73 floats, with a special program at the end of the road.

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"This is bigger than last year and such a great turnout of people," said Jill Ransey, whose house is on the parade route. "It's so very important to recognize our veterans. I'm glad to be a part of it."

The first Veterans Appreciation Day Parade was staged in downtown Hammond with only a few floats. The venue was changed last year to Hessville, with 53 floats participating.

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This year's 73 entries included high school marching bands, antique military vehicles and a legion of motorcyclists supporting the cause.

"This is a wonderful day," Loretta Alfaro, of Hammond, said as she lined up her grandchildren along the parade route, complete with mini-flags. "We have many veterans in our family and it's great that the city is honoring all the vets. They deserve this."

Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. began the program portion of the celebration by commenting on his military background.

"If it wasn't for the U.S. Navy, I wouldn't be standing here as your mayor," he said. "The service saved my life. I wouldn't have gone to college or law school without it."

Introducing the guest speaker as the "Veterans Staple" in Northwest Indiana, McDermott welcomed World War II veteran and businessman Bill Wellman to the lectern. Wellman is known for his numerous contributions to Northwest Indiana, both as a business owner and as a supporter of veteran's issues and organizations.

The retired U.S. Marine related the ups and downs of his military service in Okinawa, citing the somber burials of his fellow servicemen, as well as the opportunity to meet war correspondent Ernie Pyle.

"Taps was sounded at the end of every burial at sea," he told the crowd. "Those 57 seconds were very sad, and that always stuck in my mind."

Wellman utilizes a recording that plays taps every evening from his Valparaiso home  with no complaints whatsoever from the neighbors.

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"I've enjoyed every minute of this parade," he said. "God bless America, the vets and all of us."

Sue Ellen Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
INDIANAPOLIS  Indiana legislative leaders are advocating a go-slow approach to expanding the state-funded preschool program and warning there might be little money to boost school spending in the next state budget.

The pre-K program was launched in five of Indiana's 92 counties last year to widespread interest: Officials received applications for more than double the 2,500 openings for low-income children that the $10 million in state funding allowed.

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Top Republican legislators are in line with GOP Gov.-elect Eric Holcomb's support for a slow growth as opposed to what his election rival, Democrat John Gregg, pushed during his campaign  adding 20,000 4-year-olds in the first year of a statewide program.

The size of the budget is a key factor, given that state tax revenue growth has been slower than anticipated for the past eight months and is 1.6 percent, or about $75 million, below projections for the fiscal year that started July 1, according to the State Budget Agency.

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Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma said he believed adding 5,000 children next year  a cost of about $20 million  could be reasonable, although state funding should remain directed to low-income families.

"You can't just jump into a universal program until we're prepared to pay for that and the price tag is quite substantial," Bosma said.

The GOP-dominated Legislature will be considering the preschool program expansion as part of the new two-year state budget that will be drawn up during the session that starts in early January.

Latrice Stumpf, whose 4-year-old daughter attends an Indianapolis preschool through the state program, said she wouldn't be able to afford the same quality of preschool without it, and that a slow expansion would be a "big disappointment."

"I think in order for us to get our children on a path where they can compete in college and the workforce we need to start early," said Stumpf, who was at the Statehouse last week with advocates supporting pre-K expansion as lawmakers were sworn into office.

Though Republican Senate President Pro Tem David Long said the state should be cautious, he thinks doubling the number of counties is a "prudent move." Currently, the program is in Allen, Jackson, Lake, Marion and Vanderburgh counties.

"It continues to show support for the program but it doesn't get us all-in on spending before we have some answers," Long said.

Some of the outnumbered legislative Democrats want a more aggressive preschool push, although program advocates say they are fine with the measured approach.

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"This is not going to happen overnight," said Andrew Cullen, a United Way of Central Indiana consultant who's helping lead a lobbying effort for expansion. "Some parts of the state are ready for an expansion and others still have some work to do but they need the funding to be ready for an expansion."

Economists are scheduled to provide updated tax revenue projections Dec. 15, which will used to guide early work on the new state budget. Bosma said he expects a tighter state budget, which could mean a smaller boost in state funding than the 2.3 percent increase included in the current two-year spending plan.

Longtime education lobbyist Dennis Costerison said that's likely to mean less money for school districts with shrinking student enrollments, which are mostly in urban and rural areas.

"It's way too early to say there's going to be massive cuts or anything like that  we're not to that point," said Costerison, executive director of the Indiana Association of School Business Officials. "Even for those who may be getting some more money, it might not be as much as they received the last two years."

Associated Press
A Hammond Police officer arrested Saturday for operating a vehicle while intoxicated has been relegated to desk duty, according to the police deparment.

As of Monday, Officer Mathew L. Anderson also has been prohibited from working any department-related overtime while the charge moves through the courts, Hammond Police spokesman Lt. Richard Hoyda said via email Monday. Anderson has been with the department for three years.

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Any further disciplinary action will be determined after the criminal proceedings are complete, Hoyda said.

Anderson was charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated early Saturday morning after an Indiana state trooper observed Anderson's 2007 Honda Civic veering across lanes of traffic on Interstate 65 and nearly driving off the road, the Indiana State Police said. He was arrested shortly after 2 a.m. on State Road 2, just south of the Indiana State Police post, after a trooper followed him as he exited from I-65, according to the state police.

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When the trooper pulled him over, Anderson identified himself as a Hammond police officer and said he had weapons in the car, the release said. The trooper said he could smell alcohol on Anderson's breath, but Anderson refused to take a Breathalyzer test or field sobriety tests.

Anderson was charged with two counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and one of unsafe lane movement.

Anderson's arrest made him the second local law enforcement officer to be accused of operating while intoxicated in a week. Lake County Sheriff Sgt. Joseph Hardiman, 34, is also facing alcohol-related charges after crashing into a parked car in Schererville early Nov. 22, police said.

According to the ISP, Hardiman told the ISP Trooper he had attempted to avoid a deer that ran in front of his personal vehicle, a 2009 Ford van. He then drove to the left side of the road and struck a parked unoccupied 2007 Dodge Caliber, the release said.

Damage to both vehicles was extensive.

Lake County Sheriff John Buncich said Hardiman registered a blood alcohol content of 0.19 percent, more than twice the legal limit. The ISP will also handle that investigation.

Michelle L Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Hayes Leonard Elementary school students and Team Chevrolet employees help load the back seat and trunk of Principal Bonnie Stephens car with boxes of candy for service personnel overseas. (Donna Rowland / Post-Tribune)

Students of Hayes Leonard Elementary School in Valparaiso recently helped brighten the lives of military personnel serving overseas during a candy collection drive through Operation Gratitude.

The students collected nearly 400 pounds of candy during the week of Halloween, and it even got representatives from a local car dealership involved.

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Operation Gratitude sends more than 200,000 care packages annually to service members deployed overseas and their families at home. Since its inception in 2003, more than 1.6 million care packages have been distributed.

Principal Dr. Bonnie Stephens said the school did not anticipate how successful the candy collection would be.

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Hayes Leonard students (back row) Emma Mallonee, 10, Victoria Magnuson, 11, Elizabeth Ehrhardt, 11, Isabella Hearn, 10, Mia Hatton, 11, (front row) Christian Cauley, 9, and Jaden Adams, 10, carry Operation Gratitude boxes of candy collected during a recent school event. (Donna Rowland / Post-Tribune)

"We collected 396 pounds of candy, which filled 33 priority boxes from the post office," she said. "At a cost of $19 to ship each box, we hadn't budgeted enough to pay for the shipping."

After sending a plea to parents to help with the shipping, Stephens said $330 was raised, just under half of what was needed. That's when Dave Brubaker, from Team Chevrolet of Valparaiso, came to the rescue. The general manager had a personal interest in helping.

"My daughter, Ava, goes Hayes Leonard," Brubaker said, "and after the overwhelming response from the kids, we offered to team up with them. It's a great thing they're doing."

Hayes Leonard students show some of the boxes filled with candy that were collected during a recent Operation Gratitude event. Behind them are Dave Brubaker (left) and Kyle Anderson (right) of Team Chevrolet, Valparaiso. (Donna Rowland / Post-Tribune)

Team Chevrolet offered $332 to cover all the rest of the shipping costs. Brubaker and two helpers even showed up on the final day to help load the boxes into Stephens' car, then escorted her to the post office to send the boxes on their way.

One of the helpers assisting Brubaker was on the receiving end of Operation Gratitude himself not too long ago. Kyle Anderson, of Crown Point, served with the U.S. Navy for 13 months in 2006-07 in Iraq as a member of the military police.

"These boxes came in pretty often from all over," he said, "and since we had to eat the same thing every day over there, getting a Snickers bar once in a while made us definitely appreciate it."

Stephens said about 20 children on the Hayes Leonard student council assisted in the collection. Their help included advertising the event throughout the school, making signs, sorting the candy and putting it into boxes.

For more information, go to www.operationgratitude.com.

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Donna Rowland is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
American President-elect Donald Trumps announcement confirming his intention to dump the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) does not come as a surprise. Although the agreement, which we have written extensively about here, took seven years to negotiate and promised to open up sectors of the US market to a handful of Asian and South American nations was sound in principle, its apparent demise is not entirely unannounced. It is also possible that Trump himself, when fully introduced to its benefits, may yet decide to resurrect the deal.

The TPPs problems, and the EU equivalent, the Trans-Atlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP), stem from a number of sources, not least their lack of presentation to the general public and the subsequent media coverage reflecting this. Establishment politicians in a number of Western democracies have been criticized recently for giving the impression that we know best and thus becoming disconnected from the average citizen, which has perturbed the popular vote and quite rightly so. That is a shame, because both agreements carry much that is good. Yet once the taking jobs away discourse poisons the equation, it becomes very difficult to shake off the stigma that the average voter is being stiffed and that both American and European workers are being marginalized for the benefit of big business who want to replace them with lower income level workers based overseas. The governments of Barack Obama and Angela Merkel, as well as the other establishment politicians in Brussels, failed to sell the deals to their own voters, or even bother to explain them. Perhaps they felt the deals were too complicated for the man in the street to understand. Perhaps they didnt want to have them weighed down in endless debates. Perhaps they didnt understand the complexities themselves and just waved them through as party policy. They were certainly too arrogant, as the deals now look dead, a victory against keeping voters ill-informed or regarded as stupid.

However, tragedy is that much of the content of these proposed agreements is high value and would benefit American and European industry. Jobs outsourced to Asia arent going to be re-shored back to the US or Western Europe, period. A measure of the wage disparity can be seen in the garments industry, where Bangladesh is now the worlds second largest producer of textiles after China. (For a hilarious David Letterman interview with Donald Trump over his Trump branded ties being made in China, please click here) Clearly, American and European workers are not going to be content with a minimum wage in Bangladesh of US$68 per month. As a further example about why the vast majority of Asian jobs are not going to be re-shored or taken back to the US or Europe, please refer to the graphic below depicting minimum wage levels in the textiles industry across Asia.

Source: Dr. Sheng Lu, Department of Fashion & Apparel Studies, University of Delaware

What the TPP actually did, in part, was to recognize this, accept it, and promote other aspects of the American apparel industry instead. The deal was about protecting the industry segments in which the US, and other higher value economies such as Japan, could add value  at the added value end. It makes sense, and should be happening. The graph above tells a story  it is impossible to incorporate fine or hi-tech processes into textiles at those wage levels. What the TPP was designed to do was to allow and promote certain countries  and I believe Vietnam and Peru would have been the main beneficiaries of this  to produce low cost basic fabrics and allow them to sell that produce onto American and Japanese markets. Once there, the higher value added processes would take place that allow, for example, raw silk or cotton to be treated, impregnated, dyed, and turned into higher value products that could then be sold onto the domestic market (a great fiscal tax, wealth creating platform) as well as globally. The textiles example is by no means the only one; there are many such industry enhancing deals contained within the TPP. This means that the Bringing jobs back to America slogan used to criticize the TPP as a bad deal is incorrect. Dumping the TPP cuts off a committed source of cheaper goods, and prevents American industry adding value to Asian sourced raw materials.

The caveat here is that Donald Trump is not a stupid man, and as the YouTube clip shows, he is familiar with having his own products made in countries such as China. He will grasp the trade and employment implications, and it may not be too far a stretch of the imagination to suggest that when he does take office, having had time to examine the complexities of the TPP, it may yet be resurrected. The Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who recently met Donald Trump, expressed hope the TPP could still take place after [Trump] has studied it. Time will tell.

But even if the TPP does get sidelined, there are other pending trade deals that may well take its place or even incorporate parts of it. In fact, I suggested this may happen two years ago. In my essay Beijing Promoted FTAAP Will Delay TPP, I explained how at the APEC meeting in Beijing held in November 2014, members agreed to allow China to examine the potential of an alternative trade agreement, called the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP). I stated: Through APECs agreeing to the study however, the alternatives  the long-promoted Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreements  will, in my opinion, probably fall by the wayside. The TPP is led by Washington and excludes China, while the RCEP is promoted by China and excludes the United States. Negotiations for each will continue  officials from the countries concerned will want to keep up political and trade pressure on any future FTAAP agreement through using the TPP and RCEP negotiations to push their own agendas.

Donald Trump, in dumping the TPP  if he does  will be savvy enough to spot the positives such an agreement provides. He is an experienced businessman with investments across the world, including Asia. He will get the nuances of the TPP deal. If he can extend the TPP to include China, then so much the better. In fact, an FTAAP agreement that finally includes both the United States and China may even be more spectacular. If Donald Trump can get the balance right in such an agreement, acknowledge that China and Asia will be able to produce raw products at lower costs than the United States, yet push American manufacturing and processing up the value added chain, then the essence of the TPP will live on  with Chinese participation.



Chris Devonshire-Ellis is the Founding Partner of Dezan Shira & Associates  a specialist foreign direct investment practice providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in emerging Asia. Since its establishment in 1992, the firm has grown into one of Asias most versatile full-service consultancies with operational offices across China, Hong Kong, India, Singapore and Vietnam, in addition to alliances in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand, as well as liaison offices in Italy, Germany and the United States. For further information, please email china@dezshira.com or visit www.dezshira.com. Chris can be followed on Twitter at @CDE_Asia. Stay up to date with the latest business and investment trends in Asia by subscribing to our complimentary update service featuring news, commentary and regulatory insight.



Revisiting Transfer Pricing in China: a Year of New Regulations

In this issue of China Briefing, we provide a guide to navigating Chinas latest regulations, highlighting the main issues that exist for foreign companies, and explaining the various transfer pricing methods and processes that exist. 2016 has seen the release of new laws that have revamped transfer pricing compliance for MNCs in China. If implemented early in a Chinese entitys business life, a transfer pricing system can complement and support an MNCs business model and commercial objectives, as well as optimize its global effective tax rate.

Importing and Exporting in China: a Guide for Trading Companies

In this issue of China Briefing, we discuss the latest import and export trends in China, and analyze the ways in which a foreign company in China can properly prepare for the import/export process. With import taxes and duties adding a significant cost burden, we explain how this system works in China, and highlight some of the tax incentives that the Chinese government has put in place to help stimulate trade.
A Chinese book fair was launched Friday at the UNESCO palace in Beirut with the release of a book entitled "Hand by Hand-Half a Century of Chinese-Lebanese friendship."

The book was published on the occasion of the 45th year of establishment of the diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The fair is organized by the Chinese General Directorate of Information and the Chinese Embassy in Lebanon, and was attended by the Chinese Ambassador to Lebanon Wang Kejian, former Economy and Trade Minister Adnan Kassar and leading businessmen and authors from both countries.

Kassar said that the bilateral relations developed during the last century, revealing "I travelled to China with the late Prime Minister Martyr Rafic Hariri and the moments of this successful trip are detailed in the book we are launching today."

Hassan Falha, Director General of the Lebanese Ministry of Interior, said that "the Chinese-Lebanese relations are a unique example of cooperation between countries as for the difference in capacity, surface and number of habitant."

"The two countries share the humanitarian, cultural and civilization diversity of belief and religion," he added, stressing that between Lebanon and China there is "a uniqueness of wealth and importance of the role they played in human civilization."
Films from the Chinese mainland stunningly swept top honors at Taiwan's equivalent of the Oscars for Chinese-language films, Golden Horse Film Awards, on Saturday in Taipei with "The Summer Is Gone," wining best picture and Feng Xiaogang the best director.

Feng Xiaogang poses for photos after winning the Best Director award for his movie "I Am Not Madame Bovary" at the 53rd Golden Horse Awards in Taipei, southeast China's Taiwan, Nov. 26, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

Best feature film prize was awarded to Zhang Dalei's "The Summer Is Gone," about a boy's summer vacation in Inner Mongolia in the early 1990s against a background of shrinking jobs at state-owned companies during a time of economic reform. It also picked up a best new performer award for 10-year-old Kong Weiyi and the FIPRESCI prize awarded by a separate jury of critics.

"What should I say? I really wasn't expecting this. It's unbelievable... It's like a pilgrimage for me coming to Taipei," Zhang, director of the film, "The Summer is Gone," told the press after winning the best picture award.

Feng picked up the best director award for "I Am Not Madame Bovary" at the ceremony. Feng said the film was the closest to his artist vision and heart. Interestingly, the director also won the best actor award at last year's Golden Horse Film Awards for his impressive performance in "Mr. Six," a rare project of Feng as an actor in a feature film for the first time.

"I Am Not Madame Bovary" stars actress Fan Bingbing, who plays the role of a peasant woman who sues her ex-husband and fights China's bureaucracy for years. The film also won the audience choice award in Taipei.

"I want to thank Fan Bingbing. She is a movie star but acts in this art film without taking any pay-ment," Feng said. He hoped the Golden Horse Film Awards can award Fan so that as he said, I hope to encourage more stars to use their influence to get the audience to go to the theaters to watch art house films.
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Compensation of 1.2 million yuan ($173,500) will be paid to the families of each of the workers killed when a platform collapsed at a power plant construction site in Yichun, Jiangxi province, the construction company said on Sunday.

The collapse killed 74 workers and left two injured.

Hebei Yineng Yanta Construction Co will pay the compensation, as well as burial costs.

According to Xinhua News Agency, more than 500 family members arrived in Yichun to identify the bodies as of midday Sunday. Some families had signed the compensation agreement by afternoon.

Police have completed DNA matches with family members of 34 of the victims.

The tragedy occurred when a crane collapse at about 7 am on Thursday brought down the entire construction platform inside the unfinished cooling tower at the plant.

Police detained 13 people who were responsible for construction of the tower, as part of the inquiry into the incident.

A State Council panel announced on Friday that nationwide inspections would be carried out to prevent similar workplace accidents. Inspectors will check for safety hazards associated with elevated work platforms, cranes and scaffolding.

Rescue crews were withdrawn from the Fengcheng Power Plant site after a final search on Friday morning found no new casualties, the provincial government said.

An investigation of the incident continues.

Earlier reports by Xinhua News Agency said authorities had confirmed the identity of 68 dead workers, ranging in age from 23 to 53.

According to Yichun officials, construction of the plant, which belongs to Jiangxi Ganneng Co, began in July last year and was expected to be completed by early 2018.

The incident is the most serious in China since a landslide at a waste dump in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, buried buildings last year, killing 73 people.
The preparatory work meeting for the World Health Conference of Acupuncture and Moxibustion is held in Qujiang Saturday. [Photo by Mi Xingang/China.org.cn]



Qujiang, a city in southeastern China's Zhejiang Province, has aimed to revive acupuncture as the ancient city readies itself to host the first World Health Conference of Acupuncture and Moxibustion next year.

Acupuncture, a traditional Chinese medical therapy, is becoming increasingly popular as a viable way to treat chronic disease and pain.The World Health Organization recognizes at least 47 kinds of diseases that can be treated with acupuncture.

On Nov. 4, the eighth executive committee of the World Federation of Acupuncture-Moxibustion Societies approved Qujiang as the host city for the first World Health Conference of Acupuncture and Moxibustion in 2017 and set the standing site of the conference in Qujiang.

Qujiang is the hometown of Yang Jizhou, the great master of acupuncture and moxibustion. "The Compendium of Acupuncture and Moxibustion," written by Yang, is regarded as a classic by doctors of all dynasties. In 2014, the classic was included in the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List.

Hosting the conference will provide a valuable opportunity for Qujiang to promote acupuncture to a wider audience.

Zhuge Huiyan, director of the publicity department of Quzhou municipal government, said, "The conference to be held next year will help Quzhou dig out and promote traditional culture, and act as an implementation of the concept of 'Healthy China' and 'Healthy Zhejiang'."

"As the hometown of Yang Jizhou, Qujiang should preserve the essence of acupuncture, continue innovating and build an international brand of acupuncture for the future," Liu Baoyan, president of the World Federation of Acupuncture-Moxibustion Societies, told China.org.cn.

The statue of Yang Jizhou is inaugurated in Qujiang Saturday. [Photo by Mi Xingang/China.org.cn]



Qujiang has made a plethora of efforts to promote acupuncture, such as building Quzhou Acupuncture Hospital, setting up Yang Jizhou Acupuncture and Moxibustion Culture Center and Yang Jizhou Culture Park, as well as shooting a short film -- "Magic Needle."

Qujiang also set up the first academician workstation for Chinese acupuncture and moxibustion and held the World Acupuncture and Moxibustion Week.

Fu Shumin, editor-in-chief of Xiaokang Magazine, said Qujiang should not only be known as the hometown of Yang Jizhou, but also as a mecca of acupuncture for practitioners across the world.
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Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (R) meets with UN secretary-general designate Antonio Guterres in Beijing. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said Monday the international community should stick to the direction of economic globalization and maintain the post-war international order.

"Economic globalization, multi-polarization and democratization of international relations have created the necessary conditions for the peaceful development of mankind. The international community should stick to this direction," Li said.

The international community should uphold the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and maintain the post-war international order, he added.

Li made the remarks when meeting UN secretary-general designate Antonio Guterres, who is on a visit to China from Monday to Tuesday.

"The world political and economic landscape is undergoing profound changes with mounting uncertainties for economic recovery amid a rising mood of anti-globalization, isolationism and populism," Li said.

"Only by exercising the common wisdom of mankind can we create a better future."

Li lauded the UN as a core post-war multilateral platform, playing an irreplaceable role in maintaining world peace and stability.

Li stressed China will continue to support the work of the UN, preserve its international authority, and back the UN to enhance its capacity to cope with global challenges.

As the largest developing country and a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China will work with all parties for world peace, stability, inclusiveness and sustainable development, Li added.
By Christoph Steitz, Peter Maushagen, Reuters | Nov. 28, 2016

German pilots union VC has announced further strikes at Lufthansa for Tuesday and Wednesday this week after fresh talks at the end of a four-day walkout failed to settle their long-running pay dispute.

"Unfortunately the high-level talks that took place today at short notice failed to produce a result," VC board member Joerg Handwerg said in a statement on Sunday.

"There is still no negotiable offer from Lufthansa regarding the compensation of pilots, which means industrial action needs to continue."

The latest round of strikes will affect short-haul flights on Tuesday, Nov. 29, and short- and long-haul flights out of Germany on Wednesday, Nov. 30, VC said.

Lufthansa said it would have a special flight schedule by Monday, 2:00 p.m. CET (8.00 a.m. ET/1:00 p.m. GMT), adding it was disappointed by VC's move.

Last week Lufthansa had to cancel nearly 2,800 flights during a four-day strike from Wednesday that affected more than 350,000 passengers, the 14th walkout in a dispute that since early 2014 has cost the carrier hundreds of millions of euros.

VC had rejected the latest pay offer from Lufthansa late on Friday, lifting the threat of extending its strike beyond Saturday.

Lufthansa said that all flights would start on schedule on Monday, Nov. 28, as there had been no strike call from VC for that day.

Germany's biggest airline had earlier urged VC to resume talks.

"We have to talk," Bettina Volkens, Lufthansa's board member in charge of human resources, told Bild am Sonntag. "I hope very much that (VC) finally changes its uncompromising stance."

"This cannot be forced via strikes."

Lufthansa has offered to increase the pilots' pay by 4.4 percent in two instalments and make a one-off payment worth 1.8 months' pay. The union wants an average annual pay rise of 3.7 percent for 5,400 pilots over a five-year period backdated to 2012.

Strikes by the pilots cost Lufthansa EUR222 million (US$235 million) in 2014, according to the IW Cologne Institute for Economic Research, while in 2015 walkouts by pilots and cabin crew cost the airline 231 million euros.

Lufthansa said it had taken another EUR20 million hit in the first two days of last week's strike.

Related News:

Lufthansa Pilots Call Full-Scale Strike for Wednesday

Lufthansa Passengers Face New Round of Pilot Strikes
China Aviation Daily | Nov. 28, 2016

Just in time for the holiday season, HK Express has an early gift for both Thai and Hong Kong fans! The low-fare airline is introducing the only nonstop service between Hong Kong and Chiang Rai, Thailand. Launching on November 25, the new route took off with celebrations at both ends of the journey.

At Hong Kong International Airport, HK Express Commercial Director Luke Lovegrove met with Guests at the boarding gate to welcome them aboard the first flight. When the inaugural flight landed at Chiang Rai International Airport, a warm Thai welcome and delightful souvenirs were on hand to greet all the inaugural flight Guests.

"HK Express is thrilled to launch this exciting new route to Chiang Rai, Hong Kong's first ever nonstop service," said Luke Lovegrove, Commercial Director of HK Express. "We are always looking at destinations that appeal to our customer base and Chiang Rai is suitable on many levels."

"We are very pleased to witness the inaugural scheduled service by HK Express between Hong Kong and Chiang Rai, the northernmost large city and also a secluded city of beauty and serenity. We have confidence Chiang Rai will become one of the most popular Thai destinations for Hong Kong tourists and this new direct flight service will be significant in securing a strong foothold in between Hong Kong and Thai tourism," said Ms. Sarima Chindamat, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Hong Kong.

Located in northern Thailand, Chiang Rai draws a following for its majestic mountains, elaborate Buddhist temples, and historic vestiges of the Lanna Kingdom. The most memorable photo opportunity is the striking Wat Rong Khun "white temple" - it's like nothing else on earth.

Near the border of Laos and Myanmar, the city is also a strategic starting point for those who wish to explore more of northern Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, and the nearby Golden Triangle. Many travellers simply make the pilgrimage to taste-test Chiang Rai's excellent street food and unique Lanna flavours.

Before HK Express launched the first nonstop flight between Hong Kong and Chiang Rai, travellers would have to fly through Bangkok or take a long bus journey from Chiang Mai. The trip is now quick and painless - direct from Hong Kong.

To celebrate the launch, Guests will be treated to a very special introductory offer, with one-way fares starting from HK$248. On sale through December 25, 2016, fares are applicable to any trips taking off from now until July 13, 2017.

Stay tuned for new route launches - including Hualien in Taiwan (commencing December 6, 2016), Guam (commencing December 15, 2016) and Saipan (commencing January 17, 2017).

HK Express is an IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) registered airline and therefore in compliance with IOSA standards. HK Express is committed to delivering operational safety to its Guests and crews.

Contributed by HK Express
View of the headquarters of the Peoples Bank of China (PBOC), Chinas central bank, in Beijing, June 27, 2015. [Photo/IC]

Digital currency, global payment systems are likely to be first segments to apply new way of sharing tamper-proof information China is investing significantly to develop blockchain technology to reshape financial services. Digital currency and global payments may be the first applications.

This technology allows parties to carry out direct transactions without using an intermediary by providing a means for people to share reliable and tamper-proof lists of information known as distributed ledgers.

The People's Bank of China said earlier this month that it would recruit personnel to develop digital currency.

"Blockchain technology can be applied to many areas, and digital currency and global payment systems may be the first applications," said Xu Mingxing, CEO of a blockchain payment company OKLink.

Xu said blockchain technology is still at the early development stage and will be mature in the next two to three years, adding that developing digital currency with the blockchain technology is not difficult, but it is very important to control risks.

OKLink is a Beijing-based global business-to-business blockchain payment platform that cooperates with about 100 financial institutions with remittance licences in more than 20 countries and regions. "Our business is growing rapidly and we expect the transaction value of our platform will reach more than $100 million in 2017," said Xu.

Yao Qian, the central bank official leading the digital currency research center, said developing digital currency can make transactions more transparent and efficient and decrease costs of printing and transportation. China will first introduce the currency in certain money markets and promote its use in a gradual and cautious way.

According to a report of the World Economic Forum in August, international payments and wire transfers, which currently involve a lot of manual steps and fees, would be replaced by blockchain.

Several blockchain alliances have been formed to develop the technology. In October, Shanghai set up a Lujiazui blockchain alliance with 13 financial institution members. Its main research areas include renminbi cross-border payments and blockchain's application in a registration-based initial public offering system.

In April, a non-commercial organization, China Ledger Alliance, was set up to focus on research and development of blockchain applications. It is led by research and development company Wanxiang Blockchain Lab.

"Before full adoption of blockchain is possible, there are factors that need to be addressed, including an uncertain regulatory environment, lack of standardization efforts and the need for a formal legal framework," said Bob Contri, Global Financial Services Industry leader, Deloitte Global.

Huang Zhen, a professor of the law school of the Central University of Finance and Economics, said it is necessary for regulators to monitor blockchain activities and carry out appropriate regulations.

The report of the World Economic Forum said blockchain will fundamentally alter the way financial institutions do business around the world, but it comes with a set of risks that must be considered. These include errors in design, malicious behaviour as a consequence of human decisions, and potential gaps in security across all inputs and outputs.
Tourists get photographed in front of the Three Gorges dam in this file photo. REN WEIHONG / FOR CHINA DAILY

China Three Gorges Corp's ambitious expansion has made it the industry leader

Back in 2008, 'Three Gorges' had already become the world's biggest hydroelectric dam.

Yet, for China Three Gorges Corporation, which built the dam, it marked not an end but the beginning of a long journeya journey of ambitious expansion, to become one of the world's premier energy groups.

The last eight years' figures suggest CTG is well on its way to realizing its ambition. "Three Gorges Corporation, which was once lagging other leaders in the hydroelectric sector, is proud to announce itself as a leader of the industry now," said Lin Chuxue, executive vice-president of CTG.

That's not an empty boast. CTG now has a total capacity of more than 13 GW overseas, enabling it to become a major player in the global clean energy market.

CTG's overseas electricity generation reached 20 billion kilowatt-hours this year, mainly from hydro power, wind power and solar power. Its facilities are scattered across the globe, including in Brazil, Germany, Greece, Pakistan and Laos.

The company expects that by 2020, about 15 percent of its revenue will be generated overseas.

Lin said the company aims at not only the developed European and American clean energy markets but those endowed with abundant hydroelectric and new energy resources. He sees huge market demand in Africa and Latin America.

The Amazon area and the Parana region in Brazil, which have rich hydroelectric resources, have always been a major focus of the company, he said.

CTG has recently agreed to acquire Duke Energy's 2,090-megawatt business in Brazil for $1.2 billion, to further strengthen its Brazilian subsidiary as a top-tier clean energy generator in the country.

After the acquisition is complete, CTG Brasil will increase its clean energy generation portfolio by 2.27 GW, reaching a total of 8.27 GW of capacity under its management and on proportional equity holdings.

This came after the company won 30-year concession rights to operate two major hydroelectric projects, the Ilha Solteira and Jupia plants, in Brazil, with a total investment of $3.7 billion last year.

So far, CTG has invested in seven hydroelectric projects and 11 wind power projects in Brazil.

Being the second-largest producer of hydroelectric power in the world, Brazil is high in CTG's investment portfolio, as the country strives to build dams to meet its growing energy demand, said Lin.

Wang Shaofeng, executive vice-president of the corporation, told China Daily in a previous interview that CTG plans to use Brazil as a base to tap into other South American countries such as Chile, Peru and Colombia, all of which have rich water resources and experience of dam construction.

"We have been present in the Brazil's hydropower market for several years. For most of the projects, we participated through capital investment," he said. "But with our rich experience, we can do more in Brazil."

Lin said the increasing consensus being reached worldwide is that the energy structure should shift from coal to cleaner alternatives like natural gas, hydropower and wind power. This, he said, is very beneficial to CTG's global play.

"We are cooperating worldwide with private consortiums, governments as well as multinational corporations for our global construction projects," said Lin.

He said the corporation now has overseas operations in more than 40 countries and regions, including more than 80 energy project investments, power plant management operations, construction project contracts and engineering-procurement-construction or EPC contract.

"More and more Chinese companies, State-owned as well as private, are eyeing the going-global strategy, encouraged by the Belt and Road Initiative and other such policies," he said.

"It's good news for the Three Gorges Corporation to see more of our peers going global, for us it's more of cooperation than competition."
Tang Ning, founder and CEO of CreditEase Corp [Photo/IC]

Led by founder Tang Ning, Chinese micro-finance pioneer CreditEase is boosting overseas investments

At the time of this interview, Tang Ning, founder and CEO of CreditEase Corp, one of China's leading peer-to-peer or P2P lending and wealth management firms, was busy with his preparations to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation or APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Lima, Peru, this month.

"I will share the Chinese practice of financial innovation with some representatives of leading fintech (financial technology) companies from other countries," said Tang.

He became the pioneer of P2P lending in China when he founded CreditEast in 2006. Under his stewardship, CreditEase has grown rapidly and has 100 billion yuan ($14.7 billion) in assets under management now.

Yirendai, a P2P lending unit under the aegis of CreditEase, listed on the New York Stock Exchange on Dec 18, 2015.

"We are stepping up our pace of investing abroad and bringing in global talents to become a globally respected P2P and wealth management company," said Tang.

His determination to take CreditEase global stems from his education and working background.

In 1995, Tang studied in Peking University in Beijing and then went to the University of the South in the US to study economics.

"I used to like those days in the coeducational liberal arts college because I not only learned economy but also knowledge of liberal arts," said Tang.

He especially enjoyed the courses taught by a female development economics professor from Pakistan. He often thought of questions like how developing countries can come out of poverty. He brought those questions to class, and learned from the professor about Grameen Bank (the microfinance and community development organization of Bangladesh that, along with its founder Muhammad Yunus, was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006).

So, in the summer of 1997, Tang went to Bangladesh to learn from Yunus the concepts of microcredit and microfinance.

During his early career, Tang joined Wall Street investment bank Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette where he worked on initial public offerings, bond issuances and mergers and acquisitions.

Upon returning to China in 2000, he served as a director with AsiaInfo, and established China Growth Capital, a venture capital firm investing in early-stage consumer and enterprise technology startups.

Ten years on, CreditEase has four branches in the United States, Israel, Singapore and China's Hong Kong. Tang visits the US up to three times a year to teach at Harvard University and Stanford University as well as interact with financial services industry leaders and venture capital institutions.

CreditEase Corp has set up the Fintech Investment Fund totaling $1 billion, half of which will be invested abroad.

"We have invested in deals in sectors of blockchain, mobile payment, Bitcoin and supply chain finance," said Tang. "We not only bring them funds but our operational and innovation experience in China."

In its latest move, CreditEase, in association with other investors, invested $75 million in San Francisco-based Tradeshift Holdings Inc.

Tradeshift Holdings Inc operates a cloud-based business-to-business or B2B platform that helps companies to enhance their invoicing, workflow, and supplier financing processes.

Tang also pays attention to the Israeli market where CreditEase has set up a fund with about $30 million to invest in tech startups. They will bring Israeli technologies to China's huge market.

"Israel is famous for innovation and Israeli companies seek internationalization from the very beginning because their local market is small," said Tang.

CreditEase also managed funds of funds totaling more than 20 billion yuan in private equity, real estate and stock markets.

These FoFs are cooperating with about 100 global partners including Blackstone, Morgan Stanley, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and IDG Capital.

"We choose funds at home and abroad with sound investment performance and they should cover high-growth investments areas, such as the internet, healthcare, education and consumption upgrading," said Tang.

Tang said his firm aims to give FoF investors double-digit returns on investment annually over a long period of time.

Tang believes in hiring talent from across the globe. In August, CreditEase appointed Standard Chartered Bank's Global Chief Innovation officer Anju Patwardhan as venture partner for its Fintech Investment Fund.

Yirendai in January appointed Chen Chaomei, former chief risk officer of LendingClub, as a member of the Yirendai Advisory Committee. Yirendai's CEO Fang Yihan was also encouraged by Tang to join the Credit Ease.

In 2011, then 39-year-old Fang decided to return from the US and set up a business in China. In November that year, she met Tang, who was a rising star on the Chinese internet finance firmament.

"Tang is a very trustworthy person and when he told me he wanted to set up a credit system for Chinese people, I felt it's a great career and I wanted to join," said Fang.

CreditEase launched a robot financial advisor this year to serve small and medium-sized investors.
By SUN RUISHENG in Qixian, Shanxi and SHI JING in Shanghai | China Daily | Updated: 2016-11-28 08:01

An artisan gives final touches to a vase at Honghai Glassware Co Ltd in Qixian, Shanxi province, which makes high-end products FAN HEPING / FOR CHINA DAILY

Local companies in Qixian ride orders from summit to rebound from recent downturn

This year's G20 Leaders Summit in Hangzhou not only brought more fame to its host city but also set the spotlight on the more remote county of Qixian, located in central Shanxi province.

Those who have some knowledge of Qixian may have learned about it from Zhang Yimou's film Raise the Red Lantern, which was shot in the renowned Qiao Family Compound. But Qixian is also known for something else: its glassware.

All the glasswareincluding the wine and water glassesused during the G20 Summit in September were produced by Tianjiu Glassware Co Ltd.

According to its general manager, Lyu Gui, the company was chosen over seven competitors to provide the State banquet during the G20 Summit with more than 40,000 products in 15 different patterns. These included red wine goblets and tea sets.

"As soon as we were assigned the design and production job by the organizing committee of the G20 Summit, we set up a special design team and worked on our plan dozens of times," said Lyu.

"You can say we gave full play to the handblown glass techniques of Qixian glassware developed over the last 60 years."

Word about the G20 job spread rapidly and orders for Qixian glassware multiplied. Not only Tianjiu but the other companies in the county saw their orders rise, leading to some of the popular products selling out.

According to Hu Xiaofeng, director of the Qixian Glassware Industry Development Center, the G20 summit signaled another important turning point for the local glassware sector. Prior to that, eight years ago, the local companies and the government had already begun to revive the traditional industry, after it was hit by fallout from the global financial crisis.

Before that, the industry had expanded considerably with the number of glassware manufacturers jumping from 41 in 1998 to 160 one decade later.

Hu said the local government had not been disheartened by the difficulty of the task to revive the industry, but rather seized on the opportunity to restructure it. Companies were merged to make those left more competitive.

The reshuffle worked. The 38 glassware companies in the county reported total annual output last year worth 2.1 billion yuan ($305 million), up from 1.4 billion yuan in 2008. About 45 percent of the handblown glassware produced in China last year came from Qixian.

Companies have also come to understand that only high-end products with high quality can win in the marketplace.

"Craftsmanship is what we value the most in our work," said Tianjiu's Lyu.

"A company can only stand out against the stiff competition with world-class products, brand image building and product innovation. It is our goal to make Tianjiu a national industrial brand," Lyu added.

With that idea in mind, glassware companies in Qixian have been working harder to improve their product quality. Brands such as Dahua and Hongyi have been recognized as national trademarks by the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce.

Qixian's glassware companies have been attaching great importance to overseas markets, after having first entered the international market in the 1980s.

Currently 50 percent of its glassware are sold to the United States, 30 percent to Europe and the rest sold to South Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Canada and Australia.

But to offset the impact of the stagnant economy in these overseas markets, Qixian glassware companies have been expanding their activities in China, targeting the wholesale markets in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Yiwu.

The local government has also been promoting a new rural e-commerce program with Alibaba, setting up a special Qixian store on the platform to win more consumers.

While Qixian's glassware industry has entered a new phase of development, problems still exist.

To further stimulate its development, the local government implemented a number of favorable policies on tax, land use and financing. Construction of a glassware culture park has started in Qixian, aiming at attracting tourists.

The local government also invested 120 million yuan ($17.4 million) to set up an international glassware school with Diablo Glass School from Boston.
International visitors exchange ideas with Chinese representatives about the mobile banking of China Merchants Bank at the 2016 China Financial Expo. LEI KESI / FOR CHINA DAILY

Technological innovation is transforming the business models of commercial banks' corporate clients, thus driving changes in their demand for more flexible supply chain financial services, working capital financing, and consulting services relating to mergers and acquisitions, said The Boston Consulting Group in a latest report.

More than 70 percent of corporate clients identified digital capability as one of the key factors to evaluate the quality of commercial banks' corporate banking services, according to a 2015 survey conducted by BCG, a US-based global business consulting firm.

"As a result, leading institutions in the banking industry are stepping up the efforts to provide corporate financial services online and on mobile devices," said BCG partner and managing director David He.

Commercial lenders are now offering digital transaction banking services through the integration of corporate payment, trade financing and custody business.

They are also designing online supply chain financing products by connecting the information on upstream and downstream trade, logistics, purchases and payments through cooperation with e-commerce companies.

That's not all. They are also providing innovative solutions for foreign exchange transactions and cross-border payments by adopting the blockchain technology.

"Commercial banks are making a digital transition of their own businesses. In the mean time, they could also actively explore cooperation opportunities with fintechs (financial technology companies) to strengthen the collaboration in the areas like asset custody, joint loans, credit investigation and risk control, or even turn fintechs into their clients," He said.

Over the last couple of years, many new fintechs have entered the transaction banking market, seeking to position themselves as alternatives to traditional banks. They offered solutions that optimize specific elements of the transaction banking value chain, said a global survey. The survey covered 750 treasurers and chief financial officers at multinational corporations with consolidated annual revenue of more than $500 million.

While treasurers like the specialized value propositions and the often-cheaper price points that fintechs provide, 90 percent indicated that fintechs are not yet capable of meeting the full array of corporate treasury needs. They cite the small scale and relatively young businesses and perceive the fintech environment to be less secure.

"One trend that we expect to gather momentum is for fintechs and large transaction banks to partner with each other for their mutual advantage," said the 2016 survey conducted by Expand Research, a wholly owned subsidiary of BCG.

Banks can advise and help treasurers to understand and mitigate their risks and improve foreign exchange hedging strategies. They can also help treasurers better assess counterparty credit risks and navigate the complexities of the local regulatory environment.

Roughly 30 percent of treasurers are willing to pay for such advisory services, according to the survey. BCG forecasts that corporate banking revenues will increase to 3.5 trillion yuan ($508 billion) in 2020.
SHANGHAI - German machine tool maker Schwabische Werkzeugmaschinen GmBH (SW) has set up its first factory outside Germany in Suzhou Industrial Park in East China's Jiangsu province.

"We plan to establish smart assembly lines and an automatic production department in China," said Reiner Fries, Managing Director Sales of SW.

Since SW's Shanghai office was set up in 2010, it has won nearly 50 clients and sold more than 200 machines.

Fries said SW is instilling in China the concept of German Industry 4.0 step by step, contributing to the development of "Made in China 2025".

The machine tool manufacturer is best known for its multi-spindle technology.

Markus Schmolz, legal representative of SW Asia Co Ltd, said that as China goes through manufacturing transformation and upgrades, the concepts of intelligent manufacturing and industrial automation are becoming more and more popular.

High-grade numerical control machine tools are among those encouraged by the "Made in China 2025" development plan. Among the others are large aircraft, aero-engines and gas turbines, civil aviation, smart green trains, fuel-efficient and new energy vehicles, marine engineering equipment and high-tech ships, intelligent power grid equipment, nuclear equipment, high-end diagnosis and treatment equipment.
A new phase of construction is underway on a third-generation Chinese nuclear reactor being built in Fujian province. Designers of the overall project hope it will become a model which Chinese authorities will be able to export abroad.

A dome measuring 24 meters across is now being installed on top of the reactor chamber at the Hualong-1 nuclear power plant, which is under construction in the city of Fuqing.

Construction of the plant originally began in May of last year.

Chen Guocai, a manager of the project, says the new dome is designed to guarantee the maximum safety of the chamber.

"Now it's hemispheric in shape. It used to be oval. This dome increases the volume of the container, which is also three to four times heavier than before. This new shape guarantees the integrity and tightness of the reactor chamber. It plays a critical role in containing radioactivity. This alloy steel plate we use differs from normal steel plates. It is up to six times stronger, giving it much more resistance against earthquakes and higher pressures than normal steel plates."

Hualong-1 also uses a double containment design, with the inner layer ensuring the tightness of the reactor chamber, while the outer containment layer can deter outside impacts, including that by an airliner.

Hualong-1 is being jointly developed by the China National Nuclear Corporation and the China General Nuclear Power Group.

Its construction is part of a broader plan by Chinese authorities to export more of China's nuclear technology abroad. Hualong-1 is compliant with all safety requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Its technology is already being used in the construction of a power plant in the Pakistani city of Karachi. The Argentinian government has also agreed to build a plant using the Hualong-1 technology. British authorities are also reviewing the design for possible use.

When it comes to nuclear power plants, containing and treating the byproducts of the nuclear reaction process is a major concern. As such, experts at the Hualong-1 construction site in Fuqing are working to ensure the safety of the surrounding environment. Geng Fei is one of them.

"After the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011, we improved our equipment. We improved the valves for our spent fuel pool-- adding monitoring systems for temperature and water levels, as well as a water supplementation system."

Geng Fei says the technology has made so many advancements that radiation within the reactor area hovers at just above zero micro-sieverts.

"What is one micro-sievert? For example, you take a plane from Beijing to Fuzhou and then return. You will get a radiation dose of 50 micro-sieverts. Or you work in Beijing for one year, you may get natural radiation of 2000 micro-sieverts. However, in our plant, if you stay here for over an hour, the radiation dose is nearly zero. "

The Hualong-1 plant in Fujian is set to be completed in 2020.
Xu Mingze assembles the 3D printer in Chongqing, Nov 23, 2016. [Photo/VCG]

Xu Mingze is a machinist studying 3D printing technology to repair any faults in high-speed trains in Chongqing. Xu, a 20-something, began searching online for documents that could help him print model parts of trains in 3D. After studying the model parts, he and his colleagues could figure out the internal structures of the trains that would help them repair or improve trains in the future.
Takata Corp has honed in on bids from Autoliv Inc and Key Safety Systems Inc, as the air bag maker behind the biggest auto safety recall ever progresses toward the final round of negotiating a sale, said people familiar with the matter.

The two bidders gained an edge because both have technical expertise in air bag systems and safety equipment, and because carmakers view them as able to lower costs and improve the quality of Takata parts, said two people, who all asked not to be identified discussing the negotiations. Takata is working to find a buyer and finalize its restructuring plan by year's end, the company said this month.

Takata had three other bidders make it to the most recent round of its sale process: private equity firm KKR & Co; Bain Capital and Daicel Corp of Japan in a joint pitch; and auto-parts suppler Flex-N-Gate Corp. The sale process has been described as fluid, given the complex nature of Takata's litigation, and any of the bidders could come back. Flex-N-Gate has a record of integrating acquisitions and could still return with a winning bid, especially if there were antitrust concerns with another suitor, one of the people said.

The eventual winner faces years of replacing Takata air bags linked to at least 17 deaths and more than 100 injuries. The buyer will potentially be on the hook for recall costs and other liabilities while having to ensure a stable supply of replacement parts to automakers. Regulators have ordered recalls scheduled through at least 2019 that could eventually exceed 100 million air bags used by more than a dozen automakers, including Honda Motor Co, Volkswagen AG and General Motors Co.

Bidders' strengths

Carmakers prefer Autoliv because it's larger and has more resources to handle the recall, one of the people said. Key Safety, which is owned by China's Ningbo Joyson Electronic Corp, makes air-bag inflators and has the kind of expertise that could make a deal work. A deal could still lead to Takata seeking some form of bankruptcy protection in the US, an option proposed by all bidders, people familiar with the discussions said in October.

Chad Tendler, an outside spokesman working for Key Safety, and Autoliv spokesman Thomas Jonsson declined to comment. Jared Levy, an outside spokesman for Takata, also declined to comment.

Antitrust scrutiny may be one potential obstacle to Autoliv because it's already the world's largest air bag maker and would end up with more than half the global market share, according to people with knowledge of the talks. Key Safety is the fourth-largest air bag maker and would jump to No 2, according to Valient Market Research. For Key Safety, a win could help it earn business from Japanese automakers.

Carmakers' interests

Automakers have expressed their preference for a manufacturer with a track record of quality control and operations in major markets over buyout firms, because of concerns that financial investors will focus on short-term returns over offering a long-term solution to the global air bag supply, people familiar with the talks have said.

Takata hired Lazard Ltd as its financial adviser and the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP to help weigh options, including bankruptcy or sale.

Takata has lost more than 60 percent of its market capitalization since the start of November 2015, dropping its value to about 44.4 billion yen ($399 million). The shares rose by 80 yen to 534 yen on Monday in Tokyo.

To fund the recalls, Takata has sold all of its holdings in Japanese automakers including Honda and Toyota Motor Corp. It also sold its Irvin Automotive Inc interiors unit to closely held supplier Piston Group.

Of Takata's 718 billion yen in sales during its last fiscal year, 36 percent came from air bags. The company also supplies seat belts, steering wheels, electronics, seat covers and head and arm rests. The cost of recalling all non-desiccated air bag inflators will be 1.28 trillion yen, Takaki Nakanishi, an analyst for Jefferies Group LLC, said in a report published in May.

Death toll

The death toll is still rising after the first victim from Takata's flawed air bags was killed in 2008. One of the most recent victims is a 50-year-old woman in a Civic compact car, who was killed on Sept 30 in Riverside County in California. Almost all Takata-related deaths have occurred in Honda-built vehicles with air bags that can rupture and spray shards at vehicle occupants.

At the center of Takata's quality crisis is the use of ammonium nitrate as its air-bag inflator propellant, a chemical that other inflator makers don't use. The recalls would phase out the use of ammonium nitrate as a propellant.

Bloomberg
Visitors look at a Wey W02 of Great Wall Motor on display during the 14th China (Guangzhou) International Automobile Exhibition, also known as Auto Guangzhou 2016, in Guangzhou city, South Chinas Guangdong province, Nov 18, 2016. [Photo/IC]

Wei Jiangjun, chairman of Great Wall Motors Co Ltd, has set out once again to expand his vast business empire, this time in a way that bears his own hallmark.

The 52-year-old started his automotive career by operating a collectively-owned and almost bankrupt garage in 1990 in the small city of Baoding, Hebei province, where he was born and raised, and where Great Wall Motors is still based.

Out of the garage, Wei conjured China's most popular pickup and SUV maker, and a family wealth of around 39.5 billion yuan ($5.7 billion), but he aspires for more.

On the evening of Nov 16, the entrepreneur, who rarely appears in the limelight, went onstage to unveil the carmaker's new brand, Wey, an attempt to move into the country's high-end SUV market.

"The brand is named after my family name. Doing that means I will defend the brand's honor like I defend that of my family," said Wei, with a hint of Baoding accent.

The brand's logo is said to be inspired by a flag mast in front of a local government office that dates back to imperial China, and makes his aspiration apparent: building a flagship SUV brand.

To fulfill his ambition, he has hired Jens Steingraeber, who was responsible for Audi Q3's development, as the brand's CEO. Former designer of the BMW X5 and X6, Pierre Leclercq, will serve as head of design, and 10 billion yuan has been invested in research and development since the program started in 2012.

Wei said the brand is positioned as an accessible luxury SUV brand with its mainstream products to be priced between 150,000 and 200,000 yuan, predominantly occupied by models from international brands.

Great Wall's popular Haval models have a relatively low price range of 80,000 to 150,000 yuan.

"Our mission is to end the age in which international brands profiteer in the segment in China," Wei, with his sleeves rolled up, told a small group of reporters after the brand was unveiled.

Two SUVs, the W01 and W02, were shown at the brand launch. A total of three models, including these two, will be launched in 2017 and another two will follow in 2018.

John Zeng, managing director of LMC Automotive Consulting Shanghai, said Wey is "very likely to succeed" because of Great Wall Motor's large customer base.

He said it is a natural choice that the automaker wants to move upward, now that it is already well-established in the market.

Its Haval SUVs are bestsellers in China. More than 680,000 units have been sold in the last 10 months, seizing a 10 percent market share.

"In fact, I think it is time for all Chinese automakers to consider what they can offer to their current customers when they want to buy more expensive cars in the coming years," said Zeng.

Great Wall Motors is not the first to come up with a high-end brand. Chery Automotive unveiled Qoros with Israel Corp in 2007, but it remains a little-known brand and its annual sales are almost negligible in the huge China market, where about 20 million vehicles are sold each year.

Late last month, Geely launched its high-end brand, Lynk & Co, in Berlin and showcased its first model.

Li Shufu, the automaker's chairman and founder, stressed how the strong R&D ties between Geely and Volvo, a company it acquired six years ago, led to the new product.

A Deutsche Bank report said the platform co-developed with Volvo AB will differentiate Lynk& Co models from Geely cars, but Great Wall Motors may find it hard to persuade customers to pay extra money for Wey, a better-equipped car built on platforms similar to its Haval.

"We remain doubtful if this attempt will be successful," said Deutsche Bank in its report, and suggested "holding" on the automaker in the Hong Kong stock market and "selling" in the Shanghai market.

Bill Peng, a partner with Strategy&, PwC's strategy consulting group, said Wey's biggest challenges are technological strength and brand building.

He said Great Wall Motors' engines rank far behind local Chinese automakers and that the brand may suffer from a large portion of its senior engineers' resigning about one and a half years ago.

The launch of Haval H8 was delayed twice for technological problems. Since it finally hit the market in April 2015, its sales hover around 500 vehicles each month, almost negligible when compared to H6. Wei admitted that he felt he had met his Waterloo in the H8 program.

Peng said brand building will prove to be another headache. "Imagine the scene: A driver in Central China's Wuhan will not feel proud when he or she drives a car that has a flag mast in Baoding as its logo."

An even more grim challenge is China's passenger car market. Peng predicted the double-digit growth rate this year will plunge to lower than 5 percent in 2017 due to the slowing economic growth and changing government policy.

The chilly market may not improve before 2019 but these two years happen to be crucial for the brand to win market recognition, said Peng.

"There might be chance if it can survive the hard years, and what I can do is to wish him (Wei) good luck."
The Audi booth attracts visitors at the 2016 Paris auto show. LI FUSHENG / CHINA DAILY

Audi dealers fight new venture German premium car brand at odds with sellers over recent deal with SAIC Motor

The clock is ticking and there is still no sign of a handshake between Audi AG and its dealers in China, who have been locked in a stalemate for a week.

Some 30 Audi dealers voiced their concerns last Monday to executives from Audi AG, Audi China and the brand's first partner in China, FAWVolkswagen in Foshan, Guangdong province, about Audi's plan with Shanghai-listed SAIC Motor to produce and sell cars, but the talks soon broke down.

Two days later, dealer representatives showed their trump card: through the China Automotive Dealers Association's WeChat account, they threatened to stop taking in Audi cars and make public their conflicts with Audi "if it cannot offer a clear and satisfactory answer about how to protect our interest before Dec 1."

Dealers are also demanding compensation from FAW-Volkswagen, although the amount is not specified, saying that the automaker has set unrealistic sales targets and mislead them into building more outlets.

The 21st Century Business Herald newspaper reported that the amount could be as much as 20 billion yuan ($2.9 billion).

A source at the China Automotive Dealers Association told China Daily that dealers did not propose the amount of compensation at the Foshan talks, as losses vary from one dealer to another.

Neither Audi China nor FAW-Volkswagen's Audi sales division have been reachable for comment.

Shen Jinjun, the association's president, said the two sides should solve conflicts through dialogues and Audi should lower its sales target and its pace of expansion.

Zhang Zhiyong, an independent auto analyst in Beijing, said dealers will not stop the Audi-SAIC cooperation.

He said what they expect is to protect their interests from competition and are probably demanding some privilege, such as priority in becoming dealers of Audi cars produced at SAIC Volkswagen.

"That would be a win-win for Audi and the dealers. Many of the dealers have a deep understanding of the brand, and they can do a better job than new recruits in promoting Audi's development in China," said Zhang

The hostility between the two sides started when SAIC Motor signed a memorandum of understanding with Audi's parent company, Volkswagen AG, on Nov 11 to produce and sell cars.

The dealers soon released a public letter online, saying that building a new sales company will damage their interests, as they are already faced with high inventory and other financial pressures, and that they fear increased competition as a result of the joint venture.

The two sides held their first round of talks on Nov 15. An Audi representative said he had high respect for the dealers and would like to provide solutions.

At a press conference on Nov 17, Audi China President Joachim Wedler said Volkswagen has long-term experience in how to deal with the 'one brand, two parties' model, under which he has experienced substantial business success.

He said Audi had worked out a 10-year development plan with FAW, including the introduction of five e-tron models in five years through their FAW-Volkswagen joint venture.

Audi will also intensify its cooperation with FAW by setting up a joint venture on mobility and digital services next year.

Audi has long been the bestselling premium auto brand in China. It sold 440,233 cars in the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong in the first nine months of this year, representing 6.2 percent growth year-on-year.

In comparison, BMW's sales rose 10.6 percent to 379,000 units, and Mercedes-Benz sold 344,791 units, a 29.5 percent surge year-on-year.
Prince Andrew pushes a button to receive a gift from Run the robot at the opening ceremony of a venture capital platform in Beijing on Oct 26. [Photo provided to China Daily]

"Your Royal Highness, my name is Run. I have a gift for you, please push the 'open' button to receive your present." That's the human-like voice of a robot... waist-high, cylindrical, mobile, wearing a bow tie and gentlemanly... instructing Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, on his recent visit to China.

The robot gifted a notebook with an embroidered cover to the prince, who appeared pleased with both the gift and his new Chinese "friend", who, avoiding the crowds and obstacles, guided him through the hall to the exhibition stand from the exit.

Designed by Yunji Technology, a Chinese startup, Run is the latest version of robots that have been impressing VIPs of late. Pitt, Run's predecessor, had "interacted" closely with Premier Li Keqiang and then became an online celebrity.

Yunji has multiple patents in artificial intelligence in China. The company focuses on the development and commercialization of autonomous robots, especially for delivering goods.

Zhi Tao, co-founder and CEO of Yunji, said he believes the key is to make every robot move freely.

"In order to bring robots to the masses, it is important to make them move easily. Once it is not fixed to one physical location, just like human, its ability will be enhanced and then it can serve us better.

"We are committed to making the robots move easily within 1 kilometer for use in both indoor and outdoor scenarios, including hotels, office buildings, shopping malls, hospitals, communities and so forth."

Founded in 2014, the company currently has nearly 40 service robots operating in hotels, offices and office buildings. They cover almost 30 high-end hotels.

Equipped with advanced positioning system, the bellboy robots can automatically identify and avoid obstacles and people. Once a robot becomes part of the internet of things, it can communicate with elevators, move up and down the hotel floors, arrive at the door, notify guests of telephone calls, deliver items they need, such as food, water and towels.

In July, Yunji signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Changcheng Property Group, a leading Chinese property enterprise. The two companies will conduct research on possible applications of service robots in communities.

It is expected such robots will be materialize by the end of this year or at the beginning of next year, and become operational in the middle of 2017.

"It is a huge industry," Zhi said. "The Chinese commercial-use robotics market will reach tens of billions of yuan by 2018."

Wang Tianran, an academician at the China Academy of Engineering, told Xinhua News Agency earlier that China's demand for service robots had grown rapidly.

He said thanks to strong policy support, there will be more new robots to meet people's daily needs.

In the past, Yunji received funding from iFlytek Co Ltd, a Chinese company dedicated to intelligent speech and language technologies.
DHAKA - China has been making immense contributions to Bangladesh's efforts in building digital Bangladesh, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) State Minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak said.

"In the past four decades Bangladesh and China relations have undergone speedy transformation," said Palak on Saturday at a discussion meeting.

The minister stressed the need for strengthening the Bangladesh-China relations for further cooperation in various fields.

"Level of cooperation has accelerated since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina-led Bangladesh Awami League government came into power in Bangladesh in 2009."

Prime Minister Hasina declared her vision to build a digital Bangladesh.

"In this process, we started inter network among the all government offices and all government officers. We have connected 18,000 government offices up to sub-district level with the support of Chinese government," he said.

"I would like to convey my heartiest thanks to the Chinese government for supporting us for building our digital infrastructure across the country and fulfill PM Hasina vision for building digital Bangladesh."
A girl plays with her newborn brother at a hospital in Nanjing, Jiangsu province,on Oct 24. 2014. [Photo/VCG]

Nearly a year after China stepped into the new second-child policy era, child care has become a prominent issue in family planning, with more than 60 percent of the mothers who don't want a second child saying it's just too hard to find help.

Wang Pei'an, deputy director of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, said at a Beijing forum on population on Saturday that the country will welcome more than 17.5 million newborns in 2016a 5.7 percent increase over last year's 16.55 million. But the figure is consistent with official projections made when the new policy took effect on Jan 1. The projected number of newborns this year will be about the same as it was in 2000, Wang said.

The announcement marked the first time the government has given an official appraisal on the effectiveness of the second-child policy.

Wang also estimated that during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), China's total fertility rate will rise to 1.8, which means, on average, that a woman is expected to give birth to 1.8 children over her lifetime.

That's less than needed to sustain the nation's population level. To do that, women would have to give birth to no less than two children over a lifetime, on averagethough the exact figure may be higher in developing countries due in part to higher mortality rates.

Luo Fuhe, vice-chairman of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said China should shift its focus from pure population growth to productivity growth over the next five to 10 years, before the aging society hits the brake on economic development.

But research by the China Population and Development Research Center found that having no one to look after children has become a major hindrance for many women as they contemplate having a second child.

Most women in China enjoy less than a half-year of maternity leave, and nurseries generally accept children older than 3 years. That leaves many parents with little choiceeither giving up one of their jobs (usually the mother's) or leaving the children with grandparents.

The research found that 80 percent of the families interviewed settled on the latter option, though they preferred a professional institution to do the job.

Meanwhile, one-third of mothers had to quit their jobs to look after their babies, as they had no one to help. Most of the mothers said they would immediately return to work if they could find child care help.

Wang Haidong, director of the planning commission's family division, said the problem is mainly the result of a lack of professional nurseries and kindergartens, as many publicly funded ones were closed due to declining numbers of newborns in recent years. Private investors showed little interest in getting into the business in part because of limited market access, Wang said.

Wang suggested that more policies should be made to support private entities entering the business of child care, so that more families will be willing and able to have a second child.
Workers take measurements on Saturday as they prepare for restoration of the walls of the Palace Museum in Beijing. JIANG DONG/CHINA DAILY

After centuries, walls that once protected mighty emperors are beginning to show their age. The walls of the ancient imperial center of power that is now the Palace Museum in Beijing have weaknesses like loose bricks and bulging, cracking surfaces.

On Saturday, the museum, also known as the Forbidden City, began a restoration project to keep the walls from collapsing.

"People usually think the walls are much more solid than our wooden palace architecture," said Shan Jixiang, director of the museum. "However, the result of our detailed investigation has told us they are not."

Experts recently finished a survey on the condition of the 3,437 meters of wall. It shows hidden hazards: Some sections have been hollowed out over time, and are sagging. Grass and tree roots that have infiltrated gaps pose another major threat to their stability.

The western walls have sustained the most damage, Shan said. A 233-meter section on that side has been chosen as the first target for renovation. Plans for the rest are pending.

The original work on the Forbidden City dates to 1420. Its walls are around 9.3 meters high and 8.55 meters thick. They have an earthen core, protected by outer bricks.

Historical records show there were several major restorations in the 17th and 18th centuries, following heavy rainstorms or earthquakes. In 1988, a section of the north wall collapsed.

In 1999 and 2000, the museum undertook a preventive maintenance project, but it mainly focused on the surfaces. Shan said restorers are looking in depth this time. New, high-tech tools like ground-penetrating radar are being used.

"We want to thoroughly cure the 'illnesses'," he said.

Zhao Peng, a museum engineer who is leading the restoration project, said his team will stick to traditional Chinese construction methods, but he also acknowledged expected difficulties.

"In some cases, it would be easier to use new bricks than reusing materials in the wall to fix the problems," he said. "But the principle of minimum intervention in the restoration of cultural relics demands that we reuse as many original bricks as possible.

"It's thus a challenge to devise a plan to combine and match old and new materials," Zhao said. Any new materials used must conform to the look of the existing brick, he explained.

Shan said he expected the whole project covering all endangered sections to be completed by October 2020, when the Forbidden City celebrates its 600th birthday.


Compensation of 1.2 million yuan ($173,500) will be paid to the families of each of the workers killed when a platform collapsed at a power plant construction site in Yichun, Jiangxi province, the construction company said on Sunday.

The collapse killed 74 workers and left two injured.

Hebei Yineng Yanta Construction Co will pay the compensation, as well as burial costs.

According to Xinhua News Agency, more than 500 family members arrived in Yichun to identify the bodies as of midday Sunday. Some families had signed the compensation agreement by afternoon.

Police have completed DNA matches with family members of 34 of the victims.

The tragedy occurred when a crane collapse at about 7 am on Thursday brought down the entire construction platform inside the unfinished cooling tower at the plant.

Police detained 13 people who were responsible for construction of the tower, as part of the inquiry into the incident.

A State Council panel announced on Friday that nationwide inspections would be carried out to prevent similar workplace accidents. Inspectors will check for safety hazards associated with elevated work platforms, cranes and scaffolding.

Rescue crews were withdrawn from the Fengcheng Power Plant site after a final search on Friday morning found no new casualties, the provincial government said.

An investigation of the incident continues.

Earlier reports by Xinhua News Agency said authorities had confirmed the identity of 68 dead workers, ranging in age from 23 to 53.

According to Yichun officials, construction of the plant, which belongs to Jiangxi Ganneng Co, began in July last year and was expected to be completed by early 2018.

The incident is the most serious in China since a landslide at a waste dump in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, buried buildings last year, killing 73 people.
A student studies at Istituto Secoli's Guangzhou branch in Guangdong province.Provided To China Daily

Milan-based fashion school Istituto Secoli has opened a new branch in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, to help fill the need for more pattern-making talent in China's fashion industry.

"China is not lacking fashion designers, but patternmaking talent," said Sam Lau, director and vice-dean of the school, which is well known for training patternmakers as well as teaching designing, sewing and production management.

In China, patternmaking knowledge and experience has traditionally been passed down from generation to generation. In the past, patternmakers have had a relatively low level of education, making it inefficient for them to communicate with designers, Lau said.

Some fashion companies buy patterns from European counterparts, but European and Chinese people often have different measurements, he said.

Istituto Secoli, which also provides training to big-name European fashion houses, has taught more than 80,000 students since it was founded in 1934. It is a champion of the belief, typical to the Italian fashion industry, that creative ideas must be translated into perfectly thought-through well-crafted products.

As the only overseas campus of the school, the Guangzhou branch houses 10 students aged 18 to 26, with capacity for 30 more. Classes started in October. The Chinese partners of the campus include the Guangdong Association of Garment and Garment Article Industry, Guangdong Fashion Designers Association and Guangzhou Textile Exchange Park.

Guangzhou is a prime location for the campus because the surrounding province hosts much of China's garment industry, the most fashion brands, the largest apparel industrial chain and the most fashion designers, Lau said.

As the provincial capital, the city also accommodates a full garment and raw materials supply chain, he said.

French fashion design school Esmod launched its Guangzhou campus in 2014.

With the Chinese government placing greater emphasis on vocational education and training, more quality foreign educational resources are expected to open branches in the country, Lau said.

Istituto Secoli's Milan campus has 400 students, many of whom come from China, said Simona Borghesan, a patternmaking teacher working at the Guangzhou campus.

Students at the new campus will spend two years in Guangzhou learning both fashion and the Italian language, with a third year in Milan.

Candidates do not need fashion skills or experience, but must have a passion for fashion if they are to get the most out of the packed schedules, Lau said.

Song Xunan, who completed a four-year university program in engineering budgeting earlier this year, is studying at the Guangzhou campus to pursue her dream of working in fashion.

"I wanted to learn fashion when I was at high school, but did not have the drawing skills necessary to attend fashion programs at Chinese universities," she said.

liwenfang@chinadaily.com.cn
Dalian Maritime University in Northeast China's Liaoning province is home to a beacon of international cooperation.

The submarine engineering technology and equipment laboratory, which is dedicated to promoting exchange and finding answers to major technical problems, is the result of a collaboration between DMU and a number of other universities and maritime institutions from around the world, including the University of California, San Diego; the University of Houston; the National Technical University of Ukraine; the World Maritime University and the American Bureau of Shipping.

By sharing technology, talent and other resources, the partner institutes have carried out a dozen of State-level international technological cooperation projects and produced some world-leading technology and equipment, according to Sun Yuqing, president of DMU.

"The joint laboratory represents a higher level of cooperation, based on the exchange of students and teachers," he said.

"This is important because China is in a position of weakness amid the increasingly fierce competition for development of deep-sea resources."

DMU is one of the best maritime universities in the world, owning and operating two advanced oceangoing training vessels, each with a carrying capacity of more than 10,000 deadweight tons.

It is renowned internationally as a center of excellence for maritime education and training, and is recognized as such by the World Maritime Organization.

Sun said the university has focused on international cooperation in order to cultivate talent.

Compared with maritime universities in countries like the United States, DMU focuses more on academic and technological training instead of leadership, yet its alumni have still grown to become leading figures in their fields in shipping companies and institutions around the globe.

"On the campus, we help our students build their aspirations and give them the ability to fulfill their ambitions," Sun said.

DMU has established cooperative relations with more than 110 universities, shipping companies and maritime institutions in more than 30 countries and regions. "In addition to the exchange of students and teachers, we will set up more joint labs in the future," Sun said.

zhangxiaomin@chinadaily.com.cn
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TAIYUAN - Lou Yangsheng was elected governor of North China's Shanxi province Monday.

The election was held at the sixth meeting of the 12th Shanxi Provincial People's Congress.

The provincial legislature of Shanxi appointed Lou, who hails from Zhejiang province, as acting governor in late August.

In June 2014, Lou was appointed deputy secretary of the Shanxi Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China. He still holds the post.
Guangdong University of Foreign Studies won a national contest for business English practice, an event aimed at boosting university students' abilities to integrate business theories with practical fieldwork.

The annual event, which is sponsored by the Foreign Language Teaching and Researching Press and more than ten foreign-funded companies, was held at the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies in Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong, on Nov 25.

With a theme of "East meets West", contestants were required to investigate a local enterprise and how they tackled challenges brought about by the fast-changing global economic environment. They presented their suggestions to enterprises in English to better upgrade their businesses.

Four teams from Harbin University of Commerce, Jiangxi Normal University, Guangdong University of Technology and Guangdong University of Foreign Studies competed in the contest.

Contact the writer at qiuquanlin@chinadaily.com.cn
President Xi Jinping meets with United Nations secretarygeneral designate Antonio Guterres in Beijing on Monday. WU ZHIYI / CHINA DAILY

China will continue to participate in and support United Nations affairs, President Xi Jinping told UN secretarygeneral designate Antonio Guterres on Monday.

The UN should also carry out the 2030 sustainable development agenda and Paris climate agreement, and look after the interests of developing countries while helping them voice their opinions and assisting them, Xi said. The president noted that this year marks the 45th anniversary of the restoration of China's rightful seat at the UN.

Guterres praised China for supporting the UN.

The UN is willing to cooperate closely with China and promote world peace, security and prosperity, he said.

Premier Li Keqiang, who had a separate meeting with Guterres, said China is willing to increase cooperation with other nations to maintain the authority of the UN, improve its ability to tackle emergencies, and facilitate sustainable and inclusive development.

Guterres, 67, was prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002.

He served as UN high commissioner for refugees from 2005 to 2015 before being elected as Ban Kimoon's successor as UN secretarygeneral. He will take up that post at the start of 2017.

Guterres visited Russia and Kazakhstan before making his first visit to China since becoming the secretarygeneral designate last month.

In another meeting on Monday, with Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Guterres said that China also led the building of new global instruments such as the Asian InfrastructureInvestmentBankandthe Belt and Road Initiative to help other nations achieve sustainable development through cooperation.

At the same time, Guterres said, China has been bringing together nations in conflict to resolve issues through dialogue. "China is a solid pillar for multilateralism," he said, adding that China could become the peace broker that "the world badly needs today".

No country can succeed in solving global issues alone, said Shen Yongxin, a researcher in world history studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Shen said the UN is an effective platform for collective response to global challenges, through which China can exercise its leadership and bring nations together to tackle global issues.

Contact the writers at zhangzhihao@chinadaily.com.cn
China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, the largest missile maker in the country, is taking aim at 20 percent or more of the small-satellite launch contracts in the world by 2020, company executives said.

"We estimate that from 2017 to 2020, we will send aloft at least 10 solid-fuel carrier rockets each year, to send about 50 small satellites into orbit," said Guo Yong, president of the CASIC Fourth Academy, in an exclusive interview with China Daily in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province. That, he said, would account for "about one-fifth of the estimated total annual missions of solid-fuel rockets around the world in that period".

Guo said letters of intent to use nearly 20 Kuaizhou rockets were signed at the 11th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition this month in Zhuhai, Guangdong province.

"Our clients told us that they hope the launch of their satellites will be arranged as early as possible," Guo added.

In mid-February, the academy set up China's second commercial launch provider, Expace Technology Co. The first was China Great Wall Industry Corp, established in 1980, which is part of another major space contractor, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.

Great Wall Industry has done 54 commercial launches for over 20 overseas clients since 1990, when it launched its first foreign-made satellite. All of those commercial missions used Long March rockets developed by Great Wall's parent company.

Zhang Di, vice-president of the CASIC Fourth Academy and chairman of Expace, said Expace plans its first commercial space launch early in 2017, using a Kuaizhou 1 to put three Earth observation satellites made by State-owned Changguang Satellite Technology Co in orbit. The contract is worth about 100 million yuan ($14.5 million).

More than 10 other Changguang satellites are "in their storehouses waiting to be launched by Kuaizhou rockets", Zhang quoted Changguang executives as saying.

Expace is in talks with satellite makers in Asia, Europe and Latin America and has taken part in public bidding on their commercial launches, according to Zhang.

"Foreign clients told us that they are interested in Kuaizhou rockets' strong capabilities and competitive prices," Zhang said. "The Kuaizhou models are specifically designed for launches of small satellites. They are capable of lifting four to six satellites to multiple orbits in a single flight and require a short period of time for pre-launch preparations, and fewer than 10 operators."

Expace charges around $10,000 for each kilogram of payload, much lower than the average international rate of $25,000 to $30,000, he explained.

CASIC Fourth Academy began to develop Kuaizhou rockets in 2009, intending to form a low-cost, quick-response rocket family for the commercial market.

The Fourth Academy is now making a new-generation Kuaizhou 11 and plans to launch it in 2017, said Tan Qinghai, publicity head at the academy.

Designers said the Kuaizhou 11 has a liftoff weight of 78 metric tons and will be able to place a 1-ton payload into a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 700 kilometers, or a 1.5-ton payload into a low Earth orbit at an altitude of 400 km.
Events and stories coming up in the next few days

Laotian prime minister arrives on Monday

Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith of Laos will arrive in Beijing on Monday on a four-day official visit. He will hold talks with Premier Li Keqiang. A Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the visit will bolster relations between the two countries because China and Laos have been cooperating in a number of fields.
Ding Wei (middle), China's vice cultural minister, attends the launch of the China Cultural Center in Den Haag, the Netherlands, Nov 24, 2016. [Photo/Chinese Embassy in the Netherlands]

A new China Cultural Center, co-built by China's Ministry of Culture and Jiangsu provincial government, inaugurated in Den Haag, the Netherlands, on Thursday.

At the opening ceremony, artists from Jiangsu province brought to citizens of Den Haag Chinese traditional art performance including folk music, bamboo flute solo, erhu solo and Kunqu.

The audience greatly appreciated the adaptation of Paloma Blanca, a classic Dutch song introduced to China in 1982, with many of them humming to the rhythm.

"Culture is a bridge that connects people's heart and soul and abound that enhances understanding and trust between states and peoples," Ding Wei, vice minister of the Chinese Ministry of Culture, said.

He emphasized that China Cultural Center in Den Haag provides new bridge for deeper understanding of the two countries.

Wu Ken, Chinese Ambassador to the Netherlands, said the establishment of China Cultural Center in Den Haag reflects and conforms to the favorable situation and trend of Sino-Dutch cultural exchanges, which consolidates a new platform for future cooperation.

In March 2014, the two governments signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the establishment of a China Cultural Center in the Netherlands.
Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro speaks during celebrations to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the creation of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR) in Havana in this September 28, 2010 file photo. [Photo/Agencies]

Whatever the reactions to the death of the longtime leader of Cuba Fidel Castro, who died on Friday at the age of 90, he was undoubtedly a political figure of extraordinary influence.

Whatever the evaluations about what he has done for his own country and people, and whatever conclusions people of different political standings have reached or will reach about this man's political legacy, it is beyond doubt that he left a deep political mark in a time characterized by ideological confrontation and the Cold War.

At the mention of this famous name, we cannot help but think about the political turmoil and chaos that the ideological confrontation between the two political camps brought to many parts of the world in the last century. Yet despite the isolation and economic embargo imposed on the island by its powerful neighbor the United States for more than 50 years, this man called the world's most developed country's bluff and led his people on a path of their own. One that they stuck to despite the suffering for want of the development opportunities they would have had without the political divide.

His death marks the end of an epoch. Looking back at what this man and his contemporaries went through, it is imperative for current political leaders to recognize that what should dominate the political landscape of today's world are peace and development instead of confrontation or a Cold War.

For Cuba, its diplomatic relations have been restored with the United States and Barack Obama has become the first sitting US president it has received for a State visit in the past more than 50 years. Although the US' economic embargo is still in place, it has been loosened. It will no doubt be further loosened as long as both countries can sit down and talk, and both peoples have closer contact.

Chinese leaders have made it clear to the world on different occasions that the country will follow a peaceful path in its national rejuvenation. This is because they strongly believe that political or military confrontation will lead the world nowhere, as has been evidenced by what Fidel Castro and his contemporaries witnessed over a large part of the last century.

Today both the developed and developing countries have their own problems, and globalization has encountered a lot of stumbling blocks. To overcome these challenges requires their joint efforts.

Castro's death should be a reminder that the world cannot afford to relive the Cold War.
South Korean Rep. Chung Dong-young (C) and other opposition lawmakers hold a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, 25 November 2016, before submitting a bill aimed at nullifying a Seoul-Tokyo military intelligence-sharing agreement that took effect the previous day. The controversial pact is designed to better monitor North Korea.[Photo/IC]

Despite the fierce domestic opposition, the Republic of Korea signed an agreement on sharing military intelligence with Japan on Wednesday. The pact will allow the two countries to directly share information on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea without first going through US intelligence.

At a news conference on the same day, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang criticized the agreement, warning that strengthened military intelligence sharing between some countries because of their Cold War mentality would "aggravate antagonism and confrontation on the Korean Peninsula".

Seoul's "hasty" decision to freely exchange information with Tokyo, and their common ally Washington, is essentially in line with the major changes in its foreign policy. Just two months ago, the DPRK conducted the fifth nuclear test since 2006 and the second this year, giving enough reasons for the ROK's increasingly assertive response.

Apart from pressing ahead with the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense anti-missile system on ROK soil, President Park Geun-hye paid a rare visit to Iran in May, possibly to draw inspiration from the Iran nuclear deal.

It is also highly likely that Park has more in mind than national security. Trapped in a major influence-peddling scandal, she has been confronted with several mass demonstrations demanding her resignation. The embattled ROK president has good reasons to pursue diplomatic breakthroughs, in order to divert public anger and prove to the opposition that she is still in charge and capable of fulfilling her presidential duties.

The Seoul-Tokyo military intelligence-sharing pact, on the other hand, showcases the ROK's inclination to consolidate its relations with the United States. Technically, the pact is unlikely to make any difference for Seoul if it truly seeks to "better manage the threats" from Pyongyang, because Japan's intelligence on the DPRK, basically gathered by Japanese satellites and radar systems, is questionable. Limited channels for collecting such information aside, the much-desired exchange of intelligence between Seoul and Tokyo largely would overlap that between Seoul and Washington.

This contradiction is exactly what the opposition and many enraged ROK citizens have been urging Park to explain. Her decision to cut the deal by bypassing the opposition and parliament also lacks procedural legitimacy and public support.

Many ROK citizens remain wary of the deepening ROK-Japan ties when Japan is yet to atone for its aggression and atrocities in their country. Protests are held from time to time over the thousands of Korean "comfort women" forced into sex slavery during World War II.

The intelligence-sharing pact makes clear Park's intention that her government will follow the US' lead in major strategic issues, and her willingness to step up the trilateral military cooperation with the US and Japan regardless of the political pressures at home. It also suggests Seoul is more open to confrontation and flexing of muscles, instead of peaceful dialogues, in handling the DPRK nuclear issue.

However, history tells us such an approach will not work in the foreseeable future. Instead, it could backfire. Pyongyang has reportedly criticized the military intelligence-sharing pact as "a dangerous act" that would heighten tensions on the Korean Peninsula and open the door to a "re-invasion" by Japan. As such, the pact could prompt Pyongyang to take a tougher stance against Seoul and thus deal another blow to their already shaky relations.

Tensions may escalate and spill over into other regional countries, adding fuel to an emerging security confrontation. Washington and Tokyo are very likely to use the pact to contain and keep a closer eye on Beijing and Moscow, in the name of beefing up defense cooperation. But the biggest victim of all will be the ROK itself because it lacks the capacity to maneuver its way out of a conflict, even if the pact takes effect.

The author is a researcher of Asia-Pacific strategy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The article is an excerpt from his interview with China Daily's Cui Shoufeng.
The United Nations climate change conference in Marrakech, Morocco, concluded on Nov 20 without making any substantial progress, because it was tasked with charting the course of implementing the climate deal reached in Paris in December 2015.

Although the Paris agreement has been ratified by 105 countries at last count, including China and India, it is not fully in the spirit of the Kyoto Protocol and many see it as rewarding the big defaulters who also happen to be, historically, the biggest pollutersthe countries in the developed North.

There are two categories of such countries: those that agreed, under the Kyoto Protocol, the principle of historical culpability and the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" to reduce emissions more deeply than developing countries, but reneged; and those that refused to ratify the protocol, led by the historically biggest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs), the United States.

The Kyoto Protocol was based on the principle that since the developed countries emitted huge amounts of GHGs for more than a century during their industrialization and development drives, they should yield "emission space" to the developing countries. Consequently, it was further incumbent on them not only to undertake more stringent, and binding, emission cuts but also help developing countries to chart cleaner growth trajectories through financial aid and technology transfers.

None of this happened on a scale significant enough to make the kind of impact necessary to arrest climate change. The US refused to ratify the Kyoto Protocol: its position was that of classical climate change denier, with former US president George H.W. Bush saying the American way of life was not up for negotiation.

The Paris climate agreement buried the Kyoto Protocol and the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" and placed all countries, irrespective of their historical contribution to GHG emission or level of development, in the same position of having to undertake binding reduction targets, even if, obviously, the depth of cuts were not envisaged to be matching. Critically, the cuts accepted by the Barack Obama administration, although Obama himself is a not climate change denier, were nowhere near the levels required to keep the temperature from rising 2 C above pre-industrial levels, which climate scientists say is just short of the tipping point. The US is vital to any climate treaty because in the absence of adequate action by it, cuts accepted by most countries of the global South (including China and India) won't cut the mustard.

Perhaps the leaderships of the countries of the South should have done more to compel the developed world to fulfill its responsibilities. India is especially guilty of selling out.

For years, successive Indian governments have been clear that the Kyoto Protocol framework should be the basis for the fight against climate change. It was clearly in assiduous pursuit of the "special relationship" with the US that the Indian government craved so desperately. While previous Indian governments resisted the urge to give in to the demands of the developed world, especially the US', this one has, literally, stooped to genuflect before Washington's interests.

This is not to say that India should not take urgent steps to reduce emissions. The recent crisis in Delhi caused by extremely hazardous air quality, which almost shut down the city, is enough of a warning.

Action, however, should be taken by countries of the South on their own terms, rather than under the pressure of developed countries. India has, in fact, been running an emissions-reduction program to meet voluntarily set targets, which will not hurt commitments to development and factor employment.

Now that Donald Trump, who is a self-proclaimed climate change denier, has been elected US president, the climate deal is back in the mix. If Trump sticks to his known anti-climate change stance, the only option would be to go back to the Kyoto Protocol and hope the White House accepts its principles.

The writer is a senior journalist based in India.
Chinese rescuers search for victims and survivors in debris of a collapsed working platform in a cooling tower under construction at Fengcheng Power Plant in Yichun city, east China's Jiangxi province, 24 November 2016.[Photo/IC]

On Thursday, 74 workers died and another two were injured when a scaffolding platform inside a power plant cooling tower under construction in Fengcheng, East China's Jiangxi province, collapsed. The State Administration of Work Safety investigated the accident and found it was the result of the company accelerating the construction process unreasonably. That's a common problem on construction sites nationwide, says Beijing News:

Any building project needs proper preparatory work and care must be taken in every stage of construction, because any error might pose a challenge to the safety of workers or occupants.

It is quite common for domestic construction companies to try and shorten the construction time. Worse, some companies are even proud of finishing construction in a shorter period than planned. The power plant in Fengcheng where the accident happened was reported to have even held a meeting to encourage workers to show their 'fighting spirit" and speed up construction.

People pay with lives for such a "fighting spirit".

The shortening of the construction period has much to do with the companies' blind pursuit of profit. The earlier the building is put into use, the earlier the company can get its money back and start to make a profit.

Actually, the domestic construction quality control regulation says that companies shortening their construction period without sufficient reason face a fine of between 200,000 ($29,990) and 500,000 yuan. Yet seldom has such a fine been imposed.

The State Administration of Work Safety has already been investigating the Fengcheng accident and those responsible will face their deserved penalties soon. But it is time we strengthened our regulation over construction companies, so that they strictly follow the timeline for a construction project, because we cannot afford to risk people's lives.
The suspension of live fish sales at Beijing supermarkets.[Photo/IC]

On Wednesday, many Beijing residents found that there were no live freshwater fish on sale in supermarkets. The China Food and Drug Administration later said this was because somebody had leaked the information that they were planning an inspection to check for antibiotics and veterinary drugs in the fresh fish sold in supermarkets. Huashang Daily comments:

What measures would you take if you were selling products you knew the authorities planned to check for safety?

The best way is to make sure all your products are of good quality and can pass any inspection. However, the supermarkets in Beijing chose otherwise. And by withdrawing all their fresh fish from sale, they showed they wanted to avoid any inspection.

That has naturally caused people to doubt the fish they sell. According to the food and drug administration, they did not notify the supermarkets there would be an inspection, when the supermarkets got wind of it there was little time for them to prepare. So in order to escape the inspection, they withdrew all their fresh fish.

Ironically, when the supermarkets have been notified in advance, the fish have always passed the inspections. In 2016, 96.62 percent of all fish products in Beijing passed inspections; in 2015, 95.94 percent passed inspections that the supermarkets had been informed of in advance. However, the supermarkets that sell "good" fish products dare not let their products be inspected without getting any pre-notice.

Those in places other than Beijing should not think the problem is just the capital's, the use of antibiotics and veterinary drugs in fish farms is quite rampant nationwide.

The scandal of fresh fish disappearing from supermarkets in Beijing is not over yet, because people's concerns about the safety of the fish they eat have not been answered. The CFDA needs to launch more unannounced inspections in the future so there is a clearer picture of the safety of fresh fish products in Beijing.
Activists hold a rally to denounce South Korea's signing of a pact with Japan on the sharing of military intelligence on North Korea, in central Seoul, South Korea, 15 November 2016. The two neighbors initialed the accord in Tokyo the previous day to better counter growing North Korean missile threats, despite strong public objection in South Korea.[Photo/IC]

Japan likes to talk about the status quo. But the country itself is trying to shift the strategic balance of power in East Asia.

Following the example of the Republic of Korea, which has already decided to deploy the United States' Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, anti-missile system on its soil, Japan too is now seriously mulling the deployment of the system in the near future to build a three-tiered missile defense system.

"We are investigating future systems for intercepting missiles," Japan's Defense Minister Tomomi Inada said on Friday. She is expected to visit Guam next month to evaluate the THAAD system at the US base.

Japan's defense ministry has included research costs for THAAD in its budget request for fiscal 2017 in the name of improving the country's missile defense capabilities.

Japan's current two-layer ballistic missile defense system includes ship-based SM-3 interceptors that target missiles at high altitude and land-based PAC-3 batteries that aim to intercept missiles as they near the ground. Four of Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force's six Aegis destroyers are currently equipped with SM-3 interceptors. Japan's defense ministry will upgrade the remaining two by fiscal 2018 and procure two more Aegis ships by fiscal 2020 to increase the total to eight.

The Yomiuri Shimbun reported that the ministry will set up a committee to begin full-fledged deliberations on THAAD. The new committee, which Japan's Deputy Defense Minister Kenji Wakamiya will chair, is supposed to come up with guidelines for antiballistic missile defense next summer.

According to The Japan Times, if the study confirms compatibility of the THAAD system and ground-based SM-3 interceptors currently operated by Japan, THAAD could be deployed during the country's next five-year defense buildup program starting in 2019.

The United States has urged its allies to adopt the system to guard against missiles launched by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, which has launched more than 20 ballistic missiles so far this year.

The US, Japan and the ROK take the deployment of THAAD in Japan and the ROK as necessary, but China and Russia see no reason for that.

During Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to Beijing in June, China and Russia issued a statement calling on nations to strictly abide by the norms of international law, keep their military capabilities at the minimum level required for national security and refrain from steps aimed at expanding existing military-political alliances.

The statement criticized the deployment of anti-missile systems in Europe and Asia, saying those who deploy them often acted under false pretenses.

On Wednesday Japan and the ROK signed their General Security of Military Information Agreement, or GSOMIA, under which the two countries will share defense secrets.

The US believes that the move will help the three sides finally build a security triangle.

The ROK's opposition parties are criticizing the GSOMIA, however, for helping Japan become a major military power.

As John Feffer, director of Foreign Policy In Focus, said in an article published in the Huffington Post in May 2015, the way to address the DPRK's nuclear and missile programs is to sit down and negotiate limits.

"Instead of letting Lockheed Martin determine the security politics of Northeast Asia, it's crucial to bring the diplomats back to the negotiating table to address the causes of insecurity and not just the symptoms," Feffer said.

THAAD has turned out to be a wedge driven between China and the ROK.

As some analysts have warned, if Japan also deploys THAAD, the US-led missile defense network in the Asia-Pacific would turn the region into the front of a new Cold War.

The author is China Daily Tokyo bureau chief.

caihong@chinadaily.com.cn
Students from the University of Havana gather outside their school to pay tribute to the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, in Havana, Cuba, Nov 26, 2016. Aged 90, Castro passed away late Friday night. [Photo/Xinhua]

HAVANA - Cuban were working on Sunday to prepare for a national tribute to their revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro, who died late Friday at the age of 90.

The tribute will take place on Monday from 9 am local time until 10 pm, at the Jose Marti Memorial in Revolution Square in Havana, local officials told reporters. The ceremony will begin with the firing of a 21-gun salute, according to a government statement.

The Jose Marti Memorial, which will temporarily welcome Castro's remains, is at the highest point of Havana. It stands on Revolution Square, long held to be one of Cuba's most emblematic spots.

For decades, it hosted massive demonstrations in support of the Revolution and Castro gave many of his most important speeches there.

On Tuesday, the square will also host a public mass at 7 pm for Cubans to pay their respects.

Following that, the ashes will begin a trip of around 1,000 kilometers from Havana to Santiago de Cuba. This journey will be the reverse of the one Castro carried out, as a young guerrilla leader, in his Caravan of Liberty in 1959.

After nine days of national mourning, the ashes of the revolutionary leader will be laid to rest on Dec. 4 in the Santa Ifigenia cemetery after another mass in the Antonio Maceo Square in Santiago de Cuba.

Besides preparations for the official commemoration, across the nation, hundreds of thousands of people turned out during the weekend waving flags and chanting slogans in Castro's honour.

Sports and cultural activities will be suspended for the period of mourning, while flags will remain at half-mast. Newspapers were printed in black ink in memory of the man, who led the country for decades.
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China will always remain deeply committed to upholding the authority of the United Nations, its charter and its central role in international affairs, Foreign Minister Wang Yi told UN Secretary-General designate Antonio Guterres on Monday during his first visit to China after his election as secretary general last month.

Facing a variety of global challenges, no country can succeed in solving them alone, Wang said. The UN is an effective platform for a collective response to global challenges.

"In a chaotic world, nations have more, not less expectations for the UN," Wang said. "Therefore the role of the UN must only be strengthened, not weakened."

The UN must answer the global demand for increasing efficiency and responses to emergency, so that the annual budget of more than $10 billion and 160,000 personnel can provide the best service, he said.

China will continue to support the work of the United Nations and remain dedicated to maintaining world peace and promoting development, Wang said, noting that this year marks the 45th anniversary of the restoration of Chinas rightful seat at the UN.

China is one of the largest sponsors of the UN and the second-largest financial sponsor of UN peacekeeping missions, Guterres said. China also developed new global instruments such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Belt and Road Initiative to help other nations achieve sustainable development through cooperation.

At the same time, China has been actively bringing nations in conflict together to resolve issues through dialogue, Guterres said. China can become an honest broker for peace that "the world badly needs today," he said.

China also wants to reform the UN, helping it trim down bureaucracy and costs, so that the UN can better help less developed countries, he said.

"China is a solid pillar for multilateralism," he said. "I am very committed to developing cooperation with China for what I hope to be a much more effective and multilateral system."

Guterres was prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002. The 67-year-old politician served as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees from 2005 to 2015 before succeeding Ban Ki-moon which he will do at the start of 2017.

Contact the writer at Zhangzhihao@chinadaily.com.cn
HOUSTON - One person was killed and three others injured late Sunday afternoon in a shooting incident in Baton Rouge, capital city of the US state of Louisiana.

The shooting occurred about 5:30 pm local time (2330 GMT) at the United Plaza Boulevard in Baton Rouge, and three people were sent to the hospital, one after being hit by gunfire and the other two after being hit by the suspected shooter's vehicle, according to the state's English daily, the Times-Picayune.

A police source said that it is believed a man and a woman were traveling together in a car. The man allegedly shot the woman and pushed her out of the vehicle. EMS staff and some passers-by were trying to help the woman, then the suspect drove his car into the crowd and started shooting, injuring three people.

Louisiana State Police confirmed that the gunman, who killed the woman and fled the scene, was later shot and killed in a shootout with police officers on Sunday night.

Police have begun investigating the cause of the shooting.

This is the second shooting incident in the state on Sunday, which also saw a shooting in the state's largest city of New Orleans earlier Sunday morning, which left one person and nine others wounded.
China has lodged representations to Singapore, requesting it cooperates with the Hong Kong government on the follow-up work over armored vehicles detained by Hong Kong customs, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Monday.

China asked the Singaporean government to observe the one-China principle, Geng said.

China has requested that Singapore strictly abide by the laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, he said.

"The Chinese government has always firmly opposed countries that have diplomatic ties with the Chinese mainland to conduct official exchanges of any kind with Taiwan, including military exchanges and cooperation," the spokesman reiterated.

Geng's remarks came after Hong Kong customs intercepted nine armored carriers belonging to Singapore on Wednesday.

According to China Central Television, the vehicles were in a cargo ship from Taiwan and transiting through Hong Kong. The vehicles were on their way back to Singapore from an earlier drill in Taiwan.
BEIJING - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said Monday the international community should stick to the direction of economic globalization and maintain the post-war international order.

"Economic globalization, multi-polarization and democratization of international relations have created the necessary conditions for the peaceful development of mankind. The international community should stick to this direction," Li said.

The international community should uphold the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and maintain the post-war international order, he added.

Li made the remarks when meeting UN secretary-general designate Antonio Guterres, who is on a visit to China from Monday to Tuesday.

"The world political and economic landscape is undergoing profound changes with mounting uncertainties for economic recovery amid a rising mood of anti-globalization, isolationism and populism," Li said.

"Only by exercising the common wisdom of mankind can we create a better future."

Li lauded the UN as a core post-war multilateral platform, playing an irreplaceable role in maintaining world peace and stability.

Li stressed China will continue to support the work of the UN, preserve its international authority, and back the UN to enhance its capacity to cope with global challenges.

As the largest developing country and a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China will work with all parties for world peace, stability, inclusiveness and sustainable development, Li added.
WASHINGTON - One suspect in the Ohio State University (OSU) shooting was killed as at least nine people were injured, local media said Monday.

WCMH, a local TV station, cited police sources as saying the suspect involved in an active shooter situation on the campus of OSU is now dead, while nine victims are currently being treated.

The Columbus Fire Department was previously quoted as saying that at least one of the wounded was in critical condition.

OSU tweeted that "scene is now secure," and that "area around 19th and College Ave is closed."

The identity of the suspect and how the person was killed is unclear.

OSU tweeted earlier that an active shooter was on campus, telling students to "run, hide, fight." A large police presence was seen on the campus.
Concerns that not all of the unions will agree to ratify their labor agreements have caused rail shippers and other transportation industry stakeholders to push President Joe Biden to act.
(Photo : Getty images) A piece of art made out of Coca-Cola cans on the street in China.

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Workers at three different Coca-Cola plants in China went on a strike on Monday, demanding that they should be involved in undertakings carried out by the firm that may affect their work. The move comes after the company sold its assets to a local Chinese firm.



According to the Guardian, Coca-Cola sold its assets to Swire Pacific and COFCO Corporations for 5.87 billion yuan ($850 million).



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The strike affected Coca-Cola plants in Chengdu, Jilin, and Chongqing. Protesting employees posted pictures online and carried banners to voice dissent against the company's new business venture.



"We worked hard for over a decade, but we were sold in less than a second," read one online post. "COMPENSATE!"



Another employee stressed that Coca-Cola should have opened up to its employees regarding the sell-off.



"We request the company gives workers economic compensation before they decide to sign the contract with Cofco," the employee said.



In a related story, the Hong Kong Free Press reported that the management of a Sony plant in Guangzhou has been forced to do away with striking employees. The strike started early in November after the company announced its decision to sell some of its camera components to local companies.



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(Photo : Getty Images) Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun speaks during a product launch on May 15, 2014 in Beijing, China.

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Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi recently announced that it was able to sell more than two million units in India during the third quarter of this year. The smartphone giant added that it is the company's best ever performance in India since it started its operations in the country.



Xiaomi was able to achieve this feat by striking up partnership deals will local brands in India. The company has also adopted a fierce strategy in pushing offline stores while expanding its online presence at the same time. Following its entry into the Indian smartphone market, Xiaomi have stuck deals with local distributors like Innocomm, YMS Mobitech, Just Buy Live, Redington and Store King. Through these deals, Xiaomi products have expanded to more than 8,500 retail stores across the country.



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Xiaomi claims that its sales output grew by 150 percent on a year-to-year basis.



In a statement acquired by The Economic Times, Xiaomi head of operations in India Manu Jain said, "We crossed 2 million plus sales in one quarter in third quarter for the first time, compared with our performance last year, we have attained more than 150% growth year-on-year."



Despite its success in the Indian smartphone market, Xiaomi is currently sitting on the number four spot with 7.5 percent of the market share, according to Huffington Post. India is considered as Xiaomi's second biggest market, right after its home country of China. Xiaomi global chief executive officer Lei Jun said that they are aiming to be the biggest smartphone brand in India within the next five years.



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TagsXiaomi, India, Smartphone, india market, smartphone market, Xiaomi News, xiaomi smartphone market
(Photo : Getty Images) Pope Francis is keen to strike a deal with China, but some are worried for a potential compromise.

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Pope Francis appears to be considering a grand compromise with China's Communist hierarchy in a bid to heal their decades-long ideological feud.



The differences between the Vatican and China's communist government have divided generations of Chinese Catholics and prevented successive popes from exercising their religious authority over the world's most populous country.



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The Vatican has conceded that it is engaging with its Chinese counterparts, although much remains to be done before a compromise is reached.



Pope Francis' apparent eagerness to reach common ground with China has however caused worries among some people who fear that he might concede too much ground with Chinese President Xi Jinping.



"There is a risk that if the pope moves too quickly, the underground priests will feel the church will lose its autonomy," a priest from Hebei said.



"Some people have sacrificed a lot, and they are worried that their sacrifice will not be recognized," the priest added.



The communist party expelled Catholic missionaries after assuming power in 1949. The priests were condemned as tools of Western imperialists.



Since then, Catholics have been required to worship in "patriotic" churches under state supervision. However, an estimated 12 million Catholics worship in "underground" congregations that pledge their loyalty to the Vatican.



They have resisted state control and have had to occasionally pay the price through persecution and imprisonment.



"We need patience, a lot of patience," Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who has been overseeing talks between the two sides, said.



The talks have been sluggish because of the communist government's deep suspicion of foreign and religious influences.



The issue that is causing a lot of friction is over who should have the power to appoint new bishops and the fate of the existing ones in China.



The Catholic church believes that bishops are divine successors to the apostles and thus should be named by the pope.



But China has always insisted on controlling the ordinations, saying that anything else amounts to interfering in its internal affairs.



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(Photo : GettyImages) China plans to impose stringent investment rules for Chinese companies to help the government in curtailing the outward flight of capital from the country.

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China is looking to control the foreign investments made by Chinese companies. The country aims to stem the flow of domestic capital to overseas. It is expected that a series of measures in this regard will be announced soon.



According to The Wall Street Journal, the government is likely to focus on the transactions involving 'extra-large' acquisitions undertaken abroad. Investment deals worth $10 billion or more will be covered under the new initiative. The regulators are also expected to pay special attention to any property investments worth more than $1 billion made by state-owned firms.



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The report also stated that any investment worth $1 billion or more undertaken by any Chinese firm in a foreign company not related to its prime business may be scrutinized.



The new regulation is expected to help the government in curtailing the outward flight of capital from the country. China is also struggling with the constant decline in its currency value. The rumored law is expected to improve the situation by keeping capital in the domestic territory.



The first nine months of the current year saw a 50 percent growth in foreign investment by Chinese companies on year over year. Chinese firms aggressively pursued foreign technology and media companies, spending over $145.9 billion during the said time period.



Apart from the Chinese government, foreign authorities have also increased their scrutiny of Chinese acquisitions. Recently, Germany ordered the review of Aixtron acquisition by Chinese firm Grand Chip. The deal was deemed to be worth over $730 million. The country cited security concerns as the cause for review.



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Gabina VOA is designed to be an infotainment youth radio show broadcasting to Ethiopia and Eritrea in the Amharic language. The show brings varied perspectives on issues concerning young people in the Horn of Africa region. Gabina in the Amharic language is a front row taxi ridesymbolic of the shows content as a fun ride that takes audiences from point A to point B. Gabina VOAs main goal is Enlightening young people, introducing them to cutting-edge technological innovations, exposing them to new processes and ideas so they can be productive, informed and self-governing citizens.
(Photo : Getty Images) China remains its title as the home of two of the world's fastest supercomputers.

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Japan is looking to retake the title of having the world's fastest supercomputer, a title the country lost to tech leaders like the United States and China. Japan recently announced its intention to build the world's fastest and most efficient supercomputer by the end of 2017.



Japan said that it is currently accepting bids that will run until Dec. 8. Authorities said that the supercomputer will be called Artificial Intelligence Bridging Cloud Infrastructure (AIBC).



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The AIBC aims to deliver groundbreaking features in terms of supercomputing. Once operational, the supercomputer will help in the development of artificial intelligence as well as the provision of cloud computing platform for various companies, startup firms, and academic and research institutions.



The title of the world's most powerful computer is currently held by Sunway TaihuLight, which is situated in China. The supercomputer has a computing power of 93 petaflops, which represent about a quadrillion floating-point operations per second.



The Japanese National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) is tasked for developing and constructing the AIBC. According to the Christian Science Monitor, the institute said that its plan is to operate the AIBC in excess of 130 petaflops once it starts operating.



AIST director general Satoshi Sekiguchi told Reuters, "As far as we know, there is nothing out there that is as fast."



The plan to build the AIBC comes after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed his intention to put Japan in the forefront of the fast growing tech market. Abe has called various government institutions and private firms to work together in order to achieve this goal.



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(Photo : Getty Images) A report by a Chinese government think tank described the US massive buildup in the Asia-Pacific region as unprecedented."

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The US military conducted more than 700 naval patrols in the South China Sea region in 2015, threatening China's sovereignty and making it the most "targeted" nation by Washington in terms of surveillance activities, Chinese government analysts said on Friday.



Analysts at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies said that if US surveillance activities in the disputed region continue to rise in the coming years, it would greatly threaten the stability of the region and might end in military confrontation between the US and Chinese forces.



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Wu Shicun, the Institute's director, echoed China's past warnings to the US that it could establish an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the South China Sea if Washington continues to intensify its aerial and naval patrols in the region.



Military challenges



China set up an ADIZ in the East China Sea in 2013 covering the airspace including, the Japanese-controlled Senkaku islands (which are known as Diaoyu Islands in China).



Wu said that Beijing has long protested against the US'' posture in the strategic waterway and has denounced Washington's military moves in the region.



Part of the US military activities include surveillance flights near Chinese waters and sending ships into disputed territories in the region in the guise of freedom of navigation operations, Wu said.



Military deployments



"The US is continuously increasing its military deployments and military base network in the Asia-Pacific region," Wu pointed out.



According to the analyst, the US has massively increased its buildup in the region over the years and continues to deploy military forces. Wu described the move as "unprecedented."



US military forces performed 1,200 close reconnaissance missions with military vessels and aircraft in 2014 in the region, up from the 200 missions recorded in 2009.



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(Photo : Getty Images) Chinese police authorities nabbed at least nine people held liable for last week's power plant accident.



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Chinese police have detained nine people in connection with last week's power plant accident in Fengcheng city in Northern China, which took the lives of nearly 74 people.



The nine detainees included the chairman of Hebei Yineng Tower Engineering, whose family name has been quoted as 'Zhang' by Chinese state media Xinhua.



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The engineering firm, which reportedly was in charge of the power plant project, has so far not issued any statement.



Xinhua claims that the nine detainees are suspected of "major liability" in the accident and will face criminal charges.



Authorities have not revealed names of most detainees, adding that the investigation is still under process.



The latest arrest follows last week's report by state media claiming that 13 people have been detained in connection with the power plant accident. The report specifically mentioned name of the engineering firm "Hebei Yineng," claiming that the company has history of work place causalities.



These series of arrest come after President Xi Jinping assured to the nation that liable individuals will be brought to the book and necessary precautions would be taken to prevent further accidents in the country.



Thursday's power plant accident in Fengchen has been described by many as one of the worst industrial accidents witnessed in recent times.



The accident was the latest in the spate of big industrial accidents that have occurred across China during the past few years. This included the horrifying chemical blasts in the port city of Tianjin that killed more than 170 people last year.



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TagsPower Plant Accidents in China, china, Industrial Accidents in China, Accidents in China
RMT calls for urgent talks with rail bosses as travel chaos continues Participate Mixed News for Tube Users in Chiswick Report Deals Major Blow to Turnham Green Piccadilly Line Hopes Sign up for our weekly Chiswick newsletter



Comment on this story on the The RMT rail union is calling for the Piccadilly line to be temporarily shut down and the Night Tube launch, set for December 16, delayed as chaos continues on the line due to shortage of trains.



The union is demanding urgent discussions with transport bosses and also urged London Mayor Sadiq Khan and the capitals transport commissioner to call a summit meeting to draw up an action plan for the Piccadilly line - the fourth busiest line on the Underground and a main route through Hammersmith. Around half the lines trains - 37 out of a total of 68 - were taken out of service on Friday due to "wet leaves on the track" and the situation has continued over the weekend and into Monday. Transport for London says that wheels on trains serving the Undergrounds fourth busiest line have been damaged as a result of slippery rails. Tom Matthews, General Manager of the Piccadilly Line said on Friday: " I sincerely apologise to Piccadilly Line customers whose journeys have been disrupted this week. "We have had to take some Piccadilly Line trains out of service to repair their wheels, which unfortunately means we do not have a full fleet available. "Were working around the clock to fix the trains so that we can return to a good service as quickly as possible." The trains are being repaired at depots at Cockfosters and Northfields, but it is not yet known when they will back in service. RMT General Secretary Mick Cash says: "The entire Piccadilly line fleet of trains has got a major engineering problem which has finally boiled over. It's nothing new and it is down to pressure on services and sheer managerial incompetence.



"The sheer danger of massive delays and overcrowding means that the service on the Piccadilly Line is inherently unsafe and will get worse under Night Tube. "Our members are asking why will it be another ten years before these 43-year-old trains are fully replaced when refurbishment clearly isn't working. It is also becoming clear that the wheels themselves are at fault and they've only recently been replaced. The contract for that job needs to be forensically examined. "These issues have now all come together in a cumulative effect and are the reason why sections of the line were closed on Friday. RMT has been told the problem could take weeks to fix properly. "That's why consideration has to be given to the service being suspended until the trains are repaired and signed off as safe. "We will have health and safety reps out and about from this morning advising our member and we expect an urgent response from the Mayor and his officials which we have set out today." Travellers also face major delays next weekend as union members strike on the Piccadilly and Hammersmith & City lines. We will bring you more news as we receive it and you can also keep up to date on the Piccadilly Line's Twitter feed. November 28, 2016
Religious leaders react to Castro's death 28 November, 2016 by Gregory Tomlin , |

MIAMI (Christian Examiner)  Fidel Castro, who governed Cuba with an iron hand for nearly six decades, died Nov. 25 at age 90, leaving behind an uncertain future for Cuba and lingering questions for Christian churches on the island.

Although Cuban-Americans, most of them Roman Catholic, had expressed hope freedom would come to Cuba after Fidel died, Rual Castro  Fidel's brother who took control of the government in 2008 after the aging dictator suffered several health crises  said on state television the policies set in place by Fidel would continue.

That means there will remain a fairly tight grip on religion, in spite of the fact relations with the Catholic Church in Rome have warmed since the Soviet Union collapsed and Cuba was jettisoned as a satellite state in 1992. With the relationship went billions of dollars in Russian subsidies, leaving Castro looking elsewhere for funds to aid the poor  which included virtually everyone on the island.

Chinese President Xi Jinping made a statement that caught my eye. He said, 'Comrade Castro will live forever.' That is true. All of us have a soul that is going to live forever in one of two placesHeaven or Hell. What we do here on earth determines where we will spend eternity. The only way to Heaven is by accepting God's plan for our salvationbelieving in His Son Jesus Christ and following Him as Lord. Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." (John 14:6). Do you know where you will spend eternity?'

Now, Catholics and evangelical Christians still remain under the watchful eye of the government, which still resists foreign influence.

Fidel Castro, like most communists, declared his allegiance to atheism as part of his national platform, in spite of the fact that he was taught by Jesuit priests as a boy and remained familiar with the Bible. When asked about religion by outsiders, he frequently reinterpreted Jesus's teachings to support communist ideals.

In the 1985 book, Fidel y la Religion, by Brazilian Priest Frei Betto, who had interviewed Castro extensively in the early 1980s, Castro said his departure from the church was mostly political. He saw conservative Catholicism  and its stated policy of anti-communism  as a real threat to his revolutionary state. He also knew he wouldn't earn the support of other communist states, such as Vietnam, Laos and China, if he did not abandoned the church.

Though no priest is recorded as having been executed during his reign, he did expel virtually every Catholic priest from the island. Only 200 remained after 1961.

For evangelicals, however, times were much harder. Castro was particularly brutal for those who held "American free church" ideas about Christianity. House churches were repeatedly infiltrated by government informers and an unknown number of evangelical Christian leaders were imprisoned and executed.

In 1998, Pope John Paul II surprised the world by seeking a visit to the island. According to papal biographer George Weigel, Castro warmly accepted the pope but still spent most of his time railing the United States. On the U.S.-led embargo of Cuba, in place since the Kennedy administration, Castro and John Paul II agreed it should be lifted.

Pope Benedict visited Cuba in 2012. Rumors surfaced then, as well, that Fidel wanted to seek a return to the church, but he did not. La Repubblica, an official newspaper, even quoted Castro's daughter Alina, who said her father "has come closer to religion: he has rediscovered Jesus at the end of his life."

"It doesn't surprise me because dad was raised by Jesuits," she reportedly said.

As his health began to fail, he also spoke more openly about religion and even said the findings of Darwinian evolution  a key doctrine underpinning materialistic atheism  did not necessarily negate the existence of God or the doctrine of His creation of the world.

However, when Pope Francis visited Cuba after his election to the papacy, and Fidel and Francis met for 45 minutes, there was again no public announcement of Castro's return to the church.

Pope Francis sent a short telegram to Raul Castro following the dictator's death. In it, he expressed "sorrow" at the death of one of the most controversial figures of the 20th century.

"Upon receiving the sad news of the death of your dear brother, His Excellency Mister Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, former president of the State Council and of the Government of the Republic of Cuba, I express my sentiments of sorrow to Your Excellency and other family members of the deceased dignitary, as well as to the people of this beloved nation," the telegram said.

"At the same time, I offer prayers to the Lord for his rest and I trust the whole Cuban people to the maternal intercession of our Lady of the Charity of El Cobre, patroness of this country."

Archbishop of Miami Thomas Wenski, who leads most of the Cuban-American Catholic community in South Florida also issued a statement calling for the aid of "our Lady of Charity." He was, however, less charitable to Castro, asking for the saint's help in helping Cuba achieve reconciliation with the world, freedom and justice.

"In the Old Testament Book of Ecclesiastes, we read: '[B]oth the just and the wicked God will judge, since a time is set for every affair and for every work' (Ecclesiastes 3:17). Fidel Castro has died. Now he awaits the judgment of God who is merciful but also just. His death provokes many emotions  both in and outside the island," Wenski said.

Among Protestants, few commented on the death of the Cuban dictator. However, Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse, said via social media that Fideal was "loved by few, hated by millions."

Castro's communist revolution, he said, "deposed a dictator, but ushered in a socialist police state that drove the entire Cuban nation into complete poverty and oppression."

In spiritual terms, he said, there is a lesson in Castro's life.

"Chinese President Xi Jinping made a statement that caught my eye. He said, 'Comrade Castro will live forever.' That is true," Graham said.

"All of us have a soul that is going to live forever in one of two placesHeaven or Hell. What we do here on earth determines where we will spend eternity. The only way to Heaven is by accepting God's plan for our salvationbelieving in His Son Jesus Christ and following Him as Lord. Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.' (John 14:6). Do you know where you will spend eternity?"

Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, said via Twitter the ability of the Cuban people to worship as they wished should be in focus.

"Fidel Castro's death should be a reminder to pray for freedom, including religious freedom, for the long-oppressed Cuban people," Moore said.
Christians are returning to Iraqs Nineveh Plains after being driven out by ISIS forces two years ago.

According to Catholic News Agency, Christians in Bashiqa, Iraq are again celebrating Mass in the Church of Mar Korkeis after a forced two-year hiatus.

When the Islamic State took over and attempted to establish their caliphate, Christians and other minorities were forced to either flee or pay the jizya tax. Some were even killed.

ISIS has lost most of the territory they originally took over. The city of Mosul is their last major stronghold. The battle for Mosul is still raging.

For Bashiqa, and other Iraqi towns, however, relief has finally come and Christian refugees are moving back to their homeland and are eager to restore their churches.

A new crucifix was placed in the Church of Mar Korkeis to replace the one destroyed by ISIS.

Christianity has been present in the Nineveh Plains of Iraq since the first century. Church leaders in the region had warned that the faith was in danger of being wiped out by ISIS, but now many are hopeful that Christians will return and bring their faith with them.

Although ISIS has been driven out of many areas they formerly controlled, Iraqi and Kurdish forces are warning Iraqis that many areas are still dangerous due to explosives and mines.

We want people to be patient and not to return here until we completely clear the area, as we want to ensure their safety, Kurdish Peshmerga Brigadier General Mahram Yasin told Reuters.

Fr. Afram, the priest of the parish, said that he hopes the city will remain under the control of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) rather than the Iraqi Government as the KRG has been much more involved locally.

Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com

Publication date: November 28, 2016
Muslim Fulani herdsmen killed at least 12 Christians in southern Kaduna state on Wednesday and Friday (Nov. 23-25) in what Christian leaders call a campaign of ethnic and religious cleansing.



The killings took place in four communities around Gidan Waya town, near Kafanchan in Jemaa Local Government Area (LGA) of Kaduna state, in north-central Nigeria: Pasakori, Mile One, Hayin Gaza and Sakiyo villages.



Area resident Joshua Aku told Morning Star News in Gidan Waya that the attacks began in Pasakori on Wednesday evening (Nov. 23). Herdsmen killed the Pasakori village head, Ayuba Gwafan, in an armed assault that began at about 5 p.m. and lasted an hour, he said.



The heavily armed herdsmen then killed James Adamu of Hayin Gaza village, a Christian identified only as Gayus of Sakiyo village, an unnamed Christian, and three other Christians who were on their way to Kagoro while on the Gidan Waya-Kagoro highway, Aku said.



The herdsmen returned on Friday to attack Mile One village, on the outskirts of Gidan Waya, and started killing villagers and destroying their houses. District head Daniel Akai was killed along with Laazarus Yakubu, Joel Tanko, Fine Gambo and Jolly Dego, the latter from southern Nigeria but resident in Mile One village, Aku said.



Akai was a member of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) in Gidan Waya.



The house of Mr. Akai was burned by the herdsmen, as was St. Pauls Catholic Church, and the offices of the ECWA Gidan Waya District Church Council (DCC) were also destroyed, Aku said.



The attack on Mile One village started at about 3 p.m. and continued until midnight, he said.



In last weeks assaults around Gidan Waya, the arrival of a military helicopter before and after the attacks on each day led many residents to speculate that renegade elements in the Nigerian military were aiding the herdsmen, he added.



Most residents of Gidan Waya believe the herdsmen were brought to the area in a military helicopter and were ferried away soon after perpetuating the atrocities on the Christian communities, said Aku, an ECWA member who was formerly sole administrator of Godogodo Development Area in Jemaa LGA.



Morning Star News was unable to independently confirm the reasons for the presence of the helicopter.



At a press conference on Nov. 16, the Rev. Zachariah Gado of the ECWA decried a campaign of ethno-religious cleansing by Fulani herdsmen militia.



About 120 homes were looted and destroyed and six church buildings burned down in the Nov. 13 attack on Kaura LGA, Gado said, asserting that ethno-religious cleansing may have intensified after Kaduna officials announced plans to allocate 20,000 hectares of land in southern Kaduna for grazing reserves, beyond that which the herdsmen have already seized and illegally occupied.



Since the latest onslaught on southern Kaduna began [in May], at least 138 people have been killed, most of them women and children, and at least 1,300 homes and church buildings have been torched, he said.



In Jemaa LGA alone, 102 people have been killed in 25 Christian communities in the past six months, amounting to ethnic and religious cleansing, the president of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Samson Supo Ayokunle, said at a press conference in Abuja last week.



Is this not Boko Haram in another color? he said. I want to plead with the government  this is a moment of truth. It is not about politics, religion or ethnicity. It is about the value that is attached to life.



The Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Godogodo Zone, the Rev. Chawangon Nathan, said the nonchalant attitude of state and federal authorities had allowed the attacks that began on May 26 to degenerate into an uncontrolled crisis. Nathan said media had erroneously described the Muslim Fulani herdsmen as unknown gunmen.

Asserting that security forces refused to arrest the assailants, he said that beyond 102 people killed in Jemaa LGA, 215 have been wounded and 10,000 displaced in the last six months.



Grace Daniel, a resident of Gidan Waya who was in Kafanchan at the time of the Nov. 23-25 attacks, told Morning Star News that she received distressed calls from relatives in Gidan Waya.



We in Kafanchan town can even see fire burning houses on the outskirts of Gidan Waya, she said last week. Please pray along with us. These armed Fulani herdsmen are out to destroy us completely.

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: November 28, 2016
Editor's note: The attacker has now been identified as 18-year-old student Abdul Razak Ali Artan. Artan rammed his vehicle into a group of people and then proceeded to cut victims with a butcher knife.

"Victim injuries include stab wounds, injury by motor vehicle and other injuries that are being evaluated," reported the University.

Reports now say that the active shooter at the main campus of Ohio State University is dead. The disturbing event that transpired this morning has shaken up the Columbus community and our nation. Though some reports are conflicting as the story unfolds, authorities report that 10 people have been taken to area hospitals and one is in critical condition.

The Columbus Dispatch reports, At 11:30 a.m., the university said the scene is secure and that all classes are canceled on campus. The shelter-in-place order was lifted at 11:14 a.m., but more than a dozen buildings remain closed.

Through the morning, officials urged people to avoid the Watts Hall area, which is the campus materials science and engineering building, and to continue to take shelter. The OSU Emergency Management sent out a tweet this morning at 9:56 am: Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.

Campus police also tweeted the alert along with, Continue to shelter in place. Avoid area of College.

Students reported hearing gunfire on the campus, followed by sirens, as police officers, fire trucks, and ambulances filled the area. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is also on the ground, according to spokesman Dave Coulson.

Another student said she never heard gunshots but saw a car plow into a crowd of people who had evacuated during an alarm. "This car just swerved and ran into a whole group of people," said Nicole Kreinbrink. "It hit a cop really bad."

"All these people were running and screaming and yelling," she added.

According to a report by Fox News, the FBI Columbus Field Office SWAT team has been activated, and is deploying to the campus to assist local authorities with the reported active shooting.

Earlier, the school newspaper, The Lantern, indicated in a tweet that someone was down: "There's at least one body bag present in front of Koffolt Labs," read the tweet. "OSU police still advising to take shelter. Situation not under control."

A police officer on scene later told The Lantern that a possible shooter is believed to be inside the Lane Avenue Parking garage on campus. The school paper also tweeted that there may be a second assailant.

With more than 65,000 students enrolled across the state, Ohio State University in Columbus is one of the largest campuses in the United States.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich tweeted that the state's "thoughts and prayers go out to the Ohio State community. Be safe, listen to first responders."

Please join us in praying for those students and families who have been affected by this mornings events, and for healing and peace for all.

This report is ongoing, please check back for additional updates.

Read more by Debbie McDaniel at www.debbiemcdaniel.com, https://www.facebook.com/DebbieWebbMcDaniel/, or https://twitter.com/debbmcdaniel.

Photo courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Publication date: November 28, 2016
Pew Research Center released a poll earlier this week in which voters were asked to grade President elect Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton on their conduct during the campaign among many other questions on their perspective on what lies ahead.

The survey was conducted November 10-14 on 1,254 voters who were also interviewed before the elections.

Voters gave Trump low grades for his conduct during the campaign. His grades were the lowest any victorious candidate received since 1988 when this series of surveys were first introduced. Only about 30 percent of the voters graded him under an A or B, 19 percent gave him C, 15 percent gave him D, and some 35 percent graded him under D, in effect failing him.

On the other hand, about 43 percent of the people gave Clinton either an A or B.

Voters are divided in their reactions to Trump's victory.

Half of all the voters were happy about Trump winning the election, but 48 percent were unhappy.

Most of the people were surprised by Trump's victory. About 73 percent of all the voters expressed their surprise at the election results.

Some 100 percent of Clinton supporters were "shocked" at Trump's victory, while 67 percent of Trump voters were "happy.

Some 60 percent of Trump voters were surprised.

A little over half of the voters (53 percent) said his electoral win made them feel "uneasy," and about as many (51 percent) made them feel "hopeful."

Majority of the Clinton supporters (58 percent) say they are "willing to give Trump a chance and see how he governs as president," while 39 percent said they cannot do so "because of the kind of person he has shown himself to be."

Overall, 56 percent of the American voters expect Trump to carry out a successful first term.

Trump voters have expressed confidence in how he will govern as a President. As many as 88 percent of his supporters are "confident about the kind of president he will be."

Voters also gave low grades to Republican and Democratic parties. Only 22 percent of the people gave Republican Party an A or B, while Democratic Party also received an A or B from just 26 percent of the voters.

Survey results also showed that people do not regard the media highly. Just about 22 percent of the American voters graded press with either an A or B, and 38 percent gave them an F.

A majority of 57 percent of the voters said press had "too much influence" on the election results, out of whom 62 percent were Trump voters, and 50 percent were Clinton supporters.
Donald Trump has nominated Christian philanthropist and education activist Betsy DeVos as Secretary of United States Department of Education.

DeVos is a businesswoman billionaire who has spent millions of dollars to advance voucher programs for the last 30 years, and has also worked to promote publicly funded but privately run charter schools.

The presidential transition team website described her as "a leader in the national school reform movement for more than two decades," and "a highly successful education advocate, businesswoman, and philanthropist."

DeVos heads Windquest Group, which is an investment management company with projects in sectors including clean technology, hospitality, and non-profit solutions.

"Betsy DeVos is a brilliant and passionate education advocate. Under her leadership we will reform the US education system and break the bureaucracy that is holding our children back so that we can deliver world-class education and school choice to all families. I am pleased to nominate Betsy as Secretary of the Department of Education," Trump said.

DeVos chairs American Federation for Children, a public policy group. She is also a member on the board of Foundation for Excellence in Education which is an education reform think tank based in Florida.

"I am honored to accept this responsibility to work with the President-elect on his vision to make American education great again," said Ms. DeVos, who accepted the nomination the same day. "The status quo in education is not acceptable. Together, we can work to make transformational change that ensures every student in America has the opportunity to fulfill his or her highest potential."

Teachers' unions were not happy with the nomination of DeVos to the cabinet post, and stated their opposition to her.

President of American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, was quoted in The New York Times as saying that Devos is "the most ideological, anti-public education nominee" in the history of the department when it was first moved to the cabinet level about 40 years ago.

However, her supporters welcomed her placement as the Secretary of Education and are of the view that she is dedicated to improving the school education system.

"[DeVos'] allegiance is to families, particularly those struggling at the bottom of the economic ladder, not to an outdated public education model that has failed them from one generation to the next," Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida wrote on Facebook.
Chinese officials Zhejiang province are trying to prevent Christian children from attending Sunday services and schools by building cultural centers to hold recreational activities for children on weekends, according to a report by Christian Today, citing China Aid sources.

The towns where such a program is being run include Tengqiao, Yangy, and Shanfu among others.

Regulations on Christian children's activities has been reported from other parts of the country as well.

In Guizhou province, house church members were threatened with legal action in July this year for attempting to send their children to church services.

The parents were told that their children would not be allowed attend college or military programs if they attended services.

In Huaqiu town of the same province, a notice was sent to all schools that if the children do not stop going to church services, they will be kept out of college.

This notice was sent to all of the schools in Huaqiu," China Aid quoted a church member in the town as saying. "They (public security) intend to cleanse us and ask us to join the Three-Self Church."

The house church members were also compelled to sign a document which said that they will not take their minor children to church. Apart from that, the members were told that they would be sued if they keep on bringing the children to church.

In August, authorities detained two female Christian camp leaders in Xinjiang province and accused them of brainwashing children.

The detainees were kept in prison for about 15 days. They were arrested when they were about to drive a children's group to a summer camp.

"Both women were accused of indoctrinating minors with superstitious beliefs. Chinese law forbids religious teaching to anyone under the age of 18, believing matters of faith to be dangerous brainwashing from which children must be protected," another report from China Aid explained.
Vietnam passed a new 'Law on Belief and Religion' last week which may curtail freedom of religion in the country, according to media reports.

The bill was passed with 84.58 percent of votes.

The details of the law have not been disclosed to the public but activist organizations fear that the legislation will compel religious organizations to register before being able assemble at houses of worship and practice their faith.

The draft of the bill was introduced last year and was expected to uphold freedom of religion and belief, but the direction of drafting was observed to be more inclined towards controlling religious organizations in Vietnam.

"When the possibility of a law on religion was first mentioned, some were hopeful that it would address the obstacles to freedom of religion or belief in the existing regulations," said Mervyn Thomas, CSW's Chief Executive. "Unfortunately, throughout the drafting process, the law continued to focus on the control and management of religious activities, rather than the protection of religious freedom.

Vo Tran Nhat, Executive Secretary of the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights, also voiced the same opinion that the law inhibits freedom of religion rather than promote it as claimed by the government.

"They're going to adopt a new law, a law on religion. This law is not a law on religion; it's just a law on how to manage the control of religion," he told World Watch Monitor. "The regime just says you have the freedom of religion [only] if you respect all the conditions of the party. It means, if you want to organize an event, you have to demand permission. If you want to create a church, you have to pass an exam, of several years - I think it's about 10 years, or 5 or 10 years. And if there is no problem, then you can have the [status] of recognized religion."
Fidel Castro, the revolutionary Cuban leader who ushered in a communist regime in the country and reigned for about five decades, died on November 25, 2016 at the age of 90.

His brother and current Cuban President Raul Castro announced the news on Cuban state TV. He officially became president in 2008, two years after a temporary transfer of power because of Fidel's illness in 2006.

"At 10.29 at night, the chief commander of the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, died," the 85-year-old president said. He did not give any cause of death.

"Ever onward, to victory," he concluded the address using the Cuban revolution slogan.

Castro's father was a rich sugar plantation owner, but he chose to spend his life fighting for the cause of poor. He took power in 1959 by toppling the former military regime in Cuba, and ruled for the next 47 years as the head of the state. He transformed the country into a one-party state and promised to serve the poorest people who were oppressed under the previous governments.

When the Cold War came to an end around 1990, the country lost its financial support from the communist regime in Eurasia. Within years, its economy declined by about half. It became a challenge for Castro to maintain the centrally controlled and closed economy. He loosened economic restrictions which were symbolic of his communist rule for over three decades.

Though Castro opened the country to foreign investments and private sectors after the end of the Cold War, he later repealed many of the laws which favored capitalism.

His brother, the new president, has embraced the communist ideology but at the same time opened the country to economic reforms and even sought to renew diplomatic relations with the US in 2014.

However, the Cuban government has failed to initiate any reforms in religious freedom and persecution of Christians has increased in recent years.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide reported as many as 1,606 separate religious freedom violations this year, which includes demolition of churches, destruction of church properties, arbitrary detention of religious leaders and seizure of their properties, among many other forms of harassment.
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.
Worse than what missing the mark does to our soul is what it does to our neighbors.
David Brooks recently wrote about a Washington, DC, couple who invited their sons friend over for dinner. This small act snowballed into a weekly dinner where upwards of 15 teensmany of whom have endured homelessness, abuse, hunger, and sexual assaultstop in to eat, hug, read poems, get help on college applications, and perhaps crash in the house later.

These meals fill a deeper hunger, which Brooks describes as a crisis of solidarity, a crisis of segmentation, spiritual degradation, and intimacy. The reigning American idealof the self-sufficient nuclear family living in a detached single-family houseisnt satiating this need. Like this DC family, growing numbers of people are finding creative ways to live together and forge new kinds of community.

Communes, monasteries, and intentional communities of all sorts have been around for ages in the margins of many societies. Today, however, a concept called cohousing is bringing group living more into the mainstream. Alice Alexander, executive director of the Cohousing Association of the United States, describes cohousing as a blend of private homes with shared common space. Cohousing groups dont require the shared finances or surrender of privacy that is commonly associated with communes. Yet they bring people to live in close proximity while emphasizing the values of sharing, community, and sustainability.

The idea is gaining traction among different populations. Boomers who are looking to downsize and curb a growing sense of isolation provide much of the time, energy, and finances needed to start cohousing communities, Alexander said. Millennials, many of whom work full-time while also raising small children, ...

1
Baptist Minister Dr. James F. Linzey Speaks to a Unified Multi-Racial Congregation in Los Angeles



LOS ANGELES, Nov. 28, 2016 / LOS ANGELES, Nov. 28, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- Southern Baptist minister Jim Linzey returned to the Los Angeles to speak to a multi-racial congregation for the first time since the passing away of Evangelist Verna Linzey. Global Covenant Church, known as The Los Angeles Mission, was where revival had broken out under Verna Linzey's ministry from 2012 to 2014. Rev. Alice Hodges, who spearheaded a Morris Cerullo crusade in Japan years ago and is the wife of Pastor Gary Hodges, solemnly spoke about the passing away of Verna Linzey who died from heart failure on Veterans' Day, November 11, 2016 at Naval Medical Center San Diego.

Photo: James Linzey speaking to the multi-racial congregation at Global Covenant Church in Carson, California, which is in the greater Los Angeles basin. High-resolution version available upon request.

African Americans, Filipinos, Caucasians, and Japanese believers gathered in a packed out house to hear Dr. James F. Linzey speak about Verna Linzey's ministry, the meaning of truly being born-again in a troubled society, and how offering God's unconditional acceptance to one another and not judging is a conduit for God's saving grace to redeem man from his sins.

Fighting erupted outside the house when a young male adult, who evidently wanted to disrupt the meeting, attacked Pastor Gary, pushing him down. Dr. Linzey called for several of the men of the congregation to assist Rev. Hodges who then counseled and calmed the young man. The meeting continued peacefully as several members filmed the message.

Dr. Linzey, chief editor of the Modern English Version and managing editor of the New Tyndale Version, began his message with the reading of John 3:1-16, culminating with, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16, MEV). He then recounted the salvation experience of the Army Private at Fort Lee, Virginia, who was a priest in the Church of Satan, who gave his heart to Christ. Dr. Linzey issued a challenging message to consecrate their lives to Christ. Several people requested prayer afterward. A visiting minister invited Dr. Linzey to appear on Christian television, which will be announced soon, and an invitation was given to continue speaking monthly at this "Los Angeles Mission."
home US Abortionist thanks God for having ability to perform abortions

An abortionist knelt down next to a pro-life protester to pray and gave thanks to God for having the ability to terminate women's pregnancies.

The encounter between the abortionist and a pro-life protester occurred outside the North American Forum on Family Planning conference at the Palmer House Hilton hotel in Chicago, Illinois on Nov. 16. The conference was hosted by Planned Parenthood and the Society for Family Planning, according to The Christian Post.

Some of those who were present at the event include Deborah Nucatola and Deborah VanDerhei, who were recorded discussing the sales of aborted baby parts in undercover videos released by the Center for Medical Progress last year.

The abortionist knelt down on the sidewalk next to a large poster held by Pro-Life Action League's National Director Joe Scheidler and started praying. The group was able to capture the woman's prayer on video.

"Dear Heavenly Father, I'm grateful today to be here at this wonderful meeting and I wanted to express to you the gratitude and humility I feel as an abortionist," the woman said.

"I can imagine no person who is in greater need of Christlike love and excellent medical care than a woman who is faced with an untenable pregnancy. And I am grateful every day to feel thy spirit and thy guiding hand in my work as I speak to women of all faiths and all creeds," she continued.

She noted in her prayer that there is no organized faith community to support her but she maintained that she has the "support of the world." She prayed that God would "soften the hearts" of pro-life activists and that they would "see the cruelty and the damage that their actions lead to," referring to the women who are suffering from stigma against abortion.

Matt Yonke, who was able to witness the woman's prayer, encouraged others to pray for the abortionist so that she would realize the injustice she is committing against the unborn.

Yonke added that pro-lifers should learn to pray for those who oppose their message without assuming to know their motives. He reminded the pro-lifers that prayers for the opposition are for their conversion and salvation not judgment or condemnation.
home World Aid organization releases list of nations with worst record of Christian persecution

A charity organization has released a new report listing seven nations where Christians and other religious minorities are facing intense persecution.

The 2016 "Religious Freedom in the World" report released by Aid to the Church in Need last Thursday revealed that religious intolerance has increased around the world, particularly between June 2014 and 2016, which coincides with the rise of ISIS, The Christian Post reported.

The report indicated that out of the 196 countries examined by the organization, 38 had committed violations of religious freedom. Twenty-three countries were grouped under the top-level "Persecution" category while 15 were under the "Discrimination" group.

It noted that non-state actors are responsible for the persecution in 12 out of the 23 worst-offending countries.

According to the study, the persecution in seven countries, namely, Afghanistan, Iraq (northern), Nigeria, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Syria, was considered so extreme that "it could scarcely get any worse."

It revealed that state of religious freedom "clearly worsened" in 14 countries but there have been some improvements in Bhutan, Egypt and Qatar since the last study was conducted in 2014.

The study pointed out that Islamist extremism in countries such as Afghanistan, Somalia and Syria has been one of the main causes in the surge of refugees, which increased by 5.8 million in 2015, according to figures from the U.N.

It also noted that mainstream Islamic groups are making efforts to counter Islamic extremism by condemning the violence through public pronouncements and other initiatives.

"A virulent and extremist form of Islam emerged as the number one threat to religious freedom and was revealed as the primary cause of persecution in many of the worst cases," the report stated.

In the case study in Iraq, a Yazidi boy who was trained for jihad in Syria recounted the words told to him by his instructors: "You have to kill kuffars [unbelievers] even if they are your fathers and brothers, because they belong to the wrong religion and they don't worship God."

Open Doors USA, another watchdog organization, has its own list of countries where Christians are being persecuted for their faith.

Open Doors president David Curry has observed that many of the same factors that made 2015 the worst year for Christian persecution has remained in place this year.

"You still have rouge nations like Eritrea, North Korea, Sudan and others, who are not concerned about international justice laws, and are persecuting Christians within their government," he told The Christian Post in October.
home World Bishop of Gloucester to preside at LGBT communion

The Right Reverend Rachel Treweek, Bishop of Gloucester, will be presiding at an LGBT communion early next year for the gay community.

The ceremony, arranged by the LGBT-affirming Inclusive Church, is believed to be the first time a senior bishop would preside at an LGBT communion, according to a report from Christian Today.

"As part of Bishop Rachel's ministry she celebrates the Eucharist in many churches across her diocese, to worship with fellow Christians who are all loved and valued by God," said a spokeswoman for the Gloucester Diocese.

Inclusive Church spokesman Simon Sarmiento said that there is nothing peculiar about the said communion. "It is purely a pastoral activity. It is all about safe spaces," he said.

Rev. James Paice, from the conservative Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), UK, is worried that the move would send a "very confused message" to the Anglican community.

"We say one thing about morality but here we are celebrating something else," said Paice. He added that while the Church has maintained that its teachings have not been changed, the reality on the ground shows otherwise.

He argued that the church should refrain from having an LGBT communion if it is serious about upholding the teachings in the 1998 resolution on sexuality known as Lambeth 1.10.

The service is scheduled to be held on Jan. 15 at St. Bartholomews Church in Gloucestershire. It is just one of several LGBT Eucharists that are already being conducted across the U.K.

Rev. Sue Greatorex, the local representative of Inclusive Church in the Gloucester diocese, expressed her enthusiasm about the communion.

"They are aimed at the LGBTI community to give them a safe space to be themselves and worship together," she said, adding that the traditional Anglican liturgy will be used in the ceremony.

Treweek worked as an pedriatic speech and language therapist in the NHS before she became ordained as a bishop. She became the first female bishop to be seated the House of Lords in 2015.

She was one of the advisers in The Pilling Report in 2013, which recommended a "pastoral accomodation" to allow the clergy to offer services to welcome gay relationships. The Church of England is yet to adopt the proposal.
home World Christian human rights group calls for investigation of forced organ harvesting in China

China Aid, a U.S.-based human rights organization which focuses on the abuses committed against Christians in China, has called for an independent investigation regarding the practice of forced organ harvesting in the Communist regime.

The call for an investigation came after two Canadian lawyers went to the Australian Parliament earlier this week to present a report stating that China performs an estimated 60,000 to 100,000 organ transplants a year.

David Kilgour, a former prosecutor and Canadian secretary of state for Asia-Pacific, and David Matas, a human rights lawyer, said that Muslim Uyghurs, Tibetan Buddhists, Christians and Falun Gong practitioners were the only "plausible explanation" for the sourcing of the organs.

China has previously stated that it had reformed its system to stop the practice of taking organs from executed prisoners but there are still doubts whether the ban has been strictly enforced.

In an interview with The Christian Post, Bob Fu, founder and president of China Aid, applauded the work of Kilgour and Matas and called for an independent investigation to verify their claims.

Fu noted that he has no evidence that Christians are being specifically targeted for organ harvesting but he pointed out a recent case of one prisoner whose organs were taken without permission.

"Although I do not have systematic evidence showing this is massively practiced toward Christian prisoners of conscience yet, the fact [that] one more high profile prisoner Mr Jia Jinglong's organs were bluntly harvested before he was executed unjustly without any consent from his lawyers nor any of his family members last week should certainly and absolutely warrant an independent investigation by a credible international panel," he said.

The BBC reported that Jia was sentenced to death for killing the village chief back in February 2015. He was executed earlier this month despite a major campaign calling on the government to commute his sentence.

Fu said that an independent investigation on organ harvesting is "long overdue" and insisted that the practice has not ended in China despite the Communist Party's denial.
home US Dallas Pastor applauds Trump's decision not to prosecute Hillary Clinton

Pastor Robert Jeffress of First Baptist Church in Dallas applauded President-elect Donald Trump for his decision not to prosecute Hillary Clinton for keeping e-mails containing classified information on her home server.

Trump said on Tuesday that he no longer intends to pursue an investigation against Clinton despite threatening her with prosecution during the presidential campaign.

"I don't want to hurt the Clintons, I really don't," Trump said in an interview with The New York Times.

"She went through a lot and suffered greatly in many different ways, and I am not looking to hurt them at all. The campaign was vicious," he continued.

In an interview with Fox Business, Jeffress stressed that the government has a responsibility to execute justice but he believes that Trump made the right decision not to prosecute Clinton.

"At the end, voters are going to judge President-elect Trump by three criteria: has he made them safer, freer, and richer. And going after Clinton is not going to accomplish any of those goals," said the pastor.

Jeffress stated that Washington could be "paralyzed" for four years if Trump decides to investigate the former secretary of state.

When Fox Business host Stuart Varney asked for advice on how to avoid fights during Thanksgiving dinner, Jeffress told Trump supporters not to gloat about the president-elect's victory.

"Instead of gloating about his win, point out the positive things to those doubters we have already seen: his inclusiveness, his measured tone," he said.

The pastor advised those who did not support Trump to pray that "he would follow God's leadership in his life."

Some of Trump's supporters were not happy about the decision to forgive Clinton. Conservatives branded the move as a "betrayal" and a "broken promise."

Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, said that it would be a mistake for the president-elect not to appoint a special counsel to investigate Clinton's State Department e-mails.

The FBI had already cleared the former secretary of state twice but Fitton argued that the investigations were flawed.

Fitton's organization has acquired access to thousands of pages of the e-mails through lawsuits and is pushing through with its case in court even after Clinton's defeat, according to The New York Times.
home US First trailer for new Scorsese film about Christian martyrs released

The first official trailer for Martin Scorsese's long-awaited film "Silence" has been released online this week.

The movie, based on the novel of the same name by Japanese author Shusaku Endo, follows the story of two 17th century Jesuit priests who went in search for their mentor in Japan, where Christianity is forbidden, Catholic Herald reported.

The cast includes Adam Driver, Andrew Garfield and Liam Neeson. In order to portray their roles with authenticity, the three actors lost significant amounts of weight in order to appear frail.

While the story is fictional, Neeson's character, Father Ferreira, is based on a historic Italian priest named Giuseppe Chiara, who served as a missionary in Japan during the same period.

The original novel focuses on the culling of Christian converts in Japan due to the concerns that the spread of the Gospel would lead to European colonization. Some Japanese Christians were tortured and told to renounce their faith while others were killed.

The release of the trailer comes just after news broke that the movie will premiere at the Vatican.

Scorsese had been keen on adapting Endo's novel to film since 1990 but the production had been delayed several times.

The award-winning director had been sued by Cecchi Gori Pictures several times for choosing to finish other films. In 2014, the film was suspended during pre-production in Taiwan due to lack of funds. The filming began in early 2015 after Fabrica de Cine and Moriah Media provided the capital.

In a 2013 interview with Deadline, Scorsese explained why making the film was so important to him.

"My initial interests in life were very strongly formed by what I took seriously at that time, and 45-50 years ago I was steeped in the Roman Catholic religion. As you get older, ideas go and come. Questions, answers, loss of the answer again and more questions, and this is what really interests me," he said.

"The very nature of secularism right now is really fascinating to me, but at the same time do you wipe away what could be more enriching in your life, which is an appreciation or some sort of search for that which is spiritual and transcends?" the director added.
home US Indiana City renames Good Friday and Columbus day for sake of inclusivity

The city of Bloomington, Indiana has renamed Good Friday to "Spring Holiday" and Columbus Day to "Fall Holiday" to make the said holidays more culturally sensitive and inclusive.

The change in names was announced by Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton last week in a memo to city employees.

"We are terrifically proud of our diverse workforce at the City. That diversity makes us stronger and more representative of the public we proudly serve. These updated names for two days of well-merited time off is another way we can demonstrate our commitment to inclusivity," the memo stated, as reported by Indiana Public Media.

Bloomington city employees get paid time off for the said holidays.

Good Friday, which comes two days before Easter Sunday, commemorates the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It is not considered as a federal holiday but it is observed as a state holiday in some states such as Texas, Connecticut, Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky, New Jersey, North Carolina and North Dakota.

The renaming of Good Friday has already caught the ire of conservative groups, including the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights. The group sees the name change as an act of censorship.

Catholic League President Bill Donohue argued that Christians are being excluded as a result of Hamilton's decision.

"Inclusivity is a ruse-it is a multicultural weapon used to foster intolerance of our Judeo-Christian heritage. In actual fact, Christians are being excluded by denying recognition of a central day in their religious calendar," said Donohue in a statement.

Columbus Day, a federal holiday which commemorates the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas on Oct. 12, 1492, has become unpopular among those who view the Italian explorer as a colonizer.

The holiday has been renamed to "Indigenous People's Day" in several U.S. cities to give recognition to Native Americans.

The state of Vermont and the city of Phoenix are among the latest places that have renamed the holiday. Other cities that have made the same move in the past include Seattle, Minneapolis and Denver.
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Open Secrets of How Joanna Gaines Balances Her Career With Being a Wife and Mother Joanna Gaines is the co-founder of Magnolia Homes, a business she runs with one goal: converting houses to homes. She doubles as the lead designer of the company which she co-owns with her husband, Chip Gaines. Lady Gaines gained massive popularity when she became a co-star with her husband on the HGTVs show, Fixer Upper. ...

Juicy Details of Ayesha Currys Love Story With Stephen, Her Family Members and Recent Pursuits When your husband is one of the greatest basketballers that the NBA has ever seen, then it bestows on you the status of a celebrity wife  and may not even demand that you do anything extra to maintain that status. However, Ayesha Curry, the wife of multiple NBA champion, Steph Curry, is not one ...

What Is Tarek el Moussas Ethnicity, Why Did He Divorce His Wife and Who Is He Dating? Tarek El Moussa has made himself one of the most recognizable men on reality television, especially to fans of HGTV. Thanks to his expertise in the world of real estate, Tarek has become a national star. But even to his hardcore followers, there are questions about Tarek El Moussa that remain unanswered, such as his ...

Fun Facts About Natalie Beckers Lonely Childhood and Eventual Career Success Natalie Becker is an actress of South African descent who became famous for her appearance in films like The World Unseen and The Scorpion King 2: Rise of a Warrior. A multitalented individual, Natalie is also a television/radio presenter. She is also a co-founder of the Thought Leader Global Media which she runs together with ...

Top 3 Female CNN News Anchors You Didnt Know Were Africans CNN is one of the leading news agencies in the world. The satellite and cable news network was founded in 1980 by Ted Turner and has been one of the best sources of news for a number of years. It also boasts of the best journalists and presenters all around in media broadcasting. The company is a ...

Channels That Aided Katie Pavlichs Growth as a Journalist and All About Her Marriage To Friedson If you have ever come across any Fast and Furious featuring Barack Obama, it is the handiwork of Katie Pavlich. The book which claims to have exposed Obamas bloodiest scandal and the shameless cover-up thereof, has been earning Pavlich much praise and fame ever since it was published in 2012. Nonetheless, Pavlich is more famed ...

Is Oprah Winfrey Married? Husband, Children, Biography, House, Facts Oprah Winfrey is a billionaire philanthropist, talk show icon, producer, actress, and writer. The media icon famously dubbed The Queen Of All Media owns and hosts the highest-rated television program in the media circle. Read more about the powerful television star below. Oprah Winfrey Biography Oprah was born as Orpah Gail Winfrey on January 29, 1954, to a ...

Who Is Arsenio Hall, What Happened To His Talk Show and Why Do Fans Think He Is Gay? He is one of the funniest beings to have graced the comedy constituent of the American entertainment industry. Arsenio Hall has a reputation for the rib-cracking disposition always portrayed in his comedy roles. He is not just a comedian; he is also an actor and a former talk show host for his popular show, The ...

What Is Woah Vicky Famous For and Who Are Her Family Members? Like most social media celebrities in this digital era, Woah Vicky is one of those stars that have utilized the internet as a powerful tool to propel themselves to instant fame. The social media space, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, etc., offers lots of people the right opportunities and potentials to become superstars overnight. Not everyone achieves ...

Where Is Michael Strahan Since His Retirement From The NFL and Who Is His Partner? Michael Strahan is a retired American football player turned media personality. He played the defensive lineman position and holds the record for most sacks in a single NFL season. He also only played for the New York Giants throughout the entire 15-year professional career that saw him win a Super Bowl ring. In February 2014, ...

How Wendy Williams Went From Being a College DJ to Having Her Own Talk Show and More About Her Divorce Wendy Williams is a former radio personality, now talk show host, who is known for her outspokenness and brash no-nonsense attitude. She gained fame and notoriety for her on-air clashes with celebrities before moving on to host her own talk show. Since 2008, Williams has hosted the nationally syndicated television talk show, The Wendy Williams Show. ...

Who is Sunny Hostin? Her Husband, Family & Net Worth Sunny Hostin is no ordinary Latina  American lawyer but also a successful columnist, multi-platform journalist, and social commentator. A happily married woman and mother of two, Hostin is the Senior Legal Correspondent and Analyst for ABC News and co-host of ABCs popular morning talk show, The View. She is a legal expert popularly known as a former ...

Who Is Robert Costa and Is He Married, Who Is His Wife? Robert Costa is a political analyst for NBC News and MSNBC who is regarded as being part of Americas next generation of journalists. The University of Notre Dame graduate, who is of Italian/Portuguese descent, has been lauded for his fresh political perspectives in an industry full of old heads. In addition to his work listed above, Costa ...

Team Valor Pokemon Go  7 Key Facts You Need To Know Team Valor Pokemon Go  The craze of the new game Pokemon Go is one that took the gaming world by storm sending teenagers and adults alike into a frenzy and one of its teams Team Valor, has proven to be instrumental in making it so. Before the game was created, Pokemon was a cartoon ...

Sheryl Underwood  Husband, Family & Net Worth She is known for her trademark smile which can be described as the brightest and broadest smile ever seen on planet earth. She is none other than Sheryl Underwood the comedian, actress, and TV host whose funny wits has left America in great awe. Although Sheryl has risen to become an important personality in the industry, ...

Team Mystic Pokemon Go: 7 Facts You Need To Know And Signs You Are One Team Mystic of the break out game Pokemon Go is a team that is full of sass and chivalry. With an enchanting monicker, Team Mystic stands out from the rest of its counterparts and deserves to take the crown as champion in the Pokemon gaming-verse. To be a member of this exceptional team of Pokemon battle ...

Exploring Guy Beahms Dr Disrespect Persona, Wife and Why He was Banned Permanently From Twitch Guy Beahm who is popularly known by his online alias  Dr DisRespect, is an award-winning Twitch.tv streamer. He has leveraged on the Twitch platform to become an internet personality that is quite widely known. His online success is just more proof that anyone who is good at what they do can attain celebrity status ...

Critical Facts About Lee Ann McAdoo  The Infowars Anchor Lee Ann Mcadoo is a conservative journalist and television host whose interests in conspiracies and astrology has established her as a famous American reporter. Often referred to as Wonder Woman, McAdoo is a reporter who works for InfoWars.com, a controversial right-wing website run by radio show host, Alex Jones. Who Is Lee Ann McAdoo? Lee Ann McAdoo was born on 7 ...

Millie Weaver  Age, Husband & Infowars Career Millie Weaver is an American model, journalist, political activist, and social commentator. The young and beautiful journalist rose to fame working as a reporter for a controversial right-wing website InfoWars.com. Also known as Millennial Millie, Weaver is a social media influencer with over 100,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel and over 35,000 followers on Twitter. Who Is Millie Weaver and What Is ...

Is Jessica Tarlov Married? What Are Her Height & Weight? Jessica Tarlov is an American political consultant, strategist, and analyst whose influential and regular TV presence has made a popular figure. A good example of beauty with brains, Tarlov has appeared on various TV networks, mostly the FOX News Network where she is known for her liberal views on political analysis and insights. She is also the senior director ...

Who Is Kelly Rebecca Nichols  Alex Jones Ex-Wife? Kelly Rebecca Nichols is the ex-wife of controversial American radio show host, Alex Jones. She got nationwide attention following her divorce and subsequent custody battle with her estranged husband. Nichols, who worked with PETAs public relations department, was herself no stranger to controversies as she was involved in several publicity stunts of the non-profit animal rights ...

Who Is Bree Morgan  Cole Sprouse Ex-Girlfriend And What Is She Up To Now? Although Bree Morgan became famous through the Instagram, she also sapped some dose of popularity from Disneys sweetheart, Cole Sprouse of the Sprouse brothers. She is not only an Instagram star but also a YouTube vlogger whose popularity has long exceeded the ordinary level. Bree is conspicuously prominent on the internet and has her digital savviness ...

Does Vanna White Have Husband or Children, What Is Her Net Worth / Salary? For over three decades, Vanna White has been a household name, famous as the co-host and letter turner of the iconic NBC game show Wheel of Fortune. The talented and beautiful television personality is also an actress with several TV series and films to her credit. Since making her Wheel of Fortune debut in 1982, she has become one ...

Liz Wheeler  Biography, Husband & Net Worth Liz Wheeler is the kind of girl who sets the room on fire whenever she comes around. In this situation, however, she sets our screens on fire each time she appears as the host of One America News Tipping Point. She is, therefore, a presenter, publisher, consultant and a member of the Board of Zoning ...

Betty White  Net Worth, Children & Husband The entertainment industry will remain indebted to personalities like Betty White who brought something extra to the table and kept the world entertained for donkey years. The comedienne, actress, and writer graced the big screens in the early 50s as a show host and has been a delight since then. She is the queen of ...

Is Bill Nye (The Science Guy) Dead or Alive, What Are His Net Worth & Education? Everyone will always remember Bill Nye as the Science Guy. Besides his TV show Bill Nye the Science Guy, he is well-known for his Netflix show Bill Nye Saves the World which started airing in 2017 as well as his appearances in many famous media projects as a science educator. The star studied mechanical engineering ...

Is Cesar Millan Dead, Who Is The Wife & What Is His Net Worth? Cesar Millan is the famous dog whisperer who often stirs up mixed emotions. The Mexican-American is precisely speaking, a dog behaviorist; he has been in the game for over 25 years. His Emmy-nominated television series, Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan further pushed his method and tactics into the limelight. The series was produced from 2004 ...

Is Thomas Sanders Gay and Does He Have A Boyfriend? By the time Vine was shut down in January 2017, Thomas Sanders was already popular within and beyond the internet community for his heavy involvements on the online video hosting platform. After the tragic shutdown of Vine impacted on the growing career of the multi-talented personality, he immediately switched over to YouTube where he continued to upload ...

Is Shepard Smith Gay, Who Is The Boyfriend & What Is His Net Worth? There are only a few media personalities who are as bold and confident as Shepard Smith. Apart from his impressive stint at Fox News Channel which includes but not limited to his classic news delivery, upfront stance on virtually every issue and much more; he loves his job as much as he loves his personality. Smith ...

Is Milo Yiannopoulos Gay? His Husband and Net Worth Milo Yiannopoulos is a popular writer, journalist, polemicist, public speaker, and political commentator who is also known as the founder of The Kernel, an online blog. He has been said to be among the list of 100 weird and influential people in the United Kingdom. He appeared on this list as a result of personal beliefs and ...

Does Ryan Seacrest Have A Wife Or Girlfriend, What Is His Net Worth? From radio to television, Ryan Seacrest is a household name and a force to be reckoned with in showbiz. The radio personality, television host, and producer is best recognized as the host of the popular TV talent search contest American Idol. Heres how the media personality who always knew what his lifes ambition was and diligently pursued ...

Is Anderson Cooper Gay, Who is The Boyfriend or Husband? For many, the thought of becoming a millionaire by writing and talking about other people appears unachievable but this is the reality of the prominent American journalist Anderson Cooper who gathered millions of dollars for conducting accurate political analysis and other vital reports on TV. He is the main anchor of the CNN news show Anderson ...

Is David Muir Gay or Does He Have A Wife, What Is His Salary? David Muir is an Emmy Award-winning journalist who works for the ABC broadcast-television network and anchors the ABC World News Tonight with David Muir program while also co-anchoring the magazine program 20/20. The Ithaca College graduate, whose show has become the most-watched newscast in America, has covered stories from all across America and the world; reporting ...

Joel Osteen  Divorce Rumors, Net Worth & Family Members Joel Osteen is an American Televangelist, Senior Pastor of Lakewood Church based in Houston, Texas, a husband and a father of two. He is an author of many books, seven of which are New York Times Best Sellers and his televised sermons capture more than 7 million viewers per week and 20 million every month ...

Who Is Todd Chrisley? What To Know About His Children, Gay Rumors & Net Worth Premiered on the USA network in 2014, Chrisley Knows Best is one of the most watched family reality TV shows in the U.S. The series which is currently in its sixth season is centered around U.S real estate mogul Todd Chrisley and his family. The show reveals Todd the patriarch of the Chrisley family as a strict dad who rules ...

Who Is Shannon Bream Of Fox News? Her Husband, Children & Net Worth Shannon Bream who hosts the iconic primetime program started her journalism career in the late 1990s debuting as the evening and late-night news reporter for the CBS affiliate, WBTV. The beauty from America currently works for the Fox News Channel and she is best known for anchoring the primetime program. She also hosts Americas News ...

Is Troye Sivan Gay, Who Is His Boyfriend and What Is His Net Worth? Troye Sivan is an Australian singer and songwriter best known for songs like Happy Little Pill, Youth, Heaven (with Betty Who) and The Boyfriend Tag (with Tyler Oakley) which have all garnered him different awards and ranked on the Billboard Charts. Sivan, who was born in South Africa but now resides in the United States, is ...

Did iDubbbz Have Cancer, Is He Gay and Who Is His Girlfriend Now? iDubbbz is one YouTuber who has made a career out of courting controversy. Renowned for his absurdist channels and comedy video series, the Los Angeles based personality is the owner of two channels, iDubbzTV, and iDubbzTV2, as well as the brains behind comedy video series such as Content Cop, Kickstarter Crap, Gaming News Crap, and ...

Inside Greg Gutfelds Love Story With Wife Elena Moussa and Why Fans Thought He Was Gay Greg Gutfeld is a seasoned American television producer whose career in the media industry has spanned over a decade. He is a man of many talents who makes extra income through comedy, journalism, and editorial works. Gutfeld regularly appears on Fox News Channel as a panellist and co-host of the political talk show The Five ...

Works That Made Bo Burnham A Household Name and How Much He Is Worth Now One of YouTubes first viral stars and the worlds most exciting young comedian, Bo Burnham, has always amazed critics and comedy aficionados alike. Often regarded as the Justin Bieber of comedy, thanks to his fresh looks, floppy blond hair and hoodies, he has a multi-faceted career bigger than many comedians twice his age. It wouldnt ...

Is Louie Anderson Gay And What Is His Net Worth? Louie Anderson has one of the most abstract faces in the industry and equally knows how to use it to his advantage. He is not only a stand-up comedian but also an actor and television host who is known for his distinctive comic wits. Some of his notable projects include Family Feud, where he was ...

Is Don Lemon of CNN Gay, Who is His Partner and What Is His Salary? Don Lemon has risen to become one of the most recognizable faces on CNN over the past few years. The fiery journalist, who anchors CNN Tonight with Don Lemon, is liked and somewhat disliked for his strong and candid opinions on a variety of matters that do not just include politics but also race, significantly, matters that ...

Is Rachel Maddow Gay, Who is the Wife and How Much Does She Earn in Salary? Rachel Maddow is an award-winning American journalist, political commentator, and television news anchor. She is best known for hosting the popular nightly TV show The Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC. Prior to this, she hosted a talk radio program on Air America Radio from 2005 to 2010. As of now, the TV sensation co-anchors MSNBCs ...

Demystifying Pokimane  Her Real Name, Ethnicity & Boyfriend Like most social media celebrities in this digital era, Pokimane Thicc is one of those stars who took advantage of the internet to make a name for herself. Given the unlimited potentials which the social media space offers, many people have been instantly propelled to fame just by posting creative online contents. Not only has ...

A Breakdown of Kris Jenners Net Worth, Sources Of Income and Relationships Over The Years Standing outside and looking in, Kris Jenner looks like the oil that greases the wheels of the entire Kardashian/Jenner machine. She has been dubbed a momager and rightfully so because she seems to have had a part to play in the trajectory of each and every one of her daughters individually and the Kardashian brand ...

Pursuits That Brought Liza Koshys Fame To its Zenith and Her Love Life Since David Dobrik Liza Koshy is an American actress who has leveraged YouTube as a platform to promote her comedy while also serving as a television host on occasions. She is talented and funny and has gathered a lot of fans from around the world. Koshy started on Vine in high school and was able to get millions of ...

Alex Aiono Biography  Inside The Life Of The American Singer Not everyone who started from the streets has attained the heights where Alex Aiono is currently. His story could be referred to as the perfect definition of rising from Grass to Grace. He came into the limelight after he started out as a YouTuber, singer, and producer. One fascinating thing about the young YouTuber is ...

Virginia Vallejo Biography And Her Love Story With Pablo Escobar Virginia Vallejo can be referred to as one of the oldest whistleblowers in history after her involvement with Pablo Escobar which made her famous. Over the years, many questions have been raised about her relationship with the drug lord and why she endangered her life to be with him despite his notorious acts. The death ...

Princess Love Bio  Ethnicity, Real Name & Parents For many people, Princess Love is simply Ray Js wife but there is so much more to this feisty lady than meets the eye. She is a star in her own right and has many feathers on her cap. Princess Love is a reality TV star, a model, video vixen, and fashion designer. She and her ...

Who is Papa Franku Also Known As Filthy Frank or Joji, Where is He Now? The social media as we all know today has given people the opportunity to be creative and innovative and at the same time, make something of themselves. YouTube is one of the known social platforms we have today that makes it possible for people to express their God-given talents and post videos they created to ...

Who Is Molly Qerim, How Did She Become a Famous Sports Anchor and Who Is Her Husband? Molly Qerim is an American sports anchor popularly known for moderating First Take, a highly rated sports talk show, on ESPN. Prior to joining ESPN, Qerim hosted Fantasy Live and NFL AM on NFL Network. It is quite obvious that the widely acclaimed television personality is in a class of her own when it comes ...

Safiya Nygaard  Height, Parents & Net Worth Safiya Nygaard is an American YouTuber, writer, content producer, and director who is popular for posting makeup, beauty and fashion videos on YouTube. Her videos regularly top at least one million views, thanks to her lively character as well as her willingness to experiment with outrageous outfits and different beauty products. Here are the things to ...

The Rigors of Sunlen Serfatys Career Journey Until CNN and Fun Facts About Her Personal Life CNN correspondent, Sunlen Serfaty is an Emmy Award-winning journalist known for covering a broad range of breaking news stories, national news, and Washington politics. She has been able to garner widespread recognition for herself which even goes beyond the sphere of her work. Her profile also increased with the extensive work she did in covering ...

Demystifying Jazz Jennings Real Name, Boyfriend & Family Of One The Youngest Transgenders Jazz Jennings is an unusual personality who became famous as a transgender activist and was recorded as the youngest documented public figure to be seen as transgender. She is also a YouTube personality and spokesmodel for brands, her fans, and other transgenders. She fought for acceptance in her high school with her super supportive family for over ...

Inside Fred Armisens Life  Ethnicity, Romantic Relationships and Gay Rumors Fred Armisen is an award-winning American comedian, he is also a writer, an actor as well as a musician. He was a cast member of the legendary comedy show, Saturday Night Live for 13 years and also one of the brains behind the successful satirical show Portlandia. Find out more about this incredibly talented guy ...

Ed and Lorraine Warren Biography: Cases, Kids, and Family Life Have you ever woken up with fear you could not explain, or felt a strange presence that made the hair at your nape rise or even experienced strange occurrences around you? Well, these were some of the promptings that made the well-known paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren delve into trying to explain the ideas ...

Truth About Tony Romos Wife, Kids and Life Since His NFL Retirement Tony Romo grew from the field as a quarterback to the screens as an American Football Analyst. He was a quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys in the richest football league in the world (NFL) before retiring. As a junior, he was honored as an All-Ohio Conference Member, an Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year and ...

Who is Brittany Venti, The Controversial Game Streamer and YouTuber? In recent times, many people live stream themselves playing video games. This has become a popular pastime on the internet and many highly skilled gamers have become internet celebrities through this means. However, some of them rather than becoming renowned for their gaming skills and great commentary, have become controversial and infamous. A good example ...

Rob Dyrdeks Family: His Kids And Relationship With Wife Bryiana Noelle Flores A multi-talented star and an elite pro skateboarder, Rob Dyrdeks success story began at a remarkably young age. Yet another proof that schooling doesnt always correlate with success, Rob has established himself not just as a phenomenal sportsman but also as a successful entrepreneur. Besides perfecting his skill as a natural talent on the board, ...

xChocobars  Biography and Everything You Should Know About Her Having distinguished herself and recorded massive successes in an industry notably dominated by men, it is very safe to say that Xchocobars deserves all the attention and cash she makes from her career. A household name on Twitch (a smart live streaming video platform), the online-gamer is popularly known for streaming classic games such as Stardew ...

Everything To Know About Mary Padian, Her Boyfriend and Net Worth Mary Padian is a famous American television reality personality best known for her involvements on the Reality show Storage Wars. She also has her own shop called Mary finds where she displays her antique collections. Since her childhood, Padian has been a creative learner. At the time, she used to create new items out of reusable ones and ...

Betsy Woodruffs Family Life: Is She Married or Related To Bob Woodruff? An old name in the world of journalism, Betsy Woodruff has warmed her way into the hearts of many with her impressive talents. Through hard work, Woodruff has carved a niche for herself in a very competitive field. Betsy has strong family and work values and is also an advocate for equal opportunities for everyone ...

Matpat (Matthew Patrick)  Wife, Height & Net Worth As far as internet business is concerned, Matpat remains one of the most dynamic and seasoned figures. He boasts a wealth of experience that has helped him in growing his business from one level of greatness to another. Like most successful people, MatPat started out small but today, he makes millions of dollars from his ...

Facts About Ricegum  His Girlfriend, Real Name & Net Worth Ricegum is an online gamer and YouTube sensation who ditched college; took advantage of the digital era, and made a name for himself on the internet. Though he began as a gaming YouTuber, Ricegum soon gained recognition as a controversial internet star following his many diss tracks. Here is everything you need to know about the youngster ...

Joy Taylor Once Married MLBs Richard Giannotti  Inside Look At Her Love Life and Family The erosion of the sexist idea that women have no business in sports broadcasting created a host of women celebrities who attained fame outside of modeling and acting. One of them, Joy Taylor, a radio personality and TV host for Fox Sports 1, has been in the industry since 2009, becoming one of the most ...

What To Know About Conan OBriens Wife, Kids & Family Today The name Conan OBrien is one that jumps right at you almost immediately you start talking about the most popular television hosts in the USA and this is no surprise because the man behind that name has risen to become one of the most admired men in the business. Known for hosting the late-night talk ...

David Letterman  Net Worth, Wife & Son In all of American, one man whose face has been seen frequently by late night TV talk show lovers is none but David Letterman. The comedian and TV show veteran has been hosting late night talk shows for more than three decades. His Late Night with David Letterman show began on February 1st, 1982 aired ...

Demystifying Sssniperwolfs Family Background And The Boyfriends Shes Had Since she launched her eponymously named channel in 2013, Sssniperwolf has been on the rise when it comes to video game influencers. She is one of the biggest names in the online gaming subgenre of YouTube videos. Real name Lia Shelesh, she started with Call of Duty: Black Ops II but has diversified with other ...

Lester Holt  Wife, Family & Net Worth Lester Holt is a multiple award-winning journalist, newscaster, reporter, and actor who has worked for notable media houses like WCBS TV, CBS, MSNBC and among others. His remarkable feat in journalism has endeared him to the hearts of many and earned him some awards and recognitions. Read on to get acquainted with his biography, ethnicity, ...

What Is Louis C.K. Doing Now, Where Are His Family And How Much Is His Net Worth? It is not easy to make it in comedy. It takes more than a funny bone and the ability to elicit a few giggles from a listening audience. For all the complexities that go into making a successful career in comedy, Louis C.K, the Washington D.C-born comedian, did it. For years, he was at the ...

The Progression of Hoda Kotbs Career, Her Ancestry and Family Life Hoda Kotb gained fame as a television host and news anchor for NBC. She anchors the shows signature show Today, and it has been an excellent vehicle for her skills in front of a camera. Kotb has won several awards, including Daytime Emmys and Peabody Awards. Simply put, she is one of the most successful ...

Jerry Seinfelds Family: All About The Amazing Comedians Wife and Kids Apparently one of the highly important entertainers in America, Jerry Seinfeld is a man of many talents. A very funny man, he is considered to be one of the most successful comedians in the USA who has been in the business as a professional rib-cracker for more than 40 years. As an actor, he has ...

The Rigors Of Sarah Silvermans Rise To Prominence And Rundown Of The Men She Has Dated A comedian, writer, and actress, Sarah Silvermans art and craft is as unique as you would ever find. Her poignant use of comedy to discuss social issues such as race, sexism, politics, and religion has gained her an impressive following. As unorthodox as her style is, so is her life experiences. She previously suffered from epiglottitis ...

Who Is Hannibal Buress, Does He Have A Wife or Girlfriend & Why Was He Arrested? Making people laugh when they are tense or not in the mood is a tough order and to ply the trade, it must indeed take some guts and expertise, this is what the humor maker, Hannibal Buress has been able to achieve and sustain after his inital teething process. The African-American is a screen writer, stand-up ...

The Success of John Mulaneys Career Efforts Since His Work On Saturday Night Live and Facts About His Wife John Mulaney had been working as a professional comedian for years before Saturday Night Live changed his status for life and like many who are now his fans, you probably did not know of him then. However, that changed when he joined the sketch comedy show in 2008. Since then, he has been one of ...

Jeff Dunham  Wife, Children and Net Worth Ventriloquism is a very subtle method of making an inanimate object (like a puppet, doll or dummy) appear to be saying words which are actually coming from the person (holding the inanimate object). In effect, the individual throws his/her voice to the puppet and can even appear to be having a conversation with it. Not ...

Ellen DeGeneres  Net Worth, Wife  Portia de Rossi & Parents Ellen DeGeneres is an American female standup comedian who has proven that whatever a man can do, a woman can also do. Since her journey as a standup comedian started in 1981, she has held swirl as one of the finest comedians America and the world at large has seen. She is often referred to ...

Revisiting Joan Rivers Death  The Daughter, Husband & Net Worth She Left Behind Joan Rivers was a renowned American comedian, TV host, writer, and actress. Her brand of comedy consisted of scathing one-liners and no individual or topic is spared. She hosted her own talk shows in the 80s and 90s and was a pioneer for women in stand up comedy. She was the first woman to host a late night ...

The Struggles of Margaret Chos Childhood, How It Influenced Her Career Growth and Love Life Margaret Cho is best described as a comic star who knows how to maneuver everything related to life into a rib-cracking joke. She is also known to criticize every social and political problem, especially those involving race and sexuality. Apart from her talents as a comic actress, she does amazingly well as a singer and ...

Where Is Eric Bolling Today? Who Is His Son & What Is His Net Worth? Eric Bolling who was once a notable figure on Fox News, is an American TV personality, an author, and versatile Journalist. As a political and financial analyst/commentator, he anchored discussions bothering on finance for Fox Business Channel. Here is everything there is to know about his career, family, and allegations that led to his exit ...

Who Is Chelsea Handler and Does She Have A Husband or Boyfriend? Chelsea Handler is one of Americas top female comedians. She is also an actress, writer, television host, producer, and activist. She is known to be very outspoken even with things that are very personal. In separate interviews with The New York Times, Handler revealed that she had an abortion twice when she was 16. She has authored five books ...

How Did Laura Lee Achieve Fame, How Much is She Worth and Who is Her Husband? Laura Lee is a popular American YouTuber, make-up artist and beauty blogger. From posting videos of her makeup routines on Instagram, Lee has transformed into a beauty influencer and a YouTube sensation. Today, her YouTube Channel has over 630 million views and 4.5 million subscribers. Asides having millions of followers across all social media platforms, ...

Madison Gesiotto Bio  Ethnicity, Parents & Measurements Madison Gesiotto is no ordinary woman; although she excelled in quite a number of pageants and competitions while she was in school, it is her views on politics and issues in America that has made her name known to most people. She possesses beauty and intelligence in a seemingly equal measure and has been able ...

Who Is Lil Tay? Parents, Brother, Sister, Age, Net Worth, Ethnicity Child stardom is nothing new in the entertainment world. With the advent of social media, we have seen more stars made from the internet than ever before, and Lil Tay is one of them. Her uploaded rap videos trademark is cursing, swearing, cash-throwing, and use of obscene languages. Her fame went wild after she dropped ...

What To Know About Tig Notaros Wife, Kids and Family Today Tig Notaro is an American stand-up comic star, writer, actress, and radio analyst. Since she started her career in 2001, she has become one of Americas best comedians, particularly when it comes to observational comedy. One prominent aspect of her routine involves her family, which includes a wife and two children. Interestingly, Tig Notaro is part ...

Who Is Chantel Jeffries? What To Know About Her Age, Ethnicity & Net Worth Chantel Jeffries is a lady of many talents. Beyond being celebrated as a DJ, she has fared well as a model, an actress, musician, and as an artist. She first rose to fame on Instagram where she has a large following. However, in recent times, she has hit the spotlight for her rumored relationships with some ...

Is Ellen DeGeneres Married, Who Is The Brother  Vance DeGeneres and Family Members? Ellen DeGeneres is one of a kind celebrity in todays world as she has used her wealth for the greater good for many people. She has served a host of famous awards shows like the Grammy, Primetime Emmy and Academy Awards. Moreso, she is probably one of the most decorated entertainment personalities around the world and ...

Carli Bybel Bio  Height, Boyfriend & Net Worth Video blogging is now on the rise and YouTube is the place where most of it happens. If you are a lady who cares about her looks or a guy who likes to help his woman out with her looks, then one person whose name rings a bell when it comes to giving beauty tips ...

Who Is Lexy Panterra? What To Know About Her Ethnicity, Boyfriend & Net Worth Lexy Panterra is one of the YouTube personalities whose breakout came through the Twerk dance videos she posted on her social media handles and YouTube which has so far generated over 13 million views for her. From there on, she created her LexTwerkOut workout program in 2014. She is sure very talented as she as moved ...

Who Is AnneMunition? What Is Her Ethnicity & Does She Have A Girlfriend or Boyfriend? AnneMunition is a professional gamer and content creator of American origin. She is one of the most sought-after streamers on Twitch  a popular online platform for watching and streaming videos, especially video games. AnneMunition has almost half a million followers on Twitch and her channel has accumulated at least 13 million views. Her favorite games ...

Norm MacDonald  Former Wife, Son & Net Worth Recently, 59-year-old former Saturday Night Live stand-up comic Norm MacDonald caused a not-so-funny stir when he expressed his personal opinion about the #MeToo movement speaking in defense of Louis CK and Roseanne Barr. Following the backlash of his actions, he is diligently doing damage control for his questionable opinion by posting a public apology on ...

Inside Iliza Shlesingers Life With Husband and How Much She is Worth Now Witty, spontaneous, and truly humorous, Iliza Shlesinger is an American comedian who is clearly proving that the stereotypical claim that women are not really funny is not only incredibly wrong but completely outrageous. Having been in the game for more than 10 years, Shlesinger has grown bigger with each step, stunning fans with her incredible ...

Who Is Nessa Diab? Details of her Parents, Ethnicity & Relationship With Colin Kaepernick Nessa Diab has gained more fame as the girlfriend of different footballers than in her career. She is currently with the popular National Football League (NFL) player, Colin Kaepernick, and has stood by his side during his most trying times. Also known for her mononym, Nessa, she recently engaged in a tweet battle with the ...

Samantha Bee  Inside the Life of Full Frontal Comedian and Presenter We have over the decades seen various brands of humor and personalities who have walked the ropes. One of the formidable forces in the world of comedy is no other than the iconic Samantha Bee of the Daily Show who now runs her own television show on TBS channel. She is a Canadian-American political commentator, ...

What Happened To Jessica Williamss Boyfriend And Which Are Her Best Works? Jessica Williams is a woman who has a lot of feathers in her cap  and keeps acquiring more. The former senior political correspondent of the comic Daily Show, who is also a comedian and actress whose recent movie appearance include starring as a playwright just recovering from a recent split with her boyfriend, Damon, and ...

Who is Nicole Byer? Here are 5 Facts You Need To Know About The Comedian Nicole Byer, an American comedian, actress, and writer, made a name for herself after she played supporting roles on MTVs prank show Ladylike and the reality show Girl Code. The latter was a series that featured comedians who analyzed in minute details, all the issues that young women deal with daily, from period to dating, to weird friendship dynamics and questions about sex. Currently, ...

A Closer Look At Bart Kwans Ethnicity, Height & Personal Life Bart Kwan is one of few Asians who is known for being successful in the comic industry at an international level. His fame broke out after the YouTube channel which he created with his close pal Joe Jo garnered up massive followings. The talented duo has been running the channel since 2007 and their success ...

Heres How VanossGaming Achieved Fame Online, His Worth and Other Facts About The Gamer For many years, the decision to drop out of college to pursue an online career was considered to be foolish and self-destructive by conventional wisdom. It was no different when Evan Fong, popularly known as VanossGaming, dropped out of college to pursue a YouTube career. However, that radical move paid off, and he stands shoulder to ...

Desi Perkins  Ethnicity, Net Worth & Husband YouTube is littered with videos of makeup tutorials by different people but if you are interested in learning how to do your makeup like a pro, there is just one person on that platform who you must follow. She is none other than Desi Perkins! She is a popular make-up artist, Instagram star, and vlogger. Desi, ...

The Phases of Casey Neistats Pursuits and His Love Story With Candice Pool YouTuber, vlogger, filmmaker, and creator extraordinaire; these are just a few hats that Casey Neistat wears and the story of how he got here is incredible. A native of Connecticut, Neistat started out by making refreshingly-authentic short films and videos that featured content that was based on everyday life and called attention to serious issues. He ...

Connor Franta  Inside The Life of American YouTuber YouTube has produced a lot of young celebrities in modern times and Connor Franta happens to be one of them. Apart from being a YouTuber, the young American is also an entrepreneur, entertainer, and writer. His journey to fame began almost a decade ago when he started a self-named YouTube channel where he uploads content ranging ...

Rhett and Link  Bio, Who are Their Wives, Net Worth and Family Facts Rhett and Link refer to an American comedy duo who are very popular on YouTube. They are known for their comic songs, viral commercials, skits and the daily show, Good Mythical Morning. Good Mythical Morning is the most watched daily show online, averaging 100 million views in a month. The show has featured guests such ...

A Walk Through The Maze of Ryan Higas Career Pursuits And Relationship With Arden Cho Ryan Higa is not only celebrated as a YouTube star, but he is also famed for appearing on television screens as an actor and comedian. Nigahiga, his Youtube channel, has gathered over 20 million subscribers and billions of views with his different comic acts, short films, and music videos uploads. With the rise in his career, ...

What to Know About The Shows That Made Craig Ferguson a Star and His Family Ties Rising to the top of your profession can sometimes be a hard and difficult process. It requires days and nights of working consistently hard to be better than what you were yesterday. It requires not giving up when all of your experiences seem to be pushing you to quit. It is because of these challenges ...

David Dobrik Married Liza Koshy for One Month  Inside His Family and Relationships David Dobrik is a YouTube sensation who has garnered fame not just for his vlogs but his love life too. Given his career as a YouTuber, his channel is one place where he shares his romantic escapades. With a cute boyish look like his, this Slovakian young man is definitely a good catch, and not ...

Merrell Twins Bio  Ethnicity, Parents & Boyfriend One of the beautiful things about modern life is social media. As rudimentary as it might seem, it could turn out to be the greatest thing that would be invented in the next 50 years because of its impact on human life. Very few tools have revolutionized human behavior and culture as much as social ...

Who Is Bunny Meyer, Is She Married & What Is Her Net Worth? Bunny Meyer is a YouTube celebrity who has amassed over 8.8 million subscribers with 1.5 million viewers on her channel. She is popularly known as Grav3yardgirl and is one of the highest-paid YouTubers in the world. She initially started out as a fashion designer and later chose the path of a YouTuber. Grav3yardgirl has used her knowledge on fashion, makeup, ...

Ninja  Inside The Life of The American YouTuber and Internet Personality Ninja is a talented video game player known for his mastery of Fortnite and other seemingly difficult games he plays with ease. The video gamer made a career out of what is ordinarily the hobby of many people and has since then amassed a huge online following. Find out about him here, including the controversies that ...

What Is Eva Gutowskis True Sexuality and How Did She Rise So Fast As an Influencer? Ever since Eva Gutowski joined YouTube in 2011, it has been an interesting journey for her, moving from one milestone to the other. Backed by an army of young women and teenage girl fans known as Evanators, she has risen to become one of the most-talked-about personalities in the digital stratosphere. She has also leveraged ...

Emma Chamberlain Biography  Age, Height & Net Worth Before now, people in the entertainment industry could only achieve popularity after many years of dedication and hard work but since social media came into the scene, massive success and overnight popularity became possible. That is the story of Emma Chamberlain who encountered fame as a fifteen-year-old. Emma is one of the many young people who became ...

Anna Akana  Ethnicity, Boyfriend & Net Worth There is a new crop of YouTubers known by their different contents with a very strong uniqueness that stands every one of them out, some upload video games, some fashion while some others have comedy video contents to showcase on their channels. Anna Akana has used her platform to showcase her comedy contents to the ...

Revealing Truths About Lilly Singhs Ethnic Background, Family and Her Relationship With Yousef Erakat Lilly Singh is an Indian-Canadian YouTube personality, actress, and comedian also known as Superwoman. She kicked off her YouTube career in 2010 with the launch of her channel IISuperwomanII and followed it up with a vlog channel in 2011. This paved the way for her fame and success which led to a world tour. The ...

Who Is Andrea Constand, Is She Married and What Is Her Connection With Bill Cosby? Many people got sexually molested but could not voice out due to the stigma victims suffer and what will become of them thereafter. Very few of the victims danm every consequence to seek justice and bring the perpetrator to the book, like Andrea Constand. She never got any media buzz, not until her friend cum molester; ...

Who Is Lazarbeam (Lannan Eacott)? Here Are Facts You Need To Know Lannan Eacott became a person of interest after his YouTube channel, LazarBeam pulled him to the limelight. Initially, he started with uploads of Madden Challenge videos before deciding to build his own channel in January 2015. Within the space of three years, his YouTube channel had gathered over 7 million loyal subscribers. Today, he has not ...

Puzzling Facts About Wengies YouTube Success and More About Her Fiance Among the many YouTubers who have succeeded in winning the hearts of millions of people is Wengie. She is a Chinese-Australian YouTube personality, vlogger, singer, and voice actress. Wengie is famous for a lot of things, from her simple life hacks, DIYs, craft ideas to fun experiments, tricks and pranks. Her content portfolio also includes hair tutorials, diet & fitness tips, lookbooks, ...

Is Jeffree Star A Billionaire and How Much Does He Make On YouTube? If looks can be deceptive then theres no other person who proves this maxim better than Jeffree Star. A quick look at Stars pictures would likely leave you wondering whether or not to tag him a male or female. But who says being controversial has to be a curse? For Star, his looks have caught ...

The Place of Rosanna Pansinos Career Hats In Her Rise To Fame and Facts About Her Personal Life There are a few phrases that could summarize Rosanna Pansinos rise to fame. None of them can do it better than the famous axiom, no knowledge is lost. Her popularity YouTube comes out of her foray into other professions, specifically acting. Although acting now occupies one of the major professional hats in Rosannas resume, it was ...

Muselk (Elliott Watkins) Biography  Age, Girlfriend and Net Worth The new and best in-thing in terms of career is video gaming and we have over time seen young men and women make massive income from an activity that was purportedly designed to serve as a hobby or a relaxation activity. One of such individuals is the Australian-born YouTube Celebrity and Twitch streamer, Muselk, whose ...

PopularMMOs Biography: 5 Interesting Facts You Need To Know We have over the years seen social media millionaires, especially on the YouTube social platform. These celebrities cum millionaires have made names for themselves after carving out niches on the internet, and a typical example of one of such exciting media personality on the YouTube is American Minecraft gamer and YouTube star, PopularMMOs whose channel ...

Jason Nash Once Married Marney Hochman  What To Know About His Ex-Wife and Kids The now-defunct video-sharing app Vine was the path that led Jason Nash to fame. With it, he built an audience of over two million followers, which he parlayed into a significant YouTube career. That move has seen him become one of the most popular personalities on the internet, with the cash income to go with ...

Where Does Dantdm Live? What Do We Know About His Net Worth, Wife and Brother? Most parents buy video games for their kids to occupy their time leisure, while other parents frown at their kids when they play video games. Despite the disparity, every parent would be proud of their child if he/she eventually turns a celebrity or millionaire through playing video games like Dantdm. Biography of Dantdm Dantdm was born Daniel ...

LaurDIY  Biography: 5 Facts You Need To Know About The YouTuber LaurDIY is the YouTube channel of Lauren Riihimaki which she created on December 1, 2011, when she was still a college undergrad with the sole aim of giving Do It Yourself (DIY) as well as practical fashion and beauty tips to her followers. She has used the channel to establish herself as a YouTube personality ...

Lachlan Ross Power  Bio And Family Life Of Australian The YouTube Star It is amazing the varied sources of income that the internet has made possible in this day and age. Internet fame can get its holder a whole lot of monetary and social benefits, but it must be noted that it does not come easy or cheap. For those who desire fame, content is the sacrifice ...

Alfie Deyes  Bio and Net Worth: Everything You Need To Know Alfie Deyes is one internet personality you definitely would like to know about. He boasts of over 10 million subscribers on three of his YouTube channels and has three bestseller books to his name. He is probably the most renowned young personality on YouTube today and his vlogging empire continues to grow by the day. ...

Colleen Ballingers Love Story With Husband Erik Stocklin and How Much She Is Worth Now Colleen Ballinger is an American comedian and YouTuber who is a very funny, adventurous, and highly talented woman. She is also an actress, singer, and writer. Collen is widely known for her work on YouTube where she posts content on her channel, Miranda Sings. The comedian has gained many subscribers over the years and has ...

Who Are The Dude Perfect Members and How Much Are They Worth? Entertainment in the 21st century can be digested in many forms and with platforms like YouTube, the creators and purveyors of entertainment have been democratized. Today, one of the most popular platforms to exhibit ones creative talents is YouTube, even though there are other platforms like Twitter, Facebook, who suffer in comparison to YouTube because ...

Who Is Rudy Mancuso, What Is His Earning Power and What Do We Know About His Girlfriend? Rudy Mancuso started his internet journey on Vine. He would later transition to YouTube where he solidified his place among the internets most beloved comedic creators. He is now regarded as one of the renowned internet personalities in the world, with a presence in mainstream TV and film projects like Comedy Centrals Drunk History and ...

Vsauce (Michael Stevens) Biography and Net Worth: All You Need To Know The advent of YouTube and the internet as a whole revolutionized how human beings consume information. With each passing year, the percentage of learning that is done in a traditional classroom decrease as a seismic shift to internet-based learning happens in our education industry. From open courses online to YouTube classes and videos, there are ...

How did Jake Paul Make His YouTube Big Break and Who is His Wife? One of the most interesting Social Media personalities of the 21st century is the young and popular Jake Paul whose elder brother is the famed Vine star, Logan Paul. Jake has utilized the power of the internet to bring himself to the limelight with a channel named JakePaulProductions that has amassed up to six billion ...

5 Facts You Need To Know About Reaction Time (Tal Fishman)  The American YouTuber Before 2015, the leading meaning of reaction time was the amount of time it takes to respond to a stimulus, until Tal Fishman started his channel, Reaction Time on YouTube and the dominant meaning changed. Today, a google search of Reaction Time would deliver Tal Fishmans videos and YouTube channel link with a few physics ...

Grace Helbig  Net Worth, Boyfriend and Family Life of The YouTuber Grace Helbig is an American internet personality, comedian, actress, and writer. She became popular due to her daily vlog series, DailyGrace, which ran on My Damn Channel from 2008 to 2013. Helbig is also popular for her own indie series on YouTube, ItsGrace, which she launched in 2014. Her vlogs which feature random stuff such as ...

Mark Wiens Bio  Ethnicity, Wife and Parents Food is a great way to connect with people. We all love to eat, if not for the pleasure of food, the satisfaction of quenching hunger, and the very process of providing and sharing that food is part of the strongest bonds that bind humanity together. Maybe it is our historical connection to food, where ...

Is Filthy Frank Dead, What Happened To Him and How Much Is He Worth? As George Kusunoki Miller, he was a nobody. However, as Filthy Frank, George was one of the most famous internet personalities on the planet. The Filthy Frank Show, a sketch series on his YouTube channel, TVFilthyFrank, was one of the platforms most influential creations. He is the reason a crazy dance song, Harlem Shake, made it ...

CaptainSparklez Bio  Net Worth, House and Cars of The Famous YouTuber Sometimes, what society wants from its citizens is quite different from what the citizens want for themselves. This is evident in the life and career of video blogger and American YouTube personality, Jordan Maron famous for his YouTube channel CaptainSparklez. He dropped out of school after discovering his talent in playing an online game called Minecraft. ...

Who is Simply Nailogical (Cristine Rotenberg)? Here are Facts You Must Know Canadian Youtube personality, Simply Nailogical (Cristine Rotenberg) originally started out polishing and designing nails even before it became a trendy culture in the social media. Simply Nailogica started out her showbiz career in her early days as a child actress, acting in commercials for game and toy companies. Aside from acting, she is blogger, vlogger, specializing ...

5 Interesting Facts You Need To Know About Huda Beauty In the world of entrepreneurship, it is interesting when an individual has a mentor who he/she looks up to, this yield more productivity on the part of the individual. The iconic and rich American beautician and makeup artist Huda Kattan nicknamed Heida is the founder of the Huda Beauty blog which is number one Instagram beauty blog ...

Is Dino MasterChef Gay? Details About His Ethnicity, Girlfriend, Where He Is Now Food, for the better part of the early years of human life, was nothing more than what we needed for survival. There was no artistry or curation to the method of cooking. The scarcity of food left no room for artistic expression until we figured out agriculture and we could make as much as we ...

Who Is Gabbie Hanna And How Did She Become Famous? As the world shifts to digital media and depends more and more on streaming services for its news and entertainment content, YouTubers have become one of the leading creators in the new media world. Their understanding of the online audience: how to create, maintain, and increase followers, are all handy skills that have primed them ...

Jacksepticeye  Height, Girlfriend & Net Worth Jacksepticeye is a YouTuber and actor who gained popularity with a series of gaming videos he uploads on his channel to the delight of millions of his subscribers. He is Known primarily for his comic video game series titled Lets Play and his vlogs. His channel was formerly ranked 46th in the list of most subscribed ...

Chris Heria Personal Details: About His Wife, Height & Ethnicity Background In this generation, keeping fit has become one of the major criteria for being hale and hearty. In fact, most occupations these days are majorly concerned with ones body mass, weight and looks. Unlike the past where most people have to register in a gym to keep fit, social media has made it quite easy ...

Everything You Need To Know About Game Grumps Gaming is becoming incredibly popular on YouTube these days with game vloggers make millions of dollars out of them yearly. One of the most popular up-coming gaming YouTube channels is Game Grumps. The Lets Play series was created in 2012 and celebrated its fifth anniversary on July 18th, 2017. In six years of its existence, the ...

Daithi De Nogla Biography, Girlfriend and Net Worth YouTube has created an avenue for many to make wealth and become famous from the comfort of their homes while having fun. Many have built a career out of the platform, uploading numerous videos that have earned them the admiration of viewers across the globe. For Daithi De Nogla, he is loved for his humorous commentary on ...

Does Phoebe Robinson Have A Boyfriend or Husband and What Do We Know About Her Family? Phoebe Robinson is a New York-based comedian, writer, and actress. She is best known as the co-creator and co-host of the WNYC Studios podcast 2 Dope Queens. Just like some other female comedians, she never had any original plans of becoming a stand-up comedian even though, according to her, she took a class on a whim at Carolines on Broadway. After ...

Who Are Lex and Alana from Listed Sisters? What Is Their Ethnicity & Is the Show Cancelled? America is a country built on diversity. Everywhere you look all over the country, a countless number of immigrants or children of immigrants have become an integral part of the fabric of the country. From entertainment to business, immigrants are creating a niche for themselves and climbing to the summit of their respective professions. One ...

Riveting Facts About Danielle Lombard And What She Is Best Known For The American entertainment industry is one that provides many avenues for aspiring hopefuls to express their talents and become famous. From films to television shows and game shows, there is no shortage of ways for men and women who desire fame to pursue and earn it in the United States of America. Another tested medium ...

Unearthing New Details About The YouTube Success And Personal Life of Alex Burriss of Wassabi Productions Wildly hilarious and truly audacious, Alex Wassabi is an American YouTuber who has become a very popular face on the video-sharing platform after having garnered millions of subscribers over the years by keeping people glued to his channel with his witty parody video releases. If you have always loved parody videos, there is every chance ...

Everything You Need To Know About H2O Delirious H2O Delirious whose full birth name is reported to be Jonathan Gormon Dennis has successfully kept himself mystified by hiding his face behind the masks leaving his loyal fans speculating who he really is for many years. The American YouTube star is easily identified by the Jason Mask Style with make-up which he wears on his ...

Who Is HolaSoyGerman and What Happened To Him? German Garmendia has certainly seen it all when it comes to internet success. His channels, HolaSoyGerman and JuegaGerman are in the top twenty most subscribed channel on YouTube. The Chilean YouTuber found a way to tap into one of the worlds greatest inventions and make a living from it. He has been able to build ...

Who Are Glenn Becks Family, What Is His Net Worth And What Happened To Him? The American political commentary space is filled with different personalities. A few of them, through their rhetoric, charisma, and resources have been able to build a large following of men and women who listen to them for insight and direction for various political and social issues in the United States. For Conservatives, the story is ...

Following Charissa Thompsons Rise Through The Ranks Of Sports Casting and All About Her Boyfriend Superstar TV host and sportscaster, Charissa Thompson, has been hailed as one of the highest-profile women journalists in America, and the reason is there for all to see. She has worked for popular establishments such as Versus, Yahoo! Sports, ESPN, GSN, and Big Ten Network. She currently hosts the popular pre-game show, Fox NFL Kickoff, ...

Is Chris Kattan Gay or Does He Have A Wife? What Is His Net Worth? Chris Kattan is a popular American comedian and actor. He has appeared in several comic movies and TV series such as The Middle, A Night at the Roxbury and Bunnicula. Kattan is, however, most popular for his six-year stint as a cast member of Saturday Night Live. During his time on the legendary show, he ...

Everything You Should Know About the Rise of Insta Star Claire Abbott and Why She Gave It All Up A lot of young Americans have shot into the limelight for uploading different kinds of videos on YouTube. Some of these young stars include Connor Franta, Desi Perkins, Emma Chamberlain, the Dolan Twins (Ethan and Grayson), and Claire Abbott. The latter became a social media celebrity for uploading sexy bikini pictures of herself on social media. Apart from ...

5 Facts You Need To Know About The YouTube Channel  h3h3Productions H3h3Productions is a YouTube channel that specializes on Comic responses or reactions of other contents or trendy stories. The celebrity couple that created the channel has over time racked up sizable views for their commentaries and contents. Even though they had their own fair share of copyright cases, thankfully they scored an unprecedented victory in all ...

Lilypichu Bio  Height, Brother and Love Story With Albert SleightlyMusical Chang Like most popular internet celebrities, Lilypichu is one of those Twitch streamers who spend their lives on camera. From daydreaming about the possibility of becoming a full-time professional streamer, she grew to live out her dreams on the popular live streaming platform where people play games, make crafts, and showcase their day-to-day activities. Given the rise of ...

KSI  What To Know About His Girlfriend, Brother  Deji Olatunji & Net Worth Assuredly, when Internet inventors Vint Cerf and Bob Khan created the technological masterpiece, they probably did not know how massive the creation will be harnessed by many for different purposes including as a platform for earning money through content creation. One of such person who smiles to the bank regularly today for spending time creating ...

The Interesting Progression and Highlights of Carrie Keagans Career as a Host and Actress Carrie Keagan has garnered huge fame through her various stints on television. She is not just your regular TV host but one with a difference. Keagan has hosted several high profile events and TV shows, including VH1s Big Morning Buzz Live and Fox News Channels Red Eye with Greg Gutfeld. However, not many know she ...

The Gist On Elise Jordans Marriages And Her Rise To Prominence Political commentaries tend to be boring when it is handled by someone who does not have a knack for it. However, when you see the likes of Elise Jordan run the same commentary, you will have a lot of reasons to look forward to watching her again as the journalist is well-versed in the field ...

What Is Timmy Thick Best Known For and How Successful Is The Star? Thanks to the internet, many people whose talents would have ordinarily gone unnoticed have become famous. A very good example of this modern-day internet celebrity is Timmy Thick, an American social media star. He became popular on Instagram due to his penchant for posting raunchy pictures of himself. He also often posted videos of himself ...

What Does Heather Storm Do For a Living and Who Is She Dating? Reality Television is a great way to make a name for oneself as well as amass a fortune. Heather Storm can attest to this as she is one of those who have made a name and earned a lot from reality TV. She made her name appearing on shows like Car Fanatics, Awesome Autos, and, ...

Matt Carriker Biography  Net Worth, Wife & Height Unlike your regular veterinary doctor next door, Matt Carriker chose to spice up his noble profession with the unusual. Though he is known to many as a medical practitioner, Carriker is better renowned as a YouTube star and an animal lover. Having recorded huge successes on his various YouTube channels, the vet doctors name and ...

Jillian Mele of Fox News Career Achievements, Husband & Measurements There are quite a good number of presenters on radio and television who listeners and viewers may never wish to miss any of their shows because of their sensational golden voice, beauty or the special way or artistry they anchor their shows. Jillian Mele is one of such. She has been at the top of ...

Who is Gillian Turner of Fox News? Her Fiance or Husband and Net Worth Gillian Turner is well-known as a news correspondent for Fox News Channel but before she became a TV personality, she built an intimidating resume working for different institutions, including the American government. She served in different capacities at the White House National Security Council during the administration of former US Presidents  George W. Bush and Barack Obama. ...

Gloria Govan Bio  Age, Ethnicity & Height Even as Gloria Govan is famous as an American actress, author, a TV host, and reality television star, shes more popular as the wife of the former NBA player, Matt Barnes. She became known after appearing on the Florida version of the reality television series, Basketball Wives and later, Basketball Wives: LA  after Matt was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. Sadly, ...

Michael Fishmans Interesting Start as an Actor and Why He Divorced His Wife of Many Years When one door closes, another one opens. As silly as that axiom may seem, it is the story of the resurgence of Michael Fishman, who plays D.J Conner on the popular show, Roseanne. Having played the character for several years as a child actor into his teenage years; when the show originally ended, Michael did ...

Who Is October Gonzalez  Tony Gonzalezs Wife? All You Need To Know October Gonzalez is a popular American TV host and media personality. Additionally, she is also a model. Gonzalez has hosted several TV shows such as Beat Shazam, Entertainment Tonight, and Rachel Ray. She has also featured in several reality TV shows. Gonzalezs fame is not just due to her profession but also because of her ...

Who Is Tony Berlin  Harris Faulkners Husband: His Children and Family Facts Tony Berlin is a popular American media guru. He has variously worked as a reporter, anchor, and producer for some of the biggest TV networks in America. They include CNN, CBS, NBC, and ABC (where he hosted the popular Good Morning America). Berlin has now diversified into public relations and owns his own PR firm. ...

The Progression of Gianna Tobonis Journalism Career and Details About Her Marriage to Kyle Buckley Gianna Toboni may not be your ideal newscaster but her unusual reporting is what made her a household name. The American journalist is renowned for her hard-hitting and authentic reportage. A motivator and activist for total press freedom, Gianna loves to explore pervasive cultural issues. Not only does this unique and ambitious journalist call for all ...

Dog The Bounty Hunters Family Including Details of His Late Wife and Kids Popularly known as Dog, a name which he got from the television series, Dog The Bounty Hunter, Duane Chapman, an American bounty hunter, and one-time bail bondsman, went from being convicted for a felony to being a reality TV star. He was brought to the limelight following the capture of the convicted criminal, Andrew Luster in 2003 and this eventually made ...

Vicky Karayiannis, Chris Cornells Wifes Bio, Children and Family The world of showbiz is made up of different people who serve different roles, and function in a variety of capacities, and one of the most important people are those in the background. Publicists are undoubtedly one of these background people yet they are vital to the life and fame of most of our favorite ...

Joe Rogan Has A Step-Daughter and 2 Other Kids With Wife Jessica Ditzel  Meet His Family Joe Rogan is a popular American stand-up comedian and TV host. His journey to stardom began in the late 80s and has seen him host several shows, the most popular is the game show titled Fear Factor. The exciting show dares contestants to face some of their greatest fears and embark on challenging stunts. The ...

Josh Gates and Wife Hallie Gnatovich Have 2 Kids But Who Has the Higher Net Worth? Best known for his explorations and adventures, Josh Gates, is a television presenter with a voracious appetite for seeing the world and the beauties in it. Some of that beauty, however, is in his home, in the form of two children he shares with his wife, Hallie Gnatovich. Not excluded is their marriage which has lasted ...

Holly Sonders Wiki, Plastic Surgery & Why She Divorced Her Husband  Erik Kuselias After trying everything within her capacity to have a low key wedding, Holly Sonders was drawn to the public because of her husbands controversy at his workplace. Well, the two are rumored to be divorced but the article below will give more light on how true these rumors are. Meanwhile, Holly Sonders is yet to ...

Nadeska Alexis Bio  Age, Boyfriend & Net Worth Journalism is one diverse profession that allows the practitioners to choose their area of specialty, build a career on it by reporting the truth and facts which in the long run will distinguish them as deserving commendation and recognition among their peers. Some choose to specialize in political journalism, while to others it is sports ...

Media Platforms Charlamagne Tha God Has Explored and All The Controversies He Has Courted Charlamagne Tha God is an American on-air personality, radio presenter, and more recently, author. He is popularly known as a co-host on New York radios nationally syndicated show, The Breakfast Club, a program he has been hosting alongside DJ Envy and Angela Yee since 2010. However, his early years had no connection to his current career ...

A Look At Jimmy Fallons Net Worth and Family Including His Wife & Kids Sometimes, a childs passion for something is a pointer to what he/she would become in the future. As a child, Jimmy Fallon was literally obsessed with watching the late-night comedy program, Saturday Night Live (SNL). Then, his parents would tape the clean parts for him to watch and later, he and his sister would re-enact sketches from the ...

Kay Adams Biography  Does The Sportscaster Have A Husband or Boyfriend? When you hear the phrase sports enthusiast, women are hardly the first group that comes to mind. Well, thats changing pretty fast. Especially with the rise of female sports analysts and broadcasters like Kay Adams who is famed for knowing more about sports than most men do. And why not, shes paid handsomely for it ...

Ben Shapiros Family  Meet His Wife, Kids and Sister Who is Popular for the Wrong Reasons A multi-talented man, Ben Shapiro is a man of controversial nature, an attribute that has made him an unusual public figure. An intellectual whose career path was clearly defined even before he became a man, the Jewish conservative commentator has always had his way with words. He became popular by sharing his critical and often ...

QVC Shawn Killinger Bio  Husband, Net Worth & Facts To Know Shawn Killinger is a prominent TV personality who has worked her way to the top. Though not initially a journalist by training, she defied the odds and today has established herself as a household name, as well as, worked alongside some industry legends. More than just being a reporter, newscaster, and anchor, heres all you ...

Liv Lo  Dissecting the Ethnicity, Parents and Personal Life of Henry Goldings Wife While many are aware that Liv Lo is the better half to Crazy Rich Asians star Henry Golding, only a few understand why his beautiful wife appears increasingly endearing to fans. A former model turned TV personality, and fitness star, Liv has an impressive resume which when combined with that of her statuesque spouse is considered a perfect ...

Stpeach Age, Husband and Other Facts About The Twitch Streamer Lisa Vannatta, famously known by her online alias, STPeach is a Canadian video game streamer cum vlogger who has garnered fame through her appearances on different video-sharing/social networking platforms such as Youtube, Instagram, Twitch, Reddit, and Twitter. The beautiful lady got her career to a start in August 2015 when she joined the live streaming video platform, Twitch. She rose to ...

Insights into Seth Meyers Wife, Family and What His Net Worth Is Celebrities are mostly remembered and known for the work they do. For Seth Meyers, his career as a comedian, writer, actor, TV host, and producer is his biggest identifier. He was on Saturday Night Live SNL show as a head writer and cast member for more than ten years during which he built a reputation ...

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home World ISIS destroys sacred texts in ancient Christian monastery

The sacred texts that contain the history of the Christian community in Iraq were found burnt on the floor of the fourth-century monastery near Mosul after it was recaptured from the Islamic State.

The terror group burned books about Christian theology, demolished the sculptures and scraped off the inscriptions written in Syriac at the Mar Behnam monastery, Reuters reported.

According to tradition, the monastery was built by an Assyrian king as penance for killing two of his children after they converted to Christianity. The jihadis tried to remove any mention of Behnam, the king's son.

"Their fundamental goal was to destroy Christian history and civilization in the Nineveh plains," said Duraid Elias, commander of a Christian militia known as the Babylon Brigades.

When ISIS seized the Nineveh plains in 2014, the Christians were forced to pay a tax, convert to Islam or die. Many fled towards the Kurdish region including the monks of Mar Behnam who escaped with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

Elias said that the monastery had been converted into a headquarters for the Hisba, the morality police that enforces the strict rules of Islam as interpreted by ISIS.

The monks' bedrooms were used as places to hold transgressors while another part of the complex was used to store satellite dishes that were confiscated from residents.

The commander said that they fought alongside the Iraqi army to retake the village of Khidir Ilyas where the monastery is located. But the regular troops have cleared out, leaving the Christian militia in control of the area.

Elias said that his forces had demolished three to four homes that are believed to belong to ISIS militants.

"There are others. We are going one by one: for every Christian house they blew up, we blow up a house next to it," he said.

Mar Behnam was not the first monastery ransacked by ISIS. Last January, it was reported that St. Elijah monastery in Mosul has been razed by the terror group. The 1,400-year-old monastery was believed to be destroyed between August and September 2014.
home World ISIS destroys trust between neighbors by pressuring Muslims to betray Christians, says Bishop

A Detroit bishop who visited Iraq has said that the Islamic State has created a lot of mistrust in communities in the country by pressuring Muslims to turn on their Christian neighbors.

Bishop Francis Kalabat of the Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle spent the entire month of September in the region and saw the difficulties faced by the Christians and other Iraqis, Catholic News Service reported. The bishop took part in a discussion at The Catholic University of America on Nov. 17.

In the discussion, Kalabat remarked that the Christians thrived in the Middle East before the Arab Spring, a series of protest that began in 2011 in several Middle Eastern countries. The protests were exploited by some extremist groups like ISIS and the Muslim Brotherhood.

Both groups were said to be responsible for the persecution of Christians which included murder, beheadings, rape, looting and destruction of churches. "If that is the spring, I'd hate to see the winter," said Kalabat.

"They not only destroyed buildings, but they destroyed relations between neighbors. Many (Iraqi Muslims intimidated by Islamic State) turned in their Christian neighbors and that has built up a lot of mistrust," he added.

Kalabat pointed out that there are many Muslims who are protecting Christians and many of them "want a democratic, free and peaceful Iraq."

"The people are sick and tired of being sick and tired. There is a need to unite the country. To remind all Iraqis, regardless of their religion, that their religion should make them better Iraqis," he said.

The bishop expressed his concern about the "massive exodus" of Christians leaving Iraq but he noted that it would not be fair and practical to ask them to stay.

"If a God forbid a every Christian left Iraq, what would happen? Let's pray and let's work and let's rebuild so that doesn't happen," he said.

Kalabat called on American Catholics to help Middle Eastern Christians by adopting churches, dioceses and even people.

Some Christians who have returned to their hometowns have found their churches desecrated by ISIS. In Keramlis, much of the interior of the church has been destroyed but the priest managed to conduct a prayer service for the returning Christians.
home World ISIS displays bodies of dead Iraqi soldiers around Mosul

The bodies of Iraqi soldiers killed by ISIS are being paraded around Mosul by the terror group to scare the residents who might attempt to flee the city.

The website Heavy has published several photos of the militants showing the dead bodies to young boys and other residents of the city. The photos, which were released on the terror group's channels on Nov. 23, had the caption that read: "Corpses of the Rafidi Army's Soldiers in #Mosul City."

"Rafidi," meaning "rejectors," is a derogatory term used by Sunnis against Shia Muslims who believe in a different line of succession in the leadership of Islam after the death of its founder Muhammad. ISIS uses the term to refer to the Iraqi government as well as the whole country of Iran, according to the report from Heavy.

Reuters reported two weeks ago that ISIS had displayed five crucified bodies at a road junction to send a message to its residents that it is still in control of the city. The terror group killed at least 20 people who were suspected of being informants. Witnesses said that some of the bodies were hanging from electric poles and traffic signals.

It was revealed earlier this month that the jihadist group is committing mass murder of former police officers. At least 300 dead bodies of former police officers were found by Iraqi forces in a mass grave near Mosul. Several witnesses have said that the executions took place at the end of October.

"This is another piece of evidence of the horrific mass murder by ISIS of former law enforcement officers in and around Mosul," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.

"ISIS should be held accountable for these crimes against humanity," he added.

Meanwhile, Iraqi forces have announced that they are now in control of a large part of eastern Mosul.

Lieutenant General Talib Shaghati, the commander of Iraq's Counter-Terrorism Service, said: "Mosul is divided into two parts, the west and the east. The liberation plan of the city is to encircle the two sides, but now forces are advancing on the eastern side and we are controlling the larger part of it. We are also moving towards the western side to liberate it."

Nongovernment organizations are urging the army to create humanitarian corridors allow some of the residents to escape the city. According to the U.N., over 70,000 residents have been displaced from Mosul since the operation to liberate the city began on Oct. 17.
home US Lawmaker to propose total ban on abortion in Indiana

A conservative Indiana lawmaker has expressed his intention to propose a bill in January that will ban abortion in the state.

State Rep. Curt Nisly said on Wednesday that he plans to file the "Protection of Conception" bill when the General Assembly convenes next year. The bill, if passed, would allow prosecutors to file charges against those who take part in the procedure, the Indy Star reported.

"You would treat the death of an unborn child like you would any other human being," said Nisly. The Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade in 1973, which upheld a woman's right to abortion, may present a challenge to the Republican lawmaker.

"My position is that the Supreme Court is wrong with Roe v. Wade and they don't have jurisdiction in this manner. This is the state of Indiana asserting the powers that are given to them, specifically in the 9th and 10th Amendments of the U.S. Constitution," he added.

Conservative activists have acknowledged that the proposal could face legal challenges but they are hoping that there would be some changes in the lineup of justices by the time the case reaches the Supreme Court.

President-elect Donald Trump had promised that he would appoint pro-life justices to the nation's highest court while his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, has repeatedly vowed to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Ken Falk, legal counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Indiana, expressed his doubts whether it is possible to overturn the 1973 Supreme Court ruling.

"I'd be surprised if any court would go in and tear down anything that has so clearly and for so long been the law of the land," he said.

Nisly's proposal has not been met with enthusiasm by House Speaker Brian Bosma. "I don't think we should buy a lawsuit, personally," he said, referring to the strong possibility that the bill would be challenged in court and be ruled unconstitutional.

Bosma would be influential in determining whether Nisly's bill would move forward. The House Speaker has the authority to choose committee leaders, including the chairperson of the House Public Policy Committee, which usually deals with legislations related to abortion.
home US Most churches did not talk about politics during election season, says Pew study

Most American churches avoided explicit discussion about politics during the election period, according to a new study.

According to the study released by Pew Research Center last Tuesday, 14 percent of the voters who attended religious services at least once a month have said that their church provided information about the political parties or candidates. Only five percent were told by clergy to vote a certain way.

The survey results revealed that Catholic and white evangelicals are more likely than white mainline Protestants to say that their places of worship provided information related to the election.

Twenty-two percent of Catholics who attend mass at least once a month said that there was information about political parties or candidates in their parishes. Among white evangelical protestants who attend church monthly, 16 percent admitted receiving information about the election within the church. Only five percent of white mainline protestants said the same.

A related survey published by LifeWay Research in October revealed that pastors were reluctant to endorse politicians during religious services. Ninety eight percent of the pastors who participated in the study said they have not endorsed a particular candidate.

Only one percent admitted endorsing a candidate and another one percent said they were not sure.

Twenty-two percent of the pastors said that they endorsed a candidate outside the church while 77 percent said they did not.

The support for endorsing candidates from the pulpit has decreased compared to the survey results in 2012. That year, 10 percent of Protestant pastors agreed that clergy should endorse a candidate inside the church while 87 percent disagreed. Forty-four percent said they endorsed a candidate outside the church while 52 percent said they have not.

Tax-exempt non-profit organizations such as churches are not allowed to engage in political campaigns under the Johnson Amendment, which was sponsored by Lyndon Johnson in 1954.

President-elect Donald Trump promised to repeal the law last July.

"You are absolutely shunned if you're an evangelical if you want to talk religion, you lose your tax-exempt status," said Trump.

"We're going to get rid of that horrible Johnson amendment and we're going to let evangelicals, we're going to let Christians and Jews and people of religion talk without being afraid to talk," he added.
home World Pakistan court sentences 5 men to death for burning Christian couple

Five men were sentenced to death on Wednesday for their participation in the lynching and burning of a Christian couple accused of desecrating the Quran.

In 2014, Shahzad Masih and Shama Bibi were falsely accused of throwing out the pages of the Quran in the rubbish. Witnesses have said that an angry mob of hundreds of people attacked the couple and threw their bodies into a brick kiln.

Other Christian families living near the couple's home in Punjab have fled in fear due to the attack, the Express Tribune reported.

As many as 103 people were charged but the Lahore court had acquitted 90, including the brick kiln owner who was accused of locking up the couple. The owner, identified only as Mr. Gujjar, allegedly tried to prevent the couple from leaving because of a debt they owed him.

Eight others were sentenced to two years imprisonment for their part in the attack.

"The five people awarded the death sentence were involved in dragging, beating and burning the couple while the other eight played a supportive role according to the judgement," said Riaz Anjum, the lawyer representing the couple's family.

The British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) has helped in providing for the needs of Shama and Shahzad's children including a nanny to take care of them.

BPCA chairman Wilson Chowdhry said that the family continues to receive death threats and he urged the Pakistani government to ensure the protection of the family.

Mukhtar Masih, father of Shama, said that the family was not able to attend the court proceedings due to safety concerns. He expressed his disappointment that the other participants have been acquitted.

"I am disappointed with today's result as my eldest daughter Yasmeen, who saw the whole incident witnessed at least 15 men involved in the brutal violence against my daughter Shama and her husband Shahzad. Only five of those men have been convicted with a death sentence yet the others poured kerosene over Shama and Shahzad and were also violent," he told BPCA.
home US Pastor Rick Warren teams up with Catholic bishop to speak against assisted suicide laws

Rick Warren, senior pastor of Saddleback Church in Orange County California, has met with Catholic Bishop Robert Barron last week to discuss the dangers of the legalization of assisted suicide.

Their conversation was hosted by Life Legal Defense Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on the protection of vulnerable life. Attorney and radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt served as the moderator, Christian News Wire reported.

In the discussion, Warren talked about the death of his son who committed suicide in 2013. He explained that the tragedy was instrumental in shaping his view against assisted suicide.

"The fact is, we belong to God. Theologically, we are not our own... I didn't choose when I came into the world and I don't get to choose when I go out of the world. It's appointed by God...It's not a political issue for me; it's a moral issue," said Warren.

And of course it's a practical issue, having had a son who took his life by suicide. I care very deeply about this," he continued.

Barron, who serves as an auxiliary archbishop to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, said that there are no motives or circumstances in which assisted suicide can ever be justified. He called on Christians from all denominations to minister to those who suffer from untreatable ailments.

California's End of Life Option Act, which allows assisted suicide for terminally ill adult patients who are capable of making medical decisions, was signed into law in October 2015 and went into effect on June 9, 2016.

Life Legal filed a lawsuit on June 8 in the California Superior Court in Riverside County to challenge the law.

Alexandra Snyder, Executive Director of Life Legal, argued that the law lacks the protections for individuals who are suffering from mental illness or mood disorders and it gives full immunity to doctors who facilitate assisted suicide.

Snyder expressed her gratitude to Warren and Barron for speaking against assisted suicide laws.

"We have a moral and philosophical obligation to protect vulnerable human life by engaging in thoughtful and articulate opposition to assisted suicideaand by showing up to help those who are hurting," she added.
home US Perry Noble shares Bible verse to inspire people dealing with addiction

Perry Noble, the former pastor of NewSpring Church, went on social media to share a Bible verse that inspired him to keep going despite the mistakes that he made in the past.

In a video posted on Facebook, Noble said that he found encouragement from Proverbs 24:16 which stated in part, "for though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again." He noted that Christians are not righteous because of their own deeds but "because of what Christ has done for us."

Noble, who was fired as a pastor of Newspring for alcohol abuse last July, went on to encourage people who have made serious mistakes, such as those are struggling with alcohol and drug addiction, "to get back up."

"What defeated us, does not have to define us, if we are in Christ. If you fail, get back up. If you had an affair, and just moved past itaget back up. Don't go back there, get back out of where you had fallen. If you stole money, if you embezzled money and it defeated you for so long, get back up," he said.

The former pastor advised Christians not to spend their time regretting their mistakes but to repent, move forward and "focus on what Christ wants us to do."

"If you're not dead, God's not done, and the best is yet to come," he concluded.

In September, Noble stated that he was able to overcome his alcohol addiction after spending 30 days in a rehabilitation facility in Arizona. He also revealed his plan to return to the ministry with the help of his therapist.

Noble refrained from posting on social media for a while but in October, he shared a few details about his family problems and alcoholism that led to his firing from the church.

He revealed that he chose to isolate himself from the community despite preaching that people should not live alone. He said that he was discouraged by the challenges he faced in his marriage with his wife, Lucretia and he started drinking alcohol instead of asking for help.

Noble said that he and his wife are working hard on their marriage and he urged other couples who are encountering difficulties in their relationship not to give up.
home World Prince Charles raises awareness about 'appaling suffering' of Syrian Christians

The Prince of Wales has called attention to the suffering of Christians in Syria in his speech at the consecration of a Syriac Orthodox Church in London last Thursday.

The ceremony at the Cathedral of St. Thomas in Acton has been described by the prince as a "notable sign of hope for the future."

"It is surely deeply encouraging, at a time when the members of the Syriac Orthodox Church in their homelands of Syria and Iraq are undergoing such desperate trials and such appalling suffering, that in Britain the Syriac Church is able to expand and gain in strength," said Charles, as reported by Premier.

The ceremony was attended by more than 600 members of the Syriac community. The Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and worldwide head of the church, Ignatius Aphrem II Karim, was also present at the event, according to Christian Today.

"May the congregation of this Cathedral, and all the members of the Syriac Orthodox Church, wherever they may be, be blessed with the kind of courage and faith that can ultimately transcend the unbearable misery and anguish that have been so cruelly inflicted upon you, your loved ones and your brethren," he added.

He likened the ceremony to the consecration of the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem as described in the book of 1 Kings.

The Prince later joined the members of the community in a traditional Syrian dance outside the cathedral. The congregation expressed their gratitude to Charles for boldly speaking out against the persecution of Christians in the Middle East.

In 2013, he warned that Middle Eastern Christians are being deliberately targeted by fundamentalist Islamic militants. In December 2015, he stated that Christianity might be totally wiped out in the region within five years unless the international community takes action.

In the latest report from Aid to the Church in Need, Syria is listed as one of the top seven countries where persecution against Christians is severe. The other nations included in the list are North Korea, Nigeria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia and Somalia.
home World Religious freedom in Vietnam still at risk despite new law

Vietnam's 14th National Assembly passed the Law on Belief and Religion on Nov. 18. But there are concerns that the law, which is the first of its kind in the country, still does not meet the international standards on religious freedom.

According to persecution watchdog group Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), the law has been revised several times and there have been some improvements in the revised versions. However, the registration requirements and state interference in the affairs of religious organizations still pose a risk to religious freedom.

CSW, the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights and 50 other civil society organizations released a joint statement calling on the Vietnamese government to ensure that registration is not a requirement for the free exercise of religion.

The various groups also expressed their concern about ambiguities in the law which might allow for discrimination and abuse.

"When the possibility of a law on religion was first mentioned, some were hopeful that it would address the obstacles to freedom of religion or belief in the existing regulations. Unfortunately, throughout the drafting process the law continued to focus on the control and management of religious activities, rather than the protection of religious freedom," said CSW Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas.

"Basic guarantees of the right to freedom of religion or belief must not be undermined by onerous registration requirements, and groups which cannot or choose not to register must not be excluded from the enjoyment of this right," he continued.

Religious freedom has improved in Vietnam in the past four decades but the communist government still maintains some form of control. Religious organizations are required to register with the government in order to own or rent property.

Religious organizations must report their leadership, membership, beliefs and activities as part of the registration process. Registered organizations may still need the permission of a local government official for some religious activities, according to America magazine.

Some religious groups choose to remain unregistered to maintain independence from the state. However, these unregistered groups run the risk of being harassed by the police.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The 16th summit of the International Organization of La Francophonie unanimously adopted a decision to hold the organizations 17th summit in Armenia in 2018, press service of the Armenian MFA told Armenpress.

After the adopted decision Foreign Minister of Armenia Edward Nalbandian delivered a speech during which he addressed President Serzh Sargsyans letter of gratitude to the heads of states and governments of Francophonie.

The letter reads:

Honorable President of the 16th Summit of La Francophonie,

Honorable President of Madagascar,

Your Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen, Heads of States, Governments and Delegations,

Mrs. Secretary General,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I want to express our gratitude to your decision to hold the 17th Summit of La Francophonie in Armenia. It is a great honor for Armenia and the Armenian people to host the Francophonie high-level meeting.

The evidence of this is the trust and solidarity towards our country, which had an important input on spreading Francophonie values following the years of Armenias membership to the organization.

This decision is also an important message to all Francophonie countries of Central and Eastern Europe, for which the upcoming summit is a chance to once again value the Francophonie in our region.

We are determined to ensure the success of this important event of La Francophonie. Our country will make all efforts to hold it at the highest level by this celebrating the 10th anniversary of Armenias membership to the organization. Today we recommit ourselves to organize at best the 17th Summit of La Francophonie.






home US School teacher loses appeal to display religious items in classroom

A high school teacher in Buffalo, New York lost her appeal to display religious items, including a poster with a Bible verse, inside the classroom.

Joelle Silver, who teaches biology and anatomy, was ordered to remove any religious items from her classroom by the Cheektowaga Central School District in 2012 after a complaint from the Freedom of Religion Foundation (FRFF).

She filed a lawsuit against the school district in a federal court in 2013 believing that the mandate was unconstitutional. In 2014, the court ruled in favor of the school district stating that the display of religious materials in the classroom was inappropriate.

This month, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan rejected her argument that the school district limited her right to religious expression and violated her right to free speech, according to a report from Buffalo News.

One of the items in question was a poster with a verse from 1 Corinthians 6:13-14 which stated: "Be on guard. Stand true to what you believe. Be courageous. Be strong. And everything you do must be done in love."

Another item was a printout of a quote from former President Ronald Reagan, which read: "Without God there is no virtue because there is no prompting of the conscience. ... Without God there is a coarsening of the society. Without God, democracy will not and cannot long endure. ... If ever we forget that we are one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under."

The school superintendent told Silver to remove the posters and other religious items and instructed her to keep religious messages in a discreet folder if she wishes to look at them occasionally.

Silver was backed by the American Freedom Law Center (AFLC) in her legal battle. AFLC Co-founder Robert Muise stated that the public officials effectively ordered Silver to "cease being a Christian while she is on school property."

He added that the mandate was in direct violation of the First Amendment as well as the equal protection guarantee of the Fourteenth Amendment.

In the original ruling, Judge Leslie Foschio said that Silver's rights have not been infringed when she was ordered to remove the religious messages.

The appeals court upheld Foschio's ruling but Silver may still take her case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
home World Swedish ambassador meets with North Korean official to discuss imprisoned Canadian pastor

A North Korean official and the Swedish ambassador to the country met on Thursday to discuss the situation of a Canadian pastor who was sentenced to life imprisonment and hard labor.

Hyeon Soo Lim, a pastor of Light Korean Presbyterian Church of Mississauga, Ont., received the harsh sentence last December for what the court considered as crimes against the state, The Associated Press reported.

The North Korean Foreign Ministry official and Ambassador Torkel StiernlAf discussed the issue of consular visits to the Canadian pastor. The ambassador also met with the director general of the European Department 2 on the same day.

Lim's family said that they are grateful to the Swedish officals for their efforts to bring the pastor back home.

"We would like to extend our particular gratitude to the Swedish officials for their ongoing support and work in aiding our government on behalf of our family," the pastor's family said in a statement.

"We hope to see him home soon." they added.

The ambassador also brought up the issue of consular affairs for at least two other Americans who were detained for espionage, subversion and other activities deemed to be against the state.

The North Korean official has stated that the issue of the American detainees will be handled according to a wartime law. The official did not elaborate but analysts have speculated that it could mean that the detainees would be treated harshly under the said law.

The Swedish Embassy in North Korea's capital of Pyongyang has assumed consular responsibility for the U.S. and Canadian citizens because the two countries have no proper representation in the communist regime, according to NK News.

Lim, who is in his 60s, has been traveling regularly to North Korea on a humanitarian mission since 1997. He aided in the construction of nursing homes and child-care centers n the country, according to UPI.

Last month, it was reported that Lim has been hospitalized for two months due to his failing health. The pastor's family had suspicions that Lim's health has already started to deteriorate by the time he appeared on CNN last January.

When the CNN reporter asked him if he needed anything, the pastor replied: "Nothing much, just a Bible. I have requested one, but it has not arrived yet."

"I also really need letters from my family. I have received letters twice from my family," he added.
Churches Join Resistance Against Trump's Deportation Pledge

Hundreds of churches across the US are preparing to hide illegal immigrants if Donald Trump goes ahead with his campaign promise to deport them.

They will use the Old Testament principle of "sanctuary" to prevent officials from deporting migrants. Dozens of synagogues are also preparing to join the resistance, according to the Guardian, as places of worship are "sensitive locations" under US regulations.

Guidelines from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) state: "Enforcement actions at or focused on sensitive locations such as schools, places of worship, and hospitals should generally be avoided."

Church World Service, a humanitarian charity, estimates 400 churches around the US will hide those at risk from deportation.

The pledge comes as around two dozen cities including New York, Chicago, Seattle, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, have announced they will refuse to comply with immigration orders that lead to deportation.

The cities' mayors have declared them "sanctuary cities" and in retaliation Trump has announced he will block funding to such cities.

"What we are going to do is get the people that are criminal and have criminal records, gang members, drug dealers, we have a lot of these people, probably two million, it could even be three million, we are getting them out of the country or we are going to incarcerate. But we're getting them out of our country, they're here illegally," Trump told 60 Minutes.

Several Anglican bishops have also vowed to resist rather than be reconciled to Trump's administration.

The Bishops of Virginia told Latino voters: "We stand with you not only symbolically, but will be there to stand with you literally if and when the time comes."

President of the House of Deputies in the Episcopal Church, the Revd Gay Clark Jennings, suggested that it may be "pastorally inappropriate for the Church even to suggest it [reconciliation] to people who now have legitimate reasons to be afraid".

"Too often the Church preaches reconciliation when what we really want is to avoid unpleasantness, or get approval from worldly powers and principalities," she wrote in a comment for the Religion News Service.

"President-elect Trump's rhetoric and his behavior indicate that he does not regard significant numbers of other Americans as his equal, or even as fully human."
Is The BBC In Danger Of Failing To Take Religion Seriously?

A senior BBC presenter has criticised the corporation's attitude to religious programming in a rare intervention by an insider.

Roger Bolton of Radio 4's Feedback says: "Just six months after the Archbishop of Canterbury called in these very pages for broadcasters to take religion seriously, it seems the BBC is doing anything but."

Bolton spoke out after the BBC decided to drop the post of Head of Religion and place corporate responsiblity for religion and ethics under Factual Scotland "to simplify the existing mangement structure". James Purnell, the former Labour minister who is head of radio and education at the BBC, is to take responsibility for religion as part of his remit.

Writing in the Radio Times, Bolton says this will threaten the coverage of religion on the BBC.

He says: "How can young people and immigrants to this country understand the UK without learning of the crucial role Christianity has played in the formation of its political structures and culture? How can people feel they're being welcomed as equal citizens if we don't bother to find out about what is often the most important part of their life, their faith?

"How can we understand what's going on in the Middle East, for example, without knowing about the Shia/Sunni split? This is not about promoting faith; it's about promoting knowledge and understanding  surely a central role of a public service broadcaster? But the BBC is coming up short."

He says one example is Songs of Praise, the BBC's flagship religious programme that has run since 1961.

"For the 55 years of its existence this shining light of traditional religious broadcasting has been made by the BBC. But for how much longer? The BBC's own in-house team  along with independent producers  have been invited to tender for a three-year contract to continue to produce it, which they may not win."

He admits that many people of the "baby boomer" generation once thought that religion was a declining influence in the world and didn't pay it a great deal of attention. But this view was now decisively proved wrong, he said.

He notes that the BBC no longer has a separate commissioning editor in television for religious and ethical programmes.

The curent Head of Religion and Ethics, Aaqil Ahmed, who is leaving will not be replaced. He lost his programme commissioning role last year.

Bolton says the BBC has an editor for almost every specialism except religion.

The Times was recently been briefed that there is to be a "BBC revamp" to counter Christian 'bias'.

Bolton writes: "Perhaps it's not Christian bias we should worry about but something far more worrying when it comes to understanding and interpreting our modern world: a bias against taking religion seriously."
ISIS Are The 'Grandsons Of Satan': Iraqi Christians Return To Find Church Desecrated By Jihadis

Islamic State fighters are the "grandsons of Satan" according to survivors of the torture and slaughter in Mosul in Iraq.

Iraqi forces are trying to drive ISIS from the Nineveh plains, which has for centuries been a traditional homeland for Christians and Yazidis in Iraq.

The liberation of Iraq is being taken cautiously because of the large numbers of vulnerable civilians who are still alive but are effectively being held hostage by the brutal Islamist fighters.

In a report from Iraq by the BBC's Richard Galpin, who visited some of the few districts of Mosul that have been freed from ISIS, Basma al-Saoor, a survivor who visited a church and also the rubble of her former home, said: "They [ISIS] are the grandsons of Satan."

When ISIS took Karamles and nearby villages two years ago, civilians were ordered to leave, convert to Islam or be killed. Nearly everyone fled.

Father Paul Thabet, the priest at Saint Addai church in Karamles, showed Galpin how statues of Jesus, the Virgin Mary and child angels had all been decapitated, the altar shot through with bullets and a priest's tomb desecrated.

Father Thabet called for those responsible to face justice and fears that good relations between Muslims and Christians in the region have been destroyed beyond repair.

Galpin reports that beside Iraqi army solders, the troops taking part in the fighting against ISIS include Shia militias, Peshmerga Kurdish troops, Christian militias and some Sunni tribesmen.

He reports that casualties are high. Former Iraqi army and intelligence officers are believed to be helping ISIS stay in Mosul and they have been deploying suicide bombers and snipers to attack Iraqi forces as they try to advance.

"It was never going to be easy to dislodge Islamic State from Mosul, but unless the militants suddenly collapse or cut and run, it looks like it is going to be a long, costly battle," he says.
ISIS Tortures Then Crucifies Christian Man, Tells Him: 'If You Love Jesus, You Will Die Like Jesus'

A survivor of the Islamic State (ISIS) rampage in Iraq has provided a fresh account of a Christian man's horrific crucifixion by the Islamist extremists.

The survivor identified only as Esam told the persecution watchdog World Watch Monitor that ISIS militants brutally crucified his brother-in-law "like Jesus" and forced his wife and children to watch.

"My wife's brother was crucified by Daesh," Esam said, using another name for ISIS. "He was crucified and tortured in front of his wife and children, who were forced to watch. They told him that if he loved Jesus that much, he would die like Jesus."

Esam said the militants tortured his brother-in-law for five hours6 p.m. up to 11 p.m. They then crucified him, cut his stomach open and shot him, he added.

Last year, the Virginia-based Christian Aid Mission reported that ISIS heinously tortured and killed a 12-year-old boy, along with 11 local Christian missionaries, after they refused to leave their homeland or renounce Christ, the Gospel Herald reported.

"All were badly brutalized and then crucified," an indigenous ministry leader told the outlet. "They were left on their crosses for two days. No one was allowed to remove them."

Esam said two other members of his wife's family, a Christian couple, were also abducted by ISIS. To this day, the husband has not been heard of since and the wife "now lives with one of the Daesh amirs," he said.

The survivor also revealed that Christian girls from his hometown were taken as sex slaves by the ISIS militants. "We heard of 12 Christian girls who are with Daesh," he said. "They may be more. Our bishop told people not to tell if they lose their girls" because "it is a shame on the family."

ISIS militants have been killing and brutalising Christians and other minorities since 2014 when they managed to grab territories belonging to Iraq and Syria. This has decimated the Christian population in the conquered areas. For instance, a decade ago, 35,000 Christians lived in Mosul. Now, only 20 or 30 remain, according to the Gospel Herald.

Esam said some of the damages done by ISIS have already been reversed and that some of his friends who escaped Mosul in 2014 after being forcibly converted to Islam have been "baptised back to Christianity."

Still, despite the liberation of villages around Mosul, many Christians who have left the city are not eager to return home soon because of the destruction of their homes, their mistrust of Iraq's security forces and their fear that the Sunni Muslims in their area collaborated with ISIS and could once again target them for persecution, sources said.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. US President-elect Donald Trumps adviser Kellyanne Conway said Trump regularly holds consultations with the current US President Barack Obama, CNN reports.

They had over 30 hours talk after Trump won the elections. They hold regular talks on a number of issues, Conway said, adding that on November 26 they had discussed the Cuba issue.

Conway didnt provide further details, he only said Trump enjoys talking with Obama, despite their disagreements. They are cooperating well. They disagree on a number of things. This will not change, Trumps adviser said.
Islamic Extremism Infiltrating China, Officials Claim

Islamic extremism has infiltrated inland China from its base on the western border, the country's top religious affairs official claimed on Monday.

The Xinjiang region is home to the Muslim Uighur population, a heavily persecuted minority group. Hundreds have been killed in recent years but Beijing blames religious extremism. The government has placed heavy restrictions on religious freedom in the region under the guise of combating radicalism and maintaining stability.

Extremist thought is now infiltrating China's "inland provincial areas", Wang Zuoan, head of the State Administration for Religious Affairs, told the National Congress of the Chinese Islamic Association, according to an article in the official China Daily newspaper on Monday.

The paper cited Wang as saying China's official Islamic clergy must be the "front line" in fighting extremism and should work to "convert" those influenced by it.

"We should let Muslims know the boundaries between legal and illegal religious activities, to enable them to say no to illegal activities," he told the Association on Saturday.

Xinjiang is an autonomous region right at the tip of north-western China, bordering eight countries including Tibet, India, Russia, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Traditionally, the majority of the population is Uighur, a Turkic-language speaking group most of whom are Muslim, and Islam plays a significant role in the culture.

The Uighur only make up a portion of China's 21 million Muslims but are heavily targeted by the state.

The US' 2016 Commission on International Religious Freedom condemned China's "severe religious freedom violations", in particular the "at times violent crackdown on Uighur Muslims".

Beijing regularly denies discrimination against the Uighur. But despite a resurgence of religious faith, the officially atheist country restricts believers to a handful of recognised religions overseen by the state.

In January last year, the government's 2014 'strike-hard' anti-terror campaign was extended, and wide-scale restrictions were imposed against Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang. Thousands were detained in security sweeps, some with deadly force, and jail sentences were given out for wearing religious attire. Even men's beards or women's face veils were denounced as "extremist", and some local authorities threatened action against Muslim business owners if they chose not to sell alcohol and cigarettes due to their religious beliefs.

Wang's words suggest China is preparing to increase its crackdown on religious freedom. New regulations coming into effect from the State Administration for Religious Affairs means religious materials may not be published without approval, no one may study theology without official permission, and no venues may be used for religious services unless a permit is granted.

"Studying the newly revised Regulations on Religious Affairs, it is evident that the Party wants to take charge of religion," one Chinese Christian pastor told persecution watchdog China Aid.

"The government wants to control everything, even the smallest aspects. One characteristic of this draft is the empowerment of local government bodies all the way down to the communities. This revision will further reduce the possibility of loosening religious control in China. It is becoming impossible."

Additional reporting from Reuters.
Jerry Falwell Jr Says He Turned Down Job As Donald Trump's Education Secretary

Jerry Falwell Jr, the leading evangelical who is president of Liberty University, has admitted he turned down the President-Elect's offer of a job to serve as his education secretary.

Falwell he said could not afford the four to six years he would need to be away from Liberty.

In the end, Donald Trump chose the billionaire philanthropist Betsy DeVoss, a supporter of school vouchers, for what is certain to be one of the pivotal positions of his presidency.

Falwell's decision to back Trump early on in the campaign caused anger among evangelicals and there was even a protest from two thousand members of his own student body at Liberty.

He refused to back down after endorsing Trump, and went even further, comparing him to King David in the Bible. He also said Trump reminded him of his own late father, also called Jerry Falwell, the hugely influential Southern Baptist pastor and evangelist who founded Liberty in 1971.

There was speculation last week that Falwell was to be offered the job so some were surprised when it went instead to the lower-profile but well-respected DeVoss.

Fallwell has now told Associated Press that that he was offered the job during a meeting with Trump in New York but had to decline because he could not take longer than two years away from Liberty. He also did not wish to move his daughter who is still in her teens.

The fact that he was offered it all is an indication of the influence the Christian right will hold during Trump's term in office. His Vice President-Elect Mike Pence is from the devoutly conservative evangelical wing, as are others in his team.
Jo Cox Murder Led To 52,000 Tweets Celebrating Her Death

Thomas Mair was repeatedly described as a "hero" and a "patriot" online after he murdered Labour MP Jo Cox in June.

Analysis of 52,000 abusive tweets from 25,000 individuals prompted calls for social media companies to do more to tackle hate speech on their sites. Researchers revealed common words associated with Cox and Mair, now jailed for life, included "white power", "rapists", "traitor", "patriot" and "hero".

The findings by academics Dr Imran Awan of Birmingham City University and Dr Irene Zempi of Nottingham Trent University come ahead of a government report on integration to be unveiled next month.

Louise Casey's report will claim the idea of integration has broadly failed with Islamist and far-right extremists both allowed to gain traction, according to the Guardian.

The analysis of social media released on Monday by anti-fascist charity Hope Not Hate found a key theme to emerge was Jo Cox "deserved to die" because "she supported rape gangs", referring to child sexual exploitation scandals in Rotherham, South Yorkshire.

The report called for social media training in schools and for companies such as Twitter, Facebook and Google to sign a duty of care for users.

"The authors feel that social media companies must be more proactive in responding to online hate crime," the report read. "This includes working alongside the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and prosecuting those who are responsible for posting, sharing and endorsing harmful content."

Chief executive Nick Lowles said: "Mair acted alone but he was inspired by over 30 years of reading Nazi propaganda.

"Clearly there were those on social media and other digital platforms who sought to exploit and profit from his disgusting actions, and the tensions also arising from the referendum process, to spread their vile beliefs."

He added: "It is time for the authorities to take greater note of these ideologues of hate, and time too for social media companies  and Twitter in particular  to up their game when it comes to providing a safe platform for expression.

"Free speech does not equal hate speech, which can have very real consequences and impact in communities in the UK."

The report on Monday comes after Westminster party leaders were told to tone down rhetoric that "polarized" the country and "legitimized hate".

David Isaac, chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commisison, signed the letter and called for "accurate information and respectful debate" from politicians.

"We are concerned that attacks on supporters of both sides of the Brexit debate have polarised many parts of the country," he said.

"There are those who used, and continue to use, public concern about immigration policy and the economy to legitimise hate.

"The vast majority of people who voted to leave the European Union did so because they believe it is best for Britain and not because they are intolerant of others."
Muslim Immigrant to U.K. Says God Using Him to Build His Kingdom, Leads More Than 600 Iranians to Jesus

When he was still a Muslim living in Iran, Shapoor did not believe God could talk to ordinary people, much less have a relationship with them or use them.

That's why he was utterly surprised when he found out later on, when he immigrated to the U.K., that God not only talks to ordinary people but also "has a heart for sinners and everybody," according to God Reports.

In his first few months in Britain, Shapoor said he was depressed. But then after attending a Christmas party to meet other Iranians, he heard a song called Jesus the "Prince of Peace," which stirred his heart.

He then prayed: "God, I am so lonely and depressed. I don't know where I'm going or what my future is. If You don't leave me, I will serve You with all my heart, for the rest of my days."

Shapoor wasted no time in embracing Jesus. Now, eight years after he settled in U.K., he believes God is using him to build His kingdom among the refugees from the Middle East and Africa.

Speaking to the Pioneers Christian mission agency, Shapoor said reading the Bible for the first time immediately changed his life. He said God quickly filled him with enormous zeal to spread God's Word.

"When I saw this unconditional love and the grace of God in my life I couldn't keep this Good News to myself," he told Pioneers. "Because we came from darkness to light we don't keep this to ourselves. As you receive freely, give freely to other people."

Shapoor began sharing the Gospel to fellow immigrants from Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Africa, many of them Muslim.

"I came here every Saturday to give them food. Also during the week we came and evangelised and talked about Jesus," he said.

Shapoor has led more than 600 Iranians to faith in Jesus, saying he finds excitement in his mission to pass the Gospel to the next generation. "As Paul said we try to find the people who are faithful and teachable and teach them," he said.

Shapoor's home in U.K. is now a 24-hour house of prayer where believers come to pray for friends, family, their city and the nations. He has discipled and commissioned 20 Iranian families to move to other parts of the U.K. to live out their faith among other immigrant communities, according to Pioneers.

Shapoor finds it truly amazing that people like him could freely preach the Gospel to people who do not know Jesus yet.

"All people are made in God's image and we should see them as human beings. We should see them with the love of Jesus. Jesus died for every person on earth. Jesus loved them unconditionally," he said.
'Prison Break' season 5 spoilers: Writers tease LGBT character who has an 'important role to play'

As the wait for "Prison Break" season 5 continues, more information about the limited series emerges courtesy of the writers themselves.

They teased that there will be a new individual to watch out for in "Prison Break" season 5. "There is a new LGBT character named Sid. He's got an important role to play," the writers teased.

There is a new LGBT character named Sid. He's got an important role to play. https://t.co/2bC9B4v3zD  Prison Break Writers (@PBWritersRoom) November 25, 2016

Nothing more was revealed by the writers after that, though. But it is known that the character will be played by Kunal Sharma, and it looks like he will be introduced in the premiere.

As announced before, Sid is an "artsy" tattoo artist who ends up in prison for his sexuality. He will be a prisoner in Yemen along with Michael (Wentworth Miller) in "Prison Break" season 5.

It looks like Sid is one of the characters that fans will meet in the series. It is unknown if he will be around for more episodes, though, as Sharma is only slated for an appearance in the first episode.

Sid was shown in the sneak peek for "Prison Break" season 5. He himself is relying on Michael to get them out of prison because, if he stays, he will either be there 20 years or have 20 minutes to live, depending on the kind of people who gets to him first.

In the preview, Sid questions Michael's plans of breaking out of prison after he asks him for a piece of gum in the midst of such serious discussion.

Michael promised that this piece of gum will "start a sequence of events that will finish on the other side of the world," and it looks like Sid will just have to trust him on that.

Joining Sharma in the "Prison Break" season 5 cast are Rick Yune, Mark Feuerstein, Augustus Prew, Marina Benedict, and Inbar Lavi.

"Prison Break" season 5 will premiere in spring 2017.
Scientists Find Evidence That Human Consciousness Extends Beyond the Grave

When the body dies, human consciousness still lives.

That was the conclusion drawn by Sir Roger Penrose, a highly respected English mathematical physicist, mathematician and philosopher of science, the Express reported.

Penrose said his theory is based on scientific evidence. He said he and his team have found evidence that protein-based mircotubules  a structural component of human cells  carry quantum information stored at a sub-atomic level," referring to human consciousness.

"If a person temporarily dies, this quantum information is released from the microtubules and into the universe. However, if they are resuscitated the quantum information is channelled back into the microtubules and that is what sparks a near death experience," Penrose explained.

The British scientist's theory jibes with the finding made by the renowned Max Planck Institute for Physics in Munich, which states that "the physical universe we live in is only our perception and once our physical bodies die, there is an infinite beyond."

Dr. Hans-Peter Durr, former head of the institute, explained further: "What we consider the here and now, this world, it is actually just the material level that is comprehensible. The beyond is an infinite reality that is much bigger."

However, these latest scientific findings are not really new since the Bible already spoke about man's immortal soul, according to Pastor Dan Delzell in an op-ed piece he wrote for The Christian Post.

The pastor of Wellspring "Lutheran" Church in Papillion, Nebraska cited at least three verses that refer to this:

 "Jesus said, 'Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10:28)

 "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." (John 3:36)

 "Jesus also said, 'I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life.'" (John 6:47)

Delzell said other scientistsmany of them Christianhave also concluded that consciousness goes beyond the grave.

However, he warned that not all near-death experiences provide accurate description of what happens after death.

People will eventually experience much more than just a near-death experience. "We will literally cross over to the other side," Delzell said.

Realising this, he asked readers, "Are you prepared to meet your Creator and your Judge?"

"You would be wise to repent of your sins and trust Jesus to wash them away. That is, unless you are the only person on the planet who won't experience consciousness beyond the grave," Delzell said.
Stephen Hawking Visits The Vatican To Discuss Origin Of The Universe

Atheist physicist Stephen Hawking has told scientists at the Vatican in Rome why he believes that before the universe suddenly came into being, there were no boundaries, no time  there was absolutely nothing at all.

The Bible teaches that God created the heavens and earth out of nothing.

Most scientists believe it took many billions of years to create everything in the world today, although some Christians interpret the Bible to believe it took God just six days.

Hawking was speaking at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in Rome at a plenary session on science and sustainability.

He said that he and a colleague had worked out the physical conditions of the very start of the universe.

He said that space and time would have had no boundaries.

Hawking said: "With James Hartle from the University of California, I worked out what physical conditions the early universe must have, if space time had no boundaries in the past.

"Our model became known as the No-Boundary Proposal. It says that when we go back toward the beginning of our universe, space and time become fuzzy and cap off, somewhat like the south pole and the surface of the earth. Asking what came before the Big Bang is meaningless according to the No-Boundary proposal, because there is no notion of time available to refer to. It would be like asking what lies south of the South Pole."

Dr Vanderlei Bagnato, of the University of Sao Paolo in Brazil, told Rome Reports: "He was very clear in saying that some few things are missing. We still need to prove a few things to somehow close his ideas about the origin of the universe.

"I think it was a very nice lecture and he made a big effort to transmit to us, physicists and non-physicists, this idea of importance. Of building up the blocks of knowledge to understand how everything starts."

Pope Francis spoke with the scientists including Hawking this morning.

The aim of the gathering was to examine the effect of the latest scientific advances on sustainable development.

Pope Francis told them: "It falls to scientists, who work free of political, economic or ideological interests, to develop a cultural model which can face the crisis of climatic change and its social consequences, so that the vast potential of productivity will not be reserved only for the few."

He called for international norms to be set to safeguard the created order.

"It has now become essential to create, with your cooperation, a normative system that includes inviolable limits and ensures the protection of ecosystems, before the new forms of power deriving from the techno-economic model causes irreversible harm not only to the environment, but also to our societies, to democracy, to justice and freedom," he said.
Vatican Deal With China Would 'Betray Christ' Says Top Cardinal

A possible landmark deal that would see China and the Vatican come to an agreement on the appointment of bishops would be "betraying Jesus Christ", China's most senior Catholic cleric has said.

Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, the retired bishop of Hong Kong, said according to the Guardian: "Maybe the Pope is a little naive, he doesn't have the background to know the Communists in China. The Pope used to know the persecuted Communists [in Latin America], but he may not know the Communist persecutors who have killed hundreds of thousands."

Relations have historically been strained between the Catholic Church and China's ruling Communist party (CCP) over irreconcilable claims to authority. The Vatican does not accept the validity of episcopal consecrations by the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association  the government's state-approved Catholic body  while the CCP has strongly opposed Rome's right to ordain Chinese bishops.

An underground Catholic Church refuses to compromise with the state and is loyal only to the Pope. The feud has been ongoing for more than six decades, alongside growing concerns from the CCP about the growth of Christianity in China.

The government has signalled a crackdown on churches, and closely monitors members of even state-controlled institutions.

The new possible deal would see the Vatican accept eight bishops ordained by the CCP without the Church's permission.

Cardinal Zen warned that only "fake freedom" would be achieved under the new deal. "The official bishops are not really preaching the gospel," he said. "They are preaching obedience to Communist authority."

"You cannot go into negotiations with the mentality 'we want to sign an agreement at any cost', then you are surrendering yourself, you are betraying yourself, you are betraying Jesus Christ," he added.

"If you cannot get a good deal, an acceptable deal, then the Vatican should walk away and maybe try again later. Could the church negotiate with Hitler? Could it negotiate with Stalin? No."

Cardinal Zen has previously accused state-appointed bishops of being "slaves" and "puppets" of the CCP, though he added that they were "very faithful to the Church".

But "with fake bishops you are destroying the Church," he said earlier this month.

However, though he said Pope Francis  who isn't known to have signed any deal yet  "has no real knowledge of communism" and may make the wrong decision in this case, he will respect his authority.
Circles are the motif that links works by masters of the medium such as Edward Steichen and Man Ray, highlights of an upcoming sale in Paris
Teachers of Tomorrow, a Houston-based teacher certification company, announced its expansion into Nevada.

The program was approved by the Nevada Department of Education, and it received an initial license from the Nevada Department of Postsecondary Education to begin operating in the state.

"Nevada has seen crippling teacher shortages for many years and recently created a method for teacher programs like ours to help school districts quickly address those shortages," said Vernon Reaser, CEO of Teachers of Tomorrow in a statement. "We are honored to be one of the initial programs to achieve approval and licensure to help Nevada schools find the teaching talent they need."

The Houston company customized additional training content for their Nevada cohort. It boasts having certified more than 42,000 new teachers through online and in-person programs for the last 11 years. It currently operates in Texas and Florida with special programs in Utah as well.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The integration of the European countries within the EU must be suspended, Germanys President Joachim Gauck said in an interview with Die Welt.

He said the pause is necessary to clarify the goals and plan the further actions.

By creating the EU, we have developed a concept about which our previous generations had not dared to dream. But on the way to an ever closer union we were sometimes so quick that not all citizens were able to keep pace or wanted to do so," Gauck saying as quoted by Deutsche Welle.

The German President said it is not easy for many people to live in the united Europe and the globalized world. Not all feel themselves as the citizens of the world. People need home, Fatherland, they want to feel as they belong to something, he said.

Gauck said first of all it is necessary to convince the people of the EU states, that the united Europe stands firm on freedom, democracy, peace and the rule of law values.

On June 6 Gauck announced that he will not run for a second term. He said the reason of making such decision was due to his age (on January 24 he will celebrate his 76th birthday). He said he will continue fulfilling his duties until the presidential term expires on March 17, 2017.
A yoga instructor from Texas shot and killed two robbers who broke into her home in Chile last week.

Hari Nam Kaur Khalsa, 61, was in her bedroom when four robbers broke into her home late Thursday, according to the Chilean newspaper El Mercurio. The men beat Khalsa when they found her and tied her up, the newspaper reports.
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Houston is most notably known for its diversity and rapidly growing population, but will the Bayou City soon have a new name as the next global food mecca?

Renowned chef and Jame Beard Award-winner David Chang says yes.

The New York City resident told GQ magazine that because of Houston's extreme diversity, the food culture in the community is bound to boom, so much so, that he wishes he could get in on the action himself.

HOUSTON'S FOOD CULTURE: How Anthony Bourdain fell in love with Houston, too

He writes this in part of the article:

By some measures, Houston is the U.S.A.'s most ethnically diverse city (a bunch of New Yorkers just choked on their halal kebabs reading that, but it's true), and when you get a collision of immigrants, the food scene is guaranteed to be bonkers.

Houston also has cheap commercial and residential rentsoh, and no state income taxwhich means broke-ass cooks and chefs can afford to live and open here. Zoning laws are more permissive than an Amsterdam brothel. And customers have cash to spend.

What's most notable, though, is the shout out to two top chefs in the Houston area: Justin Yu of Oxheart and Chris Shepherd of Underbelly - both of whom made the Houston Chronicle's Top 100 Restaurants list for 2016. Click through the gallery above to see their ranking and the other best restaurants in Houston.

"These guys would be successful anywhere," Chang writes. "And it's amazing what they've done in two very different parts of Houston."

Julie Soefer

REVEALED: Houston's Top 100 Restaurants of 2016

He furthers his praise of Houston by honoring Texas' iconic heritage as a barbecue state and gives Killen's a shout out. He also names Pho Binh Bellaire as "America's best Vietnamese food" and Houston's Crawfish & Noodles gives Chang hope in the fusion of Vietnamese-Cajun cuisine.

At the very end of the article, Chang says, "If I ever leave new York, I'm moving to Houston. This time I'm not joking."

The Bayou City welcomes you, Mr. Chang.
The T-shirt design company 713 Tees has a slogan that reads, "Rep your city. Support a nonprofit." They are staying true to their words.

The new T-shirt company was started by Houston-native Paula Bates over the summer because she wanted to show pride for the Bayou City while giving back to the community she grew up in.

"As a young girl, she enjoyed giving back to the community, volunteering for local nonprofits and donating her time," the 713 Tees website reads. "Starting 713 Tees has given her the opportunity to support her community in a new, exciting way."

HOUSTON REP: High fashion designer shows Houston-themed collection at NYFW

The t-shirts start at $21 and are made out of American Apparel jersey knit t-shirts. A total of 25 percent of the sales of every item on the 713 Tees website goes to the featured local nonprofit - currently, the nonprofit organization is The Church at Northside.

"I want to be able to donate more than 25 percent," Bates said. "The goal of the project is not a money-making venture for myself, but instead to donate to nonprofits. I'm still learning what this is costing, but if I'm able to partner with a local print company, then I could purchase in bulk and lower the cost of per item and give more." She currently partners with an online print fulfillment center, Shopify and Printful, but she would love to transition to a local company if interest continues.

TCAN is planning to build a community center for the Northside neighborhood. The center will provide a computer lab, after school programs for youth, life skills workshops and other community outreach programs for the Northside community.

LOVE HOUSTON THIS MUCH: Even more unique Houston-themed baby names

"I wanted to start with this nonprofit because it's a really special one to me," Bates said. "I've been working with them since I was a kid and my parents are in charge of the nonprofit. I really like how they provide the basic needs, but also other needs like career counseling, finding jobs and basic education. It's a great nonprofit and they've been helping for over 20 years."

Bates said that the ultimate goal is to partner with multiple nonprofits in the Houston area so that the customer is able to choose which organization to partner with when they check out. Her next focus is partnering with an animal humane society shelter.

As for widening her Houston design collection, Bates has her eyes on producing something for the Heights (a design inspired by the trees and the architecture, Bates says), River Oaks and extending her market out to the suburbs of Spring Branch and Cypress.
Whether you want to meet your favorite designer, learn to set a more beautiful table or even buy a couple of coffee table books for yourself or for gift-giving, these events are sure to make you a bit more stylish -- or at least get some holiday shopping done.

Jonathan Adler: The designer of imaginative home decor will visit his Houston store, 2800 Kirby, for a 6-8 p.m. cocktail event on Nov. 29, benefitting the Texas Children's Cancer Center.
Johnny Hanson/Houston Chronicle

Aldine ISD will pay a $140,000 civil fine, revise its policies and implement a three-year training program after the U.S. Department of Justice found that the district violated the Immigration and Nationality Act.

The Department of Justice's investigation found that Aldine required non-U.S. citizens, but not U.S. citizens, to present specific documents when verifying their employment eligibility once their original documents expired.
This story appeared in The Houston Post on Feb. 26, 1940. The headlines and words are reprinted as they ran then.

Dr. S.C. Red, prominent Houston physician and pioneer in the city's medical history, died at 7:20 am in his home Sunday. Dr. Red was 78 years old and still was in active practice.

Dr. Red was one of the organizers of the Harris County Medical Society and had served as its president. He also served as president of the Texas State Medical society. He was one of a few physicians invited to become a fellow of the American College of Surgeons with a waiver of all entrance requirements.

When Dr. Red came to Houston after his graduation in 1887 from the Jefferson Medical college at Philadelphia, Pa., he became associated with his uncle, Dr. David F. Stuart. With Dr. Stuart, he founded the first hospital in Houston, the Houston infirmary, which was located next to the Southern Pacific railroad station on Washington avenue.

Honored by Medical Society

Tribute was paid Dr. Red in 1939 when the Harris County Medical society honored him in recognition of his 52 years of active service in the practice of medicine.

His pioneering in his profession gained him widespread fame among medical men, and in addition to his regular practice, he ranked as one of Houston's most prominent businessmen. At the time of his death he was a director at the South Texas Commercial National bank and a director of the Peden Iron and Steel Company.

Dr. Red was prominent in Houston's medical history for having been the first doctor to own an X-ray machine; the first to have performed an appendectomy and the repair of hernia, and the first to bring ambulance service to Houston.

Made Many Contributions

He was also the first doctor in this section to treat and report the treatment of a fractured hip by encasing the patient from the waist down in plaster of paris. This method is now is know as the Whiting method. Dr. Red made numerous contributions to the science of medicine by reporting the results of his observations during his lengthy practice. He was the first doctor to use diphtheria antitoxin in Houston. The first nurses' training school in Houston was started under his supervision.

He was the first student to receive a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Texas. The degree was awarded him on June 17, 1885. He was the only member of the class. Dr. Red wrote a biography of Dr. Ashbel Smith, chairman of the first board of regents at the university and one of the signers of Dr. Red's diploma.

Born at Gay Hill

Dr. Red was born Oct. 28, 1861 at Gay Hill in Washington county. He attended Austin college at Sherman for his first year of college study. He attended Washington and Lee university at Lexington, Va., the next year, and finished his junior and senior years the University of Texas.

His parents were Dr. George Clark Red, a native of Newberry S.C. and Rebecca Stuart Red, a native of Bethany, Pa. His mother, often referred to as the mother of education for women in Texas, was his first tutor. She taught at the Live Oak seminary at Gay Hall and later founded Stuart's seminary in Austin.

Dr. Red had long been associated with the First Presbyterian church of Houston as an elder and an officer. He was the author of a history of the church, written at the time of its one hundredth anniversary.

Active in Civic Affairs

Dr. Red was chief surgeon for the old H. & T.C. railroad and for many years was a member of the staff of St. Joseph infirmary. He expressed his deep interest in civic affairs by serving as president of the school board for 17 years. He was also a member of the original Houston Art league. He owned one of the most valuable art collections in the South. He headed the Texas Exes as president for a number of years and was an active participant in its activities up until the time of his death.

Dr. Red's first wife was Miss Katherine Groesbeck of Philadelphia, Pa., who died in 1900. He later married Miss George Cook Plunkett of Waco, who survives him. Dr. Red was the father of eight children, all of whom survive him.

They are Mrs. Katharine Red Parker, wife of Frederick Parker, Miss H. Lei Red and Samuel Clark Red Jr. of Houston, Richard Wallace Red of Alvin, Mrs. Elizabeth Stuart Red Hanway, wife of John Thomas Hanway, George Plunkett Red, Walter Scott Red and David Douglass Red of Houston.

Surviving Grandchildren

The surviving grandchildren are Mrs. Dick Hoskins Gregg, Charles Joel Parker, Lei Red Hanway, John Thomas Hanway Jr. of Houston and Richard Wallace Red Jr. and Rebecca Stuart Red of Alvin. He is survived by a sister, Mrs. J.M. Purcell of Lockhart and a great-grandchild, Dick Hoskins Gregg Jr.

Surviving nieces and nephews are Dr. W. S. Red Jr., who was associated with him in the practice of medicine, Lewin Plunkett of Quanah, Rev. Malcom Purcell of Port Arthur, Stuart Purcell of Austin, Clark Purcell of Lockhart, Mrs. Allen Wight, Miss Catherine Plunkett, Mrs. Charles Estill, Mrs. Elmer Voorhees and Miss Jessie McJunkin of Dallas, Miss Mary Red of New York City, Misses Mary Jane Katie and Alice Dean of Waco, G.E. Cranz Jr. and William P. Cranz of Fort Worth.

Funeral services will be held at 4 p.m. Monday in First Presbyterian church, with Dr. Charles L. Xxxx* officiating Burial will be in Forest Park cemetery. The Perry-Foley funeral home will direct.

Active pallbearers will be Russell Scott, George S. Heyer, Dr. A. Philo Howard, Dr. Joe B. Foster, Dr. John Foster, Gabriel J. Lee, Dr. F.J. Xxxxx*, and A. E. Clarkson.

Honorary pallbearers will be Dr. John Wootters, Dr. B. T. Perkins, Dr. George Larendon, Dr. James H. Agnew, David Hannah, H.R. Cullen, Dr. J. M. Tribble, Abe Zindler, Gus Xxxx*, Capt. James A. Baker, Dr. M. L. Graves, Dr. J. Edward Hodges, Dr. J Allen Kyle, Dr. R. W. Knox, Dr. P. R. Denman, R.C. Briggs, O.F. Ewing, Dr. Allen C. Hutcheson, Charles Schultz, Edward S. Boyles, Harry D. Payne, Judge W. H. Wilson, Dr. A.C. Scott of Temple and E.T. Chew.

The Monday meetings of the Harris County Medical society auxilliary and Circle 12 of the First Presbyterian church will not be held because of Dr. Red's death.

* Names not legible in original text.
Are you a student that is looking for college scholarship opportunities? Are you thinking about possibly studying abroad during your time at college? Look no further than the British American Foundation of Texas (BAFTX)

The British American Foundation of Texas is a non-profit organization focused on providing opportunities for academic disadvantaged students to further their education. The BAFTX was established by the British American Business Council in 2006.

There are many different scholarships available through BAFTX. The basic requirements for applying for a scholarship are that the applicants are a resident in Texas, enrolled in full-time education within the Texas education system, have a competitive grade point average, and want to study in the STEM or business fields. Students in the United Kingdom who wish to study in Texas are also welcome to apply.

"In the United Kingdom, college isn't quite as expensive as it is here. If you are gifted and talented, but if you don't have the bank account, you can't go to the top colleges. I feel that is incredibly disabling. We should be supporting young people. These are the young business leaders of tomorrow," Executive Director of BAFTX Kay Thomson said.

There are scholarships available for those in middle school, high school, and both undergraduate and graduates in college.

Some of the scholarships include:

The Early Starters Award, which is awarded to someone attending middle school. Through this award, BAFTX puts money in a bank account for the award recipient that will go toward college tuition fees in the future.

The Junior Achievers Award sends winners to London for two weeks. While there, they have educational outings every day.

"The feedback that we have from these students who go over for two weeks, it is just completely eye opening. I am a traveler. I think everyone should travel if they get the opportunity,"Thomson, said.

The BAFTX has a direct exchange program through Swansea University in Wales, United Kingdom. Scholarships are available to do a semester abroad there if a student is enrolled in either the University of Houston, University of Texas or Texas A&M.

The Susan Howard Community Service Award is given to those who have participated in community service projects. The award is named after the founder of BAFTX.

There is also an energy scholarship which is sponsored in part by Wood Mackenzie, a global energy, metals and mining research and consultant group, which has offices in Houston and is headquartered in the United Kingdom.

This year, BAFTX aims to award 60 scholarships.

According to Thomson, there are many success stories from students who have received the different scholarships.

"One of our students is at Texas A&M. Her father was British, and she went on our British scholarship. Prior to that, she hadn't been over there much at all. Her dad has since passed away, and she said it helped her enforce the bond with her dad's country," Thomson said.

Another student is studying at the London School of Economics. She applied on a whim, thinking there was no way she could afford it, but BAFTX was able to help her.

"Our awards are flexible. We try to provide what the student needs," Thomson said.

In order to spread the word about BAFTX's scholarship opportunities, Thomson has been visiting high schools and letting counselors and students know what BAFTX does.

"I've been an expat for a very time and I've lived in a lot of different countries," Thomson said. "When you are an expat, you should still be a part of that community just as you would be at home. BAFTX is a non-profit with a volunteer board. We have great people that support our events and organization and that can be anyone. We have a ladies lunch in January and a gala next November. We are always taking on new feedback."

For details about BAFTX visit www.baftx.org. If interested in sending a donation to BAFTX, which will go directly towards tuition fees, email info@baftx.org.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. US State Secretary John Kerry continues making efforts to reach agreement with Russia over Syrias Aleppo despite leaving his post soon, reports The Washington Post.

State Secretary John Kerry is making intense and incredible diplomatic efforts in order to reach deal with Russia on ending the siege of Aleppo, The Washington Post writes.

The newspaper says Kerry reportedly holds phone talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov twice a week, as well as they held a meeting in Peru within the framework the APEC Summit.

According to the Washington Post, Kerry fears that the US President-elect Donald Trump will reach a different agreement with Moscow while assuming the post, as a result of which Washington will be directly appeared in Assads side.
The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in metro Houston dropped 1.5 cents during the past week to $1.89, according to GasBuddy.com.

Houston-area average prices are 13 cents cheaper than a month ago and about 7 cents higher than one year ago, based on a survey of more than 2,500 gas stations in the metro area.
A major crash on I-45 just outside New Waverly north of Conroe is causing backups southbound into the Houston area.

According to TxDOT an 18-wheeler and at least nine cars were involved in the Walker County pile-up.
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After presiding over one of Houston's most charming neighborhood restaurants for nearly 15 years, John Sheely is calling it quits on Mockingbird Bistro.

Sheely announced Monday that he has been unable to come to terms on a lease with the building's owner at 1985 Welch and will closing at the end of December. (His lease expires Jan. 2)

WHAT'S NEW: The best new restaurants in Houston

"At first it was a moment of complete panic, and then relief," is how the chef described the realization that Mockingbird wouldn't live to see 2017. "I now have a great sense of relief. We can move on."

Sheely said he told his staff over the weekend and all promised to stay on to the end. He said he is dedicated to helping his staff find new work in the business which is busy now thanks to the Super Bowl and many new restaurants opening within the next several months.

Still, Mockingbird's closure is a sting for the chef who last year saw the shuttering of his ambitious Osteria Mazzantini, the upscale Italian restaurant he worked tirelessly on since it debuted in August 2013. That restaurant closed in January 2015.

REVEALED: The 100 best restaurants in Houston

But that closure actually got Sheely's creative juices flowing back at Mockingbird where he threw himself into a new dining room menu as well as freshening up the popular bar menu where happy hour remains one of the city's best bargains.

Fans of the chef and the restaurant take heart: Sheely is not leaving town. In fact, after taking some time off after Mockingbird closes he plans to begin plotting his next move in the Houston restaurant scene.

Until then, however, the next month will be full of excitement and good-byes at Mockingbird.

"It'll be a time to reconnect with the guests and customers who have followed me for so many years," he said. "I plan on shaking some hands and thanking people for their dedication to Mockingbird."
Across Fort Bend County, institutions of postsecondary education are ramping up their course offerings and facilities for technical programs to keep up with local and statewide workplace demands.

"Right now, Texas has a skills shortage in what we call intermediate skills, which is something more than high school, but less than a four-year degree," Randy Wooten, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Execution Officer of Texas State Technical College.

Administrators at Fort Bend County's community colleges and four-year institutions say they're poised to fill that gap.

Perhaps the most drastic expansion is Texas State Technical College, which moved its Fort Bend County location from Wharton County Junior College's Richmond campus to its own, 80-acre property off of U.S. 59, in Rosenberg.

Previously, TSTC could only serve 60 students. The new campus opened in September with over 250 students and more course offerings. Students can get certificates or associates degrees in seven programs. By next year, a second building will open on the campus, with an additional four programs. Wooten hopes to double the number of students at the campus next year.

A Thursday morning at TSTC's building was busy. Six diesel equipment technology students troubleshooted a fan motor in that program's outdoor lab space. Around them were trucks, engines and transmissions.

"A truck's nothing but a 56 Chevy pickup on steroids," joked their instructor, Ward Hanington.

In another wing of the building, sparks flew from booths in the college's most popular program: welding technology. Students study five different types of welding processes; they need to know more than just one type to be prepared for today's workforce, Executive Director for Student Learning Albert Urbina explained.

TSTC has always had a technical focus. But Betty McCrohan, President of Wharton County Junior College, said she has seen a shift toward technical programs at her institution. Wharton County Junior College has a gained recognition for its high rate of transfers to four-year institutions. Its Sugar Land building is on the University of Houston's campus. But, with the wing of the building TSTC vacated in Richmond, the college is opting to use that space for technical programs instead of liberal arts.

"We're responding to what students want," McCrohan said. "We're also responding to requests from the State of Texas, to help them get to their goals."

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board set of a goal of having at least 60 percent of Texans ages 25 to 34 with a certificate or degree by 2030. So, at WCJC's Richmond campus, they are in the design phase of a $1.4 million renovation of the now-vacated wing. They will use it to bring back a cosmetology program and expand the community college's existing Emergency Medical Services and chemical process technology programs.

Like TSTC, WCJC offers two-year associates degrees and shorter-term certificates.

The new wing is scheduled to open by fall of 2017.

"Universities don't look at a short-term turnaround for workforce, and that's what the state really needs right now," McCrohan said. "We need people employed."

Similar changes are taking places at Houston Community College Southwest's Stafford campus, which opened a 57,000 square-foot center to house its manufacturing programs. It offers two-year associates degrees in manufacturing engineering technology and machine technology, plus a handful of certificate and workforce training programs in areas including pipefitting, welding and electrical.

The center, which opened Oct. 12, will have its first full group of students this winter. The workforce HCC hopes to fill is within its own city; Stafford has a high concentration of manufacturing companies that create piping valves and fittings for the oil and gas sector.

A technical focus isn't confined to community colleges. The University of Houston Sugar Land is expected to break ground in 2017 on a $54 million building to house a College of Technology. The campus offers only four-year degrees, but the College of Technology will have programs to fill local demand, from companies including Texas Instruments or Fluor. Think supply chain management or biotechnology, said Bob McPherson, interim associate provost of University of Houston Sugar Land and dean of the College of Education.

"What we're doing is building programs here that should feed directly into the Fort Bend County workforce," McPherson said.

The new building is expected to be complete by fall of 2018, McPherson said. It will be the fourth building on the university's 375-acre campus. As of Sept. 1, students can gain a University of Houston degree while still completing their entire education at the Sugar Land campus. Prior, they would have had to commute downtown for at least some of their courses.

"The long term goal of the campus is ... to make it a destination place for kids in the large part who are interested in careers that the College of Technology will prepare them for," McPherson said.

Back at TSTC's Rosenberg campus, most of the students already knew where they will be headed after they complete their training. Many of the welding students said they're bound for the oil and gas industry.

In the HVAC classroom, one student said he wanted to be self-employed. Sugar Land resident Sal Maredia, 25, echoed that sentiment. Maredia, who is studying precision machining technology, said he's going to use his training to open an automobile manufacturing shop. Maredia is also pursuing a four-year degree from the University of Houston.

Eventually, TSTC plans to build more facilities on the site, thanks to the Houston area's booming population. Next up might be a building to house programs to help fill demand in the medical center, Wooten said. The campus should eventually four to five thousand students. When it does, Wooten added, it'll stand out.

Said Wooten: "Someday, the Fort Bend County location could be the biggest TSTC location in Texas."
Michael Petersen graduated college in 2013 and was just starting a new life in Houston, full of friends, hunting trips and weekends with his girlfriend, when he got the call the day before Thanksgiving in 2015 that made him question if any of the plans he had for his future would ever come true.

Then 24, and lying in bed in his Heights-area home while his parents ruminated downstairs, he answered the call they all had been waiting for.

The doctor told him that the biopsy results showed that the growth they removed from his colon was, indeed, cancerous.

Petersen said if his doctor hadn't been so encouraging and optimistic about the treatment over the phone, the shock he felt could have easily spun into depression and despair.

But almost exactly one year after the diagnosis, he has reason to celebrate due to the latest round of check-ups revealing no cancer markers or growths in his body.

Petersen is not only a fortunate colon cancer survivor, he's a rare one, too.

The majority of people - 90 percent - diagnosed with colon cancer are over age 50, said Dr. Scott McKnight, Petersen's oncologist and colon and rectal surgeon affiliated with Memorial Hermann Memorial City and assistant professor of surgery at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth.

It's very unusual for someone Petersen's age to be diagnosed with colon cancer, said McKnight, who continues to screen him with periodic colonoscopys, which Petersen will have to do regularly for the next five years.

But the surgeon said his case was so successful because Petersen acted on the subtle signs his body was sending him that something was off, and allowed them to catch the disease early.

"I just noticed there was a feeling in my abdomen, some sort of knot in my stomach and I noticed blood in my stool," he said. "I know my body, and I took action."

At first, his gastroenterologist told him it was just a stomach ulcer, gave him some medication, but it didn't seem to do anything he said, so he "kept pressing."

Which is what the 25-year-old natural gas marketer wants to tell other young, seemingly healthy people.

"We're not all immune to these types of diseases, be aware as you can, and you stand a chance of living a healthy life after the fact."

Going through the mild discomfort of a colonoscopy is well worth it to catch the disease early. But for those under the officially recommended age of 50 to qualify for screening, it may be difficult to get the procedure covered by insurance companies.

"We're seeing younger and younger patients for colorectal cancer," said McKnight. "You have to have concrete evidence for insurance companies to pay."

Colonoscopies may be an unfamiliar procedure for the under-50 crowd, but McKnight said the process has improved over the years. The night before, the patient drinks a solution to clear the bowels, and the next day they are put under anesthesia (not fully under, but asleep) and can be back to normal by the afternoon, even eating right after the procedure.
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At times, Dickinson resident Chase Folwell has to summon tears as his character, Pete, copes with sleeping on a relative's couch while dealing with a drawn-out divorce in Alvin Community College's production of the holiday comedy "Seasonal Allergies."

Folwell, a 2012 graduate of the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, revealed that eating a jalapeno helps him turn on the waterworks.

"I learned it at a Mexican restaurant," said the son of Forrest and Connie Folwell of Dickinson. He often entertains at local assisted living centers, singing Frank Sinatra songs and reviving Red Skelton characters.

Scheduled for performances Dec. 3-4 and Dec. 8-10, the play features actors from northern Brazoria County and across the Bay Area.

More Information Want to go? Want to go? What: "Seasonal Allergies" Where: Alvin Community Theatre, 3110 Mustang Road, Alvin When: 7:30 p.m. Dec 3; 2:30 p.m. Dec 4; 7:30 p.m. Dec. 8-10 Cost: $7 advance; $9 at the door. Tickets are available on ACC's website. Information: 281-756-3606; www.alvincollege.edu See More Collapse

Written in 2013 by Katherine DiSavino and Kevin Mead, "Allergies" covers how the holidays can be both fun and frustrating, director C. Jay Burton said.

"The show follows a set of family and friends through the holiday season from Thanksgiving to New Year's, with all the stops in between," said Burton, who lives in Alvin. "It's funny and poignant and heart-warming, and it just might be about people you know."

Seeking some tender loving care, Pete flees to the home of his sister, Julie, and her husband, Thomas. They are portrayed by ACC sophomore Lauren Stanley of Alvin and Trevor Grace of Santa Fe.

The couple also opens their arms to a very pregnant Alison, played by Kate Court of Pearland, and her husband, JD, who is portrayed by Dillon Dewitt of Texas City.

"My favorite scene is an argument with my wife," said Dillon, 24, who graduated from Texas City High School in 2011.

"There is a very funny line that exactly sum up how this show is about family and friends and good times."

Julie and Thomas also invite their widowed neighbor, Emily, to their holiday festivities.

Emily is played by Tina Mueller, 17, of Pearland, who is home-schooled.

To portray an older adult, the daughter of Alana and Theresa Mueller demonstrated, "I make my voice deeper."

Julie and Thomas also have an 8-year-old child, played by 8-year-old Marcella Dick, the daughter of Edward and Deanna Dick of Algoa.

The youngster, who said her character "likes karate and she butts into conversations," also performed in last summer's children's theater festival at ACC.

Children from ages 6 through high school may audition May 2-3, 2017 for next summer's children's shows.

Court, 23, said that growing up, she performed many summers at ACC.

"It's a great opportunity for kids," she said. "You get to perform, but you also become skilled at public speaking and feeling comfortable in your own skin."

The 2012 graduate of Pearland High School was nominated her senior year for a Tommy Tune Award for best leading actress as Laurey in "Oklahoma!" at PHS, and she was awarded a Tommy Tune scholarship from Theatre Under the Stars.

Burton explained that auditions for ACC shows are open to both students and the community.

"Students learn the competitive nature of theater. They learn by association and by watching the interaction of more seasoned actors," he said.

Tryouts for ACC's spring musical will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13 in the ACC Theatre.

"We would love to announce the show's title," said Burton, "but we are contractually obligated to hold back on the name.

I can say that we are very excited about being able to produce this musical and are looking forward to the production."

Performances of the musical will be at 7:30 p.m. March 4 and 9-11, with a 2:30 p.m. matinee on March 5.

The production team for "Seasonal Allergies" includes Burton as the director and lighting designer, DC Stell (designer/technical director) and Donna Corley (costume designer).

The stage manager is Kat Merriman, assisted by Natasha Braun.

The assistant director is Sammie Ford.

To learn more about auditions for upcoming productions or to purchase tickets, call 281-756-3606 or visit www.alvincollege.edu/drama.

For further information on Folwell's performances at assisted living centers, contact the actor at chaseafolwell@gmail.com.

Don Maines is a freelance writer who can be reached at donmaines@att.net
Nov. 11

At 5:57 a.m., Officer Vorhees was dispatched to 5400 block of Bellaire Blvd. Officer Vorhees arrived at approximately 5:58 a.m. and found the east door glass of the restaurant broken out. Further investigation showed that unknown suspect(s) burglarized the business.

At 9:43 a.m., Sgt. Hefferin conducted a traffic stop on suspect vehicle for defective driver side brake light in the 6300 block of I-610 service road. The driver provided her name and date of birth; she did not have her driver's license in her possession. Sgt Hefferin conducted a computer query and found the suspect driver's license to be suspended. The suspect was unable to provide any type of proof of financial responsibility for her vehicle.

At 3:12 p.m., Officers O'Sullivan and D. Guerra were dispatched to the city of Bellaire Police Department lobby in reference to an ID theft. The investigation indicated the incident was an instance of Identity Theft occurred in the 4300 block of Oleander.

At 8:10 p.m., Officer Delgado was dispatched to the 5800 block of Bissonnet in regards to a criminal mischief call. Officer Delgado made contact with the victim who stated while she was working; an unknown person slashed her vehicle's four tires.

At 12:11 p.m., Officer J. Trujillo and R. Guerra were dispatched to a call for service regarding a burglary of a habitation in the 6900 block of Avenue B. Upon arrival, Officers spoke to the complainant who advised an unknown person(s) entered his home without permission through an unlocked door and removed several items from his residence.

Nov. 10

At 1:48 a.m., Officer Bellard was on patrol in the area of the 4700 block of Bissonnet when he observed a gray Nissan Murano fail to signal a right turn.

Officer Bellard initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle and after further investigation, the driver was arrested for driving while intoxicated.

Nov. 9

At 2:25 a.m., Officer Clisham responded to the St. Luke's Hospital emergency room in reference to a domestic assault that had occurred in the 4300 block of Dorothy.

Upon arrival, Officer Clisham met with Houston Police Officer S. Coke, who stated a female had just been brought in by her husband and there was suspected family violence involved. Officer Clisham met with the female victim who had suffered injuries, but refused to speak with officers. After further investigation, Officer Clisham contacted the Harris County District Attorney's Office, who refused to accept any charges on the male suspect.

Nov. 8

At 2:23 p.m., Officers Andrade, Vorhees and Corporal Kramer were dispatched to the 4500 block of Elm Street in reference to a suspicious vehicle. At about 1425 hours, Corporal Kramer arrived and observed the suspicious vehicle, occupied by 2 males, idling in the roadway more than 18 inches from the curb.

Officers Vorhees and Andrade made contact with the driver who identified himself by name and date of birth.

Corporal Kramer made contact with the passenger who identified himself by a Texas Driver's License. Upon further investigation, Officer Andrade found the driver to be driving while license invalid enhanced and a person of interest from a previous attempted burglary of a habitation case.

The passenger was also a person of interest from a previous attempted burglary.

The investigation was turned over to the City of Bellaire Detectives.

At 1:20 p.m., Officer Vorhees was dispatched to the 4600 block of Cedar Oaks Lane in reference to a stolen vehicle. Officer Vorhees located a 2004 silver Honda CRV parked at the location partially blocking the driveway. Through investigation it was later determined the vehicle was stolen from the City of Houston.

Nov. 11

At 8:10 p.m., Bellaire Police Officers were dispatched to the 5100 block of Spruce Street for a hold up panic alarm. Officer Delgado and Officer Younger were first to arrive on scene and observed two black males running out the main entrance of O' Reilly Auto Parts. Both black males fled on foot westbound on the 5100 block of Spruce Street towards Fifth Street then northbound on Fifth Street. One black male continued on foot and the second black male jumped into a white four door sedan, which was parked in an alley way behind 5160 Spruce. Officer Younger and Officer Manriquez pursued one suspect on foot while Officer Delgado pursued the other suspect in her patrol vehicle. Through investigation both suspects were found to have robbed the above location with deadly weapons. One suspect was located and placed in custody, while the other suspect evaded in the white four-door sedan.

At 1:28 p.m., Officer's J. Trujillo and R. Guerra were dispatched to Randall's at 5130 Bellaire Boulevard in reference to a shoplifting in progress. The investigation concluded with the suspect being arrested and transported to the Bellaire Police Department for Theft Class C.

At 4:10 p.m., Officer Younger was dispatched to the 5300 block of Pine Street in regards to a missing juvenile. Officer Younger arrived at 4:20 p.m. and made contact with the missing juvenile's father. The juvenile was last seen at approximately 10 a.m. The juvenile was placed as missing in NCIC and TCIC.

At 12:04 p.m., Ofc D. Rocha was dispatched to the 5400 block of Bellaire in reference to a theft of a firearm. Upon arrival at 12:09 p.m., Officer D. Rocha met with an employee and the manager of the store. The manager stated at approximately 1053 hours on this day, an unknown suspect walked into the store and started looking at the firearm display. The manager stated the suspect was looking at one of their handguns. After approximately forty minutes the suspect walked out of the store stating he would be back. The suspect walked out then turned around and walked back in the store asking to see the same handgun as before. After a few minutes, the suspect grabbed his identification from the counter and ran out of the store with the handgun without purchasing it.

At 11:40 a.m., Ofc D. Rocha was dispatched to the 5100 block of Evergreen Street in reference to found property. Bellaire resident had found a box of ammunition in his front yard.

At 6:37 p.m., Officer Liccketto was dispatched to the 5757 Bissonnet in reference to a burglary of a motor vehicle. The owner of the vehicle stated he left the vehicle and went into the restaurant to eat and found his driver side back window broken at about 1830 hours. The unknown suspect made entry into the vehicle by breaking the driver side back window and took a black briefcase with various items inside.

At 11:47 p.m., Officer Bellard was dispatched to a minor accident in the area of the 6400 block of I-610 South. Officer Bellard arrived on scene at approximately 11:52 p.m. After further investigation the driver of one of the vehicles was arrested for driving while intoxicated.

Between midnight and 7:20 a.m., an unknown suspect stole items from an unsecured truck cab and bed which was parked on the street in front of a home in the 4600 block of Valerie Street.

at 7:02 p.m., Officer Liccketto was patrolling 5400 Bellaire Blvd W/B. Officer Liccketto observed a white Pontiac in front of his patrol vehicle with expired registration of 07/2016. Officer Liccketto conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle and conducted an interview with the driver. During the interview the driver was found to have a suspended driver's license and no proof of financial responsibility. The driver was released from the scene and a To-Be Warrant will be filled at a later date.

Nov. 12

At 2:04 a.m., an officer was on routine patrol when he came into contact with a suspicious vehicle in the rear parking lot 5427 Bissonnet. After further investigation, the driver of the vehicle was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated.

At 3:56 p.m., Officer Liccketto was patrolling the 5100 block of Bissonnet and observed a red Chevrolet Impala with expired registration 08/2016. Officer Liccketto conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle and noticed a strong smell of marijuana was emitting from the vehicle. During the course of the investigation the driver was found to be in possession of Alprazolam and Marijuana. The driver was arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Marijuana and taken to the Bellaire Police Department for booking and processing without incident.

At 5:26 p.m., Officer Liccketto was dispatched to the lobby of the Bellaire Police Department in reference to an I.D. theft. The victim stated that an unknown suspect, using his identifying information, opened a new credit card in the victim's name.

Nov. 13

At 11:57 a.m., Officer Marcotte initiated a traffic stop on a 2003 Cadillac for failure to signal a lane change in the 5400 block of Bellaire. The vehicle displayed a paper dealer's tag that was found to be counterfeit. The driver was arrested and charged with displaying a fictitious registration as a class B misdemeanor.

At 9:18 a.m., Officer Marcotte initiated a traffic stop on a beige Toyota for speeding in the 6100 block of I-610 South. The driver was found to have a suspended license and was arrested for driving while license invalid.

Nov. 14

At 9:57 a.m., Officers Trujillo and D. Guerra were on patrol in the area of the 5500 block of I-610 service road and observed an expired registration as of 01/2016. Officer D. Guerra initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle and after further investigation the driver was found to be driving while license invalid class b.

At 10:56 a.m., Officer Vorhees was dispatched to Bellaire Police Department Lobby in reference to an identity theft. Officer Vorhees met with the victim who stated an unknown suspect(s) opened a Chase Bank credit card account, and an AT&T cell phone account using his identifying information without his consent.

At 4:45 p.m., Medic 1 with the West University Fire Department and Bellaire Officers were dispatched to the 500 block of South Third to an unconscious person. Officer Delgado, Officer Liccketto, Officer O'Sullivan and Officer Carson arrived at the location at 4:47 p.m. and observed the Houston Fire Department #51 EMS performing CPR on the victim. The victim regained a pulse and was transported to Hermann Memorial Hospital Downtown where the victim later died.

At 4:27 p.m., Officer Marcotte initiated a traffic stop on beige Pontiac for expired registration in the 6800 block of I-610 service road. The driver was found to have a suspended license and was arrested for driving while license invalid.

At 6:39 p.m., Officer O'Sullivan was dispatched to the 6700 block of I-610 South in reference to a major accident. The vehicle was abandoned. The driver of the vehicle was located in the 3300 block of Bellefontaine Street and arrested for DWI.

Nov. 15

At 8:22 a.m., Officer Andrade was dispatched to the 4800 block of Elm Street in reference to a criminal mischief. Upon arrival, Officer Andrade made contact with the victim who advised on 11/15/2016 between the hours of 4:30 and 8 a.m., unknown suspect(s) broke her vehicle passenger door window and window frame. The victim advised nothing inside the vehicle appeared disturbed or missing.

Nov. 16

At 5:05 a.m., Officer Clisham met with a victim who claimed he had been at his friend's house in Bellaire earlier in the night where he was assaulted. The victim stated the suspect in this case had woken up and pushed the victim down a flight of stairs and then punched him in the mouth causing severe lacerations. Officers were unable to make any contact with the suspect. The Harris County District Attorney's Office declined any criminal charges at this time, pending a criminal investigation of the incident.

At 9:47 a.m., Officers Trujillo and D. Guerra were dispatched to the 4700 block of Holt Street w to her vehicle and removed some valuables without her permission.

At 6:37 p.m., Officer Younger was dispatched to the 4600 block of Maple Street in regards to a family disturbance. Officer Younger arrived at approximately 6:45 p.m. and made contact with the husband and wife who got into a physical altercation. The investigation resulted with no charges being filed and the parties being separated for the night.

At 10:17 a.m., paramedics from Medic 81 were dispatched to the 4800 block of Elm Street in reference to an unresponsive victim. Upon arrival, Medic 81 performed C.P.R. on the victim. At 10:19 a.m., Bellaire Police Officers Trujillo and D. Guerra were dispatched to scene. At 10:47 a.m. Bellaire Paramedics transported the victim to St. Lukes Hospital.

Nov. 17

At 9:43 a.m., Officer Lysack met with the resident at the 5300 block of Patrick Henry Street. The resident stated she found an Apple Watch and a piece of cardboard with writing on it in her vehicle. The resident stated the vehicle was left unlocked in her driveway overnight and the items were left in the vehicle between about 3 p.m. Nov. 15 and 7:30 a.m. Nov. 16.

Nov. 18

At 1:47 p.m., an unknown suspect opened the victim's unlocked front passenger side door and stole the victim's purse in the 5000 block of Bellaire Boulevard. The suspect then got into the back passenger seat of a brown four door sedan.

Nov. 20

At 1:07 a.m., Officer Proctor was patrolling the 5000 block of Bellaire Boulevard when he observed a black Nissan X-Terra traveling in the Eastbound lanes in front of him. Officer Proctor observed this vehicle to drift from the middle lane of 5000 Bellaire Blvd. into the left lane and slowly drift back. Officer Proctor then observed the vehicle run the red light at the intersection of 4800 Bellaire Blvd. and 6800 First St. Officer Proctor initiated a traffic stop on the vehicle and made contact with the driver. Officer Proctor immediately noticed the driver had bloodshot eyes, slurred speech, and an odor of alcohol coming from his breath. After further investigation, Officer Proctor determined the driver to be driving while intoxicated. At approximately 0127 hours, Officer Proctor placed the driver into custody for DWI and transported him to Bellaire Jail for Booking.

At 11:32 p.m., Officer Barrientos conducted a traffic stop in the 7600 block of I-610 West Loop South on the suspect vehicle for vehicle insurance coverage expired; vehicle last match not within 45 days expiration date of 06/07/2016. The driver provided her Texas identification card. Ofc. Barrientos conducted a computer query and found the suspect driver's license to be currently suspended. The suspect was unable to provide any type of proof of financial responsibility for her vehicle.

At 7:07 p.m., Officer Delgado was dispatched to a one-car minor accident in the 6700 block of I-610 West Loop South. The vehicle had struck the barrels near the Bellaire Exit Ramp at the 6700 block of IH 610 S/B. Officer Delgado arrived on scene and observed a silver 2016 Dodge Dart with the front end against the barrels near the Bellaire Exit Ramp. Officer Delgado observed the stopped vehicle reverse and leave the scene of the accident, failing to maintain a single lane and traveling southbound on IH 610. After further investigation the driver was placed in custody for driving while intoxicated and transported to Bellaire Jail for processing.
Lewis E. Foxhall, MD, of Houston was named the 2016 Philanthropist of the Year by the Texas Academy of Family Physicians Foundation during the 2016 Annual Session and Primary Care Summit in Dallas on Nov. 5.

Foxhall is a family physician, professor and senior leader at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Throughout his career, he has been a leader in organized medicine on all levels, including serving as TAFP president and on the Texas Medical Association Board of Trustees.
Nov. 18

An officer was dispatched to the 2600 block of Centenary for a report of a Burglary of a Motor Vehicle. Upon arrival, the officer spoke to the victim who stated that an unknown person(s) smashed the window to her vehicle and took her purse without her consent.

An officer was dispatched to the West U PD lobby in reference to found property. Dispatch advised that several cards were found near the roadway at Buffalo Speedway and Bissonnet. The officer arrived and collected the items submitting them for safekeeping.

An officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby for a report of Identity Theft.

Nov. 19

An Officer was dispatched to a minor accident/FSGI involving two parked vehicles located in the 2700 block of Albans. Upon arrival it was discovered that one vehicle had sustained damage, and a report for minor accident/FSGI was generated.

An officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby for an identity theft report.

An officer observed a vehicle traveling east bound in the 4100 block of Bissonnet at approximately 45 mph in a 35 mph zone. The officer initiated a traffic stop and made contact with the driver and detected an odor of marijuana. The officer searched the vehicle and found drug paraphernalia. The driver was issued a citation for the offense and released from the scene.

Nov. 20

An officer was dispatched to the West U PD lobby in reference to theft of a bicycle.

An Officer was dispatched to the 3700 block of Sunset. Officers made contact with the subject and after further investigation, determined that the subject was heavily intoxicated. The subject was arrested for public intoxication and transported to West University Place jail for book-in. This subject has prior arrest history including driving while intoxicated, prostitution and trespassing.

Nov. 21

At 9:19 a.m., an officer observed a vehicle traveling west bound in the 3300 block of University Blvd with expired Texas Temporary Tags. The vehicle was stopped on traffic for the violation. Upon contact with the driver and through investigation it was discovered the driver was in possession of marijuana. The driver was taken into custody for Possession of Marijuana and the other occupants of the vehicle were taken into custody for outstanding warrants. One subject has prior arrest history including Possession of marijuana (2x), Theft and Possession of controlled substance. The other subject has prior arrest history including trespassing (4x), burglary of motor vehicle felon possession of weapon, assault (2x), theft (3x), and fraud.

At 12:45 pm, an officer was dispatched to the West U PD Lobby in regard to a report of identity theft that had already occurred.

An Officer was patrolling the 6500 block of Wakeforest and spotted two individuals walking in roadway where sidewalk is provided. Upon further investigation the Officer discovered that the individuals were in possession of mail that did not belong to them.

At 12:03 am, an officer located 2 bicycles in the 3700 block of University. The bikes were collected and secured for safe keeping.

Nov. 22

An officer was dispatched to the City of West U PD Lobby in regards to a subject wanting to turn himself in for outstanding West University Place warrants. The subject was taken into custody and then booked into West University Jail all without incident.

At 10:12 PM, officers were dispatched to the 6600 block of Mercer in regards to a suspicious person. The subject was later located trespassing in the backyard of a residence in the 6500 block of Mercer and provided a false name to the officer. The subject was arrested for Criminal Trespass and Fail to ID. This subject has prior history including Possession of Controlled Substance and Trespassing (4x).
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. By the initiative of the MPs the extraordinary session has kicked off in the Parliament of Armenia, reports Armenpress.

101 MPs were registered.

4 issues are included in the session agenda.

The MPs will discuss the draft law on the Human Rights Defender and the package of related drafts, the draft law on Parties, as well as the draft law on the Guarantees for the activity of the MP of the Parliament of Armenia.

The National Assembly Regulation law is also included in the session agenda.
Fort Bend County, once a Republican stronghold that's become one of America's most diverse counties, performed with purple complexity on election day. It handed Hillary Clinton a seven-point margin at the top of the ticket amid rampant down-ballot ticket splitting.

Maybe the change was to be expected. The area has transformed from rural ranches to suburban developments. But Clinton's success did not sweep in local Democrats. Republicans won nearly all county-level seats. And voters threw out an incumbent Democratic commissioner -- one who had served two terms. So what gives?

With its increasing population and, in turn, growing number of Hispanic, African American and Asian residents, it could have been expected to lean more Democratic. But how that demographic change actually played out politically was more complicated. Diversity, it seems, isn't enough to turn a red county blue.

"It will never solidly be one or the other," said Jay Aiyer, a political science professor at Texas Southern University. "It's almost designed to be the classic and perfect kind of swing neighborhood."

Interactive Written By John D. Harden

Copyright  Houston Chronicle 2016

Caption: Explore Fort Bend's diversity using the map above. The interactive map reveals how blended Fort Bend neighborhoods are, based on the countys block groups  smaller divisions of census boundaries. The map was created using U.S. Census Bureau data and by turning each resident into a dot, then randomly scattering those dots into their respective block groups. Click the checkbox to between maps.

Local experts and other academics beg to differ. Democratic party leaders say Fort Bend will eventually favor their side. The local Republican Party chair calls that "hogwash," saying it will remain conservative territory.

Since 2000, the number of residents in relatively well off Fort Bend County has more than doubled. With that came a balancing of various racial groups. Between 2000 and 2015, census data shows its Hispanic and Asian populations took a greater share of the overall population, growing to 24 and 20 percent, respectively. The portion of the county that was African American remained steady around 20 percent, while the white percentage decreased from 46 to 35.

Fort Bend 2012 vs. 2016 Results: Interactive Written By John D. Harden

Copyright  Houston Chronicle 2016

Caption: Use the map above to see where the GOP and Democrate have strengthened or weakened their grips on Fort Bend since 2012, based on presidential voting figures.Click the checkbox to the right to toggle between maps.

Even though Fort Bend chose Clinton over Trump, U.S. Census figures and historic election data indicate winning a local election may be a little tougher.According to a Houston Chronicle analysis of the county's neighborhoods, the eastern side is generally more diverse and is trending Democratic, while the western side is less diverse and is trending Republican. Simply put, Fort Bend is in a tug-of-war between each half.

The county's Precinct 1 embodies both sides. The area is beginning to become more diverse, but still remains the most homogeneous in the county. There, incumbent Democratic county commissioner Richard Morrison was fighting to hold onto the seat he had served for eight years, one the Democratic party had taken pride in occupying.

As Election Day neared, Morrison and his Republican opponent, Vincent Morales, fought for votes in the master planned communities that have come to define Fort Bend. They headed to Greatwood and Sienna Plantation. They knocked on the doors of uniform, spacious, suburban homes. Black, Hispanic, Asian and white residents answered. Some said they would vote straight-ticket Republican. Others Democrat.

A volunteer for Morrison's campaign, Ali Zaidi, 17, pointed to one home in Sienna Plantation.

"The libertarians - Ron Paul supporters - you got their vote," Zaidi said to Morrison. "They liked that you cut their taxes."

In Greatwood, a supporter stopped Morales on the street.

"I voted for you!" he called. "And Trump. We need a Supreme Court that's decent."Along with Obama's previous large support in the county, former Fort Bend Democratic Party Chair Don Bankston considered Morrison's past victories an indicator that the county was going blue. Fort Bend's five-person Commissioners Court traditionally has had one seat held by a Democrat: Precinct 2. Until Morrison, the rest were typically Republican-held.

Gaining county commissioners seats is important to the strength of a local political party. Commissioners have significant control over residents' day-to-day lives, said University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus. They approve road projects. They control the county's budget. They campaign to get their party even more representation on a local level.

On election night, local Republicans gathered for a watch party at Constellation Field, local GOP chair Mike Gibson said. People kept up with returns on tablets. Fox News played on the scoreboard. Pork sliders were served.

Early voting results showed Morales, the Republican challenger for commissioner, ahead, sending a joyous ripple through the crowd.

"We knew that that was going to be tough," Gibson said. "We knew he wasn't going to go down easy."

Before the party ended at 11 p.m., Morrison called Morales to concede. His campaign had knocked on 14,000 doors and made 8,000 phone calls. But Morrison said that had not been enough.

Gibson said Republicans succeeded in winning over a diverse electorate.

"If we did not have that minority support we would not have prevailed," Gibson said. "Then Fort Bend would have turned blue."

When Rottinghaus looks toward ways Fort Bend County could become blue, he said it probably won't start with another county commissioner's seat. The party needs to build a stronger field of local candidates.

Still, the Republican party isn't backing down. Gibson said he will focus on growing conservative support in traditionally Democratic territory. And he points to their local sweep as evidence of the party's strength: the incumbent county sheriff and two incumbent Republican district judges won their seats against challengers. Republicans also claimed an open county-court-at-law seat and constable position.

One place the Democrats would need to win is Morrison's neighborhood, Greatwood, where the two candidates had both battled for votes. Ahead of this election Morrison knew it would be a fight.

"I at least feel like in my precinct that my constituents have a choice," he said. "And that makes me kind of proud."

Precinct 1 has flipped blue before. It went red again on Tuesday. In four years, Democrats hope, it might flip again.

John Harden contributed to this report
The 2016 Houston Heights holiday home tour will feature six homes on or around a single block. Tour hours are 6-9 p.m. Dec. 2 and 3-9 p.m. Dec. 3.

The "Jingle Bell Block" homes will be bedecked for the holidays with musicians, carolers and special treats adding to the festivities.

Visit http://stores.houstonheightsstore.org/events to purchase tickets.

Online sales will close at 5 p.m. on Dece. 1. Tickets will not be mailed. People may pick them up at "will call" at the Fire Station, 107 W. 12th St., anytime during the tour. Tickets can be purchased locally at Jubilee (325 W. 19th St.), August Antiques (803 Heights Blvd.), or Buchanan's Native Plants (611 E. 11th St.) during their respective business hours. Tickets will also be available for $25 each at the Fire Station on the days of the tour.

Advance tickets are $20. Tickets purchased on tour days are $25. Tickets are nonrefundable. Tickets will not be sold at the individual homes this year.

The tour will feature the Schiller Home, Hagle/Kornberg Home, Potter Home, Arnold Home, Warner Home and the Nelson Home.

Schiller Home: 309 E. 13th St.

This 1920 bungalow was originally the family store for the residents at 1304 Cortlandt, another home on the tour.

At one point, the home was converted into a residential duplex. The current homeowners purchased the house in 2005. The front yard includes a fish pond, and the back yard features a deck with a pergola and a pizza oven built by the homeowner.

The holiday decorations reflect a blend of the husband's German upbringing and the wife's 21 years living in London.

Hagle/Kornberg Home: 1304 Cortlandt

This home was originally a Craftsman 4-square bungalow built in 1904 following the same plan as the house one block south at 12th Street. One family who owned it built and ran a store around the corner on 13th Street. Other owners have renovated and expanded the home over the years. The Christmas tree serves as a scrapbook of ephemera from the family's life, including lots of art created by the owners' two daughters. Highlighting the tree are ornaments from Indonesia, Thailand, and Italy, mementos of the exchange students hosted over the years.

Potter Home: 1312 Cortlandt

The owners purchased this classic circa-1920 working-man's bungalow in 2003. The home was renovated in 1993 but needed improvement, so a second story was added with two bedrooms, a playroom, and a second bath. The contractor carefully matched doors and woodwork so that the addition is seamless and appears to have been part of the original house.

The downstairs Christmas tree is decorated with ornaments collected over a lifetime. The playroom tree is decorated with a vintage Muffy Bear collection. The train has belonged to the husband since his childhood, with additions to the set made over the years.

Arnold Home: 1318 Cortlandt

This is the third home in the Heights for this couple who have lived in the neighborhood since 1980. They admired this Italianate Revival house built in 1995, and they purchased it when it came on the market in 2001. The home includes antique pine and cypress doors, a restored antique staircase, a barrel vault with cove lighting, and an English antique stained-glass window.

The holiday decorations include a number of hand-carved Santas and lots of Santa ornaments, some dating to the couple's childhoods. Fresh greenery with paperwhites, poinsettias, holly, and ivy complete the holiday decor.

Warner Home: 1325 Cortlandt.

The third time was the charm for the current owners moving back to Houston in 2012. Previous efforts to purchase a home in the Heights didn't work, but luck would be on their side as they relocated once again to the Houston area. The owners love the advantages of living in the nation's fourth largest city while appreciating the small town neighborhood feel of the Heights.

The couple has a collection of ornaments representing the 20-plus countries they have visited in their travels.

Nelson Home: 1333 Cortlandt.

The Nelson home was originally a 2-bedroom, 1-bath front-gable Craftsman bungalow built in 1910.

The current owner purchased the home in 2007 and built a significant addition in 2014 that doubled the square footage of the home and added a pool and landscaped yard.

The stairwell features an antique American stained-glass window discovered in Kansas City, with jewels and beveled glass set in zinc.

The den boasts a stained-glass triptych with the same design in the mantle.

Tour Headquarters/Shuttle Service:

Tour Headquarters will be the Houston Heights City Hall & Fire Station, 107 West 12th Street.

Visitors can explore the renovated 100-year-old building and board the Home Tour Shuttle for a comfortable ride to the homes, included in the ticket price.

Tour Headquarters will open one hour earlier than tour times: Friday, December 2, from 5-9 p.m. and Saturday, December 3, from 2-9 p.m.

Because parking can be limited at the homes, we encourage you to park at or near the Fire Station and ride the shuttle.

Information

Email holidaytour@houstonheights.org or call 713-861-4002, opt. 6 for information.
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A Texas death row inmate will get a chance this week to plead his case, possibly one final time.

The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled the hearing for Bobby James Moore on Tuesday, Nov. 29, the second day back from Thanksgiving for the eight justices currently serving.

Moore, whose 57th birthday was on Oct. 29, went to death row for the 1980 shotgun killing of 72-year-old James "Jim" McCarble in Houston.

SPEEDING UP: California passes measure to accelerate executions

The issues in question are Moore's intellectual capacity and how Texas decides whether he's too disabled to kill.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals rejected his claim of intellectual disability in September 2015, saying Moore didn't meet Texas' "Briseno factors," an unscientific, seven-pronged test which a judge based on the character Lennie Smalls from John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men."

The U.S. high court declared in 2002 that executing the mentally disabled is unconstitutional. But, the court didn't lay down any bright line as to what constitutes mental disability, instead, leaving it to each to decide.

LEGISLATIVE ACTION: Execution drug among bills Texas lawmakers to consider

Moore's IQ has ranged from the 50s to the 70s in tests over the years - the threshold for disability is generally considered an IQ of 70.

The case has drawn interest from the American Civil Liberties Union, the Constitution Project and the American Bar Association. The high court will decide by late spring if the standards Texas uses are constitutional and if Moore can go to the execution chamber.

The decision will once again put Texas, a state not shy about carrying out death sentences, back in the death penalty spotlight.
A 16th Century castle in northern Scotland is guaranteed to be a wee bit spooky.

So it's perhaps not surprising that a man who photographed some of his family members at Crathes Castle in Banchory, a small town near Aberdeen, reported seeing a ghostly figure in the photo background.

Bill Andrew, 78, of Scotland was visiting the site with his daughter Coleen Marsh, granddaughter Jessica Hockleyand and great-grandson Findley Hockley, who were visiting from England, acccording to The Barrhead News.

LOCAL SPOOKS: Texas is famous for its haunted sites

Andrew took the picture in front of the castle, but didn't notice the figure in the castle doorway, the Barrhead News reported. He told the paper he didn't know the castle had a reputation for being haunted.

His daughter, who spotted the strange figure in the photo, contacted the castle staff to ask about it, since the door had been shut when the picture was taken, according to The Daily Mail. The site is operated by the National Trust for Scotland.

The ghosts of two women, a "green lady" and Lady Agnes Burnett, are said to haunt the castle. Property manager James Henderson told The Daily Mail a number of visitors had reported "mysterious sightings" in and around the towering structure built as a family residence in the late 1500s.

HAUNTING TRAVEL: People say these 11 spots around the world are actually gateways to hell
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Plans to build a 60,000-square-foot Restaurant Depot in Pasadena are on hold after a group of neighborhood residents voiced opposition to the proposed development.

The business, which would supply wholesale goods to area restaurants, food trucks and catering companies from a 5.4-acre site on Preston Road, is the kind of entity that city and economic development officials see as a boon that brings in jobs and sales-tax revenues. But company officials who recently came to meet with members of the Preston Trails Homeowners Association were met with signs that said "No Restaurant Depot." Neighborhood residents also spoke at a recent City Council meeting to express concerns about the business, which would be built near Pasadena Memorial High School.

"This is something very serious that is going to affect our home values because of the flooding potential and the noise pollution," Cindy Russell, president of the homeowners association, told City Council and asked for its help at a Tuesday, Nov. 15 meeting. "This is a nightmare and it is just wrong."

Stan Gutierrez, a 16-year resident of the Preston Trails subdivision and former president of the homeowners association, expressed concerns about noise pollution, safety and increased traffic the proposed Restaurant Depot would bring to the area and suggested city officials do their part to help company officials find a better-suited location.

"I welcome Restaurant Depot, but I do not welcome them behind out neighborhood," he told the council.

"We all know Pasadena is growing and we need businesses like this. But, Restaurant Depot doesn't seem to fit the niche of what I believe the City of Pasadena would like to see within their neighborhoods."

After meeting with neighborhood residents, company officials from Restaurant Depot now say the plans for the new store are being reconsidered.

"We are currently re-evaluating the situation and it's unclear at this point if we will move forward with plans for a Restaurant Depot in Pasadena," construction manager Stephanie Mallory said when contacted by phone.

Headquartered in New York, Restaurant Depot was founded in 1990 as a members-only store with free memberships offering customers more than 11,000 kinds of foods, beverages, equipment and other supplies. Restaurant Depot has 121 stores in 33 states including two locations in Houston.
Katie Hyde, a senior at Logos Preparatory Academy, has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor in Girl Scouting.

The award recognizes girls in grades 9 through 12 who demonstrate leadership through sustainable and measurable community service projects that require a minimum of 80 hours to complete. Less than 5 percent of Girl Scouts earn the award.

To earn the award, Hyde built eight sets of horse jumps for the therapeutic riding program at Southern Equestrian Center. As part of her project, she met with the equestrian center manager, designed the horse jumps, shopped for wood and supplies and solicited donations from two local area hardware stores - Lowe's and Home Depot.

"My volunteer team measured and cut the wood for each horse jump and then they used the instructions I had typed up to build each jump," said Hyde. "Then all the jumps were primed and painted. Once the jumps were completed, my team delivered them to Southern Breeze Equestrian Center to benefit their therapeutic riding program."

Hyde's team consisted of more than 17 people, including 10 employees from Lowe's who helped construct the horse jumps during a summer workday.

Hyde is an active member of GSSJC's horse program and is also a member of the council's parade team where she represents Girl Scouts while on horseback.

During her project, Hyde learned how to build horse jumps, work with wood-working tools, learned the importance of comparative shopping and how to work with a large group of adults and peers to complete a common goal.

"I love spending time with and riding my horse, so I wanted others to have that same opportunity, despite any physical or mental challenges they might have," said Hyde. "Earning my Gold Award taught me about leadership and serving my community, especially since this was the 100 year anniversary of the Gold Award."

After graduating in spring 2017, Hyde will attend Texas A&M University major in animal science and minor in wildlife and fisheries management.

Visit www.girlscouts.org to learn more about the award.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Vice President of Armenias Republican Party Armen Ashotyan finds PM Karapetyans joining the party not surprising.

With his joining, Karen Karapetyan affirmed hes not a temporary Prime Minister, he is not temporary in our politics, he isnt simply an executive director in the government. He is willing and is ready to be a political figure, and in terms of policy, I cant tell better than him as to why he joined the party. There is no intrigue here, there would be if he didnt have joined, Ashotyan told reporters.

Ashotyan said he would be happy if the opposition acted similarly to the RPA, that is  to mention who would be the candidate for prime minister in case of winning the upcoming parliamentary elections.

We said it honestly, once again affirming that we do not give situational solutions, rather strategic. Politics is predictable in some circles, dont expect us to be even more opened, we in turn expects similar steps from the oppositions, he said.

Speaking about the upcoming parliamentary elections, Ashotyan mentioned it is important to understand the decisive meaning of that election, since it will form the vision of the countrys development until 2022.

These arent simply ongoing elections. The vote of the 2017 parliament is important, since it will form the leadership in Armenia, he said.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. More than 3000 civilians, including 1519 children left the eastern part of Aleppo over the last day, the Russian Reconciliation Center said, reports TASS.

The Russian Reconciliation Center continues delivering humanitarian aid to Aleppos eastern regions liberated from terrorists. Over the last day, 3179 civilians, including 1519 children and 138 babies, left the eastern part of Aleppo, the statement said.

All the civilians have been accommodated by the humanitarian centers deployed jointly with the Syrian authorities. They are receiving medical assistance, hot meals, clothing and etc.

The Russian Reconciliation Center also deployed more than 150 field kitchens in Aleppo.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Armenias Parliament discusses the draft law on the Human Rights Defender and the package of related drafts, reports Armenpress.

First Deputy Minister of Justice Artur Hovhannisyan said the necessity of adopting the legislative initiative is associated with the Constitutional changes on December 6, 2015.

In particular, the 216th Article of the Constitution defines that the Constitutional law on the Human Rights Defender corresponds to the Constitution and comes into force on the first day of the next session of the Parliament. The new constitutional requirements aimed at expanding the powers of the human rights defender are set in draft law. The 191st Article of the Constitution enables the Ombudsman not only to follow the maintenance of human rights and freedoms by state and local self-government bodies and officials, but also by the organizations. The draft law defined the cases when the Ombudsman can discuss the complaints against the organizations, he said.

He said it was defined that the Ombudsman can discuss issues related to the violations of human rights and freedoms by the organizations operating in the public services sector, if there is information on mass human rights violations.

Another necessary regulation deriving from the constitutional changes concerns the Ombudsmans participation in human rights-related regulations. The draft law proposes a demand to send the draft laws on human rights and freedoms to the Ombudsman to listen his opinion, Artur Hovhannisyan said.

The First Deputy Justice Minister said according to the draft law, the Ombudsman was given a jurisdiction to apply monitoring on the provisions of the UN Convention on Childrens rights, as well as to prevent the violations of rights of children.

The draft law also defines important guarantees for ensuring the effective activity of the Ombudsman.

The Deputy Justice Minister said according to the Criminal Code, hindering the Ombudsmans activity supposes criminal liability only to officials, however, according to this new draft law, the circle of those people has been expanded, including also non officials.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. On November 28, 2016, in accordance with the agreement reached with the leadership of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, the OSCE Mission conducted a planned monitoring of the Line of Contact between the armed forces of Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan in the eastern direction of Talish settlement of the NKR Martakert region, press service of the NKR MFA told Armenpress.

From the positions of the NKR Defense Army, the monitoring was conducted by Field Assistant to the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ghenadie Petrica (Moldova) and staff member of the Office Peter Svedberg (Sweden).

From the opposite side of the Line of Contact, the monitoring was conducted by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk and his Field Assistant Irji Aberle (Czech Republic).

The monitoring passed in accordance with the agreed schedule. No violation of the ceasefire regime was registered.

From the Karabakh side, the monitoring mission was accompanied by representatives of the NKR Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense.
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A "suspicious" apartment blaze drew fire crews to the scene Sunday afternoon in southwest Houston.

The flames started around 3:40 p.m. on Corporate near Sharpcrest.

Crews were on hand for more than an hour battling the blaze. Firefighters told reporters on scene that the building was vacant and no one was injured.

Initially, three units caught on fire but eventually the flames spread to the entire building, authorities said.

Aaron Jackson, who lives down the street on Oregano, was headed home when the blaze broke out.

"It was in an abandoned section of apartments in the center of the complex," he said. "The units were boarded up."

The flames ate up multiple units, according to Jackson.

Apartment fire in SW Houston Posted by Aaron Jackson on Sunday, November 27, 2016

"Other apartments were in jeopardy of being engulfed as well," he said. "However, there was such a large showing of force from the fire department, that they were able to bring it under control."

Arson investigators combed over the scene after crews tamed the blaze.

"It's definitely suspicious," said HFD Deputy Chief Blake White.

The building burned at least once before, which was why it was fenced off before Sunday's blaze, he added.
An 8-month-old infant ejected from a car during rollover crash ended up in a storm drain 25 feet away with just a scratch on her forehead, officials report.

The accident occurred Friday night in Texarkana, Arkansas after an 18-wheeler clipped the car while changing lanes causing the car to flip and the baby girl to be ejected.
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A man holding a sign outside of the Islamic Center of Irving is going viral because of his encouraging message.

The white-bearded man stood on the sidewalk in front of the center Saturday morning in his cowboy hat, flannel shirt and positive sign that read, "You belong. Stay strong. Be blessed. We are one America."

AMERICAN TENSIONS: Man charged with using Muslim slurs in restaurant attack

His message and face was captured by author Charles Finch and shared on Twitter. Within just under 36 hours, the tweet had been retweeted over 53,000 times and liked over 136,000 times.

It is not known who the man is or what prompted him to share his message, but it comes at a crucial time as hate crimes against Muslims have spiked in America by 67 percent from 2014 to 2015 and 6 percent from 2015 to 2016, according to the New York Times.

The Islamic Center of Irving is where a group of armed protesters gathered outside last year in order to "Stop the Islamization of America," according to the Dallas Morning News.

Their protest came after the November 2015 ISIS attacks in Paris. The coordinator of the protest, David Wright, said, "It would be ridiculous to protest Islam without defending ourselves."

This event is among the many racially and religiously charged attacks in response to America's current political climate. To learn of other examples, click through the gallery above.

AROUND THE NATION: Student tries to rip hijab from Muslim woman's head, implies she's a terrorist
At age 13, Drew Frank is showing an immense generosity that has caught the attention of thousands across the country.

The El Paso resident recently turned 13 years old and in lieu of gifts for his bar mitzvah, he asked for cash donations instead. After counting the gifts, Frank had over $25,000 to donate to the Braden Aboud Foundation, a nonprofit that gives away high-quality shoes to lower-income neighborhoods. The money from his bar mitzvah bought 800 pairs of Nikes and 800 pairs of socks, USA Today reports.
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A Texas inmate gets his day in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to argue that he's too mentally disabled to be executed.

The case of Bobby James Moore, which could be decided by early spring, turns on how the state defines "mentally disabled" for death row inmates.

Texas has brought all manner of cases before the high court, dating back to 1869 and the decision in Texas v. White, which concerned the constitutionality of state secession (sound familiar?).

SHORT LIST: Texas Justice Don Willett on Donald Trump's Supreme Court short list

More modern high-profile cases have involved abortion (Roe v. Wade), immigration (U.S. v. Texas) and even anti-sodomy laws (Lawrence v. Texas). The state even threw itself into the middle of (a losing) fight over the Affordable Care Act, aka. Obamacare.

No matter the result, Moore's case is just the latest in a long, colorful and litigious history between the Lone Star State and the justices.

Click through the gallery to see highlights of some of the ongoing battles Texas has waged with the federal government that landed before the high court.
On November 25, Fidel Castro passed away at the age of 90. The controversial revolutionary turned dictator ruled over Cuba for five decades before handing off control to his younger brother Raul, in 2008.

Castro's first interaction with a U.S. president was in 1959 with Dwight D. Eisenhower, who helped the young Cuban rebel wage a war against Fulgencio Batista, the incumbent dictator that ruled over the island nation for seven years. Eisenhower severed ties with Castro after he executed opponents of his revolution and his communist intentions became clear.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The liberal political field in Armenia has a future only in one case  if it unites, RPA Vice-President Armen Ashotyan told reporters.

In my opinion the liberal field makes 10-15%, meaning thats the number of people with liberal mentality in our society in terms of elections. These rates come also from the previous parliamentary elections, if we look what votes the liberal forces received during those elections. Anyhow there is the field, which awaits its owner, he said.

Ashotyan said the party has already established itself in the political field and has a clear ideology.

Why do I emphasize so much the ideology ground, because we also made changes of regulation and programs, the RPA program had been revised 10 years ago. We pay great attention to our value system, we say that we have Christian-Democratic, national conservative doctrine in the Armenian reality, we have already established ourselves  you too get established, dear socialists, from our left and liberals from our right. True, we have synthesized the European political culture, but the basis for us, of course, is the vision and doctrine of Garegin Nzhdeh as the best philosophical and political doctrine of Armenian conservatism.
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Texas officials are protesting what they call the complete shutdown of "Operation Phalanx" - an aerial patrol of the Texas-Mexico border aimed at catching drug smugglers and people crossing into the United States illegally.

The catch is, the federal government says the program isn't ending.

Conservative online outlets have lit up in recent days with a story from Watchdog.org - a conservative website - saying the program is quietly being shut down.

PROCESSING MIGRANTS: Feds open new facility to handle people crossing border

The story doesn't cite anyone from the federal Department of Homeland Security saying the program - a joint operation between the feds and the state of Texas - is over.

Instead, it notes that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and others sent a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson when there were cutbacks to the program in February.

And, Dan Hetlage, the Customs and Border Protection media division director, told BuzzFeed that while the program did take cutbacks, the Obama administration isn't looking to close it down completely.

BEEFING UP: 150 more border agents being sent to south Texas

That hasn't stopped Abbott and other conservatives from launching broadsides at Obama for allegedly wanting to end the program while border crossings are on the rise. Abbott even took to Twitter in recent days to launch criticisms.

Twitter

Twitter

And, conservative websites have screamed with headlines such as "Obama Shuts Down Successful Aerial Border Surveillance Program: Now We Know Why".

This may be an example that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. Especially when that knowledge is incorrect.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The U.S. Government welcomes the agreement that was reached in June and September between the Armenian government and parliamentary political factions  with input from civil society representatives  on strengthening the integrity and credibility of the Armenian election process, Armenpress reports the U.S. Embassy in Armenia announced.

We consider this agreement a meaningful step towards restoring public trust and accountability in Armenias electoral processes. Based on President Sargsyans pledge in December 2015, we take seriously the Armenian governments commitment that the parliamentary elections of 2017 will be conducted in the atmosphere of greater trust, so that results of the election are not doubted by either political parties, or citizens.

To help make this public commitment to credible elections a reality, the United States is pleased to join  along with the European Union, the UK, and Germany  in providing financial support to the new voting processes and equipment provided for in the June 17 and September 9 agreements, so that these processes and equipment are in place for the spring 2017 parliamentary elections. With our fellow international donors, all of whom are working in partnership with the United Nations Mission to Armenia, the U.S. Embassy will help fund the efforts of the Armenian government, political opposition, and civil society to strengthen trust in the Armenian electoral process via same-day voter authentication and the publication of signed voter lists after the elections, all as agreed in the June and September agreements.

We join in this effort understanding that no single new electoral mechanism will completely do away with electoral fraud, however. It is a matter of political will. Fundamentally, the burden is on the government and its constituent institutions  the Central Election Commission, law enforcement bodies, and the judiciary  to foster a markedly different approach to elections; to ensure the Armenian peoples free expression of choice at the voting booth; and to safeguard the essential, unfettered work of domestic and international election observers and media both on election day and afterwards. A free and fair election also requires responsible civic engagement in the election process, along with engaged electoral observation, from the Armenian opposition, civil society, and all citizens regardless of their political views.

The U.S. Embassy agrees with President Sargsyans assessment that the forthcoming elections will shape the future of the Armenian state. The United States was the first country to recognize Armenias independence in 1991, and our two countries have been friends and partners for 25 years. We remain strongly committed to being a part of Armenias ongoing democratic growth and in helping it become the independent, secure, and prosperous nation its people deserve. Free, unfettered, and credible elections are an absolutely indispensable component of the path towards achieving this goal.
The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p.
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YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Who does not search for friends, he is his own enemy, this was the slogan of the event that took place at Arno Babajanyan Concert Hall in Yerevan organized by "Iveria" patriotic Union of Georgians in Armenia. The event turned into a brilliant demonstration of centuries-old Armenian-Georgian friendship. The fact that Armenian and Georgian languages were used equally during the event was the evidence of that.

Not only Armenian and Georgian songs and dances were performed at the event, but the establishment and activities of the Iveria community was largely touched upon.

The keynote speakers of the event, Nino Spandarashvili and Liana Samadalashvili briefed on the creation of "Iveria" patriotic Union.

A Sunday school operates at the Georgian community, as well as singing and dancing groups attended by both adults and children. In addition, the community has had its own printed newspaper,Iveria monthly, for already 12 years. The representatives of the community have for many times stated that thank to the support by the Government of Armenia the Georgian community, as well as the other national minorities are able preserve their national culture, language and traditions.

One of Sayat-Novas songs was performed at the event as another demonstration of Armenian-Georgian friendship, after which many other musical and poetic works linking the cultures of Armenia and Georgia were performed.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Georgia to Armenia Giorgi Saganelidze was present at the event.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. The working group of civil society in Azerbaijan has released a new list of 119 political prisoners, Armenpress was informed from Azerbaijani contact.az news website.

The previous list released on October 17 included 94 people. Of the 25 new political prisoners 24 are believers who were arrested on various criminal cases in connection with the events in Nardaran, and another one is a religious activist from Ganja, one of the coordinators of the working group, the human rights activist Rasul Jafarov told Turan.

In addition to the 119 people, 25 potential political prisoners have been recognized as political prisoners and their cases are under monitoring.

The working group stresses that in fact the number of political prisoners is significantly more.

"However, the reactionary environment in the country leads many people to refrain from publicizing their cases. Another problem is lack of legal awareness and lawyers. Especially bad things happen in the regions, where people do not have the right to use defense mechanisms," the Working Group reported.

In compiling the list the authors were guided by the criteria of the PACE Resolution No. 1900 of 3 October 2012.

The new list has been signed by more than 20 human rights activists, NGO leaders and lawyers.

Azerbaijan is rated Not Free in Freedom in the World 2016, Not Free in Freedom of the Press 2016, Partly Free in Freedom on the Net 2015, and receives a democracy score of 6.86 on a scale of 1 to 7, with 7 as the worst possible score, in Nations in Transit 2016. The government should stop mistreating lawyers for conducting their professional duties, said Freedom House weeks ago.
United States attorney Preet Bhararas Thanksgiving gift to New York governor Andrew Cuomothe formal indictment on official corruption charges of his former top aide and seven othersis a political embarrassment to a man now considering a run for president in 2020. But its also a stinging condemnation of a cornerstone of Cuomos economic-development strategy for New York.

Last week, a federal grand jury indicted Joseph Percoco on charges of running a pay-to-play scheme out of the governors office. Percoco is a man so close to the Cuomo family that Andrew once described him as my fathers third son, but he wasnt the only Albany player with ties dating to the Mario Cuomo administration to feel Bhararas wrath. Alain Kaloyeros, the now-former president of the State University of New Yorks sprawling Polytechnic Institute, was also indicted on three counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The chargesand those against six other more-or-less bit playerswill be settled in a courtroom. Whatever the eventual outcome, however, the cases against Percoco and Kaloyeros represent human failings of the sort wryly noted by nineteenth-century Tammany Hall honcho George Washington Plunkitt: I seen my opportunities, and I took em.

Such opportunities abound in the nostrums promoted by not only the Governors Cuomo, but by many chief executives of Rust Belt states whose economies have been laid low over the past half-century. While foreign competition has played a role in the deindustrialization trend, the deeper cause of economic malaise in such states is an almost universal compulsion by government to promote social policies that state and local tax bases cant sustain. Private companies are unable to compete in such environments, and they wont even try.

Andrew Cuomo is a master at pumping taxpayer money into parts of New York where the free market fears to treadthat is to say, into the vast swaths of the state north of Westchester County. The point is to seducebribe is such a harsh wordthe private sector into returning to localities where it has become too expensive to create or sustain jobs. Cuomos signature Buffalo Billion programwhich figures prominently in Bhararas indictmentsis a case study in this sort of thing. The governor has poured hundreds of millions of wholly discretionary tax dollars into a scheme meant to build a solar-panel manufacturing plant in Erie County. Maybe the plan will work; maybe not. The results have so far been unspectacular, and the discretionary nature of the spending underlies the corruption allegations.

Buffalos days as a heavy manufacturing hub were doomed by postwar global competition. The same is true of much of upstate New Yorkan early-twentieth-century manufacturing powerhouse that time has seemingly passed by. But Albany made matters much worse than they needed to be. Governor Nelson Rockefeller was a particularly corrosive agent in this respect. He and his legislative confederates seized on Medicaidthe federal health-care program for the poorsweetened it beyond reason, and then apportioned the costs in such a way that staggered local governments. By the late seventies, the entire property-tax levy of many upstate counties went to support Medicaid.

Added to that ever-growing burden were unfunded mandates governing everything from public education to the environment to local-government labor relations; they combined to create a total tax burden almost purpose-built to drive business from the state. New Yorkers today carry the nations heaviest per capita state-and-local tax burden, as they pretty much have for decades. And while New York City, with its unique economic synergies, can shrug much of this off, upstate cant.

No governor has significantly alleviated upstates government-directed economic woes, and most havent even triedthe political blowback from unions and other special interests being too terrible to contemplate. But New York governors do pay lip service to the need for upstate economic revival. The result has been a proliferation of local development agencies operating in the Buffalo Billion model, with politicians doling out discretionary grants in return for promises of renewal down the road. Few jobs have resulted, and mini-scandals of the Buffalo Billion sort have been common.

Kaloyeross SUNY Polytechnic Institute has proved a small exception. It has helped generate a vigorous, if nascent, nanotechnology industry in Albany and Saratoga counties. But the subsidies have been enormous, and whos to say the jobs wouldnt have popped up anyway if New Yorks tax and regulatory barriers werent so high? In any event, theres no need to speculate about the actual outcome: if Bhararas indictments are to be believed, human nature once again stepped to the fore, with bid-rigging and kickbacks the result.

If nothing else, Preet Bharara has demonstrated that corruption of all sorts is deeply ingrained in New York public life. But while the spotlight understandably and correctly falls on the accused when charges are brought, some attention also should be paid to the underlying causes of corruption. Opportunities, as Plunkitt noted, almost always will be taken.

Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Democratic pundits are calling on their party to court working-class and non-coastal whites in the wake of this months electoral rout. But the Democratic Party is now dominated by identity politics, which defines whites, particularly heterosexual males, as oppressors of every other population in the U.S. Why should the targets of such thinking embrace an ideology that scorns them?

The most absurd Democratic meme to emerge from the partys ballot-box defeat is the claim that it is Donald Trump, rather than Democrats, who engages in aggressive, racialized discourse, in the words of a Los Angeles Times op-ed. By contrast, President Barack Obama sought a post-racial, bridge-building society, according to New York Times reporter Peter Baker. Obamas post-racial efforts have now given way to an angry, jeering, us-against-them nation, writes Baker, in a front-page news story.

Tell that valedictory for post-racial bridge-building to police officers, who have been living through two years of racialized hatred directed at them in the streets, to the applause of many Democratic politicians. Black Lives Matter rhetoric consists of slogans like: CPD [Chicago Police Department] KKK, how many children did you kill today? Fuck the police, and Racist, killer cops. Officers have been assassinated by Black Lives Matter-inspired killers who set out to kill whites in general and white police officers in particular. Gun murders of law enforcement officers are up 67 percent this year through November 23, following five ambushes and attacks over the November 18 weekend that left a San Antonio police officer and a U.S. marshal dead. A few days before those weekend shootings, anarchist wannabes in Austin led a counting chant based on the template: Whats better than X dead cops? X + 1 Dead Cops.

President Obama welcomed Black Lives Matter activists several times to the White House. He racialized the entire criminal-justice system, repeatedly accusing it of discriminating, often lethally, against blacks. At the memorial service for five Dallas police officers gunned down in July 2016, Obama declared that black parents were right to fear that something terrible may happen when their child walks out the doorthat the child will be shot by a cop simply for being stupid.

Obama put Brittany Packnett, a leader of the Black Lives Matter movement, on his Presidents Task Force on 21st Century Policing. Packnetts postelection essay on Vox, White People: what is your plan for the Trump presidency? is emblematic of the racial demonology that is now core Democratic thinking. Packnett announces that she is tired of continuously being assaulted by her country with its pervasive white supremacy. She calls on white people to deal with what white people cause, because people of color have enough work to do for ourselvesto protect, free, and find joy for our people.

Packnetts plaint about crushing racial oppression echoes media darling Ta-Nehesi Coates, whose locus classicus of maudlin racial victimology, Between the World and Me, won a prominent place on Obamas 2015 summer reading list. Coates has received almost every prize that the elite establishment can bestow; Between the World and Me is now a staple of college summer reading lists.

According to Coates, police officers who kill black men are not uniquely evil; rather, their evil is the essence of America itself. These destroyers (i.e., police officers) are merely men enforcing the whims of our country, correctly interpreting its heritage and legacy. This legacy aspires to the shackling of black bodies. In America, Mr. Coates claims, it is traditional to destroy the black bodyit is heritage.

Coatess melodramatic rhetoric comes right out of the academy, the inexhaustible source of Democratic identity politics. The Democratic Party is now merely an extension of left-wing campus culture; few institutions exist wherein the skew toward Democratic allegiance is more pronounced. The claims of life-destroying trauma that have convulsed academia since the election are simply a continuation of last years campus Black Lives Matter protests, which also claimed that white privilege and white oppression were making existence impossible for black students and other favored victim groups. Black students at Bard College, for example, an elite school in New Yorks Hudson Valley, called for an end to systemic and structural racism on campus . . . so that Black students can go to class without fear. If any black Bard student had ever been assaulted by a white faculty member, administrator, or student, the record does not reflect it.

These claims of structural racism and institutional oppression, in the words of Brown Universitys allegedly threatened black students, overlook the fact that every selective college in the country employs massive racial preferences in admissions favoring less academically qualified black and Hispanic students over more academically qualified white and Asian ones. Every faculty hiring search is a desperate exercise in finding black and Hispanic candidates whom rival colleges have not already scooped up at inflated prices. Far from being post-racial, campuses spend millions on racially and ethnically separate programming, separate dorms, separate administrators, and separate student centers. They have created entire fields devoted to specializing in ones own identity, so long as that identity is non-white, non-male, or non-heterosexual. The central theme of those identity-based fields is that heterosexual, white (one could also add Christian) males are the source of all injustice in the world. Speaking on WNYCs Brian Lehrer show in the wake of Trumps election, Emory philosophy professor George Yancy, author of Look, A White!, called for a nationwide critique of whiteness, which, per Yancy, is at the core side of hegemony in the U.S.

To combat that hegemony, Democratic administrations in Washington and state capitals have built permanent bureaucracies dedicated to the proposition that white males discriminate against everyone else. Evidence of such discrimination is by now exceedingly rare, however, so disparate impact analysis steps into the breach. Police and fire departments, public and private employers, bank lending officers, landlords, insurers, school administrators, and election officials have all been found guilty of discrimination despite following race-neutral procedures. The mandated remedy is a race-conscious policy crafted to favor non-white, non-male identity.

Hillary Clinton employed classic Democratic racialized discourse throughout the campaign. During a Democratic presidential primary debate in January 2016, Clinton agreed that it was reality that police officers see black lives as cheap. In a February debate, she accused Wisconsin, along with other states, of really systemic racism in education and employment. In July she called on white people to put themselves in the shoes of African-American families who need to worry that their child will be killed by a police officer. When Clinton called half of Trumps supporters racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamaphobicyou name it who belonged in a basket of deplorables, she was speaking the language of the academy, now incorporated into the Democratic worldview.

Democratic politicians and the media will respond that such charges of systemic white oppression are not racialized discourse; they are simply the truth. Such a claim is an insult to the overwhelming majority of white Americans who harbor no bigotry and who long to live in a truly post-racial society. Many of Trumps white supporters voted for Obama, and the most conservative whites in the U.S. have had one love affair after another with conservative black media figures and politicians, whether Herman Cain, Alan Keyes, Allen West, Ben Carson, or David Clarke. Yet these former Obama voters and Tea Party supporters are now being called racist for voting for Trump.

Trumps sally during the first Republican primary debate that this country doesnt have time for total political correctness sent a signal that the reigning presumptions about oppression were finally vulnerable. The message resonated. Democrats will have to do much more than invoke traditional Democratic class warfare to convince non-elite white voters that the party does not see them as one of Americas biggest problems.

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Shortly after taking power in 1959, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro took up Vladimir Lenins old strategy of gaining the support of progressive intellectuals in Europe and the United States. Lenin called them useful idiots. French writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir became Castros first marks.

The couple embodied the intelligentsia in its purity and perfection: they led a bourgeois life in Paris, they posed as revolutionaries, and they had a woeful record of predicting the future. During World War II, they never publicly denounced the Nazis and continued to publish undisturbed in France. After the war, they supported Stalin, then the Communists of North Vietnam, then Chinas Mao Tse Tung. In 1960, they accepted Castros invitation to Havana, where they were received like royalty. They responded by publishing celebrations of the Cuban revolution. They never seemed to grasp that the Castro regime was a typical Latin American caudillist dictatorship, wrapped up in Marxist language to secure Soviet protection.

There is no question that Sartre was useful for Castro, but was he really an idiot? Is it possible that the great writer saw and understood nothing on his trips to Havana, Moscow, and Beijing? It is more probable that he saw and understood everything, but judged it advantageous to claim that he didnt. In the 1950s, completely informed of the existence of the Soviet Gulag and urged by Russian dissidents to denounce the prison camps, Sartre serenely kept his mouth shut, in order, as he said, not to drive Billancourt to despair. Billancourt was at that time the Paris suburb considered a working-class fortress, where 30,000 workers manufactured Renault automobiles. Did Sartre really believe in a universal proletarian revolution carried out by Stalin, Castro, and Mao? This proclaimed faith in a collective liberation doesnt cohere with the profoundly individualist philosophy of his writings.

I knew Sartre a little personally in the 1970s. I, too, made the pilgrimage to Havana, Moscow, and Beijing (though I went in order to denounce the dictators). It always seemed to me that Sartre placed himself above the revolutionand above humanity in general. He was a Machiavellian: he believed in one morality for the elites and another for the people. Castro understood that Sartre was moved by vanity. The dictator showered the public intellectual with honors and bestowed upon him hours of personal audience. Sartre was rich; he didnt need to be bought, but his moral corruption was boundless.

Beyond Sartres case, which, to be sure, provides an archetype of intellectual idiocy, most of those who worshiped dictators have obtained the rewards they soughtrecognition that they couldnt find in their own countries. After Sartre came a stream of intellectuals from East and West. Susan Sontag led the way for the United States. Intellectuals of the Left have always lusted after power. For this reason, they detest materialism, capitalism, and the United States. Democracy does not accord power to philosophers.

In Cuba, Castro led idiots to believe that his revolution put culture, education, and health above material valuesjust what Sartre and company wanted to hear. Until recently, visitors to Havana were shown a hospital, a school, and a bookstore. I myself had the privilege of visiting these Potemkin villages. The hospital was a show pony reserved for the countrys leaders. The bookstore was devoted to the works of Castro. The school did nothing to improve Cubans educational levels, which, before the revolution, were the highest in Latin America.

Sartre couldnt have cared less about this reality. He believed what he saw and heard, or he wanted to believe what he saw and heard, which comes to the same thing. Sartre wasnt a humanist. The condition of humanity here and now had no interest for him. What pleased Sartreand still pleases other Sartresis the aesthetic of revolution. For intellectuals, revolutions are bullfights on a national scale. Naturally it follows that revolutions should be exotic, colorful, and even bloody. Sartre adored the massive parades of Cubans with flags, songs, and speeches, just as some French intellectuals of the 1930s were fascinated by the virile manifestations of Nazism and, in the 1960s, by the Chinese Cultural Revolution with its blood and ceremony.

It should be remembered that Castro recruited idiots of the Right as well as the Left. By playing on the nationalism and anti-Americanism of Europeans, he persuaded more than one to make the pilgrimage to Havana. All were offered cigars and sometimes a little more. And each year, for Christmas, idiots around the world received a box of cigars, accompanied by a note from the dictator. There will be no more cigars. Hence the sadness that Fidel Castros death has provoked among idiots everywhere.

Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
At this years annual meeting of the Online News Association in Denver, many of the 2,000 attendees and delegates crowded into the opening keynote address. In the middle of the most charged US election in living memory, at a time when the relevance and role of the news media were under intense scrutiny, the assembled newsroom operatives were not coming to hear a leading editor or garlanded correspondent give insights on the upcoming election or the state of the world. Instead, they listened intently to Fidji Simo, Facebooks director of product, talk about how the future is all about giving users more of what they want.

The intertwining of interests between enormously powerful technology companies and every news organization on the planet has troubled both sides. Mark Zuckerberg has firmly stated he does not see Facebook as a media company, but as a technology company. Journalists at the Online News Association, known as ONA, were skeptical about the influence of technology companies, though aware of the interdependence. To tell the truth, they are keeping us alive at the moment, said the founder of a small news startup. If it wasnt for advertising from Facebook pages, we might not be here.

Another technologist working with international newsrooms was far more dogmatic in questioning the motives and values of the Silicon Valley interlopers: They are not your friends. They are interested only in growth and money, and once news is dependent on them, they will turn off the traffic tap and start charging.

The mutual unease in this new pact is symptomatic of a deeper, systemic dysfunction in the relationship between journalism and production technologies. The cultures of journalism and software development are ostensibly working toward the same goalorganizing information, informing the public, generating money from advertisingbut in most respects, they are very different. In 1959, the British public intellectual C. P. Snow famously identified what he called the two cultures into which society was divided: literary intellectuals at one poleat the other, scientists, he wrote. Between the two a gulf of incomprehensionsometimeshostility and dislike, but most of all a lack of understanding.

The concepts and dissonance Snow described will be familiar to anyone who has worked to assimilate legacy media companies into the digital environment. While many fields have been disrupted by automation and computation, few have converged as abruptly and as publicly as software engineering and journalism. The news media is witnessing its business models and production processes being remade by Web publishers and search engines. Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon have replaced media companies as the most important information delivery mechanisms within the space of a decade. Every major news event in the world, from bombs raining down on Aleppo to the late night tweeting of presidential candidates, is broken through social media and seen through our luminous mobile phone screens. Facebooks value is now over $360 billion, twice as much as that of The Walt Disney Co., its nearest traditional media rival.

The wealth and influence generated by Silicon Valley has devalued media owners and news executives political capital, and increasingly replaced them completely. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos bought The Washington Post for $250 million in 2013, when its former owner, Don Graham, acknowledged that his family no longer had the resources to keep the Post relevant in the digital era. With Bezoss investment and under the editorship of Martin Baron, the Post is a resurgent and innovative force. Pierre Omidyar, who made a fortune as the founder of eBay, has invested in both a local news initiative in his home state of Hawaii, and in First Look Media, which owns The Intercept and invests in documentaries and films with a journalistic focus, including the Academy Award-winning Spotlight. (Omidyars Democracy Fund also supports CJRs local news coverage.) Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes had a brief and less happy association with media when he bought the New Republic, triggering mass staff resignations and selling the title to publisher Win McCormack after only four years.

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In engineering, there is always a right answer, whereas in journalism, there are only more questions.

The difference between the Silicon Valley and East Coast publishing mindsets was most dramatically illustrated during the Gawker lawsuit, whereby the media news and gossip website founded by British journalist Nick Denton was bankrupted in a privacy suit brought by wrestler Hulk Hogan and covertly funded by Silicon Valley investor and billionaire Peter Thiel. Thiels single-minded pursuit of Gawker was sparked by a 2007 story outing Thiel as gay. Thiel, often a supporter of free speech and the Committee to Protect Journalists, saw no inconsistency in successfully closing down Gawker. I refuse to believe that journalism means massive privacy violations.I think much more highly of journalists than that, Thiel told The New York Times. Its precisely because I respect journalists that I do not believe they are endangered by fighting back against Gawker.

Thiel could not see what made many journalists uneasy: that the operation of a free press is not a case of picking the people whose journalism you approve of, and closing those you dont. In the world of billionaire technologists, the prize lies in creating the most efficient and logical systems possible, cutting the best path for users or customers. Anything that stops the progression to seamless scale must be eliminated or debugged. In engineering, there is always a right answer, whereas in journalism, there are only more questions.

Shortly after Omidyar established First Look Media, he held a series of meetings with journalists, academics, and technologists to think about what a new model news organization ought to look like. During one session in the basement of his Laguna Beach resort hotel, the exchanges became heated around how and where the technologists ought to work. Surely in the heart of the newsroom, a number of us argued, as the ideal would be a journalistic process rethought and designed to benefit from a deep knowledge of the technology behind it. But engineers and journalists are so different, surely that is not going to work? came the response.

There are many different kinds of technologists and many different kinds of journalists, and a large number of them intersect. The best data journalists are often gifted technologists, and the most creative developers can make far more progress in building future applications for news than someone whose main skills are writing or making videos. In most newsrooms, what was once a hostility by journalists toward the techies has become an admiration and understanding that journalists with the right technical skills hold the keys to the survival and health of the field. Diversity in thinking about how to tackle stories or harder problems in the organization of our reporting and information has undoubtedly made journalism better.

I was once wandering round The Guardians digital floor, where I was, at the time, a senior editor, when I saw a group of technologists from an engineering firm arranged in a circle, passing a rubber chicken between them. The engineers were helping with a large project, but the chicken ritual was baffling. I asked a colleague about it. The chicken is like a talking stick, she explained. The developers need to know that when the chicken gets to them, they have to describe their work for the day and offer comments on anyone elses work.otherwise they might just not be able to tell us something important.

In a news organization, the idea that a group of colleagues would need a rubber chicken as an aid to self-expression was anathema. Journalists offered opinions freely, particularly on the subject of the digital landscape, often with little or no evidentiary basis. Working between teams of developers and journalists, it was easy to discern where the differences in culture and understanding lay. Technologists necessarily needed precision and certainty, while journalists frolicked amid ambiguity and uncertainty. What I regarded as a complete coup as an editorlaunching a site in a very short time on third-party technologymade the tech team wince and say, We should never ever do that again. What I saw as a tactical triumph, they interpreted as a strategic disaster. While their route would have cost much less long-term technical debt, my route took two and a half years less to complete.

This cultural difference was written through every page of the now famous leaked New York Times innovation report of 2014, often in a tone of primal frustration. One anonymous newsroom contributor to the report put it thus: We have a tendency to pour resources into big one-time projects and work through the one-time fixes needed to create them and overlook the less glamorous work of creating tools, templates and permanent fixes that cumulatively can have a bigger impact by saving our digital journalists time and elevating the whole report. We greatly undervalue replicability.

Mark Hansen, who leads the Brown Institute for Media Innovation co-located at the Columbia Journalism School and the Stanford Engineering School, sees enormous opportunity in making journalism a truly interdisciplinary field. It is a lazy line of thinking to say that journalists and technologists occupy different spaces and always will, he says. Those caricatures are really not useful. Engineers are incentivized to think differently, as are journalists. But plenty of engineers think like journalists, and vice versa.

Journalistic innovation now often means keeping pace with the largest and most agile of the social media companies. New entrants into the journalism market, like BuzzFeed, have made a point and a business of staying as close to the development of companies like Facebook as possible. Others, like Vox, have focused on making their own in-house technologies that are as good as anything Silicon Valley might produce. A new classification of newsroom jobs in product teams has been part of the response to this cultural friction. (Journalists of a particular generation detest the word product, with its nakedly commercial overtones, or the idea that news is ever a product rather than a process; but in these culture wars, it seems, technology wins even when it comes to language.)

Product teams, social media editors, and curation desks are becoming increasingly present in all newsrooms; the cultural friction between these entities and traditional editorial roles might remain, but it is no longer where the key tension lies. The rise of platform companies is having a particularly strong impact on the news app and product teams of news organizations. Facebook, Google, Snapchat, and Apple have all built impressive new ways for news organizations to distribute their journalism, and in the case of Facebook, new ways to actually assemble and tell stories. Huge teams of developers work on video and photographic applications that would be difficult for individual news organizations to develop even if they wanted to. Facebook Live, which Mark Zuckerberg described as a TV camera in your pocket, can stream simultaneous live videos from anyone with a Facebook account and a fast enough internet connection.

When Simo was asked at ONA whether Facebook is in fact a media company, she was more measured than her boss. We play a big role in the media industry and we take that responsibility very seriously, she said. The reason we primarily consider ourselves a technology company is because we dont create content, and we are not in the business of picking which topic the world should care about. What we really care about is making everyone have an experience in News Feed where they see what they want to see.

The looming question for many newsrooms is how much to invest in their own technology teams versus using the tools and techniques being developed for them by Facebook or Google? It is almost impossible to get news executives to speak on the record about this, as many are already involved in deals with social media or search companies, but the views of those who are most alarmed by this could not be clearer: What will happen, if we are not careful, is that the only technologists we will continue to employ will be those who can work on integrating whatever the news organization is doing into their platform, one executive told me. Independent thought and independent development will be at an end.

Another was even more forthright: What have technology companies done, really, apart from make journalism worse? A couple of years ago, amazingly inventive interactives and graphics were [at the] top of the most-viewed lists at news sites. You wouldnt get that kind of creativity today because they dont work with Facebook Instant Articles.

Without an informed and independent lens on the work of large technology companies, news organizations could easily surrender to the idea that they no longer belong in the business of shaping their own formats and production tools. But independent and creative advocacy for its own technologies is one of the most powerful ways journalism can retain its relevance.

It was once the case that more technology-focused resources potentially meant fewer reporters in the newsroom. That choice can now be seen for what it always was: a false bargain. As reporting and technology converge, it is not a matter of journalists learning code, but of journalism becoming code.

Twitter is, I still believe, the most important innovation for journalists since the telephone. I use it to find stories, keep track of sources, and find out what is being said. I think all journalists do, which is why I encourage students to build a profile there. Being a bad journalist but being good on Twitter will not help your career, but being a good journalist and knowing how to use Twitter effectively for news sourcing and reporting is now a core requirement for reporters. I use it all the time, though post less and less, mainly because I dont have time, but also partly because being good on Twitter is like everything else: You have to keep doing it or lose the knack. Also, Im married to a journalist, and if you are not on Twitter you end up having nothing to talk about apart from the children.

Emily Bell

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Emily Bell is a frequent CJR contributor and the director of Columbias Tow Center for Digital Journalism. Previously, she oversaw digital publishing at The Guardian.
When floodwaters poured into Holly Furlongs Virginia Beach home in October, she ripped out electrical cords and rushed her four children upstairs. They spent the next two days without power, building blanket forts while anxiously waiting for sewage-tainted waters to recede.

Nearly two months later, Furlong, 34, said shes being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder.

It changes your sense of security, she said of the flooding that inundated 1,400 homes and business in Virginia Beach after weeks of rain. It kind of bursts your optimistic bubble for life. Things that didnt seem possible, because they were so bad, seem possible.

In a region under siege from rising sea levels, the heavy rains brought flood worries to a new level. Instead of the storm surge many fear, the rain overwhelmed drainage systems in neighborhoods miles from the Atlantic Ocean and the nearby Chesapeake Bay. Homes that never flooded before were overrun with two or three feet of water.

Experts warn that flooding will likely increase in Virginias Hampton Roads region, where Virginia Beach and six other cities are clustered on or near the states low-lying coast. The land is sinking and the sea is rising at the highest rate on the East Coast, they say. Global warming threatens to draw more intense rain storms up the Eastern Seaboard.

Fears are growing that this historically prime location for military installations threatens livelihoods as much as it sustains them.

The Atlantic meets the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay here along with the confluence of three rivers. The worlds largest naval base sits in Norfolk, nearby. A commercial port, ship builders and a railroad help fuel the economy.

But the cities were built on low coastal plains and filled-in creek beds. Water drains slowly into a jagged latticework of tidal rivers and tributaries.

The Center for Sea Level Rise at Old Dominion University in Virginia said the regions population of 1.7 million is the countrys second most vulnerable to sea-level rise, facing a potential increase of five feet by centurys end.

A study released this month by William & Mary Law School said a major storm surge could cause $100 million in damage if nothing is done to counter sea-level rise by 2060.

Robert Tuleya, a hurricane expert at the Center for Coastal Physical Oceanography at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, said theres reason to worry about more rain-induced floods.

Theres pretty good evidence  that this will happen more often, attributable to global warming, said Tuleya. But he cautioned its hard to blame global warming for any one storm.

Flooding is common enough that 280 homes over the years have filed multiple flood damage claims, noted Rich Sobota, an insurance specialist with the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The latest flooding followed weeks of rain after multiple storms stalled off the coast, with Hurricane Matthews remnants serving as the tipping point. All told, it was the areas second wettest 35-day stretch in recorded history, said Larry Brown, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

Aid is now flowing after President Barack Obamas disaster declarations for the seven cities, including Virginia Beach, Norfolk and Chesapeake. More than 2,700 people so far have gotten more than $5 million, much of it for hotel rooms. Many are applying for federal low-interest loans to rebuild.

The regions cities already were focused on various flood-protection projects. Now the disaster has brought renewed urgency to the debates over their cost and priority. On Nov. 8, Virginia Beach voted down a referendum for a light rail system, with opponents calling for drains, not trains.

Erin Sutton, Virginia Beachs deputy emergency management coordinator, said the city is prioritizing projects. But she said easy solutions are elusive in a region plagued by rising tides, high water tables and low elevation.

I dont know if there is any one solution that would have kept our neighborhoods from flooding after this many weeks of rain, she said.

Jim Redick, Norfolks director of emergency management and response, said: If we did everything we wanted to do, it would cost over $1 billion.

Meanwhile, an increasing number of residents are reckoning with the reality of living here.

The flooding struck the home of Jason Meier, 39, while he was on the Persian Gulf with the U.S. Navy. Able to fly home to Virginia Beach to help his wife and two daughters cope, he could be called back before repairs are finished.

Im not a big proponent of global warming, but something is happening here, said Meier, who plans to eventually move away. When the rain does come, theres nowhere for the water to go.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
AMS Allies With Liberty Mutual Insurance

Florida-based AMS Management Group (AMS) entered into a formal agreement with Liberty International Underwriters (LIU), part of Liberty Mutual Insurance, effective October 1, 2016.

AMS, a highly technical and specialized MGU, will market, underwrite, provide risk management tools and administer jointly created medical professional liability products for LIU.

AMS combines traditional underwriting methodologies with clinical quality benchmark tools.

Philadelphia Insurance Broadens Fine Arts Coverage for Museums and Cultural Institutions

Philadelphia Insurance Companies (PHLY) is providing a new insurance solution for museums and cultural institutions through a partnership with its sister company, Tokio Marine America. The partnership gives PHLY increased capacity up to $100M per location for fine arts collections.

The new Fine Arts Collection form rounds out a full complement of coverages including Propety, Equipment Breakdown, Business Interruption, General Liability, Automobile, Umbrella, and Directors & Officers Liability.

Highlights of the new Fine Arts Collection form include Worldwide coverage, Wall to Wall coverage (including coverage while in transit and on loan), Shared Deductible, Title Defense coverage, Restoration, Retouching, Conservation coverage, $100 million by location coverage limit, and Fine Arts specific claims adjusters.

UK MGA Nexus Underwriting Forms Claims Company Called Nexus Claims

Nexus Underwriting, the London-based independent specialty managing general agent (MGA), has formed a claims company, trading as Nexus Claims.

Being run independently from the underwriting companies, Nexus Claims offers claims management services to Nexus underwriting partners as well as insurance companies, syndicates and other MGAs.

Claims management services are provided to companies that do not have their own claims operations, who need specialist expertise or simply prefer to strategically combine an outsourcing model with their existing claims capabilities, Nexus Claims explained.

Nexus Claims is led by Nexus Groups chief legal officer, Adam Kembrooke, who is a dual-qualified UK and US lawyer and has previously built and managed global claims operations for insurance and reinsurance companies.

Nexus Claims said it has already secured agreements to manage claims emanating from more than 50 percent of the Nexus Groups $200 million gross written premiums (GWP) portfolio as well as acting as a third party administrator for 14 other non-affiliated MGAs across the UK, Europe and the Middle East.

In a significant early success for the company, Nexus Claims has signed a claims management agreement with their largest capacity provider, PartnerRe Ireland Insurance Designated Activity Company (DAC), based in Dublin.

Verisk Analytics Acquires MarketStance

Verisk Analytics, Inc., a data analytics provider, announced the acquisition of MarketStance, a provider of market intelligence data and analytics to the property/casualty insurance market. MarketStance will become part of ISO, a Verisk Analytics business and a source of information about property/casualty insurance risk.

Following the completion of the transaction, MarketStance will become part of ISO, and Dr. Fritz Yohn will continue to lead the business.
Reductions in emergency room visits and total claim costs prompted EMPLOYERS, a small business insurance specialist, to expand its Injured Employee Hotline nationwide. The service, which began as a test in Florida in 2014, gives injured workers the option to receive a professional nurse consultation by phone for no additional cost to their employers via a centralized call center thats staffed 24/7.

During the hotline pilot, Barry J. Vogt, senior vice president and chief claims officer, said the insurer learned several things.

One of the things was a decrease in emergency room visits. In fact, for the pilot in Florida, we saw emergency room visits actually decrease by 50 percent when a call came in through the injured employee hotline, Vogt said. Not all claims came in through the hotline. This hotline, its a nurse triage process. If the injured worker has already treated, the opportunity to do that triage and channel to appropriate medical care is already gone. For those injured workers, or employers that contacted us prior to that treatment taking place, we did see that roughly 50 percent reduction in ER visits.

In addition, the use of the hotline seemed to eliminate almost all of the 911 calls.

Sometimes, something may seem like its urgent to the point that you may need to call 911, but when those calls came in through the nurse triage line, we did not find much need to call 911, explained Vogt. 

There were a few instances, but for the most part, calling 911 was not necessary when they came in through the nurse triage line.

Another benefit noted as a result of the hotline was the increase in self-care claims.

For those claims that came in through this hotline, we found that we increase pretty significantly the number of claims where self-treatment was appropriate, said Vogt. We insure a lot of restaurants in our book, for examplewe get burns around a stove or a fryer. To be able to explain the burn to a nurse and have them perform some triage and indicate for example, they dont need to see a doctor, ice it and keep it away from heat. The nurse follows up with them the next day to make sure that any time that self-care is recommended, that it was appropriate.

By reducing unnecessary and costly emergency room visits or treatments by out-of-network medical providers, the insurer said the service has shown it can reduce total claim costs by an average of 35 percent while ensuring injured employees receive the care they need.

According to Vogt, the nurses recommend the appropriate level of care and direct employees to the most effective, in-network medical providers.

We did see an improvement of 10 percentage points in penetration into our outcome-based network in Florida during the pilot, said Vogt.

The response from employers has been overwhelmingly positive, he said.

We havent had it long enough to really get some good metrics around it yet, but one of the big benefits to the employer is speeding up return to work, explained Vogt. By channeling these injured workers to appropriate, outcome-based, occupational medicine type of treatment, we believe that well see earlier return to work. When they get their injured workers back quicker, of course, that benefits the employer.

Another benefit to employers, Vogt said, is that over the long-term there is increased employee satisfaction.

Theres somebody whos advocating for them. They see their employer as more looking out for them, as being an advocate for them, making sure they get the appropriate medical care upfront, explained Vogt. That seems to drive some improved employee satisfaction based on some of the comments and feedback that we have received.

In addition to the benefits for injured workers, there are also tangible benefits for small business owners. Calls to the Injured Employee Hotline automatically trigger the opening of a workers compensation claim with less paperwork needed by the employer. Because injured employees can get the appropriate care they need more quickly, there is less likelihood a claim will result in a legal dispute, Vogt said. Also, since employees are referred to in-network medical providers, the total cost of a claim is lower, which can help business owners control the future costs of their workers compensation policies.

This process not only performs medical triage, but it also integrates with our first reporting of claims. Once the triage process is done, the nurse has also taken all of the pertinent loss information that feeds into our claims system and ultimately reports a claim to us. As an adjuster, theyre getting more than just the typical who, what, when, where. When the claim gets reported to them, theyre also getting a lot of good information about the injury and treatment, and maybe some co-morbidities if we got some of that information upfront Vogt said. The adjuster is much better prepared to begin the handling of that claim, because they have much better information.

Getting the information early can aid in predictive modeling, Vogt said, to allow an insurer to gain better insight into certain claims that may benefit from additional resources.

He said there hasnt been much change in the insurers book of business relating to changes in workers compensation injury trends. The insurer still sees knee, back and elbow claims. Because restaurants make up a large part of EMPLOYERS book of business, the company also sees a lot of lacerations.

Our book of business is low to moderate risk hazard and primarily small businesses. Given the kinds of businesses we write, I really havent seen much of a change in that trend, Vogt said.

The insurer has seen a change in case mix, he explained, resulting in more incident only and medical only claims.

Pharmaceutical Management

Like the rest of the industry, the insurer is dealing with the opioid abuse issue and pharmaceutical spend, in general.

We have a Pharmacy Benefit Management (PBM) program, that uses a number of triggers to pick out claims that look like they may be problematic. We look at things like the MED, the morphine equivalent dose, multiple prescribers on a claim, how long the drug has been prescribed, co-morbidities, claimants age and occupation, Vogt said.

The insurer reviews claims that appear to have more prescribing going on than what would be expected, he said. When a claim is flagged, the insurer may have a nurse discuss the pharmaceuticals prescribed with a doctor.

We may have a peer-to-peer review with a doctor, or even in some extreme cases, a face-to-face meeting or discussion with a doctor if it appears that weve got some extreme problems with prescribing opioids, Vogt explained.

Vogt said that monthly meetings with its claims and medical management teams help them stay on top of problematic cases.

We try to help the physician to understand whats happening medically, maybe in some areas that theyre not even aware of, and to talk to them about trying to taper and wean them off of these medications. Weve had a fair amount of success with this. Weve been doing this now for a few years, and its something we do nationally across our entire book of business, Vogt said.

The department reviews pharmaceutical spending trends on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis.

For me, Im looking at it more nationally across our book, but when you get it down toWeve got a medical director that works at our company. Hes looking at this every month and looking down at the case level, Vogt said.

The claims team will examine why certain cases linger.

Theres cost savings for us, obviously, if we can wean them [injured workers] off these medications, but its beyond that, Vogt said. Its about what happens long term and whats best for that injured worker, for that employer, and getting them well, and getting them back to work. Thats really what were trying to do here. Its not just about the spend, its certainly not healthy for somebody to be on these opioid medications for a great length of time, which is occurring today in this industry.

The early use of opioids is monitored very closely, he said.

When one of these claims comes in new and we see that the doctors prescribing opioids pretty rapidly, thats a warning sign. One of the things that we see with our outcome-based network is that we tend to see less of that, said Vogt. We tend to see better management of those doses and the medication being issued, which is why, tying this back to that nurse pre-claim triage, to have them channel an injured worker into our network in those states were allowed to do that, which is most of them, it really also has a preventative impact on the downstream prescribing. Theyre getting doctors who tend to be very focused on the recovery and the return to work and dont tend to prescribe that so much. 
A Kentucky judge has cleared the way for Republican Gov. Matt Bevin to appoint six administrative law judges to help ease a backlog of workers compensation cases.

The ruling by Franklin County Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd is a victory for Bevin at the courthouse, who has seen several of his executive orders restructuring state government struck down by the courts. Most of the rulings have come from Shepherd, whom Bevin has called a political hack.

Shepherd agreed Tuesday to end an impasse over the selection of six administrative law judges that decide workers compensation claims. State law permits the governor to appoint those judges, but he must pick from a slate of candidates recommended to him by the Workers Compensation Nominating Commission.

In June, Bevin abolished the seven-member commission and replaced it with a five-member committee. Most of the commission members had been appointed by the previous administration. Labor unions sued, worried that Bevin was trying to stack the court with judges sympathetic to employers.

Shepherd temporarily barred the commission from making recommendations to the governor, leaving the court with six vacancies for most of the year and increasing the workload of the remaining 11 judges. The Department of Workers Claims has at least 400 cases that need to be reassigned, according to Mike Swansburg, general counsel for the Kentucky Labor Cabinet.

Since then, four of the seven members on the old commission have resigned. Shepherd had urged Bevin to appoint replacements, which would have given him a majority of votes on the commission. But Bevin refused, insisting that his order abolishing and replacing the commission be recognized as legal.

On Tuesday, Shepherd said he could see no useful purpose in delaying the submission of names to the Governor. But he did not rule on whether Bevins executive order was legal.

Todays court order is welcome news, as Kentuckians were really beginning to feel the pain of not being able to move forward with their workers comp claims, Bevin spokeswoman Amanda Stamper said.

Kentucky AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan said he and his organizations attorneys are still reviewing the decision.

Were certainly interested in making sure the workers comp system didnt get any further backlogs, Londrigan said. But this still leaves open the constitutional issue regarding the governors authority to abolish a statutory commission and replace it with his own.

Bevin has been aggressively restructuring state government since he took office in December, abolishing and replacing several state boards and commissions that oversee important industries and functions of state government. The most controversial were his decision to replace the boards of trustees of the University of Louisville and the Kentucky Retirement Systems. Both have been challenged by Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear.

Shepherd barred Bevin from removing Thomas Elliot from the Kentucky Retirement Systems board of trustees, but he later modified that ruling to say Elliott could participate in the meetings but not vote.

Shepherd also ruled Bevin was wrong to abolish the University of Louisville board, calling it a dangerous precedent that invites the abuse of power. Bevin has appealed, and this week Beshear asked the state Supreme Court to expedite the case by bypassing the state Court of Appeals.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. On the first day of the official visit of the Delegation led by Defense Minister of Armenia Vigen Sargsyan to the Russian federation, November 27, Vigen Sargsyan paid tribute to the memories of Lieutenant General Hrach Andreasyan and Colonel General Lev Shustko in Rostov-o-Don city. Both Generals have had a great contribution to the establishment of the Armenian Armed Forces. On the same day the Armenian Defense Minister met with the representatives of the Armenian community in Rostov.

As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Defense Ministry of Armenia, Defense Minister Sargsyan paid tribute at the Memorial Complex of Fallen Soldiers on November 28. On the same day Vigen Sargsyan met with Rostov Region Governor Vasily Golubev. Issues of expanding bilateral relations were discussed at the meeting.

The delegation led by the Armenian Defense Minister also visited the helicopter producing company Rostvertol and familiarized himself with the productive capacities of the company.

On November 28 the Defense Minister of Armenia also visited the Headquarter of the Southern Military District of Russia and got acquainted with the management of the system. Vigen Sargsyan also met with the command staff of the District and discussed issues of reinforcing the partnership between the Armenian and Russian Armed Forces in the sidelines of the creation of the united military unit, as well as other issues over the military unit.

Afterwards, the delegation led by Defense Minister of Armenia Vigen Sargsyan departed for Moscow.
Policy disputes prompt stream of studies Groups with political leanings aim for lawmakers' attention

Solar projects like this 500,000 kilowatt solar array built on the roof of the Kent State University Field House in 2012 were funded, in part, by the sale of renewable energy credits, or RECs. Ohio power companies bought the RECs to comply with state mandates requiring them to generate green power or buy the credits associated with its production from independently built solar and wind projects. When Ohio lawmakers suspended or "froze" those mandates in 2014 for two years, the value of new RECs disappeared. Lawmakers now want to extend that freeze, even as federal tax credits for such projects have been renewed.

(Joshua Gunter/Plain Dealer file)

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio lawmakers are continuing their race to a showdown with Gov. John Kasich over renewable energy. He wants it. They want to delay state rules requiring it until he after he leaves office.

But lawmakers appear to have put off until early next year the even bigger question of whether to somehow put Ohio's electric utility industry back under regulation, protecting old coal and nuclear power plants from having to compete with new and more efficient natural gas-fired plants.

Extending a 2014 freeze on state rules requiring power companies to provide renewable energy and use customer-paid dollars to offer energy efficiency programs will be the energy issue in the next few weeks.

Both Senate and House committees are planning to hear testimony this week for and against bills written by Republican leadership that would, in effect, extend for another three years the state's freeze of rules requiring power companies to sell an annually increasing percentage of electricity generated by renewable technologies, such as wind and solar.

The proposed bills -- Senate Bill 320 and House Bill 554 -- don't technically extend the freeze. In fact, the original rules approved back in 2008 would come back to life, annually increasing the percentage of renewable energy required, as well as annually increasing reductions in consumption due to efficiency.

But compliance would be voluntary until 2020, meaning power companies would not have to prove they are complying until they file their reports with the Public Utilities Commission in 2021. And by then, Kasich will no longer be governor.

Since the freeze was enacted in 2014, power companies have had to show that 2.5 percent of the power they provide has been generated with renewable technologies. By 2020, the percentage would have risen to 6.5 percent under the new legislation.

Records maintained by the PUCO and publicly available show that more that 8,000 wind and solar projects have been built and registered in Ohio and in adjacent states with a total generating capacity of 5,660 megawatts.

Opponents of the freeze extension point to those projects as evidence that Ohio utilities would have no problems meeting the growing standards over the next several years. Under the law, the power companies can buy either the electricity or the renewable energy credits (RECs) associated with the power.

The proposed legislation would make participation in mandated power company energy efficiency programs an option for large, or "mercantile" customers, just as the 2014 legislation made participation an option for heavy industry.

A vote on the legislation by the full Senate and House could come before Dec. 9, giving Kasich just 10 days to either sign the legislation, let it go into law without his signature, or veto it as he has publicly vowed to do.

A veto would force the House and Senate to reconvene before the end of the year and try to override the governor. House and Senate leadership believe they have the votes to do it.

The larger issue of re-regulation coming early in 2017 could lead to higher power prices, but keep the old plants alive, objectives that Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp. and American Electric Power of Columbus have been fighting for since 2014 in separate cases before the PUCO.

AEP has already moved to sell some of its old noncompetitive plants and FirstEnergy is threatening to do the same or close them. Independent power companies operating similar plants are not complaining.

FirstEnergy wants an answer on the regulation question within six months before it begins closing or trying to sell its old plants over the next 12 to 18 months. Meanwhile developers are either already building or seeking permits to build eight large gas-fired power plants in Ohio.

In fact, gas developers argue that new gas plants coming on line here and throughout the region will easily offset the shutdown of coal-fired plants.

A closed-door meeting called a week ago by Ohio House GOP leaders and Sen. William Seitz, R-Cincinnati, got utilities, independent power companies, lawyers representing industrial customers and others at the same table.

If it resolved anything, it was that the issue was too complicated to handle this session.

FirstEnergy and AEP are not complaining these days about renewable energy or energy efficiency mandates. Both have found ways to profit from the efficiency programs.

AEP wants to build 900 megawatts worth of wind and solar -- if the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio allows the company to have customers pay for the construction over time. That's how power plants were paid for before the state decided to deregulate the generation side of the utility business, beginning in 2000.
Cleveland police car

The team monitoring the city of Cleveland under a consent decree unveiled three proposed policies on crisis intervention on Monday.

(File photo)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- More training and a mandate that officers try to de-escalate dangerous situations are part of a proposal by the Cleveland police monitor, police department and U.S. Justice Department to change the way officers respond to mental health emergencies.

The new policies, presented to the public in a draft form, are designed to give officers clear guidance on how to respond to those in crisis and who to call for additional assistance.

Ultimately, officials said the goal is to reduce the number of people in jail for mental health issues and to steer them toward the help they need. It also seeks to minimize the use of force in situations that do not call for it.

"Force is NOT to be used for expediency," the policies say.

(You can read the new policies at the bottom of this story.)

The proposed policies are mandated in a settlement the Justice Department reached with the city that found many problems with the way officers interact with individuals.

Like the city's proposed new use-of-force policies, which are awaiting a federal judge's approval, the proposed crisis-intervention policies were drafted after the Justice Department said officers lacked proper training on how to deal with the mentally ill.

While not included in the Justice Department's review, the most recent controversial incident involved Tanisha Anderson, who died with her hands cuffed behind her back while she was being placed in the back of a police car in November 2014. The two officers involved are the subject of a criminal investigation that, more than two years after Anderson died, has not yet been concluded.

The new policies were drafted with help from the Justice Department and the Mental Health Response Advisory Committee. Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather Tonsing Volosin said at a news conference Monday morning that more than 20 policies from other departments were looked at to formulate Cleveland's proposed policies.

Randolph Dupont, a professor at the University of Memphis and a member of the Cleveland monitoring team, said the policies emphasize de-escalating situations and includes a section on how to deal with juveniles in crisis. Both are unique to Cleveland's policies, he said.

A judge still must approve the policies.

The monitoring team is seeking public feedback on the proposed policies (find out more information here). The Mental Health Response Advisory Committee will host two community meetings Dec. 13 to hear feedback. They will be at 1 p.m. at Murtis Taylor Community Center, 13422 Kinsman Road, and at 6 p.m. at Urban Community School, 4909 Lorain Ave.

Here are a few key areas of the new policies:

Crisis intervention officers

The policies mandate the creation of a Crisis Intervention Team. Cleveland police Capt. James Purcell said Monday that the goal is to have 200 newly trained officers for the team. More may be added later, he said.

The specialized officers will be called to many scenes where an individual is having a mental health issue. They will have more authority to control a scene, Dupont said.

A similar team already exists, but the city will be creating a new training protocol for the new team. These officers will go through 40 hours of enhanced training, and all officers must undergo eight hours of training, Purcell said.

The new policies say dispatchers, when they receive a call about a mental health issue, shall send a specialized crisis intervention officer. It says such calls take high priority. If a crisis intervention team officer is on a less important call, the officer shall leave and go to the mental health call.

De-escalation

Once there, all officers must assess the risk and determine if others are needed. They must also consider factors such as whether drugs and alcohol are involved, any disabilities and whether the person speaks English. If a family member is on scene, they must see whether the family member can help, the policies say.

Under the proposed policies, all officers must take as many steps as possible to minimize a threat an individual poses before using force, and they must try to get a person help if necessary. This includes using de-escalation tactics.

The crisis intervention officers must introduce themselves as such and keep the individual informed of all the steps they will take to address the situation.

According to the policies, only one officer should speak as to not confuse the individual. The officer must speak in a "slow, calm, non-threatening voice and use non-intimidating body language."

The officer must "demonstrate empathy, concern, and a better understanding of the situation. The officer must repeat instructions in a simple way," the policies state.

In order to de-escalate any threat, the officer can use a variety of tactics, such as waiting until threatening actions have stopped, move slowly, remove "upsetting influence and disruptive citizens from the scene." The officers must take their time and avoid physical confrontations when at all possible.

"Statistics have borne out that it's a safer way for police officers to handle these crisis incidents," Purcell said of the new policies.

Force and handcuffing

If officers need to use force, it must be proportional to the level of resistance and reasonable given all of the circumstances. It also gives guidelines on when and how an officer may handcuff a suspect.

If a person is lying down after being cuffed, the individual must be sat or stood up to avoid asphyxiation, the policies state.

The officers must also take specialized actions if a juvenile is involved, according to the policies.

Community resources

Under the new policies, officers must "use discretion to direct individuals in crisis to the health care system, rather than the criminal justice system, in those instances where it is appropriate to do so." They give instructions on how and when officers can involuntarily commit individuals.

The policies lay out what resources are available to help them and how to transport mentally ill individuals in a variety of situations.

"We're looking to provide our officers with more resources so they can provide our citizens for more resources," Purcell said.

Purcell said the police department, separate from the settlement with the Justice Department, is in the midst of a pilot program in the Second District in which social workers are paired with crisis intervention officers. However, the new policies do not necessarily envision having on-call social workers to immediately respond to calls along with police, he said.

He said the goal with the new policies are to equip officers with training and information to ensure individuals in a crisis can get the help they need.

This includes creating "district resource cards" for officers to use that will list phone numbers of places providing mental-health services so the individual or their loved ones can follow up for more help, Purcell said.

If you would like to comment on this story, please visit Monday's crime and courts comments section.
There appears to be a crashed vehicle outside the entrance to Watts Hall on the Ohio State University campus.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Eleven people were injured during a car and knife attack at Ohio State University early Monday and the suspect was then killed by police, authorities said.

An hourlong campus lockdown was lifted at 11:14 a.m. All classes were canceled for the day.

"The scene is now secure, and law enforcement will continue to have a visible presence on campus," the university's department of public safety said.

Ohio State officials said during a news conference that at least 11 people were injured after a car rammed into a group outside Watts Hall and the driver got out and began stabbing people.

OSU officials identified the suspect as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, a student at Ohio State. OSU police officer Alan Horujko shot and killed Artan within one minute of the incident being reported to police.

The suspect has been tentatively identified as a young man of Somali descent, CBS News reported. OSU officials declined to discuss details about the suspect during a late afternoon press conference.

Rumors of a second suspect were investigated by police and determined to be false.

Six of the injured were struck by the car and five sustained knife injuries, according to Andrew Thomas, chief medical officer for OSU's Wexner Medical Center. None of the injuries were life-threatening.

Columbus Police, Ohio State police, deputies with the Franklin County sheriff's office, the FBI and homeland security officials responded to the incident.

OSU student Martin Schneider, 21, of Pittsburgh, said he was standing outside Watts Hall when the silver car ran into at least three students. He said a man wearing a black hooded sweatshirt got out of the car and swung at a student with a knife.

Jerry Kovacich, a welding engineering student, told The Lantern a similar story. He said he saw a man in a vehicle try to drive into a crowd after a fire alarm went off. After the car crashed, the man then attacked bystanders with a knife.

Eight people were reported injured and a suspect killed at Ohio State University.

"I didn't see anything with the shooter, what happened was it was outside of MacQuigg Lab," Kovacich said. "The guy ended up just coming and hopping the curb with his car and trying to mow down a couple people. He lost control, and I think he ended up hitting three people, and then people were around the car. Somebody asked him if he was OK and the guy just hopped out of the car with a butcher knife and starting chasing people around."

"My thoughts are with the victims of this attack right now and I pray for their safety and recovery," Gov. John Kasich said in a statement released by his office.

Ohio State President Michael Drake made a statement.

Ohio State President Michael Drake addressing the media outside Wexner Medical Center Posted by cleveland.com on Monday, November 28, 2016

Officials said they will provide additional information as it becomes available.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those injured and their families," the university said.

Twitter was active with posts of concern - including one from the University of Michigan.

Stay safe, Buckeyes.  Michigan Athletics (@UMichAthletics) November 28, 2016

After the incident a student posted a video of what he said was a body being covered by a sheet. There was no verification by police.

Victims were taken to Ohio State Wexner Medical Center, OhioHealth Grant Medical Center and OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital.

The Wexner Medical Center said it was treating four victims, none with life-threatening injuries.

3/5: At this time, we're treating four victims at OSU Wexner Medical Center, none w/ life-threatening injuries.  The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (@OSUWexMed) November 28, 2016

A student describes what he saw.

Ohio State student Yoon Lee just came out of Watts Hall, described what he saw and heard pic.twitter.com/zoP7hPVPxY  Bill Landis (@BillLandis25) November 28, 2016

Another student described the scene.

I added a video to a @YouTube playlist https://t.co/lFdVXWxPBh Ohio State University Student Describes Scene Outside Watts Hall  Patrick Hostis  (@patrick_hostis) November 28, 2016

If you would like to comment on this story, please visit Monday's crime and courts comments section.

Reporters Bill Landis and Jackie Borchardt contributed to this report.
watts-hall-ohio-state.png

Watts Hall is on the northwest corner of Ohio State's campus, near the intersection of Woodruff Avenue and College Road.

(Ohio State University)

Watts Hall at Ohio State University was the named site of an active shooter incident.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio State University is on lockdown this morning following the report of an active shooter at Watts Hall.

According to reports, nine people were taken to hospitals and one is in critical condition.

#Breaking: 9 people taken to the hospital. 8 are in stable condition, 1 critical according to #10TV #OSU  Brian Dorman (@BDormanTV) November 28, 2016

Police snipers are on buildings and there are reports that not all the suspects have been apprehended.

Snipers in position on Blackwell hotel. Swat teams have already swept Watts hall. Parking garage also surrounded by swat.  Brandon (@bp1115) November 28, 2016

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is on the scene..

The person may have had a machete, attacked people, and then was shot, according to reports.

Students reported one person, who was shot, was taken out of the building.

#BREAKING Active shooter in #OSU; Students outside Watts Hall reporting at least one person taken out of the school by police escort, shot.  Over It (@AshleyJordan235) November 28, 2016

There are reports that up to seven people were taken to hospitals, but it was not known if they were injured evacuating or were involved in the incident.

Police are putting up yellow tape around the building.

There was another report that a machete was involved.

A Buckeye Alert was issued at 9:56 a.m.

Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.

-- OSU Police (@OSUPOLICE)

Watts Hall, on College Road, houses the materials science and engineering departments.

According to one student, the shooting started in the neighboring Macquigg Laboratory, according to reports.

Everyone was told to continue to shelter in place.

The university has a policy for an active shooter situation. People should have an escape route in mind and if they can't run the second option is to hide. Fighting is the last resort.

There was a report of the shooter.

I'm 3 buildings down from Watts Hall. Coworker saw one shooter go down to police. Don't know if there's any more. Locked down to be safe.  Michael Billips (@phonologix) November 28, 2016

Columbus TV station NBC4 is on the scene. Here's its live feed:

LIVE on #Periscope: Live from OSU near scene of active shooter. https://t.co/vNh1zIhrMu

-- NBC4 Columbus (@nbc4i)

If you'd like to comment on this post, please visit the cleveland.com crime and courts comments section.


CLEVELAND, Ohio - Speeding in Northeast Ohio could cost you $100 in one spot and $200 on the other side of the street, a cleveland.com analysis found. It all depends on where you're stopped - how much the fine is in that town, what it costs to run the court and what special fees are tacked on top.

Cleveland.com collected the costs of speeding tickets in 69 mayor's and municipal courts in 195 communities across six Northeast Ohio counties. The total cost for driving 50 mph in a 35 mph zone? It ranged from $81 in Lagrange in Lorain County to $222 in East Cleveland.

Get busted for disorderly conduct and you're looking at fines from $114 (Seven Hills) to $283 (Rocky River). And for driving with a license that expired a month before, $87 to $272 (Lagrange and East Cleveland, again.)

Ohio is one of two states that allow individual cities to operate mayor's courts. Or they can join larger jurisdictions of municipal courts. Either way, they're free to set their own fines, court costs and special projects fees, which can pay for computer upgrades, continuing education for judges or a new courthouse.

Plus, the state and counties add their own required costs, collected for law enforcement databases and other purposes.

The breakdown of court costs and fines aren't often posted for public perusal. And they're so complicated that even some court clerks had trouble explaining where the money goes.

"This is a problem, given the disparate charges all over the board," said Sen. Tom Patton, a Republican from Strongsville who has often been critical of how communities handle traffic cases. "The easiest fix would be from the courts themselves."

But that's easier said than done. The Supreme Court doesn't have jurisdiction over mayor's courts. And making broad changes on how municipal courts operate likely would require action from the legislature, said Justice Paul Pfeifer.

Courts have been talking about making changes for at least a decade.

Cleveland.com will roll out our series, At Any (Court) Cost, today through Thursday.

Meanwhile, take a peek at what we found:

Getting a ticket outside Legacy Village along Cedar Road in Lyndhurst is nearly twice as expensive than if you're stopped outside Beachwood Place down the street.

In Painesville Municipal Court, you'll pay more in special project fees if some charges are dismissed because the court will assess costs on the dismissed charges.

In Vermilion, on multiple charges, you'll pay more for signing the waiver admitting your guilt and sending in your check than if you showed up for your court date.

Through the week, we'll explore:

What the most expensive courts in the region spend their money on.

Whether the disparate charges are fair.

How Ohio compares to other states with its jigsaw puzzle of local courts and all-over-the-map court fees.

What the legislature could do. Why hasn't it taken away this home-rule power, given that the courts - municipal and mayor's - operate very differently from one community to the next?

What the total ticket cost in cities throughout Northeast Ohio are, presented in a database.

You'll have your chance to sound off, too. We hope you'll post some of your stories in the comments section.

What we expect is that you'll reinforce what we've found -- that how you fare in court can be summed up in the old business adage:

Location, location, location.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Rocky River man seen loading a gun the day before police say he shot his daughter had planned to use the gun to protect himself, according to court filings.

Jamal Mansour took the revolver from a safe inside his Chardon gas station as he went to deposit more than $5,000 in cash at a Rocky River bank on Sept. 26, Mansour's attorney, Angelo Lonardo, wrote in court records.

This disputes earlier claims by prosecutors that surveillance video showing Mansour loading the revolver was evidence the 64-year-old had planned to kill his daughter.

Mansour used a revolver about 1:15 a.m. Sept. 27 to shoot his 27-year-old daughter Tahani Mansour three times in the head as she lay in her bed inside the family's Vine Court home, prosecutors say.

He is charged with aggravated murder, and his bond is set at $2.5 million.

Investigators obtained surveillance video from the Gas USA station on Mayfield Road that showed Mansour taking a revolver out of a safe and loading it, court records say.

Prosecutors said the video was proof that Mansour had a "calculated plan" to carry out violence the day before the shooting.

In a separate filing, Lonardo said Mansour regularly took the revolver with him for security whenever he deposited large amounts cash from the business into his bank account.

Bank records filed along with the motion shows that Mansour deposited more than $5,000 in cash at a Chase Bank branch in Rocky River on Sept. 26.

Mansour legally bought the firearm and had a permit to carry it, records say.

Prosecutors have not given a motive for the killing. Mansour admitted at the scene to shooting his daughter "out of anger," records say.

But Mansour denied making such a statement to police, Lonardo said.

Tahani Mansour was a clinical instructor at the University of Findlay, and until September worked as a pharmacist at University Hospitals Ahuja Medical Center.

Her father came to the United States from Jordan in 1978, and became a U.S. citizen in 1982, defense attorney Justin Withrow said at a previous arraignment hearing.

Jamal Mansour and other members of his family own several stores across Northeast Ohio, lawyers said.

Mansour is scheduled to be in court again Dec. 5.

To comment on this story, please visit our cleveland.com crime and courts comments section.
Jill Stein,Jill Stein Campaign

Jill Stein is on track to raise twice as much for an election recount effort than she did for her own Green Party presidential bid.

(D. Ross Cameron, Associated Press)

Michigan goes to Donald Trump as a potential recount looms. Hillary Clinton's team hits back at Trump. Trump's team brings internal discord to the public. Read more in today's Politics Extra.



Michigan goes to Trump: President-elect Donald Trump has officially won Michigan's 16 electoral votes, although a recount is possible, reports NPR. The Michigan Board of State Canvassers certified Trump as the winner on Monday. The Republican beat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by just two tenths of a percent, 47.6 percent to 47.4 percent. That's a margin of just over 10,000 votes, making it the closest presidential election in Michigan's history.

A possible recount looms: Green Party nominee Jill Stein has signaled she plans to ask for a recount in Michigan, and she has until Wednesday to petition. She already petitioned for one in Wisconsin, after raising more than $6.5 million to fund the recounts.

Wisconsin: The Wisconsin Elections Commission set a timetable Monday for a recount of the presidential election but rejected Stein's request, reports USA Today. Stein quickly responded that she would sue.

Pennsylvania: Stein filed a lawsuit in Pennsylvania Monday to force a recount there.

Clinton team hits back at Trump: After Trump claimed Sunday that he "won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," the remnants of Clinton's old campaign roared to life, reports Politico. "Winning the electoral college won him the presidency, so Trump's excuses on why he lost the popular vote by millions are just small and sad," tweeted Christina Reynolds, who was the Clinton campaign's deputy communications director. Clinton's campaign lawyer, Marc Elias, said, "We are getting attacked for participating in a recount that we didn't ask for by the man who won the election but thinks there was massive fraud." Clinton's national press secretary, Brian Fallon, has pinned a tweet congratulating Trump to the top of his feed, and has said little else since.

And also shrugs off recount effort: "Recounting votes is as American as apple pie. There's nothing wrong with the effort, but it's not somewhere where I would put the political energy of my groups, and I'm not," said David Brock, a Clinton ally whose network of Democratic political firms supported the nominee's White House bid, reports Politico. Brock said top party donors have asked him whether they should contribute to Stein's effort, but he said he was already focused on taking on Trump's administration. "We're focused on watch-dogging the Trump transition."

Was there mass voter fraud in the presidential election? Elections officials in three states disagree with Trump's allegations, reports Politico. "We have heard claims like this in the past, relative to our elections, but we have been provided no evidence that suggests that there is voter fraud on a widespread scale in New Hampshire," said David Scanlan, the state's deputy secretary of state. Virginia Department of Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortes said, "The claims of voter fraud in Virginia during the Nov. 8 election are unfounded." In California, where Clinton led by about 30 percentage points, Secretary of State Alex Padilla said, "[Trump's] unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a president-elect."

The problem with Romney: Trump is "irritated" with top aide Kellyanne Conway's public campaign against Mitt Romney's potential nomination as secretary of state, a source told CNN. The source, who is familiar with the discussions, acknowledged the existence of an internal feud between Conway and chief of staff Reince Priebus, specifically about the choice between Romney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for the nation's top diplomatic position.

Other contenders? Trump met Monday with former Gen. David Petraeus as he looks to fill out his Cabinet, reports CNN. Trump will meet Tuesday with Romney as well as Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker and House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul. The meetings, confirmed by Republican National Committee chief strategist Sean Spicer, come as Trump fills key foreign policy posts in his incoming administration. Frances Townsend, a former Homeland Security adviser to then-President George W. Bush, also will meet with Trump.

Drain the swamp: Some of the nation's 4 million or so federal workers are watching anxiously as Trump looks to set his agenda in motion, reports ABC News. Melissa Baumann, for example, lives some 850 miles from the nation's capital, but fears for her job as a chemist with the Forest Service when she hears about how Trump will "drain the swamp." The president-elect has suggested a federal hiring freeze and hinted at eliminating or sharply curtailing an entire Cabinet agency, the Department of Education. Some Trump allies say the sentiment is directed at lobbyists, donors and political cronies, but some federal workers fear he means a broader group. "I believe that is directed at us. And it's misdirected," Baumann said.

Promises, promises: On the campaign trail, Trump made about 282 promises in speeches, public comments, tweets and campaign and transition websites. Read more at The Washington Post.

AP issues guidelines for the term 'alt-right:' In a memo to reporters writing about the "alt-right," John Daniszewski, vice president for Standards at the Associated Press, cautioned journalists to be specific and deliberate when writing about a label that many say is just a euphemism for white nationalism, reports Politico. "Avoid using the term generically and without definition, however, because it is not well known and the term may exist primarily as a public-relations device to make its supporters' actual beliefs less clear and more acceptable to a broader audience," he wrote. "In the past we have called such beliefs racist, neo-Nazi or white supremacist."
COLUMBUS, Ohio--The police officer who fatally shot the Ohio State University attacker on Monday was an OSU graduate who was relatively new to the force.

Alan Horujko, a 28-year-old Cincinnati native, was hired by the Ohio State Police Department in 2015 after graduating from the university in 2012, according to OSU's student newspaper, The Lantern.

Horujko studied engineering at Ohio State for three years, but didn't feel as passionately about engineering as his classmates did, according to a 2015 Lantern story. He began working with Student Safety Services and graduated with a degree in public safety.

"I just couldn't see myself sitting in a cubicle," Horujko told the Lantern at the time.

Horujko was responding to a gas leak at Watts Hall, the school's materials science and engineering building, on Monday morning, when a driver rammed his car into a group of students. The suspect, later identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, then got out and began stabbing passersby.

Horujko quickly responded and shot the assailant within a minute of the incident first being reported to police.
The Armed Forces, as a major employer in Armenia, must have the necessary resources to be the economys driving force, the minister of defense has said, stressing the importance of raising the officers role.

November 28, 2016, 13:58 Armed Forces must be economys driving force - minister

STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 28, ARTSAKHPRESS: In a recent televised interview aired by Armenia TV Channel, Vigen Sargsyan highlighted capacity development as a measure to rule out teh public perceptions that the military is an extra burden, Tert.am reports. We must do everything possible to give a higher appreciation to the officers profession in Armenia and to return the one-time fame of the service, he said.

Sargsyan also emphasized the need of improving the quality of food in the army and establishing stricter rules in the supply procedures.

The necessary activities are under way, and I am confident we will have a positive outcome next year, he added.
AX106_52F2_9.JPG

Three days before House Democrats vote on their leadership, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan discusses the need for change in his party.

(Sabrina Eaton, The Plain Dealer)

Three days before House Democrats vote on their leadership, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan discusses the need for change in his party. A new Ohio political blog defends ECOT, but appears to have ties to the online charter school. A group once led by Donald Trump's education secretary nominee owes millions to Ohio. Read more in today's Ohio Politics Roundup, brought to you by Robin Goist.

Ryan prepares to take on Pelosi: Before Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives vote on their caucus' leadership Wednesday, Rep. Tim Ryan appeared on Sunday morning talk shows to discuss his bid against Nancy Pelosi.

On NBC's Meet the Press, Ryan discussed how Democrats ought not to be a "coastal party" and should instead develop an economic message that appeals to voters in "Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota," and southern states such as Tennessee.

What is Pelosi's fireable offense? "We're not winning," Ryan told Chuck Todd.

Pelosi, the Californian who has led House Democrats for more than 16 years should lose her position, Ryan said, because "...we can't have a standard in the Democratic Party that we're going to accept being down 63 seats. I mean, 33 governorships, 31 secretaries of state, 69 of 99 state legislators, Chuck. We're losing all over the board. We've got to start something new and start fresh."

Ryan on the recount: When asked about Hillary Clinton's campaign's decision to participate in Jill Stein's call for a recount of votes in Wisconsin, Ryan said he would advise against it.

"I mean it's their decision. They ran a tough race," the Youngstown-area Democrat said. Todd pressed, "Would you counsel against it?"

"I would counsel against it. But I'm moving on. I mean, we've got elections to win. We need to start rebuilding. But, you know, they're in a different position than I am. We're moving into the next Congress. We have this leadership race. We've got to fill the [Democratic National Committee chair] position. We've got to move forward. And I think that's the best thing for us to do."

His message for the industrial heartland: Elaborating on the need for a "robust economic message," Ryan on Fox News Sunday dismissed the notion that industrial areas are going to see a return of "low-end manufacturing," such as the steel industry.

"I think we're lying to our constituents if we say that everything that went to China somehow was going to automatically come back if we just wave a magic wand or just have the right policies," Ryan told host Chris Wallace.

"But I'll give you an example. We have a new million-dollar steel mill in Youngstown that's making steel pipes, steel tubing. That's an opportunity for us with some more high-end advanced manufacturing, the stuff that really takes a lot, in aerospace," he added.

Instead, a focus on clean energy: "I think the clean energy community is a boon, and I don't think Democrats ever quite talked about clean energy as a way to resuscitate manufacturing," Ryan said. "If you look at a windmill, Chris, 8,000 component parts, gear shifts, hydraulics. There's a mile of concrete, a sidewalk mile of concrete in a wind turbine. These are things that we make in places like Youngstown, Gary, Indiana, Milwaukee, [Wisconsin]."



O'Donnell concedes: Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge John O'Donnell has conceded the Ohio Supreme Court race to opponent Pat Fischer, a judge from the 1st Ohio District Court of Appeals, writes cleveland.com's Jane Morice.

More than two weeks after Election Night, O'Donnell said in an email to his supporters that he called Fischer Wednesday to concede. He had initially refused to do so because more than 260,000 ballots - a combination of absentee and provisional - had yet to be counted.

Official election results: Clinton lost Ohio and the general election to President-elect Donald Trump, but won Cuyahoga County with 65 percent of the vote, according to the final, official count for the Nov. 8 presidential election, released Wednesday by the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections. Cleveland.com's Mary Kilpatrick breaks down how the county, and the Buckeye State overall, voted on Election Day.

Not giving thanks for Trump: A group of more than 40 people spent Black Friday afternoon at Cleveland's Public Square protesting Trump, reports cleveland.com's Kaylee Remington.

The two-hour demonstration drew attention to the president-elect's proposed policies as well as issues including women's rights, fascism and police brutality, giving special attention to Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old boy shot to death by a Cleveland police officer just over two years ago.

Group once led by Trump nominee owes Ohio: Betsy DeVos, Trump's pick for education secretary, once directed a pro-school-choice organization that owes a record $5.3 million in fines to the Ohio Elections Commission, writes The Columbus Dispatch's Randy Ludlow.

All Children Matter Inc. was directed by DeVos, whom Trump nominated Wednesday as the nation's top education official, when it ran afoul of Ohio campaign finance laws in 2008.

The Ohio Elections Commission unanimously ruled that All Children Matter violated state law by illegally channeling $870,000 in contributions from its Virginia PAC to its then-unregistered Ohio PAC, violating a state law. The Ohio PAC donated in 2006 to candidates who supported school choice and tax-paid vouchers for private schools.

After All Children Matter lost on appeal, the Ohio attorney general's office went to court in 2012 in a bid to collect the fine, receiving a $5.2 million judgment in 2013. The judge also ordered the group and its Virginia PAC to pay a fine of $25 a day from Oct. 26, 2006, until the judgment was paid - a current total of more than $92,000.

Although DeVos was not found individually liable, an elections commission spokesman confirmed to The Dispatch that the fines still have not been received.

On the topic of charter schools: A new Ohio political blog defends an embattled charter school, but it appears to have ties to the school's influential founder, cleveland.com's Andrew J. Tobias has found.

The connections between 3rd Rail Politics and the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow raise questions about to what extent a network of companies tied to ECOT's founder, William Lager, might have been involved with the site's launch and its ongoing coverage.

The blog was launched in late August, a time when ECOT, Ohio's largest online charter school, needed support in its battle for survival with the state government. Since then, 3rd Rail Politics has adopted an editorial stance that aggressively supports ECOT, and Tobias describes several connections between the site and the school.

Get Battleground Briefing, our FREE politics newsletter, delivered to your inbox: Sign up here. Tips or links? Send here. Follow along on Twitter: @robingoist
Strongsville Tattoo Parlor.JPG

Businesses like All Tattoos on Pearl Road will have to abide by new rules, under an ordinance approved last week by Strongsville City Council.

(Bob Sandrick, special to cleveland.com)

STRONGSVILLE, Ohio - City Council has passed an ordinance that will regulate pawnshops, tattoo parlors and hookah lounges, along with vape shops, lounges and paraphernalia stores.

Under the legislation, which council approved last week, such businesses can't operate within 500 feet of a school. Also, the businesses will have to stay at least 500 feet from each other, and the city will prohibit them from operating between midnight and 8 a.m.

"Restricting the hours of operation was the most important factor for me," Councilman Joe DeMio told cleveland.com.

The ordinance, which came with a favorable recommendation from the city's Planning Commission, says that pawnshops, tattoo parlors, hookah lounges and vape businesses "may have inappropriate impacts on children, surrounding neighborhoods and adjacent retail space."

Also, the ordinance says that such businesses, if grouped too closely together, can negatively affect the values of neighboring properties and the ability to market neighboring retail lots.

Strongsville Law Director Neal Jamison said the location restrictions will apply only to new businesses, not existing ones.

In September, Jamison said the ordinance was not inspired by any recent proliferation of pawnshops, tattoo parlors or vape businesses - where electronic cigarettes are sold and consumed, and where paraphernalia is sold - in Strongsville. He said the city started working on the legislation about a year ago, under previous Law Director Ken Kraus.

DeMio said he was not aware of any hookah lounges in Strongsville. A hookah is a water pipe used for smoking tobacco, a practice that originated in the Middle East and North Africa, according to the Tobacco Public Policy Center.
STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 28, ARTSAKHPRESS: From the positions of the NKR Defense Army, the monitoring was conducted by Field Assistant to the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ghenadie Petrica (Moldova) and staff member of the Office Peter Svedberg (Sweden).

From the opposite side of the Line of Contact, the monitoring was conducted by Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk and his Field Assistant Irji Aberle (Czech Republic).

The monitoring passed in accordance with the agreed schedule. No violation of the ceasefire regime was registered.

From the Karabakh side, the monitoring mission was accompanied by representatives of the NKR Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense.
Falih said on Sunday Saudi Arabia was sticking to its position on the Algiers agreement that everyone should cooperate.

OPEC oil ministers meet in Vienna on Wednesday in an effort to finalize that deal; OPEC also wants non-OPEC producers such as Russia to support the intervention by curbing their output.

Under a preliminary agreement reached in September in Algeria, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would reduce its production to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels per day, its first supply curb since 2008.

Saudi Arabia's energy minister Khalid al-Falih said on Sunday that he believed the oil market would balance itself in 2017 even if producers did not intervene, and that keeping output at current levels could therefore be justified.

"We expect the level of demand to be encouraging in 2017, and the market will reach balance in 2017 even if there is no intervention by OPEC. But OPEC intervention aims to expedite this balance and the market recovery at a faster pace," he said.

Asked whether Saudi Arabia was keeping its output high in November at around 10.6 million barrels per day, however, Falih said: "The level of demand for Saudi crude is still high and very healthy."

"Regardless of Saudi and its market share, I think if we look at it as an indication of the health and recovery of the oil markets, it is a positive sign that makes us optimistic about the market recovery."

"I don't think that we have one path only in OPEC meetings, which is cutting production - I think maintaining production at current levels is justifiable, taking into consideration the recovery of consumption and growth in developing markets and the United States," he added.

Falih, speaking to reporters at the headquarters of national oil giant Saudi Aramco, did not elaborate on Saudi Arabia's planned production levels.

A meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC producers was originally due to be held on Monday this week, but it was called off after Saudi Arabia declined to attend; Falih said on Sunday this was because no agreement within OPEC had been reached so far.

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Cooling measures sent Singapore's housing market into a long hibernation, but some analysts point to signs of a spring awakening in sales volume, if not yet prices.

Tan Min Lan, head of the Asia Pacific investment office for UBS Wealth Management, said the bank had been bearish on Singapore property prices for "quite a few years."

But that was changing, she said.

"Singapore has dropped from an overvalued market globally, compared with global competitors, to now fairly valued," she said, noting the headline government price index was down about 11 percent since 2013.

"If you look at it in terms of real terms, adjusted for income, this is the longest stretch of decline in property prices in Singapore in 40 years," she said. "And unlike Hong Kong, Singapore actually has household income increase in the last five years," improving affordability, she noted.

There were some signs of a pickup visible in government data, with the number of new homes sold rising to 1,252 in October, from 509 in September, the highest number of sales since July 2015, although there were also more new property launches during the month.

But while sales have picked up, prices may not.
Trump was responding to the Clinton campaign's announcement that they intend to back the statewide presidential election recount effort taking place in Wisconsin, which was led by Green Party candidate Jill Stein. Marc Elias, a Clinton campaign lawyer, said they would involve themselves to ensure a "fair" process for all involved.

The former real estate mogul turned politician then quoted three instances via six tweets in which Clinton slammed Trump for suggesting he would not accept the election results.

Trump, who himself implied that he would not concede the election during the campaign if he had lost, used his Twitter account to declare that "Nothing will change." He also reiterated that Clinton had already conceded the election.

President-elect Donald Trump took to his favorite social media platform to send a stream of posts indicating that the Hillary Clinton campaign's involvement in an election recount was hypocritical.

Stein said she also intends to pursue recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan, though she also stated on Twitter that she would "do a recount in any state where the deadline has not passed."



Jill Stein tweet 1: I will do a recount

Stein's campaign is trying to raise as much as $7 million for the effort online  and it had garnered more than $6 million as of Saturday evening.

More from NBC News:



Clinton Campaign Backs Jill Stein's Election Recount Effort: Lawyer

What Happens if Donald Trump Loses and Won't Concede?

Could a Contested Election Lead to a Recession?

Stein also took some shots at Clinton's interest in the election recount, tweeting:

"Why would Hillary Clinton  who conceded the election to Donald Trump  want #Recount2016? You cannot be on-again, off-again about democracy."

Later in the day, Trump practically offered his support for the recount, providing a seemingly baseless allegation that he would have won the popular vote "if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."



Trump Tweet 7: In addition to winning the

It was unclear where he got that notion. Voting illegally is difficult, as Trump illustrated in a 2004 video in which he was turned away from three voting locations.



Bradd Jaffy Tweet 1: Trump dismisses 3-state recount effort

The president-elect then said he could have had an easier campaign had he pursued the popular vote instead of the Electoral College. According to his Twitter account, the future commander-in-chief said he would have only had to campaign in three or four states instead of the numerous states he visited.

Trump Tweet 8: it would have been much

Trump Tweet 9: states instead of the 15 states

In the past, Trump has come out against the Electoral College. Previously, on Twitter of course, he called the institution "a disaster for democracy." He also told Mitt Romney supporters via tweet in 2012 to "fight like hell" after Romney's loss, as he incorrectly believed the Electoral College had allowed President Obama to win.

Trump Tweet 10: The electoral college is a disaster for a democracy

Trump Tweet 11: Lets fight like hell

President Obama won both the popular vote and the Electoral College by large margins in 2008 and 2012.

Donald Trump's top aides on Sunday also denounced the recount effort.

"It is a total and complete hypocritical joke that the group of people that thought that they were nervous about President-elect Trump not conceding are the people that are conducting recounts in states where we won by over 68,000 votes," said incoming Trump Chief of Staff Reince Priebus on "Fox News Sunday."

Former campaign manager Kellyanne Conway also slammed the recount effort on CNN's "State of the Union," where she referenced the backlash over Trump's refusal to say he'd accept the election results during the third general election debate as evidence of hypocrisy on the part of Democrats now supporting the recount.

Multiple media analysts have opined that president-elect might be using his Twitter account to distract from more serious news, such as the New York Times investigation into Trump's potential conflicts of interest around the world.

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How it all delegitimizes the media and democracy

There's one more consequence to the rants, feuds, and conspiracy theories: They end up delegitimizing the media -- and the country's democracy. Think about it: Every time Trump claims, without substantiation, that millions voted illegally, and every time the news media call him out for it, that only delegitimizes the media among Trump's supporters. And then when the same media write and cover Trump's conflicts of interests (or policy proposals or anything else), those same supporters won't believe a word of it. Will the media be alone in this challenge? Or will members of BOTH parties decide that what's happening to two key institutions -- the press and the vote -- is worth fighting for? By the way, who has been the biggest driver of the story that millions voted illegally in the election? Try InfoWars' Alex Jones



Romney vs. Rudy for secretary of state

As for Kellyanne Conway's comments about Romney, they give you a taste of the biggest personnel battle inside Trump World -- Rudy Giuliani vs. Mitt Romney for secretary of state. "And it traces the outlines of the enduring split in the Republican Party between establishment figures who scoffed at Mr. Trump's chances of victory and the grass-roots insurgents who backed him as a disrupter of the Washington power structure," the Times writes. Per MSNBC's Morning Joe Team: "Two sources at the top of the Trump transition team confirm to MSNBC that they spoke to the president-elect today and that Donald Trump was 'furious' at Kellyanne Conway's comments Sunday suggesting Trump 'betrayed' his supporters by even considering Mitt Romney for a position in his cabinet. 'Kellyanne went rogue at Donald Trump's expense at the worst possible time,' a source familiar with Trump's thinking told MSNBC. Trump's top aides said they were 'baffled' by Conway's comments and suggested that it feeds into a growing concern inside the campaign that 'instead of driving Donald Trump's message, she's pushing her own agenda.'"



Cabinet Watch

Here is our running list of possible candidates we've been hearing about so far. We'll continue to update it as the president-elect's team makes its choices final.

Secretary of State: Rudy Giuliani, John Bolton, Bob Corker, Mitt Romney

Attorney General: Jeff Sessions OFFERED

Treasury: Steve Mnuchin, Jeb Hensarling

Defense: Jim Talent, Tom Cotton, James Mattis

Homeland: Michael McCaul, David Clarke

Interior: Sarah Palin, Mary Fallin

HUD: Ben Carson OFFERED (but hasn't accepted)

Education: Betsy DeVos OFFERED

Commerce: Lew Eisenberg, Linda McMahon, Wilbur Ross

Transportation: John Mica, Deb Fischer, Lou Barletta, Elaine Chao

Agriculture: Rick Perry, Sid Miller

CIA Director: Mike PompeoOFFERED

UN Ambassador: Nikki Haley OFFERED

National Security Adviser: Michael Flynn OFFERED

RNC Chair: Ronna Romney McDaniel, David Urban



Will a Trump White House roll back Obama's Cuba policy?

On "Meet" yesterday, Conway really didn't answer the question. "On, on the issue of diplomatic relations being re-opened with Cuba, what President-elect Trump says is that he'd be open to that himself, but that we got nothing in return. We're allowing commercial aircraft there. We pretend that we're actually doing business with the Cuban people now when, really, we're doing business with the Cuban government and the Cuban military. They still control everything." But when one of us asked if that was a rollback of Obama's policies, Conway added, "None of that has been decided. The president-elect will make those decisions and will make those announcements once he is president. We have a president in office for eight more weeks, and we're very respectful of that."



The irony of Jill Stein's recount effort
Chance Chan | Reuters

YunOS, the mobile operating system developed by Alibaba Group, is on track to corner a 14 per cent share of smartphone shipments in mainland China by the end of this year, pulling ahead of Apple's iOS to become the second-largest operating system for that device in the market, according to analysts. The forecasts would confirm Alibaba 's claim earlier this year that YunOS had initially passed iOS on the mainland in the three months ended March 31. Despite the strong strides made by the Alibaba platform, Bernstein senior analyst Mark Li told the South China Morning Post that growth prospects for YunOS outside of its home market would likely be limited to "cheap or subsidized smartphones". According to research firm Strategy Analytics, Alibaba-backed Meizu, XiaoLaJiao and Doov are the top YunOS smartphone suppliers. It estimated the total shipments of YunOS-powered smartphones this year will top 100 million units, echoing the earlier projection made by e-commerce giant Alibaba.

watch now

New York-listed Alibaba, which owns the Post, has also adapted YunOS to work as an operating system for television set-top boxes, smart home appliances, tablets, internet-connected smart TVs, smart cars and even SoftBank Group 's humanoid robot called "Pepper". At Alibaba's cloud computing conference last month in Hangzhou, YunOS product director Aiden Yong said: "We want YunOS to be the 'go-to' operating system for China's smart industry." Tsinghua Unigroup semiconductor affiliates Spreadtrum Communications and RDA Microelectronic last month jointly launched with Alibaba's YunOS business unit a new chip platform for hardware manufacturers to create innovative products for the so-called Internet of Things market of smart, connected devices. In a report on Friday, Bernstein pointed out that the key motivation for hardware manufacturers to adopt YunOS are the subsidies from Alibaba. Set-top box makers on the mainland, for example, reportedly receive from 20 to 60 yuan per box as a subsidy to encourage the adoption of YunOS.

More from the South China Morning Post :

How Modi's currency ban is helping Chinese fintech investors in India

Alibaba Health to expand its pharma e-commerce business

SCMP appoints technology leader Liu to spearhead 113-year-old publication's digital evolution Li said that figure may sound insignificant, but it is meaningful when put in the context of "the razor-thin margins of these hardware vendors", especially the smaller manufacturers. The low price afforded by YunOS smartphones has made these devices gain most of their users across the mainland's lower tier cities. Data from Sino Market Research and Bernstein showed that 54 per cent of YunOS adoption last year was found in tier-4 or smaller cities in the country, compared with 9 per cent in the tier-1 cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen.

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Donald Trump supporters perusing Amazon.com for "Make America Great Again" holiday ornaments will encounter some not-so-great reviews on Cyber Monday.

They're jokes, for the most part. But they hurt a product's rating.

For example, a Christmas tree ornament from FunnyShirts.org promoting Trump's iconic slogan has a two-star rating out of a possible five, thanks to 90 one-star reviews left during the preceding five days. Some comments with respect to the president-elect are far too offensive for print.

Here are some of the safer nonreviews:

"As soon as I hung it on my tree, it started insulting all the other ornaments," wrote one critic.

"My Christmas tree is leaning far, far to the right, to the point of tipping over and self-destructing," according to another commenter.

And yet another added, "Turns orange the higher you put it on the tree."
It's that time again! Jim Cramer rang the lightning round bell for Nov. 22, which means he gave his take on caller favorite stocks at rapid speed:



Gilead Sciences : "Gilead has to do something! They have to use some of their cash to buy someone, because they have no growth. And I cannot recommend a biotech stock that has no growth."

California Resources Corp : "It has finally taken off. This is a spinoff. I prefer higher quality oil companies. I go over them all the time, but I think the service company Schlumberger, which my charitable trust owns, is an even better bet now that California Resources has moved so much."

Frontier Communications Corp : "Too risky for me. Frankly, I'm going to have to throw a red flag there. It's just too risky, I'm sorry."

Devon Energy Corp : "Devon Energy is fine. Not as good as some others, like an Anadarko, but I like Devon."

Dycom Industries : "I have to find out whether that is an overreaction or not. I can't have a stock drop 20 points on me and I'm trying to figure out whether it's just like 'hey snap it up.' I have to do more work on Dycom. And you are owed that, so let me come back."


Staff monitor the reindeer's progress via smartphone, which shows a map and an image of the animal's face as it moves around.

The brand has released a video showing employees leading the reindeer around a parking lot, with delivery boxes attached to its back, and then on a red sleigh.

Domino's Pizza in Japan is training reindeer to deliver takeaways during the country's freezing weather over the winter season.

Although at the moment, the takeaway may not necessarily reach any customers. The video shows pizza boxes falling off the animal's back and employees running to keep up with the reindeer.

In two press releases published on Domino's Japan website, the company claims it is working on a variety of delivery methods around the world. It has published a "pizza delivery action plan" and is working with the Research Center of Hokkaido to make sure the animals are safe.

Domino's has also set up a "snowfall delivery measures room" to monitor conditions, with the expectation of "severe cold" caused by weather phenomenon La Nina following a record heat wave over the summer.



The company is posting the information (in Japanese) via its snowfall delivery response office, with a view to rolling out the reindeer deliveries from December 1.



Earlier this month, it delivered pizza via drone to a couple in New Zealand, with Domino's Group CEO and Managing Director Don Meij claiming the unmanned aerial vehicles are "future" of deliveries because they are faster than other methods.



The company has also sent food via canoe steered by a pizza "buoy" in Kent, UK, and customers can order via text and Twitter, using a pizza emoji. In Aruba, pizza pies have to be sent by truck because motorcycles can't handle the Caribbean island's high winds, while store locations in the Philippines are selected based on Feng-Shui principles.



Domino's  which claims to be the "world's fastest pizza maker"  operates in more than 60 countries. It opened its first store in Japan in 1985, and squid is now the most popular topping in the country.



Its shares rose 3.2 percent Thursday and the company said it would push to expand, according to a Reuters report.


I came to know that this elegant A-frame library had been constructed in 1968-69 and I was still at school in Chuave when eventually it was demolished in 1980.

By the time I arrived, the building  once a library  was derelict, the walls riddled with holes. It was human vandalism that had done this but the structure remained solid as if it was defying human vileness.

In 1979, when I enrolled in Grade 7 at Chuave Provincial High School, I observed on a prominent hill a monumental structure with a very different architecture from anything I had ever seen.

BACK then I could never have known that the creator of the splendid building standing conspicuously on a hill in Chuave would one day be my friend and escort me on my first visit to Australia.

Just two months ago, in September, I was able to make my first visit to Australia on a study tour funded by a McKinnon-Paga Hill fellowship.

While in Brisbane for the annual writers festival, I met Murray Bladwell, a retired educationist and a long-serving member of Toowong Rotary Club.

Under the auspices of the club, Murray had arranged for me to get a new wheelchair and a replacement for my stolen notebook computer. The wheelchair was being assembled in Ipswich, near Brisbane, and he wanted me to test it. Together we drove to Ipswich.

On the way, Murray shared fond memories of his life in Papua New Guinea in the 1960s and 1970s. Somehow the conversation got around to that unusual building I had admired nearly 40 years ago.

It dawned on me that I was in the company of the brain and sinew behind that unforgettable structure.

Murray told me the building was a library and that he, as headmaster of Chuave Primary School, had been instrumental in its concept, design and construction.

My heart cried as the image of the building was rekindled in my mind. It had been a solid structure which, had it been looked after, could have stood to this day and continued as a reservoir of knowledge.

That library was yet another hallmark of the work of Australian civil servants, missionaries and entrepreneurs who came to our shores in those pre-independence years. It was through the careless attitude of too many of our own people that such gifts vanished over time.

Let me tell you the story of Murray Bladwell.

After working as a health inspector in Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Murray accepted an offer to train as a school teacher in PNG, travelling to Rabaul to undertake a six-month course at Malaguna Teachers' College.

After he graduated in October 1963, Murray was posted to Goroka where  with the school year nearly over - he did temporary work at the District Education Office.

Here he met Keith Jackson who, after two years teacher training at the Australian School of Pacific Administration in Sydney, had just arrived in PNG and was also awaiting a posting to a school.

Murray told me that this was the start of a lifelong friendship with the PNG Attitude editor and another patriot and true man of Papua New Guinea.

In 1964 Murray was first assigned to Siokiei Primary T School, out of Goroka along the Bena road. He had no sooner arrived than he found himself in the middle of PNGs first national election for the House of Assembly.

Murray told me he was privileged to act as an assistant returning officer under the watchful eye of esteemed kiap Colin Campbell who, with his team of polling officials, trekked through villages in the Henganofi open electorate on a five week patrol.

Later in 1964, Murray was posted to Gon Primary T School, now known as Gon Kambua Primary School, in Kundiawa in the Simbu Province. There he served under Ray Andersen, a dynamic educator and prominent contributor to PNGs education development.

Through 1964 and 1985, both Murray and Keith taught in Kundiawa and collaborated in publishing the Kundiawa News, a small newspaper with a circulation of about 200.

During leave in Australia at the beginning of 1966, Murray married Joan, also a teacher. Joan is such a beautiful woman and I had the pleasure of meeting her during my trip to Brisbane. She treasured the bilum I gave her. The next day I saw Joan carrying it on a boat ride on the Brisbane River, which made me feel so happy.

On return from leave in early 1966, Murray and Joan were posted to Chuave Primary T School, as it was known back then: Murray as headmaster and Joan as kindergarten teacher. Murray told me that he and Joan had a wonderful three years working with a highly supportive local community in developing the school facilities, including the famous library.

In 1970 they were posted to Port Moresby where Murray worked in the Publications Branch of the Education Department and Joan was posted to Hohola Demonstration School and was later seconded to the Department of Health to develop a health curriculum and jointly author health teaching guides for PNG schools.

In 1971 Murray joined Wal Capper and Fay Goodman on the much loved radio program, Teachers' Teatime, a joint initiative between the ABC (now NBC) and Education Department.

This program was aimed at teachers throughout PNG and was broadcast at morning tea time so that all teachers could gather in their staff rooms to listen to it and discuss the issues raised. Teachers' Teatime enabled Murray to travel widely throughout PNG interviewing teachers and educationists.

At about the same time Joan was appointed a lecturer at Port Moresby Teachers College, later lecturing in early childhood learning at Port Moresby Medical College.

In 1972-74, Murray was seconded to Education headquarters in Konedobu where, prior to independence, he was executive officer of the National Education Board.

Upon his return to Australia in late 1974, Murray joined the Queensland Department of Education. He later earned a masters degree in education from the University of Alberta in Canada and had an impressive career in Queensland education, retiring as Assistant Director of Planning and Policy in 1999.

Murray then spent nine years working as a consultant in his best friend Keith Jackson's public relations company, Jackson Wells Morris.

Murray and Joan told me they have very fond memories of their years in PNG and in particular the warm-hearted village people, parents and inquisitive children who made teaching such an enjoyable and inspiring experience.

Murray and Joan still feel a strong attachment to PNG and the recent Simbu schools book project for that Murray initiated was another clear manifestation of this bond.

There are many Australians like Murray and Joan who are true friends of PNG and who spent much of their life serving PNG and its people, sometimes in the most difficult conditions.

Although most left PNG around 40 years ago, they still have special attachment to our country, As the late David Wall said, You can take the man out of PNG but you cant take PNG out of the man.

Today, when these men and women see PNG driven into poverty and riddled with extreme corruption and malpractice by the current brand of leaders and public servants, they feel the same pain and anger as we PNGs common citizens.

This is evident in the writings of Keith Jackson, Phil Fitzpatrick, Chris Overland, Paul Oates, Peter Kranz, Barbara Short, Bernard Corden, Lindsay Bond, Robin Lillicrap to name just a few.

Sometimes they say openly, bugger it, I am done with that shithole. But you will find that they do not give up.

The bond between them and the shithole continues, and even strengthens, and this makes them true men and women of Papua New Guinea.

Murray Bladwell is one such person.
Reaction: Oil prices surge more than 1 percent as Iraq says it will cooperate in OPEC deal

Published Mon, Nov 28 2016 5:28 AM EST Updated Mon, Nov 28 2016 11:35 AM EST
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A scroll through Instagram can become a costly experience for Aadil Seedat, a search market executive, as his shopping list of luxury goods grows. But it's not the presence of branding or logos which informs these purchases, rather the desire to "replicate (the) lifestyle" of the influencers he follows, as he explained to CNBC via telephone. According to recent market research, Seedat is typical of today's incarnation of a luxury goods consumer, looking past visible branding and instead relying on nouse to identify quality. This is all with the intention of mimicking a way of life as a whole, rather than ownership of a specific product. More consumers are opting for luxury handbags with little or no visible branding. Statistics released last month revealed that one third of the handbags purchased in the U.S. in the year ending June 2016 did not have a visible logo, according to data from The NPD Group, an information gathering firm. "Consumers want to be one in a million, not one of a million," Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst at The NPD Group told CNBA via telephone. For Cohen, the data revealed that consumer tastes are now more "personalisation-oriented," favouring "products that are more modular." The anti-branding trend pans across generations. Sales of handbags with no visible logo were highest amongst those aged 50 and older, but the phenomenon gained the most traction with Generation Z  those aged 17 years and under  whose unit sales of handbags with no visible logo rose 8 percent year on year.



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According to The NPD Group's data, older millennials, aged 25-34, and Generation X, aged 35-49, also increased their purchasing of designer bags with no visible logo. The style has been pioneered by luxury brand Celine, as well as Giorgio Armani and Hermes amongst others, said Silvano Vangi, luxury buyer and creative director at online luxury fashion retailer LUISAVIAROMA. "The concept keeps the focus on the product, it's a discreet luxury that is really based on the tailoring and fabric," he told CNBC via e-mail. Adding a different dimension to Cohen's analysis, Richard Cope, senior trends consultant at Mintel, chalks the anti-branding movement up to consumers "want(ing) more discreet, more experiential products." Cope told CNBC via telephone that consumers today "don't just define luxury in terms of material goods." Cope cited Mintel data from March 2016 which charted only 15 percent of survey respondents specifying luxury goods to be those featuring visible logos. The most popular definition associated with luxury was high quality, non-massed produced goods, backed up by 42 percent of those asked. Speculating on the psychology behind anti-branding, Cope said that "brands now have multiple price entry points and so are diluted psychologically, (they) no longer bring mystique." Cope added that consumers want to invest in products that they perceive as not widely available or mass produced. Items that are customised, limited or unique in some way are relevant for this reason. Vangi added that anti-branding creates its own exclusivity, appealing to a "select group of people who are very luxury oriented and appreciate minimalism." He said that items including the Loewe Puzzle bag, the Max Mara Manuela coat and Manolo Blahnik's shoes are "definitely amongst the most popular" for the trend.

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A car rammed into a crowd at Ohio State University on Monday, and a knife-wielding attacker got out and cut people before being shot to death, authorities said. Nine people were reported injured.

NBC News reports the attacker has been identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, citing multiple law enforcement sources.

Ali Artan was believed to be an Ohio State student  a Somali refugee who lived near campus, NBC News reported. It said he was a legal permanent resident of the U.S.



The attack on campus in Columbus had initially had been described as an active shooter on the loose. The school declared the situation under control after about an hour, but classes were suspended for the day. As of last year, the school had more than 65,000 students that were enrolled.



Ohio State police told reporters the attacker drove over a curb into pedestrians, got out and stabbed people with a butcher knife.

"To go over the curb and strike pedestrians and to get out and start striking them with a knife, that was on purpose," campus Police Chief Craig Stone said. "Our officers were on the scene in less than a minute and he ended the situation less than a minute. He engaged the suspect and he eliminated the threat. The suspect is DOA."

A witness told NBC4 Columbus that people evacuated Watts Hall after a fire alarm was pulled, "then a car came along and started hitting those who evacuated."



Earlier reports said 10 people had been injured and two people had been arrested. Officials later said the attacker had acted alone.



President Barack Obama was briefed on the situation and asked to be updated on the investigation, the White House said.

Ohio State tweeted shortly before 10 a.m. that a shooter was on campus and people should "Run Hide Fight," standard protocol for dealing with such situations. Run means try to escape. If that's not possible people should hide and as a last resort fight the attacker.

The tweet said: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College."

Watts Hall is a materials science and engineering building.


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Failure by OPEC to agree on a deal to cut production could push the oil price back under $40 a barrel, says the Global Head of Commodity Strategy at Canada's RBC Capital Markets. Speaking to CNBC on Monday morning, Helima Croft warned of the significance of the oil cartel's ability to press ahead with the tentative deal to limit production, the outline of which was first announced in late September. According to the details revealed at the time, the deal would see the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) lower its production to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels per day, in its first agreement to reduce supply since 2008. "It's binary. If you get a deal done you affirm the case for 50 (dollars per barrel). Failure to launch, you're below 40," Croft warned. "We're not nearly as complacent as Khalid al-Falih that they can survive this easily," she added.

Ryad Kramdi | AFP | Getty Images

Croft was alluding to comments from Saudi Arabia's energy minister, Khalid al-Falih, who told reporters on Sunday that he believed the oil market would rebalance itself next year even without an OPEC agreement and that he therefore saw justification in maintaining production at existing levels. According to the RBC strategist, the latest communication from the Saudi minister is significant given that until now the clear message from the Kingdom has been that they believe in the need for a cut. Croft cautions that OPEC runs the sharp risk of a loss of credibility in the case of failure to deliver a deal. "They're making everyone very nervous in the market right now," Croft said. Yet despite the latest rhetoric, she still believes a deal will get done.

OPEC's big week ahead

This comes amid a busy week for producers with an OPEC meeting due to take place in Vienna this Wednesday. A pre-meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC producers was originally scheduled for Monday but abandoned after Saudi Arabia refused to attend on the grounds of no agreement within OPEC having yet been reached. Meantime, Venezuela's oil minister is set to visit Algiers on Monday before flying to Moscow with his Algerian counterpart in the lead-up to Wednesday's talks in Vienna. In related news, Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) said on Sunday it would not participate in any OPEC production cuts for the "foreseeable future" given it is still working hard to restore crude output to pre-conflict levels. The Saudis are treading a fine line between supporting initiatives to prop up the oil price to a level that works for their increasingly challenged economy and ensuring that it doesn't go so high that a string of competitors who have found it uneconomic to produce at recent lower price points are enticed back into the industry. "The Saudis are not aiming for 70 dollar oil or 80 dollar oil," Croft said. "They're being pragmatic. They do not want to resurrect the entire U.S. shale complex."
New York State's Water Quality Rapid Response Team has formally replied to the Cayuga County Board of Health's request for assistance regarding blue-green algae toxins in the treated drinking water of more than 45,000 residents.

Board members were mostly disappointed with the reply, said county Environmental Health Director Eileen O'Connor. The written state response highlights $600,000 in state funding promised in 2015 toward research and projects around understanding and preventing cyanobacteria blooms, commonly referred to as blue-green algae.

"To me, that's not news for us," said Kathleen Cuddy, director of the county's Health Department. "We're certainly glad to have it, but my understanding is that this funding was earmarked prior to our drinking water becoming an issue, and certainly it will go to help towards combating some of the issues that are contributing to the algae blooms.

"I imagine we will need more assistance moving down the line," she added. "It may be financial, and it may be other assistance."

The Rapid Response Team's letter signed by Roger Sokol, director of the state's Bureau of Water Supply Protection, said the department is "providing technical guidance and analytical services to monitor those systems during the recent Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB). ... We are coordinating efforts and sharing information on HABs and your concerns relating to erosion and the implementation of nutrient management plans.

"You can be assured that Owasco Lake and the public water systems that use this source are a priority of the Governor's WQRRT, and we look forward to working with the community to address this problem," the letter stated.

In a statement to The Citizen on Monday, the state's Department of Health highlighted similar efforts, including daily water testing done by the state's laboratory in Albany. It also mentioned the Finger Lakes Water Hub, a newly created entity that DOH said will have an initial focus on water quality in the Owasco Lake watershed.

"As this important work continues, the state and county will identify any necessary upgrades at water treatment plants to ensure drinking water quality is protected and jointly pursue funding to implement any needed solutions," the department added.

Cuddy said the board would like to see some definitive actions from the state, in addition to assistance in the short-term so treatment plants are ready for bloom season next year. While toxin levels in treated water never reached the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's health advisory guidelines and thus the department did not need to issue a "do not drink" order, one day the treated water tested 0.22 micrograms per liter of microycstin, a toxin that can cause liver failure. The health advisory level for children under 6 is 0.3 micrograms per liter.

"We're all working towards the same goal, and that's a good thing," Cuddy said. "Certainly everyone wants to see the health of our lake improve for all sorts of reasons, drinking water certainly being the most important and time sensitive issue."

The threat of toxins has likely passed this season as algae blooms do not typically survive in cold weather, but in the meantime, the city of Auburn is funding a preliminary engineering study on its treatment plant. The town of Owasco hopes to have one, too, so that both systems can implement recommended upgrades that would keep toxins out of the treated drinking water next year. How much those recommendations may cost, and how long they may take to install, remains to be seen.

County Legislature Chairman Keith Batman said the state Department of Environmental Conservation has been working with local leaders to find grant funding opportunities for those treatment plant studies, but he did not feel the state health department was doing enough.

Sean Mahar, director of communications for the DEC, told The Citizen in a phone interview Monday that DOH is working with the DEC, and his department may appear more accessible due to the set up of regional offices.

Kenneth Lynch, executive deputy commissioner of the DEC, also told The Citizen that the department has been working since the day of the request, but it will take time to find funds.

"The short answer is that we don't have an immediate pot of money specific for planning grants for drinking water issues," Lynch said.

Lynch also pointed out that many of the state's grant processes are competitive, so the two municipalities would have to work through the current system. He said the department has not identified a specific funding opportunity yet, but it is looking.

Cuddy said the board will send an acknowledgement letter to the Rapid Response Team for now, and will reconvene in January and decide if it wishes to send a more detailed letter.

The Rapid Response Team was formed earlier this year, part of the state's reaction to a public health crisis in Hoosick Falls where a chemical linked to cancer and thyroid disease was found at high levels in the drinking water. According to a release from the state in February, the team is "charged with identifying and developing plans to swiftly address critical drinking water contamination concerns, as well as related groundwater and surface water contamination problems."
Fidel Castro's death has opened doors for U.S.-Cuba relations to grow warmer and President-elect Donald Trump should be open to talks with our neighbor to the south, former Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said Monday.

The Cuba-born Gutierrez, who was commerce secretary under President George W. Bush and currently chairs the Albright Stonebridge Group, said that with U.S. companies getting closer to Cuba over the last several years, the only way to move, at least in terms of economic interests, is forward.

"A lot of work has been done, and I think that the president-elect would be well-served if he received other points of view," Gutierrez told CNBC's "Squawk Box."

Gutierrez was interviewed before Trump warned in a tweet on Monday that he would break off the fledgling ties unless Cuba negotiated a better agreement with the United States.

On Saturday, after the death of Fidel Castro, Trump released a statement that called the former leader a "brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades."

Gutierrez said it would be wise for Trump to consider the benefits of having economic dealings with Cuba, citing businesses, universities, hospitals and other organizations that have worked hard over the last two years to establish ties with Cuba.



"He's getting a lot of pressure to just write everything off, and there are a lot of businesses, a lot of farm states, a lot of governors, a lot of mayors who are counting on agricultural sales to Cuba," Gutierrez said.

The former secretary added that a number of airlines have spent a considerable amount of time and money setting up regular flight patterns to Cuba, and that Starwood Hotels is already managing hotels there. JetBlue resumed commercial flights on Monday.

Gutierrez said Trump should take the opportunity to get everything on the table and discuss the country's options rather than rolling back President Barack Obama's progress with normalization.

"I think it would be a tremendous legacy for  President-elect Trump to be the businessperson who can spread the word of how noble free enterprise is. This is a perfect opportunity to do it in Cuba, and I do believe that he is just hearing one side of the story," Gutierrez said.
Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the Bayfront Park Amphitheateron November 2, 2016 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle | Getty Images

There is no moral purpose. It's pretty crass what he seeks to gain for the U.S.

Dana Allin, a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, fears American foreign policy is in "danger of being greatly diminished" under Trump. Allin pointed out that Trump did say a lot during the course of the campaign, and his 30 years in public life, which taken together offer a clue to his worldview. He is most worried about Trump's "admiration for authoritarian leaders and his lack of devotion to liberal democratic norms" which every president in recent memory has adhered to. Allin said Trump has also shown himself to be consistently isolationist and protectionist. Leslie Vinjamuri, an associate fellow at the London-based Chatham House think tank, said Trump has made it clear that his number one priority is battling radical Islamist terrorism, followed by the partnership with Russia. Vinjamuri said we can likely count on Trump moving "away from multilateralism and towards bilateralism agreements. A strategy that just says: 'What's in it for me? What's in it for me?'" "He has no visionary foreign policy, there is no moral purpose. It's pretty crass what he seeks to gain for the U.S.," Vinjamuri added. Here's a look at what Trump has promised to do about some global hot spots.

North Korea

Since winning the election, the Obama administration has warned Trump's transition team that it considers North Korea to be the top national security threat for the incoming White House team, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Candidate Trump called North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un a "bad dude" and a "maniac," but also said he'd be willing to meet him over hamburger to discuss rapprochement between the U.S. and the nuclear-armed nation. After North Korea claimed that it carried out its first hydrogen bomb test in January, Trump said that China has "total control" over North Korea and that if Beijing didn't "solve the problem, we should make trade very difficult with China." Trump also said that South Korea and Japan should pay for more of their own defense and if they don't he would be willing to have U.S. withdraw troops from those countries. He also suggested that he would support Japan and South Korea developing their own nuclear arsenals, in an interview with the New York Times in March. He added that he believes nuclear capability is the "biggest problem" the world has. Trump has not addressed North Korea specifically in any of his post-election interviews

China

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From the start of Trump's election campaign, China has been in his crosshairs. In his June 2015 speech announcing his candidacy, Trump accused China of devaluing their currency and dumping their cheap goods on the U.S. market  stealing U.S. manufacturing jobs in the process. Trump promised to designate China as a currency manipulator and to slap Chinese imports with hefty tariffs.

He criticized Beijing's build-up in the South China Sea and suggested in a March interview that the U.S. should use its economic power and trade with China as a bargaining chip "to negotiate" on the issue.

But Trump has also praised China's ability to build incredible infrastructure  from bridges and roads to airports, compared to what he called "third-world" airports in the U.S. During the campaign he promised to spend $1 trillion to rebuild America. Will he lean on Chinese expertise to do that?

Syria and ISIS

"We have to end that craziness that's going on in Syria," Trump said during the New York Times interview on Nov. 22. He said that he has some "very definitive" and "strong ideas" about how to deal with the civil war in Syria. But didn't elaborate on what those ideas are. During his Nov. 11 interview with the Wall Street Journal, he suggested focusing more closely on a fighting ISIS, rather than on ousting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Trump explained that given Russia's support of Syria in the civil war, if the U.S. attacks Assad, Trump reasoned, "we end up fighting Russia, fighting Syria." He said in March that he believes "our far greater problem is not Assad, it's ISIS." And also he suggested that one way to combat ISIS would be to hit their "dark banking channels" to cut off their financing.

Russia

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Dismissing criticism of his alleged chumminess with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the campaign, Trump told the New York Times that he would "love to be able to get along with Russia" and that better relations with Moscow are in "our mutual interest." He also suggested Moscow could become an ally, saying "wouldn't it be nice if we went after ISIS together." During the campaign, Trump questioned the relevance of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the alliance created in 1949 to counter the threat of the Soviet Union, calling it "obsolete." He said the U.S. shoulders too much of the financial burden of NATO, compared to other member states, and argued that it was not an effective tool to combat the biggest threat now: terror.

Despite his critique, Trump said that as president he would abide by the commitments of the treaty and defend Baltic states if Russia invaded them. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told BBC News that he has spoken to Trump directly since the election and that he said the "United States will remain strongly committed to NATO." During the election Trump praised Putin, saying he would give him an "A," for leadership, as opposed to President Barack Obama. The bromance has continued since Trump won the election. Putin called Trump to congratulate him on his victory and the two agreed to work to "normalize" relations. A Kremlin statement about the call said that the new relationship will be based "on the principles of equality, mutual respect and respective non-involvement in the other party's domestic affairs." The statement from the Russians added that Putin and Trump agreed on combating "global enemy number one"  international terrorism and extremism.

Mideast
To begin with the obvious: There is no evidence whatsoever that any of this happened. The claim of millions voting illegally appears to have come from a "story" published by conspiracy website Infowars, which has also promulgated claims that the Sandy Hook massacre was faked and Hillary Clinton is a "demon from hell."

He went on to directly target states he lost: "Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California  so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias  big problem!"

"In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," the president-elect tweeted on Sunday.

Serious election observers quickly condemned Trump, pointing out that instances of noncitizens voting are vanishingly rare. "We know historically that this almost never happens," David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, told Politico. "You're more likely to get eaten by a shark that simultaneously gets hit by lightning than to find a noncitizen voting."

One common theory about Trump's unhinged tweets is that they are calculated to draw attention away from more serious and more damaging stories. In this case, the election tweets followed a lengthy investigation by The New York Times into Trump's sprawling global business empire and how his own personal financial interests could shade his decisions as president. Trump has already shown no real desire to separate himself from his businesses  beyond saying his children will be in charge  and argued that it's legally impossible for the president to have a conflict of interest.

It's possible the distraction theory could have some merit. But the simpler answer is probably the correct one. Trump simply cannot stand the fact that while he won a narrow Electoral College majority, he now trails Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by nearly 2 million votes. Trump is also reportedly enraged by Green Party nominee Jill Stein's efforts to push a recount in Wisconsin, where he won by just 27,257 votes. Stein, who is also pushing for recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania, won 30,000 votes in Wisconsin. So her recount effort there seems aimed at proving she did not cost Clinton the state rather than altering the actual result.

The Hillary Clinton campaign has not pushed the recount effort but said it would participate to ensure fairness. None of the recount efforts are likely to alter the result. Trump is going to be president.

But his raging tweets show just how thin his skin really is and how unlikely he will be as president to smoothly handle any insults or criticism from foreign leaders or opponents on Capitol Hill.

The Sunday tweet storm also helped obscure a disturbing story that broke just before Thanksgiving reporting that Trump is turning away daily briefings from national security officials. Trump spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway explained that Trump is getting intelligence information from other sources but declined to elaborate on who those sources might be.

And Trump himself is not talking to the press. He hasn't held a news conference in four months, letting his transition process devolve into a series of leaks and extraordinarily public fights.

Conway took the unprecedented step on Sunday of publicly urging her boss not to pick Romney for secretary of state, saying Trump's supporters "feel betrayed" by consideration of the 2012 nominee, a highly respected figure in the GOP establishment.
ROME, N.Y.  Ashley Niebuhr, co-chair of Rome Memorial Hospitals Safe Patient Handling Committee, has received the Safe Patient Handling Award of Excellence from the New York State Zero Lift Task Force for her leadership in improving the safety of the hospital environment for both patients and staff.

The New York State Zero Lift Task Force is made up of health-care workers, administrators, patient advocates, union representatives, and safety and health professionals who want to ensure the health and safety of all patients and health-care workers in New York state, according to a Rome Memorial Hospital news release. The award recognizes the contributions of individuals who have distinguished themselves through their hard work and dedication to improve the health and safety of workers by advocating for safe patient handling programs.

Niebuhr was nominated for the award by Manon Gouse, assistant VP of therapeutic services and patient safety officer at Rome Memorial Hospital; Chris Craigmile, safe patient handling specialist with Craigmile Health Solutions LLC; and David Lyman, risk manager for Gilroy, Kernan & Gilroy Insurance, Inc. in New Hartford.

Due to Ashleys efforts and those of the Safe Patient Handling Committee, Senior Leadership and the entire staff at Rome Memorial Hospital, the hospital has far exceeded any other acute or long term care facility that I work with to reduce staff injuries due to patient handling tasks, Craigmile said in the release. They have nearly eliminated musculoskeletal injuries to front line staff due to the movement of patients.

Rates of musculoskeletal injuries from overexertion in health-care occupations are among the highest of all U.S. industries. The single greatest risk factor for overexertion injuries in health-care workers involves the manual lifting, moving, and repositioning of patients or residents, which can result in career-ending injuries, according to the release.

Rome Memorial Hospitals Safe Patient Handling Program, including staff education and investments in equipment, has resulted in a significant decline in incidents, the hospital said. Since 2014, Rome Memorial Hospitals rates of work-related musculoskeletal disorders equal 2 per 100 employees, well below national rates of 8.8 in hospital settings and 13.5 in nursing-home settings. These efforts have also saved the hospital nearly $634,000 annually in workers compensation and indirect costs, according to Gouse.

Niebuhr earned a bachelors degree in health and human studies and a doctor of physical therapy from Utica College. She is certified by the Association of Safe Patient Handling Professionals.

Contact The Business Journal News Network at news@cnybj.com
The Bradford Exchange honors the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor with a coin.

The 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor falls on Dec. 7, 2016.

A new base metal coin from Tristan da Cunha memorializes the Day that will live in infamy in American history.

The reverse of the 75th Anniversary Heroes Of Pearl Harbor coin depicts President Franklin Roosevelt and one of the American battleships that was sunk on that day, perhaps the USS Arizona.

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An effigy of Queen Elizabeth II appears on the obverse.

Specifications have not been released, but the mintage limit is 1,941 pieces.

The coin is available from the Bradford Exchange for $44.95 and $4.95 shipping, at its website.
Latvia finds inspiration for its modern coins in ancient jewelry. The Latvijas Banka has released the first gold 5 coin in a series to celebrate brooches.

Ancient jewelry is now inspiring modern coins from the Bank of Latvia.

Latvijas Banka on Nov. 10 released the first issue in a series of coins honoring gold brooches.

The Proof 2016 Disc Fibula .9999 fine gold 5 coin replicates a third to fourth century artifact. Additional subjects planned for the series replicate the horseshoe and bubble fibulae.

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The Austrian Mint struck the 2016 Disc Fibula coin.

The obverse pairs ancient design with modern technology as well, as evidenced by the inclusion of hashtags (pound signs) with the nations name, the weight of the coin, and year of issue, all inscribed on the obverse of the gold coin.

The history of the brooch in what is now Latvia began with various brooches from the early Iron Age (first to fourth centuries A.D.)  the so-called eye fibulae, tutulus fibulae, cross-ribbed fibulae, arbalest fibulae and round disc fibulae with openwork wheel, cross and fire cross motifs, according to the Bank of Latvia.

The older brooches were imported, but soon the local craftsmen began to use them as models to make their own brooches, with their form reflecting local aesthetics and concepts.

Brooches were used to fasten and adorn clothing for all  men, women and children. The form of and ornamentation on brooches also served a protective function (jewelry as amulet). The form, size and material have changed, yet brooches remain popular to the present.

The disc fibula, a singular find in Dzelzavas Jaunzemji graveyard in Madona region, is a special one, both laconic and luxurious at the same time: the openwork on its disc surface forms a complex geometrical ornament. The disc fibula and its ornamentation may have also served as an amulet, reflecting the sun cult, which was gaining importance in the crop-growing society. It is also associated with rotation, dynamism and continuity.

The coin weighs 3.1 grams and is struck in an irregular circle with a diameter of 18 millimeters. It has a maximum mintage of 7,000 pieces and an official issue price of 170 through the Bank of Latvia.

For ordering information from the Latvijas Banka cashiers office, visit its website.
Nov. 28, 2016

 It launched under a different name and was not officially disclosed until almost two decades later, but Russia's first Soyuz spacecraft lifted off into history 50 years ago Monday (Nov. 28).



The Soyuz, which became the former Soviet Union's third class of crewed transport spacecraft and is still used today to take cosmonaut and astronaut crews to the International Space Station, first flew under the intentionally nondescript title "Kosmos 133" on Nov. 28, 1966.



The less-than-successful 34-orbit uncrewed mission ended with the Soyuz's descent capsule self-destructing, instead of landing off-course in China. But that was only the last of its problems.



Originally slated to fly a fully automated rendezvous and docking with Russia's second Soyuz 7K-OK spacecraft, to be launched the following day, Kosmos 133 lifted off at 4 p.m. Moscow Time (6 a.m. EST; 1100 GMT) from Site 31 at Tyuratam, now known as the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in Kazakhstan. The launch inserted the spacecraft into a 112 by 144 mile (180 by 232 kilometer) orbit, slightly lower than planned.



"We've been waiting for this to happen," Nikolai Kamanin, then-head of the Soviet cosmonaut corps, wrote in a diary entry describing the first two Soyuz missions (as quoted by Asif Siddiqi in his book, "Challenge to Apollo"). "Today and tomorrow will see launches on which the immediate future of our space program will hinge."







The Soyuz 1 launch vehicle is seen standing on the pad in 1967 at Russia's Baikonur Cosmodrome. The Kosmos 133 mission in 1966 led to the first crewed use of the Soyuz. (Roscosmos/Spacefacts.de)

Almost immediately though, flight controllers knew that the missions would not go as planned. Upon separating from its booster, the Kosmos 133 spacecraft's main orientation engine system lost pressure in its fuel tanks.



"Within less than 15 minutes, all or most of the propellant in the system had been used up, sending the spacecraft into a slow rotation of two revolutions per minute," Siddiqi wrote. "Given the engines were indispensable for attitude control during approach and docking, there was little hope of carrying out a docking with a second Soyuz."



The second Soyuz launch was called off (it would later fail to reach space during a launch attempt on Dec. 14, 1966, which ended with its escape system pulling the uncrewed capsule to a safe landing away from the pad) and attention turned to bringing Kosmos 133 back to Earth.



"The ballistic team quickly predicted that without additional maneuvers, the mission's orbit would decay [deorbit] after 39 orbits," wrote Anatoly Zak with RussianSpaceWeb.com. "It was now important to take the spacecraft under control as soon as possible."



Devising alternate methods of control, the flight managers attempted to use the vehicle's smaller thrusters to stabilize the spacecraft as the main engine performed short burns, instead of executing a 100-second firing under the nominal plan. These brief burns also ran into issues though, cutting off early and placing the vehicle into the wrong orientation.



"The Soyuz apparently came close to deorbiting during the 33rd orbit on Nov. 30 ... but again, the engine burn was apparently cut short before completing the braking," wrote Zak. "Finally, the spacecraft plunged into the atmosphere during the 34th orbit of the mission."



The spacecraft's propulsion and orbital modules separated from the descent capsule as was planned, but then flight controllers lost track of the plunging vehicle.



"Later, the State Commission ascertained that the descent trajectory had been too flat and the capsule had begun to overshoot Soviet territory and head toward China," Siddiqi said. "The self-destruct system, consisting of 23 kilograms [50 pounds] of TNT, exploded automatically and destroyed the capsule."



"Debris apparently rained down on the Pacific Ocean, east of the Mariana Islands," he wrote.



The one day and 21 hour Kosmos 133 mission was not a complete failure, as the data collected during the flight led to improvements to the Soyuz spacecraft.



After the second flight's launch failure the following month, three more uncrewed missions of the new spacecraft were launched in 1967 under the Kosmos title (two successes and one failure), prior to Soyuz 1 lifting off with cosmonaut Vladimir Komarov on April 23, 1967.



Tragically, the Soyuz 1 mission ended with the first in-flight fatality in spaceflight history, after a parachute failure led to the descent capsule slamming into the ground. The Soyuz returned to manned flight in October 1968, suffering only one more loss of crew on the Soyuz 11 mission in 1971 and an in-flight abort aboard Soyuz 18A (or Soyuz 18-1) in 1975.







Soyuz MS-03 is seen docked to the International Space Station as it orbits over the Middle East at night on Nov. 27, 2016. (ESA)

To date, half a century after its first flight, Soyuz spacecraft have flown with 130 crews, flying Russian cosmonauts to Earth orbit and on missions to the Salyut and Mir space stations. The spacecraft comprised one-half of the world's first international mission, the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, in 1975, and since October 2000, has been ferrying crews to the International Space Station.



Now its fourth generation, the Soyuz is slated to continue serving the Russian space program until the introduction of the Federatsiya ("Federation") crewed transport spacecraft targeted for 2023.
America has a split personality, both sides being born out of our revolution. We simultaneously exalt the rebellious spirit and honor the authority of the law. This tension has produced a long existential struggle inside our country since the beginning.

It has expressed itself in many forms. In the 1850s, the forces of what was then considered radical were opposed to slavery. They broke federal laws and were the subjects of violence, from the streets of Charleston to the halls of Congress and the beating of Charles Sumner. In the 1960s, the left wanted to help the poor and protect voting rights, while the right felt that this was an assault on their way of life, and their twisted belief in the right to oppress others. Marchers were beaten, activists were murdered, and America watched in horror. Every time a hegemony feels like its grip on power is slipping, it lashes out with a violent reaction, and its policies become increasingly rigid and regressive.

In the past year or so I have become close friends with a number of Muslims, each of them professionals seeking to expand their training in graduate school like me. Now they fear they will be stabbed in the street, or not be allowed to return to the United States to finish their degrees. Yet these young architects and planners are as secular as any of us. They simply want to bring their money to America and then return home with quality training.

The Muslim registry is one example of how the fading hegemony of the far right lashes out. Even if the proposed regulation never becomes a reality, it has created an environment of fear. Now my friends tell me they fear being assaulted or capriciously deported. Witness America in the second decade of the 21st century, and the mainstreaming of the alt-right.

We are all well to remember that state-sponsored fear begins at the edge, in groups we may not feel common cause with, but it will eventually make its way inward and touch all of our lives. In the search for ideological purity, the number of lives shattered grows exponentially. There is a notion among many to register as Muslims in solidarity and protest, to swamp the system in an attempt to render it impractical and useless. If that is what must be done, well then there it is. Am I publically advocating breaking a proposed federal law in defense of true freedom? Perhaps I am.

Yet I would consider it a badge of honor if the Trump administration investigated me. William Seward did no less when he snuck runaway slaves into his home in defiance of the same, because a law that defies the natural state of equality is not legitimate. He paid a price for that struggle when he was stabbed in the face and his friend Abe Lincoln was killed. Clearly the forces of conservatism have historically been prepared to kill for what they believe in. Yet the left has a far greater strength: We are willing to die for we believe in.
Alex Ashmore

Director

TRW Aftermarket Asia Pacific



Gasgoo.com: Could you briefly tell us TRW's aftermarket business in China?

Alex Ashmore: TRW has had an aftermarket business in China for many years. It was incorporated in 1999, but we've decided to ramp up the investment in this area two years ago. Our business in China addresses both product and service requirements. We have the Vehicle Manufacturers Services in China, and it also allows us to address the Independent Aftermarket here. Moreover, we moved the Asia Pacific headquarter from Singapore to Shanghai, China, using our distribution platform for as a regional distribution center and as a supply warehouse to our operations in Germany, South and North America.

Gasgoo.com: Talking about the difference and similarities between China and the world, is there anything unique for the products and services in China's automotive aftermarket?

Alex Ashmore: The fundamentals of the aftermarket are the same wherever you go--you have one level that makes products, one or two or three levels to distribute products by buying, stocking, selling and fitting them into the car (these of the distribution chain wherever in the world are more or less the same).

I think the differences for us in China are: firstly there is a unique set of competitors. Of course, we have the international brands that are present in different markets all around the world but also in China; we have pure domestic Chinese competitors with their own brands that are generally not yet visible as brands in their own right outside China. Due to the difference, the spare parts market is fragmented in China, which is also true for Southeast Asia as well, while in cities there is a concentration of dealers, wholesalers and retailers, especially in certain big cities like Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou. For sure it's creating an exciting environment, full of auto parts businesses, but also brings heavy price competition.

Work hard to build brands, but also defend and protect them

Gasgoo.com: We've noticed that there are a lot of small and middle sized Chinese auto parts manufacturers who offer standard and cheap products in their ranges, also there is a lot of fake goods. So how does TRW build the brand image in this fast growing market?

Alex Ashmore: For TRW, I think the first building block of brand is our original equipment (OE) position. We have a strong OE position in China and throughout the world, but that's not enough to survive in the aftermarket.

We have to have consistent products; we have to have good distributors; and we also have to have the best product range and effective communication support. On communication support includes advertising, PR campaign, and so on, but there is also effective supporting information for our products' cataloguing, and also word of mouth marketing. It's also important to be working with good distributors- and that they all consider TRW as a good company and swear to work with TRW in the aftermarket.

You mentioned counterfeit products; we have various actions that we take against counterfeiters. We are a member of the QBPC (Quality Brands Protection Community) in China, and also we are working with collogues in the aftermarket in Europe on a very special anti-counterfeit device that we hope will become an industry global standard. It's like a thumbing print on the product label, which can be checked with a very simple handheld device, and checked against our database and work backward to show the traceability of the product. So that's how we work in the aftermarket-- we work hard to build our product and our brands, but also to defend and protect them.

Gasgoo.com: How do you differentiate your products from other competitors--not just the foreign branded companies, but also the domestic companies--in China?

Alex Ashmore: The first thing we have to differentiate ourselves is strong branding, we emphasize our TRW branding of products on packaging, cataloguing, and all the marketing and supporting materials. Where I think we're currently better than our competitors, is the quality of our catalogue information, and the speed which we develop new product lines for our distributors to sell, which's very quick and helps them get the advantage of the market.

Gasgoo.com: To speed quickly enough, you also build the warehouses near the OEMs and near the distributors?

Alex Ashmore: Yes. We have a network of depots around China to serve the vehicle manufactures' distribution network in aftermarket. Also we are fast with our speed to develop new items. With the right kind of database, we can create new references, and with an efficient process to develop news parts, we can offer the new products to the aftermarket.

Imports and localized products to support Chinese market

Gasgoo.com: Do you bring products from the factories in other existed countries or you make localized products in China?

Alex Ashmore: We do both. Our main mission in China is to grow our domestic market, and in order to address that market, we know most of our products in China will be localized over time. Of course our position at the moment is to have the advantages to offer the complete product range, and in order to do that, we have some products manufactured domestically, but also we import some items for maybe special specifications or maybe the quantity of the car in China is small but the quantity in other markets is high, and it's not economic to develop in China. So we have an appropriate policy of import and localization.

Take brake parts for example, where there's a locally made vehicle we'll generally provide locally-made braking parts; if it's an imported model, we'll provide imported braking parts, from Europe or Japan. We follow the original equipment specification to make a complete product offer. So when our distributors want to buy "A", "B" or "C"we have it.

Gasgoo.com: How was your distribution channel organized in the Chinese aftermarket?

Alex Ashmore: We have a service obligation first to the vehicle manufacturers, so in the aftermarket business, we are obliged to give the VMs service for the original equipment (OE) products we serve to them in the first place. That's one channel to market what we have. 4S shop is the major distribution channel for vehicle manufactures in China. The way we're addressing that channel is that we are not selling to the 4S shops, we're supplying directly to the vehicle manufacturer's service department, and they would distribute the replacement parts to their own cars and own service channel. We contact 4S shops in researching and finding out what is needed in the marketplace and so forth. This is a consistent strategy for us worldwide.

Then we have the independent aftermarket channel. We distribute to independent distributors, wholesalers and dealers in the market place. We are not selling directly to workshops because that is not our distribution approach or our capability of delivery service level. We are a manufacturer, and we sell to distributors who'll sell to the garages.

We are still developing our channels as well; we've started our field sales team who works with distributors around china and develops a good, strong partnership with them.

At the end of the day, the vehicle manufacturer is our way to address the vehicle manufacture service channel.

I do not think we will distribute to garages as this is the role of the distributor. But as the market grows and consolidates, along with some combination of networks, then we may have to look at other channels.

Gasgoo.com: what's the percentage of the two channels for TRW nowadays?

Alex Ashmore: Of our existing sales it's roughly 50:50, which is also roughly in line with the general market. I think generally, because along with the growth in the vehicle parc, the aftermarket is roughly 50% through the vehicle manufacture service channel; roughly 50% is in the independent aftermarket.

Gasgoo.com: Now are you over-distributed or under-distributed?

Alex Ashmore: For the independent aftermarket, we just put the resources in line and put the programs together during last year, so we are starting our journey for the independent aftermarket. We are appropriately expanding our network. So it's not over-distributed yet.

Unlike many other companies looking at distribution all round China, we look at the cities with high car populations suiting our distribution models, and make sure that we have all our products distributed in those cities all the way. Of course, as we grow, we will be progressively going downward the list of cities.

We launched our products last year, we are recently happy with our development and we have a few sales network established, and the sales are growing.

Gasgoo.com: Have you found that different regions in China have different levels of auto aftermarket?

Alex Ashmore: Absolutely. We notice that the aftermarket is only following the original equipment market. In the south of China, there're a lot of Japanese cars; in the north China, there're lots of Volkswagens; in the west of China, there're lots of ChangAn Ford cars. What we can sell in the different parts of China depends on what's there.

Gasgoo.com: For different channels of distribution, how do you balance the price gap?

Alex Ashmore: I think at the end of the day, the consumers are driving the prices into the two different distribution channels. And TRW's job is to sell at a fair price that reflects the service level of customer requirements and respects the volume that they wanted to purchase from TRW. Thereafter, the local market and the distributors' efficiency and abilities are determining the price make-ups.

Regulations & training are in urgent need

Gasgoo.com: Do you think more regulation is necessary to regulate China's auto aftermarket?

Alex Ashmore: Yes, maybe some regulations on service, maintenance and testing measures, and also some general training to consumers about the necessity for service and maintenance. Preventing measures which are important for a number of reasons, but the first of all is safety. TRW is positioned to offer safety products, but what people should take first in safety is that people need to ensure the car works properly, make sure the brake pads or other parts are not worn down. And secondly the car should have good maintenance and good care. Then it will last longer, and when you sell it, the price will be higher. So it is important for economic development to build aftermarket in China.

Gasgoo.com: Do you offer training for the 4S shops and the independent dealers?

Alex Ashmore: it's different by channel. By the 4S channels, we do our training and technical support to the vehicle manufacturer, and they organize, and adapt it to their maintenance and service training programs to their 4S dealers for the car model in question.

In selected countries round the world, we are participating in a program called eXponentia, which is a marketing alliance of some companies such as ourselves, Valeo, Tenneco, SKF and Gates. We're gathering the training information together, in order to support the market, and enable any distributor or workshop to be trained on most product technologies. This is what we do on a global basis, and we're thinking how to exploring this in China. I think it will be a great benefit. From my visit to the workshops in China, there is a real need particularly on safety critical parts improvement on technical level and know-how.

Gasgoo.com: World widely speaking, who are reshaping the aftermarket, the OEMs, or OE suppliers, or non-OE suppliers, or the retailer, or others? What's your opinion on this?

Alex Ashmore: Apart from these channels and divisions of the market, I think it is the consumers that are reshaping the market at the end of the day. The consumers are the end customer, and his or her requirements are deciding the winners and losers. The manufacturers are shaped by the consumers' requirements, then he lays the requirements to his distributor, and his distributor has to offer the garage services and the service level that he is demanding. I think the winners are decided by who is providing the consumer the right package of price, product quality, service, and in particularly consumer proximity--because people don't want to drive 50 kilometers to get the car serviced, they need something more local. So these factors are driving the winners and losers.

Gasgoo.com: If we just look at China, who is playing the key role in the aftermarket? Also what do you think of the numerous roadside shops that provide replacement parts and service?

Alex Ashmore: The aftermarket is enormous, absolutely enormous in China. Everybody is having some strategy to address the market. There is room for lots of players I'm not sure if it's clear yet who in the future dominates the market, and time will tell who is having the best strategy.

I can't say on the prospect of those operations by the roadside shops, but from what I can see of that type of operation, of course it's in the low end. They are cheap, and have good proximity to customers, so it's very convenient. But in the future, we have to ask ourselves; will they continue to operate well with the increasing regulation? Secondly, will they be able to get the know-how that they need to get?

The vehicle population in China is expanding dramatically both in its volume and variety. There are so many different car models, all of the companies all over the world want to be in China. They (garages) have a huge variety of cars to deal with now, and increasingly in the future. I don't know whether they will get the know-how to deal with all these types of car in the future. But certainly it's a trend in the market.

Gasgoo.com: What's TRW's strategy to tag China's aftermarket in the coming years?

Alex Ashmore: This year and in the near future, we are concentrating on the distributor level of the customer. We try to work with distributors to have good and close cooperation with them, to support them and let them support us.

On the first stage, our focus is on the big cities with large car population, and as we begin to grow, then of course we will step up to other cities, going to the next levels of cities, and then next levels and the next.

I think by providing product and service to our vehicle manufactures customers and the aftermarket, laying down the distribution network, we could have good partnership relationships with our customers with a good package of support. The varieties of cars in China is exploding and many suppliers are not effectively supporting their distributors and dealers in the aftermarket. TRW will continue to offer the best catalogue information in which parts are for which car, pictures of the parts and all the necessary information. That's how we differentiate ourselves in the first step by providing a great t package of support, because our customers have to be successful first for us to be successful.

Gasgoo.com: In the future will you also provide service in the village area in China?

Alex Ashmore: Yes, it depends on the economics. There are many years for us to grow, on a step-by-step controlled and managed fashion. The smaller places can get service from regional hubs, or regional cities or something like that.
Foundation adds another $25M to Kinder Institute

The Kinder Foundation is giving the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy another $25 million, bringing its total to $60 million.
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.


Christophe Aniel (Left)

CEO

Mondial Assistance China



Ronan Gould (Right)

National Sales Manager - Automotive

Mondial Assistance China





Gasgoo.com: We learnt that Mondial Assistance is the first roadside assistance company that enters China (from 2003), so please give us a brief introduction to your automotive services in China.

Christophe Aniel: Mondial Assistance Group is a world leading company in terms of global assistance. There are two lines of business in the group: automotive services (roughly 40% of the global business) and travel insurance (around 48%). The automotive services basically include roadside assistance, customer relationship managements (CRM), extended warranties, and other services related to the automotive sector, to help enhance the services of the manufacturers and dealers.

Globally Mondial Group has almost 10,000 staff all over the world, and our revenue in 2007 is about 1.5 billion euros. We have 30 business units across the world, however when we do not have a business unit in a specific country, we can still leverage our extensive automotive and medical network there to deliver a prompt and professional service (400.000 globally worldwide), which means that we can service anybody, any time through our 24-hour call center and our network. This is the global concept of Mondial Group. It's a growing and profitable group, with a profit growth of 10% each year.

We entered China in 2003 and we start from almost scratch. At the time we bought a small Chinese company which has an assistance platform, and then we became a WFOE (Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise) in 2004. We grew from about 10 people in 2003 to 165 people now. Our headquarters in China is in Beijing, and we have offices in Guangzhou, Shanghai and Chongqing; we now hope to expand to Shenzhen and Chengdu. Here we work with BMW, Mercedes-Benz, ChangAn Ford, Volvo, Jaguar, Nissan Infiniti, Honda Acura and etc; we've got 15 of the automotive brands in China as our clients.

We are growing well in China, our growth rate in China last year is about 90%. And about 95% of our staff is Chinese; some of them are growing to mid-range and senior managers, because we need the Chinese people to address the Chinese market.

We are 99% B2B (business-to-business), that's why the end consumers may not be fully aware of the Mondial systems, because when we work for a car manufacturer, we become BMW or Mercedes assistance.

Gasgoo.com: So you're the invisible helpers.

Christophe Aniel: Our purpose is to deliver our service to the OEMs. That's the full concept. In only very few cases we act B2C, when for example a manufacturer wants to propose roadside assistance outside the warranty, and then we can offer a co-branded renewal program with the manufacturer after the warranty expires.

We've worked mostly with the joint ventures auto companies set up in China. Now we are walking to Chinese-branded vehicle manufacturers who also want to grow their brand loyalty and improve their service to become more competitive. They will need our services as well--frankly speaking, it's not very expensive, yet it has great value. It's still in early stages to convince the Chinese manufacturers, but that's our strategy now.

Ronan Gould: We want to raise our service to the Chinese brands, because they certainly compromise a significant percentage of the overall sales, particularly as we know Chery is a very successful brand in China. We are very happy and proud to work with Chery in the future, because we believe that our service and added value will help increase its customer loyalty.

Challenges for roadside assistance provider in China

Gasgoo.com: What are the challenges you face when you start business with the Chinese vehicle manufacturers?

Christophe Aniel: The first challenge would be culture and education. And for the time being, we've met a lot of Chinese people looking into prices and purchasing powerthese kinds of things only. We can feel that the Chinese customers are not likely to spend money easily. So we have to find the right balance between Chinese consumers who want to pay and the services we provide.

Ronan Gould: In additionthe concept of roadside assistance is new in China. While in Europe and other mature markets, roadside assistance has been recognized by all of the automotive brands. In China, it's only starting to become prevalent. What we have to do as an assistance provider is to demonstrate to each of the manufacturers the benefit of having a dedicated and branded roadside assistance program which adds value to their product and increases customer loyalty to their brand.

As Christophe said, there is a cost obstructer; we have to balance the cost versus the benefits. The demonstration takes time, and involves some relationship between cost and some of our core values. We have to convince the clients the service we provide is professional, but also it's valuable. That is what we can doand we've made good progress with a lot of the joint ventures in China. As the competition in the market is increases each year and they are looking to improve their customer service; we believe passionately our services can help them to achieve that.

Customers see great value in roadside assistance service

Gasgoo.com: It seems that most of Mondial customers are premium brand car manufacture.

Christophe Aniel: We've worked with premium brands, but with volume brands as well. Yes, a large part of the business is with the premium brands, but we start to work with volume brands. Sometimes, we can differentiate the offer with different price, so we have low-end and high-end products depending on what the manufacturers want to bring to their customers. So we have to find the right balance and offer the tailor-made products with an appropriate price. So it is all about marketing differentiating the offer. We've got both premium and volume brands, now we want to explore the Chinese manufacturers. The market is booming and so is the competition in the automotive market.

And loyalty starts to be a problem. We've made some studies on roadside assistance. When you have a problem, you call Mondial Assistance; anywhere and anytime, we turn a very quick, transparent and real time service, perhaps on a main street or in the countryside. Then when people want to renew their car, they think the service is good, and that may influence their decision, so roadside assistance around the world is a key benefit.

Ronan Gould: I'd like to share some interesting statistics with you. We did follow and observe and consult with all of our customers after we provide assistance. Overall 93% of our customers said having a roadside assistance program is a factor in their decision whether to stay with the (car) brand or to change the (car) brand. That's very persuasive: 93% clearly demonstrates to the manufacturers that customers see a value in the service, and it's important. Because when they have a break-down, it is possible to turn a negative experience into a positive experience if your customers feel your service very good. This is the type of information we'd like to share with our clients. The customer's loyalty to the brand is directly related to the after sales performance of the manufacturer and the dealer.

Gasgoo.com: More and more Chinese local companies are trying to provide the roadside services; some of them get funds from the private equities or banks. What is Mondial's advantage compared with these small, local or separate automotive service providers?

Christophe Aniel: Instead of having a regional approach (a regional dealers or garage), we have a nation-wide service network across China. For example, we've got an extensive network of almost 1400 providers, which we control, manage and recruit; we just get rid of the bad ones and select new capable providers. We are constantly improving. Everything is centralized, we dispatch the providers, and we give the information back to the manufacture. We can cover people nationwide, and it's not going to depend on the regional capability or because somebody is nor available, or dealers are not there, or it's not the right time, or it's not open at night, or whatever.

There are many regional and local difference, things varies in the living and the service, but we strongly believe a worldwide company like Mondial with an extensive network in China, is able to deliver service to companies like the General Motors, or Chery, or the Japanese automakers. The fact is that we can leverage the manufacturers' network; we also have our network, so that we can deliver the services anywhere and the approach is consistent. The feedback from the manufactures often is "perfect".

Ronan Gould: The key part of our approach is quality; we are very strict about quality on the network. As Christophe said, we remove the bad ones; we ensure that when our service providers are going to visit their customer, they will have the best professional service. We work with the best dealer networks as well, we provide additional registry to the dealers service to provide the service. We believe that's the reason why Mondial is the NO.1 in this market-because of our knowledge of the local market; we have global presence with local experience; we provide a quality, 24 hour service.

Gasgoo.com: Your network in China is very impressive. How did you set up your distribution channels during the five years?

Christophe Aniel: That was the very efficient work from the network team Ronan mentioned, with about 15 people reporting to the network manager. We took five years to recruit the providers face-to-face, not on the phone, to have a proper interview, to assess their competence, to assess their means, to give them training and quality standard. For example, every year we send them the data and providing DVDs, showing how to repair all models. These 15 people who are based in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chongqing; they keep contact with the providers and bring sufficient volume as well.

Last year, Mondial provides roadside assistance service covering in excess of 400,000 cars. That was achieved through four-years of hard work in the team, with a regional presence and some robust processes to ensure that we have a strong and stable network. It's the starting point.

Gasgoo.com: How profitable was your local business yet?

Christophe Aniel: We just release global results, we don't release local results. The group has grown by over 10% last year. As for China, our growth rate in China last year was 90%, and we have handled 400,000 cars. The operating result is improving, we are moving closer to profitability.
Cllr Paul Ellis is the Cabinet Member for Housing on Wandsworth Council.

The Chancellors Autumn Statement announcement of more help for aspiring homeowners is good news, particularly as the percentage of owner occupiers has fallen dramatically in recent years. This is particularly pronounced in high value areas such as inner London, including my own borough, Wandsworth. Despite actively promoting the right to buy among council tenants for 38 years, lobbying long and hard for housing association tenants to enjoy the same right and recently being praised by Sadiq Khan, no less, for building a record number of affordable homes we are seeing home ownership falling to just over 50 per cent. The main reason for this is the enormous growth of the private rented sector; just over a third of Wandsworth residents now live in privately rented homes.

A few months ago the council commissioned a survey of private renters to try and understand their experiences of their landlords, and what their aspirations are for the future. The majority (85 per cent) were generally happy with both their accommodation and their landlords, which is the good news. The bad news is that, whilst some saw themselves as long-term renters, the majority wanted to buy but believed they would never be able to in our borough. With two-up-two down Victorian houses selling for just short of a million pounds and ex-Council flats fetching 400,000 it isnt difficult to see why they see their future as bleak. However, we are doing our best to try and help anyone who wants to become a homeowner achieve their goal.

Every year we hold an annual Affordable Home Ownership day to which we invite all our council tenants and those residents, mainly young professionals, who have expressed an interest in shared ownership. This year just under a thousand people came along to not only talk to our Councils dedicated Home Ownership team (who else has got one of those?) and housing associations who are currently developing in the borough, and also mortgage brokers and solicitors who can help would be buyers navigate through the minefield of their first purchase. One of the would be buyers I spoke to described the event as being a bit like a Freshers Fair because it had helped him to understand what opportunities were available and, more importantly, what to do about them. As far as I know no other council does this, and would be absolutely delighted to talk to promote it in their area.

Shared ownership (where someone buys a minimum of 25 per cent of their home and pays rent on the remainder) is one way people can get onto the housing ladder in high value areas, but is relatively little known. We are currently securing around 25% affordable housing in all new developments, most of which is shared ownership. Would be purchasers register with the councils Home Ownership team which then lets them know when opportunities become available. By actively marketing in this way we last year we ensured 96 per cent of these new homes were sold to people who lived or worked in Wandsworth.

The main drawback of shared ownership is it is traditionally associated with new build. Not everyone wants to live in a brand new home, and there are far more older properties available, so we looked at ways of helping people buy all types of homes. The solution we have come up with is called DIY Shared Ownership, which we hope to launch next year. We have teamed up with a housing association and basically the prospective buyer goes off and finds something on the open market and, subject to the normal affordability checks, buys it jointly with the housing association.

A large number of council tenants want to become homeowners, and we want to help them achieve that. Since 1978 we have actively promoted homeownership among our tenants, and so far have sold over 50% of our housing stock. We currently have a further 1,000 tenants who say they want to buy but, sadly, high prices mean few will be able to do so. Consequently we have devised a scheme called Right to Part Buy, which is shared ownership by another name. When it is launched in January we will be writing to every tenant who is has a good tenancy record, has no rent arrears and has not been in receipt of housing benefit for the last two years telling them about this new scheme and encouraging them to apply. We are confident there will be a lot of interest. We also realise that not all tenants want to buy their existing homes but would not be able to buy in the private sector without assistance. We therefore offer house purchase grants, which call Portable Discounts, of up to 80,000 to tenants who are looking at a move out of the social rented sector. Sometimes this will be used to top up the deposit for a family on low to middle incomes looking to buy, and in other cases it pays for adaptations to a family home to enable an elderly person to live with their nearest and dearest. We dont see this as public subsidy for our existing tenants, but more as an investment in the future. All receipts from council home sales are used to improve our estates and provide replacement homes, and all homes freed up are used to house those on our waiting list and homeless families.

These are just a few things we are doing in Wandsworth to promote homeownership, which we hope others will want to try as well. Similarly, we are always open to good ideas from others.
Nadhim Zahawi is a member of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee and MP for Stratford On Avon.

Last week, the final functioning hospital in East Aleppo was destroyed. There are now no surgical theatres left in a city at the heart of the bloody civil war in Syria. This is a city where the number of dead already weighs heavily on the conscience of the world, and is now a city where they are much less able to save the wounded.

Deaths will continue to mount, and they will continue to be mourned, but they will also continue to be met with inaction. The whole of the West has looked at Syria with horror for five years, but little has been done, and it appears that little will continue to be done.

In Britain, certainly, we have donated generously. Our Government has done the second-most in the world to provide aid to those affected by the conflict. But this will neither solve the causes of displacement, nor remove the terrors that families are fleeing from. Ultimately, we in Britain and the whole of the West have not taken concrete steps to try and bring this conflict to a swifter end. We have rightly taken on ISIS and committed to wiping that evil organisation out, wherever it is found. But most Syrians are terrorised by Assad, not ISIS. We have little to offer them except aid, if they can escape to a camp.

We have played a role in the talks to bring about ceasefires and discuss political solutions. But little has been achieved. Russia appears to be determined to maintain Assad in power for as long as he wishes, despite being believed to be responsible for up to 95 per cent of casualties in the conflict. Now may well not be the time for regime change, and there could be a role for senior figures from the Assad administration required for a transitional Government. But in the long term you will never be able to maintain Assad in power in a Sunni-dominated country after he has murdered so many of their brothers and sisters, parents and children. Leaving Assad in position leaves few other outcomes of this war than the complete subjugation of one side or the other.

We have learnt a lesson from Iraq, but it has been the wrong lesson. The lesson should have been one of caution rather than inaction. It was one of planning for what should be done in the aftermath, one of listening to local knowledge and one of humility in understanding that you cannot just tear apart every organ of a state, from the army to the civil service, and expect to be able to rebuild another in your own image.

But Syria is different. When we considered military intervention in 2013 this was a country already at war; a country where the people were protesting for an end to autocratic rule had been met with brutal repression. But above all it was a country whose leader had just used chemical weapons on his own people.

We have to have certain rules to maintain international order, and there must be consequences for breaking them. Allowing Assad to get away with those acts, just as Saddam was able to against the Kurds, was unacceptable. It signalled our willingness to watch him slaughter his people, a willingness that has left us where we are today.

And I write this now, because it seems clear that there will be no swift end to this conflict. Russia has strengthened Assad too much, and he has embittered too much of his population against him, while ISIS too lurks in the wings. The situation is markedly worse as we end 2016 compared to 2013, when we stepped back for fear of making the situation worse, and in doing so made it so much worse. We could have curtailed the power of Assad to kill his people without retribution. We did not need to overthrow him, but show that there were absolute limits to what is acceptable in a modern world. But we did not.

The best we can do from this conflict is learn a lesson, as lessons were learned from Iraq. Yes, we should not intervene in a country without a plan. Yes, we should not ignore history and local politics. And yes, we should not recklessly try and tear down a state and start again. But we must also say that we will limit the powers and abilities of those who do unspeakable evil. We will respond strongly to those who wilfully, recklessly and wantonly murder those who they should govern for and protect. And we will act swiftly, without hesitation.

We live in nothing close to a perfect world, and there will always be ugly and brutal war. We cannot enforce our vision of a perfect world through liberal interventionism, but what has happened in Syria cannot be allowed to happen again. We need a real discussion about how best to ensure this. After the terrors of the 1990s the international community talked at length about a Responsibility to Protect, with the UN committing to it in 2005. But we have allowed this standard to slip and for countries such as Russia and China to frustrate it; our commitment to ensuring a stable international system must be renewed.

The NATO countries should therefore take the lead and guarantee immediate but proportionate responses to such violations of international norms. They should introduce a new article of the treaty that specifically mandates member states to strike military facilities, away from civilian populations, in any country in the world that uses chemical or biological weapons, in any scenario.

This commitment should be as strong and clear as the guarantee that an attack on one member is treated as an attack on all. There should also be provisions to ensure NATO personnel are not put in danger, through the use of drones or cruise missiles. However, it would be absolutely clear, no Government in the world could use such weapons again without knowing we would act.

We know that getting involved is difficult, but we also know targeted and well planned intervention can work. Just look at the successful no fly zones in Iraq, implemented by President Bush and John Major in 1992, which protected Kurds in the north of the country and Shias in the south. And we also now know that while stepping back is easy, it has destroyed Syria. We shouldnt let that happen again.
Few contest that the role of the judiciary in the British constitution is changing. We shouldnt be surprised if public attitudes towards judges change with them.

This afternoon Michael Howard and Charles Moore joined Joshua Rosenberg, a legal commentator, and David Hope, the former Deputy President of the Supreme Court, on a panel organised by Policy Exchanges Judicial Power Project to consider how an independent judiciary can be held accountable for the power it wields.

At the end of the discussion it seemed clear to me that there were two unofficial sides, with Lord Howard and Moore on the one and Lord Hope and Rosenberg on the other.

Amidst an amicable and informative debate on the specifics of the High Courts Miller judgement on Article 50 and whose quotes meant what in what context, Howard and Moore made a broader argument that the judiciary has engaged in a sustained effort to expand its constitutional authority, and this will necessary lead to a change in how theyre scrutinised.

One important driving force behind this shift, according to Howard, was that in his experience judges tend to be personally disposed towards the European model of judicial governance and against executive power. This creates a mindset which leads to the interpretation of statute in ways not intended by Parliament.

(Rosenberg perhaps betrayed a shade of this sentiment when he summed up the Miller case as about whether or not the ancient and ill-defined powers of the prerogative could be wielded without Parliamentary say-so.)

He further argued that when Hope spoke of the gradual erosion of Parliamentary Sovereignty he was referring to a process undertaken unilaterally by the judiciary, without reference to Parliament. Moore followed this by quoting Abraham Lincolns warning:

If the decisions of the Supreme Court are irrevocably fixed, Then people cease to be their own masters, and practically resign government into the hands of that eminent tribunal.

Speaking from the floor Professor Christopher Forsyth, of the University of Cambridge, warned that whilst a direct challenge to Parliament by the courts was unlikely there was a much greater risk that the judges would pay lip-service to the principle  as Lady Hale does in her now-infamous Malaysian speech, when she disavows any desire on the part of the Supreme Court for the power to strike down legislation  whilst delivering judgements which undermine it.

The upshot of all this, argued Moore, was that the publics attitude towards the judiciary would evolve along with their new and enhanced role, and intrusion into the political arena would attract political criticism. Given that judges have tenure (barring misbehaviour) and arent appointed politically as in America, this is the only vehicle available for holding them accountable.

Hope and Rosenbergs main response to this charge was that ultimately Parliament is doing this do itself. It is Parliament that failed to make the consequences of the EU referendum binding; that wrote the Sewell Convention into the Scotland Act; that ratified the European Communities Act and the Human Rights Act; and so on.

Regarding the press Rosenberg argued that it was perfectly legitimate to single out individual judges for criticism  he has done so himself  but that the Daily Mails coverage was beyond the pale. Furthermore, Hope argued that the shifting nature of criticism and scrutiny was leading to fewer people opting to enter the judicial profession, which could lead to problems (a weaker bench?) down the road.

Howard on the other hand argued that the judiciary must be prepared to endure criticism in the most robust terms, and quoted the President of the European Court of Justice: if judges cant stand the heat, they will have to stay out of the kitchen.

Hope further suggested that whilst the judiciary cherished the free press it was important for journalists to consider the effect of their writing on public support for the judiciary, the erosion of which could be very damaging. But the same could be argued of coverage of politicians: the age of deferential journalism is over, and our political institutions have seldom been held in lower public esteem.

This creates space for the transfer of power to external bodies, independent inquiries, codes and bodies of rights, and so on. Its very likely that the critical coverage will follow the power, and hard to see this as unjustified.

The nakedly political approach to the US Supreme Court is, after all, a reflection of its political role, and as Ive argued elsewhere once the Court places limits on what political institutions can do then efforts to exert political pressure on apolitical institutions are inevitable.

The President of the ECJ appears to concede that political heat is the price judges will pay for increased power, and if our own Supreme Court wish to take up the mantle of guardians of the constitution (a new one, as Moore pointed out) theyll have to do the same.
Ford reaches tentative contract agreement with Canada's Unifor

Ford Motor Co. reached a tentative labor agreement with Canadian union Unifor early today that includes C$700 million ($522 million) in investment commitments at the automakers Canadian facilities.

The deal, patterned off new contracts with General Motors and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, includes the introduction of a major engine program at the Essex engine plant in Windsor, Ontario, Unifor President Jerry Dias said. The engines will be featured on some of Fords top-selling vehicles, Dias said, though he declined to discuss specifics.

Dias said the program will put Fords Windsor facilities at the top of food chain for powertrain operations.

The deal also secures Fords Oakville, Ontario, assembly plants international export footprint. The plant, which builds the Ford Edge, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKX and Lincoln MKT crossovers, exports its vehicles to about 190 countries, the union said.

However, the union said Ford plans to discontinue production of the Flex in 2020, even as the plant receives updates for refreshes of the Edge and MKX.

The company confirmed the tentative agreement, but declined further comment.

"To respect the ratification process, Ford of Canada will not discuss the specifics of the tentative agreement until unionized employees have had the opportunity to review and vote on the agreement," Ford said in a statement.

Few details

Union leaders declined to discuss many of the deals details, saying it will disclose them to its members before it does so publicly. Ratification votes are set to begin on Saturday and conclude on Sunday.

Unifor has repeatedly made securing product and investment commitments from the Detroit 3 its top priority in negotiations. Combining the tentative Ford deal with the GM and FCA contracts, the automakers have committed hundreds of millions of dollars to their Canadian operations.

Dias said the investment commitments represent a turning point in the history of the Canadian auto industry, which has been shedding jobs since the turn of the century in the wake of cheaper Mexican labor and an increasingly global marketplace.

I am hoping and expecting much brighter times for the industry here in Canada, Dias said.

Pattern agreements

The deal is patterned off the agreements with GM and FCA. Under those agreements, workers will receive a $6,000 signing bonus, legacy workers will receive a 4 percent raise over the life of the deal and new hires will get wage increases each year under the 10-year grow-in period, which remains in place.

The deal was reached after Unifor said Ford expressed concerns over the changes to the 10-year grow-in period. Under the pattern, new hires receive pay raises each year as opposed to a three-year wage freeze under the previous contracts. Unifor said Ford expressed skepticism about the new grid because of the roughly 1,000 hourly workers it has hired at its Oakville, Ontario, assembly plant since 2014.

Some resistance

Unifor could face some resistance to ratification from the 5,000 or so hourly workers at Oakville, which assembles four crossover models for Ford.

Dave Thomas, president of Local 707 in Oakville, said last month that a deal based off the pattern established during negotiations with GM would fail to ratify in Oakville, saying his members were demanding more on wages and economics.

Unifor Local 200, which represents workers at Fords engine plants in Windsor, criticized Local 707s bargaining committee on Facebook this week, calling their demands unfair to other Unifor members.

The implications of demanding more than the pattern agreement have been clearly laid out by Ford, Local 200 said in the Facebook post, saying Ford would reconsider their Canadian facilities and exit the operations should a strike occur.

It is ultimately our members decision, as it always is, Dias said, adding that he expects the agreement to be ratified.

Bob Scott, chairman of the Oakville plant, said the union was unsuccessful in securing certain gains that it sought, including a reduction in the 10-year wage grow-in period to eight years and preventing a change to pension plans to new hires.

However, he expects the deal to pass, calling the deal the best agreement the union has received from Ford in years.

I believe that our members are going to be quite happy with what we have done, Scott said.

Like under the GM and FCA deals, the agreement would place new Ford hires on a defined-contribution retirement plan, which are seen as less risky to the employer than a traditional pension plan. Details of the Ford plan were not immediately known, but the FCA and GM deals require new hires to contribute 4 percent of their earnings to the plan, which the companies will match.

Engine production continues

Dias said the Windsor engine plant will continue to build 6.8-liter engines V10 engines under the contract. While those engines are expected to be phased out over the next several years, Dias said he expects production to continue until the next round of negotiations in 2020.

It was not immediately clear if Unifor was able to secure the jobs in place at the Windsor plant. Dias said there will be a transition for workers at the Windsor plant as the new engine program in Essex begins in 2018. He said he expected the total number of employees at the Windsor engine plants to grow as a result of the agreement.

The death of the Windsor plant that we were expecting for years, is it knocking on our doorstep? The answer is no, Dias said.

He said the investment commitments are not dependent upon government support, but he reiterated his call for the federal and Ontario provincial governments to collaborate with the union and automaker to make Canada an attractive place to invest via financial incentives.




Listening to Paul Nuttall warm to his theme, it was clear UKIPs new leader understands the strategy that offers the best prospects for his party:

Today, the Labour Party has ceased to speak the language or address the issues of working people. They have a leader who will not sing the national anthem, a Shadow Chancellor who seems to admire the IRA more than he does the British Army, a Shadow Foreign Secretary who sneers at the English flag, and a Shadow Home Secretary who advocates unlimited immigration. They have lost touch. They are more at home talking about the issues that swirl about the Islington dinner party than the issues that matter in working class communities. So while Jeremy Corbyn and his Labour Party debate the Palestine question, fair trade and climate change, we instead will debate and talk about issues that concern real working people in real working class communities.

This targeting of patriotic, right-thinking traditional Labour voters ought to have been UKIPs focus for some time, but it has never previously materialised. Under Farage the party did pretty well in various northern by-elections despite only limited shifts in its message to appeal to them. Steven Woolfe, who wanted to take this tack, was forced out of the race. Then Diane James failed to address such voters in her victory speech.

Nuttall evidently understands what he needs to do to stand a chance of success. He is a politician experienced in the media hurly-burly, to whom these arguments come naturally, ever since he cut his teeth building up UKIP in his home seat of Bootle.

But if the Peoples Army has finally settled on a viable leader who understands the challenge that faces them, the question still remains whether UKIP itself is up to the job of delivering for him.

The leadership election result itself displayed some signs of the troubles facing Nuttalls party. There were 32,757 ballot papers sent out. That means UKIPs membership has fallen by 30 per cent since its peak of 46,000 in May 2015. Half of the 14,000 lost members have left since July of this year, either feeling that the job was done or dispirited by the (metaphorical and literal) in-fighting. As a result, UKIP is now estimated to be smaller than the Green Party.

This decline strips Nuttall of boots on the ground, an asset which was already in short supply in his party. Various Conservative Leavers were shocked during the referendum to find that many UKIP activists, while keen, were entirely dedicated to the organising of street stalls, and often allergic to canvassing and Get Out The Vote tactics. The loss of thousands of members makes that problem worse.

There are also questions about how engaged the remaining members are with their party, too. While Nuttall won a bigger share of the vote even than Jeremy Corbyn  62.6 per cent, the turnout for the leadership election was only 47 per cent. The majority of UKIPers didnt seem to want any of the candidates offered to them after the departure of first Woolfe and then James.

Members arent just a source of campaigning, of course  theyre a source of money, too. Last year, 18 per cent of UKIPs cash (just over 1 million) came through membership dues. Nuttall will need every penny he can get from the grassroots, because UKIPs national fundraising has stalled. In the three months to September, the party received just under 43,000, less than half the amount raised by the BNP, who currently have no elected representatives anywhere in the UK. Only 9,500 was in cash, and most of that was from the Sovereign Draw lottery, the rest being donations in kind.

The financial picture looks even more grim when you consider that the vast majority of those donations in kind came from Rock Services Ltd, of which Arron Banks is a director. Banks appears to have fallen out of love with UKIP, to which he is now planning to launch a competitor party. Asked whether Nuttall is someone he could get behind, he replied today that he cant get excited about UKIP right now. The apparent withdrawal of his financial backing, combined with the approaching disappearance of UKIPs MEPs, who use their office to provide their party with a great deal of logistical support, means Nuttall has inherited an enterprise which has next to no money.

One reason for Bankss unwillingness to get behind Nuttall is the new leaders approach to reuniting his party. Suzanne Evans, who came in a poor second in todays election, is a hate-figure for many of those close to Farage, including Banks, but Nuttall seems content to reach out to her. In his victory speech he appointed Patrick OFlynn, a close Evans ally, as his Principal Political Adviser, and Evans has told ITV that He tells me he has got a role for me, so Im waiting to see what that is.

This could herald more disruption within UKIP before things settle down  if they ever do. For Banks and other Faragistes, Nuttall is offering the wrong kind of unity  the mere hint that Nuttall might rehabilitate Evans led Raheem Kassam, Farages former adviser, to endorse John Rees-Evans for the leadership despite his absurd history of alleging a gay donkey tried to rape his pet horse and taking a gun to IKEA just in case terrorists attacked. While the new leader qualified his call for unity with a threat, telling those who do not want to unify that your time in UKIP is coming to an end, there are some who would prefer him to be purging people like Evans, Carswell and OFlynn, and will take it badly if he fails to do so. Such factionalists might hope their opponents will be out on their ear, but they might yet find it is they who are no longer welcome.

It isnt all bad news for Nuttall. Farages warm introduction will be followed by a swift departure to the United States. Though only a temporary visit, it will at least clear the field for the new leader to be UKIPs main voice in the media for the next few days. Farage will head stateside again soon for a speaking tour of the US, cashing in on his closeness to Donald Trump, which will offer his successor some more room to breathe.

Plus, of course, the fact remains that Nuttalls strategy of targeting disillusioned former Labour voters is the correct one. He has a plan, and he knows how to communicate to his target voters, and Corbyns Labour is guaranteed to keep reinforcing his message by praising mass immigration, apologising for dictators and terrorists, and looking uncomfortable whenever anyone praises anything about Britain.

For his plan to work, though, he needs to get his party into shape quickly. Finding one or more sizeable donors must be top of his list if he is to make this a false sunset rather than a false dawn for UKIP. For the Conservatives, this is a win-win: either he succeeds, in which case Labour will face a serious challenge in their remaining heartland seats, or he fails, in which case the long-running attack from the right will evaporate.
Close

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is officially called Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). This condition involves extreme levels of fatigue, which can last for a long period of time. This can disrupt a person's life on a daily basis, having rest cannot help alleviate the symptoms. It can affect 17 million people worldwide.

Last 2015, American Institute of Medicine defined ME as an acquired, chronic multi-systemic diseases biological in nature. Symptoms include immune neurological and cognitive impairment. Though there is no proven cause yet and no official diagnostic test, most cases seem to be triggered by viral infections like glandular fever. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome has been around since the 20th century. During the outbreak, it hit the royal free hospital in London in the 1950s.

This was followed by Lake Tahoe; Nevada in the 1980s where the epidemic was nicknamed "Raggedy Ann". Since then Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or ME cases started to crop up all over the world. Living with chronic fatigue syndrome can make you feel tired all the time. But it is much more than just being tired. Like other cases, chronic fatigue syndrome may also be triggered by mumps along with headaches and a foggy feeling in the brain.

In 2011, a study was published in a medical journal The Lancet. The journal originally suggested that Chronic Fatigue Syndrome could be made better with proper exercise. Years later, however, an analysis of the data showed that as long as you're already getting standard medical care, there will only be a 10 percent chance of being helped by treatment. Also, the chances of recovery might be impossible for those suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

As reported by BBC one in 100 children also miss at least one day of class a week because of chronic fatigue syndrome, for adults, this becomes more complicated. A survey in the UK carried out by the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or ME association early this year found that 46 percent of patients thought that care provided by their GP for chronic fatigue syndrome was either poor or dreadful according to The Guardian.

In 2015 the national institute of health in the US launched plans to research on people with this illness together with director Francis Collins and he stated that ME/CFS is one of the most challenging but he is hopeful that renewed research focus can lead them towards identifying the cause of this debilitating disease so that new prevention and treatment strategies can be developed.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
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Mental disorders don't just affect the mental health of a teenager, it affects the entire body. In a new study conducted by a team from the University of Basel in Switzerland and Ruhr University Bochum in Germany, researchers found a significant link between mental disorders and physical disorders in teenagers.

For the study, researchers looked at data on 6,483 teenagers aged between 13 and 18 in the US and found that those suffering from depression also had digestive system diseases and arthritis and those with anxiety issues were more likely to have skin disorders. All influencing factors, such as lifestyle and sociodemographic variables were taken into consideration during the study.

"For the first time, we have established that epilepsy is followed by an increased risk of eating disorders - a phenomenon, that had previously been described only in single case reports. This suggests that approaches to epilepsy treatment could also have potential in the context of eating disorders," explained Marion Tegethoff, the study's lead author, in a press release.

The top findings of the study were:

Teenagers suffering from depression were more likely to have digestive problems and arthritis

Skin disorders were more common among teenagers suffering from anxiety

Anxiety problems were more common among teenagers who already had heart problems

Eating disorders were more common among teenagers who already experienced epilepsy

The researchers clarified that the study only shows a correlation between these disorders and doesn't suggest that these mental disorders cause these physical issues. Though a large sample was considered for the study, researchers highlighted that there were a few limitations. The data assessed for the research was based on a questionnaire given by interviewers, as well as information provided by the teens and their parents, and not an official diagnosis.

Though this is not the first time a study has been carried out on this subject, it is the first time researchers have been able to map which disorders came first. A similar study conducted earlier this year also highlighted a correlation between certain physical disorders and mental illnesses.

In 2008, researchers also established that people with mental disorders are at higher risk of experiencing a wide range of chronic physical conditions.

The current study was financed by the Swiss National Science Foundation and funding was also received from the Korea Research Foundation. The findings were published in PLOS ONE.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
A screenshot from De La Rue website



Terming this mysterious, the portal says, the portal quotes

It also quotes what is calls unconfirmed sources from the RBI to say that, after the De La Rue's alleged involvement in the Panama papers scam in April 2016, this company had been again black-listed from supply of paper.

It adds, There is no official explanation why a foreign company, black-listed on national security concerns (2011), was allowed to supply paper again by the Modi government, without any public announcement between 2014 and 2016. There is also no announcement of this reported recent black-listing on any official government, or the RBI website.

Lately, reports the portal, a Right to Information (RTI) query has been filed to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) demanding to know whether the paper supplied for the printing of the new notes after demonetization is paper supplied by De La Rue(UK) and Louisenthal (Germany).

The portal also quotes an investment journal to point out that the company banned for national security reasons, De La Rue could be a major player in prime minister Narendra Modis Claiming that the RBI has given contract to print notes to De La Rue without any official announcement being made, the portal says, Until April 2016, at least, De La Rue continued to supply paper for this printing, and was re-issued tenders by the Modi government for this highly sensitive activity despite being banned for national security reasons in 2010-2011.Terming this mysterious, the portal says, the portal quotes an RBI circular , which makes a vague reference to only presses with sophisticated equipment supplied by De La Rue (now renamed KBA Giori), adding, The companys own website clearly announces interest and role in printing of the currency.It also quotes what is calls unconfirmed sources from the RBI to say that, after the De La Rue's alleged involvement in the Panama papers scam in April 2016, this company had been again black-listed from supply of paper.It adds, There is no official explanation why a foreign company, black-listed on national security concerns (2011), was allowed to supply paper again by the Modi government, without any public announcement between 2014 and 2016. There is also no announcement of this reported recent black-listing on any official government, or the RBI website.Lately, reports the portal, a Right to Information (RTI) query has been filed to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) demanding to know whether the paper supplied for the printing of the new notes after demonetization is paper supplied by De La Rue(UK) and Louisenthal (Germany).The portal also quotes an investment journal to point out that the company banned for national security reasons, De La Rue could be a major player in prime minister Narendra Modis Make in India schemes.

Pointing towards why it wants to be in business with India, the De La Rue site says, "Cash is the most socially inclusive payment method. It has a key role to play in the evolving payments ecosystem with India and as a result, will be around for many years to come", adding, "Non-cash transactions today account for only 22% of all consumer payments."



The portal says, seizures of counterfeit currencies made by the enforcement agencies had It continues, "Currency in circulation accounts for 18% of India's gross domestic product (GDP). During 2015 cash usage accounted for 78% of all transactions. Cash is the preferred mode of payment for 78% of merchants."The portal says, seizures of counterfeit currencies made by the enforcement agencies had revealed that the quality of notes were identical to the legal currency notes, noting, It was difficult for even the banks to identify the differences. It adds, Intelligence reports suggest counterfeit currency notes are printed in a high-security press in Pakistan and smuggled into India and distributed to destabilize the Indian economy.



The portal says, what also is being ignored is is that the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) of the United Kingdom (UK), in 2010, found serious security breaches in De La Rue. In their inquiry, the SFO had

It adds, there is also the The portal further raises alarm that another company, Italy-based Fabriano Securities, which was also allegedly named in the Panama offshore companies scam has been the supplier for the security thread for the new currency notes after de-monetization.The portal says, what also is being ignored is is that the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) of the United Kingdom (UK), in 2010, found serious security breaches in De La Rue. In their inquiry, the SFO had uncovered that a number of De la Rue employees had deliberately falsified certain paperspecification test certificates for some of its 150 clients.It adds, there is also the revelation that De la Rue paid out a 15% commission to a New Delhi businessmen to secure contracts from Reserve Bank of India, and that De la Rue paid 40m in settlement to the RBI for issues in production of paper notes.

In the wake of the ban on Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes, a portal run by well-known human rights activist Teesta Setalvad has wondered as to why Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gave away contract supply machinery for printing notes to a British company, which it alleges was black-listedpreviously. The portal, www.sabrangindia.in, quotes the official site of the RBI Note Mudran (P) Ltd, which says, The machinery at Mysore Site has been supplied by M/s. De La Rue Giori, now KBA Giori, Switzerland and that of Salboni by M/s. Komori Corporation, Japan. Both the presses are equipped with sophisticated Security Surveillance Systems.


"Haha! Why didn't the police think of this?!?"

This very convincing Reddit theory argues that Batman's sudden lax attitude towards killing is due to Batman having a mental break, brought about by his second Robin becoming the Joker. That's right, it's possible that Jared Leto's character was once Batman's apprentice, but was tortured to madness by a bad guy (the original Joker?). Let's look at some facts:

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In the film, Robin's costume was marked with comments from the Joker, suggesting that the clown prince of crime killed him. But maybe his death was only metaphorical because where Robin died, the Joker was born? You know, like how Obi-Wan insisted Vader "murdered" Anakin Skywalker.

Warner Bros.



And then spray painted all over his Jedi robes.

After all, Batman does comment on how few people stayed good after 20 years in Gotham. That level of cynicism can be expected after watching his apprentice morph into everything he hates. Also, it does sort of look like Leto's Joker has tattoos covering up the spots where Robin's armor was shot (right shoulder, below the ribcage).
The fundamental problem with the CFPB ... isnt whos on top. It is that the CFPB does not have an institutional desire, or incentives, to make sure that the financial services industry supplies consumers with products that consumers need, including loans. Its refreshing to hear a CFPB critic argue that the issue isnt really with the CFPBs structure, but with its worldview. But Evans is still wrong.

Evans' argument is that the CFPBs regulations are constraining credit, particularly from alternative financial services (payday, auto title), to those who need it most, the economically hard-pressed lower-middle class. This is basically the 2d lowest income quintile (which Credit Slips readers might recognize that the prime demographic for consumer bankruptcy filingspeople with some income and assetsnot the poorbut not enough to manage all of the curveball life throws.) Theres no question that the lower-middle class is feeling an economic squeeze, and has been for some time. This is what Elizabeth Warren documented very well in The Two-Income Trap and Jacob Hacker covered in The Great Risk Shift. The problem this demographic faces is falling real incomes and rising expenses, especially from housing, health care, education, and child care. Thats a structural problem. The idea that more credit is somehow a solution is baffling. Access to credit isnt a solution to the lower-middle-classs economic problems. Its a stopgap measure, and far too often the terms of that credit just mean that the consumer avoids one problem today at the cost of a much bigger one tomorrow. The CFPB cannot fix the structural economic problems of the lower middle class. That will require massive reforms in a number of areas beyond consumer finance, and even that might not be enough. All the CFPB can do is try to make sure that credit isnt a cement life raft as Elizabeth Warren put it in The Two-Income Trap. Basically Evans is tagging the CFPB for not solving a problem it isnt designed to fix.

Specifically, Evans suggests that the problem is that the "CFPB, is not designed institutionally to maximize the net consumer benefits from consumer financial services. It is designed to minimize consumer problems by, if necessary, effectively prohibiting products that harm some consumers some of the time. While the CFPB isnt set up for solving the structural economic problems of the lower-middle class, Evans statement about the CFPBs institutional design is incorrect.

I cant overemphasize what nonsense the CFPB-caused credit-constraint meme is. To date the CFPB has not issued a blanket prohibition against any type of product. The only thing it has directly prohibited is making certain loans without regard to a borrowers ability to repay. Thats just saying that lenders have to engage in Lending 101 (and in the case of mortgages and credit cards, it was Congress that put the prohibition into place, not the CFPB.) Moreover, the ability-to-repay requirement has all sorts of carve-outs, exceptions, and safe harbors. The QM mortgage rules allow for non-QM mortgages, just without a safe harbor. The CARD Act rules limit a bunch of sharp practices, but it hardly prohibits credit card lending. The proposed payday rule allows for payday loans that meet certain requirements. The remittances rule is basically a disclosure requirement. So Im just not seeing where the CFPB is effectively prohibiting products that harm some consumers some of the time. The only thing I can think of is that Evans is arguing about the scope of the proposed Payday Rule, but thats one rule. Its not fair to make a claim about the agency writ large based on one, non-finalized rule (that does allow for payday and title lending, just with various limitations). There's not one iota of evidence that the CFPB's actions have resulted in a material change in credit availability.

Indeed, if you want to point fingers about constrained access to credit, the CFPB is hardly the obvious place to start. There are a lot of other pieces moving in the financial regulatory space. The place to start would be the Fed and its monetary policy, and then from there go on to various bank regulators policies and Fannie and Freddie underwriting standards. I dont know of one solid study that connects CFPB regulations and a constriction in credit using anything other than a post-hoc ergo propter hoc logic that doesnt actually show a casual relationship. (For examples of two really badly done studies that do not prove any causal relationship, see here and here .)

Evans' claim about the CFPBs focus is based on an incomplete view of the CFPB. He focuses solely on rulemaking and enforcement, which will inevitably give a warped view the CFPBs activity because rulemaking and enforcement are, by definition, about cracking down on bad practices, not promoting good ones. But the CFPB has done a lot of amazingand really unprecedentedconsumer education work, ranging from outreach programs (including a very successful liaison with the armed services) to some incredible web tools (including a native-language Spanish siteno Google Translate here). This is work that is all about helping consumers maximize the benefits of consumer financial services. It doesnt grab headlines the way enforcement work does, but it is an important part of what the CFPB has been doing. . Thats the first part of the CFPBs mission. That includes both enforcement of fair lending laws (the all consumers part), but also trying to further access. Thats what the CFPB has done through Project Catalyst (a sort of consumer finance lab with a regulatory safe harbor to encourage experimentation) and through proposed regulations like the Payday Rulemaking that would allow payday loans that comply with the NCUAs small dollar lending program. Evans also ignores the CFPB is formally charged with " ensuring that all consumers have access to markets for consumer financial products and services

Additionally, Evans also overlooks the connection between cracking down on bad practices and promoting good ones. Businesses engage in sharp practices for only one reasonbecause they are profitable. They dont do so out of spite or for kicks. So imagine if youre a good apple trying to compete against the bad ones. If you price your products clearly and fairly, youll lose business to the sharp actors that obfuscate the costs of their products. The result will be a race to the bottom. If cracking down on bad practices enables the good practices. Minimizing consumer problems by prohibiting harmful products actually maximizes net consumer benefits. The goal is not simply to foment the provision of credit, but to foment the provision of good quality lending. More lending isnt a boon if it is not sustainable.

Still, suppose that Evans is right. What could be done to change things? If the problem is with the CFPBs institutional desires or incentives to promoting lending, its hard to see how the milquetoast suggestions put forth by Evans of ensuring that there is leadership that recognizes the value of consumer financial services products for people in diverse economic circumstances, cost-benefit analysis of regulations, and accountability, are going to have any effect. Instead, if the problem is that the CFPB isnt doing enough to promote lending, there are a much more obvious and direct set of tools: require lenders to make loans. That clearly isnt what Evans (or anyone else) has in mind. No one wants the CFPB to be forcing lenders to make loans. So what does Evans want then? He wants the CFPB to simply leave lenders alone to make the loans they want to make. As much as Evans says that he is against fraud and deception and wags his finger as Wells Fargo, this points to what Evans really wants at the end of the day: a do-nothing CFPB. Everything else in this exercise is just noise.

For sake of completeness, however, let me turn to Evans three recommendations and point out what is wrong with them:

(1) appointing commissioners  that recognize the value of consumer financial services products for people in diverse economic circumstances . [and] (3) making the agency accountable for its overall impact on consumers of financial services products.

Evans argues that " The commission approach is appealing because it enables a diverse group of professionals to provide checks and balances on each other. Most importantly, it promotes stability and certainty in the regulatory approach. Neither of these arguments hold water.

First, with a 5-member commission, 3 members will be from one party (and this is assuming that all 5 positions are filled). The majority can simply out-vote the minority. Where is the check or balance there? Theres only a check or balance if one assumes (a) partisan politics will shape voting and (b) that of three Democrats on a commission one will be a Mary Jo White type, who is aligned with the financial services industry. That might often be the case, but it need not always be.

Second, the fact that 3 can out-vote 2 means that theres no guaranty of stability and certainty. Staggered terms might, all else being equal, promote some stability, but agencies cant reverse rule makings willy-nilly. They have to go through the Administrative Procedures Act process, which will require a good basis for the change in policy, not just partisan politics. Enforcement emphases might change, but thats as much in the control of the commission chair as it is for a single Director. Simply put, the arguments for a commission dont engage very deeply with administrative agency realities.

The accountability argument for a commission structure also doesnt stand-up upon close inspection. The idea is that a multi-member commission (somehow) promote accountability. Jiggery-pokery. Are 5 commissioners possibly more accountable than a single director? Of course not. And are they less likely to act in an arbitrary and capricious manner? Nothey are more likely to engage in political deal-cutting that arrives on arbitrary compromises, rather than the right policy. And if three are from the same party, they can pursue whatever agenda they want.

Accountability might also be a code word for appropriations, but thats a different matter. Is an agency really more accountable because it is subject to appropriations? Hardly. The appropriations process works differently than the regular legislative process and is one of the least transparent parts of law making. There might be some accountability to Congress from appropriations, but what about to the American people? In a world of gerrymandered Congressional districts and parliamentary procedure, it is hard to see how appropriations creates real accountability. Moreover, consider how appropriations riders work. There are "legislative" riders that enact new legislation. And there are "limiting" riders that limit how funds can be spent. But I've never seen a rider that mandates that an agency undertake a particular rulemaking or up its enforcement actions. Appropriations riders are a one-way ratchet. One-way ratchets are not about accountability. They are about deregulation and nothing more.

In any event, shouldnt the goal for government agencies be effectiveness, not policy stability or checks and balances or "accountability"? The whole reason we have administrative agencies (not envisioned in the Constitution) is that they are a more effective mode of governing than Congress trying to do everything itself. An accountable, but ineffective agency is worthless. Thus, the question is really whether agencies with commission structures tend to be more effective than those with single director structures. That seems easy. Compare the OCC and CFPB with the SEC and FTC. The SEC and FTC have often been less-than-effective regulators in part because of the commission structure (and also in part because of lack of budgetary independence). The push for a commission structure is about nothing more than ensuring less-than-effective regulation, and then being able to turn around and blame big government for failing to work.

But insofar as Evans is just asking for CFPB leadership (in any form) understands that different consumers need different products, I dont think theres an argument to be had there. Different consumers have different needs, and the CFPB has already been pretty flexible about this, such as in allowing balloon mortgage structures on rural mortgages. But just because consumers dont all have the same needs does not mean that there is a virtue in having unlimited product variation. The thing that the consumer finance industry dreads is commoditizationafter all this is, at the end of the day, just moneybecause commoditization means lower profits. But from a consumer welfare perspective, commoditization of products is one of the best things possible for precisely the same reasonit means more vigorous head-to-head competition. So I would argue that while it is important to recognize that different consumers need different products, it is also important to recognize that not all product differentiation is about meeting consumer demand; part of it is about making it harder to compare products on an apples-to-apples basis.

(2) mandating that the regulations maximize economic welfare after accounting for benefits and costs;
Channel programs News

With Cognizant In The Spotlight, Solution Providers Talk About Evolving Wisely And Not 'Riding A Dinosaur'

Rick Saia

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The push by activist investor Elliott Management to shake up solution provider powerhouse Cognizant Technology Solutions underscores a clear lesson for other solution providers: Winning in the technology business means you have to change, evolve and stay ahead of the curve.

In a letter Monday to Cognizant's board of directors, Elliott Management called for a board shakeup and for the company to buy back $2.5 billion in stock over the first half of 2017, funded with $1 billion of domestic cash and an incremental $1.5 billion of new debt.

The letter said Cognizant  No. 7 on the 2016 CRN Solution Provider 500 list -- continues to practice "and swear by" a business strategy "that is nearly two decades old," dating back to when its revenue was more than 200 times smaller, and has stuck with its original plan to maintain operating margins in the 19 percent to 20 percent range. Elliott Management contends that Cognizant has "never deviated" from that range, despite a 140-fold annual revenue increase since 1999, Cognizant's first year as a public company.

[RELATED: Cognizant Welcomes Discussions With Elliott Management]

"We all swim in the same ocean," said Mont Phelps, CEO of solution provider NWN, Waltham, Mass. "If you dont evolve and change, you're going to be left behind."

"It's not survival of the fittest; it's survival of the most adaptable," Phelps told CRN.

Elliott Management said its suggested stock buyback can be funded with $1 billlion of domestic cash and an incremental $1.5 billion of new debt. That, the letter said, could drive up company stock 50 percent to 69 percent. Elliott Management said in the letter that it believes the share price can soar to between $80 and $90 by the end of 2017.

Cognizant released a statement Monday afternoon that said it "welcomes open communications" with all its shareholders "and values their input." The statement also said that the company had an "introductory discussion" with representatives of Elliott Management after it received the letter to the board. "The company intends to review the letter carefully and will respond in due course," the statement read.

The letter from Elliott Management "really shouldnt be surprising," said Jason Rook, vice president of alliances for Chicago-based solution provider 10th Magnitude. "The ecosystem is changing very rapidly, and these large service providers are being left behind" by more innovative  and maybe smaller -- solution providers "that dont have the legacy footprint that these guys have."

10th Magnitude, a Microsoft Gold Cloud Platform Partner, was founded in 2010 and doesn't play in some of the legacy outsourcing models that bigger companies such as Cognizant have relied on for at least 15 years, according to Rook.

Solution providers such as his are more focused on being a strategic solution provider, "delivering technology-based solutions as opposed to a staffing solution," Rook said.

One thing Michael Hadley, president and CEO of iCorps Technologies, Charlestown, Mass., has learned from attending technology shows is businesses need to "change or die," he told CRN. "And don't get caught riding a dinosaur."

Hadley says every business must evolve, "but you need to do it wisely," based on the direction of the market.

"I think a lot of people evolve just to evolve. We make it part of our business fundamentals," Hadley said. "It's not 'Ready. Fire. Aim."

iCorps, founded in 1994, is rooted in technology outsourcing, but has broadened its offerings to encompass cloud-based solutions and managed services, among other offerings. Hadley calls that a "smart evolution."

"Everybody has to change," added NWN's Phelps, and that includes public companies such as Cognizant that are always looking to increase shareholder value.

He added: "The highway of business is littered with companies that didnt make the change."


I always find Oxford Dictionarys Word of the Year provocative and, often, highly enlightening.

Take the Word of the Year for 2015.

It wasnt even a word.

It was, as I highlighted in last weeks blog, an emoji. Specifically, this emoji:

You can read that earlier blog for a glimpse of the significance I put into that selection.

Oxfords 2016 Word of the Year has just been announced, and it is equally reflective of our day:

Post-Truth.

It is defined as an adjective relating to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeals.

Yes, it was born out of the recent political season that led to the U.K.s Brexit vote and the U.S. presidential election of Donald Trump. But its actually been long in the making.

A few years back we called it truthiness, as inserted into our lexicon through the Comedy Central television network, and specifically through the premiere of The Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert:

And that brings us to tonights word: truthiness. Now Im sure some of the Word Police, the wordanistas over at Websters, are gonna say, Hey, thats not a word. Well, anybody who knows me knows that Im no fan of dictionaries or reference books. Theyre elitist. Constantly telling us what is or isnt true, or what did or didnt happen. Whos Britannica to tell me the Panama Canal was finished in 1914? If I wanna say it happened in 1941, thats my right. I dont trust books. Theyre all fact, not heart.

The idea behind truthiness is that actual facts dont matter. What matters is how you feel, for you - as an individual - are the final arbiter of truth. Truthiness is the bald assertion that we are not only to discern truth for ourselves from the facts at hand, but create truth for ourselves despite the facts at hand.

If evangelical Christians have been about anything throughout history, it has been truth. Through the heresy-addressing gatherings of the great councils during the patristic era, the ad fontes (back to the sources) cry of the Reformation, the bold proclamation of the gospel during the great awakenings, or the gauntlet of revelation thrown down before modernism, truth has been our bulwark.

There have been three major conceptualizations of truth throughout the history of Western thought. The first, and most dominant, has been the correspondence theory of truth. The idea is simple: If I say, It is raining, then either it is raining, or it is not. You simply walk outside your door and discover whether my statement corresponds with reality. This is by far the most common understanding of the nature of truth and has left the strongest mark on evangelical theology. Of course its weakness is that not everything can be verified by walking out your door. I might say, There is a God. If you walk out your door, will my statement be proven?

However, the greater dynamic of the correspondence theory is regardless of whether you can validate something, what is true is that which does indeed correspond with reality  regardless of ones current ability to actually make that correspondence. So while a triune God may not be discernible through the empirical method of science, the correspondence idea is that the triune God is true because there is, indeed, a triune God who exists in reality.

A second theory regarding the nature of truth is often called the coherence theory, which is the idea that truth is marked by coherence  meaning a set of ideas that do not contradict each other. The coherence theory of truth is much like a Sudoku puzzle: The numbers must align, there cant be a violation of the internal rules, and the completed puzzle must fill in all of its own squares. Imagine a system of thought consisting of a tightly bound set of ideas that, when introduced, complement one another and hold no internal contradictions. Perhaps you might think of the ideas as a set of colors that do not clash when put side by side.

The coherence theory of truth not only holds that truth is that which is coherent, but that truth is ultimately marked by a system of thought which hangs together in a way that is superior to the way other systems of thought hang together. So democracy might be considered by one political theorist as truer than Marxism in terms of its internal consistency.

The dilemma is that such a view divorces itself from what may, in fact, be true. Think of the testimony of a witness during a trial: The story may make sense and hold up under cross-examination, but that doesnt make it true. The argument simply presents itself as a plausible narrative without internal contradiction. Granted, this is far better than if it did contradict itself, but it is still not sufficient.

Further, the Bible goes out of its way to suggest that a coherence view of truth can, and will, prove grossly inadequate when it comes to the things of God. For example, it records God saying, My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways (Isaiah 55:8), and contends that the gospel itself can seem foolish to the human mind (I Corinthians 1:18-25). Thus a human perspective will always find aspects of Gods truth incoherent although it remains profoundly true.

A third major contender for the idea of truth is the pragmatic theory of truth. When someone is being pragmatic they are pursuing a course of action because it achieves an end result. So a pragmatic theory of truth maintains that what is true is that which works. This is an appealing view, particularly when we consider Jesus words that we are to judge things by their fruit. However, determining what is truly fruit of the Holy Spirit, and what is done in the flesh  or even what is, in the end, evil  is tricky business.

One needs only to think of the final solution of Nazi Germany. Hitler believed that the principal woes of Germany were found in the existence of the Jewish people. They constituted an erosion of capital and a waste of space. From this, the removal of lebensunwertes Leben (life unworthy of life) was elevated to the highest duty of medicine. Of course I am a doctor and I want to preserve life, maintained one Nazi doctor. Out of respect for human life, I would remove a gangrenous appendix from a diseased body. The Jew is the gangrenous appendix in the body of mankind. As a result, the final solution was their extermination. There can be little doubt of the workmanlike efficiency evidenced by the smoke that billowed from the furnaces of Auschwitz, yet there have been few enterprises more uniformly condemned as untrue  as well as rank evil.

So among the three candidates competing for our best understanding of truth, it would seem that the correspondence theory deserves its place of prominence in Christian and, more broadly, Western thought.

But this is precisely what we seem to be losing, and at risk is our sense of revelation itself.

This is, to be sure, the heart of the matter. Its the idea that truth exists, and that it stands above human experience. It judges human experience. Truth is, by its very nature, transcendent. It exists independent of our acknowledgment of it, much less our obedience to it. To deny this is to live in not simply a truthy world, but a post-truth world.

But its not simply that objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeals. Its that we deny the existence of objective truth itself, and make emotion our authority.

Yet even a skeptic as hardened as Sigmund Freud had to maintain that if it were really a matter of indifference what we believed, then we might just as well build our bridges of cardboard as of stone, or inject a tenth of a gramme of morphia into a patient instead of a hundredth, or take tear-gas as a narcotic instead of ether.

Oxford Dictionaries Casper Grathwohl said post-truth could become one of the defining words of our time.

Yes,

but because its a word that defines our time.

James Emery White

Sources

Post-truth declared word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries, BBC News, November 16, 2016, read online.

Stephen Colbert, The Word  Truthiness, The Colbert Report on Comedy Central Network, October 17, 2005, watch online.

Colberts truthiness strikes a chord, USA Today, Monday, August 28, 2006, p. 1D.

Laurence Rees, Auschwitz: A New History (New York: Public Affairs, 2005), p. 37.

The comment by Freud was cited in the article Truth in The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World, Mortimer J. Adler, Editor in Chief.



About the Author

James Emery White is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, NC, and the ranked adjunctive professor of theology and culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, where he also served as their fourth president. His latest book, The Rise of the Nones: Understanding and Reaching the Religiously Unaffiliated, is available on Amazon. To enjoy a free subscription to the Church and Culture blog, visit ChurchAndCulture.org, where you can view past blogs in our archive and read the latest church and culture news from around the world. Follow Dr. White on twitter @JamesEmeryWhite.


I have been to Cuba eight times over the last sixteen years, so the passing of Fidel Castro was especially significant for me. When I first visited Cuba, I was shocked by what I encountered. Knowing the persecution Christians have faced since Castro took power in 1959, I expected the church to be struggling and discouraged.

I found the exact opposite to be true.

More than a million Cubans have come to Christ in recent years. In the face of continuing government opposition, Cuban Christians serve Jesus with a joy I cannot describe in words. Ive preached on six continents and can testify that the church in Cuba is more like the New Testament church than any I have encountered anywhere.

We should not be surprised that Jesus would show up in surprising places. Thats been his strategy for twenty centuries.

Welcome to the first Monday of Advent, the most surprising season of all. Could participants in the first Christmas have imagined what this season has become? Conversely, who of us today would have imagined that the King of the universe would enter the human race as a helpless newborn baby?

Our Savior could have stepped into the human race as a fully grown man. However, Hebrews 4:15 says that Jesus in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. The text doesnt mean that Jesus experienced every single temptation a human can encounter. For instance, he could not be both single and married; he could not live in Israel and face the polytheism of India.

Rather, as scholar Oscar Cullmann noted, Jesus was susceptible to all the temptations that are connected with the weaknesses inherent in the frailty of humanity. And that meant that he would enter humanity just as the rest of us doas a baby that became a child, a teenager, and an adult.

Heres my point: if Jesus would become a baby in a manger, theres nowhere he cannot appear. He is standing beside persecuted Christians in Cuba and martyred believers in the Middle East. He is revealing himself in visions and dreams to Muslims the world over. Jesus is doing everything today he did when he first invaded our rebel planet.

It is both a stupendous miracle and a tremendous compliment that the Son of God is living his life on earth through you and me. This means that every day is Christmas. So ask yourself: What is Jesus doing today in my life? Through my life?

Oswald Chambers notes, Your body is the Bethlehem of Gods Son. Then he asks, Are we living at such a level of human dependence upon Jesus Christ that his life is being exhibited moment by moment in us?

Do those who know you know Jesus because of you?

Publication date: November 28, 2016

For more from the Denison Forum on Truth and Culture, please visit www.denisonforum.org.

Do you want to live a life in whole-hearted pursuit of loving God and others?

Read today's First15 at www.first15.org.
Tuesday, Nov. 29

CAL Film Series: "Body Heat": 7-9:30 p.m. Cline Library Assembly Hall, NAU. Directed by Lawrence Kasdan and starring William Hurt, Kathleen Turner and Richard Crenna. Turner plays a woman who convinces her lover to murder her rich husband in writer-director Kasdan's contemporary film noir inspired by Billy Wilder's "Double Indemnity." 1981. 113 min. R. 523-3892. nau.edu/CAL/Events/CAL-Film-Series/. Free.

NAU Jazz Combos: 7:30-9 p.m. Firecreek Coffee Company, 22 Historic Rte 66, Flagstaff. Join the NAU School of Music for Jazz Combos at Firecreek Coffee Co. Christopher Finet, christopher.finet@nau.edu, 523-3496. $5 admission. https://nau.edu/cal/music/events/.

'Anonymous' and 'Last Will. & Testament' Film Encores: 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Mary D. Fisher Theatre, 2030 W. SR 89A, suite A3, Sedona. Award-winning films commemorate the 400-year anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare. "Anonymous" is an epic, period drama. Set in the political snake-pit of Elizabethan England, the film speculates on who was the author of the plays credited to William Shakespeare? "Last Will. & Testament" co-directors and co-producers Lisa and Laura Wilson will be here to host the film and do a Q&A after both screenings. $12. 282-1177. SedonaFilmFestival.org.

Juegos Locos: 6-9 p.m. Vino Loco, 22 E. Birch Ave., suite 1. We bring games like Cards Against Humanity, Monikers, Snake Oil, Skull and Say Anything to the party, as well as playful strategy games like The Hive, Sheriff of Nottingham, Gravwell and Fluxx. (480) 269-0624. playwithvault.com.

Duplicate Bridge Friendly: 1-4:50 p.m. Adult Center, 245 N. Thorpe Road. Partner preferred, but call ahead and we might find you one. $3. 853-6284.

Flagstaff Dancin' Grannies: 1-3 p.m. YMCA, 1001 N. Turquoise Dr. A 50+ tap dance group, beginner-advanced. Tap shoes available flagstaffdancingrannies.org. 699-4145.

Blood Drive: Noon-5 p.m. The American Legion, 204 W. Birch Ave. We are heading into the time of year when Arizona's patient population is at its highest and blood donations are at the lowest. Donors will be rewarded with a voucher for a free slice of pizza and a soft drink, compliments of Fratelli Pizza. 607-0152. unitedbloodservicesaz.org.

Wednesday, Nov. 30

International Film Series: "The Orphanage": 7-9 p.m. NAU Liberal Arts, room 120, 705 S. Beaver St. Film follows Laura, who intends to buy the orphanage in which she grew up and turn it into a home for disabled children. Her adopted son, a social worker and a ghost create difficulties for her, which are compounded when her son disappears. She investigates the orphanage's past and makes some horrifying discoveries. Dir. J.A. Bayona, Spain/Mexico, 2007, 105 minutes. Visit http://nau.edu/parking-shuttle-services/ for parking information. Free. nau.edu/cal/events/international-film-series/.

Support groups for LBGQTI youth organizing meeting: 6 p.m. Beacon Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 510 N. Leroux St. We will need adult leaders of the group, but we will also need publicity and fliers. And kids always like snacks! Anyone working directly with students will need a background check and a willingness to make a six-month commitment, January-June.

Homework and Haiku: 1:30-3:30 p.m. East Flagstaff Community Library, 3000 N. Fourth St., suite 5. Space is provided for students to complete homework, practice creative writing skills, learn study skills and discover library resources that help with homework. 213-2348. flagstaffpubliclibrary.org/.

Blood Drive: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. LDS Institute of Religion, 239 W. Saunders Dr. 500 blood donations are needed daily and currently that number is not being met. All donors will receive a voucher for a free slice of pizza and a soft drink, compliments of Fratelli Pizza. 877-827-4376. bloodhero.com.

Toast of Flagstaff Toastmasters: Noon-1 p.m. United Way of Northern Arizona, 1515 E. Cedar Ave., suite D-1. Improve your speaking skills in a supportive, fun community. (619) 218-7554.
The AIDAperla has gotten her trademark hull art - the AIDA smile - at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan, where she is under construction.

The 124,500-ton, 3,300-passenger AIDAperla will debut into Mediterranean service on Sept. 1.



The ship will be based in Palma, offering four different Mediterranean itineraries. Two deployment options will leave from Palma de Mallorca and Barcelona; sailing to Corsica, Livorno and Civitavecchia in addition to Mallorca.

The other two cruise options on the new ship will feature the same ports, but also add in an overnight in Marseille.
On Saturday evening, reports from San Francisco outlined a malware attack causing problems for SFMTA. MUNI riders were given free access after station payment machines and schedule monitors started displaying a You Hacked message, warning that all data was encrypted.

Local media and other statements from SFMTA employees say the attack started just prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. CBS 5, a San Francisco affiliate, first broke the news on Saturday, reporting the problems had started a few days earlier.

According to reports from local media and passengers, station screens across the city were displaying the same message, and payment terminals were marked as out of service. Some terminals had a message taped to the screen telling passengers MUNI was free.

Images of the terminals started to spread on social media and Reddit. Passengers in the stations who spoke to the media were unaware that something negative was happening, assuming the free rides were part of a holiday promotion.

You Hacked. ALL Data Encrypted, a message delivered by the malware says. The warning is followed by an email address and ID number, which can be used to arrange ransom payments.

The email address used in the SFMTA attack (cryptom27 at yandex .com) has been previously observed in similar attacks, stretching as far back as September 2016. In each case, the victim was shown the same message and assigned a personal ID in order to obtain a decryption key.

The malware is believed to be a variant of HDDCryptor, which uses commercial tools to encrypt hard drives and network shares. Trend Micro covered the malware in a report on September 16 of this year, but Morphus Labs discovered a sample in the wild on September 7, and gave it the name Mamba.

The ransom demanded in cases like this will vary, but people close to the incident at SFMTA say the ransom is 100 BTC, or $73,184 USD with current exchange rates.

Over the weekend, those who emailed the address were told that the attack was automated, and that SFMTA had a very open network. The person(s) manning the Yandex address also reported that more than 2,000 systems were impacted.

As of Sunday evening, SFMTA has not confirmed any details concerning the attack, including the number of systems infected, the total ransom demanded, or how the malware entered the network.

Salted Hash has reached out to the agency for comment.

In a statement to CBS 5, Muni spokesperson Paul Rose said there was no impact to transit service, but that fare gates were opened as a precaution in order to minimize customer impact.

Because this is an ongoing investigation it would not be appropriate to provide additional details at this point, Rose stated.

Again, the number of systems affected by this attack, as well as the ransom amount, are figures being shared by the person(s) claiming responsibility  they have not been fully verified and could change as the investigation moves forward.

Also, it isnt clear if SFMTA is willing to pay the ransom, but restoring systems could take days, or even weeks, and every free ride has a cost associated with it. With Ransomware, backups are often the key recovery resource, but the attack against SFMTA has targeted the hard drives directly, so replacements will be needed.

Some background on the attack:

Email exchanges with the person claiming responsibility for the SFMTA hack via their Yandex email address has revealed a list of 2,112 systems that were infected.

Some of the earliest infections on that list (LIGHT-DUTY1 & LIGHT-DUTY2) suggest the malware entered the network via systems that are regularly used by staff, before spreading to other systems belonging to office workers. A second list of 8,656 SFMTA systems includes a domain controller for MUNI, which could also explain how the infection was able to spread, but this hasnt been confirmed.

This second list is a master list of SFMTA systems, so only a fraction of the computers on it have been infected. The reason for this discrepancy isnt clear.

On November 26, the person(s) responsible for the SFMTA attack received a message asking about ID 601, the number displayed on the infected SFMTA systems.

Assuming they were talking to SFMTA directly, the Yandex account responded immediately. The reply demanded a 100 BTC payment before theyd deliver the decryption key. The email also offered advice on how to obtain the currency.

The first message sent from the Yandex account is shown in part below; its presented with no modifications:

if You are Responsible in MUNI-RAILWAY ! All Your Computers/Server's in MUNI-RAILWAY Domain Encrypted By AES 2048Bit! We have 2000 Decryption Key ! Send 100BTC to My Bitcoin Wallet , then We Send you Decryption key For Your All Server's HDD!! We Only Accept Bitcoin , its So easy! you can use Brokers to exchange your money to BTC ASAP it's Fast way!

With some prompting, the person(s) responding to emails shared their Bitcoin wallet address, and offered to exchange one Bitcoin for a decryption key to unlock a non-important system in order to prove they had the ability to restore files.

The wallet where SFMTA is to deliver payment is: 1efs45wsKYTbFf1dmfAsGnPnqmJxgpmYp

Subsequent exchanges with the attacker show a person who suddenly gained a lot of attention for their acts and didnt know how to deal with it: we received many email from SFMTA! how are you and whats your position there? (sic) a message stated.

It isnt clear how many people were emailing the Yandex address, and their statement isnt proof that SFMTA has had any contact with their attacker(s).

However, because of the flood of emails to the address, the person responding to messages said the account would be closed on November 27, for security reason! (sic) The person answering email on the Yandex account remained silent on Sunday evening, other than to reach out one final time to ask if the person they were originally corresponding with wanted "a deal or not?"

"many ppl and news agancy send email and question , it's boring , i want to close this email ! you must say answare and say your choose clearlly (sic)," the message stated.

Discussing the situation, Beau Woods, Deputy Director of the Cyber Statecraft Initiative at the Atlantic Council, had some observations of his own to share.

Was the attacker aware he was going after SF MUNI or was it just a random campaign? For Hollywood Presbyterian it was random. I suspect this was too, Woods said, admitting that he could be wrong in his assessment.

Combine low hanging fruit like this, with adversaries who want to do harm rather than get money, and there will be real stakes involved. [San Francisco] can afford to lose 100 Bitcoin to low hanging fruit attacks - can they afford to lose 100 lives?" he added, focusing on the seriousness of such attacks against transportation and infrastructure.

This story is developing and will be updated as new information emerges.

Salted Hash would also like to give a hat tip to security researcher Mike Grover for his assistance with this story.
President Obama earned his highest approval rating in four years, with most participating in a new Quinnipiac University poll saying he has been a good or great president.

And while both the Democratic and Republican parties get negative favorability ratings, for the first time in two years the Republican Party does better, with a negative 38-50 percent favorability, compared to the Democrats' 35-56 percent score.

Voters approve by 50-43 percent of the job Obama is doing, his highest score since a 53-40 percent approval rating on December 6, 2012, soon after he won re-election, according to the national Q Poll released Monday.

Obama has been a "great" president, 22 percent of voters say, while 33 percent say he has been a "good" president, the poll found. Another 23 percent say "not so good" and 22 percent say he has been a "bad" president.

Obama's policies have helped the nation's economy, 44 percent of voters say, as 38 percent say his policies have hurt the economy and 16 percent say his policies haven't made a difference.

But only 21 percent of voters say Obama's policies have helped their personal financial situation, as 33 percent say these policies have hurt them personally and 44 percent say they've made no difference.

The new poll gave the GOP its best favorability score since a negative 38-49 percent rating in a November 26, 2014, Quinnipiac University poll, the last time the GOP outscored the Democrats.

Mondays favorability rating is the Democrats' worst since a 34-53 percent score on September 28, 2015.

"President Barack Obama's final score card is a passing grade overall, but barely," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.

"Are the GOP's favorability scores an endorsement of President-elect Donald Trump's change agent status? It could well be that despite Obama's largely positive exit numbers Americans say it's time to turn the page," Malloy said.

Only 27 percent of American voters are "very satisfied" or "somewhat satisfied" with the way things are going in the nation right now, while 72 percent are "somewhat dissatisfied" or "very dissatisfied."

A total of 39 percent of voters say the American economy is "excellent" or "good," while 60 percent say it is "not so good" or "poor." This is the best score on the economy since December, 2003, when 40 percent of voters said the economy was "excellent" or "good."

Pollsters surveyed 1,071 voters nationwide from November 17-20, with live interviewers call landlines and cell phones. The latest Q Poll has a margin of error of +/- 3 percentage points.

Read the complete poll results here.
Small Business Saturday (Nov. 26, 2016) is an American shopping holiday that aims to promote shopping at local businesses. Last year, it generated $16.2 billion in spending for small businesses which was a 14 percent increase from 2014. While its great to use Small Business Saturday as a way to increase sales, most small businesses need more consistency throughout the year to survive in the increasingly competitive marketplace. Fortunately, there are several ways small businesses can better position themselves to compete in the local market.

According to a study from Bazaarvoice, roughly 39 percent of in-store shoppers research a product online before buying at a physical location. This means that your small business must have an online presence in order to compete locally. How can your small business improve its online presence?

2. Improve your local SEO.

Focusing on improving your small business local SEO will help generate more traffic to your website and ultimately, more leads and sales for your business. With roughly 97 percent of consumers going online to search for local businesses, why wouldnt you make SEO a priority? Additionally, Google is placing more emphasis on local search with prominent local results floating at the top of targeted search queries. With that said, Google has altered their local results to focus on the top three businesses for a specific search. This means, while difficult, getting your small business inside the top three results can result in tremendous return on investment. To get started, make sure you register your business with Google and Bing Places. Other considerations to improve local SEO include, hyper-local content creation onsite and offsite, outreach and publisher partnerships with local websites, optimizing your website (NAP, keywords, etc.) and strategic social media management among others.

Related Book: Ultimate Guide to Local Business Marketing by Perry Marshall and Talor Zamir

3. Increase online reviews.

Online reviews are a critical part of your local search rankings, not just on Google and Bing, but also sites like Yelp and Facebook. Additionally, online reviews are the modern version of word-of-mouth advertising and can persuade new customers to use your small business, or to not use your small business. In fact, roughly 67 percent of consumers reported that their purchasing decisions were influenced by online reviews. Thus, its important to perpetuate reviews from your customers, especially if you know they had a positive experience. Consider adding calls-to-action on your receipts or training your employees to ask for reviews on your Google+, Facebook and Yelp page.

4. Use email marketing.

Email marketing is an undervalued resource for small businesses. It gives you a scalable tool to communicate with current, previous and potential clients. In fact, it seems like most small businesses put more energy into social media than email, even though email marketing is estimated to yield three times higher results and a 17 percent higher value in conversion. Consider using a free email marketing resource like Mailchimp or Constant Contact.

5. Target paid local results.

With local search getting increasingly difficult, it might make sense for your small business to consider pay-per-click (PPC) options like AdWords. PPC is when you pay for each individual customer that visits your website after clicking a specific advertisement. The best part is, you can optimize PPC campaigns to target affordable, yet actionable keywords in specific geographical areas. PPC lets you get your advertisement in front of highly targeted keywords in your local market, which will increase your conversions.

6. Small business tips offline.

Brick-and-mortar locations are the staple of small businesses. Even in the increasingly digital world, there are several offline tactics that can help small businesses excel.

Related: 10 Free eBooks For Your Small-Business Success

7. Become active in the community.

Small businesses are often considered to be backbones of their respective communities. As a result, local companies can differentiate themselves by staying active in local affairs. In fact, 82 percent of consumers consider corporate social responsibility as an important factor when making purchasing decisions. As a start, you can join your local Chamber of Commerce to find relevant events in your target market. If you really want to make a splash, consider sponsoring a local event or charity. Social activism in your local community is an excellent marketing tool and a great way to gain positive PR.

8. Target local government contracts.

The government sets aside specific contracts for companies that are designated as small businesses. If your business qualifies, you should consider going after local opportunities. Winning a government contract can provide a stable and consistent revenue stream to supplement other clients. The SBA states that the law requires the government to award 23 percent of their contracts to local businesses, which amounts to roughly $115 billion annually. Winning these contracts are not a given, and youll need to devote time and energy into understanding and finding opportunities, as well as creating compelling proposals. However, the risk vs. reward is substantial if youre able to win a government contract.

9. Focus on the customer experience.

If small businesses are the backbone of a community, then customers are the heart of small businesses. As such, it is vital that your small business focus its efforts on providing the best customer experience possible. Cox reports that 90 percent of U.S. consumers frequent small businesses at least once a week. Furthermore, 63 percent of the respondents said that they feel a strong need to support local entrepreneurs. This is mostly in part to the convenience, customer service and social equity of local businesses compared to corporations. As a result, small businesses can dominate their local market by providing incredible customer service, convenient operating hours, a friendly atmosphere and the inclusion of customer opinions and feedback into strategic decisions.

Related: 25 Payment Tools for Small Businesses, Freelancers and Startups

10. Dont be afraid of change.

Change is one of the hardest things for small business owners to accept. However, an inability to adapt to changing trends can kill your small business quicker than any competition can. In fact, autonomy and flexibility are two benefits that small business have over corporate competitors. The bureaucracy of larger companies can make it difficult for pivots or strategic changes, but as a small business with a typically flat management style, you are able to adapt on the fly. CRM and other integrated data systems can provide small businesses the insight needed to see trends in their operations. This will help you capitalize on opportunities and prepare for imminent threats.

Life as a small business owner can be difficult. With the saturation of local markets and the increasingly globalized economy, the external pressures forced down on small businesses can seem insurmountable. However, there are several strategies that small businesses can focus on to improve their competitive position. Remember to market yourself online, continue to improve your relationship with customers and never be afraid to change.

Related:



Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
PHOENIX - Gov. Doug Ducey selected two new justices for the Arizona Supreme Court Monday, including the first Hispanic to serve on the state's top bench.

The governor chose John Lopez IV, 48, who is currently the state's solicitor general. He heads the division inside the attorney general's office charged with defending the state in litigation.

Lopez also has been called upon to issue legal opinions in cases where Attorney General Mark Brnovich has had a conflict of interest.

Also tapped for the bench is Andrew Gould, 52, currently a judge on the state Court of Appeals.

Both are Republicans like Ducey. Gould was formerly a Superior Court judge in Yuma County.

In an exclusive interview with Capitol Media Services, the governor praised all seven who were nominated by the Commission on Appellate Court Appointments for the two new vacancies created earlier this year when the legislature voted to expand the court to seven. And the governor said he interviewed all nominees, including the Democrat and independent.

But Ducey, who said the interview is the prime factor in his decision, said these two stood out in being the closest to what he wants from the third branch of government.

"I'm looking to someone who has a fidelity to our founding documents: the Declaration (of Independence), the Constitution and the state constitution, has a love of the law and an understanding of the separation of powers,'' the governor explained. "I made the very difficult decision to pick who I thought were the two best.''

But the governor made it clear he's interested in more than general questions about judicial philosophy.

"I want to know their opinion on certain cases,'' said Ducey, who also had general counsel Mike Liburdi in on the interviews.

Ducey would not disclose which prior rulings he asks about to gauge the views of applicants, saying he wants to keep that under wraps so as not to tip off others who will be applying for judicial vacancies. That most immediately will mean the process to replace Gould on the Court of Appeals.

And the governor, who is opposed to abortion, specifically declined to say whether he asked any of the applicants about their views on the legal issues associated with the practice.

That could become an important issue in the next few years with President-elect Donald Trump vowing he will appoint justices to the U.S. Supreme Court who are opposed to abortion.

That opens the door to overturning the historic ruling of Roe v. Wade when the nation's high court concluded women have a constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy in the first trimester. Subsequent court rulings have expanded on that right.

If Roe v. Wade is overturned, that leaves the question of abortion to each state, as it was before the 1973 ruling. In Arizona, elective abortion was illegal at the time.

What could make a difference is that the Arizona Constitution has something not spelled out in its federal counterpart: a specific right to privacy. And while that provision existed even when abortion was illegal in Arizona, there is an argument that right to privacy could form the basis for keeping the practice legal even if Roe v. Wade is overturned.

Ducey, however, made it clear that he's not interested in jurists who are looking for ways to overturn what state lawmakers have approved.

"The litmus test is that people want to uphold the law, that they want to be a judge and not a legislator,'' the governor said.

"I look for judges that want to interpret the law as written,'' Ducey continued, espousing what some call "texturalism'' or "originalism.''

"But I don't think that judges should be writing the law, rewriting the law or fixing the law,'' he said. "That is the legislature's job.''

The governor, who previously appointed political independent Clint Bolick to the high court, is getting to name the two Republicans because of a law he signed earlier this year expanding the bench. He said a larger court will mean the ability to take on more cases as opposed to simply affirming appellate court rulings by refusing to consider them.

"I also think it right-sizes the court to states of equal size and equal population,'' the governor said.

Ducey said the chance to name the first Hispanic to the Arizona Supreme Court did not figure in his decision.

"These selections were made on the merits,'' the governor said.

"His interview was excellent,'' Ducey said, saying Lopez had "incredible references and recommendations.''

Lopez helped out the governor at least indirectly earlier this year when he issued an opinion declining to block the release of funds for Proposition 123. That voter-approved measure crafted by Ducey earmarks $3.5 billion for schools in the coming decade, including $2.2 billion in extra withdrawals from the state land trust account.

State Treasurer Jeff DeWit, a foe of the plan, had raised legal questions about the distribution. But Lopez declined to intercede, saying it would be improper because of a pending federal court lawsuit.

Lopez also told members of the state Board of Investment they face no personal liability for going along with what voters approve, even if a court were to subsequently decide the move was illegal.

He also is involved in an effort to have the Arizona Supreme Court overturn an appellate court ruling which voided state law denying bail to accused sex offenders. The majority ruling in that case concluded that the constitution allows people to be kept in jail pending a trial only if prosecutors can show that no conditions of release can be imposed to ensure protection of others.

That ruling was not unanimous, with Gould filing a dissent.

He said the express purpose of the statute and its companion state constitutional provision "is to protect victims and the community.'' That, he said, makes its purpose "regulatory, not punitive.''

Gould also authored a unanimous appellate court ruling which said Arizonans can sue those who have harmed them, even in cases in which they had voluntarily agreed to arbitrate instead. He wrote that arbitration agreements that are a financial burden on individuals are legally "unconscionable'' and therefore unenforceable.

That ruling, believed to be the first of its kind in the state, was a major victory for those who may not have thousands of dollars to fight a claim through arbitration. Instead, it permitted them to retain an attorney who is willing to handle the case on a fee-contingent basis and be paid only if he or she wins.

It also was a setback for many businesses that now routinely put boilerplate language into contracts requiring clients and customers to submit to arbitration. But it is most likely to affect the most complex and costly claims like medical malpractice.
ATLANTIC SKIES: Stellar asterisms  eye-catching pretenders to the constellation throne and just part of the bigger picture

Most everyone, or at least most amateur astronomers, are familiar with the constellations in the night sky to some degree. Many, however, may not be familiar with the numerous asterisms in the night sky. What is the difference between a constellation ...
Artisan bakery Muffin Break has opened for business at a new store in Redhill, Surrey.

The new stores interior and exterior has a rustic, yet modern style and can provide seating for 65 customers, said the business, adding it will also create 11 new jobs.

Gemma Sandells, marketing manager for Muffin Break, said the company is ambitious and always striving for continued expansion in the UK.

We are delighted to be opening a new store in Redhill, she said. Our menu is baked in-store, every day from scratch and this is what makes us stand out on the high street. We look forward to welcoming our new customers and to continue expanding our UK presence even further in 2017.

The new store is part of a growing series of franchisee-owned artisan bakeries, which make a wide range of food options on-site daily, using fresh ingredients.

This month, Muffin Break launched its festive menu, which includes both sweet and savoury options.
Food ingredients supplier Edme has been given an AA rating for an announced audit in the British Retail Consortiums (BRC) global food standard award.

The AA rating is the highest possible mark for a company, and Mike Carr, sales director of Edme, said it was a tribute to the work of the team.

He pointed out that the companies that go through to reach the exacting standards set by the BRC are many and complex.

It takes a great team effort to pass the accreditation  and an even bigger one to get the top mark, he said.

Quality manager Renata Faldo co-ordinated the process from start to finish, holding everyone to account and ensuring they achieved the companys best-ever grading.

To achieve an AA rating, there has to be an open culture, where team members work together to identify potential problems and support each other in putting things right, said Faldo.

The award belongs to the whole Edme team. It vindicates the trust put in us by our bakery and food-producing customers; the supermarkets who stock their products; and the consumers who buy bread and other foods containing our flours and flakes.
Somerset County Treasurer will 'do what it takes' for best returns
Americans recently gathered together to enjoy their Thanksgiving meals and express gratitude for their many blessings. Many families have a tradition of discussing all they have to be thankful for, which is a mindset we should adopt not just at this time of year but every day.

We are blessed to live in this great country which serves as a beacon of freedom and democracy for the world. The Constitution safeguards our liberties and sets out a system of representative government which empowers people to pursue greater opportunity.

This years presidential election demonstrated the power Americans have to directly impact their government. Americans said they wanted a different direction. Donald Trump became the president-elect, despite nearly every poll and national media outlet counting him out.

The American people determined the outcome of the election. This is a much too rare right and privilege in our world.

Following the election, we watched Hillary Clinton concede to Donald Trump. Right now, the Obama and Trump administrations are in the midst of a peaceful transition of power. We take this phenomenon for granted in America, but other nations are amazed by it.

In December 2000, I participated in an exchange to India. Everyone was riveted by the nonstop coverage of the contested election results between George W. Bush and Al Gore. Several local individuals commented to me how remarkable it was to see so much controversy but no violence. It was yet another example of the greatness of America.

In this country, we are also blessed to have the freedom to openly practice our faith and live in safety. Stories continue to flow out of the Middle East about the persecution of Christians and other faiths by ISIS. Human rights abuses are rampant in countries from Syria to North Korea to Cuba. We live in a dangerous world and face many global threats we must take seriously, but our day-to-day lives in America are marked by peace and stability.

We enjoy this safety and freedom because of the men and women serving in our Armed Forces. Many of them will not have the opportunity to spend the holidays with their families because they are stationed around the world, answering the call of duty. We must make it a priority to show our gratitude for their many sacrifices.

To thank our troops and our veterans, I am again helping to collect cards for the American Red Cross Holiday Mail for Heroes program. Through this effort, we can send gratitude and holiday greetings from Nebraska to our service members, veterans, and their families.

My offices in Grand Island and Scottsbluff are serving as collection points for Nebraskans to drop off postage-free cards through Monday, December 5, 2016. Please use generic salutations such as Dear Service Member or To an American Hero, and do not include your personal contact information or inserts of any kind. For more information and official guidelines for the program, please visit my website at AdrianSmith.house.gov/HolidayMailforHeroes.

Despite the challenges we face, I firmly believe we live in the greatest country in the world. It is an honor to represent you in Congress, and I am grateful to be both a Nebraskan and an American.
They say blood runs thicker than water.

But in Mariah Carey's case, her brother Morgan, 51, has apparently set out to slam her regarding her recent split with casino mogul James Packer, 49.

According to Woman's Day, Morgan said that Mariah, 46, is a 'vampire' and would 'have bled him dry'.

Scroll down for video

Slammed: Mariah Carey's brother Morgan, 51, has set out to slam her regarding her recent split with casino mogul James Packer. According to Woman's Day, Morgan said that Mariah, 46, is a 'vampire' and would 'have bled him dry'

He reportedly told the publication: 'Despite having millions of her own, she would have gone through his money.'

Morgan apparently added that James had 'dodged a bullet' and that there was no way that his sister was truly in love with him.

'It's impossible as Mariah only loves Mariah.'

Fake: Morgan added that James had 'dodged a bullet' and that there was no way that his sister was truly in love with him

It appears that he later went on to slam her further by adding that if he had the opportunity to speak to James he would tell him that Mariah has no family values.

'If I were you I'd look for someone with good family values...Things my sister does not possess,' he further added.

Mariah recently appeared on Ellen and spoke out regarding the split.

Asked how she's feeling 'mentally' and whether she's 'happy,' Mariah responded, 'I think Im doing well.'

No values: He later went on to slam her further by adding that if he had the opportunity to speak to James he would tell him that Mariah has no family values. 'If I were you I'd look for someone trustworthy with good family values...Things my sister does not possess,' he further added

She added: 'No. I'm actually. Everything happens for a reason, things are the way they are.'

Ellen then probed the star about Packer's reluctance to star in Mariah's upcoming E! docu-series Mariah's World asking, 'He didnt want to be in the docu-series at all. And yet hes in it. You see him.'

'Allegedly' the songstress replied coyly, adding, 'Its kind of difficult to talk about it at the moment.

Lost love: The couple had reportedly split a couple of weeks after a disagreement on a trip to Mykonos in Greece

Mariah's breakup from the Australian businessman was made public last month.

The couple had reportedly split a couple of weeks after a disagreement on a trip to Mykonos in Greece.

They began dating in June 2015 and James proposed in January with a 35-carat ring.
Pictured: Labour MP Jo Cox, who was murdered by white supremacist Thomas Mair

Were it not for the death of the retired Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, the BBC would have been leading its news bulletins yesterday morning with the story that came second on its revised agenda.

This was about a letter addressed to the party leaders at Westminster by the Equality and Human Rights Commission urging them to tone down campaigning that, it argued, has legitimised hate.

It is clear who the Commission has in mind: the politicians who campaigned (successfully) for the Leave side in the EU referendum campaign.

And the timing of the letters release to the BBC, just days after the conviction of Thomas Mair for the murder of the Labour MP Jo Cox, is far from coincidental.

It is entirely in line with newspaper columns last week by some of those still unreconciled to the Brexit vote, one of which  on the day after Mairs sentencing  was headlined Dog-whistle politics can be a deadly game.

The argument, such as it is, seems to be that the emphasis on the need to control immigration put by many of those campaigning for Brexit triggered Mairs unspeakably violent attack on one of the countrys most admirable politicians, who was on the Remain side.

But the wider point of such pieces is to insinuate collective responsibility for the crime on the part of those who argued that Britain should exit the EU and become a fully independent nation once again.

Disturbing

Such writers are almost akin to the fictional Dr Heinz Kiosk (an invention of the late satirist Michael Wharton), who, whenever some disturbing crime took place, would declare: We are all guilty.

The imaginary Dr Kiosks motives were not political, however, while those who attribute moral responsibility to Brexit campaigners for Jo Coxs murder are engaged in pure politics.

Indeed, the notion of collective responsibility is always highly ideological, whether on the part of those who attribute Islamic terrorism to Muslims in general or who blame all Jews for any action by the Israeli Defence Force.

It is true that when carrying out his horrifying attack, Mair was heard to shout: This is for Britain. And the murder did take place during the final week of the Referendum campaign.

But when you look into the details of Mairs (highly disturbed) thought processes, it becomes clear that Britains membership of the EU was not his principal, or even secondary, concern. As the trial judge said, he was no patriot but an out-and-out white supremacist, who for decades had been obsessed with the notion that the white race (a biological nonsense in itself) was facing extinction.

He began his indoctrination 30 years earlier by subscribing to a South African publication devoted to attacking those who opposed the policy of apartheid.

He would sign his letters to the producers of those pamphlets Yours racially. And his British role model was not Ukips Nigel Farage, still less Boris Johnson or Michael Gove, leading lights of the Leave campaign.

No, his inspiration, according to material gathered by the police, was David Copeland: the man who in 1999 planted three nail bombs in London targeting, in turn, black people, Asians and gay people.

The police also uncovered internet searches by Mair which revealed his horror that his mothers second marriage was to a man of West Indian origins.

What police photographs of his bookshelves also showed was that Mairs personal library consisted entirely of tomes about the Nazis (he appeared to worship Hitlers regime) and in his bedroom were Nazi memorabilia. Does this remind you of any Brexiteer you know? Me neither.

Nazi-obsessed killer Mair (left) stabbed Jo Cox (right) 15 times and shot her three times during a brutal attack in her hometown of Batley, West Yorkshire

It is undeniable that nationalism played a part in the success of the Leave campaign. But to the extent that it did, this emerged from a sense of deep affiliation to traditional British institutions, the most important of which is a sovereign Parliament.

It was, in part, to defend these institutions that Britain fought Nazi Germany  the very dictatorship to which Mair built a shrine in his bedroom.

The Times last week followed up the Mair trial with a detailed investigation into the modern political groups that embrace that murderers world view.

Crucial

The main one is called Knights Templar International, which says it seeks to recruit members who share an understanding of the threats we face today from radical Islam . . . and anti-Christian bigotry.

The point is, just as Islamic terrorists are not interested in the nation state, but in establishing a sort of global caliphate, so people of Mairs mindset see themselves as promoting an equally trans-national white supremacist movement. The crucial distinction is this: racism is not the same as nationalism, even though many on the Left talk as if the two are synonymous.

Actually, the falsity of this equivalence should be obvious to people in this country. The most spectacular growth in support for any of our political parties in recent years has been that enjoyed by the SNP.

Those three letters stand for Scottish National Party. It is an avowedly nationalistic party, forged in the passionate belief that the Scottish people should have independence from Westminster.

Pictured: A Nazi golden eagle and a unit full of books on Nazi Germany were found in Thomas Mair's house by police

But is it a racist party? Well, there are elements on the fringe of the Scottish independence movement who might be described as Celtic supremacists and who do have a hatred for the English.

But if you asked most Scots if they saw the SNP as inherently racist, they would rightly dismiss the idea as insulting.

So why should those who support the idea of British independence from the institutions of the EU not be similarly affronted by the implication they are motivated by racism?

While the issue of immigration was highly significant in the Brexiteers winning campaign slogan Bring Back Control, this was not remotely a racist phrase  and it is a disgraceful slur on those who agreed with that to stain them all as incipient white supremacists or connected in any way to the weirdo killer of poor Jo Cox.

The Brexit campaign would never have succeeded without winning the votes of very many British Asians. I know a number of such voters and the idea that they were driven by overt or even hidden racism is as offensive as it is preposterous.

No matter what your ethnic origins, if you believe in the idea of the nation state at all, then you are likely also to believe that such a state must have some degree of control over the number of those who have the right to enter from outside and make it their home.

Betrayed

A territory without such control has forfeited one of the principal attributes of statehood and, as a signatory to EU treaties guaranteeing absolute freedom of movement to the citizens of all 28 member states, Britain was unable to exercise that control.

The problem for the leader of the Remain campaign, one David Cameron, was not that he failed to recognise this. It was that he recognised it, but couldnt deliver it.

He declared on live television in 2014: Britain, I know you want this sorted. I will go to Brussels, I will not take No for an answer and when it comes to freedom of movement I will get what Britain needs.

Former Prime Minister David Cameron failed to get Britain control over freedom of movement

But he broke this most explicit of promises. This was made brutally clear to him by a British Asian, Harry Boparai, in an ITV referendum debate in which the then PM faced audience questions.

Boparai told Cameron that he had voted Conservative in 2015 because of that promise, but having been betrayed on this, he would vote for Brexit in the referendum.

Is Harry Boparai a racist for casting his ballot in this way and for that reason? The suggestion is an insult, not only to Mr Boparai, but all those who thought similarly.

To be fair to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, its letter to party leaders does concede that: The vast majority of people who voted to leave the European Union did so because they believe it is best for Britain and not because they are intolerant of others.
During the 2011 referendum on voting reform, the Lib Dems under Nick Calamity Clegg argued for scrapping the first-past-the-post election system in favour of one called AV.

Clegg, however, never recovered from the revelation that earlier he had branded AV a miserable little compromise. So you would have thought he had learned his lesson.

Not a bit of it. Now rehabilitated as the Lib Dem Brexit spokesman, the former Deputy Prime Minister, who is desperate to overturn the latest referendum result, has been recommending the Norwegian option as a model for future UK-EU relations, a deal which would mean Britain would continue to pay into the EU to ensure access to the single market.

Nowadays Nick Clegg (pictured) is the Lib Dems' Brexit spokesman but he does not make any more sense than he used to as Deputy Prime Minister

Yet in the run-up to Junes referendum on Brexit, Clegg said the Norwegian model was too expensive and the country had no power to limit migration. As he put it: In Norway, they have to pay into the EU coffers, they have to obey all EU rules. Thats why they call it fax democracy.

Everything gets decided by everybody else in Brussels, they then have to transpose it into law in Oslo. [In Norway] they have no MEPs or EU Commissioners... no passport checks, they have no power whatsoever. All decisions are made by foreigners  utter powerlessness.

Perhaps the next referendum question should be: Does Clegg believe in anything at all?

At yet another well-paid after-dinner speech, Lord Hague, the former Foreign Secretary, said: The last time I was here, I did tell you a lot of jokes and stories about politics, but the trouble now with political jokes is that they have started to get elected. People said much the same when he was elected leader of the Conservative Party in 1997.

Tony Blair may be trying to block Brexit but we will at least be spared him on Strictly Come Dancing.

The former PM tells the New Statesman that he takes his hat off to former Labour minister Ed Balls, who was finally voted off the show last night: Hes been brilliant. I absolutely would not dare to do that myself. Lets hope Tonys wife, Cherie, takes the same view.

Hapless Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell desperately tried to cover up the fact that dozens of his backbenchers began fiddling with their phones the moment he started speaking in the Autumn Statement debate. McDonnell said: I held their attention  even though theyre tweeting, theyre tweeting about what Im saying.

Sadly not. Of the 60 tweets posted by MPs, a meagre seven were about what he had to say.

One of the loudest criticisms of last weeks elitist party at The Ritz, to celebrate acting Ukip leader Nigel Farages 25th anniversary of battling to leave the EU, came from Tony Blairs former spin-doctor Alastair Campbell.

But the very night that he was attacking Farage as a hypocrite, Campbell was dining in Hammersmith, West London, at the upmarket River Cafe, where a bottle of wine can cost 2,000.

How elitist, you might say!

Understatement of the week:

Nigel Farage, fresh from posing with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower, quipped: I had a boys weekend in New York very recently. Not much happened.

Did Zac Goldsmith pull his weight when an MP? A Freedom of Information request reveals Goldsmith, who is fighting the Richmond Park by-election as an independent, spoke in just eight debates last year. To be fair, he was fighting the London Mayoral campaign. Still, Tania Mathias, Tory MP for neighbouring Twickenham, spoke 54 times.

Boundary changes could see Hackney North MP Diane Abbott, the Shadow Home Secretary, fighting with a neighbouring London Labour MP for a new constituency.

And who might that be? One Jeremy Corbyn, MP for Islington North, her boss  and Abbotts former lover. However, she tells the Hackney Gazette: Im not going to contest the same seat as Jeremy. Her affection for her one-time beau clearly runs deep. Perhaps the pair (pictured) could run on a joint ticket?
The pictures date from the 1970s through to 2000, and famous faces include Kate Moss and Anna Wintour

Independent publisher has spent three years painstakingly collating and digitising photographs

Bloomsbury has unveiled a new fashion photography archive featuring hundreds of thousands of images

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A new archive featuring hundreds of thousands of photographs taken on and around the catwalk is offering a 'window into fashion history'.

The work of the independent publisher Bloomsbury, the new online archive features everything from top designers' graduate shows to candid shots of original supermodels like Naomi, Kate and Helena.

Bloomsbury spent more than three years painstakingly digitising and cataloging more than 750,000 images, which date from the 1970s up to 2000, to create its new searchable fashion library.

A young Kate Moss is seen laughing ahead of a show in a photograph from Bloomsbury's new online fashion archive

Bloomsbury has put together a ground-breaking new digital archive which includes pictures of Vogue editor Anna Wintour

The treasure trove of fashion photographs include a young Anna Wintour seen both with and without her trademark shades, a laughing Kate Moss captured backstage at a show, and a fuller figured Sophie Dahl on the runway in 1998.

Top designers like Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood and the late Alexander McQueen also feature, as do famous fashion fans like Elton John and Julia Roberts, and influential figures like editors Andre Leon Talley and the late Isabella Blow.

A much fuller-figured Sophie Dahl is seen on the runway in this photograph dating from 1998

The Fashion Photography Archive (FPA) includes early examples of street style photography dating from the 1970s

Elton John smiles for the camera in this photograph taken from Bloomsbury's new fashion photography archive

Bloomsbury's FPA is a fully-searchable and meticulously indexed digital resource that's being billed as a 'treasure trove' for students, designers and fashion historians.

The images are the work of fashion photographer Niall McInerney, who has documented historically significant moments like Naomi Campbell's infamous runway fall in 1994 and the unveiling of Alexander McQueen's Dress No. 13 collection.

The chief curator and editor in chief is Valerie Steele, who is director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.

Naomi Campbell wears a gold satin dress and an elaborate matching headpiece in a runway shot taken from the archive

Kate Moss gives the designer Matthew Williamson a peck on the cheek in this backstage photograph

Controversial catwalk moments are captured in the new fashion photography archive compiled by Bloomsbury

Fashion fan Sophia Loren wears a statement hat, veil and scarf to watch a runway show from the Frow

It has taken Bloomsbury over three years to painstakingly digitise and catalogue a staggering 750,000 high-quality fashion photographs from the pre-digital 1970's to 2000

The late Gianni Versace is given a round of applause with his sister Donatella Versace

Images on the new fashion photography archive include a young Kate Moss at the start of her modelling career

Fashion designer Stella McCartney takes a bow after her S/S 1997 show with Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell

The FPA is a fully-searchable and meticulously indexed digital resource and includes photographs of the designer Vivienne Westwood, above

Fashion editors such as US Vogue's Anna Wintour make several appearances in the new online library

The collection documents both front row, back row and street style images from fashion cities around the world. Above: Helena Christensen

The supermodel Linda Evangelista storms the runway in an elaborate quilted dress in this catwalk shot

Bloomsbury has described its new fashion photography archive as both a unique resource and an extraordinary source of inspiration. Above: Julia Roberts

An interactive timeline on the archive allows users to search by designer, period, trend or season, and the archive will also contain hundreds of articles and audio and video resources providing context and analysis from expert scholars and commentators.

'Bloomsbury is thrilled to have acquired this amazing window into fashion history,' said Kathryn Earle, head of visual arts publishing.

'The archive traces the rise of the supermodel and the groundbreaking designs of innovators such as Vivienne Westwood, John Galliano, Jean-Paul Gaultier and Alexander McQueen.
Every year, when the Thanksgiving table is cleared and the dishes are stacked, Americans head out shopping. Its a longstanding national tradition: we rise early on Black Friday and take to the mall, outlets, and local stores to hunt down holiday bargains. We write our lists, compare prices, and make our purchases.

Black Friday is always a busy day, but one group of Americans is busier than most the day after Thanksgiving: our small business community. They are the entrepreneurs and employees who run every kind of enterprise, from startups to mom-and-pop shops. They are seasoned professionals; they are also young people just starting out in their careers. They open up the store early every morning; they stay late adding receipts and paying bills.

Through hard work, creativity, and long hours, small business owners and their employees make available vital goods and services for our families. They are a solid foundation of our economy. They help make our communities and our country great.

Throughout history, small businesses have been key to a nations strength and security. In the early 1800s, the French dictator Napoleon Bonaparte was said to have once insulted his enemy, Great Britain, by calling the country a nation of shopkeepers. As his defeat on the battlefield would later show, Mr. Bonaparte failed to understand just how powerful shopkeepers can be.

Americans do understand that strength, and they appreciate the men and women who provide it. According to the Senate Small Business Committee, of which I am a member, 87 percent of consumers believe the success of small businesses is critical to Americas overall economic health. This belief is well founded. For the last twenty years, small businesses have generated 63 percent of net new jobs in our country. Today, small businesses pay more than 42 percent of the total payroll of private sector employees in the United States. And, with more than 28 million small businesses operating in our country, we can say we truly are the land of opportunity.

To recognize the efforts of small businesses, I helped introduce in the U.S. Senate a resolution designating Saturday, November 26, 2016, as Small Business Saturday. Through this resolution, which passed the Senate this fall, we enhanced awareness of this annual tradition. We also highlighted the value of locally owned businesses and encouraged Americans to shop local.

Awareness is certainly important, but we can do more. With President-elect Trump and a Republican-led Congress, there is an opportunity to move forward with comprehensive, pro-growth tax reform. That may sound complicated, but the fundamental idea is straightforward: let hardworking Americans keep more of their take-home pay. There are more than a few ideas about how best to achieve this. I will evaluate each carefully and ensure we deliver the tax relief our friends, family, and neighbors in the small business community need and deserve.

Government needs to recognize the true value of small businesses. More than the services they provide or the tax revenue they generate, they are the realization of someones hopes and dreams. Behind each and every enterprise is the yearning for a better life and a brighter future. Theres no dollar sign on that. Thats what the dictator Napoleon didnt understand. Thats what the American people know by heart.

Understanding small businesses in this way, we see how important it is that government take care to nurture them, not harm them. As your U.S. senator, I will continue to work hard to ensure we do just that in the new Congress and the more hopeful days to come.
Cecile Reinaud, 42, set up her maternity wear label Seraphine in 2002. Fans include Halle Berry, Kate Winslet and the Duchess of Cambridge. She has two sons, aged seven and 11, and lives in London.

I was taught to sew by my grandmother. As a child, I made clothes for my dolls and knitted things for myself, but I never saw a future in it  my parents always told me it would be a crazy career choice.

So, after studying business administration, I went into advertising. My light bulb moment came when I was working at the ad agency J. Walter Thompson in London.

Cecile Reinaud, above, 42, set up her maternity wear label Seraphine in 2002. Fans include Halle Berry, Kate Winslet and the Duchess of Cambridge. She has two sons, aged seven and 11, and lives in London.

I heard my pregnant colleagues complaining about how difficult it was to dress nicely. There were only a few maternity brands at the time and everything looked dated.

They said: Youre French, stylish and make your own clothes, cant you do something about it? I was intrigued, so I did some market research and travelled to the U.S. to look at the maternity market, which was starting to boom. Then I wrote a business plan and raised 250,000 from investors and some savings.

I found a good manufacturer and moved into my dream shop in Kensington  classic yummy mummy territory.

One of my first customers was Claudia Schiffer, and the story went viral on the internet.

Then I felt I ought to understand what my customer goes through  this life-changing time of being pregnant. Id been married a few years, so I thought: OK, lets go for it. Its great market research!

Pregnant with my first son, Lorenz, I designed maternity jeans with a jersey panel along the waistband that expands.

When I was breastfeeding my second child, Florian, I came up with T-shirts with hidden openings. Ive also designed shoes that give you the right posture during pregnancy.

Today, I employ 70 staff, and sell in more than 30 countries. My proudest moment was when the Duchess of Cambridge wore one of my 50 dresses when she introduced baby George to the world.
You're sure to have noticed it: there's a real flare-up of flares this winter

Youre sure to have noticed this out of the corner of your eye: theres a real flare-up of flares this winter.

Below-the-knee volume in the trouser and denim departments has been growing in a manner not seen since designer Tom Ford, that leader-in-chief of glam, re-launched velvet boot-cuts at Gucci in 1995.

Oh Lordy!

Sarah Mower says that it has been 21 years since flares were a thing: 'Ergo, there are millions of twentysomethings  Generation Legging  who have never worn them before and are fully up for trotting them out for the first time'

The giveaway is the date: it is 21 years since flares were a thing. Ergo, there are millions of twentysomethings  Generation Legging  who have never worn them before and are fully up for trotting them out for the first time.

As for the rest of us, frankly, my initial reaction was somewhat similar to Edvard Munchs The Scream.

Revival fashions are endemic these days and when youve lived long enough to see something come round for the third time  Seventies, Nineties and whatever were calling now  well, you realise youre officially a member of the fashion long-service club.

The first pair of flares I had were in the era of the three-day week, when Donny Osmond and the Bay City Rollers were on Top of the Pops.

They were a pair of jeans adapted by me with triangles sewn into the outside seams because my mother refused to buy me the disgustingly hippy real thing.

The result looked ridiculous, but thats how desperate I was to be in flappy step with what everyone else was wearing. Boys included, lest we forget.

Eventually, I persuaded her to buy me a pair of cork-soled clogs from Saxone for my 13th birthday. Life finally began!

Fast forward to now and things are naturally just a tiny bit different from the Seventies, when the idea of flares was to be as exaggerated as possible.

This is a surprisingly easy-to-wear look. Just remember that if theres a hint of Seventies below the waist, your top needs to be very of the moment (Gwyneth Paltrow in flairs)

This time around you have two more subtle options.

First, cropped kick-flares, a shape that flutes out sharply and comes to an abrupt stop at the upper ankle.

Until last week, I was ready to dismiss this as an awkward novelty for the young.

Then I found myself sitting next to one of the best-dressed women I know. She was wearing black, cropped, kick-flare jeans with pointed block-heeled boots and a three-quarter-length jacket.

She looked amazing  all the proportions were aligned, elegant and suddenly not at all odd-looking.

The jeans turned out to be from Chloe Lonsdales M.i.h jeans brand  a British designer who knows what shes doing when it comes to fit.

If you dont mind spending a bit on denim, have a look at M.i.hs Marty high-rise cropped flare (215, mih-jeans.com).

FLARES: THE NEW RULES

If the trousers look as if they could be worn to a Seventies costume party, walk away. WHEN you try on flares, take along the shoes youll be wearing them with. A HIGH-RISE waist is more flattering if you are curvy. MAKE sure pockets dont add bulk at the hips. Advertisement

More affordable are Canyon Sands kick-flares (35, french connection.com) and Weekday cut mid-rise crop jeans (30, from asos.com). But I will never have the legs for any kind of cropped trouser, full stop.

So for me the second modern flares option is preferable  full-length with just a hint of volume.

I think I have found the ideal pair: the Countess trousers (380, goatfashion.com) designed by Jane Lewis for her British label Goat, which fashion editors like to keep a secret for themselves.

Another stickler for cut, Jane spent ages making sure the gently graduated volume below the knee has the most thigh-slimming, elongating effect.

They dont have pockets, so theres no extra bulk at the top, and theyre made from non-clingy black crepe.

On the High Street, Id also have a look at Ashbury flare jeans in palmetto wash from J. Crew (72, jcrew.com).

So, why switch to flares? Well, the virtue of an over-shoe length is that you can add four inches and lose half a stone from your appearance instantly.

This is a surprisingly easy-to-wear look. Just remember that if theres a hint of Seventies below the waist, your top needs to be very of the moment.
She realised early on that being a woman in medicine was going to be hard

Dr Miriam Stoppard OBE, 79, is best known for presenting medical shows Dont Ask Me and Where Theres Life. She was married to playwright Tom Stoppard, with whom she has two sons and two stepsons. She lives in London with her businessman husband, Sir Chris Hogg.

When the odds are stacked against you, just do it anyway

When I was newly qualified as a doctor in the early Sixties, I soon realised that being a woman in medicine was going to be a very hard row to hoe. We never give good jobs to women, my professor told me bluntly.

That was like a challenge for me. My mother was a great trier and she had no truck with people who didnt give things a go. She imbued me with that quality, so my reaction to being told I should know my place was to set my sights on becoming a consultant.

Dr Miriam Stoppard OBE, above, 79, is best known for presenting medical shows Dont Ask Me and Where Theres Life

To do this I had to pass three exams to get a postgraduate qualification from the Royal College of Physicians  the pass rate was something like five people in every hundred.

I trekked down from my job as a junior doctor in Newcastle and promptly failed part one. The next time I trekked down to London, I failed part two.

That was when I lost it. I remember crying and ranting to a friend about how unfair the world was and how much harder my life was than that of my male colleagues. When Id finished, she said: I dont think the Royal College want people who stamp their feet when they fail.

It only took me a few days to see how right she was. Ill show them, I thought. You were only allowed a certain number of attempts to pass the tests, so it was another six months before I tried again  and this time I passed.

Ive always remembered that lesson and I tried to pass on a healthy attitude to failure to my four sons. When I was making TV documentaries, I used to come back from a days filming and theyd ask: How did it go?

If Id made a bad job of it, Id tell them I hadnt done well because I wanted them to see everyone isnt good at everything all the time.

Now Im a grandmother (of 11, with another on the way), I hope my grandchildren grow up to be resilient. Life rocks the best of us from time to time and that doesnt make you less of an achiever. In fact, it can make you more of one.
First Lady Michelle Obama alarmed courtiers when she flouted protocol by briefly touching the Queens back during a State visit  so heaven knows what theyll make of Kathy Lettes tactile behaviour with the Duchess of Cornwall this weekend.

Australian novelist Lette, 58, slung an arm over Camillas shoulder in the Royal Box at Newbury, above, during the Hennessy Gold Cup.

Its unclear what the pair were discussing, but Lette enjoys telling her filthy jokes. Lette once arrived for a party at Clarence House on crutches.

Australian novelist Kathy Lette, 58, slung an arm over Camillas shoulder in the Royal Box at Newbury, above, during the Hennessy Gold Cup

Its unclear what the pair were discussing, but Lette enjoys telling her filthy jokes, says Sebastian Shakespeare

When Camilla asked me how Id hurt myself, a jogging injury seemed too mundane a reply, she reveals.  I fell off my toyboy, I joked, half expecting to be sent to The Tower.

The future Princess Consort cackled like a kookaburra  and despite my republicanism, the invitations have kept coming.

Prince Harry is not the only admirer of Meghan Markle. Actor Max Beesley has been sending the star flirty messages on social media since they appeared together in Suits

Mischievous Max teases Harrys girl

Prince Harry is not the only dishy British admirer of Meghan Markle. Actor Max Beesley has been sending the star flirty messages on social media since they appeared together in legal drama Suits.

After Meghan, 35, showed off a bunch of flowers last month, Max teased: They are my fav too. Glad you got them. I was worried they would mess the order.

When she posted a snap from exclusive club Soho Farmhouse, where she is thought to have stayed with Harry, married Max, 45, commented: Its meant to be unbelievable. Youre a lucky girl.

Later Max, whose exes include Kylies sister Dannii Minogue and Melanie Sykes, told Meghan: Sent you an email by mistake, babe  its for another M. No idea how that happened. Sending love x.

Tory lovebirds 20k for jet-setting jaunts

Their secret affair was exposed after they were pictured on a chilly railway platform in Doncaster last Christmas, but since then Tory MPs Jack Lopresti and Andrea Jenkyns have been spending a lot of time together in far warmer locations.

It can be disclosed that the pair have enjoyed official visits together to Bahrain, Gibraltar and Taiwan.

In total, the trips are worth 20,000. The couple are now engaged, with Jenkyns recently revealing she was pregnant.

Their secret affair was exposed after they were pictured on a chilly railway platform in Doncaster last Christmas, but since then Tory MPs Jack Lopresti and Andrea Jenkyns have been spending a lot of time together in far warmer locations

A month after Lopresti was forced to tell his wife, Lucy, of his affair, the MP went on a five-day trip to Bahrain with Jenkyns, courtesy of the Middle Eastern kingdoms Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which cost 4,753 each.

There was a happy coincidence in September when Jenkyns was due to visit Gibraltar as part of an All Party Parliamentary Group to discuss post-Brexit issues, just as Lopresti was flying in for the Rocks National Day.

Jenkynss entry in the register reveals she travelled with a relation on flights costing 856 and shared accommodation with the family member worth 510 for the four-day trip.

Loprestis visit, which was a day shorter, cost 909.

Both MPs costs were met by the government of Gibraltar, according to the register of members financial interests.

Later that month the pair were packing suitcases again for the 6,000-mile trip to Taipei. While Lopresti was seeking to understand Taiwans political system and its security and defence strategy, Jenkyns was there to understand . . . its healthcare system and learn about post-Brexit opportunities for trade.

The seven-day trip cost 3,880 each, with the bill being footed by the Taipei Representative Office in the UK.

Truly, they are a golden couple.

Actor Eddie Redmayne joined Hollywood royalty when he won an Oscar last year, but his sister has settled for British aristocracy.

Eugenie Redmayne, 52, who is Eddies half-sister through their banker father Richard, has got engaged to Guy Hudson, 54.

Guys mother is Lady Cathleen Hudson, daughter of the 6th Earl of St Germans. Eddie was Prince Williams classmate at Eton, so he will feel at home among the landed gentry at the wedding.

Donald Trump never did succeed in seducing Princess Diana, but he has won over her former chef. Darren McGrady is applying to be Trumps cook at the White House.

I am now a U.S. citizen, Lincolnshire-born McGrady tells me. I voted for Trump and would work for him in a heartbeat. I know Trump loves fast food, so I would fall back on my experience of cooking burgers and fried chicken for Princes William and Harry at Kensington Palace.
The Danish Royal also met with the international press during the visit

Twice on the trip, Princess Mary sported a grey cashmere coat by Joseph

She also visited health care centres for children, and met with mothers

During the trip, Princess Mary met with the Moldovan Health Minister

The packed trip was focused around child and maternal heath

Crown Princess Mary has recently been on a three-day trip to Moldova

After confronting images of Princess Mary and her young children observing a bloody deer hunt at Fredensborg Palace emerged last week, many were hoping the Crown Princess would be back to her fabulous best soon.

And the Australian-born Royal has not disappointed.

Princess Mary has recently been on a three-day trip to one of the poorest countries in Europe, Moldova, where she serves as patron for the World Health Organisation Regional for Europe.

As well as managing a packed itinerary focused around child and maternal health, the Danish Royal has showed off an equally impressive wardrobe.

Princess Mary has recently been on a three-day trip to one of the poorest countries in Europe, Moldova, where she serves as patron for the World Health Organisation Regional for Europe

On the first day of her trip, the 44-year-old Princess sported a stunning purple blouse, alongside a Hugo Boss handbag and a grey double cashmere coat.

The coat was by the British-based luxury retailer, Joseph, and Princess Mary paired it with an on-trend golden leaf brooch.

Princess Mary attended the Ministry of Health in Chisinau, where she met with the Moldovan Health Minister, Ruxanda Glavan.

Later on that evening, Princess Mary also had the pleasure of enjoying a Minister of Health dinner at Castel Mimi in Moldova.

On the first day of her trip, the 44-year-old Princess sported a stunning purple blouse, alongside a Hugo Boss handbag and a grey double cashmere coat by Joseph (pictured)

After a successful first day, the Danish Royal's itinerary for day two was similarly full.

Alongside a visit to the Vaccine Cold Chamber, Princess Mary later spoke with the international press.

She then attended a lunch with other United Nations representatives in Moldova, and this was followed by a visit to the Mother and Child Institute where she greeted some of the babies at the centre.

For this visit, Princess Mary again wore her Joseph coat, this time pairing it with a blouse from one of her favourite labels, Stine Goya.

On the second day, the Australian-born Royal spoke with the international press (pictured), as well as visiting the Vaccine Cold Chamber

On the final day of her visit, the Princess visited a health care centre for children, where - once again - she couldn't resist the adorable babies.

After having a guided tour around the facility, Princess Mary later met some mothers with their children who had come to the centre to get them vaccinated.

The Royal posed for photographs in a pastel pink sleeved blouse, black blazer and a Georg Jensen brooch featuring rose quartz, which she has also worn in the past.
A mother-of-two has revealed how her former partner brutally raped her before threatening to kill her and even made her write her own suicide note.

Christy Toulson, now 31, was subjected to a prolonged sexual assault after a 30th birthday meal by then partner Martin Tootell, 27, who even asked her during the attack: 'What's it like to be raped?'

Doctors who treated her after the ordeal said she was 'lucky to be alive' and her injuries were the worst they had seen in a rape victim in 30 years.

Brutal: Christy Toulson, now 31, from Burnley, was raped three times by her ex-partner Martin Tootell, 27. Sex-obsessed Tootell even made Touslon write her own suicide note

Doctors revealed that Toulson was 'lucky' to be alive following the brutal 'night-long' attack. Tootell attacked his former girlfriend so badly that she was close to suffering from a perforated bowel

Abattoir worker Tootell has since been jailed for 12 years for three counts of rape, two sexual assaults and intimidation at Burnley Crown Court.

Care worker Christy explains how an episode of EastEnders turned into her worst nightmare.

She says: 'We were watching EastEnders together where a character got raped and he turned to me and said: "I would never do anything like that".

'A few weeks later, he'd raped me three times while my children were sleeping upstairs and was planning on killing me. He's ruined my life, I'm doing this to raise awareness so he doesn't do it to someone else.'

Christy first met Tootell through a friend in 2008 but within four months he showed signs of violence and their relationship often became abusive.

She said: 'He used to be amazing, we would go shopping, he'd buy me flowers and chocolates.'

But tragedy struck when their first daughter Scarlett-Rose was born 26 weeks early in July 2012 and passed away just eight months later with severe chronic lung disease.

Christy said: 'Martin and I eventually split because of the trauma of her death. After the funeral things took a dark turn.

The couple with their daughter Scarlett-Rose, who tragically died at the age of eight months with a lung condition

The couple were briefly re-united but a birthday meal took a sinister turn and Touslon was subjected to the attack shortly after the couple returned home

'He told me he'd been having an affair throughout my pregnancy. By this time though I was pregnant with our second child.'

Tootell then threatened Christy with violence when she was 17 weeks pregnant with their first son and ordered her to have an abortion, which she refused.

He moved away for five months in 2012 but they got back together after he convinced Christy he was in therapy.

They were reunited and had their second son in August 2013, moving into a family home in Chorley, Lancashire, as a family before finally splitting in January 2015.

In February this year, Toulson agreed to go for dinner with Tootell to mark her 30th birthday.

The night was a disaster and she describes him as being 'sleazy, loud and ignorant'.

'As we got back into the house he started shouting at me and I knew I had to get out because he looked dangerous,' Christy said.

'I went outside and threatened to ring police, but he launched himself at me, knocking my phone out of my hand.

Touslon says her former partner used her daughter's tragic death 'against her'

'It rang the police and I could hear '999 can I help' as he smothered me and dragged me inside.

'He took me to front room and said 'take your clothes off' - I knew that I was in trouble but I was convinced the police were coming.

'He pushed me over the sofa and he raped me for the first time.

'When he'd finished, he shoved me on the floor, groped me and said to me: "what's it like to be raped?" and raped me again.

'He said to me: "I'm going to kill you tonight". All I could think was that our kids were sleeping upstairs and I was never going to see them again.'

Christy was then raped a third time before being ordered to write a suicide note that made it seem like Martin wasn't involved in her looming death.

'I did it but didn't say I was sorry as I didn't want people to think I'd killed myself and he made me say that I made it up because I wasn't over my daughter's death.

Burnley Crown Court heard that Tootell was obsessed with sex with his ex-partner and drink had exacerbated the situation

'After he raped me all night he made me write that I was still so messed up after the death of our daughter that I had made everything up about him.

'When he'd finished, he shoved me on the floor, groped me and said to me: "what's it like to be raped?" and raped me again

'He was using our daughter's death against me and made me say that I was sorry for lying and for putting everybody through this, and to make it looked like I had killed myself.

'My hand was shaking so much after what had just happened and I didn't realise what it was until halfway through I was writing it, he was making me write my own suicide note.

'It was then that I realised that I needed to get out or I was going to die. He hid it and acted as if it was normal, and pulled me upstairs to bed.

'When Martin fell asleep, I grabbed my children and ran downstairs, but he woke up and forced me back upstairs.'

Christy then managed to text her mum to say: 'Martin's raped me and tried to kill me'.

The police arrived 45 minutes later, broke the door down and arrested Tootell.

Christy suffered severe internal injuries and doctors told her that if Tootell had raped her one more time she would have suffered a burst bowel.

Burnley Crown Court heard that Tootell was fixated on sex with his ex-partner, and their 'volatile' relationship had 'taken a dark turn' following his daughter's death, fueled by his drinking.
A vegetarian recipe used by Lorraine Kelly came under fire when it used a meat flavoured stock cube.

In the segment of the morning show Lorraine, which airs on ITV on weekday mornings, the presenter provides viewers with tasty food recipes, and every Monday, she gives them a 'meat free' dish.

But this week's recipe, Lentil and roasted cauliflower tagine cooked by chef John Whaite, contained 500ml chicken stock.

Lorraine apologised after the recipe was placed on the site with the error still there which eagle-eyed viewers spotted

Lorraine watched on as John Whaite described how he was going to cook the lentil and cauliflower tagine

The former GBBO contestant explained that he was adding chicken stock to the recipe which was supposed to be meat-free

Lorraine nor John realised their mistake while live on air, it was only after people pointed it out on Twitter that the presenters both apologised

John Whaite accidentally used chicken stock in a vegetarian recipe for a lentil and cauliflower roasted tagine

The recipe was later placed on ITV's website, with the error still present.

The recipe reads: 'John Whaite has a hearty and tasty dish perfect for meat-free Monday... a roasted spiced lentil and cauliflower tagine.'

Ingredients included: 'One tbsp tomato puree, three tbsp dried currants, 50ml sweet sherry and 500ml chicken stock.'

Lorraine was forced to apologise on Twitter after one keen-eyed fan spotted the blunder.

Twitter user Sam Hind, whose according to her Twitter bio is 'a very Proud mum, vegetarian' and 'loves all animals' stated: 'Meat free tagine....with chicken stock??? You said its good for vegetarians?'

Kelly replied: 'Oops sorry to all my veggie pals!'

The chef who had been making the vegetarian dish cleared up confusion on Twitter as he apologised before then pointing his followers in the direction for the right recipe

Every Monday Lorraine shares a meat-free recipe but there was one big error on this week's dish when the former Great British Bake Off contestant used chicken stock instead of vegetable

The recipe was corrected later on the website with 500ml vegetable stock instead of the chicken stock that John used when he was on the show

Several other Twitter users joined in, in criticising the mistake.

Paula Aury said: 'Not made in tagine and not meat free #FAIL'.

Steve Maguire added: 'Chicken stock doesn't make it vegetarian!'

Tom Kay wrote: 'Not really meat free is it, if it has chicken stock in it?'

Chef John Whaite also apologised to the Twitter users for the mistake.

He wrote: 'Haha ooops. I used chicken stock, SHOOT ME. Just swap it for veg stock you angry lot. You're all obviously hungry, so here, have some tagine.'
Queen Letizia of Spain proved she knows how to make an entrance as she touched down in Portugal with her husband King Felipe VI on Monday.

Wrapped up against the winter chill in a tailored coat over a fitted midi-dress, Letizia looked every inch the glam royal as she kicked off a three-day visit to their neighbouring country including a glittering state dinner.

The 44-year-old wore head-to-toe taupe, accessorising with a small box clutch, suede gloves and her signature stiletto heels.

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Queen Letizia looked every inch the glam royal as she kicked off a three-day state visit to Portugal with her husband King Felipe VI

Letizia wore head-to-toe taupe, accessorising her outfit with a small box clutch, suede gloves and her signature stiletto heels

As they boarded a plane from Madrid on Monday morning, Letizia was seen chatting to Ana Pastor Julian, Spain's President of the Congress of Deputies.

The royals were also flanked by guards as they walked up a red carpet leading to the aircraft before making the short flight across the border.

On arrival, the pair were welcomed by the country's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa before jumping into a private car.

They kicked off their tour with a reception in Porto's City Hall on Monday.

The pair were flanked by guards as they prepared to board a plane from Madrid to Porto

Letizia was seen chatting to Ana Pastor Julian, Spain's President of the Congress of Deputies

The pair, who married in 2004, were colour-coordinated with Felipe opting for a taupe tie

The royal couple wave to photographers before boarding their plane for the short flight

Letizia added a touch of glamour with dangling silver earrings and a chignon hair style

That evening, Spain's King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia were received by Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa.

This was prior to an official dinner at Paco dos Duques de Braganca (Palace of the Dukes of Braganza) in Guimaraes, Portugal.

Later on in the week, they will travel to Guimaraes and Lisbon, where Felipe VI, 48, will address to the Assembly of the Republic on Wednesday.

Last week, Letizia and Felipe VI visited Valencia, where they attended the 28th Jaime I Awards ceremony in the city's Silk Exchange Building (Lonja de Seda).

The awards, worth 100,000, are presented for contributions in scientific research in Spain in six categories: Basic Research, Economy, Medicine Research, Environment Protection, New Technologies and Enterprising.

On arrival, the pair were welcomed by the country's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on arrival, before getting into a private car

The royal couple pose with President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa in Porto's City Hall

In the evening, Spain's King Felipe, left, Queen Letizia, and Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa arrived for a gala dinner in Guimaraes, Portugal

Spain's King Felipe, left, Queen Letizia, and Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa react to children waiving flags of both countries as they arrive for a gala dinner

Spain's King Felipe VI (C-L) and Queen Letizia (C-R) are received by Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (C) prior an official dinner at Paco dos Duques de Braganca (Palace of the Dukes of Braganza) in Guimaraes

The couple made their last official outing with their entire family just last week. Stepping out with Leonor, Princess of Asturias, ten, and Infanta Sofia of Spain, nine, the couple attended a ceremony to inaugurate the XII Legislature in Madrid.

The family-of-four were also joined by Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, as they arrived to the Opening ceremony of the term of office held at the Lower House in Madrid.

Letizia, a former journalist and newsreader, married into the Spanish monarchy in 2004, just a year after Felipe proposed with a 16-diamond engagement ring with a white gold trim.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia are received by President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa (C)
The Duchess of Cambridge turned to an old favourite today as she joined mourners paying tribute to the sixth Duke of Westminster at a memorial service.

Kate, 34, wore the bespoke Alexander McQueen coat with a wide-brimmed hat for the service at Chester Cathedral on Monday.

Looking suitably smart for the sombre event, the Duchess paired the faux fur-trimmed coat with a pair of pointed courts as she joined her husband, Prince William, alongside 1,400 guests to pay their respects.

Kate turned once again wore the bespoke Alexander McQueen coat with a wide-brimmed hat on Monday as she joined mourners paying their respects to the Duke of Westminster

The last time Kate wore the coat was at an equally sombre event, for the Remembrance Sunday Service at the Cenotaph, Whitehall in November 2015.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall also attended the memorial service at Chester Cathedral today.

Major General Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, a close friend of the Royals, died of a heart attack aged 64 on August 9.

He was taken ill while on a visit to his Abbeystead Estate in Lancashire before he was transferred to Royal Preston Hospital.

Kate and William arrive at the service on Monday which was also attended by Prince Charles, Princess Eugenie, and the Duke of Kent

The Duchess paired the fur-trimmed coat with a pair of pointed courts as she joined her husband, Prince William, alongside 1,400 guests to pay their respects

Members of the Grosvenor family attended a 'quiet' private funeral service in the days after the Duke's death but Monday's invitation-only ceremony was a more public occasion.

Charles represented the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh at the service, while Princess Eugenie of York represented the Duke of York.

Also present were the Duke of Kent, representing the Duchess of Kent, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, and Princess Alexandra.

The last time Kate wore the coat was at an equally sombre event, for the Remembrance Sunday Service at the Cenotaph, Whitehall in November 2015

The first time Kate stepped out in the coat in 2015, she added a netted fascinator as she joined (l-r) Tim Lawrence, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands and Sophie, Countess of Wessex

Several roads in the city centre were closed to traffic as people gathered behind barriers outside the cathedral to pay their respects.

The Grosvenor family's ancestral home is Eaton Hall at Eccleston, near Chester, and the Duke was also buried in the village.

At the time of his death the landowner was worth around 10.8 billion US dollars (8.65 billion) according to Forbes, making him the 68th richest person in the world, and third in the UK.
The Victoria's Secret angels have officially arrived in Paris ahead of the brand's annual fashion show, which will film on Wednesday and air on CBS on Monday, December 5.

With just 48 hours until showtime, the 51 models walking the glitter runway this year don't have time to deal with breakouts or dry and dehydrated, post-flight skin.

Thankfully, they have the help of New York City-based facialist Mzia Shiman, who counts many of the Victoria's Secret angels as regular clients. Mzia has set up shop at the models' hotel to treat them to her popular skin-perfecting oxygen facial.

And according to Instagram and Snapchat posts shared in between silly selfies with friends and tours of hotel amenities (like a tricked-out gym), angels like Lily Aldridge, 31, have also been tending to their complexions on their own time since touching down from New York late last night.

Below, we round up three of the Victoria's Secret runway-bound models' travel beauty essentials. Considering how glowy and fresh-faced the girls woke up looking today, we're taking notes.

LILY ALDRIDGE

Beauty sleep: Before heading to bed last night, Lily Aldridge, 31, pampered her skin with an arsenal of hydrating products

Shop Lily Aldridge's post-flight essentials from left: Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Oil ($5.79, target.com), Creme de la Mer Moisturizing Cream ($85-$465, nordstrom.com) and Windsor Edwards Lip Balm ($16, windsoredwards.com)

Shop Lily Aldridge's post-flight essentials from left: Sisley Supremya Eyes at Night ($315, sisley-paris.com) and Tatcha Luminous Deep Hydration Lifting Mask ($25, tatcha.com)

Before getting her beauty sleep last night, Lily offered a glimpse into her evening skincare routine on Snapchat.

Her 'essentials', which are focused on hydration, include both splurges and steals. The 31-year-old treats dark circles and fine lines with a $315 anti-aging eye cream from Sisley, for example, but maintains her manicure with a $6 cuticle oil from Burt's Bees.

MARIA BORGES

Saving face: After hopping off the plane from New York to Paris, Maria Borges, 24, relaxed in her hotel room with a detoxifying face mask

Shop Maria Borges' go-to detox face mask: L'Oreal Pure-Clay Purify & Mattify Treatment Mask ($13, lorealparisusa.com)

After settling into her hotel room in Paris, Maria, 24, wrote on Instagram that after a long flight, a detox mask is a must.

The L'Oreal campaign model chose the brand's Pure-Clay Purify & Mattify Treatment Mask to ready her complexion for the busy week ahead.

CINDY BRUNA

Postcards from Paris: Cindy Bruna, 22, posted a selfie from her hotel room before walking her Instagram followers through her evening skincare routine

Shop Cindy Bruna's nighttime skincare routine: La Roche-Posay Effaclar Purifying Foaming Gel Cleanser ($15, target.com) and Bioderma Sensibio H20 ($11.90, beautylish.com)

Shop Cindy Bruna's nighttime skincare routine: Shiseido Ibuki Beauty Sleeping Mask ($40, shiseido.com)

It's no surprise that the France-born model's regimen is comprised of French pharmacy favorites like Bioderma cleansing water.
She is known for her colourful fashion choices, but Sarah Ferguson outdid herself when she stepped out in a sari on Monday night.

The Duchess of York, 57, went for a bold Bollywood look at the twelfth annual British Curry Awards at London's Battersea Evolution, wearing the heavily embellished garment with a glittering gold clutch.

She wore her signature red hair loose around her shoulders, adding to her opulent look with a pair of jewel-studded sandals and a bracelet.

Sarah Ferguson went for a bold Bollywood look at the twelfth annual British Curry Awards at London's Battersea Evolution, wearing a heavily embellished garment with a gold clutch

Fergie, who was married to Prince Andrew from 1986 and 1996, is no stranger to the red carpet and has been spotted rubbing shoulders with celebrities at a number of high-profile events in recent months.

Last week she joined her eldest daughter, Princess Beatrice, 28 for a glittering charity gala in aid of the Gabrielle's Angel Foundation in New York.

Sarah, who is also mother to Eugenie, 26, is also a regular at Loulou's in Mayfair.

The so-called 'Oscars of the Curry Industry' typically features a star-studded guest list, and last year's event included a string of MPs as well as actors.

Fergie wore her signature red hair loose around her shoulders, adding to her opulent look with a pair of jewel-studded sandals and a bracelet

VIP guest: The so-called 'Oscars of the Curry Industry' typically features a star-studded guest list, and last year's event included a string of MPs as well as actors

This year, judges said they received around 218,000 public nominations via post, app and online, from diners putting forward their favourite curry restaurants. Ashas in Newhall Street, Birmingham, was among the winners, taking home the best spice gong in the Midlands.

Guests included by Dancing on Ice star Frankie Poultney and Arsenal legend David Seaman, as well as Karthik Nagesan who was recently booted off The Apprentice.

Fergie is just the latest high-profile figure to don a sari, with Prime Minister Theresa May going barefoot during a recent visit to Sri Someshwara Temple in Bangalore, while Samantha Cameron donned the garment on several occasions as first lady.

She recently revealed that she and Prince Andrew have 'never really left each other', during an interview on Australian radio.

Fergie, who was married to Prince Andrew from 1986 and 1996, is no stranger to the red carpet and has been spotted at a number of high-profile events in recent months

Fergie was joined by Dancing on Ice star Frankie Poultney and Arsenal legend David Seaman at the event on Monday night, held at Battersea Evolution in London

The mother-of-two made the comments on the hosts Kyle and Jackie O show when the former asked if they would ever reunite.

'Do you think you and Andrew will get back together lilke the world wants Kourtney Kartdashian and Scott Disick to get back together?' he asked. 'Just, enough's enough. Just bite the bullet and sort it out.'
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The UK's first gin-themed hotel is opening in London next week - complete with four floors dedicated to the much beloved spirit.

The Distillery not only houses a gin distillery as its name suggests, but two well-stocked bars, a gin museum, a shop, a room where you can make your own gin and three boutique guest rooms.

It is due to open in London's Portobello Road on December 16 and will set you back about 150 a night. But if you don't fancy a trip to the capital, there are plenty of other getaways offering a similarly boozy staycation.

Femail Food&Drink has rounded up the very best hotels offering gin or whisky experiences all over the UK - from the south coast of Cornwall to the Highlands of Scotland. Drink responsibly!

GIN BAR WITH A VIEW

The four-star Fowey Hotel on the picturesque south coast of Cornwall has a dedicated bar for gin lovers, with a spectacular view of the River Fowey below

The UK's first gin-themed hotel - the Distillery - is opening in London next week (pictured), complete with four floors dedicated to the much beloved spirit

The four-star Fowey Hotel on the picturesque south coast of Cornwall has a dedicated bar for gin lovers.

They are not just treated to fine quality gin, but a quality view of the sparkling River Fowey below as well.

The Lookout Gin Bar serves up a wide range of gins with premium Fever Tree Tonic, with certain gins served with a garnish to bring out the full flavour of the particular brand of spirit.

The bar staff serve Gin Mare with Cornish rosemary, while Williams Chase comes with dehydrated apple.

Rooms from 109/night.

BAR WITH 350 WHISKIES

The Torridon hotel (pictured) in the beautiful Scottish Highlands boasts an award-winning bar that serves up as many as 350 whiskies

In 2013, the hotel was awarded gold status by the Whisky Magazine Awards, and it was also one of the first 50 establishments to be given Best Whisky Bar in the World status by Whisky Magazine

The owners of The Torridon hotel in the beautiful Scottish Highlands admit their Scottish castle is not the easiest accommodation to get to. But once you're there, you won't want to leave if you're a whisky lover.

The bar there houses a whopping 350 whiskies from all over the world.

In 2013, the hotel was awarded gold status by the Whisky Magazine Awards, and it was also one of the first 50 establishments to be given Best Whisky Bar in the World status by Whisky Magazine.

Novices can take up a whisky nosing for 30 per person by trained staff, where guests will be treated to a sample of the bar's 350 single malt whiskies.

Rooms from 165 per night.

STAY FOR BOMBAY SAPPHIRE LOVERS

Just five miles away from the Oakley Hall Hotel in Hampshire is the Bombay Sapphire Gin Distillery - where one of the world's most famous gins is made

Just five miles away from the Oakley Hall Hotel in Hampshire is the Bombay Sapphire Gin Distillery - where one of the world's most famous gins is made.

The country pile has teamed with the distillery at Laverstoke Mill and offers a package for 199 per room per night.

Visitors can tour the factory to see exactly how the world famous gin is made - and drink plenty of the spirit too.

The package includes a welcome G&T, as well as complimentary drink at the distillery after the tour plus a three-course dinner.

RECORD-BREAKING GIN BAR

More than 400 gins are on offer at The Feathers near Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire at its dedicated gin bar

The Feathers was the first ever entrant into the Guinness Book of World Records for offering the largest selection of gins in the world

More than 400 gins are on offer at The Feathers near Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire at its dedicated gin bar. It was even the first ever entrant into the Guinness Book of World Records for offering the largest selection of gins in the world.

Naturally, any gin lover would want to taste as many of these spirits as possible so the hotel has put together four 'Gin Experience' packages where visitors can taste some of the rarest gins in the impressive collection.

Knowledgable staff are also on hand to give advice should you wish to try a full sized glass.

The hotel offers a 'Jan and Tonic' package for January for 149 per room per night, including dinner and a G&T.

WHISKIES FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD

Whisky aficionados should stay at the Highlander Inn in Moray - otherwise known as the Whisky Inn - if they want a proper Scottish whisky tasting experience. If you spend 50 a night on whisky, your room is free

The bar boasts more than 400 whiskies from all over the world. Specialising in single cask malt whiskies, the hotel claims it has the largest selections of Japanese whiskies available outside of south-east Asia

The small village of Craigellachie in Moray is in the heart of whisky country, being close to the river Fiddich that gives the famous whisky brand Glenfiddich its name.

And whisky aficionados should stay at the Highlander Inn - otherwise known as the Whisky Inn - if they want a proper Scottish whisky tasting experience.

The bar boasts more than 400 whiskies from all over the world. Specialising in single cask malt whiskies, the hotel claims it has the largest selections of Japanese whiskies available outside of south-east Asia.

Rooms from 90 a night for double occupancy, from 63 for single - but there's a special offer if you're a true whisky enthusiast.

If you're willing to spend 50 a night on sampling rare and expensive whiskies, then you get your accommodation free. Minimum stay of two nights.

DISTILLERY TOURS

Gin maker William Chase (pictured) make their own gin and vodka at Chase Distillery down the road from his hotel Verzon House out of potatoes and apples

Charming country house Verzon House in Herefordshire is owned by gin makers - so you're guaranteed to receive plenty of the spirit if you stay here

Charming country house Verzon House in Herefordshire is owned by gin makers - so you're guaranteed to receive plenty of the spirit if you stay here.

William and Kate Chase make their own gin (and vodka) at Chase Distillery down the road out of potatoes and apples.

They offer their guests free transport to the distillery to see how the spirit is made - but equally you can enjoy the drink in the comfort of the plush surroundings too.

Single rooms from 80 a night, doubles from 110.

GIN SPECIALISTS

The Plough in the picturesque Cotswolds is owned by gin specialists who in 2011 set up The Gin Pantry, where they offer boutique tasting experiences

The Plough in the picturesque Cotswolds is owned by gin specialists who in 2011 set up The Gin Pantry, where they offer boutique tasting experiences.

There's a wide range of gin tastings on offer, from a 25 gin tasting session for one up to a 150 session where you get to blend your own gin.
Candice only quit her teaching career this month after winning Bake Off

Bedford beauty, 31, has ABC, Fox and NBC fighting over her, reports say

She only won the Great British Bake Off last month but Candice Brown could already be about to break the States after reportedly being at the centre of a US TV bidding war.

The brunette beauty from Bedford, 31, who quit her teaching job last week to pursue a celebrity baking career, is being fought over by ABC, Fox and NBC, according to reports.

And she's been touted as the new Nigella after rumours emerged of the Bake Off queen replacing the Domestic Goddess, 56, on the US reality cooking show, The Taste.

Candice Brown is reportedly at the centre of a US TV bidding war with ABC, Fox and NBC fighting over her allegedly

Candice (pictured left after it was announced she won Bake Off last month) has been approached about replacing Nigella Lawson (right) on the US reality show, The Taste

'It has been put to Candice that she would be the new face of The Taste,' a source told the Daily Star.

'This would spell the end of Nigella's reign in the US, but viewing figures were already dropping after she admitted taking cocaine.

'They told Candice she was perfect to reboot the show and she is being heralded as the sexiest thing since Nigella's spoon sucking.'

The former PE teacher said it was an 'agonising' decision to leave her Hertfordshire school - but that she had been struggling to juggle her teaching job with the new opportunities being offered in the wake of her GBBO success.

The former PE teacher has said it was an 'agonising' decision to leave her Hertfordshire school - but that she had been struggling to juggle her teaching job with the new opportunities being offered in the wake of her GBBO success

Could Candice replace Nigella on The Taste? Reports suggest the Domestic Goddess is facing the chop

As well as reports of TV offers, Candice has also been offered the opportunity to launch a vintage jewellery line, a make-up range with Revel London and her own baking range.

'Candice can't believe how her career is snowballing  it's crazy,' the source said.

'This time last year she was teaching and by next year she could be living in LA and presenting her own cookery show.'

Candice was encouraged to leave by her headteacher earlier this month, after telling her 'You've got to do this, you can't do it half-heartedly.'

The baker, who lives with boyfriend Liam and pug Dennis, told Hello! magazine last month that her students were shocked when she returned to work after her win, with many assuming she was a millionaire after she wowed judges Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood with her baking skills.

As well as reports of TV offers, Candice (pictured with her fellow Bake Off finalists Jane Beedle and Andrew Smyth) has also been offered the opportunity to launch a vintage jewellery line

But in the weeks that followed her win, she has struggled to juggle her day job - which involves working with children with special needs - and new committments.

She she could not have left to pursue fame and fortune had it not been for the support of staff at her school, Ashlyns School in Berkhamsted.

Candice said: 'This has been such an agonising decision to make. Never in a million years did I ever go into the show thinking this would happen. That is why I have been back at school teaching since I won the final.

'I have been teaching for about eight years now and I love it. But since winning the final, I have also been completely bowled over by the amazing opportunities that I have been offered.

'At first, I kept telling the school I would stay until December but they were so incredible and told me I had to grab everything whilst I could.'
At high risk of a cardiac arrest, surgeons were forced to operate on them

Cassie and Emily Garner were diagnosed with a rare condition in the womb

A family are set to celebrate their first Christmas with their miracle twins who were operated on while they were still in the womb.

Kirsty Garner, from Bromsgrove, was 18 weeks pregnant with Cassie and Emily when doctors discovered they had a rare condition.

Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, which only occurs in identical siblings, leads to uneven blood flow to the babies and was putting huge strain on Emily's heart. It was also leaving Cassie with an insufficient blood supply.

At risk of a cardiac arrest at any time, the only way to save them was for experts to perform surgery while they were still developing.

The operation proved to be a success and the twins are now thriving at home - defying all expectations.

Kirsty Garner was 18 weeks pregnant with Cassie and Emily when doctors discovered they had twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome - which leads to uneven blood flow to the babies

Mrs Garner, who is married to Ben, said: 'The pregnancy was a rollercoaster of emotions. I wouldnt wish that time on anyone.

'It was a scary time, and I felt like a failure because I couldnt control what my body was doing.

'We feel so lucky to have them both because we know it could have been very different.

'They are doing great now and are trying to roll over. Cassie is a still a little bit smaller than Emily but she is catching up.'

The rare condition was putting huge strain on Emily's heart and left Cassie with an insufficient blood supply. At risk of a cardiac arrest at any time, the only way to save them was for surgeons to operate on them while they were still developing

Two weeks after the surgery at the Birmingham Women's Hospital, Mrs Garner was taken for an hour-long laser operation.

WHAT IS TWIN-TO-TWIN TRANSFUSION SYNDROME? Twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome is a disease of the placenta that affects identical twin pregnancies. The shared placenta contains abnormal blood vessels, which connect the umbilical cords and circulations of the twins. In many cases the common placenta may be shared unequally by the unborn twims, leaving one with too small a share to recieve the necessary nutrients to grow or survive. The condition is not heriditary or genetic and can happen to anyone. Advertisement

Surgeons used a laser to seal off excess blood vessels in the placenta, which were causing the defective blood flow.

The mother-of-four added: 'It was very emotional beforehand, and I was very scared.

'But during the operation I was in a dull, sleepy state. They put a camera and a laser into my womb, and sealed off the blood vessels to stop them sharing.

'My most vivid memory is the smell - like burned bacon.'

Despite the success, she was warned that Emily's heart had been under huge strain and she could still go into cardiac arrest.

Doctors warned that she may not last the week and began to prepare the family for the worst.

But after 32 weeks and five days, the twins were born on May 5 via Caesarean section.

They then spent six weeks on the neonatal unit before being allowed to return home with their family.

Mrs Garner has told her story to raise awareness of updated guidance, published by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, which give advice to healthcare professionals on complications in twin pregnancies.
A young woman was left fighting for her life after an infection caused her common skin condition to become deadly.

Bryony Bateman, 21, from St Neots, Cambridgeshire, had been diagnosed with psoriasis four years ago, which caused red, flaky patches on her skin.

But a skin infection had caused her to develop erythrodermic psoriasis, which took over 98 per cent of her skin.

Doctors battled to keep her alive after her body had went into a state of shock as a result of the condition.

But after overcoming the odds and managing to battle back from the brink of death, she chose to use her experience to help others find a way of coping.

She has since become an internet sensation, using social media to recommend products and provide fashion advice.

Bryony Bateman, 21, had been diagnosed with psoriasis four years ago. But a skin infection had caused her to develop erythrodermic psoriasis, which took over 98 per cent of her skin

Miss Bateman said: 'It was like I was burning from the inside. My body was in a state of shock because my skin was so dry that my body had no hydration at all.

'I was literally shedding sheets of skin, it was agony.

'It was life threatening and without the emergency treatment they gave me, it could have been a different story.

'It was a really horrible experience but it made me more determined to make other people aware of psoriasis and how dangerous it can be.'

Miss Bateman, who now works as a beauty therapist, began suffering symptoms of psoriasis at the age of 17 when she developed a rash on her stomach.

Doctors initially told her that she was allergic to washing powder. But when it failed to heal, she began searching online for clues as to what was causing her symptoms.

Doctors battled to keep her alive after her body had went into a state of shock as a result

Realising she had psoriasis, she demanded to be referred to a dermatologist who confirmed her suspicions, diagnosing her at the age of 18.

She said it used to keep her up at night because it was so itchy, forcing her to wear socks on her hands to stop herself from scratching her skin.

Since her diagnosis, she has been prescribed a number of antibiotics and steroid creams to try and reduce her symptoms.

But she found her condition would flare up on occassions - once so badly that her body went into shock as her immune system attacked her skin.

Doctors had to put her on a drip to keep her hydrated, smothered her in steroid cream and gave her morphine for the pain.

Not wanting to let the condition rule her life, she began scouring the internet for solutions to treat it.

She tried a range of methods before figuring out that sea salt baths and having sun beds helped her.

She was shocked to find little help for psoriasis sufferers, despite it affecting two per cent of the UK population.

Her condition used to keep her up at night because her skin was so itchy, forcing her to wear socks on her hands to stop herself from scratching

Miss Bateman added: 'I was astonished to find there was nothing out there to help people like me.

'All I was finding was shocking pictures of women in their 50s which without being funny, didnt relate to me who was only just starting out with the condition.

'I found that sea salt baths and having sun beds helped me, and I learned how to cover my face so my skin looked flawless.

'I wanted to get this out there to help other young sufferers like me to prove that life does go on.

WHAT IS ERYTHRODERMIC PSORIASIS? Erythrodermic psoriasis is an inflammatory form of the condition that often affects most of the body surface. It is a rare, occurring once or more during the lifetime of 3 percent of people who have psoriasis. It 'throws off' the body's chemistry, which causes protein and fluid loss than can lead to severe illness. People with severe cases often require immediate medical treatment. The body may not be able to maintain its temperature. This can produce shivering episodes. Erythrodermic psoriasis also can bring on pneumonia and heart failure. It can occur abruptly at the first signs of psoriasis or it can come on gradually in people with plaque psoriasis. The reason erythrodermic psoriasis appears is not understood. However, there are some known triggers, including sunburn, infection and alcoholism. Source: National Psoriasis Foundation Advertisement

'Its given me the confidence to carry on and helps me cope and come to terms with it.'

She decided to start her blog dedicated to psoriasis after she received an anonymous message from a girl who wanted to kill herself because of her psoriasis on her face.

Miss Bateman filmed herself applying make-up and put it onto her YouTube account before sending a link to the girl.

She responded thanking her and told her that 'it gave her hope' to carry on in life.

After learning that she could pass the condition on to any children she may have in the future, she is hoping to raise awareness of what psoriasis is.

She added: 'Everyone knows what eczema is but no-one really knows about psoriasis is because its not talked about.

'I want stop people feeling ashamed about having it and learn to be proud of knowing how to manage it properly.

'As much as it hurts I want to give people the strength to get through it and stay positive.'

To see her posts, follow @bryneenee on Instagram, or search Bryneenee on YouTube and Twitter.

Dr Anjali Mahto, consultant dermatologist and British Skin Foundation spokesperson, said: 'Erythrodermic psoriasis is a dermatological emergency.

'By definition, over 90 per cent of body surface area is affected and the skin is no longer able to perform its functions effectively.

'Patients are unable to control their body temperature, are at high risk for infection and lose fluid and protein through their skin.
did carry the mutation, leaving her with just once chance at creating a baby

Danielle Taggar longed to become a mother but feared it in equal measure.

As she watched her mother battle breast cancer - caused by a defective gene she too had inherited - she was terrified of passing the same fate onto her children.

But she was able to celebrate Noah's first birthday on Friday, safe in the knowledge he does not have the mutation which has caused five of her immediate relatives to develop cancer.

The tot became the first named child to be conceived using a groundbreaking IVF technique, which involved screening the embryo before implantation.

Like Hollywood star Angelina Jolie, his mother had inherited the faulty BRCA1 gene, raising her risk of getting breast cancer by 90 per cent.

Danielle Taggar, 24, was scared of passing her defective gene to any children she chose to have. She was able to celebrate Noah's first birthday safe in the knowledge that he does not have the mutation which increases the risk of cancer

She will undergo a mastectomy by the age of 28 and then then have a full hysterectomy in her thirties, which forced her to consider motherhood while relatively young.

The 24-year-old had already seen her aunts and cousins fight the disease, all while knowing there was a very real possibility that she would be next.

Miss Taggar said: 'I wasn't bothered when I found out I had the gene as it had always been in the back of my mind anyway. But I knew if there was a chance my baby could be free of the disease, I had to go for it.'

In 2013, Miss Taggar went to see a genetic counsellor at Leicester Royal Infirmary who told her about a new IVF treatment which could help her to conceive a baby without the deadly mutation.

'I knew instantly that I wanted to undergo IVF, to see if I could have a baby without it,' she told the Sun.

'I have wanted to be a mum since I was 16. My partner Mason and I knew it was worth trying it.

'I wasn't at all worried about having to inject myself with hormones  all could think about was my baby's health and how I didn't want him or her to suffer because of something in their genes that I could have prevented.'

Miss Taggar had her first consultation for the 9,000 procedure, which was funded by the NHS, at CARE Fertility in Nottingham.

Noah became the first named child to be conceived using a groundbreaking IVF technique, which involved screening the embryo before implantation

She admitted it would have been a daunting experience had she given it too much thought but that she and her partner Mason Bradshaw, 25, were both convinced that it would work.

As with regular IVF for couples struggling to conceive, the treatment involved Ms Taggar injecting herself with hormones to help her to produce as many eggs as possible.

Of the nine eggs harvested which were then fertilised with Mr Bradshaw's sperm, less than half of the embryos survived.

Fertility experts then tested samples, using pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), to see if they carried the faulty gene.

They discovered three out of the four embryos did carry it, leaving the couple with just one chance at creating a baby.

'I was worried that I only had one embryo,' she said. 'All these questions were buzzing round in my mind about what would happen if the pregnancy failed.

'Mason was confident it would work but I knew there was a good chance I wouldn't get pregnant.'

Knowing Noah, who has just started crawling, does not have the same heightened risk of cancer has made motherhood all the more special for Miss Taggar

Of nine eggs harvested, less than half of the embryos survived. Fertility experts then discovered three out of the four embryos did carry the gene, leaving the couple with just one chance at creating a baby (pregnancy scan pictured)

Despite the odds being stacked against them, the couple, from Blaby, Leicestershire, discovered she was expecting in March last year.

Miss Taggar immediately called the clinic and went for a scan when she was just seven weeks into the pregnancy.

'The more scans I had, the more relieved I was that this was actually happening  and that my baby would be born without the faulty gene,' she added.

'I had been so worried that the pregnancy wouldn't work out and I would lose him. But when Noah arrived weighing 6lb 8oz, I was instantly in love.'

Figures from Cancer Research UK show there are approximately 72,400 women in the UK with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation.

Men with the faulty gene have a one in 100 risk of developing breast cancer themselves and those with the BRCA2 gene mutation carry a 25 per cent risk of prostate cancer.

They would also have a 50/50 chance of passing it on to their children.

Despite the odds being stacked against them, the couple, from Blaby, Leicestershire, discovered she was expecting in March last year

The NHS funded the treatment, but if the couple want another baby, they would have to pay for it privately (Noah's father, Mason Bradshaw, 25)

Knowing Noah, who has just started crawling, does not have the same heightened risk of cancer has made motherhood all the more special for Miss Taggar.

However, if the couple want another baby, they would have to pay for the treatment privately, something they said they would struggle to do.

HOW THE PROCESS WORKS An embryo with a faulty BRCA gene looks just like any other, says Colleen Lynch, a fertility expert at CARE fertility. It is a tiny coding mistake that can have massive ramifications in terms of a person's susceptibility to cancer, so there is no way to look into a microscope and tell which embryo doesn't have it. We use the same technology to screen embryos for BRCA mutations as we do for genetic diseases. The technique is called preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). We take a blood sample from both parents. We also need a blood sample of the parent of the person who carries the faulty BRCA gene. Hundreds of thousands of cells are analysed in these samples and allow us to identify inheritance within a family. This, in turn, helps us identify a faulty BRCA gene in an embryo. When a woman's eggs have been harvested and fertilised, a tiny number of cells are sent away for analysis. Before the lab results come back, the embryos are frozen. The healthy ones are then thawed, ready for implantation. If a woman becomes pregnant with an embryo that doesn't have faulty BRCA genes, it means her baby has a much lower chance of developing breast, ovarian and prostate cancers. Advertisement

'He has a really cheeky little personality. He's constantly smiling and is an absolute joy to be around,' she said.

'It is horrible to see your family members suffer with cancer and I'm pleased my son has a much lower chance of developing it.

'I am proud of myself for taking action and going through IVF so he can hopefully live a long, healthy and happy life without the worry of surgery, like I have to face in a few years, or a heightened threat of cancer.

Miss Taggar's mother Shauna, 50, is now in remission following a mastectomy, hysterectomy and chemotherapy.

The grandmother, whose family have been plagued by cancer over the years, said she wished the treatment had been available before she had her children.

Mr Bradshaw, a hospital clerk, said the whole process had been well worth the stress.

'Noah is a bubbly little boy who's very sociable and loud,' he said. 'It is a massive relief knowing that Noah won't have to be tested to see if he is a carrier, or go through preventative treatments, or get cancer like the rest of Danielle's family.'

Colleen Lynch, a fertility expert at CARE Fertility, said they had treated four couples in the last two years, two of which had given birth with a third now expecting.

'People who choose to go through this process do so because they have seen generations of their families decimated by cancer. Although they could conceive naturally, they don't want their children to suffer in the same way,' she said.
A woman has spoken of her devastation at suffering a stroke blamed on IVF treatment aged just 33 which not only cost her the baby but left her needing lifelong support.

Emma Raven was delighted to learn she was pregnant after a three-year course of fertility treatment - but just five days later she was taken ill at work.

She texted her husband but the messages were 'gobbledegook' and she was rushed to hospital, where doctors diagnosed a potentially fatal bleed on the brain.

Not only did the pharmacy dispensing assistant lose her longed-for baby, but she has been forced to give up work, and two years on still has problems with her vision, speech and balance.

While there is no proven link between her condition and the fertility treatment, one study found women who get pregnant through IVF face a five-fold risk of potentially fatal blood clots because of the drugs used.

Emma Raven discovered she was pregnant with the child she always longed for after three years of IVF. But just five days later she was taken ill at work and doctors diagnosed a potentially fatal bleed on the brain

Mrs Raven said: 'It started with a headache. It kept getting worse and I started vomiting.

'I got sent home from work but my doctor thought it was down to stress and nothing to worry about.

'I tried to sleep it off but when I woke up I texted my husband. Looking back, it was all gobbledegook. None of it made sense.'

Her speech was also affected and she was rushed to hospital where doctors discovered a bleed on her brain.

'They asked me my address and I couldn't say it,' she said. 'I was crying and I just couldn't speak or understand.

'They twigged it was a stroke because of my speech and the pain in my head. They took me for a scan and they saw blood on my brain.'

Mrs Raven, from Netherton, Liverpool, was first taken to Aintree Hospital but ended up in the critical care unit of the Walton Centre neurology hospital.

'I only found out I was pregnant on the Thursday then had the stroke on the following Tuesday,' she said.

Not only did she lose her baby, but she has been forced to give up work, and two years on still has problems with her vision, speech and balance (pictured with husband Paul, 33)

'They did a scan on the baby, it looked OK but a couple of weeks later I had another scan and that's when we were told the baby had died.

'I had been having IVF for three and a half years. It was devastating, there are no words for it. It was just unbelievable.

'At first we couldn't get any answers even though I had so many tests to see why. Recently they have said it's probably down to my IVF. That's more than likely.'

In a further bitter blow, she has been left with balance problems, her vision and speech were affected and she now has difficulty reading, writing and coping with certain social situations.

Mrs Raven, who is now 35, praised her husband, 33-year-old welder Paul, for his support throughout her ordeal.

'When we married he said he would be with me in sickness and in health,' she said.

'I know people whose partners have left them after a stroke, but mine stayed right by my side.'

She added: 'I'm a different person as a result, I'm a different Emma. My confidence dropped off and I'm petrified when I go out, but I always tell myself it could have been worse.

'I find it very hard when places are busy. I don't go to parties if there are too many people or if it's too noisy.'

Mrs Raven said: 'At first we couldn't get any answers even though I had so many tests to see why. Recently they have said it's probably down to my IVF. That's more than likely.'

She believes the support she received after leaving hospital was inadequate and is now campaigning with the Stroke Association to raise awareness of rehabilitation.

She said: 'I didn't get the right access to the support I needed. I didn't have access to any therapy or anything. I only had my family for support.

THE LINK BETWEEN IVF AND STROKES IN PREGNANCY Women who become pregnant through IVF may be more likely to develop life-threatening blood clots, researchers previously warned. The study, which was the first of its kind, found that their risk rose five-fold in early pregnancy compared with women who conceived naturally. IVF is linked to more cases of pulmonary embolism, in which a blood clot causes a blockage in the main artery of the lung, and venous thromboembolism  blood clots which form elsewhere but can break off and become life threatening. The Swedish researchers said doctors should be aware of the danger, saying the number of cases remains small but blood clots on the lung are a leading cause of death in pregnant women. They suggest the reason may be a huge rise in oestrogen levels triggered by IVF drugs, with the effect diminishing later in pregnancy. Advertisement

'The support from the Stroke Association has given me a lifeline to live independently.'

While around 15,000 babies are born in the UK every year as a result of successful IVF treatment, doctors have warned of a tiny but raised risk of strokes caused by blood clots.

In 2010, Emma Draper, 26, from Dagenham in Essex, died from a massive stroke, triggered by a clot, just weeks after getting pregnant through IVF.

An inquest ruled her death was triggered by a combination of IVF and a pre-existing blood condition, anti-phospholipid syndrome.

Women are more prone to clots in pregnancy regardless of how they conceive as the blood tends to coagulate more easily.

However, IVF carries an extra risk because it can result in ovarian hyper stimulation syndrome which again raises the chance of a clot  particularly in women under 35 - because of the extra oestrogen produced.

In 2013 Swedish researchers found the risk of life-threatening blood clots rose five-fold in early pregnancy compared with women who conceived naturally.
Famed temples in south India like Kerala's Guruvayoor, which parade richly-decorated jumbo elephants during festivals like Pooram, may lose them forever.

Union Minister Maneka Gandhi has written to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) asking for such religious institutions 'which keep wild animals in captivity' be categorised as zoos.

In effect, they will follow all protocols mandated by the Central Zoo Authority (CZA).

Famed temples in south India like Kerala's Guruvayoor, which parade richly-decorated jumbo elephants during festivals like Pooram, may lose them forever

Apparently, these rules are so exhaustive and prohibitive - involving giving the elephants a 'naturalised environment', sufficient land for recreation, food, bathing facilities, no undue visitor disturbance, curator, veterinarian, biologist, education officer - that many may have to give up on their jumbo possessions.

'That was also the idea behind the move,' said an officer in Gandhi's team.

A technical committee of the Ministry of Environment has already passed the proposal.

Now, it only awaits the nod of the minister, Anil Madhav Dave, the officer said.

Over the past few years, there have been much hue and cry over 'extreme cruelty' meted out to elephants in the temples of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

They are led in huge processions in festivals such as Thrissur Pooram, Ezhunallathu.

Often, they are poached from the forests of North-East from wild herds at a young age and sold to private buyers who hand them over to the temples.

As per Project Elephant, in the year 2000, India had over 3,400 domesticated Asian elephants, 190 of which were owned by temples.

By 2015, the total number of temple elephants went up to 3,500, with Kerala having the largest number of such elephants.

The Guruvayoor temple itself has close to 60 elephants. An industry on its own, an elephant is hired at a minimum cost of Rs 25,000 for 12 hours. Often, these are made to walk in religious carnivals for hours in the sun without food and water.

Elderly and blind elephants are no exceptions.

The huge rush of devotees, loudspeakers and firecrackers compound their trouble. They are beaten up with rods and develop tumours and blisters all over their bodies.

The letter written by Gandhi to Dave reads: 'Hundreds of elephants in temples and tourist spots such as Amer Fort are exhibited to the public without having been recognised by CZA.

This is gross violation of (related) Acts, and CZA turns a blind eye. Further, there are no valid (elephant) ownership certificates as under Section 42 of the Act read with the Wildlife (Stock Declaration) Rules 1973.'

'I, therefore, request you to issue directions to the CZA to ensure that captive elephants are exhibited only in places duly recognised by it.

In places where they are already being exhibited, an opportunity may be provided to upgrade the facility in accordance with the standards set by the Recognition of Zoo Rules, 2009, within a stipulated time period.

'Failure to adhere to these must warrant appropriate action.'
The Defence Ministry is planning to team-up with France to investigate the extent of leakage of information about the Indian Scorpene submarines, six of which are under construction at the Mumbai-based Mazagon Dockyards Limited.

The Indian side had formed a high level committee in September soon after media reports from Australia came out saying that 22,000 pages of information about the Indian programme had leaked and this could compromise the safety of the classified portions of the project.

In Australia, around 10 pages of the Indian programme were leaked and before more papers could be published by a newspaper, a court put a stay on its publication and ordered the whole material to be returned to the French firm DCNS, which is the original manufacturer of the vessels.

Indian employees of the Mazgaon ship building yard gather around the first Scorpene submarine before it is floated for sea trials in Mumbai

'Whatever we could access through the public reports, does not say much on the extent and the possible impact of the leakage but the bulk of the leaked report is with the French stakeholders.

'That is why, we want to form a joint team to look into the matter,' senior sources in the Defence ministry told Mail Today.

The government is in the process of determining the French partner for the investigation.

India has fought a number of wars against Pakistan and does not want its military secrets falling into the wrong hands. Indian soldiers patrol in the Kargil sector against a Pakistani-backed armed intrusion into India's side of Kashmir in 1999 (file picture).

'We would see whether it would be DCNS or the French government,' they said. Recently, the Defence ministry has informed Parliament that a committee was constituted by it to enquire into the reported leak of documents.

'The Committee has submitted its report, which is under examination,' Minister of State for Defence Sunash Bhamre had informed the Lok Sabha.

'Though the committee has not been able to make much headway in its probe due to limitation of available leaked material, it was a matter of great satisfaction for the force that the leak did not happen in India and took place in Australia.

Preliminary investigations showed that the leak took place in the DCNS office in France.

According to reports, 22,400 pages related to Indian Navy's six under-construction Scorpene submarines were leaked by a retired French Navy Captain who was working as a sub-contractor for DCNS - which is a French government-owned submarine building firm.

The documents which are marked as 'restricted' are about the combat capabilities of the submarines of which the first is INS Kalvari. In Indian hierarchy of classifications, restricted-class documents comes after highly important files - marked as top secret and secret.

Senior Navy officers view the leaks as a matter of corporate rivalry but want to know the extent to which the submarines have been compromised.

India had signed the contract for these submarines in 2005 for around Rs 18,000 crore and the first boat was supposed to be inducted by the year 2011.

However, due to delays the time-lines slipped by another four years and the cost also went up by another Rs 5,000 crores.
As Delhi adapts to Modi's cash reforms, an incident in Delhi has led to the arrest of a sub-inspector of Kalyanpuri Police Station, Sudhir Rathi, who is accused of being wrongly in possession of somebody else's Rs 18 lakh in old currency notes.

Rathi reportedly obtained the money from three conmen who duped a textile trader to swap old notes for new.

Rathi and three other accused were produced before the Delhi court on Sunday and sent down to police custody.

An Indian man displays a new 2000 rupee note after exchanging his old 500 and 1000 rupee notes at a bank in New Delhi.

The court was told that some part of the amount has also been recovered.

Saiffudin, a 42-year-old textile trader had come to Delhi on November 7 with Rs 18 lakh to make the payment for a business deal.

However, following the announcement of demonetisation, his payment was refused by the dealer.

A relative of Saiffudin introduced him to Shailender Singh who had promised him that he could help get his notes exchanged.

Little he knew that even he would fall a victim to conmen: 'Shailender Singh told me that two of his sisters, Monu and Payal, work as bank managers and would exchange the notes.

'On November 17, he called me near Tilak Nagar with the money and introduced me to his sisters.

'They collected the money and went away asking me to wait for them at Tilak Nagar police station,' Saiffudin told police.

However, the three of them did not turn up the same day and asked Saiffudin to meet them in Connought Place on the next day.

'I was told that they had exchanged Rs 3 lakh and would exchange the rest of the amount on the next day.'

'Days passed but I was never handed over the rest of the amount. Feeling cheated, I decided to report it to the police,' he told in the FIR.

As Delhi adapts to Modi's cash reforms, an incident in Delhi has led to the arrest of a sub-inspector of Kalyanpuri Police Station, Sudhir Rathi, who is accused of being in possession of Rs 18 lakh

Police registered the case under relevant sections for cheating, criminal breach of trust and common intention on November 21.

Interestingly, according to the prosecution, the Rathi usurped Rs 18 lakh from the three conmen while they were on their way after collecting the cash from Saiffudin. Pradeep Rana, advocate for Sudhir Rathi told Mail Today.

'The prosecution told court that during the investigation, when the three accused, named in the FIR, were questioned they revealed that after collecting the old notes from Saiffudin, they were stopped by Rathi.

'He with other men asked them to get off the car for carrying out searches. Finding the money in the car, he asked the three of them to go away and threatened action against them for being found in possession with the money.

'Fearing their lives they fled the spot.'
The early days of Adolf Hitler's evil reign, when his National Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazi) consolidated its power: Above.

The interview between the aforementioned Mathew Blanchard and Tucker Carlson, who made great subtle fun of this liberal fool: Below.

I am updating this post to include this video from Louder With Crowder. Steven Crowder is an excellent spokesman for truth, and very entertaining as well. If there is a theme to this video by Crowder, it would be, 'if you're going to throw stones, don't live in a glass house': Below.

Regardless of who was your champion in this past presidential election: Will you recognize the duly elected leader of the Free World? I will never recognize President Donald J. Trump because he is not worthy. I will recognize President Donald J. Trump, providing he respects the office in which he holds. "At this point, what difference does it make?" 89 total vote(s) What's your Opinion?



Incredibly, the current accepted definition of Fascism is partially flawed, describing Fascists as "right-wing", who despise "liberalism, "Marxism and anarchism", and even cite these "right-wingers" as "Authoritarians", which is the truest connotation of Fascism; however, "right-wingers" have no lock on the worship of Authority. Regardless of Liberals' profound misunderstandings, with our historical perspective of Fascists and Fascism here in modern times, beginning in the 20 century, there is no excuse to not know the look of Fascism, especially if one uses the word in great abundance as an epithet, even while debating large Liberal issues.Within the parameters of what is American here in these Modern times on the subject of what is Fascist, what is Fascism, I am more right in my understanding of any acceptable definition written by a Liberals, and, moreover, I understand this political epithet more than the Liberals that love to throw the word around so casually, without significant forethought of its meaning.At the heart of my "right" argument is the simple premise that Fascists, at their core, are Authoritarians, or, conversely, those that crave the iron fist of Authority to which they surrender their lives unto its crushing weight. Wrongly, the accepted definition by Liberals of Fascism accuses the "Right-wing", not "liberalism, Marxism and anarchism" as the major condition of the "Authoritarianism" of Fascism - that which takes large sums from one to give to another - to keep Liberals in power.Years ago, as a multi-term Conservative (a.k.a. "right-wing") county commissioner (I have mentioned this before), my core politics were evaluated by the UNC School of Government - no bastion of the "Right-wing" - through an extensive testing, a political catechism of sorts. In my years as a Conservative county commissioner, no one ever questioned my credentials as a Conservative; I reckon I was bona fide. So, did the UNC School of Government get it wrong when they evaluated me, at my political core, and determined that I was the direct antithesis of an Authoritarian? Me, Stan Deatherage, the "Right-wing" Conservative?So, who is right: the UNC School Government, with Conservative County Commissioner Stan Deatherage as its perfect "petri dish", or the Liberals writing inaccurate definitions of Fascism, and throwing the word around that they can't etymologically fathom?Remarkably, the word Fascist, and the act of Fascism is a modern political phenomenon, just beginning in Italy about 90 years ago, with the advent of Benito Mussolini. One would think that Liberals struggling to own the word Fascist, as an epithet, would have done more in an academic sense to understand the word, then use it properly.Accordingly, I write this in light of two pieces of news last week: one large, one very small, so, let's begin with the very small. Last week a disgruntled Liberal; an Authoritarian of sorts, and a L. Hillary supporter, who runs a business regarding the nebulous Search Engine Optimization (SEO) practice, admonished all that voted for Donald Trump or may appear to have voted for Donald Trump, that he would no longer do business with them. His name is CEO Mathew Blanchard of 1st in SEO The intolerant, pathetically smug Mathew Blanchard, a purveyor of the hocus /pocus business of SEO, which was invented to fool Search Engines and those customers that would also be fooled by the SEO gimmick, was the perfect foil to adamantly work the divisive message of the Left. However, I do not admonish Mr. Blanchard for his gimmicky business, I admonish him for freely throwing the word Fascist and Fascism around, and even misrepresenting the history of it. SEO Purveyor Blanchard claimed that, which is wrong. Hitler was not rightfully elected in 1932, and it gets complicated how he consolidated power in 1933, so let's understand that for what it is - Blanchard's meaningless Leftist blather to make a Leftist point, as if he actually knew what he was talking about, which he did not.Instead, Mr. Blanchard misused his time on national television to further meltdown within his "Basket of Deplorables" moment, and a perceptively quick Tucker Carlson destroyed this SEO Fool for his hypocrisy in the intolerance of others extensively unlike himself, of which, hopefully, there are many.This SEO Fool, Mathew Blanchard, was not created in a vacuum. He enjoys a vast support group that reaffirms his oblivious stupidity, his overt prejudice, and intolerance, revealing there must be a concerted effort by committed Liberals to keep their "Sheople" intellectually malleable for their needs. Marxist pioneer Vladimir Lenin referred to this management of these low-information types as "useful idiots".Useful Idiot Mathew Blanchard well manifests how a bold Leftist spokesman does step to the fore to venomously speak for the other less bold liberal "Sheople", who either don't know what they speak of, or, are indoctrinated to ignorance through far too many years of "higher" education by stridently ideological professors; most also educated far beyond their ability of significant comprehension.As I pivot from the Why and the How of such ignorance, I bring to the fore the second much larger piece of news - the much anticipated death last week of Cuba's Dictator Fidel Castro, a strongman, who many "Marxists" and "Anarchists" well admire.Why was a "Marxist" Communist dictator: who ruled as a supreme "Authoritarian", who murdered and imprisoned tens of thousands of his political opponents and even like minded rivals, so revered by Liberals?Continuing that line of thought, how is it that Conservatives, decried as "right-wing" American Fascists, construed as so dysfunctional that Liberal zealots, like the aforementioned Blanchard , would discriminate so vehemently against Republicans or Conservatives, who would support someone other than L. Hillary Clinton ; a deeply flawed American politician?The answer: The Democrat party is now the party that has been hijacked by ultra Liberals and Socialists, and, taking a page out of the political playbook of the ultra Liberals /closet Communists of the 1930s /40s /50's, who revered the political machinations of Joseph Stalin and Mao Tse-tung, are now pushing America hard and fast toward the stance of a full Socialist government. To accomplish that feat of crushing Capitalism for the benefit of the forced sharing other people's property, "Authoritarianism" will need to play a major role. For Socialists like Hussein Obama, the Alinsky method , ofis always a viable option.In the real world that is at the core of Capitalism, one cannot forcibly take the property of others without first limiting certain liberties, thereby, plowing the path to take that which is owned by the productive to redistribute to the supporters of authoritative Socialism. That is the way it works, even to the extent that the seizing of taxes, by legislative fiat in today's Capitalistic America, is termed Police Power. Thankfully, democratic Capitalist will call it for what it is.You will not get that thread of honesty from Liberal /Socialist zealots, who toss around their unknowable word of Fascist like so much confetti. What you will get from this brand of Liberal is stupid talk, while attempting to sound smart , about a historical perspective that is far beyond their level of comprehension, as it also is unknowable to other like minded individuals that are no smarter.Ironically, this bubble knowledge, which is spread quickly through Social Media or Collegiate indoctrination by some members of the Education Industry, retards many young adults from understanding the real history of this real World. These nubile Liberals are not fathoming that words have power, and they should know the meaning of what they say long before they proffer it. Otherwise, they need to stay quiet, or thought a fool, like social gadfly Miley Cyrus or the aforementioned Mathew Blanchard.If I am wrong here, which I am not, please show me how Conservative "right-winger" Ronald Reagan was an Authoritative Fascist, and, alternately, Authoritative Marxists Joseph Stalin and Mao Mao Tse-tung were not. This philosophical construct fits within the definition of Fascists, and regardless of how Liberals spin words about a subject that they have little knowledge of - Fascism - there is an ongoing truth that Libertarian /Conservatives in today's America adhere to a political philosophy of smaller, more effective government, more freedom, more liberty, thereby, less "Authoritarianism", and, therefore, no Fascism.We'll leave the world of Fascism to the hypocritical Socialist Left to grapple with.
'Surgical Strike' has become the popular phrase as a the metaphor for Indian politics.

The work 'surgical' comes from the noun 'surgeon'. In England, there is an old standing distinction between those who are called 'doctors,' (Dr.) and 'surgeons' who are called 'Mr.'

Surgeons were originally known as barbers or butchers. Those who had the tools to invade the body were 'surgeons'.

People in the queue outside Bank OF Dena at G.B.Road to exchange their old Rs 500 and 1000 notes in New Delhi

So, 'surgical strike' meant the precise manner with which incisions are made to the body. I guess this is equally true of butchers separating parts of the body.

The 'surgical' strike directed against Pakistan was because jawans acted with precision.

The Demon(etisation)  or 'demon strike' has no precision and is directed against the Indian people.

Both strikes are a part of BJP's chest thumping that they are braver and courageous than their predecessors.

Chest thumping may be good for political exaggeration but is bad as value politics in the public interest.

Demonetisation was used by the British in 1946 (withdrawing Rs 1,000 and 10,000 notes). Morarji's government demonetised Rs 1,000, Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000 notes in 1978.

These values were to be found amongst the hugely rich beyond the capacity of the normal rich.

The 'demon' policy of 2016 is different. The demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes constitute Rs 18 trillion (85%) of the money in circulation.

The rest of the currency below Rs 500 was 2.7 trillion (15%). This means that the policy affected 85% of the money economy.

Politics apart, the capacity to print and circulate the 85% of notes is limited. It will take months for the new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes to be produced.

The purported purpose of the 'demon' policy is: a parallel economy, counterfeit currency and terror funds.

The Demon(etisation)  or 'demon strike' has no precision and is directed against the Indian people

This is a confession of failure.

Has our surveillance system failed in these areas? We are supposed to have a system to detect fake notes.

The anti-terrorism law mandates confiscation of an organisation found to be unlawful.

Find the source confiscate the notes. The parallel economy will always exist. Village after village may continue to use Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, as long as they agree to accept this as a currency amongst themselves.

The parallel economy below the 'sophisticated' will continue.

Necessity and acceptance creates a parallel economy. The insufficient bank credit system, the money lender, will not make a shade of difference.

Let us not mix-up these problems of demonetisation of the economy and creating an electronic economy.

Indifference

The argument that 80% of the adult economy has access to phones is as stupid as it comes. The question is not who has phones or even smart phones, but how many know how to use them to enter the electronic economy?

How many have the collateral to get a proper plastic debit-credit card?

Are we waiting for the entire economy to go plastic or electronic? That may take several years.

PM Manmohan Singh invoking the famous Keynesian aphorism repeated: 'In the long run we will be dead'.

Demonetisation is anti-poor. Go back in time. A few decades earlier the Rs 10 note was the maximum hope of the poor. Today that sum is Rs 500 or more.

Who was in a hurry to change Rs 500 or even Rs 1,000 notes? The poor and lower-middle class.

The latter had banking options of up to Rs 2.5 lakhs with a Pan Card and a bank account. The well off had their means and methods. The long queues. The lack of money in ATM's until they were 'calibrated'.

Alas it was the people who were getting calibrated to wonder how they will pay for their next meal.

The filthy rich are cleverer than the government who they control. What we saw and heard was agony.

To this agony, the response was indifference that it will all work out. Over and above this, Manmohan Singh's reasonable prediction for the next few months is certainly 2% reduction of the GDP.

Secrecy

The plea of secrecy is asinine. Before budgets, details are obviously not made known.

The rhetoric defending 'secrecy' is banal. Transparent democracy has some demands.

Firstly, a White Paper showing all discussions, notes, files, decisions, mistakes, responses and modes of efficiency must now be revealed.

This will be a true 'surgical strike' into the demon(etisation) policy.

Modi and his big chest: Chest thumping may be good for political exaggeration but is bad as value politics in the public interest

Mayawati wanting a general election is misconceived. We need all the information about this before we move further.

Secondly, democratic accountability through parliament is ill-served by hulla gulla tamasha.

There is a need for a proper debate and adjournment motion so that the government's head is on the line. Thirdly, an informational complete disclosure white paper should attach to that debate.

Our PM should take these discussions in Parliament seriously. His job is not just to be present to answer questions directed to him.

And fifth, apologise to those stood in queues, borrowed for sustenance, suffered loss of jobs and self respect for a hare-brained scheme inimical to the disadvantaged.

True democracy demands that not any, nor all will ever be fooled in this way.
Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo comes out after being produced at Patiala House Court in New Delhi

A detour to a Delhi gurudwara (place of worship) cost Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo his freedom as police arrested the 49-year-old near the Nizamuddin railway station on Monday while he was hailing an auto-rickshaw.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief fled from a high-security prison in Punjab at the weekend when 10 armed men disguised as policemen attacked the jail, freeing five other inmates.

But Mintoo was caught within 24 hours by Delhi Police's special unit in the Capital from where he had planned to reach Goa via Mumbai and then fly off to Thailand or Germany where he could find support from members of the Khalistan movement's international wing.

Mintoo had found time to trim his beard and moustache in an effort to dodge the cops.

Mintoo, who has a dozen cases against him, was arrested by state authorities two years ago at an airport when he returned from Thailand.

According to security officials, investigations reveal he was in touch with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and a banned terrorist group in that country.

His communications were intercepted earlier this month where he was discussing the transfer of funds.

However, cops have not been able to establish any direct involvement of ISI or a terror outfit in the jailbreak and say only local gangsters were involved.

After the jailbreak, Punjab Police alerted their counterparts in neighbouring states, suspecting he was moving towards Delhi.

Following intensive checking and tracking, Mintoo was arrested.

Sources say since he had about five hours in Delhi before his train to Panvel was to leave, he decided to visit a gurudwara.

A court remanded him in police custody for seven days.

Cops said that the role of the ISI and other extremist groups has to be probed as he has also visited Pakistan.

According to Delhi police Special cell, Mintoo was trying to escape to the Panvel suburb in Mumbai from the Nizamuddin railway station where he was arrested early on Monday.

He had plans to go to Goa, where he had stayed from 1989 to 2007.

Officials say that Mintoo, who carried a bounty of Rs 25 lakh, revealed during the investigation that the jailbreak was planned during a langar inside the prison and Gurpreet Singh Shekhon, a notorious Punjab gangster, was the alleged mastermind.

Shekon has circulated the information about the timing and escape route and Mintoo was part of the conspiracy.

Interrogation has also indicated that there was likely some carelessness in the security arrangements at Nabha jail.

Hardened criminals were put together in cells and were allowed to interact freely within the prison premises.

The inmates also had easy access to mobile phones and SIM cards.

Visitors' meetings were used for gang dealings and planning. After the jailbreak, Mintoo was accompanied by Shekhon and two more gangsters Kashmira Singh and Amandeep Singh, alias Dhotian, in an SUV. They travelled to Haryana's Kaithal district where Shekhon dropped off Mintoo and Kashmira, 24 kilometers from Kaithal.

Shekhon had arranged Rs 19,000 through his brother, identified as Mani, which he handed over to them. 'The two kept hiding for a long time in sugarcane fields after which Singh went into a nearby village and brought a pair of scissors to change their look.

Mintoo trimmed his beard and moustache to escape coming into police net,' said Arvind Deep, special commissioner of police (CP), special cell.

The duo then boarded a jeep to reach Kurukshetra. There they got on a Haryana Roadways bus to reach Panipat and then took a bus for Delhi. They parted ways in the Capital, planning to meet in Goa.

Nabha: Security personnel and media outside Nabha Central Jail, which was stormed by armed men who helped in escaping six terrorists including Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Mintoo

Cops are still carrying out raids to catch Singh, the officer said. Cops said Mintoo called up a relative in Delhi's Subhash Nagar, which also helped the security agency track him.

Punjab Police shared detailed descriptions of four vehicles used in the jailbreak. Following the alert, Delhi Police deployed 100 cops for an overnight manhunt as special cell teams were sent to hotels, railway stations and bus stands.

Policemen spotted a Sikh man near the station parking, but his face did not match the photograph.

'As soon as cops approached him, Mintoo took out a pistol but was overpowered. We have recovered a train ticket to Panvel and a pistol with six live cartridges,' Deep said.
The Home Ministry has accorded sanction to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file a charge sheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot terror strike carried out on January 2.

After receiving sanction under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the NIA will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, and handlers of four terrorists - Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif - in the charge sheet to be filed soon, official sources said.

The four terrorists, after entering into India from Bamiyal area of Gurudaspur, carried out the terror strike inside the strategic Pathankot Indian Air Force base killing eight people, including seven personnel of IAF and National Security Guard.

The Home Ministry has accorded sanction to the NIA to file a charge sheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot terror strike

The fresh charge sheet will help India to apply pressure to the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group under the United Nations anti-terror laws.

The previous attempts were spurned after China exercised its veto power.

The charge sheet will name only four terrorists involved in the attack as against six claimed by the NSG.

According to the NIA, the terrorists, who were killed after two days of gunfight were identified as Nasir Hussain, Hafiz Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum and they were residents of Vehari (Punjab), Gujranwala (Punjab), Sanghar (Sindh) and Sukkur (Sindh) districts of Pakistan respectively.

The fresh charge sheet will help India to apply pressure to the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group (pictured - Paramilitary soldiers)

The NIA investigation also included looking into the phone numbers and a conversation that one of the terrorists had minutes before launching the attack, besides a video message of Rauf released on Jaish-affiliated website minutes after the strike.

In the video message, which was subsequently removed from the website, Rauf had claimed responsibility for the Pathankot attack.

The charge sheet will also include evidence of linking the footprints of one of the terrorists obtained from Bamiyal besides matching of DNA sample found from a soft drink can in the hijacked car of Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.

The Pathankot terror strike had seen a joint investigation team from Pakistan also arriving in India to carry out a thorough probe.

However, upon their return, the Pakistani team claimed that India neither shared much of evidence nor allowed it to interrogate the personnel involved in repulsing the attack.
After Mail Today first reported the canteens in the BJP's own backyard at its national headquarters were only accepting cash, the party seems to have woken up.

After the initial Mail Today survey on November 23, another visit to the national headquarters revealed that the canteen has finally shifted to accepting online payments and e-wallets.

Talking to canteen patrons, Mail Today found that people welcomed the change as it gave them freedom from spending cash which was still not freely available at ATMs and banks though they also claimed that the situation had improved drastically in the past few days.

The BJP's canteen has finally shifted to accepting online payments and e-wallets

'It is good to see that the canteen has finally started using money through such ways as Paytm which is very convenient, more so, in these times of cash crunch.

'Also, it should have been a matter of principle for the party to have started cashless ways of payment in their own backyard since they announced the move.

PYTM started for Payment at Annapurna Cafeteria in BJP Headquarters in New Delhi

'They should have been the first, but its good they have finally crossed the Rubicon,' said Naresh Gupta from Kanpur in UP, who keeps thronging the party office for meeting leaders.

Meanwhile, party leaders too welcomed the move.

'In line with the PM's call, we are doing everything to move to a less cash-dominated society and eventually to a cashless society and economy.

People welcomed the change as it gave them freedom from spending cash which was still not freely available at ATMs and banks

'And it begins at our home. Our canteen now accepts money through e-wallets. We are committed to strengthen the PM in his fight against black money and corruption and tax evasion,' said Amit Malviya, BJP's national head of IT and digital communication.

Last week a Mail Today team visited several eateries, starting BJP's national headquarters to the Parliament canteen and those that serve key ministries located in Shastri Bhawan and Rail Bhawan, that houses the railway ministry.
In the confusion and clamour over demonetisation, two things have become reasonably clear.

It is time for all right thinking citizens to stand up in support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bold and brave move.

But it is also equally true that the government must step up its efforts to minimise the ensuing hardships of the Indian people.

Members of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), student wing of India's main opposition Congress party, try to cross barricades during a protest against the government's decision to withdraw high denomination notes from circulation

Painless

That this daring feat, isn't entirely painless is evidenced by the long lines at banks and ATMs.

Many of the latter run dry early, leaving cashless commoners stranded and irate. Private banks, baring a couple, have ceased even to pretend to serve the public.

Simply closing down ATMs and turning away customers from branches, they have exposed that profit making is their raison d'etre.

It is the public sector banks and post offices that have helped the people, proving that they cannot be written off so easily.

It is time for all right thinking citizens to stand up in support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bold and brave move

Where state and institutional mechanisms may have failed, the common people have succeeded in helping each other.

Such remarkable trust and generosity show the traditional resilience of Indian society. That the Reserve Bank of India during this tumultuous operation did not measure up is obvious. First of all, it should have introduced Rs 500 rather than Rs 2,000 notes.

That would have eased the difficulty over change in most ordinary transactions. Second, it should have ensured an adequate supply of new notes so that the cash crunch could have been avoided.

Third, it should have prevented inexcusable printing mistakes in the Rs 500 notes.

Finally, it might have used this opportunity to introduce plastic notes, which are practically impossible to counterfeit and far more durable.

We must not, however, be unduly harsh on our Central Bank knowing how big the challenge that it faced was. There are one or two other criticisms of demonetisation.

For example, hoarders, traders, and racketeers in new currency are having a field day.

Testing times: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives for BJP parliamentary party meeting in New Delhi and prepares for some tough questions from the Opposition

Like any other shortage, unscrupulous elements have taken advantage of the present cash crisis in India too.

All kinds of businesses, small and big, with large cash receipts may nip, tweak, and cook their cash-in-hand books to launder money.

Tax-free territories, such as in the Northeast, may also receive large sums of old notes, including those gathered through terrorism, drug-trafficking, extortion, and insurgency.

Worse, black money may return into circulation. How? Not only because old black money will be exchanged for new, but also because the underlying system hasn't changed completely.

Advantages

Yet, in the long run, these and other drawbacks of demonetisation will be more than adequately offset by its innumerable advantages.

First of all, it deals a death-blow to counterfeiting. This alone reduces the reach and strike capacity of terrorist groups operating with enemy support.

Second, a lot of the money used for terrorism, drug-trafficking, and other criminal goings-on has evaporated.

Similarly, many insurgent groups find themselves starved of funds.

Black marketeers, hoarders, and similar offenders, ill-gotten gains rendered useless, are sitting on rubbish heaps.

Anti-social elements, funded in cash by political parities are similarly jobless.

This brings us to the heart of the present controversy, fuelled by disgruntled political parties. It is as if the government, in one fell swoop, has confiscated all their undeclared wealth.

Moreover, the extinguished currency reduces RBI's liability and results in proportionate swelling of the government's coffers.

It is this sudden coup that has galled them so much. Let us not forget that the UPA was no less vindictive to the incumbent regime, leaving it an empty treasury and ballooning commitments to social spending that would have bankrupted us.

Now, these same parties find themselves outsmarted and cashless.

Deprived of their dough, no wonder they are furious and incensed. They want to extract their revenge in the only currency that ultimately matters in a democracy: votes.

They want Modi himself and the NDA to lose at the hustings.

Offensive

But the government has nothing to fear. It must not back down. Rather, it must to go on the offensive, calling into question the Opposition's bad faith and worse politics.

Karl Marx would stand corrected in India for it is not economics, but politics that seems to be at the base, bottom, of everything here.

It is not as if every demonetisation detractor is a crook or a rogue, but the motives of most are questionable, if not dubious.

Therefore let us shout out, once again, the gains of monetisation. These include cessation of counterfeiting, clamping down on terrorism, restraining of illegal activities, disruption and rollback of black money, push towards cashless and more accountable economy, remonetisation of banks, reduction of RBI's liability in the elimination of unreturned cash, more revenue and resources for development, and most importantly, an overall decrease in dishonesty in society and much, much more.

People stand to withdraw currency outside a Punjab National Bank ATM in New Delhi

No wonder one commentator called this the biggest event in global economics, while another the start of 'permanent revolution'.

I would, instead, characterise our throes of transformation as a neo-liberal version of Jayaprakash Narayan's 'total revolution' or Deen Dayal Upadhyaya's 'integral humanism'.

What we are undergoing is not Marx's dangerous, messianic, even apocalyptic, conception of 'permanent revolution' or what Marx himself called Napoleon's (mis)adventurism of 'total war'.

Demonetisation should instead be seen as one giant and daring step towards making India a great and prosperous country.
A 28-year-old Sanskrit professor was brutally killed by his younger brother in north Delhis Burari area after a heated argument over a visiting girlfriend, police have confirmed.

Hitesh Verma was allegedly bludgeoned to death by his younger brother, Himanshu, 23, on the night of November 28 at their rented accommodation.

Hitesh used to work as a Sanskrit professor at PDDAV college while the accused is pursuing post-graduation in the subject from Shivaji College. Police had received a call about a body lying in a drain around 3am.

The victim worked as a Sanskrit professor at PDDAV college while the accused is pursuing post-graduation in the subject from Shivaji College

On interrogation, it was found he had been murdered and the deceased was identified after which the police team spoke to his brother, who cooked up a story.

He told police that two men had barged inside their house and murdered his brother, said the officer.

However, there were loopholes in the story. Police said there was just one entrance of the house on the ground floor, where the landlord lived.

However, the landlord told the police that nobody had entered the house. The door of the room, where the brothers lived, was locked and there were no signs of a forced entry, he said.

When police questioned Himanshu about why he didnt do anything to save his brother or why he wasnt harmed by the two attackers, he broke down and confessed his crime, said the officer.

Sanskrit is the primary sacred language of Hinduism and Mahayana Buddhism, a philosophical language in Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism

He also disclosed he had hidden the murder weapon under his bed, which was recovered by them.

Himanshu told police his brother was a control freak and always forced him to do things that he didnt want to.

Himanshu said Hitesh used to get his friends over and often asked him to go out.

Hitesh was in a relationship with a girl and when he asked his girlfriend to visit, he would ask his brother to step out.

Sanskrit Pathshalas where children learn the ancient scriptures or sacred texts of Hinduism

Of late, he would often ask his younger brother to go out, he said. Yesterday, Hitesh asked Himanshu to leave since he was expecting his girlfriend but they allegedly got into a fight as Himanshu refused to go out as it was cold.

The younger brother lost his temper and killed his brother with a dumbbell, said the officer.

The brothers parents stay in Jhansi. The brothers used to visit their parents every two months.
The American owner of Cadbury has been accused of backtracking on another promise after pulling out of ethical Fairtrade rules and replacing them with its own scheme.

Mondelez claims its new 322million 'Cocoa Life' programme will secure the future of 200,000 farmers and will ensure all of its chocolate is sourced sustainably.

But fellow chocolatiers fear replacing Fairtrade will encourage other global brands to follow suit and could undermine the future of the foundation, which has become a symbol for ethical sourcing and ensuring farmers get a good deal.

Cadburty owner Mondelez claims its new 322million 'Cocoa Life' programme will secure the future of 200,000 farmers and will ensure all of its chocolate is sourced sustainably

David Marshall, chief executive of the Fairtrade-certified Meaningful Chocolate Company, said: 'We are shocked by this move.

'The Fairtrade movement grew out of pressure by churches, church schools and other consumers, who wanted to see justice for growers and accountability for manufacturers.

'The big firms resisted this pressure for decades, but have gradually started to come over. This action will confuse the consumer and many now believe that this puts the Fairtrade scheme at risk.'

Dairy Milk and other chocolate bars will soon carry Cadbury's own Cocoa Life logo, which will signify sustainable sourcing and a programme to help farmers.

But alongside its own mark, it will continue to hold the Fairtrade name on the back of its packets  even though the chocolate will not be.

Fairtrade guarantees farmers earn at least 1,600 per ton for cocoa and ensures decent working conditions.

The Cocoa Life programme has not set a minimum price, but Cadbury has offered assurances that farmers will be paid the same or more than they were before.

Its commitment in 2009 to using Fairtrade chocolate in its flagship brand was seen as a nod to the ideals of Cadbury's Quaker roots.

It prompted many of its rivals to follow suit and was hailed as the start of a movement towards more ethical sourcing.

But whether the switch to Cocoa Life ensures a better future for farmers or not, the criticism weighed at Cadbury comes after a string of unpopular moves.

The decision on Fairtrade is the latest backtrack from Cadbury since it was bought by US giant Kraft in 2010 for 11.5billion.

The firm promised that Cadbury's factory near Bristol would stay open and jobs would be saved. Just days after completing the deal, new boss Irene Rosenfeld provoked fury by announcing production would move to Poland, with the loss of 400 jobs.

Later, it put a stop to chocolate Christmas gifts for retired employees  a tradition which also harked back to Quaker roots.

It also infuriated British chocolate-lovers by shrinking some Cadbury products, including Dairy Milk bars and multi-packs of Curly Wurlys and Creme Eggs  but not cutting prices.

In a further insult, it was revealed Mondelez, which was spun off from Kraft in 2012, paid no UK corporation tax last year despite generating more than 1.7billion in sales.
The sale of a major steel business has raised fresh fears about the pensions of workers at three UK plants.

Tata Steel is in the closing stages of selling its speciality steelworks business to international industrials group Liberty House for 100million.

The future of the business and its 1,700 workers has been in doubt since March when Tata Steel put up all its UK operations for review.

But while unions welcomed the 'certainty' of the Liberty deal they warned workers could lose out on pension contributions.

Pensions threat: Tata Steel is in the closing stages of selling its speciality steelworks business to international industrials group Liberty House for 100m

It is feared workers could be moved out of the British Steel Pension Scheme and into a new one with lower payouts.

Harish Patel, Unite national officer for metals, said: 'There could also be an impact because the scheme includes options for people affected by any job losses.

'We will be trying to see if there is a way it can be part of the sale process. As a matter of urgency, we must see security for the pension scheme to which men and women have dutifully contributed all their working lives.'

Liberty, which also took over Tata steelworks in Scotland, said it was too soon to say what its plans were on pensions.

However, they are not part of the employment conditions automatically carried over into the new deal.

A spokesman added: 'Obviously there will be discussions and we hope for a positive outcome around that, but we cannot say more than that at the moment.'

The British Steel scheme has a 700million black hole and has been at the heart of negotiations between Tata and the Government. The firm is keen to strike a deal to get the scheme off its hands, threatening future payouts for members.

German steel group Thyssenkrupp is in talks with Tata to take on its UK business, but also wants it to fund a solution to the pension scheme black hole.

Indian-owned Tata said it had signed a letter of intent with Liberty House Group to start exclusive negotiations for the sale of speciality steels, which makes steel for the car, oil and gas, and aerospace industries.

The sale covers Rotherham electric arc steelworks, the steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge, a mill in Brinsworth and service centres in Bolton, Wednesbury and China.

Bimlendra Jha, chief executive of Tata Steel UK, said it was trying to solve its problems, which included developing 'a more sustainable business in the UK as well as a self-sustaining future for the British Steel Pension Scheme'.
Business as usual: The Brexit vote does not appear to have changed banks' hiring policies

LEARNING CURVE Banks have continued hiring graduates at the same pace as last year, experts say  despite the apocalyptic warnings before the Brexit vote.

Deutsche Bank took on twice as many graduates for its technology team as last year, Citi has filled almost all of its 450 London vacancies and JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs have recruited as normal.

WEALTH SALE Barclays has sold its Singapore and Hong Kong wealth business to the Overseas-Chinese Banking Corp for 181million  a third less than expected.

It came as the bank unveiled an overhaul of its online investment platform and pledged to introduce fees with no hidden charges.

ONLINE LENDING New bank Masthaven, the online-only lender, opened for business today. Masthaven offers savings rates of up to 2.01 per cent. It provides second mortgages and bridging and development loans.

JOBS AXED Standard Chartered is axing 10 per cent of its investment banking staff in a drive to slash costs.

The cuts are part of 15,000 announced last year by chief executive Bill Winters. Shares fell 0.7 per cent, or 4.5p to 630p.

FRONTIER OPENING A Mongolian property developer is set to list on the London Stock Exchange.

Asia Pacific Investment Partners will join the AIM junior market next month. Chief executive Lee Cashell said there were strong growth opportunities in the countrys economy.

POSTAL STRIKE Hundreds of Post Office managers are to stage a strike in a dispute over pensions.

Unite said the 24-hour walkout on December 3 will disrupt overseas Christmas mail and parcels.

Around 720 managers will take action, the third 24-hour strike in a long-running pensions dispute.

HOLIDAY CRASH Hundreds of holidaymakers could be left disappointed after long-haul holiday specialist Skies The Limit ceased trading. The Maidenhead-based group, better known as STL Holidays, is understood to have a number of customers already overseas.

INVESTOR FEARS Worried investors pulled almost 1billion out of equity funds in October as uncertainty around the US election mounted.

Figures from trade body The Investment Association revealed that nervous savers poured 480million into cash funds and 426million into Targeted Absolute Return funds, which aim to always deliver a positive return.

ITALY WOE Eight Italian banks face collapse if the nations government loses a crunch referendum this weekend, analysts have warned.
Market Harborough Building Society is offering borrowers the chance to buy a home with no deposit at all - if their parents agree to put their own home up as security.

The new 'family assistance mortgage' allows first-time buyers or those purchasing a new home to borrow 100 per cent of the value of the property on the condition that the borrower's parents allow a second mortgage to be taken out on their home or any other property they might own.

Over both properties, the loan-to-value can't exceed 75 per cent, meaning it will only be available for borrowers whose parents have a lot of equity in their home.

The Bank of Mum and Dad has become part and parcel of many first-time buyers' hopes of becoming a homeowner

The deal is currently priced at 3.99 per cent, a 1.5 per cent discount to the lender's standard variable rate, and is variable for the full term of the loan. It comes with a 0.5 per cent arrangement fee, with a minimum of 1,250 payable, and early repayment charges of 3 per cent only apply in the first three years.

Monthly repayments on a 150,000 mortgage, borrowed over 25 years would be 790.93 but it's worth remembering the addition of the fee bumps up the overall cost.

A spokeswoman from Market Harborough said the lender hoped the deal would help parents who wanted to support their children onto the housing ladder without the need to have large amounts of cash for the deposit.

David Hollingworth, of broker firm London & Country, said: 'The Bank of Mum and Dad has become part and parcel of many first-time buyers' hopes of becoming a homeowner.

'But this is not a return to the 100 per cent lending of the pre-credit crunch era as there is additional security for the lender, which also helps offer a more attractive rate for the child.

'However, that makes it hugely important for the parent and child alike to understand the possible consequences if things dont go according to plan. That could even mean the loss of the parental property in an extreme case.'

The Market Harborough deal is the latest in a range of mortgages designed to release cash from the so-called Bank of Mum and Dad to help children get a foot on the property ladder.

Barclays offers a version called the family springboard mortgage, which allows borrowers to take a 100 per cent LTV loan if family or loved ones can provide 10 per cent of the propertys price - in cash held with the bank - as security.

Its rate is fixed at 2.99 per cent for three years, is fee-free and your family gets their savings back after three years with interest as long as you keep up the repayments, which for the same mortgage as above work out at 710.54 a month.

100 per cent mortgages are coming back

In the immediate aftermath of the credit crunch, lenders refused to offer high LTV mortgages after thousands of borrowers fell into negative equity and were left owing the bank more than the value of their home.

But in the past couple of years, some smaller lenders have tentatively come back to market with a growing number of 100 per cent mortgages now available.

Family Building Society, Bath Building Society, Tipton & Coseley Building Society, Vernon Building Society, Kent Reliance and Aldermore also offer versions that allow parents to use savings or their home to guarantee their children's mortgage.

Rob Killeen, of mortgage advisers Capital Fortune, said: 'Regional building societies take the lead on innovation supporting first-time buyers and Market Harborough's is the latest addition to a range of inter-generational mortgage products.

'The use of parental equity as opposed to using parental investments or savings is a welcome approach in a market increasingly requiring help from mum and dad.'

Hollingworth added: 'Even though there are more options for those with as little as 5 per cent to put down, this type of deal still has a place and could be particularly useful where the parent is keen to help but may not be able to stump up a lump sum to gift to their child or children.'

Market Harborough's family assistance mortgage is only available through mortgage brokers.

MARKET HARBOROUGH FAMILY ASSISTANCE MORTGAGE Minimum loan - 200,000 Maximum loan - 750,000 Early repayment charge - 3 per cent for three years Arrangement fee - 0.5 per cent, minimum 1,250 Repayment only Maximum LTV across all securities is 75 per cent, including all first and second charge loans already in place on the parental property Applicants must be able to afford the whole loan in their own right Parents must take independent legal advice Automatic consent-to-let two rooms
HELENA  An attorney for a Montana newspaper and an advocacy group will try to persuade a federal judge to strike down a 14-year-old court order that made settlement talks on how to clean up the nation's largest Superfund site confidential.

The Montana Standard petitioned to intervene in the ongoing case between the U.S. Department of Justice and Atlantic Richfield Co. after the newspaper was denied a public record request for information about settlement negotiations related to mining pollution in Butte.

The newspaper, along with the Silver Bow Creek Headwaters Coalition, says the discussions on how the cleanup is conducted and whether it will ensure full restoration of areas damaged by mining is in the public's interest.

That information should be public under Montana's freedom of information laws, but the 2002 confidentiality order prevents its release, attorney James Goetz wrote in a document filed in U.S. District Court before the hearing set for Tuesday.

"There are few matters more important to the people of Butte and Silver Bow County than the environmental cleanup of the Silver Bow Creek/Butte area Superfund site," Goetz wrote.

Arco and the U.S. Department of Justice oppose intervention in the case by the newspaper and advocacy group. Arco attorney Kyle Gray said the Montana Standard has known for years that the sides have been negotiating privately to settle the complex Superfund lawsuit but decided only now that it's in the public interest for the newspaper to report on negotiations and related documents.

Gray and Justice Department attorney James Freeman said opening the negotiations to public scrutiny could halt them altogether.

"Press intervention ... would bring those negotiations to a swift end without settlement," Gray wrote.

U.S. District Judge Sam Haddon will hear arguments from all the parties.

The Justice Department sued Arco in 1989 over the cost of cleaning up the mining pollution left in southwestern Montana by Anaconda Copper Mining Corp. The company mined copper for decades from what was dubbed "the richest hill on Earth" in Butte. It dumped tailings into Silver Bow Creek and smelted the ore in Anaconda.

Arco bought Anaconda in 1977.

Three Superfund sites were created to regulate the cleanup of the mining pollution, including in the Butte and Silver Bow Creek area, which is the largest Superfund site in the nation. The Anaconda smelter site and the Milltown Reservoir downstream along the Clark Fork River are the other Superfund sites.

Haddon signed the 2002 order in the case that kept the settlement negotiations confidential. The order extends to other state and local government agencies involved in the talks.
EXCLUSIVE: Father said boy is still shaken after attack in South Tottenham

The father of the boy said he avoids going outside after the attack. Stock photo

The father of an eight-year-old boy who was beaten up on his way home and called a stupid Jew has said his son avoids going outside after the attack.

When the child does leave the house, he looks over his shoulder due to his continued trauma following the assault near Stamford Hill, north London.

It was among 32 anti-Semitic attacks on Orthodox Charedi Jews in the area over one month that London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said he will urgently investigate.

Others, recorded by Jewish community group Stamford Hill Shomrim, included a boy, 11, who was threatened with violence if he did not remove his skullcap.

The father of the eight-year-old told MailOnline: He was very upset and shaken by the experience.

He keeps looking over his shoulder whenever hes out and about, he regularly tries to avoid going outside, and he feels insecure.

The boy was walking home in South Tottenham at 7.15pm on September 11 when a man grabbed him, lifted his jumper and scratched his back.

It was among 32 anti-Semitic attacks on Orthodox Charedi Jews in the area over one month that London Mayor Sadiq Khan has said he will urgently investigate

Afterwards, the child ran home crying. The father, who did not wish to be named, welcomed the Mayor's promise of action.

He said: History has shown us that if antisemitism is not challenged and dealt with robustly, it just gets worse and worse.

Shomrim believes the 32 incidents are just the tip of the iceberg, as hate crimes are under-reported.

Responding to a question from London Assembly Member Andrew Dismore about the groups report, Mr Khan said: That number of reports in a single month is of concern.

OTHER SICKENING ATTACKS RECORDED BY STAMFORD HILL SHOMRIM A 55-year-old Jewish woman was asked, while praying, if she covered her hair on her head because Hitler had shaved it off  the thug then made a Nazi salute. Three terrified Jewish women were chased by yobs shouting The Jewish people are rich, horrible Jewish people, give us your money. Advertisement

Both I and the police agree that hate crime is under-reported and this is particularly true with regard to hate crime affecting Londons Orthodox Jewish communities.

Stamford Hill Shomrim said their study recorded an average of eight anti-Semitic incidents a week, including assaults and threats to kill.

Men were more likely to be targeted than women, possibly because their clothing is more visibly identifiable as Jewish.

President Rabbi Herschel Gluck OBE, said: I welcome the response from the Mayor of London.

I look forward to Shomrim working closely with the Mayor and the Metropolitan Police in challenging and reducing anti-Semitic incidents targeted at the Charedi Jewish Community.

A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman told MailOnline: 'We are investigating and have not made any arrests.' Anyone with information can phone 101.

Jailed: Thug who shouted 'I'm going to kill all the Jews' at shop assistant

Stuart Birnie, 36, was jailed for six months for threatening to kill all the Jews during a tirade of abuse targeted at a shop assistant.

Birnie shouted go f**** yourself, Im going to kill all the Jews and Jews produce too many kids during the attack on Stamford Hill High Street at around 9.30am on December 17.

But local Shomrim members who witnessed the attack helped the victim, following Birnie back to his house where police arrested him.

Stuart Birnie, 36, was jailed for six months for threatening to kill all the Jews during a tirade of abuse targeted at a shop assistant

The victim, who is in his twenties and spoke on condition of anonymity, told MailOnline: I was going into a meat shop near Stoke Newington railway station when he approached me.

When I was walking into the shop I heard him say, Ill f****** kill all Jewish people.

I was too much in shock to do anything, and he abused me another three times as he walked away.

Shomrim members who were standing across the road saw what had happened and called the police.

The victim added: They took me in the car and followed the person for about 15 minutes until we got to his house  which is just around the corner from mine.

He didnt realise at first that we were following him, but then he looked in the back of our car and saw me there.

Then he came up to the door and banged on the windows asking why the Jews were producing so many kids and threatening to kill us.

At Wood Green Crown Court, Birnie was found guilty of racially and religiously aggravated harassment and sentenced him to six months in prison

Birnie went into his house in Hackney and the police arrived around ten minutes later and arrested him.

At Wood Green Crown Court, Birnie was found guilty of racially and religiously aggravated harassment and sentenced him to six months in prison.

The victim did not look at Birnie at any point during the trial, saying that he did not want to see his face.

He was bending down all the time. I wasnt going to look at him. The attack hurt me, it killed my life. Walking around my area now I feel scared.

But the best thing anyone can do is call the police and speak firmly about what happened in court. Dont look at the person who abused you, be confident and say what you believe.

The case was one of four successful convictions of anti-Semites secured by Shomrim over two months.
He and his brother, Hawaii natives, were once fitness managers at a non-disclosed base in Southwest Asia

Ramos had been in the Hawaii Air National Guard for more than 21 years

Officials said on Sunday that their search had produced no signs of him

A 21-year veteran of the Hawaii Air National Guard is presumed dead six days after going missing during a nighttime swim in Guam.

Master Sergeant Greg Ramos, 39, disappeared around midnight last Monday off Tarague Beach. Officials at Andersen Air Force Base looked for him for six days but said Sunday night that their efforts had produced no signs of him.

Brigadier General Douglas Cox, commander of the base's 36th Wing, said the military is 'extremely saddened' and he offered prayers for Ramos' family and friends.

Ramos, a married father, and his brother Gavin, natives of Kapolei, Hawaii, once worked together as fitness managers during a deployment at an undisclosed base in Southwest Asia. Gavin, seven years younger than Ramos, had credited his brother for being a great mentor.

Master Sergeant Greg Ramos (pictured left next to his younger brother Gavin), 39, is now presumed dead after going missing during a nighttime swim in Guam last week

Authorities had received an alert about a missing swimmer off Tarague Beach after Ramos' swim - prompting a search that continued through Saturday.

Cox cautioned that while 'the waters off Guam are beautiful and inviting,' they can be dangerous. Three beaches on the base - Tarague, Serena and Scout - were closed until further notice.

Ramos, who had been in the Hawaii Air National Guard for at least 21 years, once said he felt a duty to set an example, being the oldest sibling in his family.

He was pictured, wearing a wedding ring, reading a book for his children in front of a video camera in 2010. Ramos participated in the United Through Reading program, which allows deployed service members to read a book while being recorded. The book and a DVD of the recording are then sent home to the service member's child so that they can follow along.

Ramos (pictured on the back row, right, in a family shot) had been in the Hawaii Air National Guard for at least 21 years. He and his brother once were fitness managers at a base in Asia

Authorities had received an alert about a missing swimmer off Tarague Beach (file picture) after Ramos' swim, prompting a search that continued through Saturday

Ramos' family had started a Go Fund Me to support the search, calling him by his nickname Hoku - which means 'star' in Hawaiian. They had sent Gavin and his son Jacob to Guam to keep up with the mission.

'With a heavy heart I have to report that the extensive search for Hoku was officially suspended and military officials have declared him gone,' Ramos' aunt Gayle wrote Saturday.

'Please continue to keep the Ramos ohana in your prayers during this difficult time.

'Hoku, so many have rallied for you to come home but looks like you've gone to a much grander home... Safe in the father's arm! #hokuishome'

Ramos saw his decision to join the Hawaii Air National Guard as a wise move that gave him direction when he was younger.

'When I was young and joined the Guard, there were a lot of circumstances going on and joining the Guard helped me to get on a path of success,' Ramos said in a 2010 a National Guard story.

His time in the force, he said, has been good for him and for his family.

The two were at the time trying to convince another brother to join the Hawaii Air National Guard, as well as a nephew who had recently graduated high school.

'In our family, it started with me but I think more of us will go the way of the Air National Guard,' Ramos said.

Ramos once credited joining the Hawaii Air National Guard with helping him find a path to success. He is pictured being recorded reading a book for his children

Gavin said he would always be proud to serve with his brother. 'He's a great man, he leads the way, and makes me proud to call him my brother,' Gavin said of Ramos.

No cause of death has been announced for Ramos. The waters of Guam can be treacherous due to coral reefs and currents, the US Coast Guard has warned.

The sharp reef can cause deep and painful cuts, while holes and cracks on its surface can catch a swimmer's foot or hand and leave them trapped. Large waves breaking on the reef create additional danger.
Support for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has plummeted to a new low.

In the latest Fairfax-Ipsos poll Mr Turnbull's popularity has continued to slide dramatically. Since June his personal standing has dropped eight percentage points - from 53 to just 45, The Age reports.

However, although Mr Turnbull's approval rating among voters is now 45 per cent, his disapproval rating is also 45 per cent - giving him a net rating of zero.

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According to a Fairfax-Ipsos poll since June Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's personal standing has dropped eight percentage points - from 53 to just 45

Another worrying statistic in the poll showed the government lagging behind the Labor opposition by 51 to 49 per cent, and that nearly two thirds of voters believe Labor leader Bill Shorten is supported by his party.

The harsh appraisal by voters will make for a tough final parliamentary week for the prime minister as his government tries to pass new legislation, while old rival Tony Abbott has also been critical of Mr Turnbull's regime over the weekend.

Already facing issues over its Australian Building and Construction Commission bill, and controversial life-time refugee visa ban, comments by Mr Abbott on Sunday also increased pressure on the government.

The former prime minister said it was time for the Coalition to be a 'sensible centre right government' and to be focused on differences instead of minimising them in order to stay in front of the far right, in an interview with Sky News on Sunday morning.

Former prime minister Tony Abbott said it was time for the Coalition to be a 'sensible centre right government'

The government is lagging behind the Labor opposition by 51 to 49 per cent, and nearly two thirds of voters believe Labor leader Bill Shorten (right) has the backing of his party

Mr Abbott added 'it's good that we're no longer talking about innovation and agility because, quite frankly, that loses people'.

He even hinted he would be willing to work in a cabinet position next to the man who ousted him from the top job in 2015.

'You don't have to idolise someone to be able to work with them,' he said.

When asked about his thoughts about Turnbull's job so far as prime minister, Mr Abbott answered 'there's a sense of prime ministers and governments always needing to do more.'
A resident has stabbed a would-be burglar during a home invasion in north Melbourne.

Three male intruders, armed with an axe and gun, smashed their way into the house on Salisbury Street in Coburg around 1am on Monday, 9 News reported.

They threatened to shoot the couple inside but a 63-year-old man fought back, stabbing one of the offenders in the stomach.

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Three male intruders, armed with an axe and gun, smashed their way into this house on Salisbury Street in Coburg around 1am on Monday

They threatened to shoot the couple inside but a 63-year-old man fought back, stabbing one of the offenders in the stomach

The three offenders fled with the car keys to the family's silver Range Rover and were last seen fleeing south of the scene.

The couple's son said his parents are recovering in hospital, but his mother, 52, is shaken as she will need surgery to repair a dislocated shoulder during the scuffle.

The pair have lived at the house for almost 40 years and on Thursday a similar incident occurred where three offenders stole keys to the family's Bentley.

One of the offenders from this morning's incident was found at Dandenong Hospital this morning with stab wounds to his stomach.

Two other offenders are still on the run.

Police are still trying to confirm this information.

Anyone with information should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

The three offenders fled with the car keys to the family's silver Range Rover and were last seen fleeing south of the scene

The couple's son said his parents are recovering in hospital, but his mother, 52, is shaken as she will need surgery to repair a dislocated shoulder during the scuffle

One of the offenders from this morning's incident was found at Dandenong Hospital this morning with stab wounds to his stomach. The other two are still on the run
A Coles shopper has been put in a headlock and wrestled to the ground by staff after he allegedly entered a store after it had closed.

A shocking video shows the man being tackled and pinned down by two men who appear to be workers inside a Coles store in Perth.

The footage, filmed on a concerned customer's mobile phone, shows two men grappling with the shopper as he tries to walk down the jam, honey and canned fish aisle.

A Coles shopper has been wrestled to the ground by staff after he allegedly entered a store after it had closed

It is not clear what sparked the confrontation, however the man appears to have dropped a drinks can on the floor, as well as his sunglasses.

The barefoot shopper staggers back and forth as one of the members of staff puts him in a headlock and the other holds onto his arm.

He breaks free from the both but the burlier Coles worker keeps hold of him as they lurch into another aisle.

'What do you think you are doing?' the customer asks.

'Arresting you,' the staff member replies as he tackles him to the floor.

After hurling him to the ground and pinning him down, the worker yells out for a colleague to call security.

A shocking video shows the man being tackled and pinned down by two men who appear to be Coles workers inside a store in Perth

The footage, filmed on a concerned customer's mobile phone, shows two men grappling with the shopper as he tries to walk down the jam, honey and canned fish aisle

It is not clear what happened next, however Western Australia Police were unaware of the incident or of any arrests being made.

The incident is believed to have taken place inside the Coles store in Belmont Forum, Western Australia, shortly after yesterday's 5pm closing time.

Yasir Khan, who was inside the shop at the time, claimed the man was apprehended because he entered the supermarket after it had closed.

RECOGNISE THE SHOPPER? Do you know the shopper who was tackled? Email ollie.gillman@dailymail.com Advertisement

'It seems like he only entered when the shutters were down at 5pm and wanted to buy some stuff,' Mr Khan wrote on Facebook.

'If he has done something wrong, there are always other decent means of tackling.

'The manager called security when he had already pinned down the ... bloke. The guy suffered bruises and cuts on his shoulder and neck.

'Whatever the reason, manhandling is not required. The manager is not the police.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Coles for comment.
'None of us imagined it might actually come true,' he told DailyMail.com

Her father-in-law Ken said that her return was nothing short of a 'miracle'

Her husband Keith had promised their two children that 'mommy' would be home by Thanksgiving

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said that the description was based on 'voice recognition' - suggesting that Papini wasn't able to see her captors

Police are now hunting for two Hispanic women considered armed and dangerous, and driving a dark SUV, over the kidnapping

discovered dumped by the roadside on Thanksgiving Day - three weeks after she disappeared

Sherri Papini is 'doing good' after she was

The sister of the California mother-of-two found 'heavily battered' at the roadside three weeks after she went missing said her return was the 'most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for'.

Sherri Papini had mysteriously vanished while out jogging near her home in Redding, California, on November 2. Three weeks later, at 4.30am on Thursday, she was found injured, bound and dumped by the side of the road more than 150 miles from home.

'CHP is on scene and advised that she is chained to something,' a radio dispatcher told a responding officer, according to audio obtained by The Sacramento Bee. 'CHP is advising that she is heavily battered.'

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko confirmed that the 34-year-old was treated at an area hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

Today, Papini's family are simply relieved to have her back safe and sound.

'This has been the most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for,' Sheila Koester told The Sacramento Bee. 'We're all very, very, very excited, very, very relieved and just very thankful for getting our Sherri back.'

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The sister of the California mother-of-two found 'heavily battered' at the roadside three weeks after she went missing said her return was the 'most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for (Sisters Sheila Koester (left) and Sherri Papini (right)

Sherri Papini (pictured with her husband Keith and their two children) had mysteriously vanished while out jogging near her home in Redding, California, on November 2

Sherri Papini (pictured on her wedding day to Keith in 2012 was found on Thursday at 4.30am 150 miles from her home. Her hands were bound

Koester, who has already had a 'very joyous reunion' with her sister, said that the huge social media campaign and national news coverage of Sherri's disappearance 'was an intricate part in bringing her home to us'.

'As many of you know Sherri has been returned to our family safely,' she said Friday at a press conference. 'She and Keith have been reunited. '

'We appreciate the tremendous support that everyone has given us over the past few weeks and appreciate how respectful people are being to their privacy in allowing all of us to recover from this situation.'

She said that the past few weeks had been extremely difficult for the entire family.

'It's been a range of emotions; sadness , anger, right now its just joy, lots and lots of joy.'

Koester also read a prepared statement from Keith and Sherri thanking everyone for their support.

'We are overwhelmed with joy over how supportive everyone has been to help bring us together as a family again. Everyone's tireless efforts has made our family whole again this Thanksgiving.

'Your help in keeping this alive in social media and national news was an intricate part in bringing her home to us. We can not thank you enough.'

When asked about the 'intricate part' social media played, she would only say that , 'getting her face out there was the best thing anyone could do.'

She declined to comment about whether a ransom had been paid or involved in the release of her sister.

She also refused to comment on whether they had discussed the traumatic events her sister had faced.

Keith and Sherri Papini with children Tyler four and Violet, two, on Halloween this year

Sherri has been reunited with her husband Keith (above with their Tyler, four, and Violet, two), who was ruled out as a suspect in her disappearance by a lie detector test

Koester also thanked the motorist, who hasn't yet been identified, who stopped to help Papini on the side of the road.

'We appreciate that person stopping and helping her,' she said.

One motorist posted on a Facebook page dedicated to finding Papini saying that she had seen her at the side of the road but didn't stop. She did call 911.

'I couldn't stop in time to help you this morning but I did pull over and report to police that I saw you by the road and was certain you needed help,' said Alison Sutton. 'I am thankful that someone else was able to pull over safely to help you and that you are safe. God bless you and your family.'

'I don't know that my call helped her,' she wrote in a follow-up post. 'I am very thankful she is safe and back with her family. This is truly a Thanksgiving to remember.'

Police are now hunting for two Hispanic women considered armed and dangerous, and driving a dark SUV, over the kidnapping.

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said that the description was based on 'voice recognition' - suggesting that Papini wasn't able to see her captors.

Police say that the victim had been 'very emotional' to be freed yesterday and finally be reunited with her husband Keith. Bosenko said investigators had only been able to get 'limited' information Thursday but were planning to speak to her again in the coming days.

Father-in-law Ken Papini said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home.

Ken Papini (with his daughter-in-law Sherri Papini) said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home

Ken Papini told the DailyMail.com it was a 'miracle' that his daughter-in-law had been safely returned to them

In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com Ken said: 'The whole family came together, then the whole town came together, then the whole of the United States.

'When that happens miracles happen and something like this, I'm still trying to explain it to myself. It's amazing, crazy, but we never lost hope.'

Ken said he spoke to his son Keith last night and could hear the relief in his voice.

'He's seen Sherri and said she's doing good, she's going to be okay, she's got an appointment with a doctor today and I'm sure the police have a lot of questions for her.

'We don't know much about what happened yet, Keith has been following his instructions from the police so he's not able to tell us everything. But she's back that's the main thing.'

Ken said his son had always believed he'd bring his family back together.

Last week he promised their two children, Tyler four and Violet, two, that 'mommy' would be home by Thanksgiving.

'Of course we all hoped it would come true, you have to have faith,' said Ken.

'But we had planned to have a nice family Thanksgiving and none of us were allowed to mention it, we would only talk about forgiving and thanks. 'None of us imagined it might actually come true.'

Sherri Papini's sister Sheila Koester speaks out during a press conference on Friday, after Sherri was found Thanksgiving Day

'None of us imagined it might actually come true.'

Ken added that celebrating the holiday safe in the knowledge that Sherri is safe was 'amazing'.

He explained: 'It is amazing and I've got a pretty good trust in that good beats evil and if you keep on and you keep on you get the answers.'

Ken shared a photo with DailyMail.com of the loving family at Halloween, taken two days before Sherri vanished.

The family, all dressed as cowboys and cowgirls, beamed with happiness.

He also shared wedding photos of Sherri and Keith when they were married in August 2012.

In the end the children spent Thanksgiving at Keith's mother Pam's house  Pam and Ken are separated.

Before the news broke that Sherri, 34, had been found, the family had planned a balloon release on Thanksgiving morning as a symbol of hope for her return.

The event was held at an annual Turkey Trot 10km run in Redding.

Sherri Papini and her husband Keith tearfully thanked the mayor and residents of their town on Friday

'Thank You everyone for your thoughts and prayers...What a great Thanksgiving,' wrote Ken Papini on Facebook after his daughter-in-law was found

But as dozens of family and friends gathered Ken said everyone was worried because Keith, who had been due to give a speech and read a poem at the event, didn't show.

He recalls: 'It wasn't until right after we let the balloons go when we started realizing what was happening, Keith wasn't there and we were all like, 'uh oh', maybe the emotions got to him, we all didn't know what to think.

'But then about an hour later everyone's phone started to ring, 'We found her'.'

Ken says it was his daughter Suzanne who told him.

'Suzanne called and said 'dad, they found her', I couldn't believe it, it was a miracle.

'It turns out Keith had been told she was okay hours before and he even beat the sheriffs down to where she was found.

'He called me last night when I was at work.

'He was back to the Keith I know, he's got his mojo back, he was like, 'I got this'.

'I told him, 'Keith I told you to stay strong and have hope because you never know.'

Ken, 63, a lab analyst at a cement firm, said he had watched his son struggle with his emotions in the weeks before as realistic hope of Sherri returning began to fade.

Sherri Papini's two children Tyler, 4, and Violet, 2, smile in a photo posted by Keith Papini on Thursday

Father-in-law Ken Papini said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home (Keith and Sherri Papini on their wedding day)

'I couldn't believe it, I watched this thing turn him right back in to a kid. He had been sobbing, moping around,' he said.

'We were going house to house asking for information and it was killing me seeing him like he was 12 again.

'His heart was breaking, that's why I kept telling him to stay strong.

'But you know, we got our happy ending, we got her back.'

But Ken said the family never lost 'hope' in their hearts even though a massive search turned up nothing and the police investigation appeared to draw a blank.

He said: 'At first we were all like, 'why, why is this happening to Sherri, what is happening to Sherri, is she okay?'

'Then three weeks thinking of that, it kills you.

'I told Keith to stay strong and see how this thing pans out, I told him he needed to stay sharp for when she was found.

'Keith always stayed positive, he said, 'No way, we're bringing her home.'

The 34-year-old resurfaced three weeks after she vanished some 150 miles from her home in Redding (above)

SHERRI PAPINI'S SISTER SHEILA KOESTER'S PRESS CONFERENCE IN FULL Hi. My name is Sheila Koester. I am Sherri Papini's sister. Before I say anything, I would like to share with everyone that I am 6 months pregnant, and please be mindful of my emotions. This has been a traumatic event for all of us. As many of you know, Sherri has been returned to our family safely. She and Keith have been reunited. They appreciate the tremendous support that everyone has given us over the last few weeks and appreciate how respectful people are being to their privacy and allowing all of us to recover from this situation. Keith and Sherri only have one statement at this time: 'We are overwhelmed with joy of how supportive everyone has been to help bring us together as a family again. We especially would like to thank the Shasta County Sheriff's Office, The NorCal Alliance for the Missing, the Lost Coast Trackers, Shasta Support Services, the Guardian Angels  our A-Team  the California Highway Patrol, Yolo County Sheriff's Office, the medical personnel that helped Sherri that morning, and the whole world that reached out to help find her.' 'Everyone's tireless efforts has made our family whole again this Thanksgiving. Thank you for allowing our family time to heal and for giving us our privacy. Your help in keeping this alive through social media and national news was an intricate part in bringing her home to us. We cannot thank you enough. 'Right now she has been through a very traumatic event and needs time with her family. Thank you all for coming, I have time for a few questions.' Reporter: I know you mentioned she was back with Keithhas she been reunited with the kids yet? Sheila: That's not a question that I have an answer to at this time. Reporter: How is she doing physically? We understand that she had some injuries. Sheila: She's very excited to be home. So that's all that I can say at this time. Reporter: You said that social media played a role in possibly Her release. How did that play a role in the case? Sheila: I don't have any details into the case. I just know that getting her face out there was the best thing that anyone could do. Reporter: Where were you and when did you learn of the good news? Sheila: I heard on Thanksgiving morning that she was found. Reporter: Did ransom play a role? Sheila: I don't have any details of the case that's going on at the moment. Reporter: Have you seen her, and if so, could you describe the reunion, what that was like? Sheila: I've seen her and it was a very joyous reunion and we were just very very excited to see one another. Reporter: Have you been able to talk to the people that she flagged down on Thanksgiving morning? Did she or you, anybody have a message for them? Sheila: I know that we're just very excited that somebody was able to come in contact with her. And we appreciate all the help that everyone has given. Reporter: What is your hope, there are, according to her, two women out there, what is your hope? Do you hope we catch them? They are considered dangerous, I imagine. Sheila: I don't know any details of any part of the investigation that's going on and I'm just concerned with the healing of my sister. Reporter: Has she said anything about anything that she went through those 22 days that she was missing? Sheila: We were just joyous to see one another. Reporter: It happened so close to her home. Is she there, or is she afraid to be in that area right now? Sheila: That was not a conversation that we had. Reporter: I know that she was a dedicated mother. Was she employed in some other fashion? And second, that, as a family have you have you been discussing who may have had a motive to do something like this? Sheila: That would be a question I would ask Shasta County sheriff's office. Reporter: Was she employed? Sheila: I don't have an answer to that question. Reporter: What is she doing today? What's her day like today? Sheila: I knowI don't know what she's doing at this time. I know that she's with Keith and that they're being reunited. Reporter: When will she return home? Sheila: I don't know where they are at this time. Reporter: And she hasn't been reunited with her children yet? Sheila: I know she's been reunited with Keith. Reporter: What have the last three weeks been like for you and your family? Sheila: It's been a range of emotions and sadness, angerright now it's just joy  lots and lots of joy that she's here with us. Reporter: Do Her children understand that she's back home? Sheila: I can't answer that question. I don't know. I want to thank everyone for coming. Advertisement

'We never once considered that she might not be coming back.

'And you know, we got her back, it's amazing, it's crazy.'

Surprisingly, Ken says he can even find it in his heart to forgive Sherri's kidnappers.

He added: 'My stance as a Christian is I forgive them (the kidnappers), we got our answer, but law and order haven't got their answer yet.'

It's believed Sherri will see her two young children today in what's expected to be a highly emotional reunion.

Ken shared his joy about Sherri's discovery on Thursday.

'Thank You everyone for your thoughts and prayers...What a great Thanksgiving,' he wrote on Facebook.

He later posted a photo of the couple's children in chef's hats and aprons, and wrote: 'Thank You All, the children are having a great Thanksgiving.'

Details surrounding her kidnapping were scarce as Shasta County Sheriff's Office made the announcement on Thursday that she had been found alive.

Sherri flagged down a passing motorist at the intersection of County Road 17 and I-5 in Woodland near Sacramento (above)

Police were gathered at the scene searching for evidence on Thursday as the investigation gets underway

Sherri's family maintained a highly publicized missing person's appeal after she vanished form Sunrise Drive near Mountain Gate in Redding, California, on November 2 (above)

It is not known if Papini knew her captors, was harmed by them or what their motives may have been.

Keith Papini reported his wife missing on November 2 when she failed to pick up their children from daycare.

TIMELINE OF SHERRI PAPINI'S KIDNAPPING November 2: Sherri Papini fails to pick up her two children from daycare and is reported missing by her husband Keith November 10: Keith Papini is ruled out as a suspect after passing a lie detector test November 18: The FBI joins the search for Sherri as an anonymous donor offers $50,000 for her return November 23: Cameron Gamble, a local 'negotiator', appears in a video on behalf of the anonymous donor to inform Sherri's captors the ransom was now 'off the table' November 24: Sherri flags down a passing motorist at the intersection of I-5 and County Road 17 and is taken to hospital Advertisement

He traced her discarded iPhone to the side of the road about a mile from their home where he found it tossed on the ground with her running 'ear buds'.

A frantic missing person's appeal was launched, with posters littering the local town of Mountain Gate and scores of social media pleas for Sherri's return.

Keith was later named as a potential person of interest in the case but ruled out when he passed a lie detector test.

An initial ransom was offered to her kidnappers of $50,000. It was announced in a video featuring Cameron Gamble, an apparent negotiator hired by the anonymous donor.

He claimed the money had been put up by a private citizen but that it would expire if Sherri's kidnappers did not come forward.

On Wednesday, after upping the money to $100,000, he withdrew the offer, instead turning it into a reward for anyone with information on the young mother's whereabouts.

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko (above right) said police are hunting for two armed Hispanic women. Sherri (left during a family trip) was treated for non life-threatening injuries at hospital

Sherri's family said they had no involvement in the ransom but shared information about it on social media.

They however pleaded with well-wishers to give money to a GoFundMe account which raised $49,080 for search efforts. The page has since been closed to new donations and Koester declined to elaborate on how those funds will be allocated.

Almost exactly 24 hours after the ransom offer was withdrawn, Sherri flagged down a passing driver on a road between County Road 17 and I-5 in Woodland, near Sacramento.

She was taken to a hospital to be treated for non life-threatening injuries and interviewed by detectives.

'At about 4.30 this morning, Shasta County Sheriff's Office was notified that Sherri Papini had been located,' police said yesterday.

'We learned she had been released by her captor on a road near I-5 in Yolo County.

'She was bound by restraints but was able to summon help from a passing motorist,' said Sheriff Bosenko.
Smelly food in the office has become so prevalent that it is hampering workers productivity, a study has found.

The habit of eating Al Desko has grown to such an extent that two thirds of people now eat lunch at their desks most days of the week.

But pungent packed lunches including oily fish, cheese and egg sandwiches are having an adverse effect on working conditions and office culture.

In a survey of 1,000 office workers, two out of five said they were too busy to take a proper lunch break, while over half branded colleagues who eat strong-smelling food as anti-social.

Bad smelling food is putting people off work but more and more people are eating at their desks

The worst smell was said to be mackerel or sardines, followed by cheese and eggs - yet fewer than one in five workers ask a colleague to eat somewhere else.

Buttered toast topped the list of the best-smelling food, followed by fresh pastries and a bacon sandwich.

Gareth Cowmeadow, of interior landscaping firm Ambius, which conducted the research, said: Some people may not realise how much of an effect their lunch choices could have on co-workers who sit near them.

But desktop dining may not only be bad workplace etiquette - it could also have a detrimental effect on waistlines.

Experts have warned that the growing culture of eating in the office could lead to weight gain, with health psychologists saying it distracts people into forgetting theyve eaten.

The worst smell was said to be mackerel or sardines, followed by cheese and eggs - yet fewer than one in five workers ask a colleague to eat somewhere else. Pictured quail eggs and haddock on toast with spinach

Researchers at Surrey University warned last year that not taking time out to eat a proper meal, and being distracted sitting in front of a computer, could mean people remain hungry and want to eat again later.

Lead author Professor Jane Ogden said: Al desko diners run the risk of increasing their food intake later in the day which can lead to weight gain and obesity.

Making time for lunch and sitting down at the table is actually good for our waistline.

When youre at a table, away from your desk and distractions, you actually think, this is food, this is a meal, and you remember it and you count it.

Importantly, this also means youre much less likely to snack later on. Your brain calls it food, calls it a meal and, therefore, you feel fuller.

She added: Fullness is not only the result of brain and chemical reactions, but a perception that is influenced by learning, emotion and distraction.

Prof Ogden advised office workers to build a proper lunch break into their schedules and said: Any form of distraction, including eating at our desks can lead to weight gain.

Eating at ones desk is also highly unhygienic - with computer keyboards and worktop surfaces being riddled with millions of bacteria.

In 2014 Dr Lisa Ackerley, Professorial Fellow at the Royal Society of Public Health, warned that the average office worker comes into contact with 10 million bacteria a day.

Buttered toast topped the list of the best-smelling food, followed by fresh pastries and a bacon sandwich (pictured)

We know from studies 3,000 organisms per square inch can be found on a keyboard or over 1,600 a computer mouse, she said.

Over the course of a day you might be picking up those bacteria and then if you suddenly decide to have lunch at your desk without washing your hands first, youre basically transferring those bacteria into your mouth.

Its known 16 per cent of people carry the norovirus  which causes vomiting and diarrhoea  but show no symptoms.

So you may feel perfectly fine and well but youre carrying around the virus and spreading it around the office Dr Ackerley said.
Secret documents revealing scores of Islamic State terror plots targeting the UK and Europe have been seized in Iraq and Syria, it can be revealed today.

Intelligence showed chilling plans by militants to kill and maim civilians, according to Britain's top commander in the region.

Major General Rupert Jones said tens of thousands of documents in Islamic State's 'external operations hubs' had been uncovered as towns were liberated from the terror group.

In a bid to process the mass of data, hundreds of analysts  including from Britain's security services  are being flown to a top secret location to wade through papers, hard drives and mobile phones.

Major General Rupert Jones (pictured) said tens of thousands of documents in Islamic State's 'external operations hubs' had been uncovered

Experts are also waiting to decipher what they believe will be a 'labyrinth of intelligence' when coalition forces retake the Iraqi city of Mosul.

General Jones  the son of Falklands hero Colonel H Jones VC  is a key Western commander in the fight against Islamic State, codenamed Operation Inherent Resolve.

Referring to the terror group by the Arabic term Daesh, he said: 'The reason we are all here is because Daesh has demonstrated it poses a threat to our way of life.

'It has demonstrated very effectively what it can do in Europe and elsewhere. If we want to keep Britain safe, we need to deal with Daesh.'

US-led coalition jets and local ground forces are currently engaged in a double-pronged attack on IS in its Iraqi stronghold Mosul, and its de facto capital in Syria, Raqqa.

Commanders predict the next big fight will be in Anbar province, where extremists retain key areas along the Euphrates river and where UK troops will be at the heart of the battle.

Speaking from Al Asad air base in Iraq, where 250 British troops have just flown in, General Jones said IS had 'key external operation hubs' across the region.

One of them  Manbij in Syria  had revealed a 'huge' amount of intelligence relating to threats to Europe when it was liberated.

He said only the security services would know how sophisticated the plots were but added: 'I don't think any of us should be surprised by what Daesh are capable of.' It is understood intelligence has revealed fresh threats to the UK, but this was not found in Manbij. The general also rejected suggestions by Donald Trump that the terrorists are not being hit hard enough.

Speaking from Al Asad air base in Iraq (pictured), where 250 British troops have just flown in, General Jones said IS had 'key external operation hubs' across the region

He said Western forces had been 'shaping and degrading the enemy day in day out for months', adding: 'Go and ask your Daesh commander if they've been hit hard enough.'

The US President-elect sparked fury last year when he said he knew more about IS than the generals on the ground, saying: 'I would bomb the s*** out of them.'

This month he suggested the US could end its training of moderate Syrian forces 'because we have no idea who these people are'.

SON OF FALKLANDS HERO 'H' Major General Rupert Jones was 13 when his father died in the Falklands, becoming a legendary figure of the 1982 conflict. Colonel Herbert 'H' Jones showed immense courage as he led a charge on an Argentine trench during the Battle of Goose Green. Seizing a sub-machine gun, the 42-year-old paratroop commander ran at the nearest enemy position. But as fire came in from multiple directions the courageous colonel was cut down and died only a few feet from the Argentine front line. His valour, during the first land battle of the war, helped inspire his troops to victory in the offensive on the enemy stronghold. Col Jones, commanding 2 Battalion, The Parachute Regiment, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross  the highest award for gallantry. He was the most senior soldier to be killed in the war. His son Rupert, a teenager at the time of his father's death, joined the Army eight years later. He trained at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst before serving with his father's former regiment, the Devonshire and Dorsets. Major General Rupert Jones (left) was 13 when his father died in the Falklands, becoming a legendary figure of the 1982 conflict. Colonel Herbert Jones (known as Colonel H Jones, pictured right with Rupert) at Buckingham Palace in 1978 Advertisement

But General Jones dismissed the claims, saying: 'The plan is built on those moderates.' He insisted there was a clear plan and mission that had pushed IS back significantly since Britain entered the fight in September 2014. The UK's war effort includes more than 500 ground troops helping to train local forces.

Referring to the ongoing battle for Mosul, the commander added: 'I am absolutely certain that an extraordinary amount of intelligence will come out of [there]. It will be a labyrinth of intelligence and we need to get that into the hands of the intelligence agencies.'

There are still an estimated 400 Britons who have gone to join IS in Iraq and Syria. But there are being picked off from the IS leadership 'one by one'. General Jones said recruitment was down from about 1,000 a month to a 'paltry amount'.

RAF jets were striking 'the life blood' of the terror organisation, causing towns to 'crumble'. 'A lot of what we are doing is striking leaders you have never heard of,' he said.
His sentence remained the same and he is

An inmate in Michigan convicted of a horrifying home invasion and assault of college students, which led to a rape has been resentenced to the same amount of time in jail.

Rederick Louis Melton, 24, was sentenced in 2013 for the crime committed in June 2012, which a judge called one of the most terrifying cases he's ever tried.

'Ive been on the bench almost 30 years now. Outside of murder cases, this and one other case are the worst Ive seen,' Kent County Circuit Court Judge George S. Buth said, according to the Detroit Free Press.

He added that details of the crime 'would really turn anyones stomach if they read the facts'.

Rederick Louis Melton (pictured), 24, who was sentenced in 2013 for the home invasion and assault of several college students in 2012, has been resentenced to the same amount of time

In 2013, Melton was sentenced to a minimum 43 years in prison and this week he was told the sentencing would stand.

He was resentenced due to a Michigan Supreme Court ruling in July 2015 that determined the mandated prison terms of sentencing guidelines are unconstitutional.

Instead, the mandated prison terms should be looked at as advisories, according to the ruling.

In Melton's case, he was sentenced to between 18 and 40 years for first-degree criminal sexual conduct, 18 to 40 years for armed robbery and 7 to 20 years for home invasion, according to the Free Press.

The sentencing remains the same this time as it was the first time he was sentenced by Buth.

They must also be served consecutively, meaning one after the other.

Melton is among five people who were charged in the crime for which he has been convicted.

A party had been held in a home near Grand Valley State Universitys Grand Rapids campus, the Free Press reported.

When the party ended, one of the victims answered a knock on the door to find two men saying they had left a wallet inside.

As that happened, three others entered the house from the back.

Several residents at the house were beaten and robbed. One told the court in 2012: 'I was figuring to die.'

The home invasion and assault that Melton was a part of took place on Veto Street NW near Seward Avenue in 2012

An 18-year-old woman who lived at the house was repeatedly sexually assaulted during the invasion.

Buth said the rape 'went way beyond what youd normally see with a sexual assault'.

'This was very devastating on all the victims here, but especially this young lady.

'Fortunately, she has a good support system, but she will be suffering the effects of this the rest of her life, Im sure,' Buth told Melton.

The men took turns assaulting the 18-year-old before police inevitably arrested the five people involved, which included a 14-year-old.

'You escalated a home invasion into armed robbery by using weapons and assaulting the people in the house, tying them up, pistol whipping them, threatening them, terrorizing them.

'And then to brutally sexually assault, repeatedly, the 18-year-old young lady,' Buth told Melton.
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A British sniper with 47 confirmed kills sits at the highest point of Al Asad air base keeping watch through his rifle scope.

In his latest mission, the Colour Sergeant - who is one of the UK's deadliest trained killers - is defending 250 British troops from an attack by Islamic State.

Positioned on a roof top, he is waiting for a jihadist to approach the heavily-fortified base in Anbar province, western Iraq, and with a pull of the trigger he will shoot them dead.

He cannot be named - as he and his family have received multiple threats from terrorists - but he is the first line of defence if any gun-toting militants driving suicide bomb trucks approach the gates.

Taking aim: The British sniper was photographed wearing his uniform while on the look-out at the Al Asad airbase in Iraq

Precision: The Colour Sergeant - who cannot be named - uses a sniper rifle L115A3 which can take out a target which is up to one mile away

British troops have flown into the air base in recent weeks to begin a new mission training Iraqi forces to defeat IS along the Euphrates river near Syria as the fight in Mosul rages.

They are teaching them basic soldiering skills such as first aid and how to combat the threat of roadside bombs before they head back to the bloody frontline.

The merciless extremists waging war north east of the base have fought back - and infiltrated the compound twice, killing Iraqi forces - and continue to fire rockets and mortars in a bid to kill troops.

Britain's job is to set up a headquarters - which the Royal engineers are building - while getting local forces battle ready and protecting those stationed at the base, 60km from the frontline.

The sniper from 4 Rifles once killed an insurgent with a single shot 1,431 metres away, and racked up the highest number of deaths during Operation Herrick in Afghanistan.

He said: 'We would be the first ones to shoot if someone comes near us. Nobody has dared yet while we've been here.'

The company of Britons in the security force team are protecting the base of 2,000 men, mainly British, US and Danish troops.

Lieutenant Colonel Carl Boswell, a commander of British forces, said: 'They (IS) want to come here and they want to kill us. We have no idea what's next.

'The snipers are battle-winning. The biggest success for Daesh would be killing a member of the coalition, which includes Britain.

'The worst case scenario would be a ground based attack on the base.'

Major General Rupert Jones, deputy commander of the coalition mission against Islamic State and Britain's most senior general in the war, said: 'The enemy is being as barbaric as he's ever been.

'Once Mosul is over the next big thing will be pushing up the Euphrates river valley.

'The troops here are going to be in the absolute heart of that.'

The sniper, who has served 20 years in the Army, is the eyes and ears of the base as he watches everyone coming in and out and he sends intelligence reports to his senior command.

He has established a pattern of life and profile for every person in the perimeter so anything unusual will be flagged up by his team within seconds.

'We are the ones with eyes on the ground,' he said.

The British sniper is the first line of defence if any gun-toting militants driving suicide bomb trucks approach the gates

Al Asad Airbase in Iraq, where the Iraqi Army are being trained by 250 British troops from 4 Rifles as part of an international coalition

'It is the logging and reporting of every little detail - the direction he's walked, how far he's walked, what he's wearing, what is he doing, what is he carrying.

'It is grabbing all that intricate detail that you think nothing of and telling higher command and hopefully they can grab intelligence from it'.

He carries a card with him at all times spelling out the rules of engagement which UK soldiers have to follow.

Speaking about incoming jihadists, the sniper, who served in Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Northern Ireland, said: 'If it is posing an imminent threat to life, we will escalate the force, we have a number of options at our disposal including a .338 sniper rifle or javelin missile.'

His rifle and equipment enables him to see incoming enemy forces from as far away as 1500 metres.

If he could, he would go to Mosul, where thousands of Peshmerga forces are trying to re-take the city from IS, and join the fight.

He said: 'I don't want to be a soldier and not do my job, especially such a job like this. I've been in it 20 years now and it is something you are trained to do.

'Not in a sadistic way, it is something you enjoy. I would go to Mosul tomorrow if I could. Everyone is itching to go out.'

During a normal mission on his latest tour of Iraq, he carries out 12 hour shifts building a pattern life from civilians.

He said: 'We sit in a certain place, the locally employed civilians comes in, they are held in a certain place and then we sit there and get a pattern of life on them.'

Although he has yet to shoot dead an insurgent on this latest mission, he revealed he has killed 47 people during his 13-years as a sniper, with his greatest accomplishment being a member of the Taliban who had just killed a policeman in Afghanistan.

'There were single rounds coming in every 20 minutes. I went to a roof and lay there for a bit. As soon as he popped out I got him', he said.

The most difficult mission took him 24-hours to complete. 'We lay there on a side of a road all night. It was nearly a day without moving.

'A lot of thought and planning went into it before we executed. We had people walking past us about two or three metres away, some locals.'

The Taliban insurgent was shot dead through a hole 18 inches wide from as close as 300 metres away.
The Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission will vote on an "archery equipment evaluation matrix" at its Dec. 8 meeting in Helena.

The matrix is meant to help the commission decide when or if technical advances in archery should be allowed in Montana, such as lighted arrow nocks.

The meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. Audio and video of the meeting will be available at all Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks regional offices. People will also be able to make public comments from regional offices through the live feed. Audio of the meeting will be streamed online at fwp.mt.gov.

The commission will also take final action on the following items: biennial fishing access site rule, biennial commercial use permit fee rule, Pine Grove Pond land donation, Avista cooperative management area biennial rule and grassland conservation leases.

The commission will also hear proposals for Wildlife Management Area biennial public use rules, 2017 spring turkey quotas and the Mount Silcox Wildlife Management Area forest management project.

Additionally, the American Fisheries Society will present its 2016 award for outstanding fish restoration project, and the Commission will be given a informational update on the mountain lion management plan.

For the full agenda and background on the scheduled topics for the commission meeting, go to the FWP website at http://fwp.mt.gov/; under Quick Links click Commission, and then Meeting Agendas and Meetings.
The BBCs religious coverage is failing to help young people and migrants understand the UK, it has been claimed.

Roger Bolton, who presents Radio 4s Feedback, criticised the broadcaster for coming up short in its coverage of religious affairs.

He bemoaned the BBCs decision to drop a separate commissioning editor in television for religious and ethical programmes, as well as its decision not to replace the outgoing Head of Religion and Ethics.

Writing in the Radio Times, he said: Whereas BBC News has editors for almost everything under the sun, from business and economics to the arts and sport, it doesnt have one for religion.

How can young people and immigrants to this country understand the UK without learning of the crucial role Christianity has played in the formation of its political structures and culture?

Roger Bolton, who presents Radio 4s Feedback has criticised the BBC for its lack of coverage of religious affairs

How can people feel theyre being welcomed as equal citizens if we dont bother to find out about what is often the most important part of their life, their faith?

How can we understand whats going on in the Middle East, for example, without knowing about the Shia/Sunni split?

This is not about promoting faith; its about promoting knowledge and understanding  surely a central role of a public service broadcaster? But the BBC is coming up short.

Mr Boltons comments come as James Purnell takes overall responsibility for religious programming from Mr Ahmed, adding to his brief of head of radio and education.

The former Labour culture secretary was confirmed as director of radio and education in September. He was MP for Stalybridge and Hyde from 2001 to 2010.

His appointment has raised concerns about why he was given editorial control over the BBCs radio output despite having no credentials in running a broadcast network.

Former Tory culture secretary John Whittingdale said the appointment set a very dangerous precedent in light of Mr Purnells political background.

Mr Bolton also raised concerns about BBC1s Songs of Praise, which is currently produced by the BBCs in-house team.

The BBC team have been invited to tender for a three-year contract to continue to produce it, along with independent producers.

But according to Mr Bolton, there is no one on the BBCs team that will decide who gets the Songs of Praise contract who has extensive experience of working in this area.

Mr Bolton also raised concerns about BBC1s Songs of Praise, which is currently produced by the BBCs in-house team. Pictured presenters Pam Rhodes, Aled Jones and Diane-Louise Jordan

Earlier this month, it was reported that that the BBC was planning a revamp to counter perceived Christian bias.

According to reports, the BBCs director-general was set to speak to leaders of different faith groups to discuss the corporations plans for multi-faith coverage.

Mr Bolton said it is not Christian bias we should worry about but a bias against taking religion seriously.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has previously complained that faith is being failed by broadcasters and that the BBCs diversity strategy should be expanded to promote religious literacy.

He went on to suggest that a recent Government white paper on the corporation should have done more to address religious differences.

In June, he told the Radio Times: The white paper proposes a reshaping of the BBC ... Surely there must now be a place for religious literacy in there - to improve peoples understanding of the modern world.
A young boy has told police his father's methamphetamine lab smelt 'yucky' in their south-east Queensland home.

Police discovered the production lab after searching the Ipswich home in August 2015, The Queensland Times reported.

The 9-year-old boy told police his father, 28, who cannot be named for legal reasons, 'wore a special mask'.

A young boy has told police his father's methamphetamine lab smelt 'yucky' in their south-east Queensland home (stock photo)

The house was scattered with chemicals and glass fragments in every room except the child's, according to police.

Police became aware of the father's activity when he bought suspicious items from different places, Crown prosecutor Clare Kelly said.

This included chemicals, glassware and striker plates from matchboxes, a part of which is used in the making of methamphetamine.

They also found written and visual instructions, photos and notes relating to chemical reactions, syringes, needles, cannabis and meth.

While Ms Kelly said it would be difficult to prove commercial operation due to the small amount of meth found, an aggravating factor was the child's knowledge and close proximity.

'The presence of the little boy exposed the child to the risks of labs which are quite chemically unstable and can result in explosions and fire,' she said.

Judge Alexander Horneman-Wren told the Ipswich District Court on Friday during the father's sentencing: 'The child thinks it's entirely normal to make methamphetamine in the bathroom or the lounge room.'

'What an awful childhood memory to have, one can only ponder how he will understand it - not just a yucky smell but his home when he was a nine-year-old boy was a methamphetamine lab.'

The father's defence lawyer, Stephen Kissick, told the court his client was completely clean while in jail for eight months.

The man pleaded guilty to one count each of producing dangerous drugs and possessing dangerous drugs, two counts of possessing instructions for producing dangerous drugs and five counts of possessing drug related items, including a restricted substance.

He was sentenced to a head sentence of two years imprisonment with immediate parole.

Police discovered the production lab after searching the Ipswich home in August 2015 (stock photo)
Dozens of gym junkies pose for the

As the mannequin challenge sweeps the nation, Bondi's most beautiful people aren't about to miss out on the viral sensation.

Dozens of people are posing motionless at the iconic outdoor workout area in Bondi in a video posted to Facebook.

There a few tricky poses, such as the splits and headstands, that would no doubt be a challenge in itself to hold.

Gym junkies show off their best moves and balance in a new mannequin challenge video

The outdoor gym goers at Bondi made their own rendition of the mannequin challenge

The video shows no shortage of the gym junkies envious abs and sun-kissed beach skin.

The outdoor workout spot located next to the surf club at North Bondi is one of the best spots for people watching in Sydney, with dozens working out around the clock in full view of the public.

The video was posted to Facebook by Bondi Cali and fitBUDDS.

The video has already been viewed more then 23,000 times.

The mannequin challenge has gone viral this month after teenagers in the United States started to the craze, posting videos of them while at high school.

As the name suggests, the challenge involved people freezing on the spot as if imitating mannequins, while someone films the group to capture a moment in time.

The video shows the beautiful people of Bondi, complete with toned abs and sun kissed skin

Some of the most impressive moves shown in the video are splits and handstands
She should focus on holding Trump to his campaign promises

Senator Bernie Sanders is defending the Democrats decision to back the recount process started by Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein.

Sanders appeared on CNN on Sunday to criticize the Republicans brash objections to the recount, which has been filed by Stein in Wisconsin.

The former Democratic presidential candidate said Hillary Clinton's campaign and Stein have every legal right to a recount and that they are fairly common.

Senator Bernie Sanders is defending the recount effort in Wisconsin and says the Green Party and Democrats have every legal right to do so

Sanders appeared on CNN on Sunday to criticize the Republicans brash objections to the recount, which has been filed by Jill Stein in Wisconsin

'We have recounts, probably almost every election there's a recount. No one expects there to be profound change but there's nothing wrong with going through the process,' Sanders said on CNN.

Green's petition for the recount in Wisconsin was accepted by election officials earlier this week and the efforts will begin next week to audit the ballots.

President-elect Donald Trump has made it known he is not pleased the recount is going forward and made a claim that he would've also won the popular vote, which he is currently losing by more than two million votes, if 'millions of people hadn't voted illegally'.

President-elect Donald Trump has made it known he is not pleased the recount is going forward

Sanders was also asked about Kellyanne Conway's tweet that mocked Hillary Clinton supporters for backing the recount effort. 'Nobody cares,' Sanders said regarding the tweet

However, Trump has no evidence that millions voted illegally.

He tweeted: 'In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.'

Sanders was also asked about Kellyanne Conway's tweet that mocked Hillary Clinton supporters for backing the recount effort after pressuring Trump to accept the election results during the campaign.

'Nobody cares,' Sanders said regarding the tweet.

He said the focus should be on ensuring that Trump sticks to his promises on Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security.

'The Republicans have requested, I think the governor of North Carolina right now is thinking about doing a recount (in his race). That's a legal right. They do it.

'I don't think that Hillary Clinton, who got two million more votes than Mr. Trump in the popular election, thinks that it's going to transform the election.

'I don't think that Hillary Clinton, who got two million more votes than Mr. Trump in the popular election, thinks that it's going to transform the election,' Sanders said regarding the recount

'But do people have the legal right to do it? Yeah, we do,' Sanders said.

Later, on ABC's 'This Week', Sanders touched on the death of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro.

He said he had no praise for the dictator and said the Cuban economy is 'a disaster'.

But Sanders said it's important for the Untied States to remain diplomatic and to keep up good relations with the country. He said this included offering condolences to the Castro family.
A warrant for his arrest will be issued unless he has a better reason

He is currently in Fiji with his sick father who has pulmonary tuberculosis

It is alleged Radradra assaulted his former partner

Parramatta Eels star Semi Radradra faces having a warrant issued for his arrest after failing to show up for court on domestic violence charges.

The 24-year-old was due to face Parramatta Local Court on Monday on allegations he assaulted his former partner Perina Ting, in a series of violent incidents spanning several months but his lawyer told the magistrate Radradra flew to Fiji last week because his father was ill.

Magistrate Greg Grogin said the medical certificate provided, which said the winger's father suffers asthma and pulmonary tuberculosis, was not satisfactory and that a warrant would be issued unless a more compelling reason was given by November 30.

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Parramatta Eels star Semi Radradra faces having a warrant issued for his arrest after failing to show up for court on domestic violence charges on Monday

The Parramatta Eels winger was questioned by police after he flew in from Fiji in July and during a subsequent court hearing he pleaded not guilty to assault causing domestic violence-related actual bodily harm and two counts of domestic violence-related common assault.

The Eels player's former partner Ms Ting claimed Radradra assaulted her in their Parramatta home, in Sydney's west, on a number of occasions between September 2014 and April 2015.

She alleged he kicked her in the stomach when she was nine months pregnant with their daughter, Louisa, now 18-months-old.

A new trial date was set for February 13 next year.

Radradra is currently in Fiji visiting his sick father who suffers from asthma and pulmonary tuberculosis

The 24-year-old was due to face Parramatta Local Court on allegations he assaulted his former partner Perina Ting, in a series of violent incidents spanning several months

Ms Ting claimed Radradra assaulted her in their Parramatta home, in Sydney's west, on a number of occasions between September 2014 and April 2015
Nigel Farage will return to the United States this week to 'help' diplomatic relations between President-elect Donald Trump and Britain.

The UKIP Leader and MEP will have more time to spend across the Atlantic once his successor as party leader is announced today.

His freelancing as a go-between with the incoming administration in Washington has created a headache for Downing Street, which has dismissed calls for Mr Farage to become the British ambassador to the US.

Nigel Farage will return to the United States this week to 'help' diplomatic relations between President-elect Donald Trump and Britain (pictured, the pair at Trump Tower in New York)

However one former Cabinet minister urged the government to treat the MEP with respect.

Mr Farage said he would head to America this week to ask politicians to 'forgive' the disparaging things said about Mr Trump in the run up to the election.

He offered to 'help formally or informally', adding: 'I just think it's ridiculous, petty and potentially against the national interest for our Government not even to ring me up to have a chat with me, let alone ask me to make some introductions.'

He added: 'It isn't just Trump, there are quite a few members of Trump's team, people now taking quite senior positions, that I have known and got on with for years.'

During his LBC Radio show, he added: 'Regardless of what Downing Street thinks, I'm going back to America at the end of this week, I'm going to meet all sorts of people and I shall say to them 'regardless of whether the Government uses me or not, please forgive some of the things that were said about your president during the election campaign, it's in both of our interests to get closer.'

Mr Farage conceded Mr Trump had 'gone over the top' during the election but said he would be a different president to what he had presented during the campaign.

Mr Farage said he would head to America this week to ask politicians to 'forgive' the disparaging things said about Mr Trump in the run up to the election (pictured, the pair on Trump's campaign trail)

Separately, the maverick politician also said he had 'no life' because of the many death threats he faced.

'I've got no life - I can't do anything, I can't go anywhere. Certainly I would not go out in London of an evening on my own without security - couldn't even think about it,' he told the Sunday Express.

'I can't even walk down the street without it. I have to go to private places, private venues.

The Republican president-elect has suggested that Mr Farage would make a 'great' ambassador to the United States

'The thought of doing a Friday night pub crawl around Westminster - I just can't do it any more.'

Mr Farage, who said he was threatened with a glass on Thursday night, said the trouble had become worse since Mr Trump's election success.

He added: 'It might diminish, it might not. The America dimension changed everything.

'It's been so full-on, unbelievable really.'

Michael Gove, the former Justice Secretary, said that  while Mr Farage should not be given the job of US ambassador  he should be respected.

Mr Gove said: 'Four million people voted for him at the last general election, he's someone who, even though I may disagree with him on some issues, should be respected and not abused.'

The Republican president-elect has suggested that Mr Farage would make a 'great' ambassador to the United States.

Trevor Noah, the presenter of late-night satire the Daily Show in the United States, said Americans thought of Mr Farage as 'weird' and 'quirky'.
British author Julian Barnes has hit out at the decision to open the Man Booker Prize to American writers. Pictured winning the prize in 2011

British author Julian Barnes has hit out at the decision to open the Man Booker Prize to American writers.

US author Paul Beatty won the literary award last month, becoming the first American writer to win.

The famous literary award was opened up, for the first time in its long history, to US writers in 2014.

Barnes, 70, who won the prize in 2011 for his novel The Sense of an Ending, told Radio Times magazine: 'I dont agree with opening up the Booker for the Americans. I think thats straightforwardly daft.

'The Americans have got enough prizes of their own. The idea of (the Booker) being Britain, Ireland, the old Commonwealth countries and new voices in English from around the world gave it a particular character and meant it could bring on writers.

'If you also include Americans - and get a couple of heavy hitters - then the unknown Canadian novelist hasnt got a chance.'

The 50,000 prize is now open to writers of any nationality writing in English and published in the UK. It was previously restricted to the UK, the Commonwealth, Ireland and Zimbabwe.

Flauberts Parrot author Barnes asked: 'Which American prizes are open to Brits? In theory I think only the National Book Award is. I dont think any Brit has won a major American award for years.'

US author Paul Beatty (second from left) won the literary award last month, becoming the first American writer to win. Pictured with businessman Luke Ellis, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall and historian Amanda Foreman at the 2016 Man Booker Prize in The Guildhall, London

Barnes is not the only author to criticise the decision.

Australian writer Peter Carey, who has won the Booker twice, previously criticised the decision to open up the award.

'I find it unimaginable that the Pulitzer or the National Book award people in the United States would ever open their prizes to Brits and Australians. They wouldnt,' he has said.

He added: 'There was and there is a real Commonwealth culture. Its different. America doesnt really feel to be a part of that... I suppose Im not generally in love with the notion of global marketing.'

Barnes also told the magazine that he was now on civil terms with fellow writer Martin Amis, who he fell out with when London Fields author Amis parted ways with Barnes wife, Pat Kavanagh - who later died in 2008 - as his agent.

Mr Barnes said the US had enough prizes and opening it to everyone takes away its character. Short list of winners in 1998, left to right Martin Booth, Julian Barnes, Beryl Bainbridge, Patrick McCabe and Magnus Mills

'When we meet, we talk,' he said of Amis. 'Its not a problem. He lives in Brooklyn and I live in Tufnell Park.'

Barnes admitted he only allows his agent to send him the three best reviews of the latest novel and that he does not read them online, saying: 'I never go there. I think a lot of mad people operate there.'
Theresa May will today pledge to send 150 troops to Poland to help secure the country as a key ally in Brexit talks.

The Prime Minister will roll out the diplomatic red carpet for her counterpart Beata Szydlo  pledging to help protect Poland against Russian aggression.

Mrs May is also expected to reaffirm her commitment to getting an early deal on allowing Polish citizens living in the UK to stay, once Britain leaves the Brussels club.

The summit between the two countries, which will include the Chancellor and Foreign Secretary, is unprecedented, and could put noses out of joint elsewhere in the EU.

The Prime Minister will roll out the diplomatic red carpet for her counterpart Beata Szydlo  pledging to help protect Poland against Russian aggression.

The Prime Minister said last night that the meeting emphasized common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship and the benefits it brings.

She said: We share a clear commitment to take our co-operation to the next level and to firmly establish the UK and Poland as resolute and strategic allies.

'We will never forget the Polish pilots who braved the skies alongside us during World War Two  nor the valuable contribution made by so many Poles in our country today.

'I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship  rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it.

Mrs May will set out details of the deployment of about 150 troops from the Light Dragoons regiment in Catterick, as well as a number of armoured vehicles, to Orzysz in north-east Poland in April next year.

This is close to the border with the Russian exclave Kaliningrad  where senior Moscow officials last week said they would send nuclear-capable surface-to-air missiles with a range that could reach Berlin.

The number of troops is small compared with Putins army, but is intended to reassure Poland of the UKs commitment to the Nato alliance.

It follows comments earlier this year by Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, who said sending troops to Poland would help to deter Russia from any further aggression.

Defence is expected to be top of the list of concerns at a working lunch in London during the summit.

Mrs May will set out details of the deployment of about 150 troops, as well as a number of armoured vehicles, to Orzysz in north-east Poland in April next year

The two leaders will then host a press conference and hold a Downing Street reception to pay tribute to the contribution made by Poles in the UK.

Other EU leaders will be watching closely for any indication that Brexit was discussed in detail. Brussels has banned member states from formally negotiating with the UK until article 50 is triggered in March next year. Whitehall officials believe Poland could be a crucial ally  as a counterbalance to hostility from the likes of France.

The Prime Minister will also reiterate her strong condemnation of the attacks against Poles in the wake of the referendum result, underlining that hate crime of any kind has absolutely no place in British society.

Last night, the EUs top negotiator was criticised by 80 MPs for his inhumane refusal to guarantee the rights of British citizens living in Poland and other EU countries.

The MPs, 70 of them Tory, accused Michel Barnier of being worryingly indifferent to the anxiety and uncertainty being caused.

There are an estimated 3.3million EU nationals living in Britain  and roughly 1.2 million Britons living in the 27 other EU countries.

Mrs May has said she wants to give EU citizens settled in Britain the right to stay. But she says this is not possible until the EU has done the same for UK nationals living abroad.

Mr Barnier is refusing to hold talks on this or any other matter until next March when article 50 is formerly triggered.
A bottle of Coles 'Big & Bold Shiraz 2015' costs only $5

A little known $5 bottle of red wine sold at Coles' Liquorland has won one of Australia's most prestigious wine awards.

Coles 'Big & Bold Shiraz 2015' was chosen at the Winestate Wine of the Year Awards in Adelaide as the best wine under $20 from Australia and New Zealand, The Australian reports.

A panel of expert judges including iconic Australian winemaker and pioneer Wolf Blass chose the supermarket chain's product ahead of more recognised branded wines, like McGuigan, Lindemans, Banrock Station and Queen Adelaide, and is flying off the shelves.

It is the first time a private label wine has won the award in its category that had 1,500 wines in it. It was also the cheapest wine to ever gain such an accolade at the event which showcased 10,000 wines overall.

The Australian shiraz is sold at Coles liquor outlets such as Liquorland, Vintage Cellars, First Choice and Liquor Market.

Produced exclusively for Coles by Victorian winery McPherson Wines, it is part of an increasing number of private label wines sold in the supermarket's liquor stores.

Aldi's success in the past in producing affordable and tasty private label wines and spirits has now been replicated by Coles to stunning success.

The Coles red wine proved to be more popular with judges than the more recognisable Lindeman's Shiraz (left) and McGuigan Shiraz (right, stock images)

The Australian shiraz is sold at Coles liquor outlets like Liquorland (stock image)

In an ironic twist that is sure to put a smile on the faces of Coles, the notable wine award was sponsored by Aldi.

Just like private label food, for the likes of supermarket giants Woolworths and Coles, private label wine is a growing source of profit too, with both firms now investing in company owned labels.

Rather than being looked upon as low rent versions of branded wines, these exclusive brands are winning awards as well and becoming more and more popular.
The streets of Islington ran thick with treacle on Saturday, while the Labour Partys corridors of power were hung with the black crepe of mourning. For Jeremy Corbyn, the death of Fidel Castro had come as a heavy blow.

According to the Labour leaders official statement, Castro was a huge figure of modern history, national independence and 20th-century socialism.

From building a world-class health and education system, to Cubas record of international solidarity abroad, wrote Mr Corbyn. Castros achievements were many. For all his flaws . . . he will be remembered both as an internationalist and a champion of social justice.

According to the Labour leaders official statement, Castro was a huge figure of modern history, national independence and 20th-century socialism

And that was it. No mention of the thousands executed after Castro seized power in 1959. No mention of the dictators role in the Cuban Missile Crisis, when he urged the Soviets to trigger a nuclear war.

No mention of the priests, dissidents, gays and lesbians imprisoned in re-education camps. Or of the forced shearing of men with long hair, the suppression of free speech, the intolerance of opposition or the appalling poverty that blights Cuban life to this day.

I have long ceased to be shocked by anything Mr Corbyn says or does. Nevertheless, his reaction to Castros death strikes me as disgraceful even by his own standards.

For his entire political career, he has worshipped at the shrine of Castros Cuba and has been a keynote speaker at almost every meeting of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign for more than a decade

But who can be surprised? For his entire political career, he has worshipped at the shrine of Castros Cuba and has been a keynote speaker at almost every meeting of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign for more than a decade.

The Communist dictatorship, he once said, had given the world music, literature, hope and health. No mention, once again, of the torture, repression, intolerance and prison camps recorded by groups such as Amnesty and Human Rights Watch, to which the Labour leader usually pays such close attention.

What lies behind this is no mystery. For as Mr Corbyn once put it, Cuba stood alone in the face of the supreme reign of U.S. hegemony. That was all Mr Corbyn, with his knee-jerk hatred of all things Western, needed. Fidel Castro was anti-American. That made him a saint.

Fidel Castro was anti-American. That made him a saint to Jeremy Corbyn

But, of course, Mr Corbyn was not alone. His political soulmates Gerry Adams, George Galloway and Ken Livingstone were quick to hail a political titan who stood up to the hated Americans.

The EUs risible Jean-Claude Juncker said that Castro was a hero for many, but never mentioned he was also a villain to millions. Even Canadas excruciatingly bien-pensant prime minister Justin Trudeau called him a remarkable leader and a legendary revolutionary.

If you ever needed a demonstration of the sheer myopia of the high-minded Left, its moral compass utterly warped by loathing of the West, this was it. Nothing about prison camps; nothing about human rights abuses; nothing about the suppression of political freedom.

The cult of Castro is one of the most extraordinary political phenomena of our age. Yes, he was an hugely colourful and charismatic figure; yes, his regime did make great strides in health and education.

But perhaps Mr Corbyn should reflect on the words of blind human rights activist Juan Carlos Gonzalez Leiva, who wrote a blistering indictment of the Castro regimes treatment of women.

Day and night, the screams of tormented women in panic and desperation who cry for Gods mercy fall upon the deaf ears of prison authorities, he wrote.

As dictator of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, Castro became a worldwide symbol of revolutionary socialism

They are confined to narrow cells with no sunlight called drawers that have cement beds, a hole on the ground for their bodily needs, and are infested with rodents, roaches and other insects.

In these drawers, the women remain for months. When they scream in terror due to the darkness (blackouts are common) and heat, they are injected with sedatives that keep them half-drugged.

I sometimes wonder what someone like Mr Corbyn makes of testimonies like these. Or does he simply think that they have all been invented by the wicked American imperialists?

But enough of Mr Corbyn. Most of us will soon forget he ever existed. Castro, on the other hand, will be remembered long after most leaders of his generation are not.

In an age when most leaders cut depressingly grey figures, Castros life story sounds almost impossibly melodramatic

As dictator of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, Castro became a worldwide symbol of revolutionary socialism. A bushy-bearded guerrilla who took the world to the brink of nuclear annihilation, he was the last Marxist-Leninist preaching the Communist creed long after it had been abandoned everywhere else.

In an age when most leaders cut depressingly grey figures, Castros life story sounds almost impossibly melodramatic. An illegitimate farm boy who became a Left-wing insurgent, he led a revolution and ruled his country with an iron fist for almost half a century.

With his taste for expensive cigars and pretty young women, he often seemed more like a decadent emperor from the last days of Rome.

Yet no politician of his age preached the gospel of socialist egalitarianism with greater fervour or at more self-indulgent length.

With his taste for expensive cigars and pretty young women, he often seemed more like a decadent emperor from the last days of Rome

In a country long scarred by inequality, he built a universal education system and a free health-care system that were the envy of poor nations worldwide.

In the West, his Left-wing apologists swooned in admiration. But what the high-minded residents of Islington and Hampstead refused to accept was that Castros paradise had a very dark side. Human rights were routinely violated and dissenters harshly punished or forced into exile.

The land of free schools and brand new hospitals was also one of labour camps, executions and the psychiatric treatment of political prisoners.

Although almost every fact about Castros human rights abuses is bitterly disputed, one statistic speaks volumes.

Between the late Fifties, when he seized power, and the early Nineties, when the collapse of the USSR left his Marxist experiment high and dry, 10 per cent of the Cuban population  more than a million people  fled his island utopia for new lives in the U.S.

Castro was never cut out for a quiet life. A flamboyant, restless man with an insatiable sexual appetite, he yearned for a more dramatic destiny. And he found it in armed revolution

No one could have predicted all this, though, on August 13, 1926, when a squealing baby was born to Angel Castro y Argiz, a poor Spanish farmer who had moved to the Caribbean to seek his fortune.

Young Fidel was the son of Angels cook, who bore her master seven illegitimate children. But he was lucky.

Sent to live with his teacher, he won a place at a boarding school and went on to read law at Havana University, where he found himself sucked into the violent world of Forties student politics.

The largest island in the Caribbean, sugar-rich Cuba had been ruled by the Spanish until 1898 when, after a ten-week war, the U.S. liberated it.

People with images of Fidel Castro gather one day after his death in Havana

Cubas independence was a sham, however, and during the 20th century, it effectively became an offshore stronghold of American tourism, gambling and prostitution, governed by a series of corrupt strongmen. In embracing a heady mixture of Marxism and nationalism, the young Fidel was far from unusual. In 1948, aged 21, he was involved in bloody clashes between students and the police.

For a time, however, Castro seemed likely to settle down as a middle-class radical lawyer. Indeed, the early Fifties found him as a struggling attorney working for Havanas poor.

But Castro was never cut out for a quiet life. A flamboyant, restless man with an insatiable sexual appetite, he yearned for a more dramatic destiny. And he found it in armed revolution.

His ambitions were breathtaking. In the first 30 months of the new regime, the government built more classrooms than had been opened in the previous 30 years

In the summer of 1952, aided by his brother Raoul, Castro formed The Movement, whose object was to overthrow the American-backed Cuban leader, General Fulgencio Batista. Their slogan perfectly captured Castros taste for the melodramatic: Liberty or Death!

When they launched an uprising in July 1953, however, it was easily suppressed by Batistas troops. Castro was arrested and put on trial. It was now that he first seized the worlds imagination, delivering a blistering  and immensely long  speech in his own defence.

The final lines of this oration captured his extraordinary self-belief. I do not fear prison, as I do not fear the fury of the miserable tyrant who took the lives of 70 of my comrades, he thundered.

Condemn me. It does not matter. History will absolve me!

Disastrously, Batista did not consider Castro a serious threat and allowed him to be released in 1955. The unrepentant guerrilla disappeared to Mexico, where he befriended a gaunt Argentinian doctor, Ernesto Che Guevara.

On November 25, 1956, Castro and Guevara sailed for Cuba in a old cabin cruiser called Granma.

Disastrously, Batista did not consider Castro a serious threat and allowed him to be released in 1955. The unrepentant guerrilla disappeared to Mexico, where he befriended a gaunt Argentinian doctor, Ernesto Che Guevara

Arriving off a mangrove swamp, they fled inland to the mountain fastness of the Sierra Maestra, where Batistas men would never find them. What followed was too unlikely even for fiction. Month by month, Castros little band ate away at the foundations of Batistas regime, tapping into the rural discontent with the corrupt U.S.-backed leadership.

After two years, the government was no closer to crushing the rebellion, while Castro was flush with new recruits and renewed self-confidence. Then, on New Years Eve 1958, Batista lost his nerve, fleeing into exile with $300 million in stolen cash.

Cheered by vast crowds, Castro led his men into Havana. Established in the penthouse suite of the Havana Hilton, he ordered the execution of 4,000 Batista loyalists, before unveiling grand plans for the improvement of the Cuban people.

His ambitions were breathtaking. In the first 30 months of the new regime, the government built more classrooms than had been opened in the previous 30 years. A new nationalised health care system offered universal vaccination for Cuban children, sending infant mortality rates plummeting.

Fidel Castro died on Friday, at the age of 90, a decade after he relinquished control of Cuba because of ill health

Castro built hundreds of miles of roads, spent hundreds of millions on new water projects and shut down the U.S. mafias much loathed brothels and casinos.

All of this, naturally, required vast sums of money  money that Cuba did not, in fact, have. Yet at first, he seemed tempted to turn to his islands traditional patron, the U.S., for support.

In April 1959, months into his leadership, he flew to Washington DC to meet Vice President Richard Nixon. Though he had appointed Marxist friends  among them Che Guevara  to senior positions, Castro presented himself merely as a Left-leaning Cuban patriot.

But the mutual mistrust was too great. Fidel saw the Americans as overbearing imperialist occupiers, while many U.S. business leaders remained outraged by the nationalisation of their lucrative offshore Cuban enterprises.

By March 1960, President Dwight D. Eisenhower had already instructed the CIA to prepare a plan for Castro to be overthrown. But it was his successor, John F. Kennedy, who inherited the CIAs ill-thought-out operation to land anti-Castro Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs in April 1961.

Supporters of Fidel Castro hang his photo outside Cuba's embassy in Santiago, Chile

The operation was a catastrophe. Deprived of effective American air support, hundreds of Cuban exiles were shot down as they landed, and Castros reputation as the champion of his islands freedom was secured for good.

As one of Castros biographers put it, his popularity was greater than ever. In his own mind he had done what generations of Cubans had only fantasised about: he had taken on the U.S. and won.

In Washington, the Bay of Pigs left a scar that never truly healed. Generations of U.S. politicians saw Castro as the devil incarnate, who must be confronted  or preferably assassinated  at all costs.

For his part, Castro returned the Americans hatred with interest. Having proudly come out as a passionate Marxist, he accepted the USSRs offer to install nuclear missiles in Cuba, which he believed would guarantee its security.

When the news broke in October 1962, Washingtons outraged reaction took the planet to the brink of World War III.

But after 13 days of agonising tension, the two superpowers reached a deal, with the Soviets agreeing to pull out their missiles.

At home, Castro combined the carrot and the stick: more hospitals and schools for his islands poor, together with a renewed crackdown on political dissidents

Astoundingly, though, the resolution of the Cuban Missile Crisis left Castro bitterly disappointed.

Melodramatic as ever, he had urged the Kremlin to threaten nuclear war and was furious to have been left out of the secret superpower talks.

Yet by the mid-Sixties, his position seemed more secure than ever. Castro had established his credentials as Latin Americas leading champion of anti-Western, anti-capitalist resistance.

His old comrade-in-arms Che Guevara  who is even today a poster boy for the militant Left  was killed by Bolivian troops in 1967.

At home, Castro combined the carrot and the stick: more hospitals and schools for his islands poor, together with a renewed crackdown on political dissidents. All of this, needless to say, was heavily funded by his Soviet patrons in the Kremlin.

By the Seventies, Castro was one of the best-known politicians on the planet. An irresistibly colourful figure, fired with an unusual mixture of dogmatic Marxist ideology and intense Cuban patriotism, he was also prey to some very familiar human vices.

Castro was undoubtedly a dictator, and could be cruel and vindictive to foes. To the thousands who suffered under his regime, he seemed a monstrous figure

Passionate and hot-tempered, he was fascinated by sport, cookery, wine and guns. Above all, he liked female company, fathering children in and out of wedlock.

His first marriage ended in divorce in 1955; his second, to the reclusive Dalia Soto del Valle, lasted until his death.

By this stage, the seedy glamour of Castros Cuba had long since worn off, especially as the collapse of the USSR deprived him of at least $5 billion a year in subsidies.

Cuban involvement in post-colonial Africa, which by the early Eighties involved 650,000 troops and civilian advisers in 17 countries, also proved cripplingly expensive. Once one of the Western hemispheres most dynamic economies, Cuba was reduced to a basket case.

By the mid-Nineties, the economy had plunged into the abyss. Millions of Cubans were homeless or unemployed. Prostitution boomed, and Castro was even forced to accept charitable donations from the hated Americans.

The tragedy of this passionate, stubborn, irascible man was that, to defend the independence of his own people, he yoked them to an ideology that did them no favours

At last, in 2008, Castro stepped aside as president, handing power to his marginally less decrepit brother, Raoul.

For the sake of his reputation, Castro should have retired decades earlier. Indeed, for the sake of his people, he should surely have swallowed his pride and cut a deal with Washington  even though it would have meant abandoning his ferocious anti-Americanism.

Castro was undoubtedly a dictator, and could be cruel and vindictive to foes. To the thousands who suffered under his regime, he seemed a monstrous figure.

Yet he never approached the bloody extremes of other Communist dictators such as Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot. And he had some achievements to his credit.

Castro first and foremost is and always has been a committed egalitarian, remarked one U.S. diplomat, Wayne Smith, who acted as the chief of mission in Havana in the Eighties. He wanted a system that provided the basic needs to all  enough to eat, healthcare, adequate housing and education.

At the same time, Smith noted, Castro was fundamentally intolerant of individual freedom  which is the point that Jeremy Corbyn and his friends simply refuse to accept.

Castro was convinced he was right and that his system was for the good of the people, wrote Smith. Thus, anyone who stood against the revolution stood also against the Cuban people and that, in Castros eyes, was simply unacceptable.

The tragedy of this passionate, stubborn, irascible man was that, to defend the independence of his own people, he yoked them to an ideology that did them no favours.

Yes, Castro may have brought his fellow Cubans tangible benefits in the form of schools and hospitals.
Biologists are slowly replacing traditional tracking collars with GPS-equipped ones as part of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks 10-year moose study.

The better collars will allow the researchers to more quickly find dead moose to assess what it is that has killed them, said Nick DeCesare, the FWP biologist leading the study.

Four years into the project, the biologists are slowly building a body of data on which to try and understand three separate cow moose populations across the state  30 moose in the Big Hole Valley region near Wisdom, another 30 in the Cabinet Mountains of northwestern Montana, and a third collection of 30 east of the Rocky Mountain Front.

No easy answers have yet arisen as to why the Big Hole female moose population is struggling when compared to the Rocky Mountain Front group, which is doing much better. The work is confounded by a couple of contradictions.

Moose along the Rocky Mountain Front are more infested with ticks, which can lead to moose scratching their hair off and leaving them exposed in winter. Yet this population of moose is the healthiest of the three being studied, with good calf and cow survival rates along with the highest rate of twin births  an indication of quality habitat.

So the tick levels are the highest, but not high enough to pose a problem, DeCesare said.

Conversely, moose in the Big Hole area are dying with high levels of arterial worm infection. Other moose are known to carry the worms, so why is this population less resilient to the infection? DeCesare said the researchers are hoping to devise a blood test for the arterial worms to find out infection rates before the cows die.

Were not really sure if thats what the problem is, since healthy moose carry it too, he said.

In some of the infected moose the worm, or a bacteria that causes pink eye in cattle, has blinded the animals.

The third oddity is that the Cabinet Mountain moose are suffering some of the highest calf mortalities of the three due to predation, but the adults have been living pretty well creating a stable population thats not really growing or declining.

Moose populations have declined across the United States, especially in Minnesota. Animals along the East Coast in New Hampshire and Maine and even farther north in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and, most recently, British Columbia have fallen, as well. Yet the moose in Colorado seem to be growing and expanding into new terrain  the southernmost population of moose in North America.

They seem to be doing just fine down there, DeCesare said.

The Montana study is looking at the genetics of moose across many states and provinces, from Colorado to Alaska, to test if Shiras moose (the smallest subspecies of moose) that live in Montana and the Rockies are actually genetically different than larger subspecies to the north, or if the differences are instead a result of different habitat conditions for moose living along the southern edge of their range, DeCesare said.

As for unusual data collected so far, DeCesare said two of the study's collared moose have taken some long, long summer walks.

One migrated from Pine Butte Swamp near Choteau east to Fresno Reservoir near Havre and back in 2015. Another migrated from the same area down to the Clark Fork River near Anaconda this year. Both were about 500-mile round-trip journeys.

"While not a focus of the study, those types of movements offer a sense of the level of connectivity of moose around the state," DeCesare said.

With the GPS collars, the researchers are hoping to collect possible cause of death information sooner. Right now, the study population is about 50 percent GPS collared. The old collars are slowly being switched over to GPS devices.

Hopefully the necropsy information will improve with GPS collars, DeCesare said. Theres a better chance to get on the carcasses quicker.
A cafe owner accused of banning an elderly man because it is 'not a respite centre' has fired back after the 84-year-old's daughter complained on Facebook.

NSW Central Coast woman Penelope Beveridge claimed on Facebook the owner of a beachside cafe 'screamed abuse' on Sunday.

She and her husband had gone for a walk with their dog along the beach while her father, Len Fuller, who lives with them, had two coffees, Mrs Beveridge said.

When they collected Mr Fuller about one-and-a-half hours later, Terrigal Surf Cafe owner told them not to come back, Mrs Beveridge claimed.

But the owner has fired back and accused the couple of dumping the 84-year-old man, who has a walking stick and concentrator for breathing.

Len Fuller (pictured), 84, was banned from Terrigal Surf Cafe on Sunday, his daughter claims

Penelope Beveridge is pictured with her dog Jacques on Terrigal Beach

An oxygen concentrator provides gas with a greater oxygen concentration than air.

Mrs Beveridge said she had 'the most horrendous morning' on Facebook on Sunday.

'My 84-year-old father wanted to come to Terrigal Beach and have coffee while we walked Jacques.

'When we returned, the owner  came out and screamed abuse at us for leaving him there as it's bad for business, he is too old to be left alone and they are not a respite centre, plus he doesn't appreciate an old man sitting there with a concentrator for breathing,' she claimed the owner said.

'To shout out he isn't a respite centre and we should be ashamed at ourselves? I am stunned. So old people are not allowed to drink at cafes now.

'If my dad was a younger man sitting, writing on a computer they would have said nothing.'

Mrs Beveridge's post has been shared over Facebook about 4,000 times.

Terrigal Surf Cafe, on the NSW Central Coast, where Mrs Beveridge alleges her 84-year-old father was banned from

'Simply, the old gentleman was never asked to leave,' the owner responded on Facebook

On Monday morning, the Surf Cafe owner responded in his own Facebook post and said there were 'two sides to every story'.

'Simply, the old gentleman was never asked to leave. Fact. He had come to the cafe on other occasions and the same thing happened every time,' the owner wrote.

'The man and woman sat him down, they ordered him a coffee and then left. Now keep in mind the older man has a walking frame, oxygen bottle and can't see that well.

'After time they come back, collect him and go, don't order anything just go.

'This time, on the past Sunday after over two hours I went up to the woman as she was leaving. She was the only one there as the man was in the car park. I said: "Excuse me, may I have a word". No raised voice, no abuse. "I am not comfortable with you leaving your father for such a long extended time".

Mrs Beveridge's post has been shared over Facebook about 4,000 times

'Before I could say anything else I copped the abuse saying she has heard me mutter under my breath the f-word once.

'Then the lady left only to return running into my kitchen yelling at me.

'I never raised my voice only suggested it that the cafe was not equipped to be a respite centre and it was unfair of them to leave him for such a long time, that's it. She then called me a pig, and I said: "Don't come back".

'It's my business,' the owner finished.

Mrs Beveridge told Daily Mail Australia this was a 'total fabrication'.

She said it had not been two-and-a-half hours, but perhaps one-and-a-half.

'He bought two large coffees there and had to get up and go for a walk in between. He doesn't sit there the whole period.'

She said as they left, the owner 'rushed after' as they neared the carpack.

'My 84-year-old father wanted to come to Terrigal Beach and have coffee while we walked Jacques,' Mrs Beveridge said (Terrigal Beach is pictured)

'He pulled me aside and told me he is running a business not a respite centre.

'I asked my husband to wait and was carrying my dog and walked into the cafe and asked the owner, "Can we please talk". He said he doesn't like dad sitting there taking up a table on a busy day and sitting there with his oxygen is making the staff feel sorry for him.

'The owner felt we were using his cafe to dump my dad while we walked our dog - far from the truth.

'Dad is a capable man who has a concentrator and also a walker. He was the person asking to come to the beach,' Mrs Beveridge told Daily Mail Australia.

'His specialist advised us to let him be independent.

'He is a bright, happy man when he is out and about.'

Mrs Beveridge said her father heard the owner shout, 'Don't bring him back here'.
Britain needs a 'good compromise' from the EU in Brexit negotiations as so many countries rely on the UK for security and their own economies, the Polish Prime Minister has warned.

Describing Brexit as the UK 'leaving the EU, but not leaving Europe', Beata Szydlo said Poland would conduct negotiations in a 'down-to-earth' manner, and called on other EU nations to do the same.

Ahead of an historic meeting with Theresa May today, Mrs Szydlo added that her nation was saddened by the result of the referendum and called on any negotiations to consider how the economic and security interests of Britain and many EU members are 'intertwined'.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, she said: 'We hope, as I believe the rest of the EU hopes, that Britain's new relationship with the EU will be as close as possible, and based on the principles of proportionality and balance of rights and obligations.

Beata Szydlo (pictured with Theresa May) said Poland would conduct negotiations in a 'down-to-earth' manner, and called on other EU nations to do the same

'Whether we manage to complete this arduous task of bringing negotiations to a satisfying result will depend solely on our imagination and leadership.

'We need a good compromise which gives both our countries the best possible options for economic and security co-operation.

'Poland will be a constructive partner in this process, as we have been in the past  but the initiative for determining British ambitions and expectations as to the future level of co-operation with the EU has to come from London.'

Mrs Sydlo will meet Mrs May along with six cabinet members from both nations to discuss defence, security, trade and science.

The Prime Minister will also promise to send 150 troops and a number of armoured vehicles to patrol the north-east border of Poland amid heightening fears of Russia.

In her article, Mrs Szydlo also said that UK citizens living across the EU and EU citizens living in the UK should not be made to feel like 'hostages' because of Brexit  with nations having a duty to guarantee a proper right of residence.

Mrs Szydlo (pictured left) added that her nation was saddened by the result of the referendum before she meets Mrs May (right)

Mrs May, speaking before their meeting, she said the UK's ties with Poland are rooted deeply in the two country's 'shared history'.

She said: 'I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship with Poland, rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it. Thats why I am hosting the first ever summit of this kind between our countries today.
Britain has a less than 50/50 chance of completing an orderly exit from the EU within two years, a controversial ex-negotiator claimed last night.

The cross-bench peer Lord Kerr said Parliament, including himself, would not have the guts to vote down any government bill triggering Article 50 - the start point for the two-year Brexit EU negotiations.

At most, he said, parliament would add conditions such as requiring ministers to set out their negotiating objectives in a green paper and report back regularly on the progress of the talks.

Britain has a less than 50/50 chance of completing an orderly exit from the EU within two years, according to Lord Kerr

But, in a speech at the London School of Economics, he said there was a growing chance that the UK and EU heads of state would not reach an agreement.

Lord Kerr, who has been credited with writing Article 50, said: the fog in the Channel is getting thicker all the time. He claimed that, even if an agreement was reached by spring 2019, there was a chance a demob happy European parliament in its final months before elections in 2019 would refuse to ratify the deal.

The ex-EU negotiator added: In my view as an ex-negotiator, interim agreements are only feasible when you have a permanent agreement. The interim agreement covers a gap before the permanent agreement comes into force and while the ratification process takes place.

No one concedes something in an interim agreement that they would not be prepared to concede for a permanent agreement ...

'In a transition or a bridge, you have to know where you are going, and have a second pillar on the other side of the river, and that is just as hard to negotiate.

Earlier this month the peer triggered fury by arguing that the country needed immigration because we native Brits are so bloody stupid.

In a speech at the London School of Economics (pictured), Lord Kerr said there was a growing chance that the UK and EU heads of state would not reach an agreement over Brexit

He said the UK needed an influx of intelligent foreigners to keep us on the right path.

And he claimed the Leave side only won the referendum by cleverly outsourcing xenophobia and racism to Nigel Farage  allowing the Ukip leader to make the sort of offensive claims that would boost the campaign.

Ex-Cabinet minister Owen Paterson yesterday said the public had had enough of attempts to delay Brexit.

He said: The British people voted to leave, people come up to me the whole time, people who voted to leave or to remain, when are you going to get on with it? When are we going to leave?
Travellers could be set to snub Australia after the country announced it will introduce a 15 per cent 'backpacker tax' on foreign workers. Pictured is a back packer at Ayre's Rock

Travellers could be set to snub Australia after the country announced it will introduce a 15 per cent 'backpacker tax' on foreign workers.

The charge will see them pay a 15 per cent levy on every dollar they earn while New Zealand has also introduced a 10.5 per cent charge.

The Australian government had initially sought a revenue-raising 32.5 per cent tax for seasonal workers from January 1 under a proposal first flagged in the 2015 budget.

But the move was met with an outcry from farmers and tourism operators.

They feared it would deter tourists from choosing the country as a destination, with some 600,000 backpackers heading to Australia every year, many finding work picking fruit.

Currently, like other workers, backpackers do not start paying tax until their annual income exceeds Aus$18,200.

Farmers complained bitterly that the levy could affect labour supply at harvest time and in September, the government watered down its plans to 19 per cent.

That led to a political stalemate with the Labor party opposition, the Greens and independent cross bench senators demanding 10.5 per cent, in line with New Zealand.

But Treasurer Scott Morrison said a compromise had now been reached with key crossbenchers who hold the balance of power in the upper house Senate with legislation set to be introduced on Monday.

He told reporters: 'Today the government will be working to put in place a bill which will propose 15 percent on the backpackers' arrangement,' voicing confidence the government now had the numbers to steer it through parliament this week.

Farmers were grateful the issue looked set to be resolved.

'It has been a painful process but we wholeheartedly welcome the announcement that a compromise rate of 15 percent has been reached,' said National Farmers Federation chief executive Tony Mahar.

Farmers complained bitterly that the levy could affect labour supply at harvest time and in September, the government watered down its plans to 19 per cent. Pictured are backpackers in Western Australia

'We now ask that the Senate expedite passage of the relevant legislation to provide the long needed certainty to the sector and allow businesses to start rebuilding backpacker interest in on-farm jobs.'

But despite the tax being less than previously proposed British backpackers in Sydney, who had carried out fruit picking work, were still outraged by the plans.

Chloe Pincho, 28, a Briton in Sydney told the Sydney Morning Herald: 'This tax is just not acceptable because they're robbing you already.'

While Rebecca Marsh, from Northern Ireland, who had also worked on a fruit farm added: 'Say you were doing that and got [the equivalent of] one day pay taken off after all that hard work, it makes you wonder 'what am I actually doing this for?'

It came as Australia's Labor party agriculture spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon also argued that 15 percent was still too high.

He said: 'All backpackers do is look at the headline rate.
Owners can also vote to ban smokey barbecues in apartment blocks

Penalties for tenants ignoring complaints have been hiked up as well

The restriction will only count if the building chooses to adopt the by-laws

Residents will be banned from smoking on their apartment balconies

Residents could be banned from smoking cigarettes and hosting BBQs on their apartment balconies when a set of new strata laws come into effect on November 30.

The radical reforms - which include more than 90 changes to existing strata law - will affect the two million-plus people in NSW who own, rent or manage apartments.

As part of the reforms, it will be much easier for tenants to make a complaint about their neighbour's cigarette or barbecue smoke wafting into their apartment.

Smoking ban: New strata laws that come into effect on November 30 (but will be up to the owners corporation to adopt them) will ban residents from smoking on apartment balconies

Pet-friendly: New strata laws (that will need to be adopted by owners corporations for them to be enforced) should make it a lot easier for apartment owners to keep animals

Four key strata laws to know 1. Cigarettes Residents are banned from letting cigarette smoke drift into neighbour's apartments. Fines of up to $2200 apply for repeated breaches (only enforced if owners corporation chooses to use it) 2. Keeping pets Pets are allowed provided you tell your owners corporation or receive written permission from committee (only enforced if by-laws are chosen) 3. 'Collective sales' With a 75 per cent majority, owners are able to push to demolish and replace their building, or update to add value to their apartment. Previous laws allowed one veto to squash any suggestions 4. Owners corporation powers Owners corporation (body of all the owners) is now able to remove or sell goods left on common property for too long, as well as forcefully remove illegally parked cars Advertisement

Owners corporations will also be able to set up a smoking zone away from the common areas to allow residents to get their nicotine fix.

The penalties for residents ignoring complaints have been hiked up as well, with a maximum fine of $1100 for the first offence and then $2200 for a second breach.

The smoke penetration by-laws state that 'smoke caused by the smoking of tobacco or any other substance' must not drift to the common property of other apartments.

A spokesperson from NSW Fair Trading told Daily Mail Australia that while smokey barbecues on balconies were not banned in the new strata laws, owners could vote to make their own ruling on the matter.

'Owners corporations can make their own decision about the use of BBQs when reviewing their by-laws. Changes to the use of BBQs will need a special resolution vote of owners (more than 75% of owners at a meeting being in favour of the proposed change),' the spokesperson said.

The fines will now go straight to the owners corporation rather than the government, adding incentive for the committee to follow through with complaints.

Animal owners will also be able to breathe a sigh of relief with a more pet-friendly approach to apartment living coming into rotation on Wednesday.

A spokesperson from NSW Fair Trading said that while smokey barbecues on balconies were not banned in the new strata laws, owners could vote to make their own ruling on the matter

Residents will be allowed to keep a pet inside their apartment provided they tell their owners corporation or receive written permission, as opposed to a blanket ban that was previously enforced.

The smoking and pet restrictions come in under a section titled 'by-law reforms', meaning the owners corporation will need to choose to adopt the laws for them to be enforced.

Other key changes include 'collective sales' - meaning that with a 75 per cent majority owners can choose to demolish and replace their apartment block.

Previously it took just one vote against to veto a collective sale or renovation.

Owners corporations will also be able to remove or sell goods left on common property and forcefully move cars illegally parked on their grounds.
Patients are at risk because GPs are struggling to provide a safe service, a survey will show today.

The poll of 5,025 British Medical Association members found that 84 per cent believe their workload is affecting care quality. Only one in ten think they can offer a safe service.

Doctors claim they are not being given enough funding to meet the needs of the rising and ageing population.

Patients are at risk because GPs are struggling to provide a safe service, a survey suggests (file photo)

Surgeries are also facing a recruitment crisis, with up to a third of GPs planning to retire or quit in the next five years. One in eight posts is now empty with many doctors heading abroad and too few being trained.

Waiting times for appointments are at their worst on record and patients are routinely told there are no slots for the next three to four weeks.

The 111 helpline was supposed to reduce the burden but that partially backfired when undertrained call handlers sent too many people to A&E instead.

Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of the BMA GPs committee, said last night: We cannot continue to have a service that cannot deliver a safe and effective level of care to the public.

This major survey of more than 5,000 GPs in England demonstrates that GP practices across the country are struggling to provide safe, high-quality patient care because of unmanageable workload.

Many practices are being overwhelmed by rising patient demand, contracting budgets and staff shortages which has left them unable to deliver enough appointments and the specialist care many patients need.

The poll of 5,025 British Medical Association members found that 84 per cent believe their workload is affecting care quality (file photo)

Addressing the crisis in general practice requires a clear strategy that tackles the numerous problems undermining GP services.

We need an urgent expansion of the workforce in both practices and community-based teams, with GPs calling for an increased number of nurses to look after housebound patients and mental health workers to cope with growing demand in this area.

Better information for patients about how to safely self-care and wider funding increases for general practice are also needed.

Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chairman of the Royal College of GPs, backed the BMA and told of crippling workloads.

She said: The relentlessness of the workload in general practice is a threat to our own health and our patients safety. GPs will see a total of 1.3million patients today alone, and rising patient demand means GPs are carrying out more consultations than ever before  currently 370million a year and 60million more per year than even five years ago.

Earlier this month, the head of the NHS, Simon Stevens, tried another tactic to reduce the pressures on GPs: asking patients with a sore throat to go to pharmacies instead.

He announced the roll-out of an instant test in pharmacies that would tell patients with sore throats a major source of GP visits  whether they needed antibiotics or could go home without medication.

But even that is unlikely to ease pressure to the extent needed.

Although GPs benefited from a new contract ten years ago that led to average salaries soaring to more than 100,000 a year  and enabled them to give up out-of-hours work  morale is at an all-time low.

A Department of Health spokesman said last night: We are investing in primary care precisely to relieve pressure on the front line, which will improve patient safety  with an extra 2.4billion of funding, 5,000 more doctors in general practice and 1,500 more pharmacists in surgeries by 2020.
Twelve Americans died this year as a result of twisters in the United States

Other theories blame the El Nino event and the

Only one tornado hit the United States in November as scientists say climate change is to blame.

The month is in line with what has been a record low year for twister activity with few tornadoes and tornado-related deaths.

Scientists are scrabbling for answers but believe that the melting ice caps, due to climate change, could be the cause.

Only one tornado hit the United States in November as scientists say climate change is to blame

'It is certainly plausible that a lack in Arctic sea ice this year has had implications for cyclone track and intensity, Victor Gensini, a professor of meteorology at the College of DuPage, told the Washington Post, also noting that there was natural variation in weather patterns.

He believes that climate change could be responsible for shifting the storm track north where it has remained over Canada.

Past studies have found a link between unusual jet stream behavior and climate change.

However, the unusually low number of tornadoes in 2016 - just 837 confirmed reports and 12 fatalities - could also be tied to the cyclical El Nino event.

The month is in line with what has been a record low year for twister activity with few tornadoes and tornado-related deaths (file image)

'The year in general has been considerably below normal (around 1000 tornadoes), which is not unexpected given the influence of the El Nino that persisted into spring, diverting the polar storm track northwards, and leading to a very quiet May,' John Allen wrote.

Another theory is that the historic drought over the Southeast could have affected the number of tornadoes. Without the humidity to create storms, there cannot be any tornadoes.

However, it is not just the Southeast that has seen record lows for twister activity, the entire United States has seen a tornado drought.

A huge ridge of high pressure has blocked the jet stream from moving southwards from Canada.

'The big player since September and even late summer in terms of synoptic pattern has been the persistent ridging over the Plains and Southeastern United States,' said John Allen, a pioneer in seasonal tornado forecasting and professor at Central Michigan University.

Scientists are scrabbling for answers but believe that the melting ice caps, due to climate change, could be the cause (the aftermath of a tornado in Kansas in July 2016)

This month, which is often referred to as the 'second season' for tornadoes due to its typically high number of twisters, has had just one recorded tornado - spotted by a pilot flying over northeast Kansas last week.

November has on average 58 tornadoes every month. This is only the fifth time in the past 65 years that tornado activity has dropped so low.

However, we're not at the end of the year yet.
Police face fresh demands to drop their absurd investigation into Sir Edward Heath.

The inquiry, it has emerged, is based on preposterous satanic sex cult claims linked to the suspected fantasist known as Nick.

According to a damning report by their own expert, police have been fed a catalogue of fabrication a decade after the former prime ministers death.

Dr Rachel Hoskins, a leading criminologist brought in by detectives to review the evidence in the case, described the 700,000 probe as a disgrace.

Former prime minister Edward Heath is pictured, right, with Jimmy Savile on TV in the 1980s. But although numerous victims of Savile came forward after his death no credible witnesses have come forward regarding Sir Edward

She said claims from one of Sir Edwards accusers had been cross-contaminated with the claims of Nick, whose allegations led to Scotland Yard wasting 2.5 million on a bungled VIP sex abuse probe.

Last night, Sir Edwards godson said it was clear his reputation had been shredded by an absurd witch-hunt and that the inquiry should be halted.

Lincoln Seligman told the Mail: We are saddened that the destruction of Edward Heaths reputation is allowed to continue, as much by silence from those running Operation Conifer as by a reluctance to intervene on the part of those who can and should.

'Operation Conifer is now in its second year and has recently entered the realms of the absurd. Its now time to end this witch-hunt.

A team of 21 officers and staff from Wiltshire Police have spent more than a year investigating allegations of child sexual abuse against the man who led the Conservative government between 1970 and 1974.

But yesterday, Dr Hoskins blasted detectives for following fantastical tales from a woman whose false memories were unearthed by the same controversial psychotherapy techniques used on Nick.

Sir Edward Heath (pictured) died in 2005. His godson feels his reputation has been trashed without a shred of evidence

The woman, known only as Lucy X, has made lurid claims under hypnosis that the Tory leader was part of a satanic paedophile ring that kidnapped a 10-year-old boy, who was sacrificed on the altar of Tidworth village church in Wiltshire in broad daylight.

But when Dr Hoskins analysed witness statements, she was disturbed to find Lucy Xs account was strikingly similar to the evidence of Nick.

She also discovered that the fathers of Lucy X and Nick worked in the same community and Nicks stories relate to the same location where Lucy Xs family lived, although they may never have met.

Nick is under investigation by Northumbria Police for allegedly perverting the course of justice after falsely accusing politicians and high-profile figures of rape and murder, leading to Operation Midland.

Writing in The Mail on Sunday, Dr Hoskins, who also reviewed Operation Midland as part of her work, said: I have exposed a catalogue of fabrication at the heart of two major inquiries. Worse still, Operation Conifer ploughs ahead.

People remain accused of things that simply never happened.

Cases that are based on this pernicious fallacy must be closed immediately.

A Wiltshire Police spokesman said the force was disappointed that information relating a confidential report has been leaked and potentially may have impact upon those who have disclosed abuse to us.
School Standards Minister Nick Gibb pledged to press on with government reforms which will allow the establishment of new grammars

Ministers last night condemned the fact many parents do not have the option of sending their children to a grammar school.

A dozen locations across the country have no selective school within 30 miles, including five who have none within 50 miles.

School Standards Minister Nick Gibb yesterday pledged to press on with controversial government reforms which will allow the establishment of new grammars.

Data revealed in a parliamentary written answer from Mr Gibb shows that the nearest grammar school from Gateshead, Newcastle upon Tyne, Norwich, South Shields and Sunderland is more than 50 miles away.

Families in Cambridge, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Portsmouth, Stockton-on-Tees, Weston-super-Mare and Worthing are not within 30 miles of a grammar school.

The Government is consulting on scrapping the ban on new grammars as part of a drive to increase the number of good school places for all children. It will allow more selective schools to open where parents want them, on the basis they meet strict conditions to make sure they improve the education of pupils in every part of the system.

Mr Gibb said: We want to build a country that works for everybody and that means an excellent education for every child.

We are concerned that there are still too many families whose local secondary schools are still not good enough. Allowing new grammar schools to be established in areas where parents want them will help to widen choice and improve opportunities for young people.
Cybe Monday shoppers are being warned to look out for computer hackers who will try to steal their credit card details.

Criminals use scam emails, false ads on social media or internet searches promising heavy discounts to trick people into entering their card details.

Once the fraudsters harvest this information, they use their victims details to go on shopping sprees.

The warning came as it was revealed that nearly a third of online consumers may put themselves at risk of fraud during the frenzy to buy discounted goods.

Cybe Monday shoppers are being warned to look out for computer hackers who will try to steal their credit card details using scam emails, adverts and social media campaigns

Cyber Monday is an American term for the online bargain extravaganza which marks the start of the Christmas shopping season.

Financial Fraud Action UK (FFA UK) is urging consumers to be vigilant against fraudsters tactics and to ensure websites are genuine before buying.

Nevertheless, consumers have been warned to expect an increase in the number of fraud cases in the coming days.

Advice service comparethemarket.com warns that cyber criminals are expected to steal 8.6million of todays spend.

Spokesman Simon McCulloch told the Sun: Cyber Monday is a major retail event and a salmon run for criminals who will try to seize money from unsuspecting shoppers and retail outlets.

Figures from Action Fraud, the UKs national reporting centre for fraud and cyber-crime, show more than 10million was stolen from Christmas shoppers last year.

Alex Neill from consumer group Which? added: If you see any deals advertised on Cyber Monday that look too good to be true, be careful. Fraudsters will do all they can to try and catch you out.

Which? published a guide to online shopping today, advising: A lot of fraudulent websites will use a domain name similar to a brand or product name.

For example, website domains such as ipadoffers.net or discountnikeclothes.com should set alarm bells ringing.

Nearly a third (31 per cent) of shoppers who buy goods on the internet are more likely to take a financial risk, such as shopping on an unfamiliar or unsecure website, FFA UK found.

This means that 15 million online shoppers could be putting themselves at risk of financial fraud, if the findings were projected across the UK.

Financial Fraud Action UK (FFA UK) is urging consumers to be vigilant against fraudsters tactics and to ensure websites are genuine before buying

People aged between 16 and 34 are most at risk, the research suggests, with almost half (46 per cent) saying they are more likely to take a chance.

Consumers aged 55 or over were less likely to fall for the tricks, with just 18 per cent saying theyd look at websites they didnt trust.

The survey of more than 1,900 online shoppers was carried out as part of a campaign called take five, urging people to pause before making financial decisions.

The research also found more than one in five (22 per cent) online shoppers say they never check the authenticity of an online retailer, such as by looking for the padlock icon.

Nearly a fifth (19 per cent) would click on an unsolicited email if it promised them a good deal. More than a third (36 per cent) admit their shopping habits change when offered a possible bargain.

Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) say their fear of missing out on a great deal means they let their guard down when shopping online.

Katy Worobec, director of FFA UK, said: Shopping on the internet is easy, convenient and generally very safe, but it can also provide an opportunity for criminals to commit financial fraud from a distance.

Fraudsters will use a variety of convincing tactics to entice unsuspecting shoppers to give over their financial details  from unsolicited emails to fake retail websites and bogus ads.

Shoppers, wanting to take advantage of these too-good-to-be-true deals, are putting themselves at risk by not taking the time to take five and protect themselves.

Tony Blake, senior fraud prevention officer at the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), said: It is easy to forget the dos and don'ts about sharing personal information if you feel rushed into making a purchase and are under pressure. But it really does pay to take five by doing your research when making an online purchase, particularly if you're using a website for the first time.
A man has been captured on video being waterboarded while attending a wild music festival in Victoria.

The man, who appears to be in his early 20s, is seen struggling to breathe for at least 10 seconds after he volunteered for the form of torture at Earthcore dance festival at Pyalong.

A 43-year-old woman from Bayswater, Victoria, was found dead at the same four-day 'bush doof' on Saturday afternoon but a cause of death has not yet been confirmed. The woman was originally reported to be 25-years-old.

In a statement, organisers said they were 'aware' the woman who died had 'an existing medical condition' and noted paramedics arrived within minutes but could not revive her.

Scroll down for video

A man, who appears to be in his early 20s, was captured on video being waterboarded while attending Earthcore dance festival in central Victoria last weekend (pictured)

The brightly dressed man is seen struggling to breathe for at least 10 seconds after he volunteered for the form of torture (pictured)

In the 'waterboarding' video a man dressed in colourful, hippie clothing is seen lying on a wooden bank with his torso tilted toward the ground as a blue cloth is placed over his head and held down by an unknown festival goer.

A third person then begins pouring water over the man's face.

'Do you want some water boarding?' a woman is heard asking someone in the crowd.

After a few seconds the man is seen trying to cover his face from the water with his hands and wriggling around on the board.

After a few seconds the man is seen trying to cover his face from the water with his hands and wriggling around on the board (pictured)

A 43-year-old woman was found dead at the same four-day event on Saturday afternoon but a cause of death has not yet been confirmed

The clothing choices of people at the dance festival in Pyalong, Victoria over the weekend varied greatly

The so-called 'bush doof' was frequented by thousands of young people

A couple of young men got their shirts off as a woman boogied down in the background

Revellers stayed over the weekend at the event, which has been compared to Burning Man

Two girls are seen dancing in the open field where the event was held in central Victoria

Some of the festival goers take time out from the four-day event

The techno dance festival is also held in Perth and Sydney

Men are seen covered in tattoos and body paint as they dance at the event

He begins to wave his hands, indicating he had had enough and is seen gasping for air as he sits up.

'Oh come man, that was nothing!' a man says in the background.

The video was posted to Instagram with a caption reading: 'Welcome to@the_brink_of_reality where war crimes are commonplace and people flock to get waterboarded. Just your everyday mayhem...'

The Brink of Reality is described as a Melbourne party crew, according to its website.

A large light installation of a dog was featured at the Victoria event

Most were pictured at the event enjoying themselves in the sunshine

An alien appeared to offer this young man a hand of friendship - as he gestured away

This reveller drank from a coconut and shot the camera a happy smile

Thousands of people descended upon Pyalong for the event

One reveller shared this image of a huge crowd at the event

'The video wasn't posted by The Brink officially, and was made by two private citizens with ongoing consent being provided and checked on by both parties, with possible safety precautions being taken,' the group told Daily Mail Australia.

'It isn't condoned by the crew, but The Brink feels strongly that if two consenting adults want to do something, they should be allowed to do so.'

Unrelated to the waterboarding incident, the woman who was found dead at the festival around 4.30pm on Saturday has yet to be formally identified.

Festival goers dance at the Earthcore festival in their bright attire

Festival-goers dance among tipis as the sun shines down

Her death was not being treated as suspicious, police said.

Earthcore organisers offered their condolences to the woman's family and friends in their statement released on Monday.

'Before anyone jumps to any conclusions over this very sad situation, we would urge caution in making comments that can harm the family and friends of the deceased any further.'

'We are aware of an existing medical condition and are waiting for the coroners inquest. We offered a counselling service on site to all staff and patrons at the time of the incident. A medical team attended within 2 minutes of the person found and was unable to revive her.'

Some of the party goers stop to pose for a photograph

This woman opted for a bright-coloured cape at the event

Earthcore organisers released a statement (pictured) on Monday in regards to the woman's death, saying they 'are aware of an existing medical condition'

'We strongly advise that making wild speculations during this very difficult time for the family and friends of the deceased will add more stress and difficulties to a very sad and unfortunate situation,' organisers said.

A police spokeswoman said officers spoke to 53 festivalgoers over the past few days, with 32 people detected drug driving, 28 people cautioned for possessing cannabis and 19 drug diversion notices issued.

At the 2015 event, five people were arrested for drug possession and two drug diversion notices were issued, while other people were taken to hospital for drug-related issues, the Herald Sun reported.

A report is being prepared for the coroner.

It is not suggested that anyone pictured in this story took drugs or was under the influence of drugs.

A woman wears neon-green glasses during the night at the festival
Girls are rapidly closing the maths gender gap as a study reveals that social and cultural factors rather than natural ability have previously held them back.

They are catching up with boys in top-level maths achievement as they receive more encouragement and recognition for studying the subject at school.

The findings suggest many girls have been hampered by poor opportunities and prejudice  exploding the maths myth that boys are naturally better at the subject.

Researchers studied decades of data which show young male students consistently outnumbering females in the top five per cent of mathematical ability  often by more than 10:1.

Girls are rapidly closing the maths gender gap as a study reveals that social and cultural factors rather than natural ability have previously held them back

The differences are so marked this has led to suggestions there are sex differences in general intelligence with a male advantage appearing in adolescence, the study reports.

However, latest analysis of a group of 320,554 bright 12-year-olds by the team at Duke University, North Carolina, United States, refutes these claims, pointing to the impact of other factors.

Lead author, Matthew Makel, who is director of research at the Duke University Talent Identification Programme, (TIP) examined the results of these youngsters who took part in a talent search between 2011 and 2015.

This identified and assessed academically gifted seventh graders, using a standardised test geared towards older students.

The study, published in the journal Intelligence, focused on children scoring at the very highest levels on the tests, putting them in the top 0.01 per cent of students of their age.

Girls accounted for 28 per cent of the top-level scores  a significant change from the early 1980s when they represented just seven per cent of scores at that level.

The latest analysis by the team at Duke University, North Carolina, United States, refutes the long standing claims that boys are more intelligent than girls

The study concluded that girls are narrowing the gap with their male counterparts.

It is also reportedly at such a rate that the original cause for the gulf in achievement must have been social and cultural factors rather than genetics.

Dr Makel told The Sunday Times: In the early 1980s our data  as well as independent samples  show about a 13.1 ratio for males to femalesat the top one-in-10,000 performance level.

Our data shows that there are now 2.7 males for every female (at that level). This actually represents a dramatic decline in male advantage in maths in the past 35 years.

This suggests that gaps in opportunities to develop talent between males and females have been closing.

Any such rapid change in representation is almost assuredly explained by social and cultural factors.

In Britain, many younger women are now studying maths  but senior levels are still dominated by men.

In 2008, 850 first-year postgraduate maths students were women, rising to 1,350 in 2015.

Overall, 40 per cent of maths undergraduates are now female but only 7.4 per cent of maths professors are women.

Dr Hannah Fry, who is one of Britains best known mathematicians and a lecturer at University College London, has welcomed the research.

She said: We have a cultural tendency to view maths as a male subject, so girls were socialised to think of themselves as mathematically incompetent.

However, the difference in maths performance of boys and girls is not universal.

In Britain, many younger women are now studying maths  but senior levels are still dominated by men

In Asia and the Middle East, girls often outperform boys. It suggests any problems we have in getting girls to perform in maths are cultural rather than an innate difference in ability.

Laura Butler, 20, a second-year maths undergraduate at Leeds University, admitted she has previously encountered sexism from other students.

She said: When I was doing A-levels the boys kept claiming that men were less emotional, more rational and better at numbers.

But then half of them dropped out after the first year and of the remaining four only one got an A* like me. I ignored them  I love maths and I want to take a PhD and study it for ever.

Professor Joan Freeman, a visiting professor at Middlesex University who studies gender disparities in higher education, said the long term trend is for women to reverse the traditional dominance of men in most subjects.

She said: Historically, girls were seen as far less capable, so they had low expectations and were denied a full education.

Equal opportunities changed everything.
Thousands of homes could be built on the green belt if local authorities offer up other land to create new protected areas.

Ministers are understood to be examining the green belt land swaps proposal for inclusion in an upcoming white paper to help solve the housing crisis.

Green belt swaps would only be allowed if councils offer to designate other land as green belt space.

Thousands of homes could be built on the green belt if local authorities offer up other land to create new protected areas (stock image)

The plan is likely to be met with stiff opposition from MPs however, with critics warning that it will threaten Britains countryside and lead to urban sprawl.

Sajid Javid, the Local Government Secretary, has already indicated he backs the plans for land swaps.

In a speech last week in Westminster, he warned politicians not to stand in the way of councils who propose green belt developments if all the options have been considered.

Where local councils come forward with sensible, robust local plans  and are willing to take the tough decisions  I will back them all the way, he said.

For example, Birmingham City Council has put forward a plan to meet some of its local housing need by removing green belt designation from a small area of land.

Theyve looked at all the options. Theyve considered all the implications. They want to build homes for their children and grandchildren. And Westminster politicians should not stand in the way of that.

Sajid Javid, the Local Government Secretary, has indicated he backs the plans for land swaps

Andrew Mitchell, the Tory MP for Sutton Coldfield where the green belt homes near Birmingham will be built, criticised the plan: We face horrific proposals from the Labour council and are frankly astonished that Sajid Javid has not stood by the Conservatives manifesto commitment to defend the green belt.

He himself said the green belt is absolutely sacrosanct. We are therefore at a loss to know why the Government is unable to protect us from these iniquitous proposals. There is nothing that causes more anger among the electorate than being let down in this way.

Nigel Mills, the Conservative MP for Amber Valley, said: We have always said that green belt land is untouchable except in exceptional circumstances, thats what we should stick to.

Paul Miner, planning campaign manager at the Campaign to Protect Rural England said: We are concerned that his could be charter for developers and encourage local authorities to release large swathes of green belt with little justification.

Once its gone, its gone forever. Its generally found that the green belt is performing an important function in stopping urban sprawl.

A row over the green belt has broken out in Theresa Mays own constituency of Maidenhead

A row over the green belt has broken out in Theresa Mays own constituency of Maidenhead, where eight out of ten new homes planned are due to be built on protected areas.

The local authority there has set itself a target of building 700 new houses a year until 2032.

But plans to erect the buildings on the green belt are opposed by local Lib Dems, who have set up a petition urging residents to oppose it.

A post on Mrs Mays website, made before she was MP, said she had campaigned against excessive development: Maidenhead and the surrounding areas face immense pressure for more residential development.

'This part of Berkshire is a great place to live and we want to keep its character. Thats why Theresa has a track record of campaigning against overdevelopment. Theresa opposes any weakening of the rules which protect the countryside from excessive development, such as regional development targets.

Theresa is regularly in touch with both Wokingham Borough Council and the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead to ensure they are listening to local residents views on development proposals.

'She meets local residents to discuss development issues and she has campaigned against inappropriate large-scale developments and will continue to fight to preserve the character of our local area.
Bali Nine drug smuggler Renae Lawrence has been leading a vigorous lifestyle as she serves time behind bars at a Bali prison.

The 39-year-old Australian prisoner has maintained a low profile since she was caught with 2.689 kilograms of heroin found strapped to her body in 2005.

But Lawrence, from Newcastle in NSW, has been juggling a busy schedule in the Bangli prison in central Bali - from teaching dance and fitness classes, painting murals and training her pet rescue puppy Ozzi.

And the former panel beater and hospitality worker, who converted to Hinduism, has been making the most of the rehabilitation programs on offer.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, her friend Mary Lou Pavlovic, a Melbourne artist, said she noticed the inmate has turned her life around since the pair met in 2012.

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The 39-year-old inmate has been keeping herself busy by painting murals around her prison

Lawrence has been teaching fitness dance classes as she serves time in the Bangli prison

Mary Lou Pavlovic (left) has spoken fondly of her friend Renae Lawrence (right) who is serving time behind bars in Bali after she was caught smuggling drugs in 2005

The Australian inmate (right) has also been sewing handmade wallets and clutches

'I have seen her develop since 2012,' Ms Pavlovic told Daily Mail Australia.

'She's great. The Renae I know has become a very likeable, witty, bright woman - and not the young person she was when it [drug trafficking] happened.

'Renae has been painted terribly in the media. The media sort of made her into a monster but she's a beautiful, remarkable woman. I'm very fond of her.'

And Lawrence has mastered the Indonesian language since serving more than half of her 20-year sentence for drug trafficking.

'She now speaks fluent Indonesian, forgets to speak English nowadays,' Ms Pavlovic said.

'And for as long as I've known Renae, she has been Hindu.'

Lawrence has been taking up several new hobbies. She has started classes to teach traditional Balinese dance to fellow inmates - and even children, as well as sewing handmade wallets to sell at tourist markets around Ubud.

Ms Pavlovic, who last saw Lawrence in August, said the prisoner approached her about four years ago to do an art project together.

The former panel beater and hospitality worker has been inspired to paint behind bars

She has been training her pet rescue puppy Ozzi (pictured left at three weeks old and right)

Lawrence (far left) has been teaching fitness and dance classes as she serve time behind bars

'I first visited her when she was still in Kerobokan Prison. We talked about doing an art project but she wasn't ready at that stage,' she said.

'But as she moved around to different prisons, she became more interested in art. I was really impressed with her artworks. She has improved a lot over the years - she has great organisation skills and a good focus on art.

'She asked me to set up an art project in April 2015, during the Bali Nine execution [of ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran].

'It was a very harrowing time - the executions and all the circumstances. But I'm so pleased to see that Renae is going forward and I only hope the other Australian Bali Nine can move forward too.'

Lawrence has spent a lot of time brightening up the prison by painting murals.

'Renae was fantastic,' Ms Pavlovic said.

'She worked on a beautiful project around the kitchen - it was falling to bits but she fixed the whole wall.

'It was good for her painting - and other prisoners feel much better when they see the mural. Not only has it been good for prisoners but it has been a focal point in jail.

'I think the jail that she's in at the moment has made her a better person. It's quite peaceful than any other Indonesian prison cells you hear of. It's the best you can get there. Staff are very supportive of Renae.'

Ms Pavlovic (left) met Lawrence in 2012 when the inmate asked her to work on an art project

Not only has she turned her life around, but Lawrence (pictured left during her trial in 2006 and right) has also been helping other prisoners get back on track

Lawrence (pictured breaking down in tears in 2006) was a member of the Bali Nine drug ring when they tried to smuggle heroin from the Indonesian resort island of Bali

And being closely by her side is her beloved furry friend Ozzi, a 'therapy puppy', who she has been training since he was just two weeks old.

'Ozzi was brought into the jail [earlier this year],' Ms Pavlovic said.

'She loves him a lot - he's a fantastic and perfect dog for her. He has always been by her side. She has been training Ozzi.

'Renae also loves children. She loves owning a pet fish and turtles [and has even built a turtle pond].'

Not only has she turned her life around, but Lawrence has also been helping other prisoners get back on track along the way.

'Renae is always looking out for others before herself,' Ms Pavlovic said.

'She's always helping other prisoners. If someone doesn't have a blanket to sleep with, she would say "We've got to look after him" - it's just who she is.
Australia's most wanted terrorist could inspire and radicalise inmates if he is extradited to Australia, counter-terrorism experts say.

Melbourne-born Islamic State fighter Neil Prakash, 25, is being detained in Turkey after being arrested trying to leave Syria using false identity papers.

If he returns to Australia, he will most likely be kept in maximum security at the Goulburn Supermax or a new anti-terror facility in Sydney's Long Bay Correctional Centre, ABC News reported.

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Neil Prakash was burned and disfigured by the targeted drone strike at his hide-out in Iraq, but was not killed as initially reported

Dr Clarke Jones, an expert on prison radicalisation at the Australian National University, told the ABC that Prakash would be able to influence other inmates as prisons breed extremism.

'It could be more of a risk bringing him back and putting him into our facility. Trying to manage someone like that is going to be extremely problematic,' Dr Jones said.

Counter-terrorism expert Dr Leah Farrell told ABC that Prakesh would have valuable information on local and international terrorist networks.

'The western jihadis' tended to coalesce together, and the particular 'working group' that he associated with was involved in some efforts to incite people to carry out attacks in a number of countries,' Dr Farrall said.

Prakash was earlier reported to have been killed in a drone strike earlier this year.

But Neil Prakash was alive, and headed across Iraq to the Turkish border using a fake passport after recovering from his injuries, Daily Telegraph reported.

He was unaware Australian spies and U.S. intelligence agencies were on the case, and tracked him for seven months before his arrest.

Australian and Turkish officials were waiting for him at the border and captured him at gunpoint earlier this month.

In June, online 'chatter' alerted spies that Prakash was still alive.

Prakash - who used the name Abu Khaled Al-Cambodi - is not believed to have been travelling alone, and may have been with his Indonesian-born wife.

He was unaware Australian spies and U.S. intelligence agencies were on the case, and tracked him for seven months before his arrest

Most high-profile terrorists are killed in targeted drone strikes, like the one that struck his hide-out in April.

It is extremely rare to be captured alive.

And many countries want a piece of Prakash's arrest. The U.S., Australia, UK, Turkey and Israel are all seeking to interrogate the former Buddhist. The European Union may also want to interrogate him.

Australia has put in a formal extradition request for the man, a spokesperson for the Justice Minister, Michael Keenan, said on Saturday.

'An individual we believe to be Neil Prakash has been arrested and detained in Turkey,' the spokesperson said in a statement.

'The arrest of the person we believe is Prakash is the result of close collaboration between Australian and Turkish authorities.'

Jacinta Carroll, director of the Counter Terrorism Policy Centre at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, believes it likely Australia will be given priority to prosecute the militant, given his influence and links to attacks here.

Many countries want a piece of Prakash's arrest. The U.S., Australia, UK, Turkey and Israel are all seeking to interrogate the former Buddhist

Prakash was a key part of Islamic State propaganda and he is linked to several failed Australian terror plots to kill innocent people.

He was linked to a failed Melbourne plot to behead a police officer on Anzac Day last year and to Numan Haider, an 18-year-old who was killed after stabbing two police officers in Melbourne in 2014.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in May named Prakash the most senior Australian operative in Islamic State.

Prakash was a chief recruiter and plotter for Islamic State.

He was arrested by Turkish authorities several weeks ago after being contacted by Australian officials who believed they had intelligence he was planning to enter the country.

Prakash, who left Melbourne in 2013, had also appeared in IS propaganda videos and magazines.
Hundreds of veterans protested the decision to stop flying the American flag on the campus of a liberal arts college after it was stolen and found torched.

Demonstrators brought their own flags and chanted 'U.S.A.' at Hampshire College in Amherst on Sunday during what organizers called a 'peaceful demonstration of freedom.'

The college decided to lower the flag to half-staff, due to the 'environment of escalating hate-based violence' after the elections.

The college decided to remove the flag altogether after it was stolen and recovered on the morning of Veterans Day after it had been burned - a move that drew sharp criticism around the country.

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A large crowd of veterans staged a protest at a Massachusetts college on Sunday in response to the school's decision to stop flying the American flag

Veteran Jerry Maguire said: 'They took down my flag, they have a right to that. Im here to defend their right to do that but I want them to understand how bad that hurts me.'

Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno said the school's decision disrespects veterans and current military members (left, one protester, right, a sign mocking degrees from Hampshire College)

Veteran Jerry Maguire, told WWLP: 'They took down my flag, they have a right to that. Im here to defend their right to do that but I want them to understand how bad that hurts me.'

Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno also joined in with the protesters and said the school's decision disrespects veterans and current military members, adding that the decision would have been handled 'very, very differently' in other countries.

The liberal arts school made the decision not to fly the flag after a series of controversies following Donald Trump's election win.

It first created headlines by lowering the flag to half-mast after the election, with Hampshire College President Jonathan Lash telling WBZ NewsRadio the gesture was meant to kickstart 'meaningful and respectful dialogue'.

Locals became furious with the school's stance after the flag was stolen one night and found torched on the morning of Veterans Day.

Hampshire College first created headlines by lowering the flag to half-mast. The flag was then stolen and found torched before school officials decided not to fly it at all

Lash explained the rationale behind lowering the flag in a statement.

'In the current environment of escalating hate-based violence, we made the decision to fly Hampshire's U.S. flag at half-staff for a time while the community delved deeper into the meaning of the flag and its presence on our campus,' he wrote in the statement.

'This was meant as an expression of grief over the violent deaths being suffered in this country and globally, including the many U.S. service members who have lost their lives.

'Our intention was to create the space for meaningful and respectful dialogue across the many perspectives represented in our community.'

He then went on to address criticism the school has received, and made clear why no flag will fly at the school for the time being.

'Some have perceived the action of lowering the flag as a commentary on the results of the presidential election - this, unequivocally, was not our intent,' Lash wrote.

Hampshire College's president said the decision to fly the flag half mast was 'meant as an expression of grief over the violent deaths being suffered in this country and globally'

A worker at the college in Massachusetts is seen taking the flag down on campus

'After some preliminary consultation with campus constituents (much more is needed), we decided on Friday that we will not fly the U.S. flag or any other flags on our college flagpole for the time being.

'We hope this will enable us in the near term to instead focus our efforts on addressing racist, misogynistic, Islamophobic, anti-immigrant, anti-Semitic, and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and behaviors.'

Many students appeared supportive of the stance, posting images and video to social media celebrating the change.

Some alums also commented on the college's Facebook page saying the were 'proud' at the school for taking a strong stance.

Lash (left) issued a statement (right), saying the gesture to fly the flag half mast was not 'a commentary on the results of the presidential election'

The college issued another statement clarifying that the main flag was taken down, rather than banned across campus

The school's response angered people across the country, and hundreds of veterans convened on Sunday in protest (pictured, Hampshire College)

However, some people flooded the school's Facebook page with negative comments.

'As both a veteran and a taxpayer, I am appalled at the decision of this college to ban the flying of the US flag, the symbol of your school's educational freedom. I sincerely hope that the parents of your precious students, the ones actually paying the tuition, withdraw their support,' Bob Gardner wrote.

'That's a horrible decision. If my sons went to Hampshire College or had applied there I would have pulled them out,' Deb Levine commented.

'You need to lose your Federal Funding if you are not going to honor the American Flag because of a bunch of whining little runts who never got punished or spanked as kids growing up,' Robert Diberto angrily wrote.
His family, community, and even the Savannah mayor attended his funeral at Cathedral of St. John the Baptist

Investigators are still working to determine what caused the collapse

Father of an 8-year-old son had aortic aneurysm and died in the hospital

He was pulling people from the water after a ferry dock collapsed in the afternoon

A hero firefighter who last died in Savannah, Georgia from an aortic aneurysm while rescuing people from the river after a ferry dock collapse was laid to rest Saturday.

Michael Curry, a 13-year veteran at the fire department, was helping to save people who had fallen into the Savannah River after a dock loaded with about 50 people collapsed. Thirty of them were injured.

Master Firefighter Curry, who had an eight-year-old son, was rushed to the hospital. He died the afternoon of October 19.

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Firefighter Michael Curry (pictured right and left with his 8-year-old son) died Saturday while rescuing people from drowning after a dock collapsed in Savannah, Georgia

Members of Savannah Fire Department exit the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist carrying the casket of Master Firefighter Michael Curry on Saturday

Firefighters and the community follow the casket of Michael Curry out of the cathedral

Curry's son, Cole Michael (left) and his mother, Susan Salem, solemnly make their way to the funeral

Investigators are still working to determine what caused the dock to collapse (pictured), sending about 50 people into the Savannah River and injuring 30 of them

The community and firefighters gathered at the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist for the hero's funeral service, according to WJCL.

'Today is a sad day. Many tears have and will be shed for our fellow Savannahian master firefighter Michael Curry,' said Savannah Mayor Eddie DeLoach, who was also a friend. 'Michael did not think twice when he was called to service but put on his gear and went to work.'

'Mike was someone for all of us to aspire to and because of him I am a better person,' said friend Chris Sams. 'If I were to mention all the things I learned from him, I'd never finish.'

Curry was known as someone who was always ready to lend a helping hand - 'Grab that starfish and throw it in the ocean. Save as many as you can' his friend Chris Sams said of the firefighter's philosophy

'Everybody says that I'm his best friend. He made everyone feel like his best friend. The biggest thing he'd want us to remember, grab somebody, grab that starfish and throw it in the ocean. Save as many as you can. That's the Mike I know.'

Curry was 42 years old at the time of his death, and married with a young son, Cole. He was also formerly with the US Navy, according to the outlet.

An aortic aneurysm that bursts can cause death within hours. It happens when the wall of the aorta bulges outward. The aorta is the largest artery in the body and descends from the left heart ventricle to the lower abdomen and brings blood to most organs in the body.

The dock connected people to a ferry on River Street, a popular tourist attraction.

An investigation is underway and whether overcrowding contributed to the collapse will be a focus, according to CNN.

A witness told WJCL the ramp had dropped three or for feet as it collapsed while the crowd screamed.

'The pier appeared to drop straight down,' another witness told WTVR.

People struggled to get out of the water. Witnesses tried to help them get out but had to fight against strong currents.

The fire department has pledged to open a scholarship fund for Curry's young son.
An out-of-control car was left doing doughnuts in the middle of the motorway this afternoon after a driver fell unconscious at the wheel.

Dramatic footage shows fellow motorists abandoning their cars and desperately trying to stop the vehicle as it reversed around in circles on the M4 in western Sydney.

It is not immediately clear what happened to the driver, who was eventually pulled from his white vehicle after being found slumped at the wheel.

An out-of-control car was left doing doughnuts in the middle of the motorway this afternoon after a driver fell unconscious at the wheel

New South Wales Police told Daily Mail Australia that the driver is believed to have had a 'medical episode' while driving towards the city early this afternoon.

Police received a call at 12.50pm after reports of a two-car crash, with a male driver still in one of the vehicles.

It is not clear whether the accident took place before the man fell unconscious.

Dramatic video obtained by 7 News then showed the car reversing in circles, narrowly avoiding crashing into motorway barriers.

Dramatic footage shows fellow motorists abandoning their cars and desperately trying to stop the vehicle as it reversed around in circles on the M4 in western Sydney

New South Wales Police told Daily Mail Australia that the driver is believed to have had a 'medical episode' while driving towards the city early this afternoon

Traffic came to a standstill behind the out-of-control car as motorists jumped out of their own to try to stop the speeding vehicle.

It eventually came to a halt and the driver has been taken to hospital. His condition is not known.

The damaged car was later seen being towed away.
A French Bulldog has impaled herself on a hook, larger than her body, with the owner arriving home to find Gigi in a pool of her blood.

Gigi the small French bulldog managed to impale herself on a metal hook after attacking a basket, which resulted in an emergency trip to the vet in Baulkham Hills, Sydney.

The owner said she was terrified to come home from work to find the curious dog bleeding and rushed her to the vet.

Images show Gigi in a pool of her own blood as the vet at Sydneys Animal Referral Hospital (ARH) Emergency Centre remove the bar

The owner said she was terrified to come home from work to find the curious dog bleeding and rushed her to the vet

The vet was reportedly surprised at the size of the enormous S-shaped hook caught in the dog's mouth and lower jaw

The vet was reportedly surprised at the size of the enormous s-shaped hook caught in the dog's mouth and lower jaw.

Images show Gigi in a pool of her own blood as the vet at Sydneys Animal Referral Hospital (ARH) Emergency Centre remove the bar.

Amazingly the vet said Gigi didn't suffer too much damage and after some stitches and an overnight say she was released.

The vet announced Gigi absolutely fine a couple of days later.

Amazingly the vet said Gigi didn't suffer too much damage and after some stitches and an overnight say she was released
All three women disappeared from their Brisbane home in

A man has been found guilty of killing Barbara McCulkin and her two daughters, who disappeared from their Brisbane home in 1974.

A jury found Garry Reginald Dubois, 69, guilty on Monday of raping and murdering sisters Vicki and Leanne McCulkin and of the manslaughter of their mother, Barbara, after a two-week-long trial in Brisbane's Supreme Court.

He was also found guilty of deprivation of liberty.

The crown argued Dubois and his co-accused Vincent O'Dempsey, who is yet to face trial, took the McCulkins from their Highgate Hill house and killed them soon after.

Garry Reginald Dubois, 69, was found guilty on Monday of killing sisters Vicki (left) and Leanne (right) McCulkin and their mother, Barbara, in 1974 after they disappeared from their Brisbane home

Dubois (pictured) was found guilty of raping and murdering Vicki and Leanne and the manslaughter of Barbara. He was also found guilty of deprivation of liberty

Barbara McCulkin (pictured) disappeared from her Highgate Hill home in January 1974

It was alleged Dubois aided by restraining the three women, according to The Courier Mail.

The McCulkin family began to cry after the verdict was read and Dubois' wife, Jan, shook her head 'no'.

Earlier this month, Dubois pleaded not guilty to the charges of murder, rape and deprivation of liberty.

During the trial, witness Peter Hall claimed Dubois told him just days after the three women went missing that he and O'Dempsey allegedly drove them to bushland before killing them.

Graham Ogden (left), brother of Barbara McCulkin, and family members, leave the Supreme Court in Brisbane on Monday

Jan Dubois (pictured), wife of Dubois, shook her head after the verdict was read on Monday

Garry Dubois's daughter leaves court (left) followed by Graham Ogden, the brother of murdered Barbara McCulkin

The McCulkin family home in Highgate Hill in Brisbane where the three women were last seen

Dubois, nicknamed Shorty, said the girls were separated from their mother, who he believed was strangled, Mr hall testified.

'He [Dubois] said there were gurgling sounds and he [O'Dempsey] seemed to be gone for what seemed like a long period of time,' Mr Hall said.

'After the sounds stopped O'Dempsey came back and he raped one of the girls and he told Shorty to rape the other one, which he had trouble doing.'

Mr Hall said Dubois had said he didn't 'feel good' at the time but eventually complied.

'After that was over O'Dempsey killed one and asked him [Dubois] to kill the other. He said he couldn't do it so O'Dempsey killed the second one,' Mr Hall said.

Detective Inspector Michael Dowie leaves court ahead of the family of Barbara McCulkin after hearing Dubois's guilty verdict

The McCulkin family (pictured) began to cry after the verdict was read
In the wake of Donald Trumps victory in the presidential election, the battle for the soul of America has begun.

It is playing out in boardrooms high above New York City, in off-the-record conversations between the president-elect, news executives and prominent reporters and on-air personalities.

Two such meetings took place this week. The first was with broadcast news executives and reporters at Trump Tower, and the second was with executives, editors and reporters at The New York Times.

Trump reportedly excoriated news executives from nearly every major media outlet during the closed-door meetings, strategically lobbing accusations that theyd dishonestly covered his presidential campaign. Doing so was tantamount to working the officials during a sporting event in the hopes that the next call will be favorable.

But this is not a contest whose ending is inconsequential. This contest  this battle  is for the very future of our country. It shouldnt be fought in closed-door meetings where the public never gets to join the fight.

Though Trump eventually went on the record Tuesday to tell The New York Times that he disavowed the white nationalists who are among his most ardent supporters, Trumps actions say otherwise. He appointed as his chief strategist Steve Bannon, who gave voice to white nationalists. He chose retired Gen. Mike Flynn as national security adviser after Flynn said fear of Muslims is rational. He chose Alabama U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions as attorney general after Sessions was denied a federal judgeship in 1986 because of numerous allegations of racism.

Those actions have consequences, as weve seen in the rash of hatred and bigotry that has been unleashed in the wake of Trumps election. When bigots are emboldened to physically assault women who are wearing a Muslim head covering, or to paint swastikas on walls in Trumps name, or to threaten black students attending an Ivy League university, America is in danger.

The media must seek not only to provide the facts, but also to provide context.

In recent days, however, Ive seen a troubling shift in the way these things are covered. Take white nationalism, for instance. Following Trumps election, various outlets, including The New York Times, have sought to explain that while white nationalists believe whites should control the economy, the government and the culture, they arent necessarily white supremacists.

In my view, that is a dangerous softening of what white nationalism actually represents. Both viewpoints require one to believe that whites, as a group, are the only ones worthy of leadership and control. Both viewpoints require one to believe other groups must be subjugated. Both viewpoints are rooted in the belief that ones skin color is an indication of where one should fall in the pecking order of humanity.

In other words, both viewpoints are racist. Theres just no other way to put it, and trying to parse words on such an important point serves only to normalize racism.

By appointing officials who have tried to rebrand racism as white nationalism or the alt-right while telling us that he wants to serve all Americans, Trump is saying one thing while plainly doing another.

The medias job is to tell that truth.

But if Trump, by browbeating and bullying the media, can control the narrative around such obvious truths, policies that target people of color will be overlooked. White nationalism and its close companion, white supremacy, will be accepted, and the free press Americas founders enshrined in our Constitution will be worth little.

We cant allow our most prominent media outlets to return to the time when they were complicit in the bigotry that defined American society. But if those outlets refuse to ask the tough questions that must be posed, that is exactly what will happen.

I know that the Fourth Estate is in a period of flux. I know that Trumps amazing ascent on a platform driven by bigotry is the most interesting story of our time. I know that access to the Trump administration could determine who dominates the ratings.

But if news outlets are willing to reach for ratings at the expense of the truth, if we are willing to compromise to be in the good graces of any president, then we are no longer serving the people.

Were no longer a free, unfettered press.
A daughter who severely neglected her elderly mother to the point of death has received a 12-year jail sentence for manslaughter.

Ena Lia Dung was found dead lying on a plastic sheet covered in her own faeces, weighing only 29 kilograms and with insects eating her rotten flesh in 2015, a court heard.

The 77-year-old had 14 broken ribs, a cracked sternum, severe bed sores and serious internal injuries when police found her emaciated body inside the Auckland home she shared with her daughter Cindy Melissa Taylor and two unrelated adults, theNZ Herald reported.

Cindy Melissa Taylor (pictured) is facing manslaughter charges after her mother was found dead lying on a plastic sheet covered in her own faeces, weighing only 29 kilograms and with insects eating her rotting flesh

Her 43-year-old daughter, Cindy Melissa Taylor, was sentenced in Auckland's High Court on Monday after a jury found her guilty of manslaughter and two charges of dishonestly using a document in August.

She will spend 12 years behind bars for manslaughter and 18 months, to be served cumulatively, for the dishonesty charges.

The 43-year-old earlier pleaded not guilty to manslaughter charges over the 'disturbing' death in the Auckland High Court, with her two married flat mates - Luana Taylor, 56, and Brian Taylor, 62 - also rejecting allegations they failed to give the vulnerable woman appropriate care before she died.

Luana Taylor and Brian Taylor were also found guilty of failing to protect a vulnerable adult.

They were jailed for six years and three months, and six years, respectively.

Crown prosecutor Natalie Walker said the three accused allowed Ms Dung to die a slow and painful death as evidence about the shocking condition she was found in was revealed during the trial.

'The three defendants all allowed her to die what was undoubtedly a miserable death in that house,' Walker said according to Stuff.co.nz.

'This is a case about the gross neglect of an elderly and very vulnerable woman,' she added.

The court heard Luana Taylor had called emergency services on January 16 to report Ms Dung was unresponsive but refused to give CPR on 'religious grounds' when asked by the operator, according to Stuff.co.nz.

Paramedics were reportedly met with a horrific stench when they arrived at the house and found Ms Dung lying on a green plastic sheet covered in faeces and urine which had left her skin covered in chemical burns.

Paramedics were met with a horrific stench and found Ms Dung lying on a green plastic sheet covered in faeces and urine which had left her skin covered in chemical burns (stock image)

Tristain Sames was one of the first on the scene and said the smell was so bad he had to shut the door and take some time to compose himself before holding his breath and re-entering.

'An overpowering smell of stale urine or ammonia; one of the strongest smells, if not the strongest smell, I've had in this line of work. It was enough to start me gagging,' he told the court according to the NZ Herald.

Another paramedic said the smell brought tears to his eyes before he even had the chance to lay eyes on the woman who was 'just skin and bone, basically a scarecrow'.

Ms Walker told the court the victim's body was rotting and the house smelled of gangrene but she was found to be healthy, with no other evidence of injuries or illness that would have caused her death.

Forensic pathologist Fintan Garavan told the court on Wednesday Ms Dung's rotting flesh had started to be consumed by insects, making her body resemble that of a person who was left outside after death, the NZ Herald reported.

He said necrotic ulcers, pressure sores and chemical burns had formed on her skin after she lay in her own waste for extended periods of time, adding her condition was the result of 'extremely poor hygiene and extremely poor nursing standards'.

Justice Edwin Wylie (pictured) listened to two days of evidence in the shocking case

Dr Garavan said Mr Dung's lungs were inflamed and she had multiple broken bones - the most he had ever seen in his career, Stuff.co.nz reported.

He said they could have been caused by multiple falls, one serious fall or they could have been caused intentionally by another person but could not give a date for when they occurred.

'To have so many broken ribs it's very painful and to have so many... it's going to interfere with your ability to breathe,' he said according to Stuff.co.nz.

The pathologist said he 'struggled' to understand how she had so many broken bones and still received no medical attention.

After seeing the extent of Ms Dung's injuries Dr Garavan was extremely concerned and reportedly decided to contact police so he could ask them to investigate the circumstances surrounding her death.

All three defendants told police Ms Dung had refused to eat for ten days before she died and would not use the toilet to relieve herself which is why the green tarp was laid underneath her.

Cindy Taylor said she saw her mother only hours before her death and had tried to force feed her in the days prior but she refused.

She also claimed her mother was bulimic but medical records found by police reportedly suggested her weight had not dropped below 52 kilograms before 2009.

Mr Taylor said he had seen Ms Dung through the window on the day of her death but did not check on her as the elderly woman's care was her daughter's responsibility, Stuff.co.nz reported.

Cindy Melissa Taylor will spend 12 years behind bars for manslaughter and 18 months, to be served cumulatively, for the dishonesty charges

Mr Taylor's lawyer argued the prosecution would have to prove he was in close contact with Ms Dung before her death and had been aware she was close to dying for the manslaughter charge to stick, the NZ Herald reported.

Luana Taylor, who is in a wheelchair, told police she had recently contacted Healthline about Ms Dung's deteriorating condition, Stuff.co.nz reported.

She was instructed to contact mental health advocates or police if Ms Dung's condition worsened but she took no action until making a 'disingenuous' call for help to 111 after her death, the court heard.

The court also heard from a neighbour who claimed to have seen Cindy Taylor abusing her mother and witnessed her weight decrease dramatically, Stuff.co.nz reported.

Cindy Taylor is also facing charges for obtaining money by deception after police found she had withdrawn money from her mother's superannuation account, spent $1,750 on her EFTPOS card and was also using her deceased uncle's account.
Michael Banerian (pictured), a Michigan elector, says he's received death threats

One member of the electoral college claims he has received dozens of graphic death threats from people urging him to cast his vote for Hillary Clinton.

Michael Banerian, a 22-year-old elector from Michigan, has received several 'aggressive' emails, some of which include 'talk about shoving a gun in my mouth and blowing my brains out', he told the Detroit News.

Another email stated 'You're a hateful bigot, I hope you die', Banerian said.

But the Republican college student said he has every intention of casting his vote for Donald Trump, who won the state's 16 electoral votes by a narrow margin of 10,704, it was announced Friday.

Electors across the country have been barraged with phone calls and emails from voters urging them to become 'faithless electors' on December 19 in a last-ditch effort to block Donald Trump from the presidency.

In the US, presidents are elected by the Electoral College rather than the popular vote, where Hillary Clinton is 2.2million ballots ahead of Trump.

In most states, electors must cast a vote for the winner of their state's popular vote or face fines ranging from around $500 to $1,000.

Other states like Arizona, Idaho, and Georgia don't have a rule against electors going rogue.

Donald Trump won the electoral college, but an effort from unhappy citizens, Democratic electors, along with a recount backed by Jill Stein and the Clinton campaign, pose threats, however unlikely, to his presidency

Banerian said he intends to uphold the electoral system and vote for Trump, who won Michigan's 16 electoral votes by a margin of 10,704 ballots, it was announced Friday

Colorado's Democratic elector Michael Baca, on the other hand, is considering rallying behind Mitt Romney or John Kasich if that means coaxing Republican electors away from Trump

Banerian has deleted the emails and told the Detroit News: 'They disturb me. But I wouldnt say Im afraid.'

Michigan law mandates that a faithless elector's vote is void and Banerian remained resolute, saying: 'Even if I could, I wouldnt be remotely interested in changing my vote.

'The people of Michigan spoke, and its our job to deliver that message,' he added.

But not everyone is on board with Banerian, and unhappy citizens have also targeted other electors in states like Arizona, Idaho, and Georgia.

'It is total harassment,' Robert Graham, an elector and chairman of the state Republican Party, told the Arizona Republic.

Arizona elector Saron Geise estimates that she has received as many as 8,000 calls and says she has stopped picking up altogether.

Some electors like Banerian hope their votes will uphold the electoral system, while others are actively trying to dismantle it.

At least six Democratic electors have signed an agreement to try to block Donald Trump from securing the presidency with 270 Electoral College votes.

Trump is facing another organized front after the Clinton campaign agreed to join Green Party candidate Jill Stein's (pictured) efforts for a recount in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan

Michael Baca, a registered Democrat who supported Bernie Sanders, is considering rallying behind Mitt Romney or John Kasich if that means coaxing Republican electors away from Trump.

Even if he is unsuccessful in his efforts, Baca said: 'I do think that a byproduct would be a serious look into Electoral College reform.'

But their work has gotten all the more difficult after Michigan's results came in, with Trump widening the lead at 306 to Clinton's 232.

But Trump is facing another organized front after the Clinton campaign agreed to join Green Party candidate Jill Stein's efforts for a recount in Wisconsin. The votes in Pennsylvania and Michigan are also slated for a review.

The recount was launched after a grassroots fundraising effort saw more than $6million pour in within days.

The president-elect responded to the recount with a flurry of tweets on Sunday, making baseless claims that he won the popular vote given the 'millions of people who voted illegally'.

There is no evidence of widespread voter fraud and Clinton is leading the popular vote by 2.2million ballots.

He also wrote: 'Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change.'

He quoted Clinton's previous rebuke about not accepting the results of the election after Trump himself had sowed the seeds that it was going to be 'rigged'.

At around 7am Sunday, Trump tweeted that 'nothing will change'. He then began a six-tweet-long screed in which he quoted Clinton's own remarks before and after the election
Former professional rugby league player Anthony Watts will spend Christmas behind bars after he was denied bail.

Watts, 30, made a brief appearance via video-link on Monday at Tweed Heads Local Court on several charges, including common assault and dangerous driving.

The former NRL player and ex-bikie is accused of assaulting an elderly man in the northern NSW town of Murwillumbah on Thursday.

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Former professional rugby league player Anthony Watts will spend Christmas behind bars after being denied bail for allegedly waving a gun and assaulting a 73-year-old man

Police allege Watts waved a gun and assaulted 73-year-old William Ernest Woodford outside a business before driving off.

Watts then allegedly failed to stop when his car was spotted on Tweed Valley Way about two hours after the alleged assault.

The former North Queensland and Sydney Roosters player was arrested after a short pursuit by police.

Watts' lawyer Andrew Moloney told the court he was yet to speak to his client and needed more time to take instructions.

Watts was refused bail and the matter has been adjourned until January 9.

It's adds to a long list of incidents that Watts, who had a brief stint with English super league side Widnes, has been involved in on and off the field.

In 2013 he was banned for eight matches after being accused of biting an opponent's penis during a tackle on the Gold Coast.

Watts attacked William Ernest Woodford outside a business in the northern NSW town of Murwillumbah on Thursday before driving off

Watts then allegedly failed to stop when his car was spotted on Tweed Valley Way about two hours after the alleged assault

The former North Queensland and Sydney Roosters player was arrested after a short pursuit by police

Watts has been in and out of jail for a string of offences including repeatedly punching his ex-girlfriend, Shannon Kiss, in the back of the head.

He was also charged with assault after attending his father's funeral in July 2012 and was arrested over a bikie brawl in June 2013.

In August this year Watts assaulted a man at a Gold Coast wedding.

Watts was accused of assaulting his girlfriend at the celebration before the bridesmaid's husband tried to break up the fight when Watts allegedly turned on him, fracturing several of his ribs and causing serious facial cuts.
But once it started it felt an 'obligation' to ensure the recount is 'fair to all'

Clinton's campaign said it wasn't going to call for a recount on its own

Called the recount a 'waste of time' and Trump will 'for a second time'

Priebus said that happened on Election night but Clinton may be

Reince Priebus, president-elect Donald Trump's incoming chief of staff has hit out at Hillary Clinton for joining the recount efforts in Wisconsin and 'backing away' from her concession.

Priebus talked to 'Fox News Sunday' telling them that Clinton's team 'cut a deal' with Trump's team concerning the election results.

He said that once The Associated Press called the race in favor of one candidate, the other would call within 15 minutes to concede.

Priebus says that's just what happened election night.

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Reince Priebus (pictured) spoke to Fox News Sunday calling Hillary Clinton's campaign hypocritical for joining the recount effort in Wisconsin

Priebus said he's confident the Trump campaign will 'win again for a second time' after the recount and Clinton will 'lose again for the second time'

But now he's questioning whether Clinton campaign lawyer Marc Elias is backing down from that deal by announcing Clinton will participate in a recount in Wisconsin and may do the same in Michigan and Pennsylvania.

The push is being led by the Green Party's Jill Stein.

Priebus called the recount a 'waste of time and money'.

'It is a total and complete hypocritical joke that the group of people that thought that they were nervous about President-elect Trump not conceding are the people that are conducting recounts in states where we won by over 68,000 votes.

'(The Wisconsin recount) is only to divide this country when we need to come together,' Priebus said

'And is only to divide this country when we need to come together.

'And look forward to the future of rebuilding this country and getting us back on track.

'That's what President Trump is going to do, that's what we want to do and this is a total and complete distraction and a fraud,' Priebus said on Sunday.

Priebus said he's confident the Trump campaign will 'win again for a second time' after the recount and Clinton will 'lose again for the second time'.

The Clinton campaign announced it will participate in the recount after it was triggered by Stein, but said it had no plans to do so independently.

Once Stein began the effort, the campaign felt 'obligated' to ensure the recount was done fairly and decided it would participate.

'Because we had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves, but now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides ...

The Clinton campaign announced it will participate in the recount after it was triggered by Stein but said it had not planned to do so before Stein's effort

'It is ridiculous. This is a fundraising notoriety driven fraud by a person who won 33,000 votes in Wisconsin, to President-elect Trump who won 1.4 million,' Priebus said of Stein

'But regardless of the potential to change the outcome in any of the states, we feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself,' Clinton campaign lawyer Elias wrote in a statement.

Stein filed for the recount on Friday afternoon and she has said she plans to do the same in Pennsylvania and Michigan, where Trump won or is winning by narrow margins.
Schapelle Corby may move in with her sister and family on the Gold Coast when she leaves Bali in just six months' time.

The convicted drug smuggler, 39, may move into her elder sister's family home in Tugun, along with Mercedes' children Wayan, 17, Nyeleigh, 15, and Nyoman, nine.

But whatever Schapelle does when she returns to Australia in May next year, 'it will be her decision and no-one else's,' Mercedes told Woman's Day.

The family's modest duplex has a large backyard with a skate ramp. The home backs onto a large park and is just a 10-minute walk to the famed Gold Coast beaches.

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Schapelle Corby and her sister Mercedes are pictured at the holding cell at Denpasar Courts after her final hearing in May 2005

Schapelle Corby, 39, may move into Mercede's home (pictured) in Tugun, Gold Coast

Schapelle was born in Tugun and had lived in the same home when she set out on her ill-fated flight to Bali in October, 2004.

'It's no mansion and we owned it before all this happened,' Mercedes told Woman's Day.

'Schapelle may not even live here, she may go to mum's in Logan. She's waited a long time to make her own decisions, and we're not going to pressure her.'

Their mother, Rosleigh Rose, lives in south Brisbane suburb Loganlea.

Mercedes is pictured with her three children, Wayan, 17, Nyeleigh, 15, and Nyoman, nine

Schapelle Corby is pictured in Kuta, Bali, after she was released on parole in 2014

Mercedes recently opened Coolangatta bar and restaurant, Laneway, with her friend and former pro-surfer Trudy Todd.

The drug smuggler may take up work there, but it's up to her.

'Of course we're all excited she'll be coming home, because it's been a long wait, but we don't talk about what will happen when Schapelle is finally back. Whatever she does, it will be her decision and no one else's.'

Earlier this month, she told Gold Coast Bulletin Schapelle would definitely enjoy a drink at the bar.

Mercedes revealed Schapelle could move in with her mother, Rosleigh Rose

Her mother lives in a home (pictured) in Loganlea in south Brisbane

The 39-year-old has been trapped in Bali since she was arrested for trying to smuggle more than four kilograms of marijuana in her boogie board bag from Australia 12-years-ago.

Schapelle was convicted the following year, but maintained her innocence.

Last week she learned she will visit parole officers for the last time on May 27 next year, Daily Telegraph reported.

She will have to say goodbye to Balinese surfer Ben Panangian, who has been by her side since she was released from Kerobokan Prison on parole in February 2014.

Mercedes recently opened Laneway, a bar and restaurant in Coolangatta (she is pictured in the bar)

Mercedes is pictured leaving Kerobokan Jail after visiting Schapelle in February 2014

Mercedes will travel to Bali and help Schapelle prepare for life back in Australia.

Parole Board officials and Indonesian Immigration will organise meetings to finalise details of Schapelle's release over the next few months.

The Parole Board chief Titiek Sudaryatmi will coordinate the process with Immigration and the Australian consulate.

She will be deported from Indonesia and likely banned from returning to the country for a time, according to Daily Telegraph.

Schapelle and Mercedes are pictured when they were younger

Schapelle is pictured in the holding cell at Denpasar District Court in 2006

Schapelle spent nine years in Kerobokan Prison.

Mercedes had moved to Indonesian when a judge handed down a guilty verdict in May 2005.

She refused to leave the country until her younger sister was free.

But after spending more than a decade by her sister's side, Mercedes returned to the Gold Coast earlier this year with her three children after splitting with her Balinese husband Wayan Widyartha.

Schapelle was released on parole in February, 2014. She has been stuck in Bali for 12 years

Mercedes has opened Laneway Bar and Dining (pictured) with friend and former pro-surfer Trudy Todd
Black Lives Matter has come out in support of communist dictator Fidel Castro following his death.

The movement posted said they felt an 'overwhelming sense of loss' of the death of the controversial former Cuban leader on Friday.

'Although no leader is without their flaws, we must push back against the rhetoric of the right and come to the defense of El Comandante,' the movement wrote in an un-bylined article titled 'Lessons from Fidel: Black Lives Matter and the Transition of El Comandante'.

Black Lives Matter has come out in support of communist dictator Fidel Castro following his death

They also thanked Castro for harboring Assata Shakur (left, in the 1970s) and Charles Hill (right, pictured earlier this year)

They also thanked Castro for harboring Assata Shakur - a former Black Panther member and convicted cop killer who is on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list - who they say 'continues to inspire us.'

Shakur, who some described as the 'soul of the Black Liberation Army, was linked to the 'execution-style' murders of four New York police officers between 1971 and 1972 which spurred a nationwide manhunt.

She was cleared but in 1973, she was involved in the fatal shooting of another officer in New Jersey.

After several mistrials, she was jailed but later escaped and fled to Cuba.

They also express their thanks for granting refuge to Michael Finney, Ralph Goodwin, Charles Hill and 'so many other Black revolutionaries who were being persecuted by the American government during the Black Power era.'

Black Lives Matter protesters at a demonstration in Chicago, Illinois in 2015

Hill, another cop killer, was being hunted by police for the murder of a New Mexico state trooper when he hijacked an airplane from Albuquerque and flew to Havanna.

His two accomplices Finney and Goodwin also fled to Cuba. All three men were members of the Republic of New Afrika, a black power militant group that sought to turn Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina into a separate nation for African-Americans.

The Black Lives Matter article talks about taking 'lessons' from Castro 'as we aspire to build a world rooted in a vision of freedom and the peace that only comes with justice.'

They portray Castro, who ruled Cuba with an iron fist for almost fifty years until ill health forced him to cede power to his brother, as the ideal freedom fighter.

The article states that Black Lives Matters must 'pick up the mantle' of revolution from Castro.

'As Fidel ascends to the realm of the ancestors, we summon his guidance, strength, and power as we recommit ourselves to the struggle for universal freedom. Fidel Vive!'
The Birmingham pub bombings coroner has backed a bid for legal funding by the families of the 21 victims.

On the night of November 21 1974, the IRA planted two bombs which ripped through two city centre pubs, the Tavern in the Town and nearby Mulberry Bush, killing 21 people and injuring 182 others.

The botched police investigation into the terrorist atrocity led to the wrongful convictions of the Birmingham Six - one of the most infamous miscarriages of justice.

Families from the Justice4the21 campaign group outside Birmingham's civil justice centre

WHO WERE THE IRA AND WHY DID THEY BOMB PUBS IN BIRMINGHAM? The Irish Republican Army (IRA) was formed in 1922 and never accepted the division of the island of Ireland. In 1969 the Provisional IRA - known as the Provos - split off from the Official IRA and began a campaign of terrorism against the British state. The Provos demanded Ireland be reunited, despite the majority of people in Ulster wanting to remain British. In the 1970s they began targets on the mainland and in October 1974 bombed two bombs in Guildford, Surrey, which were often frequented by soldiers from a nearby barracks. But a month later they targeted two pubs in Birmingham which had no military connections at all. It was a sign of the Provos' increasing desperation and brutality. The IRA finally ceased their activities after the Good Friday Agreement was signed in 1998. Advertisement

The real bombers have never been caught.

Peter Thornton, QC, hearing inquests into the deaths in November 1974, said today: 'I commend the application for legal funding for those who are considering them.'

Mr Thornton, one of the country's most senior coroners, added: 'There is a compelling case for proper legal representation.'

He said he wanted the funding issue - which has led to a war of words between some of the families and the government - to be settled by early next year.

The coroner today convened the first pre-inquest hearing into the 1974 double bombings in Birmingham, in a bid to establish the scope of the proceedings.

He also said he had neither the power nor the authority to order funding to be put in place.

Today's hearing was the first step in what is expected to be a lengthy inquest process, since the families won a ruling from Birmingham senior coroner Louise Hunt for new hearings earlier this year.

Mr Thornton said: 'I do wish to say I support the applications of those families who wish to participate fully in these inquests by way of legal representation.'

Firemen rummage through the aftermath of the Birmingham pub bombings in 1974 (pictured, left). The IRA outrage was followed by a miscarriage of justice when Paddy Hill (right) and the other members of the so-called Birmingham Six were wrongly convicted of being the bombers

He added: 'The events of November 21 1974 brought about the tragic deaths of 21 people.

'These were calamitous events and require full and fair investigation at least as far the inquest procedures may permit, under law.'

The families' solicitors, and that of a ninth family represented separately, raised the funding issue directly with Mr Thornton in a packed courtroom.

Among those in court was the well-known human rights lawyer Gareth Peirce, who is believed to be representing the surviving members of the Birmingham Six.

West Midlands Police, the local Police Federation, and Devon and Cornwall Police were also represented.

Mr Thornton said: 'I have in mind the gravity of events, the scale of the number of deaths, the investigations to date, the complexity of the investigations and the need for the families' participation - which is very important.

'For those reasons I support the application for funding.'

He expressed hopes funding would be granted - at the latest - six weeks before the provisional date for the next preliminary hearing on February 23.

Mr Thornton also stressed the need for the hearings to be an independent process.

The original inquests, convened in the 1970s, were overtaken by the criminal inquiry by West Midlands Police and never concluded.

The force had opposed the holding of new inquests, despite fresh evidence coming to light that police may have allegedly ignored two tip-offs of an imminent IRA attack in the city.

Julie Hambleton (pictured, left), who lost her older sister Maxine in the bombings, welcomed the intervention of Mr Thornton (far right)

Lawyers for the families have been working for free, while legal teams for the police and other government branches have been taxpayer-funded.

West Midlands Police has already set aside 1million to cover its legal costs.

The Government had rejected a call from the families for a special funding model similar to that used in the Hillsborough stadium disaster inquiry.

Instead, Home Secretary Amber Rudd backed the relatives making an application, under existing arrangements, through the Legal Aid Agency.

However, under rules governing the UK's separate legal jurisdictions, the families' Northern Ireland-based lawyers KRW Law would need to partner with an English law firm to secure legal aid.

In court today, Christopher Stanley, of KRW Law, told the coroner such an agreement was 'unworkable'.

It emerged during the hearing that the West Midlands police and crime commissioner had written to the families suggesting the legal aid authorities in England and Wales meet their counterparts in Northern Ireland to see if agreement can be reached.

Mr Thornton also made a public appeal to eight families who have never made contact with the Birmingham coroner's office to do so if they wanted to be kept informed about the inquests.

Full inquest hearings are not likely to start before the end of September 2017.

I will be writing to the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister to ask why are they treating our loved ones with such contempt Julie Hambleton

The BBC reported the government had rejected a call from the families to use a funding model similar to that used at the Hillsborough disaster inquests.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd has urged the relatives to make applications through the Legal Aid Agency.

But because the families' lawyers, KRW, are based in Northern Ireland they would have to partner with an English law firm to secure legal aid.

Julie Hambleton of campaign group Justice4th21, whose older sister Maxine, 18, was killed in the bombings, said today she welcomed the coroner's comments.
A young woman has described herself as 'the walking dead' on the day she held a boy against a tree and brutally stabbed a boy in the back after chasing him through a park with a knife.

Kyissa Bell, 21, told the Downing Centre District Court on Monday that she hadn't slept in weeks when she attacked the boy she did not know in a park in Coogee, in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

Bell was drunk and had injected herself with ice in the public bathrooms before chasing the boy and attacking him on October 9th, 2015, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

The 21-year-old woman said she hadn't slept for three to four weeks before the attack

The woman had been she using up to $3,000 worth of meth, known as ice in Australia, every day in the lead up to the a attack.

The court heard she had 'no recollection' of the stabbing afterwards.

Bell, who was out on bail for another violent crime at the time of the attack, sobbed as she told Judge Chris Hoy she wanted another chance.

'I'll do anything ... you'll never see me again,' she told the court.

Bell has been in custody for a year now and pleaded guilty to the charge of reckless wounding in company.
Kellyanne Conway challenged Obama's former senior adviser David Axelrod, asking him if the president approves of Jill Stein's calls for recounts in three key states.

Conway quickly diverted from Axelrod's criticism of her public hit on Mitt Romney and changed the subject to the recount.

Obama has avoided publicly criticizing Trump, and Conway went so far as to say the two men were 'getting along nicely' and speaking regularly in recent weeks.

The president appears to be trying to preside over a smooth transition of power and said after Trump's election that he was 'rooting for his success' and told his staff members the day after: 'This is not the apocalypse'.

Conway's Twitter showdown with Axelrod began after he tweeted a New York Times article that discussed her disapproval of Romney as the pick for Secretary of State.

'I have never, EVER, seen any aide to a POTUS or PEOTUS publicly try and box the boss in like this,' he tweeted. 'Extraordinary.'

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Kellyanne Conway challenged Obama's former senior adviser David Axelrod, asking if the president approves of Jill Stein's calls for recounts in three key states

The Twitter showdown began after Axelrod had tweeted a New York Times article that discussed Conway's disapproval of Romney as the pick for Secretary of State

Conway proved she had learned a lesson from her boss, diverting from Axelrod's criticism of her public hit on Mitt Romney to discuss the recount instead

'I wonder if @realDonaldTrump appreciates being manipulated in public like this?'

Conway has made her distaste for Romney clear in a number of television appearances, saying the former Massachusetts governor went 'out of his way to hurt' Trump during the GOP primary.

'I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position,' Conway, one of Trump's top advisers, said on CNN Sunday.

Conway went so far as to question if Romney, the GOP's 2012 nominee who never backed Trump, had done anything in the past four years to earn the nomination.

'Has he been around the globe doing something on behalf of the United States of which we're unaware?' she asked. 'Did he go intervene in Syria where they're having a massive crisis, meaning, when I say intervene, I mean offer to help?'

Conway, who ran Trump's campaign and is now actively working on the transition, added: 'We don't even know if Mitt Romney voted for Donald Trump'.

Axelrod was confounded by Conway's public bashing of one of Trump's top contenders for the position and called it an 'unbelievable breach'.

Conway picked up on Axelrod's tweets and said he had it all wrong - before quickly changing the subject.

'Rare misread from a guy w/sharp instincts,' she wrote.

'While we're here, @davidaxelrod, does @POTUS approve recount after asking Hillary to concede?'

Axelrod, who was Obama's chief campaign strategist in 2012 and is currently director of the bipartisan Institute of Politics at the University of Chicago, has not yet responded to Conway's tweet.

Conway has made her distaste for Romney clear in a number of TV appearances, saying the former Massachusetts governor went 'out of his way to hurt' Trump during the GOP primary

Conway, who is actively working on Trump's transition team, said she had made her feelings about Romney known to the president-elect

But Axelrod did respond to what has become Trump's most explosive tweet of the holiday weekend.

On Sunday Trump suddenly claimed, with no evidence to back him up, that he won the popular vote 'if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally'.

Axelrod responded: 'Either he should report this massive fraud to the appropriate authorities or acknowledge how nutty and irresponsible this Tweet is.'

Trump also claimed there had been 'serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California'.

This was despite the fact that, just the day before, his transition team stated there was no need for a recount.

'This is a scam by the Green Party for an election that has already been conceded,' it said in a statement.

'The results of this election should be respected instead of being challenged and abused.'

But just a day later it was Trump challenging the votes, boasting he could have won the 'so-called popular vote' if he had only campaigned in '3 or 4 states instead of the 15 states I visited'.

Trump, pictured here boarding a plane back to Manhattan with wife Melania and son Barron, has been obsessed with with the recount, which he endlessly tweeted about this weekend

On Sunday Trump suddenly claimed, with no evidence to back him up, that he won the popular vote 'if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally'

'I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!' he wrote.

Clinton currently has 2.2 million more votes than Trump. There is no evidence of widespread voter fraud.

Only one president-elect in history has lost the popular vote by a wider margin than Trump: Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876.

Trump's new theory about 'winning' the popular vote quickly got slammed on Twitter for its falsehoods about fraud.

'We will have a Conspiracy Theorist in charge of our government, our military and our nuclear arsenal. What could possibly go wrong?' wrote former White House senior advisor to President Obama Dan Pfeiffer.

Josh Marshall of the left-leaning Talking Points Memo wrote, 'As deep as we've gone in this Orwellian political s***hole, very disturbing that an incoming President says this.'

Alex Padilla, California's Secretary of State, shot down any notion that there was widespread voter fraud in the state where Clinton 3,389,565 more votes than Trump.

'It appears that Mr Trump is troubled by the fact that a growing majority of Americans did not vote for him,' Padilla wrote in a statement.

'His unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are abused. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a President-elect.'

And on the right, the National Review's David French said, 'Trump's worst policies can be checked, but this stuff? A steady drumbeat of this nonsense will further damage our political culture,' the best-selling author wrote, sharing the president-elect's tweet.

'This is an unbelievable lie,' French said.

Conway's pivot is in line with Trump's obsession with the recount, which he began endlessly tweeting about after Hillary Clinton's team said they would participate.

Starting at 7.19am Sunday morning, Trump dashed off seven tweets about the recount efforts.

'Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change.'

Then, an hour later, came the six-tweet message in which he initially quoted Clinton's remarks from the third presidential debate.

Wisconsin will recount its votes after receiving a petition from Green Party candidate Jill Stein on Friday. Experts believe that state and two others may have had results hacked

At around 7am EST Sunday, Trump Tweeted that 'nothing will change' from the recount, before launching an attack on Clinton for agreeing to participate

Trump implied that Clinton was a hypocrite - though the complaints against him were about writing off the results before they were called, not calling for a recount after they came in

'Hillary's debate answer on delay: "That is horrifying. That is not the way our democracy works. Been around for 240 years. We've had free and fair elections.

'"We've accepted the outcomes when we may not have liked them, and that is what must be expected of anyone standing on - a during a general election.

'"I, for one, am appalled that somebody that is the nominee of one of our two major parties would take that kind of position."'

Trump then paraphrased a remark she made in a rally speech after the debate.

'Then, separately she stated, "He said something truly horrifying ... he refused to say that he would respect the results of this election. That is a direct threat to our democracy."'

Finally, he quoted from her acceptance speech after losing the Electoral College vote.

'She then said, "We have to accept the results and look to the future, Donald Trump is going to be our President. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead."

'So much time and money will be spent - same result!' he concluded. 'Sad.'

Trump's take on Clinton's criticism of his pre-election remarks does leave out a little detail.

Criticism of Trump's calls for a recount were specifically about him challenging the results of the election before it had even taken place, due to what he said was 'rigging' of the polls.

In a rally in Delaware, Ohio, on October 20, he said he would 'promise and pledge ... to all of my voters and supporters, and all of the people of the United States, that I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election - if I win.'

That comment, and others like it, dismissed the possibility of a fair Clinton win, and implied that he would challenge the election's results even if it was not a close call or there was no sign of rigging.

Hillary Clinton's (pictured shopping for Thanksgiving in Chappaqua, New York) campaign says they intend to take part in a recount initiated by Greens Party candidate Jill Stein in Wisconsin

The challenge by Stein came after experts suggested that results in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania may have been altered by hackers to ensure Clinton lost.

Trump previously accused Stein of just trying to 'fill her coffers with money' by initiating the 'ridiculous' ballot recount.

'The people have spoken and the election is over, and as Hillary Clinton herself said on election night, in addition to her conceding by congratulating me, "We must accept this result and then look to the future",' Trump said in the statement obtained by Bloomberg.

'This recount is just a way for Jill Stein, who received less than one percent of the vote overall and wasn't even on the ballot in many states, to fill her coffers with money, most of which she will never even spend on this ridiculous recount.

'This is a scam by the Green Party for an election that has already been conceded, and the results of this election should be respected instead of being challenged and abused, which is exactly what Jill Stein is doing.'

Clinton team attorney Marc Elias hit back at Trump's Twitter tirade on Sunday night.

'We are getting attacked for participating in a recount that we didn't ask for by the man who won election but thinks there was massive fraud,' he wrote.

Elias had earlier released a statement saying Clinton's team decided to participate in the recount 'in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides'.

'We do so fully aware that the number of votes separating Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in the closest of these states - Michigan - well exceeds the largest margin ever overcome in a recount,' he added.

Elias wrote that the campaign had consulted with experts to investigate any irregularities or to see if there is anything to suggest a hack.

'The campaign is grateful to all those who have expended time and effort to investigate various claims of abnormalities and irregularities,' Elias wrote.

'While that effort has not, in our view, resulted in evidence of manipulation of results, now that a recount is underway, we believe we have an obligation to the more than 64 million Americans who cast ballots for Hillary Clinton to participate in ongoing proceedings to ensure that an accurate vote count will be reported.'




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Thousands of Cubans gathered at Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Monday to bid farewell to Fidel Castro, whom they said changed their lives while he ruled the country for nearly half a century.

A nine-story image of a young Castro joined the towering images of fallen guerrillas overlooking the massive square. Some supporters shed tears as they paid tribute to the late leader, while a long line snaked through the streets.

One of the first in line was Tania Jimenez, 53, a mathematician who arrived at 4 am carrying a rose. 'Fidel is everything to us, the soul of this country who gave everything, all his life,' Jimenez said in tears.

Castro was cremated Saturday, the day after his death, as per his wishes, according to his brother Raul. The ashes of the 90-year-old former president did not appear to be on display inside the monument Monday, contrary to what had been announced by the government.

Castro's ashes on Wednesday will begin a three-day procession east across Cuba, retracing the march of his bearded rebel army from the Sierra Maestra mountains to the capital. The former leader's ashes will be interred on Sunday in Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago, Cuba's second-largest city.

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Thousands of Cubans gathered at Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Monday and stood in line (pictured) to bid farewell to Fidel Castro, whom they said changed their lives while he ruled the country for nearly half a century

Some supporters, such as this woman, shed tears as they paid tribute to the late leader, while a long line snaked through the streets. She was walking past the monument to independence hero Jose Marti, while paying her respects to Castro

People wait to pay their respects to former president Fidel Castro in Havana. Castro was cremated Saturday, the day after his death

The Revolution Plaza (pictured as a woman weeps while paying homage to Castro) will be the site of two days of tributes to the late leader. The tribute was scheduled to stretch for 13 hours on Monday and take place again on Tuesday

Cuba finds itself riveted once again by the words and images of the leader who dominated the lives of generations. Pictured, mourners, including children, line up at the Revolution Plaza Monday with the Jose Marti memorial in the background

Three rooms inside the Revolution Plaza's memorial to national hero Jose Marti served for the tribute to Castro. Roses and medals were used as a base for a portrait of the late leader

Castro hasn't ruled in Cuba for 10 years and was replaced by his younger brother Raul, a relatively camera-shy and low-key successor. But some, such as this woman wiping away tears and clutching a newspaper, seemed fiercely loyal to him

Many Cubans got to take time off to pay tribute to Castro. Students are pictured walking to Revolution Plaza Monday

The monument to independence hero Jose Marti (pictured) became the site of the tribute to Castro Monday, with several supporters weeping as they said goodbye to their former leader

Soldiers of the Battalion of Ceremonies of the Revolutionary Armed Forces guarded the altar (pictured). Castro's ashes did not appear to be on display inside the monument, contrary to what had been announced by the government

CUBA OBSERVES NINE DAYS OF MOURNING DURING FIDEL CASTRO'S FUNERAL Nine days of official mourning have been declared after the death of the 90-year-old former leader. Events regarding his funeral began on Monday and will continue through Sunday. November 28 and 29: Castro's supporters gather at the Jose Marti Memorial on the Revolution Plaza in Havana to say goodbye to their former leader. November 29: The two-day event on the Revolution Plaza ends with a massive rally echoing those that Castro addressed on the plaza for most of his time in power. November 30  December 3: Castro's ashes will be transported from Havana to Santiago de Cuba, traveling 560 miles in four days. The itinerary is the reverse of the route his caravan took in January 1959, during the revolution. December 3: A rally will be held at 7 pm on the Plaza Antonio Maceo in Santiago de Cuba. December 4: Castro's remains are buried at 7 am in the cemetery of Santa Ifigenia in Santiago de Cuba, where Marti is also buried. Source: The Havana Times Advertisement

Since Castro's death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have been running wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel. They have aired non-stop footage of his speeches, interviews and foreign trips, along with adulatory remembrances by prominent Cubans.

'There's a genuine feeling of mourning, that's not a formality, that's not showy, that's not outward-focused, but rather completely intimate,' former National Assembly President Ricardo Alarcon said on state television Sunday.

Tens of thousands of Cubans were filing through three rooms inside the Plaza of the Revolution's memorial to national hero Jose Marti, where posters of Castro as a young guerrilla were mounted alongside flowers and soldiers standing at attention.

Many Cubans were given time off from work to attend the memorial and virtually all schools and government offices were closing for the homage to Castro.

The tribute was scheduled to stretch for 13 hours on Monday and take place again on Tuesday, ending in a rally echoing those that Castro addressed on the plaza for most of his time in power.

'It's a terrible sadness. Everyone's feeling it here,' said Orlando Alvarez, a 55-year-old jeweler. 'Everyone will be there.'

A massive rally is planned on Tuesday at the Revolution Plaza, where thousands gathered Monday for the beginning of the tributes to Castro (pictured). Cuba will honor its late former leader for the rest of the week

Some of Castro's supporters wept and held one another in distress as they paid their final respects to Castro in Havana

A woman brought a photo of Castro and another one held a text about the revolution among the crowd of supporters Monday

A man held an image of the late Castro as he waited in line to enter Revolution Plaza. Monday marked the start of week-long services bidding farewell to the man who ruled the country for nearly half a century

Mourners hold pictures of Fidel Castro as they wait to pay their respects to the former president at Havana's Plaza of the Revolution

Tens of thousands of Cubans waited to file through three rooms inside the Plaza of the Revolution's memorial to national hero Jose Marti. A man came with more than a dozen medals pinned to his shirt

A giant banner with a picture of Cuba's late leader Fidel Castro as a young revolutionary hung from the Cuban National Library building in Havana Sunday, as part of national tributes to the late revolutionary

Blank shots were fired in Havana Monday by honor guards, as a tribute to the late leader who died Friday at 90 years old

Since Castro's death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have been running wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel. Cuban citizens came to pay their respects in person Monday (pictured)

A woman wearing a Cuban flag on her chest was among thousdans who lined up to pay tribute to Castro on Monday

Havana University student Melissa Cepero, 18, stands in a park near the Plaza of the Revolution Monday. She has the name 'Fidel' written on her face

A man wearing military medal stopped for a salute as thousands of people lined up to pay tribute to Castro Monday

Cubans gathered at Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Monday to bid farewell to former president Fidel Castro on Monday

Some supporters brought items in honor of Castro, such as this woman who came bearing a sunflower and a Cuban flag

Nine days of mourning have been declared by the Cuban government as Castro's ashes make their way to the historic city of Santiago

SO WHO'S GOING? WORLD LEADERS DECLINE TO ATTEND CASTRO'S FUNERAL Going South African President Jacob Zuma Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of Russias lower house of parliament, will lead a Russian delegation Canadian representative Iran delegation Awaiting confirmation Rajnath Singh, India's Home Minister, is likely to attend according to The Hindu Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela's president, and his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales, are both expected to attend Not going Barack Obama Joe Biden Justin Trudeau Jeremy Corbyn Theresa May Vladimir Putin Juanita Castro (Fidel's sister) Advertisement

The government also said Cubans would 'sign a solemn oath to carry out the concept of the revolutionary', but that activity did not appear to be taking at the site of the tribute of Fidel.

Cuba finds itself riveted once again by the words and images of the leader who dominated the lives of generations, after 10 years of leadership by Castro's younger brother Raul, a relatively camera-shy and low-key successor.

Ordinary people have largely been staying at home, off streets hushed by a prohibition on music and celebration during the nine days of official mourning for Castro. For some, particularly younger Cubans, Castro's death barely registered.

Yankemell Barrera, a 20-year-old student, said Castro wasn't a strong presence in his life and that he wasn't much affected by his death or planning to go to any of the memorial events. He said studying for finals would be a better use of his time.

'Even if I'm obligated to go, I'm not doing it,' he said.

Three months after the first US commercial flight to Cuba in five decades landed in the central city of Santa Clara, the first flight to Havana touched down. Passengers aboard the American Airlines flight cheered as the plane landed at Jose Marti International Airport at 8:25 am.

Thirty-five minutes later, simultaneous 21-gun salutes sounded in the capital and in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953.

A black and white photo of Castro as a young revolutionary was displayed at the memorial, which was guarded by soldiers

Castro's supporters were distraught as they said goodbye to their former leader, hiding their tears behind tissues and glasses

A woman brought four pictures of Castro to Monday's tribute, which was scheduled to last for 13 hours and resume Tuesday

Several supporters brought pictures of Castro, like this woman who held two of his portraits as well as an image of former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who died in March 2013

A woman held an image of the late Castro as she waited to enter Revolution Plaza Monday. Many Cubans were given time off from work to attend the memorial and virtually all schools and government offices were closing for the homage to Castro

Soldiers marched before firing blank shots in Havana (pictured). Simultaneous 21-gun salutes sounded in the capital and in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953
CASPER, Wyo.  After more than a week of searching, the Natrona County coroner has found a sister of the Vietnam veteran set to be be buried Tuesday morning near Casper. The sister planned to attend the funeral at the state veterans cemetery and will accept her brother's flag.

Coroner Connie Jacobson said she spoke with the sister Sunday night and that the sister will fly into Casper from southern California on Monday evening.

Last week, Jacobson asked for help finding family members of Stephen Carl Reiman, a homeless Navy veteran who served during the Vietnam War. Reiman died Nov. 17 in Sheridan, shortly after moving to Wyoming from California for unknown reasons.

The sister, Diane Reiman, hadn't heard from her brother for at least two years, Jacobson said. The sister began to cry on the phone during their brief conversation, Jacobson said.

"She's relieved and grateful that he's going to have a decent burial with honor," Jacobson said. "I'm just glad it's all coming together. And maybe she'll get some answers."

Diane Reiman didn't know why her brother had come to Wyoming but said he worked as a firefighter in Casper for a few years during the late 1970s or early 1980s. His years in Casper were some of his best, Diane Reiman told Jacobson.

Jacobson found Diane Reiman through Facebook and sent her messages about her brother. Jacobson also contacted the veteran's daughter-in-law, who wanted to come to the funeral with her daughter  Reiman's only grandchild  but couldn't afford the trip.

Jacobson received dozens of phone calls and emails from people across the country who wanted to help find the veteran's family. She said she didn't expect such an outpouring but hopes Reiman's story will raise awareness about homeless veterans.

"One of the reasons I did this was to raise community awareness that we have homeless vets in our own communities," she said. "They deserve the same recognition and honor that any other vet would get."

Services for Stephen Carl Reiman are planned for 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery in Evansville. The public is welcome.
The sister of former NRL star Chad Robinson has made an emotional plea for help from the public to find her missing brother.

Robinson disappeared from his home in Sydney's Beaumont Hills on Friday night without his phone or wallet and wearing only shorts and a t-shirt.

Robinson's sister Monique Brennan, who fought back tears during the short press conference on Monday said it was 'totally out of character' for her brother to do something like this and was 'extremely concerned' for his safety and well being.

Former NRL player Chad Robinson (left with his sister Monique Brennan), 36, is missing after leaving his home in Sydney's hill on Saturday night

'We are desperately seeking assistance from the community,' Ms Brennan said.

'We dearly miss our brother and really want to see him come home.'

Flanked by family members Ms Brennan sad she had absolutely no idea where her brother may have went but told awaiting media that he did enjoy the outdoors and liked finding waterfalls.

She also said that he has never before left home without returning or telling someone where he was going.

'As you know he doesn't have a phone or any money which is a grave concern, he hasn't got any shoes on either,' she said.

Robinson's sister Monique Brennan, made an emotional plea on Monday for the public to help find her brother

A family friend put together a missing persons poster with the details of his disappearance, though it's not clear if all the details are correct

Ms Brennan said there was nothing that triggered Robinson to leave the house saying there 'wasn't a fight or anything like that'.

Inspector Matt Harris said at the press conference that he held 'grave concerns' for the father of three and urged anybody that had information about the disappearance to come forward.

On Sunday the 36-year-old's family, including Cronulla Sharks player Tim Robinson, desperately appealed for help on social media.

His sister Monique Brennan said via Facebook that Robinson was last seen in Beaumont Hills driving his silver Subaru Outback, registration CME54F, with damage to its passenger side.

'If anyone comes across him or the car, could you please contact any of the family or the police. As you can imagine we are very concerned for his welfare,' she wrote.

She said the father-of-three had no phone or wallet with him. He is 185 centimetres tall with dark, receding hair.

NSW Police said it had not received a missing persons report and was not yet looking for Robinson.

Robinson played six seasons for the Parramatta Eels (pictured) and three for the Sydney Roosters in 2000-08, including in the 2003 and 2004 NRL Grand Finals

He is the older brother of Cronulla Sharks star Tim Robinson (R)

Robinson played six seasons for the Parramatta Eels and three for the Sydney Roosters in 2000-08, including in the 2003 and 2004 NRL Grand Finals.

In 2009 he moved to London to play for the Harlequins but was released after one season because of a persistent knee injury.
An alleged knifeman accused of pushing for women into the path of a train is 'extremely violent' and is being held in a padded cell, a court has heard.

Craig Hansen, 47, has a long history of mental illness and will not be well enough to face court for weeks, Melbourne Magistrates Court heard.

He is charged with four counts of attempted murder he allegedly shoved four women - including a woman on her 80s - off a train platform and onto the tracks.

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An alleged knifeman accused of pushing for women into the path of a train is 'extremely violent' and is being held in a padded cell, a court has heard. Pictured, police at the scene

Hansen was arrested following the alleged rampage on Sunday but refused to appear in court today and has also turned down legal advice.

Magistrate Jelena Popovic said the accused had a 17-page mental health history.

A court advice officer, Bob Allen, said the man is 'extremely violent' and 'very unwell'.

'He's had a significant history at Thomas Embling (high security mental hospital),' Mr Allen said. 'He's currently in a padded cell.'

Mr Allen asked Ms Popovic to adjourn the matter for three weeks, saying a week would not be long enough for Hansen to recover sufficiently to face court.

'He chose to go off his meds,' Mr Allen said. 'Whether he chooses to go back on them is another matter,' he added.

Ms Popovic gave Hansen a one-week reprieve, adding that she would usually visit defendants in their padded cell, but would not be seeing him.

'Given how unwell he is that would not be a sensible position,' she said.

Hansen was arrested following the alleged rampage on Sunday but refused to appear in court today and has also turned down legal advice. Pictured, a woman being treated at the scene

Four women - including two aged 81 and 75 - were taken to hospital after the alleged daylight assault at Glenhuntly station, in Melbourne, on Sunday. Pictured, police at the scene

Four women - including two aged 81 and 75 - were taken to hospital after the alleged daylight assault at Glenhuntly station, in south east Melbourne, on Sunday.

The elderly women had suspected broken hips and head injuries, police said.

The two other women, aged 25 and 36, suffered minor injuries while a fifth woman was treated at the scene.

The incident was reported to have started after a woman's handbag was stabbed.
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A spectacular apartment complex with oceanfront views worth $4 million could be snapped up for as little as $10.

The Gold Coast property comes complete with five fully furnished apartments, including a luxury five-bedroom penthouse and four spacious two-bedroom units with balconies and a swimming pool.

Just 50 metres from Bilinga Beach, the waterfront block is being raffled off in a 'prize home lottery' by RSL Art Union to raise money for veterans.

Located on Golden Four Drive in Bilinga, the luxury apartments could earn the new owner more than $200,000 annually if all the units are rented out.

A spectacular apartment complex (pictured) with oceanfront views worth $4 million could be snapped up for as little as $10

The Gold Coast property comes complete with five fully furnished apartments, including a luxury five-bedroom penthouse

Tickets for the raffle start from a measly $10 for a single game - and run up to $2,000 for 280 chances to win.

RSL Art Union marketing manager John Devaney said the new owner could move in by Christmas Day as the complex comes complete with $300,000 worth of furniture and electrical appliances.

The winner is set to be announced on December 23.

'They could be spending Christmas Day in the penthouse,' Mr Devaney told Daily Mail Australia as the apartment also includes a Christmas tree with presents worth $6,000.

The luxury apartments on the Gold Coast could earn the owner more than $200,000 annually if all the units are rented out

The units boasts open-plan living and dining areas that lead to spacious outdoor areas with sweeping views of the ocean

The complex includes spacious outdoor areas with sweeping views of the popular tourist spot Bilinga Beach (pictured)

The Gold Coast property comes complete with five fully furnished apartments, including a luxury five-bedroom penthouse

Around 85 per cent of two million tickets available on its website have already sold as Mr Devaney said tickets could sell out before the raffle closes on December 20.

'Everybody has the same chance to win at the end of the day,' Mr Devaney said.

'But the key for us is to raise money - and all proceeds will go towards supporting our veterans. Everyone has won us over by buying a ticket.

'We get quite a mix of winners each year. Winners have included people who have purchased their first ticket or people who have been long standing supporters of our raffle. We do 10 prized home lottery per year.

'From the time I've been here, every winner has been worthy in their own right.'

The complex includes a stunning five-bedroom penthouse with panoramic views of the dazzling ocean and four extravagant two-bedroom apartments.

Tickets for the charity raffle start from a measly $10 for a single game - and run up to $2,000 for 280 chances to win

The block includes a stunning five-bedroom penthouse and four extravagant two-bedroom apartments overlooking water

The Queensland units boasts spacious outdoor areas where residents could soak in the glorious sunshine from the balconies

Set on 258sq m of land, the units boasts open-plan living and dining areas that lead to spacious outdoor areas where residents could soak in the glorious sunshine from the balconies.

'This fantastic prize gives you the option to sell tax free, rent and receive the highest ever yearly estimated income of $202,280 or live in the luxurious penthouse, while enjoying an income from your impressive investment portfolio,' the website says.

Last year, a Sydney resident won a similar apartment complex in Queensland.

'The winner quit her job and moved into the penthouse. Since she moved in, she sold other units and has made an ongoing income from renting out her block,' Mr Devaney told Daily Mail Australia.

'She's living the life.'
Rickey J King, 37, was shot in the head on Sunday afternoon in East Garfield Park

At least 58 people were shot in Chicago over Thanksgiving weekend, leaving eight dead as the city faces the highest number of homicides in more than a decade.

The latest victim is an 18-year-old who was shot dead in his vehicle at 2pm on Sunday, NBC reported.

Two gunmen outside a house party on Saturday night left one dead and five others injured, while another shooting killed a 16-year-old boy on Friday evening.

In October, Chicago surpassed 600 homicides this year, in numbers that have not been seen since 2003. There were 468 murders in 2015, and 416 the year before.

On Sunday afternoon, an 18-year-old was in a parked vehicle when a suspect in an SUV opened fire in a drive-by shooting, according to NBC.

The victim was hit several times, and drove himself to the Christ Medical Center about five miles away, where he was pronounced dead. His name has not been released.

Rickey J King, 37, was shot in the head just 10 minutes before, by someone who opened fire from across the street in East Garfield Park and ran off, police said.

Eric Peoples, 30, (left) died on his own birthday on Sunday, while Diego Alvarado, 16, (right) was shot in the back, groin, and arm on Friday evening

Eric Peoples, 30, died on his own birthday, according to the Chicago Sun Times.

He was in a parked vehicle with a 31-year-old when two men emerged from a silver car at 2.38am on Sunday and opened fire, police said.

Peoples died at the scene with gunshot wounds to the head and body, while the 31-year-old was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital where he has stabilized with a wound in his right arm.

On Saturday afternoon, a 56-year-old man was shot in the head after witnesses said they saw two men getting into a fight on the 6600 block of South Kenwood Avenue, police said. He has not been named.

An earlier shooting outside a house party left a 20-year-old man dead with a gunshot wound to the chest on the 8800 block of South Exchange and five others injured, WGNTV reported. The victim's name has not been released.

Another 20-year-old was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition after he was shot in the groin.

A bullet grazed a 25-year-old woman's head, and two other men were shot in the arm and hand. All three have stabilized.

Two people robbed Thomas Smith, 24, before fatally shooting him in the abdomen

Diego Alvarado, 16, was shot in the back, groin, and arm around 6.40pm on Friday, near his home in the Back of the Yards, according to police. He died at Stroger Hospital less than an hour later.

On Friday afternoon, two people robbed Thomas Smith, 24, before shooting him in the abdomen in Englewood, police said. He died at 4.30pm.

Officers said they saw Celotha Mitchell, 37, fatally shoot Jeffery Banks, 35, while they were on patrol around 12.30am on Friday, NBC reported.
Chinese investors are struggling to pay off their Australian property investments after the big banks scaled back lending to foreigners as part of a crackdown on fraudulent loan applications.

Australia's big four lenders - National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and Westpac  tightened lending rules for foreign investors about six months ago, property consultant David Wang told the ABC.

Westpac in April stopped lending to borrowers who lived outside Australia while the other banks announced they would apply stricter lending criteria for foreign customers.

Mr Wang, a Beijing-based expert, said about 50,000 Chinese investors are now worried about how they will finance their Australian home loans.

Chinese investors are clambering to hold onto their Australian property investments after a handful of fraudulent loan applications pushed banks to cut back on foreign lending (stock image)

'Say about 30 per cent of them are able to pay it all upfront, that leaves about 30,000 investors here who are affected  that's quite a large number,' he said.

Cai Yiyi bought an apartment at Burwood, in Sydney's inner west, earlier this year, with a $93,000 deposit.

'Seeing I'm not able to pay the remaining $530,000 up front, I could try to find another bank,' she told ABC.

'Otherwise, I could try to on-sell the contract to someone else to at least get the value of my deposit back, but I've heard this is difficult.'

Australia's big four banks  NAB, Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and Westpac  decided to reduce the amount they are lending to foreign investors about six months ago (stock image)

Mr Wang said many investors are trying to get loans from other Asian banks, especially in Singapore.

But he said many of them won't be approved in time.
A fed-up homeowner has left behind an angry note to an anonymous dog walker who left dog poo on the lawn of his multi-million dollar property.

Geoff Heslop, from a quiet street in Buderim, on the Sunshine Coast, decided to take action earlier this week when he spotted a particularly large deposit in his yard.

'Please leave your address so I can s*** on your lawn - video surveillance,' he scribbled on a sheet of cardboard which he then propped up in his front yard.

A fed-up homeowner has left behind an angry note to an anonymous dog walker who left dog poo on his lawn

Mr Heslop told Daily Mail Australia he was infuriated when he spotted the dog poo sitting on his 'well-looked after lawns'.

'I just thought "that's inconsiderate and not supposed to happen in any public place- so I'll try to embarrass the owner",' Mr Heslop told Daily Mail Australia.

'There are lots of people walking their dogs in the street and usually it's not an issue.'

'(But now) the whole street has this problem.'

Since putting up the sign Mr Heslop is happy to report that there have been no unwanted dog poos left in his front lawn.

He has also altered the sign to present a slightly less-forward message : 'Please clean up after your dog.'
Many shoppers will be forced to dip into their savings to cover the cost of Christmas.

But this bargain-hunter has found a way to enjoy the festive season for free.

Cal Holder, 40, from Birmingham, uses coupons, promotions and freebies to save money on everything from premium skincare products to the Christmas turkey.

She has given up her job to focus on her hobby - known as 'couponing' - full time and has amassed a stockpile of goods worth some 5,000.

Ms Holder also visits supermarkets during rush-hour because she knows that is when shoppers are most likely to leave behind receipts with money-saving offers.

Over the last year she has earned 960 through picking up strangers' receipts - a practice known as 'wombling'.

Cal Holder, 40, from Birmingham, uses coupons, promotions and freebies to save money on everything from premium skincare products to the Christmas turkey

She has given up her job to focus on her hobby - known as 'couponing' - full time and has amassed a stockpile of goods worth some 5,000

Ms Holder also visits supermarkets during rush hour because she knows that is when shoppers are most likely to leave behind receipts with money-saving offers

Over the last year she has earned 960 through picking up strangers' receipts - a practice known as 'wombling'

Over the last year she has earned 960 through picking up strangers' receipts and has bought hundreds of items which she stores at home

Stash: The former administrative worker has given up her job to focus on her hobby - known as 'couponing' full time. Pictured, some of Ms Holder's discounted food and household products

And she is so successful she can even make 15 through cash-back deals on her weekly shop.

She said: 'It pays for our everyday expenses. I gave up my admin job around a year ago and have managed to live on my couponing.

'It is not just about couponing. It is about utilising every other kind of saving alongside this.'

The former administration worker wakes up at 4.30am to start her search the internet for the best deals on offer.

She also visits supermarkets during rush-hour because she knows that is when shoppers are most likely to leave behind receipts with money-saving offers.

Over the last year she has earned 960 through picking up strangers' receipts - a practice known as 'wombling'.

Ms Holder, who said she is not on benefits, shares her rewards with housemate Simon Bourne, 46, who covers the rent and bills.

She said: 'We have had an average of 50 of freebies every month. I have spent nothing on premium skincare this year thanks to free samples and giveaways.

'It's all through deal-hunting.'

BEST BARGAINS Over the last six years, Cal Holder has bagged some incredible money-saving deals. Here are some of her favourites: 176 tins of baked beans for free, which lasted for a whole year 17 worth of New Look clothes for 2 10 worth of washing tablets for 20p Advertisement

Last year Ms Holder covered the cost of Christmas and her New Year's Eve celebrations with couponing, earning 12 in December while enjoying free wine, crackers and a turkey.

She has already made a promising start to this festive season, buying cut-price selection boxes for 1 and earning back 2 for each one through cash-back deals.

As well as providing the food and drink for the flat, Ms Holder also treats her housemate using the money saved from the weekly shop.

She said: 'Every year we have a treat weekend in London, where we take the money we've saved from the weekly shop and go and spend it.

'This year we've averaged 15 a month but August was great  we earned 38 back.'

Storage room: Ms Holder wakes up at 4.30am to start her search the internet for the best deals on offer. Pictured, a selection of Ms Holder's discounted goods, including food and Fairy liquid

Expert: Ms Holder warned budding bargain-hunters will need excellent organisational skills - especially in the beginning. Pictured, some of the tea and hot chocolate she has snapped up

Money saving: Since she started couponing in 2010, Ms Holder estimates her household bills have been cut by 90 per cent. She estimates her stockpile (some pictured) is worth 5,000

But while couponing is now second nature for Ms Holder, she warned budding bargain-hunters will need excellent organisational skills - especially in the beginning.

She said: 'It's a quick process for me, but at the beginning it takes longer. Now, though, I'm an expert. I can do it really easily. It takes me 20 minutes to check promotions.

'It gets stored in your head what coupons are available and what works out best.'

Since she started couponing in 2010, Ms Holder estimates her household bills have been cut by 90 per cent.

'I also have massive stockpile of goods worth around 5,000,' she added.

Most importantly, though, she won't go anywhere without her coupons.
They are due to appear in Newtown Local Court on

He waited outside with another man and

The Trump supporter allegedly verbally abused the pair inside, yelling homophobic and pro-white statements while being held back by friends

The incident took place last Monday about 1.30am on Parramatta Road

The pair allegedly attacked two gay men at the fast food chain

Two gay men were allegedly bashed by a Donald Trump supporter and another man outside a McDonald's, after the pro-Trump man yelled homophobic and racist abuse at the pair while they were waiting in line for food.

The incident took place at the McDonald's in Stanmore on Parramatta Road about 1.20am last Monday, according to NSW Police.

Sam and Andrew, whose names have been changed to protect their identities, told the Star Observer they were at the McDonald's on Monday morning when a drunk man started aggressively rambling about the newly-elected US president.

A Donald Trump supporter and his friend allegedly attacked two gay men outside a McDonald's restaurant in Sydney (pictured), after one yelled homophobic abuse at the pair while they were waiting in line for food

The Trump supporter is then said to have attacked the pair outside with another man, after yelling homophobic and pro-Donald Trump statements at them inside

Sam said the man was saying 'White men rule' now that Trump had won, so Sam told the man he was homosexual, which enraged the man even more, who started shouting 'Trump's won, straight white men rule'.

Sam and Andrew told the Star Observer the other man's friends had to restrain him while he was aggressively pointing and shouting at them, before the friends dragged the man out of the restaurant.

But the Trump supporter was waiting for Sam and Andrew outside the restaurant and as they exited with their food, he allegedly attacked Sam.

'He hit me on the head, and because Im a pretty big guy, I went down hard  immediately there was blood everywhere,' Sam said.

'He kept mouthing off, but when he hit my head things went a bit blurry from that point.'

Andrew said he looked up from trying to book a car home on his phone, to see Sam flying against a wall, before he said he was hit in the face as well.

One of the men, referred to as 'Sam' said the man was saying 'white men rule' now that Trump had won, so he told the man he was homosexual, which enraged the man even more who started shouting 'Trump's won, straight white men rule' (stock image)

Sam was taken to hospital, while Andrew accompanied the police with the offenders to the nearest station to make a statement.

A NSW Police spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia an argument began between two men at a fast food restaurant on Parramatta Road.

'Police were told the argument recommenced when the men's paths crossed outside the restaurant with two men allegedly assaulting two other men before they left the scene,' the spokesperson said.

Police arrested the two alleged offenders, aged 18 and 21, and have charged them with assault and affray. They will appear in Newtown Local Court on December 15

Police said officers from Newtown Local Area Command attended the scene and arrested two men aged 21 and 18 who have since been charged with assault and affray offences.

They are on bail to appear at Newtown Local Court on December 15.

Sam said he wants his experience to serve as a warning to other members of the LGBTI community.
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Health officials have warned that an Arctic icy snap will send temperatures plunging to -8C tonight which could put the lives of the elderly and vulnerable at risk.

Public Health England is calling on people to prepare for the chilly snap, warning that the 'cold does kill'.

The mercury will fall under starry skies on Monday night, with most of England seeing temperatures fall to as low as -4C (28F), with London seeing temperatures falling to a potential low of -3C (26.6F).

This week temperatures will plummet to as low as -8C (18F) as frosty mornings and nights arrive before the official start of winter on Thursday. (A horse in a small holding near Clayfield Copse, Berkshire this morning in cool but sunny conditions)

After a cold and frosty start, skies will clear from the east this morning, bringing sunshine for many; however, cloud will linger across Northern Ireland and north west Scotland (Horses in the Oxfordshire countryside near to Dunsden pictured)

Despite the sunshine, temperatures will only climb to around 7C (45F) in northern England, 10C (50F) in the South, 6C (42F) in Wales, 5C (41F) in Scotland and 8C (46F) in Northern Ireland (a woman enjoys a walk in Sidcup, Kent)

The mercury will fall under starry skies tonight, with most of England seeing temperatures fall to minus 4C (28F) and further still to minus 6C (21F) in the South (pictured, people walk through the mist on the Gateacre estate in Liverpool)

The conditions will be worse than in Reykjavik as forecasters there predict it will remain above freezing this week

Scotland is forecast to see a low of -5C (23F), but rural areas are likely to be even colder, while Northern Ireland will face temperatures of 0C (32F), with rural areas similarly expected to plummet lower.

A new survey of highways bosses also shows that councils have stockpiled 1.2 million tonnes of salt to prepare for the months ahead.

Dr Angie Bone, from the extreme events team at Public Health England, said: 'Cold does kill, even in places where the temperatures aren't at their lowest.

'Now is the time to prepare for the cold weather forecast by the Met Office, and to think of those you know who are older, very young, or have pre-existing health conditions who are particularly vulnerable.'

Andy Page, chief operational meterologist at the Met Office, said: 'High pressure will bring generally dry and settled conditions this week, with clear skies and light winds allowing a widespread frost to occur on Monday and Tuesday night.

'From Wednesday onwards, cloudier and slightly less cold conditions will arrive across northern England, therefore overnight frosts will become fewer and less severe in the north but cold weather may persist across the south where skies remain clearer.

Tonight's lows are set to make it England's coldest November night for almost 25 years. The last time it was this cold was in Yorkshire, on November 22 1993 (Pictured, a woman walks her dogs in Sidcup, Kent)

'Looking ahead into December and beyond, there are indications that a cold start to winter is more likely than normal, but this doesn't guarantee snow nor does it mean we won't see spells of mild and wet weather at times.'

Meanwhile, the Local Government Association's (LGA) annual winter readiness survey shows that councils are well prepared for plummeting temperatures with a substantial stock of grit.

About half are at the limit of storage capacity, and the LGA said gritters will be out treating thousands of miles of roads whenever overnight temperatures drop below zero in the coming days.

Councillor Martin Tett, LGA transport spokesman, said: 'Councils are fully prepared to protect residents and minimise disruption... caused by the drop in temperatures.

'They are constantly monitoring up-to-the-minute weather reports to make sure they can stay one step ahead of the weather.

'We are well prepared for the cold, with 1.2 million tonnes of salt stockpiled and a fleet of state-of-the-art gritters ready to be deployed.'

December 1 marks the beginning of meteorological winter, which lasts until February 1.
An Iraqi soldier has been filmed using a makeshift dummy to trick an enemy sniper into firing shots.

At first the man uses a periscope to look over the top of the bunker he and his comrades are hiding behind, as they speak in Arabic to one another.

They then take the doll, which is just a metal tin covered in a camouflage-coloured sack, and hold it over the parapet.

At first the man uses a periscope to look over the top of the bunker. They then take the doll, which is just a metal tin covered in a camouflage-coloured sack, and hold it over the parapet

The pair wait expectantly for the shot, and after a few seconds a huge clang is heard, forcing the soldier holding the doll to duck to the ground.

But the two still share a laugh and a joke as they hold the dummy up for a second time.

This time he begins cowering away before the next shot has been fired, which it promptly is a few seconds later and causes another loud clang.

After a few seconds a huge clang is heard, forcing the soldier holding the doll to duck to the ground. Three bullet holes can be seen in the tin at the end

After repeating this for a third time, they take the doll apart to inspect the damage.

There are indeed three bullet holes, all of which are in close proximity and have all completely pierced the metal, highlighting the accuracy and power of the weapons.
Theresa May is facing a fresh court battle over Brexit amid claims MPs should be able to stop her quitting the single market.

A think-tank is threatening a legal challenge over whether leaving the EU means automatically withdrawing from the single market.

Lawyers for the British Influence group believe the UK's membership of the European Economic Area - which includes non-EU countries like Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein - will remain in place after we cut ties with Brussels.

Theresa May (pictured greeting her Polish counterpart at RAF Northolt today) is facing the prospect of a new front in the legal battle over how Britain leaves the EU, with a think-tank arguing that quitting the bloc does not automatically mean leaving the single market

The position raises the prospect that parliamentary approval would be needed to trigger our departure from the EEA.

Pro-EU MPs and peers could use that opportunity to fight a rearguard action to limit the impact of Brexit.

Although many politicians are unwilling to go against the outcome of the historic referendum in June, they could argue that the people's verdict is being upheld by quitting the EU and remaining in the single market.

However, that would be unacceptable to many Brexiteers as it means free movement rules would stay in place - preventing curbs to immigration.

The Prime Minister is already embroiled in a row over whether parliament needs to approve triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty - the formal two-year mechanism for leaving the EU.

Pro-Remain campaigners spearheaded by businesswoman Gina Miller defeated the government at the High Court on the issue earlier this month.

Pro-Remain campaigners spearheaded by businesswoman Gina Miller defeated the government at the High Court earlier this month on the issue of whether the PM can trigger Article 50 without a vote in parliament

The Supreme Court is due to consider next week whether the PM can start the process using executive powers.

British Influence is writing to Brexit Secretary David Davis to seek clarification on the Government's position regarding the UK's status.

A spokesman said: 'It is likely there will be a legal action because, in our view, the Government has taken a stance that leaving the EU means leaving the single market.'

WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA (EEA) AND WHY DOES IT MATTER? The European Economic Area (EEA) was set up in 1994. It gives three countries - Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein - access to the single market without being full members of the EU. In return, the states agree to abide by EU laws covering goods, services and capital - and importantly accept the rules on free movement of people. British Influence is arguing that the UK's membership of the EEA is not dependent on being in the EU. As a result, merely triggering Article 50 to cut ties with Brussels will not be enough to take us out of the single market. A separate parliamentary vote may need to be called to approve leaving the EEA. Such a vote could be far more difficult for the government to win, as while politicians are unwilling to go against the result of the historic referendum, many would support quitting the EU and staying in the single market. However, Brexiteers insist curbing immigration was the key demand of the public in the referendum. Advertisement

Professor George Yarrow, Chairman of the Regulatory Policy Institute and emeritus professor at Hertford College, Oxford, told the BBC: 'There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU.

'The only exit mechanism specified is Article 127, which would need to be triggered.'

Jolyon Maugham QC, of Devereux Chambers, told the BBC: 'My own view is that you do not automatically leave the EEA.

'Given Article 127 provides an express mechanism for withdrawal, it implicitly excludes other implied mechanisms for withdrawal such as ceasing to be a member of the EU.'

But a Government spokesman insisted the UK would automatically stop being a member of the EEA once it leaves the EU.

'As the UK is party to the EEA Agreement only in its capacity as an EU member state, once we leave the European Union we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA.

'The future relationship between the UK and the EU will be subject to negotiations.

'It's not in the UK's interest to give a running commentary on our thinking that could undermine our negotiating position.

'The referendum result will be respected and we intend to invoke Article 50 no later than the end of March next year.'

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said: 'There is no delay. We have already announced we are going to start the negotiations by triggering the famous article 50 next spring, and those negotiations are prescribed in the treaty lasting two years.'

John Longworth, Co-Chair of Leave Means Leave, said: 'This is another attempt by the remain campaign to frustrate the Brexit process with legal challenges.

'The Government must not have their hands tied when trying to negotiate the best deal for Britain.

'The remain campaign are yet again defying the will of British voters. Leaving the EU means leaving the EU internal market  the British people voted to take back control.

'Remainers must stop trying to undermine Britain's negotiating position.'
One party wants a referendum on ditching the euro and another says it will pull the country out without a vote

Italy could end up ditching the euro if its prime minister loses a crucial referendum on reforming the country's constitution on Sunday.

Matteo Renzi has vowed to step down if he fails to convince voters to back a streamlining of the political system that includes curbing the powers of its Senate.

His resignation could lead to early elections and victory for his opponents who are promising to leave the single currency.

Matteo Renzi (pictured) has vowed to step down if he fails to convince voters to back a streamlining of the political system that includes curbing the powers of its Senate

Opinion polls now predict his defeat, in what would be the third big anti-establishment revolt by voters this year in a major Western country, following Britain's unexpected vote to leave the European Union and the US election of Donald Trump.

Pressure is mounting on Renzi to drop his threat and instead agree to remain in power to deal with the fallout from a 'No' vote, including the risk of a fullblown banking crisis.

Italy's leading opposition parties, the anti-establishment Five Star Movement and the anti-immigrant Northern League, have called for new elections in the event that Mr Renzi is defeated.

The Five Star Movement has pledged to hold a referendum on ditching the euro if they come to power, while the Northern League has said it will pull the country out without a vote.

Italy is now subject to a polling blackout, but the latest surveys published last weekend showed the vote against Mr Renzi's proposed reforms to the constitution had a significant lead.

Campaigners protest against Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in Rome on Sunday ahead of the vote next weekend

On Saturday, Mr Renzi told Italian newspaper La Stampa that he would stick to his promise to step down if he loses.

The country's parliament is not due to hold its next elections until early 2018, but they could be brought forward if he resigns.

Polls show that Mr Renzi's Democratic Party and the Five Star Movement are both on around 30 per cent support.

The Northern League and Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right Forza Italia each have about 12 per cent support, and could have the option of taking power together in a right-wing coalition.

Mr Renzi has proposed drastically curtailing the powers of the second chamber, the Senate, while shrinking its membership and running costs.

ITALY AT A CROSSROADS: THE REFERENDUM EXPLAINED Why is Italy holding a referendum? On December 4, Italians will vote on proposed constitutional reforms that are considered the most important in the eurozone country since World War II. They are aimed at increasing political stability in a country which has had 60 governments since 1946, by streamlining parliament and the electoral system. A victory for prime minister Matteo Renzi would dramatically reduce the powers of the upper house of parliament while regions would lose some decision-making powers to bolster central government. Why would people vote 'No'? Critics say a 'yes' vote victory for Renzi would strip Italy of vital democratic checks and balances put in place after the Second World War. Renzi has also said he will resign if he loses the December 4 ballot - an outcome all opinion polls say is the most likely - on his plan to drastically reduce the role of the upper house Senate. Initially the plan was backed by 70 percent of Italians, but when an over-confident Renzi said at the end of 2015 he would step down if defeated, opposition parties turned the referendum into a de facto ballot on his 2.5 years in office. A victory for prime minister Matteo Renzi would dramatically reduce the powers of the upper house of parliament while regions would lose some decision-making powers to bolster central government His record is mixed. Despite many reforms, Italy is set to have the third lowest growth in the 28-nation European Union in 2016 and the second lowest next year, according to EU forecasts. Unemployment is stuck above 11 percent and wages are stagnant. A loss would provide more evidence of voter fury in Europe ahead of elections in France and Germany next year. And Renzi's exit could benefit populist ex-comedian Beppe Grillo, who wants to ditch the euro currency and whose Five Star movement won more than a quarter of the vote in Italy's last general election in 2013. Why might defeat mean leaving the Euro? Italy's leading opposition parties, the anti-establishment Five Star Movement and the anti-immigrant Northern League, have called for new elections in the event that Mr Renzi is defeated. The Five Star Movement has pledged to hold a referendum on ditching the euro if they seize power, while the Northern League has said it will pull the country out without a vote. Advertisement

The changes are designed to go hand-in-hand with a new electoral reform law designed to ensure elections produce winners with clear majorities.

Mr Renzi has claimed this will modernise Italy, putting an end to endemically weak administrations and logjams in parliament which have stymied equally overdue reforms in areas ranging from education and the snail-paced judicial system to the fight against corruption and organised crime.
Barack Obama is set to ram through last-minute law changes to try and cement his legacy, according to reports.

'Midnight regulations' are those introduced between November's election and January's inauguration of a new president.

It is a last chance for an outgoing Commander-in-chief to put his stamp on the presidency and tie the hands of his successor.

Obama can pass the rules because of a loophole in US law allowing him to put last-minute regulations into the Code of Federal Regulations - rules that have the same force as law.

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President Barack Obama, pictured last week, is trying to pass a number of 'midnight regulations' to cement his legacy

As many as 98 final regulations are reportedly under review at the White House and could be implemented before Donald Trump takes office.

Seventeen of those are considered 'economically significant', with an estimated economic impact of at least $100million a year, Politico reveals.

Obama is trying to push through regulations on issues close to him such as air pollution from the oil industry and measures aiming to help highly skilled immigrant workers obtain green cards.

He is also pressing ahead with negotiations on an investment treaty with China and decisions by the Education Department on whether to offer debt relief to students at defunct for-profit colleges.

By contrast, Trump has shown disdain for climate change regulation and campaigned on an anti-immigration rhetoric, describing Mexicans as 'rapists' and pledging to build a wall on the US border with Mexico.

The Republican has also criticized China's trade and currency practices and threatened to impose tariffs up to 45 per cent on Chinese imports.

Some government officials are behind the move.

Gina McCarthy, US Environment Protection Agency Administrator, wrote a memo to staff following the controversial election result: 'We're running - not walking - through the finish line of President Obama's presidency.'

President-elect Donald Trump, pictured earlier this month, has vowed to cancel 'every wasteful and unnecessary regulation which kills jobs and bloats government'

Politico reports Obama has gone ahead with the 'midnight regulations' despite House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy warning him against doing so.

In a letter on November 15, he reportedly said: 'Should you ignore this counsel, please be aware that we will work with our colleagues to ensure that Congress scrutinizes your actions - and, if appropriate, overturns them'.

Trump has also vowed to cancel 'every wasteful and unnecessary regulation which kills jobs and bloats government.'

The so-called 'midnight regulations' can be reversed by the same executive agencies, but that requires a considerable rule-making process.

Congress could also effectively overturn them by passing more explicit statutory mandates - but risk turning an unwanted regulation into law.
Brown recluse spiders, which can kill children, hiding in clothing and toys

The spiders have a venomous bite which can lead to necrosis of the skin

Infestation of brown recluse spiders and false widows in her Essex home

A deadly spider infestation has left an eight-year-old girl with a hole in her hand and too scared to return to her home.

Abbie Kinnaird was rushed to hospital needing surgery and a skin graft after she was bitten by a brown recluse spider.

Pest control officers have now warned Abbie's family not to return to their home in Colchester, Essex after a suspected infestation of false widows and brown recluse spiders - which have a venomous and potentially fatal bite.

Abbie Kinnaird was hospitalised for several days after being bitten by a brown recluse spider

A suspected brown recluse spider fell from the bathroom ceiling and sank its fangs into her hand and two more were found in her bed

The brown recluse spiders (pictured right) are thought to be hiding in the family's toys and clothes and their bites can lead to necrosis of the flesh. Left, Abbie's inflamed hand

The spiders are thought to be hiding in the family's toys and clothes and their bites can lead to necrosis of the flesh.

The suspected brown recluse spider fell from the bathroom ceiling and sank its fangs into Abbie's hand, while two more were found in her bed.

The eight-year-old's mother Hayley Kinnaird eventually had to rush her to hospital where she was kept for four days.

Mother-of-two Hayley, 35, said: 'Abbie's terrified of going into the flat.

'The [pest control] man said he could only see a couple of spiders but once he started spraying he saw more of them including brown recluse spiders and false widows.

'He said that they could be hiding in toys and clothing and there was a risk that some spiders would remain for several weeks until they come into contact with the pesticide.

'He didn't recommend coming back to the house.'

Five-year-old Branson Riley Carlisle from Alabama in America died after being bitten by a brown recluse spider on his shoulder in November 2014.

The bite started as a red spot before becoming sore, inflamed and black and Abbie was given antibiotics before undergoing surgery and a skin graft

While the eight-year-old has remained brave throughout her ordeal, she is terrified to return to her home

BROWN RECLUSE SPIDERS The venomous brown recluse spider Brown recluse spiders are one of only two spiders with medically significant venom in North America. While often not painful at first, their bite contains a hemotoxic venom that can lead to necrosis of the skin. Most deaths associated with brown recluse spiders involve young children. Advertisement

Mrs Kinnaird said the bite started as a red spot before becoming sore, inflamed and black so she took her to a walk-in centre the following day where Abbie was given a course of antibiotics.

A week later the bite had not improved and Abbie developed bumps on her arm and a rash so was advised to go to hospital, where she was immediately put on a drip.

Mrs Kinnaird said: 'We were told she would need a skin graft and within a couple of hours she was sent into surgery.

'They cut out all the black and flushed out whatever was inside.'

Abbie was hooked up to an antibiotic drip three times a day during her four-day stay in hospital in a bid to flush out the infection from the gaping wound which was the size of a 10p piece.

Since leaving hospital Abbie has had three hospital check-ups with her mother cleaning the wound and changing the bandages every other day.

Their landlady arranged for pest control experts to fumigate the house following the 'medium infestation'.

The schoolgirl has bruising on her arms after the bite - which could have had fatal consequences

Hayley, Abbie and her 10-year-old brother Rhys have been staying with her mother in her one-bedroom flat.

Mrs Kinnaird said: 'I've asked Colchester Council to see if they can set us up with emergency housing but they say they've got nothing available, and can only offer a hostel which I don't feel safe staying in with the children.

'I'm fuming, they don't seem to care. It's easy for them to say the spiders will be gone but when you're eight and have spent four days in hospital because of them saying the flat is fine and her bed won't have spiders in it doesn't make it easier for her.'

A Colchester Borough Homes spokesperson said: 'In this case the customer was offered short-term temporary accommodation, but this was not taken up.
Daniel Morcombe's eldest brother has announced his engagement, adding further joy to an already landmark year for the Morcombe family.

Dean, 29, the eldest child in the family, proposed to his girlfriend Alice Webb while on a holiday in New Zealand last week.

Their announcement comes after the sentencing appeal of Daniel's killer Brett Peter Cowan was thrown out in March, allowing Denise and Bruce Morcombe to finally put to bed their long-running quest for vengeance for their son, who was killed in 2003.

After years of heartache, the family from the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, told the Courier Mail the latest news was 'very welcome'.

Dean Morcombe (left), the older brother of murdered schoolboy Daniel Morcombe, has announced his engagement to nurse Alice Webb (right)

The couple (left) got engaged while in New Zealand, with the news capping off a successful year for the Morcombe family. The nightmare over the disappearance of Daniel (right) from Woombye, Queensland, while waiting for a bus in 2003, finally ended this year

'Shes just a young girl herself so shell be very keen on furthering her career first before the baby comes along,' he said.

'Theyre always smiling and they are a happy couple.

'It was very noticeable, the change in Deans attitude, and he seem very happy and Im sure Alice is as well.'

Dean Morcombe was aged 16 when Daniel disappeared in 2003, before his brother's remains were found in the Glasshouse Mountains in November 2011.

Ms Webb - a nurse at Caboolture Hospital - and Dean Morcombe have been together for one year.

Their happy news comes after Dean's twin brother Bradley welcomed his first child with wife Anna in July.

Denise and Bruce Morcombe (pictured) finally put to bed their long-running quest for vengeance for their son this year

After years of heartache 2016 has proved to be a good year for the Morcombe family, with Daniel's twin brother Bradley and his wife Anna (left) giving birth to their first son in July. Daniel's (right) older brother was aged 16 when he disappeared in 2003

In September it was revealed that Cowan, Daniel's killer, had been left permanently disfigured after coming under attack while behind bars.

Cowan reportedly had a bucket of boiling over him by fellow prisoners, before also being bashed.

Adam Paul Davidson admitted to the attack in court, saying he 'did it for the people'.

Cowan is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of the schoolboy.
A former baggage handler forced a Virgin Australia flight to abort a landing and told air traffic controllers a plane was about to crash into a river, a court heard.

Paul Sant, 19, allegedly made 16 prank calls to aircraft and air traffic control at Melbourne and Avalon airports between September 5 and November 3 this year.

The aspiring pilot from Rockbank, in Melbourne's north-west, is accused of advising two flights to either turn around or abort their landings, Melbourne Magistrates Court was told on Monday.

Melbourne teenager Paul Sant (pictured) wanted to become a pilot so much he allegedly prank called aircraft and air traffic control 16 times

The 19-year-old former Virgin Australia baggage handler (pictured) managed to abort a landing at a Melbourne airport, a court has been told

He also allegedly made mayday transmissions to other aircraft on the national distress frequency, claiming flights had crashed into the Maribyrnong River, or were at risk of doing so.

Sant is autistic and has trouble 'adhering to social cues', his defence lawyer Pern Chaya said.

She said he was being kept in custody with offenders aged in their 40s and 50s, one of whom was coming down from drugs.

'He was intimidated and scared,' Ms Chaya told the court.

'Hes learnt his lesson.'

Australian Federal Police officers (pictured) arrested Paul Sant last week. They have opposed bail arguing his alleged actions had the potential to endanger human life

The former Virgin Australia baggage handler was charged with one count of interference likely to endanger safety or cause loss or damage and four counts of endangering the safety of an aircraft. Stock image

Police opposed bail, arguing the teenager posed a real risk of endangering other aircraft and passengers.

'These calls had the potential to cause a major aviation incident with a threat to human life,' said Australian Federal Police Constable Jonathan Croft.

Sant is charged with one count of interference likely to endanger safety or cause loss or damage and four counts of endangering the safety of aircraft, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years.
Step aside Missy Elliott, Iggy Azalea, Lauren Hill and Pharrell - Eva Laing (AKA Eve Star) is the next big rapper.

Eva is a 10-year-old schoolgirl from Queensland and thanks to her rapping skills, she's now the 2017 school captain at Brightwater State School.

The youngster is a huge hip-hop and rap fan and when it came to making a bid for her school captaincy recently, giving a speech wouldn't cut it for her.

Eva Laing, from Queensland, rapped her way to her school captaincy with a song which convinced her fellow student to vote for her

Eva in full swing rapping in front of her school in a bid for her school captaincy

So she spent four hours coming up with the lyrics and three days preparing her rap, she told The Project.

Her hard work with the performance on Wednesday got her the gig, too, with students clearly getting the 'vote Eva' message from the rap.

During her song, which she performed on stage in front of her peers without a backing track, she got the crowd involved in chanting her name.

Father Paul was there to document the show and filmed the whole performance before uploading the video to social media with the caption 'When hip hop is your life and you run for school captain'.

Eva, 10 and her younger sister, Liv, whom Liv would take on tour if she became a famous rapper

The video of Eva rapping in front of her school was recorded by her father

It had been viewed tens of thousands of times by Monday.

Eva told The Project: 'I couldn't really picture myself just doing a normal speech... I love performing front of people, so I decided to try my hand at rapping'.

In true rap fashion, she even gave a shout-out to her principal when she appeared on The Project.

Her favourite rappers are Missy Elliott, Iggy Azalea, Lauren Hill and Pharrell - and she's even thought up her own rap name, Eve Star, for when she becomes a star.

When she appeared on The Project she even gave them a demo of her rap skills, demonstrating how good she was on the spot.

She's generous, too - she told the hosts if she became a famous rapper she'd take younger sister Liv on tour with her.

Eva dressed up as one of her favourite rappers, Missy Elliott
Paul Nuttall has been elected as Ukip's second leader in 10 weeks, beating Suzanne Evans into second place by a landslide.

Ukip will hope the new election will draw a line under months of bitter infighting and feuding over Nigel Farage's political legacy.

After securing 62.6 per cent of the vote, Mr Nuttall vowed to hold the Government's feet to the fire and 'ensure Brexit really does mean Brexit'.

Mr Nuttall - who survived the Hillsborough disaster as a teenager - echoed Donald Trump's 'Make America Great Again' slogan by insisting Ukip would 'put the great back into Great Britain'.

Merseyside-born Mr Nuttall immediately turned his fire on the Labour Party, vowing to 'stand up for real working people' and 'promote the English' while Jeremy Corbyn's party wrings its hands about Palestine and climate change.

Ukip's new leader, a former history lecturer who was a youth footballer for Tranmere Rovers, claimed his party faced an 'open goal' as it bids to replace Labour as the official opposition. Ukip is in second place in around 40 Labour seats.

But in a nod to months of infighting that marred the contest Mr Nuttall said: 'Only unity breeds success.'

Paul Nuttall was elected Ukip leader by a landslide today and was immediately congratulated on stage by Nigel Farage

A jubilant Mr Nuttall warned rebels inside the party they would have to unify or face being kicked out of the party

And in a warning to squabbling rebels, he said: 'To those who do not want to unify and want to continue fighting the battles of the past, I'm afraid your time in Ukip is coming to an end.'

Mr Nuttall said it was 'day zero' for the party as he ordered 'all factions to come together'.

He announced former leadership contender Peter Whittle would be his deputy leader while Paul Oakden would continue as chairman.

The announcement frees Mr Farage from his duties as 'interim leader' and means the Brexit champion can return to his plan to 'get my life back'.

As the leadership event began, Mr Farage joked he would make the winner 'sign in blood' the correct paperwork to take on the job full time.

Mr Farage was thrust back into the breach last month when Diane James quit the leadership after just 18 days without ever completing the paperwork required to officially take the post. She has since quit the party altogether.

UKIP RESULTS IN FULL Paul Nuttall won the Ukip election by a landslide. More than 32,000 ballots were issued and 15,370 votes were cast. The results in full were: Paul Nuttall: 9,622 (62.6 per cent) Suzanne Evans: 2,973 (19.3 per cent) John Rees-Evans: 2,775 (18.1 per cent) Advertisement

Taking the leadership back on did not stop Mr Farage racing to America to pose with President-elect Trump but he has made clear his desire to step back from the front line of running a party to pursue his own interests.

Today he claimed Brexit and the rise of Ukip 'directly led to the establishment getting beaten on November 8' when Mr Trump won the White House.

And declaring Ukip would win four million votes if an election were held tomorrow, Mr Farage told his successor: 'There is no longer any need for pessimism in Ukip.'

Mr Farage said he would not be a 'back seat driver' but would offer help to the new leader if they asked, vowing to serve out his term as an MEP.

Outgoing Ukip leader Nigel Farage today quipped he would make the winner 'sign in blood' to ensure they do not resign within days - brandishing the official paperwork on stage in Westminster this morning

Mr Farage has spoken of his eagerness to get back to his own personal interests after he tried and failed to resign after the referendum

Ukip's new leader faces a stiff challenge to bring together warring factions divided over Mr Farage's legacy and his approach to politics.

In his victory speech, Mr Nuttall said: 'The country needs a strong Ukip more now than ever before, for if Ukip ceases to be an electoral force, there will be no impetus on Theresa May and her Government to give us real Brexit and we will end up with some mealy-mouthed, backsliding version,' he said.

'This will be a betrayal of the British people and a united Ukip under my leadership will never, ever allow that to happen.'

He made clear his sights are on poaching votes from Labour, arguing that the party under Jeremy Corbyn was more interested in 'dinner party' topics like climate change and fair trade than the interests of their working class voters, such as immigration and social mobility.

The new Ukip leader said: 'Today the Labour Party has ceased to speak the language or address the issues of working people,' he said. 'I want to replace the Labour Party.'

'They have a leader who will not sing the national anthem, a shadow chancellor who seems to admire the IRA more than he does the British Army, a shadow foreign secretary who sneers at the English flag and a shadow home secretary who seems to advocate unlimited immigration.'

Mr Farage is expected to continue his enthusiastic support for President-elect Trump in his new free time - assuming he is not called back into the breach within days

'Ukip's future is bright but for it to be so, Ukip must unite. Today's result has ensured that it will.'

The latest leadership contest was marred by an actual fight in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, leaving leading contender Steven Woolfe in hospital.

Angry clashes between the final three candidates and others who have dropped out - particularly Raheem Kassam, Mr Farage's former chief of staff - will raise fears the new leader will find it impossible to bring the party together.

Its major donor, Arron Banks, has cut off funding and spoken publicly of plans to launch his own political movement with hundreds of Westminster candidates.

Suzanne Evans, pictured arriving for the announcement today, has the support of many senior figure - including MEP Patrick O'Flynn, left - but is expected to finish second today

Outsider John Rees-Evans, pictured arriving for the announcement in Westminster today, is a former soldier most famous for making a gaffe about a 'homosexual donkey'

Douglas Carswell, Ukip's only MP, arrived for the announcement today promising to work with whoever is victorious after months of infighting

A Conservative Party spokesman said: 'Now on their third leader in as many months, UKIP are too divided, distracted and incompetent to offer any serious solutions for the people of Britain.

'After a leadership contest, which the winner himself has described as 'completely shambolic' we've seen brawls and squabbling  but nothing about the issues facing ordinary working people.

'It's the Conservative Party which held a referendum and is now delivering on the people's verdict. We will deliver Brexit and more control on immigration - while UKIP continue to squabble on the sidelines.'

Labour campaign co-ordinator Jon Trickett said: 'You only need to know one thing about Ukip's new leader, Paul Nuttall: he wants privatisation in the NHS.

'Paul Nuttall has welcomed privatisation of the health service, arguing that 'the very existence of the NHS stifles competition'. By electing Paul Nuttall as their leader, Ukip have sent a clear message that they pose a threat to our NHS.'

If Ukip does unite, Labour's leadership will face a challenge on a new front.

Senior Labour backbencher Dan Jarvis warned in The Times: 'There are very few Labour MPs, if any, who would say that they are in what's traditionally been referred to as safe seats. I'm not sure such a thing exists any more.

'It is clear to me that the Ukip fox is in the Labour henhouse and we have got to make a decision about what we want to do about that fox.'

Ukip secured second place to Labour in about 40 seats at the 2015 General Election while an uptick in the party's support in more than two dozen seats could hand them to the Tories.

Race favourite Mr Nuttall has made clear his intention to target Labour votes if he wins today.

Nigel Farage, pictured last week at a party held in his honour at the Ritz, is expected to return to pursuing his own interests, including enthusiastic support for Donald Trump

Mr Farage was thrust back into the leadership last month after his successor Diane James (pictured right moment after being named leader in September) quit the post after 18 days

He told the Sunday Telegraph: 'We have this fantastic opportunity, which we've never had before to this extent, to move into Labour working-class communities and mop up votes,' he said.

'I think in some of these communities we can replace the Labour Party in the next five years and become the patriotic party of the working people.'

He added: 'You've got a Labour Party whose leader refuses to sing the national anthem, whose shadow foreign secretary sneers at the flag, whose shadow chancellor says nice things about the IRA.

'That isn't going to chime well with working-class people.'
It is believed the man died from appendicitis as his skin was too strong to cut through

The skin had black magic tattoos for a spell to make the skin

Thai cemetery workers have uncovered a partially decomposed corpse whose skin has been presevered thanks to what they believe is a black magic tattoo.

Authorities unearthed the body when they were clearing a remote cemetery in Mukdahan on the border of Thailand and Laos.

And they were amazed that the skin was still in tact - hanging loose around the dead man's skeleton.

Thai cemetery workers pose with the corpse they unearthed close to the Laos border, which still had its skin attached

Incredibly, dozens of tribal bamboo inkings done while the person was still alive show a black magic spell for nothing to ever penetrate the skin

Incredibly, dozens of tribal bamboo inkings done while the person was still alive show a black magic spell for nothing to ever penetrate the skin.

And excavators believe the Sanskrit writing and inkings of a tiger ensured the man's body stayed together and was prevented from rotting.

But in a cruel twist, it may have his strong skin that killed him as it was inpenetrable meaning he was unable to have an operation for fata appendicitis, according to rescue organisation Goopaitongdaeng Jeemokkho Goopainueng Soonpaed.

The Thai government organisation then shared the pictures online including one with the workers posing next to the body. .

Excavators believe the Sanskrit writing and inkings of a tiger ensured the man's body stayed together and was prevented from rotting

A spokesman for the group said: ''The authority cleaned the cemetery with local people and volunteers and they found the skin of an old man who died of appendicitis.

''However, he couldn't have surgery because the skin was too hard to cut and he ended up dying in agonising pain from the illness.

'The skin has a lot of tattoos and it hasn't gone rotten.

It is is believed that the man died as a result of appendicitis as doctors could not operate because his skin was impenetrable

'The spell to protect him and make him strong prevented the operation and then after he died stopped his skin from rotting.'

Deeply superstitious Thais - the majority of whom believe in ghosts and reincarnation - were amazed when the images emerged.
A mother was left searching for her daughter for months when the 14-year-old ran away from home during the notorious Apex gang's rise.

Martha - known only by her first name - has revealed how her eldest child, Awiel, ran away from home in Melbourne earlier this year.

The mother-of-six came to Australia from war in South Sudan to provide for her children, but one ended up on the streets, according to an ABC 7.30 report.

'I'm worried, maybe she can drink or she can be dealing with drugs or she can be involved with stealing things,' Martha said of her daughter.

Martha pictured with daughter Awiel, 14, who ran away from home earlier this year

Her daughter's disappearance came during a time which the Apex gang - comprised mainly of South Sudanese youths - was highly active in the city.

A spate of car jackings and home invasions has been linked to the gang.

Their activities have been widely documented since they came to public attention during riots in Melbourne's central business district in February.

The increase of crime among the South Sudanese youths in Melbourne has had an impact on their wider community.

Apex gang members have been linked to a number of car jackings in Melbourne this year

Apex members have been linked to a spate of car jackings, home invasions and thefts in Melbourne

Some parents - who came to Australia for safety and freedom - have even begun sending their children back to Africa for schooling so they don't get involved in crime, the ABC reported.

There are a lot of African children now in jail. There are a lot of children now in the street, they drink, they do whatever. Akec Mading, a South Sudanese mother from Melbourne

Kot Monoah, chair of the South Sudanese Community in Victoria said: 'It is very extreme, but there are many cases where that has really worked to the best of young people'.

Akec Mading sent her daughter and son away after seeing the trouble her relatives' children became involved in and becoming concerned.

'There are a lot of African children now in jail. There are a lot of children now in the street, they drink, they do whatever.'

Her cousin, Rebecca, had done the same with two of her 11 children - two of the older siblings already had drug problems and another had been jailed for assault, it was reported.

Recently, youths linked to Apex carried out a string of thefts at Officeworks stores in Melbourne

Mr Monoah said problems arose with children brought up experiencing freedom in Australia, while their parents still adhered to a strict culture they had learned in their home countries.

The combination led to conflict like Martha and Awiel's.

Months before the teen ran away, she had told child protective services her mother had hit her and that she wouldn't allow her to do the things she wanted.

Martha denied hitting her daughter, and added that South Sudanese parents hadn't been shown how parents dealt with children in Australia.

Recently, Martha was told Awiel had been found, however, she was still worried about her child.
A Dakota Access Pipeline protester has been charged with a felony in federal court, and attempted murder charges against her in state court have been dropped.

Red Fawn Fallis, 37, of Denver, has been charged in U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota with possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Either the U.S. attorney will seek a grand jury indictment against her within two weeks, or she will have a preliminary court hearing Dec. 12.

Attempted murder charges filed against Fallis in Morton County were dismissed Monday morning because of the federal case, according to court records.

The federal complaint alleges that Fallis fired two shots toward officers while being arrested Oct. 27, as law enforcement cleared the northern "front line" camp on N.D. Highway 1806. One shot allegedly struck the ground near a deputy, who said he saw the ground near his left knee "explode."

According to the complaint, Fallis later told law enforcement she was trying to pull the gun out of her pocket and it went off when deputies jumped her. She also reportedly said they were lucky she didn't shoot them all.

In addition, the complaint suggests the alleged gun  a Ruger LCR, .38 special revolver  had been taken from Fallis' then-boyfriend. The Mandan man, who said he dated Fallis for a couple of months prior to the Oct. 27 raid, reported to police Oct. 28 that his gun had been stolen in the past two to three weeks.

In addition, the complaint alleges that Fallis has a felony history as accessory to a crime in Arapahoe County, Colo., which precludes her from legally possessing a gun.

In court Monday, Fallis asked for appointed counsel. Chris Bellmore, of the Federal Public Defender's Office, was assigned to her.

Federal Public Defender Neil Fulton said his office will approach the case as it would with any client, despite the heightened public interest connected to the pipeline protests. He said it was the first protest-related case his office had fielded.

"This taking place on the front line of the DAPL protest raises interest," Fulton said. "It doesn't have an impact on the merits of the case."

Protesters have advocated on Fallis' behalf during the past month. A rally was held for her release Nov. 17, with dozens calling "Free Red Fawn!" outside the Morton County Correctional Center.

About 20 supporters attended Fallis' hearing on Monday morning. Among them was Susana Sandoval, of Chicago.

Sandoval said she does not believe Fallis was armed Oct. 27 and suggested Fallis may have been trying to protect a religious or spiritual instrument. Sandoval also questioned whether Fallis could get a fair trial in North Dakota.

"Morton County has made many allegations against water protectors, but no one is armed," she said.

Some also have suggested that Fallis was targeted by police.

"At the same time that she was arrested, she was helping people who had been pepper-sprayed in their face, taking them back and helping them clean the pepper spray out of their eyes," Rick Williams, a Lakota elder and Fallis' father told ABC affiliate Denver7 earlier this month.

Fallis still has open misdemeanor cases in Morton County, including three separate incidents in which she is charged with disorderly conduct, criminal trespass and maintaining a public nuisance in connection with pipeline protests.
He is raising money for a private search of the area he thinks is more likely

Mr Chillit believes the plane's wreckage is far north of current search area

He posted images of the possible wreckage on his website on Monday

An independent investigator searching for the wreckage of MH370 claims to have found some of the debris on Google Earth.

American statistician Mike Chillit looked at waters around Saint Brandon Island, about 430 kilometres northeast of Mauritius, six months after the plane disappeared in March 2014.

He posted a series of images on his website and Twitter on Monday showing objects he believed could be pieces of the downed Boeing 777 carrying 239 people.

An independent investigator searching for the wreckage of MH370 claims to have found some of the debris on Google Earth

They were seen in waters around Saint Brandon Island, about 430 kilometres northeast of Mauritius, six months after the plane disappeared in March 2014

Mr Chillit was trying to use the position of the possible debris, with what he knows about ocean currents and temperatures, to help narrow down its resting place.

'I havent tried to use Google Earth for this before other than on Reunion where it picked up debris one week before the flaperon was found (in July 2015),' he told News Corp.

All debris found so far is on the east coast of Africa near Madagascar and Mozambique, but he said Saint Brandon Island was never examined.

American statistician Mike Chillit has been searching for the downed plane for more than a year

What Mr Chillit believes to be a hinged wing flap floating in the ocean

A few more pieces of debris near the island

Scientific analysis found barnacles on the flaperon likely started growing in warmer waters than were being searched.

Mr Chillit belies the Malaysia Airlines flight crashed much farther north than the current search site and started a petition for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to move the search.

He is trying to raise money for a private search near the Batavia Seamount and Zenith Plateau off the WA coast west of Exmouth.

MH370 disappeared in March 2014 with 239 people on board

All debris found so far is on the east coast of Africa near Madagascar and Mozambique, but he said Saint Brandon Island was never examined

Scientific analysis found barnacles on a flaperon (pictured) from Reunion Island likely started growing in warmer waters than were being searched

Mr Chillit belies the Malaysia Airlines flight crashed much farther north than the current search site

He wants to hire deep water search specialists Williamson and Associates who applied for the MH370 contract but missed out to Dutch survey company Fugro.

'I try not to take myself too seriously, but I think this is worth investigating,' he said.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is preparing a report on the search that may suggest a 'redefinition' of the search area.

However, there is no funding for searching beyond the current 120,000 square kilometre area and the Malaysia, China and the Australian governments don't support it unless credible new evidence emerges.

He is trying to raise money for a private search near the Batavia Seamount and Zenith Plateau off the WA coast west of Exmouth
Headmistress Louise Bury, pictured, wrote a letter to parents after receiving 'mixed feedback' on the controversial idea

Parents at a Catholic primary school are furious after they were told they will need to pay for tickets to see their children perform in the nativity play.

St Joseph's Catholic Primary School in Worcester is charging parents pay 1 per ticket to attend three performances of the nativity in the school hall next month.

Headmistress Louise Bury was forced to write a letter to the school community after receiving 'mixed feedback' on the controversial idea.

Mrs Bury said some teachers had been 'verbally abused' by furious parents while some have branded the charge 'outrageous'.

The money raised from the tickets will be used to buy bilingual books for children with English as a second language, who make up 43.5 per cent of the student body.

It will also be used to pay for 'story sacks', to help pupils learn English by reading books with props.

In the letter to parents, Mrs Bury said: 'For the first time this year we have decided to charge for the tickets.

'It is evident from the feedback received that there are mixed feelings about this. I know that for some of you, paying to see your child perform doesn't feel right.'

She explained that the money will be used to improve school resources.

Fury: St Joseph's Catholic Primary School in Worcester, pictured, is making parents pay 1 per ticket for three performances in the school hall next month. The decision has outraged parents

Outrage: Headteacher Louise Bury was forced to write a letter to parents after receiving 'mixed feedback', saying 'for some of you, paying to see your child perform doesn't feel right'

Speaking today, Mrs Bury said charging for a nativity was 'not that uncommon' but it was the first time it had been tried at the school.

She said: 'We are becoming a bigger school and there are cost implications on that.

'The money raised is being put back into the school to buy story sacks to help us work primarily with our English as an additional language (EAL) parents.

She added: ' We are a very poorly funded authority. Everything we do is for our children. We are wanting to invest in reading.

'We have taken the decision to do it and we hope parents will see the benefit in what we purchase and we will share that with them.'

However parents have blasted the decision, saying that it is unfair the money will primarily benefit pupils with English as a second language.

Backlash: In a letter to the school community, pictured, Mrs Bury said some teachers had been 'verbally abused' by furious parents while some have branded the charge 'outrageous'

One parent, who asked not to be named, said: ' If your kid doesn't speak English then surely you should pay for these books and teach your child the language which is used in the school.

'If I lived in Spain or France I wouldn't dream of begging the other parents to pay for my kids to learn their language. You move to another country, you play by their rules and you learn their language at your own expense.'

A mother whose eight-year-old son attends the school, added: 'A lot of the kids from minorities are pretty poor and qualify for free school meals.

'I know another mum who said these kids are being given money by the school towards the nativity costumes while the parents of English kids have to pay for their outfits.
He said striking a deal would be like negotiating

the Vatican and China are thawing after six

Cardinal Zen said any agreement the church makes with China would be 'betraying Jesus Christ'

China's most senior Catholic has blasted the Pope for a potential rapprochement between the Vatican and Beijing comparing it to striking a deal with Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin.

Cardinal Joseph Zen, the former bishop of Hong Kong, said any agreement the church makes with China would be 'betraying Jesus Christ' amid a thaw in more than six decades of bitter relations.

The state-controlled China Catholic Patriotic Association still controls the church and controversially appoints bishops without any input from the Vatican meaning sermons could be marred with rhetoric from the Communist Party.

And Cardinal Zen, 84, said that at any agreement where Beijing would have a hand in approving clergy would be 'a surrender'.

'Maybe the pope is a little naive, he doesn't have the background to know the Communists in China,' Zen said at the Salesian school in Hong Kong where he teaches.

'The pope used to know the persecuted Communists (in Latin America), but he may not know the Communist persecutors who have killed hundreds of thousands.'

'You cannot go into negotiations with the mentality 'we want to sign an agreement at any cost', then you are surrendering yourself, you are betraying yourself, you are betraying Jesus Christ,' Zen told the Guardian.

'If you cannot get a good deal, an acceptable deal, then the Vatican should walk away and maybe try again later,' he added.

'Could the church negotiate with Hitler? Could it negotiate with Stalin? No.'

There have been murmurings of a deal for months but Zen argues the Vatican doesn't know the real China and the repression that Catholics still face in the country today.

The cardinal served as the sixth Bishop of Hong Kong after being ordained in 2006. He said Chinese bishops are puppets of the government

Chinese Catholics are free to go to mass and attend government-sanctioned churches, but are barred from attempting to convert people into the religion.

And should a deal be struck and the government still able to appoint Bishop's of their choice the Cardinal said the gospel preached will be still be influenced by the Communist Party.

'It's only the impression of freedom, it's not real freedom, the people sooner or later will see the bishops are puppets of the government and not really the shepherds of the flock.'

'The official bishops are not really preaching the gospel. They are preaching obedience to Communist authority,' said Zen who has been outspoken about the lack of political freedom and religious liberty in China.

Francesco Sisci, an Italian scholar and journalist who is based in Beijing, said 'a very wide-ranging agreement' between the Vatican and Beijing appeared to be on the cards but it still remains unclear when details of the deal will be revealed.

Mass in China. There are an estimated 10 million Catholics in China but that number could be higher due to an 'underground' following

Sisci says the church sees an agreement as 'a major breakthrough' for China and people of all faiths.

The Vatican is eager to boost the number of Catholics in the country who are 10 million in number according to official estimates however there could be far more due to an 'underground' Catholic church operation.

The clergy have faced increased persecution for practicing their faith by authorities since the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989.
A daredevil who was prosecuted for scaling the World Trade Center two years ago is still pulling dangerous stunts on New York skyscrapers.

Justin Casquejo, 18, uploads pictures to his Instagram page of him dangling precariously some of the tallest buildings in the Big Apple.

He boasts of being 'limitless' on social media and has posted dozens of images from structures looking over Times Square, Columbus Circle and near the Empire State Building.

Justin Casquejo, 18, was prosecuted for scaling the World Trade Center two years ago, but it hasn't stopped his antics. He recently posted this image of him dangling from a skyscraper with Central Park behind him

The 18-year-old has continued to perform the dangerous stunts despite his arrest. He poses for a picture with Midtown Manhattan in the background

On his Instagram page, Casquejo describes himself as being 'limitless'. He is seen sitting precariously on a steel beam near New York's Grand Central station

The death-defying teenager is seen balancing on top of the Time Warner building in the Big Apple, above Columbus Circle

'I'm eternally grateful for the life I've lived and the people I've connected with', he said.

'Everything I do is to facilitate even more amazing connections and experiences in the future. For all of us.'

Casquejo made national headlines as a 16-year-old boy when he climbed to the top of 1 WTC in March 2014.

Dressed as a construction worker, he slipped through a square-opening in the fence surrounding the site around 4am.

He managed to elude security and took an elevator to the 88th floor.

The teenager, seen here with the Freedom Tower in the background, said 'following your genuine passion will take you on an adventure you could never even dream of'

Casquejo has continued to carry out his dangerous stunts despite being prosecuted in 2014

Casquejo made national headlines as a 16-year-old boy when he climbed to the top of 1 WTC (seen left in the distance). He is seen in a different snap from the same year

The teenager was sentenced to 30 days community service after his first stunt. He was also ordered to have counseling and to write a 1,200-word essay on the risks. (Casquejo is seen going into Manhattan Criminal Court in April 2014)

He is seen being patted down by court officers on the way into his hearing

From there he took the stairs all the way to the 104th floor and walked right past a sleeping security guard to access the roof.

He spent about two hours on the roof before coming down and getting caught by Port Authority Police.

Casquejo later admitted to breaking a city misdemeanor law against scaling tall buildings without permission, and Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Felicia Mennin let him off without jail time.
Jeremy Corbyn has turned down an invitation to attend the funeral of his Cuban Communist hero Fidel Castro.

The Labour leader faced criticism for praising the revolutionary leader as 'a huge figure of modern history' in the wake of his death over the weekend.

Following the backlash Mr Corbyn, a regular keynote speaker at the Cuba Solidarity Campaign for more than a decade, has decided to send Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry instead.

Theresa May and Boris Johnson both snubbed their invitations and will instead send the Foreign Secretary's deputy - Sir Alan Duncan - to the funeral on Sunday.

Jeremy Corbyn, pictured leaving his north London house on Saturday, is still waiting for an invitation to the funeral of his Cuban Communist hero Fidel Castro

The decision not to send a senior minister has already been criticised by Tories, however, with former International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell saying it would have given the UK Government a good opportunity to engage with other global leaders attending the funeral.

Downing Street said Mrs May 'shares the view of the Foreign Secretary... that he was marked out as a historic if controversial figure'.

The Prime Minister's spokeswoman added: 'We now want to look to the future, how we can work with the government of Cuba on a wide range of priorities, including human rights.

Downing Street said Theresa May, pictured waiting to greet Polish PM Beata Szydlo at RAF Northolt in north London today, will not be attending Fidel Castro's funeral

The death of Castro was announced by his brother and current Cuban president Raul on Saturday morning and nine days of national mourning have been declared in Cuba.

In a statement, Mr Corbyn said: 'Fidel Castro's death marks the passing of a huge figure of modern history, national independence and 20th century socialism.

'From building a world class health and education system, to Cuba's record of international solidarity abroad, Castro's achievements were many.

'For all his flaws, Castro's support for Angola played a crucial role in bringing an end to Apartheid in South Africa and he will be remembered both as an internationalist and a champion of social justice.'

But critics highlighted the Castro regime's human rights abuses and its lack of democratic accountability.

Castro seized power in 1959 following a revolution, purged and killed thousands of his political opponents and held onto power for 50 years, before handing over to brother Raul.

Mr Corbyn has been a long-standing supporter of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign, which urges an end to the blockade of Cuba.

Mr Corbyn, pictured on a train from London to Oxford on Saturday, attracted widespread criticism for his praise of Castro

Castro was never cut out for a quiet life. A flamboyant, restless man with an insatiable sexual appetite, he yearned for a more dramatic destiny. And he found it in armed revolution

Following the backlash Mr Corbyn, a regular keynote speaker at the Cuba Solidarity Campaign for more than a decade, has decided to send Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry, pictured, instead

The veteran socialist particularly praised Castro for standing up to American power and his egalitarian health and education system, but appeared to ignore his dismal record on human rights and the purging of his opponents.

Mr Corbyn's controversial ally Gerry Adams, the Irish Republican leader of Sinn Fein, is intending to fly to Havana for Castro's funeral.

He said: 'Fidel Castro was a global leader and a good friend of the Irish people. I am proud and honoured to travel to Cuba to represent Sinn Fein, as we remember Fidel Castro.'

In the United States, President Barack Obama has been told to snub Castro's funeral.

Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House and a close ally of Donald Trump said he and Secretary of State John Kerry should 'under no circumstance' attend the funeral.

Theresa May and Boris Johnson, left, will snub any invitation to Castro's funeral and will instead send the Foreign Secretary's deputy - Sir Alan Duncan, right

As dictator of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, Castro became a worldwide symbol of revolutionary socialism

With his taste for expensive cigars and pretty young women, he often seemed more like a decadent emperor from the last days of Rome

In contrast, Theresa May, pictured in her Downing Street flat for a Sunday Times interview, and Boris Johnson will snub any invitation to Castro's funeral and will instead send the Foreign Secretary's deputy - Sir Alan Duncan

Reacting to Castro's death, he described him as a 'relentless dictator who imprisoned thousands, killed and tortured many Cubans'.

The Republican said on Twitter: 'Under no circumstance should President Obama or VP Biden or Secstate Kerry go to Cuba for Castro's funeral. He was a tyrant.'

Marco Rubio, one of Mr Trump's rivals in the race for the Republican nomination, said he 'would hope that [the Obama administration] would send no one to the funeral'.
An eight-year-old girl has written a heartfelt letter to the Welsh government asking why cancer drugs needed by her mother's friend are not free.

Daisy Wald penned the letter after her mother told her about Carolyn Gammon, who is raising money for treatment not available through the health service.

Ms Gammon, from Cwmavon, South Wales, was diagnosed with breast cancer last year - just two months after she found out she was pregnant.

This is the letter written by an eight-year-old girl to the government after she found out her mother's friend's cancer treatment was no available on the NHS

She gave birth to her 'miracle' baby Mira despite the diagnosis but was later told her cancer had spread to her liver and lung and was now terminal.

The mother-of-two is now raising money to pay for life-extending drugs TDM1 (Kadcyla) and Pertuzumab (Perjeta), which are not routinely available through the NHS in Wales.

When Ms Gammon's friend Sarah told her daughter Daisy about her plight, the primary school pupil decided to write to the Welsh government and her letter was sent to minister Vaughan Gething.

Daisy's mother said: 'She knows all about Carolyn. When I said drugs aren't free in Wales, she couldn't get her head around it.

'She asked what she could do and I told her to write a letter to the government. We sent it in the post, but haven't heard anything back.'

The little girl wrote: 'It's very sad for me and my mum because my mummy's friend Carolyn has cancer.

'She had it when she was pregnant and had a baby. Then she was fine.But soon after she had cancer again and she had lots of treatment. But she also needs those tablets so will you please make them free.'

Daisy Wald was told by her mother about Carolyn Gammon's plight and wrote the letter

Describing her situation on her fundraising webpage, Ms Gammon wrote: 'At the moment, I get three-weekly injections of a drug called Herceptin, and so far, this has stopped my cancer from progressing. At some point though, this will stop working.

'There are other targeted therapy drugs that have proven to be very effective in treating my type of cancer. These are TDM1 (or Kadcyla) and Pertuzumab (Perjeta), but these are not routinely available on the NHS in Wales.

'We can apply for these but it is highly likely our application will be rejected. We can appeal the decision but this takes time, which is a luxury I may not have.

'I have therefore decided to try and raise funds now, while I am well, and before we begin the process of applying for funding from the NHS.'

Ms Gammon has raised more than 60,000 for her treatment. But with one drug alone costing over 5,000 every three weeks, she needs to she needs nearly 100,000 more to pay for a year's worth of the drugs.

Carolyn Gammon, with her partner Gos Davies and their children Rudy and baby Mira

A Welsh Government spokesman said: 'The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes decisions about which treatments should be available within the NHS based on clinical and cost effectiveness.

'Our All-Wales Medicines Strategy Group (AWMSG) is an extra process that delivers even quicker access to medicines that are proved to be effective.

'Where a treatment is not routinely available in the Welsh NHS and a patient's clinical circumstances indicate they are likely to gain significantly more benefit from a treatment than would normally be expected, clinicians may apply through the Individual Patient Funding Request (IPFR) process, on the patient's behalf.'
Heartwarming video shows how much his return meant to his parents

The pair planned how to surprise his parents with his visit and caught it all on camera

His parents had no idea he was returning home with his sister Olivia

A devoted son flew 2,500 miles to surprise his parents with a Thanksgiving visit.

In this heartwarming video, Collin Straka joins his sister Olivia in planning the ultimate present for his parents to be thankful for by turning up unannounced.

He opens the video at the airport in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where he has landed from California.

Collin Straka arrived at the airport in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to surprise his parents with a visit

His mum and dad thought they wouldn't see him until Christmas, and hadn't seen him since May. He roped in younger sister Olivia to help

First to be surprised is his dad, who spots him in the kitchen before his mother gets home. He says 'I'm going to freak out' when he sees him

He says: 'I'm here as a complete surprise to my parents. I haven't seen them since May and my parents think the earliest I'm coming home is Christmas.

'I planned this whole little thing where my sister would pretend she is coming home and it's just her but actually I'm here.

'I was on the phone with them last night and they have no idea anything is up.'

His sister Olivia picks him up and the two plot the best way to announce his presence to his parents.

In the kitchen, Collin hides while Olivia says hello to her father.

The trio begin to plot the best way to surprise Collin and Olivia's mother with his return and decide to stage a magic trick

As he bursts up from behind the counter, Collin's father is shocked and says: 'What are you doing here?

'Oh your mother! She is going to freak out.

'I'm going to freak out!'

Collin's mother's reaction is caught perfectly on camera as the sheet he is standing behind drops

His mother runs over to hug him, thrilled by his surprise visit back home after six months away in California

Collin later posted that he was so pleased to have their reactions caught on camera to watch again and again

Then the trio wait for Collin's mother to return and plan a funny magic trick involving a huge sheet and strategic use of the basement.

As the sheet drops, Collin is revealed to his mother and her happy face is revealed to him.

He laughs as she repeats: 'Oh my gosh!'

She hugs him and then Olivia and says: 'Both my babies, I'm so happy.

'Oh thank you, you kept it a secret.

'I'm trying to figure out the magic trick.'

Posting on Instagram later, Collin wrote: 'Flying 2,500 miles to surprise my parents.
At first glance, this might look like a typical family photograph.

But a closer look reveals what appears to be a ghostly figure of a woman and a baby standing in the doorway of Crathes Castle, near Banchory, Aberdeenshire.

The figure was captured by Bill Andrew on a visit to the 16th century site with his daughter Coleen, granddaughter Jessica and great-grandson Findley.

The figure was captured by Bill Andrew on a visit to Crathes Castle, near Banchory, Aberdeenshire, with his daughter Coleen, granddaughter Jessica and great-grandson Findley

The door to the castle had been closed at the time so when Coleen spotted the shadowy figure in the image, she contacted staff to see if there was an explanation.

There are said to be two ghosts haunting the castle, a Green Lady and the ghost of Lady Agnes Burnett, who is said to reappear on the anniversary of her death.

Property manager James Henderson said a number of visitors have reported 'mysterious sightings in and around the castle of late'.

There are said to be two ghosts haunting the castle, pictured, a Green Lady and the ghost of Lady Agnes Burnett, who is said to reappear on the anniversary of her death

He added: 'T he castle guides have reported that things have felt strange.

'They have reported a chill down the back in an otherwise warm room, and odd noises in an otherwise empty building.'
Relatives of the San Bernardino killers are fighting for custody of the couple's 17-month-old daughter who was left an orphan.

Terrorists Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik died in a shoot-out with police after they killed 14 and injured 20 during a rampage at an office party in the California city last year.

Now Farook's older sister and her husband are desperately trying to adopt the killers' abandoned daughter who is currently in care.

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Hopeful: Saira and Farhan Khan (pictured with their children), from Riverside, California, filed for adoption and were interviewed by Child Protection Services

Saira and Farhan Khan, from Riverside, California, filed for adoption and were interviewed by Child Protection Services.

They were cleared by the FBI of any prior knowledge of the shooting and submitted to home inspections.

But still they have only been granted six-hour visits twice a week and have to wait for a decision by the county on adopting.

'We are normal people. We are a good family,' Mrs Khan, 32, toldThe Washington Post.

The couple, who are the closest surviving relatives of the killers' child, already have a daughter, 3, and a son, 8.

They had no idea their relatives were terrorists in the making, plotting to leave their daughter behind by buying a wardrobe of clothes to last her until she was six as they prepared to die.

Terrorists Syed Rizwan Farook (left) and Tashfeen Malik (right) died in a shoot-out with police after they killed 14 and injured 20

Survivors are evacuated from the scene of a shooting under police and sheriff's escort on December 2, 2015 in San Bernadino

'What kind of parent makes plans to abandon their child? How were they capable of something like that and we didn't know?' asked Mrs Khan.

Mrs Khan has postponed her teaching internship so she can be there for her niece for regular visits, determined to give the child a chance of a normal life.

She has pleaded with the CPS to grant her custody, writing, 'I am afraid she will completely forget us,' but still awaits a decision.

She and her husband said they will tell the girl 'the whole story' of her parents' actions when she is a teenager.
Michelle Harper, 25, and her 28-year-old partner Brian Slusarek (pictured together) are upset that Mr Slusarek cannot get a permanent visa to stay in the UK

A student says she feels 'betrayed' by the British immigration system after her Canadian boyfriend was told he would be kicked out of the country because of a technicality.

Michelle Harper, 25, and her 28-year-old partner Brian Slusarek met in 2013 and have lived together in Britain since January 2015.

But Home Office officials have now denied Mr Slusarek's bid to stay permanently in the UK because the couple cannot prove they have lived together for two years.

Although the pair lived together in Canada - which would take them over the 24-month threshold needed to qualify - officials say that time does not count because they do not have the paperwork to prove it.

It means the Home Office have only accepted their time living together in the UK - one year and nine months.

Ms Harper, who lives in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, said they were 'devastated' by the decision and accused officials of 'putting a price on love'.

'We're a genuine, honest couple and we've done everything by the rules,' she said.

'Brian is the most hardworking person I've ever met, and I know that anyone who knows him here would say the same.

'Even more, Brian has provided for this country. Last year he paid over 5,000 in taxes from wages alone, not to mention additional contributions to National Insurance, council tax and all the rest of it.

'Brian is from a country in the Commonwealth. We share the same Queen, the same language, and same cultural values. He has no criminal convictions, no children and no previous marriages.

'Yet besides all of this, the government have refused his visa to remain in the UK and he must return to Canada on January 6, no exceptions.'

The couple met in Cairns, Australia, in November 2013 and travelled together until the following April, when Mr Slusarek returned to Canada.

In June 2014, Ms Harper moved in with Mr Slusarek at his family home in Barrie, Ontario, and stayed there until her three-month visitor visa expired.

Mr Slusarek then moved to the UK in January 2015 and the couple originally rented a house in Stoke before moving to Sheffield this summer.

Michelle Harper, 25, and her 28-year-old partner Brian Slusarek met in 2013 in Australia (right) and have lived together in Britain since January 2015

But Home Office officials have now denied Mr Slusarek's bid to stay permanently in the UK because the couple (pictured together) cannot prove they have lived together for two years

But the pair have no official confirmation that they lived together in Canada.

'Unfortunately I didn't open a bank account or have any form of paperwork to prove we were together,' Ms Harper said.

'We've been to see an immigration lawyer but basically the advice was that Brian will have to leave. His employers have said they will keep his position open if he returns.

'They said basically we should have just got married in the first place. But if we get married now they will reject it as a sham.

'Because I'm studying and not working it makes things even more difficult. You have to have a certain amount of savings. To meet the requirements we'd have to have 62,500.

Ms Harper, who lives in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, said the couple (pictured) were 'devastated' by the decision and accused officials of 'putting a price on love'

'They're basically putting a price on love, which is ridiculous. Now I just wish we'd got married, but we wanted to do things at our own pace and not rush into it.'

She added that the refusal had come as a 'shock'.

'The rejection letter came last week and basically just said we don't meet the relationship requirements, we're three months short,' she said.

'You ask yourself all these questions: why won't they let him stay? It made me really upset. We feel betrayed in a way because he's such a hard-working person.

'He's trying to be strong for me and he's a very positive person, but it's hard to talk about it. He's looked at flights to go back to Canada in January but not booked anything.'

Ms Harper, originally from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire is studying for a masters degree in clinical communication studies at the University of Sheffield, while Mr Slusarek works for a car manufacturer in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire.

He is currently on a 230 two-year Tier 5 (Youth Mobility Scheme) visa and has worked as a business manager since he moved to the UK.

He said: 'I'm definitely frustrated by it. I thought it was quite an easy process, but it's all come down to the fact we're missing a bit of paper from Canada.

'I thought it was going to be a done deal. I signed a one-year lease for the house in August and I wouldn't have done that if I thought I'd be leaving.

'In hindsight obviously I wish we'd got a bank account or something that showered we're together. We've shown them photos and evidence from our families but it's not enough.

'It's hard to stomach. There's not much point appealing as I have nothing new to submit so it'd be a waste of 800.

'We've just got to take each day as it comes and assess our options. We've spoken about getting married and starting a family and that's still the plan.'

A Home Office spokesman said: 'All applications are considered in line with the immigration rules and accompanying guidance.

'The guidance is clear that unmarried partners require evidence of cohabitation for two years and, despite being given the opportunity to provide evidence from before he came to the UK, Mr Slusarek could not.
US authorities fear thousands of Cubans will take advantage of Fidel Castro's death to flee the island and move to Miami.

Miami Dade County Schools Superintendent Albero M Carvalho warned that thousands of Cubans may arrive in Miami with their children.

He said his officials are preparing for 'a potential influx of children and adult learners'.

In addition, many of the Cuban-Americans whose families fled Cuba to escape the government have said they will not consider returning to the island despite Castro's death, because the Communist regime remains in force.

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Cuban Americans celebrated on the streets of Miami following Fidel Castro's death

Cubans in Havana read about Castro's death in the communist daily newspaper

Mr Carvalho told CNN: 'We are ready to work with state and federal entities to secure the appropriate and necessary support to deliver educational services to all who, in light of today's development, may arrive in our community.

'Just as we did during the 1980 Mariel Boatlift and the 1994 Cuban rafter exodus, this school district will continue its long-standing history of opening our arms to welcome, embrace, and educate all students.'

President Barack Obama met Castro's brother Raul at Nelson Mandela's funeral. Obama publicly shook Castro's hand - a moment seen as an important event in the normalization of relations between Cuba and the US.

In Little Havana, Miami, home to many of those who fled Castro's despotic regime, people have been on the streets, greeting the news of his death like an unexpected festival.

One woman, Delsy, who would not give her last name was standing outside the Cafe Versailles in a jubilant mood.

President Obama met with Fidel Castro's brother Raul at Nelson Mandela's funeral

Miami Dade County Schools Superintendent Albero M Carvlho warned that thousands of Cubans may arrive in Miami with their children despite the dictator's death last weekend

She said: 'I'm not tired of celebrating because I can't believe it. I never thought that this moment would arrive.'

Some 70 per cent of the two million Cubans in America live in Florida.

A major rally is planned in Little Havana on Wednesday, calling for democratic elections. The rally will coincide with a four-day tour of Cuba by Castro's body.

Orlando Gutierrez of the Cuban Resistance Assembly said: 'The tyrant is dead but the tyranny continues.'

Vicente Abrez, 65 said he hoped one day to return home.

He said: 'Now we Cubans have hope that without Fidel, communism will fall, and if God allows it, we can return to our free country.'

Some 70 per cent of the two million Cubans in America live in the state of Florida

Leticia Gallo, 44, arrived in the US seven years ago with her young son. She said Castro's death provided her with 'light at the end of the tunnel'.

Emilio Estefan, husband of singing star Gloria Estefan, said Cuba now faces 'a new dawn with a new sun full of hope'.

Elana Garcia, who arrived in Miami aged 13 in 1961 was one of those who was celebrating but she said she was unlikely to return to Cuba.

She told the LA Times: 'I really am not sure that the death of Fidel Castro is going to make much of a difference at this point.

'Because his brother [Raul Castro] is still the president, and [he] has insisted that he will do everything to make sure that Cuba remains a socialist nation.'
Her prince might be 2,000 miles away in the Caribbean, but Meghan Markle is still having a good time as she celebrates putting up a Christmas tree with friends.

The 35-year-old Suits actress was pictured in a festive scene in California with her friends Heather Dorak, and Benita and Darren Litt and their two children.

The photograph was taken in front of a colourfully decorated Christmas tree in a luxurious living room, and was captioned with the hashtag #theresnoplacelikehome.

#californialove: Meghan Markle (right) was pictured in a festive scene with her friends Heather Dorak (centre right), and Benita (left) and Darren Litt (centre left) and their two children

Prince Harry (left) and Markle (right) are 2,000 miles away from each other at the moment

Ms Dorak is known as a Los Angeles fitness guru who founded Pilates Platinum, while Mrs Litt launched the bag company Legend of Lido based in Venice Beach.

Markle tweeted last night: 'Tree trimming bliss with my faves. Love u Benita Litt (& D) @pilatesplatinum + my fairy god-daughters #theresnoplacelikehome #californialove

And she posted the same picture to her 1.3million followers on Instagram with the caption: Tree trimming bliss with my favorites. Love you @benitalitt (& D) @heatherdorak + my fairy god-daughters #theresnoplacelikehome #californialove.

Markle, who became a household name after her relationship with Harry emerged last month, has been without him while he makes an official visit to the Caribbean.

Christmas is coming: Markle revealed last this week that she was nervous about cooking for Thanksgiving, as she shared a photo of a celebration in a previous year on Instagram

Prince Harry at Queens Park Grounds in Grenada today attending a community sports event

Harry poses with children at the event during the second leg of his Caribbean tour today

Harry had the opportunity to meet and engage with some of Grenada's young sporting stars

Harry is midway through a 15-day tour that has already taken him to Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

She is currently in her hometown of Los Angeles after returning to the set of US legal drama Suits in Toronto, following a recent trip to London.

Before she took on her most well-known role as feisty paralegal Rachel in Suits, Markle was a 'briefcase girl' on the American version of Deal Or No Deal.

Last night, Harry was stranded after the Navy ship he was travelling on broke down during his tour of the Caribbean.

The 32-year-old prince at an official arrival and welcome parade at Grenada Cruise Port today

Harry is midway through a 15-day tour that has already taken him to Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines

Harry disembarks a speedboat (left) as he arrives into St George's on the ninth day of an official visit to the Caribbean, where he played cricket in Grenada today (right)

Harry, pictured in Grenada today, is on a 15-day tour of the Caribbean on behalf of the Queen

The Prince was due to leave the island of St Vincent on Saturday evening and spend the night moored offshore but the ship, RFA Wave Knight, would not start.

Yesterday was then meant to be a travel day, with the RFA Wave Knight, a fast fleet tanker that entered Navy service in 2003, sailing on to the island of Grenada.

The Prince, 32, is spending a total of six days on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary boat during his 15-day tour of the Caribbean on behalf of the Queen.

Harry is said to have loved his time so far on the vessel and enjoyed eating with the men on board. Food on offer includes poached eggs and Lancashire hot pot.
A five-year-old boy was greeted by police officers at his home after inviting them round on Thanksgiving to share his cheesecake.

Billy Nolin, five, from DeFuniak Springs in Florida, melted hearts when he called 911 to ask officers to join him and his family for their Thanksgiving dinner.

His brief call puzzled the Walton County 911 dispatcher but left them all with a smile on their faces.

Monica Webster, communications officer, said: 'With all the bad calls we take on a daily basis this one was a welcomed happy call that made all of us smile.'

Billy was paid a special visit by Deputy Damon Byrd and Deputy Aaron Ethridge who gave him a Sheriff's Badge and even let him sit in their patrol cars and turn on the siren.

The five-year-old said he was now inspired to become a police officer so he could also be 'nice to little kids some day.'

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Five-year-old Billy was greeted by two police officers after asking them to come round to his house for his family's Thanksgiving dinner

His mother Landi McCormick was in the kitchen with her mother preparing the Thanksgiving feast on Thursday while Billy was playing outside with his grandfather and four-year-old brother Camden.

She then noticed he was on the phone and when she asked who he had speaking with, he bashfully replied '911'.

She told News Herald: 'I asked him, "Why did you do that? You know that you are only supposed to do that if there's an emergency."

'He started crying but just a few minutes later the officers arrived at the house.'

When they showed up, they approached Billy and asked if he was the boy who phoned 911.

Rather than tell him off, they thanked him for his kind invitation but reminded him 911 was for emergencies only.

They then gave Billy a sheriff's badge and allowed him to sit in their patrol car and turn on the lights and siren.

Billy has been inspired to become a police officer when he was older so he can do the same thing for a little boy or girl in the future

Ms McCormick said: 'Billy is still talking about how nice the deputies were to him today and he has his mind set on being a cop when he is older.

'He said, "Momma I'm gonna be a cop when I get older so I can do the same thing they did for me today for another little boy or girl!"

'[But] he now knows that you can't just call 911 invite them to a dinner or lunch...it is for emergencies only!'

She added: 'I want to thank the deputies that came out... y'all are amazing people thank you so much. Billy enjoyed y'all's company.'

WSCO Public Information Officer Corey Dobridnia said: 'This is typical of the kind of professionalism our deputies display every day.

'It just goes to show that deputies aren't just about arresting people and putting them in jail.
An inspirational teenager has proved there are no barriers that his disability can stop him from breaking - quite literally in this case.

Cody Piver, who suffers from Cerebral Palsy, manages to smash seven boards during a taekwondo presentation.

While mastering some of the involuntary movements caused by the brain condition, he masterfully broke the first of his wooden blocks using a hammer fist.

Cody Piver, who suffers from Cerebral Palsy, manages to smash seven boards during a taekwondo presentation

While mastering some of the involuntary movements caused by the brain condition, he masterfully broke the first of his wooden blocks using a hammer fist

With pointed precision, the 13-year-old used a mixture of chops, punches and even elbow shots to shatter the obstacles swiftly in his able-bodied presentation.

As he moved with some difficulty across the Junior Taekwondo School in Boardman, Ohio, USA, Cody is cheered all the way by onlookers, including his mother, Michelle.

Michelle said: 'I was extremely proud of Cody.'

With pointed precision, the 13-year-old used a mixture of chops, punches and even elbow shots to shatter the obstacles swiftly in his able-bodied presentation
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From stormy seas on the Sussex coast to the peaks of the Scottish Highlands, these landscape photographs capture some of the most breathtaking scenes Britain has to offer.

The images all received commendations in this year's Landscape Photographer of the Year awards, which was won by Matthew Cattell, from Bracknell, Berkshire, for an arresting photograph of starlings in Brighton.

Other photographs honoured include a stylised picture of the lighthouse at Beachy Head, East Sussex, and an image of a railway viaduct cutting across the rugged Yorkshire Dales.

The Young Landscape Photographer of the Year award was won by Hannah Faith Jackson for her fascinating photograph of reflections in a bar window in Glasgow.

Now all 153 winning and commended photographs have been compiled in a book titled Landscape Photographer of the Year: Collection 10.

They are also on show at a free exhibition of winning entries, hosted by Network Rail, on the Balcony of London Waterloo station until 5th February 2017 before touring selected stations nationwide.

Rugged beauty: This photo by Francis Taylor of the Ribblehead Viaduct, North Yorkshire, won the Network Rail Award

Force of nature: Titled 'Poseidon Rising', this stunning image captures the waves off the coast of Newhaven, East Sussex

Feat of engineering: The Queensferry Crossing under construction, as seen from from North Queensferry was commended

Perfectly still: Morning light at Crummock Water, Cumbria, was commended in the Landscape Photographer of the Year

Cinematic: Sun rays cast a captivating glow on Sgurr an Fhidhleir, North of Ullapool, in the Scottish Highlands

Moody: This commended photograph captures the landscape surrounding the Haweswater Resevoir, in Cumbria

Stylised: This image, titled 'The Guardian of the Island', taken at Beachy Head, East Sussex, was highly commended

Beautiful: Grant Hyatt's 'Dragon's Breath Dawn', taken at Cribyn, Brecon Beacons National Park, was commended

Frozen land: Robert Birkby captured the Lochaber Light, at Ballachulish, in the Scottish Highlands, in a commended image

Drama: Titled 'Giants Above', this highly commended image was taken at Picton Castle, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire
Andy Cohen and his boyfriend were spotted enjoying a romantic dinner in New York City on Sunday night.

The Watch What Happens Live host and his beau of almost two years, Clifton Dassuncao, grabbed a bite to eat at the trendy Waverly Inn near Cohen's apartment in the West Village.

A fellow diner tells DailyMail.com that the two were affectionate throughout the meal, with Dassuncao leaning over at one point to plant a kiss on Cohen's head.

The lovebirds also enjoyed some wine and sampled one another's food during their post-holiday dinner, arriving to the restaurant at 7:15pm and heading out a little over an hour later at around 8:30pm.

Cohen had been in his hometown of St. Louis over the long weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving with his family, and it is not clear if he brought Dassuncao along on the trip or if the New York City native stayed back on the East Coast.

The Bravo executive, 48, met the 28-year-old, who is a fellow in Environmental Science and Engineering at Harvard University, back in March 2015 during the opening night of his AC2 Tour with pal Anderson Cooper in Boston.

DailyMail.com revealed the two were dating back in April, after Dassucano joined Cohen on Barry Diller's $150million yacht Eos for two Caribbean getaways in the span of three months.

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Watch what happens: Andy Cohen and his boyfriend Clifton Dassuncao had a dinner date Sunday night at the Waverly Inn in Manhattan's West Village (above)

Lovebirds: A fellow diner tells DailyMail.com that the pair were affectionate throughout the meal, drank wine, and shared their food

Going strong: Dassuncao, 28, met Cohen on opening night of his AC2 Tour in March 2015 and the pair have been dating ever since

In the beginning: Dassuncao first posted a photo of himself and Cohen back in July of last year after a taping of Watch What Happens

Cohen - who has written and released three autobiographical diaries in the past four years detailing everything from his late-night FaceTime sessions with Cooper to the threesome he had with a husband and wife (whom he also met in Boston) - has kept remarkably quiet about his relationship with Dassuncao, who is 20 years his junior.

The man behind the Real Housewives franchise has always been shockingly private when it comes to his love life and sexual escapades, though he has admitted to hooking up with Lance Bass and made it very clear on multiple occasions that he and Cooper have never dated or had sex.

Cohen's reps at NBC and Bravo also had no comment back in April when asked about his relationship with Dassuncao, who set his Instagram account to private after it was revealed that he was the Bravo boss' new boyfriend.

Cohen did briefly talk about his boyfriend during an interview with The Daily Dish last month though, but did not mention Dassuncao by name.

In that interview, Cohen discussed his dog Wacha's relationship with his new beau, saying: 'Wacha loves him. I met him with Anderson Cooper on the opening night of my tour with Anderson. And Anderson has loved this guy from the moment that I met him.

'I remember saying to Anderson, like ten months ago, that Wacha really likes this guy and Anderson said "Dogs always know. You have to listen to your dog."'

Giving thanks: DailyMail.com revealed the pair were dating in April after Dassuncao twice joined Cohen on a trip aboard Barry Diller's $150m yacht Eos

Jetting home: Cohen had been in St. Louis over the long weekend celebrating Thanksgiving with his family

Wicked smart: Dassuncao grew up in Queens, attended private school in Manhattan, then went to MIT for undergrad and Harvard for a Masters and PhD

See and bee seen: The Waverly Inn (above) is close to Cohen's apartment in the West Village

Cohen also briefly opened up about his relationship during an interview with Matt Lauer on Today earlier this month, though again did not mention Dassuncao by name or share any personal details about his Ivy League-educated man.

While promoting his latest book, Superficial: More Adventures from the Andy Cohen Diaries, Cohen said that it was his relationship with his new boyfriend that made him want to 'put the pen down' during a writing session over Memorial Day and live more in the moment.

'I started to get emotionally exhausted reporting on my life kind of, and I said, "I have to go live it. I've got to go do this. There's this great guy here,"' Cohen told Lauer.

He also said in that interview that he was starting to consider the possibility of having a child one day.

In and out: The pair arrived for dinner at 7:15pm and headed out some time around 8:30pm

PDA: At one point during the meal Cohen leaned over and planted a kiss on Dassuncao's head

Keeping quiet: Cohen has spoken very little about his boyfriend, though did recently admit his dog Wacha and Anderson Cooper approved of his new love interest

Dassuncao first posted a photo of himself and Cohen in July of last year after seeing him on Watch What Happens Live, four months after the pair began dating.

'This happened, live,' wrote Dassuncao.

A week later he posted a photo on Instagram of his summer reading list which included a copy of The Andy Cohen Diaries, which Cohen liked.

Dassuncao is one of only 289 people that Cohen, who has 1.5million followers, follows on Instagram.

He posted photos of himself on Diller's yacht last December, including one photo where he wrote; '#monkeybusiness.'

Cohen commented on that photo; 'Monkey business is right.'

Dassuncao posted a photo while on Diller's yacht in the Caribbean last Christmas (above), which prompted Cohen to respond

Cohen also posted a photo from the trip last Christmas (above), though not one of him and his boyfriend together

Cohen and Dassuncao took a couple's vacation this past April in the Caribbean on a megayacht belonging to Barry Diller (in green). Also on the tropical getaway was, l to r, Lauren Blum, Diane Von Furstenburg, Bruce Bozzi, Jason Blum and Bryan Lourd

The Palms owner Bruce Bozzi also posted a photo back in April the showed himself and partner Bryan Lourd, Diller and wife Diane von Furstenberg, producer Jason Blum and his wife Lauren, and Cohen and Dassuncao on vacation in the Caribbean.

Dassuncao was tagged later that week in a photo having lunch with Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos.

Ripa's children and producer Sandy Gallin were also at the lunch.

Dassuncao has an incredibly impressive resume, having worked for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Geological Survey in addition to his research at Harvard, according to his Linked In.

He grew up in Queens and attended private school in New York City at Loyola on the Upper East Side

He then went off college at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Paul Goodwin, 48, was repeatedly told he could not sit and eat with his Labrador Molly by his side while out for lunch with a friend

A blind man has revealed how he felt like bursting into tears after being refused entry to Thai restaurant because he had his guide dog with him.

Paul Goodwin, of Carterton, Oxfordshire, was repeatedly told he could not sit and eat with his five-year-old brown Labrador Molly by his side while out for lunch with a friend.

The 48-year-old father-of-two then called police following a row with staff but was shocked to be then only offered a table by the door.

Mr Goodwin had arranged to meet a friend at Angrid Thai but was refused entry by staff who told him they had a no dogs policy.

Despite handing over an information card explaining the rights of guide dog owners, Mr Goodwin said staff continued to turn him away.

He said: There's a point where you just feel like bursting into tears. It feels really nasty. My dog is like a mobile phone is to some people. Not having her would be like having an arm removed.

'It seems to be happening more and more frequently. It's the result of a lack of awareness and I find it very frustrating.

Mr Goodwin, who works for Oxfordshire County Council, was diagnosed as a child with Choroideremia, a rare inherited disorder that causes progressive vision loss.

About five years ago the customer services worker's condition began to deteriorate and he is now registered as legally blind.

WHAT IS CHOROIDEREMIA? Choroideremia is an inherited retina disorder that causes progressive vision loss, ultimately leading to complete blindness. It is believed to affect just one in 50,000 individuals - mostly males. It is caused by a genetic defect of the X-chromosome. Men have just one X chromosome, while women have two, which means a normal X chromosome can compensate for an unhealthy one. The first symptom tends to be night-blindness, followed by vision loss in the mid-periphery. Over time the peripheral vision loss leads to 'tunnel vision' and eventually complete loss of sight. There is currently no cure for Choroideremia, but a gene therapy treatment is under trial in the US, the UK, and in Canada. Source: Choroideremia Research Foundation Advertisement

Angrid Thai waitress Yure Nasthat said: It was a misunderstanding. We have a no dogs policy and we didn't know he was blind or that it was a guide dog.

When we realised we told them to sit down but he was not happy with that and did not want to stay to eat.

Oxford City Council recently sent information leaflets provided by the charity Guide Dogs to about 800 food businesses.

Oxford East Labour MP Andrew Smith has been supporting a campaign by Guide Dogs to increase awareness of the law.

He said: It's appalling that yet again we see this happening in a restaurant in Oxford and it underlines the importance for all restaurant managers, staff, and all premises open to the public to respect people's basic human rights.

The charity said almost half of guide dog owners who took part in a survey have experienced access refusals in the last year.

Under the Equality Act 2010, owners of registered, qualified assistance dogs have the right to enter restaurants, cafes, pubs and other food premises with their assistance dogs.

A Guide Dogs spokesman told MailOnline: 'We were sorry to hear that Paul was turned away by a restaurant in Oxford because of his guide dog.

'People with sight loss rely on their guide dogs to live with freedom and confidence, and its extremely distressing to be turned away by a business.
Adams was arrested in the Netherlands and extradited back to the UK

He grabbed the gun and shot the man, who refused to help detectives

Patrick Adams was approached by a driver said to be holding a gun in 2013

Patrick Adams - a member of the notorious Adams crime family - has admitted causing grievous bodily harm

A member of the infamous Adams crime family has admitted shooting a man in the chest - but was cleared of attempted murder after the victim refused to cooperate with police.

Patrick 'Patsy' Adams, 60, one of the Adams family, shot motorist Paul Tiernan in Islington, north London, in December 2013 with a .45 calibre gun.

Adams admitted causing grievous bodily harm with intent at Woolwich Crown Court.

Prosecutor Crispin Aylett QC said the defendant and the victim were long-time associates.

He said: 'The prosecution suggest from the circumstances of the shooting in broad daylight and at close range, that what happened would seem to have been personal.

'They had known one another for many years. The prosecution suggest they had much in common.

'They were men of a similar age, they knew a number of the same people, they share a reluctance to cooperate with police and live by the same code, one in which loyalty is everything and either snitching or grassing is contemptible.'

The court heard the defendant and his wife Constance Adams, 56, had been spotted on CCTV walking in the area near to their flat in Percival Street, Finsbury, north London, at around 9.30am that day.

As they walked in St Johns Street, in Clerkenwell, Mr Tiernan beckoned Adams towards his car, a dark-coloured BMW, where the defendant claimed he could see the victim had a gun.

'Adams ran to the car and reached into the open window,' Mr Aylett said, outlining the defence's version of events.

'Although Mr Tiernan had a gun in his hand he had not shot him. This allowed Patrick Adams to grab hold of the gun. Fearing for his safety and that of his wife, he shot Paul Tiernan.'

The incident happened in St Johns Street, London, where the victim was found in the road

Mr Tiernan, who refused to cooperate with police, was shot in the chest and was later found by officers lying on his back in the road.

Meanwhile, Adams returned home to pick up his car and then drove to the Regent's Canal, where the gun had been thrown into the water.

The victim, who was 51 at the time, spent a month in hospital after suffering complications linked with anabolic steroid withdrawal, the court heard. He is now thought to have made a full recovery.

Mr Aylett said that, days after the shooting, police found a handwritten note, which had been written by Mr Tiernan and was addressed to Adams, during a search of his London flat.

Reading it to the court, Mr Aylett said: 'Pat, I ain't no f****** grass. G (which may be a reference to Mr Adams' son George) could have stopped all this b******s by telling the truth.

'I've always been there for both of you but no-one is ever there for me. We are men. Face me. The truth will hurt.'

Patrick Adams, pictured (right) in the 1990s, is the brother of gangster Terry Adams (left)

The court heard that, on the evening of the shooting, two women were seen on CCTV entering Harold Laski House, where the defendant lived, and emerging half an hour later with suitcases.

Mr Aylett said the women were thought to be Adams' daughters and the evidence indicated that the defendant and his wife were not intending to return home and instead fled abroad.

They were later found to be in Amsterdam in April 2014 and were extradited in October last year from the Netherlands on a European arrest warrant sought by the Metropolitan Police during the investigation.

Adams had previously denied a charge of attempted murder and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) offered no evidence on that count.

A third charge of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life would lie on file, Mr Aylett said.

Patrick Adams was arrested in Amsterdam after the shooting and extradited to Britain

Mrs Adams, who also denied the same charges, was discharged as the CPS offered no evidence against her.

Six dock officers flanked Adams, who wore glasses and a navy blue jumper, and his wife as they appeared in court.

The career criminal, who was first convicted at the age of 12, is the younger brother of Terry Adams, the 'retired' head of the north London gang.

Adams was remanded in custody ahead of sentencing on Friday.
A London cafe which sold smoothies with swastikas on the bottles has removed the product after complaints.

Customers at Nincomsoup cafe, by Old Street tube station, could purchase the 3.95 drink which featured the Nazi-style logo.

A Jewish woman complained to staff and left the store 'almost in tears' after she was told the drink's name, 'The Nutzy', was a play on 'having the nuts', and not related to the Nazi Party.

Customers at Nincomsoup cafe, by Old Street tube station, could purchase the 3.95 drink which featured the Nazi-style logo

Speaking to Campaign Against Antisemitism, she said: 'He asked why I would find that so offensive, to which I responded that I lost my family to the Nazi regime and that despite the Hindu use of the symbol, this along with the name of the drink was extremely offensive. He said that London is a free city.

'I left the shop almost in tears and shivering as it proved to me how much antisemitism and fascism is still utterly present.

'That man had no shame whatsoever to tell me that I should not be offended by what I saw, when the use of the swastika and the name of that drink is clearly not a coincidence.'

The next few days representatives from the group visited the shop and claimed the drink was still listed for sale, although none was in stock.

But the following Monday 'The Nutzy' had returned, but this time with a no swastika and a new logo depicting the Pope.

The shop's founder, Ben Page-Phillips, said the employee responsible had been sacked

The shop's founder, Ben Page-Phillips, said the employee responsible had been sacked after the 'unsanctioned' logo was created.

He said: 'Sadly, an employee deemed it appropriate to put a swastika on a smoothie named The Nutzy.

'This was unsanctioned and the bottles were removed immediately upon being alerted by our shop manager.

'Needless to say the rogue employee has been dismissed. This was incomprehensible, extremely insensitive, and upsetting to all of us.

'We unreservedly apologise.'

A spokesman for the Campaign Against Antisemitism said: 'It beggars belief that this shop created a Nazi-branded drink by unwitting coincidence.
Theresa May promised more than 800,000 Poles living in Britain they will be able to stay here after Brexit - but only if the EU offers similar rights to British citizens living across Europe.

She used the visit of Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo to London today to pledge to make ties between the two countries 'even closer' after Britain leaves the EU.

Ms Szydlo signalled she could be one of Mrs May's closest allies in the upcoming Brexit negotiations after vowing to be a 'constructive' partner in the talks and she urged EU leaders to 'compromise' over Brexit.

Theresa May, right, used the visit of Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo, left, to London today to pledge to make ties between the two countries 'even closer' after Britain leaves the EU. Pictured, the two leaders shake hands at a press conference in Downing Street this afternoon

Theresa May and Polish PM Beata Szydlo are holding talks at Downing Street today expected to cover Brexit and defence issues

The leaders laid a wreath at the Polish War memorial in Northolt before heading into London for the discussions

She said that Warsaw would insist on 'reciprocity' in the rights and privileges accorded to UK citizens in Europe and EU citizens in Britain.

Mrs May said the status of Poles and other EU citizens living in the UK would be one of her top priorities in order to give people certainty.

Speaking at a joint press conference in Downing Street today, she said: 'I have reiterated my plan to guarantee the rights of Poles and other Europeans currently living in the UK, so long as the rights of British citizens living across the EU are guaranteed.'

'I hope we can reach an early agreement on this issue, providing certainty for Polish citizens here and British people living in Europe.

The discussions between Mrs May and Ms Szdlo tested the limits of the EU's ban on substantive negotiations before the Article 50 process is officially invoked but the Polish premier stressed that there had been no negotiations concerning Brexit during their talks in Downing Street today.

She said that she hoped Brexit would result in new relations between Britain and its former EU partners based on 'mutual trust'.

Theresa May, pictured at the press conference in Downing Street today, promised more than 800,000 Poles living in Britain they will be able to stay here after Brexit - but only if the EU offers similar rights to British citizens living across Europe

Beata Szydlo, left, signalled she could be one of Mrs May's closest allies in the upcoming Brexit negotiations after vowing to be a 'constructive' partner in the talks and she urged EU leaders to 'compromise' over Brexit

Ms Szdlo said: 'Today, we spoke about Brexit as a certain fact and outcome of a decision made by British citizens in a referendum.

'We are all wondering how this process will go. We are all trying to decide about our priorities and objectives but the negotiations will be held between the EU and the UK.

'Poland - as a member of the EU - considers it very important what objectives and what priorities will be decided. We want the new relations to be built on mutual trust.

'As for reciprocity in terms of the rights and privileges, they have to be negotiated and there needs to be the right balance. This the condition that will certainly be brought up by Poland.'

During the visit, Mrs May and Ms Szydlo also discussed Brexit and defence co-operation over a working lunch.

Meanwhile, senior ministers including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Chancellor Philip Hammond met at Lancaster House.

Mrs May and her team of ministers held discussions with their counterparts in No10 today

Theresa May greeted Polish PM Beata Szydlo at RAF Northolt today before they headed to Downing Street for talks

Mrs May confirmed plans to deploy around 150 troops to Poland in April next year as Nato steps up efforts to deter Russian aggression.

POLISH PM WHO SHUNNED EU FLAG COULD BE KEY ALLY FOR THERESA MAY Beata Szydo could be a crucial ally for Theresa May in the looming Brexit negotiations. One of her first acts on becoming PM last year was to remove EU flags from the backdrop for her press conferences. PM Szydo is well aware of the historical affinity between the countries - as demonstrated by her visit to the Polish war memorial in Northolt today. Warsaw and London share similar outlooks on free trade, and have frequently been on the same side on key debates within the EU. Mrs May will be hoping that alliance translates to the efforts to keep close ties after we leave. The fact that some 800,000 Poles currently reside in the UK should help underline the need to do a deal. Ms Szydo, 53, became PM last November after her Law and Justice party triumphed in elections. Advertisement

The force from the Light Dragoons regiment in Catterick, along with a number of armoured vehicles, will be sent to Orzysz in north-east Poland, close to the border with the Russian enclave Kaliningrad.

Ahead of her visit to London Ms Szydlo called for agreement from the EU over the rights of citizens in the UK and British expats living on the continent.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph she said: 'One thing is certain: millions of UK citizens living across the EU and millions of EU-27 citizens living in the UK should not be made to feel like hostages.'

Warsaw has raised concerns about the abuse of Poles in the UK following the European Union referendum, with a rise in incidents of alleged hate crimes including the killing of Arkadiusz Jozwik in Harlow, Essex.

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon hinted that security cooperation could be on the table in the talks with EU partners.

He told BBC Radio Four's Today there was no 'cynical' effort to use the UK's military and intelligence capacities as leverage, but added: 'I think that's a little cynical. This is a glimpse of the future, of how we will be deepening our country-to-country relationships with key partners in Europe.

'Right across the board, on exports, on trade, on research, and also on defence and security.'

Sir Michael said the UK should emphasise the mutual benefits for countries like Poland in keeping close ties with London after Brexit.

Mrs May looked rather windswept as she waited for her counterpart to disembark the plane

'Yes, and that is absolutely right, and they have an interest in a strong relationship with us. We are the leading European player in Nato, we are a major export market for the Poles themselves - in fact, Britain is Poland's third largest export market.

'So, when this negotiation starts, I think everybody will realise that it's not a one-sided negotiation. But, today isn't just starting a negotiation. Today is about a glimpse of the future, how we will want, and aim for, deeper relationships, country-to-country, with major players like Poland.'

Mrs May's official spokeswoman suggested intelligence-sharing could form part of Brexit negotiations with the EU.

'There are a whole range of issues that will need to be addressed through the negotiation,' she told a Westminster briefing.

'We work with a whole range of our European allies to help keep their people safe and to help keep people safe here in the UK, including through intelligence-sharing.
A final report for an interim cybersecurity task force has been approved and provided to the governor.

Dan Sipes, deputy chief information officer for the North Dakota Information Technology Department, said whether anything from the report is used by the incoming administration remains to be seen.

The final version of the report was provided to task force members via email Nov. 9. Sipes said the following week it was submitted to Gov. Jack Dalrymple, who reviewed it with Lt. Gov. Drew Wrigley and staff.

Overall, I think he was pleased with it, Sipes said.

At the recommendation of task force members to streamline some similar items, the reports recommendations have been reduced from 13 to 10. Topics in the report include improving monitoring and scanning of the states IT network, finalizing a response plan to addressing cyberattacks and proposing legislation for cyber insurance.

Sipes said the exercise of the past months getting agency heads together to discuss the issue of cybersecurity was positive. He said it was encouraging that everyone was on the same page in terms of advancing the state as one entity rather than agencies trying to do a hodge-podge of methods individually to protect data.

Sipes said governor-elect Doug Burgum should be good to work with on issues of cybersecurity, as he is a former software company executive. The final report will be passed on to his administration for him to consider if he wishes to pursue the task force findings.

With Gov. Burgum, he has a very good background, Sipes said. Hell wrap his head around it pretty quickly. He obviously would understand the importance of it.

Sipes said more proactively monitoring the states network and increasing the frequency of scans may require additional staff and materials or a shifting of resources.

Legislation for agencies getting cyber insurance likely will be discussed next session. With a tight budget, Sipes said who knows how far that might go at this time.

Sipes said with the tight budget situation for 2017-19 some areas may need to wait, while others can be implemented fairly easily by ITD.

This isnt going away. Were going to have to be vigilant, Sipes said.
A woman was given a fright by a flock of turkeys she was filming - forcing her to sprint back to her house and slam the door shut.

The video, filmed in Chicago, shows the unidentified woman recording the turkeys before they started inching closer towards her.

Afraid of being attacked by the birds - which can grow to 20lb and 4ft tall - she started running back to the sanctuary of her home.

Video footage showed the woman filming the turkeys before fleeing them as they charged at her in Chicago

As the turkeys got closer to the woman she scarpered and dashed back to her home

On camera, she gasped: 'Hey I'm getting attacked by turkeys... oh shoot. Better run, better run, better run!'

She then screamed loudly as she dashed away from the encroaching animals.

Once home she slammed the door behind her and shouted: 'Michael! There's turkeys in our garage.'

Befuddled, he replied: 'You what?'

The footage turned blurry as the startled woman tried to escape the ferocious turkeys

'Oh my god, I was attacked by turkeys', she shot back.

He responded quizzically, saying 'I was wondering what it was...'

She then urged him to investigate the ten turkeys in the garage.
More than 30 people people were caught drug driving after a dance music festival where a woman died and a man was waterboarded over the weekend.

In addition, two people were found with weapons at the four-day Earthcore event in Pyalong in central Victoria, police say.

The 32 drug drivers and the death came after a senior police officer earlier warned the presence of drugs and risk of a death at the event were too serious for it to go ahead, according to the Herald Sun.

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A 43-year-old woman was found dead at the same four-day event on Saturday afternoon but a cause of death has not yet been confirmed

The so-called 'bush doof' was frequented by thousands of young people

The clothing choices of people at the dance festival in Pyalong, Victoria over the weekend varied greatly

Men are seen covered in tattoos and body paint as they dance at the event

Most were pictured at the event enjoying themselves in the sunshine

A 43-year-old woman from Bayswater died on Saturday and her death is not being treated as suspicious.

The woman may have had a pre-existing medical condition, Earthcore music festival organisers say.

A medical team reached the woman within two minutes but was unable to revive her, according to a statement posted to the Earthcore Facebook page on Monday.

Festival organisers 'are aware of an existing medical condition and are waiting for the coroner's inquest.'

A man, who appears to be in his early 20s, was captured on video being waterboarded while attending Earthcore dance festival in central Victoria last weekend (pictured)

Two girls are seen dancing in the open field where the event was held in central Victoria

Some of the festival goers take time out from the four-day event

Festival goers dance at the Earthcore festival in their bright attire

One reveller shared this image of a huge crowd at the event

'We offered a counselling service on site to all staff and patrons at the time of the incident,' the statement reads.

'This is truly heart breaking news and we will be releasing a formal statement once we have all the facts in place.'

A report will be prepared for the coroner.

Police ran operations inside and outside the Earthcore festival grounds from November 24-28, including sniffer dogs.

During the five-day festival, 19 drug diversion notices were issued, 28 people were cautioned for cannabis and four people were interviewed for possessing a drug of dependence.

Police also interviewed two people for possession of a weapon and 32 were caught drug driving.

'While the presence of drugs is still concerning, police were pleased with the general behaviour of the crowd,' police said in a statement.

Media reports of a man being voluntarily waterboarded - a form of torture - at the festival had not been reported to police, a spokesman said.

It is not suggested any of those pictured in this story were involved in the offences mentioned.

The techno dance festival is also held in Perth and Sydney

Revellers stayed over the weekend at the event, which has been compared to Burning Man
Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott Dayton (above), 42, died this past Thursday when a roadside bomb exploded on the side of a road in northern Syria, the Pentagon said

The United States has suffered its first casualty of war in combat in Syria, the Pentagon announced on Friday.

Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott Dayton, 42, was killed by a roadside bomb in northern Syria on Thanksgiving Day, the Defense Department said.

The incident occurred in the town of Ayn Issa, which lies halfway between Raqqa and the Turkish border.

Dayton, a Navy enlistee from Woodbridge, Virginia, was assigned to a bomb-disposal unit based in Virginia Beach, The New York Times reported.

He was a decorated sailor, having earned a Bronze Star for his heroic service in combat.

American troops are heading an international coalition of forces that are helping to fight ISIS.

The US has primarily been conducting air strikes against the Islamtic State, but it also has 300 special operations troops on the ground in Syria to help train Kurdish and Arab fighters trying to unseat ISIS from their de facto capital, Raqqa.

A Pentagon spokesperson confirmed to the Daily Mail Online that Dayton was the first US casualty to die in Syria.

Dayton had earned numerous citations over the course of his service, including the Bronze Star for heroism in combat. Here his flag-draped coffin is removed from an aircraft

A Navy carry team moves a transfer case containing Daytons remains at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Sunday

Hundreds of people with flags line Locksley Arch in Virginia Beach, to see off Daytons family on Sunday

'We offer our deepest condolences and sympathies to the family and friends of Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott Dayton, who made the ultimate sacrifice on a day we set aside time to give thanks for our freedom and to recognize the men and women who defend that right,' Rear Adm. Brian Brakke, commander of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, said.

On Sunday morning, hundreds of people from Dayton's family's neighborhood lined the streets to see them off as they headed to Dover, Delaware, where their loved one's coffin was being flown in.

'My dad actually worked with him in the same unit for a while and my dad was in the Navy for a long time and we understand that sacrifice,' Mikel Manthey, who was at the send-off, told WAVY-TV.

Dayton is seen in this undated Facebook photo in front of an American flag. He was honored by friends across social media who were saddened to learn of his death

Dayton is seen here posing with an unidentified boy in this undated photo posted on Facebook

Neighbors in Virginia Beach are seen lining up to see off Dayton's family as they traveled to meet his coffin. They vowed to 'emotionally take care' of the bereaved kin

'When someone loses someone like this, its hard, and the family needs to know that people are there for them,' said Meghan McTernan, who lives near Dayton's family.

'Its very sobering to lose someone who sacrificed their life and to have someone taken from your family, from this community,' she said.

'Its hard for everyone.'

'Hopefully we can emotionally take care of them a little bit too,' said another neighbor, Barb Anderson.

'They really are patriots that care about the country and I think it shows in this military community,' said her husband, Greg Anderson.

A number of friends posted pictures of the heartwarming gesture on Facebook, while others changed their profile pictures to that of the symbol of Dayton's unit, the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit.

My favorite unkept, tussled, fierce, military operator looking towards heaven because he was protecting us and in front of our flag, wrote one Facebook user, Katharine Evans, who posted a photo of Dayton underneath her message.

Dayton enlisted in the Navy on February 17, 1993.

During the course of his service, he has earned the Bronze Star, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and seven Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals, according to the New York Times.

In May, SEAL Charles Keating IV, 31, was killed during an ISIS assault in Northern Iraq against Kurdish forces.
Congressman Chris Collins joined the chorus of a Donald Trump advisers bashing potential Secretary of State Mitt Romney this morning.

Romney is a 'self-serving, ego-maniac' and a 'loser,' Collins said on CNN.

'My concern is that Mitt Romney is a bit of a lone wolf and might not take the advice or the direction of President-elect Trump,' he stated.

Congressman Chris Collins joined the chorus of a Donald Trump advisers bashing potential Secretary of State Mitt Romney this morning

Collins has an official role on the president-elect's transition team. The GOP lawmaker was the first federal legislator to back Trump in the primary and continues to have his ear as a member of his executive committee.

Appearing on CNN's New Day on Monday Collins said, 'Well, I mean, what do I know about Mitt Romney? I know that he is a self-serving, ego-maniac who puts himself first, who has a chip on his shoulder, that thinks he should be president of the United States.

'I mean, there's no love lost between me and Mitt Romney. I've called him a loser for the last six months, even though I supported him.'

The New York representative's scathing criticism of Romney, the GOP's 2012 nominee for president, was another black mark against the former Massachusetts governor and elder statesman.

Romney called Trump a 'phony' and a 'fraud' during the Republican primary and said his refusal to release his tax returns - which could be hiding a 'bombshell' - disqualified him from sitting in the Oval Office.

Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee and Kellyanne Conway have publicly lobbied against Romney, who Trump met with earlier this month.

The retired Republican politician is under serious consideration for the secretary of state position, Vice-President Mike Pence said after the meeting.

Trump is also said to be looking at Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, the chairman of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee, former CIA Director David Petraeus, who plead guilty to a misdemeanor for sharing classified information, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, and Rudy Giuliani, a loyalist and the former mayor of New York city.

Romney and Giuliani also competed against each other in 2008 for the Republican nomination for president. Neither won it that year. The title went to John McCain.

Both could end up losing the coveted secretary of state job to someone else entirely, too.

Romney called Trump a 'phony' and a 'fraud' during the Republican primary and said his refusal to release his tax returns - which could be hiding a 'bombshell' - disqualified him from sitting in the Oval Office

'My concern is that Mitt Romney is a bit of a lone wolf and might not take the advice or the direction of President-elect Trump,' Collins told CNN's Chris Cuomo this morning

Trump's inner circle is quarreling over the high-profile cabinet position that they believe should go to a fellow insider.

Collins said Monday that 'healthy debate is a good thing, disagreement is a good thing - once you come to an agreement though you've gotta move on.'

He cast Romney as 'a lone wolf' on Monday and advised Trump to pick someone else for the job.

'Would I choose him? No,' Collins told CNN's Chris Cuomo. 'But if President-elect Trump does, I will certainly support that decision. It's up to the president-elect to surround himself with the people that he thinks can best serve his administration.

'But I have not seen in Mitt Romney the personality traits of someone who will take direction.'

Conway forcefully argued against Romney on CNN's 'State of the Union' on Sunday, as well.

Trump supporters are telling her they would feel 'betrayed' if the president-elect picked Romney for the diplomatic post.

'There was the Never Trump movement, and then there was Mitt Romney: He gave speeches against Donald Trump. He attacked his character,' Conway stated.

MAY THE BEST MAN WIN: Trump is also said to be looking at Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, former CIA Director David Petraeus, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton and Rudy Giuliani (pictured)

Two transition source told Morning Joe this morning that Trump is 'furious' at Conway, a senior advisor to his government-in-waiting, for going 'rogue' on television and arguing against Romney.

'Instead of driving Donald Trump's message, she's pushing her own agenda,' one said.

Trump's White House chief of staff, Reince Priebus, and senior counselor, Steve Bannon, are said to be frustrated with Conway, too.

She told MSNBC this morning, 'It is all false. And sexist.'

Of her future in a Trump administration she said, 'I [can] have any job I want. May stay outside to take the Plouffe role and run the political operation. [Trump] wants me by his side.'

David Plouffe was the architect of President Barack Obama's 2008 electoral victory.

The Obama campaign manager did not take a job at the White House and was an outsider adviser the first two years of the Democratic president's first term.
A crime magazine is inviting its readers to assist in the manhut for an unidentified suspect who leaped out of a hijacked aircraft with $200,000 in November 1971.

The suspect, known only as Dan Cooper or DB Cooper, bought a ticket on the Northwest Orient jet between Portland and Seattle.

Early in the flight, Cooper handed a flight attendant a note informing her that he was carrying a bomb. He ordered the pilot to land and said he would only release the passengers if he was given $200,000 in cash and a couple of parachutes.

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FBI sketch artists created this image of the man known as DB Cooper who hijacked a flight in November 1971 and demanded $200,000 and some parachutes to release the hostages

Cooper jumped from the plane over Washington state leaving behind this tie from JC Penney

The note said: 'Miss, I have a bomb here and I would like you to sit next to me.'

The man had booked his flight in the name Dan Cooper, although the FBI do not believe this is his identity.

The magazine, True Ink, is releasing the FBI's case files in the hope that readers could possibly track down Cooper.

The first tranche of documents contains interviews with passengers and crew on the flight.

The FBI is no longer actively investigating the case, although the file remains open.

One of the stewardesses saw Cooper open his gag and noticed 'a mass of wires and red colored sticks', which she believed was a bomb.

After receiving the cash, Cooper ordered the passengers off the aircraft and demanded that he should be flown from Seattle to Mexico.

During the flight, Cooper removed a black tie he had purchased from JC Penney, from which the FBI were able to extract DNA evidence.

According to the FBI: 'We interviewed hundreds of people, tracked leads across the nation, and scoured the aircraft for evidence. By the five-year anniversary of the hijacking, wed considered more than 800 suspects and eliminated all but two dozen from consideration.

Cooper chose the Boeing 727, pictured, because the rear door can be opened in flight.

In 1980, a young boy recovered $5,800 of the missing cash beside the Columbia River

The suspect booked his ticket on the flight using the name Dan Cooper

'One person from our list, Richard Floyd McCoy, is still a favorite suspect among many. We tracked down and arrested McCoy for a similar airplane hijacking and escape by parachute less than five months after Coopers flight.

'But McCoy was later ruled out because he didnt match the nearly identical physical descriptions of Cooper provided by two flight attendants and for other reasons.'

Cooper ordered the pilot to keep the Boeing 727 aircraft under 10,000ft.

He chose the 727 because passengers could enter and leave the aircraft through a door with steps in the tail.

Importantly, this door could be opened in flight, allowing Cooper to escape.

However, the FBI are not convinced Cooper landed successfully.

He jumped into the night over woodland in Washington state.

The recovered cash, pictured, had rotted away over the course of nine years

Readers are asked to look over the files, one of which is pictured here, to see if the FBI missed anything over the past 45 years

The FBI said: 'Perhaps Cooper didnt survive his jump from the plane. After all, the parachute he used couldnt be steered, his clothing and footwear were unsuitable for a rough landing, and he had jumped into a wooded area at nighta dangerous proposition for a seasoned pro, which evidence suggests Cooper was not.

'This theory was given an added boost in 1980 when a young boy found a rotting package full of twenty-dollar bills ($5,800 in all) that matched the ransom money serial numbers.'

According to Geoffrey Gray, who is releasing the files: 'Were opening up everything we have to the public, and we need help solving the case.'

He said: ' Were re-opening the case. Well be releasing all of the FBIs confidential case files, a treasure trove never made available before.
A charity for volunteer fightfighters is spending only 14 per cent of funds raised to help those on the frontline of summer blazes.

The New South Wales Rural Fire Service Association, which represents more than 70,000 volunteers and paid staff, has raised $25 million during the past three financial years.

But only 16 per cent of those funds raised from raffle tickets and public donations has gone towards firefighters, The Daily Telegraph reports.

Volunteer firefighters are getting only 16 per cent of funds raised by the NSW Rural Fire Service Association

Rural Fire Service trucks at Bungendore, in southern NSW, are ready to fight blazes near the national capital Canberra

The registered charity for Rural Fire Service volunteers and paid staff gave $13.7 million to commercial telemarketer Contact Centres Australia, and spent another $7.7 million on property and shares, the News Corp Australia story said.

The numbers were contained in a report filed with the federal government's Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission.

The Volunteer Fire Fighters Association, a breakaway charity, said the revelations undermined public confidence in the NSW Rural Fire Service Association.

'If the public knew how little we get and how much money they are sitting on, I dont think they would give so generously,' breakaway association president and Cooma RFS brigade captain Mick Holton told The Daily Telegraph.
A TV reporter filmed himself intervening in a horrific domestic violence episode on a busy city street in broad daylight.

Channel Nine's Martin King witnessed a man appear to hit his partner in the head as they walked in front of him in central Melbourne, leaving her doubled over in pain.

The balding man walked away before returning to yell at the woman to 'get up' as she knelt on the ground sobbing in an alcove, the footage aired on A Current Affair showed.

A TV reporter filmed himself intervening in a horrific domestic violence episode on a busy city street in broad daylight where a man appeared to hit his partner twice in the head

She got up and appeared to push him away before walking away, but the man pursued her, shouting for her to come back in a menacing tone.

He ran up to her and again hit her in the head from behind as she tried to get away, then continued to run after her and ripping the woman's scarf from her neck.

It was at this point that King and two other bystanders decided to intervene and restrain the man until police, who saw some of the incident, arrived to arrest him.

Still recording as he grabbed hold of the man by his shirt, King was heard telling him to leave the woman alone while others told him he shouldn't hit women.

After the first alleged assault, the balding man walked away before returning to yell at the woman to 'get up' as she knelt on the ground sobbing in an alcove

Later the alleged attacker was filmed being questioned by a policeman who had him pinned against a police van.

'We were having an argument and everyone was getting involved,' he claimed, gesturing towards the gathering crowd.

'No mate, you were hitting her, you were hitting her,' King interjected, but the man denied it despite being caught on camera moments earlier.

King said on the programme that the woman after the incident defended her partner, saying they were 'having a really tough time'.

The shocking events took place on White Ribbon Day, an annual campaign to raise awareness about domestic violence in Australia.

Still recording as he grabbed hold of the man by his shirt, the reporter and two other bystanders decided to intervene and restrain the man until police arrived to arrest him

Kate O'Callaghan, who was abused by her partner for five years until he was eventually jailed, said she identified with the woman.

'You lose your confidence, you lose your total sense of being. You're not the person that you were. You become what they made you,' she said.

'She doesn't know the alternative, she's not even thinking about that, she's thinking about here and now - how do I get through the next five minutes.'

Ms O'Callaghan told King he did the right thing by intervening.

'If you don't do something, you may as well be the one hitting her,' she said.

Channel Nine's Martin King (pictured) witnessed a man appear the hit his partner in the head as they walked in front of him in central Melbourne

Major Brendan Nottle of the Salvation Army said if he and the two others had not stopped him, the situation could have gotten much worse.

'The amazing thing about that is that you stepped in and if you didn't step in, I don't know what would have happened,' he said.
Incoming White House chief of staff Reince Priebus says Trump would 'absolutely' reverse Obama's recent executive orders on Cuba if the situation doesn't improve

Following the death of Fidel Castro, president-elect Trump is pledging to undo the changes if Cuba is 'unwilling' to make a better deal

Obama took multiple steps in 2014 to loosen trade and commercial restrictions on U.S. individuals and companies dealing with Cuba

President-elect Donald Trump weighed in on Twitter with a threat to 'terminate' new executive actions that took steps to normalize relations with Cuba if the U.S. is unable to get concessions.

President Obama in 2014 took a series of steps to loosen economic, travel, and business restrictions, even as the U.S. embargo remains in place by force of law.

Leading trump advisers said on Sunday following the death of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro that conditions would have to improve for the recent changes to remain in place.

Trump took to Twitter on Monday morning to make his own views on the latest policy position known  after tweeting Saturday morning about Castro's death.

President-elect Donald Trump threatened to 'terminate' easing of relations with Cuba if the island nation is 'unwilling to make a better deal'

'If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal,' Trump warned.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller cautioned Monday morning during a conference call with reporters that it would be inappropriate to assume Trump has definitely decided to make any moves.

'Clearly Cuba is a very complex topic, and the president-elect is aware of the nuances and complexities regarding the challenges that the island and the Cuban people face. So this will be an issue that he addresses once he becomes president,' Miller said.

'But I wouldn't qualify it, as far as it changing up or down. I would say this has an important issue and it will continue to be one.'

Trump issued his vow on Twitter Monday morning

'And to be clear,' Miller added, 'the president-elect wants to see freedom in Cuba for the Cubans, and a good deal for Americans where we aren't played for fools. Our priorities are the release of political prisoners, return of fugitives from American law, and also political and religious freedoms for all Cubans living in oppression.'

During the campaign Trump had criticized Obama's executive actions, and campaigned in parts of Florida with a strong Cuban-American presence. But it wasn't clear precisely what policies Trump might undo  or whether he would allow some of the slackening to remain in place.

On Sunday, Trump's incoming White House chief of staff Reince Priebus also raised the issue of renegotiating with the government of Raul Castro, Fidel's brother.

'Repression, open markets, freedom of religion, political prisonersthese things need to change in order to have open and free relationships, and that's what President-elect Trump believes, and that's where he's going to head,' Priebus said, appearing on 'Fox News Sunday.'

'President-elect Trump has been pretty clear,' Priebus continued. 'We've got to have a better deal.'

The new focus on Cuba policy comes after the death of longtime dictator Fidel Castro on Friday

Incoming White House chief of staff Reince Priebus said Sunday Cuba raised the issue of renegotiating with Cuban President Raul Castro

Trump transition adviser Kellyanne Conway added, 'To the extent that President Trump can open up new conversations with Cuba, it would have to be a very different Cuba,' appearing on ABC's 'This Week.'

Conway added: 'He wants to make sure that when the United States of America, when he's president, engages in any type of diplomatic relations or trade agreements,' and that 'we as America are being protected and we as America are getting something in return.'

Obama's executive actions made it easier for Americans to visit Cuba, allowing visits for educational and journalistic reasons without advance approval.

He also ended a 180-day ban on ships that sail from Cuba docking in U.S. ports, eased some banking and credit restrictions, and allowed for ties in the medical field. The U.S. reopened its shuttered embassy in Havana, after conducting diplomatic business for decades through the Swiss.

The thaw came after 18 months of secret talks that included an intervention from Pope Francis.
Jean-Claude Juncker has urged EU leaders not to hold referendums

Jean-Claude Juncker has urged EU leaders not to hold referendums on their membership of the bloc because he fears their voters will also choose to leave.

The European Commission president said giving people a vote would be 'unwise' as they could seek to replicate Brexit.

His remarks come as one of the contenders to become Austrian president has threatened to hold a referendum if the EU integrates further.

Norbert Hofer, who will become Europe's first far-right head of state since the Second World War if elected on Sunday, has promised a ballot if the EU becomes more centralised following Brexit.

Asked about the Freedom Party candidate's pledge, Mr Juncker told Euronews: 'We can't deny or take away the people of Europe's right to express their views.

'Regarding referenda on EU membership, I think it is not wise to organise this kind of debate, not only because I might be concerned about the final result but because this will pile more controversy onto the huge number already present at the heart of the EU.

'Besides, I don't think the next president of Austria, whoever it will be, will launch themselves into this kind of escapade.

'I have learned to tell the difference, between campaign promises and concrete policies.

Mr Juncker, who has faced blame for the Brexit vote, insisted 'the existence of the EU is not in doubt'.

He claimed the EU's weakness was a 'lack of love' rather than because of the actions of Brussels.

Norbert Hofer has promised a ballot if the EU becomes more centralised following Brexit

'We do not know a great deal about each other,' he said. 'What do the people in Lapland know about Sicily?

'What do the Italians in the south know about the depths of Poland? Nothing. We need to take more of an interest in each other.'

Mr Juncker dismissed Marine Le Pen's chances of being elected French president, saying: 'This is a hypothesis that I do not think will come to pass. It is a question that we should not even be asking.'

Asked about whether Britain would be made an example of to discourage other countries from leaving the EU, Mr Juncker said: 'It is not really a question of that. I am not looking for revenge when it comes to the UK.

'The British have had their say by universal suffrage. I hope others do not do the same.

'But, regarding the UK, we must not come at this in the spirit of revenge. We must sort out the problems this has caused for the UK and for Europeans.

'We will make sure relations between the British Isles and the continent remain harmonious, all the while knowing that the British cannot have the same rights and advantages as citizens of the European Union.'

Polls in Austria show the result is too close to call. The election is a re-run of a vote held in May in which Mr Hofer was beaten by only about 30,000 votes by independent rival Alexander Van der Bellen, a 72-year-old staunchly pro-EU retired economics professor.
Teena Brayen and her family were prepared for a military invasion and the end of the world - but they weren't prepared for burglars.

The Brayens are doomsday preppers who hoarded weapons, armor and food to fend off anything from an invading army to full-on Armageddon.

But last week their arsenal and survival gear was taken when unknown criminals broke into their Cleveland home. 'These guys are prepared for war now,' Brayen told Fox 8. 'They have seven guns, seven.'

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Victim: Teena Brayen, a militia member who moved from rural New York to Cleveland, Ohio in October, says her family's arsenal of guns, grenades, machetes and other items were stolen

Gun baby gone: Items taken included smoke grenades (left), five shotguns (one right), body armor and a high-powered sniper rifle capable of shooting through cars

Brayen and her family moved from sleepy Rome in rural New York to Cleveland, Ohio on October 28 - bringing with them the small army's worth of weapons they'd amassed.

The Brayens are part of the Three Percenters Club, a militia group that 'exists to... protect and defend the constitution and our way of life' by helping people 'execute Military Strategies to defend against foreign and domestic enemies'.

But the items they wanted to use to defend against invasion in Rome made them a target for invasion in Cleveland.

On November 22, burglars - who, Brayen believes, spotted the weapons when she was moving into the home - took seven guns, 12 machetes, body armor, smoke grenades, more than $1,000 in ammo and some of their food.

Two gun cabinets were emptied of their contents: a high-powered, armor-piercing sniper rifle; five shotguns, and a pellet gun.

Now she's afraid that the thieves - who she believes got in through a side door that her kids had left unlocked - will be able to harm others.

'Our military personnel, especially, and our police officers because they wear bullet proof vests,' she said, tearing up at the thought.

'We have a gun out there that can pierce them and go through cars. All you have got to do is aim it.

'They took all of our ammo. With the ammunition that they've got, they're good for a good year with that ammunition.'

Thieves in the night: Teena believes they came in through a side door (left) that one of her kids left unlocked. Two gun cabinets (right) were cleaned out, and survivalist food was also taken

Earlier this month, a group called the Three Percent Security Force threatened to rise up violently if Hillary Clinton 'stole' the election from Donald Trump.

Its relationship to the Three Percenters Club is unclear, although they share a similar flag - essentially the original US flag, with a circle of 13 stars, and a Roman-numeral 'III' in the center. The design of the 'III' differs between the two groups, however.

According to the Three Percenters Club website, members must recite the military's swearing-in oath.

That includes a promise to 'obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice.'
This is Up and Down, where we give a brief thumbs up and thumbs down on the issues from the past week.

Up

Its been a tradition in Mandan for a Thanksgiving meal to be held at First Lutheran Church. The event, hosted by AID Inc., draws those in need and people looking for fellowship on the holiday. Volunteers make the meal possible. This year, a meal was added in Bismarck at First Presbyterian Church. The driving force behind the meal was Sister Kathleen Atkinson of Annunciation Monastery and Ministry on the Margins. Again, volunteers made the event possible. Both events reflect a caring community and they should be applauded.

Down

Welcome House has been providing shelter and help for single parents and families for about six years. It has been forced to give up its location in Mandan because the lease became more than it could handle. They are looking for a new location. Hopefully, they find a new home soon since they provide a valuable and needed service to the community.

Up

Every year the Tribune profiles local agencies that serve the Bismarck-Mandan community. Empty Stocking, which published Friday, tells readers about the items the agencies can use to make life easier for those they serve. They are often simple, daily items like toothbrushes. They also include clothes and toys for children. Helping in any way is appreciated.

Down

Last week, Bismarck police were investigating a case of shots fired into a Bismarck home. Before that, on Nov. 16, a cat was killed in Bismarck when someone fired into a home. There have been other recent incidents involving guns. Its a troubling trend that police can hopefully curb, but they will need the publics help. The police need tips and information to solve the crimes.

Up

It didnt take long for the local Wreaths Across America program to meet its goal. The program had raised about half the money needed to fund 6,000 wreaths for the Veterans Cemetery about 10 days ago. After the word got out, more than enough money was raised for the event. There will be plenty of wreaths for the graves for the 11 a.m. Dec. 17 program.

Down

North Dakota can take no pride in ranking high on a hate crime list. The state comes in second nationally for the number of hate crimes reported per capita in 2015. There were 36 hate crimes reported that year. The number may seem small, but its too many. North Dakotans need to live up to their nice reputation.
Wanted: Law enforcement officials in Georgia are searching for 29-year-old John Calhoun, who is suspected of kidnapping an 81-year-old woman

Law enforcement officials in Georgia are searching for a man suspected of kidnapping an 81-year-old woman and throwing her in the trunk of her own car in Walton County.

According to the Walton County Sheriff's Office, 29-year-old John Calhoun abducted the unidentified octogenarian from her Loganville home on Sunday and took off in her car, with the woman locked inside the trunk.

Deputies were eventually able to locate the stolen vehicle at a shopping center in Bethlehem by tracking the victim's cellphone. When they spotted the car, a brief chase ensued.

Calhoun eventually hopped a curb behind the Gateway 12 Movie Theater on Exchange Boulevard and crashed the car into a dry retention pond before fleeing on foot.

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Ditched: Officials say Calhoun forced the victim into the trunk of this sedan, which he then crashed behind a movie theater and fled on foot

Hunt: Armed deputies are seen scouring the area around Exchange Boulevard in search of Calhoun

The wrecked vehicle then caught fire, but responding officers were able to quickly extinguish the flames, reported Fox 5 Atlanta.

Sheriff Joe Chapman says officials rescued the elderly victim from the trunk and took her to Athens Regional Medical Center for treatment.

The sheriff said the 81-year-old woman sustained some abrasions on her head but was in a fairly good condition. However, she has no recollection of the kidnapping.

I believe if we hadn't acted as soon as we did, we'd probably be working a homicide, added Chapman.

A police helicopter is seen taking part in the search for the kidnapping suspect Sunday

Calhoun is considered armed and dangerous, and the local sheriff said he would not hesitate to use force

Officials are still searching for Calhoun, who is considered armed and dangerous. They believe the carjacking is related to a string of auto thefts in the area, and that Calhoun likely had accomplices.

He's not ashamed to use force, said Walton Count Sheriff Joe Chapman. He wouldn't hesitate for one second to harm someone.
Gomez - the third and final marmoset stolen from a zoo over the weekend - is due to be reunited with his family after being found alive and well on Monday night.

Meanwhile brothers Jackson and Jessie George, aged 23 and 26, have admitted handling stolen goods after being caught with two of them in New South Wales.

Police say the George brothers did not pull off the heist, which took place at Symbio Wildlife Park in Helensburgh overnight on Friday, but bought the critically endangered animals from another man and planned to sell them on.

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Jessie George, 26, is due to be sentenced in January for his part in the theft of three monkeys from a New South Wales zoo, while brother Jackson, 23, has been handed a fine

Gomez was discovered inside a box that had been dumped in front of a vet on York Street, in Sydney, at around 8.30pm, the Daily Telegraph reports.

Police first tracked down the Georges after receiving a tip-off on Sunday, leading them to the Appin Hotel, around 30 miles from the wildlife park.

There they discovered a four-week old baby boy, which is so young it has not yet been named, and arrested the pair.

Later that night another monkey, 10-month-old Sophia, was discovered in Campbelltown.

But the brothers refused to tell police the location of Gomez, as officers revealed at a bail hearing, saying the pair had laughed and told them to 'work it out.'

Jessie was sentenced to a two-year good behaviour bond and fined $1500 for being an accomplice to the crime. Jackson was granted bail until his sentencing on January 10.

It was fortunate the baby was found on Sunday as experts had warned it would likely die if kept away from its mother for more than a day, as it is still suckling and dependent upon her.

Staff at the wildlife park in Helensburgh were shocked to discover the pygmy marmoset enclosure had been broken into and three of the monkeys had been taken on Saturday morning.

The pair were found in possession of a four-week-old pygmy marmoset monkey (center) before leading police to his ten-month-old sister Sophia and father Gomez

The four-week-old was stolen on Saturday from Symbio Wildlife Park south of Sydney, along with its father Gomez, 10, and its younger sister named Sophia, 10

Officers arrived at the scene at 8am to find the entry into the enclosure was forced.

Park operations supervisor at Symbio Zoo, Ryan Leahy, told Daily Mail Australia the thieves were direct in their robbery, stealing only three monkeys and not vandalising or stealing anything else.

'The park has sufficient security throughout the boundaries and the exhibit, but they clearly managed to break their way through the initial door, Mr Leahy said.

He added: 'The mother (monkey) is clearly stressed because half of her family is not with her and this has shaken up all of the staff.'

A zookeeper had also told police its twin, who was left at the zoo, could also die because the mother was too stressed to feed it.

The wildlife park has asked for its Facebook followers to share their post of the missing monkey, with many of them leaving comments expressing their disbelief.

One man wrote: 'What is wrong with people these days... and how stupid... taking a four-week-old baby that can only survive with its mother... low lifes.'

A woman commented: 'Whoever has taken them, please just give them back or even take them to a vet to be reunited with their family. That tiny baby needs its mum.

'I can't believe this! I'm hoping they get returned safely to the wildlife park! I'm praying they're okay' another wrote.
A former soldier who returned from duty because he has appendicitis could be jailed for stealing the story of a hero Marine who lost both his legs in battle - all so he could scam the federal government and veterans charities.

Brandon Blackstone, from Arlington, Texas, was a U.S. Marine and served in Iraq in 2004.

The 35-year-old was diagnosed with appendicitis that same year and was sent home. But when he returned, he stole the story of a fellow Marine, Casey Owens, the Dallas Morning News reports.

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Brandon Blackstone (pictured) has pleaded guilty to stealing a fellow Marine's story of valor and using it to defraud a wounded warrior charity and the federal government

Owens, who served in the same unit as Blackstone, was critically injured when his Humvee hit an anti-tank mine.

He lost both his legs as a result of the explosion, and was awarded a Purple Heart for his valor. But after returning home, he battled constant physical pain and mental wounds, before he took his own life in 2014.

Owens tragic death did not stop Blackstone from stealing his unit mate's story - and trying to make a tidy profit off the back of it.

He claimed he was in the Humvee that was hit, which caused him to suffer serious injuries to his knees, ankles, and head. Blackstone also claimed he picked up a traumatic brain condition after the incident, which meant he had constant migraines and seizures.

The 35-year-old admitted in court that he lied and took on Owens' story to trick a wounded warriors charity into paying his mortgage in 2012, according to the Morning News.

He also received checks from the Department of Veterans Affairs for about nine years, after creating two fake statements to back up his fraudulent story.

Blackstone (left) was a U.S. Marine and served in Iraq in 2004. When he returned home, he stole the story of Casey Owens (right) - a Purple Heart winner

Owens (pictured in hospital in 2004), who served in the same unit as Blackstone, was critically injured when his Humvee hit an anti-tank mine

Officials have yet to disclose just how much Blackstone stole as part of his lie.

The former Marine even gave interviews where he spun his tall tale, one of which was published on YouTube in 2011.

At one point in the four-minute interview, the 35-year-old said he was '100 per cent disabled'.

Blackstone could be jailed for up to 21 years for wire fraud and fraudulent representation about the receipt of a military decoration for financial gain.

He is due to be sentenced in February.

His lawyer told reporters that his client: 'served our country in Iraq suffering several injuries at the time and still suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and seizures.'

Blackstone was exposed after he showed a picture of the damage done to Owens' Humvee to another Marine who recognized the image and knew he was not in it at the time of the blast.

Blackstone stolen Owens' (pictured) story when he returned from the war. Owens battled with physical and mental injuries, and killed himself in 2014

The person he told informed another soldier or the scam, and they in turn told a former Marine who had become an FBI agent.

An investigation was launched, and Blackstone was caught.

Owens' family and soldiers who served with him in Iraq blasted Blackstone after his guilty plea.

'Hes living off a fake story. Its disgusting,' former soldier Nick Sowers told the Morning News.

'It took my breath away that someone would do something like that,' Owens' sister, Lezleigh Owens Kleibrink, told WFAA.

'These were supposed to be your brothers, and you steal valor from one of your brothers?
San Antonio detective Benjamin Marconi was shot dead while sitting in his patrol car writing a traffic ticket on November 20

About 3,000 people have gathered to remember San Antonio detective Benjamin Marconi at his funeral after he was shot dead in the line of duty eight days ago.

Marconi, 50, was shot and killed as he sat in his patrol car writing a traffic ticket outside San Antonio police headquarters on November 20.

Family, friends and law enforcement officers from across the nation gathered at the Community Bible Church in San Antonio on Monday to honor the 20-year police veteran.

Marconi's adult children, Jacy and Dane, spoke fondly of their father saying he was a true role model.

'He made everyone around you feel lighter and safer,' Jacy said.

'He relaxed people. He was the kind of person we should all strive to be like.'

About 3,000 family, friends and law enforcement officers attended Marconi's funeral service at the Community Bible Church in San Antonio on Monday

Marconi's casket was delivered by a horse-drawn carriage on Monday as thousands gathered to honor the slain police detective

A funeral procession for the San Antonio officer included police vehicles and motorcycles

Onlookers hold flags as the funeral procession for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi, 50, passes by

San Antonio firefighters and onlookers pay their respects as the procession for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi passes by en route to funeral services

An onlooker holds a flag as he and others pay their respects for Marconi on Monday

Betsy Buhler, the church's media minister and a police chaplain, said: 'We are forever grateful for his watch over us. He was a friendly dear brother, and he was a friend for so many.'

'Upset': Otis Tyrone McKane, 31, said Monday his shooting of San Antonio detective Benjamin Marconi on Sunday was because he was 'upset' about a child custody battle

A funeral procession including police vehicles and motorcycles accompanied the hearse to the church and onlookers were pictured holding U.S. flags as the slain police officer's body was driven past.

Otis Tyrone McKane, 31, was charged with capital murder in the attack on Marconi.

He said at the time of the arrest that he was angry about a child-custody battle.

'I've been through several custody battles, and I was upset at the situation I was in, and I lashed out at someone who didn't deserve it,' he said.

He said he wanted to apologize to the family of the slain officer.

McKane is accused of shooting dead the detective as he sat in his squad car after making a traffic stop.

Authorities have said McKane pulled up behind the officer, walked up to his driver's-side window and shot him in the head twice.
Farhad Quami, the leader of the notorious Brothers 4 Life gang, doesn't like a picture of him being published by media.

The 34-year-old Sydney gang boss is awaiting sentencing for a string of offences including ordering shootings and on trial for an unrelated alleged murder - and he's released a less intimidating picture of himself he prefers.

He is reported to dislike an image of him with a long bushy beard, shaved head, tattooed arms bared and a scowl on his face so much he sent The Daily Telegraph a photo he'd rather be used.

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Farhad Quami, 34, the leader of the Blacktown chapter of the Brothers 4 Life gang

This is the picture of himself that Quami would prefer is published by the media

In his new image, the beard is gone and the poor quality almost disguises his tattoos.

He wears a dark cap and sunglasses, a black t-shirt and a pair of green cargo pants.

Earlier in November, Quami was convicted by a jury of solicit to murder, conspiracy to murder, manslaughter, commercial drug supply and directing a criminal group.

He and younger brother Mumtaz, 31, are now before a judge-only trial for the alleged murder of Strathfield man Joe Antoun in December 2013.

They've both pleaded not guilty.
Pauline Hanson may be skeptical about whether global warming is bleaching the Great Barrier Reef but she has still managed to find herself in hot water for something unexpected - picking up coral.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is reviewing a media conference, where the One Nation leader donned a wet suit and snorkel last week to question if coral bleaching is occurring along the Queensland coast.

The Queensland senator handled for the cameras a piece of coral, off Great Keppel Island, near Rockhampton in central Queensland.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson (pictured) is being investigated by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority for picking up this piece of coral

Queensland senators Pauline Hanson (pictured left) and Malcolm Roberts (pictured right) visited central Queensland to question green group 'untruths' about coral bleaching

This has upset the federal government body established by Gough Whitlam's Labor government in 1975.

'Under the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park zoning plan collecting or touching coral is not allowed, unless a permit has been granted by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority,' it said.

'We are seeking further information on the activities - and reviewing the conditions of the permit - to determine what follow up action, if any, is required.'

The One Nation leader was accompanied in the water by fellow Queensland senator Malcolm Roberts, a vehement climate change skeptic.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson (pictured) takes off her snorkel near Great Keppel Island

The Queensland senator (pictured) brought a media pack with her to an area conservationists say is 1000km from where actual coral bleaching is occurring

Her New South Wales colleague Brian Burston stayed on the boat.

They were there to refute 'untruths' spread by green groups about the reef's health.

Senator Hanson also faced criticism for holding her media event far from where the worst of the coral bleaching has occurred.

Conservationists, including the World Wildlife Fund, said Senator Hanson should have instead travelled to Lizard Island, more than 1000km away, where the worst of the bleaching is occurring.
The first British woman convicted of joining Islamic State received 132,000 of taxpayers' cash to help fight her case in court, it was revealed today.

Tareena Shakil, 26, fled to Syria two years ago with her toddler son to join the terror group before being arrested on her return at London Heathrow Airport.

The Morrisons supermarket worker used her 400 student loan to fund the trip with her child before crossing over the border from Turkey.

Guilty of joining ISIS: Tareena Shakil, 26, fled to Syria two years ago with her toddler son to join the terror group before being arrested on her return at London Heathrow Airport

She was later found guilty of joining ISIS and encouraging acts of terror following a trial at Birmingham Crown Court and was jailed for six years in February.

Now figures have revealed Shakil received 132,703 to pay for her solicitor and barrister through the taxpayer funded legal aid system.

A total of 72,875 was paid to her solicitor, 53,918 to her barrister and there was 5,909 to cover disbursements.

Conservative MP Andrew Griffiths said taxpayers would be 'upset' at the costs.

Jailed for six years: A total of 72,875 was paid to her solicitor, 53,918 to her barrister and there was 5,909 to cover disbursements. Shakil is pictured above

Shakil (pictured) bought plane tickets to Turkey flying out from East Midlands Airport - then crossed the border into Syria

He said: 'People will understandably be upset at the cost of the legal defence team, but it is an important part of our justice system that defendants get access to legal representation.

Shakil was found guilty of joining ISIS and encouraging acts of terror following a trial and was jailed for six years in February

'There is nothing more important than keeping the nation safe from threats of terrorism.

'Preventing young people from being radicalised and from going to places like Syria and then potentially returning to the UK after being filled with hate is something that we must guard against.

This only shows the importance of ensuring British born young people are not fundamentalised here in Britain and much more needs to be done to prevent that happening.'

The trial was told how Shakil bought plane tickets to Turkey flying out from East Midlands Airport - then crossed the border into Syria.

She travelled after prominent IS member Fabio Pocas told her on Facebook she would go to Jehannam (hell) if she stayed in Britain, the land of the non-believers.

Once there she used social media to show her life in Syria, telling family members that it was part of her faith to kill the murtadeen (apostates) and that she wanted to die a martyr.

The former psychology student also messaged her husband telling him there was no future in their relationship but she would meet him again in 'jannah (paradise)'.

Detained: Shakil fled to Syria two years ago with her toddler son to join the terror group before being arrested on her return at London Heathrow Airport (file picture)

She also sent pictures of herself posing with pistols and machine guns as well as images of her child standing next to the ISIS flag.

Sentencing her at the time, Mr Justice Inman said Shakil showed 'no remorse' for her actions.

He added: 'Your Facebook profile clearly demonstrated your support for ISIS. You were well aware of the terrible violence inflicted by ISIS in various parts of the world.
US District Judge Richard Gergel will allow Dylann Roof (pictured) to represent himself at trial

Dylann Roof, who is accused of fatally shooting nine black parishioners at a South Carolina church, will act as his own attorney in his federal death penalty trial.

Roof's request on Monday came against his lawyers' advice, and US District Judge Richard Gergel said he would reluctantly accept Roof's 'unwise' decision.

Noted death penalty attorney David Bruck then slid over and let Roof take the lead chair.

The lawyers were able to stand by and help Roof if he asked.

As the the jury selection process wrapped up on Monday, Roof had only made one motion to strike a juror.

That juror was reportedly the only black man called at that point in the process.

The jury selection process was halted on November 7 after lawyers for Roof questioned his ability to understand the case against him.

But Gergel's ruling last week cleared the way for Monday's process to begin anew.

The 22-year-old is charged with counts including hate crimes and obstruction of religion in connection with the June 17, 2015, attack at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston.

He faces a possible death sentence if convicted.

The 22-year-old is charged with counts including hate crimes and obstruction of religion in connection with the June 17, 2015, attack at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston

He faces a possible death sentence if convicted. Beginning Monday, 516 potential jurors report to the courthouse to be individually questioned by the judge

Beginning Monday, 516 potential jurors report to the courthouse to be individually questioned by the judge.

When 70 qualified jurors are picked, attorneys can use strikes to dismiss those they don't want, until 12 jurors and six alternates are seated.

The judge delayed the process of narrowing the jury pool when Roof's lawyers suggested that their client either didn't understand the charges against him or couldn't properly help with his defense.

The lawyers didn't say what led them to question Roof's fitness for trial.

A decision was made after Gergel wrapped up a hastily called two-day hearing to determine if Roof is mentally fit to stand trial, hearing testimony from psychologist James Ballenger and four other unnamed witnesses and reviewed sworn statements from three others.

The judge said he took the rare step of closing the hearing to the public and media because Roof made statements to a psychologist that might not be legal to use at his trial and could taint potential jurors.

Nine black people, including the Reverend Clementa Pinckney, 41, died in the church massacre, and Roof later told investigators he wanted to 'start a race war'

According to police, Roof sat through nearly an hour of prayer and Bible study at the church (pictured) with its pastor and 11 others before pulling a gun from his fanny pack and firing dozens of shots

NOTORIOUS KILLERS WHO DEFENDED THEMSELVES ON TRIAL Colin Ferguson: He went on trial in 1996 for shooting six people to death on a Long Island, NY, commuter train. Ferguson insisted on representing himself. He was found guilty and sentenced to six consecutive life terms. Charles Manson: He was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the 1969 deaths of actress Sharon Tate, her unborn baby and six others. The judge reluctantly granted Manson's wish to represent himself. Ted Bundy: He confessed to 30 killings in the 1970s and was later executed. Bundy, who was a former law student, represented himself while on trial for the murder of two college students and assaulting others in 1979. John Allen Muhammad: He was convicted of being the 'Beltway sniper', in a cold-blooded shooting spree that killed 10 people in the Washington, D.C. area in 2002. He was executed in 2009. Muhammad acted as his own lawyer briefly, but soon changed his mind and requested help from defense attorneys. Advertisement

On Friday, the judge said he refrained from releasing a transcript of the hearing for the same reason, reversing an earlier pledge to release a redacted transcript.

Victims' relatives complained about the secrecy surrounding the proceedings, but Gergel maintains the steps he has taken are to ensure Roof receives a fair trial and that pre-trial exposure doesn't provide grounds for an appeal.

Roof also has already been found competent in state court, where prosecutors plan a second death penalty trial on nine counts of murder.

According to police, Roof sat through nearly an hour of prayer and Bible study at the church with its pastor and 11 others before pulling a gun from his fanny pack and firing dozens of shots.

Roof shouted racial insults at the six women and three men he is charged with killing and the three people left alive, authorities said

He said he left the three unharmed so they could tell the world the shootings were because he hated black people

Nine black people, including the Reverend Clementa Pinckney, 41, died in the church massacre, and Roof later told investigators he wanted to 'start a race war'.

Cynthia Hurd, 54, the Rev Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45, Tywanza Sanders, 26, Ethel Lance, 70, Susie Jackson, 87, Depayne Middleton Doctor, 4, the Rev Daniel Simmons, 74, and Myra Thompson, 59, were all victims of the attack.

Roof shouted racial insults at the six women and three men he is charged with killing and the three people left alive, authorities said.
An easyJet flight to Hamburg from the UK has been diverted after reports of fumes in the cabin.

The flight departed Edinburgh Airport at 12.40pm this afternoon but had to be re-directed to Newcastle Airport.

It is understood the plane landed safely at around 1.25pm and emergency services and fire crews were waiting on the runway.

An easyJet flight from Edinburgh to Hamburg has been diverted due to fumes in the cabin (file picture)

The flight, which contained 161 passengers and six crew, was scheduled to arrive in Germany, at 3.30pm.

A replacement aircraft has been sent to Newcastle Airport but passengers may face a lengthy wait to complete their journey to Hamburg.

EasyJet said the diversion was because of a 'technical issue'.

A spokesman said: 'easyJet can confirm that flight EZY6931 from Edinburgh to Hamburg on November 28 diverted to Newcastle as a precautionary measure only due to a technical issue.

The flight landed safely at Newcastle Airport this afternoon and a replacement flight is being arranged to transfer the passengers to Germany

'The aircraft landed safely and was met by emergency services in line with our procedures.

'The safety of its passengers and crew is easyJet's highest priority and easyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with all manufacturers' guidelines.

'We would like to apologise to passengers for the resulting delay.
For the first time in over half a century, an American carrier flew a regularly scheduled commercial flight from Miami to the Cuban capital on Monday, just three days after the death of Fidel Castro.

A Boeing 737 operated by American Airlines took off from Miami International Airport just after 7.30am on with 145 passengers headed to the communist nation on board.

Ninety minutes later, JetBlue sent its own carrier on the first-ever commercial flight to Havana, taking off from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport .

JetBlue will offer a daily flight from New York to Havana, while American Airlines will be flying out of Miami four times a day for flights to the Cuban capital.

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A water cannon welcomes an American Airlines plane arriving at Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, the first Miami-Havana commercial flight in 50 years

An American Airlines plane displays US and Cuban national flags upon landing at Jose Marti International Airport

An American Airlines pilot who flew the plane gives a thumbs-up sign just moments after landing in Havana as the Stars and Stripes flutters overhead

'It's a monumental day of great historic relevance with Miami being the epicenter of the Cuban American community and American's hub for the region,' Ralph Lopez, American Airlines vice president for its Miami hub, told the Miami Herald.

The plane landed at Jose Marti International Airport in Havana on schedule.

'We're excited to live in these exciting times and serve Havana.'

JetBlue had scheduled a music and dance celebration at the airport to mark the occasion of its first flight, but canceled it due to Castro's death.

Other airlines began flying to Cuba this past summer following the restoration of diplomatic relations between Washington and Havana, though those flights landed in cities outside of the capital.

American Airlines passengers deplane from their flight from Miami at the airport in Havana

A calendar with the likeness of Fidel Castro is displayed for sale at the airport in Havana. Cuba is in the midst of a nine-day mourning period following Castro's death on Friday

Although the US began flights to Cuba this past summer, Monday's flights were the first commercial flights to Havana in 50 years. An airport worker looks at his cell phone at a shop in Jose Marti International Airport

The American flight on Monday is the first of four daily flights that the airline will be offering between Miami and Havana, the Herald reported.

JetBlue is planning to offer twice-daily flights from Fort Lauderdale to Havana beginning on Wednesday. It will also offer flights to Havana from Orlando on Tuesday.

Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines will begin Fort Lauderdale-Havana flights on Thursday, and Delta will launch Havana-bound flights from Miami, New York, and Atlanta on Thursday.

Southwest Airlines will offer twice-daily flights from Fort Lauderdale to Havana beginning on December 12.

Despite the flights, there are still restrictions in place for Americans wishing to visit Cuba.

Since the embargo on Cuba remains in effect, anyone looking to fly there must obtain a license from the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control.

The government wants to make sure that Americans do not engage in activities that violate the embargo, including anything that qualifies as 'tourist-related.'

A loophole does allow US nationals to travel to Cuba for educational, humanitarian, or religious purposes.

While the atmosphere in America was festive over the resumed flights, the planes will land in a country in grief.

The Cuban authorities have declared a nine-day mourning period to honor Castro.

Cubans began lining up five hours in advance of a mass gathering in Havana's Revolution Square on Monday to commemorate Castro, the guerrilla leader who led a leftist revolution in 1959 and ruled the Caribbean island for half a century.

The US-Cuba flights were resumed after the Obama administration restored relations with the Communist island last year. President Barack Obama is seen on the left with Cuban President Raul Castro, who took over for ailing brother Fidel (right) in Havana this past March.

Castro died on Friday at the age of 90, a decade after stepping down due to poor health and ceding power to his brother Raul Castro.

Castro was admired by leftists and people of the developing world who saw him as a revolutionary who stood up to the powerful United States, but vilified by those who viewed him as a dictator who oppressed Cubans and ruined the economy through socialism.

'For me, he continues living in the hearts of the Cubans,' said Misleidys Rivero, 47, a service station employee with a small Cuban flag in her hand.

Castro was cremated on Saturday and the government has declared a nine-day period of mourning.
A longtime McKenzie County sheriffs deputy was named to take over the department as the current sheriff is suspended from duty pending removal from office by Gov. Jack Dalrymple.

Deputy Matt Johansen, a department employee since 2007 and onetime primary election candidate for the job, is serving as interim sheriff. He will fill the remaining two years of the current term if Sheriff Gary Schwartzenberger is removed.

Johansen was appointed Monday by the McKenzie County Commission, which had five days to act after Schwartzenberger was placed on immediate suspension by Dalrymple. The suspension was recommended by Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, who had ordered an investigation after the county petitioned for Schwartzenbergers removal in late October.

County Auditor Linda Svihovec said the special meeting lasted only a few minutes, and only one other name  Capt. Lloyd Clock, second in command  was suggested. She said the meeting was well attended, but there was no public input and only a round of applause after Johansen was named.

The county conducted an investigation into complaints against the sheriff and, based on the results, wants Schwartzenberger removed for alleged misconduct, malfeasance, crime in office, neglect of duty or gross incompetency.

The case awaits filing of a formal complaint against the sheriff and the appointment of a special commissioner.
An Indian man with a 'beard of steel' who lifts astonishingly heavy objects with just his facial hair is training to set a new world record.

Ranjeet Singh, 35, from Ludhiana, in Punjab, northern India, has become famous in his city as the 'beard man'.

His unique talents have seen him able to lift heavy objects with his beard, even a person weighing 120lbs.

Mr Singh is currently preparing to lift a 141lb (64kg) weight and break the existing beard lifting record of 138lb (63kg) made by Antanas Kontrimas from Lithuania in 2013.

Ranjeet Singh has been training to lift heavy objects with just his beard. Here, he lifts a girl held in a harness which is attached to his beard

He said he was inspired by other men who have done the same thing and is now keen to break the world record for heaviest item lifted with facial hair

Mr Singh has never had formal training and has relied on the good nature of others to give him somewhere to train

He said: 'I do this to build a good name for my family, a name that will stay in the books forever. I am preparing for a Guinness Book of World Record and I will settle for nothing less.

'I want people to acknowledge my talent, nobody else in India can do this.'

Mr Singh first started lifting objects with his beard in 2010 after being inspired by stunts he'd seen on television and in local fairs.

He said: 'I was really fascinated by the way people performed stunts at fairs and on television. I started researching stunts and I saw people doing all sorts across the world. I felt if they could do it then I could do it.

'I decided the same day that I will prepare myself for a Guinness Book of World Records and get my country a record in beard lifting.'

Mr Singh takes good care of his beard and uses oil in it twice a day every day to maintain its health

Mr Singh has lifted a 138lb weight with his beard, which is the current world record, so he is close to being able to beat it

Singh, 35, lifts an 88 lb (40kg) girl Lovepreet Kaur, 20, in his gym where he trains in northern India

But Mr Singh's passion became a joke among his peers. Though he was often ridiculed and friends and family tried to discourage him, his passion continued to grow.

He said: 'People said my passion was a waste of time and no one will value it. They laughed at me and said I was wasting my energy. I wanted to prove them all wrong.

'I was determined to one day break a record.'

Mr Singh, a factory worker and earns just Rs 10,000 (110) a month, started building his strength by watching techniques on the Internet and became confident when he lifted his first 5kg weight at work.

He said: 'It was an amazing feeling. I picked small weights every day initially. My face used to get numb and there was a lot of pain. I was also scared of getting an infection or suffer an injury.

'But my willpower got stronger with each day and gradually I got used to it and lifted heavier weights until I eventually lifted a 53kg boy.'

Mr Singh says when he started training his face would go numb, but he has built up more strength now

But Mr Singh has faced difficulties with his training.

'I've never had any professional training,' he said.

'I just can't afford it. It's difficult for me to join a gym or buy weights because I have no money. I've had to ask people for favours and some people have been very kind.

'I just wish I could get the right help and better support so that I am able to take my talents to the next level.'

Mr Singh's wife Manpreet Kaur, 32, a full time housewife, is concerned her husband will injure himself but she still supports his dream.

She said: 'I get really scared when I see him perform but I support him at all times because I know how much he wants this and is doing something special and unique. I've not seen anyone else do anything like this and that's what makes him different. I worry but I'm confident he will make it big one day.'

While his parents disapprove with his choice of sport, he's an inspiration to his 10-year-old son Harmandeep Singh.

Mr Singh pictured with his wife Manjeet Kaur, 34, and son Harmandeep Singh, 10 at their home. Although his wife worries about his, his son admires his strength

Harmandeep said: 'My father is so strong. I feel so good when I see him doing something no else can. I am very proud of him.'

Mr Singh said: 'I want my efforts to pay well. I have struggled a lot to get to this level and I can't let it go to waste now.
A former Hillary Clinton staffer claimed Monday that Donald Trump is plotting to put his White House rival in jail because of her involvement in the Wisconsin recount.

Neera Tanden, an adviser to Clinton the first time she ran for president, said Trump was 'lying' on the campaign trail when he said he'd lock his general election opponent up.

'Then, last week, he said he wasn't going to prosecute her, and now he's threatening to prosecute her if she takes part in a recount,' Tanden, head of the liberal think tank Center for American Progress, asserted on MSNBC.

A former Hillary Clinton staffer claimed Monday that Donald Trump is plotting to put his White House rival in jail because of her involvement in the Wisconsin recount. Center for American Progress President Neera Tanden (pictured) said Trump's 'threatening to prosecute her if she takes part in a recount'

She also mocked the Trump camp for pushing back on the recount that Democrats, including Clinton's lawyer, have said will not have the effect of removing Trump from office.

'If people have confidence in the election, then I don't know what the worry is,' she said. 'If the Trump campaign thinks these numbers are accurate, president-elect Trump thinks these things are accurate, then I don't know why he's so anxious about it, why he needs to attack Hillary.'

Trump has not said or implied that he wants to see Clinton investigated since the recount was announced.

He did lash out on Twitter after her lawyer said the Democrat's campaign would be participating in the proceedings that Green Party candidate Jill Stein initiated.

The only direct reference to Clinton in Trump's statements was to cite her concession call, her public affirmation that he won the election the next day and her comments in a presidential debate about accepting election results.

Trump also claimed on Twitter that he won the national popular vote on Sunday and the election results were skewed by voter fraud in three states - California, Virginia and New Hampshire.

He called the recount effort 'ridiculous' in a statement and the president-elect sneered at the 'badly defeated & demoralized Dems' joining the effort on Twitter.

Trump said he could have Clinton jailed at a presidential debate and promised to appoint a special prosecutor. But he backed off a future investigation of Clinton last week as he spoke to the New York Times, saying she'd 'suffered greatly' and he wants to 'move forward.'

His White House chef of staff, Reince Priebus, said Sunday morning on Fox that Trump is 'not seeking methods and ways to persecute and prosecute Hillary Clinton.'

'I would suspect that President-elect Trump is going to be open to listening to' Congress and his attorney general, Priebus said, 'but ultimately it's going to be the DOJ's call.'

Senior adviser Kellyanne Conway said on CNN that Trump wouldn't rule out an investigation in his talk with the Times while stating 'it's just not his focus right now.'

'I think he's being quite magnanimous, and at the same time, he is not undercutting at all the authority and the autonomy of the Department of Justice, of the FBI, of the House committees,' Conway stated.

The only direct reference to Clinton that Trump made was to cite her concession call, her public affirmation that he won the election the next day and her comments in a presidential debate about accepting the election results

Trump also claimed on Twitter that he won the national popular vote on Sunday and the election results were skewed by voter fraud in three states - California, Virginia and New Hampshire

Continuing, Conway said, 'I would say he's been incredibly gracious and magnanimous to Secretary Clinton at a time when, for whatever reason, her folks are saying they will join in a recount to try to somehow undo the 70 plus electoral votes that he beat her by.'

So far, Stein has filed paperwork in Wisconsin and has raised more than $6 million to support recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania.

MSNBC's Stephanie Ruhle asked Clinton pal and CAP president Tanden this morning if she was concerned that Trump 'could change his mind again and assign a special prosecutor' to Clinton if she continues to be a 'thorn' in his side.

Tanden replied, 'We don't live in a dictatorship. You don't get to say if somebody does something I don't like, like exercise their constitutional rights, insure a principle that every vote counts, I'm going to try to prosecute them. That is not how it works.

'It's actually not up to Donald Trump,' she said, adding, 'I thought he was lying to his voters to be sad about it. It was actually lie that he was going to lock her up. I regret to say that he was actually lying, but he was.

'And then last week, he said he wasn't going to prosecute her and now he's threatening to prosecute her if she takes part in a recount. ..this is not how democracy works, and I think the American people will reject this kind of behavior.'

MOVE FORWARD: Trump backed off a future investigation of Clinton last week as he spoke to the New York Times, saying she'd 'suffered greatly.' Clinton is pictured conceding to Trump earlier this month

Tanden oversaw Clinton's debate prep in 2008 and remains close to her and 2016 campaign chairman John Podesta, the founder of CAP.

Wikileaks emails revealed Tanden to be fiercely loyal to Clinton and critical of Democrats who aligned themselves with her primary opponent, Bernie Sanders.

She famously said in one of the illegally obtained emails, 'Do we actually know who told Hillary she could use a private email? And has that person been drawn and quartered? Like whole thing is f***ing insane.'

Tanden was reportedly under consideration to be Clinton's chief of staff in the White House if she won.

She said Monday that she has not spoken to Clinton about the recount and was receiving her information through other campaign aides.

'Hillary Clinton didn't ask for the recount. Jill Stein did,' Tanden stated. 'I think actually Hillary has followed through with exactly what she said, which is that, you know, we want this election to be fair and accurate, every vote counts. She's not expecting a change in the results, but she does want to make sure that the votes are counted.'

Tanden , pictured at the Democratic National Convention, oversaw Clinton's debate prep in 2008 and remains close to her and 2016 campaign chairman John Podesta, the founder of CAP. Tanden was reportedly under consideration to be Clinton's chief of staff in the White House if she won

Clinton's general counsel Marc Elias announced Saturday in a Medium post that the campaign had looked at hacking claims and reviewed the recount rules and had come to the conclusion that the Democrat could not win.

'Because we had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves,' Elias wrote, 'but now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides.'

The Clinton campaign official said they would follow suit in Pennsylvania and Michigan if Stein challenges the results there, as well.

'We do so fully aware that the number of votes separating Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in the closest of these states  Michigan  well exceeds the largest margin ever overcome in a recount,' Elias said.

'But regardless of the potential to change the outcome in any of the states, we feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself.'

Michigan has remained too close to call since the election. The state plans to certify the results today. Stein has until Wednesday to request a recount of the nearly 4.8 million ballots that were cast.

The ballots would be counted by hand at a cost of $787,500, the Detroit Free Press reports. Stein has now raised more than enough to pay for the recount there.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller told reporters today during a conference call that it's 'ridiculous that so much oxygen has been given to the recount effort, where there's absolutely no chance of any election results changing.'

'This election's been decided. It's a conceded election,' he said.

The recount is a scheme for the Green Party to make money, he asserted.
David Petraeus, the retired four-star general who led the CIA until he resigned under a criminal cloud in 2012, met with President-elect Donald Trump on Monday to interview for the secretary of state job.

But afterward, the architect of President George W. Bush's Iraq 'surge' wanted to talk only about Trump's international acumen.

'I was with him for about an hour. He basically walked us around the world. Showed a great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well,' Petraeus told reporters staking out the lobby of Trump Tower.

'Very good conversation and well see where it goes from here. We'll see where it goes from here.'

Trump completed the mutual-admiration circuit, tweeting: 'Just met with General Petraeus--was very impressed!'

Retired general and former CIA director David Petraeus had high praise for President-elect Donald Trump following a meeting in New York on Monday

Petraeus met with Trump to interview for the secretary of state position

Petraeus carried on an affair with Paula Broadwell (right), a married woman who was his biographer, and shared classified material with her

Petraeus, 64, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified information after he shared government secrets with his mistress.

He was sentenced in 2015 to two years of probation and a $100,000 fine.

Other candidates for the job of America's top diplomat include 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker and California congressman Dana Rohrabacher.

It's unclear if Petraeus still has a security clearance from his time as the nation's spymaster, or whether Trump would have to commute his probation sentence or pardon him in order to appoint him to his cabinet.

Trump said on the campaign trail that Petraeus' transgressions with classified documents were 'a tiny fraction' of Hillary Clinton's, although his then-Democratic rival was never proven to have intentionally exposed secret or top secret material to anyone.

But a book published in March alleged Petraeus admitted in an email that he had done 'something terrible and dishonorable.'

Clinton was dogged during the campaign by an FBI investigation into her use of a private server to send email  an issue Trump and his supporters relentlessly exploited with chants of 'lock her up!'

The FBI declined to file charges in Clinton's case and Trump indicated last week that he's no longer interested in revisiting that decision.

Trump tweeted his approval of Petraeus after the pair met inside Trump Tower on Monday

A celebrated general, Petraeus led the U.S. surge in Iraq from 2006 to 2008, and was later pulled from his post as head of U.S. Central Command to lead NATO forces in Afghanistan in 2010.

Petraeus took over the CIA in mid-2011 after retiring from the military, but resigned in late 2012 after coming under investigation for giving Paula Broadwell, his biographer and mistress, access to classified information.

He said last week that he would serve if Trump asked him to.

'The only response can be: "yes, Mr. President",' Petraeus told BBC Radio 4's 'Today' program.

'I've been in a position before where a president has turned to me in the Oval Office in a difficult moment, without any pleasantries, and said, "I'm asking you as your president and commander in chief to take command of the international security force in Afghanistan",' he added.

Petraeus was a respected four-star general before his role at the CIA led to a public downfall

So far, Trump has named four individuals to his cabinet and hired a chief of staff, Reince Priebus, and senior counselor, Steve Bannon.

The president-elect has chosen Sen. Jeff Sessions to be his attorney general, Nikki Haley to be his ambassador to the United Nations, Rep. Mike Pompeo to lead the CIA and Betsey DeVos to serve as secretary of education.

He's also tapped retired Army Lieutenant General Michael Flynn to be his national security adviser.

Petraeus observed in the Radio 4 interview other officials who have spoken to Trump since the election have said 'he's very personable, very hospitable, very gracious guy, full of questions and dialogue.'

BBC asked whether Trump had the temperament to be president.

'We're going to have to see,' he said. 'I'm not someone who's had contact with him in the past. I don't know how he operates.'

He said the billionaire has clearly 'done pretty well in life,' though.

Taking a position he said, 'I think so, yes.

'It's up to Americans at this point in time not only to hope that that is the case, but if they can, endeavor to help him,' he said.

Petraeus is willing to be one of them if the president-elect makes the call.
A dog walker who found a mysterious goo known as 'space poo' on moorland believes it may have been left by aliens.

Andrew Holden found the bizarre substance two weeks ago near Manchester and is now determined to find out what it really is.

The 32-year-old says he returned to the same spot last weekend only to find the strange slime was gone, but the grass was flattened and resembled a crop circle.

A mysterious substance known as 'space poo', pictured, was discovered on moorland near Manchester and the dog walker who found it said it could be proof aliens exist

Mr Holden, who believes in aliens, said: 'I went back up to the same area on Saturday to have a look again because people were saying about aliens and that.

'You can see the grass is raised up in parts, but the circle where the goo was is flat now - about 12 square yards. It's like something has landed on it.'

Mr Holden, who lives in Shaw, Greater Manchester, found the substance while walking his Jack Russell dogs on the moors near junction 22 of the M62.

He said: 'It was foggy so I couldn't see much, but the goo was clear so it stood out. It was gleaming a bit.

'It looked like blobby jelly, like frogspawn, but it definitely isn't that.

'I didn't notice a smell and there are no plants that could secrete something like that.

'I carried on going further up and I found some more, but this wasn't as jelly like - this was more crystallised.

'I tried to keep my dogs, Marley and Willow, away from it but they didn't seem bothered by it.

'I had spotted it before so I took photos and videos this time and put them on Instagram. A lot of people commented and some said they'd seen it before too.'

One user commented: 'Maybe it's some sort of afterbirth from a animal that has give birth. I want to know what it is now [sic]'.

The gunk, which is also known as star jelly, astromyxin, astral jelly, star rot or star shot, has been spotted all over the world - but its origin has never been confirmed.

Reports of the substance date back as far as the 14th century when physician John of Gaddesden detailed 'stella terrae' in his medical writings - describing it as 'a certain mucilaginous substance lying upon the earth,' and suggesting it could be used to treat abscesses.

A 14th century Latin medical glossary describes 'uligo', 'a certain fatty substance emitted from the earth, that is commonly called 'a star which has fallen'.

In 1440, an English-Latin dictionary has an entry for 'sterre slyme', a falling or shooting star.

The mysterious goo was found on moorland near the M62 near Manchester, pictured

A 6ft domed disc of quivering jelly was discovered in Pennsylvania in 1950 - reports of which inspired the 1958 film The Blob.

In 1996 a meteor shower was reported in Kempton, Australia - and the following day, a white translucent slime was reportedly discovered on the lawns and pavements of the town.

Such reports lead some people to believe it is deposited on the earth during meteor showers, but others say it is the remains of frogs, toads, or worms.

Mr Holden, who works in his family's pallet business, said: 'I'm up on the moors every day. I've seen it about six or seven times before, but sporadically.

'Next time I see it I'm going to collect some in a plastic tub and freeze it so I can get it tested.
President Obama's approval rating stands at 50 percent, according to a new Quinnipiac University national poll, his highest score since he won re-election in 2012.

That high water mark came on December 6, 2012, when 53 percent of American voters approved of the job he was doing, versus the 40 percent who did not.

Today 43 percent do not approve of the president.

Additionally, just about one-in-five, 21 percent, told pollsters that President Obama's policies have helped their pocketbooks.

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Half of the country is giving a thumbs up to President Obama in his final months of office, his highest approval ratings since 2012 when he won re-election

President Obama's popularity does not extend to how Americans feel about their finances, with just one in five believing the Democrat has done good things for their pocketbooks

Another 33 percent said his policies have hurt their financial situation, while 44 percent said they've made no difference.

More broadly, 44 percent of voters said Obama's policies have helped the nation's economy, while 38 percent said they've hurt the economy.

Sixteen percent said Obama's economic policies have made no difference.

A majority of Americans still don't think the economy is working great with 60 percent of respondents describing it as 'not so good' or 'poor,' while 39 percent characterize it as being 'excellent' or 'good.'

That being said, this is the best score Quinnipiac University pollsters have seen since December 2003, when 40 percent of respondents classified the economy as 'excellent' or 'good.'

Thirty-nine percent of respondents said they were better off than they were a year ago, while another 30 percent said they were worse off. Twenty-nine percent said they were doing the same.

While 22 percent of voters called President Obama a 'great' president and 33 percent classified him as a 'good' president, another 23 percent said he was 'not so good' while another 22 percent said he was a bad president, showing the nation highly-divided on the subject.

Pollsters found a more cohesive response when they asked Americans to rate their overall satisfaction with the country, with a super-majority, 72 percent,' saying they were 'somewhat dissatisfied' or 'very dissatisfied' with the nation today.

Only 27 percent of Americans voters said they were 'very satisfied' or 'somewhat satisfied' with the country.

Americans also held negative views of the political parties, but for the first time in two years, the Republicans were rated more favorably than their Democratic counterparts.

Republican stand at 38 percent favorability to 50 percent unfavorability, while Democrats are currently at 35-to-56 percent.

Republicans haven't scored this high since November 26, 2014, which was several weeks after the midterm elections, after the GOP grabbed the Senate from the Democrats.

At that point, the GOP had a favorability score of 38 percent to 49 percent unfavorability.

The Quinnipiac University poll was conducted from November 17-20 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. The survey was conducted over landlines and cell phones.

'President Barack Obama's final score card is a passing grade overall, but barely,' said the assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll, Tim Malloy.
Told conference 'it cannot be that all young people from Afghanistan come to Germany'

Merkel says 60,000 rejected asylum seekers to be repatriated voluntarily

Germany is planning to return 100,000 rejected asylum seekers to their home countries after Angela Merkel admitted: 'It cannot be that all young people from Afghanistan come here'.

About 60,000 will be returned under voluntary repatriation programmes while the rest face compulsory deportations, the German chancellor revealed.

They will be given money as 'start-up' aid to help them resettle in their homeland as well as a plane ticket, it has been reported in Germany.

Germany is planning to return 100,000 rejected asylum seekers to their home countries after Angela Merkel (pictured) admitted: 'It cannot be that all young people from Afghanistan come here'

According to Die Welt, Merkel made the announcement at a Christian Democratic Union (CDU) regional conference in Neumunster, northern Germany on Friday.

Referencing Afghanistan, the 62-year-old is said to have told members that 'it cannot be that all young people from Afghanistan come to Germany'.

Merkel has previously come under fire in Germany for her 'open-door' policy, in the wake of Europe's worst migration crisis since World War II.

But, speaking to the conference, Merkel stressed the need to repatriate failed asylum seekers.

Merkel (pictured alongside Theresa May) has previously come under fire in Germany for her 'open-door' policy, in the wake of Europe's worst migration crisis since World War II

Earlier this month the veteran chancellor announced she would run again in next year's polls.

She has governed Europe's top economic power, which does not have term limits, since 2005.
'None of us imagined it might actually come true,' he told DailyMail.com

Her father-in-law Ken said that her return was nothing short of a 'miracle'

They were looking into Sherri Papini's past, including her first marriage and divorce

have put out 20 warrants requesting access to footage from surveillance cameras and data from cell towers

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said that the description was based on 'voice recognition'

Police are now hunting for two Hispanic women considered armed and dangerous, and driving a dark SUV, over the kidnapping

discovered dumped by the roadside on Thanksgiving Day - three weeks after she disappeared

Sherri Papini is 'doing good' after she was

Police investigating the alleged kidnapping of a California mother-of-two, who was found battered but alive on Thanksgiving morning after a three-week absence, say they have no reason to doubt her story.

Sherri Papini, 34, was discovered badly beaten, restrained and dumped by the side of the road in northern Yolo County, more than 150 miles away from her home in Redding, California, early Thursday morning.

The married mother went missing on November 2 while out for a jog near her home, setting off a massive search and a well-publicized social media campaign, which her family have credited with helping bring her back alive.

On Sunday, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko confirmed that Papini was assaulted and suffered injuries that required medical treatment.

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Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko (left) said on Sunday police have no reason to disbelieve the story of alleged kidnapping victim Sherri Papini, 34 (right), who was found battered and dumped by the side of the road on Thanksgiving

The sister of the California mother-of-two found 'heavily battered' at the roadside three weeks after she went missing said her return was the 'most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for (Sisters Sheila Koester (left) and Sherri Papini (right)

We currently have no reason to disbelieve Sherri Papini's story,' he told ABC News.

Bosenko added that his investigators are now looking into Papini's past, including her first marriage and divorce, as well as any online activity.

Authorities have put out 20 warrants requesting access to footage from surveillance cameras in Yolo County and Redding overlooking homes, motels, a church and a business.

They also will be reviewing video captured by traffic cameras and sifting through data from cell towers in an effort to piece together what had happened.

Officials said they were looking for a dark SUV and two Hispanic women who were believed to be armed.

Bosenko also noted to the station KTLA that there is sensitive information related to the case that has yet to be released to the public.

Sherri Papini was found at around 4.30am last Thursday, bound and left on a rural road near Interstate 5.

'CHP is on scene and advised that she is chained to something,' a radio dispatcher told a responding officer, according to audio obtained by The Sacramento Bee. 'CHP is advising that she is heavily battered.'

Sheriff Tom Bosenko confirmed that the 34-year-old was treated at an area hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

'This has been the most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for,' Papini's sister, Sheila Koester, told The Sacramento Bee after the woman's return. 'We're all very, very, very excited, very, very relieved and just very thankful for getting our Sherri back.'

Sherri Papini (pictured with her husband Keith and their two children) had mysteriously vanished while out jogging near her home in Redding, California, on November 2

Sherri Papini (pictured on her wedding day to Keith in 2012 was found on Thursday at 4.30am 150 miles from her home. Her hands were bound

Koester, who has already had a 'very joyous reunion' with her sister, said that the huge social media campaign and national news coverage of Sherri's disappearance 'was an intricate part in bringing her home to us'.

'As many of you know Sherri has been returned to our family safely,' she said Friday at a press conference. 'She and Keith have been reunited. '

'We appreciate the tremendous support that everyone has given us over the past few weeks and appreciate how respectful people are being to their privacy in allowing all of us to recover from this situation.'

She said that the past few weeks had been extremely difficult for the entire family.

'It's been a range of emotions; sadness , anger, right now its just joy, lots and lots of joy.'

Koester also read a prepared statement from Keith and Sherri thanking everyone for their support.

'We are overwhelmed with joy over how supportive everyone has been to help bring us together as a family again. Everyone's tireless efforts has made our family whole again this Thanksgiving.

'Your help in keeping this alive in social media and national news was an intricate part in bringing her home to us. We can not thank you enough.'

When asked about the 'intricate part' social media played, she would only say that , 'getting her face out there was the best thing anyone could do.'

She declined to comment about whether a ransom had been paid or involved in the release of her sister.

She also refused to comment on whether they had discussed the traumatic events her sister had faced.

Keith and Sherri Papini with children Tyler four and Violet, two, on Halloween this year

Koester also thanked the motorist, who hasn't yet been identified, who stopped to help Papini on the side of the road.

'We appreciate that person stopping and helping her,' she said.

One motorist posted on a Facebook page dedicated to finding Papini saying that she had seen her at the side of the road but didn't stop. She did call 911.

'I couldn't stop in time to help you this morning but I did pull over and report to police that I saw you by the road and was certain you needed help,' said Alison Sutton. 'I am thankful that someone else was able to pull over safely to help you and that you are safe. God bless you and your family.'

'I don't know that my call helped her,' she wrote in a follow-up post. 'I am very thankful she is safe and back with her family. This is truly a Thanksgiving to remember.'

Police are now hunting for two Hispanic women considered armed and dangerous, and driving a dark SUV, over the kidnapping.

Sheriff Bosenko said that the description was based on 'voice recognition' - suggesting that Papini wasn't able to see her captors.

Police say that the victim had been 'very emotional' to be freed Thursday and finally be reunited with her husband, Keith.

Father-in-law Ken Papini said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home.

Ken Papini (with his daughter-in-law Sherri Papini) said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home

Ken Papini told the DailyMail.com it was a 'miracle' that his daughter-in-law had been safely returned to them

In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com Ken said: 'The whole family came together, then the whole town came together, then the whole of the United States.

'When that happens miracles happen and something like this, I'm still trying to explain it to myself. It's amazing, crazy, but we never lost hope.'

Ken said he spoke to his son Keith last night and could hear the relief in his voice.

'He's seen Sherri and said she's doing good, she's going to be okay, she's got an appointment with a doctor today and I'm sure the police have a lot of questions for her.

'We don't know much about what happened yet, Keith has been following his instructions from the police so he's not able to tell us everything. But she's back that's the main thing.'

Ken said his son had always believed he'd bring his family back together.

Last week, he promised their two children, Tyler four and Violet, two, that 'mommy' would be home by Thanksgiving.

'Of course we all hoped it would come true, you have to have faith,' said Ken.

'But we had planned to have a nice family Thanksgiving and none of us were allowed to mention it, we would only talk about forgiving and thanks. 'None of us imagined it might actually come true.'

'None of us imagined it might actually come true.'

Ken added that celebrating the holiday safe in the knowledge that Sherri is safe was 'amazing'.

He explained: 'It is amazing and I've got a pretty good trust in that good beats evil and if you keep on and you keep on you get the answers.'

Ken shared a photo with DailyMail.com of the loving family at Halloween, taken two days before Sherri vanished.

The family, all dressed as cowboys and cowgirls, beamed with happiness.

He also shared wedding photos of Sherri and Keith when they were married in August 2012.

In the end, the children spent Thanksgiving at Keith's mother Pam's house  Pam and Ken are separated.

Before the news broke that Sherri, 34, had been found, the family had planned a balloon release on Thanksgiving morning as a symbol of hope for her return.

The event was held at an annual Turkey Trot 10km run in Redding.

But as dozens of family and friends gathered Ken said everyone was worried because Keith, who had been due to give a speech and read a poem at the event, didn't show.

He recalls: 'It wasn't until right after we let the balloons go when we started realizing what was happening, Keith wasn't there and we were all like, 'uh oh', maybe the emotions got to him, we all didn't know what to think.

'But then about an hour later everyone's phone started to ring, 'We found her'.'

Ken says it was his daughter Suzanne who told him.

'Suzanne called and said 'dad, they found her', I couldn't believe it, it was a miracle.

'It turns out Keith had been told she was okay hours before and he even beat the sheriffs down to where she was found.

'He called me last night when I was at work.

'He was back to the Keith I know, he's got his mojo back, he was like, 'I got this'.

'I told him, 'Keith I told you to stay strong and have hope because you never know.'

Ken, 63, a lab analyst at a cement firm, said he had watched his son struggle with his emotions in the weeks before as realistic hope of Sherri returning began to fade.

Sherri Papini's two children Tyler, 4, and Violet, 2, smile in a photo posted by Keith Papini on Thursday

Father-in-law Ken Papini said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home (Keith and Sherri Papini on their wedding day)

'I couldn't believe it, I watched this thing turn him right back in to a kid. He had been sobbing, moping around,' he said.

'We were going house to house asking for information and it was killing me seeing him like he was 12 again.

'His heart was breaking, that's why I kept telling him to stay strong.

'But you know, we got our happy ending, we got her back.'

But Ken said the family never lost 'hope' in their hearts even though a massive search turned up nothing and the police investigation appeared to draw a blank.

He said: 'At first we were all like, 'why, why is this happening to Sherri, what is happening to Sherri, is she okay?'

'Then three weeks thinking of that, it kills you.

'I told Keith to stay strong and see how this thing pans out, I told him he needed to stay sharp for when she was found.

'Keith always stayed positive, he said, 'No way, we're bringing her home.'

The 34-year-old resurfaced three weeks after she vanished some 150 miles from her home in Redding (above)

SHERRI PAPINI'S SISTER SHEILA KOESTER'S PRESS CONFERENCE IN FULL Hi. My name is Sheila Koester. I am Sherri Papini's sister. Before I say anything, I would like to share with everyone that I am 6 months pregnant, and please be mindful of my emotions. This has been a traumatic event for all of us. As many of you know, Sherri has been returned to our family safely. She and Keith have been reunited. They appreciate the tremendous support that everyone has given us over the last few weeks and appreciate how respectful people are being to their privacy and allowing all of us to recover from this situation. Keith and Sherri only have one statement at this time: 'We are overwhelmed with joy of how supportive everyone has been to help bring us together as a family again. We especially would like to thank the Shasta County Sheriff's Office, The NorCal Alliance for the Missing, the Lost Coast Trackers, Shasta Support Services, the Guardian Angels  our A-Team  the California Highway Patrol, Yolo County Sheriff's Office, the medical personnel that helped Sherri that morning, and the whole world that reached out to help find her.' 'Everyone's tireless efforts has made our family whole again this Thanksgiving. Thank you for allowing our family time to heal and for giving us our privacy. Your help in keeping this alive through social media and national news was an intricate part in bringing her home to us. We cannot thank you enough. 'Right now she has been through a very traumatic event and needs time with her family. Thank you all for coming, I have time for a few questions.' Reporter: I know you mentioned she was back with Keithhas she been reunited with the kids yet? Sheila: That's not a question that I have an answer to at this time. Reporter: How is she doing physically? We understand that she had some injuries. Sheila: She's very excited to be home. So that's all that I can say at this time. Reporter: You said that social media played a role in possibly Her release. How did that play a role in the case? Sheila: I don't have any details into the case. I just know that getting her face out there was the best thing that anyone could do. Reporter: Where were you and when did you learn of the good news? Sheila: I heard on Thanksgiving morning that she was found. Reporter: Did ransom play a role? Sheila: I don't have any details of the case that's going on at the moment. Reporter: Have you seen her, and if so, could you describe the reunion, what that was like? Sheila: I've seen her and it was a very joyous reunion and we were just very very excited to see one another. Reporter: Have you been able to talk to the people that she flagged down on Thanksgiving morning? Did she or you, anybody have a message for them? Sheila: I know that we're just very excited that somebody was able to come in contact with her. And we appreciate all the help that everyone has given. Reporter: What is your hope, there are, according to her, two women out there, what is your hope? Do you hope we catch them? They are considered dangerous, I imagine. Sheila: I don't know any details of any part of the investigation that's going on and I'm just concerned with the healing of my sister. Reporter: Has she said anything about anything that she went through those 22 days that she was missing? Sheila: We were just joyous to see one another. Reporter: It happened so close to her home. Is she there, or is she afraid to be in that area right now? Sheila: That was not a conversation that we had. Reporter: I know that she was a dedicated mother. Was she employed in some other fashion? And second, that, as a family have you have you been discussing who may have had a motive to do something like this? Sheila: That would be a question I would ask Shasta County sheriff's office. Reporter: Was she employed? Sheila: I don't have an answer to that question. Reporter: What is she doing today? What's her day like today? Sheila: I knowI don't know what she's doing at this time. I know that she's with Keith and that they're being reunited. Reporter: When will she return home? Sheila: I don't know where they are at this time. Reporter: And she hasn't been reunited with her children yet? Sheila: I know she's been reunited with Keith. Reporter: What have the last three weeks been like for you and your family? Sheila: It's been a range of emotions and sadness, angerright now it's just joy  lots and lots of joy that she's here with us. Reporter: Do Her children understand that she's back home? Sheila: I can't answer that question. I don't know. I want to thank everyone for coming. Advertisement

'We never once considered that she might not be coming back.

'And you know, we got her back, it's amazing, it's crazy.'

Surprisingly, Ken says he can even find it in his heart to forgive Sherri's kidnappers.

He added: 'My stance as a Christian is I forgive them (the kidnappers), we got our answer, but law and order haven't got their answer yet.'

It's believed Sherri will see her two young children today in what's expected to be a highly emotional reunion.

Ken shared his joy about Sherri's discovery on Thursday.

'Thank You everyone for your thoughts and prayers...What a great Thanksgiving,' he wrote on Facebook.

He later posted a photo of the couple's children in chef's hats and aprons, and wrote: 'Thank You All, the children are having a great Thanksgiving.'

Details surrounding her kidnapping were scarce as Shasta County Sheriff's Office made the announcement on Thursday that she had been found alive.

Sherri flagged down a passing motorist at the intersection of County Road 17 and I-5 in Woodland near Sacramento (above)

It is not known if Papini knew her captors, was harmed by them or what their motives may have been.

Keith Papini reported his wife missing on November 2 when she failed to pick up their children from daycare.

TIMELINE OF SHERRI PAPINI'S KIDNAPPING November 2: Sherri Papini fails to pick up her two children from daycare and is reported missing by her husband Keith November 10: Keith Papini is ruled out as a suspect after passing a lie detector test November 18: The FBI joins the search for Sherri as an anonymous donor offers $50,000 for her return November 23: Cameron Gamble, a local 'negotiator', appears in a video on behalf of the anonymous donor to inform Sherri's captors the ransom was now 'off the table' November 24: Sherri flags down a passing motorist at the intersection of I-5 and County Road 17 and is taken to hospital Advertisement

He traced her discarded iPhone to the side of the road about a mile from their home where he found it tossed on the ground with her running 'ear buds'.

A frantic missing person's appeal was launched, with posters littering the local town of Mountain Gate and scores of social media pleas for Sherri's return.

Keith was later named as a potential person of interest in the case but ruled out when he passed a lie detector test.

An initial ransom was offered to her kidnappers of $50,000. It was announced in a video featuring Cameron Gamble, an apparent negotiator hired by the anonymous donor.

He claimed the money had been put up by a private citizen but that it would expire if Sherri's kidnappers did not come forward.

On Wednesday, after upping the money to $100,000, he withdrew the offer, instead turning it into a reward for anyone with information on the young mother's whereabouts.

Sherri's family said they had no involvement in the ransom but shared information about it on social media.

They however pleaded with well-wishers to give money to a GoFundMe account which raised $49,080 for search efforts. The page has since been closed to new donations and Koester declined to elaborate on how those funds will be allocated.
The former Health Secretary - who was forced to quit after he was caught flouting his own Covid lockdown rules with his married aide Gina Coladangelo - has sparked a storm which has seen him ridiculed and even booted out of the parliamentary Tory party. Justifying his decision to fly Down Under, landing in Brisbane this morning, Mr Hancock denied he had 'lost his marbles'. He insisted it was so he can 'go to where the people are - not to sit in ivory towers in Westminster' - and claimed that he will 'promote his dyslexia campaign' and make a donation to a hospice - although not his entire estimated 350,000 pay deal from ITV. But millions are set to punish him for his decision, including MPs. One former minister has threatened 'to vote for him to eat armadillo c**k every night'. Transport Secretary Mark Harper said today that he should 'step down' and didn't deny he would also vote for Hancock to face Bushtucker Trials, smiling as he said: 'That will be between me and my phone'. In Mr Hancock's West Suffolk constituency, Andy Drummond, the cheesed off deputy chairman of the local Conservative Association, said: 'I'm looking forward to him eating a kangaroo's penis'. Incredibly the now independent MP insists that he will still be doing his job as an MP, meaning he will not forego his taxpayer-funded salary for the duration of his trip. He said: 'As an MP, my first priority is to my constituents. I have agreed with the show's producers that I can be reached at any point on any urgent constituency matters'. Yesterday the Prime Minister said he was doing the opposite. The former health secretary also revealed he had twice asked to appear on the show before but accepted the third offer because the government is now 'stable'. Many have pondered whether he made up his mind when he was snubbed by new PM Rishi Sunak at his victory rally last week, which was tacit confirmation his career as a senior MP is over.
Mike Adams, a criminology professor , has provoked fury by suggesting a Muslim student was a terrorist and saying gay marriage was bad as rape

A University of North Carolina professor has provoked fury by suggesting a Muslim student was a terrorist and that gay marriage was bad as rape.

Mike Adams, a criminology professor, also referred to transgender people as 'mentally ill' and mocked students who accused him of harassing them as 'weak pansies'.

More than 2,000 students and community members have now signed an online petition calling for Adams to be kicked out of the institution.

In September Adams wrote an article condemning student Nada Merghani - a self-described 'queer Muslim social justice warrior' - for her Facebook post about an upcoming Trump rally.

She wrote: 'Expect to see me at the Trump rally... y'all are not prepared for what I'm about to do. All I can say is pray I make it out of this alive.'

Responding to that, the university professor said: 'That sounds like a suicide mission for those who have never met Merghani.'

He added: 'In my view, she simply lacks the intellectual coherence to form any sort of rational plan  including, but not limited to, killing a presidential candidate.

'She comes across sort of like Squeaky Fromme minus the handgun and resolve.'

Merghani told the Daily Beast she felt personally threatened and unsafe on campus after that attack.

She said Adams 'suggested I was a terrorist without a hint of truth or any regard for my personal safety.'

The 19-year-old student has since left the university.

Elsewhere, Adams described transsexuals were 'mentally ill' and claimed any doctor willing to help with gender-reassignment surgery should be charged with mutilating a mentally ill person.

Video courtesy of WECT

Despite that the claims of hate speech, the university (pictured) has supported the professor and claimed there was 'no evidence of unlawful discrimination' from Adams to Merghani

He also wrote on social media how 'students who make false claims of harassment to silence others should also be deported'.

He also claimed the argument '"you're racist" usually means "I have no argument"'.

In a separate post following the election result, he said: 'We could have had a woman president. Unfortunately, radical feminism aborted 28million "potential" candidates.'

And in an attack on the LGBT community, he wrote in a piece for the Daily Wire: 'I wonder whether LGBT stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Thespian. So much drama, so few letters in the alphabet.'

Adams has been accused of describing transsexuals as being 'mentally ill' in one of his many controversial online posts

Thousands of people have signed a petition urging the university to sack him.

Wendy Brenner, an associate professor in the Department of Creative Writing, said: 'Teachers are supposed to protect and challenge students, not harass or attack them.'

Despite that, the university has supported him and claimed there was 'no evidence of unlawful discrimination' from Adams to Merghani.

Adams has successfully sued the university for religious and speech-based discrimination when he was not promoted to full professor in 2006.

A spokesman told the Daily Beast: 'Dr Adams' online column and social media presence represent his personal expressions and opinions on a variety of topics.

'These expressions and opinions are neither within the requested scope of Dr Adams's duties with the university, nor do they represent the views of this institution.

'However, they are expressions protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.'

'At this point, the university has not found evidence that Dr Adams has improperly released any private or confidential information related to the student, or violated the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act.

'There is no evidence of unlawful discrimination by Dr Adams toward this student in UNCW's working, living, or learning environment, per the university's harassment prevention policy.
The ex-lover of the twin who was 'murdered when her sister drove her off a cliff' said the news wasn't surprising and that the two had fights all the time.

Keith Weiss, a trained chef from Florida, told People Magazine that he was in a six-month romance with Anastasia Duval, who was at the time Ann Dadow, more than 10 years ago.

He said that his ex-girlfriend and her sister, Alexandria Duval, who has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of her twin sister, had a toxic relationship.

Weiss knew Duval as Alison Dadow before she and her sister changed their names in 2014.

Keith Weiss (pictured) said that he was in a six-month romance with Anastasia Duval more than 10 years ago. He said that his ex-girlfriend and her sister, Alexandria Duval, who has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of her twin sister, had a toxic relationship

Weiss said he knew Anastasia (left) and Alexandria Duval (right) as Ann and Alison Dadow before she and her sister changed their names in 2014. He described one incident in which Ann smacked Alison in the back of the head and 'they raged'

'There was just so much drama. I remember this one time, the three of us were at the mall, and Ann smacked Alison in the back of the head. They raged,' Weiss told People.

He said the pair went back and forth 'pulling hair, pinching each other'.

Duval, who is a yoga instructor, made her first appearance in an upstate New York courtroom on November 18.

She showed little emotion as she made her way into the Albany County Court. She was taken into custody by police to face a charge of second degree murder on November 11.

The 38-year-old was indicted by a grand jury in Maui, Hawaii, last month, who heard how in May of this year Duval drove her car off a 200-foot cliff and into the Pacific Ocean, killing her sister Anastasia.

Witnesses who had been driving behind the sisters told police the pair appeared to to be fighting, and that Anastasia could be seen pulling her sister's hair, officials have alleged.

Her lawyer was able to successfully delay extradition back to Hawaii for his client, after telling the court she had returned to the mainland to grieve for her 'soul mate' sister.

Duval is being held at Albany County Jail on $3million bail until her next appearance on December 16.

Alexandria Duval (pictured), made her first appearance in an upstate New York courtroom on November 18. She was taken into custody by police to face a charge of second degree murder on November 11

The 38-year-old was indicted by a grand jury in Maui, Hawaii, last month, who heard how in May of this year Duval drove her car off a 200-foot cliff and into the Pacific Ocean, killing her sister Anastasia

Weiss said that he witnessed firsthand what it was like to ride in a car with the sisters as they fought on at least two occasions.

One incident occurred when Ann was driving and the 'very intense' scuffle caused them to nearly crash, Weiss told News.com.

'She let go of the wheel and they were going back and forth with each other, oblivious to the obvious danger and the other cars around us. She almost lost control of the car,' Weiss told the news site.

After the second incident Weiss broke it off with Anastasia when she 'started kicking' his hands off of the steering wheel after he refused to stop and get wine.

Weiss (pictured), who is a trained chef, said that he witnessed firsthand what it was like to ride in a car with the sisters as they fought on at least two occasions. One incident occurred when Ann was driving and the 'very intense' scuffle caused them to nearly crash, he said

The Duval sisters had spent their entire lives together, moving to Palm Beach where they opened a yoga studio in 2008 before closing shop and moving to Utah in 2014

'Alison [Alexandria Duval] was kicking the windows and they were screaming, 'I want you to stop!' I told them, 'You're going to end up killing us.' They didn't care,' he told People.

Weiss, who is a trained chef, said it 'seemed like Alison was jealous of Ann, who always got the guy', because she was always tagging along on his dates with Ann.

But things got even worse when the sisters would drink, he said.

'I once got call from Ann saying, 'Get over here now  I'm going to kill her,'' Weiss told People.

'She actually started hitting Alison with the phone. I heard it  thump, thump, thump.

'I get to their apartment and ...there was blood everywhere, and the bedroom door was falling off its hinges.

'Both of them were sitting on the couch when I walked in, and they were like, 'Hey  how are you doing?' I asked them if they were okay, and they were like, 'We're good, we're fine.'

'Meanwhile, all around them it's total destruction. They seemed to not know they wanted to kill each other just minutes earlier,' Weiss told People.

The two girls were born Alison and Ann Dadow in nearby Utica.

Duval and her sister had only recently moved to Hawaii when on May 29 the two were seen by eyewitnesses arguing in their Ford Explorer while driving down Maui's Hana Highway.

One woman, who had been cleaning a gravesite on the side of the road, said she also saw the passenger pulling the driver's hair in the vehicle while also attempting to get control of the steering wheel.

Soon after the vehicle took a sharp left and crashed into a rock wall before hurtling down 200 feet onto a large rock in the ocean.

Duval suffered only minor injuries in the crash while her sister Anastasia was pronounced dead on the scene.

The twins' SUV (pictured after the crash) accelerated and took a sharp left over the cliff, Maui Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Emlyn Higa said after Duval's first arrest

Duval (left and right being airlifted after crash) and her sister had only recently moved to Hawaii when on May 29 the two were seen by eyewitnesses arguing in their Ford Explorer while driving down Maui's Hana Highway

Soon after Dual was arrested, but prosecutors were forced to let her go when they could not provide enough evidence to prove who was behind the wheel of the car.

She left the island almost immediately after the charges were dropped, returning to New York.

Duval also tried to leave the island at least twice just after the crash and before she was officially charged in June, but managed to miss both flights.

Maui Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Emlyn Higa spoke of her concern after hearing that Duval had tried to leave the state back in June before charges could be filed in the case.

'We had information after she was discharged from the hospital she attempted to fly out of the jurisdiction Wednesday night. All we know is she was trying to leave the state,' said Higa at the time.

'We were afraid she would try to leave the country as well. The fear we have is that she could easily go to a country where we don't have an extradition treaty.

Duval (left and right) has yet to publicly comment on her sister's death or the deadly crash, and it is unclear if she has entered a plea. She had planned to plead not guilty back in June but was released before she had to enter a plea in court

'She has already changed her identity once, so she could change her identity again and we wouldn't be able to locate her.'

'The judge understood the factual and legal circumstances. He got it right. Allison did not harm the person she was closest to and loved the most in the world,' Duval's attorney told DailyMail.com after charges were dropped in June.

Back in New York she found herself in trouble with the law once again, with police arresting her in August after she almost hit a squad car while driving with a blood alcohol content of .26 per cent.

She pleaded not guilty to driving while intoxicated in September.

The Duval sisters had spent their entire lives together, moving to Palm Beach where they opened a yoga studio in 2008 before closing shop and moving to Utah in 2014.

The two then moved to Hawaii in December of last year. Soon after they arrived the two were both arrested for disorderly conduct on Christmas Eve.

Duval has yet to publicly comment on her sister's death or the deadly crash, and it is unclear if she has entered a plea.
FARGO  Uncomfortable and overwhelming.

Thats how 25-year-old Ashlee Cournia described her first learning about the Holocaust in high school. She hated hearing about the death of millions and seeing all the pictures.

Now Cournia, a language arts teacher at Shanley High School in Fargo, aims to teach her students about the Holocaust in ways to evoke empathy while understanding anti-semitism and the Nazi rise to power.

Hate doesnt just happen. We slowly become indifferent, she said, becoming engulfed in it without even knowing it.

Jacob Kienzle, language arts teacher at Discovery Middle School, said its important to educate his students on the Holocaust so we can prevent anything like this happening in the future.

That being said, the topic is difficult when dealing with seventh graders.

Teaching a topic as heavy as the Holocaust, its hard to teach that and not let it become a very depressing atmosphere, Kienzle said.

For being English teachers, both Kienzle and Cournia have put a lot of their own education and energy into history, specifically with the Holocaust, so they can bring that knowledge back into the classroom to pass onto their students.

The teachers received extensive training from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington. Kienzle attended a conference at the museum this summer along with his wife, Brita Bostad, who is a teacher at West Fargo High School. Cournia was invited to the conference in Washington, but she instead went to Concordia College where people from the museum joined a lecture series in March. Kienzle was also in attendance at the local lecture.

For the past 23 years, the museum has hosted a national conference for educators to provide successful strategies on teaching the Holocaust. This summer more than 180 teachers from across the country gathered to hear from scholars and survivors.

In the face of rising anti-semitism and Holocaust denial, educating students about this history is becoming increasingly urgent, said Peter Fredlake, director of the museums teacher education and special programs, in a press release following the conference. As the global leader in Holocaust education, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum works to ensure teachers have the training and resources they need to introduce their students to this important and complex history  and show them how its lessons remain relevant to all citizens today.

One of the biggest takeaways mentioned by both teachers after receiving their training earlier this year was that theres no way to compare their students experience with those from the Holocaust.

You cant understand what it wouldve been like, Kienzle said. You cant make a comparison to their pain.

Cournia used to have her sophomores create an identity chart with information about their family, home, belongings and interests. So as they read Night by Eli Wiesel, they could begin checking off items from the chart just as they are taken away from Wiesel throughout the book.

Rather than trying to have her students relate, Cournia said she wants them to gain awareness.

Without us learning about it their memory is gone, she said.

Kienzle said he feels more confident about answering questions from his students now that he has a greater understanding of the Holocaust. When his students are reading The Diary of Anne Frank and they ask, Well, why didnt they just leave? he can give them historical context about how difficult it was to obtain visas among the many other challenges.

Through the Memorial Museum, Kienzle and Cournia were connected with a surplus of educational materials, including other diaries of Holocaust victims and survivors. Kienzle said he is most excited about having his students read those additional diaries so they can get be exposed to more than just Franks experience.

When leaving Washington this summer, Kienzle said he and his wife actually had to ship books back to Fargo because their luggage couldnt handle the load of learning resources they acquired from the conference.

The museums website is a great resource for students, Cournia said. They can use it when researching projects to be sure they are getting consistent and accurate information -- after all, there are still websites out there that deny the Holocaust even happened.
Michigan officially declared on Monday afternoon that Trump was victorious, opening 48-hour window for challenge

A recount will happen in Wisconsin and Stein will pay; in Michigan she now has 48 hours to ask for one and says she will

She missed state-wide deadline for petition for a recount but her lawyers believe the claims of hacking form a separate legal avenue for them

in bid to force recount there on top of one in Wisconsin

Green Party candidate Jill Stein is using legal papers to claim Pennsylvania's voting machines could have been hacked as she attempts to force a state-wide recount, DailyMail.com has learned.

The move would allow her to get round her failure to meet individual and state-wide deadlines for requests for a recount and is being submitted to a court on Monday afternoon.

She had failed to meet the statewide deadline for a voter-initiated recount, which was Monday November 21, the Philadelphia Inquirer had reported.

Instead she is questioning whether the electronic voting system in the state could have been tampered with as they tallied results - a separate legal avenue, her legal advisers believe.

That would be enough, Stein's camp claim, to force a recount.Her lawyer told DailyMail.com there were four pages of expert evidence that the voting machines used in parts of the state were 'hackable'.

Recount efforts are now moving in three states. As well as Pennsylvania:

In Michigan, Stein has until Wednesday afternoon to file a formal request after Trump was officially declared the winner;

In Wisconsin, officials said they would rush through a recount but would not do it by hand - and stood by the initial result.

The moves came as Trump's aides continued to hammer the effort to force recounts in three states that handed Trump his victory over Hillary Clinton.

Stein raised more than $6 million to fund recounts in Wisconsin, is bringing the legal case in Pennsylvania, and has 48 hours to do the same in Michigan following close and unexpected Trump wins there.

President-elect Donald Trump's campaign spokesman blasted the latest recount effort as 'ridiculous' and said, 'This election's been decided'

What did they talk about: Adam Parkhomenko, who was the founder of Ready For Hillary, tweeted this picture of him with the former First Family apparently meeting in Chappaqua

Hacked? Jill Stein's claims center around the cyber security of the voting machines used in Pennsylvania.

Stein announced her efforts after computer scientists released a study that they wrote showed differences in Trump's margin in counties that used optical scan voting technology as opposed to paper ballots. The study raised the possibility that election systems could have been hacked, but indicated this was unlikely.

However the possibility of hacking appears to be central to Stein's legal case.

'It's going to be a Class II election contest in Pennsylvania, something that's never occurred before,' said Bucks County attorney Lawrence M. Otter, who is working on behalf of the Green Party's recount effort.

'It's basically asking for a recount of a presidential election, statewide.'

The four-page petition includes an 'Exhibit A' that details 'information about the hackability of the electronic voting machine', said Otter.

The move could get Stein out of one difficulty - that she had missed individual deadlines for recounts in some counties, and would not need to find three voters in each district to petition for a recount in each of them.

However a recount in Pennsylvania could raise a number of challenges, according to experts. The state does not back up all of its electronic voting machines with paper ballots, which would make it extremely difficult to conduct a recount.

'The nightmare scenario would be if Pennsylvania decides the election and it is very close. You would have no paper records to do a recount,' said Lawrence Norden, deputy director of the Brennan Center for Justice's Democracy Program, in a comment to the Los Angeles Times.

The Green Party has a history of challenging vote results in presidential elections. Still, some critics have dismissed Stein's efforts as a 'gimmick' to help raise money, while others have speculated that the Clinton campaign is using Stein as a cut-out to challenge the election results.

The Clinton camp this weekend announced that it was 'participating' in the effort, but doesn't expect a change in the outcome of the election.

'I really do think that it's been ridiculous that so much oxygen has been given to the recount effort, where there's absolutely no chance of any election results changing,' Trump spokesman Jason Miller told reporters on a conference call Monday.

'This election's been decided. It's a conceded election,' he said.

Miller said Stein was using the recount as a fundraising effort, and noted that Clinton has already conceded the election, but failed to offer specific evidence for Trump's claim that millions of votes cast by illegal immigrants were being counted in Hillary Clinton's popular vote totals.

'So if this much attention and oxygen is going to be given to a completely frivolous, throwaway fundraising scheme by someone like Jill Stein, then there should be actual substantive looks at the overall examples of voter fraud, illegal immigrants voting in recent years,' Miller said. 'And so that's the broader message that I think should be taken away here.'

Stein announced her plan after a report by c omputer scientists including J. Alex Halderman, the director of the University of Michigan Center for Computer Security and Society, conducted an analysis of the vote.

That analysis indicated that Clinton performed 7 per cent worse in Wisconsin counties that have electronic voting machines than in counties that relied on paper ballots that are logged with an optical scanner.

Trump began bashing the recount effort from his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach over the weekend.

Failed Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein filed for a recount in Wisconsin on Friday

IS GEORGE SOROS BEHIND RECOUNT MOVES? The sources of cash for Jill Steins recount legal battle  and Hillary Clintons involvement in it  have yet to be disclosed. But among the intriguing questions hanging over it is whether George Soros, the billionaire financier, has aided the efforts of either camp. The question is being raised after links between Hillary Clintons general counsel, Marc Elias, and Soros were highlighted by Breitbart. Funder: Soros gave to Clinton lawyer Cash: Marc Elias has taken $5m from Soros Elias revealed the Clinton campaigns involvement in the recount in Wisconsin on Saturday in a blogpost which did not say how it was being funded. But he has previously received large amounts of Soros funding for legal efforts to battle Republican states on voting laws. The Washington Post reported in August that Soros' spokesman said he had given $5 million to trusts used by Elias after the lawyer approached them with a proposal for legal challenges up and down the ballot which would be useful to Democrats. Elias had argued that African-Americans and Latinos were illegally excluded from voting by restrictions brought in by Republicans. Ironically, if he got behind a full effort to overturn Wisconsin, it could be based on the opposite assertion  that illegal votes were mistakenly counted. The claim being advanced in Pennsylvania that the machines were hackable is based on work by the National Voting Rights Institute, which is either currently or was previously funded by the Open Society, a Soros funded organization, and by the also Soros-funded Tides institute. Advertisement

'Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem!' he wrote.

Earlier, he suggested he would have won the popular vote as well as the electoral college  even as Hillary Clinton's lead over him climbed to 2.2 million ballots. The president-elect provided no evidence of the widespread voter fraud he claimed had occurred.

'In addition to winning the Electoral College by a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally,' Trump tweeted.

Miller referenced a Pew Research study that said 24 million, or one out of every eight, voter registrations were 'no longer valid or significantly inaccurate.'

Trump himself has referenced the same study to charge that dead people are voting.

Factcheck.org has written that the study argued for upgrading U.S. voting systems, and referenced the need to purge and improve voter rolls, not to claim that millions of people were voting improperly.

Miller also referenced a '2014 Washington Post study that indicated that more than 14 per cent of noncitizens in both the 2008 and 2010 elections indicated they were registered to vote.'

The article was by two academics who wrote a paper that was contested by some of their colleagues.

Neither report dealt with any voting irregularities in the 2016 election.

'So all of these are studies and examples of where there have been issues of both voter fraud and illegal immigrants voting,' said Miller.

Asked about whether the Justice Department would follow up on the charges of massive voter fraud, Miller said: 'I think it'd be inappropriate for me to speculate as far as Justice Department activity following  after inauguration or after swearing-in and the transfer of power has been completed.'

'Obviously I do think that it's an issue of concern, the fact that there's a concern that so many have voted who were not legally supposed to.'

He mocked the recount story as 'just chasing the shiny object of the Jill Stein recount effort, which is really just a way for Ms. Stein and the Green Party to go and make money.'

After his initial forays about the recount over the weekend, Trump followed up with two more tweets.

He suggested it would have been easier for him to win the popular vote anyways, because he would have just campaigned in a handful of highly-populated states.

'It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4--,' he began. 'states instead of the 15 states that I visited. I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!' he concluded in the second tweet.

Former White House senior advisor to President Obama Dan Pfeiffer slammed Trump for the unsubstantiated claims. 'We will have a Conspiracy Theorist in charge of our government, our military and our nuclear arsenal. What could possibly go wrong?' Pfieffer wrote.

Explosive: Trump's series of tweets which started the storm over claims of illegal voting

Loving the spotlight: Jill Stein has been given the sort of attention she never got during the campaign. On Wednesday she will appear on The View

Clinton's camp joined Green Party candidate Jill Stein in her efforts for a recount in three major electoral college states; Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma said Monday he had 'not seen any voter irregularity in the millions.'

'I don't know what he was talking about on that one,' Lankford told CNN's 'New Day.'

Wisconsin's elections commission voted Monday to approve a recount once payment is received from Stein, who is also pushing for recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan, where Trump's lead reached nearly 11,000 votes.

'We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides,' said Clinton campaign attorney Marc Elias.

In Michigan the state's board of canvassers on Monday certified Trump's 2,279,543 votes to 2,268,839  a difference of 10,704 votes. He beat her by 47.6 per cent to 47.2 per cent.

The official declaration on Michigan gives Stein a 48-hour window to request a recount, which she said she would do.

In Wisconsin, the recount was given the formal go-ahead but will not be done by hand.

That would need a separate court order, the Wisconsin Elections Commission said, as it also stood by the earlier result.

'If nothing else, this is going to give us a very good audit, it's going to re-assure Wisconsin voters that we have a fair system, that we're not counting illegal votes,' Elections Commission chairman Mark Thomsen said, reported CNN.

Just what Clinton intends to do is unclear but in an intriguing development, she was pictured meeting with Adam Parkhomenko, a key member of her inner circle.

He tweeted the picture of her and Bill Clinton, apparently in Chappaqua, among a series of tweets about the election recount and criticisms of Trump.
Abrini claimed the money was not for terror but was spent clothes and cars

Two men are accused of giving him 3,000 taken from benefits payments

He went to casinos, Old Trafford and the Bullring centre, jury are told

Suspect: Mohamed Abrini became known as the 'Man In The Hat after his suspected involvement in March's Brussels terror attack

Britain is too difficult a target for terrorism because of its developed secret service, one of the Brussels bomb suspects has claimed.

Mohamed Abrini, dubbed the man in the hat, visited the UK in July last year, allegedly to collect money for terrorism.

He is said to have spent a week in the country, visiting shopping centres in Birmingham and Manchester, although Abrini claimed he had only visited casinos to satisfy a gambling addiction.

Abrini, who has been linked to terror attacks in both Paris and Brussels, was given 3,000 from overpaid UK housing benefit during a trip to Birmingham in July 2015.

Zakaria Boufassil is now on trial accused of giving Abrini the money to fund terror attacks.

Abrini confessed to the British fundraising trip after he was arrested in April following his appearance wearing a hat and pushing a luggage trolley during the attack on Brussels Airport.

But, in an interview with Belgian police, Abrini claimed the man he had given the money to 'blew it all on going out, cars and clothes.'

Despite having taken a tour of Manchester United's Old Trafford stadium and going to Birmingham's Bullring shopping centre during his visit, he said there was 'no plan to target England.'

Abrini's interview with Belgian police was read to the jury, in which he was asked: 'Who did you hang around with during your visit to Birmingham?'

'Apart from the people who gave me money I had contact with an Algerian who worked in a shopping centre,' he said.

'I think at the top in a large pizza place. The girl worked in that restaurant.'

Dubbed the man in the hat, Abrini was caught on camera fleeing Brussels airport after the bombing in March and he is accused of playing a role in the Paris and Brussels attacks

He added: 'She worked in the shopping centre at the Bullring, on the top floor, in a restaurant. I ate pizza there.'

Abrini made at least five visits to casinos in London, Birmingham and Manchester and police wanted to know why.

'I am a player, a fan of casinos,' he said. 'I play, I am registered a little everywhere in casinos - Lille, Essen...I am a player it's my addiction.

As part of the trip he travelled to Manchester where he took more than 30 photographs on a two-hour tour of the stadium.

Abrini also described being spirited across the border to Syria by a 'man in a van' from ISIS.

Once there, he met Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who was later identified as a key player in the Paris attacks.

He said he later went to Birmingham and met Ahmed and Boufassil in a hotel opposite Small Heath Park.

Zakaria Boufassil (sketched in court) is accused of giving the terror suspect benefits money

Abrini said he delivered the money to Abaaoud's brother, Yassin, claiming to police: 'What I understood from the local neighbourhood was that Yassin blew it all on going out, cars and clothes.'

He also denied any plan to attack Britain, saying: 'Neither in London, nor in Birmingham, nor in Manchester, have I been on any reconnaissance trips in relation to preparatory terrorist attacks.'

He added: 'There's no plan to target England as a potential site for a terrorist act. From what I know, it's France who is the declared enemy of Islamic State.

'I think England has a more developed secret service, better observation techniques etc... and it's therefore more difficult to attack. I've not heard either of contacts with any English nationals in Syria.'

Boufassil and Ahmed, both from Birmingham, are charged with supplying money to Abrini between June 1, 2014, and April 16, 2016, with the intention of committing or assisting another to commit acts of terrorism.

Boufassil has pleaded not guilty and denies sharing the intention of Ahmed, who has admitted the offence.
The EU imposed a number of trade sanctions after the

The stem of needed materials entering Russia from the EU has dropped

Commuters travelling on this Russian tram needed to step warily - because it had a massive hole in the floor amid speculation the country is suffering due to EU sanctions.

A shocked passenger, who was travelling on the tram in the far-eastern Russian city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the Khabarovsk Krai region, recorded this video which he then posted online.

He said it shows clearly how the current financial crisis has hit the local public transport system of the Russian provincial city.

A gaping hole in the tram big enough for passengers to fall through into the road. To make matters worse temperatures in Komsomolsk-on-Amur can reach -30 degrees in winter

The holes are big enough for anyone's leg to fall through onto the road, which is seen speeding along underneath. Tram rails can also be seen intermittently through the holes.

The author of the video can be heard saying: 'This is for real, we are really really having a ride in the tram which is broken and with giant holes on the floor.

'I feel pity for people who live here and do not have cars. Because they are forced to use this sort of public transport.'

Reportedly, it was also freezing cold in the tram as the temperature outside was about minus 20 degrees Celsius.

It was not reported if local transport officials had commented on the video.

Social media user, known as Jorik, filmed the hole whole travelling on the tram

Netizen 'Jorik' said: 'As long as most people are ok with the situation it will not change. Until people agree to live and refuse to be treated like cattle there is no hope for a better future.'

The European Union enforced a number of sanctions on Russia in 2014 as a reaction to the Kremlin's 'illegal annexation of Crimea (claimed by Russia and Ukraine) and deliberate destabilisation of a neighbouring sovereign country.'

Among other sanctions, the EU has imposed an export and import bans on trade in arms; an export ban for dual-use goods and reduction of Russia's access to sensitive technologies and services linked to oil production.

And critics will say the bottomless trams and other such problems could be a result of trade embargoes, that limit the flow of needed materials reaching Russia from the EU.

Russian troops stand guard outside a Ukrainian navy ship in the harbour of Sevastopol, Crimea. Since Putin annexed the jut of land a number of international sanctions have been imposed on Russia

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said in an interview with Euronews, that the sanctions against Vladimir Putin's Russia will be in place for the foreseeable future.

'Up until now, I have seen no argument for the sanctions against Russia being immediately lifted,' he said last week.
Donald Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner has been caught out embarrassingly heaping praise on one of the officials at the center of the 'Bridgegate' scandal.

Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump and has emerged as one of Trump's most trusted advisers, emailed Port Authority executive David Wildstein the day after he was forced to resign for his role in the fiasco involving the George Washington Bridge.

The 35-year-old sent an email to Wildstein on December 7, 2013, that read: 'Just wanted you to know that I am thinking of you and wishing the best. For what its worth, I thought the move you pulled was kind of bada**.'

Donald Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner (pictured) has been caught out embarrassingly heaping praise on one of the officials at the center of the 'Bridgegate' scandal

The message was obtained by the Washington Post.

Wildstein was one of the three officials convicted for his role in shutting lanes on the bridge in a ploy to get revenge on Democratic Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich who refused to endorse Christie for reelection in 2013.

Bridget Kelly, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's former deputy chief of staff, and former Port Authority of New York and New Jersey executive Bill Baroni were the other two who were charged and then convicted earlier this month.

Wildstein pleaded guilty and appeared as the government's star witness, detailing how the three officials schemed to pay back Sokolich.

Kushner emailed Port Authority executive David Wildstein (pictured) the day after he was forced to resign for his role in the fiasco

'Just wanted you to know that I am thinking of you and wishing the best. For what its worth, I thought the move you pulled was kind of bada**,' Kushner (left) wrote to Wildstein (right)

Kelly and Baroni testified during the trial that they were under the impression the lane closures were part of a study by Wildstein.

But he said on the stand the three of them knew all along that the study was a bogus cover story.

Wildstein also implicated Christie, saying he and Baroni discussed the lane closures with the governor while they were ongoing.

Christie, Wildstein testified, laughed at the notion that Sokolich was frustrated by the traffic.
A 15-year-old boy who was shot on his way to school in Delaware on Monday morning still managed to get on the school bus after the attack, police say.

The incident occurred along N Van Buren Street near 27th Street in Wilmington around 6:50 am this morning.

The victim was believed to have been walking along the sidewalk at the time of the shooting. He then managed to flag down his school bus and got on while nursing his injuries, NBC 10 reported.

Scene: Footage from where the shooting occurred this morning shows a car with a bullet hole through the windscreen. One person - a 15-year-old boy - was shot

Video from the scene showed a bullet hole in a nearby parked car. Neighbors say that five or six shots were fired

Friends of the teen, who is in the 9th grade at Dickinson High School, told the driver what had happened and the driver pulled over and 911.

The boy was treated on scene by paramedics and then transported to A.I. duPont Children's Hospital in a stable condition.

At least one bullet struck the windshield of a car parked nearby. However it wasn't immediately clear how many shots were fired.

Neighbors reported hearing between five and six shots.

'When we looked out the window we saw kids running this way, kids running across,' resident Ira Findley told 6ABC.

The incident occurred along N Van Buren Street near 27th Street in Wilmington around 6:50 am this morning.

'Some of the bus drivers were telling kids to get on the bus for their protection.'

'There were about 5-6 shots,' said another resident. 'I came out to make sure my son was okay ... He was okay.'

It is unclear what prompted the shooting or whether it was a drive-by.

Members of the anti-violence group Wilmington Peacekeepers were on the scene after the shooting.

Organizers told Action News they already had plans Monday night to talk about going into local schools to spread their message of peace.
A zookeeper in Shanghai has been caught forcing a baby tiger to take pictures with young tourists, according to Chinese media.

The man, who works for the Shanghai Wild Animal Park, was seen grabbing the tiny animal by its neck and limbs before passing it onto children who were waiting to have pictures taken with the tiger.

Investigation carried out by local reporters discovered that a tiger cub could be forced to take over 100 pictures with tourists during a day. Each photo shoot cost 30 yuan (3.5).

A zookeeper from Shanghai, China, has been caught brutally handling a tiger cub

The man, who works for Shanghai Wild Animal Park, forced the animal to pose for pictures

The zookeeper grabbed the cub by its neck forcing it to look at the camera during the shoot

The disturbing video was first uploaded to Weibo, the Chinese equivalent to Twitter, by a user named 'Mo Xiaozhi' on November 6.

'Mo Xiaozhi' is believed to be a tourist who visited the zoo and witnessed the cruel scenes.

In the one-minute-long video, a male zookeeper violently handled a tiger cub forcing it to take pictures with young children.

The man grabbed the baby animal by its neck and forelegs before giving it to a little girls who was waiting to have her pictures taken.

At one point, the tiger tried to crawl out of one girl's arms. The zookeeper quickly grabbed the animal by its forelegs.

Then the zookeeper instructed a second girl to hold the tiger upright. The baby animal failed to look at the camera probably. The zookeeper grabbed the cub by its neck forcing it to look at the camera.

The man was seen grabbing the animal by its neck and limbs before passing it to tourists

Most of the tourists who waited to have pictures taken at the zoo were young children

Several still photos at the beginning of the video showed that a cub had been dropped to the ground by one of the young tourists.

In addition to the video, 'Mo Xiaozhi' wrote in the post: 'Inside the Small Animal World of the Shanghai Wild Animal Park, tourists could touch a tiger cub - which was only months old - without being sterilised. Among them, most were children. Is it reasonable for a zoo to provide photo opportunities using baby animals and gain profit?'

The video was quickly shared by CCTV News, the Chinese state-run television station, which sparked an outcry.

The re-post by CCTV News attracted more than 1,400 comments. Many web users were shocked by the zookeeper's ill treatment towards the baby tiger, demanding the zoo abolish the photo service.

User 'Ferrari-LaFerrari' was one of them, who wrote: '[I] used to think zoos are the best platform to promote animal welfare, but now [I] have lost confidence in zoos. Animals have become tools for them to gain profit. What's more shocking? The goal of zoos has turned from protecting animals to maltreating animals.'

The zookeeper instructed a young girl to hold the tiger upright while having her pictures taken

The little girl held the tiger cub, which was only months old, during the photo shoot at the zoo

Asian Animal Foundation condemned the zookeeper's behaviour on its Weibo account on November 7.

The animal welfare group wrote: 'In the video, the zookeeper held the tiger cubs forelegs with one hand, dragging it from the ground to mid-air and constantly beating its head during the photo shoots.

'[China's] State Forestry Administration banned tourists from taking pictures with protected and endangered animals in 2010.

'[We request that] the Shanghai Wild Animal Park stop photography activities as such and tourists stop participating in taking pictures with wild animals.'

It is unclear whether or not the tiger cub in the video belongs to a protected species.

A manager from Shanghai Wild Animal Park denied that the zookeeper had maltreated the cub

The manager said that the zookeeper was trying to comfort the animal during the photo shoot

A manager from Shanghai Wild Animal Park denied that the zookeeper had maltreated the tiger cub.

The manager, named Tao Fengyuan, told a reporter from Jiefang Daily that the zookeeper was trying to comfort the animal in the video.

Tao Fengyuan added that each photo shoot cost 30 yuan (3.5).

The manager also said that all the income would be used on the protection of animals.

The reporter of Jiefang Daily visited the zoo on November 13 and discovered that each photo shoot took around two minutes and a tiger cub was forced to take pictures with tourists for three and a half hours non-stop on the day.

Located on the outskirts of Shanghai, one of China's most modern cities, Shanghai Wild Animal Park is home to more than 200 rare animal species, including giant pandas and golden snub nosed monkeys.
Art Sisneros, a Texas Republican elector, has decided to resign from the Electoral College rather than vote for Donald Trump.

Sisneros penned a lengthy blog post about his decision over the weekend and confirmed to Politico on Monday he was serious about dropping out.

'I do not see how Donald Trump is biblically qualified to serve in the office of the Presidency,' Sisneros argued. 'Since I cant in good conscience vote for Donald Trump, and yet have sinfully made a pledge that I would, the best option I see at this time is to resign my position as an Elector,' he also wrote.

Scroll down for video

Art Sisneros has decided to step down from the Electoral College, after thoughtfully laying out why he couldn't, as a Christian, cast a vote for President-elect Donald Trump

Art Sisneros, a Texas member of the Electoral College, used his blog to explain why Donald Trump was not 'biblically qualified' to be president of the United States

For several months, Sisneros, a Christian, has been weighing whether he could vote for Trump.

On the day before Election Day, Sisneros came to the conclusion that he couldn't do it, citing passages from the Bible about what God expects from the voter, with 'qualified' being the trait that swayed his decision.

'It seems clear to me that God both calls me to vote and directs me to only vote for men who fear Him and are just according to God's law,' Sisneros wrote.

'He doesn't expect or allow me to add to his qualifications and seek for perfection,' he continued. 'He also doesn't hold me accountable for all the sins that these qualified men commit once in office.'

'He does, however, give me clear commands for who is qualified and expects me to be obedient with my calling as a voter,' Sisneros said. 'Therefor, I can not in good conscience vote for Donald Trump for president.'

The Texas elector built on that explanation when announcing he would depart from the Electoral College, which casts votes for president on December 19.

Sisneros laid out the history of the Electoral College, calling its current form a 'corrupt college,' because the founders did not mean for the electors to be bound to the state-wide popular vote.

'The current pledges most political parties make Electors sign after they are elected is contrary to the original intent of the Constitution,' Sisneros argued.

Sisneros signed a pledge that would force him to vote for Trump.

' The fact that the pledge makes no mention of the biblical qualifications necessary for one to serve as President makes it an immoral pledge,' he said, adding later that the pledge he signed 'undermines the Bible and the Constitution.'

In his final conclusion, Sisneros again calls out Trump for not being 'biblically qualified' to serve as president of the United States.

'Of the hundreds of angry messages that I have received, not one has made a convincing case from scripture otherwise,' Sisneros wrote.

'If Trump is not qualified and my role, both morally and historically, as an elected official is to vote my conscience, then I can not and will not vote for Donald Trump for President,' he continued.

Sisneros said that he believed voting for Trump 'would bring dishonor to God.'

'The reality is Trump will be our President, no matter what my decision is,' he added.

Sisneros believed that while the 'goal' for people may be Trump in the White House, what they really want is a pure democracy, as evidenced by the pushback he received for threatening to buck the popular vote in his district and cast a vote for someone else, which would be in the designs of the original Electoral College.

'That is evidence alone to prove that our republic is lost,' Sisneros said.

Sisneros said that to resign is 'to honor the intent of the pledge as it relates to the people of my district' because he couldn't vote in good conscience for Trump.

'This will allow the remaining body of Electors to fill my vacancy when they convene on Dec 19 with someone that can vote for Trump,' he said.

'The people will get their vote,' he continued.
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A man who was exploring an abandoned quarry came across a stash of cars that had been hidden away since the start of World War Two.

Belgian PE teacher Vincent Michel described his amazement at coming across the rusting vehicles that had lain undiscovered for 70 years.

They were likely hidden at the quarry in central France at the start of the war to avoid them being requisitioned, and were forgotten about by the end.

A man who was exploring an abandoned quarry came across a stash of cars that had been hidden away since the start of World War Two

Belgian PE teacher Vincent Michel described his amazement at coming across the rusting vehicles that had lain undiscovered for 70 years

They were likely hidden at the quarry in central France at the start of the war to avoid them being requisitioned, and were forgotten about by the end

Mr Michel said: 'It felt like we were walking back in time, 70 years ago, and I just wondered how on earth it was possible!

He said: 'We suppose the cars were brought into the quarry at the start of the war to stop them being seized'

Mr Michel said: 'It felt like we were walking back in time, 70 years ago, and I just wondered how on earth it was possible!

'We suppose the cars were brought into the quarry at the start of the war to stop them being seized.

'After the war, nobody took them out from there, forgotten forever. The owner of the quarry added a few more cars some years later.

'Almost all the cars were empty, with the shells the only things remaining.'

Mr Michel added: 'After the war, nobody took them out from there, forgotten forever. The owner of the quarry added a few more cars some years later'

Almost all the cars were empty, with the rusted metal shells all that remained. This car (left) still kept most of its old blue paintwork

The 56-year-old urban explorer said several of the cars have been sold, but most will have to stay where they are

He added: 'Shortly after we were there the owner pulled a few of them out to sell at auction, but most of the cars are still at peace inside the quarry, too damaged to move'

Mr Michel said: 'It was an unbelievable experience, and I really hope to find a similar place in the future'

The 56-year-old urban explorer said several of the cars have been sold, but most will have to stay where they are.

He added: 'Shortly after we were there the owner pulled a few of them out to sell at auction, but most of the cars are still at peace inside the quarry, too damaged to move.

'It was an unbelievable experience, and I really hope to find a similar place in the future.'

Photographer 'Foto-Runner' sits on a ledge looking over the lines of rusted 1930s vehicles, which were arranged in neat lines

Many vehicles were seized by the German Army after they invaded France for use by the occupying forces

The German invasion of France began in May 1940. Within six weeks, the Nazis were in control of the country, along with Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands

After the invasion, France was divided into a German occupation zone in the north and west and a 'free zone' in the south. Pictured: pile of tyres sits in front of the shells of two vehicles
The unnamed shopper declares she voted for Donald Trump, saying: 'You want to kick me out because of that? And look who won'

She later calls police to complain that she had been

A white shopper at a Chicago department store was caught on video throwing what has been described as a racially charged tantrum after accusing two African-American employees of discriminating against her because she had voted for Donald Trump.

The incident took place Wednesday evening at a Michaels store in the Lakeview section of Chicago and was captured by another customer, Jessie Grady, who then shared the footage on YouTube, where as of Monday afternoon it has been viewed more than 181,000 times.

Grady later launched a GoFundMe campaign titled 'Stand Strong Against Racism' to raise money for a Michaels manager, described as a mother of three, who was yelled at by the white pro-Trump shopper.

Public meltdown: This unnamed woman at a Michaels department store in Chicago was caught on camera launching an expletive-laden, racially charged tirade at two black employees

Face-off: The angry shopper confronted another customer, Jessie Grady, when she spotted her recording her rant on a cellphone

The incident took place Wednesday evening at this Michaels store in the Lakeview section of Chicago

According to the description of the online fundraiser, Jessie Grady had just gone through the checkout line at Michaels and paused at the exit to show her 2-year-old daughter a Christmas ornament when she witnessed the other shopper, a young woman in a dark puffer jacket, checkered scarf and rain boots, launch into a '30-minute racist rant,' which involved yelling, swearing and 'repeated references to the fact that employees were African American.'

Good Samaritan: Grady (pictured) stopped by Michaels with her 2-year-old daughter to pick her up a Santa hat

According to Ms Grady, the woman in the video went into a foul-mouthed, racist meltdown because she did not like that a store clerk at the checkout counter had offered her to purchase a re-usable bag for $1 for her larger items.

Grady stated that she was directly behind the woman in the checkout line and witnessed that the employee did nothing to provoke the 'verbal attack' that followed.

On Facebook, Grady reiterated that Michaels employees did nothing to the angry shopper and 'never yelled at her,' despite her repeated claims to the contrary seen in the nearly 11-minute cellphone video.

Gradys footage capturing the confrontation begins with the furious customer yelling at a store employee: 'Yes, I voted for Trump, so there. You want to kick me out because of that? And look who won.

The young woman can be heard telling the staffer: you want to discriminate against me and name call me?' She then pulls out her cellphone and begins recording the employee.

Enraged: The shopper verbally lashed out at Grady, accusing her toddler of stealing and telling her to go home to her 'cheating' husband

Epic rant: The white customer directed her rage at a black store manager, claiming she failed to reprimand a black cashier, whom she repeatedly called 'an animal'

The riled-up Trump supporter later confronts Grady for videotaping her and launches into a vitriolic tirade, in which she accuses the woman's 2-year-old child of stealing and claims that her husband is unfaithful to her.

I dont know what you think youre videoing, lady, the shopper tells Grady. I was just discriminated against by two black women and you being a white woman and you literally thinking thats OK why dont you go home to your husband whos cheating on you.

The wound-up shopper then directs her rage at an African American store manager, accusing her of failing to reprimand the cashier, who is also black, for allegedly screaming at her.

Ive been discriminated twice by you,' she screams. This woman [cashier] came around and screamed at me from across the goddamn store like an animal! An animal! Animal!

You screamed at me from across the store like you were in your own living room, youre an animal!

She's with him: The customer declared she had voted for Donald Trump and suggested that was the reason why the black staffers had discriminated against her

The woman later doubles down on her outburst, saying of the cashier that she was screaming like shes out on the streets.

According to Grady, the manager remained calm throughout the entire ordeal, telling the irate shopper the cashier had merely told her they did not have large enough bags for her items.

You're not gonna give me some sort of a liberal lecture about who's a human, the shopper screams in the video after derisively imitating the manager telling her earlier, Were all human. Your job is to ring people up and tell them to have a nice day.

The woman then shouts out: You're are not gonna tell me who I can vote for and who I can't vote for.

The shopper later called the police, repeatedly complaining that she had been discriminated against and had been refused service by two black women.

She also can be heard referring to Jessie Grady as a 'creep' for videotaping her and muttering something about wanting to bring a lawsuit so big, so big, so big!

The irked shopper was apparently enraged that the cashier had offered her to buy a reusable bag for $1 for her larger items

In the wake of the incident, Grady revealed online that it took police 45 minutes to respond to multiple calls from several customers. By the time officers arrived, the raving shopper had left.

I do hope that this woman received some type of medical attention, but I don't think this was a breakdown, I think it was someone who felt so entitled that her views had been validated that she genuinely expected other white people to be on her side about this, Grady stated.

Mystery woman: By the time police responded to the scene, some 45 minutes later, the unidentified woman had left the store

Grady explained that she decided to start the GoFundMe campaign on the store manager's behalf 'to try to make it up' to her and brighten up her holiday season after she had become the target of this 'racist attack.'

She added: 'Id like to show her that many people are horrified by how this woman treated her, and that we stand with her and appreciate her hard work.

She inspired me because despite the hateful words that were being hurled in her direction, she stood in that entranceway [sic] calm and unmoving to protect her staff and customers. Her calmness calmed me and I saw a true leader, which in todays world, is something to be rewarded.'

The initial goal of the fundraiser had been $400. As of Monday afternoon, the campaign has drawn more than $4,600 in donations.

In an update posted Monday, Grady said the Michaels manager has confided in her she that would like to get her Master's degree in psychology so she could pursue her dream of becoming a guidance counselor, and she also has a small side business knitting scarves and hats for homeless teens.
President Barack Obama will not attend Fidel Castro's funeral, the White House said Monday.

Vice President Joe Biden will not fly to Cuba for the dictator's funeral, either, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said.

Earnest also suggested Secretary of State John Kerry would not make the trip.

'I don't want to lead you to conclude that the secretary of state is considering attending,' Earnest told DailyMail.com.

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President Barack Obama will not attend Fidel Castro's funeral, the White House said Monday.

Obama poses for the cameras with Castro's brother Raul, the current leader of Cuba, during his March trip to Havana

Fidel Castro died on Friday evening at the age of 90. Havana University students are seen laying a wreath today in his honor

Russian President Vladimir Putin, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and British Prime Minister Theresa May had already said they wouldn't be attending Castro's funeral next week.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, an adviser to president-elect Donald Trump, angrily tweeted Saturday that 'under no circumstance' should Obama, Biden or Kerry go to Cuba for the ceremony.

'He was a tyrant,' Gingrich said of Castro.

The White House would not say Monday whether Caroline Kennedy, the U.S. ambassador to Japan and the daughter of John F. Kennedy, could represent the United States in Havana.

'I don't have news to make,' Earnest said of U.S. delegation during his daily briefing with reporters. 'I can't even confirm that there will be one at this point.'

Kennedy's father introduced the trade embargo on Cuba that holds fast today and imposed travel restrictions on the country.

Obama has eased regulations on travel to and from the county and the transfer of goods. Only Congress can overturn the embargo, though, and it has provided no indication that it will do so.

President-elect Donald Trump said Monday that he will 'terminate' the deals that Obama made with the Cuba if the government, led by Raul Castro since 2008, is 'unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole.'

Fidel Castro died on Friday evening at the age of 90. The United State's detente with Cuba came about after Castro passed on power to his brother, Raul, in 2014.

The U.S. and Cuba reopened embassies in Havana and Washington and fully resumed diplomatic relations in July of 2015.

Obama became the first sitting U.S. president in 88 years to visit Cuba in March. The entire first family came to Cuba, located just 90 miles south of Florida, for the historical event.

The first family attended a baseball game with Raul Castro and the two leaders stood side by side at a join press conference, where the Cuban dictator and revolutionary insisted his government does not jail its political opponents - and attempted afterward to clasp Obama's hand but instead grabbed and help up his limp wrist.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (pictured with the former Cuban leader in 2000) described Castro as 'the symbol of an era' and a 'distinguished statesman' - but he's not going to his funeral, either

Obama did not meet with Fidel Castro during three days he was in Havana.

Castro excoriated Obama and his White House predecessors in an op-ed after the visit. Obama did not respond in kind and refused to criticize the brutal dictator in a statement on his passing.

'History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him,' Obama said.

The statement was received critically by Republicans, especially those who vocally opposed the thawing of tensions.

'I hope we dont see Barack Obama and and the Democrats lining up to lionize a murderous tyrant and thug,' said Senator Ted Cruz.

Cruz lit into Obama on ABC, saying, 'If you wouldnt go to Pol Pot's funeral or Stalins funeral or Maos funeral because they were murderous communist dictators then you shouldnt be doing what Barack Obama and Justin Trudeau are doing, which is celebrating Fidel Castro, a murderous communist dictator.'

Trudeau called Castro a 'remarkable leader' in his statement, earning scorn at home and abroad.

The Canadian prime minister's father, Pierre Elliot Trudeau, became the first NATO leader to visit Cuba in 1976. Castro was an honorary pallbearer the elder Trudeau's funeral in 2000.

Earnest defended Obama's statement as forward-looking on Monday.

'There certainly is no whitewashing the kinds of activities that he ordered and that his government presided over that go against the very values...that our country has long defended,' he said. 'The question for the president is, in terms of making policy, are we going to be rooted in that past, or are we going to look to the future?'

He admitted that Raul Castro hasn't responded to external demands for free and fair elections and an end to human rights abuses.

The White House official argued that progress is still possible, though, and that's been the focus of the president's policy toward Cuba in his second term.

'To issue some sort of blistering statement and engage in the kind of mutual recriminations that are tired to the past,' he said, 'doesnt advance freedom or democracy on the island nation of Cuba.'

And it doesn't expand economic and cultural opportunities for Americans, he argued.

'It doesnt advance further the success that we've had in removing the Cuba issue as an impediment in our relationship with countries throughout the Western Hemisphere.'

Earnest said the Obama administration's engagement is widely supported by the Cuban people and claimed the president's opponents are not making 'coherent' arguments against warmer relations.

Vice-President Biden (pictured right next to Vice-President elect Mike Pence) is not attending Castro's funeral

The White House also suggested Secretary of State John Kerry would not make the trip

Critics of the president are claiming he 'made a bunch of concessions to the Cuban government - that's wrong,' Earnest said.

'It's not a concession to allow Cuban Americans to send more money to their family members who are living in Cuba,' he contended.

Nor is it a concession to open up an embassy, allow commercial flights, cruise operators to dock there, hotel operators to sign licensing agreement and the American agriculture industry the opportunity to do more business, the president's spokesman insisted.

'All of those are things that had important benefits for the American people and are strongly supported by the Cuban people,' Earnest asserted.

If Trump rolls back the Obama administration's policies, Earnest said, there will be 'significant diplomatic, economic, cultural costs.'

'This is among the many significant challenges that the incoming administration will have to carefully consider.'
RAPID CITY, S.D.  About 270 river-miles downstream from the Dakota Access pipeline protest camp, a South Dakota Native American tribe is quietly fighting for $200 million in compensation over alleged water-rights violations.

The Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, which resides on a reservation on the eastern banks of the Missouri River in central South Dakota north of Chamberlain, is locked in a legal showdown with the federal government in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, the Rapid City Journal reported.

The tribe contends its reservation of land includes rights to Missouri River water that the government has long allowed others to use illegally. Now, the tribe wants $200 million as compensation and also wants its water rights measured, or "quantified," in the language of the tribe's formal complaint. The government disputes the tribe's claims and has filed a motion to dismiss them.

The tribe filed its case in June, about two months after Native American-led protesters began to gather at the site of the planned route of the Dakota Access pipeline under the Missouri River near Cannon Ball. The Crow Creek complaint and the pipeline protest are not formally related, but they are both grounded in Native American assertions of water rights.

The Crow Creek complaint is based on the Winters Doctrine, established by a 1908 U.S. Supreme Court decision. In that decision, the court determined that the establishment of a land reservation for a Native American tribe includes an implied reservation of water rights for the tribe.

Some tribes in other parts of the country have since forced the U.S. government to determine the amount of water they are entitled to use, but apparently no tribe in the Northern Great Plains has done so.

David Ganje, a Rapid City lawyer who handles water-rights cases but is not involved in the Crow Creek case, said tribes have been hesitant to sue for water rights. That is partly because of a 1952 federal law known as the McCarran Amendment, which pushed many water-rights disputes from federal courts down to state courts, where Native Americans often fear they will not receive fair treatment.

Why then is the Crow Creek tribe suddenly pressing its case in the federal Court of Claims?

When the Journal emailed the question to the tribe's lawyer, Austin Tighe, of the Nix, Patterson & Roach firm in Austin, Texas, he mentioned the firm's success in similar cases.

Tighe said the firm helped win a $186 million payment from the U.S. government for the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes in August 2015. The payment settled 100-year-old claims that the government failed to protect tribal timber interests.

In a separate and ongoing case, the firm is representing the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation in its $600 million lawsuit against the state of Connecticut over its claims of illegal taking of tribal land.

The Crow Creek complaint is similar to those cases because it claims the U.S. government has a responsibility to hold tribal water in trust  like tribal land  and manage it for the good of the tribe.

The government, in its motion to dismiss, calls the tribe's position "novel and legally unsupportable."

"A Winters doctrine right 'gives the United States the power to exclude others from subsequently diverting waters that feed the reservation,'" the government's motion says, quoting a 2015 court ruling. "It does not give Plaintiff ownership of any particular molecules of water, either on the reservation or up or downstream of the reservation."

Ganje, the local water-rights expert, said he foresees a number of legal issues that could thwart the tribe's effort in the Court of Claims, and he thinks negotiation would have been a better initial tactic than litigation. But he said tribes should generally do more to assert their water rights.

"Our society has such a great need for water," Ganje said, "and good-quality water is becoming a commodity that in the future could be as valuable as oil and gold."
Nearly three weeks after Election Day, Michigan officials certified Monday that Donald Trump won the state by 10,704 votes out of nearly 4.8 million to claim all of its 16 electoral votes. There's more wrangling to come, though, on the final vote count for this oh-so-contentious campaign.

Jill Stein's Green Party served notice that it would petition for a Michigan recount even as her party pushed forward with recount efforts in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, where Trump won by somewhat wider but still small margins.

Should the results for Trump hold in all three states, as expected, the president-elect would have 306 electoral votes to 232 for Democrat Hillary Clinton. It takes 270 to be elected president.

Michigan officials certified Monday that Donald Trump won the state by 10,704 votes out of nearly 4.8 million

This morning, Trump tweeted saying the announcement was a boost to his supporters

Only if the results were overturned in all three states would Clinton have a claim on the presidency, and that is widely considered to be out of the question.

If it's any consolation for Clinton  and it's probably mighty little  she's winning the national popular vote. With some votes still being counted, she is ahead by more than 2 million, about 1.5 percent of the total counted so far.

And today after the result was announced Trump tweeted: 'The Great State of Michigan was just certified as a Trump WIN giving all our MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN supporters another victory - 306!'

It comes after the president-elect issued a series of weekend tweets complaining about the Midwest recount efforts, said the Green Party was engaged in a 'scam to fill up their coffers' and that 'defeated & demoralized Dems' were joining in.

Stirring the post-election pot, Trump made his own unsubstantiated claim of widespread voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California, saying without evidence that he would have won the popular vote if millions of people had not voted illegally.

Pushing for a recount: Jill Stein now has a window to file for one in Michigan

Stein, who won 1.4 million votes nationwide or about 1 percent of the count, signaled her determination to keep pushing the Midwest recount efforts, saying that 'Americans deserve a voting system we can trust.' As of Monday, she had raised $6.2 million to finance recounts, according to her campaign website.

'After a presidential election tarnished by the use of outdated and unreliable machines and accusations of irregularities and hacks, people of all political persuasions are asking if our election results are reliable,' she said in a statement.

Scam: Trump has been robust in his response to Stein's efforts to have his victory questioned

There is no evidence that voter results were hacked or that electronic voting machines were compromised.

The Clinton campaign, which declined to initiate recounts on its own, said over the weekend it would participate in the recounts requested by Stein 'to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides,' in the words of campaign lawyer Marc Elias.

Stein's campaign said she would file a petition Wednesday for a Michigan recount, after which Trump would have seven days to file objections. Trump's margin of victory in the state was a slim 0.22 percent of the total vote.

Michigan Republican Party Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel said a recount would be 'a waste of time and disrespectful to all Michigan voters.'

Chris Thomas, director of the Michigan Bureau of Elections, said the recount would begin as early as Friday to meet a December 13 deadline. Under state policy, the recount will be conducted by hand.

He said election officials have heard a lot this year about 'so-called fraud ... without any foundation in fact,' and a recount settling that question could provide one 'silver lining.'

In Wisconsin, meanwhile, the state elections commission on Monday approved a timeline to start a recount on Thursday. Stein is pushing for a hand count of the nearly 3 million ballots cast in the state, but the commission left it up to local election officials to determine the best method.

Starting point: In Michigan, the Board of Canvassers met to certify the vote officially - and then heard representations from Green Party representatives

Stein's Wisconsin recount request included an affidavit from University of Michigan computer scientist J. Alex Halderman stating that a hand recount is the only way to determine whether there could have been a cyberattack that affected the results. He argued that records stored in electronic voting equipment could have been manipulated in an attack.

The AP on Monday updated its election night vote count in Wisconsin to correct the totals for both candidates in three separate counties. The updates dropped Trump's margin over Clinton from 27,257 votes to 22,460 votes, or 0.8 percent of the total vote. The corrections were made during the regular post-election canvass of the election-night vote.

In Pennsylvania, where Trump edged Clinton by about 71,000 votes, or about 1 percent of the vote, Stein filed a lawsuit seeking a statewide recount but it wasn't clear if the courts had the authority to order one.
Widower Douglas Hurr was found dead in a side room of the hospital's acute medical unit

A retired Rolls-Royce engineer was found choked to death on his hospital gown by his granddaughter, an inquest has heard.

Widower Douglas Hurr, 84 - who suffered with dementia - was discovered lying naked and lifeless in a side room of the hospital's acute medical unit.

The alarm was raised when he was found with a piece of fabric poking out of his mouth by his granddaughter Charlotte Harrop, 23, and her mother.

Doctors rushed into the room on ward 15 at Leicester Royal Infirmary on January 2, and pulled the gown out of Mr Hurr's throat but he had already died.

The grandfather-of-three's health deteriorated in the months before his death and he had been forced to leave his semi-detached home in Cosby, Leicestershire, and move into a care home.

He moved to Holmes Court care home in Blaby, Leicestershire, before being admitted to hospital with a urinary infection on New Year's Day this year.

An inquest into Mr Hurr's death at Leicester Town Hall on Monday heard he died from asphyxiation.

Pathologist Dr Hew said the pensioner also had sepsis due to bladder infection and heart disease which could have contributed to his death.

Dr Hew said Mr Hurr had died after foreign material had blocked his upper airways, leading to a heart attack.

Darren Smith, a senior carer at the home, said Mr Hurr was taken to hospital by ambulance on January 1 after he was found to be unwell in bed.

He said he had seen Mr Hurr most days after he had been admitted to the home six months previously.

Mr Smith said: 'He was very sharp.'

In a statement read out in court, Mr Hurr's sister, Patricia Hurr, said he was a much-loved brother, father and grandfather.

She added: 'For him to die alone when in such a high dependency unit is unacceptable to the family.'

The retired businessman had worked as a quality engineer for Rolls-Royce before setting up his own consultancy company.

Mr Hurr, a ham radio enthusiast, had kept himself active into his 80s.

He had a black belt in judo and was a martial arts instructor who ran his own classes in Leicestershire for many years.

He also played the bagpipes with the Seaforth Highlanders.

Doctors rushed into the room on ward 15 at Leicester Royal Infirmary on January 2, and pulled the gown out of Mr Hurr's throat but he had already died

Neighbours on his former street said he had seemed lonely following the death of his wife Doreen in 2010, who he married in 1953.

Mr Hurr wrote a moving death notice in his local newspaper following her death, in describing her as 'my darling wife' who 'left me with the sweetest memories I can ever hold.'

One neighbour said: 'He never recovered from his wife's death. He was lost without her.'

The tragedy is the latest in a string of controversial deaths that have occurred at Leicester Royal Infirmary.

In November last year, a Nigerian doctor and Portuguese nurse were both convicted of manslaughter by gross negligence after the death of a disabled six-year-old boy who was wrongly labelled with a 'Do Not Resuscitate' notice at the hospital.

And administrators were forced to apologise for a 'catastrophic error' after 100-year-old great-grandmother Lydia Spilner died of dehydration in 2012 when she was taken off her drip.

After its latest inspection of the hospital in 2014, the Care Quality Commission rated it as 'requiring improvement'.
Another passenger jet has been put at series risk after it was targeted in a laser attack.

The Emirates aircraft could have been brought down from the sky after it was flying over Hertfordshire when the green laser was directly shone at the plane for at least a couple of seconds.

The attack happened in near The Avenue in Bushey, Watford, at 7.55pm on Wednesday, November 16.

Emirates aircraft could have been brought down after green laser pen was shot directly at it

This is how powerful a laser can look to pilots when it is shone at their aircraft

This incident comes after a British Airways flight was targeted in a laser beam attack as it prepared to land at London's Heathrow Airport in August.

A Hertfordshire Police spokesman said the Emirates flight was not caused to change its path, but Inspector Peter Edwards, of Hertfordshire Police, added: 'This is a very serious offence and could have had very grave consequences.

'We are asking those who may have information to help us with our investigation to please come forward and speak to us, as you may have vital evidence.'

Such laser incidents can create major dangers when aimed at aircraft (file picture) especially takeoff and landing. Pilots can be dazzled by the beams and even have their eyesight damaged

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101, quoting crime reference number J2/16/1399, or contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, by calling 0800 555 111 or visiting www.crimestoppers-uk.org.

Experts have warned that lasers can dazzle pilots - and if they are distracted at a critical time, such as during take-off or landing, the result could be disastrous.

In April, experts warned that 1,500 planes had been targeted by lasers over the UK in the space of 12 months.

Such attacks are on the rise in the UK, with an average of four a day, according to an editorial published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Figures from the Civil Aviation Authority show more laser incidents were reported at Heathrow than any other airport in the UK last year.

A total of 121 such attacks were recorded during the course of 2015 compared with 168 the previous year.

Birmingham airport was the second worst affected by the problem with 94 and Manchester Airport recorded 93.

While it is illegal to shine a laser pen, such as the one pictured, at a plane, the pilots' association wants them classified as potential weapons in order to clamp down on yobs who use them

Shining a laser at a plane is a criminal offence in the UK and a conviction can carry a maximum of five years in prison.

However, the British Airline Pilots' Association (Balpa) wants tougher measures imposed.

Former RAF and BA pilot Stephen Landells, flight safety specialist at Balpa, told MailOnline earlier this year: 'People need to realise that shining a laser at an aircraft endangers the passengers, the crew and people on the ground.'

The association has called for all but the lowest-powered lasers to be restricted and wants them recognised in law as potential weapons in the same way knives are.

This would mean police would have improved powers to search people they suspect are carrying a laser, confiscate it and arrest them unless they have a good reason for having it.

A British Airways spokesman declined to discuss the incident that happened yesterday but said: 'The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority.

'Our pilots report any incidents so that the authorities can investigate and take appropriate action.

We take such matters very seriously.'
An angry driver who was slapped with a 70 parking fine at Asda has claimed that every ticket issued there is illegal.

Terry Harris, 48, is calling for all issued tickets to be refunded after discovering the signs in the Asda car park in Peterborough, Cambridge, were unlawful.

The photographer received a letter on September 28 saying he had to pay a fine for parking in Asda for going over the two hours he paid for.

Terry Harris, 48, is calling for all issued tickets to be refunded after discovering the signs in the Asda car park in Peterborough, Cambridge, are unlawful

He scoured Facebook for advice before contacting Peterborough City Council which informed him the signs didn't have planning permission.

Nigel Barnes, city council's planning team told him: 'The new adverts on the lamp posts in the car park of Asda at Viersen Platz are unlawful and will remain so until such time as any future application is approved.'

Mr Harris said: 'Every single ticket they have profited from is illegal. They should all be rescinded and on their own volition.'

Parking in Asda is enforced by ParkingEye and a spokesman said: 'ParkingEye is a member of the British Parking Association and follows its code of practice.

'We support landowners in obtaining the necessary planning consent if required.'

An Asda spokesman said: 'We are currently investigating this matter and will be happy to cancel any ticket if it has been issued incorrectly.'

An Asda spokesman said it was currently investigating the parking sign issue (pictured, the Asda store in Peterborough)

Peterborough City Council will not take enforcement action despite telling ParkingEye the lamp post signs are a 'few centimetres' too big.

A spokeswoman said: 'In cases like this, where we would likely approve the change to the signs, the advice from government is not to use our enforcement powers and to work with the landowner to achieve compliance.'
A group of teens have sparked outrage after they brought a cupcake designed with a swastika to a Jewish girl's 14th birthday party in Arizona.

The teenager's mother was horrified when she saw the cake's icing after it was given to her daughter, so she sent a picture to her college friend in Los Angeles.

She then posted it on Facebook alongside a scathing post condemning the behavior, and prompted outrage on social media.

The mother later said the friends who brought the cake apologized, insisting they were only trying to be 'funny'.

But critics were still furious after they learned the children involved had recently been studying the Holocaust.

A picture of the cupcake adorned with icing in the shape of a swastika was posted on Facebook last week and quickly went viral

Naomi Cooper Hochman of Los Angeles, California, was the first to upload the image on November 20, which she says came from her friend in Arizona.

As of Monday afternoon, Hochmans post was shared over 270 times.

One of my sorority sisters, who is Jewish and lives in a diverse community in Arizona, hosted an intimate cupcake decorating party last night at her home for her daughter's 14th birthday, Hochman wrote on her Facebook page.

Just some teen girls having fun baking and watching the Princess Bride, right? Well - this is what two of the invited guests decided to put on a cupcake.

Hochman wrote in the post that two 14-year-old girls who brought the cupcakes to the party knew the symbolic significance of what they were doing since they had just studied about the Holocaust.

She wrote that her friend, whom she identified as Debbie, had reached out to the parents of the two girls who made the cupcakes and clarified matters.

I received wonderful feedback from each and every parent of the girls at the party fully underscoring that each family spoke at length with their daughters about the severity of the issue, Debbie is quoted as telling Hochman in the Facebook post.

My daughter spoke again with her friend who apologized profusely and told her she thought it was just "being funny" but understands that her actions weren't humorous in the slightest, she wrote.

I spoke with the school and they will be reaching out to all the teachers to relay to their students that hateful speech/actions/insignias will not be tolerated or condoned.

Noami Cooper Hochman, a Los Angeles resident, posted the image, writing that she received it from her friend, a Jewish woman living in Arizona

'This is beyond words,' wrote one Facebook commenter in reaction to Hochman's post

Another user thanked Hochman for calling attention to the phenomenon of hate speech

'I couldn't decide to click angry or sad,' wrote another. 'I feel both'

Another Facebook user replied: 'Unbelievable'

Opening this hurtful incident up to others to provide a teaching moment will hopefully stop others from promoting ideas of hate is all I ever wanted, Debbie told her friend.

Hochman wrote that the cupcake is just the latest manifestation of hate speech and racist imagery that has come to the surface of the public discourse since the election of Donald Trump as president.

Commenters on Facebook were aghast at the image of the cupcake.

'This is beyond words,' wrote one commenter. 'The thing I have learned over the past week and a half is how naive I was to the face that widespread racism is so prevalent.'

'Thank you for calling attention to this in such a productive way,' wrote another commenter.

'I couldn't decide to click angry or sad,' wrote another Facebook user. 'I feel both.'

'Unbelievable,' one person added.

The Anti-Defamation League, an anti-hate group, has called on parents to educate their children about the swastika and its historical connotations.
A retired guard dog is now recovering from a shocking attack by a group of thugs who had broken into her owner's home in Utah, after the animal came to their defense.

The attempted robbery occurred in Taylorsville after some intruders tried to sneak into the house through the garage late on Friday night.

The German Shepherd, named Wagner, came to the defense of those inside the home and was stabbed several times, coming close to death.

Now recovering: Wagner, a 13-year-old retired security dog, was stabbed multiple times on Friday night in Taylorsville, Utah

Wagner was mostly stabbed in the neck and underwent surgery. He also sustained wounds to his legs (right)

The German Shepherd survived a horrific attack, where he was stabbed multiple times in his neck. The wounds can be seen here

Wagner was the on-leash canine 'sidekick' of his security guard owner, Randy Price, and so it was his natural instinct the protect Pierce from the intruders.

'He likes to be outside doing his job, that's protecting the yard,' Price told Fox 13 Now.

Wagner was stabbed multiple times, mostly in the neck. The intruders fled the scene, and Price quickly grabbed his dog and rushed him to BluePearl Veterinary Partners hospital in Midvale.

'He was in shock, it looked like he had an infection in some of his wounds,' vet Jordan Scherk told Fox.

The dog is the retired on-leash canine of his security guard owner Randy Price (left). Jordan Scherk (right) is the vet that operated on Wagner

The attempted robbery occurred in Taylorsville after some intruders tried to sneak into the house through the garage late on Friday night

Price did not hear the intruders, nor did he see them.

I grabbed a flashlight and I grabbed a firearm and I went out looking,' he said.

All he found was his wounded dog, who is now 13-years-old.

'I didn't know if he was alive or if he was dead,' Price said. 'My heart was pounding. I really was scared. I kind of went into shock myself.'

Price is now working with police to try and find the person or persons responsible for stabbing his beloved dog.

'I don't have kids, (my dogs) are my kids. And so, I was very scared I'm going to lose him I was scared to death,' Price said.

Wagner is recovering from the wounds and surgery. He is expected to make a full recovery

Price said: 'Poor guy, he stood his ground with them, he fought it out, Price said. I just don't understand, why? Why you could hurt an innocent animal, especially stabbing it?'
The world's leading manufacturer of commercial aircraft, Boeing, received billions in illegal tax breaks from Washington state, a world trade body ruled Monday.

In addition, the federal government should now take action to end that support within months.

The Chicago-based company and the European Union, which backs Boeing's key European rival Airbus, both claimed the ruling by the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a victory in a longstanding battle for contracts between the two aerospace giants.

The 28-member bloc said the WTO had ruled that $5.7 billion in subsidies were illegal, out of a total $8.7 billion in measures that it reviewed.

But Boeing called that figure excessive and said only 'future incentives' of $50 million a year were found impermissible in the WTO decision.

The world's leading manufacturer of commercial aircraft, Boeing, received billions in illegal tax breaks from Washington state, the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled Monday

The 28-member bloc said the WTO had ruled that $5.7 billion in subsidies were illegal, out of a total $8.7 billion in measures that it reviewed. Passenger planes are pictured in various stages of completion in this 2011 photo

The WTO found that the support Washington state promised to give Boeing from 2024 to 2040 amounted to 'prohibited' subsidies.

The support offered by Washington came on condition that Boeing keeps the production of the wings for the wide-bodied 777X plane in the state, effectively excluding foreign competition.

Boeing has extensive plants around Seattle.

Appearing to counter both, a Geneva-based trade official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter, said the ruling addressed only the legality of the measures, and not the possible financial benefit that could be drawn from the subsidy.

The ruling is but a part of a wider squabble involving accusations between the US government and the 28-nation EU over support for Boeing and Airbus dating back to 2004.

'We are really the only party that can credibly come up with a figure,' said Boeing spokesman Tim Neale, referring to the value of the tax breaks.

He said the $50 million per year was a 'conservative estimate' and even over a 20-year span would only total $1 billion.

He said the EU effort was aimed in part to distract attention from a far more costly WTO ruling against Airbus two months ago.

EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom called Monday's ruling 'an important victory for the EU and its aircraft industry'.

'We expect the US to respect the rules, uphold fair competition, and withdraw these subsidies without any delay,' Malmstrom said in a statement.

The WTO found that the support Washington state promised to give Boeing amounted to 'prohibited' subsidies. The support offered by Washington came on condition that Boeing keeps the production of the wings for the wide-bodied 777X plane in the state

For its part, Boeing said it expected the European bloc and Airbus to appeal the ruling, saying the WTO had found that the US company had not received any benefit yet from the 777X tax rate and wouldn't until the plane is first delivered in 2020.

'Today's decision is a complete victory for the United States, Washington State and Boeing,' Boeing general council J Michael Luttig said in a statement.

'In rejecting virtually every claim made by the EU in this case, the WTO found today that Boeing has not received a penny of impermissible subsidies.'

Airbus President Fabrice Bregier argued the state's support in the United States would allow Boeing to develop the 777X for free on taxpayers' costs.

He estimated the damage to Airbus and the European aerospace industry to be around $50 billion so far 'and that's only for the 777X'.

The case could have some implications for President-elect Donald Trump's ambitions to support U.S. business first and foremost.

Rejecting some of the EU claims, the WTO found that only one of seven tax incentives provided by Washington state amounted to illegal subsidies for wings for the wide-body jet.

In essence, the 'prohibited subsidy' involved the reduction of the business tax rate on the condition that the wings were produced domestically within the United States.

Airbus had already confidently predicted victory at the WTO over the Washington state tax incentives, saying during the latest tit-for-tat showdown in September that the alleged subsidies would 'almost certainly be condemned as illegal.'
'None of us imagined it might actually come true,' he told DailyMail.com

Her father-in-law Ken said that her return was nothing short of a 'miracle'

They were looking into Sherri Papini's past, including her first marriage and divorce

have put out 20 warrants requesting access to footage from surveillance cameras and data from cell towers

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said that the description was based on 'voice recognition'

Police are now hunting for two Hispanic women considered armed and dangerous, and driving a dark SUV, over the kidnapping

discovered dumped by the roadside on Thanksgiving Day - three weeks after she disappeared

Sutton did not pull over but called 911 to report the sighting; she didn't know at the time the blonde woman was Papini

Alison Sutton says Sherri Papini was standing on the side of the road in Yolo County without a jacket and waving a shirt 'like a flag'

A California motorist has recounted how she came upon a terrified blonde woman by the side of the road who later turned out to be alleged kidnapping victim Sherri Papini.

Papini, a married mother-of-two from Redding, California, was discovered battered and chained in Yolo County, some 150 miles away from home, on Thanksgiving morning, more than three weeks after she vanished while out jogging.

Papini, 34, told investigators she had been abducted by two armed Hispanic women traveling in a dark SUV.

Scroll down for video

Good Samaritan: Alison Sutton (left) says she say alleged kidnapping victim Sherri Papini, 34 (right), by the side of the road in Yolo County and called 911 for help

On Monday, Alison Sutton spoke to ABC News about her early-morning encounter with Papini on the side of a rural road near Interstate 5.

'I saw a woman with long blonde hair by the side of the road kind of frantically waving what looked like a shirt,' she said. 'I figured if she was willing to risk being hit by a car, she must really need help.'

Speaking to the New York Daily News Friday, Sutton, 43, revealed that at the time of her brief encounter with the missing woman, she was six hours into a 12-hour road trip with her 14-year-old son in the car.

After seeing Papini standing on the side of the freeway in the dark with no jacket despite the cold weather, and waving her shirt 'like a flag,' Sutton drove to the nearest road sign to pinpoint her location and called 911.

'She didn't look like she was hurt, but she did look scared,' Sutton told the paper. 'It was just luck that I saw her at all.'

Sutton later took to Facebook, writing on a page dedicated to finding Papini that she had seen her at the side of the road but didn't stop.

'I couldn't stop in time to help you this morning but I did pull over and report to police that I saw you by the road and was certain you needed help,' said Sutton. 'I am thankful that someone else was able to pull over safely to help you and that you are safe. God bless you and your family.'

'I don't know that my call helped her,' she wrote in a follow-up post. 'I am very thankful she is safe and back with her family. This is truly a Thanksgiving to remember.'

On Sunday, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko confirmed that Papini was assaulted and suffered injuries that required medical treatment.

Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko said they have no reason to 'disbelieve' Papini's story of abduction

The sister of the California mother-of-two found 'heavily battered' at the roadside three weeks after she went missing said her return was the 'most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for (Sisters Sheila Koester (left) and Sherri Papini (right)

We currently have no reason to disbelieve Sherri Papini's story,' he told ABC News.

Bosenko added that his investigators are now looking into Papini's past, including her first marriage and divorce, as well as any online activity.

Authorities have put out 20 warrants requesting access to footage from surveillance cameras in Yolo County and Redding overlooking homes, motels, a church and a business.

They also will be reviewing video captured by traffic cameras and sifting through data from cell towers in an effort to piece together what had happened.

Officials said they were looking for a dark SUV and two Hispanic women who were believed to be armed.

Bosenko also noted to the station KTLA that there is sensitive information related to the case that has yet to be released to the public.

Sherri Papini was found at around 4.30am last Thursday, bound and left on a rural road near Interstate 5.

'CHP is on scene and advised that she is chained to something,' a radio dispatcher told a responding officer, according to audio obtained by The Sacramento Bee. 'CHP is advising that she is heavily battered.'

Sheriff Tom Bosenko confirmed that the 34-year-old was treated at an area hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

'This has been the most amazing Thanksgiving that our family could ever ask for,' Papini's sister, Sheila Koester, told The Sacramento Bee after the woman's return. 'We're all very, very, very excited, very, very relieved and just very thankful for getting our Sherri back.'

Sherri Papini (pictured with her husband Keith and their two children) had mysteriously vanished while out jogging near her home in Redding, California, on November 2

Sherri Papini (pictured on her wedding day to Keith in 2012 was found on Thursday at 4.30am 150 miles from her home. Her hands were bound

Koester, who has already had a 'very joyous reunion' with her sister, said that the huge social media campaign and national news coverage of Sherri's disappearance 'was an intricate part in bringing her home to us'.

'As many of you know Sherri has been returned to our family safely,' she said Friday at a press conference. 'She and Keith have been reunited. '

'We appreciate the tremendous support that everyone has given us over the past few weeks and appreciate how respectful people are being to their privacy in allowing all of us to recover from this situation.'

She said that the past few weeks had been extremely difficult for the entire family.

'It's been a range of emotions; sadness , anger, right now its just joy, lots and lots of joy.'

Koester also read a prepared statement from Keith and Sherri thanking everyone for their support.

'We are overwhelmed with joy over how supportive everyone has been to help bring us together as a family again. Everyone's tireless efforts has made our family whole again this Thanksgiving.

'Your help in keeping this alive in social media and national news was an intricate part in bringing her home to us. We can not thank you enough.'

When asked about the 'intricate part' social media played, she would only say that , 'getting her face out there was the best thing anyone could do.'

She declined to comment about whether a ransom had been paid or involved in the release of her sister.

She also refused to comment on whether they had discussed the traumatic events her sister had faced.

Keith and Sherri Papini with children Tyler four and Violet, two, on Halloween this year

Koester also thanked the motorist, who hasn't yet been identified, who stopped to help Papini on the side of the road.

'We appreciate that person stopping and helping her,' she said.

Police are now hunting for two Hispanic women considered armed and dangerous, and driving a dark SUV, over the kidnapping.

Sheriff Bosenko said that the description was based on 'voice recognition' - suggesting that Papini wasn't able to see her captors.

Police say that the victim had been 'very emotional' to be freed Thursday and finally be reunited with her husband, Keith.

Father-in-law Ken Papini said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home.

Ken Papini (with his daughter-in-law Sherri Papini) said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home

Ken Papini told the DailyMail.com it was a 'miracle' that his daughter-in-law had been safely returned to them

In an exclusive interview with DailyMail.com Ken said: 'The whole family came together, then the whole town came together, then the whole of the United States.

'When that happens miracles happen and something like this, I'm still trying to explain it to myself. It's amazing, crazy, but we never lost hope.'

Ken said he spoke to his son Keith last night and could hear the relief in his voice.

'He's seen Sherri and said she's doing good, she's going to be okay, she's got an appointment with a doctor today and I'm sure the police have a lot of questions for her.

'We don't know much about what happened yet, Keith has been following his instructions from the police so he's not able to tell us everything. But she's back that's the main thing.'

Ken said his son had always believed he'd bring his family back together.

Last week, he promised their two children, Tyler four and Violet, two, that 'mommy' would be home by Thanksgiving.

'Of course we all hoped it would come true, you have to have faith,' said Ken.

'But we had planned to have a nice family Thanksgiving and none of us were allowed to mention it, we would only talk about forgiving and thanks. 'None of us imagined it might actually come true.'

'None of us imagined it might actually come true.'

Ken added that celebrating the holiday safe in the knowledge that Sherri is safe was 'amazing'.

He explained: 'It is amazing and I've got a pretty good trust in that good beats evil and if you keep on and you keep on you get the answers.'

Ken shared a photo with DailyMail.com of the loving family at Halloween, taken two days before Sherri vanished.

The family, all dressed as cowboys and cowgirls, beamed with happiness.

He also shared wedding photos of Sherri and Keith when they were married in August 2012.

In the end, the children spent Thanksgiving at Keith's mother Pam's house  Pam and Ken are separated.

Before the news broke that Sherri, 34, had been found, the family had planned a balloon release on Thanksgiving morning as a symbol of hope for her return.

The event was held at an annual Turkey Trot 10km run in Redding.

But as dozens of family and friends gathered Ken said everyone was worried because Keith, who had been due to give a speech and read a poem at the event, didn't show.

He recalls: 'It wasn't until right after we let the balloons go when we started realizing what was happening, Keith wasn't there and we were all like, 'uh oh', maybe the emotions got to him, we all didn't know what to think.

'But then about an hour later everyone's phone started to ring, 'We found her'.'

Ken says it was his daughter Suzanne who told him.

'Suzanne called and said 'dad, they found her', I couldn't believe it, it was a miracle.

'It turns out Keith had been told she was okay hours before and he even beat the sheriffs down to where she was found.

'He called me last night when I was at work.

'He was back to the Keith I know, he's got his mojo back, he was like, 'I got this'.

'I told him, 'Keith I told you to stay strong and have hope because you never know.'

Ken, 63, a lab analyst at a cement firm, said he had watched his son struggle with his emotions in the weeks before as realistic hope of Sherri returning began to fade.

Sherri Papini's two children Tyler, 4, and Violet, 2, smile in a photo posted by Keith Papini on Thursday

Father-in-law Ken Papini said the family is 'blown away' by the discovery, but always had 'hope' Sherri would make it back home (Keith and Sherri Papini on their wedding day)

'I couldn't believe it, I watched this thing turn him right back in to a kid. He had been sobbing, moping around,' he said.

'We were going house to house asking for information and it was killing me seeing him like he was 12 again.

'His heart was breaking, that's why I kept telling him to stay strong.

'But you know, we got our happy ending, we got her back.'

But Ken said the family never lost 'hope' in their hearts even though a massive search turned up nothing and the police investigation appeared to draw a blank.

He said: 'At first we were all like, 'why, why is this happening to Sherri, what is happening to Sherri, is she okay?'

'Then three weeks thinking of that, it kills you.

'I told Keith to stay strong and see how this thing pans out, I told him he needed to stay sharp for when she was found.

'Keith always stayed positive, he said, 'No way, we're bringing her home.'

The 34-year-old resurfaced three weeks after she vanished some 150 miles from her home in Redding (above)

SHERRI PAPINI'S SISTER SHEILA KOESTER'S PRESS CONFERENCE IN FULL Hi. My name is Sheila Koester. I am Sherri Papini's sister. Before I say anything, I would like to share with everyone that I am 6 months pregnant, and please be mindful of my emotions. This has been a traumatic event for all of us. As many of you know, Sherri has been returned to our family safely. She and Keith have been reunited. They appreciate the tremendous support that everyone has given us over the last few weeks and appreciate how respectful people are being to their privacy and allowing all of us to recover from this situation. Keith and Sherri only have one statement at this time: 'We are overwhelmed with joy of how supportive everyone has been to help bring us together as a family again. We especially would like to thank the Shasta County Sheriff's Office, The NorCal Alliance for the Missing, the Lost Coast Trackers, Shasta Support Services, the Guardian Angels  our A-Team  the California Highway Patrol, Yolo County Sheriff's Office, the medical personnel that helped Sherri that morning, and the whole world that reached out to help find her.' 'Everyone's tireless efforts has made our family whole again this Thanksgiving. Thank you for allowing our family time to heal and for giving us our privacy. Your help in keeping this alive through social media and national news was an intricate part in bringing her home to us. We cannot thank you enough. 'Right now she has been through a very traumatic event and needs time with her family. Thank you all for coming, I have time for a few questions.' Reporter: I know you mentioned she was back with Keithhas she been reunited with the kids yet? Sheila: That's not a question that I have an answer to at this time. Reporter: How is she doing physically? We understand that she had some injuries. Sheila: She's very excited to be home. So that's all that I can say at this time. Reporter: You said that social media played a role in possibly Her release. How did that play a role in the case? Sheila: I don't have any details into the case. I just know that getting her face out there was the best thing that anyone could do. Reporter: Where were you and when did you learn of the good news? Sheila: I heard on Thanksgiving morning that she was found. Reporter: Did ransom play a role? Sheila: I don't have any details of the case that's going on at the moment. Reporter: Have you seen her, and if so, could you describe the reunion, what that was like? Sheila: I've seen her and it was a very joyous reunion and we were just very very excited to see one another. Reporter: Have you been able to talk to the people that she flagged down on Thanksgiving morning? Did she or you, anybody have a message for them? Sheila: I know that we're just very excited that somebody was able to come in contact with her. And we appreciate all the help that everyone has given. Reporter: What is your hope, there are, according to her, two women out there, what is your hope? Do you hope we catch them? They are considered dangerous, I imagine. Sheila: I don't know any details of any part of the investigation that's going on and I'm just concerned with the healing of my sister. Reporter: Has she said anything about anything that she went through those 22 days that she was missing? Sheila: We were just joyous to see one another. Reporter: It happened so close to her home. Is she there, or is she afraid to be in that area right now? Sheila: That was not a conversation that we had. Reporter: I know that she was a dedicated mother. Was she employed in some other fashion? And second, that, as a family have you have you been discussing who may have had a motive to do something like this? Sheila: That would be a question I would ask Shasta County sheriff's office. Reporter: Was she employed? Sheila: I don't have an answer to that question. Reporter: What is she doing today? What's her day like today? Sheila: I knowI don't know what she's doing at this time. I know that she's with Keith and that they're being reunited. Reporter: When will she return home? Sheila: I don't know where they are at this time. Reporter: And she hasn't been reunited with her children yet? Sheila: I know she's been reunited with Keith. Reporter: What have the last three weeks been like for you and your family? Sheila: It's been a range of emotions and sadness, angerright now it's just joy  lots and lots of joy that she's here with us. Reporter: Do Her children understand that she's back home? Sheila: I can't answer that question. I don't know. I want to thank everyone for coming. Advertisement

'We never once considered that she might not be coming back.

'And you know, we got her back, it's amazing, it's crazy.'

Surprisingly, Ken says he can even find it in his heart to forgive Sherri's kidnappers.

He added: 'My stance as a Christian is I forgive them (the kidnappers), we got our answer, but law and order haven't got their answer yet.'

It's believed Sherri will see her two young children today in what's expected to be a highly emotional reunion.

Ken shared his joy about Sherri's discovery on Thursday.

'Thank You everyone for your thoughts and prayers...What a great Thanksgiving,' he wrote on Facebook.

He later posted a photo of the couple's children in chef's hats and aprons, and wrote: 'Thank You All, the children are having a great Thanksgiving.'

Details surrounding her kidnapping were scarce as Shasta County Sheriff's Office made the announcement on Thursday that she had been found alive.

Sherri flagged down a passing motorist at the intersection of County Road 17 and I-5 in Woodland near Sacramento (above)

It is not known if Papini knew her captors, was harmed by them or what their motives may have been.

Keith Papini reported his wife missing on November 2 when she failed to pick up their children from daycare.

TIMELINE OF SHERRI PAPINI'S KIDNAPPING November 2: Sherri Papini fails to pick up her two children from daycare and is reported missing by her husband Keith November 10: Keith Papini is ruled out as a suspect after passing a lie detector test November 18: The FBI joins the search for Sherri as an anonymous donor offers $50,000 for her return November 23: Cameron Gamble, a local 'negotiator', appears in a video on behalf of the anonymous donor to inform Sherri's captors the ransom was now 'off the table' November 24: Sherri flags down a passing motorist at the intersection of I-5 and County Road 17 and is taken to hospital Advertisement

He traced her discarded iPhone to the side of the road about a mile from their home where he found it tossed on the ground with her running 'ear buds'.

A frantic missing person's appeal was launched, with posters littering the local town of Mountain Gate and scores of social media pleas for Sherri's return.

Keith was later named as a potential person of interest in the case but ruled out when he passed a lie detector test.

An initial ransom was offered to her kidnappers of $50,000. It was announced in a video featuring Cameron Gamble, an apparent negotiator hired by the anonymous donor.

He claimed the money had been put up by a private citizen but that it would expire if Sherri's kidnappers did not come forward.

On Wednesday, after upping the money to $100,000, he withdrew the offer, instead turning it into a reward for anyone with information on the young mother's whereabouts.

Sherri's family said they had no involvement in the ransom but shared information about it on social media.

They however pleaded with well-wishers to give money to a GoFundMe account which raised $49,080 for search efforts. The page has since been closed to new donations and Koester declined to elaborate on how those funds will be allocated.
Germany's 'Nazi bride' Beate Zschape has told judges she wants to testify about the brutal death of a nine-year-old girl thought to have been murdered by one of her lovers.

Two of the greatest crime dramas in German history converged in spectacular fashion recently when the DNA of neo-Nazi mass murderer Uwe Bonhardt was found on the corpse of the country's most famous missing girl.

Forensic tests on genetic material at the grave of nine-year-old Peggy Knobloch - often referred to as the Maddie McCann of Germany - has been confirmed as coming from gangster Bonhardt.

Peggy Knobloch (pictured, left) went missing in May 2001 and her body was finally found in northern Bavaria in July this year. DNA tests have linked Uwe Bonhardt (right) to her body

Zschape (pictured, left), said through her lawyer Mathias Grasel (right) she wanted to testify about what happened to Peggy

Bonhardt and his sidekick Uwe Mundlos committed suicide in 2011 when they botched a bank raid aimed at financing their National Socialist Underground cell, which was dedicated to driving immigrants out of Germany.

Zschape, 41, the sole surviving member of the NSU gang, is on trial for her role in the murders of ten immigrant businessmen and a policewoman, which took place over a decade.

Both of the dead men were lovers of Zschape - referred to in German media as 'The Nazi Bride' - and pornography and Nazi propaganda was found on their computers after her arrest.

Neo-Nazi cell: (Left tor right - Zschape, Uwe Boehnhardt and Uwe Mundlos) are shown in pictures published in 1998, when they had already become fugitives

Now those computers are being re-examined to try to find out if there are any more clues that might corroborate the DNA evidence linking Bonhardt to the death of Peggy.

Numerous children's toys, including a teddy bear, were found in the wreckage of their caravan hideout, which Zschape torched after her cohorts killed themselves.

In the ruins of their hideout police also found a board game they invented called Pogromoly - an amalgam of pogrom and Monopoly - in which the winner was the player who herded the biggest number of Jews into gas chambers.

Peggy went missing in 2001 in Bavaria. Her remains were found in July this year in a forest 95 miles from the city of Eisenach, where Bonhardt and Mundlos killed themselves in November 2011.

Police and prosecutors said genetic material - thought to be on a fragment of cloth smaller than a human thumbnail - recovered from the site had been connected to Bonhardt.

The disappearance of Peggy came to haunt Germans in much the same way that the vanishing of Maddie McCann while on a holiday with her parents in Portugal scarred the collective psyche of people in Britain.

Peggy was last seen 50 yards from the front door of her home in Lichtenberg, Bavaria, when she vanished on May 7, 2001.

Hundreds of police officers and troops, backed up by Tornado surveillance aircraft equipped with thermal imaging cameras, scoured the countryside around her home for weeks.

Police remove Peggy's remains from her lonely grave in the forests of northern Bavaria. Zschape now says she is ready to testify about what happened to Peggy

But her fate only became clear in July when a mushroom picker stumbled on her remains in woodland ten miles from her home. Wild animals had disturbed her lonely grave.

A mentally backward man named Ulvi Kulac was found guilty of Peggy's murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in the city of Hof in 2004.

His conviction was declared unsound nine years later and he was freed in 2014.

The discovery of 34-year-old Bonhardt's DNA on the remains of Peggy created a media firestorm.

The tabloid Bild pointed out Peggy's hometown lay directly between Zwickau - the home base of the NSU - and Nuremberg, where the first murders were carried out by the group in September 2000.

The trio believed if they killed enough immigrants, thousands of others in Germany would fear for their lives and head back to their countries of origin.

Bonhardt was known to mix in the company of child perverts: one of them, Tino Brandt, was sentenced to five-and-a-half years for 66 sex crimes involving children.

Zschape, whose trial has been dragging on since 2013 and still has no end in sight, said through her lawyer Mathias Grasel she wants to answer questions about Peggy.

Her evidence is due to be heard in the week beginning December 5.
A visually impaired female primate is missing from a Florida zoo and staff believe she may have drowned.

Naples Zoo officials made the announcement on Monday that their 30-year-old gibbon named Sumba was missing from the primate exhibit as early as 8am.

On Monday morning, animal care staff reported that Sumba, the white-handed gibbon, was missing from her island, according to Naples Daily News.

Zoo staff began an immediate search of the primate.

Visually impaired gibbon, Sumba (pictured) went missing from Naples Zoo in Florida and staff believe she may have drowned

On Monday morning, animal care staff reported that Sumba, the white-handed gibbon, was missing from her island (pictured with another ape). Two divers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission were also brought in to search the water for the primate

Two divers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission were also brought in to search the water for the primate.

It's believed the 20-pound monkey may have wandered into the water and drowned, the newspaper reported.

Officials searched the primate island for six hours but to no avail.

Liz Harmon, the director of animal programs at the zoo told the newspaper that the underwater search had to be called off because 'the water was not conducive'.

'They [the divers] couldn't see the bottom,' she said.

Sumba and other primates at the zoo are kept on 'islands within a large man-made lake where the water acts as a natural barrier for the animals', according to the zoo's statement.

Harmon told Naples Daily News that Sumba had been at the zoo for more than 20 years, adding that the creatures can live into their 40s.

The zoo remains open to the public, but discounted admissions were being given Monday because Primate Island is shut down.

No further details were immediately available.

Liz Harmon, the director of animal programs at the zoo said the underwater search of Primate Island (pictured) had to be called off because 'the water was not conducive'. 'They [the divers] couldn't see the bottom,' she said
Panel chairman Chaffetz, hasn't responded to an earlier request to investigate the incoming president, but during the campaign said if you're running for president 'you're going to have to open up your kimono' and release taxes

They ask the committee to 'formally request' Trump provide the committee with copies of his tax returns

Democratic lawmakers claim President-elect Trump has 'exhibited a shocking level of disdain for legitimate bipartisan concerns about his conflicts of interest'

All seventeen Democratic members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Monday wrote the Republican majority demanding the committee 'immediately begin reviewing President-elect Donald Trump's financial arrangements' in order to 'protect against conflicts of interest.'

The letter follows up on a similar appeal from the ranking Democrat on the panel, Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, and states that in the two weeks since, members had received 'thousands of calls in strong support of this investigation, jamming our phone lines with more calls than we have ever received in response to any other issue.'

The lawmakers claim Trump has 'exhibited a shocking level of disdain for legitimate bipartisan concerns about his conflicts of interest.'

Democratic members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee are seeking a committee inquiry into potential conflicts of interest

The seven-page letter also points to 'troubling new revelations about Mr. Trump's actions' during the last two weeks, and blasts his recent statement to the New York Times that 'The law's totally on my side, the president can't have a conflict of interest.'

Federal law governing conflicts applies to an array of government employees but does not include the president.

The lawmakers also referenced Trump tweet from last week that 'Prior to the election it was well known that I have interests in properties all over the world. Only the crooked media makes this a big deal!' as evidence that he 'does not appear to be taking these concerns seriously.'

Trump has said previously that he would hand over his business to his children when he takes office, but at a recent meeting with the Times didn't say definitively when or how this would work.

Chaffetz' office didn't provide comment. He told the Daily Caller after the election the committee would continue its investigative role.

'Our committee was founded in 1814 to oversee all expenditures by the executive branch, no matter who the president is,' he said.

The Democrats wrote Chairman Jason Chaffetz, who as the committee leader could start an investigation

The letter claims Trump is not taking ethics concerns 'seriously'

President-elect Donald Trump has blasted the media for focusing on his business dealings, and says liquidating his business is 'a really hard thing to do'

Trump blasted the 'crooked media' for focusing on his business dealings in a tweet Monday night

The lawmakers then draw on a number of media reports about potential Trump conflicts, as well as meetings and conversations he has had with foreign leaders since his election that could pose conflicts with current Trump properties.

Trump has given three of his adult children roles in his presidential transition.

The lawmakers point to a Washington Post report that 111 Trump companies have done deals in 18 different countries, with projects in Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, and Panama.

The also point to Ivanka Trump's participation in a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Her presence was revealed in handout photos released by the Japanese side.

The also referenced a Trump meeting at Trump Tower, not released by Trump's transition, with Indian developers involved with a Trump hotel in that country.

Atul and Sagar Chordia and Kalpesh Mehta, Indian business partners of Trump's, meet with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower

Japan's government released a handout photo that showed Trump's daughter, Ivanka, meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe

They note that as president, Trump will be empowered to appoint the head of the General Services Administration, the government entity that negotiated a long-term lease with the Trump organization for Trump's new Washington D.C. luxury hotel.

Seeking to pressure Chaffetz, the letter notes his comments during the election that 'If you're going to run and try to become the president of the United States, you're going to have to open up your kimono and show everything, your tax returns, your medical records.'

They are asking that Chaffetz that the committee 'formally request' Trump turn over copies of his tax returns to the panel, which has broad investigative powers.

Government Oversight probed the Benghazi attacks, Hillary Clinton's emails, 'Fast and Furious' gun running, and a variety of other matters during the Obama administration.

There is no law requiring presidents or candidates to turn over their tax returns, although lawmakers have introduced legislation to require it.

The letter was signed by every Democratic member of the committee

Chaffetz told the Salt Lake Tribune after the initial letter from Rep. Cummings and after the elections that he would keep an eye on the president-elect  while maintaining his focus on Hillary Clinton and her use of a private email server.
There were 202 passengers and 15 crew onboard; no injuries reported

A source told CBS that the passengers were not in danger

It's believed a compressor issue caused the gouts of flame and loud noise

UA flight 873 then flew around before returning to SFO airport

Flames were seen shooting out of an engine after take-off at 11:36am PT

A United Airlines flight to Tokyo containing 202 passengers and 15 crew has been forced to make an emergency landing in after flames shot out of an engine, it has been reported.

UA flight 873 suffered problems almost immediately after takeoff at 11.36am PT, witnesses said, with flames coming out of the plane's left inboard engine, accompanied by loud bangs.

The 747 entered a holding pattern just off Santa Cruz for an hour before it was able to return to San Francisco International airport, landing at around 1:35am, CBS reported.

Drama: United Flight 873 to Tokyo was forced to make an emergency landing Monday afternoon after flames were seen gouting from an engine. It returned safely to San Francisco

Looping: The plane's flight path saw it looping around several times before it returned to the airport - suggesting that it may have tried to burn off fuel to make its landing safer

United spokesman Charlie Hobart told Dailymail.com that the plane followed the extended flight path to reduce the amount of fuel in its tanks, in order to make landing safer.

It also dumped fuel into the atmosphere while flying, to deplete the load faster. The fuel would have evaporated the moment it left the plane, Hobart said.

The plane ultimately returned to the airport with the dysfunctional engine shut off.

No injuries were reported, Hobart said. Initial reports put the number of passengers at 222.

Hobart added that although the reason for the engine's malfunction isn't yet known, he was confident that the passengers were never in danger, thanks to its pilots, whom he described as 'professionals - the best in the business'.

A source told told CBS that he believed the problem was caused by a backfire in the compressor section of the engine.

If that was the case the plane was not in danger, the source said, but the stall can result in a loud bang and a jet of flame.

The plane was seen taxiing on the runway after landing, followed by fire engines.

Hobart said that all of the passengers had been rebooked onto another flight that would take off later this afternoon.

The dysfunctional plane will not be allowed to fly again until it's been serviced and the problem identified. There is no fixed time frame for that process, Hobart said.

The FAA has said it will investigate.
It may bear a creepy resemblance to the film Minority Report, where people are arrested for crimes before they have committed them.

But scientists believe they may be able to pick out a potential criminal just by looking at their face.

Computer software created in China is able to identify someone who has committed a crime with up to 89.5 per cent accuracy, after scrolling through almost 1,900 facial images.

You wouldn't want to mix these two ladies up - one a society beauty and 1870s stage actress, the other a murderous nightclub hostess hanged in July 1955 for killing her lover

One of these women was a 1930s Hollywood star married to Clark Gable, while the other was a sadistic SS Auschwitz-Birkenau guard, choosing who to send to the death chambers

It found criminals have upper lips which curve around 23 per cent more and their eyes are closer together.

This type of science is controversial, linked to discredited Italian criminologist Cesare Lombroso who argued that criminals were more primitive than the rest of us, with differently shaped skulls and asymmetrical facial bones.

There is no real evidence of why criminals might look any different, but the academics at Shanghai Jiao Tong University say their computer programme can be trusted.

Their study states: Unlike a human examiner/judge, a computer vision algorithm or classifier has absolutely no subjective baggages, having no emotions, no biases whatsoever due to past experience, race, religion, political doctrine, gender, age, etc, no mental fatigue, no preconditioning of a bad sleep or meal.

From an icy trek to a col heart, one was second-in-command on Captain Scott's South Pole expedition a century ago, while the other was a merciless 'acid bath murderer' in the 1940s

Philanthropist or fraud? One picture is one of the first criminal mugshots ever taken in Britain, while the other chap gave away millions to education and health projects

Dr Leandro Minku, a computer science lecturer at the University of Leicester, said the difference in facial features, including a narrower angle from criminals nose to the corners of their mouth, might be explained by non-criminals being more likely to smile slightly in photographs.

But he said the research had been well-conducted, adding: This is a very controversial topic, but one of the advantages of using machines is that they learn based on the data given.

They can analyse a very large amount of information which we would struggle to do.

Aristotle famously advocated that you could tell someones character from their face, while psychologists have known for a millennium that we judge personality traits and peoples trustworthiness based on how they look.

One changed the modern world by inventing the Biro, while the other was one of the main orchestrators of the Holocaust  truly one of the most evil men of the 20th century

Its healer versus poisoner here, with one woman a doctor and leading suffragette who founded a London womens hospital. The other was the first female serial killer in modern times

However it is unclear why criminals should look different, leaving the Chinese researchers interested in what we use to judge whether someone looks like a wrong un.

They collected 1,856 ID photographs, rather than police mugshots, of men aged 18 to 55 with no facial hair and no facial scars or other markings for the study.

Half were convicted criminals and all were fed into a computer system taught to tell the difference.

The best classifier achieved 89.51 per cent accuracy, according to the report published on the research website arXiv, which is yet to be peer-reviewed.

Spot the giver and taker: one woman was a violent Victorian shoplifting gang leader in Londons West End; the other donated millions of pounds worth of paintings to the nation

They both slicked their hair back, but one was vile serial killer The Beast of Birkenshaw, while the other was a brilliant engineer who invented a rear-gunning device for pilots

The computer system found there is no one typical criminal face, but many, with non-criminals actually having more similarity facially to each other than people who break the law.

A summary of the findings states: The variation among criminal faces is significantly greater than that of the non-criminal faces.

It adds: In other words, the faces of general law-biding public have a greater degree of resemblance compared with the faces of criminals, or criminals have a higher degree of dissimilarity in facial appearance than normal people.

.... So did you spot the faces of evil?
Horstman said he was left feeling 'gutted' after the

ABC Science reporter Mark Horstman has taken to social media to criticise the sacking of his colleagues following a controversial overhaul of the network's popular program Catalyst.

Horstman also lost his job lost after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation announced the 30-minute science program would be replaced by 17 one-hour long documentaries for 2017, The Australian reported.

'Today the ABC sacked its entire specialist science TV team, the only one of its kind in Australia,' Horstman wrote on Facebook on Monday.

Horstman (pictured) also his job lost after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation announced the 30-minute science program would be replaced by 17 one-hour long documentaries for 2017

ABC Science reporter Mark Horstman has taken to social media to criticise the sacking of his colleagues following a controversial overhaul of the network's popular program Catalyst

'After 14 years of diligent public service as a science broadcaster, journalist, and producer (including training me as a cadet journalist), ABC tells me I'm redundant "as your position is no longer required for the efficient and economical operation of the ABC."'

The network said the reformatting would allow for more editorial depth and target younger audiences.

'The new Catalyst model follows the audience trend that values impact over volume. A single issue, one-hour format will allow us editorial depth, more effective promotion, and more cut-through for ABC Science,' an ABC spokesperson told The Australian earlier in November.

Horstman said the ABC's decision was 'bizarre' given the program's popularity.

'Bizarre, given that the weekly Catalyst show was cost-effective, highly valued by the community, and one of the ABC's most popular programs,' he said.

Horstman (pictured) said the ABC's decision was 'bizarre' given the program's popularity

Horstman said he was left feeling 'gutted' after his team's science expertise were 'trashed in one fell swoop.'

'I'm gutted. For my 15 colleagues, that their incredible skills and dedication are not valued by the ABC,' he said.

'The media need more, not less science.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the ABC for comment.
They are often called two-headed skinks because their stumpy tails look similar to their faces.

But this fascinating shingleback skink that was discovered in Victoria literally has two heads.

A captivating video, filmed by Karen and Barry Goldsmith of Snake Catcher Victoria, shows how the little lizard has a second head and an extra hand.

Fascinating: A shingleback skink with two heads has been discovered in Victoria

As well as its normal four legs, the unusual animal has a fifth limb with seven fingers.

Describing the reptile as a 'crazy little guy', the snake catcher is seen showing the calm animal to the camera as it pokes out its tongue.

The two-headed shingleback skink is not the first to be discovered in Australia.

Another of the two-headed lizards was found in Dunsborough, Western Australia, earlier this year.

The animal had been abandoned by its mother moments after birth and had to be put down because it had little chance of survival.

Another lizard with an extra head was found in Coogee, south of Sydney, in 2010.

As well as its normal four legs, the unusual animal has a fifth limb with seven fingers

A fascinating video, filmed by Snake Catcher Victoria , shows how the little lizard has a second head and an extra hand

The reptile had two extra legs, making it difficult for the animal to move, and each head had a tendency to attack the other.

The skink was re-homed at a reptile park in Perth.

Shingleback skinks are found in Western Australia, Victoria and New South Wales and are recognisable by their stumpy tail.
A live-streaming host from China has been sentenced to four years in prison after spreading obscene videos on the internet, according to Chinese media.

The 21-year-old, whose screen name is 'Sherry Gun', was arrested after a video called 'Foursome in Chengdu' became widely shared online.

Sherry Gun participated in the filming together with one other woman and two men in order to attract more followers for her online live-streaming business, reports said.

The woman (pictured), whose screen name is 'Sherry Gun', has been sentenced to prison

The 21-year-old, from Deyang, was charged with spreading obscene videos on the internet

The two-minute-long video became viral in March, according to Huanqiu.com, an affiliation to People's Daily, which cited a report from Chengdu Business Daily.

The search term 'foursome in Chengdu' quickly became a top search term on various search engines in China.

It was also widely shared on Chinese social media platforms, such as WeChat and QQ.

The video caught the attention of officers from the internet security team at the Mianzhu Public Security Bureau. They quickly set up a team to investigate the case.

Police officers found out one of the female performers in the video was known as Sherry Gun on the internet.

Sherry Gun works as an online host, who live-streams her daily activities through social media websites and mobile apps to her 40,000 fans.

Police identified Sherry Gun as 21-year-old Lin who is from Deyang city, but lives in Chengdu.

The woman had produced a video called 'Foursome in Chengdu' with three other people in front of a live audience

On May 4, two teams of police officers from Deyang and Mianzhu arrested Lin in front of her residential compound as she returned from a holiday in Dubai.

In addition to Lin, two other suspects, identified as Wang and Li, were arrested at the same time.

According to the police, Lin, Li and Wang have admitted to spreading obscene content on the internet.

All of them were aged under 22 and come from wealthy families.

The three suspects said they had decided to upload such content in order to pursue fame.

The police also said that Lin who had worked as a saleswoman in Chengdu found it too hard to earn money.

She then quit her job to become a full-time internet host.

China has nearly 200 live-stream websites and apps, which attract some 200 million users. Above is a file photo and the woman is not related to the story

Internet hosts, mainly young women, live stream their daily activities from singing to dancing. Above is a file photo and the women are not related to the story

The police said Lin filmed 'Foursome in Chengdu' with one other woman and two men in a rented flat in Chengdu in February.

The video was one of the 31 obscene videos Lin had posted, said the police, and she managed to earn 75,000 yuan (8,758) from the business.

Lin was sentences to four years in prison on November 23 by the Mianyang People's Court.

In addition, she was fined 100,000 yuan (11,678). Her computer and mobile phone were confiscated by the authorities.

According to the Chinese Criminal Law, a person who 'produces, duplicates, publishes, sells or disseminates pornographic materials' shall be sentences to fixed-term imprisonment of no more than three years.

In a 'serious' case, the person could be sentenced to no more than 10 years in prison.

If the circumstances are 'especially serious', a jail term of no less than 10 years or life imprisonment shall be sentenced.
A group of 49 sinkholes have been discovered in the Qinling mountains in north-west China, according to Chinese state media.

Experts believe this is the world's biggest sinkhole cluster.

The caverns, located between 32 and 33 degrees north latitude, are situated in the northernmost karst landform region ever found in the world, said Chinese experts.

Occupying an area of around 600 square kilometers (230 square miles), the group comprise one 'super large' sinkhole, 17 'large' sinkhole and 31 'conventional' sinkholes.

Mysterious: A group of 49 sinkholes have been discovered in the Qinling mountains in China

A video released by CCTV News revealed what is inside the Hanzhong sinkholes (pictured)

The caverns are situated in the northernmost karst landform region ever found in the world

The discovery was revealed by the Department of Land Resources of Shaanxi Province at a press conference on November 24, according to People's Daily Online, citing a report on Xi'an Evening News.

The caverns were spread over four townships in the Qinling-Zaoshan Mountains to the south of the city of Hanzhong.

They have been named the Hangzhong sinkholes.

The caverns were situated in four townships in the Qinling-Zaoshan Mountains near Hanzhong

The sinkholes were situated in a remote area rarely touched by human beings. This means the ecological system inside the caverns remains almost intact

Wang Weihua, the head of Shaanxi's land resources department, said experts had carried out inspection in the area for about four months.

A total of 5,000 square kilometers (1,930 square miles) had been explored through various research methods, including infrared measurement and drone surveys.

Footage released by CCTV News revealed the ecological diversity inside the sinkholes.

In addition to the 49 sinkholes, 50 funnels measuring 50 metres to 100 metres (164 to 328 miles) wide as well as 50 caves were found.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE HANZHONG SINKHOLES? The sinkholes were situated in a remote area rarely touched by human beings. This means the ecological system inside the caverns remains almost intact. Comprising different geological features, such as dried valleys and caves, the sinkhole group can help experts understand the evolution of subterranean rivers and the ancient environment in the south of Qinling Mountains. They also act as valuable material for the research on the formation of the Hanzhong basin and cave canyon. Department of Land Resources of Shaanxi Province Advertisement

A Chinese geologist told China Daily that the scientific value of Hanzhong sinkholes was unmatched.

Zhang Yuanhai, a senior engineer with Institute of Karst Geology under Chinese Academy of Geological Science, told a reporter from the state-run English newspaper that the sinkholes were 'the first geological landscape found in the most north boundary of the humid tropical and subtropical Karst landform area, which has exceeded expectations of all geologists'.

The provincial government of Shaanxi said they would develop a 'systematic, scientific and specific' plan to protect the sinkhole group.
Researchers used cutting-edge imaging tech to identify the creatures

Sixty five million years ago, dinosaurs of every shape and size roamed the Earth, before they were mysteriously wiped from the face of the planet.

Before their long reign, it was monstrous amphibians that ruled both land and sea.

A set of fossilised amphibian footprints - carved into the Earth over 300 million years ago - have resurfaced after they lay forgotten for decades in a Birmingham museum.

These footprints offer precious insight into life before the dinosaurs, and may help scientists unravel how the reptilian giants became the dominant species on Earth.

In an article for The Conversation, senior researcher Dr Richard Butler and PhD student Andrew Jones of the University of Birmingham explain how the ancient prints capture a key evolutionary moment.

These ancient prints capture a key evolutionary moment as reptiles became the dominant species on Earth. Using cutting-edge technology, researchers were able to identify the creatures that probably made the footprints over 300 million years ago

HOW WERE THE FOSSILISED FOOTPRINTS FORMED? The footprints are preserved on about 20 red sandstone slabs, and provide a remarkable window into life in Birmingham at the end of the Carboniferous period. They formed as animals walked over muddy areas next to river channels, and were preserved by a covering of sand in a subsequent flood. Trackways show how the animals that lived there moved and skittered across the floodplain. Fossilised footprints are known as 'trace fossils' - fossils that are physical evidence of the life activities of now-vanished organisms. Advertisement

After lying largely forgotten in a museum for decades, a set of fossilised footprints have revealed a new glimpse of the world when reptiles began taking over from amphibians as the dominant land animals.

Using cutting-edge technology, we have been able to identify the creatures that probably made the footprints over 300 million years ago.

This gives us a snapshot of what was happening as reptiles started diversifying and began the process that would see them become the dominant form of vertebrate life on land.

Birmingham used to be covered in lush tropical rainforest.

This city in the British Midlands is today known as an ethnically-diverse melting pot of industry and innovation, famous for canals, heavy metal, Balti curry and friendly people with distinctive accents.

But 310 million years ago  long before the dinosaurs or the first mammals  the area was dominated by primitive plants like horsetails and club mosses, which grew into towering 98-foot (30-metre) tall trees.

A great diversity of early amphibians, insects, arachnids and other invertebrates lived among the lush vegetation.

Birmingham area was dominated by primitive plants 310 million years ago. A great diversity of early amphibians, insects, arachnids and other invertebrates lived among the lush vegetation. (Pictured: illustration of the Carboniferous period)

As the plants died, their remains formed thick layers of peat that over time were compressed to form rich deposits of coal that today underlie many parts of Britain. (Pictured: fossilised plant material from the Carboniferous period)

As the plants died, their remains formed thick layers of peat that over time were compressed to form rich deposits of coal that today underlie many parts of Britain.

These coal deposits would later power the industrial revolution that would make Birmingham a world leader in manufacturing.

But towards the end of the Carboniferous period (299m years ago), the world began to change.

The global climate became increasingly dry and the rainforests of Europe began to contract and vanish.

This rainforest collapse is believed to have caused a mass extinction among plants, while many groups of amphibians disappeared and were replaced by early groups of reptiles.

A collection of fossil footprints from Birmingham provides a unique window into this changing world.

A schoolteacher, Walter Henry Hardaker, discovered the footprints (not pictured) in the early 20th century in a quarry in the Hamstead area in the northwest of the city. Most commonly featured were amphibians (Pictured: fossilised animal remains from the Carboniferous period)

A schoolteacher, , discovered the footprints in the early 20th century in a quarry in the Hamstead area in the northwest of the city.

Since Hardakers work, they have lain largely ignored in the collections of the Lapworth Museum of Geology at the University of Birmingham  until our research team decided to re-study them as part of a research project funded by the Palaeontological Association.

The footprints are preserved on about 20 red sandstone slabs, and provide a remarkable window into life in Birmingham at the end of the Carboniferous period.

They formed as animals walked over muddy areas next to river channels, and were preserved by a covering of sand in a subsequent flood.

Trackways show how the animals that lived there moved and skittered across the floodplain.

Exquisite details of the environment are preserved, including raindrops and mudcracks that formed during drier intervals.

Our team, led by Birmingham Palaeobiology and Palaeoenvironments undergraduate student Luke Meade, used cutting-edge photogrammetric technology to study the footprints.

By comparing these models to Carboniferous tracks from other parts of the world, we were able to identify the types of animals that probably made the tracks. Rare tracks show that large pelycosaurs (pictured) were present, resembling modern day Komodo dragons

Pelycosaurs (pictured) were part of the great evolutionary lineage that would eventually lead to mammals, including humans

Each trackway was photographed from numerous different angles, and special software was then used to turn these photos into high-resolution 3D models.

These models are freely available to download, and can be used for educational purposes.

Colour-coding the models allowed us to produce topographic maps of each specimen that illustrate them in three dimensions.

By comparing these models to Carboniferous tracks from other parts of the world, we were able to identify the types of animals that probably made the tracks.

Most common were amphibians, ranging from a few centimetres up to 3.2 feet (1 metre) or more in length.

Alongside these amphibians lived two other vertebrate groups.

Smaller tracks document early representatives of another great branch of the vertebrate evolutionary tree, the sauropsid reptiles (pictured), which were small and lizard-like. These would ultimately diversify into everything from dinosaurs to lizards, turtles and birds

Rare tracks show that large pelycosaurs were present, probably superficially resembling modern day Komodo dragons.

Pelycosaurs were part of the great evolutionary lineage that would eventually lead to mammals, including humans.

Smaller tracks document early representatives of another great branch of the vertebrate evolutionary tree, the sauropsid reptiles, which were small and lizard-like.

These would ultimately diversify into everything from dinosaurs to lizards, turtles and birds.

This snapshot of geological time captures an important evolutionary moment.

Although amphibians were still abundant, their dependence on moist environments and bodies of water for spawning may have put them at a disadvantage compared to the rapidly diversifying reptiles as the climate became increasingly arid.

Lying at the centre of a famously soggy island, the bustling city of Birmingham may today seem a far cry from this past world.
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With its indoor theme park and helipad, this building might seem more like it would belong in Las Vegas, but this towering Hindu temple is set to become the world's tallest religious skyscraper.

The Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, which is currently under construction at Vrindavan in the Uttar Pradesh region, will stand at 700 feet (210 metres) tall and will have 70 floors.

The building, due for completion in 2022, has been dedicated to Hindu deity Lord Sri Krishna and designed to blend traditional Indian 'Nagra' temple architecture with modern aesthetics.

The Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir, which is currently under construction in Uttar Pradesh, will stand at 700 feet (210 metres) tall and will have 70 floors. The building, due for completion in 2022, has been dedicated to Hindu deity Lord Sri Krishna and designed to blend traditional Indian 'Nagra' temple architecture with modern aesthetics

THE VRINDAVAN CHANRODAYA MADIR - 700 feet (210 metres) tall - 70 storeys - 30 acres of forest - Indoor theme park - Guest houses, restaurants, and lecture theatre - Center for Krishna Heritage Studies - Viewing platform - Express lift with immersive 3D experience - Earthquake-proof - Due for completion in 2022 Advertisement

Visitors will be able to ride to the viewing deck at the top of the building, with an immersive 3D light and sound show planned for the journey up.

The ride will take people through the planetary systems of the universe, as described in Vedic literature, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism.

At 700 feet (210 metres), the temple will be taller than India's Taj Mahal, which stands at 239 feet (73m) tall, as well as St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, which measures 422 feet (128.6m).

Work first began on the building, which also includes a 1,000-seat auditorium, Center for Krishna Heritage Studies and a food court, in 2014.

Dedicated to Hindu deity Lord Sri Krishna, the striking structure has been designed to blend traditional Indian 'Nagra' temple architecture with modern aesthetics.

It is the work of Indian architecture firm InGenious Studio and engineering consultants Thornton Tomasetti.

Attractions planned in the theme park would be like park rides, animatronics, light, sound and special effects as well as the Vraja Mandal parikrama shows and laser shows, said Narasimha Das, project director of the temple.

'The temple is planned to be a vibrant platform for reviving the lost glories of our rich heritage through festivals, cultural and social activities throughout the year,' says a statement on the architecture firm's website.

The building will also include an indoor theme park, a viewing gallery and the Krishna Heritage Museum and due for completion in 2022. When finished, the entire site will cover 62 acres (250,905 square metres) of land. The temple will also be involved in a number of social programs including an free lunch initiative for economically challenged children

A graphic shows how the 700ft skyscraper will stand up against some other famous structures including India's Taj Mahal and Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican

Set to open in 2022, the building is surrounded by 30 acres of forest, designed to recreate the natural forests of the Braj region.

'A look-alike of the verdant forests of Vrindavan will be recreated around this magnificent temple with varieties of lush vegetation, green pastures, elegant vistas of fruit bearing trees, flower laden creepers serenaded by bird songs, clear water lakes with lotuses and lilies and waterfalls that tumble from small artificial hillocks - all recreated from descriptions in the Srimad Bhagavatam and other source books of Lord Sri Krishna - to transport the visitors to Krishna's times in Vrindava,' says the design firm's website.

As well as a temple, the 70-storey building will include guest houses and restaurants.

Religious activities and festivals are set to take place at the massive temple throughout the year, on its completion.

The tiered building has been designed to be earthquake-proof and will be built on foundations 16 feet (five metres) deeper than those of Dubai's Burj Khalifa - the world's tallest structure.

'The foundation of the Burj Khalifa is 50 metres [165 feet]. The temple's foundation is 55-metre [180-foot] deep. The foundation will have 511 columns, which will be completed by March next year,' said Narasimha Das, senior Vice-President and project director of the temple, reports The Indian Express.

Visitors will be able to ride to the viewing deck at the top of the building, with an immersive 3D light and sound show planned for the journey up. The project is said to cost around $45 million (36 million). The sale of guest houses at the site will provide a portion of the funds, as will donations by devotees

Dedicated to Hindu deity Lord Sri Krishna, the striking structure has been designed to blend traditional Indian temple architecture with modern aesthetics

The base of the build will be constructed in the shape of a plus sign, with one of four temples on each points.

The project is said to cost around $45 million (36 million).

The sale of guest houses at the site will provide a portion of the funds, as will donations by devotees.

When finished, the entire site will cover 62 acres (250,905 square metres) of land.

The temple will also be involved in a number of social programs including an free lunch initiative for economically challenged children in the surrounding area.

A number of restorations will also be carried out on nearby sites related to the Lord Sri Krishna who is believed to have come from the area, according to scripture.

The Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir is currently under construction at Vrindavan in the Uttar Pradesh region

Work first began on the building, which also includes a 1,000-seat auditorium, Center for Krishna Heritage Studies and a food court, in 2014

The tiered building has been designed to be earthquake-proof and will be built on foundations five metres deeper than those of Dubai's Burj Khalifa - the world's tallest structure. Pictured is the construction site

Religious activities and festivals are set to take place at the massive temple throughout the year, on its completion. Pictured is the construction site
Language evolves in predictable patterns as 'fashions' are passed on

Experts found the trend in English as well as several European languages

'Rad', 'psychedelic' and 'gnarly' were once-popular phrases that are now lost to the sands of time.

Now, a new study has found that words such as these seem to fall out of favour after roughly 14 years.

Why 14 is such a crucial number is still unknown, but scientists believe it could shed light on trends in history and politics.

A new study has found that words such as these seem to fall out of favour after roughly 14 years. The scientists noticed that the popularity of related nouns - such as king, queen, and duchess - follow a rise and fall together over time

BOOK WORMS The researchers wanted to investigate how humanity's use of words had changed over time. They used a computer programme to dig through Google Books' Ngram feature. Ngram is a large database of the words used in a collection of over five million digitised books, dating back over 300 years. The researchers painstakingly ranked the nouns by popularity, tracking how they dipped in and out of fashion between 1700 to 2008. They noticed a curious language pattern surface, revealing that English, Spanish, German, Italian, and French words become fashionable for around fourteen years at a time. English words over the past century have tended to last a year or two longer. Advertisement

To make the discovery experts from Argentina and the University of Manchester identified 5,630 commonly used nouns and analysed how their popularity has ebbed and flowed since the 1700s.

The researchers used a computer programme to dig through Google Books' Ngram feature.

Ngram is a large database of the words used in a collection of over five million digitised books dating back over 300 years.

They painstakingly ranked the nouns used by popularity, tracking how their relative popularities changed between 1700 to 2008.

They found that English words rise in popularity and fall out of fashion in fourteen year cycles.

The team uncovered similar 14-year language trends in Russian, German, Italian, French, and Spanish.

The research supports the theory that human language evolves in predictable patterns.

'Language is not all over the place,' language expert Professor Mark Pagel, not involved in the study, told New Scientist.

'It's remarkably consistent,' he said.

Interestingly, the team found that the prevalence of some words even seemed to align with historic events.

In the years around the world wars, sizeable chunks of popular language saw a sharp drop in popularity, which the researchers link to changing political trends.

The experts identified 5,630 commonly used nouns and analysed how their popularity had peaked and dipped since the 1700s. They found that the prevalence of some words even seemed to align with historic events

The scientists also noticed that the popularity of related nouns - such as king, queen, and duchess - follow a rise and fall together over time.

The authors hope that their findings can help us better understand language and writing.

'Assuming these patterns reflect some cultural dynamics, I hope this develops into better understanding of why we change the topics we discuss,' co-author Dr Marcelo Montemurro, experimental psychology lecturer at the University of Manchester, told New Scientist.

'We might learn why writers get tired of the same thing and choose something new,' he said.

Professor Pagel warns that more research must be done to rule out any chances of a statistical fluke.

'It's fascinating to look for cultural factors that might affect this, but we also expect certain periodicities from random fluctuations,' he says.
The insects will also fertilise the seedlings to help them grow

Ants collect and plant seeds, and even protect them from being eaten

Humans began farming around 12,000 years ago, and only in the past 50 years have scientists realised we're not the only species to delve into agriculture.

New research has revealed that a humble Fijian ant species beat us to becoming the first farmers by almost three million years.

The ants have been observed carefully sowing seeds, fertilising them, and waiting for them to grow into plants which bear tasty fruit.

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A species of Fijian ant has been observed carefully sowing seeds, fertilising them, and waiting for them to grow into plants which bear fruit for them to eat. The ants form a symbiotic relationship with the plants, who need the ants to plant their seeds. (Stock image)

ANTS AND PLANTS Several species of ant hold mutually beneficial 'symbiotic' relationships with plants. Leafcutter ants have been farming fungus for over eight million years - the ants cultivate the fungus by feeding it plant material and clearing it of invasive pests. Adult leafcutter ants then feed the nutritious fungus to their larvae. A recently discovered fossilised Acropyga ant points to the species having farmed mealybugs for the past 15-20 million years. The two insect species live side-by-side in the ants' nest, where the ants tend to the mealybugs in exchange for the sweet honeydew the bugs excrete. Like the Fijian Philidris nagasau, dozens of ant species sow plant seeds, while around 700 different plant species shelter ants in the small, hollow chambers at their base known as domatia. Advertisement

What triggered the formation of this relationship remains a mystery to scientists.

But it puts the ants millions of years ahead of the first human societies to use farming techniques.

The newly discovered relationship, stumbled upon by scientists at the University of Munich, is unique to the animal kingdom.

'The story is unique,' Dr Brian Fisher, entomologist-in-residence at the California Academy of Sciences, told NPR.

'We already have ants that disperse seeds, and have ants that feed plants, but we've never had a case where they farm a plant they can't live without.'

The ants rely on the plant for shelter and food, while the plants need the ants to sow and spread their seeds.

Squamellaria plants are epiphytes, meaning they grow on other plants.

Worker ants of the Fijian species Philidris nagasau ferry seeds from the fully-grown plants to nearby trees.

They pick tree species with soft bark, or that produce nectar, to plant the seeds - giving the plants the best possible chance of growing.

Once a plot has been selected, the ants then monitor the planted seeds, protecting them from hungry herbivores.

The find puts the ants millions of years ahead of the first human societies to use farming techniques, who began using agriculture around 12,000 years ago. Image: A 'field' of Squamellaria plants in a Macaranga tree farmed by a colony of Philidris nagasau ants

As the plants grow under the ants' supervision, they begin to develop hollow chambers called domatia at the base of their stems.

The ants fertilise the plants to spur further growth.

Once the plant is big enough, its hollow domatia provide shelter for the ants.

It had previously been spotted that the ants like to reside in these small chambers, but the Munich researchers have uncovered the true nature of the relationship - that the ants sow and nurture the plants to grow themselves a new home.

The ants will eat the fruit of the Squamellaria plant and harvest their seeds for further farming projects.

While many other examples of mutually beneficial or 'symbiotic' relationships between ants and plants exist, the discovery marks the only case in which both parties are totally dependent on each other for survival.
Ancient Brazilians performed gruesome rituals on their dead, involving pulling out teeth and muscles, mutilating the body and maybe even cannibalism.

Now scientists have found the oldest evidence yet in the continent to show humans performed these rituals on dead bodies.

The remains of 26 ritualistic burials were found in a cave called Lapa do Santo, east-central Brazil.

A 9,500-year-old skull cap used as funerary receptacle, pictured. The mutilated and burnt bones of the same individual were deposited inside

A group of researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, and the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, studied the skeletal remains that date back 9,500 years.

They were found in a cave called Lapa do Santo, in Lagoa Santa, that was first used as a burial ground between 10,300 and 10,600 years ago.

The researchers do not offer an explanation as to why people started to indulge in these gruesome activities.

But some Brazilian tribes ate their deceased, a practice known as 'endocannibalism', to honour them.

They believed it gave them a permanent connection with their relatives.

'The Lagoa Santa region is known since the early 19th century due to the work of the Danish naturalist Peter Lund,' said Andre Strauss from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.

'During the following decades, many international research teams went to the region looking for evidence of the coexistence between humans and megafauna.

Last year, a 9,000-year-old decapitated skull (pictured) was unearthed at the same site, with a pair of amputated hands placed in opposite directions over the face, and cut marks suggest the flesh had been removed

Burial 34 during exhumation in 2014. Between 9,400 and 9,600 years ago the people at Lapa do Santo began burial rituals

'Although hundreds of early Holocene skeletons were exhumed in the process little has been reported about funerary rituals.

'Therefore, the ample diversity and elevated elaboration of the burials at Lapa do Santo at first struck us as a great surprise.'

Between 9,400 and 9,600 years ago the people at Lapa do Santo began burial rituals.

First they would reduce the body by mutilation, defleshing, tooth removal, exposure to fire and possibly cannibalism.

Then they would have a secondary burial that followed strict rules.

'In reconstructing the life of past populations, human burials are highly informative of symbolic and ritual behaviour,' said Strauss.

The remains were found in a cave called Lapa do Santo, in Lagoa Santa, east-central Brazil (marked). It is thought to have been used by prehistoric humans up to 12,000 years ago

THE CAVE OF LAPA DO SANTO The remains were found in a cave called Lapa do Santo, in Lagoa Santa, that was first used as a burial ground between 10,300 and 10,600 years ago. Lapa do Santo is thought to have been occupied by humans up to 12,000 years ago. Stone tools and animal bones found in the region suggested prehistoric hunter-gatherers used the site for some time. 'The Lagoa Santa region is known since the early 19th century due to the work of the Danish naturalist Peter Lund,' said Andre Strauss from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. Between 9,400 and 9,600 years ago the people at Lapa do Santo began burial rituals. Last year it was revealed a 9,000-year-old decapitated skull had been unearthed at the same site, with a pair of amputated hands placed in opposite directions over the face, and cut marks suggest the flesh had been removed. In 2007, anthropologists discovered the disembodied skull and jaw, together with the first six vertebrae of the neck and two severed hands in a pit just below the surface of the cave. They had been covered with limestone slabs, suggesting they had been carefully buried. Advertisement

'In this frame, the funerary record presented in this study highlights that the human groups inhabiting east South America at 10,000 years ago were more diverse and sophisticated than previously thought.

'The strong emphasis on the reduction of fresh corpses explains why these fascinating mortuary practices were not recognised during almost two centuries of research in the region.'

These groups used parts of fresh corpses to elaborate their rituals, showing this practice was not restricted to the Andean region at the beginning of the Holocene.

Previously, the oldest known case of decapitation in South America occurred in the Peruvian Andes, dating to around 3,000 years ago.

The oldest known case in North America was found in Florida and is around 6,990 to 8,120 years old.

Lapa do Santo is thought to have been occupied by humans up to 12,000 years ago.

Stone tools and animal bones found in the region suggested prehistoric hunter-gatherers used the site for some time.

Last year, a 9,000-year-old decapitated skull was unearthed at the same site, with a pair of amputated hands placed in opposite directions over the face, and cut marks suggest the flesh had been removed.

Researchers believe the decapitated head may provide clues about the origins of decapitation practices that later became widespread throughout South America.

The Tupinamba from Brazil were famed for collecting heads as war trophies, for example, while the Arara Indians used the heads of defeated enemies as musical instruments.

Researchers believe the decapitated head may provide clues about the origins of decapitation practices that later became widespread throughout South America

Elsewhere, for the Chmiu culture in Peru decapitation was used during human sacrifices.

Analysis of the decapitated skull revealed it belonged to a young man who was member of the group of humans who inhabited the cave, rather than a defeated enemy.

The careful positioning of the hands and skull also suggest the disembodiment was carried out as a part of a ritual or ceremony.

Tiny cut marks on the skull suggest the soft tissue around the skull was additionally cut away before it was buried.

In 2007, anthropologists discovered the disembodied skull and jaw, together with the first six vertebrae of the neck and two severed hands in a pit just below the surface of the cave.

They had been covered with limestone slabs, suggesting they had been carefully buried.

The skull (pictured in the cave) was unlike any other burial found in the cave and suggests that burial practices among these prehistoric humans were more complex than had originally been believed

The hands had been cut from the rest of the body and placed palm sized down over the face, with the left hand pointing upwards on the right side of the face and the right hand pointing down on the left side of the face.

Dr Domingo Carlos Salazar-Garcia, another of the researchers involved in the study at the Max Planck Instiute for Evolutionary Anthropology, said the decapitation appears not to have been a violent act.

'The chemical analysis of strontium isotopes done in this study indicates that the decapitated individual was not an outsider to the group,' he said.

'Therefore, it was probably not a defeated enemy but instead a member of the community'.
The contest ends next month, but judges have chosen 10 of their

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Drones have taken photography to new heights - allowing snappers to capture breathtaking shots from a bird's eye view.

As a way to highlight these spectacular images, SkyPixel and drone maker DJI has teamed up for the second annual drone photography contest.

Thousands of submissions have been entered in the SkyPixel 2016 Photo Contest and the judges selected their top 10 favorites, which included a shipwreck off the coast of L'Agulhas, South Africa and a windy road to Transylvania.

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SkyPixel and drone maker DJI teamed up for a contest that features both 'enthusiast' and 'professional' groups to which users can submit their photos taken by drones. Pictured is 'Infinite road to Transylvania', an image by Calin Stan. It shows a long road that appears to curve like a rippled ribbon nestled in a thick forest of Cheia, a road in Romania

The SkyPixel 2016 Photo Contest teamed up with DJI to celebrate the drone maker's 10th Anniversary Celebration and SkyPixel's two-year anniversary.

The goal is to show the world why aerial imaging is the next evolution of photographic art and showcase new talents from around the world.

When signing up for the content, photographers have the opportunity to choose between the categories of 'beauty', encompassing natural landscape and urban architecture and '360-degree aerial panorama', which showcases immersive 360-degree views from above, aided by Virtual Reality (VR).

A final category, 'Drones In Use', is all about capturing images of drones in flight.

'Through this competition, we aim to show the world why aerial imaging is the next evolution of photographic art, and highlight new talents found on SkyPixel,' SkyPixel shares on their website.

THE SKYPIXEL 2016 CONTEST TOP 10 FAVORITES 1. Infinity Road to Transylvania by Calin Stan  The Drone.ro: The true beauty and winding nature of Cheia (DN1A), a road in Romania that leads you into Transylvania, can only be shown through aerials as depicted here. 2. Ship Wreck at L'Agulhas by Dirke Heydenrych: A dramatic sunset is the perfect backdrop for this shipwreck off the Cape L'Algulhas headland in South Africa Dirkie Heydenrych is next with his 'Ship Wreck at L'Agulhas' (pictured), which he used a DJI Phantom 3 Advance drone to capture. It shows a deteriorating vessel in the sea off the coast of South Africa. The abandoned boat is rolling with the waves in the blue-green colored sea and sits in a spot that has a perfect view of the mountains 3. Dronie by Manish Mamtani: A bridge caked in snow in New Hampshire was the perfect opportunity for Manish Mamtani and his wife, both wearing bright clothing, to create a contrasting "dronie" (selfie taken by drone) against the monotonous white winter cold. 4. by 225158586: Rice terraces are more commonly synonymous with Bali, but the man-made phenomenon also occurs throughout Asia, as user 225158586 showcases the presence of this unique feature in Fujian through aerial means. 5. WWII airplane by Salim Madjd: A World War 2 airplane at the outdoor display of the Belarusian Great Patriotic War Museum is caked in snow from a light snowstorm overnight, with a photo taken during 'blue hour' in the early morning. 6. Crop Triangle by Eddie Oosthuizen: Crop irrigation and agriculture can also be fascinating visually, as shown here with a barren triangle forming between three crop types planted in a circular motion for efficient irrigation.\ 7. Barskog by Atle Goutbeek: The sun and snow form a beautiful contrast in a wintery forest 8. Night lights by Jeff: A private superyacht stands out with its lights in the dark waters at night from above 9. Winter by Tomasz Walczack: A road cuts through the harsh starkness of a forest experiencing winter. 10. Camel by Abbas Rastegar: Camels cast a long shadow in the sun of the desert on a trek to find water. Advertisement

'Dronie' by Manish Mamtani is next, which he used a DJI Phantom 3 while shooting in New Hampshire. The image is an aerial shot of a snow covered woodsy area, and Mamtani and his wife are laying in the middle of a bridge, holding an umbrella. 'We laid down on the bridge covered with snow and flew the drone above us to take this image,' he writes in the description

'As the world's largest contest dedicated to aerial photography, the 2016 SkyPixel Photo Contest will give participants the chance to have their work elevated to the next level and seen by hundreds of thousands of people around the world.'

'Adding to this, we've got incredible prizes from big sponsors including DJI, Adobe and Epson, and a Grand Prize that includes the recently released DJI Mavic Pro and Inspire 2.'

The grand prize is valued over $5,500 and includes the recently released Inspire 2, Mavic Pro and Epson Moverio BT-300 smart glasses.

A user by the name of '225158586' came in as the next favorite with a stunning image of rice terraces in Fujian, a southeastern Chinese province known for its mountains and coastal cities. The image shows water filled pools glistening in the sun and the barriers surrounding them are coated in a bright green moss

'WWII airplane' was the fifth favorite, which depicts a World War II airplane displayed outside. Salim Madjd captured the scene of an a deserted area, with a single light on in the corner and the ground surrounding the antique plane is covered in a fresh blanket of powdery snow. The airplane displayed at the Belarusian Great Patriotic War Museum in Minsk, Belarus

Other winning contestants could receive another prize such as the DJI Phantom 4 Pro, Osmo, Osmo+, Osmo Mobile and the 'Above the World: Earth Through a Drone's Eye' coffee table book.

To make it fair, the judge's panel consist of well-known photographers, digital directors, world renowned travels and more names in the photography industry  who have now selected their top 10 favorites so far.

So far, the prestigious panel has chosen the windy Chei road in Romania that leads straight to the birthplace of Dracula  Transylvania.

Called 'Infinite road to Transylvania' this image by Calin Stan was taken with a DJI Phantom 4 and shows a long road that appears to curve like a rippled ribbon and is nestled among a blanket of trees  so far this is the number one favorite.

Although crop irrigation and agriculture may not sound exciting to some, Eddie Oosthuizen was able to create a stunning visual of a barren triangle forming between three crop types planted in a circular motion for efficient irrigation in South Africa. The crops are planted in circles for efficient irrigation, this method of irrigation is called center pivot irrigation

Atle Goutbeek submitted 'Barskog', which was snapped by setting a DJI P3A to 3500 Kelvin. The image shows how the sun and snow can create a beautiful contrast in a wintry forest. Although the trees are coated in a white blanket of snow, colors can still be seen on the top -adding life to this shot of a forest in Norway

Dirkie Heydenrych is next with his 'Ship Wreck at L'Agulhas', which he used a DJI Phantom 3 Advance drone to capture a deteriorating vessel in the sea at sunset off the coast of South Africa.

The next favorite is 'Dronie' by Manish Mamtani who used a DJI Phantom 3 while shooting in New Hampshire.

'This image is an aerial selfie image,' Mamtani shares in the description.

'We laid down on the bridge covered with snow and flew the drone above us to take this image.'

A user by the name of '225158586' came in as the next favorite with a stunning image of rice terraces in Fujian, a southeastern Chinese province known for its mountains and coastal cities.

A user simply by the name of 'Jeff' submitted 'Night Lights for the contest. The image was take during a three day shoot in Antalya, Turkey, when he was on a private 47 meter Superyacht just off the coast. Jeff captured the private vessel in the water that was standing out in the dead of night

'WWII airplane' was the fifth favorite, which depicts a World War II airplane displayed outside

Salim Madjd captured the scene of an a deserted area, with a single light on in the corner and the antique plane surrounded by a fresh blanket of powdery snow.

The airplane is part of the outdoor display at Belarusian Great Patriotic War Museum in Minsk, Belarus.

Although crop irrigation and agriculture may not sound exciting to some, Eddie Oosthuizen was able to create a stunning visual of a barren triangle forming between three crop types planted in a circular motion for efficient irrigation for the next favorite.

'This was taken just as the new crops were sprouting after a very cold winter,' Oosthuizen shares in the description.

'The triangle was hidden between 3 different crop types.'

'The crops are planted in circles for efficient irrigation, this method of irrigation is called center pivot irrigation.'

'Winter' by Tomasz Walczack is next, which depicts a snow covered forest, bare trees and a jet black, plowed road cutting right through the middle. The image seems to give off a quiet feel, with no one or nothing in sight

'The tire track of the irrigation system is visible in the crops, it also forms perfect circles. This triangle is only visible from above.'

Atle Goutbeek submitted 'Barskog', which was snapped by setting a DJI P3A to 3500 Kelvin.

The image shows how the sun and snow can create a beautiful contrast in a wintry forest.

A user simply by the name of 'Jeff' submitted 'Night Lights for the contest.

The image was take during a three day shoot in Antalya, Turkey, when he was on a private 47 meter Superyacht just off the coast.

Jeff captured the private vessel in the water that was standing out in the pitch black of night.

The 10th favorite of the contest is Abbas Rastegar's 'Camel' that was taken in Torud, which is a village in Torud Rural District, in the Central District of Shahrud County, Semnan Province, Iran. The image shows 10 camels standing in the desert, the sun beating down and their shadows cascading on the sand

'Winter' by Tomasz Walczack is next, which depicts a snow covered forest, bare trees and a jet black road cutting right through the middle.

The 10th favorite of the contest is Abbas Rastegar's 'Camel' that was taken in Torud, which is a village in Torud Rural District, in the Central District of Shahrud County, Semnan Province, Iran.

The image shows 10 camels standing in the desert, the sun beating down and their shadows cascading on the sand.

Although some favorites have been selected, the SkyPixel 2016 Photo Contest is still accepting entries and will continue to run until December 30, 2016.
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Who said nothing good came out of the banking crash?

In the heart of Bristol, a stealth operation is underway, turning two former neighbouring banks into something far more desirable: the lavish new Harbour Spa Hotel.

People used to come to the corner of Corn Street and Small Street to deposit cheques and take out their cash. Now, after a lavish renovation, they can come and deposit themselves  for drinks, dining, a little pampering, or a few nights stay  and theyre sure to take out a real sense of contentment.

In the heart of Bristol, a stealth operation is underway, turning two former neighbouring banks into something far more desirable: the lavish new Harbour Spa Hotel (pictured)

People used to come to the corner of Corn Street and Small Street to deposit cheques and take out their cash. Now, after a lavish renovation, they can come and deposit themselves  for drinks, dining and a little pampering

The bedrooms are fitted with an elegant mix of modern and stylish retro furnishings - the beds amply stacked with designer pillows and blankets, writes James

I visited the new hotel a few days after it opened this autumn. I knew it wasnt quite complete, so half-expected a building site, but was impressed to find a slick, stylish boutique hotel, already hitting its stride.

From the street, you can step into the bustling Jetty restaurant and bar which is sure to do a roaring trade all in itself, or into the hotel lobby with its primary-coloured furnishings and pop-art prints of Twiggy, Audrey Hepburn and others style icons.

The artful theme extends throughout the hotel: in the stairwell, you cannot help but smile each time you pass the six-foot wrought-iron frog playing the saxophone.

His cheerful demeanour somehow captures the whole essence of the Harbour Spa: ever so classy but with a twist of irreverence, acknowledging the fact they turned two tired old banks into a shrine of pleasure.

The bedrooms are fitted with an elegant mix of modern and stylish retro furnishings; the beds amply stacked with designer pillows and blankets.

The en-suite bathrooms come with two sinks and  in our case  every single variant on cotton wool (balls, buds and pads) you could ever need.

James was impressed with the food at the Habour Spa Hotel. He ate plump grilled prawn served atop slow-cooked pork belly, then stone bass with a cute copper-pan of shellfish pie on the side

The hotel's stylish bar and restaurant has a sea-faring theme, with propeller-shaped ceiling fans

An even more appealing touch is the hefty, complimentary decanters of sherry and gin insisting you start your Bristol adventure in decadent style.

Having drained these, we descended to the Jetty for dinner.

Here, the Harbours pedigree really shines. This isnt the first Harbour hotel, its a burgeoning family dotted along the south coast, each with a Jetty restaurant of its own.

While this one is a little more inland than the others, Bristol sits sufficiently on the waterways to justify the plentiful seafood menu that the Jetty nightly serves. For my starter, I opted for plump grilled prawn served atop slow-cooked pork belly; for my main, stone bass with a cute copper-pan of shellfish pie on the side. All in all, quite the catch.

With an exemplary English breakfast back in the Jetty the next morning, the Harbour Spa needed do little more to impress me.

Guests at the Harbour Spa Hotel are treated to complimentary decanters of sherry and gin, deposited in their bedrooms

But then Reception Manager Josie invited us to glimpse behind the scenes and see what guests will enjoy when the hotel is fully complete in early 2017.

Like the killer twist in a Hollywood movie, she took us through an unassuming door at the back of the restaurant and into another world.

Brace yourself, Bristol, for something truly exciting: it turns out the Harbour Spa isnt a boutique hotel after all.

Though it has 20 rooms presently, another 22 are almost finished.

Moreover, the second of the two former banks housed a truly resplendent old banking hall thats set to become a banqueting hall like nothing else in town.

The bar at the Harbour Spa Hotel does a roaring trade. This image shows some of the cocktail concoctions on offer

BRISTOL NAMED THE FOURTH MOST INSPIRING CITY IN THE WORLD Bristol has been named the fourth most inspiring city to visit in the world by a top travel operator. The birthplace of Banksy was praised for its vibrant arts scene and museums. The West Country town was beaten to the top spot by the bustling coastal city of Miami, with Bruges and San Francisco coming in second and third place respectively. Reykjavik came in at fifth place followed by Santiago de Compostela in Spain, Salzburg, Zurich, Heidelberg and Florence. London, Paris and New York failed to make the top ten. The 2016 Inspiring Cities Ranking - run by TravelBird - graded 85 cities on eight criteria based on innovation and creativity. Overall, Bristol's abundance of art galleries, museums and performing art companies gave it a score of 70 out of 100. It also scored 31 out of 100 on the romance front. The level of romance was based on how many romance-focused keywords were used in Google searches. Commenting on the outcome, Bristol's mayor, Marvin Rees, told the Bristol Magazine: Bristol is a great place to live and work. 'We are a diverse, talented and outward looking city with a world-class annual calendar of events that inspire residents and visitors alike. Im pleased that our efforts and those of everyone who is contributing to the citys success are recognised in this survey.' Advertisement

We gawped at the elegance of the renovation.

As a heritage plaque outside the building relays, this frankly vast glass-ceilinged chamber (unsurprisingly Grade 2 star listed) was styled in 1857 by architect W. B. Gingell upon the Library of St Mark in Venice, itself created by the 16th century architect Jacopo Sansovino.

It seems a travesty to me that for well over a century its been the scene of mundane banking transactions, and Im excited that at last its been reclaimed, set for all sorts of celebrations and festivities.

You can imagine weddings here, and concerts, spectacles and extravagant parties. Whats more, theyre putting the final touches to another bar adjoining this which Josie calls the gold bar as all its fixtures and furnishings are set to gleam.

Pity the drab old Wetherspoons and Walkabout down the road when it opens.

But the fun doesnt stop there. Josie then took us downstairs into the former vault.

Amid iron-barred gates and vintage blast-proof doors, the Spa part of the hotels name is taking shape, and guests will soon be able to descend into a midtown sanctuary of tranquillity, with multiple treatment rooms, a steam room, sauna, and two modest pools.

Josie enthusiastically told us theyre keeping the old doors because they add so much character.

I, for one, am already plotting my return visit to make the most of this subterranean treasure  I recommend you do too, before everyone else is in on the secret.
Airbnb and rival HomeAway will both be fined 600,000 euros (500,000) by Barcelona city hall for allegedly marketing lodgings that lacked permits to host tourists.

The fine comes as the popular seaside resort struggles with a rising tide of tourism that has exasperated locals, threatening to drive out poorer residents and spoil the charm of Spain's second-largest city.

In a statement, Barcelona said it had initiated proceedings 'that will result in 600,000-euro fines for each of them [the rental sites] for the repeat offence of advertising tourist lodgings online' without authorisation.

Airbnb and rival HomeAway will both be fined 600,000 euros (500,000) by Barcelona city hall for allegedly marketing lodgings that lacked permits to host tourists. Pictured is the city's W hotel

Under a 2012 regional law, any apartment rented to visitors in Catalonia must be logged in the province's Tourism Registry and have a permit.

The city council, which is led by former anti-eviction activist Ada Colau, said it had counted 3,812 lodgings on Airbnb and 1,744 on HomeAway that did not have the permit.

Colau is working to curb a boom in visitor numbers, fearing it will spoil the attraction of Barcelona, one of Europe's most popular destinations for short-term holidays, and rising real estate prices will drive out poor residents and small shop-owners.

'It's not acceptable that there are thousands of flats operating illegally without a permit, without paying taxes and causing problems for the neighbours,' she told Spanish radio on Thursday.

Airbnb said it would appeal the fine.

'Less than a month ago, we held a meeting with city hall representatives and Airbnb promised to work together (with city hall) to support the city's interests,' it said in a statement.

'Airbnb is part of the solution in Barcelona. We want to be good partners to cities and we will keep proactively seeking collaboration with Barcelona to maintain this dialogue and support regular people who share their homes.'

HomeAway said in a statement: 'We regret the disproportionate reaction of the City of Barcelona, which seems to go against the European and national legislation and against the recommendations of the European Commission... blocking the normal development of the e-commerce and the holiday rentals platforms.

'Far from what the City Hall seems to suggest, platforms like HomeAway represent the future of the tourism industry and provide transparency and guarantees to consumers as never enjoyed before... generating revenue to Catalan families, supporting small nearby businesses and having a positive impact by redistributing travellers, mainly families and couples, among the different neighbourhoods of the cities, thus relieving the pressure on certain touristic zones.

'HomeAway runs regular information and awareness campaigns on regulation among homeowners, has enabled a specific field to display the registration number and openly collaborates with authorities to look for solutions that allow... the fairest distribution of its positive impact.

'Regarding this 600,000 euro fine, HomeAway keeps the right to adopt the legal actions that might be required to defend its legitimate position.'

Tourists at a book stall on the Ramblas in Barcelona. In December last year, city officials slapped Airbnb and HomeAway with a 30,000 euro fine - which, at the time, was the maximum - for offering for rent homes which lacked permits

For many years the tourism boom was seen as a success story, but persistent issues with noise, rising housing prices and illegal tourist flats have led many of the city's 1.7million residents to draw battle lines against the never-ending tide of visitors.

The issue was thrust into the spotlight in August 2014 when newspapers published photos of three naked Italian tourists roaming through the city's Barceloneta neighbourhood where there are many illegal tourist flats, shocking residents.

Earlier that year, a new documentary about the city's tense relationship with visitors, 'Bye Bye Barcelona', warned that it was becoming 'a theme park'.

In December last year, city officials slapped Airbnb and HomeAway with a 30,000 euro fine - which, at the time, was the maximum - for offering for rent homes that lacked permits.

Then in June, city hall increased the maximum fine to 600,000 euros as the two sites continued to advertise holiday apartments that did not have permits.

This is the first time it has applied the fine.

San Francisco-based Airbnb claims that it provides a useful service by helping visitors find affordable temporary lodging while enabling homeowners to supplement their income.

FC Barcelona fans on the Ramblas pedestrian street in Barcelona

In June, the European Union even warned member states against banning 'sharing economy' services such as Uber and Airbnb, especially if only to protect existing businesses from competition.

But the global home sharing site has found itself in the crosshairs of many cities around the world, with tourism bosses seeing it as threatening revenues - lacking as it does the legal and tax constraints of commercial enterprises.

New York, Miami and Berlin are just some of the cities that have cracked down.
Fans of My Kitchen Rules are eagerly awaiting the premiere of the new series next year.

And audiences have been given another taste of what's to come, with a new sneak peek introducing 'The Mighty Mums,' Kelsey and Amanda.

The two blondes show off their very bubbly personalities as they admit: 'Food means laughter!'

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Incoming! My Kitchen Rules has given fans a new sneak peek introducing contestants dubbed 'The Mighty Mums,' Kelsey (L) and Amanda (R)

Bright: The two blondes show off their very bubbly personalities as they admit: 'Food means laughter!'

'I think definitely an advantage that we have is being busy mums. Food means laughter, family,' they say in the short clip, as they can be seen dancing and laughing and feeding their children.

'We definitely want to make our families proud.'

The girls are seen at one point of the clip screaming and laughing as they open their front doors to their home to judges Pete Evans and Manu Feildel.

Doing it for the kids! 'We definitely want to make our families proud,' they say

Mummy duties: In the short clip, they can be seen dancing and laughing and feeding their children

'I think it's going to be a lot of fun,' Pete says.

He later compliments them on a chocolate dessert they whip up saying that type of food is why he loves being on the show.

'It's just faultless.'

At the end of the clip, Kelsey speaks to camera and gets er wording wrong, describing an experience as 'uncredible,' instead of 'incredible,' before making herself laugh.

Getting high scores? Pete Evans, R, (seen with fellow judge Manu Feildel) compliments them on a chocolate dessert they whip up saying that type of food is why he loves being on the show

Incoming: Earlier this month, My Kitchen Rules gave a sneak peek at all the teams of the new series (seen are the Fiery Foodies)

Pop a bottle! The teams include the Housewives of Wollongong

Earlier this month, My Kitchen Rules gave a sneak peek at all the teams of the new series.

The teams include the Fiery Foodies, the Housewives of Wollongong and the Tassie Sweethearts.

A young couple was also seen with the male being described as the Seafood King.

An urban couple, David and Betty, are also introduced.

Will they win? The Tassie Sweethearts are also another couple set to tackle the competition

Sailing away: A young couple was also seen with the male being described as the Seafood King

Earlier this month, Manu and Pete were seen filming with a bunch of contestants at Sydney's beach-side suburb of Sandringham near Sans Souci.

Earlier this year, sisters Tasia and Gracia took out the show.

At the time, The Sydney Morning Herald reported the girls were kept in the dark about the outcome of the show with Channel Seven filming two different endings last year.

'They didn't give us the results,' Gracia told the publication.

'We didn't know the scores until (the) night.'

It followed reports that My Kitchen Rules producers film two outcomes for the finale to stop the winners' identities being leaked before broadcast.
Actress Shailene Woodley joined hundreds of demonstrators for a march in the nation's capital on Sunday to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The Divergent star, 25, is an outspoken opponent of the project and has been spending time at the protest camp at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota.

At Sunday's march from the Department of Justice to the Washington Monument, she filmed video of the speeches using her cell phone which she then posted to her Facebook page.

Opposed to pipeline project: Actress Shailene Woodley joined hundreds of demonstrators for a march in Washington, D.C. on Sunday to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline

Her participation in the demonstration comes just days after Shailene slammed Thanksgiving for perpetuating 'false narratives about our native brothers and sisters.'

She spent the holiday helping Hollywood star Jane Fonda serve up a free dinner for 500 at at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

In her Facebook video, she was seen breaking down in tears as she delivered her message, saying: 'From the time were little kids, we cut out in cardboard paper pictures of pilgrims and feasts and turkeys, and yet none of our children know the truth about not only what happened to Native Americans when Westerners decided to colonize this country, but what is still happening to Native Americans.'

Activist: The Divergent star, 25, is an outspoken opponent of the oil pipeline project and fierce defender of the Standing Sioux who don't want the pipeline construction on their land

Fight: Shailene spent Thanksgiving at the protesters camp at Standing Rock Sioux Reservation in North Dakota where she was arrested in October and charged with criminal trespass

Drumming up support: The actress has been vocal in her support of the Sioux and posts messages of support and videos on her Facebook page

Hands dirty: Many celebs have been vocal, but Shailene was one of the few who physically made a stand

Charged: She has pleaded not guilty to criminal trespass and engaging in a riot, both misdemeanors that carry a maximum punishment of a month in jail and a $1,500 fine

Woodley was arrested in October as she took part in protests against the pipeline construction set to run through the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and under the Missouri River.

She has pleaded not guilty to criminal trespass and engaging in a riot, both misdemeanors that carry a maximum punishment of a month in jail and a $1,500 fine.

Woodley was to stand trial on Jan. 25. Court documents show trial has been rescheduled for Feb. 22 because her attorney had a conflict.

The Standing Rock Sioux want construction of the $3.8 billion pipeline halted, saying it threatens drinking water and cultural sites. Nearly 470 people have been arrested in months of protests supporting the tribe.

Ongoing: She was to stand trial on Jan. 25. Court documents show trial has been rescheduled for Feb. 22 because her attorney had a conflict

Native American protest: Sunday's march led by members of the Sioux Nation ended at the Washington Monument

Speaking out: The 25-year-old shared this photo and message to her Twitter and Instagram Saturday after arriving in the nation's capital

Protest: Shailene Woodley criticized the Thanksgiving holiday in a video she posted Thursday saying it perpetuates 'false narratives' about native Americans
Twitter went into overdrive on Sunday night, after controversial act Honey G was voted off the X Factor and politician Ed Balls got the boot from Strictly.

Aspiring rap act Honey G managed to make it through to the eighth week of the singing contest despite widespread backlash.

And Ed's quick-stepped it through ten weeks of the dance contest, with many crediting his amusing but gawky moves.

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Finally! Twitter went into overdrive on Sunday night, after controversial act Honey G was voted off the X Factor and politician Ed Balls got the boot from Strictly Come Dancing

One viewer tweeted: 'Ed Balls and Honey G sent packing. Sanity returns to the voting public. Quick let's have a second referendum,'

One viewer tweeted: 'Ed Balls and Honey G sent packing. Sanity returns to the voting public. Quick let's have a second referendum.'

Another wrote: 'Common sense is coming back. Honey G out of X Factor and Ed Balls out of Strictly. Time for Brexit 2.0'.

'Honey G and Ed Balls gone. It's been a long time but the public have finally woken up to the dangers of voting for the fun stupid choice', another wrote.

And one jolly tweeter added: 'Ed Balls and Honey G out.I'm seriously considering getting the party poppers out'.

Dance off: Judge Rinder and Ed Balls went head-to-head, with the panel unanimously saving the former

Foxtrotting his way off the show: Ed became the tenth act to be voted of the dance contest

Emotional farewell: Tess Daly bid hin goodbye as dance parter Katya welled up

Ed, who was bottom of Strictly's leader board for nine out of the ten weeks, was voted out by a unanimous panel on Sunday night , ending up in a dance-off after receiving two of the lowest voting numbers from the public.

The former MP, 49, did his best tango to the Rolling Stones, (I can't Get no) Satisfaction, but Craig Revel-Horwood, Darcey Bussell, Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli were united in their choice to save Judge Rinder and Oksana.

David Cameron took to Twitter to mourn his exit, writing: 'Strictly won't be the same without you!'.

But Ed has faced criticism for keeping his place on the show for so long, with Darcey admitting just days ago she would give him the boot if given the deciding vote.

It's over: Aspiring rap act Honey G managed to make it through to the eighth week of the singing contest despite widespread backlash

Even Alan Sugar got in on the action, complaining that he was 'losing all faith' in the BBC One show.

He wrote: Len telling public to vote for @edballs because he is entertaining. He can't dance but he's entertaining !Isn't this a dance contest?'

Aware of the criticism he has received from The Apprentice star, Ed tweeted on Wednesday: 'Hey @Lord_Sugar - I'll match your Dance-Off and raise you a Dirty Dancing lift.. You on? Any night on @bbcstrictly #ItTakesTwo.'

Comedy factor: Politician Ed Balls managed to make it through ten weeks of the dance contests, with many crediting his amusing but gawky moves

Meanwhile Honey G's artistic talent was questioned by singing sensation John Legend, Lily Allen and Professor Green who branded her a gimmick.

'Im not black but I find it offensive,' Lily saidduring an interview with DJ Annie Mac on Radio 1's The Exchange

'As far as I can tell, she is a white lady that dresses up in Ali G, Goldie Lookin Chain kind of attire.

On Sunday Honey G was evicted from the X Factor after eight weeks on the show.

The controversial act went head-to-head in a sing-off with 5 After Midnight, but was voted off by Simon Cowell, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh.

Leaving the show, the aspiring rapper admitted: 'The X Factor team is amazing, this has been the most amazing experience of my life, to everyone who doubted me, I'm standing here and made it this far.'

RIP! Not everyone was happy to see sympathetic act Ed Balls go

EX-Factor: Honey G has been evicted from the X Factor after eight weeks on the show

Sunday night's X Factor Results show saw the final five acts face the public vote after singing twice to make it to the semi-finals next week.

Louis Walsh's 5 After Midnight, Nicole Sherzinger's Matt Terry, Sharon Osbourne's Saara Aaalto and Honey G and Simon Cowell's Emily Middlemas battled it out in the live episode.

And boyband Busted, as well as Clean Bandit ft Anne Marie and Sean Paul all took to the stage to perform.

Honey hug: Dermot bid farewell to Honey G as talented trio 5 After Midnight breathed a sigh of relief

When I say Honey, you say bye! The controversial act went head-to-head in a sing-off with 5 After Midnight, but was voted off by Simon Cowell, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh

'The X Factor team is amazing, this has been the most amazing experience of my life, to everyone who doubted me, I'm standing here and made it this far' Honey G said

Nicole brought her usual glamour in a white halterneck jumpsuit with a floor-length train, Sharon shimmered in an olive semi sheer dress, and Louis and Simon looked chic suited and booted.

All five acts opened the show together, belting out Elton John's Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting.

Dancing around the panel in coordinated black and red ensembles, the last competing acts put on a live performance, with Saara taking on the majority of the solo parts and Honey G taking a step back from the singing following Saturday's drama.

United: Louis Walsh's 5 After Midnight, Nicole Sherzinger's Matt Terry, Sharon Osbourne's Saara Aaalto and Honey G and Simon Cowell's Emily Middlemas opened Sunday night's X Factor show together, belting out Elton John's Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting

Glam team: Nicole brought her usual glamour in a white halterneck jumpsuit with a floor-length train, Sharon shimmered in an olive semi sheer dress, and Louis and Simon looked chic suited and booted

Next Busted sent pulses racing in the audience as they performed their latest hit On What You're On alongside dramatic acrobat dancers.

The band named Saara as their favourite, though one member named 5 After Midnight.

Following the performance the five acts faced the public vote.

Limelight: Saara took on the majority of the solo parts and Honey G taking a step back from the singing following Saturday's drama

Sher-sizzling! Nicole turned heads in a silk one-piece with her hair piled high on her head

Autumnal: Sharon stuck with olive, having worn a stunning green dress on Saturday night

Saara Aalto was named as the first safe act, screaming in excitement, followed by last boy in the competition Matt Terry, a bookies' favourite.

The third act saved by the public was Emily Middlemas, leaving 5 After Midnight and Honey G to battle it out in the sing-off, decided by the judges' panel.

Nicole admitted they had a 'batshizzle bananas' Saturday night, which was 'Louis loves' themed.

Ahead of their battle to stay in the show, Louis defended 5 After Midnight being in the bottom two, reminding the audience of their talent, while Sharon persuaded the booing audience that Honey G was 'unique.'

Suave: Simon and Louis looked suave in crisp dapper suits

'We vote Saara Aalto' Clean Bandit revealed following their performance alongside Anne Marie and Sean Paul

Hi Honey: Honey G came out with her arms raised at the beginning of the night

'Honey G is talented in a different way to the other acts', she stammered.

Next up was Clean Bandit performing with Anne Marie and Sean Paul, getting the crowd going with hit number 1 hit RockaBye.

Clean Bandit also named Saara Aalto as their favourite act, ignoring Dermot O'Leary's hints at Honey G.

Following their performance, Honey G and 5 After Midnight went head-to-head in a tense sing-off.

Dressed in a red patterned jumper and matching trainers, along with her trademark cap and sunglasses, Honey G came out with her hands raised.

Showing them how it's done! Busted sent pulses racing in the audience as they performed their latest hit On What You're On alongside dramatic acrobat dancers

'They're talented: Busted voted for Saara Aalto and 5 After Midnight following their show

Versatile: 5 After Midnight showed off their pop-ready side as all the acts joined together in red and black coordinated ensembles

She attempted rap legend Tupac's California hit, adding in 'mash it up' and spelling out her name as usual, strutting around the stage.

Next up were talented trio 5 After Midnight, who performed a gimmick-free cover of Labrinth's Beneath your beautiful, harmonising to the screams of the crowd.

Louis chose 5 After Midnight, branding them the next big thing: 'Honey you've had a great run but it's time to go home,' he said.

'Against all odds Honey has been here 8 weeks,' Sharon persuaded viewers to the boos of crowds, championing her act Honey G and sending 5 After Midnight home.

Talent! Clean Bandit performed with Anne Marie and Sean Paul, getting the crowd going with hit number 1 hit RockaBye

Dutty! Sean Paul got the crowd going and Clean Bandit named him as their long time idol

'Finally!' Twitter was flooded with viewers' reaction to the controversial act's elimination

Bit of al-white! Nicole looked stunning in a white wedding-inspired ensemble

Nicole backed 5 After Midnight, adding: 'Honey I'm sher-mazed you made it this far, you're such a fighter but I'm sorry I'm sending you home'.

Leaving Simon with the deciding vote, he said: '5 After Midnight you shouldn't be in the final two, Honey you've got guts but here's my issue. The public expect me to do the right thing, you've gone as far as you can, the act I'm going to save is 5 After Midnight', ending Honey G's unexpected lengthy run on the show.

Next week's semi final show will see a Christmas themed show.

Saturday night's show almost descended into chaos as pranksters stormed the stage in an apparent attempt to remove Honey G's trademark hat and glasses.

Racy! The revealing piece showed off the full expanse of Nicole's toned tanned back

Battling it out: Honey G and 5 After Midnight went head-to-head in a tense sing-off

Backing his boys: Louis chose 5 After Midnight, branding them the next big thing: 'Honey you've had a great run but it's time to go home,' he said

'Honey I'm sher-mazed you made it this far, you're such a fighter but I'm sorry I'm sending you home': Nicole voted for 5 After Midnight

'The act I'm going to save is 5 After Midnight', Simon cast the deciding vote, ending Honey G's unexpected lengthy run on the show

Simon Cowell was seen looking horrified as the camera stayed off-stage during the kerfuffle, while the judging panel attempted to remain calm.

The third act to perform was controversial contestant Honey G, Sharon's second Overs act, with You Can't Touch This by MC Hammer.

Showing off her dance moves alongside a large group of background dancers, Honey G matched her trademark cap to her trousers, finishing her performance to cheers from the panel.

Suddenly, Simon Cowell leapt up in horror and a security guard was seen running to assist as an audience member stormed the stage.

The camera zoned in on the panel and Nicole was seen looking equally shocked, while Louis and Sharon tried to distract from the goings-on onstage.

Behind the scenes chaos ensued as several audience members attempted to storm the stage and remove Honey's cap and glasses - one grabbing the microphone - but thankfully the situation was quickly dealt with.

After their attempt to unmask her failed, the camera returned to the stage, Honey G appeared composed and the panel took their seats appearing shell-shocked.

Scary! Saturday night's X Factor live show almost descended into chaos as members of the audience stormed the stage in an apparent attempt to remove controversial contestant Honey G's trademark hat and glasses

Shock! Simon Cowell was seen standing up in horror as the camera stayed off-stage during the kerfuffle, while the judging panel attempted to remain calm

'I'm so sorry about that,' Simon reassured before adding, 'at one point I thought it was part of the act'.

'See, you drive people wild with excitement!', Sharon laughed as the panel settled back down.

Dermot added: 'We had a stage invasion, three punks thought they could come on and take on Honey G. Nah, I don't think so.'

And Simon added: 'Forget that. You've got a second song. Don't let that bother you. Come back believing you are a star.'

An X Factor spokesperson told MailOnline: 'There was a stage invasion by four men, with one further person in support. All five had been in the audience. They were spoken to by police and security and have now been removed from the studio.'

'Devo!' Not everyone was happy about Honey G getting the boot
She made her name as the darling of Summer Bay, but now Kate Ritchie is in search for a grittier role.

The former Home And Away star told TV Week that she is ready to get back on the small screen after enjoying a post-soap career in radio.

'My goal is to work in drama sooner rather than later,' Kate explained, before sharing her love for the idea of joining prison drama Wentworth.

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True grit: Kate Ritchie says she wants to get back on the small screen in a gritty drama like Wentworth

'It would mix it up a bit,' the 38-year-old said of getting fake tattoos and a shaved head for an inmate role.

'No-one would recognise me!'

Kate's radio career began shortly after leaving her long-running role on Home And Away, in 2008, when she joined the Nova FM breakfast show.

Inmate: Kate would love to get some tattoos and a shaved head for a role in Wentworth

Throwback: Kate puts on her Summer Bay High uniform after playing Sally Fletcher on Home And Away for over 20 years

She played the character of Sally Fletcher for 20 years, 19882008, and briefly reprised the role in 2013 to mark the soap's 25th anniversary.

Speaking about the long-lasting impact Home And Away, Kate admitted toThe Daily Telegraph that the show gave her a 'great foundation' for her career.

'It's really comforting to know that the show continues to go from strength to strength.

Radio star: Kate with her Nova FM co-hosts Tim and Marty

'I don't think I'll ever find anything like that again. It's a very special and unique place to work.'

Kate's currently the co-host on the Kate, Tim and Marty drive time show on Nova, but over the years has appeared in various other acting roles.

In 2009 she was nominated for a Australian Film Institute Award for her supporting actress role in Underbelly: A Tale Of Two Cities.

She appeared in the 2010 police drama Cops L.A.C. as Samantha Cooper and a few years later appeared in Mr & Mrs Murder and It's A Date.

Classic: Kate starred opposite the late Heath Ledger in Home And Away




Bachelor's Megan Marx gushed over her girlfriend Tiffany Scanlon on social media in a post which saw the girls meet up in Western Australia.

The sun kissed reality stars beamed as they stood together at Bather's Beach House in Fremantle in plunging figure hugging ensembles.

Megan posted a picture of herself holding Tiffany complimenting the 29-year-old Training Administrator for her 'adventurous and fun' qualities.

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In love: Bachelor's Megan Marx gushed over her girlfriend Tiffany Scanlon on social media in a post which saw the girls meet up in Western Australia

'I want Tiffany to be considered bold/inspiring not because of her sexuality or relationship status.

'But because she is adventurous and fun and warm and delicate, and full of a love for others and life that sometimes I cannot relate to.'

Posting the same picture Tiffany wrote: 'The way she looks at me makes me feel like I'm the most beautiful person in the whole wide world!

Australia's favourite Bachelor couple stepped out for an evening of glamour and fashion as they sat front row for the Natalie Rolt Designs runway show.

'My first time sitting front row': The sun kissed reality stars beamed as they stood together at Bather's Beach House in Fremantle in plunging figure hugging ensembles for a fashion show

Tiffany took to social media to express excitement commenting: 'At the Swimwear and Resort Series for @telstraperthfashionfestival.

'Was such a great show and my first time sitting front row! Gorgeous models, gorgeous designs, gorgeous setting!'

Meanwhile, Tiffany and Megan have been touring Australia's hottest tourist destinations and visited their fellow Bachelor rejects in Sydney earlier this month.

In a picture from an outing at Bondi Beach, a bikini-clad Tiffany and Megan can be seen posing behind a hat as Megan holds her girlfriends knee.

Beach babes: In a picture from an outing at Bondi Beach, a bikini-clad Tiffany and Megan can be seen posing behind a hat as Megan holds her girlfriends knee

Speaking exclusively to Daily Mail Australia at Maxim's Hot 100, Tiffany told how they confessed their love for each other on holiday in Bali, Indonesia in June.

'While we were in the show, it was just a friendship. It probably wasn't until we were in Bali together that it was like ''Oh, this is more'',' said Tiffany.

Her partner Megan also confessed she wasn't expecting to fall for another woman while filming the TV dating series, starring Richie Strahan.

'We had very different experiences when we were on the show. Obviously I found Tiffany very attractive but I was there to get to know Richie,' she said.

'Oh this is more': Speaking exclusively to Daily Mail Australia at Maxim's Hot 100, Tiffany told how they confessed their love for each other on holiday in Bali, Indonesia in June

'But instantly we knew there was a very strong connection. I was so excited to meet her in Bali,' Megan added.

The couple revealed 'no one seemed to notice' they had become more than friends during that fateful holiday - and it took 'months' for anyone to find out.

'It started in June and it wasn't until October that people noticed! So it was quite a long time,' Tiffany revealed.

The pair met while competing for Richie Strahan's heart on the fourth season of the Bachelor earlier this year - on which he fell in love with single mother Alex Nation.
He's been making the most of life as a singleton, reportedly enjoying dates with Perrie Edwards and Chloe Lewis this year.

And now The Sun reports that Skins star Luke Pasqualino, 26, enjoyed a secret rendezvous with TOWIE star Jess Wright, 31, around the time he was filming steamy scenes with her brother Mark's wife Michelle Keegan, 29, for Our Girl.

According to the publication the duo enjoyed a series of dates, before Jess 'lost interest branding him a player'.

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Score! Luke Pasqualino, 26, reportedly enjoyed a secret rendezvous with TOWIE star Jess Wright, 31

'Luke's really been playing the field this year and taking advantage of being single but dating Jess was a real surprise,' a source told the paper.

'They both tried to keep their romance under wraps but it didn't take long before she saw through him and pulled the plug.'

MailOnline has contacted their representatives for comment.

Their reported liaison was around the time Michelle and Luke were filming hit drama Our Girl amid reports Luke was keen to avoid questions around their working relationship, to avoid fueling rumours to do with her marriage to Mark.

Complicated: The dates reportedly happend around the time he was filming steamy scenes with Jess' brother Mark's wife Michelle Keegan, 29, for Our Girl

However Michelle was quick to dismiss any talk of tension, revealing on This Morning at the time: 'Everyone makes a big deal of [Mark seeing this content] but he's seen me kiss loads of guys.

She explained: 'My Coronation Street character went with a lot of guys. It's my job, I can't just turn around and say, "I don't want to do this."'

Revealing her mum and dad's reaction wasn't as chilled, she laughed: 'With parents watching its so cringe! We had a screening a couple of days ago in Manchester and my parents came, but luckily I wasnt sat anywhere near them, but my brother was and it's one of the first opening scenes.

Awks? Michelle and Luke were filming hit drama Our Girl amid reports Luke was keen to avoid questions around their working relationship, to avoid fueling rumours to do with her marriage to Mark

Hitting back: Michelle was also keen to speak out about the reports her marriage to Mark was faltering, as she dismissed the rumours as 'silly', and 'frustrating'

'My brother said he didnt look at them once and there was silence. So yeah it was quite embarrassing!'

Michelle was also keen to speak out about the reports her marriage to Mark was faltering, as she dismissed the rumours as 'silly', and 'frustrating.'

Explaining why she didn't wear her wedding ring whilst she was apart from her husband and filming in South Africa, she explained: I was living in hotel rooms at the time so I just didn't bring [my ring] with me in case it got stolen.'
She's a sucker for a good pun, often seen posting pictures on Instagram captioned with a quirky quip for her 155,000 followers.

And when professional wood chopper Brad De Losa brought in a huge log to the set of Sunrise, Sam Armytage couldn't help but take the opportunity to poke some fun.

Taking to Instagram Sam, who was seen holding one end of a huge saw, captioned the image: 'I wood have a go...But I'm board with all this.'

'I wood have a go...But I'm board with all this': Sam Armytage, 40, captions yet another snap with a hilarious pun as she poses for a photograph with world champion wood choppers

The humorous television personality continued: 'And my shoulder is saw (sic, sic, sic!). I'll leave it to the experts ... the Chopperoos our newest world champs!'

Beaming beside the world champion wood choppers, Sam cut a svelte figure in a black dress with white stitching detail which ran down the front.

Beside her four men posed, two in black T-Shirt's which read Chopperoos, another in a green and gold jersey and her co-host Mark Berretta.

But this isn't the first time the popular television anchor has tapped into her punny side often captioning pictures with humorous tags.

'I think I talked my way out of a piece of coal this Christmas': Sam appeared all smiles as she donned a pair of reindeer ears and antlers for a festive snap with Santa Claus

In a recent picture posted by Sam, the breakfast television host wrote, 'I think I talked my way out of a piece of coal this Christmas', as she posed with Santa.

Sam appeared all smiles as she donned a pair of reindeer ears and antlers for the festive snap.

Another post saw Sam at Australia's Dreamworld on Tiger Island which she captioned: 'Crouching TV host, hungry Tiger.'

'Crouching TV host, hungry Tiger': Another post saw Sam at Australia's Dreamworld crouching beside a tiger and playing on the title of kungfu movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Sam crouched down for the hilarious shot, playing on the movie title, Crouching tiger, Hidden Dragon directed by Ang Lee.

Earlier this year the blonde haired beauty went into overdrive captioning a picture of herself and David Koch holding eggs: 'Eggs-ceptional circumstances Australia!'

'Omelette'in y'all know, there's an egg-shortage we cannot egg-nore. We're consuming 16 million Bum-Nuts a day.

'Eggs-ceptional circumstances Australia!': Earlier this year the blonde haired beauty went into overdrive captioning a picture of herself and David Koch holding eggs with a long list of puns

'Hens are averse to laying on these cold winter mornings (who could blame them?!) So they're as rare as, well ... Hen's teeth. Treat them like gold & don't whisk it.'

But Sam's quick wit hasn't always made it onto social media with the 40-year-old drawing a blank when posed with canoeing champion Jessica Fox.

'I can't think of any boat puns, canoe?' she wrote.

'I can't think of any boat puns, canoe?': But Sam's quick wit hasn't always made it onto social media with the 40-year-old drawing a blank when posed with canoeing champion Jessica Fox

Before gushing over the young Australian athletes spectacular gold medal win.

Despite her quick wit and warm personality as seen on Sunrise, Sam has remained steadfastly single since splitting with playboy hotelier Peter De Angelis.

She has previously confessed to dating 'dangerous guys' and admitted to looking to her father Mac as a role model.
She spends hours each week in the makeup chair, getting dolled up for her live cross on national television.

Now The Morning Show host Kylie Gillies has expressed her shock after a social media filter was used over one of her photos.

While sharing a selfie of herself and the show's producer Alison Brown, the 49-year-old wrote: 'I went out on Friday and I lost something. About 20 years off my face.'

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Comparing the difference: The Morning Show host Kylie Gillies has expressed her shock after a social media filter was used over one of her photos, left. A photo Kylie posted earlier, right

In the shared frame, Kylie was pictured with smooth skin and a bronzed tan as well as piercing blue eyes.

'#TMS7 Producer Alison took this selfie...and I praised her lighting. She laughed "That's not lighting, it's a SnapChat filter",' the TV host continued to explain.

'Resisting the urge to download the app IMMEDIATELY and use on all future posts, it got me thinking.

Back in time: While sharing a selfie of herself and the show's producer Alison Brown, the 49-year-old wrote: 'I went out on Friday and I lost something. About 20 years off my face'

Fighting back: The TV presenter admitted she had to resist 'the urge to download the app IMMEDIATELY and use on all future posts'

'Gorgeous Alison is in her mid 20's and looks like this anyway. I don't...and y'all know it...so who am I kidding?

'Sure, I'll continue to chase the good light, turn up the brightness, pop an elbow so I don't have fat arms in pics and occasionally do a quarter-body-hide behind someone else. Oh, and have my make-up done by a pro!

'But as for the "Snapchat" beauty filter. It's a fib. And it doesn't feel right,' she continued to rant to her 79,000 followers.

Kylie concluded her rant: 'So, I'll see you tomorrow on @morningshowon7 when you'll see I've certainly "found" those missing 20 years. Xx.'

Keeping it natural: But she explained she has decided to simply 'continue to chase the good light, turn up the brightness, pop an elbow so I don't have fat arms in pics'

Praise: Fans of the Channel Seven reporter took to the post to praise her for deciding to stick to her natural beauty

Fans of the Channel Seven reporter took to the post to praise her for deciding to stick to her natural beauty.

'Keeping it real! You're a role model Kylz,' one wrote, while another posted: 'You are gorgeous Kylie!! Let's all age gracefully!! Spoken by someone a little older than you!!'

A different follower added: 'Well said. You look beautiful just the way you are. Too much time is spent these days trying to look wrinkle free.

'I just took my filter off my selfie's cause I was sick of looking totally wrinkle free.'
She's the food blogger who found herself at the centre of rumours she is dating one of television's most eligible bachelors.

And while Sofia Levin has issued a fresh rebuttal to any romance with Karl Stefanovic, she has admitted the pair share a platonic relationship.

In an interview with Woman's Day on Monday, the 27-year-old said she and Karl text and FaceTime each other several times a week.

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We are friends: In a new interview with Woman's Day, Food blogger Sofia Levin denies she is romantically involved with Karl Stefanovic, however, admits the pair are friends who text and FaceTime regularly

'Yes, we FaceTime and text each other, but I don't believe my relationship with Karl is at all inappropriate - I didn't known him when he was with his wife,' Sofia said.

'We're just friends. I'm in the middle of planning my wedding!'

The foodie is engaged to longtime partner Matt John, who also laughed off claims of a romance between Sofia and Karl saying: 'I've hung out with Karl and Sofia together.'

Texting buddies? Sofia continues to insist her relationship with Karl is completely platonic

Blossoming friendship: Karl met Sofia after she made a guest appearance on the Channel Nine breakfast program in September

She met Karl in September during an appearance on the Today show.

'We just got along really well and have stayed in touch,' Sofia said.

Friends of Karl's estranged wife, Cassandra Thorburn, previously told the publication she was the brunette in the middle of the couple's fights over FaceTime calls.

Denial: A Channel Nine rep told Daily Mail Australia last week the pair were not in a relationship

Friendship: Sofia has said the pair are just friends and have hung out together with her fiance Matt

Last week, New Idea claimed Karl had developed a crush on Sofia after she made a guest appearance on the Channel Nine breakfast program several weeks ago.

'Karl loves how free and easy Sofia is - she's a lot of fun,' the magazine's insider claimed.

The story was strongly denied by his representative.

Karl, 42, split from his wife of 21 years Cassandra earlier this year and will be taking a break from his television duties over the summer.

When contacted about Sofia's claims she was friends with Karl, a Channel Nine Spokesperson said: 'Articles suggesting any "new" relationships are 100% untrue, and incredibly hurtful to all of those mentioned in the articles.'
A phalanx of models from Kendall Jenner to both Hadid sisters descended on Paris at the weekend for the upcoming Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

One Victoria's Secret Angel, however, has decided to sit out Wednesday's extravaganza, which is being held in France for the first time.

Having given birth to her first daughter in September, Behati Prinsloo will stay off the catwalk, but told the other models on Instagram: 'Love you all, have fun in Paris and see you next year!!!!'

'Love you all, have fun in Paris and see you next year!!!!!': On Sunday, Behati Prinsloo posted an Instagram photo of herself on the catwalk at the 2014 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, revealing in her caption that she will be skipping the 2016 edition

The 27-year-old's Instagram photo saw her dressed as an golden angel, complete with enormous curving wings and intricately strapped boots.

Her vertiginous legs were on generous display, and her metallic gold-coloured top featured several gaps that showed off her enviably flat midriff.

In 2007, she walked her first Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, which that year was held in Los Angeles. She's walked every year since, having become an Angel in 2009.

Longtime fixture: She's walked every Victoria's Secret Fashion Show since 2007, and became a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2009; she's pictured here at the 2011 show in New York City

Her caption reminisced about that first experience, recalling: 'Opening the #vsfashionshow for the first time was a dream come true opening twice in a row was just NUTS, still pinching myself.'

In the intervening time, the Grootfontein native married Adam Levine in 2014, and gave birth to his daughter Dusty Rose two months ago.

The baby got a name-check in Sunday's Instagram caption, wherein her mother wrote: 'To the girls and crew, good luck in Paris, me and Dusty Rose will be cheering.'

Family woman: In September, the 27-year-old gave birth to her daughter Dusty Rose, who's her first child by her husband Adam Levine

She noted: 'I know the blood sweat and tears that goes into the making of this show and also being in it, this would have been my 10th year,' throwing in a shocked monkey emoji before adding: 'I can't believe it.'

Among the Victoria's Secret Angels who on Sunday posted an Instagram photo of herself preparing to fly out of New York City alongside some Angel confreres.

Names including Elsa Hosk, Romee Strijd, Stella Maxwell, Lily Aldridge and Adriana Lima waved the French tricolor as they posed in the brand's crop tops.

Out of LA: Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid were spotted alighting in Paris together on Sunday, where both of them will walk during the show
Evan Rachel Wood said she was 'craving danger and excitement' at age 18 when she started dating much older rocker Marilyn Manson.

The 29-year-old actress discussed her relationship with Manson, 47, in a recent article in Rolling Stone.

The Westworld star said she went to the Chateau Marmont Hotel in West Hollywood, Califronia and met Manson, who was 36 at the time and married to Dita Von Teese.

Past romance: Evan Rachel Wood, shown last month in New York City, discussed her relationship with much older rocker Marilyn Manson in a recent interview

'I met somebody that promised freedom and expression and no judgments,' she said.

'And I was craving danger and excitement. I looked at my mother one day and said, ''Mom, I'm gonna get on this tour bus for eight months and see the world and have a crazy journey and find myself, and if people aren't OK with that, I'm sorry, but I can't live my life for other people'',' Wood added.

The Thirteen star said she was trying to figure out her own identity at the time.

'Then you're demonized for figuring it out and getting messy. People would call me a whore when I walked down the street, and you can't not be hurt by that,' she said.

Former couple: The actress is shown with rocker Manson in September 2007 in New York City

Wood also was attracted to Manson while they were on and off from 2007 to 2010 for his androgyny and after they split she announced in 2011 that she was bisexual.

She posted a 19-minute online video in June two days before the shooting at the Pulse gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida.

Wood in the video talked about the high rates of suicide attempts among bisexual women and the high rate of violence by partners against bisexual women.

Multiple talents: Wood, shown last month in New York City, also performs with the band Rebel And A Basketcase

The Wrestler star said she's grown the most since having her three-year-old son with ex-husband actor Jamie Bell.

'I had my son, and that changed everything. It got me out of my own s***. I just couldn't be what I was not,' she said.

Wood has earned rave reviews for her portrayal of sentient android Dolores Abernathy in HBO's Westworld.

Mother of one: The Thirteen star is shown with her son in January 2014 in Los Angeles

She's been nominated for a Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series.

HBO earlier this month renewed Westworld for a 10-episode second season.

Wood also previously starred on ABC's Once And Again and played the Vampire Queen of Louisiana on HBO's True Blood.
As Los Angeles finally admitted it was autumn and began to cool down, Kate Beckinsale stylishly adjusted to the chill.

The 43-year-old was spotted on Sunday stepping out of her home in Pacific Palisades wrapped in an elegant checked shawl.

As she descended the stone steps toward the street, her 69-year-old mother Judy Loe could be seen smiling behind her.

Stepping out: Kate Beckinsale cut a chic figure as she left her Pacific Palisades home Sunday

The Love & Friendship star's brown hair was bundled up into a high ponytail, and she accessorised with black cat-eye sunglasses.

A black turtlenecked jumper matched a pair of black trousers that draped about her enviably svelte legs. Black stilettos rounded out the look, complementing a bit of black lining on the shawl that appeared to be made of fur, either real or faux.

Meanwhile, the Urmston-born Casualty actress was bedecked in head-to-toe black offset by a pair of white trainers.

Family time: The 43-year-old's mother, Casualty actress Judy Loe, was spotted descending the steps behind her daughter

Beckinsale will shortly be appearing in Underworld: Blood Wars, the fifth entry in the action horror franchise that began with Underworld in 2003.

The Chiswick native's appeared in all of the prior films as the vampire gunslinger Selene, and was the leading lady of the first, second and fourth.

Len Wiseman, whom she was married to from 2004 until this year, directed the first two films and has been a producer on all of them, including Blood Wars.

Prepared for the chill: The Chiswick native's checked shawl appeared to be lined with a bit of fur, whether real or faux

Though her role squeezes her into a skintight black catsuit unforgiving of any extra weight, Beckinsale dished this weekend that her worry is in fact being too thin.

'Nobody wants to be terribly skinny with a catsuit hanging off them,' she told The Sun, dishing that 'I eat more when Im in catsuit-mode or Id never get through the gym sessions.'

She did concede: 'Theres always the fear Ill overdo it, though, and its a bit like putting on your wedding dress every five years or so. Does it still fit or am I fat?'

Incoming: She'll shortly be appearing in Underworld: Blood Wars, the fifth film in an action horror franchise that began with Underworld in 2003

When pulling the thing on, 'You have to have another person there because you cant do up your own corset. Someone has to put their foot in my back and wrench it tighter and all that embarrassing stuff.'

Having released on Wednesday in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia and Kazakhstan, Underworld: Blood Wars will continue opening in various countries over the rest of November and during the early bits of December and January.

The film will finally arrive in American cinemas on January 6th and in British and Irish cinemas a week later.
She said back in September that she would getting corrective surgery on her nose.

Now it looks as though Keira Maguire may have gone through with the procedure, after showing off a rather different profile at the My Face My Body Awards.

Keira's nose seemed straighter than it had during her last red carpet appearance.

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New look: Keira Maguire showcases a subtly different face at the My Body My Face Awards (left) after confirming she would be getting a nose job

Different: Keira's face looked more streamlined than it did when she appeared on The Bachelor

The 29-year-old's nose wasn't the only aspect of her face that looked more streamlined as her jaw-line looked far more defined than usual.

The reality star has previously admitted to choosing a plastic surgeon in Double Bay, 'who was highly recommended' to her by close friends.

'I'm booked in to get corrective surgery on my nose,' the 29-year-old told WHO magazine.

Transformation: Keira looks different from her last red carpet appearance in October at Sony Foundation's Wharf 4 Ward 2016 event

Procedure: Keira admits to having lip fillers and her eyebrows feather tattooed

Keira's decision to have the rhinoplasty comes after her appearance on The Bachelor, where she became upset with how she looked on the reality show.

'When you see yourself on television, you just notice things and you end up picking yourself apart so much,' she explained.

The blonde beauty also admitted to the publication that this won't be the first time she's had a cosmetic procedure - confessing she has had lip fillers and her eyebrows feather tattooed.

Nose job buddies: Both Keira and former Big Brother contestant Skye Wheatley visited Sydney plastic surgeon's Dr Michael Zacharia's clinic recently

The Lara Bingle lookalike was spotted visiting prominent Sydney plastic surgeon's Dr Michael Zacharia's clinic recently, where she bumped into fellow reality star Skye Wheatley.

Keira has also looked to exercise to transform her appearance.

'I do a lot of barre  its really good for lengthening and toning the booty,' she told NW Online. 'So I do that three times a week and yoga twice a week. Ill do a strength class, too, probably once a fortnight.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Keira for comment.
Kylie Jenner may face a lawsuit for allegedly stealing her Kylie Cosmetics artwork from a California make-up artist.

Make-up artist Vlada Haggerty and her professional photographer have threatened to file a lawsuit following a similar situation last year, according to an article on Sunday by TMZ.

Vlada took to social media last December to point out striking similarities between make-up artwork she shared on Instagram and images shared by Kylie's Cosmetics.

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Lawsuit threatened: Kylie Jenner has come under fire for this recent image promoting her holiday collection

Seems familar: The image looks a lot like one shared by make-up artist Vlada Haggerty in September

Kylie's new holiday collection also includes a fresh ad that look nearlys identical to a photo shared by Haggerty on Instagram in September.

On September 24, Vlada  who has an Instagram following nearly a half million strong  posted a picture of a make-up look she created on model Britt Rafuson.

Shot by Julia Kuzmenko McKim, the image shows and open, pouty mouth with bold red lips, teeth just peeking through. The model's hands are crossed over her eyes and covered in a shiny gold powder. The stunning photo caught the attention of over 22,000 Instagram users.

And at least one of them may have been Kylie or a Kylie Cosmetics employee. Earlier this month, the brand's Instagram account uploaded a new campaign photo for the holiday collection, shot by photographer Marcelo Cantu (who also shot Kylie for campaign images).

Uh-oh! Vlada pointed out the similarities on Instagram after people started attacking Kylie in the comments

Dishonest: She chastised the brand for not giving her or her photographer credit

What a pro: Vlada has nearly half a million Instagram followers who love her creative cosmetics ideas

This photo also sees a close-up of a model's face, with pouty red lips, teeth just showing, and gold dust-covered hands placed over the eyes.

Fans  and Vlada herself  were quick to notice. Some followers commented on the Kylie Cosmetics image, charging that it was a 'cheap copy'. Many others commented with strings of snake emojis.

The same day, Vlada shared a side-by-side comparison of the photos on Instagram, highlighting their incredible similarities.

'Really @kyliecosmetics? Haven't you gotten enough "inspiration" from me already?' she wrote bitingly.

Noy nice: Last year, Kylie Cosmetics shared this image  created by Vlada  without attribution, passing it off as their own

Backtracking: Once she started pointing it out, Kylie Cosmetics took the image down

The former 'inspiration' Vlada referred to involves a similar scandal last year. When Kylie was poised to debut her metallic lip kits, she posted an image of several pouty mouths dripping with luxe rose gold gloss.

Except in this case, the picture wasn't even a recreation of one Vlada had shared  it was the exact image.

After the snap was picked up my several news outlets, Vlada pointed out that it was really stolen goods.

'And the insanity continues,' she wrote, shouting out to Graftobian Makeup Company, which made the products used in the image. 'What can we do about it? This is your loose metallic powder in Copper mixed with the clear gloss!'

Inspo: Vlada is known to post images of lips dripping with cosmetics, long before Kylie's brand debuted

Not taking blame: Kylie did not comment on the original controversy and has said nothing this time around, either

Soon after, websites started giving Vlada attribution, but Kylie's team never fixed the situation and simply deleted the image altogether.

'Nobody reached out to me before or after the incident. I did message the brand through Instagram on the day of the repost, but there was no response,' she told Refinery29 at the time.

'Crediting artists is essential, but this goes beyond that. It's theft; this is our livelihood...I see these things happen too many times to artists. We are all trying to make it, and this business is extremely competitive. I would ask anyone at this level use the proper channels to obtain images.'

Similar: Even Kylie's Lip Kit packaging looks like photos Vlada has posted

Not the first time: Earlier this year, a beauty vlogger with her own make-up line pointed out that Kylie's eyeshadow palette looked similar to her own

Kylie has also been accused of taking 'inspiration' for her products themselves, not just the artwork.

In July, New Zealand beauty vlogger Shaaanxo posted side-by-side photos of Kylie's then-new eyeshadow palette with her own palette for BH Cosmetics. Once again, the similarities were clear.
Advertisement

Jesinta and Buddy Franklin's honeymoon location was recently revealed as the Gold Coast, despite the city being awash with teenagers celebrating their final year of high school.

But now the spectacular waterfront home the newlyweds stayed in has been revealed, it's not hard to see why they made the choice.

With its own sandy beach and jetty, the five-bedroom bungalow sits in the exclusive suburb of Broadbeach, according to Yahoo Be.

Revealed: Jesinta and Buddy and Franklin's spectacular honeymoon bungalow on the Gold Coast has been revealed

A vast entertaining balcony boasts impressive water views, sunbeds, a swimming pool and a heated spa.

And if the couple grew bored of the stunning views, they could kick back in the cinema room, featuring a big screen and a PlayStation.

According to the agency which rents out the retreat, it encompasses: 'Everything required in a spectacular holiday home.

'The view is spell binding from the living areas and literally takes your breath away, ensuring you feel relaxed from the moment you step in.'

Stunning: With a private sandy beach and jetty, the five-bedroom bungalow sits in the exclusive suburb of Broadbeach

Picturesque: Their honeymoon location was recently revealed as the Gold Coast after it was kept under wraps, much like their secret wedding

It's got it all! The stunning holiday home has the perfect mix of relaxation and entertainment options

Jesinta and Buddy's wedding earlier this month was kept secret from the public and media until after the ceremony.

Until recently, the couple took an equally low-key approach to the honeymoon, offering fans just a few glimpses of coastline in their Instagram photos.

They managed to keep their exact location secret, until Queensland socialite Judy Brine shared a photo of herself with the couple on social media.

'Love these guys,' she wrote alongside a snap she shared on Instagram.

'Mr & Mrs Franklin': The couple tied the knot in a private ceremony in the New South Wales Blue Mountains on November 4

Spacious: The main living area (pictured) is just one of several living spaces the spectacular home boasts

Impressive: The master bedroom opens up to the outdoor living area, which has impressive water views

She notably declined to comment when approached by The Sunday Telegraph about their 'chance' meeting.

Eyebrows were raised when it was revealed Buddy and Jesinta had chosen the Gold Coast as their destination.

Their honeymoon coincided with Schoolies week, which saw thousands of youngsters flock to the city to celebrate finishing high school, with plenty of drinking and debauchery on display.

But judging by a series of loved-up snaps shared to Instagram this week, the happy couple are still basking in the joys of their new marriage.

Hush hush: Until recently, Buddy and Jesinta kept their honeymoon secret, offering fans just a few glimpses of coastline in their Instagram photos

Retreat: If the couple grew bored of the stunning view, they could kick back in the cinema room which features a big screen and a PlayStation

Outdoor dining: A vast entertaining balcony boasts impressive water views, a swimming pool and a heated spa

'That tropical feel': According to the agency which rents out the property, 'the outdoor bath has been included for that tropical Queensland feel

Buddy and Jesinta tied the knot in a private ceremony in the New South Wales Blue Mountains on November 4.

They confirmed the news at 1am the following morning, with Jesinta writing alongside a picture of the newlyweds: 'Mr & Mrs Franklin.'

Just minutes after announcing the news, the David Jones ambassador changed her name on Instagram to Jesinta Franklin.

The brunette beauty first rose to fame as the Australian representative at the Miss Universe 2010 beauty pageant.

She then capitalised on her success with several ambassador roles, modelling gigs, TV work and property investments.

One of five! The Broadbeach property, which is advertised 'from $440 per night' has a total of five bathrooms

Romantic: The bungalow includes a romantic outdoor bath, perfect for a hot summer's night

Fit for a king! All five bedrooms have a king size beds and televisions

According to the agent: 'The Nespresso coffee machine (George Clooney not included) will save you a three minute walk to the cafes'

Her public profile increased further when she accepted Buddy's marriage proposal almost two years ago.

Meanwhile, Buddy is widely considered one of the best AFL players of the modern era.

The superstar forward has played nearly 250 games for Hawthorn and Sydney and kicked 787 career goals.

He played in the 2008 and 2013 premierships at the Hawks before signing a nine-year deal worth $10million with the Swans.

It is the most lucrative player contract the AFL has ever seen.
BLACK REPUBLICAN BLOG - The Republican Party is the party of civil rights and the four Fs: faith, family, freedom and fairness. The Democratic Party is the party of the four Ss: slavery, secession, segregation and socialism (Quote By Author Michael Scheuer).
Tara gained terrifying insight into the blood-thirsty carnage of the Saviors on Sunday's episode of The Walking Dead.

The latest episode of the hit zombie show caught up with Tara and Heath, the duo last seen driving off from the satellite station outpost massacre for a supply run.

After being overwhelmed by zombies, they were separated as Tara fell off a bridge, finally washing up on a beach and stumbling across a mysterious new community called Oceanside.

Fan favourite: Tara returned on The Walking Dead on Sunday's episode and learned more about the savage rule of Negan and the Saviors

She was stunned to see it was made up completely of women, before one of them gave a chilling summary of what happened - with a potential warning of what could face the others in Alexandria under the rule of Negan and the Saviors.

'Every man, every boy over 10 - they lined them up, shot them in the head,' one of the Oceanside women, Beatrice, tearfully told Tara, played by Alanna Masterson.

'We tried to fight, just like you. They won,' Beatrice said.

Tara's supply run after the satellite station meant she was convinced her people had wiped out the Saviors, with her completely ignorant of the bloodshed Negan had imposed and the terrifying rule he now had over the group since she left.

She's back: The experienced scavenger wore sunglasses and was all smiles as she returned to Alexandria

But Beatrice warned her of what was to come 'You're people are dead. You have no idea what you started.'

'We didn't start anything, we ended it - they're dead,' Tara insisted, thinking the small group they killed at the satellite station was all of the Saviors.

'You didn't stop them,' Beatrice insisted. 'You can't stop them. That was just an outpost.

Gun control: Tara managed to overtake Beatrice and her rifle but didn't kill her

'There are more, more Saviors, more outposts. If they know about your friends it's already too late for them.'

Beatrice, played by Briana Venskus, also told her how the Oceanside women had escaped - perhaps also giving a hint as to what the group in Alexandria should do, too.

'We were supposed to keep working for them, then one night we just left. We got away. We are not going to let you lead them back to us. They get what they want.'

Their story: Tara listened as the women told her how the Saviors killed all of the men and boys over age 10 in their community

Earlier, when Tara had first been found washed up on the beach, one of the younger girls in the new community had been determined to kill her even when she realized she was human, insisting: 'We're supposed to. I want to.'

But the older girl she was with, Cyndie, played by Sydney Park, stopped her, later hiding Tara's body in a hidden part of the beach and leaving her water, a salted fish and even a spear.

After pretending she was unconscious, Tara then followed her to the new community, where she was soon ambushed by women who grabbed high-powered assault rifles from a shed heavily packed with weapons.

Single blow: Rachel killed a zombie on the beach while out with Cyndie

Tough girl: The youngster was going to kill washed up Tara also

Saved her: Cyndie saved Tara and left her water and a spear

They were clearly intent on killing her but Tara escaped by knocking down Beatrice but refusing to kill her.

The youngster from the beach, Rachel, finally pinned her down at gunpoint - with the other girl, Cyndie, once again stepping in the way and saving her life.

'Hi. I just er - I didn't mean to,' Tara laughed nervously as numerous guns were pointed at her. 'Look, I'm cool.'

Fully loaded: Rachel was all set to kill Tara a second time before Cyndie intervened again

The camp's leader Natania - also Cyndie's grandmother - later admitted that they have a shoot-to-kill policy on the camp because they are so terrified of being discovered by the Saviors.

'I'm hoping to convince you to stay. You're a skilled fighter, Tara, and a good person, I can tell,' Natania finally pleaded, adding: 'Tara, you could have hurt us and you didn't.'

After initially lying that she had worked on a fishing boat, Tara finally opened up about their 'community,' telling them: 'I have a girlfriend I want to get back to.'

Kill on sight: Natania explained that a skirmish with another group prompted their kill on sight policy

She also insisted: 'We've done things, just like you.'

After recounting the massacre of Saviors at the satellite station, she insisted: 'Those people got what they deserved. They chose to kill and to terrorize people.

'But that's not why we killed them. We didn't do it to make the world a better place - we did it because we wanted to stay alive. Just like you.

Done things: Tara told the women about her group's attack on the Saviors

'Maybe our groups can start working together.'

She also warned them: 'If you keep seeing everyone as an enemy then enemy's are all that you're gonna find. Sooner or later you're gonna need a friend.'

Realizing that she would not persuade her to stay willingly, Natania pretended to go along with the plan to join the two communities together, sending Beatrice and Cathy to help Tara get back to the bridge and find Heath.

So long: Natania sent Tara back with two escorts who were going to kill her in the woods

In the woods: Tara soon realized that Cathy and Beatrice were going to kill her

Finally realizing they were really planning to kill her in the woods, Tara used the appearance of a walker to try to run, before being held at gunpoint by Beatrice who filled her in about the horrors of the Saviors to explain why she had to kill her.

Just as Beatrice was about to kill her, Cyndie once again came to her rescue, before pointing her own weapon at her and threatening to kill her herself.

When Tara confidently said she was not about to shoot her, Cyndie asked: 'Because I saved you?'

Walking dead: Tara used a zombie to get away from Beatrice and Cathy

Males killed: Beatrice told Tara how the Saviors killed all the men and boys over age 10

'Three times now,'she answered flippantly. 'You're not going to shoot me.'

Instead, Cyndie got her to swear she would keep Oceanside a secret, before telling her: 'Nobody's evil - they just decide to forget who they are.'

'Some people are evil, Cyndie. I've seen it,' Tara insisted. 'That's why I have to get back.'

Evil people: Tara told Cyndie how some people are evil and swore not to tell anyone about Oceanside

She finally helped her to get back to the bridge where she fell off, acting as a sniper taking out the zombies who first overwhelmed her when she got there with Heath.

For a terrifying moment Tara thought she saw Heath in the walkers, before realizing it was actually a woman and her friend was no longer there, nor was their RV.

When she finally made it back to Alexandria, Rosita - one of those most eager to defy Rick and get guns to fight back against Negan and the Saviors - begged her for any leads she may have on possible weapons caches.

Good shot: Cyndie provided cover for Tara as she made her way back over the bridge

Sad welcome: Eugene Porter sadly welcomed Tara back to Alexandria

Seeking weapons: Rosita asked Tara if she came upon any weapons caches, but Tara kept the secret about Oceanside

But Tara, aware of the shed full of high-powered rifles at Oceanside, stayed true to her promise to Cyndie and refused to let on, insisting: 'I didn't see anything like that out there.'

While Heath, played by Corey Hawkins, was still missing at the end of the episode, before they were separated he had made it perfectly clear that he was struggling with the guilt of the satellite station killings.

'What we did, all of those people that we killed for some milk, and some corn?

Feeling guilty: Heath was struggling with guilt over the satellite station killings

'I know how it works. If it's you, or someone else, you chose you,' he added bitterly.

'You take what you can, you take out who you have to, and you get to keep on going. No one's in this together, not anymore,' Heath said.

'It only hurts because you know what you just said is total bulls***,' Tara told him. 'That's not you, Heath.'

'Tara that's me, and that's you, and that's everybody that wants to stay alive. That's the truth,' Heath insisted.

Zombies attack: Tara was surrounded by zombies as Heath tried to shoot them away from her
They're the hottest couple to come out season four of The Bachelor, after confessing their love for each other during a trip to Bali in June.

And on Saturday night, Megan Marx and Tiffany Scanlon put on their most loved up display yet, holding one another as they attended their first music festival together.

The blonde beauty's were seen walking around Elizabeth Quay in Perth for Arcadia, while flaunting their svelte figures in rock inspired ensembles.

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In love! The Bachelor's Megan Marx and Tiffany Scanlon put on their most loved up display yet, as they attended their first music festival together - Arcadia in Elizabeth Quay in Perth

Megan was every bit the doting girlfriend as she helped Tiffany step down from a ledge at one point before putting her arm around her and walking away.

The girls were seen rocking cropped black tops, while Tiffany paired her outfit with white shorts and Megan wore a striped yellow pencil skirt.

Both girls put on a leggy display as they enjoyed the electronic dance music festival in their hometown of Perth.

In pictures posted to Instagram the girls shared their excitement to their combined 203,000 fans following their journey throughout the day.

Cute: Megan was every bit the doting girlfriend as she helped Tiffany step down from a ledge at one point before putting her arm around her and walking away

One post saw the girls holding each other by the waist on Tiffany's Instagram with a caption which read: 'We are on the wayyyyyyy!'

'My hair had its first cut and colour since February and is on point.'

A video posted by Tiffany saw the girls yelling with excitement and dancing to the music on stage.

Tiffany captioned the picture: 'Last night was amaaaazzzzeeeeballssss!'

She's electric: Prior to the event Tiffany posted a picture in front of two giant statues of men holding what appeared to lightning rods with beams light between them

'Thanks @arcadiashowaus for bringing this eye orgasm to ma hood! Now to attempt to look somewhat presentable for the Perth Swimwear and Resort series this arvo.'

Prior to the event Tiffany posted a picture in front of two giant statues of men holding what appeared to lightning rods with beams light between them.

She wrote: 'Tonight is the night!!!! Cannot wait for #arcadiaaus. First music festival with my girl @megan.leto.marx come say hi if you see us!

'Just so everyone knows I informed Megs that that is electricity and of she touched it it would hurt. Diaclaimer: no humans were injured in the capturing of this shot.

'First music festival with my girl': In pictures posted to Instagram the girls shared their excitement to their combined 203,000 fans following their journey throughout the day

Megan posted a picture of herself before the festival and wrote: 'In Year Two when we had to write a story about what we wanted to be when we grow up.'

'I said either The Queen or a Spider (parents obviously encouraged unrealistic life goals).

'ANYWAY TODAY I GET TO HANG OUT WITH A MOTHER FCKN GIANT SPIDER AT ARCADIA! Come dance like a Queen (or Prince) with me and my girl...SEEYA THERE!'

Arcadia landed in Australia November for the first time and has three shows and community open days in Perth.
They were on again / off again in their 1994 film Reality Bites.

And 22 years later, Ethan Hawke and Winona Ryder appear to still be friends.

The duo reunited on Sunday night at a special screening of his film Born To Be Blue in New York.

Bites back: Ethan Hawke and Winona Ryder reunited on Sunday night 22 years after Reality Bites at a New York screening of Born To Be Blue

The actors looked genuinely delighted to see each other as the chatted animatedly and embraced warmly at the IFC Films event.

Winona went casual, going all black in a bomber jacket and minimal make-up, letting her brunette tresses down for the evening.

Ethan meanwhile rocked a very jazzy vibe in a pinstripe suit jacket and matching fedora.

Pals The actors looked genuinely delighted to see each other as the chatted animatedly and embraced warmly at the IFC Films event

In Born To Be Blue, Hawke plays Chet Baker, in a 'semi-factual, semi-fictional' account of the legendary jazz musician's life.

It recounts how he first became addicted to heroin, and how he hand his teeth smashed in by muggers during a robbery, which left him unable to play for months - two of the sadder factual events that befell the trumpeter.

Next up for Ethan is an as-yet-unspecified role opposite Carla Delevingne and Dane DeHaan in Luc Besson's Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, due 2017.

Netflix chill: Winona went casual, going all black in a bomber jacket and minimal make-up, letting her brunette tresses down for the evening

In character: Ethan meanwhile rocked a very jazzy vibe in a pinstripe suit jacket and matching fedora

Winona meanwhile is getting set to reprise her lauded role as Joyce Byers in the second season of the original Netflix smash hit Stranger Things.

Another blast from Winona's past making a comeback is the TV Land remake of her 1988 film, Heathers.

Shannen Doherty recently confirmed she had rejoined the cast, while Winona has yet to reveal if she will follow suit.

So 90s: Their 1994 cult classic was directed by Ben Stiller, who also starred
She was one of the five original, era-defining supermodels of the 1990s and has enjoyed a three decades as a catwalk queen.

And Naomi Campbell has given her blessing to the social media generation breed of models - including the likes of Kendall Jenner, 21, and sisters Gigi, 22, and Bella Hadid, 21 - who are carrying on her mantel.

Posing in a stunning shoot for Remix magazine's 'Icon Edition', Naomi, 46, said: 'I think they're great. I know all of these young girls, Instagram girls, and theyre all really respectful and sweet.

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Original: Naomi Campbell has given her blessing to the social media generation breed of models in a stunning shoot for Remix magazine's new 'Icon Edition'

'If I can ever help them, its a pleasure for me to do that. Ive helped a few of them with their walks.'

She added: 'I think it is a change in the industry. It seems to be that there are so many more models now and it is so much more competitive. It just seems to be that they come in and out much faster.

'There is a group of girls, I think, that have staying power. I never thought Id be doing it this long either.

'You love what you do so you do it to your best. If you dont like it, then dont do it. Its that simple.'

Naomi - who has struck up a close friendship with Bella Hadid, in particular - referred to the umbrella group of models taking the internet by storm, many of which have flown into Paris this week for the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

New breed: The supermodel, 46, praised the likes of 'Instagram girls' Gigi Hadid (L) and Kendall Jenner (R), both 21, as 'really respectful and sweet'

Icon: Naomi was one of the five original, era-defining supermodels of the 1990s and has enjoyed a three decades as a catwalk queen

Elegant: The British beauty looked fabulous in the edgy shoot, shot by photographer Gui Paganini

In spite of their success, they have faced criticism from some industry professionals, including model Stephanie Seymour, 47, who labelled Kendall and Gigi 'b*****s of the moment' earlier this year.

Runway goddess Naomi was regarded as one of the five original supermodels of the 90s alongside Christy Turlington, Claudia Schiffer, Linda Evangelista and Cindy Crawford.

Flaunting her incredible in a cleavage-enhancing sleeved bustier top, the British beauty looked fabulous in the edgy shoot - shot by photographer Gui Paganini - for the New Zealand fashion bible.

Speaking about her 'icon' status, Naomi told Remix editor Steven Fernandez: 'I feel very blessed.

'Instagram girls': In spite of their success, the new generation of supermodels (Kendall and Bella pictured on Sunday) have faced criticism from industry professionals

Walk the walk: Naomi revealed she has helped some of the girls with their runway walks (Bella Hadid, 20, pictured at the Cannes Film Festival in May)

Mentor: Naomi and Bella have struck up a close friendship in recent years

'Whatever capacity they think of me in, I feel very blessed and hope I never disappoint. Im grateful to God to be able to do the things I love doing.

'Ive been through so many phases in my life, with so many wonderful people, some of whom are no longer with us. My journey so far has been amazing.

'The people Ive met, the people Ive gotten to work with, the people that are still in my life today... its very diffcult for me to choose one in particular.'

Naomi also discussed her move to acting, admitting she had 'waited years' for the right role to come along.

She said in the Remix interview: 'Ive waited for years. I believe things come when theyre supposed to. Ive been really blessed that Lee Daniels and Spike Lee and other friends, actors as well, have encouraged me to act.

Woman of many talents: Naomi also discussed her move to acting, admitting she had 'waited years' for the right role to come along

'It took a while and Im really grateful to be given the chance. Its fun. Im having fun doing it and enjoying it and learning every day. Its a work in progress. Im learning.

'The one Im doing now in Star I play a drunk; Lenny Kravitzs wife, and its a lot of fun. I mean, I dont drink, but Im getting to play one.'

And the supermodel admitted she is thrilled to be able to have the chance to express herself more than she did when she was a model.

Naomi explained: 'The similarity is with modelling its more like a silent acting. With acting you get to express yourself with your emotions and say things aloud. You can feel if you got that right take or not.

'You feel it. You feel the energy, you feel if it fows or not. You know right away if you hit it or you didnt hit it. You know if you have to do it again. Most importantly, what I try to do, is forget that I am Naomi Campbell, whatever that may be.

'I dont think that way. I still go to restaurants and sit at a table and if someone looks at me Im like, "Why are they looking at me?".'

Original: Naomi (pictured at Milan Fashion Week in 1993) admitted she is thrilled to be able to have the chance to express herself more than she did when she was a model

Read the full interview with Naomi Campbell in the new edition of Remix magazine

After her meteoric rise to fame as a girl growing up in south London, Naomi puts her supermodel success down to sheer determination.

She said: 'I was pretty determined. Even not knowing the outcome of whatever I was going to do, I put my mind to it and wanted to do it, learn it, study it and perfect it the best I could.'

And offering her take on feminism, the catwalk queen insisted 'behind every great man is a great woman'.

She concluded: 'Women have always been the strength behind the men, Im sorry to say.

'Men show the strength on the exterior, women can sometimes appear to be weak on the exterior, but we are not weak. We are far stronger than men, for a fact. Behind every great man is a great woman.'

Read the full interview with Naomi Campbell in the new edition of Remix magazine.

Still the best: The supermodel (pictured in London in July) has enjoyed three decades of success as a model and philanthropist

Catwalk queens: Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington during the height of their fame in 1991
The mother of starlet Nicole Kidman, Janelle, was reportedly rushed to hospital on Thursday with suspected heart problems.

Janelle, 76, was taken to a hospital in Sydney's North Shore, and held under observation, reported The Daily Telegraph.

She was later released into daughter Antonia's care, and is said to be recovering at home.

Rushed to hospital: Janelle Kidman (left), mother to actresses Nicole and Antonia (right), was hospitalised on Thursday with suspected heart problems

A spokesperson from Royal North Shore Hospital confirmed to Daily Mail Australia that Janelle 'is not a patient at the hospital', but refused to comment further.

Sources told the Telegraph Nicole had not yet returned home to see her mother, but this only indicates the condition was not as serious as first thought.

'They are of course concerned, but if it was anything super serious, Nicole would have been home straight away,' they said.

Antonia, who lives in Singapore with her husband and six children, was reported to be on a pre-arranged holiday to Sydney when the incident occurred.

Not home yet: Janelle has since been released, and sources close to the family said if it was 'super serious', Nicole would be home in Sydney by now

Nicole is in Louisiana filming her upcoming film Beguiled, according to Woman's Day.

An anonymous source told the magazine that while Janelle is out of hospital, she is far from well.

'She's not in a good way at all,' they said. 'She's very unwell - it's an enormous shock.'

'Enormous shock': Other sources claim Janelle's health scare was completely unexpected (Picture in 2002)

The health scare comes just two years after the mother-of-two lost her husband to a sudden heart attack in Singapore.

Antony, a respected psychologist, was spending time in his hotel during a trip to see Antonia and her family before he collapsed and later died in hospital.

Last year, Antonia's ex-husband Angus Hawley, 46, also died from a suspected heart attack.

The father of four was attending a business conference in New York at the time.

Daily Mail Australia have contacted the Kidman family for comment.
Kim Kardashian has put her own emotional issues stemming from her horrific Paris robbery ordeal to focus on helping husband Kanye West recover from his breakdown, according to reports.

The rapper was rushed to the UCLA Medical Center on Monday with reports suggesting he is battling extreme dehydration, sleep deprivation and paranoia.

Kim has been struggling to overcome her robbery ordeal when she was held at gunpoint in Paris in October - but has put her own feelings to one side to be her husband's 'rock'.

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His rock: Kim Kardashian has put her own emotional issues stemming from her horrific Paris robbery ordeal to focus on helping husband Kanye West recover from his breakdown

According to TMZ, the reality superstar, 36, has kept a 'constant vigil' by his bedside, helping to feed him.

The insider claims that Kim has found it 'excruciating' to see her husband battling severe paranoia about outsiders trying to ruin their marriage.

The source adds: ' She has been an unbelievably devoted spouse. He's a lucky man.'

Meanwhile, the star is said to have total focus on nursing the father of her two children back to health.

Devoted: Kim has been struggling to overcome her robbery ordeal when she was held at gunpoint in Paris in October - but has put her own feelings to one side to be her husband's 'rock' after he was hospitalised following a breakdown earlier this week

Standing by her man: Kim isa said to have been at the side of Kanye West and has been helping feed hi, according to a Sunday report from Us Weekly

An insider for the publication said: 'Kim has been amazing. She knew he couldn't keep going the way he was.

'She has been by his side through all of this, helping to feed him and laying by his side.'

The helping hand somewhat parallels Khloe Kardashian aiding ex Lamar Odom after his overdose last year.

The source added: 'All the Kardashian women stick by their men.'

Breakdown: The 39-year-old rapper is reportedly 'depressed and paranoid' after being taken to hospital on Monday in Los Angeles

Security: One of the Kardashian family bodyguards was seen leaving the UCLA medical center

This comes just days after a TMZ report that Kanye was 'profoundly depressed and paranoid' and that he has been 'dealing with these issues for a long time.'

After he was rushed to the Los Angeles hospital earlier this week the star was allegedly 'convinced people were out to get him.'

This suspicion even apparently extended to the medical staff looking after him, and he briefly 'wouldn't even let the doctors touch him,' according to the U.S. website.

However, the family and Kim are hoping Kanye can return home on Monday, with his care supervised by his personal doctor.

Hoping to have him home: Kim, pictured back in September has been visiting Kanye in hospital

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star has been at the side of the Fade rapper for most of the week.

Following one visit on Thanksgiving morning, Kim then headed to her sister Kylie Jenner's home in Calabasas, where her family were celebrating the holiday on Thursday, according to People.

Earlier this week TMZ reported his condition was worse than first feared.

By his side: Kim visited Kanye at hospital on Thanksgiving morning, as he continues to recover from a reported breakdown, according to a new report (the couple pictured in September in New York)

Although he was initially reported to be suffering from a temporary psychosis brought on by sleep deprivation and extreme dehydration, TMZ suggested that the rapper's problems 'go deeper'.

The website reported that Kanye is in such a 'bad mental state' that his insurance policy for his 21 cancelled U.S. concerts is likely to cover him for lost profits due to illness.

Kanye, was at trainer Harley Pasternak's home on Monday when he started 'acting erratically,' according to People.

A call was made at about 1:20pm for a disturbance.

He was later escorted to UCLA Medical Center and admitted 'at will' but under the advice of a physician.
His final ever F1 race ended in heartbreak on Sunday.

But Jenson Button at least had his stunning model girlfriend Brittny Ward to console him at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

25-year-old Brittny strutted around in the paddock at the Yas Marina Circuit in a stunning scarlet maxi dress, before covering her racing driver beau in kisses after he was forced to retire early from the Formula One season finale.

His number one cheerleader: Jenson Button's model girlfriend Brittny Ward wowed in a scarlet maxi dress as she cheered on her beau at the Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix

Brittny looked gorgeous in her summery dress, which was perfect for the scorching heat.

The low-cut number showed off the model's curves, while a thigh-high split flashed her long legs.

Brittny accessorised with mirrored shades and a pair of flat sandals to keep comfy during the tense day

I got you babe: Brittny covered her racing driver beau in kisses after he was forced to retire early from the season finale

Jenson and Brittny made their relationship public just three months after the driver split from his model wife, Jessica Michibata.

After dating on and off since 2009, Jessica and Jenson tied the knot in Hawaii in December 2014, but split in December 2015 after just one year of marriage.

Jenson isn't the only famous face model Brittny has dated, as she previously enjoyed a brief romance with Twilight actor Kellan Lutz.

Keeping her cool: Brittny looked gorgeous in her summery dress, which was perfect for the scorching heat

It was Brittny who was among the first to console a heartbroken Jenson on Sunday when he was forced to retire just 14 laps into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after suffering a wishbone failure on his McLaren.

Earlier this week Jenson admitted that this weekend's race would 'probably' be his last - ending a 305-race career which began back in 2000 at the Australian Grand Prix.

'I don't think we've ever had a failure like this,' he told his team over the radio.

Disappointment: It was Brittny who was among the first to console a heartbroken Jenson on Sunday when he was forced to retire just 14 laps into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

The British driver was afforded a standing ovation by the Abu Dhabi crowd as he entered the pits and was greeted by his mother, Simone, and Brittny.

Button's early retirement cast a shadow over a day that had started positively for the Brit, who took to social media on Sunday morning to thank his family, friends, team-mates and supporters for their help throughout his career.

'So I hear today is a pretty big day for me,' Button said. 'Today is the day that I will be strapped into an F1 car for probably the last time.

Still in good spirits: The British driver was afforded a standing ovation by the Abu Dhabi crowd as he entered the pits and was greeted by his mother, Simone, and Brittny

Support: Jenson was surrounded by Brittny and his family after his last ever F1 race

'It's been an eventful 17 years! I'd like to say a massive thank you to everyone that has helped and supported me through the years including family, friends, team members and fans and last but not least my Dad who I'm hoping is looking down on us with pride, miss you papa.

'From when the lights go out at the start of my final race here in Abu Dhabi to when the chequered flag drops I will give it my all and drive with my heart knowing that whatever happens today I will always know I reached my goal and dream in life to become a Formula One World Champion.
She's returning as the iconic Kat for an EastEnders spin-off next year.

But Jessie Wallace was looking worlds apart from her soapland alter ego over the weekend as she stepped out for a spot of shopping.

The actress kept things very casual in pajamas layered under a cosy winter coat for her trip to the local supermarket.

Dressed down: Jessie Wallace was looking worlds apart from her soapland alter ego over the weekend as she stepped out for a spot of shopping

Jessie, 45, looked tired as she carried her groceries home in London, and appeared to be make-up- free.

The actress layered a thick black coat over her pjs, and added a pair of black lace-up boots.

She added a pair of shades while her long brunette locks were left loose around her shoulders.

It's been a busy year for the star who recently wrapped the Chicago UK tour, in which she played Matron mama Morton to rave reviews.

Real and onscreen: The actress kept things very casual in pajamas layered under a winter coat for her trip to the supermarket, while her EastEnders character Kat Slater loved to glam up

Meanwhile Jessie will next be seen on screen in the EastEnders spin-off BBC One drama Redwater alongside Shane Richie.

Filming for the series began at the end of the March and the storyline sees the couple travel to Ireland in search of the barmaid's long lost son who was taken away from her at birth and put up for adoption.

Speaking about the new series on This Morning earlier this year, Shane said: 'It's a really dark story. I read the first episode and I kept thinking Wicker Man [Robin Hardy's 1973 cult classic starring Christopher Lee].

Coming soon: Jessie will next be seen on screen in the EastEnders spin-off BBC One drama Redwater alongside Shane Richie

'It's a standalone drama, it has nothing to do with EastEnders apart from Kat and Alfie. It's not a spin-off, it's six stand alone dramas.'

Elaborating on what exactly set his mind racing to horror films when he read the script, Shane described how the first episode sees Kat and Alfie arrive in a secluded and strange village in the Irish countryside.

Redwater is a tiny, picturesque Irish harbour village, a quiet rural idyll by the sea where the Kelly and Dolan families have lived for generations.

The series also stars Game of Thrones actor Ian McElhinney and Downton Abbeys Maria Doyle Kennedy and it's scheduled to air in 2017.
He rose to fame as Main Force Patrol officer Max Rockatansky in the hugely successful Mad Max franchise.

But Mel Gibson was worlds away from his hunky and often leather-clad character on Friday - sporting a portly figure instead as he filmed on set in Dublin, Ireland.

The actor, 60, looked almost unrecognisable in the bulging false belly and full grey beard as he transformed into his 19th century character for new flick The Professor and the Madman.

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Unrecognisable! Mel Gibson, 60, sported a bulging false belly on Friday as transformed into his 19th century character for new flick The Professor and the Madman

The Braveheart star, who is better known for his action-hero characters, fully embodied his Victorian gentleman character in the authentic costume.

He dressed in a classic tweed three-piece suit, complete with a chain on the tight-fitting waistcoat, and a colourful mustard silk tie.

Making the look even more effective, the Australian star also rocked a traditional black top hat and kept his smart but full grey beard, to help transform him into a figure older and wiser than himself.

Authentic: The Braveheart star fully embodied his Victorian gentleman character in a classic tweed three-piece suit as he took to set in Dublin, Ireland

Mel, is that you? Gibson was worlds away from his hunky and often leather-clad character Max Rockatansky in his Victorian costume

However catching most attention was his large fake belly - which shocked onlookers as a far cry from his usual trim self, as well as his hunky frame of the past.

However he is currently filming The Professor and the Madman - which is based on Simon Winchester's 1998 book, The Surgeon of Crowthorne: A Tale of Murder, Madness and the Love of Words.

First proposed as a film two decades ago, the project follows professor James Murray, played by Gibson, who begins compiling the Oxford English Dictionary in 1857.

Period project: Jennifer Ehle was also seen on set of the film, which takes place in 1857

Gibson's character works to create the book with William Chester Minor, who became a devoted contributor to the OED after seeing an advert for volunteers.

Minor, who submitted more than 10,000 entries from his residence in a mental asylum, will be played by Academy Award winner Sean Penn.

Other stars to feature in the period project include British actors Steve Coogan, Laurence Fox, Ioan Gruffudd and Jeremy Irvine.

The Professor and the Madman also sees Mel reunite with writer and director Farhad Safinia, his screenwriting partner on 2006 hit Apocalypto.

The movie, which began filming in September, is expected to be released in 2017.
She recently lost an incredible two stone through grit and determination.

Flaunting the fruits of her seven month weight loss labour, Frankie Essex, 28, displayed her enviable curves in a plunging Grecian inspired beach dress that flaunted her ample cleavage during her break away to Abu Dhabi.

The TOWIE star - who launched her first fitness DVD - was sure to showcase her impressive assets in the daring beachside ensemble that featured a racy sheer gold bodice with crystal embellishment, helping to cover her modesty on Sunday.

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Grecian Goddess: Frankie Essex, 28, displayed her enviable curves in a plunging Grecian inspired beach dress that flaunted her ample cleavage as she soaked up the sun during a break away to Abu Dhabi

The reality star flashed major side and underboob in the eye-popping look, yet managed to avoid a wardrobe malfunction as she placed nude pasties over her nipples as she took to the seaside for the day.

Frankie's choice of beachwear continued her semi-sheer theme with a lightweight white chiffon floor-grazing overlay that displayed her gym honed pins and pert derriere to the fullest with its seductive double slits.

Under her waist cinching skirt, Frankie's ensemble featured a swimsuit inspired undergarment that hugged her womanly curves and teased the naked eye as she sashayed along the boardwalk.

The Essex babe added inches to her petite frame as she slipped on a pair of sky-high soft metallic cork platform wedges as she carried her gold beach bag with rope detailing in her hand.

Going for gold: The TOWIE star was sure to showcase her impressive assets in the racy sheer gold bodice with crystal embellishment that helped cover her modesty on Sunday

All intact: The reality star flashed major side and underboob in the eye-popping look

Beach babe: Frankie's choice of beachwear continued her semi-sheer theme with a lightweight white chiffon floor-grazing overlay

Taming her mane for the seaside outing, she worked half her glossy blonde locks into a top knot, pinned into place at the crown of her head as the rest of her tresses cascaded down her back, playfully being tousled by the breeze.

Although going to the beach, Frankie opted to wear a full face of make-up, accentuating her peepers with a brown smokey eye and lashings of mascara.

Making her way up the promenade, the ITVBe star stopped to check out the sights of the city as she playfully placed her hand above her eyes to witness the United Arab Emirates beauty.

Work it! Her daring skirt displayed her gym honed pins and pert derriere to the fullest with it's seductive double slits

Taking it in: Making her way up the promenade, the ITVBe star stopped to check out the sights of the city as she playfully placed her hand above her eyes to witness the United Arab Emirate beauty

Meanwhile, the bubbly blonde had been hitting the gym hard, preparing for her one-off ITVBe comeback on TOWIE's series 19 finale.

Transforming her life, Frankie previously opened up to MailOnline about what drove her to launch her fitness CVC.

She said: 'I've had a year and a half of being sad and depressed and not even wanting to leave the house at times, so I'm definitely not complaining about being busy.

'I just want to make everyone feel good like I do now,' she said, about sharing her fitness tips in her new DVD, Frankie Essex Weight Loss Workouts.

Figure-hugging: Under her waist cinching skirt, Frankie's ensemble featured a swimsuit inspired undergarment that hugged her womanly curves and teased the naked eye as she sashayed along the boardwalk

Metallic muse: The Essex babe added inches to her petite frame as she slipped on a pair of sky-high soft metallic cork platform wedges as she carried her gold beach bag with rope detailing

Seaside stunner: Taming her mane for the seaside outing, she worked half her glossy blonde locks into top knot pinned into place at the crown of her head

Frankie continued: 'Burning calories and getting a sweat on, it just releases the endorphins and it makes you feel better.'

The reality star had to overcome the fear of being judged when she first rejoined a gym and embarked on her weight loss journey.

'Sometimes I think the gym's a bit scary,' she said. 'I didn't go for ages, it's a bit intimidating. Especially being on TV, I felt like everyone was looking at me anyway, and I was bigger and I felt fat.

'Now I talk to all the men about their regimes and we all kind of copy each other's routines.'

Glam gal! Although going to the beach, Frankie opted to wear a full face of make, accentuating her peepers with a brown smokey eye and lashings of mascara

Goldie locks: Frankie styled the rest of her tresses cascaded down her back, playfully being tousled by the breeze

Far from coy: Frankie wasn't shy flaunting her curves in the sheer thigh cut number

'They've been so impressed with my core strength - I have a really strong core and I didn't even realise.

'I've been planking with a 15kg weight on my back for two minutes at a time, and no-one could believe how easy I was finding it.'

She added: 'I want to show everyone that being sad is all in your head and you need to believe in yourself and that you can do it.'
They are the couple who have become online superstars by opening up their lives on the web.

Now vlogger Tanya Burr has let fans have a glimpse into her latest romantic holiday with husband Jim Chapman on Instagram.

The 27-year-old shared a sizzling bikini snap from their stint in sunny South Africa this week.

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Snap happy: Vlogger Tanya Burr has let fans have a glimpse into her latest romantic holiday with husband Jim Chapman on Instagram by sharing a sizzling bikini snap

Slipping her curves into a black bikini, Tanya proudly flaunted her tiny waist as she made a splash in the surf.

Captioning the snap, she wrote: 'Fun with @jimchapman at Clifton 4th beach.'

Jim - a fellow vlogger and style expert - joined in the action, uploading a sweet image of the couple cuddling up together after they hiked up to Lions Head in Cape Town.

Squinting in the snap, he joked: 'Forgot my sunglasses but really enjoyed the hike up Lions Head to catch the sunrise!'

High flyers: Jim - a fellow vlogger and style expert - joined in the action, uploading a sweet image of the couple cuddling up together after they hiked up to Lions Head in Cape Town

Rocking it: The online sensation shared several pics from her African adventure, including her looking stylish sporty on a hike

Cheers to that: The couple - who have made a fortune from vlogging and subsequent sponsorship deals - enjoyed a trip to a vineyard during the break

The couple have made a fortune from tapping into Millennials' obsession with social media.

Through their YouTube videos, they have amassed a following of over seven million users on the clip sharing site.

Alongside their lucrative deals with companies such as Superdrug, the pair snapped up a 2million pad in London last year.

The four-bedroom and three bathroom property is host to their videos and updates for fans.

Talking about their plans to decorate the house when they moved in at the end of last year, Jim explained: 'This house is quite bare. I love the house, but everything is white and it needs decoration.'
She's in the midst of her promotional tour for the hotly-anticipated Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

And Felicity Jones proved she's a force to be reckoned with in the style stakes as she dazzled yet again while doing the rounds of the morning chat shows in New York on Monday.

The British actress, 33, flaunted her sartorial flair in three very different ensembles.

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Dream in cream: The actress, 33, flaunted her sartorial flair in a semi-sheer mini-dress, topped with a chic overcoat, which was casually draped around her shoulders for Good Morning America on Monday morning

She's the star: The frock skimmed past Felicity's thighs to tease an eyeful of her long and lean legs, while a matching belt cinched in her already slim waist

She headed into the Good Morning America studios in a semi-sheer cream dress, topped with a chic black overcoat, which was draped around her slender figure.

The frock skimmed past her thighs to tease an eyeful of her long and lean legs, while a matching belt cinched in her slim waist.

Adding height to her petite frame, the star teetered on strappy silver metallic heels while she strutted into the studio.

Accentuating her striking looks, The Theory Of Everything actress wore her long chestnut tresses in a chic up-do, while her makeup was kept simple with just a slick of pink lipstick and layers of mascara.

Quick change: The actress, who stars as Jyn Erso in the Star Wars spin-off, wore a sexy black number for a chat with Kelly Ripa and co-host Billy Eichner on ABC's LIVE With Kelly.

The actress, who stars as Jyn Erso in the Star Wars spin-off, wore a sexy black number when she turned up for a chat with Kelly Ripa and co-host Billy Eichner on ABC's LIVE With Kelly.

The low-cut black frock showed off her decolletage to perfection with cut outs in the cap sleeves highlighting her shoulders.

Fitted to the waist, it flared slightly to the hemline that sat just below her knees.

Brunette beauty: The low-cut black frock showed off Felicity's decolletage to perfection with cut outs in the cap sleeves highlighting her shoulders

Felicity teamed it with black high-heeled shoes that had a strap over the arch of her foot and another around her ankle.

The celebrity arrived back at her hotel in a floaty, pale pink chiffon dress, with her coat still wrapped around her shoulders

She wore blue suede shoes very similar to the ones she donned for her chat with Kelly and she let her brunette tresses down from the updo, allowing them to spill over her shoulders.

Dressed to thrill: Fitted to the waist, the frock flared slightly to the hemline that sat just below the actress's knees

The good-natured star smiled as she stopped to sign autographs for fans.

Speaking on GMA, Felicity revealed her excitement at playing such a 'fantastic' character.

'It was the opportunity to play a kicka** girl,' she said. 'She's a real live wire. She's got real spirit, and it was a just a fantastic character to make.'

Pretty in pink: The celebrity stopped to sign autographs as she arrived back at her hotel in a floaty, pale pink chiffon dress, her third outfit of the day

Wrapping up warm: Combating the cool November chill, Felicity was still wearing the overcoat she had been seen in earlier

The Oscar-nominated actress has been a fan of the franchise for many years, explaining: 'I remember watching when I was a little girl.

'I'd watch at my cousin's house with my older brother, and for some reason we'd be really close to the TV watching it.

'We would watch it on VHS. I just remember the opening titles going up the screen,' she continued.

On the sofa: Diego Luna hit Univision's Spanish-language show Despierta America to talk up Rogue One: A Star Wars Story with host Alan Tacher at its studios in Miami, Florida on Monday

While she was in New York, Diego Luna hit Univision's Spanish-language show Despierta America for a chat with host Alan Tacher at its studios in Miami, Florida.

He looked relaxed in a black jacket and trousers that he wore with a blue shirt left unbuttoned at the neck.

The 36-year-old, who sported a healthy growth of designer stubble, plays Captain Cassian Andor in the movie.

Casual comfort: The 36-year-old looked relaxed in a black jacket and trousers that he wore with a blue shirt left unbuttoned at the neck

It revolves around Felicity as Jyn Erso, whom the Rebel Alliance enlist to help steal the blueprint of the Galactic Empire's planet-vaporising Death Star.

In the original Star Wars film, those plans wind up in the hands of Princess Leia and then Luke Skywalker, who ultimately successfully destroys the Death Star.

The film's expansive cast includes Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Ben Mendelsohn, orest Whitaker and Riz Ahmed.

The movie, which was directed by Gareth Edwards, is set to hit the cinemas in Britain on December 15 and the US on December 16.
She's been working hard on her fashion career since she bowed out of Made In Chelsea in 2013.

And Millie Mackintosh proved herself to be the perfect model for her very own new collection of tailoring as she got to work on a stylish shoot in London on Monday morning.

The former reality star, 27, looked suited and booted to perfection as she slipped her statuesque figure into a chic maroon two-piece with black lapel detailing.

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Suits you! Millie Mackintosh proved herself to be the perfect model for her very own new collection of tailoring as she got to work on a stylish shoot in London on Monday morning

Turning on the charm for the cameras, the fashion designer pouted and posed away as she used the pavement as her very own catwalk.

The socialite added height to her frame with a pair of towering black suede platform sandals with a dramatic gold block heel.

Millie kept her outfit classy and timeless by wearing a crisp white pussy-bow blouse under her suit, and toted a tiny black clutch bag.

The Made In Chelsea beauty - who went public with her rekindled romance with her former co-star Hugo Taylor in May - wore her brunette locks in lightly-tousled waves and opted for natural, low-key make-up.

Suited and booted: The former reality star, 27, looked suited and booted to perfection as she slipped her statuesque figure into a chic maroon two-piece with black lapel detailing

Work it! Turning on the charm for the cameras, the fashion designer pouted and posed away as she used the pavement as her very own catwalk

Clearly pleased with the way she looked, Millie cheekily checked out her own rear view by glancing at her reflection in a parked car.

Millie was back in London after spending the weekend at lavish country pile, 10 Castle Street, in Cranborne, Dorset, with boyfriend Hugo, 30.

The couple were attending the 40th birthday celebrations of blogger and Ladies Of London star Juliet Angus.

Millie and Hugo went public with their rekindled romance in May when they travelled to the Monaco Grand Prix for Hugo's 30th birthday celebrations - the same week that Millie's divorce from rapper husband Professor Green, 32, was finalised.

Head for heights: The socialite added height to her frame with a pair of towering black suede platform sandals with a dramatic gold block heel

Elegant: Millie kept her outfit classy and timeless by wearing a crisp white pussy-bow blouse under her suit, and toted a tiny black clutch bag

Snap happy: Millie proved to be a natural in front of the camera

They previously dated back in 2011 when they met on E4 reality show, Made In Chelsea.

But the union was not to last and ended rather dramatically when Millie discovered Hugo had cheated on her with her friend, Rosie Fortescue.

At the time, Millie claimed she would always love Hugo, saying in an interview: 'I loved him - those feelings dont disappear  but I just always have to remind myself why were not together.

'I do think that, for the rest of my life, every time I see him, Ill get that feeling in my stomach. I dont think I could ever not get that butterfly feeling.'

Natural beauty: The Made In Chelsea beauty wore her brunette locks in lightly-tousled waves and opted for natural, low-key make-up

Hey, good looking! Clearly pleased with the way she looked, Millie cheekily checked out her own rear view by glancing at her reflection in a parked car

Check me out! Millie checked out the shots from the photoshoot before getting back to it

Millie and Pro Green announced their split in February after just over four years together. Their two-and-a-half-year marriage was dissolved in just 30 seconds in May.

In a statement at the time, they said: 'It is a mutual decision, we still care deeply about each other and would like it to be known that it is on amicable terms and we wish each other well.'

They were granted a decree nisi at Central London Family Court with Millie citing 'unreasonable behaviour' as the reason for their split.

Millie and Stephen started dating in November 2011 after the rapper saw her on the cover of men's magazine FHM.

The rapper contacted Millie through her agent and they had their first date at the Groucho Club in Soho.

They went public at the Brit Awards in February 2012, with Stephen proposing on holiday in Paris just over a year later.

Rub-a-dub-dub: Millie was back in London after spending the weekend at lavish country pile, 10 Castle Street, in Cranborne, Dorset, with boyfriend Hugo Taylor, 30

Cute couple: Millie and Hugo (pictured in October) went public with their rekindled romance in May - the same week that Millie's divorce from rapper Professor Green, 32, was finalised

Young love: They previously dated back in 2011 when they met on E4 reality show, Made In Chelsea, but called time on their romance when Hugo cheated on Millie

The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at Babington House in Somerset in September 2013.

Pro Green recently lashed out at Millie in his new track Eye On The Door, rapping about their lack of sex life, drug use and hinting that cheating was to blame for their split.

But in spite of his very public bashing of his ex-wife, the musician admitted last week that splitting from Millie felt like experiencing 'a death.

He told the i newspaper earlier this month: 'Of course whether youre happy somethings finished or not, it doesnt change the fact that it does still feel like theres been a death.

'An energy thats always been in your presence is suddenly no longer there and youre an idiot if you think thats not going to affect you.'

The rapper has since moved on with model Fae Williams.

Former flame: Millie and rapper Pro Green, 33, (pictured together in September 2015) announced their split in February after just over four years together
She came under fire again over the weekend for her bizarre behaviour on The X Factor.

And on Monday morning Sharon Osbourne didn't escape Piers Morgan's attention as he discussed the weekend's TV on Good Morning Britain.

Piers, who used to work with Sharon on America's Got Talent, made a quip about his pal, who stunned viewers again by laughing at a potentially dangerous stage invasion on Saturday night and flashing her cue cards.

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Quip: On Monday morning Sharon Osbourne didn't escape Piers Morgan's attention as he discussed the weekend's TV on Good Morning Britain

Speaking on Good Morning Britain with co-star Susanna Reid and showbiz reporter Richard Arnold, Piers joked that there was definitely something going on with Sharon.

'Sharon thought that stage invasion was hilarious. I must say I was a bit worried about it,' admitted Susanna as talk turned to the pranksters who interrupted Honey G on Saturday night's X Factor after her performance.

'But Sharon's like Louis, there's a party happening in her head, and I don't even know if she's at The X Factor or not,' replied Richard, only for Piers to quip:

Lost for words: Piers, who used to work with Sharon on America's Got Talent, made a quip about his pal, who stunned viewers again by laughing at a potentially dangerous stage invasion on Saturday night and flashing her cue cards

'It's not just in her head. Trust me, I work with her.'

Piers' comment came after Sharon was given a helping hand by the X Factor producers with a cue card instructing her on what to say next on Sunday night's show.

The judge, 64, was caught waving a piece of paper that bore the words: 'The name of the act I am sending home is...', just moments before her act Honey G was voted off.

Awkward! The mother-of-three has regularly been left red-faced with her live pitfalls - including on Saturday night when she couldn't remember the act she was introducing

The note, which had been helpfully placed in front of Sharon, offered even more help thanks to the underlining of the phrase 'sending home'.

The mother-of-three has regularly been left red-faced with her live pitfalls - including on Saturday night when she couldn't remember the act she was introducing.

Her fellow judge Nicole Scherzinger was forced to intervene, saying: 'It's Honey G,' as Louis Walsh directed her to the right camera.

In the first episode of the series Sharon got the nationality of her contestant Saara Aalto wrong before asking a Scottish contestant to say a supposed phrase-meets-cliche.

Helping hand: The judge, 64, was captured waving a piece of paper that bore the words: 'The name of the act I am sending home is...', just moments before her act Honey G was voted off

Later, she was asked to give an introduction directly to camera for her act, Honey G.

Sadly, she delivered it to the wrong camera and spent almost all of the intro looking into a different lens.

Even host Dermot O'Leary couldn't resist commenting on her amusingly behaviour, saying: 'We want whatever Sharon's on'.

It comes as Honey G was the latest act to be evicted from theX Factor after eight weeks on the show.

The controversial act went head-to-head in a sing-off with 5 After Midnight, but was voted off by Simon Cowell, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh.

Leaving the show, the aspiring rapper admitted: 'The X Factor team is amazing, this has been the most amazing experience of my life, to everyone who doubted me, I'm standing here and made it this far.'

EX-Factor: Honey G has been evicted from the X Factor after eight weeks on the show

Sunday night's X Factor Results show saw the final five acts face the public vote after singing twice to make it to the semi-finals next week.

Louis Walsh's 5 After Midnight, Nicole Sherzinger's Matt Terry, Sharon Osbourne's Saara Aaalto and Honey G and Simon Cowell's Emily Middlemas battled it out in the live episode.

And boyband Busted, as well as Clean Bandit ft Anne Marie and Sean Paul all took to the stage to perform.

Honey hug: Dermot bid farewell to Honey G as talented trio 5 After Midnight breathed a sigh of relief

When I say Honey, you say bye! The controversial act went head-to-head in a sing-off with 5 After Midnight, but was voted off by Simon Cowell, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh

'The X Factor team is amazing, this has been the most amazing experience of my life, to everyone who doubted me, I'm standing here and made it this far' Honey G said

Nicole brought her usual glamour in a white halterneck jumpsuit with a floor-length train, Sharon shimmered in an olive semi sheer dress, and Louis and Simon looked chic suited and booted.

All five acts opened the show together, belting out Elton John's Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting.

Dancing around the panel in coordinated black and red ensembles, the last competing acts put on a live performance, with Saara taking on the majority of the solo parts and Honey G taking a step back from the singing following Saturday's drama.

United: Louis Walsh's 5 After Midnight, Nicole Sherzinger's Matt Terry, Sharon Osbourne's Saara Aaalto and Honey G and Simon Cowell's Emily Middlemas opened Sunday night's X Factor show together, belting out Elton John's Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting

Glam team: Nicole brought her usual glamour in a white halterneck jumpsuit with a floor-length train, Sharon shimmered in an olive semi sheer dress, and Louis and Simon looked chic suited and booted

Next Busted sent pulses racing in the audience as they performed their latest hit On What You're On alongside dramatic acrobat dancers.

The band named Saara as their favourite, though one member named 5 After Midnight.

Following the performance the five acts faced the public vote.

Limelight: Saara took on the majority of the solo parts and Honey G taking a step back from the singing following Saturday's drama

Sher-sizzling! Nicole turned heads in a silk one-piece with her hair piled high on her head

Autumnal: Sharon stuck with olive, having worn a stunning green dress on Saturday night

Saara Aalto was named as the first safe act, screaming in excitement, followed by last boy in the competition Matt Terry, a bookies' favourite.

The third act saved by the public was Emily Middlemas, leaving 5 After Midnight and Honey G to battle it out in the sing-off, decided by the judges' panel.

Nicole admitted they had a 'batshizzle bananas' Saturday night, which was 'Louis loves' themed.

Ahead of their battle to stay in the show, Louis defended 5 After Midnight being in the bottom two, reminding the audience of their talent, while Sharon persuaded the booing audience that Honey G was 'unique.'

Suave: Simon and Louis looked suave in crisp dapper suits

'We vote Saara Aalto' Clean Bandit revealed following their performance alongside Anne Marie and Sean Paul

Hi Honey: Honey G came out with her arms raised at the beginning of the night

'Honey G is talented in a different way to the other acts', she stammered.

Next up was Clean Bandit performing with Anne Marie and Sean Paul, getting the crowd going with hit number 1 hit RockaBye.

Clean Bandit also named Saara Aalto as their favourite act, ignoring Dermot O'Leary's hints at Honey G.

Following their performance, Honey G and 5 After Midnight went head-to-head in a tense sing-off.

Dressed in a red patterned jumper and matching trainers, along with her trademark cap and sunglasses, Honey G came out with her hands raised.

Showing them how it's done! Busted sent pulses racing in the audience as they performed their latest hit On What You're On alongside dramatic acrobat dancers

'They're talented: Busted voted for Saara Aalto and 5 After Midnight following their show

Versatile: 5 After Midnight showed off their pop-ready side as all the acts joined together in red and black coordinated ensembles

She attempted rap legend Tupac's California hit, adding in 'mash it up' and spelling out her name as usual, strutting around the stage.

Next up were talented trio 5 After Midnight, who performed a gimmick-free cover of Labrinth's Beneath your beautiful, harmonising to the screams of the crowd.

Louis chose 5 After Midnight, branding them the next big thing: 'Honey you've had a great run but it's time to go home,' he said.

'Against all odds Honey has been here 8 weeks,' Sharon persuaded viewers to the boos of crowds, championing her act Honey G and sending 5 After Midnight home.

Talent! Clean Bandit performed with Anne Marie and Sean Paul, getting the crowd going with hit number 1 hit RockaBye

Dutty! Sean Paul got the crowd going and Clean Bandit named him as their long time idol

'Finally!' Twitter was flooded with viewers' reaction to the controversial act's elimination

Bit of al-white! Nicole looked stunning in a white wedding-inspired ensemble

Nicole backed 5 After Midnight, adding: 'Honey I'm sher-mazed you made it this far, you're such a fighter but I'm sorry I'm sending you home'.

Leaving Simon with the deciding vote, he said: '5 After Midnight you shouldn't be in the final two, Honey you've got guts but here's my issue. The public expect me to do the right thing, you've gone as far as you can, the act I'm going to save is 5 After Midnight', ending Honey G's unexpected lengthy run on the show.

Next week's semi final show will see a Christmas themed show.

Saturday night's show almost descended into chaos as pranksters stormed the stage in an apparent attempt to remove Honey G's trademark hat and glasses.

Racy! The revealing piece showed off the full expanse of Nicole's toned tanned back

Battling it out: Honey G and 5 After Midnight went head-to-head in a tense sing-off

Backing his boys: Louis chose 5 After Midnight, branding them the next big thing: 'Honey you've had a great run but it's time to go home,' he said

'Honey I'm sher-mazed you made it this far, you're such a fighter but I'm sorry I'm sending you home': Nicole voted for 5 After Midnight

'The act I'm going to save is 5 After Midnight', Simon cast the deciding vote, ending Honey G's unexpected lengthy run on the show

Simon Cowell was seen looking horrified as the camera stayed off-stage during the kerfuffle, while the judging panel attempted to remain calm.

The third act to perform was controversial contestant Honey G, Sharon's second Overs act, with You Can't Touch This by MC Hammer.

Showing off her dance moves alongside a large group of background dancers, Honey G matched her trademark cap to her trousers, finishing her performance to cheers from the panel.

Suddenly, Simon Cowell leapt up in horror and a security guard was seen running to assist as an audience member stormed the stage.

The camera zoned in on the panel and Nicole was seen looking equally shocked, while Louis and Sharon tried to distract from the goings-on onstage.

Behind the scenes chaos ensued as several audience members attempted to storm the stage and remove Honey's cap and glasses - one grabbing the microphone - but thankfully the situation was quickly dealt with.

After their attempt to unmask her failed, the camera returned to the stage, Honey G appeared composed and the panel took their seats appearing shell-shocked.

Scary! Saturday night's X Factor live show almost descended into chaos as members of the audience stormed the stage in an apparent attempt to remove controversial contestant Honey G's trademark hat and glasses

Shock! Simon Cowell was seen standing up in horror as the camera stayed off-stage during the kerfuffle, while the judging panel attempted to remain calm

'I'm so sorry about that,' Simon reassured before adding, 'at one point I thought it was part of the act'.

'See, you drive people wild with excitement!', Sharon laughed as the panel settled back down.

Dermot added: 'We had a stage invasion, three punks thought they could come on and take on Honey G. Nah, I don't think so.'

And Simon added: 'Forget that. You've got a second song. Don't let that bother you. Come back believing you are a star.'

An X Factor spokesperson told MailOnline: 'There was a stage invasion by four men, with one further person in support. All five had been in the audience. They were spoken to by police and security and have now been removed from the studio.'
Kristin Cavallari posted a moving Instagram tribute to her late brother Michael Cavallari on Monday, a year and a day after his death at the age of 30.

The 29-year-old posted a picture along with a caption that read: 'The last few days have been tough...yesterday was the anniversary of my brothers passing.'

'I know he is watching over me': A day after the first anniversary of her brother Michael Cavallari's death, Kristin Cavallari uploaded a moving tribute to him on Instagram

Mrs Jay Cutler went on to confide that 'There hasn't been a day that's gone by where I haven't thought of him and missed him.'

Still, she concluded: 'I know he is watching over me and my family though from all of the amazing signs he has given us. Love and miss you so much, Mikey.'

Police reports said Michael Cavallari succumbed to hypothermia and was discovered last December at the base of a hill in rural Utah.

Heartrending: Her late elder brother was the reality star's only sibling

After crashing his 2014 Honda Civic roughly 200 miles from Salt Lake City near the end of November, he'd ventured out alone into the cold.

Prior to his trip to Utah, he'd been riven with paranoia and had informed family members he was being pursued by Los Angeles gangsters.

Per his mother Judith Spies, he'd had a bipolar disorder diagnosis. The Associated Press have reported he also had a drink problem.

Days before travelling from California to Utah, he'd been arrested in the former state over a weapons charge. He was out on bail at the time of his death.

Background: The 30-year-old's body was discovered at the bottom of a hill in rural Utah last December after he succumbed to hypothermia, according to the Associated Press, which cited police reports

Two weeks before: After crashing his 2014 Honda Civic roughly 200 miles from Salt Lake City, he'd ventured out alone into the cold

Last month, his sister reminded People that her third child and only daughter Saylor had been born 'a few days before' the family's loss.

As a result, 'you know, it was the extreme highs and extreme lows, and even with her first birthday coming up, it's the same kinda thing, you know.'

Since the reality star lost her only sibling, 'I definitely have been closer with my parents, and I think just my entire family in general. Yeah, it makes you appreciate everyone you have.'

Along with their daughter, Cavallari and her husband have two sons: a four-year-old called Camden and a two-year-old called Jaxon.

Bonded by loss: The 29-year-old confided in People last month that she's become 'closer' with 'my entire family' since her brother's demise
Amber Heard vowed to donate all of her settlement money to charity after being awarded $7million in her divorce from Johnny Depp in August.

However according to a new report, the two organisations that the 30-year-old decided to divide the funds between still have not received the money.

TMZ claims that Johnny wants to pay the amount directly to each of the charities, but Heard wants him to pay the money to her so that she can donate it herself.

The website alleges that Amber does not want Johnny to receive a tax deduction on the donations.

Settlement: Amber Heard vowed to donate all of her settlement money to charity after being awarded $7million in her divorce from Johnny Depp in August, however the two organisations are yet to receive the funds. The former couple are pictured in February

Amber decided to split the money evenly between the American Civil Liberties Union for their work to stop violence against women, and the Children's Hospital Los Angeles.

According to TMZ, Johnny sent each organisation a first installment of $200,000, but they have not received any more since then.

The American Civil Liberties Union has contacted TMZ to state that Amber also donated $350,000 to their organisation in August, as an advance from the money Johnny is due to pay her.

The website reports that the delay is because the former couple are yet to sign their final settlement documents.

It's complicated: The actors (seen separately earlier this month) are apparently yet to sign their final settlement documents, and Amber wants to donate the money herself instead of having Johnny do it, so that he can't receive a tax deduction

Pierce O'Donnell, Amber's lawyer, told TMZ that he expects the documents to be signed this week.

Amber filed for divorce from the Pirates Of The Caribbean star in May after one year of marriage, and obtained a temporary restraining order against him five days later.

She alleged that the actor was 'verbally and physically abusive' throughout their relationship and provided photographs of her battered face as evidence of abuse, along with witness statements.

However Johnny's lawyers alleged that Amber was 'attempting to secure a premature financial resolution by alleging abuse' because on an occasion that police were called to her home, she said there had been a 'verbal dispute only' and officers saw no evidence of a crime at the time.

Messy split: Amber and Johnny (pictured in January) reached a settlement in August, with Amber receiving the $7million and dismissing her restraining order against Johnny, having claimed he was 'verbally and physically abusive' throughout their relationship

Amber and Johnny reached a settlement in August, with Amber receiving the $7million and dismissing her restraining order against Johnny.

In a joint statement to announce their divorce settlement, Johnny and Amber said: 'Our relationship was intensely passionate and at times volatile, but always bound by love.

'Neither party has made false accusations for financial gain. There was never any intent of physical or emotional harm.'

Last week, Amber appeared in a PSA for GirlGaze Project in which she fought back tears while discussing domestic violence.

Speaking up: Amber discussed domestic violence in a public service announcement for GirlGaze Project last week

'I guess there was a lot of shame attached to that, the label of victim,' she explained in the clip. 'It happens to so many women you know. When it happens in your home behind closed doors with someone you love, its not straightforward. If a stranger did this it would be a no-brainer.'

She added: 'Just as a woman having gone through this in the public stage, in the public arena that I did it, I have a unique opportunity to remind other women this doesnt have to be the way it is, you dont have to do it alone, youre not alone. We can change this.'

According to TMZ, Amber's settlement requires that she does not make any mention of allegations against Johnny.

The website alleges that Johnny may now fight against honouring the settlement, although this may prove difficult as she does not name Johnny directly in the clip.
Sharon Stone seemed to need to cool down when in Beverly Hills recently.

The 58-year-old actress was seen holding a small blue doctor's ice pack as she ran errands in Beverly Hills earlier this month.

The ice pack is the same type given to patients after they get fillers.

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Chillin in the 90210! Sharon Stone held a medical ice pack as she departed from an appointment in Beverly Hills earlier this month

The blonde bombshell looked ready for duty wearing chic black leather motocycle boots with tailored army-green cargo pants.

Stone made a political statement with her outfit, sporting a fitted black t-shirt by French fashion designer Christian Audigier.

The tee shirt shows the words Love Vote and over an image of President Obama's face printed on it.

Just what the doctor ordered: The 53-year-old looked slender in a black top

The socially conscious star accessorized with dark cat-eye sunglasses and subtle diamond earrings to add a hint of glamour to her simple street look.

Stone, who's rarely shies away from sharing her opinion, showed her support for Democrats making her fashion statement the day after November's election.

The star of indie film Mothers and Daughters recently spoke at Santa Clara University to voice her outrage about the problem of sexual assault across college campuses.

Fresh faced: The Golden Globe winning star shows off her timeless beauty in a makeup free selfie that the actress posted on Instagram

At the November 18 event, the actress and activist read from a letter written by the victim of Stanford swimmer Brock Turner to her attacker.

Stone called the letter 'monumentally powerful' and said it was impossible to read 'without having it just impale your heart and soul.

The real-life mother of three will back on the big screen next May alongside Andy Garcia in the romantic drama What About Love.
Lea Michele was not lonely on her trip to New York City over the weekend.

The Glee vet spent time with an old pal, actor Jonathan Groff, 31. Lea and Jonathan go all the way back to 2006 when they co-starred in Spring Awakening.

In one image, the siren let the New Yorker lick her face as she held onto his hand.

Tasty? Lea Michele was not lonely on her trip to New York City over the weekend. The Glee vet spent time with an old pal, actor Jonathan Groff, who licked her face

Groff, best known for his animated classic Frozen, is sticking out his tongue, touching Lea on the cheek.

She seems pleased with the daring move as she smiles for the camera. The looker has on a black lace top and heavy but flattering makeup.

Daniel is casual in a grey beanie.

Touching moment: In one of her shots, where they were standing cheek to cheek, she wrote, 'Home is whenever I'm with you'

The caption reads: 'Reunited and it feels so good.' And she added a heart.

The brunette beauty posed with the thespian on the streets of New York City.

In one of her shots, where they were standing cheek to cheek, she wrote, 'Home is whenever I'm with you.'

And she added another heart.

Two much! In a third photo the star is in a theater with red seats. Her caption reads: 'Such a fun night last night with my Spring Awakening  @blakedan seeing @greatcometbway'

In a third photo the star is in a theater with red seats.

Her caption reads: 'Such a fun night last night with my Spring Awakening  @blakedan seeing @greatcometbway.'

The man next to her is not Groff but rather actor Blake Daniel.

Michele seems to be single since splitting from Robert Buckley earlier this year.

She loves the Big Apple: In a Snapchat video she posed on a bridge in Central Park with her Starbucks coffee

Back on her home turf: She also took a clip of a stone walkway and put a heart over it

Before that the diva was with model Matthew Paetz.

And before him, she was seeing her Glee costar Corey Monteith, who was found dead in Vancouver in 2013 at the age of 31.

Lea looked happy in New York.

In a Snapchat video she posed on a bridge in Central Park with her Starbucks coffee. She also took a clip of a stone walkway and put a heart over it.
Jennifer Garner looked to be in a planning mood on Monday.

When out to breakfast with ex Ben Affleck and their son Samuel at The Farm inside Brentwood's Country Mart in Los Angeles, the 44-year-old actress carried a black 2016 calendar under her arm.

The two stars split in June 2015 and don't seem to be close to finalizing their divorce, suggesting they will be spending the holidays together with their three children.

Last year the family jetted off to Montana for a white Christmas.

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Busy weeks ahead? Jennifer Garner carried her 2016 calendar as she enjoyed breakfast with ex Ben Affleck on Monday morning in LA

Relaxed exes: The stars hit The Farm inside LA's Brentwood Country Mart

It's likely they will be making some cozy plans for the entire gang that includes Violet, 11, Seraphina, seven, as well as Samuel, aged four.

On Monday the actors looked to be a bit sleepy as they walked in the mart's parking lot.

Garner wore a blue sweater with a long floral scarf with an oversized denim miniskirt that had buttons and pockets.

More trips? Last year the family jetted off to Montana for a white Christmas

Still close after all this time: It's likely they will be making some cozy plans for the entire gang that includes Violet, 11, Seraphina, seven, as well as Samuel, aged four

Not done? Garner and Affleck - sporting a blue Raffi jumper - wed in 2005 and split in 2015

The Tribes Of Palos Verdes star showed off her toned bare legs that must have been cold in the chilly morning air.

The Miracles From Heaven actress added brown loafers.

Her hair was worn in a bun and she had on no makeup.

Nothing fancy: Ben had on a puffy black jacket over a blue sweater and grey slacks with blue lace up shoes

Hands on: The Good Will Hunting star kept a close eye on his only son Samuel, who looked cute in a green jacket and blue slacks

He still gets the looks!: A pretty blonde woman in a leopard scarf checked out the Oscar winner

Ben had on a puffy black jacket over a blue Raffi jumper and grey slacks with blue lace up shoes.

He wore his grey locks untamed and his beard was a bit bushy.

The Good Will Hunting star kept a close eye on his only son Samuel, who looked cute in a green jacket and blue slacks.

Her own style: Garner wore a blue sweater with a long floral scarf with an oversized denim miniskirt that had buttons and pockets

When she exited the Farm, Garner carried a cup of coffee. She did not have her wedding ring back on.

There have been rumours the two have reconciled.

That buzz may have stemmed from Jennifer's own admission that the two are living in side by side bedrooms in the same house in the Pacific Palisades.

Her bestie: The 13 Going On 30 star usually spends her mornings with her lean blonde pal. Here they are pictured on Saturday in LA

Most couples that split up cannot stand to live in the same house together, but Jennifer has insisted the two have found a very mature way to live in the same house while raising their three kids together.

She has repeatedly slammed talk that she is back with Ben.
She's no stranger to the red carpet glamour being one of the world's most famous movie stars.

And Salma Hayek certainly showcased her stylish streak on Monday night, in London, as she attend the I Am Bolt documentary premiere.

Arriving at the event, held in Leicester Square, the 50-year-old Desperado star earned her pips in the fashion brigade thank to her chic military-inspired ensemble.

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Yes SIR! Salma Hayek certainly showcased her stylish streak on Monday night, in London, as she attend the I Am Bolt documentary premiere

The Mexican-born star ensured she put on a head-turning display at the event, as she arrived in a striking black and red ensemble.

Wearing a black leather military-style jacket, which included red detailing, over a cropped red blouse, Salma ensured her trim waist was firmly highlighted.

The blouse, which looked to be a Latin affair, featured a wife delicate white collar with red roses stitched into it.

Salma teamed the jacket and blouse combo with a pair of flared, high-waisted black trousers which served to draw the eye to her hourglass figure and tiny waist.

Chic brigadier: Arriving at the event, held in Leicester Square, the 50-year-old Desperado star earned her pips in the fashion brigade thank to her chic military-inspired ensemble

She added a pair of complementary stilettos to her look, which only served to accentuate her figure further.

The Frida star added a further touch of the army woman to her look by placing a quirky peaked cap atop her head.

She accessoried her look with a classic Gucci handbag, though she kept jewellery to a minimum.

Ready for the parade ground: Wearing a black leather military-style jacket, which included red detailing, over a cropped red blouse, Salma ensured her trim waist was firmly highlighted

Pretty as a rose: The blouse, which looked to be a Latin affair, featured a wife delicate white collar with red roses stitched into it

Figure-flaunting: Salma teamed the jacket and blouse combo with a pair of flared, high-waisted black trousers which served to draw the eye to her hourglass figure and tiny waist

Hell for leather: The Frida star added a further touch of the army woman to her look by placing a quirky peaked cap atop her head

Striking: With her hair swept up under her headgear, the star chose to highlight her striking features with a slick of red lipstick and a flash of black mascara

With her hair swept up under her headgear, the star chose to highlight her striking features with a slick of red lipstick and a flash of black mascara.

Salma joined the likes of Liam Payne and Geri Halliwell at the premiere of the film, which charts Ussain's historic Rio campaign.

I Am Bolt follows the Jamaican athlete in the 18 months leading up to his epic - and historic - triple win at the 2016 Rio Olympics this year.

The film hits cinemas across the UK as of November 28.
Fidel Castro, the former dictator of Cuba, died this past weekend at the age of 90. Here are five facts you should know about the long-ruling Marxist despot.

1. Castro was baptized a Catholic at the age of 8 and attended several Jesuit-run boarding schools. After graduation in the mid-1940s Castro began studying law at the Havana University, where he became politically active in socialist and nationalist causes, in particular opposition to U.S. involvement in the Caribbean. By the end of the decade he became interested in the writings of Marx and Lenin and the cause of revolutionary socialism.

2. During his law school days Castro began to adopt the practice of revolutionary political violence. In 1947 he journeyed to the Dominican Republic to participate in a failed attempt to overthrow of the countrys dictator, Rafael Trujillo. That same year Castro was also accused of instigating an assassination attempt on Cubas president, Ramon Grau. When in 1952 General Fulgencio Batista seized power, Castro began making plans to overthrow him too. Castros use of political violence continued even after he seized power. The Cuba Archive project has documented almost 10,000 victims of Castro between 1952 and today, including 5,600 men, women, and children who died in front of firing squads and another 1,200 in extrajudicial assassinations. Thousands more Cubans also died trying to flee his repressive regime.



3. In 1962, while still declaring his country to be merely a socialist state, Castro worked with Nikita Khrushchev, the leader of the Soviet Union, on a plan to install Soviet nuclear weapons on Cuban soil. When aerial reconnaissance detected them it sparked the 13-day (October 16 to 28) confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. Castro wanted Khrushchev to threaten to use nuclear weapons if the United States attacked Cuba, but the Soviet leader refused and ultimately conceded to U.S. demands to remove all the missiles from the island nation.

4. Before Castros reign, notes the Financial Post, Cuba had an economy that grew throughout the 1950s with rising industrial and agricultural wages comparable to those in Europe. The country also enjoyed Latin Americas highest per capita consumption of meats, fruits and vegetables and had the high levels of ownership of cars, telephones, and radios. After Castro took power, though, the countrys wealth and living standards declined considerably. In 1959, when Castro took power, GDP per capita for Cuba was some $2,067 a year. Forty years later it had only risen to $2,307 (1999). When Castro turned over power to his brother in 2008 the rate was $5,382. (In comparison, the U.S. GDP per capita in 1960 was $3,000, $34,620 in 1999, and $48,401 in 2008.) Today, the market economy in Cuba is extremely limited and almost three-fourths of all Cubans (74 percent) work for the state.

5. Under Castros rule, the Cuban people faced several restrictions and violations of human rights. According to Human Rights Watch, Cuban citizens have been systematically deprived of their fundamental rights to free expression, privacy, association, assembly, movement, and due process of law. Religious freedom, in particular, was curtailed beginning in the 1960s. In 1976 the Constitution of Cuba added a clause making the country officially atheist and stating that it was punishable by law to oppose ones faith or religious belief to the Revolution. Since 1992, restrictions have been eased, but the latest report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom notes: [R]eligious freedom conditions in Cuba deteriorated due to increased government actions and threats to close, demolish, or confiscate church properties. In addition, the Cuban government continues to harass religious leaders and laity, interfere in religious groups internal affairs, and prevent democracy and human rights activists from participating in religious activities.
She has transformed herself with the help of a nose job, lip fillers and a 32HH breast augmentation.

So it's no wonder Chloe Khan was in high spirits as she joined a like-minded friend, fellow surgery obsessive Rodrigo Alves for dinner in Mayfair on Monday night.

The reality star, 25, flaunted her eye-popping cleavage in a plunging skintight dress, as she stepped out with the 33-year-old Brazilian surgery addict, who has had a staggering 43 operations.

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Turning heads: Chloe Khan, 25, flaunted her surgically-enhanced cleavage in the wine-hued dress, as she headed out with fellow surgery lover Rodrigo Alves, 33

The former X Factor reject flaunted every inch of her slim physique in the body-conscious dress, which featured a trumpet hem and racy cut-outs at the bust.

Boosting her height, the brunette beauty added a killer pair of studded scarlet stilettos and carried a grey fur stole.

She wore her raven tresses in her trademark tumbling voluminous curls that cascaded down her back.

Boasting a deep tan, Chloe highlighted her eyes with false eyelashes and smokey eyeshadow paired with a nude lip and heavy contouring.

Stealing the limelight: The former X Factor reject flaunted every inch of her slim physique in the body-conscious dress, which featured a trumpet hem and racy cut-outs at the bust

Interesting duo: The model was later seen with fellow surgery lover Rodrigo Alves, as they arrived for dinner in Mayfair

Double trouble: The reality star was joined by Rodrigo Alves, who has undergone 43 operations to look like a 'human Ken doll'

Chloe has spoken openly about the amount of surgery she has had over the years.

She told the Daily Mirror: ' The transformation wasn't overnight. I didnt go from being a chav clown to an LA princess  it has been a long journey.

'I have had slight rhinoplasty just to neaten my nose and obviously I've had a boob job or two taking my breasts to a 32HH.'

The reality star was joined by Rodrigo, who has undergone 43 operations to look like a 'human Ken doll'.

Surgery-addict Rodrigo saw his sixth nose job go drastically wrong after his body rejected the nose and he suffered necrosis, where the flesh withers and dies.

The Brazilian, who recently underwent a seventh rhinoplasty surgery to fix the damage to his face, says he wouldn't go under the knife again unless absolutely necessary.

London based- Rodrigo has spent more than 350,000 to look like Barbies boyfriend and he's recently insured his body for 1 million after a hole appeared in his nose.

Working her angles: The former X Factor reject flaunted every inch of her slim physique in the body-conscious dress, which featured a trumpet hem and racy cut-outs at the bust

Boosting her height: The brunette beauty added a killer pair of studded scarlet stilettos and carried a grey fur stole

Hair today, gone tomorrow: She wore her raven tresses in her trademark tumbling voluminous curls that cascaded down her back

Tan-tastic: Boasting a deep tan, Chloe highlighted her eyes with false eyelashes and smokey eyeshadow paired with a nude lip and heavy contouring

And Chloe Khan kept busy at home before heading out for dinner.

She ensured all eyes remained on her as she shared a very racy Snapchat video on Monday.

The reality star shared a video from her bed where she threw off the covers to expose her naked curves.

Dramatic: Surgery-addict Rodrigo saw his sixth nose job go drastically wrong after his body rejected the nose and he suffered necrosis, where the flesh withers and dies

Made a vow: The 33-year-old Brazilian, who recently underwent a seventh rhinoplasty surgery to fix the damage to his face, says he wouldn't go under the knife again unless absolutely necessary

In high spirits: The pals laughed and chatted as they strolled along the London streets

Bit nippy? Chloe didn't seem bothered about braving the November chill despite her scanty attire

Appearing to wear minimal make-up, she posed the snap wearing the flower filter, her raven tresses loose.

Flaunting a glimpse of her surgically enhanced bust, she attempted a range of curious Jamaican accents.

And then going for the icing on the cake, she threw her covers aside to reveal her naked body.

Sending pulses racing: Chloe Khan ensured all eyes remained on her as she shared a very racy Snapchat video on Monday

No shame: The reality star, 25, shared a video from her bed where she threw off the covers to expose her naked curves

Despite it being late at night, the mother-of-one looked fairly preened, sporting bold brows and lashes.

Flaunting her French manicure, the reality starlet complained about not being able to sleep, surely not helped along by her selfie obsession.

Meanwhile Chloe recently revealed that she can earn a whopping 50 a minute through her work as a webcam model.

And she proved just why she's so successful as she sent her fans wild with a sizzling selfie on Saturday.

Clad in a plunging bodycon dress, the reality starlet showed off her ample cleavage as she reclined on the floor in her glamorous get-up.

Bare-faced- for her! Appearing to wear minimal make-up, she posed the snap wearing the flower filter, her raven tresses loose

Changing race again? Flaunting a glimpse of her surgically enhanced bust, she attempted a range of curious Jamaican accents.

Eye-popping: Clad in a plunging bodycon dress, Chloe, showed off her ample cleavage as she sent her fans wild with a sizzling selfie on Saturday

Seemingly mid-way through her preparations for the evening, the star donned a full head of rollers as she pouted down the lens.

But it was her phenomenal figure that took centre stage in the shot as her dress gave her nowhere to hide.

Featuring a daringly low-cut neckline, the garment was ribbed in design and clung to every inch of her phenomenal figure.

'Business barbie': After soaring to fame on The X Factor, Chloe has gone on to make a fortune by setting up a profitable webcam business and working as a model

Always prepared: The model has hoards of clothes and custom-made costumes that she wears on request for her webcam sessions with men

After soaring to fame on The X Factor, Chloe has gone on to make a fortune by setting up a profitable webcam business and working as a model.

The self-made millionaire appears in Channel 4's online series Selfie Addicts to reveal how she's boosted her fortune by charging men 5 a minute to talk to her online via a webcam.

'The webcam girl thing you can go online, group or private, set your own price and guys can come in and chat to you. You can set it for 5 a minute. If you've got ten people that's 50 a minute, so it's really good money,' she explained.

Maintaining her look: Chloe regularly gets lip fillers to keep her pout and also has chin injections. She has had two boob jobs taking her to a 32HH

'You are going to get the guy who is horny and wants you to do the sexy chat, or you're going to get the guy who is lonely and wants to talk about his allotment. It is literally so random and so weird,' she adds.

Busty Chloe knows her look is where the money is, she currently has 933,000 Instagram followers and 116,000 people following her on Twitter.

She opens up about how her online presence 'changed her life' from the very first moment she started selling images of herself flaunting her surgically-enhanced chest in skimpy clothing.

Eye-popping curves: The brunette beauty litters her social feeds with saucy selfies to show off her huge assets and slimline figure

Selfie-assured: The selfie-made millionaire knows what her best assets are and ever since she began selling her pictures she has enjoyed a lavish lifestyle

'As soon as I put pictures on to sell online and started 'camming' that was it I was making money, I was gone,' she recalls.

'By taking selfies I got the money I needed to really get kick-started and it really actually has changed my life.

'I know what I'm doing, I run a tight ship, I've got my schedule and my targets, it's a business,' she proudly explains.

The model's main goal is to make her webcam site the 'biggest in the world' and she hires and trains all her girls personally to prepare them for the business.

Eager to share: Chloe shares her rags to riches story with Channel 4 for their Selfie Addicts online series following other looks-obsessed people

Business brains: Chloe launches her own webcam site, putting her own money into the event and setting it all up herself to welcome the girls

'A lot of the girls haven't cammed before so I'm going to give them some advice because it's not what everyone thinks,' she says.

'You need to engage in conversation and get them interested. I'm really going to try and train them and give them tips.'

Of her own image, the Celebrity Big Brother star says: 'There is a lot more to me than just a pair of boobs, I mean my boobs are big and my boobs are fabulous, but I'm fabulous too.'

She adds: 'People see me and think, 'such a bimbo' or 'such a barbie' or a total airhead, t*** on a stick and not anything else.

'I am very business-orientated, I am business Barbie and selfies are my game.'

Mentoring: The model is hoping to share her own wisdom with her webcam girls and give them the direction that they need to fulfil their job description

Chloe, who grew up on a council estate in Wakefield, is used to a life of luxury now and owns a home in LA.

In addition to her webcam business, she's appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, modelled for Playboy and was the face of the strip club chain Spearmint Rhino.

She's come a long way since she was ridiculed for her deep fake tan and bad hair extensions on X Factor before being booted off the show for partying too hard.

'If I look back to when I was 15, I lived on a council estate I would have bad people around me, everything was just bad,' she says.

Selfie addict: The model has posed up a storm over the years and has a tightly-run ship of scheduling posts and video clips

Since then the self-made millionaire has had several surgical procedures and regularly gets lip fillers to enhance her looks, something which she is seen doing in the online short.

'Lip fillers I get like once a year. Cosmetic surgery wise I have had a couple of boob jobs,' she says.

'I've had a slight rhinoplasty, a nose job. Really minimal it looks the same as before so I'm going to go and get another one.'

Selfie Addicts is available to watch now on the Channel 4 website
US Black Friday: more shoppers but less spent per head

The American shopping orgy known as Black Friday lured more buyers this year but they spent less per person thanks to great bargains, an industry group said Sunday.

More than 154 million people made purchases during the four-day retail extravaganza that began Thursday on Thanksgiving, compared to 151 million last year, the National Retail Federation said.

Shoppers spent an average of $289.19, compared to $299.60 in 2015.

Shoppers with their arms full walk to their cars during the "Black Friday" sales at a Best Buy store in Culver City, California on November 25, 2016 Mark Ralston (AFP)

Sales over the Thanksgiving holiday, which extends into so-called Cyber Monday, are a good indicator of the health of US consumer spending.

Online sales dominated. A total of 44 percent of those who took part in the NRF survey said they had bought via the internet while 40 percent went to a brick-and-mortar store.

"It was a strong weekend for retailers, but an even better weekend for consumers, who took advantage of some really incredible deals," NRF president Matthew Shay said.

The most popular day to shop online was Black Friday itself, the day after the Thanksgiving holiday. Of those who purchased online over the four-day period, 74 percent did so on Friday, up 1.3 percent from last year.

And of the people who went to actual stores over this shopping period, 75 percent did so on Black Friday, up 3.4 percent from last year, the NRF said.

Millennials, aged 18-34, drove the increase in shopping, with eight out of ten buying something over the long weekend.

Around 56 percent of smartphone owners and 53 percent of tablet owners used these devices to assist with their shopping.
Focused Taylor helps set Pakistan big target

Ross Taylor shrugged off his eye problems to score a superb unbeaten century as New Zealand set Pakistan a formidable 369-run target to win the second Test on Monday.

Taylor finished 102 not out despite only being cleared to play two days before the Test after scarring on his left eye threatened his vision.

He was due to have surgery on Wednesday.

New Zealand's Ross Taylor hits the ball during day four of the second cricket Test match between New Zealand and Pakistan at Seddon Park in Hamilton on November 28, 2016 Michael Bradley (AFP)

New Zealand declared late on the fourth day in Hamilton at 313 for 5 and Pakistan were one without loss after facing three overs before stumps.

Both sides vowed there would be no holding back on the final day with Pakistan needing to win to keep their world number two ranking and New Zealand looking to improve on seventh place.

"All going well that last session could be really entertaining," said Taylor, who was pleased he made the decision to play.

"There were definitely thoughts going through my mind not to play so it was nice to draw on a bit of experience -- I've been in that situation before -- and put the team in a good place.

"Probably for the past year, for the first five to 10 balls of the innings I haven't picked up the balls as I would have liked."

- Win or bust -

Pakistan quick Mohammad Amir dismissed talk of playing for a draw.

"We like to be among the top teams in the world and we will try our best to retain that," he said.

"We will definitely try to go for the target. The first session will be very important."

The tourists will have to better the record fourth-innings succesful run chase at Seddon Park of 212 for 4 by Australia in 2000 to win on Tuesday's final day and save the two-Test series.

The highest fourth-innings total on the ground is 344 for 6 by Sri Lanka in a drawn Test nearly 26 years ago.

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson declared after a trademark cut to the boundary from Taylor took him to his century.

Earlier Tom Latham laid the foundations for the declaration with a battling 80 in a welcome return to form and Williamson made 42.

Pakistan made an early breakthrough when they dismissed Jeet Raval for two with the New Zealand score on 11, but they struggled to assert themselves despite the wicket continuing to show life.

- Side-on success -

Williamson and Latham fell in the middle session, and Henry Nicholls (26) and Colin de Grandhomme (32) went after the tea interval.

New Zealand, having won the first Test, need only a draw to beat Pakistan for the first time in 13 Test series dating back to 1985.

Taylor and Latham had both struggled for runs through recent South Africa and India tours as well as the first Test against Pakistan.

Taylor showed no sign of his vision problems when he opened his account with a four off Imran Khan, setting the tone for an innings that contained 16 boundaries.

He survived an lbw appeal on 16 in what was otherwise a chanceless knock.

Taylor said he had changed his technique to allow for his vision problems and it paid off.

"I wanted to get a bit more side on. I didn't go out there to play the cut shot any more than I have in the past. It's just surprising how I was a little more side-on that shot came naturally."

Latham lived on the edge. He survived a runout appeal and had a moment of apprehension when the big screen mistakenly put up the word "out".

On 41 he was dropped by Sami Aslam.

But his luck deserted him trying to fend off a Wahab Riaz bouncer and the ball looped off his gloves to Sarfraz Ahmed behind the stumps.

The wicketkeeper also snapped up Williamson who feathered a good-length Imran delivery to break a 96-run stand with Latham.
Syria's Aleppo key to a regime victory

President Bashar al-Assad is determined to retake Syria's second city Aleppo to deal a decisive blow to the rebels ahead of a possible change in US foreign policy, analysts say.

Assad's regime has in recent months been pressing a series of offensives to seize control of the devastated city's east, which has been in rebel hands since 2012.

The latest assault made a major breakthrough on Saturday when government forces seized the largest of the city's opposition-controlled neighbourhoods.

A picture taken on November 27, 2016 shows a damaged mosque in the Masaken Hanano district in eastern Aleppo, a day after Syrian pro-government forces reseized it from rebel fighters George Ourfalian (AFP)

For Assad's regime, taking Aleppo would be "one of its greatest victories", Middle East expert Mathieu Guidere says, stressing the city's "extraordinary historical, political and geopolitical prestige".

"It was one of the first cities to be taken by the armed opposition," he adds.

Syria's former economic capital and industrial hub lies at a strategic commercial crossroads near the border with Turkey.

The city has been roughly divided since 2012 into a rebel-held east and a government-controlled west.

Fabrice Balanche, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, says the regime retaking east "Aleppo would be a turning point" as it would then control "the five largest cities in Syria".

Assad's forces already control the capital Damascus, the central cities of Homs and Hama and the coastal city of Latakia.

Bringing Aleppo under their control would also give regime forces a better chance at taking back the northwestern province of Idlib, which is almost entirely held by rebels and jihadists.

- 'Balance of power' -

Bassam Abu Abdallah, an analyst close to the Damascus regime, says east Aleppo's fall would "tip the balance of power in the conflict".

Regime forces have since July 17 besieged east Aleppo, where some 250,000 civilians face severe food and fuel shortages and nearly all hospitals have been damaged by bombardment.

"The aim is to push these (rebel) groups towards a scenario like in Homs," Abu Abdallah says, referring to Syria's third city where rebels were defeated in 2014 after two years of regime siege and bombardment.

The current offensive will either lead to a truce or to rebels being evacuated towards other opposition-held areas in Syria, he says.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment of the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shells and barrel bombs.

Analysts say the relentless bombing also aims to push war-battered, hungry residents to turn against the armed opposition.

More than 4,000 civilians fled rebel-held districts into regime-held areas this weekend in the first exodus of the kind in east Aleppo since 2012.

Assad's regime "can only take back a territory if its population no longer backs the rebels", Balanche says.

The government regaining control of Aleppo would mark the end of fighting on a major battlefront in a war that has killed 300,000 people since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

- Upper hand in talks -

Rebels would then control pockets of territory only in the southern province of Daraa, the birthplace of the uprising, and near Damascus where they have lost their previous bastions of Daraya and Moadamiyeh al-Sham.

A defeat in Aleppo would mean rebel groups "are no longer able to maintain the population under their control or protect them", Guidere says.

Balanche says the insurgents losing Aleppo would show the "opposition is incapable of a major military success" and dash its hopes of presenting itself as a viable alternative to the Damascus regime.

Aleppo's fate will be key in any resumption of stalled peace talks to end the five-and-a-half-year war after three failed attempts at UN-brokered dialogue this year.

Guidere says the regime would have the upper hand and "tend to want to negotiate even less" if it seized east Aleppo.

US president-elect Donald Trump taking up office in less than two months' time and a possible subsequent change in American foreign policy could also give Assad the advantage.

If Damascus controls both the capital and Aleppo in January when Trump arrives in the White House, "he may say replacing the regime is categorically out of the question", Guidere says.

Balanche agrees: "We know Trump doesn't really want to invest himself in Syria. If Aleppo falls... it will no longer be worth supporting the opposition."

Regime forces advance in Aleppo AFP (AFP)

Displaced Syrian families arrive at a makeshift camp on November 27, 2016 in the government-held district of Jibreen in Aleppo George Ourfalian (AFP)

Syrian civilians have fled the eastern part of Aleppo in the past 24 hours as regime forces advance against rebel-held districts George Ourfalian (AFP)
Like hero Tupac, Israeli Arab rapper's music provokes

Israeli Arab rapper Tamer Nafar's politically-charged lyrics have sparked the same kind of controversy that may have made his hero Tupac Shakur proud.

Nafar, from the pioneering political rap group DAM, has touched a nerve with songs like "Who's the Terrorist?" skewering what he and others say is discrimination against Arabs in Israel.

He has become a star among Israel's Arab population and Palestinians, but Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev, a former military censor with a combative style, is not a fan.

Rapper Tamer Nafar has been accused of incitement by Israel's Culture Minister Ahmad Gharabli (AFP)

She has singled him out for criticism, accused him of incitement and sought to have one of his recent performances cancelled, helping make him a target of rightwing protesters.

Speaking to AFP in a recent interview, the 37-year-old, who wears a hoody, baggy pants and simple gold chain, dismissed her remarks, saying: "Regev is nothing but a government mouthpiece spreading racist poison."

Speaking after a concert in the Arab-Israeli city of Sakhnin attended by about 1,000 people, many of them teenagers, he pledged to continue with his strident lyrics matched with infective beats.

Regev accuses Nafar of taking it too far, reportedly saying he "chooses at every opportunity and before every possible audience to come out against the idea of the state of Israel and its existence as the state of the Jewish people."

She charges that some of his lyrics justify "terrorism."

- 'Country of my ancestors' 

Arab Israelis like Nafar are descendants of Palestinians who remained after Israel was created in 1948, and they currently make up around 18 percent of the country's population.

They tend to sympathise with the Palestinian cause and Nafar refers to himself as Palestinian.

Growing up in the 1990s in Lod, a mixed Israeli city southeast of Tel Aviv, Nafar listened to Tupac, the provocative American hip-hop star murdered in 1996.

Nafar said he saw similarities between the African-American struggle for equality and the Israeli-Arab experience.

"The imagery in Shakur's videos was similar to our reality in Lod -- how the police were chasing them in the streets," he said.

"I found out we had something in common. I didn't speak English and I used to search for the lyrics in English, print them and sit in school with a dictionary translating them."

DAM -- an acronym for Da Arabian MCs but which also means "blood" in Hebrew and "lasting" in Arabic -- performs songs that are explicitly political.

- 'Go to Gaza, terrorist!' -

In his song "Who's the Terrorist?" Nafar says: "they call me a terrorist but I live in the country of my ancestors."

In another, he rails against so-called honour killings in Arab communities.

Israeli media said Regev, whose spokesman did not respond to a request for comment, took particular objection to lyrics saying:

"Democracy? Why? It reminds me of the Nazis. You've raped the Arab soul, and it became pregnant, giving birth to a child called 'terror attack'. And then you call us terrorists."

The controversy peaked last month when Nafar was to perform at a government-funded festival in the northern Israeli port city of Haifa.

Regev called on Haifa's mayor to withdraw his invitation. Despite the pressure, the gig went ahead, although the atmosphere was charged with rightwing activists wrapped in Israeli flags blocked by police from approaching the stage.

Nafar said he was "scared" by dozens of protesters outside.

"They were yelling 'terrorist', 'go to Gaza' and 'son of a bitch.'"

"It is not normal to go to a concert surrounded by 15 security guards for my own protection," he added.

"There is Tamer the artist who gets on stage and raps, challenging rightwingers and fascists, but there is also Tamer the father and husband who loves his wife and children and worries about himself and them, and takes fascist threats seriously."

He says he has Arab and Jewish friends who helped him through the concert.

A spokeswoman for the Haifa municipality said the event reflected the city's diverse culture.

- 'From that ghetto' -

Nafar is not the only artist or entertainer to be targeted by Israel's culture minister in recent months.

Regev, who belongs to what is seen as Israel's most rightwing government ever, has taken on Israel's largely leftwing Jewish cultural elite.

They have accused her of seeking to muzzle them, including by promoting a bill to cut subsidies to cultural institutions deemed not "loyal" to the state.

She was booed on arrival at a recent cultural conference, and hit back from the podium.

"As the famous Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu once said: 'Cut the bullshit,'" she said.

In September, she walked out of a film award ceremony as Nafar and a Jewish performer read out a poem by Mahmoud Darwish, considered the Palestinian national poet.

"Everything I have done came from the reality in the streets of Lod, from that ghetto," Nafar said of the part of the city where he grew up.

"My job is to document my generation and I am not ashamed of using some Hebrew words in my songs."

He recently finished a film, "Junction 48," which he co-wrote and starred in under direction by Israeli-American Udi Aloni.

It tells the story of an Arab-Israeli rapper, his lover and their feelings of desolation inside Israel.

The film was to have been shown earlier this month at a youth club in the northern city of Karmiel, but the screening was cancelled by the local municipality.

Audience members cheer as Arab-Israeli rapper Tamer Nafar performs on-stage during a festival in the northern Arab-Israeli town of Sakhnin Ahmad Gharabli (AFP)

Israeli Culture and Sports minister Miri Regev says Tamer Nafar's lyrics justify "terrorism" MENAHEM KAHANA (AFP/File)
Eight Indonesians jailed for tanker hijack in Malaysia

Eight Indonesians were sentenced to between 15 and 18 years in prison by a Malaysian court for the hijacking of an oil tanker last year, an official said Monday.

The tanker MT Orkim Harmony was carrying around 6,000 tonnes of petrol worth an estimated $5.6 million when it was commandeered by the eight men on June 11 last year.

The tanker was en route from Malaysia's western coast to the port of Kuantan on the east coast.

The International Maritime Bureau's Malaysia-based Piracy Reporting Centre has recorded 141 incidents worldwide from January-September of this year Manan Vatsayana (AFP/File)

Six of the pirates were sentenced to 15 years in jail and five strokes of the cane, while the other two were handed 18-year jail sentences, a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency official told AFP.

He said that the Indonesians pleaded guilty after they were charged on Sunday in the southern state of Johor, neighbouring Singapore.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Center, said the shipping community hailed the punishment.

"We welcome the tough punishment. It will send a strong signal to potential pirates that crime does not pay," he told AFP.

The eight suspects had eluded security forces by escaping from the tanker on a lifeboat under cover of darkness, Malaysian authorities said at the time, after warships were scrambled to hunt down the men.

The tanker's 22 crew members were mostly unscathed except for an Indonesian sailor who was treated for a gunshot wound to the thigh.

The hijackers subsequently washed up on Vietnam's southwestern Tho Chu island on a lifeboat claiming to have had an accident at sea about a week after the hijack.

But they were taken into custody after local officials discovered they were carrying large sums of cash, and were accused of hijacking the MT Orkim Harmony oil tanker.
Sikh militant commander recaptured after India jailbreak

A top Sikh militant commander was recaptured by police in the Indian capital Delhi on Monday, a day after he was freed in a dramatic jailbreak by a gang wearing police uniforms.

Harminder Singh Mintoo, who heads a Sikh separatist group, was arrested on the outskirts of Delhi some 200 kilometres (124 miles) from the high-security prison in Punjab where he had been remanded on terror charges.

"He was caught near Delhi early Monday and will be brought to Punjab," A S Chahal, a senior local police official, told AFP.

Top Sikh militant Harminder Singh Mintoo escaped from Nabha maximum-security prison during a jailbreak by a gang wearing police uniforms on November 27, 2016 STR (AFP)

Four other inmates who also escaped during the breakout -- members of a local criminal gang jailed for murder -- are still at large, Chahal added.

Mintoo, leader of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) -- a militant group fighting for a Sikh homeland in Punjab -- was arrested in 2014 and was in jail awaiting trial for terrorism offences.

He was freed in an early morning raid on Sunday by at least 10 armed men wearing police uniforms. They stabbed one guard and opened fire before fleeing with the prisoners in cars.

Three policemen were injured in the assault, which prompted a massive hunt for the fugitives.

A woman was killed on a highway a few miles from the prison when police opened fire on her car after the driver allegedly failed to stop at a checkpoint.

Police later said she had no connection with the escapees.

A 2.5 million rupee ($36,000) reward was offered for information on Mintoo's whereabouts. It was not clear if the bounty had played any part in his recapture Monday.

Three top prison officers were sacked or suspended following the jailbreak.

Sunday's raid was the second major prison break in India in less than a month.

In October eight Islamist militants escaped from a jail in central Madhya Pradesh state. They were gunned down hours later in a shootout.

The Sikh separatist insurgency in Punjab largely waned in the late 90s, but several groups remain committed to the Khalistan movement and dozens of alleged Sikh militants are in prison.
Castro's Vietnam battlefield visit cemented his hero status

Vietnamese volunteer Nguyen Thi Huong was just 17 when she was severely injured by an American cluster bomb. She would have died that day if it weren't for a fateful encounter with an unexpected saviour: Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.

The cigar chomping Cuban's surprise appearance on the battlefield in 1973 during the height of the Vietnam War cemented an enduring romance between the Cold War-era allies.

After his death Friday at the age of 90, Castro has been lionised in Vietnam, with teenagers and seniors alike displaying an outpouring of grief.

Fidel Castro on a 1995 visit to Vietnam - the deceased Cuban leader is revered in the country for his support in the war against the United States Hoang Dinh Nam (AFP/File)

Huong belonged to a legion of diehard volunteers on the side of the communists during the brutal conflict.

She was behind the front lines in newly liberated central Quang Tri province, filling craters, when an American cluster bomb exploded near her, sending searing shrapnel into her body.

She lost so much blood that she fainted on the side of the road and said she would have died had Castro not come by in a convoy.

"I was trying to cover the bleeding wound with my hands. Before I fainted on the highway, I vaguely saw a tall westerner with a beard, taking me to his car," 60-year-old Huong told AFP from Quang Tri province.

It was the trip to a nearby hospital in his car that saved her life, she said.

"I considered him a second father. Without him, I would have died 43 years ago," Huong, now a farmer, said through tears.

"I am so sad at the news of his death."

Huong's battlefield tale is among many that have entered the annals of communist Vietnam War-era folklore.

Nguyen Dinh Bin, a Spanish-speaking former deputy foreign minister who sometimes translated during Castro's visits to the nation, often recounted the story.

But it also illustrates the remarkable relationship between two communist nations, separated by 15,000 kilometres (9,300 miles) but bonded by ideology and a once fervent animosity towards Washington.

- 'Milestone' visit -

The Vietnam War ended with a stunning victory for the North two years after Castro's visit, with the Americans defeated and the country unified.

His appearance on the frontlines of Quang Tri province, where he famously raised a battleflag, was a classic piece of theatre, helping to rally north Vietnamese morale and poke the "Yanqui" enemy they both loathed.

He received a rock star welcome on the trip. Cheering Quang Tri residents lined the streets for several kilometres to greet the bearded Cuban leader, dressed in bush attire to meet communist soldiers.

"Castro's visit to Quang Tri brought a lot of fame for Vietnam, and confirmed our legitimate right to the land there," historian Pham Xuan Nam told AFP.

"It was a milestone, affirming that Vietnam and Cuba were great brothers and comrades," he said.

It was a relationship that remained steadfast long after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.

Castro visited Vietnam twice more in 1995 and 2003 -- even as Hanoi's relationship with long-time Cuban foe, the United States, warmed.

Cuba also funded infrastructure projects in Vietnam and paid for post-war recovery efforts even as coffers drained back home under Castro's hardline communist economic policies.

Vietnam's President Tran Dai Quang was the last head of state to visit Castro on November 16, just 10 days before his death.

And on Castro's final trip to Vietnam in 2003, he reportedly sat with legendary war general Vo Nguyen Giap, chatting and laughing beneath a portrait of former Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin. Giap died in late 2013.

And while Castro is reviled by many at home and abroad who accuse him of being a despot with little tolerance for dissent, in Vietnam he is widely revered, especially among war veterans who saw him.

"I'll never forget his words, saying that the revolutionary flag he was holding in his hand would surely be in Saigon one day," said Le Van Hoan, an 85-year-old retired communist party member who was in the crowd that day with many who cried as the Cuban spoke.

"Castro's visit was an honour and a great encouragement to thousands of people and soldiers in the area."

Nguyen Thi Huong reads a local newspaper announcing the death of Fidel Castro - the former Cuban leader rescued her after a bomb attack in 1973 STR (AFP)
S.Africa's Zuma on the ropes as resignation calls grow

South African President Jacob Zuma on Monday faced the biggest challenge to his leadership since taking power in 2009 as the ruling ANC party debated his future and calls grew for him to resign.

Zuma has been hit by a series of corruption scandals and damaging court rulings this year, while the ANC suffered a sharp setback in local polls in August and unemployment has hit a 13-year high.

A weekend meeting of the African National Congress (ANC) national executive committee was extended into Monday after a rebellion led by senior government figures.

Jacob Zuma has refused to repay taxpayers' money used to refurbish his private rural house John Wessels (AFP)

Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi all called on the president to step down, the News24 news agency reported, citing party sources.

The ruling party gave no official comment after the prolonged national executive meeting but promised a press conference at 2:00 pm (1200 GMT) on Tuesday.

The president, who has survived numerous scandals while in office, has been under renewed pressure since a corruption probe earlier this month unearthed fresh allegations of misconduct.

The probe by the country's top watchdog uncovered evidence of possible criminal activity in Zuma's relationship with the Guptas, a business family accused of wielding undue political influence.

"He is at his weakest. He is under extreme pressure," political analyst Daniel Silke told AFP.

"I don't think the ANC is ready for a very fast departure, but this is an unprecedented show of anti-Zuma support.

"We could see a warning sign to the president that his days are numbered."

- 'Fighting for political life' -

However Zuma, 74, retains strong loyalty among many rank-and-file ANC party members, as well as its lawmakers. He easily survived a vote of no confidence in parliament on November 10.

Neither the ANC nor any of the three ministers reportedly calling for Zuma's head commented on Monday, as the party meeting at a hotel near Pretoria continued.

Increasing numbers of anti-apartheid veterans, ANC activists, trade unions, civil groups and business leaders have called for the president to resign in recent months.

The ANC, which has ruled since Nelson Mandela won the first post-apartheid elections in 1994, has seen its popularity dive, with local polls in August delivering the party's worst-ever result.

Zuma's term in office ends in 2019, but the ANC is due to elect a new party leader at the end of next year and could decide to replace him as head of state.

"There is no doubt that Zuma is fighting for his political life," analyst Ranjeni Munusamy wrote on the Daily Maverick website.

"He is hanging on while it is clear that large sections of the ANC... no longer want him as president."

South Africa's highest court this year found him guilty of violating the constitution after he refused to repay taxpayers' money used to refurbish his private rural house.

He is also fighting a court order that could reinstate almost 800 corruption charges against him over a multi-billion dollar arms deal in the 1990s.

- Economic woes -

International credit rating firm Fitch on Friday dropped its outlook for South Africa from stable to negative, pointing to the country's recent political turmoil.

Zuma has also been engulfed by a power struggle with Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan.

Zuma's loyalists have been at loggerheads with Gordhan, a reformist who is widely respected among international investors.

Mmusi Maimane, leader of the main opposition Democratic Alliance party, told AFP that he expected Zuma to ride out the latest bout of criticism.

"I think it will probably be a deferred decision until next year," he said.

"The ANC (has) a very difficult decision about who will succeed him and which faction that will come from because it's a deeply divided organisation."

When Zuma leaves office, the three leading possible successors are his ex-wife, African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphone par

osa and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.

The Business Day newspaper reported that many of Zuma's supporters rushed back to the ANC meeting after missing proceedings to attend a wedding near Cape Town.

Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi (right) is among ministers reportedly calling on Jacob Zuma to resign Nardus Engelbrecht (AFP/File)

South African president Jacob Zuma has been criticised for his close relationship with the Guptas -- a business family accused of wielding undue political influence Gianluigi Guercia (AFP/File)
Israeli airforce strikes IS-linked group in Syria: army

Israel's air force targeted gunmen linked to the Islamic State group in Syria overnight, the army said Monday, after they fired on an Israeli soldier in the occupied Golan Heights.

"Overnight the (Israeli air force) targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the Islamic State as an operations centre along the border in the southern Syrian Golan Heights," an army statement read.

It said the building was the "base for yesterday's attack," which was believed to be the first such direct assault by jihadists on Israeli soldiers in the Golan Heights since Syria's civil war began in 2011.

A UN officer monitors the Israel-Syria border in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, on November 27, 2016 Jalaa Marey (AFP)

The army said Israeli soldiers were targeted Sunday with machinegun fire and mortars and shot back. The air force then bombed the vehicle carrying the gunmen, identified as members of the Yarmouk Martyrs' Brigade, a Syrian rebel group that pledged allegiance to IS.

Four of the militants were killed, with no Israeli soldiers injured.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the soldiers who "successfully repelled an attempted attack."

"Our forces are prepared on our northern border, and we won't let (IS) elements or other hostile elements use the cover of the war in Syria to establish themselves next to our borders," he said in remarks relayed by his office.

Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres (460 square miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

The two countries are still technically at war, though the border had remained largely quiet for decades until 2011.

Since then regular stray missiles have landed in Israeli border areas, but rebel groups and Syrian government forces have largely avoided directly targeting Israeli forces.

Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.
 BREAKING: InterVarsity Press in United States to Cease Publication of Stephen Sizer's Books | Main | Wheres the Coverage? Palestinians Attack Palestinian Security Forces 

November 23, 2016

The Washington Post Gets CAIR-Less, Again



The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) portrays itself as a U.S. civil rights organization. However, as numerous terrorist analysts and the U.S. government itself has noted, CAIR is an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2009 Holy Land Foundation (HLF) retrial, the largest terrorism financing case in the countrys history. Yet, The Washington Post has frequently failed to disclose CAIR's history.

The Posts Hate crimes against Muslims hit highest mark since 2001? (November 14) by reporter Matt Zapotosky, quoted Ibrahim Hooper, a CAIR spokesman, who claimed that anti-Muslim rhetoric was responsible for an increase in hate crimes. Zapotosky did not, however, inform readers about relevant information regarding Hooper, other CAIR employees, or CAIR itself.

As a CAMERA Washington Times Op-Ed pointed out (CAIRs cries of Islamophobia,? Aug. 9, 2016), at least five former staff or lay leaders from CAIR have been indicted, arrested or deported on weapons or terrorism-related charges. In an out of court settlement with the website www.anti-cair-net.org, the council did not contest assertions that it was founded by Hamas members, founded by Islamic terrorists and was funded by Hamas supporters. Hamas is a U.S.-designated terrorist group that rules the Gaza Strip. The movements charter calls for the destruction of Israel and the genocide of Jews.

CAMERA has made The Post aware of CAIRs history via several unpublished letters to the editor and in correspondence to the papers reporters. CAMERA has sent its Special Report The Council on American Islamic Relations: Civil Rights or Extremism?? (July 2009) which noted, among other things, CAIRs connections to the HLF retrial. Additionally, CAMERA has sent The Post documents such as FBI Assistant Director Richard Powers statement to members of the U.S. Congress, which stated that the bureau was ceasing official cooperation with CAIR or its executives until it could resolve whether there continues to be a connection between CAIR or its executives and Hamas.?

Nonetheless, The Post often omits CAIRs background (see, for example Washington Post CAIR Cover-Up Fails Readers,? CAMERA, May 3, 2016). The decision to trust Hoopers claims regarding rampant Islamophobia is questionable. As CAMERAs Special Report highlighted, critics have charged that the council has shown a tendency to embellish statistics about hate crimes? against Muslims. The historian Daniel Pipes, a former U.S. State and Defense Department employee, has noted an earlier CAIR hate crimes report in 2005discovered that of twenty anti-Muslim hate crimes? in 2004 that CAIR cited, at least six are invalid.?

Hooper has made several curious statements in the past, which Post readers should have been appraised of. For example, he was quoted as saying that he would not want to create the impression that I wouldnt like the government of the United States to be Islamic sometime in the future.?

Other CAIR officials have made similarly outrageous statements. The organizations executive director, Nihad Awad, stated in 1994, I am in support of Hamas.?

Indeed, a mere five days before The Posts latest uncritical CAIR quotation, the head of the council's Los Angeles office, Hussam Ayloush, made a questionable statement in response to news that Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. Ayloush took to Twitter, tweeting Ok, repeat after me: Al-Shaab yureed isqat al-nizaam. (Arab Spring chant). As Pipes noted in National Review Online, the second line of Ayloushs tweet is Arabic for The people wants to bring down the regime.? In other words,? Pipes said, Ayloush unambiguously and directly called for the overthrow of the U.S. government.?

Pipes hoped that Ayloushs tweet would help awaken the press to CAIRs true Islamist identity.? Early returns, however, arent encouraging.

(Note: An earlier version of this post stated that Pipes was a consultant to the U.S. Departments of State and Defense. In fact, he was an employee.)

Posted by SD at November 23, 2016 03:31 PM

Perhaps the Justice Department, in the new administration now entering, will finally indict CAIR. It is about time. Then, we will see the true color of the press. Will they print the facts, or simply repeat the lies told by the CAIR leadership. I think bring CAIR to justice, will be a relief, especially to many American Muslims who would have otherwise spoken out against Islamic extremism.

Posted by: El Cid at November 29, 2016 12:17 PM

Due Diligence RE: CAIR... http://pointdebasculecanada.ca/council-on-american-islamic-relations-cair-canadian-council-on-american-islamic-relations-cair-can-le-conseil-canadien-en-relations-islamo-americaines-cair-can/

Posted by: healer at December 1, 2016 02:08 PM

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Wife of Putin aide shocks with Holocaust-themed skating routine

The wife of President Vladimir Putin's spokesman faced a storm of criticism on Monday for performing a Holocaust-themed ice-dancing routine with striped costumes based on concentration camp uniforms.

Tatiana Navka, an Olympic ice dancing champion who is married to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, performed the pirouetting routine with actor Andrei Burkovsky on a prime-time celebrity skating show on Saturday.

The dancers wore black-and-white striped outfits with numbers and yellow stars for the routine, which ends to the sound of gunfire.

Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov perform at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin Yuri Kadobnov (AFP)

The routine was set to a song from 1997 Oscar-winning Italian film "Life is Beautiful," a tragicomedy about a father trying to hide the horrors of concentration camp life from his son.

The pair won maximum points on the Ice Age show on state-controlled Channel One and praise from judges, while Navka wrote on Instagram that it was one of her "favourite routines", and "our children should know and remember this terrible time."

The routine prompted a wave of discussion online and in international media.

"Have you gone mad? Smiles in prison uniforms with yellow stars! The audience erupting in applause... No taste, no, tact, no understanding," wrote viewer Mihael Ratinsky on the Channel One website.

"This is terrible, people don't understand what they are doing. This is blasphemy," wrote another viewer, Viki Reznik, in a comment to a YouTube video that had been viewed more than 89,000 times by Monday afternoon, with most reactions negative.

Britain's the Daily Mail wrote that the dancers' "beaming grins" seemed to have "little in connection with their gruesome theme," while US People magazine's site called it "troubling".

Israel's Russian-language newspaper Vesty Israel wrote on Facebook that it hoped choreographer, ice dancer Ilya Averbukh, "has enough brains not to bring this routine to Israel."

Averbukh -- who is reportedly of Jewish origin -- angrily defended the routine to Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid, saying, "I would call all this reaction a sign of the craziness of today."

- 'Proud of my wife' -

Navka herself insisted that the camp prisoner uniform was simply part of the performance, telling Life News website: "This is our job."

She said the global reaction "means we are forcing people to think."

Asked to comment on the furore, Peskov told journalists: "I am proud of my wife, that's all I can say."

The Nazis killed some 10 million Soviet civilians and prisoners of war, some 1.3 million of whom were Jewish, according to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Head of the Moscow-based Holocaust Fund Alla Gerber said in an interview with Govorit Moskva radio station that it was "very complex" to depict the Holocaust appropriately.

"Primarily I think there must not be mockery, there must not be irony, there must not be a crooked smile."

Navka was already a popular star and television personality before marrying Peskov in a swanky ceremony on the Black Sea coast last year, but their marriage has made them one of Russia's most-watched celebrity couples.

The weekend show was not the first time ice dancers have tackled the risky topic of the Holocaust.

In the Sochi Winter Olympics in 2014, Russian teen figure skater Yulia Lipnitskaya danced a routine, also choreographed by Averbukh, set to the music of Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List".

Lipnitskaya wore a red costume echoing a victim's red coat in the film in a performance that prompted a standing ovation from Putin but also some accusations of tastelessness.

Tatiana Navka and Roman Kostomarov perform at the 2004 World Figure Skating Championships in Dortmund Jacques Demarthon (AFP/File)

Former Olympian Tatiana Navka's new Holocaust-themed dance routine has stirred controversy Alexander Zemliachenko (POOL/AFP)
Uncertainty ahead of crucial OPEC meeting

Mixed signals from OPEC ministers caused fresh volatility on oil markets Monday ahead of a meeting in Vienna meant to nail down a deal reducing the cartel's output by up to a million barrels per day.

Saudi Arabia's energy minister appeared to suggest on Sunday that Riyadh could live with OPEC failing to agree its first cut in output in eight years, saying recovering demand would "stabilise" prices next year anyway.

"We don't have a single path which is to cut production at the OPEC meeting, we can also depend on recovery in consumption, especially from the US," Saudi media quoted Khaled al-Falih as saying.

Low oil prices have blown a massive hole in producers' finances in recent years, hurting not just more vulnerable OPEC members like Venezuela and Nigeria but even the Gulf states Yasser Al-Zayyat (AFP/File)

But amid concerns that OPEC might not be able to reach an agreement after all, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani on Monday expressed support for plans by the cartel to limit its output.

In a telephone conversation, the Iranian and Russian leaders said OPEC's efforts were "an essential element" for returning stability to global oil prices, a Kremlin statement said.

But they stopped short of saying they would cut their own production levels.

Russia, while not a member of OPEC, is currently pumping some 11 million barrels per day (bpd), a level not seen since Soviet days. Hit hard by the low price and Western sanctions, Moscow has said it is ready to freeze output but not to cut it.

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabbar al-Luaibi meanwhile sounded an upbeat note Monday as he arrived in Vienna ahead of Wednesday's meeting, saying he was "optimistic" that the 14-country group would strike an accord.

This was echoed by Venezuela's similarly "optimistic" Oil Minister Eulogio del Pino as he arrived in Algiers for talks with his Algerian counterpart.

The two were due to head to Moscow together to persuade non-OPEC Russia to also tighten the spigots. "OPEC and non-OPEC countries must take action," del Pino was quoted by local news agency APS as saying.

Around 1715 GMT, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in January was up $1.59 to $47.65 per barrel, winning back most of Friday's heavy losses.

"Just as everyone in the market feared, there is intense volatility," said ETX Capital analyst Neil Wilson. "No one knows if an agreement to freeze output is just wishful thinking or pretty nearly a done deal."

- Devil in the detail -

In September the cartel agreed in principle to lower production to 32.5-33.0 million bpd, meaning a cut of between 600,000 bpd and 1.1 million bpd from current levels.

In addition it reportedly wants non-OPEC countries to reduce output by 600,000 bpd.

OPEC hopes this will reduce the mammoth global supply glut and push the market price of oil above $50 a barrel.

It also marks a reversal of OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia's two-year-old strategy of flooding the market to squeeze out rivals, in particular US shale oil producers, which need a higher oil price to make a profit.

But it remains to be agreed what size cuts, if any, each of OPEC's members will make, particularly Iraq and Iran, the cartel's next-biggest producers. Libya and Nigeria want to be exempted.

Iraq has said it will cut output but that it is short of money needed to fight Islamic State extremists. It also disputes with OPEC the level of its current output. Luaibi was tight-lipped on Monday.

Iran, free to export oil since last year's nuclear deal, won't cut production until it has reached pre-sanctions levels. It is also a fierce regional rival of Saudi Arabia, engaged in a proxy war in Yemen and backing different sides in Syria.

- Prices at the pump -

If OPEC does manage to get a deal and oil prices rise -- though the increase may be modest -- then this will hit the wallets of billions of consumers worldwide, although on balance it could give the global economy a fillip, experts say.

Low oil prices have blown a massive hole in producers' finances in recent years, hurting not just more vulnerable OPEC members like Venezuela and Nigeria but even the Gulf states.

Saudi Arabia, once seen as fabulously wealthy, is projecting a budget deficit of $87 billion in 2016. Low prices have also hit investment in oil facilities, raising the prospect of supply problems in the medium term.

But at the same time, the bad news for OPEC is that higher oil prices may also see more US shale oil producers return to the market.

The US industry could also be given a helping hand by president-elect Donald Trump.

Trump has promised to eliminate regulations restricting fracking, support oil and gas pipeline construction and open restricted federal lands and offshore areas for exploration, including Alaska.

Kuwait's al-Ahmady oil refinery Yasser al-Zayyat (AFP)
Amnesty slams 'shocking' Uganda clashes as toll hits 62

Amnesty International on Monday denounced as "shocking" weekend clashes between security forces and royal guards in Uganda which left 62 dead, saying many victims appeared to have been executed.

The bloodshed, which took place in a traditional kingdom in the west, broke out when a joint patrol of police and troops was attacked by the royal guards in the town of Kasese.

The clashes continued into Sunday until police stormed the palace, arresting King Charles Wesley Mumbere of the Rwenzururu kingdom.

Ugandan policemen guard a checkpoint on the outskirts of Kampala, in February 2016 Isaac Kasamani (AFP/File)

Speaking to AFP on Monday, police spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi said the intial death toll of 55 had risen to 62, including 16 police officers and 46 royal guards.

The royal guards are believed to be part of a militia agitating for the creation of an independent republic straddling Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Police said the king had been taken into custody in Kampala, with another spokesman telling NTV television that 139 royal guards had been arrested,

The violence drew a sharp reaction from the London-based rights watchdog, which said emerging evidence suggested some of the victims had been shot after their arrest.

"The full picture of the weekends events is yet to emerge, but there appears to be shocking examples of unlawful killings and a complete disregard for human rights during the arrests," said Abdullahi Halakhe, Amnesty Internationals East Africa Researcher.

"In a shocking display of heavy-handedness, many people appear to have been summarily shot dead and their bodies dumped."

Uganda's main opposition leader Kizza Besigye shared gruesome images circulating on social media which appeared to show dozens of bodies piled up in front of the palace gates, condemning the "massacre" on Twitter.

Human rights lawyer Nicholas Opiyo said researchers were still trying to determine exactly what had happened.

"Although we have been unable to determine exactly what happened yesterday, we are concerned about the excessive loss of life," he said.

He also said Joy Doreen Biira, a local journalist covering the violence, had been arrested on charges of "complicity with terrorism" with police searching her home for photographs.

- 'Wanted to wage war' -

Brigadier Peter Elwelu of the Ugandan army told NTV that the militia had been carrying out sporadic attacks on the government and civilians since 2014.

"We kept on watching this group, we kept on reaching out to them. Things were not working out and we had to take a decision," he said.

Elwelu said President Yoweri Museveni had phoned the king on Sunday morning and ordered him to rein in his guards.

"We gave him an hour, it elapsed. So the president again called -- gave him two more hours (saying) 'please, sort this out'," said Elwelu.

"So we had no option, after that we had to storm the palace and get these terrorists, and that is what we did."

The king has denied any links to the separatists.

Speaking to AFP on Monday, Interior Minister Jeje Odongo accused him of wanting to start a war.

"From what was recovered from the palace, the weapons used and the people, you clearly see that King Mumbere wanted to wage a war against the government," he said.

- Feeling marginalised -

The Rwenzururu kingdom, of the Bakonzo tribe, is a modern one.

It began as a separatist movement of the same name when the Bakonzo -- tired of being subjected to the rule of another tribe given preference under British rule -- declared its own kingdom in 1962.

The move led to years of bloodshed until a settlement was reached in 1982 in which the movement laid down arms in return for a degree of local autonomy.

Museveni officially recognised the kingdom in 2009.

However, many in the region still feel marginalised by the government and want to create their own state known as the Yiira Republic, uniting the Bakonzo and its sister tribe, the Banande, in neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.

They share a common language and culture, and are believed to stem from one people known as the Ba-Yira.
French strike thought to kill Al-Qaeda ally Belmokhtar

One-eyed hostage killer Mokhtar Belmokhtar, one of Al-Qaeda's most notorious allies in North Africa, was said Monday to have been slain in a French air strike.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed a report in the Wall Street Journal that US intelligence helped France target the veteran jihadist.

The news came as French defense minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was in Washington for talks with his US counterpart Secretary of Defense Ash Carter.

A undated video grab reportedly shows Algerian militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar

But neither top official confirmed the strike, said to have taken place in southern Libya earlier this month.

The Algerian militant, commander of an Al-Qaeda-linked faction of the Al-Murabitoun group, has been reported killed on several previous occasions.

But the official told AFP the latest strike is believed to have finally hit the elusive militant, once known for kidnapping Europeans for multimillion dollar ransoms.

According to the Wall Street Journal report, citing experts and unnamed officials, the strike reflects closer US and French intelligence cooperation.

After November 2015, Islamist attacks on Paris left 130 dead, US President Barack Obama announced promised that closer intelligence cooperation with Paris would begin.

Belmokhtar became one of the world's most wanted men in 2013 after a spectacular assault on the In Amenas gas plant in Algeria left at least 38 hostages dead.

This year, his group claimed responsibility for an attack on a luxury hotel in Burkina Faso that killed another 20 people, most of them foreigners.

And reports he had arrived in Libya have fuelled concern that jihadists will take advantage of the political turmoil there to establish a base of operations.

Washington put a $5 million bounty on the 44-year-old's head, dubbing him the leader of the Khaled Abu al-Abbas Brigade, also known as the "Signatories in Blood."

In May last year, he insisted that Al-Murabitoun remains loyal to Al-Qaeda, despite another of its leaders pledging allegiance the Islamic State group.

Belmokhtar was born on June 1, 1972 in the ancient desert city of Ghardaia, 370 miles (600 kilometers) south of the Algerian capital.

- 'Mister Marlboro' -

In a rare 2007 interview he said he joined the mujahideen rebels fighting the Soviet forces in Afghanistan in 1991 when he was barely 19 years old.

In Afghanistan, he claimed, he lost an eye to shrapnel and had his first contact with the group that became Al-Qaeda, eventually rising to a senior position.

He returned to Algeria in 1993, a year after the Algiers government sparked civil war by cancelling an election that an Islamist party was poised to win.

He joined the Armed Islamic Group (GIA), and thrived thanks to his intimate knowledge of the remote deserts of southern Algeria, northern Mali and Niger.

In 1998 the "Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat" (GSPC) broke from the GIA and Belmokhtar went with them.

Nine years later, GSPC formally adopted the global ideology of Saudi-born jihadist kingpin Osama bin Laden and renamed itself Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

Belmokhtar was best known as a smuggler, known by some as "Mister Marlboro" for trafficking cigarettes.

But in 2013 he emerged as the hardline leader of the "Signatories in Blood," blamed for attacks across the Sahara and the Sahel in Algeria, Mali, Chad and Niger.

The group is one of several Islamist units roaming the scarcely governed wastelands of the Sahel, smuggling goods and people and attacking Western targets.
Aleppo so near yet so far as UN sends aid via Turkey

Every morning, Syrian trucks roll up to a car park near a Turkish border crossing, ready to take a consignment of UN aid back inside the war-torn country.

But so far the cargo cannot reach the area where it is needed most -- the besieged rebel-held areas of eastern Aleppo where tens of thousands of people are desperately short of food.

The United Nations has been running the operation for the past two and a half years, sending in more than 9,000 trucks to northern Syria through two UN hubs in Turkey.

A Syrian woman with her child walks near a Syrian-bound truck loaded with humanitarian aids at the UN transhipment hub at Cilvegozu in Reyhanli near the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay on November 28, 2016 OZAN KOSE (AFP)

At one Turkish staging post, just north of the Cilvegozu crossing that lies barely 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Aleppo, the aid is loaded onto empty Syrian trucks, their number plates covered with paper.

Turkish driver Ibrahim said they had a duty to deliver the goods to the many Syrians suffering after five and a half years of brutal civil war.

"Last year, there was snow and ice and we came without any hesitation. We are here warm, and they are in the cold," he told AFP.

"We made sacrifices, it is risky and dangerous but we do it. They are Muslims, we are also Muslims, we are brothers."

Ramesh Rajasingham, the UN's deputy regional humanitarian coordinator for the Syria crisis, said this is "the safest and quickest way" to reach out to people in northern Syria.

Rajasingham said eastern Aleppo was in a "dire situation," and that the United Nations was pushing all key players to allow the shipments through.

"In terms of east Aleppo, we just need the green light from the people who control the roads going in because, as you know, the east of Aleppo is besieged."

He said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's ally Russia has given verbal support, and rebel groups have given written confirmation they will provide guarantees of security.

After receiving the final formal confirmation from Russia and the Syrian government, "we will move very rapidly".

With the Damascus regime pressing on with its blistering offensive, around 250,000 civilians besieged for months in eastern Aleppo have faced serious food and fuel shortages.

No aid has entered the city's devastated eastern neighbourhoods since government troops surrounded them in July.

And in a major blow Monday, rebels lost all of the northern districts in their strongholds as the army made significant advances in its offensive to recapture the entire city.

- 'Thorough screening process' -

The UN Security Council adopted a resolution in July 2014 to allow the crossing of humanitarian assistance after difficulties faced by UN agencies in accessing affected populations in Syria.

UN agencies, in cooperation with international and local charities, provide assistance to Syrians in selected districts in areas accessible from Turkey including Idlib, Hama and Latakia, as well as parts of Aleppo province not affected by the fighting in the city.

UN officials say one million people live in 20 besieged areas in Syria that are militarily encircled with no access for humanitarian assistance, and another four million live in areas with no predictable or regular access.

The aid operation begins well before dawn in Cilvegozu, where Turkish trucks chartered by UN agencies wait to hand over their cargo.

Every vehicle is carefully screened to ensure it does not carry unsolicited items. Turkish customs authorities check the driver's paperwork and the truck is X-rayed.

"The process starts very early in the day," Jean-Luc Tonglet, officer-in-charge at the UN Monitoring Mechanism, told AFP. "The screening process is rather thorough.

"It is a process that takes 15 minutes for every single truck. If you have a convoy of 20 trucks it takes 2.5 hours."

Then starts the loading process.

Manual labourers carry sacks and boxes to Syrian trucks as UN monitors look on, to make sure for example that no people are being smuggled across.

Finally the trucks are on their way, eventually -- hopefully -- providing some relief to those in need.

A UN worker checks checks a Syrian-bound trucks loaded with humanitarian aids at a UN transhipment hub at Cilvegozu in Reyhanli near the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay on November 28, 2016 OZAN KOSE (AFP)
UN says help needed for suffering Hebron

The UN's Middle East envoy on Monday warned of a new "spiral of violence" in the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron unless daily life for its Palestinian residents improves.

Nickolay Mladenov said during a visit that while the city was the main Palestinian economic hub in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, little trickles down to those who live there.

"It is also the city with the highest rate of unemployment and poverty compared to the rest of the West Bank," he told a news conference, alongside the Palestinian governor, Kamil Hmeid.

UN Assistant Secretary General, Robert Piper (R), walks in the streets of the Old City of Hebron in the Israeli occupied West Bank, on November 28, 2016, during a visit HAZEM BADER (AFP)

"About 30 percent of people in all the governorate are classified as poor compared to 18 percent in the rest of the West Bank," he said in English.

"Given the spiral of violence that we saw last year," he said, there is a pressing need for a strategy "that addresses the human rights aspects of the situation here, that addresses the access to services... looks how to create more economic opportunities for people."

With 200,000 Palestinian inhabitants, Hebron is the largest city in the West Bank and the only one where 500 Israeli settlers have moved into enclaves in its heart.

They are guarded by thousands of Israeli soldiers who scan the streets from watchtowers and from behind concrete slabs.

Hmeid said that in Hebron's Old City 1,050 Palestinian families are caught between the fortified settler compounds and more than 150 army barricades, checkpoints and other obstacles.

"The Old City is entirely under siege," he said in Arabic, adding that some families "are forced every day to pass through Israeli electronic checkpoints and are body-searched every day. This includes families, women and children. This is violating their human rights."

Once a prosperous trading centre, Hebron has become a powder keg, with the ever-present threat of violence hanging in the air.

Tensions are especially high around the shrine known to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque and to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs and revered by both.

Many attacks and attempted attacks have happened there, especially since a wave of violence broke out on October 1, 2015 in the Palestinian Territories, Jerusalem and Israel.

Since then, 241 Palestinians, 36 Israelis, two Americans, a Jordanian, an Eritrean and a Sudanese have been killed, 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 died in Israeli air strikes on Gaza.
Suicide gunmen attack Iraqi city of Samarra

Five gunmen, some of them wearing suicide belts, attacked the Iraqi city of Samarra on Monday, killing at least four members of the security forces, officials said.

"A group from the Daesh terrorist gang tried to infiltrate Samarra and forces confronted them and killed them," the Joint Operations Command said in a statement, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group.

Samarra, which lies 110 kilometres (70 miles) north of Baghdad, is home to a major security headquarters and to an important Shiite shrine where a 2006 bombing touched off two years of sectarian bloodletting.

Iraqi security forces stand on an armoured vehicle in the desert of Samarra, on March 3, 2016 AHMAD AL-RUBAYE (AFP/File)

At least four members of the Iraqi security forces were killed and one wounded in the attack, the JOC and other security officials said.

Security officials said the assailants came from the western bank of the Tigris, crossed it on a boat and attacked a building belonging to the Salaheddin provincial council.

A curfew was briefly slapped on the city as security forces combed the area for any additional attackers.

There was no immediate claim for the attack but officials in Samarra blamed it on IS, which is fighting to defend its Iraqi bastion of Mosul against a huge government offensive.

The "inghimasi" attack, a term for jihadist operations in which gunmen, often wearing suicide vests, intend to sow chaos and fight to the death rather than achieve any military goal, fits a recent pattern of IS attacks.
Abbas's Fatah opens first congress since 2009

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party opened its first congress in seven years Tuesday as the 81-year-old seeks to fend off opponents while talk of who will eventually succeed him mounts.

The election of members of Fatah's parliament and its central committee beginning Friday will signal the direction the oldest Palestinian party will take at a time when Abbas is weakened by his own unpopularity and internal dissent.

Abbas, whose position as party head is not threatened at the congress, will give an address at 6 pm (1600 GMT) on Tuesday. Some 1,400 delegates are expected.

Mahmud Abbas's position as head of the Fatah movement is not threatened and the ageing elader has said he has no intention of stepping aside anytime soon Abbas Momani (AFP/File)

While the ageing leader has said he has no intention of stepping aside anytime soon, talk of who will eventually succeed him as Palestinian president has intensified. He has not publicly designated a successor.

Some analysts see the congress as an attempt by Abbas to marginalise political opponents, including longtime rival Mohammed Dahlan, currently in exile in the United Arab Emirates.

Jibril Rajoub, a former intelligence chief, current head of the Palestinian Football Association and Fatah central committee member, said it will also provide an opportunity to update the party's structures.

"The system from the 1960s no longer works in 2016," he told AFP.

"We have to take into account the current circumstances. The current system was created when we were in the diaspora and we are now on national soil. It was put in place at a revolutionary stage. Now we have a state."

Saeb Erekat, Palestine Liberation Organisation secretary general and Fatah central committee member, said the congress will allow the party to "choose leaders for the next stage."

- Stalled peace efforts -

But the congress also comes at a difficult time for the push to create a Palestinian state, with the cause having been overshadowed by other crises in the region.

The incoming Donald Trump administration in the United States has also signalled its policies will be far more favourable to Israel, likely vetoing UN Security Council resolutions on the conflict it opposes.

Peace efforts have been at a complete standstill since a US-led initiative collapsed in April 2014.

Israel is concerned that US President Barack Obama may take some sort of action related to the conflict before he leaves office in January, but his intentions remain unclear.

In an op-ed published in the New York Times on Tuesday, former US president Jimmy Carter called on Obama to recognise a Palestinian state before his term is up.

The congress also comes with Fatah and its Islamist rival Hamas, in power in the Gaza Strip, still deeply divided. Fatah dominates the Palestinian Authority, which runs the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Israel has prevented dozens of Fatah members in Gaza, which is under an Israeli blockade, from attending the conference, said party spokesman Mahmud Abu al-Hija.

Israeli authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israel controls all borders of the Palestinian territories apart from the Gaza-Egypt frontier.

Abu al-Hija said an objective of the congress, due to run at least five days, is to determine how to act in the face of stalled peace negotiations.

Peace initiatives being promoted by France and Arab nations will be discussed, as will the possibility of introducing a UN Security resolution against Israeli settlement building in the West Bank.

Fatah is the main component of the PLO, created in 1964 in Jerusalem, which brought together the main Palestinian nationalist movements of that time.

The spokeman of Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas' Fatah movement, Abu al-Haija speaks during a press conference on November 28, 2016 Abbas Momani (AFP)
Belmokhtar is the Notorious one-eyed Africa jihadist

Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who a US official said Monday is likely to have been killed in a French air strike, is the notorious commander of a group allied to Al-Qaeda in North Africa.

One of the world's most-wanted men, the Algerian jihadist was dubbed "Mr Marlboro" for his past involvement in trans-Saharan cigarette smuggling and is easily recognisable by his scarred face.

His Al-Murabitoun group claimed responsibility for several major attacks in sub-Saharan Africa, including Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, and is also known for kidnapping Europeans for ransom.

Mokhtar Belmokhtar (pictured), who was said to have been killed in a French air strike, is the notorious commander of the Al-Qaeda ally, Al-Murabitoun jihadist group

France and its allies have been a prime targets for west African jihadists since French forces intervened in Mali in 2013 to root out Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and other extremist groups from the country's desert north.

- Past deaths denied -

Al-Murabitoun was born in 2013 from the fusion of one of those groups, MUJAO, and Belmokhtar's Al-Qaeda splinter group "Signatories in Blood".

Earlier that year, Belmokhtar's group was blamed for the bloody siege of a remote Algerian gas plant in which at least 38 hostages, mainly Westerners, were killed.

The one-eyed Belmokhtar, who reportedly lost his left eye fighting in Afghanistan in the 1990s, has been reported killed several times in counter-terrorism operations.

Each time the death of the man who took up arms alongside the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) during Algeria's civil war of the 1990s has been denied.

- Al-Qaeda allegiance -

An audio recording attributed to another leading member of Al-Murabitoun pledged allegiance to the Islamic State jihadist group in May 2015.

But Belmokhtar reportedly quickly distanced himself from the declaration, vowing allegiance to IS's jihadist rival Al-Qaeda in what was seen as a sign of a power struggle. Al-Qaeda confirmed the allegiance in December, 2015.

Al-Murabitoun claimed an attack on the luxury Radisson Blu hotel in Mali's capital Bamako in November, 2015, in which 20 people were killed, including 14 foreigners.

AQIM said that attack was a joint operation by its forces and those of Al-Murabitoun.

The group was also behind a January 2016 attack on a hotel and restaurant popular with Westerners in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou in which 30, mostly westerners, were killed.

- Belmokhtar in Libya -

Reports that Belmokhtar had arrived in Libya fuelled concern that jihadists would take advantage of the political turmoil there to establish a base of operations.

In July 2016 a confidential UN report said Belmokhtar was able to travel throughout Libya with relative ease.
Texas announces first local Zika case

Texas has announced its first case of local Zika virus, making it the second US state after Florida to say it likely has mosquitoes spreading the disease that can cause birth defects.

The case involves a woman who is not pregnant and has not recently traveled anywhere that Zika is spreading, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.

The case is considered "likely" a result of local transmission, until officials find evidence of mosquitoes carrying the disease.

An environmental health specialist points out an aegypti mosquito caught on a "mosquito trap" in April 2016 in McAllen, Texas John Moore (Getty/AFP/File)

The woman was "was confirmed last week by lab test to have been infected," said the statement.

"She reported no recent travel to Mexico or anywhere else with ongoing Zika virus transmission and no other risk factors."

Texas health officials said there are no other cases of suspected local transmission at this time, but vowed to continue surveillance.

"We knew it was only a matter of time before we saw a Zika case spread by a mosquito in Texas," said John Hellerstedt, Department of State Health Services commissioner.

"We still don't believe the virus will become widespread in Texas, but there could be more cases, so people need to protect themselves from mosquito bites, especially in parts of the state that stay relatively warm in the fall and winter."

Florida was the first state to report the local spread of Zika, and has reported 238 such cases as of last week, as part of more than 1,200 infections statewide so far this year.

The virus has swept mainly across Latin America and the Caribbean, and can cause birth defects if pregnant women are infected.
South Korean capital glows with anti-presidential fervor

SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  In each of the past five Saturday evenings, thousands of protesters have transformed a darkened avenue near the South Korean presidential palace into a sea of light, waving candles, glowing smartphones and battery-powered LED sticks, singing and shouting for President Park Geun-hye to step down.

Candlelight vigils have become the main form of mass, peaceful demonstrations in South Korea since the early 2000s, reshaping a national protest culture once known for its ferocity.

Thousands participated in candlelight vigils in 2002 protesting the death of two schoolgirls struck by a U.S. military vehicle, and in 2008 over Seoul's decision to resume U.S. beef imports amid persisting fears of mad cow disease. The crowds calling for Park's removal have been much larger.

FILE - In this Nov. 1, 2016, file photo, an unidentified man holds a candle light during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. The letters read "Park Geun-hye should step down". (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

In these photos by Ahn Young-joon and Lee Jin-man, South Korean protesters demand the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune.

FILE - In this Nov. 12, 2016, file photo, people holding candle lights stage a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 12, 2016, file photo, people holding candle lights mach toward the presidential house during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2016, file photo, people holding candle lights stage a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2016, file photo, an unidentified woman places a candle to form words that read "South Korean President Park Geun-hye should step down" during a rally calling for Park to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon. File)

In this Nov. 26, 2016, photo, a street vendor prepares to sell candle lights and light sticks during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

FILE - In this Nov. 19, 2016 file photo, South Korean protesters hold up candles during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2016 file photo, South Korean protesters hold up candles during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down near the Gwanghwamun, the main gate of the 14th-century Gyeongbok Palace, one of South Korea's well known landmarks, in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2016 file photo, South Korean students wearing masks, hold candles during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)

In this Nov. 26, 2016 photo, South Korean protesters hold up candles and smartphones' light during a rally calling for South Korean President Park Geun-hye to step down in Seoul, South Korea. South Korean protesters in capital Seoul take part in candlelight vigils demanding the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Israel bombs alleged IS militant hideout in Syria

JERUSALEM (AP)  Israel carried out an airstrike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces, the military said Monday.

The overnight air strike targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel said was used as a base by the militants. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war raging next door, suffering only sporadic incidents of spillover fire over the frontier that Israel has generally dismissed as tactical errors of the Assad regime. Israel has responded to these cases with limited reprisals on Syrian positions in response to the errant fire.

An Israeli soldier directs a tank near the border with Syria in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

But on Sunday, Israeli aircraft struck a machine gun-mounted vehicle inside Syria killing four Islamic State-affiliated militants inside after they had opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Golan Heights, the military said.

No Israeli troops were hurt, but it was a rare attempt by IS-affiliated militants to ambush Israeli forces.

An Israeli soldier directs a tank near the border with Syria in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

An Israeli soldier stand by a tank near the border with Syria in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli soldiers gather next to their tanks near the border with Syria in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A group of men, not specified which group of rebels, drive into an abandoned UN post at Syria's Quneitra border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, seen from the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A group of men, not specified which group of rebels, drive into an abandoned UN post at Syria's Quneitra border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, seen from the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A group of men, not specified which group of rebels, drive from an abandoned UN post at Syria's Quneitra border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, seen from the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Two men, not specified which group of rebels, ride a motorcycle towards an abandoned UN base at Syria's Quneitra border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A group of men, not specified which group of rebels, drive into an abandoned UN post at Syria's Quneitra border crossing between Syria and the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, seen from the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. The Israeli military says it has carried out an air strike in Syria on a building used by Islamic State militants to attack Israeli forces. The overnight air strike Monday targeted an abandoned United Nations building that Israel says was used as a base by the militants. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
Young Philadelphia drummer's cover recognized by Metallica

PHILADELPHIA (AP)  A 10-year-old Philadelphia drummer is receiving high praise for his cover of a Metallica song that was featured on the heavy metal band's Instagram page over the weekend.

Daniel Krilov has been playing drums for only two years, but that didn't stop him from responding to the band's request for fans to send video of themselves covering a track off their new album.

Krilov, a School of Rock Philadelphia student, posted a one-minute recording of himself drumming to his favorite song on "Hardwired... to Self-Destruct" to his own page on the social media site last week.

WPVI-TV reports (http://6abc.cm/2gMcgVM ) Metallica reposted the video to its official Instagram page Friday, telling the Holmesburg boy "Nice work dude!"

Krilov's video was viewed more than 300,000 times on Metallica's page in just one day.

___
France's Hollande and his premier weigh presidential bids

PARIS (AP)  France's government spokesman is insisting that Socialist President Francois Hollande and his prime minister can't compete against each other in an upcoming presidential primary  except if the second quits.

Attention turned Monday turned to the troubled French left, after the staunchly conservative Francois Fillon won the right-wing presidential nomination Sunday on promises of slashing public spending and immigration.

While the unpopular Hollande still hasn't said whether he'll seek re-election, Prime Minister Manuel Valls told French newspaper Journal du Dimanche that he is ready to compete in the left-wing primary in January. The national election is in April and May.

French President Francois Hollande arrives at the Francophonie Summit in Antananarivo, Madagascar on Saturday, Nov. 26, 2016. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press via AP)

"I will make a conscious decision," Valls said.

Government spokesman Stephane Le Foll said on Europe-1 radio Monday, "There will not be a primary between the president and the prime minister." He said Valls could seek the nomination only if he leaves his job.

This scenario would imply a Cabinet reshuffle, only few months from the end of Hollande's term.

The Socialist president of France's lower house of Parliament, Claude Bartolone, said last week he wants both Hollande and Valls to run in the primary.

The two men had their weekly working lunch on Monday at the Elysee Palace in a "cordial and studious atmosphere," the president's office said.

Hollande is expected to say in the coming weeks whether he will seek re-election. The party has fixed a Dec. 15 deadline for the primary's participants to declare themselves as candidates.

The Socialist party is deeply divided over Hollande's presidency. A group of rebels have expressed their opposition to what they consider a pro-business stance and calls for the preservation of the welfare state and other left- leaning social policies.

Two former ministers who have joined the rebel group, Arnaud Montebourg and Benoit Hamon, have already announced they are running for the Socialist nomination.

France's President Francois Hollande, during a meeting with his Namibian counterpart Hage Geingob, at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, Pool)
Trump drama rolls on: Disputes, falsehoods hit transition

NEW YORK (AP)  The drama, disputes and falsehoods that permeated Donald Trump's presidential campaign are now roiling his transition to the White House, forcing aides to defend his baseless assertions of illegal voting and sending internal fights spilling into public.

On Monday, a recount effort, led by Green Party candidate Jill Stein and joined by Hillary Clinton's campaign also marched on in three states, based partly on the Stein campaign's unsubstantiated assertion that cyberhacking could have interfered with electronic voting machines. Wisconsin officials approved plans to begin a recount as early as Thursday. Stein also asked for a recount in Pennsylvania and was expected to do the same in Michigan, where officials certified Trump's victory Monday.

Trump has angrily denounced the recounts and now claims without evidence that he, not Clinton, would have won the popular vote if it hadn't been for "millions of people who voted illegally." On Twitter, he singled out Virginia, California and New Hampshire. In another series of tweets Monday, he lashed out at a CNN reporter who had called Trump's fraud claim "baseless."

Former CIA director retired Gen. David Petraeus arrives at Trump Tower talks with reporters after a meeting with President-elect Donald Trump, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

There has been no indication of widespread election tampering or voter fraud in those states or any others, and Trump aides struggled Monday to back up their boss' claim.

Spokesman Jason Miller said illegal voting was "an issue of concern." But the only evidence he raised was a 2014 news report and a study on voting irregularities conducted before the 2016 election.

Trump met Monday with candidates for top Cabinet posts, including retired Gen. David Petraeus, a new contender for secretary of state. Trump is to meet Tuesday with Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, who is also being considered more seriously for the diplomatic post, and Mitt Romney, who has become a symbol of the internal divisions agitating the transition team.

Petraeus said he spent about an hour with Trump, and he praised the president-elect for showing a "great grasp of a variety of the challenges that are out there."

"Very good conversation and we'll see where it goes from here," he said. A former CIA chief, Petraeus pleaded guilty last year to a misdemeanor charge of mishandling classified information relating to documents he had provided to his biographer, with whom he was having an affair.

Trump is expected Tuesday to name Georgia Rep. Tom Price to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, said a person familiar with the decision, who insisted on anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss the nomination publicly ahead of the announcement.

Vice President-elect Mike Pence, who is heading the transition effort, teased "a number of very important announcements tomorrow" as he exited Trump Tower Monday night.

Pence is said to be among those backing Romney for State. Romney was fiercely critical of Trump throughout the campaign but is interested in the Cabinet position, and they discussed it during a lengthy meeting earlier this month.

Other top Trump allies, notably campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, have launched a highly unusual public campaign to warn the president-elect that nominating Romney would be seen as a betrayal by his supporters. Conway's comments stirred speculation that she is seeking to either force Trump's hand or give him cover for ultimately passing over Romney.

Three people close to the transition team said Trump had been aware that Conway planned to voice her opinion, both on Twitter and in television interviews. They disputed reports that Trump was furious at her and suggested his decision to consider additional candidates instead highlighted her influence.

Conway served as Trump's third campaign manager and largely succeeded in navigating the minefield of rivalries that ensnared other officials. Trump is said to have offered her a choice of White House jobs  either press secretary or communications director. But people with knowledge of Conway's plans say she is more interested in serving as an outside political adviser, akin to the role President Barack Obama's campaign manager David Plouffe played following the 2008 election.

The wrangling over the State Department post appears to have slowed the announcements of other top jobs. Retired Gen. James Mattis, who impressed Trump during a pre-Thanksgiving meeting, was at the top of the list for Defense secretary, but a final decision had not been made.

Trump was also considering former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for Homeland Security secretary, according to those close to the transition process. Giuliani was initially the front-runner for State and is still in the mix. But questions about his overseas business dealings, as well as the mayor's public campaigning for the job, have given Trump pause.

Those close to the transition insisted on anonymity in commenting because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the private process.

Even as Trump weighs major decisions that will shape his presidency, he's been unable to avoid being distracted by the recount effort. He spent Sunday on a 12-hour Twitter offensive that included quoting Clinton's concession speech, in which she said the public owed Trump "an open mind and the chance to lead."

His final tweets challenging the integrity of an election he won were reminiscent of his repeated, unsubstantiated assertions during the campaign that the contest might be rigged. Those previous comments sparked an outcry from both Clinton and some Republicans.

Clinton lawyer Marc Elias said the campaign has seen "no actionable evidence" of voting anomalies. But the campaign still plans to be involved in Stein's recount to ensure its interests are legally represented.

Trump narrowly won Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan. All three would need to flip to Clinton to upend the Republican's victory, and Clinton's team says Trump has a larger edge in all three states than has ever been overcome in a presidential recount.

___

Pace reported from Washington. AP writer Jon Lemire contributed to this report.

___

Follow Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC and http://twitter.com/catherine_lucey

Kellyanne Conway walks past reporters in the lobby of Trump Tower, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke gets on an elevator after arriving at Trump Tower, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

President-elect Donald Trump, followed by his wife Melania Trump and son Barron Trump, boards his plane at Palm Beach International Airport, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016, in West Palm Beach, Fla., en route to New York. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
North Korea in 3 days of mourning for 'great comrade' Castro

TOKYO (AP)  North Korea is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, who was seen by the North as a comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States.

Flags outside official buildings are being flown at half-staff to honor Castro, who died Friday at age 90.

Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited the Cuban Embassy to pay his respects. A delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castro's memorial services.

In this photo distributed by the North Korean government, Choe Ryong Hae, right, a vice chairman of North Korea's Workers' Party, is sent off before leaving Pyongyang, North Korea, for Cuba Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the Korean Central News Agency via Korea News Service. Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy and that a delegation of senior North Korean officials, led by Choe, left for Havana to attend the late Fidel Castro's memorial services. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

"We feel pain of the loss of the great comrade, the great comrade-in-arms," Kim wrote in a condolence book at the Cuban embassy, the North's official Korean Central News Agency reported Tuesday.

According to a Japanese agency that monitors North Korean media, Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honored in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.

The mourning period ends Wednesday.

Shortly after receiving news of Castro's death, Kim Yong Nam, head of the North's parliament, and Premier Pak Pong Ju sent a message of condolence to Castro's brother Raul, who assumed power after Fidel Castro became too weak to continue as leader in 2008.

In it, they said that although Fidel Castro has died, "the feats he performed for the Cuban revolution and the fraternal relations of friendship between the two countries would remain forever."

But Fidel Castro's passing could well be the end of an era for North Korea-Cuba relations.

Because of their common enmity toward the United States and similar authoritarian power structures, Cuba and North Korea had maintained generally close diplomatic ties throughout the years. The two countries established ties in 1960 and Castro visited the North in 1986 to meet with Kim Il Sung, the country's founder and Kim Jong Un's grandfather.
Will Washington shout down the 'voice' of Trump voters?

WASHINGTON (AP)  Donald Trump thundered to Americans, "I am your voice," as he accepted the Republican presidential nomination this summer.

As president, he'll find that Washington has a way of shouting back  even to the point of drowning him out.

The seat of the federal government is teeming with interest groups, corporate lobbyists and big-money super PACs. They will have some different goals than Trump and wide swaths of his voters, particularly on matters of government ethics and trade deals. There's comparatively little in place to pressure lawmakers to follow Trump's lead.

FILE - In this Nov. 17, 2016 file photo, Kellyanne Conway, campaign manager for President-elect Donald Trump, speaks to media at Trump Tower in New York. Trump says of his voters "I am your voice." But there's really nothing in Washington to amplify it. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

"This has always been the problem for conservatives," said Brent Bozell, a longtime activist who leads a social media effort called For America. "We'll get a person elected only to get the middle finger as soon as the person is sworn into office."

To fight back, Trump and his allies are already taking steps to assemble a support system.

Members of his team are considering whether to convert his campaign into a nonprofit group, following a trail blazed by President Barack Obama. A nonprofit group similar to Obama's Organizing for Action would not have to disclose its donors and could spend money in unlimited ways to urge supporters to pressure members of Congress and senators to back Trump's legislative efforts.

Trump allies might also put together a well-funded super PAC that could loom as a threat to Republican lawmakers who break with him. In July, Trump said he could see himself spending $10 million to $20 million to defeat Republicans who'd spoken out against his nomination, though since his election, he's been setting up conciliatory meetings with some of them.

There's no rule against Trump's adult children  even Trump himself  promoting outside groups that align with him, or even showing up at their events. Although elected officials including the president are restricted in how much money they can solicit, they can freely give out of their own pocket.

"There's plenty of legal room for a president to be involved in outside groups when it comes to policy matters and the election of other people to office," said Paul S. Ryan, vice president of policy and litigation at Common Cause, a liberal-leaning government watchdog. "Especially when it's their own money."

Several of Trump's closest aides, including campaign manager Kellyanne Conway and deputy campaign manager David Bossie, have experience leading outside groups. Brad Parscale, a senior Trump adviser who steered the campaign's data and digital operations, hinted in a recent Fox News interview that he is interested in that kind of work. "My goal is to be a megaphone for people, for businesses, for candidates," he said.

Any Trump-blessed political group could inherit or lease a list of more than 12 million supporters built up over the course of the campaign. A signed agreement means the Republican National Committee also receives the campaign's supporter list and data.

Richard Worthington, a Las Vegas real estate developer who liked Trump so much that he gave the campaign money even before Trump was officially seeking donations, said Trump supporters  particularly those who can afford it  would rally behind any kind of supportive group.

"I know he will have some detractors," Worthington said. "What he's going to have to do is build some bridges in Washington, and that may be one way to do it."

While an "official" Trump effort hasn't been announced, already some of the outside groups that backed him this year are rebranding as White House boosters. Within 24 hours of the election, Great America PAC was publicizing a "2017 Trump Presidential Agenda Survey" as a way to continue building its supporter list. It's also planning events for Trump's inauguration Jan. 20.

"People have made the investment to get him elected, and we want to keep them active and see what we can do to help him," said Ed Rollins, one of Great America's leaders. "Trump has a tough, tough agenda, and he will need help."

Eric Beach, co-chairman of the group alongside Rollins, said 300,000 individuals gave to Great America.

Rollins, who was a top aide to President Ronald Reagan, noted he had some of the same challenges when he arrived in Washington after campaigning as an outsider. Like Obama, Reagan counted on a network of political groups to push his message.

Tea party groups also could play a role in communicating between Trump supporters and the administration and Congress. That movement touched off in 2009 and pushed against increased government spending, among other economic issues.

One of the biggest tea party groups, Tea Party Patriots, backed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in the GOP primary but was supportive of Trump during the general election.

Bozell, the longtime activist, said the same sentiment that drove thousands to mass at Trump rallies was behind the earlier tea party rallies  and for that matter the "silent majority" of the 1970s and the "moral majority" of the 1980s.

"The conservative movement has shown itself in different ways over the years," he said, "and each name is just a snapshot in time."

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Follow Julie Bykowicz at http://www.twitter.com/bykowicz

FILE - In this Nov. 7, 2016 file photo, then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures as he arrives to speak to a campaign rally in Raleigh, N.C. Trump says of his voters "I am your voice." But there's really nothing in Washington to amplify it. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci, File)

FILE - In this Sept. 12, 2016 file photo, Eric Beach, co-chairman of Great America PAC, relaxes on the bus after it made a stop for a town hall meeting in Lake Mary, Fla. Trump says of his voters "I am your voice." But there's really nothing in Washington to amplify it. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)
Rebels' hold on eastern Aleppo collapses as troops move in

BEIRUT (AP)  Syrian government forces captured more than a third of opposition-held eastern Aleppo on Monday, touching off a wave of panic and flight from the besieged enclave as rebel defenses in the country's largest city rapidly collapsed.

The dramatic gains marked an inflection point in Syria's nearly 6-year-old conflict, threatening to dislodge armed opponents of President Bashar Assad from their last major urban stronghold.

Reclaiming all of Aleppo, Syria's former commercial capital, would be the biggest prize of the war for Assad. It would put his forces in control of the country's four largest cities as well as the coastal region, and cap a year of steady government advances.

This Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016 photo provided by the Rumaf, a Syrian Kurdish activist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows a Syrian woman carrying her belongings pass by Kurdish fighters, as she flees rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo into the Sheikh Maqsoud area that is controlled by Kurdish fighters, Syria. Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo's besieged rebel-held areas under state control. (The Rumaf via AP)

It also would bolster his position and momentum just as a new U.S. administration is taking hold, freeing thousands of his troops and allied militiamen to move on to other battles around the country.

Charles Lister, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute, said the opposition's losses in Aleppo are the biggest since 2012.

"Aleppo city itself has also been a consistent base of moderate opposition activity, so its collapse spells what could be an existential blow to the moderate opposition from which it'll likely struggle to recover," he said.

Ever since it joined the uprising four years ago, eastern Aleppo tried to make itself a model for a Syria without Assad. It elected local leaders, ran its own education system and built an economy trading with the rebel-held countryside and neighboring Turkey.

Its residents kept life going amid ferocious fighting with the pro-government western districts, but four years of battles and airstrikes have reduced entire blocks in the territory to rubble.

Helped by massive Russian air power and thousands of Iranian-backed Shiite militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq and Iran, Assad renewed his push for Aleppo this month. The besieged eastern districts came under intense airstrikes that killed hundreds in the past two weeks.

More than 250,000 people are believed trapped there with limited access to food, water and medical supplies. They include more than 100,000 children, the U.N. says.

"It is stinging cold, food is scarce and people are shaken in the streets," Mohammad Zein Khandaqani, a member of the Medical Council in Aleppo, told The Associated Press in a text message from eastern Aleppo.

Some are taking refuge in mosques while others moved to homes of displaced people in safer areas, he added.

Thousands of civilians, many of whom had refused to leave despite the suffocating siege and bombardment that tested the limits of endurance, fled the enclave over the weekend and Monday.

"We've been under siege for the past three months," said Alaeddine Hilal, a 45-year-old trader who lives between the Hulluk and Haidariyeh neighborhoods, speaking by phone. "I couldn't find a tomato or potato, or even an egg to eat. There were no nutrients left."

Pro-government forces began a push last week apparently aimed at slicing the territory in two. Over the weekend, rebel defenses buckled under simultaneous advances by the government and Kurdish-led forces, sending people fleeing inside the divided city.

Troops moved quickly Saturday into the Hanano neighborhood, the first time they had pushed that far into eastern Aleppo since 2012. On Monday, they moved into the Sakhour district, putting much of the northern part of the city's besieged rebel-held areas under government control.

With the capture of Sakhour, the rebels are now boxed in mostly in central and southeastern Aleppo, encircled by government troops.

Ammar Sakkar, a spokesman for the Fastaqim brigade, said the rebels would continue to fight.

"The situation of the revolutionaries inside the city is good, from a military point of view," he said. "We've redeployed and made fortifications. There will be an attempt to hold fast."

Still, the collapse in Aleppo is a devastating blow to the morale of rebels in other parts of Syria. With Aleppo secure, Assad will be able to turn his attentions to the Damascus countryside and Idlib, the province next to Aleppo.

The northern province is a stronghold of the al-Qaida-linked Fateh al-Sham Front and other Islamic opposition factions, and the loss of Aleppo is expected to be a defeat for the people holed up there.

It also potentially would free up Assad's forces to advance on the Islamic State group, including the northeastern city of Raqqa, the extremists' de facto capital.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has said he will ramp up the war on Islamic State militants and suggested he would be willing to work with the strongmen who do so. He has made clear that defeating the Islamic State group is more important than removing Assad.

The war that has killed well over a quarter-million has its roots in a harsh government crackdown on dissent in 2011. It remains far from a political resolution.

"Assad's survival does not promise stability in Syria," said Lister, who predicts that the collapse of the more moderate rebel elements will embolden the extremists.

"The hunger to remove Assad is as strong as ever," he said. "Islamists and jihadists are stronger, and that's where we are headed today."

Russia's Defense Ministry said Syrian government forces in recent days captured 12 neighborhoods and over 3,000 buildings. The troops now control 40 percent of the rebel-held parts of Aleppo, and more than 100 rebels have laid down their arms and left the eastern suburbs, it added.

A report from east Aleppo's Haidariyeh area by a correspondent for Al-Manar TV of Lebanon's Hezbollah group showed bulldozers removing barriers to open roads as Syrian troops rode in armored personnel carriers. The neighborhood was captured Monday, with Hezbollah fighters taking part along with Syrian troops.

State TV said 3,000 people, half of them children, have fled in a few hours. It showed men, women and children in green buses heading for government-controlled areas.

Hilal, who has four children, said his family is scattered. "I stayed in the liberated area because I couldn't move," he said of maintaining his residence in eastern Aleppo. He has not seen one of his sons in two years and is yet to meet his first grandson.

"We've aged 200 years in these past two or three years. It was like judgment day. I wouldn't wish this on my enemies," he said.

___

Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue and Sarah El Deeb in Beirut, Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria, and Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow contributed to this report.

This Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016 photo provided by the Rumaf, a Syrian Kurdish activist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows people fleeing rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo into the Sheikh Maqsoud area that is controlled by Kurdish fighters, Syria. Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo's besieged rebel-held areas under state control. (The Rumaf via AP)

This Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016 photo provided by the Rumaf, a Syrian Kurdish activist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows A Syrian woman carrying her child in one hand and a bag in the other, as she flees rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo into the Sheikh Maqsoud area that is controlled by Kurdish fighters, Syria. Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo's besieged rebel-held areas under state control. (The Rumaf via AP)

This Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016 photo provided by the Rumaf, a Syrian Kurdish activist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows Kurdish fighters watch people flee from rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo into the Sheikh Maqsoud area that is controlled by Kurdish fighters, Syria. Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo's besieged rebel-held areas under state control. (The Rumaf via AP)
High court to examine mental disability, death penalty issue

HOUSTON (AP)  The U.S. Supreme Court is set to examine whether the nation's busiest state for capital punishment is trying to put to death a convicted killer who's intellectually disabled, which would make him ineligible for execution under the court's current guidance.

Lawyers for prisoner Bobby James Moore, 57, contend that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state's highest criminal court, ignored current medical standards and required use of outdated standards when it decided Moore isn't mentally disabled. That ruling removed a legal hurdle to Moore's execution for the shotgun slaying of a Houston grocery store clerk in 1980.

The Texas court is a "conspicuous outlier" among state courts and "defies both the Constitution and common sense," Clifford Sloan, Moore's lead lawyer, told the justices in written briefs submitted ahead of Tuesday's scheduled oral arguments. Such a "head-in-the-sand approach ... ignores advances in the medical community's understanding and assessment of intellectual disability over the past quarter century," he wrote.

This undated photo provided by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice shows inmate Bobby Moore. The U.S. Supreme Court this week examines whether the nation's busiest state for capital punishment is trying to put to death a convicted killer who's intellectually disabled, which would make him ineligible for execution under the court's current guidance. (Texas Department of Criminal Justice via AP)

Moore's lawyers want his death sentence set aside, contending his punishment would violate the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment and the Supreme Court's 2002 ruling in a North Carolina case that prohibited execution of the mentally disabled.

The Texas attorney general's office says the state "fully complies" with Supreme Court precedents. The state points to its use of 1992 clinical definitions for intellectual disability as cited by the high court in its 2002 decision. And the office says it has consulted and considered more recent standards.

The question before the high court "rests on a false premise," Texas Solicitor General Scott Keller said, arguing that Moore's claim of intellectual disability is refuted "under any relevant standard."

Two years ago, the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a Florida law that barred any other evidence of intellectual disability if an inmate's IQ was over 70. Texas uses a three-pronged test to define intellectual disability: IQ scores, with 70 generally considered a threshold; an inmate's ability to interact with others and care for him or herself; and whether evidence of deficiencies in either of those areas occurred before age 18.

The state says Moore had a troubled childhood with little supervision and scored 57, 77 and 78 on IQ tests before dropping out of school in the ninth grade. He'd been convicted four times of felonies by age 17 but never was diagnosed with an intellectual disability as a youth, the state argues.

It describes him as living on the streets, playing pool for money and mowing lawns. During the fatal robbery of 72-year-old Houston supermarket clerk James McCarble, Moore wore a wig and fled to Louisiana afterward, and had represented himself in legal actions, showing the required intellectual capabilities, the state contends.

Moore's lawyers argue the state "cherry-picked" specific higher IQ scores, and that at age 13 Moore had no basic understanding of the days of the week or seasons of the year, couldn't tell time and couldn't read or write or keep up in school.

Since the Supreme Court allowed capital punishment to resume in 1976, Texas has carried out 537 executions, far more than any other state. Moore arrived on death row in July 1980, and only five of the state's some 250 condemned inmates have been there longer.

In 1999, an appeals court threw out his death sentence, ruling that the legal help at his trial was deficient. At a new punishment hearing two years later, a Harris County jury again sentenced him to die.
5 Filipinos missing after fishing near disputed shoal

MANILA, Philippines (AP)  Philippine coast guard officials said Monday they've launched a search for five Filipinos who failed to return after fishing in the disputed Scarborough Shoal in bad weather off the country's northwest.

Coast guard spokesman Armand Balilo said the fishermen left the shoal due to an approaching typhoon last week and have not been heard from since. Boats and ships passing in the area were alerted after a fisherman notified authorities about his missing colleagues.

The Philippine coast guard plans to coordinate its search with its Chinese counterpart in the Scarborough area, Balilo said.

China seized the shoal in 2012 after a maritime standoff with Philippines. Chinese coast guard ships have been blocking Filipino fishermen from the shoal but were allowed back after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte discussed the territorial rift with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month.
Anti-EU UKIP picks new leader to replace Trump ally Farage

LONDON (AP)  Britain's populist U.K. Independence Party chose European Parliament member Paul Nuttall as leader on Monday, replacing the charismatic but divisive Nigel Farage.

In his parting speech, Farage claimed the political upheavals that are taking Britain out of the European Union and Donald Trump into the White House are far from over.

He said UKIP's anti-EU, anti-globalization politics had had a "seismic" effect in Britain, and beyond.

Paul Nuttall gestures after being announced as the new leader of the U.K. Independence Party in London Monday Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

"It is Brexit that directly led to the Establishment getting beaten on the 8th of November and Donald J. Trump about to take the presidency," Farage said, referring to the U.S. presidential election. "We were the inspiration behind much of that."

Nuttall decisively beat two other contenders in a contest to head the right-wing anti-EU party, winning 62.6 percent of the votes cast.

The 39-year-old former college history lecturer vowed to unite the fractious party and fight to ensure that Britain's divorce from the EU is not watered down during negotiations.

"We will hold the government's feet to the fire electorally and ensure that Brexit really does mean Brexit," he said.

Monday's announcement follows a tumultuous period for UKIP, which was instrumental in forcing Britain's Conservative government to hold a referendum on EU membership.

The June 23 vote to leave the bloc was a triumph for the party, which was founded to get the U.K. out of the EU. But UKIP's leadership  a collection of authoritarians, libertarians and former Conservatives  soon descended into squabbling.

Farage stepped down after the EU vote, which he said capped his political career. But replacement Diane James resigned after 18 days. The favorite to replace her, Steven Woolfe, also quit after a fight with a UKIP colleague that left him hospitalized.

UKIP won almost 4 million votes in the 2015 election, though that translated into just one of the 650 seats in Parliament because Britain doesn't have a system of proportional representation.

Nuttall said that as leader he would take on the left-of-center Labour Party in England's former industrial heartlands.

For decades, Labour has been the main party of working-class voters. But, like Trump, UKIP has won the support of many lower-income voters by linking immigration and globalization to the financial squeeze felt by many families.

"I want to replace the Labour Party and make UKIP the patriotic voice of working people," Nuttall said.

Despite its success shaping the political agenda, UKIP's membership has declined from its peak, and the party faces an uncertain future without Farage, a crowd-pleasing populist who helped propel UKIP from political fringe to influential power broker.

Farage said Monday he wouldn't be a "back-seat driver" to the new leader, and would retain his seat in the European Parliament until the term ends in 2019.

Farage's international profile has grown because of his strong relationship with Trump, who suggested in a tweet that Farage would make a good British ambassador in Washington.

The British government quickly replied that there was no vacancy for the job.

Farage said Monday he was heading to the U.S. this week  "purely as a tourist. Nothing more than that."

New leader of the U.K. Independence Party Paul Nuttall, left, smiles as he is greeted by former leader Nigel Farage after a press conference where it was announced in London Monday Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Paul Nuttall gestures as he speaks after being announced as the new leader of the U.K. Independence Party in London Monday Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Paul Nuttall gestures as he speaks after being announced as the new leader of the U.K. Independence Party in London Monday Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

Nigel Farage, the acting leader of the right-wing U.K. Independence Party gestures before announcing the new leader of the party in London Monday Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Polish, German presidents visit NATO command center

WARSAW, Poland (AP)  The presidents of Poland and of Germany on Monday visited NATO's easternmost command center, which is being upgraded for quick reaction in the event of a threat to the alliance's eastern flank.

Andrzej Duda and Joachim Gauck stressed the important role that the headquarters of NATO's Multinational Corps Northeast in Szczecin, northwestern Poland, plays at a time of concern for Europe's security.

They met with the center's commanders and troops and visited the main command post and the military barracks that house troops from the U.S. and 24 other nations, including non-NATO countries Finland and Sweden. Formed in 1999, around the time when Poland and other countries of the region joined NATO, the corps plays a deterrent role but can potentially command defensive action.

Polish President Andrzej Duda, right, and German President Joachim Gauck brief the media after a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

"This multi-national corps plays an important role in assuring security at a time when politicians and societies alike have concerns as to security in Europe," Gauck said.

Duda said that potential threats could be coming from the "south and the east"  referring to an uncontrolled migrant influx and Russia, respectively  "not to mention the threat of terrorism."

Following Russia's seizure of the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, a NATO summit that year decided to raise the corps' readiness to high and to double its force to 400 troops, as a deterrent. It's chiefly made up of land units but also has special forces. The corps' area of responsibility covers Poland, the Baltic states, Slovakia and Hungary and its tasks also include monitoring of the region's security environment and coordinating military operations.

A NATO summit in Warsaw this year decided to send about 4,000 troops to Poland and the Baltic states to reinforce the deterrent power.

Poland's one-year-old conservative government is also taking steps of its own to boost its defense and is putting together a new force, the Territorial Defense, which will number around 50,000 troops in 2019.

Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, and German President Joachim Gauck, 2. from left, review the honor guards during a visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO, in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, right, and German President Joachim Gauck, left, leave a news conference after a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

German president Joachim Gauck, left, shakes hands with Poland's president Andrzej Duda, during a meeting in Szczecin, Poland, Monday Nov. 28, 2016. ( Soeren Stache/Pool Photo via AP)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, second from left, and German President Joachim Gauck, third from left, bow to the honor guards during a visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO, in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, center left, and German President Joachim Gauck, center right, listen to the national anthems during a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, and German President Joachim Gauck, 2. from left, review the honor guards during a joint visit of the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO, in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, center back, and German President Joachim Gauck, center front, greet soldiers at the Main Command Post ,MCP, at the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

German President Joachim Gauck, center, and Polish President Andrzej Duda, center left, listen to Lieutenant General and Commander Multinational Corps Northeast Manfred Hofmann, center right, at the Main Command Post ,MCP, at the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, and German President Joachim Gauck, center, listen to the national anthems during a visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

German president Joachim Gauck, left, shakes hands with Poland's president Andrzej Duda, during a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday Nov. 28, 2016. ( Soeren Stache/Pool Photo via AP)

German President Joachim Gauck, standing left, and Polish President Andrzej Duda, center, listen to Lieutenant General and Commander Multinational Corps Northeast Manfred Hofmann, standing center right, at the Main Command Post ,MCP, at the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

German President Joachim Gauck, right, and Polish President Andrzej Duda, left, arrive with Lieutenant General and Commander Multinational Corps Northeast Manfred Hofmann, center, at the Main Command Post ,MCP, at the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, center left, and German President Joachim Gauck, center, listen to the national anthems during a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Polish President Andrzej Duda, right, and German President Joachim Gauck, left, sign a guest book during a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

German president Joachim Gauck, left, and Poland's president Andrzej Duda,meet during a joint visit to the Headquarters of the Multinational Corps Northeast of the NATO in Szczecin, Poland, Monday Nov. 28, 2016. ( Soeren Stache/Pool Photo via AP)
Guns fall silent, but tensions high between India, Pakistan

NEW DELHI (AP)  An uneasy calm has fallen over the de facto border between the Indian and Pakistani-controlled portions of Kashmir after months of deadly firing and signs that the two countries were engaged in a brinkmanship not seen for decades.

Though guns have gone silent for the past five days, analysts say the two nuclear-armed neighbors have displayed unprecedented aggression this year without pursuing any real lines of diplomacy. They've amped up the artillery they've used and targeted infrastructure instead of just military outposts. The corpses of soldiers killed in battle have been found mutilated.

"The level of retaliation was definitely more intense than what India has done in the past," said defense analyst C. Uday Bhaskar of the New Delhi-based think tank Society for Policy Studies.

FILE - In this Oct. 4, 2016, file photo, Indian army soldiers patrol near the highly militarized Line of Control dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan, in Pallanwal sector, about 75 kilometers (46.8 miles) from Jammu, India. An uneasy calm has fallen over the de facto border between the Indian and Pakistani-controlled portions of Kashmir after months of deadly firing and signs that the two countries were engaged in a brinkmanship not seen for decades. Though guns have gone silent for the past five days, analysts say the two nuclear-armed neighbors have displayed unprecedented aggression this year without pursuing any real lines of diplomacy. (AP Photo/Channi Anand, File)

"There is a danger of it spiraling out of control," Bhaskar said. "If both sides decide that neither side will blink, then the collateral damage will only increase."

That could also mean recalling diplomats, halting the buses ferrying people back and forth across the border, or stopping all trade. In 2015, bilateral trade amounted to just $2.6 billion  far below the $10.9 billion Indian government economists say is possible under normal relations.

India and Pakistan have long been foes, fighting two of their three wars over their rival claims to the Himalayan region of Kashmir. Countless rounds of peace talks have yielded scant results.

The two sides reached a cease-fire agreement in 2003 which held for the first few years, but has seen frequent violations since then. Meanwhile, India accuses Pakistan of arming and training Kashmiri rebels fighting to oust India from the Muslim-majority region. Pakistan denies the allegation, saying it offers the rebels only moral support, and accuses India of an illegal military occupation of the disputed mountain territory.

Tensions began building this year as Kashmiri civilians on the Indian-controlled side rose up in rebellion, demanding independence or a merger with Pakistan. Violent street protests and clashes with Indian forces left 90 civilians dead and thousands injured.

The situation escalated further in September after anti-India rebels launched an attack on an Indian army base in the western Kashmiri town of Uri, killing 19 soldiers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised "a befitting reply to those who dare to attack India," and India retaliated by sending small groups of military commandos across the border for what it called "surgical strikes" on terror bases. India said a dozen suspected rebels were slain, which Pakistan denied.

Pakistan's outgoing military chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, promised that "India will be taught a lesson."

The two sides then spent two months firing aggressively at each other. As days turned to weeks, villagers were evacuated from areas near the Line of Control, the de facto border that divides Kashmir into the separate territories administered by India and Pakistan.

Pakistan, along with some residents near the border, accused India of using the Uri attack to ramp up border hostilities in order to distract attention from the public protests within Indian-controlled Kashmir.

As the shelling intensified, schools near the frontier were shut down indefinitely. Farmers abandoned their crops to rot. Pakistani cinemas banned Bollywood films, while Indian filmmakers vowed to never hire Pakistani actors.

Last week, the body of one of three Indian soldiers killed by rebels was found mutilated, a month after another Indian soldier was found beheaded.

Indian military officers, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military rules, acknowledged the tensions have escalated to the highest level since the cease-fire came into effect.

"Our reaction time is swift and severe. It's no more wait and watch, no more hold your fire to see what the higher bosses have to say," an army officer in Kashmir said.

Indian officials said Pakistan has violated the cease-fire agreement more than 300 times in the last two months by firing and shelling military positions and villages, killing at least 17 Indian soldiers and 12 civilians in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir.

Pakistan has countered with its own list of 44 casualties, including 11 civilians that it said were killed when a civilian bus came under fire.

There were anxious moments last week as Pakistan shelled the border district of Gurez, close to a hydropower project that India is building, forcing authorities to suspend work.

There had been signs when Modi took office in 2014 that he might seek to work with Pakistan toward normalizing relations. He invited his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif, to his inauguration in New Delhi. A year later when returning to India from a trip abroad, Modi dropped in on Sharif at his home in Lahore to give him greetings on his birthday.

The bonhomie was short lived.

An attack on an Indian air force base in January and the assault on the army base in Uri eight months later left the 2003 cease-fire agreement in tatters.

Meanwhile, both countries face domestic pressure to take a harder line. Modi's Hindu nationalist party, in campaigning for some state elections, has once again whipped up a jingoistic fervor against Pakistan.

In Pakistan, a new army chief was appointed over the weekend. But analysts in both India and Pakistan said they do not expect any major change in Islamabad's position, as the army chief would not want to be seen as selling out.

Given that Pakistan's military plays a "dominating role" in shaping the country's foreign policy, "I don't think there will be any change in our policy toward India," said Azeem Khalid, an international relations expert at COMSATS Institute of Information Technology in Islamabad.

At the border, military commanders from the two sides agreed to halt all firing, but there was no indication of how long the calm would last.

Analysts said the space was shrinking for diplomatic steps to resolve the countries' differences.

"Pakistan asked for a cease-fire primarily because we made life unlivable for them near the border," said G. Parthasarathy, a former Indian high commissioner to Pakistan.

What is clear is India and Pakistan have once again hit a low in their testy relationship, analysts say.

"The relationship with Pakistan is at a nadir at the moment," said Gurmeet Kanwal, a retired army brigadier at the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses, a state-run think tank in New Delhi.

___

Hussain reported from Srinagar, India. Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.

___

Follow Nirmala George on Twitter at twitter.com/NirmalaGeorge1 and Aijaz Hussain at twitter.com/hussain_aijaz .
Afghan official: 4 police killed in Taliban ambush

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP)  An Afghan official says Taliban fighters have killed four border police in an ambush in the southern province of Zabul.

Bismullah Afghanmal, the provincial governor of Zabul, said the police were ambushed while on a foot patrol in a mountainous area. He says several Taliban were also killed in Sunday's clash, but had no additional details.

Elsewhere in Afghanistan, a police official says 30 Islamic State militants have been killed in the eastern province of Nangarhar in the past 24 hours.
Brotherly solidarity: William backs Harry's call for privacy

LONDON (AP)  Prince William has supported his brother Prince Harry who has called for restraint in coverage of his private life.

A Kensington Palace press spokesman said Monday that William "absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy."

The comments were made in response to press questions after a newspaper suggested that William disagreed with Harry's decision to publicly complain about coverage of his relationship with new girlfriend Meghan Markle.

The spokesman says William supports Harry's desire to support "those closest to him."

Harry took the unusual step earlier this month of confirming his relationship with Markle, an American actress, and saying he was concerned for her safety because of press harassment.
Philadelphia teachers' union president rejects $100M offer

PHILADELPHIA (AP)  The president of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers has rejected a four-year, $100 million contract offer from the district.

Union president Jerry Jordan tells Philly.com (http://bit.ly/2gauAqx ) he won't take the newest offer to his members.

Philadelphia teachers have been working without a contract for three years and without raises for four.

The proposed contract would include bonuses for teachers in hard-to-staff schools, and raises for teachers now maxed out on the pay scale, as well as step increases that boost a teacher's pay for years of service.

But the deal doesn't include back pay or retroactive raises, which Jordan says offers "no recognition of the years that people have sacrificed."
To help draw business, a state looks back to its 1636 roots

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP)  Tax credits. Lower cost of living. Restaurants and beaches. And don't forget Roger Williams and his experiment in protecting everyone's liberty of conscience.

One of Colonial America's most important freethinkers has a new role as a marketing tool for the place he settled 380 years ago.

Rhode Island started out as a refuge for dissidents experimenting with revolutionary ideas that formed the backbone of U.S. democracy. Now, the tiny state is invoking its roots to draw and retain educated young people searching for a community that matches their ideals.

In this Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016, photo, a statue of Roger Williams overlooks the skyline in Providence, R.I. One of Colonial America's most important freethinkers has a new role as a marketing tool for the place he settled 380 years ago. Williams founded Providence as a refuge for dissidents experimenting with ideas that formed the backbone of U.S. democracy. Now state leaders are harkening back to his legacy as a draw for businesses and young people looking for a place that matches their ideals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

"Young people want to live in a place that's tolerant and diverse and inclusive," Gov. Gina Raimondo said during an interview at the Roger Williams National Memorial , which commemorates the minister and his advocacy for individual freedom. "This is part of who we are. It's not a fad or something temporary. It's ingrained in who we are as Rhode Islanders."

The Democratic governor views those principles through the lens of economic development. When PayPal announced it was halting plans to open a North Carolina branch because of that state's law blocking transgender people from using the bathroom of their choice, she called up the San Jose, California-based company and asked it to move to Rhode Island instead. Her appeal included a reference to the founding ideas of Williams' colony.

Raimondo used the strategy again in September with a letter to the National Collegiate Athletic Association after it pulled a men's basketball tournament out of North Carolina.

"Rhode Island was famously founded in 1636 on the principle of personal and religious freedom," Raimondo wrote to the NCAA. "Today, that tradition of acceptance persists, and we count the diversity it invites as one of our deepest strengths."

The NCAA ended up moving its games to South Carolina, but PayPal has been in serious talks to open a Rhode Island branch.

To be fair, the state hasn't always lived up to its founding ideals. Raimondo was cautious about welcoming Syrian refugees, saying the state would accept them if asked by the federal government. Other politicians in the state advocated banning Syrian refugees or putting them in camps; previous waves of immigrants have faced discrimination.

Williams is better known in Rhode Island than in the rest of the United States, where history textbooks give passing mention to his banishment from Puritan Massachusetts and his founding of Providence as a refuge for like-minded dissenters.

The ideas he espoused about personal freedom and separating church and state, and the citizen-led government he formed in Providence, became precursors to American constitutional democracy. He also stood out among English colonists in his early opposition to slavery and in fostering relatively warm relations with New England's indigenous people.

It makes sense for Raimondo and other leaders to harken back to his legacy, said John Barry, author of the 2012 book "Roger Williams and the Creation of the American Soul: Church, State and the Birth of Liberty."

It's impossible, he said, to imagine how the theologian would have interpreted laws affecting transgender rights. But on other hot-button issues, his ideas have clear resonance, such as Republican President-elect Donald Trump's campaign proposal to ban Muslim immigrants.

Williams was a devout Christian who favored acceptance of religious differences over mere "toleration," because only the divine could pass judgment on another's belief, Barry said.

"He explicitly stated that a Muslim  and someone he called anti-Christian, or atheist  could be as good a government official as a Christian," Barry said. "That was extraordinary in his time. Unfortunately, it seems unusual among some parts of the American population today."

The Rhode Island General Assembly also became one of the first governments to abolish slavery, though merchants later ignored the law and became active in the slave trade. Williams died in 1683.

A big proponent today is Roger Williams National Memorial Park Ranger John McNiff, who said people "are basically rediscovering Roger Williams as this country is going through a series of changes."

"They look at Roger Williams and see a radical set of ideas," he said. "They see a place where these ideas were actually put into practice."

In this Thursday, Nov. 3, 2016, photo, a statue of Roger Williams over looks the skyline, in Providence, R.I. One of Colonial America's most important freethinkers has a new role as a marketing tool for the place he settled 380 years ago. Roger Williams founded Providence as a refuge for dissidents experimenting with ideas that formed the backbone of U.S. democracy. Now state leaders are harkening back to his legacy as a draw for businesses and young people looking for a place that matches their ideals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Justices reject appeal of Ponzi scheme conviction

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court has declined to disturb the conviction of former Texas tycoon R. Allen Stanford on fraud, conspiracy and obstruction charges.

The justices had no comment Monday on their order rejecting Stanford's appeal of his 2012 conviction for running a Ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of $7.2 billion. He was sentenced to 110 years in prison.

Stanford argued that the government deprived him of using his lawyer of choice by unfairly freezing all his global assets, including money untainted by fraud. He also said the government used evidence that was illegally seized by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Trade body says Boeing was offered illegal tax breaks in US

GENEVA (AP)  U.S. plane maker Boeing received major illegal tax breaks from Washington state, a world trade body ruled Monday, adding that the federal government should now take action to end that support within months.

The Chicago-based company and the European Union, which backs Boeing's key European rival Airbus, both claimed the ruling by the World Trade Organization as a victory in a longstanding battle for contracts between the two aerospace giants.

The WTO found that the support Washington state promised to give Boeing from 2024 to 2040 amounted to "prohibited" subsidies. The support offered by Washington came on condition that Boeing keeps the production of the wings for the wide-bodied 777X plane in the state, effectively excluding foreign competition. Boeing has extensive plants around Seattle.

FILE - In this Jan. 25, 2011 file photo, the Boeing Company logo on the property in El Segundo, Calif. Boeing Co. A World Trade Organization panel on Monday, Nov. 28, 2016 ruled that Washington state offered billions in illegal tax breaks to plane maker Boeing, saying that the U.S. government must take action to end the plans within months. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)

The 28-member bloc said the WTO had ruled that $5.7 billion in subsidies were illegal, out of a total $8.7 billion in measures that it reviewed.

But Boeing called that figure excessive and said only "future incentives" of $50 million a year were found impermissible in the WTO decision.

Appearing to counter both, a Geneva-based trade official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter, said the ruling addressed only the legality of the measures, and not the possible financial benefit that could be drawn from the subsidy.

The ruling is but a part of a wider squabble involving accusations between the U.S. government and the 28-nation EU over support for Boeing and Airbus dating back to 2004.

"We are really the only party that can credibly come up with a figure," said Boeing spokesman Tim Neale, referring to the value of the tax breaks. He said the $50 million per year was a "conservative estimate" and even over a 20-year span would only total $1 billion.

He said the EU effort was aimed in part to distract attention from a far more costly WTO ruling against Airbus two months ago.

EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom called Monday's ruling "an important victory for the EU and its aircraft industry."

"We expect the U.S. to respect the rules, uphold fair competition, and withdraw these subsidies without any delay," Malmstrom said in a statement.

For its part, Boeing said it expected the European bloc and Airbus to appeal the ruling, saying the WTO had found that the U.S. company had not received any benefit yet from the 777X tax rate and wouldn't until the plane is first delivered in 2020.

"Today's decision is a complete victory for the United States, Washington State and Boeing," Boeing general council J. Michael Luttig said in a statement. "In rejecting virtually every claim made by the EU in this case, the WTO found today that Boeing has not received a penny of impermissible subsidies."

Airbus President Fabrice Bregier argued the state's support in the United States would allow Boeing to develop the 777X for free on taxpayers' costs. He estimated the damage to Airbus and the European aerospace industry to be around $50 billion so far, "and that's only for the 777X."

Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement that the tax breaks were "the right thing to do for our state's economic future," noting that more than 88,000 aerospace workers are employed in the northwestern state. He said he would work with federal officials about how to respond.

The case could have some implications for President-elect Donald Trump's ambitions to support U.S. business first and foremost. Rejecting some of the EU claims, the WTO found that only one of seven tax incentives provided by Washington state amounted to illegal subsidies for wings for the wide-body jet. In essence, the "prohibited subsidy" involved the reduction of the business tax rate on the condition that the wings were produced domestically within the United States.

Airbus had already confidently predicted victory at the WTO over the Washington state tax incentives, saying during the latest tit-for-tat showdown in September that the alleged subsidies would "almost certainly be condemned as illegal." Airbus had made that assertion after the trade body had found that the EU had provided billions of dollars of improper subsidies to the European plane maker.

___
Sudan on a three-day general strike after cutting subsidies

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AP)  Sudanese authorities have arrested dozens of activists and members of opposition parties over allegations they engineered a call for a general strike against subsidy cuts that have sparked price hikes.

Information Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman was quoted by the state radio as saying that the detainees will face charges of "attempt to incite riots."

On the second day of a three-day campaign for a general strike, streets in the capital, Khartoum, were deserted, classrooms were empty and many shops were closed.

Authorities also banned Monday's edition of al-Jareeda, one of Sudan's largest dailies, and shut down the private-owned Omdurman TV network.
In drawn-out battle of Mosul, limits of Iraqi military show

BAGHDAD (AP)  When Iraq's top generals finalized the plan to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group, they gave themselves six months to finish the job.

"It was the maximum time cap," Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said last week. "We had to plan for the worst, so we don't get surprised."

Six weeks into the battle, the force made up of 50,000 troops, Shiite and Sunni tribal militias and Kurdish fighters is a long way from winning back the country's second-largest city. The fight is showing the limitations of Iraq's military and security forces, suggesting it has still not fully recovered from the collapse it suffered two years ago in the face of the militants' blitz across much of northern and western Iraq.

FILE - In this Nov. 16, 2016 file photo, a car bomb explodes next to Iraqi special forces armored vehicles as they advance towards Islamic State held territory in Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

As expected, IS militants are tenaciously defending their last major foothold in Iraq, and the 1 million civilians who remain inside prevent the use of overwhelming firepower.

But what is alarming, according to Iraqi field commanders, is that the progress so far has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are doing most of the fighting and slowly advancing inside the city. Other military outfits are halted outside the city limits, unable to move forward because of resistance, battle fatigue, inexperience or lack of weaponry suited for urban warfare.

Another major challenge for the Iraqis is the command of large and disparate forces maneuvering for a coordinated assault on a large city, according to retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Mark P. Hertling, the top American soldier in northern Iraq during the troop surge of 2007-2008.

"This will continue to be a tough fight," he said. Many of the Iraqi army commanders are seasoned, but "most of the soldiers are young, new and have not experienced combat."

The special forces are under considerable pressure to push on, slugging it out through treacherously narrow streets and alleys while enduring a daily barrage of suicide bombings and mortar and rocket shells.

As policy, the Iraqi military does not release casualty figures, but special forces' officers speak privately of scores killed and wounded.

"We must continue to advance because we suffer fewer casualties than if we hold still and wait for other units to advance in their sectors," said Brig. Gen. Haider Fadhil of the special forces. "We are trying to advance cautiously to minimize casualties, and we are convinced that we will eventually be asked to liberate the western sector of the city when we are done here."

That may be a while yet.

The special forces have driven IS militants from about 15 of eastern Mosul's estimated 39 neighborhoods, some of which are no more than a handful of blocks. Their progress to date places them about 3 kilometers (nearly 2 miles) from the Tigris River, which divides the city in half.

It's a deceptively short distance: The area is densely built up and heavily populated, and the men are advancing on multiple fronts, constantly assigning valuable resources to securing their flanks and rear as they capture more territory. For example, in a week of fighting, they have only taken about 60 percent of the large and densely populated Zohour neighborhood, site of one of Mosul's busiest food markets.

Mosul's eastern half has a greater population than the western half. In a positive note, coalition airstrikes that cut off the city's four bridges across the river have helped reduce the number of car bombs, commanders say.

In contrast, the regular forces, which have been battling for weeks through towns and villages on the way to the city, are now stalled on the edges, facing the prospect of diving into an urban battle, according to commanders in the field.

The 16th Infantry Division met stiff resistance about 10 kilometers (6 miles) north of the city and has had to halt its advance and hold its positions. It did send a brigade to the eastern side of Mosul to help hold territory taken by the special forces there. South of Mosul, forces from the 9th Division along with some 10,000 members of the paramilitary federal police have stopped about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) short of the city's boundaries to regroup and rest after the long fight to reach that point.

"We are not equipped or trained to fight inside cities. We are an armored outfit with tanks," acknowledged a senior officer from the 9th Division, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military regulations. "Even if we are able to advance toward the city, we need forces to hold the territory we liberate. Our men are exhausted after a six-week battle deployment."

The IS militants are putting up resistance not seen in past major battles with the Iraqi military north and west of Baghdad. They are drawing on a vast arsenal of weapons, while fighting in a city they called home for the past two years. The militants have also dug an elaborate network of tunnels, some as long as 3,000 meters (yards), that offer cover from drones.

The battle "will require a combination of siege warfare and continuous attacks against targets identified by sophisticated intelligence, all taking place while civilians are still in the city and its surroundings," Hertling wrote in response to questions emailed by The Associated Press. "It will take longer than any of them have predicted, and they will sustain significant casualties."

Commanders suspect the worst may yet to come.

Up to 6,000 IS fighters remain in Mosul, including as many as 1,500 foreign fighters, with French and Belgians believed to number several hundreds, according to a senior military intelligence officer in Mosul.

"Their escape from Mosul is now difficult, so they will either fight to the death or become suicide bombers," said the officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military regulations.

IS also appears to use its own drones to gather intelligence on troop movements. An example of their information-gathering abilities came Thursday, when fighters accurately hit with several mortar rounds a tent near the airstrip outside the town of Tal Afar, west of Mosul. The attack took place just minutes after the prime minister concluded a meeting there with leaders of the Shiite militias tasked with liberating Tal Afar.

Two senior militia leaders and four members of their security details were hurt, according to Jaafar al-Husseini, a militia spokesman.

___

This story has been corrected to change the last name of the retired U.S. Army general to Hertling, instead of Hurtling.

FILE - In this Nov. 25, 2016 file photo, Iraqi special forces soldiers battle against the Islamic State militants in the Bakr front line neighborhood, in Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

FILE - In this Friday, Nov. 18, 2016 file photo, an Iraqi special forces convoy advance towards Islamic State militant-held territory in Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 23, 2016 file photo, an Iraqi boy rides his bicycle as he follows the special forces Humvees on their way to the front line to battle against Islamic State militants, in the Al-Samah neighborhood in Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 22, 2016 file photo, an oil worker walks next to burning oil fields in Qayara, south of Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city.(AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - In this Friday, Nov. 25, 2016 file photo, Iraqis flee fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants on a road in eastern Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 24, 2016 file photo, an Iraqi special forces soldier carries an alleged Islamic State group collaborator to inside a house where they gather people to transfer them to refugee camps, in the Samah front line neighborhood, in Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 26, 2016 file photo, Iraqi citizens fleeing the fighting between the Iraqi forces and the the Islamic State militants, in Arbajiyeh front line neighborhood, in Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 25, 2016 file photo, brothers Taha, left, and Hasul are treated at a field hospital after being injured by a car bomb explosion during fighting between the Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants, in eastern Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 15, 2016 file photo, internally displaced people flee fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants on a road in eastern Mosul, Iraq. Six weeks into the battle for Mosul, the Iraqi government's 50,000-strong expedition is a long way from finishing the job. The Islamic State is tenaciously defending its last major foothold in Iraq. A million civilians remain inside the city, preventing the use of overwhelming firepower. Iraqi commanders are alarmed that the progress has been lopsided. The battle-seasoned special forces are slowly advancing inside Mosul while other military outfits remain bogged down outside the city. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)
Flagpole set up at US-Canada border crossing in Idaho

BONNERS FERRY, Idaho (AP)  A new flagpole has been set up at the U.S.-Canada border in Bonners Ferry, Idaho.

Idaho Department of Transportation communications officer Reed Hollinshead told The Spokesman-Review (http://bit.ly/2gOX1eA ) that a flagpole has been missing since the Bonners Ferry Port of Entry was established more than two decades ago.

Port of Entry inspector Tom Chaney and the Idaho transportation staff requested the flagpole to display flags of the U.S., the state of Idaho and the MIA/POW emblem. They worked with local businesses to install the flagpole.
UN envoy employs shuttle diplomacy to restart Cyprus talks

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP)  The United Nations will use shuttle diplomacy to help the rival leaders of ethnically divided Cyprus to come up with ways of getting back to the negotiating table after reunification talks broke down last week, a U.N. envoy said Monday.

Envoy Espen Barth Eide, the U.N. secretary-general's special adviser on Cyprus, said after speaking with Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and breakaway Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci that resuming negotiations won't be easy.

But both leaders are willing to get things moving again, Eide said.

U.N. Special Advisor of the Secretary-General Espen Barth Eide, left, and Cyprus' President Nicos Anastasiades sit during their meeting at the presidential palace in divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. Eide meets with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders after the talks with rivals' leaders at Mont Pelerin, Switzerland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

"The last mile is always the most difficult one in peace processes," he said. "If there's any consolation in that, I can say that in almost every success...peace talks are preceded by a crisis."

A 1974 coup aimed at uniting Cyprus with Greece triggered a Turkish invasion that split the island into an internationally recognized, Greek Cypriot south and a breakaway, Turkish Cypriot north.

Two days of intensive talks at the Swiss resort of Mont Pelerin ground to a halt a week ago after Anastasiades and Akinci clashed on how many people would be eligible to reclaim homes and property in zones each side will control in an envisioned federation.

Anastasiades sought as many as 90,000 Greek Cypriots getting back property in an augmented Greek Cypriot zone. Akinci offered a maximum 65,000.

The two leaders blamed each other for the impasse that renewed doubts about whether 18 months of negotiations could resolve the intractable dispute. Even with the U.N. serving as mediator, it ultimately is up to them to figure out how to move forward, Eide said.

"We can never want it more than they," he said. "They have to make up their mind at the end."

U.N. Special Advisor of the Secretary-General Espen Barth Eide talks to the media after a meeting with the Cyprus' President Nicos Anastasiades at the presidential palace in divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. Eide meets with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders after the talks with rivals' leaders at Mont Pelerin, Switzerland. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
'Drain the swamp'? Federal workers worried about Trump plan

McLEAN, Va. (AP)  Melissa Baumann lives some 850 miles from the nation's capital, but when she hears President-elect Donald Trump and his supporters say they will "drain the swamp," she worries she will be sucked down into the muck.

Baumann, a chemist with the Forest Service, is one of the nation's 4 million or so federal workers and is watching anxiously as Trump looks to set his agenda in motion.

In terms of policy, Trump has suggested a federal hiring freeze and hinted at eliminating or sharply curtailing an entire Cabinet agency, the Department of Education.

In a Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2016 photo, Melissa Baumann, a chemist at Forest Products Lab, stands in outside of the facility in Madison, Wis. Baumann is one of the nation's 4 million or so federal workers who is watching anxiously as President-elect Donald Trump looks to set his agenda on federal employees in motion. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)

In terms of rhetoric, he targeted the federal bureaucracy and regulations. And then there's his "drain the swamp" catchphrase.

Trump's allies say that was directed at lobbyists, donors and political cronies. Some federal workers fear he means a broader group.

"I believe that is directed at us. And it's misdirected," said Baumann, who lives in Madison, Wisconsin, where she also serves as a union officer for the Forest Service. The problems in Washington "have nothing to do with the people outside the Beltway" who are doing honorable work under difficult circumstances, she said.

Like most federal workers, Baumann works far from D.C., where less than 10 percent of the federal workforce is stationed, government data show. Maryland and Virginia are large federal employment centers, but so are California, Florida, Texas and Georgia.

Greg Guthrie, an information specialist with the National Technical Information Service in Alexandria, Virginia, said that after the initial shock of Trump's win, he has adopted a "cautiously optimistic" stance. Trump won as a champion of the working class, he reasoned, and he hopes Trump will advocate for the federal working class as well as the private sector.

Guthrie's co-workers are sympathetic to technology's disruption of the labor force, he said. The NTIS provides reports and research to a variety of customers. Internet search engines now fill some of that role, prompting senators to introduce the "Let Me Google That For You Act" in 2014 to kill the NTIS. But Guthrie said his agency has reinvented itself and now helps government agencies use big data.

Guthrie said federal workers can adapt when given the opportunity.

"I don't like some of the terms I'm hearing, like 'drain the swamp,'" said Guthrie, also an officer in his union. "Sometimes it's couched as we're these lazy, unnecessary relics. That's not true. We're people who work hard."

Corey Stewart  who chaired Trump's Virginia campaign and serves as Board of Supervisors chairman in Prince William County, home to many federal workers  said "drain the swamp" was directed at the lobbying corps and Washington insiders who infiltrate the political system.

The average federal worker doesn't have much to worry about, he said, though he does expect reductions at the Department of Education, IRS and EPA, because Trump is skeptical of those agencies.

Stewart said Trump's promises to bolster defense will result in a net benefit for the capital region and the federal workforce.

He said Trump won't find much savings in the federal labor force because it has already been squeezed by budget cuts. The number of executive branch employees hasn't been this low since 1965, government data show.

Bill Dougan, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees, said that after the initial shock of Trump's victory, many federal workers are adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Dougan suspects federal workers' fate will depend largely on whether Trump's inner circle is populated by establishment Republicans  even though they've been hostile to federal workers  or wild cards like Newt Gingrich, who engineered a government shutdown as speaker of the House, and Steve Bannon, the Trump adviser Dougan says embodies an ethos to "do everything he can to blow things up."

Dougan said he expects Republican attacks on federal salaries and pension benefits to continue, but he's "hopeful that we're going to see some appointments with some experience in government and how government works, or it's going to be a real problem."

Still, he said, there's some optimism that federal workers connected to defense and the Veterans Administration could see improvements, given campaign promises to increase spending there.

But Kim Valavez, a social worker at a VA clinic in Santa Rosa, California, said the prevailing mood among workers there is fear. They worry a Trump administration may favor privatization over investing in the VA itself.

"People are scared," she said. "It feels like a great unknown."

Rep. Gerry Connolly, the ranking Democrat on a subcommittee overseeing the federal civil service, said he doesn't expect the GOP-controlled Congress to oppose any Trump efforts to downsize the federal workforce.
Residents in Somali town resist al-Shabab taxes, 10 dead

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP)  Clashes between the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab and villagers in a central Somali town have left 10 people dead and dozens wounded, say local residents.

The fighting erupted Monday after al-Shabab fighters who control the port town of Harardhere ordered nomadic villagers to pay a tax, said resident Ahmed Mohamed.

Harardhere's inhabitants, who have lost hundreds of animals in the current drought, dismissed the demand, leading to fighting between the two sides, he said.

Six militants and four residents have been killed in the ongoing fighting, he said.

Villagers ambushed al-Shabab fighters traveling near Harardhere on Monday afternoon, and destroyed one battlewagon, another resident, an elder in the area, told The Associated Press by phone. Militants burned down homes in Dumaya, a village outside the town, he said. He insisted on anonymity for fear of reprisal by al-Shabab.

Civilians have rarely resisted al-Shabab, which carries out executions to impose its authority.

It was not possible to get a comment from al-Shabab, which seeks to establish a strict Islamic emirate in Somalia and is waging an insurgency against the weak U.N.-backed government.

More than 22,000 peacekeepers are deployed in Somalia in the multi-national African Union force. Al-Shabab opposes the presence of foreign troops.
AP EXPLAINS: Why Aleppo is Syria's fiercest battleground

Syrian government forces seized a swath of what was once rebel territory in Aleppo Monday, in one of the most dramatic shifts in the 5-year civil war. The divided northern city has paid dearly as a central theater of the war. In the past two weeks alone, over 250 civilians have been killed by intense bombardment of the city's rebel-held eastern zones. A photo of 5-year-old Omran Daqneesh  confused and covered in dust and blood as he sat in an ambulance after being rescued in August from the rubble of a building  became a haunting image in the unforgiving struggle.

A look at Aleppo:

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This Sunday, Nov. 27, 2016 photo provided by the Rumaf, a Syrian Kurdish activist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows A Syrian woman carrying her child in one hand and a bag in the other, as she flees rebel-held eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo into the Sheikh Maqsoud area that is controlled by Kurdish fighters, Syria. Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo's besieged rebel-held areas under state control. (The Rumaf via AP)

A SHATTERED HISTORICAL TREASURE

Syria's largest city and once its commercial center, Aleppo was a crossroads of civilization for millennia. It has been occupied by the Greeks, Byzantines and multiple Islamic dynasties. As one of the longest continuously inhabited places, its Old City was added in 1986 to UNESCO's list of World Heritage sites. Aleppo was one of the last cities in Syria to join the uprising against President Bashar Assad's government. Landmarks have been used as bases for fighters, and the conflict has damaged some of them, including the 11th-century Umayyad Mosque, where a minaret collapsed in 2012; the 13th-century citadel; and the medieval marketplace, where fire damaged more than 500 shops in its narrow, vaulted passageways.

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THE KEY TO VICTORY

With rebel defenses crumbling in eastern Aleppo, Assad is on the brink of regaining full control of the city. A government victory, aided by the interventions of his Russian and Iranian allies, would significantly bolster his position in the international arena. Rebels still hold other pockets around Syria, but any movement to unseat Assad will have to reckon with the reality that he holds the country's four largest cities and its coastal region.

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A SUFFERING CITY

The government's push has laid waste to Aleppo's rebel-held eastern neighborhoods. An estimated quarter-million people are trapped in dire conditions in those districts since the government besieged the enclave in late August. Food supplies are running perilously low, the U.N. has warned, and a relentless air assault by government forces has damaged or destroyed every hospital in the area. But its western neighborhoods have suffered, too. After rebels moved into the eastern districts in 2012, residents in the west withstood repeated sieges that drained their fuel and food stores. Shelling from the east and from the surrounding countryside, while far less-intense than government bombardment, has been constant. Hundreds of civilians, including children, have died in their homes and schools.

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THE WARRING PARTIES

The main Kurdish militia, known as the People's Protection Units, or YPG, controls several predominantly Kurdish northern neighborhoods. The main insurgent groups in the city are the Nour el-Din Zenki brigade, the ultraconservative Ahrar al-Sham group and the al-Qaida-linked Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, formerly known as the Nusra Front. Government forces are backed by thousands of Shiite militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq and Iran, and augmented by Russian air power.
South African president in battle to continue in office

PRETORIA, South Africa (AP)  Whether or not Jacob Zuma will continue as South Africa's president will be announced Tuesday afternoon when the ruling African National Congress party makes public the outcome of a motion by the party's leaders to remove the president.

The ANC said Monday night that the results of the motion against Zuma will be announced at its headquarters in Johannesburg on Tuesday afternoon.

A meeting of the National Executive Committee of the African National Congress was due to end in Pretoria on Sunday but was extended so that each of the 80 members could state their position on whether or not Zuma should continue as president.

FILE -- In this Thursday, Nov, 3, 2016, file photo. South African President Jacob Zuma attends a meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe. Zuma is fighting for his presidency in the capital Pretoria as the ruling party's highest decision-making body considers a motion for him step down. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi, File)

The surprise motion for Zuma to step down was introduced by Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom.

Zuma will travel to Havana later this week for the funeral of Fidel Castro, according to a statement issued from his office Monday.

The surprise motion for Zuma to step down was introduced by Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom.

The party's executive committee has the power to recall Zuma as president of South Africa. In 2008 the committee recalled then president Thabo Mbeki after he was defeated by Zuma in the ANC's leadership contest.

Should the motion succeed, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa is likely to take over the presidency from Zuma.

However, Zuma is a wily political survivor. Earlier this year he survived being recalled after South Africa's highest court ruled that he violated his oath of office by refusing to refund public money spent to upgrade his rural homestead.
US concerned over missing Chinese legal activist

WASHINGTON (AP)  The U.S. State Department is voicing concern over the disappearance of a prominent legal activist who has defended some of China's most politically sensitive figures.

Katina Adams, a spokeswoman for the department's East Asia bureau, urged Chinese authorities on Monday to provide information on the whereabouts of Jiang Tianyong (JAHNG tee-ehn-YAWNG) who went missing a week ago and ensure his safe and speedy return to his family.

According to Jiang's wife, he has not been heard from since Nov. 21 when he went to visit relatives of a detained human rights lawyer.

Jiang was disbarred in 2009 but has continued his activism, recently helping to publicize the plight of lawyers arrested in a government crackdown.
2 shot dead in Cancun tourist hotel zone

CANCUN, Mexico (AP)  Mexican authorities say that two people have been shot dead in the heart of Cancun's hotel zone.

A statement from the Quintana Roo state prosecutor's office says that police responded to a report of shots fired at around 11:15 p.m. Sunday and found three people wounded. Witnesses indicated that there were two shooters.

The victims were employees of a bar and a disco. Two died of their wounds and one remains hospitalized.

Investigators found an abandoned motorcycle and a backpack containing two pistols near the scene. No arrests had been made.
Benetton heir quits clothing brand's board

MILAN (AP)  Alessandro Benetton, the son of one of the Italian fashion brand's founders, has quit the Benetton Group board in a move that has raised union concerns about the company's future.

The fashion company on Monday confirmed the Benetton heir's exit, calling it "a regular part of the rotation within the board."

Alessandro Benetton is the son of Luciano Benetton, one of four siblings who launched the brand that became known for colorful knitwear and provocative advertising campaigns in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Benetton brand more recently has struggled to find its footing and undergone several creative relaunches.
Pilot dead after Canadian fighter jet crashes

TORONTO (AP)  A pilot is dead after a Canadian CF-18 fighter jet crashed in western Canada during a training mission.

Canadian Forces spokesman Daniel Le Bouthillier confirmed that the pilot died in Monday's crash.

He said the plane was based out of Alberta's Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake, the busiest fighter base in Canada. It provides fighter training for all Canadian Forces pilots.

Speaking in Ottawa, Air Force commander Lt.-Gen. Michael Hood said the plane came down on the Saskatchewan side of the border between the provinces during a routine training mission.

Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan said he couldn't speculate on what caused the crash. A helicopter from the base was dispatched to the crash site.
'Nightly Show' vet Larry Wilmore signs deal with ABC Studios

NEW YORK (AP)  Three months after Comedy Central axed "The Nightly Show," its host, Larry Wilmore, has signed a multi-year deal with ABC Studios, the company said Monday.

Under the deal, Wilmore will develop his own projects as well as supervise others while helping target talent for the studio.

Besides hosting "The Nightly Show" for 17 months, Wilmore co-created HBO's new hit comedy, "Insecure," as well as the Peabody Award-winning "Bernie Mac Show" and "The PJs," an animated series he co-produced with Eddie Murphy.

FILE - In this June 25, 2016 file photo, Larry Wilmore appears at Politicon 2016 at The Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, Calif. Wilmore, has signed a multi-year deal with ABC Studios, the company said Monday, Nov. 28. Under the deal, Wilmore will develop his own projects as well as supervise others while helping target talent for the studio. (Photo by Colin Young-Wolff/Invision/AP, File)

Earlier writing and producing credits include "In Living Color," ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," ''The Jamie Foxx Show" and "The Office."
Deputy fatally shoots bull that trampled rancher

INDIANTOWN, Fla. (AP)  Authorities say a central Florida deputy shot and killed a bull after it trampled a rancher.

Treasure Coasts Newspapers (https://goo.gl/fe7LNj ) reports that the 24-year-old man called 911 Monday morning, telling dispatchers that the bull had injured him and was pushing him into a pond.

A Martin County Sheriff's Office report says deputies responded to the Indiantown pasture and found a black bull standing over a large pond. A sheriff's sergeant shot the bull three times, killing it.

Deputies found the injured man in the pond. He told deputies the bull stomped on his body and head.

Authorities say the man was airlifted to a Fort Pierce hospital. His condition wasn't immediately known.

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Police shoot, kill person armed with blunt object in Kansas

OLATHE, Kan. (AP)  Police say officers fatally shot a man outside a suburban Kansas City retail store after he hit one of them with a long wooden rod.

Lenexa, Kansas, police spokesman Dan Friesen says the man was shot near a Wal-Mart in Olathe around 10:30 p.m. Sunday after striking an officer.

Friesen, speaking on behalf of Olathe police, says the rod resembled a martial arts bo stick.

He says officers responded to a report of a man with a weapon and tried to use non-lethal force to subdue him, including an attempt to use a stun gun, but those measures were not effective.
Mississippi teacher accused of dragging student is indicted

JACKSON, Miss. (AP)  A former teacher in Mississippi has been indicted on a misdemeanor charge of abusing a vulnerable person.

Washington County District Attorney Dewayne Richardson said Monday that Linda Winters-Johnson will be arraigned Dec. 13.

Richardson says he doesn't know whether Winters-Johnson has a lawyer to speak on her behalf.

A widely circulated video shows Winters-Johnson dragging a special education student by the hair and then striking the student with a cup on Sept. 21. The Greenville school district fired her, and state officials are seeking to revoke her teaching license.

The charge carries a penalty of up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

Richardson says grand jurors considered other charges with higher penalties.
US Sailing hires Aussie Malcolm Page to lead Olympic team

SAN DIEGO (AP)  U.S. Sailing is turning to two-time gold medalist Malcolm Page of Australia to try to turn around the American Olympic team's sagging fortunes.

The national governing body hired Page as chief of Olympic sailing on Monday.

Page won gold medals in the 470 class at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.

That's one more medal combined than the United States won in the 2012 and 2016 Olympics. The Americans were shut out in 2012, the first time that happened since 1936, and won just one medal at the Rio Games in August, a bronze in the Finn class by Caleb Paine of San Diego.

Page said in a phone interview that standing on the Olympic podium representing Australia was one of his most special accomplishments.

But he's wanted to get back to the performance side of the sport, and leading the U.S. Olympic team was too good of a chance to pass up.

"I'm a competitor," he said. "I hate losing, and I'm excited to be here and to be involved and to assist. I'm looking forward to seeing these athletes realizing their dreams. I want to help them get to that point."

Page, who currently is head of marketing and media for World Sailing, replaces Josh Adams, who is leaving U.S. Sailing to tend to his family business.

The United States has won the most Olympic sailing medals in history, 60, but the well-funded British team has quickly pulled within one. Plus, the Brits lead the Americans in gold medals, 28 to 19.

The United States dominated Olympic sailing in the 1980s and early 1990s before Britain, Australia and New Zealand began overtaking it.

U.S. Sailing President Bruce Burton said there were American candidates for the job, but that Page "is a great fit for what we need" because he brings "a template" of the success the Australians had in rebuilding their Olympic program. Burton said the Australians hired top coaches, put together a strategic plan and found the money to compete at a high level.

The Australians were shut out in the 2004 Athens games despite having several world champions and top-ranked sailors on their team.

"I was one of those world champions and world No. 1s leading into the games and I took a solid 12th," Page said.

He said athletes initiated a review and the federation took over to restore the program. The Aussies responded with two golds and one silver at Beijing in 2008, and three golds and one silver in London, when the Aussies, including Page, outperformed the powerful British team.

Burton said U.S. Sailing needed a different point of view.

"We've been looking in the mirror quite a bit but we need a different picture," he said. "We think we needed a little bit different perspective and we think Malcolm does a great job of bringing that perspective."

U.S. Sailing is working to direct more resources to the national team and a youth development effort.

Including Paine, Americans finished in the Top-10 in six classes in Rio.

"I think the potential in the U.S. is through the roof and I mean that from so many different levels," Page said. "It has a huge population and a huge talent base. That talent base hasn't been lost even though you haven't been as successful. And also the wealth potential, the funding potential, is there as well. We just need a cohesive approach and a cohesive team to pull it all together, which I do believe the journey started four years ago on that."

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Slain San Antonio officer remembered at funeral service

SAN ANTONIO (AP)  The top leadership of Texas and law enforcement officials from across the nation joined family and friends of San Antonio police Detective Benjamin Marconi to pay tribute to the officer who was shot to death while sitting in his patrol car.

Marconi's funeral Monday was at the Community Bible Church in San Antonio and drew an estimated 3,000 mourners, in and out of uniform, to praise the detective. Betsy Buhler, the church's media minister and a police chaplain, said: "We are forever grateful for his watch over us."

The 50-year-old Marconi was fatally shot Nov. 20 as he sat in his patrol car writing a traffic ticket outside police headquarters. Thirty-one-year-old Otis Tyrone McKane has been charged with capital murder in the attack. McKane said he was angry over a child-custody battle and "lashed out at somebody who didn't deserve it."

An onlooker holds a flag as he and others pay their respects as the funeral procession for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi passes by en route to services, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in San Antonio. Marconi was fatally shot during a traffic stop near police headquarters on Nov. 20. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, a San Antonio Republican, were among the dignitaries who attended the service.

Those who spoke at the service included fellow officers and grown children of the slain 20-year department veteran.

"He made everyone around you feel lighter and safer. He relaxed people. He was the kind of person we should all strive to be like," said Jacy Marconi, one of the detective's grown children.

A 21-gun salute and a flyover by a San Antonio Police Department helicopter were highlights of the service.

Onlookers hold flags as the funeral procession for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi, 50, passes by, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in San Antonio. Marconi was fatally shot during a traffic stop near police headquarters on Nov. 20. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Police attend funeral services for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi, 50, a 20-year veteran of the force, as his casket is delivered by a horse-drawn carriage, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in San Antonio. Marconi was fatally shot during a traffic stop near police headquarters on Nov. 20. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Police attend funeral services for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi, 50, a 20-year veteran of the force, as his casket is delivered by a horse-drawn carriage, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in San Antonio. Marconi was fatally shot during a traffic stop near police headquarters on Nov. 20. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

San Antonio firefighters and onlookers pay their respects as the procession for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi passes by en route to funeral services, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in San Antonio. Marconi was fatally shot during a traffic stop near police headquarters on Nov. 20. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

The funeral procession for San Antonio police detective Benjamin Marconi passes by en route to services, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in San Antonio. Marconi was fatally shot during a traffic stop near police headquarters on Nov. 20. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Sen. Warren blasts drug approval bill as 'extortion'

WASHINGTON (AP)  Sen. Elizabeth Warren delivered a ferocious attack Monday on congressional Republicans and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell over a medical research bill, and put fellow Democrats on the spot by pushing them to oppose a measure she said "is corrupt, and it is very, very dangerous."

As Congress began the final stretch of its post-election session, Warren said the 996-page measure  a top priority for GOP leaders and backed by the biomedical industry  was riddled with provisions that she called "a bunch of special giveaways" to big pharmaceutical companies.

"They didn't send us here to whimper, whine or grovel," she said on the Senate floor about Democrats, using the populist rhetoric that has given her one of her party's highest profiles. "They sent us here to say no to efforts to sell Congress to the highest bidder."

FILE - In this Oct. 24, 2016, file photo, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. speaks at a rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H. Warren says a bill providing extra money for medical research is extortion and a giveaway to big biomedical companies. She also said the bill benefits a Republican donor who backs controversial therapies that are supposed to regenerate cells. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, file)

All but taunting her own party, Warren, D-Mass., said, "Republicans will control this government, but they cannot hand that control over to big corporations unless Democrats roll over and allow them to do so."

She said the research bill would "legalize fraud" by reducing the scientific evidence the government needs to approve existing drugs for new uses. She said it would "cover up bribery" by exempting medical companies from publicly reporting some payments they make to doctors.

Those provisions, she said, outweighed the "tiny fig leaf" of additional money the bill provides for biomedical research and combatting abuse of addictive opioid drugs.

"I cannot vote for this bill. I will fight it because I know the difference between compromise and extortion," said Warren, who some mention as a potential 2020 presidential contender.

Warren's comments came with Democrats in the early stages of decoding their lesson from this month's elections. Hillary Clinton shockingly lost her White House bid to Republican Donald Trump and Democrats remained in the House and Senate minority, making only small gains in each chamber.

Warren is expected to try tugging her party toward more progressive policies, while some more moderate Democrats are emphasizing the need to appeal to the type of working-class white voters who helped Trump win Midwestern states carried in recent elections by Democrats.

The House plans to vote on the research legislation Wednesday, with Senate consideration expected next week.

The measure calls for spending $6.3 billion over the next decade, including $4.8 billion for research at the National Institutes of Health. There is also $1 billion for grants to states for drug abuse prevention and research, and $500 million for the Food and Drug Administration to accelerate drug and medical device approval processes.

To pay for that, the bill would cut a public health fund in President Barack Obama's health care law, reduce some payments made by Medicaid and Medicare and sell oil held in the government's strategic petroleum reserve.

Warren said the bill benefits a Republican donor who backs contentious therapies that are supposed to regenerate cells. She did not name the donor during her speech but said McConnell, R-Ky., has accepted contributions from him.

A McConnell spokesman declined to comment.

No. 2 Senate GOP leader John Cornyn of Texas, on the Senate floor as Warren spoke, criticized her for making "a political speech" and launching "personal attacks" on senators and called her comments "beneath the dignity of the United States Senate."

McConnell said this month that the overall bill is a major priority for Congress' lame-duck session and singled out its provisions helping regenerative medicine.

A Warren spokesman said later that Warren was referring to an April report by Politico that said separate legislation helping companies get approval for stem-cell treatments was backed by Ed Bosarge, a wealthy Texan. The report said Bosarge has donated to McConnell's political committee and invested in regenerative medicine.

Top Republicans announced the mammoth research bill last week, more than a year after the House by an overwhelmingly bipartisan margin approved an earlier version.

Most Democrats have not said whether they support the measure, though others also are expected to object to it.
No national TV exposure for Atlantic City on New Year's Eve

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP)  When the new year arrives in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the eyes of the nation will be elsewhere.

An anticipated big-name concert at Boardwalk Hall that was to be featured in ABC's national New Year's Eve broadcast won't happen.

The Casino Reinvestment Development Authority says the show was part of the agency's $11.9 million deal to keep the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City but couldn't be finalized due to scheduling and financial concerns.

Agency deputy executive director Chris Howard says the kind of A-list entertainers it wanted for Atlantic City weren't available.

Dick Clark Productions was to feature an Atlantic City show on its "New Year's Rockin' Eve" broadcast for the next three years.
Duke of Edinburgh to open new Brompton bikes factory

The Duke of Edinburgh will celebrate British engineering and ingenuity later when he opens a new factory producing the famous Brompton folding bicycle.

One of the great manufacturing success stories of recent years, sales of the handmade bicycles favoured by commuters and Hollywood A-listers alike have surged.

Demand is now so high that the firm has found itself needing to expand - despite a shiny new Brompton rolling off the assembly line every 210 seconds.

The Duke of Edinburgh admires the winner of the Prince Philip Designers' Prize, a pink Brompton fold-up bike, at a reception at Buckingham Palace

Having risen from humble beginnings in a west London flat, Brompton Bicycle Ltd now sells 44,000 of its desirable lightweight, collapsible bicycles to customers around the world every year.

Admittedly the award-winning bicycles - with their coveted "made in Britain" labels - come with a hefty price tag. Prices range from around 800 for an entry-level model up to around 2,400 for a steel/titanium version with tyres made of bullet-proof Kevlar.

There are an estimated 90,000 of the bicycles being pedalled around London alone, by owners from the time-poor financier to the image-conscious fashion designer.

Hugh Jackman, Orlando Bloom, Owen Wilson and even petrolhead James May have been photographed astride a Brompton. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, too, has been seen in the saddle.

Since inventor Andrew Ritchie first sketched out designs for a bicycle that folds to just a third of its size while looking out at the Brompton Oratory, South Kensington, in 1975, over 450,000 Brompton Bikes have been produced in the UK.

Philip will meet Mr Ritchie and tour the company's new factory in Greenford, west London, on Monday where he will be shown the bicycles' journey from drawing board to delivery.
England in trouble as Jadeja and Ashwin help India take charge of third Test

England appeared to be losing their battle to stay in with a chance of series success after Ravindra Jadeja and Ravi Ashwin helped India dominate day three of the third Test.

Jadeja (90) and Ashwin (72) responded to India's collapse to 156 for five the previous afternoon by sharing a stand of 97 on the way to 417 all out - for a lead of 134 - and then the home spinners piled on the pressure in Mohali.

By stumps, England, without Haseeb Hameed to open alongside Alastair Cook because of an injury to his left little finger which will be x-rayed after this match, were still perilously adrift after struggling to 78 for four.

Joe Root was unbeaten at the close but England were still in deep trouble in Mohali

The hosts defied Ben Stokes' third five-wicket haul in Tests to recover their composure as numbers seven, eight and nine all passed 50 for the first time in India's history, Jayant Yadav (55) helping Jadeja to add 80 for the eighth wicket.

It all put England in grave danger of a second successive defeat, and a 2-0 series deficit with two to play.

India captain Virat Kohli brought Ashwin into the equation after only three overs of the tourists' second innings, and it soon became all too much for his opposite number.

Cook did at least account for an India review before what seemed his inevitable departure to Ashwin.

Jadeja turned one too far, missing leg-stump, for Cook to be granted an overturn on nine, and the England skipper survived again to his very next delivery after being given out initially, this time to Ashwin, only for DRS to demonstrate a pitching point outside leg.

The unfathomable aspect of it all was that, for one horribly claustrophobic half-hour at least, the ball was suddenly turning so much more sharply than it had for any of England's spinners.

Ashwin (three for 19) did finally strike, however, with one that went straight on - through a frazzled Cook's front-foot defence - and there could be no DRS gambit this time, with middle-stump pegged back.

Six overs later, Moeen Ali's attempt to counter-attack failed for the second time in the match.

He went up the pitch to Ashwin and only half-bailed out when he was not in the right position, succeeding only in chipping a catch to deep mid-on.

Joe Root had been pressed into service at the top of the order for the first time since he was relieved of that duty after the 2013 Ashes, and he at least stayed until the close, unlike Jonny Bairstow, undone by low bounce from Jayant and a fine catch by wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel.

Then in the final over of the day, Stokes departed lbw to Ashwin and was sent on his way with a predictable finger to his lips by Kohli - reference to the verbal spat between the pair which earned the England all-rounder an International Cricket Council reprimand on day one here.

India had resumed still marginally in arrears on 271 for six but found easy pickings against Chris Woakes, surprisingly bowling in tandem initially with Moeen rather than James Anderson, an odd deployment of a ball only five overs old.

It took the re-introduction of Stokes (five for 73) to break the seventh-wicket stand, the all-rounder striking in his first over, as he had the previous day, when Ashwin drove a wide delivery on the up and was caught at point.

Ashwin had done plenty of damage by then, though, with 11 boundaries in a near three-hour innings which put India back on top in a fluctuating contest.

Jadeja duly completed his 50, moved on to a career-best and was on course for a maiden Test hundred until he got greedy against Adil Rashid (four for 118).

The leg-spinner deserved minor credit for making the left-hander fetch him for an attempted big hit over long-on, where Woakes was characteristically safe under a high ball to end a 170-ball innings which had contained 10 fours and a six.

Umesh Yadav brought up India's 400 with a slog-swept six off Moeen, and Jayant celebrated by pushing a single in the next over to bring up his first Test 50.

Insult was added to injury, for Stokes especially, when Cook dropped Umesh at slip and then two balls later Jayant edged just out of Bairstow's reach to go from 51 to 55.
UK 'expects Donald Trump to stand up to Moscow'

Britain expects US President-elect Donald Trump to "stand up" to Moscow as Russia tests Western resolve, Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon has said.

Sir Michael insisted that Britain was not in danger of becoming internationally isolated by its tough stance towards Vladimir Putin after Mr Trump expressed admiration for the Russian president during his bid for the White House.

He told BBC Radio Four's Today programme: "I think you have to distinguish between the campaign rhetoric of President-elect Trump and what he does in practice. In practice, every American administration has always stood up to Russia.

Sir Michael said that, in practice, every American president had stood up to Russia

"We are not suggesting you shouldn't talk to Russia, but what you can't do is treat Russia as business as usual, as any kind of equal partner."

Asked if he had any contact with the president-elect's team, Sir Michael said: "Our people are talking to people who are advising Trump, and we are waiting for his nomination of defence secretary."

Sir Michael warned that Mr Putin was trying to test the Western alliance, and countries on Nato's eastern flank needed reassurance.

He said: "'Test' is the right word, that is what he has been doing.

"We have seen long range aviation, Russian bombers flying down the edge of our flight region, we have seen more submarine activity, we have seen manoeuvres on the borders outside the Baltic States, and across the border from Poland, we have seen more maritime activity in the Baltic, we have had this carrier group sail through the English Channel . So, Putin, I think, is testing the alliance and we have to respond.

"We have to make clear that Nato is a defensive alliance, but equally it is prepared to come to the defence of those members who feel very vulnerable, particularly on the eastern flank."

Mr Trump sparked alarm in Nato during his campaign when he suggested the US may not fulfil its collective defence obligations if the Baltic States were attacked unless they increased their military spending.
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attend memorial for Duke of Westminster

Senior members of the Royal Family were among about 2,000 guests who gathered in Chester to celebrate the life of the sixth Duke of Westminster.

The Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended the memorial service at Chester Cathedral.

Major General Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor, a close friend of the Royals, died of a heart attack aged 64 on August 9.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arriving for a memorial service to celebrate the life of the sixth Duke of Westminster at Chester Cathedral

He was taken ill during a visit to his Abbeystead Estate in Lancashire before he was transferred to Royal Preston Hospital.

Members of the Grosvenor family attended a "quiet" private funeral service in the days after the Duke's death, but Monday's invitation-only ceremony was a more public occasion.

The Duke married Natalia Phillips - a godmother to Prince William - in 1978. They had one son, Hugh, and three daughters, Lady Tamara, Lady Edwina and Lady Viola.

The dukedom passes to Hugh, 25, who is Prince George's youngest godfather.

Also attending the service were the Duke of Kent and Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, along with employees of the Grosvenor estate and representatives of the numerous charities with connections to the sixth Duke.

Several roads in the city centre were closed to traffic as people gathered behind barriers outside the cathedral to pay their respects.

The Grosvenor family's ancestral home is Eaton Hall in Eccleston, near Chester. The Duke was buried in the village.

At the time of his death, the landowner was worth about 8.65 billion, according to Forbes, making him the 68th richest person in the world, and third in the UK.

He owned 190 acres in Belgravia, adjacent to Buckingham Palace and one of London's most expensive areas, as well as thousands of acres in Scotland and Spain.

Prince and Princess Michael of Kent arrive with the Duke of Kent, second left

Natalia Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster, arrives for a memorial service to celebrate the life of her husband, the sixth Duke of Westminster

Lady Viola Grosvenor arriving for a memorial service to celebrate the life of her father, the sixth Duke of Westminster

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall arriving for a memorial service to celebrate the life of the sixth Duke of Westminster

Princess Cleo the dog came to watch the royal party outside a memorial service to celebrate the life of the sixth Duke of Westminster at Chester Cathedral
England's Elliot Daly handed three-week ban

Elliot Daly has been banned for three weeks after his red card for tackling Leonardo Senatore in the air in England's 27-14 win over Argentina.

Wasps utility back Daly was sent off in the fifth minute of England's autumn Test win over the Pumas at Twickenham on Saturday, and faced a disciplinary hearing on Monday.

The 24-year-old accepted he had deserved a red card and a three-person disciplinary panel imposed an initial six-week suspension that they then halved on mitigating factors.

England's Elliot Daly walks off after he is shown the red card against Argentina

Daly will miss England's final autumn Test clash with Australia at Twickenham on Saturday as expected, but will also sit out Wasps' European Champions Cup double-header with Connacht.

"The disciplinary committee found that Mr Daly had acted recklessly and that the offending merited a mid-range entry point based on World Rugby's scale of seriousness, which carries a six-week playing suspension," read a statement from Autumn International Disciplinary.

"The disciplinary committee further found that there were no aggravating factors and that there were a number of mitigating factors (including Mr Daly's acknowledgement of wrongdoing, expression of remorse to the injured player and his good conduct at the hearing) such that his playing suspension be reduced by three weeks.
Spain arrests man on suspicion of Islamist militant activity

MADRID, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Spanish police have arrested a Spanish citizen in Madrid on suspicion of belonging to Islamic State, the Interior Ministry said on Sunday.

The ministry said the man of Palestinian origin planned on joining the jhadist group in Syria.

The accused is resident in the province of Las Palmas on the Spanish Canary Islands.
Uruguayan derby called off after fans clash

SAO PAULO, Nov 27 (Reuters) - The Montevideo derby between Penarol and Nacional was called off on Sunday after fans clashed with police in and around the Centenario stadium.

Hosts Penarol said on their website that the match had been suspended, with local media reporting that more than 100 people were arrested as fans fought with riot and mounted police inside and outside the ground.

Nacional, who are in second spot in Uruguay's top flight, could have gone top with a win, while Penarol are struggling in 11th-place in the 16-team table.
Poland - Factors to Watch Nov 28

Following are news stories, press reports and events to watch that may affect Poland's financial markets on Monday. ALL TIMES GMT (Poland: GMT + 1 hour):

DIPLOMACY

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May will discuss deeper co-operation with her Polish counterpart in defence, security and trade on Monday, seeking common ground to underpin relations between the two countries after Brexit.

Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo hopes that British companies will invest in Poland and that Polish companies will be welcome in Britain, Fakt tabloid quoted Szydlo as saying.

TAXES

The planned increase of the personal tax allowance for those with smallest income to 6,600 zlotys annually will cost Poland's budget around 1 billion zlotys annually, Super Express tabloid quoted deputy prime minister as saying.

MILA

Retail chain Mila considers various strategic options including attracting an investor and a debut on a stock exchange, Puls Biznesu daily said quoting the company's statement.

PGG

Poland's state-run coal miner PGG has swung to a net profit of 15 million zlotys in October as it sold 1.38 mln tonnes of coal to a state-run agency which intervenes on the coal market, Rzeczpospolita daily said.

PGNIG

Six Pakistanis working for a Polish oil and gas surveying company have been kidnapped in northwestern Pakistan, military sources told Reuters, years after a Polish engineer from the same company was beheaded by Pakistani militants.

****Reuters has not verified stories reported by Polish media and does not vouch for their accuracy.****
South Africa's Zuma expected to survive no-confidence vote

By Mfuneko Toyana

PRETORIA, Nov 28 (Reuters) - South African President Jacob Zuma was expected to survive a no confidence vote at a meeting of the ANC's National Executive Committee (ANC) extended into Monday night, despite media reports of at least three cabinet ministers turning against him.

Zuma's presidency has been plagued by accusations of corruption and the nation's anti-graft watchdog this month asked for a judge to investigate alleged influence-peddling by a wealthy family Zuma has called his friends. Zuma has denied any wrongdoing.

One senior ANC official, who asked to remain anonymous, said Zuma would probably survive the latest attempt to dislodge him by the growing number of ANC figures unhappy with his leadership.

"Even if there's secret ballot, he's still likely to get the numbers," the official told Reuters.

But analysts said Zuma's hand would be weakened by the challenge even if he survived the vote, boosting sentiment in financial markets that see him as a liability.

Spokesman Zizi Kodwa said the ANC would hold a news conference on Tuesday on the outcome of the meeting. Late on Monday evening, Kodwa would not say if it was still going on.

The NEC, which can remove Zuma from office, extended a scheduled weekend meeting into a third day on Monday after Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom proposed the no-confidence motion on Saturday, the Afrikaans-language daily Beeld said.

Two more cabinet members - Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi - have since joined Hanekom in asking Zuma to step down, News24 reported.

South Africa's rand firmed to near three-week highs against the dollar and yields on government bonds fell, largely after rating agencies Fitch and Moody's affirmed the country's investment-grade credit ratings on Friday and partly due to the no-confidence vote against Zuma.

"If markets perceive that the president could be weakened, whether that happens or not is not irrelevant, if they believe it to be so then the currency will strengthen," NKC Independent Economists political analyst Gary van Staden said.

'FIERY AND FIERCE DEBATE'

The NEC, which met in the capital, Pretoria, is the only body in the ruling party that can remove the leader of the party, besides its five-yearly congress.

Zuma himself is one of the committee's 104 members, most of whom were elected alongside the president in 2012.

The Beeld reported that the NEC members were locked in a "fiery and fierce" debate over whether a secret ballot should be used, citing unnamed sources who had attended the meeting.

An ANC spokesman did not respond to telephone calls seeking comment about the meeting. In a statement on Sunday, the ANC did not give a reason for the extension of the meeting.

Analysts said Hanekom's motion was even less likely to succeed if Zuma's allies managed to secure an open vote, one of the main ways he has controlled the party during his seven years in charge.
Resettled in the Baltics, refugees flee for wealthier lands

By Andrius Sytas and Gederts Gelzis

RUKLA, Lithuania/MUCENIEKI, Latvia, Nov 28 (Reuters) - In early November, 34 Syrian and Iraqi refugees boarded buses heading for Germany from Lithuania, the country where they had been resettled. No one expects them to return.

Only a tiny number of refugees from war in the Middle East have been sent to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, among the European Union's poorest countries. The Baltic states were nobody's first choice.

"When we left from Turkey to Greece, our final goal was Germany or Holland," said Mohamed Kamel Haj Ali, 52, once a shopkeeper in Syria, who for the time being still lives in Rukla in Lithuania.

"But the land route from Greece was already closed, so we had no choice but to enter the relocation programme, which brought us here."

Seventy-two out of the 90 Syrians and Iraqis resettled to Lithuania from Greece or Turkey, and granted refugee status under its EU quota, have since left, according to official figures.

"The ones who left (for Germany) said they left Syria out of fear of death from bombs, but here they feared they would die from hunger," said Haj Ali.

"So they took the risk and left."

Under EU rules, refugees are forbidden to work or claim refuge in other member states. Some destroy their identity documents after leaving the Baltics, in the hope of claiming refugee status anew in richer countries like Germany.

But Haj Ali, who is in touch with some of the refugees who took the buses from Lithuania to Germany, says things are better there.

"They are satisfied living in a German refugee centre, and are receiving everything they are entitled to," he said.

More than half of the 63 refugees given asylum in Latvia under its EU quota have left, according to an estimate by the Latvian Red Cross.

The European Union is struggling to implement its 2015 agreement to share 160,000 refugees across 28 member states.

Only about 7,500 have been resettled so far. Poland has refused to accept its quota of 7,000, and Slovakia has called for the scheme to be scrapped.

"We can't hold them here by force," said Rihards Kozlovskis, interior minister of Latvia.

MEAGRE BENEFITS, FEW JOBS

In the Baltic states, benefits are limited. Lithuania pays a refugee family of two parents and two children 450 euros a month for the first six months. After that payments are halved.

Ilmars Latkovskis, head of the Latvian parliament's Citizenship, Migration and Social Cohesion Committee, said that to make it attractive to stay, benefits would have to be boosted "to a level which would be very unpleasant for our own population, which is not that well-off".

Neighbouring Estonia provides free accommodation for two years in addition to financial benefits. Not one of is allocated 77 refugees is missing, its interior ministry said.

The Baltic countries have little history of immigration, so refugees lack community connections and there are few jobs.

"Why do you take us for relocation if you don't have a place for us?" said Qassem, 37, a Syrian working as a translator at Latvia's Mucenieki refugee reception centre.

Qassem, who did not want give a surname, said he knew only one other refugee with job.

Haj Ali, who has only just won refugee status, said he too planned to leave for Germany with his wife and two adult children unless he could find work and affordable housing in Lithuania before the six-month deadline when his benefits will be halved.

Despite the re-migration westwards, the European Commission sees the relocation scheme as a success, said Giedrius Sudikas, spokesman for the commission's office in Lithuania.

"If they move to another country, they cannot apply for work, they cannot reside there, they cannot receive benefits," he said.
Malaysian pro-democracy leader released after ten days' detention

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The leader of Malaysian pro-democracy group Bersih and critic of Prime Minister Najib Razak was released on Monday after ten days in detention under a widely criticised security law.

Maria Chin Abdullah was arrested the day before a protest rally organised by the group saw thousands of Malaysians marching in the capital to demand Najib's resignation over his alleged involvement in a multi-billion dollar financial scandal. Najib has denied wrongdoing.

Maria was arrested on Nov 18 under Malaysia's Security Offences (Special Measures) Act, a law that was introduced in 2012 to fight security and extremist threats.

The U.S. State Department and other civil rights groups had criticised Maria's arrest under the law, which could have seen her detained for 28 days without trial.

In a text message to Reuters, human rights lawyer Ambiga Sreenevasan confirmed Maria's release, but said police had not given a reason why she was freed.

Earlier on Monday, police also raided the office of Empower Malaysia, a women's rights organisation where Maria was previously executive director.

Empower Malaysia member Honey Tan said via her Twitter account lawyers were barred by police from entering the organisation's office during the raid.
Syria denounces Qatar for saying it will continue to back rebels

BEIRUT, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Syria's Foreign Ministry on Monday denounced comments by Qatar that it will continue to back rebels against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as merely an attempt "to raise the morale of the terrorist groups" in the face of army advances.

Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani told Reuters in an interview on Sunday that Doha would continue to arm Syrian rebel groups even if U.S. President-elect Donald Trump were to end Washington's support for them.

Sheikh Mohammed's remarks showed "the Qatari regime is one of the sources of extremism, terrorism and takfiri thought," Syrian state news agency SANA reported, citing a Foreign Ministry statement.

Takfir is the labelling of other Muslims as non-believers, a practice that has become a central element of most jihadist groups' ideologies. The term "takfiri" is commonly used by opponents of jihadist groups to describe the latter's way of thinking.

Qatar is one of the leading supporters of the insurgency against Assad, joining other Gulf monarchies, Turkey and the United States to supply arms and training to some rebel groups that they say have been vetted.

Damascus regards all the rebels fighting to oust Assad, including both jihadists and nationalist groups, as terrorists. The Syrian army and its allies have recently advanced in Aleppo, the insurgents' most important urban stronghold.

The Syrian government is supported by Russia's air force, Iran and Shi'ite Muslim militias from Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan.
French conservatives back Fillon for president, Left flounders

By Andrew Callus and Leigh Thomas

PARIS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - France's centre-right rallied behind free market reformist Francois Fillon as its candidate for president on Monday after a snap opinion poll showed him clear favourite to beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen in an election showdown next year.

Fillon, a former prime minister who vowed to change France's "software" with an assault on public sector spending, moved one step closer to the Elysee by securing a resounding victory over Alain Juppe in the Les Republicains primary vote on Sunday.

The ruling Socialists, meanwhile, sought to quell talk of a fallout between deeply unpopular President Francois Hollande and his prime minister, Manuel Valls, over which of them should seek the party ticket in their primary set for January.

Opinion polls show, though, that whoever does run for the Left is likely to come a very distant third behind Fillon and the National Front (FN) leader Le Pen in the election's first round next April.

Fillon, 62, easily saw off Juppe, another former prime minister, by securing two-thirds of the vote on Sunday.

"When a candidate wins with a score of that size - two thirds - it creates a natural momentum, a centre of gravity and a unifying force," Bruno Ratailleau, a Fillon ally and senator from western France, told RTL radio.

Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy, who was ousted in the first round of the conservatives primary, and Juppe had both been given far better odds of winning the ticket at the start. Both men rallied behind Fillon after his triumph.

GLIMMER OF OPPORTUNITY

But Fillon's hard-line reform plans - cutting public spending by 100 billion euros over five years, scrapping a tax on the wealthy and pushing the retirement age to 65 and cutting public sector jobs - hand a glimmer of opportunity to Hollande and his Socialists, and the broader French Left.

His plans also set him apart from the anti-euro, anti-immigration, more pro-worker policies of Le Pen.

Fillon is solidly pro-European while Le Pen says she would seek a Britain-style referendum on European Union membership with a view to leading France out of the bloc - something which, if it happened, could sound the death knell for the union.

By contrast, his socially conservative views such as his deep reservations about abortion and gay marriage could win him votes at her expense in a traditionally Catholic, if formally secular, country.

Under the leadership of Le Pen, who took over from her father Jean-Marie in 2011, the FN has switched from an economically liberal, pro-small business party to one that promises to lower the retirement age and guarantee France's generous welfare safety net.

Fillon's social and economic policies could also push more centrist voters towards the left - if there was a rallying candidate.

Fillon, an admirer of late British prime minister Margaret Thatcher, pledged on Sunday to introduce radical change.

"I will take up an unusual challenge for France: tell the truth and completely change its software," Fillon, a racing car enthusiast who lives in a Loire valley chateau, told supporters.

French voters are angry about unemployment - stubbornly high at 10 percent - and fearful after a wave of Islamist militant attacks.

Next year's presidentials in the euro zone's second-largest economy are shaping up to be another test of the strength of anti-establishment parties in Western countries after Britain's vote to quit the EU and the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president.

DIVIDED LEFT

After five torrid years in power, marked by high unemployment and security worries caused by the attacks, the Socialists and the broader left are deeply divided.

Though close aides expect Hollande to run despite his deep unpopularity there are signs Valls is considering his own bid to challenge his boss for the Socialist party ticket in a primary due for next January.

The Elysee and the government sought to paper over the cracks when the two men met on Monday for lunch.

A presidential source said their two-hour meeting had been "very cordial" and workmanlike but gave little clue of their exchanges regarding the Socialist primary.

Valls was quoted by an aide as saying that given the security threat neither side sought a "political confrontation" now.

Government spokesman Stephane Le Foll sought to dismiss media speculation of a possibly damaging Valls-Hollande contest.

"To those who say there could be a primary election with the president and prime minister, I say there won't be a primary between the president and the prime minister," Le Foll told Europe 1 radio.

The left's headaches do not end there. Valls's former economy minister Emmanuel Macron has launched his own campaign targeting centrist voters, while firebrand left-winger and former Socialist party member Jean-Luc Melenchon has also set off independently on the campaign trail.

A Harris opinion poll on Sunday had each of these rebels winning more than 13 percent of votes each in next April's first round of the presidential election, while either Hollande or Valls would be in single figures.

In the same poll, Fillon and Le Pen were seen coming top in the first round with 26 and 24 percent respectively. In the resulting second round run-off, Fillon was seen winning with 67 percent to Le Pen's 33.
EIB to lend Tunisia 400 million euros -Tunisian government

TUNIS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to grant loans to Tunisia worth 400 million euros for youth and infrastructure projects, the Tunis government said on Monday.

The deal will be signed during an international investment conference in Tunis on Tuesday, the prime minister's office said in a statement.

It quoted EIB President Werner Hoyer as saying the money would be provided for projects targeting youth, children, and schools, as well as a bridge project in the northern city of Bizerte. The projects will have an "immediate impact", it said.

The statement added that the EIB had made a commitment to provide a total of 2.5 billion euros worth of funding to the North African country, without giving details.

Tunisia's economy has been hit by social unrest and militant attacks following a 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, leaving many young people frustrated at a lack of economic opportunities.

Earlier on Monday, Tunisia's government said it was planning to issue a Eurobond worth 1 billion euros in January as it seeks funding to cover its deficit.
Kuwait plans to buy 28 Boeing F-18 jets -official

KUWAIT, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Kuwait plans to buy 28 Boeing F-18 Super Hornets, a military official said on Monday, 10 days after the U.S. State Department notified Congress of the possible sale of 40 of the warplanes to the Gulf Arab state.

Major General Lafi al-Azmi, chief of the military's Armament and Procurement Authority, also said Kuwait planned to return a number of outdated F-18s in its inventory as part of the purchase deal, the official Kuwait News Agency reported.

He added that details of the sale would only be disclosed after it is officially signed.

"Given Kuwait's proximity to turbulent locations, we certainly need effective military equipment," he was quoted as saying, in apparent reference to wars in Iraq and Syria.

The fighter aircraft are increasingly important to Kuwait amid rising regional tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, whose struggle for regional pre-dominance underpins wars and political tensions across the Middle East. Kuwait, an ally of Saudi Arabia, is also part of a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.

Boeing, Northrop Grumman Corp, Raytheon Co and General Electric Co are the prime contractors for the proposed sale.
Islamic State sniper hits Iraqi unit as army inches forward in Mosul

By John Davison

MOSUL, Iraq, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The Islamic State sniper was a good shot. His round hit the Iraqi soldier just above the eye through a hole in the wall no bigger than 10 inches across.

"Come, he's been hit!" shouted one of his comrades, seconds after the sharp crack rang out.

Two soldiers crouching behind other peep-holes on the roof rushed inside, keeping their bodies low to avoid being spotted by the sniper.

They carried semi-conscious Omar Abdul Wahid, in his late 20s, down two flights of narrow stairs, leaving a trail of bright red blood. They bundled him into an armoured vehicle and rushed him to hospital.

The challenge the men faced on Sunday - of dealing with a sole sharpshooter in an area the army entered weeks ago - shows how difficult the battle to recapture Mosul is becoming, with Islamic State deploying snipers and suicide car bombs, and using civilians as human shields to bog down Iraqi forces.

The unit from Iraq's 9th Armoured Division had occupied the home in eastern Mosul's Intisar neighbourhood just two or three days ago as they make incremental advances against Islamic State as part a U.S.-backed campaign to recapture the city.

But the same sharpshooter had tied them down since then, in an area the army pushed into in early November.

"The sniper is next to the mosque," little over 200 yards away, said Sattar Rikan, one of the soldiers. "We're still trying to deal with him. A coalition air strike would sort him out."

The U.S.-backed campaign to drive Islamic State out of its Iraq stronghold, which began in earnest last month, quickly retook surrounding villages. But advances slowed once Iraqi forces entered Mosul itself, in an increasingly costly fight.

"This is the second wounded we've had in the area in the last two days," said Sadeq, 45, another soldier who gave only his first name.

"The round fragmented and went through (part of the skull), but didn't hit him straight in the eye."

'A DIRTY FIGHT'

Securing areas recently captured was the biggest challenge, Sadeq said.

"It's a dirty fight, it's not conventional. They use snipers, car bombs, IEDs. You're not in control of the area until you've walked through it, and searched it completely," he said. "We want to finish the fighting in a given area as soon as possible so we can begin searches."

The soldiers did not fire back when Abdul Wahid was hit.

"There are civilians everywhere, you can't just fire randomly just because you've seen Daesh (Islamic State) terrorists," Sadeq explained.

"Three times I've had RPGs fired at me from (militants) standing among civilians... Hopefully after two or three days we can advance."

The 9th Armoured Division says advances in Mosul's southeastern neighbourhoods have been slow because of the civilian presence.

"If there weren't civilians we'd be able to advance to the 4th bridge," in southern Mosul, said Brigadier Gen. Mustafa Sabah said on Sunday.

The military is also keen to keep its own casualties to a minimum.

"In the past two days there haven't been so many military casualties in the area because we're moving slowly, but before it was harder," medical officer Captain Osama Fuad, 33, said speaking in Shahrezad village on Mosul's eastern outskirts.

At the front line, the unit went back to their firing positions.

They were not sure if Abdul Wahid would live.

Sadeq, who was praying when Abdul Wahid got shot, used a rag to mop up his comrade's blood next to the green prayer mat.
Record number of boat migrants reach Italy this year

By Steve Scherer

ROME, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The number of migrants who have reached Italy by boat from North Africa this year has already topped a previous record set two years ago, official data show, as pressure on Italy's shelter and asylum systems grows.

Italy has borne the brunt of new arrivals since the implementation in March of an agreement between the European Union and Turkey to curb the flow of migrants sailing for Greece.

As of Nov. 28, 171,299 boat migrants had reached Italy's shores, the Interior Ministry said, compared to the previous record of 170,100 for all of 2014.

Last year some 154,000 migrants came through the deadly central Mediterranean route, bringing the three-year tally of arrivals to almost a half million.

More than 176,000 asylum seekers now live in Italian shelters, and there have been a record number of asylum requests this year. This is putting the country's asylum process and legal system under increasing pressure.

While there had been hope that a government formed in Tripoli in March would help stop people smuggling, it has not. Libya remains fertile ground for traffickers as local militias and a rival government in Tobruk compete for power.

Most of the migrants who have come to Italy this year are Africans of various nationalities. Some 36,000 Nigerians have made the trip, about 21 percent of the total, along with 20,000 Eritreans and more than 12,000 from Guinea.

An estimated 4,663 migrants have died in the Mediterranean this year as a record number of unaccompanied minors have come to Italy. As of the end of October, almost 23,000 unaccompanied minors -- mostly teenage boys -- had arrived, compared with 13,000 during the whole of 2014.

During the more stormy winter months, arrivals in the past have dropped, but rescuers are concerned this year that there will not be enough boats to go to their aid.
Syrian rebels, families evacuate besieged town near Damascus

BEIRUT, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Hundreds of people left the besieged town of Khan al-Shih southwest of Damascus on Monday under a deal with the Syrian government for safe passage to other rebel-held areas, a monitoring group said.

The Syrian government, helped by Russian air power and Iran-backed militias, has steadily quashed armed opposition to its rule in the remaining pockets of resistance around the capital using a series of army offensives and evacuation agreements.

Damascus describes the deals as reconciliation or settlement agreements, but rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad say they involve the forcible displacement of whole communities from opposition areas after years of siege and bombardment.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the civil war, said 10 buses had left Khan al-Shih for rebel-held Idlib province, but that it was unclear if they were carrying fighters themselves or only their families.

As part of the deal, around 1,450 rebels and 1,400 relatives are due to leave the town, the British-based Observatory reported. The process will require 42 buses, in addition to nearly 25 ambulances for injured civilians and fighters, it said.

Local sources in Khan al-Shih told Reuters earlier that 3,000 people, half of them fighters, were expected to evacuate the suburb, most of them on Monday.

The United Nations estimates 12,000 people have been besieged in Khan al-Shih, where a Palestinian refugee camp is located, for years. Heavy clashes and air strikes have rocked the area during the past month until the evacuation deal was agreed last week.

Khan al-Shih is the only town not controlled by the government along a major supply route between Damascus and government-held territory in the southern province of Quneitra.

In previous such deals, insurgents have been allowed to keep light weapons. Rebels in Khan al-Shih handed in their heavy weapons on Sunday as part of the deal, state-affiliated media and the Observatory said.

Syrian state-run Ikhbariya TV, broadcasting from near Khan al-Shih on Sunday, said 3,000 to 4,500 remaining people would be taken back into government-controlled areas, citing sources within the local administration.

Syria's Minister of National Reconciliation Affairs, Ali Haidar, whose department administers the agreements, could not immediately be reached for comment. Haidar has previously said such amnesties are "a workable model to bring security and peace" after more than five years of war.
Denmark picks eurosceptic as foreign minister

COPENHAGEN, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Denmark's new coalition government on Monday picked an outspoken eurosceptic as its new foreign minister, marking a potential political shift in a country where opposition against the European Union is growing.

Anders Samuelsen, 49, has maintained a sceptical attitude towards Denmark's participation in the European Union since his Liberal Alliance party was founded in 2007 and campaigned against further cooperation with the bloc.

"I have not changed my attitude overnight towards the EU," Samuelsen told reporters on Monday after his party on Sunday became part of a new broader coalition deal.

Unlike previous liberal governments that have clearly stated they wanted to keep Denmark close to the core of the European Union, the new 86-page government platform presented on Sunday only describes policy towards EU in vague terms.

"The government's line is that we are at the core of the EU cooperation, but at the same time we have a critical attitude in the way the EU works. We want to reform the EU, United Nations and NATO from within," he said. "We have a task of cleansing to do."

"We may be inspired by what happens in the rest of the world," he said without elaborating and without specifically mentioning Britain's vote to exit the EU.

Opposition against European cooperation is growing in Denmark, with anti-EU or eurosceptic parties getting more mandates in parliament, including the Danish People's Party, the Red-Green Alliance and the Liberal Alliance.

Denmark currently holds opt-outs from EU policies on security, police and the euro. At the most recent EU referendum in December last year, Liberal Alliance campaigned against cooperation with cross-border police agency Europol, a deal that was eventually rejected by Danish voters.

The two other government parties, the Liberals led by Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and the Conservative Party, are pro-EU and want to revoke exceptions the Nordic country currently holds on EU matters.
Heineken takes on Castel in Ivory Coast beer market

ABIDJAN, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Heineken is planning to take on Castel for the top spot in Ivory Coast's growing beer market by competing with the French company on price, the general manager of the Dutch firm's new brewery said on Monday.

Following a decade-long crisis that ended in 2011, Ivory Coast has emerged as Africa's fastest growing economy, according to the International Monetary Fund, and beer consumption is rising in the cocoa producing country of 23 million people.

Heineken, the world's second largest beer maker, and Africa-focused trading firm CFAO invested 100 billion CFA francs ($162 million) to build a brewery that opened this month near the commercial capital Abidjan.

Groupe Castel, a private firm founded by the Castel family, produces the majority of the 270 million litres of beer consumed annually in Ivory Coast at its Solibra brewery in Abidjan and has maintained an iron grip on the market for years.

Besides its ever-popular Castel, Flag and Solibra Bock brands it also brews other well-known beers under licence such as Diageo's Guinness and Carlsberg's Tuborg.

"We want to be the leading beer seller in Ivory Coast," Alexander Koch, general manager of Heineken's new Brassivoire brewery, told Reuters.

"The market has been served by a single actor, Castel, for years ... We judged it promising enough to move in with this investment."

For now, the Dutch company is focusing on producing its local Ivoire brand at the new plant, which has a capacity of 160 million litres a year, said Koch.

The recommended unit price for a 60 cl bottle of Ivoire will be 500 CFA francs a bottle, said Koch, which is lower than the rival brands produced by Castel, Africa's second largest producer of beer and soft drinks.

Heineken has operations in 10 other African countries including Nigeria, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia.
Texas reports first case of Zika spread by local mosquitoes

By Julie Steenhuysen

Nov 28 (Reuters) - Texas health officials on Monday reported the state's first case of Zika likely spread by local mosquitoes, making Texas the second state within the continental United States to report local transmission of the virus that has been linked to birth defects.

The case involved a woman living in Cameron County near the Mexico border who is not pregnant, the Texas Department of State Health Services said.

Pregnancy is the biggest concern with Zika because the virus can cause severe, life-long birth defects, including microcephaly, in which a child is born with an abnormally small head, a sign its brain has stopped growing normally.

Texas said it currently has no other suspected cases of local Zika transmission, but officials there plan to step up efforts to watch for the virus.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was coordinating with state and local officials to increase surveillance efforts and "vector control activities" such as spraying for adult mosquitoes and applying larvicide to kill emerging mosquitoes.

Texas is one of several U.S. states where Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which carry Zika, are present.

Florida's Miami Dade County has been battling Zika within local mosquito populations since mid-summer. As of today, the state has had 238 cases of locally transmitted Zika.

"We knew it was only a matter of time before we saw a Zika case spread by a mosquito in Texas," Dr. John Hellerstedt, Texas Department of State Health Services commissioner, said in a statement.

"We still don't believe the virus will become widespread in Texas, but there could be more cases, so people need to protect themselves from mosquito bites, especially in parts of the state that stay relatively warm in the fall and winter."

Dr Amesh Adalja, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, said local transmission in Texas was "totally expected."

Both dengue and chikungunya, two closely related viruses, have already spread locally in Texas, and the state "is a well-established home" of Aedes mosquitoes.

"What this case underscores is the risk of local transmission in any area in which Aedes mosquitoes are present and the urgent need to continue aggressive vector control measures to minimize the impact of such local introductions," he said.

Officials in Cameron County and the City of Brownsville have assessed the woman's home and have begun trapping and testing mosquitoes to understand how widespread the virus is in local mosquito populations.

The city recently sprayed for mosquitoes in the area, and will continue to take action to reduce the mosquito population, state and local officials said.

"Even though it is late in the mosquito season, mosquitoes can spread Zika in some areas of the country," CDC Director Tom Frieden said in a statement. "Texas is doing the right thing by increasing local surveillance and trapping and testing mosquitoes in the Brownsville area."

There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which causes mild fever, rash and red eyes. An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms, making it difficult for individuals to know whether they have been infected.

The connection between Zika and microcephaly first came to light last year in Brazil, which has since confirmed more than 2,000 cases of the birth defect.
Former Tesco boss Clarke will not face charges over accounting scandal

LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Philip Clarke, the former chief executive of Tesco, will not face charges from the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) over the accounting scandal that rocked Britain's biggest retailer in 2014, his lawyer said on Monday.

David Corker, partner at CorkerBinning, told Reuters he had received a letter from the SFO informing him that Clarke would not be prosecuted.

"It has been decided not to initiate criminal proceedings on the grounds there is insufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction," said the letter.

The SFO declined to comment beyond stating its investigation into Tesco was continuing.

Clarke was sacked as Tesco CEO in July 2014 after three years in the top job.

Last month three former senior executives of Tesco accused of fraud and false accounting were told they would face trial next September.

Christopher Bush, who was managing director of Tesco UK, Carl Rogberg, who was UK finance director, and John Scouler, who was UK food commercial director, were charged by the SFO in September with one count of fraud by abuse of position and one count of false accounting.

The SFO said the alleged crimes occurred between Feb. 1 and Sept. 23, 2014.

Tesco issued a statement to the Stock Exchange on Sept. 22, 2014, saying that during its final preparations for a results announcement it had identified a 250 million pound overstatement of first-half profit, mainly due to booking commercial deals with suppliers too early.

The discovery led to the suspension of eight senior members of staff including Bush, Rogberg and Scouler, sent Tesco's shares tumbling and plunged the company into the worst crisis since Jack Cohen founded the business nearly 100 years ago.

The profit overstatement, identified three weeks after Dave Lewis took over as CEO from Clarke, was later raised to 263 million pounds.

Clarke not facing charges could have implications for the SFO deciding whether to prosecute Tesco itself.
A business seminar titled Innovative Products from China was held during the afternoon session of the first day of the second edition of China Products (Colombo Sri Lanka) Exhibition 2016.

During these sessions, China Commerce Ministry Trade Development Bureau Deputy Director Wang Yuchen made several comments emphasizing on the importance of maintaining strong business links between the nations. He said that Sri Lanka and China have been close friends even in trade-related matters during the past.

It is a matter of continuing along that path and work on better long-term associations with Chinese companies for joint ventures, collaborations and import-export trading relations. We believe that events of this nature and the vital business information shared in this manner would greatly help to strengthen our ongoing bilateral relations further, Yuchen added.

CMEC International Exhibition Co., Ltd managed the seminar sponsored by the China Commerce Ministry Trade Development Bureau. There was much response from Sri Lankan community with full house participation for the session.

During the sessions, vital information about high-quality branded Chinese products introduced to the market was shared among participants gathered. It was stressed that not only retail goods but also products of high value such as machinery are marketed as recognized Chinese brands. It was also revealed that China is confidently moving ahead marketing its own brands at present.

The exhibition was inaugurated by Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen and the ceremonial opening was graced by Guangdong Province Peoples Government Deputy Secretary General Li Yiwei, China Council Promotion of International Trade Guangdong Committee President Lin Tao, Worldex Fiera Milano (Guangzhou) Exhibition Co. Ltd Managing Director Wolfgang, CMEC International Exhibition Co., Ltd Vice General Manager Wu Chupeng, National Chamber of Commerce (NCC) of Sri Lanka President Thilak Godamanna and WorldEx India Managing Director Rajesh Bhagat. Many distinguished guests representing leading trade bodies from Sri Lanka were also present at the opening event.

The exhibition, which displays more than 120 quality exhibitors from China, is jointly organised by the China Council for Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT Guangdong Committee), China National Machinery & Equipment Import & Export Corporation (CMEC), and Worldex Fiera Milano Exhibitions (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd for which National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) extend fullest support by joining-in as the industry partner of

the event.
Commercial Bank Chairman Dharma Dheerasinghe (centre) and Managing Director Jegan Durairatnam receive the Business Today Award from Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe

Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC has been ranked second in Business Todays Top 30 public listed companies in Sri Lanka in 2015-16 for the fourth consecutive year.

This is also the ninth year that Sri Lankas benchmark private sector bank has been ranked among the top five listed companies in the country on the basis of financial performance by Business Today.

The Business Today TOP 30 ranking is strictly based on the published information of companies listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange and is compiled with the assistance of KPMG Ford Rhodes, Thornton & Co. Financial criteria considered for the ranking include share turnover, revenue, profit after tax, return on equity, earnings per share, market capitalisation and value addition. Weights are assigned to the criteria uniformly to arrive at the scores on which the order in which companies are ranked is decided.

The 2015-16 Top 30 rankings of Business Today places Commercial Bank well ahead of some of Sri Lankas leading diversified conglomerates, multinationals and other financial services companies.

In the year reviewed for this latest ranking, Commercial Bank posted net profit of Rs.11.903 billion on profit before tax of Rs.17.144 billion. Total assets stood at Rs.880 billion as at December 31, 2015.

Carefully audited performance-based rankings such as the Business Todays Top 30 are very helpful in benchmarking our performance against a wide cross section of listed companies including diversified conglomerates, Commercial Bank Chief Operating Officer/Executive Director S. Renganathan said.

Our consistent presence at the very top end of the ranking is a noteworthy acknowledgement of the calibre of the entire team at Commercial Bank.
Vajira Kulatilaka, Chairman of the CSE handing over the sponsorship cheque to Lasantha Wickremasinghe, President of CA Sri Lanka. Also in the picture are CA Sri Lankas Vice President Jagath Perera, Chairman of the Annual Report Awards Committee Sanjaya Bandara and CEO Aruna Alwis. Chief Executive Officer of CSE

Rajeeva Bandaranaike is also in the picture

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has once again extended its support for the prestigious Annual Report Awards Competition organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka).

CSE will power the 52nd Annual Report Awards competition as a strategic partner. This is the third year in a row that CSE has extended its support to the annual corporate competition, which has created an important benchmark as an event that promotes transparency, good governance and social responsibility among corporates and other organisations both big and small. This years competition revolves around the theme Precision Exemplified.

In a history spanning over five decades, the Annual Report Awards competition has helped organizations in Sri Lanka improve transparency and accountability in financial reporting, while also enhancing Sri Lankas reporting standards in line with global best practices.

This year too as in other years, the awards ceremony will honour the most cohesive, clear and customized annual reports that best reflect an entitys operations, which has also gone beyond the statutory boundaries of reporting. The competitions grand finale will be held in

December 2016.
CTCs Finance Director Emma Ridley after receiving the award from Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe

Ceylon Tobacco Company (CTC) secured the fourth position among Business Today Top 30 corporates at the award ceremony held recently in Colombo.

The awards platform recognizes the financial performance of established blue chip organizations that stabilize the growing Sri Lankan economy. Criteria considered for the ranking went beyond merely turnover to include, revenue, profit after tax, growth in sales turnover, growth in profit, return on equity, growth in earnings per share, market capitalization, value of shares transacted and value addition.

Emma Ridley CTCs Finance Director speaking at the award ceremony said, We are extremely happy in being positioned 4th because we have succeeded in being placed among the Top 10 for 11 consecutive years. CTC has performed commendably to achieve this recognition despite the challenging operating environment that has hampered the growth of a legal business entity manufacturing a legal product. Most recently we were hit with unprecedented increases in excise and taxes, which has led to a 20 percent decline in our volumes. Unfortunately, however our loss seems to be a win for the less regulated and minimally taxed Beedi which grew its volumes by 200 percent in the past 5 years. This is not surprising as Beedi prices have hardly increased over the past years and it has remained a widely available affordable alternative to cigarettes.

CTC is considered the highest contributor to government revenue paying over Rs. 74 billion in excise and taxes in the first 9 months of this year. However, two back to back price increases, an excise led price increase in October followed by the enforcement of a 15% VAT in cigarettes in November, has resulted in a significant decline in the companys contribution to the state coffers.

Speaking on winning the BT award, CEO and Managing Director, Michael Koest said, While we are proud of this recognition of our strong financial performance, we are concerned that the excessive and ad-hoc tax increases on legally manufactured cigarettes will have a detrimental effect on a business that has been operating legally for over a century. Since the most recent tax increases we see this also impacting our contribution to the exchequer.

As a responsible tobacco company, we support reasonable regulations that are consultative, evidence-based and delivers policy objectives while respecting our legal rights as a legal business, selling a legal product. However, we also urge policy makers to adopt a formula that optimizes government revenue and meets public health objectives while enabling the legal cigarette industry to have a competitive advantage through a profitable and sustainable business.

CTC is also the second largest entity listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange further establishing the company amongst the top blue chip organizations in Sri Lanka. Further, CTC continuously invests in its CSR efforts to eliminate poverty in Sri Lanka and its flagship CSR project, the Sustainable Agriculture Development Programme, has been feted as one of the

best in Asia.
The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) today staged a protest in front of the Colombo National Hospital urging the Government to withdraw the Budget proposal 2017. The GMOA demanded the Government to withdraw the Budget proposals on several subjects, including the privatization of job market and privatizing the health sector. Pix by Nisal Baduge
The Board of Investment (BOI) was the one institution that has successfully facilitated PPPs in the past, and Thilan Wijesinghe has been the youngest ever and longest serving Chairman of the BOI. In the following interview, he speaks of the key enablers which facilitated successful PPPs during his chairmanship.

Excerpts.



Why was the Bureau of Infrastructure Investments (BII) set up?

The Bureau of Infrastructure Investments (BII) was set up soon after I became Chairman in 1996 as a separate department of the BOI to structure PPPs, primarily in infrastructure.

This was a consequence of the Government at the time deciding to attract private investment into infrastructure in order to allocate resources into areas where the private sector cannot obtain a suitable investment return (such as irrigation, rural health).



Also, PPPs were intended to generate competition and efficiency within State-owned monopolies at the time such as Telecom and Ports. The BII was set up under the BOI due to a prior experiment of setting a PPP unit under the Ministry of Finance being unsuccessful.



What role did it play in facilitating PPPs?

In 5 years from 1996 to 2001, I put together a team at the BII that successfully implemented PPPs valued at US$ 800 million at a time when the country was faced with a war risk premium. Projects implemented included the South Asia Gateway Terminal (SAGT), which was the first ever Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) in the port sector in South Asia, and the largest private investment ever in Sri Lanka at the time at US$ 220 million.



In telecoms, FDI into Lanka Bell and Suntel was secured to create competition for Sri Lanka Telecom, which paved the way to its privatization.



The BII then structured and executed Sri Lankas first ever thermal private power generation plant (Asia Power) and first ever mini hydro. This has led to more than 75MW of mini hydro and 250MW of thermal power investments by 2001. Through a pioneering structure on alienating State land, the BOI and BII implemented Sri Lankas largest private housing schemes, Millennium City Athurugiriya and Nivasie Pura, Ekala, which collectively comprised over 3000 housing units.



The same State land alienation formula was applied to quadruple the number of private hospital beds, which resulted in the construction of Lanka (Apollo) Hospitals, Asiri Surgical, Ninewells and several more. Identifying Malabe as an IT zone was also planned during this time with the cooperation of the UDA. The BOI provided grant funding to commence operations of SLIIT in 1998, which today is the largest degree awarding University for ICT and Engineering in Sri Lanka, with 7500 students. We also initiated the land policy that resulted in Millennium Information Technology (now owned by the London Stock Exchange) investing in a large new development facility in Malabe.



How was the organization structured? Did this have a significant impact on the success of enabling PPPs?

Yes, the organization structure played an important role. Firstly, the BII had the benefit of a powerful and dynamic board of directors of the BOI, which was appointed by former President Chandrika Bandaranaike at my request.



It included the Secretary to the Treasury, two other senior Secretaries and a former Chairman of Aitken Spence. The board functioned as a strong policy making body and did not waste time with routine matters. Secondly, the BII obtained approval of the Cabinet of Ministers to pay market salaries to private sector professionals. There were no connected persons parachuted to the BII. Key officers selected had skills in negotiation, financial structuring and investment banking that were required to bridge the gap in such skills in the public sector. They were hired on contract basis usually up to 2 years, and would face dismissal with one months notice if performance was poor. During my 5-year tenure as Chairman, I dismissed or did not extend contracts of several senior officers who did not perform up to my expectations. So, a performance-based culture not only helped us to succeed in closing many investment deals, but also earned the respect and support of the public service in general.

How were resources sourced to create the BII?

Initially BOI allocated resources to set up the BII and a major portion of the funding was obtained via a US$ 2 million grant from USAID, which was also used to hire foreign technical experts to assist in complex negotiations on PPP transactions.



What were the key success factors for the establishing the BII? What was the political context surrounding this?

The key success factor was right people. In my view the caliber of the Board and key staff at the BOI, who also contributed to the implementation of PPPs, and the BII were the best ever the institution has had.



Success was also possible due to the strong support of the Minister in charge of the BOI, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike. Whenever we hit a bottleneck, the former President resolved them through a process of consultation with the Ministry concerned and the Cabinet. Further, effective communication contributed to success. The BOI/BII was able to support the Government with required information to win over broad stakeholder support for PPPs.



What were the challenges/obstacles the BII encountered during your Chairmanship?

There were several key challenges. The first was criticism by some officers of the BOI for recruiting young professionals to the BII at significantly higher salaries than prevailing in public service. I countered this by offering similar salary if someone resigned from public service and was willing to work on contract basis with prospect of dismissal for non performance. No one took the offer and no one criticized me thereafter.



The key aspect in countering criticism is performance.

I am of the opinion that any person from the private sector entering public service has 6 months to prove himself. If you do, you will earn their respect and they will work for you; and if not, you will not receive broader public sector support to execute PPPs.



The second challenge was from Ministers and senior officials of line ministries who opposed PPP investments at the outset. These were countered through hours of negotiations, arguments and presentations, where the young team at the BII, all in their 20s and 30s, held their own against the Establishment to justify the rationale for PPP projects.



Another key constraint faced was with the delays at the Attorney Generals (AG) Department in concluding complex and lengthy legal documentation required for PPPs. This was not due to a lack of skills at the AGs Department, but the more capable solicitors were saddled with routine work that took time away from focusing on PPP agreements. The then AG and I reached a compromise to resolve this when 3-4 of the most capable solicitors of the Department were seconded to the BII on an almost fulltime basis. They did excellent work and several lawyers of this team are now heading up thriving private commercial law practices.



What in your opinion is the way forward for enabling successful PPPs in Sri Lanka?

Firstly, the government should recognize that PPPs will play a catalytic role in furthering FDI into Sri Lanka and that too much time has been wasted in setting up the capability within government to efficiently execute PPPs.



In my view the policy, institutional framework and the inter-ministerial relationships for implementing PPPs should be approved by the Cabinet of Ministers as soon as possible. The next task is to secure a line of funding from agencies such as USAID to pay for the right technical skills. PPPs are complicated and requires a highly skilled and well-paid core team of professionals and technical advisers on a case-by-case basis. Finally, several of the most capable officers of the AGs Department should be dedicated to PPPs as such investments have far reaching and positive impacts on Sri Lankas economy.



(The opinions expressed in this article are the individuals own and does not reflect the view of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce. This column is part of the PPP Knowledge Week initiative by the CCC in collaboration with the World Bank, which will be hosting a roundtable discussion on Country Readiness for PPPs and Way Forward on the 2nd of December 2016)
he outbursts of Sinhala-Buddhist ultra-nationalism in the South have often been cyclical. They take place with the connivance, and when it was not the case, complacency of the government in power. A closer look at this periodic rage would also reveal, since the Black July in 1983, which was facilitated by the governments inaction and active collaboration of some of its ministers, subsequent episodes of Sinhala-Buddhist ultra-nationalism have taken place broadly without any association with the terrorist war of the LTTE.

In the early 2000s, while the country was facing an existential threat from terrorism, a quasi-militant form of Sinhala-Buddhist radicalism sprung up with their primary target being the alleged aggressive proselytizing by evangelical Christian missionaries. A series of makeshift churches were attacked. Then in 2011, while the country was still reeling from the after-effects of a devastating war, another episode of ultra-nationalist Sinhala Buddhism popped up. This time the target was Muslims: Halal certificates, cow slaughter and the allegations of growing Islamic radicalism.

None of the above perceived concerns of Sinhala-Buddhist radicals was a grievance of the majority Sinhalese. However, ultra-nationalists managed to smuggle in their sinister agenda into the mainstream discourse. It is always dangerous to let bigots set or manipulate the national agenda. But, how did that happen in this country, not once, but periodically?

The problem has always been the governments lethargy towards the creeping radicalism or covert cooperation with Sinhala-Buddhist ultra-nationalism. That was partly due to electoral calculations. The success of the Jathika Hela Urumaya in some of Colombo suburbs such as Maharagama and Kaduwela, which were otherwise traditional Centre Right electorates generally favorable to the UNP, highlighted the appeal of religious nationalism even to the urbanites. And cognitive bias of Rajapaksas also made them embrace religious radicalism of the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS). The bottom line was that the successive governments did not really consider Sinhala ultra-nationalism as a credible threat, instead viewed it as a useful ally.

In the early 2000s, when churches were attacked, Chandrika Kumaratunga administration, cracked down on militant Buddhism, making several arrests. However, even then the government did not wish to get to the bottom of the problem. No arrests were made in a bomb attack on a musical concert which killed two in Colombo.

"The problem has always been the governments lethargy towards the creeping radicalism or covert cooperation with Sinhala-Buddhist ultra-nationalism"



Now the intelligence agencies say there are 40 odd extremist groups operating in the country- including the BBS and Thawheed Jamath, the ultra-orthodox Islamic group which is growing in number and influence within the Muslim community. Those groups operate openly as well as in the shadows. They do not appear prominently in the national security agenda, partly because the current mainstream dialogue itself downplays national security imperatives for the sake of reconciliation and democratization. The danger in that approach is that neither reconciliation nor democracy can be sustainable without national security for there will always be groups that exploit the vacuum to advance their sinister agendas.

It was the failure of the intelligence and security apparatus, partly due to inadequacy of resources, to monitor the threats of Tamil militancy in the North and JVP in the South that helped those incipient threats to grow into monstrous proportions which convulsed this country in three brutal rebellions. It was the same failure that led to beleaguered governments to deploy extra-judicial means to fight terrorism and insurgency for the sake of long term stability. Now the government should not take chances. Intelligence services should be given adequate clearance to monitor these groups, both Sinhala-Buddhist and Muslims and make arrests where necessary.

In the past, fighting extremism within criminal justice laws was considered to be the best practice, however, more often than not, such laws proved to be inadequate and played into the hands of terrorists.The current political discourse does not favour the Prevention of Terrorism Act, for it was at times abused, but also helped lock up potentially dangerous terrorists, who if they had stayed at large, could have blown up a couple of more bombs. The civil society also opposed a proposed legislation on banning hate-speech for it could affect free speech. But the same groups now cry foul only when the Sinhala-bigots spew hatred.

"It is always good to promote inter-ethnic dialogue, which seems to be the governments main strategy"



The government should bring back the proposed ban on hate-speech. It should also consider potential future security concerns and have remedies for such eventualities in its new security law with which it seeks to replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act. The world is not a utopia. Sri Lankas past sordid experience should compel a rational policymaker not to take any chances.

A country cannot fight extremism when its laws are inadequate or security agencies have hands tied behind their back. Hate speech could well be free speech, depending on the receptive audience, but the long-term radicalizing effect of such would not be nice. Their adherents in the long run would not operate within democratic parameters. It is better to lock up the trouble makers now under existing laws or new laws, than leave room for a desperate future government to bring backs white vans, when the threat multiplies. Ultra-nationalism does have many forms of utility. The rise of JVP in the mid-80s happened in the backdrop of rising anti-Indian nationalism. Islamic extremism is richly used in the Middle East and Pakistan for regime legitimization. One of those local Muslim politicians could well be tempted to try his or her luck. Once the wheel of radicalization is put into motion, it takes a life of its own.

It is always good to promote inter-ethnic dialogue, which seems to be the governments main strategy. At the moment, where extremism is still incipient, it could work. But, it could also give an undue national recognition to groups like the BBS. What is equally dangerous is that it could well provide a convenient smoke screen for growing Salafication of some sections of Sri Lankan Muslims. That potential radicalization could well be many times more dangerous than the usual Sinhala Buddhist antics of the BBS. It may be politically incorrect to note, but the propensity for violence in the two ideologies differ vastly.

There is another hard fact. Even during its peak, Sinhala-Buddhist ultra-nationalism has been a nuisance, rather than an existential threat to ethnic minorities. Now there are some who try to project it as a mortal threat to the minorities; that is in a way of advancing the narrative concocted by Eelam Tamil separatism. This misrepresentation helps no one, but it has become a pastime of some. It is not just discrediting Sinhalese or Sinhala Buddhist, which is generally the intention, but it could more dangerously radicalize some sections of the Muslim youth, as the Tamil narrative did to zombiefy hordes of Tamil youth into suicide bombers. So that may not be the best strategy, if you only want to pique the Sinhala-Buddhists.

"It was the failure of the intelligence and security apparatus, partly due to inadequacy of resources, to monitor the threats of Tamil militancy in the North and JVP in the South that helped those incipient threats to grow into monstrous proportions which convulsed this country in three brutal rebellions"

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The Government was mulling an increase the office rent allowance up to Rs. 100, 000 per month each on offices maintained by 225 Members of Parliament.

The allowance for attending Parliament, which was now Rs. 500 would also be increased to Rs.2,500 for days of their attendance to Parliament meetings.

The new move has been introduced, instead of the earlier move to pay Rs.75, 000 as office rent allowance and Rs.5,000 attendance allowance for committee meetings.

The new move is due to be presented in Parliament soon by the Ministry of Parliament Affairs, it is learnt. The relevant Cabinet Memorandum had been signed by the minister on Friday according to the sources.

Accordingly a Parliamentarian is entitled for a total allowance Rs 20,000 per month on eight days attendance in Parliament meetings.

It is also learned that steps were being taken to increase insurance coverage offered to an MP and already negotiations have begun with an Australian Insurance Company.

When inquired about the decision to increase the MPs allowances, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Gayantha Karunathilaka said the matter was now being considered and a decision would be taken next week about presenting it to the Cabinet.(Dayaseeli Liyanage)
worst drivers map.JPG

This map shows state rankings of the nation's worst drivers, according to a study released last week.

(CarInsuranceComparison.com)

SEATTLE, Washington -- For at least one year, Mississippi drivers are not considered among the worst in the U.S., according to an annual study released last week.

Seattle-based CarInsuranceComparsion.com compiles the yearly list, using data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The study released last week was for data from 2015.

The data analyzed included fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, the percentage of fatal crashes which involved failure to obey traffic laws such as signals, wearing seat belts or driving with an invalid or no license, drunk driving, speeding and careless driving for fatal collisions with pedestrians or cyclists per 100,000 residents.

The statistics are broken down into individual category rankings, then translated into one total score to achieve the overall rankings.

Last year, Mississippi drivers ranked number 10 on the list, which the study's authors noted was a marked change from 2014, when Mississippi was 23rd on the list.

In 2015, however, Mississippi drivers improved, dropping out of the dubious top 10 to 17th on the list.

In the individual categories, Mississippi's rankings were:

Fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles: 4th

Failure to obey traffic laws: 26th

Drunk driving: 31st

Speeding: 47th

Careless driving: 12th

Louisiana and Texas tied for the the "honor" of having the nation's worst drivers, followed by South Carolina, North Dakota, Delaware, New Mexico, Nevada, Alabama, Arizona and Montana -- which dropped to 10th after being in the top spot a year ago.

The full report can be read here.
The monthly payment of Rs.100,000 to be given to each MP is not a take-home allowance but one which will be used to help the people in their constituencies, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told Parliament today.

He said this allowance would be given to MPs for giving gifts to the people in their constituencies.

"MPs are usually invited to weddings in their constituencies. They attend funerals as well. The proposed allowance is to be used for giving wedding gifts and making donations for funerals," the Prime Minister said.

He emphasized the fact of there being a need to increase the salaries of MPs.

"The Daily Mirror has published the story about the payment of Rs.100,000 to the MPs. Its editor and the others had requested for a pay hike last year. There is no issue when their salaries are increased, but give the impression that it is wrong to increase the salaries of MPs," the Prime Minister said.

"These newspapers encourage extremism and hit out at me because I am not an extremist."

He also responded to a comment made by Chief Opposition Whip Anura Dissanayake, who said the Prime Minister had threatened the Daily Mirror on several occasions.

The Prime Minister said he would not hesitate to hit out at the media if they hit out at him.

"I cannot attack the Wijeya Newspapers or burn the press. These are properties that belong to my uncle. Sirasa belongs to my one-time friend Kili Maharajah who has attacked me several times but did I burn it?" he asked.

"I will only hit back verbally if the media hits me and will never go beyond a verbal retort," (Yohan Perera)
The government has objected to the conditions stipulated by the party first nominated by China for the development of the Mattala International Airport, it is said.

Along with the Hambantota Port, the government has decided to sell off the airport under what it called a debt to equity swap. The debt component, obtained by the Government of Sri Lanka for the construction of the airport at that time, is to be absorbed by the company that buys it.

According to a report submitted to the Cabinet, the government has informed the Chinese government that it cannot agree to the conditions laid down by its nominee to develop the airport.

Accordingly, a new party was to be nominated.(Kelum Bandara)
During my resident time at the Na Uyana Aaranya, Malsiripura in my early twenties, the first two books introduced to me by Ven. Ananda Thera were -- the  Milinda Panna in Sinhala and the Kalama Sutta, of which the small library possessed an English translation. It was not by chance that I ended up in the monastery. My childhood friend was, now Ven. Watagoda Maggavihari. I had met him once at the same place prior to him being ordained and a year or two after, I packed my bags on the trek to experience solitude. Although time and tide were never within a mans reach to curtail, I have made it a point to meet Ven. Maggavihari, the most scholarly among my friends at Royal College and one of the most talented of sportsmen on the field, at least annually to discuss life, politics, the unknown and the unfathomable. The discussions are yet to be as memorable as the lesson taught to the Kalamas.

Do not go upon what has been acquired by repeated hearing; nor upon tradition; nor upon rumour; nor upon what is in a scripture; nor upon surmise; nor upon an axiom; nor upon specious reasoning; nor upon a bias towards a notion that has been pondered over; nor upon anothers seeming ability; nor upon the consideration, The monk is our teacher. Kalamas, when you yourselves know: These things are bad; these things are blamable; these things are censured by the wise; undertaken and observed, these things lead to harm and ill, abandon them they were preached.

Attempting to understand the unknown and the unfathomable has always been a childhood preoccupation. Was the concept of God, the omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent creator of the world according to religious teachings, human: as petty and arrogant and as the literal interpretation of scripture and ritual would have us believe? Was Nirvana an ideal beyond definition although words have posited it within reality, the place in which the two or three dimensions of consciousness evaporates into the transcendental? What does it really mean to meet God? What did it really mean to attain Nirvana? Were there similarities between the four stages of attaining a truth beyond the self, in Islam defined as Sharia (universal truth/ not to be confused with the term used to describe a man-devised archaic legal system), Thariqa (phase in which the seeker becomes aware of inner guidance), Haqiqa (where the seeker understands the nature of being, and is transcendentally in communion with nature), and Marifa (Ultimate attainment of being-where the self is one with its universal nature), and in Buddhism defined in the concepts of Sovan, Sakrudagami, Anagami and Arahath? Or the more pertinent question as to if such attainment, Arahath or Marifa, posits the being into the realm of Nirvana or in Islam the realm of Fanaa (the passing away of the self, the entry into non-existence, thereby, becoming absolute existence) were actually the same stages described in different words? To any follower of these spiritual strands there is very little to distinguish from.

If not, were they all pure concepts through which the other- the unknown was explained. Was such explanation beyond reach of the human mind or are they in fact in reality attainable, remain questions that have continued the childhood preoccupation. I had understood at an early age, that organized religion, be it couched in terms of philosophy or way of life, nationalism and pride were concepts through which identity was created and control was exerted. It was the genetic accident of birth that determined them. Death, the ultimate end -- is where the questions arise, and from time immemorial human beings have devised various formulae to explain to themselves the two biggest mysteries of life: Why are we here? What happens after death? Two questions which no amount of theology, religion, or philosophy have yet been able to provide answers to.

"It is these tendencies of intolerance, forcefulness and rigidity which lead to the conclusion that the PWSB and the Muslim Fundamentalist are in fact, two sides of the same coin. Constantly feeding each other in their warped endeavours, silencing the inclusive moderates, advocating and creating suspicion among the two communities"



Today, religions thrive in the very fact that such answers have not been provided. But they counter it with certainty, a sense of convoluted paranoia and certainty which the intellect doesnt, could not, and ideally should not perceive. The certainty has evolved into an unbridled conviction which adherents of close to 4000 religions across the globe believe they are right, convinced that every single one of the others is wrong. The same certainty with which the men of yore concluded smallpox was a disease from God, or was a result of Karma and therefore asserted with certainty that finding a solution was going against the will of God or nature. Cures were found for smallpox and for many other diseases, which according to many who denounced the research for a cure, emanated from God or was a result of Karma. Be it the concept of heaven and hell or reincarnation, in explaining life after death -- human beings of either spectrum have convinced themselves that they are aware of an ultimate truth and believe it with certainty. But therein lies the oxymoron. Belief is a paradox in itself and an absurd one at that. Belief stems from insecurity. If one was to know something as true or fact, there is no need of belief. We dont believe that the sun will rise in the morning. The sun will rise in the morning, as it has for the millions of years before us. One needs to believe or have faith only when one is uncertain. Accordingly although belief/faith is a product of knowledge and social construct it inherently contains the possibility of uncertainty: the possibility of disbelief, as Hazelton so eloquently describes.

The human mind is constantly in search of a linear narrative: attempting to make sense of what is and what is not is a constant preoccupation. While the ascetic Muslims recitals and chants remained the symbol of the path towards knowledge, the Buddhist monk remained the symbol in the quest for such knowledge, to me.

"Today, religions thrive in the very fact that such answers have not been provided. But they counter it with certainty, a sense of convoluted paranoia and certainty which the intellect doesnt, could not, and ideally should not perceive"



As much as the spiritual quest remains, the hope for political salvation -- the material (loukika) seems further and further away. Since the end of a bloody war, in which one side were named the victor, Sri Lanka has driven herself into turmoil. The war remained the constant through which the human minds need for the other was embodied. The end of it signified the beginning of the material mind to find another other. This was for the essential materialist, who unfortunately took the helm in the need to find the other -- with the saffron robes intact, the robes which were to the larger world and those at home -- the symbol of tranquillity and equanimity. While the majority of the country slept in peace, there remained the mind which didnt. A mind which runs amok, and meanders in constant paranoia. A paranoia driven by hate and fuelled by vengeance. It would be foolish to think that this mind is confined to the undermentioned, but they were the visible frontier of fearmongering and hate fuelling.

What was essentially a movement which gathered pace due to the support by the urban businessmen to counter- what they perceived the new others encroachment in their endeavours -- has over time evolved into a paranoia that has been solidified in public consciousness. The movements initial slogans drew parallels with the calls in Nazi Germany. Boycott the shops owned by Muslims. Only yesterday, social media was rife with news which said a Muslim-owned store had sprayed female underwear in an attempt to curtail birth rates of Sinhalese women, and thus called for the immediate boycotting of the store. This is not a new cry, and has been a consistent tag line since the inception of the movement. Of course this tag line is not based on fact or evidence, mass hysteria often isnt.

"While the majority of the country slept in peace, there remained the mind which didnt. A mind which runs amok, and meanders in constant paranoia. A paranoia driven by hate and fuelled by vengeance"



It is those that possess or justify such paranoia- that fall within the ambit and scope of the definition of the Post War Sinhala Buddhist (PWSB), coined in the previous essay. The racist, bigoted xenophobe who found salvation at the annihilation of one enemy and had to create another. It attempts to define, a militarist, fascist and loud movement, the likes of which the nationalists movement pre and post colonialism had not seen. This as detailed previously, does not include nationalists Sinhalese who are protective of the only Sinhala Buddhist state in the world and who cherish its identity remaining so. Only the extreme and the warped could use such clear distinction provided in the previous essay to further and distort it to include the definition to mean All Sinhala Buddhists who live in post war Sri Lanka. The distinction between Buddhism as a philosophy, to use the closest western adjective, and Sinhala Buddhism as a political embodiment is also understood. However, the Post War Sinhala Buddhist, as defined, supersedes these boundaries. If Nietzsche, Orwell, Hegel or even Trotsky were to analyse this phenomenon they would be marvelled at the usurpation of what they termed nationalism. It remains the only term through which, monks in Saffron Robes, laity, and the educated but post war emboldened fascist could be described. As such its used to define the fascist tendencies of a movement that continues to gain ground, largely among Sinhala Buddhist youth active on social media.

Was this fearmongering without good reason, and have the Muslims always been the innocent victim seem to be the questions that are asked. If one was an observant reader of my previous columns in these pages, the reader would be aware of the detailing and description of the threat posed by Islamic fundamentalism. The need to address such is incumbent upon the Muslim intellectuals, and intelligentsia which have over the years not been active in curtailing the fundamentalism as would have been ideal.

There remains a section of the Lankan Muslim polity, who in their carved realms, believe that a strict literal interpretation of scripture, practice and ritual is required -- and in their outward expression of such conviction -- have sympathized with the actions of the Islamic State (IS), justified the whipping of a Muslim girl in Puttalam, and banished a female poet from the East who called for the legalization of Prostitution, among others.

"This is not a new cry, and has been a consistent tag line since the inception of the movement. Of course this tag line is not based on fact or evidence, mass hysteria often isnt"



I use these examples as symbols, which are in no way meant to confine these expressions only to the above. The demand that is now in the public domain, dominated by a section of the males within the Muslim community, is to continue the validation of an archaic and pre modern aspects of a law which should and could have no place in modern society. A law ideally which should have been abolished decades ago, all stemming from a warped interpretation of scripture. It is this same interpretation that has resulted in the rise in the adorning of the Niqab -- a pre Islamic costume of the Hejaazi desert in which Islam was born. It would however, be naive to believe that these interpretations were suddenly thrust upon the Muslims of Sri Lanka. The Iraqi invasion, and the resultant constant conflict the Middle East have been engulfed in, have most certainly had its impact. For if ones belief is not providing answers to the sufferers as promised: they are not adhering to the faith in the manner prescribed and the suffering is as a result of this non adherence- is almost always throughout history, the narrative that is put forth to believers of any religion. The Wahabi and Salafist networks spearheaded by Saudi Arabia and ably funded by Qatar, supported by the American empire has drawn support as a result of this perceived lack of adherence.

Gods wrath falls on us because we are straying away from God is the cry through which the educated and the uneducated confine their intellectual prowess and resort to literal interpretations. This is true of Sri Lanka presently. The international and sectarian dynamics of the violence in the Middle East is not addressed in this essay but these warped interpretations have, in the existing political context of the Middle East resulted in Killing in the name of God. Such is the power of ignorance and blind faith. Again, this is not the sole construct of the adherents of the Islamic faith. Throughout history symbols, religion, and nationalism have been usurped by different sects, religions, and fascists to further their perverted narratives.

But there is a point that needs to be made. On social media there run many photographs of Pre and Post  Libya, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. Often times those who share these photos are under the mistaken belief that the Muslims occupied these countries in the 1990s after which all liberalism vanished. That again reeks of pure ignorance. All these countries, formed an integral part of the early conquests and for centuries were under Muslim rule, with all forms of religious expression, individual freedom intact as was possible during those times of rule -- until the Talibanisation of that part of the world. The threat to curb such liberalism, culturally, has taken roots in parts of Sri Lanka, within sections of the Muslim community.



It is this strict literal interpretation that must be fought ideologically, because -- the literal interpretation of text, practices and rituals -- is the source, and the source must be addressed.

A clear way of which is to understand and educate on the socio politics of religion, theology, history and most importantly the evolution of the different stages of the interpretation of the text, practices and rituals.

Education into these areas and socio, economic and political conditions which propelled the interpretations in the past, is the most potent way of addressing and overcoming the existing fundamentalism. Denial after denial of such fundamentalism only symbolizes ignorance. To any observer, there is a visible shift in the actions and attitudes of a growing section among the Muslims in Sri Lanka.

However, do these interpretations and practices warrant such violent reaction from a section of the majority -- identified as the PWSB? As detailed in my previous essay it does not. It does not call for such a violent, alienating and exterminating threat. The real victims as of now, are the Muslims themselves and the fundamentalism that is espoused among a section of the Muslim polity in Sri Lanka has got very little, if nothing, to do with the State or the annihilation of Sinhala Buddhists and other races. Instead it seeks to confine and limit the expressions and practices of the Muslims. But the fearmongers are fascists, who believe in the annihilation of every other different race and culture which exist in the country. The excuse, for them, an excuse which has been fed down to evolve into mass consciousness is fundamentalism among the Muslims. But that excuse reeks of hypocrisy and deceit. If those shouting their throats hoarse with anti-Muslim hate were altruistic, the need of the hour would be to help the Muslim community address these issues. Instead the threat of annihilation is on all Muslims. Lets start from Maligawatte and finish them all off-- was the cry. The fascism has extended beyond too. There is a constant call by these fascists for the rest of the communities to fall in line, culturally. The beauty of Sri Lanka rests in its diversity and as one of the unintended heroes of the PWSB, Lt. Gen Daya Ratnayaka points out The beauty of this country is that in the same street you have a Temple, a Kovil, a Mosque and Church. That is the identity of this country. The PWSB doesnt not understand that the likes of Gen. Ratnayaka, a proud nationalist, among many others do not condone the fascism sprouted by this loud movement.

However, it is these tendencies of intolerance, forcefulness and rigidity which lead to the conclusion that the PWSB and the Muslim Fundamentalist are in fact, two sides of the same coin. Constantly feeding each other in their warped endeavours, silencing the inclusive moderates, advocating and creating suspicion among the two communities. Although the end goal seems different, the results are one and the same.

"The human mind is constantly in search of a linear narrative: attempting to make sense of what is and what is not is a constant preoccupation"



I dont find the need to respond to the recent response to my previous essay rife with selective statistics picked out from thin air, and interpretations given out like a bigoted justifier of violence would- covering the fascism with the excuse of fundamentalism. But I remind the Kalama Sutta to the PWSB, to question the fascist narrative put forth, and to the Muslims, I reintroduce the intellectual powerhouses which formed the bedrock of Islam, Ibn Rushd, Ibn Arabi, Ibn Kuldoom Ibn Sina, Sarraj who wrote the famed  Kitab Al Luma (Book of Flashes) or the 9th century mystic Junaid, among many others, who kept true to the spirit of the transcendental zeal and questioned the nature and the beauty of the mystery that is the Universe and explored the concept of God. They did not blindly believe in a human like interventionist man up in the sky who insists on reward and punishment, with a notebook in hand hovering over the mundane day to day activities of humans, who are only a minute fraction among the vastness of the creation. Such a concept at best describes no one but an insecure dictator of a third world state.
State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene today said that Sri Lanka's strategic location in the Indian Ocean had been a connecting point of the East and West and the country is looking at the future with great expectations to regain our maritime glory in the Indian Ocean by mainly promoting trade and tourism.

Speaking at the opening session of the 'Galle Dialogue 2016' International Maritime Conference of the Sri Lanka Navy, in Colombo, State Minister Wijewardene, said that the importance of fostering stronger partnerships among the maritime community holds a great deal of significance than ever before.

The cooperation and coordination of nations is important to ensure the security of the Indian Ocean and in this regard many countries have assisted us, he noted.

President Maithripala Sirisena graced the event as the chief guest of the inaugural session held at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo.

Navy Commander Ravindra Wijegunaratne received the chief guest upon his arrival at the venue.

The international conclave is being held for the seventh consecutive year by the Navy under aegis of the Ministry of Defence. Representatives from 40 countries including seven navy commanders are among the more than 120 foreign participants attending this year's conference held under the theme 'Fostering Strategic Maritime Partnerships'.
Crossing Vineyards & Winery in eastern Bucks County, near Washington Crossing, was packed with cars Sunday, some there for Slow Down Sunday in the Barrel Room Bar while another group gathered at the "cottage" down the hill for a wine club thank-you party. The winery's nouveau wine was the featured drink at the latter.

Part of the Bucks County Wine Trail, Crossing Vineyards & Winery opened in 2000 and has been guided for the past 16 years by Tom and Christine Carroll and, more recently, winemaker Tom Jr. It produced its first vintage in 2002.

You can find a history of the property and the vineyard at this link.

The grapes growing in the vineyard include Chambourcin, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Vidal Blanc and Viognier.

Vidal grapes continue to hang on the vines at Crossing Vineyards & Winery, eventually being picked and make into a dessert wine.

Crossing's extensive wine list leans a bit toward dry, but there's plenty of sweeter juice listed under the Specialty Wines list you can find here.

Christine Carroll noted Sunday that the premises will look a little different over the next month, as hey transform an outside covered seating area into something that can use year-round. They are in the process of putting glass panes on two sides, still allowing for visitors to see the vineyard and the landscaping that runs along the ribbon of walkways that cross the front of the property. That room now includes a fireplace that will help heat the room. It is, as Christine said, the kind of upgrades that they need to continue to make there as the business and grounds mature.

That vineyard is almost stripped of grapes, with only several rows of Vidal still hanging. Throughout New York and up into Ontario, grapes like these would hang until they freeze, the process that starts the making of ice wine. Around Pennsylvania and Maryland, more wineries will allow their Vidal grapes to rot and shrivel, increasing their sugar content, the beginning of what will become a late-harvest dessert wine. Christine said they haven't made it since 2009, but the excellent growing season prompted the owners to try another batch.

Those grapes will be picked over the next couple weeks and that wine will be released sometimes in 2017.
Legal notices

1) The material on this blog has been created by W. Blake Gray, is protected under US copyright law and cannot be used without his permission.



2) To the FTC: In the course of my work, I accept free samples, meals and other considerations. I do not trade positive reviews or coverage for money or any financial considerations, unlike certain famous print publications which have for-profit wine clubs but, because they are not classified as "bloggers," are not required by the FTC to post a notice like this.


UPDATED

The Obama administrations final accountability rules for the Every Student Succeeds Act, issued Monday, give states greater flexibility on school ratings, schools with high testing opt-out rates, and in other areas than an earlier draft version , released in May.

But, with President-elect Donald Trump set to take office in January, the regulations face an uncertain future.

The U.S. Department of Education sought to address some of the chief complaints about its draft regulations, which state officials and some lawmakers said went overboard on federal authority and expected states to make key decisions on compressed timelines and hold schools accountable for their performance before new ESSA systems take effect .

To address those concerns, states will now have until the 2018-19 school year to pinpoint their lowest-performing 5 percent of schoolsthose identified for so-called comprehensive improvement under the lawas opposed to the 2017-18 school year under the draft regulations.

The department had also originally told states to get their plans in by March 2017 or by the summer. Thats been moved to April 3 or Sept. 18. That gives states a longer window to craft their plans and the incoming Trump administration greater

opportunity to get key players in place to review them.

The final rules give states more time and flexibility to provide every student with a high-quality, well-rounded education while ensuring that states and districts keep the focus on improving outcomes and maintaining civil rights protections for all children, particularly those who need our support the most, U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King, Jr., said in a statement.

He said the department incorporated feedback from those in the education communitywho sent in more than 20,000 comments on the draft regulations to improve the final rules.

But its unclear what happens to the regulations from here. The incoming Trump administration, which is expected to favor a more hands-off approach to accountability than the Obama administration, could decide to hit the pause button on these regulations, delaying their implementation for years. Or Trump and his team could issue guidance telling states that they wont enforce parts of the regulations, or even go through the process of re-regulating, which could delay states planning.

And the GOP-controlled Congress could decide to use the Congressional Review Act to toss the proposal entirelya move that would bar the department under any administration from issuing similar regulations again until new legislation is passed. David Cleary, an aide to Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., chairman of the Senate education committee said the Obama administration has issued a number of proposals ripe for such revocation.

[UPDATE (Nov. 28): In a statement reacting to the final accountability rules, Alexander said on Monday, I would have moved to overturn the earlier version of this regulation because it was not authorized by the new law, and included provisions specifically prohibited by the new law. I will carefully review this final version before deciding what action is appropriate.]

Meanwhile, ESSAs key Democratic architectsSen. Patty Murray of Washington and Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginiasaid in a statement that theyre bummed the regs didnt go as far as [we] hoped but commended the department for its work.

The Council of Chief State School Officers seems pretty happy with the final regulations, which could bode well for their staying power. It is clear the U.S. Department of Education listened to the feedback from state education chiefs across the country and made several important changes to ensure the accountability provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act can be implemented in all states, said Chris Minnich, CCSSOs executive director in a statement. We look forward to working with the new administration to offer states the guidance, flexibility and stability they need to create plans under this new law that will best meet the needs of each child.

King declined to comment on whether he expected the Trump team to get rid of the departments regulations, or make changes to them. But he said hes heard that state chiefs are ready to get started on ESSA implementation.

So, whats in these final regulations? And how are they different from ESSA, and from what the department put out before? Heres a rundown, drawn from a fact sheet on the regs sent to reporters before their official release.

School Ratings:

What ESSA says: States have to have an accountability system that takes into account both academic factors (like test scores, graduation rates, and English-language proficiency) and at least one school quality or student success indicator (like school climate, access to advanced coursework, or chronic absenteeism). They must identify schools for comprehensive improvement (lowest-performing schools and those where less than two-thirds of students graduate) and targeted improvement (schools that might be doing well overall, but where subgroups of students are struggling).

What the draft regs said: States would have had to come up with an overall summative rating for their schools. That could have been on an A through F scale, or a number, or even a category like excellent or needs improvement. States also would have needed to make clear to parents how each school is doing on each of the different accountability indicators.

What the final regs say: The final regulations clarify that states could use the ratings in ESSAincluding comprehensive improvement and targeted supportas their summative ratings. They dont have to go as far as an overall number or A through F grade, unless they want to. To be sure, King already said as much in testifying before Congress , but the new regs make this crystal clear. They also say states can use a dashboard to explain how schools are doing on each of the different indicators that make up their accountability systems.

School Quality Indicators

What ESSA says: In addition to test scores, grad rates, and English-language proficiency, states have to hold schools accountable for another factor that gets at school quality or students opportunity to learn, including school climate, access to advanced coursework, access to arts, and more.

What the draft regs said: This other factor would have had to be something that research has shown has contributed to student achievement or higher graduation rates. Some in the education community said that was way too narrow an approach and could leave things like citizenship by the wayside.

What the final regs say: States can pick any factor that research has shown has a positive impact on student learning, as defined by a whole host of things like grades, credit accumulation, postsecondary enrollment, persistence, performance in advanced classes, and more. That should broaden the list of possibilities for the new indicator, according to the department.

N sizes

What ESSA says: States get to set their own minimum n size. Thats a technical term for the number of students from a particular group that a school must have in order to be held accountable for their performance. For instance, if a states n size is 20 and a school has only 17 4th graders in special education, that school wouldnt have to include their scores for accountability or report their data because the sample size is too small.

What the draft regs said: States could use any n size they wanted, but if they decided to go over 30, they would have to justify their reasoning. Civil rights groups worried that 30 was too high and urged the department to go lower, perhaps to 15.

What the final regs say: States can use any n size they want, but those that want to go over 30 have to show the impact of that decision, giving data on the percentage of schools that would be held accountable for subgroup performance under whatever number they want to use, versus the percentage that would have been held accountable for subgroup performance if the n size were 30.

Identifying Schools With Consistently Underperforming Subgroups

What ESSA says: States have to identify schools where subgroups of students (such as English-language learners or students in special education) are consistently underperforming compared to their peers.

What the draft regs said: States have to come up with their own definition of a consistently underperforming subgroup, based on no more than two years of performance. The state-crafted definition could include things like whether the subgroup is performing at the lowest level on an academic measure (like test scores), whether the subgroup is performing way below the states average on any indicator, or another factor the state comes up with.

What the final regs say: The tweak is subtle. States are still supposed to base their definition of consistent underperformance on no more than two years of performance, but if they really want to look over a longer time frame, they can, as long as they can explain how more time will help subgroup students get the support they need.

Testing Participation Rate/Opt-Outs

What ESSA says: Schools need to test 95 percent of their students, both for the whole school and for different subgroups of students, just like they had to under the No Child Left Behind Act, which ESSA replaced. If a school doesnt hit that threshold, the state gets to decide what happens, not the feds.

What the draft regs said: The proposed regs gave states some pretty dramatic options for intervening in schools with low test participation rates. They could give the school the lowest possible score for academics, knock down their overall summative score, automatically identify them for targeted improvement, or something equally serious. A bunch of commenters, including the teachers unions, thought this went way beyond the law and punished schools because parents choose not to test their kids.

What the final regs say: The final regulations keep the same menu of options listed above, but add a twist. States that decide to come up with their own system for dealing with opt-outs get the leeway to develop a bunch of different remedies to address different degrees of the low-test participation. That means states can propose to do something less dramatic for a school that barely missed the 95 percent for a single subgroup of kids, as opposed to a school where only say, 10 percent of the students took the test. Whatever the state comes up with though, has to be sufficiently rigorous to fix the schools low test participation problem.

English-Language Proficiency

What ESSA says: States need to hold schools accountable for helping English-language learners become proficient.

What the draft regs said: The proposed rules set no maximum timeline in which an ELL should attain proficiency. But states were told they should think about students initial level of proficiency in picking long-term achievement goals.

What the final regs say: States have to come up with a research-based maximum timeline for ELLs to become proficient in English. The idea is to encourage schools to make sufficient progress each year in helping ELLs master their new language.

Timelines

What ESSA says: The new law, which passed in December of 2015, is supposed to go into effect in the 2017-18 school year. The 2016-17 school year is for transition and planning.

What the draft regs said: States were supposed to identify their lowest-performing schools and those with really low graduation rates in time for the start of the 2017-18 school year. Plans were to be due in either March or the summer of 2017.

What the final regs say: States essentially get a one-year extension on identifying key groups of schools for extra attention and support. They are now supposed to identify their lowest-performing schools and schools with really low graduation rates (those in comprehensive improvement) in the 2018-19 school year. Also in 2018-19, they must identify schools with low-performing subgroups for so-called targeted support. But states now have until the 2019-20 school year to identify schools where subgroups of students are consistently underperforming compared to their peers for targeted support. Plans now are due April 3 or Sept. 18.

Confused on these timelines? The department has a pair of charts that can help. Check them out:

Follow us on Twitter at @PoliticsK12 .
In response to a lawsuit filed on behalf of students at some of Detroits lowest-performing schools, lawyers for Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and the states education department are asserting that there is no fundamental right to literacy .

The lawsuit alleges that decades of disinvestment in Detroits schools has resulted in a situation in which young people are being denied their right to literacy. Detroits public school system has long been beleaguered by financial problems, declining enrollment, and low academic performance.

Lawyers for the state filed a motion earlier this month to dismiss the lawsuit, which was filed in September .

Timothy J. Haynes, an assistant attorney general in Michigan, said in a statement about the motion that while literacy is important, it is not a right:

But as important as literacy may be, the United States Supreme Court has unambiguously rejected the claim that public education is a fundamental right under the Constitution. Literacy is a component or particular outcome of education, not a right granted to individuals by the Constitution.

The motion asserts that the lawsuit is asking courts to make decisions about funding and education policy that should be left to the states legislature. The Detroit News reports that Haynes said the lawsuit is an attempt to destroy the American tradition of democratic control of schools. The state rejects the claim that the state of Michigan has run Detroits schools in the years since 1999, although the district has been under the authority of a state-appointed emergency manager since 2009.

The Detroit News reports that Kathryn Eidmann, a representative for the children who filed the case noted that in the 61-page motion to dismiss their lawsuit, there is no mention about the fact that hardly any of the students have access to teachers or books. These are schools where no state officials or state lawyer would send their child.

Related :
What Is a 5150 Hold and What Does It Mean for Kanye?

On Monday, Kanye West suffered what is being called a psychotic break. He had to be handcuffed to the paramedic's gurney at his personal trainer's home, then he was taken to a mental health facility for evaluation, treatment, and time to calm down. While the reason for the break is currently unknown, sources are speculating that it may relate to a common ailment many people experience: grief. West lost his mother during the month of November in 2007. Since then, every month of November has reminded him of that pain and loss.

While all of the above is rather strange, West is known for being a workaholic, and routinely binge-works for nearly 48 hours straight. His doctor explained that West was suffering from sleep depravation and dehydration. During the episode, West allegedly attacked a staff member at his personal trainer's residence/gym. West's doctor, who feared that West would attack an officer, or resist arrest, if police were called, placed him under a 5150 psychiatric hold and requested medical assistance.

What Is a 5150 Hold?

The phrase 5150 (pronounced "fifty-one fifty") has been used for sometime now across the nation to refer to the action of a doctor, mental health professional, police officer, or even a family member, involuntarily committing someone to a mental health treatment facility. The phrase originated in California as a result of section 5150 of the Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) which allows an officer or mental health professional to involuntarily commit an individual that may be a danger to themselves or others.

Generally, when a person is placed under a psychiatric hold, it is only temporary. Depending on the type of hold, and state law, these can range anywhere from 24 to 72 hours.

Wild Wild West

Kanye West is well known for being, let's just say, a bit out there. Recently, he lashed out at Beyonce on stage, ended a concert after only 3 songs, and cancelled the remaining dates on his current music tour. The cancelling of the remaining tour dates is estimated to cause him a $10 million loss. While some sources deny that West was 5150'd, clearly there is something going on with the performer.

Related Resources:
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 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. K. Dixon Company, RRXH Limited, RRXIL Limited, RRXO Limited, RSA Medical, Rabbit Copiers Inc., Reflex Digital Solutions (UK) Limited, Reprographics Egypt Limited, Saxon Business Systems Inc., Smart Data Consulting, SoCal Office Technologies Inc., Stem Networks Limited, Stewart Business Systems LLC, Stewart of Alabama Inc., StrataCare, Talegen Holdings Inc., Tektronix - color printing, Text Comm Limited (in receivership), The Xerox (UK) Trust, The Xerox Foundation, Time Business Systems Limited, Triton Business Finance Limited, Una-Stem Limited, Veenman B.V., Veenman Financial Services B.V., WDS, WaterWare Internet Services, XC Asia LLC, XC Global Trading B.V., XC Trading Hong Kong Limited, XC Trading Japan G.K., XC Trading Korea YH, XC Trading Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., XC Trading Shenzhen Co. Ltd., XC Trading Singapore Pte Ltd., XEROX CZECH REPUBLIC s r.o., XESystems Foreign Sales Corporation, XFS Secured Borrowing 2020-1 LLC, XHC Acquisition Corp., XMPie, XMPie Inc., XMPie Ltd., XRI Limited, XRO Limited, Xerox (Europe) Limited, Xerox (Ireland) Limited, Xerox (Nederland) BV, Xerox (Romania) Echipmante Si Servici S.A., Xerox (UK) Limited, Xerox (Ukraine) Ltd LLC, Xerox A/S, Xerox AG, Xerox AS, Xerox Argentina Industrial y Comercial S.A., Xerox Austria GmbH, Xerox Bulgaria EOOD, Xerox Business Equipment Limited, Xerox Business Services Bulgaria EOOD, Xerox Business Solutions Inc., Xerox Business Solutions Southeast LLC, Xerox Buro Araclari Servis ve Ticaret Ltd. Sti, Xerox Canada Inc., Xerox Canada Ltd., Xerox Canada N.S. 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.

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The following companies are subsidiares of International Flavors & Fragrances: 1456111 Ontario Limited, A. Boake Roberts And Company (Holding) Limited, ASA Ventures Inc., Agtech Products Inc., Alpris Ltd., Amco SP Z.O.O, ApS Syntetic, Aroma S.A., Aromatics Holdings Limited, Aromco Ltd., Aromor, Arvin Company, Asian Investments Inc., Atelier du Parfumeur IFF Grasse SAS, BKF Vision Ltd, BSA India Food Ingr. P. Ltd., Belden Company, Branch office of DuPont Protein Technologies International Sales LLC, Bremil Industria e Comercio de Ingredientes Alimenticos Ltda. , Bremil S/A Industria De Produtos Alimenticos , Bush Boake Allen (New Zealand) Limited, Bush Boake Allen (Pension Trustees) Limited, Bush Boake Allen Australia Pty Ltd, Bush Boake Allen Benelux B.V., Bush Boake Allen Chile S.A., Bush Boake Allen Controladora S.A. de C.V., Bush Boake Allen Enterprises Limited, Bush Boake Allen Holdings (U.K.) Limited, Bush Boake Allen Inc., Bush Boake Allen Inc., Bush Boake Allen Limited, Bush Boake Allen Zimbabwe (Private) Limited, Bush Boake Allen do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., Butamax Advanced Biofuels LLC, Chemical Process Materials and Equipment S.A., CitraSource Holdings L.L.C., Columbia PhytoTechnology LLC, Columbia Phytotechnology LLC, Cometra ApS, Crestmont Investment Co., Cultor Oy, DDP Specialty Products Germany GmbH & Co. KG, DDP Specialty Products Poland Sp. z.o.o., DSP Germany N&B Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Daivd Michael Netherlands B.V., Dandy Lions Limited, Danisco (China) Co. Ltd., Danisco (China) Holding Co. Ltd., Danisco (India) Private Limited, Danisco (Zhangjiagang) Textural Ingredients Co. Ltd., Danisco Argentina S.A., Danisco Australia Pty Limited, Danisco Austria GmbH, Danisco B.V., Danisco Biosciences (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Danisco Brasil Ltda., Danisco Canada Inc., Danisco Chile S.A., Danisco Colombia Ltda., Danisco Cultor (Switzerland) AG, Danisco Cultor Sweden AB, Danisco Cultor Trading Ltda., Danisco Czech Republic a.s., Danisco Deutschland GmbH, Danisco Dis Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Danisco Egypt Trading LLC, Danisco Flexible Brasil Ltda, Danisco France SAS, Danisco Guatemala S.A., Danisco Holding USA Inc., Danisco Holdings (UK) Ltd., Danisco Holland B.V., Danisco Ingredients Belgium N.V., Danisco Italia S.p.A., Danisco Japan Limited, Danisco Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Danisco Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Danisco Mexico S.A. de C.V., Danisco New Zealand Limited, Danisco Nutrition & Bioscience Greece Ltd., Danisco Nutrition & Biosciences Korea Ltd., Danisco Nutrition & Biosciences Malaysia SDN. BHD., Danisco Nutrition & Biosciences Taiwan Limited, Danisco Nutrition and Biosciences India Private Ltd, Danisco Peru S.A.C., Danisco Poland Sp. z.o.o, Danisco Singapore Pte. Ltd., Danisco South Africa (Pty) Ltd., Danisco Sweeteners Oy, Danisco Switzerland AG, Danisco UK Ltd., Danisco US Inc., Danisco USA Inc., Danisco Ukraine LLC, Danisco Zaandam BV, David Michael & Company (Canada) 1986 Ltd., David Michael Europe S.A.S., Du Pont de Nemours Nigeria Limited, DuPont (Shanghai) Enterprise Co. Ltd., DuPont Acquisition LLC, DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC, DuPont Denmark Holding ApS, DuPont Electronics Holding LLC, DuPont LA Holding 1 BV, DuPont Lanka (Private) Limited, DuPont Nutrition (Thailand) Ltd, DuPont Nutrition Biosciences ApS, DuPont Nutrition Dis Ticaret Limited Sirketi, DuPont Nutrition Food Ingredients (Beijing) Co. Ltd., DuPont Nutrition Ingredientes BRASIL LTDA, DuPont Nutrition International, DuPont Nutrition Ireland, DuPont Nutrition Italy SRL (f/k/a FMC Chemical Italy SrL), DuPont Nutrition Manufacturing UK Limited, DuPont Nutrition Mexicana S.A de C.V., DuPont Nutrition Mexico S.A de C.V., DuPont Nutrition Norge AS, DuPont Nutrition Philippines Inc., DuPont Nutrition USA Inc, DuPont Nutrition and Biosciences Iberica S.L., DuPont Protein Technologies International Sales LLC, DuPont S&C Holding LLC, DuPont Shineway Luohe Food Company Limited , DuPont Shineway Luohe Protein Company Limited , DuPont US Holding LLC, DuPont de Nemours Kenya Limited, ERELEM, ETOL SK s.r.o., ETOL-RUS Ltd., Eden Essentials Inc., Envoltec Industria de Embalagens Ltda. , Enzymotec Australia PTY LTD, Enzymotec Singapore Pte. Ltd., Enzymotec USA Inc., Etol Aroma Ve Baharat Gida Urunleri San.Ve Tic.a.s., Etol JVE d.o.o., Etol Proizvodnja Arom D.O.O, Etol Skopje DRUSTVO ZA TRGOVIJA ETOL UVOZ-IZVOZ DOOEL, FYMSA Real Estate LLC (23), FYMSA del Caribe S.R.L , Fangchen International Trading Ltd. (6), Finnfeeds Finland Oy, Finnfeeds Oy, Finnsugar Bioproducts Inc., Flavor Systems International Inc., Flavors and Essences UK Limited, FoodBlenders Limited, Foreign Trade Representative of Danisco Singapore Pte. Ltd., Fragrance Resources, Fragrance Resources (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Fragrance Resources Asia Pacific Ltd., Frutarom (Asia Pacific) Limited, Frutarom (Marketing) S.R.L., Frutarom (UK) Holdings Limited, Frutarom (UK) Ltd., Frutarom - Etol (UK) Limited, Frutarom Belgium N.V., Frutarom Chile S.A., Frutarom Czech Republic S.r.o, Frutarom Do Brazil Industria E Comercio Ltda., Frutarom Etol RO SRL, Frutarom Etol Ukraine LLC., Frutarom F&F Trading (Shanghai) Co., Frutarom Finance EUR AG, Frutarom Flavors (Kushan) Co Ltd., Frutarom Flavors Mexico S.A. de C.V., Frutarom Flavours (India) Private Limited (14), Frutarom France S.A.R.L, Frutarom Germany GmbH, Frutarom Gida Urunleri Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Frutarom Global Ltd., Frutarom GmbH, Frutarom Industries Ld, Frutarom Industries Ltd., Frutarom Italy S.r.l, Frutarom Kenya Limited, Frutarom Ltd., Frutarom Netherlands B.V., Frutarom Nigeria Limited, Frutarom Nordic A/S Flachsmann Scandinavia A/S Aksel Holm-Essensfabrik A / S, Frutarom Norway A.S, Frutarom Peru S.A. (Montana Food activity), Frutarom Production GmbH, Frutarom Savory Solutions Austria GmbH, Frutarom Savory Solutions Germany GmbH, Frutarom Savory Solutions Switzerland AG, Frutarom Savory Solutions Ukraine, Frutarom Switzerland Finance CHF AG, Frutarom Switzerland Finance GBP AG, Frutarom Switzerland Finance MXN AG, Frutarom Switzerland Finance USD AG, Frutarom Switzerland Ltd., Frutarom Trade & Marketing (1990) Ltd., Frutarom UK Investments Limited, Frutarom USA Holding Inc., Frutarom USA Inc., Frutarom do Brasil GRU Industria e Comercio Ltda., Genencor (China) Bio-Products Co. Ltd., Genencor International B.V., Genencor International BVBA, Genencor International Holding BV, Genencor International Indiana Inc., Genencor International Oy, Genencor International Wisconsin Inc., Genencor Mauritius Ltd., Genentech Ventures Inc., Grow Company Inc., Hagelin Flv (UK) Ltd., Hexachem Sociedad Anonima, IB EMEA Holding 2 B.V., IFF (BVI) Limited, IFF (Korea) Inc., IFF Aroma Esans Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, IFF Augusta Holdings LLC, IFF Australia Holdings Pty Ltd, IFF Benicarlo S.L., IFF Bio-Technology (Nanjing) Co. Ltd., IFF Capital Services, IFF Chemical Holdings Inc., IFF Delaware Holdings LLC, IFF Essencias e Fragrancias Ltda., IFF Flavors & Fragrances (Hangzhou) Trading Co. Ltd., IFF Fragrance GmbH, IFF Hungary Global Kft, IFF International Inc., IFF Latin American Holdings (Espana) S.L., IFF Mexico Manufactura S.A. de C.V., IFF Murcia Natural Ingredients S.L., IFF Sabores y Fragancias de Chile Ltda., IFF Turkey Aroma Ve Esans Urunleri Satis Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, IFF West Africa Limited, IFF Worldwide LLC, Ingrediants dooel Skopje, Institut Europeen de Biologie Cellulaire, International Aroma Group, International Flavors & Fragrances (Canada) Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Caribe) Inc., International Flavors & Fragrances (China) Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Greater Asia) Pte. Ltd, International Flavors & Fragrances (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Hong Kong) Limited, International Flavors & Fragrances (Japan) Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., International Flavors & Fragrances (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Mexico) S. de R.L. de C.V., International Flavors & Fragrances (Middle East) FZ-LLC, International Flavors & Fragrances (Myanmar) Limited, International Flavors & Fragrances (Nederland) Holding B.V., International Flavors & Fragrances (Philippines) Inc., International Flavors & Fragrances (Poland) Sp. z o.o., International Flavors & Fragrances (Vietnam) Limited Liability Company, International Flavors & Fragrances (ZhangJiagang) Co. Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Zhejiang) Co. Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances (Zimbabwe) (Private) Ltd., International Flavors & Fragrances Ardenne S.a r.l., International Flavors & Fragrances France Holding I SAS, International Flavors & Fragrances France Holding II SAS, International Flavors & Fragrances France Holding III SAS, International Flavors & Fragrances Holdings LLC, International Flavors & Fragrances I.F.F. (Chile) Limitada, International Flavors & Fragrances I.F.F. (Espana) S.A., International Flavors & Fragrances I.F.F. (Hungary) Kft, International Flavors & Fragrances I.F.F. (Nederland) B.V., International Flavors & Fragrances I.F.F. (Norden) AB, International Flavors & Fragrances I.F.F. (Rus), International Flavors & Fragrances IFF (Deutschland) GmbH, International Flavors & Fragrances IFF (France) SAS, International Flavors & Fragrances Irish Acquisition Company Limited, International Flavors and Fragrances Colombia S.A.S., International Flavors and Fragrances I.F.F. (Israel) Ltd., International Flavors and Fragrances IFF (South Africa), International Flavors and Fragrances Ingredients Ltd, International Flavors e Fragrances IFF (Italia) S.r.l., International Flavours & Fragrances (Australia) Pty Ltd, International Flavours & Fragrances (CIL) Limited, International Flavours & Fragrances (GB) Holdings Limited, International Flavours & Fragrances (Mauritius) Ltd, International Flavours & Fragrances (NZ) Limited, International Flavours & Fragrances (Pension Trustees) Limited, International Flavours & Fragrances (Thailand) Limited, International Flavours & Fragrances I.F.F. (Great Britain) Limited, International Flavours & Fragrances India Private Limited (13), International Frutarom Corporation, Inventive Food Technology (ZQ) Ltd., Inventive Technology Ltd., Irish Flavours and Fragrances Limited, K-Vision Consulting and Investments Ltd, Kelp Industries Pty. Ltd, Leagel GmbH (11), Leagel S.r.l. (19), Les Ingredients Alimentaires BSA Inc., Les Laboratories Bio ForeXtra Inc., Lucas Meyer Cosmetics, Lucas Meyer Cosmetics Australia Pty Ltd, Lucas Meyer Cosmetics Canada Inc., Lucas Meyer Cosmetics S.A.S., M.P. Equity Holdings Ltd, MISR Company for Aromatic products, Manseg S.A., Mark Services Holdings Inc., N&B Chemicals Germany GmbH, N&B EMEA Holding B.V., N&B Germany Verwaltungs-GmbH, N&B International Holding B.V., N&B NL BV - Saudi Branch, N&B Real Estate Verwaltungs-GmbH, N&B Services BV, N&B Switzerland  UAE Branch, N&H EMEA Holding 1 BV, N&H EMEA Holding 2 BV, N&H EMEA Holding B.V., N&H International Holding 1 B.V., N&H International Holding 3 BV, N&H Switzerland Holding Sarl, Nardi Armoas Ltda., Neptune Merger Sub I Inc., Neptune Merger Sub II LLC, New Asia Holdco B.V., Nutra-Lease Ltd. (16), Nutrition & Bioscience (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Nutrition & Bioscience (Switzerland) GmbH, Nutrition & Bioscience (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Nutrition & Bioscience Pakistan (Private) Ltd, Nutrition & Biosciences (Finland) Oy, Nutrition & Biosciences (France) SAS, Nutrition & Biosciences (Sweden) AB, Nutrition & Biosciences (UK) Ltd, Nutrition & Biosciences Argentina S.A.U., Nutrition & Biosciences Australia Pty Ltd., Nutrition & Biosciences Brasil Ingredientes Ltda., Nutrition & Biosciences Canada Company, Nutrition & Biosciences Chile SpA, Nutrition & Biosciences Colombia S.A.S, Nutrition & Biosciences Hong Kong Limited, Nutrition & Biosciences Hungary Limited Liability Company, Nutrition & Biosciences Inc., Nutrition & Biosciences Italy S.r.l., Nutrition & Biosciences Japan K.K., Nutrition & Biosciences Korea Ltd., Nutrition & Biosciences Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Nutrition & Biosciences Netherlands B.V., Nutrition & Biosciences New Zealand Limited, Nutrition & Biosciences Singapore Pte. Ltd., Nutrition & Biosciences USA 1 LLC, Nutrition & Biosciences USA 2 LLC, Nutrition & Biosciences USA 3 LLC, Nutrition & Biosciences Vietnam Company Limited, Nutrition Biosciences USA 4 Inc, Nutrition and Biosciences South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Nutrition and Biosciences Spain S.L., OOO WIBERG Rus, P.T. Essence Indonesia, PARMA FA, PIASA USA (24), PM Taiwan Inc., PT Blue Cube Indonesia, PTI Astana LLC, PTI CA LLC, PTI Center LLC, PTI Group of Companies LLC (GK PTI), PTI-BEL TUE, PTI-MOL LLC, PTI-NN LLC, PTI-Ukraine LLC, Platinum Absolut LLC, Pointer Specialty Chemicals LLC, Protein Technologies Do Brasil Ltda., Protein Technologies International Asia Pacific LLC, Protein Technologies International Development LLC, Protein Technologies International Europe LLC, Proveedores de Ingenieria Alimentaria S.A. de C.V. ("PIASA") (17), Prowin International Ltd., Pucheng Yongfang Fragrance Technology Co. Ltd. , Redbrook (UK) Limited, Redbrook Blentech Limited, Redbrook Ingredient Services Limited, Rene Laurent SAS, Representaciones FYMSA S.A. de C.V (FYMSA) (18), Rohm and Haas Wood Treatment LLC, SP EMEA Holding 8 BV, SP Holding IB Inc., SP Nutrition and Health (Singapore) Inc., Sabormax Industria de Alimentos e Representacao Ltda., Savoury Flavours (Holding) Limited, Savoury Flavours Ltd., Solae (UK) Limited, Solae Argentina S.A., Solae Australia Pty Limited, Solae Belgium N.V., Solae Company India Private Limited, Solae Denmark ApS, Solae Deutschland GmbH (f/k/a CSY Agri-Processing (Deutschland) GmbH), Solae Do Brasil Industria E Comercio De Alimentos Ltda., Solae Europe S.A., Solae Holdings LLC, Solae Investimentos LTDA, Solae LLC (SMLLC of Solae Holdings), Solae Overseas B.V., Solae Trading (Shanghai) Company Ltd., Solae de Mexico S.A. de C.V. (formerly PTI Mexico), Solae do Brasil Holdings Ltda., Sonarome Private Limited (15), Southern Cross Botanicals Pty Ltd, Specialty Products Balkans d.o.o., Specialty Products FZE, Specialty Products N&H Inc, Specialty Products US LLC, Speximo AB, TNI Investments NV, Tastepoint Flavors (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Tastepoint Inc., Tastepoint OOO, Tastepoint Polska Sp.z o.o, Tastepoint SA (Pty) Ltd., Tastepoint Tovarna arom in etericnih olj d.o.o., Taura Natural Ingredients (Australia) Pty Limited, Taura Natural Ingredients (North America) Inc., Taura Natural Ingredients Holdings Pty Limited, Taura Natural Ingredients Ltd., Taura Natural Ingredients NV, Tekhnomol Soya Products LLC, The Additive Advantage LLC, The Additive Advantage LLC, The Foote & Jenks Corporation, The Mighty Company Limited (21), Thorungaverksmidjan HF (12), UFC America Inc., Unique Flavors Proprietary Limited, Unique Food Solutions Proprietary Limited, Unique Ingredients Limited, VAYA PHARMA HONKG LTD, VITIVA proizvodnja in storitve d.d., Vantodio Holdings Limited, Vaya Pharma Inc., Vaya Pharma Pte Ltd. (20), Venezuela Protein Technologies Internationla -PTI C.A., W.W. Holdings Inc., WIBERG Italia S.r.l., Wiberg Baharat San.Tic.A.S, Wiberg Canada Inc., Wiberg Corporation of California, Wiberg Corporation., Yderns 1 ApS, ZAO Danisco, extrakt chemie Dr. Bruno Stellmach GmbH, iDrug Delivery Inc.(Delaware) (22), nternational Flavors & Fragrances S.R.L., van Ameringen-Haebler Inc., and world wide WIBERG GmbH.

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The TNLAs News and Information Department published on its Facebook page on November 24 a report that it had captured RCSS/SSA mountain outposts in Mantong Township in the Palaung [Taang] Self-Administered Zone.

There were nine remaining RCSS outposts in Montong, read the TNLA statement. At about 6pm on November 23, those remaining bases were captured, including the outposts at Mawnoe, Namhai and Mawni.

But according to Lt-Col Sai Nguen, the RCSS/SSA spokesperson, the information published by the TNLA was incorrect. He said that his group had not been active in that area for a long time, and that no fighting was currently taking place.

Its fake news, he said. How can our group fight with them when we are no longer active in the area?

The Shan rebel spokesman added: We moved out of that area because we wanted to avoid confrontations with them [TNLA].

Following a series of clashes between two ethnic militias, other armed groups have urged them to hold talks and find peaceful ways to end the fighting. However, no such meeting has yet been held.

Clashes between the RCSS/SSA and the TNLA (also referred to as the Palaung Army) first broke out in November 2015, only a month after eight ethnic armed groups including the RCSS/SSA signed a Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement with the Burmese government. The TNLA was excluded from the accord by Naypyidaw.

Earlier this week, the TNLA, in a joint operation alongside its allies the Arakan Army (AA), Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), launched offensives against Burmese government forces in northern parts of Shan State, including Muse, Namkham and Kutkai townships.

As they [TNLA] are currently engaged against the Burmese army, it is not true to say that they are fighting with us, said the RCSS/SSA Peace Team Secretary Lt-Col Sai Nguen. They cannot launch an offensive against us at the same time.

Shan Herald attempted to reach TNLA for comment, but has yet to receive a response.
ONEOK, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in gathering, processing, storage, and transportation of natural gas in the United States. It operates through Natural Gas Gathering and Processing, Natural Gas Liquids, and Natural Gas Pipelines segments. The company owns natural gas gathering pipelines and processing plants in the Mid-Continent and Rocky Mountain regions. It also gathers, treats, fractionates, and transports natural gas liquids (NGL), as well as stores, markets, and distributes NGL products. The company owns NGL gathering and distribution pipelines in Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas, New Mexico, Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming, and Colorado; terminal and storage facilities in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois; and NGL distribution and refined petroleum products pipelines in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana, as well as owns and operates truck- and rail-loading, and -unloading facilities connected to NGL fractionation, storage, and pipeline assets. In addition, it operates regulated interstate and intrastate natural gas transmission pipelines and natural gas storage facilities. Further, the company owns and operates a parking garage in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma; and leases excess office space. It operates 17,500 miles of natural gas gathering pipelines; 1,500 miles of FERC-regulated interstate natural gas pipelines; 5,100 miles of state-regulated intrastate transmission pipeline; six NGL storage facilities; and eight NGL product terminals. It serves integrated and independent exploration and production companies; NGL and natural gas gathering and processing companies; crude oil and natural gas production companies; propane distributors; municipalities; ethanol producers; and petrochemical, refining, and NGL marketing companies, as well as natural gas distribution and electric generation companies, producers, processors, and marketing companies. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Wells Fargo & Company, a diversified financial services company, provides banking, investment, mortgage, and consumer and commercial finance products and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Consumer Banking and Lending; Commercial Banking; Corporate and Investment Banking; and Wealth and Investment Management. The Consumer Banking and Lending segment offers diversified financial products and services for consumers and small businesses. Its financial products and services include checking and savings accounts, and credit and debit cards, as well as home, auto, personal, and small business lending services. The Commercial Banking segment provides financial solutions to private, family owned, and certain public companies. Its products and services include banking and credit products across various industry sectors and municipalities, secured lending and lease products, and treasury management services. The Corporate and Investment Banking segment offers a suite of capital markets, banking, and financial products and services to corporate, commercial real estate, government, and institutional clients. Its products and services comprise corporate banking, investment banking, treasury management, commercial real estate lending and servicing, equity, and fixed income solutions, as well as sales, trading, and research capabilities services. The Wealth and Investment Management segment provides personalized wealth management, brokerage, financial planning, lending, private banking, and trust and fiduciary products and services to affluent, high-net worth, and ultra-high-net worth clients. It also operates through financial advisors. Wells Fargo & Company was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
Suncor Energy Inc. operates as an integrated energy company. The company primarily focuses on developing petroleum resource basins in Canada's Athabasca oil sands; explores, acquires, develops, produces, transports, refines, and markets crude oil in Canada and internationally; markets petroleum and petrochemical products under the Petro-Canada name primarily in Canada. It operates through Oil Sands; Exploration and Production; Refining and Marketing; and Corporate and Eliminations segments. The Oil Sands segment recovers bitumen from mining and in situ operations, and upgrades it into refinery feedstock and diesel fuel, or blends the bitumen with diluent for direct sale to market. The Exploration and Production segment is involved in offshore operations off the east coast of Canada and in the North Sea; and operating onshore assets in Libya and Syria. The Refining and Marketing segment refines crude oil and intermediate feedstock into various petroleum and petrochemical products; and markets refined petroleum products to retail, commercial, and industrial customers through its other retail sellers. The Corporate and Eliminations segment operates four wind farms in Ontario and Western Canada. The company also markets and trades in crude oil, natural gas, byproducts, refined products, and power. The company was formerly known as Suncor Inc. and changed its name to Suncor Energy Inc. in April 1997. Suncor Energy Inc. was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.
United Parcel Service, Inc. provides letter and package delivery, transportation, logistics, and related services. It operates through two segments, U.S. Domestic Package and International Package. The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States. The International Package segment provides guaranteed day and time-definite international shipping services in Europe, the Asia Pacific, Canada and Latin America, the Indian sub-continent, the Middle East, and Africa. This segment offers guaranteed time-definite express options. The company also provides international air and ocean freight forwarding, customs brokerage, distribution and post-sales, and mail and consulting services in approximately 200 countries and territories. In addition, it offers truckload brokerage services; supply chain solutions to the healthcare and life sciences industry; shipping, visibility, and billing technologies; and financial and insurance services. The company operates a fleet of approximately 121,000 package cars, vans, tractors, and motorcycles; and owns 59,000 containers that are used to transport cargo in its aircraft. United Parcel Service, Inc. was founded in 1907 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Ryan Shapiro, the punk Freedom of Information Access ninja, is crowdfunding a warchest to fund his inevitable lawsuits against the Trump government when he subjects it to the same relentless bombardment of transparency requests he visited upon the Obama administration.



The Department of Justice calls Shapiro its "most prolific" open documents requester  others call him the "FOIA superhero." Shapiro is currently suing 12 government agencies to disclose information that belongs to the public, but which the agencies will not let us see.

Shapiro's new project is called Operation 45  for the 45th presidency in United States history  and he's gearing up for a fight, given that the Trump campaign has been even less transparent than the record-settingly-opaque Obama presidency, which invoked the Espionage Act against more whistleblowers than all the other presidencies combined.

Operation 45's other half is litigator Jeffrey Light, another punk music fan turned FOIA superhero, who represents Shapiro in his existing suits.



But things are not rosy. "FOIA is broken," Shapiro explained. "One of the core causes of FOIA's brokenness is that there are essentially no penalties for noncompliance. So despite FOIA being federal law, if an agency doesn't want to comply with the Freedom of Information Act, it often simply refuses to do so." He lamented that the FBI "does nearly everything within its power to avoid compliance with FOIA," which leads to "the outrageous state of affairs in which the leading federal law enforcement agency in the country is in routine and flagrant violation of federal law." When he is not filing FOIA requests, writing his dissertation for MIT or listening to hardcore punk, Shapiro is also a research affiliate at Harvard University's Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society.

Operation 45 [Ryan Shapiro/Gofundme]

"FOIA superhero" launches campaign to make Donald Trump's administration transparent

[Ben Norton/Salon]





(via Naked Capitalism)
The following companies are subsidiares of Abbott Laboratories: 3A Nutrition (Vietnam) Company Limited, ABON Biopharm (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AGA Medical Belgium, AGA Medical Corporation, AGA Medical Holdings Inc., ALR Holdings, AML Medical LLC, APK Advanced Medical Technologies LLC, ATS Bermuda Holdings Limited, ATS Laboratories Inc., Abbott, Abbott (Jiaxing) Nutrition Co. Ltd., Abbott (UK) Finance Limited, Abbott (UK) Holdings Limited, Abbott AG, Abbott Asia Holdings Limited, Abbott Asia Investments Limited, Abbott Australasia Holdings Limited, Abbott Australasia Pty Ltd, Abbott B.V., Abbott Bahamas Overseas Businesses Corporation, Abbott Belgian Investments, Abbott Bermuda Holding Ltd., Abbott Biologicals B.V., Abbott Biologicals LLC, Abbott Bulgaria Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Capital India Limited, Abbott Cardiovascular Inc., Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc., Abbott Delaware LLC, Abbott Diabetes Care Inc., Abbott Diabetes Care Limited, Abbott Diabetes Care Sales Corporation, Abbott Diagnostics GmbH, Abbott Diagnostics International Ltd., Abbott Diagnostics Technologies AS, Abbott Doral Investments S.L., Abbott Equity Holdings Unlimited, Abbott Equity Investments LLC, Abbott Established Products Holdings (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Finance Company SA, Abbott Financial Holdings SRL, Abbott France S.A.S., Abbott Fund Tanzania Limited, Abbott Gesellschaft m.b.H., Abbott GmbH & Co. KG, Abbott Health Products LLC, Abbott Healthcare (Puerto Rico) Ltd., Abbott Healthcare B.V., Abbott Healthcare Costa Rica S.A., Abbott Healthcare LLC, Abbott Healthcare Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Healthcare Private Limited, Abbott Healthcare Products B.V., Abbott Healthcare Products Ltd, Abbott Holding (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding GmbH, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited Luxembourg S.C.S., Abbott Holdings B.V., Abbott Holdings LLC, Abbott Holdings Limited, Abbott Holdings Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Hungary Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Iberian Investments (2) Limited, Abbott Iberian Investments Limited, Abbott India Limited, Abbott Informatics Asia Pacific Limited, Abbott Informatics Canada Inc, Abbott Informatics Corporation, Abbott Informatics Europe Limited, Abbott Informatics France, Abbott Informatics Germany GmbH, Abbott Informatics Netherlands B.V., Abbott Informatics Singapore Pte. Limited, Abbott Informatics Spain S.A., Abbott Informatics Technologies Ltd, Abbott International Corporation, Abbott International Enterprises Ltd., Abbott International Holdings Limited, Abbott International LLC, Abbott International Luxembourg S.ar.l., Abbott Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Ireland, Abbott Ireland Financing Designated Activity Company, Abbott Ireland Limited, Abbott Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Kazakhstan Limited Liability Partnership, Abbott Knoll Investments B.V., Abbott Korea Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Bangladesh) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco (Dos) SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Laboratories (Mozambique) Limitada, Abbott Laboratories (Pakistan) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Philippines), Abbott Laboratories (Puerto Rico) Incorporated, Abbott Laboratories (Singapore) Private Limited, Abbott Laboratories A/S, Abbott Laboratories Argentina Sociedad Anonima, Abbott Laboratories B.V., Abbott Laboratories C.A., Abbott Laboratories Finance B.V., Abbott Laboratories GmbH, Abbott Laboratories Inc., Abbott Laboratories International LLC, Abbott Laboratories Ireland Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited - Laboratoires Abbott Limitee, Abbott Laboratories NZ Limited, Abbott Laboratories Pacific Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Laboratories Products B.V., Abbott Laboratories Residential Development Fund Inc., Abbott Laboratories S.A., Abbott Laboratories SA, Abbott Laboratories Services Corp., Abbott Laboratories Slovakia s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories South Africa (Pty) Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trustee Company Limited, Abbott Laboratories Uruguay S.A., Abbott Laboratories Vascular Enterprises, Abbott Laboratories d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories de Chile Limitada, Abbott Laboratories de Colombia S.A., Abbott Laboratories de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Abbott Laboratories druzba za farmacijo in diagnostiko d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories(Hellas) Societe Anonyme, Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios del Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Abbott Laboratuarlari Ithalat Ihracat ve Ticaret Ltd.Sti, Abbott Laboratorios Lda, Abbott Laboratorios do Brasil Ltda., Abbott Limited Egypt LLC, Abbott Logistics B.V., Abbott Management GmbH, Abbott Management LLC, Abbott Manufacturing Singapore Private Limited, Abbott Mature Products International Unlimited Company, Abbott Mature Products Management Limited, Abbott Medical (Hong Kong) Limited, Abbott Medical (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Medical (Portugal) Distribuicao de Produtos Medicos Lda, Abbott Medical (Schweiz) AG, Abbott Medical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Australia Pty. Ltd., Abbott Medical Austria Ges.m.b.H., Abbott Medical Balkan d.o.o. Beograd (Novi Beograd), Abbott Medical Belgium, Abbott Medical Canada Inc./ Medicale Abbott Canada Inc., Abbott Medical Danmark A/S, Abbott Medical Devices Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Espana S.A., Abbott Medical Estonia OU, Abbott Medical Finland Oy, Abbott Medical France SAS, Abbott Medical GmbH, Abbott Medical Hellas Limited Liability Trading Company, Abbott Medical Ireland Limited, Abbott Medical Italia S.p.A., Abbott Medical Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Korea Limited, Abbott Medical Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Medical Laboratories LTD, Abbott Medical Nederland B.V., Abbott Medical New Zealand Limited, Abbott Medical Norway AS, Abbott Medical Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Medical Sweden AB, Abbott Medical Taiwan Co., Abbott Medical U.K. Limited, Abbott Medical spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Middle East S.A.R.L., Abbott Molecular Inc., Abbott Morocco SARL, Abbott Nederland C.V., Abbott Nederland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Netherlands Investments B.V., Abbott Norge AS, Abbott Nutrition Limited, Abbott Nutrition Manufacturing Inc., Abbott Operations Singapore Pte. Ltd., Abbott Operations Uruguay S.R.L., Abbott Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Overseas Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Overseas S.A., Abbott Oy, Abbott Point of Care Canada Limited, Abbott Point of Care Inc., Abbott Poland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Procurement LLC, Abbott Products (Philippines) Inc., Abbott Products (Spain) S.L., Abbott Products Algerie EURL, Abbott Products B.V., Abbott Products Distribution SAS, Abbott Products Egypt LLC, Abbott Products Limited, Abbott Products Limited Liability Company, Abbott Products Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Products Operations AG, Abbott Products Operations LLC, Abbott Products Romania S.R.L., Abbott Products Tunisie S.A.R.L., Abbott Products Unlimited Company, Abbott Resources Inc., Abbott Resources International Inc., Abbott S.r.l., Abbott Saudi Arabia Trading Company, Abbott Scandinavia Aktiebolag, Abbott Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, Abbott South Africa Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Strategic Opportunities Limited, Abbott Trading Company Inc., Abbott Universal LLC, Abbott Vascular Devices (2) Limited, Abbott Vascular Devices Limited, Abbott Vascular Inc., Abbott Vascular Instruments Deutschland GmbH, Abbott Vascular International, Abbott Vascular Japan Co. Ltd, Abbott Vascular Limitada, Abbott Vascular Netherlands B.V., Abbott Vascular Solutions Inc., Abbott Ventures Inc., Abbott West Indies Limited, Abbott drustvo sa ogranicenom odgovornoscu za trgovinu i usluge, Advanced Neuromodulation Systems Inc., Alere, Alere (Shanghai) Diagnostics Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Healthcare Management Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Medical Sales Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Technology Co. Ltd., Alere A/S, Alere AB, Alere AS, Alere AS Holdings Limited, Alere BBI Holdings Limited, Alere Bangladesh Limited, Alere China Co. Ltd., Alere Colombia S.A., Alere Connect LLC, Alere Connected Health Limited, Alere Connected Health Ltd., Alere Diagnostics GmbH, Alere DoA Holding GmbH, Alere GmbH, Alere GmbH (Austria), Alere GmbH (Germany), Alere HK Holdings Ltd., Alere Health B.V., Alere Health BVBA, Alere Health Corp., Alere Health Sdn Bhd, Alere Health Services B.V., Alere Healthcare (Pty) Limited, Alere Healthcare Connections Limited, Alere Healthcare Inc., Alere Healthcare Nigeria Limited, Alere Healthcare S.L., Alere Holdco Inc., Alere Holding GmbH, Alere Holdings Bermuda Limited, Alere Holdings Pty Limited, Alere Home Monitoring Inc., Alere Inc., Alere Informatics Inc., Alere International Holding Corp., Alere International Limited, Alere Lda, Alere Limited, Alere Limited (New Zealand), Alere Medical BVBA, Alere Medical Co. Ltd., Alere Medical Pakistan (Private) Limited, Alere Medical Private Limited, Alere North America LLC, Alere Oy Ab, Alere Philippines Inc., Alere Phoenix ACQ Inc., Alere Pte Ltd, Alere S.A., Alere S.r.l., Alere S/A, Alere SAS, Alere San Diego Inc., Alere Scarborough Inc., Alere Spain S.L., Alere Switzerland GmbH, Alere Technologies GmbH, Alere Technologies Holdings Limited, Alere Technologies Limited, Alere Toxicology AB, Alere Toxicology Inc., Alere Toxicology S.r.l., Alere Toxicology Services Inc., Alere Toxicology plc, Alere UK Holdings Limited, Alere UK Subco Limited, Alere ULC, Alere US Holdings LLC, Alere s.r.o., Alisoc Investment & Co, Amedica Biotech Inc., Ameditech Inc., American Generics S.A.S., American Medical Supplies Inc., American Pharmacist Inc., Antares S.A., Apica Cardiovascular Limited, Aquagestion Capacitacion S.A., Aquagestion S.A., Arriva Medical LLC, Arriva Medical Philippines Inc., Arvis Investments Limited, Atlas Farmaceutica S.A., Avee Laboratories Inc., Axis-Shield AD III AS, Axis-Shield AD IV AS, Axis-Shield AS, Axis-Shield Diagnostics Limited, Axis-Shield Ltd., BBI Animal Health Limited, BBI Diagnostics Group 2 Public Limited Company, Banco de Vida S.A., Bioabsorbable Vascular Solutions Inc., Bioalgae S.A., Biohealth LLC, Biosite Incorporated, Bosque Bonito S.A., Branan Medical Corporation, Brandex Europe C.V., British Colloids Limited, CFR Chile S.A., CFR Interamericas EL Salvador Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, CFR Interamericas Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, CFR Interamericas Panama S.A., CFR Pharmaceuticals, California Property Holdings III LLC, CardioMEMS LLC, Caripharm Inc., Cephea Valve Technologies, Cephea Valve Technologies Inc., Colibri Medical Aktiebolag, Comercializadora y Distribuidora CFR Interamericas Honduras S.A., Concateno South Limited, Concateno UK Limited, Consorcio Tecnologico en Biomedicina Clinico-Molecular S.A., Continuum Services LLC, Cozart Limited, Dextech S.A., Diagnostik Nord GmbH, Distribuciones Uquifa S.A.S., Domesco Medical Import-Export Joint-Stock Corporation, Duphar International Research B.V., Endocardial Solutions, Epocal (US) Inc, Esprit de Vie S.A., European Chemicals & Co, European Drug Testing Service EDTS AB, European Services S.A., Evalve Inc., Evalve International Inc., FARMINDUSTRIA S.A., Fada Pharma Paraguay Sociedad Anonima, Fadapharma del Ecuador S.A., Farmaceutica Mont Blanc S.L., Farmacologia Em Aquicultura Veterinaria Ltda., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV Ecuador S.A., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV S.A., Fernwood Investment S.A., First Check Diagnostics LLC, Focus Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Forensics Limited, Forestcreek Overseas S.A., Fournier Pharma Corp., Fournier Pharma GmbH, Fournier Pharmaceuticals Limited, Framed B.V., Gabmed GmbH, Garden Hills LLC, Global Analytical Development LLC, Globapharm & CO LP, Glomed Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Golnorth Investments S.A., Gynocare Limited, Gynopharm Sociedad Anonima, Gynopharm de Centroamerica S.A., Gynopharm de Venezuela C.A., Hi-Tronics Designs Inc., IDEV Technologies Inc., IG Innovations Limited, IMTC Finance B.V., IMTC Holdings B.V., IMTC Technologies Inc., Ibis Biosciences LLC, Igloo Zone Chile S.A., Igloo Zone S.L., Inmobiliaria Naknek S.A.C., Innovacon Inc., Instant Tech Subsidiary Acquisition Inc., Instant Technologies Inc., Instituto de Criopreservacion de Chile S.A., Integrated Vascular Systems Inc., Inverness Canadian Acquisition Corporation, Inverness Medical (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Australia Pty Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Hong Kong Limited, Inverness Medical Innovations SK LLC, Inverness Medical Investments LLC, Inverness Medical LLC, Inverness Medical Shimla Private Limited, Inversiones K2 SpA, Inversiones Komodo S.R.L., Ionian Technologies LLC, Irvine Biomedical Inc., Kalila Medical, Kangshenyunga S.A., Knoll UK Investments Unlimited, LLC VeroInPharm, Laboratoires Fournier S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano Lafrancol S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano del Ecuador S.A., Laboratorio Internacional Argentino S.A., Laboratorio Synthesis S.A.S., Laboratorios Lafi Limitada, Laboratorios Naturmedik S.A.S., Laboratorios Pauly Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Laboratorios Recalcine S.A., Laboratorios Transpharm S.A., Laboratory Specialists of America Inc., Lafrancol Dominicana S.A.S., Lafrancol Guatemala S.A. Sociedad Anonima, Lafrancol Internacional S.A.S, Lafrancol Peru S.R.L, Lake Forest Investments LLC, Lightlab Imaging Inc., Limited Liability Company Abbott Laboratories, Limited Liability Company Abbott Ukraine, Limited Liability Company VEROPHARM, Lung Fung Hong (China) Limited, Mansbridge Pharmaceuticals Limited, MediGuide LLC, MediGuide Ltd., Medscreen Holdings Limited, Metropolitana Farmaceutica S.A., Midwest Properties LLC, Murex Argentina S.A., Murex Biotech Limited, Murex Biotech South Africa, Murex Diagnostics Inc., Murex Diagnostics International Inc., Natural Supplement Association LLC, Negocios Denia Sociedad Anonima, Neosalud S.A.C., Nether Pharma N.P. C.V., NeuroTherm LLC, Normann Pharma-Handels GmbH, North Shore Properties Inc., Novamedi S.A., Novasalud.com S.A., Nutravida S.A., OJSC Voronezhkhimpharm, Omnilab Iberia Sociedad Limitada, OptiMedica, Orgenics France SAS, Orgenics International Holdings B.V., Orgenics Ltd., PBM-Selfcare LLC, PDD II LLC, PDD LLC, PT Alere Health, PT. Abbott Indonesia, PT. Abbott Products Indonesia, Pacesetter Inc., Pantech (RF) (PTY) LTD, Pembrooke Occupational Health Inc., Penagos S.A., Pharma International Sociedad Anonima, Pharmaceutical Technologies (Pharmatech) S.A., Pharmatech Boliviana S.A., Polygon Labs S.A., Quality Assured Services Inc., RF Medical Holdings LLC, RTL Holdings Inc., Ramses Business Corp., Recben Xenerics Farmaceutica Limitada, Redwood Toxicology Laboratory Inc., Rich Horizons International Limited, SC VEROPHARM, SJ Medical Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., SJM International Inc., SJM Thunder Holding Company, SPDH Inc., Saboya Enterprises Corporation, Salviac Limited, Scanax AS, Sealing Solutions Inc., Selfcare Technology Inc., Shandong Abbott Dairy Product Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Medical Devices Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Shanghai Si Fa Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Sinensix & Co., Spinal Modulation LLC, St. Jude Medical, St. Jude Medical AB, St. Jude Medical ATG Inc., St. Jude Medical Argentina S.A., St. Jude Medical Asia Pacific Holdings GK, St. Jude Medical Atrial Fibrillation Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Brasil Ltda., St. Jude Medical Business Services Inc., St. Jude Medical Cardiology Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Colombia Ltda., St. Jude Medical Coordination Center, St. Jude Medical Costa Rica Limitada, St. Jude Medical Europe Inc., St. Jude Medical Export Ges.m.b.H., St. Jude Medical GVA Sarl, St. Jude Medical Holdings B.V., St. Jude Medical India Private Limited, St. Jude Medical International Holding, St. Jude Medical LLC, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings II, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings NT, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings SMI S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings TC S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Mexico Business Services S. de R.L. de C.V., St. Jude Medical Middle East DMCC, St. Jude Medical Operations (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., St. Jude Medical Puerto Rico LLC, St. Jude Medical S.C. Inc., St. Jude Medical Systems AB, St. Jude Medical Turkey Medikal Urunler Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Standard Diagnostics Inc., Standing Stone LLC, Swan-Myers Incorporated, TC1 LLC, Tendyne Holdings Inc., Tendyne Medical Inc., Thoratec Delaware LLC, Thoratec Europe Limited, Thoratec LLC, Thoratec Switzerland GmbH, Tobal Products Incorporated, Topera GmbH in Liquidation, Topera Inc., Tremora S.A., Tuenir S.A., TwistDx, UAB Abbott Laboratories, UAB Abbott Medical Lithuania, Union-Madison Realty Company Inc., Unipath Limited (dba Alere International/aka Cranfield), Unipath Management Limited, Unipath Pension Trustee Limited, Veropharm, Veropharm Limited Liability Partnership, Vida Cell Inversiones S.A., Vida Cell S.A., Vivalsol, W&R Pharma Handels GmbH, Western Pharmaceuticals S.A., X Technologies Inc., Yissum Holding Limited, ZonePerfect Nutrition Company, eScreen Canada ULC, eScreen Inc.,      ( ), and Abbott Laboratories Baltics.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Ecolab: AO Ecolab, Abednego Environmental Services, Abednego Environmental Services LLC, Abednego Mexico Holdings LLC, Abednego de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Alcide Corp., Anios America S.A., Anios Diffusion SAS, Anios Manufacturing SAS, Aqua Environmental Limited, Bioquell, Bioquell Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Bioquell Global Logistics (Ireland) Ltd., Bioquell Holding SAS, Bioquell Inc., Bioquell Limited, Bioquell SAS, Bioquell Technology (Shenzhen) Ltd., Bioquell Technology Canada Ltd., Bioquell UK Limited, Bro-Tech Limited, CALGON LLC, CID LINES NV, CID Lines, CID Lines Beijing Animal Hygiene Co Ltd., CID Lines France Sarl, CID Lines Iberica SL, CID Lines LLC, CID Lines Mexico S.A. DE C.V., CID Lines R&D NV, CID Lines Sp. z o. o., CORPAK MedSystems, Cascade Water Services, Champion Technologies, Chamtech L.L.C., Chemlawn, Chemstar Corporation, Cirlam BVBA, Copal Holding NV, Copal Invest NV, Cymru Holdings Limited, DERYPOL SA, DMD, E&M Bio-Chemicals LLC, ECOLAB NL 10 B.V., ECOLAB PEST FRANCE SAS, EPN Water Col Ltd., Ecolab (Antigua) Ltd., Ecolab (Aruba) N.V., Ecolab (Barbados) Limited, Ecolab (China) Investment Co. Ltd, Ecolab (Fiji) Pty Limited, Ecolab (GZ) Chemicals Limited, Ecolab (Guam) LLC, Ecolab (Proprietary) Limited, Ecolab (Schweiz) GmbH, Ecolab (St. Lucia) Limited, Ecolab (Taicang) Technology Co. Ltd., Ecolab (Trinidad and Tobago) Unlimited, Ecolab (U.K.) Holdings Limited, Ecolab A.E.B.E., Ecolab AB, Ecolab AU2 Pty Ltd, Ecolab Acquisition LLC, Ecolab ApS, Ecolab Argentina S.R.L., Ecolab Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Ecolab B.V., Ecolab Bahrain S.P.C., Ecolab CDN 2 Co., Ecolab CDN 4 ULC, Ecolab CH 1 GmbH, Ecolab CH 2 GmbH, Ecolab CH 3 GmbH in Liquidation, Ecolab CH 6 GmbH, Ecolab Chemicals Limited, Ecolab Co. Compagnie Ecolab, Ecolab Colombia S. A., Ecolab DE 1 GmbH, Ecolab Deutschland GmbH, Ecolab Digital Center Private Limited, Ecolab EOOD, Ecolab East Africa (Kenya) Limited, Ecolab East Africa (Tanzania) Limited, Ecolab East Africa (Uganda) Limited, Ecolab Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Ecolab Engineering GmbH, Ecolab Europe GmbH, Ecolab Export GmbH, Ecolab FR 1 SAS, Ecolab FR 4 SAS, Ecolab Finance Company Designated Activity Company, Ecolab Food Safety & Hygiene Solutions Private Limited, Ecolab G.K., Ecolab Global Business Services LLC, Ecolab GmbH, Ecolab Gulf FZE, Ecolab HK 1 Limited, Ecolab HK 2 Limited, Ecolab Hispano-Portuguesa S.L., Ecolab Holding Italy S.r.l., Ecolab Holdings (Europe) LLC, Ecolab Holdings Inc., Ecolab Holdings Mexico S. de R. L. de C. V., Ecolab Hygiene Kft., Ecolab Hygiene d.o.o., Ecolab International SDN BHD, Ecolab Israel Holdings LLC, Ecolab JVZ Limited, Ecolab Korea Ltd., Ecolab LLC, Ecolab LUX & Co Holdings S.C.A., Ecolab LUX 1 Sarl, Ecolab LUX 2 Sarl, Ecolab LUX 4 Sarl, Ecolab LUX 7 Sarl, Ecolab LUX Sarl, Ecolab Limited, Ecolab Ltd., Ecolab Lux 10 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 12 SCA, Ecolab Lux 13 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 14 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 15 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 16 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 17 Sarl, Ecolab Lux 9 Sarl, Ecolab Lux Partner LLC, Ecolab MT Holdings LLC, Ecolab MT Limited, Ecolab Malta 1 Limited, Ecolab Malta 2 Limited, Ecolab Malta GPS, Ecolab Manufacturing IE Limited, Ecolab Manufacturing Inc., Ecolab Manufacturing UK Limited, Ecolab Maroc Societe a Responsabilite Limitee, Ecolab NL 11 B.V., Ecolab NL 15 BV, Ecolab NL 16 B.V., Ecolab NL 23 B.V., Ecolab NL 3 BV, Ecolab Name Holding Limited, Ecolab New Zealand, Ecolab Peru Holdings S.R.L., Ecolab Pest Deutschland GmbH, Ecolab Philippines Inc., Ecolab Production Belgium B.V., Ecolab Production France SAS, Ecolab Production Italy Srl, Ecolab Production LLC, Ecolab Production Netherlands B.V., Ecolab Production Poland sp. z o.o., Ecolab Pte. Ltd., Ecolab Pty Ltd., Ecolab Quimica Ltda., Ecolab S. de R.L. de C.V., Ecolab S.A., Ecolab S.A. de C.V., Ecolab SAS, Ecolab SIA, Ecolab SNC, Ecolab SRL, Ecolab Sdn Bhd, Ecolab Services Argentina S.R.L., Ecolab Services Malaysia SDN. BHD., Ecolab Services Poland Sp. z o, Ecolab Sociedad Anonima, Ecolab Sp. z o, Ecolab Spain Services S.L.U., Ecolab Temizleme Sistemleri Limited Sirketi, Ecolab U.S. 2 Inc., Ecolab U.S. 6 LLC, Ecolab U.S. 7 LLC, Ecolab US 1 GP, Ecolab USA Inc., Ecolab Viet Nam Company Limited, Ecolab Water Holding LImited, Ecolab a.s., Ecolab d.o.o., Ecolab s.r.l., Ecolab s.r.o., Ecolab y Compania Colectiva de Responsabilidad Limitada, Ecolab-Importacao E. Exportacao Limitada, Ecolabone B.V., Ecolabtwo B.V., Endoclear Equipamentos Medicos Hospitalares Ltda., Enviroflo Engineering Limited, Food Protection Services, GCS Service, Gallay Medical & Scientific Pty Ltd, Gallay Medical & Scientific Pty Ltd., GallayTrac Pty. Ltd., Georgia-Pacific - Paper Chemicals Business, Gibson Chemical Industries, Green Harbour Mainland Holdings Ltd, Henkel-Ecolab, Hicopla SL, Holchem Laboratories, Huntington Laboratories, Hydenet SAS, INTERNATIONAL WATER CONSULTANT B.V., Immobiliare R.E.O.P.A. SRL, Instrunet Hospital SLU, Jianghai Environmental Protection Co., Jianghai Environmental Protection Co. Ltd., KATAYAMA NALCO INC., Kay BV, Kay Chemical Company, LHS (UK) Limited, Laboratoires Anios, Laboratoires Anios S.A.S., Laboratoires Anios-Distribution SAS, Les Produits Chimiques ERPAC Inc., Lobster Ink, Lobster Ink Africa (Pty.) Ltd., Lobster International S.A., MOBOTEC AB LLC, Master Chemicals OOO, Meratech Rus Group LLC, Microtek Dominicana S.A., Microtek Italy S.R.L., Microtek Medical B.V., Microtek Medical Holdings, Microtek Medical Holdings Inc., Microtek Medical Inc., Microtek Medical Malta Holding Limited, Microtek Medical Malta Limited, Midland Research Laboratories, NALCO (SHANGHAI) TRADING CO. LTD., NALCO AB, NALCO ACQUISITION ONE, NALCO ACQUISITION TWO LIMITED, NALCO AFRICA (PTY.) LTD., NALCO ASIA HOLDING COMPANY PTE. LTD., NALCO BELGIUM B.V., NALCO CHINA HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO COMPANY OOO, NALCO DANMARK APS, NALCO DE MEXICO S. de R. L. de C.V., NALCO DELAWARE COMPANY, NALCO DEUTSCHLAND GMBH, NALCO DUTCH HOLDINGS B.V., NALCO EGYPT LTD., NALCO EGYPT TRADING, NALCO ESPANOLA MANUFACTURING S.L.U., NALCO ESPANOLA S.L., NALCO EUROPE B.V., NALCO FINLAND MANUFACTURING OY, NALCO FINLAND OY, NALCO FRANCE SAS, NALCO FRANCE SNC, NALCO GLOBAL HOLDINGS B.V., NALCO GLOBAL HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO HOLDING B.V., NALCO HOLDING COMPANY, NALCO HOLDINGS G.m.b.H., NALCO HOLDINGS UK LIMITED, NALCO HONG KONG LIMITED, NALCO INDUSTRIAL OUTSOURCING COMPANY, NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (NANJING) CO. LTD., NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (SUZHOU) CO. LTD., NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES (THAILAND) CO. LTD., NALCO INDUSTRIAL SERVICES CHILE LIMITADA, NALCO INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS B.V., NALCO INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO INVESTMENTS U.K. LIMITED, NALCO ISRAEL INDUSTRIAL SERVICES LTD, NALCO ITALIANA HOLDINGS S.R.L., NALCO ITALIANA MANUFACTURING S.R.L., NALCO ITALIANA SrL, NALCO KOREA LIMITED, NALCO LIMITED, NALCO MANUFACTURING BETEILIGUNGS GMBH, NALCO MANUFACTURING LTD., NALCO NETHERLANDS B.V., NALCO OSTERREICH Ges m.b.H., NALCO OVERSEAS HOLDING B.V., NALCO PAKISTAN (PRIVATE) LIMITED, NALCO PHILIPPINES INC., NALCO PORTUGUESA (QUIMICA INDUSTRIAL) UNIPESSOAL LDA, NALCO PWS INC., NALCO SAUDI CO. LTD., NALCO TAIWAN CO. LTD., NALCO TWO INC., NALCO U.S. HOLDINGS LLC, NALCO UNIVERSAL HOLDINGS BV, NALCO WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS LLC, NALTECH INC., NANOSPECIALTIES LLC, NLC PROCESS AND WATER SERVICES SARL, Nalco (BN) SDN BHD, Nalco (China) Environmental Solution Co. Ltd., Nalco Anadolu Kimya Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Nalco Canada ULC, Nalco Company LLC (1), Nalco Contract Operations LLC, Nalco Deutschland Manufacturing GmbH, Nalco Japan G.K., Nalco Libya, Nalco Middle East FZE, Nalco Polska Sp. z o. o., Nalco Production LLC, Nalco Real Estate GmbH, Nalco Schweiz GmbH, Nalco US 1 LLC, Nalco Wastewater Contract Operations Inc., Nalco Water India Private Limited, Nalco Water Pretreatment Solutions LLC, Nalco Worldwide Holdings S.a.r.l./B.V., National Wiper Alliance Inc., Nigiko, Nuova Farmec S.r.l., Oksa Kimya Sanayi A.S., Oy Ecolab AB, PT Ecolab International Indonesia, PT Ecolab Technologies and Services, Purate business - AkzoNobel, Purolite, Purolite (China) Co. Ltd., Purolite (Int.) Ltd, Purolite (Pty) Ltd, Purolite AG, Purolite GmbH, Purolite Ileri Kimyasal Ticaret Ltd, Purolite KK, Purolite LLC, Purolite Ltd, Purolite NZ Limited, Purolite Private Limited, Purolite Pte. Ltd., Purolite Pty Ltd, Purolite S. de R.L. de C.V., Purolite SAS, Purolite SRL, Purolite do Brasil Ltda, Purolite s.r.o., Purolite sp. z o.o., Purolite C Corporation, QazSorbent LLP, Quantum Technical Services LLC, Quimicas Ecolab S.A. de C.V., Quimiproductos S.A. de C.V, RP Adam Ltd, Research Fumigation Co., Royal Pest Solutions, Shield Holdings Limited, Shield Medicare Limited, Soluscope International Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Soluscope SAS, Swisher Hygiene, TechTex Holdings Limited, Technical Textile Services Limited, Terminix, Ultrafab, VanBaele Hygiene AG, Wabasha Leasing LLC, Zhe Jiang Purosoft Home Appliances Sale Co Ltd, and vanBaerle Hygiene AG.

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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.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Quanta Services: (De) Lazy Q Ranch LLC, 1 Diamond LLC, 1Diamond AS, 618232 Alberta Ltd., 8246408 Canada Inc., Advanced Electric Systems, Advanced Electric Systems LLC, Advanced Utility Testing & Maintenance LLC, Alexander Publications LLC, Allteck GP Ltd., Allteck Limited Partnership, Apprenticeship Programs Inc., Arby Construction, Arcanum Chemicals LLC, Arnett & Burgess Oil Field Construction Limited, Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners (Rockies) LLC, Arnett & Burgess Pipeliners Ltd., B&N Clearing and Environmental LLC, Banister Pipelines Constructors Corp., Banister Pipelines Constructors GP Ltd., Banister Pipelines Limited Partnership, Brent Woodward Inc., Brink Constructors Inc., Brink Constructors Inc. A Corporation Of South Dakota, Brown Engineering and Testing, CAT SPEC Ltd., CAT-SPEC Limited Partnership, CAT-SPEC Limited Partnership (Regd Name) CAT SPEC Ltd., CAT-Spec Limited Partnership, Canadian Utility Construction Corp., Cat Spec Limited LP, Cat Spec Ltd, Cat Spec Ltd. L.P., Cat Spec Ltd. LP, Cat Spec. Ltd. LP, Cat-Spec Ltd (A Domestic limited Partnership), Cat-Spec Ltd LP, Cat-Spec Ltd., Cat-Spec Ltd. L.P., Cat-Spec Ltd. LP, Cat-Spec Ltd. Limited Partnership, Catalyst Changers Inc., Chatham Electric, Citadel Industrial Services L.P., Citadel Industrial Services Ltd., Citadel Industrial Services Ltd. L.P., Citadel Industrial Services Ltd. Limited Partnership, Coe Drilling Pty Ltd., Computapole, Conam Construction Co., Consolidated Power Projects Australia Pty Ltd, Conti Communications Inc., Crux Subsurface Canada Ltd., Crux Subsurface Inc., Cutting Technology - 1 Diamond LLC, DB Utilities Inc., DE Lazy Q Ranch LLC, DNR Pressure Welding Ltd., Dacon Corporation, Dashiell (DE) Corporation (Dashiell Corporation), Dashiell Corporation, Dashiell Corporation DBA Dashiell (DE) Corporation, De Mears Group, De Mears Group Inc., Delaware Quanta Technology LLC, Delaware Underground Construction Co., Didado Utility Company Inc., Digco Utility Construction L.P. Digco Utility Construction Limited Partnership, Dorado Specialty Services L.P., Dorado Specialty Services Ltd., Dorado Specialty Services Ltd. L.P., Dorado Specialty Services Ltd. Limited Partnership, Dorado Specialty Services. Ltd. L.P., Driftwood Electrical Contractors, EHV Power ULC, ELITE PIPING & CIVIL L.P., ELITE TURNAROUND SPECIALISTS LTD, Elite Fabrication Ltd. Elite Fabrication LP, Elite Piping & Civil Limited Partnership, Elite Piping & Civil Limited Partnership, Elite Piping & Civil Lp, Elite Piping & Civil Ltd L.P., Elite Piping & Civil Ltd., Elite Piping & Civil Ltd. L.P., Elite Piping & Civil Ltd. Limited Partnership, Elite Piping and Civil L.P., Elite Turnaround Specialists L.p., Elite Turnaround Specialists Limited Lp, Elite Turnaround Specialists Limited Partnership, Elite Turnaround Specialists Limited Partnership, Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd Lp, Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd., Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd. L.P., Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd. LP, Elite Turnaround Specialists Ltd. Limited Partnership, Energy Consulting Group LLC, Enscope, Enscope Pty Ltd, FIC GP LLC, Field Personnel Services LLC, First Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC, First Infrastructure Capital GP L.P., Five Points Construction Co., G-Tek, G-Vac, GEM Engineering Co., Grand Electric Inc., Great Lakes Line Builders, Grid Creative Inc., Grid Manufacturing Corporation, Grid Training Corporation, H.L. Chapman Pipeline Construction Inc., Haverfield Aviation, Haverfield Aviation Inc., Haverfield International Incorporated, Heritage Midstream LLC, IM Electric Inc., IUC ILLINOIS LLC, IUC Nebraska LLC, InfraSource Construction LLC, InfraSource Field Services LLC, InfraSource Services LLC, InfraSources Construction LLC, Infraestructura ETP de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V, Infrasource Engineering Company PC, Infrasource Iowa Underground LLC, Infrasource Of Pa LLC, Integracion Tecnologica del Peru SAC, Intermountain Electric Inc., Intermountain Electric Inc. A Corporation of Colorado, IonEarth LLC, Irby Construction Company, Irby Construction Company Inc., Iron Mountain M.J. Electric LLC, Island Mechanical Corporation, J.C.R. Construction Co. Inc., J.C.R. Utility Construction Co., J.W. Didado Electric Inc., J.W. Didado Electric LLC, J.w. Didado Electric, JBT Electric LLC, Kingston Contracting Inc., Lazy Q Ranch LLC, Lazy Q Training Center LLC The Lazy Q Lineman School, Legend Foundation Services, Lex Engineering Ltd., Lindsey Electric L.P., Logical Link, Longfellow Drilling, M. G. Dyess Inc., M. J. ELECTRIC LLC IRON MOUNTAIN, M. J. Electric LLC, M. J. Electric LLC - Iron Mountain, M. J. Electric LLC DBA M. J. Electric Iron Mountain LLC, M.J. Electric LLC DBA M.J. Electric Iron Mountain, M.J. Electric LLC Iron Mountain, MTS Field Services, MTS Field Services (Richmond Co), MTS Quanta LLC, Manuel Bros. Inc., Marathon Construction Services, Mears Canada Corp., Mears Equipment Services LLC, Mears Group Inc., Mears Group Pty Ltd, Mears Installation LLC, Mearsmex S. de R.L. de C.V., Mejia Personnel Services LLC, Mercer Technical Services, Microline Technology Corporation, Mid America Energy Services Inc., NACAP Niugini Ltd., NC Northstar Energy Services Inc, NGI Construction, NGI Construction Inc., NGI Construction Inc. (FN), NLC CA. Inc., NLC FL. Inc. Northwest Lineman Center, NLC ID. Inc. Northwest Lineman College, NLC TX. Inc., NPC Energy Services LLC, Nacap Australia, Nacap PNG Limited, Network Communication Services, North Houston Pole Line L.P., North Houston Pole Line Limited Partnership, North Sky Communications, NorthStar Energy Services Inc., Northern Powerline Constructors Inc., Northstar Energy Solutions LLC, Northwest Lineman Center, Northwest Lineman College, Northwest Lineman Training Center, Northwest Lineman Training Center Inc., Nova Constructors LLC, Nova Constructors LTD, Nova Equipment Leasing LLC, Nova Group Inc, Nova Group Inc (CA), Nova Group Inc., Nova Group Inc. DBA NGI Construction, Nova NextGen Solutions LLC, O. J. Pipelines Canada Corporation, O. J. Pipelines Canada Limited Partnership, O.J. Industrial Maintenance, O.J. Pipelines Canada, One Call Locators Canada Ltd., P.D.G. Electric, PAR Electrical Contractors Inc., PDG Electric Co., Par Internacional S. de R.L. de C.V., Performance Energy Services Guyana Ltd., Performance Energy Services L.L.C., Phasor Engineering Inc., Phoenix North Constructors Inc., Phoenix Power Group Inc., Potelco Inc., Potelco Incorporated, Power Delivery Program Inc., Price Gregory International Inc., Price Gregory Services LLC, Probst Construction Inc., Probst Electric Inc., QEPC, QEPC Power Solutions LLC, QES GP LLC, QP Energy Services LLC, QPS Engineering LLC, QPS Engineering LTD., QPS Engineering PLLC, QPS Environmental, QPS Flint Construction, QPS Flint Tank Services, QPS Global, QPS Global Services, QPS Global Services (Richmond Ci), QPS Professional Services, QPSE, QS Mats, QSI Engineering Inc., QSI Finance (Australia) Pty Ltd., QSI Finance (Cayman) Pvt. Ltd., QSI Finance Canada ULC, QSI Finance GP (US) LLC, QSI Finance I (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., QSI Finance I (US) LP, QSI Finance II (Australia) Pty Ltd., QSI Finance II (Lux) S.a r.l, QSI Finance II (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., QSI Finance III (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance III (Lux) SARL, QSI Finance IV (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance IX (Canada) Limited Partnership, QSI Finance V (US) L.P., QSI Finance VI (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance VII (Canada) Limited Partnership, QSI Finance VIII (Canada) ULC, QSI Finance X (Canada) ULC, QSI Inc., QSN Lux Holdings I SCSp, QSN Lux Holdings II SCSp, QSN Lux Holdings III SCSp, QSN Lux Holdings IV SCSp, QTSL LLC, QUANTA FOUNDATION SERVICES, Quanta APL GP II Ltd., Quanta Asset Management LLC, Quanta Associates L.P., Quanta Aviation Services LLC, Quanta Canada GP ULC, Quanta Canada Holdings III Limited Partnership, Quanta Canada Holdings LP, Quanta Canada III GP Ltd., Quanta Capital GP LLC, Quanta Capital LP L.P., Quanta Capital Solutions Inc., Quanta Cares, Quanta EPC Services, Quanta Electric Power Construction LLC, Quanta Electric Power Construction Management Inc., Quanta Electric Power Services LLC, Quanta Electric Power Services West LLC, Quanta Energized Innovations Ltd., Quanta Energized Services U.S. LLC, Quanta Energized Services of Canada Ltd., Quanta Energy Services LLC, Quanta Environmental Solutions, Quanta Equipment Company LLC, Quanta Government Solutions Inc., Quanta Holdings I (Netherlands) B.V., Quanta Holdings II (Netherlands) B.V., Quanta Infraestructura de Chile SpA, Quanta Infrastructure Services LLC, Quanta Infrastructure Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Quanta Inline Devices LLC, Quanta Inspection Services, Quanta Insurance Company Inc., Quanta International Holdings (US) LLC, Quanta International Holdings II Ltd., Quanta International Holdings Ltd., Quanta International Limited, Quanta Kingsvale LP Ltd., Quanta Lines Pty Ltd., Quanta Maine Services LLC, Quanta Middle East LLC, Quanta Pipeline Services Inc., Quanta Power Australia Pty Ltd, Quanta Power Generation Inc., Quanta Power Inc., Quanta Power Solutions India Private Limited, Quanta Resource Development, Quanta Services Africa (PTY) Ltd., Quanta Services Australia Pty Ltd., Quanta Services Chile SpA, Quanta Services Colombia S.A.S., Quanta Services Costa Rica Ltda., Quanta Services Guatemala Ltda., Quanta Services International Holdings II LP, Quanta Services International Holdings LP, Quanta Services Management Partnership L.P., Quanta Services Netherlands B.V., Quanta Services Panama S. de R.L., Quanta Services Peru S.A.C., Quanta Services Puerto Rico LLC, Quanta Services of Canada Ltd., Quanta Subsurface Canada Ltd., Quanta Subsurface LLC, Quanta Tank Services, Quanta Technology Canada ULC, Quanta Technology LLC, Quanta Technology UK Ltd., Quanta Tecnologia do Brasil Ltda., Quanta Telecom, Quanta Telecom Services, Quanta Telecommunication Services, Quanta Telecommunication Services LLC, Quanta Telecommunications Services LLC, Quanta Underground Services, Quanta Underground Services (Culpeper Co), Quanta Underground Services (Spotsylvania Co), Quanta Underground Services Inc., Quanta Utility Engineering Services Inc., Quanta Utility Installation Company Inc., Quanta Utility Operation LLC, Quanta West LLC, Quantecua Cia. Ltda., R. R. Cassidy Inc., RMS Holdings LLC, RMS Holdings LLC (Delaware), RMS Welding Systems, RMS Welding Systems LLC, Ranger Directional, Realtime Engineers Inc., Realtime Utility Engineers Inc., Redes Andinas de Comunicaciones S.R.L., Riggin & Diggin Line Construction, Rms Welding LLC, Rms Welding Systems LLC, Road Bore Corporation, Ryan Company Inc. The, Ryan Company Inc. of Massachusetts, Ryan Company Inc.(The), Seaward, Seaward Corp, Seaward Corporation, Service EC (DE) Inc., Service Electric Company (DE), Service Electric Company Inc., Service Electric Company of Delaware, Servicios Par Electric S. de R.L. de C.V., Servicios de Infraestructura del Peru S.A.C., Southwest Trenching Company Inc., Specialty Tank Services L.P., Specialty Tank Services LP, Specialty Tank Services Limited Partnership, Specialty Tank Services Limited Partnership, Specialty Tank Services Ltd., Specialty Tank Services Ltd. (LP), Specialty Tank Services Ltd. L.P., Specialty Tank Services Ltd. LP, Specialty Tank Services Ltd. LP, Specialty Tank Services Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold General LLC, Stronghold Holdings (BVI) Limited, Stronghold Inspection L.P., Stronghold Inspection Limited Partnership, Stronghold Inspection Limited Partnership, Stronghold Inspection Lp, Stronghold Inspection Ltd L.P., Stronghold Inspection Ltd., Stronghold Inspection Ltd. L.P., Stronghold Inspection Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold Limited Partnership, Stronghold Ltd., Stronghold Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold Management Holdings LP, Stronghold Specialty General LLC, Stronghold Specialty Ltd., Stronghold Specialty Ltd., Stronghold Specialty Ltd. Limited Partnership, Stronghold Tower Group LP, Stronghold Tower Group Ltd LP, Stronghold Tower Group Ltd., Stronghold Tower Group Ltd. LP, Stronghold VI LLC, Subterra Damage Prevention Specialists Ltd., Summit Line Construction, Sumter Utilities Inc., T. G. Mercer Consulting Services Inc., TA Construction, TC Infrastructure Services Ltd., Taylor Built, Texas Specialty Tank Services Ltd. LP, The Aspen Utility Company LLC, The ComTran Group Inc., The Hallen Construction Co. Inc., The Massachusetts Ryan Company Inc., The Ryan Company Inc Of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company Inc., The Ryan Company Inc. (Massachusetts), The Ryan Company Inc. of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company Incorporated of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company Of Massachusetts Inc., The Ryan Company of Massachusetts, The Ryan Company of Massachusetts (FN), Tom Allen Construction Company Inc., Tom Allen Construction Company of Delaware, Trans Tech Electric, TurnKey Automation Limited Partnership, TurnKey Automation Limited Partnership, TurnKey Automation Ltd., TurnKey Automation Ltd. Limited Partnership, TurnKey Automation Ltd. Limited Partnership, TurnKey I&E Ltd., Turnkey Automation Ltd. L.P., Turnkey Automation Ltd. LP., UCC Underground Construction Co. Inc., Ucc - Underground Construction Co., Underground Construction Co. Inc., Underground Construction Co. Inc. (Delaware), Underground Electric Construction Company LLC, Utilco Inc., Utility Fleet Services, Utility Line Management Services Inc., Utility Testing & Maintenance LLC, Utility Training Services Corporation, VALARD Polska sp. Z o.o., Valard, Valard, Valard Construction (Ontario) Ltd., Valard Construction (Quebec) Inc., Valard Construction 2008 Ltd., Valard Construction Australia Pty Ltd, Valard Construction LLC, Valard Equipment (AB) Ltd., Valard Equipment GP Ltd., Valard Equipment Limited Partnership, Valard Geomatics (Ontario) Ltd., Valard Geomatics BC Ltd., Valard Geomatics Ltd., Valard Mechanical Ltd., Valard Norway AS, Valard Sweden AB, Valard Zagreb d. o. o., Wade D. Taylor Inc., West Coast Communications, Winco Helicopters, Winco Inc., Winco Inc. an Oregon Based Corporation, Winco Powerline Services, Winco Powerline Services Inc., Winco Powerline Services Inc., Winco Services Inc., World Fiber Inc., and mmit Line Construction Inc..

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Elly from Microcosm publishing writes: "Our next book has been in the works for years, but as we launch our Kickstarter we find it's become terrifyingly current: Soviet Daughter is a rather swashbuckling story of her great-grandmother Lola, who came of age in the Soviet Ukraine, in the wake of the October Revolution."

It's Julia Alekseyeva's debut work of nonfiction comics. Lola has a lot of lovers and a lot of fun, despite a lack of such amenities as food and heating, while raising young kids and caring for her large, needy family. On top of that, she's coerced into working long hours for the NKVD and then has to flee as a war refugee to Kazakhstan where she's terrorized for being Jewish. Throughout it all, she finds a lot of joy and it gives you hope that you can too, come what may."

$15 gets you the book; $25 gets you a signed, personalized copy.





Soviet Daughter: A Graphic Revolution by Julia Alekseyeva [Microcosm Publishing/Kickstarter]
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.
Total Energy Services Inc. provides various products and services to the oil and natural gas industry primarily in Canada, the United States, and Australia. It operates through four segments: Contract Drilling Services, Rentals and Transportation Services, Compression and Process Services and Well Servicing. The Contract Drilling Services segment offers contract drilling services to oil and gas exploration and development companies. As of December 31, 2021, it operated a total fleet of 95 drilling rigs. The Rentals and Transportation Services segment provides drilling, completion and production rental equipment, and oilfield transportation services in western Canada and in the United States. This segment owned and operated a fleet of 79 heavy trucks. The Compression and Process Services segment offers gas compression services; and designs and packages skid style compressors and proprietary trailer-mounted compressors under the NOMAD brand in Canada and the United States, the European Union, Australia, and Mexico. It had 53,800 horsepower of compression in its rental fleet. The Well Servicing segment offers well services. This segment operated a total fleet of 83 well servicing rigs across Western Canada, mid-western United States, and Australia. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.
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.




NEW DELHI (PTI): To enhance bilateral maritime relations, Chief of Indian Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba, on Sunday embarked on a five-day visit to Sri Lanka.



During his visit, Lanba will hold bilateral discussions with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, the Chief of Defence Staff and the three Service Chiefs.



Lanba will also hold 'Galle Dialogue' at Colombo, hosted by Sri Lanka on the issues of Maritime Security and Cooperation between international navies.



Representatives from 39 countries and 13 international organisations are likely to participate in the event.



Lanba would also be delivering Key-Note address on 'India's perspective on the benefits of Strategic Maritime Partnerships', during the event.



He will also lay a wreath at the IPKF memorial, which has been built by Sri Lanka to honour Indian Martyrs, during his visit.


Albemarle officials are looking to the annual Santa Fund as one way to help some of the neediest families in the county, hoping the community will contribute as generously as it has in past years.

The Santa Fund, which runs from Thanksgiving Day through early January, collects donations to provide vouchers for families to buy shoes, clothing, medicine and other essentials for children in need.

Sponsored by The Daily Progress and radio station WINA in conjunction with the United Way-Thomas Jefferson Area, the Santa Fund serves children in the city of Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle, Buckingham, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Nelson and Orange.

The Santa Fund, now in its 122nd year, has a goal of $150,000. Last years goal, also $150,000, was surpassed, with $150,901.37 in donations made. The money helps an estimated 2,000 children each year.

Kevin Kirst, director of special education and student services for the Albemarle school division and the countys Santa Fund coordinator, said the fund drive provides a small but crucial resource for area families.

The Santa Fund is one piece of a community effort to support our areas most needy families, and specifically kids in this case, he said.

The vouchers, which can be redeemed at a handful of stores throughout the region, are distributed in Albemarle based on the number of students in the school division who receive free or reduced-price lunch. And though 3,812 applications for the lunch program were received in the county public schools this year, only 270 vouchers are available.

Last year, Kirst said, the same amount of vouchers was available but the number of students who applied for free or reduced-price lunch was lower than this year.

One of the biggest benefits Kirst said he sees from the clothing vouchers is that when children have some of their most basic needs met, they can focus more on their studies and have a more productive school day.

When kids come in with a nice warm coat, clean and well kept clothes, thats one less thing theyre worrying about in terms of a distracter from their studies, from learning to read, write, do math problems and all the great stuff we do, he said.

Art Stow, principal at Red Hill Elementary in southern Albemarle, said that even though its felt a little contentious across the country recently, the Santa Fund and similar fund drives this time of year are evidence of a local community that reaches out to help others, no matter what.

I mean, in this community, from what Ive seen firsthand, despite the challenges our nation has faced and all, Ive seen nothing change as far as their commitment to supporting each other and supporting this school and all, Stow said.

Kirst said hes confident the community will help this year in whatever capacity they can.

I think this year were even more keenly aware of the needs in our community and looking out for each other, he said. So I am very hopeful and confident that we will meet, if not exceed, our goals to help the kids that are most in need.

Lets just act as a community and care for each other, he added.

Donations may be mailed to Santa Fund, 806 E. High St., Charlottesville VA 22902. Contributions also may be made at thesantafund.org.
FREDERICKSBURG  Congressman Dave Brat said he sees huge parallels between his upset GOP primary victory two years ago and Republican Donald Trumps stunning presidential win this month.

Both are just classic outsiders running against the establishment in D.C. because its totally broken and everybody knows that, said Brat, who defeated former House Majority Leader Eric I. Cantor in the 2014 GOP primary.

Brat, whose 7th District includes Orange and Louisa counties, said the media likes to portray him as Mr. No, No, No. But once Trump is inaugurated Jan. 20, he said he is ready to become Mr. Yes, Yes, Yes with the help of the GOP majority in Congress.

Im all on board, and I think were going to get a lot of stuff done, said Brat, a tea party favorite who is part of the Freedom Caucus.

With Trump in the White House, Brat thinks Republicans can repeal the Affordable Care Act, cut corporate and individual income tax rates and implement a very ambitious plan to eliminate regulations.

Rep. Rob Wittman, R-1st, said in a statement that voters are tired of empty promises and that its time to end the current of over-regulation and corruption that is burdening businesses, families and communities.

As duly elected officials, President-elect Trump and I are bound by the mandates weve been given by the people, Wittman stated.

But University of Mary Washington political science professor Stephen Farnsworth said the default position in Congress is the status quo, regardless of the political party in power.

He noted that President Barack Obamas health care bill was full of compromises despite the Democratic majority in Congress at the time. And Obama was unable to follow through on his pledge to close the Guantanamo Bay prison because Congress would not let him, Farnsworth said.

Any new president is going to have a problem with change getting through Congress, he said. Congress does not have an interest in being a rubber stamp to the executive. It never has that interest.

On the campaign trail, Trump said he wanted to replace Obamacare with something great.

But after meeting with Obama this month, the president-elect said he supports keeping portions of the law, including a provision that allows people to stay on their parents health care plans until they are 26. Deciding what to keep and what to eliminate will create a very difficult and very-time-consuming legislative environment, said Farnsworth, who noted that Congress doesnt do quick.

Still, Brat said he expects a fast repeal of Obamacare. He said Republicans have a plan to replace the law and noted that he and Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Arizona, introduced legislation to nearly triple the maximum family contribution to tax-free health savings accounts from $6,750 to $18,000.

Critics of that proposal say it amounts to another tax break for the rich.

Everything the federal government touches is currently insolvent, Brat said. The rest of the world is moving toward free markets  when were moving in the opposite direction.

Brat and Trump, however, differ on what to do about Social Security and Medicare. Trump has said he will not touch the entitlement programs, but Brat says they will run out of money in less than 20 years if nothing changes.

Thats where hes going to be a little weak, Brat said of Trump.

But he said Democrats are the ones who need to evolve on the issue. Democrats say they support social justice and children, but the kids arent going to get Medicare or Social Security under the current path, Brat added.

He also said Trump won a mandate to secure the U.S.-Mexico border, which he said would firm up the average persons wage rate. Trump said in a recent interview on 60 Minutes that he wants to deport 2 million to 3 million undocumented immigrants with criminal records.

Some experts say the number of immigrants with criminal records is much lower.

Asked whether he agreed with Trumps deportation plan, Brat said Obama had prevented U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from doing their jobs. You dont need much new if you would follow the law of the land, he said.

More than 2 million immigrants have been deported during Obamas presidency  a record high. But unlike Trump, Obama does support a path to citizenship for some undocumented workers.

Farnsworth said he thinks deporting undocumented immigrants with criminal records would be the quickest way for Trump to ramp up deportation numbers. But thats not going to catch anywhere near the number of people who are in the country illegally, he said.

Meanwhile, some of Trumps more expensive proposals, including tripling the number of ICE agents, may be hard sells in Congress.

U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., said on MSNBC recently that he hopes the Freedom Caucus will continue to stick to its guns on the deficit, adding: A quick sugar high with a tax cut thats unpaid for, when weve already got $19 trillion in debt, is really unsustainable.

He also said the presidential election not only amounted to a rejection of Democrats, but of establishment Republicans, the media and corporate America.

The 21st century has left a lot of rural communities behind, and the Democratic Party cant just be a party of metropolitan areas in the East Coast and the West Coast, he said. Weve got to do a better job for those communities which have lost a factory to trade or globalization.

Brat said Trumps victory shows that he has been right all along, and the press had it totally wrong on what the American people actually wanted.

The whole country indicted the establishment on both sides of the aisle for total failure, he said.
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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

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Twelve students from Piedmont Virginia Community College are representing the state in a national engineering challenge hosted by NASA.

The Piedmont Student Launch Team is the only team from a Virginia school selected to participate in NASAs University Student Launch Initiative, a high-power rocket-building competition featuring teams from across the country.

The team won a berth in the competition after submitting a design proposal that was approved by NASA. Out of about 40 contestants, PVCC is one of only three community colleges to clinch a spot.

The competition includes student teams from Georgia Tech, the U.S. Naval Academy, Northwestern University and the University of California, Berkeley.

Andrew Oxford, the teams leader, said hes not worried about their chances against the bigger schools.

We have fewer resources but we have a team thats enthusiastic and our [mentors] are good, he said. Teachers are here to teach and not just to do research.

Yanina Goddard, associate professor of physics, will oversee the team, along with Dave Oxford (Andrews father), chief information officer for Tiger Fuel, a local propane, oil and gas distributor.

The team consists of 11 other students who each have a particular role, including programming, electrical, structural design, fundraising and management of financing. But each team member contributes to the overall design and construction, as well.

Along with the other teams, theyll have to build a high-power rocket that flies one mile above the ground. Each vehicle must include payload, designed by the team, that will address research needs of different subsystems of the Space Launch System, the vehicle NASA is developing to replace the space shuttle, according to the Student Launch Initiative website.

The teams will share any data gathered during the launch, and the results will be used in the development and design of the space launch system, as well as other projects.

The Piedmont team has chosen to build an 8-foot-long, 28-pound fiberglass rocket that will reach speeds of about 517 feet per second.

Once the motor has burned out, a reaction wheel will allow the rocket to rotate in a controlled manner (something competitors are required to do), before making a controlled descent with the deployment of an onboard parachute.

The design allows the team to meet the requirements without too much complexity, said Nicolas Gutkowski, the teams safety officer.

I think simplicity is going to make it work, he said.

Rodney Davis, who is in charge of financing, is enthusiastic about the teams chances, saying that Piedmont has a key advantage over the larger schools.

Our course load isnt as great as theirs, he said, adding that hes not bothered by Piedmonts smaller budget. All great innovation comes from scarcity.

Having already succeeded with its proposal to NASA, the team now looks to build and test a smaller-scale prototype of the rocket, which is expected to go up in the air Dec. 10.

In January, theyll submit a full-scale plan, followed by testing in February.

The NASA challenge will be held in Huntsville, Alabama, in April.

The whole process is designed to look like an engineering project in the real world, said Dave Oxford, with team members required to make presentations to grant-issuing agencies, build prototypes and test them in advance.

Its supposed to help develop the skills engineers need beyond technical know-how: leadership, teamwork, public speaking, planning and budgeting.

This project is as much about professional development as engineers as it is about the competition, Oxford said.

The team, which was just assembled this fall, is hoping to grow its numbers and, in the future, participate in more competitions.

The Piedmont Student Launch Team needs donations to fund its project. Anyone who wants to help can visit piedmontlaunch.org and click on the yellow Donate button in the top-right corner.
Jocelyn Senn started posting the lost-dog fliers a few hours after Bagel ran away.

And for months, she kept posting them, gluing them to thousands of telephone poles and utility boxes throughout Richmond.

Through her persistence, Senn elevated what would have been a mundane and lonely search for her small, spotted beagle into a kind of citywide phenomenon, mounting what is probably the most vigorous hunt for a missing dog Richmond has ever seen.

Her posters became iconic for their simplicity and sheer numbers. She also shared frequent and increasingly emotional updates for a growing audience on social media.

In the process, she enlisted hundreds of volunteers  most of whom shed never met  to help her search. Some describe spending a dozen or more hours a week looking for him. Strangers put up thousands of dollars in reward money.

By October, Bagel was so well-known that at least half a dozen people dressed up as him for Halloween. There were knock-off posters for bands and theater shows. Online memes popped up and spread. He was even a topic of discussion in grief counseling groups. Students from the VCU Brandcenter, a marketing and advertising school, are working on a documentary.

But Bagel was never found. And all the effort only netted one positive sighting  a few blocks from Senns house the day he ran away.

Senn ended her search at the beginning of the month, saying in a Facebook post that was viewed by more than 125,000 people that she realized Bagel had died, probably hit by a car the day he escaped.

She came to the conclusion after consulting with a pet psychic who seemed to know things about her and her pets.

I thought, now its time to move forward, she said. To honor him, I had a little memorial service for him with friends. We lit candles, had dinner.

***

Senn said Bagel seemed nervous the morning he ran.

It was June 18, his first time in a new house in Richmond on Monument Avenue and the day after a powerful thunderstorm.

Bagel hated loud noises and was used to his country home in Varina.

He already had tried to run out the front door, so Senn said she was careful only to crack the back gate when she went out to meet a friend.

But the 30-pound dog saw the opening and went for it, pushing hard past her, bolting through the alley, around the corner and away.

That was the very last time I saw him, Senn said.

Senn, a 57-year-old small-business owner, already had two dogs when Bagel came into her yard as a stray five years ago. She jokes that he adopted her rather than vice versa.

He was a rascal, she said. He got in the trash, chewed things up. But he had an endearing personality.

Senn said Bagels escape came at a hard time: It was two weeks after her 16-year-old bulldog, Maddy, died of old age. On top of that, a close friends dog had died at around the same time.

She said she was determined not to lose another dog.

After a few hours of searching the neighborhood that first morning went nowhere, she printed her first run of fliers.

I really felt at first that I could find him with help, she said. And I think one of the things I did early on is ask for help. I think the first flier I made, I said, Please help on it, and people did.

******

Terrie Buczek, a psychologist who practices in Chesterfield and lives in Bon Air, had never met Senn, but estimates she has spent at least 40 hours searching for Bagel.

Buczek got involved just before the Fourth of July, when Senn organized mass search parties because she worried the holiday would be terrifying for Bagel with all the fireworks.

The next day, Buczek was wandering the Fan District with a group of strangers looking for Bagel.

She was sincere, so heartbroken about that dog, and she had a way of expressing it that just made you want to get involved and help her and help that dog, Buczek said.

Her determination was very impressive. I had my friend from Florida help me. My daughter put up posters in North Side. I started thinking about ideas about where this dog would have gone. One of my clients, whos a hunter, said this is what a beagle would do and gave me ideas about where to look.

The hunters advice led her all the way to Ashland on a hunch that never panned out.

The director of Richmonds Department of Animal Care and Control, Christie Chipps Peters, said shed never seen such an involved search for a lost dog in the city.

More typically, she said, people put little to no effort into finding their dogs: Of about 1,800 stray dogs the city animal shelter has taken in this year, only about 400 were claimed by their owners.

The stray dogs we pick up, we never even know they have an owner, because no one calls us, no ones looking for them, she said. Then you have the people who will check the shelter and look for their pet. And then we have people like Bagel the Beagles owner, who take it to a completely different level.

We were joking that if we ever went missing, wed want her as a mom.

******

Senn cant say exactly how many fliers she eventually put up, but it was easily several thousand. She said she spent at least $2,500 having them printed.

They went through several designs, but all featured a cut-out of Bagel on a white background with Senns cellphone number and a few bits of text, usually along the lines of: Pet Amber Alert: Missing Beagle. Do not chase.

Senns business, PopMounts, sells commemorative plaques to people and businesses featured in newspapers and magazines, and she brought her expertise in marketing and printing to her lost-dog flier design.

A lot of times these dog posters, theyre these horrible black and white pictures and theyre really small and you cant distinguish the animal when youre driving by, she said. When I was doing my fliers, I was thinking, how would this look if I was driving by in a car, which is why it evolved over time.

Whenever she got a call about a possible sighting in a neighborhood, shed post more fliers there as she searched. During the first six weeks, Senn said she spent 12 hours a day driving around in her red pickup truck with supplies such as binoculars, pet food and motion-activated wildlife cameras, which she deployed strategically hoping to catch a glimpse of Bagel.

Along the way, Senn picked up more and more help from strangers who found themselves captivated by the growing search. When Senn posted about a new lead on her Facebook page, she said shed usually find others in the neighborhood already searching by the time she got there.

She took to posting near daily status updates on her Facebook page; each began with a count of how many days it had been since Bagel went missing. As the number grew, she pleaded with Bagels followers not to give up:

D A Y 7 5 : this is my special boy Bagel. I love his long soft ears and expressive eyes. He loved me unconditionally and I adore his loving beautiful playful soul. He is deeply missed. There isnt a moment that goes by that I dont think about him and wonder where he is. PLEASE keep sharing his story so more people are aware.

******

Alane Miles doesnt know Senn and never met Bagel, but he nonetheless became a frequent topic of conversation after the signs started appearing.

Shes a minister and grief counselor, which to a certain extent made her a magnet for people wondering about the dog, its fate, and why the search felt so oddly fascinating.

She has lots of thoughts, but her primary takeaway is that our culture doesnt offer many outlets for people to express their grief, particularly for people who experience a sudden loss of a loved one and never get the chance to say goodbye or see them one last time.

Miles said Senn responded by doing the only thing she could do: Looking for him, and not giving up through a long, improbable search.

So theres something so beautiful about Bagel being all over town, she said. In that sense, we all saw him, we all saw her grief. We all saw the dog.

Andrew Jones, a student at VCUs Brandcenter, decided to make a documentary with classmates about Senns search after he noticed the signs popping up around the city over the summer.

There were a lot of people who were weirdly into it, he said. Like an inside joke. But at the end of the day its really sad, but we identify with the questions it raises: How long would you look if you lost your child, your baby. So, it kind of makes us all ask that question: Why was she still looking?

Not everyone was charmed by Senns tactics. Alongside pictures of Bagel the Beagle, couples Halloween costumes and lighthearted memes that went around Twitter, some groused about vandalism and how difficult it was to remove the posters.

The posters Senn had printed were essentially giant stickers backed with an unusually strong adhesive. One Facebook user commented on every post Senn made on Facebook pleading with her supporters to use regular tape.

Others just expressed a general sense that it was pathetic that someone would search so long and so hard for a missing dog.

Miles said her impression was that those kinds of reactions say less about Senn and more about the people voicing them.

Our whole town got covered in her grief, and I think that made some people profoundly uncomfortable, Miles said. But to me, its honest. Its completely honest. And honesty in grief is not pretty. They call it the valley of the shadow of death for a reason.

***

Senn is now in the process of trying to harness the vast online network of dog lovers she brought together to help find more pets and raise money for dog rescue organizations.

Shes launched a website, Bagelbeagle.com, that tells the story of her search and includes games, including one called Wheres Bagel, which is like Wheres Waldo, but with Bagel.

She announced in a Facebook post she was ending her search on Nov. 3, the 139th day. She posted the message the same day she consulted with the pet psychic, whose description of Bagel and his escape just felt like the truth.

R I P my beautiful Bagel. I have really suffered through this experience. I feel like I was led to a truth, one that makes sense but hurts like hell. So many details to share when you have time and I am not so broken. Long and short Bagel was killed, on impact, not long after he left my home. I do believe this is the reality. He is complete. I need to find my peace. One day I really want to share what I learned. Thank you for all your help and support.
There were lots of troubling things to come out of the recent presidential election, including this one: the proliferation of so-called news sites online that appeared to be real, but which, in fact, were peddling flat-out lies.

Were not talking about the standard partisan spin that one side might put on a particular event. Were talking about intentional fraud.

Its a disturbing trend enabled by social media.

A study by the Pew Research Center, conducted in association with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, found that 62 percent of Americans now get links to some portion of their news through social media, primarily Facebook.

That is not necessarily a bad thing. It might even be a good thing, because it has broadened our access to news. The global nature of the Internet means an entire world of news is available at readers fingertips. In theory, that should make everyone better informed.

Except it hasnt  because a lot of those so-called news sites are simply peddling misinformation.

The news site BuzzFeed  one of the real ones, by the way  conducted an analysis and found: Hyper-partisan political Facebook pages and websites are consistently feeding their millions of followers false or misleading information.  The review of more than 1,000 posts from six large hyper-partisan Facebook pages selected from the right and from the left also found that the least accurate pages generated some of the highest numbers of shares, reactions and comments on Facebook  far more than the three large mainstream political news pages analyzed for comparison (emphasis added).

Further investigation revealed where a lot of that fake news was coming from: Macedonia, a tiny Balkan country that emerged from the break-up of the former Yugoslavia. At least 140 websites purporting to be U.S. news sites  with innocuous names such as USADailyPolitics.com and USConservativeToday.com  could be traced to a single small town in Macedonia.

One 17-year-old Macedonian was quoted as saying: I started the site for an easy way to make money. In Macedonia the economy is very weak and teenagers are not allowed to work, so we need to find creative ways to make some money.

The more people who clicked through to these sites, the more money their creators made.

Their entrepreneurship was aided by what psychologists call confirmation bias  the notion that we are more likely to believe news we want to hear than news we dont. Both sides are susceptible to this very human weakness.

We hope the lesson is clear: Dont believe everything you read on the internet.

Thomas Jefferson famously advised that error of opinion may be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it. What were dealing with here, though, is not error of opinion but error of fact. Combating that will necessitate the discerning diligence that a democracy requires of its citizens.

Adapted from The Roanoke Times.
I am in K-8 education in another part of our country, and I recently read with horror that the University of Virginias president was criticized for having the nerve quote the founder of the university in an email to staff and students several days back.

We have learned that approximately 469 professors, staff and students penned a letter to UVa President Teresa A. Sullivan objecting to such words from the man who was the third president of the United States.

It is our understanding these 469 individuals felt threatened by the email, even though to me it was very obviously an attempt to convey a compliment and a source of school pride to all at your place of higher learning.

I would like to now suggest to the faculty, students and staff who did feel threatened that they collectively put their big girl and big boy pants on, for they would not survive a real debate of fact or common sense.

The notion that such students at UVa are, as Jefferson said, ...persons who are to succeed to the government of our country, and to rule its future enmities, its friendships and fortunes... scares the living hell out of me.

Glenn J. Wehe

Columbia Falls, Montana
News / International

by BBC

US President-elect Donald Trump has asserted he won the popular vote on 8 November "if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally".The Republican, who won the all-important electoral college count, offered no evidence to back his claim.It comes after the camp of Democratic rival Hillary Clinton said it would support a vote recount in Wisconsin initiated by a Green Party candidate.Mrs Clinton won about two million votes more than Mr Trump in the popular vote.However, Mr Trump surpassed the required 270 electoral votes to win the presidency. This was based on the state-by-state contests.In a tweet, he wrote: "In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."In his follow-up tweets, the Republican wrote: "It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than in the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4 states instead of the 15 states that I visited.""I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!"Mr Trump also alleged "serious voter fraud" in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - states won by Mrs Clinton - accusing US media of not reporting on that issue.Earlier on Sunday, the president-elect reminded his Democratic rival that she had already admitted defeat, and published remarks from the presidential debates in which she had urged an acceptance of the poll results.At the time, Mrs Clinton was reacting to Mr Trump's refusal to respect the outcome.Mr Trump narrowly beat the Democratic candidate in Wisconsin, where a recount of the votes was initiated last week by Green Party candidate Jill Stein.Dr Stein also wants recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania, citing "statistical anomalies".The Green Party nominee reportedly wants to be sure computer hackers did not skew the poll in favour of Mr Trump.Concerns over possible Russian interference had been expressed in the run-up to the vote.The US government has said Russian state actors were behind hacks on the Democratic National Committee, a claim denied by Moscow.Results would need to be overturned in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania to alter the outcome of the November presidential election - something analysts say is highly unlikely.Mrs Clinton's campaign has said it will participate in Wisconsin's recount.Her campaign's general counsel, Marc Elias, said there was no evidence to conclude the election had been sabotaged, but "we have an obligation to the more than 64 million Americans who cast ballots for Hillary Clinton to participate in ongoing proceedings to ensure that an accurate vote count will be reported".
News / Local

by Staff reporter

Jailed RMG Independent End Time Messages founder Robert Martin Gumbura's civil appeal against both his rape conviction and sentencing will now be heard this Wednesday at the High Court 2 years into his 40-year jail term.Gumbura, who was convicted on 4 counts of rape in February 2014, is living no stone unturned in pursuing freedom.This coming Wednesday will see his fresh bid to secure the quashing of his conviction and sentence being entertained before a High Court judge.Gumbura is currently serving a lengthy jail term at the infamous Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison Complex following his conviction on 4 counts of rape when he appeared before Harare regional magistrate Hosea Mujaya facing 9 counts of rape.He was also found guilty of possessing p-rnographic material and sentenced to a total of 50 years imprisonment 10 of which were wholly suspended on condition he does not commit an offence of a similar nature within 5 years.After his conviction, he made several applications for bail pending appeal which were all thrown out, with Supreme Court judge Justice Bharat Patel ruling that his appeal was doomed to fail and had no prospects of success at all.Gumbura's conviction has widely been debated in social circles with other legal minds opining that the cleric has chances of success as the circumstances surrounding the alleged rapes did not clearly meet the test required to warrant a conviction.The court of public opinion, however, has no jurisdiction in determining the outcome of the shamed cleric's latest bid for freedom.That jurisdiction lies squarely in the hands of the High Court which will preside over the matter to come up with a determination.
News / National

by Staff reporter

President Mugabe is set to deliver a State of the Nation address next Thursday in which he will address Parliament on the country's achievements and priorities over the next year.The yearly event serves as a platform for the President to inform the nation about the country's current and socio-economic and political situation.Clerk of Parliament Mr Kennedy Chokuda, confirmed the development on Thursday."Yes, I can confirm that His Excellency, the President, will address a joint sitting of both the National Assembly and Senate, where he will deliver a State of the Nation Address on December 1 2016."We have since started making preparations for the event and obviously look forward to it," said Mr Chokuda.In his address, the Head of State and Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, is expected to update Parliament on national developments, challenges and how Government intends to overcome them.Key among them is the introduction of bond notes aimed at stimulating export-led industrialisation through the provision of a 5 percent incentive scheme for exporters. Another objective of the bond notes would be to curb the foreign currency leakages as well as arrest the current cash challenges.The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Amendment Bill, which seeks to give legal effect to the bond notes, is already before Parliament. The President is also expected to give an update on the Command Agriculture programme, where Government is providing inputs for farmers to improve crop yields, and food security.At least 19 600 farmers have received inputs under the Government specialised scheme, with about 163 865 hectares of both irrigable and dry land now under contract farming. President Mugabe is also expected to touch on other aspects aimed at implementing Government's economic blue-print, Zim-Asset.The event is expected to be attended by captains of industry, diplomats accredited to Zimbabwe and senior Government officials.
News / National

by Staff reporter

SOUTH Africa has extended by three months study permits for international students, among them Zimbabweans, whose visas were set to expire in December.In a statement, South African Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba said the extension was necessitated by recent student protests that rocked several top universities in the neighbouring country, leading to their closure.The Minister said the extension ends on March 31 next year."The Department of Home Affairs has granted a blanket extension until March 31, 2017, of all study visas issued for the purpose of studies at tertiary institutions in South Africa. The extension applies to all study visas with an expiry date of, or prior to, 31 December 2016, and it is on condition that the date of departure from South Africa is not later than March 31, 2017," he said.Protests at South African universities erupted last month after a Government proposal to raise tuition fees by up to eight percent in 2017."We had to intervene in the interest of students mindful of the situation in tertiary institutions and the imperative for all students to complete their academic year. Acting otherwise would be insensitive to the plight of students, their parents, sponsors and broader society. This is key to their future and that of their countries and ours given the potential on their part to contribute meaningfully to our economic growth and prosperity," said Mr Gigaba.He said requirements prescribed in the South African immigration regulations have also been waived so that the affected students are not declared undesirable persons when departing from South Africa after the expiry of their temporary residence visas.Mr Gigaba said the decision to extend the students' stay in South Africa was reached after his department received representations from tertiary institutions and other stakeholders on the predicament that foreign students found themselves in following the protests.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Zimbabwe is home to over 9 000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia and Ethiopia housed at the Tongogara Refugee Camp, a Labour ministry official said.The Labour ministry's refugee officer, Moira Gumbingo said on refugees in the capital. She said the DRC, that is constantly facing tribal related insurgencies, contributes the biggest number of the refugees.She said they worked with different stakeholders to provide education for refugees.United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees representative in Zimbabwe, Robert Tibagwa said they were receiving support from the government, as well as from the World Food Programme for the refugees.He commended the government, saying it was doing its best despite the economic challenges.
News / National

by Staff reporter

The case of Gokwe-Nembudziya member of parliament Justice Mayor Wadyajena who is being accused of insulting Zanu-PF party members, will proceed to trial on the 12th of December after the legislator withdrew his application to the Constitutional Court challenging the constitutionality of the case.The defence said the case is distracting the legislator from executing his national duties, hence the decision to withdraw the application and proceed to trial.Wadyajena was facing two counts of disorderly conduct allegedly for insulting Zanu-PF members Jimayi Muduvuri and Letina Undenge, who is wife to Energy and Power Development Minister Samuel Undenge while at the party's 15thannual National People's Conference in Victoria Falls last year.Wadyajena who is represented by Mr Givemore Muvhiringi, will stand trial on the charge against Undenge after Muduvuri who was the first complainant withdrew the charges.In his withdrawal affidavit which was presented in court, Muduvuri said it is of national interest that as members of the revolutionary party from the same village, they are better off united and working together than dragging each other to court over trivial issues.The defence had made a direct application to the Constitutional Court earlier this year in terms of Section 85 Sub-Section 1 of the constitution of Zimbabwe, challenging the refusal by the Victoria Falls Magistrate Ms Lindiwe Maphosa to refer the matter to the upper court.
The Honda Activa had been India's top-selling two-wheeler for nine consecutive months, but now the title has been taken back by previous market leader, the Hero Splendor. The Indian two-wheeler market sales report issued by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) for October 2016 reveals that 2,54,813 units of the Splendor were sold in that month while Honda could only sell 2,50,681 units of the Activa (around 4,132 less).

The best-selling scooter in the Indian market, Honda Activa has registered 6 percent growth in the month of October 2016 as compared to the corresponding month of last year. Hero Splendor, on the other hand, has also recorded a growth of 8 percent on the same parameter. Now, if we compare the sales of October 2016 with that of the previous month, the sales of the motorcycle remains almost constant while that of the scooter has shockingly fallen by 19.8 per cent. While the Honda Activa is now gaining pace in the rural areas, the Hero Splendor still rules the rural market. And this might be a reason the Splendor hasn't seen a downfall.

On the other hand, the Honda Shine has regained its leadership in the 125cc motorcycle segment back from the Hero Glamour that was leading in the segment for eight consecutive months. The month of October 2016 also proved as a remarkable period for TVS Motor as its XL Super moped achieved the fourth position in the two-wheeler market and the Jupiter also entered the top 10 list with the ninth position.

If we talk about the market report for the current month i.e. November 2016, the results could be little disappointing in terms of numbers as demonetisation is restricting the sales of the mass market. Declaring the reduced footfall at the dealerships, Pawan Munjal, chairman, managing director and chief executive officer of Hero MotoCorp said, While there was a steep drop in footfalls at our dealerships in the first two days since demonetisation, we are seeing a steady improvement with footfalls having climbed to almost 85 per cent of the normal level. With the slew of measures being implemented by the government, we expect the situation to return to normal sooner than later.

The rural markets have been affected more due to the demonetisation as compared to the urban markets. So, there are chances that the Activa and the Splendor might switch their positions once again.

Source: BikeDekho.com
Hyundais facelifts usually adopt changes done to the companys design language and the Grand i10 is no different.

The second generation of the Hyundai i10, the Grand i10 was introduced in the Indian market in September 2013 and was an instant hit. The hatchback clocks monthly sales of around 11-12k units and is among the best-selling models in its segment. Now, Hyundai is planning to introduce a face-lifted version of the hatchback.

The facelifted model made its global premiere online in August ahead of the recently held Paris Motor Show, where it had its public debut. It was expected to come to our shores early next year and, voila, our sources have confirmed that the Grand i10 facelift will be launched in January 2017. Heres what we expect out of the upcoming 2017 Hyundai Grand i10.

Design

Hyundais facelifts usually adopt changes done to the companys design language and the Grand i10 is no different. In fact, the updated Grand i10 was the first Hyundai to feature the new 'Cascading' grille, which will become the family identity for Hyundai models henceforth.

Unique compared to the lineup, the extremities of the grille in the facelifted model get circular daytime running LEDs. It also features projector fog lamps similar to the recently launched Elantra. Of these two add-ons, we expect Hyundai might offer the daytime running LEDs with the updated hatchback in India. The rear profile sees the redesigned dual-tone bumper with circular fog lamps, mirroring the front DRLs in a way. Rest of the vehicle is unaltered, including the head and tail lamps, save for the new set of alloy wheels.

Cabin and Features

Unlike the exterior, the interior of the 2017 Grand i10 remains the same. In the European version, Hyundai has just added a new shade of red for the dashboard, along with new upholstery (existing blue and black options are also available). This is similar to what Hyundai offers with the i20 Active in the country, however, it is unlikely that these options will come to India with the updated Grand i10.

Apart from these, Hyundai has equipped the 2017 i10 in Europe with its latest seven-inch touchscreen infotainment system. The unit comes with support for both Apple CarPlay and Google Android Auto. Possibilities of the Grand i10 offering a touchscreen unit are high, but it is unlikely that it will offer CarPlay and Android Auto. Perhaps it might get the present seven-inch unit from the Elite i20 (it will be a segment-first feature). Also, we believe that Hyundai will offer the climate control unit from the Xcent in the updated hatchback since the Ford Figo comes with an automatic AC. Rest of the features of the outgoing model will be carried forward in the upcoming version.

Speaking of safety equipment, Hyundai already offers driver airbag as standard in the Grand i10, while the front passenger airbag is offered from the second last trim and ABS (anti-lock braking system) is only offered with the range-topping optional variant. We believe that Hyundai will offer ABS as standard with the upcoming hatch, similar to the Xcent compact sedan, and maybe dual front airbags as well.

Mechanicals

As is the case with the European model, the facelifted Grand i10 will continue to offer the 1.2-litre petrol engine with five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmissions, along with the 1.1-litre diesel coupled to a five-speed manual.

Prices and Rivals

Thanks to the aesthetic improvements and additional features, the prices of the updated model will go up marginally. The hatchback will continue to compete with the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Swift, Ford Figo, Honda Brio, and others.

Source: CarDekho.com
New Delhi: India's trade deficit with China increased to USD 52.69 billion in 2015-16 from USD 48.48 billion in the previous financial year, Parliament was informed on November 28.

During the April-September period of 2016-17, the deficit is at USD 25.22 billion, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

"Increasing trade deficit with China can be attributed primarily to the fact that Chinese exports to India rely strongly on manufactured items to meet the demand of fast expanding sectors like telecom and power," she said.

India is negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade agreement keeping in view "its offensive export interests" as well as sensitivities with respect to all participating countries including China, she said.

She added that efforts are being made to increase overall exports by diversifying the trade basket with emphasis on manufactured goods, services, resolution of market access issues and other non-tariff barriers.

Further, the minister said that as India and China are WTO members, any restrictions imposed on trade needs to be WTO compliant. No blanket ban can be imposed on China or any other member country under the WTO framework, she added.

Replying to a separate question, she said India's import of bulk drugs from China stood at USD 1.63 billion in 2015-16, which constitutes 64 per cent of India's total bulk drug imports. Overall, India had imported such drugs worth USD 2.5 billion last fiscal.

"Efforts are being made for revival of (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) API industry to lessen dependency on import of key starting materials, intermediates and bulk drugs including from China," the minister said.
The Centre and RBI are exploring possibility of introducing Islamic banking to ensure financial inclusion of those sections of society that remain excluded due to religious reasons.

Mumbai: The RBI's proposal to open up "Islamic window" in conventional banks will lead to trillions of dollars from Gulf nations getting invested in India, said an organisation pushing for Islamic financial banking.

Indian Centre for Islamic Finance (ICIF) said if the RBI proposal becomes a reality, huge investments from countries like the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain will flow into India.

"There are various sovereign funds in Gulf countries with trillions of dollars waiting to invest in India. Introduction of Islamic banking will give a green signal to people in nations like the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain to invest here," ICIF General Secretary H Abdur Raqeeb told PTI.

"In 2008, when Raghuram Rajan (who later became RBI Governor) headed a high-level committee on financial sector reforms, we met him and conveyed our concern about exclusion of Muslims from financial system.

"We pressed for their inclusion in the sector. According to the Sachar Committee report, Muslim-majority areas are described as 'negative zone' by banks," said Raqeeb, whose organisation is spearheading campaign for introduction of interest-free Islamic financial banking in the country.

Citing various studies, he said Muslims prefer to invest in real estate, gold, spending lavishly or even depositing in banks without withdrawing the principle amount to avoid interest. He said no amendments would be required in the existing Act for introduction of Islamic banking and a notification by the Centre would suffice.

"The Anand Sinha Committee, constituted by the RBI in 2006, had said the banking Act would have to be amended. But, when we got the report, we pointed out various flaws like absence of an Islamic financial expert in the panel and also ignoring prevailing practices in countries like Singapore, UK, Japan and France all of which have introduced Islamic banking system," he said.

Raqeeb said later an inter-departmental group of the RBI recommended that interest-free windows can be started in banks on an experimental basis before a full-fledged roll out.

"It also asked the government to issue a simple executive order by way of notification," he said, adding Islamic banking is practised by 75 nations globally.

He said opening up the banking system according to Shariah will not only be good for Muslims, but will help in development of the nation. The RBI proposal is aimed at "gradual" introduction of Sharia-compliant or interest-free banking in India.

The Centre and RBI are exploring possibility of introducing Islamic banking to ensure financial inclusion of those sections of society that remain excluded due to religious reasons.
New Delhi: Providing a window to black money holders, the government on Monday proposed to levy a total tax, penalty and surcharge of 50 per cent on the amount deposited post demonetisation while higher taxes and stiffer penalty of up to 85 per cent await those who don't disclose but are caught.

Nearly three weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced junking high denomination 500 and 1000 rupee notes, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley introduced a bill to amend the Income Tax law which also provides for black money declarants a mandatorily depositing of 25 per cent of the amount disclosed in anti-poverty scheme without interest and a four-year lock-in period.

Those who choose to declare their ill-gotten wealth stashed till now in banned 500 and 1000 rupee notes under the Pradhan Mantri Grabi Kalyan Yojana 2016, will have to pay a tax at the rate of 30 per cent of the undisclosed income.

Additionally, a 10 per cent penalty will be levied on the undisclosed income and surcharge called PMGK Cess at the rate of 33 per cent of tax (33 per cent of 30 per cent).

Further, the declarants have to deposit 25 per cent of the undisclosed income in a scheme to be notified by the government in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

The money from the scheme would be used for projects in irrigation, housing, toilets, infrastructure, primary education, primary health and livelihood so that there is justice and equality, said the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill.

For those who continue to hold onto undisclosed cash and are caught, existing provisions of the Income Tax law will be amended to provide for a flat 60 per cent tax plus a surcharge of 25 per cent of tax (15 per cent), which will amount a levy of 75 per cent.

Besides, if the assessing officer decides he can charge a 10 per cent penalty in addition to the 75 per cent tax.
Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market

Bengaluru: Anticipating a more protectionist US technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The US currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.

"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and US businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the US.

"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the US. and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.

Acquisitions

Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big US and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying US companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.

"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including US-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a US cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more US acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

Offshoring & Automation

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero." More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

"The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.
Oil regulator PNGRB has granted time extension for completion of the two projects up to December, 2017. (Photo: Representational Image)

New Delhi: After state-owned GAIL India Ltd,Gujarat government has sought Rs 6,600 crore from the Central government to partly fund two gas pipeline projects of its firm GSPL including one taking the fuel to Jammu and Kashmir.

Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) had in 2011 quoted rock-bottom tariff to win rights to lay gas pipeline from Mehsana in Gujarat to Bhatinda in Punjab and onwards to Jammu and Srinagar as well as one from Mallavaram on the east coast to Bhopal and Bhilwara in Rajasthan, but has since then struggled to begin work on laying the lines.

"The Government of Gujarat in the month of October, 2016 has requested the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas to consider a capital grant of 40 per cent" for the Mehsana- Bhatinda-Jammu-Srinagar Pipeline (MBJSPL) and Mallavaram- Bhopal-Bhilwara-Vijaipur Pipeline (MBBVPL) projects, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today.

While the 2,042-km Mallavaram-Bhopal-Bhilwara via Vijaipur pipeline will cost Rs 8,086 crore, 2052-km Mehsana-Bhatinda line will cost Rs 6,864 crore and 725-km Bhatinda-Jammu-Srinagar line would cost Rs 1,520 crore.

In a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, he said oil regulator PNGRB has granted time extension for completion of the two projects up to December, 2017. Prior approaching Oil Ministry, "the Government of Gujarat had also approached the Ministry of Finance for financial support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for execution of MBBVPL project," he said in the reply.

The Oil Minister further said that "keeping in view the importance of this pipeline project, MoP&NG has conveyed its support to the request of Government of Gujarat for financial assistance from ADB to the Ministry of Finance in this regard."

In September, the government had agreed to partly fund a Rs 13,000 crore natural gas pipeline project that will take the fuel to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's constituency Varanasi and the eastern part of the country.

The government is providing Rs 5,176 crore or about 40 per cent of the project cost after state-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd found it difficult to commercially justify the huge investment of Rs 12,940 crore in absence of either a firm source of gas supply or customers.

The 2,539-km long pipeline from Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh to Haldia in West Bengal and also Bokaro in Jharkhand and Dhamra in Odisha will be completed by 2020. This was the first gas pipeline project that the government decided to fund.

Besides seeking 40 per cent funding of the projects, the Gujarat government has also asked for "grant of authorisation for development of city gas distribution networks on nomination basis on the lines of support provided to GAIL for its Jagdishpur-Haldia and Bokaro-Dhamra natural gas pipeline project," Pradhan said. Pradhan said the Petroleum & Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) had authorised GSPL (52 per cent stake) led consortium with other partners as Indian Oil Corp (26 per cent), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (11 per cent) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (11 per cent) to develop the two pipelines.

The consortium has incorporated two separate Special Purpose Vehicles -- GSPL India Gasnet Limited (GIGL) and GSPL India Transco Limited (GITL) for development of these natural gas pipeline projects. "GIGL is developing MBJSPL project of about 2,100 km length which traverses through total 29 Districts in the states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir.

"GITL is developing MBBVPL project of about 2,042 km length which traverses through total 33 districts in the States of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh," he said. Both the projects have received all major statutory clearances and notifications have been published in official gazette for acquisition of Right of User (RoU) in all the states where the pipelines passes, the Minister said.

"The mode of investment in the said project is through debt and equity. As on September 30, 2016, GIGL has invested Rs 255 crore for MBJSPL project and GITL has invested Rs 190 crore for MBBVPL project," he added.
For someone who is not adept at timing the market, SIPs in ELSS starting right from the start of the financial year makes more sense than investing in lump sum.

Most of the taxpayers delay their tax-savings investments till the last quarter, and some till last month of the financial year. Even in the case of Equity Linked Savings Schemes (ELSS), around 3050% of total investments in ELSS are made in the last 3 months of the financial year. However, ELSS is a market-linked instrument and hence, is always susceptible to the volatility in the equity markets. For someone who is not adept at timing the market, SIPs in ELSS starting right from the start of the financial year makes more sense than investing in lump sum. However, if you are one of those who are yet to start investing in ELSS, this may be the right time for you to get started. Here is why:

Benefit from the current correction: The election of Donald Trump as the next President of US has spooked the markets everywhere, including that of India. Adding fuel to the fire is the demonetization process. The BSE Sensex has already come down by around 9% from its 52-week high of 29077 touched in September this year. Investing lumpsum in ELSS now will allow you to purchase the mutual fund units at much lower prices.

Benefit from short-term uncertainty: Major upcoming global events such as Federal Reserves possible rate hike and uncertainty regarding Trumps foreign and trade policies will keep equity markets very volatile in the near short-term. Demonetisation is also likely to adversely affect the domestic consumption, thereby, reducing the third quarter corporate earnings. This may pull down equity markets further. The equity market can be expected to remain this way till the Budget Session starting on February 1, 2017. Thus, make most of this volatility by investing in ELSS in a staggered manner during every dips in the market. Remember, the last bull run in the market started right after the presentation of Union Budget this year (2016).

Avoid TDS deductions from your salary: Generally, employers require their employees to submit their proof of tax-saving investments by the end of January. If you postpone your ELSS investment to the month of February or March, you may not be able to submit your proofs by the cut-off time. Hence, TDS on the deficient amount will be deducted from your salary even if you make up the deficient by the end of the financial year. For example, assume that you will invest Rs 1.5 lakh in ELSS fund(s) in the March-end while your employee requires you to submit your investment proof by the end of January. On failing to submit the investment proof by the set timeframe, TDS of up to Rs 46,350 (depending on your tax-slab) will be deducted from Marchs salary.

Avoid mistakes resulting from last-minute haste: Ideally, a lot of factors should be taken into account while choosing an ELSS scheme, such as the past performance of the scheme, portfolio composition of the scheme and track record of the fund manager and the fund house. With over 40 ELSS scheme to choose from, this may require some effort and time. Making investment in the last-minute may not allow you to do the required research. With a lock-in period of 3 years, this may lead you to make costly mistakes.

As the equity market is in a correction mode and mid cap stocks still highly over-valued, prefer ELSS funds with higher exposure to large cap stocks.

List of best ELSS funds along with their portfolio composition:

Ideally, your ELSS investments should be done through the SIP mode right from the start of the new financial year. Investing in ELSS through SIP allows you to spread your investments over several months and reduces pressure on your liquidity at the end of the financial year. SIP also allows you to average your investments from the ups and lows of the market. However, with just 4.5 months remaining in this financial year, SIPs in ELSS is not advisable now as they require at least 6 months of consecutive investments. With just the lumpsum option available, the present uncertainty in the equity markets provide the best opportunity to invest in ELSS. Instead of investing in ELSS at one go, purchase ELSS in small tranches at every dips in the equity market.

 by Manish Kothari  Head of Mutual Funds, Paisabazaar.com
New Delhi: The government has proposed to revisit the existing National Steel Policy, the work on which is at "conceptual stage", Parliament was informed on amid the sector reeling under global glut and surge in import prices.

"The Government proposes to revisit the existing National Steel Policy. It is at conceptual stage," Minister of State for Steel Vishnu Deo Sai said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

Last month, the government's think tank Niti Aayog had floated a working paper where it had mooted a new and dynamic steel policy to bring the over USD 100 billion industry back on track as well as meet the target of 300 million tonnes (MT) capacity by 2025.

The country's premier policy maker feels that mere changes in the National Steel Policy, 2012, will not help the sector that in the last few years has been flooded with cheap imports from China, Korea and Japan impacting its sales and profits, which has negatively influenced its capacity to repay debts.

Niti Aayog feels that there is a need to examine the entire value chain associated with the industry -- from raw materials to production of finished products -- to discover the bottlenecks in the sector.

The Working Paper -- prepared by Niti Aayog Member V K Saraswat and Niti Aayog professional Ripunjaya Bansal -- said that an ecosystem has to be created that will ensure profitability of the associated industry be it mining, pet coke, pellet or sponge iron.

Another pertinent issue that needs to be ensured that none of these make windfall gains at the expense of others, it added. Sai said the global glut and surge in import prices of steel have adversely affected the domestic steel industry.

"It has resulted in erosion of profits of domestic steel companies and has resulted in Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) of domestic steel companies," the minister added.

Listing the steps taken by the government to support the domestic steel industry, Sai said the ministry has notified the Steel and Steel Products (Quality Control) Orders to check the quality of steel being imported into the country.

Besides, government has notified the MMDR, Amendment Act, 2015 to streamline grant of mining leases in order to maintain sufficient availability of raw materials for various sectors including steel sector, he said.

Also to provide a level playing field to domestic steel producers, government has imposed Minimum Import Price (MIP) on 66 steel products and has also come out with anti-dumping duties on various grades, Sai said.
In terms of quantity, the exports have dipped to 101.04 million kg from 106.36 million kg in the corresponding period last fiscal.

New Delhi: India's tea exports declined by 2 per cent to Rs 2,084.06 crore in the first six months of the current fiscal. In the April-September period of last year, the total value of tea exports was Rs 2,124.97 crore, according to Tea Board's latest data.

In terms of quantity, the exports have dipped to 101.04 million kg from 106.36 million kg in the corresponding period last fiscal. As per the Tea Board, the exports in value terms remained slightly higher in the six-month period of the 2016-17 fiscal on better unit value realisation. The export realisation was Rs 206.26 per kg as against Rs 199.79 per kg a year ago.

Tea export from North Indian states -- Assam, West Bengal and others - was marginally lower at 58.10 million kg in the April-September period as against 58.38 million kg in the year-ago period.

Similarly, the overseas shipment from South Indian states -- Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka -- was down at 42.94 million kg as against 47.98 million kg in the said period. Whereas, tea production is estimated to have been 795.89 million kg in the first six months of this year, which is almost same as it was in the year-ago period.

India is the second-largest tea producer in the world after China, with over 70 per cent of the beverage produced, being consumed in the country itself. In the full 2015-16 fiscal, the country sold 232.92 million kg in the overseas market and the export realisation was about Rs 4,493.10 crore.
News / National

by Staff reporter

How could SA do this to us?  pic.twitter.com/XGI9F4LHzd  MaiNaniso (@misskache) November 27, 2016

It's still not clear where Zimbabwe's new bond notes were printed but it's almost certain that the country's bond coins come from South Africa.A photo circulating on social media shows a bag of freshly-minted coins with a label bearing the words: South African Mint Company.Zimbabwe was due to release 2 million US worth of bond coins into the market Monday, along with 10 million in new bond notes. The release of the coins - announced only on Saturday - came as a surprise to many. The coins are in their highest denomination yet, with each one (supposedly) worth 1 US.A press report from the Zimbabwe Independent newspaper in October claims that the South African Mint Company has been minting bond coins for Zimbabwe since 2014, when they were first introduced to make it easier for supermarkets to give out change.Attempts to get confirmation from the company in Centurion were unsuccessful on Monday.It's not clear where the bond notes were printed. They do not appear to be of top-quality. Locals are complaining that the green colour of the 2-dollar denomination of bond "rubs off".The label on the bag of new bond coins says the bag contains 400 coins which weigh 3,830 kg. bond notes
Bhansali has reportedly used references from Chittorgarh fort and incorporated them in his set.

Mumbai: Director of period drama Padmavati, Sanjay Leela Bhansali (SLB) has turned his set into a replica of Chittogarh fort to do complete justice to the script of his magnum opus.

In order to create recreate the fort, SLB has used Rajasthani paintings and 400 diyas (earthen lights) for the ghoomar song. Deepika, who plays the titular role in the film, had to go through rigorous training of one month to learn the dance form.

The song will have local Chari dancers dancing with Deepika and the feel of it is will be a royal experience.

Padmavati will see Ranveer Singh essaying the role of tyrant ruler Alauddin Khilji and Shahid Kapoor will be Raja Rawal Ratan Singh, Deepikas husband.
Shah Rukh Khans recent film Dear Zindagi released on Friday and has received a thumbs up from the critics and the audiences.

The superstar was seen heavily promoting the film in the past few days with Alia Bhatt and the director, Gauri Shinde, and were all over the media with interviews and appearances.

The release and the good response seems to have finally allowed Shah Rukh to take a break and relax.

It seems that the actor took off to the United States to meet his son Aryan, who is studying in a university in the country.

The Thanksgiving Day was also celebrated in the West recently and that seems to have given Aryan some much-needed break from his studies.

Shah Rukh later took to Twitter to share a picture with his son, sharing his delight at being able to spend time with the 'lil one'.

The father-son duo definitely looked classy in their style.

Previously pictures of Aryan celebrating Halloween festival had also gone viral on social media and it seems that the star kid is enjoying his time in the country.
Mumbai: Renowned actress Radhik Apte had to face the repercussion of cyber crime last year when clips from her films Madly and Parched were leaked. If that was not all, an MMS of a woman bathing was associated with her name, claiming that the woman was she.

Radhika, then, took to social media to warn those who had started the rumour. She wrote: You guys! If you're going to get someone to pass off as naked me, she needs to look a lot more like me.

Now Radhika will revisit her disturbing past as she plays the role of a victim of leaked MMS in her next Bombariya.

Confirming the news, filmmaker Michael E Ward told Mumbai Mirror, Yes, we do have such a scene in our film which was shot around the same time when a clip from Anurag Kashyap's film, Madly, was leaked. For a while we were afraid that we may have to change our script as Radhika who was really upset about the real leak might be uncomfortable shooting it. But she's a brave girl and bounced back strongly and agreed to do the scenes. Her character is a film publicist whose phone is snatched on the street. She chases after the thief frantically because there's a an MMS in it of her in the shower after a Holi blast which she knows could be embarrassing to her as well as the Bollywood actor she works with."

Michael, however, maintains that the leaked scenes were always a part of the film and had nothing to do with Radhikas previous encounters with cyber offence.
Mumbai: Pregnancy is not holding our begum, Kareena Kapoor Khan back from partying with her close friends. Recently, the soon-to-be-mom was seen having a great time with her husband Saif Ali Khan along with her girl squad, Amrita, Malaika, Salman and others.

While Kareena shined in her natural glow, it was some other beauty that caught our major attention. We spot Salman Khans rumoured girlfriend Iulia Vantur, standing in the far behind with a broad smile on her face.

There were several reports suggesting Salman and Iulias relationship had hit the end road. B-Town was also abuzz with Salmans growing fondness for actress Amy Jackson.

Soon enough the rumours started making rounds, Iulia flew back to India and was snapped at a beauty salon. Days later, we spotted her partying with Salman Khan and his close friends.

Well, the picture pretty much puts the rumours to rest. Apart from Kareenas party, the Romania beauty was also spotted at Salim Khans birthday bash held at Galaxy Apartment in Mumbai.

Ashley Rebello, who was also present at the birthday bash, shared a selfie on his Instagram where we see Iulia posing with him and Amrita Arora.
Mumbai: Shahid Kapoor and Mira, who were recently blessed with a little baby girl, are one of the most loved couples in B-Town.

Apart from being a fantastic actor, Shahid also is a loving husband to Mira and dotting father to Misha. On Monday, the actor took his lovely wife out on a cozy lunch date in Mumbai

While Shahid was casually dressed in grey t-shirt and black shorts, Mira looked pretty in white top and black jeans.

On work front, Shahid Kapoor is currently gearing up for Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Padmavati', which also stars Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh.
While students across different streams celebrate the end of their semester in various ways, the third semester students of printmaking, department of fine arts, S.N. School, University of Hyderabad, marked it with an end semester open studio exhibition.

Six students displayed a variety of work that evoked emotions and memories, and definitely made you think about your existence.

What set this exhibition apart was the excellent use of space. Guest faculty, Diptej Vernekar who was one of the guides for the show, says, Through this exhibition we wanted to justify the use of space, it wasnt just about the artwork. We wanted to see how artwork can be a part of this space and how space can be a part of this work.

(Above left) Divesh Gadekars audio installation; Probhashs projection work; Anju Chandrans installation.

The exhibition that was open to public, saw a mix of media used. Take for instance the work of Divesh Gadekar. From the first look, it seems like any other chair with two speakers to the side, but Divesh explains. When one sits on the chair, they can hear two kinds of sounds from the left and right speaker. I worked with sound for this project and for an entire semester I collected sounds of the universitys ambience and from the roads outside. This was to show the stark difference in both the worlds. For me, the university is peaceful, but the world outside is noisy and that was the contrast that my work shows, he says.

(Below, from left to right) Probhash, Tanaya, Gautham, Anju Chandran, Mannan Sheikh and (sitting) Divesh

As you walk past that, you cant miss the seemingly ordinary cupboard; the only difference is that this one makes noise. Artist Tanaya Kundu who works around the topic of violence and womens issue says, My works speak out against the stereotyping and objectifying of a feminine body, I try to question the issues of inequality and oppression in my endeavours. The cupboard that was part of her work made the sounds of someone scratching. A cupboard is something that is available in every household, it is a place where we save our day-to-day objects. But sometimes, we hide very intimate things like violence against women and this is just a showing of that, she explains.

Artists made great use of objects and space that one would usually look past in any other situation.

Artist Probhash Sarkar who used an old sink for his video art says, I used an old sink and then projected a video onto it. The artwork was created to show the different layers of transparency of human beings. Every person has a dual nature, one inside and the other that people see. My passion is to explore the various facets of human nature through art, he explains.
The naturally-formed pebble is also known as the stone of many faces (Photo: AFP)

London: In a corner of the British Museum's new South African exhibition, near an ancient golden rhino and a collection of apartheid-era campaign badges, sits a glass case holding a pitted, reddish-brown stone.

It is the Makapansgat pebble, on display for the first time in its three-million-year history, curators reckon - an object that, in its own way, outshines the other treasures in the museum's halls.

Experts theorise a very early ancestor of humans, Australopithecus africanus, picked up the pebble and took it home, mainly because it was interested in a pattern of lines on the surface that, even today, look startlingly like a face.

"This is an example of early curiosity, a pre-cursor to true art that some people have called the earliest piece of art of anywhere in the world, the earliest piece of found art," said John Giblin, co-curator of the show "South Africa: the Art of a Nation".

The naturally-formed pebble - also known as the stone of many faces - was found in Makapan valley in Limpopo province near some Australopithecus remains in the 1920s, several kilometres away from its likely source.

The theories have clustered around it since. It could be the earliest known sign of empathy - if the creature saw it as a baby. It could show the development of self-awareness - the stone forms a different face if you turn it the other way round, a face very much like an Australopithecus africanus.

It also has a claim to being the world's earliest known exhibit - in the sense of an object set aside for special contemplation - giving it an edge over the Elgin marbles one floor down in the British Museum, or the Egyptian mummies two floors up.

That is all theorising. "It's impossible to ever really know what's behind the pebble and if these early australopiths recognised it as a representation of something that looked like them," said Bernhard Zipfel from the Evolutionary Studies Institute at Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg, which loaned the pebble.

But it is theorising that has continued to compel experts in the field.

"When you are holding it and looking at that face and imagining how another being three million years ago saw a face in that - and you remember how you walked along a beach and picked up stones that looked like they had faces or other features in there - you see this really common experience," said Giblin.
It's creative activity on the previous day that predicts wellbeing the next (Photo: AFP)

Washington: A recent study has found that everyday creative activity may lead to an "upward spiral" of increased wellbeing and creativity in young adults.

In the new research from New Zealand's University, Department of Psychology researchers asked 658 university students to keep a daily diary of their experiences and emotional states over 13 days.

After analysing the diaries the researchers, led by Dr Tamlin Conner, found a pattern of the participants feeling more enthusiasm and higher "flourishing" than usual following days when they were more creative.

Flourishing is a psychological concept that can be described as increasing positive growth in oneself. While the current study did not specifically ask the university students to record the nature of their creative activity, the researchers had collected such information informally in an earlier study.

They found that the most common examples reported were songwriting; creative writing (poetry, short fiction); knitting and crochet; making new recipes; painting, drawing, and sketching; graphic and digital design; and musical performance.

Dr Conner says she and her team wanted to find out if engaging in everyday creative acts makes people feel better emotionally.

"There is growing recognition in psychology research that creativity is associated with emotional functioning. However, most of this work focuses on how emotions benefit or hamper creativity, not whether creativity benefits or hampers emotional wellbeing," Dr Conner says.

The researchers found that "positive affect" (PA) -- which encompasses feelings such as pleasurable engagement, happiness, joy, excitement, and enthusiasm -- on a particular day did not predict next-day creative activity.

"Our earlier research found that PA appears to increase creativity during the same day, but our latest findings show that there is no cross-day effect. Rather, it is creative activity on the previous day that predicts wellbeing the next," she says.

Even when controlling for next-day creative activity, the previous day's creativity significantly predicted energised PA and flourishing.

Dr Conner and her co-authors write that: "this finding suggests a particular kind of upward spiral for wellbeing and creativity.

Engaging in creative behavior leads to increases in wellbeing the next day, and this increased wellbeing is likely to facilitate creative activity on the same day.

They conclude that "overall, these findings support the emerging emphasis on everyday creativity as a means of cultivating positive psychological functioning."
London: Scientists have engineered cells with a 'built-in genetic circuit' which produces a molecule that inhibits the ability of tumours to survive and grow in their low oxygen environment.

The genetic circuit produces the machinery necessary for the production of a compound that inhibits a protein which has a significant and critical role in the growth and survival of cancer cells. This results in the cancer cells being unable to survive in the low oxygen, low nutrient tumour micro-environment.

As tumours develop and grow, they rapidly outstrip the supply of oxygen delivered by existing blood vessels. This results in cancer cells needing to adapt to low oxygen environment. To enable them to survive and grow in the low-oxygen or 'hypoxic' environments, tumours contain increased levels of a

protein called Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1).

HIF-1 senses reduced oxygen levels and triggers many changes in cellular function, including a changed metabolism and sending signals for the formation of new blood vessels. It is thought that tumours primarily hijack the function

of this protein (HIF-1) to survival and grow. "In an effort to better understand the role of HIF-1 in cancer, and to demonstrate the potential for inhibiting this protein in cancer therapy, we engineered a human cell line with an additional genetic circuit that produces the HIF-1 inhibiting molecule when placed in a hypoxic environment," said Ali Tavassoli, professor at the University of Southampton in the UK.

"We've been able to show that the engineered cells produce the HIF-1 inhibitor, and this molecule goes on to inhibitHIF-1 function in cells, limiting the ability of these cells to survive and grow in a nutrient-limited environment as expected," said Tavassoli. "In a wider sense, we have given these engineered cells the ability to fight back to stop a key protein from functioning in cancer cells," he said.

"This opens up the possibility for the production and use of sentinel circuits, which produce other bioactive compounds in response to environmental or cellular changes, to target a range of diseases including cancer," said Tavassoli.

The genetic circuit is incorporated onto the chromosome of a human cell line, which encodes the protein machinery needed for the production of their cyclic peptide HIF-1 inhibitor.

The production of the HIF-1 inhibitor occurs in response to hypoxia in these cells. The research team demonstrated that even when produced directly in cells, this molecule still prevents the HIF-1 signalling and the associated adaptation to

hypoxia in these cells.

"The main application for this work is that it eliminates the need for the synthesis of our inhibitor, so that biologists conducting research into HIF function can easily access our molecule and hopefully discover more about the role of HIF-1 in cancer," said Tavassoli. The study was published in the journal ACS Synthetic Biology.
Population studies cited in the research found that women with larger bottoms are more likely to have lower levels of cholesterol and produce more hormones to metabolise sugar.

A study has claimed that for women, the key to a better life is having a larger bottom. Scientists at the Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism at Oxford University and the Churchill Hospital have found that women with big bums are increasingly intelligent and more resistant to chronic illnesses. The number of health benefits make booty akin to a miracle cure.

Behind the data

Population studies cited in the research found that women with larger bottoms are more likely to have lower levels of cholesterol and produce more hormones to metabolise sugar. Moreover, the adipose tissue on a bum and upper thigh catches the harmful fatty particles and prevents cardiovascular disease. Having a big butt also favours the hormone which regulates weight, and ones with anti-inflammatory, vascular-protective and anti-diabetic attributes. The protective properties of booty are exerted through long term fatty acid storage.

Smart arse

The increased intelligence is due to the amount of Omega 3 fats required to get a big bum in the first place. Omega 3 fats are proven to catalyse brain development. The traits appear to be passed on. The research also showed that children born to women with larger hips were more intelligent. The research shows a good sized posterior is good for posterity. Published in the International Journal of Obesity in 2010, the study concluded that if a person is going to carry body fat, the thighs and buttocks at least offer some protection. The lead researcher Konstantinos Manolopoulos explained that fat around the hips and thighs is good for you but around the tummy is bad. The study Gluteofemoral body fat as a determinant of metabolic health focused on the distribution of fat around the body, rather than looking at whether or not more fat was healthier.

 Source: www.indy100.com
News / Press Release

by Dr. Dumiso Dabengwa

Public Dialogue, Department of History, University of Witwatersrand, South AfricaWednesday, 23rd November 2016Discussion Note by Dr. Dumiso Dabengwa, ZAPU President_________________________________Your ExcellenciesDistinguished GuestsLadies and GentlemenAll protocols observedI would like to thank the organizers of this public dialogue which invites us to consider whether the armed struggle for liberation was worth it.Not so long ago such a question would have sounded preposterous because the colonial, racist, repressive and exploitative regimes in Southern Africa had pushed the largely black majority of the people to a corner. Progressive elements in society and those of us at the bottom of the racist political and economic ladder saw a stark choice between permanent subjugation to minority rule and the imperative of taking up arms as the last resort to throw off the yoke of brutal oppression. The Portuguese hold on Angola and Mozambique, the post-UDI rebel Rhodesian regime of the 1960s and 1970s, South African continued occupation of Namibia, and the Apartheid regime in South Africa itself, constituted challenges that required the "last resort".Armed struggle at the beginning and armed struggle at the endLike most African countries, the territory and current borders of Zimbabwe were defined by the carving up of the continent among European colonial powers at the 1884 Berlin Conference. It was only a matter of time therefore before the Pioneer Column of Cecil John Rhodes crossed the Limpopo into what is now Zimbabwe. This piece of history is a necessary point of departure because the Pioneer Column set up forts along its route (Fort Tuli, Fort Victoria and finally Fort Salisbury where they hoisted the Union Jack in 1890). By 1893 the occupation force was ready to move back southwards to attack the Ndebele King Lobhengula who they had skirted on their way north. Several battles were fought including Lalaphansi and Shangani. The most ferocious battle was that fought at Gadade as the aggressors got nearer the capital Bulawayo.There are contemporary accounts of the 1893 Matebele War that recount the fierceness of the encounters. At Gadade (Mbembesi) in their familiar bull-horn formation, several regiments threw their might (spear and shield) against the approaching invaders who were armed with guns and heavy cannon). IHlathi, iNsukamini, INqobo, iSiziba and iNduba formed the right flank and led the attack.UMcijo, Amavevane, uJinga and INxa formed the left flank. IMbizo and INgubo, the crack Matebele Regiments formed the military epicentre of the entire campaign. They were commanded by Generals Mtshana Khumalo (uNdindikuyasa) and Fusi Khanye respectively.Dr.Leander Starr Jameson, one of the prominent leaders of the invasions is reported to have later expressed bewilderment at what he had witnessed at Gadade when the colonial invaders clashed with Matebele warriors: "The pluck of iMbizo and INgubo regiments was amazingNo troops anywhere in the world could have fought and withstood such terrific fire as was unleashed for half as long as the Matebele took it hour after hour they kept coming.""The amajaha fought extremely bravely in defense of their land, their King, their Sovereignty, their Nation, their dignity and pride as amaNdebele. They fought until they blocked the nozzle of the Maxim gun with their leather aprons (amabhetshu) after spearing to death the operator of the machine."In any age, in any land, of any men where brave deeds are sung or told; the feats of the Matebele on the plains of Shangani and Mbembesi rivers will forever shine and glitter with the best and brightest".The 1895-1897 fighting, Matebeleland and Mashonaland rise against occupationThe bulk of the Ndebele regiments had not been decimated because they were not yet deployed to the 1893 theatre of war. In 1895 they rose against the colonial regime. Whereas there was no fighting when the Union Jack was hoisted in Salisbury (Harare), in 1896 the whole territory (Matebeleland and Mashonaland) was engulfed by fighting in response to the excesses of the colonial regime. Sources and legitimacy of resistanceSomeone once said that peace is not just the absence of war. In our case (Zimbabwe) the end of armed resistance in the middle of the 1890s was followed by new forms of struggle. These included the mobilization of workers into trade unions in the emerging industries, campaigns for opening of the franchise to Africans, and pushing for economic opportunities denied to "non-whites". There were other factors that fed the growth of nationalism, such as the experiences from the two World Wars. After fighting for the British Empire in the two World Wars, returning black soldiers got grossly inferior benefits from those of their white counterparts.As young people who benefited from educational opportunities driven mainly by church mission schools in the 1950s and 1960s, we were also radicalized by racial inequalities in access to professional employment and unequal pay for the same work. Peaceful agitation on all the above issues was met with more and more police and even paramilitary responses from the white minority regime. This made it clear to us that what was needed as the struggle escalated was some way of redressing the balance of force.The emerging African and International tide in favour of independence movementsThe tide of nationalist victories and calls for independence that moved from West Africa (Ghana and Guinea of Kwame Nkhrumah and Sekou Toure initially), then East Africa, added to our confidence that victory was possible in Southern Africa. The North African countries (Egypt and Algeria in particular) later became valuable sources of technical and material support. The growth and success of "Third World" movements for independence in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East were similarly significant for turning the tide in our favour.At the international level, the League of Nations and later the United Nations raised the bar when it came to independence and sovereignty of states. The United Nations bodies such as the General Assembly and the Trusteeship Committee provided vital international support to our claims for independence and an end to regimes based on racial discrimination. United Nations Resolution 1514 of 14th December 1960 explicitly called for the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples. This and other resolutions noted the aspirations of colonized peoples to exercise their right of self-determination, and laid the foundations for formulation of the right to development.Rapid movement from nationalist campaigns to armed struggleFew among our older nationalists would have foreseen that peaceful political agitation for "One One Vote" and other demands would reach their limits in less than ten years from development of mass movements in Zimbabwe. The African National Congress (ANC) lasted barely two years from 1857 to being banned in 1959. Its successor, the National Democratic Party (NDP) lasted barely a year in 1960, to be followed by ZAPU in 1961 which was also proscribed by the Rhodesian regime. The banned ZAPU suffered a split in 1963 when ZANU was formed by elements opposed to the leadership of Joshua Nkomo, but it too suffered the same fate. From then on the nationalist movement(s) went underground and became more convinced of an inevitable armed struggle.The period 1963-1964 witnessed the training of guerrilla units and the formation of military wings by both ZAPU and ZANU.In 1965-1966 there was deployment of reconnaissance and sabotage units into various parts of the country from bases in Zambia (which had become independent in 1964). ZAPU further made an alliance with the ANC and had combined operations in 1967 (Wankie) in which Umkhonto (MK) legends like Chris Hani and 1968 (Sipolilo) which provided valuable lessons for the development of the war effort.By 1977 the war had escalated and we had acquired sophisticated weaponry and trained a large number of fighters, some of them organized into the Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army (ZPRA) regular army formation. Large operational areas in the North and the West of the country were contested by ZPRA with the enemy, In fact, the "Turning Point" strategy that Joshua Nkomo and the ZAPU leadership had adopted would have seen the racist regime's forces being taken head-on by ZPRA and parts of the country taen under our partial control as was beginning to happen. Meanwhile ZANLA forces from the North East and the East (from Mozambique) put enormous pressure on enemy forces. It is this environment which convinced the British government to convene the Lancaster House conference in 1979 to negotiate with the Patriotic Front of ZAPU and ZANU. As they say, the rest is history because in 1980 the country became independent.I have omitted the role played by global East-West rivalry in our struggle, but it was not insignificant. What we can say here is that choices of friends and perceived enemies were made on bi-polar considerations beyond our internal contradictions. This is why the repression of ZAPU members in newly-independent Zimbabwe and the genocidal "Gukurahundi" massacres of the early 1980s in Matebeleland and the Midlands did not excite necessary international outrage. Ironically, the brutal land grab campaign against white formers got more attention in the West than the unprovoked slaughter of over 20,000 civilians in the "Gukurahundi" campaign.Was the Armed struggle worth the trouble and the sacrifice?To answer the question whether the armed struggle was worth it, one has to take a long range view of the origins and permanent gains of the struggle, but also the immediate and short-term effects on the people and those who bore the brunt of the war effort. The latter includes those who survived the armed struggle and those who paid the supreme price of permanent injuries and death.At the level of the country we got the right to chose and to control our rulers, never mind that those who got into power soon saw themselves as rulers instead of elected representatives of the people. This is in clear violation of our basic demand that led to war, the demand for "One Man One Vote" (really One Person One Vote!). Universal suffrage has virtually been replaced by universal control by a powerful President and ruling clique. A culture of "winner takes all" in which outwitting competitors is given priority over goal-oriented collaboration has been built by the ruling party and unconsciously pervades even models for collaboration among the opposition parties.One example of preoccupation with ruling and not representing the people is the unwillingness of the ruling party (ZANU) to adopt the culture of peaceful change of government through free and fair elections. More than three decades after independence there is still need for electoral reform and repeal or reform of repressive legislation retained in spirit and sometimes in words from the Ian smith regime. Implementation of the Constitution adopted in 2013 is slow and in some cases there are numerous violations.Political repression and economic mismanagement in independent Zimbabwe has led to well-known results such as youth unemployment, emigration of skilled and unskilled but industrious workers, and collapse of vital institutions that were among the best in the region.In spite of all these setbacks to our aspirations and original expectations the armed struggle on balance was worth it.Among other things the armed struggle proved beyond all doubt that anyone can wield modern state power, not just a "chosen race".The armed struggle gave opportunities to people that were previously officially denied them because of their race and allotted social status during the racist regime.The armed struggle restored dignity to those previously automatically relegated to inferior class and social status in a racially stratified state.More controversially, the armed struggle made it possible to acquire or grab economic assets that had been reserved for people of European origin. The implementation of this necessary land re-distribution was brutal and poorly implemented from both an economic point of view and reverse racism whose consequences are the decimation of commercial agriculture and resulting food insecurity.We can therefore conclude that the armed struggle was worth it but very costly to the extent that not all immediate benefits were realized. The best result is that an independent people have acquired the inalienable right to determine their course, with ups and downs.I thank you for your attention.
Fed up of the recent demonetisation drive, a 70-year-old man in Kerala has pledged not to grow his hair after shaving off half his head until Narendra Modi is no longer the prime minister of the country. Dr. Ashraf Kadakkal, an assistant professor at the University of Kerala, shared the story of Yahikkakka on his Facebook page under the title Mann Ki Baat from a small hotel owner to a former tea vendor.

Heres a translation of the post which was written in Malayalam:

My name is Yahiya. Peers call me Yahi, others prefer calling Yahikkakka. I am nearly 70 years old, a native of Kadakkal Mukkunnam in Kerala's Kollam district. I live with my wife and two daughters.

When I realised I cannot marry off my daughter from what I make from climbing coconut trees and working in farms, I sold everything I had and went to the Gulf. Nothing but a life of suffering awaited me there, a poor, uneducated man. I came back with whatever little I made. With that money, and a bank loan from Kadakkal Co-operative bank, I got my daughter married.

I found a new way to sustain myself and family by starting this RMS fast food joint.

I handle the entire hotel myself, from cooking to serving to cleaning. So I chose to wear a nightie. My customers enjoy the tasty beef and chicken fry I serve from 5 PM till midnight, and stay entertained by what they consider ridiculous attire for a man. Had I been running this store in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, I would have been hanged.

I was living, facing one day at a time, till Prime Minister Modi announced the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

I had Rs 23,000 in cash, all in the demonetised notes. I tried my best to get it exchanged from nearby banks, stood in queues for two days. On the second day, blood sugar level dropped and I almost collapsed. Some Good Samaritans helped me to a government hospital.

Other than the loan account at the co-operative bank, I don't have a bank account. Since all transactions at co-operative banks were frozen, I realised I cannot get it deposited anywhere.

How many days should I stand in queues to get the money I saved, my money, the money I made working hard for hours straight over the years, deposited?

When I got home from the hospital, I lit my choolah and burnt the entire Rs 23,000 in it. I then went to a nearby barber shop, shaved off half my already bald head.

I vow to grow it back only when Prime Minister Modiji, the man who, in a jiffy, burnt all my hard work and savings into ashes, is voted out of power and this country is saved.

This is my pledge and my protest."

Dr. Ashraf Kadakkal ends the post with the following words: "Dear Yahikkakka, sorry for treating you like a clown all these years. Your protest is so powerful and meaningful that the bandh the strongest party in our state is conducting tomorrow."

Here's the original post:
Clearly a lot more needs to be done by police and government authorities and the embassy to rein in these unlawful agents and stop this trafficking in women who are poor and vulnerable. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: South zone police have cracked down on some visa agents but have to still hunt down many more who traffick women and girls to the Middle East. Police usually book a cheating case against the agents when the victim's family lodges a complaint.

But this weak charge cannot hold the offenders in prison. They come out and continue to trap victims and traffic them. A much more severe charge needs to be slapped on these inhuman offenders.

A challenge local police face is how to bring back the victim, since she is in another country. The police often arrests the local agent in the city and pressurises him to get the victim released.

"We have brought back victims in this way. But this method will not work all the time," said a South Zone police official.

There are also risks involved in such tactics. The employer could harm the victim. "The employer can keep some of his valuables with the victim and then blame her so she is caught up in a legal case for theft. The victim may then end up in jail for many years. He could also manipulate the situation using his influence, said a senior South Zone officer.

Since the women are not registered with the Indian Embassy in Saudi, it's difficult for police to proceed officially.

Clearly a lot more needs to be done by police and government authorities and the embassy to rein in these unlawful agents and stop this trafficking in women who are poor and vulnerable.
Hyderabad: Thirty-three-year-old Anjum Fatima from Chanchalguda was promised a job in Medina with a salary of around Rs 30,000 before she boarded the flight to Saudi. She was told the job would be a comfortable one in the home of an Arab.

After she landed at Riyadh Airport, she had to wait for three days at the airport till someone came to pick her up and take her to her workplace. Instead of taking her to Medina, she was taken to Al Kasim, a remote area 450 km from Riyadh

It was a farmhouse and the employer informed her that her salary would be less than Rs 15,000. The job was really tough. She could not get time to sleep. When she told her employer she wanted to go back, he started torturing her. She was beaten repeatedly and was not fed for a long time, said her husband Khuddus Zaiqa.

Fathima recorded a video explaining her ordeal and sent it to her family in Hyderabad. After the news broke, the police and embassy got involved. The police picked up the agents and pressurised them to release her from the custody of her employer.

Even after the embassy got involved, her employer handed her over to a Pakistani bus driver and asked him to drop her at a deserted place and destroy her passport. Coming to know this, she shouted for help in the bus and reached the airport with the help of other passengers in the bus, said her husband. Fathima returned to Hyderabad on October 13.

There are many Hyderabadi women like Fathima who are tricked by agents and have to put up with horrible working conditions in Saudi.

Some face sexual harassment, violence and confinement. Most of those who have managed to return say that the employer takes away their mobile phone first and does not allow them to contact their families back home in India.
Parminder alias Penda was travelling in an SUV when his vehicle was intercepted by police at a check post in Kairana in Shamli district. (Photo: ANI Twitter)

Muzaffarnagar: The alleged mastermind in the Nabha jailbreak case Parminder has claimed that eight persons were involved in the incident and the five fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in search of a hideout, police said on Monday.

Parminder alias Penda, who was arrested on Sunday in Shamli district hours after the jailbreak in which six prisoners including Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo escaped, told police during interrogation that he was staying in a hideout in Dehradun.

He claimed that besides him seven persons were involved in the jailbreak and he was in contact with them through whatsapp.

During interrogation, Parminder said that he was also involved in narcotic smuggling in states including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab, SP Ajay Sharma said.

Parminder was accused of killing Punjab police inspector Gurudev and he was on the run, police said.

Last evening, when he was travelling to Dehradun his vehicle was intercepted by police at a check post in Kairana in Shamli district in western Uttar Pradesh, police said.

Further investigations also revealed that Parminder was also involved in theft cases.

Police said it had recovered two SLRs, three other rifles, 544 cartridges and mobile phone from his possession.

Meanwhile, another car was on Monday found abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place yesterday.

"A car has been found in the village. Further investigations were under progress," Kaithal's SP Sumer Partap Singh said, adding police and forensic experts were examining the car.

Another car had been found abandoned on Sunday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

"Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said. The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, he said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was on Monday nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.
Pune: Four boys, aged between 10 and 14, were detained on Sunday for allegedly raping a six-year-old girl in city's Pimpri area here, police said.

On Saturday afternoon the boys, who live in Anna Saheb Magar slum, allegedly picked up a six-year-old girl, who was playing in the vicinity and took her to a secluded area and raped her by taking turns, officials from Pimpri police station said.

"The incident came to light after the girl, who was traumatised, narrated her ordeal to her mother and later police were informed," they said.

A case under sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural offences) of IPC and relevant sections of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 was registered, officials said, adding all the four boys have been detained.
Muzaffarnagar: A 30-year-old Dalit was shot at allegedly by a gram pradhan and three others who also thrashed the victim's family members after accusing them of stealing a radish, police said on Monday.

The incident took place yesterday when the four accused, including gram pradhan Anil, his son Nishant and nephew Sarouttem, reached Sunil Kumar's house in a car and started beating his family members, Circle Officer Bhushan Verma said.

They accused the family of stealing a radish from the gram pradhan's fields. When Kumar protested, the accused fired at him, the CO said.

He was taken to the hospital in a serious condition, he said, adding that police have registered a case against the four accused who are absconding.

Senior police officers have impounded the gram pradhan's car. Security has been tightened and extra police has been deployed in the area, the official added.
Chennai: Days after joining the Opposition protest against demonetisation, Tamil Nadus ruling AIADMK on Sunday tore into Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of slighting the Constitution and democracy by speaking about the issue outside Parliament not inside the House.

In an article published in party mouthpiece Namadhu MGR, the AIADMK listed the volte-face of the RBI and the Finance Ministry, which kept revising the rules and regulations on demonetisation after its announcement on November 8, and punched holes into the BJPs fight against black money.

The Prime Minister who is supposed to answer such questions is slighting the Constitution and democracy by choosing to explain about the move only outside Parliament and not inside the Parliament (where Opposition parties want the PM to speak), the article in the AIADMK mouthpiece said. Both Houses of Parliament had been paralysed for more than a week demanding that Prime Minister sit through the entire debate on demonetisation and make a statement on the issue.

The stinging criticism of the Prime Minister comes days after the AIADMK joined the Opposition protest that was spearheaded by Congress and attended by arch-rival DMK against demonetisation in the Parliament House.

The AIADMK, which has 13 MPs in the Rajya Sabha, has been bailing out the BJP Government in the House of Elders for the past two years and the Tamil Nadus ruling party joining hands with leaders of Opposition parties, including the Congress, had raised many an eyebrow in state and national political circles.

The BJPs claim to root out black money is like cultivation of desert by drawing water using a bucket that has a sieve for its bottom. And isnt it a reality that people of saffron parties have not shown in action what they speak? the article said in a stinging criticism of the demonetisation policy.

Questioning the move to allow exchange of old notes into new at Big Bazaar, the article asked why a superstore where only rich people shop was selected to allow swapping of notes, while imposing a ban on banking in cooperative banks which is visited by lakhs of hapless farmers every day.

Quoting news reports, the article said common man is angry that demonetisation move was reportedly leaked to many, and a Gujarati daily had even published beforehand about it and added that people were incensed by norms like an upper limit even for withdrawals for weddings.

The article also referred to other issues like the Indian rupee hitting a record low level against the US dollar (on November 24, it hit an all-time low of 68.86 against the US$ before recovering partially to end the day at 68.73 a 39-month closing low) besides Nepal banning new Indian Rs 500, Rs 2,000 notes and alleged quality issues in the new notes.
Congress activists shout slogans after being detained during a protest against the government's decision to withdraw high denomination notes from circulation, in Ahmadabad. (Photo: AP)

New Delhi: After three weeks of demonetisation move, the opposition has planned countrywide shutdown on Monday against the government's mishandling of the currency ban.

The demonetisation exercise by the Modi government has brought a rarely seen unity among opposition parties, but they stand divided over the way they would protest against the measure.

While the Left parties, including the CPI(M) and CPI have called a 12-hour bandh to protest against demonetisation of old high-value currency notes in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee's TMC will not join it and only hold protests.

The Congress too has decided not to go for a bandh. Senior party leader Jairam Ramesh said no 'Bharat Bandh' has been called by the party which will hold nation-wide protests as part of 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas'.

The JD(U) has decided not to participate in the protests by opposition parties tomorrow or West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's proposed dharna in Patna on November 30 after its leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar welcomed the demonetisation decision.

"We have supported he Centre's demonetisation move. How can we oppose or be the part of activity like bandh which is meant to protest the issue which our party has strongly supported," Bihar unit JD(U) President Bashishtha Narayan Singh said.

"JD(U) will not be part of any agitation against demonetisation including the dharna by Mamata Banerjee on November 30 in Patna," party Secretary General K C Tyagi said.

"We have taken an ideological position in favour of demonetisation so how can we be part of any agitation seeking its roll back," Tyagi said.

Odisha's ruling BJP will also not join the protests with its leader and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik having hailed the demonetisation decision.

The opposition parties have been divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against it. While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, other opposition parties stayed away. Shiv Sena has backed demonetisation but is unhappy over the way it was causing problems to people.

Mamata's TMC and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's AAP are the only parties which have demanded a roll back of the exercise, while other parties have voiced displeasure over the way it was being implemented which was causing hardship
All these parties along with other Opposition outfits have been protesting against the issue of demonetisation of high value currencies inside Parliament for the past 10 days by stalling the proceedings of both Houses.

Chennai: Taking their fight against move to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes to the streets, Opposition parties, including the DMK, Congress and Left, will Monday picket Central Government offices in the state capital and elsewhere to condemn the economic emergency imposed by the Union Government. Meanwhile, Chennai Police have made elaborate arrangements to ensure no untoward incident happens during the protests.

All these parties along with other Opposition outfits have been protesting against the issue of demonetisation of high value currencies inside Parliament for the past 10 days by stalling the proceedings of both Houses.

DMK Treasurer and Leader of Opposition M K Stalin will lead the partys demonstration outside Chennai Collectorate as police refused permission for him to hold the protest in front of the RBI, located close-by, while TNCC chief Su Thirunavukarasar will agitate outside the Office of the Chief Post Master General on arterial Anna Salai in the city.

CPI (M), CPI and VCK  constituents of the Peoples Welfare Alliance  will also join the nation-wide protest in Tamil Nadu outside the regional headquarters of SBI, while their comrade Vaiko has announced that he would not agitate against the move while welcoming demonetisation.

The Central government has embarked on this move without proper homework and preparations.

The banks, even after two weeks, are reporting that only 10 per cent of the value of the withdrawn currency has reached them in new notes. Crores of people in India are those being deprived to use any money for elementary exchanges required for their day to day life, a joint statement issued by the Left parties said.

All these parties have deputed senior leaders to districts to ensure that the demonstrations are held outside central government offices in all districts.
The ruling BJP at the Centre is also facing the wrath of its alliance partners as the Shiv Sena has alleged that the implementation of demonetisation has not been done in an appropriate manner. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: In the wake of the protests by the Opposition parties, the Central Government has decided to form a sub-committee of Chief Ministers to deal with the demonetisation issue.

This come as a united opposition is leaving no stone unturned in taking potshots at the government post the decision.

Demanding that this decision should be rolled back for not being implemented properly, the opposition parties have also alleged that this exposed the 'anti-poor' stand of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government as the general public is the worst hit.

So far, only two Chief Ministers - Bihar's Nitish Kumar and Odisha's Naveen Patnaik - have voiced their support for the Centre.

Nitish has said he supported the currency ban as he is "convinced" that it would help in the fight against black money while Patnaik has praised the move as a bold step.

The ruling BJP at the Centre is also facing the wrath of its alliance partners as the Shiv Sena has alleged that the implementation of demonetisation has not been done in an appropriate manner and said it is not only 'one party's monopoly' to end corruption.

Talking to ANI, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut wondered as to when would the long queues outside banks and ATMs in cities and rural areas of the country end.

"We also supported the Centre's demonetisation move but the middle class has been suffering due to this in Maharashtra and we are just trying to bring that in front of the government. I don't think there is anything wrong in that. The implementation is not done in the right way. Everyone is against corruption. It's not only one party's monopoly to end corruption; everyone is patriotic and wants good for the country," he added.

Moreover, the ongoing disruptions in Parliament have also posed an obstacle for the government, which is looking forward to the passage of pending bills in the Winter Session.

Meanwhile, the Lok Sabha has been adjourned for the day after witnessing repeated adjournments since morning as opposition members continued their demand for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's presence during discussion on the demonetisation issue.

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh today told the Lok Sabha that the government's intention about the decision on demonetisation is unquestionable.

Describing the decision as "historic, bold and pro-poor", Singh said the decision has been considered in the interest of the nation.

"As far as the discussion on the issue is concerned, the government is ready for a debate," he added while assuring the opposition that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be present in the House and will also speak when the discussion on the issue will begin.

Despite the Home Minister's assertion, the opposition continued with their slogans.

Uproar continued in the Rajya Sabha as well as the opposition Congress members continued to troop into the well of the House raising slogans against the government's decision.

Stating that no steps were taken to address the problems of the people following demonetisation, the opposition members have been demanding the Prime Minister to put forth his stand on the issue in Rajya Sabha.
News / Regional

by Staff Reporter

Prominent Gwanda bases activist Bekezela Maduma Fuzwayo on Friday night led the hopes of the people of Matabeleland in the presumed highly polarised Zimrights Community Human Rights Award.With the Matabeleland regions complaining that the awards have through the years not reflected a true national picture as the nominees are predominately people from Mashonaland provinces with Harare in particularly, Fuzwayo came up to grab the third most prestigious award the Overall Male Human Rights Defender of the year Award.On his way to grabbing the award, Fuzwayo overcame high competition from visually impaired leader of the Divine Destiny Network Bishop Ancelimo Magaya and radical leader of the National Vendors Union Sten Zvorwadza.Bishop Magaya who eventually walked away with the Peace Award is well known for leading his church members to demonstrate against President Robert Mugabe's over the deteriorating economic situation in Zimbabwe. Zvorwadza who is also a member of the notorious Harare grouping #Tajamuka /Sesijikile was arrested on several occasions in the year after carrying out several anti Mugabe demonstrations in the capital.Fuzwayo also had a heavy 2016 as both a leader of the Gwanda Residents Association and rights advocacy group Restoration Of Human Rights International. He among a lot of advocacy work he was involved in through the year struck records fighting bravely for the release of arrested demonstrators in Beitbridge and for leading in the fight for the people of four Matobo Villages who are on the verge of losing 2000 hectares of their ancestral land to the government owned Agriculture Rural Development Agency ARDA.Fuzwayo also out did himself when he led a small group of four Gwanda activists to walk past a barricade of heavily armed riot police and state security agents to deliver an electoral reforms petition to the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission in Gwanda town.Leading the Gwanda Residents Association, Fuzwayo has been bravely involved in the fight for the stabilisation of the water situation in Gwanda which has been extremely erratic for the last five years. His fight for Gwanda water has seen him clash with both Ministers of Water and of Local Government and the local police.Speaking on the sidelines of the Awards Night, chairperson of the technical team that led in the adjudication of the nominees Dr Charlton Tsodzo said that the committee was extremely impressed by Fuzwayo's profile which outweighed several other prominent nominees whose names had been brought forward by community leaders."The committee went all out of its way digging into the names that were submitted as nominees and from the interviews we held with people on the ground and searches in the internet Fuzwayo's profile was extremely impressive," he said.Newly elected People's Democratic Party Deputy President, Human Rights Lawyer, Kucaca Phulu himself a former Zimrights Chairperson was also full of praise for Fuzwayo's accolades in the year claiming that he truly deserved the award.Fuzwayo who last year walked away as the Matabeleland South Province Human Rights Defender of the tear also missed out on the most prestigious award the Overall Human Rights Defender of the year where he was nominated with prominent Human Rights Lawyer, Harare West Member of Parliament Jessie Majome and eventual winner lawyer Dzimbabwe Chigbwa.Majome acknowledge Fuzwayo's efforts congratulating him on social media Facebook and urging him to continue working hard for the people of Matabeleland."Well done Bekezela, you have indeed done very well let's keep on fighting," she added.Other winners for the 2016 Community Human Rights awardsProvincial Winners:Chitungwiza - Stanford ChanakiraHarare - Dr Patson DzamaraMatabeleland North - Vumani NdhlovuBulawayo - Tinei MukwevaMidlands - Elliot MusangaziManicaland - Fadzai JekemuMashonaland Central - Rambo MuzezaMashonaland West - Nunurai JenaMatabeleland South - Nkululeko MoyoMasvingo - Gamuchirai MukuraMashonaland East - Armstrong MagavaneMinority AwardsHuman Rights Lawyer - Khulani NgwenyaYouth Defender - Moreen ChademaungaTheatre - Sylvanos MudzvovaFemale journalist - Phyllis MbanjeMale journalist -Tapiwa ZimbiraEnvironmental - Female - Rosemary ShokoEnvironmental male - Farai MaguwuLocal Authority - Goromonzi Rural District CouncilCommunity Based Organisation - Benia ArtsOverall:Peace ambassador - Bishop Ancelimmo MagayaOverall Female - Linda MasarireOverall Male - Bekezela Maduma FuzwayoOverall outstanding - Dzimbabwe ChigbwaPeople's Choice Award:People's Choice - Honourable Jessie Majome
New Delhi: Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who along with five others escaped from the high security jail in Nabha on Sunday, was arrested near Delhi railway station on Monday.

"Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police," said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh.

He said Delhi police nabbed the dreaded terrorist on the basis of inputs passed on by Punjab police. "We passed on the information about Mintoo following which Delhi police arrested him," official said.

He said a team of Punjab police will go to Delhi to bring him back.

It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle--a Toyota Fortunerwas stopped at a police picket.

Mintoo yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates and bolted out with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets. Officials said efforts are on to nab the other prisoners who managed to flee.

The Punjab Government has suspended the Director General (Jails) and dismissed the Nabha Jail superintendent and deputy jail superintendent and set up a special task force to look into the Nabha jailbreak incident.

Mintoo was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh Gopi after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

Mintoo was wanted in ten terror offences while Gopi was tasked to target Hindu outfit leaders in 2013, which were foiled by Punjab Police, in a bid to disturb the peace in the state.

The then Punjab DGP Sumedh Singh Saini had then claimed that Pakistans spy agency ISI was making concerted efforts to use terror outfits like KLF and Babbar Khalsa to revive terrorism in Punjab, with focus on carrying out killings of prominent leaders belonging to a particular community.

To strengthen KLF, he had developed independent contacts with the foreign-based supporters and fund raisers of terrorism, the official said.

When he was in Pakistan, Mintoo worked with Babbar Khalsa International. But, but being ambitious and a good organiser, he developed independent contacts with Pakistans ISI and Europe and North America-based terrorist sympathisers and fund raisers and had planned to raise his own outfit, police had then said.

During his stay in Pakistan, he had visited Europe in 2010 to establish contacts and in June 2013, he left Pakistan for an extensive tour of Europe lasting 11 months, police had then said.
New Delhi: Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh on Monday wrote to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh demanding dismissal of the Parkash Singh Badal-led Akali-BJP government and a CBI probe into the sensational jailbreak in Nabha in which six dreaded criminals escaped.

Blaming the Akali government in Punjab for Sunday's Nabha jailbreak, the former Chief Minister accused the Badals of trying to polarise the state on communal lines ahead of the Assembly polls, just as they had always done when faced with defeat.

Amarinder said he has written to the Home Minister and the Chief Election Commissioner demanding dismissal of the Badal government and immediate imposition of the Model Code of Conduct in the state.

He also demanded a CBI probe into the incident, saying a fair investigation would not be possible under the Punjab Police.

The Congress leader said that the four gangsters who had escaped along with the Khalistani terrorist from jail belonged to Muktsar and Jalalabad area from which the Badals hailed.

Amarinder also warned that the SYL issue had the potential of escalating into an explosive situation, which could even trigger the revival of terrorism in Punjab.

Warning that the entire belt from Sardulgarh to Abhor would go dry if the Supreme Court verdict on SYL is implemented, he said any move to deprive the people of the state of the much-needed river water could lead to the outbreak of violence, culminating in disastrous consequences for Punjab.

Stating that the earlier outbreak of terrorist violence in Punjab had arisen from the Anandpur Sahib resolution, with water the main issue of dispute, Amarinder claimed 35,000 people had been killed earlier.

Amarinder said the Supreme Court should have first assessed the quantum of water available with Punjab before coming out with its verdict, and stressed that Haryana had no riparian right to Sutlej or Ravi water. He noted that Punjab had never staked claim to Yamuna river water, which it could easily have done.

In a separate communication, Amarinder has also written to Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi urging imposition of the Code of Conduct without further delay and holding of the Assembly elections under President's Rule.

In his letter to the Home minister, the Punjab Congress chief said that going by the trend of the incumbent government in the state, "with the elections coming close and with their chances of winning very meagre, they would try to resort to polarisation of communities".
Chandigarh: Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo who along with five others escaped from the high security jail in Nabha, was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014.

The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh Gopi after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.

Mintoo was wanted in ten terror offences while Gopi was tasked to target Hindu outfit leaders in 2013, which were foiled by Punjab Police, in a bid to disturb the peace in the state.

The then Punjab DGP Sumedh Singh Saini had then claimed that Pakistans spy agency ISI was making concerted efforts to use terror outfits like KLF and Babbar Khalsa to revive terrorism in Punjab, with focus on carrying out killings of prominent leaders belonging to a particular community.

To strengthen KLF, he had developed independent contacts with the foreign-based supporters and fund raisers of terrorism, the official said.

When he was in Pakistan, Mintoo worked with Babbar Khalsa International. But, but being ambitious and a good organiser, he developed independent contacts with Pakistans ISI and Europe and North America-based terrorist sympathisers and fund raisers and had planned to raise his own outfit, police had then said.

During his stay in Pakistan, he had visited Europe in 2010 to establish contacts and in June 2013, he left Pakistan for an extensive tour of Europe lasting 11 months, police had then said.
Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo comes out after being produced at Patiala House Court in New Delhi on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

Chandigarh: Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday and was arrested by Delhi police from Nizamuddin railway station, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan, Punjab police said on Monday.

"Mintoo was in touch with associates of terror groups in Pakistan," Punjab Director General of Police Suresh Arora said this evening.

The dreaded terrorist would be subjected to "intensive interrogation" when he would be brought from Delhi, the DGP said.

"We will put him to intensive interrogation after we bring him to Punjab," he further said.

On Sunday, Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal had voiced apprehension that Pakistan could be behind the sensational Nabha jailbreak, saying the neighbouring country was "desperate to revive terrorism" after Indian army conducted the surgical strike across the LoC.

"Pak desperate to revive terror post surgical strike. Could be behind jail break," Sukhbir had tweeted.

Mintoo, who was wanted in ten terror offences, was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014.

DGP further said that Parminder Singh Pinda would also be questioned when he would be brought to the state.

Pinda was arrested Sunday evening from Kairana in Uttar Pradeshs Shamli district by UP Police.

In a sensational jailbreak, Mintoo on Sunday escaped along with five other prisoners after armed men in police uniform stormed the high-security Nabha prison in Patiala. He was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi on Monday.
New Delhi: The Home Ministry on Monday gave santion to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to prosecute Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot attack.

Azhar is accused of masterminding the January 2 attack on the Pathankot airbase in which seven security personnel were killed. He is also wanted for the more recent Uri attack which was carried out by suspected JeM terrorists on 18 September, who killed 18 personnel.

After receiving sanction under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the NIA will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, and handlers of four terrorists -- Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif in the charge sheet to be filed soon, official sources said.

The four terrorists, after entering into India from Bamiyal area of Gurudaspur, had carried out the strike inside the strategic Pathankot Indian Air Force base killing eight people including seven personnel of IAF and NSG.

The fresh charge sheet will help India in building pressure on the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group under the United Nations' anti-terror laws. The previous attempts were spurned after China exercised its veto power.

The charge sheet will name only four terrorists involved in the attack as against six claimed by the NSG. According to the NIA, the terrorists, who were killed after two days of gunfight were identified as Nasir Hussain, Hafiz Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum and they were residents of Vehari (Punjab), Gujranwala (Punjab), Sanghar (Sindh) and Sukkur (Sindh) districts of Pakistan respectively.

The NIA's probe will also included looking into the phone numbers and a conversation that one of the terrorists had minutes before launching the attack besides a video message of Rauf released on Jaish-affiliated website minutes after the strike.

In the video message, which was subsequently removed from the website, Rauf had claimed responsibility for the Pathankot attack.

The charge sheet will also include evidence of linking the footprints of one of the terrorists obtained from Bamiyal besides matching of DNA sample found from a soft drink can in the hijacked car of Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.

The Pathankot terror strike had seen a joint investigation team from Pakistan also arriving in India for carrying out a thorough probe.

However, upon their return, the Pakistani team claimed that India neither shared much of evidence nor allowed it to interrogate the personnel involved in repulsing the attack.

Azhar is wanted by India in several terror related incidents, including the Parliament attack case and bomb blast at Srinagar Assembly in year 2001.

Azhar was released by India during the 2001 Kandahar hijack and is believed to be in the protective custody of security agencies in Pakistan.
Bengaluru: BJP's Karnataka unit President B S Yeddyurappa on Monday said 'Jan Aakrosh Divas' on the demonetisation issue has proved to be "an utter flop."



"Aakrosh Divas called by Opposition parties has proved to be an utter flop and is a tight slap on their faces for failing to garner support for their stand against demonetisation, which has given problems to people," he said in a statement here.



He said the "sinister design and devious attempts of the Opposition parties to misguide the people against Prime Minister Narendra Modi has utterly failed. "



"The Congress stands exposed in this exercise due their wavering stands over the issue," Yeddyurappa said.



"First it supported the Bharat bandh call given by a few parties. Later it developed cold feet when it realised that the bandh will be a flop... Congress changed its plan, from support to bandh to mere protest," he added.



At least now, Yeddyurappa said the protesting leaders should understand the "futility of opposing the BJP government on the issue of fight against corruption and black money.
Vijayawada city police commissioner D. Gautam Sawang said that up to seven additional police battalions will be deployed in Vijayawada to respond to any untoward incident during the day. (Representational image)

Vijayawada/Kurnool: The APSRTC has given specific instructions to its regional managers to take the assistance of the police to run buses if required during Mondays bandh called by non-Congress Opposition parties, corporation managing director M. Malakondaiah told this newspaper on Sunday.

Vijayawada city police commissioner D. Gautam Sawang said that up to seven additional police battalions will be deployed in Vijayawada to respond to any untoward incident during the day.

We are prepared to tackle any situation. As long as the protestors act in a democratic way, we will not intervene, Mr Sawang said. If they try to obstruct buses or any public transport and try to close shops, they will be dealt with seriously, he said.

The Congress made it clear it had not called for a bandh on Monday but would hold protests across the country against demonetisation which, it alleged, was a political move being sold as a fight against corruption.
Chandigarh: Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded handing over of the Nabha jailbreak case to CBI, alleging a deep-rooted conspiracy, "which has deepened" with the arrest of Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.



"Since the Punjab Police DGP Suresh Arora has already admitted to conspiracy and connivance in the matter, the case should not be probed by the Punjab Police and handed over to CBI for an independent investigation," he said.



Amarinder Singh also accused the ruling Akalis of "resorting to communal polarisation when faced with imminent defeat".



"The jail break incident also pointed to such an attempt by the state government," he alleged in a statement here.



Reacting to the arrest of Mintoo less than 24 hours after he dramatically escaped from Nabha jail in Patiala district along with five others yesterday, Amarinder warned against allowing the matter to be pushed under the carpet with the arrest of Mintoo, and called for a thorough probe.



"It is a clear case of connivance," he maintained and added that since Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, the case could jointly be probed by the CBI and the IB, with support from the Delhi Police.



"The ease of his arrest belied Sukhbir Badal's claims of a Pakistani role in the escape of the hardcore terrorist, who has about a dozen terror cases against him," said Amarinder.



"Had the whole thing been plotted from across the border, Mintoo would have by now escaped out of India, instead of waiting in Delhi to be nabbed," he further stated.



The former Punjab Chief Minister demanded "meticulous interrogation" of Mintoo by independent agencies to get at the root of the conspiracy.



"With the entire police and administrative machinery in Punjab in the grip of the Akalis, such blatant incidents of law and order breakdown were to be expected in the run-up to the Assembly polls in the state," he said.

Assembly polls in Punjab are scheduled early next year.

Expressing apprehensions of violence and possible terrorist attacks in the poll-bound state, Amarinder reiterated his demand for imposition of President's Rule to ensure free and fair elections in Punjab.

Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was today nabbed from Delhi railway station.
New Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh will lead the Indian delegation at the funeral of Cuba's revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.

The delegation is likely to include leaders from various political parties like the Congress, CPI(M), CPI and Samajwadi Party.

The team will leave for Havana on Tuesday and is expected to return on Thursday evening, official sources said.

The composition of the delegation is still being worked out by the Prime Minister's Office in consultation with the Ministries of the External Affairs and Home.

After two days of commemorations in Cuba's capital Havana, Castro's ashes will go on a four-day island-wide procession starting Wednesday before being buried in the southeastern city of Santiago de Cuba on December 4.

Castro died on November 25 at the age 90, after defying the United States during a half-century of iron-fisted rule and surviving the eclipse of global communism.

Castro, whose 1959 revolution toppled a dictatorship with the promise of bringing justice and equality to his Caribbean island, was a major 20th century figure.
Hyderabad: Union home minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said he does not look at the terror outfit ISIS as a challenge as he believes that Muslims in India love their country.

Im sure the threat of radicalisation by ISIS wont be an issue in our nation because people who follow Islam in India love the country, he said while talking to the media after attending the three-day annual DGP conference at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy.

I have stated clearly that no innocent should be troubled and none of the offenders should be spared, he said.

Mr Singh said the conference discussed the emerging security scenario and challenges faced by the police. The conference discussed issues like challenges of terrorism, radicalisation, cyber-crime, road safety and airport security, he said. The conference was attended by 100 DGPs and IGPs.
Opinion / Columnist

Hear me: when President Mugabe, Tsvangirai, Mnangagwa, Chamisa, Kasukuwere land in Matebeleland to address a rally, they are always in company of an interpreter. The obvious, they care less to learn languages of Matebeleland region.But when Prof Moyo, Prof Ncube, Nkomo, late G . Sibanda, Khuphe, Mpofu, Mohadi, address in Mashonaland do address in Shona.Who are tribalist or regionalists in this regard? Hard Facts will do!

Source - Black Sibasa on Facebook

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Madurai: In raids in several places in the city, three suspected al-Qaeda operatives were on Monday arrested by the National Investigation Agency, police said.

Police said the three allegedly planned to attack 22 top leaders of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

They were allegedly involved in threatening embassies of various countries in India, police said.

Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali. While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from G R Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram, police said.

Explosive materials were also seized from them.

Police said NIA raided several places on specific information that suspected Al-Qaeda activists were operating from South Tamil Nadu in and around Madurai.

"Explosive materials and arms have been seized from them," police said, declining to elaborate.

The trio was allegedly running the al-Qaeda unit in South Tamil Nadu. They were also allegedly involved in the explosions that took place in various courts in the country over a period of time, police added.

NIA were also searching for two other suspected al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman, they said.
New Delhi: A united Opposition on Monday continued to disrupt proceedings in Rajya Sabha over hardships caused to the people due to demonetisation of 500 and 1000 rupee notes, forcing it to adjourn for the day.

Congress, TMC and BSP members trooped into the Well shouting slogans against the government, forcing proceedings to be adjourned first for 30 minutes and then till noon.

Soon after the House mourned the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and the listed papers were laid, Naresh Agrawal (SP) said nationwide protest is being observed today against demonetisation that has caused hardships to common man.

'All India Protest', called Aakrosh Diwas, has been called to highlight the hardships, he said as other opposition leaders including Mayawati (BSP), Derek O'Brien (TMC), Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M), Anand Sharma (Cong) joined in.

Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the nation was seething in anger over the hardship and harassment caused because of the announcement made by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8.

Soon Congress and TMC members trooped into the well of the House shouting slogans against the Prime Minister. Ruling benches also joined him by shouting slogans favouring start of a discussion on the issue.

I&B Minister M Venkaiah Naidu rose to state that the discussion which had started on the opening day of the Winter Session of Parliament on November 16 and has not yet concluded, should be resumed, instead of such disruption of proceedings.

Deputy Chairman P J Kurien agreed with the suggestion of Naidu but the din continued, forcing him to adjourn the proceedings for half an hour.

When the House met after adjournment, the Opposition was again on their feet shouting slogans like 'Janta Ka Paisa Janta Ko Do' (Give money to the people, it is their's).

Deputy Chairman Kurien insisted that the discussion on the demonetisation be resumed, when Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M) asked "Why is the Prime Minister not coming (to the House)?"

"You start. The Prime Minister will come. How do you know that the Prime Minister will not come," Kurien said, adding that it is already on the record that the Prime Minister will speak on the issue.

As the Opposition members kept shouting slogans in the Well, the Chair adjourned the House till noon.

When the House reassembled at noon for Question Hour, Leader of Opposition and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said he wanted to "make it clear" that 18 Opposition parties have decided to observe 'Jan Akrosh Divas' today.

"We did not discuss anything on Bharat Bandh. If anyone has raised the issue of Bharat Bandh, it is the Prime Minister. He is responsible for Bharat Bandh.

"We are observing this day as 'Jan Aakrosh Divas' to raise the 'aakrosh' (anguish) across the country. There is 'aakrosh' (anger) among the youth, the women and the old against this new policy of demonetisation," Azad said, adding that so far 75 people have lost their lives due to the government's decision to go for demonetisation.

The senior Congress leader also said a 96-year old man had died while standing in a queue outside a bank in Chennai and also the death of a young girl who did not have money for her wedding.

Earlier, when Ansari allowed Azad to speak, Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu rose to take up an issue saying "we need to raise a point".

Ansari, however, said the floor has already been given to Azad and if the government has a point it would be allowed later.

Amid the din raised by treasury benches, Chairman Hamid Ansari adjourned the proceedings till 1400 hours "because the House is not being allowed to run".

Meanwhile, a vociferous Opposition in the Lok Sabha continued their protests against the government over the demonetisation issue, forcing adjournment of the proceedings till noon.

When the Rajya Sabha resumed, Ghulam Nabi Azad attacked the government, saying that the PM had broken protocol by not speaking in Parliament on demonetisation on the first day of the Winter Session.

Hitting back, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that the Opposition only wants to speak but not to listen to the government.

Opposition parties have been stepping up their protests against the government's decision to withdraw old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and are also observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' across the country on Monday.

Lok Sabha has witnessed a virtual washout of proceedings since the Winter Session started on November 16 due to the protests over the demonetisation issue.
Guwahati: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stressed on the need for close coordination between the militancy-infested northeastern states and suggested that every police officer should devote at least 100 hours in a year to train their subordinates.

Modi and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting with the Director Generals of Police of northeastern states during the three-day DGP conference at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy in Hyderabad, the security sources said.

According to the sources, Modi wanted police forces of Assam, Nagaland, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh to work in close coordination.

During the meeting, Modi also asked the DGPs to periodically review the status of the family members of those police personnel who lost their lives while fighting against the insurgency in the region, sources added.

The DGPs were also asked to remain vigilant of the radical forces and were advised to intensify surveillance on cyber space, which is used by insurgent groups to propagate their subversive plans and propaganda, the sources said.

The Prime Minister assured to facilitate central assistance to modernise the state police forces to cope with the growing challenges in this age of technology.

The Prime Minister and the Home Minister also underlined the success of Assam police in conducting one of the most peaceful elections in the state and containing the activities of anti-talk faction of NDFB, the sources said.

Expressing concern about the poor housing facilities for the police personnel in the region, Modi and Singh also asked the DGPs to increase the housing facilities for the policemen.
The police do not have the powers to take the custodial remand of the accused, he said. (Representational Image)

Bengaluru: With greater stress now on digital economy and online cash transactions, cyber security experts warn of a bigger danger, of online fraud and cyber security attacks, which India is presently ill-equipped to prevent or deal with, said Neeraj Aarora, advocate on record, Supreme Court, cyber lawyer and international arbitrator.

Mr Aarora told Deccan Chronicle that digital economy faces a more sinister challenge from new set of crimes and fraudsters than cash transactions. The job of terrorists and antinational elements has become easier. While counterfeit currency could be identified and terrorists needed manpower to circulate it in the market, in the case of online fraud fixing identity will be a bigger issue. We lack adequate laws and professional expertise to prevent and counter cyber security attacks, he said.

The Information Technology (IT) Act is not adequate to deal with online fraud, he explained. Sections 66, 66A, 66C and 66D of the IT Act, which deal with punishment for phishing, disguising email containing the fake link of bank to mislead the recipient about the origin of such email, disguising of fraudster as the real banker and misuse of the unique identifying feature of the bank for fraud and impersonation are all bailable offences. The police do not have the powers to take the custodial remand of the accused, he said.

Ransomware is another real threat in the virtual world. Indian laws are toothless to deal with ransomware as most provisions in law  Section 43(c) of IT Act, Section 383/384 Indian Penal Code  are also bailable and are soft to deal with such offences.

Further, the lack of investigative skills with law enforcement agencies in the country, coupled with requisite trans-jurisdictional investigation, creates a safe haven for such cyber criminals.

Further, the manner in which Indians are participating in cyber crimes and given the technical knowhow the Indian community has, the bigger risk would be swinging of Indian cyber criminals into the ransomware industry. In the absence of cash if digital system becomes the victim of ransomware, how will we encounter the threat, he questioned.

In September, the countrys largest bank, the State Bank of India, and its subsidiary banks had to block about 6.25 lakh debit cards of their customers following a malware-related security breach at non-SBI ATM machines.

Credit wages of labourers into their accounts: Ministry

Following the Union governments decision on demonetisation, the labour ministry has directed all service providers to credit the salaries of all labourers in the unorganised sector, like construction, into their bank accounts.

The ministry has directed all the banks and companies concerned to ensure one bank account per family at the earliest. With this, nationalised banks in the city are now holding account opening drives in many public places, like ESI hospitals. A bank officer said that for the first time, labourers from the unorganised sector are brought under the formal banking system.
Circle Officer Bhushan Verma said that the family was accused of stealing a radish from fields. (Representational image)

Lucknow: A 30-year-old Dalit was shot at allegedly by a village head and three others who also thrashed his family members after accusing them of stealing a radish.

The incident took place in Muzaffarnagar district on Sunday when the four accused, including the village head Anil, his son Nishant and nephew Sarouttem, reached the victim, Sunil Kumars house in a car and started beating his family members.

Circle Officer Bhushan Verma said that the family was accused of stealing a radish from fields. When Sunil Kumar protested, the accused fired at him.
Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday said if Telangana state was to survive demonetisation, it should become a cashless transaction state as soon as possible and the government would come up with measures to achieve this task faster.

Mr Rao said he would make the Siddipet Assembly constituency a 100 per cent cashless transaction constituency in a month or two to gain first-hand experience on what measures were required to make the state switch to cashless transactions.

As part of this, cash transactions of only up to Rs 500 would be allowed and anything over this would have to be made through bank transactions like cheques, debit/credit cards etc.

Addressing a press conference in the Secretariat to brief the details of the Cabinet meeting, Mr Rao said that only the abolition of high-value currency notes would not check black money and appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to dismantle black money in all forms like jewellery, foreign currency, shares etc., else the demonetisation exercise would be futile. Mr Rao also announced the introduction of a TS Wallet scheme soon to encourage cashless transactions in the state.

He also predicted abolition of the new Rs 2,000 notes anytime. The Chief Minister said that Mr Modi should scrap income tax after India became a cashless transaction country because the Centres income would increase manifold after this and there would be no need to impose I-T on people.

What Modi did is for a noble cause, says KCR

He, however, welcomed the Prime Minister Narendra Modis decision on demonetisation saying that it was for a noble cause of curbing black money and should not be opposed blindly.

Mr Rao said a five-member task force comprising senior IAS officers to recommend measures on making TS a cashless transaction state had already been constituted and it started its exercise from day one of demonetisation.

Based on the committee's suggestions, he said the government had decided to allow high-value transactions in departments such as Stamps and Registrations, Excise etc. only through banks and no cash will be accepted.

Mr Rao admitted that people were going through severe hardships on account of currency crisis. Telangana has around Rs 75,000 crore of cash in circulation. After demonetisation, Rs 35,000 crore was deposited in banks, while banks supplied only Rs 12,500 cash. Even this comprised Rs 2,000 notes, which served no purpose due to the change problem. This huge demand-supply gap in currency resulted in sufferings for people, Mr Rao added.

He said the state had suffered revenue losses of up to Rs 1,500 crore this month and was expected to lose up to Rs 7,500 crore in the remaining four months of this fiscal.

As of now there is no problem to pay salaries and pensions for staff. The real impact of demonetisation will be felt in December, Mr Rao said.

The CM hoped that the tax devolution to states from the Centre would increase manifold after achieving the cashless transaction nation tag. Now, TS is getting nearly Rs 13,000 crore from the Centre towards tax devolution. This is expected to witness a five-six fold increase later, Mr Rao predicted. He said he was also in favour of extending government funding for political parties to fight elections.
Mumbai: The Kalyan-based family of Aman Tandel  who was part of a group of four youths who went to Iraq in May 2014 to fight for transnational terror outfit Islamic State  said on Monday that they had received a call on Saturday night, from what appeared to be a satellite phone, informing them about his death in an accident.

It is suspected that Tandel died in an air strike. The family is set to hand over the phone set on which the call came to the police for a probe into the nature and origin of the call.

The unidentified caller, who the family suspects to be a Turkish male, had spoken to Naeem, Tandels father, who spoke to this newspaper. The state Anti-Terrorism Squad and NIA have asked the local police to submit a report to them.
Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo being produced at Patiala House court in New Delhi on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The police recaptured top Sikh militant Harminder Singh Mintoo from a railway station in Delhi on Monday, a day after 10 gunmen stormed a high-security prison in Punjab and freed him and five others.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief was arrested in a joint operation by the Punjab and Delhi police from the Nizamuddin railway station while he was trying to flee to Mumbai.

He tried to whip out a sophisticated semi-automatic pistol, but the police overpowered him, sources said. The separatist militant was sent to seven days of judicial custody after being produced before a Delhi court.

Mintoo had trimmed his hair and beard after the escape. From Mumbai, he wanted to move to Goa where some of his family members live, and then fly to either Malaysia or Germany, sources said.

He has about a dozen cases pending against him. Searches are on to nab his aide Kashmira Singh, said to be hiding in Delhi, who also escaped from Nabha jail in Punjabs Patiala district.

During searches at bus terminals and railway stations, a police team noticed a Sikh man with his beard trimmed haphazardly. He looked extra conscious which raised suspicion. He later told the police that the jailbreak was planned and executed by his co-inmates, members of a criminal gang.

Mintoo had been deported from Thailand and arrested in Delhi in 2014 on a string of terror charges. Punjab battled Pakistan-backed Sikh militancy for a separate homeland for more than two decades till early 1990s.

The Intelligence wing of the Punjab police had cautioned the state and all district police units about a fortnight ago that Pakistans Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) could try to carry out terror strikes ahead of next years Assembly elections.
Communist Russias military has decided to go in for Indias traditional yogic exercises and the ancient art of ayurveda to cure the ill and heal the injured. (Representational image)

NEW DELHI: Call it the Narendra Modi effect and the Indian Prime Ministers effort to promote yoga at the international level. Communist Russias military has decided to go in for Indias traditional yogic exercises and the ancient art of ayurveda to cure the ill and heal the injured. These two disciplines are among a host of Oriental disciples, including medicinal systems of the Tibetan, Uighur, Buryat and Yakut.

Russian media quoted Colonel Vyacheslav Polovinka, head of the Moscow branch of the S.M. Kirov Military Medical Academy, as saying: The decision to use methods of traditional oriental medicine was made by the main military medical directorate of the ministry of defence.

The training of specialists in these fields will start next year at the Moscow branch of the S.M. Kirov Military Medical Academy and dedicated and specialised rooms dealing with these systems will soon be set up in all Russian military medical facilities.

We are studying the experience and subtlety of oriental medicine, which evolved over thousands of years, and are trying to integrate them into our standard treatments, Col. Polovinka was quoted as saying.

The move comes in the backdrop of a controversy in June 2015 when authorities in central Russias Nizhnevartovsk referring to the occult character of yoga reportedly instructed the citys culture, sports, and education department to take measures to stop the practice of yoga in municipal institutions.

Interestingly, in November 2015, Russian and Indian military troops practised yogic exercises like Anulom-Vilom, Suryasana, Vajrasana and Ardha Matsyendrasana in special sessions during the Indra-2015 bilateral military exercise in Rajasthan.

Besides physiological improvements, yoga is also said to enhance an individuals capacity to deal with stress, mental tension, and emotional overload.

Indian military and the paramilitary as also the defence forces of many western countries are taking to yoga in a big way and have made it part of their daily activities.
The Pakistan High Commissioner also once again spoke about the J&K issue being the core issue between the two countries and the root of tensions. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: Chastened by the strong Indian military response at the borders, Pakistan on Monday sought to nudge India towards talks, with the move coming just days ahead of the start of the Heart of Asia (HoA) conference in Amritsar.

The timing is being seen as significant, considering that the Pakistan Armys hardline chief Gen. Raheel Sharif will demit office on Tuesday, paving the way for a re-asserting of authority by the Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The Pakistan PMs advisor on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz will be visiting Amritsar in the first week of December for the HoA conference on Afghanistan.

On Monday, Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit told a TV channel that if India, being the host of the HoA conference, moots a proposal for talks, Pakistan would consider it positively.

He also said that as of now there was no proposal for bilateral talks (between Mr Aziz and the Indian leadership at Amritsar on the sidelines of the conference).

If India, being the host, comes forward, Pakistan will respond favourably, Mr Basit said. With the end of the tenure of the hardline Gen. Raheel Sharif and change of guard in the Pakistan Army and asked about its impact on the civilian Government in Pakistan, Mr Basit said the civil-military issue there was unnecessarily being given importance, adding that all institutions in Pakistan are stronger and in favour of democracy.

The Pakistan High Commissioner also once again spoke about the J&K issue being the core issue between the two countries and the root of tensions.

He also claimed that Pakistan also wanted to talk about its concerns on terrorism and raise various issues with India.
Opinion / Columnist

"Zim re-engagement with EU anchored on respect for democratic values" screamed the headline in The Zimbabwean. The tragedy for Zimbabwe is the EU has not been a true and consist friend for the longsuffering people of Zimbabwe because the EU has revised and even ignored the "democratic values" so often the value and purpose of the anchor has been compromised and lost."For this country to reintegrate into the international community fully and create an environment which creates confidence for investors to come back, it is critical that these (2018) elections are peaceful and lead to an acceptable result which means that there should be a minimal level of transparency and fairness in the system. If you don't have that you create a new cycle of instability which will scare off investors," Ambassador Philippe Van Damme, the EU Head of Delegation to Zimbabwe told the The Zimbabwean."The conclusion of everybody (European investors) is always the same, they are all charmed by this country and impressed by the potential of this country but they all have the same type of concerns. The legal framework remains very uncertain."No thinking Zimbabwean would disagree with that. The billion-dollar question is; how do we remove a well-entrenched corrupt and tyrannical dictatorship that has corrupted every State institution and has a well-organized and well-funded vote rigging juggernaut so the country can finally hold it first ever free, fair and credible elections?After 36 years of independence the country is nowhere near holding its first free and fair elections. Zimbabweans themselves have struggle to define what constitute free, fair and credible elections and thus agree on what democratic reforms the nation needs to implement. The EU's policy inconsistences have not helped the people of Zimbabwe."What is important is that we continue dialogue with stakeholders to see how we can entrench a democratic culture. Constitutionalism is about aligning the laws to the constitution. It is also about people being aware of the contents of the constitution and what are the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in the constitution and knowing what are the consequences of that to their daily lives," said Van Damme.This is not helping the people of Zimbabwe for two reasons:a) No Zimbabwean worth his/her salt has ever argued that aligning existing law with the new 2013 constitution will deliver the free, fair and credible elections because the latter is a weak and feeble constitution that has given the State president "excessive powers with no democratic checks and balances", according to Senator David Coltart. Just because some of the country's feeble minded opposition leaders have been calling for this realignment does not mean it is the right solution. The feeble minds failed to implement the reforms during the GNU and insisted the 2013 elections would be free and fair.b) Everyone else has been calling for the formation of a National Transition Authority or some such independent body to implement the democratic reforms necessary to dismantle the Zanu PF dictatorship and the vote rigging machinery to ensure the next elections are free and fair. It is shocking that the EU is trusting the Zanu PF regime to implement the reforms.It is no secret that the EU lifted its targeted sanctions on all the Zanu PF individuals and institutions, all except President Mugabe and his wife Grace, in 2015 not because the Union was ever under any illusions that the July 2013 elections were free and fair. The whole world saw the blatant vote rigging of bussed hooded voters, the regime stubbornly refusing to release the voters roll, etc. The sanctions were lifted out of economic consideration; Belgium, in particular, was desperate to renew trade in Zimbabwe diamonds; and so democratic values were trumped by economic consideration.Zimbabwe is in serious economic trouble and another failed election in 2018 could send the nation tumbling over the edge into the abyss. This country cannot take any chances; the solution we want MUST deliver free, fair and credible elections.Anyone, anyone at all, still arguing that realigning the exist laws to a weak constitution and that we should trust this Zanu PF dictatorship to preside over its own demise regime is not a true friend of the longsuffering people of Zimbabwe and must be ignored! We are looking for a way out of this hell and not for yet another quick-fix solution that will drag us even deeper into this hell!We have the Zanu PF dictatorship being assisted by the Chinese, Israeli and other foreign nations to rig elections, on the one hand. On the other, we have a basketful of corrupt, incompetent and confused Zimbabweans who have failed to get even one reform implemented when they had the golden opportunity to do so. The last thing we want is add the EU in the mix, when all they are doing is muddy the already mudded waters.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will decide on Tuesday the issue whether gangster-turned-RJD leader Mohd Shahabuddin can be shifted from Siwan jail in Bihar to Tihar Jail in Delhi to ensure a fair trial in the pending cases against him.

A Bench of Justices Dipak Msira and Amitav Roy after hearing counsel for the parties in a brief order said, The core issue that would arise for deliberation is whether the concept and conception of fair trial would command transfer of the cases to the CBI for conducting as well and the shifting Shahabuddin to Tihar Jail, Delhi.

The court said it is a test case for our criminal jurisprudence and how far witnesses can be given protection to ensure a free and fair trial and indicated that it will pass orders in this regard on Tuesday.

Senior counsel Dushyant Dave, appearing for petitioner Asha Ranjan, journalist submitted that Shahabuddin has been convicted but in many cases trial is in process.
The Haryana police force was on maximum alert on Monday, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab. (Photo: PTI/File)

Chandigarh: The Haryana police force was on maximum alert on Monday, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab, even as one more abandoned car was found in Kaithal district.

Acting on inputs that some fugitives had passed through Haryana territory, the police remained on maximum alert and a vigorous search was on to nab the accused.

"We are maintaining a high alert. If any of the fugitive is found in Haryana, we will immediately nab him," IGP Karnal Range, Subhash Yadav said.

Another car was on Monday found abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.

"A car has been found in the village," IGP Yadav said, adding it was suspected to have been used in yesterday's jailbreak incident.

Another car had been found abandoned yesterday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

"Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, Kumar said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Security has been beefed up in Haryana and police force has been put on high alert after Nabha jailbreak incident at Patiala in neighbouring Punjab on Sunday.

The borders with Patiala and the adjoining borders with Ambala, Kaithal and Jind have already been sealed.

Checking is being carried out at 'nakas', Yadav said. Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.
Two sons of a local BJP MLA were arrested in connection with the death of a youth in a bar fight. (Representational image)

Nagpur: Two sons of a local BJP MLA surrendered along with three others before police in Nagpur in connection with the death of a 21-year-old man after they allegedly got into drunken brawl with him at a bar last week. A case of attempt to murder has been registered against them.

Rohit and Abhilash, sons of MLA Krishna Khopde, were allegedly involved in a brawl at a bar-cum-restaurant in Shankar Nagar square area of the city on November 20.

Abhilash was discharged on Sunday from hospital where he was admitted after the brawl while Rohit was absconding since both of them were booked for attempt to murder, police said.

Abhilash and Rohit, accompanied by their father, walked to the Ambazari police station on Sunday night and both were subsequently arrested, police said.

Khopde is the MLA from East Nagpur constituency.

The deceased, identified as Shubham Mahakalkar was said to be the friend of the brother duo.

Rohit and Abhilash were booked under various sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 307 (attempt to murder).

Police had earlier launched a manhunt to nab them.
Mumbai: With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in a commanding position in the first phase of municipal council polls in Maharashtra, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday thanked the people of the state for placing their faith in the party and also hailed the efforts of Chief Minsiter Devendra Fadnavis.

"I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP," he said in a series of tweets.

Thanking the people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP, Prime Minister Modi said that this is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.

BJP Chief Amit Shah, however, took a swing at the opposition saying that the results are a wake-up call for them.

"BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics. Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on #Demonetisation, a decision in national interest," he tweeted.

Post the Centre's demonetisation move, voting was held in 147 municipal seats and 17 Panchayat seats on Sunday.

Early trends indicated the BJP had charged ahead and made its mark in areas that were Congress and NCP strongholds.

Of the 2,501 seats for which results have been declared, the BJP has won 610 seats while the Shiv Sena has won 402. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Indian National Congress have won 482 and 408 seats respectively.

The BJP has clearly retained the public's favour, despite the opposition's fervent claim that the ruling party would face a major loss in the polls, post the inconveniences thrust upon the masses due to demonetisation.
New Delhi: On a day when they were observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' to protest demonetisation, opposition parties on Monday held a strategy meet where they decided to continue their stir in Parliament till Prime Minister Narendra Modi replies to their concerns and a JPC probe is announced in alleged leak of the decision.

A meeting of all the opposition parties, barring JD(U), was held in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad in Parliament House here and it was decided that the protests will continue till their demands are met, sources said.

However, some fissures also appeared in the opposition as the JD(U) skipped the meeting with sources saying party leader Sharad Yadav had left Delhi early this morning.

The opposition parties have been divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against it.

While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, other opposition parties stayed away.

Shiv Sena has backed demonetisation but said it is unhappy over the way it was causing problems to people.

Asserting that the entire nation is backing the government's demonetisation drive, Union Minister Ananth Kumar on Monday reprimanded the opposition over the planned 'Aakrosh Divas' and said that they must engage in parliamentary debate instead of acting in an irresponsible manner.

"If they are protesting then they should be protesting against corruption, black money, fake currency and terrorism. I just don't understand that they are fighting in an opposite direction. The entire country is with the government in this crusade against black money and corruption under the leadership of Narendra Modi but the Congress and other opposition parties are acting in a opposite direction," he said.

"Even today I want to tell them that if you want to show your anguish protest against corruption, black money and terrorism, participate in a debate in both the houses we are ready to give reply also but I don't understand why they are running away from debate and working in a opposite direction," he added.

The opposition parties have called for a countrywide protest today against what they call the government's "mishandling" of the currency ban. Only the Left Front, which has a presence in Kerala, Bengal and Tripura, has called for a strike or 'Bharat Bandh' in the three states.

Banks, ATM services, post offices, hospital and medical clinics, ambulance, milk, water and power supplies, newspapers and marriages would be out of the purview of the strike.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday slammed the opposition for its all-India shutdown call over demonetisation, saying the country instead needed an end to evils like corruption and black money.

He described demonetisation as a cure to the 70-year-old disease of corruption.
New Delhi: LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan on Monday said he will welcome Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar into the NDA and claimed that the JD(U) chief was apprehensive that his ally Lalu Prasad of the RJD would weaken his party.

Speaking to reporters on the 16th foundation day of his party, the Union Minister lauded Mr Kumar for his support to the Centre's demonetisation step, saying he had taken a "bold decision".

Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party is part of the ruling NDA coalition at the Centre.

"If Nitish Kumar comes to the NDA, I will welcome him," the LJP leaded said. He, however, added that any such decision was the prerogative of the BJP, which headed the coalition.

Paswan claimed that Kumar, whose party JD(U) was a former BJP ally, was working "under the pressure of Prasad" who had a "history of weakening his allies".

He cited the examples of Congress and CPI, both of which were influential in Bihar in the 90s but lost much of it during their alliance with the former chief minister, and claimed that the JD(U)-RJD alliance will not last for more than two-and-a-half years.

Sources in the JD(U) though rebuffed speculation over Mr Kumar's support to demonetisation and BJP or Mr Paswan's praise for the Bihar Chief Minister.
US President-elect Donald Trumps nomination of Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, as the next US ambassador to the United Nations is a landmark for the three million-plus upwardly mobile Indian-American diaspora community. As the first Indian-American to get a Cabinet-level position in the federal government, Ms Haley is an inspiring example, particularly to minority women. The 2016 election season in the US marks the political ascent of Indian-Americans, with a record five among them winning seats in Congress. Three of these flagbearers are women  Kamala Harris (Democrat of California), Pramila Jaypal (Democrat of Washington) and Tulsi Gabbard (Democrat of Hawaii). Together with Nikki Haley, they are a manifestation of the incredible talent, people skills and commitment to public service which women of Indian origin bring to American politics.

Governor Haley has never shied away from touting her Indian roots as the daughter of Punjabi Sikh migrants. Unlike Bobby Jindal, the former Republican governor of Louisiana who disowned India, Ms Haley has proudly blended her Asian ethnic identity into her persona and harnessed it for international business linkages. The sub-unit diplomacy she has engaged with India to attract trade and investment benefits for South Carolina has been striking given her deep gratitude and respect for India and its cultural heritage. The sight of Governor Haley fighting to control her tears at the Golden Temple in Amritsar in 2014 is etched in memory. Here was an American politician and a rising star in the Republican Party telling the world that her faith and beliefs are a seamless amalgam of Western Christianity and Eastern Sikhism. That she carries off her Indianness effortlessly despite pressure to conform to a stereotypical mainstream identity in US politics is a tribute to increasing maturity and self-confidence of Indian-Americans.

Instead of getting co-opted into the dominant construct of whiteness, Ms Haley represents a confluence of civilisations. Aged just 44, she believes in a syncretic America. She initially dared to critique Donald Trumps hate-mongering during the presidential election campaign, but later accepted the mantle of serving as his ambassador to the UN out of dedication to larger American national interests. Governor Haley is a role model for minorities who are struggling to come to grips with institutionalised bigotry. In South Carolina, which has a troubled history of flagrant racist discrimination against people of colour, she has navigated the twin evils of white supremacy and sexism to thrive as a moderate Republican who appeals to a broad cross-section of society. For a woman, that too an Indian-American, to win the trust of voters in a region where majoritarian extremists of the Ku Klux Klan used to run amok is no mean achievement.

Her signature moment in American politics came in 2015 after a white nationalist massacred nine African-Americans in Charleston, South Carolina. The calming influence she brought in the aftermath won universal praise. As a Republican from the Deep South of the US, she had not hitherto challenged the racially insulting and humiliating symbol of the Confederate battle flag flying in the South Carolina Statehouse. But once the Charleston horror occurred with the killer expressing admiration for that flag, Ms Haley won over the states legislature to secure the removal of this entrenched object of hate. For this act of courage, she was branded by conservative extremists as an immigrant (she was actually born in the US) who does not understand American history. However, Ms Haley was scripting history, not succumbing to the past. It was a political risk to go against accumulated majoritarian bias, but she took the bold step thanks to her ethnic Indian comfort with diversity and tolerance.

From 2017, Ms Haley will be expected to shoulder the burden of tabling resolutions, making interventions and shaping opinions in the sanctum sanctorum of world politics  the UN Security Council. As the holder of the second-most crucial office in American diplomacy after the secretary of state, Ms Haley will be at the centre of international diplomatic jockeying and posturing. The economic diplomacy and negotiation skills Ms Haley picked up as a state governor while courting governments and private corporations in India, Germany, Sweden, Canada, Britain, France and Japan suggest that she will be a force at the UN headquarters in New York Citys Turtle Bay. The challenge for Ms Haley is to defend controversial positions of Mr Trump, who is eyed with scepticism in Europe and many other parts of the world.

Her conservative convictions favouring free markets, trade and globalisation may need to be shelved as Mr Trump promises to upend formerly sacred norms of American foreign policy. As an American ambassador to the UN, she has no alternative but to pursue Mr Trumps America First agenda. But her ethnic Indian connection and the US expanding strategic partnership with India are likely to enhance New Delhis sway in the corridors of the UN. For years, the Indian government has mounted a bipartisan lobbying operation in Washington and New York to shape American policies in New Delhis favour. With Nikki Haley in Turtle Bay and five Indian-American Congresspersons on Capitol Hill, Indias cachet in the American foreign policy calculus will grow. The fact that President-elect Trump chose Ms Haley over other hardline Republican contenders to be Americas top diplomat in the UN is a celebration of her healing and bridge-building qualities that have a sharp Indian ring to them. At a time when the US is being ridiculed in many corners of the world for rejecting liberal and inclusive values, the woman born as Nimrata Randhawa to humble Sikh parents who ran a clothing store after migrating from Punjab is the perfect antidote.
Lt. Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa has been appointed the new chief of the Pakistan Army, and will take over on Tuesday from Gen. Raheel Sharif, who turned out to be scrupulous on not playing politics to gain an extension. Like his predecessors, we may be fairly certain that the new chief will be a professional soldier who wont unleash ideological-political policies to promote jihadism, as had been done by Gen. Zia-ul Huq. That wont go down well internationally in the current climate.

But regarding India we may be just as certain that the new chief wont give up the use of militant proxies, no matter how democracy-minded and of moderate disposition Gen. Bajwa shows himself to be. This is a low-cost option short of war with deniability written all over it. China, Pakistans best friend, is likely to approve. The United States, best friend at crucial junctures, fretted and made the right noises, but went along all this time.

In Pakistan, the Army, rather than the pseudo-democratic political structure, is the keeper of the flame. It enjoys widespread public support, specially in dealing with India, whatever the means employed, including terror. But it will likely tailor its tactics in keeping with how the West, soon to be led by US President-to-be Donald Trump, sees its political and security role. Gen. Bajwa has considerable experience dealing with Kashmir and will use his knowledge and expertise to advance the Pakistan Armys interests.
The jailbreak in Punjab on Sunday was as sensational as anything that can be imagined. It almost appears to have been like a piece of theatre with a Punjabi flavour. The getaway too seemed a piece of cake. The whole thing was so surprisingly easy  and bizarre. This needs a proper explanation. Fortunately, Harminder Singh Mintoo, a leader of the Khalistan Liberation Force, the dreaded Punjab terrorist group in the days of militancy in that state in the 1980s, who was sprung from the Nabha high-security jail along with some others, was apprehended at Nizamuddin railway station in New Delhi on Monday. This is a piece of luck. He could just as easily have got away as someone like him is likely to have very good contacts and that goes a long way in this country.

In light of this, those in authority cannot take the tack that they can now breathe easy as the terrorist who escaped has been got back. There needs to be a proper, credible and independent inquiry. If such a cool adventure can be effected at Nabha high-security prison, then where should people like the KLF leader be sent back to? Since the Assembly election in Punjab is due in less than three months, suspicion does arise that giving the Khalistanis an easy ride may be part of the calculation to appease a section of the Sikh voter in the state. The Akali Dal-BJP government in Punjab led by Parkash Singh Badal had been vociferous not long ago about scrapping the death sentence of Rajona, a dreaded terrorist from the era of militancy in the state. The Akali Dal is a religious party and has not been above playing that kind of politics, although there have been times when it has been at the receiving end from the Sikh far-right.

Mr Badals son Sukhbir, who is the states deputy chief minister and holds the home portfolio, naturally has much explaining to do. The younger Badal, without a shred of even ostensible proof, has said Pakistans ISI was behind the escape from Nabha prison. That may well be the case. But for now this seems to be a stretch. The Pakistan angle appears a convenient deflection at this stage. What is the reason that states in which the BJP is in power seem so casual in matters relating to security? There was a major jailbreak near Bhopal recently that involved some Islamic militants, who were subsequently killed. That escape saga was also bewilderingly easy. And now Nabha. With two cases of this kind in quick succession, the Union home minister could perhaps urge state governments for reports on the conditions at central jails and high-security prisons across the country.
These are surreal times in India. With most of its citizens forced into queues, it is a country at a near standstill. There is despair and death as people scramble to access their money after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the most sweeping and arbitrary demonetisation since Independence, declares that the most commonly used notes have been withdrawn. That is, 86 per cent of the currency. As anger grows over peoples inability to meet even their food requirements, outraged opposition MPs seek answers from the Prime Minister who studiedly avoids Parliament but insists the abrupt switchover is essential to fight black money and counterfeit currency used to fund terrorism. Using the overheated rhetoric of nationalism, he puts critics on the defensive portraying them as deshdrohis or enemies of the state. He makes several such public speeches where he dubs anyone questioning the so-called demonetisation as both anti-national and black money hoarders.

Never mind that most Opposition politicians are only calling for better management of what must rank as the most ill-prepared and ham-handed implementation of a major policy decision. The Prime Minister mocks everyone, even those harassed citizens standing in endless queues  overwhelmingly the poor who have no bank accounts  as people with ill-gotten riches. This is as bizarre as it can get. Unmindful of the distress caused to millions, the Prime Minister even jokes about the currency crisis during a surprise video appearance at a Coldplay concert in Mumbai. But these are times defined by the cult of the leader who is mesmerised by his own myth, the myth of an invincible and infallible strongman who knows what is best for the nation. Its clear that Modis hold over his Cabinet colleagues, his BJP party and even the once independent central bank, the RBI, is complete and unchallenged. So is it surprising that senior ministers are fumbling for answers as to how matters have gone so awry?

Does it matter that the Supreme Court has questioned the constant chopping and changing of rules on cash withdrawals and warned of riots? Modi says it is all for the greater good of the nation and people must bear the pain for 50 days. After all, the Prime Ministers opinion poll on Twitter with its Hobsons choice of replies has resoundingly approved his demonetisation policy. In less than 24 hours, Modi has won 93 per cent approval from respondents using his special app! So should Modi care at all if the leader of the Communist Party Marxist has described him as a modern Tughlaq, a reference to the 14th-century Delhi ruler famous for his quixotic decisions? One such was the ill-considered decision to shift the capital of his sultanate from Delhi to Daulatabad. The other, more disastrous, was replacing gold and silver currency with brass and copper coins of equal value. Historians say that turned every Hindu home into a mint.

Fortunately for the current ruler, that is unlikely to happen in 2016. But counterfeiters may well be biding their time given the colossal currency mess. Tughlaq-like, the RBI has been releasing new notes of 500 and 2,000 in different sizes and colours which it says is due to the rush. So both versions of the notes will remain in circulation. Should Indians be laughing or crying? Where does this leave the battle against counterfeit currency and the war on terrorism? In Parliament, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called it monumental mismanagement in a case of organised loot and legalised plunder of the common people. Strong words from a man of mild disposition but then remember that over 90 per cent of the workforce is in the informal sector. More troubling is his warning that demonetisation could shave two per cent off the GDP.

As the Modi regime hits the midpoint of its five-year term the country is struggling with an increasing sense of unreality and frustration. The dream of development and jobs for the young that he sold the electorate in 2014 is turning out to be delusional  and bitterly so for many. For the very poor who subsist on daily wages, the demonetisation could be the last straw in a series of policy decisions that have had a severe impact on their lives. While a host of social welfare schemes have been repackaged to show that the governments heart beats for the poor, subsidies have, in fact, been slashed. A prime casualty of this sleight of hand is MGNREGA, the flagship employment scheme that guarantees 100 days of work for those in dire need. With much fanfare it was allocated a record budgetary allowance but in effect, people got less than 49 days. The government claimed people did not turn up for more days because they did not need work, a patently false claim in a time of drought and rural distress.

It turned out that the government used an unofficial WhatsApp group to warn states not to offer employment because the centre would not provide them the funds. By being economical with the truth and artful in deflecting criticism, Modi with his embarrassingly fawning ministers has managed to sidestep the most pointed questions. Such as why it was necessary to put the country through such turmoil when its well known that just about three per cent of unaccounted or black money is actually held in cash; the rest is stashed away abroad or is invested in real estate or in business enterprises. Since a rational answer is not possible, the government is falling back on its stock in trade, a slogan or a clever phrase that captures media attention and the right-wing Hindutva imagination. Surgical strike continues to be the current favourite since it was first used to describe a raid across the border to hit terrorist camps. A surgical strike, it was argued, would stop incursions through shock and awe. Not that it has worked since around 20 Indian soldiers have been killed thereafter along the Line of Control. Now we have a surgical strike on black money that is as misguided and way off calculations as the first. But this time around Modi may have stirred the nationalist pot once too often. For the mass of Indians whose lives are in turmoil nationalism is a poor excuse for robbing them of their own money.

By arrangement with Dawn
Apple is celebrating its 10th anniversary with the iPhone launch next year. The company has dropped several hints ever since, suggesting that they are planning a major design and specifications overhaul with the launch. Now reports suggest that the company is planning on adding a 3D camera to its speculated device.

According to a report by The Korea Economic Daily, Apple is working with LG Innotek to develop a camera module that is compatible with 3D technology.

Apple is now studying how to apply its 3D camera technology into LG Innoteks smartphone camera. Since LG Innotek also has its own 3D camera and related technologies, such joint efforts will likely to bear fruit in sometime within next year, the report read.

The report further goes on to suggest that Apple might make use of LG Innoteks 3D dual rear camera module in its future device.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Xiaomi Mi 6 is expected to be launched in March next year.

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi is rumoured to release the Mi 6 phone powered by recently unveiled Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset.

On November 17, Qualcomm in partners with Samsung unveiled its next-generation smartphone processor Snapdragon 835 with Quick Charge 4.0 technology.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 chipset will be based on a Samsung built 10nm FinFET process, replacing the largely used Snapdragon 820/821 mobile processor based on a 14nm process.

Earlier reports suggest, Samsung Galaxy S8 will be the first smartphone to sport Snapdragon 835. However, according to a report by GSMArena, an iSuppli analyst stated that Mi 6 will be the first Chinese smartphone to feature the upcoming SoC. The Xiaomi Mi 6 will be released at around the same time the Samsung Galaxy S8's international launch, he added.

Xiaomi Mi 6 is expected to be launched in March next year.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Pretoria: South Africa's scandal-plagued President Jacob Zuma is facing a vote of no confidence by the ruling party's executive committee, media reported on Monday.

The ANC's national executive committee (NEC) extended its scheduled meeting into a third day on Monday, after Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom proposed the motion of no-confidence on Saturday, said Beeld, an Afrikaans-language daily.

Committee members were locked in a "fiery and fierce" debate over whether a secret ballot should be used to decide the no-confidence motion, it added, citing unnamed sources who had attended the meeting.

The ruling party's spokesman did not respond to a telephone call to seek comment. In a statement on Sunday, the ANC did not give a reason for the extension of the meeting.

The committee, which is meeting in the capital, Pretoria, is the only body in the ruling party that can remove the leader of the party, besides its 5-yearly congress.

Zuma's presidency has been plagued by scandal and the nation's anti-graft watchdog this month asked for a judge to investigate alleged influence-peddling by a wealthy family Zuma has called his friends.
Ohio State University sent a series of tweets Monday morning warning of an active shooter on campus. (Photo: YouTube Screengrab)

Columbus: Ohio State University sent a series of tweets Monday morning warning of an active shooter on campus, telling students to shelter in place and to "Run Hide Fight."

At least seven people were hospitalised following the shooting. Condition of two of them is stable, while there were no information about five others.

Around 10 am, the university's emergency management department tweeted "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College." Watts Hall is a materials science and engineering building.

"Run, hide, fight" is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; Hide, get silently out of view; or Fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.

The university followed up with another tweet: "Continue to shelter in place in north campus area. Follow directions of Police on scene." The university asked for anyone with information to call police.

The Columbus Police Department referred calls to Ohio State. A dispatcher for Ohio State police declined to comment. The media relations office said it wasn't immediately able to comment.

Many police vehicles were at the scene. No other information was immediately available.

With nearly 60,000 students at its main Columbus campus, Ohio State is one of the nation's largest universities.
Chicago: United Airlines says a flight bound for Hong Kong from Chicago was diverted near Tokyo after 12 hours because of an "unruly passenger."

Chicago-based United Airlines spokesman Charles Hobart said Sunday that Flight 895 left O'Hare International Airport for China after 2 pm. Saturday. The plane instead landed at Narita, which is one of Tokyo's main airports.

No injuries were reported. He says 241 passengers and 15 crew members were aboard.

Hobart says law enforcement met the aircraft in Japan, but he declined to offer further details.

Hobart says the flight has departed from Japan and is expected in Hong Kong.
Florida: President-elect Donald Trump said on Sunday it's "sad" Hillary Clinton is joining an effort to force recounts of votes from the November 8 election in up to three crucial states.

Mr Trump tweeted part of Clinton's concession speech, when she told supporters they must accept that "Donald Trump is going to be our President," and snippets from her debate remarks, when she assailed the Republican nominee for refusing to say in advance that he would accept the Election Day verdict.

And it came on top of his saying it was a "scam" that Green Party nominee Jill Stein was revisiting the vote count in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Mr Trump won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday.

Ms Clinton leads the national popular vote by close to 2 million votes, but Mr Trump won 290 electoral votes to Ms Clinton's 232, not counting Michigan. It takes 270 to win the Presidency, and the three states in question could tip the electoral balance to Ms Clinton in the remote event that all flipped to her in recounts.

Wisconsin officials said Friday they were moving forward with the first Presidential recount in state history. Ms Clinton joined the effort Saturday, with her campaign attorney Marc Elias saying, "We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides."

Mr Elias said that Ms Clinton would take the same approach in Pennsylvania and Michigan if MS Stein were to follow through with recount requests in those states.

Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway noted that the President-elect hadn't ruled out the possibility of pursuing a criminal investigation into Ms Clinton's use of a private email server while Secretary of State, even if Mr Trump indicated he'd rather move past the issue.

"He's been incredibly gracious and magnanimous to Secretary Clinton at a time when, for whatever reason, her folks are saying they will join in a recount to try to somehow undo the 70-plus electoral votes that he beat her by," Ms Conway said on CNN's "State of the Union."

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a Hillary Clinton rival during the Democratic primary turned ally during the general election, defended the recount effort, telling CNN that leaders in both parties commonly request them. "No one expects there to be profound change, but there's nothing wrong with going through the process," he said.

He also suggested he would support a change to the nation's electoral college system, which allowed Mr Trump to win the presidency despite lagging in the popular vote.

"We have one candidate who got 2 million more votes than the other candidate and she is not going to be sworn in as President," Mr Sander said.

"And I think on the surface that's a little bit weird."

Donald Trump had been paying little if any attention to the recount push by Ms Stein, who has raised millions of dollars for the effort since drawing a mere one per cent of the vote nationally. But Ms Clinton's stance changed his tune.

"Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in," Donald Trump tweeted on Sunday. "Nothing will change."

He quoted from her concession speech - "We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead" - and he concluded: "So much time and money will be spent - same result! Sad."

Mr Trump, who repeatedly challenged the integrity of the US election system before his win, earlier called the recount push "a scam by the Green Party for an election that has already been conceded."

Mr Trump was expected to return to New York on Sunday after spending the Thanksgiving holiday weekend at his West Palm Beach estate. His transition team said the President-elect had scheduled a series of meetings Monday with prospective administration hires.

Among the jobs Mr Trump has still yet to fill: Secretary of State.

Internal division over the position again spilled out into the open on Sunday as Ms Conway said she had personal concerns with the possibility of Mitt Romney serving as the nation's top diplomat.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker are among other prospects.

Ms Conway noted that Mr Romney and his allies regularly attacked Mr Trump during the campaign.

"I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position," she said.

Mr Trump's incoming Chief of Staff, GOP Chairman Reince Priebus, acknowledged that a Mr Romney pick would represent "a team of rivals concept."

That possibility, Mr Priebus told "Fox News Sunday," should tell the public that Mr Trump wants to "put the best possible people together for all Americans, no matter who you are, what your religion - whatever your opinion is, he wants to move forward looking through the windshield and not the rear-view mirror."
The tanker, MT Orkim Harmony, was en route from Malaysia's western coast to the port of Kuantan on the east coast. (Photo: youtubegrab)

Kuala Lumpur: Eight Indonesians were sentenced to between 15 and 18 years in prison by a Malaysian court for the hijacking of an oil tanker last year, an official said on Monday.

The tanker MT Orkim Harmony was carrying around 6,000 tonnes of petrol worth an estimated USD 5.6 million when it was commandeered by the eight men on June 11 last year.

The tanker was en route from Malaysia's western coast to the port of Kuantan on the east coast.

Six of the pirates were sentenced to 15 years in jail and five strokes of the cane, while the other two were handed 18-year jail sentences, a Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency official told AFP.

He said that the Indonesians pleaded guilty after they were charged on Sunday in the southern state of Johor, neighbouring Singapore.

Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau's Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Center, said the shipping community hailed the punishment.

"We welcome the tough punishment. It will send a strong signal to potential pirates that crime does not pay," he told AFP.

The eight suspects had eluded security forces by escaping from the tanker on a lifeboat under cover of darkness, Malaysian authorities said at the time, after warships were scrambled to hunt down the men.

The tanker's 22 crew members were mostly unscathed except for an Indonesian sailor who was treated for a gunshot wound to the thigh.

The hijackers subsequently washed up on Vietnam's southwestern Tho Chu island on a lifeboat claiming to have had an accident at sea about a week after the hijack.

But they were taken into custody after local officials discovered they were carrying large sums of cash, and were accused of hijacking the MT Orkim Harmony oil tanker.

The Indonesians pirates were extradited to Malaysia early on Sunday after being held by Vietnamese authorities for almost 18 months.
It is alleged that Naik had been provided with immunity and support by the Malaysian government and allowed to continue his preaching. (Photo: PTI)

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia has dismissed media reports that controversial Indian preacher Zakir Naik had been granted citizenship by the country, saying it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen.

"We don't give out (citizenships) automatically unless the person was born in the country to Malaysian parents," Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said on Sunday, rejecting media reports that the Islamist preacher had been granted citizenship by the country.

"There are many processes to follow and it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen. Besides, Naik is not an important religious personality for the Southeast Asia region as we should have our own moderate model of Islam which fits the soft culture of the people here," Nur was quoted as saying by the Star online.

However, an ethnic Indian NGO, Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF), said Home Minister Zahid Hamidi had denied Naik was given citizenship, but he was silent whether he was given a Permanent Resident status.

HINDRAF alleged in a statement that Naik had been provided with immunity and support by the Malaysian government and allowed to continue his preaching that "clearly fostered the spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice towards the Non-Muslim community in Malaysia."

Muslim majority Malaysia has a 25 per cent ethnic Chinese who are mostly Buddhists and Christians and eight per cent ethnic Indians, a majority of whom are Hindus.

HINDRAF president Wayathamoorthy alleged that thousands of Malaysian Indians still continued to live in a "stateless manner."

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in India has charged Naik and banned his organisation Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) under section 153-A of IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), besides various sections of anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Manila: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday hit out at what he called "bullshit" Western threats to seek his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his role in a bloody crackdown on drugs.

Police figures show Duterte's campaign has killed more than 2,500 people since he took office on June 30, about three-quarters in police counter-narcotics operations, and the rest believed to be the victims of vigilantes or druglords eliminating rivals or silencing those who could implicate them.

An ICC prosecutor last month said the Hague-based tribunal may have jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrators of Philippines killings.

"You scare me that you will jail me? International Criminal Court? Bullshit," Duterte said during a speech.

He scolded the United States for what he called hypocritical threats to try him in the ICC, to which Washington itself is not a signatory. He did not specify when the U.S. threat was made.

The United States chose not to sign the Rome Statute to protect former President George W. Bush, Duterte said, without elaborating.

"America itself is threatening to jail me in the International Criminal Court," Duterte said. "It is not a signatory of that body. Why? Because at that time, they were afraid Bush would face it."

For months, Duterte has been ridiculing concerns that extrajudicial killings could be taking place in his drugs war, and the United States, European Union and United Nations have been the preferred targets of his comments.

The brash former mayor and prosecutor said lawyers in Europe were "rotten", "stupid", and had a "brain like a pea".

This month, Duterte said he might follow Russia's move to withdraw from the ICC, describing it as "useless".

He believes the West has failed to comprehend the gravity of the Philippines' methamphetamine problem and has said he was ready to "rot in jail" to achieve his goals.

There is nothing wrong with threatening to kill bad elements, he said on Monday.

"I will never allow my country to be thrown to the dogs," Duterte said. "I said, when I was a mayor, 'If you destroy my city with drugs I will kill you.'

"Simple as that... When was it a crime to say, 'I will kill you,' in protecting my country?"
Candlelight vigils have become the main form of mass, peaceful demonstrations in South Korea since the early 2000s, reshaping a national protest culture once known for its ferocity. (Photo: AP)

Seoul: In each of the past five Saturday evenings, thousands of protesters have transformed a darkened avenue near the South Korean presidential palace into a sea of light, waving candles, glowing smartphones and battery-powered LED sticks, singing and shouting for President Park Geun-hye to step down.

Candlelight vigils have become the main form of mass, peaceful demonstrations in South Korea since the early 2000s, reshaping a national protest culture once known for its ferocity.

Thousands participated in candlelight vigils in 2002 protesting the death of two schoolgirls struck by a US military vehicle, and in 2008 over Seoul's decision to resume US beef imports amid persisting fears of mad cow disease. The crowds calling for Park's removal have been much larger.

In these photos by Ahn Young-joon and Lee Jin-man, South Korean protesters demand the ouster of Park, who is suspected of assisting criminal activities of a secretive confidante who allegedly manipulated power from the shadows and extorted companies to amass an illicit fortune.
Seoul: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye will not answer questions from prosecutors over a snowballing influence-peddling scandal rocking her presidency, her lawyer said on Monday.

Prosecutors describe Park and her secret confidante, Choi Soon-Sil, as co-culprits in the scandal. They are accused of coercing top Seoul firms to donate over $60 million to non-profit foundations which Choi then used for personal gain. Choi was charged last week with coercion and abuse of power.

The scandal has sparked nationwide fury, with hundreds of thousands taking to the streets to call for Park's ousting.

A parliamentary vote to impeach her could take place as early as this week as a growing number of ruling party politicians back the opposition-led campaign to oust the president.

Park earlier vowed to cooperate "sincerely" with the legal probe but has rejected a series of requests in recent weeks by prosecutors to make herself available for questioning.

"We regret that we can't cooperate with the request from prosecutors to hold face-to-face questioning on November 29," Yoo Young-Ha, Park's lawyer, told reporters.

Seoul prosecutors gave Park an ultimatum last week, saying Tuesday is the final deadline for questioning before a powerful independent team of investigators takes over the probe in December.

But Park, the first South Korean president to become a criminal suspect while in office is too busy handling state affairs and preparing a legal defence against the mounting accusations, Yoo said.

It is not clear whether Park will cooperate with the new independent investigative team.

As a sitting president, Park cannot be charged with a criminal offence except insurrection or treason, but she can be investigated and potentially charged once her term is over.

The president is also accused of letting Choi, daughter of a shady religious figure who was a long time mentor to Park, meddle in state affairs including the nomination of top officials.
London: Prince William has supported his brother Prince Harry who has called for restraint in coverage of his private life.

A Kensington Palace press spokesman said Monday that William "absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy."

The comments were made in response to press questions after a newspaper suggested that William disagreed with Harry's decision to publicly complain about coverage of his relationship with new girlfriend Meghan Markle.

The spokesman says William supports Harry's desire to support "those closest to him."

Harry took the unusual step earlier this month of confirming his relationship with Markle, an American actress, and saying he was concerned for her safety because of press harassment. She recently visited Harry in London.
Heavy fighting continues in Mosul where Iraqi security forces began an assault to drive out ISIS nearly six weeks ago. (Photo: Representational Image/AFP)

London: A top UK general who was part of the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State terrorists in the Middle East on Monday said that a large amount of intelligence had been obtained on the dreaded terror group's plans to target Europe.

Major-General Rupert Jones, the deputy commander of US-led operations against the militants, said the files had been retrieved in July by Western-backed Kurdish and Arab militias from the former Islamic State (ISIS) stronghold of Manbij, in the Aleppo governorate of northern Syria.

Jones told some British newspapers that an even bigger haul of data about ISIS was expected to be uncovered in the terrorists' stronghold of Mosul, in northern Iraq, which he predicted would fall by the early half of next year.

"Manbij was hugely important for external operations. A huge amount of intelligence gathered in Manbij related to threats in Europe and elsewhere," he said.

"I am absolutely certain that an extraordinary amount of intelligence will come out of Mosul. We have ramped up as a coalition our ability to gather and process all that intelligence, because it will be a labyrinth of intelligence and we need to get that into the hands of intelligence agencies," he said.

While specific plots against Britain had not yet emerged, he said he was in no doubt that ISIS, also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh, remained a threat.

"If we want to keep Britain safe, if we want to keep Europe safe, then we need to come and deal with Daesh," Jones said.

Heavy fighting continues in Mosul where Iraqi security forces began an assault to drive out ISIS nearly six weeks ago. The upcoming struggle for Raqqa will be worse, Jones predicted.

"What we are now in the process of doing is starting the isolation of Raqqa. For as long as Raqqa is sitting there, they can orchestrate external operations. So the sooner it's liberated or the sooner Daesh are liberated from there, the better," he said.

Jones stressed that an "extraordinary amount of progress" had been made by Western-backed Iraqi and Syrian forces.
Islamabad: With its new army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa set to take charge, Pakistan has asserted that focus will remain on country's eastern border with India, even as the US nudged Islamabad to keep the pledge of not allowing use of its soil for terror attacks against neighbours.

Gen Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest army by troop numbers from Pakistan's outgoing Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif, who paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Monday.

Sharif and Hussain praised Gen Raheel's valuable service as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life, Radio Pakistan reported.

"The military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it (under Bajwa)," Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Geo News.

"The focus will remain on country's eastern border and the armed forces backed by the nation will meet all challenges," he said.

"The legacy of General Raheel Sharif would continue in the light of the examples he set," Asif said.

The Defence Minister expressed hope that the government and military leadership will continue to work together for the betterment of the country.

General Raheel will become the first army chief in more than 20 years to step down at the end of his term. Previous army chiefs have either obtained extensions or in the case of General Pervez Musharraf, staged a coup.

Meanwhile, the United States on Sunday welcomed the appointment of the new army chief and expressed hope that the country would never allow the use of its soil for terrorism against its neighbours.

The US embassy in Islamabad, in a statement, welcomed Prime Minister Sharif's appointment of Bajwa.

"We look forward to continuing our work with Pakistan's elected leaders, with Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and with the Pakistani military to advance our shared counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism goals for Pakistan and the region, and to enable Pakistani authorities to honour their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistan's soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbours," it said.

Raheel, who is set to retire tomorrow, was appointed as army chief in 2013 by Prime Minister Sharif at the retirement of Gen Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani.

According to Pakistani media and experts, General Bajwa's "pro-democracy credentials" and his low-profile influenced Sharif to appoint him to the powerful post of army chief superseding four top generals.

The military has been in charge of the country for more than half of Pakistan's nearly 70-year history since independence.
Yangon: Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Monday postponed a visit to Indonesia after protests there over her country's bloody crackdown on Rohingya Muslims and a thwarted plot to attack its Jakarta embassy.

Thousands of desperate Rohingya have flooded over the border from Myanmar's Rakhine state into Bangladesh in the past week, making horrifying claims of gang rape, torture and murder at the hands of security forces.

The Nobel laureate has faced a growing international backlash for what a UN official has said amounts to a campaign of ethnic cleansing.

Suu Kyi's government has denied the allegations, saying the army is hunting "terrorists" behind deadly raids on police posts last month.

Foreign journalists and independent investigators have been banned from verifying what is happening in the north of Rakhine state bordering Bangladesh.

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets last week in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, calling for the government to break off diplomatic ties with Myanmar.

On Sunday Indonesian police said they had arrested a third Islamic State-linked militant accused of plotting to bomb Myanmar's embassy in Jakarta.

Suu Kyi had been due to visit Indonesia after a trip to Singapore from November 30-December 2, but a senior foreign ministry official said the trip had been delayed.

"We postponed the Indonesia trip because of the problems in Rakhine and also northern Shan State" where the army is fighting ethnic insurgents, said deputy director general Aye Aye Soe.

"It will be arranged in the near future," she told AFP, denying that the delay was due to security concerns.

Some 30,000 Rohingya have fled their homes in Myanmar, where even in normal times they are denied citizenship, healthcare and education and have their movements severely restricted.

Dhaka says thousands more are massed on the border but it has refused urgent international appeals to let them in, instead calling on Myanmar to do more to stop people fleeing.

On Monday border guards pushed back eight more boatloads of Rohingya who were attempting to cross the Naf River to southern Bangladesh.
Islamabad: The Baluchistan High Court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.

A divisional bench of the Baluchistan High Court passed the order during hearing of review petition challenging acquittal of the 73-year-old former president by an Anti-Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.

Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, the son of Akbar Bugti.

The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".

However, Bugti's lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former president Pervez Musharraf has failed to appear before the court.

The court ordered that the administration should ensure adequate security to Musharraf while he appears in court.

Pakistan government had allowed Musharraf to go abroad in March this year for medical treatment.

Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistan's rugged mountains of Taratani in Kohlu district on August 26, 2006. Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistan's natural resources.

The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country.

Musharraf, who went into self-imposed exile in Dubai after being forced to resign as president facing impeachment following the 2008 elections, had returned to Pakistan in 2013 to contest elections but was implicated in several cases. He also lost in the polls.

He was not allowed to leave the country until government allowed him in March this year to go abroad for treatment following orders by the Supreme Court.

Musharraf has been facing a slew of cases, including the high treason trial since 2013 and he was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government.

Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
As the technology industry came to grips with the reality of a presidential election that did not go its way, many in Silicon Valley landed on the idea that widespread misinformation spread online was a primary factor in the races outcome.





In response, both Google and Facebook altered their advertising policies to explicitly prohibit sites that traffic in fake news from making money off lies. Thats very likely a worthwhile fix, even if it comes too late. The internet has loosened our collective grasp on the truth, and efforts to fight that dismaying trend are obviously worth pursuing.



Yet it would be a mistake to end this investigation at fake news. In fact, the dangers posed by fake news are just a symptom of a deeper truth now dawning on the world: With billions of people glued to Facebook, WhatsApp, WeChat, Instagram, Twitter, Weibo and other popular services, social media has become an increasingly powerful cultural and political force, to the point that its effects are now beginning to alter the course of global events.



The election of Donald Trump is perhaps the starkest illustration yet that across the planet, social networks are helping to fundamentally rewire human society. They have subsumed and gutted mainstream media. They have undone traditional political advantages like fundraising and access to advertising. And they are destabilising and replacing old-line institutions and established ways of doing things, including political parties, transnational organisations and longstanding, unspoken social prohibitions against blatant expressions of racism and xenophobia.



Most important, because these services allow people to communicate with one another more freely, they are helping to create surprisingly influential social organisations among once-marginalised groups. These ad hoc social movements range widely in form, from alt-right white supremacists in the United States to Brexiters in Britain to the Islamic State in the Middle East to the hacker collectives of Eastern Europe and Russia. But each in its own way is now wielding previously unthinkable power, resulting in unpredictable, sometimes destabilizing geopolitical spasms.



You now have billions of people on the internet, and most of them are not that happy with the status quo, said Ian Bremmer, the president of the Eurasia Group, a research firm that forecasts global risks. They think their local government is authoritarian. They think theyre on the wrong side of the establishment. Theyre aggrieved by identity politics and a hollowed-out middle class.



Many factors accounted for Trumps win: middle-class economic anxiety in the industrial Midwest; an inchoate desire for some kind of change in the national direction; and some mix of latent racism, xenophobia and sexism across the electorate. But as even Trump acknowledged in an interview with 60 Minutes aired Sunday, social media played a determining role in the race.



In the past, Bremmer said, the concerns of Trumps supporters might have been ignored, and his candidacy would almost certainly have foundered. After all, he was universally written off by just about every mainstream pundit, and he faced disadvantages in money, organisation and access to traditional political expertise. Yet by putting out a message that resonated with people online, Trump hacked through every established political order.



Through this new technology, people are now empowered to express their grievances and to follow people they see as echoing their grievances, Bremmer said. If it wasnt for social media, I dont see Trump winning.



For people who like an orderly, predictable world, this is the scariest thing about Facebook; not that it may be full of lies (a problem that could potentially be fixed), but that its scope gives it real power to change history in bold, unpredictable ways.

But thats where we are. Its time to start recognising that social networks actually are becoming the world-shattering forces that their boosters long promised they would be  and to be unnerved, rather than exhilarated, by the huge social changes they could uncork.



This should come as no surprise. In a way, we are now living through a kind of bizarro version of the utopia that some in tech once envisioned would be unleashed by social media.



Over much of the past decade, we have seen progressive social movements powered by the web spring up across the world. There was the Green Revolution in Iran and the Arab Spring in the Middle East and North Africa. In the United States, we saw the Occupy Wall Street movement and the #BlackLivesMatter protests.



Social networks also played a role in electoral politics  first in the ultimately unsuccessful candidacy of Howard Dean in 2003, and then in the election of the first African-American president in 2008. Yet now those movements look like the prelude to a wider, tech-powered crackup in the global order.



In Britain this year, organising on Facebook played a major role in the once-unthinkable push to get the country to leave the European Union. In the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, a firebrand mayor who was vastly outspent by opponents, managed to marshal azzz huge army of online supporters to help him win the presidency.



The Islamic State has used social networks to recruit jihadis from around the world to fight in Iraq and Syria, as well as to inspire terrorist attacks overseas.And in the United States, both Bernie Sanders, a socialist who ran for president as a Democrat, and Trump, who was once reviled by most members of the party he now leads, relied on online movements to shatter the political status quo.



Why is this all happening now? Clay Shirky, a professor at New York University who has studied the effects of social networks, suggested a few reasons.



One is the ubiquity of Facebook, which has reached a truly epic scale. Last month the company reported that about 1.8 billion people now log on to the service every month. Because social networks feed off the various permutations of interactions among people, they become strikingly more powerful as they grow. With about a quarter of the worlds population now on Facebook, the possibilities are staggering.



When the technology gets boring, thats when the crazy social effects get interesting, Shirky said.One of those social effects is what Shirky calls the shifting of the Overton Window, a term coined by the researcher Joseph P Overton to describe the range of subjects that the mainstream media deems publicly acceptable to discuss.



From about the early 1980s until the very recent past, it was usually considered unwise for politicians to court views deemed by most of society to be out of the mainstream, things like overt calls to racial bias (there were exceptions, of course, like the Willie Horton ad). But the internet shifted that window.



White ethnonationalism was kept at bay because of pluralistic ignorance, Shirky said. Every person who was sitting in their basement yelling at the TV about immigrants or was willing to say white Christians were more American than other kinds of Americans  they didnt know how many others shared their views.



Thanks to the internet, now each person with once-maligned views can see that hes not alone. And when these people find one another, they can do things  create memes, publications and entire online worlds that bolster their worldview, and then break into the mainstream. The groups also become ready targets for political figures like Trump, who recognise their energy and enthusiasm and tap into it for real-world victories.



Shirky notes that the Overton Window isnt just shifting on the right. We see it happening on the left, too. Sanders campaigned on an anti-Wall Street platform that would have been unthinkable for a Democrat just a decade ago.



Now, after Hillary Clintons loss, the way forward for Democrats will very likely be determined as much by collectives on Facebook as by elites in Washington  and, as a result, were likely to see more unlikely candidates and policy positions than we would have in the past. The upshot is further unforeseen events.



Were absolutely going to get more of these insurgent candidates, and more crazy social effects, Shirky said.



Trump is just the tip of the iceberg. Prepare for interesting times.




Anticipating a more protectionist U.S. technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.





Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the U.S., their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.



Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The U.S. currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.



"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.



While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and U.S. businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.



And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.



"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the U.S.



"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the U.S. and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.



ACQUISITIONS



Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big U.S. and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.



In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.



Buying U.S. companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.



Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.



"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including U.S.-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.



Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a U.S. cloud services firm.



The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more U.S. acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.





In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.



With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.



Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero."



More automation would mean fewer onshore developers. "The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.
Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was today nabbed from Delhi railway station, a day after he escaped with five other inmates from Nabha jail in Patiala.



"Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police," said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh. He said Delhi police nabbed the dreaded terrorist on the basis of inputs passed on by Punjab police.



"We passed on the information about Mintoo following which Delhi police arrested him," official said. He said a team of Punjab police will go to Delhi to bring him back. It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.



He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district when the getaway vehicle--a Toyota Fortuner--was stopped at a police picket. Mintoo yesterday escaped along with five other prisoners in a sensational jailbreak after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates and bolted out with the inmates while firing a hail of bullets.



Officials said efforts are on to nab the other prisoners who managed to flee. 'Mintoo' was arrested by Punjab Police after he was deported from Thailand in November 2014. He was wanted in ten terror cases.



The KLF chief was brought to India along with his key aide Gurpeet Singh 'Gopi' after Punjab Police, in coordination with central agencies, traced them in Thailand, a senior police official said.



Among the escapees was another terrorist Kashmira Singh, according to Punjab police chief Suresh Arora.


ATM cash van driver Selvaraj's wife, who was found missing from her residence, has been arrested by Bengaluru police.



The police have also recovered cash worth Rs 79.8 lakhs. The main accused Dominic Selvaraj Roy is yet to be arrested.



The police had found the van abandoned in Vasanthnagar on November 24 with Rs 45 lakh and a gun inside it.



Police teams are searching for Roy in Chennai, Hyderabad and different parts of Kerala.



Roy, a resident of Lingarajapuram, had driven off with Rs 1.37 crore belonging to Bank of India branch, recently.
On a day they were observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' to protest demonestisation, opposition parties today held a strategy meet where they decided to continue their stir in Parliament till Prime Minister Narendra Modi replies to their concerns and a JPC probe is announced in alleged leak of the decision.



A meeting of all the opposition parties, barring JD(U), was held in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad in Parliament House here and it was decided that the protests will continue till their demands are met, sources said.



However, some fissures also appeared in the opposition as the JD(U) skipped the meeting with sources saying party leader Sharad Yadav had left Delhi early this morning.



The opposition parties have been divided over the ways to protest against demonetisation ever since Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee decided to march to the President against it.



While she was joined by AAP, National Conference and Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, other opposition parties stayed away.



Shiv Sena has backed demonetisation but said it is unhappy over the way it was causing problems to people.



LS adjourns amid Opposition protests over demonetisation issue



A vociferous Opposition in the Lok Sabha today continued their protests against the government over the demonetisation issue, forcing adjournment of the proceedings till noon.



Soon after the House expressed its condolences over the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, Oppositon members, including those from the TMC and Congress, demanded that they wanted to speak on the demonetisation issue.



With Speaker Sumitra Mahajan declining their request and saying that the matter could be taken up after Question Hour, Opposition members trooped into the Well holding placards and shouting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the government.



"No placards please... No papers," Mahajan told the protesting members and also reminded them that it was against the rules.



Over 30 members, including from Congress, TMC and the Left parties, were in the Well while members of AIADMK were seen standing near their seats.



Amid the din, the Question Hour went on for around 20 minutes and saw four questions as well as supplementaries being taken up. With the protests continuing unabated, Mahajan adjourned the House till noon.



Opposition parties have been stepping up their protests against the government's decision to withdraw old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and are also observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' across the country today.



Lok Sabha has witnessed a virtual washout of proceedings since the Winter Session started on November 16 due to the protests over the demonetisation issue.



Oppn protests over demonetisation continue in RS



A united Opposition today continued to disrupt proceedings in Rajya Sabha over hardships caused to the people due to demonetisation of 500 and 1000 rupee notes, forcing two adjournments in the pre-noon session.



Congress, TMC and BSP members trooped into the Well shouting slogans against the government, forcing proceedings to be adjourned first for 30 minutes and then till noon.



Soon after the House mourned the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and the listed papers were laid, Naresh Agrawal (SP) said nationwide protest is being observed today against demonetisation that has caused hardships to common man.



'All India Protest', called Aakrosh Diwas, has been called to highlight the hardships, he said as other opposition leaders including Mayawati (BSP), Derek O'Brien (TMC), Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M), Anand Sharma (Cong) joined in.



Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the nation was seething in anger over the hardship and harrassment caused because of the announcement made by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8.



Soon Congress and TMC members trooped into the well of the House shouting slogans against the Prime Minister. Ruling benches also joined him by shouting slogans favouring start of a discussion on the issue.



I&B Minister M Venkaiah Naidu rose to state that the discussion which had started on the opening day of the Winter Session of Parliament on November 16 and has not yet concluded, should be resumed, instead of such disruption of proceedings.



Deputy Chairman P J Kurien agreed with the suggestion of Naidu but the din continued, forcing him to adjourn the proceedings for half an hour.
Another car was today found abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.





The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place yesterday.



"A car has been found in the village. Further investigations were under progress," Kaithal's SP Sumer Partap Singh said, adding police and forensic experts were examining the car.



Another car had been found abandoned yesterday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.



"Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.



The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, he said. Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.



Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates yesterday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.
Joining the nation-wide 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' against demonetisation of high value currency, ruling Congress in Karnataka today held protests and rallies throughout the state against the Narendra Modi government's action.





The protest affected the functioning of both the Houses of Karnataka Legislature, now in a 10-day winter session at Belagavi, as they did not sit today in line with the decision taken by the Business Advisory Committee (BAC).



BAC had decided to suspend the sitting amid opposition by BJP, which walked out of the meeting on Friday.



An extra day of session would be held on December 3 to make up for the loss of business today. Life in Bengaluru and elsewhere remained normal with commercial establishments, educational institutions, banks and private offices working as usual and public transport and Metro maintaining their regular services.



Official reports said barring protests by Congress, the situation in the entire state, including the districts of Mysuru, Gadag, Haveri, Belagavi, Kalaburgi, Chamrajanagar, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada and Kolar, was normal.



In Bengaluru, Congress staged a demonstration in front of Town Hall near City Market at the nucleus of the city, where State Working President R Gundu Rao, a few legislators and local leaders took part.



At the protest, Congress workers raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and carried placards against demonetisation which they said has "hurt the common people".



Hundreds of Congress workers led by Rao took out a procession to Mysore Bank Circle in the heart of the city, causing major traffic snarls.



Congress workers set afire tyres in Kalaburgi and Ballari and formed human chains in Ramanagara and Mandya.



Countering Congress, BJP workers observed "Sambhram Divas" (Celebration Day) to back demonetisation and distributed sweets and offered flowers to people in Mysuru, Belagavi, Chamarajnagar and Mandya and other places and raised slogans hailing Modi.



'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' did not strike chord as expected as the state has seen five days of bandhs, protests and strikes in the last four months, including one on Cauvery water issue with Tamil Nadu which was marked by large-scale violence.



Janata Dal (Secular) had made it clear it would not join the protests though, while endorsing the fight against black money, it was against the manner against which demonetisation was implemented as it was "an unrealistic decision which has been forced on the people."



In Bengaluru, various associations representing cab operators, trucks and private bus transporters and autorikshaws did not support the protest. Police had stepped security across the state, deploying armed and reserve forces to prevent any trouble.



In Bengaluru, some 15,000 policemen were on duty, apart from platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police and City Armed Reserve.
With its new army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa set to take charge, Pakistan has asserted that focus will remain on country's eastern border with India, even as the US nudged Islamabad to keep the pledge of not allowing use of its soil for terror attacks against neighbours.





Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest army by troop numbers from Pakistan's outgoing Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif, who paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif here today.



Sharif and Hussain lauded Raheel's valuable service as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life, Radio Pakistan reported.



"The military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it (under Bajwa)," Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Geo News.



"The focus will remain on country's eastern border and the armed forces backed by the nation will meet all challenges," he said.



"The legacy of General Raheel Sharif would continue in the light of the examples he set," Asif said.



The Defence Minister expressed hope that the government and military leadership will continue to work together for the betterment of the country.



General Raheel will become the first army chief in more than 20 years to step down at the end of his term. Previous army chiefs have either obtained extensions or in the case of General Pervez Musharraf, staged a coup.



Meanwhile, the United States yesterday welcomed the appointment of the new army chief and expressed hope that the country would never allow the use of its soil for terrorism against its neighbours.



The US embassy in Islamabad, in a statement, welcomed Prime Minister Sharif's appointment of Bajwa.



"We look forward to continuing our work with Pakistan's elected leaders, with Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and with the Pakistani military to advance our shared counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism goals for Pakistan and the region, and to enable Pakistani authorities to honour their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistan's soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbours," it said.



Raheel, who is set to retire tomorrow, was appointed as army chief in 2013 by Prime Minister Sharif at the retirement of Gen Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani.



According to Pakistani media and experts, General Bajwa's "pro-democracy credentials" and his low-profile influenced Sharif to appoint him to the powerful post of army chief superseding four top generals.



The military has been in charge of the country for more than half of Pakistan's nearly 70-year history since independence.
Unidentified persons allegedly decamped with ornaments and cash worth over Rs three lakh rpt three lakh from the bungalow of a Shiv Sena leader here while she along with her family was off to Aurangabad for campaigning for the local body polls, police said.





The bungalow of Sena leader Meena Maruti Rathod in Dombivali area was also ransacked and set on fire, an official attached to Manpada police station said.



The leader, who was busy campaigning in Kannad in Aurangabad district for a local body election, which is slated to be held on December 18. Her family was also in Kannad, said the official.



As per the complaint filed by Rathod, she was informed about the the incident by her neighbours, the official added.



Ornaments and cash worth Rs 3.12 lakh were stolen, police said, adding a case under relevant sections of IPC has been registered in this regard.
Government has given "relaxation" wherever necessary on the demonetisation issue, Delhi High Court said today as it reserved its verdict for tomorrow on a petition seeking relaxation of the Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal limit for marriages.





"Relaxation has already been given wherever it is necessary," a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal told the counsel appearing for the petitioner who has also sought a direction to accept old currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 for paying fines and court fees till December end.



Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, appearing for the Centre, opposed the plea and said the government has already given certain exemptions but some conditions were needed so that nobody can misuse it.



"We cannot have an unmeasured and uncanalised situation. We have given exemptions. For weddings, if we will not put conditions, anybody can get a marriage card printed and go to the bank to withdraw Rs 2.5 lakh," the ASG told the bench.



In his plea, petitioner Birender Sangwan has alleged that the guidelines, which seeks detailed list of persons to whom the cash withdrawn is proposed to be paid for marriage and declaration from them that they do not have a bank account, were "arbitrary".



The counsel said the cap of Rs 2.5 lakh withdrawal for marriages should be relaxed as there were various "customary donations" which one gives during the wedding ceremony.



"Liberty must be given for marriages so that one can pay as per the customs. How can somebody give such an undertaking? As per the guidelines, even the priest who performs marriages has to give undertaking of not having a bank account. The parents of the bride and groom should be allowed to withdraw money from their accounts without such arbitrary conditions," his counsel said.



When he raised the issue of payment of court fees, the bench asked the ASG "what do you say about the cost or fines imposed by courts? Can't it be paid in cash in old currency notes?"



In response, the ASG said "old currency notes are accepted for paying court fees" and the government has given various relaxation on issues concerning common people. He said that new currency note of Rs 500 was in circulation and Rs 100 and Rs 500 could also be used for paying the court fees.
Delhi High Court today sternly asked the city police to "cut across all political barriers" and find missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, saying there could be "something more" to his disappearance as no one can just vanish from the heart of the national capital.





Expressing concern over the whereabouts of the student who has remained untraced for 45 days now, the court also raised several questions, including why the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the injuries sustained by Najeeb was not mentioned in the Delhi Police's status report.



A bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel said if a person disappears from the national capital and remains untraced, then it would create a "sense of insecurity" in the people here and asked the police to explore all angles.



"This is the heart of India, the national capital. No one can just disappear from here. It creates a sense of insecurity in people. If he disappeared, then there is something more to that. All angles have to be explored. 45 days is a long period for someone to be underground," it said to the police which is of the view that Najeeb was "not forcefully abducted".



After perusing the status report of Delhi Police, the court asked why was Najeeb taken to the Safdarjung Hospital in an ambulance if he had no apparent or visible injuries, as this detail was missing from the police report.



It also asked why the report does not say anything about the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members allegedly of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) who are alleged to have brutally beaten him up and only mentions that the missing student had slapped one of them.



The judge questioned why the police waited till November 11 to interrogate those persons with whom Najeeb allegedly had an altercation on the night of October 14-15, prior to his disappearance on October 15 and against whom a criminal complaint was lodged on October 17.



"Cut across all political barriers. Get him back. You will get your answers at either of the two places, Jamia or JNU. No need to go to Aligarh or any other place so far," the bench told the police, which said that an auto driver has claimed to have dropped off Najeeb at the Jamia Milia Islamia University.
Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh.blog spot.com. If you enjoy "Love of the Land", please be a subscriber. Just put your email address in the "Subscribe" box on the upper right-hand corner of the page.Twitter updates at LoveoftheLand as well as our Love of the Land page at Facebook which has additional pieces of interest besides that which is posted on the blog. Also check-out This Ongoing War by Frimet and Arnold Roth. An excellent blog, very important work.

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..Gatestone Institute..28 November '16..It is no secret that Arab countries have long mistreated their Palestinian brothers and sisters, governing them with inhumane laws and imposing severe restrictions on their public freedoms and basic rights. Building a wall around a Palestinian community to prevent terrorists from entering or leaving, however, has raised the bar on such infringements.This is precisely what is happening in Lebanon these days. The construction of a security wall around Ain al-Hilweh, the largest Palestinian refugee camp (with a population of nearly 120,000), has drawn sharp criticism from Palestinians and revived memories of the abuse they regularly receive at the hands of their Arab brethren.The Lebanese authorities say the Palestinians have left them no choice but to build the controversial concrete wall. The Palestinians, they say, refuse to cooperate against terrorists who have established bases within their camps. Yet that problem raises the question: "What has Lebanon done in the past half-century or so to help the Palestinians who fled to that country?" The answer: "Nothing."In fact, among all Arab countries, Lebanon has been arguably the worst in its treatment of the Palestinians. Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are denied access to adequate housing and certain categories of employment. According to Amnesty International: "Over half of Palestinian refugees live in decaying and chronically overcrowded camps and discriminatory practices are permitted under personal status laws and nationality laws."These anti-Palestinian practices are regularly ignored by the international community, including the mainstream media and human rights organizations, whose obsession with Israel blinds them to Arab injustice. While, every now and then, an organization does publish a report on the misery endured by Palestinians in Arab countries, these bodies rarely follow up on their work, thus creating the impression that they are doing so only for the sake of protocol.
Home Ministry has given sanction to NIA to file a charge sheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot terror strike carried out on January 2.





After receiving sanction under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the NIA will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, and handlers of four terrorists -- Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif in the charge sheet to be filed soon, official sources said.



The four terrorists, after entering into India from Bamiyal area of Gurudaspur, had carried out the strike inside the strategic Pathankot Indian Air Force base killing eight people including seven personnel of IAF and NSG.



The fresh charge sheet will help India in building pressure on the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group under the United Nations' anti-terror laws. The previous attempts were spurned after China exercised its veto power.



The charge sheet will name only four terrorists involved in the attack as against six claimed by the NSG.



According to the NIA, the terrorists, who were killed after two days of gunfight were identified as Nasir Hussain, Hafiz Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum and they were residents of Vehari (Punjab), Gujranwala (Punjab), Sanghar (Sindh) and Sukkur (Sindh) districts of Pakistan respectively.



The NIA's probe will also included looking into the phone numbers and a conversation that one of the terrorists had minutes before launching the attack besides a video message of Rauf released on Jaish-affiliated website minutes after the strike.



In the video message, which was subsequently removed from the website, Rauf had claimed responsibility for the Pathankot attack.



The charge sheet will also include evidence of linking the footprints of one of the terrorists obtained from Bamiyal besides matching of DNA sample found from a soft drink can in the hijacked car of Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.



The Pathankot terror strike had seen a joint investigation team from Pakistan also arriving in India for carrying out a thorough probe.



However, upon their return, the Pakistani team claimed that India neither shared much of evidence nor allowed it to interrogate the personnel involved in repulsing the attack.
The green volcanic hills that tower above Aputzio de Juarez, Mexico have begun to fill with swarms of monarch butterflies, which return each year for the winter stretch of their celebrated migration. But downhill from the monarchs mountain roost, in the oak and pine forests that border this small farming town, there lurks a new threat to their winter habitat: a lust to grow the lucrative avocados that are being consumed at record rates in the US.



Spurred by soaring demand, farmers in the western state of Michoacan are clearing land to make room for avocado orchards, cutting oak and pine trees that form a vital buffer around the mountain forests where the monarchs nest. Its scandalous what people are doing now to grow avocado, said Arturo Espinosa Maceda, who has for years grown avocados, peaches and strelizia flowers at a farm some 12 miles north of Aputzio. But its mega-business.



Aputzio sits on the western edge of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, a 135,000-acre protected area where the butterflies rest on oyamel trees. The butterflies numbers have dwindled sharply in recent years, as milkweed declined in the US and deforestation affected their Mexican habitat. Each year environmentalists hold their breath to see how many butterflies will arrive in Mexico. Omar Vidal, director general of the World Wildlife Fund in Mexico, said that conserving the winter sanctuary was fundamental to the survival of the migration. Deforestation has to be reduced to zero, he said. But the avocado boom could complicate that goal.



Americans ate a record seven pounds of avocado per capita in 2015 according to the Department of Agriculture. Nearly 80% of those avocados came from Michoacan, the only Mexican state authorised to export the fruit to the US. Michoacan doubled its avocado exports over the past seven years to 7,70,000 tonnes  worth roughly $1.5 billion.



The bonanza has been brutal for Michoacans oak and pine forests, which grow at 5,000 to 7,000 feet  the same altitude as avocados. Between 1974 and 2011, about 1,10,000 acres of forest across Michoacans central highlands were turned into avocado orchards, according to a study by the National Autonomous University of Mexico. And deforestation is accelerating, experts said. Jaime Navia, president of GIRA, a non-governmental organisation based in Michoacan that promotes sustainable rural development, estimated that 65,000 acres (most of it forest) had been converted to avocado farms since that study. The damage is irreversible, he said.



Officials have blamed producers looking for a pretext to turn land over to avocado orchards for a spike in the number of forest fires in Michoacan this year. But forestry experts and farmers said that Mexicos environmental watchdog, the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection, often turned a blind eye to abuses. Officials are fearful of powerful interests, they said, especially given that organised crime has links to the industry.



To offset deforestation, the association has planted half a million trees since 2009 and hopes to plant another half-million by 2018, he said. Around Aputzio de Juarez, a town of 1,100 people, scars on the hillsides and patches of young avocado trees signal the crops advance.



If people keep cutting down the forest, well run out, Fernando Bernal, a butcher, said. And Aputzio isnt the only community with much at stake. The hills that stretch northeast collect water for the massive Cutzamala water system that supplies the thirsty Mexican capital, Mexico City.



Even David Romero Hernandez, a farmer happily tending his avocado bushes on land once filled with mighty trees, is saddened by the loss of forest. He said that his village depends on water that comes from the hills near Aputzio. So were all affected, David said. But people dont think about the future.


At present, some of the contentious and controversial provisions of the Muslim Personal Law (MPL), notably the triple talaq and polygamy, are under challenge before the Supreme Court (SC) to consider doing away with them as they are biased and discriminatory to women.



The government, in response to the SCs notice in this regard, supported

the petitioners plea in court for the abolition of such practices hurting gender equality and womens dignity. It also asked the National Law Commission (NLC) to examine afresh the entire gamut of issues involved in enacting the Uniform Civil Code.



However, several Muslim organisations, including the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), have boycotted any such move by the NLC, considering it a gross interference with their personal law. They considers divorce, polygamy and other such practices as an intrinsic part of their religion and wish to retain them as it is.



India has separate sets of personal laws for each religion. Just as Hindus, Jews, Christians and Parsis are governed by their own personal laws, so are the Muslims. The British Legislature had enacted the Shariat Act in 1937 covering matters pertaining to Muslim marriage, divorce, maintenance, inheritance and custody of children, which later came to be known as Muslim Personal Law.



Various provisions of the existing personal laws including the MPL, based on scriptures and customs of religious communities, are deemed as not only outdated and discriminatory to women, they are also seen to militate against the very essence of democracy, basic human rights and secularism at large. While Hindu family laws were overhauled long before despite stiff opposition from conservative sections of the community, the MPL mostly remained unchanged.



The MPL prescribes different modes of talaq for the dissolution of marriage. But against all norms of justice and equity, Muslim males have adopted talaq-ul-biddat  unilateral dissolution of marriage  as the modus operandi for divorce. The husband simply pronounces the word talaq thrice in one sitting and it results in irrevocable termination of marriage.



And there is no scope for any compromise or reconciliation even if it has been uttered out of sheer passion, momentary anger or drunkenness. Once divorced, the woman cant return to her husband without going through a difficult process. It requires that after the divorce, she should get married with another man, consummate the marriage and let her second husband divorce her to go back to join the former husband. This practice is called nikah halala in common parlance.



All Hanifi ulemas agree that instant divorce in one sitting is against the holy Quran and Sunnah (practice), and term it as later-day innovation. Yet, it is the most widely practiced form of divorce among Muslims.



Thanks to the advent of modern technology, the practice has become more rampant through telephone, email, SMS, Skype, Twitter and even Facebook, thereby denying women any say in the matter and leaving them and their children homeless and destitute overnight.



Most eminent Islamic scholars agree that the preferred mode for divorce should be  talaq-e-ehsan in which a couple is given three months to separate if they wish. The separation period gives them a chance to patch up. The Quran clearly asks Muslims to try reconciliation and arbitration before giving talaq.



Many Muslim countries, including Pa-kistan, Tunisia and Indonesia have ban-ned triple talaq and religiously follow the former. Hence, many argue that there is a case for a similar ban on this in India.



While the Quranic principles and practices, originated in a particular context in the past, played a progressive role then, several such customs have become fossilised and are of no relevance to the world of today.



For instance, seventh century Arabia, riven with tribal conflicts, saw decimation of menfolk, and the phenomenon of orphans, widows and girls without the prospects of grooms, was common.



Under those circumstances, the introduction of limited polygamy was considered to be a reform of high order to rehabilitate them. However, despite the non-existence of any such condition now, the practice of polygamy still prevails. Not only has polygamy outlived its historical necessity but has degenerated into an oppressive institution for women.



Matrimonial break-ups



Needless to say, it is the major cause of frequent matrimonial break-ups. Once the husband brings in another spouse, the first wife virtually loses her marital dignity. She cant question even the ill-treatment because it is too easy for a Muslim man to give her talaq. Polygamy, therefore, deserves to be abolished in the interest of gender justice.



Many Islamic countries have by law restricted marriage to more than one woman at a time. It is beyond comprehension why India has not done so to ensure a better deal for Muslim women. The Hindu law was also reformed in the teeth of strong opposition from obscurantists but Hinduism did not collapse.



The practice of bigamy has been made a punishable offence. The Child Marriage Restraint Act, the Widow Remarriage Act and the law banning sati are some of the important examples of social reforms.



In all fairness, the MPL should also be suitably reformed so as to keep it in tune with contemporary social needs of society. Laws can never be static. They grow and change with times. There should be equal rights and equal laws to all women irrespective of their caste, community and religion to ensure gender justice.



While the judiciarys role in attempting to rectify gender and other biases that prevail in community-specific legislations is widely welcome, the legislature cannot escape its prime responsibility of law making and updating laws from time to time.



(The writer is an advocate at the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court)
Kannada Sahitya Parishat president Manu Baligar urged writers to display sensitivity while penning their thoughts as they are socially bound and owe allegiance to society.





He asked them to have no distinction between their lives and their writings as only then can there be relevance in their art form.



After inaugurating the 84th literary convention as part of Lakshadeepotsava celebrations in Dharmasthala on Monday Baligar asked writers to be ethical towards society.



Expressing concern over the extinction of folk art forms, he called upon youth to gain knowledge about folklore and culture. He said government, academies and religious institutions must strive towards preserving folk art forms.



He said the main objective of literature was to unite minds and not divide them. He said Dharmasthala, apart from being a spiritual destination, was a centre of art and literature.



Delivering the keynote address Dharmasthala Dharmadhikari D Veerendra Heggade called upon people to encourage literature. Kannada, as a mother tongue, plays a significant role in character building and one must develop a sense of pride in Kannada language and culture, he said.



Presiding over the literary convention, writer M N Vyasarao said moral values had diminished in literary works. Human values have been ill-represented in poetry, novels and plays, he said. He said writers must utilise their experience to enrich literature.
The district Congress staged a protest before Clock Tower condemning the demonetisation move Prime Minister Narendra Modi and observed Aakrosh Diwas.





Speaking at the protest rally, the Youth Congress leader Amrith Shenoy said the prime minister has made the life of poor hell. His decision to demonetise currency would only help the affluent while the poor would be the worst sufferers.



Cashless transaction in a country like India is far from being a reality. He added that the prime minister should have thought about the poor before taking the draconian decision.



Congress leader Kishen Hegde Kolkebailu said that Congress had never indulged in creating distress for the people, especially the poor. The prime ministers cynicism, similar to that of erstwhile ruler Mohammed Bin Tughlaq will not yield any potential results. He is the most shameless prime minister and always hesitates to come before the Parliament and seek the approval for his less sensible decisions, he said.



Little support from BJP



He pointed out that not many BJP ministers have supported the decision taken by the leader. He urged for an uninterrupted cash flow. The cooperative sectors which acted as the backbone of the rural economy are now paralysed. Poor women engaged in dairy farming and fishing are cursing the prime minister. It is chaos and confusion prevailing all over. People stand in queues outside banks and ATMs.



He added that the achievement of the prime minister is that the fake and illegal currencies were out within 24 hours of demonetisation. He also said that BJP leaders created fuss over the death of farmers but are now mum over people who die standing in queues for long hours.



Women Congress leader Jyoti Hebbar said that the BJP government has put poor women at risk. Rural people are suffering immensely as they are unable to arrange marriages. The BJP had Hindutva as its only agenda, however, now it has another agenda, which has created havoc in the lives of people, she added.



The agitators shouted slogans against the prime minister and demonetisation. Members of the district unit of CPI(M) also staged protest against the demonetisation decision taken by the prime minister on the occasion.
The District Congress Committee members staged a protest in front of Gandhi statue near Town Hall on Monday as a part of the nationwide Aakrosh Diwas against the demonetisation by the BJP-led NDA government.





Addressing the protesters, Chief Whip of the government in Legislative Council Ivan DSouza said that Prime Minister Narendra Modis move has disturbed the economy and inconvenienced poor and labour class.



The BJP promised to bring back black money stashed in foreign banks but failed to do so. In order to cover up its failure, it had resorted to demonetisation. DSouza asked the Central government to give an account of the black money deposited in banks after the scrapping of high-denomination notes.



He said, India basically is cash-based economy with cash in circulation amounting to about 12% of GDP. Rural India is predominately cash-dependent for its economic activities. Therefore, the sudden withdrawal of high denomination notes has caused severe livelihood problems to street vendors, small merchants, vegetable merchants, hawkers and rickshaw pullers, auto drivers, various craftsmen, farmers and agriculture labourers, service and other industrial sectors. The smooth functioning of co-operative societies in rural areas too has been adversely affected.



The President of India should immediately direct the central government to rollback from this drastic decision, he said.



The Congress is protesting against the inconvenience, suffering and agony caused by demonetisation to the common man, small traders, farmers and daily wage workers. Those who had black money have already converted it by purchasing gold, land and other properties. The Centre has created financial anarchy in the country, he said.



He added that this is precisely why the Congress has been requesting Narendra Modi to come to the Parliament and address these issues but the Prime Minister chooses to address Parliament through public rallies and party meetings.



He urged the Centre to waive the loans borrowed by farmers who are not in a position to pay instalments following the scrapping of notes.



Chief whip in the Council of Mangaluru City Corporation Shashidhar Hegde said that there is an anti-Modi wave across the country. In spite of it, the government claims that 90% of the citizens have hailed the government move to fight black money and demonetisation of high-value currency.



District Congress Committee president in-charge Ibrahim Kodichal said that it is a tragedy that normalcy has failed to return even after 20 days of demonetising high value currency. Modi had spoken about cashless transactions in his address to the nation, but a majority of the population did not have internet access.



The protesters gathered and raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP government for withdrawing high denomination notes and causing inconvenience to the masses. A memorandum was submitted to the deputy commissioner on the occasion to be forwarded to the President of India.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has given its nod to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file a charge sheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief and three others in the Pathankot airbase attack case.





NIA will now name Maulana Masood Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar and handlers Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif in the charge sheet to be filed soon under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.



Four militants had on January 2 entered the Pathankot airbase and carried out the attack, killing eight people, including seven personnel of the Air Force and National Security Guards (NSG).



Official sources said this move would help India put more pressure on the international community to declare Azhar and his outfit a global terror group under the United Nations anti-terror laws.



India had earlier unsuccessfully tried to get UN sanctions against Azhar after China exercised its veto. Though the NSG has claimed that six terrorists were involved in the attack, the NIA has not found evidence to substantiate it.
The NIA on Monday arrested three people suspected to be part of a group sympathising with the al Qaeda, and involved in five blast cases in the court premises of Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka since April.





Swooping down on various locations, the NIA with the help of the Tamil Nadu and Telangana Police apprehended four youths for their involvement in the blasts at court complexes.



During a sustained examination, three of the four confessed to their involvement in these blasts, NIA spokesman said, adding three of them have been placed under arrest, while the fourth was still being questioned.



The five cases relate to blasts inside a vehicle at a parking space at the district court complex, in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, on April 7; in the parking area of the CJM Court complex at Kollam in Kerala on June 15; inside the court complex at Mysuru on August 1; in Nellore of Andhra Pradesh on September 12; and inside a toilet complex of the judicial court in Keralas Malappuram on November 1.



Those arrested are Abbas Ali (27) and Samsum Karim Raja, both residents of Madurai, and Suleiman (23) of Chennai.



Ali has studied up to Class VIII and worked as a painter. He also ran a library called Darul Ilm in Madurai. Suleiman was working in a software firm and was the leader of the terrorist gang. Raja is a commerce graduate and runs a poultry shop at Kannimara Koil street in Madurai.
In a major breakthrough, the state CID apprehended T K Biswas, the mastermind behind the syndicate involved the trafficking of newborns to different parts of India and the world.





Initially believed to be a physician, the police later found that the 45-year-old had forged his degrees and was a quack.



Senior police officials said that Biswas was picked up from a thatched hut at Memari in Burdwan district, where he was hiding since he absconded soon after the raid on Sohan Nursing Home & Polyclinic at Baduria in North 24 Parganas on the night of November 21.



The documents seized by the police carried only his initials, TK, however, the officers found his full name to be Tapan Kumar Biswas.



Following interrogation of the other 17 people arrested from Kolkata and adjoining areas, the police concluded that Biswas was the mastermind behind the syndicate, which ran an international racket of trafficking newborns and selling them at a price to childless couples in the US, the UK and in different parts of India.



While Biswas was the silent partner of the nursing home, Sheikh Asaduzzaman was its face. The police arrested Asaduzzaman during the November 21 raid, along with Babul Baidya and his wife, Nazma Biwi, who were also partners in the polyclinic.



Senior officials said that while on the run since November 21, Biswas would often change his appearance and identity. He (Biswas) shaved off his moustache, had his hair closely cropped and kept moving from one place to another, an official said.
Pakistan on Monday stated that it was ready to hold talks with India on the sidelines of the forthcoming Heart of Asia meet at Amritsar in Punjab later this week.





Islamabads envoy to New Delhi, Abdul Basit, told a TV channel that Pakistan was ready to hold bilateral talks with India on the sideline of the 6th Ministerial Conference of Heart of Asia.



Pakistans Foreign Affairs Advisor Sartaj Aziz will lead the delegation of the neighbouring country, which will be hosted by India on December 3 and 4.



India, however, was cold to the latest overtures from Pakistan. Sources in New Delhi told DH that it would not be possible to get into any meaningful engagement with Islamabad, unless the neighbouring country demonstrated its willingness to stop export of terror from its territory to India.



We can delay talks for months or even for years. But ultimately, a solution to the problems between India and Pakistan can only come through dialogue, and therefore, both nations must sit and discuss all the issues that confront them, Basit told a TV channel.



Aziz is likely to reach Amritsar on December 4 morning. He is likely to cross the India-Pakistan border at Wagah-Attari and drive to Amritsar, which is just 30 km away.



He will return the same day after taking part in the Heart of Asia ministerial conference.



External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who was expected to host the conference, is suffering from kidney failure and is on dialysis at All India Institute of Medical Science here.



Since she will not travel to Amritsar, the two Ministers of State V K Singh and M J Akbar in her ministry are set to play host to the visiting foreign dignitaries.
The Centre is working on a $3.1-billion worth package to encourage companies to set up solar cells and modules manufacturing industry.





Under the project, which will be dubbed as Pradhan Mantri Yojana for Augmenting Solar Manufacturing, the government will not only fullfil the domestic needs of clean energy equipment but also create an export industry.



To create employment



The new programme is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modis Make In India campaign to meet the domestic requirement of equipment as well as create employment.



As per the plan, the government is planing to create five gigawatts of photovoltaic manufacturing capacity from 2019 and build 20 gigawatts of projects in the country by 2026, sources in the government told DH. Integrated solar manufacturing units will produce everything from solar cells, solar photovoltaic modules, ingots and wafers.



Earlier, New and Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal informed the Rajya Sabha that India imported $2.34 billion solar cells and modules equipment, and of which 84% are from China alone.



The NDA government has set an ambitious target of adding 175 GW power generation capacity by 2022 from renewable sources including 100 GW from solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 GW from biomass and 5 GW from small hydro electric projects.


Arrested head of the banned Khalistan Liberation Front, Harminder Singh, told the police that he and five others escaped from Nabha jail during langar (community lunch) organised at a gurdwara on the jail premises to their advantage.





Utilising the occasion, all the six inmates reached near the exit gate of the jail just before the 14 men in police uniform stormed the jail and freed them, said Arvind Deep, Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell).



Harminder said that Gurpreet Sekhon, one of the gangsters who escaped, and Harjinder Singh, both members of a criminal gang, plotted the jailbreak.



Harminder further told his interrogators that around 24 km before Kurukshetra, he and another militant Kashmeer Singh got down from the Toyota Fortuner with Rs 19,000 in cash and hid themselves in sugarcane fields for a couple of hours.



Kashmeer then went to a nearby village and brought a pair of scissors with which they trimmed their hair and beard. The police said Harminder was sporting a patka to hide his trimmed hair at Nizamuddin railway station, which gave away his identity.



They noticed a Sikh person with a patka on his head and having his beard trimmed haphazardly and improperly. He was looking extra conscious which raised suspicion, Deep said.



The police said Harminder had visited Pakistan on several occasions and it is suspected that he was in touch with the Inter Services Intelligence. The police are investigating Harminders links with the Pakistani agency.



Information disclosed by Palwinder Singh, one of the 14 who spearheaded the jailbreak, to the Uttar Pradesh Police helped the Delhi Police organise an operation which resulted in Harminders arrest.



On his interrogation, Palwinder disclosed that Harminder and Kashmeer were dropped by him in Kaithal, Haryana, from where they might go to Delhi. We sent a message to all police personnel to be on lookout for any suspicious movement. Photographs of escapees were also shared with all, Deep said.



Palwinder was arrested at Kairana town in Uttar Pradeshs Shamli district on Sunday evening while he was heading to his hideout at Sahastradhara Road in Dehradun.



The Delhi Police have launched a manhunt to trace Kashmeer who entered Delhi with Harminder but later separated. We have good leads where he could be hiding. We are treading very cautiously at this point of time and cannot disclose more, said a Delhi Police Special Cell officer.
The Centre has decided to set up a committee that will have chief ministers of five states to suggest measures to push for a cashless economy, and ease the situation caused by demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.





Finance Minister Arun Jaitley spoke to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday, asking him to head the five-member panel. Jaitley also spoke to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who has supported the ban on old notes, and requested him to join the panel.



Other members may include Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. All these chief ministers have backed demonetisation.



Meanwhile, Modi hailed the BJPs victory in the elections to local bodies in Maharashtra.



The prime minister described it as a win for pro-poor and development politics, and thanked the people of the state for placing their faith in the party.
More than 1,000 people, including various political leaders, were arrested in Tamil Nadu on Monday, even as the protest called by the Opposition parties against demonetisation evoked a poor response.





Banks, schools and business establishments functioned normally, with traffic snarls being reported in a few places in Chennai and other district headquarters. DMK treasurer M K Stalin, who led the protest near the collectorate in Chennai, was arrested along with his cadres.



In addition, several 100 former ministers and senior functionaries of the DMK were arrested at all district headquarters when they tried to block roads.



Similarly, several Congress cadres, including Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president S Thirunavukkarasar, were also taken into preventive custody when they attempted to block the Anna Salai Road in Chennai.
Tata Steel UK has signed a letter of intent (LoI) with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its speciality steels business for an enterprise value of 100 million.



The LoI covers several South Yorkshire-based assets, including the Rotherhan electric arc steelworks, the steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth, as well as service centres in Bolton and Wednesbury, UK, and in Suzhou and Xian, China, Tata Steel said.



Speciality Steel employs about 1,700 people making steels for aerospace, automotive and the oil and gas industries. Tata Steel UK has invested 1.5 billion capital over the last nine years. The companys board considers the technical feasibility and economic returns of investments when taking decisions, as well as their affordability. The company is pursuing a transformation plan to create a sustainable future for its UK strip products business. The success of this plan is likely to influence decisions on future investments, the company added.



The Speciality Steels business is independent of the pan-European strip products supply chain and the announcement is in line with the overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio. This is an important step forward in seeking a future for Speciality Steels and we have reached this stage thanks to the efforts of employees, trade unions and management, Tata Steel UK CEO Bimlendra Jha said. We now look forward to working with Liberty on the due diligence and other work streams so that the sale can be successfully concluded. We will continue to work closely with trade unions and will communicate any material news on this issue to the employees on an ongoing basis, he added.



Unite calls for independent audit

Unite, one of Britains largest manufacturing union, has sought an independent audit by Tata Steel following the companys decision to sell its speciality steel business to Liberty House Group. The devil is very much in the detail, which is why we will be asking Tata Steel to ensure that we can conduct independent due diligence on its proposals, Unite national officer for metals Harish Patel said.
A united Opposition is in no mood to relent on its protests over demonetisation till Prime Minister Narendra Modi tenders an apology for insulting Parliament by not apprising it of the decisions taken by him.





On a day when Opposition parties took out separate protest marches across the country, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi joined a large number of Parliamentarians in the Parliament premises to stage a demonstration over the hardship faced by citizens in the aftermath of the currency ban.



Home Minister Rajnath Singhs offer of an olive branch, assuring that the prime minister would intervene in the debate in Parliament, was met with strong rejection.



Is he obliging Parliament by agreeing to intervene in the debate? He transgressed the boundaries of Parliamentary norms. None of the circulars regarding note ban have been tabled in Parliament, Anand Sharma, deputy leader of the Congress in the Rajya Sabha, told DH.



Trinamool Congress leader Derek OBrien said the Opposition wanted an apology from Modi for putting the people of the country through hardship by denying full access to their hard-earned money.



Modi has raised the hackles of the Opposition by virtually painting them as black money holders.



Some people are criticising saying the government did not make ample preparation... I think the pain of such people is that the government did not give a chance to make any preparation, he had said last week.



Former finance minister



P Chidambaram hit out at the governments assertions on the benefits of demonetisation. Bank branches are not allowing withdrawal, rationing notes and our government says all is well, he said on Twitter.



Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad chaired a meeting of leaders of several Opposition parties on Monday morning to chalk out a joint strategy for the coming week in Parliament. We will continue to protest till our demands are met, Azad told reporters.



Opposition parties like the BJD and the TRS have not joined others, while JD(U) president and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has publicly supported the demonetisation drive.
The Opposition parties on Monday staged nationwide protests against the scrapping of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, disrupting normal life in Kerala and Tripura where a day-long shutdown was observed.





The protest, termed Akrosh Divas (Day of Anger), received mixed response.The Congress, which did not call for a shutdown lest people are inconvenienced, staged protests in Karnataka, New Delhi, Kerala, West Bengal, Bihar, Maharashtra, Meghalaya and other parts of the country.



In Karnataka, demonstrations and rallies were held throughout the state. The protests affected the functioning of both the Houses of the Legislature, now in a 10-day winter session at Belagavi, as they did not sit on Monday in line with the decision taken by the Business Advisory Committee. In Delhi, the Congress and the partys student wing, the National Students Union of India, staged demonstrations.



The Left front  CPM, CPI, CPI-ML Liberation, Forward Bloc and RSP  staged a demonstration at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, which was led by CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury and CPI national secretaries D Raja and Atul Anjan.



The Left parties demanded that the government let people use the banned notes for transaction till December 30 or till an alternative arrangement is put in place.



They also demanded compensation for the families of those who died while standing in queues in front of banks and ATMs post-demonetisation.



Yechury accused Prime Minister Modi of providing an opportunity to black money hoarders to make their money white, and Raja attacked him for evading a debate on demonetisation in Parliament.



Though the Trinamool Congress, which is demanding a rollback of demonetisation, took out a rally led by Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata, it opposed the protest called by the Left. According to reports, the bandh evoked a lukewarm response.

Normal life was hit in Left-ruled Tripura with schools, colleges and shops remaining closed and vehicles staying off the roads.



In Maharashtra, the Congress and te NCP took to the streets, though life remained unaffected with no disruption to public transport or functioning of offices and businesses in Mumbai and other parts.



Hundreds of workers from various Opposition parties, led by the DMK, were arrested when they staged protests across Tamil Nadu.
The one-man commission of enquiry appointed by the government to probe into the circumstances and events leading to the unnatural death of DySP M K Ganapathy will function from the fifth floor of Cauvery Bhavan, Karnataka Housing Board Complex, KG Road, Bengaluru.





The government has appointed retired Karnataka High Court judge, justice K N Keshavanarayana, to enquire into the death of Ganapathy.



Ganapathy was found hanging in a Madikeri lodge on July 7, following which a complaint was filed by his family in the Madikeri Town Police station alleging foul play.
Chief of the banned Khalistan Liberation Front, Harminder Singh Mintoo, who escaped from Punjabs Nabhi jail, along with five inmates on Sunday, was arrested at Delhis Nizammuddin railway station early on Monday morning.





The Special Cell of the Delhi Police nabbed him in the parking lot of the railway station when he tried to flee after being identified. He had bought a train ticket to Panvel in Mumbai when he was stopped for questioning by the police, said Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Arvind Deep.



Mintoo whipped out a pistol after being questioned by the police but was overpowered, Deep said.



The Delhi Police was alerted by its Punjab and Uttar Pradesh counterparts on Sunday that the fugitive inmates could enter the national capital. After receiving the inputs, we positioned our personnel at strategic locations in the city. Searches at guesthouses, hotels and border areas were intensified, said Deep.



After escaping from the jail, Mintoo, Kashmeer Singh, Amandeep Singh and Palwinder Singh, who helped the six flee the jail, headed towards Kaithal in Haryana in a Toyota Fortuner car. At Kaithal, Mintoo and Kashmeer alighted from the vehicle and the other two drove off.



The police said that at Kaithal they both tried to change their appearance by trimming off their beard and moustache.



From Kaithal, Mintoo and Kashmeer took a jeep and reached Kurukshetra in Haryana. From there they travelled by a bus to Panipat and then boarded another bus to reach Delhi ISBT (inter state bus terminus).



At the Kashmere Gate ISBT, the two separated in order to avoid detectionby police.



Their objective was to reach Nizamuddin Railway Station separately and latermeet in Goa where Mintoo has good logistical support as he has spent 18 years there,Deep said at a press conference.



While Mintoo reached the railway station and managed to buy a ticket to Panvel, the whereabouts of Kashmeer is still unknown. The police said he was still in Delhi and would be caught soon.



Mintoo was born in Dalli village in Jalandhar district in 1967. His family shifted to Goa in 1989. Mintoo then travelled to Cambodia, Malaysia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.



He used Thailand as his base to mobilise funds for banned pro freedom Sikh bodies, sources said.



Before becoming the chief of Khalistan Liberation Front (KLF), Mintoo was a member of Babbar Khalsa International (BKI).



In 2009, he left BKI and revived KLF. He was arrested from Indira Gandhi International Airport in 2014 while travelling on a fake passport.



Mintoo is involved in 12 terror-related cases, including the attack on the Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in 2008,and the recovery of explosives at Halwara Air Force Station near Ludhiana in 2010.
The state BJP and the Congress engaged in a slugfest on Monday, a day after BJP national president Amit Shah dubbed the state government the most corrupt in the country.





Speaking on the sidelines of an event, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah charged that Shah was a murder accused and had Narendra Modi not become prime minister, he (Shah) would have been languishing in jail.



At a Other Backward Classes (OBC) convention of the BJP in Bengaluru on Sunday, Shah had termed the Siddaramaiah government as the most corrupt in the country and had stated that the time had come to weed it out.



On Monday, Siddaramaiah said Shah had no moral right to speak about the state government. The BJP has leaders who have gone to jail and who keep currency counting machines with them. These are the people who make charges of corruption against us, he said.



He rubbished BJP state president B S Yeddyurappas claim that the party would resolve issues like Mahadayi dispute within 24 hours of coming to power. Why did the BJP not do it when they ruled the state? he asked.



Later in the afternoon, BJP state general secretary C T Ravi countered Siddaramaiahs charges. Ravi said Siddaramaiah neither had knowledge of law nor common sense, he said.



He said the UPA government had conspired against Shah, misused the office of the CBI and had framed him in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case. However, Shah had been cleared of the charges, he said.



He said Yeddyurappa had been acquitted by the courts of corruption charges. Siddaramaiah should procure the order copies and read them, Ravi said.



Ravi said Siddaramaiah himself faced several charges including illegal denotification of land in Arkavathi Layout, misusing his office to secure a contract for his son to set up a diagnostic laboratory inside the premises of a government hospital among others.
The demonetisation programme undertaken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems to have appealed to the rural people of Maharashtra  despite the hardships faced  as the BJP has now clear control of over 50 of the 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats.





Modi and BJP president Amit Shah congratulated Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and state BJP chief Raosaheb Patil-Danve for the massive victory.



As the results of the local body elections poured in on Monday, it was clear that the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena saffron alliance  despite their differences  have a clear edge.



This has come as a major shock to the Sharad Pawar-led NCP and the Congress, which was expecting gains in the aftermath of the prime ministers currency ban.



According to details available from the State Election Commission (SEC), more than 50 presidents of the 147 municipal councils were of the BJP. Besides, the BJP also took control of 50-plus councils.
The Amruthalli police solved a seven-month-old murder case by arresting five people on Monday.





Police arrested Manjunath, Purushottam, Rajanikanth, Muni Narayanappa, David Richard, for murdering Akbar (all residents of Amruthalli) on April 22, near Bagepalli in Chikkaballapur district.



Love affair



Akbar was Manjunaths neighbour and owned a goods vehicle. Akbar was in love with Manjunaths daughter. Both had also eloped and had returned after deciding to get married. However, Manjuath opposed the marriage, the police said.



Manjunath got her daughter engaged to another man. But she continued to meet Akbar, forcing Manjunath to plot Akbars murder with his relatives Purushottam, Rajanikanth and Muni Narayanappa. They sought David Richards help to execute their plan.



Richard, according to the plan, hired Akbars goods vehicle on the pretext of transporting goods from Chikkaballapur on April 22. Muni Narayanappa joined David on the way and the three other suspects followed the goods vehicle in a car.

The suspects asked Akbar to get down from the vehicle at a desolate place near Bagepalli and killed him by hitting his head repeatedly with an iron rod and burnt the body. They drove back to Bengaluru in Akbars vehicle, abandoned the vehicle at Kogilu Cross, and went to their respective houses, the police explained.



Bagepalli police registered a case after an unidentified body was traced the next day. Meanwhile, Akbars mother lodged a missing complaint with the police, but did not specify the exact date. It took some time for us to decide the exact date. We contacted police stations in neighbouring districts in an attempt to trace Akbar.

That is when Bagepalli police informed us about the unidentified body and the details matched, Srinivas Raju, a police inspector told DH.



Vehicle missing



He said local residents informed police about Akbars affair with Manjunaths daughter.



We detained him for questioning and he confessed to the crime. Based on his inputs, we arrested others. Akbars vehicle is missing. We are trying to trace it, he added.
Two persons were killed and two injured in an accident near Bidadi on Bengaluru-Mysuru Road on Sunday night. The deceased were Ranjith, 27,and Vinod, 28, both residents of Kengeri New Town. The injured Shashank and Harivardhini, both from Chennai, are stated to be critical. They are being treated at a private hospital in Bengaluru.





All the four, who attended the wedding of Ranjiths sister in Bengaluru on Sunday, decided to go on an outing on Sunday night. Ranjith lost control over the car while changing lanes and crashed into a tanker near Punith farm at Sheshagirihalli.



Ranjith and Vinod sustained severe injuries and were killed on the spot. The Bidadi police have registered a case.



Actor attacked by cow



Kannada film actress Pooja sustained injuries after a cow attacked her during the shooting of Mukahakki movie near Begur on Monday. The actor was taken to Apollo Hospital for treatment. Pooja is out of danger and doctors have advised her 10 days rest.



Director of Mukahakki, Neenasam Manju, confirmed the incident. The crew completed shooting of the climax for the movie. They had used the cow for the shooting. They were about to pack up and leave the premises when the cow attacked her. Pooja was injured near her waist. She was immediately rushed to the hospital. Pooja hogged the limelight through the award-winning movie Tithi.
Five days after a van driver fled with Rs 1.37 crore, his wife gave herself up and returned a major part of the loot.





Evelyn Mary Roy (40), a resident of Lingarajapuram and wife of Dominic Selvaraj Roy, was accompanied to the police station by her advocate Nancy Prince.



Evelyn handed over Rs 79.08 lakh to the police and said the remaining cash was safe with her husband. Police had found Rs 45 lakh in the abandoned van. That leaves about Rs 12 lakh with the runaway driver.



Dominic was a driver for Secure Transit, a logistics company employed by banks to replenish their ATMs. We have arrested Evelyn for plotting the robbery with her husband, Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) M N Anucheth told reporters.



Dominic is in Bengaluru, she told the police, and will also turn himself in soon. The couple spent just Rs 5,000 of the stolen cash to buy clothes and shoes and pay for their stay at the lodges, Anucheth said. Police have reconstructed the crime with details obtained from Evelyn.



Evelyn joined her husband soon after the heist, when he drove the cash van away from Bank of India on K G Road.



Dominic abandoned the van near Mount Carmel College in Vasanthnagar, and they couple left for Vellore from the Shanthinagar bus terminus. They then travelled to Coimbatore, Thrissur and Vijayawada, first to a shrine and then looking for shelter, before returning to Bengaluru on Sunday.



Dominic is Evelyns second husband. She married him after her first husband died 14 years ago. She has a 12-year-old son from Dominic, and her son from the first husband lives separately.



Police had got in touch with the couples relatives and warned them not to shelter the fugitives.



Evelyn has two aunts, one in Hyderabad and the other in Vijayawada. The aunts refused the couple shelter, and advised them to surrender.



Dominic and Evelyn were left with no option when their relatives refused to help them. They also decided to follow advocate Nancy Princes advice, Anucheth said.



The police will analyse Evelyns fingerprints to check if she was involved in any other crimes in the past. The couples son will not be included in the FIR as he is a minor, he said.
A 23-year-old Delhi University student bludgeoned his elder brother to death with dumbell after the two had a fight over the latter's girlfriend visiting their rented accommodation in North Delhi's Burari area in the early hours of Sunday.





The deceased identified as Hitesh Kumar Verma, 27, had been living with his brother Himanshu, 23, in Delhi for the past two years. Police said Hitesh had been working as an assistant professor in Sanskrit at a Delhi University college for the past two years.



When the police team reached at the house after receiving a PCR call around 3 am, Himanshu allegedly cooked up a story that two men had barged inside their house and murdered his brother. They said that he had hidden the weapon of offence under his bed, which was later seized by them.



The police said Hitesh had asked his younger brother, a post graduate student at the Delhi University, to leave the house as he had invited his girlfriend over, which was followed by the duos fight and the latter killing his brother.



According to a police official, once Hitesh got a job here, he called his brother to the city so that he can pursue his post graduation from the Delhi University. The police said that the duo had been living away from their family in Jhansi and went to visit them every two months.



Himanshu told the police that two months after he shifted to Delhi, Hitesh met a girl here, after which they started meeting each other quite often. Hitesh at first hid his friendship with the girl from his younger brother, as he feared that his brother might share the same with their parents in Jhansi.



However, once Himanshu became suspicious, he started asking his brother about the girl, who in turn shared that Hitesh was dating the girl for some time and asked him to cooperate.
The Aakrosh Diwas protest called by the Congress and the Left parties failed to evoke any response in Bengaluru.



Businesses, educational institutions and transport services functioned as usual.

The protest march by the Congress, the Left parties and their trade bodies led to traffic congestion for nearly three hours on KG Road, Nrupatunga Road, J C Road and Lalbagh Road causing inconvenience to road users.



Leading the protest, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) working president Dinesh Gundurao, Agriculture Minister Krishna Byregowda and Urban Development Minister R Roshan Baig criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for demonetising without a proper plan.



Instead of keeping his promise to bring back black money, Modi has put the working class and the middle class to hardship,'' Gundurao said.



Byregowda termed demonetisation as unscientific. It will curtail economic growth, he said.



The Congress leaders later submitted a memorandum to Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner V Shankar.



Meanwhile, the Left parties held a demonstration at Mysore Bank Circle. Members of CPI, CPM, SUCI and other Left parties demanded that the Centre withdraw demonetisation as it is hurting the poor.



They also asked the prime minister to keep his promise of depositing money into bank accounts of the poor by brining back black money parked abroad.



Sambhram Diwas



BJP workers and NaMo brigade members distributed sweets to officials in banks, post offices and to the public for not extending support to the protest called by the Opposition parties.



The BJP had asked its workers to counter Aakrosh Diwas as Sambhram Diwas or the day of celebration.


Aakrosh Diwas, the nationwide protest called by various opposition parties against demonetisation of high-value currency notes by the Centre, evoked lukewarm response across the state on Monday.



Normal life was not affected anywhere as shops and commercial establishments remained open. Banks, government offices and educational institutions functioned as usual. There was no disruption in transportation as private and KSRTC buses plied on the day. There were no reports of any untoward incident during the protests.



In Mysuru, the members of Congress Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Leftist parties staged protests at various parts of the city.



The Congress members took out a bike rally and later staged a dharna at the Gandhi Square. The workers of the Left parties demanded that prime minister withdraw demonetisation of currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination.



Meanwhile, BJP workers distributed sweets and flowers to government employees, bank officials and shopkeepers for their support for demonetisation.



Normal life was not affected in Hassan and Chamarajnagar districts also. In Mandya, former Lok Sabha member, Ramya said that BJP leaders knew about demonetisation in advance. The BJP men served sweets, biriyani and tea to the people as part of their Sambhrama Diwas.



Life was normal in the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharward, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts.



Its utter flop: BSY

BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa on Monday termed the call given by the Congress and other parties to observe Monday as Aakrosh Diwas to protest against demonetisation as an utter flop, reports DHNS from Bengaluru.



In a statement released to the media, he stated that the people had given a slap on the face of the parties which had given the call. He stated that the Opposition had tried to misguide the people against the prime ministers fight against black money.
A Lokayukta special court on Monday granted interim bail to former Lokayukta Justice Y Bhaskar Rao in the extortion and corruption case.



Justice Rao had moved an application seeking interim bail to attend his mother's death ceremony. The Lokayukta special court had issued summons to Justice Rao after the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which probed cases of extortion and corruption, had filed an additional charge sheet against him.



Justice Rao's son Yerabati Ashwin is the main accused in the case. The High Court had rejected Justice Raos petition seeking quashing of the additional charge sheet and also the issuance of summons against him.



Former Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court, Justice Rao, arrived on the court premises at Mayo Hall on M G Road in a car with his advocates. He walked straight towards the court room on the ground floor amid police security. Justice Rao stood in the accused box for some time and was later allowed to sit, considering his age.



The advocates appearing for Justice Rao moved an application seeking regular bail in the case. When the Special Public Prosecutor appearing for the SIT sought time to file objections, the advocates moved another application for interim bail.



The Lokayukta court judge D T Devendra granted Justice Rao interim bail and posted the next hearing to November 30. The SPP, appearing for the SIT, was directed to file objections by November 30.



The SIT, which probed the cases of extortion and corruption within the Lokayukta institution, had filed the additional charge sheet naming Justice Rao as an accused.



Earlier, the SIT had filed the main charge sheet in the first case, pertaining to extortion and demand for bribe from M N Krishnamurthy, former executive engineer, zilla panchayat (Bengaluru Urban).



Justice Raos son Ashwin and former Lokayukta public relations officer Syed Riyaz

are the prime accused in this case.



In the additional charge sheet, Justice Rao was named accused number seven in the case. The SIT has pressed charges of abetment, destroying of evidence and attempting to protect his son Ashwin, who ran the extortion racket from both the office and the residence of the Lokayukta.


Demonetisation has badly hit the coffee growers in the state who are already fearing a drop in coffee production due to scanty rainfall.



As coffee cultivation is labour-intensive, growers are finding it extremely difficult to pay workers due to scrapping of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denomination notes and a ceiling imposed on cash withdrawals.



Former president of The United Planters Association of Southern India Vijayan Rajes told DH, The Plantations Labour Act and the Payment of Wages Act mandate that we pay labourers in cash. We are facing severe problem in paying daily wages. However, the impact will be short-term.



According to Classic Synergy founder and managing director D M Purnesh, a coffee grower with estates in Karnataka, Demonetisation has affected payment of daily wages to labourers. Normal weekly payments have got a little staggered since we are not able to draw large money from the banks.



About 30% of labourers who work in our estate are migrants. We have convinced them about the delay in payments. We have made arrangements with provision stores near the estate to supply provisons to labourers. Shops will maintain an account of the supplies made to labourers and we will pay them directly through our bank account, Purnesh, who is a member of Indian Coffee Board, told DH.



However, coffee planters are happy that labourers are not skipping work despite delay in payments.



Almost all our labourers, about 200 in one of our estates have been reporting to work regularly even after demonetisation. We have been making staggered payments by drawing amount from our staff accounts etc. We have already spoken to most of the workers that we will start depositing money into their bank accounts directly. Definitely, there is a temporary setback, he stated.



Demonetisation has only added to the worries of the coffee growers. Due to delay in blossom shower this year, we have lost almost 30% of our Arabica crop. This is the second consecutive year where rainfall is below 40% of the annual normal rainfall. If the trend continues, the plants would be highly stressed and we may lose even the future crop. The moisture levels have come down drastically due to low rains in last two years, Purnesh explained. Though there are reports that only about 20% of the current crop is affected due to scanty rains, it is much higher. Due to shortage of overall rains and less ground moisture, the size of beans will reduce, he opined.



Banning co-operative banks from exchanging scrapped notes has hit a big number of small growers who mostly deal with such banks. For generations, many growers have been very comfortable transacting with co-operative banks.



Production to dip by 8%

Coffee production during 2016-17 would be around 3,20,000 million tonnes (MT), a 8% dip from 3,48,000 MT in 2015-16, according to post-blossom estimates. Karnataka contributes 2,29,345 million tonnes (Arabica - 74,485 MT and Robusta 1,54,860 MT) to the total production.
By Phil Plait

23 November 2016 (Slate)  In a month where its easy to get outrage fatigue at the incoming Donald Trump administration, he still finds a way to be brazenly awful and make terrible, dangerous decisions. In an interview with the Guardian, Bob Walker, a senior Trump adviser, said that Trump will eliminate NASAs Earth science research. This is the mission directorate of NASA that, among other important issues, studies climate change. In other words, Trump and his team want to stop NASA from studying climate change. From the article:

NASAs Earth science division is set to be stripped of funding in favor of exploration of deep space, with the president-elect having set a goal during the campaign to explore the entire solar system by the end of the century.

This confirms essentially the same comments made by Walker in late October at a Federal Aviation Administration committee meeting. The motivation behind this is clear: Utter and complete denial of science. Ive written many times that Trump denies climate change is even real, saying its a Chinese hoax. Hes said theres no drought in California, even while the majority of the state is under intense drought conditions. He picked a climate change denier to advise him on energy policy during his campaign, and picked an even more egregious denier to head up the EPA transition effort. In a recent statement he appears to have softened that hard-line stance, but given the torrent of lies dropping from Trumps mouth, his history of science denial, and Walkers current statements, I see no reason to believe Trumps attitude has changed. [more]
27 November 2016 (Washington Post)  National Geographic asked a global community of photographers to share their stories about climate change. Photos were submitted through Your Shot, National Geographics online photo community, and then editors selections were chosen to be in an exhibit at the Conference of the Parties 22 Climate Summit in Morocco.
Vodacom Tanzania has submitted a draft IPO prospectus in the face of a deadline for listing on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange.

By 31st December, all eight of Tanzanias mobile operators will be legally required to float 25% of their shares on the stock exchange. If they do not comply then they face fines or possibly even the revocation of their operating licences.

Market leader Vodacom Tanzania applied to the Capital Markets and Securities Authority (CMSA) before the end of November, and fellow operator Tigo has stated its intent to comply with the order, but other operators are in danger of missing the deadline, with Airtel in particular making no announcements.

The government of Tanzania has been pushing operators towards an IPO, arguing that the transparency is required for tax reasons. In addition, the public listings will allow Tanzanians to invest in their mobile industry. The government has noted that the listing process could become more incremental to so that investor capital isnt used indiscriminately.
An eight-year-old girl with type 1 diabetes, who has raised more than $2,000 (1,600) for research into the disease, has lobbied the Canadian Government to help find a cure.

Tilly Stimpson (pictured second from right), who at such a young age has already lived with the condition for 5.5 years, travelled to Parliament Hill together with her father Matt, who also has type 1 diabetes, and her mother Jo.

The inspirational eight-year-old ftom Peterborough, Canada was picked along with 24 other children from across the North American country to spend two days at Parliament Hill as part of the Kids for a Cure Lobby day.

Tilly, who together with her family has raised $2,739 for the JDRF in five years, spent her time meeting Senators and Members of Parliament. She was able to tell them of her own experiences and asked the Government to fund more clinical trials in a bid to find a cure.

Maryam Monsef, Member of Parliament for Peterborough-Kawartha, met Tilly during her visit. She said: Im very proud of the work that Tilly Stimpson and her family are doing to raise awareness about type 1 diabetes.

Many of my colleagues told me that they were impressed with Tillys advocacy work, and that she is a great ambassador for all Canadians who live with type 1 diabetes every day.

Maryam shared Tillys story with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who gave her a wave after spotting her in the public gallery.

Maryam added: I wanted to be sure to share Tillys story with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau so on Monday just before Question Period, I pointed out the family as they were sitting in the gallery.

As I shared their story with him, he gave the Stimpsons and the other families participating in Kids for a Cure Day a wave from the floor of the House of Commons. I cant wait to see the good work that Tilly will do in our community.

Picture: PTBO Canada
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt will on Thursday urge healthcare leaders to make significant improvements in the care and support available to people with diabetes in the UK.

Hunt will be speaking at the launch of a new report titled Diabetes Care: Improving Standards and Reducing Variation, which has been written by a group of MPs.

The report outlines significant variations in diabetes care across the country, and calls for an additional 40 million of funding to transform diabetes services in worse performing areas.

The funding would then be used to make priority improvements to make sure people with diabetes are not missing out on vital care and support  the report highlights a current lottery of care that exists not just by postcode but also by diabetes type and age.

These priority improvements are:

High quality conversations with the right healthcare professionals: Also giving people with diabetes tailored treatment plans and the ability to input into the decision-making process with their healthcare team

Support people with diabetes to manage their condition: The report highlights Berkshire West CCG as an area that has radically increased the number of people attending structured education courses

Access to key technologies: The Academic Health Science Network for South London is hailed for increasing the amount of adults with diabetes on insulin pumps in South London by 31 per cent

The report also stresses the need to reduce the cost of diabetes on the NHS, which is approximated at 10 billion a year, of which 80 per cent is spent on preventable complications such as amputations and blindness.

MPs have urged Clinical Commission Groups in England to raise this extra 40 million to help put better systems of care in place for younger people with type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes to help teach them how to avoid developing complications.

Keith Vaz MP, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Diabetes, said: Our message is that variation is not a signal of despair; but of hope. It shows that good care can be achieved, and were tasking CCG leaders with making it happen everywhere to tackle the diabetes crisis.
The device is tipped to come in three variants  a 2GB RAM 16GB variant, a 3GB RAM 32 GB variant and a 4GB RAM 64 GB variant

Chinese cellphone manufacturer Meizu will be releasing its newest smartphone the Meizu M5 Note in China on December 6. The company has already started to send out press invites for the impending launch. Earlier reports had suggested that the device would be launched on November 30.

The m5 note was recently spotted on Antutu where it was listed with a Mali-T860GPU, MediaTek Helio P10 octa-core processor and a full HD display. According to the Chinese website GizmoChina the device will be available in three variants based on RAM and internal storage capacity - 2GB RAM/16GB internal storage, 3GB RAM/ 32GB internal storage and 4GB RAM/64GB internal storage. All variants will feature the option for expanding the internal storage via a microSD card slot. The website added that the variants will also differ in terms of battery size with only the 64GB variant sporting a 4000mAh battery while the others will come with a 3920mAh battery. Tipped to run on Android 6.0.1 the device will sport a metal unibody with round edges and will be available in two colours  Black and White.

In the invite for the launch Meizu noted that it had already sold over 20 million units of the m3 note. According to GizmoChina the company will soon halt the production of the M5 notes predecessor. Launched in India in May 2016 at Rs. 9,999 the m3 note features a 5.5-inch Full HD display. The m3 note runs on Android Lollipop v5.1 coupled with a 1.8GHz MediaTek Helio P10 SoC with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage. The camera setup included a 13MP rear camera with dual-LED flash and PDAF, while at the front camera was a 5MP shooter. All this is backed by a 4100 mAh battery.
Xiaomi's India head Manu Jain tweeted that the company recorded 150 percent year-on-year growth

Xiaomi has sold over 2 million handsets in India during the July-September quarter. This is the highest sales ever for Xiaomi since entering India in 2014.

Xiaomi's India head Manu Jain tweeted that the company recorded 150 percent year-on-year growth. Xiaomi recently announced that its latest budget devices, Redmi 3S and Redmi 3S Prime, have contributed sales of over million handsets. Xiaomi has been constantly doing sales of over 1 million handsets per quarter but this is the first time, the number has reached over 2 million units.

Xiaomi made its debut in India in 2014 as an online-only brand via an exclusive tie-up with Flipkart. Since then, the Chinese smartphone maker has expanded its presence to other e-retail platforms like Amazon, Snapdeal, Paytm and TataCliQ. Xiaomi also recently introduced its first offline only smartphone, in order to catch up on the offline sales platform.

According to latest IDC numbers, Xiaomi is the fourth largest smartphone vendor with a market share of 7.4 percent. The company is poised to overtake home-grown smartphone maker, Micromax as the third largest brand. With the latest quarter sales, Xiaomi could announce its best yearly performance yet.

Since the launch of Redmi Note 3, Xiaomi has turned aggressive in India with expansion of its own retail site and exclusive offers. During the Diwali sale, Xiaomi managed to sell over 247,00 units via Mi.com before reaching sales of 1 million units in just 18 days. Xiaomi has also pushed the 'Make in India' bandwagon ahead with most phones getting assembled at Foxconn's Sri City factory in Andhra Pradesh.

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Crude oil futures are on the front foot on Monday afternoon as traders continue to ponder the likelihood of whether cartel Opec will introduce a production cap when it meets on 30 November in Vienna.

"Just as everyone in the market feared, there is intense volatility in oil prices ahead of this weeks OPEC meeting," said Neil Wilson of ETX Capital.

"No one knows if an agreement to freeze output is just wishful thinking or pretty nearly a done deal," he added.

At about 15:23 GMT, Nymex-quoted West Texas Intermediate crude was up 2.21% to $47.08 a barrel, while Intercontinental Exchange-listed Brent was up 2.12% to $48.24 a barrel.

Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, noted Brent crude's rise above $48 a barrel.

"The inspiration ... were comments from the Iraqi oil minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi claiming he is 'optimistic' for a deal on Wednesday," Campbell added.

Wilson of ETX Capital continued: "This is only the start -- expect many more gyrations as markets react to various rumours and mutterings from Vienna.

"It looks like it will be a bumpy ride for oil until we know the score."

He added that if Opec struck a production cap, crude futures were likely to make a concerted effort to bust $52 a barrel, but a no-deal situation could see $40 tested to the downside.

"A fudged half-deal could leave the market guessing for months to come and oil will be stuck in the range its been in since the summer.

"This could be the most likely outcome - the fact is that because of the US shale revolution, OPEC doesnt have the muscle to really swing prices like it used to."

Meantime, on Comex at about 15:23 GMT, gold was up 0.68% to $1189.00 an ounce, silver was up 0.7% to $16.67 an ounce and copper was up 0.8% to 270.30 cents a pound.

In agriculturals, Chicago Board of Trade-listed corn was down 0.42% to 356.75 cents a bushel, while wheat was down 1.01% to 415.25 cents a bushel.

ICE-priced cocoa firmed 0.17% to $2419.00 a MT, and cotton No.2 rose 1.32% to 72.19 cents a pound. Live cattle down 0.16% to 112.03 cents a pound.
Oil prices bounced back at the beginning of the week amid multiple reports of last minute negotiations and shuttle diplomacy between high-ranking OPEC officials as its members to try and close the first deal in eight years to cut their combined level of output.

Highlighting the difficulty of reaching a deal, on Sunday Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih floated the possibility that an output cut agreement was no longer necessary as a pick-up in US oil demand in 2017 would suffice to rebalance supply and demand in the market.

The announcement came amid foot-dragging from Saudi Arabias two main regional rivals, Iraq and Iran, on freezing or much less cutting their own levels of production.

Russia was also seen as simply paying 'lip-service' to talk of a production freeze.

We expect demand to recover in 2017, then prices will stabilize, and this will happen without an intervention from OPEC, Al-Falih said on 27 November, according to Saudi daily Asharq al-Awsat.

We dont have a single path which is to cut production at the OPEC meeting, we can also depend on recovery in consumption, especially from the US, he said.

On the previous day, reports indicated that Algerias Energy Minister, Noureddine Boutarfa, had presented a proposal to Iran for a 1.1m barrel a day reduction in OPECs together with a 600,000 b/d cut by non-OPEC producers.

Boutarfa and his Venezuelan counterpart, Eulogio del Pino, were expected to travel to Moscow on Monday.

To take note of as well, on Monday afternoon Iraqi oil minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi said he was optimistic that OPEC would be able to reach a deal when it met on Wednesday.
European equity markets fell on Monday, with the mood directed by Italy's tanking bank shares ahead of the countrys upcoming referendum.

By the close, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was down 0.77%, while Germanys DAX was 0.88% lower. Italys FTSE MIB suffered the heaviest losses, down 1.81% as bank stocks slumped amid concerns the referendum on constitutional reform could precipitate the fall of Prime Minister Renzis government.

The Stoxx 600s gauge of lenders shares retreated 1.8% to 155.22.

In the UK, the Bank of England was scheduled to publish the results of its 2016 bank stress tests on Wednesday, alongside its biannual Financial Stability Report.

On 4 December, Italians will be asked to decide whether to accept a package of constitutional reforms put forward by centre-left Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who has said he would resign if the proposals are rejected.

Spreadexs Connor Campbell said: "With the likes of Unicredit and Banca Popolare di Milano dropping around 4%, and the ever-troubled Monte dei Paschi plunging as it revealed legal claims totalling 8.5bn, Campbell said the market has taken a good look at Sundays Italian constitutional reforms referendum and decided it doesnt like what it sees. The vote is being labelled Italys Brexit-moment  if no prevails it could lead to political chaos in one of the eurozones most precariously balanced members.

Market participants are concerned that if this results in a 'no' vote, political uncertainty will ensue, making the task of sorting out non-performing loan issues at the countrys banks even more difficult.

In France, the CAC 40 was down 0.88% as Francois Fillon won the primary race to become the French rights presidential candidate next spring.

The hope in markets was that Fillon would be able to see-off far right National Front leader Marine Le Pen in second round voting in the French presidential elections.

However, in a research note penned on 27 November HSBC cautioned that: "[...] Of course, polls have been unreliable. With still more than seven months to go before the final vote, there could be many twists and turns in the French presidential race."

Meanwhile, oil prices bpunced off their session lows, with West Texas Intermediate rising 2.5% to $47.25 a barrel and Brent up by 2.4% to $48.42, respectively. Prices fell sharply on Friday after Saudi Arabia said it wouldnt meet with non-OPEC Russia ahead of the OPEC summit in Vienna as originally planned.

Stoking buying interest, on Monday afternoon Iraqi oil minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi said he was "optimistic" that OPEC would be able to reach a deal when it met on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, Aberdeen Asset Management fell back despite posting annual results that were in line with expectations and the company maintaining its dividend.

Antofagasta edged higher after agreeing to sell the Michilla mine to Chilean mining group Haldeman Mining Company for up to $52m following the closure of the mine at the end of last year.

Swiss food group Aryzta was under the cosh after it reported a drop in quarterly revenue due to lower sales in North America.

Tesco fell following a report in The Times that investigators are looking into whether Tesco Bank ignored a warning about a security flaw in its payment system that allowed fraudsters to steal millions of pounds from the accounts of thousands of its customers.
European equity markets fell on Monday, with the mood directed by Italy's tanking bank shares ahead of the upcoming referendum.

At midday, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index was down 0.7%, while Germanys DAX was 0.9% lower. Italys FTSE MIB suffered the heaviest losses, down 1.5% as bank stocks slumped amid concerns the referendum on constitutional reform could precipitate the fall of Prime Minister Renzis government.

On 4 December, Italians will be asked to decide whether to accept a package of constitutional reforms put forward by centre-left Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who has said he would resign if the proposals are rejected.

Market participants are concerned that if this results in a 'no' vote, political uncertainty will ensue, making the task of sorting out non-performing loan issues at the countrys banks even more difficult.

In France, the CAC 40 was down 0.8% as Francois Fillon won the primary race to become the French rights presidential candidate next spring.

Meanwhile, oil prices were weaker but off lows, with West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude down 0.2% to $45.96 a barrel and $47.16, respectively. Prices fell sharply on Friday after Saudi Arabia said it wouldnt meet with non-OPEC Russia ahead of the OPEC summit in Vienna as originally planned.

Saudi Arabia, which is the worlds largest oil producer, said it would not attend the meeting unless there was a clear decision from OPEC on production cuts.

However, a report in the Financial Times on Monday suggested Saudi has offered to cut its production by 4.5% from its current level of 10.5m barrels a day. It was also said to have demanded that Irans production be frozen at the current level of 3.8m barrels per day.

Spreadexs Connor Campbell said: Despite Brent Crude clawing its way back above $47 per barrel the major European indices all remained in the red this morning.

With the likes of Unicredit and Banca Popolare di Milano dropping around 4%, and the ever-troubled Monte dei Paschi plunging 15% as it revealed legal claims totalling 8.5bn, Campbell said the market has taken a good look at Sundays Italian constitutional reforms referendum and decided it doesnt like what it sees. The vote is being labelled Italys Brexit-moment  if no prevails it could lead to political chaos in one of the eurozones most precariously balanced members.

Elsewhere, Aberdeen Asset Management was a high riser after its annual results were in line with expectations and the company maintained its dividend.

Antofagasta edged higher after agreeing to sell the Michilla mine to Chilean mining group Haldeman Mining Company for up to $52m following the closure of the mine at the end of last year.

Swiss food group Aryzta was under the cosh after it reported a drop in quarterly revenue due to lower sales in North America.

Tesco fell following a report in The Times that investigators are looking into whether Tesco Bank ignored a warning about a security flaw in its payment system that allowed fraudsters to steal millions of pounds from the accounts of thousands of its customers.
US president-elect Donald Trump has responded to Jill Stein's efforts to initiate recounts in three states after the election earlier this month, by claiming millions of illegal votes were cast.

Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the electoral college system used in the United States, but the Democrat looks set to win the popular vote by at least two million votes.

The Republican offered no evidence as to why he believed the so-called illegal votes were cast.

In a tweet published on Sunday by the former reality television show host, he said "in addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."

He followed up his remarks with more claims that if the election winner was based on the popular vote, it would have made it easier for him to beat Clinton.

"It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than in the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4 states instead of the 15 states that I visited," Trump added. "I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!"

The tweets came after Clinton's campaign team said that she would support a recount in the states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania if it were to be initiated by Stein and the Green Party.

Clinton's general counsel Marc Elias said over the weekend that she would support the recount effort, but not actively pursue it.

"We certainly understand the heartbreak felt by so many who worked so hard to elect Hillary Clinton," Elias wrote, "and it is a fundamental principle of our democracy to ensure that every vote is properly counted."
City plans to offer $500k buyouts to 4 deputy police chiefs

Five of the six current Columbus deputy chiefs would be eligible to apply for a buyout payment of $500,000. Four chosen would leave in January.
Subscriber content preview

BOISE, Idaho (AP)  Federal officials are proposing one of the largest ever projects to remove juniper trees to protect habitat for imperiled sage grouse.

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management recently announced that it's taking public comments through Jan. 3 on the plan to eliminate trees from 940 square miles in southwest Idaho.





. . .
Tata Steel is preparing to commit to its UK steel operations, including the vast Port Talbot works, for at least the next 10 years, in a move which would secure the future of more than 11,000 steel workers and deliver a major boost to the government. Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, one of the group's closest advisers, said Tata is preparing ''major announcements about growth in Tata Steel'', and is ''resolving'' the problems facing the business. He also said the company is halting the sale of its speciality steels arm, which is part of Tata Steel UK and employs about 2,000 people in northern England. Bhattacharyya is close to Ratan Tata, the chairman of Tata Group, and advised him on the purchase of Corus, which was previously British Steel, and Jaguar Land Rover almost a decade ago. He is the founder and chairman of Warwick Manufacturing Group, a research partnership between the University of Warwick and leading manufacturers. He is also a member of the panel that will choose Tata's successor as group chairman. The future of Tata Steel UK and its 11,000 workers has been in doubt since the Indian company announced a review of the business in March, amid mounting losses and heavy debts. The entire UK business was initially put up for sale before Tata Steel pulled out of talks to focus on a merger of its European operations, including the UK business, with the German group ThyssenKrupp. Talks with ThyssenKrupp have been continuing, but according to The Guardian, Tata sources say the company is now willing to commit to its UK sites whether this deal goes ahead or not. Bhattacharyya was talking at a meeting of political and automotive leaders from the Midlands on Thursday evening, which included Greg Clark, the business, energy and industrial strategy secretary. The government has been fiercely criticised for not doing enough to help the steel industry, which has struggled due to mounting energy costs and China dumping cheap steel in Europe, which has driven down prices. The Labour peer said, ''Of course we went through some problems as you have read in the press in the last few months but we are now resolving it and we are working with everybody, with the workers, local authorities and government, in order to make sure that Tata produces steel here for the next 10 years at least. We will do that.'' Bhattacharyya claimed Britain ''has got a lot of skill in steel'', adding, ''We have been going through some problems of course, temporary problems, but nevertheless I think we are on the verge of solving it. We will work with Jaguar Land Rover to introduce thin steels for the new generation of cars.'' The future of Tata Steel UK's pension scheme, the British Steel pension scheme, has been a major obstacle to the future of the business. It has liabilities of more than 15 billion and 130,000 members, making it one of the biggest retirement schemes in the country. The company has been in talks with the government about spinning the pension scheme off into a new vehicle disconnected from Tata Steel, which could prove hugely controversial if it is finalised.










The first Donegal patient to receive cancer treatment at the new radiotherapy centre in Derry has been referred to the service.

The centre opened its doors in the last two weeks and will treat 75 patients a day when fully operational.

The West

Health and Social Care Trust Confirmed last week that it has received its first referral from the HSE for the service.

The patient will be seen by clinicals at the 50m centre in the coming weeks.

The North West Cancer Centre at Altnagelvin Hospital was built with 19m funding from the Dublin government.

Of the 1,500 patients who will be seen annually, around 4,00 will be referred from the HSE in Donegal.

The opening of the centre will end the journeys to Galway for treatment for many Donegal cancer patients.

The building of the centre followed campaigning by cancer services campaign groups in Donegal.

The news that the first Donegal patient has been referred to the service was welcomed by Donegal Action for Cancer Care (DACC).

Betty Holmes of DACC said the radiotherapy center will benefit cancer patients all over Donegal.

This is a good news story. Our first choice was Letterkenny but we were told from the beginning that it would be Derry. This is a really good story and it will benefit Donegal cancer patients.

Noelle Duddy of Co-operating for Cancer Care NorthWest, said the group is absolutely delighted and overjoyed that the cross border, North West Cancer Centre at Altnagelvin Hospital is commencing radiotherapy treatments for cancer patients.

For us, it is a day to celebrate, our work is done.

See page 4 for more.
Home Four wheelers Volkswagen And Algerias SOVAC Joins For Local Assembly oi-Sreejith

German auto giant Volkswagen signed a deal to assemble cars in Algeria in a joint venture with its local car importer SOVAC. According to VW and Algerian officials, the main aim of the deal is to produce more than 100 vehicles per day from June 2017.



{photo-feature}
Five years ago, Zeryab Cheema launched Taxi 24/7. The iPhone app, which has been embraced by the London Black Cab network, thrust Cheema into the media spotlight, with appearances on 7News, Today Show, ABC 7:30. On Wednesday (30 Nov), the Sydney entrepreneur launches his second venture, Uber challenger HOP. Its a bold move thats especially impressive given Cheemas age: hes just 20 years old.

Essentially a pivot from my first business, HOP is an on-demand ride-sharing platform that provides Hertz rental cars for use by drivers to pick-up passengers, Cheema told Dynamic Business.

HOP will eventually operate across Sydney but for now were focused on Eastern Suburbs/Bondi because we want to ensure a balance in supply and demand.

Were being very competitive. Drivers rent a car from us and get to keep 100% of all fares, whereas Uber drivers only get to keep 80%. While using Uber is 20% cheaper than using a taxi, our service is 40% cheaper. With HOP, passengers can choose to book a ride through the app or from the street by approaching our Street Ushers, located at popular street spots, to hail a ride. While the Australian market had moved on from booking taxis, many people still hail them  but you cant hail an Uber. Thats part of our USP: we want people to be able to get a ride with or without the app. We also have three different car types  Plus, Pro and Lux. Its about offering consumers greater choice.

Cheema, a second-year economics student who addresses industry conferences and regularly speaks on entrepreneurship at the University of Sydney, is being backed by some cool minds; namely, former apprentice winner, Andrew Morello and Stuart Cook, the former CEO of Zambrero). In addition, with support from senior government ministers as well as former PM Julia Gillard, he has conducted over $2.5 million in research and development with multi-nationals like PayPal, TeamSpeak and Altoros.

With PayPal, we looked at creating an integrated payment feature to allow the app to communicate with a third-party hardware, he explained.

Basically, a driver would be able to turn their phone into a payment device. This had to be streamlined so it could work for thousands of drivers. With TeamSpeak, it was creating a VoIP feature which allowed any app to give its users the ability to speak with one another for free. We could add this to HOP to allow people to socialise and make planning via the HOP app using free calls.

Asked whether his youth has been a barrier to securing investors, Cheema replied, Im very persistent. If I ever get turned down, I dont walk away and look for another alternative; instead, I do whatever it takes to convince them because I hate taking NO for an answer. With investors, my attitude has always been that Im personally happy with what I have financially and so I dont have the risks other entrepreneurs have. Plus, investors have loved my unconventional approach  I first contacted Hertz over LinkedIn and I made contact with TeamSpeak using my dads email. With HOP, four private seed investors are on board.
One of the most volatile conspiracy theories in recent times ended with a whimper last month, when Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump made the terse statement, President Barack Obama was born in the United States. Period.

Though birthers may be with us always, it seems that many have turned their attention to other potentially scandalous topics  and they need look no further than the place most conspiracy theories are born these days, the Internet.

Scientists recently made a discovery that might explain why Trumps search for President Obamas real birth certificate resonated with his supporters  those most drawn to his promise to make America great again.

Highly stressed people are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories, according to research published this spring in the journal Personality and Individual Differences.

Based on the responses of 420 U.S. adults surveyed, stress and discontent correlated with a higher likelihood of belief in conspiracy theories ranging from 9/11 being an inside job to the moon landing being produced on a Hollywood set, researchers found, regardless of the participants social status.

That offers some insight into why some people are more likely to believe, but it does not explain why they push away a preponderance of evidence in favor of the generally accepted answers to questions most people dont even ask.

There always have been conspiracy theories, noted pop culture expert Paul Levinson, a communications professor atFordham University, who pointed to all the wild ideas that emerged in the aftermath of the JFK assassination.

Social media have fanned the flames, making conspiracy theories more likely to spread, he said.

Anyone can write anything, and it can be viewed by millions in the blink of an eye on Twitter. Millions can, in turn, easily retweet the comment or image or link, Levinson told TechNewsWorld.

At the Intersection

One of the most popular conspiracy theories  one thats likely to outlive this generation and the next  concerns the untimely death of Princess Diana in a 1997 automobile accident. That event occurred squarely at the intersection of two eras, spinning one of the first major series of conspiracy theories of the Information Age.

Suspicious circumstances surrounding the incident intrigued the world. Back then, newspapers were still alive and well, birds were the only ones tweeting, and posting meant sending mail.

Author and self-described Diana fanatic Roman Clay recalled how old-school TV and print media coverage of the princess death focused on certain details and missed many others.

Clay was surprised by the common perception that Diana had died immediately in the tunnel, as well as by the many other details that generally were unknown  for example, that it took 108 minutes to rush her to the ER, and that she passed away due to internal hemorrhaging.

There were a few writers who questioned the official report and wrote investigative books on Dianas death, but they received very little coverage in mass media, Clay told TechNewsWorld.

So Clay, using the freedom fiction allows to fill in the blanks, wrote Death of the Queen of Hearts to publish his own theory and encourage more people to question the official line.

Coverage of the princess death certainly would have been a lot different had it occurred a decade or so later. These days, individuals can express themselves to a large audience over the Internet, and thats definitely a plus, Clay said.

Researchers into Dianas death would be able to present the facts quickly and widely, he noted, but that easy access to the Internet also permits some outrageous theories that bring in aliens or lizard people, which thereby dilutes and buries other serious investigative research.

New Millennia, New Media, No Change

Although news of Dianas death traveled quickly, its dissemination was nothing like it would be today. Anyone with an Internet connection now has up-to-the-minute access to every detail, true or false  whether its the latest controversial police shooting, an Olympic divers tale of being held at gunpoint by Brazilian muggers, or the discovery that the divers story was fabricated.

The worlds current connectedness gives everyone a voice and a platform. However, voices that once were dominated now get drowned out by a crowd of blog, forum and social media posts.

Governments have harder time controlling their messages, noted Richard W. Lachmann, a professor specializing in comparative/historical sociology and political sociology at the University at Albany.

Its a way around censorship, he said, pointing to the U.S. governments inability to control information about the Iraq war, due in large to soldiers sharing impressions online.

Compare that to Vietnam, Lachmann told TechNewsWorld. It took years for enough soldiers to come home and tell civilians that the reality of the war was very different from the governments version.

As for terrorism, the Internet has increased the amount or rumors and conspiracies on the subject, he noted.

That can induce panic and the feeling that the government does not have terror under control, Lachmann said.

However, savvy government can take advantage of a climate of fear, he suggested.

The Bush administration repeatedly tried to increase public fear after 9/11 to build support for the Iraq war and for others of its policies, and to win the 2004 election, Lachmann maintained. For those purposes, rumors about terror were helpful, even though they had no basis in reality.

While the Internet has turbocharged the speed and distances at which conspiracy theories travel, that doesnt necessarily mean more people buy into them, observed Joseph Uscinski, an associate professor of political science at the University of Miami and author ofAmerican Conspiracy Theories.

Many people blame the Internet for conspiracy theories, he told TechNewsWorld but conspiracy theories are a part of the human experience and existed, sometimes in great numbers, long before the advent of the Web.

Conspiracy Theories in the Information Age, Part 2
Twitter on Tuesday suspended the account of Richard Spencer, one of the leading voices of the alt-right movement, amid a wider crackdown on hate speech and cyberbullying. It also expanded the use of several existing tools and changed policies to make it easier for users to fight back against abuse and harassment.

Twitter suspended the accounts of Spencer, president of the National Policy Institute, a white nationalist think tank. It also suspended the account of the organization, as well as the accounts of its online magazine and Washington Summit Publishers, which is Spencers book publishing firm.

Spencer referred to the move as corporate Stalinism.

The suspensions and larger crackdown come amid an increase in reported hate crimes since the presidential election, which was praised by a number of alt-right groups while thousands of protesters took to the streets in cities across the country.

The Twitter rules prohibit violent threats, harassment, hateful conduct and multiple account abuse, and we will take actions on accounts violating those policies, a Twitter spokesperson told TechNewsWorld.

Twitters mute button, which allows users to block certain accounts, has been enhanced to allow users to block keywords, phrases and entire conversations they consider offensive, similar to the Unfollow feature on Facebook.

Who Ya Gonna Call?

The change comes months after the widely reported onslaught against Ghostbusters star and Saturday Night Live cast member Leslie Jones. After being bombarded by racist and sexist attacks, she temporarily unplugged her own Twitter account.

Twitter provides an opportunity for users to have more control of their experience on the site, said Zach Fuller, paid content analyst at Midia Research. I expect the feature to be welcomed by the Twitter community.

The mute function for words and hashtags applies only to user notification, and the tweets will still show up in the timeline and via search, Twitter noted.

Twitters hateful conduct policy already bans conduct that targets users based on race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religion, age, disability or disease. The new tools give users a more direct ability to report that type of abuse going forward.

Twitter has retrained all of its support teams on the cultural and historical context of hateful conduct, and it has implemented a refresher program.

The company had received feedback from users that people didnt always know where or if they could report hateful conduct, especially if not targeted at them personally, Twitter spokesperson Brielle Villablanca told TechNewsWorld.

Red Lines

Policing hate speech on a social network can be difficult, because it begins to creep into activity that is considered censorship, noted Jim McGregor, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

Eventually, artificial intelligence will make it easier, he told TechNewsWorld, but that is going to be further into the future  and even then, nothing is perfect, because AI needs to learn and adapt just like a human.

Despite those concerns, cracking down on hate speech and abusive behavior will be important for social networks to avoid driving users away altogether.

Cyberbullying has been an ongoing problem on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms, and it reportedly was a factor in Twitters inability to find a buyer last month, when companies such as Salesforce, Disney and others considered making a bid for the company.
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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which sent an eviction notice to Standing Rock Tribal Chairman Dave Archambault on Friday, released an update Sunday to clarify their plans to close the Oceti Sakowin Camp, which lies just north of the Cannonball River in southern Morton County, North Dakota.

My reactions to the Army Corps unjust notice that #standing rock camps will be cleared by Dec 5. https://t.co/YqEicWi7aa #nodapl @EcoWatch  Josh Fox #BanFrackingNow (@joshfoxfilm) November 26, 2016

The Army Corps said they have no plans to forcibly remove anyone, though those who stay, the agency said, do so at the risk of being ticketed or arrested.

We fully support the rights of all Americans to exercise free speech and peacefully assemble, and we ask that they do it in a way that does not also endanger themselves or others, or infringe on others rights, Omaha District Commander Colonel John Henderson said in a statement.

The Army Corps update on the eviction came the same day that a coalition of groupsCamp of the Sacred Stones, International Indigenous Youth Council, Indigenous Environmental Network and Honor the Earthreleased a new statement, which said, We will not be moved.

Water protectors continue to take a stand against the Dakota Access Pipeline. Lori Panico

The statement went on to say:

We stand united in defiance of the black snake and are committed to defense of water, our Mother Earth, and our rights as Indigenous people. We call on all people of conscience, from all Nations, to join the encampments and stand with us as we put our bodies on the line.

The Army Corps has no authority to evict us from these lands. The Oceti Sakowin encampment is located on the ancestral homeland of the Lakota, Mandan, Arikara and Northern Cheyenneon territory never ceded to the U.S. government, and affirmed in the 1851 Treaty of Ft. Laramie as sovereign land belonging to the Great Sioux Nation.

We call on the White House to deny the easement now, revoke the permits, remove the DAPL construction workers and order a full environmental impact statement in formal consultation with impacted tribal governments.

Watch the Facebook live video of the Standing Rock press event held Saturday afternoon in response to the eviction letter:

[facebook https://www.facebook.com/EcoWatch/videos/1361568743856059/ expand=1]

Just one day after Thanksgiving, and the government is once again breaking trust with Indigenous peoples, 350.orgs Executive Director May Boeve said. Its the pipeline company who should be vacating this land, not the water protectors and their supporters. President Obama can no longer remain silent while peoples lives are being put at risk by the actions of the Army Corps and militarized law enforcement. The only just and responsible way to end this confrontation is for the President to reject the pipeline once and for all.

The eviction letter from the Army Corps came just 12 days after the Army Corps announced that it would delay a decision on granting an easement to Energy Transfer Partners. The enforcement date of the eviction, Dec. 5, is one day after more than 600 veterans plan to join the water protectors at Standing Rock to peacefully protest the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The $3.8 billion pipeline project is now in its final stretch with more than 80 percent of the pipeline already constructed.

We will stand our ground for the water and the unborn generations, the joint statement from the water protectors said. Our fight is not just about a pipeline project. It is about 500 years of colonization and oppression. This is our moment, a chance to demand a future for our people and all people. We ask you to join us.
By James Dyke

Will President Donald Trump really slash funding of the National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) politicized climate change science?

It certainly has been politicized, but not by the scientists conducting it. Blame instead the fossil fuel industry-funded lobby groups and politicians that have for more than a generation tried using doubt, obfuscation or straightforward untruths to argue that humans are not in fact causing significant changes to the climate.

Panuwat Phimpha / Shutterstock

That is what must irk Trumps team of skeptics. NASAs organizations such as the Goddard Institute for Space Studies and Jet Propulsion Laboratory have made seminal contributions to our understanding of how humans are changing the Earths climate. All funded by the U.S. taxpayer.

De-funding NASAs climate change science is effectively sticking your fingers in your ears and whistling Dixie. The Earths climate is indifferent to politics and will continue to respond to human emissions of greenhouse gases. All that would happen is U.S. leadership in this area would end, with the risk that not just America but humanity would be the loser.

Specifically, here are five reasons why de-funding (aka wilfully destroying) NASAs climate change research would be colossally stupid.

1. NASAs Satellites Are Our Eyes on Our World

NASA currently operates more than a dozen satellites that orbit the Earth and remotely sense ocean, land and atmospheric conditions. Its research encompasses solar activity, sea level rise, the temperature of the atmosphere and the oceans, the ozone layer, air pollution and changes in sea and land ice.

All of this is directly relevant to climate change, but also represents vital research on these different components of the Earth system itself. Billions of dollars have been sunk into these programs which produce data that is used by an international community of scientists studying many different aspects of the Earth.

NASA Earth observation satellites. NASA

2. Climate Science is a Key Part of NASAs Mission

Okay, we cant turn all these satellites off, but we can stop the administration using its data to progress climate change science. NASA was created with the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 with a remit to develop technology for space observations but not Earth science. That was the job of other federal agencies.

But the model of cross-agency research failed during the 1970s due to a lack of funding. Budgets were cut and NASA ended up conducting some of the science that was made possible by the data it was collecting. Moreover, it was told to put more emphasis on research towards national needs such as energy efficiency, pollution, ozone depletion and yes, climate change. As such, Earth and climate change science is one of the central remits of the agency which has become a global leader in it.

3. NASA Attracts the Best of the Best

NASA is world famous, largely because of programs such as Apollo which put humans on the Moon. But its fame extends well beyond those interested in space flight. NASA attracts some of the worlds best and brightest Earth and climate change scientists because its operations offer unparalleled breadth and scale of research. And saying I work for NASA is still pretty cool.

De-funding climate change science would mean putting many scientistssome of whom are just starting their careersout of work. Some would be happily gobbled up by other agencies in other countries, in fact Im sure overtures to some staff are already in the post. This would be Americas loss.

4. NASA Has Transformed Climate Change Communication

A visit to climate.nasa.gov will immediately show how effective NASAs communication of Earth science has become. Climate science is complex. NASA along with other U.S. agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration produce unparalleled visualizations of climate change. These are used by other agencies and communicators around the world and further increases the profile and reputation of NASA and the U.S. as leaders in Earth science.

5. Climate Science Can Be NASAs Next Great Legacy

Its easy to get misty-eyed about some of NASAs operations. Apollo was a staggering achievement. But while U.S. astronauts visited the Moon for all mankind we should remember that the space race was driven by the cold war and rivalry with the USSR. The fact humans have never returned to the Moon should tell us that there isnt much to be gained from such fleeting visits.

In terms of legacy, I think Eugene Cernan, the commander of Apollo 17 and so the last human to walk on the moon, summed it up best: We went to explore the Moon, and in fact discovered the Earth. It was one of the crew of Apollo 17 that took photograph AS17-148-22727 as they left Earth orbit on their way to the Moon on the Dec. 7, 1972. This photograph is now known as the Blue Marble and has become one of the most reproduced images in all of human history. There have been profound changes to the Earth since that photograph was taken. There are nearly twice as many humans living on it. The number of wild animals has halved. Concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere are higher than they have been for many thousands of years. And yes, the Earths surface and oceans are warmer, glaciers are melting and sea levels rising.

The Blue Marble photograph.

The Blue Marble, like all of NASAs images, was released to the public domain. Free to be used by anyone. The science that NASA conducts on climate change is similarly shared across the world. Its Earth and climate science represents the best of not just the U.S., but humanity. We need it now, more than ever.

James Dyke is a lecturer (assistant professor) in Sustainability Science at the University of Southampton. Reposted with permission from our media associate The Conversation.
(Photo:  Havard Bjelland / NCA)Girl kissing the picture of her father, killed by IS in Syria.  Havard Bjelland/NCA

The removal of the group calling itself Islamic State will not alone secure the return of displaced minority communities or their longer-term well-being in Iraq or Syria, a new report released in Oslo has found.

The World Council of Churches and Norwegian Church Aid, a member of the ACT Alliance, released a report in Oslo on 28 November titled, "The Protection Needs of Minorities from Syria and Iraq". It was funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"This report brings forward a reality that is not that well-known and it brings forward the needs" of those in the study, said WCC general secretary Rev. Olav Fykse Tveit at the launch of report.

"We see the whole picture in another way and we see it more clearly in a more frightening and deeply worrying way," as the report contains details of the sexual abuse, and often sexual enslavement of women and horrific atrocities against the communities.

It has to "be one of the most dramatic situations in the world today, if not the most dramatic in the world, for so many people, and also for security and peace for the region, and the whole world," he said.

"If we do not adjust aid better to the needs of the minorities in Syria and northern Iraq, we run the risk of building walls instead of bridges," NCA general secretary Anne-Marie Nrstelien Helland and the WCC's Tveit in a joint statement.

The report says that since 2003, it is estimated that 70 percent of Iraq's Christians have left the country, from a total of 700,000, leaving 250,000 remaining there.

"Diversity is a treasure of human society, and a key component for social dynamism and progress," said Tveit.

He said that communities referred to as "minorities" in the report such as Yazidis and Christians "are not happy" at that reference. They see themselves as part of the social fabric and were in the region "in ancient times even before the religious map" that is drawn today.

HIGH LEVEL DELGATION OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS TO IRAQ

Tveit said the WCC is planning to take a high-level delegation of religious leaders to meet with Iraq authorities in January next year as recent developments make this "timely".

The state secretary in the Norway Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Marit Berger Rsland, said at the launch: "The situation of vulnerable minorities in Syria and Iraq is a matter of great concern and we need better understanding and knowledge of the situation."

She noted that after close to six years of conflict in Syria, 13.5 million people are in need of humanitarian aid within the country and more than six million people internally displaced.

In Iraq, more than 10 million people need humanitarian and more than three million are internally displaced. In addition the United Nations projects that up to 700,000 more will be displaced following on the current offensive in Mosul to extricate IS.

The report observes: "The removal of the so-called 'Islamic State' alone will not secure the return and stay of displaced minority communities or their longer-term wellbeing in society."

"Indeed, the removal of IS and the manner in which it is removed is likely to set in motion fresh inter-communal power struggles in which minorities will once again be threatened," it notes.

The report says that the whole population of both "Syria and Iraq is feeling the toll of the armed conflicts in their countries".

It seeks to expand the understanding of the protection needs of religious and ethnic minority groups in both countries, including those remaining and those who have fled to neighbouring countries.

The report is geared to humanitarian actors, to help them refine and coordinate efforts to provide life-saving assistance and work towards sustainable long-term solutions for all Syrians and Iraqis.

Further, the report aims to support Syria, Iraq, neighbouring countries and donors in their search for better humanitarian responses, and to help find the most durable solutions for displaced minority communities from Syria and Iraq.

"It must be the key purpose of the international community and all people of good will to restore, encourage and sustain hope in the hearts and minds of the people whose hope in the future has been so diminished," said Tveit.

In Syria, 35 percent of Christians and 8 percent of Muslims surveyed wanted to emigrate. In the Kurdistan region, 65 percent of Christians wanted to leave, in contrast with 12 percent of Muslims. The desire to leave the Kurdistan region is strongest among Yezidis (85 percent of Yezidi respondents).

This percentage is higher than, but not far from, the estimate of a Yezidi organization: "If there would be [the] opportunity tomorrow, more than 75 percent of Yezidis would leave Iraq as they do not see [a] safe future here."

The analysis and findings stem from of the views of 4,000 displaced people and refugees from Syria and Iraq.

NCA carried out the project, in partnership with WCC and with funding from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
For decades, standardised testing has been a familiar and long-running part of Australian education, but is it doing more harm than good?Around the world, some countries, including Finland and Wales in the UK, have moved away from this kind of testing to accommodate a broader assessment of students academic skillsets.So far, the experiment has delivered promising results  particularly in Finland, which sits near the top of the global education rankings. Yet, the debate persists. While standardised testing aims to hold schools accountable and let parents know how their kids are performing, some argue they are too narrow a measure and cause unnecessary anxiety for students. Maurie Mulheron , president of the NSW Teachers Federation (NSWTF), told The Educator that the 2010 NAPLAN moratorium dispute was a watershed moment for Australian education.It arose because teachers asserted that the profession should control the use of test data rather than have student assessment turned into an adult spectator sport. Across Australia bans were put on place on NAPLAN testing for that year and were lifted once protocols were agreed to in order to protect the misuse of the data, he said.But there are still concerns, Mulheron says.Too often, testing is distorting pedagogy, curriculum options are narrowing and school-based assessment is de-emphasised. Another serious threat is the entry of for-profit edu-businesses into the test industry, he said.These companies seek to exert an undue influence on the design of the tests. A recent example of this is their push to have the written component of NAPLAN marked by computers, not humans. Not too many teachers would mourn the death of standardised testing.Mulheron suggested that a more economical approach would be sample testing enabling governments to still collect data from across the system for the purposes of planning.However, Robert Randall , CEO of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), is a firm believer that the pros of the test outweigh the cons.NAPLAN provides valuable information for teachers, parents and governments about the key areas of literacy and numeracy, showing us where students are doing well  and not so well, he told The Educator.NAPLAN assessments complement those conducted by teachers in schools on a regular basis. However, NAPLAN provides parents and carers, teachers, school leaders and policy-makers with national level data against which they can benchmark local information.For students, NAPLAN involves four hours of tests, four times over seven years of schooling. Randall said this small investment in time allows success to be measured and decision-making about where further improvement is necessary.Professor Kaye Stacey from the University of Melbourne agrees that Australian schools should keep standardised testing.Australia has very little standardised testing below Year 12 and we are not part of the testing epidemic spreading elsewhere. In contrast to testing in some other countries, NAPLAN tests content that teachers are aiming to teach, she told The Educator.Teachers see the items and the results and can use these to understand strengths and weaknesses in their program.However, she pointed out that NAPLAN cannot test all the goals of the Australian Curriculum, such as problem solving and reasoning in Mathematics.Good schools should not be satisfied with good NAPLAN results, but must also monitor their students achievement of the whole curriculum, she said.






China ascendant, ASEAN rising: Asia's vast, two-track pork trade

How the Far East transformed import markets and made pork the world's most popular meat



An eFeedLink Hot Topic

The world pork market has gone from being dominated by Japanese buyers to one where China dominates

Along with China, South Korea, Philippines and Mexico have become major pork importers over the last 15 years

Going forward, Vietnam will become the world's fastest growing pork import market

Already having gone from 52% of world pork imports in 2000 to 62% in 2016, Asia's share of world pork imports is destined to grow even larger over the next decade

Pork is both the world's most flexible meat and also its most ironic. Flexible because despite being a a red meat, pigs can be grown and eaten in Asian countries that lack the resources to raise more feed ineffient ruminants. Pork is both the world's most flexible meat and also its most ironic. Flexible because despite being a a red meat, pigs can be grown and eaten in Asian countries that lack the resources to raise more feed ineffient ruminants.

Ironic because despite centuries of religious restrictions, countless health warnings and decades of promoting poultry consumption non-stop, pork not chicken remains the world's most popular meat.

According to the USDA, in 2017, world pork consumption will jump 2.5% to 110.7 million tonnes, from 108 million the previous year. By comparison, chicken meat consumption is rising a mere 0.9% to 88.4 million tonnes, from the previous year's 87.6 million.

Fifteen years ago, policymakers expected chicken to have overtaken pork consumption by this time but thanks to red meat hungry consumers in nations like China and Vietnam, swine meat remains the world's most popular and it did so in a manner that upset many longstanding theories about economic development and meat consumption.

Vietnam and China did away with the idea that you need to be wealthy to eat red meat. From 3kg in 1960, China's per capita pork consumption rose to just under 40kg by 2015. Despite having disposable incomes which (after purchasing power parity) amounted to less than 25%of American, 2015 saw the average Chinese eat just as much red meat as Americans, the difference being that most Chinese red meat consumption is accounted for by pork. Similarly, at purchasing power parity, Vietnamese incomes were only 9% of what Americans make and 17% of Koreans make but the average Vietnamese eats as much pork as Koreans do and 26% more than Americans do.

The way developing Asian nations have overtaken wealthy ones not just in per capita pork consumption but pork imports is one of the least appreciated agribusiness trends of our time. Back in 2000, Japan and South Korea accounted for 38% of world pork imports and still made up 36% of the total as recently as 2005. The way developing Asian nations have overtaken wealthy ones not just in per capita pork consumption but pork imports is one of the least appreciated agribusiness trends of our time. Back in 2000, Japan and South Korea accounted for 38% of world pork imports and still made up 36% of the total as recently as 2005.

By 2010, despite aggressive growth in South Korean import volumes, they accounted for 28% of the world pork market. This year and again in 2017, their share will have shrunk to 23%. On the other hand, the Greater China region (China, Hong Kong, Taiwan) went from 11% of world pork imports in 2000 to 36% in 2016.

Clearly, Asia has become a two-track pork market, where stable demand from Japan, South Korea and Singapore is now being complimented by aggressive import growth in the continent's faster growing economies.

Thus China, which was an exporter even ten years ago, now single-handily accounts for 25% to 29% of world pork imports in any given year. From under 100,000 tonnes ten years ago, China's pork imports now total above 2 million tonnes and look poised to stay at that high level.

Moreover, while China is leading the way, other Asian nations, be they Singapore and Philippines today or Vietnam tomorrow, are becoming large pork importing customers. The Philippines for example, saw its pork imports rise 686% in sixteen years, from 28,000 tonnes in 2000 to 220,000 tonnes in 2016. Moreover, while China is leading the way, other Asian nations, be they Singapore and Philippines today or Vietnam tomorrow, are becoming large pork importing customers. The Philippines for example, saw its pork imports rise 686% in sixteen years, from 28,000 tonnes in 2000 to 220,000 tonnes in 2016.

Containing nearly 100 million people, with per capita consumption at nearly 30kg and growing but with only a tiny fraction of China's arable land, Vietnam will become the world's fastest growing pork import market over the next ten years.

Hence, led by developing Asia's surprisingly large hunger for red meat, its share of world pork imports rose from 52% in 2000 to 62% in 2016; and looks set to rise even higher.

In fact, outside Asia, only Mexico, the the third largest importer (after China and Japan) has a market with growth dynamics that resemble that of Far East. But with China, Vietnam, Philippines and South Korea all matching or exceeding Mexico's pork consumption growth, the world swine trade will increasingly be centred on Asia's eastern and south eastern coast.





All rights reserved. No part of the report may be reproduced without permission from eFeedLink.
Ministers attend BIC Summit in Cardiff



Howard Quayle and Graham Cregeen attend the British-Irish Council Summit in Cardiff

The Island's Chief Minister and Minister for Education and Children have been attending a British-Irish Council Summit in Wales.

Howard Quayle and Graham Cregeen were in Cardiff to discuss a number of issues, including the importance of Early Years education.

It's the first time Mr Quayle has attended a BIC summit since being elected as Chief Minister last month.

Early Years education was one of a number of areas the Chief Minister highlighted when he presented his programme for Government in Tynwald earlier this month.

The British-Irish Council allows Governments and administrations from across the British Isles to discuss matters of mutual interest.
Police investigate after tyres slashed in Peel

Police are appealing for information after the tyres were slashed on a car parked in the west of the Island.

The blue Peugeot was parked in the area of Close Chiarn near Peel power station when the incident occurred.

The damage, which was to two of the tyres, was caused overnight on Saturday.

Anyone who can help officers with their investigation is asked to contact Peel Police Station.
Even though NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 is currently on a three-week break, CBS Television Network has finally released the official plot summary and preview trailer of episode 10 titled "Tidings We Bring". Also, a quick recap of last week's episode 9 "Sirens" is made available here for fans who have missed to watch it.

NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 will be taking a long break. According to Carter Matt, the Shane Brennan-created TV series which was scheduled to air last Sunday, November 27, 2016, is postponed to air after three weeks, December 8, 2016.

This is because CBS Television Network decided to release their Christmas episodes days before December 25 and not before a week or two.

As for the official plot synopsis of episode 11, Spoilers Guide notes, "Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) partners with Anastasia 'Anna' Kolcheck (Bar Paly) and NCIS Special Agent G. Callen with Marty Deeks (Eric Christian Olsen) as the team investigates the disappearance of a Navy Lieutenant Commander who is working with the NSA (National Security Agency) on foreign cyber threats. Also, the team celebrates the holidays together. "

For a quick recap of last week's episode 9 "Sirens", TV Fanatic reported that an unidentified lady assailant killed 2 men who were disguised as fake deputies of the sheriff outside Agent G. Callen's house.

Also, the NCIS (Naval Crime Investigative Service) team got a new lead for the ongoing mole investigation.

Elsewhere, Intelligence Analyst Nell Jones (Renee Felice Smith) interviewed a prisoner who knows a lot of information about the department's leak.

NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 episode 11 is titled as "Tidings We Bring". The upcoming episode is scheduled to premiere on Sunday, December 18, 2016, at 7:00 p.m. ET first and exclusive on CBS Television Network.

NCIS: Los Angeles is an American action television series combining elements of the military drama and police procedural genres created by Shane Brennan. Get your own copy of NCIS: Los Angeles Season 8 and watch the hit series anytime.
Communism: The wrong species and planet By Samuel Chan

Shockingly, according to recent polls, somewhere between 10% and 15% of Americans think Communism is a better economic system than capitalism. Communism may be a good idea--at least in theory. But, it doesnt work. What is Communism exactly? Contrary to popular belief, it isnt total control by the government--that would be an extreme Socialism. Essentially, communism is an ideology that advocates creating a society that is classless, stateless, with common ownership of means of production and equal distribution of resources. In Marxist theory, society evolves from the feudal state to the capitalist state, then from capitalism to socialism, and finally, communism, with each state being necessary for the next state. Thus, the first step after capitalism is the establishment of complete government control over all aspects of society. In the final stage of communism, there is essentially no governing body and centralized authority--in fact, even the borders of all nation-states are dissolved. Class distinctions are removed and everyone is essentially equal. It sounds idealistic--and it is inherently and fundamentally flawed. Its not wrong or evil in certain philosophical aspects--pushing for equality and a society free of coercion or want is not technically wrong, but it doesnt (and cant) work for humans, and especially not on our planet. I will expound later in this analysis of the economic and philosophical roadblocks to implementing communism and will be primarily focusing on this concept of communism and socialism. First, Id like to explore some of the influences and underlying philosophies of Marxs ideology. Unlike philosophers Hobbes and Locke, who argued that humans are either by nature in a state of war or chaos, Jean-Jacques Rousseau argued that men in the state of nature are born free and equal, but that civilization corrupts. Hence, he delineates an ideal society, being one of the first modern writers to attack the institution of private property, bringing people into harmony through the General Will. Marx more closely aligned with Rosseau, calling for control of all means of production and property by the people. Marxs view of the nature of man was that existence precedes consciousness. In other words, there is no mold that can fit every being, but that social interactions, centered around the concept of labor, define who humans are. His theory behind this was o

alienation, that workers are deprived of their right to think and determine their own actions because they give up their ownership of labor and so alienate themselves from their own human nature. Although an independent, autonomous individual, according to Marx, the worker is controlled by the bourgeoisie (elite), who also control the means of production and direct the manufacture of goods. Labor is consequently dehumanizing under capitalism. Communism, on the other hand, is argued to free workers from violating their own nature, and that labor can be intrinsically rewarding and efficient when pursued without external pressure. Unfortunately for Marx, this reasoning is extremely unsound. As myrmecologist (ant entomologist) E.O. Wilson said, Wonderful theory, wrong species. There are many organisms that have essentially communist systems--where resources and wealth is equally distributed. Just take a look at an ant colony or beehive. Then how come it doesnt work for humans? Because Marx had it wrong. Marx assumes some sort of fundamental difference between the elite and the worker; however, both are equally self-centered and look after their own interests. Humans have reproductive independence, meaning that we thrive by looking after our own survival and offspring. This underlying motive carries into all aspects of our society: in a general sense, if you take away the incentive to work, we wont work. Communist communities in insects and other organisms work because genetically, the success of the individual in the colony is only capable through investment in the colony/community at large. Small size communist societies are absolutely possible. A family is a prime example, where resources and work are (usually) distributed equally and everyone is content. The foundation for success in a communist society is that individuals must prize the collective need above their own goals. However, this only happens in communities where these individuals have personal interactions with every other member. Because the Dunbar Number, 150, is posited to be the maximum number of individuals with whom any one person can maintain stable relationships, communism on a national level will inevitably collapse. A major flaw in communism lies in its lack of scalability. For a communist society to work, all members need to cast away all their personal beliefs, backgrounds, and ideologies for the common goal of revolution against the capitalists. All members must know, in some sort of Rousseauian concept of General Will, that they are being used by capitalists and who those exploiters are. After defeating capitalism, the transition to communism must be managed--principally by establishing a collectivized state that would nationalize production and distribute wealth. You need individuals who are not hungry for control and eager to abuse their power to manage the society and implement central command accordingly. Finally, the socialist government must be willing to dissolve itself into communism for the common good. These are all extremely tall barriers to overcome. Principally, concentrating power in the hands of a select few is highly dangerous, as history has shown. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Communist/central command economies have an extreme tendency to devolve into totalitarianism that is far worse than whatever came before. This is because disagreements about structure and resource distribution will undoubtedly spring up (this is just how humans operate, due to differing opinions, even on little things). Gradually, power, whether political or economic, will condense into smaller pockets of people, which become more and more corrupt and immoral, since those who play by the rules will be speedily terminated. After a long power struggle, corruption will be so widespread and freedom so restricted that only force or bribery will allow for anything to be done (whether emergency services, resource allocation, or other services). The people grow tired of such a state, and they allow a strong leader to take the reins of the economy and political system, descending the country into totalitarianism and dictatorship. Flipping through pages in a history book reveals names that can be speedily recognized--Josef Stalin, Mao Zedong, Fidel Castro, Kim Il-sung, Enver Hoxha, and Pol Pot. Such is the end of an ideology advocating that the ends justify the means. China, Russia, Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, revolutionary France were all impoverished and desperate countries abused by an elite few, but attempted implementation of communism made it much worse. As examples, my grandparents have spoken to me about the mass abuses and killings in China incurred under Mao (see The Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution, among others). Another gentleman Ive met has told me about conditions in Eastern Europe under Soviet rule. With deaths under communism in the 20th century nearly matching the total deaths in WWI and WWII combined, Communism has displayed a horrible, systematic violence that cannot be ignored. Some modern Communists whine that so-called Communist countries in the 20th century were not fully implementations of communism. However, when every attempt at establishing communism has failed miserably and has only led to violence and dictatorship, we can only assume that communism is not actually able to be purely implemented. The problem is that it goes against human nature in implementing a completely pure form of collectivism. Saying otherwise would be denialism and inverted cherry picking--rejecting every failed attempt at putting communism into practice. In the economic sense, communism is a terrible system as well. Extreme consolidation of political and social power in the state allows no room for competition or innovation. In Marxist theory, self-interest is deprecated and class struggle is important. Hence, with the absence of a bourgeois class, the passion of the people to work hard slows. People are fundamentally motivated by self-interest. As eighteenth century economist Adam Smith points out, there is an invisible hand that leads a market-based economy made of members of society motivated by their own wants, involuntarily making it a positive force for advancing the society as a whole. Collectivism devalues the importance of the individual and puts the community first. Thus, free thinking, ambition, entrepreneurship, and choice--all important elements to improvement--are discarded as not in the interest of the collective. When the reward is great, people will put in effort, thought, and time to succeed, but when society or government takes away that incentive, no one will try to do so. This concept can be roughly illustrated by a college class. Imagine a professor teaching a class in which every student gets the same score--the class average. In the first test, student scores would probably follow a bell curve, and the score every student receives might be a B. Receiving this demoralizes students who put in a lot of work and encourages poor-performing students to put in the same amount of effort or less. Over time, the test scores would most likely plummet. The second test could be a C and the final exam could be an F. In the end, every student received the same class grade, so everyone would be happy right? Of course not. The trouble here is that communism (hence, socialism) forces equality of condition, regardless of merit or effort. It is a noble cause to advocate for equality of condition, but that merely ensures every person is equally poor. Marxist theory also ignores the basic economic concept of scarcity. On our planet Earth and in our universe, we have limited resources--capital, natural resources, time, space, air--but unlimited human needs and wants. Communism assumes that we do have the utmost abundance of material, but that they are concentrated in the hands of the oppressive capitalist class. Thus, all the workers need to do is to rise up, upturn the social order, seize the goods, and redistribute it to everyone, ensuring happiness for one and all. Not only will this not ever happen, because people are inclined to consider their own interests first, but it is fallacious. When labor expands at a much greater rate than technology and GDP growth, we will have a decreasing GDP per capita. We have seen this in many countries. Communisms de-incentivizing of work and labor means there is less opportunity for technological advancements. Technology, accounting for a majority of long-term economic growth, is therefore much less. Workforce increase has a marginal rate of return, and only through more efficient work--upgraded capital or technology--will shift the curve upwards (Figure 1.0). By contrast, movement along the production possibilities curve by increasing population will create little economic growth and have the added side-effect of lower standard of living.

Figure 1.0 -- Shift Upwards of PPF Curve (S. Chan)

Figure 1.1 -- Movement Along the PFF Curve (S. Chan) All this is not to say that I advocate anarchism or complete laissez-faire capitalism. Economically speaking, moderate government intervention is sometimes important in order to incentivize private business, risk-taking, and advancements. As revealed, however, since these individuals are also flawed, they must be reined in by laws. These laws serve as safeguards in case individuals do not act out of enlightened self-interest (self-interest with a side goal of the common good). This is the principle by which the US has been founded on--freedom to explore and invest. Its equality--not equality of condition, but equality of opportunity. Justice would be a more proper term. This gives incentives for work and ensures that those most qualified and put in the most effort rise up higher in power and influence. Hence, a society based on merit. In effect, the society is continually being pulled upward, instead of dragged down to a stagnant plane as in communism. Its only been a generation, but already our culture has lost its sense of reality and its touch with the past. With nearly a fifth of millennials favoring communism over capitalism, and probably many more at least viewing communism positively, it is no wonder that far-left views are increasingly gaining ground. What Communist supporters dont realize is firstly, their preconception of communism is in and of itself false and more importantly, it has deep-rooted flaws, both ideologically and economically, which prevent it from ever working. According to the Communist Party USA, communism is an evolutionary outgrowth of a socialist society, where wealth can be distributed according to the principle of from each according to their abilities, to each according to their need. Sounds phenomenal. Sadly for these people and happily for the rest of us, history, anthropology, philosophy, and economics say otherwise. Sorry CPUSA, communism only works for ants and angels. This is Samuel Chans first contribution to Enter Stage Right.  2016 Samuel Chan Home
Five stages of climate grief By Paul Driessen

Ever since the elections, our media, schools, workplaces and houses of worship have presented stories showcasing the stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Liberal-progressive snowflakes are wallowing in denial, anger and depression. They cannot work, attend class or take exams. They need safe healing spaces, Play-Doh, comfort critters and counseling. Too many throw tirades equating Donald Trump with Adolph Hitler, while too few are actually moving to Canada, New Zeeland or Jupiter, after solemnly promising they would. Nouveau grief is also characterized by the elimination of bargaining and acceptance  and their replacement by two new stages: intolerance for other views and defiance or even riots. Sadly, it appears these new stages have become a dominant, permanent, shameful feature of liberal policies and politics. The Left has long been intolerant of alternative viewpoints. Refusing to engage or debate, banning or forcibly removing books and posters, threatening and silencing contrarians, disinviting or shouting down conservative speakers, denying tax exempt status to opposing political groups, even criminalizing and prosecuting climate change deniers  have all become trademark tactics. Defiance and riots were rare during the Obama years, simply because his government enforced lib-prog ideologies and policies. Liberals view government as their domain, their reason for being, far too important to be left to poorly educated rural and small-town voters, blue-collar workers or other deplorable elements. Liberals may not care what we do in our bedrooms, but they intend to control everything outside those four walls. They are aghast that over 90% of all US counties and county equivalents voted for Trump. Theyre incensed that President Trump and Republicans in Congress, 33 governors offices and 69 of 99 state legislatures nationwide will likely review and reform policies, laws and regulations on a host of issues. Above all, they are outraged over what might happen to their dangerous manmade climate change mantra. It was supposed to be their ticket to endless extravaganzas at 5-star venues in exotic locales  their trump card for controlling the worlds energy, economy, livelihoods and living standards. That is why they demand that only their facts be heard on the consensus science supporting policies they say are essential to prevent a disastrous 2 C (3.6 F) rise from 1850 levels, when the Little Ice Age ended (and the modern industrial era began). Its why the Paris climate agreement tells developed nations to keep fossil fuels in the ground, roll back their economies and reduce their living standards  while giving $100 billion per year to poor countries for climate mitigation and reparation. That, in turn, is why developing countries eagerly signed the Paris accord, bringing it into force and effect just before this years climate confab in Marrakech. They would not be required to reduce their fossil fuel use or greenhouse gas emissions. And they  or at least their governing classes  would receive trillions of dollars over the coming decades. Countless thousands were thus in jolly spirits as they flew giant fuel-guzzling, GHG-spewing jetliners into Morocco for the historic event. But then, on the third day, news of the US elections brought misery and mayhem to Marrakech. Event organizers had tolerated credentialed Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow representatives handing out Climate Hustle DVDs and discussing Real World climate science and energy development. But when CFACT erected a Donald Trump cutout and shredded a copy of the Paris accord, they sent armed police to forcibly end the educational event and boot the impudent non-believers out of the hallowed conference. Marrakech may have marked the zenith of the religious-political climate movement. President-Elect Trump has long held that there is likely some connectivity between human actions and the climate  but he has also said it is a hoax to say humans are now causing catastrophic global warming and climate change. He also says he has an open mind on the issue and will be studying it very closely. Here are a few important facts and probing questions that he could raise, to get the ball rolling. 1) The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was formed to detect and assess possible human influences on global climate systems, amid many natural forces. However, it soon began looking only at human influences. Now it claims warming, cooling and weather are driven only by human emissions. How and why did this happen? How can alarmists ignore the powerful natural forces, focus solely on air emissions associated with fossil fuel use  and call it solid, honest, empirical, consensus science? 2) Your manmade climate chaos thesis  and computer models that support it  implicitly assume that fossil fuel emissions and feedbacks they generate have replaced numerous powerful natural forces that have driven climate cycles and extreme weather events throughout Earth and human history. What caused the ice ages and interglacial periods, Medieval Warm Period, Little Ice Age, Anasazi and Mayan droughts, and other major climate and weather events  before fossil fuel emissions took over? Where did all those natural forces go? Why are they no longer functioning? Who stole them? When did they stop ruling the climate: in 1850, 1900, 1950  or perhaps 1990, after the IPCC was established? 3) You claim climate and weather patterns are already unprecedented and increasingly cataclysmic. But even as plant-fertilizing CO2 levels continue to climb, average global temperatures have risen barely 0.1 degrees the past two decades, amid a major El Nino. Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets are growing at record rates. Seas are rising at barely seven inches per century. It has now been a record eleven years since a category 3-5 hurricane struck the US mainland; the previous record was nine years, 1860 to 1869. The 2016 US tornado count was the lowest on record. Where are the unprecedented cataclysms? 4) Your computer models begin with the assumption or assertion that increasing levels of carbon dioxide will cause rapidly, dangerously rising global temperatures, and more extreme weather events. But if this assumption is wrong, so are your models, projections and scenarios. Its garbage in / garbage out. And in fact your models have been wrong  dramatically and consistently, year after year. When will you fix them? When will they factor in data and analyses for solar, cosmic ray, oceanic and other natural forces? 5) The manmade climate cataclysm community has refused to discuss or debate its data, methodologies, analyses and conclusions with those whom you call skeptics or deniers. 97% consensus, case closed, you say. What do you fear from open, robust debate? What manipulated data or other tricks are you trying to hide? Why are you afraid to put your cards on the table, lay out your supposed evidence  and duke it out? Do you really think taxpayers should give you one more dime under these circumstances? 6) The FDA and other federal agencies require that applications for drugs, medical devices and permits for projects include extensive raw data, lab and project methodologies, and other information. Your modeling and other work is largely paid for with taxpayer money, and used to determine public policies. Why should you be allowed to hide your data and methodologies, treat them as proprietary, refuse to share them with Congress or realist scientists, and refuse to engage in a full peer-review process? 7) EPAs social cost of carbon scheme blames everything imaginable on fossil fuels  but totally ignores the huge benefits of using these fuels. Isnt that misleading, disingenuous, even fraudulent? 8) America already produces more ethanol than it can use. Now EPA wants another 1.2 billion gallons blended into our gasoline. Why should we do this  considering the land, water, environmental, CO2, fuel efficiency and other costs, rampant fraud in the RIN program, and impacts on small refiners? If we replace all fossil fuels with biofuels, how much land, water, fertilizer and energy would that require? 9) Wind turbines are land intensive, heavily subsidized and exempted from most environmental rules. They kill millions of birds and bats. Their electricity is expensive and unreliable, and requires fossil fuel backup generators. Why should this industry be exempted from endangered species laws  and allowed to conduct bogus mortality studies, and prevent independent investigators from reviewing the work? Mr. Trump, keep an open mind. But keep exercising due diligence. Trust, but verify. And fire anyone who lies or refuses to answer, or provides the climate equivalent of shoddy work and substandard concrete. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow (www.CFACT.org), and author of Eco-Imperialism: Green power - Black death and other books on the environment. Home
Free market reforms can alleviate poverty for millions in India By Joshua Anumolu

Beep! Beep! The sounds of a countless number of simultaneous honks mingled with the many rickshaws and motorcycles that were stuck in the center of the road. Indeed, there seemed to be no traffic law that was enforced. A quick glance across the street revealed tens of vendor shops selling food, clothing, and cheap accessories. This is just a quick peek into an ordinary Indian street when I visited India several years ago. Like many developing countries, India enjoys the advantages of an abundant labor force and a strong entrepreneurial spirit, leading to huge potential in human capital. However, India also suffers from rampant corruption, widespread poverty, and dismal living standards. First, the Indian government should hack through the jungle of regulations and thicket of red tape for three reasons. First although well-intended, many of of the regulations are too costly or serve no purpose. A report by Political & Economic Risk Consultancy Ltd. found that India has the worst bureaucracy in Asia. Indias massive bureaucracy was cited as the biggest complaint by business executives. Second, excessive regulations reduce legal certainty for foreign investors. If you want to invest in India, you would not be sure if your company will be find guilty of violating of one of the thousands of onerous regulations. For example, two stores that have enhanced the standard of living for millions of Americans - Walmart and IKEA - struggled just to begin to operate in India. The 2017 World Bank Ease of Doing Business report ranked India 130 out of 190 countries. Third, the regulatory climate induces corruption by incentivizing companies to bribe regulators, politicians, or judges to ignore violations. As one business owner said, Right now its not possible to do business in India without greasing palms, without paying bribes. This puts law-abiding businesses at a heavy disadvantage. Corruption is a serious problem in India. In 2003, only 15% of the governments anti-poverty funds reached the poor. A survey by the firm KPMG found that corruption has directly inhibited the growth of 45% of Indian companies. How can the Indian government cleanup its regulatory mess? It could either streamline its federal regulations, appoint an independent commission to evaluate regulations, or implement structural reform to make passage of new restrictions on business harder. Doing any of these will increase the benefit businesses, increase investment, enable employment, push-down prices, and cut corruption. Second, the Indian government should increase investment in infrastructure. An estimated 40% of villages dont have proper roads connecting them. Although the poverty rate remains high, it has been steadily reducing the past decade or so. According to the World Bank, one of the main reasons for this is investment in infrastructure, noting that the benefits were many: Rural electrification in India has caused changes in consumption and earnings, with increases in the labour supply of both men and women, and promoted girls schooling by reallocating their time to tasks more conducive to school attendance. Finally, the Indian government should privatize its State Owned Enterprises. The Indian government owns the railway system, public telecommunication systems, and tens of other services. (see here for a full list) Unsurprisingly, the area of India with with most corruption is the government-owned railway system. Quasi-politicians-employees distribute bribes (that is, the taxpayers money) to fellow employees based off on seniority, rather than merit. That is a recipe of inefficiency. The Indian government should sell off each of these. This will give them revenue to reduce debt and pay for the infrastructure. Privatization will undoubtedly accelerate Indias economy. An OECD report reviewed the research on privatization and found overwhelming support for the notion that privatization brings about a significant increase in the profitability, real output and efficiency of privatised companies. The Journal of Economic Literature concluded that privatization appears to improve performance measured in many different ways, in many different countries. Finally, the CATO Institute issued an extensive report in June 2016 that found privatization: Promotes Efficiency and Innovation, Increases Labor Productivity, Improves Capital Investment, Reduces Prices, Increases Government Transparency, Increases Exports and Foreign Investment, and Reduces Debt, among other advantages. It is easy to see all of these advantages would contribute to an increase in long-term growth for Indias economy. Although India has huge potential, it still suffers from many serious and widespread problems. The statistics are heartbreaking: an estimated 363 million live in poverty, 3000 children die from hunger every day, 70% dont have access to proper toilets, and 35% dont have a nearby water source. Reducing red tape and regulation, investing in infrastructure, and privatization are just three of the policies that would ameliorate these problems by increasing long-term growth. There are many more ideas that would undoubtedly help, but these three simple ones will go a far. All in all, a restoration of free market policies would go miles for India. The Heritage Foundations Index of Economic Freedom has consistently found that countries with more Economic Freedom enjoy higher GDP per capita incomes, cleaner environments, and less poverty. Restoration of free market policies are necessary for the good of millions of people.



Joshua Anumolu is a high school student and this is his first contribution to Enter Stage Right.  2016 Joshua Anumolu Home
Raising the minimum wage solves no issues By Joseph Shen

John Komlos is a professor of economics and economic history at the University of Munich. Hes written a textbook on economics and has even taught at Harvard, Duke, and the University of Vienna. Recently he published an article on PBS Newshour on why raising the minimum wage is a good idea. He makes three main points: The minimum wage of the US is well below that of other advanced countries. He claims that an average person will be lucky enough to take $225 a week or $12000 a year, which is not enough to live on. Raising the minimum wage will not increase the number of jobless people. He claims there is no evidence to back this up. Raising the minimum wage will lessen the gap between the top 1% of the population and the lower working class. He claims that most of the profits generated by the economy go to the top 1%. Using these three main points, Komlos argues that raising the minimum wage will be beneficial to the US economy. I will attempt to address these three main points and prove that raising the minimum wage will harm the US economy. First of all, the average US worker earns far more than $12000 a year. The average US GDP per capita is an astonishing $53000. According to the Forbes, only 4.5% of Americans are actually living below the poverty line, and every year the number is decreasing. The real GDP per capita has been steadily increasing annually due to new innovations and technology every year, causing more and more Americans to climb out of poverty annually. Thus Komlos argument that the average US worker takes home only $12000 a year cannot be shown to be true and only applies to a small minority of the population. Second, Komlos claims that increasing the minimum wage will not affect the number of jobs in the economy. He states that there is no evidence to back this fact. However, economics teaches that when a price floor, or minimum wage, is set in the market for work, there will be a surplus of workers. More workers are willing to apply for the job than employers to hire them. This causes unemployment. Using economic analysis, setting a minimum wage above the equilibrium wage level will hurt employment. However, sometimes economic models do not apply in the real world. However data does support this fact, as shown here: Finally, Komlos claims that raising the minimum wage will lessen the gap between the "super rich" and the working class citizens. In fact, this is the reason many Americans believe we should raise the minimum wage. They seem to have a mental picture of a greedy capitalist sitting on a mountainload of money while shouting "Dont Raise the Minimum Wage" However, we must remember that these "greedy capitalists" were the ones who made jobs available in the first place. They are the innovators and they create the jobs. Raising the minimum wage will take away incentive for entrepreneurs in the future from creating more jobs. In the end, remember that workers are willing to accept their wage. No one is forced to work, they work for particular employers only because they are willing to. I would only advocate a minimum wage in cases where employers form unions and thus remove a competitive market for labor. This will cause truly unfair working conditions and will require a minimum wage to correct. Throughout Dr. Komlos article, unfortunately he does not use very good economic analysis and makes several large mistakes. Raising the minimum wage is harmful to the economy for two main reasons: it causes unemployments and removes the incentive to innovate. It is better to simply leave the wage at the equillibrium price level. This is Joseph Shens first contribution to Enter Stage Right.  2016 Joseph Shen Home
The patience of faith versus The New World Order plot By Michael Moriarty

See this first. If youve seen it before? See it again! I am way too old, 75 lucky years of age, to go into Survival Mode! That is the off the grid strategy offered you at the end of this remarkable documentarys presentation. Faith has brought me this far and I have a bit more confidence that my God, Jehovah of the Holy Bible, wont let the Divinity within His Children be owned by Gods greatest enemy, The Marxist-Muslim Devil. Yes, Pure Evil! With a capital M-M-T!! The Marxist-Muslim Tyranny

Of

Barack Hussein Obamas Mr. Hyde

And that treasonous American Presidents

Dr. Jekyll,

George Soros! In short,

The New World Order The history of The New World Order is possibly older than the very legend of Jekyll and Hyde. The Illuminati and The Masons all very Hush-Hush. John F. Kennedy, however, was our first detailed warning after President Eisenhowers famous branding of The Military-Industrial Complex of what has been diabolically choking the United States to death. The Machiavellian Operatives

For

A Progressive New World Order

JFKs Legendary Lecture To A Deaf Press He asked for The Press to re-examine their priorities! They not only ignored him! They joined The New World Order Mafia in the obfuscation of the bipartisan conspiracy to abandon Americas national sovereignty! The campaign to insure a surrender of the United States to the unrelenting demands of the plotters and their co-conspirators at the United Nations!! Please review this Expose of American High Treason more than once. As I have already said, going off the grid and falling off the governmental radar may not be possible for more than an old man like myself. In my case, I have concluded that the only possible and immediate hope for saving The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution and The Bill of Rights is President-Elect Donald Trump! All others in the Republican Party offer either lame and half-hearted solutions to Americas most pressing nightmare or are, in a shamelessly brazen manner, Republicans In Name Only. That means basically that The R.I.N.O.s are the entire Bush Family and Associates. George H. W. Bush, at first, never lied about The Plot. Here he shares The Plot boldly and with absolute certainty. If you have the time and, God willing, the patience, please view this documentary. Yes, it states unequivocally that there is a God of Evil, Satan, and that men and women of immense power have sworn to worship Lucifer and will use any means possible to make their diabolical ambitions come true. Their existence?! Their power?! Their horrifying challenge to all of Judeo-Christianity?! All were inevitable. They will fail. How can I be so certain? An occasionally arduous, 75 year-long apprentice-ship as a Graeco-Judeo-Christian disciple of Jehovah, The Holy Trinity and The Inevitability of The Second Coming of Christ. He is here now. But he is not here as one man. The Present-Day Christ is comprised of all dedicated Judeo-Christians who await their time to act. In the face of the Clear and Present Dangers from The United Nations and its by now transparent and tyrannically Satanic New World Order?! The prophesied eruption of Christ and Christian Faith is explosively growing. The Truth? Christ, because of Christianity, is now Everywhere! Fear not. You will, however, be called. When and where I have no idea nor do you. When called and if you are, indeed, The Real Thing? You will instinctively, intuitively and both consciously and sub-consciously know what to do. Donald Trump has certainly been called. Join with him to turn back The New World Order and restore America not only to greatness again but the entire human race to its previously soul and life-saving directions! God bless. Michael Moriarty is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor who starred in the landmark television series Law and Order from 1990 to 1994. His recent film and TV credits include The Yellow Wallpaper, 12 Hours to Live, Santa Baby and Deadly Skies. Contact Michael at rainbowfamily2008@yahoo.com. He can be found on Twitter at https://twitter.com/@MGMoriarty. Home
Whats wrong with our schools? By Sarah Schott

In Milton Friedmans famous 1980 broadcast, Whats Wrong with our Schools?, he questioned why the public school system has changed; with parents beginning to complain about the poor education and the general public despising the growing taxes that support the public schools. He came to the conclusion that too much government control hurts the well-being of students and parents alike. Think about a system where no one had the choice of what food they would eat. Instead they were given soggy cereal and rotten potatoes, and demanded to pay for it. Since this was the only food the people received, their only choice was to pay for and eat the food. People became weaker and were unable to work, depending more and more on that food system. Eventually there was no hope. Horrible, right! That is exactly what the school system is today. The government has given the people no choice in the quality of education of children and has forced some to attend schools with extremely deficient academics and pay education taxes. People that graduate or drop out of those schools are unable to get jobs and make money, thus trapped in poverty. Many parents are denied the choice of choosing to what public school their child will attend and what teachers the school will hire. Milton Friedman references back to the one room schoolhouse, where families in the community would all work together and pay the fees to ensure that a sufficient building, teacher, and proper academic were instituted so that the children would be fully equipped for the real world of business. Around the early 1840s, the government became more involved in education, by creating free schools by which the parents paid tuition indirectly through taxes. Over time, parents have lost the freedom to choose what school their child will attend. To combat this declining situation, Milton Friedman stated, Market competition is the surest way to improve the quality and promote innovation in education. I agree with his statement about how market competition can improve the quality of education, since those who want their child to go to a school with better education, will pay more. It is a factor of producer competition, with the schools being the producers and the students and parents the consumers. One thing I am concerned about is if the schools with better education cost more money than schools with deficient academics, the poor will be forced to choose the less expensive school, thus receiving a lower education. Gregory Anrig, the Commissioner of the Department of Education in Massachusetts, in response to Friedmans broadcast, stated that the problems in urban schools, schools with poorer education, are problems of poverty. However, Friedman said Do not underestimate the role which bad schooling provided by our governmental mechanism has played in creating poverty. Because the schools are not providing education that will help people excel in the work field, people become trapped in poverty. This is a perfect example of a fallacy of a false cause. Anrig stated that the cause of problems in urban schools is poor education. Rather, these two events tend to occur together. As far as higher education, such as colleges, I believe that people who do not go to college or are unable to go to college, should not pay for those who do go to college. In my opinion, schools should be a private endeavor that provides the education that the parents want to pay for, instead of parents being forced to pay for schooling that does not provided sufficient education for their child. Friedman quotes, Everyone who has the desire to have a higher education should be enabled to do so provided theyre willing to undertake the obligation to pay the cost of their schooling either currently or in latter yeas out of the higher income that their education will make possible. I fully agree with this statement. Overall, government control hurts the education system. People are unable to choose the level of education their child will receive and are forced to pay taxes to attend that school. We must, in America, establish a system where individuals are given the freedom to choose their education. Sarah Schott is a junior in high school and this is her first contribution to Enter Stage Right.  2016 Sarah Scott Home
Younited Italia, Nicola Manzari e il nuovo Coo, Luca Faccini e Head of Growth e Domenico Petraroli e General Counsel
US Dollar Pound Exchange Rate News: Voting Recount Concerns Weaken USD Demand With Currency Investors

The US Dollar to Pound (USD GBP) exchange rate failed to hold its ground on Tuesday despite an impressive US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as Sterling demand was bullish enough to hold any USD strength at bay.

Sterling was bought up from its Monday lows throughout the day and was particularly able to benefit from weakness in the Euro as well as the mornings impressive UK stats.

Octobers net consumer credit and mortgage approvals figures encouraged investors to pile back into the Pound exchange rates, with both pointing towards a greater level of confidence within the UK economy.

However, the afternoons US GDP data could offer the Greenback a fresh rallying point, given the growth is expected to have picked up further in the third quarter.

Monday: The US Dollar to Pound (USD GBP) exchange rate continued to trend near its best levels after American markets opened as USD investors bought into the Greenback against the unappealing Pound.

Brexit concerns continued to weigh on GBP demand throughout the day. However, demand for the US Dollar was also mixed due to uncertainty of US election vote recounts.

USD GBP exchange rate has hit 0.80 today, following a crash in UK economic confidence

Sterling has been a poor prospect against the US Dollar today, with a lack of resolution to the single market issue seeing investors abandon GBP in droves.

The US Dollar remains unstable for its part, due to the possibility of an unprecedented Presidential shift.

The US Dollar put on a mixed performance as markets reopened after the weekend, with USD having dipped to 0.80 against the Pound and fallen considerably against most other peers.

The latest US developments have come from the top, with an unusual response from President-Elect Trump to calls for a recount diminishing confidence in his authority.

Amid claims that some votes were miscounted or manipulated, a recount is underway in Wisconsin. Trump has claimed that there was voter fraud in the election (despite his victory), though has offered no evidence to support this.

Latest Dollar/Pound Exchange Rates

On Wednesday the Pound to British Pound exchange rate (GBP/GBP) converts at 1

FX markets see the pound vs pound exchange rate converting at 1.

FX markets see the pound vs euro exchange rate converting at 1.16.

The pound conversion rate (against canadian dollar) is quoted at 1.562 CAD/GBP.

Please note: the FX rates above, updated 2nd Nov 2022, will have a commission applied by your typical high street bank. Currency brokers specialise in these type of foreign currency transactions and can save you up to 5% on international payments compared to the banks.

US Dollar Pound Outlook: USD Volatility Likely on Fed Speeches and GDP Stats

What other news is likely to impact USD exchange rates in the week ahead?

The present week is expected to be packed with high-impact US data, starting off with this afternoons Dallas Fed manufacturing index for November. This is predicted to rise from -1.5 to 1.4.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Q3 second estimates for GDP are due to come in; a rate rise is expected on the quarter from 1.4% to 2.9%, although any positive impact could be undone by the GDP price index falling from 2.3% to 1.5% as forecast.

Pound US Dollar Gains Seen amid Overall Brexit Uncertainty for UK

While UK data is thin on the ground today, the Pound US Dollar (GBP USD) exchange rate has crept up towards 1.25.

The prevailing cause of weakness in other GBP pairings has been fresh Brexit concerns, which have recently focused on the EU single market.

Following on from a successful legal challenge to the Government automatically triggering Article 50, the next source of unrest has been whether it is legally permissible to leave the single market.

Pound Sterling (GBP) Predicted to Slide if Consumer Confidence Worsens

The present weeks major UK ecostats are due to come at the end of the week, so Brexit discussions are set to be the main source of input in the meantime.

Outside of such developments, the Bank of England (BoE) is expected to deliver consumer credit estimates for October on Tuesday morning; a rise from 1405m to 1700m is predicted.

The first high-impact announcement will come early on Wednesday, when the November GfK consumer confidence report is due. At present, this is forecast to improve from -3 to -1.

UK Focus: Could Single Market Access Derail Immigration Control Hopes?

The continuing source of uncertainty for GBP investors, Brexit, seems set to remain a destabilising influence on Pound Sterling for the foreseeable future.

Commenting on the latest issue, whether the UK will also need to vote to leave the single market, has been Regulatory Policy Institute Chairman George Yarrow, who has said;

There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU. The only exit mechanism specified is Article 127, which would need to be triggered.

If the UK does remain in the single market, it is expected to have little say over immigration control on EU citizens, given how vocal EU leaders have been about the two matters being intertwined.
The Euro to Dollar Rate forecast

EUR/USD has traded little changed around $1.0600 during the afternoon session in London on Monday as the French presidential elections and approaching Italian referendum over the next weekend pose increased uncertainty and political risk in Europe.

With former French Prime Minister winning Frances conservative party primary election at the weekend, a race between a Thatcherite right, led by Fillon, and the far-right under Marine Le Pen is expected.

Weakest Growth Since 2015, Euro Exchange Rates Lower

On the European data front, the Eurozone showed the weakest growth in M3 since early 2015 (4.4% y/y) while Italian manufacturing dipped slightly this month as consumer sentiment perked up slightly.

The short-term spreads between the Eurozone and the US remain punishingly disadvantageous for the EUR and we expect the EUR to remain defensive ahead of the Italian referendum, Shaun Osborne from Scotiabank wrote in a note on Monday.

Technically the EUR squeezed sharply higher in Asian trade but, much as expected, gains slowed in the upper $1.0600 resistance area.

The subsequent drop in spot has been sufficient for us to shift from a neutral technical view of the EUR back to bearish. Intraday price action looks weak  the selling pressure is leaving small gaps on the short- term charts as the market slides lower  and will likely leave a bearish print on the daily chart today (unless there is a sharp rebound in the market back to the overnight highs). We look for losses to extend below short-term support at 1.0575, Osborne further added.

The Euro to Pound Rate Outlook

The EUR/GBP exchange rate started trading in the final week of November at 0.8470 before reaching a high of 0.8567 later on Monday.

After noon during the trading session in London the EUR/GBP has traded up 0.56% around 0.8560 level with the GBP being sold out due to ongoing Brexit-related uncertainty.

After EUR lost some ground hitting the low of 0.8470 on Wednesday last week, before closing the week at around .8496, the weekly range reached only 1.90%, " HSBC analysts noted in its Weekly research update on Monday.

The fall of sterling against the US Dollar was driven by news of the UK government facing legal battle over whether the UK stays inside the single market after it has left the European Union (EU) as reported by BBC.
Question regarding ECA & Education details



I am from India and currently based in Australia.



I have done by bachelors degree in Commerce and Post Graduate Diploma in Systems Management. All my education is from India.



I completed the ECA process through WES. In the report, WES considered only the graduation and the report mentions 'Bachelor's degree (three years) in CANADIAN EQUIVALENCY SUMMARY'.



I want to check the following -



1. While filling the education details in the online application for CIC, shall I provide the details for my post graduation diploma although it has not been considered by WES.



2. While filling the education details in the online application for CIC, shall I provide the details for my schooling.



2. In the ECA process, do we get high school (class 10) & senior secondary school (class 12) certificates accessed? If someone is applying from India then he will be able to help with this as different countries have different schooling systems.



Thanks

A
www.StrategicMgtPartners.com

John M. Collard, Chairman, Strategic Management Partners, Inc. has agreed to write a column for Smart CEO Magazines. This column provides insight for board of director members, company leaders, investors, lenders, and stakeholders interested in the turnaround leadership and investing process.

Turnaround Strategist @ Smart CEO Media www.smartceo.com/turnaround-strategist-john-collard

@ SMP www.StrategicMgtPartners.com/sceoarticles.html

Select articles:

Raising money for under-performing companies. Easier than you may think. www.StrategicMgtPartners.com/sceomoney.pdf

The time has come to liquidate your company. How can you start over? www.StrategicMgtPartners.com/sceoliquidate.pdf

Show them the money. A case for incentive-based management. www.StrategicMgtPartners.com/sceoincentives.pdf

Deathbed businesses. When a business stops growing, it starts dying. www.StrategicMgtPartners.com/sceosigns.pdf

John Collard said "I am honored to be part of the Smart CEO program and contribute to this effort. These are interesting times for businesses in a troubled marketplace. Turnarounds are a lot like start-ups  they must build teams, differentiate and sell products and services, secure capitalization, and grow. It is a disgrace for CEOs and boards of directors who allow their company to become distressed and watch value deteriorate." Collard continued. "Turnaround specialists can be an option to stabilize the situation and rebuild value. Turnaround management strategies will certainly play a key role in recovery."

###

About the Author:

John M. Collard is a Certified Turnaround Professional (CTP), and a Certified International Turnaround Manager (CITM), who brings over 35 years senior operating leadership, $85M+ asset and investment recovery, 45+ transactions worth $1.2B, and $80M fund management expertise to run troubled companies, serve on and/or advise company boards, litigators, institutional and private equity investors, and raise capital. John has parachuted in as the Interim CEO, CRO or senior executive to turn around troubled entities, and serves as an outside director. John is Chairman of Strategic Management Partners, Inc. in Annapolis, Maryland. John is inducted into the Turnaround Management, Restructuring, and Distressed Investing Industry Hall Of Fame. John is Past Chairman of the Turnaround Management Association (TMA), Past Chairman of the Association of Interim Executives (AIE), and a Senior Fellow of the Turnaround Management Society. John is a Founder of TMA. John was honored as Prince Georges Business Leader of the Year. John is honored with the Interim Management Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Interim Executives. John is a Maryland Most Admired CEO.

About the Firm:

Strategic Management Partners, Inc. ( www.StrategicMgtPartners.com 410-263-9100) is a turnaround management firm specializing in executive CEO leadership, asset and investment recovery, board and private equity advisory, raising money, and investing in and rebuilding distressed underperforming troubled companies. The firm has been advisor to Presidents Bush (41 & 43), Clinton, Reagan, and Yeltsin, World Bank, EBRD, Company Boards, and Equity Capital Investors on leadership, rebuilding troubled companies, investment recovery, turnaround management and equity investing. SMP is celebrating over 25 years of service to its clients. SMP was named Maryland's Small Business of the Year, and received the Governor's Citation, Governor Martin J. O'Malley, State of Maryland as a special tribute to honor work in the areas of turning around troubled companies and saving jobs in Maryland. Turnarounds & Workouts Magazine twice named SMP among the Top Outstanding Turnaround Management Firms. American Business Journals named SMP among the Most Active Turnaround Management and Consulting Firms in Baltimore, Washington, and the Mid-Atlantic Region. Global M&A Network Turnaround Atlas Awards named SMP as Boutique Turnaround Consulting Firm of the Year.

End

###

Reference:

www.StrategicMgtPartners.com Turnaround Managers.

Strategic Management Partners, Inc. Library

Turnaround Strategist Column

Collard on NewsReleaseWire

Social Media:

John M. Collard on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/JohnMCollard

John M. Collard on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/JohnMCollard

John M. Collard on Twitter at http://twitter.com/JohnCollard

Firm:

www.StrategicMgtPartners.com Turnaround Experts and Advisors

End

###
Saudi Arabia and other major OPEC producers are running large budget deficits after two years of stubbornly low oil prices, adding pressure on the cartel to finalize an agreement to cut production at its formal meeting Wednesday, analysts said.

The Saudi governments budget deficit has ballooned to one-fifth of its economic output this year despite its $57 billion in spending cuts since oil prices collapsed since peaking more than two years ago, according to Wood Mackenzie. Iraqs fiscal deficit has also climbed to 20 percent of its economic output, while Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates have respective budget shortfalls equivalent to 12 percent and 9 percent of output of their economies.

In a low oil price world, Saudi Arabia would have to run down reserves further, Ed Rawle, Wood Mackenzies chief economist, said in an interview. Any increase in oil prices would reduce that financial pressure.

Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which controls about one-third of the worlds oil supply, reached a preliminary agreement to cut crude oil production by as much as 750,000 barrels during informal talks in Algeria in September. Since then, Saudi Arabia has led efforts to line up support among OPEC nations and craft a final deal.

On Monday, Iraq, which has been reluctant to lower production, said it would cooperate to reach agreement would be accepted by the all nations in the cartel, helping to push oil prices higher. Oil rose more than $1 in New York trading to settle at $47.08 a barrel.

Prices have held between $40 and $50 a barrel for several weeks, swinging up and down according to the latest speculation on whether OPEC will follow through on its Algeria accord. Oil peaked at about $107 a barrel in June 2014.

OPECs efforts to reassert its role as the manager of the worlds oil supplies shows that the cartel, too, is feeling the pain of low oil prices. Through most of the oil bust, OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, was content to let the market sort out supply and demand, and as recently as April chose not to cap or cut production.

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.

But many of the nations rely heavily on oil revenues to fund government services. Saudi Arabia, for example, needs oil at $92 a barrel to balance its budget, according to Wood Mackenzie. The kingdom has pushed back major infrastructure projects, cut state employee wages and burned through $180 billion in financial reserves, a quarter of its coffers, as oil prices have languished.

Oil prices have been buffeted by the various pronouncements from OPEC producers. Iraq has come out today with a little more of a positive rhetoric, Harry Tchilinguirian, head of commodity markets strategy at BNP Paribas SA in London, told Bloomberg News. What we have now is the usual poker game ahead of the meeting, where you have the various producers positioning themselves, each with their own agenda. In the end, they will sit down behind closed doors  they will have to show their cards.

If OPEC fails to reach an output deal this week, oil prices may fall to the $20s, Amrita Sen, Energy Aspects Ltd. chief oil analyst, said Monday in a Bloomberg Television interview in Vienna.

collin.eaton@chron.com

twitter.com/CollinEatonHC
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Family, friends and fellow police officers  from near and far  gathered at a public viewing Sunday afternoon to pay their respects to San Antonio Police Detective Benjamin Marconi, who was fatally shot a week ago in front of police headquarters.

Police agencies and first responders from across Texas and a few from other states attended the viewing, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Fort Worth Police Department and the New York Police Department among others.

Douglas Greene, spokesman for the San Antonio Police Department, said well over 100 local and federal agencies will be represented at Marconi's funeral on Monday morning.

Its overwhelming. We cant put a number on it, Greene said. It feels that youre not alone.

Starting at 3 p.m. Sunday, residents and officers in uniform filtered into Porter Loring Mortuary at 1101 McCullough, just north of downtown, walking past a large American flag erected between two San Antonio Fire Department firetrucks.

Inside, countless photos of Marconi, smiling with friends and family members, scrolled on a large screen. Many visitors were visibly emotional as they walked away from the casket, fighting and wiping away tears.

The four-hour viewing preceded a rosary for Marconi, who was shot twice in the head Nov. 20 while writing a traffic ticket in his patrol vehicle.

More than 100 people attended the 7 p.m. rosary, with many more visiting the funeral home in the hours that preceded it.

The rosary was both sorrowful and at times, light-hearted. Marconi's three siblings  Tom Marconi, Terri Marconi McKnight and Debbie Saldana  told stories about him, both smiling and tearing up at his memory.

Tyler Nation attended the viewing to support one of his close friends, Dane Marconi, Marconi's son, whom he's worked with for years at the construction company Ja-Mar Roofing and Sheet Metal Co., he said.

Lately I've been talking to (Dane) a whole lot more, he said. Just to make sure he knows that if he needs anything, Im here.

He said he came to support all officers, too. He brought a handful of people with him, all friends through the Super Duties of San Antonio, a group of fans of the Ford Super Duty and other big trucks. In the back of the truck they were traveling in, they carried a blue-tinted flag, the symbol for the Blue Lives Matter movement.

Sgt. Jorma Huttunen was one of a handful of NYPD officers to make the trip from New York as part of the Brotherhood for the Fallen, an organization that lends financial and emotional support to the families of fallen officers by sending officers to funerals across the country.

Huttunen said the gesture is the least they can do to offer support and to connect with other officers, adding that many consider the force to be a second family. It's also important to not become numb to the number of officers killed in the line of duty, he said.

Jim Bruno, a retired firefighter from Kankakee, Ill. who has since retired in San Antonio, came dressed in his uniform. He said that while he did not personally know Marconi, all first-responders are affected by a fallen officer.

When something tragic like this happens, whether its somebody in blue or somebody in red, we all come together to mourn, said Bruno, who served as a firefighter for over 20 years.

San Antonio resident Frieda Bryant, 77, and her daughter Lisa said they wanted to show their support to police officers. They said they wished other members of the African American community would come out, too.

We love this city. We love our officers, Bryant said. I just want to let the family know  every policeman on the force  we're with you.

The viewing also drew those who knew Marconi personally.

Four decades ago, Bruce Sanders was Marconi's music teacher at Floresville Elementary School, back when the officer was in grade school. The 65-year-old, retired from teaching, decided to make the drive from Marconi's hometown, 30 miles southeast of San Antonio, after learning of his death..

The news about how his former student died first brought tears, followed by disbelief and anger. He remembers Marconi as a good kid who never gave him any trouble.

I just want to give respect to Ben, a final goodbye, Sanders said.

Law enforcement agencies make an effort to come together when an officer pays the ultimate sacrifice, said Officer Ruben Pereida with the Midlothian Police Department, near Arlington. Pereida, who served in the Marines for 23 years before becoming a police officer, represented one of at least 10 different agencies Sunday.

It breaks our hearts when someone goes down in that nature, he said. We're here to protect and serve. Im honored to pay respect for our brother.

A public procession for Marconi will be held today at 10 a.m. The route will take McCullough Avenue to Interstate 35 North, then U.S. 281 North to eastbound Loop 1604 before exiting at Gold Canyon Road.

A public funeral will take place at 11 a.m. at Community Bible Church, 2477 Loop 1604 North.
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SAN ANTONIO  Roughly 3,000 gathered at Community Bible Church near Loop 1604 on Monday morning to honor San Antonio Police Det. Benjamin Marconi, who was shot and killed in the line of duty eight days ago.

Several public officials attended the funeral service, including Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Texas House Speaker Joe Straus and state Sens. Carlos Uresti, Donna Campbell, and Jose Menendez, as did law enforcement officers from across the country.

We are forever grateful for his watch over us, said Betsy Buhle, Community Bible Church Media Minister and a San Antonio Police Department Chaplain. He was a friendly dear brother, and he was a friend for so many.

MORE: 10 things to know about slain SAPD Det. Benjamin Marconi

Marconis children, Jacy Marconi and Dane Marconi, also spoke, recalling fond memories of their father and thanking the community for its support during the difficult time.

He made everyone around you feel lighter and safer, Jacy Marconi said. He relaxed people. He was the kind of person we should all strive to be like.

Marconi, 50, was a 20-year veteran of the department who worked in the Special Victims Unit. He was working overtime Nov. 20 when a man approached his patrol car as he conducted a traffic stop and shot him twice in the head.

The days commemorations started with a private procession from the Porter Loring Mortuary, located on McCullough Avenue just north of downtown. The procession included around 100 vehicles, including the hearse, the Marconi family and patrol cars and motorcycles from many law enforcement departments.

About a dozen people watched on the corner of McCullough Avenue as the procession left, including Efrain Garza, who lives across the street from the funeral home.

Its a bad thing that happened to that officer, Garza said. I wanted to give my condolences.

From the funeral home, the procession traveled on McCullough Avenue to Interstate 35 North, along U.S. 281 North to eastbound Loop 1604 and exited at Gold Canyon Road. San Antonio Fire Department trucks parked on the overpasses along U.S. 281 to allow onlookers to watch the procession and pay their respects safely.

RELATED: Slain SAPD officer Benjamin Marconi once saved a drowning boy



Once the procession arrived at the Community Bible Church, officers transferred Marconis coffin into a horse-drawn hearse and an honor guard performed a 21-gun salute, played Taps and a helicopter flew over.

The funeral service began at 11:30 a.m. and ended roughly two hours later.

Marconis colleagues in the Special Victims Unit also attended. Their shifts are being covered by SAPDs homicide unit.

A public reception directly followed the service.

There will not be a procession after the funeral and reception, as Marconi wished to be cremated.

On Sunday, a public viewing ran from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Porter Loring. The viewing was directly followed by a rosary service.

RELATED: Mourners gather to pay tribute to slain SAPD Detective Benjamin Marconi at a public viewing

Friends and family have described Marconi as a loving and caring person who would pray for everyone. He was also a doting grandfather, they say.

I always knew he was going to be something very special, his aunt Elsie McGuire said last week. He had this beauty about him that was always with people  working with people, talking to people. He was always being there. I knew when he became a policeman, it was like thats his calling. To protect others. And thats what he loved. Thats the biggest thing he loved, doing his job.

He was also a decorated officer, according to a department list of Marconis merits and commendations.

Visit ExpressNews.com later in the day for an updated story.

Staff writers Silvia Foster-Frau, Alia Malik and Kelsey Bradshaw contributed to this report.

eeaton@express-news.net

Twitter: @emilieeaton
AUSTIN  The Texas agency that regulates veterinarians  which aggressively pursued one high-profile case and was overwhelmed by complaints in another  hasnt kept on top of basic responsibilities such as proper fiscal management, evenhanded enforcement and keeping tabs on controlled substances meant for animals, according to a state review.

Its in a shambles, Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, said about the State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.

The veterinary board accepted the scathing findings by staff of the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission, which periodically reviews state agencies to see whether they should be continued, reformed or disbanded. Watson is a commission member.

The agency may pursue reorganization, and it faces a push for change in the coming legislative session. It informed Watsons office that its executive director tendered her resignation.

The Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners has taken the Sunset Commissions report to heart and is diligently working to implement changes that will address the commissions concerns. These changes may include changes in personnel and an agency reorganization, said interim executive director Rudy Calderon, who was the agencys general counsel and stepped into the top job when Nicole Oria yielded it.

Oria, facing intense questioning by the sunset panel at a November meeting, cited in part the demands of dealing with about 750 complaints after a veterinarian posted a photo of herself holding up a cats body by an arrow speared through the animals head. The story got national attention, and the board ended up suspending the veterinarians license for a year.

In a separate case with implications for the no-kill shelter movement, the agency became involved in a legal fight by pursuing enforcement action against a shelter veterinarian over the death of a dog rescued by San Antonio Pets Alive! Ellen Jefferson, the veterinarian, is founder and board member of SAPA and executive director of Austin Pets Alive!

Jefferson successfully argued that shelter work wasnt subject to the boards purview in a case that went to the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin.

The Legislature is expected to take up the issue, among others, in its regular session, which begins in January.

The shelter issue is a big deal. I am concerned about that being anything that is veterinary board-related in the future. I just dont think they have shown they can do that fairly, Jefferson said.

Watson, who plans to file legislation, said the no-kill shelter movement constitutes a cultural shift that must be accounted for in state governance. The board targeted the standard of care provided to animals otherwise facing euthanasia if not rescued.

I really love that our culture has shifted from where if an animal is abandoned, then that animal is just destined to die to a culture in which we figure out how to save those animals, Watson said. To do so, he said, requires allowing shelters to innovate in providing medical care to large numbers of animals.

But the Texas Veterinary Medical Association opposed Watsons bill on the topic in 2015. The professional association wants an approach that will ensure that shelter veterinarians fall under the same law as other veterinarians, albeit with leeway to acknowledge shelter circumstances.

We are trying to stand up for good medical practice, said Elizabeth Choate, director of governmental relations and general counsel for the association.

The sunset report said the agencys struggle with issues in the cases contributed to its problems. But it said the cases do not fully account for issues at the small agency with a $1.1 million annual budget and staff of 20.

Among problems, the report said the agency wasnt able to provide basic enforcement data with a reasonable degree of confidence or reliably provide basic financial information; hadnt finished closing its books for fiscal year 2015; and hadnt followed proper procedures in awarding a contract valued at over $100,000, which was in the process of being terminated.

The report also said the agencys enforcement couldnt ensure fair treatment of licensees or people filing complaints.

And with 6,300 veterinarians authorized to dispense controlled substances, the report said, the board has an ineffective and inconsistent approach to monitoring the substances theft and loss.

Besides addressing agency practices, Watson said, he would like to reconfigure its governing board, which includes six veterinarians and three public members appointed by the governor. Watson wants to specify that the board include veterinarians with a particular background, such as a shelter vet, and a veterinary technician.

Gov. Greg Abbott this year named three board members and appointed Roland Lenarduzzi as presiding officer. Abbotts office said in a statement that any sunset proposals will be addressed at the appropriate time.

The safe practice of veterinary medicine in Texas is important to Gov. Abbott, and his appointees to the Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners recognize this importance, the statement said.

Lenarduzzi, when questioned at the sunset hearing, said the board is committed to having the best agency in state government.

We care about animals. We care about protecting the public, he said. Have we made mistakes? Most assuredly, but we are committed to doing well. This report helps give us guidance.

pfikac@expres-news.net

Twitter: @pfikac
In her memoir Settle for More, Fox Network anchor Megyn Kelly talks about being sexually harassed by Roger Ailes, founder and former chairman and CEO of Fox News.

She also talked about this ugly chapter with CBS News anchor Gayle King last week during a live interview on CBS digital network, CBSN.

In the book, Kelly tells about how she initially thought catching the bosss eye might be good for her career.

But she also mentions how, along with career advice, he tossed in obviously inappropriate remarks. About how she wondered if it was really harassment or if it was just a superior being non-politically correct. About how, in 2006, she dodged his smoochy advances.

And how, when she didnt respond, he asked her if she knew when her contract was up  and then he tried to kiss her again. When she did report the incident, she was encouraged to just move on.

She did and became a Fox Network star.

Ailes resigned from Fox News in late July, after sexual harassment accusations piled up. Thats when Kelly spoke up.

Before that, Donald Trump took offense at a question she asked him during the first Republican presidential debate. She asked about remarks hed made about women in the past, comparing them to dogs and pigs; he later said on a CNN show that she had blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her wherever.

He later clarified that he meant her nose. Wherever referred to her nose, and anybody who might have assumed he meant something else? Thats just sick.

Kelly talks about her public battle with the president-elect in her book as well.

But in her interview with King, Kellys voice cracks. Kelly  the same Kelly who dodged Ailes, whose debate question was met with a crack about blood coming out of her nose and who was accused by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of being obsessed with sex when discussing how some women had accused Trump of being a sexual predator  gets emotional when talking about why she chose to speak out about the icky treatment shes experienced the past few months.

She says she saw an image of her young daughter, Yardley, and she realized she didnt want her child to have to make the same decisions she did.

Many Americans expected that, after this months election, we would have our first woman president  and we dont. All this means, however, is that the first woman president is still out there, somewhere. And theres a good chance, if shes already well into her career, that shes had to face this kind of treatment on some level.

Kelly left a career in law to pursue a career in journalism. Shes an attractive and articulate woman. She is in a position where she has an audience, a platform and a fan base. She is, arguably, as powerful as any American can be.

But there are women out there without any of this who face the same kind of harassment she did. And what Kelly stressed in her interview with King is that there needs to be a safe avenue for them to report what happened. They need to be believed.

There are women who have worked hard to get their foot in the door, who fear that speaking up will slam it shut. There are women who have to put up with remarks and inappropriate conversations because theyre not sure if their superiors are merely not PC. And there are women who become victims because they are powerless, because they are uneducated, inarticulate or made to feel so unattractive by those who take advantage of their position that nobody would deem them even worthy of harassment.

The weak are the easiest prey. And thats probably the vulnerability Kelly saw in her young daughter.

And thats why Americans  men and women alike  need to shut sexual harassment down.

mariaanglin@yahoo.com
The Prairie Doc: Men, you can thank women for your good health

columnists
The European Commission has published the second report on the operation of the so-called 'Milk Package', a series of measures launched in 2012 to strengthen the position of European dairy producers in the supply chain.

The report shows that after three years of implementation, European farmers are increasingly using the tools provided by the Milk Package, such as collective negotiation of contract terms via producer organisations (POs), or the use of written contracts.

The measure allowing collective negotiation is designed to reinforce the bargaining power of milk producers, whilst written contracts offer better transparency and traceability to farmers.

The report states that more than 60% of dairy POs have earned better or more stable milk prices for their farmers.

EU Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan decided to fast-track the report to the end of 2016

The National Farmers Union has previously renewed calls for new dairy POs. NFU dairy board chairman Michael Oakes said the UK must develop a 'collaborative dairy industry' that can compete effectively in the UK and on the world markets.

This is something the NFU has always promoted and encouraged," Mr Oakes said, its a shame that many UK milk buyers, both large and small, see POs as a threat and have publically said that they will not work with farmers who are part of a PO. Today in the dairy farming sector, collaboration is the key and the NFU sees POs as a vital part of developing new relationships in the UK dairy sector.

The focus of the Commission report is the important role POs can play in increasing farmer bargaining power, it lines up with the NFU dairy boards asks including its calls for fairer, more balanced milk contracts and stronger producer representation.

The report was initially due to be delivered in 2018, but in light of the continuing difficulties in the dairy sector, the EU Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan decided to fast-track the report to the end of 2016. This commitment was part of the series of solidarity packages for the dairy sector announced and implemented during the past year.

'Secure a better position for dairy farmers'

Welcoming the report, Phil Hogan stated today: "The report shows that there are measures that we can take at EU level to secure a better position for dairy farmers in the supply chain. Following on from the Agricultural Markets Task Force report last week, I see this report as further evidence for policy action, in the context of the 2017 Commission Work Programme."

The report also examines further possibilities for dairy farmers. For example, it highlights the potential of two key instruments of the Milk Package  POs and collective negotiations  which are not yet fully exploited by the UK, and outlines various ways of making these more effective both at EU and Member State level.

The report encourages Member States to take the steps to foster the creation of producer organisations with collective actions that go beyond collective bargaining, thus enhancing producers' weight in the milk supply chain. In addition to these recommendations, consideration should be given to expand the role of Inter-Branch Organisations (IBOs).

For the full potential of the Milk Package's possibilities to materialise, the report concludes that an extension of its application beyond 2020 should be considered.

What is the Milk Package?

Adopted under co-decision in 2012, the Milk Package was aimed at strengthening the position of dairy producers in the dairy supply chain and preparing the sector for a more market-oriented and sustainable future, seeking in particular to learn lessons from the 2009 dairy market crisis.

EU Member States have the option to make written contracts between farmers and processors compulsory in the milk sector, and it allows farmers to negotiate contract terms collectively within certain limits.

The package also sets out specific EU rules for inter-branch organizations, allowing actors in the milk supply chain to dialogue and carry out certain activities and Member States are allowed, under certain conditions, to apply rules to regulate the supply of PDO/PGI cheeses. The package also entails a series of measures enhancing transparency in the market.

The measures established by the Milk Package will apply until mid-2020. The Commission was mandated to report in 2014 and 2018 on the market situation and the implementation of the measures.
The AHDB Recommended Lists for cereals and oilseeds (RL) 2017/18, launched today (28 November), sees 29 new varieties added, including the first soft wheat varieties in four years.

The winter wheat list sees an overall increase of five varieties, while the east/west oilseed rape list has been reduced by four. In total, 28 varieties have been removed from the RL.

Advances in combining high yields with good resistance traits are reflected in disease ratings for new varieties.

Dr Simon Oxley, who heads AHDBs Crop Production Systems, said: This years biggest change is the addition of six new soft wheat feed varieties  the first new entrants for four years to a wheat category whose markets include distilling, soft biscuit wheat for export, and soft endosperm feed.

This year, northern growers aiming for distilling markets have some exciting new varieties to consider, with improved yields, first-rate septoria tritici resistance and earlier maturity. Growers further south looking for uks biscuit export varieties or distilling varieties will also find something new.

Feed growers in soft and hard feed markets will find varieties with a combination of high yield, early maturity, stiff straw and better septoria resistance.

New wheat varieties resist yellow rust

Changes in the yellow rust population last season caused the ratings of some recommended wheat varieties to fall but this years new entrants show good resistance to the disease, with ratings of 7 to 9. Most wheat varieties new to the RL are in the relatively low risk category, with high disease and lodging ratings and a high untreated yield.

Dr Oxley said: The relative risk of these new varieties is low, providing confidence to early adopters of new varieties. For all varieties, new and old, the RL shows information from previous seasons, so there is always a chance risks may change. AHDB disease monitoring is important for identifying any changes that occur in the new season.

Septoria tritici ratings are now reported to a decimal place, showing exactly where on the rating scale varieties lie and the incremental improvements being made by breeders. Eight of the new varieties have resistance scores between 6.2 and 7.3.

Reporting on percentage protein in milling trials

Protein is an important measure for the market when selecting milling wheat varieties. This years list shows the percentage protein achieved in trials grown to milling specification, as well as the protein levels reported in all trials, both feed and milling.

Although the RL does not measure the quality of the protein  which can be more important than the total protein  varieties are tested in baking tests managed by nabim to ensure they are up to the mark for the quality bread markets.

Higher-yielding quality wheats are more than capable of achieving market requirements for protein. This years list includes a new provisional nabim Group 1 high-yielding, high-quality bread-making wheat, KWS Zyatt.

The spring wheat list also sees the introduction of two new high-yielding nabim group 2 milling wheats, KWS Cochise and KWS Chilham. Both have the flexibility to be drilled in the autumn or spring, having orange wheat blossom midge resistance.

OSR  balancing yields and disease resistance

The new oilseed rape lists see advances in maintaining the yields growers have come to expect, together with superior disease resistance.

New varieties show excellent overall resistance to light leaf spot and phoma stem canker. Growers looking for top notch resistance with opportunities for better integrated disease management have a new semi-dwarf variety to consider in DK Secret.

The oilseed rape lists also help to directly compare variety performance in all regions, with this years publication of a UK gross output and seed yield for current and new varieties.

Spring barley variety - innovative first for brewing

Growers of feed barley can look forward to three new winter feed varieties  a two-row feed for the north (KWS Creswell), as well as a six-row conventional (Funky) and six-row hybrid (Sunningdale) for the UK.

There are three new spring barley varieties, under test for brewing, malt distilling and brewing, and grain distilling. Further tests are required before they achieve IBD approval, but this year sees the first potential brewing variety lacking a gene for lipoxygenase production, Chanson. This helps to improve flavour stability in the end product.

Recommended List for winter wheat

KWS Zyatt is a new quality provisional nabim Group 1 winter wheat, which achieved good bread making qualities in line with other Group 1 varieties. It achieves the highest yield of all the Group 1 varieties and similar proteins to Skyfall. It has stiff straw with good resistance to septoria tritici (6.4), yellow rust (7), brown rust (6) mildew (7) and eyespot (7). It is also similar in maturity to Crusoe, and Skyfall.

It will undergo further quality testing as part of nabims two-step process in granting full Group 1 status.

Six new soft feed varieties have been added to the Recommended Lists.

Bennington is the highest yielding Group 4 soft variety on the AHDB Recommended List, advancing the yields in this soft feed category to levels growers expect from hard group 4 varieties.

It is recommended for the east and west regions where the highest yields were seen. Its high yield is in combination with stiff straw, good resistance to yellow rust (7), brown rust (7), mildew (7) and septoria tritici (6.2)

LG Sundance is a high yielding Group 4 soft feed variety for the UK, which is suitable for distilling with a medium rating. It also has the highest rating for septoria tritici (7.3) of all varieties on the Recommended List  a breakthrough in achieving good resistance and high yield. It also has stiff straw, orange wheat blossom midge resistance and good resistance to yellow rust (9).

Savello is a high-yielding Group 4 soft feed variety for the north, which is suitable for distilling with a medium rating. It has a high treated yield with the advantage of being earlier maturing than both Leeds and Revelation. It is stiff-strawed and has good resistance to yellow rust (8) and mildew (7). Although susceptible to brown rust (4), this is of lower risk in most seasons in the north of the UK.

LG Motown is a high yielding Group 4 soft feed for the UK, which is an early maturing variety suitable for distilling with a medium rating. It has stiff straw and an overall good disease resistance package for mildew (8), yellow rust (9), brown rust (7) and septoria tritici (5.8).

Moulton is a high yielding early maturing Group 4 soft feed variety for the UK, with a combination of being suitable for distilling with a medium rating and has uks export potential, achieving samples with high specific weight and Hagberg Falling Number. It has stiff straw and an overall good disease resistance package for mildew (7), yellow rust (8), brown rust (7) and septoria tritici (6.5).

Hardwicke is a high-yielding early maturing Group 4 soft feed variety for the north, suitable for distilling with a medium rating. It is stiff-strawed early maturing with good resistance to yellow rust (8), brown rust (6) and septoria tritici (5.9).

Four new hard feed varieties have also been added to the Recommended List.

KWS Kerrin holds the crown as the highest yielding variety on the list recommended for the east and west. This yield advantage is in combination with stiff straw, orange wheat blossom midge resistance and good resistance to mildew (7), yellow rust (7), and brown rust (7).

Shabras is recommended for the UK and combines a high yield with early maturity. It also has stiff straw and good resistance to mildew (7), yellow rust (8) and septoria tritici (6.2). The variety is, however, susceptible to brown rust (4).

Freiston combines a high yield, early maturity and stiff straw, with good resistance to mildew (7), yellow rust (9), brown rust (7) and septoria tritici (6.7).

Dunston combines a high yield with stiff straw and good resistance to yellow rust (7), brown rust (6), septoria tritici (6.7) and eyespot (6). This combination makes it one of the relatively lower risk varieties on the List.

Recommended List for spring wheat

KWS Cochise is a new quality nabim Group 2 spring wheat, it shows a degree of variability in testing over three years, leading to its group 2 rating. It has the highest yield of all varieties in spring-sown trials, in combination with orange wheat blossom midge resistance, early maturity and good resistance to brown rust (8) and septoria tritici (6).

KWS Chilham is a new quality provisional nabim Group 2 spring wheat, which tends to show lower protein than a Group 1 variety, but with stronger gluten. It has good resistance to yellow rust (7) and septoria tritici (6), but it is susceptible to brown rust (4). It also has resistance to orange wheat blossom midge

Recommended List for winter barley

Sunningdale is a very high yielding hybrid six-row feed barley. Although it has a similar yield to Bazooka, it is earlier maturing with shorter straw.

Sunningdale has performed particularly well in the north where it is the highest yielding variety on the Recommended List. It widens the choice available to six-row hybrid feed varieties for growers throughout the UK. It has good resistance to brown rust (6), rhynchosporium (7) and net blotch (6), plus resistance to barley yellow mosaic virus.

Funky is a very high yielding early maturing conventional six-row feed with good resistance to mildew (6), brown rust (8), rhynchosporium (7) and net blotch (6), plus resistance to barley yellow mosaic virus. It is currently the only conventional six-row variety on the List.

KWS Cresswell is a high yielding early maturing two-row feed variety for the north. It has stiff straw and good resistance to rhynchosporium (6), plus resistance to barley yellow mosaic virus.

Recommended List for spring barley

Chanson is under test for brewing and is the first recommended variety lacking a gene for lipoxygenase production.

It is early maturing and has a high yield, particularly in the east and north. It can produce a lower than average specific weight, but screenings are in line with other brewing varieties. It is best to consider Chanson as a conventional variety under test for brewing, but with potential added benefits to the end user.

LG Opera is under test for brewing and malt distilling. It is a high yielding early maturing variety, with relatively short straw and good resistance to brackling and good resistance to mildew (9)

Dioptric is recommended for the north as a high yielding variety under test for grain distilling. It has a high specific weight, short straw with good resistance to brackling and good resistance to mildew (9) and ramularia (8).

Recommended Lists for oilseed rape

Flamingo is a conventional variety that performs well on gross output in the East/West and combines early maturity and stiff stems with high resistance to light leaf spot (7). Phoma stem canker (4) will, however, require attention.

Nikita now has a UK recommendation adding the East/West region to the North recommendation gained last year. It has a high UK gross output in combination with stiff stems, relatively early maturity and high resistance to light leaf spot (7). Phoma stem canker (4) will, however, require attention.

Aquila is a restored hybrid that has a high gross output in combination with stiff stems, good resistance to light leaf spot (6) and to phoma stem canker (8). This variety achieves high levels of resistance to both diseases with no apparent penalties in gross output or agronomics.

DK Secret is a restored hybrid semi-dwarf variety and will be the shortest variety on the List (9) in combination with high resistance to light leaf spot (7) and phoma stem canker (8). The gross output is favourable when compared with the only other specialist semi-dwarf variety, Troy.

Ergo is a described high erucic acid (HEAR) variety for the east/west region. The oils are used for industrial processing and care should be taken to keep HEAR varieties away from others.

Recommended Lists for oats

RGT Victorious and Griffin are conventional winter oat husked varieties. RGT Victorious combines high yields with early maturity and achieves a good specific weight and good kernel content.

Griffin is also high yielding with similar positive characteristics in specific weight and kernel content. Both varieties will, however, require attention to the risk of lodging.

Peloton is a naked variety, with a combination of high yield and early maturity. It has good resistance to mildew (6) and crown rust (6).

Yukon and WPB Elyann are two new husked spring oat varieties. Yukon achieves a high yield, early maturity and stiff straw. It achieves good specific weight and kernel content. It has good resistance to mildew (8). WPB Elyann is also early maturing but slightly lower yielding, and has a very high kernel content at 80.7%, combined with a good specific weight. It has good resistance to mildew (7).
Farmers do not trust the Welsh government to deliver fit for purpose subsidies when the UK leaves the European Union, Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies has said.

Speaking on the first day of the Royal Welsh Fair, Mr Davies said farmers had more confidence in the UK government rather than the devolved assembly. Currently, under the EU CAP policy, Wales receives around 250m per year.

"There is a view among farmers and most businessmen and women in the rural economy that they would not trust the Welsh government to deliver a package of support that would be fit for purpose, they would have greater confidence in the UK government being able to do that.

"From my conversations with people in agriculture, and I am a farmer myself, most people seem to identify a role, an important role, for the UK Government in shaping UK government policies because there is such a thing as UK agriculture."

But Rural Affairs Secretary Lesley Griffiths said there was 'little appetite' from farmers for Westminster to take control.

"I have detected little appetite for Westminster to retake responsibility over agriculture in Wales. Indeed, many have indicated a keen willingness to work with me to develop distinctively Welsh agriculture policies, responsive to the unique needs and interests of Wales' farming communities," she said.

Dr Andrew Francis, the NFU's chief economics and international affairs adviser, said: "he EU single market is by far our biggest export destination, and access to foreign markets is crucial for farming businesses.

"The NFU is urging government to limit our exposure to imports produced at lower standards in order to safeguard our sensitive sectors. It is a very early stage to formulate a detailed alternative to CAP. However, we need a flexible policy framework reflecting the business and trade settlement that includes volatility mitigation and a broad scheme for the farmed environment, amongst other measures."

'Thousands of farms at risk'

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Mark Williams launched the 'not a penny less' campaign in September, highlighting that the UK is 'failing' to support farmers in the long term.

"The subsidy regime is not something farmers welcome but it's a reality for the farming industry at the moment. There has been some concern in farming circles that those existing subsidies will be removed... this is a lifeline so I understand their anxiety.

"The ramifications of many farming businesses going bust [are] huge for rural communities. It's at that point you factor in how feasible it is for village schools to stay open, as well as other service providers and bus routes."

He said that "on balance", he would prefer to see the Welsh Government, not UK ministers, keep control of farm support payments.

The Lib-Dems said 4,402 farms in the South West alone were at risk. Nationally, it estimates 20,600 farmers would be driven out of businesses unless they continue to get financial support.

"Farmers making decisions now about buying livestock and investing for the future are being left in the dark about what will come after 2020. I am calling on the government to reassure farmers that they are not going to face cuts to the support they rely on after 2020," said Lib Dem leader Tim Farron.

'UK government has failed'

Plaid Cymru Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Simon Thomas, has hit out at Wales' Tory leader.

According to Plaid Cymru, the UK Government has 'failed' to guarantee that payments will continue beyond 2020, despite the guarantee of the Leave campaign ahead of the referendum that Welsh EU cash would be maintained.

Plaid Cymru's Simon Thomas AM said: "Back in June, Andrew RT Davies loudly proclaimed "we now know that funding for each and every part of the UK would be safe if we vote to leave." Five months on and the empty pledges made by the Brexiteers to Welsh farmers are unravelling.

"Rural Wales benefits greatly from EU funding. Far from guaranteeing that direct payments will continue post-2020, the UK Government has completely failed to offer any security to farmers whose livelihoods are on the line.

"With this attitude being adopted by the Westminster government, it is absurd and irresponsible for the Leader of the Conservatives in Wales to claim that farming subsidies would be better administered from London.
Public spending on flood risks in England is increasing vulnerability rather than preventing it, according to new research.

A report found that twice as much money is spent on dealing with after affects of floods rather than hard flood preventions, think tank Green Alliance revealed.

The group said the efforts were resulting in many millions of pounds of subsidy being spent in ways that may actually increase vulnerability as nearly four times as much money is being spent on land management that 'ignores or even increases' flood risks.

Flooding in Northern England cost the economy 5 billion in 2015, if foods continue to be managed in the same way, damages could increase by as much as 150% by the 2080s, the group claimed.

'Farmers are perfectly positioned to make these small interventions in how they manage land'

"In the worst case scenario, the number of people living in properties exposed to flooding could rise by as much as 98%," the Green Alliance said.

"A major failing of the current system is its lack of support for natural flood management methods (NFM), which have been proven to reduce flood risk when used alongside traditional flood defences. In the North Yorkshire town of Pickering, methods like creating woody debris barriers in rivers have reduced peak river flows by as much as 7.5%, which allowed it to escape the floods in 2012."

"The UK farming support scheme that replaces the Common Agricultural Policy should reward land management that helps to prevent flooding. A dedicated fund for natural flood management projects should be established. This would allow enough evidence to be gathered at larger, catchment scale to demonstrate where NFM is best applied as part of flood risk management programmes," the group said.

Brexit offers opportunities

Patrick Begg, rural enterprises director at National Trust said post-Brexit offers an opportunity to create a system that rewards farmers and land managers to implement solutions to the flow of water.

"Farmers are perfectly positioned to make these small interventions in how they manage land that can have a big impact in reducing flooding, saving us all millions of pounds in the long term. Public money is needed to support farmers in delivering these public benefits.

"But our own work with Green Alliance suggests that it should also be possible to set up a market for services from farming that today go unrewarded, reducing flood risks, improving water quality and boosting biodiversity."

"Natural flood management is effective. On the National Trusts Holnicote estate we have worked with our tenant farmers to plant trees, create bunds to hold back floods, reinstate functioning water meadows and put back river meanders. During last weeks storms the villages of Allerford and Bossington, which previously would have suffered after heavy rain, avoided flooding largely thanks to these measures."

Angela Francis, senior economist at Green Alliance, said: "This analysis reveals how we are spending hundreds of millions of pounds of public money in ways that are perverse. Just by allocating current funding more rationally the government could reduce the burden on the public purse, save vulnerable communities from the misery of flooding, and increase the health of our natural environment.

"We welcome the governments announcement of 15 million of additional funding for natural flood management, and urge that it be used as an innovation fund to support catchment scale trials of these approaches. This is the only way we can understand how cost effective it could be in preventing and managing floods."
Pwllheli-based pig farm in North West Wales, Oinc Oink, has been awarded Pedigree Breeder of the Year at the National Pig Awards.

Huw and Ela Roberts of Oinc Oink have a herd of 30 Pedigree Welsh Pigs and are featured on the Porc.Wales website, dedicated to Wales' specialist farmers, artisan producers and master butchers of pork.

The category, open to all breeders of pedigree pigs, is judged by sector specific experts against a range of criteria. These including number of pigs sold to other breeders, performance at county shows, key breeders stats and processes to prevent inbreeding.

Huw and Ela have been farming since 2007 specialising in Welsh pedigree pigs. Both from farming backgrounds, they are the fifth generation of Huws family to farm this land.

Huw Roberts, Oinc Oink, said: Its a real honour to be awarded a national accolade for our pedigree breeding, and to fly the flag for pork from Wales. With pork from Wales, its all down to the quality of the meat. You have to taste it to believe it. Its unique.

Melanie Cargill, Market Development Officer, Porc.Wales, said: The National Pig Awards are coveted awards in our industry, so we are immensely proud of Oinc Oink, a pork from Wales supplier who feature on our website (Porc.Wales), for winning this recognition. Its great to get the message out there on a national scale that pork from Wales is of superb quality and taste, which is reflected in the produce that Oinc Oink and the many other suppliers featured on Porc.Wales have to offer.
Wales' Cabinet Secretary for Education, Kirsty Williams, has joined farmers and school children to launch a Welsh language teaching resource educating children about the importance of food and farming.

Miss Williams visited Builth Wells CP School on Thursday 24 November to help launch the Why Farming Matters/Pam Fod Ffermion Bwysig education packs produced by NFU Cymru and Farming & Countryside Education (FACE).

The education packs, now available in both English and Welsh, are designed to provide teachers with ideas and activities to help stimulate and foster childrens interest in food and farming, encourage healthy eating and lifestyles, as well as encouraging pupils to think about where their food comes from. The resource, aimed at Key Stage 2 pupils, looks to weave the themes of food and farming through the curriculum areas of English, Welsh, maths, geography, science, art and design.

The new Welsh language teaching resource is the latest work to be released as part of the wider NFU Why Farming Matters initiative, which has been raising awareness of the contribution made by agriculture to rural communities for a decade.

'Excellent way to inspire'

Miss Williams said the teaching resource is an 'excellent way' to inspire and educate children about the many ways in which farming supports everyday lives in Wales, whether that be through food security, employment, the environment or the economy.

Its great to see NFU Cymru and FACE working together to deliver an educational tool that helps teachers deliver the important themes of food and farming in a variety of subjects across the curriculum through the mediums of Welsh and English, she said.

NFU Cymru Deputy President, John Davies, said: We know that farming is the bedrock of rural communities in Wales and that the Welsh language makes a vital contribution to Wales cultural identity. Many of our communities were built on agriculture, so its important that we help protect and nurture the important traditions that play such an integral part of life in Wales.

NFU Cymru will be encouraging its members to make contact with their local schools and help distribute the education packs to teachers in their local area.

Jane Powell, FACE Coordinator for Wales, said: "Engaging children with farming is vital if they are to have an understanding of how food production, environmental conservation and economic activity all fit together, so that they can help build a world that can feed future generations. Farmers have a special role in the food system and this pack will help them to connect with schools and get their message across."
A new campaign which is aiming to encourage people to consider different ways of controlling pests and disease thereby improving water quality is to be launched today.

PestSmart, a joint initiative supported by the Welsh government, says it wishes to encourage farmers and landowners to 'consider the way they manage their land to help improve raw water quality before it reaches water treatment works.'

Ian Christie, managing director of water services at Welsh Water said the campaign will 'signpost' land managers to advice and practical solutions for weed, pest and disease control.

"Our routine raw water monitoring programme has detected increasing traces of pesticides in areas we have never seen them before. While these levels are too low to pose a risk to those drinking the water, they are enough to breach the rigorous drinking water standards so we want to work with land managers to take action to address this issue together.

"Anyone who is interested in finding out if they are eligible for either of these initiatives or who wants more information on our PestSmart campaign can visit our stand at the Royal Welsh Winter Fair where Welsh Water staff will be on hand to answer any questions you may have."

'Reduce risks'

Lesley Griffiths, Welsh government cabinet secretary for environment and rural affairs said "If we are going to protect our water environment for future generations, we will need to be imaginative about how to do this.

"The PestSmart initiative is an innovative approach that provides an excellent example of the sort of new collaborative approaches we want to foster in the years ahead."

Diane McCrea, Chair of the Natural Resources Wales Board, said, "The two elements of the PestSmart campaign  the free pesticide disposal scheme and the weed wiper initiative which is available in targeted areas across Wales  will both reduce the risk of pesticides accidently finding their way into watercourses.

"We know that pesticides play an essential and everyday role for farmers and land managers in Wales. But is essential that any unwanted or out of date pesticides are disposed of safely so that they dont have a damaging effect on people, water nor wildlife. The programme launched today is a way of collecting and disposing of pesticides in a safe and secure way."
Farmer, 20, who took over family farm after tragedy scoops award
"Our view is to recognise the skills that are necessary to ensure our senior executives and our boards can in fact position their organisations to drive and renew profit-driven outcomes in the region," she said.
He said while it was still early as harvest in the more frost affected areas was just getting underway - and it had generally been a slow start to harvest overall - so far it could end up "better than expected" for some growers.
The first time we got smashed with frost was 1998 and I can remember telling my wife then this year is too good to be true and unfortunately this year is probably the same, except the potential was even greater.
While the size of the market in Australia is still undetermined, Ms Darby said AusCann estimated that within two years about 20,000 patients would access the product, consuming up to a gram per day in dried weight product as a vapour or orally, which is the equivalent of about 300 milligrams of the active ingredient cannabinoid.
"Yes, at certain times of the year you have a few Australians who want to travel up there, but I don't think a few rangers on certain properties would attract the whole of Perth to have a look.
Subjects chosen for Mr Perrier's Rising From the Ashes sculptures were local people who had property destroyed or were integral in some way to helping the communities of Northcliffe and Windy Harbour survive the massive blaze, one of the biggest in WA's history.
At the annual meeting in Perth on Thursday, Mr Goyder responded to questions from shareholders on a view widely expressed by dairy farmers and WAFarmers, that Coles' $1 milk has contributed to the dairy crisis with two farmers being forced out of the industry since September and the likelyhood of more to go in January.
Lawyer says body cam shows police trying to cover up unlawful stop

The exchange can be heard in body camera footage released Tuesday in the case of Ja'Lana Dunlap-Banks, 22, who says she was wrongly detained Sept. 6.
Marketing and sales people working in low-integrity places are usually far removed from the victims of nearby corruption. Compliance professionals supporting a far-flung work force need to keep that cultural isolation in mind.

I became aware of the issue when reading Why They Do it: Inside the Mind of the White Collar Criminal, by Harvard Business School Associate Professor Eugene Soltes. In his riveting work, Professor Soltes says the human ability to sense the potential for harm is significantly affected by physical and psychological proximity.

Professor Soltes had reached out to incarcerated executives to ask: What were the most significant pressures you faced, and how did the way you were compensated influence your decision making?

He then drew upon research in psychology, neuroscience, legal theory and philosophy to thread together common themes among violators and the managerial institutions in which they operated, and which ultimately failed.

Yet fly-in business teams, even (or especially) those working in poverty stricken countries, usually congregate in enclaves of relative comfort. They set up shop in the business center of a nice hotel where they stay, and enjoy great restaurants at the same hotel or nearby.

During their visits, the team members only exposure to suffering citizens might be the ride from the airport to the hotel. But that ride is often in the back seat of an armored SUV with other security vehicles trailing or leading or both.

The separation from local life usually blocks any chance to understand the local consequences of corrupt behavior, or to develop empathy for the victims. Beyond that, the isolation can lead to the false notion that corruption is a win-win proposition. That sounds too weird, I know. But its what actually happened to me.

As my thinking went, the bribery helped win the sale for the company, and I made quota, forecast and bonus. Maybe the company even added overtime or a second shift to manufacture the order, putting more money in a lot of other paychecks.

In addition, the intermediary could move on to the next transaction, and the public official, who might be earning what we think of as poverty wages, got a little something extra to makes ends meet.

Thats a short version of the self-justifying win-win fantasy.

You might think the win-win fantasy is repulsive, especially given the norms and cultures at HQ. But HQ isnt where everyone in the organization is tasked with success. Goods and services are finally marketed and sold in the field, sometimes in frontier markets, where ideas about corruption are often elastic at best, especially among the ruling elites.

So the win-win fantasy is affirmed by local norms, further interfering with the perception of harm. As Professor Francesca Gino points out, where unethical conduct is perceived as benefiting others, one might even think of it as altruistic and morally acceptable.

In this corrupt ecosystem, one can think that everyone benefits, and no one gets hurt. And as Professor Soltes points out, without experiencing any negative consequences, youre unlikely to feel that youre committing them.

On the contrary, he says, when corrupt behavior leads to success, the offending act begins to resonate positively.

How, then, can big companies doing business in far-flung places snuff out the win-win fantasy and replace it with reality?

The first step is admitting the fantasy exists, then confronting it. Many multinationals have volunteer days, where employees donate time to local community service programs.

If you think thats too daunting for an international team, read A Better World, Inc by Alice Korngold. She describes international corporate volunteering (ICV) initiatives. The aim is to engage overseas employees by deepening their knowledge and understanding of the needs and cultures in emerging markets where opportunities abound.

One result, Korngold says, is that field personnel involved in the pro bono work emerge from these experiences with acute sensitivity and awareness of their surroundings, while becoming more effective in a variety of new and different cultures and work environments.

Its actually a career enhancing event, imagine that.

Outside the corporate structure, many faith-based groups have short-term overseas mission opportunities. Those programs arent just for doctors and dentists. Help is always needed from anyone willing to pitch in.

However the experience arises, a few days or weeks building local housing, digging wells, mentoring a young professional, or teaching in a dirt-floored school should end the win-win fantasies.

Think about how a book club can help us understand more about the victims of corruption. Id recommend Sarah Chayes Thieves of State and Tom Burgis The Looting Machine.

Or watch some movies together and then talk about them. The Year of Living Dangerously, perhaps, or Blood Diamonds. Those films can help bring front-line personnel back to reality.

Sure, win-win fantasies about corruption are convenient and comforting. But theyre extremely dangerous to a compliance program and can land a company and some of its people in the middle of an FCPA disaster. I know. Ive been there.

___

Richard Bistrong is a contributing editor of the FCPA Blog and CEO of Front-Line Anti-Bribery LLC. In 2010 he pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to violate the FCPA and served fourteen-and-a-half months at a U.S. federal prison camp. He now consults, writes and speaks about compliance issues. In 2015 he was named one of Ethispheres 100 Most Influential in Business Ethics. He can be contacted by email here and on twitter @richardbistrong.
On November 8 the government of India demonetized all existing Indian currency notes of rupee 500 and 1,000 denominations effective from midnight. The old notes will be replaced over time and can be exchanged in banks till December 30, on production of proof of identity.

In the meantime cash is being rationed, with a withdrawal limit of Rs. 2000 (about $29).

This is part of a long war on cash that the country has waged.

The two reasons given for this step were undermining currency counterfeiting and controlling black money.

The move has caused significant harassment to the masses in Indias cash-based economy and has proved to be politically controversial.

The opposition alleges that the move is primarily a distraction by the government to hide its failure to bring back black money from offshore accounts.

This argument reflects the popular image of black money as a kind of pirates buried treasure.

In reality black money is as much a flow as stock; it is a revenue stream generated from certain activities that are either illegal or go beyond what is legally permitted.

Part this flow can be converted into stock (cash, gold, or offshore account) or social goods like political power. But to sustain the activity, bribes need to be paid regularly to officials and police, and lawyers accountants and musclemen need to be bankrolled, among others.

None of this can be done through the banking channels. So high denomination currency notes supply the working capital. Demonetization not only destroys the black money stock in cash, it also destroys the operating capital as well. And it signals to the blackeconomy participants that purely cash transactions are inherently unreliable, thereby undermining the confidence in the black economy.

A note of caution though. Demonetization will have to be followed by a reduction in high denomination notes (presently at 86 percent of currency in circulation) otherwise the black-economy will regain the equilibrium over a period of time.

Some say the move is a tactical ploy to disadvantage the regional parties in the upcoming Punjab and Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls in January 2017. There might be kernel of truth in the matter. Regional parties who lack the large financial infrastructure of national parties like BJP tend to rely more on informal / illicit cash channels for election financing.

But then again, in India in any given period there is a State, local government, or national election scheduled somewhere, and it is difficult to see any pattern in the timing.

Most importantly, concerns have been raised about certain vulnerable groups. Women hiding meagre savings from alcoholic or abusive husbands, people with no access to identity documents or banking channels, farmers, small shopkeepers  all of them could be rendered penniless by this move.

These human issues should have been considered more fully before the demonetization decision was made. I fear that the war against black money wont be painless or without collateral damage.

____

Suvrajyoti Gupta is Assistant Professor at O.P. Jindal Global University in Delhi, India, and Assistant Director of the Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution. His teaching and research interests include dispute resolution, international arbitration and corruption.
This week is another big one for music releases, so we've taken a look at five new albums you should be listening to when they drop on Friday, December 2!

Pete Doherty is back

1) Childish Gambino - 'Awaken, My Love!'

Featuring 11 new tracks from the groundbreaking musician, those who pre-order this record will receive 'Me And Your Mama' immediately. The rapper has said he's drawn from memories of listening to his father's favourite music for these new songs, and it's likely that becoming a father for the first time earlier this year has played a huge part within the album's content. Check this out for a raw and honest look at life in America for a black man, father and rapper.

2) Deadmau5 - 'W:/2016Album'

Serving as the first release on Deadmau5's own mau5trap as an independent artist, fans are expecting big things when 'W:/2016Album' drops later this week. With three singles already released from the record, eight more new tracks are included along with an extended verson of Grabbitz collaboration, 'Let Go'. Promising an "80s sci-fi, fantasy vibe", Deadmau5 will have to deliver something really special to rival his prior work. We have faith.

3) John Legend - 'Darkness And Light'

John Legend has said he wants to "contribute to the conversation" with his new and extremely topical album. As another new dad in the world of music, lyrics here are going to be extremely honest and more emotional than we may have ever heard before (hard we know when it comes to John Legend!). Guest appearances come from Miguel, Chance the Rapper and Alabama Shakes' member Brittany Howard.

"A lot of the difference is just my own evolution as a person, as a father and as a husband. This will be the first time I've made an album, given those life changes I've gone through. And I think you can hear it in the music." (Legend in conversation with Billboard).

4) Pete Doherty - 'Hamburg Demonstrations'

Known to be a controversial figure, it's great to see Pete Doherty back doing what he does best - releasing powerful new music. You only have to listen to the track above to get a flavour of what he'll be doing with this new record and it's never been clearer that he's been more passionate and confident with his work.

5) The Rolling Stones - 'Blue & Lonesome'

Some fans may not have thought they'd see the day The Rolling Stones would release even more music, but the veteran band have only gone and done it again, putting together a collection of new tracks to whet the appetites of all those begging for more!

by Daniel Falconer for www.femalefirst.co.uk

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Olly Murs is to perform for the Teenage Cancer Trust for the first time in 2017.

Olly Murs

The 32-year-old pop star has been announced as one of the headliners for the charity's 17th annual series of concerts held at London's Royal Albert Hall next March and April.

Olly has sold 10 million records and has notched up four number one singles in the UK - he recently made his fourth UK number one album with '24 HRS' which knocked Robbie Williams from the top spot.

The Who's Roger Daltrey, CBE and honorary Patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust, is very excited that Olly has agreed to play.

He said: "The Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at the Royal Albert Hall are now fully fledged teenagers as next year marks our 17th anniversary. Yet again we have a really varied line up starting with Olly Murs who is fresh from his fourth number one album and will be embarking on an arena tour before he reaches us."

The other headliners confirmed for next year are The Who, who will perform their seminal rock opera 'Tommy' on two nights, Paul Weller, the Pet Shop Boys with Johnny Marr and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra and an evening of comedy hosted by Romesh Ranganathan.

Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, of the Pet Shop Boys, said: "This will be a very special night for us, performing with Johnny Marr and the Royal Philharmonic. We have often combined electronics with orchestrations on our records and now we're going to do this in concert. Johnny has played on many of our albums and it will be a real thrill to have him on stage with us."

Meanwhile, Weller added: "It's important to support the continuously incredible work that Teenage Cancer Trust does. It's an honour to be able to perform for them and hopefully help raise money for teenagers when they need it the most."

Since 2000, a staggering 225 bands and artists have performed, raising more than 24 million for the Teenage Cancer Trust, including Noel Gallagher, Sir Paul McCartney, The Cure and Ed Sheeran.

The gigs play a vital role in helping the charity raise funds to provide 28 specialist cancer units and over 60 nursing and support staff in NHS hospitals across the UK and this year's shows are supported by headline sponsors Aldi and associate sponsors American Airlines.

Tickets for the TCT shows go on sale at 9am on Friday (02.12.16) from at gigsandtours.com, ticketmaster.co.uk and royalalberthall.com.
Prince Charles reportedly wants solar panels to be fitted at Buckingham Palace.

Prince Charles

The royal residence is to undergo a refurbishment costing 369 million and The Daily Express reports that the Prince of Wales is keen for the ancient property to be made environmentally friendly.

The 68-year-old royal, who is a huge environmental campaigner, is believed to have played a major part in ensuring the palace will have energy efficient features like his own homes, Clarence House and Highgrove.

It comes following the news that Queen Elizabeth has been urged to foot the bill for the renovations.

A petition of more than 100,000 people was signed demanding the 90-year-old monarch pay for the repairs, which will take 10 years to complete.

The campaign called 38 Degrees is headed up by Mark Johnson, who feels more money should be spent on education and health care rather than the upkeep of the royal residence in London.

He said: "There is a national housing crisis, the NHS is in crisis, austerity is forcing cuts in many frontline services.

"Now the Royals expect us to dig deeper to refurbish Buckingham Palace."

Several MPs have also had their say on whether public money should be spent on the project.

Labour shadow business secretary, Clive Lewis said: "I think the Queen could contribute quite a bit towards that - she's one of the wealthiest people in the country. Why not?"

Meanwhile, Royal finances expert David McLure has said he feels Elizabeth should dig into the funds she receives from the Duchy of Lancaster's Estate.

As the Sovereign, she is expected to rake in 17.8 million next April.

He said: "No-one is saying there isn't an enormous backlog of palace repairs.

"But given the pressure on the public purse at the moment I would have thought they could do it bit by bit out of the existing grant they receive.

"The other option is that The Queen could dip into the money she receives from the Duchy of Lancaster and contribute a few million pounds.

"Yes it's not a private residence, but as a gesture she could do that."
Prince Harry was left stranded after the Royal Fleet Auxiliary boat he is living on broke down.

Prince Harry

The 32-year-old royal is staying on the vessel during his two-week stay in the Caribbean, however, his trip came to a halt on Saturday (26.11.16) when RFA Wave Knight failed to start.

However, It's said the rest of the tour will not be affected by the "technical" glitch and they are hoping to resume their trip to the island of Grenada so Harry can continue his royal engagements on behalf of Queen Elizabeth.

A spokesman for Kensington Palace said: "Today, day eight of the tour, was a designated travel day. The journey from St Vincent to Grenada was due to take six hours and the tour party planned to stop along the way for lunch.

'Due to a technical problem, RFA Wave Knight was unable to leave St Vincent as planned. Prince Harry and the tour party remain in the country and went to a nearby island for a private afternoon.

"Contingency plans are in place and there is no current expectation the second half of the tour will be impacted by the technical problem."

According to the Daily Mail, a Royal Navy spokesman added: "RFA Wave Knight experienced a minor technical issue. This has not caused delay to the royal tour, or affected the operational commitments of the ship."

Other than being stranded, Harry is said to be enjoying his time on board the Royal Navy boat and has loved eating with the crew.

A source recently said: "He is really liking life on board, he took to it immediately and he is enjoying getting to know the crew and talking to everyone he meets. It is a reminder of his days as a serving officer in the Armed Forces.

"He is eating his meals with the team and the officers on the ship, in the mess with the other sailors.

"It is very traditional fare, a standard English breakfast and good, no frills food for other meals when he is on board.

"The Prince does not get any special treatment and nor would he ever want any from the crew.

He has, though, been given the captain's cabin, in line with standard protocol when the ship hosts a member of the Royal family or a senior naval figure, and he is incredibly grateful for that."
Ben Cohen and Kristina Rihanoff are planning to get married.

Ben Cohen and Kristina Rihanoff

The retired rugby player is keen to pop the question to the former 'Strictly Come Dancing' professional, with whom he has five-month-old daughter Milena, but she's adamant she won't walk down the aisle until she's managed to lose her baby weight.

Speaking to HELLO! magazine, the 38-year-old hunk said: "I imagine we will get married at some point. Having a baby later on in life, we were both very set in our ways so it has been a big change for both of us."

The 39-year-old beauty added: "It's not something that we're ruling out. We will see what the future holds. But with a baby, it's not something we've got time to think about at the moment. And I want to be in better shape on my wedding day than I am now."

And Kristina - who quit the ballroom and latin show last year in order to have her daughter - has already kick started her plans to get her pre-baby body back.

She said: "I've been going to yoga for an hour a day. It's such a good fitness regime for me. I love it. I'm gradually losing weight and getting back into shape, but I'm not there yet. With 'Strictly...' I used to burn so many calories dancing six to seven hours a day, so I'm trying to get back the endurance. I used to have."

Kristina and Ben's relationship has been heavily criticised after they met when they were partnered together on the ballroom and latin show in 2013 and began dating shortly after he divorced Abby Blayney in 2014.

It was initially claimed the pair were having an affair on the programme but both have denied the reports and insist they only got together once Ben had ended it with his childhood sweetheart, whom he has eight-year-old twin girls Harriette and Isabelle.

And, although the rumours got to her at the beginning of their relationship, Kristina has learnt to ignore the cruel comments because she's got a baby to focus on.

She said previously: "I think when you have true feelings for each other you know it was meant to be... when you have a little one, it changes your prospective in life."

Ben and Abby - who were married for 13 years after meeting at school - ended on bitter terms but that hasn't stopped his daughters getting along with Milena.

She said: "They get on so well. We all went on a fantastic holiday to Dubai together, and Ben's twins Harriette and Isabelle] are great with Milena."
Fashion designer Manish Malhotra turns a year older on December 5, kicked off his birthday celebrations in Maldives. The designer, who has been in the Maldives with actress Katrina Kaif for a fashion photo shoot, cut into a large chocolate cake as he got the pre-birthday celebrations started.



Manish, who will soon turn 50, shared a video of himself blowing out a candle as he cut pieces of cake and fed them to Katrina and few other crew members.





The designer has been letting fans in on all of the behind the scene action with his numerous posts on his social networking handles. He also shared a few pictures with his muse, Katrina, showing off her sculpted legs as she sat on his lap after a wrapping up a long day's work.













Next Story : Not Your Average Gift: Our Handpicked Thoughtful Diwali Gifts
The 14edition of the China International Polyamide & Intermediates Forum slated to take place on Dec 1 - 2, 2016 in Shanghai, is being organised to discuss issues concerning the nylon chain. Participants from multiple countries are expected to gather to analyse the effect of economic backdrop as well as the market trends on nylon at the forum.

Industry experts will discuss the bulk stock commodity market of China, innovations and transformation of Nylon-6 products and decrease in the demand for engineering nylon plastics and films this year among other things. The forum will also give companies a chance to forge new business relations.

The conference is being organised by China Chemical & Fiber Economic Information Network (CCFEI) and Tecnon OrbiChem, and is supported by Nylon Committee of China Chemical Fibers Association and China National Chemical Fiber Corp.

The 14th edition of the China International Polyamide & Intermediates Forum slated to take place on Dec 1 - 2, 2016 in Shanghai, is being organised to discuss issues concerning the nylon chain. Participants from multiple countries are expected to gather to analyse the effect of economic backdrop as well as the market trends on nylon at the forum.#

Topics including Strategies to Facilitate R&D and Application of New Nylon Products, Changes of Caprolactam Fundamental, Changing Market in China, Perspective of High-end Nylon Market, Overcapacity Builds Along the Supply Chain, Polyester Amide  Fiber of New Type, Facing the Future of Polyamide 6 Technology with Plant and Product Versatility and Developments in Polyamide Tyrecord Industry will be covered at the 2-day conference.

Speakers at the forum include Deng Jun, secretary general of nylon committee at China Chemical Fibers Association; Huang Wei, fibre raw material department at Sinopec Chemical Commercial Holding; Song Manjun, marketing & logistics director at Fujian Shenyuan New Material; Lin Jun, chief editor at CCFEI; Qu Zhenlin, director of sales at UBE Shanghai and Jiang Zhenhua, product manager at CCFEI among others. (KD)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
While the entire nation is divided over PM Modi's demonetisation drive, the situation is no different at the Bachchans house! On one side, Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan praised the PM for his bold move, but Big B's wife Jaya Bachchan, who is also Rajya Sabha MP slams the PM for the same.

Recently, Jaya was seen sharing the stage with the opposite camp led by leaders like Mamata Banerjee. She said that the intention behind demonetisation might be good but the implementation has been flawed. She also took a jibe at Modi's recent statement and said, "Bharat 50 din baad swarg ban jayega aur hum sab swargwasi."

Isn't It An Awkward Situation? It's surprising to see that the entire Bachchan parivaar is supporting Modi but Jaya Bachchan showed her disappointment quite openly! We wonder if the Bachchan family members talk among each other on matters related to the country or not. What Aishwarya Had Said About Demonetisation Aishwarya Rai: As a citizen, honestly I will say congratulations Mr Prime Minister. You have gone ahead with a very strong move for your larger plan to wipe out corruption in our country and that's the larger overview we as a country need to recognize. 'Change Is Not Always Comfortable' She had added, "Change is not always comfortable, everyone will find their way to embrace it if they focus on the larger picture." Abhishek Bachchan On Demonetisation Abhishek Bachchan: Anybody, who is trying do something good for the country needs to be supported. And that's what we should do. It's a move in the positive direction. Big B On Demonetisation On 8th November's night, PM Narendra Modi had announced about demonetisation and on the same day, Amitabh Bachchan had tweeted, "T 2435 - the new 2000 rs note is PINK in colour ... the PINK effect .."

On a related note, a few days ago, actor Arshad Warsi had also expressed his disappointment over demonetisation. He took to Twitter to hit out at PM Modi and had posted a series of tweets:

"@narendramodi EOW takes my hard earned TAX PAID income from my bank account & there is nothing I can do about it."

"@narendramodi Modiji if you really want to improve India then change the one sided laws. Can I please have my TAX PAID WHITE MONEY BACK."

"@narendramodi A fraudulent company is allowed to do business by the Govt & the innocent tax Payer has to pay the price. Where is the justice."

"@narendramodi Sir please enjoy your chair but please stop using the honest TAX payers as your foot rest."

"@narendramodi Sir,you have effectively eradicated black money. Please also change dated laws & work on increasing the number of tax payers."
Rishi Kapoor is currently holidaying in the city of Milan, Italy and it looks like he's been bowled over by the city so much that he has changed his name on Twitter from Rishi Kapoor to 'Duomo Milan'! Not only that, Rishi Kapoor has also fallen in love with the Milan Cathedral and tweeted that it's the best architecture he has ever seen, even better than the Taj Mahal in Agra.

Awwww! Little Baby Cries In Salman Khan's Arm! Prefers Rajinikanth Instead

He tweeted a picture of the Milan Cathedral and captioned it as, "As far as Human effort and Architecture is considered, sorry Taj Mahal, Agra, India, you pale in front of the Cathedral Duomo, Milan-my opinion!"

Good friends in Milan,Italy. Chandru,Sunita,Shashi,Kiru! Thank you for such a great time. Dolce Gabbana Martini bar! pic.twitter.com/KenbZ4wBv3  Duomo Milan (@chintskap) November 24, 2016

Well, the word 'Duomo' in Italian means Cathedral and it looks like Rishi Kapoor has been mesmerized by it's architecture and grandeur. Rishi also posted a picture chilling with his friends at a popular bar in Milan and captioned it, "Good friends in Milan, Italy. Chandru, Sunita, Shashi, Kiru! Thank you for such a great time. Dolce Gabbana Martini bar!"

Well, it looks like Rishi Kapoor and his friends are really having a good time in Milan and they're all giving us a much needed holiday vibe! After all who wouldn't love to visit Milan?

Explained! Why Akshay Kumar & Rajinikanth Starrer 2.0 Is Such An Expensive Film? 350 Crores!
Celebrated Hollywood actor Ryan Gosling said that it was not easy working for the musical La La Land as he had to learn jazz piano, keytar, songs, dance routines, along with his own lines.

However, the actor also said that he had a lot of fun working with actress Emma Stone for the movie.

"Trying to fit the keytar into my schedule of things I had to learn was pretty funny. But we were all being pushed to our limits to see what we were capable of. We worked for three months on, for instance, one number that happens at sunset where it starts as a scene." Gosling said.

He continued, "then it becomes a song, and then it's a dance and then it's a scene again and it all happens in one take. Isn't this a lovely day to be caught in the rain."

Ryan Gosling also shared on the funny aspect of how their characters are supposed to make a worst situation look best in the movie and how they ended up making it look even worse.

"That idea, just the clever nuance of the way Fred and Ginger's characters were trying to make the best of a bad situation, we tried to subvert that lyrically in our scene. We tried to make the worst out of a good situation," he said.
Deepika's Payment Issue

Deepika Singh, who rose to fame for the portrayal of Sandhya on the show is apparently upset with the makers for not clearing her dues. As per the reports, the actress is yet to receive an amount of 1.14 Crores as her payment.

Deepika's Payment To Be Reduced?

However, rumour has it that the production house had a dispute with the actress and they have agreed to settle down to only 67 Lakhs instead of 1.14 Crores, by claiming that she was reporting late to the shoot.

What The Report Says...

A leading entertainment portal reported that, "Shashi and Sumeet wanted the actors to finish off their outstanding amounts (the show went off air on September 10 this year) by accepting a lump-sum amount. Deepika is not ready for any such settlement. She was the lead on the show who sweated it out almost every day on the sets, why should she allow herself to be shortchanged?"

'Deepika Was Reporting Late To The Sets'

Sheetal Somani, Associate Producer of the show and Shashi Sumeet Productions, told, "Look, let me tell you exactly. We want to deduct Rs 16 Lakhs as far as Deepika is concerned because she was reporting late on our sets."

Deepika's Fitting Reply

Speaking about the same, the popular actress told, "Let me also tell you exactly. I was on time on the sets of Diya Aur Baati Hum and I have enough proof of that." Reports even suggest that the actress is currently negotiating with the makers regarding the fee and she will take legal action against them, if her demands are not fulfilled.

Deepika Approached For Kapil Sharma's Show

Due to her alleged tiff with the makers, there were reports that, Deepika had to let go off a lucrative offer. She was approached play the role of Rajesh Arora's (Kapil's new avatar) wife on The Kapil Sharma Show.

DABH Is A Hit In Thailand

Diya Aur Baati Hum is a big hit in Thailand. The show which is currently being aired in Thai language, recently completed 1000 episodes. As there is a big demand for the show, DVDs of the show have been launched.
HATFIELD, England, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

FOR EMEA MEDIA ONLY - NOT FOR SWISS/AUSTRIAN/US JOURNALISTS

Data from nine abstracts for Eisai's epilepsy treatments perampanel and rufinamide will be presented at the 70th Annual Meeting of the American Epilepsy Society (AES), 2-6 December, Houston, Texas, which provide further insight into their long-term use in people with epilepsy.

Perampanel is indicated in the European Union for patients aged 12 years and older, for adjunctive treatment of partial-onset seizures (POS), with or without secondarily generalised seizures, and for adjunctive treatment of primary generalised tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizures in patients with idiopathic generalised epilepsy (IGE).[1]

Rufinamide is indicated in the European Union for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients with epilepsy aged four years and older.[2]

"These data provide real world insights into the activity of perampanel and rufinamide in potential patients over a wide range of ages. Through new and continued research with perampanel and rufinamide, we aim to further educate the epilepsy community about these debilitating diseases," comments Lynn Kramer, MD, Chief Clinical Officer and Chief Medical Officer, Neurology Business Group, Eisai.

The development of its epilepsy portfolio underscores Eisai's human health care (hhc) mission, the company's commitment to innovative solutions in disease prevention, cure and care for the health and wellbeing of people worldwide. Eisai is committed to the therapeutic area of neurology and to address the unmet medical needs of people with neurological conditions and their families.

Perampanel abstracts at AES (presented in the George R Brown Convention Center, Hall A3, Level 3):

Abstract Number Abstract details Poster # 2.189 Evaluation of perampanel as monotherapy for focal Date: Sunday 4 seizures: experience from open-label extension studies December Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Kwan P, Mintzer S, Laurenza A, Patten A, Cartwright K B3 Poster # 2.190 Adjunctive perampanel (PER) in patients (pts) with partial Date: Sunday 4 seizures or primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures December (PGTCS): effect of age at diagnosis Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Kramer L, Patten A, Laurenza A, French JA B3 Poster # 2.193 Long-term efficacy and safety of adjunctive perampanel: Date: Sunday 4 pooled analyses of the open-label extension (OLE) studies December Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Rektor I, Krauss GL, Inoue Y, Kaneko S, Williams B, Patten B3 A, Bibbiani F, Laurenza A, Wechsler RT Poster # 2.222 A systematic review of real world perampanel treatment Date: Sunday 4 outcomes December Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Krauss G, Tsong W, Steinhoff BJ B3 Poster # 2.225 An indirect treatment comparison (ITC) of perampanel Date: Sunday 4 versus brivaracetam in patients with partial-onset December seizures with or without secondary generalisation Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Tsong W, Kockelmann E, Tremblay G, Mehlig H, and Patel V B3 Poster # 3.238 Adjunctive perampanel in patients with drug-resistant Date: Monday 5 partial seizures with and without concurrent vagal nerve December stimulation therapy in Phase III studies Time: 08:00-14:00 Location: Hall A3, B3 Laurenza A, Klein P, Williams B, Patten A Poster # 2.191 Phase II trials of adjunctive perampanel in Japanese Date: Sunday 4 patients with refractory partial-onset seizures, an December open-label, ascending-high-dose study (study 231) and Time: 10:00-16:00 long-term extension study (study 233) Location: Hall A3, B3 Hiramatsu H, Saeki K, Ohnishi A, Kaneko S, Inoue Y Poster # 3.232 Factors influencing the efficacy of perampanel: Date: Monday, multivariate analysis of a randomized, double-blind, December 5 placebo-controlled Phase III study Time: 08:00-14:00 Location: Hall A3, B3 Nishida T, Inoue Y, Kaneko S, Saeki K, Ishikawa K

Rufinamide abstracts at AES (in the George R Brown Convention Center, Hall A3, Level 3):

Abstract Number Abstract details Poster # 3.363 Safety and Cognitive Development Effects of Adjunctive Date: Monday 5 Rufinamide in Pediatric Subjects With Inadequately December Controlled Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS): Final Results Time: 08:00-14:00 From Study 303 Arzimanoglou A, Ferreira J, Satlin A, Olhaye O, Kumar D, Location: Hall A3, Dhadda S, Bibbiani F B3

Notes to Editors

About Fycompa(perampanel)

Perampanel is a first-in-class, non-competitive AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid) glutamate receptor antagonist on post-synaptic neurons.[1] AMPA receptors, widely present in almost all excitatory neurons, transmit signals stimulated by the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate within the brain, and are believed to play a role in central nervous system diseases characterised by excess neuroexcitatory signalling, including epilepsy.[3] Since launch, approximately 52,000 people living with epilepsy have been treated with perampanel.[4]

About Inovelon (rufinamide)

Rufinamide is a triazole derivative that is structurally unrelated to currently marketed antiepileptic drugs (AEDs).[5],[6] It is believed to regulate the activity of sodium channels in the brain which carry excessive electrical charges.[5] Rufinamide was approved for adjunctive therapy for seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in Europe (under the brand name Inovelon) in 2007 in patients four years of age and older. Rufinamide is available as film-coated tablets containing 100mg, 200mg and 400mg rufinamide and as a 40mg/ml oral suspension.[2]

About Epilepsy

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions in the world, affecting approximately six million people in Europe, and an estimated 50 million people worldwide.[7] Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain that affects people of all ages. It is characterised by abnormal discharges of neuronal activity which causes seizures. Seizures can vary in nature and severity, from brief lapses of attention or jerking of muscles, to severe and prolonged convulsions. Depending on the seizure type, seizures may be limited to one part of the body, or may involve the whole body. Seizures can also vary in frequency from less than one per year, to several per day. Epilepsy has many possible causes but often the cause is unknown.

About Eisai EMEA in Epilepsy

Eisai is committed to developing and delivering highly beneficial new treatments to help improve the lives of people with epilepsy. The development of AEDs is a major strategic area for Eisai inEurope, theMiddle East,Africa,Russiaand Oceania (EMEA).

In the EMEA region, Eisai currently has four marketed treatments including:

Fycompa  (perampanel) is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive treatment for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures in idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in patients aged 12 years or older

(perampanel) is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive treatment for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures in idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in patients aged 12 years or older Inovelon  (rufinamide) is indicated for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients 4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis)

(rufinamide) is indicated for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients 4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis) Zonegran  (zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma)

(zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma) Zebinix (eslicarbazepine acetate) as adjunctive treatment in adult patients with partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation (Zebinix is under license from Bial)

About Eisai Co., Ltd.

Eisai Co., Ltd. is a leading global research and development-based pharmaceutical company headquartered inJapan. We define our corporate mission as "giving first thought to patients and their families and to increasing the benefits health care provides," which we call ourhuman health care(hhc) philosophy. With over 10,000 employees working across our global network of R&D facilities, manufacturing sites and marketing subsidiaries, we strive to realise ourhhcphilosophy by delivering innovative products in multiple therapeutic areas with high unmet medical needs, including Oncology and Neurology.

As a global pharmaceutical company, our mission extends to patients around the world through our investment and participation in partnership-based initiatives to improve access to medicines in developing countries.

For more information about Eisai Co., Ltd., please visithttp://www.eisai.com

References

1. Fycompa (perampanel) Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) Available at: http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/EPAR_-_Product_Information/human/002434/WC500130815.pdf Accessed November 2016

2. Inovelon (rufinamide) Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC). Available at: http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/EPAR_-_Summary_for_the_public/human/000660/WC500032938.pdf Accessed November 2016

3. Lee K et al. AMPA Receptors as Therapeutic Targets for Neurological Disorders 2016;103:203-261

4. Eisai. Data on File 2016. DOF PER112

5. Wier H et al. Rufinamide for Pediatric Patients with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome. Pediatric Drugs 2011;13(2):97-106

6. Xu M et al. Pharmacokinetics and Tolerability of Rufinamide Following Single and Multiple Oral Doses and Effect of Food on Pharmacokinetics in Healthy Chinese Subjects. European Journal of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics 2016;41(5):541-548

7. Epilepsy in the WHO European Region: Fostering Epilepsy Care in Europe. Available at: http://www.ibe-epilepsy.org/downloads/EURO%20Report%20160510.pdf Accessed November 2016

December 2016

Fycompa-EU0185
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 11/28/16 -- Pasinex Resources Limited (CSE: PSE)(CSE: PSE.CN)(CNSX: PSE)(FRANKFURT: PNX) (the "Company" or "Pasinex") today announced their third quarter 2016 financial results with a strong profitability being seen in their 50% owned joint venture company Horzum AS. The following are highlights of the Horzum AS Joint Venture company sales of direct shipping material (DSO) mined from the Pinargozu mine in Turkey for both the 9-months and 3-month 2016 periods, expressed in Canadian dollars.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3 months ended Sept. 30 9 months ended Sept. 30 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Horzum AS ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gross sales $ 3,413,571 $ 6,931,254 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net income $ 1,187,340 (34.8% margin) $ 1,591,785 (23.1% margin) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pasinex Resources ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Equity gain $ 593,671 $ 795,893 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net income $ 354,915 $ 66,611 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Steve Williams, President and CEO of Pasinex Resources Limited commented "Our advances at Pinargozu has resulted in these great results because of several factors. The recent development of the new, larger adit has positively impacted our production capabilities since it opened in late August coupled with a sharp rise in the price of zinc from around US$0.65/lb early 2016 to around US$1.25/lb now. The joint venture company is now solidly profitable. We anticipate an even better performance over the next 12 months."

In the third quarter 2016, the Pinargozu mine produced and sold around 7,700 tonnes (wet weight) of direct shipping (DSO) material at an average rate of 86 tonnes per day, and given the average grade of 33.3% Zn this represented about 5.3 million pounds of zinc sold in the quarter. This production for Q3 compares with the first half 2016 production of about 9,300 tonnes (wet weight) of DSO product at an average production rate of 58 tonnes per day and given the average grade of 35.1% Zn amounted to about 6.6 million pounds of zinc. In total Pinargozu has now produced nearly 12 million pounds of zinc to the end of September.

The nine month all in operating costs for the Pinargozu operation were $5,339,469 which amounted to $313.23 / tonne mined in that period. However, for the three months ended September 2016, the all in costs were $1,226,231 which amounted to $158.27 / tonne mined in that period. This significant improvement in productivity reflected the use of bigger equipment and higher degree of mechanization in the mine, as a result of the new third adit which was installed in Q3. All in costs include all underground mine development and drilling costs associated with exploration at Pinargozu. Corporate management costs for both Pasinex Resources and Akmetal AS (the Turkish joint venture partner in Horzum AS) are, however, not included in this all in cost calculation.

Horzum AS has done about 2.5 km of underground development up to the end of September 2016. As well a total of 8,881 metres of drilling has been completed.

Pasinex Resources' balance sheet continues to strengthen as a result of the equity contribution from the Company's 50% investment in the Horzum AS joint venture company. Total assets have increased to $3,033,477 in September 30th 2016 versus $2,368,863 at end December 2015 and similarly shareholder equity has increased to $2,694,275 versus $1,986,962 at December 2015. For further information on the financials, please go to our website www.pasinex.com or www.sedar.com.

About Pasinex

Pasinex Resources Limited (CSE: PSE)(CSE: PSE.CN)(CNSX: PSE)(FRANKFURT: PNX) is a metals company which is a 50% owner of the high grade Pinargozu zinc mine which is in production and, under its DSO Program, is shipping directly to zinc smelter / refiners from its mine site in Turkey. The Company has a strong technical management team with many years of experience in mineral exploration and mining project development. The mission of Pasinex is to build a mid-tier zinc company based on building a large land package within a productive CRD district in Turkey.

The Pinargozu Mine is owned by, Horzum Arama Isletme AS (Horzum AS), which is a corporate joint venture between Pasinex and Turkish mining house, Akmetal Madencilik San ve Tic. AS (Akmetal AS). Akmetal AS is one of Turkey's largest family-owned conglomerates and it owns the nearby past-producing Horzum zinc mine.

Visit our web site at www.pasinex.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors, PASINEX RESOURCES LIMITED

Steve Williams

The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This news release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause the actual results of the Company to be materially different from the historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking. Although Pasinex Resources Limited 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 market prices, continued availability of capital and financing, exploration results, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

Contacts:

Pasinex Resources Limited

Steve Williams

President/CEO

416.861.9659

info@pasinex.com

www.pasinex.com



CHF Investor Relations

Cathy Hume

416.868.1079 ext. 231

cathy@chfir.com




CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The euro strengthened against most major currencies in the Asian session on Monday. The euro rose to nearly a 2-week high of 1.0685 against the U.S. dollar, nearly a 3-week high of 1.0770 against the Swiss franc and nearly a 2-week high of 1.4394 against the Canadian dollar, from Friday's closing quotes of 1.0591, 1.0739 and 1.4308, respectively. The euro advanced to 0.8541 against the pound, from Friday's closing value of 0.8482. Against the Australian and the New Zealand dollars, the euro climbed to 4-day high of 1.4309 and 1.5095 from last week's closing quotes of 1.4219 and 1.5022, respectively If the euro extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around 1.10 against the greenback, 1.09 against the franc, 1.48 against the loonie, 0.90 against the pound, 1.47 against the aussie and 1.56 against the kiwi. 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.
DUBLIN, Nov 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Global Automotive eCall Market 2016-2020" report to their offering.

The report forecasts the global automotive eCall market to grow at a CAGR of 29.77% during the period 2016-2020.

The report 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.

The electronic components in cars have increased exponentially in recent years. This is due to the increased installation of driver assistance and safety features in automobiles. With the advent of connected car technology, the complexity has further increased in automobiles. Thus, electronics hardware and software are the most crucial parts in today's automobile.

According to the report, the developing countries such as India and China have experienced a rise in ownership of passenger cars that come installed with telematics systems owing to changing customer preferences and increased importance of safety features. Increase in the number of road accidents, vehicle thefts, and safety and security issues while roaming are propelling the market growth for automotive telematics.

Further, the report states that return on investment for standalone eCall systems is low for OEMs which is hindering the market growth.The European member states have taken many initiatives to lay the foundation for installation of eCall systems. One such initiative is the ban on telephone roaming charges across member states across Europe in 2014 to establish a favorable ecosystem for interoperability of eCall systems. Despite these initiatives, OEMs are still skeptical about the installation of eCall systems as the returns for such systems are low. The revenues generated from eCall systems depend on rare events like accidents.

Key vendors:

Bosch

Continental

DELPHI

Telit

u-blox

Key Topics Covered:

Part 01: Executive summary

Part 02: Scope of the report

Part 03: Market research methodology

Part 04: Introduction

Part 05: Market landscape

Part 06: Market segmentation by geography

Part 07: Market segmentation by installation

Part 08: Market drivers

Part 09: Market challenges

Part 10: Market trends

Part 11: Vendor landscape

Part 12: Key vendor analysis

Part 13: Appendix

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/mghd8x/global_automotive

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
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 17, 2017 / Ashanti Gold Corp. (TSXV: AGZ) ("Ashanti" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has begun mobilization to drill on the Kossanto East project in Mali (the "Project").

The Project is a 66.41 km2 concession in the prolific Kenieba Inlier, the northwestern-most exposure of Birimian rocks in West Africa. The Project has six known pods of mineralization. Two have been partially explored by past operator, Alecto Minerals PLC. Ashanti's plan is to extend out and add data points to the existing geological model and to drill untested mineralization pods. The Kenieba Inlier is a major geological province for gold mineralization. Over the last twenty five years more than 40M ounces of gold has been discovered in proximity to key structures resulting in the construction of multiple mines, including the world class Loulo, Sadiola, Yatela, Gounkoto, Segala and Tabakoto (see Figure 1).

Currently, the Company is in the process of building a camp on site for its crew (see Pictures 1 - 3), and the anticipated work will include both diamond and reverse circulation drilling for end-May going into June.

Picture 1

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://www.accesswire.com/uploads/ASH51717A.jpg

Picture 2

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://www.accesswire.com/uploads/ASH51717B.jpg

Picture 3

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://www.accesswire.com/uploads/ASH51717C.jpg

Figure 1. Geologic map of the Kenieba Inlier, the most northwest extent of Birimian rocks in West Africa. The Kossanto East Project is situated at the convergence of the Main Transcurrent Shear Zone and the Senegal-Mali Shear zone offering a rich structural environment for the formation of gold deposits. (map adapted from Lawrence, et al., 2013; Economic Geology v.108,pp. 199-227. Gold ounces from Annual Reports and various on-line sources.)

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://www.accesswire.com/uploads/ASH51717D.jpg

Ashanti has the right to earn 65% of Alecto's interest (after including the Mali State carried interest of 10%, Ashanti ownership of the property upon completion of the earn-in agreement will be 58.5%) in the Project by completing a Preliminary Feasibility Study ("PFS") within 36 months with the right to extend the Option Period to complete PFS by an additional 12 months for a cash payment of US$280,000.

ABOUT ASHANTI GOLD

Ashanti is a gold-focused, exploration and development company with projects in the northern Ashanti Belt of Ghana and the Kenieba Belt of Mali. The Company targets premier projects where it has a competitive advantage due to past work experience of the team and specific project know-how.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors of

ASHANTI GOLD CORP.

"Tim McCutcheon"

Tim McCutcheon

CEO

For further information, please contact:

Ashanti Gold Corp.

2300 - 1177 West Hastings Street

Vancouver BC, V6E 2K3

Phone: 604-638-3847

Qualified Person and Quality Control/Quality Assurance

Dr. Paul Klipfel, CPG (AIPG certification #10821), Ashanti's COO and Chief Geologist is a Qualified Person as defined by Canadian NI 43-101 and has supervised the preparation of the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release. Dr. Klipfel is responsible for all aspects of the work including the Quality Control/Quality Assurance programs. Dr. Klipfel is not an Independent Person, as he is a shareholder of Ashanti.

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

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 press release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements regarding the anticipated content, commencement, timing and cost of exploration programs, anticipated exploration program results, the discovery and delineation of mineral deposits/resources/reserves, and the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of the Company, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. 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, but not limited to, the state of the financial markets for the Company's equity securities, the state of the commodity markets generally, variations in the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located, variations in the market price of any mineral products the Company may produce or plan to produce, the inability of the Company to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required, including TSXV acceptance, for its planned activities, the inability of the Company to produce minerals from its properties successfully or profitably, to continue its projected growth, to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies, and other risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's latest interim Management Discussion and Analysis and filed with certain securities commissions in Canada. All of the Company's Canadian public disclosure filings may be accessed via www.sedar.com and readers are urged to review these materials, including the technical reports filed with respect to the Company's mineral properties.

SOURCE: Ashanti Gold Corp.


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Extending a recent upward trend, the price of gold moved notably higher during trading on Thursday. Gold for June delivery climbed $10.40 to reach a new five-month closing high of $1,288.50 an ounce.



The increase by the price of gold came as the value of the U.S. dollar moved lower on comments by President Donald Trump, who told the Wall Street Journal he thinks the U.S. dollar 'is getting too strong.'



Trump also told the Journal he likes a low interest rate policy and noted he has not decided whether to reappoint Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.



On the U.S. economic front, a report released by the Labor Department showed a modest decrease in producer prices in the month of March.



The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand edged down by 0.1 percent in March after rising by 0.3 percent in February. Economists had expected prices to come in flat.



The report also said core producer prices, which exclude food and energy prices, came in unchanged in March following a 0.3 percent increase in February. Core prices had been expected to rise by 0.2 percent.



The Labor Department also released a report showing an unexpected drop in first-time claims for unemployment benefits in the week ended April 8th.



The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 234,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's revised level of 235,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 245,000.



Meanwhile, the University of Michigan released a report showing an unexpected improvement in consumer sentiment in the month of April.



The report said the consumer sentiment index rose to 98.0 in April from 96.9 in March, while economists had expected the index to edge down to 96.6.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de
MONTREAL, QC--(Marketwired - November 28, 2016) - Siyata Mobile Inc. (the "Company" or "Siyata") (TSX VENTURE: SIM) (OTC PINK: SIMFF) will be hosting a conference call to discuss 2016 Q3 financial results to be released November 30 th , 2016.

The Company will hold the conference call on Wednesday, November 30, 2016, at 9:00 AM Eastern Time (6:00AM PST) to discuss the Q3 results, along with a Q&A session with Siyata Mobile CEO, Marc Seelenfreund.

Details of the conference call:

Title: Siyata Mobile 2016 Q3 Financial

Date: Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Time: 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time

North America dial-in number: 1-877-277-0232

International dial-in number: 1-647-788-4965

A playback of the conference call will available in mp3 format by contacting investor relations below.

About Siyata

Siyata Mobile Inc. is a leading global developer and provider of innovative cellular communication systems under the Uniden Cellular brand. Siyata's "Connected-Vehicle" devices and accessories are specifically designed for professional fleets including trucks, vans, buses, emergency service vehicles, government cars and more. Siyata aims to provide greater mobile connectivity for professional drivers and to facilitate replacement of the aging in-vehicle, multi-device status quo with a single device that incorporates voice, push-to-talk, data, and fleet management solutions.

Siyata also markets and sells Uniden  cellular signal boosters and accessories as well as rugged mobile phones for both the consumer and enterprise markets. Siyata's customers include cellular operators, commercial vehicle technology distributors, and fleets of all sizes in Canada, the US, Europe, Australia, and the Middle East.

Visit www.siyatamobile.com and www.unidencellular.com to learn more.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors of:

SIYATA MOBILE INC.

Marc Seelenfreund

CEO and Director

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking. 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 market prices, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under the applicable laws.

Investor Relations:

Arlen Hansen

Kin Communications

1-866-684-6730

SIM@kincommunications.com



Paradox Public Relations

Carl Desjardins

514-341-0408 or Toll Free: 1-866-460-0408

info@paradox-pr.ca
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.
DUBLIN, Nov 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Global Cluster Munitions Market 2016-2020" report to their offering.

The global cluster munitions market to grow at a CAGR of 2.08% during the period 2016-2020.

The report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the global cluster munitions market for 2016-2020. To calculate the market size, the analyst considers the revenue generated from the sales of cluster munitions across several industries.

One of the latest trends gaining traction in the market is the growing prominence of Alternative Warhead Program (AWP). Recently, Orbital ATK has signed a contract with the US Army for the development and provision of Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) Alternative Warhead to replace the regulated cluster bombs. These alternative warheads are an advanced version of cluster munitions which aims at the complete elimination of unexploded ordnances. These advanced guided weapons have no long-term threat as cluster munitions and do not restrict the movement of soldiers.

According to the report, the cost-effectiveness and easy deployment of cluster munitions over ICBMs and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) are the prime reasons why many countries still opt for the development of cluster munitions. Moreover, specific launching systems are required for launching ICBMs or the SLBMs; cluster munitions, on the contrary, can be launched from a fighter aircraft. In addition, the effect would be over a larger area than other bombs.

Further, the report states that a cluster munition threats are not limited to soldiers or battlefields but also affect civilians, residential places, and medical institutions. These bombs pose an immediate threat to the lives of civilians during conflicts by randomly scattering submunitions over a wide area. They continue to pose threats after conflicts, as the remnants or submunitions that do not detonate upon impact can become a greater hazard in the future. As of 2016, more than 98% of the cluster bomb victims are civilians, of which over 40% were children.

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?

Key vendors

Textron Systems

IMI Systems

L-3 Fuzing and Ordnance Systems

Lockheed Martin

NORINCO

Orbital ATK

Other prominent vendors

Aeroteh

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

Key Topics Covered:

Part 01: Executive summary

Part 02: Scope of the report

Part 03: Market research methodology

Part 04: Introduction

Part 05: Market landscape

Part 06: Market segmentation by type

Part 07: Geographic segmentation

Part 08: Market drivers

Part 09: Impact of drivers

Part 10: Market challenges

Part 11: Impact of drivers and challenges

Part 12: Market trends

Part 13: Competitor landscape

Part 14: Key vendor analysis

Part 15: Appendix

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/vwkbjq/global_cluster

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
Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Global Bakery Market 2016-2020" report to their offering.

The analysts forecast the global bakery market to grow at a CAGR of 6.55% during the period 2016-2020.

Global Bakery 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.

The bakery industry has expanded from simple baked goods to a multitude of products across various categories, including healthy, organic offerings. Healthy eating trends, in light of growing concerns about obesity and related health issues, are expected to drive the bakery market globally. Manufacturers are now incorporating healthy ingredients, such as whole grains, in their products. They are also labeling the products, clearly listing all ingredients, to enable consumers to make informed choices.

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?

Key vendors

Grupo Bimbo

Finsbury Food Group

Flowers Foods

Hostess Brands

McKee Foods

Yamazaki Baking

Other prominent vendors

Abbott Vascular

Abiomed

AtriCure

Biosensors International

Biotronik

BioVentrix

C. R. Bard

Key Topics Covered:

Part 01: Executive summary

Part 02: Scope of the report

Part 03: Market research methodology

Part 04: Introduction

Part 05: Market landscape

Part 06: Market segmentation by product

Part 07: Geographical segmentation

Part 08: Key leading countries

Part 09: Market segmentation by distribution channel

Part 10: Market drivers

Part 11: Impact of drivers

Part 12: Market challenges

Part 13: Impact of drivers and challenges

Part 14: Market trends

Part 15: Vendor landscape

Part 16: Appendix

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/v3f8mm/global_bakery.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005893/en/

Contacts:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

press@researchandmarkets.com

For EST 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 Topics: Baked Goods
HYALO GYN Provides Long-Lasting Relief to Women Suffering from Vaginal Dryness

Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A., a world leader in the research, development and manufacturing of hyaluronic acid (HA)-based products, and its wholly owned subsidiary, FIDIA PHARMA USA INC., introduces newly redesigned packaging for the vaginal hydrating gel, HYALO GYN. While keeping its current formulation, HYALO GYN's new product packaging gives the innovative hydrating gel a dynamic and fresh, feminine look to help make it more appealing to those who may be suffering from vaginal dryness.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005900/en/

HYALO GYN introduces new packaging (Photo: Business Wire)

"Many women often suffer silently from the bothersome symptoms associated with vaginal dryness, but they do not have to. HYALO GYN, with its unique hyaluronic acid derivative component Hydeal-D was made for women to provide long-lasting hydration," said Aldo Donati, president, FIDIA PHARMA USA INC. "Women trust that HYALO GYN can provide hydration in a non-hormonal vaginal hydrating gel without a messy buildup or unpleasant order. Keeping its same formulation, HYALO GYN now features new packaging that exudes a fresher, more feminine look that we believe is more attractive and better aligns with the comfort, hydration and relief that HYALO GYN provides to women."

In a clinical trial among women who used HYALO GYN for 30 days, nearly 80 percent reported feeling no messy sensation, and 100 percent of women reported reduction in unpleasant vaginal odor.1 It acts as a moisturizer and lubricant because of the strong hydrating properties of its hyaluronic acid derivative component, Hydeal-D. Its unique properties allow it to adhere to the vaginal mucosa, enhancing the residence time, thus hydrating and protecting the tissue.

HYALO GYNis a hormone-free, clear, odorless gel that supplements the body's natural hydrating function and was developed specifically for women whose vaginal lining is not sufficiently hydrated.

The carbomer and propylene glycol, combined with the hyaluronic acid derivative, enable HYALO GYN to achieve its thick, viscous gel form, and the mucoadhesive properties of the product allow it to adhere to the vaginal mucosa, enhancing the residence time, thus hydrating and protecting this tissue.2

HYALO GYN can be ordered online in the U.S. For product information or to order, please call 1-855-844-0664 or visit www.hyalogyn.com.

About FIDIA PHARMA USA INC.

FIDIA PHARMA USA INC. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Italian pharmaceutical manufacturer Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A., an established leader in the hyaluronic acid market segment.

FIDIA PHARMA USA INC. is focused on expanding Fidia's position in the U.S. and Canadian market, while upholding the company's mission to provide consumers with innovative products that offer quality, safety and performance. FIDIA PHARMA USA INC. is headquartered in Parsippany, N.J. For more information, please visit www.fidiapharma.us.

About Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A.

Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A. is an Italian pharmaceutical company founded in 1946. It is a leader in research and marketing hyaluronic acid-based products, with several applications in the biomedical field, such as rheumatology, orthopaedics, surgery, wound care, tissue repair and dermo-aesthetics. Fidia Farmaceutici is part of the P&R Holding group. The company is located in Italy, with R&D facilities in Abano Terme (Padua) and Noto (Sicily). Fidia has more than 700 employees, and its revenue exceeds 250 million euros. Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A.'s products are marketed in more than 100 countries, through wholly owned subsidiaries and a comprehensive network of international partnerships and distributors. Thanks to its investment in research, it has created a legacy of products with more than 600 patents to its name. For more information, please visit www.fidiapharma.com.

Indication

HYALO GYN is a personal lubricant, for penile and/or vaginal application, intended to moisturize and lubricate, to enhance the ease and comfort of intimate sexual activity and supplement the body's natural lubrication.

This product is compatible with condoms: lubricated/non-lubricated latex, lubricated polyurethane, lubricated natural skin.

1 Tempera, G. Evaluation of the tolerability and efficacy of Hyalgel Vaginal Gel for the treatment of vaginal dryness and irritation, 1998, data on file at Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A.

2 Data on file at Fidia Farmaceutici S.p.A.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005900/en/

Contacts:

FIDIA PHARMA USA INC.

1-973-507-5120

ckong@fidiapharma.us
LOS ANGELES, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 11/28/16 -- Lieberman Software Corporation's Vice President of Product Strategy, Jonathan Sander, will present How to Stop Security Threats from Following You to the Cloud at the Gartner Identity and Access Management Summit in Las Vegas. The company will also exhibit its recently updated Privileged Identity Management product, Enterprise Random Password Manager (ERPM), in booth 101 at the event.

How to Stop Security Threats from Following You to the Cloud

Date: Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Time: 10:45 AM PT

Location: Octavius 11, Caesars Palace, Las Vegas

Description: As you migrate to the cloud, are you worried about the growing number of unmanaged administrator accounts, secrets and SSH keys? You should be. If you are not regularly changing service account passwords and managing privileged credentials on-premises, imagine how bad it will get as you expand to the cloud. Learn how you can automatically change privileged credentials throughout your cloud environment to secure access to critical systems with sensitive data.

"The cloud is creating new security challenges as it transforms the cost and shape of IT," Sander said. "Many people don't realize how many new layers of accounts are introduced when they start migrating workloads to the cloud. There are bits of privilege and elevated risk tied to many pieces of the way the cloud works, and organizations ignore these at their peril."

Lieberman Software's cyber security technology automatically discovers privileged accounts in cloud and hybrid environments, and audits access to those accounts. By continuously rotating privileged credentials, intruders who penetrate the network perimeter are blocked from leveraging stolen credentials to move unrestricted throughout the environment.

For more information, visit www.liebsoft.com/erpm.

About Lieberman Software Corporation

www.liebsoft.com.

Product and company names herein may be trademarks of their registered owners.

Media Contact

Dan Chmielewski

Madison Alexander PR

1-714-832-8716

1-949-231-2965

Email Contact




TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 11/28/16 -- Plateau Uranium Inc. ("Plateau Uranium" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: PLU)(FRANKFURT: QG1) is pleased to announce commencement of the initial drill program at the high-grade Pinocho uranium occurrence, an extension of the Kihitian Complex uranium deposits on the Company's Macusani Plateau uranium project in southeastern Peru. Pinocho represents one of the most prospective of several previously untested higher grade, near-surface uranium targets on the Company's extensive 910 km2 land package. Historical underground adits were established previously at Pinocho by IPEN ("Institute of Peruvian Nuclear Energy"). Results of channel sampling completed by the Company from these adits in 2009 suggests high grades are to be expected (see Company news release of December 14, 2009 through this link and also available at www.plateauuranium.com and www.sedar.com). Pinocho remains one of the highest priority targets on the project, but has not been followed up to date. Prospecting, sampling and mapping work is also being conducted around the Corachapi deposit area at Chimboya to generate and prioritize future drill targets.

Highlights

-- Pinocho adits were developed along high grade sub-horizontal planar uranium mineralization with thicknesses exceeding 2 metres, surrounded by lower grade disseminated mineralization of unknown thickness, open in all directions. -- 96 channel samples collected from Pinocho adits in 2009 by the Company intersected uranium grades up to 4.37% U (5.15% U3O8) averaging 3836 ppm U (4524ppm U3O8) with 15 ppm U low background -- 12 samples contained greater than 1% U (1.18% U3O8), and 50 samples contained greater than 500ppm U (590 ppm U3O8) -- Initial diamond drill program will consist of 5-8 drill holes totaling 800-1000m -- Community agreement and government approvals in place for exploration drill program -- Road access completed -- Company-owned diamond drill rigs mobilized and drilling has commenced -- Additional drilling planned, but will depend on results of this initial program -- Chimboya area exploration ground-work and target generation on-going

Debt Settlement

The Company also announces that, subject to regulatory approval, it is proposing to issue 2,500,000 common shares to GBM Minerals Engineering Consultants Limited ("GBM") at a deemed price of $0.27 per share to settle in part fees that have been incurred for project engineering services in respect of the Company's Macusani Plateau uranium and lithium project in southeastern Peru. An additional cash payment of US$200,000 will be made to GBM in connection with the debt settlement. All shares issued under the debt settlement transaction will be subject to a 4-month hold period with three-quarters of the shares being subject to additional voluntary hold periods of between 3 and 9 months.

Ted O'Connor, CEO of Plateau Uranium commented: "We are extremely happy to start the initial drill testing of Pinocho - a truly compelling target with the prospect of intersecting uranium mineralization with grades that are an order of magnitude higher than the average grade of our existing deposits. We are excited to be returning to active exploration work on the Macusani Plateau projects with the goal of extending the known Kihitian Complex resources to the southeast at Pinocho and generating quality drill targets for future testing at Chimboya.

The debt settlement arrangement with GBM has removed a significant historical legacy issue on the Company's balance sheet by negotiating a mutually beneficial solution to finally deal with payment of pre-2013 engineering study work. Both parties have been accommodating and patient in dealing with this issue."

Pinocho Details

Pinocho is located 2 km southeast of the Kihitian deposit, and is believed to be a possible extension of the same mineralization comprising the Kihitian Complex deposits (see Figure 1 - Location Map of Pinocho and Chimboya.pdf). Approximately 194 m (length) of adit development was established at Pinocho by IPEN in the early 1980's. Adit development followed a high grade core of sub-horizontal uranium mineralization within a much thicker disseminated uranium envelope. The exposed mineralization within the adits is open in all directions.

The Pinocho adits were sampled by Company geologists in 2009 (see Company news release of December 14, 2009, through this link and also posted on the Company's website and on SEDAR). Adit sampling was completed at 3 metre line spacing, sampling the left wall from the floor to the back (ceiling) throughout the entire length of the workings using 10-15 cm channels. The adits range in height from 1.10 to 1.85 meters. The 2-3 kg samples were sent to CIMM labs in Juliaca for sample preparation with representative 250 g sub-samples sent to CIMM Labs in Lima for ICP-OES & ICP-MS multi-element analyses. CIMM Labs is a Certified and Accredited Laboratory of International Standards.

A total of 96 channel samples were collected from the Pinocho adits with results ranging between a maximum of 4.37% U (5.15% U3O8) and a minimum of 15 ppm U (background) averaging 3836 ppm U (4524ppm U3O8). Lithium was not analyzed for in the ICP multi-element analytical package used in 2009, however, lithium will be included in all analytical results for the present drill campaign.

Sampling procedures, sample handling and lab preparation and analyses followed Company standard QA/QC procedures, including reference material, duplicate samples and blank material insertion.

Pinocho Drill Program

The planned 800-1000 m diamond drilling at Pinocho has started with an initial 5-8 drill holes planned. Company-owned diamond drill rigs have been mobilized to site and have started working, based out of the Company camp/offices in the Community of Isivilla. This initial program at Pinocho should be completed prior to the end of 2016, with any follow-up work occurring in 2017 pending successful results. Timing of follow up work will also be weather dependent. Drill results will be released as analytical data and information becomes available.

Chimboya Field Work

A program of radiometric scintillometer prospecting, sampling and mapping is being conducted in the Chimboya area in the north central region of the Macusani project. The Chimboya area surrounds the Company's Corachapi uranium deposit to the south, west and north. Several surface uranium anomalies have been identified on the ground and more detailed work continues to identify and prioritize targets for future drill testing.

Qualified Persons

Mr. Ted O'Connor, P.Geo., CEO and a Director of Plateau Uranium and a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release.

About Plateau Uranium

Plateau Uranium Inc. is a Canadian uranium exploration and development company focused on its properties on the Macusani Plateau in southeastern Peru. The Company controls all reported uranium resources known in Peru, significant and growing lithium resources and mineral concessions covering over 91,000 hectares (910 km2) situated near significant infrastructure. Plateau Uranium is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol 'PLU' and the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol 'QG1'. The Company has 51,750,974 shares issued and outstanding.

Forward Looking Information

This news release includes certain forward-looking statements concerning possible expected results of exploration and future exploration activities. Forward-looking statements are frequently identified by such words as "may", "will", "plan", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend" and similar words referring to future events and results. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions and expectations of management. All forward-looking information is inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; the possibility that any future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with our expectations; mining and development risks, including risks related to accidents, equipment breakdowns, labour disputes (including work stoppages and strikes) or other unanticipated difficulties with or interruptions in exploration and development; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities; risks related to commodity price and foreign exchange rate fluctuations; risks related to foreign operations; the cyclical nature of the industry in which we operate; risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms or delays in obtaining governmental approvals; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the certainty of title to our properties; risks related to the uncertain global economic environment; and other risks and uncertainties related to our prospects, properties and business strategy, as described in more detail in Plateau Uranium's recent securities filings available at www.sedar.com. Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and Plateau Uranium cautions against placing undue reliance thereon. Neither Plateau Uranium nor its management assume any obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements.

For more information please visit www.plateauuranium.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view Figure 1 - Location Map of Pinocho and Chimboya - visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/Figure_1_Location_Map_Pinocho_Chimboya.pdf

Contacts:

Plateau Uranium Inc.

Ted O'Connor

CEO

+1-416-628-9600

ted@plateauuranium.com



Website: www.plateauuranium.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/plateauuranium/

Twitter: www.twitter.com/plateauuranium/




TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 11/28/16 -- Partners Value Investments Inc. (TSX VENTURE: PVF) (the "Company") announced today its financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2016.

Net income for the quarter was $25 million ($0.34 per common share) compared to a net loss of $35 million ($0.47 per common share) in the prior year quarter. The increase in net income was primarily due to higher level of returns from our investment activity during the quarter.

The Company's net book value increased by $4.33 per share to $47.29 per share primarily due to the increase in the market value our Brookfield investment. The market price of Brookfield's Class A common shares increased 7% during the quarter to $46.13.

Consolidated Statements of Operations

For the periods ended September 30 (Thousands) Three months Nine months ----------------------------------------------- 2016 2015 2016 2015 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Investment income Dividends $ 21,279 $ 18,083 $ 61,348 $ 50,523 Other investment income 802 298 5,840 605 ----------------------------------------------- 22,081 18,381 67,188 51,128 Expenses Operating expenses (4,787) (859) (12,852) (2,403) Financing costs (688) (447) (1,221) (693) Retractable preferred share dividends (8,839) (6,973) (25,088) (20,926) ----------------------------------------------- 7,767 10,102 28,027 27,106 Other items Investment valuation gains (losses) 30,882 (41,291) 65,907 (44,838) Amortization of deferred financing costs (627) (458) (1,802) (1,372) Change in value of fund unit liability (59) 2,838 (1,187) 2,979 Income taxes (3,607) 6,606 (22,012) 5,619 Foreign currency (losses) gains (9,420) (12,736) 23,833 (10,331) ----------------------------------------------- Net income (loss) $ 24,936 $ (34,939) $ 92,766 $ (20,837) ----------------------------------------------- -----------------------------------------------

Financial Profile and Net Book Value

The Company's principal investment is its interest in 86 million Class A Limited Voting Shares ("Brookfield shares") of Brookfield Asset Management Inc. ("Brookfield"), representing a 9% fully-diluted interest as at September 30, 2016.

The information in the following table shows the changes in net book value:

For the periods ended September 30 (Thousands, except per share amounts) Three months ended Nine months ended ---------------------------------------------------- Total Per Share Total Per Share ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Net book value, $ beginning of period(1) 3,160,436 $ 42.96 $ 3,127,980 $ 42.52 Net income(2) 24,936 0.34 92,766 1.26 Other comprehensive income(2) 292,224 3.97 256,850 3.49 Capital reorganization - 0.02 - 0.02 ---------------------------------------------------- Net book value, end of $ period(1,3) 3,477,596 $ 47.29 $ 3,477,596 $ 47.29 ---------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------- 1. Net book value per common share is non-IFRS measure. 2. The weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the nine months ended September, 2016 was 73,545,875 (2015 - 73,546,899). 3. As at September 30, 2016, there were 73,543,831 (December 31, 2015 - 73,546,897) voting and non-voting common shares of the Company issued and outstanding on a fully diluted basis.

The information in the following table has been extracted from the Company's Statement of Financial Position:

Statement of Financial Position

As at September 30, December 31, (Thousands, except per share amounts) 2016 2015 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Assets Cash and cash equivalents $ 37, 368 $ 127,467 Investments Brookfield Asset Management Inc.(1) 3,959,754 3,746,873 Other securities 795,844 619,363 Accounts receivable and other assets 13,017 8,169 ------------------------------ $ 4,805,983 $ 4,501,872 ------------------------------ ------------------------------ Liabilities and shareholders' equity Accounts payable and other liabilities $ 156,552 $ 243,527 Preferred shares(2) 699,858 706,258 Deferred taxes(3) 471,977 424,107 ------------------------------ 1,328,387 1,373,892 Shareholders' equity Common equity 3,477,596 3,127,980 ------------------------------ $ 4,805,983 $ 4,501,872 ------------------------------ Net book value per common share(4 ,5) $ 47.29 $ 42.52 ------------------------------ ------------------------------ 1. The investment in Brookfield Asset Management Inc. consists of 86 million Brookfield shares with a quoted market value of $46.13 per share as at September 30, 2016 (December 31, 2015 - $43.65). 2. Represents $711 million of retractable preferred shares less $11 million of unamortized issue costs as at September 30, 2016 (December 31, 2015 - $717 million less $11 million). 3. The deferred tax liability represents the potential future income tax liability of the Company recorded for accounting purposes based on the difference between the carrying values of the Company's assets and liabilities and their respective tax values, as well as giving effect to estimated capital and non- capital losses. 4. As at September 30, 2016, there were 73,543,831 (December 31, 2015 - 73,546,897) voting and non-voting common shares of the Company issued and outstanding on a fully diluted basis. 5. Net book value per common share is a non-IFRS measure.

Note: This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian provincial securities laws and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities regulations. The words "potential" and "estimated" and other expressions which are predictions of or indicate future events, trends or prospects and which do not relate to historical matters, identify forward-looking information. Forward-looking information in this news release includes statements with regard to the Company's potential future income taxes.

Although the Company believes that its anticipated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements and information are based upon reasonable assumptions and expectations, the reader should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and information because they involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond its control, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from anticipated future results, performance or achievement expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and information.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated or implied by forward-looking statements and information include, but are not limited to: the financial performance of Brookfield Asset Management Inc., the impact or unanticipated impact of general economic, political and market factors; the behavior of financial markets, including fluctuations in interest and foreign exchanges rates; global equity and capital markets and the availability of equity and debt financing and refinancing within these markets; strategic actions including dispositions; changes in accounting policies and methods used to report financial condition (including uncertainties associated with critical accounting assumptions and estimates); the effect of applying future accounting changes; business competition; operational and reputational risks; technological change; changes in government regulation and legislation; changes in tax laws, catastrophic events, such as earthquakes and hurricanes; the possible impact of international conflicts and other developments including terrorist acts; and other risks and factors detailed from time to time in the Company's documents filed with the securities regulators in Canada.

The Company cautions that the foregoing list of important factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. When relying on the Company's forward-looking statements and information, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements and information, whether written or oral, that may be as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Contacts:

Investor Relations

ir@pvii.ca

647-503-6516




Newsenselab GmbH, the Berlin, Germany-based startup behind M-sense, a certified medical app to combat migraines and headaches, raised a six-figure funding round.

Backers included High-Tech Grunderfonds, Think.Health Ventures, Flyinghealth and an additional private business angel.

The company intends to use the funds to further expand M-sense and make it available to a broader group of users.

Led by Markus Dahlem, Chief Medical Officer and Managing Director, Newsenselab provides M-sense, a certified medical app that analyzes the potential trigger factors of migraines and headaches by leveraging Big Data. In the future, it will also offer a personalized prevention and therapy program that is recommended by clinical partners. Sufferers can document their migraine attacks and analyze their triggers.

M-sense is available in the Google Play Store. An iOS version for iPhones is planned for the first quarter of 2017.

FinSMEs

28/11/2016
WI Harper Group, a cross-border early stage venture capital firm, has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Luxin Venture Capital Group and Shandong Leader Equity Investment Fund to launch a cross-border fund.

The vehicle will focus on investing in promising startups in the US and Greater China.

Areas of investment include robotics, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, augmented reality, autonomous vehicles, big data, cloud computing, healthcare IT, medical devices and biotech.

Shandong Province and Luxin Group Partner With Pioneering Venture Capital Firm, WI Harper Group, to Drive Disruptive Technology Investments Between US and Greater China

BEIJING, SAN FRANCISCO and TAIPEI, Taiwan, Nov. 28, 2016 /WI Harper Group, a leading cross-border early stage venture capital firm, has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Luxin Venture Capital Group and Shandong Leader Equity Investment Fund. Mr. Peter Liu, Chairman of WI Harper Group, Mr. Ji Binchang, Chairman of Luxin Group, and Mr. Shen Xi-Liang, Chairman of Shandong Leader Fund, Mr. Sean Peng, Managing Director at WI Harper, Mr. Biao Wang, Chairman and General Manager of Luxin, Mr. Yue Jiang, General Manager of Shandong Leader Fund, attended the signing ceremony which was hosted in Shandong.

Under this strategic initiative, the three parties have agreed to launch a cross-border fund, with an emphasis on investing in promising startups in the US and Greater China. Additionally, through investing in cutting-edge startups in the areas of robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), autonomous vehicles, big data, cloud computing, healthcare IT, medical devices and biotech, they will support Chinas national policy of growing and further improving its technology infrastructure.

Chairman Peter Liu commented, In the last 20 years, WI Harper Group has devoted itself to driving cross-border economic growth through investing in innovative start-ups. We demonstrated this in China by identifying and licensing core telecommunication technology from the US, establishing a joint venture with a Chinese SOE, which eventually paved the way to the launch of Chinas 3G standard. I am confident that, with this joint venture in place, we will continue bringing disruptive technologies to help foster Chinas next wave of growth.

Exploring global opportunities has been an area of interest for Luxin, added Chairman Binchang Ji. It is a pleasure to work with a world-class investment group that can bring our vision to fruition. WI Harper Group is one of the first Venture Capital funds to have an unique cross-border angle. Additionally, our visions are aligned in helping China develop its economy by bringing the best talent and innovation into China.

Chairman Xiliang Shen closed by saying, We are thrilled to be working with WI Harper and Luxin and look forward to leveraging our strengths to build a global brand.
US-based taxi hailing app company Uber is gearing up for a mega expansion plan in India, as it considers the country to be its second most important market outside the US. Given its exit from China, a much bigger market in terms of size, early this year, India has emerged as a key market for Uber to make up for its losses in the dragon country.

Based on the feedback from the Indian riders, Uber will introduce additional features like calendar integration, people search and advance booking to its app in the coming months, a report in The Indian Express said.

Prabhjeet Singh, Uber's Head  Strategy and Planning, told the newspaper that the new app loads 50 percent faster compared to the older one, keeping in mind that several parts of the country does not have effective 3G and 4G network coverage.

While the new app will allow users to book rides outside the app, several new features such as allowing users to book cabs via webage, sharing ETA for real-time location, allowing users to integrate calendar apps are being added to improve experiences for its riders, the Indian Express added.

The Travis Kalanick founded company is also making India as the regional hub for its South Asian businesses. Major expansion and operations across the region are being executed out of the Indian offices, with the company launching its services in Sri Lanka late last year while starting operations in Bangladesh mid-November, the Economic Times report said.

We are expanding into multiple cities across the region and not just in India alone, Amit Jain, South Asia president, Uber said in a interview with The Economic Times.

However, the company said it may not expand beyond the 29 Indian cities compared with Ola's presence in over 100 cities in the country.

We are investing in all aspects of the business, said Jain. The focus is on building products and technologies that are customised to India. In the past one year, the company has rolled out several features that are specific to India, such as cash payments, Dial an Uber and call centre support for drivers. These features were not present anywhere else in the world," the ET report added quoting Jain.

Besides facing stiff competition from its nearest rival Ola, the company is currently embroiled in regulatory hurdles with several state governments.

Last month, Uber had kicked off a campaign seeking support from people in Mumbai in response to Maharashtra state government's proposed draft rules on regulating the taxi-hailing app companies.

Not just Maharashtra, the company is already facing similar issues in the state of Karnataka over the Karnataka On-demand Transportation Technology Aggregators Rules 2016, notified on 2 April. Not just in India, Uber had earlier run-ins with regulators across the world like France and the US as it competes with local taxi operators.
Oil futures jumped on Monday after heavy falls in the previous session, reflecting volatility as OPEC officials try to salvage a deal to cut crude production ahead of a long-anticipated formal meeting of the group's ministers on Wednesday.The 14-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries announced a preliminary deal in September to cut oil output to 32.5-33.0 million barrels per day (bpd) from a record 33.64 million bpd now, to bolster perennially low prices.Although doubts existed over whether the organisation, including regional foes Saudi Arabia and Iran, could agree on the mechanism of a cut, many market watchers believed last week a deal would be struck if only to save the group's credibility.But the chances of an agreement declined over the weekend after Saudi Arabia said oil markets would balance next year even without an OPEC deal and a meeting with non-OPEC producers such as Russia was cancelled, sparking shuttle diplomacy to smooth differences before Wednesday's Vienna gathering.Analysts' forecasts for oil prices now vary widely.With a realistic but significant deal struck, prices could reach $60 a barrel, according to the most optimistic forecast, or barely approach $50, according to the most bearish prediction.Should OPEC fail to strike a deal, prices may briefly fall to the low $40s but return to current levels, according to the most bullish forecast, or slide downwards to $40, opening the door to $30 a barrel, according to other predictions.IHS ENERGY: MOST IMPORTANT OPEC MEET SINCE 1973

"OPEC is under intense pressure to deliver on their previous promise to cut production by around 1 million b/d to 32.5-33.0 million b/d. However, a deal will be extremely challenging to deliver given political differences between members ... An agreement of some sort is more likely than not to emerge this week, as there are intense financial, political and credibility pressures on OPEC to strike a deal even if it is flawed."SEB: CHANCE OF OPEC CUT DECLINED SUBSTANTIALLY

"(Saudi Energy Minister) Khalid al-Falih on Sunday said that demand will recover and prices will stabilize in 2017 even without an intervention by OPEC. In our view this is clearly an effort by al-Falih to prepare the market for a no-cut outcome in order to avoid too much of a sell-off in case of an announcement of a no-deal."...If OPEC this week announces that there will be no cut we expect the oil price to trade down to $43-44/b but we don't expect it to stay there all that long. It'll likely revert back towards $48/b where it has averaged since the start of June." COMMERZBANK: OIL AT $40 IF NO DEAL

"OPEC is currently producing roughly 700,000 barrels per day more than is needed. If OPEC's present production level were maintained, this would remain the case until mid-2017. The market would then be balanced only at the end of 2017, assuming that OPEC does not further increase its output. Yet experience in recent months shows that this is unlikely, especially since Libya and Nigeria are likely to grab every opportunity to raise their currently subdued production to a more normal level. "If OPEC really does decide on Wednesday not to implement the production cut that has been promised for the past two months, oil prices can be expected to fall towards the $40 per barrel mark." PVM: A CUT FROM WHICH LEVEL?

"OPEC's current production is 33.6 to 33.8 mbpd. Once the dust settles it is less the size of the cut and more the actual production level that it could imply that really matters. Do not take an announcement of a headline cut of 1 mbpd at face value. It could still imply an OPEC production level considerably in excess of 33 mbpd, depending on developments in Libya and Nigeria and the speed and rigour of compliance." JBC: RUSSIA'S INTENTIONS IN DOUBT

"Russia's possible intention to contribute to a coordinated effort to curb the crude supply overhang remains in doubt despite statements by its energy minister and deputy suggesting that a freeze at current production levels would in effect be equivalent to a cut of 200,000-300,000 b/d. This latter volume is more or less in line with our expected annual supply growth for 2017 of 220,000 bpd but with the recent surge in October, Russia has in fact already reached this higher production level, indicating that any freeze would simply be just that  holding production steady at the recent strong level."

LAST WEEK:

BANK OF AMERICA MERRILL LYNCH: "DEAL HIGHLY PROBABLE"

"Should OPEC just deliver a half a million barrel deal, we see prices staying around the current levels. For prices to firmly break over $50/barrel, OPEC would have to deliver a 1 mln bpd cut announcement ... Oil may drop to $40 a barrel if the cartel cannot agree to cut."DNB MARKETS: "$40 BY CHRISTMAS IF NO DEAL"

"Saudi Arabia does not seem very happy about the prospect of another year of oil prices below $50 per barrel and we believe all the cartel members are aware that unless a deal is reached the oil price could fall to $40 by Christmas."CAPITAL ECONOMICS: "FACE-SAVING AGREEMENT LIKELY"

"In the case of a strong credible deal, with participation from a number of large non-OPEC producers we could see prices go into the high 50s. On the other hand, if there is no deal we could see prices slump to below $40." ABN AMRO - "75 PCT CHANCE OF CUT"

"If OPEC surprises with a larger cut, or can make sure that non-OPEC producers like Russia would also cut production, then the impact can be bigger and a jump towards $55-60 range can be seen. However, the risk of a disappointment is much bigger. A real failure could push prices below $41 a barrel which would open the way towards the 2016 lows of around $30."MACQUARIE - "DEAL HAS A 60 PCT CHANCE OF SUCCESS"

"We are reiterating our call that the OPEC deal has a 60 percent chance of success on Nov. 30 with a low $50 price range on success and low $30 on failure. "If OPEC fails, they will be The Boy Who Cried Wolf, Bill Buckner and the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight all rolled into one. Additionally, OPEC would lose jawboning power immediately and be on its way to dissolution while members are locked in a crude production arms race."COMMERZBANK: "CUT BUT NOT GROUND-BREAKING"

"No ground-breaking agreement on production caps or cuts should be expected from the OPEC meeting. The oil market is likely to remain oversupplied for some time yet even after the OPEC meeting, especially since U.S. oil production will soon start rising again." GOLDMAN SACHS: "CUT WITH 33 MLN BPD CEILING"

"For the purpose of our oil price forecast, our base case is now that an OPEC production cut will be announced and implemented with OPEC production at 33.0 million bpd in 1H17 and a Russia freeze at 11.6 million bpd.

"Normalizing inventory levels will generate backwardation by 2Q17 and leads us to raise our 1Q and 2Q17 WTI price forecasts to $55/bbl from $45/bbl and $50/bbl previously. We however reduce our 3Q and 4Q17 forecasts to $50/bbl (from $55/bbl and $60/bbl previously) on an expected resumption in OPEC production growth and a U.S. shale supply response to the 1H17 rally."BARCLAYS: "FACE-SAVING CUT"

"Now, with extra supply on the market a deal looks much more challenging to achieve. At the same time, a stronger dollar and far lower oil prices mean the pressure to turn the tide might be even more intense now than in Algiers. Should a credible deal prove out of reach, only the normal uptick in winter demand could save the market from declining further."JULIUS BAER: "CUT BUT NOT MEANINGFUL"

"We continue to believe that a meaningful agreement to cut production is very unlikely. More recently, OPEC production has risen to new record levels, showing that petro-nations are in need of cash flows to plug budget deficits. The common denominator for negotiations remains small and any deal would enter rough waters shortly after signature. Historically, sacrificing oil revenues has been too bitter a pill to swallow for most petro-nations."PVM OIL ASSOCIATES: "CUT BUT A FUDGE"

"A failure to agree some sort of deal would be such a disaster that it is almost unthinkable. Having built up expectations it would be suicidal to end the meeting in disarray. It is also equally difficult to believe either that Iran/Iraq or the Saudis will completely capitulate ... The most likely outcome is therefore some sort of gruyere type fudge, thinly covered in chocolate but delivered with conviction as a breakthrough."MORGAN STANLEY - "CUT WITH GROUP QUOTA"

"If OPEC fails to announce any agreement come Nov. 30, there could be a sharp correction in prices, which OPEC knows. Therefore, our base case remains a group quota (similar to 2012) that lacks country specifics or leaves several notable exemptions given the disagreements."PETROMATRIX - "CUT/FREEZE WITH SAUDI JAW-BONING"

"A supply freeze does not seem much in pure mathematics but if it comes with convincing statements that defacto it brings spare capacity to zero, then it will allow the market to price a greater risk premium..."Given that OPEC seems to want a price range of $55/bbl to $60/bbl it is likely that if a deal is confirmed next week, it will also come with statements to convince the markets that a new policy era is starting."SOCIETE GENERALE - "REASONABLE TO EXPECT 500,000 BPD CUT"

"At this point, still without any details, our initial 'back of the envelope' calculation for a real crude output of 0-0.5 million bpd is still reasonable. If we take the 0.25 million bpd midpoint as the real cut, and adjust our new forecasts, we would get a 0.25 million bpd global stockdraw in 2017." (Reporting by Apeksha Nair in Bengaluru and Sabina Zawadzki and Amanda Cooper in London; Editing by Dale Hudson and Mark Potter)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
ROME India's JSW Steel Ltd (JSTL.NS) has joined one of two investor groups vying to take over Italy's loss-making Ilva steel plant, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Monday.The steel firm owned by billionaire Sajjan Jindal has signed an agreement with Italian state lender CDP, businessman Leonardo del Vecchio's holding company and steelmaker Arvedi to make the bid, the source said.A second source said the Indian firm had confirmed its interest in joining the bid, but did not know if a formal agreement had been signed.JSW Steel, one of India's top domestic steel producers, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Italy's government has been trying to find a bidder for the plant, Europe's largest by output capacity, since taking it over last year in a bid to save jobs and clean up its polluting factories.

Judges put key parts of it under special administration in 2012 following accusations it had caused serious health problems in the surrounding Puglia region in southern Italy.The world's largest steel producer Arcelor Mittal (ISPA.AS) has also offered to buy Ilva, in a joint bid with Italy's Marcegaglia.

Neither bidder has said how much they would offer for the plant, but a source familiar with the matter told Reuters in June the CDP-led group would probably bid between 500 million and 1 billion euros ($1.06 billion).The sale is now expected to be completed in early 2017. Officials from the Italian environment ministry had been due to deliver their verdicts on the bidders' proposals by Nov. 13.

($1 = 0.9449 euros) (Reporting by Massimiliano Di Giorgio; Additional reporting by Promit Mukherjee in Mumbai; Writing by Isla Binnie; editing by Crispian Balmer and David Evans)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Rania El Gamal and Alex Lawler

| VIENNA

VIENNA OPEC was trying on Monday to rescue a deal to limit oil output as tensions grew among the producer group and non-OPEC member Russia, with top exporter Saudi Arabia saying markets would rebalance even without an agreement.OPEC experts started a meeting in Vienna at 0900 GMT and were due to make recommendations to their ministers on how exactly the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries should reduce production when it meets on Nov. 30.Meanwhile, the Algerian and Venezuelan oil ministers were to travel to Moscow on Monday and Tuesday in a final attempt to persuade Russia to take part in cuts instead of merely freezing output, which has reached new highs in the past year.In September, OPEC, which accounts for a third of global oil production, agreed to cap output at around 32.5-33.0 million barrels per day versus the current 33.64 million bpd to prop up oil prices, which have more than halved since mid-2014.The meeting on Nov. 30 was expected to rubber-stamp that deal, with Russia and some other non-OPEC producers such as Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan also contributing.But doubts emerged in recent weeks as OPEC's No.2 and 3 producers, Iraq and Iran, expressed reservations about the mechanics of output reductions and Saudi Arabia voiced concern about Russia's willingness to cut.On Friday, OPEC canceled an experts meeting with non-OPEC producers scheduled for Nov. 28 after Saudi Arabia said the organization needed to sort out its differences first.

Over the weekend, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said oil markets would rebalance even without an output-limiting pact. He had previously said Riyadh was keen for a deal."NOBODY KNOWS"

Doubts about OPEC's ability to deliver promised cuts sent Brent crude down 2 percent initially on Monday to less than $47 a barrel. Prices later recovered to trade up 1 percent after Iraq's oil minister said he remained optimistic. [O/R] Some analysts including Morgan Stanley and Macquarie have said oil prices will correct sharply if OPEC fails to reach a deal, potentially going as low as $35 per barrel.As OPEC experts turned up at the group's headquarters on Monday, one delegate who had previously stated that a deal would be done, said this time: "I am not sure."Another delegate, when asked about the prospects for a deal, said: "Nobody knows yet".

Iraqi Oil Minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi, upon arrival in Vienna, declined to say whether Iraq was ready to cut output: "We are optimistic. We hope we (will) have agreement. We will cooperate with OPEC members to reach agreement acceptable to all."OPEC ministers started arriving in Vienna on Sunday for the group's regular twice-yearly talks but Saudi Arabia's Falih was not expected to land before Tuesday evening, leaving little time for traditional pre-meeting discussions with peers.Iranian semi-official news agency MEHR published an editorial on Sunday accusing Saudi Arabia of declaring a new "war on oil prices" and reneging on its promises to limit output. The tone contrasted with Iranian news agencies' more upbeat coverage of OPEC's informal meeting in September in Algeria, when the initial deal was reached. (Additional reporting by Ahmad Ghaddar and Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by Dale Hudson)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Anshuman Daga and Sumeet Chatterjee

| SINGAPORE/HONG KONG

SINGAPORE/HONG KONG Standard Chartered is set to cut about a tenth of its global corporate and institutional banking headcount, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Monday, as the bank steps up an aggressive drive to cut costs.Chief Executive Bill Winters this month branded the bank's income and profit unacceptable, as below-forecast third-quarter results underlined the challenges facing his overhaul.The job cuts will be rolled out beginning this week across all the major business centres starting with Singapore and Hong Kong, one of the sources told Reuters. All the sources declined to be named because they were not authorised to speak to the media. "We are making our corporate and institutional banking division more efficient," a Standard Chartered spokesman said, without revealing how many jobs are to be axed. "Removing duplication in roles and managing our costs to protect planned investments in technology and people means that a small number of existing roles will be impacted."Former JPMorgan investment banker Winters has already moved to close the stock trading business and raise $5.1 billion in capital.

These efforts have paid off for Standard Chartered's bottom line, and its third quarter result marked a second consecutive quarter of profit after it swung to an annual loss for 2015, when it was hit by the costs of revamping its management team.Winter also said in November last year the bank would cut 15,000 jobs. It was not immediately clear whether the cuts in corporate and institutional banking formed part of that.The latest headcount cut marks the first major move by former senior HSBC banker Simon Cooper who joined in April as chief executive of corporate and institutional banking.Cooper has been working to overhaul and streamline the structure of the corporate and institutional banking division, the largest unit of the bank accounting for more than 46 percent of its operating income in the six months ended June.

It was not immediately clear how many of the global total of 84,477 employees at the British bank at the end of June were in that division.Returns from the bank's corporate and institutional banking, which includes corporate finance and transaction banking, were hurt by loan impairments and high expenses, Standard Chartered said in last year's annual report.In the quarter ended September, Standard Chartered corporate and institutional banking income dropped 7.5 percent from the year-ago period to $1.6 billion, pulling the bank's total operating income down nearly 6 percent.

Separately, the bank said Ajay Kanwal would step down from his role as regional CEO for ASEAN and South Asia with immediate effect. Anna Marrs, CEO of commercial and private banking, will add the role to her existing position.In a statement issued by Standard Chartered, Kanwal, who had been with the bank since 1992, said he had resigned after he failed to disclose his past personal investments outside the bank."Though I do not own these investments any more, as a senior leader my actions should be beyond reproach. Hence with regret I have decided to tender my resignation," he said.Kanwal, whose senior roles at Standard Chartered included regional CEO for North East Asia and CEO for Taiwan, could not be immediately reached for comment by Reuters. (Reporting by Anshuman Daga and Sumeet Chatterjee; Additional reporting by Lawrence White in London; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman/Ruth Pitchford)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Mumbai: BJP on Monday emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls winning 39 municipal chief's posts of the 147 urban local bodies, dealing a blow to Congress and NCP in the keenly fought elections, whose campaign centred around issues like demonetisation.

Trends and results pouring in from around the state showed the BJP making inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds.

Polls were also held for 17 nagar panchayats on Sunday.

As per the trends available till late afternoon, BJP is ahead with its candidates winning 455 seats, its ally Shiv Sena with 187, NCP 231 and Congress 333.

In the last elections, BJP tally was 298, Sena 264, Congress 771 and NCP 916. However, in Parli municipal council in Beed district, Women and Child Development Minister Pankaja Munde of the BJP was outsmarted by her cousin and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde.

The panel backed by Dhananjay, leader of opposition in Legislative Council, won 27 of the total 33 seats in Parli. "I accept the people's verdict. I will analyse what went wrong and what led people to give this verdict," Pankaja said.

Elections to 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats across 25 districts in Maharashtra were seen as 'mini' Assembly polls and a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who led the BJP's campaign to extend his party's influence in the rural areas, where Congress and NCP has held sway for long.

Fadnavis, who entered third year in office heading the first BJP-led government in the state, had addressed around 50 poll rallies.

As many as 15,826 candidates were in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held on Sunday in the first phase with around 70 percent of the electorate exercising its franchise.

Polling was also held for municipal council presidents post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates were in the race.

In all, 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, are going to polls in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on 14 and 18 December, and January 8.

Reacting to the results, Revenue minister Chandrakant Patil said, "BJP is expected to bag 50 municipal council president posts while in another 50 councils the party will increase it tally considerably."

Terming the party's performance as "overwhelming", he said five years ago BJP was negligible in these areas and the outcome showed that people have accepted the demonetisation decision.

Patil, a senior minister, said the outcome clearly showed that the performance of Narendra Modi and Fadnavis governments in the state had percolated down to the grass roots.

The Maratha agitation for reservation in jobs and education worked in favour of the BJP as the community

rejected Congress and the NCP, which had ruled the state for long but did not "adressed their grievances", he said.

"The Maratha youth is convinced that the BJP government was addressing their issues sincerely," he said.

Going into details, Patil said the BJP did well in Karad and Islampur in western Maharashtra, strongholds of former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and NCP leader Jayant Patil respectively.

"Credit should also go to our tremendous planning. Fadnavis addressed nearly 50 rallies in the last leg of

campaign. He explained to the people the advantages of demonetisation. There were huge applause from the audience of more than 15,000. He (Fadnavis) addressed eight rallies daily," Patil said.

He said out of the 164 councils and nagar panchayat, alliance with Sena materialised in 10 places. The alliance should have been formalised much earlier and Sena leadership should have given more time to the campaign.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Narayan Rane blamed the party leadership for not highlighting demonetisation and Maratha stir adequately.

"Unless the leaders take an aggressive stand against the government and create awareness among the people, nothing will work for the party. Workers are ready but leaders are not," Rane, a former chief minister, told reporters. Political observers said the gamble of having direct polls to municipal council presidents post had paid off for BJP.

While Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said the previous Congress government had scrapped the decision for direct election to municipal council presidents post because if president is of one party and majority of councillors are from another party, development work gets hampered . He rejected that the results were a "mandate for BJP government's performance".

"Counting for seats is still on. BJP is leading in most of the council presidents election. There are three more phases to go besides there is also Zilla Parishad polls early next year," he said.

Sawant said Shiv Sena-BJP has 185 MLAs and the alliance had benefited as they were in power. He also claimed that cash was seized from premises of ministers and MLAs.
Hyderabad: The nation-wide shutdown called by the Left parties over demonetisation of high value currency notes evoked partial response in Telugu states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Monday.

Shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in some areas while there was not much impact elsewhere.

The services of state-owned Road Transport Corporation (RTC) was near normal in both the states.

The activists of the opposition parties staged protest at RTC depots at many places since early morning, however, the bus services by and large remained unaffected.

Activists of Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), Congress and YSR Congress Party staged sit-in at RTC depots. However, the employees union stayed away from the shutdown.

Main opposition YSR Congress and Congress clarified that they have not called for 'Bharat Bandh' but were only participating in protests against the people's sufferings due to demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

The Left parties exempted banks from the strike call.

Congress and CPI workers were arrested by the police at RTC bus depot in Kadapa town of Andhra Pradesh when they staged a sit-in and tried to prevent buses from plying.

YSR Congress Party leader Bhuma Karunakar Reddy and others were arrested when they held a protest demonstration at RTC depot in Tirupati. The left parties took out a rally in the temple town and raised slogans against the central government.

The activists of opposition parties also staged protests in Nellore, Guntur, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and other towns in Andhra Pradesh, where TDP-BJP alliance is in power.

In Telangana, ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) was not participating in the shutdown.

The Left parties and Congress staged sit-in since morning at RTC depots at various places including Khammam, Karimnagar, Jagtiyal, Suryapet and Sircilla.

The Left parties plan to take out a rally in Hyderabad, while Congress, which is observing it as 'Akrosh Diwas' would be forming a human chain at the regional office of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in Hyderabad to highlight the problems faced by the people.

Some schools in Hyderabad declared holiday as a precautionary measure. Osmania University, Kakatiya University and Jawaharlal Nehru Technology University (JNTU) postponed their examinations.
Israel President Reuven Rivlin was in India in November on a six-day visit. The two countries pledged cooperation in the fields of agriculture, research, trade, defence, tourism and education. Ram Fishman writes about the importance of young Israelis and Indians working together to change the perception of agriculture in India.

Over the last 10 years, I have had the good fortune of meeting hundreds of small-scale farmers all over India. I came to appreciate their hard work, eagerness to progress, and the difficult physical and economic environment in which they work.

Farmers bitterly complain about these hardships, but they always light up when I mention that I am Israeli. Even in the remotest of villages, farmers are somehow well aware and appreciative of Israels agricultural achievements. Unfortunately, however, very few of those who adore Israels technologies also use them in their own farms. A tremendous potential therefore remains largely unfulfilled.

Indian agriculture has made incredible progress over the last few decades, but it needs to undergo a deep transformation. It must make more efficient use of scarce water resources, lest they deplete. It must make more efficient use of nitrogen fertilizers, lest they continue to pollute water and sicken children. It must make more judicious use of pesticides, lest they continue to poison farmers. And it must diversify.

Israels experience and its technologies can help, so the growing agricultural cooperation between the two countries is heartening. Several Indian states have opened Centres of Excellence with the Israeli government. Cooperation in the private sector is also growing.

Last week, an Israeli business and academic delegation, led by President Reuven Rivlin, was hosted by President Pranab Mukherjeein Agro Tech 2016 in Chandigarh. President Rivlin declared that when Israeli companies and Indian farmers meet, they can mage magic happen. In a seminar organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry and Tel Aviv University, called 'Digital Pathways in Indian Agriculture', Israeli and Indian scientists and businessmen introduced exciting new technologies with the potential to transform the Indian agricultural landscape.

As exciting as technological innovations are, making them impactful will require a broadening of perspective. Agronomists and plant scientists have made incredible progress in understanding what crops need in order to flourish. Now, we need to develop a similar understanding of what farmers need in order to flourish. Without such an understanding, even the most revolutionary technologies will likely remain unused by the hundreds of millions of smallholders who grow Indias food.

Take drip irrigation, the most famous Israeli agricultural technology. Drip irrigation is proven to deliver the dual benefit of increased production and reduced water, fertilizer and herbicide requirements, exactly what so many Indian farmers need. Why then does the market for drip irrigation, while growing, still represent only a small fraction of Indian farmers?

The answers to this and related questions have to do more with economics than with agronomy, and more with farmers than with the crops they grow. The problem is that finding business models and government policies that can spread improved technologies sustainably has simply turned out to be as difficult a puzzle as developing these technologies in the first place.

It is therefore not for lack of effort or resources that a country that has mastered nuclear and satellite technology is still struggling to replace antiquated farming practices or lift its farmers out of poverty. The challenge is much more complicated than it may seem. And I dont mean to suggest no programmes are successful. For example, in some states, like Gujarat, drip irrigation has been spreading rapidly in recent years, likely thanks to effective administration of the national drip subsidy programme. But we know too little about what works and what doesnt and why and when.

We need to direct the same kind of energies that we put into the crop aspect of the challenge into the human aspect of the challenge. Frankly, it doesn't help that the majority of Indias brightest and most ambitious young direct their brainpower to the fields of engineering, medicine and information and communication technology, while so few choose to take on the challenge of sustainable rural development (of course, there are wonderful exceptions, but they are too few).

India can surely succeed in transforming its agriculture, and we in Israel are eager to help. Let us begin by recognising the importance of not just the technical element, but also the human element. Let us build a bi-national, long-term and systematic programme that brings together academia, the public sector and the private sector; engineers, agronomists, plant scientists, social scientists, policy specialists and entrepreneurs. Let us harness the amazing brainpower, entrepreneurship and creativity of our two countries young generations, and get them involved. And most importantly, let us not shy away from leaving our offices and our labs and our experimental farms and stepping into farmers own fields.

Academia can have a powerful role to play. My own institution, Tel Aviv University, is leading the way by forging alliances with leading Indian universities and working with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to carve new paths forward. We can use these collaborations to create a prestigious programme for outstanding, brilliant young Israelis and Indians to work together in small inter-disciplinary teams, and develop and test, in fields and villages across India, new approaches and models for adapting and disseminating relevant technologies to farmers. Governments can provide support and then scale up and implement those approaches that prove to be effective.

I believe a programme of this kind can radically change the perception of agriculture by young Indians from a thing of the past to a science of the future, and attract bright, dedicated and idealistic students from both India and Israel. These students will forge personal ties that will strengthen our relationship as countries, and achieve something that only they, if anyone, can do: help make Indian agriculture a model for the other emerging economies who are facing similar challenges.

The author is assistant professor of public policy, Tel Aviv University
Whether its a terror attack, a train accident or a jailbreak, we never learn our lessons. No matter how serious security lapses can get, incidents continue to happen, people lose their lives and life moves on, waiting for another incident to occur.

The felicity with which the Nabha jailbreak in Punjab was executed on Sunday  about 10 gunmen disguised as policemen tricked their way into the high-security prison and escaped with a Khalistani militant group commander Harminder Singh Mintoo and five others  seems laughable. Its no laughing matter, though.

Coming close on the heels of Bhopal jailbreak, where eight SIMI (Students Islamic Movement of India) operatives allegedly escaped from the high-security ISO-certified central jail and were killed in an encounter on 31 October, its actually pretty serious.

According to the latest Prison Statistics India (PSI) report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 2015, 200 inmates, including militants, terrorists, dreaded gangsters and petty criminals managed to escape from high-security jails from six states in the calendar year.

In wake of the recent jailbreak in Bhopal, this one at Nabha speaks of the pathetic security system in Indian jails. Theres a general air of complacency and callousness in every prison in India, including the high-security ones where terrorists and underworld operatives have been kept. Each and every movement should be monitored, but thats missing. Prison officials are mollycoddling with the inmates, giving a safe passage to the latter in escaping from jails, quipped former director general of police (UP), Prakash Singh.

The PSI report further highlights that there had been 83 jailbreak incidents in the country between 2011 and 2015, with the highest 28 jailbreaks in 2011, followed by 26 in 2015. In this five-year period, Rajasthan accounted for 41 out of the 83 jailbreaks, followed by 14 in Uttar Pradesh and 5 in Madhya Pradesh. Out of 836 incidents of clashes in jails, close to 60 percent or 501 of these incidents were reported from jails in Delhi alone.

A performance audit report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in 2013 stated that there were 91 incidents of prisoners escaping from jails during 2007-2012. The CAG had indicted the prison administration for its lackadaisical approach towards securing its jails. The audit report also pointed out the malfunctioning of wireless sets and CCTVs  meant for maintaining security in jails.

The recent Bhopal jailbreak revealed that CCTV cameras were not functioning when the SIMI operatives allegedly scaled the 28-ft perimeter wall and escaped. Prior to this, adopting an identical modus operandi in October 2013, six SIMI operatives, accused of murder, dacoity and communal violence, broke open the ventilator of their barrack in the high-security Khandwa jail in Madhya Pradesh, scaled the wall and escaped.

For the last two decades, I have been advocating for police reforms in India, including prison reform. I have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, bringing it to his notice that it was he who in 2014 had enunciated the concept of SMART police, but two years down the line, there is a sense of disappointment because the change has not happened. Im not trying to find fault with the central government, because police is a state subject. The decline in quality policing and deteriorating conditions of prisons has essentially been due to state political leadership, added Singh, also former DGP, Border Security Force.

It was on 30 November 2014, while addressing DGP conference in Guwahati, that the prime minister came up with the concept of SMART police  police which would be strict and sensitive, modern and mobile, alert and accountable, reliable and responsible, and, tech-savvy and trained.

The political opponents in Punjab have launched a scathing attack on the state government after the jailbreak in Nabha.

Law and order situation in the state has deteriorated to unprecedented levels under Badal regime, especially in the run-up to the Assembly polls. The jailbreak has triggered fears of revival of terrorism ahead of the polls in Punjab. The shocking brazenness with which the armed gangsters freed the dreaded Khalistani terrorist along with other convicts by walking into the high security jail, clearly shows the complicity at the highest levels, said former chief minister and Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh.

However, not ruling out the possibility of revival of Pakistan-backed Khalistan movement in Punjab, the security experts are more concerned about the lack of security in prisons that is paving the way for militants and hardened criminals to escape.

Why blame Pakistan? Its doing what its expected of them. Pathankot and Gurdaspur attacks revealed Pakistans desperation to create disturbances in Punjab after Jammu and Kashmir. Though it isnt easy at present to revive pro-Khalistan movement in the state, Pakistan will try to exploit the situation during Punjab election. But the immediate concern is the series of jailbreaks taking place in the country. It speaks of the lack of manpower, deteriorating infrastructure, not following standard operating procedures (SOPs) by jail staff and absolute apathy towards having a foolproof security in prisons. When will we learn a lesson? questioned security analyst Anil Kamboj.

Here are the major jail breaks in two decades:

1995: 43 LTTE cadres escaped from Tipu Mahal inside Vellore Fort after digging a 153-ft long tunnel.

1998: 78 prisoners escaped from the Nizamabad jail, taking advantage of mob strength and official laxity.

2000: 15 prisoners escaped from the Mahendragarh district jail in Haryana.

2001: 270 inmates, including hardened criminals, escaped from Bhuj jail in Gujarat, taking advantage of the earthquake that had rocked the state.

2002: 8 prisoners, two of them serving life sentences, escaped from Betiah divisional jail in Bihars West Champaran district after scaling the prison wall.

2005: 137 inmates escaped from Jehanabad jail in Bihar after a Maoist attack on the town.

2013: 6 SIMI operatives, accused of murder, dacoity and communal violence lodged in Khandwa jail in MP and scaled the wall to escape.

2015: 2 under-trials in one of the most high security prisons of India  Tihar jail scaled the wall, dug a tunnel through the boundary wall and escaped.

2016: 8 SIMI operatives allegedly escaped from the high-security Bhopal Central jail and were later killed in an alleged encounter with police on the outskirts of the city.
Chandigarh: Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded handing over of the Nabha jailbreak case to CBI, alleging a deep-rooted conspiracy, "which has deepened" with the arrest of Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.

"Since the Punjab Police DGP Suresh Arora has already admitted to conspiracy and connivance in the matter, the case should not be probed by the Punjab Police and handed over to CBI for an independent investigation," he said.

Amarinder Singh also accused the ruling Akalis of "resorting to communal polarisation when faced with imminent defeat".

"The jail break incident also pointed to such an attempt by the state government," he alleged in a statement here.

Reacting to the arrest of Mintoo less than 24 hours after he dramatically escaped from Nabha jail in Patiala district along with five others yesterday, Amarinder warned against allowing the matter to be pushed under the carpet with the arrest of Mintoo, and called for a thorough probe.

"It is a clear case of connivance," he maintained and added that since Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, the case could jointly be probed by the CBI and the IB, with support from the Delhi police.

"The ease of his arrest belied Sukhbir Badal's claims of a Pakistani role in the escape of the hardcore terrorist, who has about a dozen terror cases against him," said Amarinder.

"Had the whole thing been plotted from across the border, Mintoo would have by now escaped out of India, instead of waiting in Delhi to be nabbed," he further stated.

The former Punjab Chief Minister demanded "meticulous interrogation" of Mintoo by independent agencies to get at the root of the conspiracy.

"With the entire police and administrative machinery in Punjab in the grip of the Akalis, such blatant incidents of law and order breakdown were to be expected in the run-up to the Assembly polls in the state," he said.

Assembly polls in Punjab are scheduled early next year.

Expressing apprehensions of violence and possible terrorist attacks in the poll-bound state, Amarinder reiterated his demand for imposition of President's Rule to ensure free and fair elections in Punjab.

Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was on Monday nabbed from Delhi railway station.
Madurai: In raids in several places, three suspected Al Qaeda operatives were on Monday arrested by the National Investigation Agency, police said.

Police said the three allegedly planned to attack 22 top leaders of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They were allegedly involved in threatening embassies of various countries in India, they said.

Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali. While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from GR Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram, police said.

Explosive materials were also seized from them.

Police said NIA raided several places on specific information that suspected Al Qaeda activists were operating from South Tamil Nadu in and around Madurai.

"Explosive materials and arms have been seized from them," police said, declining to elaborate.

The trio was allegedly running the Al Qaeda unit in South Tamil Nadu. They were also allegedly involved in the explosions that took place in various courts in the country over a period of time, police added.

The NIA were also searching for two other suspected Al Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman, they said.
The Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) affiliate, has decided to study the Chinese connection of Paytm, a company that has reaped huge benefits from the Narendra Modi government's demonetisation exercise, a report in The Economic Times has said.

The payment solutions company is 40 percent owned by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba group and SJM has told the newspaper that it wants to ensure that "data shared by Indians is safe".

"No Indian company should be sharing data with foreign companies and the investment routes should be made very transparent," Ashwani Mahajan, co-convener of SJM, has been quoted as saying in the report.

The SJM's move comes at a time when Paytm is seeing its business swell due to the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, which has resulted in forced digitisation of payments in the country.

After the move by the government on 8 November, there has been a surge in mobile and online payments for transactions as there is a severe crunch in cash in the system after the withdrawal of the existing Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

Paytm on 21 November said it has been witnessing over 7 million transactions worth Rs 120 crore a day, helping it cross $5 billion gross merchandise value sales, four months ahead of its target.

The company said it was doing more transactions than the combined average daily usage of credit and debit cards in the country.

After the demonetisation announcement on 8 November, the company had placed full page ads with prime minister Narendra Modis' face on front pages of newspapers, raising a controversy.

Not just Paytm, all mobile wallet companies have seen manifold growth in transactions and new users coming on board with people turning to digital platforms, as serpentine queues outside ATMs continuing to hassle cash-strapped public.

With Modi making a pitch for switching to less-cash economy in his speech on Sunday, the importance of these firms are only going to increase. An earlier report in The Economic Times had said the rural ministry has sought the help of companies like Paytm and Oxigen to help digitise cash transactions in rural areas.

Seen in this context, SJM's move to study the Chinese connection of the company is interesting since it goes against the spirit of the initiative taken by the government.

SJM and a few other groups have been in news recently for campaigning against Chinese imports that they claimed is killing the domestic manufacturing. Some of them had even suggested a ban on these imports.

Meanwhile, Paytm founder and chief executive Vijay Shekhar Sharma has told PTI that his company is "as Indian as Maruti" and prides itself on being a representative of the "India story".

"We are as Indian as Maruti is...We are 'India story' in every sense whatsoever," Sharma has been quoted as saying in the PTI report.

Alibaba Group and its affiliate Ant Financial pumped in $680 million into Paytm's parent One97 Communications last year, taking its total shareholding to over 40 percent in the country's largest mobile wallet operator with close to 160 million customers.

The criticism over ownership, circulated widely through instant messaging apps, sought to pick up on sentiment of banning Chinese products.

Sharma, however, appeared unfazed by the criticism. "Everybody else has a way to say whatever they want to say. We don't come to that level and reply," he told PTI.

With PTI
Given the commotion within and outside Parliament (some sullen, some outrageous statements, threats and boasts), demonetisation sure has raised considerable political heat. Black money stashes of political parties apparently suffered hits across the board in varying measures; even some chief ministers  including prospective ones  are struggling to hide their frustration, while others are distributing free laptops publicly.

Then you have this spent fellow cackling about the PoK, even though an inquiry into ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Pandits could have nailed him good and proper. There is a rumour that just after 2018, new currency notes of Rs 2,000 denomination may also be withdrawn. Surely, this will hit black money stashes for the 2019 General Election, but given the hint, trust the Indian system of jugaad for alternatives. Besides, foreign donations to political parties have been legalised, so why fret?

How much black money demonetisation will scrap and to what extent it can be regenerated will depend on multiple factors, which the government will have examined, but given the fixation with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, faking new currency notes should not take Pakistan too long. Interestingly, while the government recovered X amount of money from the voluntary income disclosure scheme (IDS) that ended in September 2016, Indonesia reportedly recovered 100 times this amount with a smaller penalty imposed on disclosed amounts.

Economists agree that black money cant be stamped out completely. The NN Vohra Committee, constituted vide MHA Order No S/7937/SS(ISP)/93 dated 9 July, 1993, had significantly revealed the criminalisation of politics and the nexus between government functionaries and mafias; a major conclusion being that any leakage whatsoever about the linkages of crime syndicates and senior government functionaries or political leaders in the states or at the Centre could have a destabilising effect on the functioning of the government.

When the Vohra Committee said that money power is used to develop a network of muscle-power which is also used by the politicians during elections, the reference was not to any particular political party. Corruption obviously is across the board. We may say that a majority of scams occurred between 2004 and 2014, but why are the culprits walking free, some even in Parliament? Thats why a scam like the Tatra Truck Scam is frozen because it ran through many governments. The Vohra Committee also spoke of pressures exerted whenever corrupt and undesirable officers are shifted from sensitive assignments, but we have scamsters deserving prosecution nominated to the Rajya Sabha. Live and let live may be a global norm but if the big fish remain untouched, the war against corruption and black money will remain incomplete.

Demonetisation was very much needed albeit the collateral damage due to lack of adequate logistical management, certainly could have been reduced with better planning. Digital India, going cashless and optimal digitisation has much potential in curbing black money and transforming the economy in the long run, even as there is the fear of losing your money with worldwide incidents of hard-earned savings wiped out partially or in full through cyber crimes by individuals and syndicates. India too has had its share of this, some reported, some not.

But the reason for political temperatures going through the roof with demonetisation is the forthcoming slew of elections in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh in 2017  the exact dates for which are to be announced in January. So the gloves are off. John Lyly said All is fair in love and war in his novel Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit in 1579, but politics has preceded love and war since then. And if technology has empowered one and all including non-state actors, it has done so for political parties too. Already, the demonetisation digital war on social media is growing by the day with dedicated teams of political parties trying to outdo their opponents.

But first, considering the considerable cyber prowess of our adversaries, are we building adequate safeguards in our Digital India programs?

Given the stated financial outlays, the answer is no, as it appeared in discussions on the sidelines of an international cyber-security conference. One question being debated was that given our fixation of caste, creed and reservations (the latter has been prolonged by decades in contradiction of what Dr BR Ambedkar wanted), what havoc will it cause if demographic and individual statistics at the state and Centre levels are hacked and changed?

The manner in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched demonetisation can best be described as a revolution, not evolution, and a revolution always causes much turbulence which is absent in the case of evolution. At the same time, demonetisation would also have caused discomfort to some from his own political party, of which he would be acutely aware. It is no secret that when he disbanded the Planning Commission (functioning under the UPA-I and UPA-II) that was pocketing 10 percent of whatever money was sanctioned to states, plenty eyebrows went up  why now when it is our turn?

So let us see dispassionately examine who will want Modi to win a second tenure as Prime Minister of India in 2019:

Pakistan and China? Certainly not

Opposition parties? Most definitely not

Coalition partners? Some may, some won't

His own party? Some may not, no matter the numbers.

In addition, there will be other internal and external forces inimical to India including those who simply dont want India to grow beyond a point. China, who wants India boxed in within South Asia, has already referred to Modis demonetisation drive as a gamble. The simple inference therefore is that multiple methods will be employed by political parties in conjunction their local and foreign benefactor; financial muscle, perception-building and optimising technology etc, but what else?

In a civil appeal No 9093 of 2013 (Arising out of SLP (Civil) No. 13735 of 2012), Dr Subramanian Swamy, the appellant contended that the present system of electronic voting machines (EVMs) did not meet all international standards and although ECI maintains EVMs cannot be tampered with, EVMs like all electronic equipments, are open to hacking. The requirement of a printout apprising the voter of his or her vote was rightly registered, and was to be deposited in a box for use by ECI in case of dispute.

According to the counsel for ECI, apprehension that EVMs could be tampered with were baseless and ECI was exploring possibility of incorporating viable Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) system in EVMs to make elections more transparent. The court ruled that the VVPAT is indispensable for free and fair elections and must be introduced in a phased manner. The VVPAT is a printer-like machine that is attached to individual EVMs that allows voters to verify that their vote has been cast correctly.

Whether the VVPAT has been installed in all EVMs is not known. But VVPAT is a separate issue, not very relevant to cyber crime. Symantec Security Response has already demonstrated that EVMs can be hacked by devices that are easy to acquire and cost no more than $16 (~Rs 1,100). Such hacking can be undertaken before the voting or 'after' the voting. While the Hillary Clinton camp accuses Russia of tampering with the recent US Presidential Election, trust our ECI to keep insisting our EVMs are different and tamper proof. But guess what professional hackers in India including those who have worked for government have to say about our EVMs?

One, they are highly rudimentary in terms of cyber safety; two, they can be hacked 100 percent and three, they 'have been tampered with' on some occasions in the past.

The above indicates that mass-scale rigging is possible in elections by optimising technology. The government will do well to examine the above issues. Much will be at stake during elections in the six states next year, with a direct bearing on the 2019 General Election.

The author is a veteran Lieutenant-General of the Indian Army
Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Monday supported NCP MP Udayan Raje Bhosale's remarks that people will "loot and destroy banks" if the situation arising after the demonetisation move does not improve soon, saying he has voiced the concerns of people on the cash chaos.

Bhosale, a descendant of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji, while speaking at a function to pay homage to late Deputy Prime Minister YB Chavan at Sangli in the presence of several political bigwigs last week, had also said many BJP MPs and MLAs who were his close friends too have not accepted the demonetisation decision.

"Chhatrapati's anguish has represented the feelings of common man. At one time, Udayan Raje had joined BJP and was even made a minister so BJP cannot him disown him now. If the government has courage, it should challenge Udayan Raje's statements," the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

It said Bhosale has time and again voiced the concerns of people.

"After PM Narendra Modi's decision, people in rural areas have suffered a lot. Yet, no leader from rural areas is ready to speak against it. These leaders have their hands full with old notes and they are now in a piquant situation as they cannot remove that money nor can they keep it as it is," the Sena said.

"During the British rule, Indians in Satara used to loot banks and government treasury. Udayan Raje, from the same Satara has warned the government that people will loot banks to live. Will the government shoot these people?" the Sena asked.
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This is for the first time that presidents of municipal councils will be elected directly by people.

There are total 147 posts of municipal council president, of which results for 108 seats have been declared. The BJP is maintaining a lead by bagging the top job at 40 municipal councils while Shiv Sena has managed to win at 18 councils. Congress has won the presidentship at 17 municipal councils while NCP has secured 10 councils. Twenty three seats have gone to other Independent candidates.

Wardha District: BJP win all 6 out of 6 Municipal Council Presidential Election's with clear majority of seats. #mahavoted4bjp

According to the Maharashtra BJP's Spokesperson Keshav Upadhye, the party has won all the 6 seats for the President of Municipal Council in Wardha district. The BJP leader put out a tweet announcing the result.

BJP wins all 6 posts of President of Municipal Council in Wardha district

Bharatiya Janata Party bagged 610 seats in the Municipal Council polls in Maharshtra while its ally Shiv Sena is has won 402 seats. Nationalist Congress Party is at the second position with 482 seats so far, while the Congress has secured 408 seats. Maharashtra Navnirman Sena has so far managed to win 12 seats while the BSP has won 4 seats. Other Independant candidates have won 583 seats, according to ANI.

The NCP, which is a key opponent of the Sena-BJP alliance, has made demonetisation one of the key issues in the local body elections.

"Demonetisation has angered the people of the country. The condition of the poor and working classes everywhere is pitiable," Sena said in the party mouthpiece Saamana

Even as counting was underway, Shiv Sena on Monday endorsed NCP MP Udayan Raje Bhosale's warning that if the post-demonetisation situation fails to improve soon, "people will loot banks".

Recently, the two allies were at loggerheads over the demonetisation issue with Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray criticising Centre's move.

Though the BJP-Shiv Sena are alliance partners for the polls, the top leadership of the two parties continues to exchange jibes.

Result on 3510 seats have been declared so far.

According to the latest tally obtained by Firstpost correspondent, BJP has managed to maintain its lead by bagging 851 seats, while Shiv Sena won 514 seats. Congress has won 643 seats, while NCP secured 638 seats. MNS has logged victory at 16 seats and CPM has won 12 seats. BSP has claimed 9 seats, Others have won on 708 seats.

According to a Firstpost correspondent, so far results for the post of presidents of municipal councils have been declared at 140 councils. BJP is maintaining its lead by cinching victory at 51 seats, Shiv Sena has bagged 24 seats, Congress has 21 seats, NCP stands at 19 seats while Others won at 25 seats.

51 BJP candidates carry the day in first ever polls for municipal council presidents

I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.

PM Modi tweeted out his congratulation to the state party unit and thanked the people of Maharshtra for showing faith in the party.

Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on #Demonetisation , a decision in national interest.

With BJP emerging as a major gainer in Maharashtra local polls, party chief Amit Shah said the results should be a "wake-up call" for the opposition parties who were "trying to mislead" people on demonetisation.

Thanks Sir! You inspired confidence in people that our Nation is transforming.Mandate shows Maharashtra is with your vision of transparency. https://t.co/ljVtcJ4Ewo

Maharshtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis replied to Modi's tweet, in which the prime minister congratulated hm for the resounding victory. In his tweet, Fadavis thanked Modi and said that the verdit is a proof that the people are with Modi's policies.

Counting of votes began on Monday morning in the election to 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats across 25 districts in Maharashtra, seen as a litmus test for the Devendra Fadnavis' government.

As many as 15,826 candidates are in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held yesterday in the first phase with around 70 per cent of the electorate exercising its franchise.

No nominations were received for Shirala Nagar Panchayat in Sangli district while 28 candidates were elected unopposed.

Counting of votes began at 10 am.

Polling was also held for municipal council presidents post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates are in the race.

The polls are being viewed as 'mini' Assembly election sand a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis who led the BJP campaign to make inroads in the rural areas where Congress and NCP hold sway.

This is for the first time that presidents of municipal councils will be elected directly by people. The second phase for elections to 14 municipal councils will be held on 14 December.

Demonetisation, farm distress, improvement in rural infrastructure and caste tensions due to morcha by various communities in the run up to the polls were the main issues apart from local matters.

While ruling alliance partners, BJP and Shiv Sena, had tied up for the polls, the opposition Congress and NCP didn't formally announce any alliance.

While BJP projected development as its main plank, during the campaign Fadnavis hailed the demonetisation move as a major attack on black money. The Congress highlighted the hardships being faced by the poor and common man due to demonetisation among other issues.

In total, including Sunday's phase, elections are being held for 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on 14 December, 18 December and 8 January.
The Jan Akrosh Divas, called by a fractured Opposition driven by its fear of Narendra Modi's ever increasing political capital, resembled more a 'Frustration Divas' due to the lack of jan (people's) support behind the akrosh (rage).

If the rage was rendered futile by the lack of consensus among the motley crew on how best to express their akrosh at being sidelined by the prime minister's powerful political narrative, Nitish Kumar's abstention decidedly robbed the 'nationwide protests' of its moral strength.

As is inevitable in a multi-party democratic set-up, any big bang economic reform has an equally significant political fallout. If anything, the politics of reform sometimes overtakes even the economic objective. By now it is fairly clear to the Opposition that demonetisation has set free a game-changing political narrative that may override all known calculations  regional or national.

To counter that narrative, NDA's rivals must quickly mobilise the masses who, much to the frustration of Modi's detractors, still appear to be taken in by the appeal for a larger corruption-free society and see themselves as equal partners in that fight.

Their task has been made even more daunting by internal bickering and the barely concealed game of one-upmanship that has seen 18 parties including the Left and Lalu Yadav's RJD calling for a 12-hour Bharat bandh and the Congress, AAP, SP, BSP and the Trinamool Congress at pains to distance themselves from the bandh in favour of a 'nationwide' itinerary of agitations, obstructions, rail rokos, protest rallies, public meetings and demonstrations outside Parliament.

One wonders how deeply this akrosh will discomfiture Modi given the fact that the increasingly irrelevant Left seems to be regretting even its own call. Addressing a news conference at the party's Alimuddin Street headquarters in Kolkata on Sunday, Bengal CPM state secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra said: "Our target is not to make the strike a success. We might be a lone voice but it is important to raise it at this juncture", according to a report in The Telegraph.

The comrades must have belatedly figured out the absurdity of a hartal while protesting against the loss of livelihood of the marginalised whom it claims to represent. This self-defeating move accurately captures the crisis of traditional Left.

The situation among the conglomerate of socialist and neo-Left parties is no better. With Modi fashioning his drive as a war against black money and exhorting the youth to join him in the yajna (subtly creating an ownership of the 'movement'), the anti-demonetisation mass-mobilisation programme must necessarily tell an equally gripping political story.

It is not enough to tell the people that they are inconvenienced. Majority of Indians who still appear to be in favour of the drive are backing it despite the hardships. They see the benevolent disruption as a sort of necessary purge to cleanse the system. Therefore, the Opposition needed a far more credible moral force than just crying about people's inconvenience.

And it is here that the Congress-TMC-SP-BSP conglomerate ran into trouble. The Congress is synonymous with corruption, Saradha and Narada scandals have made TMC vulnerable, the UP twins are similarly tainted by charges of graft. None among Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee, Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati possesses the moral strength to convince the plebeians that their call against demonetisation is truer than the drive launched by Modi.

The script of the entire Akrosh Divas was changed the moment Nitish Kumar decided to stay out of it. The Bihar chief minister's presence could have lent Opposition the credibility it lacks. The JD(U) chief was uniquely placed to deliver multiple messages. He may not have Modi's pan-Indian appeal but Kumar is a mass leader in his own right. His clean corruption-free image rivals that of Modi and in implementing a strict liquor ban in Bihar, he has shown himself to be cast in Modi's mould of a strong leader driven by own convictions.

However, Nitish did not only choose to distance himself from the bandh or stay away from participating in opposition aakrosh, he even went a step further and called for more stricter measures against black money, revealing a mind more sensitive to the pulse of the people and sharper than most of his peers.

As a report in The Times of India points out, while the entire spectrum of Opposition was busy creating ruckus in Parliament and derailing House proceedings, appearing at a public rally in Bihar's Madhubani, the JD(U) chief made it clear that Modi and he were on the same page. "I fully support the move... The Centre now also needs to act against people who have amassed 'benami' properties," he said during a meeting which was also attended by his alliance partners RJD and Congress.

A few days later, during a meeting with lawmakers of the state's grand alliance (JD-U, RJD and Congress), Kumar repeated his statement. In direct contradiction with leaders of his own party such as Sharad Yadav who has not lost an opportunity to slam Modi, Kumar said last Friday that "demonetisation is not a wrong thing". "The Centre's notebandi is not a wrong move. You can raise questions on issues pertaining to its execution. But opposing the demonetisation move as a whole will not be proper," said the Bihar chief minister, according to another The Times of India report.

In absence of the moral legitimacy that Nitish's presence could have ensured, not surprisingly the bandh or akrosh failed to capture public imagination. Early reports indicate that its business as usual in big cities and in different parts of the country.

Unless the Opposition manages to address its fault lines (Mamata ensured huge numbers in Kolkata but struggled to explain the differing agendas), the futile rage is unlikely to rob Modi of his sleep.
By Elias Biryabarema

| KAMPALA

KAMPALA Amnesty International on Monday accused Uganda of carrying out extrajudicial executions as authorities in the east African country said 62 people had died in clashes between a tribal militia and security forces in a restive western region. The fighting between royal guards of a tribal king, Charles Wesley Mumbere, and a combined army and police force occurred on Saturday and Sunday in Kasese, the biggest town in Uganda's Rwenzori region located near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. A regional police spokesman, Mansur Suwed, told Reuters on Monday at least 46 members of the king's guards died in the fighting, which also left 16 police officers dead."In a shocking display of heavy-handedness, many people appear to have been summarily shot dead and their bodies dumped," Amnesty International said in a statement on Monday. The security crackdown had shown "shocking examples of unlawful killings and a complete disregard for human rights during the arrests ... the government must ensure that police and soldiers observe restraint and desist from extrajudicial executions," the rights group added.Paddy Ankunda, spokesman for Uganda's military, said he had no immediate comment on Amnesty's allegations."We're preparing a comprehensive government statement which will be issued tomorrow," he said.

Ugandan police were not able to be reached to comment on the allegations.Earlier on Monday, police said they had taken control of Mumbere's palace after the fighting and seized a cache of machetes, spears and petrol bombs.Security detained Mumbere on Sunday and accused his supporters of trying to create a new state in the area.

The Rwenzori area has been experiencing intermittent unrest since Uganda's disputed February presidential election, which the electoral body said was won by long-ruling President Yoweri Museveni. Uganda's largest opposition party Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) got overwhelming support in the area. There has been no statement from the king, a supporter of the opposition. "The town is calm but we're still patrolling and monitoring. We have burnt down all the camps they (the guards) had established and also we've taken over the royal palace," Suwed told Reuters earlier on Monday.

Police, Suwed said, had also seized a rifle, a pistol, four walkie-talkies and knives from the fighters, and increased patrols in Kasese town.Some opposition officials have said in the past the government was likely stoking the violence in the area to punish it for shunning the ruling party, a charge the government has denied.An opposition legislator from the region, William Nzoghu denied the royal guards were armed and accused the government of using excessive force when storming the king's palace."It was madness. The action of government was real madness," he said. (Reporting by Elias Biryabarema; Writing by George Obulutsa; Editing by Katharine Houreld and Toby Chopra)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
At least nine people were injured at Ohio State University in an attack that was carried out by two assailants at the Columbus campus on Monday, according to local officials and media.Local media reported that the injured were both shot and stabbed.The nine victims were taken to local hospitals, a spokeswoman with the Columbus Fire Department said. One person was in critical condition, and the others were stable. The nature of their injuries was not immediately known.A suspected attacker was shot, local television station WBNS reported, citing law enforcement sources. WBNS said four of the injured suffered gunshot wounds.

WBNS, citing law enforcement, reported the attack began with a person armed with a gun and another individual with a knife got out of a sport utility vehicle at a university engineering building. At least some victims were stabbed, the station reported.Columbus police said on Twitter they were assisting university law enforcement. Representatives for the university did not immediately return calls.

"Ohio's thoughts and prayers go out to the Ohio State community," Ohio Governor John Kasich said in a statement. "Be safe, listen to first responders."

Ohio State student Wyatt Crosher told CNN he heard what sounded like gunfire and then emergency sirens. (Reporting by Kim Palmer in Cleveland and Laila Kearney and Franklin Paul in New York, Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Ethan Lou

Canada has extended its small deployment of soldiers with the United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan this year despite concerns about its viability and soldiers' safety, an internal Canadian government memo showed.A senior official said the extension would help to achieve the Liberal government's goal of increased U.N. participation, according to the April memo from Canada's foreign affairs ministry, obtained by Reuters under access-to-information laws.Canada's Liberals, who took power last year, are eying a U.N. Security Council seat in 2021-2022, seeking to repair relations with the world body that deteriorated under their Conservative predecessors.Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Sunday his government had reengaged with the U.N. peacekeeping mission, offering C$500 million ($373 million) and up to 600 soldiers.Precise deployment destinations were yet to be decided and would depend on where Canadian soldiers would have the most impact, he said.U.N. peacekeepers have been in South Sudan since 2011, when it separated from Sudan after decades of civil war. The country hosts some 13,000 peacekeepers, including those from the United States, Britain and Australia.

Canada's participation, dubbed "Operation Soprano," comprises just 10 soldiers, according to the Department of National Defence.In the memo, Daniel Jean, then-deputy minister and now Trudeau's national security advisor, said Canada's participation in the U.N. Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) was "visible and positive." Continuing it was consistent with the government's "commitment to provide meaningful contributions to U.N. peace operations," he said."While an extension of Operation Soprano has been approved, concerns remain in connection with the safety of CAF (Canadian Armed Forces) personnel in South Sudan, as well as the overall ability of the UNMISS to achieve its mandate," he wrote to Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion.

A recent U.N. inquiry found a lack of leadership among peacekeepers in South Sudan, and that they failed to protect civilians. A top Kenyan commander was fired.Canada's foreign affairs ministry referred questions to the Department of National Defence.Asked about the memo, defence spokeswoman Captain Nicola LaMarre said soldiers were well-equipped to perform the mission and that deployment destinations were up to the government.

"We remain ready to conduct operations or implement changes to existing operations, as directed by the government," she said. "There is currently no plan to change the presence and personnel strength in the area."($1 = 1.3407 Canadian dollars) (Editing by Bernadette Baum)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
CALGARY, Alberta A Canadian CF-18 fighter pilot was killed on Monday when his single-seat jet crashed in a training area near Cold Lake, Alberta, the country's military said."The name will not be released until next of kin are notified," the Department of National Defence said in a statement. "A flight safety investigation will be conducted to determine the cause of the incident." In a tweet, the Royal Canadian Air Force called the crash an accident, but did not elaborate. The defence department said there were no other casualties. The incident happened near the community of Cold Lake, which is close to the neighbouring province of Saskatchewan and is home to 4 Wing Cold Lake, the busiest fighter base in Canada, according to the defence department.

The pilot involved was from 4 Wing and crashed his CF-188 Hornet at about 11 a.m. in the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range in Saskatchewan, said Captain Mat Strong, public affairs officer for the base.A defence department spokeswoman said helicopters were dispatched following the incident.

The base, used to train Canada's fighter pilots, attracts international crews to its annual air combat exercise, Maple Flag, according to the department.

In July, a plane crashed in Cold Lake during a military air show, killing the pilot. (Reporting by Ethan Lou and Nia Williams; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Steve Orlofsky)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
(The story was refiled to remove the reference to Iranian representatives not responding to a request for comment)WASHINGTON An Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard vessel pointed its weapons at a U.S. Navy helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, two U.S. defence officials told Reuters on Monday, an action they described as "unsafe and unprofessional." The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the incident took place when a Navy SH-60 helicopter flew within half a mile (0.8 km) of two Iranian vessels in international waters. One of the vessels pointed its weapons at the helicopter, the U.S. officials said.

The officials added that at no point did the crew of the helicopter feel threatened, but it was unsafe because it could have lead to an escalation.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Bill Rigby)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Atlanta: Donald Trump's disavowal this past week of white supremacists who have cheered his election as president hasn't quieted concerns about the movement's impact on his White House or whether more acts of hate will be carried out in his name.

Members of the self-declared "alt-right" have exulted over the 8 November results with public cries of "Hail Trump!" and reprises of the Nazi salute. The Ku Klux Klan plans to mark Trump's victory with a parade next month in North Carolina. Civil rights advocates have recoiled, citing an uptick in harassment and incidents of hate crimes affecting blacks, Jews, Muslims, Latinos, gays, lesbians and other minority groups since the vote.

The president-elect has drawn repeated criticism for being slow to offer his condemnation of white supremacists. His strongest denunciation of the movement has not come voluntarily, only when asked, and he occasionally trafficked in retweets of racist social media posts during his campaign.

Further, Trump has named Stephen Bannon, the conservative media provocateur who shaped the final months of Trump's campaign, as a White House chief strategist who will work steps from the Oval Office. Bannon's appointment has become as a flashpoint for both sides.

Trump's detractors and his "alt-right" supporters broadly agree on one thing: It may not even matter what Trump himself believes, or how he defines his own ideology, because his campaign rhetoric has emboldened the white identity politics that will help define his administration. "Alt-right" is an offshoot of conservatism mixing racism, white nationalism and populism.

"Those groups clearly see something and hear something that causes them to believe he is one who sympathizes with their voice and their view. ... Donald Trump has to take responsibility for that," said Rep Elijah Cummings of Maryland, a black Democrat. He was among 169 members of Congress who signed a letter opposing Bannon's White House appointment.

White nationalist leader Richard Spencer said he believes Trump, Bannon and the "alt-right" are "all riding in the same lane." Spencer explained that neither Trump nor Bannon is a movement "identitarian," Spencer's preferred term for his racially driven politics. But Spencer said Trump's election validates Spencer's view that America must reject multiculturalism and "political correctness" in favor of its white, Christian European heritage.

Spencer's group, the National Policy Institute, drew headlines for its recent gathering where some attendees mimicked the Nazi salute as they feted Trump. Spencer told The Associated Press the salutes were "ironic exuberance" that "the mainstream media doesn't get."

But at the Anti-Defamation League, which tracks incidents of anti-Semitism, Oren Segal said it is part of a disturbing postelection atmosphere tied to Trump's 17-month campaign.

Before, Segal said, it wasn't surprising for the ADL to get calls about a swastika, the Nazi insignia, defacing public or private property. "What's surprising now," he said, "are the references to the campaign" in the incidences. "'Make American White Again' ... 'Go Trump' with the swastika," he said. "That is unique."

Trump was asked about the rash of incidents during a postelection interview on CBS' "60 Minutes." Trump said he was "saddened," and he looked into the camera and said, "Stop it." But Trump has steadfastly defended his hiring of Bannon, who previously led Breitbart News and in July described it as a "platform for the alt-right"  just a month before he took the job running the Republican nominee's campaign.

Jared Taylor, editor of the white supremacist magazine "American Renaissance," said Trump bears some responsibility for his pitched rhetoric, which included describing Mexican immigrants as "rapists" at the outset of his campaign and proposing a ban on all Muslim immigrants. But Taylor said Trump is still unfairly maligned as a white supremacist and racist because he "cares about Americans already here."

But white supremacist imagery was a common sight at Trump rallies. Pepe the frog, a cartoon character appropriated by the white supremacist movement on social media, appeared on dozens of T-shirts and signs. The "Make America Great Again" motto was seen by some as a call back to the nation's simpler, whiter, past. While Trump's campaign never actively courted votes from the movement, it did recognize the long-term fears that some whites feel about immigration.

Taylor insisted, "There's nothing Ku Klux Klan about any of this."

But, in fact, Trump drew Klan backing.

As part of his prolific Twitter use, he has retweeted white nationalist accounts and a famous quote of Benito Mussolini, the 20th century fascist leader of Italy, saying "It is better to live one day as a lion than 100 years as a sheep." In February, Trump declined to repudiate former Klan leader David Duke during a CNN interview. Afterward, Trump blamed the move on a faulty earpiece, only to come back days later and offer an explicit condemnation.

He has several times fallen back on the excuse of merely retweeting when asked about his controversial social media behavior. In February, he retweeted a message from the account of a neo-Nazi, which came shortly after he retweeted false crime statistics that dramatically overstated the number of whites killed by blacks.

"Bill, am I gonna check every statistic?" he asked Fox News host Bill O'Reilly at the time. "All it was is a retweet. It wasn't from me."

While Trump is quick to blast his foes on Twitter  in recent days that includes The New York Times and the cast of the Broadway musical "Hamilton"  he has yet to proactively condemn racist acts his win has inspired. His eldest son, Don Jr, has used Twitter to liken Syrian refugees to a poisoned bowl of Skittles candy, and he has posted images of Pepe. And Trump's rise to political celebrity came as he peddled the falsehood that the nation's first black president, Barack Obama, was born in Africa, not in the United States.

In an interview last week with The New York Times, Trump did denounce the white supremacist movement when asked, saying "I condemn them. I disavow, and I condemn." But he has yet to convene the traditional news conference held by a president-elect in the days after winning where he could potentially face more pointed questions about it.

The ADL's Segal called Trump's answers when questioned an important step to "allay any illusions" white supremacists have about their place in a Trump administration.

But Ben Jealous, a former national president of the NAACP, went a step further, saying Trump should "pull a George Wallace." The segregationist Alabama governor ran for president on white identity politics but years later publicly apologized for his views.

Trump "shouldn't just disavow the worst behavior of others," Jealous said, "but take accountability for the worst behavior he's engaged in himself."
After Cuban leader Fidel Castro passed away, Justin Trudeau marked his death by calling him a "remarkable leader" who would be mourned by Canada.

Twitterati immediately lashed out on an otherwise social media favourite, Trudeau. The Canadian Prime Minister became the target for his remarks over Castro's death, which comes as a surprise.

Trudeau's statements were soon heavily criticised on social media, with #trudeaueulogies trending for all the wrong reasons.

While Trudeau mentioned earlier about Castro being a "controversial figure", he now made further statements, defending his initial remarks. At a press conference in Madagascar, Trudeau called Castro "a polarising figure" and that he had a "deep and lasting impact on the Cuban people", The Independent reported.

Meanwhile, according to NDTV, Castro who was widely known for violating human rights, Twitter imagined what Trudeau would say about Joseph Stalin, the former leader of the Soviet Union.

Users lashed out at Trudeau for praising a leader who was largely considered a dictator.

Disgraceful statement from Justin Trudeau re Castro. No, Justin, Fidel didn't "serve" Cuban people. He made them serve him. For 60 years. https://t.co/E413zutMwS  Bret Stephens (@StephensWSJ) November 26, 2016

Yes, Fidel Castro murdered, tortured, and imprisoned thousands, but unlike Donald Trump he never attacked Rosie O'Donnell #trudeaueulogies  Nick Gillespie (@nickgillespie) November 27, 2016

Osama Bin Laden was certainly a controversial figure, but his contribution to airport security is unparalleled. #TrudeauEulogies  Deplorable Michael (@Beezer1776) November 27, 2016

@JustinTrudeau you don't speak for me as a Canadian about Fidel Castro. He was a murderous dictator that should've been dead long ago. https://t.co/W7VDfQJIyO  Alan Perkins (@aperkins_) November 26, 2016

Let us remember Jack the Ripper as a great benefactor who worked tirelessly to get female prostitutes off the streets. #trudeaueulogies  Natalie Faulk (@NatalieFaulk) November 27, 2016

Trudeau had a chance to stand for freedom and human dignity today and instead stood with a brutal dictator. https://t.co/TflJeaG3vp #castro  Kellie Leitch (@KellieLeitch) November 26, 2016

Trump's statement on Castro is better than Justin Trudeau's statement tbh. https://t.co/Xgum8RyNp5  Josh Barro (@jbarro) November 26, 2016

Trudeau also agreed to Castro being a dictator and having raised the issue of human rights in his previous visit to Cuba.
BERLIN The head of Germany's foreign affairs committee, an ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, called on Monday for Berlin to impose sanctions on Russia because of its supporting role in the war in Syria.The Syrian army and its allies announced the capture of a swathe of eastern Aleppo from rebels on Monday in an accelerating attack that threatens to crush the opposition in its most important urban stronghold.Norbert Roettgen, a lawmaker in Merkel's Christian Democratic (CDU) party, and Greens parliamentarian Franziska Brantner said that the West must act immediately in view of the Syrian-Russian attacks in eastern Aleppo."The EU must at least impose sanctions on the Russian henchmen of these atrocities," they wrote in a statement.

"It's not acceptable that those responsible for war crimes fly to Munich or Paris to do their Christmas shopping while women and children are dying in Syria," they added.The leaders of the United States and five European countries discussed their concerns about Syria during a meeting in Berlin on Nov. 18 but did not talk about imposing Syria-related sanctions against Russia that have been sought by the Syrian opposition.

Roettgen and Brantner said while sanctions would only work slowly, Russian President Vladimir "Putin would have to take their effects into account in his calculations on the consequences of his actions in Syria."A spokeswoman for the German foreign ministry said on Monday that an immediate humanitarian ceasefire was necessary in Aleppo for the sake of the people there.

"This tragedy must end. The regime and its supporters, above all Russia and Iran, bear the biggest responsibility for that," the spokeswoman said. (Reporting by Andreas Rinke; Writing by Michelle Martin; Editing by Tom Heneghan)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Pyongyang: North Korea began three days of official mourning on Monday for late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, remembering him as a "close friend" and heroic ally in a joint struggle against the US aggression.

Flags flew at half-mast at official buildings across the country as a mark of respect for the revolutionary icon, despite a relationship that was often warmer in rhetoric than reality.

In the Pyongyang subway, commuters in one station crowded around a glass case containing a Castro obituary published by the ruling party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun. Alongside a picture framed with a black border and showing a head-and-shoulder shot of a bearded Castro in full military dress, the obit recalled his visit to North Korea in 1986 when he met founder-leader Kim Il-Sung.

It noted that the Cuban leader was awarded the title of "DPRK (North Korea) Hero" for his efforts to strengthen relations between two countries "fighting in the outposts of the anti-US, anti-imperialist struggle."

Kim Hong-Chol, 76, a retired literary researcher in Pyongyang, said he clearly remembered Kim's visit. "He was a great revolutionary. Until the last minute he supported and defended our revolution, and fought intensely for anti-imperialist independence and against America," Kim told AFP.

Asked about the historic restoration of Cuba-US diplomatic relations last year, Kim said Havana had acted

"tactically for Cuba's revolutionary benefit".

Ordinary North Koreans usually express only officially-sanctioned views when questioned by foreign news

organisations.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un sent a condolence message on Castro's death, calling him a "close friend and comrade" of the Korean people.

An official delegation led by senior Kim aide and vice chairman of the ruling Workers' Party Central Committee, Choe Ryong-Hae, left for Havana on Monday to attend memorial events.

Castro only made the one visit to the North. The fact that it came decades after the Cuban revolution and Kim's ascent to power was partly a reflection of a geographical, cultural and often ideological divide that a shared hatred of the "US enemy" could never fully bridge.

Neither Kim Il-Sung nor his son and successor Kim Jong-Il  who had a profound fear of flying  ever made the trip to Havana.
By Philip Pullella

| VATICAN CITY

VATICAN CITY Pope Francis will make the first papal trip to Ireland in nearly 40 years, the country's prime minister said on Monday, amid signs he could also become the first Roman Catholic pope to visit Northern Ireland.The Argentine-born pontiff confirmed the visit in 2018 to Prime Minister Enda Kenny during a meeting at the Vatican in which the Irish leader tried to put an end to years of difficult relations between the Vatican and Dublin.The late Pope John Paul visited the island in 1979 but could not go north because of violence between Protestant loyalists who want the province to stay in the United Kingdom and Catholic nationalists who want it to unite with the Irish Republic.A delicate power-sharing agreement between the two sides in 1998 ended three decades of violence that cost over 3,600 lives. Despite some continued activity by militants, security would now be much less a problem than before that peace deal. "We discussed what he might do ... and obviously if that means that he also travels to Northern Ireland, then we will assist in cooperating in making whatever arrangements," Kenny told reporters after his meeting with the pope.In Northern Ireland, UTV television quoted Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness as saying, "I think there is no prospect whatsoever of him coming to Ireland and him not coming to the north."

The province's most famous Protestant leader, the late Presbyterian preacher Ian Paisley, once railed against John Paul as the antichrist. But after the 1998 Good Friday agreement, he turned around and agreed to become the province's first minister and share power with his onetime Catholic foes.His successor as first minister, Democratic Unionist Party leader Arlene Foster, said she would be willing to meet the pope if he travels to Northern Ireland. But she said in a statement the invitation must come from the British Foreign Office. Kenny indicated he believed Francis, who will attend a worldwide meeting of Catholic families in Dublin, would also go to the north. He would need an invitation from local authorities and at least the tacit agreement of the British government.

"This is a pope who has visited places that people did not expect him to visit," Kenny said. "He is deliberately moving the Church towards the people and particularly towards those who are poor and dispossessed."The Catholic Church's once blanket influence on politics and society in Ireland has plummeted in recent years in the wake of a series of clerical sex abuse scandals.In 2011, Dublin stunned the Vatican by closing its embassy to the Vatican, bringing relations between the once ironclad allies to an all-time low.

The closure followed a row earlier that year over the Irish Church's handling of sex abuse cases and accusations that the Vatican had encouraged secrecy.Ireland was the only major country of ancient Catholic tradition without an embassy to the Vatican until a scaled-down embassy was reopened in 2014.In a defeat for the Church and the Vatican, Ireland backed same-sex marriage in a referendum last year. (Additional reporting by Conor Humphries in Dublin; Editing by Tom Heneghan)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Steve Scherer

| ROME

ROME A record number of migrants have reached Italy by boat from North Africa in 2016, according to official data, as pressure on Italy's shelter and asylum systems grows. Italy has borne the brunt of new arrivals since the implementation in March of an agreement between the European Union and Turkey to curb the flow of migrants sailing for Greece.As of Nov. 28, 171,299 boat migrants had reached Italy's shores, the Interior Ministry said, compared to the previous record of 170,100 for all of 2014. There is no sign of a let-up in people crossing. Some 1,400 more migrants were rescued from rubber and wooden boats attempting to cross the central Mediterranean during Monday, Italy's coast guard said.

In the past three years, Italy has recorded nearly half a million migrant arrivals. Many have fled war, poverty or political oppression.The influx has brought a record number of asylum requests this year in Italy where more than 176,000 asylum seekers now live in shelters. This is putting the country's asylum process and legal system under increasing pressure. [nL8N1DP32O]

While there had been hope that a government formed in Tripoli in March would help stop people smuggling, it has not. Libya remains fertile ground for traffickers as local militias and a rival government in Tobruk compete for power.Most of the migrants who have come to Italy this year are Africans of various nationalities. Some 36,000 Nigerians have made the trip, about 21 percent of the total, along with 20,000 Eritreans and more than 12,000 from Guinea.

An estimated 4,663 migrants have died in the Mediterranean this year as a record number of unaccompanied minors have come to Italy. As of the end of October, almost 23,000 unaccompanied minors -- mostly teenage boys -- had arrived, compared with 13,000 during the whole of 2014.During the more stormy winter months, arrivals in the past have dropped, but rescuers are concerned this year that there will not be enough vessels to go to their aid. (Additional reporting by Reuters TV and Isla Binnie; editing by Ralph Boulton and Richard Lough)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
BEIRUT Hundreds of people left the besieged town of Khan al-Shih southwest of Damascus on Monday under a deal with the Syrian government for safe passage to other rebel-held areas, a monitoring group said. The Syrian government, helped by Russian air power and Iran-backed militias, has steadily quashed armed opposition to its rule in the remaining pockets of resistance around the capital using a series of army offensives and evacuation agreements. Damascus describes the deals as reconciliation or settlement agreements, but rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad say they involve the forcible displacement of whole communities from opposition areas after years of siege and bombardment.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the civil war, said 10 buses had left Khan al-Shih for rebel-held Idlib province, but that it was unclear if they were carrying fighters themselves or only their families. As part of the deal, around 1,450 rebels and 1,400 relatives are due to leave the town, the British-based Observatory reported. The process will require 42 buses, in addition to nearly 25 ambulances for injured civilians and fighters, it said.

Local sources in Khan al-Shih told Reuters earlier that 3,000 people, half of them fighters, were expected to evacuate the suburb, most of them on Monday. The United Nations estimates 12,000 people have been besieged in Khan al-Shih, where a Palestinian refugee camp is located, for years. Heavy clashes and air strikes have rocked the area during the past month until the evacuation deal was agreed last week.Khan al-Shih is the only town not controlled by the government along a major supply route between Damascus and government-held territory in the southern province of Quneitra.

In previous such deals, insurgents have been allowed to keep light weapons. Rebels in Khan al-Shih handed in their heavy weapons on Sunday as part of the deal, state-affiliated media and the Observatory said. Syrian state-run Ikhbariya TV, broadcasting from near Khan al-Shih on Sunday, said 3,000 to 4,500 remaining people would be taken back into government-controlled areas, citing sources within the local administration.

Syria's Minister of National Reconciliation Affairs, Ali Haidar, whose department administers the agreements, could not immediately be reached for comment. Haidar has previously said such amnesties are "a workable model to bring security and peace" after more than five years of war. The conflict pits Assad, supported by Russia and Iran, against an array of mostly Sunni rebel groups, some backed by Turkey, Gulf monarchies or the United States. (Reporting by Ellen Francis in Beirut, additional reporting by Kinda Makieh in Damascus; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Steve Holland and Melissa Fares

| NEW YORK

NEW YORK President-elect Donald Trump stepped up his search on Monday for a new U.S. secretary of state, with the focus on former CIA head David Petraeus, who is a candidate despite admitting he shared classified information with his lover.Petraeus, a retired general, held a meeting with the Republican winner of the Nov. 8 election at Trump Tower in Manhattan. Once the top U.S. military commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, Petraeus was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $100,000 last year for the unauthorised removal and retention of classified information.He admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012.Petraeus has also been mentioned as a possible new secretary of defence. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, is also holding talks with Mitt Romney on Tuesday in his second recent meeting with the 2012 Republican presidential nominee.U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are also in the mix for the job of America's top diplomat, Trump aides say. Petraeus said after meeting Trump that the New York businessman "basically walked us around the world" in their discussion. "He showed a great grasp of the variety of challenges that are out there and some of the opportunities as well," Petraeus told reporters.

A Republican source close to the transition team said it had appeared late last week that Trump was leaning toward choosing Romney but that the appearance of Petraeus at Trump Tower suggested the president-elect was still undecided and casting a wider net for the secretary of state position. Frances Townsend, a national security aide during the administration of Republican President George W. Bush, also met Trump on Monday.PETRAEUS TROUBLES

Petraeus' past mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to Trump offering him a top government post, said a source who has advised the transition team on national security. That is despite Trump harshly criticizing Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the election campaign for using a private email server while she was secretary of state.Trump often compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against Clinton, who was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but never charged with any offence."Just based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received a lot more punishment," Among the Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said.

Giuliani is favoured by aides who worked on the election campaign, while ideological conservatives are more inclined toward John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded, but some in the Trump camp do not want too many senators coming into the Cabinet, the source said.Trump arrived back in New York on Sunday after several days in Florida for Thanksgiving. He caused a stir on Sunday when he alleged on Twitter that serious voter fraud had occurred in the presidential election in New Hampshire, Virginia, and California - states won by Clinton - but provided no evidence to back his assertion.The White House said on Monday there had been no evidence of widespread election fraud in the presidential contest, and all three states rejected Trump's allegation. New Hampshire's deputy secretary of state, David Scanlan, said: Theres no evidence that weve seen that supports claims like that. Voter fraud does occur, but it occurs in isolated instances.California Secretary of State Alex Padilla called Trump's allegations unsubstantiated and Virginia Commissioner of Elections Edgardo Cortes said they were unfounded. (Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington and Julia Harte in Washington; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Peter Cooney)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Steve Holland and David Brunnstrom

| NEW YORK/WASHINGTON

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON President-elect Donald Trump on Monday stepped up his search for a new U.S. secretary of state, with the focus on former CIA head David Petraeus, who is a candidate despite admitting he shared classified information with his mistress.Petraeus, a retired general, arrived at Trump Tower in Manhattan to meet with the Republican winner of the Nov. 8 election. Once the top U.S. military commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, Petraeus was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $100,000 last year for the unauthorised removal and retention of classified information.He admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012.Petraeus has also been mentioned as a possible new secretary of defense. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, is also holding talks with Mitt Romney on Tuesday in his second recent meeting with the 2012 Republican presidential nominee.U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani are also in the mix for the job of America's top diplomat, Trump aides say. Trump spokesman Jason Miller, asked if the president-elect was nearing the end of his search for a secretary of state, said Trump is using the interview process as he works toward a final decision on the position.

"Hell complete that when hes ready," Miller said. "Hes going to pick the person that he thinks will do the absolutely best job.PETRAEUS TROUBLES

Petraeus' past mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to him being offered a top government post, even though Trump harshly criticized Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the election campaign for using a private email server while she was secretary of state.

Trump often compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against Clinton, who was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation but never charged with any offence."Just based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received a lot more punishment," said a source who has advised the transition team on national security.Among the Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said.

Giuliani is favoured by aides who worked on the election campaign while ideological conservatives are more inclined toward John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded but some in the Trump camp do not want too many senators coming into the Cabinet, the source said.Trump arrived back in New York on Sunday after several days in Florida for Thanksgiving. He caused a stir on Sunday when he alleged on Twitter that serious voter fraud had occurred in the presidential election in New Hampshire, Virginia, and California - states won by Clinton - but provided no evidence to back his assertion.The White House said on Monday there has been no evidence of widespread election fraud in the presidential contest, and all three states rejected Trump's claim. New Hampshire's deputy secretary of state, David Scanlan, said: Theres no evidence that weve seen that supports claims like that. Voter fraud does occur, but it occurs in isolated instances, he said.California Secretary of State Alex Padilla called Trump's allegations unsubstantiated and Virginia Commissioner of Elections Edgardo Cortes said they were unfounded. (Additional reporting by Melissa Fares in New York and Julia Harte in Washington; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Steve Holland and David Brunnstrom

| NEW YORK/WASHINGTON

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON President-elect Donald Trump on Monday stepped up his search for a new U.S. secretary of state on Monday, with the focus on former CIA head David Petraeus who is a candidate despite admitting he shared classified information with his mistress.The Republican was to meet Petraeus, a retired general, at Trump Tower in Manhattan in a new round of interviews.Once the top U.S. military commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, Petraeus was sentenced to two years' probation and fined $100,000 last year for the unauthorised removal and retention of classified information.He admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, with whom he was having an affair. The scandal forced Petraeus to resign from the CIA in 2012.Petraeus has also been mentioned as a possible new secretary of defence. Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, is also holding talks with Mitt Romney on Tuesday in his second recent meeting with the 2012 Republican presidential nominee.U.S. Senator Bob Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani are also in the mix for the job of America's top diplomat, Trump aides say. Trump spokesman Jason Miller, asked if the president-elect was nearing the end of his search for a secretary of state, said Trump is using the interview process as he works toward a final decision on the position.

"Hell complete that when hes ready," Miller said. "Hes going to pick the person that he thinks will do the absolutely best job.PETRAEUS TROUBLES

Petraeus' past mishandling of classified documents is unlikely to be an obstacle to him being offered a top government post, even though Trump harshly criticized Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during the election campaign for using a private email server while she was secretary of state.

Trump often compared the prosecution of Petraeus with the lack of legal action against Clinton, who was investigated by the FBI but never charged with any offence."Just based on his public statements, I think (Trump) sees Petraeus as a good man who made a mistake, who did a fraction of what other people have done and received a lot more punishment," said a source who has advised the transition team on national security.Among the Trump transition team, Petraeus and Romney are supported by Republicans looking for a candidate with gravitas who can unify the party, the source said.

Giuliani is favoured by aides who worked on the election campaign while ideological conservatives are more inclined towards John Bolton, the former ambassador to the United Nations, the source said. Corker is well regarded but some in the Trump camp do not want too many senators coming into the Cabinet, the source said.Trump arrived back in New York on Sunday after several days in Florida for Thanksgiving. He caused a stir by on Sunday when he alleged on Twitter that serious voter fraud had occurred in the presidential election in New Hampshire, Virginia, and California -- states won by Clinton -- but provided no evidence to back his assertion.In New Hampshire, the deadline to apply for a recount has already passed. Any strong evidence of widespread voter fraud in New Hampshire could still be investigated by the states attorney general, according to David Scanlan, the states deputy secretary of state.But Scanlan emphasized that his office had not received reports of voter fraud on the scale alleged by Trump. Theres no evidence that weve seen that supports claims like that. Voter fraud does occur, but it occurs in isolated instances, he said.California Secretary of State Alex Padilla said Trump's "unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd." (Additional reporting by Melissa Fares in New York and Julia Harte in Washington; Writing by Alistair Bell)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
By Michelle Nichols

| UNITED NATIONS

UNITED NATIONS The United Nations Security Council is set to vote on Wednesday morning on a U.S.-drafted resolution to impose new sanctions on North Korea over its fifth and largest nuclear test conducted in September, diplomats said on Monday.Diplomats said the council's five veto-wielding powers - the United States, China, Britain, Russia and France - had agreed to new measures, seen by Reuters on Friday, that target Pyongyang's export earnings.North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions since 2006. It conducted its latest nuclear test on Sept. 9, and the United States and China, a North Korean ally, then spent more than two months negotiating new sanctions. The draft resolution was given to the full 15-member council on Friday. It intends to close loopholes in sanctions imposed in March, following Pyongyang's fourth nuclear test in January. That resolution banned the 193 U.N. member states from importing North Korean coal, iron and iron ore unless such transactions were for "livelihood purposes" and would not generate revenue for Pyongyang's nuclear and missile programs.

The new sanctions to be voted on Wednesday would cap North Korean coal exports at $400.9 million or 7.5 million metric tonnes annually, whichever is lower, starting on Jan. 1. Over the first 10 months of this year China has imported 18.6 million tonnes of coal from North Korea, up almost 13 percent from a year ago. Coal is particularly important to the economic health of North Korea because it is one of its only sources of hard currency and its largest single export item. North Korea would also be banned from exporting copper, nickel, silver and zinc. The draft resolution would prohibit the export of North Korean helicopters, vessels and statues, banning deals similar to multimillion-dollar contracts that Pyongyang had signed to build large statues in some African countries.

It calls on U.N. states to reduce the number of staff at North Korea's foreign missions and requires countries to limit the number of bank accounts to one per North Korean diplomatic mission amid worries that Pyongyang had used its diplomats and foreign missions to engage in illicit activities.The draft text says that countries can inspect the personal luggage of individuals entering or leaving North Korea as it could be a way to transport banned items.

The Security Council would blacklist a further 11 individuals, including people who have served as ambassadors to Egypt and Myanmar, and 10 entities, subjecting them to a global travel ban and asset freeze for their role in the North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile programs.The sale or transfer of luxury items to North Korea has long been banned by the Security Council and the draft resolution adds rugs or tapestries worth more than $500 and porcelain or bone china tableware valued at more than $100 to the list. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The state of Wisconsin in the United States holds ten electoral votes for the presidential election. The Republican presidential candidate and now President-elect Donald Trump narrowly won Wisconsin by a narrow margin of 22,000 votes. The president-elect got 1,404,000 votes against his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's 1,381,823.

But now, Wisconsin  one of three battleground US states won by Trump  will undergo votes recounting after it received two petitions in this regard from a third-party candidate.

Here are the key points:

1. The petition for recounting of votes was filed by Green Party candidate Jill Stein who alleged that Russian hackers may have infiltrated the voting systems in the state. Statistical anomalies were also observed in Wisconsin. For example, in some Wisconsin counties, more votes were recorded than the number of registered voters.

2. Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Michael Haas said they are preparing to move forward with a statewide recount of votes for President of the United States. According to The Uptake, local election officials will decide the final tally. While some of the counties in Wisconsin use paper ballots, others use electronic voting machines.

3. The report also said that the recount is supposed to be public and the media is allowed to broadcast the counting. However, only election officials can touch the ballots.

4. The Wisconsin Elections Commission said it plans to complete the recount of votes by 10 December.

5. Stein said she also plans to challenge the presidential election results in Pennsylvania and Michigan, where Trump won.

6. Trump is obviously not happy with the recounting. He had insisted on Saturday that his presidential win should be respected, not "challenged and abused." Clinton's campaign said it would join the recount, although it has not seen any irregularities so far in the White House contest won by Trump.

7. John Bonifaz, founder of the National Voting Rights Institute, told Newsweek that this was not a partisan effort because once the election was over, the partisans usually didn't bother going through the anamolies.

8. If the tallies of the recount are different from that on election night, Wisconsin has to go with the recount tallies. This could further lead to more investigation and may open the door for more recounting, according to Bonifaz.

9. Marc Erik Elias, an election lawyer for Clinton, said that "because we had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves."

10. Clinton lost by around 20,000 votes in Wisconsin, 70,000 votes in Pennsylvania and 10,000 votes in Michigan.

With inputs from agencies


Taiwan-based Benq announced the launch of the Zowie XL2540, the latest gaming monitor under XL series for PC e-Sports. This monitor comes with a Shield on both sides that can be modified corresponding to the user preference.

It also comes with a feature called Black eQualizer that enhances the visibility in dark scenes without exposing too much. The Zowie XL2450 also has 20 levels of Color Vibrance settings to maintain the viewing requirements for game play.

BenQ Zowie XL2540 specifications

24.5-inch LCD (19201080 pixels) display

High Refresh Rate: 240 Hz

DVI-DL

2 HDMI ports

1 Headphone jack

1 Mic jack

Dimension: High: 515.43 x 569.94 x 226.04 Low: 445.75 x 569.94 x 226.04

Weight: 7.5kg

The BenQ Zowie XL2540 gaming monitor is now available at Rs. 45,000.

Commenting on the launch, Rajeev Singh, Managing Director, BenQ India said:
Upcycled Foods, an innovation and ingredient platform for food manufacturers, has unveiled five commercial ingredient solutions  two of which were developed with... Read More
If you're already receiving Social Security and are curious how you compare with other recipients, or you're fast approaching retirement and you want to get a better feel for how much money you can expect from the program, you're probably curious how much the average American collects in Social Security income. The short answer is that the average retired worker will receive $1,360 per month in 2017. The long answer is that the amount that Americans receive in Social Security will vary widely next year.

How is Social Security calculated?

Social Security is designed to replace roughly 40% of a worker's pre-retirement income. However, the calculation used by Social Security is complex, and a person's actual benefit depends a great deal on his or her work history.

Social Security calculates your monthly benefit by adjusting your highest 35 years of monthly income into current dollars and then averaging those amounts to come up with your average indexed monthly earnings (AIME).

Multipliers are then applied to the AIME at various income levelsto determine your primary insurance amount, or PIA. In 2017, these multipliers, or bend points, occur at the $885 and $5,336 levels. Specifically, the PIA is based on the sum of 90% of AIME up to $885, 32% of AIME up to $5,336, and 15% on any income above $5,336. In 2017, the maximum benefit payable to a worker retiring at full retirement age, or the age at which a person qualifies for 100% of his or her benefit, is $2,687.

What people really get in Social Security Income

In 2015, 2.8 million Americans were awarded Social Security benefits, and as you can see in the following chart, the amounts payable to them ranged widely. Over 217,000 Social Security recipients were awarded less than $500 per month, and more than 433,000 were awarded north of $2,100 per month.

Data source: Social Security Administration. Chart by author.

Across the entire universe of Social Security recipients, the amount pocketed also varies widely. Ignoring the two extremes of high- and low-income recipients, you see that most Americans are getting somewhere between $750 per month and $1,800 per month this year.

Data source: Social Security Administration. Chart by author.

Maximizing your benefit

If you're approaching retirement, you've already worked 35 years, and your income is higher now than it was in the past, your best bet to a higher Social Security payment may be to continue working. Social Security uses only your 35 highest-income years, so every additional year worked at a higher income today will remove a lower-income year from Social Security's calculation.

Further, working beyond your full retirement age can pay off with a higher monthly Social Security payment due to delayed retirement credits. Social Security rewards people for holding off on claiming until after their full retirement age by increasing their payout by about 8% per year up until age 70.

If you're a bit further away from retirement, then it may be a good time to ask your employer for a raise. The average American's hourly earnings grew 2.8% year over year in October, and if your income isn't keeping pace, it may be worth bringing up the topic with your supervisor. After all, unless you're already at the maximum benefit, any additional money you earn every year can increase your AIME and primary insurance amount.

Finally, if you're 62 and want to retire, consider working half-time while collecting your Social Security benefit. If you claim at 62 you'll receive roughly 75% of what you would otherwise receive at your full retirement age, and if your earnings eclipse $16,920, then Social Security will hold back $1 for every $2 you earn above that limit. Those withheld dollars will then be used to increase your benefit once you reach your full retirement age.

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With just a few weeks to go in 2016, Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) shareholders are straddling the line between optimism and pessimism. Including dividends, their investment return has been almost exactly equal to the broader market.

Data through Nov. 27.PG Total Return Price data by YCharts.

The consumer goods giant is currently the 18th best performer out of the 30 members of the Dow this year. So P&G isn't trouncing the market -- but it's not set to finish among the Dogs of the Dow (as it did last year), either.

With 2016 looking like a toss-up, let's pull out the crystal ball and consider a few reasons why shareholders might be in for a rougher year ahead.

More market turmoil

The biggest potential spoiler to P&G's 2017 is also something over which it has no control: weak market conditions. Stubbornly low demand in rich markets like the U.S. and developing ones like China and Russia held back results over the last two years. Thus, the disappointing 2% organic sales uptick in fiscal 2015 was followed by an even weaker 1% last year.

Fiscal 2017 is off to an encouraging start, with organic growth improving to a 3% pace. However, the global outlook isn't great. Rival Unilever (NYSE: UL) recently warned that consumer demand weakened in many of its biggest markets. And Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB), which competes with P&G's flagship Pampers brands, told investors that "we experienced a more challenging and competitive environment" in the third quarter. Both Unilever and Kimberly-Clark reported slowing growth rates and forecast another year of sluggish gains ahead.

For its part, P&G held to its projection of a 2% organic sales gain in fiscal 2017. That would mark a welcome improvement over last year's nearly flat, but it's still below the 3% (or better) that P&G routinely managed until fiscal 2015.

Rivals steal market share

Even if demand firms up around the world, P&G's stock can still underperform if it continues to shed market share. After all, its business model depends on the company's growing at a slightly faster rate than the industries it competes in, which hasn't happened in the last two years.

Image source: Getty Images.

Many factors contributed to that poor result, but one of the biggest has been stiff competition on the value end of P&G's product lines. In shaving, for example, cheaper disposable razors and online subscription options -- such as Unilever's Dollar Shave Club -- have eaten away at Gillette's formidable market share lead.

P&G believes it can turn the tide in shaving and across its portfolio through a mix of better product innovations, more competitive pricing, and increased advertising support. Investors so far are buying management's rebound plan, but they'll be understandably disappointed if it doesn't result in a better market share result next year.

The portfolio gamble doesn't pay off

For most of the last two years, P&G has been working at slicing 100 brands out of its portfolio. Besides the short-term bonus that initiative delivered to shareholders in the form of huge cash returns, executives claimed that the portfolio they're left with will be easier to steer through changing consumer preferences while also generating better profits and faster growth.

Image source: Getty Images.

With the sale of 41 Coty beauty products last quarter, the brand-shedding initiative is basically done, and so investors will be looking for evidence that the transformation was a success.

While CEO David Taylor and his team have cautioned not to expect a quick spike in growth, they also predicted that the remaining brands, led by powerhouse franchises like Tide detergent and Bounty paper towels, will grow at a 1% faster organic sales pace and sport a profit margin that's 2 percentage points better than before.

If those improvements don't begin to materialize in 2017, investors will be right to question whether management blundered by selling off almost $10 billion worth of well-recognized global franchises.

Valued at 21 times next year's earnings, P&G's stock seems reasonably priced -- if you believe the company is entering a new chapter of increased profitability and sales growth. On the other hand, if 2017 fails to deliver better operating trends, the stock could significantly lag indexes next year.

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What makes a stock a good fit for a retirement portfolio? Most older investors want steady dividend payments for income, but don't want to give up the potential for growth. These three pharmaceutical stocks should be able to deliver both. Here's why Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY), AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV), and Lilly (NYSE: LLY) could offer the right investment prescription for you.

Image source: Getty Images.

Banking on Opdivo

Bristol-Myers Squibb easily checks off the dividend requirement. Its yield stands at a respectable 2.68%. Bristol has also claimed one of the best Big Pharma dividends over the last two decades.

The real attraction for Bristol now, though, comes from its growth potential. Wall Street analysts project the drugmaker will grow annual earnings by 17.8% on average over the next five years. These rosy forecasts stem largely from expected success for one drug: Opdivo.

During the first nine months of 2016, Opdivo generated sales of $2.46 billion. That's nearly double the sales racked up in the prior year period. However, not all the news for the cancer drug has been great. Bristol announced disappointing results from a late-stage study using it as a first-line treatment fornon-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Despite this clinical setback, the company still has high expectations for Opdivo and plans to explore more possibilities in combination with other drugs. While much of Bristol's growth depends on the cancer treatment, the drugmaker also continues to see strong sales growth for blood thinner Eliquis. And, the brightest near-term prospect in Bristol's pipeline, prostate cancer vaccine Prostvac, could generate peak annual sales of $1.3 billion if approved.

Humming along with Humira

If you like Bristol-Myers Squibb's dividend yield, you'll love AbbVie's current yield of just over 4%. The company has been able to pay out such nice dividends thanks in large part to Humira, which ranked as the world's top-selling drug in 2015. The immunosuppressant, which is used to treat a range of conditions including arthritis, plaque psoriasis and Crohn's disease, seems likely to retain its top spot this year.

Wall Street analysts think that AbbVie will achieve average annual earnings growth of almost 15% over the next five years. Continued strength for Humira will be an important factor for the company to hit this goal, but the company has another solid growth driver with cancer drug Imbruvica.

Expect Imbruvica to become even more key to AbbVie's fortunes over the next few years. The drug could reach peak annual sales of more than $6 billion. While that's well below the $14 billion that Humira generated last year, it's still impressive.

AbbVieshould also get help from its pipeline. One standout potential candidate is elagolix. The company expects to submit the experimental drug for FDA approval as a treatment forendometriosis next year. Elagolix is also in a late-stage study targeting treatment of uterine fibroids.

A potentially game-changing pipeline

Lilly's current dividend yield of 2.66% might seem low compared to its previous levels. However, that negative comparison to the past is mainly a reflection of how well Lilly's stock has performed over the last several years.

Analysts think Lilly will experience solid annual earnings growth of over 11% over the next five years. To do so, the drugmaker will have to overcome several hurdles, including loss of patent exclusivity for Cialis next year.

While Lilly is getting solid sales growth from existing products like cancer drug Erbitux and diabetes treatment Trulicity, the company's pipeline will need to be a big growth engine. Lilly has 18 drugs in late-stage clinical trials. Despite a major disappointment in a recent clinical trial for monoclonal antibody solanezumab as a treatment for Alzheimer's disease, Lilly and partner AstraZenecahave another late-stage candidate for the indication withBACE inhibitorAZD 3293.

Lilly could also give AbbVie a run for its money with baracitinib, which awaits regulatory approval. In a late-stage study, baracitinib was found to be more effective than Humira in treating rheumatoid arthritis.

The bottom line

The dynamics in the pharmaceutical industry can change quickly. Opdivo might not prove to be as successful as expected if newer cancer drugs prove to be more effective. Humira faces challengers that could negatively impact AbbVie's sales. Lilly's other pipeline candidates could flop like solanezumab.

For now, though, Bristol-Myers Squibb, AbbVie, and Lilly look likely to make great additions to investors' retirement portfolios. Their combination of solid dividends with attractive growth make all three drug stocks good picks.

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This August, Bloomberg reported that U.S. corn production will be higher than expected, and is set to reach a record level thanks to improved yields. At the time, corn farmers must have been concerned about the potential oversupply, but theyve just got some great news.

Earlier this week, the EPA finalized the Renewable Fuel Standard, which is part of the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act. The new standard calls for 15 billion gallons of ethanol to be produced from corn in 2017. For reference, one bushel of corn produces around 2.8 gallons of ethanol. The 2016-2017 crops are estimated at 15.15 million bushels.

When the record production estimate was made public by the Department of Agriculture, its effect on corn price futures was identical to the effects of the global crude oil glut on Brent and WTI. The effect of the EPAs latest announcement should, on the other hand, boost prices like an OPEC production cap would boost oil benchmarks.

Unlike Big Corn, however, the oil industry is clearly not happy with the news, even though the biofuel target for 2017 falls short of the original from 2007, which was 24 billion gallons of biofuels: ethanol and biodiesel. The revised 2017 mandate is for 19.28 billion gallons of biofuels, up 6 percent on 2016.

The initial target became impossible to achieve, the FT reminds us, because engines became more efficient and burned less fuel, therefore reducing the need for increasing amounts of biofuels to be blended with the gasoline or diesel to reduce harmful emissions.

The oil price crash turned out to be a boon for biofuels, however, as it raised fuel demand. With crude prices about to stay below US$60 for a while, even with an OPEC agreement, this demand will likely continue to be strong.

Representatives of the renewable fuels industry are happy. The move will send a positive signal to investors, rippling throughout our economy and environment, said the president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association Bob Dinneen.

Oil producers and refiners are worried. Shares in Valero Energy, Tesoro Corp, and HollyFrontier all fell after the announcement. A VP for Tesoro said the new biofuel mandates are unworkable and the downstream director of the American Petroleum Institute called them irresponsible.

While its clear that no government could ever make everyone happy, the new mandates mark what could possibly be a major milestone in the development of the biofuel industry. Until recently, Big Oil slept safe in the knowledge that no one would dare break down the so-called blend wall: the ratio between biofuel and fossil fuel that is safe for the engine. At the moment, the wall is 10 percent or less for maximum effectiveness.

If the 2017 ethanol targets are to be achieved, the blend wall as it looks now might have to be breached. On the other hand, the EIA expects gasoline and distillate demand to grow, which could maintain the wall, which, according to a December 2015 article by Bloomberg, was already breached this year, with the EPA setting the 2016 ethanol target at 14.5 billion gallons out of a total 18.11 billion gallons of biofuels to be blended into gasoline and diesel. Cars and trucks, apparently, survived.

This latest blow to the oil industry could serve a practical purpose: it could deepen their awareness of the changing energy realities and the determination of more than enough stakeholders to advance their greener-economy agenda.

This article was provided courtesy of Oilprice.com.
While Americans are expected to spend a near-record $952 billion during the 2016 holiday shopping season, retailers will be plagued by about $2 billion in fraudulent returns, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF).

That seems like a small number (if any number with nine zeroes in it can be considered small), but it's a problem that hurts shoppers, stores, and even municipalities that lose out on taxes. Part of a $15.9 billion annual problem, return fraud hits consumers the hardest because ultimately it's honest people who are forced to pay the price for the criminal actions of others.

"Certainly there's a loss of tax revenue," NRF VP of Loss Prevention Robert Moraca told the Chicago Tribune. "And every item stolen has to be replaced, and that's passed on to the consumer."

Some of these Black Friday sale items will likely be returned fraudulently. Image source: Best Buy.

This is not a small problem

Overall, on an annual basis, total merchandise returns come to about $260.5 billion for retailers in the United States, according to NRF [opens in PDF]. About 6.1% of that number is people either abusing the return process or making fraudulent returns (coming to the aforementioned $15.9 billion number).

During the holiday season, the NRF estimates, overall returns come in at 10% (about 2% higher than the rest of the year). About 3.5% of those returns end up being fraudulent, a $2.21 billion problem.

"Return fraud remains a critical issue for retailers with the impact spanning far and wide, in-store and online," said Moraca in an NRF report. "While technology has played a significant role in deterring many in-person fraudulent transactions that would have otherwise gone unseen, there is little that can be done to prevent a determined criminal who will find a loophole one way or another. When it comes to retail fraud, retailers can build taller walls, but criminals continue to find taller ladders."

How do the frauds work?

Thieves use a variety of scams to commit return fraud, but nine in 10 retailers told the NRF for its report last year that they have experienced people returning stolen merchandise. In addition, a little over 70% of stores told the trade organization that they deal with "wardrobing," the practice of someone using/wearing an item then returning it.

Other examples of return fraud and the percentage of retailers that say they have experienced them include:

The return of merchandise purchased with counterfeit money (75.8%).

Return fraud made by "known organized retail crime groups" (71%).

"Employee return fraud or collusion with external forces" (77.4%).

"Retailers have the difficult task of providing superior customer service by always giving the benefit of the doubt to their shoppers when it comes to returns, while simultaneously working to make sure they protect their business assets," said Moraca.

What can stores do?

Retailers must make their return policy clear to consumers, including info on whether they track returns or require an ID. Of course, that info is on receipts, signs posted near registers, and in online disclaimer copy that few people read.

Return tracking has been a controversial practice and ultimately it's effective, but only to a point. Despite new efforts at enforcement by retailers, holiday season return fraud has been cut from an estimated $3.4 billion in 2013 and $3.8 billion in 2014 to $2.2 billion in 2015. This year, the NRF expects a number similar to last year if not slightly higher.

Retailers do not yet have the silver bullet that can end return fraud, which ultimately costs all honest shoppers a little bit more every time they buy something.

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Donald Trump campaigned on promises to simplify the tax code for individuals and families, and now that he's wonthe White House, the way appears to be clear for significant tax reform. Trump's tax plan includes reducing the number of income-tax tiers and the maximum tax rate. However, not everyone will see his or her tax rate drop without some proper planning. Here's what you need to know about Donald Trump's tax proposals and how to make the most of them.

DISNEY-ABC TELEVISION GROUP VIA FLICKR.

Managing your tax tiers

Donald Trump's tax plan includes reducing the number of tax tiers to three from seven. His plan eliminates the lowest 10% income-tax tier and it reduces the top tax tier to 33%. If Trump wins support for his tax plan on Capitol Hill, then income-tax rates under Trump could look like this:

TABLE BY SEAN WILLIAMS. DATA SOURCE: DONALD TRUMP CAMPAIGN WEBSITE.

And those brackets are significantly different from what they are currently:

TABLE BY SEAN WILLIAMS. DATA SOURCE: IRS.

If you look closely at those tables again, you'll notice there are winners, losers, and those who will break even under President-elect Trump's plan.

The biggest losers in this plan are low-income families, who will see a 2% tax increase. Those taxpayers don't have many tax planning options, but mid- and high-income earning individuals and families might be able to improve their tax situation with some careful planning.

For example, married tax filers with taxable earnings between $75,000 and $75,300 should consider contributing more to their retirement plan so that they can get their taxable income below $75,000. If they don't, they could see their income-tax rate jump from 15% to 25% under Trump. If they do, then they could drop down into Trump's 12% tax bracket, which would mean that they'd go from a 10% tax increase to a 2% tax decrease.

Couples with taxable income of more than $75,300 should consider their options, too. If they plan appropriately, they could go from breaking even under Trump's tax plan to getting a significant tax cut.

Currently, couples with taxable income of between $75,300 and $151,900 fall into the 25% income-tax bracket. Under Trump's plan, couples who make the maximum $18,000 contribution to an employer-sponsored retirement plan, such as a 401(k) plan, could have taxable income of up to $93,000 and still squeak into Trump's 12% tax tier. In that scenario, these taxpayers could net a 13% tax break under Trump.

Similar strategies could help couples with income that's above, but still near, the maximum$224,999 allowed in Trump's 25% income-tax bracket. If a couple's taxable income is between $225,000 and $231,450, then they'll see their income-tax rate increase from 28% to 33% under Trump. However, a little planning could get these couples below $225,000, netting them a 3% tax break instead.

Further, families with taxable income north of $231,450 who can get their taxable income below $225,000 could go from breaking even under Trump to an 8% tax cut.

Prep for changes to deductions

In addition to changing income-tax brackets, Trump proposes revamping how the IRS handles deductions.

Trump proposes increasing the standard deduction for individuals and couples to $15,000 and $30,000, respectively. That's more than double the current standard deduction of $6,300 for singles and $12,600 for most married couples.

To pay for that increase, Trump's plan would eliminate personal exemptions, which currently stand at $4,050 per individual and dependent. He'll alsolimit itemized deductions to $100,000 for individuals and $200,000 for couples. Taxpayers should also prepare for the integration of changes to deductions proposed by Republican leaders in the past. Those changes includeeliminating itemized deductions, including property taxes, except mortgage interest and charitable giving. Because deductions for high-income earners could disappear, or be crimped significantly, those taxpayers might want to maximize their itemized deductions this year. Further, ifdeductions for state and local taxes end up eliminated, then it could be beneficial to pay any remaining state and local tax balances owed this year, rather than wait until 2017.

If you've got investments with capital gains that you're debating on selling, it may pay off to hang on to those investments a bit longer as well. Trump's proposing to eliminate the 3.8% Medicare net investment income tax, which is applied to taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income north of $200,000 if single, or $250,000 if married and filing jointly. That tax is based on investment income, including dividends and capital gains.

Looking forward

There's no telling how cost-conscious members of Congress will feel about passing significant tax reform that could increase the national debt. Therefore, it's uncertain if all of Trump's proposals will cross the regulatory finish line, or if they do, what tax year they'll begin to kick in. What taxpayers can assume, though, is that tax reform is coming, and that means it may be a good time to sit down with your tax professional sooner, rather than later.

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Image source: Getty Images.

Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX) is on a quest to slim down and refocus its attention on growing shareholder value as opposed to just increasing gold output. To achieve that aim the company is selling non-core assets and using that cash to pay down its mountainous debt. It recently initiated a process to explore the sale of its 50% stake in Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines (KCGM), which is the largest open pit gold mine in Australia. Interest in the asset was reportedly pretty robust, and according to a recent Reuters report, Barrick received a very generous bid for that asset.

Digging into what's at stake

Barrick currently co-owns KCGM with Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM), which is a partnership they have shared for more thana decade. The massive mine produces 700,000 ounces of gold each year, making it one of the largest open pit mining operations in the world. That said, despite its large size, cash costs are expected to range between $610 to $630 an ounce this year, which are well above those of Barrick's core mines, where cash costs are expected to average in a range of $480 to $510 an ounce. Because of those higher costs, and the fact that Barrick is a minority owner, it put the asset on the market to push it closer toward its target to reduce debt by at least $2 billion this year as it strives to become debt free within a decade.

Newmont had hoped to buy out its partner's stake in the mine because it would have tilted the balance of power in the gold sector from Barrick to Newmont, which would have then become the largest gold miner. This shift would not have been a problem with Barrick, which is no longer concerned with size -- only value. That is why the sticking point between the two came down to a disagreement on the mine's valuation, with Barrick wanting a value that was favorable for its shareholders while Newmont wanted to buy the stake at an excellent value. This disagreement on price opened the door for other bidders.

Image source: Getty Images.

The winning bidder?

Because the door was wide open, the bidding drew companies from around the world. However, according to a report by Reuters, Australian mining company Minjar Gold is the leading bidder at $1.3 billion. That is well above the value analysts pegged on the asset, which saw it worth between $600 million to $1 billion. Barrick is currently studying the offer to ensure that Minjar, which is a subsidiary of a larger Shanghai-listed property development and management company, has the resources to complete the transaction.

If the deal does get done at that valuation, it would be a big win for Barrick Gold. That is because it would enable the company to accelerate its debt reduction efforts, putting it a step closer to its ultimate debt reduction goal.

That said, the deal is far from a sure thing. Aside from the concerns about the financial capabilities of Minjar, another issue that could derail the transaction is the recent slump in the price of gold since Barrick put the asset on the market. After peaking at more than $1,350 an ounce this summer, gold is down about 11% to around $1,200 an ounce. Because of that slump, it could not only be harder for Minjar and other buyers to obtain funding but also to justify a premium valuation for the asset.

Investor takeaway

Barrick Gold looks like it is getting close to sealing a deal to unload a non-core asset for a premium price. That would provide the company with more cash than anticipated, enabling it to take a big step forward in its debt reduction plan. That is, of course, assuming the deal goes through, which considering the leading bidder and the weakening gold market is no sure thing at the moment.

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Shanghai skyscrapers. Image source: Getty Images.

What happened

Shares of Fang Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: SFUN) were down 12.2% as of 2:47 p.m. EST, after the Chinese online real estate portal released weaker-than-expected third-quarter 2016 results.

So what

Quarterly revenue rose 1% year over year, to $250.1 million, as growth in e-commerce services revenue was partially offset by declines from marketing services. Analysts, on average, were anticipating significantly higher revenue of $296.5 million.

On the bottom line, that translated to adjusted operating income of $2.4 million, and an adjusted net loss attributable to Fang shareholders of $14.2 million, or $0.03 per American depositary share (ADS). By comparison, in last year's third quarter Fang incurred an adjusted operating loss of $30.6 million, and an adjusted net loss of $31.9 million, or $0.08 per share.

Fang chairman and CEO Vincent Mo explained:

Now what

For the full year 2016, Fang now anticipates revenue of almost $928 million, representing year-over-year growth of roughly 5%. Previously, Fang expected full-year revenue of nearly $1.149 billion.

In the end, Fang might well be on track with its continued transformation, and it's encouraging to see the company turn an operating profit. But given its significant top-line shortfall and regulatory headwinds from the Chinese government, it's no surprise to see investors taking a big step back from Fang stock today.

10 stocks we like better than Fang Holdings When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.*

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U.S. relations with Cuba have been thrown into question following the death of the communist countrys former leader, Fidel Castro, on Friday, and President Obamas term expiring in January.

In December 2014, Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro, Fidels younger brother, announced plans to thaw relations between the two countries. In July of last year, the countries reopened their embassies in each others capital cities.

However, President-elect Donald Trump has held a different stance than his predecessor on the relationship between America and the island country. In a tweet Monday, Trump said he would terminate the agreement Obama made with Cuba if the country doesnt make a better deal for both Cubans and Americans.

Commenting on the future of U.S. relations with Cuba, Cigar Aficionados managing editor, David Savona, said its time for a change, and he hopes thawing relations will continue under a President Trump.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2016

Hopefully President-elect Donald Trump will get more out of it, maybe well press for a little bit more in the way of U.S. business down there, more in the way of freedom which is so needed for the Cuban people because they have suffered unfairly over all these years.

Shortly after Fidel Castros rise to power in 1959, U.S. relations with Cuba soured. In 1961, diplomatic relations were severed under the Eisenhower administration, and in 1962, President John F. Kennedy made a trade embargo with the county official.

The Cuban people have suffered under the Castro government, under the embargo It needs to change and the embargo has been the way of change for more than 50 years, its proved ineffective, Savona said.
Actor Anthony Michael Hall could be in big trouble.

The 48-year-old star was charged with felony assault with serious bodily injury by the Los Angeles District Attorney, TMZ reports.

Hall is alleged to have violently shoved a neighbor during a confrontation at their Playa der Rey apartment complex. The fight reportedly left the neighbor with a broken wrist and injured back.

Undisclosed special circumstances reportedly upped the maximum jail term from four years to seven.

The incident happened in mid-September after the neighbor left his condo gate open which prompted the actor to angrily tell him to shut it, according to TMZ. Hall then went to close the gate himself.

Grainy video appears to show Hall and the other man arguing before the actor roughly pushes his neighbor to the ground and then strides off.

Its not the first time Hall has been in trouble with his neighbors.

TMZ reports that in 2011 he reportedly frightened a number of fellow residents in their Playa del Rey, Calif. neighborhood by shouting obscenities and challenging them to fights.

Halls best known for 80s movies like The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles. He also starred in the television series The Dead Zone.
"Star Wars" actor Mark Hamill weighed in on President-elect Donald Trump saying he's in "total denial" over the election results.

"Im glad I have [my new show 'Pop Culture Quest'] to take my mind off whats going on, Hamill told the Daily Beast. "Because if you look at what's being assembled for our government its like, yikes. It's a whos-who of really despicable people."



Hamill did not mention any of Trump's appointments by name. Several Cabinet positions have been filled since he won the election earlier this month.

Hamill added that while it's "tempting to say" he'll leave the country under a President Trump, it's more challenging to "stay and defend our country and do what you think is right."

He continued, "And not to retreat and hide under the covers. It's not going to be easy, that's for sure."

The actor will reprise his role as Luke Skywalker in 2017's "Star Wars Episode VIII."
Necessity is the mother of invention, the saying goes. And in Cuba, this has proved true among a group of fishermen who have taken to inflating condoms to catch fish. Its called balloon fishing, and the floating condoms carry the anglers bait up to 900 feet from shore to hook trophies.

As NBC Miami reports, Cubans have adopted the method as a result of limited resources and the high cost of purchasing a private boat. The fishermen simply cant get their lines out far enough to catch big fish. No one can cast line that far by hand, said local fisherman Ivan Muno. This is the most effective way to fish. I can be out here all night with the balloons out.

Many of the anglers who use the condoms are looking to feed their families. But many also opt to sell their catches, which can fetch a dollar a pound on an island with an average monthly income of about $25. Selling fish is illegal without a license, but the big money drives many to disregard the law.

Balloon fishing is less risky compared with riding the high seas on an inner tube or on foam blocks, two other popular makeshift ways to catch fish off the Cuban coast. The latter is known as cork fishing, which the Coast Guard cracks down on, but balloon fishing is kosher.

Its efficient and everyone uses it, Alex Romero, Old Havana Federation of Fishermen, told NBC Miami. Its the ingenuity that Cubans always show in resolving problems without spending a lot of money.
Texas officials announced Monday that a woman who tested positive for the Zika virus is likely the first case transmitted by a mosquito in the state.

The woman lives in the Rio Grande Valleys Cameron County on the far southeastern tip of Texas on the Gulf Coast and Mexican border, according to Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) and the Cameron County Department of Health and Human Services.

The patient said she has not been in Mexico or anywhere else with ongoing Zika virus transmissions.

State officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are working to determine exactly how and where the transmission occurred. Officials said they are continuing surveillance for the disease but at the moment they dont believe anyone else in the area was affected through local transmission.

Laboratory tests found the virus in the patients urine but not in her blood, meaning a mosquito can no longer bite her and spread the disease further.

We knew it was only a matter of time before we saw a Zika case spread by a mosquito in Texas, Dr. John Hellerstedt, DSHS commissioner, said in a news release. We still dont believe the virus will become widespread in Texas, but there could be more cases, so people need to protect themselves from mosquito bites, especially in parts of the state that stay relatively warm in the fall and winter.

Cameron County and City of Brownsville Health officials have been trapping and testing mosquitos in the area, as well as conducting an environmental assessment of the patients home. Theyve also sprayed for mosquitos and will take other steps to reduce the areas mosquito population.

County health workers will go door to door starting Monday evening to educate the public about Zika, to help get rid of breeding habitats, and to conduct voluntary tests to determine if there are more infections.

The DSHS said there are multiple towns on the Mexican side of the border where mosquitos are spreading Zika. They urge pregnant women to avoid travel in Mexico and avoid sexual contact with partners who have traveled there. The most common symptoms for Zika are fever, itchy rash, join pain and eye redness.

Although the case is in Cameron County, the DSHS is recommending that pregnant women in Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, Webb, Willacy and Zapata Counties also get tested for Zika; whether or not theyve traveled to an area prone to transmissions. They also suggest statewide testing for anyone with three or more symptoms.

Until last week, there had been 257 confirmed Zika cases in Texas. All cases were associated with travel, including two infants whose mothers traveled during their pregnancy and who had sexual contact with infected travelers.
Editor's note: The following column originally appeared on AEIdeas.org, the blog of the teAmerican Enterprise Institute.



Fidel Castro was a murderous tyrant who summarily executed dissidents and turned the entire island of Cuba into a tropical gulag. According to the Black Book of Communism  a groundbreaking effort by a group of French scholars to document the human toll of Communism in the 20th century  From 1959 through the late 1990s more than 100,000 Cubans experienced life in one of [Castros] camps, prisons, or open-regime sites. Between 15,000 and 17,000 people were shot.

But no matter such minor details of history. A panoply of Western leaders who ought to know better have been heaping praise on the dead dictator since his passing this weekend.

Here are the 10 most appalling examples:

1. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau:

It is with deep sorrow that I learned today of the death of Cubas longest serving President.

Fidel Castro was a larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century. A legendary revolutionary and orator, Mr. Castro made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation.

While a controversial figure, both Mr. Castros supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for el Comandante.

I know my father was very proud to call him a friend and I had the opportunity to meet Fidel when my father passed away. It was also a real honour to meet his three sons and his brother President Raul Castro during my recent visit to Cuba.

On behalf of all Canadians, Sophie and I offer our deepest condolences to the family, friends and many, many supporters of Mr. Castro. We join the people of Cuba today in mourning the loss of this remarkable leader.

2. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon:

The Secretary-General was saddened to learn of the death of Fidel Castro Ruz, former President of Cuba. An emblematic figure of the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro was prominent in Latin America and influential in world affairs. As Prime Minister, President, Commander of the Cuban Armed Forces and First Secretary of the Cuban Communist Party, his role at the helm of Cuba spanned nearly 50 years, during which he left a major imprint on his country and on global politics.

President Fidel Castro will be remembered for his leadership of the Cuban revolution and for advances in Cuba in the fields of education, literacy and health. His revolutionary ideals left few indifferent. He was a strong voice for social justice in global discussions at the UN General Assembly and international and regional forums. The Secretary-General vividly recalls meeting him during a visit to Cuba in January 2014, and was impressed by the former Presidents passion and lively engagement on a wide range of issues.

The Secretary-General extends his condolences to the Cuban people and to the family of the former President, particularly to President Raul Castro.

The Secretary-General hopes Cuba will continue to advance on a path of reform, greater prosperity and human rights. At this time of national mourning, he offers the support of the United Nations to work alongside the Cuban people.

3. President Barack Obama:

At this time of Fidel Castros passing, we extend a hand of friendship to the Cuban people. We know that this moment fills Cubans  in Cuba and in the United States  with powerful emotions, recalling the countless ways in which Fidel Castro altered the course of individual lives, families, and of the Cuban nation. History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him.  Today, we offer condolences to Fidel Castros family, and our thoughts and prayers are with the Cuban people. In the days ahead, they will recall the past and also look to the future. As they do, the Cuban people must know that they have a friend and partner in the United States of America.

4. Secretary of State John Kerry:

We extend our condolences to the Cuban people today as they mourn the passing of Fidel Castro. Over more than half a century, he played an outsized role in their lives, and he influenced the direction of regional, even global affairs. As our two countries continue to move forward on the process of normalization  restoring the economic, diplomatic and cultural ties severed by a troubled past  we do so in a spirit of friendship and with an earnest desire not to ignore history but to write a new and better future for our two peoples. The United States reaffirms its support for deepening our engagement with the Cuban people now and in coming years.

5. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto:

I regret the death of Fidel Castro Ruz, leader of the Cuban revolution and emblematic symbol of the 20th century.

6. Former President Jimmy Carter:

We remember fondly our visits with [Castro] in Cuba and his love of his country.

7. Pope Francis:

Pope Francis sent a telegram to Raul Castro, writing, Upon receiving the sad news of the passing of your beloved brother, the honorable Fidel Castro Ruz, former president of the state council and the government of the Republic of Cuba, I express my sadness to your excellency and all family members of the deceased dignitary, as well as the government and the people in that beloved nation.

At the same time, the popes telegram continued, I offer my prayers for his eternal rest, and I entrust the Cuban people to the maternal intercession of Our Lady of La Caridad del Cobre, patroness of that country.

8. Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA):

We need to stop and pause and mourn his loss, Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, said in a phone interview. When she learned the news, Lee said, I was very sad for the Cuban people. He led a revolution in Cuba that led social improvements for his people. In her eight meetings with Castro over the years, Lee said, she found him to be a smart man. A historian. He wanted normal relations with the United States but not at the expense of the accomplishments of the revolution.

9. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi:

10. British Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn:

Fidel Castros death marks the passing of a huge figure of modern history, national independence and 20th century socialism. From building a world class health and education system, to Cubas record of international solidarity abroad, Castros achievements were many. For all his flaws, Castros support for Angola played a crucial role in bringing an end to Apartheid in South Africa, and he will be remembered both as an internationalist and a champion of social justice.

These democratic leaders should be particularly ashamed to find themselves echoing the praise some of the worlds most brutal despots and mass murderers have heaped on Castro. Consider the company they are keeping:

Xi Jinping and Chinese state news:

Chinese President Xi Jinping also sent a telegram to Cuba on Saturday, mourning the loss of a dear comrade and true friend of the Chinese people who made immortal contributions to the development of socialism around the world. Chinas official Xinhua News Agency eulogized a man who resisted the American superpower for half a century with the headline: Old Soldiers Never Die.

Bashar al-Assad:

President al-Assad said that the great leader Fidel Castro efficiently led the struggle of his country and people against imperialism and hegemony for decades, and that his steadfastness has become an example and an inspiration for leaders and peoples everywhere in the world. Our friend Cuba was able under his leadership to stand its ground in the face of the most ferocious of sanctions and unfair campaigns witnessed in our modern history, said the President, adding that Cuba has thus become a beacon for the liberation of the peoples of the South American countries and others around the world. The name Fidel Castro will live forever in the minds of generations and remain an inspiration for all the peoples who aspire to achieve real independence and liberation from the yoke of colonialism and hegemony, the President said.

Kim Jong Un:

Though he passed away, the precious feats he performed will remain forever in the hearts of the peoples of our two countries and the hearts of progressive mankind.

I express conviction that the revolutionary Cuban people would overcome the pain they suffer from the loss of their distinguished leader and certainly build the prospering ideal society of the people and achieve the victory of the socialist cause under the wise leadership of you, Comrade Raul Castro Ruz, true to the lifetime intention of Comrade Fidel Castro Ruz.

Vladimir Putin:

I offer my deepest condolences to you and the entire Cuban nation over the death of your brother, the leader of the Cuban revolution Fidel Castro. The name of this remarkable statesman is rightfully viewed as a symbol of a whole era in modern history. Free and independent Cuba built by him and his fellow revolutionaries has become an influential member of the international community and serves as an inspiring example for many countries and peoples. Fidel Castro was a sincere and reliable friend of Russia. He made a tremendous personal contribution to the establishment and progress of Russian-Cuban relations, close strategic partnership in all areas. This strong and wise man always looked into the future with confidence. He embodied the high ideals of a politician, citizen and patriot who wholeheartedly believed in the cause, to which he devoted his life. Russians will always cherish his memory in their hearts. In this mournful hour, I ask you to pass on my words of sympathy and support to all members of your family. I wish you courage and tenacity as you face this irreparable loss.

Heres some advice for Trudeau and company  when your statements are indistinguishable from those of Bashar al-Assad and Kim Jong Un, maybe its time for a little introspection.
Hillary Clinton has never played the board game, Monopoly.

How do we know? Because even novice players learn quickly that you always hang on to a get out of jail free card. No matter what. You never know when youre going to need it. And you usually do.

Clinton had such a card and has managed to recklessly squander it.

So what happens now? Will she draw that other dreaded card: Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $ 200 ? For Clinton, who could face serious criminal jeopardy, this is no game.

Post-Election Rapprochement

The night Clinton lost the presidency, she telephoned Donald Trump to concede. We now know that it was President Obama who persuaded Clinton to make the gracious concession.

Hillary Clintons decision to embrace a challenge to Trumps election is both confounding and inexplicable. Why would she chance angering the very individual who holds her fate in his hands? Its like an inmate taunting a jailer. Youd have to be obtuse to do it.

According to a soon-to-be published book by two Washington journalists, Obama told his former Secretary of State, You need to concede. At that point, it was clear the Democratic nominee was losing Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania and had no hope of winning the White House. Clinton heeded the advice and made the call. Wise move.

The president-elect was clearly moved by what he described as a lovely conversation with Clinton. It was a tough call for her. She couldnt have been nicer. Shes very strong and very smart, Trump told CBS News' 60 Minutes. The newly-elected president suddenly seemed reluctant to have his Department of Justice pursue Clinton for criminal wrongdoing.

After spending months promising his supporters that he would see to it that Clinton is prosecuted over her email server and, perhaps, the Clinton Foundation, Trump reversed himself.

In a meeting with the New York Times last week, he all but ruled out recommending a special prosecutor or criminal charges. Its just not something that I feel strongly about. I dont want to hurt the Clintons, I really dont. She went through a lot and suffered greatly in many different ways.

Clintons election night concession seemed to have prompted Trump to hand her a get out of jail free card. If she was moving on, then he was moving on. And so would the nation.

But in politics, what is given can be taken away. Especially when the recipient of a generous gift exhibits a conspicuous lack of gratitude. Which is precisely what Clinton has now done.

A Game of Chance With No Chance

Clintons campaign announced over the weekend that it will join efforts to push for recounts in the key states of Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania in a futile effort to deprive Trump of the needed 270 electoral votes and, thus, the presidency.

It is the definition of a fools errand. A game of chance with not a scintilla of chance to succeed.

Recounts almost never swing enough votes to change the outcome. Clinton would have to do it in not one, but all three states. In Pennsylvania alone, the law on a voter-initiated recount is next to impossible to meet. It demands notarized voter affidavits in each and every 9,163 election districts. The deadlines are imminent and, in some districts, have already passed. Forget the fact that Trumps lead in the state exceeds 70,000 votes.

Clintons decision to embrace a challenge to Trumps election is both confounding and inexplicable. Why would she chance angering the very individual who holds her fate in his hands? Its like an inmate taunting a jailer. Youd have to be obtuse to do it.

Already, Trump has responded with a series of furious tweets reminding Clinton that she already conceded. One of his top advisers hinted that retaliation works both ways. Trump might easily reconsider his decision to forego a case against his former adversary.

So why would Clinton deliberately antagonize someone who is notoriously mercurial? With a wave of his hand, Trump could signal his new attorney general to reignite a Justice Department criminal investigation of Clinton or, in the alternative, appoint a Special Prosecutor to consider charges. After all, FBI Director James Comey laid out a meticulous case of how Clinton violated the Espionage Act, but then dismissed it by claiming that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.

Sorry, Mr. Comey, but there are plenty of reasonable prosecutors who would be eager to do so.

Stupid Is As Stupid Does

As the great American philosopher, Forrest Gump, pointed out, an intelligent person who does stupid things is still stupid. Common sense, or lack thereof, is evidenced by a persons actions.

While Clinton may be a smart person, it makes no sense whatsoever for her to risk criminal indictment by alienating the one person who can best insulate her from the legal consequences of her own extremely careless, if not intentional, conduct. And for what? A recount that is destined to fail?

By contesting the presidential election, Clinton does damage only to herself. When, during the election, Trump suggested he might not accept the result if he lost, Clinton called it horrifying. Did it ever occur to her that she is now committing the same horrifying act she so vehemently condemned?

Donald Trump made billions of dollars accumulating properties in a way the inventors of Monopoly envisioned. He knows how the real game is played.

Hillary Clinton does not. She held a treasured get out of jail free card but wasted it for nothing.
Saturday, Hillary Clinton announced that she had joined a recount effort in at least three Midwestern states, questioning whether an accurate vote will be reported to the Electoral College. This comes on the heels of a concession speech where she told her supporters that, We must accept this result Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead.

Hours after Clinton delivered her remarks, President Obama joined his nominee in asking the same of the country  and my Democratic party. It was a moment of pride for many Americans. We could celebrate a peaceful transition of power, even if we didnt like the result.

MORE FROM OPINION: COOLIDGE, IMMIGRATION AND US

Its now clear that Clintons speech wasnt genuine. According to her campaign, theyve had lawyers, data scientists and analysts combing over election results starting the day after the election, or the day of her otherwise thoughtful concession speech. Their goal: find evidence that would suggest a hacked result, despite the president  and my former colleagues in the intelligence community  stating clearly that there are no signs of foreign tampering at the ballot box.

As a Democrat, I am frustrated and ashamed. Unlike Hillary Clinton, I realize that Americas history was built not just on its gallant winners but also on its noble losers.

Why would Clinton do this? Some suggest its a vengeful ploy to make Trump look illegitimate in the eyes of the American people. But I suspect that this is the last, embarrassing gasp of a flailing politician, unable to accept defeat with grace.

As a Democrat, I am frustrated and ashamed. Unlike Clinton, I realize that Americas history was built not just on its gallant winners but also on its noble losers.

Clinton is not the first Democrat from New York to lose the presidency after winning the popular vote. That honor goes to Samuel Tilden during his disputed election of 1876. At the time, Tildens supporters were utterly convinced that his opponent  President-elect Rutherford B. Hayes  would bring about the end of the nation. As one voter put it: Goodbye free government, free elections, free speech, and free press, as well as all civil liberties.

The media response was no less breathless. Newspaper titan and fellow Democrat Joseph Pulitzer  of Pulitzer Prize fame  called for 100,000 armed Tilden supporters to storm Washington D.C.

Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed; Tilden was not one to foment a revolution. He gave a respectful concession speech and retired to New York.

Perhaps in the back of Tildens mind was another great American loser, General Robert E. Lee. Just before his surrender at Appomattox near the end of the Civil War, Lees chief of artillery  General Porter Alexander  proposed that the Southern army collapse into bands of guerilla fighters, continuing the war until an exhausted North finally conceded. Lee refused, eloquently summarizing why the South had to accept defeat.

You and I as Christian men have no right to consider only how this would affect us. We must consider its effect on the country as a whole. Already it is demoralized by the four years of war. If I took your advice, the menwould be compelled to rob and steal in order to live. They would become mere bands of marauders We would bring on a state of affairs [that] would take the country years to recover from.

Lee surrendered the next day.

In politics and war, the lesson is clear: American patriots arent always the winners. Indeed, how we lose sets the example for what it means to win. Tilden could have led an army to D.C.  he won the popular vote. Lee could have opened the gates of hell and secured a Southern victory. But both men understood something of far greater consequence: the American republic is worth more than ego or ambition.

With Clintons embrace of an electoral recount, it is clear that she cannot accept defeat with grace, nor does she hold our nation in the same regard as Tilden or Lee. That means my fellow Americans  and especially my fellow Democrats  must stand up to her hubris. We must make clear that we offer no excuses for our loss. We will not chase the ghosts of foreign hackers. We wont be fooled by FBI conspiracies, blame bad campaign staff, whine about false Facebook posts, or blame mobs of deplorables.

No, we realize that we lost because the nation wanted change and our candidate was too flawed and untrustworthy to carry that mantle.

And so we will work with President-elect Trump to make America great again. When his solutions make sense, he will have our vote. When he loses his way, we will hold him accountable. In short, we will be a faithful opposition; we will offer better solutions. That is how America works, even if its not the America that Hillary Clinton wants us to be.
Editor's note: The following column originally appeared on NewsBusters.org, a project of the Media Research Center in Washington.



When Jill Stein was the Green Partys candidate for U.S. president, the broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, NBC) only gave her 36 seconds of coverage. However, as soon as she launched a campaign to contest the presidential election and demand a recount of ballots in several key states, the evening news shows on ABC, CBS and NBC managed to find 7 minutes and 26 seconds of coverage for her in just four days.

On November 26s NBC "Nightly News," anchor Lester Holt began a story on the recount by implying that the election may not be over yet, if you thought the presidential election was behind us, word came today from the Hillary Clinton campaign that it will back the state-wide election recount effort put on by third party candidate Jill Stein in three key battle ground states.

Holt then turned the story over to correspondent Kristen Welker, who led by saying that the recount was prompted when a group of computer scientists, including a voting rights lawyer, said they found voting irregularities in three states.

Despite this drastic uptick in coverage, Stein admitted that her team was working without proof. Let me be very clear, Stein told CBS Evening Newss Anna Werner during a November 24 interview, we do not have evidence of fraud. We do not have smoking guns. What we do have is an election that was surrounded by hacking.

Mike Ciandella is a research analyst for the MRC's News Analysis Division, and manages the MRC's Bias by the Minute project (BBTM). For more, click here.
President-elect Donald Trump's proposals would modestly cut income taxes for most middle-class Americans. But for nearly 8 million families -- including a majority of single-parent households -- the opposite would occur: They'd pay more.

Most married couples with three or more children would also pay higher taxes, an analysis by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center found. And while middle-class families as a whole would receive tax cuts of about 2 percent, they'd be dwarfed by the windfalls averaging 13.5 percent for America's richest 1 percent.

Trump's campaign rhetoric had promoted the benefits of his proposals for middle-income Americans.

"The largest tax reductions are for the middle class," said Trump's "Contract With the American Voter," released last month.

The tax hikes that would hit single parents and large families would result from Trump's plan to eliminate the personal exemption and the head-of-household filing status. These features of the tax code have enabled many Americans to reduce their taxable income.

His other proposed tax changes would benefit middle- and lower-income Americans. But they wouldn't be enough to offset those modifications.

"If you're a low- or moderate-income single parent, you're going to get hurt," said Bob Williams, a fellow at the Tax Policy Center.

Unlike Trump's polarizing proposals on immigration and trade, his tax plan is in line with traditional Republican policy. His steep tax cuts in many ways resemble those carried out by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush, and the Republican-run Congress is expected to welcome them.

During the campaign, Trump said his tax cuts -- for individuals and companies -- would energize the economy by boosting business investment in factories and equipment, while leaving consumers with more cash to spend. His proposals, he contended, would help create 25 million jobs over the next decade.

But Lily Batchelder, a visiting fellow at the Tax Policy Center and former deputy director of President Barack Obama's National Economic Council, estimates that roughly 7.9 million families with children would pay higher taxes under his proposals. About 5.8 million are led by single parents.

An additional 2.1 million are married couples.

Other analysts, including economists at the conservative Tax Foundation and right-of-center American Enterprise Institute, have agreed with Batchelder's conclusions.

Here's what her analysis finds:

Right now, a single parent with $75,000 in income and two children can claim a head of household deduction of $9,300, plus three personal exemptions. Those steps would reduce the household's taxable income by $21,450, to $53,550.

Trump's plan would more than double the standard deduction to $15,000. But that change would be outweighed by his elimination of personal exemptions and head-of-household status. So the family's taxable income would be $60,000, and their tax bill would be $2,440 more than it is now.

A married couple with four children and income of $50,000 would absorb a tax increase of $1,090 because of their loss of personal exemptions.

Trump's advisers deny that he will raise taxes on middle-income Americans. Stephen Miller, his top policy adviser, said Trump would provide tax-free child care savings accounts and other provisions to enable some families to reduce taxes.

But Batchelder's analysis found that those provisions wouldn't be enough to offset the plan's other elements that would increase taxes for some middle income households.

More broadly, Miller said Trump would instruct Congress to avoid raising taxes on those families.

"We will cut taxes massively for the middle class and working class," Miller said.

Kelly Rodriguez, 47, who lives in Tampa, Florida, voted for Trump and is a single mother who claims two of her four children as dependents.

(Her ex-husband claims the other two.) She made roughly $90,000 last year, including alimony payments. Her taxes would likely rise under Trump's plan, according to Batchelder's analysis.

"I would want him to explain that to me," she said. "Taxes have to make sense to the people paying them."

Still, Trump's plan will likely evolve during congressional negotiations before it becomes law.

"This is not anywhere close to a final plan," Williams said.

Kyle Pomerlau, director of federal projects at the conservative Tax Foundation, noted that House Speaker Paul Ryan's own tax-cut proposal is similar to Trump's but wouldn't raise taxes on single-parent families. In theory, the two plans could be melded, and Trump's elimination of the head of household status could be dropped.

But leaving the head of household filing status and personal exemptions intact would lower tax revenue by $2.1 trillion over the next decade, the Tax Policy Center says.

All independent analyses show most of the benefit of Trump's plan flowing to the wealthiest Americans. Nearly half of Trump's tax cuts would go to the top 1 percent of earners, the Tax Policy Center found. Less than a quarter of the cuts would benefit the bottom 80 percent.

Trump proposes to reduce the number of tax brackets from seven to three, with rates of 12 percent, 25 percent and 33 percent. That would slash the top rate from the current 39.6 percent. He would repeal the estate tax, which affects only about 0.2 percent of estates -- those worth above $5.45 million.

For middle-income earners as a whole, the Trump proposals would cut taxes, even taking into account the increases on single-parent families. Those earning nearly $50,000 to about $83,000 -- the middle one-fifth -- would receive an average cut of $1,010, according to the Tax Policy Center. That would lift their after-tax incomes 1.8 percent.

By contrast, the wealthiest 1 percent -- those earning over $700,000 -- would enjoy a tax cut averaging nearly $215,000, boosting their after-tax incomes 13.5 percent. And the richest 0.1 percent -- those making above $3.7 million -- would receive a bonanza: An average tax cut exceeding $1 million.

"Trump's campaign rhetoric may have been populist, but his tax plan isn't," Howard Gleckman, a senior fellow at the policy center, wrote on its website.

His tax proposals suggest what may be a challenge for Trump's administration: Providing his middle- and working-class supporters with tangible signs of economic progress. Middle-income Americans already pay a relatively modest share of federal income taxes compared with the wealthy. That limits the scope of what tax cuts could do for them.

"The thing that he needs to worry about is making life better for his supporters, and that involves more than tax cuts," Williams said.

Middle class finances have also been squeezed by high and rising costs for health care, higher education and housing, noted Joseph Cohen, a sociologist at Queens College in New York City.

"We've been cutting taxes since Reagan, and things have been getting worse for the middle class since Reagan," he said.
As Twitter, Reddit and other social media networks are cracking down on the so-called alt-right," some are taking matters into their own hands and migrating away from traditional forms of social media and to new ones that claim to be more welcoming to free speech.

Twitter has been particularly strong in cracking down on alt-right voices and suspended a number of accounts, including reality TV star Tila Tequila's, after she posted a picture of her performing a Nazi salute at a conference of white nationalists in Washington DC. While Tequila has denied that she is a Nazi, her Twitter bio referred to her as an alt-reich queen.

Tequilas ban is one of the most high-profile bans since Breitbart writer and provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos was banned from the social network site in July.

ACTOR JAMES WOODS LEAVES TWITTER OVER ALT-RIGHT 'CENSORSHIP'

The increased censorship is not limited to Twitter. Facebook is looking at cracking down on fake news, which some conservatives fear could target them, while Reddit CEO Steve Huffman last week admitted that he had edited posts by Donald Trump supporters criticizing him on Trump subreddit /r/The_Donald.

Now a new social network start up  Gab  is trying to take advantage of what they see as Silicon Valleys biased censoring of conservative voices, by putting its focus on uncensored free speech.

Gab, which launched in August, is still in early beta stage and so is available via invite only. But CEO Andrew Torba, who worked in Silicon Valley for five years before starting the project, says what began as a three-person startup now has 90,000 users and over 100,000 people applying to be part of the new networking site.

Torba emphasized to FoxNews.com that Gab is not designed specifically for conservatives, but he believes its emphasis on free speech is appealing particularly to those on the right being silenced on Twitter and other networking sites.

From day one weve said everyone is welcome here  we are defending free speech, he told FoxNews.com. But we are getting a lot of people on the right because they ae being censored, so its understandable they are migrating over.

While still lacking some of the functionality of Twitter, Gab has a number of features that its rival does not  including the ability to upvote posts and give them more prominence, as well as a more liberal 300 character limit for Gabs as opposed to Twitters 140 character limit.

One of Gabs main features is the ability for users to mute phrases, words, hashtags and other users. Torba says Gab feels that is a better way of countering speech that people find offensive than taking a big brother approach and banning it.

If you dont want to see these people, you can mute them. Our policy is to have free speech within the legal limitations of the law, he said. The cure for hate speech isnt to shut them out, but to allow more open discourse with these people and ask why are you posting this?

Torba noted that Twitter has introduced similar features earlier this month, and sees it as a sign that they are taking note of their plucky competitor.

Gab has picked up some significant names as it begins to expand its reach. Conservative columnist Ann Coulter has a verified account on the site, although she has yet to post. Tequila and Yiannopoulos both have accounts on the site also, and are outspoken in their support of the new site.

"Progressive journalists are reporting -- desperately hoping it's true -- that Gab is little more than a cesspit for racists, Yiannopoulos told FoxNews.com. But Gab isn't just attracting the alt-right and other social pariahs. Dissidents, mischief-makers, libertarians and conservatives are all discovering it -- and remembering what Twitter used to be like before the social justice warriors took over."

Yet the network still remains heavily Trump-focused. On Monday, of the 10 top trending topics, four were pro-Trump (#Trump, #DrainTheSwamp, #PresidentTrump and #MAGA) and a scan of top postings reveal a number of memes mocking liberals or celebrating Trump.

Gabs alt-right flavor is similar to that of the /r/The_Donald  the unofficial Donald Trump subreddit on Reddit, which itself became a bubble away from the main politics subreddit for Trump supporters to spread what they see as unreported news, attack Hiillary Clinton, and express support for Trump.

In the runup to the election, the subreddit was mocked -- perhaps prematurely -- for its overwhelmingly positive atmosphere (LANDSLIDE INCOMING!!! was a popular tag on headlines) amid a slew of news elsewhere suggesting their candidate  whom they fondly refer to as the God Emperor  would lose.

In the wake of Trumps victory, the forum is booming, with over 300,000 subscribers and a high level of activity making it one of the most popular subreddits on Reddit. The subreddit has its own language, premises and sense of humor, with users posting abundant images of alt-right mascot Pepe, referring to one another as "centipedes" and posting conspiracy theories and enthusiastic and offbeat subject lines such as "Anyone up for a game of Hungry Hungry Soros? and I heard there is going to be a recount. Winning twice! #NeverGetTiredOfWinning.

One user recently urged fellow centipedes to mail bags of salt to the New York Times in reaction to the papers angry (or salty) reaction to Trumps election, with users claiming to have sent over 2,000 pounds of salt to the paper. A Times spokeswoman told Breitbart that any salt received would be thrown out.

In light of the controversy surrounding Reddit CEO Steve Huffmans editing of posts criticizing him for shutting down a subreddit about a Clinton conspiracy theory called Pizzagate, the moderators of the subreddit released a statement vowing to stay on Reddit, saying We arent going anywhere until they MAKE us go somewhere.

Gab's Torba says controversies such as these, and wider censorship prevalent at sites like Reddit, Facebook and Twitter give him hope that Gab may be on to something.

We are growing like wildfire, and I think a lot of those bans and the censorship is really propelling our growth, he said. People are looking for a new alternative as their voices have been shut up.
President-Elect Donald Trumps claim that ballot fraud in certain parts of the country cost him the popular vote is not going over well in the states he singled out.

Hillary Clintons total was swollen by millions of people voting illegally in the Nov. 8 election, Trump said Sunday, citing New Hampshire, Virginia and California. Although Trump won easily with electoral votes, unofficial totals have him trailing Clinton 64,654,483 votes to 62,418,820, according to a Cook Political Report analysis Monday.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump tweeted Sunday.

TRUMP CALLS STEIN'S RECOUNT BID A "SCAM"

Officials in those states insisted Monday that Trumps claim of millions of illegal votes, including ones allegedly cast by illegal immigrants, is unfounded.

Virginias election was well administered by our 133 professional local registrars, with help from hundreds of election officials and volunteers who worked to guarantee a good experience for eligible Virginia voters," Virginia Commissioner of Elections Edgardo Cortes told FoxNews.com. The election was fair and all votes cast by eligible voters were accurately counted.

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla tweeted Sunday that Trumps allegations of voter fraud in California and other states were absurd.

It appears that Mr. Trump is troubled by the fact that a growing majority of Americans did not vote for him, Padilla said in a statement. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a President-Elect.

But California RNC Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon told FoxNews.com that the voter registration website in California is very insecure.

There are incidents of either irregularities or fraud in California, Dhillon said, specifically citing a report of more than 80 California ballots left at the doorstop of an elderly man just days ahead of the election. We are woefully behind the times for a state that is home to the greatest tech minds in Silicon Valley.

There are checks and balances in place to make sure the Golden States vote is not manipulated, said Kim Alexander, president of the California Voter Foundation. Every county in the state is required to select one percent of its precincts at random and recount the votes cast in those precincts publicly, by hand, to show that the results match the software-counted results, Alexander said.

Weve done this for over 50 years, ever since software was first introduced into the vote-counting process, Alexander said. Many counties are in the process of conducting their post-election manual tallies right now and the public can watch.

Registrar of Voters for Los Angeles County and President for the California Association of Clerks and Election Officials Dean Logan told Fox News in an email that election officials are frustrated and voters may well be insulted by Trumps claim.

Broad brush allegations of voter fraud and illegal voting serve only to undermine the publics trust and confidence in the elections process and run the risk of further deflating voter participation, Logan said in a statement.

New Hampshire Deputy Secretary of State Dave Scanlan said that while the Granite State has seen no evidence of voter fraud this time around, officials acknowledge there are individual instances.

This is nothing that we havent already heard in New Hampshire, Scanlan said. There are perceptions out there similar to what the president-elect expressed, and perception is very important for New Hampshire voters.

Like California, New Hampshire has instilled safeguards in the election process, including requiring every voter to register with an elected official in person. That process requires an ID check or, for those without identification, a verification review by the state attorney generals office.

We dont view President-Elect Trumps statement as a negative, but think it will probably generate a healthy discussion in front of our state legislature come January, Scanlan told FoxNews.com. We dont think his comments are going to hurt the overall election integrity in the state of New Hampshire.

Questions about the hotly contested vote are not confined to Team Trump. Clintons team is supporting Green Party candidate Jill Steins effort to have Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin conduct recounts. But it is out of the norm for the declared winner to cry foul, said Neil Levesque, executive director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics.

Its unusual because the victor doesnt usually say there was fraud after an election because usually, the victor will say it was a fair election and thats why they won, Levesque told FoxNews.com. You dont win the Super Bowl and then claim the referees were corrupt.
President-elect Donald Trump will be back in the saddle Monday in New York as he looks to decide who will fill the integral appointments in his Cabinet as concerns about a possible secretary of state choice rise and the distraction of a recount vote in Wisconsin, and possibly other key battleground states, set to press on.

Trump has a series of meetings scheduled to try and narrow down the foundation of his Cabinet after spending Thanksgiving weekend at his Palm Beach, Fla., estate. As the talks are reportedly expected to intensify over the course of the week, concerns about the possible appointment of Mitt Romney as secretary of state were made known on Sunday.

Top adviser Kellyanne Conway said Sunday that she will support Trump's pick, but continues to argue that the grass-roots supporters who backed his improbable victory feel let down about Romney, considering he called Trump a con man and a phony.

"People feel betrayed to think that  Romney, who went out of his way to question the character and the intellect and the integrity of Donald Trump  would be given the most significant Cabinet post of all, Conway said on NBC's "Meet the Press.

Trump and his team of advisers appear to be split on whether Trump should pick Romney, a former GOP presidential nominee, or former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, an early Trump loyalist.

Incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus on Fox News Sunday downplayed rumors over vicious infighting over who will lead the State Department, saying that Trump's "going to make the best decision for the American people.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich told Fox & Friends Sunday that a Romney choice would be disappointing, adding, "I think there's nothing Mitt Romney can say that doesn't sound phony and frankly pathetic.

Romney was one of the most notable Republicans to speak out against Trump during his campaign.

People involved in the transition process told the Associated Press Trump's decision on his secretary of state did not appear to be imminent. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker and John Bolton, a former ambassador to the U.N., have also been under consideration.

Meanwhile, looming in the background of Trumps Cabinet picks is the recount that is slated to take place in Wisconsin. State election officials are expected to meet Monday to discuss a possible timeline for a recount of the states presidential election.

The recount comes at the request of Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who says its important to determine whether hacking may have affected the results. Stein also plans to request recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Trump went on a Twitter offensive Sunday in an attempt to assail that the recount front. He claimed widespread voter fraud in his storm of tweets.

"I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," Trump tweeted in the afternoon before alleging in an evening tweet "serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California."

Trump narrowly won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and, as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday. All three would need to flip to Hillary Clinton to upend the Republican's victory, and Clinton's team says Trump has a larger edge in all three states than has ever been overcome in a presidential recount.

There's been no evidence of widespread tampering or hacking that would change the results; indeed, Clinton's team said it had been looking for abnormalities and found nothing that would alter the results.

Clinton's lawyer Marc Elias said her team has been combing through the results since the election in search of anomalies that would suggest hacking by Russians or others and found "no actionable evidence." But "we feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Advocates of college men who claim their lives were destroyed by false rape claims are hoping the incoming Trump administration will change a policy they say tramples on civil rights.



Beginning in 2011, the Obama administration's U.S. Education Department began pressing colleges to more aggressively police sexual assaults. The department currently has some 216 schools under investigation, while other schools have expelled accused students on scant evidence, often with no legal recourse or due process.

What we represent is not a popular issue, we know that, Cynthina Garrett, co-president of Families Advocating for Campus Equality, which supports due-process rights for accused students, told FoxNews.com. But there are so many young men whose lives have been destroyed by these allegations.

Garrett added that she thinks the Education Department's Office of Civil Rights has gone too far and that schools are now operating out of fear rather than cooperation with the government  leading those accused of sexual assault to be found guilty even before they are judged.

Campus Sexual Assaults

11.2% of all students experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation (among all graduate and undergraduate students).

Among graduate and professional students, 8.8% of females and 2.2% of males experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation.

Among undergraduate students, 23.1% of females and 5.4% of males experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation.

4.2% of students have experienced stalking since entering college.

*Information from RAINN.org

What President-elect Trump plans to do, however, is unclear as he rarely mentioned education while on the stump and even less frequently talked about civil rights in schools. Trumps biggest qualm with the Department of Education  as with many other federal agencies  was to say that it is massive and it can be largely eliminated.

Trumps pick for education secretary, billionaire philanthropist Betsy DeVos, has also not broached the issue of sexual assault on college campuses or commented on the Obama administrations interpretation of Title IX.

Title IX is a law enacted in 1972 that prohibits any educational program or activity that receives federal financial assistance from denying benefits to or discriminating against someone based on their sex. The OCR sent a letter to schools in April 2011 that made sexual assault a form harassment prohibited by Title IX.

Trump and DeVos biggest priority seems to be school and not Title IX, Garret said.

President-elect Trumps transition team did not immediately replay to FoxNews.coms request for comment.

The Obama administrations moves helped fuel a surge of sexual complaints on campuses across the country. In May 2014, the government published the names of 55 colleges and universities under investigation in connection with sexual violence and since then that number has jumped to 216.

From a purely public relations standpoint, we would rather not be on the list, The College of William and Mary spokesman Brian Whitson told the Washington Post. But were not looking at this from a public relations perspective. . . .This is an issue we are very focused on. When it comes to response and education related to sexual violence, we spend a lot of time considering what we do and why we do it. We didnt ask for this review, but we do expect to learn something along the way.

Since the Obama administrations crack down on schools, a number of students who have been found guilty by their colleges of sexual assault have filed lawsuits alleging their due process rights and Title IX were violated during the investigation and ruling of the cases.

We have hundreds of years of history suggesting that the ability to cross-examine and confront your accuser is essential to having a fair and accurate process." Joshua Engel, the attorney for a University of Cincinnati graduate student accused of sexual assault, told the Cincinnati Enquirer earlier this year.

Groups representing victims of campus sexual assaults say that nobody would benefit from a rollback on policies because schools would be held even less accountable for their investigations into accusations.

I get where they are coming from, Anna Voremberg, the managing director of End Rape On Campus, told FoxNews.com. But were on the same side.

Voremberg added: The only way to get a true ruling is to have a fair and equitable process for both partiesa dialing back of Title IX would not do that.
Donald Trump adviser Kellyanne Conways extended public criticism of Mitt Romney in the secretary of state sweepstakes spilled over Monday with reports that the president-elect is furious with Conway.

Conway, in turn, then reportedly called the anonymous allegations sexist and boasted about her irreproachable status.

She began her attack on Romney shortly after he interviewed with Trump nine days ago about becoming the countrys top diplomat, reminding Americans about how Romney called Trump a con man and a phony.

This weekend, Conway turned up the heat when she appeared on Sunday talks shows to say that Trump supporters feel betrayed over Romney, a former GOP presidential nominee, even being in the running.

Trump -- who since his Nov. 8 win has been huddled with his transition team trying to fill Cabinet posts and other key administration positions -- is furious with Conway, MSNBCs Morning Joe reported Monday, reportedly based on information from two transition team sources.

Conway -- who joined the Trump campaign in the closing stages of the race and helped guide the first-time candidate to what once seemed an improbable victory -- shot back at the accusations.

She called the sources sexists and said she can have any job she wants, either inside or outside the White House, according to the show.

The MSNBC sources reportedly spoke directly with Trump about the issue and said that Conways behavior feeds into a growing concern that she is no longer a team player and has gone rogue.

Incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus is downplaying any infighting, but acknowledged on Fox News Sunday that there are teams of rivals.

Conway, now a senior transition team adviser, appears to support former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani for the secretary of state post. Or she is at least advocating on behalf of the grassroots Trump supporters who helped the first-time candidate to victory and who appear to back Giuliani, an early and loyal Trump backer.

Conway tweeted Monday that shes expressed her opinion to Trump and will support his decision.

I already have the job I want, she also tweeted.

Former GOP House Speaker Newt Gingrich is another member of Trumps inner circle who has voiced his opposition to Romney.

Some strategists suggested Monday that Conways weekend comments were carefully coordinated so Trump could say he tried to reach out to the partys establishment wing.

Romney will be in New York City on Tuesday to talk for a second time with Trump. And Tennessee GOP Sen. Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, is also scheduled to meet that day with Trump.

On Monday, retired CIA Director and retired Army Gen. David Petraeus visited Trump Tower in Manhattan to meet with the president-elect, with the secretary of defense post still open.
The forests of Ethiopia are teeming with a supercharged ant that is poised to invade the globe, new research suggests.

The infamous ant species, Lepisiota canescens, is demonstrating the behavior needed for supercolony formation and for global invasion  (insect world domination, anyone?), the researchers say.

"The species we found in Ethiopia may have a high potential of becoming a globally invasive species," study author D. Magdalena Sorger, a postdoctoral researcher at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, said in a statement. "Invasive species often travel with humans, so as tourism and global commerce to this region of Ethiopia continue to increase, so will the likelihood that the ants could hitch a ride, possibly in plant material or even in the luggage of tourists.

"All it takes is one pregnant queen," she added. "That's how fire ants started." [Gallery of Zombie Ants]

Typically, ants form colonies made up of one nest and ruled by one queen. But about 20 different ant species  think of them as the Romans or the Incas of the insect world  have their sights set on building an empire. These ants form so-called supercolonies comprising many nests with many queens. Supercolonies can contain billions of individuals that swarm out across the landscape and wipe out their ant neighbors. The Argentine ant, for instance, has a supercolony that spans most of California and is now expanding into Mexico, researchers previously told Live Science, while the biggest supercolony on the planet spans 3,700 miles (6,000 kilometers) across the Mediterranean, according to a 2009 article in the journal Insectes Sociaux.

Sorger's team was surveying ant species in Ethiopia when they found that L. canescens was showing some of the hallmarks of supercolony formation  namely, an ability to expand without any constraints. A genetic analysis revealed that the different colonies contained genetically diverse members and that the species is native to the region.

In Ethiopia, many of the churches are surrounded by forests in an otherwise forbidding landscape. The ants seemed to have a preference for these forests, the researchers said. In addition, L. canescens seemed to have an uncanny ability to cross from its preferred forest habitat to nearby farmlands, roads and buildings, the researchers reported in the current issue of the journal Insectes Sociaux.

The largest colony was still relatively modest in absolute terms, crossing an expanse of roughly 24 miles in length, but this population is actually the largest supercolony documented in an ant species living in its native habitat, the researchers noted. Even stranger, its rapidly expanding population and aggressive expansionist behavior are more typical of invasive species, the researchers wrote in the journal article.

The findings suggest the possibility that these ants could become global hitchhikers that colonize other regions, the researchers wrote.

"It is good to have a record of what this species does in its native habitat," Sorger said. "Rarely do we know anything about the biology of a species before it becomes invasive."

Original article on Live Science.
A bubbling flood of molasses that sent a towering wave of goo down the streets of Boston in 1919, catching everything from horses to humans in its sticky grasp, killing 21 people, injuring 150 more and flattening buildings in its wake. Now, scientists have figured out why the deluge of viscous sweetener was so deadly.

Cool temperatures may have caused the spilled molasses to flow more slowly, complicating attempts to rescue victims and to begin recovery and cleanup, researchers report in a new study.

On Jan. 15, 1919, shortly after 12:40 p.m. local time, a giant storage tank 50 feet tall and 90 feet wide on Boston's waterfront at the Purity Distilling Co. collapsed in the city's crowded North End, according to newspapers at the time. It released more than 2.3 million gallons of molasses. [The 10 Weirdest Spills in Nature]

The wave from the flood, which reached about 25 feet tall, oozed at more than 50 feet per second, the researchers of the new study said. It took just moments for the molasses  a standard sweetener at the time  to engulf Boston's Commercial Street area.

According to a report from The Boston Post from 1919, "Molasses, waist deep, covered the street and swirled and bubbled about the wreckage ... Here and there struggled a form  whether it was animal or human being was impossible to tell. Only an upheaval, a thrashing about in the sticky mass, showed where any life was ... Horses died like so many flies on sticky fly-paper. The more they struggled, the deeper in the mess they were ensnared. Human beings  men and women  suffered likewise."

How molasses flows

Scientists began investigating the science of this disaster this year, after undergraduate students produced a video about the flood in May. "To gather relevant details about the flood and its aftermath, I've read hundreds of pages of historical accounts and contemporary newspaper articles, studied century-old maps of buildings in the area, and even called the National Weather Service to request historic meteorological data," lead study author Nicole Sharp, a Denver-based aerospace engineer and fluid dynamicist, said in a statement.

The scientists also investigated the properties of blackstrap molasses, focusing on how temperature affected its rate of flow. "The goal is to take our knowledge and understanding of highly viscous spreading flows and apply that to the Boston Molasses Flood," Sharp said in the statement. [The Mysterious Physics of 7 Everyday Things]

The researchers found that at the time of the collapse, the air temperature would have been around 41 degrees Fahrenheit. The molasses, however, had arrived from the Caribbean to top off the tank only two days before the flood, and was likely a balmy 50 to 68 degrees F when it was first delivered. Boston winter temperatures would have cooled the molasses down, but it would still likely have been a few degrees warmer than the surrounding air, Sharp said.

Once the tank collapsed, the molasses started flowing quickly over the waterfront. The scientists found that temperature could greatly influence molasses's viscosity, or the degree to which it resists flowing.

"Temperatures dipped just below freezing the night following the accident," Sharp told Live Science. "Based on our data, it's possible the viscosity of the molasses increased by a factor of four or more due to that drop in temperature. That does not sound like such a big difference, but the high viscosity of the molasses was a major factor for rescue work."

For example, "a group of men were trapped in a nearby firehouse when the molasses knocked the building off its foundation and caused the upper floor to collapse atop them," Sharp said. "Reaching them took hours, and one of the men, George Layhe, grew so exhausted fighting against the molasses hour after hour that he ultimately drowned when he could no longer hold his head up."

Tank failure

The tank had its share of issues even before the disaster.

"The molasses tank was originally built in December 1915 under the direction of a manager, Arthur Jell, with no technical background," Sharp said. "The tank leaked throughout its short lifetime, and the response of United States Industrial Alcohol's management to the comments and complaints about the leakage was to paint the tank brown so that the leaks were less noticeable." (United States Industrial Alcohol was the parent company ofthe Purity Distilling Co.)

"As an engineer, one of the things that struck me about the whole affair was the lack of professional ethics involved," Sharp said. "We engineers have a professional and a moral obligation to ensure that what we design and build is safe. People's lives and livelihoods are at risk if we fail. The Boston Molasses Flood is a reminder of what can happen when corners are cut and when warnings about a structure's failing integrity are ignored."

Sharp hopes to figure out what was going on in the tank prior to its collapse. "Two days before the rupture, warm molasses was pumped into the bottom of a tank of cold molasses," she said. "Historical accounts say that the tank walls 'groaned' after such deliveries, presumably due to the mixing between the warm and cold molasses. That's a problem I'd like to simulate using computational fluid dynamics, both to try and address the rumbling described by accounts and to have a clearer idea of what temperature the molasses might have been at the time of the disaster."

The physics of the Boston Molasses Flood are relevant to other accidents that affect the public, including industrial spills or breaking levees. However, the main goal of this work is education.

"Ultimately, I hope that by shedding some light on the physics of a fascinating and surreal historical event, our work can inspire a greater appreciation for fluid dynamics among our students and the public," Sharp said.

Sharp and her colleagues Jordan Kennedy and Shmuel Rubinstein, both at Harvard University, detailed their findings today (Nov. 21) at the annual meeting of the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics in Portland, Oregon.

Editor's Note: This article was updated to correct the temperature of the molasses when the disaster happened.

Original article on Live Science.

Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
WISE programme by Microsoft : Making women technologically more efficient

IANS, New Delhi| Published : 28th November, 2016

Two years ago, Sri Charvitha, a student of the B.V. Raju Institute of Technology, walked into the Microsoft campus in Hyderabad to join the Women in Software Engineering (WISE) mentoring programme. Dreaming of leveraging it to land a reputable job, she transformed herself from a rookie coder to an enlightened developer.

Microsoft launched WISE in 2014 to inspire women engineers to pursue rewarding careers in the field of software technology.

"We have worked with partners who interacted in local and regional colleges to help the volunteers offer the students a strong platform that nurtures their technical capabilities and enhances their soft skills to be job-ready at the end of the programme," Charumathy Srinivasan, Partner Group Software Engineering Manager at Microsoft India Development Center, told IANS.

The idea stemmed from a group of women engineers at Microsoft India who wanted to help women engineering students carve out successful careers in technology.

"When we began the WISE mentoring programme, our first batch had 10 students from the B.V. Raju Institute of Technology and each of them developed interesting applications. The students worked from the ideating phase to actually publishing the app," Srinivasan added.

The WISE programme comprises a mentoring ring of volunteers who aim to create an experiential learning for the students to hone their professional skills and cultivate a "can do" attitude. Additionally, it also allows participants to enhance their learning in the area of their technological interest.

After the success of first batch, the second focused not only on helping students build apps but also introduced deep-learning modules with a focus on Big Data and Machine Learning.

The second batch students built nine applications across platforms, demonstrating their understanding of agile development of solutions.

"The feedback from the college faculties was also extremely favourable, with recognition of how the sessions had enhanced the students' academic and personal development. Earlier this month, we inducted 35 students for our third batch," Srinivasan noted.

Another participant in the programme, Lalitha Gade, has inspired her fellow students by building a school bus tracking application called Trackyaan as a part of the WISE programme. She credits her transformation into an industry-ready professional to the Microsoft mentors.

"The WISE Mentoring Ring has been an ideal platform to help us transform into professionals by enhancing our skills and confidence. The mentoring sessions helped us learn the latest technologies from the experts and gave us an opportunity to build Trackyaan and publish it. Our mentors transmuted us into industry-ready professionals," Gade told IANS.

"WISE Mentoring Ring helped me gain invaluable knowledge in both technical and soft skills. The sessions made us competent to develop and publish an app, WalletLog, on Google Play Store. During the sessions, I have learnt how to communicate effectively, collaborate with teams and carry myself with poise even in tough situations," Sravya Kanagarla, another student, said.

"While we run an industry collaboration programme with Talent Sprint for Women in Software Engineering, the perspective of applying their learning in a large organisation environment is daunting and challenging to a student," Ravichandran Rajagopal, Vice Chair, Sri Vishnu Educational Society, one of the institutional partners, told IANS.

"The fact that women mentors from Microsoft came together and volunteered to mentor girl students to adapt their career and create a product company mindset was unique and appealing," Rajagopal added.

(Vivek Singh Chauhan can be contacted at vivek.c@ians.in)

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You may or may not have heard of a StingRay its a controversial surveillance device that, by acting like a cell tower, can find your cell phones location and other info. Now photos of what's reportedly a related device called a Harpoon have surfaced and show it ostensibly in the posession of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Published by Vice Motherboard, a photo shows a stack of devices with what looks like the word Harpoon on them; a second photo reveals a label from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) on the back of equipment.

Whats a Harpoon? A document posted by Ars Technica describes it as a high-power filtered amplifier that boosts the performance of the StingRay devices as well as another system called the KingFish.

A lawyer from The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) who was shown the photos by Vice said that it was consistent with what we know about how these devices are typically used, according to Vice Motherboard, which acquired the photos and other documents via a leak. Theyre put inside a police vehicle and to anyone on the outside there would be no indication that the police are driving around with a powerful surveillance device.

DISTRICT JUDGE SAYS EVIDENCE IN 'STINGRAY' CASE CAN BE SUPPRESSED

State or local police use StringRay-type tracking devices in 23 states across the country, from Washington and California to Pennsylvania and New York, according to a map published by the ACLU.

"FDLE does not discuss investigative tactics," Molly Best, a public information officer for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, told FoxNews.com by email in response to an inquiry on the topic.

The company connected with the Harpoon device is called Harris. "We are unable to comment for your story," Jim Burke, the director of global public relations at Harris Corporation, told FoxNews.com in an email.

This July, a United States district judge ruled to suppress evidence that authorities gathered after using a StringRay device in that case, the Drug Enforcement Agency used a StingRay-type cell-site simulator to find a suspects New York City apartment.

Later, the DEA entered the apartment and found drug paraphernalia, but the judge deemed that that was an unreasonable search because of the use of the StingRay.

Follow Rob Verger on Twitter: @robverger
Ohio State Universitys Buckeye Alert system warned students of a campus attacker within minutes of the car and knife attack unfolding Monday morning. Nine people were injured in the attack and the suspect was killed by a campus police officer.

Monica Moll, the school's public safety director, told reporters the attack took place in front of Watts Hall, the location of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, around 9:52 a.m. ET.

A campus officer nearby engaged the suspect, who was attacking people with a butcher knife, and shot and killed him within minutes.

ONE SUSPECT DEAD, 9 INJURED AFTER ATTACK AT OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY INVOLVING CAR, BUTCHER KNIFE

OSU Emergency Management tweeted a Buckeye Alert 9.56 a.m. ET Monday warning students of an active shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight, it added.

Run hide fight is an ongoing training program, so when you see that referenced in an alert message, that rings a bell with members of the campus community that have been through the training, explained Monica Moll, Ohio State Universitys Public Safety Director, during a press conference Monday afternoon.

The public safety team has done a lot of training across the community, and again, thats why they use these keywords in an alert, to remind folks of what their options are, for any violent intruder, she added.

The Universitys Run Hide Fight training corresponds with the Department of Homeland Securitys guidelines for situations involving active shooters.

WIRELESS WARNING: HOW NEW YORK USED SMARTPHONES IN HUNT FOR BOMBING SUSPECT

Subsequent tweets urged students to continue to shelter in place and follow the directions of police at the scene. Buckeye Alerts were also sent out via text message, Ohio State University President Michael Drake told reporters Monday.

OSU Emergency Management tweeted that the Shelter in Place was lifted at 11.30 a.m. ET. Scene is now secure. ALL classes are canceled on Columbus campus for the remainder of the day, it added.

Updates were also provided on the schools website.

Nearly two dozen communication methods are integrated into the Buckeye Alerts system, according to the Ohio State University website. New technology was integrated into the system this year to enhance the timely sharing of information, it said.

An 18-year-old Somali man was behind the attack, law enforcement sources told Fox News Monday.

Two law enforcement sources told Fox News the attacker, identified as Abdul Artan, came into the United States as a Somali refugee, and was granted status as a legal permanent resident.

Warning system technology has been in the spotlight recently. In September, for example, authorities in New York sent a smartphone alert to New Yorkers in the hunt for bombing suspect Ahmad Khan Rahami.

Fox News' Jennifer Griffin, Matt Dean and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Delta Air Lines is apologizing for not removing a passenger from a flight to Pennsylvania who rudely professed his support for President-elect Donald Trump and insulted those who didn't.

The (Allentown) Morning Call first reported on a video posted on Facebook by a fellow passenger on the Tuesday flight from Atlanta to Allentown. The video shows the man standing in the aisle, yelling and insulting Hillary Clinton supporters.

In the video, the man asks loudly: "We got some Hillary bitches on here?"

Referring to Trump's victory, he says: "If you don't like it, too bad."

Delta said on its website Saturday that it is "sorry this disruption happened" and says the airline is responsible for "ensuring all customers feel safe and comfortable."
A 16-year-old has been fatally shot inside a fire station in Pennsylvania.

Officials say the unidentified teenager was shot Sunday at the Republic Volunteer Fire Company in Redstone Township in Fayette County, about 45 miles south of Pittsburgh.

The circumstances surrounding the shooting remain unclear.

The fire company said on its Facebook page that a parade and other events scheduled for Sunday night had been canceled "due to an emergency."

No other information was immediately available.

The investigation is ongoing.
A Denver TV station Sunday denied a report that it had refused an Emmy-winning journalist's request for additional security after she received death threats over one of her stories.

Heidi Hemmat claimed that KDVR Fox 31 had stopped paying for personal security at her home because of concerns over the cost of employing undercover Denver police officers. Her claim was initially made on her website, and then picked up by Mediaite. KDVR General Manager Joan Barrett called Hemmat's accusations "unequivocally false" in a statement to FoxNews.com late Sunday.

"We took Heidi's concerns very seriously and provided her with support, security and an attorney, for which Heidi expressed her appreciation," Barrett said.

On her website Thursday, Hemmat blamed her departure from the station on fallout from a four-part investigative piece on a Denver businessman's alleged dumping of customers' documents that held their personal information and other alleged misdeeds. Consumer fraud charges were filed against the subject of Hemmat's story.

"Shortly after he learned about the charges against him, that were a direct result of me, I got a call from his psychiatrist," Hemmat wrote. "She told me he was 'homicidal' and was planning to kill me. The psychiatrist thought the threat was so credible, she broke HPPA laws (the laws that protect medical records of psychos, such as the theater shooter -- James Holmes) to warn me."

According to Hemmat's KDVR report, Muhammed Murib was charged with fraud after allegedly charging people for unnecessary parts through his business, AAAA TV Electronics Repair and Vacuum.

Murib was ordered to close his repair shop, although the business could still sell new merchandise.

The report also revealed a 1993 case filed by the Denver district attorney in which Murib, who owned American Vacuum, Sewing and Typewriter at the time, was charged with 18 counts of consumer fraud. He pleaded guilty in that case and reopened a new business, according to KDVR.

As the 2015 case against Murib continued, Hemmat says her supervisors expected her to cover every new development regarding the alleged fraud. She says she resisted, was overruled, and continued to fear for her life.

"I knew I couldn't keep ambushing people who did bad things to other people," she said in her web post. "Society has changed. People have changed. My physical and mental health were unraveling. As soon as that ratings period ended I took an unpaid leave of absence, and in August I asked to be let out of my contract."

KDVR officials said they never denied security requests and expressed regret that Hemmat has chosen to blame the station.

"To be clear, we never denied a request for additional security," Barrett said Sunday. "We are disappointed Heidi has chosen to view the circumstances differently and disparage the station. We wish her nothing but the best during what appears to be a continued difficult time."


The exclusive Dallas boys' prep school that Richard B. Spencer attended is denouncing the activities and ideas of its white nationalist alumnus.

St. Mark's School of Texas headmaster David Dini issued the statement of criticism after a Nov. 19 rally in Washington where Spencer, a member of St. Marks Class of 1997, shouted "Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory!" as supporters raised their arms in Nazi salutes.

Without referring to Spencer by name, Dini said his activities have "been deeply troubling and terribly upsetting to our whole school community. We reject racism and bigotry in all its forms and expressions." In his statement, posted on the school's Facebook page, Dini hailed other St. Mark's alumni for "expressing their outrage and disgust" toward the National Policy Institute, which Spencer heads, and the ideas that group promotes.

Spencer's classmates have raised about $40,000 so far in a fundraising campaign to settle refugees in Dallas. One of them is Ben Kusin, former "Shark Tank" contestant and chief executive of deodorizing wipes company.

"This issue hits deep  not just for me but for everyone," he told WFAA-TV of Dallas-Fort Worth, adding about the rally, "When you see something like this, you have to say something."

The Southern Poverty Law Center, a hate group watchdog, describes Spencer as "one of the country's most successful young white nationalist leaders  a suit-and-tie version of the white supremacists of old."

"He wants to expel all these non-white Europeans from this country," Kusin said. "Our countermeasure was supporting refugees coming into this country."

An email message to Spencer from The Associated Press drew no response Sunday.

Other school alumni include folklorist/musicologist Alan Lomax, rock stars Steve Miller and Boz Scaggs, actors Tommy Lee Jones and Luke and Owen Wilson, and investigative journalist Kurt Eichenwald.
Federal investigators are examining a Facebook post that may have been written by the Somali-born Ohio State University student who injured 11 people Monday when he plowed his car into a group of pedestrians, then attacked bystanders with a butcher knife, law enforcement sources told Fox News.

Abdul Artan, 18, was shot and killed by a university police officer shortly after he began his attack.

'THIS WAS DONE ON PURPOSE': STUDENT BEHIND CAR, KNIFE ATTACK THAT INJURED 11 AT OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY

One law enforcement source described the Facebook post, written earlier Monday, as a declaration against unfair treatment of Muslims. Fox is told that authorities believe the post was made by the same Abdul Artan behind todays attack at OSU, but have not yet confirmed it.

ABC News reported that the post read, in part, "I am sick and tired of seeing my fellow Muslim brothers and sisters being killed and tortured EVERYWHERE. ... I can't take it anymore."

Law enforcement sources told Fox News that the FBI is combing through Artans digital history and devices to see if he had contact with any suspected terrorists and for any traces of terrorist propaganda.

One source told Fox News that Artan's use of a car in the attack recalls a recent article in ISISs propaganda magazine Rumiyah, which included a blanket call to followers to mirror Julys mass casualty attack in Nice, France.

DHS WARNS LOCAL POLICE AFTER ISIS CALLS FOR MASS CASUALTY ATTACKS

Like the Nice attack, which targeted the Mediterranean city's Bastille Day celebrations, the article suggested followers use easily obtainable objects  like trucks  to cause large-scale injury and destruction.

In September, a 20-year-old Somali-American stabbed 10 people at a St. Cloud, Minn., shopping mall before being shot to death by an off-duty officer. Authorities said he asked some of his victims if they were Muslim. In the past few years, London and other cities around the globe have also seen knife attacks blamed on extremists.

That Rumiyah article led to a Department of Homeland Security bulletin warning of possible vehicle attacks that was sent nationwide ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.

Fox News' Matt Dean and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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The attorney for the driver in a Chattanooga school bus crash that killed six children says her client will likely plead not guilty.

Amanda Dunn says she anticipates 24-year-old Johnthony Walker will plead not guilty if a grand jury indicts him. He's charged with five counts of vehicular homicide. Police say another count will be added.

Dunn says the accident has been devastating for Walker and his family. Dunn hoped for a quick investigation and respect for the privacy of Walker's family.

Federal authorities say Walker left the designated bus route Nov. 21 when he wrecked on a curvy road while carrying 37 children. Authorities suspect Walker was speeding.

The defense and prosecution said Walker will appear briefly in court Tuesday in Hamilton County to delay a preliminary hearing until Dec. 15.
A Pennsylvania man was charged Sunday in connection with the shooting death of a 16-year-old junior firefighter inside a fire station.

State police said George Matis, 21, of Republic, was charged with criminal homicide.

According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, authorities said the unidentified teen was shot at around 4 p.m. inside the fire hall at the Republic Volunteer Fire Company in Redstone Township in Fayette County, about 45 miles south of Pittsburgh.

Redstone Township police responded to a report that someone had been shot inside the fire station and found the teen with a gunshot wound to the face. The teen was pronounced dead at the scene.

The coroner's office identified the teen but will be released after relatives are notified. Officials told WPIX-TV that the teen was a sophomore at Brownsville High School.

The fire company said on its Facebook page that a parade and other events scheduled for Sunday night had been canceled due to an emergency.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Authorities in the San Francisco Bay Area are investigating the slaying of a young black man as a possible hate crime amid growing concern over racially motivated incidents and attacks nationwide.

The Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department arrested one white suspect and is searching for two others thought to be involved in the Nov. 12 killing of a 28-year-old musician.

Investigators say Will Sims was robbed, beaten and shot to death in the wee hours outside a bar near his hometown of Richmond. Investigators say Sims worked as a retail clerk, had no gang ties and a clean criminal record.

Authorities arrested 31-year-old Daniel Porter-Kelly and charged him with robbery and murder with a hate crime enhancement. Authorities are searching for 32-year-old Ray Simons and 31-year-old Daniel Ortega and didn't elaborate on the hate crime allegations or the details of the homicide.

Porter-Kelly remains jailed without bail.

Porter-Kelly's attorney Colin Cooper says his client denies involvement in the killing and that prosecutors have not yet provided any evidence or details supporting the hate crime accusation.

Contra Costa County homicide prosecutor Derek Butts declined to discuss details of the case or the evidence supporting the hate crime allegation, noting that investigators were still searching for two murder suspects.

The Southern Poverty Law Center says it has documented 701 "reports of hateful incidents of harassment around the country" since the presidential election.

Since then, the Council on American-Islamic Relations says it has documented about 100 "anti-Muslim" incidents, including an anonymous letter mailed to several California mosques and one in Georgia saying President-elect Donald Trump will exterminate Muslims.

The population of Richmond is 36 percent black, making it the largest ethnic group in the city. Richmond Mayor Tom Butt said Sims' slaying appeared to be a hate crime and urged community restraint.

"I urge Richmond residents to maintain our city's values of respect and care for one another, especially during a time when we are experiencing a nationwide surge in hate-filled hostility and threats to public safety," Butt said Saturday in a statement.


A knife and car attack Monday at Ohio State University by an 18-year-old Somali man that left 11 injured highlights an unfortunate string of incidents involving members of Columbus Somali migrant population in recent years.

The capital of the Buckeye State has long had a large community comprised of Somali nationals and with 38,000 people, it's one of the largest Somali populations in the U.S.

Many migrated to Columbus from the war-torn African nation for the low cost of living and the high number of steady jobs for non-English speaking workers.

But Mondays incident is just the latest in a string of incidents in which some migrants in the community went rogue and unleashed violent attacks and even planned terrorist plots.

Back in Feburary, a Middle-Eastern restaurant in Columbus was the scene of a frightening machete attack that left four people wounded and the attacker killed.

Nazareth Restaurant and Deli owner Hani Baransi told Foxnews.com in May that he thought he and his establishment were targeted by a Muslim man with a Somali background because he was from Israel and adorned his establishment with the Jewish States flag.

"It was a targeted killing," Baransi, 50, told FoxNews.com earlier this year. "It was definitely an assassination attempt. This person went through town looking for someone like me."

Baransi also confirmed reports that the man, Mohamed Barry, who was killed by police as he fled the restaurant, came in the building prior to the attack and asked staff members about their boss.

"One of the waitresses told him I was from Israel, Baransi said. He came back 30 minutes later and started attacking customers."

Just two months later, another Columbus resident of Somali descent was indicted after he returned from Syria where he trained alongside terrorists and was discovered to be planning an attack on a U.S. military base or prison.

Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, a U.S. citizen originally from Somalia, wanted to "kill three or four American soldiers execution style," according to his indictment from April. Attacking the prison was part of a backup plan if that didn't work, the charges said.

Mohamud, 23, of Columbus was charged with supporting terrorism, supporting the same terrorist group and making a false statement involving international terrorism when he allegedly lied to an Ohio FBI agent by saying he was in Istanbul when authorities say he was in Syria.

Some incidents have gone back years.

It was nearly a decade ago when a Somali immigrant from Columbus was sentenced to ten years in prison for plotting to blow up an Ohio shopping mall with a man who was convicted of being an al-Qaeda terrorist.

The alleged plot was never carried out by Nuradin Abdi, whose lawyer long maintained that he was guilty at most of ranting about the United States' handling of the war in Afghanistan.

Abdi pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to provide material support for terrorists and three charges against him were dropped as part of his plea deal; Abdi could have received 80 years in prison had he been convicted of all the counts he had faced. Upon his release, Abdi will be deported to Somalia.

Prosecutors at the time said Abdi made threatening comments about an unspecified shopping mall during a meeting with two other alleged terrorists on Aug. 8, 2002, at a coffee shop in suburban Columbus.

Abdi and the two "could attack the mall with a bomb," Abdi told his friends, according to court documents.

One of the men with Abdi that day was Iyman Faris, who pleaded guilty in May 2003 to providing material support for terrorism. A Pakistani immigrant, Faris was convicted of plotting to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

The motive behind Mondays attack on the Ohio State campus is still unknown but investigators are looking into the possibility of it being a terrorist attack.

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone said the attacker, later identified as Abdul Artan, deliberately drove over a curb and into pedestrians.

"This was done on purpose," Stone said.

Those in the Somali community of Columbus find the latest incident troubling.

Hassan Omar, president of the Somali Community Association of Ohio, said according to reports that the news of the attacker being Somali was upsetting.

"This is a shock," he said. "As a Somali community here, we are in a state of shock. In Columbus, we live in a very peaceful community. This is going to affect the life of everybody. We are American and we don't want somebody to create this problem."
A Somali-born student at Ohio State University injured 11 people, one of them critically, on Monday when he attacked a crowd of pedestrians on campus in an incident one lawmaker said "bears all the hallmarks of a terror attack."

Authorities said Abdul Razak Ali Artan, 18, plowed a small gray Honda into the crowd outside Watts Hall, an engineering classroom building, just before 10 a.m. ET. Artan then got out of the vehicle and attacked people with a butcher knife before he was shot and killed by a campus police officer.

The officer, identified as Alan Horujko, 28, happened to be in the area because of a reported gas leak. Ohio State University Police Chief Craig Stone said Horujko arrived on the scene and shot Artan in under a minute. OSU Department of Public Safety Director Monica Moll said Horujko had done a "fabulous job."

In a statement, the university said that five of the victims had been struck by the car, five others had suffered lacerations or stab wounds and another person had orthopedic injuries. At least five of the victims were affiliated with Ohio State, either as faculty, students or staff.

From the archives: Ohio State attacker featured in Humans of Ohio State https://t.co/OjucYxXcZo pic.twitter.com/0BSYW9Vy81  The Lantern (@TheLantern) November 28, 2016

Two law enforcement sources told Fox News that Artan came into the United States as a Somali refugee, and was granted status as a legal permanent resident.

In August, Ohio State's student newspaper, The Lantern, ran an interview with Artan, who identified himself as a Muslim and a third-year logistics management student who had just transferred from Columbus State Community College in the fall.

He said he was looking for a place to pray openly and worried about how he would be received.

Nov. 28: Ten injured in #Columbus at Ohio State in an attack involving a car and a butcher knife. The suspect is a reported Somali refugee. pic.twitter.com/6kV7ePyQim  Fox News Research (@FoxNewsResearch) November 28, 2016

"I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media. I'm a Muslim, it's not what media portrays me to be," he told the newspaper. "If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I don't know what they're going to think, what's going to happen. But I don't blame them. It's the media that put that picture in their heads."

The Columbus Dispatch reported that Artan received an associate's degree from Columbus State this past May before transferring to Ohio State. The paper said Artan was a logistics management major in the university's College of Business.

The Dispatch also reported that Artan lived in an apartment complex west of downtown Columbus. Neighbors told the paper that police and a bomb squad arrived at the complex around 11 a.m. Monday to secure the area. Local law enforcement officers reportedly are waiting for federal officials to arrive before searching the apartment.

Neighbors say Artan was always polite and attended daily prayer services at a mosque on the city's west side.

The motive behind the attack is still unclear, but law enforcement sources told Fox News the FBI was examining a Facebook post that may have been written by Artan earlier Monday. The post appeared to condemn U.S. military action in Muslim countries.

The @OSUPolice confirm Officer Alan Horujko shot and killed

the suspect, Abdul Razak Ali Artan, Monday morning. (OFFICER PHOTO ATTACHED) pic.twitter.com/i1skmuLqCb  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said Artan "may have been self-radicalized."

"While we are still awaiting more information from the investigation into the OSU attack, it bears the all of the hallmarks of a terror attack," Schiff said in a statement. "The fight against ISIS, Al Qaeda and other terror organizations and their global incitement to radicalism, must be carried out on battlefields far away, and by confronting online propaganda here at home."

House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said late Monday that "we do not yet have confirmation of terrorist connections" to the attack. However, McCaul added "this is the type of indiscriminate violence our enemies are urging their followers to use against us."

Vice President-elect Mike Pence called the episode "a tragic attack" and said "our prayers are with them all."

Leaders of Muslim organizations and mosques in the Columbus area condemned the attacks while cautioning people against jumping to conclusions or blaming a religion or an ethnicity.

"It is particularly heartbreaking to see this random act of violence come to this community I hold so dear," said Nicole Ghazi, who is active in Islamic organizations and is an Ohio State graduate.



Angshuman Kapil, a graduate student, was outside Watts Hall when the car barreled onto the sidewalk.

"It just hit everybody who was in front," he said. "After that everybody was shouting, `Run! Run! Run!"'



Student Martin Schneider said he heard the car's engine revving.



"I thought it was an accident initially until I saw the guy come out with a knife," Schneider said, adding that the man didn't say anything when he got out.



In recent months, federal law enforcement officials have raised concerns about online extremist propaganda that encourages knife and car attacks, which are easier to pull off than bombings.

The Islamic State group (ISIS) has urged sympathizers online to carry out "lone wolf" attacks in their home countries with whatever weapons are available to them.

Surveillance photos showed Artan in the car by himself just before the attack, but investigators are looking into whether anyone else was involved, the campus police chief said.



The bloodshed came as students were returning to classes following the Thanksgiving break and Ohio State's football victory over rival Michigan that brought more than 100,000 fans to campus on Saturday.



"There were several moments of chaos," said Rachel LeMaster, who works in the engineering college. "We barricaded ourselves like we're supposed to since it was right outside our door and just hunkered down."



LeMaster said she and others were eventually led outside the building, and she saw a body on the ground.



Classes were canceled for the rest of the day.



The initial tweet from Ohio State emergency officials went out around 10 a.m. and said: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College." University President Michael Drake said the warning was issued after shots were heard on campus.



"Run, hide, fight" is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run away if possible; get out of view; or try to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.



Fox News' Jennifer Griffin, Matt Dean and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from MyFox28Columbus.com.

Click for more from The Columbus Dispatch.
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A former Russian army officer who defected to fight alongside Taliban-affiliated forces is now arguing he should never have been prosecuted at all.

Irek Hamidullin contends he deserves to be treated as a lawful combatant with prisoner of war status. A judge rejected those arguments before Hamidullin was convicted last year and given a life sentence.

A federal appeals court takes up the matter Dec. 9.

There's been only one criminal prosecution in the last 15 years in which a court considered whether a Taliban fighter enjoyed combatant immunity. Then, the judge ruled for the government.

The U.S. is among nations that distinguish between acts committed by soldiers during war and violent acts outside an international conflict.

The government and Hamidullin are at odds on what category he falls into.
Around 1,000 veterans gathered at a western Massachusetts college Sunday to protest the schools decision to stop flying all flags, including U.S. flags, after students allegedly burned a flag in protest of Donald Trumps election victory.

Hampshire College in Amherst outraged many with its decision to remove all flags from campus. Protesters expressed their displeasure and hoped to reach out to students during their demonstration.

They took down my flag, they have a right to that, Im here to defend their right to do that but I want them to understand how bad that hurts me, veteran Jerry Maguire told WWLP-TV.

The station reported that hundreds all over the New England region joined the protest, including Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno. He stood with the veterans as well.

For the students here and the president and board of trustees have risen from what the veterans sacrificed, this flag and not to fly the flag on this campus if you were in some other countries around the world it would be handled very, very differently, Sarno said.

Other veterans and demonstrators were heard chanting U.S.A., according to Fox 25 Boston.

The WWLP-TV reported that the protest was largely peaceful, aside from one isolated incident.

Hampshire College President Jonathan Lash didnt attend the event, according to WWLP-TV.

The station reported last week that debates over flag flying have occurred on campus before. For more than a decade flying commemorative 9/11 flags have been a hot-button issue until the school board voted to fly those flags annually.

Lash said the Amherst campus will talk with students and staff about properly utilizing flags in the future.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from WWLP-TV.
An Olympic ice-dancing gold medalist and her on-ice partner have caused controversy by dressing up in concentration camp uniforms for a dance routine on a popular television show.

Tatiana Navka, who is the wife of Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, and dancing partner Andrei Burkovsky, appeared in Saturday's episode of "Ice Age" dressed in striped uniforms bearing yellow six-pointed stars and heavily made-up to look bruised and frail.

Their routine, which aired on state-owned Channel One, was based on "Life is Beautiful," the Academy Award-winning Italian movie about a Jewish father who pretends for the sake of his small son that their internment in a Nazi camp is just a game.

Navka's Instagram account soon was flooded with indignant comments.

Navka, 41, who won gold in ice dancing for Russia at the 2006 Turin Olympics, and Burkovsky, a 33-year-old theater actor, told Russian media on Sunday that it was their way of paying homage to Holocaust victims.

Their dance sparked outrage in Israel.

"Motifs from the Holocaust are not for parties, not for dance and not for reality (TV)," Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev told Israeli Army Radio on Sunday.

"Not one of the 6 million danced and a concentration camp is not a summer camp," Regev added, referring to the number of Jewish dead.

Peskov told reporters on Monday that his wife's dance routine is not something for the Kremlin to comment on, but said: "I'm proud of my wife. This is all I can say."

While some Russians were indignant at what some saw as mockery of the memory of the dead, others posted messages of support on Navka's Instagram account, saying that the dance brought tears to their eyes.

The routine was choreographed by 2002 Olympic silver medalist Ilya Averbukh, who is Jewish.

Averbukh, who said in a 2012 interview that he "had problems" in his childhood because of his Jewish name, stood by the Holocaust-themed dance.

"This routine is my idea," Averbukh, who is also Ice Age's chief producer, told Komsomolskaya Pravda on Sunday. "I have done a lot of routines on the war and Jewish themes."

Senior Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, have honored Holocaust victims and have spoken out against attempts to justify the crimes of Nazis or their allies.

The Holocaust-themed routines aren't new to sports.

In 1996, France's synchronized swimming team had to scrap its program, which depicted the arrival of Jewish women in death camps and their final march to the gas chambers, following an intervention by the French sports minister. The routine was also based on a movie and set to music from Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List."


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Albania has celebrated its Independence Day with a display of Mig-19 Chinese-made jets and other outdated weaponry.

Two jets, a helicopter, rocket launchers, a missile, transport vehicles, guns, other weaponry and a cement bunker from the former communist regime is on show from Monday in the courtyard of the Defense Ministry in the Tirana suburbs.

Albania declared independence in 1912 after five centuries under the Ottoman Empire. After World War II it was tied first to the Soviet Union and then to China, until the fall of communism in 1990.

It joined NATO in 2009 and has replaced outdated weaponry in line with the alliance's standards.

Most of its Eastern Bloc-era transport vehicles, jets, tanks and armored personal carriers, as well as infantry AK-47 assault rifles, have been sold for scrap.
An Iranian small boat pointed a machine gun at a U.S. Navy helicopter flying off an American aircraft carrier in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, two U.S. defense officials told Fox News.

The two Iranian small boats were spotted approximately nine miles from the aircraft carrier while it was transiting the strait. After spotting the Iranian vessels, the aircraft carrier launched a helicopter, which had been on alert.

The helicopter next flew close to the Iranian small boats, where one of the Iranian vessels pointed its weapon at the helicopter and the pilots reported seeing that the machine gun was loaded, officials said.

The U.S. Navy helicopter then returned to USS Eisenhower after the weapon was pointed.

A Navy official called the Iranian behavior unsafe and unprofessional, and an escalating measure.

The two Iranian small boats came within a mile of the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in the Strait of Hormuz, officials told Fox News.
A slippery, one-eyed Al Qaeda leader long wanted by the U.S. appears to have finally met his maker courtesy of French airstrikes over Libya, two Pentagon sources told Fox News.

French fighter jets based on the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the Mediterranean and conducting a mission over southern Libya took out Mokhtar Belmokhtar, two U.S. defense officials told Fox News. American forces have targeted Belmokhtar twice in the past two years, only to see the senior Al Qaeda leader cheat death.

"It looks like he is dead this time," said one official, citing a recent intelligence report.

Neither official contacted by Fox News would say when the French airstrike occurred. The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the strike, said it took place earlier this month. Belmokhtar is the leader of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, or AQIM.

In January 2013, Belmokhtar led a group of Al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists who kidnapped hundreds of workers at a gas plant in Algeria, including dozens of foreigners. A four-day standoff came to an end when Algerian forces stormed the plant, killing 32 militants. Seven hostages were killed, including one American.

Officials at the White House and the Pentagon declined to comment on the strike, and a spokesman for the French Ministry of Defense declined to comment when contacted by The Wall Street Journal.

Belmokhtar raised millions of dollars for Al Qaeda affiliates through smuggling, hostage-taking and selling illicit goods, and is considered directly responsible for the deaths of at least three Americans.

Belmokhtar has been on the U.S. wanted list for at least a decade.

Fox News' Lucas Tomlinson contributed to this report.


The death toll and injuries incurred by the Kurdish Peshmerga are mounting in the battle against ISIS, but despite the rising number of fallen and maimed fighters, officials say it would be worse without U.S. training.

The number of dead stands at an estimated 1,600, and thousands more have lost limbs or been burned by chemical weapons. Yet, they say training has spared many more.

In the early days, we would have 70 wounded soldiers coming in all at once from one battle, only a few nurses and doctors who would work three shifts without break, Pshtiwan Aziz, manager of the Emergency Management Center in Erbil, told FoxNews.com. But now they have had American training, many less are coming in with wounds. Just a few, even from big battles.

From tourniquet techniques and proper bandaging to how to position the wounded for transport, training for thousands lasted several weeks. Each training block was tailored to the needs of a specific unit, with especially focused instruction on how to handle casualties from improvised explosive devices. IEDs have caused as much as 85 percent of casualties, and coalition personnel worked extensively in the lead-up to the campaign to retake Mosul on strategies to mitigate their damage.

Given that Kurds lack medical-evacuation helicopters and well-equipped mobile hospitals, on-the-field triage is critical. Yet, even for those who are saved, the armys poor funding remains an obstacle. Nearly 9,500 Peshmerga fighters have been wounded in the last 2  years, many of them seriously.

The brutal war has ravaged the economy of the semi-autonomous region to such a degree that some Kurds refer to the mounting debt as a worse threat than ISIS.

Thousands of wounded soldiers are consequently being treated in public hospitals across the region, many miles from the frontlines, where they have to compete with other ordinary casualties in what is already a greatly over-burdened health care system. A few of what doctors describe as the fortunate ones have been sent abroad for surgeries to places like India, Turkey, Jordan and Germany for better medical assistance.

Inside the EMC, a crumpled collection of chipping white walls in the center of Erbil, the frustration is evident. There are thousands of case files on the wounded, and scores of soldiers -- young and old, body parts gone -- file in and out looking for treatment and answers.

Phwan Ishmael, 31, an engineering student, was defusing a roadside bomb for the Peshmerga in December 2014, when it exploded. His comrades died, and much of his body was burned. But the worst part, he told FoxNews.com, was losing his hearing.

Karwan Saeed, 37, was one of the first victims of an ISIS chemical attack. Just outside of Mosul in July last year, Saeed went to inspect a Katysha rocket that hit a few yards in front  not knowing of its chemical payload. Now his body and eyes well endlessly and his skin erupts into excruciating rashes. In a recent interview, he pulled out a bar of oatmeal soap, and declared the treatment ineffective.

Khider Merkir, 42, a 25-year Peshmerga serviceman, was ambushed by ISIS fighters nearly a year ago while patrolling in the Makhmour area. A round from a BKC -- also known as PKM machine gun -- cleaved right below his left ear and lodged just a few millimeters from the top disc in his back -- where it remains, infected and inflamed.

I want to remove the bullet, Merkir said. But it is a sensitive operation, and they cant do it here.

Then there is Bazhar Hussein, 32, who was working on the frontlines for the regions leading security and intelligence branch  the Asayish  when the crucial first and second vertebrae in his back were struck by a snipers bullet. Hussein can no longer control his legs, head or eyes. Sometimes, he can slowly speak, but other times his eyes swell with confused tears as the words simply wont come.

He wasnt like this before; he used to be able to talk. But now it is getting worse and worse, one nurse said softly, helping him reach for the walker. But thats what this war has done to people.

But the person who has waited the longest for treatment is that of Nabil Majeed, 36, who became the very first Peshmerga fighter to be injured during the war in early July 2014. He was inside a Christian village near Mosul when he opened fire on an ISIS operative putting up propaganda posters in the street. Majeeds body was battered by bullets in the exchange and since that day he has had nine teeth and part of his tongue removed and can no longer close his left eye or chew. His nerves are riddled with damage and two of his ribs have been removed and instead inserted into his face where his jaw once was in a complicated bone graft operation.

Yet for him there is no self-pity, no anger.

I miss going outside in the sun. Now the sun makes my eye swell, and I always feel like something is in front of my eye, he says. Something is always in front of me. And I don't know what it is."
The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local):

10:30 a.m.

Russia's Defense Ministry says Syrian government troops have captured 10 neighborhoods and over 3,000 buildings from rebels in Aleppo.

The ministry said in a statement on Monday that more than 100 rebels have laid down their weapons and exited the Syrian city's eastern suburbs. The ministry also said the Syrian government troops had pushed the rebels from al-Qadisia, which it described as the "key neighborhood of eastern Aleppo."

The government's push, backed by thousands of Shiite militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran, and under the occasional cover of the Russian air force, has laid waste to Aleppo's eastern neighborhoods.

___

10: 15 a.m.

Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo's besieged rebel-held areas under state control.

State news agency SANA says government forces captured the Sakhour neighborhood early Monday in the latest blow to rebels in Syria's largest city.

Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said Syrian government forces have captured some 10 neighborhoods over the past few days, putting nearly 30 percent of Aleppo's formerly rebel-held neighborhoods under government control.

Government forces captured the Hanano district on Saturday, the first time they had pushed this far into eastern Aleppo since 2012.

Thousands of east Aleppo residents have fled to safety in government and Kurdish-controlled areas of the city.
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The Netherlands and Belgium, with their royals in attendance, have signed a deal for a peaceful exchange of land between them for the mere fact that it makes sense to do so.

While the globe is littered with pieces of territory that are jealously held on to or fought over for historical reasons, the two neighboring nations on Monday signed away tiny plots of their land to the other because they were too much of a practical and jurisdictional bother.

On the meandering Meuse river, which divides both nations, Belgium gave up a tiny peninsula linked only to the Netherlands and got in return a nearby piece from its neighbor.

Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said the signing shows "borders can also be changed in a peaceful manner."
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North Korea is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, seen by the North as a rare comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States.

State media reported Monday that the North has ordered flags outside official buildings be flown at half-staff to honor Castro. The iconic Cuban leader died Friday at age 90.

Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy and that a delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castro's memorial services.

According to a Japanese agency that monitors North Korean media, Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honored in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.
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A ban on Segway motor scooters in Prague's historic center and some other parts of the Czech capital is coasting into effect.

Authorities have started placing 610 traffic warning signs in the Segway-free areas. Once the signs all are installed, using the two-wheeled scooters in those zones will be punishable by a fine of up to 2,000 koruna ($78).

Protests from locals over the number of tourists riding Segways on sidewalks and Prague's narrow cobbled streets prompted city officials to approve the ban in July.

An association of companies providing Segway tours says City Hall has not responded to its objections.

The ban, expected to take effect by Dec. 10, affects parts of Prague's 1st, 2nd 3rd, 4th, 7th and 8th districts, including streets and walkways.
Authorities in Manila detonated an improvised explosive device Monday that was found in a trash bin near the U.S. Embassy. No one was reported hurt in the incident.

At least two explosions were heard as a bomb disposal unit detonated what Metropolitan Manila police Chief Oscar Albayalde later described as an IED. Authorities were forced to shut a portion of a major roadway where the device was found.

National police chief Director-General Ronald dela Rosa said at a news conference that police believe that Maute militants could be behind an attempted act of terrorism that appeared to target the embassy.

The improvised bomb fashioned from an 81-mm mortar round, cellphone, blasting cap and a small battery could have been powerful enough to kill people within 110 yards, police officials said.

"After analysis, we can link it to the Maute because of what happened in Davao, the same (bomb) signature," dela Rosa said.

He added that the Maute group may have wanted to create a diversion after suffering heavy losses in its war against military and police in the south.

Senior Supt. Joel Coronel, the Manila city police chief, said they were checking security cameras in the area and seeking information from at least two eyewitnesses.

The trash bin where the device was found was about 22 yards from the embassy compound.

Philippine troops, backed by bomber aircraft, have recently attacked the Maute militants, including an operation launched last Thursday based on intelligence reports that the group was continuing to make bombs after the Sept. 2 bombing in Davao city, the president's hometown, military spokesman Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said.

Military officials say that the militants, a loosely organized group that has more than 200 members, were initially affiliated with an Indonesian terror suspect but have lately used black flags and arm and head bands with Islamic State group symbols in a possible attempt to gain support from the Middle East-based group.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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The presidents of Poland and of Germany are paying a visit to NATO's easternmost command center, which is being upgraded for quick reaction in the event of a threat to the alliance's eastern flank.

Andrzej Duda and Joachim Gauck are meeting on Monday with commanders and troops at the headquarters of NATO's Multinational Corps Northeast in Szczecin. Stationed there are troops from the U.S. and 24 other nations, including non-NATO countries Finland and Sweden.

Following Russia's seizure of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014, a NATO summit that year decided to raise the corps' readiness to high and to increase its force as a deterrent on the alliance's eastern flank. The corps will take command of NATO's rapid reaction force or "spearhead" in case of a threat.
Rights groups are urging Ugandan security forces to show restraint as they crack down on a tribal militia in a remote area near Congo.

More than four dozen people have been killed in clashes since Thursday, most of them guards protecting a tribal king who is critical of long-time President Yoweri Museveni. The militia, armed with modern weapons as well as spears and machetes, have killed more than a dozen police officers.

In a statement Monday, Amnesty International said the Ugandan security forces "must not jettison human rights in their handling of the clashes" in the western Kasese district.

Maria Burnett, an Africa researcher with Human Rights Watch, said that "everyone, including government troops and their commanders should face investigations into their conduct that led to the deaths."
South African President Jacob Zuma is fighting for his presidency in the capital Pretoria as the ruling party's highest decision-making body considers a motion for him step down.

The meeting of the National Executive Committee of the ruling African National Congress was scheduled to end on Sunday but was extended to Monday so that each of the 80 members could state their position on whether or not Zuma should continue as president.

The motion for Zuma to leave office was introduced by Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom.

The party's executive committee has the power to recall Zuma as president. In 2008 the committee recalled then president Thabo Mbeki after he was defeated by Zuma in the ANC's leadership contest.

Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa is likely to take over if Zuma resigns.
Member states of the world's chemical weapons watchdog on Monday slammed Syria for using poison gas during its civil war and for repeatedly failing to fully explain the scope of its chemical weapons program.

A joint investigation by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has concluded that Syrian government forces were behind three attacks involving chlorine gas and the Islamic State extremist group was responsible for one involving mustard gas. Syria denies using chemicals as weapons.

"For the first time in the convention's 19-year history, a state party has been found to have violated the treaty's most fundamental tenet," Canadian representative Sabine Noelke said, referring to the Chemical Weapons Convention that banned such weapons and established the OPCW.

The convention and the organization that polices it have been seen as disarmament success stories  the OPCW won the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize  but repeated reports of the use of chemicals as weapons during the Syrian crisis are casting a shadow over that success.

Australia's ambassador to the Netherlands, Brett Mason, told the annual Conference of the States Parties of the OPCW that chemical attacks in Syria are "the most serious violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention in its history" and urged the meeting to take action.

Syria's "flagrant and repeated violations of its basic obligations under our convention cannot be met with silence or excuses by this conference," Mason said.

Syria's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Faisal Mekdad rejected the criticism, calling repeated reports of his country's use of chemicals as weapons "part of a coordinated and repeated campaign of lies."

Damascus also faced repeated criticism at Monday's meeting for failing to answer questions about gaps and discrepancies in the declaration it made when it joined the OPCW in 2013 about the extent of its stockpile and chemical weapons program.

"The extent of the gaps in Syria's declaration combined with its willingness to use toxic chemicals as weapons leave substantial grounds for concern that Syria has retained elements of its stockpile and is prepared to use them," said British representative Geoffrey Adams.

The debate was scheduled to continue Tuesday.
Thousands of Cubans walked through Plaza of the Revolution in Havana on Monday to pay their respects to a man who inspired both loyalty and loathing throughout his almost half-century of complete political control of the island.

The memorial, which included a 9-story image of a young Fidel Castro mounted alongside flowers, kicked off a week of services bidding farewell to the longtime dictator.

Uniformed Cuban soldiers fired off 21-gun salutes to mark the start of the services at 9 a.m. from the Morro fort in Havana and from a fort in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953.

One of the first in line was Tania Jimenez, a 53-year-old mathematician who arrived at 4 a.m. carrying a rose.

Fidel is everything to us, the soul of this country who gave everything, all his life, she said in tears.

Since his death on Friday night, state-run newspapers, television and radio have been running wall-to-wall tributes to Fidel, broadcasting non-stop footage of his speeches, interviews and foreign trips, interspersed with adulatory remembrances by prominent Cubans.

"There's a genuine feeling of mourning, that's not a formality, that's not showy, that's not outward-focused, but rather completely intimate," former National Assembly President Ricardo Alarcon said on state television Sunday.

However, for some young Cubans, Fidels death barely registered into their daily lives.

Even if Im obligated to go, Im not doing it, 20-year-old student Yankemell Barrera said, adding that the ex-leader, who gave up leadership to his younger brother Raul about 10 years ago, wasnt a strong presence in his life.

He said studying for finals would be a better use of his time.

The ashes of the 90-year-old former president did not appear to be on display inside the monument. Many Cubans were given time off from work to attend the memorial and virtually all schools and government offices were closing for the homage to Castro, which will stretch for 13 hours on Monday and take place again on Tuesday, ending in a rally echoing those that Castro addressed on the plaza for most of his time in power.

"It's a terrible sadness. Everyone's feeling it here," said Orlando Alvarez, a 55-year-old jeweler. "Everyone will be there."

On Wednesday, Castro's ashes will begin a three-day procession east across Cuba, retracing the march of his bearded rebel army from the Sierra Maestra mountains to the capital. Castro's ashes will be interred on Sunday in Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago, Cuba's second-largest city.

Monday also marked the arrival of the first U.S. commercial flight to Havana just three months after the first flight to Cuba in five decades landed in the central city of Santa Clara.

Several airlines began routes to other Cuban cities earlier this year; Monday morning's flight was the first of the new Havana-bound service and the first of four daily flights American Airlines plans out of Miami International.

The Miami Herald reports JetBlue will start twice-daily service from Orlando on Tuesday and Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday. On Thursday, Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines begin flying from Fort Lauderdale and Delta flights will take off from Miami, New York's JFK airport and Atlanta. Southwest starts daily service from Fort Lauderdale on Dec. 12.

More than 3 million tourists visited Cuba last year, and the government expects even more this season as interest explodes due to detente between Havana and Washington.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Three United Nations employees were recently taken hostage in the volatile Sudanese region of Darfur, local government authorities reported on Monday.

The employees, two Nepalese and one Sudanese national, were picked up by a group of armed men in a 4-by-4 vehicle in the town of Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state.

UN EXTENDS LIBERIA PEACEKEEPING MISSION

A local resident elaborated further on the incident, speaking to AFP anonymously.

I saw some armed men ordering the three UN employees to get into their vehicle. They then drove off quickly.

The incident happened near the main mosque of Geneina, the resident said.

UN RENEWS SOMALIA-ERITREA ARMS EMBARGO

UNHCR, the United Nations official refugee agency, has not commented on the situation, but its spokesman in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum relayed to AFP via text that meetings were being held to discuss the urgent incident.

This area of Sudan has been gripped by violence since a 2003 civil war erupted between the countrys often repressed black tribes and the Arab-controlled government. The president of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, is wanted by the international community on charges of genocide as well as war crimes. He has denied all charges against him.

The UN estimates the Darfur conflict has caused the deaths of at least 300,000 people, leaving 2.5 million displaced.

The kidnapped workers have not been found, and police continue searching for the attackers.


Despite the Iranian regimes best efforts to stop the spread of Christianity, a large underground church movement is growing.

Hundreds of Iranian citizens have been converting to Christianity, and many are being baptized in large ceremonies in underground churches held in private homes across the country. This month, Christian ministry ELAM estimated that more than 200 Iranian and Afghans were secretly baptized in a service just across the Iranian border.

Its an astronomical increase, Mani Erfan, CEO and founder of CCM Ministries, which has been involved in Irans underground church movement for more than two decades, told FoxNews.com. And its been predominately young people. We call it an awakening.

Erfan says much of Irans young population has grown tired of the regimes oppressive religious rule, which often distorts Islamic teachings.

The youth have become restless and have looked toward an alternative to the regime and Islam, he said. The youth find Western culture and the Christian church very appealing.

"Its become a counter-culture," he added. "A counter-revolution to the [1979 Iranian] Revolution.

Erfan adds that the evangelical movement began in the wake of 9/11 but has steadily increased in the past three to four years and that experts predict that by 2020, the Christian population in Iran will top 7 million -- or 10 percent of the total population.

Thats a paradigm shift, he said. It would change the dynamic of the country and the region.

The news out of Iran may provide a glimmer of hope for the Christian community elsewhere in the Middle East.

With the rise of extremism in neighboring Iraq and Syria, Christians have been under siege in the region due to ISIS. The Christian population in Iraq has plummeted from 1.5 million in 2003 to current estimates of 275,000, and could be gone for good within five years, according to a report last summer. The dwindling numbers have been due to genocide, refugees fleeing to other countries and forced conversions.

Much of Irans Christian population is forced to obtain religious materials and teachings from satellite TV, or social media forums like Telegram and Instagram and gather for worship services in the homes of pastors and other clergy members.

The [Iranian] government says that they are basically illegal gatherings, David Yeghnazar, executive director of Elam Ministries, told FoxNews.com. They are forced to meet in these house churches which the regime deems to be unlawful.
Fidel Castro: Africa has lost a friend

Fidel Castro will go down in history as a revolutionary leader who strongly supported the liberation struggle in Africa. The courage with which he withstood and confronted years of intimidation and threats from the gatekeepers of the "might is right" ideology, and on his own terms, inspired and will inspire the alternative world of genuine hope and freedom.

http://sfbayview.com/2016/11/fidel-castro-africa-has-lost-a-friend/
The trade-off between cure and long-term quality of life in pediatric cancer became far too real to Hinds. Ella was ineligible to receive radiation therapy for her brain tumor, Hinds says, because she was under age 3  an age that demarcates the upper limit of a particularly dramatic period of brain growth. The collateral damage of the radiation would have devastated her ability to function for the rest of her life, even if it had cured her tumor.

Brain cancer expert Olson (who did not treat Ella) says that when the pediatric brain cancer field learned about the terrible long-term effects of radiation to the brain in children under age 3, survival rates for these children plummeted as radiation came off the table in an effort to spare childrens brains the collateral damage of this treatment. Pioneered by researchers like Olsons mentor Dr. Russ Geyer at Seattle Childrens Hospital, better chemotherapy regimens have since improved matters, Olson says, but they bring long-term challenges of their own.

We are slowly getting back up to reasonable survival rates using chemo-only regimens, but these can also have serious long-term side effects, including permanent neurocognitive damage, Olson says.

Dr. Marie Bleakley of Fred Hutch, who treats advanced leukemia in children, also grapples with the challenges of treating children in this critical developmental window. When someone has very serious leukemia, often the only thing that can save their life is a transplant of blood-forming cells. In the youngest children, however, the intensive, cell-destroying, pre-transplant preparative regimens have profound negative effects on later growth and cognitive function.

Even just staving off transplant for a year or two could have a huge impact, Bleakley says. She is exploring whether engineered, tumor-targeting immune cells would allow doctors to push a transplant back, out of this critical window, or just avoid the most toxic transplantation regimens.

Probably theyll still need one, but its a different ballpark if you could delay transplant from when they are less than 1 to when theyre 3, Bleakley says. The goal, she says, is to transplant smarter in young patients who are still growing and developing.

Heartening progress

The good news is that the need for more research on therapies for children has not gone unnoticed.

Federal legislation over the past decades has helped to increase the number studies of new treatments in children by creating incentives for drug companies to study therapies in children and giving the FDA more power to request pediatric studies. A 2008 report by the Institute of Medicine, for example, cited improvements in dosing and safety information for medications used in children and the development of new pediatric formulations of medications as positive results of the previous decades legislation.

Instead of a drug company, Olson has partnered on the early development of new targeted therapies with the families and friends of children who had suffered brain cancer  people who are acutely aware of the need for new treatments. Crowdfunding helped to make possible his teams initial development of BLZ-100 Tumor Paint, now in clinical trials in adults and children, that is designed to help surgeons distinguish between cancer and healthy tissue by lighting up cancerous cells.

Emerging data on the molecular basis of rare diseases like childhood cancers is also helping to turn the tide, pediatric leukemia expert Meshinchi says. He and collaborators are poised to kick off a study in pediatric AML, funded by a drug company, that tests a medication that the company already has on the market for a different disease. His research had discovered that the cancer cells of almost a third of children with AML display the molecule that is targeted by this drug.

If you can match an existing drug with a target in your population, youve functionally truncated that [drug development] process by 10 to 15 years, Meshinchi says. The fact that the drug already exists vastly reduces costs and gives the company an opening into a new market.

Once they proved that the most common AML mutations in adults are not found in children with the disease, Meshinchi and colleagues succeeded in getting federal funding for a five-year initiative called TARGET AML that is uncovering new knowledge about the genetic signatures of this disease in children, adolescents and young adults. A new effort kicked off at the Hutch and funded by philanthropists, called Target Pediatric AML, seeks to sequence the genome of every child diagnosed with AML in the U.S. through the nationwide cooperative research network in pediatric oncology.

Armed with these emerging data and philanthropic support, Meshinchi and Bleakley are setting off on a project to develop immunotherapies that employ genetically engineered immune cells to kill the unique variants of AML that occur in children. They hope that the eventual therapy that results from their project will not only be effective in treating this cancer, it will minimize the kinds of toxic side effects that are especially impactful on young lives.

The Hutch Holiday Gala, to be held Dec. 3, will raise money to make the biggest investment ever in pediatric cancer researchers at Fred Hutch who focus on developing safe, effective therapies for children.

Ella Hinds, whose dad will always remember her as a gentle, smiley kid, died at the age of 2 in 2007. In the years since, Tom Hinds says hes seen a number of such targeted strategies begin to emerge from cancer research that give him hope that someday there will be more options for children like her.

I think theres been a lot of really heartening progress. But theres a lot more to go, Hinds says. I think were years, not decades, away from finding a good treatment.
Ogden Painting & Decorating Custom Walls Fireplaces Revamp Service Launched

A Utah based painting and decorating company has launched a custom painting service for residential and commercial properties. Customers can get fireplaces, walls and other features painted, and the company also offers a wide range of other painting services.

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Ogden Painters, a Utah based painting contractors company, has launched a custom painting service for residential and commercial properties wanting a brilliant finish on walls, fireplaces and other features. It offers photo examples on its site of the high quality custom paint jobs it has performed recently, and also details its other services including exterior painting, construction work, and painting kitchen cabinets.

More information can be found on the company website at: http://ogdenpainters.net.

The site explains that Ogden Painting Contractors are committed to offering customers services of the highest quality, using the best painting materials that result in the highest levels of workmanship. The company's staff are dedicated, trained professionals who strive to provide high levels of customer satisfaction with every job.

Customers in the Ogden area looking for new interiors to match their design model, and customers looking to revamp their home or office space can get in touch with Ogden Painting Contractors to help make their ideas become reality.

In addition to this, anyone wanting custom paint jobs on any area of their property can discuss their project or aims with the expert staff in order to finalise their plans. The team is also skilled in areas such as wallpaper, faux painting, drywall and furniture re-facing. This means that customers can get in touch feeling confident that their interior and exterior projects will be held to the highest standards.

As a locally run business, Ogden Painting Contractors can help save local clients money and time on all their painting work. The staff will inspect any location and give customers a quick, accurate and fair estimate for the cost of any work to be carried out.

Further to this, the Ogden Painting site emphasises that only the best painters and decorators are chosen to work for the company, so the men and women the team sends out are experts in their field, and keen to take on jobs of any size. Through working with Ogden Painting, clients can extend the life of their home and business and increase the value of their property by getting a high quality finish on their work.

For more information, please visit http://www.ogdenpainters.net/

Contact Info:

Name: Jason Marchand

Organization: Ogden Painters

Address: 4287 Harrison Blvd. Suite 262 Unit B

Phone: 801-876-1791

Release ID: 149866

For more information visit r



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Dawn Shannon's Intuition Salon & Spa Nominated for Philanthropy Award

Dawn Shannon's Intuition Salon & Spa has been honored with a nomination for the Tampa Bay Business Journal's 2016 Corporate Philanthropy Award. This nomination recognizes the community impact, contributions and support that is a hallmark of Dawn Shannon and her business philosophy.

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With two thriving salons and plans to open a third location, celebrity stylist Dawn Shannon is honored to have been nominated for the Tampa Bay Business Journal's 2016 Corporate Philanthropy Award. This nomination recognizes the community impact, contributions and support that is a hallmark of Dawn Shannon and her business philosophy.

Dawn Shannon's Intuition Salon & Spa has been an active member of the Tampa Bay area for many years contributing money, time and talent to the Sunscreen Film Festival, charity fashion shows and even donating to send an impoverished young woman in Honduras to beauty school so she can help support her family when she graduates. Now celebrating the 13th anniversary of the first location in downtown Clearwater, Intuition Salon & Spa has grown to two locations with a third planned for the near future.

Known locally for founding and organizing the Clearwater Beautification Project with the intention or using art to kickoff a revitalization of the downtown area, Shannon can always be counted on for help whether it is donating to a horse rescue, Relay for Life, or simply a raffle for an event, she truly believes that people will get out of a community what they put into it.

"Giving back to the community is important to me," said Shannon. "I really enjoy volunteering our time and services to help promote events in the Tampa Bay area. Being nominated for the Corporate Philanthropy Award is definitely an honor."

To learn more about Dawn Shannon and Intuition Salon & Spa please visit http://www.intuitionsalonandspa.com/

About Dawn Shannon: With over 23 years of experience, Dawn Shannon, has worked with local and national celebrity client's around the country and founded Intuition Salon & Spa to create a friendlier high-end salon environment, where every client can experience the Intuition Magic. Requiring that every artist working in her salons continue their advanced training in color, cut and style, ensures the quality Dawn demands at Intuition while maintaining a relaxing, professional and fun salon experience. Specializing in organic color and color correction, Dawn Shannon's Intuition Salon & Spa has two locations in the Tampa Bay area. For more information visit http://www.dawn-shannon.com/

For more information, please visit http://www.intuitionsalonandspa.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Diane Stein

Email: ontoppr@gmail.com

Organization: Intuition Salon & Spa

Address: 16 N Fort Harrison Ave., Clearwater, FL



Release ID: 149779

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Varner Pipe, LLC Introduces Steel Pipe Solutions

The company is giving customers a more durable option for their commercial projects, reports http://varnerpipe.com/.

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Texas-based Varner Pipe, LLC announced the introduction of their steel pipe solutions. The company now has New and Used Steel Pipe for sale for those currently pursuing commercial projects. Varner Pipe's steel piping solutions can be used in a number of construction applications, and the company has custom options available for those who have unique requirements for their projects.

"When it comes to commercial projects, steel pipes have a number of advantages over using wood, not the least of which is strength. Simply put, customers prefer to use steel piping because it outlasts other materials. It can brave the elements without breaking down, and there's no risk that insects will eat away at it when it's pushed below the soil line. It's also fire resistant and able to withstand significant force. We're proud to be offering Steel Pipe for commercial projects because we know that it provides a solid value proposition in almost any situation," said Gary Varner, owner of Varner Pipe, LLC.

Varner's Quality Steel Pipe for sale comes in sizes ranging from 4.5 inches to 30 inches in diameter. For those who need something other than what Varner Pipe may have in their yard, the company stands ready to cut the pipe to the customer's desired length. Varner Pipe also offers a number of helpful services, including delivery and forklift services, and all deliveries are guaranteed within 24 hours of order placement.

Varner went on to say, "No matter what application our customers need steel pipe for, Varner Pipe stocks the sizes and grades to keep them running smooth. For those who need help with their project, our team is always available to provide assistance. We've seen our products used in many different scenarios and are confident that we can provide a viable solution that delivers unquestionable value to the customer."

Those who are interested in learning more about Varner Pipe, LLC or would like to inquire about their high quality steel pipe solutions can visit varnerpipe.com for more information.

About Varner Pipe, LLC:

Varner Pipe, LLC is a family owned and operated business. Having been introduced to the world of pipe at a very young age, the seeds of Varner Pipe were planted when owner Gary Varner sold his first truckload to his former paper company boss. Since 1999, the Varner family has owned Varner Pipe in Clyde, Texas. Great customer service and West Texas values quickly grew the business into an LLC in 2007 and allowed the Varner family to open their second location in Weatherford Texas off of I-20 in 2013. The same values and priorities provide the foundation for every transaction today.

For more information, please visit http://varnerpipe.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Gary Varner

Organization: Varner Pipe, LLC

Phone: (325) 893-3743

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/varner-pipe-llc-introduces-steel-pipe-solutions/149912

Release ID: 149912

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Dynamic Gift Australia Launches USB Flash Drive Range

The company is helping business owners gain brand exposure with a sought-after promotional gift, reports www.dynamicgift.com.au.

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Premier promotional products company Dynamic Gift Australia recently announced the launch of their extensive USB flash drive range. The new range includes a plethora of different USB drive types in a variety of shapes and colors, including novelty items like planes and f1 karts. The full USB range is currently available for viewing and purchase at the Dynamic Gift Australia website.

"USB drives are often overlooked by business owners as a marketing opportunity. Still, research shows that these items have a high retention rate among consumers because they are extremely useful to them. This means that, day in and day out, a current or potential customer will have a company's logo in front of them whenever they pick up their keys or use their computer. You simply can't beat this type of brand exposure," said Brian Perry of Dynamic Gift Australia.

Dynamic Gift Australia supplies only tier-one USB hard drives manufactured using Samsung and Hynix chips. All of their high-quality custom drives are guaranteed to perform, as the company backs each product with a 10-year warranty. Business owners and event planners are encouraged to visit the Dynamic Gift Australia website to browse their extensive range of USB drive types, which include everything from classic styles like The swivel USB, business card USB drives, and USB lanyards to more unique options like USB pens and puzzle cubes. The Dynamic Gift design team also offers the option of creating a bespoke design for those companies with unique needs.

As Perry further commented, "What we're offering to business owners is not just custom USB drives. It's a unique marketing opportunity that costs them very little and yet has the potential to bring in a much larger return. When businesses provide consumers with a high-quality and extremely useful gift such as a USB drive, those potential customers will come to associate that quality and usefulness with that company's products and services and may be more likely to remember their brand for future purchases."

About Dynamic Gift Australia:

Dynamic Gift Australia are direct manufacturers of promotional items for businesses and organizations. Their status as a manufacturer allows them to offer the best prices on the market for promotional gear. Their team is customer focused, striving for 100 percent satisfaction in every order they take on. With their simple ordering and straightforward delivery process, Dynamic Gift Australia is able to provide exactly what customers want in the most efficient way possible.

For more information, please visit http://www.dynamicgift.com.au

Contact Info:

Name: Brian Perry

Organization: Dynamic Gift Australia

Phone: 02 6555 4001

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/dynamic-gift-australia-launches-usb-flash-drive-range/149910

Release ID: 149910

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Manchester Nashua Asphalt Concrete Paving Driveway Parking Lot Site Launched

A Manchester and Nashua based paving company, American Asphalt Paving, have launched a new website detailing their services. They focus on paving parking lots, driveways and apartment complexes. They are also involved in giving back to the community with Habitat for Humanity.

--

American Asphalt Paving, serving Manchester and Nashua, New Hampshire, have launched a new website. The asphalt paving company paves parking lots, driveways and apartment building complexes. They also support the community with Habitat for Humanity.

For more information please visit: http://aapave.com.

American Asphalt Paving have been creating Paving in the New Hampshire area for 20 years and have accomplished hundred of paving jobs including home owner contracts, schools, churches, business and retail. The site states that they have old fashioned principles and that value, workmanship and respect come first.

Throughout their years in the business the company has built up relationships with local businesses who supply them with the high quality materials they use in their work. They are fully insured and maintain all necessary requirements needed to carry out their work. The company owner pays close supervision to every single project, ensuring the highest standards and the satisfaction of the customer.

American Asphalt Paving explain that they are experts in the paving of parking lots and driveways. Asphalt is advantageous in northern climates due to the freeze and thaw cycles that occur. Asphalt is flexible and stands up to cold weather and it also absorbs the sunlight, melting snow at a faster rate than concrete would.

The company can advise customers on their choice of paving and advise that blueprint drawings are usually needed for asphalt parking lots. When carrying out asphalt driveways and parking lots they use a multi layer pavement system to ensure proper support structure and longevity of the paving. A free, no obligation quote is available upon request.

The company helps to support the state of New Hampshire by being heavily involved in Habitat for Humanity and giving back to the community. Habitat for Humanity is a charity that helps to break the cycle of poverty by building and renovating homes for the most vulnerable.

Interested parties wishing to know more can visit the link above for more information.

For more information, please visit http://aapave.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Robert Stewart

Email: aapave@gmail.com

Organization: American Asphalt Paving

Address: 28 Zapora Dr.

Phone: +1 603 232 0458

Release ID: 149861

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Jacob Frydman - Pledges $180,000 At NCFJE Annual Awards Dinner

Real estate developer Jacob Frydman pledged $180,000 to the NCFJE organization at their 76th annual Awards Dinner Sunday night.

--

Real estate developer Jacob Frydman has come out in strong support of the NCFJE on November 20th, 2016. Frydman was Guest of Honor at the organization's 76th Annual Awards Dinner, which took place at the Edison Hotel Ballroom in Manhattan, and lent enthusiastic support to the organization's work in the Jewish community. The real estate mogul, a frequent guest on major news networks, punctuated his enthusiastic support of the NCFJE with a pledge of $180,000. The room was electrified by Frydman's announcement and his commitment to charity, philanthropy, and kindness.

In a recorded statement, Jacob Frydman praised the organization's flagship Jewish Released Time Program, which sends hundreds of volunteers across metropolitan New York to teach Jewish public school students. "Find me another organization that mobilizes, literally, an army of young men and women... to engage Jewish children all over metro New York, week after week..." He also praised the Machon LeYahadus, the organization's advanced Jewish Studies program for women, which he called "forward thinking" and "ground breaking". "The National Committee was decades ahead of the rest of the Jewish world, to recognize that there were young ladies, and many of them... thirsting for that knowledge."

NCFJE Chairman, Rabbi Shea Hecht said: "We really could not be more happy with our relationship with Mr. Frydman. He has shown a real concern for the welfare of the community at large, and is the kind of guy that really wants to help. You would think that someone involved with such massive projects is very removed from the concerns of the community, but Jacob is not like that at all. He is just an incredibly warm and loving person. I'm really impressed with him."

"I'm the kind of guy - I do things right, I do things with impact, or I don't do them," said Jacob Frydman, "I feel very fortunate to have discovered an organization that shares my approach."

NCFJE was founded in 1941 by the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn to teach Torah to public school students through the Jewish Released Time Program. The organization is responsible for running 37 separate social, religious and educational programs, including Jewish Summer Camps, TOYS for Hospitalized Children, Food Pantry in Brooklyn, Anti Shmad, ILTSF (formerly known as ILTSE), and Operation Survival. In recent years, the organization has turned its focus upon the economically disadvantaged families in its home community of Crown Heights.

Jacob Frydman - Property Expert and Consultant: http://jacobfrydmannews.com

Jacob Frydman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobfrydman

Jacob Frydman (@jacobfrydman) - Twitter: https://twitter.com/jacobfrydman

For more information, please visit http://www.JacobFrydmanNews.com

Contact Info:

Name: JFN

Email: jacob@jacobfrydmannews.com

Organization: JacobFrydmanNews.com



Source: http://marketersmedia.com/jacob-frydman-pledges-180000-at-ncfje-annual-awards-dinner/149828

Release ID: 149828

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Paul Broadfoot Releases Three New Workshops To Revolutionize Business Innovation Approaches

Paul Broadfoot is an Australian consultant that has created three new workshops based on business model innovation, enterprise growth and transformation, and disruptive innovation.

--

Businesses around the world face similar challenges at every level, but the biggest threat to their success is continuing to do things the way they have always done them. This stagnation causes many businesses to decline, because the business world is now evolving more rapidly than ever. Paul Broadfoot (www.paulbroadfoot.com) is an Australian business model innovation consultant, and specialises in what businesses can do next to improve their business performance. He has just released a series of three new workshops designed to offer unique strategies and approaches to businesses looking to break through to the next level.

The first of these workshops is entitled "Accelerate Next", and is designed to teach people the fundamentals of business model innovation, and the flexibility with which these principles can be applied to how a company works, in order to improve all aspects of the Enterprise Model.

The second, "Design Next", has been created to assist in designing a new purpose-built growth division within a company. The addition of a 'speedboat' engineered to find new growth and create a more responsive structure better capable of seizing opportunities.

The final workshop, "Lead Next" has been created to help teams learn about business model innovation, advancing their capability to think more strategically in their roles.

A spokesperson for Paul Broadfoot explained, "The work Paul is doing on behalf of businesses is revolutionary. Many businesses think that the future should look quite similar to what they did before and do now. Paul redefines next, redirecting business energies, which gives organisations the strategies to successfully orient themselves for the future, giving them the true power of 'next'. Businesses can also follow Paul Broadfoot on Facebook or his blog for regular updates on workshops and speaking engagements, as well as his current consulting work."

About Paul Broadfoot: Paul Broadfoot is one of Australia's foremost experts on Business Model Innovation, Growth Strategies, Disruptive Innovation and Business Acceleration. Paul works with a select group of clients determined to improve their methodologies, through bespoke growth strategy programs. In addition to this, Paul speaks at conferences and events to get people thinking differently about future business for their roles and their organisations, inspiring them to act.

For more information, please visit http://paulbroadfoot.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Paul Broadfoot

Email: pr@paulbroadfoot.com

Organization: Paul Broadfoot

Address: Level 17, 31 Queen St Melbourne, Victoria 3000 Australia

Phone: 1300 98 77 44

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/paul-broadfoot-releases-three-new-workshops-to-revolutionize-business-innovation-approaches/149924

Release ID: 149924

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Zimigo Opens Full Version Of Their Classifieds Search Engine After Successful Beta

Zimigo is a new search engine for classified ads, which covers homes, cars, jobs, products and more, and has launched its full version across more than thirty countries after a successful beta test.

--

Classified ads are a great way for people to advertise their old belongings, and sell them on to new owners. Equally, they are a great way for people to find everything from second hand goods to new homes online. Unfortunately, there are a huge number of competing classified ad platforms, which can overwhelm users, who have to spend hours repeating the same search on multiple websites. Zimigo is a new classified ads search engine, which has undertaken a successful beta since February this year, and has now launched its full version, with a plan to deliver business solutions for classifieds ads publishers.

Zimigo works with classifieds websites to offer free qualified traffic, while simultaneously making it quicker and easier for searchers to find what they are looking for across multiple platforms. The site is now accepting new sites, to index their ads on their search engine.

Zimigo is now present in over thirty countries, and is planning to launch in twenty more by the end of 2017. Their focus will be on African countries, while consolidating their presence in key territories, expanding Zimigo Brazil and Zimigo Argentina. This will uniquely position them to have a global reach, ideal for large-scale classifieds websites.

A spokesperson for Zimigo explained, "We are thrilled to be out of beta, and to launching the full version of our classifieds search engine. Our focus now is extending a truly global reach, helping open new markets to the classifieds websites that we hope to partner with, while similarly opening that network to people in countries traditionally underserved by online platforms. This is an exciting time for us, and we cannot wait to begin connecting more people to the cars, homes, products and even jobs that they are looking for online, more quickly and conveniently than ever."

About Zimigo: Zimigo is a classified ads search engine start-up that opened for business in February 2016 with a beta version. Now launched in its full form, the site is fully operational across more than thirty different countries, offering the best single source to search for homes, cars, jobs, products and other listings in their home country.

For more information, please visit http://zimigo.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Philippe Oger

Email: philippe@zimigo.com

Organization: Zimiweb SL



Source: http://marketersmedia.com/zimigo-opens-full-version-of-their-classifieds-search-engine-after-successful-beta/149926

Release ID: 149926

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Miami Board Certified Plastic Surgeons Lookup List & Directory Website Launched

Miami Plastic Surgery and Surgeons, a new website featuring the most distinguished and reputable board certified plastic and cosmetic surgeons in Miami with detailed background and contact information to allow for quick and convenient research and an educated final decision, has been launched.

--

A brand new website entitled Miami Plastic Surgery and Surgeons featuring the most distinguished and renowned board certified plastic and cosmetic surgeons in the Miami area to help those looking for cosmetic surgery quickly make an educated decision, has been launched.

More information is available at http://allovermarketing.com.

The Miami Plastic Surgery and Surgeons website was developed by Allovermarketing.com to provide a complete and user-friendly one-stop-shop directory where people seeking cosmetic surgery in the Miami, Florida, area can quickly and easily browse, research, find and contact the best cosmetic surgery specialist for their individual needs.

The newly launched cosmetic surgery directory features the most distinguished and reputable board certified plastic and cosmetic surgeons in and around the Miami area with a detailed overview of their training & education, credentials & qualifications, professional track record, specialties or procedures offered, patient care and service philosophy or practice details, and more, supported by patient reviews and ratings.

The range of plastic surgery specialist listings also provide each surgeon's website to allow for further research and investigation along with image galleries and the address, email and phone number of their practice as well as a contact form allowing visitors to quickly and easily reach their preferred cosmetic surgeons and practices directly through the Miami Plastic Surgery and Surgeons website.

More information on the newly launched Miami Plastic Surgery and Surgeons website and the range of renowned and board certified cosmetic surgeons listed or the wide variety of valuable details provided on each specialist to facilitate the most convenient browsing and research experience possible and ensure an educated decision can be consulted on the website link provided above.

The Miami Plastic Surgery and Surgeons website developer, Allovermarketing.com, explains that "this new website features the most distinguished and reputable plastic and cosmetic surgeons in and around the Miami, Florida, area. There is no need to waste any more time and energy looking around for a cosmetic surgeon. The top board certified specialists are now all in one place with all the information needed for people to easily make an educated decision."

For more information, please visit http://www.allovermarketing.com

Contact Info:

Name: Okley Robinson

Organization: Allovermarketing.com

Address: Miami Fl

Phone: 1 800 437 9458

Release ID: 149640

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LED Shop Front in UK: Installed by Dynamo LED Displays

Dynamo LED Displays announced the installation of the UK's first structural LED shop front. More information can be found at http://dynamo-led-displays.co.uk/.

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Customers looking for the latest Dynamo LED Displays will soon be able to purchase LED Displays by Dynamo LED Displays. LED Displays is designed to appeal specifically to shops and stores.

Dynamo LED Displays - Hour Passion is a specialist multi-brand watch boutique belonging to the Swatch Group which was looking to create something out of the ordinary for their London Gatwick shop.

This is great news for the consumer as Dynamo LED Displays worked closely with the customer and numerous other subcontractors to create what's considered to be the UK's first ever Structural LED shop front. The job to create this stunning video wall shop front came to Dynamo LED after two other LED integrators had bookings over having the ability to fulfil the technical necessities of the build.

LED video wall - This was made part of the product, since Dynamo designed and produced the structural LED video wall and constructed the display utilizing the unique module by module build method that they've become famous for.

Customers who buy LED Displays should enjoy the 3mm pixel pitch arch that was contrived by Admemori, a design studio specialising in memorable "brick and mortar" digital experiences. They created the electronic arch theory, its distinguishing architectural layout along with its bespoke arty content strategy that was subsequently carried out by the Dynamo LED Displays team to maximum effect.

Dynamo LED Displays made sure to make this part of the Dynamo LED Displays's development as The Dynamo LED team produced the right angle modules in house to make the seamless corners on the return section to complement the creative content that was made specially for the screen.

Customers will likely appreciate this because the Hour Passion concept shop is located airside at London Gatwick's North Terminal and is now a scene in the departure lounge with several passengers stopping for photographs in addition to taking video recordings before going into the shop.

Yet again, Dynamo LED Screens create another memorable LED Video Wall.

For more information, please visit http://dynamo-led-displays.co.uk/

Contact Info:

Name: Cecilia Evans

Organization: Dynamo Led Displays



Release ID: 149853

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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.
Agrochemicals and seeds giant Bayer is launching the first wheat fungicide containing two SDHIs next spring.

The company claims it shows the best available control of septoria, leading to a yield boost over rivals.

The new product, called Ascra, adds a second complementary SDHI active to the groups existing Aviator product, and Bayer says it gives a 0.3t/ha yield advantage over rival Adexar.

This yield gain translates into a 40/ha advantage at current wheat prices. The fungicide is fully approved and ready for use next spring on wheat aimed at the key T2 flag leaf stage in May to control key diseases such as septoria, rusts, mildew and fusarium.

Will Charlton, Bayers campaign manager for cereal fungicides, explains Ascra is the first wheat fungicide with two SDHIs and is mixed with the top-performing azole prothioconazole to guard against disease resistance building up.

It gives the best and most curative septoria control available, offering 6% better control on the top two wheat leaves than Adexar, he told a recent briefing.

See also: Best fungicide for cereals set for 2017 launch

The improved performance comes from the second SDHI, fluopyram  used in the groups oilseed rape fungicide Propulse  which distributes quickly through the leaves. The other SDHI, bixafen, and azole prothioconazole give long-lasting action.

The new product will enter a very competitive market, with Syngenta looking to launch its new SDHI solatenol-based fungicide next year alongside other SDHI-based established products such as Adexar, Aviator, Librax, Vertisan and Keystone.

Actives Ascra  bixafen + fluopyram + prothioconazole

Adexar  fluxapyroxad + epoxiconazole

Librax  fluxapyroxad + metconazole

Aviator  bixafen + prothioconazole

Securis/Keystone  isopyrazam + epoxiconazole

Vertisan  penthiopyrad

The new Syngenta product has not been named yet. It will contain the SDHI solatenol (active benzovindiflupyr) and azole prothioconazole.

Thumbs up

Four growers have already given Ascra the thumbs up, with South Oxfordshire farm manager Simon Beddows seeing pleasing results using the product as he saw a 0.4t/ha wheat yield increase over his farm standard, worth about 60/ha.

In the same county, James Price saw another good result with the fungicide as it showed a 0.3t/ha yield benefit. He said he will definitely be using the product again.

In south Lincolnshire, David Hoyles saw a yield gain of 0.37t/ha over a plot grown for the Adas-organised Yen Enhancement Network, which had extra nutrition. In the same county, Andrew Ward was pleased with the product and will be using it again.

These four were part of 42 growers asked to compare their standard T2 fungicide with the new fungicide in 2016, with 70% of them showing improved yields.

Premium price

Ascra is to be priced at a premium to Bayers existing Aviator, is fully cleared for use next spring and will be aimed at the T2 timing, with Bayer advising using Aviator at T1.

Jennie Watson, Bayers field agronomy manager, said the 0.3t/ha yield gain was seen when Ascra was applied at 1.2 litres/ha compared with Adexar at 1.25 litres/ha. The same yield gain was seen against the groups own Aviator at 1 litre/ha.

The new product performed particularly well in high-disease situations, while even with low disease pressure it exhibited physiological benefits to give greener leaves, bigger roots and hardier plants and so boost yields, she added.

Laboratory tests show the two SDHIs could potentially control different strains of septoria, but as both SDHIs have the same mode of action, using two is not seen as a resistance management tool.

The key to managing resistance is to use an 80% dose of prothioconazole, which, according to Bayer, is the most active azole fungicide against septoria. A multisite fungicide such as chlorothalonil can also be used with Ascra.

Genetics

Wheat breeder Bill Angus says disease resistance genetics are not powerful enough to preclude the use of fungicides in the UK. He believes the UK has the best climate in the world for growing wheat, but also for disease development.

Septoria is really a very frightening disease and is the silent yield killer. Lack of yellow rust control is embarrassing, but does not kill yields like septoria, he says.

Even low levels of septoria can hit yields by more than 1t/ha, and it is a high-risk strategy to cut fungicide use in efforts to reduce costs, Mr Angus adds.
Story Highlights 58% say Donald Trump and Democrats in Congress will try to cooperate

49% say Republicans in Congress will cooperate with Democrats

Public was more optimistic about cooperation after Obama's 2008 election

PRINCETON, N.J. -- Although Republican President-elect Donald Trump will take office with his party in firm control of Congress, a majority of Americans (58%) are optimistic that he will make a sincere effort to work with Democrats to find solutions to the nation's problems. The same majority also believe that Democrats in Congress will sincerely try to work with Trump. Americans are less sure (49%) that Republicans in Congress will reach across the aisle.

Sincere Efforts of Donald Trump, Democrats and Republicans to Work With One Another Among U.S. adults Yes No % % Trump will make sincere effort to work with Democrats in Congress 58 40 Democrats in Congress will make sincere effort to work with Trump and Republicans 58 39 Republicans in Congress will make sincere effort to work with Democrats 49 49 Gallup, Nov 9-13, 2016

These results, from Gallup's Nov. 9-13 post-election survey, are updates to similar questions Gallup asked after the 2008 and 2012 elections. Americans were significantly more hopeful in 2008 about the possibilities of newly elected President Barack Obama than they are now about Trump. Eight in 10 Americans at the time expected Obama would cooperate with the opposing party in Congress. Like Trump, Obama had campaigned in 2008 on the need to bring about change -- but Obama was much better-liked after his election, with a 68% favorable rating, compared with Trump's post-election 42%.

After contending with a GOP-led House in 2011 and 2012, Obama in 2012 was less widely seen as able to work with the Republicans in Congress to find solutions. Even so, the 65% of Americans still saying this about Obama after his re-election was a bit more positive than Trump's current evaluation.

Although the political circumstances were different four years ago than they are now, just like today, Americans then gave more credit to the Democrats than to the Republicans in Congress for willingness to cooperate with the other party. Immediately after the 2008 election, however, the public was about equally optimistic about the potential cooperation of both parties' leaders.

Sincere Efforts of Barack Obama/Donald Trump, Democrats and Republicans to Work With One Another Among U.S. adults Yes No % % President will make sincere effort to work with opposing party in Congress 2016 (Trump) 58 40 2012 (Obama) 65 33 2008 (Obama) 80 19 Democrats in Congress will make sincere effort to work with opposing party 2016 58 39 2012 57 40 2008 59 40 Republicans in Congress will make sincere effort to work with opposing party 2016 49 49 2012 48 48 2008 62 37 Gallup

Implications

Although a record number of Americans believe the nation is divided after this election, Trump will enter office with fairly positive expectations that he will cooperate with Democrats in Congress and that Democrats will cooperate with him. Perhaps reflecting the political gridlock seen since the GOP took control of the House in 2011, Americans are less positive that GOP leaders will cooperate with Democrats.

Trump has the advantage of working with a Republican-controlled House and Senate, which should mean that he will be less at odds with Congress than has been the case for Obama over the past two years. Additionally, Trump can make a number of changes by implementing executive actions without congressional approval. But Democrats in Congress will still be needed for a number of actions on the Trump agenda to become law, meaning that cooperation between the two parties will continue to be important.

Previous Gallup research shows that Americans want their leaders in Washington to cooperate to get things done, including a significant percentage of rank-and-file Republicans who want compromise from their leaders. The likelihood of that occurring after the contentious 2016 election campaign is unknown, although Americans are somewhat optimistic that it will.

Historical data are available in Gallup Analytics.

Survey Methods

Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Nov. 9-13, 2016, with a random sample of 1,019 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is 4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level. All reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for weighting.

Each sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 60% cellphone respondents and 40% landline respondents, with additional minimum quotas by time zone within region. Landline and cellular telephone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods.

View complete question responses and trends.

Learn more about how the Gallup Poll Social Series works.
(Reuters) - China is concerned over the Philippines' detention of more than a thousand Chinese nationals during a crackdown on online gambling, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday, in what could be a strain for ties that have warmed in recent months.

The Philippines immigration bureau last week detained about 1,200 Chinese people working in call center-like facilities suspected of running online gambling operations out of a former U.S. air base, Clark Field.

The detentions marked the government's biggest such round-up of Chinese nationals in the country, many thought to be working there illegally.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said China had requested that the Philippines "appropriately make arrangements" for those who had been detained and quickly release individuals who have "legal identification.

"At the same time, China expresses concern over the large number of Chinese citizens detained by the Philippines," Geng told reporters at a regular press briefing, adding that China always reminds its citizens who travel abroad to abide by local laws.

It is unclear if the Chinese nationals were being held for gambling offences or for visa and immigration violations, but about 900 were brought to the immigration detention center in Manila, according to a Philippine police report.

Online gambling is not illegal in the Philippines, but it is subject to permitting and zoning regulations.

China has expressed support for the Philippines' other law enforcement efforts, including President Rodrigo Duterte's anti-narcotics campaign, which has sparked criticism from Western countries over fears of extrajudicial killings.

In contrast with the previous Philippine government's adversarial relationship with Beijing, Duterte has made efforts to improve ties with China, which have been plagued by territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

Prior to leaving for an Asia-Pacific summit in Lima this month, Duterte said if Russia and China decided to create a "new order" in the world, he would be the first to join.
Current and now four time Southern All Star Champion Riley Hickman of Ooltewah, led all 100 laps of the annual Crate Late Model "Possum Town Grand Prix" Saturday picking up the $10,000 top prize at Magnolia Motor Speedway.

He crossed the finish line 3.444 seconds ahead of runner-up local racer Chase Washington, in his #R1 "Austin Trucking, American Billet, Competition Racing Equipment, RH Designs, A1 Towing and Recovery, Mayo Racing Components and FK Rod Ends" sponsored CVR Race Car with an Eagle Race Engine.

"We made the right tire call," Hickman said. "We were gambling there, and I think we're probably harder (on tire compound) than anybody else out here. We weren't quite sure how it was going to play out. Promoter Johnny Stokes always has this place phenomenal. It's always great to race at. I just wish it was a little closer to home, but that five hours over here isn't too bad."

Hickman's dominant triumph marked his ninth Crate Late Model win and 18th overall victory of 2016.

The feature was slowed by six caution flags. NeSmith champ Cory Hedgecock of Loudon, Tenn. slowed to pit on lap 12. Mississippi's David Breazeale retired on lap 18. Michael Blount spun on lap 64. Josh Banes smashed the turn-one wall on lap 71 and fellow Ooltewah racer Andy Picklesimer spun in turn four on lap 86.

The event wrapped up the NeSmith Chevrolet Dirt Late Model touring season. Hickman's time of 14.720 seconds was fastest among 66 entrants for the Thanksgiving weekend event.

Possum Town Grand Prix 1. Riley Hickman 2. Chase Washington 3. Eric Cooley 4. Chris Brown 5. Grant Garrison 6. Chase Edge 7. Scott Dedwylder 8. Michael Arnold 9. Neil Baggett 10. Cory Hedgecock 11. Evan Ellis 12. Jake Teague 13. Chris Kratzer 14. Marcus Minga 15. Jeremy Shaw 16. Hunter Carroll 17. Jim McDuffie 18. Michael Blount 19. Robbie Starnes 20. Nick Thrash 21. Tyler Burgess 22. Andy Picklesimer 23. Josh Banes 24. Todd Robinson 25. Ricky Waggoner 26. David Breazeale
Eve V Latest News & Update: Microsoft CEO Shows Interest In Hybrid Tablet-Laptop; Is This A Surface Pro Killer?

The first-ever crowd designed computer, Eve V, is set to be released soon. Eve V will directly compete with Microsoft Surface Pro. Pre-order is now accepted and even Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella will get one.

A Helsinki-based start-up, Eve, with Intel backup has developed a laptop/tablet hybrid computer called Eve V that is expected to compete with Microsoft's Surface Pro. The design and built were a collaboration of the Eve community that will also run with Windows 10 operating system.

According to Business Insider, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella has caught his attention with the Eve V project after he learned about it. Nadella will be getting his unit when the shipping starts in February. Eve CEO Konstantinos Karatsevidis confirmed it and said, "[Microsoft] really wanted to see the device."

Project Pyramid Flipper, the codename for Eve V, has been opened to the Eve community and the result was tremendous. People who signed for the Eve community provided suggestions on how Eve can improve the Eve V. The start-up company first thought of a slim design with the Eve V but the Eve community poured in their suggestions to help improve the device.

As a result result, the design and specs of Eve V are now a possible threat with big tech giants on how it manufactures its devices. Eve V has 12.3-inch IGZO with scratch and drop resistant Corning Gorilla Glass. It has 2,736 x 1,824 resolution same with Surface Pro 4, but Eve 5 has Anti-reflection coating. Eve V has the latest processor of Intel 7th gen Core i7 compared to Surface Pro and Asus Transformer Pro.

The 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD storage of Eve V is similar with Microsoft Surface Pro and ASUS Transformer 3 Pro. The tablet comes with Pogo-pin keyboard and has Bluetooth 4.2 feature for wireless connectivity. Eve V also has the V Pen that is Windows Ink-certified with 1,024 pressure levels, which is on par both for the Surface and Asus Pens, Silicon Angle reported.

In addition, Eve V comes with quad speakers equipped with finest audio processor available. It also features an audio amplifier for the headphone jack. The tablet device has two full-size USB 3.1 Gen 1, a USB 3.1 Gen 1 USB-C, 2 Thunderbolt 3 ports, and microSDXC card slot. What makes Eve V stand out from Surface Pro 4 and ASUS Transformer 3 Pro is its battery life of 10-12 hours as Eve-tech claims. The tablet may come with Windows 10 Home or Pro free of bloatware.

Meanwhile, Eve V has a lower spec version which comes with Core m3 and i5 that cost $699. The Core i7 version of Eve V is priced at $1,399 only below the sales price of Microsoft Surface Pro 4 and ASUS Transformer 3 Pro. The shipment of pre-ordered Eve V for early backers will start in February 2017 and the rest of the backers will receive the device starting in April 2017.
Xiaomi's Smartphone Declining Sales Won't Affect its Company's Growth

Despite Xiaomi's decline in smartphone sales, Xiaomi, Inc. assured its public that this will not have a major impact on the company as their profit growth will be derived from the sales of smart home devices and its software eco-system.

In an interview of Reuters, Xiaomi's global vice president Hugo Barra said that the company's business profit was not only based on the smartphone's sales by itself and does not have an adverse effect on their overall revenue.

"Basically we're giving [handsets] to you without making any money... we care about the recurring revenue streams over many years," Barra told Reuters in an interview. And he added, "We could sell 10 billion smartphones and we wouldn't make a single dime in profits."

Last 2014, Xiaomi, Inc. was valued at $46 billion and has been considered as the world's most valuable start-up company at that time. Looking back, Xiaomi is the best-selling smartphone brand in China and was expected to hit worldwide. However last year, according to the research firm IDC, the company was not able to meet its smartphone global targets by 12% and even decreased its sales by 45% on China.

Hello Vegas! Will be coming to @CES with an all-new product at our global launch. Any guesses? Place your bets now! https://t.co/kjAzE0hPO1 pic.twitter.com/Rbs1Fa0cG8  Mi (@xiaomi) November 23, 2016

Xiaomi is focusing more on its range of services and accessories like air purifiers, headphones, and smart technology as these are their key earning drivers. Moreover, Liu De, Xiaomi's Vice President also said that they are expecting for doubled sales this year driven from its range of smart home devices.

The Chinese company has already made investments in India and Southeast Asia and gearing towards the U.S. market. Meanwhile, as reported by CNET, Xiaomi is planning to unveil an all-new product at Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this coming January 5 as their first participation in the electronics trade show. However, the details announced are conservative enough and the product might not be a smartphone.
Apple Is Back With Gift Cards Once Again; Cards Available in Different Categories, Different Nations; Some Happy, Few Disappointed

Apple is one of the most sought-after brands as far as choosing technological devices are concerned. Hence, it has come up with one of the best Black Friday deals by offering customers gift cards worth $150.

Apple skipped the gift card deals in 2015 and saw a level of disappointment among its customers. As a result, it has decided to continue with it long-term offers to make sure the customers enjoy convenuent shopping this festive season. Although the deal is valid for selected purchases, the brand has made sure people could grab maximum benefits from the offer.

Apple Is Offering Various Gift Cards Alternatives

Apple unveiled its plan of offering gift cards to customers, which it kept a secret until the last moment, The Verge stated. The iPhone-maker divided the gift cards into four categories: $150 , $100, $50 to purchase a MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. On the other hand, those preferring the iPad Pro, iPad mini 4 can take advantage of the $100 gift card. Users of $50 gift card may go for iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE, among others. The gift card worth $25 is applicable for Apple TV, Apple Watch, to name a few.

Where To Find Apple Gift Cards

The Apple gift card offers have been introduced to various markets, including Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom. Besides giving huge affordability to some of the products, the brand also disappointed customers in some ways.

The shoppers who went to use the Apple gift cards for products were disappointed to find that the device manufacturer has initiated the offer for only some of the purchases, mostly its old products. Those who desired to use the cards to buy latest Apple gadgets could not use the offer, CNBC mentioned.
'The Big Bang Theory' News & Updates: Will There Be Season 11 Next Year?

One of the all-time most popular American TV series "The Big Bang Theory" was first premiered since September 24, 2007. The show has always been at its peek at getting a remarkably great number of viewers and fans, and next to its consistently high rating is the fact that the endorsements for both the casts and the show itself are overwhelming.

Aside from the fame "The Big Bang Theory" receives, the main casts are also one of the highest paid actors in a TV series. As the Morning News USA reports that; lead stars Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco and Johnny Galecki are already making $1 million dollars each, while Kunnal Nayar and Simon Helberg makes $900,000 each.

This year, the show is already reached tenth season of "The Big Bang Theory" with all the lead actors present together. Though, an issue has been spreading around that one of the lead stars in the show, Kaley Cuoco (Penny).

Recently on a report by Enstarz; the actress mentioned that she will soon be marrying her current boyfriend, Karl Cook. In an interview during her Women's Health magazine photo-shoot, Kaley Cuoco said she still has not shunned the idea of marriage despite the unsuccessful relationship with her ex-husband Ryan Sweeting. The actress also expressed her desire to build a family of her own, which led the people to conclude that Penny might no longer be on the eleventh season of "The Big Bang Theory."

With contracts to end before "The Big Bang Theory" season 11, negotiations on pay has risen, and rumors circulating some of the lead stars, it seems that the show still cannot speculate exactly what would happen on the next season. However, the show's boss Steve Molaro is still keeping the positive vibe.

"All we can do right now is to keep moving forward with the cast and crew for season 10," as stated by Steve Molaro.
Self-Driving Car ALVINN: 1989 Invention Acts As Precursor To Advanced Technology Behind Driverless Cars

With several nations introducing self-driving cars in the 21st century, it seems the technology has evolved somewhere near the period. However, ALVINN is the self-driving car that came into existence long before in the early 90s in 1989.

This was the same period when the World Wide Web emerged to provide a huge chain of networks where people can sit at one place and browse any data at any time. ALVINN was a retrofitted army ambulance that operated in Pittsburgh. It was driven by self through the Carnegie Mellon University in 1989.

Evolution of ALVINN: Start Of Self-Driving Technology

The presence of ALVINN, a self-driving car without human intervention, has proven that the scientists have been planning new developments for a long time. The first report on the automated cars technology was published in the middle of the 70s, while, according to Motherboard, the first fully robotic van came into existence in the beginning of the 80s. The credit can be attributed to Ernst Dickmanns and his Budeshwr University team in Munich.

While Carnegie Mellon's technology led to the emergence of Terregator in the Atlantic in 1983. This was followed by a more advanced and improved machine vision algorithms. Hence, Carnegie Mellon's ALVINN came into existence in 1989. The first self-driving car used machine learning and observed human drivers. It tried to adapt its own strategies and became the fundamental principle behind the development of the new age self-driving technology.

ALVINN In 2017

According to The Verge, the name ALVINN grabbed attention following a mentionby two engineers on Twitter. Udacity's open source self-driving car project head Oliver Cameron and CMU professor Dean Pomerleau discussed ALVINN on the social mediasite. The latter was involved in the self-driving car project that led to the emergence of ALVINN. It was this discussion that proved that self-driving cars development is not a new phenomenon but a new and advanced form of the already existing technology.
'Fairy Tail' Chapter 512 Release Date, Latest News & Update: It Is Sting Versus Larcade; Larcade And Natsu Are Brothers

Today, November 28, the chapter 512 of the Japanese manga series titled "Fairy Tail" is expected to be released. The spoilers for "Fairy Tail" chapter 512 have been circulating for a while now and they will be confirmed or denied by the avid fans who already got a hold of the Weekly Shonen Magazine.

As a summary of the spoilers, many reports suggest that Unison Raid will be used by Rogue and Sting to fight the evil, Larcade. More so, "Fairy Tail" chapter 512 is rumoured to unfold the connection of Larcade to Natsu.

It was revealed by the spoilers in Manga Helpers Community that Rogue and Sting will use the technique called Unison Raid in "Fairy Tail" chapter 512 to battle against Larcade. The evil Larcade seems to be a very powerful opponent.

Hall Of Fame Magazine recently reported that in "Fairy Tail" chapter 512, Larcade will be making use of the RIP spell. The RIP spell has the capability to make one fall sleep. As a result, Sting will be feeling sleepy.

Rogue and Kagura will be able to manage the seemingly helpless Sting and make him back to his senses. This will prove Larcade wrong in his thought that once the RIP spell took effect to Sting, he can no longer be awakened. With this being noted, there seems to be a lot of surprising event to occur in "Fairy Tail" chapter 512.

Morever, "Fairy Tail" chapter 512 will have a big revelation. How true is the rumour that Natsu and Larcade are both the sons of Zeref? This makes the two, brothers, and this could not be more mindblowing.

"Fairy Tail" chapter 512 is sure to once again give its readers another journey full of adventure and action. Do not dare to miss a single update about "Fairy Tail" chapter 512! Stay tuned to Gamenguide.
'Samsung Galaxy S8' Latest, News & Update: Comes In A Larger Storage of 256GB And 6GB Of RAM; Bigger Features Than Apple's iPhone 8?

The Samsung Galaxy S8 is the latest front runner of the smartphone brand that features an innovative redesign like the 4k resolution with the additional pressure-sensitive display that will also be in the upcoming new Apple iPhones. The all-screen Galaxy S8 design may come with a 6GB of RAM and a handful of internal storage of 256GB which is larger than the previous Samsung Galaxy S7.

There are still no confirmation that there will be a microSD slot in the Samsung Galaxy S8 by the smartphone producer according to TechTastic. The latest Samsung is also reported to have two versions or processors that will be powered by Exynos and the Snapdragon 835.

The Exynos chipset together with the latest Snapdragon 835 chipset gives a higher performance and a 40 percent reduction in its power consumption that is provided by the Quick Charge 4.0.The Snapdragon 835's Quick Charge 4.0 in the Samsung Galaxy S8 whihc is supported by a USB Type-C that can charge devices 20 percent faster than its predecessor.

Another unique feature in the Samsung Galaxy S8 is the new AI personal assistant which is similar to Apple's Siri. The AI allows the users to perform mobile payment by using the voice commands which is named "Bixby Pay" according to Phandriod which is much convenient than using the Samsung Pay application.

The Samsung Galaxy will be available in either a 5.5-inch display size or a 6.2-inch display size that will have a dual-curved edge design together with a Coning Gorilla Glass 5 protection. The smartphone is also expected to come with a special "optical fingerprint sensor" which is located in front of the mobile instead of a physical home button.

The Samsung Galaxy S8 will also have the wireless feature that has a 4,200mAh battery. The Samsung Galaxy S8 will be released at the Mobile World Congress on April 2017.
Nintendo Mini NES Classic, Nintendo 3DS Latest News & Update: Out of Stock Status to Continue Throughout Holidays? Cyber Monday Availability Revealed

Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS are probably the two most in demand gaming devices in the market today. Both devices are so hot that interested buyers could no longer find a retailer that sells these items, which basically means they are sold out. Now fans are still waiting for Nintendo to provide concrete details with regard to the two gaming systems' availability.

According to a report by Forbes, Nintendo has definitely scored big with its Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS devices. Industry experts have almost counted out the two before they became surprise hits during the Black Friday weekend.

As of the moment, consumers still don't have any idea where to get the elusive Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS; however, the company is expected to provide solid information anytime soon with regard to the situation. There are speculations coming from fans that Nintendo might ship the items to different retailers all over the country during the Cyber Monday event; however, this has yet to be confirmed by the Japanese tech manufacturer.

There are also fans who turned to a tracker website to help them hunt down the elusive Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS systems. The website appears to have all the important information such as the location of the retailers that currently sell the NES Classic Mini.

In a report by the Express, the tracker website definitely serves as a great help to many interested buyers who have yet to secure any of the two items. Fans who have already preordered the Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS are still not assured of receiving the devices anytime soon as both are still listed as "out of tock" by most retailers.

Nonetheless, Amazon said that stocks of Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS will soon be replenished as the maker will try to ship them in the coming days. Fans are hoping to get their desired units anytime soon as both are expected to go "out of stock" again during the holiday season. Stay tuned for more news and updates about Nintendo Mini NES Classic and Nintendo 3DS.
'Hawaii Five-0' Season 7 Episode 10 Air Date, Spoilers, News & Update: Danny's Sister Visits; Missing Teen Investigated; Crossover with 'MacGyver' Confirmed?

"Hawaii Five-0" Season 7 just keeps getting more heart pounding with every episode. However, fans just might get more excited as "MacGyver" characters are set to crossover on the show. With the two CBS reboot shows being executively produced by Peter Lenkov, this is highly possible.

"Hawaii Five-0" And "MacGyver" Crossover

"Hawaii Five-0" Season 7 and "MacGyver" undeniably have a lot of things in common, with the most glaring details being both are reboot of classic shows and that they share a Lenkov as the showrunner. With this, a possible crossover between the two shows has long been rumored.

Lenkov himself admitted in an interview that he already has plans for a crossover. He then alludes to the pilot episode of "MacGyver." He recalls Jack Dalton, played by George Eads, in a flashback during his time serving in Afghanistan. There was a shot of a gun's saddle with the marking of "Aloha" imprinted, making the connection with "Hawaii Five-0" Season 7.

He then explained that this detail was elaborately placed so as to serve as a connection between Dalton and Steve McGarrett, the main protagonist of "Hawaii Five-0" Season 7 played by Alex O'Loughlin. The two characters are supposedly acquainted with each other back while serving in the military. However, there are no concrete plans as of yet regarding the two shows' crossover.

Season 7 Spoilers

Despite the rumored departure of Alex O'Loughlin from "Hawaii Five-0" in Season 7, the show still holds its own and continues to deliver exciting episodes every Friday night. Lenkov has also hinted that McGarett and Catherine Rollins, played by Michelle Borth, could give their relationship a second try.

The next episode of "Hawaii Five-0" Season 7 will be titled "Ka Luhi." The Five-0 will be investigating a cold case that dates back to ten years. It is about a missing teen, as a boy has surfaced suffering from PTSD, undergoes hypnosis, and may have witnessed the murder of the missing teen.

Also, Danny's sister, to be played by guest star Missy Peregrym, will be visiting Oahu for a business conference. However, he suspects that his sister may be getting a little too close to one of his "Hawaii Five-0" Season 7 co-workers.

"Hawaii Five-0" Season 7 Episode 10 will air on December 9, Friday, after a two-week break. It airs every 9/8c on CBS. "MacGayver" airs on the same day, but on an earlier 8/7c time slot.
Samsung New & Update: South Koreas Samsung Electronics Co Ltd Wants A Split From Samsung Group

South Korea's "Samsung Electronics Co Ltd" will examine splitting itself into two as recommended by the U.S. activist hedge fund Elliott Management. Seoul Economic Daily gathers information by an exclusive source.

The proposed split would grant the heirs of the founding Lee family to sustain their grip on the global smartphone leader, the crown jewel of the "Samsung Group" business empire. Elliott Management wants a split in this October 2017 to improve shareholder value.

The "Samsung Company" board of directors will have a meeting on Tuesday November 29 2017. Responding Elliott's proposals, the Seoul Economic Daily newspaper stated. The Korea Exchange separately asked Samsung to discuss the matter by 6 p.m. (0900 GMT) on whether it planned a spinoff.

The "Samsung Company" did not immediately respond on the newspaper report. The protected fund wants "Samsung Electronics Co Ltd" to split into a holding vehicle for ownership objective and the operating company, will pay a $26 billion special dividend, swear to return at least 75 percent of free cash flow to investors and allowing them to appoint some independent directors.

Neither the Lee family nor "Samsung Group" have concluded on reestablishing the plans, but the reorganization efforts has been increased since Jay Y. Lee took over the reins after his father, the Samsung patriarch Lee Kun-hee was paralyzed following a heart attack last May 2014.

"Samsung Company" has sold non-core assets while presuming through a merger of two affiliates in 2015 to consolidate the stakes in key affiliates under a company handled by Jay Y. Lee and his two sisters, as the founding family wants to secure a stable transfer of control.

"Even if Samsung Electronics does not comment on specifics such as the timing of a split; the firm will at least say it will implement ownership structure changes in a reasonable manner."-HI Investment stated in a report last Monday.
Cartoonist Clay Bennett will speak on editorial cartooning at the Elder Scholars meeting Tuesday, Dec. 13, from 1-2:30 p.m. at the UTC University Center, Signal Mountain Room.

Mr. Bennett, the son of a career army officer, led a nomadic life attending 10 different schools before graduating from high school in Huntsville. He served as the editorial cartoonist for his college student newspaper and managing editor of the alternative student newspaper while attending the University of North Alabama. He currently is on staff at the Chattanooga Times Free Press where he draws five cartoons a week. Examples of his work can be found at: http://www.claybennett.com/archives.html

He is the recipient of The Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning and has earned almost every honor his profession has to offer, including the Sigma Delta Chi Award, the National Journalism Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Award, the United Nations/Ranan Lurie Award, the John Frischetti Award, the Overseas Press Club Award, and the National Headliner Award. His work is distributed internationally and he was the Past President of the Assoc. of American Editorial Cartoonists.

Membership in Elder Scholars is free to everyone over 55. Parking is free at UTC in Lot 7 at the corner of Douglas and East 5th Street or in the Fifth Street parking garage (high rise parking). When parking in either of these locations, place an Elder Scholars meeting flyer in the window of your car.

Several meet at noon in the University Center for lunch together. They will be in the corner over by the windows, near the door facing Vine Street.

For more information contact: Jane Elmore - 51jelmore@gmail.com or Connie DeLetis - cdeletis@gmail.com or visit http://utc.edu/elderscholars.






Constantine' Season 2 Release Date, Update: Matt Ryan Talks Show's Future, More CW Cameos

"Constantine" Season 2 might happen if Matt Ryan's recent interview is any indication of the show's return. The actor talked about the Hellblazer's whereabouts in a recent interview and his interest to reprise John Constantine on screen.

Comicbook caught up with Ryan at the Heroes & Villains Fan Fest in Georgia, Atlanta, where he talked about "Constantine" Season 2. He admitted that he does not know if the instalment will happen. However, he expressed his appreciation to the fans, who have endlessly showed their support for the character.

Ryan especially thanked the fans who rallied around him and the show after NBC cancelled the series. He said the supporters have been "hardcore" and the response to the show has so far been fantastic.

In the same interview with Comicbook, Ryan revealed what the Hellblazer could be up to now had NBC given "Constantine" Season 2 the green light. The actor said that John Constantine would probably be back in Hell smoking cigarettes with the devil.

Regardless of the cancellation, Ryan expressed his interest to reprise the character even in cameo appearances only. He would be willing to cameo as John Constantine in any of The CW shows, including DC's "Arrow" and "The Flash."

The last time Matt Ryan portrayed Constantine was in "Arrow" Season 4 Episode 5. However, with the crossover happening, there might be a chance to see the Hellblazer back on screen again.

Suffice to say, the fate of "Constantine" Season 2 ever happening remains bleak. There have been speculations that The CW or Netlflix might be the show's new home. However, both networks have remained mum about these speculations.

In the meantime, with "Constantine" Season 2 still up in the air, Matt Ryan returns as the Hellblazer in "Justice League Dark." He voices John Constantine in the animated movie.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 Release Date, Specs, Features, News & Update: Tablets Launch Pushed To Q1 2017? Impressive Device Specifications Revealed! [ROUNDUP]

Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 was supposed to make a debut in September, but the month has come and gone and fans didn't receive any update. Latest rumors, however, suggest that the tablet's release is imminent as it has been spotted at an import tracking website.

Samsung's next flagship tablet made its way to the Indian import tracking site, Zauba, for the first time. According to Phone Radar, Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 units have made their way to India for testing purposes. The listing also revealed that the Tab S3 lineup will be available in two variants: an LTE and a WiFi version.

It was mentioned in the report that there were multiple units of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 imported to India and this was done for evaluation purposes. Not much is known about the Tab S3 since most of the reports on its specs and features are based on rumors and leaks. What's most likely is that the tablet will come with an AMOLED display.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 is also expected to have a chipset with higher capacity to process more information. It is also said to have an operating system that's superior to its predecessor. Trusted Reviews speculated that the tablet will have an Exynos 8890 chip on board -- the same chip found in the Galaxy S7. There's also a possibility that it will have Qualcomm Snapdragon 820. Then again, a Snapdragon 652 processor shouldn't be ruled out either.

The listing also revealed that price for the Tab S3, which is around $500, but this should also be taken with a pinch of salt since the pricing details could be incorrect or changed. Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 is expected to release sometime in the first quarter of 2017, probably at next year's Consumer Electronics Show. More details about the upcoming flagship tablet should surface soon. Stay tuned to GamenGuide for more updates.
Artificial Intelligence vs Human Resources: AI Is No Threat To Humans; They Will Create Opportunities

Robots and other artificial intelligence-driven products have always seen to be a threat to the jobs humans have. As a result, whenever artificial intelligence is talked about, people are worried if they will eventually lose their jobs in a machine-driven society.

How Artificial Intelligence Could Affect Human Resources

Artificial Intelligence is term that has been coined by John McCarthy in 1955. Since the beginning of the civilizations, development has been evident, whether it is manual or automatic.

In the movies, people enjoy the use of the AI devices and robotics. However, when it comes to welcoming the same in real life, they could hardly bear the thought, thinking it would threaten the existence of human resources in companies, Tech Crunch stated.

Will Artificial Intelligence Kill Jobs or Create Opportunities?

There was a time when there were no computers and AI seemd to be purely fiction. People used to keep so many documents, registers and data to maintain calculations, case histories, survey results and many more things manually. The development and emergence of computers started worrying the common people as they felt it will do nothing but take away jobs.

On the contrary, computers have not only made complex calculations and data maintenance easier but also created a huge demand for manpower. Today, youngsters have Information Technology and Computer Science as their subjects in graduation and post-graduation levels, giving them numerous job opportunities to earn their living. The case will be no different for artificial intelligence.

With the development of AI, companies might become machine-oriented but there will be more jobs, writes Financial Express. Those companies will require professionals for the configuration and repair of the concerned AI devices. The installation of the devices will also need trained workers. To build experts, there will be a need for trainers, as well. Hence, it can be seen how artificial intelligence will help in making tasks easier, thereby promoting skill development among the common people.
FC Barcelona News: Paris Saint Germain Wont Take Advantage Of Neymars Legal Case To Sign Him

Patrick Kluivert, Paris Saint Germain's director, confirms to Journal du Dimanche that PSG will not use Neymar's legal situation to their advantage to lure him from Barcelona.

Paris Saint Germain has tried to sign up Neymar before, regardless of the Brazilian star's $264M release clause from Barcelona. Nasser Al-Khelaif, the president of PSG, even went so far as to personally meet him and his father. When Neymar renewed with Barca, PSG wasn't deterred and there were reports that they would make another attempt to sign him up again next summer.

But Neymar is currently involved in an ongoing legal case with Spanish tax prosecutors seeking a two-year prison sentence and a $10M fine for the Barcelona striker. If his legal woes end up troublesome enough to prompt a transfer away from Barca, Paris Saint Germain is one of the few clubs that can shoulder the transfer fee that Barcelona will demand for him. Kluivert has made it clear that they are not going to exploit the situation to sign him up though. "Could Neymar's legal issues be an advantage to us? To be honest, what is happening to him is a real shame. We are not going to try to take advantage of this case."

While Kluivert remains keen to sign up rising stars to Paris Saint Germain, he emphasizes that the team is more important and goes on to say that "It is nice to have a star player but the team remains the most important thing. So, if it is possible, I will never say no if there is a chance to sign a star but I will not force it at any cost."

Going from Kluivert's comment, it seems that the supposed attempt for PSG to have Neymar next summer might not take place at all given the situation.
SELCO awards school grants

SELCO Community Credit Union recently awarded 11 grants of up to $500 each to educators in Linn and Benton counties.

Heres a list of the winners: Amy Krahn of Santiam Christian School, for a swine raising facility; Kaisa Laukkanen of Philomath Elementary School, for Chromebooks for students; Matt Boase of West Albany High School, for a video technology improvement; Devlyn Brazel of Timber Ridge School, for a nature walk and restoration project; Jennifer Crow of Oak Grove School, for fifth grade outdoor school; Carrie French of Lafayette Elementary School for boomwhackers; Amanda Miles of South Albany High School, for headphones with microphones to help students write; Daniel Mitchell of Timber Ridge School, for a music project; Debra Redpath of Waverly Elementary School, for a functional math skills project; and Danica Rickards of Liberty Elementary School, for springtime leaf printmaking.

The SELCO grant program, in total, awarded 73 grants worth $32,650 for educational and extracurricular programs in Oregon Schools.

Linn County CASA hires director

CASA of Linn County has hired a new executive director, Marie Jennings, who will start her new position on Dec. 19.

Jennings graduated from Oregon State University with a degree in communications and has 15 years of experience in nonprofit development.

She has previously worked with the Oregon State University Foundation and the Family Tree Relief Nursery.

Samaritan named fit-friendly

Samaritan Health Services has been recognized as a Platinum-Level Fit-Friendly Worksite by the American Heart Association for helping employees eat better and move more.

In addition to meeting the certain criteria for the designation, Samaritan also was recognized for its Healthy Steps program. This program encourages employees to be active by earning steps for the activities they complete, such as walking, running and yoga.

The program was designed to improve individuals overall quality of life with the ability to earn steps for activities like journaling and participating in social events. By earning steps, employees are eligible to win prizes that make choosing a healthy lifestyle fun and rewarding.

Dutch Bros raises funds

On Sept. 29, Dutch Bros Corvallis partnered with the community on Buck for Kids Day to raise $7,049 for Jackson Street Youth Services.

On Sept. 29, $1 from every drink sold company-wide was donated to local organizations that strive to make a positive impact on children. Dutch Bros Corvallis donated proceeds from the day to Jackson Street Youth Services.

Ale brings home medal

Six months after bringing home Corvallis first World Beer Cup Medal, Flat Tail Brewing Co. received a bronze medal for its DAM Wild: Marionberry and Pink Peppercorn Wild Ale.

This is the second world-class medal for the DAM Wild series since its launch late last year, garnering medals in both the American Sour and Mixed Culture Brett Beer categories. In addition to being brewed in downtown Corvallis, Flat Tail uses marionberries from Stahlbush Island Farms. As the official winter offering in the DAM Wild series, Marionberry and Pink Peppercorn are back on tap and on shelves as of Nov. 1.

Fautin wins state award

Charlie Fautin received the Jane Moore Place Matters Award on Oct. 5 at the Biennial Oregon Health Authority Place Matters Conference in Portland.

Fautin received this award for his long-term commitment and leadership for policy, systems and environment change to ensure all people in Oregon live, work, play and learn in communities that support health and optimal quality of life.

For the past 15 years, Fautin has served as deputy director of the Benton County Health Department, with responsibilities including oversight of chronic disease prevention and healthy community promotion.

Fautin also has held statewide leadership positions including board president of the Oregon Public Health Association; he is currently chair of the Coalition and Conference of Local Health Officials Executive Committee. Fautin is a member of the Public Health National Center for Innovations Advisory Board.
Katie Lantz-Phillips owns Potion Bath, which makes soaps and lotions, so she sometimes has about 10 artisan soap bars at her testing laboratory.

And that lab, much to her husbands chagrin, doubles as her home shower. Lantz-Phillips creates her bath products at her house north of Corvallis, then sells them online or at bazaars to help support her family.

All the while, Lantz-Phillips works full-time as a software project manager. I do this almost full time, too. Some weeks are very busy, she said, in a downstairs room of her house dubbed the soap dungeon.

Plenty of other mid-Willamette Valley residents are starting businesses or working out of their homes, said Patrick OConnor, regional economist with the Oregon Employment Department.

Improvements in technology have fueled the increase in people working from home, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

And there has been a huge increase. In 1997, about 9.2 million Americans worked at least one day per week at home. By 2010, that had jumped to 13.5 million, a 35 percent increase, according to Census figures.

Census data indicates about 2,040 Corvallis residents (5.5 percent of the population) worked from home in 2005, and that increased to 2,620 workers (6.8 percent of the population) in just five years. No figures were available for Albany.

In general, businesses in the West were more likely to allow people to work from home.

A lot of us are working on computers, doing emails. With a lot of these jobs, you could be located wherever you wanted and still do your tasks, O'Connor said.

But at-home businesses also have proliferated thanks to the internet.

Depending on the type of services or what people are selling, it could be that you dont need that physical address, where someone could very easily run a business out of a home, he said.

Leasing a storefront, a huge expense, simply isnt necessary for many businesses that try to boost their visibility and reach customers online.

Sue Queisser, who owns Melarova Baking in Corvallis, has decided to keep her cookie-making business small rather than ramp up to open a commercial-scale bakery.

With a storefront, shed need to hire employees to increase production and pay the rent, and, by necessity, her focus would shift to business and marketing, rather than baking, which she enjoys.

Lantz-Phillips described making soap as creative and experimental, a mixture of art and science. The business aspects of it are work, she added.

Taxes and other paperwork tend to suck the joy out of things. I like marketing and sales, but the passion comes from making it, Lantz-Phillips said.

Still, small-scale means different things to different people. Queisser bakes more than 20,000 cookies in her kitchen the month before Christmas.

Queisser's house is in danger of being taken over by Melarova Baking, in the same way that Potion Bath is threatening the Lantz-Phillips house. A shrink wrap machine and assorted boxes, for example, sit next to Queissers front door.

But the intrusion of work into her home  and vice versa  has been well worth it to Queisser, who comes from a family of entrepreneurs.

I like not having to ask anybody for permission to do anything in any particular way, Queisser said.

For Queisser, though, theres no place like work for socializing and having a home business can be a bit isolating. Shes going back to work at Oregon State University, where shell manage the Center for Sensory and Consumer Behavior Research, though shell keep operating Melarova Baking.

Caroline Aaron, 27, also knows all about the hustle and bustle and mess of running an at-home business.

She operates Craft Biscuit Bakery out of her Philomath kitchen, where she makes high quality dog treats that use food waste  think spent grain from an award-winning brewery and carrot pulp from an organic juice bar.

When I get home from work, its usually straight to work on dog treat stuff. Some weeks its never ending until I go to bed, Aaron said.

Theres not a set-aside space for it, so spaces around my house just get turned into a work space, she added.

Aaron started making her treats in February, then began trying to sell them in April. Her small business is quite new, but she has big dreams for her dog-treat company.

Shed like Craft Biscuit Bakery to generate enough profits that it becomes her full-time job.

Creating a new business isnt easy, however, Queisser said. At her first holiday bazaar, she and her husband ran out of cookies halfway through the first day of the two-day event. Queisser had to speed home and start baking again.

The first year, you have no idea whats going to happen. It was a steep learning curve, she said. Its kind of like childbirth. You cant read about it and say, I know what thats like.
We understand that legislators will be under some severe financial constraints when they gather for the 2017 session.

But here's hoping that they can find the funds, and the time, to fine-tune the Oregon Promise program, which is intended to help state students pay for the costs of attending community colleges.

The program originally was touted as a free ticket to community college for qualifying students. It hasn't worked out that way, for a variety of reasons, even though students who receive grant money through the Oregon Promise presumably still are grateful for the help.

That's one area that legislators will want to review during the 2017 session, even though it's likely that some potential changes (such as eliminating the 12-credit ceiling for the program and taking into account the difference in tuition fees among the state's community colleges) would add to the program's costs.

There is another broad area that would be worth legislative scrutiny: Is there any way to adjust or add to the Oregon Promise program so that it consistently includes the type of support to students that came with the so-called fifth-year programs offered by mid-valley K-12 school districts?

Until last year, many districts in Linn and Benton counties offered these programs, which allowed students to put off receiving their high school diplomas and continue as fifth-year students, taking community college courses that were paid for by their school districts because they hadn't officially left.

Supporters said the programs were invaluable, especially for students who didn't come from families with a college background or who needed extra support for their first year of higher education. Students remained connected with counselors who guided them through registration, helped them plan their courses and checked up on them. And, in fact, evidence suggested that students who had that additional help stayed on track with their college work at a higher rate than did students who enrolled on their own.

But the use of state funds for an extra year in high school raised legitimate questions with some Oregon lawmakers who felt it wasn't fair to take money from K-12 programs.

So, a compromise bill from state Sen. Sara Gelser established a "postgraduate scholar" program. Students can become postgraduate scholars only if they have all their credits for a diploma; have filled out the federal financial aid form known as a FAFSA; have applied for and accepted all the grant-based aid for which they are eligible, such as a Pell Grant; and have applied for the new Oregon Promise community college grant.

Part of the idea pushing the compromise bill is that it would put sideboards on the fifth-year programs, and it certainly has done that: In the mid-valley, the number of students enrolled as postgraduate scholars is considerably less than the number of students who were in the fifth-year programs.

But the requirements to qualify for Oregon Promise grants seem almost certain to keep community college out of reach for certain students, especially those who would be the first members of their family to attend college.

What's missing from the program is the type of consistent support system that helped to keep students on track during that first critical year of taking college courses. With community colleges increasingly focused on getting students to graduation (not to mention the state's own educational goals), this is a critical piece.

Can the piece consistently be replicated in the Oregon Promise program? Despite the tight budgets they will face next year, legislators would do well to ask that question and to search for answers. (mm)
photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon photo by Mark A. Herndon Previous Next

Goo Goo Dolls returned to Chattanooga, performing at the historic Tivoli Theater, with opening band SafetySuit from Nashville. www.googoodolls.com.

SafetySuit's 2016 fall tour was scheduled, supporting the Goo Goo Dolls. With heir upcoming record release and a nationwide headline tour scheduled for early 2017, SafetySuit is poised and ready to have the biggest moment of their career. Members are Doug Brown, Dave Garofalo, Jeremy Henshaw, Tate Cunningham from Nashville, www.safetysuitmusic.com.

Photo materials 2016 photos Mark A Herndon/ Chattanooga Live Music / AC Entertainment/ Tivoli Theater / Chattanoogan.com


Deutsche Telekom : Disruptions in internet, TV and telephone affect thousands

Bonn Customers of Deutsche Telekom have been facing massive disruptions in service. The company says the number of disruptions has been significantly reduced throughout Monday.

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Deutsche Telekom customers are having to deal with massive disruptions in both the fixed network and mobile internet. Apparently, thousands of connections are affected. Telekom has posted on its website that it is working on the problem but it cannot say when the disturbances will be repaired.

A spokesperson for the company said that the number of disruptions had been significantly reduced throughout Monday due to measures taken by Telekom. Telekom is recommending that customers disconnect the router from the power supply for a short period of time (pull the power plug for 30 seconds). In many cases, the problem is then resolved.

According to the online portal allestorungen.de (all disruptions), mainly larger cities like Berlin, Hamburg and Munich are affected. In North Rhine-Westphalia, the focus is on the Ruhr area. But customers in the Rhineland are also likely to face problems. According to the online portal, the beginning of the disruption was at 3:59 pm on Sunday afternoon and a short time later, 7,000 notifications had been received.
An Australian mining company says it has found a 12.76-carat pink diamond, the largest rough diamond found in the country.

The rare diamond was found at Rio Tintos Argyle diamond mine in Western Australias East Kimberly region.

Large stones like the Jubilee usually go to museums or wind up in high-profile auction houses like Christies. Christies has auctioned 18 painted pink diamonds greater than 10 carats in its 244-year existence. The Jubilee was supposed to travel globally before being sold at an invitation-only auction.

Estimated to be worth millions, it has been named the Argyle Pink Jubilee, and is being cut and polished in Perth.

More than 90% of the pink diamonds in the world come from the Argyle mine, a Rio Tinto statement said.

The Argyle Pink Jubilee is a light pink diamond, the company said. It is similar in colour to The Williamson Pink  the diamond found in Tanzania that Queen Elizabeth II received as a wedding gift and which was subsequently set into a brooch for her coronation.

A Rio Tinto spokesperson said that a diamond of this calibre was unprecedented.

It has taken 26 years of Argyle production to unearth this stone and we may never see one like this again, said Argyle Pink Manager Josephine Johnson.

The Argyle Pink Jubilee  Australias largest pink diamond  has been donated by Rio Tinto to Melbourne Museum, home to the nations most comprehensive natural science display.

In 2010, a rare 24.78-carat fancy intense pink diamond was sold for a record-breaking $46 million (29m), the highest price ever paid for a jewel, to a well-known British dealer at an auction in Geneva.

That diamond had been in a private collection for 60 years.
An opportunity for foodies and beer lovers to get lost in a world of food and drink from a hand-selected range of food trucks and breweries from around New Zealand.
A Reformed Neo-Nazi Talks Trump, Mt. Greenwood & White Supremacy

By Stephen Gossett in News on Nov 28, 2016 3:40PM



Christian Picciolini (center) with his former band, Final Solution / Courtesy of Picciolini

Hate is taking its close-up right now.

Reports of hateful intimidation since the election number above 700; across the nation, weve seen a wave of racist and xenophobic vandalism; and participation swelled at last weeks National Policy Institute conference, Richard Spencers cosmetically scrubbed-up iteration of white nationalism. The fulcrum pointwhether stated or unstatedis Donald Trump, who has embraced InfoWars-style, coded nationalism-speak and appointed Steve Bannon, former head of Breitbart News, as chief strategist. His response to the extreme right has ranged from stammering non-disavowal to worryingly tepid. All the while, mobilization among hate groups, both traditional and diffuse, has spiked.

Chicago played its own lamentably key role in the development of the modern hate movement. One of the very first organized neo-Nazi skinhead movements in the country was birthed here, in the late 1980s. The Chicago Area Skinheads (CASH), which grew out of Blue Island, just south of Chicagos southwest border, was responsible for a wave of racist attacks during its heyday, including firebombings, vicious assaults, and numerous acts of vandalism against synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses.

At the age of 16, Christian Picciolini, became head of CASH, after its founder, Clark Martell, the man who recruited into Picciolini into white supremacy, was sentenced to prison. Now reformed and branded a race traitor by his former associates, Picciolini today leads pro-peace public talks with groups such as the Anti-Defamation League and works to combat right-wing extremism with his groups Life After Hate and Exit USAwhich seek to educate and pull people away from white supremacist groups. His memoir, Romantic Violence: Memoirs of an American Skinhead, was published last year.

We caught up with Picciolini to talk about the mainstreaming of hate, the new-but-familiar face of white supremacy, his alarming experiences at last falls Trump rally protest and how the legacy of racial tensions on the Southwest Sideincluding Mt. Greenwoodhas been stoked by white nationalism for decades.

Chicagoist: How much of the current mainstream political environment rings familiar with the white-power underground circles of Blue Island you trafficked in in the '80s and '90s?

Christian Picciolini: Quite a bit actually. 30 years ago in white supremacy, we had a strategy called leaderless resistance. The concept was: stop shaving our heads, stop getting tattoos and instead try to blend in as much as possible. It was a really concerted effort to try and tone down the rhetoric and make it a little more palatable to the mainstream. And it certainly has penetrated the mainstream now. Were seeing people who were supportive of our cause back then also supportive of Trumps cause, certainly with the recent cabinet appointments. Its a cause for great concern because a lot of these people have said and done repulsive things in terms of racism and misogyny and marginalizing peopleits really come to fruition, something Ive spent the last 21 years of my life trying to expose and educate people on. This really is kind of a dream scenario for white nationalists at the moment.

I can say from personal experience, I was at the cancelled Donald Trump rally in Chicagowhere, by the way, I didnt see any violent protestersbut when I was inside in the UIC Pavilion and I heard some of the most vile things come out of peoples mouths, more vile than I heard at any Klan rally or the dozens neo-Nazi skinhead rallies that Ive been to. There was a woman going throughout the whole stadium, pointing out people of color and urging security to remove them because they were protesters. She had no way of knowing if they were protesters; they were just seated quietly. Security would come and escort them out. To me thats a major red flag.



Christian Picciolini

C: Do you know if any of the people from the old Chicago Area Skinheads movement of the '90s became actively involved in the Trump movement? And do you see a corollary between the two?

CP: Im not in contact really with people from CASH and couldnt say who they now support politically, but I can tell you through my research online over the last four months, in which Ive been doing interventions with people who are part of hate groups, that Ive discovered essentially thousands and thousands of pro-Trump neo-Nazi accounts.

When I was on an intervention in Florida three months ago, through my research on that case specifically, there was an underage girl making pro-white, national-socialist propaganda videosshe was a big Trump supporter. A boyfriend she had, supposedly a 23-year-old guy from Boise, was writing scripts for her. I found out he wasnt who he said he was, this girl was being sort of catfished. But this guy had essentially created thousands of pro-Trump bots spreading wild misinformation and propaganda. There are a lot of people being duped with misinformation, and theyre all rejoicing over Trump. And having a white nationalist be his chief strategist and have a racist be your attorney general, this is a really dangerous situation for our country right now.

However, there are also people not being necessarily influenced by this misinformation, that still choose to support racist rhetoric because they feel white dominance in America is slipping through their fingers. To them, "diversity" is a codeword for white genocide. They claim that their "homelands" are being overrun by minorities and are desperate for solutions that ensure their "white survival." This fear, of course, is irrational and solely based on a loss of white power and control.

C: Theres been a mixture of shock after the election but also a sense of, What did you expect? We know racism runs deep in America. Are you surprised?

CP: I cant say Im surprised. Ive been doing public speaking engagements and for the last three years, Ive been warning about this very scenario. For years now, Ive been talking about the rise of the extreme right in the U.S. Since 9/11, white nationalists have killed more Americans on U.S. soil than any foreign or domestic terrorist group combined. Its something we dont categorize as terrorism or extremism. We often brush it off as mental illnessthings like Oak Creek Wisconsinand these people are certainly tied to white supremacy, have written manifestos. Weve got a major problem in not calling that terrorism.

Certainly the election brought that to the surface for people that didnt expect it was as large as it is. But hate crimes have increased since the election. So Im not surprised. Im hopeful, very vigilant. Were seeing the same thing as what happened in 1933, when a politician stokes fears and grievances to rally them for a nationalist cause. But nationalism to the exclusion of other people is not nationalism, thats xenophobia.

C: Youre an example of someone who was a racist, but changed. But at the same time, I dontand most people donthave much appetite for empathy for bigots. It feels like a Catch 22.

CP: It is a bit of a Catch 22. We try to approach everything in Life After Hate and Exit USA with compassion. While we really promote approaching things with compassion and empathy, because thats what changed us, its very difficult knowing there are very virulent, vile people who are focused on furthering the Trump cause. Right now were dealing with a lot of fake news, misinformation, propaganda, parody. My goal is still trying to reach people through compassionate means, and to get them access to real information. My goal is to share my story and get people out of their bubble, so they can empathize. I received compassion from the people I deserved it least from when I least deserved it, and that helped change me. When you take fear and isolation and put grievance on top, its all too easy for people to hate and blame somebody else for their problems.



Courtesy of Christian Picciolini

C: You grew up in Blue Island, just a stones throw from Mt. Greenwood, which has become a flashpoint of racial tension this month after a black man was fatally shot by an off-duty cop. It also has had a long history of segregation. Can you talk about your experiences in that region, then and now?

CP: Those are my old stomping grounds, Mt. Greenwood, Blue Island, Beverly. Those were the places I recruited the most 30 years ago, where a lot of our members lived, and where we did a lot of our business. Of course its no surprise to me Mt. Greenwood is one of the places where a lot of white cops and firefighters live because they need to maintain a Chicago address. Theyve concentrated in those areas because they view them as the last white bastions of Chicago. It was always a very self-isolated neighborhood surrounded by diverse neighborhoods. Theyve maintained their white status by being racist, limiting the amount of minority-owned businesses. Its a dangerous situation when you build a wall around your community because you reinforce polarization. While Beverly has grown in diversity, the latest attack in Mt. Greenwood is really an indication of whats been happening for decades. With presidential politics and misperceiving Black Lives Matter, its thrown gasoline on sparks that have already existed.

C: You mentioned law enforcement. Do you know anyone in law enforcement who did or does have ties to white nationalism?

CP: There were a lot of people in our group who went on to become cops and firefighters and correctional officers. Unfortunately so. I havent talked to them in 20 years, but just by keeping tabs on Facebook I know that there are some whove gone that way. And theyve never indicated publicly that theyve changed their opinions. Its a minority. I know a lot more people who do social justice in those lines of work than people who were part of my white nationalist organization at the time.

C: Whats that region like now, in your mind?

My family still lives in that area. Blue Island has gotten more diverse. I cant say Ive seen any formalized white supremacy grow. I was a selfish leader and never trained anybody to train over my group. It scattered when I left. But Chicago has always been a very segregated city and Mt. Greenwood is an example of that. I cant say Ive seen organized white-supremacist growth, but I have seen racial tensions increase. I think weve all seen that. In the last eight years, especially, the far right has considered diversity a code word for white genocide.

Weve seen hate groups rise across the country. But weve also seen an increase in the average person, who looks like your doctor, your lawyer, your mechanic, your dentists, starting to say the same types of rhetoric. Sometimes its a little bit more polished, something the average person who has underlying racism can attach himself to. Im less concerned about skinheads and Klansmen now than the average person who feels emboldened, and the militia and sovereign-citizen groups who are certainly tied to white supremacist organizations, training in paramilitary camps. As far Chicago, our city was designed with racism in mind, with neighborhoods segregated by expressways and train tracks. Even suburbs, like Highland Park, have long histories of barring Jewish and black people. That history that has always existed has come out of the shadows because of the social and political climate.

C: Is there anything in your work that gives you hope in such a dark time?

CP: Ive been flooded in the last few weeks for support from people who found our organization whove say, Ive never been an activist, but what can I do? Thats really encouraging. People are ready to be actors in making the world a better place. On the flip side, Ive received death threats and trolling from people on the opposite end of the spectrum. But Im hopeful because people are ready to step up and educate people, support peaceful protest, and make their voices heard. People are motivated to make a positive difference.
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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.
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Narendra Modi App Link

Narendra Modi had tweeted requesting users to share a first-hand view on demonetization along with which he had also mentioned the link to the Official Narendra Modi App as nm4.in/dl app, whereas the link to the official Narendra Modi app is http://www.narendramodi.in/downloadapp and we have checked the same.

Domain Name of Narendra Modi App is?

All government related app on Play Store should have the domain name as Government of India, whereas on clicking the link provided by PM Narendra Modi in the tweet shows the domain name as Narendra Modi.in. So is there something fishy?

Publisher or Owner of the App is Narendra Modi?

When checking out the details of the app, in the "Offered by" section it says Narendra Modi, whereas yet again any government related app should be offered by the "Government of India".

SEE ALSO: Beware of These Reliance Jio, Narendra Modi, and Paytm Related Hoax WhatsApp Messages

Other Narendra Modi App's Available

Well, going through the App store, we at Gizbot recognized that there is a Narendra Modi App, which states "Narendra Modi App of Prime Minister of India" and is also offered by the Government of India. However, in the tweet, there was no mention of this link.

Narendra Modi App Operated by PM Modi as an Individual?

After pointing out these instances, there comes a question if the app that the PMO has requested the citizens to share their view on demonetization is operated directly by Narendra Modi rather than the Government of India. Well, the question still pertains and has still not been answered.

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Here's How to Spot "Fake News" on the Internet [Google, Facebook, Twitter] Tips Tricks oi -Sneha The Internet, especially the social media platforms are being flooded with fake news more. Here's how you can spot fake news sources easily.

Recently, after the U.S presidential election, both Google and Facebook had been accused of displaying more of fake news leading to the win of Trump.

Several websites and news mediums had showcased various examples to support their statement, which is said to have played a great role behind Trump's win.

However, even after several claims, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg denied the blame, but however is supposedly working on filtering out the fake news, which often misguide the users.

On the other hand, Google recently revealed that it is working towards controlling the fake news flooding the internet using online advertising service, Adsense.

SEE ALSO: Is Downloading Narendra Modi's Official App Safe? Let's Find Out!



However, until Google, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms are starting to filter the rising fake news, there are a few ways that online news readers can distinguish between fake and real news.

Avoid These Websites

Most websites publishing fake news that ends with, Lo, .Co.com, Com.co and more. Registered website URL doesn't often don't end like these, .com, .in and rest are preferred more.

No Author Name For The Article

Most news articles will have the author's name as the byline, however, articles with no bylines or authors name, most probably can be fake. Hence, verifying facts is mandatory.

SEE ALSO: Beware of These Reliance Jio, Narendra Modi, and Paytm Related Hoax WhatsApp Messages



Several Stories Having Same Author Name

Just in case you visit a particular website and find that most or all articles are by one single author, it is possible that this news can be fake and verifying facts is suggested.

Verify Facts With Other Sources

Be it any website, re-verifying the facts of the news is mandatory. Reading and believing on what one website states is not quite recommended, hence reading about the same topic from other websites is a good choice.

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Xiaomi Creates New Record by Selling 2 million Smartphones in India News oi -Samden Sherpa Xiaomi seems to have an eventful year while achieving a record sales milestone in the Indian market.

Of late, the smartphone market in India seems to be growing drastically. With the introduction of news manufacturers almost every year and smartphone usage becoming more prevalent, many suppliers are making the most of this opportunity.

SEE ALSO: Oppo A57 with 16MP front camera launched in China: Top 10 Rivals

As such one of the Chinese manufacturers, Xiaomi has broken its own record by selling over 2 million smartphones in India.

Xiaomi India head, Manu Kumar Jain disclosed on his Twitter handle that how the company had broken its own record by selling over 2 million smartphones in just one quarter. Xiaomi has indeed managed to sell over 2 million smartphones in the third quarter (July-September months) of this year.

More significantly, the sale marks a 150 percent year-over-year growth compared to the same period in 2015. The company has disclosed that it has consistently managed to sell about 1 million to 1.5 million smartphones every quarter this year.

So with its record-breaking third quarter, we believe that Xiaomi will be reporting its best yearly performance in the days to come.

While Xiaomi debuted in India in 2014 it was specifically an online-only brand with an exclusive partnership with Flipkart. However, with the passing of time, the company has widened its partnership by including e-commerce companies like Amazon India, Snapdeal, Paytm and Tata CLiQ.

In fact, Xiaomi today may have risen up to become the biggest players to conduct online sales.

However, the real reason behind the company's growth may be due to its expansion into the offline segment. They have also added more online retailers for effective distribution and have also launched attractive and cheaper smartphones like the Redmi Note 3, Redmi 3s and the Redmi 3s Prime.

Xiaomi earlier had disclosed that the company had sold more than 2.3 million units of Redmi Note 3 smartphones in India till September. Following the same path, the company in October had also seen a hike in sales on major e-commerce sites like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal.

On the other hand, Xiaomi has been also pushing its homegrown e-commerce site, Mi.com. The company claims to have sold over 247,000 units on Mi.com across 3 days of Diwali sale.

SEE ALSO: Microsoft Surface Phone to Arrive With Snapdragon 835 and 6GB of RAM Like Samsung Galaxy S8

Despite struggling in China, Xiaomi seems to be doing well in India as it serves as the biggest market for the company outside of China. Besides, the growth in the Indian market has come as a breath of fresh air for Xiaomi.

Some research reports also suggest that Xiaomi holds a 7.4 percent market share in the country, and has climbed up to the fourth spot in India behind Samsung, Lenovo and Micromax.

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Indigenous Rapper Frank Waln Is The Sound Of #NoDAPL Struggle

By Stephen Gossett in Arts & Entertainment on Nov 28, 2016 5:36PM



Frank Waln (center) / Photo: Bailey Rebecca Roberts

Even though the young rapper is based in Chicago, were ashamed to say it took a national tragedy to get Frank Waln on our radar. Waln is one of dozens of artists who performed over the weekend at the Mni Wiconi: Water Is Life festival in North Dakota, a benefit fundraiser for water protectors at Standing Rock.

A Sicangu Lakota native, Waln hails from the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, and moved to Chicago to study Audio Arts and Acoustics at Columbia College. In his music, he positions himself in the politicized hip-hop tradition of Nas and Talib Kweli, but uses that legacy to lend smart, non-didactic perspective to the underrepresented contemporary Native American experience and challenge stereotypes.

There are a number of Native hip-hop artists who play off the kitsch of what it is to be Indian because thats whats going to give them notoriety, said Alan Lechusza Aquallo, a professor of American Indian studies at Palomar College, in a recent Pacific Standard profile of Waln. [Waln] has his long braids, but hes wearing street clothes. Hes not playing Indian.

Walns most recent release is the October single 7, which blends a long-lens historical outlook with consideration of present-day issues, traditional Native sounds and of-the-moment trap-influenced production.

Waln spoke about the track with Fader last month for Indigenous Peoples' Day:



"This song is about not forgetting who we are and where we come from as indigenous people. Colonization attempted to, and continues to, destroy our cultures, languages, land, and everything that makes us indigenous. Our ceremonies and cultures were illegal under U.S. law from 1883-1978. In every indigenous community I visit, including my own home, I see young indigenous people speaking their language, singing their songs, and bringing back the ceremonies. I see language and cultural revitalization programs all throughout Indian Country. This is all despite the continued colonization of our homelands, communities and bodies."

As urgent as his music sounds at this moment, Waln's own non-musical dispatches are invaluable at the moment, as he visits Oceti Sakowin Camp and other key sites in the protest against the North Dakota pipeline expansion into sacred groundsespecially as the Army Corps' Dec. 5 deadline for protesters to vacate looms. You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram and find more of his music on Soundcloud and Bandcamp.
Reliance Jio Bill, Free Delivery of JioFi Device, and Other Scams You Should Ignore Features oi -Abhinaya Prabhu Reliance Jio bill of Rs. 27,000 and a few other scams related to Jio are listed here.

Right now, the telecom industry in the country is dominated by Reliance Jio and everyone is talking about the free 4G SIM that packs a slew of benefits.

While Reliance Jio is known to provide freebies until December 31 under the Welcome Offer, there are talks that on December 28, the company might announce the extension of the same. Well, the talk is about the Welcome Offer 2 that might give a new set of freebies to the users.

Also Read: 5 Reasons Why Reliance Jio Welcome Offer Could Be Extended

However, Reliance Jio is not in news only for the Welcome Offer 2 but also regarding a few scams. Today, we have compiled a few such scams over here so that you stay away from those and don't believe them.

Fake Jio Bill of Rs. 27,000 The fake news that gave a shock to many Jio users is the Jio bill of Rs. 27,718. Well, this fake bill started making rounds all over the web and was claimed to be sent to a Kolkata based Jio user. As per this fake bill, the penalty for not paying the amount within the due date is Rs. 1,100. However, it should be understood by the Jio users that is fake as the Welcome Offer is still valid. Also Read: FAKE Bill Urges User to Pay Rs. 27,000 During Welcome Offer Jio SIM is available online A mysterious website came up with a listing that it will offer the Jio SIM for free and interested people can book the same online and get it delivered to their doorsteps. This came in before the official roll out of the Jio SIM home delivery service. Despite providing free SIM, the delivery charges for the same was Rs. 199. This website was taken down soon as it was identified to be fake. Also Read: Buy Jio SIM from online Get a LYF phone and Jio SIM at Rs. 199 In another unbelievable news, it was stated that you can purchase a LYF phone and a Reliance Jio SIM by paying a low price of Rs. 199. Notably, the cost of the LYF smartphones start from Rs, 2,999 and there is no possibility to get it at Rs. 199. Also Read: Buy Jio SIM and LYF phone for Rs. 199 You can get free JioFi device One of the fake websites that emerged online stated that the JioFi device that is a Wi-Fi hotspot device will be offered for free. However, the website wasn't genuine and asked for the personal details of the users and required them to get the coupon code only by sharing the message on WhatsApp. Also Read: Get JioFi Wi-Fi hotspot device for free Paying up to Rs. 500 for Jio SIM Some users are avoiding the long queues to get the Jio SIM and paying a hefty sum of up to Rs. 500 to get their hands on one. This is happening in the black market and it is recommended that people stay away from such resellers. Also Read: Reliance Jiio Black Market Sales

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Counter-ISIL Strikes Continue in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Nov. 27, 2016  U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterday's strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, fighter, bomber and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 18 strikes in Syria:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed oil production equipment.

-- Near Shadaddi, seven strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units, destroying eight vehicles and a vehicle bomb. A tunnel was damaged.

-- Near Raqqah, five strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed two fighting positions, two vehicles, three wellheads and an oil tank.

-- Near Tanf, a strike destroyed a bomb and an ISIL fighting position.

-- Near Ayn Isa, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units, destroying a vehicle bomb and a vehicle bomb storage facility. A fighting position was damaged.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed a wellhead.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter, bomber, rotary and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 10 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq's government:

-- Near Qaim, a strike destroyed a vehicle.

-- Near Mosul, five strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units, destroying four mortar systems, three vehicles, three weapons caches and an ISIL-held building. Seventeen supply routes and a tunnel were damaged. A fighting position was suppressed.

-- Near Rawah, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed three vehicles and a bunker.

-- Near Tal Afar, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat it poses to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of targets in Syria and Iraq further limits ISIL's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

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Serbian soldiers protest against low wages

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 7:15PM

Serbian army soldiers have for the first time staged a protest in the capital, Belgrade, to express their anger over low wages and poor working conditions.

Nearly 1,000 people, including members of the Serbian army, police officers and army pensioners, took part in the protest that was held in front of the defense ministry building in central Belgrade on Sunday, the state-run Tanjug news agency said.

The protesters carried banners that read, "Military Trade Union" and "Police Trade Union of Serbia - always with its people."

"If a Serbian solider cannot feed his family throughout the whole month while spending more than 250 days annually in the field, then this is a problem," said Head of the Military Trade Union of Serbia Novica Antic during the protest.

According to the union, more than 75 percent of employees in the Serbian armed forces receive monthly wages lower than Serbia's national average, which was 370 euros ($389) in October.

Antic said 1,000 people left the military this year due to low salaries and poor working conditions.

In a letter to President Tomislav Nikolic, the demonstrators also urged Nikolic, who is also the supreme commander of the armed forces, to protect the soldiers.

The protest organizers vowed to continue demonstrations until the Serbian president and the Ministry of Defense meet some of their demands.

Defense Minister Zoran Djordjevic, who was against the protest, said only about 200 members of the army participated in Sunday's demonstration, adding that he was "proud of Serbia's army members for not joining the call of politically-motivated union leaders."

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Yemeni forces hit Saudi positions in retaliatory attacks

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 5:9PM

Yemen's army and fighters of the popular committees have carried out retaliatory attacks against military positions on the Saudi territory amid the kingdom's ongoing airstrikes.

According to Yemen's al-Masirah news website, the Yemeni forces fired artillery shells at a Saudi army base in the southwestern region of Asir on Sunday.

The Yemeni forces also launched mortar attacks against Saudi military positions in the southwestern province of Najran.

On Saturday, Yemeni snipers killed seven Saudi soldiers in Asir and the province of Jizan.

The regime in Riyadh continues its deadly campaign against Yemen.

On Sunday, a woman succumbed to injuries suffered in a Saudi airstrike on a residential area in Sahar district in the province of Sa'ada. A girl was also wounded in a Saudi rocket attack on Haydan district.

Saudi jets also bombarded the provinces of Ta'izz, Hudaydah, Sana'a, Hajjah and Ma'rib. There were no immediate reports of possible casualties.

The Saudi campaign began in March 2015 in a bid to crush the Houthi Ansarullah movement and reinstate the former Yemeni administration. The war has left at least 11,400 civilians dead, according to a latest tally by a Yemeni monitoring group.

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Ethnic strife claims 34 civilian lives in eastern DR Congo

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 1:56PM

More than 30 civilians have been killed in an attack by militiamen from Nande ethnic group in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Joy Bokele, a local official in North Kivu province, said the Mai Mai Mazembe militiamen attacked the village of Luhanga, where the Hutu ethnic people live, on Sunday.

The official said the assailants began the attack by targeting a position of the DRC military, commonly known as the FARDC, in the village.

"While they were attacking the FARDC," the official added, "another group was executing the population with bladed weapons or bullets."

"The provisional toll is 34 civilians killed," Bokele said.

One of the attackers was also killed in clashes between the DRC forces and the militiamen.

The Nande and Hutu groups have been divided along ethnic lines and relations between the two sides have been tense over the past months. Civilians are the main victims of the ethnic strife.

The country faces grinding poverty and crumbling infrastructure. In addition, the DRC has been suffering from a war in the eastern region since 1998.

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55 killed in Uganda clashes: Police

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 11:9AM

Clashes between military forces and a tribal militia in a remote western district of Uganda have left at least 55 people dead.

Police spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi said on Sunday that 14 police officers and 41 militants had died in the clashes in the town of Kasese near the border with the Congo on Saturday.

Earlier reports had said Ugandan troops launched a retaliatory operation, in which at least 15 rebel militias were killed, after the rebels had killed four police officers and wounded a soldier in an earlier attack.

The two days of fighting between government forces and the tribal militia indicate an escalation of tensions in a long-running dispute between Kampala and the rebels, who are believed to be loyal to a tribal king, Wesley Mumbere.

Mumbere, who is king of the Bakonzo people, is opposed to Uganda's long-time president Yoweri Museveni.

Some Mumbere loyalists have voiced separatist tendencies, said government spokesman Colonel Shaban Bantariza on Sunday.

The rebels based in the western district's Rwenzori mountains have set up military camps, from which they are said to run a small, self-proclaimed government, even collecting taxes from the people they control.

Bantariza said he had seen copies of money printed by secessionists hoping to establish a country named the Yiira Republic.

The rebels are armed with both modern weapons and improvised explosive devices, according to Bantariza.

Museveni, who has been in power since 1986, lacks popularity among the Bakonzo people.

In the 1990s, the region was the scene of a violent rebellion by the Allied Democratic Forces, a militant group that has now relocated to the Congo after being cracked down on in Uganda.

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Philippines military pounds positions of Daesh affiliate group in south

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 9:12AM

The military in the Philippines has shelled the positions of a terrorist group affiliated to Daesh in the south of the country, killing and wounding a number of combatants.

Intelligence showed that 11 militants were killed and five were wounded in the Sunday shelling, said Brigadier General Restituto Padilla, a spokesman for the Philippines' armed forces.

The bodies of the slain members of the militant group, named Maute, had not yet been recovered, he said.

Clashes began between the army forces and Maute militants, which have sworn allegiance to the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group on Saturday.

Padilla said that two soldiers had been wounded in the clashes.

During previous clashes with troops, Maute militants had been seen carrying black Daesh flags and bandannas bearing the militants' insignia were found in a militant base, the military said.

The army deployed reinforcements to the region to dislodge the Maute militants, who had occupied the town hall and other building in the town of Butig on the restive Mindanao Island.

Many residents of Butig, a town of 17,000 people, fled after the town hall was occupied by the militants.

Three members of the Maute group were arrested last month and were accused of a bombing attack in September that left 15 people dead in Davao, President Rodrigo Duterte's hometown and Mindanao's largest city.

Government forces captured a Maute training camp in the town in June after a 10-day battle that left four soldiers and dozens of militants dead, according to the army.

"They (the militants) have long been professing allegiance to the foreign terror group," said another military spokesman, Colonel Edgard Arevalo, in a statement referring to Daesh. "This is still part of the Maute group's agenda in courting support and encouraging similar-minded individuals to support ISIS," he added, using an English acronym for Daesh.

The Takfiri terrorist group is mainly active in the Middle East and to a much lesser extent in North Africa.

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China's Aircraft Flights Near Japan's Okinawa Part of Planned Drills

Sputnik News

10:38 27.11.2016(updated 15:47 27.11.2016)

A spokesman to the Chinese Air Force said that flight of Chinese aircraft near the Japanese airspace was part of the planned drills, which is the internationally accepted practice.

BEIJING (Sputnik)  The flight of Chinese aircraft near the Japanese airspace was part of the planned drills, which is the internationally accepted practice, a spokesman to the Chinese Air Force said on Sunday.

Early on Saturday, four Chinese Xian H-6 jet bombers flew over the Miyako Strait, south to Okinawa, in the direction of the East China Sea. In parallel, two Chinese Su-30s were registered, initially heading in the opposite direction, but near the Miyako Strait aircraft made a turn and also headed toward the East China Sea. Following the move, Japan's Air Self-Defense Forces (JASDF) scrambled its jet fighters.

"Conducting long-range naval exercises of military aviation is a common practice for maritime countries. The performed drills were planned, they were held in accordance with international law and international practice and were not directed against third countries," Air Force spokesman Shen Jinke said in a statement.

According to the statement, on Friday, China's planes of different types carried out a simultaneous flight across the Bashi and Miyako straits, and the objectives set for the drills have been achieved.

In late September, JASDF jets flew on to intercept eight Chinese military aircraft flying between Okinawa's main island and Miyako Island. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said then that it was the first time that Chinese military aircraft flew over the area. hen, the Chinese air force said it was staring drills, in articular, the forces conducted reconnaissance and early warning drills and simulated attacks on sea targets.

 Sputnik

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At Least 54 People Killed in Uganda Fighting

By VOA News November 27, 2016

Fierce fighting between security forces and a separatist militia believed to be loyal to a tribal king in Uganda's Rwenzori western region left at least 54 people dead, authorities said Sunday.

Police spokesman Felix Kaweesi said 13 police officers and 41 militants had died Saturday in clashes in the town of Kasese, when the militia attacked patrolling security forces. Four police officials and four soldiers were wounded, Kaweesi said.

The killings are an escalation of a long-running conflict between Ugandan security forces and rebels linked to a tribal king, Charles Wesley Mumbere, a critic of the country's long-time president.

Gunfire rang out outside the king's palace Sunday as Ugandan security forces tried to break into the premises and disarm his guards, after the rebels had killed four police officers.

Mumbere is king of Uganda's Bakonzo people, and some of his supporters have been calling for secession from Uganda, according to authorities. He has denied any role in the attacks on police posts.

The western district of Uganda, where Mumbere is based, is a hotbed of opposition to President Yoweri Museveni, who lost there in the last presidential polls.

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Chicago Had Its Most Violent Thanksgiving Weekend In Years

By Stephen Gossett in News on Nov 28, 2016 6:47PM



Crime scene tape (Photo by LukaTDB via Shutterstock)

Just as it did over the Labor Day break, Chicago just logged another incredibly deadly long holiday weekend. This Thanksgiving weekend was the bloodiest in years.

Including the three people fatally shot by police over the weekend, eleven people were killed and 62 more were wounded, according to Tribune data. As the paper points out, its a staggering jump from the most recent prior years: in 2014, five were killed and 14 were wounded; and in 2015, eight people were killed and 20 were wounded.

In one incident, on Sunday night, police fatally shot a man, identified in news reports as Richard Grimes, 36, in West Garfield Park. He had shot a 24-year-old pregnant woman, according to police. ABC7 reports that the shooter was the victims boyfriend, and the womans unborn child was killed.

Grimes' sister, Nicole Brady, said Grimes was depressed and snapped before the shooting. "He wanted the baby. Everybody wanted the baby. He wanted the baby. 100 percent wanted the baby. It was just like a snap, a depression," Brady said, according to ABC7.

There have been four fatal police shootings within the last nine days. Nineteen-year-old Kajuan Raye was fatally shot in the back on Wednesday night. Police said Raye was armed, but no gun was recovered from the scene. The sergeant who shot Raye has been relieved of police powers, authorities said. The People's Response Team released a statement on Monday in which the anti-police-violence organization criticized police and local officials for selective transparency when it comes to police shootings.
Ghana Electoral Commission Approves Election Monitors

By Peter Clottey November 27, 2016

The Electoral Commission of Ghana has begun approving local and international poll observer groups to monitor the December 7 presidential and legislative elections. The electoral commission, however, says groups affiliated with political parties would not be allowed to monitor the polls.

The criteria that poll observer groups must meet before their applications are considered include the name of the poll monitoring group, the leadership and composition of the group and their experience in election observation together with their passport pictures as well as their contact information.

"We have received a number of applications to observe the elections in the country," said Eric Dzakpasu, spokesman for the electoral commission. The commission has also received a number of applications from local and international observers, as well as foreign missions and embassies, he added.

Thousands of monitors

"As at the meeting we had today with the political parties, tentatively, we are talking about 400 international observers," he said. Embassies and foreign missions have about 200 observers. CFI France, which provides assistance to the media, has about 1,000 observers, and there are about 10,000 local observers.

"Once the accreditation is granted, they can go anywhere, but they need to inform the commission where they would be concentrated and where the rest of the [observers] would be dispersed throughout the country. And once accredited, they do have access to all parts of the country, while the election is going on," Dzakpasu added.

Officials of the electoral commission also met Friday representatives of the political parties at the Inter-Party Advisory Committee in the capital, Accra. The objective of the meeting, the electoral officials said, was to help resolve the political groups' concerns as part of the electoral body's effort to ensure a transparent process.

The electoral commission will administer special voting December 1. On that day, security officials, electoral commission officials and journalists who will be on duty on election day are scheduled to vote.

Special voting concerns

Some political parties are accusing the electoral commission of doing the bidding of the ruling party to rig the special voting  a charge the electoral commission sharply denies.

Opposition parties previously expressed concern about the voter list compiled by the commission to be used for the elections. They said it appeared the electoral body was overly slow compiling the list.

The parties also raised concern about the number of people who are registered to participate in the special voting December 1. The parties also wanted to know the number of voting centers that would be used for the special voting.

"The major concern centered around the voters register, the proxy list and then the special voting list," Dzakpasu said, "and they also wanted to know the state of preparation of the electoral commission.

The parties "were also interested in the election observation and then the process for the transmission of election results electronically from the various constituency centers to the national coalition center," he added, "and most importantly, they were also concerned about the modalities for the training of party agents." All of the issues were addressed at the meeting.

The number of people who were supposed to vote early has been of some contention, Dzakpasu said. "I think we have finalized the list of special voters and the figure is out and the political parties are now comfortable with the final figure," he added.

"The special voting list has about 127,394 people, and they would be voting on the first of December at about 284 polling stations, which are based in all the 275 constituencies of the country," he added.

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Military Strikes Target ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Nov. 28, 2016  U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterday's strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, fighter, bomber and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 12 strikes in Syria:

-- Near Abu Kamal, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two oil tanker trucks, an oil tanker trailer and a vehicle.

-- Near Shadaddi, four strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle and an anti-air artillery system.

-- Near Raqqah, two strikes destroyed three vehicles, two oil wellheads, an oil tank and an oil pumpjack.

-- Near Ayn Isa, three strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle bomb-making facility and a fighting position.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed four oil tanker trucks and two oil tanker trailers.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft, and rocket artillery conducted nine strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq's government:

-- Near Bashir, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two vehicles, two weapons caches, an ISIL-held building, engineering equipment and a tunnel.

-- Near Beiji, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building.

-- Near Mosul, five strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroying four mortar systems, two vehicles, two ISIL-held buildings, two vehicle bombs, two front-end loaders, a command-and-control node and a heavy machine gun. A mortar system was suppressed and 11 roads and a bridge were degraded.

-- Near Tal Afar, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an unmanned aerial vehicle.

-- Near Rawah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat it poses to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of targets in Syria and Iraq further limits ISIL's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

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Uzbek 'Extremists' Blacklisted After Prolonged Absence

Mehribon Bekieva, Farangis Najibullah November 27, 2016

Whenever Uzbek national holidays roll around these days, "Gulnora" knows they're coming. The only real mystery, she says, is whether or not they'll be in balaclavas.

"Police...raid my home before every major public celebration," says the recently widowed 55-year-old resident of rural Uzbekistan. "There have been raids by masked men and by ordinary police. They embarrass me in front of the neighborhood."

Gulnora, who does not want her real name disclosed, says the men raiding her home are looking for her sons, aged 31 and 36. She blames the perceived harassment, which has also included police questioning and pressure to locate her sons, for the downturn in her husband's lifestyle and health before his death in April.

The young men are among a growing number of citizens thought to be living abroad and blacklisted as extremists by authorities in Uzbekistan, according to a police source who provided one such district list to RFE/RL's Uzbek Service.

"We do indeed have an instruction according to which we put on the wanted list those who were absent from Uzbekistan for a long time. This is a question of security," says the same source.

The suspects face immediate arrest on their return, the source says, adding that police and security services across the country have hundreds of similar lists of suspected members of "religious-extremist organizations."

It is all but impossible to verify the claim. But locals contacted via details on one such list and interviewed for this story have expressed concern at their own or family members' presence on the blacklist.

'Harsh Repression'

Uzbekistan's government has long warned of the dangers of militant Islam in a region where religious expression was routinely suppressed under Soviet rule. The emergence this decade of Islamic State (IS) and its particularly brutal ideology, along with its global recruitment efforts, has lent greater urgency to Tashkent's and other governments' efforts to combat religious and other forms of extremism.

A new report by the British-based Foreign Policy Center (FPC), a think tank, criticizes Uzbekistan and several other former Soviet states for the "harsh repression of political opponents and independent religious movements that has forced thousands to flee abroad."

The FPC says the Uzbek government already engaged in "extra-territorial repression," but adds that "over the past one and a half years, the situation of Uzbek refugees has considerable (sic) worsened." It cites "formal tactics [that] include the use and misuse of legal and policing agreements, while informal mechanisms include surveillance, threats and attacks, abductions, forcible renditions and even assassinations."

Contacted via the police list, "Shavkat," a 33-year-old Uzbek migrant in Cairo who agreed to speak if RFE/RL didn't use his real name, says he and his Russian wife have been living in the Egyptian capital for nearly four years. Before coming to Egypt, Shavkat says, he left a construction job in Vladivostok, home to a sizable community of Uzbek migrant laborers on Russia's Pacific coast.

'Bogus' Charges

Shavkat describes himself as a practicing Muslim, but he insists he has never had any links to religious extremist groups.

He says he left Russia after his brother -- whom he describes as a non-practicing Muslim -- was deported by Russian authorities to Uzbekistan along with two fellow villagers. His brother is serving a nine-year jail sentence, he says, for charges of Islamic extremism that he calls bogus.

There are at least 16 other names, including four women, on the district police's fugitives list from Shavkat's native village of around 25,000 inhabitants.

Contacted by RFE/RL's Uzbek Service, relatives of blacklisted individuals complain of pressure by authorities seeking information about their family members.

A woman whose 29-year-old son is on the wanted list says "men in black masks" raided her home in late August amid preparations to mark the country's 25th independence anniversary.

"They took away [the equivalent of $900] that my son-in-law had sent for my medical treatment," she says, adding that authorities have never returned the money.

Some relatives were surprised to learn that their family members were being sought by authorities.

'Security And Stability'

A 57-year-old man whose name and phone number are listed as the father of a "suspect" says his daughter and her husband have worked in Turkey for nearly four years. She "frequently calls home," he says, and has no idea that she has been blacklisted.

Uzbekistan has a history of extremist activity, including a series of explosions in the capital, Tashkent, in 1999 blamed on the banned Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). Included on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations, the IMU group pledged allegiance to IS in 2015.

There is ample evidence that Uzbeks fight alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and social media posts and other evidence point to hundreds of Uzbek nationals having joined IS militants in Syria and Iraq.

Uzbek officials insist their measures are justified in pursuit of security and stability, and they cite security successes.

The government has taken tough steps to target religious extremism by arresting and persecuting suspected followers and supporters of radical movements.

But it has also come under widespread criticism for crackdowns on political opponents and innocent Muslims in the process.

The authorities opened fire on antigovernment protesters in the eastern city of Andijon in May 2005, blaming the unrest on alleged supporters of Akramiya, a religious group that Tashkent has banned as a terrorist group.

Written by Farangis Najibullah based on reporting by RFE/RL's Uzbek Service correspondent Mehribon Bekieva

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/uzbekistan- extremists-blacklisted-absence- emigrants/28142170.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.

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Russia to Deploy New Space Surveillance System Elements in Four Regions

Sputnik News

17:10 27.11.2016(updated 02:11 28.11.2016)

Advanced elements of the Russian Space Surveillance System will be deployed in a number of the country's regions, including Crimea and the Far East, in the next few years, according to Andrey Ivashina, spokesman for the Russian Aerospace Forces.

The next few years will see the deployment of sophisticated complexes of the Russian Space Surveillance System in the Altai Republic, the Far East, Crimea and the Republic of Buryatia, Andrey Ivashina, spokesman for the Russian Aerospace Forces, was quoted by RIA Novosti as saying.

In an interview with the Russian news network Life.ru, Ivashina explained that "this will be a network of next-generation special radio-electronic surveillance complexes."

He said that unlike current systems, the new complexes will be equipped with new hardware components.

"It will greatly increase their combat capabilities as compared to previous generations," Ivashina pointed out.

Using the new complexes, the Russian Aerospace Forces will be able to permanently monitor the near-Earth space at all inclinations and at a maximum altitude range, he said.

An essential part of the Russian Aerospace Forces, the Russian Space Surveillance System is an information system based on specialized tools designed for continuous and global assessment of the space situation in peacetime and during hostilities.

The system can also use the ground based optical network located on the territory of Russia and Kazakhstan.

Additionally, the system uses a network of the early-warning radars, such as Voronezh-M in the southern Russian town of Armavir.

Last year, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the Okno-M station, which is based in Tajikistan in Central Asia and is part of the Russian Space Surveillance City, reached its full capacity.

 Sputnik

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Fidel Castro: A Revolutionary Who Held Onto Power Through Repression

Charles Recknagel November 27, 2016

Fidel Castro portrayed himself as a champion of the poor against repressive regimes.

But to stay in power for nearly 50 years, Castro created a tyrannical one-party state that jailed thousands of dissidents and suppressed freedom of expression, human rights groups say.

The former Cuban president, who died at age 90 on November 25, often won praise from socialists for leading a revolution in 1959 that toppled a corrupt government which ignored the dismal poverty in which many of its citizens lived.

After seizing power, Castro sought to improve social conditions by increasing ordinary Cubans' access to health services, housing, and education.

But those achievements came at the cost of crushing his fellow citizens' right to voice criticism or form political parties, according to activist groups and Cuban exiles. Human rights campaigners say the system he built continues suppressing human rights in Cuba today, despite Fidel's handing of power to his brother Raul in 2008 and increasing economic liberalization.

"Despite these achievements in areas of social policy, Fidel Castro's 49-year reign was characterized by a ruthless suppression of freedom of expression," Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas Director at Amnesty International, said after his death. "The state of freedom of expression in Cuba, where activists continue to face arrest and harassment for speaking out against the government, is Fidel Castro's darkest legacy."

'Draconian Rule'

Many other human rights experts agree. Even as Castro launched drives that were unprecedented in Latin America to rapidly improve literacy and to train thousands of doctors, his rule distinguished itself as a repressive system that punished virtually all forms of opposition, they say.

"As other countries in the region turned away from authoritarian rule, only Fidel Castro's Cuba continued to repress virtually all civil and political rights," said Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas director at Human Rights Watch (HRW). "Castro's draconian rule and the harsh punishments he meted out to dissidents kept his repressive system rooted firmly in place for decades."

Castro signaled his determination to brook no dissent almost immediately after taking power in 1959. He eliminated hundreds of members of the toppled government of Fulgencio Batista in a series of show trials and summary executions.

When faced with an international outcry over the executions, Castro gave an uncompromising public answer.

"Revolutionary justice is not based on legal precepts, but on moral conviction...we are not executing innocent people or political opponents," he said. We are executing murderers and they deserve it."

Over the following decades, Castro devised a system in which executions for political activity were rare but imprisonment, harassment, and intimidation were commonplace.

HRW says that in 2003, during a period of heightened repression, 75 human rights activists and other critics of the government were tried behind closed doors and accused of being "mercenaries" of the United States -- Castro's declared archenemy.

"Many served years in inhumane prisons, where they were subjected to extended solitary confinement and beatings, and denied basic medical care for serious ailments," HRW said in a statement on November 26 regarding Castro's record.

"More than 50 of the remaining prisoners were released after Fidel Castro handed over power to his brother, most on the condition that they accept exile to Spain," it said.

According to a 2016 report by HRW, thousands of dissidents continue to be jailed in Cuba each year. The report says that the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, an independent human rights group that the government views as illegal, received more than 6,200 reports of arbitrary detentions from January through October 2015.

The large number of dissidents who are routinely detained or jailed comes despite some highly visible prisoner releases in recent years.

'Deaths, Pain, And Sacrifices'

One notable release was agreed in December 2014, when U.S. President Barack Obama made a landmark trip to Cuba to urge a renewal of diplomatic relations which were severed following Cuba's 1959 revolution. In response to Obama's call for greater political freedom on the island, Raul Castro gave conditional release to 53 dissidents after a detente was announced between Havana and Washington. The two governments restored diplomatic relations in July 2015. Obama later made a historic trip to Cuba in March 2016.

Even with such gestures, many observers say that intolerance of opposition is such a fundamental part of Fidel Castro's legacy that there is little likelihood the government will change direction now that he is dead.

"The primary objective of the Cuban regime today is the preservation of power as long as possible and while dissidents still have the potential to create the kind of unrest that might unsettle a Cuban leadership, they'll continue to repress," Brian Fonseca, director at Florida International University's Public Policy Institute, told Voice of America on November 26.

The Cuban government controls virtually all media in Cuba while tolerating a small number of independent bloggers who write on websites or publish tweets. Authorities routinely use preventive detention to keep activists from participating in peaceful marches or meetings. Artists and academics who demand greater freedom outside of closely controlled government organizations are routinely subjected to arrest or smear campaigns in the state press to discredit them.

Many who have suffered as a result of Castro's policies will not miss him.

"He is responsible for a huge number of deaths, pain, and sacrifices," Carlos Paya, brother of the late Cuban activist Oswaldo Paya, told the dpa news agency on August 26 from Madrid. "Those of us who have loved ones who have been victims of Castroism will not mourn this person."

Oswaldo Paya, who led Cuba's Christian Liberation Movement and received the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 2002, died in a car crash in 2012 that his family believes was not an accident.

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/castro- cuba-revolutionary-power- repression/28142253.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.

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Castro's Death Highlights Stark Contrast Between Obama, Trump on Cuba

By Cindy Saine November 27, 2016

The death of former Cuban President Fidel Castro has put U.S. policy toward Cuba back in the spotlight, and is highlighting stark differences in the world view of President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump.

Obama considers opening up U.S. ties to Cuba after more than 50 years of bitter estrangement one of his signature foreign policy achievements. He visited the Caribbean island nation in March  the first sitting U.S. president to do so since 1928.

"I have come here to bury the last remnants of the Cold War in the Americas," he told the Cuban people.

Over the past two years, the two countries have re-opened their embassies after more than 50 years. U.S. cruise ships are now docking in Cuba, and there are regular flights by U.S. airlines to the island.

Reacting to Fidel Castro's death, Obama issued a diplomatically worded written statement, offering condolences to the Castro family. It said: "History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and the world around him."

Trump issued a toughly worded statement calling Fidel Castro "a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades." Trump pledged that his incoming administration will "do all it can to ensure the Cuban people can finally begin their journey toward prosperity and liberty."

Fidel Castro's 85-year-old brother Raul is Cuba's current president. He helped to draw up the opening to the U.S. but has not introduced any major political or economic reforms to the communist system. Raul Castro appears to be in good health and firmly in control. He has pledged to step down in 2018.

Future ties in question

The death of the iconic revolutionary figure, 90-year-old Fidel Castro, and Trump's election are raising questions about what will happen to the warming of U.S.-Cuban ties. A senior Trump adviser, Kellyanne Conway, told ABC News This Week Sunday that Trump is open to any number of possibilities on resetting U.S. relations with Cuba, but he would demand concessions in return.

"But we remain very firm that when you open up diplomatic relations, as President Obama has, with Cuba and Fidel Castro in the last several years, that to get nothing in return, including political prisoners and assurances that people on the island of Cuba will be free politically and economically - I mean, I've personally met, and I'm sure you have, victims of Fidel Castro's oppression and his torture and his imprisonment."

Conway said the release of political prisoners held in Cuba would be a key factor in future relations.

Obama's Cuban policies also have been criticized by a number of lawmakers from both major parties. Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida called Obama's statement on Fidel Castro's death "pathetic," saying there is no mention of the thousands he killed and imprisoned.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, whose father is from Cuba, told ABC News This Week that the coming days will be a test of resolve.

"I very much hope that we don't see any U.S. government officials going to Fidel Castro's funeral. I hope we don't see Barack Obama and Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton and Democrats lining up to lionize a murderous tyrant and thug."

The White House has not announced who will be traveling to Fidel Castro's funeral on December 4.

Some lawmakers are hoping that the passing of Fidel Castro may usher in a new chapter in U.S.-Cuban ties. Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota has introduced bipartisan legislation to lift the 50-year-old U.S. trade embargo on Cuba, saying it is based on the ghosts of the past. Only Congress can lift the embargo.

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Improved US-Cuban Economic Ties in Doubt when Trump Assumes Presidency

By Ken Bredemeier November 27, 2016

The nascent growth in U.S. business ventures in Cuba is now in doubt, with uncertainty whether U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will carry out his campaign vow to undo President Barack Obama's diplomatic thaw with the communist island that ended five decades of hostilities between the two countries.

U.S. cruise ships are docking in Havana, American flights are landing in Cuba and U.S. hotels are booking guests. But the death of Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro and the ascent of Trump to the U.S. presidency in two months have left open the question of whether the improved economic links will continue with Cuban President Raul Castro.

Even as Obama renewed diplomatic relations with the island nation 140 kilometers off its southeastern shore and made economic overtures, the U.S. maintained its official trade embargo, which most Republicans who control Congress support keeping in place.

Trump on Cuba policy

At one point during his lengthy campaign for the White House, Trump said, "All of the concessions Barack Obama has granted the Castro regime were done through executive order, which means the next president can reverse them, and that I will do unless the Castro regime meets our demands."

Reince Priebus, Trump's White House chief of staff when he assumes power, echoed that sentiment Sunday, telling Fox News that the president-elect needs to see "movement in the right direction" from the Cuban regime in order to maintain the renewed diplomatic relations.

"Repression, open markets, freedom of religion, political prisoners  these things need to change in order to have open and free relationships," Priebus said. "There's going to have to be some movement from Cuba in order to have a relationship with the United States."

Rapprochement

Cuba and the United States opened embassies in Washington and Havana in 2015, with Obama visiting Cuba in March of this year.

But U.S. trade with Cuba in recent years has been one-sided, with the U.S. exporting about $180 million worth of goods this year and last and importing nothing, according to U.S. government figures.

However, U.S. flights to Cuba are increasing, carrying tourists eager to see a land and people that have been off limits to Americans since Fidel Castro nationalized U.S. corporate holdings in 1961 after overthrowing Fulgencio Batista, a dictator who was a U.S. ally.

New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez, a critic of Obama's normalization of relations with Cuba, said that U.S. economic links to Cuba remain firmly connected to President Raul Castro's family.

"What Raul is doing is preparing for a generational change to his son and son-in-law," Menendez said. "You want to do business in Cuba, you want to be part of the hotel industry, tourism industry, you got to see Raul's son. You want to go ahead and do agriculture business in Cuba, you got to do it with his son-in-law, both high-ranking officials of the Cuban military. So yeah, they're thinking about a generational change, but it's from one set of Castros to another set of Castros, not from a dictatorship towards freedom and democracy and human rights. And we should understand that."

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Is Castro's Death a Turning Point for Human Rights?

By Katherine Gypson November 27, 2016

Six decades after declaring history would absolve him, Fidel Castro's life has ended and his troubled human rights legacy can be considered.

Cuban-Americans took to the streets of Little Havana on Saturday, saying the passing of one man could be the beginning of hope for the many who had suffered under him.

"A bad dictator that had Cuba under oppression and repression for almost six decades is no longer with us, and that will give an opportunity to the Cuban people to start the journey to freedom and democracy," Cuban-American Jose Sanchez told VOA as he celebrated with hundreds of other Cuban-Americans in Miami.

Under Castro's rule, three generations of Cuban people lacked nearly all basic civil and political freedoms, including the rights to expression, assembly and association. The communist government routinely detained journalists and dissenters while denying independent human rights monitoring organizations access inside the country.

"This is a man who is deeply admired in the rest of the region for standing up to the United States," said Eduardo Gamarra, professor of politics and international relations at Florida International University. "But at the same time, and it's very important to remember, he also presided over a tyrannical regime, a regime that was responsible for the deaths by firing squad of hundreds of people and somebody who jailed people for their political views."

U.S.-Cuba relations

Even the restoration of relations with the United States, starting in December 2014, didn't loosen limitations on freedoms.

According to a 2016 Human Rights Watch report, internet access in Cuba was still severely limited despite the opening of 35 Wi-Fi hotspots nationwide, and the government continued to control nearly all media outlets. The number of jailed dissidents remained consistent at between 8,000 and 9,000 prisoners each year.

Now it will be up to Raul Castro, who had gradually taken over control of the communist island nation starting in 2006, to decide whether his brother's death marks the end of an era.

"The symbol is dead," Guadalupe Correa Cabrera, professor of public affairs and security studies at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, said of Castro's death.

Cabrera said Raul Castro's control over the country had already opened the door for normalization of relations with the United States, and with the death of Fidel marking the end of an era, even more opportunities could arise.

"He needs to change his approach and allow the country to be more open," Cabrera said.

Human rights

Human rights concerns have long shaped U.S. relations with Cuba, playing an often crucial role in presidential politics. In the hours after Castro's death, many U.S. lawmakers took to Twitter to recall Castro's legacy and express the hope his passing would begin a new chapter for the country.

"While some may wish to paint a rosy picture of communism and this dictator's leadership, any account that ignores his bloody atrocities and human rights abuses, economic persecution and support for terrorism abroad does no justice to the survivors and victims of his legacy," U.S. Representative Jeff Duncan of South Carolina, chairman of the Western Hemisphere subcommittee on foreign affairs, said in a statement released Saturday.

Even as the aging leader slipped from public view, the memory of his rule remained alive in the minds of the generations he marked  a psychological toll that could have very real consequences as the nation moves forward.

"We knew that as long as the dictator who founded the Cuban revolution was alive and in Cuba, change would be very difficult. But now this represents an opportunity  especially for those freedom fighters in Cuba, the opposition leaders who have been risking their lives, their security, their well-being, for years to fight for a better country. Now they're going to be stronger," U.S. Representative Carlos Curbelo of Florida told VOA.

But change in the wake of Castro's death could come at a steep cost, exacted by the communist government still in place.

"The primary objective of the Cuban regime today is the preservation of power as long as possible, and while dissidents still have the potential to create the kind of unrest that might unsettle a Cuban leadership, they'll continue to repress," said Brian Fonseca, director at Florida International University's Public Policy Institute.

Create 'fissures'

"If the social fissures sort of begin to manifest because of changes in the emotional temper of the Cuban people, and if that does occur, given that preservation of power is most critical to the Cuban political elite, then I think you may find political repression going up, at least in the short term," Fonseca said.

Back in the streets of Little Havana, many realized the end of the era of Castro is in many ways just the beginning.

"We're here honoring all our grandparents and that entire generation that wasn't here to experience it today, but for them we're here, and hopefully this is the beginning of freedom for Cuba," said Lissette Calderon, a Cuban-American woman who has never set foot on the island but brought her children out to witness the historic moment.

"The people of Cuba do not have free elections; there's no democracy. I think those of us aren't going to rest until we see freedom for the people of Cuba," Calderon said.

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Canada's Trudeau Chided for Castro Praise

By VOA News November 27, 2016

The reactions of world leaders to the death of Fidel Catro included sorrow and sometimes criticism for the former Cuban leader. But Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's praise for the revolutionary and dictator's "dedication and love for the Cuban people" was swiftly rebuked by some Canadian and U.S. politicians.

"I know my father was very proud to call him a friend and I had the opportunity to meet Fidel when my father passed away," the prime minister said.

Trudeau, who visited Cuba earlier this month, said, "While a controversial figure, both Mr. Castro's supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for 'El Comandante.'"

Kellie Leitch, a Canadian Conservative Party lawmaker, said Trudeau's remarks about Castro sounded "as if the prime minister were reading from a story book."

Leitch said on Facebook, "When given the opportunity to recognize the Castro regime for what it was  brutal, oppressive, and murderous  our prime minister instead chose to lionize the man who denied his people basic freedoms for decades."

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, who is of Cuban descent, was startled by Trudeau's praise of Castro, saying "Is this a real statement or parody? Because if this is a real statement from the PM of Canada, it is shameful and embarrassing."

Trudeau's tribute to Castro was also mocked on social media, as #trudeaueulogies became a trending hashtag on Twitter, with users tweeting satiric praise for historic and fictional villains.

Reaction among world leaders mixed

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump wrote on Twitter that Castro was "A brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Trump said Castro's legacy included "firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights."

U.S. House speaker Paul Ryan said, "Now that Fidel Castro is dead, the cruelty and oppression of his regime should die with him."

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said he and his wife, Rosalynn, "fondly remember our visits with him in Cuba and his love of his country." In a statement, Carter said he wishes the Cuban citizens peace and prosperity in the years ahead.

Luiz Inacio Lula, Brazil's former president, said Castro was the "greatest of all Latin Americans."

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon offered the support of the UN to the people of Cuba during spoken remarks at a sustainable transportation conference in Turkmenistan.

"Under the former president Castro, Cuba made advances in the fields of education, literacy and health. I hope that Cuba will continue to advance on a path of reform and greater prosperity," Ban said.

Ruben Berrios Martinez, the longtime leader of the Puerto Rican Independence Party, said Castro was the "largest and most influential Latin American of the 20th century, whose verticality, vision and passion has always served as an inspiration for those who aspired to a more just, free and dignified Latin America."

Nicolas Maduro, president of Venezuela, said he spoke to Raul Castro, Fidel's brother, to convey solidarity with the Cubans.

Spanish President Mariano Rajoy Brey gave his condolences to Cuba and called Castro "a figure of historical significance."

Similarly, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Castro "one of the most iconic personalities of the 20th century."

"India mourns the loss of a great friend," Modi said on Twitter.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said "the world has lost a man who was a hero for many... his legacy will be judged by history."

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said on Twitter, "I lament the death of Fidel Castro Ruz, leader of the Cuban revolution and emblematic reference of the 20th century."

French President Francois Hollande called Castro a towering figure of the 20th century.

"I want, on the occasion of the death of Fidel Castro to again insist that the embargo that punishes Cuba should be lifted definitively (and that) Cuba should be fully regarded as a partner in the international community," said Hollande during a summit in Madagascar.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also praised Castro as a symbol of an era.

"Free and independent Cuba, which he (Fidel Castro) and his allies built, became an influential member of the international community and became an inspiring example for many countries and nations. Fidel Castro was a sincere and reliable friend of Russia.''

Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev hailed Castro for "strengthening" his island nation.

"Fidel stood up and strengthened his country during the harshest American blockade when there was colossal pressure on him and he still took his country out of this blockade to a path of independent development," Interfax news agency quoted Gorbachev as saying.

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Iran Navy fleet set to cross Atlantic Ocean in near future: Commander

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 7:14AM

Iran's Navy Commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari says the country's naval forces should have a far-reaching arm in the high seas, adding that they will sail across the Atlantic in the near future.

"We are not limited to regional waters, and should have a far-reaching arm in international waters as security would not come about in the absence of power," he said in a televised interview on the eve of National Navy Day on Saturday.

The senior military official further said, "Beyond a doubt, our naval fleets will, in the near future, circle Africa and cross the Atlantic," and will sail to waters of East Asia.

An Iranian naval group left the country's southern coast last month, heading to the Gulf of Aden and then Tanzania's Port of Dar es Salaam. It is currently berthed off South Africa in the Atlantic.

Sayyari had said earlier this week that for the first time, the 44th flotilla of the Iranian Navy, consisting of the Alvand destroyer and the Bushehr logistic vessel, has sailed into the Atlantic Ocean.

Elsewhere in the interview, the commander referred to remarks by US President-elect Donald Trump on his campaign trail back in September, when he claimed that if Iran "inappropriately" approached US ships, the country's vessels would be "shot out of the water."

Such remarks can only be replied by "laughter," Sayyari said. "The US thinks it is the world's overlord. We don't accept that."

"They are not in the position to take decisions concerning the high seas," the Navy chief asserted, adding, "Should any parties seek to prevent our presence in international waters, we would do the same to them."

Pentagon spokesman, Captain Jeff Davis, said on September 6 that seven attack speedboats of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) had approached the US warship USS Firebolt two days earlier with their machine guns uncovered, though not trained on the Americans.

Later, Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi, the commander of the IRGC Navy, said the Corps' naval force had been constantly and pervasively present in all of Iran's coastal territories from the northernmost areas of the Persian Gulf to its southernmost regions in the Strait of Hormuz. He, however, dismissed any harassment claims as "sheer lies and untrue."

In January, Iran's Navy arrested the crews of two US patrol boats that had trespassed on Iranian territorial waters. Iran released them after establishing that they had done so by mistake.

Iran has invariably asserted that it only uses its naval might for defensive purposes and to send across the Islamic Republic's message of peace and security to other nations.

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The Chicagoist will be launching later but in the meantime please enjoy our archives.
Iran Cleric Receives Jail Sentence

By VOA News November 27, 2016

The son of a late Iran revolutionary was sentenced Sunday to six years in prison.

Ahmad Montazeri, 60, whose father is Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, was convicted by Iran's Special Clerical Court in the holy city of Qom after "acting against the national security [and] releasing a classified audio file," the ISNA news agency reported.

Reports say Montazeri released audio recorded at the end of the country's 1988 war with Iraq in which his father condemned the execution of thousands of prisoners.

Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri died in 2009. He was the right-hand man to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini known as the father of Iran's Islamic revolution.

The elder Montazeri was one of the few leaders who spoke out against the execution of thousands of political dissidents known as the People's Mujahideen of Iran (MEK).

MEK was a political group that had sided with Saddam Hussein during the war between Iraq and Iran.

Iran's justice minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi, allegedly featured on the audio file, said he did not regret the killings.

"We are proud to have carried out God's commandment with regard to the [MEK] and to have stood with strength and fought against the enemies of God and the people," Pourmohammadi said, according to the Tasnin news agency.

Ahmad Montazeri has 20 days to appeal the verdict.

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Tehran Jails Son Of Top Revolutionary Cleric Over Execution Tape

November 28, 2016

A court in Iran has sentenced the son of one of Iran's founding revolutionaries to six years in prison for releasing a decades-old tape in which his father denounced the mass execution of prisoners in 1988.

Media in Iran reported that a clerical court in the city of Qom on November 27 convicted Ahmad Montazeri of charges of "acting against national security" and "releasing a classified audio file." The court initially sentenced Montazeri to 10 years on each of the charges, plus one additional year for abetting "antiregime propaganda."

But it reduced the sentence to six years in view of his lack of previous convictions and the fact that his brother was killed in an attack by a Marxist group that Tehran views as a "terrorist organization."

Montazeri, a 60-year-old Islamic cleric, is the son of Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, who for decades was the right-hand man to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the father of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. Hossein Montazeri died in 2009.

In August, Ahmad Montazeri released a 40-minute recording of his father from 1988, arguing with leading members of the judiciary about the executions.

According to Amnesty International, Iranian officials executed some 5,000 political dissidents at the end of the country's 1988 war with Iraq. Montazeri was one of the few Iranian leaders to speak out against Khomeini's order to execute the prisoners.

Based on reporting by ISNA, AP, and AFP

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/iran-son-of-top-cleric- jailed-executions-audio-tape/28143740.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.

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At least 126 Daeshi terrorists killed in Mosul operations

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 8:50PM

A total of 126 Daesh terrorists have been killed during operations by the Iraqi army, anti-terrorism forces, and police aimed at liberating the city of Mosul.

According to a commander of the anti-terrorism forces, Abdel Wahab al-Saedi, 40 of the terrorists were killed as they were trying to block the advancement of Iraqi forces in the city's eastern regions on Wednesday.

The Iraqi Defense Ministry also announced that 54 Takfiris were killed during government airstrikes in the city's southern neighborhoods. It noted that several terrorist vehicles were destroyed in the attacks.

Earlier in the day, Iraqi military intelligence announced that at least 32 militants were killed during airstrikes which targeted terrorist positions located to the west of the city.

Iraqi army soldiers, backed by pro-government fighters from Popular Mobilization Units and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, launched an operation on October 17 to retake Mosul from the Daesh terrorists.

Mosul fell to Daesh two years ago, when the terror outfit began its campaign of death and destruction in northern and western Iraq.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has vowed that Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, will be fully recaptured by year-end.

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Iraqi Kurds find two new mass graves containing 18 bodies near Mosul

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 1:45PM

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters have found two mass graves in the country's northern province of Nineveh, which are thought to be containing the bodies of more than a dozen Izadi Kurds murdered by Takfiri Daesh terrorists.

A local official said on condition of anonymity that the graves contain the remains of 18 Izadi citizens and were found in Ayn Ash Shababit region near the Daesh-held city of Mosul, located some 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, on Sunday.

Mahma Xelil, the mayor of Sinjar, said the latest discovery brings to 29 the number of Izadi mass graves unearthed so far.

A number of other mass graves have been found by Kurdish Peshmerga forces over the past months, containing the remains of the Izadi Kurdish minority, who were slain by Daesh.

Back in August 2014, Daesh militants overran Sinjar, killing, raping, and enslaving large numbers of Izadi Kurds. The town was later recaptured on November 13, 2015, during a two-day operation by Peshmerga forces and Izadi fighters.

The Office of Kidnapped Affairs in the northern Iraqi city of Duhok says around 3,500 Izadi Kurds are being held captive in Daesh-held areas, and a large proportion of the abductees are women and children.

Additionally, Iraqi Air Force fighter jets carried out a series of airstrikes against Daesh positions in the strategic Tal al-Zalat region west of Mosul, killing 32 terrorists and destroying six vehicles belonging to them.

The aerial attacks were reportedly conducted in coordination with pro-government fighters from Popular Mobilization Units.

Another 54 Daesh extremists were killed and five pickup trucks equipped with heavy machine guns destroyed as Iraqi jets struck militant hideouts in Mosul's southern region of al-Masaed.

After months of preparation, Iraqi army soldiers, backed by pro-government fighters from Popular Mobilization Units and Kurdish Peshmerga forces, launched an operation on October 17 to retake Mosul from the Daesh terrorists.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has vowed that Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, will be fully recaptured by year-end.

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Iraq scholars hail parliament vote to legalize Hashd al-Sha'abi

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 8:15AM

The association of Iraq's Sunni Muslim scholars has hailed the parliament's recent recognition of the Shia-majority Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), known as Hashd al-Sha'abi, as a subdivision of the country's armed forces.

On Saturday, the legislature recognized Hashd al-Sha'abi as an official force with similar rights as those of the regular army, therefore legally establishing it as part of the National Armed Forces, which is subject to its commandership.

Abdul-Qadir al-Alousi, who chairs the Council of Scholars of Baghdad, welcomed the vote in a statement, saying it was the least token of appreciation of Hashd al-Sha'abi sacrifices for the liberation of Iraq and preservation of the country's unity, Iraq's Shafaaq news website reported.

The measure, he said, represents the will of the entire Iraqi nation, including all of its ethnic and religious minorities, adding anyone opposing the move pursues foreign-dictated goals as well as the country's disintegration and destruction.

The Popular Mobilization Units were formed after the rise of Daesh in Iraq in 2014.

In the early days of Daesh emergence in Iraq, the volunteer fighters played an important role in reinforcing the army, which had initially suffered heavy losses amid the lightening advances of the Takfiri terrorists.

Currently, Hashd al-Sha'abi has joined forces with the army and other military groups, including Kurds and Christians, in the large-scale operation to free the northern city of Mosul, the last remaining Daesh foothold in Iraq.

Iraqis find Daesh databank

Meanwhile, Iraqi security forces involved in the Mosul battle came upon a databank belonging to the terror group in Amrakan Village south of Mosul, Iraq's al-Sumariah TV network reported.

The find comprises computers, financial documents, and leases on agricultural lands overrun by the group. The gain led to the identification of "all" of the terror group's members and its financial transactions with foreign countries.

The city fell to Daesh on June 10, 2014, the year it unleashed its campaign of terror against the country. Mosul's recapture would deliver a decisive blow to Daesh terror activities both in Iraq and neighboring Syria.

Separately, London-based Al Quds Al Arabi paper reported that the group had executed 32 Iraq civilians, which it had seized during raids on residential houses south of Mosul on Friday, accusing them of collaboration with security forces and "apostasy."

Iraqi forces have, time and again, paused their operations in favor of allowing civilians to flee the battleground, while Daesh refuses to spare the non-combatants and uses them as human shields against the army's advances.

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Israel to Buy 17 More Beleaguered F-35 Fighter Jets From US

Sputnik News

01:00 28.11.2016(updated 01:01 28.11.2016)

Israeli government has approved a procurement of 17 additional US-manufactured fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets in order to bring the total number of such aircraft in Israeli Air Force (IAF) service to 50, the governmental press service said Saturday.

TEL AVIV (Sputnik)  Israel expects to receive the first two F-35 fighter jets in December, which will become the first aircraft of such type in the Middle East.

"The Ministerial Committee on National Security Affairs headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has unanimously decided to acquire 17 F-35 fighter jets. Thus, the total number of such machines, which will be delivered to the Israeli Air Force, will amount to 50," the press service said.

In June, IAF Chief of Staff Brig. Gen. Tal Kalman said that the IAF planned to purchase 75 F-35 fighter jets.

The F-35 project is the most ambitious and expensive weapon system in the history of the US Defense Department, with a cost of some $1.5 trillion.

 Sputnik

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Pakistan's Defense Minister: No Immediate Policy Changes By New Army Chief

November 27, 2016

Pakistan's Defense Minister says there will be no immediate shift in the country's military policy under the newly appointed army chief of staff, Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Defense Minister Khawaja Asif made the remarks to Pakistan's Geo News TV on November 27, a day after Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif appointed Bajwa to replace the outgoing army chief, General Raheel Sharif.

The army chief of staff is arguably the most powerful person in Pakistan, and Bajwa's appointment was expected to reset tense relations that have developed between the government and the military under General Sharif's command.

But Asif dampened expectations that Bajwa would immediately push for radical policy changes, saying "the military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it."

Little is publicly known about General Bajwa or his ideological stance on key issues such as relations with India or how to combat homegrown Islamist militants.

Based on reporting by Reuters and Geo News TV

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan -defense-minister-new-army-chief- no-changes/28142445.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.

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Pakistan Appoints an 'Extremely Professional' Army Chief

Sputnik News

00:59 28.11.2016

Career infantry officer Qamar Javed Bajwa has been appointed head of Pakistan's army, succeeding General Raheel Sharif, who has retired after his three-year term.

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced November 16 that he had named General Qamar Javed Bajwa to replace General Sharif and run the army for the next three years.

It is for the first time in 20 years that the most powerful official in Pakistan has retired on time and passed the position to a person chosen by the prime minister.

General Raheel Sharif said earlier this year he was not going to seek extension. "I will retire on the due date," Sharif said.

His stepping down on time was somewhat unexpected. He has gained unprecedented popularity among the general public.

"Some of the hyper-nationalists, some TV anchors and retired [military] mafia wanted him to stay, but he disappointed them," said Saad Mohammed, a retired brigadier general. "He stayed out of politics, he stood up to India, he brought the army out of despondency and he took on the challenge of terrorism that was eating at our vitals. He will go down in history as one of our best and most popular army chiefs."

Newly appointed chief Bajwa had been serving as inspector general of training and evaluation. He has also commanded the famed 10 Corps, the army's largest body, which is responsible for the area along the Line of Control (LoC) that divides India's Jammu and Kashmir from Pakistan-controlled Kashmir. He also served with a UN mission in Congo as a brigade commander.

He is said to consider extremism a bigger threat to Pakistan than India, according to Dawn.com.

"He is extremely professional, but very easy-going and full of compassion," an officer who had served under him said.

Bajwa is apolitical, without any biases, not seeking attention, his military colleagues said.

The new army chief is going to face a number of challenges such as Taliban militants on the border with Afghanistan as well as the situation with Kashmir. He will also have to work on protecting $50 billion worth of Chinese investment in energy and infrastructure in Pakistan.

Bajwa is due to take the command of Pakistan's Army at a ceremony in Rawalpindi November 29.

 Sputnik

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From Bad to Worse: S Korean Leader Could Be Involved in Another Corruption Case

Sputnik News

12:22 27.11.2016

South Korean President Park Geun-hye could have been involved in one more case of corruption, Yonhap reported Sunday.

TOKYO (Sputnik)  South Korea has been shaken by a major scandal, involving Park, two her former aides and Choi Soon-sil, a friend and "shadow adviser" of the president. Park's surroundings were suspected of being accomplices in several crimes.

According to the South Korean Yonhap news agency, Park could have ordered her former aide An Chong-bum, who had already been under arrest in light of the ongoing scandal, to ensure that Cha Eun-taek, a friend of Choi, would receive the shares of advertisement company Poreka instead of a major corporation.

The media outlet added that Cha was also suspected of having embezzled significant amounts of money to pay off his debts.

On October 24, media reported that Choi allegedly received drafts of the president's speeches before they were publicly delivered, though she had never held a public post. The following day, Park officially admitted asking Choi for advice on speeches and public relations issues, and apologized for "causing public concern." Choi is also accused of using her ties with Park to extract millions of dollars in donations from big companies into two non-profit foundations she controlled.

The situation had already cause large-scale protests around the country, with hundreds of thousands of people demanding Park to resign. The South Korean parliament is expected to discuss the issue of impeachment in the beginning of December.

 Sputnik

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Egypt rejects reports on military presence in Syria

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 6:26PM

Egypt has denied Arab media reports claiming that Cairo has military presence in Syria.

"These claims only exist in the imagination of those who promote them," the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued on Sunday.

On November 24, Lebanese As-Safir newspaper quoted "well-informed Arab sources" as saying that Egypt had dispatched pilots to an airbase in Syria's western city of Hama on November 12, adding that the contingent was joined by four senior Egyptian military figures upon arrival.

The paper added that two Egyptian major generals had also been operating at the Armed Forces Staff Headquarters in the Syrian capital, Damascus, since last month. They have been touring frontlines, including the so-called southern front in the city of Quneitra, the report said.

The daily also quoted one source "close to the Syria file" as saying that a large deployment of Egyptian troops will arrive in Syria in late January 2017 to take part in military operations "not limited to air support at Hama airbase."

Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi recently expressed support for the Syrian military, saying it was capable of restoring stability to Syria.

Sisi's remarks reportedly irked Saudi Arabia and some Persian Gulf Arab monarchies that back Takfiri terrorist groups, including Daesh, which are operating to topple the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Major General Ali Mamlouk, the head of Syria's National Security Bureau, visited the Egyptian capital, Cairo, in October and held talks with senior Egyptian intelligence officials. The two sides reached an agreement on "coordinating political standpoints" and improving bilateral "cooperation in the combat against terrorism" during the talks, Syria's official news agency SANA reported at the time.

A month earlier, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry had announced that Cairo and Riyadh did not have common attitudes vis-a-vis the ongoing crisis in Syria.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt have been at odds over regional politics including the warming of ties between Moscow and Cairo and Egypt's refusal to send troops to Yemen and Syria.

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A flower still-life by Chinese-French painter Sanyu (Chang Yu, 1901-1966) fetched a whopping HK$103.58 million ($13.35 million) at a Hong Kong auction Saturday night.

Sanyu, Chrysanthemums in A Glass Vase [Photo provided to China Daily]

Chrysanthemums in a Glass Vase was painted in the 1950s and a French family collection acquired the painting from the artist in 1965.

Born into a wealthy family in Sichuan province, Sanyu went to France to study art in 1921 and had spent the rest of his life in Paris.

Flowers were a frequent motif of Sanyus oil paintings, in which he explored the harmony of color, space and light and successfully presented the graceful simplicity of Eastern aesthetics.

In Chrysanthemums in a Glass Vase, he applied only ochre, scarlet-black and gold to create its lustrous appeal.

The painting was among the 15 lots being hammered at a Christies evening sale of Asian art.

In the same sale, another Chinese-French master painter Chu Teh-chuns (1920-2014) abstract work, Snowy Vertigo, was sold for HK$91.82 million.

It was inspired by a train trip from Switzerland to France in 1985 during which Chu saw a snow storm striking the Alps. He thus created a series of paintings to reflect snow scenes, including the one on auction that took him nearly a decade to complete.

Zao Wou-kis (1920-2013) Water Music was sold for HK$48.7 million. In the oil painting, he traversed ancient Chinese characters among a void of colors to achieve a feeling of infinity. Both Chu and Zao were schoolmates at the Hangzhou Fine Art School (now China Academy of Fine Art) and members of the Academy of Fine Arts of France.

Their headmaster Lin Fengmian (1900-1991) was a part of the first generation of Chinese painters trained in France. His oil work Fishing Village was sold for HK$39.74 million.
Syrian army forces, allies liberate two more districts in eastern Aleppo

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 4:34PM

Syrian army soldiers have established full control over two more neighborhoods in the eastern quarter of the strategic northwestern city of Aleppo following days of bitter clashes with foreign-backed Takfiri militants.

A military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Syria's official news agency SANA on Sunday that government forces, backed by fighters from allied popular defense groups, had recaptured Jabal Badro neighborhood.

The development came only a day after Syrian soldiers managed to establish full control over the adjacent Hanano neighborhood.

Hanano used to serve as a major stronghold of militant groups in eastern Aleppo since 2012, and militants used the region to launch attacks against areas under the control of government forces in the divided city.

Later on Sunday, Lebanon-based Arabic-language al-Manar television network reported that Syrian army soldiers were in complete control of the residential al-Sakhour neighborhood in eastern Aleppo.

1,500 civilians evacuate militant-held areas in Aleppo

Meanwhile, the Syrian army has also secured the safe departure of 1,500 civilians from the besieged eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo. The government forces reportedly transported the displaced families to makeshift housing camps, and distributed basic commodities among them.

Militants agree to withdraw from southern Syrian towns

Separately, the Syrian army has reached an agreement with anti-government gunmen in towns of Khan al-Shih and al-Tall near the capital, Damascus, to offer them safe passage should they pull out of the southern towns and move to militant-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib.

Daesh launches chemical attack against rival FSA militants

Meanwhile, the Daesh terrorist group has carried out a chemical attack against the Turkey-sponsored Free Syrian Army (FSA) militants, leaving nearly two dozen extremists affected.

The Turkish General Staff said in a statement on Sunday that 22 FSA members showed signs of exposure to chemical gas in their eyes and bodies after a Daesh rocket slammed into an area of Khaliliya village.

The affected FSA militants were brought over the border to the south-central Turkish border town of Kilis, and hospitalized.

On August 24, Turkish air force and special ground forces kicked off Operation Euphrates Shield inside Syria in a bid to support the FSA militants and rid the border area of Daesh terrorists in addition to fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and Democratic Union Party (PYD).

The offensive was launched in coordination with the US-led military coalition, which has purportedly been fighting Daesh extremists since 2014.

The incursion was the first major Turkish military intervention in Syria, which drew strong condemnation from the Syrian government for violating the Arab country's sovereignty.

Car bomb kills several, injures 12 in northern Syria

Several people lost their lives on Sunday when a car bomb explosion ripped through a street in the northern Syrian town of al-Rai.

Local sources said a dozen civilians, mostly children, sustained injuries in the attack, who were taken to a hospital in Turkey.

No individual or militant group has claimed responsibility for the act of terror, though it bears the hallmarks of those carried out by Daesh extremists.

The conflict in Syria, which flared up in March 2011, has claimed the lives of more than 400,000 people, according to an estimate by UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura.

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Nearly 500,000 kids living under siege in Syria: UNICEF

Iran Press TV

Sun Nov 27, 2016 7:27AM

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimates that almost half a million kids are living in 16 besieged areas across Syria, which has been gripped by a deadly foreign-sponsored militancy for over five years.

UNICEF said in a press release on Sunday that the 500,000 children are trapped in areas almost completely cut off from sustained humanitarian aid and basic services, some for nearly two years.

The agency also said that 100,000 children are living under siege in militant-held eastern part of Aleppo city alone.

"For millions of human beings in Syria, life has become an endless nightmare - in particular for the hundreds of thousands of children living under siege," said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake.

He further highlighted the dire situation in which children are holed up, saying they "are being killed and injured, too afraid to go to school or even play, surviving with little food and hardly any medicine. This is no way to live  and too many are dying."

UNICEF further called for lifting the siege in Syria to allow unconditional humanitarian access.

The situation in Aleppo is of particular concern as the city remains divided between government forces in the west and terrorists in the east.

Last week, at least eight children lost their lives in a militant attack on a school in western Aleppo.

The Syrian army has set up several humanitarian corridors for people to leave Aleppo. However, terrorists are said to be preventing civilians from leaving the city in a bid to use them as human shields.

Locals say they are scared to use the exit routes for fear of militant snipers as well as mines and bombs planted by Takfiri elements.

The militants have been dealt heavy blows over the past few months amid advances made by Syrian army forces and their allies on the ground, with the support of Russia's aerial campaign.

'Over 400 flee militant-held eastern Aleppo'

More than 400 civilians have reportedly managed to flee the eastern Aleppo controlled by terrorists as the Syrian government forces tighten the noose around the militants in the battered city.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Sunday that the civilians escaped overnight to Aleppo's recently liberated district of Masaken Hanano and were taken to government-held regions.

Syria's official SANA news agency reported that army soldiers on Saturday evening secured the exit of tens of locals who were besieged by terrorists, and transported them to a safe area.

Local authorities are working to provide the civilians with relief aid, the report added.

Meanwhile, in what is regarded as a major breakthrough in Syria's anti-terror fight, the army soldiers and their allies retook Masaken Hanano, the largest neighborhood formerly held by the militants, on Saturday.

Separately on the same day, there were reports of clashes between Syrian troops and militants in the nearby districts of Haidariya and Sakhur.

The terrorists, however, intensified their rocket attacks on western Aleppo overnight, leaving at least four civilians dead and dozens injured, the observatory said.

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Syria Government Forces Say Second East Aleppo District Taken

RFE/RL November 27, 2016

The Syrian army says it has taken control of the second district of eastern Aleppo from rebels in two days.

In a statement on November 27, the army said it had taken full control of Jabal Badro -- a district adjacent to Hanano, which it said it took the previous day.

The state news agency SANA said on November 26 that Syrian forces were in full control of Hanano and were clearing the area of mines and bombs.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that government forces had taken control of Hanano and said they were launching a follow-up assault on two other neighboring districts, Al-Haidariyah and Sakhur.

A spokesman in Syria for the Russian military, which is backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with air strikes and other support, said on November 27 that government forces had "advanced substantially deep into the eastern districts of Aleppo" over the past two days, clearing their opponents out of "more than 2,000 buildings," the Russian news agency Interfax reported.

Yasser al-Yousef of the Nour al-Din al-Zinki rebel faction said rebels had fought fiercely for more than 48 hours to defend Hanano.

He also warned that if regime forces can advance to Sakhur, then eastern Aleppo will be split in two.

Aleppo has been divided in two since 2012, with the government controlling the west and rebels the east.

Capturing all of the city would be a major victory for Assad after five and a half years of fighting.

On November 15, the government resumed its offensive to retake rebel-held eastern districts, where some 250,000 civilians have been trapped.

The observatory said that at least 18 civilians were killed in government raids and artillery fire in several districts of Aleppo on November 26, and that more than 400 civilians fled rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo for the government-controlled west overnight.

The ground and air assault has killed 219 civilians, including 27 children, since November 15, the observatory said. It said 134 rebel fighters have also died.

The British-based monitor also documented 19 civilian deaths, including 11 children, as a result of rebel shelling of western Aleppo.

On November 26, SANA reported that three people had died and 15 were injured when rebels fired rockets into government-held areas.

Meanwhile, the aid organization Doctors Without Borders said eight out of nine hospitals in eastern Aleppo were no longer functioning, while the ninth could not be contacted.

In a November 27 statement, the UN children's agency said the number of children living under siege has doubled in less than one year to nearly 500,000.

UNICEF said these children were living in 16 besieged areas across the country, "almost completely cut off from sustained humanitarian aid and basic services."

In rebel-held eastern Aleppo alone, UNICEF estimated that 100,000 children are living under siege.

"For millions of human beings in Syria, life has become an endless nightmare  in particular for the hundreds of thousands of children living under siege," UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake said in a statement. "Children are being killed and injured, too afraid to go to school or even play, surviving with little food and hardly any medicine."

UNICEF said some communities have received "little to no aid in nearly two years."

Separately, Turkish media cited the country's armed forces as saying that 22 Syrian rebels suffered symptoms of "chemical gas" after a rocket attack by Islamic State (IS) militants.

The reports on November 27 said the attack targeted rebels who are backed by Turkey and have been besieging the IS-controlled northern Syrian town of Al-Bab for several days.

Assad's harsh crackdown on pro-democracy protesters and government opponents in 2011 evolved into a multisided civil war that has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced more than 11 million.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and dpa

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/syrian-government-forces- capture-aleppo-rebel-district/28141763.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.

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Syrian Army Frees Eight Aleppo Districts From Terrorists, Evacuates 2,500 People

Sputnik News

23:02 27.11.2016(updated 23:50 27.11.2016)

Syrian troops liberated eight districts from terrorists in Eastern Aleppo on Sunday, evacuating more than 2,500 civilians, the Russian Center for Syria reconciliation announced.

Syrian government forces freed on Sunday eight districts in the east of the Aleppo city, evacuating 2,500 civilians and forcing dozens of militants to surrender, the ministry said Sunday.

"On November 27, the Syrian Arab Army troops liberated eight blocks of Eastern Aleppo from terrorists. More than 2,500 civilians, including 800 children have been evacuated. That number includes 500 people from the al-Qadisiyah district and about 1,500 people from the districts of Jabal Bidart and Hai es Sackur," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry added that during the operation 42 insurgents have left the al-Kadisiya area, refusing to continue warfare and laying down their weapons.

 Sputnik

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Egypt Denies Sending Troops to Syria

Sputnik News

19:18 27.11.2016(updated 19:42 27.11.2016)

Egyptian Foreign Ministry dismissed media reports that Cairo sent troops to Syria, according to official statement of ministry spokesman.

CAIRO (Sputnik)  Egypt denied on Sunday having sent troops to Syria and reaffirmed its commitment to respect other nations' sovereignty, in a statement attributed to its Foreign Ministry spokesman.

"Some Arab newspapers reported about Egyptian military presence in Syria," the statement published on the Foreign Ministry's Facebook page read. "Egypt is committed to the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries."

The spokesman stressed there existed constitutional procedures on foreign deployment that Egypt had to follow. "And those actions cannot be taken secretly without informing the Egyptian people about their objectives," he added.

Egyptian military has been accused of sending troops to the aid of the embattled Syrian government. Many Arab Gulf states support opposition forces in Syria. A Russian government spokesman said earlier this month he could not confirm reports that Egyptian soldiers were present in Syria.

 Sputnik

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Syrian Army Helps 1,500 People Leave Rebel-Held Eastern Aleppo Districts

Sputnik News

19:08 27.11.2016(updated 19:09 27.11.2016)

The Syrian Army helped 1,500 people leave Aleppo's eastern part controlled by militants.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Some 1,500 people managed to leave eastern Aleppo neighborhoods besieged by militants, local media reported on Sunday.

"The army units secured departure route for 1500 people from Aleppo city's eastern parts," a field commander told Syria's state-run SANA agency.

He added that families were located in makeshift centers, where they received all necessary service.

Earlier in the day, a source in Aleppo Governorate told the agency that a number of families managed to leave eastern parts of Aleppo using the Syrian army's advance in the Masaken Hanano neighborhood.

The situation in Aleppo has been seriously deteriorating over the recent months. Thousands of citizens are believed to be trapped in the terrorist-besieged eastern parts of Aleppo with no access to food or water.

The Syrian civil war is ongoing since March 2011, with many armed groups including terrorist organizations such as Daesh and al-Nusra Front (both outlawed in Russia) involved in the conflict.

 Sputnik

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Turkey Accuses IS of Chemical Attack in Syria

By VOA News November 27, 2016

Turkey said Sunday it suspects Islamic State fighters used chemical weapons against Turkish-backed rebels in northern Syria.

A Turkish military statement in the state-run Anadolu news agency says 22 rebels showed symptoms of exposure to "chemical gas" after a rocket attack east of al-Rai, near the Syria-Turkey border. The statement did not indicate when the attack took place.

The wounded were evacuated to the Turkish border town of Kilis where they are being tested for traces of chemical weapons, Turkish media reported.

There have been several episodes of chemical weapons being used against civilians and fighters in Syria since the civil war broke out in 2011, which would be a clear violation of international law.

A report in August by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons says there is enough evidence to pin responsibility for two chlorine gas attacks on the Syrian army and a mustard gas attack on Islamic State.

The Assad government denies being behind any chemical attacks, blaming them on "terrorists," its name for rebels.

Also Sunday, the Israeli military says it killed four gunmen with ties to Islamic State-affiliated militants in Syria.

Israel says its soldiers came under a machine gun and mortar attack on the Israeli side of the Golan Heights, along the Syrian border.

Military spokesman Peter Lerner said the soldiers returned fire while an Israeli military plane attacked the militants' vehicle, killing them.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the Israeli soldiers Sunday.

"We are well prepared on our northern border and we will not allow any Daesh of hostile elements, under cover of the war in Syria, to establish themselves adjacent to our borders."

Daesh is the Arabic acronym for Islamic State.

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Syrian Government Forces Press Offensive in Eastern Aleppo

By VOA News November 27, 2016

Russian-backed Syrian government forces pushed deeper on Sunday into the ruins of eastern Aleppo, in an apparent strategy aimed at splitting the rebel-held sector of the once vibrant city.

Witnesses reported hordes of civilians fleeing the battered sector ahead of the onslaught, with Khaled Khatib, who works for the unarmed, volunteer rescue group known as the White Helmets, warning that "thousands of eastern residents" are taking refuge in government controlled western Aleppo.

"[Eastern] Aleppo is going to die," he posted on Twitter.

Syrian state media reported that government forces, backed by Russian air power, stormed through a second key rebel district on Sunday, just hours after breaching rebel defenses on the sector's northeast frontline.

Hastening collapse of rebel force

Witnesses placed the government force late Sunday inside the Sakhur district, the narrowest point in eastern Aleppo. Analysts have warned that the fall of Sakhur to forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad would effectively divide the east from north to south and - in theory - hasten the collapse of the rebel force.

The French news agency quoted rebel fighter Yasser al-Youssef as saying opposition fighters were consolidating their positions in Sakhur. But he also warned that Russian and Syrian government warplanes are "destroying everything methodically, area by area."

Western monitors and analysts say as many as 250,000 civilians have been trapped in eastern Aleppo under the government siege. For its part, the United Nations continues to warn that those civilians are facing dire threats to their safety and critical shortages of food and medicine.

Government ground forces, backed by their Russian allies, began a push into eastern Aleppo earlier this month, after days of intensive bombing by Russian and Syrian warplanes.

'Starve, get bombed or surrender' strategy

U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power held up the airstrikes as proof "that the [Syrian] regime and Russia are continuing their 'starve, get bombed or surrender' strategy in eastern Aleppo.

Her comments to the U.N. General Assembly last week were part of a stinging critique of Russian and Syrian actions in eastern Aleppo, which intensified in September when Russian warplanes joined the bombing campaign.

Moscow and Damascus have routinely described the fight against rebels in eastern Aleppo as a battle against terrorists, despite the sector's vast civilian population. Both governments have used the "terrorist" characterization to justify the deadly and apparently indiscriminate bombings in the sector.

On Sunday, Russia's Tass news agency bolstered that claim with a statement saying "more and more [of eastern Aleppo] locals demonstrate they are against the crimes committed by terrorists" by fleeing to government controlled neighborhoods.

Western governments and the U.N. diplomats have scoffed at the Russian interpretation, while framing the Aleppo onslaught as a vast humanitarian crisis. Diplomats and human rights organizations argue that both Moscow and Damascus could face war crimes inquiries for their roles in the destruction of eastern Aleppo.

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Taiwan on top of China's military activity: MND

ROC Central News Agency

2016/11/27 13:14:36

Taipei, Nov. 27 (CNA) Taiwan has been staying on top of and is aware of China's military activity, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said Sunday, after six Chinese military planes flew near Japan's Okinawa Islands two days ago.

The military has been monitoring the country's surrounding waters and airspace closely to ensure national security, without being provocative or escalating conflicts, MND spokesman Chen Chung-chi () said.

According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, the six Chinese aircraft flew north along the Pacific side of the Sakishima Islands before traveling between Okinawa's main island and Miyako Island and heading toward the East China Sea on Friday.

China's Air Force spokesman Shen Jinke () said Saturday that the flight was part of routine distant-sea exercises and was not targeted at any specific countries.

(By Lu Hsin-hui and Y.F. Low)

ENDITEM/cs

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China files protest with Singapore over joint exercise with Taiwan

Iran Press TV

Mon Nov 28, 2016 11:25AM

China has protested to Singapore over military maneuvers conducted earlier between the city-state and Taiwan.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters on Monday that Beijing has filed a formal complaint to Singapore for "any form of official exchanges with Taiwan, including military exchanges and cooperation."

Nine armored troop carriers belonging to Singapore, which were being shipped back from Taiwan after the exercises, were held in Hong Kong last week.

Singapore's Defense Ministry has said the shipment of Terrex Infantry Carrier Vehicles and other Singaporean military equipment has been held in Hong Kong since last Wednesday due to a "request for routine inspections" by customs.

It confirmed that the armored vehicles had been used in military exercises.

Beijing regards Taiwan as a breakaway region belonging to Chinese territory.

Singapore and Taiwan have a decades-long military agreement codenamed "Project Starlight," under which Singaporean troops train in Taiwan alongside Taipei's forces.

Singapore has military ties with China as well and conducted a joint military exercise with Beijing in 2014.

Chinese state media have described Singapore's military cooperation with both China and Taiwan as "hypocrisy."

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You are here: Home

China's structural reform has made rapid progress as a whole thanks to a string of government reforms, Lou Jiwei, newly-appointed chairman of the National Council for Social Security Fund, said on Sunday.

Global issues like sluggish demand and high debt ratio are rooted in medium-long term structural problems of global economy, Lou said at an annual meeting on Chinese economy and international cooperation.

China's structural reform has achieved remarkable results under the government's efforts to streamline administration, lower market access, remove barriers, and push forward reforms of price, household registration and finance, according to Lou.

In 2017, China will face a number of "hard nuts" to crack, such as how to improve labor productivity, keep fiscal sustainability and promote the effective flow of production elements.

Lou, the former finance minister, was named the fifth chairman of the national pension fund to replace Xie Xuren.

Earlier this month, China's top legislature appointed Xiao Jie to replace Lou as minister of finance.
Saakashvili Holds Rally In Support Of New Political Movement In Ukraine

RFE/RL November 27, 2016

KYIV -- A diverse crowd of about 1,000 people turned out in central Kyiv for a rally in support of a new political movement headed by Mikheil Saakashvili, the reformist former Georgian president who has launched a second political career in Ukraine.

Saakashvili launched the New Forces movement and called for early parliamentary elections, days after he quit his job of governor of the Odesa region on November 7 and accused President Petro Poroshenko of coddling a corrupt elite.

Poroshenko had brought Saakashvili in to govern Odesa as part of an effort to conduct reforms in Ukraine, where entrenched graft and a costly conflict with Russia-backed separatists who hold part of the eastern Donbas region is hobbling progress following the pro-European protests that pushed Moscow-friendly President Viktor Yanukovych from power in 2014.

The rally on November 27 brought a mix of young and older people, many waving Ukrainian flags and some holding flags of the European Union -- one of the symbols of the Euromaidan protests.

Saakashvili repeated his call for early elections and promised, ""We will win, we will return Ukraine's wealth to its people and will recover its potential."

He told supporters he knows how to "make Ukraine great...and we will do it together."

Saakashvili vaulted to power in Georgia's peaceful 2003 Rose Revolution and led the country for almost a decade, but his party was defeated by an opposition coalition in 2012 parliamentary vote.

He is now sought in Georgia on criminal charges related to his 2004-2013 presidency that he says are politically motivated.

With reporting by Christopher Miller in Kyiv

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine- saakashvili-rally-kyiv-/28142323.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.

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Russia Opens Criminal Case Against Ukrainian Military Commanders

November 28, 2016

Prosecutors in Russia have launched a criminal case against Ukrainian security agencies for alleged war crimes committed in the eastern Ukrainian Donbas region.

Svetlana Petrenko, a spokeswoman for Russia's Investigative Committee, told journalists on November 28 that prosecutors have uncovered "previously unknown incidents" of artillery strikes on civilians by Ukrainian military forces.

As a result, a criminal probe against six Ukrainian military commanders has been launched, she said, naming Colonel Oleksandr Hruzevych, Lieutenant Colonel Mykhaylo Drapaty, Colonel Serhiy Panchenko, Colonel Serhiy Perets, and Lieutenant Colonel Volodymyr Horbatyuk.

The commanders are accused of "the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare."

The officers "fulfilled the clearly criminal orders of senior officials of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry," Petrenko said.

Ukraine has not commented on the charges.

According to the United Nations, more than 9,600 people have been killed since the conflict between Kyiv and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine broke out in April 2014.

Based on reporting by Interfax and TASS

Source: http://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ukraine-criminal-case- artillery-alleged-war-crimes/28143416.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.

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Alan Burkitt-Gray speaks to Don MacNeil, chief operating officer of GTT, about its company restructuring after coming out of Chapter 11 and its strategic roadmap for the next 12 months.
Press release

Ground-breaking broadband solution for airline passengers integrates satellite and LTE-based terrestrial network for superior performance

Key milestones achieved for project, as test flight is successfully conducted in UK and live over-the-air connection achieved in Germany

Construction of S-band satellite and rollout of approximately 300 LTE sites across Europe remains on track

28 November 2016

Bonn, Germany, London, UK, Espoo, Finland - The European Aviation Network (EAN) has taken to the skies. Inmarsat and Deutsche Telekom, together with their technology partners Nokia and Thales have successfully conducted a programme of test flights in the UK.

This is a major milestone in the development of EAN, the world's first integrated satellite and air-to-ground network dedicated to providing a true in-flight broadband experience for the European aviation industry and for millions of passengers travelling across Europe.

EAN is planned for introduction in mid-2017. The flights serve to test the performance of the EAN system including the onboard equipment being provided by Thales and the ground network provided by Deutsche Telekom and Nokia.

As a precursor to the test flight series, Deutsche Telekom and Nokia jointly achieved the first EAN live over-the-air connection, in Nokia's Stuttgart laboratory. There, all components of the LTE ground network were thoroughly tested and validated. The first live connection in the field was accomplished in a broadband video conference with both parties connected via the dedicated EAN LTE mobile network.

"We are happy that we achieved a major milestone in building the European Aviation Network. With these successful tests we once more underline our goal to be the leading European telecommunications operator," says Claudia Nemat, Board Member Europe and Technology at Deutsche Telekom. "The EAN allows us to offer our customers outstanding connectivity services not only on the ground but also in the sky. The new technology based on LTE standard makes sure that EAN is flexible for any further technology developments in the future. Deutsche Telekom's aim is to drive technology leadership to bring best network experience to our customers."

Leo Mondale, President of Aviation, Inmarsat said: "EAN is progressing extremely well, both on the ground as well as in the air, to achieve the world's first integrated service providing true in-flight broadband experience. The actual performance and quality of the in-flight datalink exceeds design expectations and is truly game changing for European airlines. We look forward to further successful testing milestones working with all the EAN partners to bring together this integrated system."

Thorsten Robrecht, Vice President, Advanced Mobile Networks Solutions at Nokia says "Nokia is extremely excited to be a pillar of the European Aviation Network project. As a global leader in communications technology, we are looking forward to the close cooperation of these distinguished partners to transform the passenger experience and deliver new services with advanced in-flight connectivity."

"We are very proud of our employees who have helped make the first flight trial a huge success and look forward to working with our partners to bring high-speed broadband to passengers and operators across Europe," says Stephen McCann, Vice President, Avionics at Thales.

Innovation in the skies, from the ground up

To achieve EAN's live connection of the LTE ground network, Deutsche Telekom and Nokia have adapted Nokia's LTE base stations and Remote Radio Heads (RRH) to the frequency used for EAN, provided by Inmarsat, and build a specific base station antenna to cover the sky. The LTE ground network for EAN differs from "normal" LTE networks as it needs to work at speeds of up to 1,200 km/h, at cruising altitudes requiring cells of up to 150 km. Nokia will manage the operations for this advanced network from its global delivery centre in Romania. In addition to the live network, Nokia and Deutsche Telekom set up a full end-to-end ground network reference system in Stuttgart, Germany, including all components and integrated on-board equipment from partner Thales, to prepare for technical challenges, for example compensation of the Doppler effect due to high aircraft speeds.

The flight trial tested the performance of the onboard equipment being provided by Thales and the ground network provided by Deutsche Telekom and Nokia. Tests were performed to see if the network could successfully attach to the ground system, which it did at all four test sites located in the south west of the UK.

The systems performed multiple successful handovers between sectors and cell towers, and maintained a stable connection. The transfer of data to and from the aircraft was also tested. The outcomes have exceeded expectations for this early flight trial and provided valuable data for the development teams.

Notes to Editors





Europe, we've got you covered

The European Aviation Network (EAN) is an innovative integrated S-band satellite and complementary LTE-based terrestrial network across Europe that will bring unprecedented passenger connectivity to the aviation industry. It is unique in the capacity and quality of broadband internet service it brings to the dense European aviation routes; in a very small and lightweight form factor that typical broadband satellite based solutions cannot offer. Since the initial announcement of EAN in September 2015, Deutsche Telekom and Nokia have made steady progress and are on track to deliver the ground component of the project, with the on-schedule rollout of the approximately 300 antenna sites and connecting the network live over-the-air. In parallel, Inmarsat and Thales are advancing with implementing the satellite communication for EAN, having completed construction and associated sub-system tests of the satellite earlier this year. With the test flight program now underway, the EAN will be introduced in mid-2017.

About Deutsche Telekom

https://www.telekom.com/companyprofile

Media Enquiries:

Deutsche Telekom AG

Corporate Communications

Phone: +49 228 181 4949

Email: media@telekom.de

Further information for the media at:

www.telekom.com/media

www.telekom.com/photos

www.twitter.com/telekom_group

www.instagram.com/deutschetelekom

About Inmarsat

Inmarsat plc is the leading provider of global mobile satellite communications services. Since 1979, Inmarsat has been providing reliable voice and high-speed data communications to governments, enterprises and other organizations, with a range of services that can be used on land, at sea or in the air. Inmarsat operates in more than 60 locations around the world, with a presence in the major ports and centres of commerce on every continent. Inmarsat is listed on the London Stock Exchange (ISAT.L). For more information, please visit www.inmarsat.com.

The Inmarsat press release newsfeed and corporate updates are on @InmarsatGlobal.

About Nokia

Nokia is a global leader in creating the technologies at the heart of our connected world. Powered by the research and innovation of Nokia Bell Labs, we serve communications service providers, governments, large enterprises and consumers, with the industry's most complete, end-to-end portfolio of products, services and licensing.

From the enabling infrastructure for 5G and the Internet of Things, to emerging applications in virtual reality and digital health, we are shaping the future of technology to transform the human experience. www.nokia.com

Media Enquiries:

Nokia

Communications

Phone: +358 10 448 4900

Email: press.services@nokia.com

About Thales

Thales is a global technology leader for the Aerospace, Transport, Defence and Security markets. With 62,000 employees in 56 countries, Thales reported sales of 14 billion in 2015. With over 22,000 engineers and researchers, Thales has a unique capability to design and deploy equipment, systems and services to meet the most complex security requirements. Its exceptional international footprint allows it to work closely with its customers all over the world. www.thalesgroup.com

Media Enquiries:

Adrian Rondel

Phone: +44 79 710 414 052

Email: Adrian.rondel@uk.thalesgroup.com
Chinese authorities on Sunday told safety watchdogs nationwide to launch thorough work safety checking to resolutely curb severe accidents and plug the holes in safety standards.

The call was made at a meeting on work safety of the State Council, China's Cabinet. Vice Premier Ma Kai addressed the meeting.

The meeting urged local authorities to earnestly carry out the orders by President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang concerning a deadly power plant accident in east China's Jiangxi Province and implement their instructions on national workplace safety.

It was agreed at the meeting that lessons should be learned from recent accidents and an overhaul is needed to ensure safety at work.

Attendees to the meeting also suggested promoting supervision and inspection as well as accountability in order to improve workplace safety.

They cited areas in need of more attention, including construction sites, coal mines, traffic, dangerous chemicals, fireworks, power and heating supply sectors.

Safety measures should also be strengthened at crowded places, it was agreed. Precautions should also be made to deal with extremely bad weather.

Local authorities should take innovative measures to improve work safety. Illegal operations should be cracked down on and the threshold for work safety standards should be carried out strictly, according to the meeting.

The platform for a cooling tower of a power plant under construction collapsed in Fengcheng of Jiangxi on Thursday morning, and 74 people were killed.

President Xi on Thursday urged local authorities to step up rescue efforts, treatment and follow-up work after the deadly accident. He ordered those involved to leave no stone unturned when investigating the accident.

Premier Li also called for all-out efforts to treat the injured.Supervision should be strengthened and precautionary measures should be taken to prevent serious accidents from happening again, Li said.
A rare diving duck, a species which is heading for extinction with fewer than 1,000 in the wild, was spotted lately by a photographer in southwest China's Sichuan Province.

The finding of Baer's pochard at a lake in the city of Chengdu in mid-November was confirmed by the provincial forestry bureau experts.

"The lone pochard was found paddling on the lake of Xinglong. A local bird watcher and photographer surnamed Yang caught it in his camera," said Wu Jiawei, deputy director of Chengdu Birding Association.

A male Baer's pochard has a dark grey to black neck and back, light brownish-red chest and sides, and a white belly. The head has a dark green sheen. A female has mostly brown coloring on its body.

The diving ducks breed in northeast Asia and migrate to the south for winter. The migration usually starts in mid-October.

Sichuan is on many birds' migration routes, but spotting of the Baer's pochard was rare in recent years. The species only was seen in 2008, 2013, and 2016.

Long Yanlun, a wildlife specialist with Sichuan provincial forestry bureau, said that as ecology of the region's wetlands recovers due to increased conservation efforts, more birds will be seen.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov 28, 2016) - Pasinex Resources Ltd. (CSE:PSE)(CSE:PSE.CN)(CNSX:PSE)(FRANKFURT:PNX) (the "Company" or "Pasinex") today announced their third quarter 2016 financial results with a strong profitability being seen in their 50% owned joint venture company Horzum AS. The following are highlights of the Horzum AS Joint Venture company sales of direct shipping material (DSO) mined from the Pinargozu mine in Turkey for both the 9-months and 3-month 2016 periods, expressed in Canadian dollars.

3 months ended Sept. 30 9 months ended Sept. 30 Horzum AS Gross sales $ 3,413,571 $ 6,931,254 Net income $ 1,187,340 (34.8% margin ) $ 1,591,785 (23.1% margin ) Pasinex Resources Equity gain $ 593,671 $ 795,893 Net income $ 354,915 $ 66,611

Steve Williams, President and CEO of Pasinex Resources Ltd. commented "Our advances at Pinargozu has resulted in these great results because of several factors. The recent development of the new, larger adit has positively impacted our production capabilities since it opened in late August coupled with a sharp rise in the price of zinc from around US$0.65/lb early 2016 to around US$1.25/lb now. The joint venture company is now solidly profitable. We anticipate an even better performance over the next 12 months."

In the third quarter 2016, the Pinargozu mine produced and sold around 7,700 tonnes (wet weight) of direct shipping (DSO) material at an average rate of 86 tonnes per day, and given the average grade of 33.3% Zn this represented about 5.3 million pounds of zinc sold in the quarter. This production for Q3 compares with the first half 2016 production of about 9,300 tonnes (wet weight) of DSO product at an average production rate of 58 tonnes per day and given the average grade of 35.1% Zn amounted to about 6.6 million pounds of zinc. In total Pinargozu has now produced nearly 12 million pounds of zinc to the end of September.

The nine month all in operating costs for the Pinargozu operation were $5,339,469 which amounted to $313.23 / tonne mined in that period. However, for the three months ended September 2016, the all in costs were $1,226,231 which amounted to $158.27 / tonne mined in that period. This significant improvement in productivity reflected the use of bigger equipment and higher degree of mechanization in the mine, as a result of the new third adit which was installed in Q3. All in costs include all underground mine development and drilling costs associated with exploration at Pinargozu. Corporate management costs for both Pasinex Resources and Akmetal AS (the Turkish joint venture partner in Horzum AS) are, however, not included in this all in cost calculation.

Horzum AS has done about 2.5 km of underground development up to the end of September 2016. As well a total of 8,881 metres of drilling has been completed.

Pasinex Resources' balance sheet continues to strengthen as a result of the equity contribution from the Company's 50% investment in the Horzum AS joint venture company. Total assets have increased to $3,033,477 in September 30th 2016 versus $2,368,863 at end December 2015 and similarly shareholder equity has increased to $2,694,275 versus $1,986,962 at December 2015. For further information on the financials, please go to our website www.pasinex.com or www.sedar.com.

About Pasinex

Pasinex Resources Ltd. (CSE:PSE)(CSE:PSE.CN)(CNSX:PSE)(FRANKFURT:PNX) is a metals company which is a 50% owner of the high grade Pinargozu zinc mine which is in production and, under its DSO Program, is shipping directly to zinc smelter / refiners from its mine site in Turkey. The Company has a strong technical management team with many years of experience in mineral exploration and mining project development. The mission of Pasinex is to build a mid-tier zinc company based on building a large land package within a productive CRD district in Turkey.

The Pinargozu Mine is owned by, Horzum Arama Isletme AS (Horzum AS), which is a corporate joint venture between Pasinex and Turkish mining house, Akmetal Madencilik San ve Tic. AS (Akmetal AS). Akmetal AS is one of Turkey's largest family-owned conglomerates and it owns the nearby past-producing Horzum zinc mine.

Visit our web site at www.pasinex.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors, PASINEX RESOURCES LIMITED

Steve Williams

The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

This news release includes forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause the actual results of the Company to be materially different from the historical results or from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking. Although Pasinex Resources Ltd. 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 market prices, continued availability of capital and financing, exploration results, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
DENVER, Colo., Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ -- Vista Gold Corp. ("Vista", the "Company," "we" or "our") (NYSE MKT: VGZ) (TSX: VGZ) today announced the results of process area optimization studies that have the potential to enhance the project economics for the Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia. The anticipated economic improvements are the result of process flowsheet changes that are expected to produce higher gold recoveries and lower process area operating costs. Testing indicates that these objectives can be accomplished through selectively screening and rejecting sub-economic, coarse crusher product prior to grinding; resulting in opportunities for improved gold recovery through finer grinding and improved operating costs down-stream of the grinding circuit.

A conference call with management to discuss the results of the Mt Todd gold project optimization studies is scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 2:00 pm MST.

Summary of Process Area Optimization Results

Earlier this year, Vista completed an independent review of the Mt Todd gold project. The combined input of the independent consultants and the project management team resulted in additional comminution and metallurgical recovery evaluations. These evaluations assessed opportunities to selectively remove below cut-off grade material from the process circuit after crushing. This results in less material being processed in the grinding and leaching circuits. The reduction in material results in excess grinding capacity which can be used to achieve a finer grind size in the final product and a corresponding increase in gold recovery for the remaining portion of the leach feed. Achieving the finer grind size is not expected to materially change the total grinding costs. Most importantly, the higher gold recovery is expected to increase cash flow, while the leaching, cyanide detoxification and tailings management costs are expected to decrease as a result of the reduction in the volume of material processed.

We completed size distribution and assay analysis of the high pressure grinding rolls ("HPGR") crusher product. This indicates that screening the HPGR crusher product at 5/8" produces an oversize product that accounts for 15-20% of the weight, but contains only 7-9% of the gold. Subsequently, we completed test work with Tomra Sorting Solutions, Inc. ("TOMRA") at their facilities in Germany to evaluate the recovery of sulfide/quartz/calcite-bearing material using Laser Reflection/Fluorescence and X-ray Transmission ("XRT") automated sorting techniques. This test work indicates that approximately 85% of the gold in this oversize fraction can be efficiently recovered with a return of 30-40% of the weight. We expect this to translate into an 11.5% reduction in material to be processed in the grinding/leaching circuits with a 1.6% loss in gold coming from the elimination of sub-economic material from the process stream.

If there is an 11.5% reduction in material passing to the grinding circuit, we expect to achieve a final grind size of 80% passing ("P80") 75 microns ("?m"), approximately 17% finer than the final grind size used in our May 2013 PFS of 90 ?m. Test work confirms that at a P80 75 ?m grind size, we can expect to achieve gold recoveries in the range of 83-84%, up from the 81.7% reported in the May 2013 PFS.

Vista's President & CEO, Frederick H. Earnest commented, "The process improvements that we have identified have the potential to generate lower operating costs and better gold recoveries without adding materially to the capital costs of the project. These improvements, coupled with the current US dollar to Australian dollar exchange rate have the potential to produce a significant improvement in project economics. We are now evaluating an update of our preliminary feasibility study."

Detailed Discussion of Metallurgical Testing Program Results

Mt Todd Deposit Geology

The Mt Todd deposit is hosted by a silicified sequence of greywackes, siltstones and shales. This host is cross-cut (nearly perpendicular to the bedding planes) by two different series of quartz and calcite veins. The injection of quartz- and calcite-rich solution provided the transportation mechanism for the gold and other sulfide minerals found in the deposit. The gold in the Mt Todd deposit is associated with the veining and occurrence of sulfide minerals, and is found only in small concentrations (likely the result of micro-fracturing) in the host rock. The quartz/calcite veining is pervasive throughout the deposit with vein thicknesses running from a couple of millimeters to several centimeters. Vein density can vary from 3-4 to 10-15 veins per meter. Selective assaying was completed to assess the presence of gold exclusively in the veins and/or sulfides compared to the host rock. Selective samples submitted to Pine Creek Labs in Pine Creek, Northern Territory, Australia indicated that carefully selected veins and sulfide samples contained 0.16-41.4 grams Au/tonne of sample compared to 0.05-0.46 grams Au/tonne of sample for the host rock. The relatively small proportions of vein/sulfide material account for the average grade of the deposit, and at the same time highlight the value of efforts to separate the host rock from the gold-bearing veins and sulfides.

HPGR Product Screen-size and Gold Distribution Analysis

In 2012, we prepared two bulk samples representative of the Mt Todd deposit using metallurgical core dispersed across the deposit (identified as M1 and M3). These two samples were sent to Thysen Krupp Industrial Solutions' HPGR testing facilities in Germany for HPGR crushing tests. A total of approximately two tonnes of material between the two composites was crushed. The HPGR crushed material was returned to Vista for subsequent metallurgical testing. Using HPGR crushed material from these two composites, we undertook studies to evaluate the amount of material and amount of gold contained in various screen size fractions. The results of this analysis are summarized in the following table. This work (including the subsequent sample prep) was completed by Resource Development Inc. of Wheatridge, Colorado ("RDi") with assaying completed by Florin Analytical Services in Reno, Nevada.



M1 Sample M3 Sample

Wt% Au (g/mt) %

Distribution

Au Cumulative

Au Passing Au (g/mt)

in Screen

Undersize Wt% Au

(g/mt) %

Distribution

Au Cumulative

Au Passing Au (g/mt)

in Screen

Undersize Feed 100 0.92 100 ----- ----- 100 0.79 100 ----- ----- +7/8" 6.6 0.71 5.1 94.9 0.93 4.3 0.67 3.7 96.3 0.79 7/8" x 5/8" 13.1 0.53 7.5 87.4 1.00 11.7 0.4 6 90.3 0.85 5/8" x 3/8" 19.8 1.19 25.8 61.6 0.93 17.2 0.87 19.1 71.2 0.84 3/8" x 1/4" 12.6 0.92 12.7 48.9 0.93 12.7 0.72 11.7 59.5 0.87 -1/4" 47.9 0.93 48.9 ----- ----- 54.1 0.87 59.5 ----- -----

Based on this data and with some understanding of the minimum size requirements for selective automated sorting we determined that the 5/8" screen oversize provided a meaningful volume of material for our testing to evaluate selective sorting and rejection. This size was also selected because it is reasonable to expect that screening can be effectively achieved at this size in a full scale operation. Physical observation of the +5/8" material indicated visually identifiable portions of vein material and sulfide material. It was noted that the majority of the 5/8" material showed no visual indications of veining or sulfides.

Automated Sorting Testing

Automated sorting is employed by many industries, and in the gold sector the Coeur Kensington mine is successfully operating an automated sorting circuit to recover higher grade ore before wasting the rejects. Many different sensors are used today in sorting, including but not limited to: Optical, Laser, XRT, Near Infrared, Visible light, Electromagnetic, and Color. A sample of +5/8" oversize material was sent to TOMRA's mining sorting division for testing. Testing was performed under the supervision of Outotec personnel using XRT and Laser sorting sensors. Testing indicates that a combination of XRT and Laser sorting methods could effectively identify the material containing quartz/calcite veining and/or sulfide material for subsequent removal using automated air sorting technology. A larger sorting test is planned to verify the promising indicative results. The following table summarizes the results of test work completed by TOMRA under Outotec supervision at TOMRA's mining sorting division in Germany.







Grade % Distribution



Wt % Gold (g

Au/mt) Total Sulfur (%) Gold Sulfur Average Feed (Calculated) 100% 1.98 0.84 100% 100% Average Product 35.6% 4.80 2.10 86.1% 88.6% Average Waste 64.4% 0.43 0.15 13.9% 11.4%

Grind-size/Recovery Testing

As part of the comprehensive metallurgical testing completed in 2012, we completed grind size optimization studies. Those studies indicated that a P80 of 90 ?m was the optimum grind size. At that time we recognized that finer grinding could result in higher gold recoveries, but the additional capital (i.e. larger mills) and power could not be justified to achieve the incremental increase in gold recovery. With the successful completion of the screening and automated sorting tests, we evaluated the relative advantages of down-sizing the mills to match the expected throughput compared to maintaining the mill size and grinding to a finer size.

As part of the recent testing, we completed grinding tests to achieve an initial product with a P80 of 90 ?m. This product was subsequently screened to assess the relative proportion of material at size fractions from 100 mesh to minus 400 mesh. This screen analysis indicated that 40-50% of the ground material was minus 400 mesh and 10-20% of the material was plus 200 mesh. RDi completed an analysis of the energy requirements to grind to a finer size and determined that the ball mills selected for the project in the 2013 PFS, operating with 11.5% less feed from the crushers would be able to successfully produce a product with a P80 of 75 ?m without any additional power demand. Based on grind-size and leach recovery work completed in 2012 and work recently completed by RDi, we expect that total recoveries in the range of 83-84% can be achieved with mill product with a P80 of 75 ?m.

Evaluation of Potential to Incorporate 2-Stage HPGR Crushing

In addition to the foregoing work, we prepared additional core composite samples and sent them to KCA in Reno, Nevada for additional HPGR testing. We conducted a testing program to evaluate the potential to achieve significant additional size reduction through 2-stage HPGR crushing. The objective of the program was to evaluate the potential to achieve sufficiently fine ball mill feed that even finer grinding, and hence higher gold recoveries, could be achieved. At this time we are not convinced that the additional capital and operating costs of 2-stage HPGR crushing can be justified by the results, but additional testing is contemplated.

Qualified Person

Dr. Deepak Malhotra, of Resource Development Inc., is a Qualified Person as defined under Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this news release.

Management Conference Call

A conference call with management to discuss the results of the Mt Todd gold project optimization studies is scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 2:00 pm MST.

Event Title: Vista Gold's Mt Todd Gold Project Optimization Update

Toll-free in North America: 1-866-233-5249

International: 416-642-3300

This call will also be web-cast and can be accessed at the following web location: http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=1322195&s=1&k=B2530005D32B12FE6F9AE93198FAF931

This call will be archived and available at www.vistagold.com after November 29, 2016. Audio replay will be available for 21 days by calling toll-free in North America: 1-888-203-1112, passcode 1698128.

If you are unable to access the audio or phone-in on the day of the conference call, please email questions to Connie Martinez, Manager  Investor Relations (email: connie@vistagold.com), and we will try to address these questions prior to or during the conference call.

About Vista Gold Corp.

The Company is a well-funded gold project developer. Our principal asset is our flagship Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia where we are seeking approval of our final environmental authorization and evaluating an update of our preliminary feasibility study. We also hold approximately 4.4% of the outstanding common shares of Midas Gold Corp., non-core projects in Mexico and the United States and royalty interests in Indonesia. For more information about our projects, including technical studies and resource estimates, please visit our website at www.vistagold.com.

For further information, please contact Connie Martinez at (720) 981-1185.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that we expect or anticipate will or may occur in the future, including such things as the potential to enhance the project economics for the Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia; the anticipated economic improvements that the process flowsheet changes that are expected to produce; selectively screening and rejecting sub-economic, coarse crusher product prior to grinding; our expectation that the capital costs will not add materially to the capital costs of the project; the effect on the projects economics of the current US dollar to Australian dollar exchange rate; our plan to finalize a schedule for the completion of an updated preliminary feasibility study; and our expectation that we will announce our plans for its completion in the near future and other such matters are forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. The material factors and assumptions used to develop the forward-looking statements and forward-looking information contained in this press release include the following: our approved business plans, exploration and assay results, mineral resource and reserve estimates, results of optimization studies and results of preliminary economic assessments, technical studies, pre-feasibility studies and feasibility studies on our projects, if any, our experience with regulators, and positive changes to current economic conditions and the price of gold. When used in this press release, the words "optimistic," "potential," "indicate," "expect," "intend," "hopes," "believe," "may," "will," "if," "anticipate," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such factors include, among others, uncertainty of resource and reserve estimates, uncertainty as to the Company's future operating costs and ability to raise capital; risks relating to cost increases for capital and operating costs; risks of shortages and fluctuating costs of equipment or supplies; risks relating to fluctuations in the price of gold; the inherently hazardous nature of mining-related activities; potential effects on our operations of environmental regulations in the countries in which it operates; risks due to legal proceedings; risks relating to political and economic instability in certain countries in which it operates; as well as those factors discussed under the headings "Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the Company's latest Annual Report on Form 10-K as filed on February 26, 2016 and other documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Although we have attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements and forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information; whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vista-gold-corp-announces-process-flowsheet-changes-to-generate-better-gold-recoveries-and-lower-operating-costs-at-mt-todd-300368327.html

SOURCE Vista Gold Corp.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Nov. 28, 2016) - Auryn Resources Inc. (TSX:AUG)(OTCQX:GGTCF) ("Auryn" or the "Company) is pleased to announce results from its belt wide till sampling program at the Committee Bay Gold Project located in Nunavut, Canada. The program was designed to screen the belt for the highest grade gold-in-till signatures to establish the priority sequencing for drill targets that could represent significant mineralized systems along the 300km Committee Bay greenstone belt.

Auryn COO & Chief Geologist, Michael Henrichsen commented, "Auryn's belt wide till sampling program has identified 17 significant gold-in-till anomalies that represent large-scale mineralized systems within the Committee Bay gold belt. Our 2017 exploration program will be scaled to test each of the 17 multi-kilometer targets."

A total of 6450 till samples from the 2015 and 2016 till sampling programs identified 17 multi-kilometer long targets within 5 structural corridors across the belt defined by the 98th percentile of the results (see Figures 1 - 4). Fifteen percent of the belt still remains to be surveyed during the 2017 summer program. In conjunction with the till survey, selected areas were rock sampled to ascertain potential grades of mineralization within the identified till anomalies (see Auryn News Release Nov 25, 2016).

In the southwest region of the Committee Bay gold project, a total of 9 high priority gold-in-till anomalies have been identified. The previously recognized 20 km long north south trending gold-in-till structural corridor at Anuri has been extended to 30 km in length with a new anomaly being identified 10 km to the south of anomalies identified in 2015 (Figure 2).

A cluster of three new till anomalies were identified in the vicinity of Quartzite Ridge that have not seen any historical work. Finally, a very well defined till anomaly was identified in the Four Hills region that has a very similar dispersion pattern to that observed from the Three Bluffs deposit in the central part of the belt. This anomaly has not been drill tested. Historical drilling 5 km to the west of the Four Hills anomaly intersected 10.6 meters of 2.37g/t Au in an area of a weaker gold-in-till signature (Figure 5).

In the central region of the Committee Bay belt, in the vicinity of the Three Bluffs deposit, six gold-in-till anomalies were identified with four of them having seen no previous historical work (Figure 3). Till anomalies identified in the Three Bluffs deposit region demonstrate that there is a prominent north-south trend to mineralization situated along a set of secondary structures identified in the 2016 high resolution magnetics and EM airborne geophysical survey (Figure 6) defined by the Ridge, Prospector, Kanosak, Avinngaq, Orca, and Three Bluffs deposit anomalies. These till anomalies have demonstrated high grade potential form both historical and 2016 boulder and rock sampling. A second prominent northeast trend of mineralization has also been discovered on a set of northeast trending fault zones, defined by the Castle Rock East and Kallulik anomalies (Figure 6).

In the northeast region of the belt, two multi-kilometer long till anomalies were identified to the south of the Inuk prospect where previous drilling intersected 16m of 12g/t Au. These two anomalies are very significant in that they are located to the south of all previous historical gold bearing rock samples and till samples outlining potential new source areas in this region of the Committee Bay gold project (Figure 4).

About Auryn

Auryn Resources is a technically driven junior mining exploration company focused on delivering shareholder value through project acquisition and development. The Company's management team is highly experienced with an impressive track record of success and has assembled an extensive technical team as well as a premier gold exploration portfolio.

Auryn is focused on scalable high-grade gold deposits in established mining jurisdictions, which include the Committee Bay gold project located in Nunavut, the Homestake Ridge gold project in British Columbia and a portfolio of gold projects in southern Peru.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF Auryn Resources Inc.

Shawn Wallace, President and CEO of Auryn Resources

Cautionary Statements and Technical Disclosures

Michael Henrichsen (Chief Operating Officer), P.Geo is the QP who assumes responsibility for the technical contents of this press release.

Till samples were collected mostly from active frost boils. Samples from 3 to 5 kg each sent to ALS Lab in Yellowknife, NWT and Vancouver, BC for preparation and then to ALS Lab in Vancouver, BC for analysis. All samples are analysed using Ultra-Trace Au by Cyanide Extraction and ICP-MS finish method (Au-CN44) and multi-element aqua regia digest ICP-AES/ICP-MS method (ME-MS41). QA/QC programs using internal standard samples, field and lab duplicates, re-assays, and blanks indicate good accuracy and precision in a large majority of standards assayed."

The Toronto Stock Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that the company expects are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, investors should review the Company's continuous disclosure filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

To view 'Figure 1', 'Figure 2', 'Figure 3', 'Figure 4', 'Figure 5', and 'Figure 6', please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/1077989_Auryn_link.pdf
TORONTO, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - RNC Minerals ("RNC") (TSX: RNX) (OTCQX: RNKLF) welcomes the announcement on November 27, 2016 of a nickel offtake agreement entered into by Western Areas Ltd. and the Tsingshan Group ("Tsingshan"), China's largest stainless steel producer, as further validation of RNC's roasting approach as a more valuable alternative to traditional nickel smelting and refining for nickel sulphide concentrate. RNC first successfully demonstrated this process in 2011. After working with RNC in 2012 and 2013, Tsingshan began the construction in 2014 of the first plant to directly utilize nickel sulphide concentrate as part of the stainless steel production process.

Mark Selby, President and CEO of RNC, commented, "We believe this agreement is another significant milestone for sulphide nickel concentrate producers and further confirms RNC's roasting approach as a valuable alternative to traditional smelting and refining. RNC's roasting approach is a simpler, lower cost, higher recovery alternative that should allow sulphide concentrate producers to capture significantly higher payabilities. We are very excited by the initial feedback on our marketing of test samples of NiCal-30, the roasted concentrate from Dumont, with potential payabilities exceeding our expectations. We expect to complete our initial marketing of NiCal-30 in early 2017 and expect to incorporate this market feedback into a feasibility study update for Dumont."

Mr. Selby continued, "I am happy with the progress at our Beta Hunt Mine under the new leadership of Kevin Small, Director, Mining Operations, as ore grades to date in November have exceeded our expectations and the ramp up is on track to deliver our guidance."

RNC's Roasting Approach

RNC continues to work to develop the market for roasted nickel concentrates from its own Dumont concentrate and other nickel producers. Samples of roasted concentrate from RNC's Dumont Nickel Project, under the product name NiCal-30, have been shipped to a number of potential customers (alloy steel producers, stainless steel producers, and nickel pig iron producers) in Europe and Asia and initial feedback has exceeded expectations. RNC expects this phase of the work to be completed in early 2017.

Beta Hunt Update

The Beta Hunt Mine is successfully ramping up under the new leadership of RNC's Director, Mining Operations, Kevin Small, with run-of-mine ore grades to date in November of 2.65 g/t, exceeding our expectations of 2.5 g/t. Mined gold production is expected to be in line with previously announced guidance of 8.5-10,000 ounces during Q4 2016, targeted annualized gold production rates of 60,000 ounces per annum early in Q1 2017, and 2017 gold production in excess of 60,000 ounces.

About RNC

RNC is a multi-asset mineral resource company focused primarily on the acquisition, exploration, evaluation and development of base metal and precious metal properties. RNC's principal assets are the producing Beta Hunt nickel and gold mine in Western Australia, the Dumont Nickel Project located in the established Abitibi mining camp in Quebec and a 30% stake in the producing Reed Mine in the Flin Flon-Snow Lake region of Manitoba, Canada. RNC also owns a majority interest in the West Raglan and Qiqavik projects in Northern Quebec. RNC has a strong management team and Board with over 100 years of mining experience at Inco and Falconbridge. RNC's common shares trade on the TSX under the symbol RNX. RNC shares also trade on the OTCQX market under the symbol RNKLF.

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking information" including without limitation statements relating to the the liquidity and capital resources of RNC, production and cost guidance, the potential of the Beta Hunt and Reed mines, and the potential of the Dumont, West Raglan and Qiqavik projects.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of RNC to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect the outcome include, among others: failure of the parties to sign definitive agreements and satisfy conditions of closing; future prices and the supply of metals; the results of drilling; inability to raise the money necessary to incur the expenditures required to retain and advance the properties; environmental liabilities (known and unknown); general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; political instability, terrorism, insurrection or war; or delays in obtaining governmental approvals, projected cash costs, failure to obtain regulatory or shareholder approvals. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to RNC's filings with Canadian securities regulators available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Although RNC 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 made as of the date of this news release and RNC 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 applicable securities laws.

SOURCE RNC Minerals
THUNDER BAY, ON, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - Wolfden Resources Corp. (WLF-TSX-V) ("Wolfden" or the "Company") today announces that it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement (the "Offering") of up to 3,000,000 flow-through units (the "Flow-Through Units") at a price of $0.10 per Flow-Through Unit for gross proceeds of up to $300,000. Each Flow-Through Unit will consist of one common share of the Company that is a "flow-through share" within the meaning in the Income Tax Act (Canada) and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant a "Warrant"). Each such Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one common share of the Company at a price of $0.15 per common share for a period of 24 months from the closing date of the Offering. In connection with the Offering, the Company may pay finders' fees to certain arm's length parties in accordance with the rules of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") in consideration for their efforts in introducing subscribers to the Company.

The securities to be issued under this Offering will be offered by way of private placement in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario and such other provinces or territories of Canada as may be determined by the Company, in each case, pursuant to applicable exemptions from the prospectus requirements under applicable securities laws. Securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a four-month hold period which will expire four months and one day from the date of closing of the Offering.

Closing of the Offering is anticipated to occur on or before December 15, 2016. The Offering is subject to acceptance by the TSXV and other customary conditions for a transaction of this nature.

The proceeds for the offering will be used for exploration on the Company's Rice Island nickel-copper-cobalt property in Manitoba.

ABOUT WOLFDEN RESOURCES:

Wolfden is a mineral exploration company exploring the Rice Island and Nickel Island properties in Manitoba. Manitoba is ranked #6 in Canada and #19 in the world as the most favourable jurisdiction to conduct mining and exploration (Fraser Institute (2015-2016). The Company also holds a dominant, 24,000 hectare land position in the heart of the Bathurst Mining Camp in New Brunswick.

The technical information in this news release has been prepared and approved by Donald Hoy, P. Geo., President, CEO and a director of the Company and a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101.

This press release contains forward-looking information (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation) that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information includes the anticipated completion of the Offering, statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance of the Company, and include, without limitation, statements relating to plans and results of exploration and the magnitude and quality of the property. 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 in this news release, including without limitation, the following risks and uncertainties; (i) risks inherent in the mining industry; (ii) regulatory and environmental risks; (iii) results of exploration activities and development of mineral properties; (iv) risks relating to the estimation of mineral resources; (v) stock market volatility and capital market fluctuations; and (vi) general market and industry conditions. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. This forward-looking information is based on estimates and opinions of management on the date hereof and is expressly qualified by this notice. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed in the Company's disclosure materials filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada at www.sedar.com. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward looking information or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from such information unless required by applicable law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) has reviewed or accepts responsibility for the accuracy and adequacy of this news release.

SOURCE Wolfden Resources Corp.
To OUR Gourmet Retailer Readers

While Gourmet Retailer no longer exists as a separate print publication and website, Progressive Grocer will continue to feature new content about boutique retailing in our ongoing coverage of Independent Grocers.

Please update your Gourmet Retailer bookmark and check our Independent Grocers topic page regularly for updates and fresh content.

-- The Progressive Grocer Team
My name is Li Yang. I was born in 404. It is the name of my hometown in the deep Gobi desert in western China, where China started making its first nuclear bomb in the late 1950s. You will never find the town on any map.

My name is Li Yang (C). I am the third generation of 404. My parents and i took a family photo in front of the statue of Chairman Mao Zedong when i was young.[File photo]

Covering an area of four square kilometers, 404 has a court, government, media, school, theater, park and anything else you want from a city.

It also used to have the first military nuclear reactor of China. Today, it is basically deserted. It is said that there is an underground nuclear base. But I have never seen it.

But the air-raid shelter in 404 is like a large labyrinth. In the 1980s, the underground project was deserted and become a children's secret amusement park.

The first generation of 404's residents was also its builders. They are the best of every walk of life, chosen by the government from across the country to work together for China's first atomic bomb, an important weapon for a country desperate to ensure its security from the United States and the former Soviet Union.

The 404 people made almost everything they need, from vinegar to ice-cream. They built a zoo, which consisted of five cages for bears, birds, monkeys, peacocks and sika deer. The government moved new animals to replace the old ones constantly. There is also a retired fighter jet exhibited in the zoo.

My grandfather and father worked in 404. Local residents called it hecheng, or nuclear city. A popular slogan is "After offering your youth, offer your life; after offering your life, offer your children and grandchildren." I am the third generation of 404.

When I went back to 404, now almost a deserted city, to take photos in September 2014, I found a plutonium manual outside of the public bathing room's gate. The handbook was universal in 404 residents' homes.

The most solid building in 404 is a hospital designed by Soviet architects. They knew this place well. That became a big concern after bilateral relations soured in early 1960s, as local residents were always worried that the Soviet Union would attack the place. All 404 children were familiar with air strike sirens and used to the air defense maneuver.

404 is an extremely dry and windy place. The days are glaringly sunny. We are happy when it is cloudy. All families know each other in at least three generations. Children in the same age are like siblings.

To outsiders, 404 residents' life was dull. Roasting potatoes and watching stars were the main way to kill time for children, in addition to doing sports. 404 had a dry skating arena, where boys fought for beautiful girls. Some people are still in the 404 prison because of gang fighting.

Many of my neighbors are expert technicians. A neighbor is a bench worker, who can copy keys with only a file. The other lathe worker can cut metal parts precisely. Many parts of China's first nuclear bomb were from him.

Almost all of the first generation of master technicians died in 404 and were buried in the Gobi desert.

The richest man in 404 today is a former ragman, who seems the only natural businessman in the town filled with State-owned factory technicians and workers. He runs several restaurants and shops. 404 people are simple-minded and warm-hearted.

I went to a college in Beijing later. That was the first time I left for 404 for a long time, and I was afraid of meeting strange persons at first. Although I live and work in Beijing now, I will never forget my unique childhood in that remote place. I clearly remember every detail of that place.

Today, only some old people live in that town, and they have decided to die there. I am afraid my hometown will disappear forever together with its last senior residents.
The election of Donald Trump, who ran on a platform that promoted myths about crime and criminal-justice policy, has left many communities and advocates of justice reform grappling with what it all means. Contributing to the sense of uncertainty that so many feel are the real changes that Trump, as president, could unilaterally make to federal law-enforcement and immigration policies. He has promised mass deportations, and there will almost certainly be an overhaul at the Department of Justice.Still, the movement for justice reform should not recoil. It's important to remember that the federal government has a limited role in state criminal-justice policy. While Washington can incentivize state reforms, most sentencing policy is made at the state or local level. Of the 2.2 million people incarcerated in the United States, more than 90 percent are in state prisons or local jails.Even more important, the voters themselves sent strong signals on Nov. 8 that justice reform can, and should, continue marching forward. The 2016 election cycle saw unprecedented support for reducing incarceration in favor of rehabilitation and treatment. Overwhelming bipartisan majorities of voters approved criminal-justice ballot measures, signaling that they want more, not less, reform. It would be wrong to assume that Trump's views on criminal justice reflect the perspective of most voters, or even that of most Republicans.In Oklahoma, for example, voters approved two significant ballot initiatives to reduce the prison population in a state that has the nation's second-highest incarceration rate. The measures the voters approved reclassify drug possession and petty theft from felonies to misdemeanors and reallocate the savings to prevention. Oklahoma joined at least four other states -- Alaska, California, Connecticut and Utah -- that have recently reduced penalties for drug possession, helping to reduce incarceration and advance smarter approaches to addiction.Voters in California, the first state to begin reducing incarceration through voter initiatives, provide yet another major reform victory on Nov. 8. A proposition approved by nearly two-thirds of the state's voters, combined with ballot-measure victories in 2014 and 2012, represents a major rebuke to the tough-on-crime policies of 1980s and 1990s. The latest California ballot measure creates incentives to participate in rehabilitation programs that reduce recidivism, and it transfers discretion from prosecutors to judges to determine when a juvenile can be tried as an adult. Voters decided that these common-sense changes would cost less and work better than the one-size-fits-all approach embodied in failed bumper-sticker policies such as "three strikes and you're out."In New Mexico, voters essentially ended money bail in the state, passing a constitutional amendment that prohibits holding people in jail until trial just because they cannot afford to pay for their release. The measure approved by the state's voters also requires the use of risk assessment to ensure that public safety rather than wealth guides pretrial-release decisions.All of these changes build on recent state legislative reforms that have slowed prison growth and corrections spending. Thirty-nine states have reduced their prison populations, and several will be considering further reforms in upcoming legislative sessions. And the states that have reduced imprisonment the most have seen the biggest crime declines.This trend is not just supported by justice reformers or those interested in reducing government waste. Victims of crime -- the very constituency that much of the old "tough-on-crime" era was purportedly designed to support -- also back reducing over-incarceration. In a recent national survey , the majority of victims revealed a belief that prisons cause crime rather than reduce it and expressed strong support for spending on education, treatment and job creation. By a margin of 2 to 1, victims believe that we should shorten prison sentences to pay for these investments. These beliefs cut across demographic groups, and support is as strong among violent-crime victims as it is among victims of property crime.With crime victims joining the chorus of voices calling for transformed justice -- along with Democrats and Republicans, law enforcement, formerly incarcerated people, faith leaders, business leaders and voters -- there should be no slowdown in the reform movement. In fact, reform efforts should grow even stronger. Not only is that what voters want, but it's the most effective way to stop the cycle of crime. We should continue to demand it from our leaders, no matter who is in the White House.
Donald Trump has consistently vowed to repeal and replace Obamacare. But he has yet to explain what he intends to replace it with.His meeting schedule today might offer a clue of what he is pondering. On the agenda is a chat with Seema Verma, an architect of Indianas unusual healthcare program for the poor.Indiana is among a handful of red states that took federal aid through the Affordable Care Act to expand Medicaid eligibility to poor, childless adults. But unlike most traditional Medicaid expansions, Indiana set up a system that requires many low-income residents on the program to pay small monthly contributions for their health coverage.Conservatives, including the state's governor, Vice President-elect Mike Pence, have argued that this makes poor patients take greater responsibility for their health. And healthcare advocates in Indiana generally supported the program, in large part because it was seen as the only way to expand health protections in the deeply conservative state.But cost-sharing requirements for low-income patients remains controversial, and a number of states that have experimented with it in the past stopped after concluding it was too expensive and difficult to administer.
A Utah judge frustrated over a lack of DNA results from the state crime lab said if the results aren't complete by next month, he'll put a crime lab employee behind bars.Christopher Lee Monson has been in jail for the past 13 months, after prosecutors in Davis County charged him with rape and attempted kidnapping in connection with an alleged assault of his ex-girlfriend last October.A seven-day trial had been scheduled for next month, but Monson's attorney, Mary Corporon, told 2nd District Judge Thomas Kay in a mid-November hearing that attorneys still have not received the DNA results of a rape kit that was completed last year.She told Kay that she doesn't know if the evidence will help or hurt Monson's defense  but said she can't go forward with the trial without the results, according to a recording of the court hearing.
Description

GIS  28 November 2016: We are all witnessing the dramatic consequences of disasters. We have no choice than to be better prepared and build resilience. We need now to culminate the outcomes of the consultations into a committed Programme of Action, a common Africa position for the Global Platform 2017 and a Mauritius Declaration that will be submitted to the African Union Summit in January 2017 for endorsement and operationalisation.

The Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism and External Communications, Mr Xavier Duval, made this statement on 25 November 2016 at the InterContinental Resort, Balaclava at the opening ceremony of the 5th high level meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction in Africa.

According to the Acting Prime Minister, the various forms of vulnerability have the potential to transform even fairly minor hazards into major disasters. The World Risk Report 2016 lists out Mauritius as the 13th country with the highest disaster risk and the 7th on the list of countries most exposed to natural hazards, he recalled.

Nothing can stop nature, said Mr Duval, adding that countries must be prepared and fully equipped and set up disaster response mechanisms, invest in good infrastructure and train personnel in hospitals, emergency units, and special forces.

Mauritius has placed disaster risk reduction as a priority, with the establishment of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Centre (NDRRMC).

Some key initiatives of the NDRRMC include the promulgation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act 2016 and the setting up of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. The comprehensive National Disaster Scheme 2015 enables stakeholders to better understand and assume their respective roles before, during and after disasters. With regard to Local Emergency Operations Command, each local authority has its own Disaster Risk Reduction Committee.

A National Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Emergency Alert System has been implemented to provide alert in a timely and reliable manner. Some 50 simulation exercises have been conducted since last year with a view to enhancing the preparedness of agencies and local communities against natural disasters.

Government Information Service, Prime Ministers Office, Level 6, New Government Centre, Port Louis, Mauritius. Email: gis@govmu.org Website:http://gis.govmu.org
Description

GIS - 28 November, 2016: The Ministry of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare, Mrs Aurore Perraud met with Ms Vasundhra Sachdeva, Managing Director of Centre of Excellence in Alternative Care for Children (New Delhi) and Research Scholar with the Institute of Technology and Management (ITM) University, Gurgaon, on 25 November 2016. The meeting was held at the office of the Minister.



The meeting focused on the findings of a research carried out by Ms Vasundhra Sachdeva on the Foster Care System in Mauritius. One of the objectives of the research is to determine ways and means to professionalise the actual Foster Care System.

This initiative will serve to professionalise the Foster care Service in order to cater for the urgent needs of these children and to enhance the services provided by Foster families, pointed out Mrs Perraud.

Highlighting the current situation in Mauritius, the minister expressed her concern for the 500 children placed in 21 shelters who have yet been to be welcomed in a Foster family.

Ms Sachdeva underlined that in the wake of several cases of child abuse, negligence and other forms of exploitation, it is imperative to cater for the protection of abused children. She reflected on the dire atrocities that children are subject to in India and underscored the need to boost such Programmes to better tackle this issue.

The Foster Care System aims at providing the opportunity to children, victims of abuse and neglect, to live in a substitute family on a temporary basis, to safeguard them from any hostile situation and help them grow physically, emotionally, socially and spiritually in an environment conducive for their growth.

Handing over of cheques to NGOs and Day Care Centres

After the meeting, cheques were handed over to ten Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), under the Special Collaborative Programme for Support to Women and Children in Distress. Through this initiative, Government aims at strengthening the capacity of NGOs so as to deliver quality services and come to the help of women and children in distress.

NGOs interested to take part in this cause were remitted cheques which will partly fund their projects aiming at providing support, assistance and social integration to vulnerable members of the population.

The minister also proceeded to the handing over of cheques for four Child Daycare Centres, under the One Off Grant Scheme, in a bid to empower the organisations in dispensing quality services.

Children should enjoy an excellent child growth in an appropriate social environment with a strong emotional support, thus preparing them to grow as good citizens, pointed out Mrs Perraud, while highlighting the necessity of providing a quality service to children.

This event follows the intensive campaigns of the Government to promote the importance of providing children with a good childhood development. A sum of approximately Rs480,933 was disbursed for this initiative.

Government Information Service, Prime Ministers Office, Level 6, New Government Centre, Port Louis, Mauritius. Email: gis@govmu.org Website: http://gis.govmu.org
Description

GIS  28 November, 2016: The 2016 edition of Infotech, a major annual event on the information and communication technology calendar of the National Computer Board, will kick-start on Thursday 1st December 2016 at the Swami Vivekananda International Convention Centre, in Pailles.

The four-day event, which is in its 23rd edition, has as objectives to create awareness on emerging technologies; bridge the digital divide; and provide a platform for local ICT operators to develop business opportunities with potential technology partners and customers.

Infotech 2016

Infotech 2016 will bring together 69 exhibitors who will showcase their technology and ICT products and services. It will also include a Delivery Zone. The 62 stands booked are expected to attract over 100,000 visitors. Entrance is free of charge.

Infotech 2016 will include the following components:

ICT Exhibition  (30 exhibitors)

Youth Forum under the theme Harnessing the Digital Evolution

Innovation Space (23 exhibitors)

ICT Job Fair (6 exhibitors)

3D and Robotics Induction Corner (10 exhibitors)

Open Source Space

Cyber Caravan

Gaming Zone

E-Government Services

Opening Hours

The Exhibition will be open to the public as follows:

Thursday 1 st December 2016: 10:00 to 19:00

Friday 2 nd December 2016: 10:00 to 19:00

Saturday 3 rd December 2016: 10:00 to 20:00

Sunday 4th December 2016: 10:00 to 19:00

Free bus shuttles will be available to the public from Victoria & Immigration stations (Port Louis) and Place Margeot (Rose Hill) during the four-day exhibition.
Description

GIS - 29 November, 2016: The Ministry of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare is organising a series of five regional capacity building programmes for female councillors of both Municipal and District Councils. The aim is to enable participants to articulate gender issues at the level of their respective Constituencies/regions, and ensure that womens strategic needs are taken into consideration while devising gender sensitive policies and programmes at the Municipal and/or Village Council levels. Over 300 women councillors are expected to benefit from the programme.

The first leg of the programme kicked off this morning at the Municipal Council of Port Louis for some 41 women municipal councillors in the presence of the Minister of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare, Mrs Marie-Aurore Perraud, and the Minister of Local Government, Dr Mohammad Anwar Husnoo. The other four sessions will be held as from January 2017, and will target some 273 village councillors of the District Councils.

In her address, Minister Perraud highlighted the crucial role that women councillors can play in their respective Councils. Research indicates that women-led councils are responsible for considerable gains at the local level, and deliver much-needed public services more effectively, whether on environment issues or education, by targeting public resources to benefit the community, she said.

The Minister however deplored that elected women councillors continue to show varying degrees of fragility and face important challenges. Among the challenges listed out by Mrs Perraud are lack of confidence and low self-esteem; marginalised roles where their opinions are not always valued; intimidation by male councillors; lack of knowledge on their roles and responsibilities; lack of skills in lobbying, networking and advocacy; lack of openness in political decision-making; inadequate knowledge on gender equality and women empowerment discourses; and inabilities to address prevailing gender inequalities within their respective Constituencies/regions.

Political empowerment is one of the key areas where Mauritius needs to make special efforts, said Mrs Perraud. She recalled that the last Global Gender Gap Report of the World Economic Forum shows that the country has slightly improved. In the Gender Gap Report 2016 of the World Economic Forum, Mauritius ranks 113 out of 144 countries, compared to last year where the country was at the 120th position. According to the Minister, the country has still a long way to go for women to be called fully politically empowered.

For his part, Minister Husnoo stated that womens political and socio-economic status improves when women become more involved in decision-making and policy development at all levels of Government. According to the Minister, groups made up of diverse individuals tend to make better informed decisions.

It is important that Councils have female councillors who not only reflect and represent the communities they serve, but also have a broad range of skills and life experiences, he pointed out.


Description

GIS  28 November, 2016: The first Government to Government contract agreement between Mauritius and South Korea for consultancy services for the design of the Jumbo/Phoenix/Dowlut roundabouts and the A1-M1 Link Road, connecting the motorway at Soreze to Coromandel Royal Road, was signed on 25 November 2016 between the Road Development Authority (RDA) and the Korea Expressway Corporation (KEC) in Port Louis.

On this occasion, the Minister of Public Infrastructure and Land Transport, Mr N. Bodha, announced that the cost for the two projects will amount to Rs 5 billion and that Mauritius will benefit from a discount of Rs 106 million on the consultancy services. He also stressed that KEC, with 45 years of experience and 6 000 staff, is behind the construction of 9 000 bridges and 853 tunnels around the world and of the worlds tallest building in Dubai.

The consultancy services of KEC were chosen solely for the design, engineering, project management, supervision and defect liability of the two projects for road decongestion, he added. The technical documents for the bids are expected to be ready by December 2016 and open international tenders will be launched in March 2017. Works on the two projects are expected to begin in May 2017 to ensure that these projects are operational within 24 to 30 months, the Minister underlined.

He further added that the Jumbo/Phoenix/Dowlut roundabouts and the A1-M1 Link road form part of the National Transport Network which is worth Rs 40 billion, and that the design of the two projects takes into account the layout of the metro express.

KEC's representative, Mr Jeong, recalled that the bilateral cooperation dates back to 2015, following Minister Bodha's visit to South Korea. He gave assurance that KEC will put its skills and experience to the service of Mauritius so that the road decongestion project, including the implementation of the Phoenix interchange and the Coromandel/Soreze Link Road, is a success.

The Projects

The first project is the Grade Separated Junction at Phoenix, Jumbo and Dowlut roundabouts. It consists of a viaduct along the M1 over the Phoenix roundabout with 2 lanes in each direction and viaduct over the Jumbo & Phoenix roundabout for the 2 northbound lanes. Additionally, the Dowlut roundabout will be replaced by a direct connector between Port Louis and Curepipe in order to ensure uninterrupted traffic flow.

The second project consists of a flyover over GRNW between Soreze and Coromandel, Soreze interchange and a Grade Separated and roundabout at Chebel. The flyover will enable motorists to directly access the motorway and the Ring Road. At Soreze, an interchange will be built to allow motorists to either go to Port Louis or Curepipe with the M1, or to the Ring Road to avoid Port Louis and go north. On the Chebel side of the A1-M1 Bridge, the road will be extended to Gros-Cailloux.
Description

 GIS  28 November 2016: The Southern African Development Community (SADC) Ministerial Meeting for Ministers Responsible for Disaster Risk Management was held on 26 November 2016 at the InterContinental Resort, Balaclava. The Government in collaboration with the SADC Secretariat hosted this strategic meeting to deliberate on the Draft SADC Disaster Preparedness and Response Strategy and Fund.

Present at the meeting, the Minister of Civil Service and Administrative Reforms and Minister of Environment, Sustainable Development, and Disaster and Beach Management, Mr Alain Wong, stated that we have all witnessed that frequent natural disasters and unprecedented climate change are becoming significant game changers in the SADC sub-region.

In fact, exposure to natural and climate-related disasters has increased faster than the decrease of vulnerability, he said, adding that against this backdrop, the hard-earned gains in the sub-region are increasingly being threatened, and it is always the poorest and most vulnerable who are being disproportionately affected.

According to him, to make things worse, SADC countries are not on the same level playing field as regards Disaster Risk Reduction and management. Most often, institutional and legal frameworks for national disaster management are weak, he said, underlining that the lack of information and knowledge management systems seriously hinder comprehensive risk assessments and analysis.

At times, disaster risk management is downright overlooked, under  funded and uncoordinated, thus generating new risks and a steady rise in disaster-related losses, Minister Wong said.

Moreover, he recalled that despite the gaps and challenges that hinder progress in achieving Disaster Risk Reduction, SADC countries are sparing no efforts in striving to mainstream in national policies and planning strategies. Mauritius, for example, has strengthened its national Disaster Risk Reduction institutional framework by setting up the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Centre in 2003, and reinforced the legal setup by promulgating the resultant Act earlier this year, he added.

In addition to outlining disaster response mechanisms and defining the roles and responsibilities of all Disaster Risk Reduction actors at central level, this piece of legislation also decentralises Disaster Risk Reduction, he said, adding that it empowers Local Authorities to undertake risk analysis and vulnerability assessment as well as to act in the event of disasters.

Minister Wong underlined that the SADC Secretariat has always been at the forefront in addressing issues of strategic priority to the sub-region and is among the Regional Economic Communities to translate the African Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy into action. Consequently, the adoption of the Draft SADC Disaster Preparedness and Response Strategy and Fund will be an integral part of global and regional efforts deployed to enhance resilience in line with the objectives of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, he underscored.

The SADC Disaster Preparedness and Response Strategy and Fund will be instrumental in strengthening preparedness and response for early recovery in the SADC region by 2030. The Strategy and Fund will be anchored in the culture of prevention, safety and resilience building.
(TNS) -- Sedalia, Mo., has been selected as a test market for a new first responders network, and local law enforcement and other members of the Sedalia first responders community learned about the opportunity Thursday evening.Representatives from Persistent Telecom, based in New Jersey, spoke with members of the Pettis County Sheriffs Office, Pettis County Commission, Sedalia Fire Department, Missouri State Highway Patrol, Sedalia City Council and Sedalia-Pettis County Emergency Management Agency at Hotel Bothwell to explain its Sustainable Communications Network (SCN).Persistent Telecom (PT) has decided to step out on its own to self-fund and build its own secure, private LTE network for first responders.Weve decided we wanted to take a different approach and build something that was much lower cost, Robin Gamble, of PT, said during the presentation. The problem with the cellphone networks is once they lose the Internet or once they lose power or once they lose fiber, they go down. So if we could build a cellphone network that was interconnected over satellite, it would not be vulnerable to any other catastrophes or terrorist attacks.Gamble told theafter Thursdays presentation that the company searched the country for affordable LTE spectrum licenses and found four, one being in Sedalia. Sedalia was selected because it is home to the Missouri State Fair.According to a timeline, the goal is to test and evaluate the network performance before and during the Missouri State Fair, then compile results to refine the SCN and start the test over again. The companys plan is to use Sedalia as a laboratory for testing the LTE network, then share the best practices it finds with communities around the country so they can replicate their own first responder network.According to information provided Thursday by PT, the SCN will use nanoSAT Call Processing, which is a mobile phone system created by PT that works over satellite backhaul and is impervious to network outages.Over the next year and a half what wed like to do is build out a private network, well invite anyone whos interested, well give you a smartphone, well give you a SIM card, itll only work on the private network, Gamble said. Itll work when nothing else works, and you can use it for whatever normal business that you do.Those in attendance voiced some concerns, such as how far the signal can reach. Gamble never gave a specific answer, but said that from the LTE tower PT installed last week on the roof of Hotel Bothwell, it can reach Bothwell Regional Health Center and the Missouri State Fairgrounds. Gamble was informed during the presentation by a MSHP representative that typically 200 troopers are in Sedalia for the Fair.Two hundred cars, 200 state troopers, I dont think we could support that many, but certainly we could support a growing number of them, Gamble said.Those in attendance also heard from a representative from Elbit Systems, which has created a First Responder Application for smartphones. The application allows calling and video calling, sharing multimedia, posting multimedia to a map during investigations, GPS tracking and other features tailored to first responders.Thursdays presentation was a request for support and participation by local first responders to help test the new SCN. Since local entities would be helping test the network and products, there would be no cost to join PTs initial effort and the smartphones and application would be provided for free. While some entities expressed some interest, no official agreements have been made.
(TNS) -- It might sound like a James Bond movie, but its happening in our homes: Devices with microphones and cameras are transmitting private images and conversations to the Web, and experts fear smartphones and watches could be used for spying, too.The problem of digital eavesdropping gained attention in June, when a photo suggested that Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Facebook, might have taped over the video camera and audio jack on his laptop. But the risk goes beyond corporate leaders. Devices ranging from webcams to childrens toys might be tapped for video or audio feeds. Last year, researchers said they could gain access to an Internet-connected Hello Barbie , which would allow them to listen to audio recorded by the doll at home.The universe of objects connected to the Internet, many of them with cameras and microphones, is swelling rapidly. That fact alarms security experts, who note the seeming ease with which attackers took over poorly protected devices like baby monitors and digital video recorders last month. In that case, the devices were used to send errant signals that knocked Twitter and other Internet companies offline. But given control over the devices, hackers could do much more.You have a lot of companies that were not previously engaged with these technology areas, that never dealt with digital security before that are now designing devices that need those protections, said Betsy Cooper, executive director of UC Berkeleys Center for Long-Term Cybersecurity. Those companies might not be as prepared as others.The number of Internet-connected devices with voice features shipped in the U.S. is expected to grow nearly 30 percent from 2016 to 2020, to more than 316 million, according to research firm IDC. In the past, some gadget buyers have dismissed the devices as too complex . But as Amazons Echo and Apple TV bring voice assistants like Alexa and Siri to living rooms, consumers have grown more comfortable with them.Yet regulation of the devices hasnt caught up with their proliferation . Its up to consumers to assess the security reputation of the companies selling the products. Few members of Congress are familiar with the complexities of cybersecurity, making it more challenging for them to write laws on the subject, said Vince Houghton, historian at the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C.There are a few basic ways that microphones can be accessed. Hackers could take over the device through an unsecured connection, like a Wi-Fi router, analysts said. Malware on computers or smartphones can allow an attacker to take control of the device, sometimes including its microphone or video camera.Experts warn that small vendors overseas may try to undercut larger competitors by skimping on security and testing. For example, low-cost webcams that sell for less than $150 often pose problems, said John Matherly, founder of Shodan , a site that lets people check to see if their video feeds are accessible online. His site shows that there are thousands of video feeds worldwide that dont need a log-in to view. Plenty of webcams still rely on default user names and passwords, making them targets for hackers, Matherly said.If strangers can access a webcams feed, they may be able to know when its owner is home. Audio files can be used for blackmail.Security has not been something that consumers care enough to spend more money on, Matherly said.The Internet-connected Hello Barbie doll, which speaks and listens to children, could be hacked to allow outsiders access to audio recordings, researchers with the San Francisco software company Bluebox Security found last year, according to CNET . San Franciscos PullString Inc., which makes the software behind the doll, pointed to a November 2015 blog post in which its co-founder wrote that we are actively engaging the security community to address any concerns. The blog post, published in response to other reports of security worries and shortly before Bluebox circulated its findings, said no audio of children had been accessed.As for smartphones and computers, its important to keep software updated in order to avoid malware. Since software can disable warning lights meant to show when a camera is active, taping over a camera is the only way to be certain images arent being transmitted. Microphones are harder to debilitate, but some people stuff the audio jack with a nonworking plug.A microphone can not only listen to a conversation, it can also provide clues to passwords. In 2015, researchers from Stevens Institute of Technology, Rutgers University and Florida State University ran an experiment in which they were able to determine the passwords a user was typing on a keyboard by listening in via a smartphone placed near the keyboard. In a crowded space like an airplane, a hacker could place his own phone next to a keyboard and capture the keystrokes that way.While there is already considerable awareness of privacy risks associated with microphones, this awareness usually extends only to spoken words and not necessarily to keystrokes, the study said.It recommended that microphone access on mobile devices should be tightly controlled.Yingying Chen, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at the Stevens Institute of Technology and an author of the study, said consumers ought to be informed of the risk of such snooping.Google updated its operating system in the fall of 2015 to ask users for permission to give apps access to their microphones rather than automatically allow the access, an approach that is similar to Apples mobile operating system.Some governments, including Australias, have strict rules for cell phone use at high-level meetings.It is standard practice, on both sides of politics, that no electronic transmitting devices be allowed in the Cabinet room for a range of reasons including security, according to a spokeswoman from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet in Australia.Officials in the United Kingdom have been told to leave their Apple Watches behind before Cabinet meetings because of concerns that the devices, which have microphones, could be hacked and used to eavesdrop on conversations, according to the Telegraph . (A different security concern for smartwatches, Chen and other researchers have pointed out, is that their sensors could be hacked to reveal the watch owners hand movements, which could be used, for example, when someone is entering a personal identification number at an ATM.)There are also worries about voice-activated devices listening to everyday conversations and sending the information to third parties. An attorney in New York raised that issue last year when he read the privacy policy on his Samsung TV. It said spoken words, including personal or other sensitive information, could be part of information captured and transmitted to a third party. California subsequently passed a law that would require smart-TV manufacturers to notify customers during set-up that the TV can listen in on their private conversations, and bars manufacturers from selling that information to third parties for advertising purposes.You have devices, once they are turned on and activated, that are capable of hovering over massive amounts of data and capturing lots of background conversations, said Assemblyman Mike Gatto, D-Los Angeles, who helped author the law. If that gets in the wrong hands, its not going to be a good thing.Amazon said the information collected on its Internet-connected home devices isnt used for advertising purposes, though it does track purchases made through its Echo speaker. Apple said the information Siri collects is anonymized, encrypted and not used for advertising either. Google said it does not serve ads on Google Home but it may use conversations with Google Home to make ads in other services more useful to the user.Despite the controversies, analysts dont believe that people will stop buying Internet-connected devices. Thats because the gadgets can make life more convenient.Houghton, the spy museum historian, lives in Washington, D.C., and says he has a webcam installed so he can keep an eye on his mother in Florida. Its possible that the device could be hacked and people could see what his mom is doing in her home, but it is a risk he is willing to take because that technology also allows him to check up on her and make sure shes OK.Its the give-and-take we have in this modern world, where technology is redefining what we consider security and privacy, he said.
The problem at Ferrari is a lack of good quality chiefs.

That is the view of Gerhard Berger, who said that compared to more competitive top teams Mercedes and Red Bull, Ferrari's management shortfalls are obvious.

"You only have to look at the management structure," the former Ferrari driver told Speed Week in Abu Dhabi.

"At Mercedes you have Toto Wolff, Niki Lauda, (Paddy) Lowe, (Andy) Cowell, (Aldo) Costa. Red Bull has (Christian) Horner, (Helmut) Marko, (Adrian) Newey and Didi Mateschitz in the background.

"Only those two teams have such personalities. In comparison, Ferrari is not at this level," Berger added.

However, Berger said Ferrari's issues do not necessarily mean that Vettel was wrong to jump from Red Bull to the great Maranello team after 2014.

"When Sebastian went to Ferrari, he probably knew that he would have to build a team around him," he said.

"In Michael Schumacher's time at Ferrari, he had a brilliant team around him, as Mercedes or Red Bull do now. You need top-class people all pulling together without fighting, and Seb has not succeeded in creating this yet," Berger added.

Vettel, however, ended his 2016 with a podium in Abu Dhabi, and he insists that Ferrari is making changes for the better -- behind the scenes.

"A lot has changed for the better in recent months at Ferrari," the German told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.

"Although I am not the team leader, I am fully convinced that the people with the highest responsibilities, who have been criticised very sharply - like our team boss Maurizio Arrivabene - do their jobs very well.

"However, I do admit that this positive internal process is difficult to see from the outside," Vettel added.

Finally, Vettel denied that his bad mood in recent races, including expletive-laden radio rants, shows that he is not enjoying the process of building up Ferrari.

But the quadruple world champion says he has simply had a change of public approach.

"I used to feel that I have to always behave well," Vettel explained. "But now I want to be authentic and show the way that I am."

(GMM)
The Co-Optima project team, which is leveraging the technical contributions of nine of DOEs 17 national laboratories, has grown to more than 130 researchers, according to Robert Wagner, Director of the Fuels, Engines, and Emissions Research Center at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), and a member of the Co-Optima leadership team, in a briefing at the lab earlier this month. In August 2016, DOE announced funding of up to $7 million further to support the initiative.

In October 2015, the US Department of Energys (DOE) launched a broad, joint effort to co-optimize the development of efficient engines and low greenhouse-gas fuels for on-road vehicles with the goal of reducing petroleum consumption by 30% by 2030 beyond what is already targeted. ( Earlier post .) The intended application is light-, medium-, and heavy-duty markets including hybrid architectures.

Co-Optimas premise is that current fuels constrain engine designand thus engine efficiency. The researchers suggest that there are engine architectures that can provide higher thermodynamic efficiencies than available from modern internal combustion engines; however, new fuels are required to maximize efficiency and operability across a wide speed/load range.

The Co-Optima researchers are working to discover:

What fuel properties maximize engine performance? How do engine parameters affect efficiency? What fuel and engine combinations are sustainable, affordable, and scalable?

In an informational webinar in September, John Farrell, Laboratory Program ManagerVehicle Technologies, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and part of the Co-Optima leadership team observed that:

Put most simply, the Co-Optima goal is to introduce better fuels and better vehicles sooner. Essential to this is the recognition that current fuels available in the marketplace constrain engine efficiency and limit the potential fuel economy and greenhouse gas improvements available across the light, medium, and heavy duty transportation fleet.

The introduction of new fuels and engines is a formidable task and requires close coordination with stakeholders to ensure that the most promising options are identified. The path to realizing the goal is to build on the strong legacy of fuels and engines work sponsored by the vehicle and bioenergy technologies offices over the past several decades.

The project has two parallel thrusts: a near-term thrust on spark ignition (SI), with a 2025 commercial target, and a long-term thrust on advanced compression ignition (ACI), with a 2030 commercial target.

Thrust 1 builds on the significant amount of work carried out over the past several decades, focused on building advanced boosted, downsized, and downspeeded spark ignition engines. The Co-Optima team is working to extend the knowledge base resulting from simulations with petroleum-derived fuels and ethanol to the broader range of fuels and fuel properties available from biomass resources.

Thrust 2s focus on advanced compression ignition engines includes not only advanced conventional compression ignition engines or diesel engine technologies, but also on the broad suite of technologies focused on kinetically controlled and low-temperature combustion approaches. These efforts basically take the high efficiency of the diesel engine and the low emission potential of the gasoline engine and try and find ways to capitalize on both efficiency and emissions potential.

While such technologies have demonstrated the potential for high efficiency and low emissions at the research labs, they are much less developed than the advanced spark ignition engine technologies and thus represent the higher risk and longer term approach being pursued in the Co-Optima effort, Farrell said. Further, noted Wagner, the two thrust may require very different fuel properties.



Co-Optima has very aggressive targets for market introduction. With a target 2025 introduction of Thrust 1 fuel and engine technologiesand recognizing that there is a lead time required to get the new fuels and engines into the marketplaceDOE is targeting having Thrust 1 R&D complete by 2019. With the 2016 start date, that gives the team three years to complete the R&D efforts in this area.

Thrust 2, at a much earlier stage of technology development, will take longer to reach market readiness. DOE is targeting R&D completion in that area sometime in the middle of the next decade.

To address the complexity of this broad technology space, Co-Optima is relying on the collaboration of six multi-disciplinary teams:

Low Greenhouse Gas Fuels. Low-GHG blendstock properties and pathway attributes

Modeling and Simulation Toolkit. Simulation of fuel and engine parameter impacts on efficiency and emissions.

Advanced Engine Development. Experimental assessment of impacts of engine parameters on efficiency and emissions.

Analysis of Sustainability, Scale, Economics, Risk, and Trade. Environmental impacts, cost, scalability, feed logistics.

Fuel Properties. Impact of fuel properties on engine performance.

Market Transformation. Infrastructure and legacy fleet compatibility.

THRUST 1

For Thrust 1, the researchers are focused on fuel propertiesnot a specific molecule, Wagner said.

The one thing we didnt want to do was to try to pick a molecule as a winner. Weve been accused of that; people still say we are, but were not. Were not going to say Ethanol. Ethanol is the answer. Maybe ethanol will meet the properties we come up with, maybe it wont. Its going to be more open than that. Lets say we do come up with properties, and there is some fuel we can make in mass quantity that meets those properties. Five years from now, ten years from now, we want there to be an opportunity for other fuels to come on line that also meet those properties. Robert Wagner

Put another way, the Thrust 1 approach seeks to understand not just what could we make but what should we make, said Dan Gaspar from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in the webinar. Thrust 1 began by casting a wide net, looking at biomass from all sources and the range of conversion processes, from fermentation and other biological approaches to thermochemical or catalytic approaches. Co-Optima is definitely not seeking to develop new conversion pathways, but is relying on what has already been done.

The team then focused on the types molecules that might be best fuels and came up with nine different molecular classes that are suitable for spark ignition blendstocks or fuels. These include traditional hydrocarbons such as paraffins or olefins, cycloalkanes, and aromatics. They also focused on a set of oxygenates, alcohols, furans, ketones, ethers, and esters suitable as fuels and have the potential to improve engine performance. The result was one the order of 400 potential blendstock candidates.

The researchers then used a tiered approach to prioritize candidates. This process includes consideration of a range of metrics spanning not only engine performance, but also environmental impacts, cost, scalability, infrastructure compatibility and so on.

From this fuel funnel, the researchers have currently identified 20 molecules or mixtures that will be evaluated as blends in the 1030% range using BOB (blendstock for oxygenate blending) as the basis.

To rank promising candidates, the researchers developed an engine performance fuel merit function, which continues to evolve, Wagner said. The merit function includes a large number of properties that are important for engine performance (such as octane number, heat of vaporization, flame speed, lower volume fraction, Heaviside function and particle mass index) coupled to a series of expected values.

Current Thrust 1 research areas include:

Clarifying the effects of HoV on knock mitigation

New insights into the meaning of RON and MON

Improving HoV measurements for mixtures

Investigating the impact of HoV on engine performance

Lean and EGR dilution tolerance

Fuel impacts on particulate emissions

Fuel impacts on catalyst light-off temperatures

Fuel impacts on low speed pre-ignition

Findings from these investigations will feedback to help calibrate the merit function.

THRUST 2

Thrust 2, which includes both gasoline-like and diesel like fuels, examines the compatibility of Thrust I fuels with Thrust 2 engine technologies and seeks to accelerate Thrust 2 technology development. Broadly, the effort seeks to discover the important fuel properties or performance metrics and how to measure or compute those metrics.

Researchers are working to identify new, or combined, metrics for autoignition that are not capture in the conventional RON, MON, CN metrics. The researchers are also seeking to clarify which fuel properties dominate specific performance measures, such as particulate formation. From an engineering perspective, this means determining how fuel properties and engine design/operating parameters interact, and how those interactions can be leveraged to optimize efficiency.

Thrust 2, said Wagner, is facing a decision point in March 2017.

So far, we have been very focused on Thrust 1. When we hit the decision point, we want to look at how we are doing on Thrust 1, what do we need to do going forward, and that will help dictate if we shift our focus more strongly to Thrust 2. Part of that will be coming up with a more defined Thrust 2 strategy.  Robert Wagner

The field of advanced compression ignition combustion represents a very broad spectrum of technologies. As a general rule, ACI offers high efficiency and reduced particulate and NO x emissions, but is often unstable and is hampered by a limited speed/load range. High combustion noise and high HC and CO emissions are also a problem, with lower exhaust temperatures representing a challenge for current emissions controls.

Controllability is dominated by in-cylinder reactivity stratification. More reactivity stratification is better for stability. Reactivity (or ignition delay) is a function of the local equivalence ratio, local temperature, and fuel properties. High dilution may also lead to controllability challenges.

Criteria pollutants are dominated by equivalence ratio stratification and fuel chemistry. A lower equivalence ratio and/or high dilution reduces NO x and PM emissions but may result in an increase in unburned HC emissions. The fuel chemistry also impacts on emissions. For example, NO x emissions from aromatics and olefins are greater than those from paraffins due to higher adiabatic flame temperatures. PM emissions from aromatics are greater than those from naphthenes which are greater than those from paraffins. The fuel reactivity resulting in HC emissions depends on the chemical composition of the fuel.

There are four Thrust 2 combustion mode strategies currently under investigation:

Leaner lifted flame combustion (LLFC). LLFC is mixing-controlled combustion that does not form soot because it occurs at equivalence ratios < 2. LLFC delivers high efficiency, good controllability and low noise, is fuel-flexible, and EGR-tolerant for NO x control. However, LLFC has yet to be sustained in an engine at moderate loads using a practical injector-tip configuration and fuel. The current approach for high-load operation included diced fuel injection (DFI): injecting fuel down a tube co-axial with the fuel jet. The Co-Optima researchers are looking into fuel properties that might help enable LLFC.

Reactivity Controlled Compression Ignition (RCCI). The RCCI process uses in-cylinder fuel blending with at least two fuels of different reactivity and multiple injections to control in-cylinder fuel reactivity to optimize combustion phasing, duration and magnitude. (Earlier post.) The process involves introduction of a low reactivity fuel into the cylinder to create a well-mixed charge of low reactivity fuel, air and recirculated exhaust gases. Co-Optima is investigating fuels that would extend the load-range band supported by RCCI and also investigating the impact of fuels on phasing control.

Gasoline Compression Ignition (GCI). Gasoline compression ignition ignites gasoline purely by compression, as with a diesel, rather by using a spark. It is a high-efficiency, low-temperature combustion mode that offers low engine-out NO x and soot. (Earlier post.) GCI, however, is challenged by stable idle- to low-load operation (i.e., 02 bar BMEP) because it is challenging to ignite the low-reactivity gasoline purely through compression. Co-Optima is focusing on challenges impact load-load operation, as well as fundamentals.

Low Temperature Gasoline Combustion (LTGC). LTGC is based on the compression ignition of a premixed or partially premixed dilute charge; it can provide thermal efficiencies and maximum loads comparable to those of turbo-charged diesel engines, and ultra-low NO x and particulate emissions. Intake boosting is key to achieving high loads with dilute combustion, and it also enhances the fuels autoignition reactivity, reducing the required intake heating or hot residuals. However, at high boost the autoignition reactivity enhancement can become excessive, and substantial amounts of EGR are required to prevent overly advanced combustion.

There are multiple possible Thrust 2 paths forward: Thrust 2 fuel the same as Thrust 1; a Thrust 2-specific fuel; or an advanced diesel-specific fuel. What the program has not done to this point is add blended power or extended-range architectures (i.e., various forms of hybrid architectures, including engines optimized for range-extension, earlier post), Wagner said.

I think we need to add that into the mix, although we have not had enough conversations with industry around it. We have certainly thrown it out there as something to discuss. Robert Wagner

A second Co-Optima Listening Day (the first was earlier this year) is targeted for 1920 January at Sandia Labs in California; the goal is to solicit stakeholder input on program goals and progress.
Two years after states around the country passed an unprecedented number of police reforms after the killing of George Floyd, some are struggling to make the new policies stick. The momentum for change has slowed from its earlier frenetic pace. Some of the reforms have been rolled back or at least tweaked after police complained that the new policies were hindering their ability to catch criminals. Legal experts say police killings of Black people over the last decade  epitomized by Floyds killing  have altered the trajectory of policing. But change has come about unevenly in thousands of police departments across the U.S.
Flowers and notes are placed by residents in front of the Cuban Embassy after the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Nov. 26, 2016. Aged 90, Castro passed away late Friday night. (Xinhua/Martin Zabala)

Fidel Castro is dead. In his own words he was never afraid of death. That helped him to survive at least 638 attempts on his life. He was one of the most hunted people with no closed season for his enemies looking for his head. But they failed; Fidel won.

He defied the most powerful country just 90 miles away. The CIA, notorious for plotting overthrows, could not reach the Cuban man. He ruled for 49 years - a sort of record for a non-royal - after building a communist state through a successful revolution in 1959.

Famous for oratory and puffing Cuban cigars, which were banned in the U.S., he lived an unusually long life, saying good-bye at 90. The death was announced by Rahul Castro on state television. The mortal remains would be cremated and the ashes buried. But his political struggle and life will never be forgotten. Rather, his ideals and struggle will inspire new discussions.

He had said that history would "absolve" him, meaning that he would be remembered in good words. History is cruel because it always tells the truth. So, it is too early to say if history will absolve Fidel. Men like him are not easy to be adjudged. May be after a couple of decades, it would be possible to see his actions in its true light. But no doubt, he is already an icon. The history of Latin America would never be complete without him.

If one word can define Fidel Castro, it is "defiance." He was a symbol of resistance, who against heavy odds fought to overthrow an absolute ruler. Surviving despite opposition by the United States, which used every third rated method to remove him. But Fidel defied the American power and hegemony.

He embraced communism and built a system based on a Marxist-Leninist model where poor people could have free access to health and education. There was no going back on evolutionary ideas. Even after countries like Yugoslavia, USSR and the entire Eastern Block disintegrated and renounced communism, he stood his ground.

Years earlier, when China introduced market reforms and started a journey to build a powerful economy, the Cuban leader was not impressed and stuck to his own way of government and economic system.

It is clear that he could not succeed the way he would have liked. The chief reason was the mighty next door neighbor. His government was constantly threatened by the U.S. The confrontation sapped a lot of energy and consumed a lot of time and resources. Finally, it was the U.S. that blinked when Barack Obama decided to undo the flawed politics of the Cold War and established diplomatic ties with Havana.

It is not easy to sum up the legacy of Fidel Castro. Putting trust in your own powers and making sustained efforts to reach the desired goal is just one way to define the powerful legacy of the man who is still revered and hated with nearly equal amounts of passions. It was visible after his death, when people on the street of Cuba were crying and those living in Miami in exile were celebrating.

He was a true champion of the poor workers, peasants and those not blessed with material resources. His emphasis on free health and education helped millions who could never dream of quality healthcare or to send their kids to schools. His reforms in the two sectors will be long remembered.

Fidel was also the voice of the Third World - the unfortunate symbol of poverty and backwardness. He would never miss an opportunity to highlight the issues faced by Third World countries. The poor in Cuba and elsewhere have lost the most ardent living supporter for their rights.

He did not have success on the economic front. But he cannot be entirely blamed for it. The particular global economic order clashed with his ideals and since he was not ready to forgo his principles, he and the Cuba had to pay a heavy economic price.

Of course, treatment of dissidents and political opponents is a question mark. But it is difficult to say how much of the opposition was genuine or sponsored. The fact that he survived coups and life attempts while always freely roaming around and meeting the people proves his solid support base and that people liked him.

And don't forget his speeches delivered in revolutionary zeal, which are history now. Some of them might last for up to seven hours. He also holds the record for the longest speech at the UN: a four-hour and 29-minute address in 1960 got him in the Guinness Book of Records.

Sajjad Malik is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/SajjadMalik.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
As temperatures plummet, many residents will soon be looking to hit an ice rink this month as a season tradition. Here's a look at where you can get your skate on in southwestern Connecticut.
Contribued / Contributed

The Bridgeport Rotary donated $1,000 earlier this month to the Milford-based St. Mary Twinning Committee Birthing Kit Project. The kits contain products that help make the birthing process safer and more comfortable for mothers and their newborns in Maribal, a poor, isolated village in a mountainous region of southern Haiti.

On hand to receive the donation were Dr. Richard Garvey, senior attending surgeon at Bridgeport Hospital and medical director of the St. Mary Twinning Committee medical mission to Maribal, Haiti; his wife, Eleanor Garvey, former president of the Bridgeport Hospital Auxiliary and current director of the Birthing Kit Project; and Robert Vossler, chairman of the Bridgeport Rotary International Program.
On November 5-6, the 16+1 group of China and 16 Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries held its fifth Premiers Summit, hosted this time by Latvia in its capital Riga. Hence, the occasion might serve as an opportunity to start a discussion of what has been achieved and where additional effort should be put to get more positive results in future.

Since its establishment in 2012, China-CEE cooperation has been steadily strengthening. It has evolved into a platform for bilateral and multilateral forums involving regular high level meetings of premiers and ministers, work sessions between officials, dynamic interactions between businesspeople, and numerous other people-to-people exchanges. The CEE countries have reached their highest level of interaction with China in history.

The development of China-CEE relations has been applauded by many politicians and observers. The CEE countries and China did not have many opportunities to become familiar with each other in their earlier history. The platform and its related activities have put the spotlight on partners from both sides, helping everyone to learn more about each other and foster partnerships. The political interactions have become so rich that they surpass perhaps any other external framework for the CEE countries; of course with the exception of the EU (of the CEE countries, 11 are members of the EU, and the rest are on the path toward membership in the future).

At the same time, economic ties have a lot of room to improve. In 2012, then Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao stated that bilateral China-CEE trade should reach US$100 billion by 2015. According to UNCTAD data, trade for 2015 was roughly US$80 billion, leaving plenty of space for growth, especially when it comes to promoting CEE exports to China.

Other views of the trade statistics re-emphasize this message. The CEE share in overall Chinese imports have been stagnant since 2012, although it had been consistently increasing in the decade prior to that year. At the same time, trade between China and Western Europe increased rapidly. Again, this shows that there is a huge potential to boost China-CEE trade.

The same is true with foreign direct investment. According to Chinese government statistics, in 2012 China had about US$1.3 billion of investment stock in CEE, while in 2015 it had about US$2 billion. Measuring investment flows and capital stocks is extremely difficult and various statistical sources show different numbers depending on their methodology. According to German think-tank Merics and the US consultancy Rhodium Group, there is about 4 billion euros (US$4.25 billion) of Chinese FDI in CEE. American Enterprise Institute shows more than US$20 billion of Chinese capital deals in CEE. However, compared to all Chinese investments abroad, Chinese investments in CEE have a strong potential to grow.

Here are some proposals to boost two-way trade and investment.

First, there have been a number of measures in place to facilitate CEE exports to China but perhaps more new initiatives can be explored. Possibly, the newly formed China-CEE Financial Holding, which was announced as one of the major outcomes of the recent Riga Summit, will direct its activities in this direction.

Second, Chinese investment activity in the region has focused on acquisitions and infrastructure building. However, for most CEE countries, it is greenfield investment that is more desirable and where their greatest competitiveness lies. Again, the China-CEE Financial Holding might be put into service here.

Third, attention should be paid to more standardized and up-to-date informing of media, researchers and professionals about the activities organized as part of the platform, as well as their results. The Latvian organizers spread the word relatively well about the Riga Summit and its outcomes, and the official website of the platform (www.china-ceec.org) saw timely updates. These are certainly positive signs and the continuation of these efforts would be welcomed.

Eventually, and more generally, both sides should adopt long-term plans and realistic views. Five years of China-CEE cooperation do not require final results to be achieved in one step, but they do ask members to make small steps in the right direction. The platform has been able to do that, and it is the hope of many observers in Europe and China that it will continue doing so.

Richard Q. Turcsanyi is visiting scholar at Fudan Development Institute, deputy director at Institute of Asian Studies, Bratislava, and assistant professor at Mendel University in Brno, Czech Republic.
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If there are natural born leaders and revolutionaries then Fidel Castro stands alongside them in the front rank. His role in shaping the modern world is greater than any of his contemporaries. Millions of people throughout the world will share a profound sense of mourning upon hearing of his death.

Cuba has performed incredible feats of endurance since the collapse of the Soviet Union, which was its main trading partner until 1991. The demise of the Soviet Union produced an economic catastrophe for Cuba, and Cuba's survival would have been impossible if the people did not support their government and leader. It was the election of Hugo Chavez as the president of Venezuela in 1998 that rekindled the socialist and internationalist dreams of the Cuban revolution. And Venezuela provides vital economic support to Cuba in exchange for assistance from Cuban doctors, who provide free healthcare to the people. However, the death of Chavez in 2013 was a huge blow to Cuba. And Venezuela's economic crisis has hit Cuba hard. Now China is Cuba's biggest trading partner and can provide essential support to Cuba in the face of new threats under Donald Trump's presidency.

Indeed, there were jubilant scenes of dancing and cheering in Miami - the homeland of reactionary anti-communist Cubans-in-exile. Many of them support Donald Trump, who did not bother to send his condolences to the Cuban people. Rather, he denounced Castro as "a brutal dictator" and described Cuba as "a totalitarian island." Trump declared: "It is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve." Despite Trump's supposed non-interventionist rhetoric, the United States will still intervene to manipulate politics and economics around the world. The powerful and wealthy groups that dominate the USA will continue to defend their international interests by any means deemed necessary.

When Castro nationalized its companies in 1960 the U.S. government imposed its ongoing economic blockade. This stifled the potential of the Cuban economy, which was forced to turn to the Soviet Union for help until it collapsed in 1991. Cuba foiled hundreds of attempts on Castro's life organized by the US state. They defeated a U.S.-backed invasion, and faced down all manner of terrorist attacks and sabotage orchestrated in Washington.

This is largely explained by the tenacity, energy and determination of Fidel Castro. His ability to win and sustain the support of his people was rooted in their collective purpose - to build a new and better society.

Castro began his political activity as a law student fighting for genuine national independence and social justice. But like his Argentinian friend and comrade-in-arms Che Guevara, Castro's vision extended to the whole of the Caribbean, South America and beyond. They both believed in a unified South American continent. However, precisely because they confronted the U.S., the defense of their own revolution led them to seek support from all over the world. They carried out acts of international solidarity offering skills, talent and resources to back revolutions in Africa, South America and elsewhere. Indeed, when a wave of global unrest engulfed much of the world in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Cuba was regarded as the ally of oppressed people everywhere. Castro was even hailed in the USA, particularly by the black community in New York's Harlem district.

The Greek philosopher Archimedes said that with a firm place to stand on he could move the universe. If Cuba is that place, then it is Fidel Castro who took the role of Archimedes in our time.

Heiko Khoo is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/heikokhoo.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.




Haiti - Security : Promises to fight against insecurity and criminality





Camille Edouard Jr., the Minister of Justice and Public Security, once again promises to crack down on the resurgence of insecurity and criminality in Haiti.



He condemned the vicious crimes committed in recent days, notably against former Prime Minister Yvon Neptune https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-19351-haiti-flash-former-prime-minister-neptune-attacked-shot-and-wounded.html and affirms that "preventive and coercive measures will be taken to curb any form of recrudescence of insecurity and criminality in the country."



The Minister of Justice "promises to tackle criminality", while informing the population of the installation of a security and prevention device subject to important measures in the security of the population. Stressing "agents of the National Police of Haiti carry out an identity check around certain roads in the capital Port-au-Prince."



Camille Edouard Jr, calls the population to the utmost vigilance, strictly adhering to the safety instructions issued by the authorities concerned...



HL/ HaitiLibre


















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File photo of a Chinese passport [Photo: baidu.com]

The Philippine government is studying the possibility of a visa waiver for Chinese tourists to boost travel between the two countries, an official with the Philippine Department of Tourism said.

The official said China has a huge number of outbound tourists; however, the Philippines' visa policy is one of the inconveniences faced by Chinese tourists when they plan for visits.

Last year, Chinese arrivals in the Philippines reached some 491,000. The number was only a small proportion of the total 120 million outbound trips made by Chinese people last year.

Currently, around 50 countries enjoy visa-free policies with the Philippines.

If Chinese tourists are granted visa waivers, the Philippines could capture a bigger chunk of outbound Chinese tourists to boost the country's tourist sector.

The Philippine Department of Tourism earlier set a goal of increasing Chinese arrivals to one million in 2017, which more than doubles 2015's figure.
 Flash

The number of Chinese travelling abroad and their spending is increasing every year. In 2015 alone, more than 117 million Chinese tourists went overseas, a 9 percent rise, and total spending surged to more than $104 billion, a 16 percent increase.

Given the sheer scale of the market, more countries are easing their visa policies to lure more Chinese tourists. Let's take a look at eight countries that have issued or are about to issue the 10-year multiple-entry visa for Chinese travelers.

1. Australia

Staring from this December, Chinese tourists will be able to apply for a 10-year multiple entry visa. The visa will allow the holder to stay in the country for 90 days each time. This is the first time that the Australian government is issuing such kind of visa, and it's limited to Chinese citizens at the moment.

In 2015, more than a million Chinese visited Australia, with tourists spending $6,000 per visit.

2. Thailand

On Nov 22, 2016, the Thailand government agreed to grant long-stay visa for senior tourists. Travelers over the age of 50 could apply for a 10-year visa. But reportedly the applicants must have a minimum monthly salary of $2,777, or a minimum deposit of $83,333 in their bank account for at least one year.

Thailand saw most Chinese visa applications in the first half of the year, according to Ctrip, a leading online travel agency in China.

3. United States

During the APEC Summit in Beijing on Nov 2014, the U.S. and Chinese government agreed to issue multi-entry business and tourist visas to each other that would be valid for up to 10 years. The 10-year multiple entry visa policy is applicable to businessmen and short-term tourists. Meanwhile, students and cultural exchange visas lasts for five years.

The 10-year U.S. visa holders can also enjoy visa-free benefit when entring Agentina, Cuba, Turkey among others.

4. Canada

From March 9, 2015, Canada and China have started issue 10-year multi-entry visa to each other for business, tourism and family visits.

5. Singapore

From June 2015, Singapore started issuing 10-year visas to Chinese business personnel who regularly visit the country, while the visa procedures and fees remain unchanged. At the same time. spouse and children (under the age of 21) of the 10-year visa holders will be granted the same visa.

6. Japan

From Oct 17, 2016, Japan extended its five-year multi-entry visa to 10 years, particularly for Chinese businessmen, academics and artists. Visa requirements for certain applicants will also be lowered.

7. South Korea

South Korea, for the first time, began issuing 10-year multiple entry visas to Chinese tourists from January 28. Those working in specialized fields, such as law, or those who are professors or hold a master's degree or above can apply for the visa.

Meanwhile, application requirements for multiple entry visas have also been relaxed, with the age restriction starting from 55. Previously the restriction was set at 60 or above.

8. Israel

China and Israel reached a deal to issue each other the 10-year multiple-entry visas in late March of 2016. Last year, 47,000 Chinese visited Israel, and the number is expected to grow thanks to the new visa policy.
The 14 Most Maxed-Out Metros for Housing Debt

by John Egan, LawnStarter.com, November 21, 2016

Living in paradise comes at a hefty price.

In the Honolulu, HI, metro area, the median sale price of an existing single-family home was $745,300 in the third quarter of 2016, according to the National Association Realtors. Behind the San Jose, CA, and San Francisco, CA, metro areas, Honolulu was the third most expensive home market in the U.S. during that period. By comparison, the national median sale price in the third quarter was $249,000, the association says.

Not surprisingly, Hawaii has the third highest average mortgage debt in the U.S.  $262,825  according to figures reported by Bankrate.com. That figure puts Hawaii behind only two other places: the District of Columbia and California. Hawaiis mortgage debt is 60 percent higher than the national average.

Maxed Out in Honolulu

The high cost of housing in Honolulu helps explain why its the most maxed-out metro for housing debt among the 100 most populous metro areas.

A LawnStarter analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data shows nearly 23 percent of mortgaged owner-occupied homes in the Honolulu metro area had a second mortgage or a home equity loan in 2015. Thats the highest percentage among the top 100 metros. The Census Bureau data was released in 2016.

In and of themselves, second mortgages and home equity loans (another type of second mortgage) arent evil. But they do carry financial risks.

By taking out a second mortgage, you are adding to your overall debt burden. Anytime you add on to your overall debt burden, you make yourself more vulnerable in case you then experience financial difficulties that affect your ability to repay your debts, the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says. It is important to know that a major risk with home equity loans or home equity lines of credit is that if you cannot repay a home equity loan or home equity line of credit, you could potentially lose your home because you are using the equity in your home as collateral.

The 80-15-5 Formula

Cathy Lee, 2016 president of the Hawaii Association of Mortgage Brokers, says most home buyers in the Honolulu area dont have enough money for a 20 percent down payment, which would enable them to avoid paying private mortgage insurance (PMI). To work around that, she says, most Honolulu home buyers use whats known as the 80-15-5 formula  85 percent for a first mortgage, 15 percent for a second mortgage and 5 percent for a down payment. This way, the need for PMI can be skirted.

The embrace of this so-called piggyback loan method underscores the hurdles faced by home buyers in Honolulu.

We must build homes that Hawaiis working families can afford  not luxury condominiums for out-of-state speculators, Hawaii Gov. David Ige said when he was running for the post in 2014.

Of course, some homeowners in the Honolulu area do take out second mortgages to pay off debt, undertake home improvements or cover college expenses, Lee says, rather than just to avoid PMI.

Cost-of-Living Concerns

Lee notes that most homeowners in the Honolulu area hold down more than one job to make ends meet, as residents of the area pay much more for housing, food, clothing and other essentials than their mainland counterparts do. Honolulus cost of living is the fourth highest among major North American cities, according to cost-of-living data from Expatistan.

Cost of living is hard to fix. Hawaii is the most isolated community on the planet, and everything costs more, Ige told the Hawaii Economic Association in 2015.

With Honolulu claiming the top spot, heres our ranking of the 14 Most Maxed-Out Metros for Housing Debt.

#1 Honolulu:

Owner-occupied homes with mortgage: 112,055

Mortgaged owner-occupied homes with second mortgage or home equity loan: 25,668

Percentage of mortgaged owner-occupied homes with second mortgage or home equity loan: 22.91%

read  Maxed Out
Do penalty rates attract people to work on weekends or holidays or are they just relics in todays modern gig economy?



This question has been examined since the end of 2014 through the Fair Work Commissions four-yearly review of modern awards  the final decision of which could have very real impacts on employers and employees in retail and hospitality.



However, employers are playing a waiting game: in September the FWC unexpectedly delayed its decision on whether to cut Sunday penalty rates until at least December.



Tribunal president Iain Ross called for further evidence from employers pushing for penalty rate cuts.



The Australian reported in September that Commission members are believed to be sympathetic to employer arguments that penalty rate cuts are justified because of societal changes and, to a lesser extent, a positive employment impact associated with reducing penalties.



Although the ultimate outcome is still hard to predict, Ray Markey, professor of employment relations in Macquarie Universitys Department of Marketing and Management and director of the universitys Centre for Workforce Futures, said the review itself is not drawing on enough empirical data; rather it has relied too heavily on economic theory and modelling.



Professor Markey, who was part of the review process on the impending decision, has undertaken considerable research into the effects of altering penalty rates, particularly in the hospitality and retail sectors.



While employers  and to some extent the Productivity Commission  have said that changing rates will have an impact on employment, empirical evidence of this has yet to be presented, said Markey.



Additionally, he added that surveys done by employer associations of their members have been biased. These are members that are actually trying to reduce rates. They know thats the argument, so of course its not a good survey technique.



A second form of evidence, presented by economists, is an extrapolation from economic theory.



This, Markey said, predicts that if you reduce the price of labour, there will be increased employment. But theres actually no empirical data which shows that and thats part of the problem.



The only data available on the impact of employee entitlements on employment is the minimum wage, and this has been argued for some time. However, the evidence is sketchy at best.



In some cases, employers may substitute older workers for younger workers, but even thats contested. Its not clear cut, so theres no empirical data about employment.



If Sunday penalty rates are aligned to Saturdays, one possible impact for employers could be an increased difficulty in finding staff to work on Sundays, Markey said.



This prediction is hinted at in the Australian Work and Life Index (AWALI) survey.



There could likely be a supply problem if penalty rates are reduced on Sundays. The vast majority of people who work those days dont do it for any reason other than the money.



The AWALI survey found that 17% of those who worked on Sundays did so for the flexibility this offers, while 83% did so because of the higher rates, Markey said.



These results are in stark contrast to a recent survey of fast-food workers about their employment preferences by the Australian Industry Group (Ai Group), which found that there was no preference by employees to work Saturdays or Sundays.



According to Ai Group survey, the most common reason given for employees wanting to work Saturday rather than Sunday was because they wanted to spend time with their family on Sundays.



While employees aged 15 years and under said their preference for working Sunday was due to sporting commitments on Saturdays, those aged 16-24 years said their preference was based more on friends being available to socialise on Saturday.




erts call it the sophomore slump, the workplace phenomenon where an employee suffers a drop in motivation and productivity in their second year at work.As a new hire, they may have been bright, eager to learn, and ready to take on challenges but come the second year and theres a sudden dip in their output.Realistically, we cant go 100 mph every day of the year. At some point we all have a temporary slowdown, but it should be just that  temporary, wrote Tom Gimbel, founder and CEO of recruitment and staffing firm, LaSalle Network, at The Wall Street Journal.Gimbel said there are six ways employers can help employees get over the sophomore slump.Some employees dont see that theyre in a slump, he said, so the best thing you can do is make them aware of it. Dont be afraid to have that tough conversation, he added.Talk to him or her about it and share specific examples, whether its about the employee contributing less during team meetings or not showing excitement when put on a career-building large project.Change things up a bit and add variety to their workday, he said. Something as simple as changing where they sit or having them work on different projects with different team members can help re-energise unproductive employees.If nothing is changed about employees responsibilities, you cant expect them to get better, he said.Help your employees connect with others that might help them gain a different perspective about their job. This could be anything from a formal mentorship program or a simple sit-down lunch with more experienced employees that have gone through what they are experiencing.For anyone who is in a rut, its encouraging to hear the rebound stories of others who have come out of it and became top performers, said Gimbel.When you have that tough conversation with the employee, end with creating a plan that outline a step-by-step process on ways that can help them improve. For example, you can outline workshops they can attend, books they can read, or people they can talk to.But Gimbel said it is most important that you do the planning with the employee not for them, so the employee can offer input and ultimately be more invested and willing to execute it.Hold the employee accountable for each step and meet regularly to discuss their progress, he said.If an employee was used to being praised for his or her work during their first year, the sudden loss of recognition might also be a cause of their slump. Help them regain their confidence and motivation by praising them for even small victories, he said.Sometimes going back to what once worked can fix the problem. If there was a process that the employee steered away from over the year that used to produce results, go back to it, said Gimbel.
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The Syrian army successfully recaptured on Sunday the neighborhood of Sakhour in the rebel-held part east of Aleppo city in northern Syria, a military source told Xinhua.

This is considered the latest in a series of victories military forces have achieved recently in that part of the country, stated the source.

Military forces and allied fighters have regained control over the neighborhood of Sakhour and the Jabal Badro district, after capturing the largest rebel-held neighborhood of Masaken Hanano the day before, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

With Sakhour under control, the Syrian army and allies have effectively divided the rebel-held areas in eastern Aleppo, as the neighborhood lies between the northern and southern parts of eastern Aleppo.

The source said that the Syrian army's rapid advance left rebels in a state of confusion, adding that the Syrian forces and allied fighters are currently advancing into the neighborhood of Babdien and the outskirts of the area of Haidariyeh in eastern Aleppo.

Meanwhile, the pan-Arab al-Mayadeen news agency said that Syrian warplanes were targeting rebels who fled Sakhour.

A security source in the joint operation room of the Syrian army and its allies in Aleppo said in a statement sent to Xinhua on Sunday that military operations in eastern Aleppo aim to set free the civilians "who have been taken hostage by the rebels."

"As we have previously promised, it's only a matter of short time before all civilians in Aleppo will be set free from the terrorists," the statement said.

The statement added that "we have stressed recently that we will liberate all of Aleppo and everyone can witness the victories of the Syrian army and its allies."

Furthermore, the statement stressed that there is still time to reach a settlement in eastern Aleppo in order to secure evacuation for those wishing to leave, thus saving the city from bloodshed and sparing civilians further agony.

"Our determination to fight the terrorists has increased whatever the sacrifices and the blood of the martyrs of the Syrian army will not go in vain and the victory will be the big prize for every Syrian," the statement said.

It further stressed that "whoever thinks, even for a minute, that the Syrian army and its allies would back down, would be delusional and we will not leave over 200,000 civilians hostages in the hands of the terrorists. This is the final, irreversible decision."

For months, the Syrian government and Russia have been urging rebels to leave Aleppo, offering them safe passages to other rebel-held areas in the northwestern province of Idlib.

However, the rebels turned down all offers, which led to intensified violence.
(The Business Insider) King Street Capital, a $19 billion hedge fund focused on the credit markets, is planning to launch its own collateralized loan obligation

To read this article:
(Bloomberg) Three former Barclays Plc traders sent to prison for Libor manipulation were denied permission to appeal their convictions by a U.K. judge, narrowing the possibility that their guilty verdicts will be overturned. Requests for an appeal by Jonathan Mathew, Alex Pabon and Jay Merchant were all turned down by a London judge earlier this month

To read this article:
Some 200 municipalities have decided to receive asylum seekers. I'm proud of all Centre Party councillors who have carried their responsibility for tackling the crisis, he said.

Prime Minister Juha Sipila (Centre) has, in a speech delivered to his party comrades, expressed his gratitude to the hundreds of municipalities and municipal decision-makers across the country that have borne their share of responsibility for the refugee crisis by welcoming asylum seekers to their communities.

You are the real everyday heroes, even though the climate has not always been the most encouraging. Only by bearing responsibility can we reach conclusions that are socially sustainable and promote cohesion, reminded Sipila.

The Centre's party council convened last weekend in Tornio, a roughly 22,000-resident municipality located on the northern border between Finland and Sweden. Tornio was one of the most affected municipalities by last autumn's influx of asylum seekers, with the number of daily arrivals peaking at roughly 500 and averaging at over 150 in the final quarter of last year.

We've now moved to a new stage in terms of the asylum situation, said Sipila. In addition to processing applications and enforcing returns, we must pay particular attention to those who were granted asylum. These new Finns will need assistance and support but, above all, a community to become a part of. The key to successful integration lies in the local level, ultimately in the hands of each and every one of us.

Sipila also suggested the willingness to receive and welcome asylum seekers is a reflection of one's fundamental values and commitments.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Photo: Timo Heikkala  Lehtikuva

Source: Uusi Suomi
A garda outside the flat where Simone Lee was brutally attacked

Gardai believe acid may have been poured over a Limerick woman who was burned, stabbed and beaten in a savage attack in her own home.

The 37-year-old was naked from the waist up when she was discovered on the floor of her flat by gardai early yesterday morning.

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She was semi-conscious and "massively hyperthermic".

Simone Lee, of Hassetts Villas, Thomondgate, had burn marks on her face, neck and torso.

It is understood that Ms Lee had also been stabbed in the back and a had severe cut to the forehead.

Blood

Gardai were alerted to the attack at 12.40am when a passer-by saw shattered glass on the ground outside Ms Lee's flat.

"We don't know whether the burn marks were caused by acid or boiling water," said a source. "But it looked like she was there for some time.

"I've seen some bad injuries but these were some of the worst. There was a lot of blood."

Detectives were liaising with doctors treating Ms Lee at University Hospital Limerick to determine the cause of her burn injuries.

Gardai were unable to speak to Ms Lee last night because she was sedated but it is believed her statements will drive the direction of the investigation.

A man, aged 28, was arrested on suspicion of attacking Ms Lee, who is single.

He was being detained for questioning at Henry Street Garda Station under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.

Ms Lee's condition was described last night as "critical but stable".

She was treated at the scene of the attack by paramedics before being taken to University Hospital Limerick where she was admitted to the intensive care unit.

The garda source said the arrested man was known to Ms Lee but was not residing in the flat with her. A neighbour described Ms Lee as "a nice girl".

Local Sinn Fein TD Maurice Quinlivan said he had previously attempted to help Ms Lee secure accommodation.

"I had tried to get her a house. She seemed like a nice girl. Her mother passed away a few years ago. It's shocking," he said.

Ms Lee's townhouse flat and neighbouring properties will remain sealed off until the arrival today of forensic officers from Dublin.

Two access roads leading to the apartment block will also be sealed off. It is understood that investigators will be focusing on determining what liquid caused the victim's extensive burns.

Smashed

Shards of glass were visible on the street outside the flat and an upstairs window was smashed.

It is believed an ironing board was thrown through a window at the flat.

Gardai are investigating whether there were other people in the house at the time of the assault, and are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information to contact them.

They should do so by calling Mayorstone Garda Station on 061456980 or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.
Jillian McNulty says she will run out of Orkambi at Christmas and fears 2017 will be her last new year

A woman whose life has been saved by a 'miracle' drug said she has been given a Christmas death sentence by a decision not to fund it.

Jillian McNulty (40), from Longford, is one of eight Cystic Fibrosis (CF) sufferers given the medicine Orkambi for free as part of trials by the drug company which makes it.

Jillian said her supplies of the drug are due to run out on Christmas week and she won't get any more from drug company Vertex.

The makers of Orkambi, the pharma company Vertex, and the HSE have failed to reach an agreement on the cost of the drug which could be used to treat around half of Cystic Fibrosis sufferers.

Voted

The HSE's drug committee, made up of doctors and experts, has unanimously voted not to approve the use of the drug which costs 159,000 per patient per year.

Jillian's evidence to the US Food and Drug Administration in Washington led to Orkambi being approved for general use to treat CF.

"I have just been sentenced to death," said a tearful Jillian last night. "I have been taking Orkambi since July 2013 and it's very simple, I would be dead by now if it wasn't for this drug.

"There are 1,200 CF sufferers in Ireland and it can have huge benefits for around 550 of them and I am one of that number.

"I had lost 20pc of my lung function before I started the drug and I was going downhill fast. I wouldn't be here today without it.

"I have four weeks' supply left. I will begin to die at Christmas. My New Year will most likely be my last thanks to this decision and it is heart-breaking."

She said drug-maker Vertex had agreed to continue to supply the 159,000-a-year medicine until the HSE and the company reached the end of their negotiations.

"My lifeline is about to be pulled away from me," she said.

"We thought we'd get a positive decision for everyone in time for Christmas but instead this is what we're getting.

"I'm devastated. I can't believe they have come to this after six months of negotiation. It is very frightening."

Jillian said she had hoped there would have been some sort of compromise between the company and the drug manufacturer. She said she understands the company's need to charge for the medicine.

"It took them (Vertex) more than 20 years of research to come up with Orkambi and it has cost billions of euro so I understand they have to get some of their money back," said Jillian.

"When I was in Washington I met its creator Fred Van Goor. We hugged and cried together.

"I was crying because he had changed my life and he was crying because he knew that all his work was helping to keep me alive.

"I think the price of the drug is too high but I also think our Government have just put a price on my life and that is very hard to take.

"It is very unfair. I know of so many people who have already died because they didn't get this drug and now so many more will die."

Under the system of drug approvals, the Government cannot intervene on drugs which are rejected.

Campaigners say they won't let the Government off the hook. Aisling Golden from Sligo has been supporting CF sufferer and campaigner Jillian after losing her own sister Grainne (21) to CF in February.

"I spoke to Jillian on the phone when we heard the news at the weekend and it was just heartbreaking," said Aisling.

"Grainne's last words before she died were for us to fight on and prevent any other young person suffering like she had.

Devastating

"This is utterly devastating news. We are going to march on the Dail on December 7. The TDs can start by coughing up their pay rises. That will help straight away."

Around 550 of the country's 1,200 CF sufferers could benefit from Orkambi.

Cystic Fibrosis Ireland CEO Philip Watt criticised the way the announcement of the decision was made.

"We are angry at the cynical way the HSE has conveyed this information to our patients, some of whom are very ill," said the charity boss.

"The decision was leaked to a Sunday newspaper even before the Minister was informed, never mind patients. It's a disgraceful and heartless form of communication."

The HSE defended its decision and blamed the drug company for its 'exorbitant' pricing.

Vertex said it wants to continue discussions in a bid to reach an agreement, but this is viewed as unlikely.
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Former Prime Minister Francois Fillon won the conservative primary runoff on Sunday and is set to represent the biggest opposition party in the 2017 French presidential race, according to partial results the runoff.

Former Prime Minister Francois Fillon (Front) arrives at the primary's high authority headquarters in Paris, capital of France, on Nov. 27, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

After counting ballots in 8,081 out of a total of 10,228 polling stations, the 62-year-old liberal politician led the runoff with 67.4 percent of the vote, against his moderate rival Alain Juppe who collected 32.6 percent while the counting was still underway.

"It is a fundamental victory built on convictions. Progressively, I felt this wave broke all the written scenarios in advance. My approach was understood," Fillon told supporters.

"The future is ahead of us. We have all the assets to be a sovereign nation, to lead Europe. Now, I have the duty to convince the whole country that our project is the only one that can lift us up," he added.

Serving as prime minister from 2007-2012, under the leadership of Nicolas Sarkozy who was kicked off last Sunday, Fillon has lagged for months behind the duel of Juppe-Sarkozy. He gained a spectacular momentum a week ahead the primary first round following a late surge in campaigning.

Advocating for pro market reforms, Fillon presented "more radical project," based on a slash of 500,000 public sector jobs, twice as Juppe pledged, lower corporate taxes and wanted people to work more in a move to clinch public spending and revive economy.

On foreign policy, he has expressed his Russia-related stance, calling on Paris and Moscow to "sit down around the same table" to enhance bilateral ties and help to end war in Syria and Iraq.

Admitting his defeat, Juppe, 71, who had long been the polls' favorite, "congratulate Francois Fillon for his great victory."

"I support him and I wish him good luck for his presidential campaign and the victory in May," he told supporters after results were released.

His concession means the U.S.-style primary, the first ever held by French conservatives, had chosen Fillon to be the center-right's favorite to challenge the Socialist ruling party and to challenge a risk of mounting populism echoed by the far-right National Front party.

According to the center-right authority, turnout of the Sunday's runoff reached more than 2.9 million, 4.5 percent more than the first round and far beyond the party's previous expectation of two million.
A tragic bride-to-be who died after a dream engagement trip was "beautiful, vivacious and sensitive", her funeral has heard.

Majella Donoghue, who passed away suddenly after falling ill on a flight home from South Africa after getting engaged was laid to rest in her native Mayo.

Her fiance, Barry Doherty, her mother, Mary, twin brother Stephen, sister Angela, and brothers, Tommy, David and Brendan were the chief mourners at the service.

In a eulogy at the end of the Mass, Majella's fiance, Barry Doherty recalled her love for fancy dress and festivals especially the "Father Ted" weekends on the Aran Islands.

"I love her dearly, I will miss her so much", he said.

Gifts brought to the altar included a statue of Our Lady, a bodhran, teddy bears and the Mayo jersey which Majella wore to GAA matches.

Beautiful

Majella was laid to rest in Faulmore Cemetery, Blacksod, in the same plot as her father, Willie, who passed away some years ago.

The results of a post mortem into the young woman's death are not yet available.

Fr Hegarty, the parish priest of Kilmore Erris, was one of 11 priests who joined in con-celebrating the funeral Mass for the 30-year-old in the tiny church where she was baptised and made her First Holy Communion.

"Majella was beautiful, vivacious and sensitive," Fr Hegarty said.

"She captured the heart of everyone she met."

There were few dry eyes in the packed church as the parish priest recalled hearing 30 years ago of the joyful news of the birth of Majella and her twin brother, Stephen.

Majella was hard-working, often helping her mother, Mary, in the maintenance and care of the church.

Fr Hegarty said Majella's life was "shaped by love, loyalty and laughter" and spoke of her generosity to her widowed mother.
Retailers are due to feel the pinch today as shoppers look to take advantage of Cyber Monday deals.

However, the Dublin Chamber of Commerce believes that the new trend of super sales will not last.

There are fewer products on sale in good quantities during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday weekend according to the Chamber's Graeme McQueen. He played down the hype of the sales saying there was "a lot of noise from Black Friday" but less stock on sale compared with last year.

Mr McQueen also said that retailers are trying to get away from the big sales as the "market has forced their hand."

He added that there is a place for online and traditional shopping and that "retailers will be hoping to go back to normal in the future" as he sees trends changing in coming years.

Mr McQueen's comments come as figures show Irish retailers are losing out on 4.5bn annually in online shopping, according to research carried out by Amarach for Virgin Media.

Abroad

The research said that Irish consumers spend 7.5bn online every year. However, just 40pc of this is spent on Irish online retailers leaving 4.5bn going abroad.

Meanwhile, Jobs Minister Mary Mitchell O'Connor will today tell her European counterparts she wants an end to so-called 'geo-blocking' that sees Irish online shoppers pay more when buying from foreign websites.

She said the practice was "unfair" and current lack of regulation left shoppers "paying over the odds".

Geo-blocking means that shoppers are charged different prices on websites based on their nationality or purchasing location.

Shoppers are prevented from accessing cheaper prices on different versions of a seller's website for specific countries.

"I want to ensure fairness across the board so that Irish consumers are not disadvantaged...[shoppers] should be aware of the best prices available," Ms Mitchell O'Connor added.
Senior politicians have criticised the presence of gangster John Gilligan at a house that the Criminal Assets Bureau has been seeking to seize for several years.

Labour leader Brendan Howlin said it was "shocking" that Gilligan is still living in the house where slain reporter Veronica Guerin challenged him about his crimes.

Annoyed

Fianna Fail TD Jim O'Callaghan said it was irritating to the Irish people that Gilligan has been able to live in a property beside his former Jessbrook Equestrian Centre in County Kildare.

The politicians made their remarks after Irish Independent crime journalist Paul Williams angrily confronted Gilligan at the property.

The journalist's TV3 documentary, State of Fear, airs tonight and tomorrow night at 10pm.

Gilligan was the boss of the gang that murdered Sunday Independent reporter, Ms Guerin in 1996. He previously assaulted her at the property when she attempted to interview him about his life of crime.

Gilligan has fought a legal battle against the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) for almost two decades to hang on to the house. The gangster is reported to be considering taking the case to Europe if he loses a Supreme Court appeal.

Mr Howlin said his Labour colleague Ruairi Quinn established the CAB, "to strip ill-gotten gains away from the predators who make money from drug dealing and gang crimes".

"John Gilligan was the centre of a network of evil," he said. "That he remains living in the house where Veronica Guerin confronted him about his crimes will be shocking to most right-minded people."

Deputy O'Callaghan said the process of trying to take the property from Gilligan has "gone on too long".

Insult

"It will be a source of annoyance and irritation to the Irish people that 20 years after John Gilligan's properties at Jessbrook Equestrian Centre were frozen by the State, he is still able to reside in one of those," he said.

"CAB must be relentless in pursuing the proceeds of crime."

Mr O'Callaghan said efforts to seize the property "should be concluded promptly".

Gilligan (65) was acquitted of Ms Guerin's murder - but he remains the chief suspect. He fled Ireland in 2014 after an attempt on his life but has returned and was confronted by Mr Williams at the house recently. Mr Williams said it is a "grotesque insult" to Ms Guerin's memory that Gilligan is still living there. Veronica Guerin was shot dead in her car on June 26, 1996.
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Egypt denied any military presence in Syrian territories as circulated by some Arab newspapers, said the Egyptian Foreign Ministry in a statement on Sunday.

The Lebanese daily As-Safir newspaper said on Thursday that Egypt sent earlier in November an 18-member air force unit to assist the Syrian army and two Egyptian military generals were carrying out aerial reconnaissance in Syria.

"These claims only exist in the imagination of those promoting them," Egyptian Foreign Ministry's spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said in the statement, stressing that Egypt is committed to the principle of non-interference in other countries' domestic affairs.

The spokesman added that constitutional and legal measures need to be taken before sending any Egyptian soldier or equipment abroad, "and these measures are not done secretly without informing the Egyptian people."

The fighting in Syria has recently escalated in the war-torn city of Aleppo, killing dozens of people, as well as wounding and besieging many others.

Since erupting in March 2011, the Syrian crisis has claimed the lives of about 500,000 people and displaced over 10 million.
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Sudan government on Sunday received the first batch of life-saving medicines in accordance with an agreement between the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and Sudan's Health Ministry on importing medicines at inexpensive cost.

"This is the first batch of life-saving medicines representing about 50 types. It is the fruit of the partnership with the international organization," Sudan's Health Minister Bahar Idriss Abu Garda said in a statement by the UNDP.

He said the agreement on expanding the procurement circle with the UN is beneficial for Sudan as it shortens the prolonged banking procedures and contributes to bringing medicines in a short time to serve the citizens.

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Marta Reudas, for her part, urged for supporting the partnership and expanding the medicines procurement circle, according to the statement.

She said that providing medicines, medical and laboratory equipment and health commodities to Sudan aims mainly to lessen the suffering of many patients, noting that they were looking forward to building further partnerships with probable donors to support this effort for the interest of the Sudanese citizens.

In March 2016, the UNDP and Sudan's Health Ministry signed an agreement on enhancing the procurement of medicines, medical and laboratory equipment and consumables to enhance the treatment of patients in Sudan.

The project constitutes an unprecedented attempt to procure life-saving medicines at inexpensive cost with the aim to treat cardio-vascular, respiratory and kidney diseases, in addition to diabetes, antimicrobial and digestive system drugs.

Sudan government has committed to fully providing the total fund of the three-year project which amounts to 60 million U.S dollars.
It's been 125 years since Dracula was published. And it's still scary.
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South Sudanese government has agreed to the deployment of 4,000 extra regional protection force (RPF) pursuant to UN Security Council resolution 2304 in August.

Chinese peacekeepers patrol at the Protection of Civilians site 1 beside the United Nations House in Juba, capital of South Sudan, Aug. 11, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

The Council of Ministers during their meeting on Friday said the extra forces are meant to join an existing 13,000 blue helmets serving under the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) tasked with protection of civilians and UN installations in the war-torn country.

Deputy government Spokesperson Paul Akol Kordit told reporters in Juba that the transitional unity government has resolved all pending issues with the United Nations and have agreed "immediate" deployment of the RPF.

"The cabinet has resolved unanimously to allow the deployment of the regional protection force anytime from now," Kordit said.

However, the official did not divulge more details about when and where in the capital the force would be deployed.

Juba had earlier rejected the Security Council proposal, calling it "intervention" but later softened its stance and called for dialogue with the UN.

Dr. Martin Elia Lomuro, Minister for Cabinet Affairs, also echoed the acceptance message to the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC), the body tasked with monitoring the country's peace deal.

"All outstanding issues related to the deployment had been resolved with the United Nations and that deployment of the RPF could commence with immediate effect," Lomuro said.

JMEC said in a statement on Saturday that the decision to move forward with immediate deployment of the RPF is critical to providing a secure and safe environment in Juba and creating an enabling environment for the implementation of the peace agreement.

South Sudan has faced ongoing challenges since a political face-off between President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar erupted into full-blown conflict in December 2013. The crisis has produced one of the world's worst displacement situations with immense suffering for civilians.

Despite the August 2015 peace agreement that formally ended the war, conflict and instability have also spread to previously unaffected areas in the Greater Equatoria and Greater Bahr-El-Ghazal regions of South Sudan.

Tens of thousands have been killed and more than two million displaced since late 2013, according to the UN.
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Theresa May admitted Sunday that of all of the challenges she faces as Britain's prime minister, it is Brexit that keeps her awake at night.

The politician opened the door of Number 10 Downing Street to give a rare insight about her journey to the top job in government.

May is known for not being a regular in the tea rooms and bars at Westminster where many politicians mingle and discuss matters of the day. As the Sunday Times said in its in-depth profile and interview Sunday, even members of May's own cabinet don't know her.

What politicians on all sides of the political divide do know is that before becoming prime minister, May served as the country's top interior minister at the Home Office for longer any other Home Secretary since 1892.

May was cascaded into the job following the resignation earlier this year of David Cameron after the June 23 referendum vote when Britain voted to leave the European Union.

May has signalled her intention to trigger the leave process by the end of March, hoping she can do so without the permission of politicians in the two Houses of Parliament.

That will be decided in just over a week when Britain's highest court, the Supreme Court, will rule whether May must put the Brexit issue before the parliament.

In the interview, May admitted that of all things on her plate, it is Brexit keeping her awake at night.

"Well, it is a moment of change. It is a hugely challenging time. And we need to get on with the deal in terms of Brexit," said May.

She added: "I want to make sure that everything we do ensures Britain is a country that works for everyone. And that we really get out there and forge a new role in the world post-Brexit. We can make a success of it; we will make a success of it. But these are really complex issues."

The prime minister added that it's not so much about how to steel yourself for making the tough decisions, many of which lie ahead.

"It's about are you doing the right thing. If you know you are doing the right thing, you have the confidence, the energy to go and deliver that right message," she adds.

In her childhood days, May said in the interview, that there was never a view in her Oxfordshire home that because she was a girl, there were things she could never do.

May revealed she was introduced to her future husband Philip, when they were both at Oxford University. At the time, friends thought Philip May could make a future prime minister. The couple do not have any children.

Now that Number 10 is their home. May said her husband supports her in everything she does, but he understands that when it comes to aspects of the job, it is for her to get on with it with her advisers.

May said she doesn't use a stylist, and prefers going to shops for her wardrobe rather than shopping on-line. She added that her husband often accompanies her on shopping expeditions, offering his advice.

"He's good at accessories, too, particularly good at choosing handbags and bracelets," said May.

Britain's second only female prime minister once had an ambition to become a ballet dancer. Growing too tall brought the curtain down on that dream.

Now, as the most powerful women in Britain, the world is her stage.
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A change at Rawalpindi GHQ is going to alter India-Pakistan relations

For a long time, a common refrain in India has been that our hostile and myopic neighbour -- Pakistan -- is obsessed with everything Indian and this attitude is a major reason for the deterioration of relations between the two nations. But it amazes many in this land too about how equally fixated we are about our errant terror-exporting neighbour.

If we werent, why did the media and security analysts go overboard as to who would succeed General Raheel Sharif? Of course, the odds were between an extension for Gen. Sharif and him ousting Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, as many of his predecessors have done to their PMs in the past.

Read: General Qamar Javed Bajwa named new Pakistan Army chief

It is a matter of satisfaction that the Pakistani establishment has not accused the Indians of interfering in their internal matters by conjecturing on the selection of their army chief.

How does it matter to India as to who is the next incumbent of any post in Pakistan? Let us not demean ourselves by indulging in such trivialities.

Mercifully for him, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been given the opportunity to nominate the new chief officially. I wonder if Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa is his choice or that of Pakistans Deep State.

Read: New army chief Bajwa brings no immediate change in policy: Pakistan

Lt Gen Bajwas name has been announced with media reports stating that he is a non-interfering sort of a military man and also a Kashmir expert. The facade of Pakistan having an elected civilian government thus gets sanctified, which is encouraging for the country.

Surely some of their friends in the West, notably the US, would be pleased for optics matter more than reality in todays perception-oriented world.

It is indeed laughable as to how the Pakistani and even some in the Indian media have already started analysing the next Pakistani Army Chiefs future strategic and operational proclivities.

Read: We know how to deal with them: Pakistani air force chiefs warning to India

It requires no great wisdom for anyone to know that national interests, security challenges and the mission for army chiefs do not change overnight.

Personalities will come and go but national interests, challenges and opportunities have to be analysed, strategies conceived and implemented.

However, the only institutions that try to analyse important personalities remain intelligence agencies in some nations.

But more often than not, such analyses count for nothing substantial and accordingly, national decision-making must remain clinical, capability- and current ground realities-based.

Thus, let us not hope that a personality change at Rawalpindi GHQ is going to alter India-Pakistan relations anyway.

Indias security preparedness has to be continually improved and energised with a recalcitrant and mischief-making Pakistan never changing its spots, changes in military leadership notwithstanding.

Gen Kamal Davar was the first chief of the Defence Intelligence Agency

The views are personal
It didnt take long after Prime Minister Narendra Modis announcement of demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes on November 8 for the ultra-nationalists to link it with love for the motherland. Baba Ramdev was the first off the mark, declaring that those who opposed the move were committing treason (deshdrohi) and the cyber-warriors, safe in their anonymous, egg-shaped cocoons, did their bit and waded in by invoking soldiers guarding Indian borders.

Any sensible person may wonder what is the connection between standing in a crushing line for days to access ones own money and the Indian Army patrolling Siachen but for the deshbhakts such leaps of logic are normal. The sacrifices of our brave soldiers is the default, all-purpose phrase to be applied to everything, a bit like those silly games where one is asked to use a common word for movie titles, leading to funny results.

Read: Congress defends Azads remark, says BJP communalising demonetisation deaths

Except that the humour, if there was any, about this constant invocation of the nation, Mother India and our men in uniform has long disappeared. Linking demonetisation, or anything else, with patriotism is no longer a routine ideological response from the feverish right-wing mind. It has a strategic aim and its fervour and volume are growing by the day.

The latest to the jump on to the bandwagon in Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis who is a lawyer by training and also an MBA. He was the Mayor of Nagpur. He is committed to bringing in big investments into Maharashtra, though regrettably they have been eluding him. In short, he is technologically savvy and forward looking. But, no matter the educational gloss, his roots lie in RSS thinking and show up with alarming regularity.

Read: Would have resigned if PM insisted on demonetisation: Ex-FM Chidambaram

Commenting on demonetisation, Fadnavis recently said that those who do not support the PM and the move were deshvidhrohak (anti-national). This is a neat trick, used by demagogues, propogandists and in advertising, of seamlessly conflating two different ideas into one whole. The PM becomes the country and vice-versa; doubting one is doubting the other, and is, therefore, treachery.

This is hardly a new formulation  minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju had recently said that the habit of asking questions, any questions of the government had to stop. Rijiju does not appear to have an RSS background, but has been quick to pick up the key phrases.

Read: Point-counterpoint: What Manmohan, Modi said on demonetisation

Just like it would be a mistake to think of such statements from the government and its supporters as knee-jerk declamations, it is also wrong to respond to them in the usual knee-jerk way of criticising them for bringing in nationalism into the debate. That is what they want - it allows them to frame the debate around their agenda. It forces everyone else to prove their own patriotic credentials when that is not the issue at all.

Hiding behind the soldier allows them to get away by not answering any serious question about the monumental disaster this decision has turned out to be. It deflects discussions about the economic rationale, the social consequences and the long-term repercussions of the drastic move, made clearly without any in-depth assessment of the fall out on a vast majority of Indians.

Read: We have no right to complain about demonetisation: William Dalrymple

But invoking nationalism is not merely a convenient slogan that can be deployed at any time. In March, the BJPs national executive passed a resolution stating that freedom of expression did not mean seeking the destruction of the country. Refusing to chant Bharat Mata ki Jai was tantamount to disrespect to the Constitution since Bharat is mentioned in the Constitution, was the argument. That argument sounds convincing, except that it does not stand for a minute, since the Constitution also allows for freedom of expression.

Nationalism has, of course, been the currency of many political parties throughout history and is now on the rise in different parts of the world. In India, the openly nationalistic BJP and its sister organisations have raised it to a high pitch. The constant chanting of patriotic mantras serves many purposes - it keeps the faithful satisfied and alert, it throws the opposition into confusion and it makes all kinds of enemies  ideological and religious  nervous. Most of all, it stirs the basest instincts in people who may have been otherwise peaceable and harmless but who then beat up innocent people in cinemas for their refusal or inability to stand up for the national anthem.

Read: Demonetisation: Could it not have been done more efficiently?

These are the neo-converts to the religion of hyper-nationalism who will now infect large numbers of the population who in turn will become become soldiers guarding against malcontents. Tomorrow, if it is announced that not spying on your neighbours is unpatriotic, these soldiers will spring to attention and get on with the job.

The law of diminishing marginal returns would suggest that ultimately the routine use of the deshbhakti card will stop yielding results. The citizenry at large and voters in particular would see through this cynical ploy and stop falling for it. But it would be naive to see it as an exercise for mere electoral gains. A loss here or there is not going to make anyone change their strategy. This is a long game and it is here to stay.

Sidharth Bhatia is the Founder Editor of Thewire.in.

The views expressed are personal
The Jabalpur Municipal Corporation (JMC) has proposed to set up solar-powered charging stations in various localities of the town to charge the batteries of e-auto rickshaws.

Currently there is no such facility available in the city to charge the batteries of the e-auto rickshaw and the individual owner charges the batteries from their houses through the power generated from conventional sources of energy like coal.

Over 160 e-auto rickshaws are currently plying within JMC limits.

The e-auto rickshaws were introduced in Jabalpur on January 30 this year after chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan handed over the keys to 70 persons in a function here.

New and renewable energy department principal secretary Manu Shrivastava told HT that the MP Urja Vikas Nigam and JMC are working on the modalities to have the solar-powered charging stations for e-auto rickshaws in Jabalpur and soon such stations will be set up.

He said step to have solar-powered charging stations is being taken to encourage usage of renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy conservation by slowly reducing dependability on the conventional sources of energy.

The JMC has proposed to set up solar powered charging stations in various localities, including near the railway station, medical college hospital, Damohnaka Square, Gwarighat, Gohalpur and Gokalpur localities, inter-state bus stand and Deendayal Square.

Solar-powered charging stations will provide electricity at cheaper rates than that available from state-run discoms, the municipal officials say.

The stations will be run by the Jabalpur City Transport Services Limited (JCTSL).

After identifying the spots a proposal has been sent to the MP Urja Vikas Nigam for technical assistance to set up such stations having facilities to charge batteries of 15-20 e-auto rickshaws at the same time, JCTSL chief executive officer Sachin Vishwakarma told HT.

Pawan Virha, owner of an e-auto rickshaw said, It takes eight-nine hours to charge the batteries and the power last for 80 kilometres.

He said, I charge batteries in the night when all the electricity usage is low in the house and incur additional expenditure of over Rs 700 per month on power bills. If we get facility to charge the batteries on cheaper rates, I will definitely opt for it, he said.

Parmanad Kori owner of an e-auto rickshaw said if the JMC provides the facility to charge batteries on nominal rates, it will be helpful as charging batteries from domestic power is costly affair.
Who can categorise George Orwells Animal Farm with Harry Potter? Most of us cant, but Bollywood actor-producer Shilpa Shetty can. The actor has a very kind reason to do so - she has said the book should be included in school syllabus so that kids can learn to love and care for animals.

Shilpa Shetty said Animal Farm, a social commentary on the dystopian society and the Russian Revolution during the Stalinist era in Soviet Union, should be included in school syllabus as it will teach the little ones to love and care for animals.

Shilpa was speaking to an English daily when asked to react to the recent development of The Council of School Certificate Examination (CISCE) deciding to include Harry Potter series in the English Literature syllabus for junior and middle school students, starting from 2017-18.

I think having books like Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter as part of the syllabus is a great move because it cultivates imagination and creativity at a young age. I thinks books like Little Women would also encourage respect towards women at a young age. Even Animal Farm should be included as it will teach the little ones to love and care for animals, the daily quoted Shilpa as saying.

Soon, #ShilpaShettyReviews was the top trend on Twitter India with people posting jokes about other books Monday afternoon.

Lazy Sundays with both my babies.. my prince Viaan-Raj and my Beagle #Princess.. #familytime #precious #happiness #familyfirst A photo posted by Shilpa Shetty Kundra (@officialshilpashetty) on Jun 12, 2016 at 4:59am PDT

While one Twitter user said, The Hunger Games is a great series on Karwa Chauth, the best one was perhaps this - Fifty Shades of Grey is an amazing coloring book. Children will love it.

Sample some of the most hilarious and witty tweets that followed:

The Hunger Games is a great series on Karwa Chauth. #ShilpaShettyReviews  Nirwa Mehta (@nirwamehta) November 28, 2016

"Fifty Shades of Grey is an amazing coloring book.Children will love it"#ShilpaShettyReviews  Fats (@a_bit_too_much) November 28, 2016

"The Hobbit is good. All children should develop good hobbits." #ShilpaShettyReviews  Harish Iyengaar (@scaryhairyman) November 28, 2016

"The Lord Of The Rings is the best autobiography of Bappi Lahiri ever." #ShilpaShettyReviews  Harish Iyengaar (@scaryhairyman) November 28, 2016

Iron Man is Dope. simply reflecting the importance of Iron man in our busy schedule #ShilpaShettyReviews  sarthak pahwa (@sarthakLM10) November 28, 2016

Shakespeare's Hamlet is about how tough life is in a small Hamlet without pubs and discos. #ShilpaShettyReviews  Nikhil Agarwal (@nikkhill) November 28, 2016

"Two States by Chetan Bhagat details the events leading to the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and creation of Telangana" #ShilpaShettyReviews  Nimrah (@nim147) November 28, 2016

Shilpa shetty to Alia Bhatt what R. Ashwin to MS Dhoni. #ShilpaShettyReviews  Lazy Lion (@chakkdephattey) November 28, 2016

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Cuban were working on Sunday to prepare for a national tribute to their revolutionary leader, Fidel Castro, who died late Friday at the age of 90.

A boy stands below a Cuban national flag at half-mast in honor of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, in Havana, capital of Cuba, on Nov. 27, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

The tribute will take place on Monday from 9 a.m. local time until 10 p.m., at the Jose Marti Memorial in Revolution Square in Havana, local officials told reporters. The ceremony will begin with the firing of a 21-gun salute, according to a government statement.

The Jose Marti Memorial, which will temporarily welcome Castro's remains, is at the highest point of Havana. It stands on Revolution Square, long held to be one of Cuba's most emblematic spots.

For decades, it hosted massive demonstrations in support of the Revolution and Castro gave many of his most important speeches there.

On Tuesday, the square will also host a public mass at 7 p.m. for Cubans to pay their respects.

Following that, the ashes will begin a trip of around 1,000 kilometers from Havana to Santiago de Cuba. This journey will be the reverse of the one Castro carried out, as a young guerrilla leader, in his Caravan of Liberty in 1959.

After nine days of national mourning, the ashes of the revolutionary leader will be laid to rest on Dec. 4 in the Santa Ifigenia cemetery after another mass in the Antonio Maceo Square in Santiago de Cuba.

Besides preparations for the official commemoration, across the nation, hundreds of thousands of people turned out during the weekend waving flags and chanting slogans in Castro's honour.

Sports and cultural activities will be suspended for the period of mourning, while flags will remain at half-mast. Newspapers were printed in black ink in memory of the man, who led the country for decades.
Anticipating a more protectionist US technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, Indias $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The US currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trumps campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.

The world over, theres a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce, said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, Indias second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and US businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there, said Infosys Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the US

Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs, he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the US and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.

Acquisitions

Trumps election win and Britains referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for Indias IT sector, as clients such as big US and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In Indias IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying US companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sectors revenue.

We have to accelerate acquisitions, said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including US-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipros chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a US cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, C.P. Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more US acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

Offshoring and automation

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues, he told Reuters. Three years ago, it was zero.

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

The Plan B would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients, said Partha Iyengar, Gartners head of research in India
Anticipating a more protectionist US technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, Indias $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

Staff from the three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The US issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trumps campaign rhetoric, and his attorney general -- Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme -- have many expecting a tighter regime.

The world over, theres a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce, said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, Indias second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and US businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there, said Infosys Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the US.

Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs, he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the US and Europe, around 80% of whom are locals.

Acquisitions

Trumps election win and Britains referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for Indias IT sector, as clients such as big US and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In Indias IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying US companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sectors revenue.

We have to accelerate acquisitions, said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies including US-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipros chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a US cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, CP Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more US acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

Offshoring & automation

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. The AI platform is 5-6 percent of our revenues, he told Reuters. Three years ago, it was zero.

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

The Plan B would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients, said Partha Iyengar, Gartners head of research in India.
During the time I lived in Mumbai  in 2006 and 2007 -- I looked everywhere for the famed Mumbai spirit. But the spirit was nowhere to be found. What I found, instead, were lessons in forbearance and reconciling to fate.

The arteries and veins of the city, the Mumbai local, can bruise you and make you bleed. No, really! Try getting off a train at its last destination during peak hours. If you are smart, you will jump out before the train stops, or stay inside the compartment and wait for the rush to subside before quietly stepping out.

It takes time to learn these skills. Meantime, you get your bones readjusted. Those looking to board the train have nothing but a seat in their sights, and do not think much about the collateral damage of their pursuit. A few bruises to the idiot trying to get out is par for the course.

It is not only about the seat. There was a news report of a fight in a local in which one man ended up dead. They were not fighting for family jewels, not even for a place to sit. Both of them wanted to stand at the door, where the air is freshest.

Read: Mumbai, Delhi are not really smart cities, says global survey

Fresh air, by the way, is at a premium in Mumbai because most of the city is a large dump. You should see the slums they used to romanticise in movies such as Sai Paranjpes Katha, until Aditya Chopra and Karan Johar sold our stories to the NRIs. You will feel sad for the people living in the slums and chawls. Its a good thing the average Mumbaikar spends most of her day travelling, so that she has little time to spend at home.

Of course, many of them consider the local train as a second home. It is easy to see dinner preparations in full swing in a train compartment. Vegetables being chopped is a common site. It should not be seen as evidence of the Mumbai spirit, it is the Mumbai mujboori. Of late, even the stories of the city being safe for women have got diluted by reports of harassment.

Now imagine how the Mumbai way of life would translate into the world of business. Yes, the people are nice, and yes, the people are professional. But you cannot do too many meetings in person unless you have a cluster approach to your scheduling: Plan meetings in a short radius.

Secondly, until the BKC came up, there were limited locations to have your office and make it look respectable. It does not help that Mumbai does not have much room for expansion, unless you are willing to go to Dombivli, which not many are. And it does not get any better once the rains arrive in mid-June and Ganapati soon after.

No wonder Mumbai stopped being the first choice for companies setting up shop in India. Several start-ups have chosen to be elsewhere, some even shifting base after first setting it up in Mumbai.

Read: A hilarious take on Delhi vs Mumbai debate

Now think of Delhi, which has supplanted Mumbai as the countrys economic capital in a study by Oxford Economics. Once you get past the tropes harsh weather, dirty air, rude people dragging mothers and sisters into street brawls  the city has space, roads, and the Metro. It also has Noida, Gurgaon, and Greater Noida. It is not perfect, but it has enough areas for people to buy houses that do not demand them to sell both their kidneys.

And Delhi has one more thing. It is the seat of the government, its blessing and its curse. But that is lure enough for companies to flock to the city. The truth is that despite the removal of shackles on businesses, and the freedom from licences, companies need the government more, not less.

Why? That is a story for another day.

@suveensinha

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People of poll-bound Uttarakhand on Monday rejected a protest called by some political parties, including the states ruling Congress, against the Centres move to recall high-value banknotes, the BJP state unit said.

The Congress, however, rejected the claim, saying people will give their reply through ballot in the 2017 assembly poll.

BJP state unit vice-president JP Gairola said peoples rejection of the protest clearly showed that they fully support Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

It has also exposed the protesters that are siding not only with the corrupt but also terrorists, who had been using high-value currency to carry out their subversive activities, he told Hindustan Times.

Parties, including Congress, Left, Samajwadi and Trinamool Congress, observed Jan Aakrosh Diwas on Monday to protest demonetisation. On November 8, the prime minister announced that `500 and `1,000 banknotes will no longer be legal tender from November 9 in a bid to tackle corruption and undeclared wealth.

Gairola said: It has now become clear that the people are not with the parties opposing the central governments strike against black money.

Reacting to the BJP leaders remark, chief minister Harish Rawats media in-charge Surendra Kumar said: People will tell them (BJP leaders) their right place through ballot in the assembly election due early next year.

In a statement earlier in the day, BJP state unit spokesperson Munna Singh Chauhan said non-BJP parties have lost whatever little credibility they had after Mondays protest against demonetisation.

Their failed protest against the Centres move has also exposed the parties like the Congress that they are hand-in-glove with corrupt thriving on black money, Chauhan said.

Besides, he said the Congress was forced to withdraw its shutdown call at the last moment despite its high commands approval owing to massive support for demonetisation move across the country.

Surendra Kumar, meanwhile, rubbished Chauhans allegation that the Congress was siding with corrupt and subversive elements.

We are siding with labourers, farmers and poor who are having a hard time as they are unable to withdraw money from banks, he said, adding that his party was against corruption and black money.

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A 36-year-old ex-army man allegedly shot dead his friend in south west Delhis Chhawla village on Sunday night.

The incident occurred when the accused, Charan Singh, took out his licensed pistol and began showing him how the weapon worked. The victim, Sidharth, received bullet injuries in the chest and died on the spot.

Singh has been arrested. He had retired from the Kumaon regiment in 2014. Police have registered a case under section 302 (murder) IPC and 27 Arms Act against him at Chhawla police station.

Police officials said that a probe was on to verify if it was a freak accident as narrated by Singh.

The incident took place around 8pm when Singh came out of his house for a stroll after dinner. He was allegedly drunk and walking with two friends.

Read: Stationary bus kills DTC driver

They were soon joined by two more friends - Sidharth, a milkman, and retired BSF officer Ram Awatar. Singh allegedly took out his licensed pistol and began showing it to others.

Singh was showing them what precautions to take while handling the weapon when he fired and the bullet hit Sidharth in the chest.

The five men knew each other. Singh was explaining how the weapon works and fired once in the air. When he fired for the second time, the bullet hit Sidharth in the chest. He died on the spot, said a senior police official.

Sidharth was rushed to Rao Tula Ram Memorial hospital where he was declared brought dead. Police was informed and Singh was arrested. The weapon of offence has been recovered.

Singh is being interrogated. We are probing if this was a planned murder. We are questioning the family members as well. All allegations are being verified, the officer said.

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The 9th Delhi Queer Pride Parade that took place this Sunday, had its fair share of inspiration. One such story is that of Aman Valecha (name changed on request). Valecha is a DU student from a town near Meerut, who is developing an app for the LGBT community. The 19-year-old, who is gay, ran away from his house to pursue education and is developing an app to provide a support group for individuals of the LGBT community, who are closeted because of the fear of intimidation.

Anyone can offer words of support, but our app will provide logistical support to LGBT people. If any member of our community feels threatened by their surrounding, we will provide them the support they need to step out of that place and start afresh. We will give them accommodation, food and anything else they need, says Shashank Singh, a second year engineering student and Valechas boyfriend, who is helping him develop the app.

The app will have a SOS button that a member can press to alert others in the group if he or she is in trouble. The app will send the location of the member to others in the group. The app is almost complete and should be out by January next year. I have faced many issues throughout my life, and I will not let that happen with anyone else, he says. Though Valecha has found support in Singhs parents, but says that society has forced them into hiding within the bodies of straight men.

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Pushing the government agencies to implement the ban on diesel vehicles that are more than 15 years old, the National Green Tribunal on Monday asked agencies to identify sites to dump scrapped vehicles as soon as possible.

After the Delhi Development Authority submitted that it has proposed two such sites, the bench asked it to coordinate with the municipal corporations and identify space for more such spaces.

It also asked neighbouring states like Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan to meet with the Delhi government for identifying land to park these old vehicles banned from plying in the NCR.

The green court also directed the Union Ministry of Heavy Industries to frame a policy on incentives for scrapping vehicles, which are over 15 years old.

The directions came during the hearing of a petition filed by Vardhaman Kaushik over worsening air quality in Delhi.

The process to de-register around 2 lakh old diesel vehicles in Delhi started earlier this month. However, with no directions or guidelines available, the traffic police were worried about what needs to be done with these vehicles.

The traffic police has only eight pits with a capacity to accommodate 8,000 vehicles left to decay.

Read: Crackdown begins in Delhi on diesel vehicles older than 15 years

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Union home minister Rajnath Singhs directive to top police officers that no one should be arrested or harassed on the basis of radicalisation in the absence of solid proof is welcome but the message should trickle right down to the local police stations. Alongside, he also said that genuine NGOs were free to carry out development work but warned that those indulging in anti-national activities would not be spared. We have seen numerous instances of young men being picked up at random after terror attacks  the Hyderabad blasts come to mind  on mere suspicion of involvement in terror. The definitions of radicalisation, as also that of genuine NGOs, are very subjective. In the case of radicalisation, it is difficult to tell whether a person poses a threat to security or public peace merely on the basis of his or her radicalised views. Of course, the police have to keep an eye on any speech or action which could result in encouraging subversive activity. But the issue is larger than this.

Read: Chhattisgarh IG, chief secy summoned over alleged rights abuses

There are many instances of people suspected of radical views being imprisoned as undertrials for years thanks to a painfully slow criminal justice system. The home minister should also ensure that the sort of encounter deaths we have seen of terror suspects should end. There can be no room for extra-judicial action by the police in a democracy. In the Bhopal case, there are more questions than answers as to why a trained police force was not able to apprehend the suspects who had escaped from jail and needed to kill them. The police must be held accountable for their actions and not be allowed carte blanche simply because of a perceived threat to national security, again a loose term which is used to describe various types of speech and actions.

Read: India vs India: Can our laws save our nation from disaster?

In the case of NGOs, the governments definition of good work is often at variance with what activists consider appropriate work. In the past, NGOs which have criticised the governments record on human rights have been termed anti-national, a case in point being that of Amnesty International. Many NGOs working in Maoist areas have been branded anti-nationals for speaking up about atrocities by the police. But, clearly, the home minister felt the need to ask the police to be more circumspect, given that their track record has not been exemplary in this regard. If indeed, they were to gather proper proof before arresting people or harassing them, there would be a drastic decrease in the number of undertrials and also greater confidence among communities which are routinely targeted.
Foreign students selected for admission to IITs through the JEE Advanced/GATE examinations will have to pay Rs 6 lakh per year as fees for undergraduate and post-graduate programmes.

The human resource development (HRD) ministry, which was considering the fee structure proposal for foreign students, has now asked all IITs to issue directives in this regard.

Domestic students shell out approximately Rs 2 lakh per year, and it was felt that international students should at least pay for the total expenditure incurred on their education. This comes to Rs 6 lakh, officials said.

The proposal of conducting JEE abroad was cleared by the IIT council in August this year, paving the way for entrance tests in Dubai, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Ethiopia.

In January, the ministry had decided that IITs should offer some seats to foreign students on a supernumerary basis (addition of seats to accommodate them). At present, foreigners can only join IITs as exchange students.

The test will be a paper pencil exam, just like the one held in India.

IITs are hoping to attract more international students from next year, and this will increase their revenue to a certain extent. At the same time, it will make the institutes more diverse, said a senior HRD official.

However, the push for foreign students is solely intended to improve diversity among students. Sources said the move would help improve the global ranking of IITs, considering that foreign students happen to be one of the biggest parameters for rating universities.

Though IITs are among the countrys best institutes, none figure among the worlds top 200 schools. Over a million aspirants appeared for the JEE Main examination this year.

.

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The army said on Monday they found evidence that suggested Pakistans complicity in an attack in which three Indian soldiers were killed --- and one of the bodies was mutilated --- in Jammu and Kashmirs Machhil about a week ago.

On Twitter, the armys Northern Command posted two photographs -- one of a pair of night-vision goggles with US government property marked on it and the other of supplies with Pakistan marked on them.

Among the supplies was a roll of gauze that had Pakistan defence forces written on the package. Food items and disposable food cans were also found in the area, all carrying Pakistans markings.

Refer Machhil op of 22 November where body of one soldier was mutilated. Search leads to recoveries that indicate Pak complicity @adgpi pic.twitter.com/qmKbzjqUQN  NorthernComd.IA (@NorthernComd_IA) November 28, 2016

On November 22, three soldiers were killed in Machhil sector along the Line of Control, the de-facto border, in Kupwara district . One of the soldiers bodies was found mutilated, the second such incident in a month.

As the Indian Army pledged to exact a heavy retribution, Pakistani authorities said 11 civilians and three soldiers were killed in shelling by Indian forces the next day. Later, the Directors General of Military Operations of the two countries held an unscheduled hotline interaction at Pakistans request.

Trouble at LoC The army has suggested Pakistans complicity in the killing of three soldiers along the disputed border on November 22, a claim that can further deteriorate ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. After the attack in Machhil, Indian forces retaliated, as Pakistan claimed 11 civilians and 3 of their soldiers were killed in the counter-assault.

Ties between New Delhi and Islamabad have hit a low in the aftermath of an attack on an Indian Army base in northern Kashmirs Uri that killed 19 soldiers in September. New Delhi blamed the brazen assault on Pakistan-based militants, a charge Islamabad promptly denied.

The Indian Army also said it carried out surgical strikes on militant bases across the LoC in response to the Uri attack. Since then, repeated ceasefire violations at the border and civilian deaths on both sides have added to the tension.

Also read | Lives on the Line : HT travels to LoC

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Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang speeches at a routine press briefing on Nov. 28. [Photo/fmprc.gov.cn]

China Monday urged Japan to act prudently in military and security fields and avoid unsettling regional stability.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks at a routine press briefing in response to a question regarding Japan's plan to install an advanced U.S. missile defense system, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD).

According to Japanese media reports, Tokyo plans to set up a panel to discuss ways to reinforce its missile defense system.

"We were concerned about the news reports. China's position on the deployment of the THAAD is very clear and remains unchanged," Geng said.

Japan's military and security activities are watched closely by its Asian neighbors and the international community because of its history, he said.

"We hope Japan [will] play a constructive role in boosting regional peace and stability, not to the contrary," said the spokesperson.

Calling the current Korean Peninsula situation "complicated and sensitive," he urged parties concerned to solve related issues through political and diplomatic channels.
Bubu Konwar of central Assam is a known car thief and murder suspect. Whats unknown until his arrest this weekend is that he is a contract killer, with 42 hits by his own admission.

In front of television cameras on Monday, the 38-year-old owned up to his involvement in several sensational murders, including that of a popular physician in 2006 and a Congress leader two years later.

He is a dreaded car thief and several murder cases are lodged against him. What surprised us was his boast that he has killed 42 people, said Rishikesh Hazarika, in-charge of Pulibor police station in Jorhat district.

Konwar started his innings in crime early. Beginning with petty thefts and robberies when he was 16, he graduated to car thefts, murders, kidnappings and extortion.

Money was the sole motive of this lynchpin of a gang involved in killing politicians, businessmen, taxi drivers and professionals.

He used to honey-trap businessmen with the help of girls and extort money from them, officer Hazarika said.

Konwar has more than 50 cases  including seven murders and 27 car thefts  against him and was arrested several times before. But he always got bail because of botched investigations and continued his criminal activities.

He was released from Jorhat jail only a few days before his re-arrest on Sunday.

My husband was used by politicians to murder their rivals. They used to pay him big sums, Konwars wife, Panchi Gogoi, told news channels on Monday.

The murder of prominent doctor Mridul Baruah, Congress leader Hemanta Baruah, businessman KL Ginoria in 2012 and school headmaster DN Gogoi in 2014 had grabbed headlines in Assam. These were alleged victims of Konwar.

The shocked police want to verify Konwars boast of 42 murders, but their efforts suffered a setback as the district court sent him to 14 days judicial custody.

The order will affect our investigation. We will apply again to seek police custody so that his involvement in the murders can be established with proof, Hazarika said.

Konwar lost three fingers of his right hand eight years ago trying to make a crude bomb at home, but that didnt deter the son of a former Nagaland police constable from continuing his crime run.

He is from Amguri in Sivasagar district and he grew up in Nagaland. After a crime, he would flee to that state, said Amguri police station in-charge Kiran Nath.

Konwar came in touch with criminal elements early in life. His underworld links in Nagaland now helps him cool his heels in the hill state after a crime in Assam.

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Sikh militant leader Harminder Singh Mintoo was recaptured from a railway station in New Delhi early on Monday, after policemen hunting for the fugitive became suspicious of his hastily trimmed beard and fidgety behaviour.

The 49-year-old leader of the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) was freed from a jail near Patiala by gunmen posing as police a day ago. Mintoo was tracked down to the parking lot at the Nizamuddin railway station around 2am Monday, five hours before he was to board a train to eventually reach Goa from where he wanted to escape to Germany, police said.

Mintoo and another fugitive Kashmeer Singh were driven by their accomplices to Kaithal in Haryana, where the two hurriedly trimmed their beard in a sugarcane field with a pair of scissors they bought from a local farmer.

Read: Birthday cakes, cooks, gym: Kings life for high-profile inmates at Nabha jail

At the Nizamuddin railway station, Mintoo tried to buy a ticket to Panvel, near Mumbai, when Delhi Police assistant sub-inspector Harish Chander became suspicious by his improper appearance and extra-cautious behaviour.

In no time, Arvind Deep, special commissioner of Delhi Police (special cell) said, a police team swooped down on them. Mintoo was caught with a pistol which he tried to fire at the police. They also found Rs8,000 with him in old and new banknotes.

Deep said Mintoo chose Goa as his hideout because he lived there for 18 years between the mid-1980s and early 2000s with his family. His wife is from Goa. Another police officer said Mintoos plan was to get a passport and visa using his contacts in Goa and reach Nepal en route to Germany.

A Delhi court sent Mintoo to seven days police custody. The authorities announced a reward of Rs25 lakh for the capture of the militant, who is said to have visited Pakistan several times and been trained by Islamist jihadis. Police said his jail break was planned as part of efforts to revive Sikh militancy in Punjab.

Read: Gangs of Punjab stalking the state with brazenness

Police said Mintoo told his interrogators that he planned his jail escape 15 days ago on the instructions of his handlers at Pakistani spy agency, ISI. He had apparently received Rs25,000 in the jail to help with his escape.

Deep also said Mintoo and Kashmeer Singh had been dropped off in Kaithal by Palwinder Singh, a fugitive gangster who helped Mintoo escape from the jail on Sunday. Palwinder was caught with arms and ammunition by the Uttar Pradesh police in Shamli within hours of the jail break.

Teams were deployed at all interstate bus terminals, railways stations, Metro stations and border points to nab the two. The SHOs were asked to check hotels and guest houses in their respective territorial jurisdictions, said Deep, the special CP. Hundreds of policemen had been deployed to trace Mintoo.

Deep said Mintoo and Kashmeer Singh hitched a ride from Kaithal to Kurukshetra and then took a bus to Panipat. A second bus ride brought them to Kashmere Gate bus terminus in Delhi.

To avoid getting caught together, the two split at the bus terminal and Mintoo asked Kashmeer Singh to meet him at the railway station, as they together had to leave for Goa, said Deputy Commissioner of Police PS Kushwah.

Mintoo was deported from Thailand in November, 2014. He was wanted in at least 10 terrorism-related offences, including the 2008 attack on Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.

The KLF is among a handful of Sikh militant groups founded after Indian army stormed the holiest of Sikh shrines, the Golden Temple in Amritsar, to flush out militants. The 1984 operation triggered widespread anger in the community, and is believed to have prompted the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi who had ordered the military operation.
BJP MLA Binay Bihari was denied entry into the Bihar Assembly after he arrived in shorts to protest the delay in construction of Bettiah-Manuappa road on Monday.

The MLA from Lauria in West Champaran district later sat in the laws outside the assembly to protest against the denial of entry.

Biharis novel protest was against the state government for continuing to delay the construction of the 44.325 km road from Bettiah to Manuappa despite Chief Minister Nitish Kumars announcement the new road at a public meeting in 2013.

BJP MLA Binay Bihari arrived in Bihar Vidhan Sabha wearing vest&shorts to protest against delay in construction of road in his assembly area pic.twitter.com/rDRNJsiRiG  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar raised the issue in the Assembly and pleaded Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary to allow Bihari inside the house.

The Speaker informed later that Bihari cant enter as his attire was a violation of House etiquette.

He quoted rule 29 (1) of Assembly which prohibits ashisht acharan (not following etiquettes) inside the House and said the present case fell in that category.

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, Leader of Opposition in Assembly Prem Kumar, and a host of party legislators joined the agitating MLA later.

Kumar attacked the chief minister and held him responsible for the MLA vowing to wear shorts and vest till the road was constructed.

Binay Bihari said he would continue wearing shorts for the Assembly until govt gives satisfactory explanation.

Iss sadak ke liye humne apna kurta bharat sarkar ko aur pyjama Bihar sarkar ko de diya hai: Binay Bihari, BJP MLA from Bihar pic.twitter.com/BV5hXl9eyv  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls in Maharashtra on Monday, winning 851 seats across 164 urban local bodies, dealing a blow to the states opposition Congress and the NCP.

Elections were held for 3,705 seats spread over the 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats. Results have been announced for the 3,510 seats. Counting for rest of the seats was still on.

Of the 147 municipal councils, where municipal chiefs were elected directly, BJP nominees won at 52 places, compared to the around half a dozen places, where that party held the civic chiefs posts in these bodies.

The BJP made inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds, winning 851 seats. Shiv Sena won 514, NCP 638, Congress 643, MNS 16, BSP 9, unrecognised parties 119, local coalitions 384, CPI(M) 12 and independents 324 seats.

In the last elections, BJP tally was 298, Sena 264, Congress 771 and NCP 916

The elections across 25 districts in Maharashtra were seen as mini assembly polls and a test of popularity of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who led the BJPs campaign to extend his partys influence in the rural areas, where the Congress and the NCP have held sway for long.

The BJP appears to have retained the publics favour despite the oppositions fervent claim that the ruling party would face a major loss in the wake of the demonetisation move, which has triggered a cash crunch and spelt troubles for the common man across the country.

I laud BJP Karyakartas, CM @Dev_Fadnavis & @raosahebdanve. Their grassroot level work ensured people place their valued trust in BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Twitter.

I thank people of Maharashtra for placing their faith in BJP in local body polls. This is a win for pro-poor & development politics of BJP.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 28, 2016

BJP chief Amit Shah took a swipe at the Opposition, saying the results were a wake-up call for them.

BJP has emerged as the largest party, I thank people of Maharashtra for their continued support and faith in BJP's development politics.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

Maharashtra result should be a wakeup call for opposition attempting to mislead people on #Demonetisation, a decision in national interest.  Amit Shah (@AmitShah) November 28, 2016

However, in Parli municipal council in Beed district, women and child development minister Pankaja Munde of the BJP was outsmarted by her cousin and NCP leader, Dhananjay Munde.

The panel backed by Dhananjay, leader of the opposition in legislative council, won 27 of the total 33 seats in Parli.

I accept the peoples verdict. I will analyse what went wrong and what led people to give this verdict, Pankaja said.

As many as 15,826 candidates were in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held on Sunday in the first phase with around 70% of the electorate exercising its franchise.

Polling was also held for municipal council presidents post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates were in the race.

In all, 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, are going to polls in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on December 14, December 18 and January 8.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday hit out at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Mahesh Sharma, questioning how the latter managed the expenses of his daughters wedding despite withdrawal limits in the wake of demonetisation.

BJP MP Mahesh Sharmas daughter wedding. Is he making all the payments in cheque? Is he managing the marriage in Rs 2.5 lakhs? How his notes were exchanged? Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Kejriwal asked.

Read | Black-to-white money rackets forced govt to stop currency exchange

The AAP has been protesting against the central governments demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 banknotes.

Opposition called for a Bharat bandh on Monday in protest against the November 8 announcement.

Serpentine queues have been witnessed outside banks and ATMs, as anxious people wait hours to deposit or exchange their scrapped notes or withdraw cash.

Read | Demonetisation protests across country today, but Opposition divided over bandh
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) supported the demand to move gangster-turned-politician Shahabuddin out of Bihar jail to Delhi-based Tihar jail.

Appearing in the Supreme Court on behalf of the CBI, additional solicitor general PS Narasimha also favoured transferring the trial of criminal cases against the former RJD parliamentarian to Delhi. We welcome transfer of those cases where CBI is the prosecuting agency. But, the state of Bihar must clarify its position with regard to those cases where it is pursuing the trial against him (Shahabuddin), Narasimha told a bench headed by justice Dipak Misra.

This case is a test case in Indian criminal jurisprudence on witness protection and fair trial, the bench noted, fixing Tuesday to pass orders on two petitions that want a direction to lodge Shahabuddin in Tihar jail.

The first case was filed by the wife of murdered journalist Rajdeo Ranjan, who worked with a national Hindi daily Hindustan. She alleged that Shahabuddin had masterminded the killing and wanted him to be transferred out of Bihar as he continues to wield influence despite being in jail.

The second petition was moved by a man whose two sons were murdered, allegedly at the behest of the RJD leader. According to the petitioner, his third son witnessed the murder of his two brothers and was killed before he could record his evidence in the case.

Shahabuddins counsel, senior advocate Shekhar Naphade, opposed his clients transfer, arguing it would jeopardise his relatives visitation rights.

Meanwhile, the CBI gave a sealed cover report on the status of its investigation in Ranjans murder. Mobile phones of the accused and the victim have been sent to the experts to retrieve the data. The CBI said it had collected the hard disk of the victims computer and sent it to experts.
Angry customers vandalized two SBI branches in Manipur on Monday after the bank refused to allow people to withdraw Rs 24,000 each from their accounts citing cash shortage.

A policeman was injured in violence in one of the banks while a mob damaged windows in another, witnesses and officials said. Bank work was hit in both places but no one has been arrested.

The trouble started at the State Bank of India in Manipur University when two customers insisted on withdrawing Rs 24,000 each - the maximum amount one can take out from the bank a week following demonetisation.

Branch manager Prasad Jain said: They became angry when it was pointed out that our senior officials had declared that such big amounts could not be withdrawn.

The customers then turned unruly.

N Birean, a customer, said people who had been queuing up from early in the morning became angry when they were informed they could withdraw only Rs 2,000 each from their savings accounts.

An elderly customer who didnt want to be named said: Two thousand rupees is chicken feed. We have been wasting several days for this pittance?

Sensing the mood, the SBI said the customers could take out Rs 4,000 each. But the bank will be closed once the cash runs out, one officer told the crowd.

On hearing this, the account holders started vandalizing the office, the witnesses said. Riot police rushed to the bank to bring the situation under control.

A policeman, Mutum Shyamo, was injured in the violence.

There was a similar incident at another SBI branch at Leimakhong in Imphal West district where account holders damaged windows following heated exchanges with the staff, witnesses said.

Though armed policemen have been deployed in all bank branches in the state, officials say it has become increasingly tough to maintain order as customers who are denied cash become restive.

There have been face-offs between the bank staff and customers in Manipur but this is the first time banks were vandalized.

The November 8 demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes has caused a severe cash crunch across the country. Several banks have unilaterally put curbs on how much a customer can withdraw from their accounts.

The RBI says the maximum a person can take out from his or her account is Rs 24,000 a week.

Read| 63-year-old Mumbai man tries to exchange old notes, gets cheated of Rs 57 lakh
Deficient rainfall has led to a severe drought in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala with 54 out of 76 districts in the three states facing acute water shortage that has left farmers the worst hit.

In Karnataka, where the northeast monsoon (Oct to Dec) has been 79% deficient, water in major reservoirs is down by half, drinking water is getting scarce and migration has been reported from many villages, government officials said.

Uppukunte village in Kolar district of Karnataka used to bustle with activity at this time of the year after a good harvest with preparations for sowing. Now half of the villagers have migrated to Bengaluru about 65 km away looking for work as the drought tightens its grip.

It is the worst ever drought I have ever seen in my life, said agri economist Prakash Kammardi, 60, who heads the Karnataka Agricultural Prices Commission.

I have seen many droughts, but this time there is not enough water even for drinking, said 62-year-old farmer Muniyappa, standing next to a dried pond from which he used to provide water to animals and irrigate his eight acre farm. His ragi crop has failed and he cannot even use it as fodder for the three cows he has.

I have to now pay Rs 25,000 for procuring one tractor-load of fodder, which will last for three months, he added.

Narayan Reddy, a member of the Uppukunte gram panchayat in Kolar district, Karnataka. (HT Photo)

Another farmer in Uppukunte, 39-year-old Suresh, said he would be lucky if he got half a quintal of ragi (finger millet) as compared to usual 15 quintal from his three-acre farmland. Srinivas, a farmer from a nearby village, opted for tomato in place of ragi thinking vegetables will fetch a stable price. It is all gone. I will get nothing from the farm this year, he said pointing towards his dry field.

The worst effect of drought is in regions like Kolar, where ground water is the only source for irrigation. Bore wells have gone dry. We have reached a stage where we get water only at depths of 1,500 feet, Srinivas said, adding that he does not have Rs 5 lakh to invest for drilling another bore well.

The costs of sinking a bore-well have shot up because of the alarming depletion of groundwater levels.

Water conservationist Vishwanath Srikantaiah has termed over-use of ground water as a reason for distress. He said there was no realisation of the damage caused by over exploitation of groundwater.

It can take three to four years to recharge groundwater and undo the damage, he said, terming the present drought as hydrogeological meaning deficient rains, low water availability and dryness in soil moisture.

Professor S Janakarajan, water management expert and developmental economist from Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS) in Chennai, termed the distress level as unprecedented as both surface and ground water levels were very low across the region.

State-run agricultural institutions in Karnataka have reported that the sowing of winter crop is down by 50% as reservoirs are running almost dry with storage level at the Krishnaraja Sagar dam on the Cauvery river --- main source of irrigation water for Karnataka and Tamil Nadu --- standing at 16% of its capacity as on November 24.

Kammardi said farmers need to understand impact of climate change better. We continue to think in terms of rabi and kharif crops, when in reality our weather patterns have changed drastically because of climate change. Just look rains were good across the country except parts of the south, he said.

In Tamil Nadu, the Cauvery delta districts  Tanjavur, Trichy, Nagapatitnam, Tiruvarur and Pudukottai have been badly hit by the drought. In the western part of the state, Salem, Erode and Tiruppur are also reeling under the dry spell.

Almost all the districts in Tamil Nadu received below normal rain in southwest monsoon (June to September), which triggered severe distress in agricultural sector. Deficient northeast monsoon (Oct to Dec) in Karnataka, from where Cauvery flows has only worsened the situation.

Suresh, 39, said his three-acre plot in Uppukunte in Kolar district used to yield at least 15 quintals of ragi. He said he would be lucky if he gets even half a quintal this year. (HT Photo)

The deficient rain had also led to tension between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over sharing Cauvery waters, settled tenuously by the intervention of the Supreme Court.

Over the last one month around ten farmers have committed suicide in Tamil Nadu, allegedly due to crop failure due to deficient rainfall. Farmers associations have been demanding that the government declare the state as drought-hit, which would make them eligible for compensation.

There must be a concerted effort by the government to mitigate the sufferings of the farmers, said BR Pandian, president, Tamil Nadu federation of farmers associations.

The tragedy is that the government does not seem to have a plan in place to counter what is a known entity. The state should have done enough to fill up the water bodies with rain water, but largely rain water is wasted flowing into the sea, said Prof Janakarajan.

In Kerala, one of Indias wettest states, all 14 districts have been declared drought-hit. While there was a 34% deficit in southwest monsoon and the northeast monsoon has so far been 69% deficient.

Wayanad and Idukki districts which are known for cash crops have been worst affected with cardamom and pepper production down to 60%.

Water levels in all 44 rivers in the state have plunged alarmingly. Besides water shortage, Kerala is also staring at a power crunch given that 60% of its power is produced by hydel projects.

We are in the midst of a severe drought. Our government is committed to preserve all water bodies and people will have to use water judiciously, revenue minister E Chandrasekharan told HT.

The government is now planning to recharge 10,000 private temple ponds lying unused.

With inputs from K V Lakshmana in Chennai and Ramesh Babu in Thiruvananthapuram

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A 36,000-tonne rock hanging over the Brahmayoni hill near Gaya in Bihar following a landslide after record rains in September was blasted by experts on Sunday.

Experts from the Central Mining and Fuel Research (CIMFR) and the Maccaferri Environment Solutions Private Limited Company, an Italy-headquartered company, took part in the operation that cost the government exchequer Rs 80 lakh.

This and other rocks pose a serious threat to life and property of more than 200 families residing at the foothills. More blasts would be carried out over this week to decimate other rocks prone to rolling down the hill after the incessant rains in September.

Safety of the population living on the hills was our priority. That is why it took some more time to stabilise the hill rocks. The remaining rocks would be blasted after three days as it will take some time to remove the rubbles of the destroyed rock, Magadh divisional commissioner Lian Kunga said.

The demolition of the rock was carried out in such a manner that splinters during the blast did not damage the residential colonies, which were already protected by wire nets and fencing.

Earlier, the district administration and police evacuated these families by the Shahmir Takiya side and traffic on Gewalbigha-Vishnupad road was stopped as part of the precautionary measures.

The crisis had assumed an alarming proportion and chief minister Nitish Kumar had to rush to Gaya to take stock of the situation. The chief minister also persuaded the residents of the hilltop colony to vacate their houses and assured them all help.

An Army Engineering Corps from Ranchi visited Gaya in September and studied the hill and later submitted its report.

After going through all the study reports, the administration finally took a decision to blast the huge boulders and it took more than two months to end the crisis.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had declared the Brahmayoni hills, in the southern part of Gaya, a protected site for its historical and spiritual significance in 1976 and prohibited any construction on it.

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The Delhi High Court on Monday granted a months parole to Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader Ajay Chautala, who is serving a 10-year jail term in a teachers recruitment scam case, for maintaining social ties but restrained him from taking part in any political activity.

Justice A K Pathak also restricted Ajays movement, while directing him not to leave Delhi without permission from the authorities concerned.

The petitioner is granted one months parole. During this period, he will not move out of Delhi and will also restrain himself from participating in any of his or other political parties rally, the court said.

It said the relief is granted to re-establish his ties with the society and the family members.

The courts order came on Ajays plea seeking two months parole to allow him return to the mainstream.

The convict in his plea for parole filed through advocate Amit Sahni, had contended that the Delhi governments 2010 guidelines were framed to achieve the objectives of parole, to enhance continuity with family members, to maintain a minimum level of self-worth and confidence, for a positive attitude and interest in life and to protect social ties.

The advocate had argued that law was well settled that grant of parole to a convict is an integral part of correctional process.

It is a kind of consideration granted to the prisoners to help them to come back into the mainstream of life. It is nothing but an instrument of social rehabilitation of the prisoner. Still further it is equally settled that the release on parole is expected to provide opportunity to the prisoner to transform himself into a useful citizen, the plea had said.

The Supreme Court on August 3 , 2015 had dismissed the appeals of Ajay and his father O P Chautala challenging the high courts verdict upholding their conviction and sentence of 10 years awarded by a trial court in the junior basic trained (JBT) teachers recruitment scam case.

The high court had on March 5, 2015, upheld the 10-year jail term awarded to Chautalas and three others, saying, The overwhelming evidence showed the shocking and spine-chilling state of affairs in the country.

The father-son duo and 53 others, including two IAS officers, were among 55 persons convicted on January 16, 2013 by the trial court for illegally recruiting 3,206 JBT teachers in Haryana in 2000.
A Sikh militant leader who escaped after 10 gunmen stormed a Punjab jail was arrested by the Delhi Police from a city railway station early on Monday.

The self-styled chief of the Khalistan Liberation Force, Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was freed from the Nabha jail in Paitala with his aide and four gangsters on Sunday, was nabbed from Nizamuddin station, special commissioner of police (special cell) Arvind Deep said.

Punjab Police had suspicion about his movement towards Delhi and they contacted Delhi Police. Following intensive checking and tracking, he was arrested from the railway station, the officer said of the arrest made at around 3am.

The arrest followed the interrogation of Palwinder Singh alias Pinda, one of the 10 gunmen to attack the jail.

Pinda was in the car in which Mintoo was driven off from the jail when he was arrested in Uttar Pradeshs Shamli late on Sunday.

Read | Decoy prisoner to getaway cars: Punjab jailbreak planned to last detail

He told the Uttar Pradesh Police that the two of them travelled together till Panipat in Haryana, which is 85km from Delhi, where Mintoo got off to leave for Delhi.

The UP Police alerted their Delhi counterparts. Mintoo was planning to take shelter with a relative in west Delhis Subhash Nagar, sources said.

He was arrested after he made contact with one of his relatives in Subhash Nagar. The intercepted phone call helped in the arrest, news agency IANS quoted a senior officer of the Delhi Polices special cell as saying.

A Punjab Police officer in Chandigarh said a team would leave for Delhi to bring back the militant.

Ten gunmen dressed as policemen tricked their way into the Nabha jail on Sunday morning. They fired more than 200 rounds before escaping with the six inmates in three cars.

From the Archives| Read: Gangs of Punjab stalking the state with brazenness

The audacious attack lasted not more than 10 minutes, indicating the attackers were familiar with the jail layout and routine. One of the gangsters who escaped had planned the operation, Pinda told the police.

Mintoos escape came as a huge embarrassment for the Punjab Police. The 49-year-old was arrested in November 2014 at the New Delhi airport after he was deported from Thailand.

He was wanted in at least 10 terrorism-related offences, including the 2008 attack on Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and recovery of explosives at Halwara air force station in 2010.

Efforts were on to nab the others, officials said.

The Khalistan Liberation Force was founded after the 1984 Operation Bluestar when the Indian Army stormed the holiest Sikh shrine the Golden Temple in Amritsar to flush out militants, triggering widespread anger.

The KLF remained among the most dreaded of the Sikh organisations fighting for a separate homeland of Khalistan till 1993 when several of its frontline militants were killed in a ruthless anti-terrorist campaign led by Punjab Police chief KPS Gill.

(With agency inputs)

Read | Punjab DGP admits to conspiracy, connivance and lapses in Nabha jailbreak
Opposition parties including the Congress, Left, Samajwadi and the Trinamool Congress are observing Jan Aakrosh Diwas on Monday to protest against the Centres demonetisation move.

The first week of the winter session in Parliament saw opposition parties stand as a united front, but they appear divided on how they will protest against the move on Monday.

The Left Front is intent on holding a 12-hour bandh in West Bengal, but the Trinamool Congress-led state government has vowed to foil it. The state finance department has issued a circular stating that all employees would be required to attend office on Monday and Tuesday, and exceptions would be made only in case of bereavement, maternity leave, hospitalisation and other genuine reasons.

Read | They are perturbed: PM Modis demonetisation barb draws Oppn fury

Traders associations

All major traders associations in the national capital said no political party asked them to participate in the shut down against demonetisation. Sanjeev Mehra, Khan Market Traders Association (KMTA) said he heard about the proposed bandh, but no one approached him.

Here is how the day panned out across India:

5:00pm: Bihar | Scores of CPI-ML (Liberation) workers, including its general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, were arrested and subsequently released for trespassing a prohibited zone while taking part in a rally in Patna.

The Congress and the RJD took out separate rallies, as part of the Akrosh Diwas. Both parties claimed that they were not against demonetisation, but with its implementation. The JD(U) had distanced itself from the bandh.

3:30pm: Telangana , Andhra Pradesh| It was business as usual in Hyderabad and rest of the Telangana districts, while there was a mixed response in Andhra Pradesh for the Bharat Bandh call.

Ruling parties from both states - Telangana Rashtra Samithi, Telugu Desam Party - decided not to support the call for bandh.

Though the Congress party too stayed away from the bandh call citing inconvenience to traders, it staged protests and burned PM Modis effigies at various places in both the states.

The YSR Congress, main Opposition in the Andhra Pradesh State Assembly, along with the Left parties, tried to disrupt bus services and shut down shops at various places. However, the response to the bandh call was poor.

In Hyderabad, banks, business establishments, educational institutions, transport services and private and government organisations functioned as usual.

However, a large number of autoriskshaws remained off the roads, as the auto-drivers union supported the Left parties bandh call. Osmania University postponed its UG and PG examinations as a precaution.

2.45 pm: Odisha | Congress workers and activists of Centre of Indian Trade Union (CITU) protested in front of the RBI office in Bhubaneswar.

The demonetisation of high denomination currency notes has crippled the economy and heaped untold miseries on the poor people of the country. It is nothing but financial emergency, state Congress president Prasad Harichandan said.

Sudhir Parichha, a farmer union leader, who protested against demonetisation outside Balangir district headquarters, said, the move has finished farm economy and farmers are forced to sell their goods way below minimum support price.

But protestors didnt disrupt vehicular traffic or shut down business outlets, police said.

However, the BJD led state government, which backs Modis demonetisation move, ordered schools and colleges to remain closed citing law and order issues.

2.30 pm: Uttar Pradesh | Samajwadi Party workers torched an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi near Prayag Station in Allahabad, while Congress activists held a public meeting at Clock Tower in Chowk in protest against demonetisation.

Samajwadi Party workers burn effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi near Prayag Railway Station in Allahabad on Monday as part of a nation-wide protest against the demonetisation move . (PTI)

Leaders of both the political parties made it clear that their act was not part of Bharat Bandh but only against sudden demonetisation of currency notes which comprised of around 86% share of currency circulation (by value) in country.

2.20 pm: Bihar | Vehicular traffic and normal life remained largely unaffected across the state but movement of trains was affected.

At least 15 trains, including some express trains such as the Mumbai-Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Bhagalpur superfast, Gandhidham Kamakhya, New Delhi Maldatown, Patna Ranchi Janshatabdi, Darbhanga New Delhi Sampark Kranti and Bangalore City Jainagar Suvidha Special were stranded at different locations under Danapur and Samastipur railway divisions.

2.10 pm: Tamil Nadu | Leader of Opposition MK Stalin was detained by Chennai police along with another member of the DMK after they started protesting against the centres implementation of demonetisation.

A financial tsunami is sweeping the country following demonetisation. Government promised to solve the issue in two days. Now it has been extended to 50 days and all these seem to be mere announcements, Stalin said while addressing party workers.

1.50 pm: Karnataka | The state units of the Congress and CPI(M) parties hold rallies in Bengaluru.

Meghalaya | Congress workers organise a rally in the states capital, holding up posters saying monumental mismanagement of demonetisation, organised loot, legalised plunder - quotes from former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh speech in the Rajya Sabha on November 24.

Kerala | Senior CPI(M) party MLAs and cabinet ministers including finance minister Thomas Issac participate in a protest march in Thiruvananthapuram.

(Twitter/@cpimSpeak)

The shutdown called by Keralas ruling LDF appeared to be total as only private vehicles plied and offices registered minimum attendance.

1.30 pm: Uttar Pradesh | Shopkeepers in Shahganj market in Agra decided to keep their shops open despite Monday being the markets weekly closed day, opposing the call for a bandh. Life was visibly unaffected in the city.

12.50 pm: Mamata Banerjee joins the protest march in Kolkata from College Square to Esplanade.

The Prime Minister suddenly came up with this decision acting like God. He never asked who may need Rs500, Rs1000 and made the decision to demonetise these notes. He didnt care about the common people, she addresses the crowd.

You want people to go cashless? You have become faceless Modi babu: MB #PratibadDibas #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/jmFfQNVFXb  AITC (@AITCofficial) November 28, 2016

12.35 pm: Maharashtra | Protests by Congress workers begin the Jan Aakrosh march from Kalina in Mumbai. Senior state party leaders including Ashok Chavan, Mumbai president Sanjay Nirupam and others were part of the protest.

12.15 pm: Meanwhile, in the Rajya Sabha, Opposition leader GN Azad says, In a meeting of 18 opposition parties we decided to hold Jan Aakrosh Diwas and not Bharat Bandh. PM is responsible for Bharat Bandh.

12.10 pm: West Bengal | Left Front chairman Biman Bose leads protest rallies in Kolkata. He tells ANI, We are not demanding to keep the black money, like the Trinamool Congress. Were demanding that the government relieves miseries of the common people.

Trinamool party workers have also taken to the streets in Kolkata to protest against demonetisation. Their social media handle uses the hashtag #PratibadDibas while other parties have labelled their campaigns #AakroshDiwas.

12.00 pm: The Congress party will hold an Aakrosh Yatra from Ghanta Ghar in Kanpur. The partys city unit president Har Prakash Agnihotri said it would be the biggest rally to highlight the suffering of people.

The Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party have decided not to be part of the Congress-led protest.

11.40 am: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi holds a protest in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament complex as both House had to be adjourned following opposition uproar over demonetisation. Opposition MPs including those belonging to DMK, CPI(M), Congress and RJD are also present.

Uttar Pradesh | Meanwhile, Congress workers hold a Jan Aakrosh rally in Lucknow. Normal life is not visible affected in the UP capital as traders union refused to keep their shops closed; markets including Aminabad, Hazratganj remain open.

11.40 am: Jammu and Kashmir | Congress workers who were participating in a Jan Aakrosh Diwas rally in Jammu were detained by police, ANI reports.

11.30 am: Karnataka | The Congress government in Karnataka had said it would mark Aakrosh Diwas rather than call for a bandh in the state. While the Education Department of the state had allowed schools and colleges to be closed, most schools were open. Transport services too were not affected.

11.30 am: MK Stalin and DMK workers have been taken into preventive custody by police in Chennai.

11.15 am: Tripura | IANS reports that life is crippled in Tripura as the Left Front organised a 12-hour shutdown in the northeastern State. Government and private offices, banks, educational institutions, shops and business establishments remained closed due to the strike. All types of vehicles, except security forces, remained off the roads.

There is no untoward incident reported from anywhere in the state. The shutdown remained peaceful, police spokesperson Uttam Kumar Bhowmik told IANS.

10.50 am: This opposition protest is against the 125 crore people of the country who have whole heartedly supported demonetisation, says minister of state Jitendra Singh, outside the Parliament ahead of the days proceedings.

Follow updates from Parliament here.

10.35 am: Countering the oppositions campaign, BJP workers in Nagpur observe Jan Abhaar Diwas by offering flowers and sweets to people who are working on Monday.

(Twitter/@ANI_news)

10.35 am: Maharashtra | Opposition parties in Maharashtra have said that they will not participate in any bandh on Monday and will hold statewide protests against demonetisation.Taxis, autos and traders unions clarified that business will go on as usual. The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has called for protest marches in districts where the party is dominant.

10.30 am: Orissa | CITU (Centre of Indian Trade Unions) National Conference delegates hold a protest march in Puri.

#JanAkroshDiwas Human chain by CITU National Conf delegates in Puri, Orissa in solidarity with #AkroshDiwas protests of #demonetisation move pic.twitter.com/PwlyToPjvP  CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) November 28, 2016

10.20 am: Congress workers hold Jan Akrosh Diwas rally in Patna.

10.10 am: Tamil Nadu | Dravida Munnetra Kazhgam (DMK) workers hold protests in Chennai. On November 25, the DMK had backed former PM Manmohan Singh for his criticism in Rajya Sabha of the way demonetisation was implemented.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh put it beautifully when he called it a monumental management failure, he said.

Read | Demonetisation: DMK to hold state wide protests on November 28

9.50 am: Opposition parties meet in Parliament ahead of the winter session. Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Agrawal tells ANI that all opposition parties are united except for the the Janata Dal (United) which, he says, is maintaining a dual stand.

9.30 am: Kerala | The bandh, called for by the ruling Left Democratic Front has crippled normal life in the state. Shops and business establishments downed their shutters and school and colleges remained closed throughout the state. In north Kerala, movements of private vehicles were also disrupted.

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Bandh observed in Thiruvananthapuram #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/7INC0pP7uo  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

The ruling LDF had called for a dawn-to-dusk shutdown to denounce demonetisation, which has virtually crippled the thriving co-operative sector in the state.

9.15 am: Bihar | CPI(ML) workers protest by targeting the movement of trains in the state.Trains under the Gaya-Patna section was disrupted with the Ganga Damodar express and the Hatia Patna express being stranded at the Gaya station for nearly four hours. Bandh supporters also took to the streets and appealed to shopkeepers to down their shutters.

8.00 am: West Bengal | Normal life seems unaffected in Kolkata, where the Left parties have called for a 12-hour state-wide bandh. Government buses and other private vehicles were seen plying on the road, reports PTI.

So far there has been no major incident, except a few small ones in the districts, a senior police official said.

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Normal life continues in Kolkata #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/uvoqCI7w6t  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

7.30 am: Opposition leader in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad denied that any all-India bandh call had been given by the opposition parties against demonetisation.

The maximum amount of black money is with the BJP. Before criticizing other parties, they should introspect first. As far as the Bharat Bandh is concerned, nobody has spoken about it. We have not taken any call on or for a Bharat Bandh, said Azad, ANI reports

7 am: Samajwadi party workers protest against in Allahabad against demonetisation.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday accused the Centre of making a mess of the Indian economy and causing hardship to farmers, labourers and traders by demonetising Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.

(With agency inputs)

Read | Oppn rallies against demonetisation, Cong says no Bharat bandh, only protests
Malaysia has dismissed media reports that controversial Indian preacher Zakir Naik had been granted citizenship by the country, saying it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen.

We dont give out (citizenships) automatically unless the person was born in the country to Malaysian parents, Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said yesterday, rejecting media reports that the Islamist preacher had been granted citizenship by the country.

There are many processes to follow and it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen. Besides, Naik is not an important religious personality for the Southeast Asia region as we should have our own moderate model of Islam which fits the soft culture of the people here, Nur was quoted as saying by the Star online.

However, an ethnic Indian NGO, Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF), said Home Minister Zahid Hamidi had denied Naik was given citizenship, but he was silent whether he was given a Permanent Resident status.

HINDRAF alleged in a statement that Naik had been provided with immunity and support by the Malaysian government and allowed to continue his preaching that clearly fostered the spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice towards the Non-Muslim community in Malaysia.

Muslim majority Malaysia has a 25% ethnic Chinese who are mostly Buddhists and Christians and eight per cent ethnic Indians, a majority of whom are Hindus.

HINDRAF president Wayathamoorthy alleged that thousands of Malaysian Indians still continued to live in a stateless manner.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in India has charged Naik and banned his organisation Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) under section 153-A of IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), besides various sections of anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Lieutenant General AK Bhatt has been appointed as the countrys new Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) and will be in charge of all army operations including on the Line of Control (LoC) which has seen heightened tension.

Bhatt, a Gorkha officer, replaces Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, who has been appointed as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Mathura-based Strike 1 Corps -- one of the three assault forces of the army -- which is mandated to cross into Pakistan on short notice.

It was during the tenure of Lt Gen Singh that India carried out surgical strikes at five separate locations in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to target terrorist launch pads.

Bhatt is at present posted in the army headquarters as the Additional Director General of CAB (Complaint and Advisory Board).

The appointment was cleared by the Appointment Committee of the Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Lt Gen Shokin Chauhan, who headed the Strike 1 Corps, has been appointed as the new chief of the Assam Rifles.

Also read | Mission LoC: How India punished Pakistan with surgical strikes
Palwinder Singh Pinda, who was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police from Kairana in Shamli district, has revealed that Gurpreet Sekhon, who was lodged in the Nabha prison, and Jalandhar-based gangster Prem Lahoria plotted the jailbreak, while he executed it.

Sources said Sekhon and Lahoria also involved KLF militants, who promised them of heavy funding. Lahoria assigned the task to Palwinder, who escaped from the Nabha jail when he was being taken to the civil hospital in March this year.

Things are becoming clear now. It was a well-planned conspiracy involving many gangs. Sekhon masterminded the plot in jail, while Pinda and Lahoria, who are on the run, executed his escape and others, said Nabha senior superintendent of police Gurmeet Singh Chauhan. He said with the arrest of Pinda, police of other states, especially Uttar Pradesh, has been alerted to track Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo and others.

The UP Police also recovered arms and ammunition reportedly used by the accused during the jailbreak incident from the Toyota Fortuner, which was used in the crime. A Punjab Police team has been sent to UP to quiz the accused.

Sources said after crossing Nabha, the escapees changed the vehicles and fled in a Swift and Verna cars. They were to meet at the UP border to plan their escape to Nepal.

Escaped gangsters Gurpreet Sekhon, Vicky Gonder and Prem Lahoria had allegedly killed another gangster, Sukha Kahalwa, in Jalandhar. Later, Gonder was arrested from Tarn Taran following an encounter, while Sekhon was arrested from Faridkot. Prem is still at large.

They accused used self-loading rifle, Springfield gun, pistol and other weapons and fired over 200 shots to create panic at the high-security Nabha jail before freeing the accused. The UP police have recovered a self-loading rifle and a gun from Pinda.

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Terming organ donation an egalitarian and a moral act, health minister JP Nadda on Sunday said the government will come out with rules, regulations and protocols for facilitating organ donation as he pitched for making it a national movement and pledged to give his own.

Expressing concern over the present rate of organ donation and transplantation not being close to the requirement in the country, he said organs were national resources and not even one should be wasted.

Donating organs is a gift and is an altruistic, egalitarian and a moral act. We can turn the end of a life into a new beginning with donating our organs.

Let organ donation become a national movement and show to the world that even in death we care for our fellow citizens and humanity at large. Organ is a national resource and not even one should be wasted, Nadda said.

He along with officers, staffers, doctors, nurses and other paramedical staff members of all central government hospitals of the national capital pledged to donate their organs.

Also present were participants from the Walkathon that took place at the India Gate on Sunday to create and enhance awareness surrounding organ donation, an official statement said.

The ministry is presently framing rules, regulations and protocols for facilitating organ donation. There are about 1.5 lakh brain deaths happening in the country every year, and organs from them can be used for saving lives of several lakh patients.

It is a matter of concern that the current organ donation and transplantation rate is not close to the requirement within the country for organs. We have started taking decisive steps for harvesting cadaver organs and tissues and saving many lives a result of this, Nadda said.

Health ministry is implementing the National Organ Transplant Programme with a view to promote organ donation from deceased persons and increase the availability of organs for transplantation.

The Minister said a number of activities have already commenced a part of the programme and the state governments have been sensitised about the need to have systems in place to improve awareness in this regard.

Later, in a series of tweets, Nadda said Administered Pledge for #OrganDonation to encourage people to participate in this noble cause. It is indeed a special year for @MoHFW_INDIA since it has organised several activities to propagate the message of donation.

NOTTO had 10,000 pledges till June 2016. Today we have about 1,00,000. I appreciate the effort & fix a target of 20,00,000 by next year, he tweeted.
Normal life was hit in parts of the country on Monday amid protests and shutdowns by opposition parties against the Centres demonetisation move, even as West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee vowed to evict Prime Minister Narendra Modi from politics.

If needed, I will stage a dharna outside Prime Minister Narendra Modis house in Delhi if the demonetisation decision is not withdrawn, said Trinamool Congress chief Banerjee, a fierce critic of the shock recall of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 denomination banknotes announced on November 8.

Today I take the pledge that I may die in the process but I shall remove Narendra Modi from politics. I want to see the end of it, she said at a rally in Kolkata.

Banerjee was the first to tweet her opposition to Modis demonetisation announcement, and was also the first to announce a plan to take her opposition to states such as Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar, UP, Delhi and Punjab.

The protests and shutdowns evoked little response in BJP-ruled states.

Read | As it happened: Bharat Bandh affects some states, business as usual in others

The strike called by Left parties in Bengal failed to evoke much response. It had been opposed by the ruling Trinamool.

While the Left constituents observed a 12-hour bandh, the Congress, Trinamool and other parties held protests. The JD(U) and BJD did not participate in the protests.

The Congress kept up its attack on Modi. By a single unwitting and disastrous decision, Modi has demonetised the entire nation, said Randeep Singh Surjewala, the partys chief spokesperson. People are angry, anguished and protesting with Congress leading the Jan Aakrosh Diwas. Instead of apologising to the nation for devastating Indias growth story, an autocratic Modi is mocking at the people of India, he added.

In Kerala, the strike called by ruling CPM-led LDF evoked a near total response. Shops and business establishments downed shutters and state-run KSRTC and private buses kept off the roads in response to the strike which began at 6am. Normal life was hit in Left-ruled Tripura. Schools, colleges and shops remained closed and vehicles stayed off the roads. However, banks were open as they were out of the purview of the bandh.

During their protests in Delhi, seven Left parties including the CPM and CPI decried the invalidation of old currency notes as anti-poor and pro-corporate.

Read | Over two weeks after banknote ban, here are all steps taken by Modi govt

In Tamil Nadu, hundreds of workers of various opposition parties led by DMK were arrested during protests. A financial tsunami is sweeping the country following demonetisation, said DMK treasurer MK Stalin.

In Bihar, vehicular traffic and normal life remained largely unaffected, but movement of trains was affected. The Congress and the RJD took out separate rallies as part of the Aakrosh Diwas.

The ruling Congress in Karnataka held protests and rallies across the state. The protest affected the functioning of both the Houses of Karnataka Legislature. Life in Bengaluru and elsewhere remained normal.

In Maharashtra, Congress and NCP hit the streets, but normal life remained unaffected with no disruption of public transport or functioning of offices and businesses in Mumbai and other parts.

BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma termed the strike and protest calls a flop. People have rejected those who support black money and corruption and appreciated the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi against black money and corruption. The leaders behind the calls for Bharat Bandh and Jan Aakrosh Diwas are tainted and have been rejected by people, he said. Any call given by such leaders was bound to flop.

(With inputs from PTI)

Also read | Political class dilemma over mixed reactions of citizens to demonetisation
The Parliament opened on Monday but little progress was made as protests on the streets by the Opposition rocked the House proceedings with frequent disruptions.

Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha ran into chaos over demands of Prime Minister Narendra Modis presence in the House by the opposition parties to debate the governments move scrapping Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes .

While several Left and Opposition leaders took to streets to observe Pratibad Divas and the Jan Aakrosh Diwas, the Opposition parties rallied inside the Houses too, causing adjournments for the day before 3pm.

With the Congress, CPI(M) and TMC leading the attacks on the BJP-led government, its so far a fruitless stormy winter session of the Parliament.

Here are live updates from the Parliament:

2.34pm: Rajya Sabha adjourned till Tuesday 11am after Opposition ruckus.

2.30pm: As Congress sloganeering follows Azads point of order, BJP leader and parliamentary affairs minister of state MA Naqvi replies on behalf of the government: We are ready for discussion like always. You failed with your Aakrosh Diwas on the streets, so now you are disrupting the House proceedings.

Talk and discuss, why shout and not let anything function? Naqvi asks.

2.22pm: Leader of Opposition and Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad says in Rajya Sabha, We demand discussion over the move to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in both the houses, but in the presence of the Prime Minister since he announced the move.

Ghulam Nabi Azad speaks in Rajya Sabha (YouTube screengrab )

2.18pm: Rajya Sabha discusses demonetisation after some lighter moments, but ruckus continues.

Congress MP Anand Sharma says, Even the Constitution does not allow the Prime Minister or the government to deprive the citizens of their money and property, especially bank accounts. Not one Bill was tabled in the House. The Prime Minister and the government must answer.

2.13pm: Lok Sabha adjourned for the day

2.02pm: Finance minister Arun Jaitley moves amendment in taxation law in Lok Sabha

2.00pm: Both the Houses open but opposition parties continue sloganeering against demonetisation.

BJP MP in Lok Sabha Kirron Kher asks, Why are the opposition parties observing Aakrosh Diwas only over this issue? There were many other issues to fight against.

12.23pm: Lok Sabha adjourned till 2pm

12.20pm: Rajnath Singh tries to calm uproar in the Lok Sabha, says Were in a fight against corruption and black money in the country. If you have a complaint on implementation then we are ready to debate, but dont doubt our integrity.

We have always been open to debate on the issue (of demonetisation) from day one since the announcement. We are all here to speak for the government. But if the Opposition is so much adamant, Prime Minister will come to the House and will intervene.

12.15pm: Shiv Sena MP from Amravati Anandrao Adsul urges for discussion over demonetisation, says rural regions of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka have been under severe stress due to the cash crunch. The situation has improved, but still very inconvenient. We need to find a resolution at the earliest.

12.10pm: Mallikarjun Kharge of the Congress in Lok Sabha says, More than 70 people have died due to the demonetisation, and more than 1000 people have been injured.

12.05pm: Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2pm as uproar over demonetisation continues.

12.00pm: Rajya Sabha reopens to uproar. Chairman Hameed Ansari urges members of the House to keep calm and let the Question Hour run.

Ghulam Nabi Azad clarifies: The Congress never called a Bandh. PM Modi said there was a bandh called. Were observing Jan Aakrosh Diwas.

11.52am: Opposition raises slogans demanding presence of PM Modi in the House. Rajya Sabha adjourned till 12 noon

11.50am: This protest by the Opposition is not against demonetisation but against the check on black money: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi in Rajya Sabha amid uproar as the session reopens after adjournment.

11.42am: Opposition including DMK, CPI(M), Congress and RJD protest in front of the Gandhi statue in Parliament premises. Congress V-P Rahul Gandhi also present.

(ANI on Twitter)

Delhi: Rahul Gandhi protesting in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue at the Parliament complex #DeMonetisation. pic.twitter.com/RmiEpZ4xor  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

11.22am: Demonetisation hits the Lower House as well. Lok Sabha adjourned till 12 noon as protests continue

11.13am: Rajya Sabha adjourned for 30 minutes as uproar continues over demonetisation

11.05am: Let the Prime Minister come and talk to us inside the house, says Congress V-P Rahul Gandhi on PM Modis remarks against Opposition protesting demonetisation.

11.00am: Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds meeting with senior ministers in Parliament ahead of the days proceedings: TV reports

10.52am: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi chairs the strategy meeting of the partys members in the Lok Sabha

10.30am: Meeting of the opposition parties ends, the to demand apology from PM for his remarks against opposition demonetisation: ANI quotes sources

(ANI on Twitter)

9.45am: Meeting of Opposition parties underway in Parliament ahead of the session.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Monday morning meet senior ministers in Parliament that has seen regular disruptions over his governments decision to scrap high-value notes.

The opposition parties, too, were to go into a huddle to decide their plan for the House.

Outside Parliament, the parties have planned protests across the country against demonetisation. Though Left has called a 12-hour bandh, the call hasnt found many takers in the Opposition camp.

The Congress has clarified it hasnt called a shutdown but will hold protest demonstrations.

Breaking ranks, Bihar chief minister and Janata Dal (United) president Nitish Kumar will stay away from the Janaakrosh Divas. He has come out in support of the governments decision to recall Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

The winter session that is in its second week has barely got any business done, with the government and the Opposition locking horns over demonetisation.

Monday is again expected to be stormy as the Opposition is upset over remarks made by Modi at a function when he said those opposing the move were upset as they were caught unawares.

The governments decision is being criticised by a few for not being prepared. Actually they are perturbed that they were caught unawares. If they had been given 72 hours, they would have said there is no one like Modi, the Prime Minister said at an event on Friday.

The rivals have demanded an apology from the Modi, saying he had questioned their integrity.

Last week saw bitter exchanges between the two sides, with the Opposition questioning the Prime Ministers absence from the House. Modi should be in Parliament to answer their queries, they said.

After announcing the decision on November 8, the Prime Minister has spoken on demonetisation on several occasions but outside the House.

He was in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday but didnt speak. The opposition that day fielded his predecessor Manmohan Singh to lead the charge.

Singh, credited with opening Indias economy, warned that demonetisation could shave two percentage points off Indias growth and hit the poor the hardest. With Modi in the House, Singh criticised the government for monumental mismanagement in implementing the currency switch that has led to long queues outside banks and ATM kiosks.

The Opposition has accused the government of unleashing financial anarchy as people struggle to get cash almost three weeks after the surprise decision.
Bihar government on Monday said it would decide on implementation of 7th Pay Commission recommendations for over 3 lakh state employees only after reviewing its financial condition.

State finance minister Abdul Bari Siddiqui said this while responding to Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) MLA Lallan Paswan during Question hour.

Paswan said that while the Centre had started giving benefits of 7th Pay Commission to its employees with effect from January 1, 2016 the same had not been extended to Bihar government staff.

The Finance minister was non-committal about time the stategovernment would take to decide new scale of salary to its employees.

Siddiqui said that the Centre brought 7th pay commission without consulting states.

We will take stock of states financial condition to take a decision on providing 7th pay commission benefits to state government employees, the minister said.

On repeated questions of the RLSP MLA and leader of Opposition Prem Kumar who intervened, Siddique said that he was not saying that the state would not give benefits of new pay scale to its employees but a decision would be taken only after review of financial condition.
Seeking to break the deadlock, home minister Rajnath Singht told Lok Sabha on Monday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak on demonetisation if the Opposition wanted, but the rival parties demanding debate with a provision for voting remained unimpressed, forcing the House to adjourn for the second time.

A number of opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge (Cong), Sudip Bandhopadhyay (TMC) and Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), spoke as they pressed for acceptance of their demand for an adjournment motion, a condition not acceptable to the treasury benches which want a debate without voting.

With the Opposition parties firm on their stand, Singh said nobody is questioning the governments intentions over demonetisation or imputing any malafide.

He said that the government was willing to listen to the complaints and suggestions different parties have over the execution of the demonetisation move.

As far as the Prime Minister coming to the House is concerned, if the Opposition wants he will come and intervene. I want to assure the Opposition. We are ready for a discussion, the home minister said during the Zero Hour, after the Opposition leaders had spoken.

The decision on under which rule the discussion would take place is for the Speaker to make, he said.

Demonetisation is a historic, bold and pro-poor decision, Singh said, adding that it was taken to target black money and was in national interest.

However, members of a dissatisfied Opposition rushed to the Well, forcing Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to adjourn the House till 1400 hours.

Earlier, Kharge said demonetisation had harmed the economic system, the farmers, youths, labourers and women among others who are in distress.
Demonetisation has divided the government and the Opposition, but a united face of India will be present in Cuba to pay last respects to Cubas revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.

The delegation, led by home minister Rajnath Singh, has CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, CPIs D Raja and Congresss Anand Sharma among the dignitaries. We have a lot of programmes in Delhi against demonetisation. But joining the memorial service for Fidel is also our duty. We cant skip this responsibility, said Raja.

The team will leave for Havana on Tuesday morning. The leaders will go to Revolutionary Square where Castros remains are kept and offer their last respects. They will return on Thursday evening. The delegation also includes MPs from Samajwadi Party and BJD.

After two days of commemorations in Cubas capital Havana, Castros ashes will go on a four-day island-wide procession starting Wednesday before being buried in the southeastern city of Santiago de Cuba on December 4.

On Monday, Rajya Sabha paid tributes to Castro. A champion of anti-imperialism and anti-colonialism, he served as an inspiration for socialist movements and anti-colonial struggles across the world, Vice-President Hamid Ansari said.

Castro died on November 25 at the age 90. His 1959 revolution toppled a dictatorship with the promise of bringing justice and equality to his Caribbean island.
The Nabha jailbreak on Sunday has yet again brought 29-year-old gangster Palwinder Singh Pinda into focus, with police dubbing him as the prime suspect behind the criminal operation.

Pinda was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police at Kairana in Shamli district later that day. Two rifles, a SLR firearm, ammunition and cash were found on him.

The gangster had escaped from the law in a similar fashion on March 29, when five armed men attacked the policemen accompanying him to a local civic hospital. While a policeman was shot at, two others suffered eye injuries after the attackers threw chilli powder at them.

The incident, which occurred barely an hour after Pinda had left Nabha Central Jail, also placed some police officers under suspicion of abetment.

Read | Punjab jailbreak: Gunmen free Khalistani militant, gangsters; one held in UP

Pinda  a resident of Nehaluwala village  was accused of murdering an assistant sub-inspector (ASI) at Haveli restaurant in Jalandhar in April 2013. He was later arrested by Patiala police.

In July 2014, the gangster was sentenced to imprisonment in two separate cases of attempted murder. He simultaneously faced trial for the ASIs murder, besides a separate case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. The gangster was brought to Nabha jail on August 24, 2015.

It has emerged that Pinda masterminded the jailbreak to aid the accused, who he befriended during his stint at Nabha. He used to steal vehicles, which would then be used in crimes like these. In this instance, he provided the escapees with everything from guns to logistical support, said a police officer.

Read | Decoy prisoner to getaway cars: Punjab jailbreak planned to last detail

Investigators are also examining the call records at the prison telephone booth. This is the first time such an event has occurred at Nabha prison. We are investigating if there is a police-gangster nexus, and whether prisoners are allowed to use mobile phones for contacting aides, another officer said.

The escapees were identified as Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, his aide Kashmir Singh Galwadi, and four other prisoners -- Harjinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sekhon, Kulpreet Singh and Amandeep Singh.

Meanwhile, Haryana director general of police KP Singh said efforts were on to nab the escapees. We have learnt that two to three escapees got off the vehicles just before a police nakka on the Panipat-Kairana border. However, it is not clear whether Mintoo was among them, he told HT.

Singh said the Karnal superintendent of police has been sent to Kairana to extract information from the arrested facilitator. All the police teams are on high alert, he added.

Read | Punjab DGP admits to conspiracy, connivance and lapses in Nabha jailbreak

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For the past nine years, a vocal group of people have been hitting the citys streets with the Delhi Queer Parade to celebrates Indias LGBT community.

The parade advocates for issues like gender and sexual equality, as well as the dismissal of the controversial Section 377 of the Indian Penal code that criminalises homosexuality. It also doesnt miss the opportunity to add a little fun to the proceedings.

On display this year were colourful posters referencing issues that made headlines. From demonetisation to Fawad Khan, participants at the parade turned every thing into a catchy slogan.

For instance, this poster we spotted this suggestion of trading yoga guru Ramdev in place of Pakistani actor Fawad Khan who was forced out of Bollywood due to his nationality.

(Twitter)

Actor Fawad Khan, who built up a formidable legion of fans across India, moved out of the limelight after a right-wing organisation called for a ban on artistes from his country. As a result, director Karan Johar cut the actors role in his movie Ae Dil Hai Mushkil to a minimum while the Producers Guild pledged to not employ any Pakistani in the industry. Amid the furore, Fawad went back to his home country.

Another poster linked the governments surgical strike on black money to Section 377, asking for a similar fate for the code.

In a surprise announcement, the government scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes from the midnight of November 8, leaving millions of Indians stuck without valid money overnight.

(HT Photo)

Some did a play on the issue of ghar-wapsi -- which was followed by award wapsi -- that created an uproar across the country last year and early this year. The ghar wapsi controversy was over certain groups, allied to the BJP, encouraging Muslims to convert/reconvert to Hinduism. In October 2015, writer Nayantara Sahgal returned the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award given to her, citing concerns over a dangerous distortion of Hinduism. He r act sparked the award wapsi movement where other academics, writers and artistes followed her example.

(HT PHOTO)

Even Harry Potter found a mention in the parade through Albus Dumbledore, the wise Hogwarts headmaster and a great wizard in author JK Rowlings best-selling fictional universe. A look back to last years parade reminds us that the pivotal character in the Harry Potter world was an inspiration for muggle (non-magical) marchers too. In 2007, Rowling had in a Q-and-A session with fans revealed she always thought of Dumbledore as gay.

(Twitter)

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A senior citizen from south Mumbai was cheated of Rs 57.50 lakh while trying to exchange old currency. The 63-year-old registered a case with the Byculla police station and a special team has been formed to investigate the case.

The businessman, Siraj Dalal, was cheated by one Meeraj Ali alias Danny and three of his associates. Dalal, in his statement to the police, said, I wanted to buy a new house for which I wanted to change my old Rs500 and Rs1,000 notes. So I met Ali through one of my relatives employees, Oan Ali, who accompanied me along with my son to Mustafa Bazar for the meeting on November 12.

Ali arrived for the meeting with three more people in a car, Dalal said. Ali allegedly told Dalal one was his relative, Jonny, while the other person, Sufian, was his friend and the third person was their driver.

The four said they wouldnt be able to exchange the currency, but would instead help him buy a new house using the old notes, Dalal said. They demanded he pay the money on that day itself, as demanded by a second party. They told us to keep the money in their car and asked us to go and sit in another car parked a few metres ahead, Dalal said.

After the complainant kept the money in the first car, he began walking towards the other car. But the car left before he could make it, Dalal said. When he turned around, the other car also took a U-Turn and fled from the spot, he said.

Dalal said he tried contacting the four of them for the next two days, but their mobile phones remained switched off.

The complainant said, We even went to Alis residence in south Mumbai, but there was no one at home, which is when we approached the police.

Senior police inspector Avinash Shingte from the Byculla police station confirmed the incident and said investigations were in progress.

A case has been registered under sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Read

Mumbai duo held in Gujarat for buying 15 gold biscuits using banned notes

Police constable held for cheating man of Rs 3 lakh

Mumbai: Sales assistant held for cheating private firm of Rs6.36 lakh

Flier carrying 7 kg gold, Rs7.5 lakh arrested at Mumbai airport

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It is unusual to see the words drones and urban planning in the same sentence. However, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has decided to use unmanned aerial systems (UAS) or drones for the first time to plan the citys upcoming Metro rail corridors.

The drones will be used to survey and map out the alignment of the corridors.The agency believes this will help it acquire accurate details of the current situation and will save time.

MMRDA  the implementing agency for the Metro projects in Mumbai  has floated bids to appoint an agency to carry out a detailed survey of the 32-km Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavli corridor (Metro 4) and the 23.5-km DN Nagar-Bandra-Mankhurd corridor (Metro 2B) with the help of these drones.

The drones will help us prepare an accurate map of the area, its topography and the type and number of trees, which will help us implement the project, said Dilip Kawathkar, joint project director and spokesperson, MMRDA.

According to the MMRDAs tender notice, the drones will be used for carrying out detailed surveys, demarcating, measuring and geo-referencing the area, taking aerial photographs and videos and preparing maps of the area. Kawathkar added that the survey will help the agency prepare 3D models of the area and the proposed stations.

It will also help to identify issues that could arise during the implementation stage. It will give us accurate details of the current situation of the roads from where the alignment is planned. It will help us save a lot of time, he added.

A senior MMRDA official said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to visit Mumbai in December. He added that the state government intends to lay the foundation stone for these projects during his visit.The two corridors were recently approved by the state cabinet and the MMRDA is likely to float bids for implementing the projects in a couple of months.

In September  as part of a pilot project for drone-policing  the state government had deployed drones on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway to monitor traffic and record incidents of rash driving, lane cutting and general rule-breaking.

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Response of political parties to the governments decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 banknotes is much like the parable of blind men and an elephant.

Each of them picked a different part and drew their own conclusions  the elephant is a rope to one who touched the tail, a long fan to another who touched the ear and a wall to the one who touched the belly.

None of them were wrong but they were all far from the truth.

Similarly parties have reacted differently to the governments demonetisation decision.

Parties such as the Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party want a rollback of the decision, which they say is anti-poor. The Congress, the Left and a few others dont want a rollback but have hit the streets, citing inconvenience caused to public due to faulty implementation of the currency swap.

The ruling side has called it a revolutionary move, a surgical strike on corruption and black money.

Opposition parties have disrupted Parliament for 10 days to show solidarity with those queuing up outside banks and ATMs for hours to withdraw money.

Government strategists dont mind disruptions, as they believe these paint opposition parties as the supporters of black money.

But behind the bravado and show of belligerence is a discernible sense of insecurity and apprehension  on both sides of the demonetisation divide.

Read| Demonetisation: How govt rules changed as chaos increased

The BJP, as a party parliamentarian put it, is happy because the poor are overwhelmed with irshya janit anubhuti (jealousy-driven feeling). As prime minister, senior Congress leader Manmohan Singh might have cautioned the rich against ostentatious displays of wealth but it is the NDA government that has given the poor a vent to let out their frustration.

People are inconvenienced but they are supporting Modi for acting against the rich, says BJP leaders.

Opposition leaders concur but are of the view that the poor will eventually run out of patience as they will see no visible impact of demonetisation on the life of the rich.

Both sides foresee economic slowdown and job losses. While the opposition parties see in it a beginning of the eventual unravelling of the Modi phenomenon, ruling party leaders are banking on the Prime Minister to neutralise it.

They expect that the government will use the surplus money to finance populist schemes and provide a fresh impetus to the economy by infusing cash in both private and public sectors.

Much of this difference in the reading of the situation stems from the response of the people.

Reports from the ground indicate that while people are struggling to get cash, they are not against the demonetisation move. There are no reports of spontaneous protests against Modi or his government.

Political scientist Zoya Hasan attributes this to three factors. First, from early 1970s, the BJP (then the Jan Sangh) and the RSS have been building public opinion on black money and corruption and the current dispensation has been able to tap into it.

Second, its a post-truth phenomenon created by the social media where facts get overshadowed by appeals to emotions. And third, in the national and anti-national discourse set by the BJP, people are too scared to speak out.

Be that as it may, ambiguity about the extent of peoples anger or support has left the political class confused.

Both the ruling and the opposition leaders are watching Modis words and actions carefully. If it were some other PM, we could have seen riots on the streets. People still have faith in Modiji and so they are ready to give him time to deliver, says a senior BJP leader.

Opposition leaders acknowledge the PMs ability to pull off anything but hope otherwise. He has played the biggest political gamble of his political career. If it works out, we might be sitting in the Opposition for 15 years but it wont happen, says a Congress functionary.

Whatever their differences both sides seem to be living on hope, for now.

Read| Over two weeks after banknote ban, here are all steps taken by Modi govt

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Even as top two officials of the Nabha Jail have lost their job over escape by six inmates, it will be a tough task for the prosecution to make a watertight case against all staffers, if put to trial for lapses or other charges, to be held guilty by a court of law, going by precedent in a similar case.

In the sensational Burail jailbreak case, wherein four inmates had escaped after digging a 94-foot tunnel in January 2004, a big embarrassment to the prosecution came when 14 people, including five jail officials, were acquitted by a local court 11 years after the incident.

After the audacious act of the inmates, the authorities then had blamed the jail staff for failing in their duties and thus facilitating the escape of the former Punjab chief minister Beant Singhs assassinsParamjeet Singh Bheora, Jagtar Singh Hawara and Jagtar Singh Tara  and Devi Singh, a murder convict in another case. The jail officials were also accused of having conspired with the escapees.

Just like the suspension of ADGP (jails) MK Tiwari and dismissal of two jail officials in the Nabha jailbreak case on Sunday, the UT administration and police had also taken prompt and strict action against the jail staff then.

The local police had booked 21 people, including the then jail superintendent DS Rana; deputy jail superintendents DS Sandhu and Ved Mittar Gill, assistant jail superintendent PS Rana, chakkar hawaldar Nishan Singh and warder Inder Singh.

The shocked administration invoked Article 311(2) of the Constitution of India to terminate the services of a few jail staffers. The constitutional provision allows the authorities to dismiss an employee without holding any inquiry.

He has betrayed all responsibility placed upon him by law and rules. From the facts that have transpired, I conclude that there has been misconduct of such magnitude by VM Gill that the severest penalty permissible by law is called for, noted the then adviser in one of his orders.

The trial in the court of chief judicial magistrate went on for over 11 years. In August last year, the CJM acquitted the 14 accused, saying that the prosecution has miserably failed to prove a big conspiracy involving all the accused .

Which way the verdict was headed was evident during the trial. The prosecution had roped in 50 witnesses to corroborate its claims but most turned hostile. Even three jail officials, including superintendent Amandeep Singh, went back on their statements. The police had seized a mobile phone but it couldnt prove that it was in working condition at the time of escape.

The tug-of-war between those inside as prisoners and those given duty to guard them was won by a big margin in favour of prisoners (sic), the CJM had remarked in his scathing order.

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Modern technology scanners will soon be introduced at Attari integrated check post (ICP) at the Indo-Pak border as the Centre has given green signal to the measures being taken to enhance security here.

Disclosing this, Rajya Sabha member Shwait Malik on Sunday said, ICP is crucial for India as it trades with Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran and Turkmenistan through Attari Indo-Pak border and goods worth crore of rupees are imported and exported from here.

He said in the absence of modern technology, the employees have to go for checking of the trucks manually. As manual checking takes time, the trucks have to wait for long at ICP and bear financial loss, Malik said, adding that scanners are the need of the hour.

Malik further said that the issue had been taken up with the external affairs minister Rajnath Singh and minister of state Kiran Rijiju. Taking quick action, they directed the authorities concerned to set up the scanners. Soon, the tenders will be finalised, he added.

Contract of replacing old CCTV cameras and installing boom barriers has already been given and the public works department is also constructing a shed of 1,034 square metres, Malik said.
The kind of resilience and gene pool that small towns give to talented people is unmatched, said fashion journalist Shefali Vasudev at the concluding session of the three-day Chandigarh Literati organised by Chandigarh Literary Society, on Sunday.

The final interaction was all about home, small towns, the ancient Indian way and the rise of the new elite with author Amish Tripathi of the Shiva trilogy fame. He was here at the literary festival held at the Lake Club and had just finished an engaging session on mythology with author Ashwin Sanghi.

The lifestyle is different in small towns and people there are more rooted to their culture because everyone lives as one big family. For me, home is the most comfortable place. I am a proud Indian and Id want to be born as an Indian in my next life, said the author who was born in Mumbai and grew up in a small town 30 km away from Rourkela, Odisha.

Vasudev then veered the subject towards the literary world that has an elitist slant and asked whether he had been the butt of covered and uncovered assumptions.

While critics praised me for my stories and philosophy, there were suggestions that I should work on my language and style. But Ill stick to my style because thats what I am, he said.

Asking him about the visually sinuous images he had created in his books, Vasudev asked him whether writing about Shiva was his calling.

Its there in my mind all the time, this parallel universe. I feel their emotions so much so that I laugh and cry with them. Its a world only I dwell in and for me that world is as real as the world we live in, said Amish, adding that he recorded what he saw and to him it was a blessing rather than a calling.

I was never creative when I was younger. Maybe, Shiva has a tendency to help the worst among us first, he said.

Strictly staying away from political commentary, Amish said as modern day India we were undergoing a process of manthan.

This is the age of the downfall of the old elite and the rise of the new elite. So the time has now come to the conversation among the new elite. Since we are a bottom-up culture, our politicians are savvy. They care about impacting public opinion and what will get them votes.

But we are naturally rebellious. Right now, the conversation between us matters and needs to change. Once that happens, our politicians will hear us, Amish added.

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AGNIHOTRI GETS DRESSING DOWN

Himachal industries Minister Mukesh Agnihotri is seen as a close confidante of chief minister Virbhadra Singh, but people of his Haroli assembly constituency in Una district were left completely awestruck when the chief minister scolded him on the dais at a public meeting. Virbhadra was addressing a public meeting with Agnihotri standing behind him, expecting announcement of some new projects. Agnihotri handed over a piece of paper to the CM midway through his speech and whispered something in his ear. An upset Virbhadra said: Main kisi ke kehne pe kuan mein nahin kood sakta (I cant jump into a well if someone says so). Then, he told a red-faced Agnihotri that his demands would have to be placed before the state cabinet before taking any decision.

VIDEO CLIP CONTROVERSY

A short video clip that showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi in discussion with Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal in presence of CM Parkash Singh Badal, Union ministers JP Nadda and Harsimrat Kaur Badal and state BJP president Vijay Sampla at a public rally in Bathinda went viral on social media last week. There is talk among social media aficionados that the Akalis were rebuffed by Modi over some issue. Other theories are also doing the rounds. But BJP leaders have a different take. PM, they say, was replying to Sukhbirs query on the Indus Water Treaty. Only PM and Sukhbir know the truth.

POLITICIANS FLAUNTING THEIR CASTE

Gurpreet Singh Waraich (HT File Photo)

Ahead of assembly polls, Punjab politicians love to flaunt their caste if it suits them. After Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) state convener Gurpreet Ghuggi changed his name to Gurpreet Singh Waraich, BJP MLA from Phagwara Som Parkash, a retired IAS officer, has become Som Parkash Kainth. His banners and posters have his full name Kainth, a prominent gotra in Ravidassia community having a strong vote share in all 23 constituencies in Doaba. Since Ravidassia community is in direct clash with Valmikis, his full name has the capacity to impress a section of voters. Already, speculation is rife that the Congress may field Valmiki leader Joginder Mann from the assembly segment.

AAPS TOPI CRAZE WANING!

The craze for topi (cap) seems to be waning among workers of the AAP. The white cap with the party symbol (broom) and Main Hun Aam Aadmi slogan is rarely seen adorning the heads of its leaders, including Delhi chief minister and national convener Arvind Kejriwal, these days, whereas just about every party volunteer used to wear it earlier. The change has left their rivals baffled. While a leader of a rival party said the AAP has abandoned its visual emblem, its supporters dont think so. In the coming days, it will be topi all the way. It will make a comeback this poll season, said an AAP enthusiast.

HIPA BOSS SHOWS HIS CONNECTIONS

The Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) director general SP Gupta, a retired IAS officer, has strong RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) connections. Gupta, who was re-employed and made the HIPA boss by chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar in 2015, got a two-month extension last week. The former bureaucrat, who superannuated in 2009, had bigwigs of the state government, RSS and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the foundation laying ceremony of a health centre, Kamdhenu Aarogya Sansthan, at his gaushala (cow shelter) in Bissar-Akbarpur village of Nuh district on Saturday. Khattar, Union minister of state for planning and urban development Rao Inderjit, Hari Mandir Ashram head Swami Dharamdev, RSS prant sah-sanghchalak Pawan Jindal, Gau Seva Ayog chairman Bhani Ram Mangla, MLAs Tejpal Tanwar and Rahisa Khan and functionaries of several organisations were present at the event. Both Khattar and Rao Inderjit announced to give Rs 21 lakh and Rs 11 lakh from their discretionary funds to the institution.

TANWARS SECRET FOR SPORTING BEARD

Ashok Tanwar congress leader (HT Photo)

Haryana Congress president Ashok Tanwar has been sporting a thick beard lately. When asked about his new look, Tanwar recalled the October 6 incident of assault on him by some party workers, including former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hoodas personal security officer (PSO). The HPCC chief said he was hit on the head and had swelling on the face too. I still have swelling on right side of my face. If I shave, it would be prominent, he said, refusing to take any questions on the assault. Tanwar was beaten up by some party workers at an event held in New Delhi to welcome AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi who was returning after completing his Kisan Yatra.

NOT TAKING THE BANDH CALL LYING DOWN THE BHARAT BANDH

called by the Opposition parties on November 28 against the demonetisation drive by the Centre has support of the Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) in Haryana. But supporters of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) arent taking it lying down. They have launched a campaign on social media against Mondays bandh to counter their rivals. A poster, I Dont Support Bharath Bandh, has gone viral WhatsApp, a social messaging app, with BJP backers and workers pushing it. I dont support Bharath Bandh because I am against corruption, black money and corrupt people (sic), reads the message, urging the people to back Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demonetisation.

VIRBHADRA PLAYS HIS CARDS CLOSE TO HIS CHEST

Virbhadra Singh (HT Photo)

Himachal Pradesh chief minister Virbhadra Singh has already made clear that his son, state Youth Congress president Vikramaditya Singh, will contest the assembly elections due next year. But the ruling clan is still not ready to open its cards on the assembly segment where he will be fielded. At a function in Solan, the CM dropped a hint that Vikramaditya could contest from anywhere in the district. But that was vague, as Solan has five assembly constituencies. Perhaps the family is still to make up its mind or thinks it is too early to announce the assembly segment.

SUKHU HOGS LIMELIGHT

Himachal Congress chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu was detained by police during a protest against the demoneti-sation drive. Sukhu, who was leading protesters in Shimla, was whisked away as soon as the Congress workers burnt an effigy of PM Narendra Modi. The party workers were de-boarded from the bus at Kanlog. This was the first protest where Congress activist were detained. And Sukhus supporters went around claiming that he is the leader to watch in Himachal Pradesh.

NOTE BAN HITS MANKOTIA

Demonetisation of high-value currency has affected not only the common people, but also politicians in the state. And the worst hit were politicians who had planned some festivities. A Congress leader from Shahpur, Tourism Development Board vice-chairman Vijai Singh Mankotia had also

planned a big celebration on his birthday on November 23. His plans were dashed when the Centre announced to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 banknotes. Our people are suffering in long queues outside the banks. In such a situation, how can I celebrate my birthday? he told his supporters.

(Contributed by Gurpreet Singh Nibber, Ravinder Vasudeva, Harpreet Kaur, Navneet Sharma, Rajesh Moudgil, Gaurav Bisht, Naresh K Thakur)
The sensational jailbreak at Nabha prison has forced the state intelligence agencies to wake up to a new reality: Khalistani militants are finding common cause with Punjabs dreaded gangsters.

On Sunday, about 10 gunmen disguised as policemen tricked their way into high-security Nabha prison, stabbed a guard at the gate, fired automatics and escaped with a Khalistani militant group commander, his sidekick and four gangsters.

Read | Khalistani militant Mintoo, who escaped from Nabha jail, arrested in Delhi

One of the attackers, Palwinder Singh alias Pinda, was arrested from Uttar Pradeshs Kairana later on Sunday evening. A self-loading rifle, two rifles, bullets and cash were found on him. Harminder Singh Mintoo, the self-styled chief of the Khalistan Liberation Force, was arrested by Delhi Police on Monday morning.

While Sundays great escape is unmitigated proof of their unholy alliance at least for this one incident, the worrying trend is of militants discovering a set of dangerous and armed supporters in these gangsters for their larger causes.

Many gangsters, including those who escaped, are active on social media and eulogise the courage of militants such as Jagtar Singh Hawara and Balwant Singh Rajoana  convicted for the murder of then Punjab chief minister Beant Singh in a human bomb attack on August 31, 1995  in their Facebook posts.

Read | Punjab DGP admits to conspiracy, connivance and lapses in Nabha jailbreak

Kuldeep Singh, alias Neeta Deol, has been using hashtags such as Save the girl child, Respect women and Avoid drugs in his posts. Harjinder Singh, alias Vicky Gonder, posted videos and pictures of Sikh militants calling them the real lions of Punjab.

Police believe that the Gurpreet Sekhon gang is sympathetic to militants cause and have promised to help Mintoo and his aide Kashmir Singh Galwadi escape to Germany via Nepal and Thailand. The gang, after Sundays escape, is together and free after many years and are expected to go back to extortion, looting banks and highway robberies.

But all this will happen after some time. They will first separate and then lie low, a police officer said.

Police sources, many of who have interrogated the gangsters, add that the gang is expected to team up with dreaded gangster Jaipal, who has been on the run for years. The regrouped gang will try to target policemen responsible for their arrest and help associates lodged in other jails escape.

Read | Punjab jailbreak: Gunmen free Khalistani militant, gangsters; one held in UP

The Sekhon gang has also sworn to avenge the death of Gurshahid Singh, alias Shera Khubban, a Ferozepur gangster gunned down by the Punjab police in Bathinda in 2012. Hoshiarpur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Kuldeep Chahal was the man on the scene that day.

The murder of gangster-turned-politician Jaswinder Singh Rocky in May too was touted by Vicky Gonder on his FB page as justice for Shera Khubban. Gonder had threatened Bathinda SSP Swapan Sharma through another post chiding him for not being able to do anything while his accomplices killed Rocky.

Gangster questions escape

A post on the Facebook page of Kulpreet Singh, one of the escapees, says the police seems to have enacted the escape to stage the encounter of these inmates like it happened in Bhopal, referring to the killing of eight Students of Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) suspects in November.

Written by Neetas brother the post raises several questions of how the escape could not have taken place and there was much more than met the eye in the incident.

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Another car was found abandoned in a village in Haryanas Kaithal district on Monday after the Nabha jailbreak incident.The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district.

Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident occurred.

A car has been found in the village, Kaithals SP Sumer Partap Singh said, adding police and forensic experts were examining the car.

Another car had been found abandoned in Solumajra in Kaithal on Sunday and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, he said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates, was on Monday nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.
Fourteen criminals from different parts of Punjab chalked out a strategy to help Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh alias Mintoo, his aide and four gangsters escape from the high-security Nabha jail on Sunday.

Palwinder Singh alias Pinda, 29, spearheaded the attack on the jail in Patiala district on Sunday morning along with more than 10 men, and freed Mintoo and the others.

According to the police, those involved in the jailbreak included Prema (Jalandhar), Harry and Gopi Gasarpuria (Batala), Baba, Mani (Mundki), Khan (Mangwal), Channa (Hoshiarpur), Sukhh, Gopi Kaira and two people from Chandigarh.

Palwinder told the police that Gurpreet Sekhon, who was one of the gangsters to escape in the daring raid, and Jalandhar-based gangster Prem Lahoria plotted the jailbreak, while he executed it. Sources told Hindustan Times that Sekhon and Lahoria also involved Khalistan Liberation Force militants, who promised funds to them.

Read | Online behind the bars, escaped Punjab gangsters go offline from Facebook too

Lahoria assigned the task to Palwinder.

Palwinder was arrested at Kairana town of Uttar Pradeshs Shamli district on Sunday evening while heading to his hideout at Sahastradhara Road Road in Dehradun. Police recovered four rifles, 444 live cartridges of 12, 315, 32, 38 bore and a self-loading rifle, two walkie-talkies, four mobile phones, fake IDs and an SUV from his possession.

Senior police officers from Punjab and UP and intelligence officials interrogated Palwinder, who disclosed that 14 people were involved in the plan that was hatched in Mundki of Punjabs Ferozepur district.

According to their plan, four people arrived at Nabha jail in police uniform holding one of their aides as a decoy criminal they wanted to handover to the jail authorities. Five others accompanied them as visitors to meet jail inmates.

They arrived in four vehicles and broke into the jail, held prison guards hostage and opened fire in the air before freeing Mintoo and five others. They used self-loading rifle, Springfield gun, pistol and other weapons and fired over 200 rounds to create panic before fleeing with the six prisoners.

Read | Nabha jailbreak: Sekhon aide plotted great escape, executed by Pinda

The audacious attack lasted not more than 10 minutes, indicating the attackers were familiar with the jail layout and routine. One of the gangsters who escaped had planned the operation, Palwinder told the police.

They broke the police barrier in Haryanas Kaithal and then dispersed from Panipat, which is 85 km from Delhi. Mintoo took a bus to Delhi while Palwinder drove towards Kairana to go to Dehradun, where he stayed after he escaped from police custody in Patiala on March 28.

While addressing the media in Shamli on Monday, IG (Meerut zone) Ajay Anand and Saharanpur range DIG JK Shahi said Palwinder was wanted by Punjab police in different cases under the Arms Act, Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, for firing at the police and helping hardcore criminal Dilbag Bagga to escape from police custody in 2009 and the murder of ASI Gurudev Singh in Patiala in 2013.

He was arrested and sent to Nabha jail on charges of killing the ASI. It was there that he met Mintoo and druglord Prema, who helped him escape from police custody in March 2016 when he admitted in hospital for treatment. In return, they asked Palwinder to plan the escape of Mintoo and the other criminals from Nabha jail.

So far Palwinder has been accused of stealing five cars from Ludhiana, Jeerakpur and Mohali in Punjab and using them for committing crimes. He was also involved in the robbery of 2kg of gold and Rs 10 lakh in cash from Model town locality of Ludhiana.

Also Read | Khalistani militants find common cause with Punjab gangsters
Even at the peril of it being labelled an elitist activity, I have not stopped my daily visits to the neighbourhood cafe in Sector 11, Chandigarh.

In other words, what is it that draws me day after day to the cafe in spite the threat of being tagged with such a maxim, which in the present context is almost equivalent to a slur? But who cares, because I know its not just coffee, food or lovely women but something else that is inviting about these cafes.

Obviously, I had some idea about the what, but the haze was lifted last week when Avinash Singh, a Boston-based researcher, came calling for a discussion on his dissertation.

Our conversation soon veered to different topics, one of them being the origin of the cafe culture and its role in helping shape and define opinions in Europe. His assertion that cafes played a significant role in opinion formation was enough to set me imploring more about my quest. Of how these coffee places were doubling up as public spaces for discussion, debate and competitive arguments rather than just being places for good conversation, and dating. That in the absence of dedicated areas for public debate, how, important a role these tea lounges and coffee places was playing in shaping public discourse.

The Indian Coffee House (ICH) was perhaps the first to offer such a space to intellectually and politically stimulated minds and became a stepping-stone in developing a culture for European style brasseries and tea lounges to make an entry. ICH attracted (it still does) people from all spheres of life where people debated as equals. Yes, as equals because the moment you walked in carrying an attitude, you became a nobody in the cafe and were relegated to a mere coffee drinker.

Incidentally, the same goes for the cafe that I regularly visit for writing my column and books. Over the years, it has turned into quite a hub of stimulating discussions, be it political, economic, historical, legal, academic, financial, cultural or religious. And mind you, dont dub these as farce and snobbish conversations, because, the folks out there are individuals with an equal vote and equal stake in the country.

In fact, many topics for Punjabi by Nature are a result of conversations at cafes across the world. One wonders how Id have sustained this column for six years just sitting in the study. And Im sure that the majority of cafe-goers, besides the caffeine kick, carry back some learning, which plays out in some form or the other in their lives.

Learning from such spaces can range from understanding the mood of the nation, peoples responses to religious and cultural ideas, gaining knowledge of trends in business and fashion and most importantly knowing more about people. What matters the most to them? The way citizens want their nation to progress?

All these topics usually form centre stage of all cafe discussions, and the latest one in Indian cafes I presume is demonetisation.

Last month it was the surgical strike, but I feel the currency one is going to last longer. It will yo-yo for some time between questions that whether it was the right decision or not, before its taken over by the Punjab elections. The kaun jittu debate. The point is that these debates matter, even if they remain footloose and reach no conclusion. They must become an integral part of our policy-making if our democracy has to function, survive and flourish. So what if they are few and far between in Parliament, we at least have cafes.

(singhkhushwant@hotmail.com)
Neha Sharma, the 24-year-old woman who died in police firing at a checkpoint set up after Sundays jailbreak at Nabha, had left studies and was the only bread-earner for her Patiala-based family.

Now residing in a newly built house in Gobind Bagh area of the city, her family was in poverty 15 years ago, when her father, a factory worker, died of cardiac arrest. Seven years later, she left school and dreams of making it big in academics or otherwise, and started performing with local dance and orchestra groups. The family was not happy initially, but soon accepted her profession. Recently, she had started getting work out of Punjab at exhibitions and malls for promotion of products.

Neelam Sharma, her mother, said, She was the only source of income and worked hard to counter the financial hurdles after my husbands death. Neha was the eldest of four siblings. My youngest son is in Class 10 and the eldest, who left school in Class 8 due to our bleak economic condition, is unemployed. The third resides with my parents, said Neelam. Nehas paternal grandmother also lives with the family.

Neha's grandmother, mother and brother holding her photo, in Patiala on Monday. (Bharat Bhushan/HT)

Cops want compromise

Neha was killed when a policeman at a checkpoint near Dharamheri village, 25km from here near the Haryana border, opened fire at a car in which she was travelling. A bike-borne passerby was injured too. The FIR for murder was registered against an unidentified policeman at the Samana police station.

Family members now claim that police personnel and other middlemen are approaching them for a compromise. Manish Sharma, Neha's brother, said, Since right after the incident, police officials are trying to negotiate with us. But we want a strict action.

Meanwhile, Congress leader and Patiala-rural MLA Brahm Mohindra said the act has been done in a suspicious manner. Police claim the driver tried to flee with the car, but all the bullets pierced the front windshield. We demand a high-level committee to dig out the actual facts, he said.
Director Gopichand Malineni, who has returned after successfully wrapping up the European schedule of his upcoming Telugu actioner Winner, says they shot a breathtaking horse racing climax sequence in Istanbul.

We shot the climax in Istanbul race course. Its a nail-biting horse racing sequence, featuring Sai Dharam Tej and the films antagonist Thakur Anoop Singh. The whole action episode was shot under the supervision of Bulgarian stunt director Kaloian Vodenicharov, who had worked in films such as Baahubali and War Z, said Malineni, adding he is thrilled with the output.

Before heading to Istanbul, the team shot three songs in Ukraine.

At one point, the temperature had dropped to -2 degrees. Initially, we struggled to cope with the climate but a few days later we got used to it, he said, claiming Winner is the first Indian film to be shot in Ukraine.

Although the makers of 2.o had come before us, they didnt shoot there. We were told that they had taken pictures of some locations in order to recreate the same in India, he added.

Out of three songs, one was shot against some scenic backdrop of Ukraine.

Its a beautiful country and I would love to revisit for my future projects. We also shot a song against city backdrop and another one in a popular pub. The best time to visit the place, we were told, is during June-July when its summer, he said.

From December 6, the next schedule of the film will commence in Ooty, followed by another one in Bengaluru.

Produced by Nallamalupu Bujji and Tagore Madhu, the film also stars Rakul Preet Singh.

ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop
Donald Trump the president-elect will not be very different from Donald Trump the nominee, he demonstrated on Sunday, unleashing a stream of unfounded allegations of voter fraud in the election he just won.

Despite the fact that his allegations were widely debunked,Trump clung to them and repeated them in a string of tweets on Sunday in retaliation after the Clinton campaign joined the recount of votes in Wisconsin, ordered on Friday, and possibly Michigan and Pennsylvania.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump wrote in a tweet, indicating, as he has before, they were those staying in the US illegally.

He got more specific in a following tweet: Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem! All three states were won by his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton.

Trump has presented no evidence to back those allegations and, significantly, as pointed out by critics, he has not even lodged a complaint with election authorities in those states, or demanded a recount similar to one ordered in Wisconsin.

Jill Stein, the presidential nominee of the Green Party, started the recount effort last week in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania citing evidence of voting anomalies. Wisconsin allowed it on Friday, and the Clinton campaign joined it the next day.

There is no realistic possibility of the recount reversing the election outcome  Trump won those three states by a combine total of 100,000 votes, and the Clinton campaign harbours no hopes of overcoming that deficit.

Hillary Clinton speaks at a campaign event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, during the race to the presidential election. (Reuters file)

It has felt compelled to join the recount to address concerns among supporters about outside interference  some computer scientists found discrepancies in Clintons vote tallies where electronic machines were used compared to paper ballots.

Speculation about vote manipulation has drawn sustenance mostly from the hacking of the Democratic party headquarters that was traced to Russia. But the Obama administration has completely ruled out outside interference in voting.

But Trump, who is in the middle of deciding on important posts in his cabinet, especially those of the secretaries of state, defense and treasury, jumped in anyway with a Twitter storm reminiscent of the rants and tantrums from his campaign trail.

He had been more restrained in the late stages of the campaign and stayed off it largely since his elections, restricting himself to a few that addressed ongoing protests, meetings, cabinet appointments and messages of a general nature - nothing like the storm he unleashed on Sunday, from his Mar-e-Lago resort in Miami, Florida, where he was for Thanksgiving. His barrage of tweets attracted widespread criticism, most of which was centred on the one point he seemed to have missed  he won.

We are getting attacked for participating in a recount that we didnt ask for by the man who won election but thinks there was massive fraud, Clinton campaign legal counsel Mark Elias, who is dealing with the recount, wrote in a tweet on Sunday night.

Critics also asked that by alleging millions voted illegally, is Trump urging election authorities across the country to order large-scale voter recounts and launch fraud investigations?

Trump had moved on to tweeting about Cuba on Monday, and back at Trump Tower where he would return to the process of selecting his cabinet team, which is currently playing out in a full public view, warts and all.

Kellyanne Conway, a senior Trump adviser, has been openly canvassing against Mitt Romney, who Trump is considering for secretary of state, saying, rightly, he had done everything possible to defeat the Republican nominee.

Donald Trump and his campaign manager Kellyanne Conway greet supporters during his election night rally in Manhattan, New York, on November 9. (Reuters file)

She told a Sunday TV news anchor she doubts if Romney even voted for Trump. There are reports that Trump has been furious and annoyed by her remarks, but she has pushed back, calling them all false.

Trump is also said to be considering Rudy Giuliani, a trusted adviser and former New York mayor, for that job and also Senator Bob Corker, former CIA director David Petraeus and retired marine general John Kelly.

But Trump appears to be leaning toward Romney, for now.
One of the greatest plus points of the National Film Development Corporation of Indias just concluded Film Bazaar here is its offering of oven-fresh movies. And this, in a way, makes the Bazaar much more attractive than the ongoing International Film Festival of India.

One of the most interesting movies which this writer saw at the Bazaar was Soumitra Ranades Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai. The name will at once ring a bell. For, who does not remember Saeed Mirzas 1980 cult classic also called Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai. Apart from a great director like Mirza, the film had excellent actors -- Naseeruddin Shah, Smita Patil and Shabana Azmi. Could one have asked for more?

Mirza used an ordinary motor mechanic to convey the societys angst, the angst of the poor working class, but Ranades Albert is a middleclass man, and the movie highlights Indias corruption -- which unlike in Mirzas world, is far more widespread and much more deeply entrenched in the community.

While Shahs Albert had to grapple with the plight of Mumbais mill workers (his father was brutalised by rich mill owners), Ranades Albert is disillusioned with and distressed by corruption -- which has spread as viciously as cancer. And this makes him angry very angry, much like it did Albert in1980. Naseers Albert had a smaller battle to wage, Ranades hero has a much, much bigger fight to face.

Saurab Shukla plays a character called Nayar.

Ranades film centres on Albert (a marvellous piece of performance here by Manav Kaul), who leaves home one fine morning without telling anyone where he is going. His girlfriend, Stella (played by Nandita Das with a touch of excellence), his mother and his brother are worried about him. The movie captures Pintos journey in a series of flashbacks and conversations with the worldly-wise driver, Nayar (essayed with his usual brilliance by Saurab Shukla).

And Ranade creates an angry young Albert through Kaul, an Albert who is out to settle scores with the world.

In a chat with this writer here the other day, Ranade says: My movie is not really a remake of the Mirza classic. Rather it is a conceptual remake... where I have used anger as a central point of focus like in Mirzas work. This time, it is the anger of the middleclass, their anger against corruption, exemplified by Albert.

Also, the title, Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai is no longer the title of Mirzas film. It has become a phrase which one uses to describe a man/woman in rage. Like, for example, you read in newspapers, Sonia Gandhi ko gussa kyun aata hai. So, the title is merely a phrase, a mohavra.

Going beyond this, there was another reason why Ranade zeroed in on this title. When I had written about three-fourths of my script, I realised that my hero was very similar to Mirzas protagonist. This just came to me like a flash, and I thought that it was interesting. So, well, the title popped of Ranades head, and he rewrote his movie, the same story though.

Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyun Aata Hai: Ranades work is out and out political film.

However, when Ranade completed his film, he was not very sure about what he had written. So, I went to Saeed (Mirza). I have known him for a long time. He is like a father to me. I was apprehensive that he might not like it, but he liked it and asked me to go ahead. He gave me the push.

Ranades work is out and out political. It elaborates on the times we live in. Unlike Mirzas creation, which ended on a note of hope, mine does end so. Naseers Albert, at the end, joins a procession of Leftists. In the 1980s, people were hopeful of a better India. Left or Right, the ways may have been different, but there was a sense of hope. Todays Indians have very little hope, and my movie ends very differently.

The dream of an equal India is long dead. Despite the tremendous progress made on the industrial and technological front, most people in the country are unhappy. There are stupendous price hikes, farmer suicides, the Naxalite movement, the growing regionalism and factionalism; the onslaught of terrorism, questionable womens safety, the rural poverty and the urban stress, communalism, unrestrained corruption... the list is never ending.

My film epitomizes all the anger these maladies trigger in the common man in contemporary India. For me, Albert Pinto is the catalyst for transformation - from a despondent middleclass, driven only by the ideology of the rupee -- to an angry class, which begins to ask questions and demand answers. Personally, the movie is a culmination of a prolonged, despairing struggle. As Pinto says in the film, it was as if a bulb had broken inside my stomach...

There is classic scene to underline this. On a jeep, driven by Nayar, Albert opens a bottle of beer, and the glass chips at the mouth of the bottle. A wise Nayar tells Albert to throw the beer away. But a stubborn Albert refuses and drinks from the broken bottle. Maybe, he does not care if there is another piece of glass inside his stomach.

This scene is very crucial for it tells us what the plight of a common man will be, what the plight of a protestor can be. It talks about frustration and despondency, even loss of hope!

(Gautaman Bhaskaran covered the NFDC Film Bazaar.)

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A Nepalese member of a mountaineering expedition was killed and a British climber injured in an avalanche on Nepals Mount Ama Dablam triggered by an earthquake on Monday.

Janak Thapa of Himalayan Guides, which had organised the expedition, told Hindustan Times that Lakpa Thindhu Sherpa was killed by the avalanche. He identified the injured Briton as Ciaran Hill.

The injured British mountaineer has been airlifted to Kathmandu and is undergoing treatment at a local hospital, he said.
The Balochistan high court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.

A divisional bench of the Balochistan High Court passed the order during hearing of review petition challenging acquittal of the 73-year-old former president by an Anti- Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.

Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, the son of Akbar Bugti.

The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to security reasons.

Read | Pakistans Balochistan province facing devastating human rights crisis

However, Bugtis lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former president Pervez Musharraf has failed to appear before the court.

The court ordered that the administration should ensure adequate security to Musharraf while he appears in court.

The Pakistan government had allowed Musharraf to go abroad in March this year for medical treatment.

Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistans rugged mountains of Taratani in Kohlu district on August 26, 2006.

Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistans natural resources.

Read | We are no longer alone: Rebel Baloch leader thanks India for support

The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country.

Musharraf, who went into self-imposed exile in Dubai after being forced to resign as president facing impeachment following the 2008 elections, had returned to Pakistan in 2013 to contest elections but was implicated in several cases. He also lost in the polls.

He was not allowed to leave the country until government allowed him in March this year to go abroad for treatment following orders by the Supreme Court.

Musharraf has been facing a slew of cases, including the high treason trial since 2013 and he was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government.

Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Francois Fillon, a conservative reformist promising to shrink the French state, on Sunday clinched the rightwing nomination for next years presidential election with a resounding victory over his rival Alain Juppe.

Ex-prime minister Fillon, 62, will now become a favourite to be Frances next leader after winning the US-style primary to pick the nominee of the Republicans party and its allies.

Near-complete results showed him winning 66.5 percent of the vote, with ballots counted from 9,915 polling stations out of 10,229.

In a victory speech, the amateur rally driver said he had torn up all the pre-written scripts as he sped past his rivals in the last weeks of the campaign.

France can no longer bear its decline. France wants the truth and France wants action, he told cheering supporters after Juppe, a centrist, conceded defeat.

The French presidential vote is seen as a key test for mainstream political parties after the success of Donald Trump and the Brexit campaign in Britain, both of which harnessed anti-elite anger.

Fillon will face fierce competition in the two-round election in April and May from far-right leader Marine Le Pen, the anti-establishment candidate hoping to emulate Trumps shock victory in the US.

Fillon said a win for the anti-EU Le Pen would spell bankruptcy.

Two surveys late Sunday put Fillon ahead of Le Pen in the first round of the election, with the left-wing candidates trailing further behind.

Promising to be the candidate of all those who in their hearts are proud to be French, he pledged to turn the page on a pathetic Socialist presidency.

Turnout in the primary stood at around four million, roughly the same as in the first round of voting a week ago when Fillon came from behind to lead a field of seven candidates.

The prime minister from 2007-12 has warned that France is on the verge of revolt and believes his plan to slash 500,000 public sector jobs and increase working hours is the tonic needed to kickstart the economy.

The devout Catholic has also taken a hard line on immigration and Islam in France, telling newcomers to the country last week that when you enter someone elses house you do not take over.

Key dates in the long political career of France's Francois Fillon. (AFP Photo)

- Brutal candidate? -

Voting in northwest Paris, Christophe Mordelet, a 45-year-old human resources manager, said he chose Fillon because he showed more authority than Juppe, who campaigned as a moderate unifier.

You have to bang your fist on the table to get reforms through in this country. We have to stop giving into the power of the street, he said.

Juppe made a failed pitch for the centre-ground, saying his opponents agenda was too brutal and he was better placed to keep the far-right out of power.

Conceding defeat and ending his career-long dream of becoming president, the 71-year-old wished Fillon good luck in his bid to take back the Elysee Palace from the ruling Socialists.

During the campaign, Juppe had hit out at his opponent as a yes man for Russian President Vladimir Putin and also questioned his views on abortion.

Fillon wants closer ties with the Kremlin and has called for the European Union to lift its sanctions on Moscow imposed after Russias invasion of Ukraine in 2014.

- Unpredictable race -

The Republicans candidate is widely tipped by pollsters to face Le Pen -- and beat her -- in a second round run-off in May next year.

But the race is seen as highly unpredictable after a year of political upsets and uncertainty about the impact of independents and the Socialist party candidate.

Conservative's party presidential nominee, Francois Fillon, right, and runner-up, Alain Juppe, pose for photographers at the primary's high authority headquarters in Paris on Sunday. (AP Photo)

Socialist President Francois Hollande has yet to announce whether he will try to defy his historically low approval ratings by running for a second term.

Valls has not ruled out challenging his boss in a left-wing primary set for January, telling the weekly Journal du Dimanche he wanted to dispel the idea that the left has no chance of retaining power.

Hollandes former protege and economy minister, 38-year-old Emmanuel Macron, is also set to stand for the presidency as a centrist independent.

On Sunday, he accused Fillon of having a retrograde vision of French society and appealed to progressives of the left, right and centre to join his camp.

Far-left candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon is also likely to draw votes away from mainstream parties in a trend seen in elections across Europe following years of austerity and anger over globalisation and job losses.

Jean-Yves Camus, an associate researcher at the Institute for International and Strategic Relations, said Fillon might have to soften his programme and tack towards the centreground.

He might have to shift a bit to be more of a unifier and be less divisive, Camus told AFP.

Read|Who is Francois Fillon, Frances rightwing frontrunner?
Claiming credit for holding and influencing the June 23 EU referendum, the UK Independence Party (UKIP) on Monday elected Paul Nuttall as its leader after Nigel Farage stepped down and the party held a second leadership election this year.

Nuttall, 39, is a member of the European Parliament. He defeated former deputy chairwoman Suzanne Evans and former soldier John Rees-Evans. The second election was triggered after the previous winner, Diane James, quit after 18 days in the position.

Nuttall insisted the UKIP will fight attempts to water down the Brexit vote after former prime ministers John Major and Tony Blair, among others, last week favoured holding a second referendum on the terms of Britains exit from the European Union.

Speaking before the election announcement, Farage claimed he and the UKIP were "much of the inspiration for US voters electing Donald Trump as their next president. He also claimed inspiration for the growing popularity of anti-establishment parties in European countries.

Nuttall said his acceptance speech: "The country needs a strong UKIP more than ever before. For if UKIP is to be an electoral force, there will be an impetus on Theresa May and her government to give us a real Brexit."

As Brexit dominated UKIPs election announcement, the think tank British Influence announced it would launch a legal challenge on the issue of Britain remaining inside the European Economic Area (EEA) after it leaves the European Union.

Continued access to the European market is key to Britains economy and to the Brexit negotiation process, but comes with the obligation to accept the politically sensitive issue of freedom of movement.

British Influence lawyers argue that leaving the EEA would not be automatic and would happen only if Britain formally withdraws by triggering Article 127 of the EEA agreement. The question is whether Britain is a member of the EEA in its own right or because it is a member of the EU.

A government spokesman said: "As the UK is party to the EEA Agreement only in its capacity as an EU member state, once we leave the European Union we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA.

"The referendum result will be respected and we intend to invoke Article 50 (of the Lisbon Treaty) no later than the end of March next year."

Prime Minister Theresa May has announced that Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty to leave the EU will be triggered by the end of 2017. The Supreme Court is due to hear a legal challenge on whether the government can trigger the article without approval from Parliament.

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A deer that entered Pakistans Punjab province from the Indian side of the border on Monday was detained by people and handed over to police, according to a media report.

The development came after several instances of pigeons from the Pakistani side being held by security forces, especially in Indias Punjab state.

The deer entered Sialkot district of Punjab province early on Monday, Jaag TV news channel reported. The animal apparently crossed the border along the Ravi river.

Video: Indian deer crosses into Pakistan, caught by locals in Sialkot, handed over to police, disappears, police claim it escaped pic.twitter.com/BGcpAwxwOK  JAAG TV (@JaagAlerts) November 28, 2016

The channel beamed footage of several men holding the deer and carrying it along a road before a crowd on excited onlookers. It reported that deer from the Indian side often entered Pakistan in the areas along the Ravi.

Read | Spy pigeon with Urdu code on wings lands at house in Hoshiarpur village

The channel further quoted local residents as saying that the deer disappeared after it was handed over to police, who claimed it had escaped.

The incident led to some humorous exchanges on Twitter, with people from India and Pakistan asking how the deers nationality had been established and how it had escaped.

In the past, several spy pigeons have been held by Indian security forces, especially when tensions have spiked between the two countries.

In October, a pigeon from the Pakistani side, was taken into custody after a letter written in Urdu and addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi was found attached to it by BSF personnel in Pathankot.

In September, another pigeon from the Pakistani side with some Urdu words inscribed on its wings was held by police in Mukerian sub-division.

Read | Now, a pigeon with message for Modi taken into custody in Pathankot
Israels air force targeted gunman linked to the Islamic State group in Syria overnight, the army said Monday, after they fired on an Israeli soldier in the occupied Golan Heights.

Overnight the (Israeli air force) targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the Islamic State as an operations centre along the border in the southern Syrian Golan Heights, an army statement read.

It said the building was the base for yesterdays attack, which was believed to be the first such direct assault by jihadists on Israeli soldiers in the Golan Heights since Syrias civil war began in 2011.

The army said Israeli soldiers were targeted Sunday with machinegun fire and mortars and shot back. The air force then bombed the vehicle carrying the gunmen, identified as members of the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade, a Syrian rebel group that pledged allegiance to IS.

Four of the militants were killed, with no Israeli soldiers injured.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the soldiers who successfully repelled an attempted attack.

Our forces are prepared on our northern border, and we wont let (IS) elements or other hostile elements use the cover of the war in Syria to establish themselves next to our borders, he said in remarks relayed by his office.

Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

The two countries are still technically at war, though the border had remained largely quiet for decades until 2011.

Since then regular stray missiles have landed in Israeli border areas, but rebel groups and Syrian government forces have largely avoided directly targeting Israeli forces.

Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

Read | Israeli military kills 4 Islamic State militants in Syria after ambush
At least 34 civilians were killed Sunday in a flare up of ethnic violence in restive eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, authorities said, following a week of soaring tensions.

The provisional toll is 34 civilians killed, said local official Joy Bokele, referring to an attack by a Nande ethnic militia on a displaced persons camp in the Hutu village of Luhanga.

They started by attacking the FARDC (DR Congo military) position. While they were attacking the FARDC, another group was executing the population with bladed weapons or bullets, Bokele said.

Bokele added that the attack was carried out by the Mai-Mai Mazembe, a Nande self-defence militia, and that one of the attackers was killed in the clashes.

Map showing North Kivu in DR Congo where 34 civilians were killed in ethnic violence Sunday according to a local official. (AFP)

Tensions between the Nande and Hutu peoples have been running high in the restive east, shaken by two decades of fighting over land, ethnic tensions and mineral riches.

The Nande accuse Congolese Hutus of abetting the FDLR Rwandan rebel group. The Hutus, in return, say they are looking for land where they can settle for farming and accuse the Nande of trying to expel them.

Sundays killings are the worst inter-communal violence in a year. Dozens of people have died since the start of the year in fighting between the Nande and the Hutus.

If the army had not intervened, there would have been many more dead, said a military source.

The militia was searching for members of the Hutu community and wreaked carnage before burning down the village entirely, said a local rights group, the Centre for the Promotion of Peace, Democracy and Human Rights (CEPADHO). The attackers were there for more than an hour.

Risk a purge

The UN mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, or MONUSCO, said a peacekeeping force in the area had heard gunshots and were quickly deployed and neutralised the attack, killing one of the attackers, adding that 15 people had been wounded and now evacuated.

CEPADHO called on the government and MONUSCO to take urgent action to prevent further ethnic violence.

The Mai-Mai Mazembe made threats against the Hutus during the week, demanding that they leave the area or risk a purge, CEPADHO added in a statement.

North Kivu has been the scene of repeated clashes for nearly two decades, and hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday hit out at what he called bull**** Western threats to seek his indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his role in a bloody crackdown on drugs.

Police figures show Dutertes campaign has killed more than 2,500 people since he took office on June 30, about three-quarters in police counter-narcotics operations, and the rest believed to be the victims of vigilantes or druglords eliminating rivals or silencing those who could implicate them.

An ICC prosecutor last month said the Hague-based tribunal may have jurisdiction to prosecute the perpetrators of Philippines killings.

You scare me that you will jail me? International Criminal Court? Bull****, Duterte said during a speech.

He scolded the United States for what he called hypocritical threats to try him in the ICC, to which Washington itself is not a signatory. He did not specify when the US threat was made.

Read | Philippines prez Duterte says goodbye to US ties in Beijing

The United States chose not to sign the Rome Statute to protect former President George W. Bush, Duterte said, without elaborating.

America itself is threatening to jail me in the International Criminal Court, Duterte said. It is not a signatory of that body. Why? Because at that time, they were afraid Bush would face it.

For months, Duterte has been ridiculing concerns that extrajudicial killings could be taking place in his drugs war, and the United States, European Union and United Nations have been the preferred targets of his comments.

The brash former mayor and prosecutor said lawyers in Europe were rotten, stupid, and had a brain like a pea.

Read | God warned me to stop cursing, says Philippine President Duterte

This month, Duterte said he might follow Russias move to withdraw from the ICC, describing it as useless.

He believes the West has failed to comprehend the gravity of the Philippines methamphetamine problem and has said he was ready to rot in jail to achieve his goals.

There is nothing wrong with threatening to kill bad elements, he said on Monday.

I will never allow my country to be thrown to the dogs, Duterte said. I said, when I was a mayor, If you destroy my city with drugs, I will kill you. ... Simple as that... When was it a crime to say, I will kill you, in protecting my country?

Also read | Foul is fair for Duterte: The Philippine President insulted everyone
Yemeni security and medical officials say at least 13 civilians have been killed by an airstrike by the Saudi-led military coalition in a western port city.

The officials told The Associated Press on Monday that airstrikes hit two homes in rural areas northeast of Hodeida, which is under control of the countrys Shiite rebels. Among the victims are women and children, according to a medical official in al-Thawra hospital.

The airstrikes, which took place on Saturday, also destroyed telecommunications towers. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to speak to the press.

The coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 at the request of the internationally-recognised government after the rebels seized the capital, Sanaa, and started pushing southward.

Read | More than 40 killed in renewed Yemen clashes after ceasefire ends
President Bashar al-Assad is determined to retake Syrias second city Aleppo to deal a decisive blow to the rebels ahead of a possible change in US foreign policy, analysts say.

Assads regime has in recent months been pressing a series of offensives to seize control of the devastated citys east, which has been in rebel hands since 2012.

The latest assault made a major breakthrough on Saturday when government forces seized the largest of the citys opposition-controlled neighbourhoods.

For Assads regime, taking Aleppo would be one of its greatest victories, Middle East expert Mathieu Guidere says, stressing the citys extraordinary historical, political and geopolitical prestige.

It was one of the first cities to be taken by the armed opposition, he adds.

Syrias former economic capital and industrial hub lies at a strategic commercial crossroads near the border with Turkey.

The city has been roughly divided since 2012 into a rebel-held east and a government-controlled west.

Fabrice Balanche, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, says the regime retaking east Aleppo would be a turning point as it would then control the five largest cities in Syria.

Assads forces already control the capital Damascus, the central cities of Homs and Hama and the coastal city of Latakia.

Bringing Aleppo under their control would also give regime forces a better chance at taking back the northwestern province of Idlib, which is almost entirely held by rebels and jihadists.

Map showing the situation in Aleppo on Novemeber 28. (AFP Photo)

- Balance of power -

Bassam Abu Abdallah, an analyst close to the Damascus regime, says east Aleppos fall would tip the balance of power in the conflict.

Regime forces have since July 17 besieged east Aleppo, where some 250,000 civilians face severe food and fuel shortages and nearly all hospitals have been damaged by bombardment.

The aim is to push these (rebel) groups towards a scenario like in Homs, Abu Abdallah says, referring to Syrias third city where rebels were defeated in 2014 after two years of regime siege and bombardment.

The current offensive will either lead to a truce or to rebels being evacuated towards other opposition-held areas in Syria, he says.

The latest regime push comes after days of intense bombardment of the east, which has been pounded with air strikes, shells and barrel bombs.

Analysts say the relentless bombing also aims to push war-battered, hungry residents to turn against the armed opposition.

More than 4,000 civilians fled rebel-held districts into regime-held areas this weekend in the first exodus of the kind in east Aleppo since 2012.

Assads regime can only take back a territory if its population no longer backs the rebels, Balanche says.

The government regaining control of Aleppo would mark the end of fighting on a major battlefront in a war that has killed 300,000 people since it started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

- Upper hand in talks -

Rebels would then control pockets of territory only in the southern province of Daraa, the birthplace of the uprising, and near Damascus where they have lost their previous bastions of Daraya and Moadamiyeh al-Sham.

A defeat in Aleppo would mean rebel groups are no longer able to maintain the population under their control or protect them, Guidere says.

Balanche says the insurgents losing Aleppo would show the opposition is incapable of a major military success and dash its hopes of presenting itself as a viable alternative to the Damascus regime.

Aleppos fate will be key in any resumption of stalled peace talks to end the five-and-a-half-year war after three failed attempts at UN-brokered dialogue this year.

Guidere says the regime would have the upper hand and tend to want to negotiate even less if it seized east Aleppo.

US president-elect Donald Trump taking up office in less than two months time and a possible subsequent change in American foreign policy could also give Assad the advantage.

If Damascus controls both the capital and Aleppo in January when Trump arrives in the White House, he may say replacing the regime is categorically out of the question, Guidere says.

Balanche agrees: We know Trump doesnt really want to invest himself in Syria. If Aleppo falls... it will no longer be worth supporting the opposition.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, criticized for fondly remembering Fidel Castro without mention of his human rights record, defended his comments on Sunday and said the late Cuban leader had been a dictator.

Trudeau sparked fury and online mockery after he referred to Castro as a remarkable leader and expressed his sorrow at the Friday death of Cubas longest serving president.

Many were quick to point out that Castro suppressed dissent and there was no option for other leadership on the island nation under his regime.

On Sunday, Trudeau said the statement was simply meant to recognize the passing of a former head of state of a country that Canada had longstanding ties with, and not to gloss over unflattering history.

The fact is Fidel Castro had a deep and lasting impact on the Cuban people, Trudeau told reporters in a televised news conference at a Madagascar Francophonie summit.

He certainly was a polarizing figure and there certainly were significant concerns around human rights, thats something Im open about and that Ive highlighted.

Trudeau said he had raised the issue of human rights during an official visit to Cuba earlier this month.

Asked whether he thought Castro was a dictator, Trudeau said: Yes.

Some Conservative opposition lawmakers on Sunday urged Trudeau to boycott Castros funeral while other contenders for the Conservatives leadership criticized his comments.

The prime ministers office said no decision had yet been made on who would be representing Canada at the funeral.

Castro was an honorary pallbearer at the 2000 funeral of Trudeaus father, former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, who was the first NATO leader to visit Cuba back in 1976.

Trudeaus initial statement, which was markedly more positive than most Western leaders, sparked a backlash on Saturday, especially among some U.S. Republicans and Cuban exiles in the United States.

Canada has long been one of Cubas closest western allies, maintaining ties after its 1959 revolution.

During his November visit, Trudeau said that Canada would maintain its relationship with Cuba even if that put it at odds with US President-elect Donald Trump, who has threatened to reverse the US-Cuban detente.
In a reprise of campaign-season rancor, Donald Trump and his lieutenants are assailing an effort  now joined by Hillary Clinton  to recount votes in up to three battleground states, calling the push fraudulent, the work of crybabies and, in the president-elects estimation, sad.

And as Trump worked to fill foreign policy and national security posts in his Cabinet, a top adviser expressed astonishment that 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney remained under consideration for secretary of state after his campaign-long questioning of Trumps character, intellect and integrity.

Trump on Sunday tweeted part of Clintons concession speech, when she told supporters they must accept that Donald Trump is going to be our president, and snippets from her debate remarks, when she denounced the Republican nominee for refusing to say in advance that he would accept the Election Day verdict.

This came on top of his saying it was a scam that Green Party nominee Jill Stein was revisiting the vote count in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Trump won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday. His Michigan margin was a hairs breadth 0.22 percent of the states votes.

Clinton leads the national popular vote by close to 2 million votes, but Trump won 290 electoral votes to Clintons 232, not counting Michigan. She could conceivably tip the electoral balance in the remote event that all flipped to her in recounts.

Trump claimed in a tweet Sunday, without any evidence, that I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally. He further asserted the unknowable in saying that if the popular vote determined the presidency, It would have been much easier for me to win it because he would have altered his campaign to pile up overall vote totals, not Electoral College votes.

From the sidelines, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Clinton rival during the Democratic primary turned ally during the general election, said: No one expects there to be profound change, but theres nothing wrong with going through the process.

Trump planned to return to New York on Sunday after spending Thanksgiving weekend at his West Palm Beach estate. His transition team said the president-elect had scheduled a series of meetings Monday with prospective administration hires.

Among the jobs Trump has still yet to fill: secretary of state. Internal division over the position again spilled out into the open on Sunday as Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway voiced her concerns with the possibility of Romney landing such a significant position.

Trump supporters feel a bit betrayed that you can get a Romney back in there after everything he did, Conway said. We dont even know if he voted for Donald Trump. He and his consultants were nothing but awful to Donald Trump for a year. She added that she was reflecting what the grassroots are saying.

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker are among other prospects to serve as the countrys top diplomat.

Im all for party unity, but Im not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position, Conway said.

Trumps incoming chief of staff, national party Chairman Reince Priebus, acknowledged that Romney would represent a team of rivals concept.

Trump was mostly silent on the brewing recount effort until it became known that Clinton would join it, at least in Wisconsin. On Saturday, a day after Wisconsin officials said they would conduct the first presidential recount in the states history, Clinton campaign attorney Marc Elias said: We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides.

Elias said Clinton would take the same approach in Pennsylvania and Michigan if Stein were to follow through with recount requests in those states.

Read| Ridiculous, sad: Trump steps up criticism of Clinton camp over vote recount
Yoga guru Ramdev and his Patanjali Ayurved group were embroiled in a controversy in Nepal on Monday after the media reported he had invested more than Rs 150 crore in the country without approval from government agencies.

Ramdev and Patanjai Ayurved ignored provisions of a key law, Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act, and did not seek mandatory approval from the Investment Board Nepal or Industrial Promotion Board, according to Kantipur Daily, the countrys largest selling newspaper.

Patanjali Yogpeeth (Nepal) Trust, described as a non-profit, too was registered in Nepal in violation of local laws, the report said. It added Nepal has no provisions for foreign investments by non-profit companies and all such investments were illegal.

The report further alleged Ramdev had not taken approval from the department of industry before setting up ventures in Nepal and Patanjali Ayurved was registered in the name of businessman Upendra Mahato, founding president of the Non-Resident Nepali Association, and his wife, Samata Prasad.

Ramdev, who is very popular in Nepal and whose yoga session last week was attended by the top political leadership, including the president and prime minister, dismissed the allegations and said he had not yet started investing in Nepal.

I do not have any investment in Patanjali Ayurved, Nepal, he said in a statement. If I am going to invest in Nepal, I will take approval from the Nepal government.

All investments in the Patanjali Arurved, Nepal (were) made by Upendra Mahato and his wife Samata, he added.

It is mandatory for a foreign national or firm investing or setting up a factory in Nepal to get approval from the Industrial Promotion Board chaired by the industry ministry or the Investment Board Nepal chaired by the prime minister, the Kantipur Daily reported.

After Ramdev recently announced in Kathmandu that he planned to make more investments, government officials conducted a study to ascertain whether he had taken approval. The daily quoted government officials as saying that it was found Ramdev and his associations had not taken consent or approval from any government agencies.

When Ramdev arrived in Kathmandu last Tuesday, he reportedly told Nepalese businessmen during an interaction that he had invested more than Rs 150 crore in the country. These investments included a Patanjali Ayurved unit that was inaugurated last Wednesday by President Bidhya Devi Bhandari and Ramdev.

Ramdev had also announced he would invest another Rs 10,000 crore in Nepal over ten years and create 20,000 jobs.

The Kantipur Daily alleged Ramdevs non-profit was registered in Nepal because of political pressure and the yoga guru was one of its five shareholders. After officials refused to register it, former industry minister Rajendra Mahato, a prominent Madhesi leader, and industry secretary Janakraj Joshi pressured junior officials to register Patanjali Ayurved and Patanjali Yoghpeeth as non-profits on October 7, 2007, the report said.

During the registration by the Company Register, the passports of Ramdev, his aide Acharya Balkrishna, Rajendra Das and Rajendra Singh were used as affidavits. A Nepali national, Saligram Singh, was the fifth shareholder in both firms.

Former minister Mahato told the daily that the process began after Ramdev announced he would open a branch of Patanjali in Nepal. Then I discussed the proposal with my staff in the ministry. I do not know the nitty-gritty of the process. Completion of the process is the job of bureaucrats, not me, he said.

Ramdev said in his statement that a majority of shares in Patanjali Nepal would be taken over by Patanjali India. All profits that Patanjali will make here will be invested in Nepal, they will not be taken back to India, he said.

I have been fighting my entire life against black money, corruption and financial irregularitiesOur identity is based on financial transparency so that there is no chance of having such illegal investment or doing any kind of financial irregularities as reported in the media, he added.
A number of UFO sightings have been spotted through not only decades, but even through centuries, as reported by HNGN.

A new question has been posited: Are we all alien worshippers? Is God an Alien?

That is the strange and fascinating theory that UFO hunters are putting out. God appeared on an alien machine more than 400 years ago, it is reported.

In a painting from the 16th Century, from a church in Tuscany, you can see that the painting by Italian artist Ventura Salimbeni shows God and Jesus - flanking a mysterious, metal object, which looks like a very ordinary, earthy object - the Russian spaceship Sputnik!

This one was painted 357 years before the real Sputnik - the first human object to soar into space - was launched.

The strange and bizarre Biblical reference was revealed YouTube channel Strange Mysteries.

Thus, isn't it obvious that aliens have been controlling humans for centuries? It sure gives an insight into the God-Alien theory.

The video said: "This just looks a little bit too uncanny for symbolic reference. If the sphere is said to represent the universe, why did the painter not include any stars or other celestial objects? Why does the sphere seem to reflect light much like an actual shiny ball would? What exactly was the vision the artist saw when he painted this work of art? What inspired him? This is truly odd."

Additions were made to the theory by UFO hunter Scott C Waring. He wrote: "The artist must have had some mental visions given to him from an alien. Aliens can and have mentally manipulated humans since the beginning of our existence."

The secret Soviet Union UFO files have shows some links between humans and UFOs, just like the US through the decades. It has been reported that UFOs have frequently inhabited the Big Twos in the earlier centuries. Soviet-born UFO researcher and author Paul Stonehill said. "The Soviets were shocked so many UFOs could penetrate their borders and basically just do what they wanted without any control from the Kremlin.

"There were many more cases of direct encounters than in the United States, and anything which was flying over the Soviet Union was very interested in secret military installations."

So is our God an Alien? The above examples certainly do not show the kind, benevolent entity that we thought he would be.

Perhaps these Aliens aren't really gods - unless we are mistaken about what a God should be!

YouTube/Strange Mysteries

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
NASA may not like the new development entering the next Administration but it has been mandated to stay clear of other priorities except what the agency is supposed to do. Incoming US President Donald Trump wants the organization to focus mainly on space-associated goals.

In line with this, the President-elect is bent on limiting the agency's budget which means that a part of NASA's programs will be affected. That aspect will be climate change.

Trump believes that the space administration is better off pursuing the bigger picture beyond earth. Instead of spending money on the planet's weather forecasts, it will be appropriate if financing will be tied up to the deep and unexplored frontier.

Bob Walker, the upcoming President's adviser on space policy, shares that NASA has been merely functioning as a management center for sustaining needed resources in space. In addition, the group has also been dragged into the political approach of environmental programs.

The former congressman who spearheaded the Commission on the Future of the US Aerospace Industry during President W. Bush's presidency further states that the goal is to widen the scope of solar system exploration. Technology should be enhanced in order to attain perceived aspirations.

Prior to the current development, NASA has been on the hot seat due to its overblown funding. This year, it has been granted a 30-percent increase in its budget that amounted to $1.92 billion. Although the current presidency planned to cut the flow of support by $840 million next year, NASA's overall monetary resources have increased by 50 percent under the Obama Administration.

Part of NASA's spending spree has been focused on science projects like the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System which monitors the ocean's surface wind speed through an eight-satellite set-up.

Thomas Zurbuchen, the space agency's Science Administrator, has defended the venture, declaring NASA's earth science function is essential to human life across the globe. However, the Republicans have criticized the organization's expensive approach on weather assessment.

As of late, it is being anticipated that the Trump Administration will pursue a return to the moon which was done last in 1972. President W. Bush has planned to commence the project in the 2020s but President Obama cancelled it.

With space gear resources in place, not only will Trump pursue an upcoming lunar mission. His presidency will also set its sight on Mars.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
NASA's rover based on the Red Planet could have found the first solid proof that Mars once housed alien life, according to scientists.

As space experts reviewed images taken by Spirit Rover nearly a decade ago, they concluded that NASA have previously overlooked evidence in those images that could point towards bio-signatures for past early forms in outer space in the planet.

Steven Ruff and Jack Farmer of Arizona State University looked at the data from rover's visit to Home plate, a plateau of layered rocks in the Columbia Hills area of the crater. It is an ancient area of eroded volcanic ash thought to still contain an active hot spring, which has formed Silica outcrops, including finger-like formations photographed by the NASA's rover.

Fossils here on Earth are one example of bio-signatures of past life. Stromatolites form when microbes gather into colonies in moist environments, before trapping sediment on the sticky surface. Sediments react with calcium carbonate in the water, making up the limestone.

Stromatolites at El Tatio, which has conditions similar to those on Mars, also formed by hot springs are said to be similar to those pictured by the rover in the Martian crater.

Silica deposits in the structures at El Tatio were found by the team to be almost identical to those found by the Spirit rover in the Gusev crater.

Last month, a separate report by a different team of scientists concluded evidence for life on Mars may have been found as far back as 1976 - but the scientists who suggested it then were not believed.

A review of a study called Viking Labeled Release, which saw two probes land on the Red Planet, brought exciting claims that soil collected from Mars showed microbial life.

The crafts landed 4,000 miles from each other on Mars in the 1970s, but both yielded similarly shocking results following an analysis of Martian soil.

Once the soil had been returned to Earth, they underwent a series of tests including heating them, nutrient injection and being stored in the dark for two months.

Scientists noted that the samples showed signs of microbial life - and were uncannily similar to the same tests on soils from California, Alaska, and Antarctica.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The Trump Fever is back to pre-election levels as the President-elect made a dubious claim that he got cheated when the popular votes came in. However, the billionaire businessman has failed to support his declaration.

Based on the recent figures, Democrat Hillary Clinton is ahead by more than two million ballots in the aggregate selection process.

It is likely that Donald Trump's baseless accusation may have been attributed to an online domain named Infowars which raised the possibility of about three million people casting their votes illicitly. Radio host Alex Jones is in the forefront of this intriguing scheme.

This is not the first time that such theory has emerged. Back in 2015, Jones has leaked out a conspiracy story that outgoing President Barack Obama will impose martial law in Texas with the presence of Special Forces. The talk show anchor has also instigated that the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in 2012 is a hoax.

Considering Trump's appreciation for Jones radio work, the upcoming President's pronouncement is not entirely surprising.

To clarify matters, the PolitiFact group has started an investigation. It has been found that the Infowars site used a narrative that is non-existent. In addition, the domain has further bolstered its claim based on a person's baseless tweets.

The fact-finding organization has dug deeper to find evidence of suspicious voting methods. It appears that only 56 questionable cases have surfaced. The incident has occurred between 2000 and 2011.

Trump's attacks against popular voting will have no merit considering that the Electoral College will be presiding over the poll results. According to the Associated Press, the Republican candidate has 290 ballots which are 20 more than the threshold needed to win the 2016 US Presidential tussle.

The statistical lead is anticipated to stretch when certification of ballots gets underway in Michigan soon. Trump is ahead by more than 10,000 votes in the said state.

Following the Democrat's call for a recount, Trump has scrutinized the move on Twitter. He has cited illegal voting in Clinton-dominated territories of California, New Hampshire and Virginia.

According to Alex Padilla, California's Secretary of State, Trump's baseless claims are unbecoming of a President-elect.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Queen Elizabeth has been reported to have given her blessing to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for an engagement and their upcoming wedding. This news has been triggered more with the speculation that Prince William issued a statement supporting the said couple.

In a report published by Celebrity Dirty Laundry, Prince William released a statement regarding Prince Harry and his relationship with actress, Meghan Markle. This is very unusual as William has never given any remark on Harry's love life.

The Duke of Cambridge issued a statement on November 26 that reads, "The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him."

Though Meghan Marklehas not been directly addressed in the said statement, one can only infer that William is actually referring to Harry's girlfriend, Meghan Markle. He particularly mentioned, "support those closest to him."

The report also added that Prince Harry never talked about his relationship in public and this is the first time he did this. In fact, there is a speculation that William knew of this even before Harry released the statement.

It was on November 8 when Prince Harry confirmed the relationship though his statement which was then released by the Kensington Palace. And when the actress was spotted walking to Kensington Palace, there is a rumor that she was visiting Harry and she actually met Kate Middleton and Prince William there.

And that for Prince William to issue a statement like this means that Harry's relationship with Meghan Markle is now getting serious. This rises to the speculation that Harry has already received Queen Elizabeth's blessing for his upcoming engagement and later the wedding. So, this indicates that another royal wedding could just be happening next year.

Despite the rumors that Prince William and Kate Middleton are on the verge of a divorce, the Duke of Cambridge released this statement in support of his brother's relationship with the "Suits" actress. Prince Harry considers Kate as one of his closest friends and that he often trusts the Duchess for her pieces of advice.

So, if Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's engagement and wedding are underway because of Prince William's statement and Queen Elizabeth's blessing, what would Kate Middleton feelespecially on her rumoured divorce with Prince William?

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
T able lamps, uplighters, floor lamps and spots all give your home an instant fix.

Lighting is the best way to transform your environment, says star designer Tom Dixon. See latest lines at his recently revamped showroom in Portobello Dock, W10.

Every designer, it seems, is doing lighting. French maverick Philippe Starck and starchitect Norman Foster are at it, along with small craft outfits such as Cornish wood bender Tom Raffield and Anthony Dickens at Made by the Forge.

A stylish starburst: former art teacher Charles Lethaby with his Elara lamp, chosen for Hobbs stores last Christmas (from 700)

Newbie is ex-art teacher Charles Lethaby whose Elara pendant, a starburst of golden rods, is stocked by Heals. Meanwhile, SCP in Shoreditch has commissioned top international designers for its own-brand lighting.

Walk around the Melt collection at Tom Dixon and the orb-like shades look different from every angle, thanks to their clever shape. They give the effect of mouth-blown glass but in fact are moulded from light-weight polycarbonate with a shiny metallic finish in copper, gold or chrome. They become translucent when lit. Prices are from 380 for a mini-pendant to 1,100 for the largest floor lamp.

From 380: the Melt Collection at Tom Dixon / Peer Lindgreen

EMBRACING THE NEW

Designers are loving the new technologies, including power-saving cool-touch LEDs in neat integrated strips, laser-cut metal and 3D printing. Mobile phones operate smart home lighting, and your bulb can even be a speaker.

New sculptured Voronoi bulbs at Heals have low-heat LED filaments, while innovator Plumens latest LED filament bulb has a gold centre designed by a jeweller. Theres even a levitating bulb that hovers in the air using electromagnetism at The Conran Shop.

All Ikea lights are now LEDs, which use 85 per cent less energy and last up to 20 times longer than tungsten.

CHERISHING THE OLD

By contrast, traditional crafts are also cherished, for blowing glass, forging iron, and turning or bending wood, with shades that ooze the solid worth of old materials.

Consider Terence Woodgates perfectly balanced wood and marble. These heavier designs need a good fixing  you may have to strengthen your ceiling.

Art light is at every design show  for example exquisite lamp shades by painter Anna Jacobs and hand-folded glass lamps by Aline Johnson, both London based.

Anglepoise does specials by Paul Smith, the latest a Mondrian melange of primary colours. Londons edgier brands include Innermost, in Oxo Tower Wharf, SE1 and Decode, with a carbon lantern made with racing car tech.

WHERE TO SHOP

125: handmade Voronoi art light bulb, from Heal's

A light crawl in the West End starts at Heals  look out for sleek new brand wrong.london. A natty booth offers stylish flexes, to pick and mix with bulb holders and bulbs for a perfect combo.

Alongside is Habitat with a new basement cave of light. Naked bulbs are now our heroes, says design director Polly Dickens, who has trapped them in thin black metal cages, for style statements at good prices.

In walking distance in Great Titchfield Street is quirky Dutch brand Moooi, with outsize pendants and surreal black animal lamps.

Ligne Roset in Mortimer Street offers French-style chic with 15 per cent off, then its on to John Lewis, with a vast spread and a bulb bar.

In Finchley Road, NW11, The Lighting Store is a family firm that will design and install  which is good to know. John Lewis also has a fitting service, while Habitat easy-fit cage shades just clip on.
Last week, in Athens, a cast of hospitality and travel tech experts gathered at the Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo. The conference was dedicated to online travel trends and developments, and to solutions for the most pressing challenges facing the industry. Here is a synopsis of the meet-up, and the high points from some of the world's most knowledgeable hospitality-tech experts.

Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo Day One

From the onset of the conference attendees saw the event kicking off with a highly informative presentation by TripAdvisor's Anna Rufo, who is Head of Display Sales  Central & Eastern Europe. Rufo's detailed talk focused on TripAdvisor as a sales and marketing tool and keyed on markets like Russia where Greece growth is concerned. Rufo's lead off paved the way for one of the world's most successful hoteliers, Tom Magnuson of Magnuson Hotels, who discussed how industry players can profit even in trying economic and an uncertain geopolitical atmosphere.

TripAdvisor's Anna Rufo discusses her company's value as a sales and marketing tool to the Digi.travel audience in Athens Photo by Hospitality Net

Magnuson, whose keynote set the tone for the summit, offered several innovative marketing templates. The co-founder of the Magnuson brand engaged the Greece market from within key-point destination hospitality, but more importantly fringe regions where thinking outside the box can optimize room sales. Following Magnuson's in-depth talk, a panel discussion alongside two of Greece's most successful executives, and a hospitality media celebrity helped galvanize the conference's key topics. Alongside Magnuson were Hotelbrain's Founder and President, Panos Paleologos; AEROTEL Group President, Alexandros Vassilikos; and HospitalityNet's very own Henri Roelings, who founded and publishes the world's most read B2B hospitality media.

All four experts' focus was on how best to serve the customer journey and their travel experience by using not only new technologies but traditional hospitality value. Paleologos' focus in particular called to question hotel management reaching too far afield, rather than "doing what each hotel does best." Vassilikos' hotel group's keen focus being on guest satisfaction, the AIROTEL Group also focuses on the "Athens experience," or destination-specific value. On this, both Tom Magnuson and Henri Roelings, elaborated further, telling the audience to innovate through localization.

Day one finished with Dimitris Kossyfas, who's the Head of Travel - Google Greece, Cyprus and Malta; Murat Ozkok, who's Skyscanner's Marketing Manager, Turkey & Greece; IBM's Haris Linardakis; Microsoft's Michalis Moschos; Edouard Le Lesle of Amadeus; and day one conference chairperson, Dr. Marianna, Sigala.

Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo Day Two

Conference Chairman for day two was Phil Butler, Senior Partner of Pamil Visions PR, who had led the previous day's panel discussion. Phil introduced me to the attendees, and I discussed social PR trends and strategies. Following my presentation was Sojourn's Eleonora Francioni, who talked about how data has transformed the advertising landscape, and who fielded endless questions from the interested audience.

HQPlus Head of Sales, Philipp Selzer (left) joined by Xenia Nartschick for a well received data/revenue presentation Photo by Hospitality Net

With data and revenue as the closing sentiment, conference experts like; HQPlus's Philipp Stelzer and Xenia Nartschick captivated the audience with stunningly details data analytics for business intelligence. Stelzer actually surprised many attendees with HQPlus' deep capability for targeting segments. Following the HQPlus presentation, Vasiliki Mavrokefalou of Digital Ecosystems hammered home the critical point of using data-driven approaches. Later in the day Iconik Hospitality's Athanasios Tzakos, TrustYou's Marie-Christin Vollmer, Zoottle's Abriel Efstathiou, and key consultant Dr. Dimitris Koutoulas informed the audience and media about unlocking existing data, the power of feedback, monetizing WiFi, and managing TripAdvisor reviews respectively.

Plateno Europe's Director of E-Commerce & Distribution, Tomasz Janczak with a detailed presentation on the outbound Chinese traveler Photo by Hospitality Net

Conference Finale

Besides the keynote presentation of Tom Magnuson, the most highly anticipated topic of Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo was the fast emerging Chinese traveler market segment. Tomasz Janczak of Plateno Group Europe made a gripping presentation highlighted by an emerging Chinese middle-class tourist market, as well as the luxury component of this burgeoning potential. Janczak also focused on another similar potential from the BRICS, and emergent technologies like Plateno Connect. The audience was again surprised to discover the current situation where Chinese visitors to Europe capitals are concerned. According to the Plateno executive, the already massive Chinese visitor influx is not because of OTAs, as is the case for other segments, travel agents and wholesalers representing the lion's share of this market left the audience with a positive footnote to ponder.

At left the President and CEO of Tourism Generis, George Drakopoulos with Plateno Group's Tomasz Janczak (right) in a panel brainstorming session at Digi.travel Athens Photo by Hospitality Net

Finally, Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo Athens concluded on a highly tense note as a final panel with Plateno's Janczak and Tourism Generis' Georgios Drakopoulos found conflicting views on the scope and strategies for attracting Chinese travelers. Drakopoulos, who's a special adviser to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) was of the opinion that the Greek government would not co-fund pilot projects for creating the China conduit to Greece. For Janczak's part, Plateno Group has connection building tools and traveler supply in place. The rub, as it appears, is the lack of direct flights and other ease of travel elements being in place. In the end, both experts concurred on the need for private initiatives and funding to get these direct flights on the course.

Henri Roelings

Founder & CEO

+31 6 5431 0152

Hospitality Net
Asians head for the beaches

Double-digit growth in Asian outbound travel led by China - Asians head for the beaches

Asians travelled more than ever so far this year, with a surge in trips to destinations within the region and including many more beach holidays. After a double-digit rise in international trips this year, the outlook remains strong for 2017. Those were some of the results of the 24th World Travel Monitor Forum in Pisa, Italy (November 3-4).

Outbound travel by Asians grew by a dynamic 11 percent in the first eight months of 2016, according to World Travel Monitor figures. There was a very strong 14 percent rise in trips to destinations within Asia and also a high 11 percent increase in travel to the Americas. But the number of trips to Europe dropped by 1 percent between January and August 2016.

Once again, China was the driving force for growth with an 18 percent rise in outbound trips (excluding to Hong Kong and Macao). But the Republic of Korea also performed very well this year with an 11 percent rise in international travel, according to World Travel Monitor figures.

Holidays, which account for an overwhelming 81 percent of all trips by Asians, increased by 11 percent over the first eight months of 2016. There was a healthy 7 percent increase in international business trips, and a strong 12 percent rise in the number of visits to family and friends (VFR) and other leisure trips abroad.

Asians are clearly going on more sun & beach holidays, which grew by 20 percent between January and August 2016, according to World Travel Monitor figures. There was also good growth for countryside trips (+15 percent) and city trips (+8 percent) but the number of touring holidays increased by only 2 percent. As a result, the average length of stay fell slightly to around 6 nights and average spending per trip dropped by 2 percent (in euro terms).

Dr. Martin Buck, Messe Berlin's Senior Vice President Travel & Logistics, commented: "This year's boom in Asian outbound travel, especially by the Chinese, is remarkable. Moreover, we can observe an important long-term trend. Asians are starting to go on fewer sightseeing trips taking in several countries. Instead, many of them dream of relaxing on sun & beach holidays. In other words, they are gradually becoming 'typical holidaymakers' like in Western countries."

These trends are also reflected in figures from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) which show strong growth for many destinations in Asia and the Pacific this year. The region is leading worldwide inbound growth, with international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) up 9 percent through September, according to the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. This was well ahead of the 6 percent growth achieved in 2015. Asia "is the star performer this year" among the world's tourism regions, Michel Julian, Technical Coordinator of the UNWTO Tourism Market Trends Programme, commented at the Pisa forum.

All four sub-regions shared in this growth, led by Oceania (+10 percent) and followed closely by North-East Asia, South-East Asia (both +9 percent) and South Asia (+8 percent). Many destinations reported double-digit growth, with Vietnam (+36 percent), the Republic of Korea (+34 percent), Japan (+24 percent) and Sri Lanka (+15 percent) in the lead.

Against this very positive background, the outlook for Asian outbound travel remains good. IPK International predicts a 6 percent rise in Asian outbound trips in 2017, based on its Asian Travel Confidence Index which measures travel intentions for the next year.

At the annual World Travel Monitor Forum in Pisa, initiated at the invitation of consultancy IPK International and sponsored by ITB Berlin, around 50 tourism experts and academics from around the world present the latest figures and current trends in international tourism.
Park Inn by Radisson Residence Riga, Barona Opens in Latvia

Offering 78 spacious apartments, and operated by The Rezidor Hotel Group, this latest addition to the portfolio is the first branded hotel residence apartment conveniently located in the heart of the city center at Krisjana Barona iela.
Jordan Brand wants all of your money this Holiday Season, even if it means cramming three of their best Air Jordan 1s into one sneaker.

In addition to the Space Jam Air Jordan 11, True Blue Air Jordan 3 and Black Cat Air Jordan 6s that will be releasing this Holiday Season, this Top Three Air Jordan 1 will be arriving today, November 28th aka Cyber Monday for $160.

This Top Three Air Jordan 1 will essentially be a small-scale What The Air Jordan 1, built on a combination the Top 3 Air Jordan 1s; Royal, Bred and Chicago. Theyll be available in sizes for the whole family.

But if you prefer a more classic looking Air Jordan 1, the Royal 1s are coming in 2017.

Top 3 AJ1
RTE has announced a new partnership with the RTE Choice Music Prize for next year's event, which will see both RTE2 and RTE 2FM play a lead role in supporting what has become one of the highlights of the Irish musical calendar as part of a new agreement.

The winning album will be announced at the RTE Choice Music Prize event, held in Vicar Street, Dublin on 9 March 2017. It will be aired live on RTE 2FM in a special four hour extended programme from 7-11pm and then shown on RTE2 as part of a special RTE Choice Music Prize programme, approximately one week later.

The shortlist itself for the Irish Album of The Year 2016  in association with IMRO and IRMA  will be announced on 11 January 2017 and the shortlist for the Irish Song of the Year 2016 will be announced on 1 February 2017.

Commenting on the announcement, Dee Forbes, Director-General RTE, said, Supporting Irish music and Irish musicians is a core part of what RTE does and this partnership will allow us to take our support one step further.

Through RTE2 and RTE2FM, two established brands with a long and rich history in supporting Irish music, and through our popular online and mobile platforms, RTE will put the RTE Choice Music Prize at the centre of a campaign that will bring the best Irish artists and songs from the past year to a wider audience.

The 12th annual RTE Choice Music Prize will once again celebrate and acknowledge the best in Irish recorded music. The prize has become one of the highlights of the Irish musical calendar since its inception in 2005 and is awarded to the Irish Album of the Year, as chosen from a shortlist of ten releases by a panel of twelve Irish music media professionals and industry experts.

The winning act will receive 10,000, a prize fund which has been provided by The Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) and The Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA). All of the shortlisted acts will receive a specially commissioned award.

Past recipients of the Album of The Year award include Julie Feeney; The Divine Comedy; Super Extra Bonus Party; Jape; Adrian Crowley; Two Door Cinema Club; Delorentos; Villagers; The Gloaming; and Soak.

Past recipients of Song of the Year include: Royseven with We Should Be Lovers in 2011; Gavin James with Say Hello in 2012; The Original Rudeboys with Never Gonna Walk Away in 2013; The Script with Superheroes in 2014; and Gavin James with Bitter Pill in 2015.

Dan Healy, Head of RTE 2FM, said, The RTE Choice Music Prize is a great partnership for RTE and for RTE 2FM. As proud supporters of Irish music were looking forward to fully unleashing the power of the station to get right behind the best albums and songs recorded by Irish artists over the past year and what a great year it has been.

Adrian Lynch, Acting Channel Controller, RTE2, said, RTE2 is no stranger to broadcasting the RTE Choice Music Prize event, but as part of this new partnership which also includes radio, online and mobile support, RTE2 can play a greater role in helping all nominees make a bigger impact.

RAAP, Culture Ireland and Golden Discs are also official project partners. Culture Ireland will fund the attendance of influential overseas Industry executives to attend the Choice Music Prize Live Event on 9 March 2007, while Golden Discs will feature special stands showcasing the RTE Choice Music Prize nominees across their stores nationwide.

Commenting on the announcement, Victor Finn, Chief Executive IMRO said, We are delighted to continue our longstanding association with this important music prize. Irish music continues to push new boundaries and this prize shines a light on the music creators and songs that resonate so strongly with audiences at home and abroad.

And Willie Kavanagh, IRMA Chairman added, We at IRMA are happy to continue our support of the RTE Choice Music Prize. The ongoing search for new artists and new music, which is the focus of the RTE Choice Music Prize, represents the life blood of the music industry in Ireland.

The Choice Music Prize website has published a list of Irish albums released to date in 2016. This list  along with the full list of judges  can be viewed by logging onto http://www.choicemusicprize.ie

Tickets for the Choice Music Prize live event will go on sale from all Ticketmaster outlets and from http://www.ticketmaster.ie on 2 December, priced 26.50, including booking fee.
"I intend to live forever," the songwriting legend told KCRW.

Less than a month before his death, Leonard Cohen sat down in front of an audience of journalists with his son and producer of You Want It Darker, Adam Cohen, for an interview with KCRW's Chris Douridas on Oct. 13. The interview was part of an exclusive listening session for You Want It Darker in the Canadian Consulate in Los Angeles. In the beginning of the interview, Cohen referenced his previous interview with The New Yorker, in which he had stated that he was ready to die. "I may have exaggerated," Cohen corrected. "One is given to self-dramatisation from time to time." Then he elaborated, "I intend to live forever."

The father and son spoke eloquently about the experience of working together on the latest album. Adam said, "For me to have had the privilege, and the little capacity to be able to help, not only an artist of this magnitude, but who also happens to be my father, was one of the more outstanding things that's ever happened to my little life."

"We're actually not that tight a family," Leonard interjected, to laughs from the crowd. "I've expressed my gratitude to my son," he said, "It was a great privilege to have someone of this skill bringing this album to conclusion."

Journalists from around the world presented their own questions to Cohen directly, all in various states of starstruck awe. The questions covered a range of topics prevalent in Leonard's work, from family to religion. Leonard spoke of his songwriting process, and the many aspects of it that are entirely out of his control. "I've always said, if I knew where the good songs came from, I'd go there more often," he said. Leonard also acknowledged Dylan's Nobel win, saying "To me, it's like pinning a medal on Mount Everest for being the highest mountain." He presented the lyrics for an exclusive song about the hummingbird, a reoccurring theme in Leonard's work, to a round of applause from the crowd. "I would say the hummingbird deserves the royalties on that one," he said. The interview came to a close with Leonard spoke of one of the most impactful lyrics from "You Want It Darker;" "Hineni, hineni/I'm ready, my lord," lyrics that have become all the more impactful in these weeks following his death. "That declaration of readiness, no matter what the outcome, that's a part of everyone's soul... This is just a part of my nature and, I think, everybody else's nature to offer oneself at the critical moment, when the emergency becomes articulate. It's only when the emergency becomes articulate that we can locate that willingness to serve." He paused. "That's getting too heavy, I'm sorry," he apologised, making the audience laugh.

"Thanks for coming, friends," he said graciously at the end. "I really appreciate it, I really appreciate your standing up when I came into the room. I hope we can do this again, I intend to stick around till a hundred-and-twenty."

Listen to the full interview below.
The heavy metal band shared some making of for 'Here Comes Revenge' from their new album Hardwired...To Self-Destruct

Metallica have released a studio sessions behind the scenes video for 'Here Comes Revenge' from their 2016 album HardwiredTo Self-Destruct.

It follows their making-of promos 'Moth Into Flame' and 'Hardwired' from their new album as well.

The videos show the band members while they are racking brains as they track instruments and vocals in the studio.

Metallica continue to add dates to their World tour, which is expected to run for at least two years.
The Houston law firm Baker Botts, best known for its energy practice, has built one of the nation's largest and most successful intellectual property practices, opening offices in tech hot spots and developing an unusual compensation system to attract and keep talented lawyers.

The firm began developing the business in 1990 by hiring a dozen lawyers who specialized in patent law. A quarter century later, Baker Botts has about 180 attorneys working in intellectual property, representing clients such as AT&T, Samsung, Facebook, Hitachi and Cisco Systems.

The noted energy firm, which has 700 lawyers, today has offices in Silicon Valley, New York and Austin, with revenue from technology practice equalling that of its energy practice. "Of our top 10 clients, six are technology companies," says Baker Botts partner Bart Showalter, chair of the firm's intellectual property practice.

A surge of patent litigation in the Eastern District of Texas has helped spur the firm's growth, but the rise of Baker Botts as an IP powerhouse has been more a matter of design than luck. The firm's intellectual property strategy can be traced to a meeting 26 years ago in Dallas between Jerry Mills, a force in Texas IP circles, and Baker Botts managing partner E. William Barnett of Houston.

More Information Five big Baker Botts wins for clients in patent cases 2016: Baker Botts represented Frisco-based Genband, a real-time communications software provider, which sued a competitor, Metaswitch Networks, for infringing seven of its patents. A jury in East Texas agreed and awarded Genband $8.2 million. Two months later, Baker Botts represented Genband again. This time, Metaswitch accused Genband of violating six of its patents and demanded $59 million. The East Texas jury ruled that Genband infringed on none of Metaswitch's patents and found that three of them were invalid. 2016: Technology giant Samsung Electronics hired Baker Botts to defend the company against allegations that it infringed a patent involving liquid crystal backlight display inverter circuit technology. Masakazu Ushijima sought $30 million in damages. A six-day trial in the Western District of Texas court resulted in a unanimous victory for Baker Botts and its client. In May 2016, Ushijima filed a new case against Samsung, and Baker Botts has again been hired by Samsung. 2015: Baker Botts represented Wisconsin-based Manitowoc Cranes in claims that Sany Heavy Industry Co. of China manufactured, imported and sold crawler cranes that used technology that improperly incorporated Manitowoc Cranes' trade secrets. In 2015, the International Trade Commission entered a 10-year exclusion order against the Chinese crane manufacturer after finding patent infringement and misappropriation of trade secrets. 2015: AT&T hired Baker Botts to defend the Dallas communications giant against allegations that AT&T Family Map and AT&T Navigator and Vehicle Tracker infringed on two patents related to location privacy technology owned by Enovsys. The eight-day trial in federal court in California ended with the jury ruling that AT&T violated none of Enovsys' patents and that three of the patents were invalid. 2012: Baker Botts represented Halliburton, which accused oil and gas service provider Weatherford International of infringing on patented drilling technology that has been used in hydraulic fracturing. After an eight-day trial in Dallas, the jury ruled for Halliburton and awarded $35 million in damages. See More Collapse

At the time, Baker Botts had 150 lawyers across five offices, including one in Dallas that opened in 1985. Almost all of the firm's lawyers were involved in energy issues, whether litigation or mergers and acquisitions.

Barnett, who noticed an uptick in intellectual property cases, convinced Mills that Baker Botts had the resources to hire the best and brightest patent lawyers to build something big. "I will admit, they offered me an enticing financial package," Mills says.

Baker Botts continued to expand its intellectual property practice, gaining a foothold in New York with its 1997 purchase of a boutique law firm. The Baker Botts New York office today has 72 lawyers, half of whom are in intellectual property.

In 2007, the firm moved partner Bryant Boren to Palo Alto, Calif., to establish a Silicon Valley office. Boren, who chair's the firm's intellectual property and technology litigation practice, said it was able to hire talented law students and young lawyers at a time when other Bay Area firms were cutting associates programs. Most of those lawyers are still with Baker Botts.

The Silicon Valley office has 20 intellectual property attorneys.

In 2009, Baker Botts dispatched another partner, Kevin Meek, to launch an intellectual property practice in Austin, the tech hot spot of Texas. With 31 lawyers, Baker Botts has the largest IP practice in Austin.

The firm has grown the practice by attracting and developing talent, offering a compensation system that reflects the open-source culture of the technology industry, legal industry analysts said. Instead of just basing pay on billable hours, Baker Botts rewards lawyers for sharing work with colleagues, training young associates and generally cooperating and collaborating with each other. That has given the firm an advantage in recruiting and keeping legal talent.

"Baker Botts is not typical. (It is) one of the absolute leaders in the profession," says New Jersey law firm consultant Joel Rose. "They have superior quality lawyers, they take time for training, and they've been able to attract an excellent client base."

For a longer version of this article, visit TexasLawbook.net.
WASHINGTON - Kathleen Hartnett White, a former chairman of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and vocal critic of President Barack Obama's climate change policies, is among the leading candidates to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under President-elect Donald Trump.

White, now a senior fellow with the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation, met with the president-elect Monday afternoon at Trump Tower in New York.

With two months until the new administration takes office, White is among a list of names being circulated by Trump's transition operation as a potential Cabinet pick for either the EPA or the Department of Interior. Others include Harold Hamm, chief executive of the Oklahoma oil and gas company Continental Resources, and state attorneys general such Oklahoma's Scott Pruitt.

White had been discussed as a long-shot pick to become the nation's top environmental official since Trump's unexpected victory three weeks ago. But as news of her meeting with the president-elect bounced around social media Monday, White's profile quickly rose.

Stephen Moore, a Trump economic adviser who co-wrote a book with White titled "Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy," said White is "under serious consideration for EPA or some other high level job," and commended her tenure at the TCEQ as "proof you can have strong economic growth with large amounts of energy production while still cleaning up the air and water."

White was not available for comment, a spokeswoman for Texas Public Policy Foundation said.

Since leaving the TCEQ in 2007, White has made her name as a critic of climate change policy, questioning the methodology behind scientific models predicting the Earth's temperature will rise over the next century while advocating for lifting government regulations that restrict oil, gas and coal production.

"The climate policies now being institutionalized in the wealthiest and most educated countries in the world will eliminate the fossil fuels on which our society is utterly dependent," White said at an event hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation earlier this year. "There is no alternative that can begin to produce the goods and services and benefits fossil fuels have provided since the industrial revolution."

Picked by Perry in 2001

That position reflects comments Trump made during his presidential campaign that more climate change research needed to be done before investing more government resources into technologies and policies that reduce carbon emissions.

A longtime rancher with a cattle operation in West Texas, White graduated from Stanford University and early in her career served as a volunteer in the office of former first lady Nancy Reagan. After advocating in Washington on behalf of the National Cattleman's Association, White was tapped by former Texas Gov. Rick Perry to head the TCEQ in 2001, guiding the agency as it sought to meet new federal standards on the air pollutant ozone.

During that period, White fought back against environmentalists, who were critical of her pro-business approach and later launched a campaign urging Perry not to reappoint her when her term was up in 2007. She ultimately withdrew her name from consideration.

"She's never met a polluter she didn't like," quipped Tom Smith, Texas director of the advocacy group Public Citizen.

Support from industry

Along the way, White won the support of the state's influential energy and chemical lobbies. Pamela Giblin, an industry attorney with the Houston law firm Baker Botts, described White as a pragmatist more interested in protecting the public against immediate health hazards like contaminated water than distant threats like climate change. She pointed to Flint, Mich., where dangerous levels of lead contaminated drinking water.

"The Flint, Mich., case - it's incomprehensible it could happen in this day and age when we're chasing all these other things," Giblin said. "All of us who know her would be very pleased. She would do a fantastic job."

With the country still awaiting Trump's picks to head the State, Defense and Treasury Departments, a decision on the EPA is not expected for another "week or two," Moore said.

As White's name first circulated as a potential Cabinet pick, she told the Texas Tribune it "would be an honor to serve in his administration."

"I think a lot of things are way too premature to try to characterize meaningfully, but it would be my lifelong work," she said.
In the middle of holiday frenzy, can we stop for a moment and consider the huge lie at the heart of Christmas?

No, not that. I'm talking about the obese, overdressed man who likes children a little too much, the one who hangs out at the mall, sneaks into your house at night and is about a half-step more acceptable than an evil clown.

Oh, don't act shocked. Nothing is really going to happen. The Santa industrial complex is so deeply entrenched that a billion elves couldn't dislodge it. And no, I'm not arguing against having a little magic in childhood. The Easter Bunny makes no sense whatsoever, but the Tooth Fairy is kind of nice and has an actual end-date. Furthermore, the actual Christian Christmas story is so chockablock with wonder that you'd think it alone would be sufficient for the holiday, but apparently not.

So if you wipe that sentimental tinsel from your eyes, you might realize that in your candy-coated heart you don't really like Santa either.

The problem with Santa Claus was summed up by one of my daughters who, at about age 8, said, "I know there's a Santa because you and Dad are too cheap to get us all that good stuff."

She was right, of course. Santa was the reason for blowing the budget every year. Human parents would set human limits. Santa, or rather his specter, whizzed straight past limits.

We've all seen the present-drunk Christmas child, eyes glassy and cheeks too red, who mere days earlier was a normal kid. (All parents know that children turn into demons in the days leading up to Christmas.) Santa did that.

Kids seem to be clinging to the idea of Santa far longer than they used to, which should worry us anyway. Really, a child who believes in a guy who lives at the North Pole and flies around the world in one night? This is a child who is not paying attention in science class.

"Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies!" wrote the New York newspaper editor in his famous "Yes, Virginia" editorial. Exactly! We get along quite nicely, most of us, without fairies, and we can get along without that red oaf, too.

Thank heaven my kids are too old to have had to deal with the pernicious, snooping Elf on the Shelf, a simpering little tattle-tale who makes the NSA look discreet. He works for Santa.

Don't even get me started on Rudolph, who literally began as a crass commercial product, a promotion for a department store.

But before you write me off as a crank and a scold, let me offer an alternative, a figure just as evocative but potentially better for all of us. And no, I don't mean Krampus.

It's Good King Wenceslas. He even has the virtue of being real, as well as dead. Born in A.D. 907, he was a Czech duke who was made both a king and a saint after his death. Many legends sprang up around him. The most popular, and the one we know from the Christmas carol, is of his taking food and drink, with no fanfare, to a peasant in need.

See, this is a guy who is about generosity, not greed. His is not a tale of well-off American kids being whipped into a frenzy over getting more junk than they need, but about sharing abundance with those who have less.

Imagine a new guy at the mall, dressed up like an old-timey king, and the kids lining up to get on his lap and tell him what they're going to do for someone else.

Weird, I know.
It happens all the time. At the taco truck, Raul Orlando Edwards placed his fajita order: "Senorita por favor, pongale la cebolla bien cocida" ("I'd like the onions well-done.")

"Man," said the African-American behind him in line, "how did you learn to do that?" Meaning: Why, for a black man, is your Spanish so good?

"I'm Latino," Edwards answered. The director of the Strictly Street Salsa Studio and founder of the Afro-Latino Festival of Houston, he's a Panamanian-Jamaican immigrant.

The guy stated the obvious: "I thought you were black!"

"I'm blacker than you are!" replied Edwards. And, he says, they laughed.

These days, in both Texas and the U.S. at large, skin color is an ever less reliable indicator of identity. According to a 2015 Pew survey, about a quarter of U.S. Hispanics identify themselves as Afro-Latino. Like Edwards, the vast majority (70 percent) are foreign-born.

Afro-Latinos are generally descendants of African slaves brought to Spanish and Portuguese colonies in Latin America and the Caribbean. Most are biracial or multiracial. Being Afro-Latino, says Alain Lawo-Sukam, professor of Hispanic and Africana Studies at Texas A&M University, is less about skin color than about identity and a sense of belonging.

By their very existence, Afro-Latinos challenge the traditional "one-drop" view of race in the United States: the idea that one drop of African blood makes a person black. Afro-Latinos like Edwards aren't simply black, white or Hispanic. They're a combination -- and as such, a vision of the United States' racially and ethnically complex future. They're a minority inside a minority; a melting pot within the melting pot.

"Our identity," says Edwards, "is like the drop that is spilling the glass of the black-and-white system."

"Here is a group that we don't think of much, but that's an expression of the new America in the 21st century," says Stephen Klineberg of the Rice University's Kinder Institute for Urban studies.

What are you?

In Texas, says Jasminne Mendez, "people always ask me, 'What are you?', 'How did you get here?'  as opposed to in New York or Florida, where they are more familiar with Afro-Latinos." A poet and teacher, Mendez was born in the U.S. to Dominican parents.

"For African-Americans, whites, and even some Latino people, I am just another black girl until they hear me speaking in Spanish, and then they don't know what to make out of me," she says.

Often, Afro-Latinos' English attracts attention as well. Whites, Edwards says, sometimes tell him, "Oh, you speak so well." They do not say "for being black," but he feels sure that's what they mean.

"I learned English from books and don't speak with the slang they associate with wrong stereotypes of a black person," he says.

"I don't understand the slang yet," he laughs. "I am barely Googling the meaning of LOL."

"I had never thought of myself as belonging to a specific community based on racial factors," says Heydel Cepero, a video producer from Cuba who now lives in Houston. On the island, he notes, as well as in many Latin American countries, it's common to see a wide range of skin colors.

Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle

Spanish speakers use many matter-of-fact descriptors for mestizos, or mixed-race people -- words commonly considered no more insulting than "blue-eyed" or "dark-haired." "Mulatos" have black and white parents or grandparents, sometimes with Asians in the mix. "Jabaos" have light skin, and often blue or green eyes, but African features. "Morenos" describe dark skin and dark eyes in some countries or a brunette, a la Eva Longoria, in others.

And in Latin America, different attitudes go along with the different language. Though skin-tone words exist, the question "what are you?" is almost always answered not with one of them, but with a reference to geography. A person from Monterrey would tell another Mexican that he's a "regiomontano"; a woman from Havana would tell another Cuban she's a "habanera."

But here in Texas, Cepero says, Americans seem unsatisfied with the answer that he's Cuban, or Caribbean, or Latino, or American. "I am a product of la mezcla (the mixture)," he says. "I have never thought in terms of racial percentages, but here I would have to explain that I have an unknown percentage of black with 40 percent Spanish, 10 percent Asian."

Obsolete labels

It's difficult to know how many Afro-Latinos are in the U.S. and Houston. As Lawo-Sukam explains, the concept "Afro-Latino" has only recently begun to gain traction as a recognized American identity.

The U.S. Census doesn't track Afro-Latinos. In part, that's because the census doesn't count "Hispanic" as a racial category, but as a separate ethnic category  which, everyone seems to agree, leads to confusion. (For 2020, the Census plans a revamp of its racial categories.)

Asked to name their race, many Afro-Latinos chose to check "white alone." In the U.S., says professor Lawo-Sukam, Afro-Latinos often wish to avoid negative stereotypes that they don't believe fit them.

But there's another factor at play as well. In Spanish-speaking countries, being white doesn't necessarily mean being Caucasian. Whiteness, there, is considered not an absolute matter, but one of degrees. The difference in attitude is rooted in history. Though both British and Spanish colonizers brutally exploited African slaves and indigenous populations, the British had a more segregated model than the Spaniards; in Spanish and Portuguese colonies, the races were more prone to mix. When mestizo families began to ascend the social ladder in many Latin American countries, "white" evolved as a term more related to class.

Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle

In the Pew survey, more Afro-Latinos identify themselves as white (39 percent) than black (18 percent). A majority say their racial background is Hispanic (67 percent).

Still, in the city of Houston, a sizable number of Hispanics do not declare themselves to be white: 27 percent of Hispanics identified themselves as "black alone," "some other race alone," or "two or more races" combined.

A transracial world

Afro-Latinos are an example of the richer identities that are molding the new America.

"We are falling in love with each other's and making multiracial babies in a way that has never seen before," says professor Klineberg.

Between 1990 and 2010, black-white intermarriage in the U.S. has increased 600 percent, says Klineberg. Among U.S.-born Latinos, 28 percent of marriages are with non-Latinos.

Houston reflects that trend. Asians, for example, are also intermarrying. In the last three years in this city, a third have been tying the knot with non-Asians, he says.

While racism is a great social concern in the current America, "We are moving to what some people are calling a transracial world," Klineberg says. "We are going beyond race because ethnicity and race (identities) become less and less important (as we mix), and the great challenge in Houston and America is not going to be an ethnic divide. It's a class divide."

Afro-Latinos, says Lawo-Sukam, are uniquely able to bridge the gaps between the United States' largest racial groups. They can connect blacks and whites, Latinos and African-Americans.

Mendez agreesparticularly in light of racial tensions unleashed in the presidential election. "We could be a nightmare for some politicians if we forge a unity among races by using our natural affinity with all of them," Mendez says. "I feel that I can speak for the experiences of many people."

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Latinos are the largest ethnic group in the Houston area, representing more than 40 percent of its population. Now, following several recent mayoral appointments, Houston also has a growing number of Latino officials serving in high-profile roles.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner tapped Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo to lead the police force, and he picked El Paso Fire Chief Samuel Pena was chosen to head the fire department.

They join Richard Carranza  who was recently hired as superintendent of the Houston Independent School District after serving the same role in San Francisco  and Ed Gonzalez, who beat incumbent Ron Hickman in the race for Harris County Sheriff.

It is important that we have a leadership team at City Hall that is able to understand the different populations they serve, said Mayor Sylvester Turner in a statement following last weeks appointments, which also included several other positions. The city of Houston is roughly 44 percent Hispanic, 26 percent white, 23 percent black and 6 percent Asian, according to the most recent census estimates.

Acevedo replaces Martha Montalvo, who had been serving as interim police chief this year. She was the citys first Hispanic police chief.

Together, the collection of leaders represent not only the citys changing demographics but a potential shift in thinking when it comes to questions of equity.

In addition to running on a platform that championed diversion programs, diversity and de-escalation training for officers and transparency, Gonzalez has promised to end Harris Countys participation in a voluntary partnership with federal immigration enforcement. The current 287(g) program is a strain on valuable police resources and taxpayers money, Gonzalez wrote on his campaign website, referring to the program that allows the feds to enter agreements to have state and local law enforcement to perform immigration functions. Worse, it is a violation of due process rights and leads to racial profiling, the separation of families and a mistrust of deputies.

In Austin, Acevedo earned a reputation for reform. From an Austin American-Statesman profile of Acevedo published in October:

From his first day in July 2007, Acevedo has worked to carry out a mandate from the community, the mayor and other city leaders by creating a department that sharply scrutinizes how officers employ force and focuses on equal treatment of minorities. Central to this effort, Acevedo has tried to empower supervisors to monitor officers who violate his standards and hold them accountable.

But he also faced frustrations realizing change. In a secretly recorded tape given to the Statesman, Acevedo vented about pushback in a private meeting among high-ranking officials in August after two high-profile instances of police violence, including the shooting death of a naked and unarmed teenager, David Joseph, earlier this year. In a controversial move, Acevedo fired Geoffrey Freeman, the officer who shot Joseph, arguing he used excessive force, the newspaper wrote. But the police union has vigorously defended him, saying that he reasonably thought Joseph was about to tackle him and possibly try to take his weapon, the newspaper reported.

In the tape, Acevedo says, If you cant handle a kid in broad daylight, naked, and your first instinct is to come out with your gun, and your next instinct is to shoot the kid dead, you dont need to be a cop.

At a press conference last week, Mayor Turner said Acevedo was a cops cop, who valued the rank and file and recognized the need for diversity. He has had to deal with some very tough, very sensitive circumstances, said Turner. I wanted someone who placed emphasis on community policing, and when you look at his resume, he has always placed emphasis on community policing.

Meanwhile HISDs Carranza  still relatively new to the job  stressed during his tour of the district that he is committed to equity, neighborhood schools and culturally relevant curriculum. While serving as superintendent of the San Francisco United School District, he helped create a special diploma recognizing bilingual students and introduced a mariachi music program, among other reforms.

Acevedo and Pena, the fire chief, must be confirmed by city council before taking their positions. That decision is expected to take place later this month.

Leah Binkovitz (@leahbink), formerly of the Houston Chronicle, is now a staff writer for Rice University's Kinder Institute. This story first appeared in the institute's "Urban Edge" blog.

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The 911 call received by Houston police at 2:22 a.m. seemed routine, a disturbance between two men.

The two responding officers arrived at a single-family home on the city's east side, unaware it was an unlicensed care home for the mentally ill. The caller, a mentally ill resident left in charge of three others, told police in September 2012 that fellow resident Brian Claunch was threatening to stab him over some pilfered soft drinks.

Claunch, 45, who frequently had hallucinations from schizophrenia, was a double amputee in a wheelchair, missing all of his left arm and most of his left leg.

One of the officers, Matthew J. Marin, would later tell investigators that he shot Claunch once in the head from point-blank range after he saw him swing a "shiny metal object," which turned out to be a ball-point pen. Crime-scene photographs, however, contradicted Marin's statement about the shooting and where Claunch was at the time he was shot.

Today, that evidence and previously undisclosed forensic details of Claunch's death are at the center of a federal civil rights suit filed by the family of another mentally disturbed man shot and killed by Houston police. The father of Kenny Releford, also a schizophrenic, has argued the city of Houston is liable for the death of the Navy veteran on Oct. 11, 2012, less than a month after Claunch's shooting.

U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison ordered city attorneys to provide Releford's attorneys with the Houston Police Department's investigative files of five other police shootings, including Claunch's, as a way of determining the family's contention that the city is rubber-stamping investigations of officer shootings and thus fails to supervise the use of deadly force.

The city has defended its internal reviews and is seeking to dismiss the case. John Cannon, an HPD spokesman, said the department does not comment on pending litigation.

Every time HPD officers have intentionally fired their weapons and killed or wounded a civilian - more than 150 incidents since 2010 - the use of force has been deemed "justified" by the department, according to statistics and a deposition supplied by a top HPD supervisor.

Local grand juries often rely on HPD's internal investigations during their criminal reviews, which are augmented by separate inquiries by the Harris County District Attorney's office.

In February, Ellison ruled that Releford's attorneys had found sufficient evidence to enable a reasonable jury to hold the city liable. He noted an inconsistency in the Claunch investigation and in others.

The HPD investigation found Claunch's shooting was justified, and relied on the officer's account that Claunch had corned one officer between two beds.

However, crime-scene photographs released in the lawsuit show Claunch slumped over in his wheelchair at the foot of one of the beds, the judge's ruling noted. Directly beneath the wheelchair was a large pool of blood, indicating that Claunch had been shot in a location different from where the officers said.

HPD investigators, in a newly disclosed internal report, theorized that Claunch's wheelchair might have been moved after the shooting or rolled away from between the beds on a sloping floor, but the photos do not show bloody tracks.

Joe Melugin, the Houston attorney representing the Releford family, noted that neither officer was disciplined either for excessive force or for failing to be truthful about their accounts of the Claunch shooting.

"The city's efforts to have its police properly interact with mentally ill people have failed," he said.

Even if the city chose not to discipline its officers, it should have acted to retrain them, based on the findings of IAD reports, Melugin argues. "The officer who shot Kenny Releford wasn't aware of basic facts about mental illness," he said. "He didn't know that mental illness disproportionately affects the homeless."

Information made public in the lawsuit shows that HPD trainers do not mention the Claunch or Releford shootings when they take recruits or veteran officers through Crisis Intervention Training (CIT).

Inconsistencies

Several criminal justice experts questioned the conduct of investigators in the Claunch shooting, noting that the inconsistencies raise the issue of whether HPD displays a bias toward officers.

"I understand everyone makes a mistake, but you can't resolve a case with inconsistent information - you have to figure it out," said Geoffrey Alpert, a professor of criminal justice at the University of South Carolina and a leading expert on police training and procedures. "Why did the officer say the shooting took place in one part of the room, and the picture says another location?"

But several former HPD legal officers who have reviewed police shooting investigations defended the internal process. Only about 20-25 percent of shootings involve the unarmed.

J. Scott Siscoe, a former HPD lieutenant now in private criminal defense practice, said the vast majority of shootings he has reviewed "were not borderline cases."

He said officers have the right to defend themselves, and have paid the price when they delay using force.

"I'll be glad to give you lots of stories where police officers who didn't use force got the dog**** beat out of them," he said.

At the time of Claunch's death, officer Marin was struggling to come to terms with an earlier shooting.

Marin had provided backup to another officer responding to an "assault in progress" call on Oct. 9, 2009, at an apartment complex in southeast Houston near Hobby Airport. A man was attacking his girlfriend on a second-floor balcony, and when an older neighbor intervened, the attacker turned and stabbed the good Samaritan.

The attacker ignored commands from the officers to drop the knife, and as he continued to stab the neighbor, Marin shot him twice in the arm. When the suspect turned to attack the other officer, Marin fatally shot him. The neighbor died of his stab wounds and the girlfriend was taken to a local hospital for treatment, according to a Hostile Engagement Award given to Marin by HPD.

After the shooting, Marin's performance suffered. By early 2011, he was not showing up for court hearings. When his supervisors scheduled successive disciplinary meetings, the officer failed to appear both times.

Then police-chief Charles McClelland gave Marin a chance to "salvage his career," and the officer agreed to a 10-day unpaid suspension in lieu of a firing, according to the Aug. 30, 2011, notice in Marin's personnel file.

Marin could not be reached for comment, although he previously discussed Claunch's shooting with the Houston Chronicle.

Marin said he appealed the suspension, and it was eventually overturned by an independent arbitrator after his union lawyers presented evidence he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder related to the 2009 shooting.

In the interview, Marin said he took medication for his PTSD and emphasized it was not a factor in Claunch's shooting.

"I really feel bad for what I had to do, but I was looking out for the safety of my partner," said Marin, adding he had gone through the department's CIT before the Claunch shooting.

Marin's record of police training, released by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement under an open records request, shows that he completed 36 hours of CIT by September 2007 and had taken an additional 24 hours of classes to recognize people with mental impairment or abnormal behavior before he shot Claunch.

After a grand jury cleared Marin of any criminal liability in June 2013, McClelland announced the internal affairs investigation found that Marin - who was transferred to the HPD property room - had not violated any department polices during Claunch's shooting.

Assisting officers

Some in HPD believe the department does not do enough to assist officers involved in shootings. Currently, an officer is required to take three days of administrative leave after a shooting and meet with a counselor in HPD's Psychological Services Division.

HPD leads the state in the number of officer-involved shootings. So far this year, officers have shot and killed six people and wounded 13 others. Two of the dead were unarmed and the other four had firearms, according to HPD's website. Of the 13 wounded, seven had firearms, one had a realistic-looking BB gun, four were unarmed and the weapon status of one is unknown.

HPD could not say if any of those shootings involved mentally ill people. Cannon, the HPD spokesman, confirmed that the Mental Health Division does not keep statistics of that type.

"We are in the process of beginning to capture that data," Cannon said.

The division has developed programs over the years after a number of high-profile shootings, including one that occurred in the lobby of police headquarters downtown after a woman wielding a knife attacked officers.

The most difficult work is done by 12 teams - an HPD officer paired with a mental health counselor with a master's degree. In 2015, according to the division's annual report, those specialized teams responded to around 15 percent of more than 35,000 calls. The total included 135 cases where residents were attempting to have a police officer kill them, known as suicide by cop.

"Society is relying on the police more and more for mental heath issues," said Capt. Wendy Bainbridge, who heads the division. "Nationwide, law enforcement is training their officers on how to handle these kind of scenes and people know that and that's why they call. And at 3 a.m in the morning, they don't know who else to call.''
The first thing he noticed was the sheer number of cars on the massive highways when Assumani Bakari arrived in Houston on a Thursday in February. He left George Bush Intercontinental Airport with a driver at 4 p.m. and marveled out his window for three hours at the stream of thousands of vehicles while he rode across town. Something must have been wrong that day, he thought. But there wasn't. Houston is a city of cars, and Bakari, 36, couldn't get one.

He came with a few pieces of clothing in a single bag, straight from the Kenyan refugee camp where he'd spent the last seven years, where his two young daughters still needed his monthly support. Even with his two part-time jobs here, saving for a car remains out of reach. Houston is hard to travel on foot, though.

Thanks to the city's robust community efforts for refugee support, Bakari doesn't have to walk alongside the freeway feeder roads anymore. Earlier this month, he got a set of wheels - a bicycle from an upstart local nonprofit called Freewheels Houston that helps kickstart the lives of folks who find crucial refuge in Houston.

Since its inception in 2015, the group has distributed 80 bikes to refugees like Bakari and has seen its ranks balloon, fueled by volunteers and donations, a trend mirrored in other local refugee aid groups as Houston rises to the challenge of the biggest global displacement crisis on record.

"I thank God there are so many good people here," Bakari said recently, cracking a sheepish smile. "And I thank God I am still alive."

More than 2,000 forcibly displaced people like Bakari find new homes in Houston every year, supported by a symphony of faith-based and civic groups that help them find housing, get jobs and decipher the pulse of the Bayou City. But in a city so vast, lack of transportation remains a major obstacle. Bakari had to turn down a job offer this year because he had no means to commute.

"Refugees love bicycles," said Sara Kauffman, Houston area director for Refugee Services of Texas. Like Freewheels, her group has seen an explosion of support as the global refugee crisis - now the worst on record - has gained predominance in the news. At the start of 2015, Refugee Services of Texas had about 40 volunteers in Houston. Now they have more than 300, mostly from religious and school groups.

For folks like Bakari, those volunteers make all the difference.

Displaced aboard, sent to America

He's one of about 65 million people pushed from their homes by violence who have stretched thin the budgets of global and local aid groups. The visibility of the refugees' plight has surged in the last two years, ever since a high tide of people began pouring into Europe, fleeing wars in Syria, Afghanistan, Libya and Iraq. But across the world, there are other "theaters of large scale displacement" that barely catch the public eye, said Chris Boian, public information officer for the United Nations High Commission on Refugees.

The long-raging violence that drove Bakari from his native Democratic Republic of Congo, Boian said, "is among the forgotten crises in the world today." There, Bakari recalled, a long descent into lawlessness created a country where armed groups killed freely. His lost his wife, was separated from his daughters and ended up seven years ago in the Kakuma refugee camp, hundreds of miles to the east, alongside 60,000 other people.

In the beginning he got a tent, then Bakari, like the others, made bricks from the mud to build a hut, and aid groups similar to UN commission distributed sheet metal for roofs. A certified teacher with two diplomas, Bakari got a job instructing primary school for girls in Kakuma.

Beyond delivering tents and food, the commission works in camps like Kakuma around the world to find long-term solutions to the refugees' plight. Workers conduct health screenings and interviews, establish identities and pinpoint the people in most desperate need of relocation - victims of torture, single mothers with children, folks facing slim chances of survival. Those names are put on a list and distributed by the commission to the 35 nations that resettle refugees, which will then make the decision of who to accept for their own screening protocols.

Boian said less than 1 percent of the forcibly displaced will ever be resettled.

In Kakuma, Bakari made the list, and after years in the camp learned he'd be admitted to the United States.

Accepting the offer seemed like a foregone decision, until one day while he worked at the school, three strangely familiar people walked in. After some thought, he recognized them as a family friend with his two daughters, who he hadn't seen since leaving Congo. He'd long ago figured he would never find them again. The daughters figured their father was dead. Bakari considered telling the U.S. embassy he couldn't go, but he decided that his trip to America was his daughters' best chance at a life outside the camp someday. So he flew to Houston and landed in the care of a web of charity groups that steward federal funds for refugee resettlement.

On his first day in town, Refugee Services of Texas showed Bakari to his apartment at Gulfton and Hillcroft. He hadn't been sure if he would have to sleep outside that first night in Houston.

"Oh, thanks, God," he said to himself. "Now I can live the kind of life that other people are living."

A job but no wheels

He got one part-time job at a grocery down the street, and another washing dishes at Pappa's Barbecue, a 30-minute walk down the freeway feeder. All together he makes $1,200 each month, which he says would make him a billionaire where he came from, and sends about $200 back to his friends and his daughters, who he hopes to bring to Houston.

In November, Bill Mintz stopped by his apartment to deliver a bike.

"Bakari's story is like many we've heard over the last year: Refugees are grateful for a chance to start a new life in a nation where they can work hard to provide for their families," said Mintz, the founder of Freewheels Hosuton. "Like Bakari, they are resilient and very self-reliant."

Mintz started thinking about refugees in 2014, when throngs of orphaned Central American youth traveled to Texas in search of refuge. He knew Kauffman at Refugee Services of Texas, both were bike enthusiasts. As World Refugee Day approached in June 2015, he asked her if he could contribute anything for the fair at St. Thomas University.

Kauffman suggested he donate a bike, which he did, and he watched a young girl refugee "squeal with joy" when she won it in a raffle. That gave him idea.

Kauffman had explained the problem faced by her agency and the other four members of the Houston Refugee Consortium: resettled people can't get around the metro area, and the agencies have few options. They try to organize carpools to workplaces when possible, and otherwise help the refugees learn to use the buses. But getting to a job can still take several connections on a bus and a long walk.

So Mintz, a former newspaper reporter, searched online for programs to distribute bicycles, he found some in Australia, Britain and New Zealand, but none in Houston.

Mintz's faith convinced him to help. After all, he said, Jesus was a refugee, displaced from his homeland by King Herod's murderous crusade there. So Mintz started asking for donations at his church, Christ the King Lutheran, and word spread. He expected pushback from some conservative friends, especially in light of anti-refugee sentiments expressed by leading Texas politicians, but he encountered virtually none.

He drove place to place, picking bikes up with his truck. Eventually, he had to rent a moving truck to haul the bikes. He kept bikes in his garage at first, then in February had to rent a storage space, and two months later a bigger one.

Meanwhile, his volunteer corps snowballed. Folks joined from his community at local bike shops, and from religious groups around town. He roped in Rice University's student-run bike shop, Rice Bikes, where volunteers clean an refurbish the donations, changing out cables, brake pads, handle grips, seat cushions and inner tubes then installing lights, bells and baskets. He brought bikes to a 16-year-old Congolese boy who was walking three miles to school, and an Afghan man with a family who walked 45 minutes to his factory job.

Banding together to match refugees with bikes

The group's biggest breakthrough came in October, when Refugee Services of Texas took the Freewheels idea to the monthly meeting of Houston's Refugee Consortium - the five agencies that coordinate resettlement and employment in the city. The agencies loved the idea, and agreed that each would nominate three or four of their clients for a bicycle each month.

Freewheels gave out about 80 bikes in its first year. Now partnered with all five agencies, its goal is to give away 20 bikes a month. That will require some growth in donations and volunteers, but Mintz said his experience shows that setting goals is key to growth. He hopes this new plan puts the group on track to eventually lease a storefront and employ refugees cleaning and refurbishing bikes for other newcomers.

On Monday, Mintz and another Freewheel volunteer, David West, brought two bikes, two helmets and two sacks of gear to the YMCA International Services Building on Westgate. Case managers there had selected two clients in need of some wheels.

The first was Adela Padron, 57, who had crossed the border eight months before and qualified for refugee services under the 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act. She'd been asking her brother to drive her 20 minutes each day to her job cleaning a tech company office. She was nervous about biking on the freeway feeder, but was put at ease to see others do it.

Mintz and West fitted her helmet, adjusted the bike seat, explained the lock and pump and then sent her on her way.

Next came Edwar Gonzales, 25, who traveled a month by bus and train from Honduras to Texas, turned himself in then spent six months locked in federal detention. He had to turn down one job at a plastic factory for lack of transportation. He got hired in a restaurant kitchen, but the commute required a 45-minute walk to and from a bus stop, so his case manager nominated him to get a bike.

Mintz and West fitted his gear and sent him smiling on his way. If things go well for the group, they'll be matching refugees with bikes every day.

Earlier this month, another Congolese refugee, Peter, moved into Bakari's apartment. He didn't speak English, so Bakari became his guide, got him a job washing dishes at a Pappa's eatery and translated the training sessions into Swahili.

Sometimes they go to work together, but Bakari said it felt awkward to leave at the same time then pedal ahead, leaving his roommate walking far behind.

"But it should be better if he gets a bicycle," Bakari said at his apartment on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Mintz brought one for him.
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AUSTIN - In a break with two decades of tradition, the Texas Capitol's official 2016 ornament will not reflect the Victorian showplace's distinctive architecture.

This year, it's a Texas-styled Christmas tree.

"We've taken a little different direction to reflect a Texas Capitol tradition: a tree decorated with all the (official) ornaments of past years and surrounded by gifts with the Capitol itself at the base," said Erin Christensen, director of retail sales for the State Preservation Board.

"The ornament has a 3-D effect to it, with U.S. and Texas flags and a Lone Star at the top. It broadens the approach of how we celebrate the Capitol and its traditions."

Designed by a working group of officials that included Julie Straus, wife of House Speaker Joe Straus of San Antonio, the new $20 ornament "has been selling very well" online and at the Capitol Gift Shop, she said.

For Capitol visitors, the shiny ornaments continue to be an annual attraction.

"Our family comes to Austin every year to visit our great aunt and the Capitol and buy an ornament," said Katy resident Raye Burck, who stood on line last week waiting to buy five of the latest edition. "We got hooked on this with the first one. It's now a tradition."

An online description of the new ornament underlines the holiday tradition it is designed to showcase, one started in 1914 when the "mightiest cedar in Travis County" was placed and decorated at the south entrance to the granite Statehouse.

Since then, holiday trees have adorned the rotunda and various spots on the lawn, as well as a lobby outside the Governor's Reception Room and both legislative chambers.

"Over a century later, this tradition continues with the annual delivery of several Texas-grown pines, brought in by horse-drawn carriage and presented to the governor, lieutenant governor and speaker of the House," the description reads.

Chris Currens, a spokesman for the preservation board that maintains the Capitol, said those annual trees are slated to arrive on Monday, provided by the Texas Christmas Tree Growers Association, officials said.

Smaller trees will be placed in the office of Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and in the House chamber where it will be decorated with paper ornaments seeking donations for the needy.

Program began in 1996

In past years, the design of the official Texas Capitol tree-hanger has included architectural features of the 1888 center of government, including the Capitol's distinctive dome; its chiseled entryway; ornate doorways and signature brass door knobs and brass hinges; "Lone Star" designs on its ceilings, wrought-iron fences and in the rotunda, the Goddess of Liberty statue that graces the peak of the dome.

Among the most popular ornaments have been those showing the etched glass ceiling panels in the Senate Chamber; the star-decoration on the Capitol's perimeter fence; and the ornate floor design in the Capitol's north rotunda, a feature of the Capitol Extension added during the 1990s restoration and expansion project.

In addition to the official Capitol ornament, two lighted versions are also featured: a small-scale version of the famous dome, complete with the goddess statue, and an ornate red, white, blue and gold Lone Star.

The lighted versions retail for $35 each, and feature bulbs that can be replaced to keep the ornament shining for years to come, Christensen said.

The Capitol ornament program was launched in 1996 by the late Nelda Laney, wife of then-House Speaker Pete Laney, D-Hale Center, as a way to raise money for education programs and to maintain the historical aura of the landmark building.

More than 1 million sold

More than $8 million has been raised so far from the sale of more than 1.1 million ornaments, and it has gone to pay for a paint job on the pink dome, for new carpet in each legislative chamber that replicates the early-day floor coverings, and for the restoration of historic paintings inside the Statehouse, officials said.

The Texas Capitol program is among the most successful statehouse ornament programs in the nation, but is bested by official holiday ornaments for two Washington landmarks sold since 1962 by the U.S. Capitol Historical Society and since 1981 by the White House Historical Association.

Texas' first Statehouse ornament, issued in 1996 just after a top-to-bottom restoration of the building was completed, featured a 24-carat gold image of the front of the Capitol with a "First Edition" banner arching over the dome. It was an immediate hit, with more than 20,000 sold. Since then, the ornaments have become increasingly sought out by collectors.

Two years ago, the 1 millionth ornament sold on eBay for $5,176 to a collector.
AUSTIN - The Texas agency that regulates veterinarians hasn't kept on top of basic responsibilities like proper fiscal management, evenhanded enforcement and keeping tabs on controlled substances meant for animals, according to a state review.

"It's in a shambles," said Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, about the State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.

The veterinary board accepted the scathing findings by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission, which periodically reviews state agencies to see whether they should be continued, reformed or disbanded. Watson is a commission member.

The agency may pursue reorganization and faces a push for change in the coming legislative session. It informed Watson's office that its executive director plans to resign.

"The Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners has taken the Sunset Commission's report to heart and is diligently working to implement changes that will address the commission's concerns. These changes may include changes in personnel and an agency reorganization," said interim executive director Rudy Calderon, who was the agency's general counsel and stepped into the top job when Nicole Oria yielded it.

Oria, facing intense questioning by the sunset panel at a November meeting, cited in part the demands of dealing with about 750 complaints after a veterinarian posted a photo of herself holding up a cat's body by an arrow speared through the animal's head. The story received national attention, and the board ended up suspending the veterinarian's license for a year.

In a separate case with implications for the no-kill shelter movement, the agency became involved in a legal fight by pursuing enforcement action against a shelter veterinarian over the death of a dog rescued by San Antonio Pets Alive! Ellen Jefferson, the veterinarian, is founder and board member of SAPA and executive director of Austin Pets Alive! A person fostering the dog said the animal died when Jefferson gave medical instructions by text.

Jefferson successfully argued that shelter work wasn't subject to the board's purview in a case that went to the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin.

The Legislature is expected to take up the issue, among others, in its regular session that begins in January.

"The shelter issue is a big deal. I am concerned about that being anything that is veterinary board-related in the future. I just don't think they have shown they can do that fairly," Jefferson said.

Watson, who plans to file legislation, said the no-kill shelter movement constitutes a cultural shift that must be accounted for in state governance. The board targeted the standard of care provided to animals otherwise facing euthanasia if not rescued.

"I really love that our culture has shifted from where if an animal is abandoned, then that animal is just destined to die" to "a culture in which we figure out how to save those animals," said Watson. To do so, he said, requires allowing shelters to innovate in providing medical care to large numbers of animals.

But the Texas Veterinary Medical Association opposed Watson's bill on the topic in 2015. The professional association wants an approach that will ensure shelter veterinarians fall under the same law as other veterinarians, albeit with leeway to acknowledge shelter circumstances.

"We are trying to stand up for good medical practice," said Elizabeth Choate, director of governmental relations and general counsel for the association.

The sunset report said the agency's struggle with issues in the cases contributed to its problems. But it said the cases "do not fully account" for issues at the small agency with a $1.1 million annual budget and staff of 20.

Among problems, the report said the agency wasn't able to provide basic enforcement data with a reasonable degree of confidence or reliably provide basic financial information; hadn't finished closing its books for fiscal year 2015; and hadn't followed proper procedures in awarding a contract valued at more than $100,000, which was in the process of being terminated.

The report also said the agency's enforcement couldn't ensure fair treatment of licensees or people filing complaints.

And with 6,300 veterinarians authorized to dispense controlled substances, the report said, the board has "an ineffective and inconsistent approach" to monitoring the substances' theft and loss.

Besides addressing agency practices, Watson said he would like to reconfigure its governing board, which includes six veterinarians and three public members appointed by the governor. Watson wants to specify that the board include veterinarians with a particular background, such as a shelter vet, and a veterinary technician.

Gov. Greg Abbott this year named three board members and appointed Roland Lenarduzzi as presiding officer. Abbott's office said in a statement that any sunset proposals "will be addressed at the appropriate time."

"The safe practice of veterinary medicine in Texas is important to Governor Abbott, and his appointees to the Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners recognize this importance," said the statement.

Lenarduzzi, when questioned at the sunset hearing, said the board is committed to having "the best agency in state government."

"We care about animals. We care about protecting the public," Lenarduzzi said. "Have we made mistakes? Most assuredly, but we are committed to doing well. This report helps give us guidance."
Ex-cons and jobs

Regarding "Uplifting effort to help ex-cons find jobs" (Page A9, Nov. 15), sympathy for violent ex-felons in job procurement is misplaced, as is the suggestion on banning criminal background checks. Columnist Esther J. Cepeda's example involved a man who was part of group who violently killed an innocent victim, served time, and now complains of the difficulty getting past background checks.

OSHA regulations require employers to provide a safe workplace. It is a legal standard and a moral obligation. Texas has passed a law stating that hiring someone with a prior conviction cannot be the basis for subsequent liability. Texas law also allows an employer to legally point all the blame back on the felon and yet another statute bans assessment of any exemplar damages to a premises owner or employer for criminal conduct. The federal government even gives tax credits to hire convicts.

Workplace safety laws should be made tougher, not weaker.

Brent Coon, Beaumont

Insurance risk

The comentary "Disconnect between millennials and the ACA" (Page A17, Wednesday) presents the young-healthy view of a well-known conundrum. The ACA is based on an insurance-funding paradigm. For insurance to work, there has to be a large enough pool of nonusers to pay for the users. Often in a real insurance pool, the risk of using it is calculated and highly risky clients will pay more for it than less risky clients; e.g., I would pay very little for petroleum pipeline damage to my property because I have no pipelines near my property, but would pay substantially more if pipelines ran underneath my property.

The ACA does not allow for such risk mitigation techniques (low premium for young-healthy, high premium for old-unhealthy), because the users likely to use it would not be able to afford the insurance premium in the first place and thus remain uninsured. Certainly, once I become a major user of health insurance (cancer treatments, diabetes, heart conditions, etc.), my insurance premiums would jump sky high or just not be offered to me, the condition of individual insurance prior to the ACA that led to the 30 percent uninsured in the country.

As long as insurance is the answer to affordable health care, it won't be affordable. It's just not possible. There are just too many hands in the health-care provider pot to begin with, and then a 40 percent overcharge to "fund" the insurance company makes it permanently unaffordable.

Walt Lind, Nassau Bay

Put kids first

Regarding "Public schools don't need privatization" (Page A35, Friday), the bottom line in public education should be children getting the best education possible regardless of where that may be, and improving our standing in the world. What we are doing isn't working.

If the big teachers unions would put students first instead of their political and self-serving agendas and have an open mind, maybe some of the problems in education could be solved. Fewer students in a school system does equate to less fixed costs, and if it doesn't, then figure it out.

Who can blame a parent for seeking an alternative when the public schools don't educate? Give everyone a chance at a good education.

Jeanne Christensen, retired public school teacher, Houston
The following are excerpts from reports generated by the Texas County Sheriffs Department:

A 54-year-old Eunice man reported on Nov. 27 that several items had been stolen from his Highway 17 residence, including a radiator, battery and carburetor from a truck.

The man told an investigating officer he suspected a 33-year-old man who is a tenant of his at a Highway B trailer park at Houston, and that he had gone to the suspects home and observed several of the swiped items there. A deputy went with the man to the suspects trailer and also saw the allegedly stolen goods.

No contact was made with the suspect, but photographs of the items were taken. Investigation continues.

Seven TCSD officers responded at 3 p.m. Nov. 26 to a request for assistance by the Wright County Sheriffs Department in a multi-agency search for a male suspect who had fled on foot from Mountain Grove police onto County Road 138 in Douglas County. Wright County called in a canine team, but the dogs and officers were unable to locate the suspect and the search was called off at about 5:40 p.m.

Also assisting were personnel from the Missouri State Highway Patrol and Douglas County Sheriffs Department.

A deputy responded at about 1:20 p.m. Nov. 26 to a 911 call regarding a request to assist an ambulance crew at a Reed Road residence at Licking.

Upon arrival, the officer made contact with a man who was extremely intoxicated and said he wanted to go to the hospital and needed oxygen. The man was taken by ambulance to Texas County Memorial Hospital.

A representative of the Veterans Administration Hospital reported on Nov. 23 that a Plato man had stated he was ready to get it all over at his residence. The VA representative requested a well-being check on the man, and an investigating officer made contact with him at his home.

The man reportedly told the officer he didnt want to hurt himself, but his wife had left him and he was having a hard time dealing with the holidays and other things going on. He said he appreciated the check, but that he was okay.

A deputy responded at about 5:10 p.m. Nov. 24 to a report of several traffic cones being dumped out at Cleveland Road and Durham Road in Houston. An investigating officer located several cones and they were returned to the City of Houston road crew.

Texas County Jail admissions

Nov. 18

Daniel L. Kingston (sexual abuse  change of venue)

Roger L. Wake  48-hour commitment

Patrick A. Dodson  48-hour commitment

Nov. 19

Thomas L. Maes  24-hour commitment

Chastity M. Counts  drug charges

Nov. 20

Jesse D. Hite  West Plains PD hold

Jeffery W. Watts  burglary

Nov. 21

Joshua W. Steffen  Laclede County hold

Nekota S. Neal  assault, resisting arrest

Nov. 22

Susan L. Dixson  Wright County hold

Nov. 25

Lonnie R. Quick  Laclede County hold

Michael S. McGuire  non-support

Jimmy L. Norris  48-hour commitment

Roger L. Wake  48-hour commitment

Darci D. Jensen  abuse or neglect of child

Nov. 26

Lyndall M. Masterson  4-day shock

Kerri L. Von Holten  possession of controlled substance

Timothy N. Freedle  48-hour commitment

Dakota R. Utley  DWI, possession of controlled substance
Texas County Memorial Hospital anticipates a 6,000 square foot surgery center will be completed by the summer of 2018.

During their monthly meeting last week, board members unanimously agreed to approve a resolution accepting a $150,000 Delta Region Authority grant for the project. With the funds, TCMH said it will be able to complete infill for the planned surgery department.

This grant couldnt have come at a better time, said Wes Murray, TCMH chief executive officer.

The department shell  between the Jayson Gentry Community Safe Room and east wing of the hospital  is already built and in place. When the hospital built the safe room, it included space between the safe room and hospital to build a new surgery department.

TCMH anticipates an 18-month turnaround time on the surgery project.

Our plant operations crew will build out the department according to the plans that we already have drawn up, Murray said.

Several years ago, the hospital began working toward building or renovating all patient care areas. The final phases of the plan include building a new surgery department, and relocating and enlarging the obstetrics department in the old surgery space and relocating and enlarging the intensive care unit in the old obstetrics space.

The new surgery department is designed to house two operating rooms, an endoscopy suite and seven private rooms for pre-surgical prep and post-surgery recovery.

The anticipated cost to complete construction is $990,500. In addition to the $150,000 federal grant, TCMH will utilize funds raised during the Care for Your Future capital campaign and tax credits.

TCMH said it requested $200,000 from the Delta Region Authority for the project, so the project is still $50,000 short.

We will continue to work toward raising funds for the surgery department and other future capital and construction needs at TCMH, Murray said.

The TCMH Healthcare Foundation has a brick paver project underway that will raise additional funds and create an engraved brick paver area at the front entrance of the hospital. The brick paver funds could be utilized to continue capital projects.

Murray told board members that the new surgery department was a key factor to recruiting Dr. Jason Loden to work at TCMH when he completes his residency in 2018. He and his wife, Dr. Teresa Loden, both signed with the hospital.

Dr. Loden and I have talked about the things he can concentrate on in his final months of residency to best meet the surgical needs of the patients in our area, Murray said. Dr. Loden also has a lot of interest in providing wound care and offering additional services for area patients with wound care needs.

PEDIATRIC CARE

Murray said Dr. Teresa Loden, a pediatrician, was welcomed by all members of the TCMH staff when she recently visited the hospital and met with hospital staff.

In the past, our family medicine physicians have provided care for pediatric patients, and they expressed to Dr. Loden the need for additional specialized pediatric care for area pediatric patients, Murray said.

Physicians in the emergency department at TCMH were especially vocal to Murray about the need for a local pediatrician.

Our ER physicians have found it very difficult to get follow up care with a pediatrician for young patients that receive initial treatment in the ER, Murray said.

Murray said with the recruiting of Dr. Jason and Dr. Teresa Loden, the hospitals current physician recruiting needs are filled.

NEW DOCTORS

Dr. Cory Offutt began working at the TCMH Medical Complex in Houston in July. Dr. Jennifer Groner began working full-time at the TCMH Mountain Grove Clinic in November.

Offutt and Groner are board certified family medicine and obstetrics physicians. Groner just completed her first week of work at TCMH.

Murray explained that for Groner, the traditional family medicine practice is somewhat different than the academic setting where she has worked for the past six years.

Were very glad to have a full-time physician at the clinic in Mountain Grove, and we believe that practice will continue to grow with Dr. Groner at the helm, Murray said.

HOSPITAL CLINICS

The Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation Clinic began working with patients last week, Murray said. The clinic is at the end of the hospitals east wing where four patient rooms were renovated to house the program.

TCMH recently received a $357,000 grant from the Missouri Foundation for Health (MFH) to fund a three-year outpatient cardiopulmonary rehabilitation program. Patients will qualify for the multi-disciplinary program following testing for lung disease. The 12-week program will help patients improve lung function and activities of daily living.

Funds from the grant are utilized to employ a part-time secretary for the program and a full-time respiratory therapist. Kathy Carr, cardiac rehabilitation nurse at TCMH, is also working with the cardiopulmonary rehabilitation patients. Dr. Juan Mella, pulmonologist at TCMH, will oversee the program and patients.

Dr. Mella has already referred 22 patients to the program, and nine additional referrals have been made by other physicians to the program, Murray reported.

TCMH said it has a goal of averaging four new patients each week for the cardiopulmonary rehabilitation program.

Murray reported that patient referrals to the Sleep Study Laboratory is also growing. In August, the laboratory added new sleep study technology and increased availability for the lab.

We are averaging 29 patients a month and growing, Murray said.

Before Mella joining the TCMH medical staff, the Sleep Studies Laboratory averaged 10 patients a month.

The addition of Dr. Mellas specialized pulmonology and sleep services are working the way they are supposed to, Murray said. Dr. Mella has had patients follow him from his previous practice, and hes receiving new referrals of patients from our medical staff.

FINANCES

Anita Kuhn, controller at TCMH, presented the financial statement for October. Inpatient volumes were down $322,612 from budgeted expectations, but outpatient volumes were up $354,744 from budgeted expectations. TCMH ended October with a negative bottom line of $47,000 and a year-to-date negative balance of $1,032,745.

According to Kuhn, the TCMH is down 83 admissions for the year in comparison to last year. Swing bed utilization was moderate with eight admissions in October.

Present at the meeting were: Murray; Kuhn; Doretta Todd-Willis, TCMH chief nursing officer; Amanda Turpin, quality management director; Joleen Senter Durham, director of public relations; Ron Prenger, CoxHealth representative; and board members Dr. Jim Perry, DO, Janet Wiseman, Omanez Fockler and Mark Hampton. TCMH board member Russell Gaither was absent.

Due to the Christmas holiday, the next meeting of the TCMH board of trustees is noon Dec. 20 in the TCMH board room.
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The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) recently issued an advisory that makes retrenchment notifications to the government agency mandatory beginning 1 January 2017.



Under the Workforce Singapore Agency Act, companies employing 10 or more employees are required to report retrenchment exercises to MOM five days after affected employees have been notified, if five or more employees are retrenched within a six-month period.



Failure to do so is considered an offence and companies found guilty are liable to fines not exceeding $5,000 among other penalties.



MOM defined retrenchments as dismissal on the ground of redundancy or by reason of any reorganisation of the employers profession, business, trade or work and covers permanent employees and contract workers with full contracts of at least six months.



These notifications will provide more complete and timely retrenchment information, to better enable Workforce Singapore (WSG) and the Taskforce for Responsible Retrenchment and Employment Facilitation to assist retrenched local employees find alternative employment and relevant training to enhance their employability, said MOM in their statement.



Briefings are available for employers to familiarise themselves with the new requirement. Employers can indicate their interest with the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) at [email protected], they added.


It seems even the Grey Cup wasn't immune to the #TrudeauEulogies backlash that permeated the news headlines and dogged the prime minister this weekend.

Before the 104th edition of the CFL final kicked off Sunday night, a video message from Trudeau was broadcast on the screens at Toronto's BMO field, where the Ottawa Redblacks faced off against the Calgary Stampeders. Trudeau is currently in Madagascar leading the Canadian delegation to the summit of la Francophonie.

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"As we all know, anything can happen on Grey Cup Sunday,'' Trudeau said. "I'm looking forward to it like everyone else.''

Except the PM may not have been anticipating the barrage of boos from some fans that followed his message:

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Trudeau video plays at BMO field and is greeted with boos #GreyCup  Lindsay Dunn (@LindsayDunnTV) November 27, 2016

Trudeau getting booed in the epicentre of Canada is my favourite thing ever #GreyCup  Section O (@Section_O) November 27, 2016

TVO's Steve Paikin observed some additional criticism levelled at Trudeau from fans:

Well that was interesting. @JustinTrudeau video before game gets loud boos @bmofield. guy behind me says: "Castro was a dictator!" #greycup  Steve Paikin (@spaikin) November 27, 2016

At #GreyCup Justin Trudeau greeting just played to a crowd of boos. Post Castro or wrong audience?  Jennifer Hollett (@jenniferhollett) November 27, 2016

Following news of Fidel Castro's death, Trudeau issued a statement in which he remembered the former Cuban leader as a friend of his father's, praised his educational programs, and called Castro "controversial." His statement was met with harsh criticism from politicians and mockery from the Twitterverse. On Sunday, the Prime Minister said that Castro was a dictator.

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And on Grey Cup Sunday, boos happen, apparently.
Amber Heard has something important to say.

In a #GirlGaze Project PSA about domestic violence released on Friday, Nov. 25, the actress discusses her experiences as a victim of domestic abuse in the first person.

How is this happening to me? Im strong. Im smart. Im not a victim, the 30-year-old "The Danish Girl" star says in the two-minute video. I guess there is a lot of shame attached to that label of victim. It happens to so many women. When it happens to you behind closed doors, with someone you love, its not that straightforward. If a stranger did this... it would be a no-brainer.

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Heard, who filed for and later withdrew a domestic violence restraining order against ex-husband Johnny Depp earlier this year, reminds viewers that domestic abuse is not always physical  it can be mental and emotional.

I have a unique opportunity to remind other women... this doesnt have to be the way it is. You dont have to do it alone. Youre not alone. And also, we can change this. Violence against women is not limited to actual physical violence."

It is also about how we deal with it and how we talk about it in the media culture, she said. We need to take responsibility for how we talk about these things.

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"How is this happening to me? Im strong. Im smart. Im not a victim."

Heard can be seen holding back tears as she talks about how reaching out to friends allowed her to get help.

"Telling someone safe is the beginning of choosing yourself. Think about it. If I hadnt had that, if I hadnt had a few people that I really trust around me, a few women, support, a few friends, if I didnt have them around me, how different my life would be."

Gabourey Sidibe, Freida Pinto and Amber Heard speak onstage during Glamour Women Of The Year 2016 at NeueHouse Hollywood on November 14, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for Glamour)

"I endured excessive emotional, verbal and physical abuse from Johnny, which has included angry hostile, humiliating and threatening assaults to me whenever I questioned his authority or disagreed with him," Heard said in court documents.

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Shortly after news broke of the divorce filing, photos of Heard sporting a bruise and cut lip, which she alleges were caused by Depp, appeared on the cover of People magazine.

Amber Heard submitted this photo as evidence for her domestic violence restraining order https://t.co/sA3BZc3D6fpic.twitter.com/VjHxoobna6  People Magazine (@people) May 27, 2016

A video allegedly showing Depp fighting with Heard was also leaked to the press.

The former couple reached a divorce settlement in August, and Heard donated the entire $7 million settlement she received from Depp to charity.

In November, the "Aquaman" star honoured Emily Doe at the Glamour Women Of The Year Awards alongside Gabourey Sidibe and Freida Pinto. The actresses read part of the rape victim's impact statement, which went viral after it was published online.
A 7-year-old Syrian girl who gained worldwide attention for her tweets from East Aleppo has said she and her family are "between death and life."

Bana Alabed tweeted about Monday's bombardments as Syrian troops captured northeastern parts of the city, placing former rebel-held areas under government control for the first time in four years.

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More than 900 people have fled East Aleppo, including 119 children, according to Russian news agencies.

Tonight we have no house, it's bombed & I got in rubble. I saw deaths and I almost died. - Bana #Aleppopic.twitter.com/arGYZaZqjg  Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) November 27, 2016

Alabed and her mother Fatemah, who runs her Twitter account, have been posting photos, videos, and status updates about the Syrian civl war, highlighting the impact the conflict has had on civilians.

Last message - under heavy bombardments now, can't be alive anymore. When we die, keep talking for 200,000 still inside. BYE.- Fatemah  Bana Alabed (@AlabedBana) November 27, 2016

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On Sunday, Alabed posted a video of smoke rising as Syrian troops moved in over the past few days.

Alabed began tweeting in September, and has amassed over 138,000 followers since.

Her tweets caught the eye of author J.K. Rowling, who sent the girl copies of the "Harry Potter" novels.
H&M has pulled out all the stops for its holiday 2016 campaign, signing up a star actor and director for the occasion.

The clothing giant's seasonal campaign stars Adrien Brody ("The Pianist," "Midnight in Paris," "The Grand Budapest Hotel") and is directed by Wes Anderson ("Rushmore," "The Darjeeling Limited," "The Grand Budapest Hotel").

The video, which is almost four minutes long, sees Adrien Brody star as a train driver, trying to get his passengers home in time to enjoy seasonal celebrations with their loved ones. While the snowy scenery ensures a magical Christmas feel, it also leads the driver and his passengers to change their plans at the last minute.

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Were pleased to introduce our Holiday Film "Come Together", directed by Wes Anderson and starring Adrien Brody. See it now on hm.com! Link in bio  #cometogether A photo posted by H&M (@hm) on Nov 28, 2016 at 12:34am PST

"The winter train ride, under Wes Anderson's direction, is the perfect setting for H&M's holiday collection full of relaxed, wearable elegance. It's about mixing the informal with a sense of occasion, capturing the holiday mood for both dressing up and getting cosy with loved ones," explains Pernilla Wohlfahrt, head of design and creative director at H&M.

"This story may resonate more than ever at a time in the world where we could all do with giving a stranger a hug," adds Adrien Brody.

Although H&M puts out a festive campaign each holiday season, its offerings are always very different from one year to the next. Adrien Brody's holiday train ride follows Katy Perry starring as a fairy in a fantastical and humor-filled film for holiday 2015.

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Who is breaking down some major barriers in the pageant world this week? Halima Aden.

Over the weekend, the 19-year-old made history by wearing a burkini and hijab during the Miss Minnesota USA pageant.

Halima Aden makes history as the first woman to compete wearing a burkini during the Miss Minnesota pageant @StarTribunepic.twitter.com/QEJWToIFC1  Leila Navidi (@LeilaNavidi) November 27, 2016

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Born in a Kenyan refugee camp, the Somali-American teenager wore the traditional Islamic dress and full-body burkini during the event's swimsuit segment.

Halima Aden starts off Miss Minnesota USA's swimsuit segment to big cheers from the crowd. Announcer: "She's making history tonight." pic.twitter.com/OUvbHv6xct  Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 27, 2016

She was welcomed with cheers and received support from all over the world.

Moving to St. Cloud, Minnesota, home to a large number of Somali refugees, at the age of six, Aden was one of the top 15 contestants in the two-day pageant.

"A lot of people will look at you and will fail to see your beauty because youre covered up and theyre not used to it. So growing up, I just had to work on my people skills and give people a chance to really know me besides the clothing," the teen said in an interview with KARE-11.

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Halima Aden with her top 15 trophy. First person to wear hijab to Miss Minnesota USA pageant. Hear from her tonight on @kare11pic.twitter.com/1fBRFJkjf3  Ellery McCardle (@ElleryTV) November 28, 2016

"This is a big win for us, you know. I'm the first to do this and I'm hoping to see more Muslim women wearing burkinis and being celebrated," she said.

In another interview with ABC News, Aden touched upon America's struggle with images of Islamophobia and the perception of Muslim people.

"The people that are doing bad things, they dont represent an entire group," Aden said. "I feel like Im here to bust those misconceptions and stereotypes of Muslim women."

A photo posted by Halima Aden  (@kinglimaa) on Oct 27, 2016 at 12:27am PDT

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Denise Wallace, executive co-director of the Miss Minnesota USA pageant, praised the teen for wearing both a hijab and burkini in the competition.

"I think for Halima standing on the stage this weekend she is showing other women that they too can do that and that it's possible for them," she said.

Throwback to #eid  A photo posted by Halima Aden  (@kinglimaa) on Jul 10, 2016 at 11:14am PDT

Although she didn't win the competition, Aden said her main goal is to inspire others to embrace themselves.

"Be who you are. Its easy to feel like you have to blend in, but it takes courage to live your life with conviction and embrace the person that you are."

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It's news many "Gilmore Girls" fans want to hear: will Lorelai and Rory return to Netflix?

Just days after the highly-anticipated revival series premiered on Netflix, show creator Amy Sherman-Palladino told The Hollywood Reporter exactly how she felt about the idea of more episodes of "Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life."

"We really had a very specific journey in our minds and we fulfilled the journey. So to us, this is the piece that we wanted to do. And the whole thought about, 'Is there more, is there more, is there more?'  this has to go out into the universe now. We've got to put this to bed," she told the magazine. "And then whatever happens, happens."

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The four-part Netflix special follows the mother-daughter duo almost a decade after the "Gilmore Girls" finale.

And while Sherman-Palladino seems to be vague about the idea of yet another reboot, actor Scott Patterson (who plays Luke Danes on the show) is definitely more open to the idea.

"[It would be] be nice to do it every year," he told the magazine. "Maybe every two years, do a three-month thing, do four more chapters. It was easy to do. It was fun. It was really rewarding and people got a sense that if this was going to be the last thing that we now have some closure."

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And without giving too much away (warning, spoilers), it seems many fans still have questions after watching the four episodes.
A police department in P.E.I has a warning for anyone who drinks and drives: Prepare yourself for the Nickelback treatment.

The Kensington Police Service shared a post on Saturday promising drunk drivers this holiday season a "bonus gift" of listening to the Canadian band's music while in the back of a police cruiser.

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The idea came from Const. Robb Hartlen, who's been with the force since June and runs its Facebook page.

Kensington Police Drinking and Driving Gift. Christmas Bonus Edition So, the Holiday Season is upon us and that means... Posted by Kensington Police Service on Saturday, November 26, 2016

"We figure if you are foolish enough to get behind the wheel after drinking then a little Chad Kroeger and the boys is the perfect gift for you," he wrote in the post.

Hartlen told The Huffington Post Canada he tinges his posts with comedy to break down the notion of police officers being serious and stoic figures with no sense of humour.

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"Some of the funniest guys I know went to the academy," he said.

Hartlen said prior to November, Kensington police had no Facebook presence. He said he started the page to change that.

And despite using Nickelback as a form of punishment, Hartlen thinks Kroeger and Co. likely don't care, especially since they're "laughing all the way to the bank."

The Nickelback cassette  yes, cassette  that was shared in the Facebook post is an unopened copy Hartlen found in department's office.

"Let's not ruin a perfectly good unopened copy of Nickelback. You don't drink and drive and we won't make you listen to it," he wrote in the post.

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If you're wondering which song the officer would start the night with, it's "Photograph."

Sorry, it's stuck in your head now, isn't it?

Also on HuffPost
yoh4nn via Getty Images Horizontal color image of businesswoman - unrecognizable person - working with digital tablet in large futuristic factory. Woman standing on top of a balcony, holding touchpad and checking inventory of a manufacturing company on touchscreen tablet. Focus on futuristic machines in background, businesswoman's hands holding black tablet defocused.

Weve been told that the Internet of Things (IOT) is the future of technology, but what does that really mean? Imagine refrigerators that write grocery store lists and Jetsons-style microwaves that cook the most delicious food with little preparation. While these are pie-in-the-sky ideas, practically speaking, the IOT (also known as Industry 4.0) is a revolutionary way for manufacturers to digitize operations and save money.

The Internet of Things, a term coined by British entrepreneur Kevin Ashton in 1999, describes the ability of everyday objects to talk to each other via an Internet connection. This includes everything from your home appliances to factory machinery. The ability for a companys network to receive, analyze and send information offers manufacturers an opportunity to be agile, increase production quality, create supply chain efficiencies and earn higher profits. Companies like Cisco and Rockwell Automation are working to create these integrated systems, but how do they actually help manufacturers?

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Most manufacturing operations rely on demand and sales to drive production, inventory and manage their supply chain. But the time between production and sales results can lead to disruptions in the supply chain. Market tastes can change and without immediate visibility into their operations and the flexibility to adjust production, manufacturers can miss the opportunity to meet market demand.

So weve established that connectivity can definitely help. Now lets look at how manufacturers can leverage the IOT on the plant floor.

Leveraging big data in production

One advantage of the IOT for manufacturers is the data produced by connected devices along the plant floor. With that information, manufacturers can track parts and materials, monitor equipment, regulate production and troubleshoot problems in real-time. They receive sales data and usage data immediately and relay that to the production line, where inventory levels can be assessed and new parts ordered as required. This transparency and immediacy allows manufacturers to reduce unplanned downtime, increase Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and reduce risk. Its what Cisco calls the Connected Factory.

Energy and efficiency

When machines are connected to the Internet, manufacturers can do more than monitor output and performance. Production lines can be scheduled to scale with time-of-use electricity rates, reducing the overall cost of operations. And by leveraging sales and usage data, manufacturers can focus on producing products that satisfy customer demand. This means unnecessary goods can be phased out or produced on a smaller scale. This leads to cost savings and greater inventory efficiency, as in-demand products are immediately shipped, reducing storage time and associated costs.

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Cost savings

Unplanned production downtime due to machine failure or repair can cost manufacturers millions of dollars. A manufacturer has a better chance of survival if operations leaders know when a machine needs maintenance and can schedule repairs during a planned downtime, before it disrupts production. The IOT makes predictive maintenance possible, improving a manufacturers bottom line and production efficiency.

Daimler Trucks is leveraging the IOT in their production facility in Oregon. An intelligent network tracks material levels accurately against orders and supply chain fulfillment  which means materials arent being bought and stocked. Theres no unnecessary warehousing or downtime. And when theres a machine breakdown, video technology provides access to remote expert support on demand.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will not attend the funeral of former Cuban president Fidel Castro, his office confirms.

Governor General David Johnston will instead represent Canada at a commemoration for Castro in Havana on Tuesday. Johnston said in a release that he was making the trip at the request of Trudeau.

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The prime minister sparked international headlines over the weekend after he released a statement lauding Castro as a larger-than-life leader and legendary revolutionary who improved health care and education for Cubans.

He also noted his fathers personal friendship with the infamous communist leader, who died Friday at the age of 90.

Though Trudeau conceded in the statement that Castro was a controversial figure, many took to social media to criticize the prime minister for glossing over the significant human rights violations that marked Castros five decades in power.

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A day later, Trudeau told reporters that Castro was a dictator, but suggested his statement was meant to reflect the deep relationship between Canada and Cuba.

Tory leadership contenders urged PM to skip event

Conservative leadership contender Lisa Raitt publicly called on Trudeau not to attend Castros funeral in an open letter on Facebook, and said the prime minister should be ashamed of his words.

Canada must not be seen celebrating the life of a tyrant, Raitt said. The eyes of Canadians are watching you. Will you stand with the millions of oppressed Cubans or side with their oppressor?

Leadership rival Maxime Bernier said in a release that Trudeaus presence at Castros funeral could jeopardize relations with the United States. President-elect Donald Trump called Castro a brutal dictator.

Trudeau's comments have brought international mockery on Canada. Attending the funeral of this dictator will add insult to injury, Bernier said.

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Castro was an honorary pallbearer at Pierre Trudeau's funeral

Castro memorably served as an honorary pallbearer at the state funeral of Pierre Trudeau in 2000. In 1976, Pierre Trudeau became the first NATO leader to visit post-revolution Cuba.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited Cuba earlier this month where he met with president Raul Castro, Fidel's younger brother.

With a file from Catherine Levesque

Also on HuffPost
MillefloreImages via Getty Images

This holiday season, some Canadians may be struggling to muster up their usual festive cheer. With each new headline or breaking news story, there seems to be a pervading global climate of uncertainty, as millions grapple with uncharted courses and foggy futures.

This uncertainty is heightened by an atmosphere of increasing intolerance and worrisome rhetoric. We've seen evidence of this through viral images of offensive telephone pole posters, graffiti defaced businesses, and an overall surge in online bullying.

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However, in the midst of this darkness, Canada has the opportunity to emerge as a beacon of light by proudly embracing its inclusive, multicultural values. As many have commented in the past few weeks, "Canada is most open to the world at the exact moment the world has closed."

Through Gifts of Hope you can help reach refugee and internally displaced children at the most critical time.

(Photo: Plan International Canada)

Though Canada is far from immune to the forces of intolerance, we generally still self-identify as generous, socially conscious citizens. We recently surveyed Canadians on the topic of charitable giving and a majority of respondents (67 per cent) believe that it is "Canadian to give back to those who need it most." Similarly, a nationwide survey found that the values Canadians take pride in most are equality, equity and social justice.

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In this moment of unease and unrest, it's heartening that we see ourselves as the world's helpful, conscientious neighbor. Well Canada, this week we have the chance to put our money where our identity is.

It's Giving Tuesday on November 29th - a day that was conceived at the UN four years ago as an antidote to the mega-materialism of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. It has since grown into a giving movement, galvanizing people to mark the day by donating or volunteering their time to charitable causes.

As someone who has spent the majority of my career working for charitable organizations, I know first-hand how generous Canadians can be, never failing to step up and give back to their communities. Now more than ever, the world is in desperate need of Canada's altruistic spirit.

Though historically, only 10 per cent of charitable donations from Canadians go toward supporting international development, this could be the year this statistic shifts. Encouragingly, a third of Canadians said they would rather have a herd of goats gifted to a family in a developing country on their behalf than receive a new computer or gym membership this year.

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Goat's milk means important protein for growing children.

(Photo: Plan International Canada)

This holiday season, I am hopeful that Canadians will earn their reputation for generosity and inclusion by looking beyond our borders, beyond ourselves, to support communities half way around the world.

Let's own our identity as compassionate Canadians, not only on Giving Tuesday, but every day of the year.

By giving, we show the world that we are so much more than our borders, nationalities, and political ideologies. We are part of a collective humanity and each of us has the power to challenge injustice and inequality, and positively impact the lives of those in the world around us, whether they live next door or on another continent.

Right now, many Canadians may feel overwhelmed by the challenges facing our world. But as Prime Minister Trudeau summarized at the United Nations General Assembly this fall, "We know we can't solve these problems alone. We know we need to do this all together. We know it will be hard work. But we're Canadian. And we're here to help."

As a global citizen you too have the power to help this holiday season, whether by welcoming a family of new Canadians, volunteering at a local food bank or extending a helping hand to a girl half-way around the world. Hope knows no bounds.

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Chris Wattie / Reuters Canada's Foreign Minister Stephane Dion listens to a question after delivering a speech at the University of Ottawa in Ottawa, Canada, March 29, 2016. REUTERS/Chris Wattie

This open letter is signed by 28 researchers, practitioners and students in law and international justice. Their names are listed below.

During the last electoral campaign, we urged the next government "to step up to the plate" and commit itself to making the fight against impunity a foreign policy priority.

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Almost a year later, we are pleased to see Canada moving in this direction. In addition to meeting with the International Criminal Court ("ICC") Prosecutor and her deputy as well as with the ICC President, Minister Stephane Dion outlined the Canadian government's new policy in the field of international criminal justice at the 15th session of the Assembly of States Parties to the ICC ("ASP") that took place in The Hague between 16th and 25th November. He made a strong statement of support for the ICC, much more in line with the aspirations of the Rome Statute's promoters than that of the previous government.

It is clear that there is much to be done, in Syria and elsewhere.

Canada's welcome change in tone and attitude goes beyond showmanship. According to civil society sources, Canada has already been more proactive in promoting international criminal law and a rules-based system. It is too soon to say that the fight against impunity is now a diplomatic priority for Canada. It is clear, however, that there is much to be done, in Syria and elsewhere. The announced intention of Burundi, South Africa and the Gambia to withdraw from the court raise new challenges for the project of international justice.

We are convinced that Canada can and must do more in this field. The 15th session of the ASP was an opportunity to mobilize international support for the ICC, but Canada's efforts must not stop there.

Countering demagogic and populist discourses

It's fashionable to talk about the ICC without regard to the facts. Canada must promote a constructive and pragmatic discussion about the court's role -- one that is based on an accurate description of its mandate and experience.

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The claim that the ICC targets Africa is incorrect. Most of the African cases at the ICC have been referred by African states themselves. It is equally distorted to say that African states are united against the court and are about to leave the ICC en masse, following Burundi, South Africa and the Gambia. These three states do not represent the entirety of Africa nor of African civil societies. On the contrary, 31 other African states are not rushing to withdraw, and many reaffirmed their strong commitment to the ICC.

Canada must also promote the ICC's successes. At its inception, few believed that the ICC would have over 124 member states today. Even with the announced withdrawals, this is a success and we need to build on it. We should also celebrate the court's focus on sexual and gender-based violence, set out in the Office of the Prosecutor's policy on sexual and gender-based crimes. This led to the first conviction of a political leader for the use of sexual violence by his subordinates, and the first indictment for the direct commission of sexual violence.

As such, our proposal last year that Canada should appoint an ambassador for international justice remains relevant, and could provide the opportunity for discussions throughout the year.

The Elephant in the Room

Some African states, including South Africa, argue that their obligation to cooperate with the ICC by arresting current heads of state is incompatible with their obligations to facilitate peaceful conflict resolution. Many states avoid this discussion for fear of undermining the principle of equality of all before the law.

However, this debate could be beneficial as it would allow for a thoughtful discussion of the complexities of securing state cooperation. The recent policy of Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda is a step in the right direction. Canada's refusal to offer immunity to incumbent presidents, expressed at the ASP, is another.

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Canada must continue to defend the denial of immunity to government officials found in the Rome Statute, while seeking to build constructive solutions to any legitimate concerns.

Supporting Justice and National Initiatives

The fight against impunity goes well beyond the ICC -- it must be waged in every state. In this manner, the Rome Statute can be used by civil society as a "sword of Damocles" to convince reluctant states to implement justice. Canada should support civil society efforts in this regard, as it has committed to doing at the ASP.

Canada should also support states which exercise universal jurisdiction to pursue alleged Syrian war criminals who are now abroad. Canada could set an example by reinvesting in its own war crimes prosecution program.

Finally, it is important that Canada continues to be actively involved in supporting those documenting the atrocities committed in ongoing conflicts, particularly in Syria, in order to prepare for the eventual realization of justice.

Signatories:

Me Erick Sullivan, Laval University

Prof. Fannie Lafontaine, Laval University

Prof. David Petrasek, Ottawa University

Me Philippe Tremblay, Lawyers Without Borders Canada

Prof. Francois Larocque, Ottawa University

Prof. Robert Currie, Dalhousie University

Prof. Payam Akhavan, McGill University

Prof. Julia Grignon, Laval University

Fergus Watt, World Federalist Movement

Prof. Stephan Brown, Ottawa University

Prof. Joanna Quinn, Western University

Prof. Darryl Robinson, Queen's University

Prof. Penelope Simons, Universite d'Ottawa

Joao Velloso, Ottawa University

Mark Kersten, University of Toronto

Frederick John Packer, Ottawa University

Matt Eisenbrandt, Canadian Center for International Justice

Prof. Valerie Oosterveld, University of Western Ontario

Prof. Jo-Anne Wemmers, Universite de Montreal

Edouard Delaplace, Lawyers Without Borders Canada

Kathleen Tanner, Dalhousie University

Ayodele Akenroye, McGill University

Kirsten Stefanik, University of Western Ontario

Jessica Dufresne, Ottawa University

Claire Magnoux Laval University

Daniel Melo Garcia Laval University

Carrie Kopersky, University of Alberta

This op-ed is written in the framework of the "Strengthening Justice for International Crimes: A Canadian Partnership" funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

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kodda via Getty Images detail of white smoke polluted sky

As Justin Trudeau prepares to meet with the premiers in early December to finalize a pan-Canadian climate plan, a key contradiction remains in the Liberal's framework for a low-carbon economy.

Namely, that the government's steadfast commitment to expanding fossil fuel exports is fundamentally antithetical to real action on climate change.

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At this year's COP22 in Marrakech, Canada was criticized for pursuing new oil and gas projects. The United Nations-sponsored event saw many poor nations appeal for a more concerted global response to curb the frequency of droughts, floods and sea level rise affecting the planet's most vulnerable communities.

Canada should be committing to much more ambitious reduction targets, and adopt 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050.

"Developed countries have a moral obligation to honour the Paris Agreement," said Benson Ireri of Christian Aid Africa. "It is a serious concern when we see the international community not honouring their commitments."

Despite rapidly shrinking commodity returns, Trudeau has shown a willingness to green-light fossil fuel projects during his first year as PM. In September he approved a controversial $27 billion liquified natural gas mega-project in British Columbia. The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency has calculated it to be "one of the largest greenhouse gas [GHG] emitters in Canada."

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He's also hinted at authorizing Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. On November 19, thousands marched in Vancouver in opposition to the project which would carry bitumen from Alberta's oil sands to the Westridge Marine Terminal in Burnaby, B.C. Environmental groups warn it will add around 15 megatonnes of upstream GHG emissions. To put that in perspective, the federal government's national floor price on carbon, announced in October, is estimated to result in an 18 megatonne reduction in GHGs by 2030.

Facing the prospect of 'runaway' climate change -- the "point of no return" when no amount of cutbacks on emissions will prevent catastrophic global warming -- Canada should be committing to much more ambitious reduction targets, and adopt 100 per cent renewable energy by 2050.

"Staying in one place might be just fine in regular politics," writes Keith Stewart of Greenpeace Canada, "but climate scientists are telling us we have to move fast and far in one direction, and only one direction: replacing fossil fuels with clean energy by mid-century."

Of course, it would be misleading to suggest the Liberals have failed to respond at all to the rapid heating of the planet. On the heels of the Vancouver Declaration, Environment Minister Catherine McKenna announced on November 21 the government would phase out coal-fired electricity by 2030. This will reduce CO2 emissions by five megatonnes per year, equivalent to taking more than one million cars off the road.

Yet of the almost $500 billion spent globally last year on clean energy such as solar and wind power, Canada is lagging far behind its major partners. According to a Clean Energy Canada report from 2015, nearly half of that money was used in the developing world. Morocco, for instance, built a $9 billion solar power plant on the edge of the Sahara desert that will provide electricity for more than one million people. By 2030, 52 per cent of the North African country's energy will come from renewables. Contrast that with Trudeau's pledge to cut emissions 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030.

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Effective energy transition policies start by rejecting the notion that carbon pricing and pollution regulation hurts the economy.

Shockingly, the Canadian government still gives $3.3 billion worth of subsidies to oil and gas companies while remaining one of the top-ten absolute emitters in the world (Canada has the highest emissions per capita, double the global average).

As prices for solar power and other technologies continue to fall sharply, the Liberals' face an historic juncture: continue with the twin pursuit of expanding fossil fuel exports and GHG reductions, or, collaborate with provincial leaders to adopt the radical solutions the environment is demanding.

Governments must make bold choices, and fast, to keep the world from breaching the 1.5 degree Celsius threshold. That means accelerated reductions through renewable alternatives; expanding the electricity sector; raising subsidies for zero-emission vehicles; and shifting to a clean technology portfolio that combines solar, wind, geothermal and hydroelectric power.

It also means rejecting projects like TransCanada's Keystone XL pipeline, although the Liberals (and President-elect Donald Trump) have long expressed interest in reviving it.

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Effective energy transition policies start by rejecting the notion that carbon pricing and pollution regulation hurts the economy. On the contrary, a failure to fulfill Canada's climate commitments will spell grave repercussions at home and abroad.

Through high-stakes partnership, and by incorporating the best of provincial policies as nationwide standards, a pan-Canadian climate plan might begin to resemble the clean energy present our future demands.

In the words of renowned author and activist Naomi Klein, "we are all going to have to stop being so impeccably calm and reasonable. We're going to have to find that part of ourselves that feels this threat in our hearts, as well as our heads."

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Photo by Danielle Da Silva.

Anybody should be lucky enough to encounter a situation that causes enough conviction to actively change life's course of events, even if a sacrifice must be made.

For the last few months, I've volunteered for Photographers Without Borders. CEO Danielle Da Silva had such a life-changing opportunity when she went on a photo-documentary assignment in 2015 with photographer Gita Defoe, where the two documented the work efforts of Orangutan Information Centre (OIC) in Sumatra, Indonesia. Out in the field, Danielle had a rare opportunity to interact with orangutans in the wild, even getting to follow a mother orangutan and her baby, while watching them in their natural habitat.

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As tremendous as that opportunity was, Danielle's life was changed when she accompanied OIC on a rescue mission that removed a baby orangutan from deplorable living conditions in an amusement park. To remove an orangutan, the mother must first be killed, leaving the baby to live its life in captivity. Quite often, the conditions are unsanitary and a far cry from life in the jungle. The orangutan, named Cece, was brought to a rehabilitation facility where it will be released in the wild after receiving proper care.

Sumatra is home to many endangered species. Critically endangered tigers, elephants, and rhinoceros all inhabit Sumatra's beautiful rainforests, which are being rapidly depleted by deforestation in support of a growing palm oil industry. Palm oil can be found in everyday products like vegetable oil, candies and many desserts. Rainforests in Sumatra and Borneo, as well as the animals and vegetation that make their homes there are in a dire situation. Animals like tigers, elephants, primates and exotic birds that once roamed freely are now without a trace in these environments due to over-production and deforestation by big agriculture businesses. The effect on the environment is devastating as the rapid deforestation of these rainforests means the extinction of many species, and the end of a way of life for the people of Indonesia.

The solution is complex - simply saying "no" to palm oil also means destroying a huge industry that supports the livelihoods of people on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo who see the palm oil industry as a means of stable income. However, palm oil production also drains massive amounts of water, forcing villagers to purchase bottled water. Deforestation also depletes the world of oxygen-creating plants, causes erosion, and creates an environment more susceptible to natural disasters. Interest in preserving the rainforest is not only from the perspective of saving these endangered species, but also in a vested interest in the health of humankind.

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Danielle, along with photographer Gita Defoe and a number of like-minded individuals have been fundraising with the aim of purchasing 40 acres of land in Sumatra to set aside as a wildlife sanctuary. To date, $100,000 USD is needed to purchase the land, which will serve to rehabilitate endangered animals back into the wild, and guide them away from palm oil plantations and into the larger forest. These are normal people who have chosen to make a personal sacrifice to do an extraordinary and tangible thing to help combat this disaster. People can donate here.

We encourage you to participate in a more hands-on way and get involved any way you wish. On behalf of PWB, Danielle and award-winning photographer Kristi Odom will be presenting a photography masterclass in partnership with Sumatra Wildlife Sanctuary and Orangutan Information Centre. Participants will have the exciting opportunity to see the wildlife sanctuary first hand, while learning and telling the story of the wildlife and people affected. All proceeds from the workshop will support the Sumatra Wildlife Sanctuary and Orangutan Information Centre by conserving the rainforest land from deforestation.

I firmly believe in the power of humanity to build a better world, despite war, and greed, and destruction. It has been inspiring meeting Danielle and discussing these issues and realizing that these initiatives have tremendous impact. They are not as unobtainable or far away as I often think they are. These goals are realistic, and the impact is world-changing, from people just like myself. If Danielle, or anyone involved can save the Sumatra rainforest, this implies a strong, powerful, and exciting responsibility. If she can do this - I can do this. Anyone reading this article can do something. These actions, big or small, are not being carried out by people with power, or money, or prestige. As humans, we are privileged to live in this world and we should strive to care about humanity and keeping this planet beautiful, colorful and full of diverse wildlife. We are able to do this, not because of money or influence, but because we are human, and we are all on this fight together to build a happier, greener space.

Sign up for the Photographers Without Borders Sumatra Masterclass here.

More info about Sumatra Wildlife Sanctuary here.

More info about Orangutan Information Centre here.
Kagenmi via Getty Images

Fidel Castro will forever be remembered as one of the most controversial figures in modern history, to his many adoring supporters and vocal critics.

The former Cuban Leader and revolutionary was a great man, not only because of the actions he took on behalf of his people, but because he had principles and beliefs and stuck to them, regardless of the immense outside political pressures.

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Castro, who passed away on Friday, November 25th at the age of 90, ruled Cuba under a single party for half a century, before handing power to his brother in 2008.

Castro will be remembered for his unwavering stance against the United States for a half century, standing up to 10 different US Presidents, nearly bringing nuclear war to the West. Handing over power to his brother Raul after his health declined, who has continued his legacy since taking office, and has been fighting alongside Fidel since his earliest days.

Fidel Castro was the leader of the Communist party, regardless of your political views on Communism, he stood for the Cuban people, and always protected their national interests. Fidel turned Cuba into a Socialist state, enacting sweeping reforms which heavily invested in healthcare and education for the Cuban people.

His reforms also came with a mass crackdown on the media and his opposition in Cuba, which was widely criticized around the world. The Cuban revolution which is how Fidel came to power, by opposing the authoritarian regime in power, would shape US-Cuban relations for many years to come. Americans truly fear Communism and Socialism, and the divide between the two nations had never been greater, until a recent improvement of relations under the Obama administration.

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Fidel was able to survive in power, despite the many attempts by the US to topple his government. Examples being the invasion of Cuba during the Bay of Pigs, and the numerous reported assassination attempts.

The world can learn a great deal from Fidel Castro, that as great as Democracy is, it has allowed the imperfect system of Capitalism to take hold of Western society. Capitalism presents many opportunities for people of the West, yet it often overlooks many social issues and neglects marginalized groups of people in society.

Education in the United States is in decline, as the skyrocketing post secondary costs and the lack of good high schools around the country are an example of a system which has not invested in its own people. Education in Cuba is publicly well funded, and is free. With over 13% of Cuba's GDP being allocated to education, Cuba's Literacy rate is 99.8%.

Before Fidel Castro, Cuba was a more rural nation with basic education not provided for most. The need for heavily investing in the youth of the Nation is of utmost importance, as they are the future. A report states that as of 2014, 91% of people aged 15 to 24 years of age had basic literacy skills, compared to 76% of people 65 years or older, this is in stark contrast to Cuba's extremely high literacy rates.

Health care in Cuba saw many reforms under Fidel Castro, as health care was a cornerstone of the rule of Cuba's revered leader. Yet, many issues plagued the Cuban Health Care such as shortages in medicines and equipment, this was almost entirely due to the harsh US embargo placed on the Cuban people in the 90s.

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I do have to give credit to the Obama administration for mending ties with Cuba, as the Cuban people should not have to suffer a lack of basic medicine and supplies due to their political affiliation. Being a Canadian, I truly believe health care is a right, and people should not be left without coverage.

This was a major tribute to Fidel's rule, as there are no private healthcare clinics in Cuba, rather health care is run by the state and is provided to all citizens at a very reasonable expense. Cuba prides itself on its equity in healthcare, as the wealthy few do not receive preferential treatment. Inequality of healthcare is a major issue in Global politics especially in the United States, with Millions going without health care insurance before Obamacare.

The WHO says Cubans not only have the highest life expectancy in the region, but also place in the top globally. Millions of tourists visit Cuba annually, it is expected that thousands go just for the access to their health care system, and access to their highly trained medical professionals. With US-Cuba relations improving, it is worth noting that major health care reforms are underway in 2016-2017 to improve Cuban health care further.

I am against foreign countries forcing regime change abroad. The thing I admire most about Fidel Castro was his dedication to the Cuban people and his ability to stand up to the United States for such a long period of time. He should be praised for his ability to stand up to Corporate greed and financial institutions which often have to large a say in the decisions governments make.

Fidel Castro is quoted as saying "Cuba is the only country in the world which does not need to trade with the United States."

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Cuba was of extreme importance to the US even though there are no major oil reserves, it is not a major political player on the global scale, and the economy is not a major powerhouse, yet the US fixation on the overthrow of the Castro government was a fixture of American politics throughout history.

Fidel Castro's ability to stand tough against A foreign nation's intervention and corporate interests are widely respected around the world, and have even inspired the likes of Venezuela and Hugo Chavez. The world needs leaders like Fidel Castro to stand firm against invading foreign countries unilaterally, and attempting to dictate the future of their people, he truly was a remarkable man.

I did not focus on the many issues which Cuba and the Cuban people face, and the negative aspects of Fidel Castro's rule, as there were a number of troubling issues under his rule. I do not support Communism, but I see the valuable lessons that can be learned from its principles and the principles of Socialism.

The world needs more leaders whose only responsibility is to their people, and who are not controlled by Corporate greed and Big Business. Fidel Castro will forever be remembered in the hearts of people around the world, for his love of Cuba, and his passion for the Cuban people. He should be revered and the world should learn from his courageous actions, as a passionate and driven leader.

Fidel Castro was an example to many Latin American Nations and other leaders around the world that foreign nations such as the US do not have the right to meddle in the internal affairs of another country.

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PeopleImages via Getty Images A young businessman explaining information to an elderly manhttp://195.154.178.81/DATA/i_collage/pi/shoots/783531.jpg

Canada, like many other countries, is experiencing a significant demographic shift. Our population is now the oldest it ever has been, with more people currently aged 65 and older than there are children under the age of 15. As with any significant demographic shift, this trend has significant implications for society at large, impacting health care, finance policy, infrastructure, family relationships, and legal issues.

Elder law is a relatively new area of legal practice, evolving in response to our aging society. Elder law is not a legal form in itself, such as contract, but an approach to law that focuses on the rights of older adults. The object of the practice of elder law is to allow older adults to live in dignity by protecting their rights. Lawyers practising in the area of elder law might advise clients on wills and estate planning, powers of attorney and incapacity planning, and age-related discrimination.

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In elder law, professionalism and the lawyer-client relationship are equally important to the substantive law. A good lawyer-client relationship, in which the client feels respected and is not treated like a child, is essential to reflect the values of independence and dignity that are at the heart of elder law.

A body of substantive law is also developing to respond to the particular legal issues most often encountered by older adults. Some of the legal issues within the ambit of elder law include issues of care, capacity, exploitation, and vulnerability. In 2012, the Law Commission of Ontario released a Framework for the Law as it Affects Older Adults, to assist legislators and the legal profession in understanding and evaluating how laws and policies affect older adults and provide a foundation for law reform within the sphere of elder law.

Lawyers who practice in the area of wills and estates often become involved in elder law through power of attorney disputes. It is important to remember that while there is some overlap between the practice of estates law and elder law, the interests at issue are different. While estates disputes are fundamentally about money and property, elder law is about the rights and independence of a person who may be more likely to be vulnerable due to advanced age.

Access to justice is a concern in the area of elder law. Elder law issues impact low-income seniors equally or more so than those who can afford to hire a lawyer. It does not matter how much money is at issue, for example, in a power of attorney dispute, when the rights and independence of an individual are at risk. It can be equally catastrophic to an older adult if someone is exploiting him or her to steal a small pension cheque as it would be to steal tens of thousands of dollars from a senior with greater financial resources.

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There are some resources for older adults who cannot afford a lawyer to receive legal advice in Ontario. The Elder Law Clinic at Queens University Law School (QELC) provides free legal services to low-income seniors in Kingston and the surrounding area. QELC was the first law school run elder law clinic in Canada. There is also a community based legal clinic in Toronto for low income senior citizens, the Advocacy Centre for the Elderly (ACE). ACE is funded through Legal Aid Ontario. In addition to direct legal services, they provide legal education to the public and engage in law reform efforts.

Especially within the context of our aging population, it is important that everyone, not only the wealthy, consider planning for old age. Lawyers practising elder law and free legal clinics alike are valuable resources that can help people maintain independence and age with dignity.

Ian Hull and Suzana Popovic-Montag are partners at Hull & Hull LLP, an innovative law firm that practices exclusively in estate, trust and capacity litigation. To watch more Hull & Hull TV episodes, please visit our Hull & Hull TV page.
The five things you need to know on Monday, November 28

1) BREXIT BUFFET

Can Theresa May agree a Brexit buffer, a transitional deal that will allow us to actually quit the EU, while retaining some crucial arrangements until we finally sort out the shape of our exit? And will the EU allow us any a la carte options, or even a buffet menu of rights and responsibilities?

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We learned this weekend that Mark Carney is keen on a transitional deal that gets us to at least 2021 with many current arrangements intact. But as Michael Gove said yesterday, he suspects this is all a ruse by Remainers. As he told Andrew Marr: "there are some people who can't get over the fact that the British people have voted to leave the EU and want us to have a transitional arrangement which is as close as possible" to EU membership as a way of avoiding Brexit.

Theres the threat of yet another legal hurdle. Sick of Article 50 chat? Welcome to Article 127 debate, as former Remain group British Influence say theyll launch a judicial review of any move by the UK to trigger the obscure instrument that allows us to quit the European Economic Area (EEA).

But for my mind one of the most intriguing bits of Brexit news today came in the Guardians report of an LSE lecture by Lord Kerr, the diplomat who drafted Article 50. Forget Norway, forget Canada, forget Albania. Kerr says the best option is the Ukrainian model - a deal between Brussels and Kiev - phased in over time. He puts at less than 50% our chances of getting a decent deal within two years.

Kerr, an avid Remainer dont forget, had this key line too about the PMs Tory conference speech: Mrs Mays absolute rejection of any role for the European court of justice in Britain was the single most damaging issue. Most people in Brussels think that rules out anything but a hard Brexit because, how can you play if you will not accept the referees decision?

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2) POLE POSITION

Theresa May welcomes Polish PM Beata Szydlo to No10 today and Michael Fallon has unveiled yet more British troop deployments in northern Poland to send a signal to Russia.

Downing St will be delighted by Szydlos article in the Telegraph, in which she says Warsaw wants a "good compromise in the Brexit talks to guarantee "economic and security cooperation. She urges the EU to show imagination and leadership. Just how willing the Poles are to give us a special exemption from freedom of movement remains to be seen however (they are very much on our side in keeping non-EU migrants out of Europe, but passionate defenders of EU migrant rights within Europe, for obvious reasons).

Several Tory Brexiteers - and MPs from other parties - have written to former Polish PM and now European Council President Donald Tusk to urge a deal on reciprocal rights for Brits and EU citizens post-Brexit as the just and humane thing to do.

But when it comes to the exact shape of Brexit, the FT has had a stab at what it may look like. It picks up on the line from Sir Jeremy Heywood, who asked his top team in the immediate aftermath of the Brexit referendum this star question: What is our leverage? The FT comes up with four areas where the UK has a strong hand: contributions to the EU budget and security, invaluable UK trade with EU firms, a hard Brexit would damage the EU more than the UK, tactical opportunities to divide the EU 27.

A week on Monday, the Supreme Court will hear the Article 50 case and as its the Supreme Court, we will all be able to watch it live on TV. The Times reports that the bookies havent missed a trick and will offer live betting odds to accompany the hearing.

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3) LABOUR MOVEMENT

Labour was delighted by its Saturday Care For The NHS campaign day, not least as the 541 different events, and a million leaflets, gave it a chance to practice its snap election ground war. With Stephen Dorrell telling Marr yesterday that social care was inadquately funded, it also gave the party a chance to hit hard on the Autumn Statements lack of NHS help - and its wider claim that Mays Tories are no different from Camerons Tories.

But with the Conservatives far ahead in the polls, theres another kind of Labour movement that worries some of its MPs: the shifting positions on key issues like Brexit and immigration. Emily Thornberry, asked twice on Marr directly if Labour would back a second EU referendum, said I think we need to take this in stages and then step by step. Thats not what Corbyn, McDonnell or Keir Starmer have been saying, all of whom have ruled out a second ballot in one way or another.

And on immigration, Diane Abbotts words to the Guardian on Saturday still resonate. Shed said: Those of us who are arguing for the least harmful Brexit have to be clear to people that there is no deal to be done on freedom of movement, and to imperil our economic interests as a country because of anti-immigrant feeling would scarcely be responsible. Again, its not quite Starmers line (or Tom Watsons or many in the PLP) to suggest theres no deal to be done on EU migration.

With UKIP almost certain to elect Scouser Paul Nuttall today as their new leader, no wonder northern MPs (Dan Jarvis pops up in The Times) are worried. If Jeremy Corbyn does indeed attend Fidel Castros funeral (as claimed by the Telegraph today), you can bet that UKIP (and some in the PLP) will pounce. Labour sources tell me no invitation has even been received yet. Boris isnt going, but Theresa May has yet to utter any words on Castros death.

To add to the confusion, Labours Richmond Park byelection candidate Christian Wolmar told SkyNews yesterday hed vote against Article 50, claiming (wrongly) that was his partys stance. Note it is very much the main Lib Dem stance however. Their candidate Sarah Olney has hardened her line to say not only shed vote against hard Brexit, but any Brexit. She says on her leaflets a categoric: I will vote against Brexit. But the Sun has a video of Nick Clegg confiding that actually his party won't be able to stop Article 50, let alone Brexit.

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BECAUSE YOUVE READ THIS FAR

Watch the Strictly contestants say how sad they are to see Ed Balls go. Feels like a leadership election video

4) FILLON FINE

So Francois Fillon, the comeback kid, is set for a helluva comeback. Having once been a distant third in the polling for the centre-right Presidential candidacy, the Thatcherite ex-PM won the selection by a landslide last night.

Peter Ricketts (or @LordRickettsP as hes now styled himself on Twitter) is our former ambassador in Paris and knows Fillon and his British wife Penelope well. Hes blogged for HuffPostUK (he was a regular blogger for our sister site in France) today, pointing out that Fillon is a huge fan of the Le Mans 24 hour race where stamina and timing count so much. He also points out that while the French Presidential contender would try to push Calais border controls back to Dover, he would actually be a useful Brexit partner: a pragmatic free trader.

For Marine le Pen, of course, the fact that Fillon is the ultimate insider and free-trader is useful. But his social conservatism and defence of EU subsidies for farmers may be enough to stop her march to the Elysee (though the French unions are already gearing up for a fight with him, perhaps depriving him of left votes needed for victory).

As for Nigel Farage, he told the Sunday Express yesterday that he was still undecided as to whether hed back Le Pen in the race. It depends what the circumstances are - you'll have to ask me in April. I have never said a bad word about her, but I have never said a good word about her party and that's where I am with this - it's slightly awkward. Slightly awkward, thats one way of putting it. Long before then, if Italys Matteo Renzi loses next weeks referendum, more EU chaos could be on its way.

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5) CHA CHA, FOR NOW

So Ed Balls, the man Len Goodman described as The Peoples Champion, has finally been voted off Strictly Come Dancing. He failed the cha-cha challenge (a new bit of the show some fans, Trump stylee, believed was rigged to boot him off) but ultimately you know when youve been tangoed.

Not surprisingly, other politicians who admired the sheer guts of a fellow dad dancer queued up to offer sympathy and praise. David Cameron and George Osborne were among the many who tweeted tributes (though Vince Cable couldnt resist adding on Westminster Hour that he himself had once got a ten from Len).

Yet it was the publics reaction, not just that of the Westminster village, that was most striking. And they voted in huge numbers every week. So its natural that many have asked if Balls can channel all this into a political comeback. Well, I note that under the 2018 boundary changes, his old seat of Morley switches from a Tory marginal to a safe Labour constituency. It will take in a crucial chunk of Labours Batley & Spen, but most of the seat would be made up of Balls former constituency.

But there are two complications. First, the party may want to select very soon to prepare for a snap 2017 election, and on current boundaries it may be too difficult to regain. Second, it may just be too soon for Balls to think about the long slog of being a candidate again. One Labour MP tells me hed love to see his old pal return - but only as party leader. For now, lets accept that the ex Shadow Chancellor did all this simply because he wanted a fun new challenge. And maybe Balls Strictly success shows that all the best political decisions are taken without politics in mind.

If youre reading this on the web, sign-up HERE to get the WaughZone delivered to your inbox.
Credit: pexels

I applaud Mayor Sadiq Khan with every limb and appendage in my possession, for appointing our first ever Night Czar to help and protect London's precious nightlife scene, creating a 24-hour city.

My world revolves around nightlife. Most busy CEOs start their days at 6am, but that's often the hour I return home, because I live and breathe parties and have turned this passion into social platform Party Hype, which connects the entire nightlife ecosystem.

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I dedicated my life to this, because I share our Night Czar, Amy Lame's passionate belief in the positive effects of partying on individuals, communities, businesses and great cities, like London.

Pulsing music is the beating heart of our capital and its rich tapestry of personalities, coming together when the sun sets and they've escaped daytime responsibilities to talk with strangers, dance, create, explore... live.

And Amy Lame couldn't have come at a better time. It's estimated that in the past decade, 50% of our music venues and 40% of our nightclubs have closed.

The massive march and heart-wrenching reactions to the closure of - the soon-to-be-reopened -Fabric, illustrate how much we value our nightlife scene and why we're now coming together to save it.

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Nicole Venter, the march's organiser, put it perfectly when she implored:

"We need to protect the sacred place where we gather; where we feel alive and where we fall in love. "The places where we release our energy and where it gives us the motivation to go back to work on Mondays. "The places where we come together as a whole, as a community. The places where we get inspired and the places where we can create.'"

We care, but most politicians are in their pyjamas by 10pm, so we have the success of Night Mayors in places like Berlin to thank, for helping them see the connection between a thriving nightlife scene and a booming economy, with flourishing creative industries - night is a playground for many creatives to hone their skills, from graphic designers, DJs and actors to dancers and musicians.

And a place with a great night scene attracts the entrepreneurial, young creatives that our capital needs - these are the people behind exciting start-ups.

Berlin is a perfect example of this - nightlife SAVED Berlin. It was bankrupt and in a disastrous state, but the focus on nightlife turned that around. Now, approximately 30% of tourists visit for the clubbing scene alone. The nighttime economy subsequently caused a spurt of creativity, which led to Berlin now having the second biggest start-up scene in Europe. It has also rebuilt communities and fuelled many new cultural movements and styles.

Partying is also important on an individual level, for many surprising reasons - studies have shown that nighttime socialising reduces stress, alleviates depression and even boosts memory and intellectual performance.

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Our Night Czar has an even bigger, more exciting and ambitious challenge on her hands, because London has a population almost three times that of Berlin - the West End alone has more than 1,650 licensed clubs, bars, pubs and restaurants and more than 250,000 people pass through Leicester Square over a weekend.

The nighttime economy is the UK's fifth biggest industry, generating 66 billion a year, so imagine the impact a strong ambassador for the city after dark could have.

A 24-hour city will make the partying experience more pleasurable for both night owls and those tucked up in bed, because rather than thousands of people spilling onto the streets at 3am, they can gradually leave at different times and aren't compelled to binge drink before the clubs shut.

It could also lead to an exciting world for our young, nocturnal creatives, with 24-hour supermarkets, office spaces and gyms, fuelling creativity, friendships and the economy.

Online shopping has kept more and more people indoors, buying digitally. But face-to-face socialising - on the dancefloor, at the bar or in a restaurant - can't be replicated on the internet.

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Carlo Allegri / Reuters

"I have a very good brain," announced Donald Trump during this year's presidential election. Well, even a cursory glance at his Twitter account reveals a very different brain - that of an irritable pre-teen. His recent activity on the social media network shows the successful candidate to be bewilderingly self-deluded and prone to tantrums. Reason and tact are absent, vindictiveness and petty squabbling are very much on display. It's breathtaking to think that the future of the world's most influential superpower is to be held in such twitchy, pre-pubescent fingers.

To look at the President-elect on Twitter is to gaze into the abyss. This was his response to last week's death of Fidel Castro:

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This is a chilling tweet. On so many levels. It is simple but has no clarity. The exclamation mark is revealing but ambiguous. Is it glee? Is it surprise? Is he conveying shock or delight?

With Trump - God help us - anything is possible.

This tweet, like so many others, appears to be the work of a skittish boy-brain. It lacks only an "OMG" as he squeals with excitement to scribble his reaction to breaking news.

During the election campaign, Trump received praise for his spontaneity and unrehearsed manner. But this was only because the public was so catastrophically tired of pontificating politicians. Really, anything vaguely approaching normal human communication would have been a welcome change. Many even forgave the alarming content of his speeches, so relieved were they at actually hearing someone seemingly speak their mind.

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But on the world stage, at least some form of diplomacy is required when responding to significant events. The Donald simply does not possess this skill. To have such a crass and clueless individual in The White House is a devastating prospect.

Like a child, but minus the sweetness, Trump also has a critically short supply of self-awareness.

A week ago he was in negotiations to meet with the bosses of The New York Times, a newspaper which - in the light of the Trump / Billy Bush sex tape and amidst mounting allegations of misconduct - had quite sensibly articulated serious concerns about the quality of the Republican candidate.

The President-elect, unwisely, gave his Twitter followers the lowdown:

"The terms and conditions were changed", complains Trump. "Not nice" adds the wailing man-child as he stamps his foot and throws his toy bulldozer to the floor.

OK, let's just rewind a couple of months to the President-elect's campaign promises.

Using Twitter again as his favoured medium, Trump proclaimed to his followers "we must build a wall" and "Mexico will pay for the wall."

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Terms and conditions have now changed.

During the presidential debates he pointed at Hillary Clinton and promised he would "appoint a special prosecutor to look into your situation."

Terms and conditions have now changed.

On his campaign website he stated that "on day one of the Trump Administration we will ask Congress to deliver a full repeal of Obamacare."

Terms and conditions have now changed.

Right. So it's one rule for The New York Times who were trying to set up the basic conditions for a face-to-face meeting, but another one entirely for the man who is actually making recorded statements about something infinitely more significant - the future direction of the world's most powerful nation.

With Trump, like the formative boy who forgets what he's said or twists past statements into something new, words are simply throwaway objects, guttural noises that can be spouted and withdrawn in an instant. He is numb to the significance of speech - except when it is used to criticise him.

Only then does it hurt.

We saw this on the campaign trail when a steaming Trump brushed off his sexual accusers as "horrible horrible liars." Just days before, he had held up Bill Clinton's accusers as brave beacons of truth. The car-crash hypocrisy is truly mind-boggling.

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Childlike, he is super-sensitive to criticism but immune to the havoc wreaked by his own aggressive outbursts. In The Donald's pre-teen world, double-standards abound.

In retrospect, we can see that his repeated promises to a deluded nation were mere flights of fancy, puff pieces used to hoodwink voters and get him into the Oval Office. There is no principle, no guiding philosophy, only false pretences and empty rhetoric. What is heralded as concrete policy one day is jettisoned to the dustbin of history the next.

Amazing. Excruciating. And potentially disastrous. We will never know where we stand.

True, many of us will be breathing a sigh of relief that Trump's toxic policy promises appear open to compromise, or indeed reversal. But this is perilous territory and for politics it's a game-changer. Sure, politicians lie, but usually they are held accountable. Trump, even before taking office, has abandoned the divisive pillars upon which he was elected - and yet he angrily dismisses mutterings of accountability as the lies of a "crooked media."

Trump has the backbone of an amoeba, the skin of a chameleon. Poisonous words spill forth, sink into the sand and are left to rot. On Twitter and elsewhere, these words remain, testimony to an unstable and insecure President-elect who is stunningly oblivious to the power of language.
Photo credit: Guillaume Baviere

Plan a trip to Canada in January, February, or March, and your friends may be concerned about your mental health. No sane person travels to the far reaches of the Great White North when the temperatures fall below zero and icicles begin to look like permanent home adornments. Or do they?

Canada is one of the most underrated travel destinations in the world, and many are less motivated to head north in the often frigid winter months. However, ask a Canadian, and you'll find that winter isn't a season that's dreaded up north -- it's anticipated. These four crazy and distinctly Canadian winter experiences will encourage you to plan a getaway and start praying for snow.

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The Maligne Canyon Icewalk -- Jasper, Alberta

Photo credit: SukkhaP

Cold temperatures don't keep Canadians indoors, and the Maligne Canyon Icewalk proves that some of life's greatest adventures can be had in the winter months. Just a 10-minute drive north of Jasper, the Maligne Canyon is the deepest canyon in Jasper National Park. While true adrenaline junkies climb the ice vertically, others can explore the frozen canyon on cleat-covered foot. Sun Dog Tours and Maligne Adventures are two guide companies that lead visitors into the system of ice caves, frozen waterfalls, ice sculptures, and fossils that make the Maligne Canyon so impressive.

Winter Storm Surfing -- Tofino, British Columbia

Photo credit: Ruth Hartnup

Nothing says "Canada" like a thick wetsuit, 7-degrees Celsius saltwater, and stormy seas. As one of the world's top cold water surf spots, Vancouver Island's seaside town of Tofino sees winter storm surges, from November through February, that draw thrill seekers from around the globe. However, the mellower days in between can be ideal for beginner- and intermediate-level riders to paddle out or take lessons from one of Tofino's many surf schools and instructors.

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Dogsledding in Algonquin Park -- Algonquin Park, Ontario

Photo credit: EveryDamnNameIsInUse

Spend a day on the trail with a team of lovable, hardworking huskies, and you won't find yourself complaining about the chilly temperatures. Ontario's Algonquin Provincial Park is known for its picture-perfect wilderness, which is an outdoor playground for outdoors lovers of all kinds. The best way to experience the park in the winter months is on a weekend or three-day dogsled adventure, complete with nights spent in a large and cozy, heated prospector tent. This authentic winter experience allows you to man your own team of six dogs (after lessons are given) on a once-in-a-lifetime adventure in the wintry woods with an expert guide.

Narwhal and Polar Bear Safari -- Pond Inlet, Nunavut

Photo credit: Emma

You haven't truly experienced winter in the Great White North until you've ventured to the country's least populous, largest, and northernmost territory -- Nunavut. This Narwhal and Polar Bear Safari, led by the Inuit guides at Arctic Kingdom, takes you to some of the country's most dramatic landscapes, among icebergs, glaciers, and frozen cliffs.
The best thing about being young is the fact that we have so many opportunities to look forward to. When I graduate, there are so many things I can't wait to do from moving to London to hiking the Grand Canyon. My best years are still to come and I plan on embracing life in any way I can.

Sometimes I feel far older than my 23 years and other times I feel I have so much more to learn. I have found love and friendship in any situation. I'm grateful for everybody who has entered my life, no matter how short our relationship. There is something I have learnt from everyone. From a local in Hong Kong who taught me you can build a relationship with someone without needing to speak the same language to the security guard in Taiwan who taught me to trust in strangers.

There's this indescribable feeling that we are in it together. It doesn't matter how bad society is, I truly believe people are good at heart. We all have it within us to truly transform society for the better. We have the power to achieve our dreams. We can make the impossible possible.

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One thing I have learnt from York is how reacting can make a difference. We aren't in positions of leadership or power but we have the power to critique and criticise. Empathy is more valuable than sympathy. It doesn't matter how small your contribution is because it still makes a difference.

This October, I was mentally unwell. I was piling too much pressure onto myself until it became unbearable. It was like I was screaming at the top of my voice but I wasn't being heard. It felt I had the weight of the world on my shoulders. I was broken in every sense of the world.

I am my worst critic and I have these impossibly high standards that I'll probably never live up to but I feel that's okay. As long as I am happy and have my health, I'm fine. We are all young and we do have time to achieve our greatest dreams. It is not too late to restart or reinvent ourselves. It doesn't matter whether others are ahead as what only matters is your journey.

When you are a child, we are taught that we should aspire to getting a job and house, getting married and having kids. The truth is that there is no normality. The world is so much crazier, beautiful and better than that. There is so much to see and we are doing a great disservice if we pigeonhole ourselves.

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Next year, I graduate and it's funny that I'm in a rush to achieve. I dream about where I am going so much that I'm not appreciating the moment now. We are all going to die so why worry about the future as it's not guaranteed anyway?
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When you have lost all your freedoms, the very least the state can do is keep you safe. This is not happening, as over 100 men and women have taken their own lives in prisons so far this year - and the death toll is likely to rise as Christmas is a particularly distressing time. This is an all-time record for suicides in prison since records began almost 40 years ago and it is a national scandal and a national shame.

Today the Howard League for Penal Reform and Centre for Mental Health have published a report on preventing prison suicide that sets out a blueprint for how to save lives. A prison regime should be built around a normal life. People in prison should be able to get up, have a shower and breakfast, occupy themselves productively, socialise and exercise and go outdoors. All staff should have enough staff with the right skills and experience to keep prisoners safe.

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This is far from the reality of life in prison and there has rightly been deep public concern at reports of deaths, murders, violent attacks on prisoners and staff and the bloodbath resulting from self-injury.

Way back in 2010, the then secretary of state for justice, Ken Clarke, recognised that prisoners were being overused. He legislated to curtail the power of magistrates to remand to custody and gave the strong message that prison overcrowding was unacceptable. The prison population fell by around 3,000 as a consequence.

Following him, Chris Grayling did the opposite. He closed prisons without reducing the population, so crammed people into fewer establishments. He cut staff by 40% and introduced more punitive regimes that meant people spent almost all day locked up with nothing to do. He destroyed the successful probation service and made anyone sentenced to a short prison term undergo a whole year of extra supervision subject to recall, which is what started to happen, inflating prison numbers and putting adding pressure on local jails. Violence soared, as did self-injury, and the suicide rate started to go up.

The next Secretary of State was Michael Gove, who promised big reforms but was not in post long enough to see them through. He did, however, achieve a consensus amongst Parliamentarians that prison was not succeeding and that prisoners needed to be given a second chance.

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The Howard League has put together a campaign plan for the new secretary of state, Liz Truss, that would ease the pressure immediately and save lives. Our 3Rs campaign is asking for action on:

Rules: Prison governors to take responsibility for misbehaviour and to resist referring to external adjudicators who have imposed more than a million extra days of imprisonment for rule breaking

Release: Parole Board to ease people through the gate safely and quickly

Recall: Probation services to resist recalling people to prison for administrative reasons

Whilst the government has promised (yet again) to recruit additional staff, we cannot wait months for them to appear, especially as such promises have proved empty in the past. The only way to save lives, make prisons safe for inmates and staff and help people to live law abiding lives on release is to reduce the number of prisoners.

Once the number of prisoners is down, the challenge is to make prisons work properly in the public interest but that is such a distant prospect at the moment. Today's challenge is simply to keep people alive.
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Are we stepping back in time?

From 1950's Grammar Schools, to 1970's Industrial Policy; does Theresa May really want us to live in a bygone era?

Actually, I don't think so.

Look a little closer and the Grammar Schools plans are really very modest. Just another option for the type of school that might exist in your area. Alongside perhaps a specialist Academy focussing on sport and the Free School set up by local parents, we will once again have the option of a local Grammar Schools. So the outright ban is lifted and I think that's a good thing.

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So how about May's corporatist sounding Industrial Policy?

In truth, there have always been favourite areas of the economy favoured and pushed by government. From George Osbourne's backing of self-drive cars, to his financial support for the Graphene Institute - the last government even went as far as to establish the Catapult Programme which specifically singles out half-a-dozen 'pet' areas of the economy for special investment.

Call it a Catapult or Industrial Policy, I don't really care. What does matter in this post-Brexit world, however, is that we focus on creating a damn strong economy.

So, we should look to lower costs, slash red-tape for business and, wherever possible, dispense with taxes on growth. And Brexit should provide us with a huge opportunity, but are we ready to seize that Brexit Dividend?

Filed away deep in the EU's archive of ideas for a rainy day was the terrifying prospect of a "common consolidated corporate tax base". This would have been disastrous for Europe's competitiveness. Outvoted by socialist economies such as France, Spain and Portugal, the UK's rate could have eventually skyrocketed, forcing businesses beyond Europe's protectionist borders, therefore destroying EU jobs, profits and their taxes with them.

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Brexit means we escape this damaging prospect or indeed the kind of European Commission meddling between Apple and the Irish government, which lead to a sovereign state unable to agree their own competitive pro-growth tax rate. Departure from Europe means that we need have no qualms about repeating the tax-cutting agenda used so successfully by the Coalition government to encourage business and provide record extremely low levels of unemployment, less than half that of France and the Eurozone.

Second, Brexit means an even bigger break when it comes to VAT.

The EU has a stranglehold over the sales taxes in this country. Although we were always allowed to put taxes up, to actually cut VAT has always required begging permission from the EU. This has led to the ludicrous situation where our own government has been unable to abolish the obviously unfair Tampon Tax (a tax, based entirely on gender, applicable to only half the population) because of outdated EU rules.

Next, we should seize this moment to wipe out Air Passenger Duty.

This is a tax which simply makes doing business abroad more expensive. APD pushes up the cost of trade deals, of networking and conferences, as well as of tourism, holiday-making and international shopping.

You can't achieve Theresa May's ambitious plan to become the world's greatest free trade nation, when you also happen to be the country with the world's highest Air Passenger Duty. Yes that's right. We charge more than anywhere else to go and sell ourselves abroad.

However, Air Passenger Duty is not even a European-wide tax. In fact, several EU countries have already started to dump their version of APD entirely. So rather than waiting until we out of the EU - the Chancellors current plan - Philip Hammond could and should launch an immediate review of this poorly designed (it doesn't even achieve its environmental goal), job destroying, inept tax.

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Add to the above free-market economics, some big infrastructure investment on roads, rail, airports and power stations, then select a few favourite areas of the economy to back and you not only have an Industrial Policy, but an Economic Plan capable of beating our global competition too.
Peter Dazeley via Getty Images

After the scuffles of Black Friday and the sales of Cyber Monday, could we add a day to celebrate generosity? A day of giving back after two days of getting deals. A kick-off to the "giving season".

The movement began in the US in 2012. Last year, Paypal set the Guinness World Record for the most money raised online in a day, and the overall #GivingTuesday campaign chalked up over $117 million online, and sparked other kinds of giving as well -- volunteering, offline giving, community engagement and donations of goods and services.

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We have been thrilled to see this movement grow around the world, with people in more than 75 countries taking part. And it continues to take different shapes to reflect local needs and cultures. In Singapore, #GivingTuesday has turned into a full week of giving, with a big focus on volunteering. In Brazil, the campaign has turned into #DiaDeDoar, and is catalyzing a new giving tradition. In Slovenia, the effort looks to encourage citizens to consider giving as a part of their tax returns.

As an Englishman in New York, where this campaign was born, it has been a thrill to see the UK lead the way in re-imagining #GivingTuesday. Under the direction of the Charities Aid Foundation, a record 1,500 partners will participate this year, from small community organisations to some of the UK's largest charities and biggest businesses, like Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Sue Ryder and Cancer Research UK. Thanks to Royal Mail, this year there has been a #givingtuesday postmark on millions of letters posted before the big day. We'll even see a choir of MPs singing to raise money for "Singing for Syrians," which raises money to fund doctors in Aleppo, outside the Houses of Parliament (not a sight likely to be seen outside Congress any time soon).

In my mind, wherever it has landed, there are four things that have been behind the growth of #GivingTuesday.

1)The generosity of ordinary people. #GivingTuesday only works because people step up to find ways to give and connect with their communities. In the US, the average gift is less than 100 GBP. We see groups of dads coming together to donate to food banks. We see people donating pianos to local schools. We see blood drives and coat drives. That's why the UK #GivingTuesday campaign slogan "do good stuff" feels so right.

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2)The power of social media. For the past two years #GivingTuesday has been the top trending item on Twitter for the day with support from well-known figures like JK Rowling, Stephen Fry, Gary Lineker and David Tennant. Last year it was mentioned over 100,000 times on Twitter in the UK. We built this campaign without a media budget, so we always relied on the power of social to drive awareness and scale.

3)The multiplying effect of community. Giving is so much more powerful when we give together. For some that is taking part in a bake sale for a school. For others, it is sharing the campaigns we care about via social media. At its best, giving isn't just about reaching out to those in need, but also strengthens our communities. In Milton Keynes, for example, businesses, charities and the public are all coming together under one banner to address local needs.

4)The entrepreneurialism of the charitable world. #GivingTuesday hasn't been about funneling funds towards just one cause, but bringing together the sector to showcase its importance and creativity. Time and again we've seen amazing campaigns that make #GivingTuesday their own - to great results. Dress for Success, which provides interview clothing for women in need, runs "#GivingShoesDay", where they ask people to donate shoes for those heading back to the workplace. Heifer international created downloadable "goats," and is encouraging people to post goat selfies with their #GoatSquadGoals to rally people to give back to address hunger.

#GivingTuesday began, and remains, an experiment. We are committed to learning from the movement as it grows, and sharing those learnings across a now global network of organizations. For me, watching this grow, has reaffirmed something I have always believed - that ordinary acts of kindness, especially when they are communally combined, shared and supported - can have extraordinary impact.

So wherever you are on Tuesday, let me encourage you to join us in taking time to give, in whatever way is most meaningful to you - to a neighbor in need, to a cause close to your heart, to your local community or to those on the other side of the world.

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Ahead of this weekend's season showdown, why has there never been a gay Formula 1 driver? Does it even matter, surely these things are irrelevant in 2016, right? Wrong. It matters...

The greatest sport on the planet has a fan-base rich in diversity. Stretching the four corners of the globe, there are millions and millions of us hanging on every press conference, lap, pit-stop and chequered flag. We live and breathe F1 and without this support it's difficult to imagine the sport existing. But all this fascination hinges on one thing: the driver.

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Those two dozen super-humans are the ambassadors of this world we plan our weekends around. Not only can we have unrivalled access to these heroes during grand prix periods, we can follow our idols off the track thanks to the progression of modern technology. Twitter, and more fashionably Instagram, opens the door to the glamorous lives and incredible lifestyles of the modern F1 driver. Lewis Hamilton has been a game changer here, and more recently Danial Ricciardo has allowed the world in with his signature charisma. We can now see images of Lewis and his private jet, or Jenson on his summer break in California.

And because this group of exclusively male human beings command such status and respect from fans scaling all continents and backgrounds, coupled with the 24-hour social media inlet they can use to their, and their sponsors benefit, it is imperative these role models represent every little boy or girl who has a dream of being a racing driver when they are older.

In the sport's 66-year history, just two women have ever started a grand prix. By comparison to their white counterparts there has been only a handful of black drivers and, as mentioned, there's never been an out gay driver. Is this really the best a sport with a reputation of being on the very cutting edge of technology and thrill can achieve, or ever hope to achieve?

Rumours were afoot in the late nineties and early noughties of two drivers in the paddock happily living their separate lives, albeit privately, as gay men. Whereas this article is not intended to encourage a guessing game as to whom those individuals were, it does highlight that in this incredible world of glamour, fast cars, technology and competitiveness, two people at the very pinnacle of their profession felt unable to be authentic whilst maintaining their careers. But that was over a decade ago, and perhaps times were different then. Why is it then circumstances at face value haven't changed in the current driver line-up? Would sponsors feel uncomfortable having their branding, their watches or their headphones being worn on TV screens by men, or women, who are gay? Would a sponsor be prepared to announce commitments to diversity in such a way?

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863 of history's most talented drivers have had the honour of experiencing a grand prix in the only position that really matters. In that group you have one Indonesian - Rio Harryenta, although he didn't return after this years' summer recess, one Pole, one Chilean, a Moroccan, two Indian drivers, five Irishmen, six Mexicans, 23 South Africans, 52 Germans, 158 Americans and a whopping 161 Brits. It's quite a geographical spread yet almost all of them are white, two of them women, and none of them comfortable enough to say they're gay.

Political correctness is not needed, nor positive discrimination in promoting drivers through the ranks based on skin colour, gender or sexual orientation. But what would go at least a little way on diversifying the drivers on the grid is some top level down leadership on looking at the recruitment pool of young drivers, and asking the question if people from different backgrounds, in fact, people who are simply different, are being handed the same opportunities to have a shot of a career as a driver? You don't need to be a scientist to see something isn't working. And with the paid driver factor - look at Lance Stroll and the events leading to his seat next year at Williams - where it seems his father has literally bought him his place in the team for about $80m and you see things have the potential to only get worse. But again, does it really matter? Do the sponsors have an appetite to look at this? Does Liberty Media care? Why should anybody care?

If it isn't important enough to signify to a gay 15-year-old karting driver who feels unable to be open about his sexuality - which will ultimately affect his efficiency and output, that his individualism isn't valued and celebrated, it should at least matter to the survival of the sport from a commercial perspective. To suggest, whether deliberately or not, to women, gay or black supporters of the sport that none of the athletes battling it wheel to wheel every fortnight are like them, or are only counted as a tiny minority across the field, will eventually result in those sections of society not feeling an affinity to the sport. It could, and probably should, turn them off. The knock-on effect of less people buying race tickets or being prepared to bolt on the F1 Channel to their Sky TV subscription, which on an annual basis is not cheap, would certainly make Liberty Media, Ecclestone and the team principles stand up and listen.

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Cannabis is very much in the news at the moment. This week a cross party group of MPs have called for cannabis to be legalised in Britain, in the US almost 25% of Americans can now access medical cannabis after several more states passed its use in the recent elections, and in the Republic of Ireland, the mother of a seriously ill child decided to walk to Dublin to demand a change in the country's legal position on the use of medical cannabis for children.

Vera Twomey-Barry, mother of 6-year-old Ava who, who due to a rare genetic condition called Dravet Syndrome, suffers from as many as 20 epileptic seizures a day, decided to march the 300km to Dublin from her home in Cork. Her objective: a meeting with Health Minister Simon Harris to demand a change in the Irish government's current stance, which views cannabis as having no therapeutic benefit and cannot therefore be prescribed by doctors.

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Ava prior to taking Cannabis oil - image courtesy of the Twomey-Barry family

Just last December, after 18 consecutive seizures in close succession, Ava suffered a heart attack and had to be rushed to hospital. After trying every medication available, doctors eventually told Ava's parents they could do no more, and sent her home.

Parents Turn to Cannabis as Last Hope

But like any desperate mother in the modern age, Vera took to the internet. One treatment option they hadn't tried before kept coming up: cannabis oil, or to be more precise a non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis called Cannabidiol (CBD).

There have been some high profile cases of children reducing their fits from 300 times a week to almost zero after taking CBD, such as Charlotte Figi in the United states and Katelyn Lambert in Australia.

Not Enough Clinical Evidence

Despite the anecdotal reports and current research, giving CBD to children with epilepsy is still outside mainstream medicine in most countries, with a recent study into CBD for treatment-resistant epilepsy showing adverse effects such as sleepiness, diarrhoea and lack of appetite, and very little known about the long term effects.

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But with no more treatment options available, Vera and her husband decided to try what seemed like their one remaining hope.

"I was completely terrified, of course," says Vera. "Even though I'd researched medical cannabis for the last 4 years. This is my little girl".

Since starting with the CBD oil in September, Ava's seizures have reduced by roughly 80%. But not only that, she seems like a different child.

Ava (centre) with her mum and siblings - image courtesy of Twomey-Barry family

"She was standing up straighter," recalls Vera, "she was making more eye contact and the next thing in a family joke, Ava's giggling just like the other kids. She had never laughed like that before.

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"She's so much better. We're seeing another side of Ava. We always knew she was beautiful and wonderful, but she's just able to put her point across a little bit more."

While CBD is available as a health food supplement in Ireland and also currently in the UK, Vera thinks that doctors should be allowed to prescribe it.

"The law needs to be altered to allow them to prescribe it," she says, "One neurologist even said to me off the record, if it were his child and he was in my situation, he'd be giving it to them."

Vera isn't just campaigning for the medical use of CBD, but also Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). "We want a product allowed that's got both CBD and THC, because a lot of people believe that you need the THC part to work more efficiently with the CBD part of the plant."

But this is where things get a bit more controversial, as THC is the compound in cannabis that creates the feeling of being high, and as a result is classified as a Schedule 1 controlled substance. Studies suggest that THC can in fact be damaging to the adolescent brain, with persistent use bringing about neuropsychological decline. There is next to no information about the effects of prolongued THC use on children.

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THC and Autism

In certain childhood illnesses however, anecdotal reports indicate that cannabis oil containing THC can be an effective treatment. One such condition is autism.

So far there are no clinical trials proving cannabis can improve the symptoms associated with the disorder, but by chance mother Mieko Hester-Perez discovered it helped her severely autistic son Joey's behaviour when he was prescribed cannabis for extreme weight loss.

"When you're a parent of a child with autism, you have very simple goals and one of my goals was just to see my son smile", says Mieko. "Joey started interacting with other people. He doesn't speak, but he now has a joking personality, something we hadn't seen before."

Image courtesy of Mieko Hester-Perez

Mieko found that a high THC strain worked best for Joey, eventually collaborating with some cultivators in California to create a special variety for children with autism called 'Joey's Strain'.

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She is aware that many people feel strongly against treating a child with a psychoactive drug, but remains undeterred. "The only people who are against THC, don't have a child diagnosed with autism. Until you've walked in our shoes, your opinion will fall on deaf ears when it comes to how to take care of our children".

Cannabis and Childhood Cancer

Cases of parents giving cannabis oil containing THC to their children with cancer have also provoked public debate. 3-year-old Landon Riddle's mother Wendy decided to move to Colorado in order to give her son cannabis, when he was diagnosed with lymphocytic leukemia. Giving him an oil with both THC and CBD, she said, "I think that the chemo in combination with the cannabis did put him into remission and now the cannabis will keep him there."

Landon's doctor, Dr. Margaret Gedde in an interview with CNN admitted, "when you look at children who go through that same course of treatment and compare Landon to them, it seems like he's doing better than what would be expected." To this date Landon continues to be in remission and still takes cannabis oil.

Opponents of the legalisation of medical cannabis say that there aren't sufficient clinical trials to prove its efficacy and the UK government continues to classify cannabis as a schedule 1 drug with no therapeutic benefit. The non-psychoactive component CBD has however recently been recognised as a medicine and is currently under review by the UK Medical Healthcare Regulatory Agency.

In the meantime, there are positive signs for Ava's case as Health Minister Simon Harris has granted the possibility of an individual exemption, pending an assessment by a doctor and the issue of a special license.

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The minister has also agreed to review Ireland's policy on medicinal cannabis, stating, "I know that many patients believe cannabis should be a treatment option for their medical condition. However, cannabis is not currently an authorised medicine and has not gone through the normal regulatory procedures for medicines which are designed to protect patients and ensure treatments are supported by good evidence of their effectiveness."
I have always been a huge animal lover; I am a vegetarian, I donate to several animal charities and of course I spend a lot of time spoiling my pets. But recently I was forced to reevaluate my principles. I've always been against fur - I feel that in this day and age real fur is needless and breeding animals for their fur is beyond cruel. On the other hand I've never really felt the same way about leather - I have always thought of leather as simply a by product of animals farmed for their meat. While I don't eat meat my thought process about leather was that if the animal was going to die for their meat anyway, and they were killed humanely, then using the skin is morally acceptable.

But recently while clicking around Facebook I came across something that really shocked me. It's a few years old now but the photo showed a poor cow being skinned alive in China for her leather whilst her limbs had been cut off to prevent it from moving.

I braved myself to research more and had no idea that some leather is sourced in this disgusting way. I also read that in India cows tails are often broken and tobacco is rubbed into their eyes to force them to walk to the slaughterhouse.

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This really hit me hard, I don't want anything that was sourced from the torture of a poor animal. However, I've discovered that there is no law making it compulsory for brands to label which animals their products are made from. China is the leading exporter of leather in some cases it comes from the skin of cats and dogs.

Please don't get me wrong I'm not saying leather is bad, but personally I do not want to wear leather that has come from a tortured animal. As a consumer, I want to know how the leather has been made and certainly what animal. Surely this is our right?

Leather is such an integral part of our daily lives. Shoes, bags, belts, watchstraps, wallets, purses, jackets, furniture, ... even trousers for the bikers and middle aged rockers out there. The list goes on and on and it's really easy to forget that leather is actually the skin of an animal.

So with so much money being made on the sale of leather goods I'm saddened and disappointed that the government have no law in place making it compulsory for companies to label which animals their leather products are made from or how they have been sourced. As a consumer, you quite literally have no idea who's skin you are in and it's all too easy for a company to turn a blind eye to the conditions under which their leather has been sourced if it means more profits for them.

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Before I discovered about this I'd had my eye on a suede bag now for a couple of weeks. However I made the decision that I wouldn't buy it until I'd discovered where the and how the brand sources their leather. I shot off an email and this is the answer I got back.

"Some of our leather goods are made in factories in China, which we visit regularly to ensure rule and regulations are being followed. We always mention on our product description if a product is made from genuine leather, so please do check the description if you want to avoid buying real leather"

A fob off if you ask me! In a world where so many regulations are place for almost everything we do, why is there such a gap when it comes to the sourcing of leather? If retailers won't tell us more about the leather we buy and the government won't help us as a consumer with an interest in animal welfare the best option is buy pleather or vegan leather.

This week I met Vanita Bagri, a vegan fashion expert and the Founder & CEO of LaBante London, I was thoroughly impressed with her brand; the quality was exquisite. Talking to her I asked why she decided to use vegan leather for her designs and she told me that quite simply she wants to contribute to animal welfare whilst running a desirable fashion brand. I was taken aback hearing this as I still think ethically minded people are rare in the fashion industry. I really do hope that her brand thrives.
Ukip are a strange party - and perhaps the only one who can have two leadership contests in the space of three months and emerge stronger for doing so.

Today, Paul Nuttall was overwhelmingly elected leader, and his victory symbolises and end to the internal - and at times, actual - fights which have dogged the party since long before the referendum.

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The Bootle-born MEP has two battles to win if Ukip is going to continue to be a major player on the UK political stage: unifying the party, and winning seats in Parliament.

Heading into the referendum, Ukip appeared to be split into two broad camps: those in favour of Nigel Farage's relentless, and at times, controversial focus on immigration; and those more sympathetic to Douglas Carswell's appeal for a positive vision of life outside the EU based on democracy and sovereignty.

Even after the Brexit vote, there seemed to be no sign that these divisions would heal. Indeed, Ukip's first leadership election this year suffered from the fact that Suzanne Evans - who is very much in the Carswell camp - was barred from standing, thus depriving the party of having a clear-the-air contest involving representatives from both camps.

However, Evans was able to stand in the second election, meaning once and for all members could have their say on the two different visions of the party.

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Nuttall's margin of victory shows the party membership overwhelmingly prefer his form of working-class, patriotic, spit and sawdust politics to Evans' TV sofa chatting demeanour. Indeed, Evans lost her 5,000 deposit as she polled below 20%.

It seems the battle for the future direction of the party has been won.

But Nuttall is no fool, and he knows that using his huge mandate to launch a purge of people from the other wing of the party would simply force open the wounds that nearly killed Ukip earlier this year.

Indeed, in Nuttall's last speech as deputy leader at Ukip's conference in September, just hours before Diane James was revealed as Farage's successor, the North West MEP made the following plea:

"The new leader must be a unifier, not a divider; seek compromise; bring people together; because, as Winston Churchill once said, jaw-jaw is always preferable to war-war. They must not lead what the Westminster journalists call a Faragista Ukip or a Carswellite Ukip - they must lead Ukip, a Ukip for everyone."

Having talked the talk, he is already walking the walk, as seen from his early appointments. Former London Mayoral candidate Peter Whittle has been chosen as deputy leader. While he is not a figure known by many outside - or, let's be honest, inside - the capital, he is popular with party activists, particularly those who undertake the hard graft of knocking on doors. A former journalist who founded a cultural think-tank, Whittle's background has more in common with Evans than Nuttall.

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Likewise Patrick O'Flynn, the former political editor of the Daily Express turned Ukip MEP, who is now Nuttall's senior political advisor. While O'Flynn would enthusiastically dispute any claim he is part of the "liberal media elite", he understands how journalists operate and still has close ties in Westminster. O'Flynn was also one of those to be purged from Ukip's top table by Farage after the 2015 General Election, following an interview in which the former journalist claimed the then Ukip leader appeared "thin-skinned" and "snarling" because of advice from "wrong 'uns" close to him at the time.

Nuttall has also confirmed that Paul Oakden will stay on as party chairman. Like Whittle, Oakden is popular with activists, and has taken a hands-on approach in numerous by-elections in the north. One of these was the Oldham West and Royton by-election in December last year, which saw Ukip finish a distant second to Labour. The party was expected to do well in the seat, as a year before Ukip had come within 600 votes of winning the next-door constituency of Heywood and Middleton in another by-election. However, Labour scored an impressive victory in Oldham West (17,209 votes compared to Ukip's 6,487) because the party focused on the popularity of its candidate - local councillor Jim McMahon, a working-class man from the area. Ukip's candidate, John Bickley, was deemed to be "bussed in" and came out against a proposed cinema complex in the constituency that would have created jobs and fired a shot in the arm of the economy. It was a local election, focused on local issues, won by a local candidate.

The failure of Ukip in that by-election should not be misinterpreted as a sign of the party falling away in Labour areas and it now has precisely the right leader to take them on in these seats. Nuttall speaks the language of the ordinary man, and does so with a smile on his face. Many in the media may mock him for his resemblance to Eddie from Bottom and other comedic figures, but this simply plays into Ukip's hands. Indeed, it is this behaviour which strengthens the party's "us vs them" mentality which clearly resonates with so many people outside of London. This will only help Nuttall in his second task: getting Ukip MPs elected to Parliament.

Labour is obviously rattled by Nuttall's victory - as evidenced by the mass tweeting from MPs today of an old clip of the Ukip leader calling for greater privatisation in the NHS. That kind of treatment is only reserved for someone you consider a threat.

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And he is a threat. Nuttall's Ukip offers voters something that Corbyn's Labour does not: a patriotic party focused on reducing immigration and fanning the flames of an English identity.

Labour either needs to co-opt some of those messages, or roundly defeat them. Mocking or dismissing Nuttall will only lead to electoral success for Ukip, most likely at the expense of Labour.

Let's not forget, if Andy Burnham is elected Mayor of Greater Manchester and Steve Rotheram win's the Liverpool mayoralty next May, Labour will have two Northern seats to defend in their heartlands as the pair resign from the Commons.
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Francois Fillon is an ardent fan of the Le Mans 24 hour race, where stamina and timing count so much. It showed in the way he ran in the Primary to pick the centre-right Republican party candidate for the French presidential elections next May.

For three years, he stayed towards the back of the field, biding his time. Written off by all the pollsters as a no-hoper, he patiently worked the grassroots, criss-crossing France, building a formidable local network. In the last weeks of the campaign, he made a late run on the inside, lapping all his rivals to win the first round comfortably, knocking out in the process the man he had served for five years as Prime Minister, the former President Nicolas Sarkozy. In yesterday's second round, Fillon decisively beat his remaining rival Alain Juppe. Given the disorganised state of the French Socialist party, he is now well placed to take on (and probably beat) Marine Le Pen in May.

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What did the voters see in Fillon? I think it was partly his reputation, straight-talking and honesty. Partly his style: he looks presidential and exudes calm and confidence. And partly his programme, crafted during his long road trip around France. He is the only presidential candidate I can remember who has had the courage to tell French voters that France needs serious economic reform. An avowed Thatcherite, Fillon set out a radical (for France) plan, involving getting rid of 500,000 civil servants, cutting public spending and taxes and doing away with the 35 hour week. It is widely accepted that this is the sort of medicine the sluggish French economy needs and the largely centre-right voters in this Primary seem to have appreciated being talked to as grown-ups. They evidently liked as well the other bits of his policy mix: tough on immigration and security, and traditional/conservative on social issues.

Of course, Fillon will be attacked from the left and Le Pen's far right for his economic liberalism and proposed public sector cuts. His social policy will also be controversial: he has already had to deny that he planned to toughen access to abortion, although he does take a restrictive line on issues like IVF and adoption by gay couples. But his decisive victory in the Primary gives him momentum and credibility, in short a Le Mans start into the wider race to the May election (OK, end of this metaphor!)

Francois Fillon as President would be a good partner for Theresa May to work with. He knows this country well (not least through his Welsh wife and sister-in-law). In addition to being on the same wavelength economically, he wants to maintain our close defence and security cooperation. One point of difference is that, in the immediate aftermath of the Brexit vote, Fillon like other opposition figures called for a review of the Le Touquet agreement, the basis for British border controls in Calais, which have enabled us to keep illegal migrants out of the UK. This was when the jungle in Calais was making life a misery for local residents there. Now that the jungle has been dismantled, I hope that the wider benefits of these controls, in terms of allowing very efficient processing of the huge volumes of tourist and freight traffic through the channel ports, will mean that they stay in place.

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None of this means that Fillon would be a pushover in the Brexit negotiations. I am sure he would defend France's interests and want to present a united front with other EU countries. But if we finished 2017 with Fillon in the Elysee, and Merkel re-elected in Germany, the two most powerful politicians in the EU 27 would be pragmatic free traders: about as good as we could hope for.

The other main winner from the last fortnight has been the Republican Party. Following Sarkozy's defeat in 2012, they went through a miserable four years of infighting and backbiting. This was the first time they had held a primary to choose their presidential candidate. It has turned out really well for them. Starting with a field of seven candidates, they have produced a clear winner, with the others rallying promptly behind him. Does that put Fillon in pole position for May? (Sorry, I couldn't resist that one).
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The murderer of Jo Cox, MP for Batley and Spen, has been jailed for life for "planned and pre-meditated murder" in the run-up to the EU referendum. This vile murder epitomizes the toxic ultra-nationalist far right sentiments that have been on the rise in recent years. Muslims and immigrant communities have been the target of this hatred for quite some time now but we as a society do not seem to be taking the threat of the far right seriously.

I knew Jo Cox to be a wonderful, dynamic, caring and fearless campaigner. She had travelled the world for her dedicated aid work and seen the suffering of vulnerable communities in numerous countries. She championed the cause of those who were vulnerable and disenfranchised; she stood for compassion, dignity and human rights. My last meeting with Jo was at Carlton Junior and Infant School in Dewsbury, where we took a school assembly. I can still vividly remember how passionately Jo spoke to the children about love, respect, and tolerance. At a very young age, she wanted to instil in the hearts of those primary school children and their parents that 'We Are Far More United Than The Things That Divide Us'. Little did I know that that would be my last meeting with her and that politics of hatred and division would take away her life.

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Her murderer, Thomas Mair, had covered his council house in Nazi regalia. Police found a stash of far right books, including "March of the Titans: The Complete History of the White Race" and a book on the "politics of the Holocaust". He had watched videos about shooting and had material in his house on how to make a pistol. He had attended far right rallies. Whilst committing terror on our streets - shooting, stabbing and kicking an individual who represented the people of this country, Mair was heard shouting "This is for Britain", "keep Britain independent", and "Britain first".

Despite ample evidence of him being "radicalised" by a hardcore, violent ideology, parts of the media have shown their bias when reporting about this guilty verdict, or better still have tried to justify his brutal actions. They have called Mair a lone wolf, mentally ill etc. but shied away from using the 'T- " word. We must call the cold-blooded murderer what he is - a "home-grown" terrorist, a white fascist who was radicalised by the neo-Nazi far right-wing ideology. Imagine if a vile lunatic had called "Allah-u-Akbar" at the time of committing terror and brutally murdering a sitting MP on the streets of Britain, if Isis flags had been found in Mair's flat instead of Nazi paraphernalia, if "Islam for Dummies" had been found on his book-shelf; how would parts of the media and some politicians have reacted? Would the whole of the Muslim community have been treated, and suspected, of knowing the murderer but not stopping him?

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On the other hand, why have we allowed violent far right movements to become emboldened and to strengthen? Why have we allowed their hate to grow? Whatever the benchmark, there is a need for level playing-field. Britain has been home to fascist groups for decades, and we need to recognise the threat that they pose to our values and our society, and challenge them robustly and indiscriminately under the law. There have been at least 48 other far-right activists/supporters who have been convicted of terrorism/terror-related/murder/extreme-violent acts in England and Wales during the last 16 years, according to Hope not Hate.

Far-right extremism is much more than a political irritant. There is a need to fully recognise far right extremist ideology, and challenge it socially and legally. This is not the first time that an individual who has far right extremist tendencies has murdered an innocent person in our country. A neo-Nazi terrorist murdered Mohammed Saleem in 2013 in Birmingham, and in 2015 Mohsin Khan was attacked in Rotherham, which resulted in his death. These neo-Nazi extremists have attacked mosques around the country and have even planted bombs in mosques. Thomas Mair belongs to a horrific tradition of the murderous far-Right that includes Timothy McVeigh and Anders Breivik, who murdered 77 people in twin attacks in Norway in July 2011. From policy-makers to media, we as a country have focused too heavily on only one form of extremism. Extremism does not have a faith or colour, it is simply toxic and causes violence indiscriminately.

ISIS and Nazi ideology may be completely different, but their method of radicalisation is the same: recruiting vulnerable individuals, with personal grievances online and radicalising them to such a degree that they will commit acts of terror at home and abroad. Unless we treat all acts of terrorism and extremism, hatred and bigotry - on both sides - in the same way and strive for a culture of respect for all, we will not be making our streets any safer. Far-right extremists are able to make threats of violence and incite hatred without any repercussions for them, which would not be tolerated if made by any other group or community. For example, Britain First's policies openly declare that there should be a complete ban on Islam, and that people "of foreign descent" should be paid to leave the country permanently. Ideas such as these, which run totally contrary to British values, are left unchallenged to strengthen and flourish. They fuel anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant sentiments. A cherry-pick approach will not eliminate extremism and intolerance from our society; it will continue to reinforce the "them-v-us" narrative, breed hatred, and radicalise extremists on both sides.

Post Brexit and in the Trump era, it is more important than ever that the authorities take steps to tackle the growing threat of Britain's far-right movement and dismantle their networks. There are already reports that the Far-right extremists in Germany are joining forces with like-minded groups across Europe and even the United States as they prepare to carry out more attacks on our streets.
"If you don't believe in any religion and don't fear the day of resurrection, at least be free and noble in this world."

These are the words of Imam Hussain, whose martyrdom inspired a movement in the pursuit of justice and freedom regardless of race, religion or creed. With the rise of fascism and fear of the other, now more than ever community cohesion matters.

As millions gathered in Karbala, Iraq for Arbaeen to commemorate the death of Imam Hussain, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad who was killed by the Yazid army in 680 AD, The10thDay.com held their own procession in Manchester.

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The10thDay.com organised a peace walk to pay tribute to Imam Hussain on Saturday 12th of November, under the Footsteps to Freedom campaign. Markedly members of the general public from all backgrounds attended the walk, all of whom were keen to learn more about him and his remarkable story.

The walk started from All Saints Park and was led by two white horses and a carriage. Inside the carriage was a coffin with Imam Hussain written on it. Over 200 white roses were given to the attendees with the above-mentioned quote written on them.

Mr Das Shyamanand from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness attended as a guest of honour. Mr Shyamanand said: "he felt very proud to be there and show solidarity with the Manchester community". All attendees were given refreshments and a meal at the end of the day, where everyone was in good spirits and very inquisitive about the story or Karbala.

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At a time when racism is rising at an alarming rate, religion can be a unifying force when its values are applied universally. The far right and extremist groups such as ISIS are seeking to divide by playing on societal grievances. Growing alienation is fracturing communities and this is when hate prevails. However, there is hope when people come together and relationships are built on shared values.

The10thDay.com have put the well being of the community at the forefront of their charitable activities. Committed to tackling social injustice and working for the common good - a food drive feeding over 2000 people was organised in September. Recognising there was a problem with the number of people living below the poverty line, The10thDay.com responded. Neither religion nor race was taken into consideration. What mattered was humanity in times of hardship and social responsibility within a community.

Mr Faiz Hamdani, chairman of the organisation said:
The western world as we knew it has been shaken from its core. Donald Trump, the billionaire businessman with no experience in politics has been elected as 45th President of the United States, the most powerful man in the world. The UK has voted to leave the European Union, and at any cost! Both results rocked the nations, and caused disbelief. The French Presidential Election is underway, and now, the world is preparing itself for more "big" surprises. But what does this all mean for Architecture and the Construction Industry, particularly in the UK and London? Let's try and analyse the state of play, and what we should expect to see from industry in the coming years.

In June 2016, the UK referendum vote was made to leave the EU. Since this time, markets have been volatile, and with a large drop in the value of the pound, the lowest it has seen for 31 years, there has been uncertainty in the stability of the UK's economy and hence, major players in the construction industry have considered leaving the UK, and setting up headquarters elsewhere. Because of the uncertainty in the markets, property developers and homebuilders are just not commencing projects, which had previously been set to start, had a "remain" vote won. Several high-profile Architect's practices are declaring planned job cuts and a decrease in recruitment activity, to safeguard profit margins and efficiency in productivity.

We ourselves, have seen clients become hesitant to commence work, and these clients are now constantly at a point of abeyance, waiting for assurances from the now Theresa May PM led government, as to how "Brexit" will be intelligently negotiated and incorporated.

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Well thank goodness for the Autumn Statement. Philip Hammond announced 23bn into a new National Productivity Investment Fund (NPIF) which is investment into productivity, including transport, digital communication, research and development and housing. 2.3bn into new housing infrastructure and 1.4bn for new affordable homes, and 1.7bn to speed up construction of new homes on public sector land. Further, 10m to support culture and heritage projects across the UK and a slash in corporation tax to 17% by 2020. His announcement is timely, as these assurances express to developers, particularly those like our clients, that the UK is providing a boost to its own economy, and this is an incentive to developers, housebuilders and architects alike. The Chancellor is stating that it is safe to invest in the UK, and there are a plentiful of benefits for doing business here. With motivations from the Chancellor, and the Mayor of London pressuring his high housing targets, we can once again focus on developing innovative architecture and beautiful designs, ones which are intelligent with its use of space, and those which are geared to help meet provisions for housing which are required, yet are unheard in its delivery.

The low value of the pound also means that foreign investment will continue, as investors try to make the most of the low exchange rates, and buy up as much property as possible, with the expectation that the pound will regain its value in the medium to long term, creating good profit returns on investment.

The vote for Donald Trump as US President has only reaffirmed the trend for "populist" politics is something that is taking place globally, and the UK's vote was not a herring vote. This has informed our industry that the global world as we know (knew) it is changing, rash decisions are not being made, it is a worldwide movement, and therefore, industries must adapt, evolve and grow in line with this new way of thinking, but should not be discouraged or deflated. Business must continue.

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Our story starts four years ago, as my son's first nativity approached. The moment us parents wait for, wondering whether our children will have a starring role as a shepherd, angel, king or donkey.

Joseph had started school in the September and it was a steep learning curve for us all; the school, me and most importantly Joseph. There was so much for him to learn just in terms of the school routine and expectations of the teachers in a new environment. He was in a similar situation to many of the children, in that they didn't know one another and full time school is a tough transistion for any four year old.

Yet there was one striking difference between Joseph and the rest of the class.

Joseph is autistic.

At that time, Joseph was without his statement but it was apparent that he needed a great deal of support to guide him through each day. He had a low level of concentration, couldn't sit for long and made lots of random noises at inopportune moments and at that point, something the school had not encountered before.

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It's still not the time to go into all of the finer detail of his early days at school. The only thing that needs clarifying now is that Joseph's behaviour has never been considered bad, simply different.

In the lead up to nativity, I'd received the letter telling me what day and time it was due to take place and I'd dutifully informed his Dad and his Grandparents. The time and the location had given me some cause for concern as I wondered how Joseph would cope in a large church and it was to be held at 7pm. For a child who had normally been up for fourteen hours by 7pm, it's a long day. Nevertheless, I was still looking forward to seeing him in his first nativity.

As the week before the play approached, they'd had a couple of rehearsals in church and after one of them I'd been asked to come into school and speak to both the Class Teacher and Head. There was concern that Joseph was unsettled throughout and didn't want to sit down. He was also heard to have been singing 'Old Macdonald' whilst some of the older children were saying their lines. It was suggested to me that it wouldn't be appropriate to bring Joseph along and I could come and watch the next rehearsal to see for myself the problems they were having. I was told it wasn't fair on the older children who had waited six years to have their moment, if they couldn't be heard above Joseph's collection of animal noises.

Once again, I'd been caught off guard and I was angry for allowing myself to be placed in that situation when only a few weeks previously we'd had the same conversation around Harvest Festival. On that occasion, I had been asked to collect him from school earlier when all of the other children had walked across to church for their celebration. Of course, I didn't want Joseph ruining it for anyone else and what is the correct answer to such a dilemma?

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The next rehearsal was on a day when I should have been sleeping off a night shift but instead I arrived at church and watched the spectacle that was presented before me. It was absolute chaos as I'm certain most of these events probably are. It was protracted, all of the little ones were bored and Joseph was simply singing his own tunes when everyone else was being quiet.

I looked at him with great pride that he had the ability to sing after so many years of him not being able to communicate in any way and I saw happiness but he was oblivious to what was going on and what any of it meant. I reflected on that sound piece of advice I had previously been furnished with.

Pick your battles.

What would Joseph acquire from this whole experience if I dug my heels in and fought the special needs corner? Was I doing this for me or for him? My mind was made up and I informed them that on this occasion I wouldn't bring him but I expected future years to be different and accepting of the fact that he would possibly never be able to sit quiet enough for everyone else's liking.

Some may say that I was wrong to allow that to happen and they may be right, but it felt like the right decision at the time.

That was the Ghost of Christmas Past.

Skip forward a few years where Joseph has the pleasure of new teaching staff under new leadership. Thanks to them he was a fiddler and although he chose to play his cut out instrument as a guitar, it was not only accepted but it was embraced. Given his love of music and dance, they had clearly played to his strengths when deciding his role.

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Last year, I had been told on the day that the school dance club would also be performing which meant Joseph would have an extra part to play. I'd misjudged the timing for the journey back to school and hit some horrendous traffic. I had messaged one of the school mums to let her know that despite us leaving forty minutes previously it looked like we were still going to be late.

Anyone who knows me will tell you how that particular scenario would make me feel. I detest lateness and although I knew Joseph wouldn't be aware of us being late and not be fussed about missing the nativity, it made me feel anxious and upset.

We arrived at church about five minutes late and Joseph was quickly scuttled off and moved into his dance position in the aisle. I had no idea his dance would be performed first and neither had I realised that the whole congregation would be waiting for us. Before it started the Head gave her welcoming speech. She apologised but said it was important that they had waited for one of her children to ensure everyone was included as they had all worked incredibly hard.

That small act of kindness meant absolutely everything. It would have been so easy to carry on the show without us (and understandable) but the school mum had let her know about our lateness and she had taken the decision to wait.

His dance was wonderful and despite being thrown into position at the last minute, he carried on and performed his little heart out. My own heart was bursting with pride at this beautiful dance I had seen him perform, weaving up and down the aisle.

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How different from three years previously when I had been asked to consider not bringing Joseph. Inclusion is something that we expect, but having experienced the shit end of the stick, I never take it for granted.

It seemed only fitting that I wrote to the school to thank them as we are too quick to judge and complain when we're not happy about something. They've had a vision of immersive learning and were able to bring that to fruition and that style suits Joseph and his abilities perfectly. I'm hopeful it will continue long into the future.

Joseph will always be my shining star but I never expect a starring role; the best part he will ever play is simply, Joseph.

For now, inclusion is sufficient.

To read more, follow me on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/JosephSpectrumCoat

or the blog at http://www.josephamazingspectrumcoat.com
Top 10 tips to change the world to a better place now;

1.Do Good, Feel Good, Be Good

When you do good you feel good and you can be good, when you feel good you want to do more good and then you feel even better...

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Investment in 'doing good' is another type of investment that we aren't used to. It won't give you an immediate monetary result in hard cash, but this return on investment is different, and much bigger and more valuable than anything money can buy.

It can buy you inner happiness. It can buy happiness for others.

2. Educate, Educate, Educate

Start with your own family and children. Teach your children to love and respect themselves and each other and everyone else, regardless of race, religion, ethnic, education, status, talent and looks.

Teach your children that education is key, and they should be happy that they have the opportunity to learn; to embrace it and be excited about their learning every day.

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Learn from your children, they have often a much more forgiving, loving and accepting nature, unless taught differently.

Read about history, religions, cultures and current affairs. Develop an understanding of hate crimes, racism, sexism and nationalism, and what impact these movements and ideologies have on society now and before. In turn this will help you to address angry, dissatisfied people in a more humble and respectful way, without arrogance, judgment or hostility.

3. Speak up because your silence gives approval!

When you hear someone downgrade or be disrespectful about another human being, tell them immediately that it makes you and others feel really bad, that it is not right or cool. Don't disapprove in silence because in the speakers mind, you then agree with them.

Speak to your Government and MPs about your views.

Write about it and raise awareness.

But whatever you do, do it in a respectful and kind way.

4. Vote when you can

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If you are lucky to have a vote and live in democracy, please use it when you can!

Your vote is extremely important. Your vote counts. Your views are important

Make sure to educate yourself before you vote so you are fully aware of what the vote stands for.

5. Positive attitude

Actions speak louder than words, so be kind to people around you and ask what you can do to help to make them feel better or feel more loved, every day. And one day someone might do the same for you.

Celebrate others' successes and others will be happy for you.

Good attracts Good, Love attracts Love, and Respect attracts Respect.

A smile goes a long way; share your smile around you every day.

Meditate, do Yoga and Pilates to find inner peace and happiness.

Positive affirmations every day will help you go a long way.

Take good care of yourself, if you feel good, you can do good and be good and that will make you feel even better!

6.Celebrate all the good that is done in the world and spread the news to inspire and raise awareness.

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We need to spread good news- good attracts good.

We need to celebrate all the good things that people and organisations are doing every day.

Start by sharing this article with everyone you know.

Nominate a good cool person you know on www.dogoodnews.com

7. Shop, Travel, Live and Eat wisely. Be informed and support companies that are doing good and are taking corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Shop wisely- investigate companies' CSR strategies and policies on, food, clothes, cars, services, toys. Support the good ones, and more will follow.

Understand the countries you are travelling to, support good businesses and destinations that are, for example, treating their staff well.

Get involved in your own company's CSR strategy; make sure you have one, and if you do, help your employer to promote it and implement it.

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Ask questions if you can't find the information you need; let companies know your views and what you care about.

8. Give back, get involved and invest in good

Get involved as a family; choose something good to do together

Teach your children that actions are more important than appearance; teach your children to do good, be good feel good, every day

For example: support a charity organisation; give away toys and clothes; feed the homeless in your local area; do a volunteer trip together and build a class room in India; give Christmas presents to an orphan in Lithuania; go and visit the elderly at a home.

Choose a project or cause and get involved locally, nationally, globally, and individually, as a group, as a business or as a club.

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Raise funds for a cause, donate to another organization, or raise awareness about something that you feel really strongly about; do it yourself.

9. Recycle and Reuse, read up about the climate change and energy consumption

This is our world- let's take care of it.

There are tons of information on what you can do, I have included one link below;

But one thing could be using your smart phone less that will also give you the great opportunity to spend more time with your family and friends instead...

http://environment.about.com/od/globalwarming/tp/globalwarmtips.htm

10. Take Human responsibility as a Global Citizens

There is no "Them"- it is only "Us'- one human race.

Let us live like that. Let us teach our children this.

Have good work ethics and earn money and pay tax if you can, so you can contribute your part to help take responsibility for your children, your family, the education system, healthcare, pensioners and disabled people in your country and in the rest of the world.

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If you can't work and earn money for whatever reason, make sure you do what you can to contribute with kindness, respect and love and charity work.

Realize that it is easier to change yourself than change anyone else, as change comes from within, so make sure to take responsibility for your own life, values, beliefs, education, work situation and actions.

Be a good role model and understand that whatever you do, people around you will do whatever you say.

Challenge yourself with the question what can I do today to make a positive change for others and myself?

If you don't like something, change it.

Educate yourself, every day.

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I believe that Love, Peace and Happiness will concur all as long as we are educated and have our basic needs fulfilled, do you agree?.

You and me can make a change to make the world a better place. Today!

Spread the word, read, share and like.

Love to all

For more information on how you can do more good, please visit www.dogoodnews.com

Ulrika Lorenz http://www.DoGoodNews.com
A fraudulent campaign has resulted in the election of a fraudulent president. What can be done to save American democracy?

The recent presidential campaign season brought political pornography to the American people. Donald Trump and Steve Bannon, his senior counselor and chief strategist, have ushered in a new dark age of American politics.

As the former head of the alt-right, nationalist website Breitbart News, Bannon helped Trump construct a campaign of lies and more lies, fake stories, denigration and debasement of opponents and vicious chanting in his rallies. With coded language and symbols intended to wink at the alt-right's racist, misogynist, and anti-Semitic base, this challenge to our democracy was met with barely a peep from the news media.

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Like the naif exposed to pornographic material for the first time, the mercenaries of broadcast media (especially the morning shows) could not seem to get enough during the first three months of the campaign. Trump's outlandish tirades were given hours and hours of free time worth millions of dollars. CNN provided live coverage of most of the initial Trump rallies where the candidate unfolded his campaign of hate.

The television media, hooked on sleaze-inspired ratings, became the chief enabler of the Trump campaign. Pundits advised Trump on communication strategies and urged him to stick to his script. The implication to viewers was that the optics of the campaign are far more important than policies, ethics, or fitness to serve. Instead of a countdown of days since Trump was asked for tax returns, by the end of the campaign this grievous lack of disclosure was barely mentioned.

But the fault does not lie solely with the media. Political operatives brought their valuable wares to Trump with no regard to the damage he could bring. While this may be nothing new, Trump's staff managed to forgive his alleged sexual assaults on women, his bad business deals, and his breaking of numerous contracts. They normalized his refusal to share tax returns, along with his comments about grabbing women's genitals, and John McCain being a loser for becoming a POW. Most troubling were the pundits who declared Trump somehow rehabilitated if he managed to get through a public event without insulting someone or egging on his crowd to throw a punch. Trump's campaign aides were constantly on screen re-explaining, re-stating, or softly changing Trump's statements as part of launching Trump 2.0, 3.0, and all subsequent versions, ad nauseam. The reality was a disturbed punditry and public, being asked to accept corrections of a lie with another lie as the media gave each side "equal time"

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Functioning as the loud speaker for falsehoods, corporate social media like Twitter and Facebook amplified and spread lies. They then hid behind the First Amendment as fake stories spread with abandon and ads from fake news sites increased their revenues. Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook has belatedly agreed that his company needs to address the perpetuation of false news.

The United States needs new campaign regulations that hold candidates to truth telling, tax disclosure, and financial requirements. Otherwise, our democracy will be at risk of having a lying president with an entire machinery behind him or her to perpetuate falsehoods, intimidation, downright threats, and personal financial enrichment. Without such regulations, the Constitution will be reduced to a series of hollow words.

Lies are not the only concern. Many of Trump appointments so far have been beyond the pale. General Michael Flynn, former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency and Trump's pick for national security advisor has far-right, anti-Islamic, and anti-Semitic leanings. Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS), Trump's pick as director of the CIA, has expressed views that flout human and civil rights. Senator Jeff Sessions, the pick for attorney general, has called civil rights groups "un-American."

This normalization, along with diminished expectations of such a president only adds to an erosion of our democratic ideals. Yes, Trump has made some reasonable statements. He will not prosecute Hillary Clinton; climate change may be real, and after a chat with General James Mattis, a prospective pick for secretary of defense, he decided that waterboarding is not such a good idea after all. The press appeared relieved when Trump picked Governor Nikki Haley of South Carolina to be the United Nations representative. Despite her total inexperience, she seems sane by comparison to his other picks.

Mitt Romney, the Republican 2012 presidential candidate went to the crux of the matter as he tried to dissuade voters from supporting Trump in 2016: "Donald Trump is a phony, a fraud, ...His promises are worthless as a degree from Trump University. He's playing members of the American public for suckers: He gets a free ride to the White House, and all we get is a lousy hat." Trump replied that he could have said: "Mitt, drop to your knees--he would have dropped to his knees." And now, in the remnants of our American democracy, Romney meets with Trump to be considered for Secretary of State.

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This fraudulent campaign has resulted in the election of a fraudulent president. Soon we will accept a fraudulent presidency. Democracy is fading, and many seem not to have noticed.

History is full of national leaders who were tyrants, dictators, fraudsters, and hucksters. Some rule even today. The people of these countries are reduced to feeling grateful when these rulers do something good for the people. They accept worse actions with the knowledge that under the powers of their more fascistic rulers, their dissent will not be tolerated. Are we witnessing the beginning of the total destruction of American democracy? Not yet. But, without question, the chipping off of some of the pillars of democracy has begun. It's not too late to turn it around, but we'd better get started.
Thanksgiving Day at the hospital bedside of a close family member, she said to me,

"How does someone feel when they're dying?"

"I don't know, love. Maybe they hear the angels singing, 'Come home, Come home?'" I responded facetiously, tipping my hat to a popular hymn in her Baptist Christian tradition.

I interpreted her question rhetorically, though she's been chronically ill for years and considers death a release into heaven.



Heaven on Earth: The Blackfeet Nation succeeded in protecting their sacred land near Glacier National Park from oil and gas exploration.

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A few hours later Frank and I were 100 miles away, in the St. Petersburg home of our son and daughter-in-law, where the tenderness of "first love" lent a special air to the celebration. For the first time our college student granddaughter had brought home a young man, and I think that seeing them together brought back those feelings of euphoria for all the adults.

With a start, I realized that I felt equally serene in both places. How did that happen? I wondered.

In an instant my mind flashed back to the time in Denali National Park and Preserve when I spent a day in the company of "The Great One." Instead of going birding and wildlife watching, I chose to lie in bed in our cabin at Camp Denali and commune with the huge snow-clad mountain, the highest on the North American continent:

"Somewhere in the silence a most profound thought awakened in me. It was as if the mountain was transmitting, 'You know what? Look at the size of me and the size of you. . .a little different, yes? Relatively speaking, I am timeless and you are like chaff in the wind, here for a century if you're fortunate. So I don't really need you to 'protect' me. What I require of you and the other humans is that you wake up and recognize where the true power lies. Appreciate the force that created me, that created you and all life, and respect that.' " (Excerpt from Our True Nature.)

"I can! I will! I do!" my heart responded in rapture. From this and many similarly thrilling adventures in parks across the country I have learned an unshakeable confidence in the power of God that sustains me in all places at all times. I cannot be within sight of earth or trees or flowers or birds without feeling buoyed by the wonder and perfection and the order of Life.

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So whenever I feel the first sign of dissonance, I stop and isolate the thought that's causing it. Then I ask myself, is it something within my control - is there something I can do to affect the outcome? If the answer is "yes" I take the action or decide where in my schedule it will fit; if it's "no" I can readily move on.

Approaching the election results this way, I am doing all I can to draw attention to this: Americans keep looking away from the election's most alarming story, the successful effort by a hostile foreign power to manipulate public opinion before the vote. Unless millions of citizens join Senators Lindsay Graham and John McCain in calling for an investigation, the consequences for our country may be dire. I am making calls to every member of the Senate Intelligence Committee and every member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and asking for an investigation.



Increasingly effective at connecting youth and families with wild nature, Keeping it Wild is looking for 'new love' in the form of enthusiastic new members and potential board members.

I am calling upon my fellow Americans to do the same thing. If you read that statement and decided not to do anything because "they won't do anything," take it from me, you're part of the problem. Maybe you should reacquaint yourself with our treasures in the National Parks and public lands system, of which founding director Stephen Mather said,

"He or she is a better citizen, with a keener appreciation of the privilege of living here, who has traveled the national parks."

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With an incoming administration that has shown indifference to our environment, it will be vital for all citizens to become intimately involved in cherishing nature and particularly the lands and waters set aside for the enjoyment and benefit of this and future generations. As a member of the Next100 Coalition which is working assiduously to achieve this goal, I'm ecstatic to see how well citizen involvement is working:

Last week the people of Chico Hot Springs near Yellowstone succeeded in their long campaign to block mining that could potentially destroy the park's pristine ecosystem.

The Blackfeet Nation persevered and got the Department of Interior to cancel an oil and gas drilling lease that would have led to the desecration of their sacred land at Badger-Two Medicine near Glacier National Park.

In Atlanta Keeping It Wild, which Frank and I helped establish more than a decade ago is partnering with Big Brothers, Big Sisters and state agencies to lead the Outdoor Explorers Mentoring Program, providing transportation and opportunities for young people and their families to get out in nature. The organization is reaching out to nature lovers and those inclined to serve as new member and potential board members.



How could I resist sharing this incredible image of the Gateway Arch, part of Jefferson National Expansion Memorial from their Facebook page.

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The biggest battle for our land, air and water is being waged at Standing Rock right now, and since I cannot be there I'm doing the next best thing - sending resources to help.

Next week we'll be at the Jefferson Expansion National Memorial in St. Louis, MO, home of the Gateway Arch and the Dredd Scott Courthouse among other priceless historical gems. Ahead of its Spring 2017 re-opening after a big revitalization effort, the park is preparing to engage a wider cross section of the American public, and we're thrilled to be working with them to help achieve those goals.
Illustration and Painting

This column was originally published by Truthdig.com

President-elect Donald John Trump has named Sen. Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III, R.-Ala., to be his attorney general.

Take a moment to let that sink in: If confirmed, Jefferson Beauregard Sessions III will become the nation's top law enforcement official, in charge of overseeing the legality of federal programs ranging from immigration to national security and voting rights.

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Ordinarily, I wouldn't begin a column by highlighting the given name of a government appointee. I'd focus instead on policy. But Sessions is an exception--the rare case in which appellation, lineage and ideology intersect and overlap, illuminating the dangers of a nominee rather than obscuring them.

Like his father and grandfather before him, Sessions was christened after Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War, and Brig. Gen. Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard, who resigned as the superintendent of West Point in 1861 to take command of the first Confederate army at Fort Sumter.

In his long career as a lawyer and legislator, the 69-year-old Sessions--who prefers the diminutive "Jeff"--has done much to make his namesakes proud. Like them, he's made copious statements, taken actions and, in his instance, cast votes that can be described in a single word: racist.

Sessions graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1973, and after a brief stint in private practice in Russellville and Mobile and a short deployment in the Army Reserve, he became an assistant U.S. attorney (AUSA) for the Southern District of Alabama in 1975. Six years later, President Reagan appointed him the head U.S. attorney for the district.

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The Office of the United States Attorneys serves as the principal litigation arm of the attorney general and the Department of Justice. Currently, there are 93 U.S. attorneys stationed throughout the country. Together, they conduct most of the trial work, both civil and criminal, in which the U.S. is a party. They are appointed by the president and must be confirmed by the Senate. On the job, they are vested with tremendous discretion regarding the kind of lawsuits to initiate, and the kind of defenses to raise when the government is sued.

It didn't take long for Sessions to show his colors once he was installed to run the southern Alabama district.

Early in his tenure, he was confronted with a gruesome case involving two Ku Klux Klan members who in 1981 had kidnapped and murdered a black teenager named Michael Donald. Although Sessions has long taken credit for bringing civil rights charges against the Klansmen, the charges, in fact, were filed only at the urging of Thomas Figures, an African-American AUSA who later became one of Sessions' most outspoken critics. Figures subsequently collaborated with lawyers from the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division to win a federal conviction against one of the perpetrators.

Sessions, however, turned over the murder prosecution of the lead defendant, Henry Hays, to the local district attorney. Hays was thereafter convicted in state court, and was sentenced to death. He was executed in 1997.

Stories currently circulated by right-wing media asserting that Sessions and his office handled Hays' murder trial are false. Nor did Sessions play a direct role, as some on the right have written, in securing a $7 million verdict in 1987 against the Alabama-based United Klans of America for Donald's killing. That judgment was obtained by Morris Dees of the Southern Poverty Law Center.

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In a case from 1985, Sessions let his racism completely out of the bag, prosecuting three civil rights organizers, including a former aide to Martin Luther King Jr., for voter fraud arising from a registration drive aimed at poor and elderly residents in several "black belt" Alabama counties during the 1984 Democratic primary election. Sessions based his case on 14 absentee ballots returned by African-Americans that he alleged had been altered. A total of 1.7 million votes were cast statewide--and none was deemed tainted by Sessions.

From the start, the case raised outcries of selective prosecution. The defendants, who hailed from the small town of Marion, northeast of Selma, came to be known as the "Marion Three." They were acquitted on all counts after the jury deliberated for a mere three hours. Sessions has never apologized for bringing the case and has denied ever since that it was designed to target black voters.

Despite Sessions' evident prejudice, Reagan nominated him to become a federal district court judge in 1986. His confirmation hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee that year were marked by detailed accusations of racism.

Attorney Figures, who went on to become a municipal judge in Alabama and who died last year, testified at the hearings that Sessions repeatedly referred to him as "boy" during their time together at the U.S. attorney's office. Figures added that Sessions often had spoken of the NAACP, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Operation Push and the National Council of Churches as "un-American organizations with anti-traditional American values."

Figures also explained that Sessions initially pressed him to drop the Klan investigation, and maintained that while he and Sessions were involved in the case, Sessions joked that he used to think the KKK was "okay until [he] found out that they smoked pot."

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After becoming a criminal defense attorney in private practice, Figures was indicted in 1992, Sessions' last year as a U.S. Attorney, on charges of bribery and witness tampering. He was acquitted in a trial held a year later that his supporters claim was brought in retaliation for his criticism of Sessions.

Another witness before the Judiciary Committee, J. Gerald Hebert, then a senior trial lawyer with the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division who periodically conferred with Sessions about voting rights cases, testified that Sessions had referred to the NAACP and the ACLU as "communist-inspired" and had faulted the groups "for "forc[ing] civil rights down the throats of people who were trying to put problems behind them."

Hebert recently told Huffington Post senior justice reporter Ryan J. Reilly that he was "stunned" by Trump's nomination of Sessions to become attorney general. In retrospect, Hebert said, Sessions "demonstrated gross insensitivity to black people. So Tom Figures reporting that he had been called 'boy' by Jeff Sessions, that wouldn't surprise me at all."

In his defense before the Judiciary Committee, Sessions adamantly denied ever calling Figures or anyone else in his office a "boy." He didn't deny pinning the "un-American" tag on the National Council of Churches or the NAACP, however, but insisted he "meant no harm by it." Rather, he testified, he intended such remarks only to apply to civil rights organizations "when they leave the basic discriminatory questions and start getting into matters such as foreign policy and things of that nature and other political issues."

Despite having the full-throated backing of the Reagan administration and vigorous support on the judiciary panel from his close friend, Alabama Republican Jeremiah Denton, who recommended his appointment to the bench, Sessions' nomination failed to make it out of committee. It was withdrawn the following July.

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Unfortunately, Sessions' legal and political career survived his rebuke by the Judiciary Committee. Rather than fade away in ignominy, he went on to win election as Alabama attorney general in 1994, in which capacity he fought court-ordered desegregation, and he was elected to the Senate in 1996. Today, ironically, he is a member of the Judiciary Committee.

Since taking his seat in the upper chamber, Sessions has amassed a virtually unbroken record of ultra-conservatism, bordering at times on what can accurately be described as authoritarian white nationalism. Among the multitude of views he's espoused, he has defended voter ID laws and called the Voting Rights Act "a piece of intrusive legislation," denounced the Black Lives Matter Movement as "radical" and guilty of promoting "false" claims about police abuse, consistently opposed criminal justice reform, and resisted calls for removal of the Confederate flag from government facilities.

He has also supported Trump's proposed ban on the immigration of Muslims and the president-elect's vow to build a border wall. He has called for slowing down the rate of legal immigration, cancelling federal funds to sanctuary cities and ending the 14th Amendment's guarantee of birthright citizenship. He's decried the advent of gay marriage, and opposed abortion rights and the Violence Against Women Act. He's also been a militant war hawk in foreign policy matters, and a staunch proponent of gun rights and enhanced government spying under the Patriot Act.

As attorney general, Sessions would manage the entire Department of Justice. He would supervise the operations not only of the U.S. attorney's offices across the country and the Civil Rights Division, but also the solicitor general, who represents the interests of the federal government in cases argued before the Supreme Court. He would have the president's ear in making recommendations for future Supreme Court nominations.

In short, once installed, Sessions would be ideally positioned to help transform Trump's central campaign slogan-- "Make America Great Again"--into its actual intended objective of making the nation "white" again.

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Historically a marital partner could not sue a spouse because of "interspousal tort immunity." The historic common law viewed spouses becoming one legal person with the husband having control over the person and property of the wife. Thus, for example, there was no criminal law of marital rape, and a wife was required to have the consent of her husband to contract and obtain credit. Additionally, it was feared, allowing lawsuits between spouses would overthrow the institution of marriage, create serious social disorder, flood the courts with frivolous claims, and encourage fraudulent activity that targeted insurance companies.

This legal viewpoint significantly changed in the U.S. legal system in the 1970s with the expansion of legal rights for women. The following are several of many examples. In 1970 California was the first state to legislatively create no-fault divorce [signed by Governor Reagan]. Marital rape became a crime with Nebraska legislation in 1976. The federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act (1974) granted married women the right to obtain individual credit, and the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act (1978) protected against firing and discrimination due to pregnancy. Supreme Court decisions echoed this trend, such as Roe v. Wade (1973), and a unanimous decision in 1986 recognized sexual harassment as a form of unlawful discrimination [Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson].

Of course, precursors to these developments might be traced to many events including state Married Women's Property Acts in the 1800s that allowed married women to manage their own property and sue and be sued. As early as 1882 a New York intermediate appellate court decision, reversed, would have allowed a wife to sue her husband [Schultz v. Schultz]. The U.S. Supreme Court in 1910 interpreted the District of Columbia marital property statute as not allowing a wife to sue her husband [Thompson v. Thompson].

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Hence, today it is possible for one spouse to sue another for both intentional (deliberate) and negligent (unreasonably careless) torts (injuries). This comment briefly provides an incomplete educational overview of spousal lawsuits. Always consult an experienced attorney in all family law and litigation matters.

The rationale for allowing interspousal lawsuits was that the injury (tort) had already disrupted any domestic harmony and that a wrongdoer should not be able to escape the consequences of his or her conduct. One might initially think of physical and emotional injuries but the contemporary approach also includes property fraud.

Statutes of limitations (time period after the injury to sue) vary from state-to-state, so do not delay legal action. In some situations, the running of a statute of limitation may be stopped ("tolled"). Many spousal torts are continuing and each new wrongful action may restart the statute of limitation. A physical or emotional injury from a tort may be latent (hidden) and possibly the statute of limitations may not begin to run until the impact is apparent. Statutes of limitation issues are complex and require consultation with an experienced attorney.

There are any number of intentional torts such as parental kidnapping of children, invasions of privacy via wiretapping, video or audio surveillance, assault (threats of harmful or offensive contact) and battery (actual harmful or offensive contact), and transmitting sexual diseases. One could easily list several pages of potential torts. Depending upon state law, the damages are both compensatory (actual dollar loss including items such as property damage, medical expense, and lost wages), punitive (damages to punish a wrongdoer), and potentially attorney fees and court costs. Of course, monetary judgments do not automatically collect themselves. So a preliminary consideration in any tort lawsuit is if there are assets or insurance coverage that might be seized or applied to collect a judgment. Most homeowner's insurance policies exclude coverage for intentional acts, among other things. Many torts are also crimes that might be prosecuted.

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Some states do not allow a recovery for emotional distress without some physical manifestation of the injury. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); however, produces widely recognized physical symptoms.

A different set of legal standards may govern lawsuits separate from divorce from those that arise as part of a divorce action. A major issue is what standards a given state utilizes in dividing marital property upon divorce. Additionally, attempts to reopen property divisions in a post-divorce lawsuit may be difficult.

A claim for property fraud or for a breach of duty in managing property may exist separately from a division of property incident to divorce. However, some jurisdictions only allow property fraud claims in the context of a divorce. Some jurisdictions distinguish a physical injury claim as being uniquely personal to the injured person, and hence, always allowable either within or outside of divorce. Some states have specifically addressed these issues with legislation. Transfers of marital property to third parties, such as a paramour, that are "capricious, excessive, or arbitrary" may be subject to a lawsuit for reimbursement. The overall theory is that there has been a breach of the fiduciary duty (imposing utmost honesty and fairness) that one spouse owes the other.

Actual fraud involves proof of the following: 1. An intentionally or recklessly false, 2. Statement (words or actions that communicate), 3. Of a material (significant) fact, 4. That was justifiably relied upon, 5. Producing loss or injury. Intentional action ("scienter") is key. Deliberately false statements concerning assets might be an example.

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Constructive fraud, more commonly asserted than actual fraud, does not require proof of an intent to deceive. It is a fairness approach focusing on violations of confidence and public policy considerations. Giving away marital property, changing life insurance beneficiaries, or creating mortgages without the other spouse's knowledge or consent are common examples. This is especially true when transfers are made to paramours.

However, note that bad investment decisions alone do not constitute constructive fraud. "Waste" of marital property involves affirmative actions of dissipation, transfers, and gifts made in bad faith to the detriment of the spouse. However, if the spouses are in business together or one spouse holds a power of attorney for the other spouse, an additional obligation of fairness from corporate, partnership, and agency law applies.

The old doctrine of "unclean hands" penalizes one who comes to court with violations themselves of good faith and fairness. It only applies to conduct related to the specific transaction(s) in question and does not relate to issues of character or conduct generally. It might be utilized as a defense to claims of actual or constructive fraud.


Franz Kline, Untitled, Circa 1947, Oil on canvas, 28 x 35 in. (71.1 x 88.9 cm). Courtesy of Allan Stone Projects, New York.  The Franz Kline Estate / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

All signals point to an optimistic and rising art barometer as another whirlwind Miami Art Week approaches. Not only is the expected temperature perfect for the first week in December, but recent auction results show a healthy push for acquiring outstanding examples of contemporary art. Christie's, Sotheby's and Phillips' recent evening sales totaling almost $450 million were perhaps the best predictor that the art market is alive and well and has weathered an earlier dip successfully, so now it looks like sunny skies are ahead. Not surprisingly, most financial advisors are recommending a healthy percentage of wealth be invested in contemporary art. Concerns about the impacts of continued lagging oil prices (not oil on canvases), the aftermath of Brexit, and the unexpected U.S. presidential election results, when markets immediately plunged and then recovered (and as of this writing the Dow topped a record 19,000 points), appear to have had little effect on art buying confidence from sophisticated collectors. Last week, someone finally figured out that de Kooning is still the greatest abstract expressionist painter who ever lived on the planet and plunked down $66 million at auction for an exceptional 1970 abstract landscape. There were plenty of other impressive sales, including Christopher Wool ($5.5 million), Dubuffet ($23 million), rocker Eric Clapton's Richter ($22 million) and Hockney ($1.7 million), so it seems that the climate is encouraging for obtaining iconic and exemplary blue chip and museum quality works of art. Coincidentally and not surprisingly, all of these record-breaking artists and more are well-represented at Art Miami, the longest running continuous art fair in the U.S., inaugurated in 1989 by Nick Korniloff and partners, and its neighboring sister fair, CONTEXT, which are living up to their well-earned reputation as America's foremost contemporary and modern art fairs.

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Art Miami returns for its 27th installment, kicking off on November 29th with a VIP Preview sponsored by Christie's International Real Estate benefiting Perez Art Museum Miami (PAMM) in the Art Miami Pavilion. Eighty-five thousand art lovers attended the fair in 2015, and this year attendance is expected to rise, with 135 international exhibitors and over 450 artists from more than forty different countries.

Some of the unique highlights I spotted in advance are a pastel of Edward Ruscha's DO ING, previously exhibited at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, LACMA and the Whitney, which will be at ARCHEUS/POST-MODERN; Frank Stella's Brazilian Merganser, along with stunning works by Dzubas, Diebenkorn and Olitski, are at Leslie Feely; Roy Lichtenstein's Reflections on Expressionist Painting and some iconic Warhol silkscreen pieces are at Benrimon Projects; and Mayoral Galeria D'Art is presenting Salvador Dali's Rhinoceros en desintegration, along with a handsome Alexander Calder painted sheet metal sculpture and Joan Miro's Personnage. Sims Reed Gallery is featuring a work from a famous and rare series of works by David Hockney, titled Illustrations for Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm; and Allan Stone Projects will exhibit Willem de Kooning's Abstraction, circa 1945, and selected works by Wayne Thiebaud.

In addition, on view will be works by an alphabetical who's who of artists, including Andre, Baselitz, Basquiat, Botero, Chamberlain, Cragg, Condo, de Saint Phalle, Dine, Fairey, Frankenthaler, Hashimoto, Hirst, Johns, Judd, Kelly, Kiefer, Koons, Kusama, Longo, Murakami, Noland, Picasso, Rauschenberg, Richter, Rosenquist, Sultan, Twombly, Venet, Warhol, Wool and Zakanitch. Suffice it to say, this exciting line-up of world-renowned artists make for a great art fair that also encourages the display of mid-career and emerging artists who are represented by leading galleries around the world.

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Among the top works previewed, here is a list of my personal favorites in no particular order:

Franz Kline, Untitled, circa 1947 (Allan Stone Projects; pictured at top): an unusual but delightful painting by one of the most important abstract expressionist artists of our time. Allan Stone was known in the business as an exceptional dealer and collector with a perfect eye. The works in his overcrowded Manhattan office were always outstanding examples of leading artists, including an extraordinary Chamberlain that I predicted in The Art Economist magazine would set an all-time auction record, which it did! Allan Stone Projects



Mark Bradford, Untitled (Corner of Desire and Piety) III, 2008, Mixed media collage, 22 x 27  in. (55.9 x 70.5 cm). Courtesy ARCHEUS POST-MODERN, London.

Mark Bradford, the hot shot whiz kid and perhaps one of the most sought after artists of the last few years, who will represent the U.S. in the 2017 Venice Biennale and has work touring in the celebrated "Open This End" exhibition of Blake Byrne's collection, shows Untitled (Corner of Desire and Piety) III at ARCHEUS/POST-MODERN, a mixed media collage that is instantly recognizable as a solid example of the artist's oeuvre. Bradford's art is concerned with cities (and maps thereof), racial identity, history and injustice. He usually creates his collaged compositions by utilizing discarded materials from posters and other urban neighborhood sources, which often are sanded down. Archeus



John DeAndrea, Classical Allusion, 1987, Oil on polyvinyl, marble, 60 x 30 x 31 in. Courtesy of the artist and Bernarducci Meisel Gallery, New York.

John DeAndrea's hyper-realist sculpture Classical Allusion, 1987 (Bernarducci Meisel Gallery) is a simply astonishing, unthinkably perfect rendition of a female nude study that is leaning on the corner of a sculpture stand displaying a male torso. This work is far superior to other artists who try to create real figurative illusion and there is no contest. This sculpture will be one of the most talked about and admired in the fair. Bernarducci Meisel Gallery

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Yayoi Kusama, NETS- INFINITY (OPQA), 2004, Acrylic on canvas, 51.3 x 38.2 in. (130.3 x 97 cm). Courtesy Galerie von Vertes, Zurich.

Yayoi Kusama's hypnotic work from Galerie von Vertes, NETS-INFINITY (OPQA), has swirls and dots on canvas that are deceptively simple, but in reality, have a complex formula that seems to come naturally from this prominent and gifted artist. Gallery Von Vertes



Salvador Dali, The Earth Goddess (Illustration for a eponymous Lithograph 1979-80), 1971, Gouache, blue ballpoint pen and felt pen (silver?) on paper, 47.1 x 35.2 cm irregular. Courtesy of Mayoral Galeria d'Art, Barcelona.

Salvador Dali's The Earth Goddess (Illustration for an eponymous lithograph), 1971 (Mayoral Galeria d'Art) is a rare example of a titan of 20th century artists, complete with Dali-esque semi-conscious doodles of flying fish and fruits juxtaposed with characteristic watercolor applications from a great grandfather of surrealism. Galeria Mayoral



Henry Darger, At Jennie Richee . . ., c. 1940-50, Double-sided, carbon transfer and watercolor on paper, 18 x 76 in. Detail. Courtesy Carl Hammer Gallery, Chicago.

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Carl Hammer Gallery is internationally acknowledged for representing some of the best outsider artists in the world, well known in their own right, like Bill Traylor, Joseph Yoakum, and illustrated here, the reclusive Henry Darger, who is a truly remarkable artist with the most bizarre story attached to his life and working methods than any other I know. Janitor by day, artist by night, his late shift portrayals of a secret world often dominated by rebellious children are wondrous and beautiful. Carl Hammer Gallery



Brian Eno, 3 Fields, 2016, Light box: LED lights, perspex, wood, usb stick, 65 x 65 x 19 cm. Photo credit Masami Naruo. Courtesy Paul Stolper, London.

Paul Stolper Gallery of London is presenting a series of light box "colorscapes" at CONTEXT by musician, composer and artist Brian Eno, known for his collaborations with such musical acts as U2, David Bowie and the Talking Heads. These dramatic glowing works could almost be a theoretical hybrid of Dan Flavin, Josef Albers and Kenneth Noland, all in one. Paul Stolper Gallery



Adrien Brody, Purple and Black Fish, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, 48 x 48 in. Courtesy of David Benrimon Fine Art, New York.

Adrien Brody, Academy Award winning actor and artist, is exhibiting a new series that incorporates bold colors and narrative imagery that relate to saving the environment. These works shown by David Benrimon Fine Art successfully combine a number of painterly styles, including abstract expressionist drips and flat fields of color, with recognizable narrative outlines of fish and fowl. David Benrimon Fine Art

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Chantal Joffe, Alba and Esme in the Winter, 2016, Oil on board, 72.05 x 48.03 in. (183 x 122 cm). Courtesy Galerie Forsblom, Helsinki.

Galerie Forsblom of Helsinki is showing Chantal Joffe's dual portrait titled Alba and Esme in the Winter, 2016. Joffe is recognized for her large, highly expressive paintings and commanding interpretations of female figures, including self-portraits. Her new series, which includes pastels on paper, has a gentleness and airiness that captures a sense of ephemerality reminiscent of the Impressionists. Galerie Forsblom

Art Miami opens November 29 with a VIP preview and continues through December 4. Ticket information: 1-800-376-5850, email info@art-miami.com
Some history you probably don't know:

In 1996, a Republican-controlled Congress passed the Telecommunication Act of 1996, opening the incumbent state-based utility wires of now-Verizon, AT&T and Centurylink to all forms of competition. I.e., the customer would have a choice of who offered them ISP, broadband, phone or even cable TV service over the wires coming into their home or office.

The Act was hailed as a model of 'deregulation'.

Starting in 2001, the Republican FCC under then-Chairman Michael Powell, closed the networks to most direct competition, killing off about 7,000 independent ISPs that had helped America get online since 1990's.

The FCC called this 'deregulation'. Jeffrey Eisenach was part of the Powell transition team. He is now the head of the new, 2016-2017 FCC transition team.

And today, there is no serious competition or choice for ISP services, or most other wired services. In fact, "Internet Service Providers", (ISPs) (the companies that connect you to the Internet and provide email, among other services), are considered some of the worst companies in America. In June 2016, ACSI's Customer Satisfaction Benchmarks came out and out of 43 industry segments examined, the "ISPs" were rated dead last. However, the rest of the communications services, including phone service and even cable (subscription) TV services, are all bottom feeders as far as the public is concerned.

According to ACSI, these very bad grades are because there is no serious choice of providers.



"ISPs... remain the lowest-performing industry in the ACSI. Though many consumers are cutting the chord to subscription TV, most of them must still rely on the same companies for the high-speed Internet access required for streaming media platforms like Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime Video." "ISPs and subscription TV inched up in 2016, but they remain the lowest scoring industries in the ACSI."

In short, the phone and cable companies were able to kill off competition by getting the government (the FCC) to do their dirty work and they did this using the failed economic models of the phone and cable company consultants, including Jeff Eisenach.

Unfortunately, it is a glimpse of what we can expect from a new Republican FCC in 2017.

The History of ISPs in America that You Probably Don't Know--and the Birth of the Internet and the World Wide Web.

It's 1996 and I'm sitting in an office in mid-town Manhattan, NY, hanging with a bunch of young, tech-happy entrepreneurs, examining rack upon rack of electronic boxes that are attached to copper wires that connect to something called the Internet and the World Wide Web. (The Internet and WWW are not really the same though most people use the terms interchangeably.)

I had used email very early on, back in the 1980's, as well as online bulletin boards, which were a specific cyberspace location that you could reach by having a modem that was attached to a computer, which was attached to a phone line. It would actually dial a number and get to a specific cyber-location. This is known as "dial up".

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America Online, Compuserve, Prodigy, among others, had created online services, where you dialed up and entered their specific service. But these were 'walled in' and you couldn't go to other places outside their specific site.

This was going to change during the 1990's. The World Wide Web was spanking new and entrepreneurs were popping up all over the place to help people get online. It wasn't a smooth, sleek thing but was hobbled together. The concept of the 'web page' was new; using a 'browser' was new, and creating a web page was even newer and more treacherous. And it required hand-holding, tech support and other 'customer-service' activities.

To help America get online, thousands of start ups popped up all over America and with the advent of the Telecom Act of 1996, any company could use the utility wires to offer their services. This included 'broadband', which also hadn't existed - i.e., more speed over the same wire. Internet providers were supposed to be able to also use a "CLEC", a local competitor who offered DSL by renting the incumbent, state-based, Title II, utility phone lines, or the ISP could resell the incumbent's DSL.

At the same time, AT&T and MCI, then companies offering long distance service, (a separate phone service that crosses state lines), were also able to also offer local service, which they had been restricted from doing before the 1996 Act. By the end of 2001 they had garnered about 20% of local phone service in America.

And by the end of 2001 there were 9,335, mostly small, entrepreneurial companies - that handled the majority of all US Internet service customers. The incumbent phone companies were not even in the Top 10 of US providers in 2001.

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Meanwhile, the Act was not a gift. The local incumbent utility phone companies got to enter long distance and the other markets they had been restricted from due to undue market power-- (I.e., they controlled the actual wires and therefore the services over the wire.)



The Original ISPs Under Attack

However, throughout this time the small ISPs were under attack by the incumbent phone companies that are now Verizon or then-SBC (who would become AT&T). And note--the cable companies' networks were closed to competition so the ISPs had to rely on the phone networks.

Even though the Telecom Act had 'deregulated' the local phone networks so that they were open to direct competition, the incumbent phone companies wanted to just steal--I mean, take over the business that the entrepreneurs had invented and grown.

Enter Eisenach' Progress and Freedom Foundation (PFF). I don't know who started it, but PFF and others began pitching a bogus economic plan to remove these companies.

In 1998 Eisenach filed with the FCC about something called "intermodal competition", which was - get rid of all competition and let those who own the wires compete. According to the theory, it would bring choice for all services and broadband, etc.

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This concept was not what the Act had said. However, it made the phone companies, now Verizon et al. happy; but it was garbage. And it is now the laughing stock of economics. Large companies don't compete - they collude.

But you, the reader, know this because you are reading the history of the companies, ISPs, that most people in America now consider some of the worst companies in America.

Bad Outcomes: Thanks to the FCC and Bad Economic Models

Examining the last two decades, here's the punchline: Now-Verizon and now-AT&T never built out the majority of their territories for wired broadband or cable TV, and because they killed off the competition, you have a 'duopoly' at best - i.e., the cable company and in some places, the phone company, offering service.

Next, based on every merger that made them larger, Verizon and AT&T were also supposed to compete out-of-region for wireline phone, broadband and internet service--and never did. So, by the end of 2007, with CenturyLink (the third large incumbent phone company), there were only three non-competing massive phone companies that controlled the wires.

By 2007, they had been able to kill off most of the small companies that were offering ISP and broadband services and 'vertically integrate' their services over the wire--i.e.; the broadband service, the ISP service, and phone service, and even the cable TV, were now controlled by one company.

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Worse, Verizon and AT&T (and CenturyLink) own the wires that are used for most wireless service, (Centurylink sells Verizon's wireless) so they control the price of wireless as well as phone service in their areas; they even control the price to competitors who rent the lines. Moreover, Verizon cut a deal to offer its wireless service with the cable bundle in areas it didn't upgrade--and wireless service can't compete with a wired cable service today. And just to keep competition at abeyance, AT&T bought DirecTV, so it couldn't compete with AT&T - and Verizon resells DirecTV.

And this outcome sucks. My Time Warner Cable (now Spectrum) basic triple play, advertised at $89.95, is now over $200 dollars. Verizon's FiOS is available but if I changed it would be the same price because there is a cartel and they decided to use the same deceptive practices, the same promotional-bait and switch, and the same made up fees.

And most of America has only one high speed wired company--the cable company; the rest have a duopoly. With exceptions like where Google showed up or some municipality got sick of waiting and decided to do a work-around of the incumbents, there isn't any serious competition for wired very high speed services. Thus, most people are not happy with their ISPs and lack of choice.

Let's supply some of the details how this happened.

The Fall of ISP Competition: The 2001 Republican Transition FCC and Eisenach

Eisenach and PFF were on the FCC Powell transition team in 2001 and by 2002, the entire ISP and competitor market was now under serious attack. But, as I mentioned, this had been underway since the Act was passed.

How do we know this? We were there. We worked with the small ISPs and filed complaints against now-Verizon starting in 1998-1999 because the incumbents were making sure that their phone lines weren't installed in a timely manner or the lines would stop working or the discount pricing to the ISPs and CLECs to use these networks were higher than the retail pricing by then Bell Atlantic, now Verizon.

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"The Department of Justice (DOJ) has recently found that Bell Atlantic (Verizon), New York has not been able to deliver an "acceptable level of performance" for the provision of competitor DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) services. In fact, the DOJ report found that 30 to 40% of all order confirmations to the CLECs were inaccurate while over 80% of all orders required some form of manual processing."

What this says is - imagine having a business where at least 30-40% of the time the order didn't go through or had some problem, mostly fabricated. (This was the reason I had been sitting the room with the small ISP in 1996; their orders for lines were not going through and they wanted to know why.)

But, there were a myriad of problems, including predatory pricing by the incumbent.

"Bell Atlantic is Using Predatory Pricing for DSL that is Designed to Eliminate Internet Service Providers. "NNI was asked to comment on Bell Atlantic's ADSL discount wholesale pricing to ISPs. It is a clear case of a monopoly using predatory pricing to eliminate competitors. "Based on Bell Atlantic's 'The ISP Term & Volume Program: Rates', dated October 1999 (which is a rewrite of a previous pricing sheet), Bell Atlantic's pricing will clearly result in competitors never being able to compete against Bell Atlantic retail. In fact, these companies will lose massive amounts of money for every customer they sign up."

And it would get worse. Under Powell, the FCC released six inter-related proceedings that were designed to kill off competition.

Patty Fusco, Managing Editor, ISP Planet, March 1, 2002

"We've been begging the FCC to establish a National Broadband Policy. On Feb. 14th the FCC took action-only it might turn out to be as bloody for ISPs as the St. Valentine's Day Massacre was for George 'Bugs' Moran's North Side Gang in Chicago, circa 1929."

And this was an attack, led by Powell et al., against small businesses, using the Eisenach-Powell-et al. mantra of 'intermodal competition'. Who needs actual competition?

In fact, the independent ISPs had consistently presented data to the FCC to defend their small businesses and it had fallen on deaf ears. The head of the Texas ISP Association, (TISPA) recounted his meeting with Chairman Powell and senior staffers at the FCC Enforcement Bureau.



"The meeting was Tuesday May 8th, 2001. In a nutshell, all the "bad acts" submitted to them to date have resulted in exactly "ZERO" dollars in fines. We asked for something blatant as handwriting on a wall as to the future of the complaint process as we are approaching it. We got it. WE SHOULD EXPECT NOTHING FROM THE INFORMAL COMPLAINT PROCESS. We should expect nothing from any complaints we have submitted to date. "A couple of weeks ago we met with a senior person in the ENFORCEMENT BUREAU. After a one-hour meeting and receiving some heartfelt empathy for the plight of ISPs and the consumers who are being victimized by the illegal, anti-competitive behavior, I suggested that our best move might be to just jump out a window. He suggested we might want to consider throwing a chair out of the window first, so we wouldn't get cut on the glass as we jumped."

By the end of 2005-2006, 7,000 small ISPs had been put out of business. And while there are a host of caveats, the main attacks came, not from market forces, but from the FCC's failure to enforce the existing laws, or they erased the laws on the books. In fact, the FCC had 're-regulated' the CLECs and ISPs out of business. And surprise, surprise, guess who was able to simply walk in and take over their business? The phone and cable companies had a feast by taking over the market. Ironically, this was the FCC's idea of 'light touch' regulation.

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Let us be clear and this is worth repeating: The Telecom Act of 1996 was the deregulation of the state utility wires to allow competition. The FCC's play post 2001 removed this deregulation, regardless of what the corporate-funded think tankers tell us.

And the sad outcome? Now, when someone mentions the term "ISP", they think of the incumbent phone and cable companies. To date, the FCC has never properly defended small business rights, especially the ISP and CLEC markets.



The Start of Net Neutrality: No Competition, so Play Nice.

Eisenach writes:

"Net neutrality is crony capitalism pure and simple - an effort by one group of private interests to enrich itself at the expense of another group by using the power of the state."

Net Neutrality concerns started at this time, in earnest, because competition had been killed off and there were only monopoly/duopoly providers who controlled the essential wired utility infrastructure and who could screw around with the customer and any remaining competitors. The consensus was - something was needed so that they would 'play nice', and it was Net Neutrality. However, it was NOT designed to re-open the networks to direct competition.

Unfortunately, in this case, the "cronies" are Eisenach and his clients, including Verizon, who used the FCC to shut down the entrepreneurs--the initial group of ISPs--to take over their business with the help of the government, the FCC.

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What to expect in 2017? This new FCC will be worse. It will be the Powell FCC on steroids, if we let it.
Claire Lew is the CEO of Know Your Company, a software tool that helps companies with 25 to 75 employees overcome growing pains. Her mission in life is to help people become happier at work. Her software, Know Your Company, helps do this for over 12,000 people in over 15 countries at companies like Airbnb and Kickstarter.





When have you gone against the flow in your career?

Oh sheesh, I feel like I'm going against the flow all the time! When I first got out of college, I turned down two job offers to go start a company with my friends. A few years later, I was at another early-stage company and decided to quit my job there to strike out on my own with 10 months of savings and a desire to solve the problem of feedback in the workplace.

Today, I continue to go against the flow of what you "normally see" with Know Your Company. Our approach to growth and pricing is weird. We're a bootstrapped company that's generated over $700,000 with two people in a little over two years... all on a one-time pricing model. If you want to use Know Your Company, it's $100 per employee - and that's it. You get to use the software for life. There are no recurring charges. We do this because we believe a company should get feedback from its employees for life. Not for just a few months, or for however long it's convenient to do so. So our pricing model encourages a CEO to see getting feedback in this way - as a long-term commitment. It's definitely different than what you typically see in the software industry. But it works for us.



What advice would you give to employees who want to give their CEO feedback but aren't sure how?

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About four years ago, I was an employee in this exact situation - I wanted to give my boss feedback but had no clue how. I've been there. It's so frustrating. You want to say something, but you don't feel comfortable and you're wondering if all the trouble to do it is worth it. In fact, this is the reason I started my own consulting practice, which led me to become the CEO of Know Your Company!

Here are some of the lessons I've learned both personally and through the work we do with our customers. (1) First, schedule a time to speak with your CEO. (2) As you start the meeting, ask for feedback about yourself. When you focus on yourself first, you show vulnerability and help the CEO let his or her guard down. (3) Be clear that you have the company's best interests in mind. (4) Finally tell your CEO that your feedback is your point of view, and it's not coming from anyone else or a group of people at your company. (5) And then breathe. Relax. You've put your opinion out into the world using a sincere approach. Be open to the answers you receive.



You work with more than 200 CEOs and business owners on company feedback and transparency. What's been the most surprising CEO blindspot you've seen?

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Across the two-and-half-years worth of data we've collected, we've seen the most common blindspot CEOs have is their employees feel they could be contributing more. In fact, when asked through Know Your Company, 75% of employees said, "Yes, there's an area outside my current role where I feel I could be contributing." This runs completely opposite to a common belief that many CEOs have, which is "My employees are too busy!" Now, your employees may very well feel slammed... However, this doesn't mean they aren't open to learning new skills or taking on projects that help them grow personally and professionally. This is an important insight for CEOs because it demonstrates the untapped potential your team has - something CEOs are always looking to find!



What advice would you give to CEOs to avoid blindspots?

Ask questions. There are two ways CEOs ask questions that will yield meaningful feedback. One thing you can do is ask your team for advice, instead of for feedback. People love to give advice, as opposed to feedback, which can feel intimidating and critical. For example, saying something like "I'd love to get your advice on how we should prepare for the upcoming client meeting" lets teams know their CEOs don't have all of the answers and everyone has a chance to help shape the direction of the company. Second, CEOs should ask specific questions. When you ask general, broad questions like "How are things going?" you're guaranteed to get a general, broad response. Instead ask something like, "What's one thing in the past week we could've done better?" Employees will give you much more actionable, specific feedback.



What drives you? How do you measure success for yourself?

Helping people. That's what drives me day in and day out. I know what it's like to live this problem firsthand, as an employee. The feeling that you don't have a voice at your company, or that whatever you say is futile is an incredible source of unhappiness. So helping employees not feel this way, and helping CEOs solve this problem and create better environments is what motivates me.

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Part I: Katogi Averoff Hotel & Winery, Metsovo

It's early November and I've decided to take advantage of the low-season period as Christmas and New Year appear on the horizon. Having lived in Athens on and off for the last six years, I've naturally visited a countless number of the islands that Greece has to offer as well as the Peloponnese region. Although I say this with a shade of embarrassment, I had until now never explored the north of the country; a region which exemplifies the diversity of Greece with its mountainous terrain that one might associate more with Northern European countries.

Last summer, I went island hopping and beforehand I'd looked to see whether or not it was possible to find a hotel group that had bases on each island in order to have a familiar feeling of the accommodation. That's when I came across Aria Hotels; a small family-owned boutique hotel and villas company. I stayed in 3 of their bases on the Cyclades islands of Serifos, Milos and Kimolos, which was a very enjoyable experience. Once I found out that they also had two hotels on the mainland, I decided to make the trek up from Athens.

The drive from Athens was admittedly a long one. The most recommended route is via the Rio-Antirio Bridge, which crosses the Gulf of Corinth. From there you make your way up towards the city of Ioannina. The much-anticipated new Ionia motorway/freeway is set to open early next year, thus cutting the journey time to from Athens to the northwest dramatically.

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Metsovo is a town in Epirus located within the Pindus mountain range and is a popular tourist attraction particularly during the winter months. Thessaloniki, the 'co-capital' of Greece is a couple of hours drive away, which is partly why Metsovo is described as the 'Arahova of the north'; (Arahova is a similarly popular mountain town located nearer to Athens). As you approach the main village, you notice the bright red rooftops nestled into the mountains, which adds to the scenic view.

The Katogi-Averoff Hotel & Winery, member of Aria Hotels is unique in that it is a combination of the two; in fact, it is a pioneer of the wine tourism given its location some 1100 metres above sea level. The receptionist, Eleni, welcomed me and she was eager to ensure that I was happy with my room, which was luxurious and very spacious. It also had a great view of the surrounding mountains. The hotel had a nice and cosy old-style to it, in line with the architecture of Metsovo, with the dining room adjacent to the inviting fireplace.

Something else that caught my eye at the reception was a special offer titled 'The Food and Wine treasures of Metsovo'; a special offer over the weekend of December 2nd-4th, which entails a number of activities, such as visits to the Folk Art Museum of Metsovo and the E. Averoff Gallery. Also included is a visit to the winery next to the hotel, which also features the wine tasting experience that I had read of prior to making the trip. Additionally, you can also benefit from the great local food on offer, such as the Greek Breakfast; designed with the purpose of giving visitors the experience of local Greek products and local dishes the region has to offer.

After the long drive, I was looking forward to taking advantage of the local gastronomy, which Aria Hotels evidently pride themselves on. I went for a big portion of veal and rice, which was great. One definite suggestion is to go for the local cheeses as they combine very well with the native wine. The winery, right next to the hotel, is definitely my first stop, but that would wait until the next morning as I decided to opt for an early night.

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After a good breakfast, again involving traditional products from Metsovo, I headed to the winery and took up the option of the 30-minute tour. Evangelos Averoff started the winery in the late 1950s and today it produces over 700,000 bottles per year. The winery houses over 1200 oak barrels. As the tour progresses', you encounter works of art as well as a visual guide of the wine making process. In addition, there is also the opportunity for wine tasting, which makes for an intriguing tour all round. The Yiniets vineyards, on the slopes of Mount Pindus lie at an altitude of around 1000 metres making it the highest vineyard in Greece.

A walk through the town later in the day revealed what seems like a close-knit community here. There is also plenty to see. The Averoff Art Gallery, opened in 1985, contains various paintings and sculptors by Greek artists. The 15th century church of Agia Paraskevi along with the Monastery of Agios Nikolaos are also worth a visit. Lake Pigon is also worth a visit for those willing to drive a half hour or so. Although my visit came too early for the ski season, being an avid skier myself, I would have taken advantage by visiting the nearby Pindos of Karakoli and Politsies, at altitudes of approximately 1500 and 1600 metres respectively, and both offer varying levels of difficulty. Another must is to pay a visit to the Metsovo cheese factory, founded in 1958. The factory is known to constantly experiment and create new products to add to their already established ones. The notable local cheeses are Metsovone and Metsovela. Along with Metsovo's renowned Katogi Averoff Winery, it makes for a great blend.
By Christopher Zoukis

Twenty-five percent of the world's prison population is located in the United States, and most -- 98 percent -- of those incarcerated will eventually be released into their communities.

The issues that arise from mass incarceration and high recidivism rates are well known. A family with an incarcerated father is 40 percent more likely to live in poverty. About 65 percent of prisoners haven't completed high school, with 14 percent possessing less than an eighth grade education. Children whose parents are incarcerated are at higher risk for antisocial and violent behaviour, mental health problems, school dropout and unemployment, according to a presidential report from the Council of Economic Advisors called Economic Perspectives on Incarceration and the Criminal Justice System, released in April.

Education, vocational programs, skill building and other programs, are all vital tools for ensuring that prisoners who will be returning to their communities will be able to lead productive lives. Access to these opportunities will help break the cycles and factors that can lead to further incarceration.

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It's not only lawmakers and prisons themselves that are realizing the benefits of various programs, but local communities too. Community organizations can help to fill some gaps in resources, funding and programming, as well as providing reassurance to current inmates that the community is there for them, aware of them, and will continue to be there after release and during integration.

Just knowing that there is support from people outside of the prison walls can make a huge difference in the mindset and motivation of someone currently incarcerated, and who will soon be released. Programs that bring volunteers inside prisons, such as those driven by colleges and church groups, can also benefit the community, as individual interactions with inmates helps to humanize them.

These interactions also allow community members to learn about the criminal justice system, and about the various external factors at play that may have influenced prisoners to end up where they are. This is an important way to help de-stigmatize prisoners and change viewpoints of those who might see prisoners as deserving only of punishment behind bars, and not of rehabilitation, when in reality many have received sentences for nonviolent crimes.

This shift in attitude can be demonstrated in Lubbock County, Texas, where 60 percent of the population in the detention centre are serving time for offenses related to addiction. Sheriff Kelly Rowe has addressed this, noting that while some people need to be kept away from society, "the biggest majority of our population, they've got a debt to pay, but we don't need them in a recurring cycle."

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The issue of addiction leading to recidivism needs to be addressed, so that prisoners can return to communities and be successful. In order to address these issues, the Lubbock Country Detention Center offers several educational and rehabilitation opportunities, as well as optional religious services. Volunteers from the community lead many of these programs, which include AA meetings, bible studies, resume-building skills and GED classes. These programs are vastly needed in an area where some prisoners arrive with first-grade reading levels. The programs also encourage prisoners themselves to become long-term mentors within the facility, who are invited to return as mentors after release. Some programs also strive to address transitional housing after release.

Meanwhile other states have also made inroads toward connecting prisoners with their communities. In Nebraska, First Plymouth Church recently presented its Love of Neighbor Award to Nebraska Wesleyan University's "College is the Key to Inmate's Tomorrow" program, which pairs college students with inmates. The students help teach inmates, and in turn receive college credits for a course in criminal justice, benefiting both participants.

In San Quentin State Prison in California, prisoners are taught how to code with The Last Mile, a San Francisco-based nonprofit. Students who may have had zero experience with smartphones or computers before the course will learn enough basic coding to secure an entry-level job upon re-entry. Programs like this can provide prisoners with purpose and passion, as well as hope.

These are just a few examples out of many that demonstrate the difference community involvement can make in the lives of prisoners. Community members can provide valuable links to the outside world, a support system during and after incarceration, and assist in delivering much-needed resources like education, to increase the chances of successful re-entry and reduced recidivism. Other communities would do well to emulate these shining examples, as we continue to combat the root causes of incarceration and re-offense, and to help offset the stigma that prisoners can face in their communities upon release, so that they can feel that they are welcome -- not isolated -- in society.
A look back at what an Obama presidency might have been--what it might have been had the stars been in alignment and his inspirational campaign rhetoric counted for more than political catnip--reveals a trail of disappointments, half-measures, and, dare we say, betrayals. Basically, no one on either side of the fence got what they hoped for, which given the binary nature of politics, seems a statistical impossibility.

While the so-called mainstream Left regarded Obama as a millennial version of a "Rockefeller Republican," moderate to a fault and as tame as dish water, the ideological Right wasted no time in labeling this dangerous person a "socialist."

How soon we forget. In 1971, Republican Richard Nixon mandated wage and price freezes across the board (U.S. employers couldn't give employees pay raises, and manufacturers and retailers couldn't increase the price of merchandise), and in 2008, Republican George W. Bush temporarily nationalized the banking system. Oops.

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The list of disappointed parties is staggering, beginning with organized labor. During his campaign Obama promised to give his full support to passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), a labor reform that would allow workers to fill out a card saying they want to join a union ("card check") rather than having to submit to an arduous and management-orchestrated NLRB election.

But when the time came to step up to the plate, Obama backed away. He and his attack dog Rahm Emanuel decided that (1) pushing too hard for this so early in his administration would unnecessarily alienate congressional Republicans, and that (2) even without the EFCA, there were no political risks, because labor had no choice but to remain loyal to the Democrats ("If you think we're bad, try the Republicans").

The same was true of education. Obama's choice for Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, had the same basic approach to public schools as the Republicans, in that he favored funneling money to charter schools and saw the political advantages of demonizing the teachers unions.

Although Obama tried portraying Duncan (his Chicago crony) as an "innovator" and "visionary," Diane Ravitch, the brilliant education writer, saw little difference between the philosophy of Arne Duncan and that of George H. W. Bush's Secretary of Education, Lamar Alexander.

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Obama couldn't even send a valentine to the National Rifle Association (NRA). The NRA continued to accuse this dangerous socialist of being "anti-guns," despite Obama being the first president to repeal the prohibition against possessing firearms in a National Park. It's true.

In a pathetically transparent attempt to extend an olive branch to the almost pathologically single-minded NRA, Obama clearly and demonstrably liberalized (rather than restricted) the country's gun laws. But the NRA didn't so much as flinch. The move got Obama nothing. Except for criticism from the gun-control lobby.

But there's an opportunity for Obama to leave office in a blaze of glory. It can be done immaculately and resolutely, and without a shred of opposition to prevent it. This is not to say it won't create some heartburn because it will. But the beauty part of it is that there's nothing anyone can do about it.

On Obama's last day in office he needs to issue pardons for 10,000 prisoners currently serving time for non-violent, "non-scary" crimes. Conservative Republican Mike Huckabee once observed that we put too many people in prison not because we're afraid of them, but "because we're mad at them."

The advantage of a full pardon (as opposed to commuting a sentence) is that all is forgiven. It's as if you never committed the crime, which allows you to apply for a job without the prison term on your record. It's a second chance for people who aren't dangerous, but who simply messed up. Or as an inmate at Chino prison told me, "We're not just the ones who messed up; we're the ones who messed up and got caught."

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So Obama needs to have the Justice Department come up with 10,000 men and women worthy of pardons. Besides releasing thousands of people who don't belong in steel cages, the move might even set the stage for meaningful prison reform. God knows we need it. At the very least, these blanket pardons will launch a debate.
"Politics is just like show business." - Ronald Reagan

It's hard to argue with that sentiment after the recent US election. However, my interest is more on the side of how the show-business effect impacted Millennial voter turnout than in the antics and theater of any particular candidate.

To that end, it is important to note that in the US only about 50% of the eligible Millennial population actually cast a vote, versus an average of about 57% for the general population, a figure that, in and of itself, is sadly and pathetically low and, in fact, a few points lower than the last US presidential election.

Now, contrast this with the rest of the world, and by world I don't mean the countries where voting is compulsory. I mean the world where voting is mandatory as a public service. In October, The Guardian reported,

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In Belgium's most recent election, 87% of the voting-age population turned out. In Turkey 84% voted and in South Korea it was 80%. But in the US, in 2012, just 54% of the voting-age population exercised their right to vote. That is one of the lowest turnouts in any developed country.

If you are interested, I recommend you read the Pew Research Center on this. It's fascinating to see how voter registration varies country to country, and I'm sure you will have, like me, your own take on why.

But back to Millennials.

While I usually hate writing about labels and have never believed the "experts'" view on the monolithic "movement" status of this generation (once again proven by this election), the ganging together of an age group as an aggregated audience is a convenient way to knock off some sacred cows.

To begin with, a critical numerical line has been crossed. According to Pew Research Center from May,

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As of April 2016, an estimated 69.2 million Millennials (adults ages 18-35 in 2016) were voting-age U.S. citizens - a number almost equal to the 69.7 million Baby Boomers (ages 52-70) in the nation's electorate.

Yet, here is the critical piece of data...while many were counting on that youth vote to propel a different outcome, the truth is that:

...the high-water mark for Millennials was the 2008 election, when 50% of eligible Millennials voted. By comparison, 61% of the Generation X electorate reported voting that year, as did even larger percentages of older eligible voters. In 2008 Millennials comprised 18% of the electorate, but as a result of their relatively low turnout they were only 14% of those who said they actually voted.

But wait...it gets worse according to Pew:

Millennial turnout was less impressive in 2012, when 46% of eligible Millennials said they had voted. Since the oldest Millennials were 31 years of age in 2012 (as opposed to 27 in 2008), the expectation might have been that turnout would have edged higher. After all, an older, more mature, more "settled" age group presumably should turn out at higher rates. This underscores the fact that young-adult turnout depends on factors besides demographics: the candidates, the success of voter mobilization efforts, as well as satisfaction with the economy and direction of the country.

Depends on more than demographics? My starting point...obvious, no?

And according to the US Census,

Overall, America's youngest voters have moved towards less engagement over time, as 18- through 24-year-olds' voting rates dropped from 50.9 percent in 1964 to 38.0 percent in 2012.

Maybe not so obvious.

Look at the recent Brexit vote in the UK. The data - not surprisingly - seems all over the place. Some sources claim a very low Millennial turnout and others peg the number much higher. VICE reports the numbers at the highest.

I've just got the figures back from our other survey, which is from a fresh sample, and what we found is that turnout among voters eighteen to twenty-four was sixty-four percent. Now that is an estimate, because it's always an estimation, but it comes from an actual survey where people were asked whether they voted or not, and whether they registered or not. We also controlled for over-reporting of electoral participation, because people always have a tendency to tell you that they voted even if they did not. So even when you account for all of that, we find is that turnout among eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds was about sixty-four percent. That would be the highest turnout among eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds for the past twenty-five years.

But every other source had it far lower. The Guardian reported,

We cannot know for certain the demographic turnouts on 23 June, because there was no exit poll. So don't let any figure thrown around under pretence of being cast-iron fool you. That figure does not exist. But we have some guidance. Sky Data put 18-24 turnout at 36% and 25-34 turnout (also millennials) at 58%: but it was projected - representing those who said they were certain to vote and had done so in the past. Data crunched by the FT found that "on a general basis, areas with younger populations had lower turnout" and the Guardian, Telegraph and BBC data all back this up.

Clearly, given the poor performance of polls, none of these numbers, either in the UK or in the US, fill me with deep conviction...yet based on all that I have read, heard, and seen I would say we do have a problem of an engaged younger electorate, but I don't believe it has anything to do with the candidates, the issues, the economy or the general direction of anything.

For one, I give this generation some credit for caring...in fact, for caring deeply about the world. The problem I believe is a lack of understanding of how the levers of power actually work and, as a result, in how to actually make a difference in the world.

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For one, we are living in a glut of uncurated, unverified, highly questionable information or maybe better put words...as it's often unclear what's real and not.

Just take a look at how we use Facebook - and not just Millennials. More than a billion people log in to Facebook every day, with most users admitting to more than once-a-day use. millennials are the least likely to share political content (4% or less) and more likely to share memes (6% or more). Baby Boomers are most likely to share political content (7% or more), according to a Fractl study from April 2016.

Although Millennials may not be sharing political content, Facebook remains a major source of news. According to a June 2015 Pew Research Center study:



About six-in-ten online Millennials (61%) report getting political news on Facebook in a given week, a much larger percentage than turn to any other news source. This stands in stark contrast to internet-using Baby Boomers, for whom local TV tops the list of sources for political news at nearly the same reach (60%). Roughly a quarter (24%) of Millennials who use Facebook say at least half of the posts they see on the site relate to government and politics, higher than both Gen Xers (18%) and Baby Boomers (16%) who use the social networking site.

And Twitter seems to be no less a source of news for many. As reported by California Magazine:

It's the year Twitter catapulted billionaire Donald Trump from being a long shot to being the GOP nominee, in part thanks to his uncanny penchant for newsmaking in 140-character posts, which reaped millions of dollars in free publicity for his campaign during the crowded GOP primaries. The stunningly effective strategy sparked veteran journalist Tom Brokaw to wonder if the billionaire businessman may become the first "to tweet his way to the White House". [emphasis mine] On the Democratic side, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, boosted by Millennial voters, churned effective social media outreach into a fundraising bonanza - the average donation was $27 dollars - along with mega-rallies, which threatened to upend the campaign of frontrunner Hillary Clinton. Meanwhile, the former Secretary of State, who introduced her 2016 campaign on Facebook, fully graduated to Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter - this time in Spanish - and celebrated her historic nomination with social media emojis celebrating "The Woman Card," among other things.

Now, to be clear, I do believe that news channels actually amplified the social message, and that is where Trump triumphed as he wasn't bound by the Digibabble that, in my opinion, limited some of the Democratic Party operatives. And, I'd also posit that Trump and Bernie shared the mega-rally strategy, a decidedly analog way to make news and spread the word.

It seems to me there is a critical missing link, a crucial disconnect, an essential gap between what we think we know about millennials, their pursuit of causes, their consumption of news, and their compulsion to share.

The Guardian speculated as follows:

[T]ech can be helpful when encouraging engagement -Facebook's voter status initiative, for instance - and I see that changing your profile picture to a French flag, or a Rainbow flag helps you to feel better and does contribute to a nicer, supportive tone of discourse - it has its place - but when it comes to affecting policy change, it's as good as hovering a pencil over the box and crossing the air.

Bottom line? We have lost touch with reality. People no longer understand how elections work.

John Oliver of HBO's Last Week Tonight said it best:

The one theme that seemed to emerge in the chaos and confusion of the RNC was, feelings were king, and viewers experienced a "four-day exercise in exercising feelings over facts".

We even experienced the following, as reported by Wired and many others:

America's electoral system is already kind of a mess. Now, Twitter trolls are doing their best to make it even more confusing by spreading disinformation about how to cast a ballot on election day. The latest example: Donald Trump supporters are spreading memes on Twitter in both English and Spanish, trying to trick Hillary Clinton supporters into thinking they can vote by text.

Have we become so confused that anyone would take such misinformation seriously?

Why not? When such a large percentage of the so-called news being shared online was laughably false. And let us not forget the increasingly narrow silos of information which, true or not, are skewed one way or another. Vox reported,



Reddit is a popular news aggregator in which users vote about which stories to promote to the front page. And by March of this year, the politics section of the site had become dominated by Bernie Sanders supporters. As a result, if you relied on Reddit for your political news this spring, you basically only saw stories that praised Sanders and criticized Clinton and the Republican candidates.

We live in a world where Reality and Reality TV are often confused with each other, where sharing and liking are considered action, and where our skills at discerning the truth are being challenged, to say the least.

Summing it all up I turn to a statement made by Jennifer Lawrence - not because I think she is an influencer, (next week I will tackle that topic) but because it speaks volumes to the problem we all face:

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We're all allowed to be sad that the present isn't what we thought it was. But we mustn't be defeated. We will keep educating ourselves and working twice as hard as the man next to us because we know now that it is not fair. It is not fair in the workplace, so you make it impossible to fail. And like Hillary, it might not work. But like Hillary, you can still be an inspiration and get important things done. Do not let this defeat you--let this enrage you! Let it motivate you! Let this be the fire you didn't have before. If you are an immigrant, if you are a person of color, if you are LGBTQ+, if you are a woman--don't be afraid, be loud!

Where is the admonition to go out and vote? To get involved in the process. To make a difference by actually making a difference.

Being loud just doesn't cut it...nor does mere sharing, liking, sending disappearing messages, posting, and certainly not whining and whinging.

Perhaps the great poet Robert Frost said it best...Listen:

"Thinking isn't agreeing or disagreeing. That's voting."

So, no matter where you live, voting, taking real action, is the only way to effect serious change.... until the revolution, and we all know where that can lead.

What do you think?

Read more at The Weekly Ramble
The earthquakes and subsequent tsunami which inundated the Daiichi nuclear facility on March 11, 2011 have been well-documented. We all know that the design and location of the plant made it extremely vulnerable to the multiple reactor meltdowns that occurred. We are also well aware of policy failures that led to evacuation in to the path of radiation for some as well as the lies told to the public about the depth of the crisis and the reality of the meltdown. (1) The result was the destruction of the bond of trust between the Japanese government and the people of Japan.

As in many places around the world, entrenched special interests have taken precedence over the will of the people. What became crystal clear to me from the Fukushima experience was how easy it was for unelected officials (bureaucrats), who are beholden to no one, to make decisions affecting the people of Japan with no consequence to their seats of power. Even in the private sector, few have been punished for their negligence. Making matters worse, the Tokyo Electric Power Company - the epicenter of the entire calamity - continues to run the facility as costs to clean the containment buildings skyrocket. The "ice wall" - that $320 million dollar effort to stop water from reaching the ocean - has yet to work as promised. (2)

There are any number of remaining risks at Fukushima which deserve continuing attention and action by the decision-makers of Japan. In my mind, there is no greater risk to Japan at present than the hundreds of tanks containing highly radioactive waste water sitting on the plant site a few meters from the ocean - the same site where only 6 years ago waves reaching 40 meters smashed up along the coast. (3) Let us also not forget the many thousands of bags holding contaminated soil also near the site. Imagine what could happen if another catastrophic earthquake produced tsunami of similar height now. The potential for these storage tanks to rupture or completely collapse is immense. And what would happen to all the highly contaminated water and sacks of soil? They would firstly be drawn inland by the power of the incoming waves only to be pulled back in to the ocean as the waves subsided.

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To this day, there has not been a clearly agreed-upon solution to deal with this disaster- waiting-to-happen. No ocean wall has been built to protect the massive site. So the tanks and bags just sit there.

(1) http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/27/world/asia/27collusion.html

(2) http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/30/science/fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-plant-cleanup-ice-wall.html?_r=0
Many Democrats who minimized the importance of the negative impacts of corporate trade deals on working class Americans have now paid the price in the recent elections. As my colleagues at the Center for Economic and Policy Research have pointed out, racists and xenophobes were always going to vote for Trump but the key voters the Democrats were counting on that they lost were largely working class voters, many of them union members, in states hit hard by trade deals (supported by both parties) that put working class people in competition with lower-income manufacturing workers in other countries while preserving protections for intellectual property-holders and high income professions. While these working class voters may have voted against their economic interests in terms of workers' rights, social security, work/life balance, and other pro-worker provisions in the Democratic platform, they were right that both parties have become too aligned with corporate interests -- and trade agreements is one of several instances where that is the case. It is yet to be seen how or if President-elect Trump will make good on his pledges on trade to these voters, but in the initial preview of his first days in office, he has promised to withdraw from the TPP. Likewise the talks with the EU on a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) are on hold. In the EU, the EU-Canada agreement, known as CETA, is in limbo while the European Court of Justice decides whether the dispute settlement mechanism in the agreement complies with EU law. Fair trade advocates are rightly celebrating important victories and noting that, thanks to successful grassroots campaigning, President Obama did not ever have the votes to send the TPP to Congress for approval, and won't be able to do so in the lame duck session as he had originally intended. Unfortunately there is still a corporate trade agreement under negotiation that has so far received scant attention: the proposed Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA). Trump has not commented about the TiSA, so we really don't know his views. But there are three reasons why we're not "out of the woods" with the TiSA, and why the TiSA isn't in the same category as the TPP and TTIP for now, despite media reports that the deal is on hold until US negotiators get new instructions: 1. Trump is not against corporate-driven trade agreements; he has said that he thinks US negotiators did a bad job negotiating and that they've gotten bad deals, and that he's going to renegotiate and get good deals. So he could very well take up the TiSA as an agreement that's still under negotiation, put his stamp on it, and then claim that "this is what happens when you negotiate a good agreement!" And you can bet that the corporations are doing their best to talk with him now about doing this, because they are not going to abandon the project when he has yet to state his position. 2. The TiSA is about locking in further deregulation and privatization, and Trump loves deregulation and privatization. 3. The TiSA is focused on services, so it may not speak to the working class in his base in the same way that agreements that result in the transfer of manufacturing jobs to low-wage, worker-unfriendly countries like Vietnam do. Thus, there is an urgent need in the United States to not only ensure that Trump does not take up a re-packaged TPP or TTIP (and possibly negotiate an even worse deal for ordinary citizens), but also to use the short window of time before he announces his opinion on the deal to ensure that the TiSA is permanently sidelined as well. However, it's important not to think of TiSA as "only about services." Now that nearly every chapter of the agreement has been leaked, a more complete picture has emerged: that the TiSA is fundamentally an offshoring and outsourcing charter.* The TiSA is intended to lock in a system of rules to allow multinational companies to operate in a borderless digitized environment with minimal regulation and maximum rights regarding the treatment of labor, capital, inputs, and the new key element of data. As promoted by the multinational financial, logistics, and big data corporations through Team TiSA, the agreement would set severe limits on the ways that governments can regulate domestic economies, removing key tools of economic management and the ability to shape the service economy while providing an extensive corporate bill of rights for multinational companies' operations across the globe. Given the shift in employment patterns from high-paying manufacturing jobs to low-wage services jobs, and given the potential offshorability of millions more services jobs, the danger posed by TiSA is daunting. Here are ten ways that the TiSA could fundamentally affect jobs and the labor market, based on provisions in the leaked texts, some of which have been accepted by all parties and some of which are under negotiation. 1. Companies are expanding the category of "services" in order to make it all-encompassing. Corporations no longer consider setting up a plant and producing goods to be simply "manufacturing goods." This activity is now is broken down into research and development services, design services, legal services, real estate services, architecture services, engineering services, construction services, energy services, employment contracting services, consulting services, manufacturing services, adult education services, payroll services, maintenance services, refuse disposal services, warehousing services, data management services, telecommunications services, audiovisual services, banking services, accounting services, insurance services, transportation services, distribution services, marketing services, retail services, postal and expedited delivery services, and after-sales servicing, to name a few. Going further, a shoe or watch that measures steps or sleep could be a fitness monitoring service, not a good. A driverless car could be a transport service, not an automobile. Google and Facebook could be information services and communication services, respectively. 2. Offshoring and outsourcing of jobs and downward pressure on wages could greatly accelerate as TiSA would lock in labor, tax, and regulatory arbitrage through rules that would allow corporations to transfer capital, inputs, workers, and data across borders without consumer, privacy, or labor protections so that they can enjoy the seamless global operations of all of the above services in whichever country provided the cheapest labor, least regulation, and lowest taxes. Note that the services classification list [DOC] being used in the TiSA includes 120 subsectors, many of which are professional categories like those listed above, that have heretofore been protected from past trade deals. 3. Not only would TiSA promote offshoring of jobs, but it would also greatly expand domestic "inshoring." Foreign contractors (say from Japan) would be able to bring in workers (say from the Philippines) to conduct work inside a consumer country (say the United States) on terms and conditions well below minimum local pay and local standards. The workers would not even have to be from a TiSA country. The Mode 4 Annex in TISA would make many employees or workers mere "independent service contractors." As they wouldn't be considered formal employees, the migrant workers would not benefit from the protection of labor laws in the host country, their employment contracts being governed instead by default contract laws. The question then remains, which labor laws will apply? Labor lawyer Tony Salvador has noted: "If it is alleged that the labor laws of the [workers'] home country applies, it would be practically impossible to assert their rights since they are working and are based in the foreign country." 4. The TiSA does not include a labor chapter, and in fact the draft texts only mention labor rights once -- in one Annex supported only by one developing country. Workers' rights provisions in past trade agreements have been weak and unenforced, but the TiSA doesn't even meet this low bar, and does not even reference the basic standards set forth by the International Labor Organization (ILO). In addition, companies also would not be required to have local directors or managers, or even a local presence, compounding the inability to hold them accountable for misdeeds in labor (or other) disputes under national laws. TiSA's standstill clause would constrain governments from implementing new regulations, including labor laws, that might negatively impact the conditions of competition of foreign firms vis-a-vis domestic companies.
Last month's Huffington Post College article, "Grading Higher Education: When Worlds Collide," sparked a lively offline discussion and is worthy of additional exploration.

In that post, we examined how various magazines, journals, and other outlets grade American higher education in their version of what some call the higher education "swimsuit edition." We noted that various perspectives often shape the approach utilized.

We argued that many ranking strategies are heavily based on inputs causing the numerical rankings to change slowly from year to year because they rely more heavily on reputation and selectivity.

Based on a study by James B. Stewart in the New York Times in October examining the evolution of the higher education literature on this topic, we concluded that Mr. Stewart demonstrated convincingly that measurable outcomes -- more attuned to the metrics sought by most American families - have lasting value.

With the growth in popularity of outcomes-based rankings assessments, we offered the following thoughts:

American higher education is moving closer to center stage visibility in the court of public opinion

The decades-old disagreements between higher education officials and the editors of US News over issues like methodology is at best "navel gazing," and

The new battleground is likely to be over outcomes-based surveys.

The most interesting response came from a highly respected, distinguished colleague, Dr. Alexander Astin, the Allan M. Carter Professor Emeritus and Founding Director of the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA. Many of us use Dr. Astin's survey research in our work on student life in our own institutional planning as the basis for subsequent research.

Dr. Astin finds: "the pecking order of American higher education institutions that drives the annual 'admissions madness' in this country has little to do with rankings and ratings. It is, rather, part of our culture, part of our shared beliefs about which are the most 'excellent' institutions. These beliefs have remained largely unchanged for more than 50 years. What US News and others have been trying to do is simply to codify - put numbers on - these shared beliefs."

Dr. Astin also notes that while there is considerable value to the "outputs" approach that is gaining ground, the cold fact is that no one has the data required to properly look at outputs. He uses research on earnings as an example.

Dr. Astin reports that decades of research on earnings suggest that it is not simply dependent on the level of a student's ability when admitted as a freshman but on other factors, including career choice, major, parental occupation, degree aspirations, and social class, among others. Each carries its own set of biases.

Accounting for such bias, a researcher would need to calculate an "expected earnings" for each entering student to measure against their actual earnings. Astin suggests: "By aggregating these expected earnings and actual earnings figures for all students entering a particular college, you're able to obtain a much more valid estimate of that college's effect." He further argues that earnings is only one potential output and must be grouped with other outcomes to assess the value of a college education.

Whatever the approach, Dr. Astin regrets the emphasis placed by federal and state officials as well as US News-type rankings on degree completion rates.

He reports that degree completion rates are largely dependent on the level of the academic preparation of entering freshmen. As such, they are an indirect measure of SAT/ACT scores making them in turn a reflection of shared cultural beliefs about the pecking order.

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Put in other terms, students with high test scores prefer elite colleges because they - and their families - believe that these colleges are "the best."

Dr. Astin's comments are a cautionary tale for those who are interested in seeking broad, standardized measures of excellence and value. His words add a cultural, social, and psychological dimension to a "paint by numbers" approach. He does not reject the value of a blended approach to combine inputs and outputs in measuring quality. But he is correct to argue for a longitudinal approach that adds nuance and perspective to data on the value of higher education.
Swedish rock band Europe celebrates the 30th anniversary of their hit record The Final Countdown this year. At the time, drummer Ian Haugland wasn't convinced the title track would become such a massive hit, and he admits the band couldn't expect what happened next. "For us it was a totally different world we got sucked into. Everything is going so fast, you don't really know how to handle the situation. It's like jumping on a running freight train, trying to hold on," he says. To commemorate the album's anniversary the band is playing the full album from start to finish at several of their live shows. "Some of the songs we haven't played since the 80s so it's a bit like re-discovering songs. But those songs really hold up still, they've aged with grace."
When I first came across Stephanie Joanne I was blown away by her story and expertise. It is rare to see people start in one industry and then change to dominate another. For Stephanie, she applied what she learned becoming a major brand in the fitness industry to help others grow their online business empires.

Since appearing in over 200 media outlets, building her personal brand to be one of the most recognized in fitness, and managing over nine revenue streams, she has now flipped the table and is opening up her keys to success in online business.

On her website, she provides detailed articles on how to create a brand that stands out from the pack, implement a proven business system and launch your online empire. The one takeaway from her site is that everything is actionable. Her tips and tricks aren't some thought provoking mystical guide, they are steps you can take right now to grow your online business.

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As she says, "Screw goals. It's time for an action plan." This, as any successful online entrepreneur will know, is a key to making moves in this industry. Without taking action your business won't go anywhere. If you're ready to start this instant, SJ wants you to know 3 things.

Focus on Your Customer

Who are you in business for? What are their pain-points and where they are hanging out? As an online entrepreneur, you need to do more than just identify what your customers are looking for. You must know what your customer is really thinking and feeling. This is where you'll get to know your audience.

Once you have a understanding of their needs, it is time to use your expertise, creativity, and ambition to meet them in ways your customers could have never imagined. Consider what you're trying to accomplish with your services and then find out how to best connect your customers to them. Buying is an emotional decision and if you do not tap into the emotion of your prospects, you will have a hard time selling them.

Build a Back End

Let's face it, you need to find your customers. They aren't going to come knocking on your doorstep and everyone is already being inundated with marketing messages. As the expert, you need a marketing system (sales funnel) complete with several touch points with potential customers. This is a step you take before they finally upgrade their "follower" status with you and "subscribe" to your community, eventually graduating to customer status!

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SJ has transformed and refined her formula into something anyone can implement, regardless of their level of business experience or social media following, as a complete and repeatable business model. Lead strategies to get someone's email address include social media marketing, but can range from webinars to guest blog posts. The key to getting to establishing brand loyalty, trust and launching a business that actually converts (makes money), lies in the third point.

Convert With Your Front End

Having an incredible product or offer, complete with a sales funnel, although crucial to the success of your business is obsolete with a STAND OUT front end brand. In today's marketing landscape what people think when they look you (or your business) up matters, their perception they have of you and your offer are vital to making a sale.
Late Sunday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) modified its original statement, and after consultation with tribal leaders, issued a new statement saying it has no intention of forcibly removing occupants of the Oceti Sakowin Camp at Standing Rock.

"The Army Corps of Engineers is seeking a peaceful and orderly transition to a safer location, and has no plans for forcible removal. But those who choose to stay do so at their own risk as emergency, fire, medical, and law enforcement response cannot be adequately provided in these areas. Those who remain will be considered unauthorized and may be subject to citation under federal, state, or local laws."

It is unclear how, if or when the USACE intends to enforce "unauthorized" camping at the site.

2,000 Veterans are scheduled to arrive on December 4, raising the population to near 10,000, the size of a small city.

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Senator Al Franken (D-MN) joined a growing chorus of voices concerned about the use of water cannons for crowd control in sub-freezing temperatures. In a letter to the Department of Justice, Franken expressed alarm about the increasing use of violent and extremely dangerous force by local law enforcement in Morton County, ND.

"Native American populations have struggled for decades under the complex burden of historical trauma, and I have witnessed and admired how these communities have turned to their cultural foundations to build strength against that burden," Franken wrote.

On a more positive note, Thanksgiving dinner at the Fort Yates school included activist and actress Jane Fonda, who donated bison to feed the water protectors.

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Energy Transfer Partners issued a statement on November 8, 2016 declaring that the Dakota Access Pipeline has not voluntarily agreed to halt construction of the pipeline in North Dakota.

"Dakota Access has now completed construction of the pipeline on each side of Lake Oahe and is currently mobilizing horizontal drilling equipment to the drill box site in preparation for the tunneling under Lake Oahe." Dakota Access maintains it has all other regulatory approvals and land rights to complete the crossing of the Missouri River at Lake Oahe.

USACE maintains that it has not issued the final drilling permit, and uncertainty has increased tensions at the camp.
The New York Post has confirmed what many of US already know. Prez-elect Donald Trump is not about to change his lying ways, which includes blatantly attacking anyone who threatens to uncover his many con games.

The Post just reported at a meeting of TV execs and reporters in Trump Tower: "It was like a fing firing squad," one source said of the encounter. "Trump started with [CNN chief] Jeff Zucker and said, 'I hate your network, everyone at CNN is a liar and you should be ashamed,'" the source said.

This is from The Liar-In-Chief, who has been and continues to be caught in his own lies and deceitful behavior, whenever someone questions his statements. USA Today reports he has at least 75 lawsuits against him, not counting the tentatively settled 3 Trump University class action lawsuits, one of which was for charges of fraud and racketeering.

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Why did he single out CNN in his rant? Because CNN caught him out. As Vox reported, Argentinian President Mauricio Macri and Argentinian officials denied there was any link between Macri's call to Trump and the revival of his Buenos Aires high-rise project, as soon as Trump won the Electoral College.

"But as CNN reports, the YY Development Group, the company meant to build the Buenos Aires tower, announced just three days after the Trump-Macri call that construction on the tower could begin in summer of 2017. The project has a $100 million budget, and is "only waiting final approval from the city government."

"The meeting was a total disaster," continued the Post source. "The TV execs and anchors went in there thinking they would be discussing the access they would get to the Trump administration, but instead they got a Trump-style dressing-down," the source added. A second source confirmed the fireworks...

"Trump kept saying, 'We're in a room of liars, the deceitful, dishonest media who got it all wrong.' He addressed everyone in the room, calling the media dishonest, deceitful liars"

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In fact, we know what he wanted to hide. Revealing his tax returns, for instance, could confirm his extensive foreign business connections. A Financial Times investigation has found evidence that one Trump venture has multiple ties to an alleged international money laundering network, said the Times.

"Title deeds, bank records and correspondence show that a Kazakh family accused of laundering hundreds of millions of stolen dollars bought luxury apartments in a Manhattan tower part-owned by Mr Trump and embarked on major business ventures with one of the tycoon's partners."



And this is after his now infamous interview with the New York Times, in which he maintained that "Presidents don't have conflicts of interest," which is blatantly false. The U.S. Constitution doesn't allow foreign governments to benefit a U.S. President, because it might influence our foreign policy, which could endanger all of US.

So now we know why he singled out CNN. Trump will accuse others of lying, in order to attempt to deflect attention from his own too obvious fabrications. It is classic con artist behavior as I discussed in my previous column, The Real Donald Trump--Part II.

In it Maria Konnikova implied that Trump was a classic Con Artist with her now famous New Yorker article:

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"A grifter takes advantage of a person's confidence for his own specific ends--ends that are often unknowable to the victim and unrelated to the business at hand. He willfully deceives a mark into handing over his trust under false pretenses. He has a plan."

Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has to be another classic con-artist to convince enough Wisconsin voters to back his plan to ban the collective bargaining of public school teachers (while exempting Police and Firemen's unions), which reduced teacher union-membership by half, which will in effect reduce their salaries and benefits.

This flies in the face of modern economic theory, which says reducing bargaining power reduces incomes, which decreases the aggregate demand for goods and services for the 80 percent of workers with wages and salaries, which in turn reduces economic growth.

Nobel economist Robert Shiller attributes such irrational behavior (behavior that is not in their best interests) in Trump's victory to a sense of economic powerlessness, or a fear of losing power, among his supporters. To them, his simple slogan, "Make America great again," sounds like "Make YOU great again": economic power will be given to the multitudes, without taking anything away from the already successful.

Really? The result for Wisconsin has been job and economic growth has consistently underperformed that of its neighboring states, while the budget deficit has ballooned. The expected shortfall for the next two-year state budget starting in July 2015 has risen to nearly $1.8 billion, or about half of what it was when Gov. Scott Walker took office in January 2011, according to the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Sentinel Journal.

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This is also classic Republican Trickle-down economics, the theory that reducing taxes of the rich will credit more jobs and growth, whereas it has resulted in just the opposite since the 1980s--lower taxes and soaring budget deficits.

And it is part of the larger con game that has made so-called red states that suffer the most from Republican politics now overwhelmingly Republican. Nobelist Paul Krugman in a recent Op-ed seems puzzled by this.

"To be honest, I don't fully understand this resentment. In particular, I don't know why imagined liberal disdain inspires so much more anger than the very real disdain of conservatives who see the poverty of places like eastern Kentucky as a sign of the personal and moral inadequacy of their residents."

But it is understandable if their regions have deteriorated economically and socially to such an extent that drug use and suicide rates have soared. These are the people that have suffered most from the fast-changing modern economy that left them behind.

So why wouldn't they listen and be most susceptible to the siren call of such a snake-oil salesmen as Donald Trump or Scott Walker? How is it even possible for them to know what is in their best interest when blinded by the suffering of many in their own families and communities?

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In fact, Trump's call to revolution is really a counter-revolution, a return to a misty-eyed, white nation with a level of corruption not seen since that time.

Harlan Green  2016
Will Hillary Cave on the Recounts While Jill Stein Saves the Day?

by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman

Hillary Clinton's victory in the 2016 presidential popular vote count keeps climbing. According to the New York Times ( http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/23/us/politics/vote-count-hillary-clinton-trump.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=b-lede-package-regionion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news ) it's now well over 2 million votes.

Meanwhile Jill Stein's grassroots fundraising tally to force recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, where the election actually could be decided, is now over $4 million, according to CBS News. ( http://www.cbsnews.com/news/does-jill-steins-recount-effort-have-any-chance/ ) Donations are coming to: https://jillstein.nationbuilder.com/recount

Which will matter more?

A swing of well under 200,000 votes in those three states could shift the Electoral College from Trump to Clinton. All three are fraught with irregularities. So are swing states Florida and North Carolina, which are also very close, but which thus far are being left without recounts.

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Clinton and the Democrats are being swamped by public requests that they demand recounts and pay for them. One of the many petitions appears at www.solartopia.org. So far there has been no response from Clinton or the party.

But Stein and the Greens have come forward to pay for the recounts themselves. A torrent of small donations is pouring in, echoing those that supported the Bernie Sanders campaign. Stein estimates that with legal fees, the challenges could cost up to $7 million for the three states.

The filing deadline for a recount in Wisconsin is today. The Green Party filing is underway there.

There has been little or no public discussion of recounts in the US Senate races in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Missouri, where exit polls show Democrats winning Senate seats with razor-thin margins. A swing of those three seats would swing control of the US Senate for this coming term---and possibly on the US Supreme Court for decades to come. Presidential margins are also extremely close in Florida and North Carolina, where exit polls showed Clinton winning. Stein was on the ballot in Florida, but not North Caroilna.

With some 2,000,000 votes still uncounted in California alone, Clinton's public triumph over Donald Trump could reach 2.5 million votes or more. Such a margin would dwarf John Kennedy's in 1960 (by a factor of more than fifteen), Richard Nixon's in 1968 (by a factor of more than four) and Al Gore's in 2000 (by a factor of five).

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Had this election been held in a foreign country, the State Department would not certify it. ( http://columbusfreepress.com/article/why-united-states-state-department-would-not-certify-trump's-election-legitimate ) .

Greg Palast (gregpalast.com) and others report that computer programs like Crosscheck have been used to strip several million mostly black/Hispanic/Asian-American/Muslim citizens from the voter rolls in some 30 or more other states. Bev Harris, Jon Simon and others report that the electronic vote counts in numerous states throughout the country are highly suspect ( http://blackboxvoting.org ).

Computer expert J. Alex Halderman ( https://medium.com/@jhalderm/want-to-know-if-the-election-was-hacked-look-at-the-ballots-c61a6113b0ba#.lipwzqp61 ) and election attorney John Bonifaz have joined many others in calling for recounts.

In 2000, Gore won the national vote by more than 500,000 ballots. A full recount in Florida would have given him Florida's Electoral votes and the presidency. But the Supreme Court's 5-4 Bush v. Gore decision stopped the recount.

In Ohio 2004, US Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and US Rep. Stephanie Tubbs-Jones (D-Cleveland, since deceased) challenged Ohio's Electoral College delegation. More than 300,000 citizens were stripped from Ohio's registration rolls and more 100,000 votes remain uncounted from an election officially decided by 118,775. Despite a federal court order, no legitimate recount has ever been held.

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Neither Gore nor Kerry has ever supported investigations the massive irregularities surrounding the 2000 and 2004 elections. Kerry had raised a $7,000,000 legal fund to protect the 2004 balloting, but never allocated any of it to an independent investigation.

This year the incumbent Republican Governor of North Carolina lost the popular vote in his re-election bid, but may use a loophole in state law so the Republican-controlled legislature can keep him in office.

Few commentators doubt what Trump's GOP would be doing now had they won the popular vote but were behind in the Electoral College, or in those key Senate races.

As much as $100,000/hour has been pouring into the Greens' fund for those recounts ( https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/nov/23/jill-stein-election-recount-fund-michigan-wisconsin-pennsylvania ) at a time when Clinton and the Democrats could pay for them in a matter of moments.

But Stein and the Greens have vowed to do those recounts. At very least they'll shine a light on how our elections are conducted.

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Whether the Democrats will help, and whether the results can change history, remains to be seen.

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The Obama administration has decided to stretch the 15-year old congressional authorization for war against the perpetrators of the 9/11 attacks, or those harboring them, to include an illegal war against a group in Somalia--al-Shabab--that wasn't even in existence at the time of the attacks in 2001.

In fact, as with many of its Islamist terrorist opponents worldwide--including the original al Qaeda, the perpetrator of 9/11 that arose from U.S. arming of Mujahideen guerrillas against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan in the 1980s and al Qaeda in Iraq, which arose to combat the U.S. invasion there and morphed into ISIS--the United States inadvertently helped create al-Shabab in the first place. Al-Shabab did not arise until after 2007, long after 9/11, when the U.S. sponsored an Ethiopian invasion of Somalia to wrest control of the country from a milder Islamist council. The more virulent al-Shabab was rose to attempt to repel this foreign invasion.

More generally, after 9/11, rather than following the congressional authorization and focusing like a laser beam on countering the original al Qaeda group and their patrons, the Afghan Taliban, the George W. Bush administration launched a general "war on terror," which covered all terrorist groups of international scope, regardless of whether or not they focused on attacking U.S. targets. In the end, this massive Bush administration violation of the narrow 2001 authorization led to illegal U.S. drone wars and airstrikes in countries all over the Middle East and Southwest Asia--Somalia (against al Shabab), Yemen (against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula), Pakistan (against the Pakistani Taliban), and Iraq, Syria, and Libya (against ISIS). The Obama administration then accelerated all these unconstitutional wars. Now Obama is trying shore up the already thin legal fig leaf, so that it can pass such travesties--which actually make Islamist groups more rabid each time the U.S. intervenes--onto the incoming Trump administration. When Obama took office, he complained that he inherited from the Bush administration an economic meltdown and a military quagmire in Iraq, but he in turn is bequeathing a legal quagmire to his successor.

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Ambiguities in the U.S. Constitution do exist, but which branch of government was given the war power is not one of them. In 18th century Britain, the prerogative of deciding to go to war was the king's. Having been a victim of this prerogative, debates at the American Constitutional Convention of 1787, the Constitution that resulted, and actual practice in the republic for almost two centuries until the Korean War in 1950 demonstrate conclusively that Congress--the people's branch--gets to initiate war, not the executive. The Constitution specifically gives Congress the power to commence war; the debates at the Constitutional Convention indicate that the only exception is for urgent self-defense--that is, when U.S. territory is under sustained attack, thus preventing the Congress from convening. Even then, the Congress should meet at the earliest possible time to ratify any moves in self-defense made by the president, as commander in chief. Very early in American history, even in the informal and sporadic war at sea with France (the Quasi-War) in the last few years of the 18th century, the Congress was in the driver's seat in conducting the war and President John Adams complied with its desires. And in contrast to presidential claims of an expansive commander-in-chief role since the Korean War, the Constitution's framers intended, and normal practice till 1950 confirmed, that the president's role in that capacity was taken narrowly to mean only commanding troops on the battlefield after war had already been initiated by Congress--not commanding the entire nation, in times of crises or otherwise.Yet since 1950, presidents have claimed powers to start wars even without any authorization from Congress--either getting none (for example, Bill Clinton in his war to separate Kosovo from Serbia in 1999 or Barack Obama in overthrowing Muammar Gaddafi in Libya in 2011) or claiming that they needed to do so only as a courtesy, which was primarily a gambit to win increased political support for their military escapades (for example, both Bushes in each of their misadventures in Iraq).

Another trick is what Bush and Obama have done with the aforementioned drone wars--trying to blatantly fold wars against other only tangentially-related "Islamist" groups in countries far from Afghanistan into the congressional authorization for war against the perpetrators of 9/11--the original al-Qaeda group and their hosts, the Afghan Taliban.

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Ah, the 2016 Presidential Election. So many twists, so many turns. Approximately 60 to 70, 000 votes in three states going a different way would have made the difference in the Electoral College.

The impact of news (real and fake) and social media on this election and on voters will be studied and debated for years. While it's still too early to assess the findings of those studies, I can at least articulate those lessons for online knowledge sharing communities, the more professional bigger sibling to all those social media groups that served as echo chambers. (Revelation: I work for BraveNew, which powers online knowledge sharing communities for the enterprise.)

1.Communicate with authenticity. Whether you loved or winced at many of President-Elect Trump's tweets or posts on Facebook, you definitely heard his voice, as he was the author of most of them. Throughout the election season, the President-Elected crafted an authentic tone as he communicated with followers, creating a unique sense of community. As Cenk Uygur, the host of the series, "The Young Turks," notes, "The mistake much of the media made was believing that Trump was undoing his candidacy with every 140-character missive," when in fact many heard a real person. And he had 13 million Twitter followers to her 10.2 million.

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Secretary Clinton's team produced polished and professional messaging on variety of channels with meaningful content. However, they usually referred to her in the third person, which made her seem less real and accessible. (Tweet November 8: "Already voted? That's great! Now help Hillary win by signing up to make calls now.") As Wired Magazine noted last spring, the tone of Clinton's emails, never intended to be public, gave "a better sense of her as a person" than her social media posts.

Successful online communities almost always have dedicated managers focused on generating engagement around issues of relevance. The lesson for them here, whether for a community for a Fortune 500 company's multi-stakeholder diversity initiative or a healthcare organization's collaboration around regional issues: keep it real. Develop an authentic voice that resonates with your community.



2.Ensure Vetted, Curated Content on News Feeds

One thing that social networks and online communities have in common: news feeds filled with content. The immense power of content on news feeds of social networks, particularly on Facebook, was highlighted this election season. Pew Research recently noted that nearly half of all Americans get their news from Facebook.

The President-elect Facebook's posts resonated more and received more engagement than Hillary's. According to MediaPost, for the week of October 30-November 7, Donald Trump's page had 12.4 million engagements to Hillary Clinton's 7 million. The commentary with the content on President Elect Trump's page is written with personality and personalization. (e.g., BIG NEWS TO SHARE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE TONIGHT! POLLS LOOKING GREAT! SEE YOU SOON!) Secretary Clinton's page was more formal with quotes from scripture and third person commentary. (e.g., Join Hillary for her last rally of the campaign in Raleigh, North Carolina)

However, the bigger issue with Facebook and content, and one of the biggest in the election: fake news. Partisan web sites have started publishing false favourable stories (e.g., "Donald Trump won the Popular Vote in the Election by 700, 000 votes") to be shared widely on social media. For example, a fake story claiming Pope Francis, a refugee supporter, endorsed Mr. Trump was shared almost a million times, likely visible to tens of millions, the week before election.

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In the election's aftermath, Mark Zuckerberg in a lengthy post and later in remarks, argued that 99% of the news shared on Facebook was real. But many pundits and technologists, disagreed. At the end of election week, both Facebook and Google moved to restrict the fake news on its site. Facebook updated advertising policies that basically banned such news from generating revenue while Google updated its AdSense policies.

The lesson here for online knowledge sharing communities is to always be on alert to non-vetted, inaccurate content. Content curation is of maximum importance. In communities like BraveNew, content is delivered to the community via peer-to-peer sharing or from the manager who may at times use a curation tool. As advertising is not part of the community, there are no "featured" or "sponsored" stories in the community. The challenge, of course, for the manager and the members, is to ensure the accuracy of each piece of content that enters the community. While the risk of fake content is far lower, it is still not zero.
BRENNAN'S

417 Royal Street

504-525-9711

Saving Brennan's from both Katrina's ravages and a massive prior debt was a risky proposition for any restaurateur, for as venerable as the old place was, many thought its time had passed. But, if anyone was going to do it, it would be Ralph Brennan and his partner, Terry White. Brennan, whose success as owner of Ralph's on the Park, The Redfish Grill, Napoleon House and other restaurants around the city showed he had the clout and the will power to bring Brennan's back to life, not by resuscitation but by vast improvements in every detail, from bar to private dining rooms, from staircase to courtyard, from kitchen to provender.



Now, with the opening of Brennan's Wine Cellar dining room (above), Chef Slade Rushing will be doing tableside service and dishes not necessarily on the daily menu in the main dining room. As you can see from the picture, the cellar is one of the city's most elegant new rooms. When Katrina hit, damage was not from water (the French Quarter is above sea level) but from a long power outage that created mold and rot, destroying provisions and the rarest vintages of wines. Brennan's lost 30,000 bottles, some cellared for decades in a 1795 carriage house that is now the new cellar and dining room, seating 16. Under beverage director Joe Billesbach, the cellar strength is back up to 1,700 labels and 13,000 bottles.



Soon after the opening of the cellar I had a chance to dine there to sample the kinds of dishes Rushing is offering, all matched with wines. We began with a Caesar salad made with duck egg, shaved truffles and Creole-spiced croutons, all tossed tableside. Showing off both classic French and classic Louisiana traditions, Rushing did a clear gumbo consomme with oysters.

The fish course was a carefully poached wahoo from Gulf waters in a Mediterranean style, with Castelvetrano olives, herbs, baby vegetable ratatouille, preserved lemon and chicken jus. Beef Wellington had the requisite crispy pastry crust covering a layer of foie gras and truffles, and served with baby carrots, roasted garlic and a sauce Bordelaise.

Baked Alaska is not nearly as rare in New Orleans as elsewhere, and, although it's a rather childish display, its flaming meringue peaks are always fun.

Open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner.





AVO

5908 Magazine Street

504-509-6550



This charming Uptown newcomer adds to the growing number of modern Italian restaurants in a town that used to have almost none even five years ago. Owner-chef Nick Lama is a local boy with roots in Sicily, and Avo means "forefather," so Lama has acquired all the cooking secrets from his mother and grandmother's kitchen as well as an understanding of seafood from his father and grandfather, who ran St. Roch Market. This is honest cooking, generous in spirit and portion, culling the best from Gulf waters.



Avo's very tender charred octopus has cool watermelon, mango and radish in tandem with an assertive Calabrian chili glaze ($10), and, although rather salty when I dined there, the ricotta and porcini gnudi pasta are light and nicely sauced with a fontina fonduta ($12). Classic lasagna alla Bolognese with a bechamel sauce and short rib ragu ($21) was as hearty as it was deeply flavorful, and although the rice in the lobster risotto with peas ($19) was a bit overcooked, it was a good dish. Bucatini alla carbonara ($15) veers from traditional preparations by placing a poached egg on top to be mixed with the pancetta and pecorino ($15).

A massive, succulent lamb chop with Parisian gnocchi, onion puree, radicchio, olives and balsamic ($33) absorbed all the flavors on the plate, while a New York strip steak ($32) took well to a lush covering of Gorgonzola, with tomatoes, grilled lemon, arugula and Yukon gold potatoes. Despite unexpected complexity, there's no disputing the enjoyment of veal milanese adorned with cherries, fregula, mint, olives, arugula and charred onions ($31). But my favorite dish of the evening was shrimp and pork cheek, deftly married with eggplant, garlic-raisin agrodolce, pine nuts and mint ($27).

As dessert, s'mores seemed a little out of character but they were good. Avo's cocktails run $10-$12, and the wine list is very well chosen and very fairly priced, with a judicious number of bottles under $50.

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I felt something that went beyond disappointment after Election Day. I recognized it, but it took a minute to pinpoint what exactly was going on. I did a sort of mental checklist of my feelings.

Then it hit me. It was grief.

I was feeling the kind of grief that has been far too familiar to me. I learned a lot about grief in all the years of losing friends to AIDS, starting in my twenties, and my father and other dear friends to cancer. I had written about it over the years, too.

In fact my first major feature article on HIV-AIDS, in 1986, was called "The Survivors," and focused on the bereavement of gay men whose partners had died from AIDS. The first chapter I wrote when I was writing my book Victory Deferred is called "In Memoriam," and focuses on how the gay community expressed our grief as individuals and as a community.

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We don't grieve only when someone we care about dies. We grieve when a relationship ends, or we lose a job we liked, or we don't get into the college we set our heart on.

There's another source of grief, too, and it's what I've been feeling. It's what happens when you are forced to confront a truth about someone or something that turns the image you had of it upside down.

When gay kids come out to their parents, for example, it's common for the parents to go through a grieving process. The kid they thought they knew turns out to be someone different, and they have to readjust their understanding and expectations accordingly. Getting to the point of acceptance, the final stage (and goal) of grieving, can mean for some parents going through the full grieving process -- from denial to bargaining, anger, depression and finally acceptance.



The election was a rude awakening to the degree of fear and resentment that rules so many of my countrymen's minds.



It was this kind of grief I felt after the election. It was the grief that follows disillusionment -- in this case about my fellow Americans.

I understand the anger and frustration of the white working people who supported Donald Trump. In my blue state of Connecticut, Trump won big here in the post-industrial eastern half of the state. I've seen with my own eyes the decline of my old hometown from a once-thriving mill town to a hollowed-out catch basin for low-skill, low-income families -- generations of them and overwhelmingly white.

Their willingness to throw everyone else under the bus -- African-Americans, Latinos, LGBT, the disabled, women, even a Gold Star family who happened to be Muslim -- is what stunned and dismayed me most.

I was shocked that so many men and women could vote for a man to be president of my country after he had so publicly and disgustingly mocked everything I believe and value about common decency, the strength that comes from diversity, and the respect all humans owe one another.

I had wanted to believe my country was on an upward trajectory, moving further along toward becoming worthy of its status in the world as the land of aspiration and dreams. I wanted to believe America is a country where any person, of whatever color or creed, is welcome to help create a society in which "E Pluribus Unum," "From Many, One," is believed to be our strongest virtue.

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My life's work as a journalist has been driven by these values. My 30-year commitment (and counting) to documenting and reporting on the impact of HIV/AIDS has been my way of "doing my part" to help create the just and compassionate nation, and world, I want to live in.

The election was a rude awakening to the degree of fear and resentment that rules so many of my countrymen's minds. It frightened me to think that I, or anyone else "different" from the white heterosexuals who supported Trump, could become the next target of their rage, resentment, or violence.

It stuns me to think the president-elect of my own country was the one whose words and behavior were perceived as giving permission for reprehensible behavior.

All this felt traumatic to me, and that felt all too familiar. But what is also familiar to me from my vast experience with grief is this: I have learned that I am a strong and resilient man. I have survived multiple traumas in my life, and still love life and feel hopeful about my future.

I'll apply what I've learned about bereavement to work through this latest trauma. I am confident I will survive this one, too.
There is no secret that here in the South Bronx we have a much different attitude to Fidel Castro's passing than those that have been celebrating in Calle Ocho, in Miami's, Little Havana.

While the majority of those individuals in Miami have been celebrating the passing of a man they never met, or saw in person (that in my culture is quite disrespectful) because even the mob respects the dead and offers condolences to the families of their adversaries.

Those celebrating this passing are doing so because of stories that they have been told by a grandparent, or parent, not because of any personal encounter of experience.

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Meanwhile here in the Bronx we have been mourning his passing by celebrating his life and what he represented to many of us.

I and over 350 other people here in the Bronx had a first hand look and feel of Fidel Castro when he attended a dinner here sponsored by the National Puerto Rican Business Council in 1995 that I coordinated with a few friends as a slap to then mayor Giuliani who had disinvited President Castro from a dinner gala that he organized to welcome all world leaders attending the 50th anniversary of the United Nations.

Our memories of that night and the experience of being in a room with President Castro were so impactful that many minds were changed. Many attended that dinner because they were in agreement that what our mayor had done was disrespectful not only to Castro and the nation of Cuba, but also to the Latino community living in New York City.

However, an interesting thing occurred. Many of those that attended only for that reason and not because they supported Mr. Castro, or the Cuban Revolution left much more open and sympathetic to both Castro and the Cuban peoples struggle to maintain their self determination.

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There is so much mis-information floating around in social media and especially in the corporate news that I would like to share the following with my readers:

1.Not many can bring down a dictatorship with 20 men defying the American Empire.

2.Not many can eliminate illiteracy in a year.

3.Not many can decrease child mortality from 42% to 4%.

4.Not many can develop a health system that provides more than 130 thousand doctors, guaranteeing 1 doctor per 130 people, with the highest index of doctors per capita in the world.

5.Not everyone creates the largest Medical Faculty in the World, graduating 1500 foreign physicians per year (including many African Americans & Latinos from here), with 25,000 medical graduates from 84 nations.

6.Not everyone sends more than 30 thousand doctors to collaborate in more than 68 countries of the world summing near 600,000 missions.

7.Not everyone manages to build a country to be the only Latin American nation without child malnutrition.

8.Not everyone manages to be the only Latin American country with no drug problem.

9.Not everyone achieves 100% of schooling.

10.Not everyone can travel in their country without seeing a single child sleeping in the street.

11.Not everyone manages to be the only country in the world that fulfills ecological sustainability.

12.Not everyone achieves that their population has 79 years of life expectancy at birth.

13.Not anyone creates cancer vaccines.

14.Not everyone manages to be the only country to eradicate mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

15.No one manages to have the most Olympic medals in Latin America.

16.Not many can survive more than 600 attempts on his life and 11 American presidents trying to overthrow him.

17.Not anyone survives 50 years of blockade and economic war.

18.Not many helped accelerate the end of Apartheid in So. Africa & liberate Namibia.

19.Not many could have helped save the lives of so many poor folks in LA during Katrina when they volunteered to parachute their top medical units in less than 1 hr from Havana, but rejected by Pres. Bush who let many of those people die cause did not want to be embarrassed by Cubans helping to save Americans.

20.Not everyone reaches 90 years, with so much protagonism in world history.

21.Fidel is respected and loved by millions & Misunderstood by others. What no one can do is ignore these facts.

R.I.P Fidel Castro!



The Permanent Mission of the Republic of Cuba to the United Nations communicates that following the decease of the Commander in Chief of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, the Council of State of the Republic of Cuba declares nine days of National Mourning, from 06:00hrs on 26 November to 12:00 hrs on 4 December 2016.

The Permanent Mission of the Republic of Cuba informs that a Condolence Book will be placed at the Mission, located at 315 Lexington Avenue, NY 10016, from Monday 28 November until Sunday 4 December, from 9:00 a.m. -1:00 p.m. and 3:00 - 6:00 p.m.

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Voters wait in line at a polling station in Greenville, South Carolina, February 20, 2016. REUTERS/Rainier Ehrhardt

Donald Trump's most recent claim purports that he won the popular vote if you "deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."

This bombastic claim runs contrary to the evidence amassed this election cycle. The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law leads the nation's largest non-partisan voter protection program. We received calls and complaints from voters across the country. Here is a snapshot of what we actually saw this election cycle.

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Pennsylvania adopted a strict voter ID law that was found to violate the state's constitution by "imposing an unreasonable burden on the right to vote", and was struck down in 2014. Nonetheless, that did not stop poll officials from requiring that voters present id in polling sites across the state's five most populous counties of Philadelphia, Allegheny, Montgomery, Bucks, and Delaware, as well as in Berks County, Chester County, Dauphin County, Erie County, Lancaster County, and Luzerne Counties.

Officials across Texas in Denton, Tarrant, Grimes, Harris, Medina and Montgomery Counties continued to seek photo id from voters despite an en banc ruling from the Fifth Circuit that found that the state's photo id law had a discriminatory effect on the state's Black and Latino voters. In Bexar County, a temporary restraining order was issued mandating that officials remove all illegal voter ID signs and correct its website and hotline with the updated voter ID rules.

In Durham, North Carolina, e-poll books failed on the morning of the election. Voters were told to leave and return once the problem was corrected. That afternoon a court order was secured that extended poll hours at several impacted polling sites. It is unclear how many voters learned about the extension and were provided a fair opportunity to cast their ballots.

In Wisconsin, a strict photo id law, the subject of long and protracted litigation, resulted in depressed voter turnout rates across the state. The impact was starkest in Milwaukee where voter turnout rates dropped by 51,000 between 2012 and 2016. Milwaukee's election chief attributed the low turnout and problems at the polls to the state's restrictive voter ID law. In commenting on the law this summer, a federal judge found that "preoccupation with mostly phantom election fraud leads to real incidents of disenfranchisement."

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Student voters were not immune. Poll workers in Erie County, Pennsylvania, home to at least seven higher education institutions, unlawfully turned away scores of college students who presented their student photo ID to vote. College students in Boca Raton, Florida were turned away after election officials told them their Florida Atlantic University address was considered "a hotel" and not a residence.

Misinformation regarding the date and location for voting spread extensively online. In some places, misinformation was sent by mail including in Tuscaloosa, Alabama where voters received a letter stating that Tuscaloosa Republicans will vote for president on Tuesday, and Tuscaloosa Democrats will vote on Wednesday.

Arizona is an open-carry weapon state. Voters in Maricopa and Pima Counties reported visibly armed individuals standing near the exits or entrances of polling places attempting to interact with voters.

And we also received complaints from some of the 6 million people in our country who are disenfranchised as a result of a criminal history -- people who are citizens and unable to vote because of a conviction in their past.



There is one central point about the 2016 presidential election that can't be ignored -- voter suppression had an impact. The most intense voter suppression efforts can be traced to a 2013 ruling issued by the U.S. Supreme Court that gut a core provision of the Voting Rights Act. Since the day the ruling was issued in Shelby County, Alabama v. Holder, states have unleashed a seemingly-coordinated campaign to make voting more difficult. Those efforts bore fruit during the 2016 presidential election cycle.

Voter suppression tactics come packaged in different forms but there is usually one single justification put forth by suppression proponents. They claim these restrictions are needed to prevent voter fraud and that there are "millions of people illegally voting." When pressed to provide the proof, they are unable to offer any because vote fraud simply does not exist.

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by Hannah Walker

In the first general election since Shelby County v. Holder (2013), restrictive voting rules in place in jurisdictions previously covered for preclearance by the Department of Justice might have played a role in the election results. Such tactics limiting access to the ballot box include shortened early voting hours, reduced polling locations and hours, new requirements for photo ID, and increased voting restrictions for felons. These tactics have been contested in the courts for their negative impact on minority voters. For example, the three judge panel that struck down an omnibus bill passed in North Carolina after Shelby County described it as "target(ing) African Americans with almost surgical precision."

Selective voter identification requirements were among the provisions in the North Carolina bill, and were one of the most hotly contested voting regulations heading into the 2016 election. Advocates of voter identification laws argue that they are important to maintaining the integrity of elections. Research suggests that they are most often adopted in states where Republicans control the legislature, but elections are highly competitive. Opponents worry about their disparate impact on racial minorities and lower-income voters, and battles over their validity are waged in the courts.

In addition to North Carolina, during the summer of 2016 courts struck down, stayed or amended laws in North Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin. Yet, strict requirements remained in nine states, and cases in key states were pending appeal at the time of the election. For example, although the 5th Circuit Court found that Texas' law was in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, a version of the law remained in effect, problems surfaced with its administration in the weeks leading up to November 8, and the State applied for a writ of certiori in the end of September. Questions abound over the exact impact of voter identification laws on voter turnout, and whether or not they give an edge to their Republican proponents. The 2016 presidential election brings these questions into sharp relief, where for only the fourth time in American history the winner took the Electoral College while losing the popular vote, which Trump lost by nearly a million ballots.

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Questions over the impact of voter suppression are particularly acute in highly competitive swing states like Wisconsin, home to one of the strictest and most contested voter identification laws in the nation. While the exact impact on voter turnout is unclear, evidence suggests that Wisconsin's law had the potential to impact election outcomes.

Voter Identification in Wisconsin

2016 marked the first general election in which Wisconsin's voter identification law was in effect. The law requires that ID have a photo and a name conforming to that listed on the voter rolls, and enumerates only eight variations that are acceptable. Moreover, if the ID is not proof of address individuals must provide additional documentation to this effect. Research indicates that voter identification laws are most onerous for low income and minority voters, and on Election Day officials confirmed that turnout was lower than in previous years in districts most likely to be impacted by voter ID.

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Survey data collected in Milwaukee County in 2012 measuring access to a piece of identification that met the requirements of the law indicates that nearly 10 percent of Milwaukee County residents did not have access to an appropriate ID at the time of the survey. Possession of a valid piece of ID differed among racial subgroups, where 13.2 percent of Black respondents and 14.9 percent of Latino respondents did not have appropriate ID, compared to only 7.3 percent of white respondents. Drawing on census estimates of the citizen voting age population, this translates to an estimated 63,085 voters in Milwaukee County who lacked an appropriate ID for voting, including 7,453 Latino, 20,939 Black and 30,894 white eligible voters. While estimates of vote choice by race are not yet available for Wisconsin, national exit polls suggest 37 percent of whites, 88 percent of Blacks and 65 percent of Latinos voted for Clinton, generating 34,700 eligible voters likely to support Clinton whose vote was threatened by voter ID laws. If we correct the Latino estimate to reflect Latino Decisions' Election Eve Poll, which found 77 percent support for Clinton in Wisconsin, the approximate number of threatened votes grows to 35,595.

Voter Suppression around the Country

Despite the fact that North Carolina's restrictive voting law was struck down in July election officials in the state sought to alter the electorate through alternative means. For example, to get around the Court's ruling against eliminating a full week of early voting county election boards instead severely reduced the number of polling stations available during the early voting period. In the first week of early voting 158 fewer polling stations were available across 40 counties with high concentrations of Black voters than in 2012. Reports suggest that in the first seven days Black turnout was down by 16 percent in the first week of early voting compared to the same week in 2012. Drawing on the estimated number of Black voters who voted in the first week of early voting in 2012, that amounts to about 40,409 potential votes for Clinton, without accounting for other suppression tactics like last minute purges to voter registration records. Clinton only lost North Carolina by 177,529 total votes. Likewise, in Florida where Clinton lost by only 119,770 votes, felon disenfranchisement barred a quarter of Florida's Black voting age population from the polls in 2016. Florida is one of a handful of states, including swing states like Arizona and Iowa that permanently bar felons from voting.

These numbers highlight the increasing importance of voter suppression to election outcomes. The impact of voter ID and other voter suppression tactics on the presidential race likely will require more thorough rigorous analysis. But, reports from volunteers for the League of Women Voters deployed to observe the election across Wisconsin indicate that individuals were indeed negatively impacted by voter ID, having been turned away without being offered a provisional ballot. This, together with evidence that voter identification laws have a disproportionately negative effect on minority turnout in the aggregate, suggests that Wisconsin's law was not inconsequential to the outcome of its highly competitive election.
Jared Kushner (L) and Stephen Bannon stand by as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Canton, Ohio, U.S., September 14, 2016. REUTERS/Mike Segar

During the raft of protests following Donald Trump's election victory, one of the frequent chants was "this is what democracy looks like." Protesters chanting that were correct to remind us of the centrality of freedom of speech and assembly to any meaningful notion of democracy. Unfortunately, almost two months before Donald Trump will be sworn in as president we are beginning to see what democratic rollback looks like as well. A lot has been written about what might happen to democracy during a Trump administration, but we should not let that overshadow what is already happening to our democracy.

Donald Trump has not been president-elect for a month yet, and he is already making good on his campaign pledge to limit free speech. Thus far he has demanded an apology from actors who spoke with respect, and concern, to Vice President-elect Mike Pence from the stage, has suggested that Americans in a public setting do not have the right to boo a politician, has called a meeting with the press to castigate them for their coverage, and sent streams of nasty tweets to the New York Times. These are not the actions of a president who respects freedom of speech and understands that critical stories are just some of the punches with which any president in a democratic system must roll. We have also seen the elevation of Breitbart Media head, and noted bigot, Steve Bannon to a senior position in the White House and it is widely expected that Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, who also owns the Observer, will be one of President Trump's most influential advisors. Breitbart and the Observer have been largely uncritical of the president-elect in recent weeks suggesting that they may emerging as government media organs, another sign that the institution of free media is imperiled.

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Republican control of both houses of congress means that President Trump will likely encounter little trouble passing any conservative legislation. That is not a failure of our institutions; that is how the institutions are supposed to work. There is, however, reason to be concerned about the legislature remaining an effective check on presidential power. The breadth of Trump's conflicts of interests that has become evident since his election, including his evident desire to use the office to promote Trump business ventures in various parts of the world, is extraordinary. This is something into which a functioning legislature, particularly one that is interested in working with Trump to pursue shared partisan interest, should look. The silence from Republicans in Congress on this issue demonstrates that Congress is no longer capable of, or interested in, acting as a check on executive power in this way. They are either too afraid of what President Trump might do to them or believe that their efforts would be dodged by the President-elect. The result is that these obvious conflicts of interests will go unexamined and one more check on the executive will fade away.

Since the election, many state and local leaders have indicated they will resist attempts by the Trump administration to mistreat immigrants or limit civil liberties. Almost all of America's biggest cities, as well as several of its most populous states, are run by Democrats. Democrats like Jerry Brown of California and Andrew Cuomo of New York, as well as progressive mayors like New York City's Bill de Blasio will be the first line of defense for many immigrants and others who feel threatened by the ugly bigoted tone of the administration.

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Given this, we can expect Trump to begin to weaken the power of cities and states. This is ironic, given that for many years the GOP claimed to believe in states rights, but things are different now. In some respects this has already begun. For example, because Donald Trump's wife and youngest son will continue to live in New York, while he may continue to use Trump Tower as a kind of auxiliary office, the City of New York will need to spend an estimated $1,000,000 per day on security. While the president's family needs to be safe, this amounts to an unfunded mandate of nearly $400 million a year that New York's progressive mayor, and outspoken Trump opponent, Bill de Blasio could have used to help more New Yorkers. Trump, therefore, is using Trump Tower as a way to weaken a locally elected political opponent. We can expect more gambits like this from the president in the coming months and years. Additionally, the security around Trump Tower has created traffic problems for blocks around the building. It is apparent that the security is there not just to keep him safe, but to keep us quiet.
Well, except for a few professors, a documentarian, a pollster, a cartoonist and a 2000 episode of The Simpsons, we all got it flat wrong. Billionaire Donald Trump will be the 45th US President from January 20, 2017. But wait a minute - is his victory really so shocking? Not at all. Yes, low voter turnout (millennials, where were you?), the FBI's repeat email inquiry (Comey, what was the point?), Trump's strategic use of data analytics to tailor his rhetoric and perhaps a few other factors (here are 24 more from CNN) likely contributed to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's November 8 electoral loss. But Trump's victory really boils down to growing numbers of frustrated citizens wanting to challenge the political status quo, no matter the outcome - this in fact reflects a global trend visible in democratic and nondemocratic countries all over the world since 2010. The US experience is actually not so exceptional after all.

In countries like Egypt, Brazil, Greece, Thailand, Ukraine and beyond in the past six years, we've recurrently been witnessing the decline of state-society relations in which citizens believe in their leaders, political systems or certain policies less and less - and they have been speaking out in violent and non-violent ways. There's a recurring feeling among more citizens that there must be a better, more legitimate way to govern. Perhaps technology has made them more aware of and more reactionary to their public officials, but this has also created a chronic crisis of political legitimacy globally. Frustrated citizens have done everything from outright slapping their politicians for their failings, to launching protest movements against certain policies and even bringing down entire political systems through their violent movements to show their anti-status quo conviction. They simply expect more - or at least something different - from their public officials.

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Let's consider a few specifics. Perhaps the first example of the frustrated citizen challenging the political status quo was the self-immolating fruit seller in Tunisia fed up with government corruption back in 2010, which sparked revolutionary protests against dictators in some countries in the MENA region; yes, it didn't necessarily lead to an improvement in the material position of these protesting citizens, but they did challenge the status quo by bringing down certain autocrats. In 2011, the US saw its own anti-status quo movement with the Occupy protests against government corruption that coincided with similar protests in everywhere from Nigeria to Chile and the Philippines; and politicians in India and Nepal were even getting slapped by citizens frustrated with government inaction.

In 2012, we saw citizens in the EU start massive movements specifically against their governments' austerity policies, particularly in Greece and Spain. Yes, it didn't lead to a change in policy but citizens continue to make their disappointment known. In 2013, the mass protest movement in Egypt against President Morsi led to his ouster (the second since the Arab Spring), as it did in Thailand with the removal of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra in 2014. Around this time, citizens began their anti-government protests in Venezuela that persist today and the Euromaidan protests ousted President Yanukovych in Ukraine. Since 2015, citizen protests targeted President Rousseff in Brazil that led to her impeachment and now demonstrations continue against the new government's austerity policies. And of course earlier this year, we saw some British citizens effectively vote against the political status quo with the Brexit referendum; currently, frustrated citizens in South Korea and Malaysia are demanding change, calling for their leaders to step down.

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So, the US anti-status quo moment is not so exceptional and Trump's victory as the anti-establishment candidate isn't really so shocking after all. It's part of a global, six-year trend against the political status quo, whether frustrated citizens have been dissatisfied with specific policies, leaders or entire political systems. Perhaps we are headed for a new type of government that somehow leverages technology (eg crowdsourcing) so public officials can be more aware of and responsive to a more demanding citizenry? Let's see.
Duesseldorf and Munich are among the most popular cities for expats around the world, attracting foreign nationals with a high quality of life and outstanding job opportunities

Melbourne, Houston, and Madrid top the list of the best cities to live abroad according to previously unreleased data from the third annual InterNations Expat Insider 2016 survey. With more than 14,000 respondents, it is one of the most extensive studies ever conducted to explore the general living situation of expatriates. The latest InterNations survey finds that the most popular German destination for foreign residents is Duesseldorf on 4th position of the global ranking, with Munich following closely on 7th rank. The least favorite German city among expats is Hamburg, which lands on a rather mediocre 19th position out of 35 cities ranked. Expats in Hamburg are especially unsatisfied with the weather, with 57 percent finding it unpleasant. In Munich, only three out of ten say the same (31 percent).

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Frankfurt Number One for Working Abroad

Eight out of the ten most popular cities for working abroad are located in Germany, Austria, or Switzerland. The top 5 positions go to German cities Frankfurt, Duesseldorf, Munich, and Hamburg, with Melbourne on 4th position being the only exception to the rule. Frankfurt also ranks first for career opportunities while Duesseldorf comes in second for work-life-balance. Interestingly, satisfaction with the latter does not necessarily go hand in hand with actual working hours among expats in Germany: Foreign residents in Duesseldorf have the longest work week (44.1 hours) while expats from the other German cities featured in the survey work one or even two hours less. For those who are seeking a secure job, Munich is the place to go -- not only does it rank first for job security, but expats also consider it to be safe in general: an astounding 96 percent of foreign nationals living in Munich feel safe in their new home, which is about ten percentage points higher than among their counterparts in Hamburg, Berlin, and Frankfurt (87, 87, and 84 percent respectively).

Cheap Living in Berlin

Expats living on a tight budget do fairly well in Germany. Two out of the five most affordable cities for expatriates are located in Germany, with Berlin ranking first and Duesseldorf fourth worldwide. Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Munich have a rather mediocre rating in this category, with a 10th, 11th, and 14th place, respectively. While expats in Duesseldorf are also satisfied with their financial situation -- eight out of ten give it a positive rating -- expats living in Berlin do not quite agree. The German capital comes 23rd out of 35 cities in this index, following behind Frankfurt (15th), Munich (18th), and Hamburg (19th).

When asked whether their household income is more than enough to cover what they need in their daily life, expats in Duesseldorf express the highest degree of satisfaction, with 60 percent agreeing with this statement. Those who are less than pleased with this aspect of their life abroad are expats in Hamburg and Berlin, where only 35 and 37 percent, respectively, think their income is more than what they need. Munich, which has a reputation for being the most expensive city in Germany, actually does better here: almost half of the expats living there feel that they have more money than is necessary to afford everything they need (49 percent).

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Germany -- Not for the Tender-Hearted

Whereas Germany is extremely popular for its career prospects, its local residents seem to be just as unpopular for their attitude towards foreign nationals. Of all German cities in the survey, Frankfurt ranks lowest for the ease of settling in and ends up on 30th place out of 35 cities overall. The only cities doing worse than Frankfurt in this index are Jeddah, Shanghai, Riyadh, Zurich, and Basel. Duesseldorf, on the other hand, is the only German destination to reach above-average results in the subcategories for Feeling Welcome and Friendliness, where it ranks 12th and 14th, respectively. Moreover, Berlin makes it to a solid 14th place for finding friends.
This week, California Rural Legal Assistance celebrates fifty years representing poverty-impacted clients in rural California. Rather than expound on the effect of CRLA on California's farm workers that can be reviewed in "The Struggle for the Health and Legal Protection of Farm Workers - El Cortito" this note focuses on one new attorney's arrival in rural California in 1968 to represent the poor.

While I was a third year law student, riding home from a San Francisco anti-war demonstration, my schoolmate Ralph Abascal urged me to work the summer with a group of Ivy League Lawyers coming to California to assist farm workers as part of Prsident Johnsons' War on Poverty. I spent the summer in McFarland just south of Delano, I experienced the harsh life of farm workers, met Cesar Chavez and Delores Huerta and left the San Joaquin Valley committed to changing the living conditions of those who put food on our tables.

After graduation from law school, we packed our few belongings and headed south to Salinas. Half block past Salinas High School I pulled into a driveway on Main Street marked with a small sign "California Rural Legal Assistance." While I sat in the parking lot adjacent to the small stucco office generating courage to walk into the office for the first time, a stocky Latino appeared. "Are you the new lawyer?" he asked.

I nodded.

Offering his hand when I alighted, the youth introduced himself, Ladislao Pineda.

"You a lawyer?"" I asked while we walked across the parking lot toward the office entrance.

"No Man, a combination investigator and interpreter," he answered. "They call me a community worker."

We walked into the office where I met the receptionist Angie Valenzuela. Like many legal service offices it was adorned with an old wooden desk, a second-hand Naugahyde couch, and randomly placed folding chairs resting on a linoleum covered cement floor. On a corner coffee table stood a single-bulb lamp and pamphlets printed in English and Spanish: How to Apply for Public Assistance, How to Handle Your Own Case in Small Claims Court and You Can Live on a Budget. The tiny lawyers' offices each had an old wooden chair a second hand desk, and a bookshelf. The only set of books expressing California codes or laws and the only set of books reporting the courts' interpretation of the codes were crammed into a nine by twelve storage room in the rear which served as the library. Except for the codes and opinions a retiring private attorney had donated and the legal texts CRLA layers purchased themselves, the only place we could find he law applicable to the varied legal problems that brought us clients was the county law library on the second floor of the courthouse half-mile away.

A year before I even heard of California Rural Legal Assistance, a young lawyer, Jim Lorenz with O'Melvany and Myers, the largest law firm in Los Angeles convinced President Johnson's staff in Washington D.C. to open nine law offices spread across rural California to represent farm workers. Lorenz recruited Boston lawyer Gary Bellow to join in the adventure. Meanwhile, Martin Glick, a slender idealistic magna cum laude at Ohio State who saw his future as a tax lawyer but was working for the justice department trying civil rights cases in the South, met Bob Gnaizda who worked for the Internal Revenue Service. Glick and Gnaizda became friends and instead of Glick joining Gnaizda at the IRS doing tax law, Gnaizda agreed to join Glick in the South where Glick was working on a case the Justice Department filed against deputy sheriffs in Mississippi who murdered civil rights activists Michael Schwerner, James Cheney and Andrew Goodman until Glick received a phone call at the Holliday Inn in McComb, Mississippi from Gnaizda. Jim Lorenz had recruited Gnaizda. Instead of Gnaizda joining Glick in Mississippi, Gnaizda told Glick they were going to California to end the abuse and exploitation of farm workers. Glick and Gnaizda ended up with CRLA in Salinas.

When I arrived in Salinas, I already knew that my classmate Ralph Abascal was starting to work in the Salinas office. Since neither Abascal nor I had received bar exam results, the only licensed attorney in the office was Marty Glick. Within months, Denny Powell, a Notre Dame attorney who had worked in the Madera CRLA office since it opened a year earlier, Bill Daniels a CRLA attorney who worked in the McFarland CRLA office since it opened a year earlier, Dick Gonzalez the first Spanish -speaking lawyer in the Salinas office, and Harvard law school graduate Dave Kirkpatrick joined us. Soon, I met Cruz Reynoso the new CRLA Director at a Peace Corps intensive Spanish program and found myself at the Catholic church parish hall in Soledad, thirty miles south of Salinas representing clients with Hector De la Rosa the community worker who taught me about the living conditions of farm workers, and brought to the office the children who we represented with Glick's skill and experience in an effort to terminate the labeling of Spanish Speaking children mentally retarded because they scored low on English-administered IQ tests, and farm workers forced to engage in stoop labor who CRLA represented to convince California's Supreme Court to ban the short-handled hoe that was crippling hundreds of thousands of farm works forced stoop all day to thin and weed crops with the short hoe.

Over the past fifty years, CRLA's initial staff has moved on. Governor Jerry Brown placed Cruz Reynoso on California's Supreme Court and many CRLA lawyers joined Jerry Brown when he became Governor of California. Over the past fifty years, CRLA has continued to represent hundreds of thousands of farm workers living a cruel life in poverty. Today, their efforts continue.
While living and working as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic, Eleanor Allen's life was changed by 3-year-old Maria Fernanda (her hosts' granddaughter). "One Sunday I was playing with her, and then she died four days later."

Contaminated water took Maria Fernanda's life. "It was so horrible, because it was preventable," Allen says. "It was so sudden, and I realized this happens all over the world every day." Determined, Allen saw the situation as a challenge that she needed to help solve. After returning from the Peace Corps, she worked as a consultant on wastewater and sewer systems. Today, she's the CEO of Water For People, a global nonprofit that focuses on solving one of our most pressing social and environmental challenges: bringing clean water and sanitation to people around the world.

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About 1.8 billion people worldwide lack access to clean water. Every 21 seconds, a water-related illness kills a child like Maria Fernanda. Water For People works in nine countries, partnering with local communities and organizations to identify and implement sustainable water and sanitation solutions for rural, underserved communities. Altogether, its programs serve 4 million people.

But installing water pipes and pumps isn't enough to solve the problem. The developing world is riddled with broken equipment and dry wells built by well-meaning nonprofits that came in, completed the construction, and then left. Water For People used to fly in volunteers from the U.S. to communities in need around the world. But the organization soon realized it's more important for local citizens to take ownership and learn how to maintain the systems, so it changed its model so that the water projects are much more sustainable.

Today, Water For People uses a concept it calls "Everyone, Forever." The goal is not only to get everyone access to water, but to make sure the system for doing so is long-lasting. "Our work is done by people who live and work in the communities," says Allen. Each project begins by engaging with a local politician (typically a mayor) and drafting a formal contract that explains exactly what funding and staffing Water For People will provide and the responsibilities assumed by the local government and community. Residents receive training to maintain infrastructure so the new system remains secure long after the nonprofit leaves. "Our end goal is that Water For People exits and the forever phase is done by the community itself, so the community becomes aid-independent," Allen says.

"Community buy-in is vital to ensuring the long-term sustainability of a program," says Erin Connor, critical human-needs portfolio manager for Cisco, which has supported Water For People's digital transformation. "Water For People has been so successful because it has recognized the key role that communities play in solving local problems, and the role global problem-solvers can play in providing the right training and tools to empower everyone to be a part of the solution."

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Water For People also works on sanitation. "Sanitation and water are always linked, but sanitation challenges are more complicated," Allen says, explaining that it ultimately involves not only systems, but also individual choices like installing new toilets and learning how to keep water sources clean. Water For People conducts educational programs in the communities it serves, teaching children and families proper sanitation techniques. To sustainably improve sanitation and bring new income into the community, Water For People helps local residents launch businesses that empty septic tanks or outhouses. It also partners with micro-lenders that are already active in the community to offer loans to families installing toilets.

Making a water system sustainable takes manpower, but technology is also a necessity. To identify leaks and ensure that everything continues to work properly, systems must be continually monitored. Water For People staff used to track observations on paper, and then manually input data into spreadsheets. About six years ago, the organization developed a mobile application called FLOW that allowed staff in the field to collect information on the status of water points; they could geo-locate them, take pictures and enter information on flow rate and water quality. The information was sent to an online dashboard, providing Water For People with real-time insight into its operations and enabling it to address failures much faster. Recognizing that this technology could benefit many more organizations, Water For People transferred ownership of the tool to Akvo Foundation in 2012, so that it could scale the solution. With Cisco's support, Akvo developed FLOW v2.0, which is now used by more than 250 organizations in more than 40 countries around the world.

"The FLOW tool has brought greater transparency and accountability to the entire water sector," says Connor. "It has allowed organizations to better understand their operations, manage their resources and reach more people."

The earth has enough water, but the challenge remains: How do you distribute the precious resource fairly and efficiently? Within the next 10 years, Water For People not only aims to reach 7 million people in 50 districts around the world, but it also plans to continue helping new entrepreneurial sanitation businesses grow. Additionally, it's beginning to partner with national governments and other nonprofit organizations to share what it's learned in 25 years of working on the problem of clean water. "This is really exciting, because we can leverage our model and have much greater impact," says Allen.

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Bringing clean water to every person around the world is a huge task. By capitalizing on what it's learned -- both its successes and failures -- and harnessing the power of the digital revolution to become more efficient, expand its reach and proactively respond to real-time data, Water For People is poised for success.



This article was produced in partnership with Cisco, which believes everyone has the potential to become a global problem solver -- to innovate as a technologist, think as an entrepreneur and act as a social change agent.


Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has been mentioned as a possible Interior Secretary. But pretty much all the names floating around for that post would make the oil and gas industry happy. (Gage Skidmore/Flickr)

BY: SOO RIN KIM

While names were announced for a slew of appointments to President-elect Donald Trump's administration last week, there are still some significant posts left -- like running the Interior Department, which is in charge of wildlife and natural resources.

Oil execs and other pro-development types seem to be the leading contenders here, meaning it's likely that the department will be taking a drastic shift away from its focus of the last few years on conservation and renewable energy.

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Robert E. Grady: The former George H.W. Bush speechwriter and policy advisor who ran the Office of Management and Budget's unit on natural resources, energy and science, Grady is best known in the environmental world for his key role in negotiating amendments to push through the Clean Air Act of 1990. Though the administration championed the law for reining in acid rain and toxic pollutants, environmental groups argued that some of the administration's provisions blunted its effect.

Currently a partner at private equity fund Gryphon Investors, Grady has donated a relatively modest $218,667 to federal politicians, including $5,400 to Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), $1,500 each to House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and his leadership PAC and $1,000 to Trump this year. In 2012, he donated $7,500 to GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney and $35,000 his joint fundraising committee.

Grady is also a longtime aide to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and a former chairman of the New Jersey Investment Council, overseeing the $81 billion public pension fund.

Grady's name has also surfaced to run the Energy Department or the Environmental Protection Agency.

Forrest Lucas: The sponsor of a number of racing events who also won naming rights to the Indianapolis Colts' home stadium, the founder and president of Lucas Oil is a familiar face in his home state Indiana. His appointment would be widely hailed by the oil and gas industry, which has battled conservationists in the Obama administration.

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Employees of Lucas Oil Products (including Lucas himself) have donated a total of $965,486 since 2002 to federal candidates and committees; this year's biggest beneficiary was GOP Indiana Rep. Marlin Stutzman, who had an unfruitful senatorial campaign.

The Indiana oilman has also taken on a big role protecting farmers, ranchers and outdoor enthusiasts from threats posed by "animal rights groups" and "anti-farming extremists," such as the Humane Society of the United States.

His 501(c)(4) nonprofit group Protect the Harvest is a driving force of the anti-animal rights effort, spending nearly $1.9 million since 2010. The social welfare group has laid out $246,297 for federal political ads in the past two election cycles, including $53,500 supporting Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) this year.

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association, Missouri Pork PAC, Missouri Cattlemen Association and Missouri Pork Producers are among the top donors to the nonprofit, and Lucas himself has given it $298,000.

Lucas and his wife Charlotte Lucas, who co-founded Lucas Oil, have donated a total of $752,272 over the years, including $197,054 this cycle. Trump's joint fundraising committee, Trump Victory Fund, got $25,000 of that.

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Two years ago, Lucas took out a full-page ad in the Indianapolis Star apologizing for a Facebook post by his wife that read, "I'm sick and tired of minorities running our country! As far as I'm concerned, I don't think that atheists (minority), muslims (minority)n or any other minority group has the right to tell the majority of the people in the United States what they can and cannot do here."

In the apology, Lucas said his wife's comments were "harsh and insensitive," although he said she did not intend to offend anyone.

Harold G. Hamm: The Continental Resources chief executive who just became the 54th richest person in the world with personal net worth of $15.4 billion, Hamm was a key energy policy advisor to Romney four years ago and has played a similar role for Team Trump this year.

He was the mastermind in shaping Trump's campaign pledge to revive the Keystone XL oil pipeline project with TransCanada -- rejected by Obama last year -- with the condition that North Dakota oil get a bigger share of space in the pipeline. Hamm's Continental Resources is a major player in the North Dakota oil scene.

Also being considered for the Energy Department spot, the man Trump calls the "king of energy," holds the view that the U.S. has abundant oil "abundance" view on the oil reserve issue, and has criticized Obama's focus on domestic renewable energy as indirect support for Islamic terrorism by making the United States rely on Middle Eastern oil.

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The fracking mogul and his wife Sue Ann Hamm have donated nearly $1.9 million to federal candidates and committees over the years, including $5,000 to Romney's campaign and $985,000 to pro-Romney super PAC Restore our Future in 2012.

This year, he donated $5,400 to Ryan, $2,600 to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and $1,000 to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), as well as $5,400 to Trump.

Meanwhile, tensions have fired up in North Dakota as demonstrators clash with the police over the contested Dakota Access Pipeline, which is expected to carry oil obtained from fracking by Hamm's Continental Resources.

Trump himself was deeply involved in the pipeline, having invested between $500,000 and $1 million in Energy Transfer Partners, the key player in the project, Trump's financial disclosure report from May 2015 showed. And CEO Kelcy Warren has returned the favor by donating $3,000 to the Trump campaign this year and an additional $100,000 to his joint fundraising committee. Trump dropped most of his investment in the company this summer, leaving only $50,000.

Sarah Palin: The former Alaska governor might be a long shot for Interior, but the presence of her name on the list is attracting mega-attention nationwide.

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Putting aside all other controversies revolving around her, we can safely assume which direction the Interior Department would head under Palin: "Drill, baby, drill." (Wolves, among other animals, might not be thrilled with the appointment, either.)

The energy and natural resources sector, led by the oil industry, was Palin's main financial supporter at the beginning of her state political career in 2002.

In the 2006 gubernatorial election, though government employees and individuals from the finance sector topped her donors list, the energy and natural resources sector lead by commercial fishing and oil and gas industries played a key role in her victory.

Palin pushed through oil and natural gas development plans during her time in office, including controversial drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; she also signed legislation to grant a pipeline contract to TransCanada. The construction project was cancelled in 2014 after research showed it was inefficient.

After the unsuccessful presidential campaign with GOP candidate John McCain in 2008, Palin resigned from the office and started SarahPAC. The political action committee has spent a total of $14.8 million over the last four election cycles. This year, the PAC spent about $2.1 million, just $72,500 of which went to federal candidates, including $5,000 to Trump. Nearly $900,000 was spent by the PAC on fundraising.

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Ray Washburne: CNBC reported last week that Washburne, a Dallas investor who is currently leading the Trump transition team on commerce, could be next in charge of the country's federal land and natural resources.

Washburn was vice chairman of the 2016 Trump Victory Fund and a former Republican National Committee chair.

Individuals from his company Charter Holdings, involved in real estate, restaurants, private equity and energy investments, have donated a total of $517,000 to Republican candidates over last three election cycles. This includes Washburne's $2,700 to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and another $5,400 to Texas Rep. Pete Sessions this cycle.

Overall, the Texas investor and his wife Heather Washburne contributed a total of $579,811 to Republican candidates and the Republican party.

Robert B. Gillam: The Alaska investor is the latest addition to the rumored interior secretary list according to the Alaska Dispatch Publishing.

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Having graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with Trump in 1968, Gillam said in a statement, "I recognized that suddenly it was possible for me to serve in a role that has otherwise been one of career politicians."

Unlike his rivals for the slot, Gillam's federal political contributions over the years have been bipartisan. The millionaire financier made his single biggest donation in 2010, when he donated $50,000 to Alaskans Standing Together, a super PAC that spent $1.8 million to secure Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski's seat in Alaska. He has given $28,250 to national Republican party committees and $23,550 to GOP candidates -- but has also donated $37,000 to the Democratic Party of Alaska and $14,300 to Democratic candidates.


On 29th November, the present Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), General Raheel Sharif will retire, paving way for his replacement, General Qamar Javed Bajwa. A lot has already been written on General Sharif's achievements which made him an extraordinarily popular person. He cracked down on terrorism and also on criminal elements in Karachi, much to the respite of many. Moreover, he is also retiring on time, setting a very good precedent. Despite considering myself a critic of the army, personally I am an admirer of General Raheel Sharif. He is one of the finest soldiers to have emerged from the Pakistan Army and deserves special accolades. At the same time, his tenure was also marked by civil-military tensions, resulting in several high-profile incidents, the latest being the so-called "Dawn" leaks. Civil-military tensions in Pakistan's case are a regularity and all civilian governments have experienced it. Military in Pakistan has been an omnipotent institution and will continue to do so. However, the balance between civilian and military leadership is complex and always in a state of flux. The only constant is that military has an upper hand. However, the degree to which it asserts its authority and is able to do so would really depend on many factors. In Pakistan, there is a trend to look everything through a "conspiracy of the establishment" paradigm. However, the reality is quite complex. The army does not wield power ONLY because of its monopoly over physical violence and its maneuvers, but also because the balance of power changes towards it whenever the civilian side is weakened by internal strife and real or perceived incompetency. In a developing country like Pakistan, the army is after all one of the most cohesive and well-disciplined institutions, which enables it to successfully intervene in politics

Moreover, since it has become an established and powerful political player, the politicians also try to court it in order to get some political advantage. In recent times, Imran Khan, is a clear example of a politician, who has constantly been asking army to intervene. But what makes the army so powerful? In Pakistan's case, the army became powerful in the early years of the country's history and there were two major reasons for that. The first reason was that Pakistan faced existential threat from India from the time it got independence, which meant that the state had to prioritize defense over everything else. British decision to withdraw from the subcontinent was a decision made in haste, which resulted in subsequent territorial disputes and large-scale rioting. The British withdrew, one year ahead of their original plan, after the rioting had already started. Moreover, the division of territory between India and Pakistan was controversial and the British also did not amicably settle the issue of princely states, which resulted in conflict between the two countries immediately after independence.

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Pakistan and India went to war over Kashmir in 1947-1948, which merely exacerbated the fears of the Pakistani leadership. The state had to allocate huge resources towards defense and during the first three years, military commanded a whopping 70% of the federal budget. Besides getting enormous resources, the military was also given a lot of autonomy in their own domain. Pakistani leadership gave the military complete independence and did not try to meddle in their affairs. Military leadership also communicated to the civilian leadership that in order to defend Pakistan, it needed complete autonomy.

The complete freedom and high priority given to the military quickly transformed it, not only in terms of capability but also created its corporate and institutional identity. Further, Ayub Khan, the military chief, was given several extensions. He was appointed in 1951 and in 1954 given another extension. On the other hand, during the same time period, the country went through seven prime ministers and several cabinets. In India on the other hand, by 1955 the military chief had been changed six times whereas political leadership remained stable. The second major reason was the weakness as well as incompetency of the civilian side exacerbated by low political institutionalization. Political institutionalization was low in Pakistan from the very beginning, allowing the army to become an important political player. An early part of Pakistan's history was marked by constant changes and palace intrigues, resulting in a lot of political chaos which enabled army to intervene easily. Once the army became a powerful political stakeholder, its role and position became entrenched due to path dependency. The argument is that if civil institutions, due to legacy or incompetency, do not get anchored in the polity, then the army and civil bureaucracy, due to their better discipline and competency, end up managing the civil affairs as well. Once that happens, a path is established which the polity follows. In the case of Pakistan, once military became involved in politics, its role was further entrenched due to adaptive expectations of the other political actors (both domestic and foreign), positive feedback and exercise of power (backed by instruments of physical violence). Generally, path dependency trajectory can be broken if an extraordinary event occurs which completely discredits the military. In Pakistan's history, such event was East Pakistan debacle. Never in the history of Pakistan had its army seen such humiliation. In fact, even till this date, in the collective psychology of the nation, the East Pakistan debacle remains the lowest point in its entire history.

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For 24 years before that fateful incident, among other things, prestige in the public had enabled an army to become such a strong political player. Even when Ayub Khan himself was becoming unpopular, the Pakistan Army still enjoyed a considerable amount of respect. After the debacle, the Pakistan Army was discredited thoroughly. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto had the support and popularity to build upon it and relegate an army to a purely conventional role. However, due to a combination of factors, including his own style of ruling (he ruled like a despot and targeted his opponents), the army was able to regain control. After 1977 the army has constantly been in the driving seat, though balance at times has shifted slightly towards the civilian side. The degree to which the military would actively and regularly intervene in the governance of the country has depended on two factors. First, it would intervene, when its institutional interests are threatened. Institutional interests encompass its corporate privileges, professional autonomy and even its influence over foreign policy. In 1999, it intervened to depose Nawaz Sharif to save itself as an institution. Second, it would intervene when it perceives (rightly or wrongly is another matter) that civilian side is incompetent. Over the years, army has developed a tutelary role in which it sees itself as an ultimate protector and guardian of the state. This tutelary role is an outcome of years of autonomy, disregard of civilian supremacy and also its perception that civilian side is incompetent. Pakistan's white collar urban middle class is an active supporter for this role of the army and media personnel belonging to the same class often eulogize the army and encourage it to interfere in governance. In fact, due to this, the civil military balance skews further towards the latter whenever the former is perceived as incompetent or corrupt. Nawaz Sharif's current reign is a visible proof of the above dynamic. His position relative to the army has deteriorated a lot after Panama leaks, despite the fact that he enjoys a comfortable majority in the legislature. Every COAS has his own style and within the established parameters (in which army is better placed and looks for its institutional interests) influences the way tussle between civil and military is played out. After new COAS takes charge, the change will be in the style and extent, but not in the overall balance of power, at least in the short run. Too much has to happen, for that power imbalance to change.
Even in what we now know as the last few months of Fidel Castro's life, a hope for change in Cuba is documented in two upcoming HBO films: Olatz Lopez Garmendia's Patria O Muerte: Cuba, Fatherland, or Death and Jon Alpert's Mariela Castro's March: Cuba's LGBT Revolution.

Patria O Muerte was featured at the recent New York Film Festival in October, with a panel discussion at screening's end. Filmed over years with Garmendia creating clandestine ways of hiding her camera on the island known for censorship, she asked Claudio Fuentes to be her DP. Many at the panel wondered whether or not he would be allowed back into his country, as many of the interviews showed Cubans in poverty, unhappy with their lives. Getting these interviews seemed a remarkable feat. Julian Schnabel supported Garmendia's project as executive producer. Garmentia worked with him on Before Night Falls, the 2000 film he directed based on poet Reinaldo Areinas' book about his own great hopes for Castro's revolution before Castro clamped down on gays.

With the memory of that film in mind I asked Jon Alpert about Mariela Castro's work changing Cuban attitudes from homophobic to acceptance, the subject of his Mariela Castro's March: Cuba's LGBT Revolution, an upbeat journey through Cuba, with the LGBT community in full array, from flamboyant singles to same sex couples living together quietly open.

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Jon Alpert: Fidel went to revolutionary heaven. He fessed up to what was a mistake and apologized for it. He was not in the everyday decision making, has not been in the loop going back to the Bush administration, 12 years, when he gave the reins to his brother Raul, Mariela's father. Mariela had a discussion with her dad to make sure he supports her. He has been cautious.



How well did you know Fidel Castro?

I spent lots of time with Fidel over the years. He came to the UN in 1979. Cuba was head of the Non-Aligned Movement. Fidel came to the UN to give a famous speech. I knew the competition to report on him here would be fierce, so I requested permission to travel with him in Cuba. I asked him, why did you allow me? He said, you were the only one who asked. I spent 3 days with him here, was right next to him. He was companionable and smart and did not expect me to be so audacious. I asked to see his bedroom. He was very accommodating.



Do you expect much to change with Fidel's death?

What may change now is that normal citizens will be able to go to Cuba and see it for themselves rather than leaving it to people like me to tell them what it is like. The spirit in which I made this film is for people to see how others handle matters. We might be able to deal with human rights better. We have a wonderful opportunity to learn while the door is still open.

In early November a special screening at the UN--possibly the only movie about homophobia to ever premiere there-- was followed by a dinner at Guantanamera. Justo, a famous chef who is openly gay came from Havana with his partner Ivan to cook Chris Andersen's Mangalitsa pig, raised in New Jersey. It seemed remarkable that Mariela Castro had taken on this cause. I wondered what her siblings were doing. Her two sisters, she said through a translator, were housewives, and her brother is chief of security. She said she knew her brother had been in the military, but not that he had this position.

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Now, Jon Alpert is trying to go to Cuba to try to film some of the memorial service: "Something -maybe ashes-- is going to travel around Cuba for nine days. I think it is interesting they will cremate him and bring his ashes to Santiago de Cuba, to the cemetery where Jose Marti is buried."
DES MOINES, IA - Democratic Nominee for President of the United States former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets and speaks to Iowa voters during a rally at Roosevelt High School in Des Moines, Iowa fro a rally Friday October 28, 2016. (Photo by Melina Mara/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

If you are like me, you are probably very weary of debates about Who Lost America to Donald Trump.

The debate goes something like this:

Hillary blew it! What a terrible campaign. What a blemished candidate. What horrible judgment to take those speaking fees from Wall Street, to keep classified data on her personal server, to fail to ask her top aide Huma Abedin to leave her employ once the Anthony Weiner mess blew up, yet again. She handed her enemies a loaded gun. And now we're stuck with Trump!! Hillary screwed up, we pay the price.

Hold on, misogynist pig. Hillary won! She won the popular vote by more than two million. Even apart from the alleged hacking of election results, old-fashioned voter suppression -- in the form of closed polling places, long lines, restrictions on early voting, abuse of ID requirements, improper purges -- probably cost her at least three swing states where the winning margin was razor thin. She won!



Yeah, but a decent candidate would have beat Trump by ten points. There was no excitement for Hillary outside the bubble. Did you even see Hillary lawn signs, or bumper stickers?

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Give me a break. Look at all the dirty tricks -- the Russians hacking and leaking confidential communications by her top advisers. The FBI chief breaking all the rules and meddling in an election. Look at how the media obsessed about her emails and kept giving Trump a free pass.



I'll give you this: The rot goes a lot deeper than Hillary. The Democratic presidential party has been blowing off the white working class for decades, getting into bed with Wall Street, making trade deals by and for corporate America. No wonder Trump, despite being a billionaire and a fake, could get traction as a champion of working people. Why do you think Bernie almost beat her for the nomination?

Bernie and the Bernie bros cost us the election. He never was going to win. He sapped energy from the general election.



Hey, just think of the Bernie vote as data. Hillary and the establishment party had such weak appeal among the young and the working class that they supported a 74-year-old Jewish socialist.

What does that tell you?

Those white working class guys who voted for Trump? How many of them are just plain racist? How many of them would never vote for a woman? There is a new majority coalition in this country -- of minorities, women, immigrants, the young, LGBTQ people. It just didn't totally come together in 2016 because of all the dirty tricks.

Yeah, that and the lack of voter enthusiasm. If you think it was racism that defeated Hillary, how do you explain that Obama, a black man, did better in 2008 with the white working class than Hillary did in 2016? I'll tell you the answer. He looked like an outsider, and regular people are sick to death of insiders -- so sick that they voted for Trump. Sorry, but that coalition doesn't coalesce without the white working class.

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Maybe they are more inclined to vote for an African American man than a woman, much less a feminist.

Sorry, identity politics doesn't cut it without the working class.

No, no, stop. It's not mainly class. It's racism and misogyny. It's culture!

Class!



Culture!

Class!



Culture!

Arggghh!!

Okay, campers. Can we please move on? We've got a constitution to defend.

Can we stipulate: Hillary ran a terrible campaign, and she was the victim of dirty tricks and presidential Democrats have been far too cavalier about regular working people, and there is plenty of racism and misogyny?

Completing the rights revolution for blacks, women, gays, lesbians, trans people, immigrants, would have been tricky politics even had Hillary been better at lunch-bucket policies for Middle America. But it was a bridge too far in the absence of credible appeals to the working class.

Gentle reader, it is both/and. And class is culture. Just hang out in a bar in a working class town, where the factories have moved to Mexico or China, where half the storefronts on Main Street are shuttered and a way of life that was once valued is ruined. Is that class or culture? Surely, it's both. This was once FDR country. It's now Trump country.

John Kennedy famously said that victory has a hundred fathers and defeat is an orphan. Not this time. This particular bastard of a defeat had plenty of fathers -- and mothers.

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So can we please declare this debate closed, and think about what to do now?

What do we know about President Elect Trump? We know that he views the presidency mainly as a business opportunity; that he is appointing other billionaires to high offices, so that they can also turn government and public policies into profit-making ventures. Betsy DeVos, the designated education secretary, supports school vouchers not just as school "choice," but as a money-making opportunity.

We know that apart from a few gestures, he will do just about nothing for the white working class protest voters. So can Democrats somehow win these folks back?

It won't be easy, precisely because the revolt against the establishment is about culture as well as class. Trump, however, may be his own worst enemy. While posing as a populist, he seems inclined to let the Republican establishment have its way, not just with welfare for the poor but with federal programs that Middle America actually values, such as social security and medicare.

At some point, even the devout Trump backers may notice that the man is a fraud. And Democrats need to be there with a brand of constructive economic nationalism that actually serves working people.

But in the meantime a great deal is at risk -- not just the programs going back to Franklin Roosevelt and the civil rights victories going back to LBJ and Martin Luther King but constitutional democracy itself.

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Now, can the Democrats please suspend their usual ritual of the circular firing squad -- and get on with the business of defending what's decent in America?

Robert Kuttner is co-editor of The American Prospect and professor at Brandeis University's Heller School. His latest book is Debtors' Prison: The Politics of Austerity Versus Possibility.
To the average person, habits are a bad thing. To the extraordinary person, habits are a necessity of life. Being habitual is a must when you are performing at a high level. Most of us are prone to developing habits quickly, but we may choose to develop the wrong ones.



Everyone says they want to become a millionaire, yet very few are willing to do the research and the work it takes to get there. Proof of this lies in the amount of millionaires in the world. Less than six million people in the USA are considered millionaires. Not to overlook the fact that America has more millionaires than anywhere else on the planet.



In a country with over 300 million citizens, less than two percent bring home big money.



These five million millionaires have different habits than the other 295 million citizens. They run their life differently. The have figured out how to habitually perform at high levels. I know; I'm one of them and I have an addictive personality that used to do me more harm than good.



The same habits that got you where you are, most likely won't get you to the next level. The key to becoming a millionaire is to model and copy the habits of people who are millionaires. Today, I'm going to share five habits you must develop in order to become a millionaire.



1. Investing Your Money - Millionaires don't just have all their money laying around in a savings account. They invest their money. Money never sleeps and it needs to be put to work or it becomes worthless. If you don't make your money go work for you, it will only become worth less and less.



Investing your money is making it go to work.



No matter how much money you earn now, you need to start being disciplined and start investing your money. I invest 25 percent of my income and I have done so since 2005. I get paid every two weeks. Some of my check goes to my eTrade account and another portion goes to my real estate fund. Get used to investing now, and it will be that much easier to do when you earn big money.



Plus, let's be real, investments can make you a millionaire.



2. Delegating as Much as Possible - Millionaires aren't usually the do-it-yourself types. When you are performing at a high level, you can't afford to do everything yourself. Matter of fact, one of the biggest limiting factors in people's lives is that they believe they have to do everything themselves. As strange as it sounds, the less you do, the more you earn, if you are delegating properly.



No matter where you are in life right now, you need to start delegating. Even if it's to a virtual assistant overseas, you need to get used to telling other people what to do and how you want it done. The more of your tasks you can delegate out, and the faster you get used to delegating it out, the more time you'll have to strategize on earning more income. Millionaires have multiple people working for them, who do what they are told.



If you want to be a millionaire, get used to telling people what to do.



3. Working Hard at Getting Smarter - We've all heard the phrase "work smart not hard," and that's what lazy-ass people say. Truth is, you have to work hard at getting smarter. It's one thing to reach millionaire status, it's another to stay there. In order to continue to reign as the seven-figure champ, you need to improve everywhere you can. This means taking in information and putting it into action.



Millionaires are constantly looking to increase their intelligence. Through reading, workshops, seminars, consultants and any other way to learn something that improves their overall performance. In the beginning, you work hard gaining experience. When you start to make it in life you turn that experience into intelligence.



When you really start to make it, you convert intelligence into income.



4. Asking for the Business - This may seem obvious to you, but you'd be surprised by how many people won't ask for anything. These are the same people who bitch that nothing is ever given to them. Millionaires know what they want, and know who to ask for it. We face rejection over and over again in most cases, but we ask. You can't get what you want in life if the people in your life don't know what you want. You gotta ask in order to receive.



Asking for the business is scary as hell to a lot of people. Rejection is one of the top fears people have in America. Like anything else in life, you have to face fears and do it anyway. Millionaires have to ask clients, banks, investors, partners and contractors to do outside-the-box stuff all the time. Get used to asking people for help because getting rich all by yourself is hard.



5. Sticking To a Schedule - One thing millionaires do better than the rest of the public, is time management. When you control time instead of letting time control you, things change. One of the best ways to control time is to create a schedule and then stick to it. In my life, if it ain't on the schedule, it don't get done. The people in my life even add things to my schedule so I get it done. I live and die by the schedule on my phone. Without sticking to my schedule, I'd never be able to keep up with all the demands I need to meet.



I'm writing this article because it's on my schedule of things to do. Each Sunday night, my schedule says I must spend three hours writing. It's funny when I see someone who's not making much money tell me they are "too busy." No, you're not too busy, you just suck at managing your time. Learn to control time or it will control you.



When you are a slave to time, you can't create success.



Here's the thing: You're almost done reading this and I can feel you knocking the simplicity of these five habits. Think of this, if you can't handle the simple things, how are you going to manage the big things?



Start with these five habits. Develop and cultivate them into stronger habits. Work on these five habits and go from there. You must start somewhere, and this is the place.
On November 9, 2016, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte emphatically congratulated Donald Trump on his victory in the United States presidential elections. Duterte jokingly claimed that he would forge a durable partnership with Trump due to both leaders' propensity to "curse at the slightest of reasons." To underscore his commitment to an improved relationship with Washington, Duterte pledged to continue joint military drills with the United States in the South China Sea.

Even though Duterte has been significantly more conciliatory towards Trump than towards his predecessor, Barack Obama, predictions of a revival of the long-standing US-Philippines alliance are not supported. An in-depth analysis of Trump's policies towards the Philippines reveals many potential sources of tension between Washington and Manila.

Many Philippine economists and policymakers fear that Trump's trade and immigration policies could seriously weaken the Philippine economy. Trump's transactional approach to US security partnerships in the Asia-Pacific region and confrontational approach towards China could also dash hopes for a revived US-Philippines security partnership.

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The Economic Implications of Trump's Election on the Philippines

During the 2016 presidential election campaign, Trump frequently decried US-based multinationals for outsourcing jobs overseas and advocated protectionist policies to bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States. While it is unclear whether the most radical elements of Trump's agenda will be approved by Congress, even a partial implementation of Trump's confrontational trade policy agenda will have pernicious consequences for the Philippine economy.

Economists Euben Paracuelles and Lavanya Venkateswaran recently predicted that a Trump presidency could result in a reduction of the Philippines' current account surplus and lower revenues for the Philippine manufacturing sector. As many Filipino guest workers in the United States are undocumented, Trump's restrictive immigration policies could also have profoundly negative consequences for the families of Filipinos working in the United States.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, remittances from the United States totaled almost $6 billion in the first seven months of 2016. As remittances from the United States constitute 30% of the Philippines' total cash remittance inflows, Trump's hardline opposition to outsourcing will damage the Philippines' financial position.

Trump's ascension to the presidency has already eroded international confidence in the Philippine economy. On November 15, US credit ratings giant Moody's announced that Trump's trade policies would adversely impact the Philippines' credit rating and make it more difficult for Duterte to respond to a remittance decline with fiscal stimulus measures.

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As Duterte made increased infrastructure spending and tax relief major planks of his economic platform during May's presidential election, Trump's policies will likely have negative implications for the US-Philippines relationship. Duterte's willingness to incite anti-American nationalism is also a cause for concern.

If Duterte concludes that Trump is obstructing his domestic agenda, he could rally Filipinos around an economic separation from the United States and an even firmer pivot towards China. A hardline anti-Trump stance over the migrant workers issue would gain political support in the Philippine parliament. In August 2016, Trump's reference to an illegal Filipino migrant who plotted to join al-Qaeda and the Taliban to commit terrorist attacks prompted calls for Donald Trump to be banned from entering the Philippines.

Despite the intense reactions that surround the migrant workers issue, the extent of any potential rupture in the Philippines-US alliance depends largely on Trump's willingness to follow through on his campaign promises. This uncertainty has prevented a mood of panic from descending on Manila. Some Philippine Senators have publicly declared that Trump's post-election conduct is proof that he is veering towards a more moderate course. Duterte has also publicly stated his belief that Trump will adopt a fair immigration policy.

The appointment of Trump Organization business partner Century Properties Group founder Jose EB Antonio as the Philippines' special envoy to the United States could also convince Trump to give the Philippines softer treatment than China or Mexico. These mitigating factors could ultimately result in the creation of a Washington-Manila alliance; but the unpredictability of Trump's immigration policy agenda makes a definitive evaluation impossible at this stage.

Implications of Trump's China Policies on the US-Philippines Relationship

Even though Donald Trump's strident criticisms of China have primarily been directed at Chinese currency manipulation and trade policy, the President-elect has also hinted at transitioning the United States to a more aggressive foreign policy in the South China Sea. In April 2016, Trump criticized the Obama administration for passively allowing China to build a "military fortress" in the South China Sea. Trump also argued that Chinese expansionism was a product of Beijing's disrespect for the United States.

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If Trump's proposed defense spending increases are implemented, his rhetoric suggests that some of these new military resources will be directed towards more confrontational military posturing against China. Some US defense analysts believe that a greater US show of commitment to the security of the Asia-Pacific region could convince the Philippines to re-establish its former military alliance with Washington. Trump's unwillingness to attach human rights strings to a US military alliance offer will also appeal to Duterte, as the Philippine president's violent anti-drug campaign shows few signs of slowing down.

As Duterte fiercely opposed Chinese military incursions on the Spratly Islands during his election campaign, it is possible that a compelling set of security guarantees from Washington could cause the Philippines to scale back its pivot towards China. Philippine Defense Secretary Florin Lorenzana, an establishment figure with close ties to the Pentagon, could act as an effective mediator between Duterte and Trump in this scenario.

However, Trump's transactional approach to American military alliances in the Asia-Pacific region could undermine the prospects of a long-term thaw in US-Philippines relations. As US State Department spokesman John Kirby noted on October 1, the United States currently provides the Philippines with $180 million in annual aid. While Duterte has insisted that the Philippines can survive without US military assistance, many international observers remain skeptical. The Philippines' security situation would become more precarious if Trump ordered the Philippine government to pay the United States for defending the Philippines against Chinese aggression.

As the Philippines is in the process of expanding its arms contracts with Russia and China to reduce Manila's dependence on US military technology, Duterte will likely object strongly to a conditional defense offer from Washington. Trump could retaliate for a non-payment by Duterte for defense by threatening to withdraw US troops from the country. Even though the Philippines is concerned by the security risks associated with Chinese expansionism, Duterte's fear of antagonizing China could cause him to call Trump's bluff and deal a massive blow to the United States' pivot to Asia strategy.

Even though early signs suggest that the US and the Philippines are on the cusp of reviving their historic alliance, an extrapolation of Trump's policies towards Manila from his campaign rhetoric suggests that this optimism might be misplaced. As the Washington-Manila relationship is at a crossroads, Trump's willingness to modify his campaign pledges while in office will have a major impact long-term trajectory of the US-Philippines economic and security partnership.

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Women activists who defend rights are beautiful. Our beauty lies in our resistance.

In November 2013, the United Nations General Assembly's Third Committee adopted a historic resolution on women human rights defenders (WHRDs). The historic text was a welcome step in realizing the need to protect defenders who face risks and attacks as a direct consequence of their identities and struggles. This WHRD resolution stands as a reference point for all defenders who want to ensure their safety when confronted with risk and danger. This is in spite of limitations that occurred during negotiations pertaining to the resolution, when states failed to include a crucial paragraph on the need to refrain from invoking any customs, tradition or religious consideration in responses to violence women face during the defense of rights.

So it is imperative to discuss, what happens to women who defend rights and why we need internationally recognized mechanisms and platforms to provide them with safety. From the United States to Philippines, Bahrain to Honduras, women human rights defenders are subject to threats, risk, and violations because of who they are and what they do - their human rights advocacy. This is simply because being a defender when you are a woman is perceived to be a violation with stereotypical gender roles.

During the 13 AWID International Forum, Egyptian activist Yara Sallam, who spent 15 months in prison for participating in a peaceful protest, referenced former political prisoner Mahienour Al-Masry,when she said "We should stop glorifying prison". A sentiment repeated by a WHRD in Lebanon who chooses to remain anonymous and said "I am strong in my resistance, but I am not fearless. Our political system should be ashamed for making me live under constant threat and fear". Through deconstructing the myth of the fearless activist, whose legitimacy lies in the extent of their suffering, states and policy makers, as well as intergovernmental bodies, should recognize that "fear" is a deliberate tactic in the hands of governments in their attempt to destabilize WHRDs. It is important therefore to acknowledge that in addition to measures to safeguard physical safety and security, there is a need for the well being of activists to be actively considered and promoted.

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Yara Sallam at the 13th International AWID Forum

Deliberate state strategies to demoralise and destabilise WHRDs are widespread globally. I have previously written about the travel ban imposed on five women human rights defenders in Bahrain. Similarly, in Egypt on 19 November 2016 Azza Soliman was put under a travel ban at the Cairo International Airport while attempting to board a plane to Amman, Jordan. Azza's personal assets along with her firm's were frozen. Azza is an internationally renowned WHRD, and founder of the Center for Egyptian Women's Legal Assistance. She was previously prosecuted and accused of being a protestor when she witnessed the murder of activist Shaimaa El-Sabbagh, killed whilst participating in a peaceful protest on 24 January 2015. Mozn Hassan, co-founder and Executive Director of Nazra for Feminist Studies is also under a travel ban and has not been allowed to make the journey to pick up the Right Livelihood Award, known as the alternative Nobel, which recognizes her contribution to advancing the gender justice agenda in Egypt.

WHRDs face violence offline and online including threats, defamation, blackmail and stalking. Over the five years I had been working with WHRDs from all around the world, I witnessed my partners having their faces photo shopped to pornographic images, stalked, threatened, blackmailed by states, non state actors and even members of their own communities. During each case it was evident how demoralised my colleagues felt, and the detrimental effects of online oppression on their wellbeing and safety. Jennifer Radloff from Association for Progressive Communications explains how as activists, we inhabit both physical and digital bodies and these bodies are open to attacks, tracking and multiple violations. She says "Just as we should secure the physical spaces we inhabit and be nurturing and gentle to our bodies, we should also ensure the safety of and nurture our digital bodies and spaces".

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The multitude of threats and attacks WHRDs face as a direct consequence of their identities and struggles bring us to the most severe form of reprisal: death. Trans* and intersex defenders are also subject to lethal forms of violence. The Trans Murder Monitoring Project stated 295 trans* and gender variant individuals were murdered between 1 October 2015 and 30 September 2016.

In 2016, the AWID WHRD Tribute is commemorating 60 defenders from 30 countries who have passed away. Some of these defenders pass due to natural causes, yet what the tribute clearly shows is that a significant proportion of defenders are murdered, or disappear in circumstances with entrenched impunity. This year alone some of the WHRDs who have been murdered include Berta Caceres in Honduras, Gloria Capitan in the Philippines, Jo Cox in the UK , Estefania "Nia" Zuniga in Honduras, Brenda Marleni Estrada Tambito in Guatemala. The AWID WHRD Tribute is an important archive for the global feminist movement, as it provides a platform for the memory of our movements and gives us space to commemorate our losses, and honor those who are no longer with us. In the words of Mother Jones, "We honour the dead, and fight like hell for the living".

Following the US elections I was asked by a friend "How do you cope?" What she was really asking was, how do you cope with the multitude of information from all around the world on the systematic violence and discrimination women, trans* and intersex individuals and defenders face? My answer lies in our collective memory and the strength of the movements I feel a part of: "We resist". Building memories for our movements such as the WHRD Tribute in online and offline spaces, is a part of the movement building exercise that is necessary for my resistance, sustainability of our movements and generations of feminist activists to come. Personally, I feel thankful to all who have contributed generously to feminist movement building and helped me shape my own politics. We are beautiful in our resistance, and we will surely win.

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In this picture taken November 4, 2012 a couple sits amongst debris from a boardwalk damaged during Superstorm Sandy in the Rockaways neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York. The historic superstorm killed at least 159 people and damaged more than 650,000 homes when it made landfall on October 29, 2012, devastating parts of New York, New Jersey and several other states. TO MATCH ONE YEAR HURRICANE SANDY ANNIVERSARY BEFORE AFTER PACKAGE. Picture 18A. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson (UNITED STATES - Tags: ANNIVERSARY DISASTER ENVIRONMENT)

Now that President-elect Trump has left the rhetoric of the campaign trail, it is time to face the facts that confront the American government. Elements of economic and demographic life provide great challenges to our governments and leaders here in America and around the world. There are over seven billion people on the planet, and if economic growth continues along with better health care and birth control, human population will probably peak at 9 or 10 billion. Without immigration, population growth would have already stopped in wealthy urban nations; Japan, which resists immigration, is starting to lose population.

Whatever number human population peaks at, the planet's economic output and use of natural resources is advancing at a ferocious rate. India and China, two nations of over a billion people each, are chewing up the planet faster than ever. The political pressure for rapid economic development is constant and deeply felt by the governing elites in the developing world. It is fed by the seductive images of wealthier life styles communicated for free over the ever spreading World Wide Web. A world of economic growth is a fact and we need to learn how to manage and maintain that world. The political stability we enjoy in the United States, Japan, and Europe is built on economic growth.

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Another fact of life is that it is too late to live at one with nature and go back to the land. There are simply too many people and there is too little land. And so we need to live in cities that provide what people seek while having the least possible impact on the food, water and air that our species requires to live. We need to decouple economic growth from the growth of the consumption of finite resources. Technology and lifestyle changes such as the sharing economy could make that possible.

All of this seems obvious, but the problem is that we know too little about the impact of humans on earth systems. We are learning, but the learning process can be quite difficult. This is seen dramatically in the battle between climate deniers and climate scientists. While some deny the fact of climate change, the more profound conflict is over the impacts of climate change, and what to do about those impacts. Some climate impacts are difficult to model and measure. Unlike air, water and land pollution, the impacts of climate change are often subtle and take longer to gestate. So climate scientists model climate as a partial cause of a complex event, such as sea level rise, drought, or extreme weather. Some also try to connect climate to changes in human behavior, such as the price of real estate or the possibility of war. While this work is worthy of pursuit, it tends to be exploratory. The impact of lead in a child's drinking water, for example, is clear; the impact of climate change on human conflict is less clear.

It is true that environmental issues can lead to scarcity of water and food that exacerbate conflict and may push opposing forces over the edge from conflict to war. But wars have many causes and it is difficult to assign weights to the causes of conflict. A war could be a result of balance of power politics or leaders who are homicidal maniacs. Some of my colleagues trace the war in Syria to Middle Eastern drought that may have been made worse by climate change. That probably was the case. But sometimes nations and communities come together and respond positively to crises; they don't always descend into civil war. In America, we had a horrible drought-induced ecological crisis in the Midwest from 1934-1937. Climate change caused immigration, but not large-scale civil unrest, during the American Dust Bowl of the 1930s. The U.S. had an ecological disaster where poor cultivation methods destroyed the productivity of farm soil and led to a mass migration and a decline in farm production. Fortunately, America in the 1930s only had a deep economic depression, not the Middle Eastern culture of conflict. We had a great leader in FDR, a new institution called the Soil Conservation Service, and a new economy in the west (especially California) to absorb climate refugees. About 2.5 million people fled from the states hit by this catastrophe, but after real struggle they found employment and hope in other parts of the United States. These examples demonstrate the complexity of predicting the impact of climate change.

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The language of warnings of possible earth system impacts is the language of probability, not the language of certainty. No one knows the future. We do know, however, that the economic production and consumption of seven billion people is having a far from trivial impact on our planet. We also know that humans still need our ecological systems to provide the food, air and water that keeps us alive. We need to learn more about those impacts, not to stop the economic production that we benefit from, but to steer it and sustainably manage it so we can continue benefiting from the technological marvel that we live in. Earth system science is woefully underfunded by our federal government and we need more of it, not less of it.

When the impact of economic production is a toxic release that has a demonstrated impact, we have had some success in regulating those releases. When the impact is projected to happen in the future, we have had less success. This has led to a search for the current impacts of climate change, which are not always well-founded.

For example, this weekend, we saw Ian Urbina of the New York Times report that real estate values in coastal areas are not rising as quickly as elsewhere. Urbina observed that: "Nationally, median home prices in areas at high risk for flooding are still 4.4 percent below what they were 10 years ago, while home prices in low-risk areas are up 29.7 percent over the same period, according to the housing data." His story noted that about 40% of the nation's population lived by the coasts and that people in beach communities were reluctant to move. His point is that fear of climate change is depressing housing prices by the shore. In a response, columnist Holman W. Jenkins Jr. of the Wall Street Journal assigned that drop not to climate impacts, but to the declining federal subsidy for flood insurance and the dramatic increase in flood insurance rates. Jenkins argued that:

"When Teddy Roosevelt built his Sagamore Hill on Long Island, he did so a quarter mile from shore at an elevation of 115 feet not because he disdained proximity to the beach or was precociously worried about climate change. The federal government did not stand ready with taxpayer money to defray his risk. Estimates vary, but sea levels may have risen at two millimeters a year over the past century...On top of this, a "notable surge event" can produce a storm surge of seven to 23 feet, according to a federal list of 10 hurricanes over the past 70 years... But, to state the obvious, normal tidal variation plus storm surge is the danger to coastal property. Background sea-level rise is a non-factor. A FEMA study from several years ago found that fully a quarter of coastal dwellings are liable to be destroyed over a 50-year period."

What is really happening here? Real estate prices are subject to many factors. Waterfront homes may have been overpriced. There may be a fear of flooding. The cost of insurance may well be one factor. I don't think that Teddy Roosevelt's building decisions had much to do with insurance (let's think of TR and risk for a moment). Essentially, we live differently today than we did 75 and 100 years ago. When Americans back then built homes by the ocean, they did not value constant views of the water and built their homes away from the shore and behind dunes. I would argue this had little to do with federal flood insurance, but a more prudent and less arrogant attitude about the power of nature. There were also fewer people and the beaches were less crowded.

Take, for example, the case of my summer home in Long Beach, New York (flooded by Hurricane Sandy). No one built on the waterfront in the early 20th century. The small number of fancy houses on Long Beach from that time are blocks from the ocean and on the widest part of the island. The people who built my bungalow used wood (not dry wall) in the interior and had very little (if any) electricity. We live differently today. When Sandy hit, all our appliances, dry wall, ceiling, furniture and first floor were ruined. Contrast that to the day in 1938 when the Long Island Express hurricane came through: the water flowed into the house, the tide receded and the water flowed out. No TV or internet was ruined. No drywall presented risk of mold. The place dried for a few weeks in the breeze and the costs of repair were minimal. They probably had to buy a new sofa and easy chair. In our case after Sandy, it cost about $80,000 in federally-subsidized flood insurance to put the place back together.

As Mr. Jenkins indicates, we should have a debate about how to insure against the risks of natural disasters. My view is that climate change, development patterns and lifestyle changes have increased risk. Long Beach, like many northeastern beach communities, is not filled with million-dollar ocean-front homes, but bungalows converted to year-round homes by firefighters, factory workers, teachers and NYPD officers. My neighbors in Long Beach are not the "shoreline gentry" of Jenkins' essay. The Midwestern homes flooded this year were not built by rich people either. My view is that we need to pay more into a national disaster relief insurance program and the payments should be set by risk, home values, and ability to pay. Increases should be phased in slowly. We need this debate, but ideology makes reasoned discussion impossible.

But debate is crucial. Not only are our lifestyles different and our technology more vulnerable, but there are more of us. We need earth systems science to do a better job of predicting short-term and long-term threats. The science of climate change has been politicized. That is tragic. It has been manipulated by cynical politicians who see a way to build opposition to government playing a role in funding science. That danger has been exacerbated by the current presidential transition as climate deniers are dominating both the real and fake news sites. My scientific colleagues see their laboratories and critical earth science research projects under threat of de-funding and we get further and further from where we need to be.

We do not know enough about our planet and the impact of human technology on its basic systems. It is beyond idiotic to think we can grow our population and consumption this much, this quickly, and have no impact. But it is also foolish to overstate what we know and ask policymakers to invest trillions of dollars on impacts we have not yet seen. Scientists need to be encouraged and funded to present facts, projections and options.

The case against fossil fuels does not require global warming to be compelling. Pumping and digging fossil fuels out of the earth typically damages the planet. Burning fossil fuels typically causes air pollution. Shipping the stuff costs money and all of this can be reduced with renewable energy, smart grid technology and energy efficiency. The fact that these steps will reduce the price of energy and its short-term environmental impact makes greenhouse gas reduction icing on the cake.

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This month, I vacationed in Maui for the first time and fell in love with the island. Walking the many beautiful beaches, hiking the Haleakala Crater at sunset, enjoying a roadside gourmet meal of coconut rice and green curry chicken made by a cheerful man from the grill at the back of his truck. Most of all, I loved experiencing the Aloha culture. I had heard about the Aloha spirit but hadn't understood the meaning until I was immersed in it.

When you land in Maui, there is a big sign at the Kahului airport that explains the meaning of Aloha. Among many things, it says, "Aloha is more than a greeting or salutation. Aloha is to be in the presence of life, to share the essence of one's being with openness, honesty and humility. It is a way of being, a way of behaving, a way of life. It is a commitment to being real. It is a commitment to accepting others and giving dignity to who they are and what they have to offer."

Other than Hawaii, I don't know that there is any state in the nation that clearly spells out their values and intention for a good life. The Aloha spirit was so evident while interacting with the locals. I repeatedly heard people say some version of, "I am so lucky. I live in paradise. I have everything I need including family, beautiful scenery and fresh food." In two weeks, I never heard a local resident complain or express cynicism even if they were in the service industry, working several jobs to make a living on an expensive island. My vacation landed smack in the middle of our tumultuous November election and yet there was no tension, conflict or divisive conversations. It felt in extreme contrast to life on the mainland. So much so, that at times I felt as though I was in another country.

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When meeting new couples, I have always enjoyed hearing the story of how they met. It's one of my quirks - asking strangers to tell me their story! (Not sure if it's forced habit after all my years spent as a psychotherapist.) I asked this to some of the people I met on Maui, and several times the locals responded with, "I'm the luckiest person on earth. I married my best friend and 30 years later, she is more amazing than ever." That said by one man who lived on a neighboring island with very few people from whom to choose for a partner. Contrast it to a typical city where it is more likely to hear complaints about how tough it is to date or frustration with common marital stressors.

In many ways, we become what we surround ourselves with. The Hawaiian culture inspires a positive and grateful approach for everyone. It would be very strange and out of the norm for a native in Maui to complain about life or to be negative. They have surrounded themselves in beliefs that encourage love and gratitude. They assume that others will embrace the positive Aloha culture.

What's your culture? Whether it's with your business, your team or your family life - what are you surrounded by? How are you contributing to building a positive culture? As we go into the Thanksgiving season, notice whether you are promoting a culture of genuine gratitude and appreciation, or are more focused on the perceived stressors of the upcoming holiday season. Be aware of how you're impacting those around you and what you are choosing to be surrounded by.

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Experts share what exercises result in the biggest endorphin release and how long you need to work out to get there.
Here's when Dunkin' and Atwoods plan to open in Hutchinson

Developers of two business blame shipment delays of equipment and materials in pushing back openings for new Hutchinson retail locations.
Record Labels Shift From Promoters To Storytellers As Power Fades

In this piece, David Emery remarks on record labels' directional shift towards promoting and selling artists "stories" as their power and influence in the music industry begins to fade.

____________________________

Guest post by David Emery, VP Global Marketing Strategy for Kobalt Label Services

I was talking recently with someone I know who works at a music media company. I say media company both to be purposefully vague but also because I struggle to think of a better term that encompasses the merging worlds of distribution, retail and promotion.

Day in, day out, they get pitched music.

They told me that the latest thing that record labels are talking about is storytelling.

This makes a lot of sense, because labels have always been natural storytellers. The original story was that if you wanted to get your music into shops, into the hands of the public, you had to sign a record deal. It was a good story, a true story, and I think we can all agree that the labels did pretty well out of telling that tale.

Fast forward several decades, and the story started to change a little. The details adapted  like a shocking, unbelievable-because-its-made-up story you see flash past on Facebook every 3 years  but the underlying message is the same. Rather than were the only ones that can get you in to stores, as distribution got easier the story became were the only way you can have a hit.

When you get wined and dined, paraded through fancy offices and artist lounges with platinum discs sagging off the walls and have A&Rs flying in to see your show deep in some middle America Trumpland backwater, this story, it turns out, is still pretty convincing.

But its power is fading, and the labels know it.

Thats why they have a new narrative, which is that they, with their years of experience making and breaking artists, are the best storytellers. If you want to make it  and you want to make it, right?  youve got to have a good story. And theyre the ones to tell it.

Its an interesting, necessary, and above all smart pivot. The industry, as I may have mentioned once or twice previously, is going through a radical change with the transition to streaming. This is no mere format shift, but a complete change in the way fans engage with music, and a complete change with how artists release it. The days of focusing on a week 1 sales spike, throwing half your budget into outdoor and TV advertising in the hope that you chart well, are not gone, but are getting less and less important.

Whats becoming important is time. Your campaign now lasts for as long as people might want to listen to the music, which is a damn sight longer then how long they might keep considering to buy it. Not only that, but directly advertising to push people towards a stream doesnt make any economic sense in the way that pushing a CD or download did.

To keep people interested over time, then, you need to tell a story. A story with multiple beats, multiple moments that get peoples attention, over and over again. You need to elevate above the noise. Often the story once was heres an album, its good but now it needs to be a bit more creative then that, and much, much longer.

Your story needs to be a novel, not a press release.

So the labels have it figured out then? Theyve smartly reconfigured themselves to be best placed to navigate the modern music landscape?

Well, yes and no. On the one hand they are doing the right thing, and in no way do I want to come across as label-bashing because that would, quite frankly, be a very short sighted way at looking at the landscape. Theyre talking the talk in terms of how you need to reapproach artist development, and it would be a fool that didnt take them seriously. While they may be bastions of the old guard, that doesnt mean theyre not smart.

The bit that causes the problem is the inherent presumption  and the story that goes with it  that they are the only ones that can do this.

Let me tell you a story of an artist that shows you the other way that it can work now, and why the labels are having to attempt to repitch themselves as indispensable all over again. This is a true story, but Im going to keep it anonymous because this is representative of a whole wave of artists building careers right now.

So, this artist records a few tracks themselves in  literally  their bedroom. This, of course, wouldnt be possible to a high standard even 15 years ago, so this is a new start to the story even though it seems commonplace.

They get the tracks out, but rather then a few years back when they would have put it on SoundCloud, maybe get attention but certainly no cash, they get it out on all digital services. The main one that matters here is, of course, Spotify, but thats only right now  I think as we see diversification in the streaming space, this story only gets amplified.

The tracks are good. People like them. The tracks find themselves on a few tastemaker playlists, which end up spreading the music to other playlists  including Discover Weekly and Fresh Finds (again, Spotify specific right now, but they work, so will be copied). The tracks build up significant numbers.

Lets stop here and do some maths.

If you have 4 tracks, to make $10,000 each one only needs to be streamed a bit over 500,000 times. If you get traction with your music on Spotify, or another service, this isnt a huge number.

So, now you have $10k.

You use that to hire a small team around you, mostly consisting of publicity in your home market. Maybe some radio too if youre not in the US where its crazy expensive. You also have a bit more cash to work with to put into the recording of your next EP.

That EP does even better. Youre building a fanbase. You start playing shows, which you can make work based off the earnings youre getting from the two EPs youve got out  dont forget, the first one is still growing, as your fanbase grows. The shows start selling out, as soon as you put them on sale.

You put out a mixtape of a bunch of stuff youve been working on, but isnt your main album  youre not quite ready for that yet. This all does well too. Your catalogue now covers over 25 tracks, all constantly earning you money. You put out another EP. You get a playlist on Radio 1. You sell out 1000 cap rooms in London, and similar sized venues in the US. You build up your team.

And you can keep this trajectory going  building out your team, working with people that fill in all of the functions of a label, without signing away your business. Theyre saying that they are storytellers, that they can build your career, build your brand, and theres no doubt theyre very good at that. But when you can afford to pay for that expertise yourself, that narrative just doesnt seem to ring so true.

And anyway, this new story makes things much, much more interesting.

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Roskomnazdor issued a statement , in Russian, regarding the decision. It cited the original Moscow District Court decision from August to block LinkedIn, as well as the decision made on November 10 in a Moscow City Court, to uphold that decision, according to TechCrunch .

Russia banned LinkedIn on Thursday, after Microsoft-owned social network failed to comply with the a 2014 law regarding Russian user data collection. The ban was exacted by Roskomnadzor, the governments communications regulation agency.

LinkedIn issued a statement to its 467 million users, 5 million of whom reside in Russia, that it was blocked because it stores Russian users personal data on foreign servers.

We are disappointed with this decision, which interferes with professional networking and the pursuit of economic opportunity for many of our Russia-based members, LinkedIn stated. Additionally, we believe we are in compliance with all applicable laws, and we are currently evaluating the decision and our options.

LinkedIn claims its requests to meet with Roskomnadzor to discuss data localization were repeatedly denied. Matthew Kupfer of The Moscow Times reported that, while LinkedIn is breaking a law regarding data storage, other social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp also fail to comply with the 2014 law. There is no indication, however, on whether or not these other social media outlets will soon be blocked as well.

A spokesperson for LinkedIn further elaborated its position in a statement to TechCrunch last week.

LinkedIns vision is to create economic opportunity for the entire global workforce, a spokesperson told TechCrunch. The Russian courts decision has the potential to deny access to LinkedIn for the millions of members we have in Russia and the companies that use LinkedIn to grow their businesses. We have on Friday again requested a meeting with Roskomnadzor to discuss their data localization request and we understand they are reviewing this proposal at the present time.

Maria Olson, spokesperson at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, tweeted about the troubling precedent of banning a social media network with Russian data.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Reuters on Thursday that the Kremlin was not concerned that the decision would stir fears of broader censorship in Russia.

There are no such concerns, said Peskov.

Across Twitter, Russians voiced their opinions regarding the ban of the social media professional network. Most were critical of the decision.

This is not the first time the communications regulatory agency has come under fire from international press freedom advocates. In 2014, Russia enacted another law, known colloquially as the blogger law, that requires blogs with more than 3,000 unique readers to register with Roskomnadzor, a move that Human Rights Watch called draconian. Earlier that year, Russia enacted a law that will allow the Kremlin to block websites indiscriminately.

Storing data in foreign countries is common practice among U.S. tech companies. According to the New York Times, Amazon Web Services has servers in France and Great Britain. Google, which already operates servers in Finland and Belgium, is investing millions in new servers in the Netherlands by the end of this year.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranks Russia 148th on its list of 180 countries on the Global Press Freedom index, and says that Russia has a stifling atmosphere for independent journalists. The organization also classifies President Vladimir Putin as a predator of press freedom. According to RSF, there is currently less freedom of expression in Russia than at any time since the fall of the Soviet Union.

Russia is just the latest in a list of countries with authoritarian regimes that have cracked down on freedom of expression  including China, Iran, and Vietnam  by banning social media sites. In China, for example, Facebook and Twitter are banned, but Weibo, a social media site based in China is accessible.

Users are likely to continue to use VPNs, which can make the user look like he or she is in another country, in order to access LinkedIn or any other sites that are blocked.

Source: http://www.mediafiledc.com/russia-bans-linkedin-furthering-concerns-internet-freedom/
A National College of Cyber Security to address the critical skills gap in the cyber security industry is planned to open in 2018. It is to be based at Bletchley Park, home of the UK's World War II code breaking effort using the currently derelict Block G, which is undergoing a 5 million restoration.

The plans for an educational facility for talented 16 to 19 year olds where 40% of the of the curriculum would be devoted to cybersecurity alongside on maths, physics and computer science come from, QUFARO, new not-for-profit group designed to help deliver the cyber workforce necessary to protect British citizens and organisations against the increasing threat of cyber-attack.

The organisation's name was devised by the late Tony Sale who made it up of random letters on a keyboard. It brings together of senior figures from the Cyber Security Challenge UK; the National Museum of Computing; the Bletchley Park Science and Innovation Centre; the Institute of Information Security Professionals; BT Security; and Raytheon and as well as forming the college plans to nurture new British cyber businesses with the launch of a 50m cyber innovation investment fund next year,

The first intake of 100 students for the National College is expected in 2018. It is intended to be free to all students with around 10% of places being available to day students with the rest being borders enabling those from further afield to apply. Prospective candidates won't need to meet specific academic qualifications, but will be selected through aptitude tests, or on the basis of exceptional technology skills - such as self-taught coders. Over a three-year study period the students will work towards qualifications including A levels or Extended Project Qualification (EPQs). In addition to its boarding school QUFARO will also offers virtual courses, the first of which, the EPQ in cyber security, developed in collaboration with the Cyber Security Challenge UK, is already live. This is a qualification for school pupils and independent learners wishing to study cyber security between GCSE and university degree/vocational level. Having been over subscribed in 2016, its first year, it is expected to be expanded on 2017.

These educational initiatives complement the efforts of government-sponsored Cyber Security Challenge UK, which as we have previously reported runs contests to identify talented code breakers. Its CEO, Stephanie Daman, explained:

There is a critical skills gap in the cyber security industry, which will become ever more pressing as the world around us moves further into an online-first environment. With so much at stake, from personal data to the countrys critical national infrastructure, now is the time to act. Initiatives such as the Challenge are successful in identifying those who have great cyber skills to find jobs in the industry; but there is a clear need for a programme to compliment this which looks at cyber education specifically and helps individuals to carve different pathways into the sector  be that through apprenticeships, entrepreneurship or traditional education. It is only once a full cyber education ecosystem is developed that the skills issue can begin to be resolved.

Bletchley Park, with all its associations with Alan Turing, the Enigma Code, Colossus will be the site of the National College and G-Block, one of its largest buildings will house it. A 5m restoration project, funded by the Bletchley Park Science and Innovation Centre, is already underway to convert the building into a pioneering security technology hub.

According to Tim Reynolds, deputy chairman of the National Museum of Computing, also housed in the Bletchley Park grounds, and a director of Qufaro:

"Bletchley Park [is] a natural home for a cyber security college because it's building on the innovation and the work that took place in the Second World War, bringing it up to date and making it relevant again,"



Margaret Sale, a non-executive direction of QUFARO and a founding member of both the Bletchley Park Trust and The National Museum of Computing, said:

Through initiatives such as the National College and the Cyber Investment Fund we can effectively combine the principles of heritage, education and innovation for which everything on this site stands. Previous generations are deeply proud of their contributions at Bletchley Park. I am keen to see what the next cadre will achieve.







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The coming year is looking dismal for Iowas largest public employees union as the state government did not propose wage increases and held back health insurance provisions in its contract with unionized employees, an Associated Press report said.The contract was released last week by the Iowa Department of Administrative Services to the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Iowa Council 61.The contract reportedly contains language that would give the state tighter control over determining employee health benefits.In the report, Danny Homan, Iowa Council 61 president, said the state is shortchanging public employees as it anticipates new legislation that could change its collective bargaining laws. Republicans will have control of the Upper and Lower Houses in January.Meanwhile, Republican Governor Terry Branstad said in the report through his spokesperson Ben Hammes that the government wants to provide health care that is more financially sustainable.The union Iowa Council 61 represents around 40,000 state employees, including correctional officers, firefighters and mental health workers.

Related stories:

Employees share of health insurance costs keeps growing

Court battle begins to save $48 billion Anthem-Cigna merger
The governor of Louisiana has hired a new CEO for the states health insurance program for employees and retirees  and its someone his predecessor fired.Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards has announced the hiring of Tommy Teague as CEO for the states Office of Group Benefits, according to a New Orleans City Business report. Teague will take the reins at the agency Dec. 12.Teague has held the role before. He was CEO of the agency from 2006 to 2011, according to New Orleans City Business. But then-Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican, pushed to privatize parts of the agency  a move that Teague publicly questioned. Soon after, Jindal fired him.Edwards commissioner of administration, Jay Dardenne, said in a statement that Teague was rehired because he had a proven record of success in the agency. Teague said he was anxious to return to work, according to New Orleans City Business.He will replace Jindal appointee Susan West, whose resignation was announced earlier this month.
The Financial Stability Board (FSB), the international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system, has identified nine insurance firms as systemically important financial institutions (SIFI).Companies labelled as SIFI, which are also referred to as too big to fail, are businesses whose failure might trigger a financial crisis.The FSV, which is chaired by Bank of England governor Mark Carney, published its updated list of SIFI last week in consultation with the International Association of Insurance Supervisors.Unchanged from last year, the list included Aviva, Prudential Financial, Inc. and Prudential plc.Also on the list are US insurance firms AIG and MetLife , French insurer AXA , Dutch insurer Aegon, Germanys Allianz and Chinas Ping An Insurance.Insurance companies with the SIFI tag will be subjected to internationally agreed standards such as higher loss absorbency and enhanced group-wide supervision.The FSB published its latest SIFI list several months after a US judge ruled that federal insurance regulators did not have the right to label MetLife as a SIFI, making it subject to capital standards similar to those of the countrys largest banks.MetLifes triumphant suit argued that its business did not pose a threat to the US financial system, making its SIFI designation inappropriate.The ruling encouraged other major insurers  Prudential and AIG  to announce their intentions to challenge their SIFI label as well.
A black bear attacked a 63-year-old grandmother in Maryland last Wednesday  and now she is stuck with a $200,000 hospital bill for treatment as she didn't have medical insurance, WUSA9 reports.Karen Osbourne, who suffered the first recorded bear attack in modern Maryland history, was in hospital for six days because of a broken arm, a broken pelvis, bites on the back of her torso, legs and head.Osbournes son, Matt Hauprich, started a GoFundMe page aimed at raising money for her hospital bills and graphically details the thrashing.It took 78 stiches to seal the gashes left by the bears claws. Shell now need four to six weeks of rehab, according to Hauprich.The unprecedented attack occurred when Osbourne pursued her dog into the woods from her daughters driveway in Frederick, Maryland.Osbourne unwittingly found herself between a fully grown, female Eastern Black Bear and a bear cub, who was scared up a tree by Osbournes dog on November 16, responding wildlife officials said.After 35 minutes of intermittent mauling, Osbourne was able to dial 911. The 193-pound mother bear was tranquilized and then destroyed, wildlife officials said.The bear was previously known as a mischievous neighbour, turning over garbage bins and had been outfitted with a radio collar to track its movements.Her cubs are still in the woods near Frederick.
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
At its September meeting, the Plum City Board of Education named the districts new superintendent of schools. Effective Dec. 20, Dr. Ronald Walsh will replace Mary Baier.

I feel very fortunate to have worked with such a close knit and caring community that loves its children and cares deeply for its schools, Baier said about Walsh who retired at the end of the 2015-16 school year as superintendent of the Elk Mound School District. I wish all the best to Dr. Walsh knowing he will be working with an excellent group of students, parents, staff, community and school board.

Walsh said he is excited to lead the Plum City School District in the wake of its recent successful referendum to fun $2 million in infrastructure upgrades as well as a fiveyear effort to increase district revenue by $300,000 per year.

Walsh served as superintendent in Elk Mound for the past 13 years. In 2014, he was selected as the Wisconsin Superintendent of the Year by the American Association of School Administrators. Walsh received his bachelors degree in elementary education from UWEau Claire in 1979, his masters degree in guidance and counseling from UWStout in 1986, his education specialist degree in school superintendency from UWSuperior in 1995 and his doctorate degree in educational leadership from Edgewood College, in Madison, in 2010.

Dr Walshs wife, Susan, works for Mayo Health System in Eau Claire in its Home Health and Hospice program. He also has a son, Ryan (wife ,Tracy, son, Evan) of Maple Grove, MN and a daughter, Laura, of Eau Claire.

I am truly fortunate to have such a great support network, and I am so appreciative of my familys willingness to understand and support me in the work that I do, Walsh said.
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Birth  School  Metallica  Death

Those four words perfectly surmise the devotion that Metallica, the biggest heavy metal band on the planet, inspire. Admittedly, the sentiment first came from the band itself, appearing on a T-shirt sold during their colossal Wherever We May Roam tour in support of the biggest-selling album of the past 25 years, 1991s Metallica (universally referred to as The Black Album).

It may seem a bold, antagonistic, even downright arrogant statement, but try replacing the word Metallica with any other band from the past 50 years; there are only a mere handful that could even be considered to have sustained fanbases so fervent, devoted and passionate.

Even fewer have maintained this devotion over a period of 35 years, an idea that must have seemed far-fetched even to Lars Ulrich, the bands diminutive, ever-enthusiastic drummer, most vociferously vocal member and self-confessed number one fan. Once youre hooked on Metallica, you remain addicted for the rest of your life.

In May 1981, Ulrich placed an advert in the Musicians Wanted section of a free local Los Angeles newspaper The Recycler that read: Drummer looking for other metal musicians to jam with. Tygers of Pan Tang, Diamond Head and Iron Maiden. The call was heeded by a shy, alienated 17-year-old misfit called James Hetfield but their first practice was an unequivocal disaster, with the two musicians failing to gel musically or personally. Despite this inauspicious start, they eventually bonded over a shared love of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (abbreviated to NWOBHM), a movement that all three bands mentioned in Ulrichs advert fell under, and in October 1981, Metallica were officially formed.

Since their inception and right up until the turn of the millennium, they spent their career setting the standards by which other metal bands would follow. They pioneered (and debatably invented) thrash metal in the early Eighties, an amalgam of punk rocks speed and heavy metals ferocity. They led the charge for writing longer, more complex songs with unconventional structures in the mid-to-late Eighties, a move that is still inspiring and pushing the genre forward today. And when metal was perceived to be going through a particularly rough ride in the media during the nineties, they reinvented themselves as a hard rock band, a move that at one stage seemed almost compulsory for any veteran heavy metal act.

But even when Metallica have been the source of ridicule (and they have been numerous times), theyve always managed to maintain the unconditional support of millions  whether recording a critically mauled collaborative double album with Lou Reed, making a 3D concert film with a dubious semi-narrative running throughout or taking on Napster (and, by proxy, their own fans), at no point in 35 years have people stopped caring about Metallica en masse. Thats something its difficult to say about almost all of the bands contemporaries  Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Guns N Roses  theyve all had severe lulls in their popularity, even amongst their most staunch supporters.

Hardwired ... To Self-Destruct is the bands 10th studio album and their first since 2008s Death Magnetic. The 12-track, double-disc album is truly an event, especially considering that this is only the fifth full-length album of original material from the band in the past 20 years. It was recorded at Metallicas usual gradual pace over a 15-month period, between May 2015 and August 2016 at their headquarters in San Rafael, California, with writing for the album believed to have begun way back in October 2011. Reactions to the record have been broadly positive, with the majority proclaiming it to be the best the band have released since the hard rock and shorn locks period of 1996s Load album (some accounts go even further, declaring it to be their best since The Black Album).

Metallica recording their first session for the BBC, at Maida Vale Studios, 17 November 2016

Metallica marked the week of release for the new record with a promotional trip around three cities in Europe; Berlin, Paris and London. Their first stop in the English capital is at the prestigious Maida Vale studios to record the bands first ever session for the BBC. Were huddled onto the balcony overlooking Studio MV4, one of the smaller studios of the six currently in operation on site but with a most distinguished history, having played host to the famous John Peel sessions from 1967 until his death in 2004. Its since been used to record the majority of sessions that appear on BBC Radio 1, with todays performance being recorded and filmed for Daniel P Carters Radio 1 Rock Show.

Metallica's Kirk Hammett and Lars Ulrich record a session at BBC Maida Vale studios

If its not obvious from the vast articulated lorries parked outside the studio, the sheer amount of people running around the pokey Studio MV4 preparing to capture the five song session confirm just how huge the Metallica operation is. Including the BBC film and sound crews, there must be close to 50 people running around going about the very technical business of visually and aurally capturing one of the most influential bands in the history of music. Its a vaguely intimidating environment, especially for the two journalists whove miraculously managed to blag their way in, who both confine themselves to the shadows in case anyone important deems them unworthy to be in the studio at this particular moment.

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At twenty minutes to seven, almost two hours later than originally scheduled, the four members of Metallica stroll into the room with much less pomp and circumstance than youd imagine a band of their stature would. The atmosphere is immediately jovial, with the whole band joking around in-between songs; when lead guitarist Kirk Hammett requests everything to be turned up in his monitors except the drums, he elicits huge guffaws from the entire room, much to Ulrichs mock exasperation. The band thunder through renditions of new songs Atlas, Rise!, Moth Into Flame and Hardwired, before concluding the session with classic cuts Harvester of Sorrow and the song that brought them house-hold recognition, Enter Sandman.

Lars Ulrich at the session at Maida Vale studios

Watching the session unfold is probably the closest one can get to witnessing the dynamic of the deep-rooted friendship that was forged over a love of those NWOBHM records 35 years ago. Ulrich is the motor-mouthpiece, seemingly worried that his jaw muscles might seize up if theyre not put to constant use, whilst the more subdued Hetfield is extremely adept at a cutting yet brotherly put-down for his compadre (a typical exchange emerges when Ulrich complains his clothes are too small: Usually when were jamming at home, I dont have the stage-gear on, to which Hetfield replies, Is that whats throwing you off!?).

The chalk and cheese chemistry is a big factor when it comes to the success of this band, maybe even the biggest factor. Its the same creative magic formula that McCartney/Lennon, Plant/Page and Jagger/Richards were all blessed with  otherworldly, indescribable but undoubtedly as tangible and real as the instruments they play.

Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Show all 10 1 /10 Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica pose with guitarist Kirk Hammett covered in custard pies in recognition of his 54th birthday Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Kirk Hammett, James Hetfield and Rob Trujillo perform at House of Vans in London Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica's Lars Ulrich, during their performance at House of Vans in London Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica's James Hetfield in front of 850 lucky fans at House of Vans in London, 18th November 2016 Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 James Hetfield performing at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica play in front of 850 lucky ballot winners on the day of Hardwired ... To Self-Destruct's release Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica's Lars Ulrich, during their performance at House of Vans in London Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Robert Trujillo, James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett, performing at House of Vans, London on 18th November, 2016 Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich stands against a projection of the artwork from Hardwired ... To Self-Destruct Ross Halfin Metallica at House of Vans, London, 18th November 2016 Metallica pose at House of Vans in London, on the release day for their 10th studio album, Hardwired ... To Self-Destruct Ross Halfin

On the day of Hardwired... To Self-Destructs release, the band play an intimate show at the House of Vans underneath Waterloo station in London to 850 lucky ballot winners and fan club members. To put this in perspective, the last time Metallica played in the capital, they played two sold out shows at Londons 20,000 capacity O2 Arena. Its safe to say tickets are more valuable than gold dust and those in attendance are well aware of what an extraordinarily rare opportunity this is to see their idols in such small confines.

As the lights dim, a roar erupts, and the band file onstage with little fanfare, even foregoing the usual obligatory entrance to Ennio Morricones The Ecstasy of Gold. From the shadows, James Hetfield emerges, blasting out the opening riff to their blistering cover of Welsh hard rock mob Budgies Breadfan, and like a bullet from a starting pistol, theyre off.

The band smash through a 15-song set that includes the five songs from yesterdays Maida Vale session plus an additional 10 tracks from the first decade of the bands history; The Four Horsemen, Battery, Master of Puppets, Fade to Black, One and For Whom the Bell Tolls are tossed out with absolutely no concern for the minds that may be blown all over the walls of these old railway tunnels. All are cast-iron reminders of why this band has been worshipped so devoutly by millions around the world for 35 years. The sheer ecstasy pasted on the faces of these fortunate patrons is proof-positive that people still care immensely about Metallica and will likely continue to until their dying day; after all; sandwiched between birth and death, theres nothing but Metallica.

Hardwired... To Self-Destruct is available through Blackened Records now. Metallica will tour extensively throughout the UK and Europe in 2017
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Rudimentals Amir Amor completed a new track he wrote specially for Ourmala this summer, the London charity helping refugees and asylum-seekers rebuild their lives through yoga. The track, called Yayang, which represents the cycles of life, is a personal project and a departure from the sound of Amors Platinum award-winning band.

I wanted to help Ourmala, as I believe strongly in what theyre doing, said Amor. With a musician with some kind of voice out there, I thought using that using music could be useful. Ive been wanting to do something purely for myself for some time and it became a good excuse to do that.

First he followed the contour of the yoga session that Ourmala does in Hackney with asylum-seekers. Then it turned into something else. I became inspired Middle Eastern music, Sufi and Iranian music. I was trying to create something thats sonically meditative, ambient with tonal resonances.

Emily Brett, founder of Ourmala, teaching yoga to refugees in Hackney (Carl Bigmore)

The track was first aired at the 2016 Yoga for Refugees fundraiser, where over 300 yogis gathered in London.

The people Ourmala work with have come from all over the world and currently range in age from two months old to their late 60s. Most are registered with the UK Home Office and have experienced terrible cruelty such as torture, human trafficking and sexual violence in war zones. Most cannot sleep because of the nightmares that wake them. Anxiety, depression, physical pain, low confidence, fear, malnutrition, extreme isolation, stress and exhaustion are very common.

Ourmala provides therapeutic yoga classes which are free for its clients and the charity also refunds the cost of travel, otherwise most would not be able afford to come as they live in poverty. At each class, theres always some social time, which is hugely valuable seeing as most of the clients when they first come to Ourmala are extremely isolated  which may mean knowing no one at all in the city.

Ourmalas yoga classes not only help these individuals recover from trauma, with sleep, improving confidence, reducing anxiety and depression but the classes are also safe welcoming spaces where friendships form.

Amir Amor from Rudimental (second right) is working on a fundraiser to help refugees heal from their pain through yoga classes (Getty)

The organisation also provides English classes, a hot nutritious lunch and information about other services that can help these people. Services such as healthcare, housing, education and employment, for example.

Theres been a spike in demand for classes and the hope is to raise enough awareness and funding to put on 20 classes a week by the end of 2017.

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What Ourmalas doing connects with me, says Amor. My parents bought me into this country when I was seven [from Iran] and I connect with that struggle. Not having any permanent address, me not going to school. We found ourselves in some dangerous situations. My mum was a teacher, my dad was an engineer so its not like we were uneducated people but that was all meaningless when we got here.

Yoga is holistic, the physical practise is just a fraction, says Amor. Ourmalas work gives people the opportunity to change their suffering into the strength they need to move on with their lives, fulfil their potential and contribute to society.

When I was young, I had a lot of questions about the state of the world, Im sure sparked by where I came from. Id meditated for quite a long time. My mum got me into it. Yogas a way of living more in unison with the universe, being yourself, being able to breathe and be able to be present in your body and mind. Its hard to be in your body and mind. The new track is a personal way of acknowledging some of the journey Ive been on and my musical and cultural heritage, as well as paying homage to all those who are struggling now and to the work of Ourmala.

Amor adds, Ourmalas a way for people who have been through the worst traumas to recover through yoga and gain access to other services they need to move on with their lives. Theyre doing good stuff. Support them in any way you can.

Emily Brett is a yoga teacher and Ourmalas founder

Ourmala is currently running a crowdfunder project, to reach more refugees in 2017, which finishes on 29 November. You can donate at: http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/yoga-for-refugees


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To coincide with International Mens Day earlier this month, UK charity CALM launched Torch Songs, a campaign celebrating the healing power of music. Championed by BBC Radio 1s Huw Stephens, the concept is simple: bands including The Vaccines and Blaenavon have been asked to cover their own Torch Song, the track that helps lift them out of dark places. Also getting involved is Years & Years frontman Olly Alexander, whos recorded his version of Joni Mitchells Both Sides Now.

Since the pop trio hit superstardom with last years Communion album, Alexander has become one of musics leading voices when addressing mental health issues. The 26-year-old has been forthcoming about his past, where he was bullied at school, and how things need to change in reducing a stigma around the subject. As well as being clear about his own struggles, he never hesitates in pointing out what still needs to be done, whether through government action or simply allowing everyone to be more open about their issues.

Torch Songs specifically centres around male mental health, addressing how men can often find it hard to speak up, allowing problems to fester. Its so important, agrees Alexander. The biggest killer of men under 45 in the UK is suicide. Thats a mindblowing statistic. And I just dont know if people are aware of that. It needs to be addressed. Its difficult to talk about these things, it really is. But verbalising things is part of the process of tackling something. I would encourage people to talk.

Olly Alexander has recorded his version of Joni Mitchells Both Sides Now as his torch song

Within Years & Years, Alexander and his bandmates (Emre Turkmen and Mikey Goldsworthy) used to find it hard to be open about mental health issues. We really try. We havent always been good at sharing our feelings, he admits. Were human beings and its not always easy. But we do try and make it a priority. Because its easy to forget about and not confront these things and let the issues fester. It can become much worse. We have sit down chats where we talk about how were feeling, and you always feel better afterwards.

Despite CALMs latest initiative - focusing on a certain songs therapeutic power - Alexander is keen to stress that music shouldnt be addressed as the only form of therapy. It can be a helpful turn of phrase to describe music as therapeutic, and in many ways it is. But the issues surrounding mental health are so important, and the best thing to do is to seek help and care from healthcare professionals, he states. At 19, he was given cognitive behavioural therapy to help deal with anxiety, and hes been taking medication for depression since he was a teenager. We shouldnt ignore that its a real issue that people need real help and support from. Go down the professional route first, whatever that is - NHS, GP referral.

For his own Torch Song, Alexander chose Joni Mitchells Both Sides Now because it was the first song he learnt on piano, aged 13. I was in America when we were approached, he remembers. There was only a few songs I could turn to without having to learn to play something from scratch. I love that song. Im a huge Joni Mitchell fan. It was an obvious choice.

For him, the tracks closing lyric ('I really dont know life at all') is a comfort, a realisation that barely anyone has the world sussed out. When you hear a lyric that you identity with, it can verbalise something you wouldnt have been able to verbalise yourself. Thats the magic of her songs, he says. When I was younger, my idols were Joni Mitchell and Jeff Buckley. Their voices really informed so much of my internal world. They were these beacons of hope to me because they were artists using their experienced and the pained theyd felt, turning it into music.

Alexander says hes happy to see a wider, more far-reaching conversation about mental health happening today. But he says were witnessing a continual process of breaking down stigmas, and he notes the stark contrast between greater dialogue and a decrease in financial support. Theres so much funding thats been cut for organisations, charities and support groups working in the mental health sector. That needs to stop.

Despite the ongoing problems, he has high hopes for the future, arguing that young people are more fluent with identifying and speaking about mental health issues. Whether its from being online or talking about it in schools more, I dont know, he says. But it does seem to be going in the right direction.

Listen to Olly Alexanders cover of Joni Mitchell on CALMs Torch Songs site
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Kanye West has remained in hospital over the weekend after being taken in last Monday for dehydration and exhaustion.

According to TMZ, West has been paranoid and profoundly depressed all week, initially not letting the doctors touch him as he believed they were out to get him.

The hope is apparently to get him home on Monday (28 November), where he will be under the care of his personal doctor.

Several rappers have shown their support for Kanye, including his CRS collaborator Lupe Fiasco, who gave a speech about how mentally draining tour can be during his Sacramento show earlier in the week.

When you not performing you thinking about performing, he told the crowd. And when you not thinking about performing, you performing. When you not performing, you recovering from performing. When you not recovering from performing you gotta prepare yourself to perform again. Thats hard, and every nights not gon be your best night, every night not gon be your worst night. Every night gon be like every other night, we gotta take it how it is and rock wit it.

He continued: And with that said, we wanna send prayers out to my big bro Kanye. He say a lot of goofy sh*t sometimes, but he from Chicago, so it dont even f*cking matter.

He urged fans to stick with Kanye during this trying time.

Go through history, look at the people thats been in this business, gave their heart and soul to this business, the things that they lost, and things that they go through so just have patience, he said.

Dont let it turn into anger, dont let it turn into cynicism, if you appreciate the work that the brother put in for you, and he supported you and helped you out from a distance with his music, just hold on to that moment.
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People demonstrating at North Dakota's Access Pipeline protest have expressed frustration at white demonstrators who are reportedly turning up to "colonise" the camp.

Concerns have been raised by protestors on social media, who claim that people are arriving at the Standing Rock demonstration for the "cultural experience" and treating it like Burning Man festival.

Protestor Alicia Smith wrote on Facebook: "On my way back from the camps. Need to get something off my chest that I witnessed and found very disturbing in my brief time there that I believe many others have started to speak up about as well.

"White people are colonizing the camps. I mean that seriously. Plymouth rock seriously. They are coming in, taking food, clothing and occupying space without any desire to participate in camp maintenance and without respect of tribal protocols.

"These people are treating it like it is Burning Man or The Rainbow Gathering and I even witnessed several wandering in and out of camps comparing it to those festivals."

Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Show all 15 1 /15 Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota A person pours a pepper spray antidote into a protester's eyes during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People swim across a river to where the police officers are standing guard during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota A man holds up a ceremonial object while police officers look down from a hill during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota November Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Two people stand in the water of a river while police officers guard the shore during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota A man stands on a makeshift bridge over a river while police officers stand on the opposite shore during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Tonya Stands recovers after being pepper sprayed by police after swimming across a creek with other protesters hoping to build a new camp to block construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, near Cannon Ball, Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Dakota Access Pipeline protesters stand in the foreground and in the waist-deep water of the Cantapeta Creek, northeast of the Oceti Sakowin Camp, near Cannon Ball, N.D., Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016. Officers in riot gear clashed again Wednesday with protesters near the Dakota Access pipeline, hitting dozens with pepper spray as they waded through waist-deep water in an attempt to reach property owned by the pipeline's developer. Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Dakota Access Pipeline protesters stand in the foreground and in the waist-deep water of the Cantapeta Creek, northeast of the Oceti Sakowin Camp, near Cannon Ball, N.D., Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016. Officers in riot gear clashed again Wednesday with protesters near the Dakota Access pipeline, hitting dozens with pepper spray as they waded through waist-deep water in an attempt to reach property owned by the pipeline's developer. Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People who were tear gassed return to the shore during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People yell at police officers standing on the opposite shore of a river during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters

Ms Smith observed that many protestors appeared to be living off the native American community, and were taking advantage of donations sent in for the cause. Another Twitter user said they had witnessed a protestor turn down tap water to spend donations on 'fluoride free' water.

An open letter detailing the camp's ground rules has been shared on Twitter in an attempt to tackle the issue, which reminds demonstrators that the camp is "not a vacation".

It says protestors should avoid drugs and alcohol, engage with the elders, and refrain from playing guitars around campfires.

A similar note is being shared on Facebook from Jon Petronzio, who said that there had been a "huge influx" of "mostly white" people arriving at the camp.

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Mr Petronzio urged demonstrators to remember that they are not on vacation and to help by carrying supplies and speak to the elders who are "pillars of this community".

The North Dakota Pipeline protest was sparked by plans to construct a 1,170-mile long pipeline which would run across four states. Energy Transfer Partners, the company behind the pipeline, says that it has taken measures to prevent leaks, and that there is no archaeological significance to the area.

 Standing Rock protests continue: 'Water is life'

Thousands of people have been gathering to support the Standing Rock Sioux tribe in their legal battle against the plan.

On Saturday activists protesting the continued construction of the pipeline were told to shut down one of their camps by 5 December in a letter sent to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's leader by the Army Corps.

Tribal leader Dave Archambault and other protest organisers have made it clear that they intend to stay in the Oceti Sakowin camp  one of three camps near the construction site  which would have been shut down.

The plan to build a pipeline has been hugely controversial (Reuters)

"We are wardens of this land. This is our land, and they can't remove us," protester Isaac Weston, an Oglala Sioux member from South Dakota, told AP on Saturday.

"We have every right to be here to protect our land and to protect our water."

However US authorities said on Sunday that they had no plans to forcibly remove activists.

The US Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the federal land where the main protest camp is located, said in a statement that anyone who remained would be considered unauthorised and could be subject to various citations.

It also said emergency services might not be adequately provided to the area.

"The Army Corps of Engineers is seeking a peaceful and orderly transition to a safer location," the statement said.

"This will reduce the risk of harm to people in the encampments caused (by) the harsh North Dakota winter conditions."

High profile supporters who have expressed their support for the cause include Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom, Lupita Nyong'o, Whoopi Goldberg and Mark Ruffalo.

A GoFundMe page recently raised more than $1 million after aiming to reach just $5,000.
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While The Walking Dead has never been a series to keep both feet on the pedal, there's no denying the pace has slowed to as close a standstill it's had since the unfairly-maligned second season on Hershels farm aired back in 2011.

The series has recently been intent on tearing up the rule book each half season, shedding this storytelling skin in favour of a new technique to keep viewers on their toes. Much like Game of Thrones largely treats its characters to one scene per episode, The Walking Dead season 7's knack thus far is to make you feel you may only glimpse certain characters one episode per season (Carol and Morgan, for example, havent been heard from since episode two).

With the mid-season finale approaching, it seems this tactic is winding to a close with Tara (Alanna Masterson) and Heath (Corey Hawkins - the new lead of FOX's upcoming 24 reboot) the last characters to be ticked off the where-the-hell-have-they-been? list. Not seen since that chilling season six episode which saw our group cold-bloodedly murder sleeping Saviours at the satellite station, Tara and Heath have been scavenging for the Hilltop Colony ever since - and, in Tara's case, so much more.

It's vital to note that this episode - titled 'Swear' - is a step up from last weeks which could rank as one of the weakest in the shows history.

Immediately embracing what The Walking Dead does so well, the episode is a tantalising departure, placing us in a location we're yet to see (the beach) showing us a character in a situation weve no idea how they ended up in (Tara washes up on shore) - hey presto! An exciting gambit. Linearity is bent with the next scene cutting to a time before this moment with every other scene sequentially filling us in on how Tara ended up being assumed a 'bobber' (probably the series' most entertaining name for the undead yet) by members of a new community known as Oceanside.

Granted, if fans were told they'd be getting an episode dedicated to Tara upon her introduction in season four, eyebrows would have been raised. But its through this character - played with a refreshing charm by Masterson (whose pregnancy is to account for her lack of presence) - that we meet yet another new community, this one placed somewhere just below the Saviours in the hostility stakes. We soon learn it's Negan's fault - after stumbling upon their camp, Tara is fortunate to have her life spared after becoming target practice. We shoot strangers on sight, shes told by the factions leader, Natania (Deborah May).

Residing in woodland, the group are comprised solely of women and young children - it turns out the Saviours mass murdered all of their men in cold blood - and are terrified of being found by them. "That satellite post you wiped out, you have no idea what you started," Tara is told, unaware she'll soon learn just how bad they are; she believes her girlfriend Denise - who was killed by an arrow to the eye courtesy of Dwight last season - is waiting for her back at Alexandria.

For a show thats become as sprawling as The Walking Dead, its refreshing to see past events bear such weight - that episode at the satellite outpost, titled 'Not Tomorrow Yet,' was a real gut-puncher containing plenty of game-changing moments for several characters. Its nice to see that being reflected here six episodes into a new season. It also marked the last time all of the core group were together in one place.

Further proving that last weeks episode, plagued by wonky editing and shoddy dialogue, was a momentary blip is director Michael E. Satrazemis who here utilises the larger playing field impressively, the most striking shot of which sees the camera pan back from a Rambo-esque Tara as she peers through trees at the community she sees before her. In fact, this episode serves to heighten what the past four episodes have done exceptionally well - prove that The Walking Dead could currently be the best for female characters on television right now (see also: Rosita, Maggie, Sasha, Carol).

Elsewhere, composer Bear McCreary can clearly be heard using this episode's distinct setting to experiment with the soundtrack in adventurous ways he rarely gets to deploy; as Tara walks from the beach and through the woods, spear in hand, it hits home that regardless of your stance on The Walking Dead, you never know what you're getting from one week to the next - admirable for a show in its seventh season.

Still, unlike Tara - who arrives back at Alexandria as the episode ends - the show is not yet out of the woods: if it teased a new age with the arrival of Jeffrey Dean Morgan's villain, the series - whose dip in quality is becoming more transparent with every week - is yet to capitalise on this. As we go into the final two episodes of season seven's first half, it's all or nothing.

The Walking Dead airs in the UK every Monday at 9pm on FOX
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Are Aussie wines just over-oaked Chardonnay and over-the-top Shiraz? Try this subtle and well-made trio to get a new take on the new world.

Dead End Tempranillo 2015

A wacky Day of the Dead label belies the serious wine inside, its balanced character reflecting McLaren Vale winemaker Steve Pannells experience working in Europe. Think a juicy, youthful, medium-bodied Rioja: a small amount of oak but bursting with flavours of black cherries with just a hint of earth and spice giving added texture. Ideal with autumnal game or lighter white meats.

19.95 nywines.co.uk

Bill Downie Petit Verdot 2015

Another individually crafted wine from a highly respected Aussie winemaker: these are hand-tended vines, grown through a biodynamic process from the Murray River area. This is a great match for a casserole or a vegetable tagine: ripe, smooth, intense black fruits, enlivened with the violet-tinged lightness that can be found in Bordeaux blends.

14.95 halifaxwinecompany.com; 15.80 thebottlebank.co.uk

Food and drink news Show all 35 1 /35 Food and drink news Food and drink news Healthy living makes us more inclined to binge, research suggests Gluten-free breads, dairy-free milks and other plant-based products have been some of the most favoured foods in British supermarkets this year. However, while were busy filling our shopping trolleys with gluten-free goodness, were also jamming it with junk food and alcohol, new research suggests Getty/iStock Food and drink news Growing list of Vegan celebs Making the switch to veganism is a major lifestyle choice, one that many claim can improve energy levels, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and clear up any skin issues. Beyonce, Natalie Portman and Jessica Chastain are among the growing list of Hollywood stars who have eschewed animal products from their diets in recent years. Theres also been an increasing number of professional athletes who have gone vegan, such as boxing champions Mike Tyson and David Haye, thus debunking the myth that following a plant-based diet will leave you feeling weak and malnourished. AFP/Getty/NARAS/iHeartMedia Food and drink news McDonald's has announced the launch of a new vegan burger on its menu in Germany This will mark the first time the German franchise of the fast food chain has offered a vegan burger to its customers. The Big Vegan TS burger consists of a patty made from soy and wheat. It is served in a classic sesame seed bun, and contains salad, tomato, pickles and red onion. McDonald's Germany Food and drink news Drinking too many protein shakes could lead to an increased risk of obesity and a reduced lifespan, a new study has claimed Researchers from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre carried out an investigation to determine the impact excessive consumption of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) has on the body. BCAA supplements are often consumed in the form of powder, which is then added to water to make a shake. Published in journal Nature Metabolism, the study found that while BCAAs help to build muscle, they can also negatively impact an individual's temperament, cause weight gain and lead to a shortened lifespan Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Britain consumes more chocolate than any other country Most people love chocolate but it turns out no one does more than the Brits  with the average Brit found to have consumed 8.4 kg of chocolate in 2017, according to new data. Chocolate consumption around the world is on the rise, according to Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD), which found that in the past year alone, Easter chocolate production has risen by 23 per cent Food and drink news 'Easter eggs should be banned for children under four' Dr Becky Spelman, chief psychologist at Harley Streets Private Therapy Clinic, is calling for Easter eggs to be banned for consumption for children under the age of four, claiming that giving them the opportunity to binge on chocolate so young will give them an unhealthy relationship with food later on. "This is a nightmare situation for parents of this generation as they have no idea how to teach their children to delay their response to cravings, she said, explaining that too many young kids binge on these chocolates because their parents dont know how to stop them. "Once a child starts overeating behaviour at a young age its very hard to turn things around for them in terms of food and their eating habits moving forward, leading to obesity from at very young age," she added PA Food and drink news Pineapple overtakes avocado as the UK's fastest-selling fruit According to Tesco, pineapple has overtaken avocado as the UKs fastest-selling fruit, with sales increasing by 15 per cent in 2017. In comparison, avocado sales rose by just under 10 per cent last year. The popular supermarket says the surge in popularity comes as shoppers buying the versatile fruit are beginning to use it as a main ingredient in everything from curries and barbecues, to juices and cocktails Getty Food and drink news Marks & Spencers launches stoneless avocados Rather than the result of genetic modification, the avocados are formed by an unpollinated avocado blossom. The fruit develops without a seed which in turns stops the growth, creating a small, seedless fruit. Whats more, the skin is actually edible, unlike a regular avocado. The flesh is much like that of a normal avocado - smooth and creamy, pale in colour and rich in flavour M&S Food and drink news Office teabags contain 17 times more germs than a toilet seat, reveals study The average bacterial reading of an office teabag was 3,785, in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. Other pieces of kitchen equipment also stacked up highly in their findings, with the bacterial readings averaging at 2,483 on kettle handles, 1,746 on the rim of a used mug and 1,592 on a fridge door handle Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New study shows drinking more coffee leads to a longer life There is good news and a final hope for coffee addicts and lovers. You will now be able to drink coffee for longer as new study shows its can lead to a prolonged life. Scientists showed that those who drank between two and four cups of coffee a day had 18% lower risk of death compared to non-coffee drinkers. PA Food and drink news Coke Zero is replaced with Coke Zero Sugar Coca-Cola is pulling the plug on its Coke Zero. The much loved drink will be replaced with a new improved taste. The move, backed with a 10 million campaign, is said to come from Coca-Cola supporting people to reduce their sugar intake. Coca-Cola want people make this move while not sacrificing sugary taste of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Food and drink news Starbucks introduce new avocado spread The avocado craze has grown from hipster brunch restaurants to Starbucks. Starbucks have introduced their new avocado spread earlier this year and it has the internet in debate. Some argue that it not a spread but guacamole while others question if there is any avocado in there at all. When buying the new spread you can also buy an optional toasted bagel. It is a must try for all avocado connoisseurs. Starbucks Food and drink news New Mars chocolate bar The iconic British chocolate bar is about to get its partner in crime. The new bar, named Goodness Knows, will replace the gooey caramel goodness of the mars bar with oats. It is said to be more like a Florentine biscuit with a thin dark chocolate bottom. While being moderately healthy Mars says that is has good intentions. One pack has 154 calories and will sell for about 90p. Mars Food and drink news Wine prices could increase because of Brexit Wine lovers across the UK might soon have to shell out close to a quarter more for their favourite tipple after Brexit, as a weaker pound and sluggish economy takes its toll, a new study shows Rex Food and drink news Chocolate may be good for the heart A new study, published in the British Medical Journal: Heart, found that moderate chocolate intake can be positively associated with lessening the risk of the heart arrhythmia condition Atrial Fibrillation Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Brits throw away 1.4 million bananas each year British families are throwing away 1.4 million bananas that are perfectly good to eat every day at cost of 80m a year, new figures have shown PA/Armin Weigel Food and drink news Rosemary sales spike over exam time There has been a surge a surge in sales of the herb rosemary after a recent study found it helps improve memory. According to high street health food chain Holland & Barrett, sales of the herb have increased by 187 per cent compared to the same time last year Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Gluten-free diets 'not recommended' for people without coeliac disease Avoiding wheat, barley and rye in the belief that a gluten-free diet brings health benefits may do more harm than good, according to a team of US nutrition and medicine experts Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Starbucks launches two new coffee-based drinks Starbucks is launching two new coffee-based drinks in the UK, as it strives to tap into consumers growing appetite for healthy beverages. The Cold Brew Vanilla sweet cream and the Cappuccino Freddo, will both be available in stores throughout the UK from the start of May Twitter/@SbuxCountyHall Food and drink news Cadburys Dairy Milk Tiffin is making a permanent comeback after 80 years The Cadbury Dairy Milk Tiffin, first produced in 1937, is making a permanent comeback to the UK. The raisin and biscuit-filled chocolate bar is being launched after a successful trial last summer saw 3 million chocolate treats  at the cost of 1.49 for each 95g bar- purchased by nostalgic customers Cadburys Food and drink news Pizza restaurant makes worlds cheesiest 'Scottie's Pizza Parlor' in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Facebook/Scottie's Pizza Parlor Food and drink news A pizza joint in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Why not eating before a workout could be better for your health A study published in the American Journal of Physiology by researchers at the University of Bath found you might be likely to burn more fat if you have not eaten first Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New York restaurant named best in the world A New York restaurant where an average meal for two will cost $700 has been named the best in the world. Eleven Madison Park won the accolade for the first time after debuting on the list at number 50 in 2010. The restaurant was praised for a fun sense of fine-dining, blurring the line between the kitchen and the dining room Getty Images Food and drink news Why you crave bad food when youre tired Researchers at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University in Chicago recently presented their results of a study looking into the effects of sleep deprivation upon high-calorific food consumption. Researchers found that those who were sleep-deprived had specifically enhanced brain activity to the food smells compared to when they had a good nights sleep Shutterstock Food and drink news Drinking wine engages more of your brain than solving maths problems Drinking wine is the ideal workout for your brain, engaging more parts of our grey matter than any other human behaviour, according to a leading neuroscientist. Dr Gordon Shepherd, from the Yale School of Medicine, said sniffing and analysing a wine before drinking it requires exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news British dessert eating surges after people ditch healthy eating in February : In heartening news for anyone feeling guilty about quitting their New Year diet, it seems lots of us have given in to our sweet tooths once again. New data from nationwide food-delivery service Deliveroo reveals there was a surge in Brits ordering desserts in February compared to the first month of 2017 Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news US congress debates definition of milk alternatives A new bill has been created that seeks to ban dairy alternatives from using the term milk. Titled the DAIRY PRIDE Act, the name is a tenuous acronym for defending against imitations and replacements of yogurt, milk, and cheese to promote regular intake of dairy every day. It argues that the dairy industry is struggling as a result of all the dairy-free alternatives on the market and the public are being duped too Getty Images Food and drink news Cadburys launches two new chocolate bars UK confectionary giant Cadbury has launched two new chocolate bars, hoping to lure those with a sweet tooth and perhaps help combat some of the challenges it faces from rising commodity prices and a post-Brexit slump in the value of the pound.The companys new products will be peanut butter and mint flavoured. They will be available in most major super markets as 120g bars, priced at 1.49, according to the company Cadburys Food and drink news You can now get a job as a professional chocolate eater The company responsible for some of your favourite chocolate brands  think Cadbury, Milks, Prince and Oreo  have officially announced an opening to join their team as a professional chocolate taster. The successful candidate will help them to test, perfect and launch new products all over the world. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news MSG additive used in Chinese food is actually good for you, scientist claims For years, weve been told MSG (the sodium salt of glutamic acid) - often associated with cheap Chinese takeaways - is awful for our health and to be avoided at all costs. But one scientist argues it should be used as a supersalt and encourages adding it to food. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Lettuce prices are rising Not only are lettuces becoming an increasingly rare commodity in supermarkets, but prices for the leafy vegetables seem to be rising too. According to the weekly report from the Governments Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a pair of Little Gem lettuces had an average market price of 0.86 in the week that ended on Friday, up from an average of 0.56 in the previous week  thats an almost 54 per cent increase. Getty Images Food and drink news Do-It-Yourself restaurant To encourage more people to cook and eat together, IKEA has launched The Dining Club in Shoreditch  a fully immersive Do-It-Yourself restaurant . Members of the public can book to host a brunch, lunch or dinner party for up to 20 friends and family. Supported by their very own sous chef and maitre de, the host and their guests will orchestrate an intimate dining experience where cooking together is celebrated and eating together is inspirational Mikael Buck / IKEA Food and drink news Ping Pong menu with a twist Gatwick Airport has teamed up with London dim sum restaurant Ping Pong to create a limited edition menu with a distinctly British twist; including a Full English Bao and Beef Wellington Puff, to celebrate the launch of the airports new route to Hong Kong Food and drink news Zizzi unveil the Maamgharita Unique pizza art has been created by Zizzi in celebration of the Queens 90th birthday. The pizza features the queen in an iconic pose illustrated with fresh and tasty Italian ingredients on a backdrop of the Union Jack Food and drink news Blue potatoes make a comeback Blue potatoes, once a staple part of British potato crops, are back on the menu thanks to a Cambridge scientist turned-organic farmer and Farmdrop, an online marketplace that lets people buy direct from local farms. Cambridge PhD graduate-turned farmer, Adrian Izzard has used traditional growing techniques at Wild Country Organics to produce the colourful spuds, packed with healthy cell-protecting anthocyanin, which had previously disappeared from UK plates when post-war farmers were pushed towards higher-yielding varieties

Hummingbird Verdelho 2016

A beguiling white made from a grape more associated with the Portuguese island of Madeira: so different from many big Aussie whites: this is relatively low in alcohol at 12.5pc, crisp, refreshing with a lovely blend of citrus, tropical fruit flavours and a hint of creaminess giving extra body. A great match for any shellfish or lighter fish dishes.

9.99 virginwines.co.uk
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The morning after pill should be available to buy straight off the shelf without the need for an unnecessary and embarrassing consultation, a leading reproductive rights charity has said.

The current requirement for women to speak with their pharmacist before they can buy emergency contraception is patronising and insulting, according to the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (Bpas).

Bpas also demanded a drop in the price of the morning after pill, which usually costs around 25 to 30 at chemists, to bring the UK in line with other European countries where it is cheaper.

Katherine OBrien, a Bpas spokesperson, told The Independent restrictions on the sale of emergency contraception were outdated.

Its based on a really weird view of women, a really outdated and patronising view that we cant be trusted with this medication or well be reckless, itll be one-night stands left right and centre, she said.

I dont think that is how women view things.

The high price of the morning after pill in the UK is set deliberately to prevent women from taking it too often, according to a 2003 report in the Pharmaceutical Journal.

Levonelle costs 24 from pharmacies. The price has been set, in part, to ensure that [emergency hormonal contraception] is not used as a regular method of contraception, a spokeswoman for morning after pill Levonelles manufacturer told the journal at the time.

Emergency contraceptive pills Levonelle and ellaOne are available free of charge from most GP surgeries and specialist NHS clinics, as well as pharmacies in some areas where they are provided by the local health authority.

But the pills are more effective the earlier they are taken, and many women have no choice but to buy them over the counter as appointments were difficult to obtain amid cuts to sexual health services, said Bpas.

Emergency contraceptive pill EllaOne (Rex Features)

Advice on the NHS website states that Levonelle, which can be taken within three days of unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy, is likely to cost around 25 and can only be bought by those over 16.

And ellaOne, which can be taken within five days of unprotected sex, costs around 35, according to the site.

Ms OBrien said the pricing, which is more than in most other European countries including France, where the morning after pill costs around 7, and Portugal, where it costs around 12.50, seemed very odd.

It is a method of contraception, it prevents a pregnancy, and if thats what women need to use to do that then surely we should be supporting them to do so, she said.

It seems a very odd way of pricing an important method of contraception thats incredibly safe  a lot safer than some of the other medications that you can just pick up and buy from the shelves.

Bpas, which is the UKs largest provider of abortion services, said one reason the price of emergency contraception is so high is due to the compulsory consultation requirement.

It called for the medicine to be reclassified as a General Sales List drug, so it could be sold off the shelf as in other countries, and urged the Department of Health to launch a review into its accessibility.

The charity said it regularly worked with women experiencing unplanned pregnancy who had been deterred from taking emergency contraception because of obstacles including the price.

For some women, having an opportunity to talk about their contraceptive needs can be very useful. But for some women, its unnecessary, and for some women it can be embarrassing, and theres a feeling of judgement, said OBrien.

In some larger pharmacies, you can be given the option of going to a separate room or area, but sometimes these very personal questions are delivered to women in a queue on their lunchbreak in a really busy pharmacy. Thats quite embarrassing.

The Department of Health said it had no plans to change the system regarding access to emergency contraception and that the government did not control the price at which medicines are sold over the counter.

Emergency contraception is available free of charge from general practice, sexual health clinics and from some community pharmacies, said a Department of Health spokesperson.

We are clear it is only for use in emergencies and we have no plans to change the system.

Among women aged between 16 and 45, 29 per cent had had unprotected sex at least once in the last year, according to a 2014 study into use and attitudes towards emergency contraception, published in the European Journal of Contraception and Reproductive Health Care.

Of those, around two thirds said they had not taken emergency contraception following unprotected sex.

The most common reasons given for this were that they did not think they were at risk of pregnancy, misconceptions about emergency contraception, or not knowing where to find it.

In the UK, 11 per cent of women said they had not used emergency contraception because they were embarrassed to ask for it, compared to six per cent in all countries and just two per cent in Spain.

In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris Show all 8 1 /8 In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris A protester (R) holds a sign reading 'Prostitutes with fists raised against the penalisation of clients!' during a demonstration by sex workers and supporters near the French National Assembly in Paris In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris A protester wears a hat rimmed with red roses during a demonstration by sex workers and supporters near the French National Assembly in Paris In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris Sex workers hold signs during a protest against new bill against prostitution and sex trafficking In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris Transgender sex workers protest against a parliamentary vote to enforce the penalisation of solicitation, near the Assemblee Nationale (French parliament) in Paris In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris A protester wears a mask during a demonstration by sex workers and supporters near the French National Assembly in Paris In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris Protesters wear masks during a demonstration by sex workers and supporters near the French National Assembly in Paris, as French lawmakers take part in a final debate on a bill that would make it illegal to pay for sex. French lawmakers were poised on April 6 to pass a controversial law that makes it illegal to pay for sex and imposes fines of up to 3,500 euros ($3,970) on prostitutes' clients In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris Protesters hold up their fists and chant slogans during a demonstration by sex workers and supporters near the French National Assembly in Paris In pictures: Sex workers protest in Paris Protesters hold a banner reading 'Don't liberate me, I'll take care of it myself!'

Sandra Gidley, the chair of the Royal Society of Pharmacists, said she supported the continuation of consultations before women can buy the morning after pill at a pharmacy.

Having a discussion with the pharmacist is central to providing emergency contraception, she said.

A consultation firstly helps define if it will be effective by being taken within the right time frame. It further supports a woman to consider her future use of contraception, her risk of sexually transmitted infections and help with any other sexual health questions she may have.

Ms Gidley said the consultation was free, and unconnected to the cost of the product.

We fully support NHS schemes that allow women to access emergency contraception free of charge through community pharmacy and would like to see wider roll out of these services across the country.

And Norman Wells of the Family Education Trust expressed concern that the morning after pill could be misused or overused if no medical history questions were asked before it was bought.

Genevieve Edwards, director of policy for Marie Stopes UK, said "anything which makes it easier for women to safely get hold of emergency contraception would be welcome".

"We all know how hard it can be to get a doctor's appointment, leaving many women with no other option than an embarrassing conversation next to someone buying athlete's foot cream and stumping up 20 to 40 for the privilege, or in the worst cases being discouraged from seeking the care they need."

According to the NHS, there are no serious side effects of using emergency contraception such as Levonelle and ellaOne.

An intrauterine device (IUD), or coil, can also prevent unwanted pregnancy if it is inserted up to five days after unprotected sex.
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Cadbury is pulling out of the Fairtrade scheme, after seven years of giving some of its best-known chocolate treats an ethical stamp of approval, in favour of its own sustainability programme  Cocoa Life scheme.

The Fairtrade logo is awarded to products that meet strict criteria such as paying farmers minimum price for cocoa.

Cocoa Life branding will replace the Fairtrade logo, currently on the front of plain Cadbury Dairy Milk bars, from May. Products such as Cadbury Dinking Chocolate, Dairy Milk Buttons and Giant Buttons will follow.

The Fairtrade logo will now be transferred to the back of the products' packaging as a partner on the ground that Fairtrade will continue to monitor the company's work.

Mondelez International, Cadburys US owner, said the move was a groundbreaking commitment. However, the decision has been received by criticism from many in the industry.

We are shocked by this move. It feels like a classic Cadburys fudge because they will have dropped Fairtrade ingredients but hope to get the Fairtrade logo on their bars of chocolate. This action will confuse the consumer and many now believe this may put the Fairtrade scheme at risk. David Marshall, the founder of the The Meaningful Chocolate Company, a small British Fairtrade-only producer, told The Daily Telegraph.

 Chocolate is good for your brain

Many big firms resisted the Fairtrade movement for decades but have gradually started to come over. Many will be saddened that Cadbury has decided to reverse this trend, he added.

Anna Taylor, executive director of the Food Foundation, said she feared the Fairtrade mark could be threatened from less transparent company promises.

She was said: The UK leads the world in Fairtrade with more products and more awareness than anywhere else, and we have seen a rapid rise in sales in the last two decades.

"But for growth to continue, which I hope it will, consumers must trust, see and recognise the mark. If every company has their own mark it will be extremely difficult for consumers to determine which mark represents the best, independently verified standard."

Under existing Fairtrade rules, companies are made to pay cocoa farmers at least $2,000 (1,600) per tonne of cocoa. Such a rule does not exist under the Cocoa Life programme, although Cadburys agreement with Fairtrade to keep the logo on the back of their chocolate bars demands that farmers should not be worse off under the new scheme.

A Mondelez spokesman said: The partnership with Cocoa Life will ensure that farmers receive a competitive price for their cocoa, on clear terms of trade, and loyalty payments, which together with programme investments will deliver value per farmer at least equivalent to that previously delivered by Fairtrade premiums. An increase in the quantity of sustainably sourced cocoa that Cadbury buys from farmers means that we will be able to reach more farmers.

Mike Gidney, chief executive of the Fairtrade Foundation, said: We will be holding Cadbury to the agreement that the financial package is at least as good as the farmers would get for Fairtrade."

Green & Blacks, bought in 2005 by Cadbury, last week announced it has begun using non-organic chocolate for the first time since it was founded in 1991.

Food and drink news Show all 35 1 /35 Food and drink news Food and drink news Healthy living makes us more inclined to binge, research suggests Gluten-free breads, dairy-free milks and other plant-based products have been some of the most favoured foods in British supermarkets this year. However, while were busy filling our shopping trolleys with gluten-free goodness, were also jamming it with junk food and alcohol, new research suggests Getty/iStock Food and drink news Growing list of Vegan celebs Making the switch to veganism is a major lifestyle choice, one that many claim can improve energy levels, lower the risk of cardiovascular disease and clear up any skin issues. Beyonce, Natalie Portman and Jessica Chastain are among the growing list of Hollywood stars who have eschewed animal products from their diets in recent years. Theres also been an increasing number of professional athletes who have gone vegan, such as boxing champions Mike Tyson and David Haye, thus debunking the myth that following a plant-based diet will leave you feeling weak and malnourished. AFP/Getty/NARAS/iHeartMedia Food and drink news McDonald's has announced the launch of a new vegan burger on its menu in Germany This will mark the first time the German franchise of the fast food chain has offered a vegan burger to its customers. The Big Vegan TS burger consists of a patty made from soy and wheat. It is served in a classic sesame seed bun, and contains salad, tomato, pickles and red onion. McDonald's Germany Food and drink news Drinking too many protein shakes could lead to an increased risk of obesity and a reduced lifespan, a new study has claimed Researchers from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre carried out an investigation to determine the impact excessive consumption of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) has on the body. BCAA supplements are often consumed in the form of powder, which is then added to water to make a shake. Published in journal Nature Metabolism, the study found that while BCAAs help to build muscle, they can also negatively impact an individual's temperament, cause weight gain and lead to a shortened lifespan Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Britain consumes more chocolate than any other country Most people love chocolate but it turns out no one does more than the Brits  with the average Brit found to have consumed 8.4 kg of chocolate in 2017, according to new data. Chocolate consumption around the world is on the rise, according to Mintel Global New Products Database (GNPD), which found that in the past year alone, Easter chocolate production has risen by 23 per cent Food and drink news 'Easter eggs should be banned for children under four' Dr Becky Spelman, chief psychologist at Harley Streets Private Therapy Clinic, is calling for Easter eggs to be banned for consumption for children under the age of four, claiming that giving them the opportunity to binge on chocolate so young will give them an unhealthy relationship with food later on. "This is a nightmare situation for parents of this generation as they have no idea how to teach their children to delay their response to cravings, she said, explaining that too many young kids binge on these chocolates because their parents dont know how to stop them. "Once a child starts overeating behaviour at a young age its very hard to turn things around for them in terms of food and their eating habits moving forward, leading to obesity from at very young age," she added PA Food and drink news Pineapple overtakes avocado as the UK's fastest-selling fruit According to Tesco, pineapple has overtaken avocado as the UKs fastest-selling fruit, with sales increasing by 15 per cent in 2017. In comparison, avocado sales rose by just under 10 per cent last year. The popular supermarket says the surge in popularity comes as shoppers buying the versatile fruit are beginning to use it as a main ingredient in everything from curries and barbecues, to juices and cocktails Getty Food and drink news Marks & Spencers launches stoneless avocados Rather than the result of genetic modification, the avocados are formed by an unpollinated avocado blossom. The fruit develops without a seed which in turns stops the growth, creating a small, seedless fruit. Whats more, the skin is actually edible, unlike a regular avocado. The flesh is much like that of a normal avocado - smooth and creamy, pale in colour and rich in flavour M&S Food and drink news Office teabags contain 17 times more germs than a toilet seat, reveals study The average bacterial reading of an office teabag was 3,785, in comparison to only 220 for a toilet seat. Other pieces of kitchen equipment also stacked up highly in their findings, with the bacterial readings averaging at 2,483 on kettle handles, 1,746 on the rim of a used mug and 1,592 on a fridge door handle Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New study shows drinking more coffee leads to a longer life There is good news and a final hope for coffee addicts and lovers. You will now be able to drink coffee for longer as new study shows its can lead to a prolonged life. Scientists showed that those who drank between two and four cups of coffee a day had 18% lower risk of death compared to non-coffee drinkers. PA Food and drink news Coke Zero is replaced with Coke Zero Sugar Coca-Cola is pulling the plug on its Coke Zero. The much loved drink will be replaced with a new improved taste. The move, backed with a 10 million campaign, is said to come from Coca-Cola supporting people to reduce their sugar intake. Coca-Cola want people make this move while not sacrificing sugary taste of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola Food and drink news Starbucks introduce new avocado spread The avocado craze has grown from hipster brunch restaurants to Starbucks. Starbucks have introduced their new avocado spread earlier this year and it has the internet in debate. Some argue that it not a spread but guacamole while others question if there is any avocado in there at all. When buying the new spread you can also buy an optional toasted bagel. It is a must try for all avocado connoisseurs. Starbucks Food and drink news New Mars chocolate bar The iconic British chocolate bar is about to get its partner in crime. The new bar, named Goodness Knows, will replace the gooey caramel goodness of the mars bar with oats. It is said to be more like a Florentine biscuit with a thin dark chocolate bottom. While being moderately healthy Mars says that is has good intentions. One pack has 154 calories and will sell for about 90p. Mars Food and drink news Wine prices could increase because of Brexit Wine lovers across the UK might soon have to shell out close to a quarter more for their favourite tipple after Brexit, as a weaker pound and sluggish economy takes its toll, a new study shows Rex Food and drink news Chocolate may be good for the heart A new study, published in the British Medical Journal: Heart, found that moderate chocolate intake can be positively associated with lessening the risk of the heart arrhythmia condition Atrial Fibrillation Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Brits throw away 1.4 million bananas each year British families are throwing away 1.4 million bananas that are perfectly good to eat every day at cost of 80m a year, new figures have shown PA/Armin Weigel Food and drink news Rosemary sales spike over exam time There has been a surge a surge in sales of the herb rosemary after a recent study found it helps improve memory. According to high street health food chain Holland & Barrett, sales of the herb have increased by 187 per cent compared to the same time last year Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Gluten-free diets 'not recommended' for people without coeliac disease Avoiding wheat, barley and rye in the belief that a gluten-free diet brings health benefits may do more harm than good, according to a team of US nutrition and medicine experts Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Starbucks launches two new coffee-based drinks Starbucks is launching two new coffee-based drinks in the UK, as it strives to tap into consumers growing appetite for healthy beverages. The Cold Brew Vanilla sweet cream and the Cappuccino Freddo, will both be available in stores throughout the UK from the start of May Twitter/@SbuxCountyHall Food and drink news Cadburys Dairy Milk Tiffin is making a permanent comeback after 80 years The Cadbury Dairy Milk Tiffin, first produced in 1937, is making a permanent comeback to the UK. The raisin and biscuit-filled chocolate bar is being launched after a successful trial last summer saw 3 million chocolate treats  at the cost of 1.49 for each 95g bar- purchased by nostalgic customers Cadburys Food and drink news Pizza restaurant makes worlds cheesiest 'Scottie's Pizza Parlor' in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Facebook/Scottie's Pizza Parlor Food and drink news A pizza joint in Portland Oregon has created the worlds cheesiest pizza using a total of 101 different cheese varieties. Why not eating before a workout could be better for your health A study published in the American Journal of Physiology by researchers at the University of Bath found you might be likely to burn more fat if you have not eaten first Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news New York restaurant named best in the world A New York restaurant where an average meal for two will cost $700 has been named the best in the world. Eleven Madison Park won the accolade for the first time after debuting on the list at number 50 in 2010. The restaurant was praised for a fun sense of fine-dining, blurring the line between the kitchen and the dining room Getty Images Food and drink news Why you crave bad food when youre tired Researchers at Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University in Chicago recently presented their results of a study looking into the effects of sleep deprivation upon high-calorific food consumption. Researchers found that those who were sleep-deprived had specifically enhanced brain activity to the food smells compared to when they had a good nights sleep Shutterstock Food and drink news Drinking wine engages more of your brain than solving maths problems Drinking wine is the ideal workout for your brain, engaging more parts of our grey matter than any other human behaviour, according to a leading neuroscientist. Dr Gordon Shepherd, from the Yale School of Medicine, said sniffing and analysing a wine before drinking it requires exquisite control of one of the biggest muscles in the body Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news British dessert eating surges after people ditch healthy eating in February : In heartening news for anyone feeling guilty about quitting their New Year diet, it seems lots of us have given in to our sweet tooths once again. New data from nationwide food-delivery service Deliveroo reveals there was a surge in Brits ordering desserts in February compared to the first month of 2017 Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news US congress debates definition of milk alternatives A new bill has been created that seeks to ban dairy alternatives from using the term milk. Titled the DAIRY PRIDE Act, the name is a tenuous acronym for defending against imitations and replacements of yogurt, milk, and cheese to promote regular intake of dairy every day. It argues that the dairy industry is struggling as a result of all the dairy-free alternatives on the market and the public are being duped too Getty Images Food and drink news Cadburys launches two new chocolate bars UK confectionary giant Cadbury has launched two new chocolate bars, hoping to lure those with a sweet tooth and perhaps help combat some of the challenges it faces from rising commodity prices and a post-Brexit slump in the value of the pound.The companys new products will be peanut butter and mint flavoured. They will be available in most major super markets as 120g bars, priced at 1.49, according to the company Cadburys Food and drink news You can now get a job as a professional chocolate eater The company responsible for some of your favourite chocolate brands  think Cadbury, Milks, Prince and Oreo  have officially announced an opening to join their team as a professional chocolate taster. The successful candidate will help them to test, perfect and launch new products all over the world. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news MSG additive used in Chinese food is actually good for you, scientist claims For years, weve been told MSG (the sodium salt of glutamic acid) - often associated with cheap Chinese takeaways - is awful for our health and to be avoided at all costs. But one scientist argues it should be used as a supersalt and encourages adding it to food. Getty Images/iStockphoto Food and drink news Lettuce prices are rising Not only are lettuces becoming an increasingly rare commodity in supermarkets, but prices for the leafy vegetables seem to be rising too. According to the weekly report from the Governments Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, a pair of Little Gem lettuces had an average market price of 0.86 in the week that ended on Friday, up from an average of 0.56 in the previous week  thats an almost 54 per cent increase. Getty Images Food and drink news Do-It-Yourself restaurant To encourage more people to cook and eat together, IKEA has launched The Dining Club in Shoreditch  a fully immersive Do-It-Yourself restaurant . Members of the public can book to host a brunch, lunch or dinner party for up to 20 friends and family. Supported by their very own sous chef and maitre de, the host and their guests will orchestrate an intimate dining experience where cooking together is celebrated and eating together is inspirational Mikael Buck / IKEA Food and drink news Ping Pong menu with a twist Gatwick Airport has teamed up with London dim sum restaurant Ping Pong to create a limited edition menu with a distinctly British twist; including a Full English Bao and Beef Wellington Puff, to celebrate the launch of the airports new route to Hong Kong Food and drink news Zizzi unveil the Maamgharita Unique pizza art has been created by Zizzi in celebration of the Queens 90th birthday. The pizza features the queen in an iconic pose illustrated with fresh and tasty Italian ingredients on a backdrop of the Union Jack Food and drink news Blue potatoes make a comeback Blue potatoes, once a staple part of British potato crops, are back on the menu thanks to a Cambridge scientist turned-organic farmer and Farmdrop, an online marketplace that lets people buy direct from local farms. Cambridge PhD graduate-turned farmer, Adrian Izzard has used traditional growing techniques at Wild Country Organics to produce the colourful spuds, packed with healthy cell-protecting anthocyanin, which had previously disappeared from UK plates when post-war farmers were pushed towards higher-yielding varieties

The upmarket chocolate brand is known for its products with the word organic printed in pride of place below the company logo  but the word has been dropped for a new range in the US.

A Green & Black's spokesperson confirmed the new range was not organic, but would sit alongside the classic Green & Black's range, which will continue to be organic.
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The chaos - and sheer bewilderment - within Hillary Clintons camp on election night was on public display. Even as losses in vital states such as Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania trickled in, the campaign refused to admit defeat.

Theyre still counting votes and every vote should count. Several states are too close to call, so were not gonna have anything more to say tonight, campaign chairman John Podesta told supporters. Yet shortly afterwards, Ms Clinton called her rival Donald Trump to concede.

The trigger for that move, according to a new report, was a call to Ms Clinton from President Barack Obama. You need to concede, Mr Obama told his former secretary of state.

Shortly afterwards, sitting in a room at the Peninsula Hotel in New York, she picked picked up the phone to call the man with whom she had been engaged in probably the ugliest presidential fight in modern US history.

The details are contained forthcoming book on Ms Clintons defeat and revealed on Monday by The Hill. The book by Amie Parnes and Jonathan Allen, cites three sources from the Clinton camp who were familiar with the way the election night defeat played out.

The report said that Mr Obamas call left a bad taste in the mouths of some Ms Clintons supporters, who thought she should have clung on.

 Clinton campaign not admitting defeat

There was a lot of discussion about Michigan and Wisconsin and whether the numbers could flip it, said one of the sources.

Yet after receiving Mr Obamas call, Ms Clinton decided to take the momentous decision to aknowledge the loss, and call Mr Trump.

Just give me the phone, she reportedly said. Im calling him.

There was apparently also disagreement between Ms Clintons camp and the White House on whether to support a ballot recount effort launched by Green Party leader Jill Stein.

On Saturday, Ms Clintons campaign confirmed that it was supporting the effort to recount some votes in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

Ms Stein officially filed a recount request in Wisconsin on Friday afternoon, and her campaign has said she hopes to also push through recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania. The Wisconsin Elections Commission said it has a December 13 deadline to complete the recount of more than 2.9m votes.

Writing on Medium, the Clinton campaigns chief legal advisor, Marc Elias, said a decision had been taken to participate even though it had found no evidence itself of any hacking of the voting systems in any of the states, as some have suggested.

Because we had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves, but now that a recount has been initiated in Wisconsin, we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides, he wrote.

Mr Trump has denounced the recount effort and accused Ms Clinton, who beat him in the popular vote by more than two million votes, of hypocrisy. Early on Sunday, he took to Twitter, to repeat his condemnation of the move.

Hilary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in, he wrote. Nothing will change.

Later, Mr Trump said - without providing any evidence - that he would have won the popular vote as well, but for the millions of people had voted illegally in the election.
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A young white man accused of shooting dead nine black people in an historic black church has been given permission to represent himself in a trial that carries the death penalty.

A judge on Monday said Dylann Roof could act as his own lawyer and that he would reluctantly accept his unwise decision to do so. His lawyers had advised him not to.

The ruling by US District Judge Richard Gergel came on a day that jury selection resumed in the case. It had been halted last week while the judge heard medical testimony to determine whether or not the young man was mentally competent to stand trial.

Nine people were killed in June 2015 inside Charleston's Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church (Andrew Buncombe)

After hearing from various experts, Judge Gergel decided that he was fit to be tried over the June 2015 shooting at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina.

In this federal case, Mr Roof is charged with counts that include hate crimes and obstruction of religion. He also faces nine counts of murder and other charges in the state court system. His trial in that case is scheduled to start in January 2017.

 Dylann Roof in court

The Associated Press said that from Monday, 516 potential jurors were to report to the courthouse to be individually questioned by the judge. When 70 qualified jurors are picked, lawyers can use strikes to dismiss those they do not want, until 12 jurors and six alternates are seated.

The judge had delayed the process, and ordered the competency hearing after Mr Roofs lawyers suggested their client either did not understand the charges against him or could not properly help with his defence. The lawyers did not say what led them to question Mr Roofs fitness for trial.

In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Show all 10 1 /10 In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof poses with a gun In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof spitting on the American flag In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof poses with a confederate flag and a gun In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof poses with a gun In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof outside the 'Museum and Library of Confederate History' In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures The number 1488 is often associated with neo-Nazi culture In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures In pictures: Images attached to Dylann Storm Roof 'manifesto' Dylann Storm Roof 'Manifesto' pictures Dylann Storm Roof

AP reported that the judge said he took the rare step of closing the hearing to the public and media because Mr Roof made statements to a psychologist that might not be legal to use at his trial and could taint potential jurors.

In his written order, the judge also did not make clear his reasoning. Last Friday, the judge said he refrained from releasing a transcript of the hearing for the same reason, reversing an earlier pledge to release a redacted transcript.

The relatives had complained about the secrecy surrounding the proceedings, but Judge Gergel said he had taken the steps in order to ensure Mr Roof received a fair trial over an incident that had received huge publicity.

According to police, Mr Roof sat through nearly an hour of prayer and bible study at the church with its pastor and 11 others before pulling a gun and opening fire.

In the aftermath of the shooting, an online manifesto was discovered that had been penned by Mr Roof in which he outlined a racist worldview. Also discovered were a series of photographs of him posing with a handgun, a confederate flag and at various sites associated with the US Civil War. He also posed for photographs at former slave plantations.
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After swapping suits for sequins, Ed Balls is now facing calls for a return to politics after being eliminated from Strictly.

The former Shadow Chancellor has left viewers devastated after being the most recent contestant to leave Strictly Come Dancing on Sunday night after a solid run of entertaining dances which were a far cry from his days arguing in the House of Commons.

The technical dance ability he lacked was made up in the form of personality and passion and viewers rallied to keep the former Labour MP in the competition week after week often at the expense of better dancers.

Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Show all 12 1 /12 Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Ore Oduba puts his claim in for the Glitterball with Joanne Clifton BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Judge Robert Rinder dancing the cha cha with Oksana Platero BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Lesley Joseph dancing with Anton Du Beke to 'What'll I Do' by Alison Krauss BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Greg Rutherford dancing with Natalie Lowe on Strictly Come Dancing BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Greg Rutherford hit the dancefloor like a maniac BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Laura Whitmore cha chas with Giovanni Pernice to the tune of 'Venus' BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Pasha Kovalev dances with BBC Breakfast presenter Naga Munchetty BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Ore threw some energetic jumps into the mix BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Laura Whitmore and Giovanni Pernice opened the series with a cha cha BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Judge Robert Rinder played on his legal prowess for his first dance BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures Lesley Joseph was waltzed around the ballroom by Strictly legend Anton Du Beke BBC/Guy Levy Strictly Come Dancing 2016 in pictures You go Greg! BBC/Guy Levy

After his exit, Balls fans have begun to call for him to return to politics while journalists and politicians have pondered whether a comeback might be on the cards.

Balls lost his seat in Morley and Outwood by 422 votes to the Conservative MP Andrea Jenkyns during the 2015 General Election which saw the Tory party elected by a majority. It ended the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition government and the political careers of several high-profile Liberal Democrat and Labour MPs partially thanks to the Scottish National Party gaining unprecedented momentum in Scotland.

Even Conservative MPs are acutely aware of Balls' rise in popularity if the following tweet from the North East Bedfordshire MP Alistair Burt is anything to go by:

Balls run on Strictly has seen politicians from all sides of the spectrum unite in their support for him with former Prime Minister David Cameron congratulating him last night and his former nemesis George Osborne sending messages of support throughout the series.

His wife Yvette Cooper MP, who was defeated by Jeremy Corbyn in last years Labour leadership contest, has been spotted laughing in the audience and supporting her husband throughout the series.
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Justin Trudeau has defended his warm tribute to Fidel Castro but attempted to provide some historical context to his statement, insisting he is fully aware of the late Cuban leaders human rights record.

The Canadian Prime Minister prompted outrage for praising the former Cuban leader and revolutionary who has left behind a profoundly divided legacy. He hailed Castro, who died at the age of 90 on Friday, as a remarkable leader and a legendary revolutionary and orator and fondly remembered his late fathers friendship with Castro.

Mr Trudeau quickly found himself mocked on social media, with the Twitter hashtag #trudeaueulogies trending. People mocked his genial tone as they sardonically paid tribute to figures such as Osama Bin Laden, Benito Mussolini and Joseph Stalin.

The politician was condemned by some Conservative politicians in Canada and US Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, who are both of Cuban descent, for his remarks.

Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro in Havana, Cuba Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban president Fidel Castro looking at a rifle during a visit in North Vietnam during the Vietnam war Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro in Matanzas, Cuba, on the 46th anniversary of the assault on the Moncada Barracks by Castro's rebels. The attack marked the beginning of the Cuban revolution, which eventually propelled Castro to power Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro with his first wife Mirta and his son Fidelito Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro at his 'Guerrilla Man of Time' book launch in Havana, Cuba Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro delivers a speech attacking media organizations and groups opposed to his government in the wake of rumours of his death Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro playing Basketball Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Watched by Russian premier Nikita Khrushchev, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro takes a photograph of Moscow during his first visit to Russia Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban president Fidel Castro attends a protest against the US embargo of Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro and Osvaldo Dorticos Torrado talking to Cuban medical staff who are going to Peru to help with the aftermath of an earthquake Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro relaxing at a sugar plantation near Havana, surrounded by children Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro presides over a massive May Day demonstration at Havana's Plaza de la Revolucion (Revolution Square Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban leader Fidel Castro is presented with an invitation to the New York Press Photographer's Ball, in New York City Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro, Prime Minister of the Cuban Revolutionary government and first secretary of the Cuban Communist Party, and Ernesto Guevara known as Che, minister of Industry in Havana, Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro waves to participants of the traditional May Day parade attended by thousands of people in Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro with Argentine guerrilla leader Ernesto Che Guevara Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Pope Benedict XVI meets with former Cuban President Fidel Castro at the Vatican embassy in Havana, Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro and Soviet politician Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev in Moscow Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Iraqi vice-president Saddam Hussein, stands with Cuban President Fidel Castro and Defense minister General Raul Castro in Havana, during his visit to Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and former Cuban leader Fidel Castro Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro listens to Pope John Paul II as they walk on the tarmac of the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro with Chavez in Cuba Getty Images Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro greets Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe in Havana Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro with Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 2000. The two friends first met in 1959 AFP/Getty Images Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Mandela salutes the crowd alongside Fidel Castro in Matanzas Getty

Speaking at a news conference in Madagascar on Sunday, Mr Trudeau stood by his initial remarks but sought to provide a more balanced perspective on Castro.

Fidel Castro had a deep and lasting impact on the Cuban people, he told reporters.

He certainly was a polarising figure and there certainly were significant concerns around human rights. Thats something Im open about and that Ive highlighted.

But on the passing of his death I expressed a statement that highlighted the deep connection between the people of Canada and the people of Cuba. Canadians know that I always talk about human rights, including here yesterday, including with Raul Castro two weeks ago, including wherever I go in the world.

When probed about whether he thought Castro was a dictator, he said: Yes.

Canada has been one of Cubas closest western allies for a long time and the countries sustained their connection after the Cuban revolution in 1959. Whats more, Castro was an honorary pallbearer at the funeral of Mr Trudeaus father and former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in 2000. On top of this, his father was the first leader of a Nato member state to visit communist Cuba in 1976.

While a controversial figure, both Mr Castros supporters and detractors recognised his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for el Comandante, Mr Trudeau said in his initial statement.

I know my father was very proud to call him a friend and I had the opportunity to meet Fidel when my father passed away. It was also a real honour to meet his three sons and his brother President Raul Castro during my recent visit to Cuba.

On Sunday, some Conservative opposition lawmakers advised Mr Trudeau to boycott Castros funeral. The Prime Ministers office have made it clear that no decision had yet to be made on who was going to represent Canada at the funeral.

Castro was a deeply divisive figure in life and death. Reactions to his passing have ranged from street celebrations in Miami to solemn mourning in Cuba and melancholic tributes. While his supporters hail him as the leader of the revolution which returned to its people and praise him for bringing universal free education and healthcare to Cuba, his detractors condemn his human rights record and say he suppressed dissent.
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Halima Aden will be the first woman to compete in the Miss Minnesota USA Pageant while wearing a hijab and burkini.

Ms Aden, 19, a Somali-American in the northern state, won a competition over the weekend sending her to the semi-finals.

Her presence in the competition comes at a time when Muslim representation is important in the US. In the wake of Donald Trumps election to the presidency, the Southern Poverty Law Centre has received hundreds of reports of Islamophobic hate crimes and harassment. Mr Trump campaigned on hardline anti-Muslim rhetoric throughout candidacy.

But Ms Aden hopes that her appearance in the pageant will help in the fight against negative stereotypes of Muslim people in the US.

The people that are doing bad things, they dont represent an entire group, she told ABC 7. I feel like Im here to bust those misconceptions and stereotypes of Muslim women.

The decision to allow Ms Aden compete in her hijab and burkini was simple for pageant organisers.

The organisation continues to evolve as women evolve, the director of Miss Minnesota USA and Miss Minnesota Teen USA, Denise Wallace, said. The Miss Universe organisation is proud to be the forefront of the diversity of beauty.

Ms Adem was born in a Kenyan refugee camp and immigrated to the with her family when she was six. And she says she has found a support from her fellow contestants.

A lot of girls were very supportive of what Im doing, and that just makes it all worth it, she said, and my advice to them is just be confident in your own skin, know that an extra layer of clothing does not define your beauty, because beauty is within."
Just prior to the 2016 IPCPR Trade Show, Steve Sakas Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust announced two line extensions to its Sobremesa line. The two new sizes introduced were the 7 x 50 Elegante en Cedro (Double Corona) and the 4 3/4 x 48 Short Churchill. While these cigars keep to the core tobacco components used in the rest of the Sobremesa line, the blends for these sizes were tweaked to be bolder. Saka has referred to these tweaks as poco mas intensa  meaning a little more intense. With the Sobremesa Short Churchill, this has become a go to cigar for Saka himself. Saka had been known to smoke the Liga Privada Unico Serie Dirty Rat on a daily basis, but also gone through quite a bit of his remaining personal stock of that cigar. As a result, the Sobremesa Short Churchill has taken on the role of Sakas daily smoke. Recently Ive had an opportunity to smoke the Sobremesa. Overall Sobremesa has been a fantastic debut, and with the new Short Churchill offering, this one adds another outstanding offering to the line.

In the press release, additional background on the name of the first cigar Sobremesa was given:

Sobremesa, over the table, has no precise English translation, perhaps because there is no cultural equivalent in the US. It is an idiom used among the Latin culture to describe the leisurely time spent tableside after you have finished dining, but before you rise. It is the experience of lingering casually with family and friends in conversation, relaxing, drinking, smoking, and enjoying each others company. Sobremesa is one of lifes simplest, yet greatest pleasures.

Recently on his Facebook page, Saka explained what Poco Mas Intensa means:

poco mas intensa  my way of describing the new Sobremesa Elegante en Cedros and Short Churchill ligas  they are still the core blend, but tweaked to be a bit stronger. I did this for my own smoking pleasure to satisfy my cravings for a cigar with a more pronounced pepper note within this marca.

Without further ado, lets break down the Sobremesa Short Churchill and see what this cigar brings to the table.

Blend Profile

Sobremesa is a multi-national blend with tobaccos from four countries  Ecuador, Mexico, Nicaragua, and U.S. (Pennsylvania). As we noted, the blends for the Poco Mas Intensa (Short Churchill and Elegante En Cedro) are tweaked from the other sizes to produce a bolder cigar.

The cigar is produced at the Joya de Nicaragua factory. During the process of coming up with Sobremesa line, Saka has been hands-on involved with the process  including the procuring of tobaccos and development of the blend.

Wrapper: La Meca Ecuador Habano Grade 1 Dark Rosado

Binder: Matacapan Negro de Temporal

Filler: Nicaraguan GK Condega C-SG Seco, Nicaraguan Pueblo Nuevo Criollo Viso, Nicaraguan La Joya Esteli, C-98 Viso Nicaraguan ASP Esteli Hybrid Ligero; USA Lancaster County Broadleaf Ligero

Country of Origin: Nicaragua (Joya de Nicaragua SA)

Vitolas Available

The following are the two Poco Mas Intensa offerings in the Sobremesa line:

Elegante en Cedros: 7 x 50

Short Churchill: 4 3/4 x 48

The Elegante en Cedros is packaged in 13 count boxes, while the Short Churchill is packaged in 14 count boxes.

The following vitolas are the first six vitolas that were first released in 2015. These offerings are available in 25 count boxes:

Corona Grande: 5 1/4 x 44

Cervantes Fino: 6 1/4 x 46

Robusto Largo: 5 1/4 x 52

El Americano: 6 x 52

Torpedo Tiempo: 6 x 54

Gran Imperials: 7 x 54

Appearance

The Habano wrapper of the Sobremesa Short Churchill has a chocolate brown color with a slight colorado red tint to it. While there is a very light oil sheen on the surface, I also found the wrapper had a slight coarse feel to it. The visible veins were on the thin side while the wrapper seams are well hidden.

The Short Churchill uses the same banding scheme as the other offerings in the Sobremesa line. It features two bands. The primary band is gold and brown  featuring a large gold crown on the front. The remainder of the band has gold adornments and trim on it.

The secondary band sits on the footer. The band is brown with gold trim. Sitting on the brown background is the text Sobremesa in a cursive-styled font.

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

As I normally do , I started with a straight cut to remove the cap of the Sobremesa Short Churchill. After the cap was clipped, I moved on to the pre-light draw phase. The cold draw delivered subtle notes of cocoa, cedar, white pepper, and a creamy undertone. Overall I considered this to be an excellent pre-light daw. At this point I removed the footer band, lit up the Sobremesa Short Churchill and awaited what the smoking phase would have in store.

Flavor Profile

The Sobremesa Short Churchill picked up where the pre-light draw left off. I detected a mix of cocoa, cedar, white pepper, and a slight cherry note. There also was a creamy undertone to this smoke. It didnt take long for the cocoa notes to move into the forefront. The cedar, cherry, and white pepper notes settled in the background. While these flavors sound like a potpourri of sweetness and spice, there was very much a tobacco feel to these notes. The white pepper had a slight lingering effect on the tongue, but was more prominent on the retro-hale.

During the first third, the cocoa notes remained primary and still had the creamy texture to it. A nut component also surfaced and by the start of the second third, the nut was joined at the hip with he cocoa notes in the forefront. The cedar and cherry sweetness remained in the background. The white pepper slightly increased on the tongue as well. Meanwhile the retro-hale was now producing notes of cedar in addition to the white pepper.

Just past the midway point of the Sobremesa Short Churchill I found the nut flavors had the slight edge. The cocoa notes became a close secondary note. Some of the creamy texture began to diminish. The spice component consisting of white pepper and cedar was now gradually building up. There still was some cherry sweetness in the background.

By the last third, the cedar and pepper spice had moved toward the forefront. There still was a nice amount of flavor coming from the cocoa, nut, and cherry notes which balanced out the spices quite nicely. The creamy texture had pretty much dissipated. This is the way the Sobremesa Short Churchill came to a close. The resulting nub was firm to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn and Draw

The Sobremesa Short Churchill is a well-constructed cigar and this is reflected in both the burn and draw. The burn maintained a straight burn path and a relatively straight burn line from start to finish. This was a cigar that had a low maintenance burn and did not require excessive touch-ups. The resulting ash was gray in color with some darker speckling. This was an ash that was firm and came off the cigar in clean chunks. As for the burn rate and burn temperature, both were ideal.

As for the draw, the Sobremesa Short Churchill had a touch of resistance  which is something I like. This made this cigar an enjoyable cigar to puff on from start to finish.

Strength and Body

The name poco mas intensa was appropriate for this cigar. I definitely found the Short Churchill to have a more strength and body than the original six Sobremesa vitolas. At the same time, this was not an overpowering uptick. From a strength perspective, I assessed the Sobremesa Short Churchill as being on the upper end of medium. While I also assessed original six vitolas as being medium strength, I still had the Short Churchill as having more in the way of strength.

In terms of the body, the increased level of depth of the Short Churchills flavors was more noticeable. I assessed the Short Churchill as being medium to full-bodied. When it came to strength versus body, I found the body of the Sobremesa Short Churchill as having the edge.

Final Thoughts

One thing that has impressed me with Sobremesa is how each vitola tells its own story in terms of cigar experience. The Sobremesa Short Churchill is no exception. The combination of the tweaked Sobremesa blend with the 4 3/4 x 48 size is going to deliver a cigar experience different than the other sizes  and it works very well. While I did like the additional strength and body the Short Churchill had offer, I enjoyed the flavors produced as well. The Sobremesa line as a whole to be one that has responded very nicely to age. Its been about three months since I first started smoking the Short Churchill, and this is a cigar that continues to get better with time.

This is a cigar that I would recommend to either a novice or experienced cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar I would smoke again. Its a cigar definitely worthy of a box purchase.

Summary

Burn: Excellent

Draw: Excellent

Complexity: Medium to High

Strength: Medium

Body: Medium to Full

Finish: Excellent

Assessment: 4.0-Box Worthy

Score: 92

References

News: Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust Adding Sobremesa Elegante En Cedro and Short Churchill

Price: $10.45

Source: Purchased, Some Cigars Received by Manufactuer

Stogie Geeks Podcast: Episode 196

Stogie Feed: n/a

Brand Reference: Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust
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Prince Harry has taken part in a minute's silence for Fidel Castro during his visit to the Caribbean island of St Vincent.

The 32-year-old is currently in the midst of a two-week tour to the West Indies and has already visited Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis and St Lucia. His most recent stop as been to the island of St Vincent.

On Saturday night, he joined the islands Governor General at a drinks reception. During proceedings Governer Sir Frederick Ballantyne called for a moment's silence in memory of Fidel Castro, the controversial former leader of Cuba who died on Saturday aged 90.

The Prince observed the silence along with St Vincents Prime Minister who described Castro as a good friend of the island.

Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro in Havana, Cuba Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban president Fidel Castro looking at a rifle during a visit in North Vietnam during the Vietnam war Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro in Matanzas, Cuba, on the 46th anniversary of the assault on the Moncada Barracks by Castro's rebels. The attack marked the beginning of the Cuban revolution, which eventually propelled Castro to power Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro with his first wife Mirta and his son Fidelito Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro at his 'Guerrilla Man of Time' book launch in Havana, Cuba Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro delivers a speech attacking media organizations and groups opposed to his government in the wake of rumours of his death Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro playing Basketball Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Watched by Russian premier Nikita Khrushchev, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro takes a photograph of Moscow during his first visit to Russia Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban president Fidel Castro attends a protest against the US embargo of Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro and Osvaldo Dorticos Torrado talking to Cuban medical staff who are going to Peru to help with the aftermath of an earthquake Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro relaxing at a sugar plantation near Havana, surrounded by children Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro presides over a massive May Day demonstration at Havana's Plaza de la Revolucion (Revolution Square Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban leader Fidel Castro is presented with an invitation to the New York Press Photographer's Ball, in New York City Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro, Prime Minister of the Cuban Revolutionary government and first secretary of the Cuban Communist Party, and Ernesto Guevara known as Che, minister of Industry in Havana, Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro waves to participants of the traditional May Day parade attended by thousands of people in Havana's Plaza of the Revolution Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban Prime Minister Fidel Castro with Argentine guerrilla leader Ernesto Che Guevara Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Pope Benedict XVI meets with former Cuban President Fidel Castro at the Vatican embassy in Havana, Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro and Soviet politician Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev in Moscow Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Iraqi vice-president Saddam Hussein, stands with Cuban President Fidel Castro and Defense minister General Raul Castro in Havana, during his visit to Cuba Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and former Cuban leader Fidel Castro Rex Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Cuban President Fidel Castro listens to Pope John Paul II as they walk on the tarmac of the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro with Chavez in Cuba Getty Images Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro greets Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe in Havana Getty Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Fidel Castro with Gabriel Garcia Marquez in 2000. The two friends first met in 1959 AFP/Getty Images Fidel Castro: Life in pictures Mandela salutes the crowd alongside Fidel Castro in Matanzas Getty

The moment has been labelled potentially awkward by some while others have claimed the Prince was put under pressure by the gesture.

The Conservative MP Alec Sherbrooke told the Mail Online: Its very unfair to put pressures on members of the Royal Family to take part in this kind of tribute. Prince Harry shouldnt be put in this position.

Similarly, Michael Fabricant MP said: I am no fan of Fidel Castro, who was more of a tyrant than an enlightened leader. But I am a fan of Prince Harry. It must have been an awkward moment for him but what else could he do?

The Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson commented on the passing of Castro on Saturday calling him a historic, if controversial figure and extended the UKs condolences to Cuba, saying it was the end of an era for Cuba and the start of a new one for Cubas people.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn acknowledged the flaws of the deceased Cuban leader but hailed him as a champion of social justice and a huge figure of modern history, national independence and 20th century socialism.

The Prime Minister, Theresa May, has not made a public announcement regarding Castros passing.

Representatives for Kensington Palace did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Additional reporting by the Press Association.
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Prince William has denied reports that he disapproved of Prince Harrys statement denouncing the press intrusion into his new girlfriend Meghan Markles private life.

Previous reports from unnamed sources claimed Prince William was deeply unhappy with his brothers decision to publicly confirm his relationship with Markle.

But a spokesperson for Kensington Palace has now issued a statement explaining that Prince William fully understands his brother's concern surrounding privacy.

The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him, a spokesperson for Kensington Palace told The Independent in a statement.

People news in pictures Show all 18 1 /18 People news in pictures People news in pictures 7 October 2015 Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in an ice hockey match between former NHL stars and officials at the Shayba Arena in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. Vladimir Putin spent his 63rd birthday on the ice, playing hockey with NHL stars against Russian officials and tycoons EPA People news in pictures 6 October 2015 German designer Karl Lagerfeld (R) and model Cara Delevingne (C) appear at the end of his Spring/Summer 2016 women's ready-to-wear collection for fashion house Chanel at the Grand Palais which is transformed into a Chanel airport during the Fashion Week in Paris, France Reuters People news in pictures 5 October 2015 Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne addresses the Conservative party conference in Manchester. The Chancellor argued that reducing the payments to people in low paid jobs would give them economic security by reducing the Governments spending deficit Getty Images People news in pictures 4 October 2015 Cowboys captain Johnathan Thurston takes a moment in the centre of the field with his daughter Frankie Thurston, holding dark-skinned doll, after winning the 2015 NRL Grand Final match between the Brisbane Broncos and the North Queensland Cowboys at ANZ Stadium in Sydney. The image quickly became the talking point of Australias National Rugby League Final and provoked a strong reaction on social media, with many praising Thurston for giving his child a toy that promotes inclusiveness and diversity Getty Images People news in pictures 3 October 2015 Pope Francis gives a thumbs-up as he greets people at the end of an audience to the participants of a meeting organized by the "Food Bank" at the Paul VI audience hall in Vatican Getty Images People news in pictures 2 October 2015 Britain's Finance Minister George Osborne (L) throws an American football as he meets with former American football players Dan Marino (2nd R) and Curtis Martin (not pictured) at 11 Downing Street in London, ahead of the New York Jets playing against the Miami Dolphins at London's Wembley Stadium on 4 October Getty Images People news in pictures 1 October 2015 An honor guard opens the door as Russian President Vladimir Putin enters a hall to attend a meeting with members of the Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia People news in pictures 30 September 2015 Former Mrs America Lisa Christie, who alleges misconduct by Bill Cosby, holds up photos of her younger self during a news conference at the law office of attorney Gloria Allred in Los Angeles People news in pictures 29 September 2015 Matt Damon has defended himself against claims that he instructed gay actors to remain in the closet. He had said I think youre a better actor the less people know about you and sexuality is a huge part of that. Whether youre straight or gay, people shouldnt know anything about your sexuality but an appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres show said, I was just trying to say actors are more effective when theyre a mystery. Right? Getty People news in pictures 29 September 2015 Actor Marion Cotillard has said that there is no place for feminism in Hollywood. Speaking to Porter magazine, she saidFilm-making is not about gender/ You cannot ask a president in a festival like Cannes to have, like, five movies directed by women and five by men. For me it doesnt create equality, it creates separation. I mean, I dont qualify myself as a feminist." Getty People news in pictures 29 September 2015 Actor Paul Walkers daughter, Meadow, is suing Porsche over her fathers death in a lawsuit that claims he was trapped in the burning car because of design flaws and the seat belt. The Fast and Furious star was killed when the Porsche Carrera GT he was a passenger in hit a pole in California in 2013. The driver, his friend Roger Rodas, also died when the vehicle burst into flames. AP People news in pictures 28 September 2015 Robert Mugabe waits to address the United Nations General Assembly. The leader of Zimbabwe reportedly exclaimed 'We are not gay!' as he criticised Western nation's "double standards and attempts to prescribe new rights that are contrary to our values, norms, traditions and beliefs. In 2013 he described homosexuals as worse than pigs, goats and birds. Reuters People news in pictures 28 September 2015 South African comedian Trevor Noah hosts the first 'Daily Show' since taking over from Jon Stewart as host. Stewart had presented the US satirical news show since 1999 and was described by Noah during the show as a 'Political father' 2015 Getty Images People news in pictures 25 September 2015 Sir Elton John may have received a phone call from the real Vladimir Putin. Mr Putin's spokesman announced he had made contact weeks after the singer was duped by pranksters pretending to be the Russian President. Getty People news in pictures 25 September 2015 Actor Leonardo DiCaprio was mistakenly declared as the artist who produced the Mona Lisa by Fox News anchor Shepard Smith. It was in fact Leonardo da Vinci. People news in pictures 24 September 2015 A new biography claims Donald Trump expected to be dead by 40 and never marry. The Guardian says the a new book also claims that in 1980, Mr Trump manufactured a fake vice-president of his real estate conglomerate, whom he called John Baron. People news in pictures 24 September 2015 The Dalai Lama has said that Britain's policy towards China is just about 'Money, money, money.' And asked 'Where is morality?' People news in pictures 24 September 2015 Puff Daddy secured the number-one spot on the Forbes Hip Hop Cash Kings list, with the publication calculating he made an estimated $60million (39m) between June 2014 and June 2015.

In the initial statement, the Palace said the 32-year-old Prince rarely undertook formal action over fictional stories but the past week had seen a line crossed.

The statement said Prince Harry now fears for Markles safety after members of the press doorstepped her and her family and attempted to illegally gain access to her property.

His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment. Some of this has been very public, it said. The smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments.

Some of it has been hidden from the public - the nightly legal battles to keep defamatory stories out of papers; her mother having to struggle past photographers in order to get to her front door; the attempts of reporters and photographers to gain illegal entry to her home and the calls to police that followed; the substantial bribes offered by papers to her ex-boyfriend; the bombardment of nearly every friend, co-worker, and loved one in her life.

After small roles in the sci-fi drama Fringe, the soap opera General Hospital and cameos in films like A Lot Like Love and Horrible Bosses, Markle rose to prominence for playing the role of determined paralegal Rachel Zane on the legal drama Suits.
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More prisoners than ever before are taking their own lives, with 2016 already the worst year ever recorded for suicides in prison, according to new figures released today.

More than 100 people have killed themselves behind bars  one every three days  since the beginning of the year, said the Howard League for Penal Reform.

And this figure is set to worsen as the Christmas period approaches, the charitys CEO Frances Crook told The Independent.

Christmas is a desperately sad time and with very few staff on duty for basically two weeks, people are going to be locked up almost all the time. Its very grim, said Ms Crook.

There is usually a spike in prisoner suicides at this time of year, she added. This is the worst Ive seen it, and Ive been doing this for 30 years.

The ones where you get the highest death rate and levels of violence are the overcrowded prisons; but nowadays practically all the prisons are overcrowded, she said, saying the suicide crisis is one of "epic proportions".

The Howard League said it had been notified of 102 people dying by suicide in prison this year, the highest in a calendar year since current recording practices began in 1978.

The previous high was in 2004, when 96 deaths by suicide were recorded.

Controversial de-radicalisation programme takes hold in French prisons

The figures, published in a joint report by the Howard League and the Centre for Mental Health, add to concerns over the safety of the UKs prison system, which Ms Crook has described as a bloodbath.

The report said the rise in prison suicides has coincided with cuts to prison staffing and budgets, along with an increase in the number of people in prison, resulting in overcrowding.

There has been a rise in violence while prisoners are spending hours locked in their cells each day  a practice which increases the risk of suicide, the paper added.

Too many prisoners are spending time locked in their cells with limited access to work, education, recreation and physical exercise, said the report, which urged authorities to build prison regimes around a normal life as far as possible.

It said that in local prisons, a third of prisoners were locked up during the day, while 38 per cent of young adult prisoners were locked in their cells for over 22 hours a day.

Ministry of Justice statistics published in October showed the number of fatalities in prisons across England and Wales was at a record high, with campaigners at the time describing a toxic mix of violence, death and human misery in the countrys jails.

Ms Crook said she would pressure Justice Secretary Liz Truss to keep government promises to recruit more prison staff.

The governments been promising more staff for the last three years. The previous prisons minister made repeated promises to parliament that he was going to recruit 1,700 more staff, she said. It hasnt happened; promising it doesnt make it happen.

I dread to think what will happen if somethings not done quickly. Promising extra staff at some time in the future: [the government has] done this before, its not going to solve the problem.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures 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 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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 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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. 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The report called for the incentives and privileges scheme in prisons to be scrapped, saying it was having a detrimental impact on inmates' well being.

Under the regime, some prisoners have limits placed on family contact, physical activity and access to money and possessions, it said.

Incidents of self-harm and apparent suicides have surged against a backdrop of grave warnings about safety in prisons, and a number of self-inflicted deaths in recent years have been linked to new psychoactive drugs, previously referred to as 'legal highs'.

This report is tragic proof of what prison officers have been saying all along  that the Conservative Government is failing every test when it comes to prisons, said Shadow Justice Secretary Richard Burgon.

There is a real cost to Tory cuts to our prisons and a real cost to Tory incompetence on managing the prison service.

That's a human cost, felt by prison staff, prison inmates and by society as a whole. Liz Truss needs to take this report seriously and sort this out now.

Recommended Black people much more likely to be jailed than white people

The prison population, which currently stands at about 85,000, has come under scrutiny in recent days as former justice secretary Michael Gove warned that too many people are being sent to prison.

The Lord Chief Justice also suggested more criminals could be punished without being jailed and called for tough community penalties in the place of prison sentences.

Earlier this month, thousands of officers stopped work in protest amid soaring levels of violence and self-harm in prisons  forcing ministers to seek an emergency injunction to order them back to work.

It came after a string of high-profile incidents including the escape of two prisoners from HMP Pentonville in north London, who were later recaptured.

HMP Pentonville (Getty)

Justice Secretary Liz Truss has unveiled a wide-ranging blueprint for prison reform, including an additional 2,500 officers and measures to stop drones dropping drugs into jails and to block the illegal use of mobile phones.

A Government spokeswoman said: Mental health in custody is taken extremely seriously and there are a range of measures already in place to help support prisoners.

Providing the right intervention and treatment is vital to improving the outcomes for people who are suffering and all prisons have established procedures in place to identify, manage and support people with mental health issues.

But we recognise that more can be done. That is why have invested in specialist mental health training for prison officers, allocated more funding for prison safety and have launched a suicide and self-harm reduction project to address the increase in self-inflicted deaths and self-harm in our prisons.
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The Government has a less than 50 per cent chance of an orderly exit from the European Union within the next two years, according to the author of Article 50.

Experienced EU negotiator Lord Kerr also said Parliament, including himself, does not have the guts to vote down the triggering of Brexit.

The House of Lords crossbench peer, formerly the Foreign Office permanent secretary from 1997 to 2002 and UK representative to the EU from 1990 to 1995, made the remarks during an appearance at the London School of Economics.

One of the things that worries me is the fog in the channel is getting thicker all the time, said Lord Kerr, according to The Guardian.

How do we look from across the channel at the moment? We look incoherent.

They [Europe] cannot believe there was not a plan and five months on, there is still no plan.

 Belgium: Juncker gaffe: 'I don't think Britain needs the European Union'

They note the xenophobia  the attacks on foreigners, the sense that the climate in Britain is changing.

Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, was Secretary General of the European Convention when it drafted Article 50 as a precursor to the Lisbon Treaty, previously said the UK needs migration because Britons are so bloody stupid.

Earlier this month, Lord Kerr said Brexit could still be reversed.

Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Show all 12 1 /12 Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Brexit protest: Thousands march in London A woman poses with a home-made European Union flag as Remain supporters gather on Park Lane in London to show their support for the EU in the wake of Brexit PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Remain supporters demonstrate in Parliament Square PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Tens of thousands of people gathered to protest the result of the EU referendum PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London A majority of people in the capital voted to remain in the European Union Reuters Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Protesters chanted: What do we want to do? Stay in the EU PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London The march follows a similar rally in Trafalgar Square that was cancelled due to heavy rain  but which tens of thousands of people turned up to anyway Reuters Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum by 52 per cent to 48 per cent Reuters Brexit protest: Thousands march in London But support for the Leave campaign in urban areas and among young people was significantly lower Rex features Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Marchers gathered at Park Lane at 11am and marched towards Parliament Square PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London Some protesters held up baguettes in a display of affection for our continental neighbours PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London The disparity between different parts of the country has promoted a four million signature petition calling for a second referendum and even a renewed push for Scotland to cede from the UK PA Brexit protest: Thousands march in London The events organiser, Kings College graduate Kieran MacDermott, wrote: We can prevent Brexit by refusing to accept the referendum as the final say and take our finger off the self-destruct button" Reuters

But speaking this week, he said Parliament will vote to continue with Brexit proceedings, assuming Theresa Mays Supreme Court appeal fails.

The number of us in Parliament who will have the guts to vote against triggering Article 50 is very very small. There is Ken Clarke and there is probably someone else, he said.

It is quite difficult when the people have just spoken for us to say OK people, you voted, you got it wrong, we are not going to pay any attention.

Brexit agreement 'impossible' within two-year period

He said that at most, Parliament would add conditions such as requiring ministers to set out their negotiating objectives in a green paper, therefore prolonging the period before the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Kerr also predicted the EU would reject a series of government proposals tabled in the spring, leading to an extremely nasty bout of xenophobia in the Daily Mail and Sun in the summer, far worse than the recent attacks on the judges as 'enemies of the people'".

Over the weekend, Irish Prime Minister Enda Kennedy said Brexit within two years was impossible.
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A second legal challenge is set to further complicate the already labyrinthine Brexit process  and this time, the obscure clause of European law on everyone's lips is Article 127.

Pro-EU campaigners say Britain will have to organise its extraction from the European Economic Area (EEA)  and therefore the single market  separately to its departure from the EU itself.

This is because the UK is currently part of two different agreements with their own exit procedures.

Like Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty, which details the steps a country must take to withdraw from the European Union, Article 127 of the EEA agreement sets out the mechanism for leaving the single market.

The government will argue that EEA membership ends when Britain leaves the EU, which is expected to happen in 2019.

But the legal challenge proposed by think tank British Influence argues that Parliament should be able to vote on whether or not to trigger Article 127, blocking or delaying the possibility of a hard Brexit.

Pro-Brexit protest in London on 23 November (Getty Images)

What does Article 127 actually say?

Each Contracting Party may withdraw from this Agreement provided it gives at least twelve months' notice in writing to the other Contracting Parties, states Article 127 of the EEA Agreement.

The trade agreement was first drawn up in 1994 between the EU member states and three countries not in the EU: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

The EEA Agreement allows EU member states and these three countries access to the single market: the goods, services, money and people which move freely within the EU.

Immediately after the notification of the intended withdrawal, the other Contracting Parties shall convene a diplomatic conference in order to envisage the necessary modifications to bring to the Agreement, it says.

Why does the UK leaving the EU not automatically mean leaving the EEA?

The exact legal situation of the UK in relation to these EU agreements is up for interpretation. and is the subject of the legal battle the government is facing with lawyers who argue Britain can only leave the EEA by triggering Article 127.

Recommended European leaders agree UK must be forced into hard Brexit

There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU, Professor George Yarrow, emeritus professor at Hertford College, Oxford, told the BBC.

The only exit mechanism specified is Article 127, which would need to be triggered."

To trigger Article 127 might require an act of Parliament  and MPs could then block the move with their votes.

Jonathan Lis, deputy director of British Influence, suggested the UK could even be acting unlawfully by taking Britain out of the EEA without seeking urgent clarification of the terms of the agreement in the courts.

Could the UK simply stay in the EEA once it has left the EU?

If the UK were able to stay in the EEA, Brexit would be hardly noticeable, as the country would still be bound to the single market and free movement of people.

But Kenneth Armstrong, Professor of European Law at the University of Cambridge, told The Independent it would be very difficult for the UK to retain access to the single market once it had left the EU.

He said even if the think tank's litigation were correct, and the UK needs to formally withdraw from the agreement, "the fact that the UK was at that point outside of the EU would mean that the agreement would only be enforceable for very limited purposes".

"The centrepoint of their argument is that it keeps the UK in the single market, and thats just not going to happen," he said.

"The UK did not sign and ratify [customs and the EU single market rule book] because it was not within its power and competences; it was in the EUs power and competeneces."

What about Switzerland?

Switzerland, along with Iceland, Norway and Liechtinstein, is a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), but it is not part of the EEA agreement.

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Instead it has more than 100 of its own bilateral trade agreements with the EU, managed by a complex structure of more than 15 joint committees.

Britain may have to adopt a Swiss model when it leave the Union and talks are already said to have taken place between Swiss trade diplomats and Whitehall officials to share notes on matters of trade and migration.

For the last two years, Switzerland has been in talks with Brussels to limit free movement to the country from the EU, but has been told it would lose access to the single market if it went ahead with its plans to restrict free movement.
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The leader of the Vote Leave campaign has warned the Bank of England governor he will be very foolish if he tries to delay Brexit.

Matthew Elliott turned on Mark Carney after the governor was reported to be working on a 'secret plan for a transitional arrangement to keep Britain in the single market until 2021.

He said any attempt to slam the brakes on Britains EU exit would go down very badly with the majority who voted for it, as it was revealed that Theresa May faces a second legal challenge.

Mr Elliott also criticised the Prime Minister for not asking Parliament to vote through the Article 50 withdrawal notice last summer, when there was a bounce from the referendum result.

He insisted it was for the birds to argue the referendum result was anything other a vote to leave both the single market and the EUs customs union.

And he said the Leave side believed sincerely that an extra 350m would be handed to the NHS when Britain leaves - although the government now faces a huge Budget black hole through to at least 2021.

Speaking at an event entitled What does Leave mean?, Mr Elliott said: If the governor is going to try to delay Brexit in any way he would be very foolish and would be going against the will of the people.

Mr Carney has held private meetings with business leaders on a plan for the current trading rules  almost certainly including freedom of movement for EU citizens  to stay until 2021, the Sunday Times said.

But Mr Elliott insisted both sides in the Brexit fight had understood a Leave vote meant leaving the single market  despite claims a Vote Leave leaflet said exactly the opposite.

He said: The idea that we are going down some sort of Norwegian-style option is, I think, for the birds.

On the triggering of Article 50  a controversy heading to the Supreme Court next week  Mr Elliott said: It might have been better to have put that Bill through back in September, shortly after the referendum.

During the central London event, Mr Elliott, who was Vote Leaves chief executive, faced some anger from younger people who accused him of spreading lies about the NHS and immigration.

But he insisted many students had swung behind Brexit when Vote Leave argued it fitted with their internationalist, global outlook, by offering the prospects of fairer migration and new trade deals.

Setting out the 12 days of Brexit  the key events that led to Leaves triumph - Mr Elliott picked on David Camerons failure to strike a meaningful renegotiation of Britains EU membership, back in February, as the most important.

He noted how the deal  curbing EU migrants ability to claim benefits, but offering no cut in overall numbers  had prompted headlines reading Is That It? and comparisons with Neville Chamberlain.

Mr Elliott said: David Cameron fundamentally undermined his own positionthat went down very badly with voters.
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Britain is unlikely to be able to stay in the single market after Brexit, according to notes carried by a senior Conservative party aide.

The note, photographed in Whitehall in the arms of an official, says Britain would be "loath" to introduce "transitional" contols after it leaves the EU in order to give the City access to the single market.

It suggests the Government wants to "have cake and eat it" but this would be difficult given the attitudes of the French negotiation team.

The document was spotted in the arms of the chief of staff to Mark Field, the vice-chairman of the Conservative party, as he left a meeting at the Department for Exiting the European Union on Monday.

The document also says the triggering of Article 50, which formally starts Brexit negotiations, was likely to be "difficult". It reveals that the EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, "wanted to see what the deal looks like first" but the Government does not want to provide details.

It says Britain wanted to have a "Canada plus" trade deal rather than remaining a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) but negotiating over services, especially the financial sector, is likely to be "difficult".

The notes also suggested Britain would no longer under the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice.

 Farage says Brexit led to trump

The memo comes after many complained the Government appeared to have "no plan" for Brexit as they have yet to lay out a definitive negotiating strategy.

Earlier it was revealed ministers are facing a legal challenge over whether leaving the EU means automatic withdrawal from the single market.

Pro-EU think-tank British Influence is writing to Brexit Secretary David Davis to seek clarification on the Government's position regarding the UK's status in the wider European Economic Area (EEA) when it quits the EU.

The think-tank has said a legal challenge is likely as it believes leaving the EU does not mean quitting the EEA which extends the single market's tariff-free trade in goods to countries like Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

A legal challenge could result in Parliament being given the final say on EEA membership.

A spokesman for British Influence said: "It is likely there will be a legal action because, in our view, the Government has taken a stance that leaving the EU means leaving the single market."

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. 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This latest legal challenge follows on from a High Court ruling earlier this month which said the Government must get the approval of Parliament before triggering Article 50.

Campaigners argued that it would be undemocratic for the Government to effectively repeal the European Communities Act 1972 without the consent of Parliament and there needed to be proper parliamentary oversight of the Brexit process.

The case is due to be heard in the Supreme Court before Christmas but could then be taken to the European Court of Justice.

A Government spokesman said: "These individual notes do not belong to a Government official or a special adviser. They do not reflect the Government's position in relation to Brexit negotiations."
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The rights of Polish citizens in Britain will be the most important matter for its government in the Brexit talks, Theresa May has warned, as she confirmed plans to deploy British troops to Poland.

Beata Szydlo, Polands Prime Minister, stressed the need to maintain guarantees for up to one million Poles in this country following talks in Downing Street. Ms May has refused to confirm their rights, insisting that the Government must not reveal its hand ahead of the Brexit negotiations, which will begin when she triggers Article 50 next year.

That has prompted accusations that they are being used as bargaining chips in the EU exit talks  after Trade Secretary Liam Fox described them as one of our main cards.

Ms Szydlo added: The most important matter from our point of view is that guarantees are maintained for Polish citizens that live and work in the United Kingdom. However, the Polish Prime Minister backed Ms Mays argument that there must be reciprocity  that the rights of British citizens in other EU countries must also be confirmed.

Ms May stressed how both the UK and Poland remained committed to continuing sanctions against Russia until it abides by the Minsk peace deal in Ukraine. And she announced plans for a bilateral defence treaty  part of efforts to cement defence links with Poland, as uncertainty over Brexit continues.

However, the British Prime Minister dodged a question about whether Britain would attempt to use its military muscle to try to secure a better Brexit deal with Poland.

Earlier, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said such a move would be a little cynical, insisting there were mutual benefits for countries such as Poland. Sir Michael said: This is a glimpse of the future, of how we will be deepening our country-to-country relationships with key partners in Europe.

Right across the board, on exports, on trade, on research, and also on defence and security. He added: We are the leading European player in Nato, we are a major export market for the Poles themselves  in fact, Britain is Polands third largest export market.

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

At the press conference, Ms May sought to squash newspaper claims that she is losing sleep over Brexit, saying: I think there has been a little bit of over-interpretation about sleepless Brexit nights, I have to say.

Ms Szydlo said, Brexit will be an interesting experience for all the member states, but thats in the future, insisting talks could not begin until the Article 50 notice was triggered next year.

Ms Mays official spokeswoman was forced to retract a suggestion that intelligence-sharing could form part of Brexit negotiations with the EU.

Number 10 clarified that information was shared by security services on the basis of bilateral agreements between countries, so could not form part of the Brexit negotiations.

But the sharing of data through Europol, the EU law enforcement body that handles criminal intelligence, would be part of the talks.

The two leaders confirmed the deployment of 150 British troops to Poland as part of the Nato measures to provide support for the country amid concerns about Russian military activities.

Soldiers from the Light Dragoons regiment in Catterick, as well as a number of armoured vehicles, will be stationed in north-east Poland, close to the border with the Russian enclave Kaliningrad, in April 2017.
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Theresa May faces the headache of a second legal challenge over Brexit  this time over the barely-known Article 127.

Pro-EU campaigners will argue that Britain will not leave the European Economic Area (EEA)  and therefore the single market  automatically when it leaves the EU itself.

The think tank British Influence is writing to Brexit Secretary David Davis to argue Parliament should decide, in a mirror image over the battle to trigger the Article 50 exit notice.

 Pro-Brexit protest in Parliament Square

Recommended Supreme Court rules Scotland and Wales can intervene on Brexit

The Government will argue that EEA membership ends when Britain leaves the EU, which is expected to happen in 2019.

But, if the courts back the legal challenge and give Parliament the final say over EEA membership, MPs could potentially vote to ensure that Britain stays in the single market.

They could argue for membership until a long-term trading relationship with the EU has been agreed, something expected to take far longer than the 2019 exit date.

More MPs would feel able to do this than oppose leaving the EU outright, because the referendum question only asked about membership of the EU  not of the single market.

At the very least, the latest challenge would mean a lengthy legal process  potentially via the European Court of Justice - that could delay the Government's Article 50 negotiations with the EU.

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

Professor George Yarrow, emeritus professor at Hertford College, Oxford, told the BBC: There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU.

The only exit mechanism specified is Article 127, which would need to be triggered.

Jonathan Lis, deputy director for British Influence, said: There is a strong chance that the UK will be acting unlawfully by taking us out of the EEA with Brexit.

We consider that they have an obligation to seek urgent clarification in the courts. So we are going to be petitioning for a judicial review.

But Conservative MP and Brexiteer Dominic Raab said: "Rather than coming up with new legal wheezes to try and frustrate the will of the people, these lawyers should be working with us to make a success of Brexit.

The public have spoken; we should respect the result and get on with it, not try to find new hurdles that undermine the democratic process.

Pro-Europeans see the single market as crucial to economic success, because it allows the tariff-free movement of goods, services, money and people within the EU.

The EEA was set up in the 1990s to extend those benefits to some non-EU members including Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Non-EU members are outside the Common Agricultural Policy and customs union, but enjoy barrier-free trade in return for paying into some EU budgets and accepting the free movement of workers.

A Government spokesman dismissed the challenge, saying: As the UK is party to the EEA Agreement only in its capacity as an EU Member State, once we leave the European Union we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA.

The referendum result will be respected and we intend to invoke Article 50 no later than the end of March next year.

The separate fight over the Governments right to trigger Article 50 reaches the Supreme Court next week, with a verdict early in the New Year.
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Brexit will strengthen Britains relationship with Poland, Theresa May claims today ahead of a Downing Street summit.

The Prime Minister will meet Beata Szydlo, her Polish counterpart, as she attempts to build alliances ahead of the start of negotiations on Britains EU exit.

The two leaders will hold talks over a working lunch while senior ministers  including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Chancellor Philip Hammond  will meet at Lancaster House.

Further details of a planned deployment of 150 British troops to Poland will be discussed as part of the Nato measures to provide support for the country amid concerns about Russian military activities.

Soldiers from the Light Dragoons regiment in Catterick, as well as a number of armoured vehicles, will be stationed in north-east Poland, close to the border with the Russian enclave Kaliningrad, in April 2017.

The leaders and their ministers will then come together for formal talks at Number 10 on issues ranging from trade and scientific cooperation to Moscow's actions in Ukraine and Syria.

Ahead of the summit, Ms May stressed how Britain would never forget the Polish pilots who braved the skies alongside us during World War Two.

She said: Our ties with Poland are rooted deeply in our shared history.

"I am determined that Brexit will not weaken our relationship with Poland, rather it will serve as a catalyst to strengthen it. That's why I am hosting the first-ever summit of this kind between our countries today.

It marks the start of a new chapter in our relations and we will work even more closely together to ensure the security and prosperity of our nations in the years ahead.

 Polish woman booed on BBC question time for saying Brexit makes her feel unwelcome

Britain and Poland shared a clear commitment to take our cooperation to the next level and to firmly establish the UK and Poland as resolute and strategic allies in Europe.

The Prime Minister has vowed to trigger Article 50, the legal process for Brexit, by the end of March.

Formal negotiations on the UK's divorce settlement with Brussels cannot begin until that time, but the Prime Minister is keen to hold informal talks with European leaders to gauge their views.

Warsaw has raised concerns about the treatment of Poles in Britain following the Brexit vote, with a rise in incidents of alleged hate crimes including the killing of Arkadiusz Jozwik in Harlow, Essex.

As part of the effort to strengthen ties, the two prime ministers will jointly host a reception in Downing Street to pay tribute to the contribution made by Poles in the UK.

Addressing around 50 members of the Polish community, Ms May is expected to praise the role they play in sectors such as business, medicine, academia and the arts and reiterate her strong condemnation of the attacks against Poles.

She will also launch a British-Polish Civil Society Forum, which will meet for the first time in Warsaw next year. This annual event will bring together business leaders, communities, academics and journalists.
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Jeremy Corbyn will not attend Fidel Castros funeral, a spokesperson for the Labour leader has said.

The Labour leader has received an invitation to the event, which will take place on December 4, after several days of commemorations.

The spokesperson said Mr Corbyn never intended to attend the funeral. Labours Shadow Foreign Secretary, Emily Thornberry, will attend in his place. The spokesperson said such arrangements were "not unusual".

Ms Thornberry also attended the funeral of former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres in September
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British aircraft could be placed in harms way if they were used to drop aid to besieged Syrians in eastern Aleppo, a Foreign Office minister has said as he was heckled by MPs in the Commons.

Tobias Ellwood, who was responding to an urgent question on the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged region of Syria did not rule out the proposal but questioned if sending aircraft would compound matters or improve them.

But Mr Ellwood  who also warned Russia that using food as a weapon of war was a war crime  was heckled after failing to commit to the humanitarian relief by MPs after Labours Alison McGovern urged the Government to consider the last resort.

But what are you doing now? shouted another MP in the chamber.

It comes after more than 120 MPs, including prominent Conservatives, called on Theresa May at the weekend to authorise the immediate airdrops of food and medicine to provide help to those trapped in the besieged areas.

The letter said the time for excuses is over and added that nearly 100,000 children are facing the slowest, cruellest death because we cannot reach them with food and medical supplies.

Ms McGovern had read out a statement from the Syrian Civil Defence  also known as the White Helmets  which warned Britain that Aleppo is in a state of emergency and that 279,000 people have been under siege for 94 days.

Blaming the Syrian regime and its ally Russia for more than 2,000 air strikes in the region in the last 13 days, the statement went on: Were calling on you, as the friends of the Syrian people, to act. The Syrian regime and Russia are refusing to let aid in to the city so were calling on you to air drop aid to provide urgent relief to starving civilians trapped.

Ms McGovern added to Mr Ellwood: Do you agree that the Government needs an urgent strategy to protect civilians?

When hundreds of thousands of civilians are being starved and bombed in to submission, we must consider air drops  its time for the last resort.What Britain stands for on the world stage is being challenged. This is a test.

Let us not stand and watch as one of the great cities of the world is destroyed. Let us not allow 100,000 children to starve in eastern Aleppo.

The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Show all 14 1 /14 The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Douma, the largest town in the Eastern Ghouta area with more than 100,000 residents, is surrounded and regularly shelled by regime forces EPA The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria EPA The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria EPA The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria A Syrian man searches for victims as fire spreads following a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Members of the Syrian Civil Defense, known as the White Helmets, extinguish fire following a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Members of the Syrian Civil Defense, known as the White Helmets, extinguish a fire following a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Syrians run for cover following a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma, on the eastern outskirts of the capital Damascus Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria An injured Syrian man receives treatment at a makeshift hospital following a reported government airstrike on the rebel-held town of Douma Getty The White Helmets assist in Douma, Syria EPA

When Kosovo was under attack it was Britain that led the way. When people in Sierra Leone cried out for our help, it was Britain who led the way. The people of Syria need us to show that leadership.

In his response, Mr Ellwood said the UK is looking at all options. He added: But you must understand... that were we to do unilateral or even multilateral aid drops, it places us in harms way and in conjunction with what is already a complicated air environment.

The question has to be asked  is that the best and safest way of getting aid to where we need to actually go?

So I say to you, were not ruling out options but we have to ask ourselves, would introducing British aircraft into this air environment actually compound matters or actually improve ways, or are there other safer ways of actually getting that aid in?
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Theresa May has been urged not to abuse her position to promote Christianity, after revealing how her faith in God is her driving force.

The National Secular Society raised the alarm after the Prime Minister used a weekend newspaper interview to open up about her religious beliefs.

Asked how she steeled herself for making tough decisions, Ms May replied: It's about, 'Are you doing the right thing?' If you know you are doing the right thing, you have the confidence, the energy to go and deliver that right message.

When asked if that was a moral approach, Ms May added: I suppose there is something in terms of faith.

Recommended Theresa May reveals how her faith in God is her driving force

I am a practising member of the Church of England and so forth, that lies behind what I do.

The comments were made as Ms May admitted, to The Sunday Times, that it was the hugely challenging task of Brexit which left her with little time for sleep.

They were seized up on by Stephen Evans, the Societys campaigns director, who said: Many people lean on their faith during trying times and its no surprise that Theresa May is no different.

However, the Prime Minister would do well to remember that she governs on behalf of everyone, including those of minority faiths and of course the majority of citizens who are not religious.

While it is fine for Theresa May to have a faith, what she mustnt do is abuse her position to promote Christianity or impose her own religious values on others.

The Prime Minister grew up as the only child of a clergyman. Her father, Hubert Brasier, was the vicar of an Oxfordshire village.

In the interview, she added: Being brought up in a vicarage, of course the advantage is that you do see people from all walks of life, and particularly in villages you see people from all sorts of backgrounds and all sorts of conditions, in terms of disadvantage and advantage.

What came out of my upbringing was a sense of service.
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Theresa May will harm all other sectors of the economy if she cherry-picks a post-Brexit trade deal for the City of London, new research shows.

The Prime Minister is believed to be ready to pay billions of pounds into the EU budget after Britain leaves the EU to maintain close single market access for financial services.

But the research, by an independent think tank, says all sectors of the economy  including manufacturing, retail, professional services, energy, digital and creative  are just as dependent on the single market.

 Brexit: Corbyn accuses May of having 'no plan'

Therefore, a sector-by-sector approach will fail to prevent the damage from a hard Brexit, which will reverberate throughout the economy.

The study will be published as key figures from Britains political parties join forces to put pressure on the Government to put membership of the single market at the heart of their negotiating strategy.

Conservative MP Anna Soubry shared a stage on Monday with former Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg and Labour MP Chuka Umunna, at an event for the Open Britain campaign.

Ms Soubrey insisted there are no inevitable outcomes from the referendum result, saying: There is no mandate for one particular Brexit option. The only question on the ballot paper was whether to leave, which we will, but how we execute our extraction must be debated.

Pro-Brexit MPs who argue Britain can end free movement, financial contributions to the EU and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice are guilty of a simplistic fantasy, Ms Soubrey said.

Mr Clegg said that leaving the single market  far from cutting regulation  would lead to reduced trade due to an increase in regulatory trade barriers.

The challenge we are making to those who think differently is this  which sectors of our economy should be the lowest priority when it comes to negotiating an FTA [free trade agreement]? he warned.

And Mr Umunna added: Every major sector of our economy is linked to the single market and could be harmed through an arrangement that prioritises one sector over another.

It is dishonest to deny any cost exists. In short, cherry-picking winners creates losers  and I am not aware of anyone proposing or voting for creating economic losers.

The research, carried out for Open Britain by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, rejects cherry-picking because there is considerable linkage between the sectors.

Crucially, it warns: Whether the UK is inside or outside of the single market, EU regulations cannot be avoided if Britain wishes to trade with the European Union.

An FTA would leave Britain as a rule-taker for industries where it wishes to secure access  without the same influence over decision-making that it enjoys as a single market member.

Ms May appears determined to pull Britain out of the single market  as the price for imposing curbs on free movement of people  while striking individual deals for the City and the car industry, for example.

But todays research warns of the threat to creative industries, in particular, saying: Any move to cut immigration from the EU would be a body blow to this sector and would have a significant impact on UK GDP growth.
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Rescuers breathed a sigh of relief after finding a baby ejected from a moving vehicle during an accident, 25-feet away in a storm drain  alive.

The baby girl flew from the vehicle after a truck sideswiped the familys vehicle while changing lanes on Interstate 30 in Texarkana, Arkansas.

After the vehicle flipped, family members could not find the 8-month-old.

But when first responders conducted an extensive search, they found the baby in a nearby storm drain after hearing a sound from the vicinity.

The baby  was sitting up and looking up at us waiting for us to pull her out, firefighter Josh Moore told KSLA.

The baby suffered only minor injuries, including a scratch on her forehead, in the accident.

There had to be some kind of divine intervention for her to end up being OK, Mr Moore added.

Investigators found that the child was not secured in her seat properly, but did not issue citations to the family. The driver of the truck received a citation for improper lane change.

So many times, we go out and things arent OK, Texarkana Fire Capt Charlie Smith said, and just during the holidays here to have a positive just feels good."
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The first woman in a hijab to read the headlines on a mainstream news channel in Canada has said she is thankful to have a career opportunity when there was so much hate and vilifying of Muslims.

Ginella Massa, the CityNews anchor in Toronto, told The Hollywood Reporter that her new job was just a step forward in her career, but on a national level she acknowledged that it represented a big step forward in terms of ethnic diversity.

When she finished her first 11pm broadcast at midnight last week, her assignment editor asked her: Was that a first?

Recommended ITN files complaint with press watchdog over Kelvin MacKenzie column

Yes, I think it was, she replied.

Ms Massa took to social media to thank the viewers.

Thats a wrap! Thankful to have opportunities like this at a time when there is so much hate and vilifying of Muslims. Looking forward to the day when its no longer a big deal for someone who looks like me to be anchoring a newscast, she wrote.

Ms Massa, who was also Canadas first hijab-wearing reporter in January 2015 when she worked for CTV News in Ontario, said she received a deluge of positive comments after writing on Facebook and Twitter.

People started to go, Wow, thats amazing that we havent already had this in Canada, she said.

It shouldnt be a big deal, she added.

She admitted that she also received a backlash from a minority of people online, and that she was worried for her friends and family now that Donald Trump had been elected.

Theres a fear that we will go backwards, that we have made so many strides in terms of acceptance and tolerance and understanding each other. Its scary to think that all of that can be undone, she said.

Mr Trump in the US has proposed banning Muslims from entering the US on a temporary basis, carrying out extreme vetting and even suggesting Muslims should sign up to a registry.

When asked if she rejected criticism that her Muslim headdress topped her from being impartial as a journalist, she said that everyone had biases.

That doesnt mean I shouldnt be in this industry, she said.

Her appointment comes shortly after the first hijab-wearing reporter on Channel 4 News in the UK, Fatima Manji, was accused of being an inappropriate choice of journalist to report on the radical Islamic terrorist attacks in France in July, according to Sun newspaper columnist Kelvin Mackenzie. Ms Manji complained to the press regulator but Mr Mackenzie was cleared of wrongdoing.
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Tens of thousands of ordinary Cubans, some wiping tears, joined long queues to get their turns to enter Revolution Square in Havana on Monday to pay their respects to Fidel Castro, their former leader who died after ten years of fading health last Friday.

The first day of official mourning began with a thunderous 21-gun salute from cannons arrayed on the ramparts of El Morro, the historic fort that sits just across the harbour from Old Havana, the district where foreign tourists mingle with residents trying to make ends meet and living in decrepit, overcrowded apartment buildings.

Recommended Music stops but holidays continue in Cuba

After the canons were ignited, their booms could be heard throughout most of the city and as far away as in Revolution Square itself, a massive plaza known for the giant outlines of Che Guevara and Mr Castro himself attached to the neighbouring facades of government buildings and the pyramid-like monument to Jose Marti, the hero of Cubas independence movement.

The grieving period announced by the government will last nine days and will culminate in Mr Castros ashes - he was cremated on Saturday, according to his wishes - being taken in a sombre cortege almost the length of the island of Cuba from Havana all the way to Santiago de Cuba. The city, on the eastern tip of the nation, is where he launched his socialist revolution in 1959.

Many Cubans will surely feel pressured to go through the motions of mourning Mr Castro by local party officials even if many privately disdain him for the economic hardship he brought to the island and to their lives.

Cuban President Fidel Castro (Getty)

Now, the question is what will come next and in particular whether the passing of his elder brother will give Raul Castro, the leader of Cuba since 2008, greater leeway to push forward with economic reforms and seek an acceleration of the opening process between Cuba and the United States that he and President Barack Obama had already began.

In a Twitter message on Monday, President-elect Donald Trump, who on Saturday called Mr Castro a 'brutal dictator', made clear that he would expect reforms in Cuba to accelerate if he is to keep the economic and diplomatic changes agreed to by Mr Obama in place. Mr Trump, who is likely to press first for the release of all remaining political prisoners and the end of the harrassment of dissidents, threatened that he would end the US deal with Cuba if the government in Havana did not reciprocate with a better deal for the Cuban people".

For some world leaders, the invitation to the formal funeral of Mr Castro, set for 4 December, presents something of a dilemma. An icon of the left for creating a communist hold-out in the Caribbean basin with just 90 miles of water separating it from the United States, Mr Castro was also regarded by many as a despot who subjugated his people and ruined their economy.

His controversial standing in world history means that most governments are already indicating they will send mid-level functionaries to attend the ceremony, including President Vladimir Putin of Russia. Until its collapse in 1991, the Soviet Union had propped up Cuba and Mr Castros regime as part of its wider antagonism towards the United States.

Russia will instead be represented by the speaker of the Russian State Duma or lower house of parliament, Vyacheslav Volodin, who is a close political ally of Mr Putin. Among world leaders who are expected to fly to Havana to pay final respects is another despot well used to being cold-shouldered by the rest of the world - Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe.

Canadas Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, who was lambasted on social media at the weekend for having praised Mr Castro as a remarkable leader, announced on Monday that he would also not be traveling to Cuba and that the country would be represented by Governor General David Johnston, Queen Elizabeth II's representative in Canada.

While many of Mr Castros most famous speeches were delivered in Revolution Square, it is a place that is usually largely empty, the Marti monument more or less marooned in a gigantic round-about, around which a slow local traffic, some of it make up still of barely roadworthy rescues from the 1950s, makes slow and polluting circles.
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Senator Ted Cruz has warned Donald Trump that if the Republicans do not follow through with their campaign promises, there will be "pitchforks and torches" in the streets.

Speaking on ABC's "The Week", The Texan Senator explained the worst thing the Republican Party could do after winning the White House, the House and the Senate is return to "business as usual".

Mr Cruz said: "If we're given the White House and both houses of Congress and we don't deliver, I think there will be pitchforks and torches in the streets.

"And I think quite rightly. I think people are so fed up with Washington, this election was a mandate with change and the most catastrophic thing Republicans could do is go back to business as usual."

Even after losing the Republican nomination to Mr Trump, Cruz continued to be a vocal opponent of Mr Trump until the final months of the presidential race.

He had described the now Presidential-elect as a "pathological liar" and "utterly amoral". For Trump's part, he gave Mr Cruz the nickname "lying Ted".

When asked if he now would take back his comments on the 45th President, Senator Cruz said: "You know, I'm not going to relitigate the past. I'm going to focus on the future.

"I'm going to focus on what's in front of us and on fixing the problems we have."

 Donald Trump's four biggest U-turns

Since winning the election, Donald Trump has appeared to soften or even reverse key components of his campaign platform.

Trump has said he would keep some key tenets of the Obamacare and maybe build a fence instead of wall on the Mexican border.

Despite promising to prosecute his defeated Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton - he has said he has more important issues to deal with.
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A historian who predicted Donald Trumps win has now suggested that he will be impeached  if the Democratic Party can regain control of Congress.

Niall Ferguson, senior fellow of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, predicted in June Mr Trump had a better chance of winning the election than many observers suggested.

He said that the President-elects business background  which won him much of the support he needed to get to the White House  will ultimately be his undoing.

 Donald Trump's four biggest U-turns

Mr Trump ran a campaign as a political outsider and highlighted his business acumen to appeal to voters.

As an oligarch, Mr Trump has already shown signs of conflating his business interests with his public duties, Mr Ferguson wrote in The Sunday Times, despite claiming his first priority was running the country and that he didnt care about his business.

Mr Ferguson compared the President-elect to fictional war profiteer Milo Minderbinder and said he was a lover of conspicuous consumption, an alpha male intent on founding a dynasty.

Mr Trump has numerous commercial ventures around the world in many countries of strategic interest to the US. He and his family  who are closely involved in both the transition team and running the Trump empire  met international business partners soon after the election.

Some aspects of the businesses have raised particular concern. Mr Trump has interests in Turkey  a country of huge regional significance  and he defended the brutal crackdown on dissent by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, following the failed coup.

After the President-elects defence of Mr Erdogan, political demands made against the brash branding of Trump Towers in Istanbul evaporated.

President Donald Trump life in pictures Show all 16 1 /16 President Donald Trump life in pictures President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump poses in a rocking chair once used by President John F. Kennedy at his New York City residence Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Developer Donald Trump with his new bride Marla Maples after their wedding at the Plaza hotel in New York Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Celina Midelfart watch the match between Conchita Martinez and Amanda Coetzer during U.S. Open. She was the date whom Donald Trump was with when he met his current wife Melania at a party in 1996 Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas serving as the grand marshal for the Daytona 500, speaks to Donald Trump and Melania Knauss on the starting grid at the Daytona International Speedwa Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Developer Donald Trump talks with his former wife Ivana Trump during the men's final at the U.S. Open Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and his friend Melania Knauss pose for photographers as they arrive at the New York premiere of Star Wars Episode : 'The Phantom Menace,' Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire real estate developer Donald Trump talks with host Larry King. Trump told King that he was moving toward a possible bid for the United States presidency with the formation of a presidential exploratory committee Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump answers questions as Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura looks on in Brooklyn Park. Trump said on Friday he 'very well might' make a run for president under the Reform Party banner but had not made a final decision Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire Donald Trump makes a face at a friend as he sits next to Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso before the start of the 2003 Miss Universe pageant in Panama City Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Entrepreneur Donald Trump is greeted by a Marilyn Monroe character look-a-alike, as he arrives at Universal Studios Hollywood to attend the an open casting call for his NBC television network reality series 'The Apprentice.' Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Simon Cowell present an Emmy during the 56th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump and Megan Mullally perform at the 57th annual Primetime Emmy Awards at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump, poses with his children, son Donald Trump, Jr., and daughters Tiffany and Ivanka Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Billionaire Donald Trump told Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner on Tuesday she would be given a second chance after reported misbehavior Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures Donald Trump holds a replica of his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as his wife Melania holds their son Barron in Los Angeles Reuters President Donald Trump life in pictures U.S. property mogul Donald Trump stands next to a bagpiper during a media event on the sand dunes of the Menie estate, the site for Trump's proposed golf resort, near Aberdeen, north east Scotland Reuters

This has led to worries that a disregard for human rights in return for commercial favours could be a characteristic of Mr Trumps presidency.

Elsewhere, the government of the Philippines recently made Jose Antonio, a local business partner of Mr Trump, the countrys envoy to the US.

The Philippines was criticised by Barack Obama for its human rights record during a brutal drugs crackdown. The country is also in a pivotal moment in its relationship with the US and is weighing up a move to China.

Questions have been raised by observers as to what sort of foreign relations will be practised between a Trump administration and one of his active business associates from a sensitive region.

Mr Ferguson claimed the President-elect was under no legal obligation to surrender control of his businesses and the case of calls for him to do so were weak -- even if the Mr Trump doesnt fully cede control of his enterprise to his family, as vowed.

But Mr Ferguson continued to write that businessmen are generally quite bad at politics, particularly given how easy it is to collect taxes than make money through business.

The catch-22 of our time is that the oligarchs become so detached from the lives of ordinary people that, ultimately, they get ousted, Mr Ferguson wrote. In America that means impeachment. The Democrats have just under two years to figure out how to win back Congress.

If they were successful in this, the historian predicted, Mr Trumps days as president would be numbered.
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Donald Trump is receiving intelligence briefings from a number of sources other than official US security services, his former campaign manager has said.

The news emerged following reports the incoming US President had only attended two official intelligence briefings in the two and half weeks since his election, leading some to accuse him of not taking his duties seriously.

The Washington Post quoted officials as saying Vice President-elect Mike Pence has, by contrast, made time to receive intelligence briefings almost every day since the election.

Kellyanne Conway, who managed Mr Trump's succesful presidential campaign, refused to deny the President-elect had been turning down the classified briefings given by security service officials to sitting and incoming presidents.

She told CNN: I cant discuss that publicly.

What I can tell you is that he is the most engaged individual Ive ever met and brilliant to boot, and he is certainly availing himself of the information as provided to him from a number of sources, including those intelligence briefings.

Mr Trumps team have publicised details of conversations he has held with a number of world leaders, many of which took place immediately after his election victory on 8 November.

World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Show all 29 1 /29 World reaction to President Trump: In pictures World reaction to President Trump: In pictures London, England AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures London, England Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Manila, Philippines Getty Images World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Manila, Philippines Getty World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Mosul , Iraq Getty World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Manila, Philippines AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures New Delhi, India Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Karachi, Pakistan EPA World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Jakarta, Indonesia Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Lagos, Nigeria AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Kabul, Afghanistan AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Jerusalem. Israel Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Moscow, Russia Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Seoul, South Korea AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Lagos, Nigeria AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Peshawar, Pakistan EPA World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Jakarta, Indonesia Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Hyderabad, India AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Kolkata, India AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Sydney, Australia Getty World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Sydney, Australia AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Aleppo, Syria Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Mexico City, Mexico AP World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Reuters World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Jerusalem, Israel EPA World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Baghdad, Iraq Rex World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Gaza Strip, Palestinian Territories Rex World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Tokyo, Japan Rex World reaction to President Trump: In pictures Mexico City, Mexico Getty

His team did not make contact with the US State Department, which usually co-ordinates the president elects interaction with other world leaders, until two days after the election.

Ms Conway said of Mr Trump: He is receiving classified intelligence briefings, and the president-elect is also receiving information through his personal and on the phone meetings with over whats now 41 world leaders, in addition to meeting with 60 men and women who could serve in his government but certainly without the promise of any formal position.

The incomng president's dealings with other world leaders have already been criticised for raising potential conflicts of interest with his business links.

A meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was also attended by the President-elects daughter, Ivanka, who is a senior executive of his company and responsible for promoting its interests around the world.

It was later claimed Mr Trump had also used a congratulatory phone call with Mauricio Macri, the president of Argentina, to ask for help in securing permits for a planned Trump business project in Buenos Aires. The claim was denied by both Mr Trump and Mr Macri.

Mr Trump is currently in discussions about who will form his cabinet once he takes office on 20 January.

He has so far appointed Alabama senator Jeff Sessions as Attorney General, Kansas congressman Mike Pompeo as CIA director, South Carolina governor Nikki Haley as UN ambassador and Republican Party donor Betsy DeVos as Education Secretary.

All of these appointments are subject to approval from the Senate.
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Donald Trump may ask his ambassadors to encourage foreign governments to investigate Hillary Clinton, despite previously saying he would not seek to prosecute her.

Towards the end of the bitter campaign, the President-elect vowed to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Ms Clinton.

He said a criminal probe was necessary concerning the issue of large foreign donations made to the Clinton Foundation during Ms Clinton's time as US Secretary of State.

His promise delighted supporters, who routinely chanted "Lock her up!" at rallies.

 Donald Trump's four biggest U-turns

Last week, he declared he would not prosecute Ms Clinton over her use of private email server or the dealing's of her family's foundation.

However, Mr Trump is reportedly planning to urge US ambassadors to encourage foreign governments to investigate the Clinton Foundation.

Haiti and Colombia will be key diplomatic posts for this because of all the money involved, a source said to be close to the President-elect told the New York Post.

Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Show all 14 1 /14 Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Isis: "Some of the candidates, they went in and didnt know the air conditioner didnt work and sweated like dogs, and they didnt know the room was too big because they didnt have anybody there. How are they going to beat ISIS?" Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On immigration: "I will build a great wall  and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me and Ill build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Free Trade: "Free trade is terrible. Free trade can be wonderful if you have smart people. But we have stupid people." PAUL J. RICHARDS | AFP | Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Mexicans: "When Mexico sends its people, theyre not sending their best. Theyre sending people that have lots of problems. Theyre bringing drugs. Theyre bringing crime. Theyre rapists." Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On China: "I just sold an apartment for $15 million to somebody from China. Am I supposed to dislike them?... I love China. The biggest bank in the world is from China. You know where their United States headquarters is located? In this building, in Trump Tower." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On work: "If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." AP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On success: "What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate." Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On life: "Everything in life is luck." AFP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On ambition: "You have to think anyway, so why not think big?" Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On his opponents: "Bush is totally in favour of Common Core. I don't see how he can possibly get the nomination. He's weak on immigration. He's in favour of Common Core. How the hell can you vote for this guy? You just can't do it." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Obamacare: "You have to be hit by a tractor, literally, a tractor, to use it, because the deductibles are so high. It's virtually useless. And remember the $5 billion web site?... I have so many web sites, I have them all over the place. I hire people, they do a web site. It costs me $3." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Barack Obama: "Obama is going to be out playing golf. He might be on one of my courses. I would invite him. I have the best courses in the world. I have one right next to the White House." PA Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On himself: "Love him or hate him, Trump is a man who is certain about what he wants and sets out to get it, no holds barred. Women find his power almost as much of a turn-on as his money." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On America: "The American Dream is dead. But if I get elected president I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before and we will make America great again." GETTY

Previously leaked emails allegedly show people with ties to the Clinton foundation were given priority to receive federal funds in the wake of the Haitian earthquake.

Similarly, a Colombian mining tycoon is alledged to have benefited from the foundation's work.

The FBI investigation into Ms Clinton's use of a private email server concluded that while her staff had been "extremely careless," it did not amount to criminal behaviour.
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From the Bay of Pigs invasion to a historic visit by President Barack Obama to Havana, Cubans have known for generations that whenever the United States turns its face to Cuba, Fidel Castro would be staring right back.

But the death of El Comandante has added to worries among Cubans that US President-elect Donald Trump will slam the door shut on nascent trade and travel ties, undoing two years of detente with the United States under Mr Obama.

Many Cubans believe they could do with their late leader's charisma and way with words to counter Mr Trump's bombast.

With 'El Comandante' gone, I am a little fearful of what could happen because of Trump's way of thinking and acting, said Yaneisi Lara, a 36-year-old Havana street vendor and flower seller.

He could set back and block everything that's been going on, all the things Obama has done. And he did a lot, managing to get the US closer to Cuba, she said, admitting she would consider moving to the United States herself.

Mr Trump has struck a very different tone from Mr Obama, who reached an agreement two years ago with Castro's younger brother, President Raul Castro, to end half a century of hostilities.

Late in his election campaign, Mr Trump sought to reassure Cuban-American voters in Florida that he was firm in his opposition to the Castros, and pledged that, if elected, he would close down the newly re-opened US embassy in Havana.

Earlier on, in the primary contests to pick the Republican presidential nominee, Mr Trump said he thought restoring diplomatic ties with Cuba was fine, but that Mr Obama ought to have cut a better deal.

Now that Mr Trump has won the presidency, it is hard to know exactly what his approach to Cuba will be.

None of that has been decided, Mr Trump's senior adviser, Kellyanne Conway, said on NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday. The President-elect will make those decisions once he takes office.

However, Reince Priebus, who will be Mr Trump's chief of staff when he takes office on 20 January, said Mr Trump would call for more political freedoms from the Cuban government, and that if he did not get this he would roll back Mr Obama's opening.

There isn't going to be a one-way relationship from the United States to Cuba without some action from the Castro administration, Mr Priebus said on Fox News Sunday.

(Reuters (Reuters)

After the death of the 90-year-old Fidel Castro on Friday, Mr Obama called him a singular figure, while Mr Trump described him as a brutal dictator.

Castro began his career as a revolutionary by toppling a US-backed government, repelled a CIA-backed counter-revolutionary invasion at the Bay of Pigs in 1961, and faced off against President John F Kennedy in the Cuban missile crisis a year later.

During 49 years in office, he crossed swords with 10 US presidents. And while he took a lower profile after officially retiring in 2008, Castro never stopped warning Cubans that the American government was not to be trusted.

Although moving closer to the United States, Raul Castro has not given up much ground to the Obama administration in terms of liberalizing Cuba's one-party political system.

Mr Obama did not succeed in convincing Congress to lift the United States' tough economic embargo on Cuba, but he personally opposed the sanctions and used executive actions to allow more contact and commerce.

The first US commercial flight to Havana in about half a century is due to arrive on Monday.

Mr Trump could easily review such measures. He has included Mauricio Claver-Carone, a leading advocate for maintaining a tough economic embargo, in his transition team.

Without giving any specifics, Mr Trump said on Saturday that his administration would do all it can once he takes office to help increase freedom and prosperity for Cuban people after the death of Castro.

Trump is the polar opposite of Obama, said burly Havana taxi driver Pablo Fernandez Martinez, 39, as he hustled for work.

Life in Cuba remains hard for its educated but underemployed people, but engagement with the United States has brought in more dollars. Mr Martinez fears that could dry up in Mr Trump's administration.

There will probably be less tourist traffic. That will affect everyone in Cuba, and hit the economy, said Mr Martinez, who earns $100-$120 a week driving for foreigners.

Pedro Machado, 68, is a retired engineer in marine research who now rents out rooms in his airy apartment near Havana's Malecon seafront. Watching television with his wife, Mr Machado worried that Mr Trump's angry rhetoric could spell trouble.

Trump's policies are very aggressive. We'll have to see what he actually does. But it certainly looks like bad news for Latin America and for Cuba in particular, he said.

My generation benefited from Fidel's revolution, in terms of education, the poor were helped. Not everything was a bed of roses, but Fidel helped us, he added. The United States has acted as an empire, and that's what Trump represents. Given what he has said, the future is not looking great.

Reuters
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All hairdressers in the US state of Illinois will receive training in domestic violence support from January.

In an amendment to state legislation regulating the grooming and beauty industries, authorities intend to make use of the close relationship many stylists have with their clients.

The measure is backed by the Professional Beauty Association trade body, which also runs a programme to raise awareness among hairdressers of domestic abuse and to refer victims to support centres.

When youre a hairdresser, you're touching people first, Jamie Feramisco, a hairdresser and domestic abuse survivor from Quincy, a city in the west of Illinois, told the local Herald Whig newspaper.

I'll start touching your hair before I really even start talking to you. Its really close. Its one of the highest-touch industries, which creates a bond with your clients.

More than in most industries, hair stylists often have a very friendly relationship with their clients.

While creating a close bond, these factors also allow stylists to pick up on evidence of domestic abuse that may not be visible to others.

Campaigners say that for many female victims of domestic violence, a hair salon may be the only safe space they have or are allowed to go to without their abuser.

Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Show all 20 1 /20 Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Angela Merkel German Chancellor AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Hillary Clinton U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Reuters Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Janet Yellen Federal Reserve Chair Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Melinda Gates Co-founder of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Mary Barra General Motors Co. Chairman and CEO Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Christine Lagarde Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Sheryl Sandbert COO of Facebook Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Susan Wojcicki CEO of YouTube Getty Images for GLAAD Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Meg Whitman Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Ana Patricia Botin Santander Bank's president AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Ginni Rometty IBM Chairman, President and CEO Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Park Geun-Hye President of South Korea Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Michelle Obama U.S. first lady Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Indra Nooyi Chairperson and CEO of PepsiCo Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Angela Ahrendts Apple senior vice president Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Abigail Johnson President and CEO of Fidelity Investments and chairman of Fidelity International Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Tsai Ing-wen Taiwan President AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Michelle Bachelet Chile President AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Federica Mogherini High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Safra Catz Oracle president Getty Images

Furthermore, in what is often a safe, all-female environment, abused women may open up about their experiences.

Stylists will not be required to report abuse, but will be trained to look for warning signs and offer support. They will also learn which crisis groups to direct women to.

The whole idea is to help hairdressers deal with disclosures, said JJ Magliocco, a worker at domestic violence charity Quanada, to the Herald Whig.

There is a right way and a wrong way to talk to someone. It can make or break the way a person handles their assault.

We are teaching them that they can make a difference. They dont have to keep their mouth shut.

If you have been affected by domestic violence in the UK, you can contact the National Domestic Violence Helpline free on 0808 2000 247
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An image of a man holding a sign saying 'you belong' outside a mosque in Texas has been shared by tens of thousands of people.

Pictured outside the Islamic Centre of Irving, the man is shown holding a sign that says: You belong. Stay strong. Be blessed. We are one America."

The photo has been posted on several social media platforms and has been shared tens of thousands of times already.

A spokesman from the mosque told The Independent the man stood outside for three to four hours and was speaking out against President-elect Donald Trump.

Although the identity of the man remains unclear, social media users have described him as "the real America".

One user, named as Dvde O'Brien, responded to the picture on Facebook and said: Imagine how bad things are when people are considered brave and extraordinary because they do the right thing."

The mosque was the site for an armed anti-Islam protest after the Paris attacks in 2015. The organiser, David Wright, said he was convinced the Irving centre had established the countrys first Islamic court.

Theyre mostly for self-defence or protection. But Im not going to lie. We do want to show force It would be ridiculous to protest Islam without defending ourselves, Mr Wright told the Dallas News.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 2 November 2022 A red squirrel gathers nuts in Pitlochry, Scotland Reuters UK news in pictures 1 November 2022 Englands Tara-Jane Stanley scores their sides seventh try against Brazil during the Womens Rugby League World Cup group A match at Headingley Stadium, Leeds PA 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 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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

The viral image comes as the US has reportedly witnessed more than 700 incidents of hateful harassment since Donald Trumps election.

The Southern Poverty Law Centre (SPLC), which is tracking and collating hate crime reports, claims 65 per cent of the 701 incidents were recorded in the three days following Mr Trumps win.
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A man armed with a butcher knife was shot and killed after hitting students with his vehicle and stabbing several others at Ohio State University, authorities announced on Monday afternoon. The attack left eight victims with non-life-threatening injuries.

Authorities have not identified a motive but are not ruling out that the incident was terror-related. The suspect has been identified as 18-year-old student Abdul Razak Ali Artan. He is of Somali descent and a permanent legal resident. Sources told reporters that he left behind a message admitting that he was sick of hate crimes against Muslims across the country.

Just before 10am, the school issued an alert urging anyone near Watts Hall at 19th Avenue and College road to run, hide, or fight. SWAT vans, police cruisers, and emergency vehicles responded to the campus. The emergency lockdown was lifted by 11:30am and police announced that the area was secured at the 60,000 student campus.

Ohio State University shooting Show all 16 1 /16 Ohio State University shooting Ohio State University shooting Crime scene investigators collect evidence from the pavement as police respond to an attack on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) AP Ohio State University shooting Ohio State students duck under police tape after a shelter-in-place notification was lifted following an attack Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. (Joshua A. Bickel/The Columbus Dispatch via AP) AP Ohio State University shooting Students leave buildings as police respond to an attack on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) AP Ohio State University shooting Students leave buildings as police respond to an attack on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) AP Ohio State University shooting Police respond to reports of an active shooter on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) AP Ohio State University shooting AP Ohio State University shooting Law enforcement officials are seen outside of a parking garage on the campus of Ohio State University as they respond to an active attack in Columbus, Ohio, on November 28, 2016. Eight people were injured when an attacker apparently drove into a crowd at Ohio State University on Monday, triggering an hours-long lockdown before authorities declared the campus secure. Law enforcement shot and killed one suspect, according to local television station WBNS, which reported that police led two people out in handcuffs from a garage they had surrounded on the university's main campus in Columbus. / AFP / Paul Vernon (Photo credit should read PAUL VERNON/AFP/Getty Images) PAUL VERNON/AFP/Getty Ohio State University shooting A law enforcement official motions for people to leave the area outside of a parking garage on the campus of Ohio State University as they respond to an active attack in Columbus, Ohio, on November 28, 2016. Eight people were injured when an attacker apparently drove into a crowd at Ohio State University on Monday, triggering an hours-long lockdown before authorities declared the campus secure. Law enforcement shot and killed one suspect, according to local television station WBNS, which reported that police led two people out in handcuffs from a garage they had surrounded on the university's main campus in Columbus. PAUL VERNON/AFP/Getty Ohio State University shooting Law enforcement officials are seen outside of a parking garage on the campus of Ohio State University as they respond to an active attack in Columbus, Ohio, on November 28, 2016. Eight people were injured when an attacker apparently drove into a crowd at Ohio State University on Monday, triggering an hours-long lockdown before authorities declared the campus secure. Law enforcement shot and killed one suspect, according to local television station WBNS, which reported that police led two people out in handcuffs from a garage they had surrounded on the university's main campus in Columbus. PAUL VERNON/AFP/Getty Ohio State University shooting Law enforcement officials are seen outside of a parking garage on the campus of Ohio State University as they respond to an active attack in Columbus, Ohio, on November 28, 2016. Eight people were injured when an attacker apparently drove into a crowd at Ohio State University on Monday, triggering an hours-long lockdown before authorities declared the campus secure. Law enforcement shot and killed one suspect, according to local television station WBNS, which reported that police led two people out in handcuffs from a garage they had surrounded on the university's main campus in Columbus. PAUL VERNON/AFP/Getty Ohio State University shooting Members of the Columbus SWAT team work the scene around a parking garage on the campus of The Ohio State University Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio. ) AP Photo/Jay LaPrete Ohio State University shooting Students leave buildings as police respond to an attack on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Ohio State University shooting SWAT teams and police respond to reports of an active shooter on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Ohio State University shooting Police respond to reports of an active shooter on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Ohio State University shooting Students leave buildings surrounding Watts Hall as police respond to reports of an active shooter on campus at Ohio State University, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Ohio State University shooting Law enforcement officials are seen outside of a parking garage on the campus of Ohio State University as they respond to an active attack in Columbus, Ohio, on November 28, 2016. Eight people were injured when an attacker apparently drove into a crowd at Ohio State University on Monday, triggering an hours-long lockdown before authorities declared the campus secure. Law enforcement shot and killed one suspect, according to local television station WBNS, which reported that police led two people out in handcuffs from a garage they had surrounded on the university's main campus in Columbus. PAUL VERNON/AFP/Getty

Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College, the university alert system tweeted on Monday.

Witnesses reported that the assailants vehicle jumped the curb outside Watts Hall and intentionally ran into a group of students. Other witnesses said that a fire alarm was pulled inside the building and as students poured out of the building they were struck by the automobile. The suspect then began stabbing students and was eventually shot dead by a police officer responding to the incident.

President Barack Obama has been briefed on the shooting and has asked to be updated on developments in the case, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters on Monday.

While the incident unfolded, Governor John Kasich tweeted his thoughts and prayers to the Ohio State community, Be safe, listen to first responders.

Facebook has activated its safety-check feature so students can alert friends and family members of their well-being.
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As a gunman burst onto the campus of Ohio State University in Columbus, injuring at least nine people, the news was a sobering reminder of the mounting number of mass shootings across the country.

The number of deadly incidents in primary, high schools, colleges and universities is one of the most common types of mass shooting.

Below is a timeline of mass shootings in educational establishments in just over the last 12 months.

1 October 2015: Roseburg, Oregon

A gunman opened fire at Umpqua Community College, killing nine and wounding seven. The suspected shooter, 26- year-old Chris Harper Mercer, shot himself after exchanging gunfire with the police.

23 April 2016: Antigo, Wisconsin

An 18-year-old boy named Jakob Wagner opened fire at the Antigo High School prom. He shot four fellow students. Nobody died from their injuries. He ran from the building, exchanged fire with a police man and was shot down in a field. He died a few hours later in hospital.

1 June 2016: Los Angeles, California

Gunman Mainak Sarkar burst into the UCLA campus, shot and killed an instructor, William Klug, before killing himself. Klug, 39, was a father of two who worked in the mechanical and aerospace engineering department. The killer reportedly left a note for authorities, asking them to feed his cat.

28 September 2016: Townville, South Carolina

Homeschooled 14-year-old Jesse Osborne shot his father dead, then drove to the local primary school playground where he shot two male students and a female teacher.

The teacher and one of the boys were treated and released from the hospital. One boy died. Osborne was charged with murder.

18 October 2016: San Francisco, California

Four men waited in the car park of the June Jordan School for Equity and City Arts and Technology High School for students to leave the school for the day. They opened fire and injured four students, including a 15-year-old female student who was critically injured.
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Two thousand veterans are planning to join the Standing Rock Indian Reservation protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The day before the US Army Corps of Engineers plans to close camps in North Dakota, as many as 2,000 military veterans are expected to stand in solidarity with the Native Americans and the protesters who have endured months of extreme weather, pepper spray, water cannons, as well as alleged use of grenades by police. Protests were mostly peaceful until they turned violent in late November.

The event, Veterans for Standing Rock, is calling for participants to "assemble as a peaceful, unarmed militia" to stand against protesters being assaulted and intimidated by law enforcement.

 Standing Rock protests continue: 'Water is life'

A gofundme online fundraising page for the veterans has gathered close to $490,000 in just over two weeks.

"It's time to display that honor, courage and commitment we claim to represent," the page reads, adding that 2,100 veterans want to join the event but the event reached capacity at 2,000 people.

"It's time for real patriots. Now more than ever, it's time for anyone and everyone to lead."

The day after Thanksgiving, the Army Corps of Engineers said they would close a campsite to "protect the general public from the violent confrontations between protesters and law enforcement officials that have occurred in this area".

The closure will affect the Oceti Sakowin camp and the area north of the Cannonball River.

The event, led by Michael Wood Jr, a veteran and former Baltimore police officer, and Wesley Clark Jr, a veteran, screenwriter and activist, is already collecting names of those who are interested in a second trip, which could be as early as the second week in December.

"This event (and this event page) will not tolerate hate, violence or divisive behaivor of any kind," their Facebook page reads.

Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Show all 15 1 /15 Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota A person pours a pepper spray antidote into a protester's eyes during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People swim across a river to where the police officers are standing guard during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota A man holds up a ceremonial object while police officers look down from a hill during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota November Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Two people stand in the water of a river while police officers guard the shore during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota A man stands on a makeshift bridge over a river while police officers stand on the opposite shore during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Tonya Stands recovers after being pepper sprayed by police after swimming across a creek with other protesters hoping to build a new camp to block construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline, near Cannon Ball, Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Dakota Access Pipeline protesters stand in the foreground and in the waist-deep water of the Cantapeta Creek, northeast of the Oceti Sakowin Camp, near Cannon Ball, N.D., Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016. Officers in riot gear clashed again Wednesday with protesters near the Dakota Access pipeline, hitting dozens with pepper spray as they waded through waist-deep water in an attempt to reach property owned by the pipeline's developer. Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Dakota Access Pipeline protesters stand in the foreground and in the waist-deep water of the Cantapeta Creek, northeast of the Oceti Sakowin Camp, near Cannon Ball, N.D., Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016. Officers in riot gear clashed again Wednesday with protesters near the Dakota Access pipeline, hitting dozens with pepper spray as they waded through waist-deep water in an attempt to reach property owned by the pipeline's developer. Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People who were tear gassed return to the shore during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota People yell at police officers standing on the opposite shore of a river during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters Protesters occupy Standing Rock reservation, North Dakota Police use pepper spray against protesters in a boat during a protest against the building of a pipeline on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation near Cannonball, North Dakota, U.S Reuters

We're doing this to support our country so lets do it with honor, working together. We can stop this savage injustice being committed right here at home. If not us, who? If not now, when?

The planned pipeline is a $3.7 billion project that would cross four states and potentially destroy a Native American reserves historical artifacts, burial and prayer sites. It could also pollute the Missouri river.

Once completed, it would carry 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day through both Dakotas, Iowa and Illinois.

Legal disputes have slowed the process down, but the pipeline is almost complete.

Law enforcement has been widely criticised for its treatment of the protesters, pointing sniper guns at unarmed civilians, using a taser, sound cannons and firing rubber bullets at journalists.

 Hollywood Stars Join Standing Rock Sioux Members to Protest North Dakota Pipeline

The most serious conflict was when protester, 21-year-old Sophia Wilanksy, had her left arm and hand badly damaged following an explosion. Her father said it was due to a police grenade, whereas police said demonstrators had caused the explosion. More than 300 people were treated for injuries that day.

The military event organisers have asked participants to bring body armor, gas masks, earplugs and shooting mufflers, but has warned not to bring drugs, alcohol or weapons.

Anyone found on the closed-off land after 5 December could be charged with trespassing, the US army said.

President Obama revealed that the army was considering an alternative route for the project, but Kelcy Warren, chief executive of the pipeline company, Energy Transfer Partners, told the Associated Press that it would not consider a different route.
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Donald Trump has accused Hillary Clinton of hypocrisy after the Democrats presidential campaign team said it would participate in an election recount in three states.

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein has already filed for a recount in Wisconsin, and is raising funds to do the same in Pennsylvania and Michigan  all states that Mr Trump claimed over Ms Clinton, against expectations, on election day.

On Saturday, the President-elect described the recount effort as ridiculous and a scam in a statement released by his transition team. Early on Sunday, he took to Twitter, in response to the news that Ms Clintons campaign would also take part.

Hilary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in, he wrote. Nothing will change.

Mr Trump, who spent much of his campaign complaining that the election would be rigged, and threatening not to accept its outcome should he lose, turned Ms Clintons own pre-election comments against her in his early morning tweetstorm.

At the final presidential debate, Ms Clinton had called Mr Trumps threatened refusal to concede the election horrifying, and, in her concession speech on 9 November, urged her supporters to accept the results and look to the future.

Mr Trump tweeted that so much time and money will be spent on the recount, only to reach the same result. It was, he concluded, sad.

His criticism came a day after Marc Elias, a lawyer for the Clinton campaign, said the Democratic nominees team would not call for a recount themselves, but would participate in Ms Steins effort, in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides.

 Hillary Clinton urges supporters to give Donald Trump a chance to lead

The Wisconsin Elections Commission announced on Friday that it had received Ms Steins petition to perform a recount of the vote there, amid claims from computer experts and electoral lawyers that vote totals could have been manipulated.

As of Sunday, a crowdfunding effort started by Ms Stein had raised more than $6m of the $7m needed to cover fees and legal costs for a manual recount of ballots in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Mr Elias said in his statement that the Clinton campaigns own analysts had not found any evidence of fraud or other irregularities, despite the repeated hacking of party and campaign databases that took place during the election.

Let me be very clear: We do not have evidence of fraud. We do not have smoking guns. What we do have is an election that was surrounded by hacking, Ms Stein wrote on her campaign website.

After filing for a recount in Wisconsin, and having raised sufficient funds for a similar petition in Pennsylvania, to be filed by Monday, she went on, We will focus on raising the needed funds for Michigans recount (due Wednesday).

In Pennsylvania, which has 20 Electoral College votes, Mr Trump won by roughly 68,000 votes, and in Wisconsin, which has ten such votes, his margin was even smaller: just 27,000. Michigan, which carries 14 votes, is still yet to be certified, with the difference between the two candidates amounting to fewer than 12,000.

Asked about the recount on ABCs This Week on Sunday, Ms Clintons former Democratic primary rival Bernie Sanders said it was not a big deal, adding: I don't think anybody, Secretary Clinton or anybody else, thinks that there's going to be profound changes.
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The furore over Donald Trump listing Mitt Romney as a potential pick for US Secretary of State has intensified with one top aide calling reporting of her opposition to his selection sexist.

Kellyanne Conway, who serves as one of Mr Trumps top strategists, was pushing back against news reports that she had angered him by publicly airing doubts about Mr Romney last week and over the weekend. She claimed on MSNBC that her position in the team was secure.

Earlier, MSNBC had reported that other top aides to Mr Trump had been baffled by how strenuously Ms Conway had been undermining Mr Romney, who was the 2012 Republican nominee and before that the Republican Governor of Massachusetts.

The background sniping can be of little help to Mr Trump. There are few cabinet positions more critical than Secretary of State and his final decision is now keenly awaited. Mr Trump is expected to meet with Mr Romney for a second time since his election victory on Tuesday.

President-elect Trump has now returned to New York from his Thanksgiving weekend sojourn in Palm Beach, Florida. Ms Conway is still at his side and is still widely seen as one of the most pivotal figures in the transition team having guided Mr Trump to victory in November. Her aggressive response to a possible Romney pick has thus been all the more surprising.

She has justified it in part by pointing to the admittedly extremely harsh attacks that Mr Romney launched against Mr Trump during the campaign, notably when there was a still a chance that he might not become the Republican nominee. But nominating him for Secretary of State would offer some pluses for Mr Trump: it would be seen as an olive branch to the Republican mainstream and his nomination would be quickly confirmed by the Senate.

Ms Conway made her views known again in TV interviews on Sunday. I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of State position, she said on CNN's State of the Union.

I'm just saying, we don't even know if Mitt Romney voted for Donald Trump, she went on. I think there are concerns that those of us that are loyal have, and we want a secretary of State who's loyal to the president.

She wondered out loud why Mr Trump even imagined Mr Romney would be qualified for the job of Americas top diplomat. That appeared to ignore the fact that he has already selected a series of people for cabinet jobs with scant-to-zero qualifications for the duties they are meant to take on, including Governor Nikki Haley, slated to be the next US envoy to the United Nations.

Trump and Romney after their first meeting in Bedminster, New Jersey, earier this month (Getty)

Governor Romney, in the last four years, has he been around the globe doing something on behalf of the United States of which we're unaware? Ms Conway asked tartly.

She has not been alone, however, it trying to throw sand in any cogs that may be turning for Mr Romney. On Monday, Congressman Chris Collins, who was the first Republican in the House of Representatives to support Mr Trump during the campaign, blasted the idea of his being Secretary of State.

What do I know about Mitt Romney? I know that he's a self-serving egomaniac who puts himself first, who has a chip on his shoulder, and thinks that he should be president of the United States, Mr Collins told CNN. There's no love lost between me and Mitt Romney, he added.

Other contenders for the job that Ms Clinton once held include Rudy Giuliani. However, the former Mayor of New York could face possible ethical problems because of private consultation work he has done for foreign governments and leaders in the years he has been out of public service.

On Tuesday, Mr Trump is also expected to meet with Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, who supported him during the campaign. As the current chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, his choice would also be popular with mainstream Republicans. Also being mentioned is the former CIA director and retired Army General, David Petraeus.
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A US senator is due to introduce a resolution asking Donald Trump to convert his billions into conflict-free holdings and adopt blind trusts.

Democrat Ben Cardin also says the proposal will mean any companies owned by the President-elect that share an entity with a foreign government will be potential violations of the constitution.

Mr Trumps wealth is estimated at $3.7bn by Forbes, and his primary assets include Trump Tower in Manhattan and the Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.

Senator Cardin plans to introduce his idea this week Getty (Getty)

Richard Painter, the former chief ethics counsel for George W Bush and Barack Obama, has asked the Electoral College not to appoint Mr Trump on 19 December unless he tackles his potential conflicts of interest.

Mr Cardin, who is also a senior member of the Senates finance committee, said: The founding fathers were clear in their belief that any federal office holder of the United States must never be put in a position where they can be monetarily or otherwise influenced by a foreign governmental actor.

This resolution is intended to prevent a crisis or any misunderstanding regarding the consistency of the Presidents actions with the US constitution.

Unless he takes appropriate action, Mr Trumps many international financial interests pose a great risk of violating the constitution.

Mr Cardin pointed out a clause in the US constitution that said no person holding any office of profit or trust  shall, without the consent of the congress, accept  office.

The 70-year-old billionaire property magnet suggests placing his children, three of whom are in his transition team, in charge of a blind trust.

This weekend, Mr Trump branded the Wisconsin recount effort a scam and accused Hillary Clinton of hypocrisy over the recount requests also for Pennsylvania and Michigan.

As it happened: Donald Trump elected President of the United States in shock defeat of Hillary Clinton
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A Texas Republican who is a member of the US Electoral College has said he will resign the role after deciding he cannot vote for Donald Trump.

Art Sisneros had previously told Politico he was grappling with his conscience over the vote he would be expected to cast for the President-elect when the Electoral College meets on 19 December to ratify this months election result.

In a lengthy blog post, published over the Thanksgiving weekend, Mr Sisneros laid out the history of the Electoral College and how he believed its original function had been corrupted and ruined, as well as arguing that Mr Trump is unfit to occupy the White House.

I do not see how Donald Trump is biblically qualified to serve in the office of the Presidency, Mr Sisneros wrote. If Trump is not qualified and my role, both morally and historically, as an elected official is to vote my conscience, then I cannot and will not vote for Donald Trump for President.

He went on: The reality is Trump will be our President, no matter what my decision is. Since I cant in good conscience vote for Donald Trump the best option I see at this time is to resign my position as an Elector. This will allow the remaining body of Electors to fill my vacancy when they convene on 19 December with someone that can vote for Trump.

Since the election, there have been widespread calls from the left for the abolition of the Electoral College, which Mr Trump won by 306 votes to 232, despite his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton winning the popular vote by a margin of more than two million.

Mr Trump, who complained that the system was rigged before the election, has since tweeted his belief that the Electoral College is genius.
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Italian photographer Teo Butturini has captured images of young LGBT people living in Beijing in the places that are important to them as part of his latest project, which attempts to tackle stigma in China. Most keep their true identity hidden even from family and friends, while a few tried to come out, with mixed fortunes. For many, the mere act of showing their face requires enormous courage.

It is estimated that more than 40 million people in China are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. But homosexuality was a crime there as recently as 1997, and was only removed from the official list of mental illnesses in 2001. Massive stigma remains and, even today, many Chinese psychologists believe homosexuality can be treated and offer programmes to turn youths back to heterosexuality.

Thirty years of single-child policy created an even more difficult situation for LGBT people. In a country where the young are expected to provide for their parents and having a son is considered a must, parents often cannot accept that their child is gay, even if they can accept the general idea of homosexuality. Many young LGBT people move from their own villages to big cities, in order to escape ostracism  often those who remain hide their sexuality or are forced into marriages by their parents. Recently the Chinese government issued a document forbidding the airing and publishing of any content related to violence, drug and alcohol abuse, adultery, smoking, reincarnation, homosexuality and any form of behaviour that exaggerates the dark side of society.

Earlier this year, the government censored an online drama titled ADDICTED, exploring LGBT-related topics in a high school as part of an art project regarding the LGBT community in the country. The series was organised with the Beijing LGBT centre  an NGO working to raise social awareness and advocating LGBT related topics. The centre also promotes activities connecting LGBT youths and offers counselling to families.

Xiao, 33, from Hebei, and her girlfriend Chen, 28, from Heilongjiang, chose Xiao's parents house as their place. They have been living here together for months, even if Xiaos parents dont accept her being a lesbian and keep on acting as if she and Chen are just friends. The parents were going to be included in this shot, but later decided not to take part (Teo Butturini)

Elvans, 21 from Beijing, is says he is still discovering his sexuality. He doesnt know whether hes gay or transgender, but dressing as a woman makes him feel comfortable. His chosen place is the storage of his universitys acting company,of which he is the leader. Acting, either on stage or just for a rehearsal, gives him the chance to dress as a woman with no one criticising him, but applauding instead (Teo Butturini)

Daniel, 22, from a small village in Hunan province. This public toilet reminds him of his first sexual encounter. He was 17 and really wanted to have a sexual experience, so, as often happens, he found a partner on a social network and they decided to meet in a public convenience. The stranger performed oral sex on him and then went away. From that moment Daniel hasnt been able to emit a sound during sex (Teo Butturini)

Mondo, 25 from Hebei province, is one of the owners of Adams club, which is also his special place. He says he chose to open this establishment in Sanlitun, which is the most popular nightlife area in Beijing, because its time for LGBT people in China to stop hiding, and to live their love and their lives in the open, as everyone else does (Teo Butturini)

Yichi, 23, from Henan province, says he has been lucky as his family, friends and boss accept the fact he is gay, and no one has ever made a fuss about it. He chose the brewery where he works as his special place, because it's not easy in China to find a job in a gay-friendly company, and everyone here is incredibly supportive (Teo Butturini)

Jason, 25, from Guangdong province, came to Beijing to try to make a career as a musician and escape his parents, who he says were still treating him as a child and wouldnt accept his homosexuality. He wanted his portrait to be shot on the rooftop of the office building where hes living (Teo Butturini)

Jay, 30, from Beijing, had been living and studying chemistry in Canada for long time before coming back to China. This hospital emergency department is his special place, because a few years ago he had a brain aneurysm and his boyfriend immediately brought him here. They saved his life and, after waking from the coma, he decided he would tell everybody he is gay, so that he could live the rest of his life free to be who he is (Teo Butturini)

Island, 26, from Beijing, is very attached to the ancient traditions of China, especially Confucianism. Too many people nowadays criticise the old wisdom, he says, but its something that has helped him understand his parents and vice versa. His story is one of the few happy ones, with his family and friends fully accepting his sexuality (Teo Butturini)
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North Korea is observing a three-day mourning period for late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who was seen by the North as a comrade-in-arms against the United States.

The North ordered flags outside official buildings to be flown at half-mast as a mark of respect for Mr Castro, who died on Friday at the age of 90.

In the Pyongyang subway, commuters in one station crowded around a glass case containing a obituary to Mr Castro published by the ruling party newspaper, Rodong Sinmun.

Alongside a picture framed with a black border and showing a head-and-shoulder shot of a bearded Mr Castro in full military dress, the obit recalled his visit to North Korea in 1986 when he met founder-leader Kim Il-sung.

It noted the Cuban leader was awarded the title of DPRK [North Korea] Hero for his efforts to strengthen relations between two countries fighting in the outposts of the anti-US, anti-imperialist struggle.

 Fidel Castro - from revolutionary to global figurehead

Kim Jong-un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy, calling Mr Castro a close friend and comrade of the Korean people.

An official delegation led by senior aide and vice chairman of the ruling Workers Party Central Committee, Choe Ryong-hae, left for Havana on Monday to attend memorial events.

According to a Japanese agency which monitors North Korean media, Mr Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honoured in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.

Besides flying flags at half-mast, it was not immediately clear what the mourning period, which ends on Wednesday, would entail.

Shortly after receiving news of Mr Castros death, Kim Yong-nam, head of the Norths parliament, and Premier Pak Pong-ju sent a message of condolence to Mr Castros brother Raul, who assumed power after Fidel became too weak to continue as leader in 2008.

In it, they said that although Mr Castro has died, the feats he performed for the Cuban revolution and the fraternal relations of friendship between the two countries would remain forever.

Inside the daily life in North Korea Show all 19 1 /19 Inside the daily life in North Korea Inside the daily life in North Korea People reading a newspaper at the metro station Inside the daily life in North Korea Thoughts of the leaders on the tram. They have about a dozen of these on every tram, all with different thoughts Inside the daily life in North Korea Young people training for a big upcoming festival Inside the daily life in North Korea People at the Pyongyang's annual marathon Inside the daily life in North Korea Many stars on one of the trolleys in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea An intimidating poster in a primary school in North Korea. Inside the daily life in North Korea Solar panels installed on a street lamp. Inside the daily life in North Korea A poster on the window next to one of the venues we visited in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea Kids playing football next to the Arch of Triumph. After a while tourists were allowed to join, so some of us did Inside the daily life in North Korea Class in an educational center in Pyongyang (where people over 17 years old can attend any classes they choose after school, for free) Inside the daily life in North Korea People waving at me during the Pyongyang marathon Inside the daily life in North Korea People having a great time dancing at a public park Inside the daily life in North Korea A metro driver in a metro station in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea Fireworks to mark the birthday of the Eternal President Kim Il Sung on our last night in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea My wonderful tour guide at a public park Inside the daily life in North Korea One of the parks in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea A person rowing some boats for the day at a river in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea The National War Museum Inside the daily life in North Korea Public park in Pyongyang

Because of their common hostility toward the US and similar authoritarian power structures, Cuba and North Korea had maintained very close diplomatic ties throughout the years.

The two countries established ties in 1960 and Mr Castro visited the North in 1986 to meet with Kim Il-sung, the countrys founder and Kim Jong-uns grandfather.

Cuba became one of the few countries willing to flout international sanctions imposed on the North over its nuclear weapons programme.

In 2013, Panama seized a North Korean ship carrying an undeclared Cuban arms shipment of Soviet-era weapons and fighter jets hidden under sacks of sugar.

North Korea insisted the weapons were being shipped for repair, prior to their return.

Such fraternal sentiment toward Havana and Raul Castro, however, appears to have dimmed in Pyongyang amid a thawing of relations between Cuba and the US, who agreed to normalise ties in 2014.

Additional reporting by agencies
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The Philippines intends to move closer to new friends Russia and China, following disagreements with the United States, President Rodrigo Duterte has said.

The south-east Asian nation is not yet ready to form new military alliances, he told Russian state-funded TV channel RT, but he did not exclude the possibility of future deals, including arms deals.

I am not ready for military alliances because we have a treaty that was signed in the '50s," he said, referring to the 1951 Mutual Defence Treaty with the United States. "But I am ready to co-operate with my new friends  China and Russia  to make this world more peaceful. The US decided to cancel the procurement of weapons, and I said, 'I have a friend who has plenty'.

He told RT of his anger about atrocities committed under US occupation, including massacres, and questioned why his country would choose to continue to "follow" US foreign policy.

He said in addition to being hurt by the past, he was unhappy with the way the US continued to boss him around, adding threats and conditions to all exchanges.

"You know, every time the United States criticises us or reprimands us they always connect it with the sentence, 'If you do not do this, if you do not do that, if you do this and we do not like that we, will cut the assistance.' Every time," he said.

Because he was tired of this treatment, he said he had requested a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev at the 2016 ASEAN conference in October, in which he said he wanted closer relationship with the country.

"I told him my problem, and I said, 'You know, I am not asking for anything. We can survive with nothing. But I just want you to know that we want to be closer to you and China because I do not like what is happening to us [with the United States],'" he said.

Mr Duterte reported at the time that Mr Medvedev was supportive, responding that is really how the Americans are" and "we will help you".

Mr Duterte also described visiting China in October to repair relations with the Premier Xi Jinping. The two countries have a history of poor relations, stemming largely from territorial disputes in the South China Sea. But the Philippines president said he found Mr Xi to be a really great guy and realised the two countries had missed out on many chances for mutually beneficial co-operation in the past.

Mr Duterte said, given the two countries' fractious history, he had decided the best way to get his Chinese counterpart on side was just to turn up and introduce himself in person.

"Finally I reached the shores of China and we had a very good talk. And you know president Xi Jinping  hes really a great guy," he said.

He reiterated that he had not asked Mr Xi, Mr Medvedev or Mr Putin for anything, he had simply extended the hand of friendship.

"In all of our talks, I never said that 'I want this' or 'I want that'. I just want to be friends, to show to the world that I am not limited to a few countries, that I can interact with the rest of the world, because we are a sovereign state. We have to do business and to have diplomatic relations with everybody."

Mr Duterte went on to accuse the United States of hypocrisy for criticising the Philippines for the thousands of extrajudicial vigilante drug killings that have occurred since Mr Duterte took charge of the country.

Do you know that America is not the signatory of the International Criminal Court?" he said. "And here is a guy threatening me with prosecutionthen you see extrajudicial killing. What is that word? That is a word of a criminal justice system being adopted by the human rights commission. So if you are not a member, whats your business in mentioning those words?"

But although Mr Duterte made it clear he was leaning towards an alliance with Russia and China rather than with the US, he said he did not know who would make the first move towards solidifying the relationship, or when he would have the opportunity to meet with Mr Putin again, especially as he "can't stand the cold" in Russia.

For the time being, the important thing, he said, was simply friendship.

I made friends," he told the broadcaster. "Ive noticed that President Putin, he seldom smiles. [But] you know when we were together, and during the last day he saw me, he went out of his way to shake hands with me... And then he smiled again and shook my hand and said 'I will wait for you in Russia'."

Most people in the Philippines continue to support an alliance with the US, according to polls, but Mr Duterte suggested this down to years of indoctrination.

[It is] because [of] having been a colony for 50 years," he said. "It should not surprise you. Its ingrained in the genealogy of the Filipinos. But, little by little Ive been telling them, I made this decision [to move away from being allied with the United States]. I think the Filipinos know the reason why in their hearts."

Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence Show all 10 1 /10 Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266268.bin REUTERS/Erik de Castro Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266266.bin REUTERS/Cheryl Ravelo Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266265.bin REUTERS/Erik de Castro Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266264.bin REUTERS/Erik de Castro Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266262.bin REUTERS/Erik de Castro Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266260.bin REUTERS/Cheryl Ravelo Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266269.bin REUTERS/Erik de Castro Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266270.bin REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266271.bin REUTERS/Cheryl Ravelo Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed in election violence 266272.bin REUTERS/Erik de Castro

He said the Philippines did not need US support  "we are not a nation of beggars"  and the country should not interfere in his affairs.

However, Mr Duterte did offer a slither of hope to those invested in future US- Philippines relations. As in the past, he suggested an affinity with President-elect Donald Trump.

Im not at liberty to make it public, but there are [positive] feelings now [towards Mr Trump], even [among] retired generals," he said. "They wrote me a long letter, and the last sentence is that, 'there is no doubt in our minds that we can be great friends again and reset the whole thing'."
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An Australian man has been charged with raping a child the day after he was released on bail on stalking charges.

The 37-year-old man allegedly sexually assaulted the girl in a park earlier this month.

He had been in court the previous day charged with two counts of stalking and intimidation, one count of resisting arrest and one cound of using offensive language near a school, The Daily Telegraph reports.

He was relesaed despite a history of violent criminal behaviour, including domestic violence charges, breaking and entering and violent robberies, the paper added.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. 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The man, who also allegedly already has a criminal record more than 40 pages long, was arrested near the park a few hours after the alleged attack.

He was charged with having sex with a child under the age of 10.

The man was refused bail.

There was no way in the world he should have been granted bail," Victims of Crime Assistance League vice-president Howard Brown told the paper.

He added: There doesnt seem to be enough education for magistrates who seem to not have a proper handle on our current bail laws because if they are applied appropriately, theres no way in the world you would have been able to mitigate the risk he posed.

The rights of the community and the protection of the community must be paramount. He was clearly an unacceptable risk.

He is due to appear in court early next year to face the charge of sexually assaulting a child.
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Former French Prime Minister Francois Fillon has beaten Alain Juppe to win The Republicans primary nomination for the presidency.

Fillon, a conservative Catholic strongly opposed to same-sex marriage, positioned himself firmly to Alain Juppe's right.

Both Fillon, 62 and Juppe, 71, knocked their former boss, former President Nicolas Sarkozy, out of primary's first round. Mr Sarkozy then threw his support behind Fillon, who served as his Prime Minister from 2007 to 2012.

Juppe served as French foreign minister and defence minister under Mr Sarkozy and Prime Minister from 1995 to 1997 under President Jacques Chirac.

The two opponents disagreed on the best approach towards Russia with Fillon calling for greater ties with the Kremlin and working alongside President Putin in the fight with Isis.

Fillon insists "Russia poses no threat" to the West, while Juppe wants France to continue putting pressure on Putin on various fronts.

Both candidates promised similar free-market reforms while Juppe accused Fillon of plying a populist anti-Muslim, anti-immigration message.

They both pledged to cut public spending, reduce the number of civil servants, raise the retirement age from 62 to 65, end the 35-hour work week and cut business taxes.

 Sarkozy tells voters 'not to take the path of the extremism'

Juppe tried to encourage conservatives to support a more tolerant approach toward France's ethnic, religious and social diversity.

Current polls suggest Fillon will stand a good chance of winning the Presidency in the April-May election - but will face a tough challenge in the form of far-right candidate Marine Le Pen, the leader of the Front National (FN).

In the first round of primary voting on Nov. 20, Fillon won 44.1 percent of the votes, Juppe 28.6 percent and Sarkozy 20.7. A second round was needed because no candidate secured a majority.

All French citizens over 18  whether they are members of the Republicans party or not  were eligible to vote in the primary, if they paid 2 euros in fees and signed a pledge stating they "share the republican values of the right and the center."
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The Turkish government has a secret plan to allow 3,000 refugees to sail to Greece every day, intelligence officials have claimed.

Greek analysts claim thousands of dinghies and motorboats have massed along the Turkish coast as the refugee deal agreed between Ankara and Brussels looks set to unravel.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to open the borders if the EU continued to block talks on the countrys accession to the union.

The European Parliament voted to temporarily halt membership talks amid concerns about the brutal crackdown on dissent in the country following an attempted military coup in July.

Mr Erdogan warned: "If you go any further, these border gates will be opened. Neither me nor my people will be affected by these dry threats. It wouldn't matter if all of you approved the vote".

The deal reached in March meant any refugee who arrived on Italian or Greek shores would be sent back to Turkey in exchange for EU member countries accepting another refugee from a Turkish camp on a one for one basis.

Ankara will also received aid money to help it care for the refugees within its borders, visa free travel for its citizens and the speeding up of membership talks.

But according to Greek newspaper Proto Thema, Ankara has given up on hope of Brussels living up to its side of the deal and could start allowing the refugees to flee within a matter of weeks.

Refugee crisis - in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugee crisis - in pictures A child looks through the fence at the Moria detention camp for migrants and refugees at the island of Lesbos on May 24, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Ahmad Zarour, 32, from Syria, reacts after his rescue by MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station) while attempting to reach the Greek island of Agathonisi, Dodecanese, southeastern Agean Sea Refugee crisis - in pictures Syrian migrants holding life vests gather onto a pebble beach in the Yesil liman district of Canakkale, northwestern Turkey, after being stopped by Turkish police in their attempt to reach the Greek island of Lesbos on 29 January 2016. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees flash the 'V for victory' sign during a demonstration as they block the Greek-Macedonian border Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants have been braving sub zero temperatures as they cross the border from Macedonia into Serbia. Refugee crisis - in pictures A sinking boat is seen behind a Turkish gendarme off the coast of Canakkale's Bademli district on January 30, 2016. At least 33 migrants drowned on January 30 when their boat sank in the Aegean Sea while trying to cross from Turkey to Greece. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A general view of a shelter for migrants inside a hangar of the former Tempelhof airport in Berlin, Germany Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees protest behind a fence against restrictions limiting passage at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Since last week, Macedonia has restricted passage to northern Europe to only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans who are considered war refugees. All other nationalities are deemed economic migrants and told to turn back. Macedonia has finished building a fence on its frontier with Greece becoming the latest country in Europe to build a border barrier aimed at checking the flow of refugees Refugee crisis - in pictures A father and his child wait after being caught by Turkish gendarme on 27 January 2016 at Canakkale's Kucukkuyu district Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants make hand signals as they arrive into the southern Spanish port of Malaga on 27 January, 2016 after an inflatable boat carrying 55 Africans, seven of them women and six chidren, was rescued by the Spanish coast guard off the Spanish coast. Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee holds two children as dozens arrive on an overcrowded boat on the Greek island of Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures A child, covered by emergency blankets, reacts as she arrives, with other refugees and migrants, on the Greek island of Lesbos, At least five migrants including three children, died after four boats sank between Turkey and Greece, as rescue workers searched the sea for dozens more, the Greek coastguard said Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants wait under outside the Moria registration camp on the Lesbos. Over 400,000 people have landed on Greek islands from neighbouring Turkey since the beginning of the year Refugee crisis - in pictures The bodies of Christian refugees are buried separately from Muslim refugees at the Agios Panteleimonas cemetery in Mytilene, Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures Macedonian police officers control a crowd of refugees as they prepare to enter a camp after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee tries to force the entry to a camp as Macedonian police officers control a crowd after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees are seen aboard a Turkish fishing boat as they arrive on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from the Turkish coast to Lesbos Reuters Refugee crisis - in pictures An elderly woman sings a lullaby to baby on a beach after arriving with other refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A man collapses as refugees make land from an overloaded rubber dinghy after crossing the Aegean see from Turkey, at the island of Lesbos EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures A girl reacts as refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees make a show of hands as they queue after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures People help a wheelchair user board a train with others, heading towards Serbia, at the transit camp for refugees near the southern Macedonian town of Gevgelija AP Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees board a train, after crossing the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Macedonia is a key transit country in the Balkans migration route into the EU, with thousands of asylum seekers - many of them from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia - entering the country every day Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures An aerial picture shows the "New Jungle" refugee camp where some 3,500 people live while they attempt to enter Britain, near the port of Calais, northern France Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A Syrian girl reacts as she helped by a volunteer upon her arrival from Turkey on the Greek island of Lesbos, after having crossed the Aegean Sea EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Beds ready for use for migrants and refugees are prepared at a processing center on January 27, 2016 in Passau, Germany. The flow of migrants arriving in Passau has dropped to between 500 and 1,000 per day, down significantly from last November, when in the same region up to 6,000 migrants were arriving daily.

Greek intelligence expert Athanassios Drougas told The Times: No one is underestimating Mr Erdogan and his unpredictability these days.

These plans, along with explicit threats that the Turkish president has made in recent weeks, have Greeces joint chiefs of staff seriously concerned.

They are fearful and they have told the political leadership here that if Turkey opens the floodgates yet again, Greece, in its current state of financial and social distress, will not be able to withstand the shock. It will spell war or wreak the havoc of one.

With Europe in a mess, Mr Erdogan feels he has a free hand in trying to blackmail the bloc using the refugee crisis as leverage.

Over a million refugees, mostly from Syria and Iraq, arrived in Europe last year with many coming via the Aegean and Mediterranean seas or overland through Turkey.

Currently more than 60,000 refugees are living in refugee camps in Greece after several Balkan countries sealed their borders.

Many remain stuck on islands in the Aegean with frequent fires and disorder breaking out in the large, unsanitary camps.

On Thursday, a woman and her young son were killed in a fire caused by cooking gas canister at the Moria refugee camp on Lesbos  home to refugees facing deportation back to Turkey  while two others were hospitalised with severe burns.
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A family in Aleppo that has become renowned for tweeting from the besieged part of the city has posted a farewell message - saying they "can't be alive anymore" after Syrian government forces took control of their district and reportedly destroyed their home.

The Twitter account, which is under seven-year-old Bana Alabed's name but is managed by her mother, Fatemah, shared a message on Sunday afternoon stating: Last message - under heavy bombardments now, can't be alive anymore. When we die, keep talking for 200,000 still inside. BYE.

It came after rebel frontlines in the area collapsed due to heavy air strikes and a lack of hospitals, allowing the Syrian government forces to take control of the Hanano housing district in eastern Aleppo, where the family was living.

After the family posted the tweet, The Independent was able to speak briefly with Fatemah on Monday morning, who said she and her young children were trying to flee the area after losing their home to government bombing.

Fatemah, who studied English at college for three years, told The Independent: "The situation is very bad. We are on the run - no house, no food. Our house has been destroyed. For safety I'm not sharing where we are going.

"Bana is very scared. She's not healthy like before. Very scared."

Fatemah, who has two other young children named Mohamed and Noor, added in the brief exchange that they were struggling to flee because they were "surrounded".

"We can't leave because we are surrounded," she said.

Bana and her two brothers Mohamed and Noor (Bana Alabed/Twitter)

Just prior to posting the farewell tweet, Fatemah had tweeted to say the army had entered the district, and begging the world to pray for them.

The army got in, this could be our last days sincerely talking. No Internet. Please please please pray for us," she wrote.

Despite the suggestions it would be their last message, Fatemah and Bana continued to tweet afterwards, with one post showing a photo of Bana in a dark, apparently smoke-filled setting, along with the words: Tonight we have no house, it's bombed & I got in rubble. I saw deaths and I almost died. - Bana

On Monday morning, Fatemah tweeted: Under heavy bombardments now. In between death and life now, please keep praying for us, before adding five hours later at around 1pm UK time: "We are on the run as many people killed right now in heavy bombardments. We are fighting for our lives. Still with you."

Bana's world-famous Twitter account was set up in September, two months after President Bashar al-Assads forces cut off supply lines into the last rebel-held neighbourhoods in Aleppo, leaving around 250,000 residents in the east of the city - including the Alabed family - trapped under siege conditions.

Bana's first tweet read: I need peace. I can't go out because of the bombing please stop bombing us, while another stated: I want to be a teacher but this war is killing my dream stop the bombing. Let me learn English and maths.

In pictures: Aleppo bombing Show all 14 1 /14 In pictures: Aleppo bombing In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Smoke rises after airstrikes on the rebel-held al-Sakhour neighborhood of Aleppo, Syria April 29, 2016. Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian family runs for cover amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following a reported air strike on the rebel-held neighbourhood of Al-Qatarji in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, on April 29, 2016. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A man reacts as he stands on blood stains at a site hit by airstrikes in the rebel held area of Aleppo's al-Fardous district, Syria, April 29, 2016. Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo The damage of the airstrikes in the rebel-held area of Aleppo on April 28 Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo The damaged the Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF)-backed al-Quds hospital after it was hit by airstrikes, in a rebel-held area of Syria's Aleppo Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrians evacuate an injured man amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following an air strike on a rebel-held of Aleppo on April 29, 2016. AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo People inspect the damage at a site hit by airstrikes, in the rebel-held area of Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr AP In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A man leads a woman in tears and child out of the scene after airstrikes hit Aleppo AP In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Civil defence members search for survivors after an airstrike at a field hospital in the rebel held area of al-Sukari district of Aleppo Reuters In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian boy is comforted as he cries next to the body of a relative who died in a reported air strike in the rebel-held neighbourhood of al-Soukour in the northern city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo A Syrian family walks amid the rubble of destroyed buildings following a reported air strike in the Bustan al-Qasr rebel-held district of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrian civil defence volunteers and rescuers remove a baby from under the rubble of a destroyed building following a reported air strike on the rebel-held neighbourhood of al-Kalasa in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrians help a wounded youth following an air strike on the Fardous rebel held neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo Getty Images In pictures: Aleppo bombing Bombing in Aleppo Syrian civil defence volunteers evacuate people from a damaged building following a reported airstrike in the rebel-held neighbourhood of Tareeq al-Bab in the northern city of Aleppo

In the 12 days since the renewed bombardment on eastern Aleppo, at least 201 civilians - including 27 children - have died in the sector, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory of Human Rights.

The UN's child agency warned on Sunday that nearly 500,000 children were now living under siege in Syria, cut off from food and medical aid, mostly in areas under government control.

That figure has doubled in less than a year, and many are now spending their days underground, as hospitals, schools and homes remain vulnerable to aerial bombardment.

Unicef executive director Anthony Lake said on Sunday: Children are being killed and injured, too afraid to go to school or even play, surviving with little food and hardly any medicine. This is no way to live  and too many are dying.
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The Israeli military says its air force has bombed an Isis base in revenge for an attack on IDF soldiers.

The overnight air strike targeted an abandoned United Nations building Israel said was used as an "operations centre" in the Golan Heights.

It said the building was the "base for yesterday's attack," believed to be the first direct clash between the country and the terror group.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.

Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres (460 square miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community (Reuters)

Soldiers from the Golani Brigade returned fire on Sunday after they were attacked by Isis gunmen with machine guns and mortars.

Israeli aircraft quickly responded, killing four militants in an air strike on a machine gun-armed car.

The gunmen were identified as members of "Shuhada al-Yarmouk," or the Yarmouk Martyrs' Brigade, a Syrian rebel group which has pledged allegiance to Isis.

No Israeli soldiers were injured in the ambush.

In pictures: The rise of Isis Show all 74 1 /74 In pictures: The rise of Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters of the Islamic State wave the group's flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from Islamic State group sit on their tank during a parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from the Islamic State group pray at the Tabqa air base after capturing it from the Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from extremist Islamic State group parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping A video uploaded to social networks shows men in underwear being marched barefoot along a desert road before being allegedly executed by Isis Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Haruna Yukawa after his capture by Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Khalinda Sharaf Ajour, a Yazidi, says two of her daughters were captured by Isis militants Washington Post In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Spokesperson for Isis Vice News via Youtube In pictures: The rise of Isis A pro-Isis leaflet A pro-Isis leaflet handed out on Oxford Street In London Ghaffar Hussain In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Isis Jihadists burn their passports In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A man collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A woman collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid Local civilians queue for aid administered by Isis. Since it declared a caliphate the group has increasingly been delivering services such as healthcare, and distributing aid and free fuel In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces detain men suspected of being militants of the Isis group in Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Mourners carry the coffin of a Shi'ite volunteer from the brigades of peace, who joined the Iraqi army and was killed during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Samarra, during his funeral in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Shiite Turkmen family fleeing the violence in the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, arrives at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi A photograph made from a video by the jihadist affiliated group Furqan Media via their twitter account allegedly showing Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon during Friday prayers at a mosque in Mosul. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamist caliphate in the territory under the group's control in Iraq and Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Smoke and debris go up in the air as Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul. Images posted online show that Islamic extremists have destroyed at least 10 ancient shrines and Shiite mosques in territory - the city of Mosul and the town of Tal Afar - they have seized in northern Iraq in recent weeks In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq A bulldozer destroys Sunni's Ahmed al-Rifai shrine and tomb in Mahlabiya district outside of Tal Afar In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces celebrate after clashes with followers of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at his home after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A vehicle burns in front of a home of a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman holds her exhausted son as over 1000 Iraqis who have fled fighting in and around the city of Mosul and Tal Afar wait at a Kurdish checkpoint in the hopes of entering a temporary displacement camp in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees Displaced Iraqi women hold pots as they queue to receive food during the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, at an encampment for displaced Iraqis who fled from Mosul and other towns, in the Khazer area outside Irbil, north Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A militant Islamist fighter waving a flag, cheers as he takes part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa. The fighters held the parade to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters wave flags as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters travel in a vehicle as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade with a missile in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from an al-Qaida splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from the splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters hold a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A member loyal to the Isis waves an Isis flag in Raqqa In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi anti-government gunmen from Sunni tribes in the western Anbar province march during a protest in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. The United Nations warned that Iraq is at a "crossroads" and appealed for restraint, as a bloody four-day wave of violence killed 195 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago, raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces hold up a flag of the Isis group they captured during an operation to regain control of Dallah Abbas north of Baqouba, the capital of Iraq's Diyala province, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Isis fighters parade in the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Volunteers, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Isis group, demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony after completing their field training in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Kurdish Peshmerga troops fire a cannon during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Jalawla, Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference Iraqi Prime Minister's security spokesman, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference about the latest military development in Iraq, in the capital Baghdad. Iraqi forces pressed a campaign to retake militant-held Tikrit, clashing with jihadist-led Sunni militants nearby and pounding positions inside the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far In pictures: The rise of Isis A police station building destroyed by Isis fighters An exterior view of a police station building destroyed by gunmen in Mosul city, northern Iraq. Iraq's new parliament is expected to convene to start the process of setting up a new government, despite deepening political rifts and an ongoing Islamist-led insurgency. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani issued a decree inviting the new House of Representatives to meet and form a new government In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Smoke billows from an area controlled by the Isis between the Iraqi towns of Naojul and Tuz Khurmatu, both located north of the capital Baghdad, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces take part in an operation to repel the Sunni militants In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An elderly Iraqi woman is helped into a temporary displacement camp for Iraqis caught-up in the fighting in and around the city of Mosul in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Christian woman fleeing the violence in the village of Qaraqush, about 30 kms east of the northern province of Nineveh, cries upon her arrival at a community center in the Kurdish city of Arbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman, who fled with her family from the northern city of Mosul, prays with a copy of the Quran AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq The body of an Isis militant killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces on the outskirts of the city of Samarra Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi civilians inspect the damage at a market after an air strike by the Iraqi army in central Mosul EPA In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Members of the Al-Abbas brigades, who volunteered to protect the Shiite Muslim holy sites in Karbala against Sunni militants fighting the Baghdad government, parade in the streets of the city AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Shia tribesmen gather in Baghdad to take up arms against Sunni insurgents marching on the capital. Thousands have volunteered to bolster defences AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A van carrying volunteers joining Iraqi security forces against Jihadist militants. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the Iraqi government would arm and equip civilians who volunteered to fight AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters of the Isis group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An Islamist fighter, identified as Abu Muthanna al-Yemeni from Britain (R), speaks in this still image taken undated video shot at an unknown location and uploaded to a social media website. Five Islamist fighters identified as Australian and British nationals have called on Muslims to join the wars in Syria and Iraq, in the new video released by the Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Al-Qaida inspired militants stand with captured Iraqi Army Humvee at a checkpoint belonging to Iraqi Army outside Beiji refinery some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad. The fighting at Beiji comes as Iraq has asked the U.S. for airstrikes targeting the militants from the Isis group. While U.S. President Barack Obama has not fully ruled out the possibility of launching airstrikes, such action is not imminent in part because intelligence agencies have been unable to identify clear targets on the ground, officials said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants attacked Iraq's main oil refinein Baiji as they pressed an offensive that has seen them capture swathes of territory, a manager and a refinery employee said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants from the Isis group parading with their weapons in the northern city of Baiji in the in Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A smoke rises after an attack by Isis militants on the country's largest oil refinery in Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad. Iraqi security forces battled insurgents targeting the country's main oil refinery and said they regained partial control of a city near the Syrian border, trying to blunt an offensive by Sunni militants who diplomats fear may have also seized some 100 foreign workers In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group stand next to captured vehicles left behind by Iraqi security forces at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province. For militant groups, the fight over public perception can be even more important than actual combat, turning military losses into propaganda victories and battlefield successes into powerful tools to build support for the cause In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An injured fighter (C) from the Isis group after a battle with Iraqi soldiers at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis aiming at advancing Iraqi troops at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group taking position at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group inspecting vehicles of the Iraqi army after they were seized at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq One Iraqi captive, a corporal, is reluctant to say the slogan, and has to be shouted at repeatedly before he obeys Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group force captured Iraqi security forces members to the transport In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group transporting dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members to an unknown location in the Salaheddin province ahead of executing them In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A major offensive spearheaded by Isis but also involving supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein has overrun all of one province and chunks of three others In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group executing dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants taking position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis rebels show their flag after seizing an army post AFP/Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants waving an Islamist flag after the seizure of an Iraqi army checkpoint in Salahuddin Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Demonstrators chant slogans as they carry al-Qaida flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. In the week since it captured Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, a Muslim extremist group has tried to win over residents and has stopped short of widely enforcing its strict brand of Islamic law, residents say. Churches remain unharmed and street cleaners are back at work

However, the former director of Israel's Counter Terrorism Bureau said the attack is unlikely to mark a change in strategy for Isis.

Retired general Nitzan Nuriel said it was likely "a local decision" not emanating from a higher echelon of the group.

"They know exactly what the Israeli response" would be to attacks, he said. An Israeli front is "the last thing IS needs at this stage," he added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the troops for "successfully repelled an attempted attack".

"Our forces are prepared on our northern border, and we won't let Islamic State elements or other hostile elements use the cover of the war in Syria to establish themselves next to our borders," he said at his weekly Cabinet meeting.

 Kurds capture Isis fighter

Israel seized 1,200 square kilometres (460 square miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

The two countries are still technically at war, though the border remained largely quiet for decades until 2011.

Since then, regular stray missiles have landed in Israeli border areas, but rebel groups and Syrian government forces have largely avoided directly targeting Israeli forces.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

Additional reporting by agencies
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Huset KBH is one of the oldest cultural institutions in Copenhagen. Home to five stages and a cinema, it hosts more than 1,500 events a year, ranging from live music, theatre, stand-up comedy and film screenings. Chances are youll find something you like in the venues repertoire. Local Sigrids first introduction was randomly coming across an intimate live performance by a rock band in Husets courtyard.

Huset KBH (Morten Siebuhr/Flickr)

Local Pernille is a big fan of DR Koncerthuset because it has the same feel and expression of a classical music hall (which it is also used for). But a lot of rock, pop and alternative concerts and shows are going on here as well. So lovers of all types of music will enjoy a night out here. The stage has welcomed big names such as Jose Gonzalez, as well as jazz bands, grand symphony orchestras playing Mahler or Verdi and the Danish National Girls Choir. Feeling festive? Sing along to a Christmas performance.

Drone is a relatively new spot in Nrrebro where the DJs mix tracks by well-known rock bands, and live acts occasionally perform. Dont worry, though, according to Pernille they do have the utmost respect for the fine art of rock. The basement venue has grungy, graffitied toilets (the doors dont have locks, so look out for unexpected company) while upstairs is for sitting down. This is a treat above a lot of experiences in Copenhagen. They dont have a stage and you dont have the distance. You are just right there with the people performing, says Pernille.

Rock'n'roll toilets at Drone (Evelin Orgmets)

Many of Copenhagens venues offer a broad spectrum of musical styles, and this next one is no different. According to local Cindy, this truly is one of Copenhagens best places for live performances. She writes, Loppen hosts concerts with everything: surf, neo folk, death metal, punk, hip hop, dubstep, the list goes on. The atmosphere is intimate and relaxed, and you get really close to the music, very literally, because the stage is not much more than 25cm above floor level.

Up close with the band at Loppen (Amanda Farah/Flickr)

Our final tip is for jazz lovers. In fact, Cindy reckons everyone should visit Jazzhouse  even if jazz is not your style  because other genres are also welcome. That said, this is the place to go on Saturdays for late-night concerts, when it turns into a cool live jazz club.

Spotted by Locals is a series of apps and blogs available on iPhone and Android devices with up-to-date tips by locals in 60+ cities in Europe and North America

Click here to view the tour of Stockholm & Copenhagen, with Independent Holidays.
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Usually, the outcome of a referendum in Italy on constitutional reform or the result of an election for the figurehead post of the Federal President of the Austrian Republic would be greeted with a degree of indifference in the rest of Europe. As we know all too well, 2016 is different.

The referendum in Italy should be about helping Italy towards a more stable and effective reforming style of government. Instead it has morphed into another broad test of public sentiment towards the political establishment, both national and European. More than that, they threaten the financial stability of Italy, mired in a banking crisis that may yet overwhelm the resources of the eurozone to deal with it.

In Austria, a rerun of an annulled presidential election sees a near neo-Nazi challenging for a symbolically important victory, once again in an act of defiance by the voters towards their rulers. They have nothing else in common, but then again they dont need to in order to deliver another crisis. These elections take place on Sunday, and already the markets are showing signs of distinct nervousness about the outcome. After Brexit and with no one ruling out the possibility of a Marine Le Pen presidency in France, after elections in April, the future of the European Union has never looked dicier.

The immediate threat is to the Italian  and European  financial system. Greece and Cyprus were small enough to absorb. Italy isnt. With some 4 trillion in assets, the Italian banks are not only too big to fail in the famous phrase, but also may prove too big to save. Italy is, after all, the third largest economy in the eurozone after Germany and France, and its public sector one of the most indebted (125 per cent of GDP, compared to, say the peak of 90 per cent that the UK is headed for, or 176 per cent in Greece).

The Italians plainly do not have the wherewithal to save their banks, and the solvent members of the eurozone  for which read Germany, Finland and the Netherlands  may have neither the means nor the political willpower to accept the burden. If the crisis spirals into a domino-like series of full-on bank collapses, this would see many millions of Italian savers losing a significant proportion of their personal wealth, and Italian companies a similar proportion of their financial assets.

As in previous eurozone crises, the contagion from Italy could easily affect the other banks on Europe and around the world. Given that the Italian banks have traditionally taken it upon themselves to purchase the sizeable bond issuance of the Italian treasury, the Italian state itself might find itself unable to fund its activities. Schoolteachers and road sweepers would go unpaid. There would be a deep recession, at best.

Resolving the Italian banks, and Romes finances, is really the unfinished business of past eurozone crises, when long-term tough choices about making the single currency system function through closer fiscal and political arrangements (in effect a permanent subsidy from Germany to its southern neighbours) were ducked. The consequences of that failure of economic understanding and political courage can hardly be overstated.

Italy was going to be in trouble again sooner or later. It was merely a matter of time, and the timing was never going to be good. Europes leaders should have taken evasive action months ago. The European Central Bank and the German government should have committed to stand behind Italy. Now it is too late.

In that context the victory of the far right in Austria should be a sideshow; but, if it comes to pass, it would add to the sense of despair and of a European union, and political establishment, that is facing its biggest rebellion since the Second World War. It may even be that Brexit will be overtaken by the effective abolition of the European Union as we have come to know it in the next year or two. If the voters repudiate it  what future can it have?

If these were like the happier, quieter, calmer times of the first few decades of its existence, the officials in Brussels would be spending much of their time pondering how best to mark the 60th birthday of the original European Economic Communities, founded with the signing of the Treaty of Rome between what was then The Six, West Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Italy itself on 25 March 1957. That was a time of optimism, the embarkation point for a dream. The political classes across the continent will be looking to the nightmare in Rome with rather more trepidation now.

It is galling that today at least four of those founding members are poised to pass a vote of no confidence in the project (there are also elections in Holland and Germany in 2017). At this rate, the European Union will have months rather than years ahead of it.
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has admitted that Brexit is the 'backdrop' to her visit to Ireland in a bid to build firmer ties between Scotland and Ireland.

But she said the matter of a possible bid for Scotland to again seek independence is "a matter for the Scottish people."

After dropping in to see President Michael D Higgins at Aras an Uachtarain, the First Minister visited the Irish headquarters of leading energy provider SSE, a Scottish based company, at Sandyford in Dublin.

Along with Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Denis Naughton, she unveiled a report showing that the Galway Wind Farm has already contributed 88.7 m to the Irish economy.

The project is the largest of its kind in the country and is being jointly delivered by SSE and Coillte the State forestry industry.

Some 1,700 people in this country are employed by SSE - which took over Airtricity in 2008.

Ms Surgeon said Scotland and Ireland share many things in common, with both sharing a "huge potential" in terms of natural energy.

Asked if both share an interest in trying to keep the UK within the single market, she said it was fair to say there is "a meeting of minds in that regard."

However a report last month had already shown the implications of Brexit with lower growth and living standards.

She explained that she was in Ireland to seek to enhance long-standing links between our two countries and said they can work together constructively.

Meanwhile she said that seeking support for Scottish independence was not the purpose of her trip.

"I support Scotland as an independent country but that's a matter for Scotland," she insisted.
Aoife Cogan modelling clothes for Coast. The fashion chain is expected to be put up for sale in the New Year, along with Oasis and Warehouse Photo: Leon Farrell/Photocall

Fashion mainstays including Coast, Oasis and Warehouse are being put up for sale as part of an effort to recover money for creditors of failed Icelandic bank Kaupthing.

Administrators who control the bank are looking to sell off the portfolio of fashion retailers, four sources familiar with the matter said.

They are also looking at options for the sister company that operates the Karen Millen fashion chain which shares the same owners.

The companies employ hundreds of Irish staff at more than 60 shops and concessions and are mainstays of main streets and shopping centres across the country.

An examinership in 2014 shrank the size of the Irish operations, but also cut debt and rents.

In the UK, the chains employ thousands of people.

An internal reorganisation last year of Aurora Fashion, a previous holding company, included splitting out the debts of the chains, meaning they could now be sold separately. The Karen Millen arm was previously split out but not sold.

The most recent accounts for Aurora Fashion show Irish sales were 32m (37m) of the group's 410m (483m) in the year to the end of February 2015.

The entire portfolio ended up under the control of Kaupthing's administrators after the bank was nationalised during Iceland's 2008-2011 financial crisis.

The Icelandic bank's domestic operations were spun into a new bank known as Arion Banki, non-Icelandic assets remained with the now defunct Kaupthing.

Kaupthing itself ended up with the brands in 2009 after loans it had advanced to Icelandic investment firm Baugur turned sour. Baugur had used the debt to buy Mosaic Fashions - a holding company for its fashion chains.

Reykjavik-based Kaupthing filed for bankruptcy in 2008. Its former executives were later charged with fraud in Iceland.

The bank did not respond to requests for comment, while the retailers were not immediately available for comment.

The bank was never a natural owner of the fashion brands, so a sale has always been inevitable.

It is understood that Kaupthing invited banks to pitch late last month for a mandate to auction the retail assets early next year, the sources said. It could face a tough sell.

Valuations of clothing retailers have come under pressure, with Britain's fashion market suffering its steepest decline in sales since 2009 as consumers increasingly spend their money elsewhere, according to industry data published last month.

A sale of Oasis, Warehouse and Coast could be worth less than 100m (118m), two of the sources told Reuters. One said it might draw interest from private equity funds.

However, the funds may find it hard to submit competitive offers due to the poor outlook for British retailers, who have been further challenged by the fall in the pound since Britain's vote in June to leave the European Union.

But that makes Irish profits relatively more valuable.

(Additional reporting by Reuters)
A 15ac farm at Drumbilla, Dundalk, Co. Louth sold in recent weeks for 330,000 or 22,000/ac.

Located approx 6 km from Dundalk the land is laid out in four divisions, all currently in permanent pasture and includes a range of farm buildings and a derelict dwelling.

Handling the sale, auctioneer Raymond Fee remarked that there was huge interest in the propoerty and while there had been an intention to bring it ot auction the private treaty negotiations moved so far and afst that there was no need to go the aucton route.

"The price achieved was excellent," he said, "there is a very good demand for land generally at present and interest was very good in this particular land holding." He also remarked that there are a number of disappointed under bidders still looking for land in the area.

Meath auction

Further south at Boherard, Killallon, Co Meath a 16ac parcel with a pre-auction guide of 115,000 sold under the hammer for 130,000 or just over 8,000/ac.

Chris Smith of Quillsen handled the sale of the parcel. He described it as a fine 16ac block of grassland set out in a single field with a tree-lined bounds and significant road frontage.

Located 3km from Clonmellon and 8km from Delvin the field is described by Mr Smith as a spotlessly clean, well-fenced bit of ground being zero grazed at the moment by a tenant.

At auction four active bidders showed cause after an opening bid of 100,000. The price on often rose quickly until a concluding bid of 130,000 from a local dairy farmer won the day.
The recent Trade Mission to Algeria helped to raise the profile of Irish livestock amongst the Algerian buyers, according to Claudia Saumell Bord Bias Africa Manager.

Algeria, whose live animal imports oscillate between 40,000 to 50,000 animals per year and have predominantly, being sourcing from France and Spain, found in Ireland a new potential partner for their livestock demands, she says.

Algerian Business mentality of immediate profits prompts the livestock sector to opt for 500kgs animals for a few months of fattening and slaughter.

Heifer importations represent a smaller section of the market and are linked to private dairy farm projects that in most of the cases are long-term investments, Saumell says.

In general terms Livestock business in Algeria is run by 4 to 5 large importers, each of them importing from 6,000 to 10,000 animals per year and the rest of the market is shared between smaller importers with a maximum annual trade of 1,200 animals.

These large importers have farms with capacity of holding 1.400 animals, and their current trade dynamic is to import from 800 to 1.200 animals on each monthly shipment.

According to Scumell, transport is a major challenge that Irish exporters will have to overcome and it seems that the vessel option is the preferred way of transportation for the Algerians as it would allow some more competitiveness when maximizing the transportation costs.

The trucks option on the other hand is still a viable option but it would raise the price that could potentially put the Irish cattle beyond the prices offered by French suppliers.

French cattle operators have a notorious advantage versus the Irish as logistics, language and travel visas are factors that do not represent such a challenge as it is for Ireland.

This recent visit however has awaken interest amongst the Algerians to explore possibilities to trade with Ireland as they are all very aware of the reputation, quality and genetics of Irish cattle, she says.

Scumell says that usually livestock demand works on 2 seasons, the first one runs from September to January, during which period the imported bulls are often younger; from 6 to 8 moths, an average of weight 350kgs and a further 6 to 8 months fattening.

Breeds of interest are Charolais, Limousin and Aubrac, the Algerians have a preference for animals with low fat levels, she says.

The second season starts in January until April/May, where animals imported tend to be heavier so, from 500kg up to 650/700kg at the end of the fattening process or for direct slaughter.

It is important to make the point that castrated animals have a negative image as in the Algerian mindset they produce a lower quality meat, she says.
2016 has been deemed as 'a year of two halves' for the Irish economy, according to Investec analysts Philip O'Sullivan and Ronan Dunphy.

Britain's decision to leave the European Union acted as a bookmark for a year that has seen a sharp drop off in the rate of expansion since the June referendum.

However, it is believed the worst of the immediate pressure from the vote has passed with the October Investec Manufacturing and Ulster Bank Constriction PMIs reporting their fastest growth for four and seven months respectively.

The latest services PMI is also comfortably ahead of the contraction mark, with a reading of 54.6.

Investec said core domestic demand, up 5.5pc in the first half of the year, has been the stand-out performer this year. Labour earnings, employment levels, and retail sales all showed signed of momentum in the second half of the year.

"Due to this momentum and the more uncertain external backdrop, our expectation remains that the domestic economy will remain the main driver of growth over the forecast cycle.

"We have tapered our headline GDP growth forecast to 3.4pc for 2017 and 3.2pc in 2018, which represent downgrades of 10bps for both years. Despite these downgrades, Ireland is still on course to outperform most of its European peers," the pair said in a note this morning.

At the start of the year Investec predicted the minority Government wouldn't survive to the end of the year, something they deemed as "wide of the mark".

"Our sense is that the parliamentary arithmetic still counts against this administrations longevity. However, any fresh election would be unlikely to result in meaningful policy changes."
Communicorp Group, the company that owns radio stations such as Newstalk and Today FM, has appointed former Orion Media boss Adrian Serle as its new chief executive.

Mr Serle replaces Gervaise Slowey who is stepping down from the company after four years at the helm.

Commenting on her decision Ms Slowey, who will remain as CEO until the end of the year, said her time at the firm had come to a natural end.

Communicorp is made up of a strong dynamic team of incredibly brilliant people across all the businesses and functions who have been truly inspirational to work with. I would like to thank Lucy Gaffney, the board and the management team for the opportunity and support over the years and I wish them every success as they embark on the next phase.

The firms chairman Lucy Gaffney thanked Ms Slowey for her time at the business.

She has been a great chief executive and I would like to wish her the very best in her future career. I am very happy that we have found an excellent successor to Gervaise and I can confirm that Adrian Serle will be joining the company in the New Year, Ms Gaffney said.

Incoming chief executive Mr Serle said he was thrilled to be joining one of the countrys largest media firms.

The ever changing landscape of media consumption and the way that consumers are engaging with brands, enjoying a social and multi-platform experience, creates huge opportunity and I can't wait to get started, working with the teams to exploit this potential.
At home, Exchequer Returns on Friday will give some flavour of how the national finances have been holding up since June's Brexit vote in the UK.

With employment holding up and a boost from multinationals paying more of their tax here expected to continue, the Returns for the 10 months to the end of November are unlikely to contain major shocks. November is a big tax month for SMEs and the self-employed, however, and with retailers and others selling into the Irish market under pressure, VAT and excise figures are worth watching.

On the spending side, the perennially spendthrift health system could remain the weak link in the national accounts, and will be closely watched.

Retail credit statistics are due from the Central Bank on Wednesday, worth watching for any sign mortgage switching is actually happening among retail customers after a succession of bank chiefs last week told the Oireachtas Finance Committee that cheaper deals are available in the Irish market.

On a similar note, retail sales data is due from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) today with jobs figures due tomorrow (monthly unemployment) and Thursday (Live Register).

On the corporate side, it's a relatively quiet week. ARYZTA and Donegal Investments are both due to update the market today.

Elsewhere, European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi (pictured below) is due to give an introductory statement at the quarterly hearing of the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs in Brussels today - where investors will be listening out for any hints on whether and how his quantitative easing programme will be slowed.

In Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble and Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann will line out on Wednesday attend the launch of Germany's G20 presidency.

The centre piece of the event will be a summit in Hamburg in July, and the Chancellor is already facing controversy at home over the forecast 185m cost of hosting leaders, due to include Donald Trump at his first G20 summit.

In the US, Wall Street will spend the next few days parsing the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.

Analysts expect consumers to have opened their wallets a little wider this holiday shopping season but bargains among red-hot retail stocks could be hard to find, especially as profit growth proves elusive for many big names.

Retailers, including Best Buy, Kohls Corp and Macy's, that were pummeled in last year's disappointing holiday quarter have seen their shares surge recently on expectations that the worst is over, and that an improved economy will send more shoppers into their stores.

Those gains in recent days have helped push the S&P 500 to a record high.

With US consumers bolstered by wage gains and higher employment, holiday sales will grow 3.6pc, National Retail Federation predicts.

Last year's growth was a modest 3.2pc, short of the federation's 3.7-pc growth forecast.

A positive holiday shopping season, and consumer confidence, will likely boost market expectations that the shock of the Trump election win is already abating as a financial issue.

Expectations of tax cuts under president-elect Donald Trump leaving consumers with more disposable income have already fuelled gains in the retail sector. But it's not yet a given, however.

US shoppers were relatively thin on Friday in an underwhelming start to the holiday shopping season.

A selection of 15 large retailers that are big Black Friday players, including traditional brick-and-mortar chains and online heavyweight Amazon, averaged a total return of 12pc this year, including dividends, according to Thomson Reuters data. Best Buy's stock has jumped 55pc in 2016 and Macy's surged 26pc.

That's made it more difficult to find bargains, said Telsey Advisory Group analyst Joseph Feldman.
Here are the main business stories from this morning's papers:

Irish Independent

* Fashion mainstays including Coast, Oasis and Warehouse are being put up for sale as part of an effort to recover money for creditors of failed Icelandic bank Kaupthing.

Administrators who control the bank are looking to sell off the portfolio of fashion retailers, four sources familiar with the matter said.

* Tyrone Productions, the television company founded by Riverdance creators Moya Doherty and John McColgan, made a loss of 128,947 in 2015, according to accounts just filed at the Companies Office.

John McColgan is sole owner of the business, and Moya Doherty stood down as a director in 2014 after her appointment as chairwoman of RTE. The latest abridged accounts show losses more than doubled from 62,000 and turnover dropped sharply last year. Tyrone Productions is a major producer of programming for RTE, TV3 and TG4 and BBC.

* Experts in complex international tax avoidance schemes are to be recruited by the Revenue Commissioners to inspect the books of big multinationals based here.

The new hires will carry out transfer pricing audits on large corporate firms, "compliance interventions" and manage the roll-out of country-by-country reporting.

The Irish Times

* A 1,000 State employee payment could be brought forward in a bid to ease tensions over public sector pay, it has been reported.

However, such a provision was not accounted for in the Budget and for every month it's brought forward it could set back the Government as much as 35m.

* Dublin has been ranked as the eight-best European cities for start-ups according to the new European Digital City Index.

The high ranking comes despite the capital looming near the bottom of the table for digital infrastructure.

* Joe and Her are both to drop the ".ie" as the pair from Maximum Media look to target the television market.

The firm has built a small broadcast studio at its Dublin headquarters with Joe.ie editor Paddy McKenna being promoted to broadcast director.

Irish Examiner

* Brexit campaign leaders have reportedly rejected a plan set out by Bank of England chief Mark Carney to give companies a buffer to ready themselves for their European departure.

Mr Carney tried to gain support for a plan that would allow British firms to remain in the single market for two years after the UK leaves.

* A lack of an online presence is seeing Irish firms lose out on 4.5bn in sales, a new report has found.

According to research by Virgin Media around 4.5bn worth of sales are leaking abroad due to firms here not appropriately servicing demand.
Nicholas Nally edited The Westmeath Examiner for almost 50 years and was a major figure in the local newspaper industry, serving as President of the Provincial Newspapers Association of Ireland (Stock picture)

Former editor and owner of The Westmeath Examiner Nicholas Nally has passed away.

Mr Nally, who was aged 90, died peacefully at Newbrook Nursing Home in Mullingar on Saturday.

He edited The Westmeath Examiner for almost 50 years and was a major figure in the local newspaper industry, serving as President of the Provincial Newspapers Association of Ireland.

During a career that spanned seven decades, he also acquired The Westmeath Independent and Offaly Independent titles and became the foremost media owner in the midlands.

He is pre-deceased by his wife Peggy and he is survived by his family Bernard, Joseph, Martin, Nicholas and Caitriona (Weafer).

Frank Mulrennan, chief executive of Celtic Media Group, owners of The Westmeath Examiner, said Mr Nally was one of the finest local newspaper editors who had left a proud legacy to generations of journalists.

There will be a removal to the Cathedral of Christ the King, Mullingar arriving at 6.30pm this evening. Funeral mass will be tomorrow at 10am.
Mohammed Barkindo, secretary general of Opec, with Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro at the presidential palace in Caracas earlier this month Photo: Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg

Top Opec oil exporter Saudi Arabia has told the producer group it will not attend talks today with non-Opec producers to discuss limiting supply, Opec sources said, as it wants to focus on having consensus within the organisation first.

The meeting in Vienna was planned to discuss the contribution that producers outside Opec will make to a proposed supply-limiting agreement. Opec oil ministers meet on Wednesday in an effort to finalise their deal.

"There is an official letter from (Saudi Arabia) saying (it is) not attending the meeting because the ministers should agree to the cut and then present the agreement to non-Opec countries," an Opec source said. "This will be more effective."

Opec (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) is trying to cement a preliminary September agreement in Algeria that would reduce its production to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels per day, its first supply curb since 2008.

Opec aims to remove a supply glut and prop up oil prices, which at below $48 a barrel are less than half their level of mid-2014. Oil prices extended an earlier decline on Friday after news of the Saudi no-show.

The organisation also wants non-Opec producers such as Russia to curb output. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday that Opec had proposed that non-Opec cut oil production by 500,000 bpd.

Today's talks will be converted into another Opec-only meeting, Opec sources said, to try to resolve the group's internal differences before the ministerial gathering on Wednesday.

A similar Opec and non-Opec meeting in October resulted in no specific pledges from outside producers to cut output, with attendees citing the lack of an internal Opec agreement.

Saudi Arabia had asked that this earlier meeting be called off, but was convinced by other members to attend in order not to embarrass the group, a source said.

Despite extensive diplomacy, the Opec side of the deal still faces setbacks from Iraq's call for it to be exempt and from Iran, which wants to increase supply because its output has been hit by sanctions.

A meeting of Opec experts last week made some progress in how to implement the cut, but Iran and Iraq raised conditions for participating, according to sources.

"We have to solve our problems as Opec first. We have not achieved an agreement within Opec," a Gulf source familiar with Saudi oil thinking said on Friday.

"Before we meet with non-Opec and ask them to participate in any action, we have to have an agreement that is credible, with clear numbers and a system that the market believes."

Opec last persuaded non-Opec nations to make joint cuts at the start of the millennium. Nonetheless, Opec believes rival producers need to help in the current effort.

Its Economic Commission Board, comprised of representatives of the 14 Opec countries, concluded a two-day meeting at the group's Vienna headquarters last Thursday.
After the heart-stopping drama of the Galapagos racing snakes, the lovely, lonely mountain snow leopards and last week's caiman-jaguar showdown, episode four of the BBC's Planet Earth II had a lot to live up to. Had we been spoilt? Would Deserts prove to be a bit, well, dry?

Luckily, all fears were misplaced, both in a strictly literal sense (there were some breathtaking shots of long-awaited rains transforming scorched landscapes) and more generally.

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Sunday night's episode of Planet Earth II, presented by Sir David Attenborough, was every bit as mind-blowing as its predecessors, and offered a fascinating look at some of the most extreme environments on Earth.

Here are some of our highlights:

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1. The opening scenes felt a bit like Mad Max: Fury Road

If The Mountains episode of Planet Earth II was like a more entertaining version of The Revenant (Leos bear got to maul, but did it get to dance?), this weeks instalment had a definite Mad Max feel to it.

A dramatic shot of a dust cloud, surging across the Namib like a billowing burnt-red tidal wave, was followed by a tense chase scene, as desperate lionesses pursued a herd of long-horned oryx across the sands. Life here, for a hunter, is as hard as it gets, explained Attenborough, with suitable gravitas, before the action cut to a spectacular overhead shot of the action.

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Shimmering wide angles gave a great sense of scale (and some fantastically menacing shots of the lionesses, all lined up and advancing as one), but it was the smaller, carefully edited details that really stood out. The lean, muscled bodies and amber eyes of the big cats emerged in stunning relief, while a sudden close-up of a wet pink tongue licking a sharp tooth was perfectly, thrillingly timed.

Later on, the pack pursued a giraffe, which one brave (or just very hungry) lioness tried to take down. She ended up getting kicked aside, as her supersized prey made its escape...but the attempt was a stark illustration of the lengths to which the threat of starvation, exacerbated by barren conditions, had driven her.

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2. Harris Hawks are scarier than velociraptors

Was anyone else thinking of the Jurassic Park kitchen scenes during this sequence, filmed in the cacti-populated deserts of the Americas?

There was something about the clawed yellow feet of the birds, combined with their curved, cruel beaks, that really made us shudder for the poor cornered ground squirrels.

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Telling yourself that the pigeons crowded onto a tube platform are living dinosaurs in a weak attempt to liven up your commute is all very well, but its footage like this that really brings the relationship home. The fact these hawks were hunting in a pack (apparently they're the only bird of prey to do so ) simply upped the chilling resemblance.

Full credit should go to the programme-makers for framing the hunt scenes like a horror movie...and credit, too, to Attenborough for his disturbing narration: Theyre closing in from all sides.Soon, all escape routes are cut off.... Eek!

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Video of the Day

3. We never quite understood what a plague of locusts entailed before

But we definitely do now.

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Bloody hell.

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4. Sand grouse make surprisingly dedicated dads...

The intrepid males, we learnt, fly 120 miles to fetch water for their chicks. They risk their lives (and risk looking utterly ridiculous) to stand on the dangerous banks of the waterhole, soaking their breast feathers in precious liquid, before lugging a quarter of their body weight in water back home.

The footage of the grousefather finally breast(feather)-feeding his waiting offspring felt oddly touching, but the segment also served to highlight how, in the natural world, a grand life-and-death drama is playing out at almost every level of existence.

The images we saw of the waterhole featured a dazzling variety of creatures, from looming grey elephants to colourful antelopes and zebra...and yet the show forced us to focus on the small, easy-to-overlook birds at their feet; the animal-world "extras", if you like.

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Lo and behold, these humble "extras" turned out to be quite remarkable.

5. But butcher birds also have (grimly) good parenting skills

Leatherface, eat your heart out: that nifty arrangement of bodies on cactus spikes was impressively macabre.

But, as Attenborough's narration made clear, the gory little bird's display was also a very sensible way of protecting its kills from scavengers.

6. Wild horses are really...wild

In scenes that could have been straight out of a Western, a tall dark stranger arrived from out of town to challenge the status quo and end a leader's reign.

Instead of protagonists on horseback, however, Planet Earth II gave us the much more refreshing sight of horses as protagonists...without a rider or cowboy boot in sight.

The result was a sequence of incredible beauty  mustang are graceful, magnificent creatures, especially when shot against the dusty rock and impossibly wide sky of their desert home  and shocking brutality.

"There's everything to lose," Attenborough reminded us, as the two warring stallions headbutted, bit and kicked each other. "A broken leg or a shattered jaw could mean a slow and painful death."

7. Can David Attenborough please narrate the next Batman movie?

Someone get Zack Snyder on the phone, pronto. This episode's Bat vs Super-scorpion tussle already had some appropriately moody night-vision lighting, but it was Attenborough's superb narration (superficially calm, but with a definite underlying relish) that really helped rack up the tension.

"The battle is on!" he exclaimed. "Armed with crushing pincers and a sting loaded with venom, this scorpion is a dangerous opponent...

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"A direct strike on the head...is it all over? Not for this bat."

It was impossible to suppress a cheer.

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Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Woman was named locally as Simone Lee (37) from Thomondgate

A WOMAN is in a critical condition after being burned, stabbed, and beaten at her home in Limerick.

The serious assault took place inside the womans flat at Hassetts Villas, Thomondgate, Saturday night, Sunday morning.

The woman was named locally as Simone Lee (37) from Thomondgate. She sustained burn marks to her face, neck, and torso, a source said.

We dont know whether the burn marks were caused by some kind of acid or by some kind of boiling water, they said.

Detectives were liaising with doctors treating Ms Lee at University Hospital Limerick to determine the cause of her burn injuries.

Its believed gardai could not rule out the possibility that acid may have been used, however they were also examining the possibility that boiling water may have been poured over her.

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A man, aged 28, was arrested on suspicion of attacking Ms Lee, a single woman. The suspect is being detained at Henry Street Garda Station under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.

Ms Lee was found inside her first floor flat with burn marks, a stab wound in her back, and a deep cut to her head.

Gardai and the emergency service first responders discovered Ms Lee lying on the floor naked from the waist up in a pair of wet jeans.

It looked like she was there for some time, a source said.

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According to the source she was semi conscious and massively hyperthermic.

Ms Lee was initially treated at the scene by paramedics and then rushed by ambulance to University Hospital Limerick where she was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit.

Ms Lee received a puncture wound to her back and she has been sedated by doctors. She is in a critical but stable condition.

Its understood the arrested man is known to Ms Lee but was not residing in the flat with her.

Local Sinn Fein TD Maurice Quinlivan said he had previously attempted to help Ms Lee secure accommodation.

I had tried to get her a house before. She seemed like a nice girl. Its shocking, he said.

Ms Lees townhouse flat, as well as a number of adjoining properties, and two roadway access points leading to the apartment block, will remain sealed off by gardai overnight pending the arrival of garda forensic officers.

Shards of glass were visible on the street outside the flat and an upstairs window was smashed. Its believed an iron board was thrown through the window at the flat.

Detectives have yet to speak to Ms Lee as she remains in a critical condition.

Anyone with information is being asked to contact Mayorstone Garda station at 061456980, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any garda station.
Businessman Harry Crosbie "entirely repudiates" claims by a Nama company he is obstructing its efforts to establish his assets for the purpose of recovering a 77m judgment, his lawyer has told the Commercial Court.

National Asset Loan Management Ltd (NALM) has received some 31m from sales of Mr Crosbie's secured assets but estimates a likely shortfall of some 43m, plus costs, after sale of the remaining secured assets.

In court documents, it says its only recourse for recovery of the shortfall is to the remaining assets of Mr Crosbie, including Dublin's Vicar Street music venue, income from that venue, and his interest in various properties.

Information from Mr Crosbie last month, not previously disclosed to NALM, showed he received income of some 1.8m from Vicar Street between 2012-2015, it said.

Mr Crosbie had yet to clarify the nature of his interest in Vicar Street and has "failed to assist in any real way" in identifying what property or means he has to satisfy the judgment, it added.

In an affidavit, Nama Asset Recovery Manager Kevin Coakley said a July 12, 2016, deadline for Mr Crosbie to provide an updated statement of affairs and undertaking not to dissipate assets was extended to facilitate the businessman's advisors.

A statement of affairs and accompanying documents provided in late July did not address all NALM's queries and it also received a "qualified" undertaking not to dissipate assets.

Some further information provided since was of concern to NAMA, Mr Coakley said. "It appears that the defendant has diverted significant income over a number of years."

That claim was disputed by solicitors for Mr Crosbie.

NALM got the 77m judgment in 2014 and now wants a court examination of Mr Crosbie about his assets and liabilities, plus discovery of documents.

On Monday (Nov 28), Kelly Smith BL, for NALM, said while there has been some engagement by Mr Crosbie, that was "not fulsome" and her side had concerns, including Mr Crosbie had previously said he had a single source of income but now says he has a variety of income sources.

NAMA was concerned it does not have a "proper picture" of his assets and liabilities.

Mr Crosbie had proposed, rather than court proceedings, a meeting between himself, his advisors and NAMA when issues including the request for documents could be discussed, counsel said. Meetings were "always welcome" but there should be full disclosure beforehand, she said.

Michael McDowell SC, for Mr Crosbie, said NALM was using a "sledgehammer" approach when Mr Crosbie and his advisors were willing to meet with NAMA and provide documents which would be a better than a "hugely complex" discovery process.

The claims of obstruction against his client were "entirely repudiated" and, while he did not wish to use the word "bullying", the NAMA approach was "excessive".

Mr Justice Brian McGovern said NALM cannot be accused of bullying when, although some assets had been sold to reduce the judgment, a substantial part of that remains outstanding.

The judge said he would wish to give any debtor the opportunity to deal outside court with a creditor "as long as everyone is upfront".

He adjourned an application for hearing on December 19 but, in advance of that and once information is provided, directed both sides meet by December 14.

In an affidavit, Mr Crosbie said a meeting between himself, his advisors and Nama was the easiest and most efficient way to deal with the agency's queries and he indicated on "numerous occasions" his willingness to meet with Nama.

His lawyers indicated on October 25 last willingness to provide the information sought but it would take some weeks to complete, he said.

NALM had said that was "not acceptable" but its time frame was "extremely short" and this application for discovery and examination was "premature and unnecessary".
A BUSINESSMAN who avoided jail for a sexual assault on a teenager in a Killarney B&B back in 2014 has once again escaped imprisonment.

Martin Quigley (51) appeared before Wexford Circuit Criminal Court on an adjourned charge of assault causing serious harm.

He had been allowed time in order to pay compensation to his victim.

Quigley, of Ballyrahain Lodge, Ballyrahain Lane, Kilmuckridge, Gorey, Co Wexford, had pleaded guilty to assaulting James ORourke outside an Enniscorthy licensed premises, causing him serious harm, on November 8, 2009.

The case had been adjourned on several occasions to allow for the payment of 5,000 compensation.

When the case was called before Judge Barry Hickson, defence lawyer Peter Creane told the court that the full amount of compensation had now been paid.

The judge said he would hand down a three-year prison sentence, which he suspended for a period of three years in the defendants own bond of 100, with the defendant expected to keep the peace for that period.

The court had been told that the victim had received a number of injuries and was left with permanent scarring as a result of the assault.

James ORourke was left with a broken nose and a fractured eye socket as a result of the attack. He underwent surgery to repair his cheekbone at St Jamess Hospital.

As a result of the surgery he was left with permanent scarring on his head.

Mr ORourke has had to see his consultant on 17 different occasions since he sustained the injuries, while he has also been prescribed the use of spectacles. The victim also suffered from physical pain as a result of the assault, the court was told.

Quigley had previously appeared before Wexford Circuit Criminal Court in April 2014 on the assault charge, just one day after he was handed down a two-year suspended sentence at Tralee Circuit Criminal Court for sexually assaulting a young woman at a B&B on August 11, 2011.

The court heard how Quigley had dragged the 19-year-old woman into his room after she declined an offer to join him in his bed.

He touched her breasts and groin area outside her clothing and kissed her on the shoulder, before she managed to run from the B&B and alert four men who were outside.

Quigley was handed down a two-year suspended sentence for sexually assaulting the woman.

The victim wept in court as the defendant was given the suspended sentence.

Quigley had 12 previous convictions, including one for assault, a drink-driving conviction, and a number of public order offences.

Following the passing of the suspended sentence for the assault on Mr ORourke, Quigley walked free from Wexford Circuit Criminal Court.
A Dublin man sliced another mans face with a blade after walking up behind him on a street in daylight, it is alleged.

Darren Gallagher (45) was seen by gardai on duty attacking the man and was then arrested near the scene, a court was told.

Although the alleged victim would not make a complaint, Mr Gallagher is being prosecuted on assault and weapons charges.

Judge David McHugh said he would need to see a medical report and CCTV stills before deciding whether the case could be dealt with at district court level.

Mr Gallagher, of St Ronans Park, Clondalkin is charged with assault causing harm to a man.

He is also charged with producing a knife in the course of a dispute.

The offences are alleged to have happened at Neilstown Road, also in Clondalkin on April 22.

Garda Dominic Dowling told Blanchardstown District Court Mr Gallagher made no reply to charge after caution before the court sitting.

A state solicitor said the DPP was consenting to the charges being dealt with in the district court.

Garda Dowling said that he was on patrol with a colleague at 4.15pm when he saw the accused approach the alleged victim from behind.

He sliced his face with a blade, the garda alleged.

He said Mr Gallagher had a knife on his person when he was stopped a short time later.

There were no photographs but there was CCTV evidence available.

The alleged victim did not wish to make a complaint so there was no medical report.

Judge McHugh said he would like to see a still of the CCTV and a brief medical report with some description of the injury and a prognosis.

The defendant was remanded on continuing bail, to appear in court again on a date in January.

He has not yet indicated how he intends to plead to the charges.
A man who claims he was acting in his sleep when he allegedly raped his friend will go on trial for a third time in 2018.

The 29-year-old man conceded he might have had sex with the woman, but claimed he was suffering from sexsomnia at the time, a rare condition that causes people to carry out sexual acts while asleep.

Earlier this month a jury said it was unable to agree on a verdict following over eight hours deliberations and a month long trial.

An earlier trial collapsed in 2015 due to legal issues just before a jury was to begin deliberations.

The accused, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to one count of raping the woman at an apartment in Dublin in the early hours of September 28, 2008.

On Monday, counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions indicated that a third trial date was required.

Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy put the matter in for January 2018.

The judge also agreed to return the accused's passport to him for specified dates so he can travel abroad.

The prosecution consented to this.
A man who raped and assaulted his wife as their marriage was breaking down is to appeal his conviction.

The 42-year-old was jailed for ten years in July after being convicted by a jury in the Central Criminal Court.

He was only the third person to be convicted for marital rape since rape within a marriage was made illegal in 1990.

The trial heard the woman had to stay in contact with her husband after the rape so he could have court ordered access to their child.

In June, a jury of eleven men and one woman convicted him of raping his wife in their home in May, 2014 and of threatening to cut her face.

He was also convicted of threatening to kill the woman the next day over the phone.

He had previously pleaded guilty to attempting to cause serious harm to the woman and of assaulting her mother on August 7th, 2014 during the hammer attack outside the mother's Dublin home.

The jury could not reach a verdict on other counts of assault and threats to cause harm.

Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy imposed a sentence of 12 years for the count of rape but suspended the final two years.

She imposed lesser sentences for the other counts, but ordered they run concurrently with the rape sentence.

On Monday, the court heard the DPP is seeking another trial date for the remaining assault and threats charges.

This was adjourned until May 2017 to facilitate the accused's appeal against the rape conviction.
A young father was convicted of a shooting which left a woman fighting for her life with a bullet wound to the neck.

Gavin Sheehan (29) was convicted of the reckless discharge of a firearm and assault causing serious harm to Ciara Sheehan (21) by a Cork Circuit Criminal Court jury.

Mr Sheehan, who is no relation to the injured party, was convicted by unanimous jury vote after three and a half hours deliberation following a week long trial.

He had pleaded not guilty before Judge Sean O'Donnabhain and the jury of seven women and four men to a total of four charges.

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The defendant of Laurel Ridge, Shanakiel, Cork denied assault causing serious harm to Ciara Sheehan on May 15 last at Hollywood Estate off Corks Blarney Road.

He also denied the discharge of a firearm on May 15 at Hollywood Estate, being reckless as to whether any person was injured or not.

The jury convicted him by unanimous vote on all four charges.

Judge O'Donnabhain remanded Mr Sheehan in custody for sentencing on February 14next.

The defendant remained silent as the verdict was delivered but shook his head as he looked towards his family in the public gallery shortly before being taken into custody.

The court was told by Donal O'Sullivan BL, for the State, that victim impact statements will be involved and instructions are required in relation to two of the charges from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

"I have to compliment you on the care, attention and consideration you gave throughout this trial. This was a very difficult case," Judge O'Donnabhain told the jury.

Ms Sheehan (21) suffered a serious bullet wound to her neck as she sat in a property that night watching TV alongside her boyfriend.

The young shop worker and Cork College of Commerce student was inside a friend's home when she was injured shortly after 12.30am.

She had to be rushed to Cork University Hospital (CUH) where she underwent emergency surgery.

In evidence, she spoke of her shock at realising precisely what had happened to her seconds after she heard a window in the property being smashed.

"I felt my throat getting all tight and my face was burning," she said.

"I put my hand up to my neck and it was covered in blood. I realised I was shot."

She went to CUH where she underwent surgery twice as the bullet was stuck in her neck.

The young woman subsequently remained in hospital for six days.

Dillon Cunningham, her boyfriend, told the trial that they heard a bang as they sat and watched TV.

He said there was then a "mad scramble in the house".

Mr Cunningham said that Ciara collapsed and he brought her out to his mother's car to drive her to CUH.

He was so concerned for her welfare he did not even want to wait for an ambulance.

Linda Casey, Dillon's mother, said: "Ciara turned to me and said: 'Linda I've been shot, I've been shot' and then she collapsed."

"Dillon got my keys and half dragged, half carried her out to the car. She was saying 'call my mam, call my mam' to me."

Ms Sheehan is now making a good recovery from her neck injury.

The defendant had also denied possession at his Laurel Ridge home of Smith &

Wesson Model 6096 semi-automatic pistol with a reasonable inference that he did not have it for a lawful purpose.

Mr Sheehan was also charged with possession of a round of 9mm calibre ammunition, with a similar inference that he did not have it for a lawful purpose.

The charges were brought under the Firearms Act, 1964 and the Firearms and Offences Weapons Act, 1990.
Agriculture Minister Michael Creed has confirmed 60 animal cruelty cases have been brought by his department before the courts since new legislation was introduced.

In a written Dail reply to Sinn Fein's Jonathan O'Brien, the minister said most of the cases are before the court but stated that 23 convictions have been recorded to date.

The highest amount of cruelty cases have been recorded in Cork and Meath since the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 was introduced in 2014.

Mr Creed confirmed single convictions have also been recorded in Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Dublin, Galway, Kilkenny, Louth, Waterford and Westmeath.

The most recent animal welfare case the Department brought to court came before Ennis District Court last week where eight horses were left to starve to death on a farmer's land in Co Clare earlier this year.

In the case, 79-year-old bachelor farmer Thomas O'Neill must pay the Department costs of more than 14,000 in removing the starving horses and carcasses from his farm.

In the case, a Department of Agriculture official, Aileen Tighe, told how she came across eight horse carcasses on a farm owned by O'Neill.

In evidence, Ms Tighe told the court that she was "quite shocked" at the state of the animals when first inspecting the farm owned by O'Neill in January of this year.

Ms Tighe said there were a total of 46 horses running wild on two parcels of land owned by O'Neill with a number being emaciated.

She first visited the farm on January 8 on foot of a complaint and saw that the land was completely bare where the horses were.

She said: "There was no grass whatsoever and the horses had started to graze the bushes because no grass was available."

Ms Tighe said she arranged feed for the horses and served notice on O'Neill concerning the horses' welfare.

Ms Tighe carried out a number of visits to the land in January and February and in a visit in February, she saw eight carcasses of horses that had died in the previous month, the carcasses of two other animals that had died some time ago and bones strewn across the land.

Ms Tighe said that it cost the Department 14,022 to have all of the horses removed from the farm and an additional 397 for the remains of the dead horses to be removed.

O'Neill of Caherea, Lissycasey, pleaded guilty to five separate animal neglect charges at Ennis District Court.

O'Neill - who required a crutch to get in and out of court - has also pleaded guilty to permit the carcass or carcasses of an animal or part of an animal to be on his land on February 19.

Solicitor for O'Neill, Daragh Hassett said that it was a very sad case and that the statements in the case make for very grim reading.

He said O'Neill lives in squalor himself and "has lived a life of seclusion".

Mr Hassett said the Department of Agriculture acted very swiftly and professionally in the case.

Judge Patrick Durcan said the investigation must have been a harrowing experience for Ms Tighe.

Judge Durcan wants O'Neill to fully compensate all of the money spent by the Department in the case and adjourned it to May 10 next for sentence.
The Catholic Church has stymied plans for the first ever State curriculum in world religions and ethics for primary schools.

Government education advisers are diluting their ambitions in the face of a fierce backlash from bishops and other key figures and organisations in Catholic education.

Church opposition is underpinned by the legal rights enjoyed by denominational schools in protecting their religious ethos.

The latest Church-State education clash has come to light in a report from the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA), which is on the desk of Education Minister Richard Bruton.

The report is based on a public consultation process on the NCCA's proposals for an Education about Religions and Beliefs and Ethics (ERBE) programme, launched a year ago.

The NCCA consultation triggered a massive reaction from Catholic interests who said the proposed curriculum was "unworkable" and would confuse pupils in the nine in 10 primary schools under their control.

Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan of Waterford and Lismore, told the NCCA that "in its current form, it would be impossible to implement in Catholic schools under my patronage".

It is not intended that ERBE would replace existing religion teaching in denominational schools, but the Catholic Church is worried about the delivery of mixed messages to its pupils.

The NCCA reports notes "that a tension exists between the teaching of the patron's programme and the introduction of ERB and Ethics".

It states that some submissions from denominational perspectives suggested any challenges may be overcome, but "others were definitive, stating that ERB and Ethics as described in the proposals was not compatible with their vision for schools under their auspices".

Among those who made submissions backing ERBE were the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) and the Ombudsman for Children, Dr Niall Muldoon.

Bodies, such as Atheist Ireland, and Equate, which promotes multi-denominational education, were also highly supportive, but questioned whether it would be implemented in religious-run schools.

Feedback from teachers and patrons in the multi-denominational sector suggested that their existing ethics/religious education programmes would be compatible with a State curriculum.

The Forum on Patronage and Pluralism in the Primary Sector recommended the development of an ERBE curriculum as a way of promoting inclusivity in an increasingly diverse society and equipping pupils for the modern world.

The idea was that ERBE would be taught in all primary schools to ensure that all children followed a coherent State programme in education in religion and ethics, as well as any faith-specific teaching

At the moment, the religion and/or ethics programmes available in primary schools depend on the patron body, and the NCCA found big variations in content and quality.

Guidelines issued to Catholic schools in 2014 allow for 18 of the 732 hours allocated to religion over eight years of schooling to be devoted to "other" religions.

The NCCA is not abandoning its work on ERBE, but the report refers to the "limiting factors within Irish education to the incorporation of a stand-alone curriculum in ERB and Ethics", highlighted in the consultation.

The report, which is published on the NCCA website, identifies two key challenges to the introduction of an ERBE curriculum.

One widely-acknowledged obstacle is the question of finding time in the primary school week to integrate new areas of learning. Curriculum overload is recognised as a problem in primary schools.

The NCCA is currently engaged in a separate review on how to reshape the time allocated for various subjects.

Even if the time issue is sorted, the legal protection enjoyed by denominational schools - coupled with the opposition from Church interests is an impediment.

Mediate

The NCCA acknowledges that "in legislation, patrons have the right and duty to mediate the entire primary school curriculum with regard to the ethos of their schools".

It points to provisions of the Education Act, which are "potential barriers to the type of 'objective, critical and pluralist' approaches advocated in the proposals for the ERBE curriculum".

Analysis: Understanding other faiths would help students to strengthen their own beliefs

The report states that, for most of the curriculum, the ethos issue that may not present a challenge, but in matters relating to religion, belief and ethics, what is envisaged in a State curriculum may not coincide with the views of a patron.

Nonetheless, the NCCA says there is an appetite for the incorporation of opportunities for children to engage in the study of religions, belief systems and ethical decision-making. It says incorporating such learning across areas of a reshaped primary curriculum would give children opportunities to engage with ERBE "although not in the same way as the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism" seemed to envisage.

It suggests that opportunities may present themselves in subjects such as Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) and Social Environmental and Scientific Education (SESE).
The extra money being awarded to second-level schools is a recognition of the bigger scale of these schools and their more complex needs in terms of facilities (Stock image)

Start-up schools are to get more funding from the Department of Education.

Pre-opening grants, worth 15,000 for a new primary school and 25,000 for a new second-level school, will be paid to management bodies.

Up to now, a patron body had to be involved in establishing a minimum of three schools before such funding was paid, and a minimum grant of 32,000 was awarded.

The extra money being awarded to second-level schools is a recognition of the bigger scale of these schools and their more complex needs in terms of facilities.

In a further concession to aid the start-up process, Education Minister Richard Bruton has also announced that new schools will be able to appoint a principal from an earlier stage.

Currently, a principal in a new post-primary school is appointed from February 1 and June 1 at primary level of the year that the school opens, but the new arrangements will improve on these timelines.
Descriptions such as unworkable, secular and confusing for children pepper many of the written responses to the draft drawn up by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) at the request of the Department of Education

'Not in my back yard, not in my front yard, not even past the school gates," is the reaction of the Catholic Church to the State's draft curriculum designed to teach children about different religious beliefs and ethics in the new diverse Ireland.

Descriptions such as "unworkable", "secular" and "confusing for children" pepper many of the written responses to the draft drawn up by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) at the request of the Department of Education.

"In its current form, it would be impossible to implement in Catholic schools under my patronage," wrote Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan of the Waterford and Lismore diocese, while Bishop Denis Nulty, patron of 164 schools in the Kildare and Leighlin diocese, claimed it represented a threat to the ethos of Catholic schools.

The same diocese's religious adviser, Maeve Mahon, went further saying "the secular, post-modern, pluralist worldview underpinning the NCCA proposal is completely at odds with that of the Catholic-Christian worldview". Her colleagues in the Dublin Archdiocese, Breda Holmes, Helen Leacy and Maureen Matthews SP, said the proposed curriculum is unnecessary and in direct conflict with the philosophy of religious education in Catholic primary schools: "Teachers would find themselves delivering mixed messages."

This is the view also of the Catholic Primary School Management Association, while the Association of Trustees of Catholic Schools describes the draft as a seriously flawed model and suggests it may be unconstitutional: "We cannot recommend to the parents of children in our schools that they would support this planned programme and as representatives of the trustees of the said schools we have no choice but to reasonably object to same."

As well as 174 written submissions, the NCCA received 2,255 responses to an online questionnaire, many of which were very positive. However, the questionnaire was itself the subject of attack.

The strongest comments came from a group of theologians and educators in Mary Immaculate College of Education, Limerick, who claim it was not a genuine and impartial search for knowledge. They said: "It functions merely as a part of a political strategy. Therefore, it does not provide any basis whatsoever for substantiating claims in regard to need or demand for this type of programme."

They don't identify who is behind this supposed political strategy. But they conclude that there are good reasons to believe that the NCCA's version of pluralism "amounts to an agnostic or strongly secular approach to religious truth claims".

The same Limerick academics provided much of the intellectual firepower for the Church's response to the report from the Forum on Pluralism and Patronage four years ago. One of them, Dr Rik Van Nieuwenhove, said at the time that the Forum recommendations would destroy the Catholic ethos in schools and were effectively a recipe for the utter secularisation of Ireland. The Forum had recommended divesting some Church-linked schools and handing them over for other patrons - fewer than a dozen have been divested so far.

It also recommended the introduction of an Education about Religion and Beliefs and Ethics (ERBE) programme. Neither proposal could be described as a plot to drive the Catholic Church out of Irish education.

What's often overlooked is that ERBE is intended to supplement, not supplant, existing religious formation in schools.

It's not an either or. It's not designed to stop schools preparing Catholic pupils for Holy Communion as some allege. It's an addition which would help pupils understand other beliefs, an understanding which would, arguably, strengthen their own. Under the Education Act 1998, patrons are entitled to develop and teach their own programmes that underpin the ethos of their schools.

Not all the submissions from Catholics are uniformly hostile. Some, like that from Fr Dermot Lane PP, are nuanced and critically constructive.

Others claim that they are already doing what the NCCA is suggesting but in the context of their own ethos. However, many of the others go over the same ground using similar phrases again and again.

The suspicion that there was some element of co-ordination or at least encouragement is confirmed by a parent of non-Catholic children who attend the local Catholic school, as there is no other choice within a 20-mile radius. The family teaches respect for everyone's faith. But when the children come home singing that God and Jesus are real "it tells me something is seriously wrong with the way morality and respect are taught", wrote Sharon Delaney.

She said she had received an email "pleading for me to petition you to maintain this status quo of brainwashed children. Well I am writing to you, and with every respectful bone in my body I implore you to follow the recent EU court ruling and allow children to choose faith at an age of informed consent supported by the family, not the education system".

Her three are among the growing number of non-Catholic children in a national network of primary schools, 95pc of which are run by the Churches. According to the census returns in 2011, the non-religious were the largest group in Ireland after Catholics.

A total of 277,237 were categorised as having no religion - one in eight in Dublin were in this category. When the latest census results are published, it's a safe bet the figure will be much higher.

Yet the primary school system has not kept pace with the growing diversity in society. There is no choice for tens of thousands of parents but to send their children to the local Church-linked school - usually the Catholic school.

The proposed ERBE programme was designed to help all children understand viewpoints other than their own. Now that the State's first attempt to draft such a programme has clearly been rejected by the Catholic Church, it's back to the drawing board.

John Walshe was an adviser to former education minister Ruairi Quinn, who established the Forum on Pluralism and Patronage
Gardai investigating the brutal assault on student Kym Owens have returned to the scene of the attack one week on, along with locals who were among the first on the scene.

Every car driving past the estate where Ms Owens was viciously attacked last week was stopped and questioned.

The 18-year-old student was set upon at around 8.30pm, while returning to her digs at the Moyglare Abbey Estate, in Maynooth, Co Kildare.

From before 8pm yesterday, officers investigating the case were out in force encouraging people to provide any of information they might have, even if it seemed insignificant to them.

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"Quite often officers will return to the scene around the same time as the incident a week later.

"The idea is that many of the people going about their business will be doing as they were doing on the night," a source said.

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At least two detectives and an officer with a sniffer dog were among the units on the scene, as around 20 locals also came out to help.

Some of those were neighbours who were the first to come to the aid of Ms Owens.

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Gardai were trying to jog people's memories, as well as looking for any evidence that might be at the scene and have slipped through the net.

As was the case last week, a steady stream of students from Maynooth University were returning to their accommodation after the weekend.

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One girl, who was stopped by the gardai, said there was a level of fear in the community. She said there was concern about the fact there is no chief suspect and no motive has yet been found.

"At first we heard the attack was someone she might have known, but now we don't know.

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"It's good to know at least that gardai are out on the streets and it does make us feel a bit safer," the student, who didn't want to be named, said.

Gardai remained at the scene for more than an hour.

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Ms Owen's family stayed at her bedside in Connolly Hospital over the weekend. Her father Ray told the Sunday World she was "doing as well as she can".

The student is recovering from numerous injuries - including a broken jaw, broken eye sockets and a broken nose.

Gardai are hopeful that the first-year arts student will have information on her attacker.
The report said that housing problems figured prominently and many vulnerable and distressed callers were facing homelessness for the first time Photo: Stock

The average recorded debt people sought help for last year was 46,700 - fuelled mainly by outstanding personal loans, utility bills and overdue credit card payments.

Mortgage debt was down the rankings for landing people in financial trouble and accounted 16.2pc of the cases handled by the Citizens Information Board.

Other areas which caused people to go into the red were money-lending debts, rent arrears, money owned to catalogue companies, outstanding fines and sub-prime loans, according to the board's annual report. Just over half the people seen by advisers at the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS), which is part of the overall information service, were aged between 41 and 65, but more than a third were 26-40 years old.

Angela Black, chief executive of the board, said overall the issues that citizens needed help with had clearly shifted over the courses of recent years.

While the focus was on redundancy and unemployment at the start of the downturn it has now veered towards unsustainable debt and mortgage arrears. Social welfare queries formed the biggest category fielded by the 42 offices, followed by health, employment, money and tax. Medical cards were the highest issue query, accounting for 53,111queries.

The report said that housing problems figured prominently and many vulnerable and distressed callers were facing homelessness for the first time,

Rent supplement continued to be an area of particular concern, with a rise in concerns.

It also revealed that accessing social welfare payments was becoming increasingly complex.

"People often face a wide range of financial and personal challenges when choosing services. This makes it critical that they can easily access information and advice about the full range of public services," they said.

Meanwhile, the board, in its submission to the HSE's review of the medical card, called for a rationalisation in relation to application forms.

It said there were currently five separate application forms - the medical card and GP visit card, GP visit card for the under-6s, the over-70s medical card care, the over-70s GP visit card and the medical card application form for children under 18 years with cancer diagnosis.

There should be clearer information on the two types of medical card applications and related assessment criteria for people aged over 70.
A local councillor said its bizarre and appalling that two to three vehicles get stuck on a daily basis in a historic gate in Co Louth.

Independent Cllr Kevin Callan said the St Laurence gate is damaged "at an alarming rate" by large vehicles getting stuck in the arch.

Its the last remaining gate wall from Drogheda town and its the finest Barbican gate in Western Europe. Its a pretty important bridge.

For years traffic has been going through it and getting stuck. Id say two or three trucks a day get stuck in it, Mr Callan told Independent.ie.

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He said the walls are covered in marks and cuts from the vehicles.

At this stage local residents are standing outside trying to tell trucks not to go through it.

Mr Callan said that a correct height restriction is in place but large HGV trucks continue to go through the gate.

The hill is a one-way road and to the left is a residential estate that many of the vehicles are too large to go into, so they have no other choice but to go through the gate.

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Mr Callan, who has been the mayor of Drogheda Town twice, said he has been working for years to get the road closed.

Tourists come to see the gate and theyre appalled by the damage. Its bizarre it keeps happening. Its one of the best gates in the world and we have HGVs getting stuck in it.

You're Wrong Ian, You're wrong I Wasn't Driving But - Sorry Drogheda pic.twitter.com/QxkTzw8qcp  Ian Dempsey (@IanDempsey) November 25, 2016

Mr Callan said the Louth County Council are currently in talks to get the road closed.

Were currently consulting with the public to see their opinions and views. Most people are horrified that the road isnt closed.
Justice Mary Laffoy has said she has "no doubt" the Citizens' Assembly will be criticised for not covering certain topics in their discussions about the Eighth Amendment.

Speaking at the close of the first meeting of the Citizens' Assembly, Ms Justice Laffoy - the group's chair - said that the range of topics to be discussed was vast and could "overwhelm" the public forum. "The task we have before us over the next three weekends that the Assembly meets is enormous. It could overwhelm us, but we must remain steadfast in our commitment to fulfilling the task set for us by the Oireachtas," she said.

"The number of topics and the range of perspectives to be considered is vast. The scale of the challenge in even identifying the issues was clearly shown in the feedback from members in our brainstorming session. This is something I have been grappling with since taking up the position as chair."

The Assembly, which took place over two days in the Grand Hotel in Malahide, Co Dublin, heard presentations from legal, medical and academics. It will reconvene on January 7 and 8.

During a feedback session, members requested to hear from those with personal experience of abortion in their upcoming sessions and for improved gender balance in the experts presenting information to the Assembly.

Professor Anthony McCarthy, consultant psychiatrist at the National Maternity Hospital, questioned why a depressed woman would have to endure psychiatric assessments by a series of "strangers" to get an abortion if she could travel abroad for a termination.

He said that the process set under the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 was so burdensome it would not make sense for a woman to endure it.

"From my clinical experience and the clinical experience of any psychiatrist working in a maternity hospital, almost my first question in a situation like that is why has she not gone abroad? Why would she put herself through this?" he said.

Dr Brendan O'Shea, representing the Irish College of General Practitioners, told the Assembly that the Eighth Amendment is not "satisfactory or helpful" for women enduring unplanned or crisis pregnancies.

Oxford BRC Ethics Fellow Dr Mark Sheehan told the Assembly individual beliefs cannot always match a society's laws. In response to a question relating to how ethics and religious belief can come into conflict, he said this was a "difficult ethical situation" and the values that matter to individuals don't "always and straightforwardly apply" in this case.
Gardai and Dublin Fire brigade attend a fire at a flat in Pearse House on Pearse street, where a man in his fifties was taken to hospital. Picture: Arthur Carron

A man rescued from a fire by Dubin Fire Brigade suffered a cardiac arrest at the scene tonight.

Fire had broken out in a second floor apartment in Pearse House in Pearse Street which caused the alarm to be raised by people in the area.

Six units of Dublin Fire Brigade went to the city council flats complex, along with two ambulances.

Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus went into the burning flat and rescued a man aged in his 50s.

The man went into cardiac arrest during the rescue and advanced paramedics manning fire engines and ambulance crews successfully resusitated him.

When the man was brought to hospital, he went into cardiac arrest a second time but was against resuscitated, said a fire brigade spokesperson.

The fire was brought under control and extinguished by the fire fighter teams.
Members of Dublin Fire Brigade had a busy morning as they helped deliver a baby girl who arrived one month early.

Firefighters from the Tallaght unit assisted the National Ambulance Service in the safe birth of the baby at her home in Brookview at 9.30am on Monday morning.

A spokesperson for Dublin Fire Brigade said both mum and baby are doing well.

Great start to Monday as our Tallaght fire engine with Sara, Billy McHugh, Geoff & NAS assisted mum with the delivery of a baby girl this morning, they tweeted earlier today.

Speaking to the Tallaght Echo, firefighter Billy McHugh said: This little baby arrived early at 36 weeks but thankfully everything is great, and mam and baby are both being cared for in the Coombe.

When the call came in, Tallaght sent one fire engine to the scene and when we arrived we assisted in delivering the baby.

Mr McHugh, who himself was delivered by two firemen when he was born, said it was nice to be involved.

This is my fifth baby to deliver and I think Geoff and Sarah have both delivered around the same.

Our work can be very hard at times so to be part of something like the birth of a baby is a lovely aspect of the job.
The Pope has confirmed he will visit Ireland in 2018.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny was in the Vatican today where he invited Pope Francis to come to Ireland.

The last Pontiff to travel to Ireland was Pope John Paul II in 1979.

However it appears that lengthy gap will now be bridged with Pope Francis likely to travel here in 2018.

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After arriving in the city state today, Mr Kenny wasted no time in issuing a formal invitation for Pope Francis to travel here.

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Mr Kenny and his wife Fionnuala arrived at the Vatican shortly before 10am and were greeted by the Swiss Guard.

The meeting with the Pope lasted just under half an hour. The two men discussed a range of issues including migration.

As they left the meeting, Fionnuala said to the Pope: Hopefully well see you in Ireland. The Taoiseach presented leader of the Catholic Church with a print of a stained glass window by Harry Clarke. In return, the Fine Gael leader received an etching of St Peters Basilica.

A short time later it was confirmed that the Pope will travel to Ireland for the World Meeting of Families in Dublin in 2018.

Mr Kenny, who was accompanied by his wife Fionnuala, said it was "an exceptional privilege and honour" for him to meet the Pope and extend an invitation to Ireland.

"I discussed a range of other matters with him in regard to the state of the Church/State relations in Ireland," he said.

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Mr Kenny raised the issue of the Church's response to child sexual abuse scandals and explained his "difficulties with the Church some years ago", a reference to him famous speech to the Dail following the publication of the Cloyne Report.

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"I was happy to conform to him that Church/ State relations are in a better shape than they were for very many years. That we work very well with the Bishops and the clergy, that there are so many more safeguards in place than there were before and that.

"I regard these relations as being at a healthier position than they were for many years," Mr Kenny said afterwards.

They also discussed Brexit "in the context of the new relationship that will apply been the UK and the EU".

Last week, the Taoiseach insisted relations between Ireland and the Vatican were extremely healthy and he had regular conversations with many clergy.

This contrasts with a landmark speech about child abuse in Cloyne in July 2011, which was an unprecedented attack on dysfunction, disconnection, elitism and narcissism at the Vatican.

Following this the Irish Vatican embassy was closed for two years, but reopened in 2014 after Pope Franciss election.

Earlier this year Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said Irish bishops would like to include a trip to the North during any possible Irish visit by the Pope. Pope John Paull II did not visit the North 37 years ago for security reasons.

Since it was announced last year that Dublin is the venue for the next World Meeting of Families, senior Vatican sources have said they are unable to confirm the presence of the Pope at an event.
A still image from Paul Williamss documentary State of Fear shows John Gilligan as he was confronted by the journalist at Jessbrook Equestrian Centre in Co Kildare. Photo: TV3

Brendan Howlin has said it is "shocking" that gangster John Gilligan is still living in the house where slain reporter Veronica Guerin challenged him about his crimes.

The Labour leader made the remarks after Irish Independent crime journalist Paul Williams angrily confronted Gilligan at the property beside the convicted drug trafficker's former Jessbrook Equestrian Centre in Co Kildare. Gilligan was the boss of the gang that murdered 'Sunday Independent' reporter Ms Guerin in 1996. He assaulted her when she challenged him at the property.

He has fought a legal battle against the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) for almost two decades to hang on to the house. Gilligan is reported to be considering taking the case to Europe if he loses a Supreme Court appeal.

Mr Howlin said his Labour colleague Ruairi Quinn established the CAB "to strip ill-gotten gains away from the predators who make money from drug dealing and gang crimes".

He added: "John Gilligan was the centre of a network of evil. That he remains living in the house where Veronica Guerin confronted him about his crimes will be shocking to most right-minded people."

Meanwhile, Fianna Fail TD Jim O'Callaghan said the process of trying to take the property from Gilligan had "gone on too long".

He said: "It will be a source of annoyance and irritation to the Irish people that 20 years after John Gilligan's properties at Jessbrook Equestrian Centre were frozen by the State, he is still able to reside in one of those frozen properties."

"CAB must be relentless in its pursuit of the proceeds of crime," he said, adding that efforts to seize the property "should be concluded promptly".

Gilligan (65) was acquitted of Ms Guerin's murder - but he remains the chief suspect. He fled Ireland in 2014 after an attempt on his life but has returned and was confronted by Mr Williams at the house last month. Mr Williams said it was a "grotesque insult" to Ms Guerin's memory that Gilligan was still living there. His TV3 documentary, State of Fear, airs tonight and tomorrow night at 10pm.
Jobs Minister Mary Mitchell O'Connor will today tell her European counterparts she wants an end to 'geo-blocking' that sees Irish online shoppers pay more when buying from foreign websites.

Branding the practice "unfair", she said the current lack of regulation sees shoppers "paying over the odds".

Her trip to Brussels comes as Irish shoppers are set to spend tens of millions online on what has been dubbed 'Cyber Monday'.

She will tell fellow ministers that Ireland supports a proposal for an EU Regulation to prevent 'geo-blocking'.

The practice sees consumers charged different prices on websites based on their nationality or the location they are buying from.

Shoppers are prevented from accessing cheaper prices on different versions of a seller's website for specific countries.

"I want to ensure fairness across the board so that Irish consumers are not disadvantaged," Ms Mitchell O'Connor told the Irish Independent.

"Whether shopping locally or online you should be aware of the best prices available."

She said that the proposed EU regulation - which must be agreed by the European Parliament - "will prove to be of significant benefit to Irish and European consumers and small businesses when it comes to customers who are looking for choice and value."

"We should not be paying over the odds for goods that are cheaper from other locations," she said, stating that EU-wide regulation was needed to tackle the issue.

The European Commission proposed the new e-commerce rules to help consumers and companies reap full benefit of the single market.

Today's meeting involves other European ministers who have responsibility for the single market.

Meanwhile, Independent Communications Minister Denis Naughten urged Irish small businesses to take advantage of the opportunity of big shopping days like Cyber Monday to diversify their market.

He urged them to sign up for the Government's Trading Online Voucher Scheme which offers grants of up to 2,500 to help them set up and improve websites.

"Around the world, people are getting ready for Christmas by getting online," Mr Naughten said, adding that Cyber Monday was the "perfect day" for businesses to take full advantage of the potential to boost their sales.
Sacking under-fire minister Shane Ross from Cabinet would be "a fatal error for Fine Gael", his Independent Alliance colleague John Halligan has warned.

Mr Halligan said the Alliance was "100pc behind him".

"If Ross was removed from Cabinet in the morning. I would go. No question about it," he said.

He was speaking after a week of intense pressure on Transport Minister, Mr Ross, who was at the centre of a Cabinet row over a Dail vote on neutrality.

Mr Ross has been accused of blocking new judicial appointments as he demands an overhaul of the system for selecting and overseeing judges.

A senior Fine Gael source said there was "growing frustration" that Mr Ross was "spending so much time worrying about everybody else's brief rather than getting on with his own [Transport]".

Last night, Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin ratcheted up the pressure on Mr Ross, branding the Government's handling of the issue of judges as "shambolic".

"That one minister's personal obsession is blocking appointments and delaying public access to justice is a disgrace," he said. "For most Irish people, delays in getting to court is the problem, not a lack of faith in the judge they face when in court."

He said there was broad agreement about the need to reform the judicial appointments process, but that a refusal to allow new appointments until that was complete was "unacceptable and should end immediately".

Junior minister Mr Halligan was quick to leap to his Alliance colleague Mr Ross's defence and warned Fine Gael against any attempt to "undermine" him. He accused Fianna Fail of "throwing their toys out of the pram" and pointed to their record in government.

"Look at the political appointments they made," he said.

Mr Halligan said he did not understand the "hullabaloo" over the issue and that it was a "genuine attempt by Mr Ross and the Alliance to make judges and other State appointees "accountable".

He pointed out that reforming political and judicial appointments was in the programme for government.

"I know he's [Mr Ross] coming under fire but he has 100pc backing from me," he said.

He also referred to suggestions over the weekend that Taoiseach Enda Kenny would have to sack Mr Ross, saying it would be "a fatal error for Fine Gael to come after him".

"We're all trying to push forward for a better society where everyone's accountable to society, including judges. What's wrong with that?" he said.

Senior Fine Gael minister Charlie Flanagan attempted to strike a conciliatory note on the matter when he was asked if Mr Kenny should sack Mr Ross on RTE's 'The Week in Politics'.

"Not at all," he said. "The Government is working well. Of course there are going to be tensions. That's what Cabinet is for - to debate the issues and reach a consensus."

He said the issue of judicial appointment was "very serious" and that it would be "wrong" that any one person can have a veto over the appointment of judges. But he insisted judicial reform was high on Tanaiste and justice minister Frances Fitzgerald's agenda and that legislation would be published shortly.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny will remain in office to attend the White House St Patrick's Day reception - but a leadership contest next summer is viewed as increasingly likely, senior Fine Gael sources have said.

Mr Kenny last week raised the hackles of TDs who want to see a change at the top when he said he hopes to remain in office to welcome Pope Francis to Ireland in 2018.

That prospect has been described as "playing with fire" by one party insider.

The Taoiseach is in the Vatican today where he will tell Pope Francis the Government fully supports the invitation by the Irish Bishops to invite him to visit that summer.

However, the chances of Mr Kenny being in office at that stage are diminishing.

A White House meeting with US president-elect Donald Trump is increasingly being seen as the beginning of the end of Mr Kenny's term.

The Taoiseach has said he will step down as leader before the next general election but has refused to name a date.

Last summer he saw off a potential heave by backbenchers who feared that Fianna Fail would pull the rug from under the Government while he remained in place.

None of the potential successors to Mr Kenny - Leo Varadkar, Simon Coveney and Frances Fitzgerald - backed the rebels and all said that Mr Kenny should be allowed to step down in his own time.

A senior party source said that following the aborted challenge, there was an "expectation that Enda Kenny would step down by Christmas".

The source added: "Now that has moved on to after St Patrick's Day. He is leveraging events like Brexit and Trump to strengthen his position but that can't go on forever. The reality is Enda has done well since the general election but we don't know when the next election will be and we can't have him as leader when it comes."

Another senior source said there was a sense that a leadership contest was most likely next summer as Fine Gael wouldn't change leader in the middle of a Dail term.

The source also pointed out that Mr Kenny would surpass John A Costello as the longest-serving Fine Gael Taoiseach in April. Asked if there was any possibility Mr Kenny would remain as Taoiseach into 2018, the source replied: "I don't think there's many people that expect that to happen."

Meanwhile, a backbench source said there would be "a reluctance to sit on our hands for another year plus" in relation to a potential leadership challenge.

They said the party "would be really playing with fire" if it waited until 2018 to replace Mr Kenny, as the minority government deal with Fianna Fail was up for review that year.

Last night, a spokesman for the Taoiseach declined to comment on the rumblings.

Mr Kenny addressed a gathering of Young Fine Gael on Saturday and appeared in relaxed form. He spoke to them of their duty to engage with people that hold different opinions and of the need to work hard to create the Ireland they want to achieve.

"Life is beautiful when you are prepared to live it fully, when you are prepared to work to leave a mark," he told them.

In a speech at the same event, Health Minister Simon Harris gave the strongest indication to date that he may contest the leadership insisting that youth is no reason to dismiss a person's abilities.
Book of Condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien NCuban Embassy Dublin

The Book of Condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien

Cuban Flag at half Mast at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin Photo: Kyran O'Brien

President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina signing the book of condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien

President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina signing the Book of Condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien

President Michael D Higgins was the first to sign the book of condolences for Fidel Castro at the Cuban embassy in Dublin today.

The President arrived with his wife Sabina and wrote a message expressing his sympathy on behalf of the people of Ireland to the Cuban people.

Expand Close President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina signing the Book of Condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook

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Whatsapp President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina signing the Book of Condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien

President Higgins was initially expected to speak to the media after signing the book, but this did not happen. He expressed his condolences to the Cuban Ambassador to Ireland Dr Hermes Herrera personally before leaving.

He wrote: "On behalf of the people of Ireland to express their sympathies to the people of Cuba on the passing of former Head of State Fidel Castro Ruiz. Por la sacrificio de la gente (for the sacrifice of the people)."

Speaking after President Higgins signed the book, the Cuban Ambassador addressed the reaction to the Presidents previous statement calling Fidel Castro "a giant among global leaders" and said that he was not surprised by the controversy.

The international press have a very negative view of Cuba. I am Cuban; I know it is not true what they are saying, Dr Herrera told the press.

We are helping more than 66 countries, mainly with health but also teaching and other areas. That is possible because the majority of the Cuban people support the revolution and that's why we can survive and help.

A spokesperson for President Higgins confirmed yesterday that he would not attend the funeral for Mr Castro.

Expand Expand Previous Next Close President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina signing the book of condolence for the late Fidel Castro at the Cuban Embassy on Pearse St Dublin. Photo: Kyran O'Brien President Michael D Higgins rejected claims he ignored human rights concerns in a statement marking the death of Fidel Castro / Facebook

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When asked whether he was disappointed that the funeral would not be attended by the President or any government ministers, Dr Herrera said: We have a very difficult financial situation; the people who decided to go are welcome but unfortunately not everyone could be invited.

The President has faced criticism from a number of politicians and public figures following his comments about the former Cuban leader yesterday.

His statement said that Castros "view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet."

A spokesperson for the President yesterday said:

"The President's statement clearly referred to the price paid for social and economic development in terms of civil society and the criticisms it brought."

He added that human rights organisations in Cuba "have always had the support of the President".

"Any suggestion that the President neglected human rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted.

"The President has discussed human rights concerns with representatives of the government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland and elsewhere," the spokesman said.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny has met with the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, who described the result of marriage referendum as a "defeat for humanity".

Mr Kenny held a meeting with Cardinal Parolin, who is The Vatican's equivalent of prime minister, after his audience with Pope Francis.

The Cardinal made international headlines when he led the Holy See's reaction to the Irish vote in 2015.

At the time he said: This result left me feeling very sad but as the Archbishop of Dublin (Diarmuid Martin) pointed out, the Church will have to take this reality on board in the sense of a renewed and strengthened evangelisation.

"I believe that we are talking here not just about a defeat for Christian principles but also about a defeat for humanity."

Mr Kenny told reporters this afternoon that the issue of same sex marriage wasn't raised at the meeting but the cardinal "did refer to his comment afterwards".

"I said you are perfectly entitled to make your comment. Obviously the people voted in a referendum which was the first in the world where it came through a citizens convention and so many people travelled back to Ireland to actually register and vote.

"I think that's a signal around the world that, about the nature of population now, the way they feel about it, the happiness that surrounded that decision and the fact that it allowed so many people who lived in limbo or shadows to now play their full part in society," the Taoiseach said.

He added that Cardinal Parolin understood his position "clearly and accepts that utterly".
Units from the Cork Fire Brigade were required to battle a blaze at the Lower John Street area of the city tonight.

The fire appeared to be under control by 9:40pm, however fire brigade units remain at the scene.

Road closures and diversions are in place around the scene.

More to follow.
'I remember we would hear this quiet grinding noise," my brother Patrick recalls. It was a low, slow grinding sound that we soon found out was the sound of Banni grinding his teeth together.

"When we looked into his mouth, we saw that he had ground his teeth right down to the gums." He would also shake his head back and forth constantly, making quiet humming noises. All of these habits, we would later learn, had developed as a result of years of being left in an orphanage cot with no stimulation or room to move. The rocking of the head, the constant tapping of his thumb and the grinding of his teeth. He couldn't walk and he couldn't talk, he had severe disabilities but it's hard to explain - there was something very special about Banni.

I was about 12 years old and had just come home from school with my younger brother and sister when we first met him. We walked into the sitting room and saw this little boy sitting quietly on our couch. We didn't know what to think. Banni was different to anyone I'd ever met before. He was seven years old but looked only about three. He would sit in the same spot all day, constantly swinging his head back and forth while making quiet humming noises. My siblings and I were intrigued and would sit beside him for hours, talking and playing with him, feeding him, trying to get a sense of what he could and couldn't understand. My mam explained to us that this was a little boy from a region in Belarus affected by the Chernobyl accident, and he would be staying with us for two weeks.

Banni had come to stay with us through a charity called the Burren Chernobyl Project, set up by Irish Christian Brother Liam O'Meara. Br Liam had first visited Belorussian orphanages in 1994 and was so horrified by the conditions he found the children in, he felt compelled to do something to help. One of the many things the charity does each year is bring a group of orphans to Ireland for around a month to benefit from the fresh air, healthy food and stimulation.

We knew very little about Banni's background. There seemed to be a lot of confusion and mystery around his parents and the circumstances which lead to Banni ending up in the orphanage in the first place. But when you're 12 years of age, you don't really dwell on those details too much. Instead we were excited to have a new brother in the house. We poured love over Banni from the moment he arrived, hugging and kissing him, taking him with us wherever we went, and really treating him like one of the family.

"At the start he was quiet and afraid," my mother Noreen remembers. "But when we left him to play with you and all your friends, slowly but surely we started to see this personality come out in him." The two weeks flew by and Banni was starting to transform. The whole family doted over him and when the time came for Banni to return to Belarus my parents were faced with a tough dilemma: how could they let this little boy who had come on in leaps and bounds return to a life where he would be walled inside a state institution.

"We just thought it would be awful to send him back to the orphanage so we talked about it and thought, he could just tag along with us," remembers my dad, Tom.

My parents made the decision to adopt Banni and for the next year and a half he stayed with us as my parents went through the adoption process. He had well and truly become one of the family; he was baptised in the parish, he started going to a special needs school, and for the first time in his entire life he had a family who loved him. This wave of stimulation, love and attention had a profound affect on Banni. His habits - built up over years of neglect - started to fade; the sound of grinding teeth stopped; his head didn't swing as much; he started to smile - and laugh. He laughed all the time. He started to walk and feed himself. Banni was a completely different little boy to the one who had arrived in our home over a year earlier.

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Everything was going great until one day my mother got a call saying Banni had to go back to the orphanage for some medical checks and, once they were done, he'd be back in Ireland for good. That was the last time my family saw Banni.

My mother travelled to Belarus with Banni and it soon became apparent that they had no intention of letting him return with her. With the help of a lawyer my parents tried everything to bring Banni home but they were coming up against brick walls with no explanation as to why he was being kept in the orphanage.

"We couldn't get any answer as to why he wasn't allowed to come back and live with us," my mother remembers. "I was told, unofficially, that there was a lot of suspicion around why a western family with perfectly healthy children would want this disabled boy. It was as if they couldn't understand it." After much struggle, it was over, the adoption was blocked and my mother had to return home - Banni was sentenced to a life in state institutions. The whole family was devastated.

Letting Banni go was tough for the whole family, but particularly my parents. I think, for us, when you're young you have a great ability to move forward. I think it was only as the years rolled on and I had finished college, I started to wonder what had gone wrong.

I work as a freelance reporter and presenter for RTE and BBC, which means the job can be demanding and I suppose Banni was a memory tucked away in the back of my mind. It was only earlier this year when, over lunch one day, I was talking to someone about the 30th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster, that I started to tell them the story of Banni. I was ashamed to admit I knew so little about this boy who was such a significant and important part of my life. I didn't know the nature of his disability, his family circumstances, where he is now, and most importantly, what his future will be.

I started to look into it and the more I investigated the more I was amazed by the Irish involvement in these orphanages in Belarus and the selfless work people from all Ireland carry out there. I spoke to RTE about making a programme about Banni and the legacy the Irish volunteers have left in his orphanage and ones like them. So last July, I boarded a plane with a cameraman bound for Belarus. I knew it wouldn't be easy but I wasn't in any way prepared for just how difficult it would be.

Belarus is a beautiful country and its capital Minsk is very impressive, but as soon as you leave the city and head out into the countryside, it's a completely different story. The people live simple, self-sufficient lives, many in poverty.

I had been told Banni was still in the orphanage he was in as a child, although he had reached an age when he should be moved to an adult asylum. As we drove to the tiny rural village where Banni lived along with 300 other children, I wondered... Is coming back to meet him the best idea? Would it be too upsetting for him? Question after question was running through my mind.

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The orphanage director was a formidable man who didn't smile all that much. He sat myself, my cameraman and Br Liam, who was with us, down in his office and told us through a translator that there had been a change of plan, and even though we had come all this way with the correct documentation and accreditation, I was not permitted to see Banni and we could not film anywhere in the orphanage. I was devastated but tried not to let on.

The longer the meeting went on it became apparent to me that he was paranoid about being reprimanded by his superiors, which I understood. He told us if "anything negative" was produced about the orphanage, the programme couldn't be made. Eventually he compromised and said we could have limited access to certain parts of the orphanage provided it was a "positive" documentary and he would guide us at all times while we filmed. We were thousands of miles from Dublin, in a former Soviet country which still has the death penalty. We agreed.

The director took us on a well choreographed tour; everything looked immaculate, a blackboard which looked like it had never seen chalk, beds that looked like they'd never been slept in, but we continued filming. My heart was beating fast as every corner we turned I thought I might bump into Banni, but there was no sign of him. Then we came close to a room with Unit 7 written on the door. I remembered that this was the unit Banni had come from. I walked past the director and into the room, the cameraman followed, and it was there, sitting quietly in the corner of the room, that I saw little Banni. Now 21, he looked much older but still childlike. I walked over to him and started to say his name. He lifted his head and looked up at me, only to look away straight away. It was heartbreaking and I tried to hold back the tears, but the little boy who had been in our home for so long had changed so much, and not for the better.

Finding Banni, Wednesday, November 30, RTE2, 9.30pm
Keep warm and satisfy your sweet tooth with these five places to get a delicious hot chocolate in Dublin.

1. Brother Hubbard, Capel Street

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If you're looking for a haven to rest your feet in during the Christmas rush, Brother Hubbard is for you. Located on Capel Street, you can enjoy watching the world go by as you tuck into a hot chocolate.

Served as a cup of hot milk with a cup of hot chocolate ganache on the side, pour the ganache into the milk and watch all of your chocolate dreams come true.

2. Insomnia, locations around Ireland

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While Insomnia may not spring to mind as somewhere to go to enjoy a decadent hot chocolate, you'll be pleasantly surprised to find that it is. Served with chocolate flakes, marshmallows and cream, this is one of the best hot chocolates you can have served and ready to enjoy within minutes.

3. Bean and Goose, Temple Bar Market

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Bean and Goose is run by two sisters from Wexford who sell their chocolate at the Temple Bar Market. Try their Aztec spiced hot chocolate for the perfect balance of chocolate and spice to warm you up in winter. The market is open on Saturdays, so enjoy a cup while walking around the cobbled streets of Temple Bar.

4. Butlers Chocolate Cafe, locations around Ireland

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Bultlers' hot chocolate is award-winning for a reason. You can choose from 11 variations of hot chocolate, including white, chilli and peppermint. Plus, you can choose another chocolate treat to take with you with each order - yum!

5. The Sweetest Thing, Bachelors Walk

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The name of this cafe says it all - you won't come across another hot chocolate sweeter than what you can get here. The hot chocolates are like a dessert in themselves, with various toppings to choose from, as well as a pure Belgian chocolate shot for intense chocolate-lovers.
Madonna rang in her birthday with a family holiday to Havana earlier this year. You might want to consider visiting the island too.

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982, cntraveller.com has a list of top things to do in the Cuban capital.

Museo de la Revolucion, between Avenida de las Misiones and Zulueta, is a huge, ornate, dome-topped building which was once the presidential palace, and became the Museum of the Revolution during the years following the Cuban revolution. Head for Old Havana to explore the churches and reconstructed Spanish-style mansions found in and around the three stunning plazas of Catedral, Armas and Vieja.

Partagas Cigar Factory is considered a national treasure - formerly the second largest cigar factory in Cuba - and hides behind the Capitolio in Havana's main square.

Jardin Botanico Nacional has an extensive collection of tropical plants.

Don't be a guest from hell

Realsimple.com has tips on how to be the perfect house guest - as taking a winter city break often involves visiting friends.

1. Be very clear on how long you intend to stay for. Don't be vague, or overstay your welcome.

2. Don't turn up unannounced - or with a puppy or a child, unless you've cleared it with your host.

3. Bring a gift. If you're visiting someone else's holiday home, consider taking candles or books - things that people after you will appreciate.

4. Be appropriate - when it comes to baring it all. Before you walk down the hall with just a towel after your shower, consider whether your host would be comfortable with this.

5. Bring your own toiletries - like toothpaste - and don't expect to use your hosts'. Also, refrain from eating the leftovers or finishing off the milk.

So good they named it twice

Going to New York City can be hectic, yet with CityPASS the very best attractions are wrapped up in one easy-to-use ticket booklet.

It gives you priority entry to The Empire State Building Experience, American Museum of Natural History, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Top of the Rock Observation Deck or Guggenheim Museum, Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island or Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum or Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.

CityPASS also offers you significant savings on entry fees when you buy the pass. It's valid for nine days starting with the first day of use, so there's no need to feel rushed - you can see the city that never sleeps at your own pace. www.citypass.com/new-york. For more ideas, including shopping, dining, tours, museums, sightseeing, green spaces and more, see www.nycgo.com
Imagine our shock here in People Are Talking when we woke up and found ourselves in bed with Trump supporters. Quite.

Yes, we were all in agreement that Gigi Hadid's impression of First Lady-To-Be, Melania Trump, at the AMAs (American Music Awards) was simply wrong.

On closer inspection though it turned out that while we were trying to uncurl our embarrassed toes and unsee the ghastly 'turn' by a model determined to prove she's more than just a pretty face and a killer body, the "alt-right" as they call themselves had different gripes.

Gigi's impression of Melania's Eastern European accent is "racist" they say, and let's face it, they would know. (Remember that the next time you leave the room doing your best Arnie/Terminator "I'll be back.") Further, supporters of the First Family-To-Be were worried that Trump's 10-year-old son Barron might have seen a model (whose own parents are both immigrants) poking fun at his mama! He needn't worry as this joke was on Gigi. Small wonder boyfriend Zayn forgot to thank her when accepting an award.

Time David put his house in order

Pat Fitzpatrick

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A definition of Irish people: a forgetful race, genetically predisposed to ignoring excitable red-haired people bearing bad news. It's the only thing that makes sense any more.

Why? David McWilliams (above).

He was at it again during the week, pointing out that our ballooning property prices are a bigger threat to the Irish economy than Donald Trump. Our response? Tumbleweed. People looking at their shoes, waiting for him to go away. Thinking to themselves: ''Not him again, when has he ever been right about anything? My semi-d in Kildare is worth 8m. Why is this guy trying to undo the miracle?''

It's pretty much 10 years to the day since we watched David the Ignored's show, In Search of the Pope's Children. Is there anything to be said for another documentary?

Yes. Along with a tip for David. The next time you're going to warn us about property, pick a week when we're not all obsessing about Black Friday. Because we're not great on the whole attention front. And we're completely addicted to buying frenzies that started in the States. But then you probably know that yourself after 2006.

A vote to end silly votes? Let's vote on that

Eilis O'Hanlon

There are calls for referendums on the Eighth Amendment, water charges, Irish unity, you name it. Now SF wants one on neutrality too.

It's easy to see why the Opposition is gagging for another referendum. After Brexit and Trump, the public mood is so volatile right now that we'd vote for anything that gives the system a bloody nose.

The Government could have a vote saying there should still be seven days in the week, and we'd vote it down, demanding that we want at least nine.

Even so, there's a risk we're going to be "referendumed out" before long. What we really need is a referendum to say that we don't want any more referendums for a while, then the politicians could actually get back to, you know, running the country and boring stuff like that.

That, and a vote on what punishment to justly inflict on pretentious people who use the word "referenda" as the plural instead of "referendums". This is Ireland. Plurals here have an S on the end.

Deal with it.
OGALLALA  One of Nebraska's largest farms will be up for auction later this week.

The Thomas Land Co. holds 28,645 acres of ranch and farmland that overlooks Lake McConaughy in western Nebraska.

The auction has drawn interest from more than 500 people already. Scott Shuman with Hall and Hall Auctions in Eaton, Colorado, says he expects the bidders to be a mix of farmers, ranchers and investors.

The farm consists of a ranch operation, irrigated farmland and non-irrigated land. Each one of those segments is big enough to stand alone.

"It is very rare to find an assemblage of this magnitude and diversity being offered for sale," he said. "This is a place to invest capital and enjoy the stability and the certainty that land offers."

U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics show the average Nebraska farm has about 920 acres, although ranches in the western half of the state tend to be significantly larger. About 49,100 farm and ranches are in the state.

The roughly 45 square miles of land along U.S. Highway 26 is for sale because Michael Thomas died in 2015 at age 74. He assembled the property after he and his wife spent several years developing hotels and coastal land while living in Miami Beach, Florida. Thomas grew up in western Nebraska and graduated from Ogallala High School in 1958.

The operation includes parcels of land scattered across Keith, Deuel and Perkins counties.

The land will be broken into 50 different pieces that range in size from 10 acres to more than 5,000 acres. The major crops grown on the land are winter wheat and dryland corn.
'Children of immigrants are made welcome in our mainly denominational primary schools and allowed, even encouraged, to practise their faith' (stock photo)

The Paris and Brussels bombings are still fresh in our memories. They showed up many of the weaknesses in European societies - ghettoisation of ethnic minorities, growing Islamophobia, the radicalisation of small numbers of young people, the emergence of religious fundamentalism, and the rise of anti-Semitism.

Ireland, which absorbed higher percentages of emigrants quicker than many other EU countries, has largely avoided these problems so far. Children of immigrants are made welcome in our mainly denominational primary schools and allowed, even encouraged, to practise their faith.

But there is a need for a more structured arrangement to teach all children about different religions. This would help avoid a sense of alienation and of not belonging to an increasingly diverse society.

That is why the response of the Catholic Church - which controls 90pc of primary schools - to the State's draft programme on education about religious beliefs and ethics is so disappointing. Many in the Church will say their schools are inclusive and already teaching about other religions. But its Religious Education (RE) programme allows for only 18 hours of teaching about world religions in the 732 hours of RE over eight years of primary schooling.

The written submissions on the draft curriculum prepared by the State's advisory body, the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, are revealing.

The language and suspicions voiced in some, not least from a group of academics in Limerick's Mary Immaculate College, smack of a different era. Accusing unnamed plotters of being part of a political strategy and the NCCA of harbouring agnostic or secular ideas is hardly the most Christian response to the dedicated staff in the Council.

The attitude of the Catholic Church now makes it impossible to proceed with the curriculum as drafted. We need to re-imagine the relationship between education and religion in this country if we are to avoid some of the mistakes made by our European partners.

President's Castro tribute ill-judged and excessive

For 50 years Fidel Castro led Cuba and strode the world stage, ultimately becoming the last surviving Cold War warrior. He delivered better health care and education and improved the lot of small farmers.

But he was both hero and villain at one and the same time, and his misdeeds cannot be explained away by his well-intentioned left-wing rhetoric.

Castro's wrong-headed economic policies inflicted much hardship on ordinary Cubans, and was only masked by an annual $5bn subsidy from the USSR up to 1989, and subsidised oil from Hugo Chavez's Venezuela more recently.

Castro's denial of basic human rights, the summary execution, imprisonment and torture of dissidents, and the persecution of homosexuals - though he recanted this in later years - cannot be easily glossed over.

Let's also recall that Castro was never, ever elected to lead his country in truly democratic elections.

President Higgins was right to sympathise with the Cuban people and pay tribute to a major figure with positive achievements. But the President's tribute, as the nation's first citizen, was excessive, ill-judged and lacked the necessary balance to reflect Castro's dark legacy.
ennifer Maguire celebrated her Hen party on the Breakfast Republic,2Fm at RTE Radio studios Dublin this morning. Pic Stephen Collins/Collins Photos

Jen was all smiles at the bash. Picture: Ray Cullen

2FM's Jennifer Maguire arriving with family and friends.. for her party at Coppinger Row restaurant Picture: Ray Cullen

Blushing bride-to-be Jennifer Maguire had her wedding wish granted and celebrated her hen party without a tacky L-plate in sight.

The 2FM host had a classy dinner party with close friends to mark her final days as a singleton.

"There wasn't a willy straw to be seen and that's exactly what I wanted," she told the Herald.

The party was kept extremely low=key at the presenter's request.

"My best pal Claudine organised everything and she kept her word," she said.

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Joined by her sister and nine close friends to kiss her single days goodbye, the 2FM presenter looked elegant in a black dress and black and white blazer.

The ten women enjoyed a delicious meal in exclusive restaurant Coppinger Row before hitting the town for drinks.

With her wedding day fast approaching, the Republic of Telly star said she was looking forward to a relaxing weekend with friends and family who had travelled all over the world to attend the celebrations in Castle Leslie.

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Her night on the town with poals wasn't the only hen bash to celebrate her walk down the aisle with her handsome half-Italian beau Lau Zamparelli.

Her breakfast show buddies organised an on-air hen for their favourite host before she left Montrose behind her for a few weeks.

"My hen party was the only one to ever start at 7am," she joked.

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Her office hen-do was a huge surprise but the fun-loving presenter wasn't fazed by the naughty antics of her colleagues. "Bernard stripped, but it wasn't a big deal because he strips a lot, like every time S Club 7 come on the radio," she said laughing.

"But Jen said that it had been a long day.

"I pretty much peaked at 9am," she said, although she looked every bit fresh and excited as a bride-to-be.
Meghan Markle attends an exclusive preview of the Marchesa Voyage for ShopStyle collection on September 5, 2014 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for ShopStyle)

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attend the World Mental Health Day celebration with Heads Together at the London Eye on October 10, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Prince Harry visits a Turtle Conservation Project on the seventh day of an official visit to the Caribbean on November 26, 2016 in Colonarie, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Prince Harry visits a Turtle Conservation Project on the seventh day of an official visit to the Caribbean on November 26, 2016 in Colonarie, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Prince Harry meets a young boy as he visits a Turtle Conservation Project on the seventh day of an official visit to the Caribbean on November 26, 2016 in Colonarie, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Prince Harry meets a young boy called Jyasi Junior as he visits a Turtle Conservation Project on the seventh day of an official visit to the Caribbean on November 26, 2016 in Colonarie, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Prince Harry walks down the beach with Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves and Sir Frederick Nathaniel Ballantyne, the Governor-General of St. Vincent and the Grenadines as he visits a Turtle Conservation Project on the seventh day of an official visit to the Caribbean on November 26, 2016 in Colonarie, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Actress Meghan Markle, who plays Rachel Zane in the hit USA legal drama 'Suits' at the Westbury Hotel in Dublin in 2013

Prince William, On His Brother'S Prince Harry First Day At Wetherby School, In London. (Photo by Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Images)

Britain's Prince William (R) Kate Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry leave after a service of thanksgiving for Queen Elizabeth's 90th birthday at St Paul's Cathedral

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry attend part of a military-led vigil to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the Battle of the Somme at the Thiepval memorial

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry arrive to attend the launch of Heads Together Campaign at Olympic Park on May 16, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images)

Prince William has released a statement confirming his support for his brother Harry.

Contrary to reports on Sunday, which claimed the Duke of Cambridge was "deeply unhappy" with his brother's decision to go public with his romance with girlfriend Meghan Markle and lash out at media intrusion of their relationship, William said he "absolutely understands" the situation.

A spokesperson for Kensington Palace issued a statement to news outlets yesterday regarding the ongoing drama about Harry and Meghan's relationship.

"The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him," it read.

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The Mail on Sunday claimed that the future King of England was disappointed with his younger brother's now infamous statement in which he lambasted the "sexist and racist undertones" when describing his new girlfriend.

"He thinks Harry made a mistake in confirming the relationship and releasing such an emotional statement so soon," an insider told the publication.

"He feels that the statement offered up too much information and only served to fuel speculation about how serious Harry is about Meghan. It could also put him in a difficult position in the future regardless of whether the relationship leads to something or not."

"William knows that his brother can be hot-headed and understands that it is something he felt very strongly about. Privately, he shares a lot of the sentiments he and Meghan expressed as, make no mistake, she was very involved in the statement too"

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The brothers share media advisers and are kept abreast of any information they share in the public arena before it is released.

"The past week has seen a line crossed, read a Kensington Palace statement that Harry had asked to be issued. His girlfriend, Meghan Markle, has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment.

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Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markles safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her. It is not right that a few months into a relationship with him that Ms. Markle should be subjected to such a storm," Harry's initial statement read.

Much was made of the decision as the British royal family have only issued statements about personal relationships that led to marriage. Prince William pleaded for privacy for now-wife Kate Middleton when they were dating and on another occasion was forced to deny he was dating good friend Jecca Craig.

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Meanwhile, the Duchess of Cambridge is said to be "thrilled" for her her brother-in-law.

"Kate is thrilled that Harry has finally found a girlfriend who looks like being a keeper," a source told Woman's Day magazine.

"She only wants the very best for her lovely brother-in-law - and Meghan looks like she fits the bill."
Chrissy Teigen couldnt hide her embarrassment in a Yousef Akbar gown  however, Anja Rubik, Jennifer Lopez and Kendall Jenner, pictured, have all worn Vaccarello

Model Chrissy Teigen walks onstage during the 2016 American Music Awards at Microsoft Theater on November 20, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Hollywood has a new erogenous zone, somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle of groin, thigh and hip bone. Starlets are striding down red carpets in dresses with slits so high the crease between the leg and lady parts is defiantly on display.

It's a trend that has been quietly simmering for the past four years and has now finally peaked. Suddenly, hardly a red carpet goes by without somebody's labia threatening to escape.

Back in 2012, we were giddy at the sight of Angelina Jolie's right leg thrust out from the split of her Atelier Versace gown as she walked the Oscars' red carpet. She had us up in arms, or legs rather, with a flash of flesh that now seems downright prudish.

Three months later the furore around Angelina's milky limb had just about waned when Anna Wintour threw her take on the Oscars, the annual Met Gala. It was attended by a choice selection of A-listers along with the industry's most high-profile personalities. Among them was Anja Rubik, a Polish model whose name you probably don't know but who has worked prolifically for the past decade.

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She is also one half of the duo we can thank for getting us intimately acquainted with a rake of Hollywood pelvises.

The other half is Anthony Vaccarello, a 34-year-old designer who has recently been made creative director at Yves Saint Laurent.

Back in 2012, he was busy garnering critical acclaim for his particular brand of sex appeal. Consider him the Grand Master Slash of the fashion world; seams are ripped open, bodices laid bare, cleavage is plunging and hipbones, groins and thighs are thrust centre-stage.

Rubik stepped out in a signature Vaccarello gown that, if you ask me, was the dress that started it all. The ivory silk draped around her statuesque frame, one slit running across her chest, the other up her leg finishing nearly at her waist.

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With hipbones as chiselled as her cheekbones, it was clear why she was crowned his official muse in 2011. Her physique, coupled with his razor-sharp aesthetic suddenly had every A-lister scrambling for a dress that had been sent through the shredder.

In Harper's Bazaar March issue of that year, the impossibly toned Gwyneth Paltrow paraded across the pages in a Vaccarello gown that was slashed from shoulder to bust, then again across the torso and finally up one leg to the hipbone.

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The following year, Jennifer Lopez wore a thigh-skimming Vaccarello gown to the Grammys. At the 2013 Met Gala, supermodel Gisele's Vaccarello featured a see-through chainmail panel that ran from thigh to torso. In 2014, Kendall Jenner attended Canada's MMVAs in a Fausto Puglisi gown slit up both legs nearly to her belly button. Jenner's daring double-slit prompted the question that has been uttered by every best-dressed panel since - is she, or is she not, wearing knickers?

It was the same question we asked when Bella Hadid strode down the Cannes red carpet in an Alexandre Vauthier gown that snaked along her underwear line, her modesty apparently protected by a built-in bodysuit.

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At September's Venice Film Festival, Italian models Giulia Salemi and Dayane Mello each wore a gown cut so close to the groin their pelvic bones were like caped crusaders, threatening to disrobe at any moment.

And last week, Chrissy Teigen took to the red carpet at the American Music Awards in a Yousef Akbar gown that came so close to exposing her nethers she publicly thanked her laser hair removalist along with her stylist and makeup artist.

As the Vaccarello effect takes hold, I fear we will soon be staring into the depths of somebody's belly button, making small talk with their fallopian tubes.

Legs are fabulous, and cleavage has its obvious appeal. But our groins?

Call me old fashioned, but the female groin is a sacred thing. I'm not talking about a pious vehicle for ferrying out newborns, I'm talking about the powerful, musky mystery that sits between our legs that houses our biological bits capable of extreme measures of pleasure and pain.

To call our groins our private parts may seem childish, but in these drastic times, there could be no more appropriate title. As A-listers show no signs of covering up, this trend shows no sign of abating. With the Oscars looming next February, there's every possibility somebody will take things one step further, barging past the final frontier by going full frontal.

Suddenly, a Vaccarello gown will be rendered prim, Rubik a chaste dairymaid, and Angelina's right leg will never have looked so wholesome.
My son started college in another city in September. To cut a long story short he found out that a local's daughter is a landlady of a house in that city. I was surprised to hear this as her mother is forever going on about how they haven't got a penny. Curiosity got the better of me and over the following weeks my husband and I discovered through planning permissions and land registry that the family owns half a dozen other properties and land in various parts of the country.

There was a rumour going around 20 years ago that a local had won the Lotto. I remember seeing it in the paper but didn't take much notice of it. Anyway, my son said he had access to newspaper archives through his college so we found the article about the Lotto win. While the name of the couple was not given, their description matches them perfectly.

The win was over 2m.

About 10 years ago my daughter was seriously ill, and the fact she had to go on a public waiting list rather than being treated privately meant she suffered a lot more over the course of 18 months. Thankfully she is in full health now. It sickens me that this family, who we see virtually every second day, and who I regarded as friends did nothing to help us and my daughter despite their massive wealth.

I could probably even forgive that but the reason I am writing this is that she has just been around moaning about how they are really struggling to survive. It is like they are mocking us and having a good laugh at our stupidity. They made other purchases at the time like a massive new premises for his business that cost nearly 100,000, and exotic holidays.

They said they had cashed in shares but I don't believe that now. I don't want to see this woman or her family for the next 12 months. But what do I say to her?

Mary replies: But you don't know they won the Lotto - you are surmising that they did, and with fairly strong evidence, but it may not be the case and it may have been somebody else in the vicinity who actually did win the money.

On the other hand you know for sure that they own a number of properties and this is a fact that they haven't shared with you. There was no reason for them to tell you because it is their own business. It seems to me that it is an intrinsically Irish trait not to boast, particularly about money, whereas other people - Americans spring to mind - are quite the opposite and delight in telling others about their successes. While we do schadenfreude quite well, we don't seem to rejoice when the news is good. As a result people are fairly reticent to share the news when good luck comes their way.

I'm not for a moment suggesting that you would not have rejoiced at your neighbour's good fortune, but rather I'm looking for reasons why they might not want people to know about it. Consideration must also be given to the unsolicited begging letters that apparently arrive as soon as the names of big money winners become public.

I agree that your daughter would certainly have benefited from some financial assistance from these people when she was ill. If the situations were reversed then you would have helped their child. However, you have to keep this to yourself as you have no concrete proof that they won the Lotto, and anyway some people are far more generous than others.

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Perhaps your neighbour is just keeping up appearances by moaning about money.

You can easily stop this by letting her know that your son accidentally found out that they have a property, and say that you understand it isn't the only one that they own. Then rather firmly, but with a smile on your face tell her that you won't put up with any more complaints from her about lack of funds, and tell her that you know now where to go for a loan when you are in need!

You don't want to see her for a while and my guess is that she will get the message and won't be calling to your house any time soon. But please keep a sense of balance - she hasn't done anything wrong and so she should not be overly punished - just keep her at arm's length for a while if that is how you feel.

She's doing so well but her boyfriend won't go to work

Q. My daughter, who is 31, is doing extremely well in a career that she loves. She lives with her boyfriend and they have been together since they met in college.

The problem is that while she works all the hours that God gave her, he doesn't work at all. In fact for the majority of the time they have been together he has not had a job, and therefore all the financial responsibility falls to her.

She has complained to me about a lack of money but she has also had a lot of help financially from my husband's parents who are quite well off and dote on her. Other family members have complained to her that her boyfriend doesn't work and doesn't seem to be doing anything to get a job, but she always defends him, saying that there is nothing suitable for him.

Nobody else seems to like him, and for the life of me I can't understand why she stays with him.

They are renting a house that isn't really very nice. In fact nothing in her life, apart from her job, is working out the way I had hoped for her. I know that I can't change things but it gets me really upset when I see the future stretching ahead with more of the same. I find it difficult to be civil to him when they come to our house.

Mary replies: It is indeed a bonus when our children choose a partner of whom we approve and an even bigger bonus when we actually like them. I understand your concern as it is not just you who does not like her choice of partner.

But you will just have to go along with it. Your daughter has to be an intelligent person to have achieved what she has done so far. As such she no doubt realises that it would be more help financially if her partner were to work as well. She is indeed very fortunate to have wealthy grandparents.

It may be that she gets a lot of support in terms of housework, shopping, cooking and laundry from her stay-at-home boyfriend, thus freeing her to concentrate on her career. If they go on to have children then the childcare may well be taken over by him also.

So while you see it as him using her for an easy life she may view him as her equal. He has been around for quite a while now and it is obviously working for them, or she would have changed things. You have to be aware that he may continue to be a permanent feature in your daughter's life, and so rather than disapprove it would be wiser to keep your misgivings to yourself and make him feel welcome whenever he is in your home.

Above all you don't want to alienate your daughter so try just a little harder to be nice to him.

You can contact Mary OConor anonymously by visiting www.dearmary.ie or email her at dearmary@independent.ie or write c/o 27-32 Talbot Street, Dublin 1. All correspondence will be treated in confidence. Mary OConor regrets that she is unable to answer any questions privately.
The outside of the Mulberry Bush pub in Birmingham after a bomb exploded. Photo: PA Wire

Fresh inquests into the victims of the Birmingham pub bombings are to get under way amid a war of words between lawyers and the Government about legal funding.

One of the country's most senior coroners, Peter Thornton QC, will convene the first pre-inquest hearing into the 1974 double bombings in Birmingham, to try and establish the scope of the proceedings.

However, the hearing at the city's civil justice centre will be taking place amid a row about legal funding for lawyers of eight of the 21 victim's families.

Relatives of some of those killed have stepped back from a threat to boycott Monday's proceedings, but their solicitors are expected to raise the funding issue with Mr Thornton at the public hearing.

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Campaigners for the Justice4the21 group spear-headed a successful bid earlier this year to have the original inquests resumed.

On the night of November 21, 1974, the IRA planted two bombs which ripped through the Tavern in the Town and nearby Mulberry Bush pubs, injuring 182 others.

The botched police investigation into the terrorist atrocity led to the wrongful convictions of the Birmingham Six - one of the most infamous miscarriages of justice.

Monday's hearing is the first step in what is expected to be a lengthy inquest process, since the families won a ruling from Birmingham senior coroner Louise Hunt for new hearings earlier this year.

The original inquests, convened in the 1970s, were over-taken by the criminal inquiry by West Midlands Police and never resumed.

The force had opposed the holding of new inquests, despite fresh evidence coming to light that police may have allegedly ignored two tip-offs of an imminent IRA attack in the city.

But Ms Hunt, giving her decision earlier this year, said: "I have serious concerns that advanced notice of the bombs may have been available to the police and that they failed to take the necessary steps to protect life."

The victims' relatives will be holding a public protest calling for an "equality of arms" on legal funding, ahead of the inquest hearing.

Lawyers for the families have been working for free, while legal teams for the police and other Government branches have been taxpayer-funded.

West Midlands Police has already set aside 1 million to cover its legal costs.

The Government had rejected a call from the families for a special funding model similar to that used in the Hillsborough stadium disaster inquiry.

Instead, Home Secretary Amber Rudd backed the relatives making an application, under existing arrangements, through the Legal Aid Agency.

However, under rules governing the UK's separate legal jurisdictions, the families' Northern Ireland-based lawyers KRW Law would need to partner with an English law firm to secure legal aid.

Julie Hambleton, who leads the Justice4the21 campaign and who lost her 18-year-old sister Maxine in the blasts, said: "Our Government is holding us to ransom, using delaying tactics to stop us getting legal funding and parity."

Speaking last week, Christopher Stanley, of KRW, said: "We have to work within their rules, but we cannot comply with them - therefore we're blocked."

One other family, represented by Liverpool firm Broudie Jackson Canter - who were involved in the Hillsborough inquiry - have been granted legal aid.

The Government has said it wants all the families to be legally represented at the inquests, and suggested a work-around to the impasse.
Police handout photo of teaching assistant Jill Meldrum-Jones, 37, who has been jailed for 32 months, for performing a string of sex acts on a 15-year-old boy during an international flight. P/A

A married teaching assistant who performed a string of sex acts on a 15-year-old boy during an international flight has been jailed for 32 months.

Jill Meldrum-Jones, 37, also committed further offences against the boy while on a school trip after becoming "consumed with lust" and losing her grip on reality, Coventry Crown Court was told.

Meldrum-Jones, from Kineton in Warwickshire, sobbed in the dock as prosecutor Stefan Kolodynski told how the mother-of-two performed oral sex on the boy three times while on board a jet returning to the UK.

The disgraced teaching assistant, who performed three other sex acts on the victim during the flight, pleaded guilty at a previous hearing to a total of seven charges of sexual activity with a child and inciting sexual activity.

Opening the facts of the case, Mr Kolodynski said the offences came to light after rumours circulated relating to Meldrum-Jones, whose former school cannot be named for legal reasons.

After the offences, Mr Kolodynski said, Meldrum-Jones sent text messages to the boy making clear reference to what had happened and containing "conversation geared towards arranging further sexual congress".

Summarising a victim impact statement submitted to the court by the boy, who cannot be identified, Mr Kolodynski told Judge Philip Gregory: "He says since this was reported he has felt very nervous and embarrassed - 'I just feel horrible about it all and worry about what people may think'."

Jailing Meldrum-Jones, the judge told her: "You at the time were a teaching assistant charged with responsibility for teenage children.

"You and you alone are responsible for what happened.

"It almost beggars belief that somebody from your background - happily married with two children and intelligent - should so lose control of your senses and judgment that you would permit yourself to behave in this way."

The judge said he accepted that the offending was "grotesquely out of character" for Meldrum-Jones, and that her absence from her family during her jail term would be a "hell" for her husband and children.

Judge Gregory, who also imposed a sexual harm prevention order, told the school worker: "This court is now confronted with the appalling task of having to sentence you.

"You and your family need to understand that judges have to follow the law and have to implement it - and if we don't we are not worthy of the name.

"32 months is the least sentence I can pass in these circumstances."

Defence barrister Simon Hunka had urged the judge to suspend the teaching assistant's jail term, suggesting her behaviour on the aircraft was "unbelievable in its riskiness" and may have been linked to depression or her mental state.

"She's not a fool," Mr Hunka told the court. "She's an educated woman from a very sensible family.

"People that have not taken leave of their senses would trigger parts of their mind that put barriers down. She was unable to put those barriers down."
Scotland should have another independence referendum if it faces the "cliff edge" of a hard Brexit, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said.

Addressing students at The Philosophical Society at Trinity College tonight, Ms Sturgeon said she believes Scotland will secure independence "well within" her lifetime. She said Scotland wants to persuade the UK government to stay within the single market.

"If Scotland is faced with the prospect of not just being taken out of the European Union against their will but being taken out of the single market, effectively taken off a hard Brexit cliff edge, with all of the implications for our economy and our society and our place in the world, that's not the prospect that we voted for in 2014," Ms Sturgeon said.

"If that's the prospect we face now then I do think that the people of Scotland will have the right to vote again and decide whether that's what it wanted. We're not there yet but ... I think it's likely and I've always believed Scotland will become an independent country well within my life time."

Ms Sturgeon's address to The Phil was her last engagement of her first day in Dublin. Tomorrow she will address a business meeting at IBEC as well as the Seanad.

A majority of people in Scotland, and Northern Ireland, voted to stay in the EU at the June 23 referendum, while a majority in England and Wales voted to leave, setting the UK as a whole on the path to an unprecedented divorce the European Union and potentially straining relations between the UK's constituent parts.

Ms Sturgeon described the Supreme Court hearing next week as a result of the appeal by the UK government to the High Court decision that the British parliament must have a say on the triggering of Article 50 as the "most important and significant constitutional case" that has been before the UK courts in her lifetime.

"All eyes will be on the Supreme Court next week," she said.

Earlier, after a meeting with Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan, Ms Sturgeon said Scotland wants to retain access to the single market.

And she said the Scottish government is fully supportive of efforts to make sure that the issue of the border between north and south is resolved.

She said she agrees with Taoiseach Enda Kenny that it would be impossible to agree the Brexit negotiations in two years.

"I believe very strongly that given the complexities of the Article 50 process it would be sensible for the UK to very explicitly make clear that it is seeking a transitional arrangement before the UK formally exits, but that is a matter for the Prime Minister and the UK government, " she said.

"But with every day that passes the complexity of this process and the difficulties of contemplating a prices of exit and agreeing a new relationship being concluded within a two year period are becoming more and more obvious."
When Cadburys announced seven years ago that its leading brand, Dairy Milk, would be made from Fairtrade cocoa it was hailed as a milestone marking the ideals of its Quaker founders.

The decision in 2009 is still proudly displayed on Cadburys website and has been credited with prompting many of its rivals to follow suit.

But the company is facing criticism after pulling out of Fairtrade chocolate in favour of its own sustainability programme.

Its American owners, Mondelez International, said the move was a ground-breaking commitment to help more farmers in the developing world than before, which builds on its work with the Fairtrade scheme.

The Fairtrade Foundation, which awards the special status to products that meet strict criteria such as paying farmers a minimum price for cocoa, also claimed it was an exciting development which would empower more poor communities. But critics described it as the great Cadburys fudge.

Dairy Milk and other products will no longer be recognised as Fairtrade chocolate and will carry the logo of Mondelezs Cocoa Life scheme, which it says will involve investing millions of dollars in poor communities, on the front of packets.

But it will still carry the Fairtrade logo on the back as part of a partnership with the foundation which will monitor its work.

David Marshall, founder of the Meaningful Chocolate Company, a small British Fairtrade-only producer, said: We are shocked by this move. It feels like a classic Cadburys fudge because they will have dropped Fairtrade ingredients but hope to get the Fairtrade logo on their bars of chocolate. This action will confuse the consumer and many now believe this may put the Fairtrade scheme at risk.

Many big firms resisted the Fairtrade movement for decades but have gradually started to come over. Many will be saddened that Cadbury has decided to reverse this trend.

Under Fairtrade rules, farmers are paid at least $2,000 (2,345) per tonne of cocoa. The Cocoa Life programme does not have a specific minimum price but Cadburys deal with Fairtrade to keep the logo stipulates that producers should not be worse off than under Fairtrade.

In practice, producers in Ghana and Ivory Coast  where the Cocoa Life scheme operates  receive a higher rate than the Fairtrade minimum because of laws in those states.

A spokesman for Mondelez insisted: The partnership with Cocoa Life will ensure that farmers receive a competitive price for their cocoa, on clear terms of trade, and loyalty payments, which together with programme investments, will deliver value per farmer at least equivalent to that previously delivered by Fairtrade premiums.

An increase in the quantity of sustainably sourced cocoa that Cadbury buys from farmers means that we will be able to reach more farmers.

Mike Gidney, chief executive of the Fairtrade Foundation, said: We will be holding them to the agreement that the financial package is at least as good as the farmers would get for Fairtrade. He said the agreement to allow the non-Fairtrade bars to carry the Fairtrade logo would not mislead customers.

IN NUMBERS | Cadbury through the ages

1. Cadbury's was born in 1824 when John Cadbury opened a shop in Birmingham selling tea and cocoa

2. By 1831 the company had started to specialise in chocolate, and opened a four-storey warehouse

3. The first Cadbury Easter egg was made in 1875

4. Cadbury's Dairy Milk was launched in 1905

5. The Cadbury family bought a stretch of countryside just outside Birmingham in the 1870s. This became the factory and workers' village of Bournville. By 1900, the estate included 313 houses set on 330 acres

6. It operates in more than 60 countries and employs more than 46,000 staff

7. In 2010, Cadbury was taken over by American company Kraft

8. It is the second largest confectionery brand in the world

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]




1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.

2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.

3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament of the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.

4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.

5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.

6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.

7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.

8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.

9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.

10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.

11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)

12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.

13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.

14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.

15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.

16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.

17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.

18. Gain control of all student newspapers.

19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.

20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.

21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.

22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."

23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.

25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.

26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."

27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.

30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."

31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.

32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.

33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.

34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.

36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.

37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.

38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand.

39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.

40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.

41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.

42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use united force to solve economic, political or social problems.

43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.

44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.

45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction over nations and individuals alike.
Francois Fillon, a former prime minister who has promised to enact radical "Thatcherite" economic reforms in France, last night trounced his more moderate rival, Alain Juppe to win his right-wing party's presidential nomination.

Partial results placed Mr Fillon (62) - considered an also-ran until a few weeks ago - far ahead of Mr Juppe, also a former prime minster, in a vote to lead the Republican party, with almost 70pc of the vote.

"My approach has been understood: France can't bear its decline. It wants truth and it wants action," Mr Fillon said at his campaign headquarters as he accepted the nomination.

"I will take up an unusual challenge for France: tell the truth and completely change its software," he said.

Conceding defeat, Mr Juppe said: "I congratulate Francois Fillon for his clear victory. This evening, I offer my support to Francois Fillon and I wish him victory next May," he said.

With the French left in the doldrums, Mr Fillon's victory places him in pole-position to face the Front National's Marine Le Pen in presidential elections next May. Ms Le Pen is adamant that the same anti-establishment anger which saw Britain vote to leave the EU and America to elect Donald Trump could sweep her to power, although polls suggest that is unlikely.

Mr Fillon - a racing car enthusiast who lives with his Anglo-Welsh wife, Penelope, in a chateau in the Loire valley - is a social conservative who has positioned himself as a defender of traditional family values and France's Catholic roots as well as an opponent of "multiculturalism".

He has taken a hard line on Islam, saying the religion must eradicate radicalism, after terror attacks have left 230 dead in France in the past two years.

He wants to break with France's statist tradition and to roll out an ambitious free-market programme that will undoubtedly set him on collision course with France's unions. His pledge to slash half a million state-sector jobs and jettison the 35-hour week were branded unworkable by Mr Juppe.

Mr Fillon backs a "Europe of nations" and has voiced scepticism over the European commission and EU parliament.

Attention will now turn to the French left, with a bitter contest expected between Francois Hollande, the most unpopular president of modern times, and his prime minister, Manuel Valls, in the Socialist primaries in January.
Baby Marwa opens her eyes after spending months in a coma

A one-year-old baby has woken from an induced coma after doctors wanted to switch off her life support machine.

Baby Marwa had been diagnosed with a brain-damaging virus and doctors had been carrying out procedures to try and prevent any further neurological disorders from developing.

Medics in France eventually told Marwas parents there was little more they could do after bouts of aggressive therapy failed to make a difference.

Her family subsequently sought a court order to prevent doctors from turning off the life support machine.

After being granted a two-month extension, the little girl miraculously opened her eyes.

Her father posted the heartwarming footage of the moment she woke up on Facebook.

Marwas parents, originally from Algeria, began a petition to prevent the doctors at La Timone Hospital in Marseille, France from ending Marwas life, the Daily Mirror reported.

The 'Not without my Marwa' campaign collected more than 114,000 signatures.

Doctors argued that she would never breathe independently and that she would struggle to walk or eat for the rest of her life.

However, her mother said that all Marwas organs are working perfectly since she woke up.

Speaking to a local news website, her father said: 'Her treatment continues, but we see progress every day and that gives us a lot of hope.

'When I speak to her, she hears my voice, she reacts, sometimes even smiles.'
Hardline reformist Francois Fillon scored a resounding win in France's conservative primaries on Sunday, making him favourite to win a presidential election five months from now against the popular far-right and a deeply divided left.

Fillon, a former prime minister who wants to raise the retirement age, cut back social security and scrap the 35-hour working week, would easily beat National Front leader Marine Le Pen in a run-off second round, a flash opinion poll said right after his primaries victory.

But to do that, the 62-year old former prime minister and admirer of late British prime minister Margaret Thatcher now faces the challenge of bringing voters behind a programme that promises radical change.

"I must now convince the whole country our project is the only one that can lift us up, for jobs, growth and to fight those fanatics that declared war on us," a visibly moved Fillon said at his campaign headquarters.

"I will take up an unusual challenge for France: tell the truth and completely change its software," said Fillon, a racing car enthusiast who lives in a Loire valley chateau.

With votes from nearly all of 10,229 polling stations counted, Fillon had won 66.5 percent of the votes in the primaries organised by the centre-right Les Republicains party.

Next year's presidentials in the euro zone's second-largest economy are shaping up to be another test of the strength of anti-establishment parties in Western countries, with French voters angry with stubbornly high unemployment and fearful after a wave of Islamist militant Attacks.

In a country that saw months of street protests earlier this year against labour reforms that are much milder than those Fillon proposes, his far-reaching plans give both the ruling Socialists and Le Pen's National Front (FN) some hope that they can make a comeback.

Up until a couple of weeks ago they expected the centre-right candidate to be Alain Juppe, a more moderate proposition who had been a favourite in polls for months.

"For us, he's a great candidate (to face in the election)," the National Front's Florian Philippot told Reuters. "His project is so sharply different from ours."

Under the leadership of Le Pen, who took over from her father Jean-Marie in 2011, the FN has switched from an economically liberal, pro-small business party to one that promises to lower the retirement age and guarantee France's generous welfare safety net.

Fillon plans to slash public spending by 100 billion euros over five years, scrap a tax on the wealthy and push the retirement age to 65 as well as increase VAT sales tax.

"It's a programme of chaos. It's impossible that this austerity cure does not trigger chaos," Philippot said.

DIVIDED LEFT

All eyes now turn to whether the deeply unpopular President Francois Hollande will decide to run for the left-wing ticket in his party's primaries in January, amid signs that his prime minister, Manuel Valls, is considering a bid of his own.

Close aides of Hollande have said he will run despite his deep unpopularity. Fillon lacks the broad appeal of the more centrist Juppe and his more radical economic reform plans could give Hollande a peg on which to base his candidacy.

But on Sunday, Hollande's prime minister Manuel Valls for the first time raised the prospect he could challenge Hollande as the Socialists' candidate in the 2017 presidential election, in a further sign of the left's divisions.

Neither of them would get more than 9 percent of the votes in the first round of the presidential election and neither would qualify for the run-off, the Harris Interactive flash poll on Sunday showed.

Both Hollande's former economy minister Emmanuel Macron and leftist firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon, would do much better, the poll showed. Both on Sunday reaffirmed that they would run in the presidentials and bypass the Socialist party's primaries - guaranteeing a split vote on the left.

Fillon's misgivings about gay marriage, and belief that immigrants should assimilate to French cultural values, could make him a more difficult opponent on social issues for the FN, and an easier target for the left.

Fillon has also raised eyebrows in Germany by espousing warmer ties with Russia than Hollande has pursued.

Leading centre-right politicians, including the losers in the primaries, said unity after Sunday's vote was key to winning the presidency for Les Republicains.

Juppe said he would support Fillon's campaign and former president Nicolas Sarkozy also called for unity.

"The moment has now arrived for our political family to rally together around Francois Fillon in order to guarantee that France gets the alternative to the current policies that it needs more than ever before in 2017," Sarkozy said in a statement.
The man accused over the shooting deaths of nine black parishioners at a South Carolina church will act as his own lawyer in his federal death penalty trial.

Dylann Roof's request came against his lawyers' advice, and US District Judge Richard Gergel said he would reluctantly accept the 22-year-old's "unwise" decision.

Noted death penalty attorney David Bruck then slid over and let Roof take the lead chair in court. The lawyers can stand by and help Roof if he asks.

Police say Roof hurled racist insults at the six women and three men he is accused of killing and the three people he left alive in the June 2015 attack at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston.

Federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Roof on hate crime, obstruction of religion and other charges.

Beginning on Monday, 516 potential jurors were to report to the courthouse to be individually questioned by the judge.

When 70 qualified jurors are picked, lawyers can use strikes to dismiss those they do not want, until 12 jurors and six alternates are seated.

The judge delayed the process of narrowing the jury pool when Roof's lawyers suggested that their client either did not understand the charges against him or could not properly help with his defence.

The lawyers did not say what led them to question Roof's fitness for trial.

The decision came after Judge Gergel wrapped up a hastily called two-day hearing to determine if Roof is mentally fit to stand trial, hearing testimony from psychologist James Ballenger and four other unnamed witnesses and reviewed sworn statements from three others.

The judge said he took the rare step of closing the hearing to the public and media because Roof made statements to a psychologist that might not be legal to use at his trial and could taint potential jurors.

On Friday, the judge said he refrained from releasing a transcript of the hearing for the same reason, reversing an earlier pledge to release a redacted transcript.

Victims' relatives complained about the secrecy surrounding the proceedings, but Judge Gergel maintains the steps he has taken are to ensure Roof receives a fair trial and that pre-trial exposure does not provide grounds for an appeal.

Roof also has already been found competent in state court, where prosecutors plan a second death penalty trial on nine counts of murder.

According to police, Roof sat through nearly an hour of prayer and Bible study at the church with its pastor and 11 others before pulling a gun from his bag and firing dozens of shots.

AP
Children collect firewood at a site hit by airstrikes in the rebel held al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo Photo: Reuters

Syrian government forces advanced deep into eastern Aleppo yesterday amid a swift collapse of rebel defences inside the divided northern city.

The advance into the city's Sakhour neighbourhood brings the military within less than 1km of commanding a corridor in eastern Aleppo for the first time since rebels swept into the city in 2012.

Residents in the east of the city expressed distress among opposition circles on social media and in messaging groups.

"The situation in besieged Aleppo (is) very, very bad, thousands of eastern residents are moving to the western side of the city," Khaled Khatib said, a photographer for the Syrian Civil Defence search-and-rescue group.

"Aleppo is going to die," he said on Twitter.

Syrian state TV broadcast a video showing a teary reunion between a soldier and his family after nearly five years apart.

The UN's child agency warned yesterday that nearly 500,000 children were now living under siege in Syria, cut off from food and medical aid.
Christopher Lloyd and Michael J. Fox in Back To The Future

A team of experts have claimed that time travel is in fact possible.

The controversial claim was made by a team of physicists and was backed by a fellow researcher, New York Post reports.

The initial claims were made by Professor Howard Wiseman and Dr. Michael Hall, from Griffith Universitys Center for Quantum Dynamics. They were supported by a fellow researcher from the University of California.

Here are five things to know about their theory:

1.

The researchers' theory is called 'Many-Interacting Worlds'.

2.

The researchers provide a whole new perspective on quantum theory and say that there are multiple timelines playing out in parallel universes.

3.

These multiple worlds are all on the same timelines, but the team claim they interact when they 'bump' into each other. They say that an event happening in one world could trigger a reaction in another.

4.

One of the researchers, Dr Hall, said the group's theory fits with current science, albeit offering a new perspective, as opposed to completely contradicting the physics rule book.

5.

The group believes the theory will be useful in planning and testing experiments, however it has already sparked some controversy in the world of physics.
Donald Trump, the US president-elect, unleashed a storm of angry tweets yesterday after Hillary Clinton's campaign said it would join with Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate, in trying to secure recounts in key states.

Mr Trump accused Mrs Clinton, his Democratic rival for the presidency, of hypocrisy and called the recount push a "scam", while a senior aide warned that Mr Trump had not ruled out launching a criminal inquiry into the former secretary of state over her email scandal.

Wisconsin has begun a recount and Pennsylvania and Michigan may follow after Dr Stein raised more than $6m (5.65m) to fund the counts.

A small group of computer scientists and election lawyers sparked the efforts by claiming to have evidence that voting machines in the states could have been manipulated to help Mr Trump.

Mr Trump began the barrage on Saturday night, writing: "The Green Party scam to fill up their coffers by asking for impossible recounts is now being joined by the badly defeated and demoralised Dems".

Hours later, he added: "The Democrats, when they incorrectly thought they were going to win, asked that the election night tabulation be accepted. Not so anymore!"

He then issued a string of seven tweets in an hour, using Mrs Clinton's own words against her. "Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change," he wrote.

Mr Trump noted that his former rival had said, prior to election day, that it was "horrifying" that he would not promise to accept the vote outcome.

Marc Elias, general counsel for the Clinton campaign, released a statement saying the campaign had "concerns" about the claims that the election may have been hacked, and felt "an obligation" to supporters to pursue the recounts.

Mrs Clinton won the popular vote by more than two million ballots but the unexpected results in the three Midwestern states propelled Mr Trump to the White House.

Kellyanne Conway, a senior adviser to Mr Trump, called Mrs Clinton's decision to join the recount push "incredible", noting that Mr Trump could still choose to push for another email investigation.

Mrs Conway told CNN, "He's been incredibly gracious and magnanimous to Secretary Clinton at a time when, for whatever reason, her folks are saying they will join in a recount to try to somehow undo the 70-plus electoral votes that he beat her by."

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Police respond to reports of an active shooter on campus at Ohio State University (AP)

A man ploughed his car into a group of pedestrians at a US university campus and began stabbing people with a butcher knife before he was shot to death by a police officer.

Police are investigating whether the incident at Ohio State University - in which nine people were injured, one critically - was a terrorist attack.

The attacker was identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, a Somali-born legal permanent resident of the US, according to an official.

The FBI and other agencies have joined the investigation.

The details emerged after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning that there was an "active shooter" on campus near the engineering building and that students should "run, hide, fight".

The warning was apparently prompted by what turned out to be police gunfire.

Numerous police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads.

Students barricaded themselves inside offices and classrooms, piling chairs and desks in front of doors.

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone said that the assailant deliberately drove over a kerb outside a classroom building and then got out and began attacking people with the knife.

An officer who happened to be nearby because of a gas leak arrived on the scene and shot the driver in less than a minute, Mr Stone said.

Angshuman Kapil, a graduate student, was outside the building when the car barrelled onto the pavement.

"It just hit everybody who was in front," he said. "After that everybody was shouting 'Run! Run! Run!'"

Student Martin Schneider said he heard the car's engine revving.

"I thought it was an accident initially until I saw the guy come out with a knife," he said, adding that the man did not say anything when he got out.

Asked at a news conference whether authorities were considering the possibility it was a terrorist act, Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs said: "I think we have to consider that it is."

In recent months, federal law enforcement officials have raised concerns about online extremist propaganda that encourages knife and car attacks, which are easier to pull off than bombings.

The Islamic State group has urged sympathisers online to carry out attacks in their home countries with whatever weapons are available to them.

In September, a 20-year-old Somali-American stabbed 10 people at a shopping centre in St Cloud, Minnesota, before being shot to death by an off-duty officer.

Authorities said he asked some of his victims if they were Muslim.

The "shelter-in-place" warning at Ohio State was lifted and the campus declared secure after about an hour and a half, after police concluded there was no second attacker, as rumoured.

At least two people were being treated for stab wounds, four were injured by the car and two others were being treated for cuts, university officials said.

The attack came as students were returning to classes following the Thanksgiving holiday break and Ohio State's football victory over rival Michigan that brought more than 100,000 fans to campus on Saturday.

Rachel LeMaster, who works in the engineering college, said a fire alarm sounded on campus.

"There were several moments of chaos," she said. "We barricaded ourselves like we're supposed to since it was right outside our door and just hunkered down."

Ms LeMaster said she and others were eventually led outside the building and she saw a body on the ground.

Classes were cancelled for the rest of the day.

The initial tweet from the university's emergency management department went out at around 10am and said: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College."

Ohio State president Michael Drake said the active-shooter warning was issued after shots were heard on campus.

"Run, hide, fight" is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; hide, get silently out of view; or fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.

AP
Syrian government forces have captured more than a third of opposition-held eastern Aleppo, touching off a wave of panic and flight from the besieged enclave as rebel defences in the country's largest city rapidly collapsed.

The dramatic gains threatened to dislodge armed opponents of President Bashar Assad from their last major urban stronghold.

Reclaiming all of Aleppo, Syria's former commercial capital, would be the biggest prize of the war for Assad. It would put his forces in control of the country's four largest cities as well as the coastal region, and cap a year of steady government advances.

It also would bolster his position and momentum just as a new US administration is taking hold, freeing thousands of his troops and allied militiamen to move on to other battles around the country.

Since it joined the uprising four years ago, eastern Aleppo has tried to make itself a model for a Syria without Assad. It elected local leaders, ran its own education system and built an economy trading with the rebel-held countryside and neighbouring Turkey.

Its residents kept life going amid ferocious fighting with the pro-government western districts, but four years of battles and air strikes have reduced entire blocks to rubble.

Helped by massive Russian air power and thousands of Iranian-backed Shiite militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq and Iran, Assad renewed his push for Aleppo this month. The besieged eastern districts came under intense air strikes that killed hundreds in the past two weeks.

More than 250,000 people are believed to be trapped there with limited access to food, water and medical supplies. They include more than 100,000 children, the UN says.

Thousands of civilians, many of whom had refused to leave despite the suffocating siege and bombardment, fled the enclave over the weekend and on Monday.

Pro-government forces began a push last week apparently aimed at slicing the territory in two. Over the weekend, rebel defences buckled under simultaneous advances by the government and Kurdish-led forces, sending people fleeing inside the divided city.

Troops moved quickly on Saturday into the Hanano neighbourhood, the first time they had pushed that far into eastern Aleppo since 2012. On Monday, they moved into the Sakhour district, putting much of the northern part of the city's besieged rebel-held areas under government control.

With the capture of Sakhour, the rebels are boxed in mostly in central and south-eastern Aleppo, encircled by government troops.

Ammar Sakkar, a spokesman for the Fastaqim brigade, said the rebels would continue to fight.

"The situation of the revolutionaries inside the city is good, from a military point of view," he said. "We've redeployed and made fortifications. There will be an attempt to hold fast."

The collapse in Aleppo is a devastating blow to the morale of rebels in other parts of Syria. With Aleppo secure, Assad will be able to turn his attentions to the Damascus countryside and Idlib, the province next to Aleppo.

The northern province is a stronghold of the al Qaida-linked Fateh al-Sham Front and other Islamic opposition factions, and the loss of Aleppo is expected to be a defeat for the people holed up there.

It would also potentially free up Assad's forces to advance on the Islamic State group, including the north-eastern city of Raqqa, the extremists' de facto capital.

US President-elect Donald Trump has made clear that defeating IS is more important than removing Assad.

AP
Tourists take selfies with an image of Cuba's revolutionary hero Che Guevara in the background, at Revolution Square in Havana (AP)

Tourists who went to Havana for salsa music and mojitos ended up wandering through a city turned silent by nine days of national mourning for Fidel Castro.

As Cuba prepares a massive commemoration for the leader of its socialist revolution, tens of thousands of high-season travellers have found themselves accidental witnesses to history - and smack in the middle of a sombre city that is far from its usual exuberant self.

Tens of thousands of Cubans were expected to return to the streets on Monday after 9am local time when simultaneous 21-gun salutes will sound in the capital and in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953.

At the same moment, Cubans are expected to begin filing through the monument to national hero Jose Marti in the centre of Havana's Plaza of the Revolution, where the government said they would "render homage and sign a solemn oath to carry out the concept of revolution expressed by the revolutionary leader".

The government did not say if the ashes of the 90-year-old former president would be on display inside the monument. Virtually all schools and government offices were closing during the homage to Castro, which will stretch for 13 hours on Monday and take place again on Tuesday, ending in a rally echoing those that he addressed on the plaza for most of his time in power.

On Wednesday, Castro's ashes will begin a three-day procession east across Cuba, retracing the march of his bearded rebel army from the Sierra Maestra mountains to the capital. Castro's ashes will be interred on Sunday in Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago, Cuba's second-largest city.

"Who knows what tomorrow or after nine days brings in terms of the country and what happens for the future," said Graham Palmer, a 36-year-old financial director from London.

"And I think we will certainly look back at the airport tomorrow and feel quite privileged that we've been here."

"We picked up the (Communist Party) Granma paper from yesterday, so we've got that," said his companion, 36-year-old marketing worker Emma Taylor.

"I think we could quite even think about framing it," Mr Palmer said. "It's quite poignant."

Yet they and other travellers said that in addition to the awe at being present as Cubans honour one of the 20th century's most influential leaders, there is a tinge of regret at seeing such a subdued Havana.

Many museums have closed their doors, and a state-sanctioned ban on live music has meant cancelled concerts and closed nightspots including the famed Tropicana nightclub.

Old Havana is eerily devoid of the roving troubadours whose Buena Vista Social Club croonings normally echo through the cobblestone streets. And the 1950s classic cars that function as collective taxis are doing without the usual reggaeton at maximum volume.

Mr Palmer and Ms T aylor spent Sunday roaming the city and checking out its colonial architecture. They tried the door of the National Fine Arts Museum in the afternoon, but it was closed.

They decided to head to Plaza of the Revolution the next day in the hope of seeing the mass tributes to Castro, including a nine-storey portrait of him that has joined the towering images of fallen guerrillas there.

"That could potentially be I guess the profound moment, or kind of one of the highlights of the trip," Mr Taylor said. "I think if we don't see any of that, we'll just feel a bit sad that we've not seen the real Havana."

Meanwhile a citywide ban on most alcohol sales means those savouring Cuban cigars for the first time have to do so without the traditional accompanying snifter of rum.

The closures probably affect Cubans even more. Cinemas where it costs just a few pence to take in a film have been shuttered, along with theatres and dance halls.

There is a sense that having a good time would be considered disrespectful to the memory of the man who remade Cuba into a socialist state and wholly decided its fortunes from the 1959 revolution until severe illness forced him from power a decade ago.

"We are in mourning because the president died," said Manuel Ruiz, a 57-year-old parking attendant. "He is a man who deserves respect."

More than three million tourists visited Cuba last year, and the government expects even more this season as interest explodes due to detente between Havana and Washington.

On Monday the first commercial flights from the United States to Havana are scheduled to land. But with the national mourning in place through to Castro's December 4 funeral, those passengers will still find relatively little to do other than sightsee and eat.

AP
CONCORD- Concord Police recently arrested two suspects in separate shootings that occurred Sunday morning.

Marvin Dewon Wilson, 41, of Mooresville was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill after an incident early Sunday morning.

According to the Concord Police Department, officers responded to a report of gunshots near the intersection of McKinnon Avenue NW and Hillandale Street NW at approximately 1 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 27.

Upon arriving at the scene, officers located Lavar Lowe, 28 of Mooresville, suffering from a gunshot wound to his lower calf. While conducting the investigation officers received information that the individual who shot Lowe, later identified as Wilson, was inside a residence at 166 McKinnon Avenue.

Officers made contact and Wilson exited the residence and was taken into custody without incident.

Police said Lowe and Wilson are not residents of 166 McKinnon Avenue and were visiting at the time of the incident. It is believed that both men knew each other and an argument occurred prior to the shooting.

Wilson was placed in the Cabarrus County Jail under a $200,000 bond.

Lowe was treated at CMC- NorthEast and released.

While investigating the incident at McKinnon Avenue, officers were alerted to another report of gunshots close to their location.

They responded to 294 Hamilton Avenue Apt. A and began to search for several subjects that had fled the apartment.

During that search they found Wayne Gaither III, 18, suffering from a gunshot wound to his buttocks. Gaither is from Harmony, North Carolina.

As the search continued for other witnesses and possible victims, the suspect who fired the gun, Michael Joseph Antonius of China Grove, was located hiding in a wooded area.

Antonius, 20, was taken into custody without incident and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to kill and possession of a firearm by a felon.

He was placed in the Cabarrus County Jail under a $250,000 bond.

Police believe Gaither and Antonius did not know each other. Witnesses said the two became involved in an argument prior to the shooting because one had bumped into the other.

Neither Gaither nor Antonius resided in the apartment on Hamilton Avenue, but were attending a party at the time of the incident.

Gaither was also treated at CMC- NorthEast and released.
Demonetization a Huge Boon for Digital Payments Market

The governments shocking announcement on November 8 demonetizing the high-value currencies of 500 and 1000 that account for 86 percent of Indias cash in circulation, has indirectly boosted the countrys emerging digital payments market. In fact, among the reasons justifying the demonetization move, which was principally to weed out black money and destroy the parallel shadow market, is now a transition sought towards a cashless economy. This policy direction by the government highlights the tremendous growth possibilities for the digital payments sector that is only just started to establish itself. Demonetization has also in a way dismantled some of the traditional barriers preventing Indians from adopting digital payment solutions such as the habit of using cash, complexity and unfamiliarity of digital payment systems, lack of compelling value proposition, and anxiety over fraud and network security. Some of the players looking to benefit include Paytm, MobiKwik, FreeCharge, ItzCash, and Payworld, among others. Further, the digital and paperless Airtel Payments Bank announced that it opened savings accounts for over 10,000 customers within two days of going live with a pilot project in Rajasthan, last week.

Indias mobile wallet industry is touted to grow multifold from US$ 22.41 million in 2015-2016 to US$ 4.37 billion in 2022. This would entail a corresponding jump in the value of mobile wallet transactions from US$ 3 billion to US$ 800.35 billion during the same period, according to a July forecast by Assocham-RNCOS titled Indian M-wallet Market: Forecast 2022. The values behind the study will inevitably get impacted by the sudden usage of digital solutions forced upon customers in the current period  real jumps towards permanent adoption of cashless solutions will, however, require more assurance from firms and the banking sector. In this context, the temporary rollback of Paytms point-of-sale (PoS) feature on its mobile app within 24 hours of its launch due to security concerns last week is worrying.

Nevertheless, the current payments landscape presents a huge opportunity for digital companies. Additionally, the demonetization move has not only forced individual consumers to adopt alternative payment mechanisms but also large sections of the unorganized sector who have been badly hit by the ongoing cash crunch. The unorganized sector forms the bulk of the Indian economy and includes grocery stores, small traders and merchants, sweetmeat sellers, artisans and potters etc. Another target of digital payments companies is rural India  home to 870 million people  where online penetration is gradually progressing. A recent report by the Boston Consulting Group titled Rising Connected Consumer in Rural India predicts that rural users will increase from about 120 million in 2015 to almost 315 million in 2020, presenting enticing opportunities for marketers and digital wallet firms.

Bengaluru, Mumbai are Top Real Estate Investment Destinations in Asia

India is among the fastest growing economies in the world, and offers some of Asias best real estate investments, according to a survey jointly published by the Urban Land Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The Emerging Trends in Real Estate Asia Pacific 2017 survey shows Bengaluru and Mumbai as the top two real estate investment markets out of 22 identified in Asia. This is remarkable progress given that the two cities previously ranked 12th and 13th, respectively, in 2015 and were close to the bottom of the table in 2014. This years investment prospects survey reflects the recent burst in growth of Indian real estate private equity investment, which increased by 55 percent to US$ 3.96 billion in 2015, according to brokers Cushman & Wakefield. India has become a compelling market for investors because of high-quality assets; commercial and residential property offering consistently high returns, a strong tenant demand, and declining financing rates. Moreover, the boom in the IT and ITeS sector (IT and BPO industry) are driving the current demand for new office space.

In comparison, Tokyos performance plummeted to reach the 12th position after having topped the survey last year, indicative of Japans stagnating economy and discontent with the Abe governments policies. Singapores government is continuing its real estate curbs begun 2009 in an effort to cool the housing market, and has therefore witnessed 12 straight quarters of falling prices in the residential market. Nevertheless, Indias real estate market cannot afford to rest easy as Asian investors, led by China, are looking to diversify their property exposure outside of the region, especially into London in the wake of Brexit and New York.

Festive Season Sales Drive Indias Online Retail Market

The e-commerce market in India is heavily concentrated on its discount-driven festive season sales, which is much more than when compared to the US and China. In fact, RedSeer Consulting notes that around 6.6 percent of Indias gross online retail sales in 2016 were made over just five days in October when Flipkart held its annual Big Billion Days shopping festival and main rival, Amazon, ran its competing Great Indian Festival. The shopping festivals dug deep into their firms pockets with millions spent on advertising, promotional schemes, and discount offers.

On the other hand, the signature online shopping festivals in the US and China generate much less sales, indicative of their mature markets and a lack of dependence on seasonal discounts to push online goods. Cyber Monday, which is the last day of deals in the US after Black Friday kicks-off a four day shopping weekend post-Thanksgiving, accounted for just 0.8 percent of e-commerce sales in 2015. Similarly, Chinas flagship Singles Day sales by the Alibaba Group accounted for a mere 2.4 percent of the countrys online retail market.

Thus, Indias overdependence on discount-heavy festive season sales points to the larger challenges of its nascent e-commerce market, even as millions of new users drive higher sales during these specific periods. Foremost among these challenges remains the difficulty of engendering customer loyalty and favorably shaping shopping habits towards respective online platforms. Consequently, it is expected that local e-commerce companies will struggle to break even for a long time in India, as their costly strategies work to entice customers while fending off stiff competition from rival firms, all of whom are looking to capture the maximum online retail space.



About Us Asia Briefing Ltd. is a subsidiary of Dezan Shira & Associates. Dezan Shira is a specialist foreign direct investment practice, providing corporate establishment, business advisory, tax advisory and compliance, accounting, payroll, due diligence and financial review services to multinationals investing in China, Hong Kong, India, Vietnam, Singapore and the rest of ASEAN. For further information, please email india@dezshira.com or visit www.dezshira.com. Stay up to date with the latest business and investment trends in Asia by subscribing to our complimentary update service featuring news, commentary and regulatory insight.

An Introduction to Doing Business in India 2016

Doing Business in India 2016 is designed to introduce the fundamentals of investing in India. As such, this comprehensive guide is ideal not only for businesses looking to enter the Indian market, but also for companies who already have a presence here and want to stay up-to-date with the most recent and relevant policy changes.

Pre-Investment Due Diligence in India

In this issue of India Briefing Magazine, we examine issues related to pre-investment due diligence in India. We highlight the different regulatory, tax, and socio-economic issues that a company should be aware of before entering the Indian market. We also detail some of the topics related to entry structures while investing in the Indian market, as well as cultural and HR due diligence, which may differ from state to state.

Strategies for Repatriating Funds from India

In this issue of India Briefing Magazine, we look at issues related to repatriating funds from India. We highlight the unique regulations for sending funds back from India, examine the various strategies companies can make use of while repatriating, and look at remittance procedures for different types of Indian entities. Finally, we give some tips on how expats can remit their Indian money to their home countries.
Markets see a day in red Indian equity markets saw a day in red today. Nifty 50 ended the day, down by 62.55 points. Sensex ended the day, down by 215.26 points. Top Gainers today were Hindalco, Sun Pharma, ITC. Top Lo... November 02, 2022 | 02-11-2022 4:08 pm

Pudumjee Paper PBT rises 57% during Q2FY23 Pudumjee Paper Products Limited (PPPL), has reported impressive results for the six-month period ended September 30, 2022. During the six-month period ended September 30, 2022, the C... November 02, 2022 | 02-11-2022 3:23 pm

Airtel crosses 1 million customers on it 5G network Bharti Airtel on Wednesday has announced that it has crossed the 1 million unique 5G user mark on its network. The company achieved this milestone in less than 30 days of its commercial la... November 02, 2022 | 02-11-2022 2:50 pm

Rupee declines 12 paise against the dollar In morning trade on Wednesday, the rupee lost 12 paise to 82.71 against the US dollar due to a flat trend in domestic stocks. Forex traders reported that the rupee started the day flat before t... November 02, 2022 | 02-11-2022 2:45 pm

Markets near day's low with Nifty below 18,100 Domestic benchmark indices trading in the red after a gap-down opening on Wednesday. Both the Sensex and Nifty benchmarks are marginally lower in the afternoon market session. Moreover, globall... November 02, 2022 | 02-11-2022 2:00 pm
Meet Halima Aden. She is breaking stereotypes in unthinkable ways and is winning praises all over. In no way is Halima an ordinary teenager. The Somali-American teen is the first woman to participate in the Miss Minnesota USA pageant with a hijab.

Twitter

Representing the state of Minnesota, Halima Aden is a 19-year-old St Cloud college student who has big dreams of competing at the 2017 Miss USA pageant.

Halima Aden, 19, will be the first woman to compete in the #MissMinesota pageant wearing both hijab and a burkini. #GoHalima pic.twitter.com/LBt73tuiqN  About Islam (@AbtIslamNet) November 24, 2016

On Saturday night, she dazzled on the stage with her hijaab during the Miss Minnesota USA pageant in a burkini, a bathing suit covering her from neck to ankle.

Halima Aden starts off Miss Minnesota USA's swimsuit segment to big cheers from the crowd. Announcer: "She's making history tonight." pic.twitter.com/OUvbHv6xct  Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 27, 2016

During the swimsuit segment of the competition on Saturday night, people from the crowd could not stop rooting for her.

Miss Minnesota USA just started at Ames Center. Halima Aden, 19, of St. Cloud, introduced herself in black gown. pic.twitter.com/KlaPGEzSQI  Liz Sawyer (@ByLizSawyer) November 27, 2016

Even though she had never been party to any beauty pageant before, she decided to join the competition to break negative stereotypes and misconceptions about Muslim Americans, Somali-Americans and Muslim women.

Talking to TV station WCCO, Aden said, I think part of the problem is theyre not interacting with people who are Somali. There is not one description of beauty, that in fact it has different faces, different stories, and different background, and its important to embrace all of those."

Even though she had to face strong opposition for entering the competition from members of her own community, her spirit to fight it till the end deserves a lot of respect. She now becomes the first fully covered Muslim to compete in the state pageant, where she made it to the semifinal round of 15 but could not reach the final five.
It is quite sad that we live in a society where talking about mental health is still taboo, and if you seek help of a therapist you're labeled a mental person. Going to a doctor for fever or stomach ache is fine, but it is alright to ignore our emotional and mental health? Right from the beginning, we have been conditioned to believe that crying or becoming a wreck are signs of failing. We stay in a society where people around us, even our own family at times, feel ashamed to acknowledge that their kid needs some advice from a professional.

Red Chillies/Dharma Production

But Dear Zindagi highlighted the importance of mental health in a very subtle way. It has explained that the brain is a part of the body and that it also needs an equal amount of attention. According to a survey by World Health Organisation, India tops the list for highest suicide rate  because of depression and anxiety  in any country in the world. Despite such disturbing statistics, there continues to be a sense of awkwardness when it comes to talking about mental health. But major players like Deepika Padukone, Karan Johar, and Ileana DCruze, talking about their battles with depression, and filmmakers like Gauri Shinde treating such topics in commercial cinema, is an important step in the right direction.

Red Chillies/ Dharma Production

Here are a few lessons we need to learn from the movie:

1. You usually think that you need to choose a difficult path in life to succeed. But we can also try the easy way.

2. We should sometimes look at our parents as common people. Apart from just being parents they are more than that, We should look beyond flaws and try to understand them.

3. Crying is okay. Only if you cry uncontrollably will you be able to laugh with the same vigor!

4. It is not okay to expect a lot from one single relationship: There are different types of relationships, so why expect everything from one single relationship?

5. Everything can be mended in life. Why not say goodbye to our fears and say hi to life?
Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Mintoo, who along with five others escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab yesterday, was arrested in Delhi today.

AP

Mintoo was reportedly arrested at New Delhi Railway Station, in a joint operation by the Punjab and Delhi police.

In a daring jailbreak on Sunday morning, 12 to 14 armed men, some of them in police uniform, entered the high-security Nabha Central Jail in Punjab's Patiala district, attacked guards and escaped with Mintoo. Along with the terrorist, five gangsters lodged in the jail also escaped.

BCCL

The men came in four cars, kept three parked outside and used an SUV to reach one of the jail gates. While some of them wore turbans and had a beard, the rest were clean shaven. Officials told TOI that four of them wore police uniform and pretended they were bringing a handcuffed criminal, who turned out to actually be their accomplice, to jail. The jail superintendent and his deputy have been sacked.

The assailants who helped the prisoners escape hid weapons in blankets and had extra police uniforms, witnesses said.

AP

Later in the evening, UP police arrested Parminder Singh alias Painda, who had played a key role in planning and executing the jailbreak, from Kairana in Shamli district. He was driving one of the SUVs used in the escape.

Punjab government sacked two senior prison officials, Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent, suspended ADGP (Jails) and formed a SIT to probe the jail break. It ordered a separate inquiry committee headed by Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Jagpal Singh Sandhu to look into the "security lapses".
Demonetisation might have invited a barrage of scathing criticism, but wildlife activists are not complaining. Scrapping of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes has brought to a grinding halt illegal wildlife trade which banks heavily on cash.

BCCL/representational image

Artefacts made of ivory and rhino horns, body parts and derivatives of tiger and leopards and their skin, sand boa and pangolin scales are the major items in the illegal market fetching several lakhs of rupees.

BCCL/representational image

"With the announcement of demonetisation, the trade has slowed down throughout the country," TRAFFIC - India, a wildlife crime prevention organisation, head Shekhar Kumar Niraj told TOI. His assessment is based on inputs provided by the organisation's operatives across the country.

BCCL/representational image

Kumar said a rhino horn can fetch up to Rs 20 lakh when it is bound for the international market. Nails, teeth and skin of a tiger cost Rs 10 lakh or more and one kilogram of ivory is priced at Rs 40,000. If the ivory is crafted, the price shoots up, he said. And since all the transactions are made in cash, the denominations preferred are high. "All these materials change hands within a very short time and so does the cash," Kumar said.

BCCL/representational image

A field operative in TRAFFIC said illegal wildlife traders prefer to wind up their transactions within a short period of time for which they prefer Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes.

A few bundles of these notes add up to a few lakh rupees and can be carried easily, he said. Also, these bundles can be counted by the trader within minutes. "If the trader carries bundles of Rs 100, counting the notes will become a problem. It will take a longer time and traders do not prefer that," the operative said.

BCCL/representational image

However, poaching of small mammals like black-naped hare, spotted deer and Indian jackal, and reptiles like monitor lizard and snakes continues unabated, Kumar said. "The illegal trade will start once the cash flow resumes," Kumar said adding that the time is ripe for intelligence agencies in each state to crack down on the poaching network and its illegal trade chain. "With the available clues, the state machinery has to act swiftly to curb this," Kumar said.
A bank security guard killed himself in remorse after he shot his son accidentally while cleaning his licensed firearm early Sunday morning. K P Mathew (56) of Kavungal house in Angamaly, turned the gun on himself thinking he had fatally injured his son Manu (21) but, as fate would have it, Manu escaped with a mere flesh wound. He is recovering in hospital after seven stiches to his scalp.

BCCL/Representational image

"Mathew who works as a security guard at Federal Bank, was cleaning his double barrel gun at his house around 9am. His son Manu was watching television when the gun went off accidentally. Mathew and Manu were sitting face to face. The bullet graced Manu's scalp. Hearing the gunshot, neighbours gathered at the house and rushed Manu to hospital. Seeing heavy bleeding on his son's head, Martin thought the injury was grievous. Entering the house, Mathew locked himself in the bedroom and shot himself under his chin," police sub-inspector C P Happy said.

BCCL/Representational Image

Police believe Mathew, who has a gun licence, pulled the trigger with his toe. Pellets from the shot bored holes in the wall of the house.

"Manu was working in a shop after completing his degree and Mathew's Martin's daughter is studying for plus two. Mathew worked as a guard for daily wages and his wife is also a daily wage earner. The incident happened soon after his wife reached home from church after attending Sunday mass," Joy K A, a panchayat member said.

BCCL/Representational Image

In June this year in Kannur, a bank employee died of a bullet injury after a security guard's gun went off.
Months before Punjab votes for Assembly elections, the central government has decided to reopen eight more anti-Sikh riot cases.

BCCL/representational image

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has appointed a special investigation team (SIT) who will conduct the inquiry. In the latest announcement, the number of anti-Sikh riot cases being reinvestigated were 286.

Deccan Herald/representational image

Punjabs ruling party Shiromani Akali Dal and its ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party will be contesting against each other in elections to be held early next year.

The ministry had passed orders for SIT to investigate 22 cases of the 1984 riots on July 30 where more than 3,000 people were killed and 2,733 in Delhi alone. And 28 cases were added to SITs investigation list on August 23.

AP/representational image

SIT was set up on February 12, 2015 to investigate criminal cases related to the 1984 riots that took place in Delhi NCR and around 650 cases were registered in Delhi.

Quartz/representational image

The Home Ministry in a statement said, "Government has all the right intentions to render justice to the victims of riots as early as possible."
If you have been following the news, you'd know just how much Jan Dhan accounts have swelled since the currency ban.

So all the folks who thought it was convenient to park their black money in someone else's account...well, you should have thought of a smarter way.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday warned of tough action under the Benami law against unscrupulous elements using the Jan Dhan accounts of the poor to park black money and hailed peoples sacrifices despite efforts to mislead them against demonetization.

Deposits in Jan Dhan accounts rise to Rs 64,250 crore https://t.co/cibYng0rt0 via @TOIBusiness- A smart mouse doesn't rely on just one hole.  Rajendra Kumar Singh (@rksingh1610) November 25, 2016

pmindia

Unfortunately, they are misusing the poor for this purpose by misleading, luring or tempting them to put (such black) money into their accounts. I would tell such (unscrupulous) people thatplease dont play with the life of the poor, Modi said.

#JanDhan Deposits Now Rs 64,250,00,00,000

Gentle Reminder:There Was No Jan Dhan Account At All Prior To Aug 2014#BlackMoney #IAmWithModi  Sir Ravindra Jadeja (@SirJadeja) November 25, 2016

Idiots linking Rs 64,250 in JanDhan to black money, the currency value of demonitization is 14 lakh crores. Not even 10% - its legal money  Tehseen Poonawalla (@tehseenp) November 25, 2016

Naresh Agarwal says "if u have exempt 2.5L, how can u then investigate". Lol. Exposing themselves? Hw many politicians deposited in JanDhan?  Nupur (@UnSubtleDesi) November 24, 2016

JanDhan bank accounts, majority of them zero balance/1 rupee accounts, have mobilized 21,000 cr in 13 days. Black money laundering conduits?  Anand Kochukudy (@AnandKochukudy) November 23, 2016

While addressing the nation through his monthly radio programme Mann ki Baat, Modi said that though reaching a 'cashless' economy may not be as easy as he had thought, it shouldn't be that far once we start to move in that direction.

Furthermore, in an exclusive to PTI, RBI governor Urujit Patel said that banks are constantly monitoring the amount of cash coming in.

Modi further urged everyone to move towards a cashless economy - an appeal that was also echoed by the RBI governor.

Also read: Deposits In Jan Dhan Accounts Cross Rs 64,000 Crores, UP Leads With Highest Amount

twitter

According to reports, RBI and commercial banks spend around Rs 21,000 crore in currency operations costs a year. Since demonetization, there has been a 60% rise in total balance in Jan Dhan accounts, all in 2 weeks. This is why it comes as no surprise that money hoarders are using other's accounts to save their money.

Also read: Heres How Money Changers Are Using Jan Dhan Accounts To Convert Black Money

The increase in public sector banks was 56 percent. This was 66 percent in private sector banks.

The Prime Ministers warning of using the Benami Law came amid fears that although 23% of the 25.68 crores Jan Dhan accounts still have zero balance, even those can be tapped by such unscrupulous elements in the weeks to come.

The Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016, which came in effect from 1st November, proposes jail term up to 7 years, plus fine, or both. Assets of any kind  movable, immovable, tangible, intangible, any right or interest, or legal documents can qualify to be benami. A person who proposes false information, knowingly, will also fall under this law. He'll then have to pay 10% of the market value of the property.

Time to re-plan!
On the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi called upon all Indians to 'use' their mobiles as 'wallets', a maha panchayat in Fatehgarhi village in Khair tehsil of Aligarh on Sunday "banned" girls from using mobile phones and wearing jeans and t-shirts.

The Mahapanchayat also decided to impose fines for consumption of liquor or gambling.

Dataquest/representational image

Nekram Chaudhary, president of the 28 members' council, confirmed this decision and said 200 people had gathered at the Mahapanchayat and a decision was "unanimous".

Also Read: After Asking Public To Go For Cashless Payments, Modi Now Wants His Ministers To Follow Suit

Claiming that use of mobiles and attires like jeans and t-shirts were against Indian traditions, Chaudhary said parents of the girls found violating the dictate would be 'punished'. He said the "punishment" is yet to be decided.

Lokavidya Jan Andolan/representational image

According to Bhagwati Prasad, Pradhan Fatehgarhi, the village has 15 wards and a voting population of 2000 and all were willing to implement this decision. He informed that the maha panchayat had decided to impose fines on people caught drinking or selling liquor and indulging in gambling or satta.

Chaudhary said if a person is caught gambling (playing cards) he would be fined Rs 500 and the amount in 'play' would be seized. He said the person who allows his premises for gambling would be fined Rs 3,100.

dna/representational image

He said those selling liquor would be fined Rs 5000 and a "drinker" would have to shell out Rs 500. Chaudhry said if anyone is unable to pay the fines, they would be made to clean the sewerage drains of the village.

Also Read: An Entire Indian City Has Banned Jeans For Women Across Their Jain Temples

Earlier this year, the panchayats of Basauli village in Gonda block of Iglas tehsil, Aligarh, had also banned girls from using mobile phones.

Also Read: After Bhopal's Jain Temple Bans Jeans, Now Another MP Temple Tells Women What To Wear In The Temple
In an absolutely new kind of how-cool-is-that, scientists on the island of Fiji have discovered a type of ant that plants, fertilises and guards its own coffee crops.

sf

Their agricultural know-how has been around for millions of years.

This particular breed is known as "Phildris nagasau".

dw

They don't just harvest the nectar from the plants they sow, they also use the coffee plants later on as a place to live.

Susanne Renner, a botanist from the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, further explains that the species are the first ants to build their own home.

dw

These ants cultivate the seedling for weeks, even when it is initially of no direct benefit to them. Then after months of wait, usually three to five months, can they finally move into their new and aromatic abode.

"It's like a farmer tending to his crops," says Renner.

dw

The scientist further claims that their behaviour is absolutely innate, The ants must know which seeds they are planting.

Their study further tells that if there are other animals exhibiting similar behaviour, it could only be social insects, such as bees or termites. That's because this process depends on teamwork. These plants are only able to spread with the help of the ants.
Christmas will be very different in Japan this year. After Tokyo welcomed a magical shower of snow after 54 years, the good folks at Domino's are now preparing to deliver pizzas on reindeer. Yes, you read that right - reindeer!

Twitter

And it's not an experiment. Domino's is gearing for a full reindeer roll-out in December. The company is working closely with reindeer breeders at the Hokkaido Delivery Integrated Research Center to fully prepare ahead of what is expected to be a cold, cold winter.

Twitter

In an update on Thursday, Domino's said that each reindeer will be fitted with a "GPS driver tracker" so that the progress of their delivery can be measured in real-time.

Also read: To Every Pizza Lover's Delight, Dominos Starts Drone Delivery For Its Pizzas In New Zealand!

The company even has a proper action plan in place with photos that show a reindeer carrying one of their branded delivery containers.

Domino's Japan is now using reindeer to deliver warm pizza in cold weather pic.twitter.com/Yhp85XXJU7  Brian Sozzi (@BrianSozzi) November 22, 2016

Temperatures in Hokkaido easily touch a -7 degrees Celcius in winters and that's precisely why it would be interesting to see the reindeer navigate its path through the snow-covered island.
If a brash businessman and orange tinted reality TV star can be the President, why can't Mia Khalifa be the US ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Let's ignore for a second that they'll behead her immediately - maybe even before her plane lands. A man named Dalcolm Rodriguez-Goldstein has made a very persuasive argument on Change.org for appointing popular Lebanese American former porn star Mia Khalifa as the US ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

"Mia Khalifa has a proven track record of bringing people together", he begins.

This, he feels, makes her a "great leader representing us in the Middle East as well as a symbol of the melting pot that is America."

I signed it, because it is a Monday afternoon and I want to make a difference to the world in the most dramatic yet laziest way possible.



Also, here's why I support her:

Her great public support base (as seen on Pornhub)

Her great contributions to mankind (as seen on Pornhub)

Her strategic assets and intel (as seen on Pornhub)

All this make her a woman I can get behind. Over 3,300 people agree.

And unlike Madonna, who failed to deliver in her promise of free oral sex for anyone who voted for Hillary, we know Khalifa has what it takes to deliver.
Theres nothing that turns people against one another than the last pair of your favourite jeans at a heavily discounted price thanks to Americas famous Black Friday sale.

AFP

Like every year, this year too turned ugly as shoppers across the country were killed and injured while shopping  something one does not necessarily imagine will happen on a trip to the mall.

AFP

At a store in New Jersey, a 21-year-old man was shot dead and his brother injured. The shooter also left an SUV punched with bullet holes, and he/she has not been caught yet.

AFP

Another man was killed in Walmarts parking lot in the western US state of Nevada. And yet another was wounded at a mall in Tennessees Memphis.

Reuters

Black Friday is perhaps the busiest shopping day of the year in America but sadly is often scarred with violence.
Everybody loves Justin Trudeau. He could do no wrong because making a folly is beyond him. He is smart, caring, and puts everything in the most logical perspective one can hope for. He is respected for this and so much more.

Reuters

But that affection towards the Canadian PM changed drastically after his statement on the late Fidel Castro was made public. After learning of Castro's death, Trudeau called the late dictator a 'remarkable leader' in his statement, released on Saturday.

His statement reads,

It is with deep sorrow that I learned today of the death of Cubas longest serving President.

Fidel Castro was a larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century.

A legendary revolutionary and orator, Mr. Castro made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation.

While a controversial figure, both Mr. Castros supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for "el Comandante".

Reuters

I know my father was very proud to call him a friend and I had the opportunity to meet Fidel when my father passed away. It was also a real honour to meet his three sons and his brother President Raul Castro during my recent visit to Cuba.

On behalf of all Canadians, Sophie and I offer our deepest condolences to the family, friends and many, many supporters of Mr. Castro. We join the people of Cuba today in mourning the loss of this remarkable leader.

Getty

This sentiment didn't go down very well with Trudeau's fans and supporters and they angrily lashed out on Twitter.

Trudeau had a chance to stand for freedom and human dignity today and instead stood with a brutal dictator. https://t.co/TflJeaG3vp #castro  Kellie Leitch (@KellieLeitch) November 26, 2016

Disgraceful statement from Justin Trudeau re Castro. No, Justin, Fidel didn't "serve" Cuban people. He made them serve him. For 60 years. https://t.co/E413zutMwS  Bret Stephens (@StephensWSJ) November 26, 2016

No @JustinTrudeau, Castro was not a 'legendary revolutionary', he impoverished millions while he lived in luxury  Lisa Raitt (@lraitt) November 26, 2016

After reading Cdn PM Justin Trudeau's Love Letter to Fidel Castro I can say I've never been ashamed to be Canadian...expect now. #cdnpoli  Joe Kool (@Kool_Camel) November 26, 2016

What is wrong with Justin Trudeau? This is embarrassing for Canada. https://t.co/MMACBuOAQm  Eli Lake (@EliLake) November 26, 2016

I extend my heartfelt sympathies to the family of The Joker, a revolutionary who always had a smile on his face. #trudeaueulogies  Andrew Klavan (@andrewklavan) November 26, 2016

Oh, what did you do, Mr. Trudeau?
Were excited to announce that indmin.com is now part of fastmarkets.com.

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If US Cant or Wont Fight Terrorists, They Should Stop Getting in the Way: Russian MoD By al Manar November 27, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " al manar " - The Russian Defense Ministry commented on the US State Departments calls not to help tankers shipping fuel to the Russian Aerospace Forces in Syria. If Washington cannot or does not want to fight terrorists, it should not get in the way, the ministrys spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Thursday. US State Department spokesman Mark Toner urged other countries not to provide support for Russian tankers shipping fuel to the Russian aviation group in Syria. Such statements, unfortunately, only confirm our earlier estimates that fighting terrorism in Syria has never been on the outgoing administrations agenda, Konashenkov said. Washington had impeded negotiations, did not separate terrorists and opposition and now openly called on other countries to hamper Moscows anti-terrorism fight in Syria to somehow downplay the failures of US policies in the country since 2014, the spokesman said. Konashenkov said that the US-led coalition can only dream of a success comparable to the one Russia has achieved for a year: over 2,000 settlements have joined ceasefire, 86 armed groups have stopped fighting and hundreds of thousands of Syrians have returned to peaceful life to rebuild the country. So if you cannot or do not want to fight ISIL and al-Nusra Front  do not get in the way, at least. Our air group is Syria is sufficiently equipped to fight international terrorism in this region, he said.
Proud To Say, ICH Made The List Washington Post Disgracefully Promotes a McCarthyite Blacklist From a New, Hidden, and Very Shady Group By Ben Norton, Glenn Greenwald November 27, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " The Intercept " - The Washington Post on Thursday night promoted the claims of a new, shadowy organization that smears dozens of U.S. news sites that are critical of U.S. foreign policy as being routine peddlers of Russian propaganda. The article by reporter Craig Timberg  headlined Russian propaganda effort helped spread fake news during election, experts say  cites a report by a new, anonymous website calling itself PropOrNot, which claims that millions of Americans have been deceived this year in a massive Russian misinformation campaign. The groups list of Russian disinformation outlets includes WikiLeaks and the Drudge Report, as well as Clinton-critical left-wing websites such as Truthout, Black Agenda Report, Truthdig and Naked Capitalism, as well as libertarian venues such as Antiwar.com and the Ron Paul Institute. This Post report was one of the most widely circulated political news articles on social media over the last 48 hours, with dozens, perhaps hundreds, of U.S. journalists and pundits with large platforms hailing it as an earth-shattering expose. It was the most-read piece on the entire Post website after it was published on Friday. Yet the article is rife with obviously reckless and unproven allegations, and fundamentally shaped by shoddy, slothful journalistic tactics. It was not surprising to learn that, as BuzzFeeds Sheera Frenkel noted, a lot of reporters passed on this story. Its huge flaws are self-evident. But the Post gleefully ran with it and then promoted it aggressively, led by its Executive Editor Marty Baron:

Russian propaganda effort helped spread fake news during election, say independent researchers https://t.co/3ETVXWw16Q  Marty Baron (@PostBaron) November 25, 2016 In casting the group behind this website as experts, the Post described PropOrNot simply as a nonpartisan collection of researchers with foreign policy, military and technology backgrounds. Not one individual at the organization is named. The executive director is quoted, but only on the condition of anonymity, which the Post said it was providing the group to avoid being targeted by Russias legions of skilled hackers. In other words, the individuals behind this newly created group are publicly branding journalists and news outlets as tools of Russian propaganda  even calling on the FBI to investigate them for espionage  while cowardly hiding their own identities. The group promoted by the Post thus embodies the toxic essence of Joseph McCarthy but without the courage to attach their names to their blacklist. Echoing the Wisconsin Senator, the group refers to its lengthy collection of sites spouting Russian propaganda as The List. The credentials of this supposed group of experts are impossible to verify, as none is provided either by the Post or by the group itself. The Intercept contacted PropOrNot and asked numerous questions about about its team, but received only this reply: Were getting a lot of requests for comment and can get back to you today =) [smiley face emoticon]. The group added: Were over 30 people, organized into teams, and we cannot confirm or deny anyones involvement. Thus far, they have provided no additional information beyond that. As Fortunes Matthew Ingram wrote in criticizing the Post article, PropOrNots Twitter account has only existed since August of this year. And an article announcing the launch of the group on its website is dated last month. WHOIS information for the domain name is not available, as the website uses private registration. More troubling still, PropOrNot listed numerous organizations on its website as allied with it, yet many of these claimed allies told The Intercept, and complained on social media, they have nothing to do with the group and had never even heard of it before the Post published its story.

Just want to note I hadn't heard of Propornot before the WP piece and never gave permission to them to call Bellingcat "allies" https://t.co/jQKnWzjrBR  Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) November 25, 2016

.@ggreenwald No-one I've spoken to listed as "allies" on their site had even heard of them before the WP piece.  Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) November 25, 2016

I can confirm. I've no idea what this website is nor who runs it. Not sure how that makes us "allies." Looks like just a blogroll https://t.co/BfKo5j4Lvo  James Miller (@Millermena) November 25, 2016

At some point last night, after multiple groups listed as allies objected, the group quietly changed the title of its allied list to Related Projects. When The Intercept asked PropOrNot about this clear inconsistency via email, the group responded concisely: We have no institutional affiliations with any organization. In his article, the Posts Timberg did not include a link to PropOrNots website. If readers had the opportunity to visit the site, it would have become instantly apparent that this group of ostensible experts far more resembles amateur peddlers of primitive, shallow propagandistic cliches than serious, substantive analysis and expertise; that it has a blatant, demonstrable bias in promoting NATOs narrative about the world; and that it is engaging in extremely dubious McCarthyite tactics about a wide range of critics and dissenters. To see how frivolous and even childish this group of anonymous cowards is  which the Post venerated into serious experts in order to peddle their story  just sample a couple of the recent tweets from this group:

Awww, wook at all the angwy Putinists, trying to change the subject  they're so vewwy angwy!! It's cute ???? We don't censor; just highlight.  PropOrNot ID Service (@propornot) November 26, 2016

Fascists. Straight up muthafuckin' fascists. That's what we're up against. Unwittingly or not, they work for Russia. https://t.co/LBp2y19PTv  PropOrNot ID Service (@propornot) November 22, 2016

As for their refusal to identify themselves even as they smear hundreds of American journalists as loyal to the Kremlin or useful idiots for it, this is their mature response:

We'll consider revealing our names when Russia reveals the names of those running its propaganda operations in the West ????  PropOrNot ID Service (@propornot) November 25, 2016

The Washington Post should be very proud: it staked a major part of its news story on the unverified, untestable assertions of this laughable organization. One of the core functions of PropOrNot appears to be its compilation of a lengthy blacklist of news and political websites which it smears as peddlers of Russian propaganda. Included on this blacklist of supposed propaganda outlets are prominent independent left-wing news sites such as Truthout, Naked Capitalism, Black Agenda Report, Consortium News and Truthdig. Also included are popular libertarian hubs such as Zero Hedge, Antiwar.com and the Ron Paul Institute, along with the hugely influential right-wing website the Drudge Report and the publishing site WikiLeaks. Far-right, virulently anti-Muslim blogs such as Bare Naked Islam are likewise dubbed Kremlin mouthpieces. Basically, everyone who isnt comfortably within the centrist Hillary-Clinton/Jeb-Bush spectrum is guilty. On its Twitter account, the group announced a new plugin that automatically alerts the user that a visited website has been designated by the group to be a Russian propaganda outlet.

We just published a BETA (very beta) version of our Chrome plugin, which highlights domains we've IDed: https://t.co/FaGTOTJO2C  PropOrNot ID Service (@propornot) November 25, 2016 To hype its own story, the Post article uncritically highlights PropOrNots flamboyant claim that stories planted or promoted by Russias disinformation campaign were viewed more than 213 million times. Yet no methodology is provided for any of this: how a website is determined to merit blacklist designation or how this reach was calculated. As Ingram wrote: How is that audience measured? We dont know. Stories promoted by this network were shared 213 million times, it says. How do we know this? Thats unclear. Presumably, this massive number was created by including on its lists highly popular sites such as WikiLeaks, as well The Drudge Report, the third-most popular political news website on the internet. Yet this frightening, Cold War-esque 213 million number for Russian planted news story views was uncritically echoed by numerous high-profile media figures, such as New York Times deputy Washington editor Jonathan Weisman and professor Jared Yates Sexton  although the number is misleading at best. Some of the websites on PropOrNots blacklist do indeed publish Russian propaganda  namely Sputnik News and Russia Today, which are funded by the Russian government. But many of the aforementioned blacklisted sites are independent, completely legitimate news sources which often receive funding through donations or foundations and which have been reporting and analyzing news for many years.

The group commits outright defamation by slandering obviously legitimate news sites as propaganda tools of the Kremlin.

One of the most egregious examples is the groups inclusion of Naked Capitalism, the widely respected left-wing site run by Wall Street critic Yves Smith. That site was named by Time Magazine as one of the best 25 Best Financial Blogs in 2011 and by Wired Magazine as a crucial site to follow for finance, and Smith has been featured as a guest on programs such as PBS Bill Moyers Show. Yet this cowardly group of anonymous smear artists, promoted by the Washington Post, has now placed them on a blacklist of Russian disinformation.

The group eschews alternative media outlets like these and instead recommends that readers rely solely on establishment-friendly publications like NPR, the BBC, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Buzzfeed and VICE. That is because a big part of the groups definition for Russian propaganda outlet is criticizing U.S. foreign policy.

PropOrNot does not articulate its criteria in detail, merely describing its metrics as behavioral and motivation-agnostic. That is to say, even if a news source is not technically a Russian propaganda outlet and is not even trying to help the Kremlin, it is still guilty of being a useful idiot if it publishes material that might in some way be convenient or helpful for the Russian government. In other words, the website conflates criticism of Western governments and their actions and policies with Russian propaganda. News sites that do not uncritically echo a pro-NATO perspective are accused of being mouthpieces for the Kremlin, even if only unwitting ones.

While blacklisting left-wing and libertarian journalists, PropOrNot also denies being McCarthyite. Yet it simultaneously calls for the U.S. government to use the FBI and DOJ to carry out formal investigations of these accused websites, because the kind of folks who make propaganda for brutal authoritarian oligarchies are often involved in a wide range of bad business. The shadowy group even goes so far as to claim that people involved in the blacklisted websites may have violated the Espionage Act, the Foreign Agent Registration Act, and other related laws. In sum: theyre not McCarthyite; perish the thought. They just want multiple U.S. media outlets investigated by the FBI for espionage on behalf of Russia. Who exactly is behind PropOrNot , where it gets its funding and whether or not it is tied to any governments is a complete mystery. The Intercept also sent inquiries to the Posts Craig Timberg asking these questions, and asking whether he thinks it is fair to label left-wing news sites like Truthout Russian propaganda outlets. Timberg replied: Im sorry, I cant comment about stories Ive written for the Post. As is so often the case, journalists  who constantly demand transparency from everyone else  refuse to provide even the most basic levels for themselves. When subjected to scrutiny, they reflexively adopt the language of the most secrecy-happy national security agencies: we do not comment on what we do.

Timbergs piece on the supposed ubiquity of Russian propaganda is misleading in several other ways. The other primary expert upon which the article relies is Clint Watts, a fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, a pro-Western think tank whose board of advisors includes neoconservative figures like infamous orientalist scholar Bernard Lewis and pro-imperialist Robert D. Kaplan, the latter of whom served on the U.S. governments Defense Policy Board.

What the Post does not mention in its report is that Watts, one of the specialists it relies on for its claims, previously worked as an FBI special agent on a Joint Terrorism Task Force and as the executive officer of the U.S. Military Academys Combating Terrorism Center. As Fortunes Ingram wrote of the group, it is a conservative think tank funded and staffed by proponents of the Cold War between the U.S. and Russia.

PropOrNot is by no means a neutral observer. It actively calls on Congress and the White House to work with our European allies to disconnect Russia from the SWIFT financial transaction system, effective immediately and lasting for at least one year, as an appropriate response to Russian manipulation of the election.

In other words, this blacklisting group of anonymous cowards  putative experts in the pages of The Washington Post  are actively pushing for Western governments to take punitive measures against the Russian government, and are speaking and smearing from an extreme ideological framework that the Post concealed from its readers.

Even more disturbing than the Posts shoddy journalism in this instance is the broader trend in which any wild conspiracy theory or McCarthyite attack is now permitted in U.S. discourse as long as it involves Russia and Putin  just as was true in the 1950s when stories of how the Russians were poisoning the U.S. water supply or infiltrating American institutions were commonplace. Any anti-Russia story was  and is  instantly vested with credibility, while anyone questioning its veracity or evidentiary basis is subject to attacks on their loyalties or, at best, vilified as useful idiots.

Two of the most discredited reports from the election season illustrate the point: a Slate article claiming that a private server had been located linking the Trump Organization and a Russian bank (which, like the current Post story, had been shopped around and rejected by multiple media outlets), and a completely deranged rant by Newsweeks Kurt Eichenwald claiming that Putin had ordered emails in the WikiLeaks release to be doctored  both of which were uncritically shared and tweeted by hundreds of journalists to tens of thousands of people, if not more.

The Post itself  now posing as warriors against fake news  published an article in September that treated with great seriousness the claim that Hillary Clinton collapsed on 9/11 Day because she was poisoned by Putin. And thats to say nothing of the papers disgraceful history of convincing Americans that Saddam was building non-existent nuclear weapons and had cultivated a vibrant alliance with Al Qaeda. As is so often the case, those who mostly loudly warn of fake news from others are themselves the most aggressive disseminators of it.

Indeed, what happened here is the essence of fake news. The Post story served the agendas of many factions: those who want to believe Putin stole the election from Hillary Clinton; those who want to believe that the internet and social media are a grave menace that needs to be controlled, in contrast to the objective truth which reliable old media outlets once issued; those who want a resurrection of the Cold War. So those who saw tweets and Facebook posts promoting this Post story instantly clicked and shared and promoted the story without an iota of critical thought or examination of whether the claims were true, because they wanted the claims to be true. That behavior included countless journalists.
EU Votes For Citizens To Fund Their Own Brainwashing By Finian Cunningham November 27, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " RT " - A fledgling group set up by the European Commission to allegedly counteract Russian propaganda is to be expanded with more public cash and resources. European citizens will be funding mechanisms inducing their own ignorance and misinformation. This week, the European Parliament in Strasbourg voted by a dubious majority for a cash injection to expand the work of a media watchdog aimed at debunking Russian propaganda. The little-known media group, reportedly comprising 11 diplomats, was established a year ago by the all-powerful, but unelected European Commission. The media unit has, therefore, no electoral mandate. It is potentially holding sway over how 500 million EU citizens will be able in the future to access news and public information. In particular, it is evident the said EU media program is motivated by an extreme Russophobia bias. Working in tandem with this media watchdog is another coterie of seven parliamentarians headed by the rabidly anti-Russian Polish MEP Anna Fotyga. The 57-year-old member of the right-wing Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe within the EU Parliament has been regularly accusing Russia of aggression in Ukraine and toward Europe generally. Fotygas self-appointed media group, dominated by eastern European anti-Russian interests, produced a report earlier this year entitled EU strategic communications with a view to counteracting propaganda. It makes for hysterical reading accusing Russian news networks RT and Sputnik of being Kremlin propaganda tools for sowing division and discord among EU member states. The report states: The Russian government is employing a wide range of tools and instruments, such as think-tanks [...], multilingual TV stations (e.g. Russia Today), pseudo-news agencies and multimedia services (e.g. Sputnik) [...], social media and internet trolls, to challenge democratic values, divide Europe, gather domestic support and create the perception of failed states in the EUs eastern neighborhood. It was largely this tendentious study that formed the basis for the European Parliaments resolution this week to expand funding for the media program to debunk Russian propaganda. How much new money is being disbursed to the media watchdog is not clear. But ultimately it will be funded by EU citizens whose taxes underwrite member governments financial contributions to the Brussels-based 28-nation bloc. Notably, the EU Parliament vote this week was far from convincing. Some 304 MEPs voted for extra funding to the anti-Russian propaganda group, while 179 MEPs voted against. A further 208 parliamentarians abstained. That suggests widespread apprehension among lawmakers about the function and credibility of debunking Russian propaganda. So, here we have an outcome whereby a minuscule group of unelected faceless bureaucrats and ideologically driven politicians, who evidently have an ax to grind against Russia, are able to shape a vital area of foreign policy for the entire EU bloc and furthermore to significantly impinge on the publics right to access information freely. The charges of Russian state-sponsored propaganda have been inflamed with recent claims by Western leaders like US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel that fake news is undermining Western democracy. These claims have in turn followed months of reports from various NATO-linked think-tanks which have allege that Russian news services are fronts for Kremlin-inspired disinformation. Political pressure is now being brought to bear on internet and social media providers, such as Google and Facebook, to ban fake news from their networks. Germanys Merkel has even declared this week that she intends introducing legislation that will force internet service companies to regulate fake news. Europe enters new Dark Age with crackdown on Russia media (Op-Edge by Robert Bridge) https://t.co/NoZHsBgCfy  RT (@RT_com) November 26, 2016 It is not clear how far this development will go. Western-based internet companies may yield and impose blanket censorship. Another question is what are the limits on designating which information and sources are considered fake? The political atmosphere of Russophobia being whipped up by Western leaders, NATO-connected think-tanks and now EU parliamentarians  and the actual fingering of Russian news services like RT and Sputnik as illegitimate sources  is all setting the stage for the banning of Russian media. In reports this week, the EU media watchdog that is being expanded to counter Russian propaganda said that it would be employing ways of alerting internet users to false information. Presumably, that involves hiring online commentators (trolls) who will add disparaging comments to news articles deemed to be Kremlin propaganda. Apparently, there are no moves yet to demand that internet providers actually delete content. But that full-blown censorship would seem to be only a short step away, given the relentless anti-Russian atmosphere and claims by Western leaders of fake news eroding democracy. The insidious nature of what is unfolding is illustrated by the alleged incident of Belgian NATO fighter jets bombing Syria last month. On October 18, the village of Hassadjek in Aleppo was reportedly hit by air strikes that killed six civilians, according to local sources. Several news services, including Reuters, subsequently carried reports in which Russias Ministry of Defense accused Belgium of carrying out the strikes as part of the US-led coalition purportedly bombing Syria to combat jihadi terror groups. The Russian information appeared to be substantive, providing flight and radar data that reportedly identified the Belgian warplanes. Belgiums ambassador was summoned in Moscow to explain why the Belgian government appeared to be stonewalling with denials that its air force was involved in the deadly attack. Disturbingly, the news reports of the alleged Belgian air strike on the Aleppo countryside last month are described as an example of fake news by the EU media watchdog during this weeks parliamentary vote to endorse more funding for the unit. This has huge sinister implications. Any news report or analysis  no matter how substantive or factual  that happens to offend the political sensibilities and reputation of EU governments are thus liable to be labeled fake. And therefore subject to censorship. What about reports on Western governments supplying jihadi terror groups with weapons? Or reports on how Western media are colluding with terrorist propaganda fronts like the White Helmets to fabricate allegations of Russian violations in the liberation of besieged Syrian city Aleppo? All such reports can be verified and documented. But because they happen to offend official Western claims about their involvement in Syria, then such offending reports can be merely dismissed as Russian propaganda. This marks an audacious license by European and American authorities to grant themselves immunity from media criticism and scrutiny  simply by invoking a subjective, politicized claim that Russian news is fake and propagandistic. Meanwhile, this week Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko was being hosted in Brussels by EU leaders during which he warned: The European Union is under very severe attack from Russia. There is no hint of awareness among European media outlets and the EUs own media watchdogs that Poroshenkos tedious tirades constitute a glaring case of fake news.

Dystopian future beckons in which EU citizens are obligated to fund unelected media controllers who will deprive them of critical news and information, while at the same time sluicing citizens with the most gratuitous anti-Russia propaganda. The upshot is that EU citizens are gradually forced into paying for their own brainwashing. No wonder a growing number of citizens are becoming alienated from the EUs oligarchic rule. It is acting like a tyranny that needs to be torn asunder.
US House Seeks Syria-War Escalation



Moving to trap President-elect Trump into a war escalation in Syria, the House rushed through a resolution promoting a U.S.-imposed no fly zone that could spark World War III, reports.



By Rick Sterling November 27, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Consortium News " - Late in the day, on Nov. 15, one week after the U.S. elections, the lame-duck Congress convened in special session with normal rules suspended so the House could pass House Resolution 5732, the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act calling for intensifying the already harsh sanctions on Syria, assessing the imposition of a no fly zone inside Syria (to prevent the Syrian government from flying) and escalating efforts to press criminal charges against Syrian officials. HR5732 claims to promote a negotiated settlement in Syria but, as analyzed by Friends Committee for National Legislation, it imposes preconditions which would actually make a peace agreement more difficult. There was 40 minutes of debate with six representatives (Ed Royce, R-California; Eliot Engel, D-New York; Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Florida; Dan Kildee, D-Michigan; Chris Smith, R-New Jersey; and Carlos Curbelo, R-Florida) all speaking in favor of the resolution. There were few other representatives present, but the House Foreign Affairs Committee stated that the resolution was passed unanimously without mentioning these special conditions. According to Wikipedia,  Suspension of the rules is a procedure generally used to quickly pass non-controversial bills in the United States House of Representatives  such as naming Post Offices In this case, however, the resolution could lead to a wider war in the Middle East and potentially World War III with nuclear-armed Russia. Most strikingly, the resolution calls for evaluating and developing plans for the United States to impose a no fly zone inside Syria, a sovereign nation, an act of war that also would violate international law as an act of aggression. It also could put the U.S. military in the position of shooting down Russian aircraft. To call this proposal non-controversial is absurd, although it may say a great deal about the group think of the U.S. Congress that an act of war would be so casually considered. Clearly, this resolution should have been debated under normal rules with a reasonable amount of Congressional presence and debate. The motivation for bypassing normal rules and rushing the bill through without meaningful debate was articulated by the bills sponsor, Democrat Eliot Engel: We cannot delay action on Syria any further.  If we dont get this legislation across the finish line in the next few weeks, we are back to square one. The current urgency may be related to the election results since President-elect Donald Trump has spoken out against regime change foreign policy. As much as neoconservatives and their liberal-interventionist allies are critical of President Obama for not doing more in Syria, these Congressional hawks are even more concerned about the prospect of a President who might move toward peace and away from war. The Caesar Fraud HR5732 is titled the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, which House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Royce explained was named after the brave Syrian defector known to the world as Caesar, who testified to us the shocking scale of torture being carried out within the prisons of Syria. In reality, the Caesar story was a grand deception involving the CIA with funding from Qatar to sabotage the 2014 Geneva peace negotiations. The 55,000 photos which were said to show 11,000 torture victims have never been publicly revealed. Only a tiny number of photos have been publicized. However, in 2015, Human Rights Watch was granted access to view the entire set. They revealed that almost one half the photos show the opposite of what was claimed: instead of victims tortured by the Syrian government, they actually show dead Syrian soldiers and civilian victims of car bombs and other terror attacks. The Caesar story, replete with a masked defector, was one of the early propaganda hoaxes regarding Syria. One of the other big lies regarding Syria is that the U.S. has been doing nothing. Royce said, The administration has decided not to decide. And that itself, unfortunately, has set a course where here we sit and watch and the violence only worsens. Mr. Speaker, America has been sitting back and watching these atrocities for far too long. Vital U.S. national security interests are at stake. Rep. Engel said, Four years ago I thought we should have aided the Free Syrian Army. They came to us in Washington and begged us for help.  They were simply looking for weaponry. I really believe if we had given it to them, the situation in Syria would have been different today. That narrative is nonsense. By late 2011, the U.S. was actively coordinating, training and supplying armed opposition groups. When Muammar Gaddafis Libyan government was toppled in fall 2011, the CIA oversaw the diversion of Libyan weapons to the Syrian armed opposition, as documented in the Defense Intelligence Agency report of October 2012. These weapons transfers were secret. For the public record, it was acknowledged that the U.S. was supplying communications equipment to the armed opposition while U.S. allies  Saudi Arabia and Qatar  were supplying the weaponry. This is one reason that Saudi purchases of weapons skyrocketed during this time period; they were buying weapons to replace those being shipped to the armed opposition in Syria. It was very profitable for U.S. arms manufacturers. Huge weapons transfers to the armed opposition in Syria have continued to the present, with the U.S. government even more directly involved. This past spring, Janes Defense reported the details of a U.S. delivery of 2.2 million pounds of ammunition, rocket launchers and other weaponry to the armed opposition. So, the political claims that the U.S. has been inactive are baseless. In reality, the U.S. has done everything short of a direct attack on Syria. And the U.S. military is starting to cross that line. On Sept. 17, the U.S. air coalition conducted a series of airstrikes on the Syrian Army in Deir Ezzor, killing 80 Syrian soldiers and enabling ISIS to launch an attack on the position. Claims that it was a mistake are highly dubious. The assertions by Congressional hawks that the U.S. has been inactive in the Syrian conflict are part of the false narrative suggesting the U.S. must do something which leads to a no fly zone and full-scale war. Ironically, these calls for war are masked as humanitarian though even proponents, such as Hillary Clinton, privately have acknowledged that large numbers of Syrians, including civilians, would be killed in the U.S. attacks needed to establish the no fly zone. And, never do the proponents bring up the case of Libya where the U.S. and NATO did something: destroyed the government and created chaos. Fact-Free House of Propaganda With only a handful of representatives present and no dissent, the six Congressional members engaged in unrestrained propaganda and misinformation. Engel, said Were going into the New Year 2017, Assad still clings to power, at the expense of killing millions of his citizens. Even if all the deaths, including Syrian soldiers and civilians killed by anti-government jihadists, were blamed on Assad, this number is way off anyones charts. Rep. Kildee said The world has witnessed this terrible tragedy unfold before our eyes. Nearly half a million Syrians killed. Not soldiers  men, women, children killed. The official text of the resolution says, It is the sense of Congress that (1) Bashar al-Assads murderous actions against the people of Syria have caused the deaths of more than 400,000 civilians The above accusations  from millions of citizens to half a million to 400,000 civilians  are all preposterous lies. Credible estimates of casualties in the Syrian conflict range from 300,000 to 420,000. The opposition-supporting Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates the documented 2011-2016 death toll as follows: killed pro-Syrian forces  108,000; killed anti-government forces  105,000; killed civilians  89,000 In contrast with Congressional and media claims, civilians comprise a minority of the total death count and the heaviest casualties are among those fighting in defense of the Syrian state. In the U.S. political world and the mainstream media, these facts are ignored and never mentioned because they point to the reality versus the propaganda narrative which has allowed the U.S. and its allies to continue funding terrorism and a war of aggression against Syria. The Congressional speakers were in full self-righteous mode as they accused the Syrian government of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes against civilians including murder, torture and rape. No one has been spared from this targeting, even children. A naive listener would never know that the Syrian government is primarily fighting the Syrian branch of Al Qaeda including thousands of foreign fighters supplied and paid by foreign governments. The speakers went on to accuse the Syrian military of targeting hospitals, schools and markets. A critical listener might ask why they would do that instead of targeting Al Qaeda terrorists and their allies who launch dozens and sometimes hundreds of hell-cannon missiles into the government-held sections of Aleppo every day. The Congressional propaganda fest would not be complete without mention of the White Helmets. Royce said We (previously) heard the testimony of Raed Saleh of the Syrian White Helmets. These are the doctors, nurses and volunteers who actually, when the bombs come, run towards the areas that have been hit in order to try to get the injured civilians medical treatment.  They have lost over 600 doctors and nurses. This is more Congressional nonsense. There are no nurses or doctors associated with the White Helmets. The organization was created by the U.S. and U.K. and heavily promoted by a  shady PR firm . The White Helmets operate solely in areas controlled by Al Qaedas Nusra Front (recently renamed Syria Conquest Front) and associated terrorist groups. The White Helmets do some rescue work in the conflict zone but their main role is in the information war manipulating public opinion. The White Helmets actively promote U.S./NATO intervention through a no fly zone. Recently, the White Helmets became a major source of claims about innocent civilian victims in east Aleppo. Given the clear propagandistic history of the White Helmets, these claims should be treated with skepticism. We need to ask exactly what is the evidence? The same skepticism needs to be applied to video and other reports from the Aleppo Media Center. AMC is a creation of the Syrian Expatriates Organization whose address on K Street in Washington, D.C., indicates it is a U.S. marketing operation. Whats Going On? The campaign to overthrow the Syrian government is failing and there is possibility of a victory for the Syrian government and its allies. The earlier flood of international jihadi recruits is drying up. The Syrian Army and allies are gaining ground militarily and negotiating settlements or re-locations with rebels who previously terrorized Homs, Darraya (outer Damascus) and elsewhere. In Aleppo, the Syrian army and allies are tightening the noose around the armed opposition in east Aleppo. This has caused alarm among neoconservative lawmakers devoted to Israel, Saudi Arabia and U.S. empire. They are desperate to prevent the Syrian government from finally eliminating the terrorist groups which the West and its allies have promoted for the past five-plus years. Pro Israel groups have been major campaigners for passage of HR5732. The name of Simon Wiesenthal is even invoked in the resolution. Rabbi Lee Bycel wrote, Where is the Conscience of the World? as he questioned why the humanitarian HR5732 was not passed earlier. Israeli interests are one of the primary forces sustaining and promoting the conflict. Syria is officially at war with Israel which continues to occupy the Syrian Golan Heights; Syria has been a key ally of the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance; and Syria has maintained its alliance with Iran. In 2010, Secretary of State Clinton urged Syria to break relations with Hezbollah, reduce relations with Iran and come to settlement with Israel. The Syrian refusal to comply with these Washington demands was instrumental in solidifying Washingtons hostility . Congressional proponents of HR5732 make clear the international dimension of the conflict. Royce explains, It is Russia, it is Hezbollah, that are the primary movers of death and destruction.  It is the IRGC [Revolutionary Guard] fighters from Iran. Engel echoes the same message: Yes, we want to go after Assads partners in violence  Iranian and Hezbollah forces. In words and deeds Israel has made its position on Syria crystal clear. Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren explained in an interview: we always wanted [President] Bashar Assad to go, we always preferred the bad guys who werent backed by Iran to the bad guys who were backed by Iran  the greatest danger to Israel is by the strategic arc that extends from Tehran, to Damascus to Beirut. And we saw the Assad regime as the keystone in that arc. These statements have been fully backed up by Israeli actions bombing Syrian positions in southern Syria and providing medical treatment for Nusra/Al Qaeda and other armed opposition fighters. What Will Happen Now? If the Syrian government and its allies continue to advance in Aleppo, Deir Ezzor, outer Damascus and the south, the situation will come to a head. The enemies of Syria  predominately the U.S., Gulf Countries, NATO and Israel  will come to a decision point. Do they intervene directly or do they allow their regime change project to collapse? HR5732 is an effort to prepare for direct intervention and aggression. One thing is clear from the experience of Libya: Neoconservatives do not care if they leave a country in chaos. The main objective is to destabilize and overthrow a government which is too independent. If the U.S. and its allies cannot dominate the country, then at least they can destroy the contrary authority and leave chaos. What is at stake in Syria is whether the U.S. and allies, including Israel and Saudi Arabia, are able to destroy the last secular and independent Arab country in the region and whether the U.S. goal of being the sole superpower in the world prevails. The rushed passage of HR5732 without any meaningful debate is indicative of that. Despite Trumps election and his stated priority of taking on Islamic terrorism  not overthrowing Assad  the regime change proponents have not given up their war on Syria. They still seek to escalate U.S. aggression there and hope to box President Trump in. Its also clear that the U.S. Congress has become a venue where blatant lies can be stated with impunity and where violent actions are advanced behind a cynical and amoral veneer of humanitarianism. Rick Sterling is an investigative journalist and member of Syria Solidarity Movement. Media silent as house passes resolution for Syrian no-fly zone : News Analysis - Hillary Clintons loss was a shock to the purveyors of U.S. military hegemony, who saw in her an easier path to keep the Syria conflict going.
Reflections on the Dispossessed By Nicolas J S Davies November 27, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - After centuries of hard-fought but limited progress, human society seems to be reverting to the law of the jungle. For many of our international neighbors, this means leading lives defined by aerial bombardment, guerrilla warfare, militia rule and displacement as refugees. For half my neighbors in the U.S., it means living paycheck to paycheck under a corrupt inverted totalitarian political and economic system designed to funnel ever greater concentrations of wealth and power into the hands of a greedy and unsympathetic ruling class, exemplified at the moment by Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, the Koch brothers and Wall Street. For people everywhere, the fragile collective systems of law, civil and human rights, social welfare, progressive taxation and public services that painstakingly evolved to provide human beings with basic rights and longer, healthier, happier lives are disintegrating into something closer to Thomas Hobbes Seventeenth Century nightmare of a violent and chaotic world in which most peoples lives will be solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short. If we understood more of our own history, we might grasp a little better the fragility of the improving quality of life we or our parents once took for granted, the competing forces of progress and greed that have shaped the world we live in, and the mechanisms by which greed keeps rearing its head to undermine progress in spite of all our efforts. Until I read Eric Hobsbawms quartet of books that begins with The Age of Revolution: 1789-1848 and ends with The Age of Extremes: 1914-1991, I did not know that my own great-great-grandparents in newly industrialized Dudley in Englands Black Country were born with an average life expectancy of only 18 years. I also learned from Hobsbawm that, when I was born in a British dockyard hospital in Sri Lanka in 1954, at least half of my fellow human beings still lived as subsistence farmers in societies that had evolved for centuries with less radical change than they have now experienced in my own short lifetime. Loss of Communal Rights In the bat of an eyelid in the sweep of human history, traditional ways of life based on communal rights to land and centuries of accumulated wisdom about how to live on it have been shattered and discarded. On Friday, Consortiumnews reported on the crisis of landlessness and poverty that has led to decades of resistance and repression in the Philippines. Throughout the developing world, a billion poor, landless people have been herded into new megacities ringed by endless slums and shanty-towns, to lead lives defined by low-wage labor, street life, extreme poverty and insecurity, and unsanitary and toxic environments  not unlike Dudley in the 1830s. The predicament facing our fellow creatures is even worse than our own. The World Wildlife Fund reported recently that the Earths total population of wild animals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles has declined by 60 percent since 1970, and that the decline has accelerated in the past five years despite current conservation efforts. The shattering of relationships between people, communities and the land they live on is in large part the culmination of a process that began in England 500 years ago. In medieval times, English peasants were forced to work their feudal masters land, but they also had access to common land where they could build homes, grow crops and graze animals. Then landowners began to enclose formerly common land in what we would now call a privatization of land, the most vital resource in an agricultural society. Feudal lords gradually became modern landlords and employers, scattering their former vassals to the wind with no right to land on which to build cottages, grow crops or graze animals. As Thomas More wrote in Utopia in 1516, greedy landowners discovered that grazing sheep could be more profitable than sharing land with other human beings: the nobility and gentry, and even those holy men, the abbots, not contented with the old rents which their farms yielded, nor thinking it enough that they, living at their ease, do no good to the public, resolve to do it hurt instead of good. They stop the course of agriculture, destroying houses and towns, reserving only the churches, and enclose grounds that they may lodge their sheep in them [Ordinary people] are put in prison as idle vagabonds; while they would willingly work, but can find none that will hire them; for there is no more occasion for country labor, to which they have been bred, when there is no arable ground left. One shepherd can look after a flock which will stock an extent of ground that would require many hands if it were to be ploughed and reaped. This likewise in many places raises the price of corn. Orwells Dim View George Orwell echoed Mores dim view of property owners and the enclosure of common lands in a column in Tribune on Aug. 18, 1944: the so-called owners of the land  simply seized it by force, afterwards hiring lawyers to provide them with title-deeds. In the case of the enclosure of the common lands, the land-grabbers did not even have the excuse of being foreign conquerors; they were quite frankly taking the heritage of their own countrymen, upon no sort of pretext except that they had the power to do so. Except for the few surviving commons, the high roads, the lands of the National Trust, a certain number of parks, and the sea shore below high-tide mark, every square inch of England is owned by a few thousand families. These people are just about as useful as so many tapeworms. The proportion of common land in England shrank from a third in 1500 to 27 percent by 1600, and has kept shrinking ever since. A series of parliamentary Inclosure Acts codified and regulated this process in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth centuries, and the newly dispossessed provided a captive labor pool for new factories in places like Dudley, where women and children worked in conditions previously imposed only on convicts. Before the Second World War, hundreds of commoner families still grew crops and grazed animals in Ashdown Forest, the largest remaining area of common land in southeast England (and the setting for A.A. Milnes Winnie-the-Pooh stories). The commoners won a famous court case to uphold their rights in 1881, but half the remaining commoners lost their rights by failing to re-register under a new law in 1965. There are still 730 registered commoner families living in the forest, but reportedly only one family still makes its living grazing cattle on the common land. The others lead modern lives like the rest of us. After the Jacobite rebellions of 1715 and 1745, Scottish clan chieftains followed the example of the English lords, turned their lands to sheep farming and ethnically cleansed their clan members  their own extended families  from the highlands. The haunting emptiness of that landscape today is the result of a crime against humanity, well documented in John Prebles classic, The Highland Clearances. Memories of burned-out crofts live on across the sea in place names like Ben Lomond in California, named for the last Scottish mountain the dispossessed highlanders could see from the decks of migrant ships sailing down the Clyde. Destroying the Mayans In the highlands of Guatemala, where indigenous Mayan peoples have fought fiercely to save their land and their culture for 500 years, girls at American mission schools are forced to exchange the beautiful traje (traditional clothes) hand-woven by their mothers and grandmothers for Scots tartan uniforms, cheap factory-made imitations of the traje of another highland culture who were banned from wearing it themselves after the Jacobite rebellions. The irony seems to be lost on their American benefactors. As Europes rulers and landowners emptied their throwaway people into the Americas and other settler colonies, they spread the privatization of land and the destruction of traditional societies to new regions, leading to genocides of indigenous people and their cultures across the Americas and the world. Colonial and post-colonial rulers alike have pitted the dispossessed of Europe against indigenous people in elemental struggles for survival in which the ultimate winners are always the wealthy few who can take advantage of the commodification of the Earth to claim ownership of more and more of it. Across the world, legal concepts that evolved out of medieval English property law now serve as mechanisms to dispossess hundreds of millions of people: either because they have no paper title to land their families may have lived on for centuries; or because the extra land they would need to support a growing extended family has already been expropriated by wealthy landlords or agri-business companies; or because neoliberal government policies force small producers to compete with transnational companies in global markets, where prices of food and basic commodities fluctuate dramatically without regard for their impact on real peoples lives; or because, as many Americans have experienced, they are swindled into debt and foreclosure by greedy bankers, wealthy investors, corrupt governments and courts. The foreclosure crisis in the U.S. then dumped millions of its victims into newly inflated rental markets to be exploited all over again by other investors who are now their landlords. Privatization on Steroids Now these concepts of private ownership and property rights are expanding into new areas of life under novel legal constructs like intellectual property law, free trade and investment agreements, corporate personhood, binding arbitration, investor-state dispute settlement and global patent law. These create new opportunities for privatization and profit, leaving ordinary human beings farther adrift in captive markets where more and more of the basics of life, from food to medical care to housing to education, must be bought at a premium from increasingly monopolistic corporations. The cradle-to-grave welfare state promised to the men who marched home from World War Two has metamorphosed into cradle-to-grave debt for their grandchildren. As traditional communal land ownership was replaced by new systems of private property across the world, the rise of socialism and communism in the Nineteenth and Twentieth centuries was an attempt to restore social justice, community and communal ownership through new forms of political and economic organization. It should therefore be no surprise that the collapse of the U.S.S.R. and the resulting expansion of the neoliberal world led to an unbridled global acceleration of privatization and the accumulation of all forms of wealth in fewer and fewer hands. In the Western world, the prior gains of movements for labor, environmental, civil and human rights have fallen victim to a rampage of neoliberal political and economic policies, backed by triumphalist claims for the magic of the market that have more in common with religious dogma than social science. But the laws of economics have not really changed since the 1930s, when an apocryphal saying attributed to J.M. Keynes defined this kind of laissez-faire capitalism as the absurd idea that the worst people, for the worst reasons, will do what is best for all of us. The parasites who Orwell called the so-called owners of the world think they have built an impregnable legal fortress on the equally absurd idea that they own everything and that the rest of us therefore come into the world with nothing and must pay them for the privilege of living here. This is not the way that human beings have lived throughout our history on Earth, and it is not an improvement. These so-called owners now threaten our very existence with their insatiable greed and genocidal behavior. So let us make sure that this disastrous experiment is short-lived, and that it ends, not in a nuclear holocaust, nor with a society destroyed by climate change, but with a peaceful, sustainable world that we will all love, share, and safeguard for future generations. Castros Death With the death of Fidel Castro, the world has lost the most prominent world leader of his generation to clearly and consistently challenge the immorality and absurdity of allowing the world to be ruled by such a parasitic and dangerous ownership class. Chinas Xinhua news agency rightly called him, a pioneer in battling the current international economic order, particularly against the capitalist system, neoliberal globalisation, foreign debt and exploitation of natural resources. With his passing, to quote another leader of his era, The torch has been passed to a new generation. The Republican sweep in the 2016 election presents this generation of Americans with challenges that should be familiar by now after several decades of neoliberalism, notwithstanding the surprise rebranding of Donald Trump, a bigoted billionaire and TV game show host, as our new president. In the conclusion of his masterwork, Century of War, historian Gabriel Kolko proposed a formula for a pragmatic way forward that is just as pertinent today as when he wrote it in 1994. In the last analysis, Kolko wrote, how means and ends are defined (is) constrained only by a quite simple dedication to being on the side of the oppressed, the disadvantaged, and the people who really work to earn what they spend, whenever the basic criterion of who should gain or lose in a society is applied. In the most basic sense, when the question of whose side are you on is asked, this is ultimately the only response to it that makes the entire historic tradition of reform, the improvement of society, and socialism both meaningful and consistent And it complements an equally necessary devotion to the prevention of war. Kolkos prescription remains a rational political response to the global crisis in which we are living. Its relevance has not been diminished by anything that has happened under the Clinton, Bush or Obama presidencies, and it will remain a solid basis for principled opposition and united resistance to whatever further madness the Trump administration unleashes on the world. As Kolko prophetically concluded,there are no easy solutions to the problems of irresponsible, deluded leaders and the classes they represent, or the hesitation of people to reverse the worlds folly before they are themselves subjected to its grievous consequences. So much remains to be done  and it is late While the prospects for essential and sufficient changes are very uncertain at the present moment, allowing the worlds drift since 1914 to reach its inevitable destructive culmination is a course that our natural desire for human survival instinctively rejects Dispelling the myths of history, dismantling the pretensions of conventional wisdom and of leaders who claim omniscience, and discarding the shibboleths of ideologies that have betrayed their followers are all preconditions for escaping from the fatal illusions and errors that [the Twentieth] century has bequeathed to us. Nicolas J S Davies is the author of Blood On Our Hands: the American Invasion and Destruction of Iraq. He also wrote the chapters on Obama at War in Grading the 44th President: a Report Card on Barack Obamas First Term as a Progressive Leader .
Uniquely Talented: Only the Democrats Could Have Lost to Trump By Fred Reed November 27, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - A great uproar goes forth from the enemies of the Trump Beast, with much gnashing of hair and pulling of teeth. He will be a terrible President, they say, and they may well be right. There are ominous signs, particularly as regards foreign policy, and he seems radically incoherent and contradictory. Interestingly, his critics have no slight idea why he won. The reason is obvious: He won because everybody was campaigning for him, in particular the media, Hillary, Black Lives Matter, Obama, Democrats, and far leftists. Everybody worked for Trump. He couldnt lose. The election was a referendum on Marie Antoinettes court. It was the revolt of the unnoticed downtrodden, the financially sinking, the working classes rising against privileged snotsbut it was engineered by the elites. The glittering elect of course did not say working class, this being a loaded phrase redolent of Marxism and of the Democratic Party of five decades back before it became a royal court. They spoke instead of disgruntled white men, racists, homophobes, sexists, and the Islamonauseatedphobic, I meant. The rich and powerful are on display in Washington, white, well paid, secure, above average in intelligence, often from Oberlin, Amherst, Swarthmore, Yale. The better sorts of schools, you know. They cluster in Washingtons posh barrios of Bethesda, Upper Connecticut, Cap Hill, and Great Falls. They drink together and talk to each other and believe that they must be right because everyone they know agrees with them. Theirs is not a personal arrogancethey are nice people and you would like thembut an arrogance of class. Since nobody tells them they they are either arrogant or a class, they do not know. Since everybody around them lives at a high standard, it does not occur to them that they they live at a high standard. They exist in a small mental box. They do not know that that in the bleak down-scale strip development of Jeff Davis Highway, a half-hour away, reeking of exhaust and blowing with trash, an aged veteran on crutches lives in a dismal residential motel. Every mourning he hobbles to Dixie Lees DinerI forget its actual namefor a cheap breakfast because it is all he has. Or ever will. He is waiting to die. The elite dont know, and wouldnt care. The upper crust are also moral frauds, though they do not know this either. Nice liberals to the roots of their teeth, in principle they believe that we should all love each other, and they hate anyone who doesnt. In practice they approximate George Wallace. Ask when they last went to the ghetto for dinner, whether they have ever been in a restaurant with a majority black clientele, whether they would send their precious children to the public schools of New York. Ask whether they have a blue-collar friend. The privileged worked hard for Trump. Every time they described his people as uneducated white males, implicit dregs, they drove votes to Donald. And they so described the working class unceasingly. It made him President. Good, bad, or indifferent, it is how he got in. The privileged denigrated all whites unlike themselves. Then Hillary made her deplorables speech, confirming her contempt for half of Americathose uneducated, shapeless, dull-witted proles in Flyover Land, obese, farting and belching, swilling Bud, watching NASCAR for gods sake in awful trailers. And why not not sneer at them? Why did Hillary need their votes? Did not Rachel Maddow love her? For Trump it was gold, pure gold. If he had written her speech, he could not have come up with a better line to destroy her. It was the purest product of the establishments hubris. She did it to herself. Sweet. It made him President. Black Lives Matter also did yeoman work for the Donald. As they and snowflake Brown Shirts and excited millennials blocked highways and beat Trumps supporters and shut down rallies, and vandalized cars, and of course looted, they presumably thought they were working against the Trump Monster. Not a chance. Out there in the uncharted barbarian lands between Manhattan and Hollywood, in dark primeval forests where Cro-Magnons are still a rarity, people were sick of lawlessness, and of an establishment that tolerated it. It produced more votes, perhaps not for Trump or even against Hillary but against the class that she represented. Immigration. Here Hillary and Obama did great work for Donald. As Obama frantically brought in as many refugees as possible from everywhere, anywhere that might not be compatible with the people upon whom he would force them, Hillary promised to import huge numbers of Muslims. It was luminously stupid politics, but politically she was luminously stupid, so it fit. It is why she is not President. She knew that the backward peoples of Flyover Land ought to want hundreds of thousands of Somalis and Pakistanis and who-knew-what to live with, and if they didnt, she would force them and it didnt matter because she had big donors and everybody in the media loved her. However incoherent and ignorant Trump was, the Establishment was determined to elect him. Elect him it did. Then there is the insularity of the privileged. Its extent is hard to grasp. It worked mightily for the new President. Hillary has probably never been in a Legion hall with, god, that kind of people; if she had, she might be President. Instead she set a trotline for big donors and hung with the rich. They told her, didnt they, that she couldnt lose. These, like her, knew nothing of the lives of most Americans. Has Bill Kristol hitchhiked in the chill of three a.m. on a secondary road in Appalachia, total wealth twenty-five dollars, hoping sparse traffic would get him to Roanoke? I am accepting bets. I doubt that Katie Couric, or any of the babbling bubble heads, has ever worked in a truck stop or gas station for minimum wage, if that. How many have ever baited a hook, had a paper route, or had to decide between a warm coat with winter coming on or paying the cable? This is why Trump took them by such surprise. They were dealing with a country they had never seen. And didnt like. Lord only knows what kind of President Trump will make (unless God also is wondering, which I find plausible) but he had the country figured out. Which is positively weird, given that he is a filthy rich New Yorker. And the media. These too did great work for our new President. All the corporate outlets were furiously against him, apparently assuming that their opprobrium would crush the upstart. Were they not CBS and NBC and the Washington Post , respected news outlets that people would believe and trust? Well, no, actually. And so the talking heads chuckled and sneered and utterly underestimated and got handed their ass. They should have registered as lobbyists for the Donald. The newsies did not understand that they were widely hated. Their obvious slant, often approaching verticality, looked like (and was) hostility to anyone who was willing to consider Trump. The common sentiment in Flyover Land became, If these bastards dont like Donald, he must be OK. They made him President. It reminds me of when Bob Brown started Soldier of Fortune magazine, purporting to be a rag for, oh horror, squeak, mercenary soldiers. The media fell into convulsions denouncing him, cough, splutter, how could . And with every denunciation, circulation went up. Ol Bob, he just smile. But the talking heads couldnt figure it out. Did they not all agree with each other? Did not all of America hate what they hated? Well, ahheh. Urg. So when he slapped down Megyn Kelly of Fox News, the talking heads exploded with delighted horror. Trump had just screwed himself with women, who would vote en bloc for Hillary. Whatever minute chance he might have had was now dead. Chortle, chortle. Actual results: 42% of women, and 53% of white women, voted foroops, ahTrump. Why? An obvious hypothesis is that women think for themselves, and did. Perhaps they thought Megyn, an abrasive plastic Barbie who probably gets more daily maintenance than a 747, wasan abrasive Baribie. Trump could say to them, to Hillary, the media, the Insular Good, to BLM and the Snowflakes, Thank you, thank you. I couldnt have done it without you. Fred is reachable at jetpossum-readers@yahoo.com. Put pdq in the subject line of your email will be heartlessly autodeleted. Lack of response usually due to volume, not bad manners. Fred Reed is author of Nekkid in Austin: Drop Your Inner Child Down a Well and the just-published A Brass Pole in Bangkok: A Thing I Aspire to Be. Visit his blog. http://fredoneverything.org/
One of the four suspected fraudsters arrested by the Rapid Response Squad of the Lagos State Police Command, Joseph Onuoha, says over 40 fraudsters belonging to a syndicate headed by one Toronto are out daily on Lagos streets, looking for victims.

Forty-year-old Onuoha told RRS operatives that Toronto, who is now at large, personally trained the members of the syndicate and also rewarded them based on their successes.

He said, Anytime we hit jackpot, we would divide our loot into five parts. Toronto would take two parts. Two of us in a team would share two and we would share the remaining part to others.

Our office in Ajegunle has been busted by the police. Toronto, as I was told, has relocated to somewhere in Surulere. Whenever we have issues with the police, he comes around to secure our bail.

Onuoha and three others were arrested for allegedly swindling members of the public of various sums of money.

The four suspects  Onuoha, Kenneth Umukoro, 36; Uba Utokcha, 41; and Ikechukwu Okeke, 25  were picked up separately by the police in connection with three cases of fraud in Maryland, Ojodu Berger and Ajegunle between Tuesday and Thursday last week.

The police said the suspect had individually owned up to the crimes before RRS officers during interrogation.

It was gathered that the syndicate was smashed after two members of the gang allegedly defrauded one Chiwenu Ibeh.

Ibeh told RRS men that she was going to Ojodu Berger from Ojota when Umukoro, driving an ash colour Toyota Camry 1997 model with number plate, SMK 886 DK, stopped at the bus stop to pick her.

He picked another passenger on Kudirat Abiola Way. We were still on Kudirat Abiola Way when the new passenger started a conversation in French language with the driver.

The driver pleaded that he wanted to take the new passenger to the customs office on Mobolaji Bank Anthony Way, where his goods were seized.

At the office, the driver, a man that claimed to be a customs agent, a pastor and the goods owner brainwashed me into releasing my Automated Teller Machine card and led me to withdraw the last N9,000 from my account.

After this, the pastor prayed for me and told me to go home and get more money.

Ibeh said it was after she left the gang that she came to her senses, adding that a week later, she saw the men again in the Maryland area of the state.

My husband and I were standing at the Maryland bus stop on Thursday when I saw the same Toyota Camry with same number plate and a new driver. However, sitting beside the driver was the former driver that lured me into the fraud, pretending to be a passenger. I alerted RRS officers stationed at Maryland, who arrested them.

It was gathered that Onuoha and Okeke were arrested separately for similar fraud.

The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, warned members of the public to be wary of spurious deals.

She said. The police wont relent in their duties of making the state crime free. The four suspects have been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, Panti, Yaba.

Source: Punch
The Lagos State Police Command have arrested one Mr Femi Akinola, 30, an accountant working with Eterna Plc for allegedly stealing the sum of $50,000 belonging to the lubricant-producing company.

According to reports, Mr Akinola was on Thursday, November 17 sent to withdraw the sum from the companys account at United Bank for Africa (UBA) in the Marina area on Lagos Island, only for to him get back to office and claimed he was kidnapped and dispossessed of the money and his own personal valuables.

The company immediately reported the matter to the Police Station to which Akinola was subsequently arrested.

During interrogation, the suspect denied faking his own kidnapping but led the operatives to the fence of a primary school in the Bariga area, where $30,000 concealed inside a concrete block was recovered.

The State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, while parading Akinola at the Police headquarters in Ikeja, said he perfected his plan by stripping himself and then threw his phones into a river to avoid suspicion.

The suspect worked with a multinational company in the state. He was sent to withdraw $50,000. After withdrawing the money, he faked his own kidnap and claimed that the kidnappers collected the money.

The police have been able to recover $30,000. He confessed to have given out $15,000. We are making efforts to recover the remaining sum, the CP said.

In his statement, Akinola, an Ondo State indigene, claimed that one Kingsley who lives in the UK and a fraudster in Lagos connived together to defraud him.

He said Kingsleys accomplice hypnotized him, adding that the man had left before it dawned on him that he had been defrauded.

I am also into music. I used to chat with one Kingsley in the UK, who wanted to help me with my music career. I chatted with him that day and I told him that I just withdrew $50,000. He told me he needed $15,000. He sent somebody to meet me around Marina to collect the money. It was after the person collected the money and my phones and left that I came to my senses.

I was confused and didnt know what to do. At that point, I decided to hide the remaining $35,000 at the back of a primary school in Bariga, and left for Epe to commit suicide. On getting there, I changed my mind and reported to the police that I was robbed.

The suspect stated that he was known for honesty, which had earned him awards from the company every year.

I earn over N120,000 per month. I didnt have intention of using the money to promote my music career. That was not the first time I would withdraw money for the company as an accounting officer. I had withdrawn more than that in the past. I have been working with the company for five years, he added.
An apprentice, identified only as Grace, has allegedly absconded with the two children of her employer, Mrs. Suliyat Azeez, in the Okokomaiko area of Lagos State.

The victims were identified as Farouk, 4; and six-year-old Kafayat.

PUNCH Metro learnt that Grace fled with the children on Friday, less than 24 hours after she resumed apprenticeship at their mothers workshop on Ora Street, PPL bus stop, Okokomaiko.

It was learnt that the children had returned from school and gone to their mothers shop.

Grace was said to have claimed she was going out to buy food and asked the children to accompany her.

She was, however, alleged to have absconded with the children.

Our correspondent was told that nobody had her contact or knew her place of residence.

The victims mother, Suliyat, said she had gone for a meeting of hairdressers when the incident happened.

She said, The girl came to my shop on Wednesday and said she wanted to learn hairdressing. I asked who her guarantor was because she said she came alone. She said she stayed with a friend in the area and she would have come with her, but the friend had gone to work.

On Thursday, she returned and bought soft drinks and biscuits to celebrate the commencement of her apprenticeship. I even shared the drinks with people. That was the day she started working.

On Friday, I planned to go to her place of residence, but I had to first attend a meeting of hairdressers in the community. When I returned from the meeting around 4pm, I was told nobody knew where she went to with my children and we started searching for them. I believe she hypnotised my children.

The victims father, Fatai, a mechanic, said the family had reported the incident at the Ojo and Okokomaiko police divisions.

He said other efforts at finding the children had been abortive.

The girl just identified herself as Grace. She should be about 20 years old. My wife couldnt collect her phone number because her phone (Suliyat) was faulty. She just decided to admit her because the girl asked for help. We dont know any of her relatives and friends, Fatai added.

A relative, Mr. Sanni Saidi, blamed Suliyat for not getting a snapshot of the suspect, adding that it could be difficult to find her.

He said, On the day of her induction, Suliyat could have taken her snapshot. She could have taken her phone number. But she didnt do all these and I think she should take the blame. This shows the extent that people could go to execute their devilish intentions. How could you steal two children without any fear of God? We appeal to the security agencies to help us find the children.

The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, said the matter was not reported at the police stations.

She urged the parents to go back to the station nearest to them, so that invetigation can commence.

Source: Punch
It was an evening of music, fun and comedy when MG 11 Express hosted a party like no other to unveil its Aviva Sparkling Spanish Wine at Radisson Blu Hotel, Lagos, on Friday 25th November.



The event kicked off with red carpet appearances by Nigerias finest celebrities such as Yemi Black, Bimbo Akintola, Segun Arinze, Femi Branch, Adunni Ade, and Tiwa The Tailor.

Comedians, Gbenga Adeyinka, Omo Baba, Laff Up and Peteru were also on hand to spice the evening up with their hilarious jokes.

Living up to a luxurious lifestyle, all the celebrities present were treated to the four different flavours (Gold, Rose Gold, Rose and Platinum) of Aviva, which is available nationwide.

See more photos below.
A bomb blast at a busy market in the Somalian Capital of Mogadishu has left 11 people dead and 16 people injured. The bomb blast occurred while President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was visiting a nearby university.

There are indications that the death toll could rise before the end of the day as no group claimed responsibility for the bombing. There are suspicions that the bombing was masterminded by the terrorist group, Al Shabaab.
Princess Beatrice, the Granddaughter of Britains Queen Elizabeth II, has reportedly cut the face of Ed Sheeran with a sword while pretending to knight James Blunt at a party.

According to The Sun on Sunday, Sheeran was rushed to hospital for stitches after the princess swung the sword over her shoulder without realising he was standing behind her.

The newspaper said the incident took place after Blunt joked that he wanted to be knighted during a party held at the Royal Lodge in Windsor, and Princess Beatrice duly obliged.

It is claimed she swung the sword back and caught Sheeran on the cheek as he was standing behind her.

The blade cut into his face and it was just a few inches from his right eye, a source said.

A couple of the guests said it could have been worse and he could have been blinded in the eye but Ed really played it down.

Everyone was totally shocked and apparently Beatrice was very upset. But Ed was the perfect gentleman and told her it was just an accident, the source added.
450 ex-Biafran policemen who were pardoned in 2000 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, would soon get their pension and gratuities 46 years after the civil war ended in January 1970.

The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) which begins pensioners verification in the northeast on Monday said it would pay the pension and gratuities after the verification of the ex-policemen.

Mrs. Sharon Ikeazor, the Executive Secretary of PTAD who made this disclosure on Sunday said it had enrolled about 220,000 pensioners and uncovered 9,000 ghost payees nationwide so far.

Pension payment would henceforth be effected by the 15th day of every month, she said.

She added that PTAD had entered into a partnership with ICPC and established an Anti-Corruption Unit (ACTU) to fight fraud in the system.

Also, what we are doing now is that we dont make pension payment into any account without BVN. With this policy, we have dropped about 9,000 pensioners because they dont have BVN.

Without BVN presupposes that they are ghost because we inherited a lot of data that we cannot really verify.

She said PTAD would begin verification of pensioners in the north east from Nov. 28.

Ikeazor said the first phase of the civil service pensioners verification would start from the north east region comprising Adamawa, Bauchi, Taraba and Gombe states

The first place to start the verification must be the north east so that we can key into the Federal Governments efforts at rebuilding the northeast.

We cant forget the north, insurgency or no insurgency; we are going in there to verify the pensioners so that we can put them on the pay roll, she said.

Ikeazor also said there were four of such pension departments to be involved namely the Police Pension, the Civil Service, Custom and Immigration as well as the parastatals.

She said while PTAD would start with the civil service, the other departments would follow soon.

The PTAD executive secretary said efforts would be made to determine the state with the highest number of pensioners through the nominal roll. She said Adamawa, with a little over 2,000 pensioners, will take like a week to verify.
Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has accused Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court Abuja, of getting at him for asking the National Judicial Council to sack him.

Calling on the council to curb his excesses, the governor alleged that the judge granted an interlocutory order against him in a matter pending before another judge.

The Court of Appeal in its judgment on November 23, had lambasted Abang while setting aside his ruling of October 14, which conferred recognition on Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the last Saturdays Governorship Election in Ondo State.

Following this, the governor called on NJC to save itself from embarrassment by sacking the judge.

Fayose, who spoke through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, on Monday reiterated the call to the NJC to sack Abang.

He, however, said he was not surprised that the judge opted to get at me through strange and obnoxious proceedings.

Fayose added, If Justice Abang is an honourable person, he would have declined to handle the matter, let alone granting an indefinite order less than 48 hours that I called for his sack.

However, because Justice Abang is not honourable, those desperately looking for means to get at me and are ready to enlist the support of anyone that is amenable, including the Satan, rushed to him last Friday and secured an exparte order with interlocutory nature the same day the application was filed.

How could a judge have granted order on a matter that is before another court of coordinate jurisdiction and such an order will be granted the same day?

The governor maintained that Abang was nothing but a cancer that was eating deep into the judiciary and by extension the entire country if allowed to continue as a judge.

It is on record that justices of the Appeal Court described Justice Abang judgments as fraudulent and that he raped democracy. They went further to say that he (Abang) embarked on a wild goose chase; spoke from both sides of his mouth and acted like Father Christmas. In saner climes, what he should do is to resign because that is a clear indictment on his personality and character.

Therefore, I insist that the NJC should wade into Justice Abangs fraudulent judgments with a view to showing him the way out of the bench so that our judiciary can redeem its image, he added.

Source: Punch
25-year-old Penuel Mnguni is the head Pastor of the End Times Disciples Ministries church, a church he began himself in 2014 after years of serving under an equally controversial South African pastor, Lesego Daniel.

In 2014, Penuel Mnguni shared pictures of members of his congregation eating grass and flowers on Facebook and on the churchs website. He also fed members with stones which he claimed he had turned to bread.

However, he gained popularity in 2015 when he began to order his members to eat rats and snakes which he claimed he had turned to chocolates. Nicknamed the snake pastor, he was later chased out of Soshanguve, where his church was located by locals.
The Federal Government on Monday said that talks are ongoing for the release of more school girls that were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents from the Government Secondary School Chibok, Borno State.

Senior Special Adviser to the President  Media and Publicity  Femi Adesina gave the hint shortly after delivering lectures at the Nigerian Army School of Public Relations and Informations (NASPRI) annual media workshop for Defence Correspondents and Commanding Officers.

According to the spokesman, the President said that with talks still ongoing, many more abducted girls can be recovered.

On how many could be expected to be released, Adesina said just know that there are talks still ongoing and many more can be recovered. The released Chibok girls are being rehabilitated, physically, psychologically in all ways, and their education will be restarted.

He debunked allegations that the government knows the sponsors of Boko Haram, saying that if they knew the sponsors, then the sponsors would not be spared.

Adesinas comments came shortly after admonishing the military on the need to be more open in their relationship with the media to ensure that frictions in information management are avoided.

He lamented the mutual distrust between the media and the military, noting that the military must allow the media controlled access to information to enable it work effectively.

If we dont tell our side of the story, shame on us. Reporters are like alligators. You dont have to love them, but you do have to feed them, Adesina said quoting an American general.

He said that it was important that the military feed the media with information, insisting that like alligators, a hungry media is doubly dangerous.

A statement earlier by Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, who was represented by Major General Peter Bojie, referred to the actions of Boko Haram terrorists as having the potential of destroying the nation economically and socially, if the group is not completely wiped out.

The statement called on well-meaning Nigerians to cooperate with the military and other security agencies by way of providing timely information on suspicious activities of individuals or groups in their communities and locales.

Source: TheSun
A total of 239,834 Nigerians who were displaced by the activities of insurgents in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states are still living as refugees in neighbouring countries of Cameroon, Republic of Chad and Niger Republic.

According to the National Emergency Management Agency, over 100,000 displaced Nigerians reside in Niger, while the second largest number of refugees were in Cameroon.

Quoting from a recently released humanitarian intervention report by NEMA, the agencys Head for Media and Public Relations, Mr. Sani Datti, in a statement issued on Monday said, There are presently 20,804 displaced Nigerians living in the Republic of Chad; 80,709 in the Republic of Cameroon; and 138,321 in the Republic of Niger.

He noted that about 29,581 displaced Nigerians who fled their communities in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states to Republic of Niger and Cameroon voluntarily returned last year.

Datti stated that 13,046 Nigerian returnees came from Niger Republic in May 2015 and were received in Geidam, Yobe State.

According to him, between April and December 2015, NEMA received about 16,595 Nigerians who voluntarily returned from Cameroon through the Sahuda border crossing area near Mubi, Adamawa State.

Datti said, Some of the Nigerians that fled to neighbouring countries of Niger, Chad and Cameroon were provided with humanitarian relief support by the Federal Government of Nigeria through NEMA, to alleviate their suffering.

The displaced Nigerians have also received humanitarian support from the host governments, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, the host communities and Nigerian citizens living in the three host countries.

Datti noted that the agency adopted a monthly Humanitarian Coordination Meeting, a forum which consists of relevant Federal Government agencies, UN systems and international non-governmental organisations.

The forum, he said, undertakes analysis on causes of humanitarian situations, conducts need assessments, identifies and provides humanitarian interventions based on its respective mandates.

The report added that due to the successes recorded by the Nigerian military with the support of Multi-National Joint Military Task Force in the fight against Boko Haram insurgents, the humanitarian dashboard is fast changing, Datti said in the statement.

He noted that focus was gradually shifting towards reconstruction, rehabilitation, resettlement, recovery and dignified return of IDPs back home, while the process for the return of Nigerian refugees from neighbouring countries were equally on-going.

Source: Punch
The Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps,NYSC, Brigadier General Sulaiman Kazaure, has advised the corps members against redeployment, urging them to stay in their respective states of deployment and contribute to the promotion of national unity.

The DG stated this at the swearing-in ceremony of the 2016 Batch B Corps members deployed to Kebbi State.

He said their posting away from their home states and geo-political zones was a deliberate attempt aimed at promoting ties among Nigerians of diverse backgrounds.

The Director-General also stressed the need for them to imbibe the spirit of patriotism; and contribute to the development their host communities and the country as a whole.

He advised the Corps members to avail themselves of the opportunity for self-employment through the NYSC Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development programme.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has officially announced its rejection of the results of the Ondo state governorship elections held on Saturday.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Mr. Akeredolu polled 244, 842, to defeat the PDP candidate, Eyitayo Jegede, who rallied 150, 380 votes to place second in the race while Olusola Oke of the AD was a distant third.

The Chief Returning Officer of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Abdul-Ganiyu Ambali declared Rotimi Akeredolu as the governor-elect but the PDP has now faulted the election results and has said the party will challenge the result in court.

The spokesperson of the PDP, Dayo Adeyeye accused the APC of colluding with INEC to rig the elections.

It is common knowledge that the APC Agents openly bought votes of the electorates in the full glare of security operatives who did nothing to prevent such dastardly violation of the Electoral Law. Adeyeye said

It is not surprising that the electorates in Ondo state became so vulnerable to the corruptive influence of the APC because of the harsh economic situation in the Country inflicted on Nigerians by the APC Administration which has indeed made all Nigerians virtually beggars in their own Country.

He went on to say The actions of INEC in collaboration with the APC led Administration left us no time to campaign and sell our Candidate and Party Manifesto to the electorates in Ondo State.

Our persistent call for the postponement of the Election which was backed and supported by more than 20 other political parties were all rejected by INEC which were acting the script of the APC.

It was a carefully planned and well-orchestrated strategy to rig the Election well in advance by preventing the PDP from planning and campaigning for the Election. The APC has hereby introduced a new formula of rigging Election in Nigeria.

In view of the fact that the Election was blatantly manipulated from the beginning to the end to favour the APC, we vehemently reject the results of the November 26, 2016 Gubernatorial Election in Ondo State, he said.
A widow, Mrs. Florence Ede, has been strangled by suspected robbers on her farm in Chikanda, a border community in the Baruten Local Government Area of Kwara State.

The deceased, popularly known as Mama do good, hailed from Enugu State and was a food seller when she came to the community in 1985, but became a commercial farmer after the death of her husband.

A member of the Igbo community in Chikanda, Mr. Mayor Akonobi, told our correspondent on Sunday that Ede was strangled by the assailants, who had trailed her to the farm.

He said the mother of four had a huge amount of money on her and had wanted to pay the labourers before she was killed.

He stated that the robbers also carted away 12 bags of rice harvested from the victims farm.

The only guard at the farm when the incident occurred ran away when the assailants attacked her, Akonobi added.

The Kwara State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ajayi Okasanmi, who confirmed the incident, said the police had commenced investigation into the crime.

The guard and the labourers have been arrested. They are helping us with our investigation, he added

Source: Punch
The Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai has accused the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) of refusing to recognize Muhammadu Buhari as the President of the country as well as him as the Governor of the state.

The governor made this allegation while speaking with newsmen in Kaduna on Sunday, as he added that the group also called the Shiites Islamic Sect has been outlawed by the state government because its leader Sheihk Ibrahim El Zakzaky and members have refused to respect constituted authorities and their activities amount to running a parallel government against the state.

According to him, the state received the report of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry that looked into the clashes between the IMN and Army which concluded that the IMN poses a threat to the peace, security and good governance of Kaduna State.

The IMN does not recognize the constitution of Nigeria, they do not recognize Buhari as president of Nigeria, they do not recognize me as the Governor of Kaduna state. Because they have their governor, yes, they had, I think he was killed during the clash, he stated.

He further said that the IMN apart from being an illegal religious organisation, was in the habit of harassing and intimidating members of the public with impunity for several years.
With the PC market tapped out and in a perpetual slump and the cloud market a tough fight for customers, Microsoft's on the prowl for new frontiers.

In that spirit, the company announced last week an effort to create a quantum computer, an amalgam of exotic hardware and specialized software that will allow parallel computations at speeds orders of magnitude beyond what conventional silicon can provide.

An announcement like this would once have been easy to blow off as a science-fiction self-indulgence. But in the last couple of years, quantum computing has become a field of serious study for big-name enterprise IT companies. Here are four big takeaways from Microsoft's plunge into what may prove to be a very deep pool.

1. Microsoft is late to this party, but that may not be a bad move

Microsoft is known more for being a refiner than an innovator, but that's not always a bad characteristic. It wasn't first to the cloud, but Azure is fast shaping up to be a powerful contender in that space. By hanging back, it learned lessons about what was worth attempting in this space, instead of unthinkingly copying existing contenders.

The same may also apply to Microsoft and quantum computing. Right now, IBM and Google have their QC efforts underway. IBM is creating its own custom hardware, and Google is looking for ways to synthesize approaches between different QC methodologies.

There's much to learn from all of them. By waiting to kick off its program, Microsoft can avoid some of the earlier dead ends and false starts instead of repeating the mistakes of others.

2. The plan is to build tools, not lab toys

Quantum computing has long been regarded as a lab plaything rather than a practical application. That reputation is deserved in part: QC hardware can currently solve only a very narrow range of problems, so it's impractical for the kind of work done on conventional computing hardware. QC company D-Wave (supplier of Google's quantum hardware) has long been associated with solving highly specific problems, but IBM's approach involves creating more general-purpose systems.

Microsoft's plan is to use a different kind of quantum computing building block -- what it calls a "topological qubit" -- as the underpinning for its hardware stack. It's been difficult to create general-purpose QC hardware because quantum hardware operates properly under highly controlled, isolated conditions only. Topological qubits are believed to be more robust and thus easier to build larger systems out of -- meaning they can work in the real world, not in a laboratory alone.

In short, Microsoft wants to produce a monetizable product, not an abstract technological accomplishment. After all, the latter's already been done.

3. There's already cloud-based quantum computing, but perhaps Microsoft can do better

If history's any guide, Microsoft's most likely plan to create a product, not merely a project, of quantum research will be to offer access to its quantum hardware via Azure.

Thing is, IBM already has a version of quantum computing as a service (QCaaS). It currently offers time-shared access to programming its own five-qubit processor through a web-based, drag-and-drop "composer" interface.

But IBM's QCaaS offering is highly limited. It's essentially an experimental sandbox with few options to use the resulting quantum programs, or "circuits," outside of the sandbox. Maybe that's justified for now, since QC programming is so radically unlike conventional computing.

Microsoft could take advantage of such a disjoint by doing as much as it can to bridge the two realms -- offering Azure-based QCaaS with many common QC functions already prebuilt, for example.

4. Microsoft's existing language tools would make a great platform for future QC development

A more powerful long-term bet would be to have QC development tools available through Microsoft's existing software development and language products.

An Azure QC module for C#, R, or Python, for instance, could allow users of those languages to write QC code with software development metaphors they're already familiar with.

Some precedent for this sort of metaprogramming already exists. The LLVM compiler, for instance, has libraries that allow other languages to drive the compiler -- such as llvmpy for Python. In the same manner, Microsoft could create metaprogramming libraries for QC with bindings to most any language.

Microsoft has already started working on the software side with a tool called Language-Integrated Quantum Operations, or "LIQUi|>" (not a typo). It allows users to define quantum circuits in Microsoft's functional F# language. F# may be a first-class language in Microsoft's world, with full-blown Visual Studio support and constant upgrades, but it's nowhere nearly as widely used as other languages in Microsoft's portfolio (C#), let alone all the outside languages that Microsoft supports directly (R, Python).

If Microsoft's long-term plan is to bring quantum computing to the masses -- all signs hint at that being a major motivator -- it only makes sense to support it with the tools everyone already knows and makes the most of.
Givaudan expands in Singapore

Givaudan has invested CHF 5 million in an expansion of its Flavour Innovation Centre (FIC) in Singapore which is home to the Asia Pacific (APAC) campus of the Givaudan Flavour School and its APAC Academy.

Givaudan has invested CHF 5 million in an expansion of its Flavour Innovation Centre (FIC) in Singapore.

The FIC is home to the Asia Pacific (APAC) campus of the Givaudan Flavour School, which is training the next generation of flavourists in the region, and the APAC Academy which supports continuous learning.

The expanded Singapore centre will include a new fully integrated culinary space for concept development, as well as new or expanded savoury, bakery, confectionery, beverage and dairy facilities to serve all market sectors.

Givaudan says that the investment enhances its innovation capabilities in APAC, facilitating a regional focus on applied innovation, collaboration and knowledge sharing, to complement its global network. Within the FIC, Givaudan said its flavourists will leverage the latest ingredients and technologies to develop holistic customer solutions that can go straight to market.

The expansion of the Singapore Flavour Innovation Centre supports our 2020 strategy of investment in high growth markets, and builds on our recent developments in Nantong, China; Karachi, Pakistan, and Pune in India, said Givaudan Chief Executive Officer, Gilles Andrier. It demonstrates our continuing commitment to growing with our customers and providing them with differentiated flavour solutions for consumer preferred products that meet local market needs.

The company believes that these new facilities mean Givaudan is ideally placed to address regional trends such as the needs of a middle class concerned with health and wellness but without wanting to compromise on taste.

Expanded capacity in Singapore will, it says, enable greater collaboration and innovation with customers to meet their needs, and those of a growing mass market with a desire for quality products with natural ingredients.

Givaudan has been serving customers in Singapore since 1992, said Monila Kothari, Givaudans regional Commercial Head of APAC. This expansion underlines our ongoing commitment to our APAC and ASEAN customers, by offering them superior levels of innovative and creative flavour and taste solutions.
Nat-Gas Prices Surge on Forecasts for Colder U.S. Temps Barchart - 7 minutes ago Dec Nymex natural gas (NGZ22 ) on Wednesday closed up +0.554 (+9.70%). Dec nat-gas Wednesday rallied sharply on forecasts for colder U.S. weather, which would boost heating demand for nat-gas. The Commodity... NGZ22 : 6.189 (+8.31%)

Crude Rallies on Chinese Energy Demand Optimism and a Drop in EIA Inventories Barchart - 9 minutes ago Dec WTI crude oil (CLZ22 ) on Wednesday closed up +1.63 (+1.84%), and Dec RBOB gasoline (RBZ22 ) closed up +10.27 (+3.96%). Crude oil and gasoline prices Wednesday rallied, with crude climbing to a 3-week... CLZ22 : 89.12 (+0.85%) RBZ22 : 2.6793 (+3.27%)

Cocoa Moderately Higher as Dollar Weakness Fuels Technical Buying Barchart - 36 minutes ago December ICE NY cocoa (CCZ22 ) on Wednesday closed up +31 (+1.32%), and December ICE London cocoa #7 (CAZ22 ) closed up +27 (+1.40%). Cocoa prices Wednesday rallied moderately, with NY cocoa posting a... CCZ22 : 2,379s (+1.32%) CAH23 : 1,922s (+1.26%) DXY00 : 111.885 (+0.36%)

Sugar Moves Higher on Brazil Production Concerns Barchart - 40 minutes ago March NY world sugar #11 (SBH23 ) on Tuesday closed up +0.04 (+0.22%), and Dec London white sugar #5 (SWZ22 ) closed up +4.10 (+0.77%). Sugar prices Wednesday posted moderate gains, with London sugar climbing... SBH23 : 18.47s (+0.22%) SWZ22 : 536.80s (+0.77%) CLZ22 : 89.12 (+0.85%)

Fed unleashes another big rate hike but hints at a pullback AP - 41 minutes ago The Federal Reserve pumped up its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a point for a fourth straight time to fight high inflation but hinted that it could soon reduce the size of its rate hikes... $SPX : 3,773.28 (-2.15%) $DOWI : 32,332.72 (-0.98%) $IUXX : 10,961.88 (-2.90%)

Coffee Prices Jump on Dollar Weakness and Smaller Central American Exports Barchart - 46 minutes ago December arabica coffee (KCZ22 ) on Wednesday closed up +7.55 (+4.32%), and Jan ICE Robusta coffee (RMF23 ) closed up +43 (+2.34%). Coffee prices Wednesday rallied sharply. A weaker dollar Wednesday sparked... KCH23 : 176.95s (+3.97%) RMF23 : 1,882s (+2.34%)

Cattle Commentary Walsh Trading - 1 hour ago December cattle finished lower by 50 cents today, settling at 151.40. Technical indicators read that there should be more corrective selling in order as the market still remains in overbought conditions....

Grains sharply lower as Russia resumes grain export deal Banghart Properties - Wed Nov 2, 12:41PM CDT Just a few days after Russia announced it would be suspending the Black Sea export agreement with Ukraine, things have shifted and Russia has now agreed to resume grain exports.
Major international broker Aon recently announced its acquisition of Admix, a leading health brokerage and benefits solutions firm in Brazil.Aon health and benefits CEO John Zern said the acquisition doubles the brokerage giants presence in Brazil and expands its capability to serve clients in Latin America.Operating for 25 years, Admix has more than 1.4 million beneficiaries across 6,700 companies of all industries and sizes. It places about two billion Brazilian real in health and benefits premiums each year.We have been exploring opportunities to enhance our capabilities in Brazil and the Latin America region, said Aon Risk Solutions Latin America CEO Fernando Pereira.The acquisition of Admix provides us with expanded offerings in a sector that is of growing importance to employers, the countrys economy and consumers in Brazil, he added.For his part, Admix founder and owner Cesar Antunes said the deal with Aon will create a combined firm with the highest quality people and solutions in the industry.Antunes said the company is also excited about Aons vision for the future of health and benefits in Brazil.Aons breadth and depth of experience, strong carrier relationships, and world-class capabilities will enhance our ability to create and execute health solutions, Antunes said.Admixs broker partners and clients will continue to realize financial and operational benefits from a scaled operating platform as well as enhanced data and analytics capabilities, he added.
Insurance companies that are looking to move operations from the UK due to Brexit are reportedly in talks with the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) for possible relocation.The CBI, which regulates Irelands insurance industry, is already dealing with enquiries from UK insurers, according to Sylvia Cronin, the banks director of insurance supervision.Cronin told the Financial Times that she has increased her staff numbers to deal with Brexit and the new Solvency II capital rules of the European Union.Im staffing up for the first half of 2017 because of the increased number of enquiries in Q3, the Financial Times quoted Cronin as saying.My sense was that companies wouldnt come and talk to regulators until there was some more substance [over Brexit], but the opposite seems to be occurring, she added. Due to the uncertainty, companies are proactively approaching us.Cronin said her team has increased by over 25% since the beginning of 2016 and is expected to grow further.Its being able to respond to the demand and being sure that we deliver on our service standards, she said.Following the UKs vote to leave the European Union in June, reports have been abound that insurers and financial companies in Britain are considering relocating elsewhere in Europe if they cant keep their passporting rights or access to the single market.Just last week, AIG said it may move its European headquarters out of London and set up a new head office on the continent, with Dublin one of six possible destinations.Earlier this month, Beazley filed an application with CBI to obtain approval for its Irish reinsurance arm, Beazley Re, to become a European insurance company.If Cronin approves Beazleys application, the specialist insurer will be able to operate throughout the European Union even if Lloyds loses single market access post-Brexit.
An agreement has been reached between two industry bodies which will provide risk professionals across Asia Pacific with a professional designation and ongoing professional education, it has been announced.The Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance ( ANZIIF ) and the Pan-Asia Risk and Insurance Management Association (PARIMA) announced their partnership after signing an agreement in Hong Kong this month.ANZIIF CEO Prue Willsford and PARIMA Franck Baron said the introduction of a new designation for risk professionals in the region  PARIMA ANZIIF  Certified Risk Professionals (PA-CRP)  reflected the fact that risk managers had become more prominent in recent years.It was therefore necessary to have an established certification available to demonstrate the professionalism and legitimacy of risk professionals in the business world.The new education offering will allow risk managers to differentiate themselves as risk professionals, said Stacey Huang, PARIMAs executive director.By attaining PA-CRP, they have demonstrated that they have knowledge and expertise in risk management, and that they are dedicated to upholding high standards of ethical and professional conduct that the profession rightly requires.ANZIIF and PARIMA will jointly certify individuals as PA-CRP based on underlying qualifications and the successful completion of a 2.5 hour examination comprising of five risk management education modules.Modules would cover topics on integrated risk management, operational risk management, risk treatment and financing practices, and risk management frameworks and documentation.Willsford said ANZIIF was thrilled to enter the partnership with PARIMA.This is a wonderful opportunity for both ANZIIF and PARIMA but, most importantly, it will provide risk professionals with world-class education and training and a long-sought credible risk designation, she said.The PA-CRP is open for registrations via www.parima.org/certification/ with the first exams to occur in February 2017.
It is time for action on cyber insurance, one expert has said, as risks continue to mount.A recent global survey conducted by Zurich found that Australian SMEs are more aware than ever of the threat of cyber breach and Callum McMillan, national commercial manager for Financial Lines for Zurich in Australia, said small businesses can no longer afford to bury their heads in the sand.For SMEs, the time for thinking about cyber insurance protection is over, and its now time for action to be taken, McMillan told Insurance Business.No longer can cyber risk be a business issue considered to be the responsibility of IT managers alone. The damage to reputation and the costs associated with the disruption to business are only increasing year on year.A number of global surveys have revealed that around 50-60% of companies, who lose data, will cease trading within six months.This is an incredibly scary statistic, and one that highlights the severity of a cyber loss for any SME.Survey data revealed that, in Australia, the greatest concern related to cyber crime that can be mitigated was damage to reputation (31.5%). Theft of customer data or money came in second and third at 26.5% and 15% respectively, with business disruption ranked fourth having been mentioned by 14.5% of respondents.McMillan noted that while the cyber insurance market in Australia is still very much in its infancy brokers will play a key role in developing the market with the all-important SME client base.SMEs are an easy target for hackers, which is why we have seen a significant increase in the frequency of attacks against SME businesses, McMillan continued.As an insureds trusted risk advisor, brokers play a critical role in raising awareness and prompting SMEs to take action in order to protect themselves.With SMEs making up approximately 97% of all businesses in Australia, according to Government statistics, McMillan noted that it is not only businesses which could be impacted by an attack.Many SMEs are financed through their owners equity which could mean funding from their family home or potentially funding from friends and family, McMillan said.Therefore, there is a high probability that the owner of an SME business that does lose data could potentially lose both their livelihood and their home too.
A strike by hundreds of union workers at an upstate New York chemical plant is now into its fourth week.

Some 700 members of an IUE-CWA local walked off the job earlier this month at Momentive Performance Materials in the Saratoga County town of Waterford, on the Hudson River north of Albany. The union went on strike after contract talks failed over the companys plans to cut in health insurance and other benefits.

Scores of workers spent Thanksgiving walking picket lines while one striker cooked a turkey in an outdoor fryer and supporters in the community dropped off food for the holiday meal.

Supervisors and newly hired, non-union replacement workers are operating the plant, which makes industrial sealants, adhesives and water repellents.

The facility was owned by General Electric until 2006.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics New York Chemicals
Faced with a barrage of lawsuits from workers demanding benefits and recognition as employees, some companies in the fast-growing gig economy are looking to settle the issues through legislation.

Joseph Morelle, the number two Democrat in the New York State Assembly, said he has been talking about portable benefits with such companies, which use occasional workers to provide rides, deliveries, house-cleaning and other services through websites and apps.

He said he plans to introduce legislation early next year, which would be the first of its kind in the United States and is likely to draw scrutiny from organized labor.

In advance of that effort, online home-cleaning company Handy has circulated a draft bill, seen by Reuters, that would establish guidelines for a portable benefits plan for New York workers at gig-economy companies.

A key element of the draft bill is that it classifies workers at companies choosing to participate in the program as independent contractors rather than employees under state law, as long as the companies dealings with their workers meet certain criteria.

Morelle would not say whether his proposed law would be based on the draft bill circulated by Handy, only that he was focused on passing some form of legislation to address the issues it raises.

The gig economy is something more and more people will gravitate towards, and we clearly want to make sure they can get benefits, he said.

Employees or Contractors?

Handy, ride-hailing service Uber Technologies Inc and other companies in the vanguard of the gig economy  also known as the sharing or on-demand economy  have ignited a national debate about how to classify and provide benefits to people who work flexible schedules and irregular hours.

Several labor unions and some of the workers themselves have argued they should be considered employees, and therefore entitled to guaranteed wages, employer-provided insurance and other benefits. The companies have maintained their workers are independent contractors.

Court actions brought by workers at Handy, Uber and other similar firms hoping to establish themselves as employees have not been finally resolved.

If New York lawmakers move forward, they would be the first in the nation to authorize industry-wide portable benefits, and could serve as a model for other states, particularly if a bill draws support from organized labor.

The legislation could also make it more difficult for workers at gig-economy companies to convince courts they should be considered employees.

The draft bill circulated by Handy requires participating companies to contribute at least 2.5 percent of the fee for each job to an individual account for the worker, which he or she could then use to buy health insurance or other benefits.

Starting Point

On its website, Handy says its top professionals make more than $1,000 per week. Under the terms of the draft bill, Handy would be required to contribute at least $1,300 per year for benefits for workers making $52,000 per year.

Companies would be allowed to pass along the cost to their customers. Since workers at participating companies would be classified as independent contractors, they could not join unions to collectively bargain for better benefits.

Larry Engelstein, executive vice president of 32BJ Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents thousands of janitors, said under contracts the union negotiates employers contribute an annual average of $18,000 per employee for healthcare costs.

The amount of money thats supposed to be put into these portable benefit funds seems so meager, Engelstein said. The actual benefit a worker is getting hardly warrants what the worker is giving up.

The SEIU is a backer of the four-year-old Fight for $15 campaign, which aims to raise pay and expand the right to join a union for low-wage workers including fast-food servers, home care aides, airport baggage handlers and others. For the first time on Tuesday, some Uber drivers plan to join the campaigns protests.

A source familiar with the Handy proposal said it was meant to be a starting point for discussions, not a final bill.

In a statement, Handy said its our view we need both regulatory change to clarify the law, and we are in favor of some form of portable benefits.

Uber and Morelle declined to comment on the Handy proposal.

Morelle said he plans to draft the bill next month and introduce it in January.

(Reporting by Dan Levine and Kristina Cooke in San Francisco; Editing by Bill Rigby)

Topics Legislation New York Contractors
Tokio Marine Kiln (TMK) announced the retirement of Robin Hargreaves who will leave TMK at the end of the year after spending his entire career with the company.

Hargreaves joined in 1980 and upon completing his graduate training began writing property full time in 1983. He became head of Kilns embryonic property book just one year later, a position he held for 30 years, standing down in 2013. During that time he developed the value of the book from 2 million to more than 400 million.

Since then Hargreaves has been chairman of the TMK underwriting board, concentrating on developing the book and delegated authority relationships he built up during his underwriting career. These now account for more than 40 percent of TMKs overall premium.

One of the remarkable aspects of a man who has spent 36 years with the same company, is how restless he has been in pursuit of new adventures, said Charles Franks, group chief executive officer.

This has been to our good fortune as Robin has been tireless in seeking out new business. Whilst he continued to be a formidable underwriter at the [Lloyds] box, he also travelled widely, finding new opportunities for the company, particularly with delegated authorities, Franks continued.

The Board and staff and the whole TMK Group are immensely grateful to Robin for his remarkable career with us and wish him a wealth of new adventures in his retirement.

Source: Tokio Marine Kiln
German insurer Allianz is setting up a wholly-owned unit in Shanghai to launch hedge funds that invest abroad, three sources said, as some foreign managers prepare for China to ease curbs on overseas investments aimed at stemming capital outflows.

The unit of Allianz, the worlds fourth largest money manager by assets, will then apply for a special license that would enable it to raise funds in China directly and invest the proceeds overseas, the sources told Reuters.

Allianz is looking to tap into Chinese investors growing demand for overseas assets, which has been accelerated by a weakening yuan. China has so far been heavily restricting capital outflows to relieve pressure on its depreciating currency.

Europes largest insurer is planning to apply for the Qualified Domestic Limited Partnership (QDLP) program license. The license allows foreign managers greater freedom to raise funds within a set quota from domestic high net-worth Chinese investors through a wholly owned fund management company.

Licensing for the QDLP scheme has been informally suspended this year as Beijing tries to stem the capital outflows, but several foreign managers are positioning themselves in the expectation the regulators will grant a new round of QDLP licenses and quotas next year, the sources added.

A spokeswoman for Allianz, which owns U.S. bond fund manager PIMCO and has nearly $2.2 trillion assets under management globally, confirmed the company is in the process of setting up the wholly owned foreign entity but declined to comment further.

The Shanghai Municipal Government Financial Services Office, which runs the QDLP scheme, did not respond to requests for comment. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange, which controls Chinas capital account, said in a statement the Shanghai government was responsible for any policy adjustments to the scheme.

The sources declined to be identified as the information is not public.

A growing number of foreign financial institutions, including Aberdeen Asset Management, U.S. hedge fund Bridgewater Associates and Vanguard, have recently set up stand-alone money-management firms in China as Beijing further deregulates the mainland fund industry.

Previously, foreign asset managers looking to distribute investment products in China had to operate through minority-owned joint ventures with domestic firms, but Beijing has been gradually loosening the reins.

Allianz already has a fund management joint venture, GTJA Allianz, but its partner, Guotai Junan Securities, said in August it was putting its 51 percent stake up for sale amid a broader restructuring.

Strong Demand

Unveiled in 2012, the QDLP license is designed to allow foreign alternative asset managers, namely hedge funds, to raise funds onshore to invest offshore. The first round of licenses was granted in 2013.

Reuters reported last year that BlackRock Inc become the first traditional asset manager to receive the QDLP license, joining a handful of other global funds, including Man Group Plc and Och-Ziff Capital Management Group.

(http://www.reuters.com/article/us-blackrock-china-idUSKCN0PV10320150721)

QDLP funds are private, meaning data is not publicly available on assets or performance, but industry insiders said BlackRock saw strong demand for its first QDLP product, the Health Sciences Hedge Fund.

Chinas domestic hedge fund industry has ballooned in recent years with 7,800 private investment fund managers accounting for around $361 billion in assets as of September, according to the Asset Management Association of China.

Many wealthy Chinese are keen, however, to hedge their exposure to the falling yuan through offshore assets. The Boston Consulting Group estimates that the proportion of personal Chinese wealth allocated offshore will increase from the current 4.8 percent to 9.4 percent, or by 13 trillion yuan ($1.9 trillion) in assets, by 2020.

($1 = 6.9167 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Samuel Shen in Shanghai and Michelle Price in Hong Kong; Editing by Denny Thomas and Muralikumar Anantharaman)

Topics China Allianz
XL Catlin announced the appointment of Vincent Branch as Chief Executive for Accelerate, its new expert team focused on innovation and insurtech.

Accelerate is led by XL Catlins former chief underwriting officer for Insurance, Paul Brand.

Branch joins XL Catlin with over 20 years experience in the insurance industry. Most recently, he held the position of chief underwriting officer and chief actuary for VitalityHealth (part of the Discovery group). Prior to this role, Branch was the global chief underwriting officer for personal lines at Zurich Insurance. In these roles, he implemented a wide range of product and pricing innovations. He holds a BSc Honours degree in Mathematics from Loughborough University of Technology, and is a Fellow in the UK Institute and Faculty of Actuaries and Chartered Insurance Institute.

We all know our industry is undergoing a huge amount of change. New technologies are impacting our clients risk profiles both in terms of creating and eliminating risk; they are also altering distribution channels and buying trends. How the market responds is going to determine the future survival of our industry, said Brand, speaking on Branchs appointment and on his ambition for the team.

We understand the huge opportunities that technology and innovation presents for re/insurers that are prepared to push the boundaries. Our investment in this team is a further demonstration of our commitment to doing just that, Brand said.

The team will work across the business, with the business. It is charged with harnessing our collective expertise to deliver new solutions and services which ultimately deliver value by giving rise to better outcomes for our clients, he added.

Brand continued: I am delighted that Vincent has joined the team. The stand out work he has done in the personal lines space looking at how the insurance industry approaches and leverages wearables, telematics and automation, positions him ideally for this role and greatly enhances our play.

Accelerate complements other innovation focused activities at XL Catlin. In 2015, it announced the creation of XL Innovate, an XL Group Ltd sponsored venture capital initiative. XL Innovate is financially backed by XL Group Ltd. and invests in companies that have a strategic focus on developing new capabilities in the insurance sector. XL Innovate invests in companies that strive to create opportunities outside of the traditional underwriting space by finding ways to underwrite currently uninsured risks.

Source: XL Catlin

Topics InsurTech Tech AXA XL
Nebraskas Gage County will challenge its insurers decision not to cover it for a $28.1 million judgment awarded to six people who were wrongfully convicted of murder.

KWBE reports that the county board approved hiring a law firm to fight its insurers decision not to cover the lawsuit filed by six people who were wrongfully convicted in the 1985 murder of a Beatrice woman.

County officials have said Gage County doesnt have the resources to pay the judgment, which it has appealed.

The Keating OGara law firm will receive more money if it manages to collect from the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association or EMC Insurance.

The six people who sued spent a combined 77 years in prison in the death of 68-year-old Helen Wilson before DNA testing cleared them in 2008.

James Dean, Kathleen Gonzalez, Debra Shelden, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Thomas Winslow and Joseph White were the first people in the state cleared by DNA evidence, which was made possible by a 2007 Nebraska Supreme Court ruling.

Wilsons killing has since been linked to Bruce Allen Smith, who grew up in Beatrice. Investigators said Smith returned to the town days before the slaying and then quickly went back to Oklahoma. He died in 1992.

Related:

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Topics Lawsuits Carriers Nebraska
A contract Iowa has proposed for its largest public employees union includes no wage increase and removes health insurance provisions, a sign that changes could be on the horizon for collective bargaining laws when the new Republican-majority Legislature returns next year.

The contract released by the Iowa Department of Administrative Services to the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Iowa Council 61 adds language that would give the state more control in determining health benefits. A proposal by the union to increase wages between 2017 and 2019 was taken out.

Iowa Council 61 represents public employees including correctional officers, firefighters, mental health workers and emergency responders. The contract in question would cover workers in fields that include community-based corrections, education, patient care and security, among others.

The announcement comes days after DAS proposed removing health insurance provisions in its contract with the State Police Officers Council, which represents a range of law enforcement officers.

Danny Homan, Iowa Council 61 president, said he was disappointed but not surprised by the states proposal following the contract negotiations with the council.

Shortchanging our public employees in anticipation of what the legislature might do is premature, he said in a statement.

Republicans will control both the House and Senate for the first time in years when they come back for the legislative session that begins in January. Gov. Terry Branstad has expressed support for changes to how public workers pay for health care.

His spokesman, Ben Hammes, described it in an email as a more patient-centered way that is financially sustainable for the Iowa taxpayers. No formal plans have been released.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Iowa
South Dakota law enforcement authorities are no longer releasing vehicle crash information because doing so could violate a constitutional amendment approved by voters this month.

The states Department of Public Safety suspended access to an online crash report database after the ballot measure known as Marsys Law went into effect following the Nov. 8 election. The Sioux Falls Police Department is also not releasing crash reports and is considering whether to continue posting online a 30-day log of calls for service.

Constitutional Amendment S gives victims the right to privacy, protection from harassment or abuse, and timely notice of trial, sentencing and post-judgment proceedings. The law is named for California college student Marsalee Marsy Nicholas, who was stalked and killed in 1983 by an ex-boyfriend. Her brother, Henry Nicholas, bankrolled the effort to expand it to South Dakota.

The amendment includes a provision that gives victims the right to prevent disclosure of information or records that could be used to locate or harass the victim or the victims family. Crash reports typically include the addresses of the parties involved.

Scott Hoy, a Sioux Falls attorney who represents clients in personal injury lawsuits, told the Argus Leader that he expects attorneys will be able to acquire the reports, but at a much slower pace. He said people filing damage or medical claims could face delays in medical payments leading to personal debts being sent to collections agencies and the need for an attorney to step in.

Attempts to obtain a crash report from the South Dakota Department of Public Safetys accident records website are met with a notification stating that due to the passage and enactment of Amendment S to the South Dakota constitution, also known as Marsys Law, the sale of South Dakota motor vehicle crash reports to all parties has been suspended until further notice.

Sioux Falls Police spokesman Sam Clemens says the department is evaluating whether its online log of calls, which lists addresses where incidents have taken place, can continue to be made available.

Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead told KELO-TV that law enforcement authorities still dont know whether they are allowed to release the location of crimes or any details at all.

How can we inform the public on these areas, if now it appears that this is prohibited? Milstead said.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Auto
A fire at the gun shop next door never reached Kathy Laurientis sausage and specialty food store, but the water and smoke damage was enough to shut her business down. Because Laurienti didnt have enough insurance, its still closed  more than a year later.

Laurienti still doesnt know how much her total losses will be, but estimates shell have to pay $30,000 to $40,000 from her own pocket. While she had $10,000 in coverage for lost income, shell likely have lost $100,000 in business by the time she can reopen.

You dont think about what the insurance might not handle, says Laurienti, whose store, Paisano, is located in a shopping center in Denver.

Its a lesson learned all too often, including by business owners hit by natural disasters like this summers flooding in Louisiana that caused an estimated $2 billion in damage to companies. Some businesses in the Southeast are still assessing their losses from Hurricane Matthew, which caused an estimated $10 billion in commercial and residential losses.

The government estimates that 40 percent of companies that havent prepared themselves to be able to operate after a disaster are forced to shut down. And 25 percent of businesses fail within two years because of inadequate post-disaster revenue or cash flow. Adequate insurance would help them survive.

Inadequate Coverage

Small companies frequently either dont buy insurance at all or dont have enough to cover their losses when disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes and power outages strike.

Many owners who do buy insurance opt for a standard business policy that covers fire, rain, wind and vandalism. These policies may also include business interruption insurance, which covers lost income when a company cannot operate. But they dont cover damage from floods or earthquakes, which can be serious threats in many parts of the country.

Most (owners) are buying it as if its a commodity product instead of understanding it needs to be customized to their particular situation, says Robert Borghese, who teaches law and entrepreneurship at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

Many rely too much on insurance brokers who may not have a thorough understanding of the coverage theyre selling, Borghese says. Brokers may not know what a particular companys needs are.

Owners may also trying to keep their costs down, and dont think about the what ifs, says Belen Tokarski, a senior vice president at Insureon, an online insurance broker aimed at small businesses. It can cost thousands of dollars to insure a building and its contents in moderate-to-high risk areas.

Theyre price-focused, so theyre purchasing just what they think they need, she says.

Walter Coker considered buying flood insurance for his property that included a barn filled with furniture imported from Indonesia and a bait shop. But his broker said the cost of insuring the barn, located on the Matanzas River in St. Augustine, Florida, would be more than Coker could afford. The building is old and in disrepair.

He didnt give me any numbers, but said it would be exorbitant to try to insure a barn like that, Coker says.

When Hurricane Matthew hit, the barn and bait shop had four feet of water from the river. Cokers furniture inventory was heavily damaged. He was able to sell it at a discount and recover the price he paid, but estimates he had $6,000 to $7,000 in losses.

Coker knows he was gambling, but given the cost of insurance, says hes comfortable doing so. But for some owners, denial is a factor.

Their eyes glaze over. Theyre busy running the day-to-day operations. They dont want to think about something bad happening, says Brian Van Hook, associate director at the Small Business Development Center at Florida International University.

Van Hook recommends resources like checklists posted by the trade group Insurance Information Institute on its website that help companies understand their risks. SBDCs like Van Hooks are located around the country and can be found at www.sba.gov/sbdc .

Beyond natural disasters, if an owner is unable to work or dies, a company could be in danger.

Erin Jump Frys husband, Mike, became ill in 2010, but he didnt have disability or life insurance. Their business, Fancy Fortune Cookies, didnt have a life insurance policy for him that would have helped it deal with the financial fallout of the loss of its co-owner. Without insurance money, Erin Fry couldnt hire someone to help her run it while she also cared for her husband and daughter.

You cant hire a replacement because youre having to pull money from the company to pay medical bills, says Fry, whose company is based in Indianapolis.

Mike Fry passed away in November 2012, and several months later, his wife discovered that an employee was embezzling money. Business fraud insurance would have helped her recover that cash, she says. Her frustration is with attorneys and other advisers who didnt talk to the Frys about insurance coverage, some varieties of which she didnt even know existed.

Fancy Fortune Cookies has recovered, Fry says, and she now has more comprehensive insurance.

People who run businesses out of their homes may mistakenly think their homeowners policy will cover business losses, Tokarski says.

Elizabeth Crouch sells cupcake racks out of her home, and kept inventory in a building on the property. A fire in April destroyed the building and melted 1,500 racks, wiping out $5,000 in inventory that would have brought Crouch $37,000 in revenue. She discovered that the racks werent covered.

I had liability insurance just in case someone got hurt, says Crouch, who lives in Sheridan, Oregon. Never did I ever think there was a chance of losing my inventory.

Crouch is trying to be certain she wont suffer similar losses again.

Everything else in my business Im re-examining to be sure Im covered for anything, she says.

Related:

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Topics Profit Loss Commercial Lines Business Insurance
Students and administrators raised concerns about a Tennessee school bus drivers behavior behind the wheel in the weeks before a crash that killed six children.

Police have charged driver Johnthony Walker with vehicular homicide after the Chattanooga crash. Federal authorities said Walker was driving off the designated bus route when he wrecked on a curvy road while carrying 37 children on their way home from Woodmore Elementary School.

Records released by the school district Friday include two written statements by students complaining about Walkers driving.

The bus diver drives fast, one student wrote earlier this month. It feels like the bus is going to flip over  He makes people go seat to seat back and forth, when someone is in the aisle he stops the bus and he makes people hit their heads.

Another student wrote: The bus driver was doing sharp turns and he made me fly over to the next seat. We need seat belts.

On Nov. 2, a school official boarded the bus after the driver complained that students were not listening him. One student had complained about the heat on the bus and cursed about it to the bus driver.

The driver was now visibly upset and continued on by saying that he had another job and driving this bus was just a part-time job for him, wrote Carlis Shackelford, a behavior specialist at the school. Driver stated that he could just leave him at the school. He then stated `or I can just leave the student on the bus and I will get off the bus and leave the school.

Driver stated that he did not care about the students and proceeded to tell the students he did not care about them, Shackelford wrote.

The school districts transportation supervisor, Benjamin Coulter, responded that we are addressing the issue with the driver.

National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Christopher A. Hart said in a news conference earlier this week that Walker had had taken on a second job at an Amazon fulfillment center, and part of the agencys investigation will look at whether fatigue played a role in the wreck.

The bus driver had also complained to administrators that students would not listen to him when he told them not stand in the bus or sit with their backs facing the front. The driver submitted 10 names of students he said were misbehaving. The transportation supervisor responded that the driver may have had some legitimate safety concerns but that the driver shouldnt report so many students.

I dont want the driver to become discouraged, but he cant be turning 10 referrals in a day to you, either, Coulter wrote.

Woodmore Principal Brenda Adamson-Cothran asked for video of the bus leaving campus, noting that a few days earlier the driver, in my opinion, was driving way too fast when he pulled out of our school.

Its unclear what the video showed; hyperlinks to it are redacted in the records.

On Nov. 16, Adamson-Cothran wrote to Coulter to tell him six students had reported that the driver was swerving and purposely trying to cause them to fall today.

Walker was in custody at the Hamilton County Correctional Facility on Friday and had a court hearing scheduled for Tuesday. Jail records do not indicate whether he has an attorney.

The complaints about Walker appear to have begun in September when a parent wrote a letter to complain that the driver had cursed her kids and slammed on the brakes, causing them to hit their heads and fall out of their seats.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Personal Auto Tennessee
A Kentucky judge has cleared the way for Republican Gov. Matt Bevin to appoint six administrative law judges to help ease a backlog of workers compensation cases.

The ruling by Franklin County Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd is a victory for Bevin at the courthouse, who has seen several of his executive orders restructuring state government struck down by the courts. Most of the rulings have come from Shepherd, whom Bevin has called a political hack.

Shepherd agreed Tuesday to end an impasse over the selection of six administrative law judges that decide workers compensation claims. State law permits the governor to appoint those judges, but he must pick from a slate of candidates recommended to him by the Workers Compensation Nominating Commission.

In June, Bevin abolished the seven-member commission and replaced it with a five-member committee. Most of the commission members had been appointed by the previous administration. Labor unions sued, worried that Bevin was trying to stack the court with judges sympathetic to employers.

Shepherd temporarily barred the commission from making recommendations to the governor, leaving the court with six vacancies for most of the year and increasing the workload of the remaining 11 judges. The Department of Workers Claims has at least 400 cases that need to be reassigned, according to Mike Swansburg, general counsel for the Kentucky Labor Cabinet.

Since then, four of the seven members on the old commission have resigned. Shepherd had urged Bevin to appoint replacements, which would have given him a majority of votes on the commission. But Bevin refused, insisting that his order abolishing and replacing the commission be recognized as legal.

On Tuesday, Shepherd said he could see no useful purpose in delaying the submission of names to the Governor. But he did not rule on whether Bevins executive order was legal.

Todays court order is welcome news, as Kentuckians were really beginning to feel the pain of not being able to move forward with their workers comp claims, Bevin spokeswoman Amanda Stamper said.

Kentucky AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan said he and his organizations attorneys are still reviewing the decision.

Were certainly interested in making sure the workers comp system didnt get any further backlogs, Londrigan said. But this still leaves open the constitutional issue regarding the governors authority to abolish a statutory commission and replace it with his own.

Bevin has been aggressively restructuring state government since he took office in December, abolishing and replacing several state boards and commissions that oversee important industries and functions of state government. The most controversial were his decision to replace the boards of trustees of the University of Louisville and the Kentucky Retirement Systems. Both have been challenged by Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear.

Shepherd barred Bevin from removing Thomas Elliot from the Kentucky Retirement Systems board of trustees, but he later modified that ruling to say Elliott could participate in the meetings but not vote.

Shepherd also ruled Bevin was wrong to abolish the University of Louisville board, calling it a dangerous precedent that invites the abuse of power. Bevin has appealed, and this week Beshear asked the state Supreme Court to expedite the case by bypassing the state Court of Appeals.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Legislation Workers' Compensation Kentucky
Vocational students from across West Virginia are building tiny houses to help some people struggling to recover from flooding this year.

Students from 12 vocational schools are designing and building the houses, which will be presented to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin next month, The Charleston Gazette-Mail reported.

The project is a partnership between the West Virginia Department of Education and the Greater Recovery and Community Empowerment, an umbrella organization for various long-term recovery committees in each of the affected counties.

This is a phenomenal learning experience for our students in West Virginia, but the bigger learning experience is taking ownership of being a citizen of West Virginia and giving back to your community when you can, said Kathy DAntoni, chief officer of career and technical education for the state Department of Education. Its not just the nice thing to do, its the right thing to do.

Tiny houses have various sizes but are generally between 100 and 400 square feet. Some are portable. Each of the houses will look different.

Its quite innovative, said Sen. John Unger, who helped set up the recovery committees. I dont know of other places that do that. FEMA has indicated that thats very unusual  what West Virginia is doing. Were really trying to break new ground by doing this.

Carver Career and Technical Education Center is involving all of its students in the project. Carpentry, plumbing, electrical, HVAC and drafting students are building the house, while students from other programs are working on furnishing the house and stocking its kitchen with donated food, Principal Phillip Calvert said.

A quick turnaround for the houses has made the project somewhat hectic, said carpentry instructor Tom Bradley. The students had 28 days and a $20,000 budget to design and build their 8-foot-by-12-foot house, Bradley said. Homes typically take a full year from start to move-in, he said.

Nicholas Chapman, a carpentry student and a senior at Capital High School, said the students still need to do interior work on the house: hanging sheet rock and installing flooring and cabinets.

Its been pretty fun, Chapman said. Its been a bigger learning experience than anything else weve taken on so far. Its bigger than any other project weve done, so its getting us ready for the real work experience.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Flood Virginia Training Development
The National Weather Service in Seattle is warning that recent heavy rainfall has led to an increased threat of landslides throughout the western part of the state.

The alert notes that the recent rainfall has put extra pressure on the instability of soil that has already been saturated from rain over the past several weeks.

The Weather Service also issued a flood watch for Grays Harbor, Lewis and Thurston counties.

It also issued a flood warning for the Chehalis River near Grand Mound in Thurston County.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Washington
A team of University of Hawaii scientists has completed a study of nearshore ecosystems across Maui that shows the impact of discharged treated wastewater.

The findings were published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE earlier this month.

The scientists analyzed water and algae at six locations around Maui, including Kahului Bay, which is adjacent to Mauis highest-volume sewage treatment plant. A study of the bay found high nutrient levels in marine surface waters near the Kahului Wastewater Reclamation Facility and a `thick, fleshy mat of colonial zoanthids, a coral-like organism.

Ive never seen them dominate an ecosystem like that, said Daniel Amato, lead author of the study.

The authors noted in the report that the presence of such concentrations of zoanthids is associated with areas close to wastewater injection wells.

Kuau and Maalaea waters were also found to have nearly 100 times more nitrogen than other locations due to fertilizer-enriched groundwater discharge.

I have never seen a paper or sound results as high as what we found in Kuau Bay in terms of nitrate levels, Amato said. Its approaching enforceable contaminant (Environmental Protection Agency) levels.

Researchers also found high concentrations of nitrogen near sugar cane fields.

By comparing the spatial distribution of (nitrogen) in both water and algal samples among locations with various potential nitrogen sources, the role agriculture and wastewater have in coastal regions has become more clear, according to the study.

Scientists are interested in finding out what will happen to reefs near Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Co. when the states last sugar plantation closes down at the end of the year. Amato is looking to secure funding in order to monitor waters where much of the sugar cane production takes place off Kuau and Paia.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Agribusiness Pollution
Its the job of the U.S. military and defense establishment to predict and understand the world of the immediate and long-term future. In a video series produced by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency that was re-surfaced in a World Economic Forum post, the experts looked 30 years down the road, to the year 2045. There is a lot for the insurance industry to ponder in these predictions, which include the following:

Computing everywhere. For starters, computing capabilities will be everywhere  in everything we touch, surrounding us everywhere we go.

New composite, smart and strong materials. The composition of our surroundings will change, reconstructed at the atomic level. In 30 years, I imagine a world in which we dont recognize the materials in the thigs that surround us, says Stefanie Tomkins, a geologist and director of DARPA's Defense Sciences Office. Whether its the buildings were living in, the cars that were driving, if were driving cars the aircraft, all of those things will be made up right now that historically we thought were impossible.

Thought-controlled computing. The predictions include the possibility that devices or applications will be capable of being launched by human thoughts. "Think about controlling different aspects of your home just using your brain signals, or maybe communicating with your friends and your family just using neural activity from your brain, according to Dr. Justin Sanchez, a neuroscientist and director of DARPAs Biological Technologies Office. DARPA is already working on what Sanchez calls neurotechnologies that can accomplish this.

For computers not controlled by thoughts, there will be other means of access  such as voice. Were already seeing rudimentary stirrings of voice-activated computing, such as Apples Siri and Amazons Alexa/Echo. "We're going to find that we have a very different relationship with the machines around us," says Pam Melroy, an aerospace engineer and a former astronaut who is now a deputy director at DARPA's Tactical Technologies Office. "I think that we will begin to see a time when we're able to simply just talk or even press a button" to interact with a machine to get things done more intelligently, instead of using keyboards or rudimentary voice-recognition systems.

Artificial intelligence in the drivers  and pilots  seat. Self-driving 18-wheeler trucks are already on our highways. In 30 years, self-driving cars and trucks will be the rule  and perhaps the young people of that era will find it hard to believe that we actually had to drive ourselves at one time. We have drones now, and soon, artificial intelligence will be capable of piloting aircraft.

Dont expect the human pilot on the flight deck to go away anytime soon, however. These are factors that will definitely shape the types of coverage and products insurance carriers will be providing. Of course, its almost impossible to imagine what the insurance industry will look like that that time from a structural point of view. Were already seeing forces such as digital technologies, big data and insurtech challenging the status quo. Its a safe bet to assume that the insurance company of 2045 will be leaner, smarter, and much more capable of providing highly targeted products and services when and where customers need them.
(Bloomberg) -- Listening to Andrew Rear talk about insurers, you wouldnt think he works for one thats been around for 136 years.

The 46-year-old head of Munich Res Digital Partners unit has said the industry is one of the last bastions of the 19th century, a disaster with products that are almost impossible to understand. Rears job is to change that.

Last month he struck the first deal for Munich Res Digital Partners, taking a stake in Slice Labs, a one-year-old startup that offers insurance. Cross-town rival Allianz SE four months earlier invested in Simplesurance, a new firm thats offering product protection for online purchases. The deals highlight the rush by Europes time-honored insurers to get in on the technology thats changing financial services on Wall Street.

Insurtech is here to stay and it will bring fundamental change to the insurance industry, Rear, who headed Munich Res life reinsurance operations in Africa, Asia Pacific, the U.K. and Ireland before taking the new position in May, said in an interview. The gain for us is to build new business model approaches for Munich Re by providing capacity to these new firms.

Fintech has attracted investors for some time, but much of the funding was focused on technologies that could change banking and investing, such as blockchain -- the software that underpins bitcoin -- big data analysis or robo advisers. With startups increasingly delivering products that work, and the big insurers getting in, thats changing.

Insurance hasnt really been on the radar of entrepreneurs in the past because its so complex and opaque, said Francois Robinet, managing partner of Axa Strategic Ventures, the venture capital unit of French insurer Axa SA. Now they discovered that there are a lot of inefficiencies and problems that they can solve, meaning a lot of opportunities for innovation.

Record Funding

Funding for insurance-focused startups hit a record $2.7 billion last year. The number of investments involving such companies is expected to exceed 75 this year, up from 61 in 2015 and just one in 2012, according to venture-capital researcher CB Insights.

Both Munich Re and Allianz have set up units in recent years for venture deals and partnerships as they seek new clients and ways to distribute their services. Axa started its venture capital unit last year, with 230 million euros in commitments.

Allianz and Munich Re didnt say how much they invested in each deal, but amounts are usually small. Axas venture capital portfolio counts 22 companies, on which the firm spent about 25 million euros, according to Robinet. Investments include stakes in online insurance broker Policygenius as well as blockchain, banking and crowdfunding startups. All of them are in an early stage, where investments typically dont exceed 2 million euros, he said.

If the experience of banks is any guidance, it could be some time before any investments pay off. Lenders have made largely incremental steps to overhaul longstanding practices, such as using digital signature applications to reduce paperwork. Its only recently that banks have started experimenting with potential breakthroughs such as using the blockchain to cut costs and fundamentally change the way their customers do business.

Distribution Costs

Fintech for insurers is both a long-term challenge and an opportunity, with material effects that may only start to emerge in 10 years time, S&P Global Ratings wrote in a report last week.

For insurers, some of the technologys appeal is that it can help reduce the cost of distribution. The companies have used direct sales through online platforms for years, yet they still spent most of their non-claims costs on distribution.

We see a huge amount of potential change, said Jason Richards, the head of property and casualty business management at Swiss Re AG, the worlds second-biggest reinsurer. With reducing cost of distribution being one of the focus areas of insurtechs, there will be increasing challenges for the agents who will all need to reinvent themselves.

Trov, So-Sure

But the startups can also open new groups of potential clients. Allianz made its first investment in one of these new ventures in June when it acquired a minority stake in Berlin-based Simplesurance. The company, founded in 2012, sells point-of-sale protection for products like phones, bikes and laptops. Allianz sells insurance through the company.

Munich Re followed suit and announced it would partner with Simplesurance and help it develop new products and markets. Munich Res Digital Partners has also announced partnerships with U.S.-based insurtech startups Trov and London-based So-Sure, which insures mobile phones. The reinsurer helps some of the new companies cover claims, allowing them to grow faster than if they would relying just on their own capital.

Munich Res U.S. subsidiary belongs to a group of carriers backing startup Lemonade, which has eliminated brokers and sells renters and homeowners insurance in direct competition with primary insurers. The company, which began to sell homeowner insurance in September, promises clients low cost services and the ability to submit claims in minutes through their mobile devices. Backers, which include Berkshire Hathaway Inc.s National Indemnity and XL Group Plc, will backstop contracts arranged through the startup.

Bermuda-based XL, like Axa, has set up a venture capital fund to invest in technology startups. The unit, XL Innovate, was among a group of investors backing a $3.9 million funding for Slice Labs in March, and invested in business insurance startup Embroker in May.

We are still early in the game, said Tom Hutton, who heads XL Innovate. Insurance is a business where there is a reason for scale and carriers that are truly open for change will probably absorb the leading new ventures.
We publish unbiased product reviews; our opinions are our own and are not influenced by payment we receive from our advertising partners. Learn more about how we review products and read our advertiser disclosure for how we make money.

A Medicare Advantage Plan, also called a Part C or an MA Plan, may sound enticing. It combines Medicare Part A (hospital insurance), Medicare Part B (medical insurance), and usually Medicare Part D (prescription drug coverage) into one plan. These plans cover all Medicare services, and some offer extra coverage for vision, hearing, and dental. They are offered by private companies approved by Medicare.

Still, while many offer low premiumssometimes as low as $0 per monththe devil is in the details. You will find that many plans unexpectedly won't cover certain expenses when you get sickresulting in unforeseen out-of-pocket costs for youand what they pay can differ depending upon your overall health. Here's a look at some of the disadvantages of Medicare Advantage Plans.

Key Takeaways A Medicare Advantage (MA) Plan, known as Medicare Part C, provides Part A and B benefits, and sometimes Part D (prescription drugs), and other benefits.

All Medicare Advantage providers must accept Medicare-eligible enrollees.

Sick participants may find that medical care costs skyrocket under a Medicare Advantage plan due to copayments and out-of-pocket expenses.

Medicare Advantage Plan customers can switch back to Original Medicare during an annual Open Enrollment Period.

Prospective Medicare Advantage customers should research plans, copays, out-of-pocket costs, and eligible providers.

Coverage Choices for Medicare

If you're older than 65 (or turning 65 in the next three months) and not already getting benefits from Social Security, you have to sign up for Medicare Part A and Part B. It doesn't happen automatically. However, if you already get Social Security benefits, you'll get Medicare Part A and Part B automatically when you first become eligible (you don't need to sign up).

There are two main ways to get Medicare coverage:

Original Medicare A Medicare Advantage Plan

Original Medicare

Original Medicare includes Part A (hospital insurance) and Part B (medical insurance). To help pay for things that aren't covered by Medicare, you can opt to buy supplemental insurance known as Medigap (or Medicare Supplement Insurance).

These policies are offered by private insurers and cover things that Medicare doesn't, such as copayments, deductibles, and healthcare when you travel abroad.

Medigap policies vary and the most comprehensive coverage offered was through Plan F, which covers all copays and deductibles. Unfortunately, as of January 1, 2020, Plan F and Plan C, the two plans that covered deductibles cannot be sold to new Medicare beneficiaries. However, if you were eligible for Medicare prior to that time but haven't yet enrolled, you still may be able to get Plan F or Plan C.

Be aware that with Original Medicare and Medigap plans, you will still need Part D prescription drug coverage. If you don't buy it when you first become eligible for itand are not covered by a drug plan through work or a spouseyou will be charged a lifetime penalty if you try to buy it later.

Medicare Advantage Plans

A Medicare Advantage Plan is intended to be an all-in-one alternative to Original Medicare. These plans are offered by private insurance companies that contract with Medicare to provide Part A and Part B benefits, and sometimes Part D (prescriptions).

Most plans cover benefits that Original Medicare doesn't offer, such as vision, hearing, and dental. You have to sign up for Medicare Part A and Part B before you can enroll in Medicare Advantage Plan.

The private insurers receive a fixed amount each month for Medicare Advantage plan care. In turn, these companies can charge out-of-pocket costs to policyholders and are able to establish their own rules for service such as the need for referrals or provider networks for both non-urgent care and emergency services.

$0 to $7,550 The range of 2022 Medicare Advantage plans' maximum out-of-pocket limits, according to Q1Medicare.com, a Medicare educational site.

Medicare Advantage Plans do have a yearly limit on your out-of-pocket costs for medical services, called the maximum out-of-pocket (MOOP). Once you reach this limit, youll pay nothing for covered services.

Each plan can have a different limit, and the limit can change each year, so that's a factor to consider when purchasing one. Not surprisingly, there's often an inverse relationship between the amount of a plan's deductible and premium, and the size of its MOOP.

Disadvantages of Medicare Advantage Plans

In general, Medicare Advantage Plans do not offer the same level of choice as a Medicare plus Medigap combination. Most plans require you to go to their network of doctors and health providers.

Since Medicare Advantage Plans cant pick their customers (they must accept any Medicare-eligible participant), they discourage people who are sick by the way they structure their copays and deductibles. Many enrollees have been hit with unexpected costs and denial of benefits for various types of care deemed not medically necessary.

Consider Your Other Costs

Out-of-pocket costs can quickly build up over the year if you get sick. The Medicare Advantage Plan may offer a $0 premium, but the out-of-pocket surprises may not be worth those initial savings if you get sick. The best candidate for Medicare Advantage is someone who's healthy," says Mary Ashkar, senior attorney for the Center for Medicare Advocacy. "We see trouble when someone gets sick."



$19 The average monthly premium for Medicare Advantage plans in 2022, compared to $21.22 in 2021.

Switching Back to Original Medicare

While you can save money with a Medicare Advantage Plan when you are healthy, if you get sick in the middle of the year, you are stuck with whatever costs you incur. If you decide that the Medicare Advantage Plan isn't for you, you have the right under federal law to purchase any Medigap plan if you switch to Original Medicare within 12 months of the date that you joined a Medicare Advantage Plan for the first time.

You may also switch from your Medicare Advantage Plan to Original Medicare during the annual Open Enrollment Period or if you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period. However, you may not be able to purchase a Medigap policy (if you switch after the aforementioned 12-month limit). If you are able to do so, it may cost more than it would have when you first enrolled in Medicare.

Keep in mind that an employer only needs to provide Medigap insurance if you meet specific requirements regarding underwriting (if this is after the 12-month period). The wait time for Medigap coverage can be avoided if you have what is called a "guaranteed issue right."

A thorough breakdown of what is considered a "guaranteed issue right," where an insurance company can't refuse to sell you a Medigap policy, can be found on the Medicare website.

Most Medigap policies are issue-age rated policies or attained-age rated policies. This means that when you sign up later in life, you will pay more per month than if you had started with the Medigap policy at age 65. You may be able to find a policy that has no age rating, but those are rare.

Why Is Medicare Advantage a Bad Choice? Medicare Advantage can become expensive if you're sick, due to uncovered copays. Additionally, a plan may offer only a limited network of doctors, which can interfere with a patient's choice. It's not easy to change to another plan. If you decide to switch to a Medigap policy, there often are lifetime penalties.

Why Should I Choose Medicare Advantage? A Medicare Advantage plan covers some of the gaps of Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) and usually offers a $0 premium through a private company. It can be an affordable option for patients who are not currently sick or in need of intense medical care. If a patient's situation worsens, it might be difficult or expensive to switch plans.

Can I Choose Any Doctor With Medicare Advantage? Most Medicare Advantage plans work with a limited network of healthcare providers, so double-check to make sure your doctor visit is covered.

The Bottom Line

Shop very carefully if you are thinking of using a Medicare Advantage plan. Be sure to read the fine print. Get a comprehensive list of all co-pays and deductibles before choosing one.

Also, be sure to find out if all your doctors accept the plan and that all the medications you take (if it's a plan that also wraps in Part D prescription drug coverage) will be covered. If the plan doesn't cover your current physicians, be sure that its doctors are acceptable to you and are taking new patients covered by the plan.

CorrectionMay 5, 2022: A previous version of this article failed to explain the intricacies present when switching from a Medicare Advantage plan to a Medigap policy.
Health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs) are benefits that some employers offer their employees to help with healthcare expenses. Theyre a way for companies to reimburse workers for these costs, and reimbursements are generally tax-free when used for qualified medical expenses.

Since January 2020, the government has allowed employers to offer their employees two types of HRAs. The first is called an individual coverage HRA, and companies can only offer it if they don't offer group health insurance.

Employees can use these HRAs to buy their own comprehensive health insurance with pretax dollars either on or off the Health Insurance Marketplace. Individual coverage HRAs can also reimburse employees for qualified health expenses such as copayments and deductibles.

How much employers contribute to employees individual coverage HRAs is up to the employers, except that all workers in the same class of employees must receive the same contribution. Workers who are older or who have dependents may receive more.

Under the new rules, employers that continue to offer traditional group health insurance can also offer the second, new type: excepted benefit HRAs. These plans reimburse employees for up to $1,800 a year (for both 2021 and 2022) in qualified medical expenses.

Employees can enroll in an excepted benefit HRA even if they decline group health insurance coverage, but they cannot use the funds to buy comprehensive health insurance. They can, however, use the funds to pay for short-term health insurance, dental and vision premiums, and qualified medical expenses.

Key Takeaways Since January 2020, employers of all sizes have been able to offer to reimburse their employees for some of the cost of buying individual health insurance plans instead of offering group health insurance.

These reimbursement arrangements, called individual coverage HRAs, can also pay employees back for qualified medical expenses such as coinsurance and deductibles.

Employers who continue to offer group coverage may also offer their employees excepted benefit HRAs to reimburse employees for qualified medical expenses but not for comprehensive health insurance premiums.

Who Funds an HRA?

HRAs are funded entirely by employer money. An HRA is not an account (though you may see it mistakenly referred to that way). Its a reimbursement arrangement between employee and employer. Employees cant invest the balance, and it doesnt earn interest. If you participate in an HRA, you wont see any deductions from your paycheck.

Instead, your employer decides how much it is willing to reimburse you for healthcare costs on a monthly or annual basis. If you still have a balance at the end of the year, it may roll over to the next year as long as your employer continues to offer the HRA and you continue to participate, but it also may not: that decision is up to your employer, too.

How to Participate

To participate in an HRA, you must opt in during your employers open enrollment period. If you have a qualifying life event, you can sign up outside of open enrollment. Spouses and children who participate in your employers health insurance plan can also be reimbursed through an HRA. Unfortunately, if youre self-employed, you cant use an HRA.

The IRS allowed employers more flexibility with their benefit plans during the COVID-19 crisis. An employee can make a new election if they initially declined to elect employer-sponsored health coverage; revoke an existing election and make a new election to enroll in different health coverage sponsored by the same employer; and revoke an existing election, provided that the employee attests in writing that they are enrolled, or will immediately enroll, in other health coverage not sponsored by the employer. All these provisions are entirely at the discretion of the employer.

Reimbursable Expenses

Its up to your employer to decide which of your expenses to reimburse. The expense must be a qualified medical expense listed in IRS Publication 502, but your employer can use a narrower list. In general, employees can use an HRA to be reimbursed for qualified medical expenses their health insurance doesnt pay for, such as medical and pharmacy expenses they must pay out of pocket before meeting a deductible, as well as a coinsurance that applies after meeting a deductible.

Qualified medical expenses include costs such as doctor's office visits, X-rays, or surgery. Dental and vision expenses usually qualify, too, as do a few over-the-counter items, such as diabetes-testing aids, blood-pressure monitors, and contact-lens solutions.

Employers cant let you use HRA funds for things the IRS doesnt allow, though. You cant use an HRA for over-the-counter medicines unless your doctor has prescribed them. You also cant use an HRA to be reimbursed for costs you incurred before your HRA participation became effective or for costs from a different year.

$22,643 The average annual premium for a high-deductible health plan (HDHP)/HRA for a family in 2020; the average for a single person was $7,464

Reimbursement Logistics

Your HRA administrator will often be able to verify your claim automatically, but sometimes youll need to submit an itemized bill from your healthcare provider to substantiate your claim. By law, no expense is too small to be reimbursed, but your employer might require you to accumulate a minimum amount of reimbursable expenses before it will issue a check.

Your employer chooses how it will reimburse you for qualified medical expenses. You may receive a debit card so you can pay for your expenses as needed, or you may have to pay up front, then request reimbursement. Some plans will reimburse your doctor directly, so you dont need to use a debit card or wait to get your money back.

The maximum you can be reimbursed per year is whatever your employer decides. If your employer allows it, you may be able to spend the amount remaining in your HRA within a limited period if you are terminated.

Tax Benefits

You dont have to report your participation in an HRA on your tax return. The amount your employer is willing to reimburse you for medical expenses through an HRA is not considered taxable income, nor are the actual amounts reimbursed, as long as you put the money toward qualified medical expenses as defined by the IRS and your employer.

Exceptions to tax-free distributions apply in a few situations: If your employer pays out your unused reimbursements at the end of the year or when you leave your job, the money will be considered taxable income. Because its not being used to reimburse you for qualified medical expenses, its treated as ordinary income.

Using an HRA With an HSA or FSA

Can you combine an HRA with a Health Savings Account (HSA) or flexible spending account (FSA)? Before answering that question, it's important to clarify the meaning of these two types of accounts. Health insurance terms can get confusing, so here's a quick reminder:

HSAs must be used with a high-deductible health plan (HDHP). Contributions can come from both employers and employees, the balance can be invested and rolled over from year to year, and the account goes with you when you change jobs. These accounts can also be useful as retirement savings vehicles. FSAs dont have to be used with an HDHP. Contributions come only from employee payroll deductions, and the balance cant be invested and doesnt earn interest. FSA funds must be spent in the current plan year, though some employers allow small amounts to roll over or give employees a grace period at the beginning of the following year to use up the balance. Also, FSAs dont go with you when you change jobs.

The question is if you have both an HRA and an FSA, which account should you use to pay for a given medical expense? If an expense is only covered by one account or the other, you have your answer. If its eligible to be paid from either account, youll need to know your employers rules about which account pays first. It probably goes without saying, but you cant double-dip and be reimbursed for the same expense from both accounts.

The Bottom Line

If your employer offers you a new type of HRA called an individual coverage HRA instead of group health insurance, you'll receive tax-free reimbursement for the premiums you pay for the comprehensive health insurance you purchase on or off the exchange. You can also get reimbursed for qualified medical expenses such as coinsurance and the bills you pay before you meet your deductible.

HRAs can vary significantly from one employer to the next in terms of how much coverage they offer and which expenses will be reimbursed. So although this article has provided a broad overview of what to expect, youll want to read your employer's summary plan description of its HRA, if it offers one, to get the details.

What Are the Drawbacks of an HRA? The employer who establishes the HRA has most of the control over it. They dictate how much money goes into the plan, whether it can roll over from one year to the next, and what uses of the funds are allowed. Usually, costs that aren't deemed necessary or non-prescribed treatments or drugs aren't eligible. Also, as the name health reimbursement arrangement suggests, you can't withdraw money to pay for charges. You're only paid back for expenses after you incur them.



What Are the Differences Between HSAs, HRAs, and FSAs? All three offer tax benefits related to paying health and medical costs. But an HSA is funded entirely by the individual, while an HRA is funded by the employer. An FSA can be funded by either or both (though it's usually just the employee who does). HRA funds can cover insurance premiums; the other two can't. You can keep an HSA even if you leave your job; generally, the other two stay with your employer (though they may let you spend any remaining HRA funds through the end of the year).
Vancouver, BC and Point Roberts, WA - November 28, 2016 (Investorideas.com Newswire) Investorideas.com, a global news source covering mining stocks releases an exclusive interview with N. Eric Fier, CPG, P.Eng and President, CEO, Director of SilverCrest Metals. (TSXV: SIL.V; OTC: SVCMF).

Erik discusses the historical background on the Companys property in Mexico, recent results and the next phase of development in Las Chispas.

He also shares his thoughts on the potential impact of the drop in the Mexican peso for companies doing business there.

When asked about his outlook for the mining sector following the recent US election he says. I am a long term cycle guy. They stretch 7-8 years, so I see the next bull run in 2017 if we stay in a historical model. Being a long term big picture guy, I felt the world would be riskier no matter who won, Clinton or Trump. I still believe that and risk just means higher precious metal prices.

Watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2tA9neQ25Y

N. Eric Fier, CPG, P.Eng and President, CEO, Director of SilverCrest Metals

Watch Previous Video with SilverCrest Metals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BZVE6jTk8I

ABOUT THE LAS CHISPAS PROJECT

The Las Chispas Project is located in Sonora State, Mexico, and is in a historic silver-gold mining district which presently hosts two nearby precious metal producers. Historic information indicates that of the nineteen historically reported veins in the Las Chispas district, only three veins, the Las Chispas, William Tell and Babicanora, had documented high grade production, which occurred between 1880 and 1930. SilverCrest's initial focus is on these three veins. To the Company's knowledge, none of the historic known veins has been drilled prior to the Company's recently completed Phase I drill campaign. For more information, please refer to our website at www.silvercrestmetals.com.

ABOUT SILVERCREST METALS INC. (TSXV: SIL.V; OTC: SVCMF) http://www.silvercrestmetals.com

SilverCrest is a Canadian precious metals exploration company headquartered in Vancouver, BC, that is focused on new discoveries, value-added acquisitions and targeting production in Mexico's historic precious metal districts. The Company is led by a proven management team in all aspects of the precious metal mining sector, including the pioneering of a responsible "phased approach" business model taking projects through discovery, finance, on time and on budget construction, and production with subsequent increased value to shareholders.

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Saudi Arabia's MiSK Foundation has announced that a new invention by Team Limitless that is describing itself as the LinkedIn of blood banks has won first prize at the first-ever UK/Saudi Medical Internet Of Things Hackathon. The event took place from November 25 to 27 in London and Riyadh.

The invention was designed to revolutionize blood bank donation by connecting data profiles of donors to streamline supply while making it safer for hospitals. Team Limitless, a team of eight based in Saudi Arabia, has won an investment of $100,000 and professional mentoring that will guide them in starting a company and taking the idea to the proof of concept stage.

The members are: Tareq Sangorah, Salman Alarifi, Monira Alhasan, Ibrahim Khalifa, Mazen Rukayni, Ahmed Isam, Faten Bader and Riham Alobeidan.

We're ecstatic and can hardly believe it, said Sangorah. It's brilliant to win, but it's also been an amazing experience working collaboratively across two countries in this way and is such a life-changing opportunity for all of us. We're all passionate about this idea which will revolutionize the current channel inefficiencies in blood donation - and we can't wait to take it to the next level to make a real difference and meet this need.

Hundreds of inventors took part in the 48 hour hackathon in London and Riyadh, joined by live broadcast satellite. Cross-cultural teams collaborated to compete for investment in their health tech invention, which was awarded by an expert dual-nation judging panel. Judges included representatives from the British Council, international network HealthTech Women, Microsoft, Cisco, and a Professor and Robotics Surgeon at King Khaled Hospital, Riyadh.

I'm really impressed with the quality of the ideas and the people behind them. These are ideas that can genuinely save lives, said Dr. Tawfiq Al Rabiah, Minister of Health, Saudi Arabia. Vision 2030 is all about building a diversified economy that depends on knowledge. This first-of-its-kind UK/ Saudi hackathon from the MiSK Foundation demonstrates the caliber and innovation talent of our youth, who can help transform the whole country.

The second and third prizes were $50,000 and $35,000, and were awarded to the inventors of a medical drug vending machine and a medical health device to score and track anxiety levels, respectively. Those teams will also receive mentoring to take their innovative health tech inventions forward.

Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, Deputy Crown Prince, Saudi Arabia, founded MiSK with the goal of driving transformative change in Saudi Arabia. A key focus is on youth enterprise and unlocking solutions in health technology innovation. More information is at miskhackathon.com.

Edited by Alicia Young
A convicted rapist has been removed from court during his sentence hearing after he repeatedly interrupted proceedings, tried to sack his barrister and called his victim, a grandmother in her fifties, a filthy prostitute.

Richard O'Brien (aged 57) of Arlington Lodge, Church Street, Tralee, lured his victim to a caravan in Dublin before raping her, assaulting her and biting her during a sustained and vicious attack on March 19, 2011.

He then fled to the UK before being extradited in 2013. He was found guilty by a jury earlier this year of rape, attempted rape, false imprisonment and assault causing harm.

At the start of his sentence hearing at the Central Criminal Court today, O'Brien repeatedly interrupted the proceedings, ordering prosecution barrister Anne Rowland SC to get her facts straight, before turning on his defence barrister, Damien Colgan SC, and telling him: On your bike.

After giving O'Brien several warnings, Mr Justice Tony Hunt ordered that he be removed from court. As he was led away, O'Brien turned towards his victim and verbally abused her.

The sentence hearing continued after the judge asked Mr Colgan to continue to represent O'Brien. He has already sacked at least one legal team and is the client from hell, Mr Justice Hunt said.

Garda Ruth Brett told Ms Rowland that the victim, who can not be named for legal reasons, was having birthday drinks with friends in a Dublin pub when O'Brien offered to buy her a drink. He then invited her back to a house party, telling her it was his sister's birthday.

However, when the woman arrived at the home, she became uneasy and asked to get a taxi home. O'Brien invited her into a caravan at the back of the property on the pretext of ordering her a cab, but once inside he told her, There's no effing sister and there's no effing taxi either.

He then pushed her on to the bed, punched her repeatedly, bit her on the chest and neck and raped her. The woman fainted at one point during the attack, which went on for some time, the court heard.

It ended only after two men entered the caravan and stopped O'Brien. The woman fled the scene and was picked up by a couple in a car who took her to a garda station. She was then taken to a sexual assault treatment unit.

One of the men who entered the caravan also made a detailed statement to gardai about what he had seen.

In a victim impact statement read out in court, the woman said she has had nightmares every night for the last five years. She said the attack led to the breakdown of her 23-year relationship and she had suicidal thoughts. She said her relationship with her children and grandchildren has suffered as a result.

For the last five years of my life I have been existing, not living, she said.

The court heard O'Brien has a previous conviction for rape and false imprisonment of a woman. He left school at the age of 15 and worked in the UK as a labourer and truck driver. Mr Colgan said he suffers from arthritis and sciatica and has recently been diagnosed with testicular cancer. He has been married twice and has seven children, but is estranged from his family.

Mr Justice Hunt adjourned the matter for two weeks, saying he needed to consider sentencing. This woman was beaten up as well as raped. It's a very bad set of facts, he said.

The judge also expressed concern at O'Brien's behaviour in court, saying one gets a very real flavour of his character. This man, even in the context of the Central Criminal Court, appears to have difficulty restraining himself. That is very worrying, he said.

He adjourned the matter for sentencing on December 12.
Update 7.12pm: A man ploughed his car into a group of pedestrians at Ohio State University and then began stabbing people with a butcher knife before he was shot and killed by an officer, campus police said.

Nine people were injured, one critically, and Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs said police were looking into whether it was a terrorist attack.

Video shows scene at Ohio State Univ. where suspect hit pedestrians with vehicle before stabbing people with knife https://t.co/6EnFArS8RR pic.twitter.com/W2z3itw8xR  ABC News (@ABC) November 28, 2016

The details emerged after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning students that there was an "active shooter" on campus near the engineering building and that they should "run, hide, fight".

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone said the attacker drove over a kerb outside a classroom building and an officer who was nearby shot the driver.

"The threat ended when the officer shot the suspect," said Monica Moll, the school's public safety director.

At least two people were being treated for stab wounds, four were injured by the car and two others were being treated for cuts, university officials said.

Witness says Ohio State suspect had a "crazy look in his eyes" and was "completely silent" https://t.co/Ff9EiYcrfA https://t.co/wfnLDzb4Qf  CNN (@CNN) November 28, 2016

Update 5.20pm: Ohio State University says a "shelter-in-place" warning has been lifted and the scene is secure following reports of an active shooter and at least seven people injured.

Ohio State tweeted today that all classes would be cancelled for the rest of the day.

The university had warned students in a series of tweets earlier that there was an active shooter on campus and that they should "run, hide or fight".

The Columbus Fire Department says seven people had been taken to the hospital. It says two of those people were in stable condition. It did not have details on the other five.

Hospital officials later said that eight patients they received from the scene have non-life-threatening injuries.

The eight patients were split among OSU Wexner Medical Centre, OhioHealth Grant Medical Center and OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital.

Update 4.15pm: Nine people are believed to have been injured, one of them critically, after a gunman or gunmen targeted one of the largest universities in the US.

One suspected gunman has reportedly been shot dead at or near Ohio State University, with another suspect being sought by police. The university's students remain in lockdown.

The college has almost 60,000 students on its main campus. It is not clear how many were present on campus when the alert began this afternoon.

Update 4pm: Seven people have been taken to hospital after a shooting incident at Ohio State University, the fire department has said.

There is a report also of a body bag - an eighth casualty - on campus.

The Columbus Fire Department added that two of those people are in stable condition. It had no information on the other five people.

Ohio State University warned students in a series of tweets on Monday morning that there was an active shooter on campus and that they should "run, hide or fight".

One tweet says: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College."

Watts Hall is a materials science and engineering building.

The university followed up with another tweet: "Continue to shelter in place in north campus area. Follow directions of Police on scene."

The university also asked for anyone with information to call police.

"Run, hide, fight" is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; Hide, get silently out of view; or Fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.

A Columbus police dispatcher declined to comment on the reports, but police vehicles were seen at the scene.

With nearly 60,000 students at its main Columbus campus, Ohio State is one of the nation's largest universities.

Update 3.40pm: Local reports are that up to seven people have bee taken to hospital after gunfire at one of the largest universities in the US.

There are also reports of a body bag on campus.

Five of those injured are reported to be in an unknown condition, with two in a stable condition.

The shooter is reported to still be active on the campus, with students advised to hide where they are, avoid the area if possible and fight the shooter as a last resort.

Earlier:

Reports are emerging of a shooting incident at a school campus in the US.

While it is not yet clear whether anyone has been injured, an active shooter is reported to be present on the campus of Ohio State University, one of the largest in the US.

People have been urged to shelter where they are and avoid the area.

Ohio State University has tweeted that an "active shooter" is on campus and students should "Run. Hide. Fight". Police are on the scene.

Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

CNN reports that student Wyatt Crosher said he heard gunfire that he believes came from a class building across the street.

"My roommate and I heard about three or four gunshots from across the street, and soon after we heard a bunch of police and ambulances pull up across the street," the 19-year-old said.

"We can't see the building where the shooting happened because of a dorm blocking our view. It truly sounded like gunshots, and really soon after we heard a bunch of sirens. We can see the police cars from our dorm."
Tony McNamara, chief executive of Cork University Hospital, has received a written warning from doctors, seen by the Irish Examiner, that they cannot and will not take responsibility for women suffering adverse outcomes arising from a well-documented chronic lack of investment in the gynaecology service.

The group of about 20 consultants, almost the entire obstetrician/gynaecologist and neonatal cohort, also challenged a claim in a letter by Mr McNamara to the chair of the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Peter Boylan, that the governance model for obstetrics, gynaecology, and neonatal services at the Cork University Hospital Group works extremely well.

Mr McNamara told Dr Boylan the group was an exemplar as to how obstetric services might integrate with general services.

However, consultants say they never endorsed this view. They subsequently wrote to Mr McNamara saying governance at CUMH cannot be regarded as exemplar.

Instead, they said: On innumerable occasions, both verbally and in writing, we have expressed our concerns about the restriction and curtailment of the maternity services and the failure to ring-fence the budget allocated to CUMH.

Tony McNamara, chief executive of Cork University Hospital

The upshot of underinvestment is far longer waiting times for women for outpatient appointments and surgeries than anywhere else in Ireland, with a real risk of delayed diagnosisis and potentially devastating consequences for women and their families.

The consultant group say they have financial data to show surpluses were generated vis-a-vis resources allocated to the maternity hospital from 2008 to 2012.

According to the group, this amounts to 25.6m which they say was not available to our service.

In the meantime, the waiting lists for outpatient gynaecology appointments have climbed to 4,193 as of the end of October, of whom almost 800 have been waiting more than 18 months.

The figure is by far the highest in the country for gynaecology  at Dublins Rotunda, the closest comparable hospital, the figure is less than half that at 2,032. Inpatient/day case figures for CUMH are at 557. More than one in three women (38%) have been waiting at least one year to have their surgery performed.

The consultant group has warned Mr McNamara in a letter of the risk to patients health and life expectancy as a result of delayed diagnosis of gynaecological malignancy and other serious gynaecological illnesses.

The group provides gynaecological care to a catchment population of 500,000 across six sites in Cork city and county, and warns that capacity to meet demand is entirely inadequate and immediate action is required.

Chair of the Institute of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Peter Boylan

They point out that only one of two fully commissioned gynaecology theatres is operational  the second has never opened, even though the hospital itself opened almost a decade ago.

In addition, consultants claim that no new consultant gynaecological posts have been created in Cork in the past decade, despite 26 such posts having been advertised nationawide in a one year period during 2014-2015.

The result of such an overwhelmed service is that a quarter of patients on the general gynaecology waiting list exceed the health ministers 13-month target for review, which the consultants warn should result in the accrual of fines in excess of 1m annually for CUMH.

The Irish Examiner submitted a series of questions to hospital management. However, no response was received. The hospital also refused documents requested under Freedom of Information legislation, including original requests and appeals.
Mr McGrath, who travelled to Cuba during the Castro regime, said Castro oversaw many positive developments.

He said President Michael D Higgins was correct in his sympathetic comments in a statement issued in the wake of Castros passing at the age of 90. Mr McGrath added that the President was merely reflecting the view of a large amount of Irish people.

Mr Higgins has been accused of airbrushing over the tyrannical dictatorship of Fidel Castro in a statement marking his death at the weekend.

There has been an angry response to President Higgins after he described Castro as a giant among global leaders whose view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet.

Last night, a spokesman for President Higgins issued a statement to the Irish Examiner.

The Presidents statement clearly referred to the price paid for social and economic development in terms of civil society and the criticisms it brought. This obviously and unambiguously included the Human Rights organisations and activists who have always had the support of the President, the statement said.

Any suggestion that the President neglected Human Rights concerns is both unsustainable and unwarranted. The President has discussed Human Rights concerns with representatives of the Government of Cuba on every occasion he has had meetings, in Cuba, Ireland, and elsewhere.

Mr McGrath said he wanted to issue his sincerest sympathies to the Cuban people.

It was a very sad day, he said, adding that he totally respected the position taken by President Higgins and supported it fully.

Castros legacy in Cuba is positive one, he said.

He continued that in his view, having visited Cuba, some comments made yesterday about the extent of human rights abuse have been greatly exaggerated.

He said Castro was the product of a vicious revolution in 1947 and while Castro had his flaws like everyone else, his impact on Cuba was largely positive. He accused history revisionists of trying to re-write the story of Castros Cuba.

Mr McGrath said on RTE Radio that major progress in human rights in the past 20 years.

Of course there were times where people were not people treated in the proper way, he said.

Human rights groups like Amnesty International said from their view, Castro was guilty of significant human rights abuses.

Colm OGorman, head of Amnesty International in Ireland, stopped short of directing the President directly but said the abuses under Castro were clear.

Fianna Fails foreign affairs spokesman Darragh OBrien also described Castro as a political giant but said the Presidents message lacked balance. He said Castro had ruled unelected over a one-party state where there was no opposition.
In the wake of the Central Banks review of its mortgage policies, the Government and Fianna Fail have expressed concern that the combination of the help-to-buy scheme and the more relaxed lending rates could overheat the market. Fianna Fail finance spokesman Michael McGrath has said the party will force the termination of the scheme if they deem house prices are spiralling out of control.

If we are presented with evidence from an independent impact assessment that the Government intervention is pushing up prices, we cant stand by. If it is definitely resulting in increased house prices, it will have to come to an end, said Mr McGrath.

Last week, the Central Bank shocked many by relaxing its lending rules, which now mean first-time buyers can now borrow 90% of the value of a home.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan welcomed the change in the Central Bank policy, saying it should enable all of those borrowing to purchase a home to find it easier to source a mortgage that suits their needs. In particular, he welcomed the abolition of the 220,000 loan-to-value threshold limit for first-time buyers.

However, behind the scenes there is an awareness within the Government of the potential of the already supply-shy house market overheating, and last night a senior source said a close eye was being kept on matters.

Industry insiders have warned the combination of the two measures will force price growth of up to 10%, particularly in the greater Dublin area and surrounding commuter counties.

Ken Lowe, chief executive of estate agents DNG, said: I believe this change will now lead to sharper price rises at the lower end of the market and in the new home sector.

Property economist Ronan Lyons, has been critical of the Central Banks change of tact since it introduced its tougher new rules in 2015.

The obvious effect of this will be to push up prices, but what is perhaps even more puzzling is that the changes will have the biggest upward pressure on prices for the most expensive and therefore riskiest types of properties, he said.

Take a property costing 750,000  one where the borrower and lender face a much greater risk of a fall in value of 100,000. Here, the deposit requirement has fallen over 40%, from 128,000 to 75,000.
On the day that the guns fell silent in Europe at the end of the First World War, the rescue of Denis McNeilus from one of the British empires securest jails showed that Corks revolutionaries were willing and able to take physical force action.

The Donegal-born officer of the local Irish Volunteers brigade was sprung from Cork County Gaol before he could face trial for the attempted murder of a policeman.

The family of one of the rescue participants recently presented a key believed to have been taken in the rescue to the military museum at Corks Collins Barracks.

Paddy Varian was one of the team of Irish Volunteers on duty outside the prison, which was demolished in the 1950s but whose high walls still form part of the perimeter of University College Cork.

The 18-year-olds role was to climb a telegraph pole and cut the wires to disable communication to the police or military on the afternoon of November 11, 1918.

His daughter Betty recalls regularly asking her father to recount the story about the rescue.

He told us he was the one up the telegraph pole in the gaol, because they didnt want them sending out any messages, said Betty.

This man stopped and said to him: What are you doing up there? He said: If you dont run, Ill kill you. 

As pointed out by Irish Army Company Quartermaster Sergeant Gerry White, a military historian based at Collins Barracks in Cork, the Varian family were prominent in Cork citys War of Independence story.

Paddy and his older brother Harry were members of the Irish Republican Brotherhood, the secret society which favoured physical force to secure Irelands freedom, and which was behind the plot for the Easter Rising in 1916.

Paddy was one of four Volunteers injured, along with a Cumann na mBan member, in an explosion that killed an Irish Volunteers officer at a makeshift bomb factory in the citys Grattan St in April 1919.

The brothers were also involved in the attempt to blow up a Boer War memorial at Donovans Rd the same year.

Harry and Paddy Varian in the back row and to the right in a picture of volunteers in Cork, mainly from A Company from 1916-1918.

Jim Fahy, an officer of the Cork Masons Historical Society, was involved in arranging the donation of the items to the Cork Public Museum. Both Paddy and Harry Varian were masons, like their father William.

The key secreted out of Cork County Gaol was kept in Massachusetts for many years by one of Bettys brothers, Patrick. He formally handed over the key and his fathers 1917-1921 Service Medal to the Collins Barracks museum on behalf of the family during a recent trip to Cork.

We grew up hearing all the stories, we used to think it was like stuff from a John Wayne movie, said Patrick.

Another artefact of the escape is the set of handcuffs taken off Denis McNeilus, which also ended up with the Varian family. They handed them back to his sons Sean and Donnchadh in Cork nine years ago.

We were delighted to receive them from the Varians, and they now hold pride of place up here, Donnchadh Mac Niallais from Gweedore, Co Donegal, grandson of the escaped volunteer, said.
The much-anticipated event takes place in the stunning Wexford venue on February 3 and 4 next and will see a string quartet, 100-voice choir, narrator and four ballerinas joining the OReillys band Loudest Whisper on stage.

Fermoy composer Brian OReilly first staged his musical rendition of The Children of Lir, based on the famous Celtic legend, in January of 1973 and it was hailed as Irelands first folk opera at the time.

Since then, it has been enjoyed by over 25,000 people and also turned into an album by Polydor Records which is now a collectors item. Meanwhile, Loudest Whispers blend of folk-rock and blues has become renowned in Ireland, the UK and North America, with a re-issue of the album arriving on vinyl in 2006.

According to Brian OReilly, the concert will be one of the most creative and magical homegrown presentations that Ireland has seen in a long while.

The concert is a mystical Celtic experience, the music is hauntlingly lyrical and spiritual, yet in idiom it is contemporary and vital in a recognisable Celtic style.

The concert will be performed three times over February 3 and February 4 with choirs from two Wexford schools, the Loreto Convent and Selskar Abbey, getting the opportunity to showcase their talents. In total 120 people will perform The Children of Lir.

The event is taking place as part of Wexfords cultural celebration of the 1916 centenary, with the arrangement and the participation of local adult and childrens choirs and performers turning the project into a vibrant community venture.

The Children of Lir is an ancient Irish allegory that describes the persona of Ireland in a mythological sense. The centrepiece of the legend is that love, sorrow and betrayal transmigrate from humans to swans, with the metaphor reflecting freedom, beauty, jealousy and everlasting youth as well as eternal silence.

It will be performed in Wexford at 12 noon and 8pm on February 3, and 8pm on February 4. www.nationaloperahouse.ie
Reports emerged yesterday that the HSE is set to reject Orkambi after the HSEs drugs committee unanimously recommended against funding its purchase, deeming it did not deliver sufficient benefits to justify its 159,000 annual cost.

Minister for Health Simon Harris stepped in to reassure CF patients that the HSE had not concluded its assessment process, and told patients: I do not see this as the end of the process.

It is understood there are 550 people in Ireland with a form of cystic fibrosis that could benefit from the drug.

In a statement, Philip Watt, CEO of Cystic Fibrosis Ireland, said the organisation would fight the decision and called on Mr Harris to intervene. Mr Watt also strongly criticised the manner in which patients learned of the news yesterday, claiming it was leaked in a cynical way even before the minister was informed, in what he said was a disgraceful and heartless form of communication.

The HSE later signalled that it was disappointed with the level of meaningful engagement with the manufacturer of the drug Orkambi in lowering its price to patients with cystic fibrosis. Mr Harris said he was upset at how the news emerged and added that he was frustrated with the extraordinarily difficult negotiations that have been continuing over the exorbitant price of the drug.

Orkambi user Jillian McNulty from Longford has been on the drug as part of a trial for three years and said it had saved her life when she was hospitalised with swine flu earlier this year.

Ms McNulty, 40, said she handed in a petition some weeks ago to manufacturers Vertex, requesting they lower the price, but she said using cost as a reason to discontinue its use made no sense.

It would cost the State a lot more with me off Orkambi than with me on Orkambi, she said.

Ms McNulty has already contacted her hospital to ascertain whether she will get a fresh supply, as her current supply is due to run out on Christmas Day.
When Colin Butts was born, he was given a different name. The 57-year-old from London was originally called Louis Michael Quinlan by his mother, who was most likely Irish.

However, not long after he was born on September 11, 1959, at the Cheniston Nursing Home, Kensington, London, he was given up for adoption.

Now, diagnosed with a terminal illness, the author and scriptwriter is desperate to find his biological mother to get the chance of meeting her at least once before being overcome by pancreatic cancer.

He hopes someone in Ireland may have the answers.

My mothers name was Catherine Mary Quinlan, he says. The only other information I have about her is that she worked as a waitress and was living at 186 Holland Park Avenue, which is opposite what is now the Kensington Hilton Hotel.

I also have a letter from an obstetrician to a doctor in Chelsea, but on that it refers to a Mrs K Quinlan, so possibly a different spelling of Catherine, and it also states that shes married, but that might have been more to do with respectability.

Colin Butts

For years, Colin wasnt too concerned about tracing his blood relatives, but did follow one trail which led him to a woman who was originally from Cork.

However, despite authorities believing they had found his mother and putting him in touch with his relatives, this proved to be a false hope. However, instead of discouraging him, this just made Colin even more determined to trace his roots.

My adoptive parents died when I was quite young  my mother when I was 19 and my father when I was 25, he says. I did a bit of investigating in the UK and found a Catherine Mary Quinlan and for many years thought it to be her.

One November, five years ago, I tracked her and used an intermediary agency to get in touch. They [the officials] didnt get back to me until March and then broke the news that she had died in November. I was enveloped with a feeling of sadness and, ultimately, guilt. Had I been compelled to pursue with more urgency, then this poor woman who had probably waited her whole life to meet me or know of me, now wouldnt get the chance.

So I ended up talking to her children and did a DNA test with one of them, but it proved negative and I was actually relieved, because before I found her, strange though it may sound, I didnt really have the emotional connect and it had felt more like a paper-chase, an intellectual curiosity to satisfy nature v nurture-type questions, but now it had become very real.

Colin Butts as a child.

The Cork lead turned out to be false and now Colin has no idea about his mothers Irish origins, but is determined to find out.

However, while anxious to contact his family, he is conscious his plea, coming out of the blue, could cause emotional upheaval.

My main concerns with trying to find my mother in such a public way is, first of all, I wonder is it fair for me to come into her life (if shes still alive) and leave it again in a relatively short period of time. And, secondly, the fact she had me adopted might be one that has been kept secret for a reason, so the last thing I want to do is cause any major upset.

However, pretty much any programme I have watched on this subject and any woman I have spoken to who has given a baby up, all have wanted to see their child.

Diagnosed in February, the Londoner is undergoing treatment and, while initially given a prognosis of 12 to 18 months, he hopes his life will extend beyond that.

When I was given my diagnosis in mid-February, I was told that without treatment I would be dead by June, he says. So, I started medication in March and was lucky enough to go on a regime, which includes a trial chemotherapy drug, which is showing good results.

My attitude to it for now is the bullet is out of the gun, so I just need to do all I can to keep dodging it and hope that some of the huge amount of research currently going into pancreatic cancer bears fruit before I expire. Ironically, Im probably in as good a physical shape as Ive ever been in my life and, for the most part, my head is still very positive, but I would really like the chance to meet the woman who made that incredibly brave decision all of those years ago as, without her, I wouldnt have had the amazing life I have had.

I am asking anyone who has any information, no matter how small or insignificant they think it might be, about Catherine Mary Quinlan to get in touch with me as soon as possible. Maybe they were in Cheniston Nursing Home or lived in Holland Park Avenue, but I would really appreciate any help in finding my mother.

An Irish woman, Catherine Mary Quinlan, gave him up for adoption in 1959 in London. He would dearly love to meet her and is hoping someone in Ireland can help him.

Anyone with any information can contact Colin through www.facebook. com/colin.butts.31?fref=ts
IT was on Leitrim St in Corks north inner city that Irish Volunteer officer Denis McNeilus was arrested in the first Monday of November, 1918.

In a raid on the house where he was lodging, members of the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) found guns, ammunition, Irish Volunteer equipment and literature, and other illicit material.

During the early morning raid, McNeilus shot Head Constable Clarke, who survived severe wounds to the head at the nearby North Infirmary.

The local story was that McNeiluss gun went off when he was wrestled to the ground after trying to escape. However, police affidavits in the case of McNeiluss landlord Denis Kelleher stated that he fired at the policemen as the head constable was about to arrest him, rather than shots going off in the struggle.

The eventual outcome was that Kelleher was given a six-month sentence by a district court martial a month later for trying to help McNeilus resist arrest.

In the meantime, however, Donegal-born McNeilus was due to face trial for attempted murder of a policeman and was in line for a death sentence.

By the end of 1918, there had been numerous attacks on police by the Irish Volunteers, including an attack on two RIC members near Ballyvourney in July that led West Cork to be treated as a special military area.

But the operation to rescue McNeilus was probably the first fully sanctioned by the local brigade, under the temporary command of Sean OHegarty at the time.

An intricate plan that involved six Volunteers getting into Cork County Gaol as visitors also required a team of men to patrol the surrounding area, ready to be called into action if military or police were alerted.

Four hours earlier, the truce that ended the First World War came into effect across Europe.

But by early afternoon of November 11 in Cork City, Paddy Varian and others were among a cohort of Irish Volunteers carrying concealed weapons in the vicinity of the prison between Western Rd and College Rd.

Events inside the prison wall required two Volunteers to gain access to a visiting room with McNeilus prisoner, who had been forewarned to expect a rescue attempt.

Two other pairs were sent in on the pretence of visiting other prisoners, but timing was everything in the plot. Their role would be to assist in disarming the warders at the waiting area between the front gate and the inner areas of the Victorian jail complex.

Harry and Paddy Varian in the back row and to the right in a picture of volunteers in Cork, mainly from A Company from 1916-1918.

When their visit with McNeilus was ending, Martin Donovan and Joe Murphy waited until the prison warder had the key in the visiting room door before striking him a blow. If they had done so sooner, it might have taken too long to establish which of the keys on his chain they needed to begin the escape.

Locking the door behind them, and with the warder knocked unconscious inside the visiting cell, the visitors and McNeilus made their way through the prison complex to the front entrance.

There, meanwhile, their four accomplices had attacked and tied up the warder in the waiting room inside the main gate. Using his keys, they admitted McNeilus and his rescuers into the waiting room before unlocking the main gates and fleeing the scene unaccosted.

The excitement and the adrenalin saw everybody make off at haste, leaving the rescued officer standing alone outside the prison walls and wondering where he was to go.

Seeing a bicycle leaning against a wall, he took off and pedalled non-stop for several miles; but then doubled back to the prison in case there was somebody there waiting to escort him to a pre-decided hideaway.

Patrick Varian with the key which was used during the 1918 rescue of Denis McNeilus from Cork County Gaol. Picture: Denis Scannell

The escape caused a huge stir in Cork and beyond, demonstrating that even the most intimidating prison walls could be penetrated and escaped from with the right level of planning.

McNeilus spent the next few years hiding out in the countryside of mid-Cork near Macroom, initially in Clondrohid and later in Ballingeary, one of the countrys most wanted men. He was involved in republican fundraising in the US in 1920 before returning home to Donegal, where he became a leading anti-Treaty IRA figure in the Civil War.

Military historian Gerry White said the McNeilus rescue in November 1918 was a very dangerous operation conducted in accordance with a very detailed plan.

These guys could have been shot if it went wrong, he said. But it proved that the fight hadnt gone out of the Cork Brigade, who did not take part in the Easter Rising owing to confusion and contradictory orders.

This event set down a marker and let people in Dublin know, even though nothing happened in 1916, that the Cork Volunteers were still here and willing to continue the fight.

One of the main rescuers, Martin Donovan, was said later by a comrade to have held on to one of the keys from Cork County Gaol. But as well as being the most valuable souvenir he possessed, it could also have bought him some hefty jail time or worse if it was ever found by the RIC or British military in Cork.

He had securely cemented [it] into a wall at the back of his home in Blarney St, Cork. It was carefully wrapped in oil cloth and secured between two bricks, Sean Healy, former captain of one of the citys IRA companies, told the Bureau of Military History in 1956.

While that key might still lie wrapped in cement, one of the others taken in the daring rade will be on display from early 2017 in the museum at Collins Barracks, a reminder of events in the city almost a century earlier.
Business Jade Sales Drop Significantly

Foreign traders inspect raw jade at the governments gems emporium in Naypyidaw, July 2016. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  Jade sales are expected to drop significantly at the latest gems emporium in Naypyidaw, due to lower quality jade lots and fewer traders.

The ten-day emporium, held from Nov. 20-29, displayed almost 6,000 jade lots, but of a lower quality than past emporiums, according to U Min Thu, deputy director of the Myanmar Gems Enterprise. He added that the numbers of registered traders had dropped by at least 200.

Most traders came from mainland China, and only two came from the US, despite the fact that we invited US traders after sanctions were lifted, said U Min Thu.

About 1,800 traders registered from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Thailand. As of Monday, 5,922 lots had been auctioned.

Due to the lesser quality of the jade lots, we expect to earn about 300-400 million, U Min Thu said.

The Myanmar Gems Enterprise reported that it earned about 600 million at the emporium held in July. Decembers emporium generated about 900 million.

The jade market outside the country is cooling off. I hope next year will be better, U Min Thu said.

The record high for jade sales was in July 2014, when the government and private enterprises sold around 2.6 billion to foreign traders, up from about 2 billion in 2013, according to the (now defunct) Ministry of Mines.

U Aung Thein, secretary of the Mandalay Gems Entrepreneurs Association, told the Irrawaddy that there had been a slowdown in demand from China, where most of Burmas jade is destined.

The political transition in Burma as well as a change in Chinas economic policies is leading to fewer Chinese traders at the emporiums, he said.

Local gems traders have urged Burmas government to support the countrys internal market. Traders worry that a recent halt in Kachin State mining and an announcement that all remaining jade mining licenses would expire in 2018 will hurt the local market.

We need more support from the government in order to sustain the market without relying on China, U Aung Thein said. said.

An October 2015 report published by Global Witness, a London-based NGO, revealed that large revenues from Burmas jade trade continued to fall into the hands of high-ranking military officials and well-connected crony firms.
Asia Indonesia says two Militants Arrested in Burmese Embassy Plot

Indonesian police show seized items they say were intended for use to attack government buildings and the Burmese embassy. / Antara Foto/Reno Esnir / Reuters

JAKARTA, Indonesia  Indonesias anti-terror squad has arrested two militants who were planning to attack prominent places in the countrys capital, including the Burmese Embassy, police said Sunday.

An interrogation of suspected bomb maker Rio Priatna Wibawa, who was arrested this past week, led authorities to the men, said national police spokesman Boy Rafli Amar. All three claimed allegiance to the Islamic State group.

Bahrain Agam was arrested in northern Aceh province late Saturday and Saiful Bahri was captured in Banten province on Sunday, Amar said.

Police had said that Wibawa had sufficient explosives at his home in West Java province to make bombs three times more powerful than those used in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.

Since the Bali bombings, which were carried out by the al-Qaida-linked Jemaah Islamiyah militant group, a security crackdown has netted hundreds of radicals and reduced their capacity for large attacks. But a new threat has emerged from among the hundreds of Indonesians who have traveled abroad to fight with IS and the groups supporters in Indonesia.

Amar said the arrested militants told authorities they wanted to retaliate against Burma for recent attacks on Rohingya Muslims. They also planned to attack Indonesias parliament, police headquarters and television stations. An attack on the embassy could have been carried out this month or next, Amar said.

The embassy in Jakarta was the scene of protests against the persecution of Rohingya on Thursday and Friday. Protests also occurred in Bangladesh, Malaysia and Thailand.

Sectarian violence in Buddhist-majority Burma has killed scores of Muslims, and thousands have been driven from their homes. The Rohingya face severe discrimination and are considered illegal immigrants by Burmas government despite many living in the country for generations.

Indonesian extremists responded to sectarian violence in Burma in 2013 with a plot to bomb the Burmese Embassy. More than a dozen militants were sentenced to prison for involvement in the plot.

Amar said the three men arrested this past week were part of a network believed to be involved in a January attack in Jakarta that killed eight people. We are still investigating and searching for other alleged group members, he said.

Agam provided some cash and purchased explosives, Amar said, while Bahri was helping Wibawa make bombs.

Police had said that Wibawa, a dropout from an agricultural university who was radicalized by the writings of firebrand cleric Aman Abdurahman, also received funds from radicalized Indonesians working in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and Taiwan.

They said he was operating under the direction of Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant fighting with IS in Syria.
Burma Burma Officials Lodge Complaints with BBC, UNHCR

Displaced Rohingya Muslims at a camp in Arakan States Maungdaw Townsip / Moe Myint / The Irrawaddy

Burmese officials have lodged complaints with both the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and the BBC World Service over comments and reports made on the Arakan State situation last week.

The Burmese Embassy in Britain wrote a letter of complaint on Friday to the BBC World Service over their Nov. 22 report Rohingya Muslims hated and hounded from Burmese Soil which the Embassy said was based on rumors, hearsay and one-sided views which are far from the true situation.

In a separate BBC report, John McKissick, head of the UNs refugee agency in Coxs Bazar on the Bangladesh border, said that Burmas government has the ultimate goal of ethnic cleansing of the Muslim minority in Myanmar.

Burma Army soldiers have poured into Maungdaw Township since Oct. 9 after coordinated attacks on border guard posts. Escalating violence during security operations has reportedly killed at least 86 people and displaced some 30,000, with hundreds reportedly fleeing across the border to Bangladesh.

Burmas representative to the UN U Htin Linn met with the UNHCRs assistant high commissioner for protection Mr. Volker Turk in Geneva, Switzerland on Saturday concerning a statement made to the BBC by a UNHCR official, according to a State Counselors Office Information Committee statement issued Sunday.

According to the State Counselors Office statement, U Htin Lin said the comment undermined the trust and confidence placed and the cooperation extended to the UNHCR by Myanmar.

U Htin Lin questioned Mr. Volker Turk about whether the comments were an official UNHCR statement and encouraged the UNHCR to hold John McKissick responsible, according to the statement. If necessary, U Htin Lin said he would deliver an official objection letter to the UN.

If such allegations were indeed made by the UNHCR then Myanmar lodges strong objection against the UNHCR for unjust allegations made without substantiating evidence, the statement read.

Mr. Volker Turk reportedly responded that the UNHCR was also surprised by Mr. John McKissicks statement and would reply with an appropriate response.
Burma Commission Revisits Arakan State Amid Allegations of Abuse

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and chair of the Arakan State Advisory Commission Kofi Annan meet at the National Reconciliation and Peace Center in Rangoon on Sept. 5. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  Chair of the Arakan State Advisory Commission Kofi Annan will visit conflict-torn Maungdaw Township in northern Arakan State on Friday, according to the secretary of the Arakan State government U Tin Maung Swe.

Amid international pressure on the new government, it will be the first time the former UN secretary-general has visited Arakan State since attacks on border guard posts on Oct. 9 and security operations that followed plunged the area into violence that has killed at least 86 people and displaced thousands.

Seven members of the commission canceled a visit to Maungdaw Township last month over security concerns after improvised landmines were found in the area.

According to U Tin Maung Swe, Kofi Annan will lead a delegation to spend two days in Maungdaw, though more details of the trip and whether they will meet with villagers has not been released.

Northern Maungdaw remains under military lockdown and access is barred to international organizations and journalists.

State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi formed the Arakan State Advisory Commission to investigate the root causes of conflict in Arakan State and to develop a reconciliation process between Buddhist and Muslim communities in the area.

Fridays visit will mark the second visit by the former UN secretary-general. In early September, he led the commission to state capital Sittwe to explain his duties and responsibilities to locals and conduct meetings with Buddhist and Muslim communities.

Commission members at the time described the visit as a productive trip.

Commission member and founder of the interfaith group Religion for Peace Al Haj U Aye Lwin confirmed that Kofi Annan would arrive before the end of this month and spend five or six days visiting Naypyidaw, Rangoon and Arakan State.

Al Haj U Aye Lwin said that it had not yet been confirmed which villages would be visited in Maungdaw but that appropriate places would be selected.

He described the conditions that disrupted the trip to northern Maungdaw earlier this month as unusual.
Burma Ethnic Armed Groups Claim Control of Border Town

Members of the MNDAA captured a position in the town of Mong Ko. / myanmarwarnews / Facebook

MUSE, Shan State  Ethnic armed group soldiers say they have seized most of Mong Ko, a border town in northern Shan State, but the Burma Army retained control of a nearby hilltop base as fighting continued on Monday, according to local sources.

The ethnic armed groups took control of the Mong Ko border gate, the immigration zone, and most areas of the town. Then they launched an offensive against Burma Army troops in the area, according to the joint ethnic armed groups spokesperson, Tar Aike Kyaw. As of Monday morning, they had captured several Burma Army positions in the town.

Already, the town of Mong Ko has fallen into the hands of the joint ethnic armed groups, Tar Aike Kyaw told the Irrawaddy.

The Burma Army has suffered a high number of casualties, and the ethnic armed groups were able to seize many weapons, according to a video posted on Facebook by Northern Alliance-Burma.

On Saturday, the Presidents Office told the Democratic Voice of Burma that the Burma Army still maintains control of Mong Ko, despite contrary statements from the ethnic armed groups.

Since Nov. 20, a coalition of four ethnic armed groupsdubbed the Northern Alliancehas carried out a military offensive against the Burma Army in northern Shan State. The ethnic armed groups include the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the Arakan Army (AA), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA). It is unclear how long the offensive will continue.

The ethnic armed groups fought again yesterday. Fighting broke out near the positions of Arakan Army soldiers, said Tar Aike Kyaw.

In Mong Ko, soldiers from the MNDAA, AA, KIA, and TNLA approached the town from different sides before they attacked. On Monday, the ethnic armed groups appeared to control most of the town, but the Burma Army still defended a hilltop position nearby, according to Tar Aike Kyaw.

Units of the Burma Air Force have also taken part, attacking Mong Ko in an effort to assist Burma Army soldiers on the ground. More Burma Army troops were also present in other villages to the east of Mong Ko.

We seized the town already, but we could not yet get to their hill post, said Tar Aike Kyaw.

He said that some civilians who were trapped by the fighting have taken shelter on the hill post, and the Burma Army was allowing them to stay.

It is hard for us to attack the Burma Army post because there are civilians present there, he said.

In recent days, ethnic armed group soldiers have attacked several Burma Army positions in northern Shan State. The ethnic armed groups often employ guerilla tactics, attacking briefly and then disappearing, said Tar Aike Kyaw.

He added that on Sunday, the ethnic armed groups attacked for 30 minutes at a Burma Army position in the Muse 105th mile trade zone. The security situation on the Lashio-Muse roadway remained unstable. Some vehicles have been able to travel the road, but in other cases trucks were blocked from traveling.

In Muse town itself, shops and restaurants have reopened, and security appeared improved over last week, The Irrawaddys reporter noted on the ground. Many people were walking the streets of Muse on Monday.

Last Friday, officials from Burma and Chinas Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense held a meeting to discuss security and development along the border.

A joint statement from the meeting said, The Chinese side expressed its hope for a speedy solution to the current tension in the northern part of Myanmar and to restore normalcy in the border area as soon as possible.
Burma Military Chief Mentions State of Emergency Provisions Amid Ongoing Clashes

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing addresses senior officer trainees at the National Defence College in Naypyidaw on Saturday. / Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing / Facebook

NAYPYIDAW  Burmas military chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing discussed the provisions for a state of emergency and a potential military takeover of the country, amid an ongoing military conflict in northern Shan State and threats from Muslim militants in the west Burma.

It was the second time this month that the army chief mentioned the clause in Burmas 2008 Constitutionwhich was also drafted by the militarythat allows the military to stage a coup in the event of chaos and instability. The Constitution also reserves 25 percent of the seats in Parliament for military representatives.

In his speech at the National Defense College (NDC) on Saturday, the military chief justified the armys continuing role in Burmese politics. The military is a stabilizing force on political and ethnic issues, he said.

The military would not engage in party politics, but the 2008 Constitution did enshrine provisions for a state of emergency, said the senior general, according to the military mouthpiece Myawaddy Daily.

[People] need to know the realities and the historical facts about the military and the State, he said, also emphasizing the need to solve ethnic issues.

According to a clause in the 2008 Constitution, in case of a state of emergency in the country, the president would announce the order in coordination with National Defense and Security Council (NDSC). He would then transfer the governments executive, legislative, and judicial powers to the Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Forces.

Earlier this month, Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing spoke to the European Union Military Committee in Brussels, where he said that the Constitution defines the role of the Myanmar Armed Forces in conformity with the real situation of the nation.

If one studies the Provisions on State of Emergency in the Chapter XI of the Constitution (2008), he said, one will find various step-by-step provisions for the Myanmar Armed Forces in order not to seize the State power easily and in order not to hold the State power for a long time, even if the Myanmar Armed Forces takes the responsibility of the State under the agreement of the President.

Burma experienced government by a military dictatorship from 1962 until 2011, when the military ceded power to a quasi-civilian government that consisted mostly of retired army generals. Only this year did the Southeast Asian nation see a civilian government, elected by its people, finally assume power.
Burma State Counselor Postpones Visit to Indonesia

Foreign Minister and State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at the government house in Bangkok during her visit to Thailand on June 24, 2016. / J Paing / The Irrawaddy

State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will commence her three-day visit to Singapore for bilateral relations on Wednesday but she will postpone her planned visit to Indonesia.

The foreign affairs ministry said the Indonesia trip was delayed due to scheduling difficulties and that the trip would possibly occur in the upcoming months.

Daw Aye Aye Soe, a ministry of foreign affairs spokesperson, told The Irrawaddy that the postponement of the Indonesia trip was unrelated to current anti-Burma protests when asked whether the visit was postponed due to security issues.

Its not only in Indonesia. We are hearing about protests at Myanmar embassies in other countries, regarding campaigns to undermine our government, she added.

The State Counselor is currently putting her attention into resolving the domestic affairs issues in Shan and Rakhine [Arakan] states, she added, referring to a recent renewal of fighting between the Burma Army and an alliance of ethnic armed groups in Shan State, as well as ongoing conflict Arakan States Maungdaw Township.

Last Thursday, Muslim protesters in Jakarta, Indonesia demonstrated in front of the Burma Embassy, calling for a stop to violence against Rohingya Muslims in Arakan State. Allegations of rape and torture of Rohingya have been widespread since an Oct. 9 border post attack in Maungdaw Township.

Further attacks led to Burma Army security forces taking control of the region for almost two months to conduct clearance operations.

Malaysias cabinet condemned the actions in a Nov. 25 statement and pressed for a meeting with Burmas foreign minister as soon as possible, according to the Jakarta Post.
Burma Two Rape Cases Reported in Mandalay

A photo campaign against child sex abuse cases in Mandalay calls for harsher penalties for the offenders. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  Two new rape casesincluding one involving underage victimswere filed with the local police in Mandalays Chanayethazan Township on Sunday, according to police records.

In the first case, in Sunday morning, a 40-year-old man, U Hla Htwealso known as U Kyin Wattis accused of sexually abusing two children, a boy, aged seven, and a four-year-old girl, who live in a squatters hut in the township.

U Hla Htwe was arrested and is being investigated under sections 376 and 377 of Burmas penal code for rape and unnatural offenses, both of which can be punished with up to 20 years in prison and fines.

A 20-year-old woman also reported being raped on Sunday by 31-year-old U Sein Pyaung, who is a driver for the office of Mandalay Divisions Advocate General, and lives within the offices compound. Police records say that the victim was dragged into a room within the compound and raped.

According to the No. (3) Police Station in Mandalay, the accused is now in detention and has been charged under Section 376 of Burmas penal code.

Over the weekend, the lawyers, artists, members of Parliament and netizens campaigned against sexual violence against children in Rangoon and Mandalay.

The campaigners called for harsher penalties for convicted offenders, pointing out that it was common for perpetrators to avoid jail time by compensating victims, to be released after short prison sentences, or to escape punishment altogether.
Politics NLD Announces Candidates, Selection Criteria for By-Election

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi leaves the NLD headquarters after thanking party supporters one day after the NLDs victory in the April 1, 2012 by-election. / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYIDAW  The ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) announced on Monday the list of candidates to contest all 19 vacant seats in the by-election slated for April 1, 2017.

Among 19 candidates, only two are women, and are competing for seats in the Upper House and the Shan State regional parliament.

The NLD has adopted a new policy in selecting candidates for the by-election, the partys spokesperson U Win Htein told the press in Naypyidaw on Saturday.

In the 2015 election, we favored youth, women and ethnic persons in selecting candidates. But then, some of them lacked political acumen, and are not mature. They act and speak recklessly. Therefore, we now select those with political virtue, U Win Htein told reporters.

Despite this shift, the party has mostly approved the candidates selected by township level chapters, and only in some cases has the NLDs central executive committee replaced the candidates, said U Win Htein.

On Saturday, the NLD officially relieved three lawmakers of their duties in the partyU Sein Win from Maubin Township, Dr. Soe Moe Thu from Myaungmya Township, and U Nyan Linn from Shwepyitha Township.

These three will be relieved of their duties in the parliament and the party. Now, they are ordinary party members. We will also have to discipline some other lawmakers, but their cases are not as bad as those three, said U Win Htein.

U Sein Win was relieved of his duties because he sued fellow NLD members despite mediation provided by NLD senior leaders, said members of the party.

Dr. Soe Moe Thu has been under fire for reported extramarital affairs, while U Nyan Lin is facing charges of trespassing in a hotel in Rangoons Shwepyitha.

Among the 19 vacant seats are three in the Upper House in Chin State, Pegu and Rangoon divisions, nine in the Lower House in Sagaing and Rangoon divisions and Shan, Mon and Arakan states, and seven seats in the Karenni and Shan State regional parliaments.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko
Guest Column Free Speech Must be Defended

Swedens Ambassador to Burma, Thailand and Laos Staffan Herrstrom is seen at a discussion on the right to information law on Nov.15 in Rangoon. / Tin Htet Paing / The Irrawaddy

Today Sweden celebrates 250 years of freedom of the press. On Dec. 2, 1766, the Swedish Riksdag adopted the worlds first Freedom of the Press Act, which meant that censorship of printed publications was abolished and the right of the public to have access to public documents and take part in political debates was secured. The Freedom of the Press Act has been instrumental to the development of Swedens modern welfare state.

The Swedish Act was unique for its time. The text, which was drafted by Member of the Riksdag Anders Chydenius from Karleby, came before the American Constitution which protects the right to freedom of expression for all citizens.

Freedom of expression has served Sweden well. Freedom of speech is not only a prerequisite for democracy; it is also the guarantor of societys development. The free flow of ideas and opinions, as well as debate and critical examination, creates a wealth of ideas and drives innovation.

Thanks to the Swedish principle of public access to official documents, citizens have the right of scrutiny and access to information held by the public authorities. In this way, private individuals and journalists can scrutinize power structures and popularly elected politicians. For us, this principlecentral to our legal systemhas contributed to a low level of corruption and a high level of confidence in our democratic institutions. There is no doubt that our open society has laid the foundation for our countrys economic growth and prosperity.

But while we celebrate freedom of expression, we are unfortunately seeing how fundamental rights and freedoms are coming increasingly under threat around the world. In many places we are seeing the democratic space shrinking. People are being silenced and civic information is being restricted. Repressive legislation is targeting journalists and human rights defenders. Threats and harassment are becoming increasingly common, and worrying statistics from the UNESCO show that 800 journalists have been killed in the last ten years. Unfortunately, only a handful of the perpetrators are brought to justice.

The security of journalists is a prerequisite for free debate. Because what happens to a society that does not have access to free and independent media? What happens to knowledge when information is subject to certain conditions? What are the consequences of an uninformed public?

We must now intensify efforts to promote freedom of expression and of the media. Free speech is an important principle that we are proud of and want to protect. It is a tradition that deserves to be defended.

The UNs Global Goals for Sustainable Development and the 2030 Agenda are a positive societal development. One of the targets, 16.10, urges countries to Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements. We consider this to be a very important target to achieve in efforts for global sustainable development.

The 250th anniversary of the Freedom of the Press Act in Sweden reminds us of the long road we have travelled to promote freedom of expression. Free speech is a principle that must never be taken for granted. It must always be defended. We hope that Dec. 2 will be the starting point of renewed engagement. We hope that more people will stand up for free debate and continue to discuss, scrutinize and criticize.
Navigating Your Way Through an IT Road Map

Earlier this month, I wrote about Silicon Valley veteran Joe Salesky, CEO of CRMNEXT, who argued that his companys customer relationship management software could have prevented the scandal at Wells Fargo, in which bank employees were found to have fraudulently opened more than 1.5 million deposit and credit accounts without customer authorization. A specific dimension of this story warrants further discussion: What is CRMNEXT  an Indian company  getting right, that U.S. CRM software providers have gotten wrong?

The way I framed that question in my interview with Salesky was to ask him in what ways CRMNEXTs heritage as an Indian company contributed to its wherewithal to deliver a CRM platform thats more technologically advanced than those from U.S. CRM providers like Salesforce. First of all, Salesky responded, we need to remember that the entrepreneurial culture of Silicon Valley is every bit as present in New Delhi and Mumbai, and that innovation is a global phenomenon:

I came in as CEO a little over six months ago, and its been very interesting for me to understand the culture, and understand the teams. But theres no question, India has a tremendous number of engineers who are interested in software, which I think is a blend of engineering and art, and India loves art. I think innovation happens around the world. We just happen to live in Silicon Valley, with access to capital, and great companies with great people  theres a bit of a perfect storm here. But what isnt in the Valley are banks that have to operate much more efficiently. The Indian economy is huge. Scalable, enterprise, real CRM, that understands the depth of a customer relationship, becomes essential, especially in the business-to-consumer world, where the scale is very different. We have five banks that have more than 50 million customers  thats five banks that are bigger than Bank of America.

CRMNEXT, which caters to banking and financial services firms, didnt even enter the U.S. market until earlier this year. The impetus for the company, Salesky said, was that across Asia and Africa, there are some really big banks:

One of the banks we work with, one of the largest banks in the world, has 300 million customers. By the end of next year, theyll have half a billion customers. They have 375,000 people who will be using our platform to assist customers, and all of those customers will be self-serving on the platform. So theres some scale that requires that things be done well  as a proving ground for technology, a bank this size is every bit as much of a bank that a U.S. bank is, but theyve got to do it with a level of efficiency that will help them grow and be profitable. We now have half a million bank employees on our platform, serving about half a billion customers globally. So I think weve got a good sample set.

According to Salesky, it all comes down to a different take on CRM:

[Salesforce founder and CEO] Marc Benioff is a friend  I was with him at Oracle, I think the world of Marc. But his version of CRM is much more business-to-business CRM. Its about managing leads and opportunities. So I would actually call that either an opportunity management system or a lead management system  its really not a customer action center. I think in most cases those tools are used like they were when Tom Siebel invented CRM  to keep track of the customer interaction. Sort of like a general ledger keeping track of your transactions, CRM is keeping track of the last time we talked, what we said. Its sort of a log. It works well for certain B2B tracking opportunities.

Salesky explained that in B2C, on the other hand, CRM needs to be the tool that orchestrates automation:

The next wave in innovation is about removing friction. The way I define friction is very simple: Is it easier for you to get another product with me as an existing vendor to you, like your bank, or is it just as easy for you to go get that product from another party? You can measure this with Amazon  once youve done an online purchase with Amazon, its absolutely easier for you to do another purchase with Amazon, than to go to anybody else. Theyve got your info, your payment details  its literally one click. Theyve taken out the friction.

The problem, Salesky said, is that banks in the United States havent gotten there yet:

If you walk into your current bank and say you want a credit card, vs. going over to Capital One, for example, you would find it no easier at your current bank, because the credit card system lives in a silo. And by the way, this is what bit Wells Fargo. You want to benefit from knowledge of the customers, to know what products fit them, and make it really easy  the average product should only take a few questions to onboard you.  When you walk into a bank, theres no way the banker is going to turn his screen around and show it to you. Part of the reason behind that is its a 30-year-old green screen, and just to do anything, like an address change, is 14 screen hops. Im not kidding  we can go to any bank you want and get them to turn their screen around, and count. Theres no way that banks are going to be able to recruit great people  the minute young people take a look at that, they go, Youve got to be kidding.

A contributing writer on IT management and career topics with IT Business Edge since 2009, Don Tennant began his technology journalism career in 1990 in Hong Kong, where he served as editor of the Hong Kong edition of Computerworld. After returning to the U.S. in 2000, he became Editor in Chief of the U.S. edition of Computerworld, and later assumed the editorial directorship of Computerworld and InfoWorld. Don was presented with the 2007 Timothy White Award for Editorial Integrity by American Business Media, and he is a recipient of the Jesse H. Neal National Business Journalism Award for editorial excellence in news coverage. Follow him on Twitter @dontennant.
HMD Global, the company behind the rumored upcoming Nokia Android phone, has confirmed that it will attend Mobile World Congress in February 2017. A handful of mid-range and top-end Nokia Android smartphones have already been spotted on benchmark sites and has been analyzed by some tech people. Now, there is a new name to be added to the list of the leaked Nokia Android smartphones, an entry-level device to be detailed about it.

2017 Android Smartphone Of Nokia Will Have 2K (QHD) Display

According to a Chinese tipster, Nokia's unnamed upcoming smartphone is said to feature a 5.2-inch or 5.5-inch screen size. The rumors also claim that the smartphone will sport 2K (QHD) display which means that the handset may belong to the high-end category. HMD Global will bring Nokia back to the mobile world and the upcoming Nokia smartphones will be manufactured by Foxconn.

MoreOn 2017 Nokia's Android Smartphone

As per the Geekbench listing, a new entry-level Nokia Android smartphone, named 'Pixel,' is seen running Android 7.0.1 Nougat. It is also seen that the saidhandset is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 SoC coupled with 1GB of RAM. The CPU is a dual-core variant at a clock speed of 1.19GHz

Nokia Android smartphone is also said to support Quick Charge 3.0 technology inside to charge the battery. Under the tests run by the site, the so-called Nokia Pixel scored 404 on the single-core test while it resulted with 661 on the multi-core test. It is likely the name of this entry-level Nokia Android smartphone will change before being commercially launched.

According to Gadgets 360, the Nokia Android phone is also rumored to come with waterproof capability alongside having a full metal unibody design. Unfortunately, they don't provide any image to confirm the credibility of the leak specification. So it is time for you to imagine for now on what will be the unit model's appearance.
A campaign against gay men and women in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania and other Eastern African nations have recently been started outlawing same-sex relationships and have been threatened of years of imprisonment. In a move that has alarmed health workers, Tanzania is found to have been turning its anti-homosexual violence in a new direction which targets HIV/AIDS programs that have helped tame the disease that once severely damaged the region.

Discrimination On Gay Men And Women

According to Napa Valley Register, it was found that just last month, the minister of health has allegedly announced that Tanzania will ban HIV/AIDS outreach projects aimed at gay men, pending a review. Consequently, the move has forced the temporary closure of U.S.-funded programs that provide testing, condoms and medical care to gays. Current data shows that about 30 percent of gay men in Tanzania are HIV-positive, thus, health workers claim that this figure will rise in no time.

This plan of action that the Tanzanian authorities have made was said to be the first time in history that a country has suspended major parts of the United States' hugely successful foreign HIV/AIDS initiative in an attempt to crack down on the gay community. It was found that the US PEPFAR campaign has been backed by $65 billion since it was founded in 2003 and has been credited with saving millions of lives.

On the other hand, it was known that the PEPFAR, or the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which was initiated by George W. Bush with bipartisan support, has become one of the most important U.S. assistance programs ever in Africa.

As per Chicago Tribune, it was found that the ban has happened after months of hate speeches and threats from Tanzanian officials aimed at the gay community and at organizations treating its HIV/AIDS patients.

Furthermore, the U.N. Free & Equal campaign for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights has found that homosexuality is already perceived as a criminal act in at least 76 countries, and at least 33 of them are in Africa. With the things that are happening now, can this unjust treatment cause a much bigger problem in the future or could this actually be the final resort?
Besides the movie 'Fifty Shades Darker', Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson have been part news headline from all around the globe because of the pregnancy rumors. It was speculated that Johnson is having a baby with Dornan. And just recently, an allegations spread that the two decided to marry each other. Is this all part of the movie promotion? Or are they really ready to take their relationship to a whole new level?

After Pregnancy Rumors, Dakota Johnson And Jamie Dornan Faces Marriage Allegations, Will Dornan Leave Wife Amelia Warner?

According to some source, Jamie Dornan is ready to leave wife, Amelia Warner to spend forever with Dakota Johnson. The two were allegedly having secret dates that would eventually lead to an intimate and private wedding.

Rumors intensified when Dakota Johnson herself admitted that she wanted to have a secret wedding. She desires to follow what her parents did and that is to have her true love and tie know with him secret. This made all the fans speculated that the actress is giving a pinch of information with what's going to happen between them.

Jamie Dornan Is Done Pleasing His Wife Amelia Warner, The Actor Is All Set To File A Divorce Against Her

With all of this, sources also told that Dornan is leaving Amelia not just because of the Johnson's pregnancy but also her uncontrollable character. The wife of the actor is said to be very manipulative which led to a tiresome Jamie Dornan.

The actor is allegedly on the verge of filing divorce against his wife to finally free him from all the controls and decisions of Amelia.

With all of this issues arising, both Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson remain silent. None of them confirmed or denied all the allegations that the people are throwing at them. Thei movie 'Fifty Shades Darker' is set to be released on February 10, 2017.
Conor McGregor has said several times that he didn't intend to renounce a title if he became a two-division champ, but on Saturday it was a different story, the UFC announced the Irish star's done just that.

During the broadcast for UFC Fight Night 101, the producer announced that as reported earlier by MMA Fighting, Max Holloway - Anthony Pettis will be for the interim 145 title. That fight will headline "UFC 206", which will take place in Toronto, Ontario. The UFC also announced that McGregor has "relinquished" the featherweight title, and thus, Jose Aldo is once more the undisputed champion. Aldo decision Frankie Edgar in July to win the interim belt.

In a press release that's been posted at UFC.com, it says the subsequent:

The UFC announced the new main event on Saturday, also revealing that Jose Aldo is the promotion's new undisputed featherweight champion after two-division title holder Conor McGregor returns the 145-pound belt and he decided to focus on the title he holds in the 155-pound lightweight division.

Today, it is more interesting to read that McGregor has "decided to focus" on the lightweight belt he won at UFC 205. Why he said that? Well, not only because in the past McGregor discussed that he could defend two titles, but because MMA Fighting's reporting sources have informed Ariel Helwani the Irish star didn't agree to give up the 145 belt.

Then McGregor said, he wanted to keep both belts, UFC president Dana White made it clear even before UFC 205 that McGregor would eventually have to give up one of the titles so that one of the divisions would not be held up.

Prior to UFC 205, UFC President Dana White said that McGregor would need to vacate a title, if he defeated Eddie Alvarez. Fans, it will be engaging to see if he will win or not.
SpaceX won a NASA contract to send a $112 million water-monitoring satellite into orbit. This is just after President-elect Donald Trump's advisers suggest they might try to slash NASA's earth science budget. The Surface Water and Ocean Topography mission satellite is scheduled to be launched in April 2021 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base.

SpaceX Has Been Selected To Study Earth's Surface Water

As reported by CNBC, the plans call for SpaceX to launch the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT), or SWOT, satellite in April 2021 from the Vandenburg Air Force Base in California. The satellite is the first global survey of Earth's surface water, according to a NASA. It will take high-resolution ocean measurements, and track how bodies of water bodies change over time.

According to NASA's press release, SWOT mission will collect detailed measurements of how water bodies on Earth change over time. The satellite will survey at least 90 percent of the globe, studying Earth's lakes, rivers, reservoirs and oceans, at least twice every 21 days, aid in freshwater management around the world, to improve ocean circulation models and weather and climate predictions.

Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by Hawthorne-based SpaceX. Were excited to carry this critical science payload into orbit for NASA, the nation and the international community, SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell said in a statement. We appreciate NASAs partnership and confidence in SpaceX as a launch provider," reported by Daily Breeze.

Why SWOT?

The Surface Water & Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission brings together two communities focused on a better understanding of the world's oceans and its terrestrial surface waters. U.S. and French oceanographers and hydrologists and international partners have joined forces to develop this new space mission to make the first global survey of Earth's surface water

It also observes the fine details of the ocean's surface topography and measures how water bodies change over time. SWOT was one of 15 missions listed in the 2007 National Research Council Decadal Survey of Earth science as missions that NASA should implement in the coming decade.

This is really a mission to measure surface water across the globe, said Parag Vaze, NASAs project manager for the survey mission.
Samsung Electronics has released a software update for the Gear Fit2 smart brand with new-fitness tracking options that would excel its quality for the users. Once the firmware update becomes available, customers will be notified in their smartphones quick panel, having the chance to install it on their bands through Samsung Gear app.

The Gear Fit 2 Will Now Be A Much Better Device For Its Owners

According to Tech Times, the software update for the Gear Fit2 will offers the option of stop tracking if its owner stops the activity via the new auto-pause feature, which will allow a better tracking precision, which is always extremely important for the fitness-minded customers. Of course, his option will begin tracking again automatically if it detects that the user has started its activity again.

Despite its amazing ability to showcase a higher level of tracking accuracy, this feature could be extremely useful for owners who previously had to customize the controls to pause and resume tracking. However, with this new feature they can do their activities without having to worry about pressing a button or being aware of the brand to see if it registered the exact time.

Great New Features For A Great Product

Without any kind of doubt, this an outstanding option that will separate the user from the machine without the necessity of not wearing it, since the Gear Fit2 will do the entire work while its owner just has to worry about making its physical activity the best way possible. Samsung knew what it was doing and the users are feeling thankful.

According to the International Business Times, another new functionality that the software update gives to the Gear Fit2 is Set, which streamlines the management of physical activies as squats, crunches and star jumps. Believe it or not, the brands owners will be able to input the number of repetitions and sets per exercises, while the Gear Fit2 will just start tallying the progress, displaying break intervals between each set in order to help the user.
Apple's MacBook Pro might be the best selling laptop, but not everyone likes it and certainly there are alternatives that are just as good.

Windows 10

Definitely, Apple's macOS isn't for everyone. But this is not a problem, since laptops featuring high-end components aren't unique to Apple. In fact, if you are shopping around it doesn't take long to find hardware that out-performs Apple's best offers. And, according to ZDNet, if you want a cheaper system than Apple's MacBook Pro lineup, then you could find good Windows 10 laptops that are even priced under $300.

Depending on what are your requirements from a laptop, you could find many more suitable options than the MacBook Pro. Many professionals have discovered that, rather than feeling like a macOS machine that provides top-notch specifications and features, this iteration of Apple's MacBook Pro feels more like a Pro version of the MacBook Air.

There are many other options on the market today and we are going to look in detail at some of the best alternatives to the MacBook Pro. According to Forbes, among the machines that are worthy to consider are included Razer's Blade, Microsoft's Surface Book and HP's Spectre x360.

But one element that is going to be missing on these laptops is macOS. Apple's current operating system can run only on the Mac range and is UNIX-based. That means any alternative to the MacBook Pro will not be running macOS. In most of cases, the alternative laptops to Apple's flagship will be running Windows 10, Microsoft's latest update to its operating system.

Microsoft Surface Book

Microsoft Surface Book started off from a position of weakness in the first machines, running underpowered ARM chips and the awkward Windows 8 tablet/desktop hybrid interface. But despite this, Microsoft's Surface brand has evolved to become a strong indicator of computer excellence, quality and a no-compromise design.

The Surface Pro 4 is a solid ultra-portable machine that comes with good versatility. The laptop's design showcases a distinctive style. The touchscreen and bundled Surface Pen are offering good functionality, the screen can be detached into a tablet and Windows 10s user interface works well in a tablet style.

You can choose from a variety of Microsoft Surface Pr models, starting from an $1499 entry-level machine that comes with an i5 or i7 Skylake processor, SSD sizes from 128 GB up to 1 TB and choices of 8 GB or 16 GB of RAM. The graphical performance of the highest specced machine has been increased by a recent refresh of the keyboard base unit.

Razer Blade

Razer Blade is designed as a high-end gaming laptop. But since gaming requires some of the highest performance on a computer, then you can be sure you have a laptop with excess power when you get a fast and efficient gaming laptop. Irvine, California-based Razer was founded in 1998 and has been specializing in gaming products since its launch. The company produce three categories of laptop: the workhorse 14-inch Razer Blade, the ultrabook styled Blade Stealth and the high-end 17-inch Blade Pro.

When closed, the Razer Blade is slightly larger than the newest MacBook Pro. However, you do get a lot more screen to work with a 14-inch screen. The Blade is available with either a touch enabled 32001800 screen or a 19201080 IPS screen, being one of the best out there if screen quality is important to you.

The Blade does also stand out in its keyboard by using Chroma backlighting technology. Every key can light up in a different color and you can have animated color effects dance under your fingers. When it comes to connectivity, the laptop offers a single HDMI 2.o port for video and audio output, a single USB-C/Thunderbolt 3 port as well as 3 USB 3.0 ports for a wide range of peripherals.

With its 2.6 GHz Intel Core i7 backed up by 16 GB of RAM, the Blade provides an impressive processing power and speed. Its battery life can comfortably surpass six hours of work. Its high specifications are designed for gaming, but in case that you buy it as a processor intensive laptop for editing HD video or rendering graphics, the Blade is a good machine to recommend.

HP Spectre x360

HP's Spectre x360 is a two-in-one design. The machine can have the screen flip all the way round to create a tablet experience or can operate as a regular laptop. You can also use it in the tent mode by flipping the screen almost all the way that the laptop stands up like a tent.

The two-piece hinge allows the screen to rotate through 360 degrees. The Spectre is a stylish laptop that comes with great design. HP took extra care to improve the laptop user experience for the consumer. The 19201080 display is a touchscreen, so it offers all the extra benefits of finger control in Windows 10.

This year's Spectre x360 is offering a huge amount of future proofing power, being one of the first machines to use Intel's latest Kabylake architecture. The high performance processor is backed up by 8 GB of RAM as the default option. The laptop comes with one older USB 3.1 port alongside two USB-C Thunderbolt ports.
If there's one series or movie fans are insanely mad about a sequel, that would be Attack On Titan. This Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hajime Isayama is a worldwide phenomenon.

Attack On Titan Season 2 Release Dates

Legions of fans have been waiting for the second installation of the massive anime series Attack of Titan. It is almost 2 years since we've heard or seen any updates from the majestic series. Although we only saw one season, it showed a promising start to any anime series. Fans have been speculating about the release dates and the plots that would happen on the new season and finally we already have the answers. The release date of Attack on Titan 2 will be on February 2017. The creators of the series are still tight lipped about the specific date but they did gave a hint.

Attack On Titan Season 2 Synopsis

Basing on what had happened last season, there are a lot of things we need to consider about the upcoming sequel. First, according to an insider, the next chapter will revolve on the "Clash of the Titans". There were discussions as well of providing a little twist specially on the Reiss family saga but no concrete reports yet on what they are pertaining about. A new arc is also on the rise which will be led by Captain Erwin Smith.

The plot will be divided into 3 parts as added by the insiders. The King and his throne will also be in question as citizens from his country or kingdom looks to revolt against him. The King is as fake as hi crown. He is just a mere puppet of the Reiss family and the citizens are fed up with him. Also, the new titan is a lot different than the original. He possesses a human like intelligence, has the ability to speak and capable of destroying anybody in an instant.

The new Titan can be deceiving and very intimidating. He is a giant but can shapeshift at will. The beast-like creature has only one thing in mind and that is to eradicate every living things in his path. His origins is still unknown or complicated. One reddit user suggest that the new Titan is a result of former Titans merging. Although there's a few supporting documents on that claim, the reddit user is credible as per comments and feedback.

Attack On Titan Season 1 Ending

Here's the glimpse of the script of the ending in Season 1. As the titan was approaching them, Kalura scream "wait, don't fight them!". Everybody was visibly scared but Hannes screamed "Yeah, I could save those two for sure, but now... I'm finally going to repay the favor I owe! Hannes tried to start his sneak attack but unfortunately action speaks louder than words. He trembles upon approaching the track of the titan.

Eren was shouting and asking for help from her mom Kalura. She stretches her arms towards them and screamed that they have to survive. She then cried and sobers with what is happening. The titan removes the house debris with one swipe and picks up Eren's mother. Kalura was devoured by the titan which immediately ended her life.
This weekend, riders of the San Francisco Municipal Railway got an unexpected surprise, being offered a free ride after the system's computerized fare systems were apparently hacked.

San Francisco MUNI Metro Hacked

According to San Francisco Examiner, on Friday afternoon, Nov. 25, the MUNI system had been attacked by hackers. On late Friday and Saturday, MUNI riders were greeted with printed "Metro Free" and "Out of Service" signs on ticket machines. The Verge reports that MUNI first became aware of the intrusion on Friday.

Recode reports that a spokesperson told San Francisco's CBS affiliate that in order to minimize customer impact, the system opened the fare gates. All day on Saturday and Sunday morning, rides were free. On Saturday, sources told San Francisco's CBS affiliate that the system had been hacked for days but the officials did not find out who was behind the attack or what the hackers wanted.

MUNI Spokesman Paul Rose said that the agency was "working to resolve the situation," but did not provide additional details. Later on, after being reached by email, the hacker declared that he was seeking a deal with MUNI to undo the damage.

Previous Similar Threats

According to Security Affairs, Morphus Labs linked in September a hacker to a ransomeware strain called Mamba. The security experts think that the malware employs similar tactics to those demonstrated against MUNI.

This isn't the first time when a California organization has to face such an issue. Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center discovered earlier this year that hackers are keeping its files hostages for a $3.6 million ransom. In a ransomware attack a malicious file is typically downloaded onto a computer and executed to encrypt the important files stocked on the hard drive. The files will be decrypted once a victim pays the demanded ransom.
Many life on Earth are now endangered. As the human population continues to grow, encroaching on their habitats becomes inevitable. The result is a loss of habitat for many species, which has driven some to near extinction. Many of these species are now targets for conservation. One example are the conservation efforts on for the jaguar to survive.

The jaguar is one of the large cats. The large cats, in general, have been considered to be some of the most majestic creatures in the animal kingdom. The jaguar in the Amazon has a large area. This area stretches from parts of Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, French Guiana and Suriname.

While this area might be large, it is threatened by much human activity. Much of that habitat is being lost to farming, cattle ranching and mining operations. Conservationists are searching for ways to have the jaguar survive and keep much of its habitat amidst development.

Several experts from conservation groups have met to discuss the future of the jaguar and its habitat. These groups met in Quito, Ecuador and have representatives from such groups as the Nacional de Pesquisas de Amazonia, WWF, WCS and Panthera, among others. The meeting has aimed to draw a plan revolving around five central themes, according to the WCS Newsroom.

The five themes discussed are landscape and corridor scale conservation; research and monitoring; legislation, policy and administration; conflict management; and education, training and communication. Dr. Rob Wallace, Amazon Landscape Conservation Expert from WCS said that there is importance in working out large landscape scales for jaguar habitat. The effort should be made by indigenous tribes, municipal governments and others that are involved in the conservation effort.

Dr. Emiliano Esterci Ramalho is a leading jaguar researcher and a monitoring coordinator at the Mamiraua Sustainable Development Institute. He said that the meeting has created a Jaguar Conservation Alliance in Brazil. This alliance aims to coordinate jaguar research and conservation efforts.

Also discussed are threats to the jaguar such as hunting and illegal trade, as Science Daily reports. Jaguar population in protected areas have bounced back, but there still remains the threat coming from poaching and the sale of teeth and other body parts. There is a need for constant monitoring and vigilance to ensure that jaguars aren't severely endangered.

There are conservation efforts on for the jaguar to survive. As humans continue to encroach on their habitat, it is necessary to give the large cat additional protection. Also threatened are whales, as climate change continues to affect them.
A new deadly disease called Thunderstorm Asthma has killed six people in Australia. In addition, five people are on life support as the rare condition has struck Melbourne. The sixth patient passed away on Saturday after a thunderstorm had struck Australia's second-largest city. Here are five must-know facts about the deadly disease.

Victims

One of the victims of the disease was Omar Moujalled, 18. The Australian International Academy student just completed the final year of studies. His death comes as a shock to his friends as he was one of the fittest in the group. While he did have asthma, it became severe during the thunderstorm. He could not even stand up to go for treatment. Other Thunderstorm Asthma victims include Hope Carnevali, 20, and Apollo Papadopoulos, 35.

Cause

The strange illness is apparently caused by the thunderstorm. Hundreds of people admitted to hospital on Nov. 21. They complained of breathing problems in Victoria. Emergency services had a tough time to handle the rush. Ambulance Victoria got more than 1,900 calls in four hours. It got a call in every 4/5 seconds.

When thunderstorms hit high rye grass pollen, the disease takes place. According to Robin Ould, it happens during high pollen days. The chief executive of the Asthma Foundation of Australia explained the process.

"Normally with rye grass the pollen would be trapped by nose hairs. When it breaks up it goes straight to the lungs." FOX6Now quoted Ould as saying.

Symptoms

During the storm, the pollen enters the bronchial tubes of the lungs and causes irritation. Then, the tubes get inflamed and filled with mucus. That is why people find it difficult to breathe.

Treatment

According to Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology And Allergy, asthma can be easily cured with proper management of chronic pollen asthma. Allergen immunotherapy works for some patients to cure allergic rhinitis and improve seasonal asthma.
Instead of seeing the 58-storey Donald Trump's midtown Manhattan home as Trump Tower, it appears to be replaced in Google Maps by a new name as "Dump Tower." Someone renamed the tower on Google Maps on Saturday, and the new moniker was not very flattering. As users of the Google Maps began noticing the new name for the Fifth Avenue building on Saturday, news spread quickly on social media. A lot of speculations, reactions and even pictures spread all over the internet.

Trump Tower Renamed As Dump Tower On Google Maps

According to The Telegraph, Donald Trump, the U.S. president-elect, has not yet commented on the issue. Trump has been using Trump Tower, which has been the focus of protests after the Republican victory on the election held earlier this month, as his transition headquarters.

Reports are suggesting that the billionaire may buck tradition and eschew the lure of the White House and spend much of his time as president at his $100 million (80 million) penthouse in New York. While Google managed to put out this first fire, another quickly arose to take its place and later in the day on Saturday, Trump International Hotel & Tower in Columbus Circle was renamed Dump International Hotel & Tower.

Google's Reaction On The Issue

However, Google could not be immediately reached for comment. But after a long wait, a Google spokeswoman told The Associated Press that the company has changed the name back to its original. The spokeswoman said user contributions help provide an up-to-date map, but also occasionally lead to inaccuracies.

As reported by Digital Trends, the vigilant Google Maps team soon corrected the spelling to its original version, and on Saturday evening a Google spokesperson told New Yorks PIX11, Some inappropriate names were surfacing in Google Maps that should not be, and we apologize for any offense this may have caused. Our teams immediately took action and have fixed the issue.

As of now, it is still unclear who was behind the prank made, though some believe that it was an inside job, perpetrated by an employee ofGoogle.
When Samsung decided to remove the Note 7 from the market, fans of the Note series weren't very happy with it. This has been proven by the amount of people who have taken to online communities to attest to not returning their Note 7 devices despite the recall. Needless to say, a lot of people love the Note series which is why the arrival of the Galaxy Note 8 is pretty much anticipated. With that said, the question that remains is when the next Note phone will be released.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Release Date

As of now, most tech new sources still stick to a mid to late 2017 release prediction for the Note 8. This is pretty much due to Samsung's lack of a clearer statement as to when they will be refreshing the Note line. Nevertheless, despite the company's silence on the matter, it's still great news that the Note 8 will indeed be released. If you may have recalled, rumors about Note series' cancellation have spread soon after Samsung has discontinued the Note 7. It was said that the company considered the thought of removing the Note line altogether because of the brand's stained reputation.

Nonetheless, as it turns out, Samsung will not be depriving Note fans of getting a new Note device. A report has come out a few weeks ago saying that Samsung will be giving discounts to Note 7 owners when they buy the Galaxy S8 or the Galaxy Note 8 in the future. This, of course, is only applicable to Note 7 owners who returned their devices in exchange for a Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge. This promo is also only applicable in South Korea.

Needless to say, it's safe to say that the next Note is indeed coming and based on past releases, it could arrive mid to late 2017. The last Note was released September while the Note 5 was released August. The Note 4 on the other hand was released October. With that said, it's safe to assume that the Galaxy Note 8 should be released not earlier than August of next year. It could also once again launch just in time to compete with Apple's upcoming iPhone.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8 Rumored Specs

Right now, there isn't a lot of things said about the Note 8 yet. Keep in mind that the Galaxy S8 is expected to come in approximately three months so it's pretty much understandable that it is the S8 that is making headlines right now. As for the Note 8, the only things rumored about it is that it should be powered by next year's latest Snapdragon processor which could be a Snapdragon 830 or a Snapdragon 835. The Note 8 should also have the new AI assistant named Bixby who has been rumored to be introduced in the Galaxy S8. As for the price, Tech Radar says that the Note 8 could be at around $850.

Needless to say, the most important thing about the Note 8 is that there is a good chance that Samsung would no longer encounter the same issue as what they have experienced with the Note 7. The company has learned their lessons about quality assurance the hard way. With that, it's safe to say that the Galaxy Note 8 will be given extra attention so as to avoid explosions and controversies.
Scientists have been searching for life on Mars. Unmanned missions have been sent in hopes of finding life there. Currently, no substantial evidence has officially been found, but has evidence of life on Mars already found long back?

The debate continues whether life on Mars exists today. It will likely continue until solid evidence is found. A group of scientists though think that evidence has already come out awhile back. An earlier unmanned NASA mission might have stumbled upon life on Mars already.

The Spirit rover mission has been to Mars a decade ago. During that time it has taken images and samples from Mars. Now some scientists are going over those images and data collected. They say that some rocky outcrops on the Gusev crater have opaline silica.

Steven Ruff and Jack Farmer from Arizona State University (ASU) have gone over the images from Home Plate, which is a plateau of rocks at the Columbia Hills area located at the crater. This are is said to have active hot springs, and silica outcrops in the area. These, they contend, are biosignatures of past life.

Other signs of life have been found, such as organic molecules trapped in rocks, according to the Sunday Express. There are also signs of stromatolites that have been found. These are formed when microbes build colonies in moist environments.

The two researchers have compared these with some of the silica deposits at El Tatio, which is near the Atacama Desert in Chile, as The Inquisitr reports. The conditions on El Tatio are said to be the same conditions that can be found in the Gusev crater on Mars. If it is proven, then the case for life on Mars would have become stronger than ever.

Already there have been findings by another team of scientists that life on Mars might have already been found. The Viking Mars mission back in 1976 is said to have found life on Mars. With this new evidence, could it be that evidence for life on Mars has already been found long back? Perhaps having the two pieces of evidence together might make a stronger case for it.
Windows 10 was released in mid-2015 but many are still reluctant to let go of their Windows 7 (forget the 8.1 version).

Those who still don't belong to the 350 million strong Windows 10 users all over the world may want to rethink their life choices. They can begin with updating to the latest Widows OS.

But for every new tech - software or hardware - there will always be a few problems encountered. Here is a short list of Windows 10 problems and their respective solutions:

Lack of Space to Install Windows 10

This one is more of a reminder than a problem solver. Updating to Windows 10 requires space - lots of it. Laptops and desktops recently released already have Windows 10 installed in them so some of the issues listed here may no longer matter. To install Windows 10, 16GB of space is necessary. Go to My Computer or This PC to see the remaining space. This figure will give the user an idea on how much GB he or she needs to get rid before installing the new OS.

Printer Compatibility Issues

Transitioning from Windows 7 to 10 also requires updating the printer drivers. To do this, find out the printer's name and download the drivers compatible with Windows 10. Install the according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Missing Bookmarks and Favorites

Newbies to Windows 10 will notice that their old Favorites and Bookmarks are gone. This is because there is a new browser in the Microsoft Edge. To get these back, click on the three dots on the top tight hand corner and then click on Settings. Look for 'Import favorites on another browser' or 'Import bookmarks and settings' and then click on it. This will bring over all the previous data from the previous browser. Low Virtual Memory Allocation

Open Control Panel and go to Performance Settings. Go to the Advanced Settings tab and select Just Appearance and Performance Windows. De-select 'Automatically manage paging file size for all drivers' then click Custom Size to make the necessary changes.

Updating Old Software

Windows 10 comes with some backward compatibility issues. As with other OS, transitioning to a new one can cause some applications to stop working. The only solution so far is to delete the software and reinstall it. But before doing that, users can try looking for an update of that software in Windows Store.

Microsoft continues to release updates on Windows 10 and only time will tell if these five issues will be a thing of the past.
After a very successful run last year, the Honda Pilot is ready to make another one for its 2017 model. Those that have been eagerly waiting for the arrival of the of the new model will definitely be pleased because the 2017 Pilot Gets more than a few improvements.

The 2017 Honda Pilot Powertrain Options

OPP Trends reported that in addition to the 3.5-liter direct-injected i-VTEC engine that puts out a powerful 280 horsepower, buyers will also get an option for another engine. This would come in the form of a 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle Inline-4 unit. The second option is capable of 220 horsepower and 200 pound-feet of torque. These powertrains are paired with a standard six-speed automatic transmission but buyers may also opt for the nine-speed gearbox.

Safety Features

It was also mentioned that the 2017 Honda Pilot will come more equipped with safety features than before. These include the active cruise control system along with frontal collision monitoring, lane-keep assist, lane departure warning, autonomous emergency braking, road departure mitigation and blind-spot protection. In addition, the interior materials also received some upgrades in durability making them last that much longer.

Design And Other Features

Unfortunately, there is not much to be seen in the exterior designs of the 2017 Honda Pilot as most of its former external features have been retained except for its new body paint. However, there are more to be seen in the interior of the 2017 Honda Pilot. In addition to the standard features from the previous models, the new Pilot will now have the Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility that fans and enthusiasts have been yearning for.

Price And Availability

The 2017 Honda Pilot is now available in the market. The 2017 Honda Pilot LX trim with standard front-wheel drive (FWD) starts at $30,595 as reported. The price goes up as buyers move to higher levels of trims. Accordingly, the top trim Pilot Elite with an all-wheel drive (AWD) set up is at $47,070.
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It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times.

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Finding a job is sometimes challenging. There are a lot of things to be considered before submitting your resume in a certain company. Forbes asked Indeed.com (a job search that attracts 200 million job seekers per month) where and what the available job opportunities in the US are.

These are:

Registered Nurse

This job is the most hiring right now. Healthcare institutions seek for those who have skills and credentials as well. The overall job postings in the US is 6.16%.

Customer Service Representatives

This position is also relevant right now. Companies need employees who can immediately respond to customers and can provide helpful information. The overall job postings in the US is 3.4%.

Sales Representatives

This job ranked on third spot. A lot of companies now are selling certain products. Companies need someone who can communicate well with and promote the products to other businesses, or agencies. The overall job postings in the US is 3.1%.

Sales Managers

Many companies are engaged in sales right now. Therefore, a Sales Manager is needed to guide the team and set a goals for sales. The overall job postings in the US is 2.5%.

Other available jobs right now also include: First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Non-Retail Sales (2.19%), Truck Drivers, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer (2.14%), Operations Manager (2.11%), Managers (1.66%), Software Quality Assurance Engineers and Testers (1.44%), and Food Service Managers (1.2%)

And for those who lives in Ireland and UK, there is also a job opportunity coming thing this 2020 from Nestle. According to Jobs & Hire Nestle will hire 3,000 young adults to all over Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

But of course, do not forget the 6 tips before searching a job. These are:

1. Make Yourself a "Smack-in-the-Forehead" Obvious Fit

2. Don't Limit Yourself to Online Applications

3. Remember That Your Resume (and LinkedIn Profile) Is Not a Tattoo

4. Accept That You Will Never Bore Anyone Into Hiring You

5. If You're Not on LinkedIn, You Very Nearly Don't Exist

6. "Thank You" Matters

Surely, there will be a lot of job opportunity for the coming years; many people will be hired and the unemployment rate will decrease.
President-elect Donald Trump's campaign for the prevention of the relocation of American manufacturers to other countries such a Mexico has already begun. Among the priorities of Trump are Ford Motor Company and Carrier Corporation.

Once Ford plan of moving its production to Mexico comes into reality, over 3,000 jobs will be lost. Compared to Carrier, the transfer of Ford will have a huge impact in terms of job losses for small car suppliers will also be affected.

According to the report of The Star, once Ford moves to Mexico, employment from automotive suppliers and assembly plants will also be reduced. Assembly plants are dependent on the nearness with the suppliers of engines, tires, headlights, seats and other automotive components. If producers of small cars will decrease, employment in assembly plants will also be in jeopardy.

As to the other automotive companies, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. confirmed its investment worth $300 million in its San Luis de Potosi, Mexico tire plant for the instalment of the company's 6 million units of its yearly capacity. However, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. still has no announcements as to closure of its plant in US.

Aiming to increase 3 million units to Goodyear's annual capacity, the company also has a $210 million investment in its plant located at Pulandian, China. It is believed that the said investment is intended for the hunt for wages lower than those in the United States.

As to the Carrier Air Conditioner Company, a shocking announcement resulting to the frantic reactions of its employees revealed that the company will close two of its factories and Indiana for its plan to move to Mexico.

According to a report by New York Times, Donald Trump talked with the management of Carrier on Thursday to urge the company to stay in the United States instead of transferring over 2,000 of its factory jobs to Monterrey, Mexico.

Trump, in his campaign, had stressed on his goal of limiting the employment from American companies to the American citizens only to assure the development of the economy of the United States. However, as what is visible as of the moment, the chief executive officers of American companies choose to produce jobs on other countries and employ foreign workers.

Having said that, the negotiation prowess of Donald Trump, where he was known for, will surely be tested.
The events in "Teen Wolf" Season 6 Episode 3 intensifies with swirling surprising twists. No one still knows what happened to Dylan O'Brien's Stiles Stilinski after the last episode, now the fans will be shocked once again with another mystery, his mother's Claudia sudden appearance. Not a soul in Beacon Hills is ready for what is in store for them.

In "Teen Wolf" Season 6 previously, O'Brien's Stiles Stilinski was taken by the "The Wild Hun"t. In a report by Jobs & Hire, Corey's strange connection was revealed in episode 2. Supposedly, it has a big part on how Scott, Lydia, and the others find him.

Before they can even remember him, someone gets back from the dead, Stile's mother Claudia. Mrs. Stilinki supposedly disappears long ago, she experienced mental deterioration that caused her demise. Although, the sheriff's wife is suddenly at home in "Teen Wolf" Season 6 Episode 3, and no one knows why.

According to International Business Times, there are three Claudia appearance theories. Notably, the one most intriguing is AnExcitedOstrick Theory: "Something feels off about the Claudia. But I could see Teen Wolf writers using Stiles mother as some mythological being who works with the wild hunt."

The most relative thing to the "Teen Wolf" Season 6 Episode 3 current events is the sheriff's connection to the Ghost Riders. There is a possibility that she too was wiped out from everyone's memory or not.

Now, everything is gone a screw. With Tyler Posey's news about Scott, no one knows further what will happen. "So, there is a little bit of a roller coaster for Scott there but all in all, same old Teen Wolf business," Movie News Guide quoted Posey's thought on his character's college plans.

In all, "Teen Wolf" Season 6 Episode 3 puzzles everybody though the next episode on Nov. 29, Tuesday will surely answer everything. Stay tuned to Jobs & Hire latest news and updates.
HBO is now having a handful of big-ticket dramas stage after stage, viewers from the UK-adapted "The Night Of" has been raising questions about its sudden continuation. An aspiring actor is also set to come back and play a big role for the second series.

Game N Guide had mentioned HBO President of programming Casey Bloy announced at the network's Santa Monica office recently. Due to a lot of network competitions with the wide variety of channels the CEO has decided for the short-series to definitely come back on air.

It has also stated upon getting asked if he wants to make "The Night Of" Season 2, he answered "Yes, Absolutely!" He has also mentioned that the only issue in making another season is how to make it more exciting and more entertaining.

Screen Crush reveals some information regarding Steve Zaillian and Richard Price discussing about their ideas for the upcoming new season of the show. In addition to this, Casey Bloy admitted that it will probably take some time for them to make another chapter. It is possibly because the two showrunners is taking a lot of time developing the story.

Is John Turturro going to be seen once again for 'Night Of' Season 2?

Yes, John Michael Turturro the Italian-American actor who has been known for his roles and appeared in over sixty films will once again play a big role for the upcoming season. Steve Zaillian suggested to keep John Turturro in the cast and he stated John Turturros psoriasis-ridden role is of great potential for the show, all this statements are just speculations as said by Bloy.

It is possible that Bloy gives more statement sooner or later as HBO presents its winter press tour. But will "The Night Of" Season 2 have an available slot in the new HBO regime? More updates will be revealed soon.
Two months have passed since the sectarian Iraqi coalition launched the battle of Mosul to reclaim the city from ISIS. While the military campaign continues, United Nations are now keen on acquiring more aid for the displaced civilian population.

Life will be harder for the citizens living in the liberated neighborhoods given that winter is encroaching in the region. The liberated territories can barely sustain a decent functional community in the current refugee camp without the freezing temperature to consider.

According to the article featured in Reuters World News, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) are setting up additional 1,600 tents in an area being cleared of landmines. The United Nations are also currently demanding more donors to supply 1.2 million people with winter kits.

But with the civilians receiving the shorter end of the stick, how are the armed forces faring so far? Contrary to popular belief, their string of victories against the ISIS in the ongoing battle of Mosul is not without heavy costs.

A report published by Washington Post describes how an Iraqi hospital dedicated to providing medical support for the coalition are now jam-packed with their own wounded fighters. The head physician testifies admitting approximately 150 emergency patients per day despite the dire lack of beds and medical supplies.

Both the civilian and military got their hands full. Even with the United Nations at the forefront of rallying concerned citizens worldwide, the Iraqi civilian and military sectors are getting little relief amidst their ongoing plight.

Nothing seems easy while the teetering force of the enemy is still putting up a good fight with covert and guerilla strikes. The recent report by Jobs & Hire describes how the terrorists continue to harangue the larger force of the Iraqi coalition with suicide car bombs while going under the radar by hiding among the civilian population.
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Today is the deadline for Upward Bound grants, a federal college-preparation program with the goal of getting more high school students from low-income families and those whose parents dont have four-year degrees to finish high school and go on to college.

Surry Community College wont be reapplying.

It has run its course for the college, said David Shockley, the president of SCC. Weve moved on to new methodologies, and the old has just run its course.

We felt like it was time and its irresponsible to renew the grant.

SCC hosts one of 20 Upward Bound programs operating in the state. Theyve had it since 2003.

Shockley said people get caught up in thinking that federal grants are free money. The grant, worth more than $1 million over five years, comes with standards and benchmarks the program must meet, he said.

At the end of the day, the college felt like it was basically redundant, he said. Were meeting those needs through different avenues now.

People feel like you can just take federal money because its free, but its not free.

SCC officials  the president and board of trustees  made the decision last year to let two federal grants that target low-income students and potential first-generation college students lapse. The Educational Opportunity Centers grant, which sought to help adults without a post-secondary degree get back to school, expired in August. The Upward Bound grant will expire next summer, meaning this year will be the last for the 50 or so students from Surry and Yadkin counties currently participating. Many of them have been part of the program since their freshman year, and they say theyre sad to see it go.

I was a bit surprised, said Corbin Powell, a junior at East Surry High School. Ive been kind of depending on it to help me get into college and then the year thats most vital, I cant go anymore.

At least some of the students said they had no idea the program was ending.

Powell, who will miss out on the programs college prep services during his senior year of high school, said he only found out it was ending from the program director, Erica Smith, last week. Though Shockley told the board of trustees in August 2015 that the school would not reapply for the grant, that message  and its full implications for Upward Bound  doesnt appear to have been communicated to the students.

No one bothered to tell the children or their parents, Smith said. I want them to know, so they have the opportunity to be heard. Its just wrong from them to not have a say.

Smith said she thinks its the school administrations responsibility to talk to the students and their parents and explain the decision. Shockley said he expected the programs director  thats Smith  to notify students.

If thats the case (that the students dont know), then for me that would be extremely disappointing that leadership over those grants had not done that, Shockley said. They were informed and the students should have been.

Smith said she didnt feel like she had permission to tell the students. She had also been hoping that Surry County Schools would take over the program from the college. Back in February, Smith wrote to Travis Reeves, Surry Countys superintendent, to ask the school system to take over the program. Reeves responded at the end of October.

They were not interested.

While we do believe in the mission of this grant to provide educational opportunities to low-income, first-generation students, we do not foresee this grant helping us further our current goals for our students as we are already accomplishing much of the same work through Career and College Promise and the work of the college liaisons we currently employ, Reeves wrote in a letter dated Oct. 17, but sent to Smith a week later.

Career and College Promise is North Carolinas dual enrollment program, which allows high school students to enroll in college classes at North Carolina community colleges and universities through their high schools. Shockley also cited CCP as a reason for moving away from Upward Bound, calling it a duplication of services.

Smith said the programs are not the same, though. Where CCP is open to all public high school students, Upward Bound focuses on at-risk kids. More than three-quarters of Surrys current group of Upward Bound students come from low-income families. Nearly half of them are minority students.

I truly believe these folks do not understand what the program provides, Smith said.

CCP allows high school students to enroll in college classes as part of their regular high school schedule. Upward Bound offers Saturday classes twice a month, academic and college counseling, tutoring opportunities and a six-week summer school on the SCC campus where students get academic coursework four days a week and go on college visits each Friday. After high school graduation, Upward Bound students also get to take two free summer courses at SCC.

Joel Hoyle, the principal at Elkin High School, said his school can provide some of the services students receive in Upward Bound, but not all of them  especially not for free.

I hate that the program is ending, Hoyle said. Were a small school, so we havent had large numbers, but the ones who have been involved have gained some valuable experiences.

Hoyle said Elkin usually has six to eight students in the program at any one time.

The Upward Bound group hasnt met since October, before Smith found out that her last-ditch effort to save the program  Surry County Schools  had failed. The group took November off because of several long-weekend holidays in the month. Theyll meet next month, and Smith said shes not sure what to say.

Since I was never brought into the conversation, the people who made the decision are really responsible, she said. Im not sure what I would tell them (the students) because I dont understand it either.

Destiny Largen, a junior at Surry Central High School, said some of the programs counselors had mentioned to her that the program might be coming to a close, but the students hadnt heard anything official.

They kind of warned us a little about what was going on, so we kind of knew but always hoped, she said. Next year, they were going to help us put in applications and apply for scholarships. It really helps out.

Largen said shell look to her parents to help her with these things now. Joseph Largen, Destinys father, said hes also disappointed to see the program come to a close before his daughter applies to college. Its helped her make friends with kids like her, from families with limited means but who want to go to college. Shes gone on college visit trips that their family couldnt have provided, he said.

In my family, (Destinys) sister is the first one ever to graduate high school and now shes getting ready to go to college, Largen said. Destiny will be the second.

I grew up very poor. Now, both of my daughters and doing things ... I never would have imagined.

The program has been operating at Surry Community College since 2003, reaching hundreds of students who faced a lot of barriers when it came to getting into college. And its been largely successful, surpassing both the average performance of Upward Bound programs around the country and the goals set by the federal government, according to U.S. Department of Education data.

Of the 24 students SCCs Upward Bound program graduated in 2013, 21 of them were enrolled in post-secondary education of some sort the next semester. Many of them end up at Surry Community College.

Dacia Lopez, a freshman there, said she hadnt considered SCC until she entered the Upward Bound program in her sophomore year at Surry Central High. But, after three years of regular visits and summers spent on the campus, it became her best option.

I was not planning to go to Surry at all, Lopez said. But I liked the environment and the way the counselors and everyone talked to me about it.

Lopez is studying to become a teacher.

I think they should do whatever is possible to keep the program, because its great for the kids, she said. It helped me a lot.

Shockley said dual enrollment initiatives like CCP and SCCs two early college programs have been more efficient at recruiting students to his school.

But recruitment isnt the only benefit SCC gets from Upward Bound. A portion of the grants annual allotment of $220,000 flowed directly to the school. The grant pays SCC for hosting the program, covering the cost of using its space and feeding the students (who get breakfast and lunch at Saturday class and each day of summer school). The grant also pays the tuition, fees and book costs for the two classes that each Upward Bound graduate gets to take at SCC during the summer after they finish high school. Over the last five years, the Upward Bound grant has paid SCC more than $75,000.

When the grant expires, so too will that modest source of income. Itll also cost Smith and several other employees their jobs. Smith said shes more concerned, however, about the students losing services.

By not speaking with them and conferring with them, we are not seeing the full picture of this program and how it works, Smith said. And without a full picture, how can a decision of this magnitude be made?

Smith said she has the grant application ready to go, should SCC officials change their minds. She hopes the school will at least allow her to submit the application and give students and families a chance to be heard. They can pull the grant request down the road but will have no options if they miss the deadline. The application is due at 4:30 p.m. Monday.
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates  What does Donald Trumps election mean for the Middle East? A group of prominent foreign ministers and policy experts gathered here recently to explore the elections implications for the worlds most volatile region.

The gathering, known as the Sir Bani Yas forum, is hosted each year by Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, the UAEs foreign minister. Comments here werent attributable, so I cant identify the participants by name. But it included representatives from nearly every Arab country, as well as America, Europe, Russia, China and the United Nations.

Change itself was welcomed by the Gulf Arabs, who grew to dislike many aspects of President Obamas Middle East policy. But so little is certain about Trumps positions that even those urging support cautioned that nobody knows where he stands.

Given Trumps sparse record, several speakers focused on his obvious personality traits. One argued that Trump is clearly a vain man, so flatter him  as many world leaders have done in their contacts since Nov. 8. Another cautioned that Trump is a volatile man, so dont corner him. A third argued that hes transactional  a self-proclaimed deal-maker  so look for the deals that will serve the regions interests.

Trumps rhetorical volleys against trade drew surprisingly little comment, given that the UAE is a symbol of globalization. Nor did his anti-Muslim remarks draw any rebuke. One prominent attendee said at least Trump would be anti-Shiite (hard on Iran) as well as anti-Sunni, which he claimed Obama has been.

Perhaps in these mercantile city-states, people doubt that Trump could reverse the momentum of diverse, multicultural global commerce even if he wanted. The build-out is just moving too fast: At a backyard dinner in Dubai hosted by Afghan media mogul Saad Mohseni, I met young entrepreneurs investing in East African logistics networks, Saudi supermarkets, South Asian power grids and a raft of other projects.

Two issues facing Trump garnered special focus at the Sir Bani Yas discussions.

The Iran nuclear deal is the first conundrum. Throughout the campaign, Trump suggested he would scrap the agreement or renegotiate it. But there was near-unanimity here that Trump should accept the agreement as a done deal, and focus instead on curbing Irans aggressive behavior in the region. This consensus included even officials who had been among the agreements strident critics.

Only someone who wants to send us into the unknown world would tear it up, said one prominent Gulf Arab official. Nobody is really against the deal, said another, after sharply criticizing the way it was negotiated.

Many in this group hoped that Trump would be tougher in challenging Iranian provocations. Trump said during the campaign that if Iranian gunboats harassed U.S. Navy ships in the Gulf, he would blow them out of the water. Thats the kind of anti-Iran pushback the Gulf Arabs want to see (albeit with someone elses ships at risk).

Trumps willingness to consider allying with Russia in Syria was the second big, overarching issue. Many Arab officials here backed the Syrian opposition against President Bashar Assad, so you might think that any hint that Trump would partner with Moscow would be anathema. But in the Middle East, political support tends to go with a winner, and Russia looks like the strong player in Syria these days.

Representatives of the Syrian opposition spoke movingly of the human cost of Russias intervention, and argued that the fall of Aleppo would mean permanent war.

Russian speakers made some of the most provocative comments at the conference. Hillary Clintons intervention policies would have driven America toward an abyss and a kinetic collision in Syria, said one. Now, with Trump, we have at least taken a step back.

Could a new U.S.-Russian dialogue  which draws in Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the other Middle East players  stabilize this region and calm its fratricidal sectarian wars? Several speakers explored that possibility.

A Gulf Arab suggested such a concert of nations, including the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, plus the regional powers. An American expert recalled the Madrid peacemaking conference in 1991, after the end of the Cold War. A Russian recalled the 1815 Congress of Vienna that brought peace to a fractured Europe.

As Don Corleone convened the five families in The Godfather, so, too, perhaps, might Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin gather America, Russia, Turkey, Iran and Saudi Arabia. But experts warn against Yalta II  a new Russian-American attempt to designate spheres of influence that carve up the region.

There were no answers here about life in the new world of Donald Trump, but so many intriguing questions.
In December 1752, Augustus Gottlieb Spangenberg and his band of Moravian surveyors found a body of land which is probably the best left in North Carolina, he wrote in his diary. The land on which we are now encamped seems to me to have been reserved by the Lord for the Brethren. Spangenberg had been sent south to N.C. to find suitable land for a Moravian settlement, and the land he had stumbled upon is a place we now know as Forsyth County.

Spangenberg was born in central Germany and orphaned at age 10. After earning a degree in theology, he became the superintendent of several orphanage schools and met Count Zinzendorf, the early benefactor of the Moravian Church. He later set up free schools for poor children and halls for the sick and poor in the town of Jena, yet the German government saw these efforts as a challenge to its authority and shut them down. Such care, however, appealed to Zinzendorf and his fellow Moravians, and they soon began calling Spangenberg Brother Joseph after the Old Testament prophet.

In the years that followed, Spangenberg would grow in faith and status in the Moravian Church. Hed eventually oversee the churchs first American settlements in Georgia and, ultimately, its expansion to North Carolina.

Charged with purchasing 100,000 acres in North Carolina where the land was cheap, his group had to travel about 200 miles west to land not already claimed. Noting poor soil, rough terrain, and a lack of navigable waterways in many areas, Spangenberg went farther west and closer to unrest with Native Americans before finding what he was looking for along the Wachovia Tract (i.e. modern day Forsyth County). Here he found land that contained easy hills, healthful air, and plentiful sweet water. He also saw an opportunity to minister to native tribes and create a center of commerce and industry that had no rival in the region.

Spangenberg returned to Pennsylvania in 1753 after completing the survey, yet he came back to N.C. in 1759 to help select the site for Bethania. He eventually returned to Germany to lead the Moravian Church and write important books on the religion. He died at age 88 as a universally loved, trusted, and respected pillar of the Moravian faith.


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A bid from Pulte Homes to rezone and add 465 residences and possibly a school near Sandy Run Creek on Jedburg Road wasn't met with open arms at a Oct. 26 community meeting on the part of local homeowners seeking to preserve the area's rural characteristics. Read moreJedburg Road residents tell Pulte Homes: 'Keep it rural'
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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

Americans have given the nuclear codes to that crazy uncle you have to sit through Thanksgiving with who watches nut cases like Alex Jones and red-facedly proclaims that FEMA is keeping Americans in concentration camps.

Donald Trump still has his Twitter account and obsessed over the weekend about Jill Steins request for a recount in Minnesota and some other states. Then the last of the series came, saying that he would have won the popular vote if several million undocumented aliens had not voted.

As Politifact points out, though way too cautiously and politely, this meme comes from conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones. It is based on discredited studies, whether academic or the Florida GOP attempt at a purge of voter rolls (which ended up affecting like 80 people and one of those was a WW II vet).

No one can understand why exactly Trump says these things. Some think he is trying to divert attention from his scandals and legal problems. Some think he is preparing the way for further voter suppression laws.

This issue was raised when he told people in Pennsylvania that wind turbines were killing all the birds. Was he playing to the coal lobby? Was he trying to confuse Bernie voters? (The assertion about birds was of course phony.)

But all this theorizing is too clever by half. I think hes just like that. Hes a conspiracy nut. (For more on this see Tim Murphy at Mother Jones). Maybe the reason liberals keep trying to discover the real strategy behind these unbalanced rants is that they dont want to face the explosive truth in the first paragraph of this piece. The most powerful man in the world is the sort who cuts out articles from the newspaper on obscure subjects and papers the walls with them, trying to track down the FBI cover-up of Area 51.

Of course, it may well be that he favors conspiracy theories which also, if they were widely believed, would give him the power to do things he wants to do. Goethe and Weber had a theory of elective affinity, that sometimes differing ideas just go together.

Social psychiatrists have investigated conspiracy theorists, so we do know something about them. There are, for instance lots of conspiracy theories about the disappearance of Amelia Earhart, the pilot who disappeared in 1932 in the Pacific.

The Scientific American notes,

In a study of 914 adults in London, University of Westminsters Viren Swami and Adrian Furnham of University College London found that 4.5 percent of respondents espoused an alien abduction theory, 5.5 percent believed the two were spies taken down by the Japanese, and only 32 percent endorsed a relatively undramatic account that the plane crashed into the Pacific after running out of gas. Further, researchers found that respondents who believed in Earhart conspiracy theories had lower self-esteem, were more likely to be cynical toward politics, were less agreeable and gave themselves lower ratings of intelligence.

The correlation of belief in conspiracy theories with maladaptive personality traits is supported by a number of studies. That is, proneness to belief in conspiracy theories goes along with having some psychiatric problems of the sort detailed in DSM-4. Although on the surface no one would think that Trumps problem is low self-esteem, in fact Adlerian theory would suggest that he is a bully precisely for this reason. The big hulking guy at the beach who kicks sand in the face of the 98-pound weakling does so because he is insecure inside. You could imagine that Der Donald was never good enough for old man Trump and is still working out daddy issues.

Having a conspiracy theorist in the White House is extremely problematic for a number of reasons.

People who have this tendency dont look at assertions as falsifiable. They dont have the sort of mindset that allows them to look at a fact-checking piece that disputes a deeply held belief and decide that theyll have to give it up because the evidence tells against.

You wouldnt want a president who, for instance, was convinced that another country was a threat to the US, and who could not be convinced by any evidence that the other country was not plotting to nuke Washington, DC.

Conspiracy theorists also have a tendency to what the Scientific American calls a monological belief system, in which any and all events can be explained by a web of interconnected conspiracies.

Trump, for instance blames immigrants for a whole host of problems. He sees them as the explanation for rising crime (crime is not rising and immigrants are unusually law-abiding). For unemployment (they dont generally compete for jobs with the native-born theyre in a different labor niche). Now he sees them as the reason for which Hillary Clinton beat him in the popular vote. He just needs one scapegoat and can apply it to all his problems. The immigrants are in his web of interconnected conspiracies, at the center of his monology.

Conspiracy theorists are contrarians and capable of holding two diametrically opposed beliefs at the same time. Princess Diana is still alive. Princess Diana was deliberately murdered. They so distrust the government and authority that they prefer to hold more than one contradictory belief than to accept the mainstream view.

These ways of thinking may explain why Trump is uninterested in US intelligence briefings. His beliefs about the world are not falsifiable, so he finds the presentation of alternative evidence unbearably tedious. And since good intelligence reports are atomistic, disparate, and ambiguous, they would offend his quest for a monological set of beliefs. Moreover, the intelligence briefing will inevitably give him the mainstream view, whereas he prefers to go off chasing thought-butterflies.

The last time we had a president this paranoid, Richard Nixon, he got himself impeached because he thought the Democratic Party was planning dirty tricks against him of the sort he planned against them. Hence he had to have the party offices at the Watergate broken into. Twice. (Yes.) Nixon, like Trump, claimed executive privilege to cover his legal irregularities. The courts didnt accept it.

But we cant be sure Trump will go too far. And his conspiracy theories were so attractive that they won him the election. They could even win him a second. Assuming the level of radioactivity isnt too high to prevent any more elections.
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By Lucy DerTavitian | (Informed Comment) |  

The battle over Mosul appears to have ignited Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans expansionist Ottoman era fantasies. He gained a few more adversaries recently when he claimed that Mosul, along with Aleppo, Western Thrace in Greece, and Kosovo, are part of Turkey. Erdogans comments come at a crucial time, as Iraqi forces sets out to liberate Mosul from ISIS.

Baghdad is already enraged at Ankara over a unit of Turkish troops stationed in the Northern city of Bashiqa, near Mosul. When Iraqi Prime Minister Hayder AlAbadi demanded that Ankara get its troops out of his country immediately, Erdogan refused claiming no one should expect us to leave. Abadi responded swiftly and sharply we are ready for them, said the Premier, this is about Iraqi dignity.

When Abadis inflammatory comments were more than Erdoganand possibly Turkishness as a wholecould accept, the Turkish President invoked an Ottoman era document which gives Turkey historical claims to Mosul. Some ignorant people come and say, what relation could you have with Iraq? those geographies that we talk about now are part of our soul, said Erdogan, in Mosul a history lies for us.

Erdogans assertion is based on the National Pact, a set of decisions adopted by the last term of the Ottoman Parliament in the 1920s. One of its claims is that Mosul and Kirkuk belong to Turkey. Basically, its a pact that the Turks made amongst themselves that Erdogan now appears to want the rest of the world to recognize in some fashion.

ERDOGANS AMBITIONS IN MOSUL.

Despite his heavy-handed remarks, Erdogan was quick to follow that Turkey respects Iraqs territorial integrity, even if it weighs on our hearts, we respect every nations geographical borders, said the Turkish President. Erdogans comments seem to have more to do with bringing Mosul under Turkeys sphere of influence than reclaiming an old ottoman territory. After all, annexing land from our neighbors is just not that easy in the 21st century, given that it is forbidden in the United Nations Charter and international law.

Turkish scholar Fatma Muge Gocek agrees that Erdogans rhetoric is aimed at establishing Ankaras influence in Mosul, but doesnt think the Turkish Presidents ambitions stop there. His [Erdogans] ultimate goal is annexation and brining Mosul under his sphere of influence is simply the first step towards that goal says Gocek.

According to Gocek, Erdogans claim to Mosul is yet another attempt to re-write Turkish history. For Erdogan the establishment of the Turkish (secular) Republic was a diversion from the nations ultimate goal. Erdogan envisions a new Turkey, one that under his correct leadership will bypass the republic phase of his country by returning to its Empirical legacy. This return to Turkeys illustrious history is to take place by 2023, the Centennial of the establishment of the Republic. Mosul is part of his larger discourse of Empire over Republic.

With Mosul Erdogan can claim that the Republic gave the city away and he, the leader of neo-Ottomans somehow brought it back.

WHO DOES MOSUL REALLY BELONG TO?

Its hard to comprehend Erdogans claims to Mosul without first understanding the origins of ancient Mesopotamia.

A number of dynasties had ruled Iraqs second largest city until the Islamic Conquest in the seventh century. Then the Ottomans ruled the City until the fall of the Empire. After the collapse Mosul was under the Baghdad province, but later became its own administration along with Basra. Although Mosul was a trade center for the Ottomans, the region was mostly culturally Arab, and Arabic, not Turkish, was the language of the province. After WWI Britain occupied Mosul until King Faisal, the new ruler of Iraq took reign of the City. When Saddam Hussein came into power he embarked on a steady policy of Arabization in order to drastically change the demographics of Mosul.

In June 2014 ISIS occupied Mosul. Many in the city had initially welcomed the terrorist organization because the Sunni population had experienced discrimination at the hands of the Shiite dominated Iraqi government. After experiencing heavy atrocities at the hands of ISIS, the City now stands firmly united against the extremist group.

ERDOGAN EYES MOSUL

Erdogans interests in Mosul are twofold: protection of the Citys Sunni majority, and Turkeys history in the Northern City.

Turkey fears that once ISIS is cleansed out of Mosul, Shiite vengeance will reign throughout the city. Its claims are founded as human rights organizations have long documented the kidnapping and brutal killing of Iraqi Sunnis in the hands of Shiite militias. Since the Iraqi army is comprised mostly of Shiites, many Sunni Moslawis mistrust the Popular Mobilization Units that have been sponsored by the Iraqi government to drive ISIS out of the City. Prime Minister Binali Yildirim made it clear that Ankara cant rely on Baghdad to protect the Sunnis of Mosul when he claimed we have made every preparation to take our measures because the promises given by the United States and Iraq about the PKK and the Shiite militias not being part of the operations has not satisfied us yet.

For Erdogan Turkeys acceptance of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which defined the borders of the modern republic, is the greatest injustice to be done to the country and to the nation.

As the second strongest army in Nato, and a Sunni state, Ankara feels obliged to protect the City. And with Iranian-backed Shiites forces already on the ground, Ankara sees no reason why Turkish troops should have to leave; regardless if theyre welcomed by the Iraqi government or not. Interestingly, when the Ottoman Turks governed Iraq they too played favorites. The Turks reserved most positions of power to the Sunnis elites and often treated the Shiites as second-class citizens.

Turkeys historical claims to Mosullike everything else in the Middle Eastis complicated and ambiguous.

When the borders of modern day Turkey were defined in the 1920s the fate of Mosul was left to be determined by the League of Nations. The city would either merge with Iraq, under the British mandate, or join the Turkish Republic. The League concluded that modern day Turkey had no claims to Mosul.

Mosuls diverse identity, much like many of the territories in the Middle East, made it difficult to carve out. What the League learned during its inquiry was that Mosul was culturally Arab, not Turkish. But perhaps what most weighed heavily on their decision was that the Brits had already established a political and economic presence in Mosul. Most significantly, they had founded the Turkish Petroleum Company, which later became the Iraqi Petroleum Company. When King Faisal took reign of Iraq he convinced the League of Mosuls vital significance to his new country. His argument was that the Northern City was the only barrier against Turkeys intrinsic expansionists aspirations, which of course had the potential to destabilize Iraqs oil economy.

Ultimately Turkey agreed to the concede Mosul in exchange for 10% of Iraqi oil profits from the region for the next 25 years. Nearly a 100 years later, it seems President Erdogan is not happy with that arrangement while Prime Minister Abadi is still echoing King Faisals fear of an expansionist Turkey.

WHO ARE THE MOSLAWIS?

Mosul is a mosaic of diverse peoples, cultures, and religions. The majority of Moslawis are Sunni Arab, but the city is also home to a small population of various ethno-religious groups. Assyrians and Armenians comprise most of Mosuls Christian citizenry. Kurds and Yazidis along with the Turkmen, Kawliya, Circassians, Mandeans and Shabakis comprise the remaining of Mosuls indigenous communities.

The Kurds and the Yazidis may be the most familiar ethnic groups of Mosul. Yazidis, a Kurdic people, adhere to an ancient Northern Mesopotamian faith that combines Zoroastrianism, Islam, Christianity, and Judaism.

Less familiar are perhaps the Mandeans, Circassians, Shabakis, and Kawliyas. The Mandeans adhere to a Southern Mesopotamian religion, but theirs is of a Gnostic faith that reveres mostly John the Baptist, but rejects Jesus. The Circassians are indigenous peoples of the Caucasus and are predominantly Muslim. And then there are the Shabakis, whose faith, much like the Yazidis, combines Islam and Christianity. To complicate the matter further, Shabakis, unlike the Yazidis are Shiite. Lastly there are the Kawliyas, who are the Romas of Iraq. Mosul also had an ancient Jewish population, but most were driven out soon after the creation of the State of Israel.

Finally there are the Turkmen of Iraq, who are the third largest ethnic group in the country and most significant to Ankara. The Turkmen are the decedents of Turks who migrated to Mesopotamia at the start of the seventh century and onward. They have a strong bond to their ancestral land and have long been trained, armed, and funded by the Turkish government.

Erdogans path to Mosul is paved through the Turkmen. The minority group is continuously denied political rights and is widely targeted by ISIS. They also face ethnic discrimination and forced assimilation in the hands of the larger Arab and Kurdish communities. Erdogan can use human rights violations against his ethnic kin as a reason for intervention and prolonged stay in Mosul. After all the Turkmen were one of the reasons why the Turkish President refused to leave Bashiqa at Abadis request, I have Turkmen brothers there, Turkish brothers who ask us to come and help, said Erdogan,excuse me, but I wont leave. If such a precarious situation were not to arise, when needed, then Erdogan can create a situation in which the Turkmen are systematically targeted. Hes very good at that.

But the Turkmen arent always a reliable ally of Ankaras. Like many other minority communities in the region, they are ethnical diverse and fiercely divided. Forty percent of Turkmen are Shiites, while the remaining 60% are Sunnis. The two dont necessary get along. Sectarian strife has erupted amongst the ethnic group in the past leading the Shiites Turkmen to migrate to the center and south of Mosul while the Sunni Turkmen fled to the Kurdish controlled areas. Shiite Turkmen traditionally vote for Shiite parties, regardless of ethnicity, whereas the Sunni Turkmen traditionally vote in accordance with Ankara. To complicate matters further there are pro-Kurdish Turkmen who are at odds with the more overtly religious Islamic Turkmen. The pro-Kurdish Turkmen have called for concessions in exchange of Kurdish rule, while others in the community have called for a sovereign, independent Turkmen state.

Under such circumstances its hard to imagine that Erdogan would rely solely on the protection of the Turkmen to fulfill his ambitions in Mosul. But according to Gocek, religion comes before ethnicity for Erdogan and Sunnism is the only version of Islam hes interested in defending. It is under the Sunni flag that he hopes to untie the majority of Mosul and expand that control throughout former Ottoman territories. For Erdogan the Turkmen are merely a means to an end.

ERDOGAN CAN ONLY EXASPERATE MOSULS DELICATE BALANCE

All of Mosuls various ethno-religious communities have age-old diverging claims to their ancestral land. They also have colliding regional allegiances that further threaten the Citys fragile sectarian balance. Erdogans aggressive form of nationalism only unsettles that delicate equilibrium.

Once ISIS is driven out of Mosul, each one of the citys ethno-religious communities will continue to cling to their age-old aspirations and grievances. They all have enormous scores to settle: Sunni tribulations continue to pile up against Shiite indignation, Arabs keep resenting the Kurds for encroaching on their territories, while Kurdish objectives are still at war with Turkish interests. Meanwhile the Iranians continue to battle the Saudis for regional hegemony.

We dont quite know where Erdogans ambitions in Mosul lie or what steps hell take to attain them. What we do know is that the Turkish president is a careful strategist. Hes patient and politically astute. He hides his ambitions, even from those closest to him. Its now apparent that he has long harbored ambitions of turning Turkey into a Sultanate in disguise of a presidential system, an Islamic Republic, and ultimately an empire.

Mosul is very important to Ankara, not just historically but strategically and because of its resources. It could also be an outpost that in some way brings Erdogans ambitions of Sunni expansion into fruition. Unfortunately for Erdogan the Middle East is an ever-changing region with shifting allegiances and altering ambitions. And the Iraqis, not the Turks, will determine where those alliances will ultimately fall.

Lucy DerTavitian is a content creator/writer at a Sabbah Media. Born in Beirut, she came to the US at age 10. She was for some time a foreign affairs anchor and producer at KPFK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles.

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Related video added by Juan Cole:

Aljazeera English: Battle for Mosul: Turkish-trained Nineveh guards on the ground
Brazilian President Michel Temer [official website, in Portuguese] said Sunday that he will block a controversial bill [press release, in Portuguese] that would grant amnesty to politicians who received illegal campaign donations. Temer, along with Speaker of the Lower House of Congress, Rodrigo Maia, and Speaker of the Senate, Renan Calheiros, stated that it would be impossible to sanction such a proposal and that to allow such a bill to pass would go against the voice of the people. Temer called on congress to focus instead on economic initiatives.

Brazils government has been wracked with charges of corruption for the past several months. Earlier this month Federal Police in Rio de Janeiro arrested former governor Sergio Cabral on allegations of corruption [JURIST report] connected to the Olympic Games held this past summer. In October the Federal Police arrested former House speaker Eduardo Cunha [JURIST report] for his alleged participation in an embezzlement scheme. Earlier in October Brazils federal prosecutors filed [JURIST report] new corruption charges against former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The Federal Police arrested former finance minister Antonio Palocci [JURIST report] in September in connection with an ongoing corruption probe. Also in September the Brazil Supreme Court approved [JURIST report] a motion by prosecutors to open a preliminary investigation into accusations from Sergio Machado, former Transpetro head, that president Michel Temer sought illegal campaign donations in 2012.
[JURIST] The German Federal Court of Justice [official website, in German] has upheld the conviction [judgment, in German; press release, in German] of former Nazi SS Officer Oskar Groening, for his role in the deaths of over 300,000 people during the Holocaust, according to court documents made public Monday. Groening, known as the bookkeeper of Auschwitz, was given a four-year jail sentence for his role at Auschwitz last year, which he said he would appeal [JURIST reports]. While Groening himself did not physically kill any of the people, some felt that his charges should have been more serious. However, the decision was praised [Reuters].

In September 2014 German authorities imprisoned Groening, who was charged [JURIST report] as an accessory to the murder of 300,000 people. German courts have recently seen an increase of war crime charges against former members of the Nazi party. In September the Neubrandenburg state court in Germany started the trial of a 95-year-old former SS medic [JURIST report] who served at the Auschwitz camp. Also in September a court in Kiel, Germany, ruled that a 92-year-old woman charged with Nazi crimes is unfit to stand trial [JURIST report]. Prior to 2011, German prosecutors often chose not to charge individuals they regarded as cogs in, rather than active members of, the Nazi war machine. The 2011 conviction [JURIST report] of former Nazi guard John Demjanjuk may have emboldened German prosecutors to pursue cases against all those who materially helped Nazi Germany function.
The Parliament of Iraq [official website] on Saturday voted to give militias fighting Islamic State (IS) militant group legal status in the country. The 208 votes allow Popular Mobilization Units (Hashd Al-Shaabi) [GlobalSecurity backgrounder] to fight the militant group throughout the country as long as they keep their identity and character [DW report]. The bill legitimizes and recognizes[Aljazeera report] the militia as an extension of the state, as they will now receive pensions and instructions from government leaders. Opponents to the bill note that mobilization forces are traditionally Shiite, and have in the past fought against Sunni Iraqis. Many fear the authorization will allow the militias to continue the sect fighting [JURIST report] with the blessing of the government. However the the new security forces state they are trying to secure Iraq from IS attacks, and will prove any detractors wrong. So far the Forces have been a formidable weapon [PressTV report] against the militant group after the US draw down.

The battle against the Islamic State wages on, simultaneously creating human rights and policy concerns. IS has used chemical weapons more than 52 times in Syria and Iraq since 2014, according to a report released [JURIST report] earlier this month by London-based analytical group IHS Markit. Shortly before, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein called for [JURIST report] immediate action for the victims of IS, to ensure their rights are upheld in Iraq. Human Rights Watch urged [JURIST report] Iraqi military commanders to prevent historically abusive militias from participating in the campaign to retake the city of Mosul from the Islamic State in July.
The Balochistan High Court [official website] issued an arrest warrant Monday for former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf [BBC profile]. Musharraf is accused [TOI report] of involvement with the murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti [Al Jazeera profile] in a military operation in 2006. Bugti had led a campaign for greater autonomy in the Balochistan region.

Cases against Musharraf have been ongoing since 2010. In April Pakistans Anti-Terrorism Court issued a nonbailable arrest warrant against the former president and military leader for detaining more than 60 judges [JURIST report] after declaring a state of emergency in 2007. Pakistans Sindh High Court [official website] in June 2014 lifted a travel ban that had prevented Musharraf from leaving the country. Musharraf was indicted [JURIST report] in March of that year on charges of high treason. If convicted, Musharraf could face the death penalty. Musharraf pleaded not guilty to each of the charges against him, including unlawfully suspending the constitution, firing Pakistans chief justice, and instituting emergency rule in 2007. Musharraf called the charges politically motivated and maintained that the country had prospered under his 2001-2008 rule and that his declaration of a state of emergency was not unconstitutional.
The US Supreme Court [official website] on Monday asked [order list, PDF] the Obama administration to comment on New Mexicos lawsuit against Colorado over the Gold King Mine waste spill [JURIST report], which released 3 million gallons of contaminated water. New Mexico sued Colorado over the spill in June demanding that Colorado be held responsible for the contamination as well as decades of toxic drainage from other mines. The complaint [text, PDF], filed in the Supreme Court by New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas [official website], stated that the spill was the coup de grace of two decades of disastrous environmental decision-making by Colorado, for which New Mexico and its citizens are now paying the price. The Supreme Court invited Solicitor General Ian Gershengorn [official profile] to file a brief, which would represent the Executives official stance on the lawsuitrelevant because the waste spill was accidentally caused by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [official website].

In August the Navajo Nation filed suit [JURIST report] against the EPA alleging that water flowing from the punctured mine in Colorado was toxic and damaged the Nations environment, people, and economy. Specifically, the 48-page complaint [complaint] alleged that the toxic wastewater contaminated the San Juan River, a river on which the Nation has a [u]nique dependence, and the contamination negatively affected the production of crops, feeding of cattle, culture and economy of the Nation. The complaint also alleged that the operators of the mines hired by the EPA, Gold King Mines Corporation, continuously neglected its obligations to control the discharge of wastewater from its properties and to operate the treatment facility to protect [their] water and that the damages were preventable and foreseeable.
Swiss voters on Sunday rejected [press report, in German] a referendum to phase out the nations nuclear power program. The referendum failed [SRF report, in German] with 54.2 % of voters agreeing to keep nuclear power programs with only 45.8 % voting to do away with nuclear options. The referendum was sponsored by the Green party of Switzerland [official site, in German] who hoped to remove nuclear power options from the country citing a transition to renewable energies was better for the long term safety of the country after the Fukushima nuclear disaster [JURIST news archive]. The measure would have included a 45-year phase out of nuclear power options while creating renewable energy alternatives. Yet the opposition [SRF report] stated such a move would be costly for the nation, a disaster for the economy and create a drastic change to energy availability in the country due to its timetable. Even though the referendum failed, it had 45% support which the Green party believes signals a change is to new energy forms is popularity supported and will still push for similar policies in the future.

Nuclear power and its many uses continue to raise questions on the international stage. The UN General Assembly in October voted to begin [JURIST report] negotiations on banning nuclear weapons, despite opposition votes from world leaders including the United States, Russia and the UK. The International Court of Justice in October refused [JURIST report] to hear a claim by the Marshall Islands that the worlds nuclear powers failed to halt the nuclear arms race. The Fukuoka High Court in April rejected [JURIST report] an appeal filed by citizens of Japan seeking to stop the operation of the only two remaining nuclear reactors in the country.
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Aryzta has reported declining sales in the first quarter of its year, as the bakery group continued to feel the negative impact of contract renewal issues in North America.

The company said this morning (28 November) that sales fell 3.3% in the three months to 31 October, dropping to EUR962.3m (US$1bn). On an underlying basis, revenue dropped 1.2% in the period and  excluding the impact of customer renewals  comparable sales increased 0.4%.

The company grappled with contract renewal issues last year, which prompted it to report a decrease in annual profits for fiscal 2015/16. At the time, Aryzta reiterated all long-term contracts have now been signed, giving revenue stability moving forward.

However, the company said today that the fall in like-for-like revenue was largely accounted for by the 5.7% drop in North American volume, driven by long-term contract renewal losses.

In Europe, volumes increased 1.8%. The growth in volumes was, however, somewhat offset by a negative price/mix impact of 0.4%, leading to a 1.4% rise in underlying sales.

Aryzta CEO Owen Killian stressed the companys earnings expectations will be supported by lower debt levels and free cash flow generation this year.

The weaker underlying revenue development reflects the impact of expected contract renewal volume declines in North America, timing of new business listings, as well as a subdued European performance disrupted by consolidation of manufacturing activities in Germany, he said. The material reduction in total group debt funding costs will provide EPS support for FY17. Our outlook for both free cash generation and for underlying fully diluted EPS remains unchanged.

Alain Oberhuber, an analyst at MainFirst, said the 1.2% fall in organic sales posted by Aryzta was below his estimate of a 0.9% decline. Oberhuber pointed to the relocation of a plant in Germany, as well as the impact of contract renewals with Subway and Tim Hortons in North America.

At Kepler Cheuvreux, analyst Jon Cox said: Aryztas Q1 organic sales declined by 1.2% (vs. consensus +0.4%) as flagged contract losses in North America were compounded by timing issues regarding the release of new products. The company reiterated guidance. We expect some pressure on the stock but see the new chairman appointment providing support. Well-respected Irish executive Gary McGann is expected to be appointed as chairman at the companys AGM on 13 December. We expect McGann to provide greater oversight of the long-running management team, which has been criticised in the last couple of years.

Shares in Aryzta were down 0.88% at CHF41.45 at 10:32 CET.

Click here for our analysis, published in September, of Aryztas results in its last financial year and its outlook for 2017.
French private-label frozen ready meals maker Celtigel is to launch its own branded range.

Free Report Unilever- A Deep-dive into Product Launches and Advertising Strategy Track product launches by FMCG companies to get an understanding of the product-level strategies including geographic concentrations, innovation types, product claim, category focus and more

Monitoring the advertising strategies of various brands and gain insights into channel focus, regional focus, and more

Perform company-level analysis to understand business model, size, and geographic focus Dont miss out on key market insights that can help optimize your next investment  read the report now. Unilever product advertising is mainly through mainstream TV channels. Out of the products advertised so far at least 50% (over 850) of ads have been run on TV, while print media comes second with 496 ads. Unilever also utilizes social media platforms for advertisement. Unilever products are categorized by innovation ratings and tags in our product launch database. The North American region consists of almost 74 products with innovations related to the formulation of the product. Europe and other regions also have more products categorized under formulation-related innovation, followed by the packaging and positioning of the products. Most Unilever products are tagged with High Vitamins, Recyclable, and Natural tags to understand what the product differentiator is from other products available in the market. The majority of products belong to the personal care industry with a total of 5,788 products to date. This report, through the Unilever Example, illustrates how GlobalData Explorer enables you to:Dont miss out on key market insights that can help optimize your next investment  read the report now. by GlobalData Enter your details here to receive your free Report. Please enter a work/business email address Country United Kingdom United States Afghanistan Aland Islands Albania Algeria American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antarctica Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Bouvet Island Brazil British Indian Ocean Territory Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia Comoros Congo Congo, The Democratic Republic of The Cook Islands Costa Rica Cote D"ivoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guernsey Guinea Guinea-bissau Guyana Haiti Heard Island and Mcdonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq Ireland Isle of Man Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jersey Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, Democratic People"s Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Lao People"s Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macao Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway Oman Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Reunion Romania Russian Federation Rwanda Saint Helena Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saint Vincent and The Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Georgia and The South Sandwich Islands Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Svalbard and Jan Mayen Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand Timor-leste Togo Tokelau Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United States Minor Outlying Islands Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Viet Nam Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, U.S. Wallis and Futuna Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe Download free Report By clicking the Download Free Report button, you accept the terms and conditions and acknowledge that your data will be used as described in the GlobalData privacy policy By downloading this Report, you acknowledge that we may share your information with our white paper partners/sponsors who may contact you directly with information on their products and services.



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The La Tribu Toquee range is made up of three recipes  Alaskan hake in a sauce Parisienne, Saint-Jacques scallops in sauce Breizh and Saint-Jacques and gambas scallops in sauce bord de mer  each served in shells.

Weve limited the launch of the Tribu Toquee brand to supermarkets in western France, notably in Leclerc and Systeme U outlets, with Intermarche set to follow. Depending on how the range is received, we could market it further afield in France,a spokesperson for Celtigel, a subsidiary of Brittany-based food Groupe Le Graet, told just-food.

Launching our own brand marks a departure for us and the aim is give fresh impetus to the frozen ready meals segment which in general has been flat in terms of sales of late.

Celtigel is set to add more products to the Tribu Toquee range in January, the spokesperson added.

The companys own-label customers include Leclerc, Carrefour Aldi and Lidl.

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Boca Raton, FL, USA, 11/28/2016 /SubmitPressRelease123/

With the legalization of marijuana looming on many ballots across the country, Boca car accident lawyer Joe Osborne explains what the public should expect. Over the past few years, our country has retrieved much more data on the positive and negative effects of the use of marijuana. Marijuana is legal in a select number of states and has become legal in many others after voters voiced their opinions at the polls in early November. We as citizens need to be educated on how marijuana will affect the average persons life, particularly on our roadways, says Boca Raton car accident lawyer Joe Osborne.

According to AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety Fatal crashes involving drivers that recently used marijuana doubled in Washington after the state legalized the drug This AAA statistic can certainly be explained by both sides of the pro and anti-marijuana conversation, but no one can argue that it adds an ever-growing variable to the roadways. The ideal situation for someone who gets behind the wheel is one that allows them to get to their destination without any injury or damage to their vehicle.

Additionally, as the use of marijuana is legalized more people who had previously followed the law will venture to try marijuana. With the number of users rising it doesnt seem that long until more people will get behind the wheel of a car while under the influence. Instead of being drunk, they might be high or both. Neither of those two mental states seems like a preferred one to the rest of the public who you may share the road with.

Even though in 2015 the Drug and Alcohol Dependence Journal came out with a study that viewed through a simulator and studied that individuals who drank alcohol were more likely to swerve out of their lane than pot smokers. This quote may or may not support the Marijuana or Alcohol proponents but the objective of the study essentially is to find out what drug affects decision-making more.

Those who do follow the law and remain sober while driving will have to be aware of the possibility of increasing dangers says top car accident lawyer Joe Osborne. The best recommendation we can give is to drive in a defensive manner as well as make sure you seek legal advice if youre met with these unwanted circumstances.

As the law changes in the upcoming months and marijuana does become legal it is also important to know if there is a legal limit in your state (ex: Alcohol is .08), and how much marijuana you are allowed to carry on your person. If you do happen to be involved in a car accident and marijuana plays a role in the accident or injury its important to pursue the best car accident lawyer; Joe Osborne and his car accident law firm thoroughly investigate your case and work to achieve a successful outcome.

Society can agree that drugs and alcohol should never be used while operating a vehicle. Not only are you putting your life in danger but you are risking the life of many innocent men, women, and children. Unfortunately, the citizens of this country will be forced to adjust to the abundance of high drivers.

If you or a family member have been injured in a car accident due to a driver under the influence in Miami-Dade, Broward or Palm Beach Counties and have any questions about accident law, contact Boca car accident lawyer Joe Osborne at (561) 800-4011 or fill out this online contact form. You can discuss your case, how the law may apply and your best legal options to protect your rights and obtain compensation for your injuries.

Press Contact:

Personal injury lawyer Joseph Osborne

561-800-4020

source: http://www.oa-lawfirm.com/car-accident-lawyer-will-legalization-weed-make-roads-dangerous/

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Dallas, 11/28/2016 /SubmitPressRelease123/

Companies were chosen based on categories that included, diversity, perks, ethics, and family friendliness.

Dallas, TX November 22, 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 years list were repeat winners from last year. The process began in March 2016, when employees were allowed to nominate their company online.

Im 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 attended a luncheon on November 17, where the top three companies in each category were announced. The Dallas Morning News published the winners on November 20, 2016.

http://apps.dallasnews.com/top-100/2016/companies/Eberstein_Witherite_LLP

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.

Media Contact

Lucy Tiseo

Eberstein & Witherite, LLP

Phone: 800-779-6665

Email: [email protected]

Connect with Eberstein & Witherite on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+

source: http://www.dallastexaspersonalinjurylawyers.com/news/eberstein-witherite-selected-top-100-workplace-2016

Social Media Tags:Eberstein & Witherite, Top 100 Workplace, Top 100 Workplace For 2016

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Americans have many expectations of their government, but foremost among them is that it will keep them safe. Indeed, in a recent survey, respondents ranked defense as the governments highest priority.

Unfortunately, the just-released third-annual edition of The Heritage Foundations Index of U.S. Military Strength has sobering news for them.

The index provides a benchmark against which to measure the ability of U.S. forces to defend enduring national security interests at home and around the globe.

Each edition assesses the global security environment and U.S. military strength over the past year. Collectively, they indicate an alarming trend. The costs and consequences wrought by years of inadequate defense funding, combined with a high operational pace across the armed services, are seriously compromising our national defense.

The index uses the ability to fight and win two wars nearly simultaneously as a benchmark by which it measures U.S. military strength.

This benchmark, first used by the military after the end of the Cold War, serves to deter potential adversaries who might find an opportunity to act while the United States is engaged in another conflict.

Based on an exhaustive review of the Department of Defenses own studies and of historic force deployments, the index editors concluded the following measures as necessary to fulfill this ability:

U.S. Navy: 350 ships; current level: 272.

U.S. Air Force: 1,200 active component fighter aircraft; current level: 1,113.

U.S. Army: 50 brigade combat teams; current level: 31.

U.S. Marine Corps: 36 infantry brigades; current level: 23.

Despite serving as the militarys standard for decades, the concept of a two-war capable force has recently been criticized as excessive. Heritage believes these critiques are situational, that Americas military requirements should be based on Americas strategy, interests and the threats  not the current budget situation.

The services and the public agree. According to Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Mark Milley, The only thing more expensive than deterrence is actually fighting a war, and the only thing more expensive than fighting a war is fighting one and losing one.

The true value of preventative measures, however, is difficult to estimate. The price of comprehensive home insurance may place greater strain on a family budget month-to-month, but it is pocket change to a family that has just watched its house burn to the ground. If you wait until you see the first plume of smoke, it will always be too little, too late.

The same is true for the military. It takes time, money and commitment to build and maintain a fighting force of the size and strength our country needs.

Having a military of the proper size is just one part of the solution. The military must also be ready with the right numbers of people, training, weapons and supplies. Yet Americas military is suffering from shortages in all these areas.

The Air Force is currently short 700 fighter pilots. While it may only take a day to distribute pink slips, it takes two years for an individual to become an operational fighter pilot, and seven years for a pilots skillset to fully mature.

The Armys main combat platforms  its tanks, fighting vehicles and helicopters  are now decades old, with no replacement programs in sight. And a recent rise in the number of aviation accidents, some of which have been directly tied to the lack of training hours, reflects the stress of a military underfunded and overused.

Worse, the decline in U.S. military strength has coincided with a rise in global threats, and the modernization and expansion of the Russian, Chinese, Iranian and North Korean militaries.

Although the threat of a large scale war between near-peer competitors is inconceivable to many, it is important to consider whether an Americas unwillingness to properly prepare for a major war could in fact increase the risk of its occurrence.

Unlike an unfortunate but unintended house fire, U.S. adversaries can and will act opportunistically. A continued decline in the size and strength of U.S. forces will invite aggression.

With years of documented damages inflicted by budget cuts, the next administration must immediately work to stop the bleeding, using the wisdom of our first president, George Washington: If we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be known, that we are at all times ready for war.

Rachel Zissimos is a researcher in the Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at The Heritage Foundation, 214 Massachusetts Ave. NE, Washington, D.C. 20002; Web site: www.heritage.org. Information about Heritages funding may be found at http://www.heritage.org/about/reports.cfm.
The cover of "Best of Bridge: The Family Slow Cooker" is seen in this undated handout photo. Slow cooker recipe developers are updating the way the appliance is used. By reducing cooking times the result is not overstewed and ingredients maintain their flavour and colour. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ HO, Robert Rose Inc. *MANDATORY CREDIT*
Dear KFBers, we have got loads of interesting stories in tonights #MajorHeadlinesYouMissedToday featureenjoy!

APCs Rotimi Akeredolu declared winner of Ondo state governorship election

INEC has declared APC candidate, Rotimi Akeredolu, winner of the Ondo state governorship election held yesterday November 26th. According to INECs returning officer, Abdul-Ganiyu Ambali, Akeredolu pulled off 244,842 votes to defeat PDPs Eyitatyo Jegede with 150,380 votes and Olusola Oke of the AD who scored 126,889 votes.

Sad news emanating from the University of Nigeria Nsukka has it that a final year Agric Economics student committed suicide.

Troops attached to the 121 Task Force Battalion killed 20 Boko Haram terrorist on Saturday, November 26th. The troops were escorting local government officials including the Caretaker committee chairman of Gwoza Local Government Council, Hon. Saeed Salisu Sambo and travellers from Pulka to Maiduguri when the terrorists ambushed the convoy.

80 couples received their sacrament of matrimony blessings on Sunday, November 27th, at St Sylvesters Catholic Church, New Nyanya in Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa Statexx The Holy Mass was officiated by His Lordship, Most Revd Dr Ishaya Mathew Audu, Catholic bishop of Lafia Diocese, Nasarawa State. In a statement signed by the public relations officer the Church, Ewache Ajefu, the church said that the ceremony was unique and historic in the history of St. Sylvester Catholic Church.

According to his friend Nwachukwu Daniel Ikechukwu,who posted the photo on Facebook today, the young man allegedly killed himself over debt.

He also lost some money to betting. Some of his friends dont believe he killed himself over money though.

Unknown gunmen suspected to be militants, on Sunday blew up a pipeline in Delta State.

Hide quoted text

The pipeline is operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, NPDC in Delta State.

However, no separatist group from the oil rich region has claimed responsibility for the attack.

The attack was confirmed to vanguard by the Ughelli South council Chairman, Mr Paul Etaga.

Etaga said the pipeline popularly known as Abura line, was bombed at about 7:30am on Sunday morning.

Etaga disclosed that he visited the site of the incident in company of the Commanding Officer 222 battalion, Agbaraha-Otor, Lt. Col U. S Abdulsalam, the Ughelli South Division Police Officer, Oghenedoro Samuel and heads of other security agencies in the area visited the scene of the blast.

According to Etaga, the inferno from the blast has been curtailed by fire fighters drafted from the Otor-ogun Gas plant in Ughelli South.

He said, Though no arrest has been made, the security agencies are currently investigating the incident and are on the heels of the perpetrators so as to bring them to book.

APC is out to create jobs, restore Nigerias economy  Buhari



President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday said the All Progressives Congress, APC, is out to create jobs and restore the economy the country.

Buharis remark was contained in a statement congratulating the governor-elect of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu.

Buhari in the statement by his Media Aide, Femi Adesina, described Akeredolus victory at the Saturdays governorship election in the state as a well-deserved victory.

The President also congratulated the National Chairman of the party, John Odigie-Oyegun, the Chairman of the Campaign Committee, Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State, and all party faithful who worked towards the victory of the party in Ondo State.

He said, From the beginning, this election set out to be a different kind of election. The unity and resilience of the party was tested. I am happy we came out of this victorious.

This is a huge win. The mood today is against corruption, insecurity and for the restoration of the economy and the creation of jobs. This is where the party stands and I am happy that the electorate has read the situation correctly.
"I was terrified," the victim said after the sentencing. "I still am. I have no means to support myself and my children, but I was terrified Id end up dead if he came back ... I cant give up. I just cant. I want to. Trust me I cry every single day. I am scared and heartbroken for my kids. My sons cant grow up watching me be hit. My daughter cant watch me walk around with a black eye and me act like its okay."
Kingstree, SC (29556)

Today

Sun and clouds mixed. High 78F. Winds light and variable..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 53F. Winds light and variable.
HANOI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official market and indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi at 0058 GMT.

Nov 28 Nov 25 USD/VND mid-point 22,132 22,137

USD/VND interbank 22,730/22,770 22,750/22,770 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.51/35.73 35.32/35.52

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)
Vietnam's Nov trade deficit seen at $400 mln - govt



* Oct trade deficit revised up to $445 mln * Jan-Nov exports seen up 7.5 pct y/y at $159.5 bln * Jan-Nov imports seen up 3.5 pct y/y at $156.65 bln

HANOI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Vietnam trade data, as released by the government's General Statistics Office on Monday: KEY DATA Monthly trade, in billions of dollars 2016 *Nov **Oct Sept Aug July June May April Mar Feb EXP 15.6 15.40 15.42 16.09 14.91 14.72 14.4 14.3 15.1 10.1 IMP 16.0 15.85 14.55 15.52 14.34 14.74 14.6 14.1 14.5 10.3 BAL -0.4 -0.45 0.87 0.57 0.57 -0.02 -0.2 0.3 0.6 -0.2 NOTE: * Updated; ** Revised Figures up to September 2016 are based on those previously reported by the statistics office. Figures for October are revised. CONTEXT Vietnam is expected to achieve annual export growth of 8 percent this year, the country's prime minister said on Thursday, raising his previous projections of an expansion of 6 to 7 percent. (Reporting by Ho Binh Minh; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in precious metal products, commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.

kitco news
SAO PAULO, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Brazilian lender Banco do Brasil SA will not make an initial public offering (IPO) of its credit card unit, according to an interview with its chief executive published by newspaper Folha de S.Paulo on Monday.

The state-controlled bank is "not counting on" fresh capital from the Brazilian government or sales of core assets, Paulo Cafferelli said in the interview a week after announcing aggressive downsizing plans.

The bank may instead sell its minority stakes in power distributor Neoenergia SA and grain storage systems producer Kepler Weber Industrial SA , Cafferelli said.

Banco do Brasil currently owns 11.99 percent of Neoenergia and 17.45 percent of Kepler Weber.

The bank announced last week it would shed as many as 18,000 jobs and shut hundreds of branches to save up to 3.1 billion reais ($907 million) in coming years. "If nothing had been done, we would have had to knock on the government's door to request a capital injection in July 2017," Caffarelli said in a transcript of the interview published by Folha.

Press representatives for the bank did not immediately respond to questions about the interview.

Banco do Brasil shares rose 6 percent last week on the prospect of cutting payroll, which in some areas is three times the size of private-sector peers.

About 6,700 employees have already joined the bank's early retirement scheme in the past week, Caffarelli told Folha. He said he expects that figure to rise to between 9,000 and 10,000 by the Dec. 9 deadline.

That would imply savings of 2.130 billion to 2.232 billion reais, he said. Should 15,000 employees join the early retirement plan, savings would be 2.742 billion reais, he added.

Caffarelli ruled out offering a broader voluntary buyout plan to more employees, saying he expects to reduce payroll enough through the early retirment scheme and regular turnover.

($1 = 3.42 reais)

(Writing by Bruno Federowski, editing by Louise Heavens)
(Kitco News) - Some analysts are warning investors to not count gold out just yet as financial markets prepare for Italys congressional reform referendum on Sunday.

Gold prices managed to start the week with positive gains, bouncing off Fridays nine-month lows to settle Monday at $1,190.80 an ounce, up nearly 1% on the day.

While $1,200 an ounce is still elusive for the gold market, Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said that the Italian referendum has potential to create more geopolitical uncertainty as the government is expected to lose the referendum, which proposed to reshape the Senate to replace 315 elected senators with 100 appointed representatives

According to the latest polls, the No side currently has an eight point lead over the Yes camp, leading 41% to 34%. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who called for the referendum, has said that he would step down if the vote failed to pass.

The event risk is supporting gold. The $1,200 to $1,203 is the key area to watch, he said.

Bill Baruch, senior market strategist at iiTrader, said that he could see some potential safe-haven demand ahead of Sundays vote as a no victory could impact the countrys major financial institutions.

According to the Financial Times, eight of Italys banks risk failing if the vote fails, quoting sources from senior bankers.

The FT article noted that Renzi has been promoting a market solution to recapitalize some of countrys banks but could end up in limbo with the country having to transition to a new government leader.

Baruch said that his is watching the $1,212 level as a consolidation level for gold, which looks oversold in an environment of further political uncertainty.

However, he added that gold has to push back above at least $1,237.10 an ounce to neutralize the latest downtrend.

By Neils Christensen of Kitco News; nchristensen@kitco.com

Follow @Neils_C
OSLO, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Russia and Norway will soon sign a deal to acquire new seismic data from the two countries' Arctic Barents Sea maritime border region to boost the search for oil and gas, the Norwegian oil minister told Reuters on Monday.

"Now we have come to an agreement which will allow shooting seismic data across the border," Tord Lien, Norway's minister of petroleum and energy said after a meeting with Russia's natural resources minister, Sergei Donskoi, in Oslo.

"This will make it possible to get a better picture of the reservoirs which cross the border," he said, adding that he expected to sign the deal before Dec. 24.

The two neighbouring countries have already signed a deal to exchange older seismic data from the border zone. Norway's Statoil and Sweden's Lundin are among the firms that have previously found oil and gas in the Norwegian sector of the Barents Sea.

(Reporting by Stine Jacobsen, editing by Terje Solsvik)
HANOI, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Here's a snapshot of Vietnamese dong exchange rates in the official and unofficial markets, indicative SJC gold prices in Hanoi and interbank offered rates at 0510 GMT.

Nov 28 Nov 25 USD/VND mid-point 22,132 22,137 USD/VND interbank 22,715/22,720 22,750/22,770 USD/VND unofficial 22,800/22,830 22,880/22,930 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 35.62/35.84 35.32/35.52

Interbank offered rates Overnight 1.8-3.3 1.5-2.4

1 week 2.0-3.4 1.5-2.5

1 month 2.8-3.9 2.7-3.2

3 months 4.2-5.0 4.2-4.9

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 offered rates are the latest indicative bid/ask prices, quoted from market sources.

One tael is equivalent to 37.5 grams or 1.21 troy ounces. SJC gold prices are quoted by state-owned Saigon Jewelry Co.

For more interbank rate fixings released at 0400 GMT, click on .

For Vietnam market overview click on: Vietnam's bonds market auctions: Bonds auction results: (Compiled by Hanoi Newsroom; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
(Adds details, background)

TUNIS, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Tunisia plans to issue a Eurobond worth 1 billion euros in January as it seeks funding to cover its deficit, a government source said on Monday.

The issue was initially scheduled for April, but that was delayed after Tunisia secured a $500 million sovereign bond fully guaranteed by the United States, said the official.

"Tunisia will issue in January 2017 a delayed 1 billion euro Eurobond that was first planned earlier this year," he said, without giving further details.

Tunisia's economy has been hit by social unrest and militant attacks following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. Investment has fallen and unemployment is high, especially among young people.

The government is facing further strikes over austerity measures included in the 2017 budget as it tries to cut public spending and rein in the deficit.

Tunisia recently cut its 2016 growth forecast to 1.5 percent this year, down from an expected 2.5 percent.

(Reporting by Tarek Amara; Editing by Mark Trevelyan; Writing by Aidan Lewis; Editing by Catherine Evans)
Commissioners weigh banning gun shows at Fairgrounds

The city of Bremerton earlier this year made an agreement with the operator of its conference center to discontinue shows there as well.
Prime Minister John Key has dismissed calls for a gender-balanced Cabinet, calling the idea stupid.

Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner Jackie Blue has called on Mr Key to follow in the footsteps of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who last year unveiled a Cabinet which was half female.

When asked why, Mr Trudeau simply replied: Because it is 2015 The fact is, men should be lucky I only made it a 50 percent women Cabinet.

Writing in the New Zealand Herald earlier this year, Dr Blue  herself a former National Party MP  said: Until gender equality is normalised and becomes part of our DNA, unless women are intentionally included, the system will unintentionally exclude them.

But her former boss disagrees, telling The Nation on Saturday it would be stupid to promise a gender-balanced Cabinet.

I think if you went to our female ministers, of which weve got a tremendous group of talent  from Paula to Amy to Judith, you name them, Hekia, Anne Tolley, theres just a bunch of very talented women in there.

They are there because theyre immensely talented. Yes, its great that theyre women, and I think there should be balance.

He told host Lisa Owen she didnt get her job because youre a woman.

Youre here because youre a good interviewer and you run a good show.
Newshub reports:

MPs are calling on the Government to close tax loopholes which allow the kids of some of New Zealands wealthiest families to receive a student allowance.

The non-repayable allowance is designed to provide the kids of low- and middle-income families up to $175 per week while they study.

But a 20-year-old Victoria University student whose parents own a multi-million-dollar business told Newshub she gets the allowance because her parents technically dont receive an income.

Everything goes into the trust, so on paper we look like just your average struggling family.

A 21-year-old Waikato University student whose parents own a multi-million-dollar farm in the Waikato also told Newshub they get the allowance.

Last week, Revenue Minister Michael Woodhouse proposed a crackdown on abuse of the student allowance system. His proposed changes will see the Ministry of Social Development receive parents income statements directly from IRD. Presently, parents submit payslips or a declaration of estimated earnings.
Now that Republicans will be running the White House, the House and the Senate, theyd better succeed in streamlining and simplifying our bloated government. Quotes from some of our greatest minds can guide them.

While President Obama sought to make government cool again, many great minds have long been wary of government:

Governments view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.  Ronald Reagan

A government big enough to give you all you want is big enough to take everything you have.  Barry Goldwater

A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government.  Edward Abbey

Ronnie, we miss you, but your spirit guides us still. Barry, youd roll in your grave if you saw how big our government has gotten. And Eddie, our IRS recently turned against people whose nonprofit organizations promoted the wrong political point of view.

Being self-employed for many years, Ive found that high income taxes and complex rules have been the bane of my existence. Republicans had better heed these quotes as they reform our tax system:

Did you ever notice that when you put the words the and IRS together, it spells THEIRS?  unknown

What at first was plunder, assumed the softer name of revenue.  Thomas Paine

It would be a hard government that should tax its people one-tenth part of their income.  Ben Franklin

Hey, guys, too many politicians and bureaucrats think we owe them MORE of our hard-earned dough. Tommy, youd be shocked at the level of plunder. And Ben, the only Americans who enjoy an income tax around 10 percent these days are the ones who moved to Russia.

As Republicans attempt to roll back the massive expansion of government that occurred under Obamas presidency, here are some points to consider:

The single most exciting thing you encounter in government is competence, because its so rare.  Daniel Patrick Moynihan

Government is inherently incompetent, and no matter what task it is assigned, it will do it in the most expensive and inefficient way possible.  Charley Reese

Government is an association of men who do violence to the rest of us.  Leo Tolstoy

Hey, Leo, folks often forget how nasty government can be  particularly the millions of college-age Americans who think socialism is hip and that the rich should pay off the thousands they borrowed to get graduate degrees in the dining habits of sub-Saharan cross-dressers.

Here are more thoughts that had better motivate Republicans:

The primary function of the government is  and here I am quoting directly from the U.S. Constitution  to spew out paper.  Dave Barry

The government is good at one thing: It knows how to break your legs, then hand you a crutch and say, See, if it werent for the government you wouldnt be able to walk.  Harry Browne

Government cannot make man richer, but it can make him poorer.  Ludwig von Mises

Hey, Republicans, the American citizens have spoken and we demand a return to the principles of SMALL government. You had better stay on your toes and pay attention to these quotes:

One of the greatest delusions in the world is the hope that the evils in this world are to be cured by legislation.  Thomas Reed

That government is best which governs the least, because its people discipline themselves.  attributed to Thomas Jefferson, but first appeared in United States Magazine and Democratic Review in 1837

The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government  lest it come to dominate our lives and interests.  attributed to Patrick Henry, but actual source unknown

Tom Purcell is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist and is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons Inc. Email him at Tom@TomPurcell.com.
Shenandoah, IA (51601)

Today

A mix of clouds and sun with gusty winds. High around 75F. Winds S at 25 to 35 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph..

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low 56F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.
A remarkable story from Texarkana, Arkansas- The family of an 8-month old girl is thanking their lucky stars she is OK after she was thrown from their vehicle in a crash involving an 18 wheeler.

it was a chaotic scene friday night when firefighters arrived on scene in the eastbound lanes of interstate 30 in Texarkana, Arkansas. Police say that's where an 18 wheeler had clipped a car while changing lanes, causing the car to flip.

"Immediately, as we got out of the engine, family members were saying the baby was ejected from the car and was unaccounted for at the time," Josh Moore, a Texarkana firefighter, said.

Moore says they began searching the thick hay in the interstate median.

"A good samaritan was already out here, searching for the baby, and he claimed he heard something from this general direction," Moore said.

It was a drainage grate in the middle of the median about 25 feet from the road. They began removing hay, when they spotted the infant inside the grate.

"The 8 month old was sitting down in the grate, sitting up, looking up at us, waiting for us to pull her out. She wasn't screaming, wasn't crying. She was just sitting there, waiting for us," Moore said.

"We reached down there, and she more or less had her hands up, waiting for somebody to pick her up. It took 3 of us to work her around the grate and get her back up through," Captain Charlie Smith said.

Remarkably, medics found little more than a scratch on her forehead.

"There are so many times, we go out and things are not OK during the holidays here. To have a positive just feels good," Smith said.

Officials say the family is from Hope, Arkansas. None of the other four people in the car was seriously hurt either. Only the driver still remains in the hospital, after getting hit by a passing car after the crash.

Texarkana, Arkansas police have since confirmed the car seat the baby was in was not properly installed and the child was not properly restrained in the seat at the time of the crash, but there were no citations issued related to the lack of proper child restraints. The driver of the 18 wheeler was cited for improper lane change.

"I just started crying and thanking God for sparing my baby, for sparing us and not taking my angel away from me," Jakesia Colson, the baby's mom, said. "He is my miracle baby."
LARAMIE, Wyo.  The Iowa State wrestling team (1-3, 1-3 Big 12) was topped by Wyoming (1-1, 1-0 Big 12), 19-15. The Cyclones went 5-5 on the day, but the Cowboys' two bonus-point decisions were the difference in this dual.

After five matches, the Cardinal and Gold trailed 10-6. A pair of redshirt seniors, No. 10 Lelund Weatherspoon and Carson Powell , picked up victories for the Cyclones.

Weatherspoon took on Wyoming's Kyle Pope at 174-pounds. He jumped out to a quick lead, scoring two takedowns in the first, but Pope knotted it up 4-4 heading to the second. The 2016 All-American added two takedowns in the second and scored a pair of escapes to take this match, 10-7.

At 184-pounds, Powell picked up his first dual victory since 2013. He knocked off Luke Paine by 6-0 decision. The Ankeny, Iowa, native scored on two takedowns, an escape and 3:04 in riding time.

Wins from redshirt freshmen Markus Simmons and redshirt senior, No. 5 Earl Hall put the Cyclones back on top, 12-10.

In his Cyclone debut, Simmons defeated Gunnar Woodburn by 13-7 decision. The Broken Arrow, Okla., native scored on a pair of takedowns and rode hard on top, picking up a four-point and a two-point near-fall. A reversal in the third and 2:18 of riding-time solidified his first Iowa State dual victory.

Hall gave ISU the lead with a 10-4 decision over Drew Templeman. He scored on three takedowns, a two-point near-fall, an escape and 1:24 of riding-time.

After a fall from Bryce Meredith at 141-pounds and a victory at 149-pounds, the Cowboys' 19-12 lead was insurmountable with only one match remaining.

Redshirt freshmen Colston DiBlasi stretched his record on this road trip to 2-0 when he beat Archie Colgan by 5-3 decision. DiBlasi jumped out to a quick lead with a takedown and two-point near-fall in the first and cruised to victory, adding a late escape.

Match of the Night: 125 Pounds

Markus Simmons was victorious in his first dual appearance. He showed off his high-flying offense and his dominance on top with a 13-7 decision.

Next Up

The Cyclones will be back in action next weekend. They'll head to Las Vegas on Dec. 2-3 to take on the field at the 2016 Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational.
City of Gatlinburg calling for evacuations due to wildfires

NOVEMBER 28, 2016 at 4:06 p.m.



Published November 28, 2016


A fire at the Chimney Tops in Great Smoky Mountains National Park has burned 500 acres. Image courtesy of GSMNP.
Netziv (Shemos 34:10) We need to explicate the manner of Divine Providence. There are two types which four. 1) there are two by means of ...

My sefer Yad Moshe has been unavailable in seforim stores. However it was recently reprinted and shipped to New York There are two distrubu...

Shemos Rabbah (52:03) The story is told of R. Simeon b. Halafta, that he once came home just before the Sabbath and found that he had no fo...

Rashbam (Shemos 4:10): It is inconceivable that a prophet who spoke with G d face to face and received the Torah from Him should have a sp...

Important!! email - yadmoshe@gmail.com
Liiv KB Cambodia officials hold mobile devices, which run the digital bank's application.

/ Courtesy of KB Kookmin Bank



By Kim Tae-gyu



KB Kookmin Bank, one of the country's leading lenders, is striving to duplicate its notable success here in the global market through briskly tapping into lucrative businesses across the world.

Such efforts have started to bear fruit and the most recent example is its work of jointly arranging a 750 billion won ($660 million) project financing deal for a power plant in the United States.

Earlier this month, the Seoul-based lender said that it joined forces with global banks Mitsubishi and ING Bank to finance the 790 megawatt gas-fired power plant construction.

They attracted investors who purchased senior debt worth $660 million and of that amount, KB Kookmin arranged $200 million that is composed of a direct investment of $50 million and $150 million from other Korean firms.

In overseas project financing in which Korean constructors are not directly involved, domestic financial firms have played limited roles. But the recent feats showcase KB's capacity, according to experts.

In retail banking, KB Kookmin has also been a pioneer in making a foray into offshore markets. As of the end of last year, it had 12 subsidiaries, branches and offices outside the country.

One of its latest initiatives in the overseas retail market took place in Cambodia where KB Kookmin opened a mobile-oriented bank, Liiv KB Cambodia, this September.

The digital bank offers various services such as account transfers, cross-border remittances and mobile payment services as well as various non-banking features like letting people top up their handsets.

A KB Kookmin official said that the new-concept bank has been accepted well and for further growth momentum, it plans to enable its customers to withdraw money at automatic teller machines by forming business alliances with Cambodia's top-tier banks.

Observers point out that many successful firms tend to forget about management principles such as putting existing customers first and respecting business ethics but KB Kookmin appears to be different.

Its CEO Yoon Jong-kyoo has stressed globalization to secure new cash cows for the lender, but at the same time he reiterates that the bank should stick to principles.

"In an effort to become the most respected bank in the nation and to solidify its role as the leader of the Korean financial services industry, KB Kookmin Bank is committed to paying close attention to every one of our customers while providing the best customer-oriented services," Yoon said.

"Upholding high moral standards and work ethics as bankers, KB Kookmin Bank's entire staff and management will keep striving to fulfill our responsibilities to our customers and society, making it the most dependable and socially responsible bank."
By Kim Tae-gyu



The corruption scandal involving President Park Geun-hye may prompt governance-sensitive foreign funds or pensions to pull out of the Seoul bourse, if conglomerates are found to have been engaged in illegalities.



Park's shadowy confidant Choi Soon-sil is suspected of having extorted millions of dollars from nine business groups in return for special treatment.



Their leaders are facing questioning at National Assembly hearings. Included in the nine are representative domestic chaebol such as Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG and Lotte.



"Many global pension funds shun investing in companies implicated in corrupt deals. The conglomerates may face a prospect," said a professor at a Seoul university, who asked not to be named.



The scandal will negatively affect foreign investor-sentiment in Seoul stocks, he said.



As demonstrated by the consistently low price-to-earnings ratio (PER), many Korean companies are undervalued compared to their overseas counterparts.



International investors are unwilling to pay as much for Korean shares as for associated shares in other countries due to risks, and that is called the "Korea discount."



A departure of foreign funds because of their investment policies would exacerbate the degree of the discount. And the threats seem to be real in the light of their track record.



Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund, which runs around $1.1 trillion in assets, signed the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) last year.



Norway's $870 billion public pension fund, one of the world's biggest sovereign wealth funds, divested from Chinese telecom equipment maker ZTE this year because of corruption fears.



The two are just a fraction of many global funds and pensions, which pay greater attention to the concept of socially responsible investments by signing the PRI.



Signatories to the PRI are an international network of investors collaborating to incorporate environmental, social and governance factors into investment decisions.



The third factor of governance includes five considerations  executive pay, bribery and corruption, political lobbying and donations, board diversity and structure, and tax strategy.



Among them, PRI signatories may take issue with two subcategories of bribery and political lobbying to scrap new investments in Korean companies or worse, divest from them.



That might be significant for Korea Inc. as around 1,600 players representing $62 trillion in assets under management have signed up to the principles as of the end of last month.



Although the principles are voluntary through offering a menu of desirable and responsible actions, many large-sized investors care about them.



Prof. Lee Phil-sang at Seoul National University said, however, that most funds and pensions would still put top priority on profitability over governance.



Still, he said the recent corruption investigations into Korean conglomerates are not a good sign for the country's economy, which is already experiencing large downward pressure.




By Yoon Ja-young



With the deadline to pass the 2017 budget in the National Assembly nearing, rival parties are confronting each other regarding a corporate tax hike. While the government and the ruling party said there would be no increase in corporate taxes, the tax hike plan is gaining momentum as the economic control tower is losing power amid the political scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her longtime confidant Choi Soon-sil.



The corporate tax rate was slashed from 25 percent to 22 percent during the previous Lee Myung-bak administration. Amid concerns over snowballing social welfare costs, the opposition parties demand they be returned to the previous level. They plan to pass revision bills aimed at the tax hike through the National Assembly along with the 2017 budget bill.



The government, however, opposes the plan, especially following Donald Trump's surprise win in the U.S. presidential election. Trump pledged to pull down the corporate tax rate in the U.S. from its current 39 percent to 15 percent. According to the Korea Institute of Public Finance, a 1 percentage point increase in the corporate tax rate will increase the burden on businesses by 1.25 trillion won. Strategy and Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho said, "The finance ministry believes it isn't time to raise business taxes."



National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun, however, hinted he may introduce a corporate tax hike bill directly in the National Assembly for voting if the parties fail to agree on the issue. There is also speculation the parties may reach a "big deal." The opposition parties may withdraw the tax hike plan if the government and the ruling party agree to expand the budget for the Nuri free childcare program, a contentious issue in recent years.



They may also agree to raise income taxes even more on high earners instead of raising the corporate tax. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea says the tax rate on those with incomes of 500 million won or more should be raised from the current 38 percent to 41 percent.



There has been criticism that businesses aren't increasing investments despite corporate tax cuts, after the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said a lower corporate tax rate leads to increased corporate investment. Nam Chang-woo, a senior economist at the institute, said a 1 percentage point cut in the average effective tax rate leads to a 0.2 percentage point increase in the investment ratio.



However, he noted the investment rate hasn't increased as much as it should due to the greed of management  they are stockpiling cash for themselves, instead of putting it back into investments. The report estimated that the management of Korean firms takes 0.09 percent of the operating profit or cash assets for their private use, which compares with only 0.01 percent in the United States. Nam noted such profiteering diminishes the positive effects of the corporate tax rate cut by 28 percent.



This also means management could decrease investments even more if the tax rate is raised. The economist said the government should strengthen supervision of corporate management to prevent such practices and lead to more hiring and investments.




By Nam Hyun-woo



The fallout of the political scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her confidant Choi Soon-sil is placing the looming shakeups of bank heads under increasing uncertainty.



According to industry sources, the heads of the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK), Export Import Bank (Eximbank) and Woori Bank will see their terms expire in December or next March.



IBK CEO Kwon Seon-joo's term expires the first on Dec. 27. With less than a month remaining, however, whether she continues to serve or leaves the post is up in the air.

Since IBK is a state-run bank, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) chairman recommends a candidate to the President for nomination.



Currently, FSC Chairman Yim Jong-yong is regarded as a strong candidate for minister of strategy and finance, which also carries with it the duties of deputy prime minister.



Park named Yim in her abrupt cabinet reshuffle before she lost her grip on state affairs, but the plan is adrift at the National Assembly as lawmakers are focusing on removing Park from power. As it will take time to appoint a new FSC head, uncertainties are increasing over who will be nominated to lead the IBK.



Steps after that are more uncertain. When opposition lawmakers draft a joint impeachment motion sometime this week and if the motion passes the Assembly, Park will be suspended from her duties immediately. Then, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn will serve as acting head of state.



Given the circumstances, market watchers say the FSC, Park or even Hwang will not likely make a "surprise" appointment and may opt to select a new chief among ranking IBK officials or give Kwon another term.



"There is not enough time to wrap up the whole process," said a banking insider asking not to be named. "Though it remains to be seen what will happen, the majority opinion is that there will be no surprise."



Another factor giving momentum to such a view is that of former senior presidential secretary for political affairs Hyun Ki-hwan's involvement in the scandal over the Haeundae LCT development project.



Hyun has been widely viewed as "a government-backed candidate" for IBK chief, leading IBK union members to issue a statement against his possible appointment. However, Hyun has been sidelined as he will be summoned by the prosecution on Tuesday as a suspect in the LCT scandal.



If the government fails to appoint a candidate before Kwon's term expires, Park Chun-hong, IBK deputy CEO, will serve as acting CEO. However, his term also expires on Jan. 20. A deputy CEO served as chief of the IBK when former CEO Kang Kwon-seok died in 2007.



With the bank saying there will be no major problem from a possible hole in its leadership, an IBK official said he does not expect the appointment process to be protracted until January and the bank has yet to set up a scenario for that.



Facing a similar case is Eximbank. Eximbank President Lee Duk-hoon's term will expire this coming March.



The state-run Eximbank's head is also appointed by the government: The strategy and finance minister recommends a candidate to the president to ratify. With uncertainties lying over what will happen to the ministerial job, a prolonged political hassle over Choi gate may affect the Eximbank appointment.



However, Lee is unlikely to serve another term in the position, because Eximbank under his leadership has been hit hard for its negligence in corporate restructuring.



Also, Woori Bank CEO Lee Kwang-goo's term will expire in March. With the bank's major shareholder  the government  losing its power to appoint a favored figure as its chief, observers say the possibility for Lee to serve another term is high thanks to the successful privatization of the bank. However, as a former government figure was appointed as vice chief, voices are rising that another government-backed figure can be parachuted into the top Woori Bank post.




A child places a flower-patterned sticker on a police bus during the anti-President Park Geun-hye rally in central Seoul, Saturday. While some participants at earlier rallies destroyed police vehicles, the stickers of flowers, symbolizing peace, have replaced violence in recent rallies. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul



By Choi Ha-young



The five massive Saturday protests against President Park Geun-hye have all ended peacefully. They also achieved a national record for the number of participants  1.9 million people last Saturday  as well as a new norm in protest culture: nonviolence.



Some, however, claim nonviolence is ineffective. President Park is still in office without answering calls to resign over the influence-peddling scandal involving her confidant and aides, and all protesters can do is just enjoy concerts.



"I come here every week but it feels like I do it to satisfy myself and make my participation meaningful," said Heo Soon-man, 45, a factory worker.



Park Eun-sik, 29, an office worker from Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, said, "The cultural performances and the form of rally don't seem to reflect our energy."



However, change is taking place quietly but fundamentally.



While police initially banned gatherings and marches at places even 1 kilometer from Cheong Wa Dae, local courts have unprecedentedly ruled in favor of protesters for five consecutive weeks, allowing them to march to a point 200 meters from the presidential office.



"Citizens, not courts or police, should be able to make the boundary of legality," said Jeon Mi-ok, 56, a Seoul resident.



For them, nonviolence is a strategy to prove the police's responsibility for violence. "Previously, protesters turned violent because police oppressed them excessively. It instigated protesters' anger," said a participant surnamed Park, 55, from Seoul.



"As we can see, we can stage a peaceful rally if the police don't violently suppress the people," said Seo, 55, next to Park.



For the five rallies, police haven't used water cannons, which put farmer activist Baek Nam-ki in a coma for 10 months before he died in September. Instead, last Saturday police hung a banner that read: "Please keep the rally peaceful, show a mature sense of citizenship."



"I think people know by instinct that violence will reduce the number of protesters," said Kim Sun-young, 39, a mother of two. "We could come here because safety is ensured."



People have also shown a different stance toward riot police from before, as those standing in front of the barricades are conscripts serving their mandatory military duty.



"I had a problem with criticizing the police, because they are young people forced to be there," said Lee Joo-hee, 17, who came with her mother.



Chun Sang-chin, a sociology professor at Sogang University, also pointed out the different tone of the conservative media regarding the recent anti-Park rallies. "Traditionally, conservative newspapers tried to divide good protests and bad protests, separating ordinary citizens from professional protesters," Chun said.



In the 2008 protest against beef imports from the United States, this strategy worked effectively, he said. "This isolated labor and civic activists, encouraging police to adopt violent measures."



However, that narrative has not appeared this time, he said. "It looks like activists and citizens are harmonized in the square, as a place of civic education."
By Park Si-soo



A group of senior lawmakers loyal to President Park Geun-hye will urge the scandalized head of state to step down to keep her "honor" untarnished.

Multiple sources in the ruling Saenuri Party said Monday the party's senior lawmakers loyal to Park gathered at a restaurant and reached a "consensus that they will demand Park step down."

They refused to elaborate on details, including when and how they will make the suggestion to the increasingly unpopular President.

The participants included Rep. Suh Chung-won, Choi Kyung-hwan and Yoon Sang-hyun, key members of the Park loyalist faction within the ruling party.












Six senior lawmakers from the mainstream pro-Park Geun-hye faction and from smaller factions of the ruling Saenuri Party hold a meeting at the National Assembly, Monday. From right front, clockwise, are Reps. Hong Moon-jong, Na Kyung-won, Joo Ho-young, Chung Woo-taik, Won Yoo-chul and Kim Jae-kyung. / Yonhap



By Yi Whan-woo

Six senior lawmakers from the ruling Saenuri Party agreed to the creation of an emergency committee to replace the current leadership controlled by loyalists of President Park Geun-hye, Monday.

However, the pro-Park faction is unlikely to accept the proposal, possibly prompting a mass exodus of lawmakers from the party.

The six representatives from the mainstream pro-Park faction and the non-mainstreamers asked the party to form an emergency committee and pick its head among three candidates to be recommended by minor factional members.

The deal was made as part of the efforts to prevent a possible departure of non-mainstreamers from the party amid internal strife over the corruption scandal surrounding Park and her confidant Choi Soon-sil.












By Lee Kyung-min



Rallies against Park Geun-hye will continue until the day of her resignation, even on weekdays, organizers of the rallies said Monday.



They said the Saturday rallies, as well as daily candlelit protests on weekdays, will be held in December in front of Seoul Finance Center near Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul.



"The concentrated voice of the public protesting against the President over numerous influence-peddling allegations involving her confidant Choi Soon-sil shows no sign of abating," said an official of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), one of the organizers.



At last Saturday's rally, 1.9 million protesters nationwide  with 1.5 million in central Seoul alone  braved the cold and expressed their outrage in peaceful gatherings, with not a single incident of violence reported.



The organizers said they do not expect that many people will gather again in the upcoming protests due to cold weather. "We just provide the platform. It's up to the individual citizens whether they come or not. But we think hundreds of thousands of people will gather in numerous separate locations across the country on upcoming Saturdays," the official said.



In a similar move to keep the protests going, the organizers said they would encourage people "not to do their duty" on Wednesdays to demonstrate civil disobedience against the government.



A daytime protest is scheduled at Gwanghwamun Square at 3 p.m., followed by a street march at 4 p.m., and a candlelit protest at 6 p.m.



The organizers are urging workers to take the day-off, those self-employed to shut down, and college students to boycott classes. The KCTU said up to 300,000 union members will stage a partial walk out. While students from 15 universities nationwide initiated boycotting classes last Friday, students from 10 more are planning to join the action.



"We will expand the civil disobedience movement," the official said.




Rep. Kim Moo-sung, former chairman of the ruling Saenuri Party, gestures to reporters during a welfare event held at the National Assembly, Monday. He is leading the party's non-mainstream lawmakers who have vowed to join forces with opposition parties to impeach President Park Geun-hye. / Yonhap



Impeachment motion needs 28 votes from ruling party to pass

By Kim Hyo-jin

Rival factions in the ruling Saenuri Party are key to the passage of an impeachment motion against President Park Geun-hye, if submitted by the opposition parties this week.

While drawing up the joint impeachment motion, the opposition bloc is paying keen attention to how many anti-Park lawmakers in the ruling party will join to oust Park.

At least 28 Saenuri Party lawmakers are needed to vote for the motion to pass, assuming that all 172 opposition and independent lawmakers vote in favor. The law requires support from two-thirds of the 300-member National Assembly to pass the motion.

Rep. Park Jie-won, interim leader of the minor opposition People's Party, expressed confidence of a smooth endorsement, saying the expected number of votes in favor has already far exceeded the minimum required.

"I heard from the Saenuri Party that the number of lawmakers on board has reached about 60," he said in a party meeting. "The legal requirements for impeachment are in the making. Now, there is only about a week left for the presidential term."

Rep. Woo Sang-ho, floor leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), however, remained cautious, saying, "It could be true that a growing number of lawmakers in the ruling party are supporting impeachment but it can't be as many as 60."

Rep. Cho Won-jin, a Park loyalist and member of Saenuri's Supreme Council, refuted the People's Party leader, saying he is seeking to drive a wedge between factions in the ruling party.












         :   - 32          ' '
Officials at the Ministry of Education look at the draft version of a new history textbook written by the government at the ministry building in Sejong, Monday.Whether the textbook will be able to used from March as planned will depend on whether President Park Geun-hye will be impeached, because if she is, her key policies may automatically be scrapped.

/ Yonhap



By Kim Bo-eun

The Ministry of Education unveiled the draft of a controversial state-authored history textbook for middle and high schools, Monday, drawing protests from progressive historians and civic groups.

It revealed the "right-leaning" textbook about one year after the conservative Park Geun-hye administration announced the plan.

The book allegedly contains disputed definitions and interpretations of historical events skewed in favor of conservatives.

The ministry had originally planned to collect public opinion until December and send it for printing in January for publication before the spring semester beginning in March.

"The ministry is seeking ways to introduce the textbooks at schools by minimizing confusion," Education Minister Lee Joon-sik said at a briefing at the Seoul Government Complex.

However, the fact that the minister did not confirm the definitive introduction of the textbook in March, is seen as a means of leaving room for its withdrawal depending on public opinion.

The Park government has pushed for the book despite fierce opposition from liberal historians and civic groups.

The new textbook comes at a time when the public has also turned its back on the Park administration following the outbreak of an influence-peddling scandal.

The draft showed the state-authored book contains content backed by conservative historians.

It states Aug. 15, 1948, three years after Korea's liberation from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule, as the day of the "foundation of the Republic of Korea (ROK)," or South Korea, instead of "the establishment of the ROK government" in existing books.

The difference is notable because recognizing the "foundation of the nation" on that day dismisses the importance of independence movements and the establishment of the provisional government in Shanghai in 1919.

It is also seen as a means to glorify the dictatorship of Syngman Rhee, Korea's first president, who conservatives consider as the founding father of the nation.

"The ROK, established by the election (in 1948), which was held in the presence of territory, people and sovereignty, attained its status as a nation," Kim Jung-bae, president of the National Institute of Korean History, said at the press conference.

However, progressive historians question how there could have been independence movements if there wasn't a state in the first place.

The education ministry, meanwhile, stressed the textbook says the nation was founded "by succeeding the provisional government."

In addition, the textbook highlights the "great economic growth" achieved under former President Park Chung-hee, the current President Park's father, who led a dictatorial regime for 18 years.

"Existing textbooks focus more on the side effects of the nation's economic growth than the achievements, so the state-authored textbook gives sufficient coverage to it," the ministry said.

Whether the Park administration will be able to publish the unified history textbook may be up to whether the President is impeached.

If the President  who has one year remaining in her term  is impeached, the policies she has been pushing for will automatically be scrapped as she loses power as head of state. The state-authored textbook was one of her key policies. The National Assembly is seeking to put the motion for impeachment to a vote as early as this week.

The textbook also reflected the administration's hostile stance toward North Korea.

While some of the existing books do not specify the suspect behind the sinking of the naval vessel Cheonan in 2010 which killed 46 South Korean sailors, the new one clearly states Pyeongyang was behind the attack.

The ministry also disclosed the 31 authors of the textbook, most of whom are regarded as conservative. When the government announced the plan for the book in October last year, many historians and scholars declared they would not participate, so it was difficult for the government to secure fairness, objectiveness and diversity in the pool of authors.
Orietta Pelizzari is surrounded by students during a class at the Seoul Municipal Footwear Academy in Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul, Nov. 22. / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government



By Kim Se-jeong

Fourteen students of shoemaking had a special opportunity last week to attend workshops by Italian experts.

The Seoul Municipal Footwear Academy in Seongsu-dong, eastern Seoul, invited a shoe designer and a trend expert from Arsutoria school in Italy to hold workshops on shoemaking, how to read the market, and developing brands.

"It is important for students to learn from world-class professionals," said Kim Jeong-hoon, the academy's director. "Ars Sutoria School is a longstanding academy with outstanding curriculum that can have a great impact on our students."

Orietta Pelizzari, a footwear trend expert and instructor at Arsutoria, expressed her satisfaction with the students and the academy.

"It's very good that the city government is helping the industry," she said. "The students are wonderful."

She taught the students how to analyze trends, develop their own collection and target potential customers, while her colleague Georgia Roehe focused on the actual shoemaking.

The academy, opened in September, is part of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's (SMG) new initiative to recover the city's once-thriving shoemaking industry.

Footwear was a major manufacturing component in the city, and Seongsu-dong was a mecca for the shoe industry, with skillful designers, suppliers and manufacturers flocking to the area.

Over the years, however, the industry has dwindled due to competition from low-priced shoes from China and decreasing popularity of shoemaking as a career.

While Pelizzari recognized the SMG's effort to revive the footwear industry, she said the city should also focus on creating an environment where people crave style.

"People need to change their mindsets," she said. "They should have taste."

Pelizzari attributed the success of Italy's footwear industry to the culture of people's desire for fashion.

Another reason is the old history of shoemaking, she said. Ars Sutoria School was founded in 1947. Italy has more than 1,500 footwear brands, with four towns dedicated to the shoemaking industry. Both regional and central governments there also help manufacturers with selling.

The program for the 14 students will end in December, and the top student in the class will be given a chance to visit Italy. A new batch of students will attend the program next year.
By Jun Ji-hye

Public outrage over the corruption and influence-peddling scandal involving President Park Geun-hye and her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil has shown no signs of slowing down since the case broke out in October.

Some 1 million angry citizens have been taking to the streets every Saturday, calling for Park's resignation. Even some members of the ruling Saenuri Party said either Park should voluntarily step down or the National Assembly should push for her impeachment.

But Park has appeared to continue to hold on to her power in defiance of the public calls for her resignation.

In line with this stance, the presidential office has clearly announced Park's stance on the prosecution's ongoing investigation and offered explanations for media reports and abounding rumors associated with the scandal.

But some of its explanations sound illogical and absurd, serving only to worsen the public anger against Park, opposition lawmakers and critics pointed out.

Prosecution probe

The prosecution announced the results of its interim investigation, Nov. 20, saying Park allegedly colluded with Choi, who is suspected of interfering in various state affairs and bullying local conglomerates into collaborating with two then-presidential aides.

In response to the announcement, Park's attorney, Yoo Yeong-ha, cast doubts over the fairness and credibility of the prosecutorial probe, claiming that the interim results were based on "imagination and conjectures."

The attorney then stressed he will not respond to any requests from the prosecution for direct questioning of the President and that he will, instead, prepare for an independent counsel probe, "which will be neutral."

Critics said the attorney's comment sounded ridiculous, as it meant that the President denies the prosecution, which takes orders from a prosecutor general appointed by the President.

"Park denies the prosecution, which is part of the administration led by herself," said Moon Jae-in, human rights lawyer-turned politician and former chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK). "This means the prosecutor general, justice minister and prime minister, who were appointed by the President and control the prosecution, should all resign from their posts."

Critics also denounced Yoo's claim that an independent counsel, who will be recommended by opposition parties, will be politically neutral, while the prosecution, which is controlled by the administration, was not.

Rep. Kim Kwan-young, deputy floor leader of the second largest opposition People's Party, said the comment signaled that the President could also reject to cooperate in an independent investigation, calling its neutrality into question. If this happens, opposition parties would have no tools to respond, he said.

Sewol ferry disaster

On Nov. 19, the presidential office posted explanations on its official website to what it claimed were 10 false reports and rumors, including one surrounding Park's whereabouts during the sinking of the Sewol ferry on April 16, 2014, which claimed 304 lives, mostly those of high school students on their school trip to Jeju Island.

Park has been embroiled in controversy, as she appeared at an emergency countermeasure headquarters only seven hours after the tragic accident. Owing to the lack of explanation about Park's whereabouts during those seven critical hours, rumors have abounded that "she might have undergone plastic surgery or other medical procedures on the day."












By Lee Hyon-soo

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Bearing this proverb in mind, I set out to learn to speak and behave as Canadians do, when I came to Canada to live.

For starters, I embraced political correctness, which means using words or behavior which will not offend any particular group of people in society. The rationale behind the idea of political correctness is that it is important for everyone to be treated equally, fairly and with dignity regardless of gender, race, appearance and religion, among other things.

As English-speaking Western societies have evolved, the use of gender-specific language has become a thing of the past. Now it is politically correct to use gender-neutral terms. Some examples are:

chairman: chair, chairperson

policeman, policewoman: police officer

stewardess: flight attendant

fireman: firefighter

postman, mailman: letter carrier

businessman, businesswoman: businessperson

waiter, waitress: server

salesman, saleswoman: salesperson

housewife: homemaker

Besides gender-neutral terms, some other politically correct words which are commonly used are:

Negro: African American

Indian: Native American

colored people: people of color

short: vertically challenged

handicapped: physically challenged

retarded: mentally challenged

blind: vision impaired

deaf: hearing impaired

illegal immigrant: undocumented immigrant

It is interesting to note that some terms which are purported to be politically correct have gone too far. Some examples are:

ignorant: factually unencumbered

perverted: sexually dysfunctional

dead: metabolically inconvenienced

poor: financially inept

rich: economically maximized

homeless: residentially flexible

dishonest: ethically disoriented

wrong: differently logical

ugly: under-attractive

garbage man: sanitation engineer

car wash worker: vehicle-appearance specialist

alcoholic: anti-sobriety activist

There are some people who feel censored by political correctness. They believe that political correctness infringes too much on their freedom of expression. Despite such criticism, it is generally acknowledged that political correctness is vital in society because without it all imaginable prejudices would still be around.

The writer is a retired international banker who lives in Toronto, Canada. His other writings are posted on http://blog.daum.net/tom_hslee.
In a video statement Monday, President-elect Donald Trump laid out as his first priority the U.S. withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact.



U.S. membership in the TPP became the skunk issue of the campaign as candidates and voters circled in on the theory that TPP and other international trade treaties had led to the export of U.S. jobs overseas. They therefore needed to be ditched or renegotiated for future economic health; it was an essential part of making "America great again," Trump's rallying cry.



The TPP was one of the key pieces of President Barack Obama's "pivot to Asia" and the part of his economic policy that posited America's recovery from the recession and growth on freer trade with Asia and on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, an agreement between the U.S. and European Union, also apparently on the rocks now.



The TPP was signed by 11 other Pacific rim nations, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. China was excluded, which the Obama administration saw as one of the pact's advantages. The economies of the countries signing the accord added up to about 40 percent of the world's gross domestic product. The removal of tariff barriers among them would make a significant difference in world trade. Obama saw it as to America's advantage. Trump does not agree.



The question now is, what happens to the TPP with the United States out? One possibility is that, without U.S. participation the agreement will simply sink beneath the waves. Another alternative is that the other 11 countries that signed it will continue to see virtues in it, even without U.S. participation, and will ratify it.



It also could be that the other 11 TPP signatories will now invite China on board, eliminating that virtue of the TPP for the United States. Given the size of its economy, China could come to play within the TPP the same leadership role that it is likely to play in implementing the Paris climate change agreement, if the United States drops out as Trump has promised.



Voters expressed on Nov. 8 their deep skepticism that the kind of growth offered by U.S. international trade agreements outweighed the destruction of jobs in the American heartland. The coming years of the Trump administration will show if the choice was correct, and if the new president can strike deals that treat the American worker fairly.



This editorial appeared on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.




By Jeffrey I. Kim

Last week a team of nine diplomatic officials from Thailand visited the Ombudsman's Office to ask for consultation on the FDI grievance resolution system. On October 13, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand died after ruling the country for over 70 years. The King received great respect from his people for having devoted himself to helping the country become stronger.

Thailand now needs to attract foreign investment. The country wants to invigorate its economy by attracting as many foreign investors as possible. They know what incentives they can provide for foreign investors but they know little about how to encourage foreign companies to stay on a longer-term basis. They want to know about the Korean ombudsman system which has a world-wide reputation for providing highly sophisticated after-care services for foreign investors.

There have been many other countries trying to emulate the Korean ombudsman system. As countries extend their economic territory by establishing FTA relationships with other countries, the ombudsman's role is becoming more important. The China-Korea FTA was the first FTA that adopted the role of the foreign investment ombudsman.

Article 12.19 of the FTA stipulates that the trade ministry of each government should designate contact points for resolving the grievances of foreign investors. These contact points include each country's investment promotion agency. For Korea the contact points are KOTRA (Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency) and the Foreign Investment Ombudsman Office, and for China, Investment Promotion Agency of the Ministry of Commerce.

Brazil has recently started the operation of its own ombudsman unit after consultation with us. Before establishing their ombudsman system, they asked us hundreds of questions. The key questions include: the legal status of the ombudsman, the political independence of the ombudsman, the organization of the ombudsman system, the ombudsman's relationship with KOTRA, the main activities of the ombudsman, and the scope of the ombudsman's legal authority and rights. The answers to these questions are all stated in the brochure and the booklets but they wanted to hear explanations directly from us.

The fact that we can now answer all their questions related to the Korean ombudsman system does not mean that our system was right and impeccable from the beginning. It has continuously changed and evolved since its foundation in 1999. It will continue to change as Korea's economic conditions and global economic environment change with time.

Very recently the Korean ombudsman system has gone through a couple of important reforms in operation and management. These specific operational reforms are seldom introduced in the published brochure. But it is very important and valuable information to share with the countries which have adopted the Korean ombudsman system.

One major reform is to change our grievance-collection system from passive call-awaiting' to proactive reaching out.' Previously 9 professional counselors, called home doctors,' simply waited for emergency calls from 4,000 foreign-invested companies. But the home doctors seldom received emergency calls from them. Even when they did receive a call, it was too late. To prevent that from happening, we split the nine home doctors into a few groups and have them select larger firms and try to directly collect their grievances before the problems become critically serious. Each time the home doctors make a group visit to client companies, the Ombudsman leads the group.

Another operational reform is to use the super-high-level professional consulting service from outside. These days, foreign firms with high technology frequently suffer from grievances because of the complexity of the issues involved. For the same laws, decrees, and rules, different government agencies may have different interpretations. Consequently foreign investors get caught and end up being subject to heavy tax penalties and fines. Often they wrap up their investment and leave the country.

To prevent these unfortunate episodes, we have organized a senior advisory group consisting of renowned scholars or even retired professors and ex-government officials in various fields. Their advisory service way exceeds the average capacity of lawyers and accountants, and other specialists hired by the ombudsman's office. When necessary, we convene an advisory group meeting by professional field.

With these two system reforms, we can collect and resolve foreign investors' complaints and grievances much earlier than before. In addition, we can provide higher-quality services for foreign investors at smaller expenses by utilizing the expertise and wisdom of the senior advisers.

Dr. Jeffrey I. Kim is a foreign investment ombudsman, a presidentially appointed troubleshooter for investors and entrepreneurs from overseas. He earned a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago and taught at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and at Sungkyunkwan University.
Fixing imperial presidency' is long overdue



No Korean president since 1987 has been free from the wrongdoings of themselves or their family members and close confidants. The current "imperial presidency" has been largely blamed for the nation's entrenched corruption culture at the top.



Every time a presidential election draws near, politicians have raised the need to revise the Constitution, which currently enables the head of state to abuse his or her power for personal interests. But these attempts have failed so far without exception as strong presidential candidates have been lukewarm about the constitutional amendment, adhering to their vested rights.



The situation is very much the same this time too. Moon Jae-in, the frontrunner for the next presidential election of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, is said to be skeptical about revising the basic law, dismissing it as a ploy to prolong a conservative government.



He reportedly said calling for the constitutional amendment at this time is nothing more than trying to water down the accountability of the ruling Saenuri Party for the Choi Soon-sil scandal.



Ahn Cheol-soo, another strong presidential contender of the minor opposition People's Party, also remains skeptical about the revision, saying that now is the time to focus on unseating President Park Geun-hye and settling the current chaos in an orderly way.



But it's almost certain that the next administration will struggle with similar power abuses and irregularities as those committed in previous governments if a new president is elected under the current Constitution. As long as the mechanism of "checks and balances" used to rein in presidential power is not in place, one cannot help but see the repetition of tragedy at the presidential office.



Support for the constitutional amendment is gaining traction. In a meeting held to discuss riding out the national crisis Sunday, former parliamentary speakers and other elderly politicians called for revising the Constitution to change the current five-year, single-term presidency, blaming it for the latest corruption scandal.



Former Saenuri Party Chairman Kim Moo-sung sparked a fresh debate on the Constitution last week when he proposed pushing for its amendment while abandoning his bid to run in the next presidential race. Also, not a small number of presidential hopefuls sympathize with the need to amend the Constitution.



Yet constitutional revision before the next presidential election is never an easy task. Aside from the strong opposition from Moon Jae-in, critics argue that pushing for amendment now will hurt the momentum to impeach President Park. Not surprisingly, parties and presidential hopefuls differ widely on its timing and direction.



Nonetheless, there is no doubt that we must mend our wrong institutions and practices. The National Assembly needs to take up the revision issue as soon as it votes on an impeachment motion for President Park.




Visitors to this year's meeting of the Radiological Society of North America in Chicago examine LG Electronics' medical monitors, Sunday (local time). The company showcased three medical display devices at the event.

/ Courtesy of LG Electronics



By Lee Min-hyung

LG Electronics is challenging traditional healthcare products giants  including Sony, Olympus and Siemens  by offering medical display equipment outfitted with its top-notch imaging technology.

The company said Monday it has unveiled three medical display products  monitors for surgery, monitors for clinical purposes and digital X-ray detectors  speeding up its expansion drive into the medical equipment industry.

The announcement came as part of its group-wide strategy to realign its business structure into the stable and lucrative sector, as the standard display industry is showing signs of a slowdown and reaching saturation point due to fierce rivalry from Chinese manufacturers.

For this reason, the company has sought to diversify its display lineup, highlighting its technological edge to tackle the substantial entry barriers of the medical-grade display industry, compared with traditional display markets.

"We hold industry-leading imaging technologies, which we believe will become our core marketing points differentiating ourselves from existing healthcare industry titans," said an LG Electronics spokesman.

But the company is expected to face tough challenges from the Japan- and German-based leading healthcare players, due to the conservative nature of the medical equipment industry.

Medical buyers have traditionally wanted safer and more conservative products than those in the television and standard display sectors, as the former must take a bigger responsibility for their purchases.

Things are much tougher in the healthcare industry, as potential newcomers require certifications and licenses, and face tough regulations which differ in each market.

LG Electronics is, for this reason, seeking to slowly expand its global presence in the industry after successfully penetrating into Korea and the United States where the company is recognized for its brand value and generates more revenue than any other global markets.

"Our display and electronics businesses are highly recognized in the two countries," he said. "This will help reduce entry barriers there. We are going to differentiate our products by aggressively promoting our leading imaging technologies and hardware stability which is another key factor determining success in the medical equipment industry."

He cited its commercial display products, the LG Digital Signage, to stress its technological expertise in manufacturing stable display products.

LG is the world's leading display manufacturer, particularly focusing on the premium sector with its OLED display.

The company will start selling the devices next year in Korea and the United States, expanding its sales into key European markets soon after, according to the firm.
Two individuals were arrested after a shooting occurred in the 10,000 block of Tyler Road in Irondale on Sunday evening.

Washington County Sheriffs Department Captain Zach Jacobsen said the Washington County 911 Center received a call reporting two people had been shot.

A male and female had both been shot. The deputy and his trainee, who were the first to arrive, located both victims who were suffering from a single gunshot wound each to the torso, said Jacobsen. They tended to both victims until emergency medical and the fire department arrived and they were both flown to a St. Louis area hospital with severe injuries.

Jacobsen said the shooter and his girlfriend fled in an unknown direction of travel, but authorities were told they could possibly be en route to Iron County.

We notified Iron and St. Francois County that they may be en route to Lake Hannah, explained Jacobsen. We werent sure, but we thought they were going to go to Iron County. A Missouri state trooper was on Highway 21 going northbound in the area of Elephant Rocks and observed (the suspect) vehicle southbound.

Jacobsen said the trooper turned around and before he could activate his emergency lights to conduct a traffic stop, the driver of the vehicle abruptly pulled to the shoulder and stopped.

The trooper, at that point, took both subjects into custody, said Jacobsen. Both exited the vehicle without incident and were arrested. I sent a detective and a deputy to that location and the deputy transported both the male and female to our sheriffs office.

Jacobsen said a detective processed the vehicle and had it impounded and towed to Potosi. He said they also processed the scene where the shooting occurred.

As of noon Monday both victims were listed in stable but critical condition.

The charges are only being sought on the male shooter and those charges are two counts each of assault in the first degree, two counts of armed criminal action and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon, said Jacobsen.

During the course of the investigation it was determined that the apparent shooters girlfriend and shooting victims were involved in some type of argument and the male shot both victims as a result of that argument.

No names are being released at this time pending the filing of formal charges.
DEAR ABBY: Earlier this year I moved away from home to move in with my boyfriend. We had been dating for more than a year and were close enough we could see each other whenever our schedules allowed. However, over the last few months I have been second-guessing that decision. I'm noticing things that I realize won't work.

To make matters more complicated, I met a girl who quickly became a good friend three months ago. She has inspired -- and in some ways pushed -- me to go back to college and improve my life. I find myself falling for her. The thing is, she just started dating someone, and I would never betray my partner by being unfaithful.

I don't know what to do. I can see my relationship with my boyfriend is not going to work out, and I know I'm not going to violate my female friend's relationship either. How does someone end a relationship when they live together? And how do I deal with the fear that I'll be miserable being on my own again, and the guilt of breaking my partner's heart? -- MIXED-UP GUY IN THE MIDWEST

DEAR MIXED-UP GUY: The first thing you need to do is recognize that being unencumbered can be a positive thing, particularly if you are not happy or satisfied with the relationship you are in. The adage "When a door closes, another one opens" is usually true.

Start looking around for alternative living arrangements, and when you find something that will work for you, explain to your boyfriend that you need to "make some changes." It's better for both of you than living a lie.

As to your relationship with the young woman, whether she stays with the person she's dating is something neither of us can predict. When you are single, she may become available. Or, you may meet someone else and start a relationship. Don't be afraid. These are the things that make life interesting.

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been together six years. This Christmas will be our second year as a married couple. On Christmas morning, my husband goes over to his parents' house to open gifts with his siblings. They are all adults; the oldest two are almost 40. (Both are single.) I'm not invited and have never been invited to their home, despite living five minutes away, because his mother is a hoarder.

We are expecting our first child in April. My husband works in law enforcement and is typically not off the entire day on Christmas. He calls me selfish and accuses me of trying to ruin their family tradition when I tell him this needs to end. I do not appreciate my husband taking off on me for four hours every Christmas morning. I want us to start our own traditions. Am I wrong? -- WANTS OUR OWN TRADITIONS

DEAR WANTS: Be thankful you have never been invited to your MIL's home because from your description, the experience wouldn't be pleasant.

Since you and your husband are starting a family now, I see nothing wrong with wanting to start some traditions of your own. However, it doesn't have to be an either/or situation. A way to do that without causing WWIII would be to suggest alternating the Christmas mornings he spends at his parents' house, or schedule your gift exchange for a time when your husband can be with you. Once the baby arrives, holiday plans are bound to change.

DEAR ABBY: I recently got my husband back in touch with "Scott," his best friend from adolescence and college. My husband's ex had kept them apart, so this rekindling is extra special and appreciated. I don't want to do anything that would jeopardize it. But Scott's wife makes me very uncomfortable.

She is quiet, reserved, but very manipulative. Neither she nor her husband are drinkers, but she insists on bringing a gift of some form of alcohol every time we see them, which is about once a month.

Abby, I am a recovering alcoholic. I have worked hard for my 11 years of sobriety, and continue to work hard at it every day. Firm, but polite requests I have made to her have fallen upon deaf ears. Speaking to Scott hasn't helped either, because he doesn't stand up to her. My husband also hasn't been able to get through.

He and Scott tell me to accept the gift and throw it away, or give it to another friend. But with addiction, it isn't that easy. I have resorted to inventing excuses not to see them, but I don't like feeling this way.

I believe she gives gifts because it makes her feel good, but at what point does my extreme discomfort trump her happiness? What can I do to get her to understand without ruining this relationship? -- IN A DELICATE SITUATION

DEAR DELICATE: Have you told Scott's wife that you are a recovering alcoholic? If you have, and she persists in gifting you with liquor when they come over, she is attempting to challenge your recovery. (Could her behavior be the reason your husband's former wife kept them apart?)

Your husband's rekindled friendship with Scott would not be ruined if he sees him on a one-to-one basis rather than the four of you socializing as couples. And if the clueless wife hands you another bottle of booze, that's what you should insist upon.

DEAR ABBY: I have been talking to someone I know is a genuine person, someone who has all the qualities I would want in a lifelong partner. However, I am still in love with my ex.

My ex has moved on but still contacts me, and we do deeply care about each other. I'm afraid if I decide to move forward, I'll always second-guess whether or not I did it for the right reasons. I'm afraid that because of my feelings for my ex, I won't be able to open up to anyone. I also know we would have many issues to resolve if we ever decided to give it another chance.

I guess I'm afraid to let go and afraid to move forward. What should I do? -- EQUALLY TORN IN THE WEST

DEAR EQUALLY TORN: Move forward as your ex has. And while you are at it, put more distance between the two of you. Whether the person you are talking to -- who seems to look good on paper -- is someone you'll wind up with is anybody's guess. So consider taking a break from romance for a while until you get your head straight. You're not there yet, but with time you will be.

DEAR ABBY: Child abuse is epidemic in the United States. It occurs at every socioeconomic level, across ethnic and cultural levels, within all religions and at all levels of education. Every year, more than 3 million reports of child abuse are made in the U.S. Without intervention, about 30 percent of those abused and neglected children will later abuse their own children.

With the proper skills, all parents can raise happy, healthy children. Treatment is necessary, but our communities also need to do a better job at prevention.

Please ask your readers to learn about programs and activities in their communities that support parents and promote healthy families.  JOHN E. THORESEN, DIRECTOR, BARBARA SINATRA CHILDRENS CENTER, RANCHO MIRAGE, CALIF.

DEAR MR. THORESEN: Thank you for your letter. Readers, the first step to curbing child abuse is recognizing it. These are the 10 most common indicators:

1. UNEXPLAINED INJURIES: Visible signs may include burns or bruises in the shape of objects. There may be unconvincing explanations for a childs injuries.

2. CHANGES IN BEHAVIOR: Abused children often appear scared, anxious, depressed, withdrawn or more aggressive.

3. RETURNING TO EARLIER BEHAVIOR: Abused children may display behaviors shown when they were younger, such as thumb-sucking, bed-wetting, fear of the dark or strangers. For some, loss of basic language or memory problems may occur.

4. FEAR OF GOING HOME: Abused children may express fear or anxiety about leaving school or going places with the abuser.

5. CHANGES IN EATING: The stress, fear and anxiety lead to changes in a childs eating behaviors, which may result in weight gain or weight loss.

6. CHANGES IN SLEEP HABITS: The child may have frequent nightmares or have difficulty falling asleep, and appear tired or fatigued.

7. CHANGES IN SCHOOL PERFORMANCE OR ATTENDANCE: Children may demonstrate difficulty concentrating in school or experience excessive absences, sometimes because of adults trying to hide the childrens injuries from authorities.

8. LACK OF PERSONAL CARE OR HYGIENE: The child may appear unkempt, be consistently dirty and have severe body odor, or lack sufficient clothing for the weather.

9. RISK-TAKING BEHAVIORS: The child may engage in high-risk activities such as using drugs or alcohol, or carrying a weapon.

10. INAPPROPRIATE SEXUAL BEHAVIOR: A sexually abused child may exhibit overly sexualized behavior or use explicit sexual language. We can all support children and parents to reduce the stress that often leads to abuse and neglect. Be a friend to a parent or child you know. Volunteer your time or donate to programs that support child abuse treatment and prevention as well as those that build healthy families. Trust your instincts. Suspected abuse is enough of a reason to contact authorities.

DEAR ABBY: Im a 43-yearold woman who has been in a relationship with a man I dated many years ago, Charles. When we reconnected three years ago, I had a dog, Frosty. One year into the relationship, Charles asked me to get rid of Frosty because he thinks dogs are unsanitary. I loved Frosty and kept him, but it caused all kinds of problems with my boyfriend.

When Charles and I moved in together three months ago, he insisted I get rid of Frosty and I caved. I miss my little friend so much it hurts. Memories of him are everywhere. I am able to get him back, but is it crazy that I would jeopardize my relationship because I want to keep my dog?  IN THE DOGHOUSE

DEAR IN THE DOGHOUSE: I dont think its crazy, and Im sure my animal-loving readers  who number in the millions  would agree with me. People bond with their pets to such an extent that in the event of a natural disaster, some of them refuse to be separated from their companions.

That Charles would insist you get rid of Frosty shows extreme insensitivity for your feelings, in addition to disregard for your beloved pet in whom you had a significant emotional investment. Could Charles be jealous of the affection you have shown Frosty? Not knowing him, I cant guess. But if you are forced to choose between the two of them, you should seriously consider choosing the dog.

DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend and I have been dating for two years. We live together, and his child from another woman lives with us. I love my boyfriend and his child, but one thing prevents me from imagining us being married: He has his childs mothers name tattooed on his body.

The tattoo bothers me for many reasons, and Id like him to have it covered up if we ever do marry. He says he doesnt want to get rid of it. When the topic comes up, we argue. Am I unreasonable for wanting him to get rid of the tattoo? If that woman really is in his past, why does he need a constant reminder of her on his body?  IN A STINK OVER INK

DEAR IN A STINK: Youre asking the wrong person. Only your boyfriend can answer that. He may not want to go to the expense, or to experience the pain of having more artwork done. Or he may not like the idea that you are telling him what to do.

However, if he has been living with you for two years, I doubt its because hes still carrying a torch for someone else. If you love him and the two of you want to get married, my advice is to accept him warts, artwork and all, because regardless of any romance in his past, YOU have habeas corpus. (Thats Latin for you have the body.)

DEAR ABBY: I consider myself a social person and enjoy talking to friends on the phone. My problem is, when I talk to one of them, she will never let me get off the phone. Sometimes well talk for several hours, but eventually I have other obligations and have to go. When I tell her that, she often ignores me and keeps right on talking.

I dont want to be rude, but sometimes I have to say goodbye four and five times before she finally acknowledges that I must end the call. It irritates me. I like talking to her, but I cant go on and on forever. How can I make her let me off the phone without hanging up on her or upsetting her?  MR. NICE GUY

DEAR MR. NICE GUY: The person youre describing obviously has less going on in her life than you do. She may also be a compulsive talker.

The next time you talk to her, make the conversation face-toface and tell her that as much as you like her, you dont have the amount of time to spend on the phone that she does. Explain that when you tell her you must end the conversation, if she doesnt stop talking within five minutes, you will have to hang up. And then do it.

Will she like it? No. But the alternative is that she will continue to take advantage of you  which she has been doing because you have allowed it.

DEAR ABBY: My husband has a male co-worker, Bo, who comes to our house occasionally. We have two bathrooms, one of which is in our bedroom. The other is the guest bathroom. When Bo needs to use the restroom, he goes into our bedroom and uses ours. He never asks; he just goes in, even after I have pointed out the guest bathroom. It creeps me out. I feel like hes invading my personal space, and I think its rude. What can I do, since pointing out the guest bathroom hasnt worked? Bo is intimidating. He thinks he can do whatever he wants. Please tell me what I can do.  CREEPED OUT IN GREENVILLE

DEAR CREEPED OUT: I agree your husbands coworkers behavior is creepy. If you have medications in your bathroom, you should check to be sure he isnt helping himself to some of them when he visits. Because you cant seem to convey the message to Bo the Boor, before his next visit, ask your husband to tell him that guests are supposed to use the guest bathroom. And if that doesnt discourage him, install a lock on your bedroom door.

DEAR ABBY: My 21-year-old daughter, Alex, and her 6-year-old moved into an apartment with her 18-year-old boyfriend. We had a tough time accepting this, but I make do because I love Alex and want to be part of her life. My boyfriend of eight years, Niles, cant accept my daughters new boyfriend. We were invited over for dinner and Niles refused to go. How do I handle this? I feel all future events will be strained and Ill be forced to choose between my daughter and Niles. Please advise.  SAD MOTHER IN NEW JERSEY

DEAR SAD MOTHER: Tell Niles that if you must choose between him and your daughter, you will choose your daughter. Her romance may  or may not  last forever, but your relationship with her will. There is nothing to be gained by punishing her and alienating her young man. If Niles has a problem with that, do not let him make it your problem, too. Continue your relationship with your daughter and see Niles separately.

DEAR ABBY: Today is my 50th birthday. Im a person with a few close friends, but Im not widely social. The members of my book club knew it was my birthday when we met a few days ago. I had mentioned it before our meeting. Nothing was said when we met.

My best friend is going on vacation and hasnt remembered. My husband asked me what plans I had made for us to do today. My sister, bless her, has been wonderful and feels responsible to try to make this day special for me. Is it really my job to plan a celebration and remind everyone Im close to? I have talked enough about how important this particular birthday is to me. Im hurt that no one feels Im worth the effort. Am I making too big a deal out of this? VEXED IN VERMONT

DEAR VEXED: I think so. My dear mother used to say, If you want something done right, do it yourself! Thats good advice when those around you are too preoccupied to be as nurturing as you would like them to be.

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
DEAR HARRIETTE: I have been working as a freelance writer for most of my life. I have been able to make a decent living for myself, but I don't have much extra. I had a heart attack a few years ago and have had various other health concerns. As a result, I had to figure out how to get proper health insurance and other support.

So, now I'm looking to retire. I just can't work at the pace I once did anymore. I feel like I will be able to retire if I stay lean in my spending. I guess I'm a little nervous about how my friends will look at me. I am getting some government assistance and hopefully will soon receive Social Security. I'm 65 years old, so I qualify for everything I will be getting, but I worry that my friends will think I am trying to take from the government even though I have paid in with all my taxes and everything for my whole life. How can I reconcile these feelings? -- Ready to Retire, New York City

DEAR READY TO RETIRE: Your true friends should be happy for you that you were able to overcome your health concerns and be able to retire with enough money to take care of yourself. You should make a mental note about anybody else with sharp opinions about your circumstances. They should not be in your inner circle and have no need to know details about your retirement. Surround yourself with people who are compassionate and practical.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I have found myself spending time traveling whenever I get time off instead of going home to see my family. I feel guilty about this, but I am young and won't have these funds and freedom when I have a family. I haven't seen my parents in over a year, due to jetting off whenever I can. We FaceTime, but my mom has asked me to come home for Christmas this year. Should I cancel my trip (it's been paid for) to surprise my mom? I'm on the fence because I could see her in January. -- Travel Bug, Cincinnati

DEAR TRAVEL BUG: What you need to do is strike a balance between your world exploration and your connection to family. The tricky part is that when you are ready to settle down, your parents may not be around to share that with you. Also, you may have less time to visit your parents when you have children.

For now, get a feel for how your parents are doing. If you think they are healthy, you can potentially tell them of your trip and promise to come home in January. They will surely be happy to see you whenever you can come. But make sure that your January trip is long enough to connect with them in a meaningful way. Pledge to add more trips home to your schedule for next year. That would be a perfect New Year's resolution!

DEAR HARRIETTE: I am starting college in the fall, and I am very nervous about it. I have lived in one place for my entire life and have never really experienced this type of change before. All of my friends have found roommates, but I have barely spoken to anyone going to my school next year. I really dont want a random roommate because I would feel more comfortable knowing who I am going to live with. I come off as a shy person, and it is hard for me to open up to new people. I am scared that this transition will be extremely difficult. Do you have any advice for me to feel better about startingthis new chapter in my life?  Shy and Scared, Secaucus, N.J.

DEAR SHY AND SCARED: Contact your college immediately and find out how it goes about assigning roommates. You will end up with a random roommate if you take no action. That doesnt have to be bad, though. You could be lucky and get the perfect match. To avoid randomness, ask your guidance counselor to help you. Open up about who you are. Reveal that it can take some time for you to get to know people. Also ask for suggestions for clubs or groups that share your interests. Joining a small affinity group will make it easier for you to get to know people.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My school reunion is coming up. Its a big year for us, and I am nervous to go back. I used to go to reunions when I first graduated, but I havent gone for about 15 years. I also used to be cute. I was tall and thin and had a great figure. I was one of the so-called popular girls, and I know I thought I was all that. Fast forward to now, and I am divorced twice, seriously overweight and fairly broke. I lost my job about six months ago and havent had steady work since. Talk about eating humble pie! I am definitely not on top of my game. People might not even recognize me if I went back. I feel like I shouldnt go since Im not in the best place. But then I wonder if thats crazy. Maybe they would welcome me as I am. Chances are some of them are having their fair share of problems, too. I dont have time to lose weight or rewrite my story. Should I go anyway?  Afraid of Reunion, Shreveport, La.

DEAR AFRAID OF REUNION: I can guarantee you that you are not the only one who is feeling skittish about attending your class reunion. While there will likely be some who are sitting on top of the world, there will be plenty of others who are simply living their lives and doing the best they can  facing ups and downs like everybody else. Whether good or bad, most Americans gain weight over time, so you will probably see quite a few people who are overweight. My point is that you should go. Do your best to be in the moment. Do not judge yourself or others as you greet one another. Say your name as you see people, not so much because they may not recognize you, but because they may not remember your name. Be humble and kind. Choose to enjoy yourself. You may find that not being the most popular girl will allow you to notice people who could be great connections moving forward.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I always give my children money when they go to hang out with other children for play dates. I tell them to offer to pay for their meals or whatever else costs money when they are out with these children and their families. And they always come home with all of their money. They say that the parents never accept it. My problem with this is if I take a few friends with my kids to hang out, I cant afford to pay for all of them. I need them to help pay for it, but now I dont know how to bring it up. How can I entertain these kids without going broke?  Play Date, Brooklyn, N.Y.

DEAR PLAY DATE: Plan activities that you can afford. This can include at-home fun, or going to the park with a lunch that you pack for them. You can also tell parents in advance if you are planning a special event that has a cost, and be honest: Tell them that you need them to pitch in for a particular amount.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I went to visit my mother a week ago, and I was shocked to see how much medication she is taking. I know she has some ailments, but I definitely think she is being overmedicated. I bet she had about 15 pills in her daily pill case. I watched her counting them all out and putting them in a weekly container. She seemed organized about it, but I cant imagine that this is good for her body. I asked her about all the pills, and he got defensive. I wasnt trying to upset her, but I am concerned. Do you think I should call her doctor to review her medicines? I live several hours away, so I am not there to monitor or support her, and no other family is, either. How can I help?  Advocating From a Distance, Jackson, Miss.

DEAR ADVOCATING FROM A DISTANCE: First, you should know that many people, particularly older ones, do take a lot of medication. It is fairly common, depending upon what their ailments might be. That does not mean that you should take your mothers medications lightly. It is wise for you to check in with her and with her doctor regularly to ensure that she is being properly medicated and monitored. The best-case scenario would be for you to accompany your mother on her next doctors appointment. Ask her if you can go with her, and schedule yourself so that you can be in town that day. Ask the doctor all of the questions that you have. You may want to write them down in advance so that you dont forget anything. Also, ask if you can stay in touch to help support your mothers progress. Once you have established a rapport with the doctor and it is clear that you are her advocate, you will have a better chance of having the doctor respond to your inquiries.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My daughter, who recently turned 21, sent me a two-word text message: Im pregnant. She has been dating a young man for less than a year, and Im disappointed by this outcome. I do not know if I should lecture her on how she should live her life. I need some words of encouragement before I say something terrible about her pregnancy. Any suggestions?  Incredulous, Bay City, Mich.

DEAR INCREDULOUS: I bet it took a lot of courage for your daughter to write you that two-word text. Chances are she is nervous, afraid, worried and possibly happy too. Rather than scold her, you need to talk to her, preferably in person. If you havent already, start by responding to her text and asking her how she is doing. The best thing you can do right now is to establish a clear line of communication with your daughter so that she feels at ease discussing with you how she is feeling, where her head is around this pregnancy and what the next steps are going to be. You can help her by being a sounding board for all that she is thinking and feeling. Ask her about her vision of her future and how a child can or cannot fit into it. Find out if the father intends to be an integral part of the family should she/they decide to keep the child. Talk about all options, from getting married and having the baby, not getting married and having the baby, being a single mom without his support, giving the baby up for adoption, to having an abortion. As difficult as these conversations may be, they are important so that your daughter can be crystal clear about her choices. If she intends to keep the baby, talk about prenatal care, insurance, work, money, her future, the babys future. Also, establish what you believe you will and will not do as it relates to caring for this child. Many grandmothers like you end up being the principal caregivers when their children have children young. Decide what you are willing to do, and make that clear up front.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My mother recently came to visit me at college and took my boyfriend and me out to dinner. After we finished eating, we sat across the table from my mother and had a post-dinner conversation. I put my arm around his neck and began playing with his ear. I did not think anything of it, but my mother stared from across the table shocked. After we dropped off my boyfriend, my mother told me that ear fondling is not appropriate in public. I was surprised because I didnt think it was a big deal. I like public displays of affection, and I do not see why that little gesture would make people around us uncomfortable.  PDAs, Laredo, Tex.

DEAR PDAS: The person who was uncomfortable was your mother, likely because that little gesture suggests intimacy, something that may be difficult for your mother to accept is part of your life. Out of respect for your mother, refrain from touching your boyfriend in front of her. In general, read the room where you are and the people around you to determine what public displays of affection will be welcome and act accordingly.

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
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President-elect Donald Trump is still making it up as he goes along, claiming without evidence in a tweet that he would have won the popular vote if "millions" had not voted illegally. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla responds to the "absurd" claim: "His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a president-elect." But still, Trump got the headlines. He's trailing by 2+ million votes. NYT If Trump cuts off cities that don't cooperate with deportations, Los Angeles could lose as much as $500 million of its $9 billion budget. "Taking away funding because our law enforcement will not act as federal agents would not only be irresponsible but immoral, Mayor Eric Garcetti said. It would be an unprecedented overreach of federal executive power to take even more of our taxes away. NYT How one web entrepreneur in suburban LA created fake pro-Trump news for profit: Made-up stories like buying pot with food stamps and the murder of an FBI agent linked to Clinton emails were gold to the gullibles: "We've tried to do similar things to liberals. It just has never worked...You'll get debunked within the first two comments." NPR Authorities keep razing Ceola Waddell Jr.'s homeless settlement under the 110 freeway and he keeps rebuilding. LAT Solid deep global reporting by the New York Times into Trump's many business entanglements and conflicts of interest around the world. The lead byline is former LA Times foreign correspondent Richard C. Paddock in Manila... Also NYT: In Trump, Breitbart's Steve Bannon found his vessel into real power... The NYT says it has netted 70,000 new subscribers since the election... Journalist Masha Gessen has spent years reporting on Vladimir Putins rule in Russia: U.S. journalists need to begin imagining the unimaginable ...Also: Maneuvering a new reality for US journalism in CJR ... Patrick Soon-Shiong, the wealthiest person in Los Angeles, spent the week before Thanksgiving buying up more shares of Tronc stock . He's now at 15.2 percent of the LA Times parent company... Participant Media is shuttering TakePart ... Los Angeles Magazine is hosting a Tuesday press conference with mayoral spouse Amy Wakeland and philanthropist Austin Beutner to promote a new giving initiative.Here's the full transcript of Donald Trump's meeting at the New York Times last week.In a note to readers and supporters about the future, Reveal/Center for Investigative Reporting editor in chief Amy Pyle harkens back to covering the 1994 Northridge earthquake for the LA Times in the San Fernando Valley: "From this day on, nothing will be the same."Three top Trump surrogates, led by spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway on Sunday's politics shows, disparaged Mitt Romney as a possible Secretary of State  and the weird part is it's unclear if they were speaking for the boss or trying to sway him.... Former Obama advisor David Axelrod tweeted "I have never, EVER, seen any aide to a POTUS or PEOTUS publicly try and box the boss in like this. Extraordinary."... Right-wing pundits Laura Ingraham and Monica Crowley are in the conversation for White House press secretary... Orange County congressman Dana Rohrabacher, a former LA reporter, is Putin's favorite congressman and in good graces with Trump, apparently... How Nancy Pelosi's daughter and Dianne Feinstein's granddaughter became part of the electoral college. LAT Mayor Eric Garcetti said that Trump voiced support for LA's 2024 Olympics bid in a phone call last week... City Council President Herb Wesson unveiled a May 2017 ballot measure that would overhaul LAPD Board of Rights panels, a reform sought by the police union. LAT Joe Morgenstern, the Wall Street Journal and KCRW film critic, apologized by tweet for mistaking Dev Patel's past work for Kal Penn's in a review of "Lion."... Of the 4 reporters with bylines on the Fidel Castro obituaries in the NYT, LAT and WaPo, only one still works at the paper where it was published. One is dead. The LA Times piece is by Carol J. Williams, who left last year. The foreign editor called her then "possibly one of the most versatile foreign correspondents I have ever known." Hat tip: Amy Fiscus of the LA Times Washington bureau... A profile of Steve Wasserman (above) in the San Francisco Chronicle says the new head of Heyday Books is "a man of many, many words." He is former books editor of the LA Times... The LA judge who knocked down a lady dog-walker and the homicide detective who cheated to help him.Ann Louise Bardach revisited her 1994 Vanity Fair interview with Fidel Castro after his death for The Guardian ... Tim Rutten , the former LA Times and Daily News columnist, is blogging about Trump including a chiding of religious leaders and this: With Trump the worst is yet to come ... Bryan Chan, an editor on the online photo desk at the LA Times, is leaving after 19 years and moving to the county Hall of Administration as chief photographer for the Board of Supervisors. .. The NBCLA.com paid internship program is accepting applications ... Thursday is the deadline to apply for USC Annenberg's Center for Health Journalism $1,000 California Fellowship stipend ... Tap-O-Ween is an original all-new tap dancing show presented by students, guests and dance colleagues of LA Times education reporter Howard Blume Megyn Kelly's "Settle for More" opens as #1 bestseller in the hardcover nonfiction section of SoCal independent bookstores. "The Whistler" by John Grisham is #1 fiction... Here are the NYT's 100 notable books of 2016 ... Some of the contributors to "Weird Scenes Inside the Goldmine: Los Angeles in the 1970s" will be at Chevalier Books on Larchmont on Thursday at 7 p.m. ... Jennifer Clement, President of PEN International, will be in conversation with KPCC's Adolfo Guzman-Lopez Friday at 6 p.m. at the LA Times.Lewis MacAdams stepped down as head of Friends of the LA River. LAT



An Orange County Republican Party official and Trump campaign volunteer, Mary Young, posted on Facebook (in all caps, of course) that "I do not want any type of Muslims' in this country, period." OC Register

Air pollution hot spot in Paramount spurs calls for action on metal factory emissions. LAT

What went wrong at Sophia Amaoruso's Nasty Gal, the DTLA fashion company that is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy? Business of Fashion

Writer Marc Myers' love for the Capitol Records tower. JazzWax

The most spectacular spots for viewing the LA skyline. Los Angeles Magazine

Santa's Village near Lake Arrowhead reopens on Friday after 18 years. KPCC

Looking back 38 years to the murders of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and elected supervisor Harvey Milk by former supervisor Dan White. NPR

The Rams lost in New Orleans 49-21 and are now 4-7 in their first season back in Los Angeles.



Selected tweets

Time for Kellyanne to take away the Twitter account again.  David Ulin (@davidulin) November 28, 2016

Trump is not using Twitter to distract you from his agenda. Bannon & co. are using Trump to distract you from theirs.  Brooklyn Spoke (@BrooklynSpoke) November 27, 2016

Government of the billionaire, by the billionaire and for the billionaire shall not perish from this earth https://t.co/qOQkVL9WCN  Steven Strauss (@Steven_Strauss) November 23, 2016

Florence Henderson was a dear friend for so very many years & in my <3 forever. Love & hugs to her family. I'll miss u dearly #RIPFlorence  Maureen McCormick (@MoMcCormick7) November 25, 2016
PRESS RELEASE

Kiev Regime Provocation over Crimea

Nov. 26, 2016 (EIRNS)The Nazi-backed regime in Kiev launched a very dangerous provocation against Russia yesterday, in the form of an announcement that it will be testing missiles in the airspace of Crimea and the Black Sea.

"In violation of all international agreements Ukraine has made a unilateral decision to conduct missile launches in Russias sovereign airspace in the Simferopol flight information region,"

Rosaviatsiya, Russias aviation agency told TASS. The Kiev regime announced their plans through the issuance of NOTAMs (notices to airmen), announcing the closure of certain airspace in the region for missile launches on Dec. 1 and 2.

"The issue of these NOTAMs has not been agreed with the Russian authorities concerned or the Russian provider of air navigation services, although the routes of both civilian and government aircraft lie through these zones,"

Rosaviatsiya said. Therefore, Russia will ban flights over Crimea, unless Ukraine cancels its decision to hold missile firing drills over the Black Sea peninsula.

The Kiev regime has had little to say about its plans for Dec. 1 and 2 beyond the NOTAMs other than to dimiss Russian complaints.

"Ukraine carries out the missile tests within the framework of all the international obligations and treaties. Thats why we ask Russia not to hinder the tests by its hysterics and provocations,"

said Oleksander Turchinov, Ukraines National Security and Defense Council Secretary.

Sergei Zheleznyak, a member of Russias State Duma Committee for International Affairs told reporters, yesterday, that the Kiev regimes actions are not only "irresponsible and unreasonable" but also the cause of great concern.

"The Ukrainian authorities seek to use every opportunity to spoil the life of the Crimeans, in this regard their activities should be assessed not only by diplomats and military officers but by psychologists as well,"

Zheleznyak said.

The region encompassing southern Ukraine, the Crimean Peninsula, the Black Sea and the adjacent Russian region is a major transit corridor for commercial aircraft flying between Europe and Asia. It was on one of those routes that Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 was flying from Amsterdam en route to Moscow and Kuala Lumpur, when it was shot down in July 2014.
PRESS RELEASE

Helga Zepp-LaRouche Issues Call to Action

Nov. 26, 2016 (EIRNA)Heinrich Heine's famous concern comes to mind: When I think of Germany in the night... Indeed, where is Germany headed, or rather, where is it drifting? The fact that Angela Merkel is going to run for a fourth term is not reassuring. Contrary to the impression she is attempting to create, four more years of a Merkel government are no promise of stability, but the opposite."

Thus begins an appeal issued by the chair of the Schiller Institute, Helga Zepp-LaRouche, on Nov. 26, asking the German population to help her bring the country into the "new paradigm."

Both the Brexit in the United Kingdom and the U.S. election of Donald Trump, she notes, are expressions of the rejection of the entire paradigm of neo-liberal "globalization," "which is just a synonym for the Anglo-American empire. That globalization had led to the impoverishment of growing sections of the population to the benefit of the financial oligarchy, in all countries that have been subjected to the rules of neo-liberal monetarism. That globalization, i.e., the City of London and Wall Streets claim to unipolar supremacy over the world, is responsible for a whole series of wars based on lies, from Afghanistan to Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen, which caused the refugee catastrophe. Globalization also means color revolutions, a policy of regime change against democratically elected governments, such as in Ukraine; it means the eastward expansion and encirclement policy of NATO and the European Union, and it likely would have brought us sooner rather than later into a global confrontation with Russia and China under a Hillary Clinton administration.

"Chancellor Merkel and the shocked Ursula von der Leyen represent this losing paradigm, and the idea of four more yearswith no change in policy and with absolutely no vision for the futuredoes not mean stability, but escalating political divisiveness in Germany and the disintegration of an EU in rebellion. With the next financial crisis which is bound to come, the Merkel-SchAuble duo is sure to foist the costs on the citizens once again, and risk chaos by so doing. The fragility of the abominable refugee deal with Turkeys Erdogan and various governments in Africa promises that it will only be a matter of time before this crisis explodes again. "Merkel represents this paradigm, which is irreversibly sinking. Just like the 304 members of the European Parliament who just voted up a resolution accusing Russia of conducting massive anti-European propaganda, she supports an EU and NATO policy which does exactly what they accuse Russia of doing. We must put an end once and for all to the logic of the Cold War."

The next U.S. President has already said he wants to improve relations with Russia and China, and he might be brought to cooperate with Chinas Silk Road policy, which Zepp-LaRouche goes on to outline. This is the policy she and her husband have been fighting for for over 25 years, and that she asks for Germans to support.

"To create a real perspective and alternatives for Germany, we dont need an AfD [Alternative for Germany] which has no solutions to offer, but together with me, you can put cooperation with the U.S., Russia and China in building the New Silk Road on the agenda. It is only through such cooperation that we can develop the Middle East and Africa with a New Silk Road-Marshall Plan, and thus solve the refugee crisis humanely. That is moreover what Gen. Michael Flynn, Trumps new National Security Advisor, already called for in April 2015."

This is the policy for peace Germany should commit to, while contributing to the needed dialogue of cultures, on the highest level, that must accompany the new world economic order.

Helga Zepp-LaRouche calls on all citizens to fight with her in ensuring that this extraordinary opportunity is seized in and for Germany.
Dictionary.com has selected xenophobia as the 2016 word of the year, citing the anti-immigrant rhetoric of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and the United Kingdoms Brexit vote to leave the European Union as reasons for its choice.

In a news release, the online dictionary said that searches for the word, which it defines as fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures, or strangers, spiked after the Brexit vote and after a speech in which President Obama used the term to describe Trumps positions on immigration.

Xenophobia and other words tied to global news and political rhetoric reflected the worldwide interest in the unfortunate rise of fear of otherness in 2016, making it the clear choice for word of the year, explained Dictionary.com Chief Executive Liz McMillan. While we can never know the exact reasons why xenophobia trended in our look-ups this year, this reflects a desire in our users to understand the significant discourse surrounding global events.

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The company also cited other global events as reasons for its selection, including the rise of the so-called alt-right, the Syrian refugee crisis and the decision by some French cities to ban burkinis, full-body swimsuits worn by some Muslim women.

This year in the United States we saw the rise of the alt-right, white nationalism, and other ideologies that promote hate, especially directed toward Muslims, Latinos, Jews, trans and queer communities, black America, and other nondominant groups, the company noted in a blog post. On November 9, the day after the U.S. presidential election, the term xenophobia spiked in lookups on Dictionary.com, and, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, there has been an increase in hate-based incidents since election day.

The word xenophobia, which first appeared in English in the late 19th century, was also among the most searched-for words in the Merriam-Webster online dictionary after the U.S. election, along with bigot, fascism, racism and misogyny.

Earlier this month, Oxford Dictionaries selected another word with political overtones, post-truth, as its word of the year. The publisher defines the adjective as relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief.

Post-truth beat out other words related to current events, such as Brexiteer, alt-right and woke, for the honor.

Robert Reich, the former secretary of Labor and a vocal critic of Trump, commended Dictionary.com for its choice.

Dictionary.com is right to make xenophobia the word of the year, but it is also one of the biggest threats we face, Reich said. It is not a word to be celebrated. It is a sentiment to be fought.
The sorcery behind Harry Potter and the Cursed Child  the eighth story in the J.K. Rowling series, this one written as a stage play  is of vintage pedigree.

The epic tale of two boys making their way across the terrifying bridge between youth and maturity delivers the old-fashioned delights of traditional fable in the rapturously inventive terms of timeless theater.

The production, already a blockbuster since opening here at the Palace Theatre in July, is divided into two parts. I joined the international tourist hordes making the West End pilgrimage on a day when it was possible to experience both parts back to back, a full immersion in the world of Rowlings inexhaustible imagination.

The novels, of course, have been successfully adapted to the screen, but one of the fears I had about this theatrical extension of the Potter franchise is that it was going to attempt to reproduce on stage the movie magic. No matter how limitless the production budget, such an approach would have only thrown into relief the theaters technological inferiority.

How wise then of Rowling to join forces with a director (John Tiffany) and a choreographer (Steven Hoggett) who have patented an approach to theatrical storytelling that prioritizes movement in a scenic tapestry that respects words but isnt bullied by them. As demonstrated in Tiffany and Hoggetts preternaturally fluid staging of the Tony-winning musical Once and their mesmerizing handling of Gregory Burkes Black Watch, bodies in motion have a poetry all their own.

Hermione Granger (Noma Dumezweni), Ron Weasley (Paul Thornley) and Harry Potter (Jamie Parker). (Manuel Harlan) (Manuel Harlan)

The story of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, credited to Rowling, Tiffany and Jack Thorne (who is the author of the dramatic script), picks up the Harry Potter tale 19 years after the last book. The protagonist isnt Harry, now a 37-year-old married man with three children and a high-level position at the Ministry of Magic, but Harrys middle child, Albus (Sam Clemmett), who as the play begins is heading off to Hogwarts, the prestigious academy for magic, and feeling intimated by the long shadow cast by his most famous wizard father.

Albus befriends Scorpius (Anthony Boyle), another socially anxious new student carrying parental baggage. Scorpius is the son of Harrys longstanding enemy, Draco Malfoy (James Howard filling in for Alex Price), though the rumor is that hes really the son of the evil and presumed dead Lord Voldemort. Rose (Cherrelle Skeete), daughter of Hermione Granger (Noma Dumezweni) and Ron Weasley (Paul Thornley), wants nothing to do with Scorpius, but Albus is impressed with Scorpius bookish mind, appreciates the candy hes always happy to share and feels solidarity with a fellow outsider.

For nearly five hours of stage time, Albus and Scorpius embark on one perilous adventure after the next. Thornes script depends on secrecy and surprise, so Im not at liberty to disclose the twists and turns of a plot that is admittedly knotty to a novelistic fault. But I can reveal that much of the action depends on a Time-Turner, an outlawed magical device that allows the two young men to travel back to the past for short intervals.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child contemplates an age-old question: If you could go back in time, what would you change? Albus is compelled to erase a blot in his fathers legacy, but in doing so he reorders so much else that he is forced to risk his life and Scorpius to undo the damage caused by their tampering.

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Being a relative neophyte in the Harry Potter world who wouldnt know Goblet of Fire from Order of the Phoenix, I no doubt missed many of the subtleties that young scholars of the Rowling series found infinitely meaningful. After rereading the script, Im still not entirely sure what exactly occurs each time Albus and Scorpius venture back to Harry Potters school days. Nor could I provide a precise inventory of the fallout of the boys historical meddling.

But the emotional clarity of the tale saves the day. Rowling and company lucidly lay out the inner compulsions driving the story  Albus need to redeem himself in his fathers eyes by outshining him; Scorpius wish for his natural goodness to earn him what the rumors of his parentage have deprived him of for too long, a genuine friend.

In keeping with the psychological basis of classic fables, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child reveals that the trials that form our characters are survivable, even if the grief they inevitably bring is not something that can be eradicated with a stroke of the wand.

The philosophical dimension of the work is as rich as its emotional substance. Tolstoy once contended that the most profound truths in literature require the simplicity of folk tales. Rowling has arguably wielded this power more successfully than any other contemporary author, and this new chapter in the Harry Potter cycle asks us to meditate on the relationship between fate and free will, the nature of evil and the difficulty of recognizing it by outward appearance and the way in which our attempts at outrunning fearful prophecy can often hasten its fulfillment.

At the heart of the work is the relationship between fathers and sons. What passes between them is shown to have enormous influence on whether society chooses justice or power as its organizing ideal. I came to London for Shakespeare and, much to my surprise, found quite a bit of his political insight in Harry Potter.

Clemmetts Albus, Parkers Harry and Boyles Scorpius never let us lose sight of the personal stakes of these public matters. The sensitivity of these performances is all the more remarkable considering the level of occult tumult around them.

Women naturally play an equally important part in the Harry Potter world. Hermione, now the Minister of Magic who everyone looks to for governing wisdom, is played with tremendous intelligence and grace by Dumezweni, whose majestic voice will forever be for me the sound of the adult character. Ginny Potter (Poppy Miller), Albus mother, plays a guiding role here, always gently nudging the men in her life to confront the wounds they would rather deny. Much as I would like to tell you about Esther Smiths Delphi Diggory, the most I can safely say is that the bond between fathers and daughters turns out to be as consequential as any other in this story.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Palace Theatre in London. ( Manuel Harlan ) (Manuel Harlan)

The production is undeniably long and there were moments when I wondered if its tremendous scale wasnt more of a marketing strategy intent on manufacturing a theatrical event than a narrative necessity. But the work moves with an impressive briskness on the spare yet shape-shifting set by Christine Jones appropriately adorned with the kinds of clock faces ubiquitous in train stations like Kings Cross, where the play begins and frequently returns.

So many of the shows special effects are conjured by simple wardrobe tricks (aided by costume designer Katrina Lindsay) and movement choreography, proving that theatrical legerdemain doesnt require fancy hydraulics. Children and adults will no doubt find terrifying the soul-sucking Dementors that swoop in for the kill at the spectacular end of the first part, but quiet courage is the perennial scene-stealer.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child filled me with the confidence that the challenges of our own age can be met and that goodness can band together to overcome evil. Its no surprise, then, at this precarious juncture of history that people from the world over are making the journey to witness this lesson together in the theater. The luminous power of Rowlings storytelling soothes the jangled soul while urgently reminding us that the future ultimately rests in our own hands.

charles.mcnulty@latimes.com

Follow me @charlesmcnulty

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The president-elect and the worlds of art and design. A Cuban artist arrrested. And antiquities and the Italian mafia. Plus, updates on museum expansions and a profile of the fashion mogul opening a Los Angeles museum. With synapses still redolent of turkey and tryptophan, heres the Roundup:

 A series of graphic political posters depicting Fidel Castros revolution, in Cuba and abroad. New York Times

 Dissident Cuban artist Danilo Machado, a graffiti artist known as El Sexto, has once again been arrested in Havana. Artnet

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 Italian mafia groups trading arms for antiquities with Islamic State militants, according to an investigation published by an Italian newspaper. The Art Newspaper

 When President-elect Donald Trump met President Obama in the Oval Office on Nov. 10, a painting of the Statue of Liberty by Norman Rockwell hung behind him. Rockwells granddaughter, Abigail Rockwell, mulls the significance of the work given the political moment. Huffington Post

 Trumps pick for education secretary, Betsy DeVos, has art-world connections. She is a founder of the art contest Michigan ArtPrize. Artnet

 Critic Ben Davis picks through Breitbart to find out what sorts of views Trump adviser Stephen Bannon might have on the art world. There is precious little that is positive here, he writes, and it is all presented in an alt-right fun-house mirror. Artnet

 Plus: Architecture critic Oliver Wainwright looks at the legacy of Trump architecture. The Guardian

 And since were on the subject of Trump and design: A brief examination of the work of interior designer Angelo Donghia, who designed Trumps townhouse in the 80s. Even

 How will art contend with the era of Trump? It might be instructive to look at how the Latin American artists of the 70s created work that was fierce and full of resistance. A good place to start? The exhibition of 1970s Chilean art at Harvard University. Boston Globe

 Also instructive: The trio of exhibitions about the Black Panthers in the Bay Area. Daily Serving

 With a one-vote margin, the proposed Guggenheim Helsinki in Finland inches forward in city board proceedings. But Finnish architect Juhani Pallasmaa, who for several years served as a juror for the Pritzker Prize, says the project is ruthless business presented as a cultural project  and says the plan should be scrapped. Yle Uutiset, the Architects Journal

A file photo shows a model for the winning design for the Guggenheim Helsinki by French architecture firm Moreau Kusunoki. (Heikki Saukkomaa / Lehtikuva via AP )

 The Detroit Institute of Art will be adding more contemporary art to its programming mix. Detroit Free Press

 Architect Norman Foster has been chosen to create an extension for the Prado Museum in Madrid. New York Times

 And the L.A.-based firm Johnston Marklee will be overseeing the redo of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. New York Times

 A profile of Maurice Marciano, who is about to launch a new museum in Los Angeles of his collection at the old Scottish Rite Masonic Temple on Wilshire. Interesting fact: Marciano has held on to some of the artifacts he found inside the temple  including lots of wigs. Wall Street Journal

The former Scottish Rite Temple on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles will become a private art museum. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times )

 Critic Jen Graves has a good piece on moderating Marina Abramovic. The Stranger

 A good long read: The European company that makes sophisticated 3-D facsimiles of famous works of art  including King Tuts tomb. New Yorker

 A recently restored mural by Emigdio Vasquez in Orange, which records the areas Mexican history, is to be included in next years Pacific Standard Time exhibitions. OC Register

 An exhibition at the Depart Foundation in West Hollywood explores the complicated history of Edward Curtis historic portraits of American Indians. LA Weekly

 And last but not least: Coagula Curatorial is holding an astrology seminar for artists in the new year. Hopefully they will be able to tell us what our uncertain future holds. Coagula

Sign up for our weekly Essential Arts & Culture newsletter 

Find me on Twitter @cmonstah.
He has been cited by Rush Limbaugh, quoted in the New York Times, featured at Real Clear Politics and Lucianne.com and interviewed on radio, TV and in social media.





Inducted into the Philadelphia Public Relations Hall of Fame, for many years he served as a Lecturer in Corporate Communication at Penn State University. A former President of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association (PPRA) he has lectured at Rowan University, Temple University, The College of New Jersey and Arcadia University. He has conducted workshops on public relations for thousands of participants throughout the nation and has taught countless others the art of public speaking. He has also advised numerous lawyers, judges, public officials and political candidates.





Cirucci is a prolific writer and his op-ed pieces have appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer, Courier-Post and other publications.



A native of Camden NJ, Cirucci is a former President of the Philadelphia chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators. Cirucci served as Associate Executive Director of the Philadelphia Bar Association for nearly 30 years. He served as Chair of Penn State University's Professional Advisory Board for the Corporate Communication major at Penn State Abington and on the Pennsylvania Bar Association's Judicial Selection Commission.



He received his MA degree from Rowan University and his BA from Villanova University. He has been named a Distinguished Alumnus of Rowan's public relations program and received the E. A. "Wally" Richter Leadership Award, the highest honor from the National Association of Bar Executives' Communications Section. He has also been honored by numerous other local, state and national groups.









Cirucci's passions include politics, the popular culture, books and authors, art, communication, music, theatre, movies, dining and travel. In his hometown of Camden, Cirucci taught fifth grade at the Ulysses Wiggins Elementary School named for the founder of the Camden NAACP. There he was one of the first teachers in the country to teach African-American history to inner city students. He later served as editor of a local weekly newspaper, as Assistant to the Township Manager of Cherry Hill Township and as Associate Director of Communications at the New Jersey State Bar Association.

He's Dan Cirucci, the founder and editor-in chief of the Dan Cirucci Blog, Matt Rooney's sidekick on Save Jersey's videocasts and one of the most widely honored public relations professionals in his field. He's also been a public relations consultant to numerous organizations and individuals and hosted The Advocates on RVN-TV.
A week after Kanye West was reluctantly hospitalized, the rapper reportedly didnt appear ready to head home anytime soon.

Despite rumors that West would check out after the holiday weekend under the care of his personal physician, people with direct knowledge of the situation told TMZ on Monday that West still wasnt stable enough leave Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.

While a West rep had no official update on the rappers status early Monday, insiders clues have been filling in some of the blanks.

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Sources involved with the situation told The Times last week that it had taken two hours to persuade Yeezy to agree to hospitalization  ostensibly for dehydration and sleep deprivation. Since hes been there, sources told TMZ, hes also dealt with depression and paranoia.

Apparently, support from wife Kim Kardashian has been Wests secret weapon for a while now, and her absence from his Saint Pablo Tour while she dealt with the aftermath of a life-threatening armed robbery in early October had made a major difference.

This has been going on for years, a source told People on Monday. In the past when Kanye seemed to struggle, no one took it too seriously. The attitude was more like it was just Kanye being Kanye.

Sans Kardashian, however, he wasnt able to snap back, the source said.

 Days after pledging allegiance to President-elect Donald Trump  and hours after cutting short a concert in Sacramento  Kanye West has reportedly canceled the remaining U.S. dates of his Saint Pablo Tour.

Last week, an insider had explained to People that West was used to leaning on her. Since Kim has had her own issues to deal with, the roles have been reversed. Kanye has had to stay strong to support Kim, and its like he cant handle it anymore.

In the days before his hospitalization, West cut one show short after three songs and a rant, and then canceled his tours remaining dates.

The robbery did a number on him as much as Kim, an insider told Us Weekly. The mere thought that anything could happen to her sent him in a tailspin. He wasnt sleeping and he was having nightmares about it.

Kardashian has reportedly been by Wests side nearly nonstop since she jetted home from New York City a week ago, skipping what was to have been her first public appearance since the robbery. The couple have two children, daughter North and son Saint.

 Two Paris police officials said five armed, masked men, who were still at large, stole a jewelry box containing valuables worth $6.7 million as well as a ring.

As people sent flowers and made calls to her husband, Kardashian was being very careful about not letting him get wound up and making sure he rests and recovers, a source close to West told Us Weekly on Sunday. Shed even been lying by his side and helping to feed him, the source said.

She reportedly spent most of Thanksgiving with West before heading out for dinner at sister Kylie Jenners place, where the rest of the family had gathered for the holiday.

Said the Us Weekly source, Kim wouldnt leave his side except to see the kids.

Follow Christie DZurilla on Twitter @theCDZ.

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Kanye Wests doctor called 911 during breakdown, report says; Kim Kardashian skips public return
Nov. 28, 2016, 12:57 p.m. Paisley Park will mark the anniversary of Princes death with a four-day celebration

Prince, at one of his final shows, at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta on April 14. (Amiee Stubbs / For The Times)

The first anniversary of Princes death will be a big deal at his former home in Minnesota, where friends, musicians and others will come together for four days of programming and music in honor of the artist, Paisley Park Studios announced Monday.

In addition to live music, Celebration 2017, from April 20 to 23, will include panel discussions, guided tours and other presentations focusing on Princes creative contributions.

General admission runs $499 for 20 hours of access; a $999 VIP ticket includes that plus reserved seating, autograph opportunities, meals and more. Tickets went on sale Monday.

Prince was found dead at his Chanhassen, Minn., home on April 21, 2016. He was 57.
Lauren Graham pulls a laptop from her purse.

Its an overcast day in West Hollywood and the actress just back from a jaunt to Berlin to promote the global launch of Netflixs revival of Gilmore Girls is sitting in a conference room at her publicists office when she abruptly reaches into her bag to grab the faux-marble coated gadget. Its a couple of weeks before those long-anticipated final four words of Gilmore Girls will be analyzed ad nauseam so, no, shes not combing through think pieces.

This is what I did every chance I had, she says, opening up the computer and hunching over to illustrate how she managed to write a book while simultaneously reprising her career-defining role as fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore in Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, which die hard fans gobbled up over Thanksgiving weekend.

Its what she did just outside Lukes Diner, in the bounds of Miss Pattys dance school, even while at the Dragonfly Inn. There is hardly a place in Stars Hollow, the fictional setting of Gilmore Girls, that didnt serve as a makeshift writing sanctuary for Graham as she crafted a collection of essays. Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and Everything in Between), out Tuesday, completes the Gilmore-ification of November.

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Every single scene you see, I was also working on the book in between takes, Graham says.

I loved that I had to act that out for you, as if you dont know what a person on a computer looks like, she adds with a laugh.

The 49-year-old author and actress writes with wit about her childhood as a theater-loving kid (who at one point lived on a houseboat in the Virgin Islands), her early years as an actor and finding love in Hollywood (she is dating her former Parenthood co-star Peter Krause.)

And, as the title suggests, Gilmore Girls also gets plenty of ink. Graham, who starred in a few short-lived sitcoms prior to her breakout role, recounts landing the part (and almost having to give it up because she was on another series). The final chapter takes readers through the making of the revival.

I wondered if rebooting Gilmore Girls could be as gratifying as doing the series the first time, if the show would feel as fresh and quirky and smart and speedy as it had been, if returning to Stars Hollow after all those years would be as I dreamed it would be, she writes in the book. Spoiler alert: it was.

Mention Graham to show creator Amy Sherman-Palladino and its clear there was an ease in resurrecting the Lorelai persona nine years after the show went off the air.

The thing about Lauren Graham is theres nothing you can throw at her that she cant do, says Sherman-Palladino. That is a soul-satisfying feeling to be able to write any scene exactly the way you wanted it on paper and know shes going to kick it out of the ballpark. Thats rare. Its just really rare.

Graham had originally set out to write a follow-up to her 2013 debut, Someday, Someday, Maybe, about a twentysomething actress trying to catch a break, but she felt that idea growing stale.

(She still owes publisher Penguin Random House another book and has an idea for pulling some characters from Someday in a way that wouldnt strictly be a sequel.)

I had been asked to do a book of essays or a memoir-type thing before and I just felt like it wasnt justified, says Graham of Talking as Fast as I Can. But to me, if [Gilmore Girls] came back, that kind of gave it a purpose. It was everything coming full circle.

But if readers are looking for juicy tidbits of on-set discord on Gilmore Girls or Parenthood, which ended its six season run in 2015, they wont be found within the 224 pages.

My sister said, All you say is nice stuff, Graham says, somewhat apologetically. But thats really all I had to say. There was nothing to hide. Im always of two minds about any behind-the-scenes stuff. It was a dark day when I saw the Downton Abbey cast in street make-up. I really love to be transported and not to think about how they might shop at Whole Foods. I felt that way in what I want to share.

In person, its easy to distinguish Graham from her most recognizable role. She turns down an offer for coffee from her publicist and speaks in a rhythm that allows for oxygen to be replenished. Asked what her food of choice is when shes binge-watching, Graham says she doesnt eat while watching TV. But its also clear she doesnt mind being closely tied to the character  at one point, shes curious to know what Sherman-Palladino has said about the chances for more episodes, as if keeping score of its likelihood.

While Graham certainly wouldnt face many objections to continuing her acting work for Gilmore Girls or any other TV or film project, she is also building her reputation as a writer.

Someday, Someday, Maybe was developed as a CW pilot, for which she wrote the script. She also co-wrote a female late-night host comedy that received an NBC development deal. Her latest project, which she is tackling with her Parenthood daughter Mae Whitman, is a movie adaptation of The Royal We, a book from GoFugYourself.com creators Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks about an American girl-next-door who falls in love with a guy who happens to be the future king of England.

I like making something of my own, Graham says. Its much harder than being an actor, but I think it feels like a way to grow creatively. It wasnt a calculated career move to start writing. I woke up with some ideas in my head and I put them down. Im certainly not perfect, but Ive learned enough to know these things are not going to create themselves without some discipline, so I kind of just went down that road and here we are.

Whitman fondly remembers her first introduction to Grahams writing  it came in the form of a poem around Christmastime during Parenthoods run that she describes as so genuine and hilarious and so, so smart, without being the least bit manipulative or saccharine.

Right then I knew that we would see great things from her in the writing department, Whitman says. I mean, Ive had her write break-up texts for me for Gods sake! Side note: I do not necessarily condone or recommend breaking up with anyone over a text; but if youve got to do it, get yourself a Lauren Graham. Trust me  I think the most amazing thing to me about her writing is that shes able to be so inclusive and present and so genuinely funny without ever being mean or cutting anyone down. Shes like the Jim Henson of the writing world.

And while Graham is happy to have come full circle in Stars Hollow, shes looking forward to what takes shape next.

Its been really fun to know what I was doing and know when it was coming out and know whats on my plate that I needed to finish, she says. But itll be really fun to not know whats next.

The most-read Entertainment stories this hour 

yvonne.villarreal@latimes.com

Twitter: @villarrealy

ALSO:

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Lauren Graham weighs in on the other mother-daughter relationship of Gilmore Girls

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Los Angeles parents who have been kept off their childs school campus because of disruptive behavior now have a way to appeal principals decisions.

Under current California law, principals can send what are called disruptive person letters to parents or other adults who pose a risk to students or staff. That letter requires that if the parent wants to come to school, he or she needs to call ahead and get approval from the principal. These sanctions usually last a year.



For the record: A previous version of this story cited L.A. Unified attorney Christine Wood as saying the district did not track the number of letters principals send out to restrict disruptive people from visiting campuses.

However, some parents who have received the letters argue that they did nothing wrong beyond advocating for their child, and that some principals use the letters to silence parents who are involved in the school. They say principals have too much power in deciding who receives these letters, that the punishment is too long, and that the letters deter parents from becoming involved in their childrens education.

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Another problem is that its unclear how many of these letters have been issued. Until now the district was not collecting the data centrally, said L.A. Unified spokeswoman Shannon Haber.

This month Los Angeles Unified School District staff updated its policy to include an appeals process for the decisions, and to require principals to file the letters in a central district database. The update also reminds principals that they may give parents a warning before resorting to a disruptive person letter.

Now, parents can appeal the letter to the schools principal, who must respond in writing within 30 days. The parent can then appeal to the local district director, who must also respond in writing within 30 days. And while the letters can still last for up to a year, appealed letters must be reviewed every 90 school days. The policy doesnt specify who should conduct that review, though.

When anyone comes onto our campuses and disrupts the educational processes of our students, then we are very concerned about that, Earl Perkins, the associate superintendent for district operations, told the districts Early Childhood Education and Parent Engagement committee during a meeting Tuesday.

Why do we have our panic bars facing inward instead of facing outward?  We want to keep anything that can create damage or harm our kids on the outside, Perkins told the committee.

The nonprofit advocacy group Parent Organization Network reviewed 476 letters that parents have received since 2002, most in the past four years (this is not a complete count of the letters that have been sent). According to that analysis, 82% of the letters were issued because of verbal behaviors, 35% for procedural violations like failing to sign in or recording a school event without permission, and 18% are issued to parents who approached students.

These letters make sense for people who actually pose a threat to the school, but parents shouldnt be kept off campus or made to feel unwelcome just because they voice concerns, said Araceli Simeon, the Parent Organization Networks project director. She thinks the appeals process and the record-keeping requirement are positive improvements to the districts policy, but the language in the sample letters still presumes an adversarial relationship between parents and school staff, Simeon said.

The district should also do a better job of clarifying the process for parents, Simeon said, and shortening the yearlong enforcement period that makes it difficult for parents who need to pick their children up from school daily.

AmberMarie Irving-Elkins and Marvin Elkins Jr. both received letters from their daughters elementary school, Baldwin Hills Gifted/High Ability Magnet, in 2012.

Elkins received a letter first, saying he had tape recorded a School Site Council Meeting without permission. He wrote a response that Irving-Elkins distributed to teachers at the school, saying that he thought this was an unnecessary response.

After Irving-Elkins distributed the letter, she received a disruptive person letter from the principal as well, asking her to resign from any school committees and requiring her to call ahead before entering the campus.

This was necessary, the letter said, due to the inappropriateness of your actions.

The parents relationship with the school changed after that, the couple said.

Drastically our volunteering was cut back, Irving-Elkins said. To be so really involved and then to have that kind of cut off, it hurts to have to call whenever we want to come on campus and set up an appointment.

They appreciate the new policies that allow for an appeals process, but think principals who send out multiple letters should also be under scrutiny.

The principals that are issuing them in large numbers ...they need to be reviewed, Irving-Elkins said. It shouldnt just be to bar parents that are really involved and advocating for their children from the campus.

Reach Sonali Kohli at Sonali.Kohli@latimes.com or on Twitter @Sonali_Kohli.
Breakfast Club actor Anthony Michael Hall is facing a charge of felony battery with serious bodily injury after he allegedly shoved a neighbor to the ground and broke his wrist, according to authorities.

The incident occurred at Halls Playa del Rey condominium complex on Sept. 13, when a neighbor left a gate open, according to authorities.

The neighbor suffered a broken wrist and a back injury when the actor shoved him to the ground after an argument turned physical, according to court records. Hall, 48, was charged on Nov. 17, but has yet to surrender to authorities. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

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The Los Angeles Police Departments Pacific Division investigated the incident, which was reportedly captured on videotape. The neighbor obtained a temporary restraining order against Hall after the incident but did not seek a permanent injunction, according to court records. The neighbor alleges that he and the actor have had several run-ins in their gated community in the past.

Hall won fame in the 1980s for appearing in such teen hits as The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles and Weird Science. He was also a member of the so-called Brat Pack, a group of young Hollywood stars who rose to fame in the 1980s.

Hall has also appeared in television shows including the The Dead Zone.

richard.winton@latimes.com

Follow @lacrimes on Twitter
The death of a Valley State Prison inmate is being investigated as a possible homicide, officials said Monday.

Efrain Rodriguez, 44, was found unresponsive on Thanksgiving morning in a dormitory at the Chowchilla facility, according to a prison statement.

Life-saving measures were initiated and an ambulance was called to the scene, but the inmate was pronounced dead at 9:45 a.m., the statement read.

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Officials are awaiting an autopsy to determine the cause of death, said Lt. Ronald Ladd, a public information officer with the prison.

Rodriguez was received by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation from Los Angeles County in June 2015 and was serving a two-year, eight-month sentence for second-degree burglary and possession of a controlled substance, officials said.

The incident is being investigated by the prisons investigative services unit. The eight-man dormitory was sealed as a crime scene and inmates housed there at the time have been transferred to the administrative segregation unit pending investigation, according to the statement.

The Madera County district attorneys office, coroners office and CDCR Special Service unit are assisting with the investigation.

No staff members were injured as a result of the incident, officials said.

Valley State Prison was established in 1995 and functions as a Level II, general population institution housing inmates requiring so-called sensitive-needs yard placement.

Such inmates cannot be housed in the general population because of safety concerns and include gang dropouts, sex offenders and those who have been labeled informants, Ladd said.

The prison also houses inmates who require higher levels of mental health treatment and have been assigned to the enhanced outpatient program for inmates.

Our entire institution is a sensitive needs institution, Ladd said.

brittny.mejia@latimes.com

Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia

UPDATES:

4:30 p.m.: This article has been updated to include the dead inmates name.

This article was originally published Nov. 28 at 1:20 p.m.
Rescue crews will resume their search Monday morning for a couple who went missing after their vehicle became stuck in snow while driving in a mountainous area of El Dorado County.

Rory and Susan Holloter of Yuba City were last seen at around 9 a.m. Saturday, according to the El Dorado County Sheriffs Office. They were last heard from Sunday at 12:40 p.m., stating they were stuck in the snow.

The husband and wife are reportedly driving a white Dodge truck, according to the sheriffs office.

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The California Highway Patrol Air Unit assisted with the search Sunday in the area of Wentworth Springs Road until it was called off for the night. The search will resume at 7 a.m. Monday, officials said.

brittny.mejia@latimes.com

Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia
California has more than 100 million dead trees in its forests  and no easy way to deal with them.

Based on aerial surveys, the U.S. Forest Service concluded that more than 102 million trees have died across the states forests since 2010. More than half  62 million  died this year alone. There are 4.1 billion live trees in California forests, according to U.S. Forest Service data. So the dead trees represent about 2.5% of that population.

The die-off raise many ecological questions that officials are still trying to grapple with. The dead trees represent a major fire threat. But removing them poses logistical, financial and public safety risks.

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So what happens to all those dead trees?

There are not nearly enough resources available to effectively manage 102 million dead trees. So officials have formed a task force to try to fell the dead trees in what they call high-hazard areas  before the trees snap on their own.

That means targeting for removal dead trees that are close to critical power lines, roads and areas where people live, play and work.

Right now were just focused on trees that pose a health-and-safety hazard, said Stephanie Gomes, a U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman. Its kind of a triage approach. First and foremost we have to protect people and property.

Officials have already spent more than $200 million in state and federal funds to cope with the problem, said Janet Upton, a deputy director for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Agencies have collectively removed more than 423,000 dead trees within the last year.

They have a few ways to get rid of the trees. Crews can cut them down, take them to the side of the road and organize them into log decks. Then mills can purchase and pick up the logs and use them for lumber.

The trees can also be taken to a facility where the dead timber gets turned into biomass. This option burns the wood waste in a high-pressure boiler to create steam, which turns turbines and produces renewable energy.

These options are preferable, but Gomes said that in general, mills are not taking dead wood from California. Further complicating matters, most wood-processing facilities are far from where the tree mortality has been the heaviest, and the cost to transport trees across that distance is high.

In addition, some of the biomass facilities power-purchase agreements are expiring.

Theres not the infrastructure in place to take this on this quantity of trees, Gomes said.

If there is no place to take the dead trees, crews can burn them, but that creates air-quality problems for the forest.

What is the fire risk?

When a lot of dead fuel remains on the ground, fires burn hotter and damage the soil, Cal Fire officials say. Once fires burn through the fuel on the ground, they can climb up a ladder of dry branches and timber until they get into the crown of the tree. And once a fire gets to the top of a tree, fire authorities say it can spread quickly  hopping from tree to tree rather than winding slowly across the ground.

But a number of scientific studies knock down the idea that dead trees  and the beetle infestations that kill them  increase wildfire risk.

Water-starved trees are unable to produce their usual pitch or sap, the secretions that tend to protect them from fungi and insects. So bark beetles can burrow destructive paths into the limbs and trunks of trees, where they mate and lay eggs.

A 2015 study of areas infested by mountain pine beetle outbreaks across the western United States found that the outbreaks had no effect on areas burned by wildfire  results which the authors said refute the assumption that increased bark beetle activity has increased area burned.

Another 2011 study that examined the lodgepole pine forests of the greater Yellowstone region concluded that rather than increasing the wildfire risk, beetle attacks reduce it by thinning tree crowns.

What is the long-term effect of this die-off?

Because California hasnt experienced this level of mortality, no one knows for certain.

Researchers are still grappling with how fire affects the forests differently than drought, the mixed findings on fire danger and how tree mortality affects the supply of water and snow.

Adrian Das, an ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, said he is somewhat torn.

I work with trees because I like being in the forest, and seeing large swaths of the forest dying is challenging, he said. The one silver lining as a scientist is, in a sense, were having a real dramatic natural experiment.  Its tragic, but its been a tremendous opportunity to learn.

What caused the die-off?

Scientists say five years of drought are to blame for much of the destruction. The lack of rain has put Californias trees under considerable stress, making them more susceptible to the organisms, such as beetles, that can kill them. Unusually high temperatures have added to the trees demand for water, exacerbating an already grim situation.

How much is the rain helping?

Experts say rain helps a lot, and, thankfully, certain parts of Northern California have enjoyed a wet start to the rainy season. One important index in the northern Sierra has already measured 16.2 inches of rain  more than twice the normal amount.

Central and Southern California have been less fortunate.

Officials say the majority of the dead trees are located in the southern and central Sierra Nevada, where precipitation levels have been average or below average. But officials have also warned that the death march is moving north into counties such as Siskiyou, Modoc, Plumas and Lassen.

Officials have said the parts of the forest at lower elevations  about 5,000 to 6,000 feet  continue to get hit the hardest. In the higher elevations, it can sometimes appear as if there is no drought and the trees are much healthier.

And experts say that even if a deluge somehow managed to end the drought this year, trees would continue to die for at least another year or two.

There are still many trees that are dead that dont know theyre dead, said Randy Moore of the U.S. Forest Service.

matt.stevens@latimes.com

Twitter: @ByMattStevens

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In Redwood City, a man slugged a gas station employee and told police he did it because he wanted to hit a Mexican.

In Danville, a black student walked into a restroom at Monte Vista High School and found someone had scrawled the words colored and whites over separate urinals.

In Orange County, a local Republican official faced bipartisan scorn after she wrote on Facebook that she did not want any type of Muslims in our country.

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Then, over the Thanksgiving Day holiday, numerous California mosques received handwritten letters that threatened the genocide of Muslims and praised President-elect Donald Trump.

Since election day, there have been reports in California and across the country of hate crimes, ugly verbal confrontations and other incidents. The election was one of the most divisive in modern history, punctuated with issues over illegal immigration, Muslims and treatment of women.

Despite numerous high-profile incidents, officials said they dont know whether there are actually more hate crimes since the election or whether they are simply getting more attention.

Law enforcement agencies are trying to get ahead of the problem. Some are launching task forces to quickly investigate hate allegations. San Francisco, for example, is sending undercover officers into neighborhoods to see if they become the victims of hate crimes. Its similar to a program the department launched to reduce sport-related violence by having undercover cops wearing rival team gear during playoffs.

Other agencies are stepping up outreach efforts to encourage people to report hate crimes and incidents of bigotry that are likely protected by the 1st Amendment, but that officials still vowed to investigate.

In times of turmoil, in times of uncertainty, in times of strife, hate crimes increase. The fear of other is very, very strong in humanity, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said. This cannot stand. This cannot be something we allow as a people.

Over the last week, law enforcement agencies throughout California have launched a public awareness campaign hoping to deter the perpetrators of hate crimes and to remind victims that they should feel safe in reporting such incidents to police.

Authorities in Los Angeles and San Francisco are monitoring social media comments that might rise to the level of a criminal threat or serve as a precursor of a hate crime.

San Francisco Dist. Atty. George Gascon said he hopes the efforts will not only deter criminal activity but also make those who fear being targeted feel safer.

There are several things that are very concerning. The fear level that has been impacting a lot of communities  people are not going out into certain places, Gascon said. Youre seeing Muslim women afraid to wear their traditional garb.

Experts say hate crimes are generally considered underreported, in part because the victims either speak poor English or fear that interaction with law enforcement might spark questions about their immigration status.

As a result, its difficult to get a clear sense of hate crime trends. But one thing is clear: Even before the presidential election cycle, hate crime reports were rising both nationally and in California.

Reported hate crimes throughout the U.S. rose 7% in 2015, according to the FBI. Incidents specifically targeting Muslims grew the most, with 257 reported incidents last year compared with 154 the year before. In California, hate crime reports increased by 10.4% in 2015, according to the state attorney generals office.

Officials are quick to point out that there is a difference between a hate crime and cruel or hurtful comments, many of which are protected under the 1st Amendment. The law makes it illegal to physically harm someone based on his or her race, religion, national origin, gender or sexual orientation, among other characteristics.

But Gascon and Beck also urged people to report incidents that might not be prosecutable but still might constitute racist or bigoted behavior. Police want to track those as well, and hope that by collecting information on racist behavior and speaking out against it, they can battle back what some call the normalization of hate.

This is a new world for law enforcement, Beck said. We have people that monitor social media particularly in and around the things that we think may be related to hate crimes, and then we make value judgments based on the law.

In September, the LAPD, the Rand Corp. and a group of British researchers announced plans to monitor millions of tweets related to the L.A. area in an effort to identify patterns and markers that prejudice-motivated violence is about to occur in real time. The researchers then will compare the data against records of reported violent acts.

The academics said the program could help determine whether police can predict when and where hate crimes are likely to occur and deploy law enforcement resources to prevent them.

In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo last week announced the establishment of a special police unit to investigate hate crimes and established a hotline for potential victims to call.

The Southern Poverty Law Center last week reported 701 incidents of harassment since Trumps win, with most occurring in the first three days following the election. Of those, 206 incidents were anti-immigrant and 51 were anti-Muslim.

There also were 27 reported anti-Trump incidents, according to the SPLC.

Civil rights advocates say identifying perpetrators of hate crimes is difficult.

In general the majority of hate crimes are not perpetrated by card-carrying members of racist organizations, said Joanna Mendelson, an investigative researcher with the Anti-Defamation Leagues Center on Extremism. There are so many more incidents that are perpetrated by your juveniles, by your neighborhood bigots. But theyre not members of your National Socialist Movement or your local KKK.

Trump has disavowed support from prominent white supremacists, including former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke, though critics say his outspoken views have contributed to the tense political atmosphere. In an interview with 60 Minutes given days after the election, Trump also said he was saddened by reports of increased bias attacks.

And I say, Stop it.  I will say right to the cameras: Stop it, Trump said.

Some experts on extremism hope Trump will do more.

We would like to see a speech addressing this specifically, not just saying the words Stop it, said Brian Levin, executive director of the Cal State San Bernardino Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism.

Aside from a call for unity from Trump, other activists called for greater outreach from local police. Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in the greater Los Angeles area, said he would like to see police and prosecutors visiting local mosques and schools in an effort to assuage fears.

Ayloush said many of the incidents reported to CAIR after the election involved harassment rather than violence. Muslims in Los Angeles, Riverside and Orange counties have reported at least 15 incidents to CAIR, saying they were screamed at for wearing religious garb in public or received anti-Islamic slurs in recent weeks, according to Ayloush.

One Muslim college professor walked into class and found a note on his desk that read, this is not your country, this is Trumps country, Ayloush said.

Over the last few days, at least four mosques around California received copies of a handwritten letter addressed to the children of Satan that called Muslims a vile and filthy people.

Your day of reckoning has arrived, the letter states, according to CAIR. Theres a new sheriff in town  President Donald Trump. Hes going to cleanse America and make it shine again. And, hes going to start with you Muslims.

Theres a lot of concern today, Ayloush said. When I visit people at mosques, people are worried, especially people who are visibly Muslim.

Law enforcement officials and Muslim leaders will discuss the letters during a news conference Monday at the Islamic Center of Southern California.

james.queally@latimes.com

Follow @JamesQueallyLAT for crime and police news in California.

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One was a war hero, a Bronze Star recipient credited with using restraint in Iraq to save the lives of local civilians.

The other was known as a hard-working cop whom one social worker described as compassionate and understanding with mentally ill jail inmates.

Jason Branum and Bryan Brunsting worked alongside each other as Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies in the downtown Twin Towers Correctional Facility.

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But on Monday, a federal judge sentenced them to prison for beating a mentally ill inmate and lying to cover up the attack, saying the pair were swept up in an us versus them culture in the jails that pitted deputies against inmates.

The two men are the latest deputies to face imprisonment in connection with a county jail abuse probe that has so far led to the convictions of 20 Sheriffs Department officials.

Brunsting, 31, was ordered to spend 21 months in custody, and Branum, 36, was given five months. U.S. District Judge George Wu ruled that they could remain free pending their appeals.

Both sentences fell below what prosecutors  and, in Brunstings case, even the defense  had requested, with Wu questioning whether handing down lengthy sentences would deter other law enforcement officers from similar misconduct. He asked whether the prosecution really thought an officer would look at the sentences and say, Id do it if I get six months, but I wont do it if I get three years.

Yes, Assistant U.S. Atty. Brandon Fox said emphatically, suggesting that hes heard people on wiretaps urging each other to knock off criminal behavior after stiff sentences were handed to others.

Defense attorneys portrayed Brunsting as a young, immature deputy thrust into a position of teaching other deputies early in his career despite having no training on managing mentally ill inmates. Prosecutors accused Brunsting of fostering a culture of abuse, though Wu was not convinced.

Hes not that high up, Wu said. I cant understand how he could be the fomenter of the adverse mentality that was there.

As a training deputy, Fox said, Brunsting taught the officers he mentored how to use violence to command respect from inmates and then lie to cover it up. In August 2009, Fox wrote in a court filing, Brunsting choked out an inmate and wrote a false report under the name of a deputy he was training. Prosecutors dropped the charges stemming from that incident in exchange for Brunsting agreeing to allow the judge to consider the conduct when he is sentenced.

This is acting with impunity, Fox said. This is saying, We are above the law.

Branum, meanwhile, was described by his attorney as a decorated war hero who gave up his military career to devote himself to his family.

Ive spent the majority of my adult life protecting people who cant protect themselves, Branum told the judge before his sentencing.

Their case revolved around allegations made by a former recruit who said he was only days on the job at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility on March 10, 2010, when he was summoned by his training officer, Brunsting, and told that an inmate had left his cell without permission and mouthed off to jail staff.

Were going to teach him a lesson, Joshua Sather recalled Brunsting telling him.

Sather, who had graduated from the academy at the top of his class, testified he tackled the inmate and punched him several times but then stopped because he wasnt resisting. Other deputies then set upon the inmate with a barrage of kicks and blows. The inmate, Sather said, lay curled up on the ground throughout, screaming and crying.

Prosecutors alleged that the inmate, Philip Jones, was attacked in a locked hallway of the jail that lacked surveillance cameras. They told jurors he was kicked in the genitals, punched and pepper-sprayed.

When they were done, Sather testified, the deputies gathered privately to concoct a justification for the beating that they gave sheriffs officials in falsified reports.

They conspired to assault somebody, Fox said. They conspired to cover it up.

Sather resigned from the department soon afterward.

During the trial, attorneys for Brunsting and Branum argued that Sather was an untrustworthy, biased witness, who gave inconsistent accounts of the incident over the years in an attempt to avoid coming into the crosshairs of prosecutors.

Jurors took only 90 minutes to reject the defense argument. Brunsting and Branum were convicted of conspiracy to violate an inmates civil rights, depriving him of his civil rights under color of authority and falsifying records.

Brunsting, prosecutors wrote, preyed on those inmates he was supposed to protect, including inmates with mental health issues. ...[He] has tarnished not only his badge with the Sheriffs Department, but also the badges of every law enforcement officer.

The U.S. attorneys office asked the judge to give Brunsting a punishment similar to the prison terms handed out to three former sheriffs officials convicted in a separate beating case. Those defendants received sentences that ranged from 72 to 96 months.

In another filing, prosecutors accused Branum of instigating the attack on Jones, saying he should serve three years behind bars. They wrote that Branums actions showed he believed he was above the law and said he had shown no remorse.

Branums attorney, Donald M. Re, noted in a filing that his client had served in the U.S. Army in Iraq, where he was credited with ordering a squad he was leading not to fire at Iraqi civilians who had ignored a curfew in Samarra and were officially subject to the rules of engagement. One of Branums former colleagues wrote in a letter filed with the court that Branum ordered his soldiers to instead help the Iraqi civilians return home safely, saving countless innocent Iraqi lives on that one day alone.

Re, who argued that Branum should receive probation instead of prison time, filed dozens of letters in support of his client, including some from veterans who served alongside him.

Brunstings attorney, Richard Hirsch, described his client as a hardworking and deeply devoted new father who supported himself through school before pursuing his dream of working in law enforcement.

During his nine-year career, Brunsting worked undercover vice operations and was hand-selected to transport inmates across the country in extraditions, Hirsch wrote in a court filing.

Hirsch, who requested a prison sentence of no more than two years, attached to the filing 31 letters from Brunstings family members and co-workers.

It was always my experience that Deputy Brunsting took mental health seriously and advocated for treatment for my clients, wrote Felicia Hall, a licensed clinical social worker who worked with Brunsting at the jail for four years.

Even so, Hirsch argued that Brunsting, who was selected to serve as a training officer within two years of joining the department at age 22, was not properly trained on how to deal with problems that arise from housing mentally ill inmates.

Times staff writer Joel Rubin contributed to this report.

alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter for more Southern California news: @AleneTchek

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UPDATES:

6:20 p.m.: This article was updated with additional details from the hearing.

3:30 p.m.: This article was updated with more details from the sentencing hearing.

12:10 p.m.: This article was updated with details about the sentences.

This article was originally published at 3 a.m.
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A series of letters sent to mosques throughout California that threaten genocide against Muslims does not rise to the level of a hate crime, but police are still searching for the author or authors of the racist screeds, officials said Monday.

Flanked by faith leaders and police commanders at the Islamic Center of Southern California in Los Angeles, law enforcement leaders said they are still doggedly pursuing the letter-writer or writers to ensure they dont pose a larger threat.

We know that incidents routinely evolve into crimes, LAPD Cmdr. Horace Frank said. We dont want to wait until this evolves.

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The gathering near Koreatown was sparked by a series of handwritten messages recently sent to Muslim faith centers in Los Angeles, Signal Hill, Northridge, Claremont, San Jose and Savannah, Ga. Each missive was addressed to the Children of Satan and called Muslims a vile and filthy people. The letters also praised President-elect Donald Trump and called for Muslims to be eradicated in the U.S.

Your day of reckoning has arrived, the letter read, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations Greater Los Angeles chapter. Theres a new sheriff in town  President Donald Trump. Hes going to cleanse America and make it shine again. And, hes going to start with you Muslims.

The letter, signed only by Americans for a Better Way, said Trump was going to do to you Muslims what Hitler did to the Jews.

WATCH LIVE: LAPD press conference on Periscope 

Stephen Woolery, who heads the counterterrorism division of the FBIs Los Angeles office, said the messages are too vague to constitute a hate crime.

The letters dont specifically contain a threat. The letters dont speak directly about a threat of violence, and thats what the FBI looks for when we investigate, he said.

While the FBI does not have an open investigation into the letters, police in Los Angeles, Pomona, San Jose and other jurisdictions are still trying to find the author or authors, and plan to document the threats as a hate incident.

Frank said threats like these could be indicative of a larger threat, pointing to the October arrest of an Agoura Hills man who called the Islamic Center of Southern California and threatened to kill people there because of his hatred for Muslims. When that man, 40-year-old Mark Feigin, was arrested, a search of his home turned up thousands of rounds of ammunition and several weapons, police and prosecutors have said.

Investigators said the letters appear similar, and it is likely each was sent by the same person.

Frank said the LAPD was making significant headway in tracking the source of one of the letters sent to a Los Angeles mosque, but declined to elaborate. The letters have similar handwriting and phrasing, though it is unclear whether they were sent individually or if the same message was photocopied and sent out, according to Woolery.

The letters were sent to the Long Beach Islamic Center and the Islamic Center of Claremont, CAIRs greater Los Angeles chapter said in a statement. The same letter was also sent to the Evergreen Islamic Center in San Jose.

Faith leaders on Monday called for the person behind the threats to come forward and discuss their concerns with Muslims, rather than hiding behind a pen and paper.

You are a coward, unless you come here and debate the points that you apparently believe so much, said Salam Al-Marayati, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council. Let us bring this darkness that you are in to light, and let us discuss these issues directly.

The Los Angeles and Bay Area chapters of CAIR have called for increased cooperation with law enforcement agencies to protect mosques.

Reported hate crimes increased by 7% across the U.S. in 2015, according to the FBIs Uniform Crime Report. Incidents targeting Muslims saw a particularly sharp increase, with 257 reported bias crimes last year compared with 154 in 2014.

Los Angeles and San Francisco police have also reported an increase in hate crimes this year, but investigators warned that increase is based on an extremely small sample size.

A spate of bias incidents that followed Trumps election victory has also drawn serious concerns from police and human rights activists.

The Southern Poverty Law Center reported 701 incidents of harassment since Trumps win, with most occurring in the first three days after the election. Of those, 206 incidents were anti-immigrant and 51 were anti-Muslim.

There were also 27 reported anti-Trump incidents, according to the SPLCs data, which are self-reported and have not been independently vetted.

Hussam Ayloush, executive director of CAIR-LA, blamed the perceived surge in bias crimes on the irresponsible, hateful rhetoric of the Trump campaign.

Im not saying [Trump] created racist people, he said. He normalized it. While he might say hes not responsible, and I respect that, I remind President-elect Trump that he has a responsibility to act as a president for all Americans.

Imam Sayed Moustafa al-Qazwini, president of the Shia Muslim Council of Southern California, said he would still welcome the person behind the letters into a mosque despite their hateful words.

We may hate the act, but we dont hate the person, he said. We live in a country that is based on love, harmony and togetherness.

james.queally@latimes.com

hailey.branson@latimes.com

Times staff writer Brittny Mejia contributed to this report.

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A South San Francisco police officer remains in critical condition after a man struck him in the head with a skateboard during a Thanksgiving Day confrontation.

Robby Chon, a 12-year veteran of the department, was responding to a disturbance at a business on the 300 block of Grand Avenue Thursday, police said. When Chon arrived at the scene, the suspect, identified as 28-year-old Luis Alberto Ramos-Coreas, refused to follow the officers commands, authorities said.

Ramos-Coreas fled on a skateboard and the officer ran after him, according to a statement from the police department. The suspect stopped, turned and struck the officer on the head with the skateboard, knocking the officer unconscious, police said.

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Another officer took Ramos-Coreas into custody without further incident, authorities said. He is expected to be charged with attempted murder of a police officer and other felonies.

Chon sustained a major head injury as a result of the assault, authorities said. As of 8 a.m. Monday morning, Chon remained in critical condition at San Francisco General Hospital, police said in a statement.

However, he is beginning to show positive signs of recovery and doctors are cautiously optimistic regarding his progress, police said. His family and the South San Francisco Police Department are extremely grateful for the continued outpouring of support and prayers being received from the community.

brittny.mejia@latimes.com

Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia

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After a weekend in which two storms moved through Southern California, forecasters said the weather for the coming workweek would be chilly and windy but mostly dry.

The Los Angeles area was expected to see temperatures in the mid-60s on Monday, about six degrees cooler than usual for this time of year, said Stuart Seto, a weather specialist with the National Weather Service in Oxnard.

In the mountains of Los Angeles County, temperatures were forecast to hover in the 40s and 50s, with powerful winds that could reach as high as 60 mph. The strongest winds were expected along the 5 Freeway in the Grapevine, which could also see up to an inch of snow by Monday morning.

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For the rest of the week, temperatures will oscillate between the mid-60s to the low 70s in the coastal areas. The coming weekend is expected to see slightly warmer-than-usual temperatures in the low 70s, Seto said.

Over the weekend, two storms soaked the Southland and brought as much as 4 inches of snow to higher elevations.

Torrance received more than a half-inch of rain, and Woodland Hills, Northridge and Simi Valley each saw roughly a quarter-inch. Downtown L.A. saw just over a 10th of an inch.

Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties saw the heaviest showers, with Pismo Beach recording more than 1.2 inches.

matt.hamilton@latimes.com

Twitter: @MattHjourno.

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Authorities searching for two women who apparently abducted a Redding mother are delving into the victims past as they try to piece together details of the bizarre episode.

We currently have no reason to disbelieve Sherri Papinis story, Shasta County Sheriff Tom Bosenko told ABC News. She was assaulted and had injuries, which she was treated for.

The 34-year-old woman was found bound by restraints along Interstate 5 in Yolo County. Officials were called about 4:30 a.m. Thanksgiving Day after Papini flagged down a motorist. The mother of two was treated for injuries and reunited with her husband, Keith.

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Officials said they were not aware of a motive for the apparent kidnapping. Bosenko also said it was not clear whether Papini knew her abductors.

He told the Associated Press that sensitive information has not been publicly released and that the investigation is critical and active.

Before Papini was found, police had filed about 20 search warrants in court related to the investigation. Many were filed under seal, the Sacramento Bee reported. ABC reported that detectives were also looking through Papinis computer records, investigating past relationships and seeking video surveillance camera footage that might offer clues.

Papini disappeared Nov. 2 while she was out for a jog in the small town of Mountain Gate in Shasta County.

Her husband reported her missing after he came home from work and found that she hadnt picked up their children from daycare. Her cellphone and headphones were found near where she had last been seen, about a mile from her home, investigators said.

Her disappearance made national news, and the community launched an aggressive manhunt to find her. Her story was shared on social media, and volunteer searches were launched.

The Redding Record-Searchlight quoted dispatch logs from the California Highway Patrol that said Papini was heavily battered and chained to something.

Allison Sutton, a witness who saw Papini on the side of the road on Thanksgiving morning, told ABC News that she saw a woman frantically waving what looked like a shirt.

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North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple on Monday ordered a mandatory evacuation of protesters seeking to block construction of the Dakota Access pipeline, but both the state and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said they have no plans for forcible removal of the protesters.

The Corps of Engineers earlier had said that it planned to close the camp, led by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe of North Dakota, by Dec. 5, and that anyone still there could be prosecuted for trespassing.

On Sunday, however, after a broad backlash, the corps said it has no plans for forcible removal and is seeking a peaceful and orderly transition to a safer location.

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Dalrymples evacuation order came Monday, citing safety concerns related to the regions harsh winter weather.

In an emergency declaration, the governor, a Republican who has urged federal officials to allow completion of the pipeline, said the camp is not zoned for dwellings suitable for living in winter conditions, and also [does] not possess proper permanent sanitation infrastructure to sustain a living environment consistent with proper public health.

The governor referred to safety concerns stated by the corps and the inability to effectively provide emergency, medical, fire response services, and law enforcement services.

But though the order said people who defy it could face legal consequences, officials said the state also would not seek to forcibly remove people.

Its part of our due diligence. These folks out there have to understand the situation. Weve got folks from all over the country out there and I dont know what they know about North Dakota winters, Jeff Zent, a spokesman for the governor, said.

Today we got dumped about 5 inches of snow. Im sure conditions are not good out there. This order lets them know the situation in no uncertain terms, he added.

The corps said Sunday that groups that were not part of the original protest of the pipeline helped shape its decision to try to close the camp.

Unfortunately, it is apparent that more dangerous groups have joined this protest and are provoking conflict in spite of the public pleas from tribal leaders, said Col. John Henderson, the commander of the corps Omaha district. We are working to transition those engaged in peaceful protest from this area and enable law enforcement authorities to address violent or illegal acts as appropriate to protect public safety.

Protesters against the Dakota Access oil pipeline stand on a burned-out truck near Cannon Ball, N.D., on Nov. 21. (James MacPherson / Associated Press )

The corps, which has allowed the camp to grow for months, had said safety reasons prompted the notice on Friday. More than 500 people have been arrested since the summer in sometimes violent clashes with local law enforcement, which has come under fierce criticism for what protesters say have been abusive tactics.

The notice prompted an array of criticisms and vows by protesters and their supporters to stay. Some noted that it came just a day after Thanksgiving, a holiday associated with oppression for many Native Americans, though it is also portrayed as symbolic of goodwill with European settlers. Others pointed out that Dec. 5 is the birthday of Gen. George Armstrong Custer, who famously clashed with Native Americans.

On Monday morning, Dallas Goldtooth, a leader of the Indigenous Environmental Network, posted a video showing snow falling outside the yurt in which he was camping at the site.

We dont expect a forced removal or a sweep ... of this camp relatively soon based on their words, Goldtooth said, referring to the Sunday night clarification. But we as a camp are prepared, are preparing, for any scenario for the protection and safety of our folks.

In the meantime, shout out to all of you lovely people out there, rabble rousers, pipeline fighters. Lets keep fossil fuels in the ground. Talk to you later. Peace. Im going sledding later on.

The Standing Rock Sioux tribe has argued for months that the pipeline will put its water supply and cultural sites at risk. The corps announced this month that it would continue to withhold a final permit for the pipeline while it conducts additional analysis of the project and expands consultation with the tribe.

The corps said the additional review was warranted in light of the history of the Great Sioux Nations dispossession of lands, the importance of Lake Oahe to the Tribe, our government-to-government relationship, and the statute governing easements through government property.

The company building the pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners, has said that the Obama administration made the pipeline a political issue and that it has filed suit in federal court asking to proceed with the project.

The 1,170-mile pipeline would transport as much 500,000 barrels of crude oil daily from the Bakken production region of North Dakota to an existing pipeline in Patoka, Ill.

william.yardley@latimes.com

@yardleyLAT

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Breitbart News wants supporters to #DumpKelloggs after advertiser pulls out By David Ng Breitbart News senior editor-at-large Joel Pollak, left, and Chief Executive Larry Solov at the Breitbart offices in Los Angeles. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times) The Breitbart News Network is seeing some of its advertisers head for the exit doors and is responding in typical Breitbart fashion: by going on the counteroffensive, labeling one of them as un-American and calling it a war on conservatism. Since Donald Trumps victory in the presidential election, Los Angeles-based Breitbart has experienced a backlash from some advertisers who say that the online site conflicts with their corporate values. Breitbart took a pro-Trump stance during the campaign, supporting the Republican candidates views on immigration and national security. The companys executive chairman, Steve Bannon, who is on a leave of absence, was Trumps campaign manager and has been named chief White House strategist. Although Bannon was quoted in Mother Jones as saying Breitbart is a platform for the alt-right  the ultraconservative movement associated with white nationalism  the news site has denied accusations that it engages in racist rhetoric. The company has stated that it isnt affiliated with the alt-right and that the brand of nationalism it espouses is political, not racial. Breitbart is fighting back at one of the advertisers  breakfast cereal maker Kellogg Co.  by launching a Twitter campaign, #DumpKelloggs, that encourages its readers to sign a petition and boycott the maker of such favorites as Froot Loops and Apple Jacks. Read More Facebook

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Supreme Court weighs rules for jailed immigrants in Trump era By David Savage The Supreme Court building in Washington. (Saul Loeb / AFP-Getty Images) Facing the likelihood of dramatically stepped-up deportations under a President Donald Trump, the Supreme Court justices sounded closely split Wednesday over whether the government can indefinitely jail immigrants with criminal convictions while they fight legal efforts to remove them from the country. Trump, who made illegal immigration one of the platforms of his presidential campaign, has promised to deport as many as 3 million immigrants once he takes office, and the Supreme Court case involving a Los Angeles immigrant could give his administration greater leverage. Read More Facebook

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Trump says he saved American jobs, but he hasnt shown how he can turn the victory into policy By Noah Bierman A Carrier Corp. plant in Indianapolis. (Darron Cummings / Associated Press) President-elect Donald Trumps newly announced agreement to save more than 1,000 jobs in Indiana gave him the kind of trophy he covets: a tangible victory that matches his campaign promise to serve as deal maker in chief. But its long-term value will depend on what Trump gave up to keep those factory jobs from going to Mexico and whether he is able to craft a successful fiscal policy that has a broader impact on the economy. Read More Facebook

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Lawmakers reach a compromise to help California soldiers ordered to repay enlistment bonuses By David S. Cloud House and Senate negotiators announced a compromise Tuesday that would permit the Pentagon to forgive debts owed by thousands of California National Guard soldiers who received improper bonuses during the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The agreement was included in a defense bill due to be voted on by the House on Friday and the Senate next week. It seeks to strike a balance between the Pentagons concerns about fraud in the bonus system and lawmakers attempts to resolve a scandal that has hurt thousands of military veterans and sparked a public furor. The compromise calls on the Pentagon to forgive the enlistment bonuses and student loans benefits unless the soldier who received the money knew or reasonably should have known that he or she was ineligible for it. The provision stops short of requiring the Pentagon to forgive debts allegedly owed by all California Guard soldiers as long as they fulfilled the terms of their enlistment contracts and did not commit fraud  a far more sweeping waiver that members of the California delegation had proposed. Read More Facebook

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Pentagon says human errors led to mistaken bombing of Syrian-backed forces By W.J. Hennigan Smoke rises near the Syrian village of Hisha, about 25 miles from Islamic States de facto capital of Raqqah, after an airstrike by the American-led coalition on Nov. 9, 2016. (Delil Souleiman /AFP/Getty Images) A U.S. military investigation has found that unintentional human errors led to a coalition airstrike that mistakenly killed dozens of Syrian-backed troops this fall, but it did not recommend disciplining anyone for the deadly attack. The Sept. 17 air raid on a garrison in the eastern Syrian town of Dair Alzour is one of the worst coalition errors to emerge since the Obama administration began an air war against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria in mid-2014. The attack, which was in an area also frequented by Russian forces, led to sharp criticism from Moscow after it emerged that Russian attempts to use a communications hotline to stop the attack were not answered for nearly half an hour. Russias Defense Ministry has said the attack killed 62 Syrian troops, wounded 100 more and opened the way for an Islamic State offensive in the area. It also helped destroy an already fragile U.S.-Russian cease-fire. A four-page redacted summary of the investigation that was released Tuesday concluded that the botched bombing did not violate international laws of armed conflict. Read More Facebook

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U.N. slaps new sanctions on North Korea for recent nuclear test By Tracy Wilkinson Participants stand behind a military band in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Sept. 13 during a celebration rally after the countrys successful test of a nuclear warhead. (Kim Won-Jin / AFP/Getty Images) The United Nations has slapped additional sanctions on North Korea in an effort to cut its exports of raw materials as punishment for conducting another nuclear test. The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a U.S.-drafted resolution aimed at cutting North Koreas exports of coal, copper, silver and other raw materials, which are its biggest legitimate sources of foreign revenue. The latest sanctions were issued in response to Pyongyangs fifth and largest nuclear test, which was conducted in September in violation of U.N. resolutions. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power estimated the new sanctions will cost North Korea about $800 million a year in lost export income. North Korea is determined to refine its nuclear and ballistic missile technology to pose an even more potent threat ... to international peace and security, Power said. But this resolution imposes unprecedented costs on the [Kim Jong Un] regime for defying this councils demands, she said. Previous international sanctions have had little apparent effect on decisions in Pyongyang, and its difficult to know whether the latest round will make a difference. In March, a set of sanctions described as the most severe in two decades was imposed. But North Korea has gotten around some of the restrictions thanks to complicity from China, its neighbor and longtime benefactor. Wednesdays measures included a 60% cut on North Koreas export of coal, its biggest income source, and bans on the export of copper, nickel, silver and zinc. The sanctions also banned North Koreas export of statues, a business that caters mostly to Africa, and blacklisted 11 people and 10 entities. Under the resolution, North Korea is also threatened with suspension of some U.N. privileges if it fails to comply. Facebook

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CIA director warns Trump it would be the height of folly to scrap the Iran deal By Brian Bennett In an unusual public warning, the head of the CIA said Wednesday it would be the height of folly and disastrous for President-elect Donald Trump to scrap the Iran nuclear deal. CIA Director John Brennan said in a TV interview that ripping up the historic accord could allow Iran to resume its nuclear program and set off an arms race in the Middle East by encouraging other countries to acquire their own nuclear weapons. I think it would be disastrous for the incoming Trump administration to renege on the deal with Iran, Brennan said in an unusually blunt interview with BBC. It could lead to a weapons program inside Iran that could lead other states in the region to embark on their own programs, so I think it would be height of folly if the next administration were to tear up that agreement, Brennan said. It is extremely rare for the CIA director to issue a public warning to an incoming administration, and it suggests deep concern inside the intelligence community about Trumps intentions. During the campaign, Trump variously promised to dismantle or to revise President Obamas signature foreign policy achievement, an international deal that cut off Irans ability to build or acquire nuclear weapons in exchange for easing of sanctions on its finances and oil industry. Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.), Trumps pick to replace Brennan as CIA director, also has been a vocal critic of the deal. I look forward to rolling back this disastrous deal with the worlds largest state sponsor of terrorism, Pompeo wrote Nov. 17 on Twitter. After meeting Trump at the White House after the election, Obama said they had discussed the Iran deal and that he hoped it would survive intact, noting that the United States would be acting alone if it sought to impose new sanctions. The five members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany negotiated the deal in 2015, and the U.N. later voted to enforce it. Implementation began in January, and no evidence has emerged to indicate Iran is violating its side of the agreement. View Twitter post Obama administration officials want to brief Trump and his top advisors on classified details and assessments of the Iran deal, including monitoring systems put in place to verify Iranian compliance. So far, Trumps transition team has delayed receiving more than a handful of in-depth intelligence briefings. There are a lot of people out there who read the papers and listened to news broadcasts where the facts may be a bit  you know  off, Brennan told the BBC. I want to make sure the new team understands what the reality is. It ultimately will be up to them to decide how to carry out their responsibilities, Brennan said. Robert M. Gates, a former CIA chief and secretary of Defense, also called for preserving the nuclear deal. It would be a mistake to tear up the agreement at this point, Gates said in an interview on CBS This Morning. I think we would be the ones isolated, not the Iranians, because none of our partners who helped to negotiate that would walk away from it. But I think what the new president can do is push back against the Iranians. Facebook

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Rep. Nancy Pelosi elected by House Democrats for another term as minority leader By Lisa Mascaro House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Andrew Harnik/Associated Press) House Democrats elected Rep. Nancy Pelosi for another term as minority leader after she fended off a rival who said the November election showed the party needs change at the top. The San Francisco Democrat has beaten back challengers before, but this years campaign from Ohio Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan focused attention on President-elect Donald Trumps success in attracting white, working class voters in Rust Belt states that had traditionally been part of the Democratic base. Pelosi responded by expanding her leadership team to include more seats at the table for younger members and those from states Trump won. The only woman to serve as House speaker, Pelosi has faced calls for her ouster ever since Democrats lost the House majority in 2010. First elected to leadership in 2002, the mother of five -- and grandmother -- has also endured questions about how much longer she will stay at the helm. The 76-year-old typically swats back such inquiries by noting the comparable ages of male colleagues in leadership roles elsewhere in the Capitol. Pelosi remains a fundraising powerhouse and despite interest by other Democrats in taking a turn at leadership, few have been able to make the case to their peers that they could match her drive. But this year, Pelosi appeared to take her challenge seriously. She repeatedly worked to shore up support from liberals and minorities who make up the bulk of the Democratic caucus. She also pointed to the gains Democrats have made under her watch -- they picked up six seats in November -- and warned that losses could have been worse. Democratic Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank, in nominating Pelosi during a closed-door meeting Wednesday, said, We need the very best to lead us.... No one is a better tactician than Nancy Pelosi. Facebook

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Trump pledged to protect Medicare. His choice for health secretary has other ideas By Noah Bierman Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), President-elect Donald Trumps choice for Health and Human Services secretary. (Carolyn Kaster / Associated Press)) President-elect Donald Trump reassured voters during his insurgent political campaign that he would protect Medicare, Social Security and other popular federal assistance programs. But in tapping Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.) to be his Health and Human Services secretary, he has elevated one of the most aggressive proponents of dramatically overhauling the government safety net for seniors and low-income Americans, a long-held conservative goal. Read More Facebook

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Trump says he will leave his business in total to fully focus on running the country By Jim Puzzanghera (Mandel Ngan / AFP/Getty Images) President-elect Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday morning that he would leave his business operations in total to fully focus on running the country. Trumps vast interests in real estate and other ventures have raised unprecedented concerns about the potential for conflict of interest, both at home and internationally. In one of a series of tweets, Trump said he would be leaving my great business in total. Legal documents are being crafted which take me completely out of business operations. The Presidency is a far more important task! he said. However, Trump made no mention that would be giving up ownership of the Trump Organization, which includes hotels, golf resorts and other properties and many licensing deals that span the globe. Neither did he specify whether his separation from his businesses would be permanent. To avoid conflicts or the perception that his presidency would benefit his financial empire, government ethics lawyers and watchdog groups have urged him to sell off his businesses and put the assets in a blind trust to be managed by an independent third party. Trump said last week that he has been turning over operations of his businesses to three of his children, who already have senior positions at the Trump Organization. But some critics have said turning over control to his children may not be enough to alleviate such concerns, since several of his adult children remain active in planning his transition. What he does not seem to realize, or does not want to admit, is that the conflicts arise from his ownership of the Trump Organization, said Noah Bookbinder, executive director of the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, in reacting to Trumps announcement Wednesday. He will continue to know what his business interests are and to benefit from them whether or not he is involved in the day-to-day management, so the conflicts remain unchanged. Federal conflict-of-interest rules for government employees and members of Congress dont apply to the president. Trump said in an interview with the New York Times last week that the president cant have a conflict of interest  In theory, I can be president of the United States and run my business 100%. He said then that it would be very hard to sell off his businesses because they are mostly real estate, but also noted that he would like to try and formalize something in terms of an arrangement that would distance his businesses from his work as president. On Wednesday, he tweeted that While I am not mandated to do this under the law, I feel it is visually important, as President, to in no way have a conflict of interest with my various businesses. Trump said he would detail the changes at a New York news conference with his children on Dec. 15. I will be holding a major news conference in New York City with my children on December 15 to discuss the fact that I will be leaving my ...  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2016 great business in total in order to fully focus on running the country in order to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! While I am not mandated to ....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2016 do this under the law, I feel it is visually important, as President, to in no way have a conflict of interest with my various businesses..  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 30, 2016 Facebook

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Trump names billionaire investor Wilbur Ross as Commerce secretary By Jim Puzzanghera President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence greet investor Wilbur Ross, left, in New Jersey on Sunday. ( (Carolyn Kaster / Associated Press)) President-elect Donald Trump has chosen billionaire financier Wilbur Ross, known as the king of bankruptcy for his investments in distressed properties, to serve as Commerce secretary, according to a person familiar with the decision. If confirmed, Ross would become the Trump administrations chief liaison with the business community and a leading advocate for U.S. trade abroad. Ross, 80, who was a senior policy advisor to Trumps campaign, is worth $2.9 billion, according to Forbes magazine. Like Trump, Ross has been critical of U.S. trade deals. He sharply criticized trade negotiators and called for the U.S. to withdraw from the yet-to-be-ratified Trans-Pacific Partnership and to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement. Trump has pledged to do both upon taking office. Read More Facebook

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Trump taps Wall Street executive and Hollywood producer Steven Mnuchin for Treasury secretary By Jim Puzzanghera Steven Mnuchin at Trump Tower in New York this month. (Eduardo Munoz Alvarez / AFP/Getty Images) President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Steven Mnuchin, a wealthy Wall Street executive and Hollywood movie producer who served as his campaign finance chairman, to be the next Treasury secretary, according to a person familiar with the decision. Mnuchins deep roots on Wall Street fit the mold of past Treasury secretaries but contrast with the populist stance that Trump took during his campaign. Mnuchins net worth is unclear, but he could be the second billionaire member of Trumps Cabinet, after Betsy DeVos, who is Trumps pick for Education secretary. The third is expected to be financier Wilbur Ross, who has been selected as Commerce secretary. Mnuchins selection  which was first reported Tuesday by the New York Times  drew ire from Democratic and liberal groups, which have accused him of profiting from the financial crisis after buying the failed IndyMac Bank in 2009. Read More Facebook

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Noam Chomsky, Junot Diaz and nearly 400 MIT faculty oppose Trump picks in open letter By Colleen Shalby President-elect Donald Trump. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) Nearly 400 MIT faculty members, including professor emeritus Noam Chomsky, writer Junot Diaz and four Nobel Prize winners, signed an open letter criticizing President-elect Donald Trumps Cabinet picks. The President-elect has appointed individuals to positions of power who have endorsed racism, misogyny and religious bigotry, and denied the widespread scientific consensus on climate change. Regardless of our political views, these endorsements violate principles at the core of MITs mission. At this time, it is important to reaffirm the values we hold in common. The letter also denounces the controversial rhetoric often associated with Trumps campaign and impending presidency. For any member of our community who may feel fear or oppression, our doors are open and we are ready to help, it states. MIT boasts a student body represented by 120 foreign countries, all 50 U.S. states and three U.S. territories. While campaigning, Trump lauded his late uncle, John, who was a professor at MIT for nearly 50 years. Shortly after Trump announced his candidacy, he spoke about him to CNN. I had an uncle who went to MIT who is a top professor. Dr. John Trump. A genius. Its in my blood. Im smart. Great marks. Like really smart, Trump said. A handful of faculty members who signed the statement overlapped in time with John Trump. At least one, physics professor Robert Jaffe, said that he did not know the uncle, but hopes that his nephews administration will maintain a dedication to science. Facebook

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With no Cabinet to build, Hillary Clinton appears with Katy Perry By Chris Megerian Pop star Katy Perry was one of Hillary Clintons biggest celebrity boosters on the campaign trail, and on Tuesday night the former Democratic presidential nominee introduced the singer at a charity gala in New York. Perry has served as UNICEFs goodwill ambassador. Hilary Clinton surprise appearance just now to intro @katyperry #SnowflakeBall #UnicefSnowflake pic.twitter.com/3wh2Zc2BwG  David Ushery (@DavidUshery4NY) November 30, 2016 Facebook

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Jill Stein pays fee to green-light Wisconsin recount By Michael A. Memoli The recount is officially on. The Wisconsin Elections Commission said Tuesday that Green Party nominee Jill Stein has paid the nearly $3.5 million estimated cost to set into motion a statewide retabulation of the presidential vote. Stein had asked for the recount after claiming that evidence of foreign interference existed. She is also seeking recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania; together, the three states carry enough electoral votes to flip the election from President-elect Donald Trump to Democrat Hillary Clinton, but such an outcome is all but impossible. The Wisconsin recount, which starts Thursday, is likely to cost Stein slightly more, the commission said, blaming an earlier error in adding up cost estimates from the 72 county clerks who will oversee the ballot review. Stein will be charged whatever additional costs are incurred after the recount is concluded. Officials on Monday said that most counties will complete their recount in a week but that more populous counties will face a challenge in meeting the deadline to certify results. The state aims to finish by Dec. 12, as state law gives the recount petitioner five days after the new tally is finished for further legal challenges. Presidential electors in 50 states and the District of Columbia will meet Dec. 19 to formally cast the votes that will elect Trump as the next president. Facebook

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Repeal and replace Obamacare? It wont happen on Trumps first day, GOP leader says By Lisa Mascaro House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) cast doubt on whether the Republican-led Congress would be ready to repeal Obamacare by inauguration day, as some in President-elect Donald Trumps transition team have suggested could happen in a special session. But McCarthy said Republicans would try to start as soon as possible on what he acknowledged would be a complicated two-step process to repeal and replace Obamacare that will consume much of 2017 and beyond. Their plan involves retroactively passing a fiscal 2017 budget in the early weeks of Trumps term. Such a maneuver would give Republicans the ability to unwind President Obamas signature domestic program with a simple majority vote, without facing a Democratic filibuster. Replacing the Affordable Care Act would come later, and likely extend into fiscal 2018. Once its repealed you will have hopefully fewer people playing politics and everybody coming to the table to find the best policy, McCarthy told reporters. I just want to make sure we get it right. McCarthy on Tuesday welcomed reports that Trump intends to nominate House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (R-Ga.) to lead the Health and Human Services Department as Congress focuses on getting rid of Obamacare. Democrats, though, suggested that Price, a medical doctor who has championed House Speaker Paul D. Ryans plans to overhaul Medicare, will face so much opposition in the Senate that he may not be confirmed. Try it, said Sen. Charles E. Schumer of New York, the incoming Democratic minority leader. Privatization of Medicare goes way beyond where most Americans are. For years, Republicans have promised to end Obamacare, and with Trump in the White House they will have their best opportunity to do so. But McCarthy cautioned that repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act will be more complicated than simply sending a bill to the White House for the presidents signature. Instead, Congress will need to insert special repeal instructions as part of the wonky budget reconciliation process. And that will take time, he said. McCarthy said that replacing Obamacare will be even tougher than repealing it. Even though Republicans have promised their own healthcare law, they have never been able to produce an agreed-upon alternative. To gather ideas, McCarthy said he would solicit advice from governors and state insurance commissioners. Hell be sending a letter to the states later this week. Since Congress did not pass a 2017 budget for the fiscal year that began Oct. 1, they hope to retroactively approve one in the weeks ahead so they can include the first part of the special instructions needed to repeal the program. But he doubted that would be completed by the time Trump takes office. I dont think you can do it before [Jan.] 20th, he said. Theres only so many legislative days. The finish the job, lawmakers will use the reconciliation process for the fiscal 2018 budget, which is due by spring. McCarthy predicted Congress would still need to pass additional legislation, which cannot be completed through the reconciliation process, in order to ensure a smooth transition. Facebook

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Obama will skip Fidel Castros funeral but is sending an informal delegation By Christi Parsons The Cuban flag hangs at half-staff in front of a picture of Fidel Castro on the facade of the Cuban national library in Havana. (Ronaldo Schemidt / AFP/Getty Images) President Obama is not going to the memorial service for former Cuban dictator Fidel Castro on Tuesday but instead is sending a pair of key representatives to pay their respects, an informal appearance that reflects the delicate diplomacy between the White House and the leadership in Havana. Obama is sending Jeffrey DeLaurentis, the top U.S. diplomat in Cuba, along with deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, but the two men are not being dispatched as part of a formal delegation, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Tuesday. DeLaurentis and Rhodes played key roles in reopening U.S. ties to the communist island nation in late 2014, ending five decades of a Cold War-era freeze in relations. The policy has been celebrated for opening the possibility of expanded trade with and travel to Cuba, while critics attacked Obama for engaging with President Raul Castro without extracting concessions on human rights. His brother Fidel held power through firing squads, false imprisonment and harsh treatment of dissidents. President-elect Donald Trump was one of those critics, saying after Fidel Castros death that if Cuba isnt willing to make a better deal for the Cuban people  and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate the deal. After Castro died Friday, the White House released an oblique statement noting that his death filled Cubans with powerful emotions, recalling the countless ways in which Fidel Castro altered the course of individual lives, families, and of the Cuban nation. History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him. Facebook

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Donald Trump to pick Elaine Chao, a well-connected establishment figure, as Transportation secretary By Noah Bierman President-elect Donald Trump plans to name Elaine Chao  a former Labor secretary married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)  as his Transportation secretary, according to House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield). Chaos establishment ties conflict with Trumps promise to drain the swamp in Washington and promote outsiders to lead his government. But Chaos connections could be an asset in Trumps plan to promote a major infrastructure proposal that could face resistance from within his party. Trump has decried the state of the nations airports, bridges and roads and promised to make their revitalization a major part of his jobs program aimed at helping working-class Americans whose votes helped propel him to victory. Chao, who served as Labor secretary through the entire George W. Bush administration, could play a central role in negotiating an infrastructure spending bill while her husband leads the Senate. Trumps spokesman Jason Miller did not confirm the pick on a conference call with reporters but said that Trump had taken people whove been successful in all different walks of life  including business, government, and military  to fill a Cabinet that Miller called a true dream team. The Taiwan-born Chao also exemplifies the type of immigrant success story that became the subject of debate during Trumps campaign, which promised to crack down on illegal immigration and labeled many of those entering the country illegally from Mexico as criminals, drug dealers and rapists. Chao is one of four sisters who attended Harvard Business School. Her family donated $40 million to the institution in 2012. Facebook

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U.S. economy grew 3.2% in third quarter, the best in two years By Jim Puzzanghera The U.S. economy grew faster in the third quarter than initially estimated, expanding at its strongest pace in two years in a rebound from a weak first half of 2016. Total economic output, also known as gross domestic product, expanded at a 3.2% annual pace from July through September, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. The figure was up from an initial estimate of 2.9% and the best performance since the economy expanded at a 5% annual rate in the third quarter of 2014. Read More Facebook

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Q&A: What you need to know about the Wisconsin recount By Michael A. Memoli This is certainly not Bush vs. Gore, a Wisconsin elections official said Monday. Well, what is it? The state is initiating the first significant candidate-driven recount in a presidential election since the 2000 ordeal in Florida between then-Vice President Al Gore and eventual President George W. Bush. This time, though, Donald Trump is certain to remain president-elect after Wisconsins nearly 3 million ballots are re-tabulated. But the fight here and potentially in other states has given third-party candidates new rationale for seeking public attention for their causes, and it has given Trump fresh ammunition to trash his opponents  as well as, bafflingly, the political process in which he just secured the presidency. Here is a look at the issues involved in the Badger State and elsewhere as the seemingly unending 2016 presidential election seeps into overtime. Read More Facebook

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By tweet and petition, Donald Trump and the left cast doubt on credibility of election By Noah Bierman (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) Rather than celebrating his victory, Donald Trump is amplifying far-right conspiracies to undermine the credibility of an election he won. At the same time, he is finding some common cause in the quixotic effort by the fringe left to prevent him from reaching the White House. The chances of changing the election result with selective ballot recounts, as some on the left hope, or finding widespread voter fraud as alleged by Trump are next to nil. Yet a combination of self-interest and a desire for misdirection have propelled factions of both parties to debate the results of an election already decisively settled. Trumps motives are often hard to pinpoint. But by pushing the myth that millions of ballots were cast illegally for his opponent, as he has done on Twitter in recent days, he may be building the case to claim a larger mandate for his victory despite the fact that Hillary Clinton is leading the popular vote by more than 2 million votes. The issue also distracts attention from mounting questions about the financial conflicts of interest he is likely to have in the White House, given that he plans to allow his children to run his international real estate and branding business while he serves as president. Finally, Trumps rhetoric may also sow the seeds of future efforts to propose more restrictive voting rules championed by some of his top advisors. Read More Facebook

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Democrats look to make some deals with Trump  and divide the GOP in the bargain By Lisa Mascaro Republicans became known as the party of no during the Obama years because of their frequent efforts to block the presidents initiatives. As congressional Democrats prepare to deal with a Republican White House, they appear ready to take the opposite approach, effectively challenging President-elect Donald Trump by finding opportunities to say yes. The goal is to strategically engage with the White House on common objectives and at the same time try to drive a political wedge between Trump and those Republicans anxious about his costlier ideas, such as rebuilding infrastructure, aiding blue-collar workers and expanding paid family leave, a pet project of daughter Ivanka Trump. Read More Facebook

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Trump to name a harsh critic of Obamacare as his pick for Health secretary By Noam N. Levey (Drew Angerer / Getty Images) President-elect Donald Trump plans to select House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price (R-Ga.) to be his Health and Human Services secretary, according to a person familiar with the decision. In picking Price, Trump is tapping an arch-conservative lawmaker and leading critic of the Affordable Care Act to lead his push to roll back President Obamas signature health law. Price, a six-term congressman from suburban Atlanta, has never held an executive position comparable to leading the federal Department of Health and Human Services, a behemoth that includes the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health and the agency overseeing Medicare and Medicaid. Three of the four previous Health and Human Services secretaries were former governors. Price, an orthopedic surgeon, would be the first physician to serve as the departments secretary since Dr. Louis Sullivan, who held the post from 1989 to 1993 under President George H.W. Bush. He would also be among the most politically conservative Health and Human Services secretaries in history. And as a member of House leadership, he would bring to the Trump administration a revolutionary governing agenda closely aligned with Republicans on Capitol Hill. Read More Facebook

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Trump says he won the electoral college in a landslide, but he ranked near the all-time bottom By Cathleen Decker In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 27, 2016 President-elect Donald Trumps tweet that he would have won the popular vote this month but for millions of illegal voters was not based on fact. There is no proof backing up his statement, and voting researchers uniformly dismissed it as false. Also problematic was his second claim in the same tweet, that his victory was one of the rare landslides in American political history. A study of electoral vote results by John J. Pitney, an author and professor of government at Claremont McKenna College, shows that Trump resides on the lower end of the electoral vote scale. He won 56.97% of the electoral votes up for grabs by virtue of his state wins. That places him 46th out of the 58 elections since George Washingtons era, Pitney found. In 38 elections, the winner exceeded 60% of the vote, a lopsided verdict by voters. Clear landslides were won most recently by Ronald Reagan in both of his elections: In 1984, he won 97.58% of electoral votes, and in 1980 he won 90.89%. President Obama won nearly 68% of the vote in 2008 and just under 62% in 2012. Faring worse than Trump among modern presidents was George W. Bush, who eked past Al Gore in 2000 with 50.37% of the vote, after a protracted squabble over the Florida results that ended in a U.S. Supreme Court verdict favoring Bush. Facebook

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Trump says Cuba has to act or hell end the diplomatic thaw, but its not that simple By Tracy Wilkinson In his latest comment on Cuba since the death of revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, President-elect Donald Trump said Monday he would end Washingtons diplomatic thaw with the island unless Cuba makes a better deal. If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal, Trump tweeted. President Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro renewed diplomatic ties in 2014 after a half-century of Cold War hostility. Since then, through a series of executive orders, Obama has eased restrictions on Americans traveling to Cuba and U.S. firms doing business there. Castro, at the same time, has made it easier for Cubans to travel and to engage in limited private enterprise. However, Castro has not enacted significant political reforms, and the death Friday of his brother, former president and leader of the revolution Fidel, at age 90, is not likely to usher in quick change. It was not clear what Trump meant by a better deal. An email seeking clarification from his transition team was not answered. Previously, however, Trump has spoken of the release of political prisoners and more open space for free expression of opinions and dissent. These are the same elements the Obama administration has been demanding, while choosing not to delay economic progress while awaiting political change. From a legal standpoint, Trump could easily reverse Obamas executive orders with little more than a signature. Politically, however, renewed estrangement would be more complicated and would isolate the U.S. as the only country in the world that does not recognize the Communist-led government in Havana. Its not as simple as one Tweet might make it seem --@PressSec Josh Earnest, on whether @realdonaldtrump might undo @POTUS Cuba policy  Christi Parsons (@cparsons) November 28, 2016 Trump and his top aides have sent conflicting signals over his likely Cuba policy. On Saturday, his staff put out a statement saying a Trump administration would do all it can to help Cubans achieve prosperity and liberty. But it did not mention reversing Obamas actions expanding ties. While Cuba remains a totalitarian island, Trump said, it is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve. Kellyanne Conway, a top advisor, told NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday that nothing is definite when it comes to Cuba. But Trumps soon-to-be White House chief of staff, Reince Priebus, said that Trump would be looking for some movement in the right direction to keep the Cuba opening on course. Conservative Republicans, like Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, oppose detente with Cuba as long as any Castro continues to rule. But a growing number of Cuban Americans, as well as most Democrats and a substantial segment of the business community, want better ties and opportunities for economic exchange. Facebook

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The era of super-low interest rates might be ending. Whats in it for you? By Jim Puzzanghera Since President-elect Donald Trumps surprising election victory this month, financial markets have sent a forceful message that the era of super-low interest rates is coming to a close. Mortgage rates have shot up. Bond yields have jumped to their highest levels in a year. And the dollar has surged against other major currencies to values unseen in more than a decade. Those developments have been fueled by expectations of stronger economic growth and higher inflation from Trumps promises to cut business taxes, reduce regulations and increase defense and infrastructure spending. His plans triggered a post-election stock market rally and, combined with recent solid economic data, increased expectations that the Federal Reserve would nudge up its benchmark short-term rate again next month  with more hikes to follow next year. Read More Facebook

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Trump seems ready to fight the world on climate change but hes likely to meet resistance By Evan Halper Coal trucks leave a power plant operated by PacifiCorp outside Huntington, Utah. ( (George Frey / Getty Images)) Donald Trump is branded with all manner of unflattering labels, but one that hasnt seemed to much bother him is climate pariah. The president-elect is unabashed in his disdain for Americas global warming policy. He has placed a staunch climate-change doubter and antagonist of mainstream science in charge of reshaping  or as Trump has suggested, dismantling  the Environmental Protection Agency. He has talked frequently about reneging on the historic Paris global climate treaty the U.S. took a lead in drafting. And he has said he wants every federal green-energy program eliminated. Environmentalists take little comfort in Trumps recent comments that he accepts there is some connectivity between human activity and climate change and that he has an open mind about it, as what hes said elsewhere and done so far suggests otherwise. And even those comments gave scientists cause for alarm. You can make a lot of cases for different views, Trump told the New York Times, casting doubt on the finding by more than 90% of climate scientists that emissions are accelerating global warming. Im not sure anybody is ever going to really know. Read More Facebook

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Jared Kushner, the Trump son-in-law whos the next presidents eyes and ears By Chris Megerian The election results were rolling in, and so were the phone calls for Donald Trump. But no matter who was on the other end of the line, the person handing the phone to the next president of the United States was the same. Jared was screening the calls, said Armstrong Williams, a political ally who described the scene in Trumps Manhattan skyscraper on election night. That would be Jared Kushner, Trumps son-in-law, and his election-night role provides a glimpse of the enormous influence he wields as Trump prepares to take office in January. As the husband of Ivanka Trump, the president-elects elder daughter, Kushner holds an unassailable position inside Trumps unruly ecosystem of advisors. Read More Facebook

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Trump falsely claims that millions voted illegally, costing him the popular vote By Matt Pearce Donald and Melania Trump cast their ballots on Nov. 8. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) Donald Trump falsely claimed Sunday that he won the popular vote, alleging in a tweet  without evidence  that millions of people had illegally voted for his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton. In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump wrote, hours after he tweeted his opposition to a recount in Midwestern states initiated by the Green Party. In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 27, 2016 Election experts, who say election fraud is rare, immediately denounced Trumps claim. Theres been no evidence produced of millions  or thousands  or even hundreds  of noncitizens voting for president in 2016, tweeted Rick Hasen, a professor of law and politics who writes for the Election Law Blog. The source of Trumps claim appears to be a widely shared Nov. 14 article on the conspiracy site Infowars, which is famous for claiming the Sandy Hook mass shooting was a hoax. Politifact investigated the illegal votes claim and rated it false. Facebook

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Trump is warned that supporters will feel betrayed if he picks Mitt Romney as secretary of State By Don Lee A senior advisor to President-elect Donald Trump stepped up an extraordinary public effort Sunday to discredit Mitt Romney and thwart the chances that he would be picked as secretary of State. Kellyanne Conway warned on Sunday TV talk shows that Trumps supporters would feel betrayed if he picked the former governor of Massachusetts, a sharp critic of Trump during the campaign, for a senior Cabinet position. Conway, who was Trumps campaign manager and now is a top advisor to the incoming president, said she felt compelled to speak out on the matter because of the backlash from the grass roots. People feel betrayed to think that Gov. Romney, who went out of his way to question the character and the intellect and the integrity of Donald Trump, now our president-elect, would be given the most significant Cabinet post of all, Conway said on NBCs Meet the Press. They feel a bit betrayed that you can get a Romney back in there after everything he did, she added. We dont even know if he voted for Donald Trump. Conway dodged questions about whether Trump supported the concerns she has been raising publicly about Romney, which began with a tweet she posted on Thanksgiving morning: Receiving deluge of social media & private comms re: Romney. Some Trump loyalists warn against Romney as sec of state. Conway made clear that she did not approve of Romney, who was the GOP presidential nominee in 2012, and didnt see him as especially qualified to act as Americas top diplomat. In the last four years, has he even been around the globe doing something on behalf of the United States of which were unaware? she asked on CNNs State of the Union. Did he go and intervene in Syria where they are having a massive humanitarian crisis? Meaning when I say intervene, like offered help. Has he been helpful to Mr. [Benjamin] Netanyahu? she said of the Israeli prime minister. Im all for party unity, but Im not sure that we have to pay for that with the secretary of State position, Conway said, although she quickly added that she would respect what Trump decides. During the campaign, Romney called Trump a phony and a fraud and said his policies would lead to economic ruin. In response, Trump mocked Romney as a failed candidate who had choked in the 2012 race. But a little more than a week ago, Trump met with Romney for about 90 minutes at a golf course in New Jersey to discuss the State Department post. Afterward, Trump said the meeting went great and Romney described the discussion as very thorough and in-depth. Trump is also considering Rudolph W. Giuliani, who was a fierce Trump loyalist during the campaign, for the job. The former mayor of New York has touted his experience traveling, consulting and speaking overseas since leaving office in 2001. But his extensive business deals abroad have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest if he gets the post instead of Romney. In criticizing Romney, Conway exposed what appears to be deep divisions in the Trump camp as it tries to assemble a team. It is highly unusual for a senior representative of an incoming president to be lobbying publicly against a candidate under consideration. Reince Priebus, the Republican National Committee chairman and Trumps choice to be chief of staff, on Sunday sought to downplay reports of internecine struggles in the transition. However, he acknowledged that picking Romney would represent a team of rivals concept. Trump wants to put the best possible people together for all Americans, Priebus told Fox News Sunday. The fact that hes actually even flirting with the idea of choosing a rival should tell the American people where hes at  which is the best place for everyone in this country, he said. Conway also said Trump, who spent the Thanksgiving holiday weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., talked with President Obama by phone on Saturday for about 40 or 45 minutes. She wouldnt say what they talked about. I can tell you from President-elect Trumps side that he very much enjoys speaking with President Obama, talking about the serious issues that face this country and the world, Conway said on NBC. They get along nicely. They disagree on many things. Thats not going to change. Facebook

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Hillary Clinton campaign will participate in ballot recount in Wisconsin By Don Lee Hillary Clintons presidential campaign will participate in a ballot recount led by Green Party candidate Jill Stein in Wisconsin and perhaps two other battleground states that were crucial to Donald Trumps victory, a Clinton campaign lawyer said Saturday. In response, Trump called the recount request ridiculous and a scam designed to raise money for Steins political party. Read More Facebook

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Donald Trump names KT McFarland, Don McGahn to White House posts By Michael A. Memoli Don McGahn is named by President-elect Donald Trump as his White House counsel. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) President-elect Donald Trump added to his West Wing roster Friday, naming KT McFarland as deputy national security adviser and Donald McGahn as his White House counsel. McFarland served in three separate Republican administrations, most notably as a spokeswoman for Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger under Ronald Reagan. In 2006, she sought to challenge Hillary Clinton for her U.S. Senate seat from New York but lost in the Republican primary. Most recently, she has been a regular contributor to Fox News on national security issues. She joins retired Gen. Michael Flynn, previously named as Trumps national security adviser. So proud & honored to have KT McFarland as part of our National Security team. She will help us #MAGA  General Flynn (@GenFlynn) November 25, 2016 McGahn, who was general counsel for Trumps campaign and a former chair of the Federal Election Commission, is a partner at the powerhouse Washington law firm Jones Day. President Obama revealed at a recent news conference that he had advised Trump to hire a strong White House counsel to guide him and his team, who could provide clear guideposts and rules to help avoid ethical and conflict of interest concerns. Trump campaign officials said Friday that the president-elect, who is spending the holiday weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, would make no additional high-level announcements until next week when he returns to New York. On Monday, he will meet with several more potential Cabinet and sub-Cabinet choices, including Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke, Pennsylvania Rep. Lou Barletta and Oklahoma Atty. Gen. Scott Pruitt. Facebook

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Ben Carson hints he may join Trump Cabinet as Housing secretary By Christi Parsons Former Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks in Lakewood, Colo. on Oct. 29. (David Zalubowski / Associated Press) Ben Carson said Wednesday that an announcement is imminent about his role in improving the nations inner cities  a broad hint that President-elect Donald Trump will name him secretary of Housing and Urban Development. After serious discussions with the Trump transition team, I feel that I can make a significant contribution, particularly to making our inner cities great for everyone, Carson said on Facebook. An announcement is forthcoming about my role in helping to make America great again. Carson, himself once a candidate for president, would be the first African American named to Trumps Cabinet. He was a mild critic of Trump during the campaign, but after dropping out of the race, he backed Trump and now serves on the president-elects transition team. Though Carsons professional background is as a neurosurgeon, he has spoken often of his experiences growing up in inner-city Detroit, with a mother who sometimes relied on food stamps and other assistance. Carson has said they moved into a tenement at one point but has never said whether he lived in public housing. Days ago, a senior advisor said Carson thought he lacked the background needed to manage a federal agency, and that he didnt think it was the best way for him to serve. Carson didnt want to take a position that could cripple the presidency, advisor Armstrong Williams told the Hill newspaper. HUD is responsible for administering low-income housing assistance, fair housing laws, housing development and aid to neighborhoods in distress. Carson indicated a change of heart Wednesday. We have much work to do in strengthening every aspect of our nation and ensuring that both our physical infrastructure and our spiritual infrastructure is solid, he wrote. In an interview with the New York Times on Tuesday, Trump suggested he isnt applying the usual standard of qualifications to his Cabinet picks. Were trying very hard to get the best people  not necessarily people that will be the most politically correct people, because that hasnt been working, Trump said. So we have, really, experts in the field. Some are known and some are not known, but theyre known within their field as being the best. Thats very important to me. Facebook

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Trump picks Michigan school-choice advocate to be his Education secretary By Christi Parsons President-elect Donald Trump chose a Michigan charter school advocate and prominent Republican donor to serve as his secretary of Education, he said Wednesday, a decision that may hearten supporters of school choice but worry teacher unions  and even some of Trumps core supporters. Trumps pick, Betsy DeVos, is a champion of charter schools and school vouchers that give families tax funds they can spend on private school if theyre not happy with their local public schools. DeVos, 58, served as chairwoman of the Michigan Republican Party, a credential that ties her to the party establishment reviled by many Trump supporters. She and her family are among the countrys largest donors to Republican and conservative Christian causes, including opposition to same-sex marriage. She has also backed the Common Core initiative to standardize educational requirements across the nation. Trump repeatedly called for its demise. In a tweet after her selection was announced, DeVos disavowed past support for Common Core, acknowledging that the topic was an issue among conservative activists. Many of you are asking about Common Core. To clarify, I am not a supporterperiod. Read my full stance, here: https://t.co/qB2nAXvX0B  Betsy DeVos (@BetsyDeVos) November 23, 2016 In his statement announcing her as his choice, Trump called DeVos a brilliant and passionate education advocate. Under her leadership, we will reform the U.S. education system and break the bureaucracy that is holding our children back so that we can deliver world-class education and school choice to all families, Trump said in the statement. 1:46 a.m.: This post was updated with DeVos statement about the Common Core. Facebook

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Trump may have one more Cabinet-level pick coming before Thanksgiving By Christi Parsons (John Minchillo / Associated Press) President-elect Donald Trump may decide another Cabinet-level position Wednesday, aides said, after he announced South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley as his ambassador to the United Nations. Aides did not say which job Trump was considering making an announcement about. As he and his family settle in for Thanksgiving at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Trump is still spending significant time on one prominent position, secretary of State, a sign that a pick for it may not come before the holiday, one staffer on the presidential transition team said. In his search for a secretary of State, Trump has met with close advisor and former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and with Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican nominee for president. Aides said Trump chose Haley for the U.N. post because she improved South Carolinas economy and took part in overseas trade and recruitment trips. The two have a natural chemistry, one staffer said, and their views jibe on how the U.S. should be represented on the world stage. Facebook

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Trump taps South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley for U.N. ambassador By Tracy Wilkinson South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley speaks at the Federalist Societys National Lawyers Convention in Washington on Nov. 18. (Cliff Owen / Associated Press) President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday picked South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, a rising star in the GOP, as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, an announcement that brings a measure of diversity to a transition that has been dominated by white, male figures. Haley, 44, and the daughter of Indian immigrants, is the first woman and first person of color to be picked for the new administration. Read More Facebook

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Dalai Lama: I have no worries about Trumps election By Associated Press (Ganbat Namjilsangarav / Associated Press) The Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, said he has no worries about Donald Trumps election as U.S. president and expects the businessman will align his policies with global realities. Commenting at the conclusion of a four-day visit to Mongolia, the leader of Tibetan Buddhism said he looks forward to meeting Trump at some point after the Jan. 20 inauguration. The 81-year-old monk says he has always regarded the U.S. as the leading nation of the free world and wasnt concerned about remarks made by Trump during the election campaign. Some of those comments have been cited as offensive to Muslims, Latinos and other U.S. minority groups. China accuses the Dalai Lama of seeking to split Tibet from China and had demanded Mongolia scrap his visit. Facebook

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Trump asks Ben Carson to consider Housing secretary post By Chris Megerian Donald Trump asked Ben Carson to consider serving as secretary of Housing and Urban Development, an advisor to the former Republican presidential candidate said Tuesday. They discussed the potential job at a meeting in the morning and Carson is seriously considering it, said the advisor, Armstrong Williams. Its a role that plays to Dr. Carsons passions, he said. Asked what qualifications the retired neurosurgeon has for overseeing housing policy, Williams said: Dr. Carson has experience with everything. Youd be shocked at the depth of his experience. Williams had previously suggested that Carson didnt feel he had the experience to serve in Trumps Cabinet, but he said Tuesday that those comments were taken out of context. Housing secretary was one of a few options discussed Tuesday, Williams said. Carson always felt that hed be willing to serve in the administration if Trump felt that no one else could fill the position, he added. Facebook

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Texas judge blocks Obama administrations new overtime rule from taking effect By Michael A. Memoli Labor Secretary Thomas E. Perez. (Andrew Harnik / Associated Press) A Texas judge blocked President Obamas bid to expand overtime pay protections to millions of Americans on Tuesday, thwarting a key presidential priority just days before it was set to take effect. The Labor Department rule would have doubled the salary level at which hourly workers must be paid extra for overtime pay, from $23,660 to $47,476. Siding with business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Texas District Judge Amos L. Mazzant III halted it. The rule, finalized in May, represented the first such change in more than a decade and was hailed at the time as the most consequential action the Obama administration could take for middle-class workers without congressional involvement. Plaintiffs had argued the Labor Department acted beyond its authority under the Fair Labor Standards Act. The administration said more than 4 million salaried workers stood to benefit from the change when it took effect Dec. 1. The rule was already in jeopardy after the election of Donald Trump. Just as the Obama administration made the change through its rule-making prerogatives, a Republican administration could undo it. Neither the White House nor the Labor Department had an immediate comment. Republican lawmakers and their allies in the business community, which were behind the legal challenge, celebrated the decision. The decision brings us a step closer to curbing regulations that have resulted in $80 billion in compliance costs and more than 25 million hours of paperwork, said Linda Kelly, senior vice president for the National Assn. of Manufacturers. The fights are not yet over  and our work is just beginning. Facebook

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Heres why the electoral college (probably) wont stop Donald Trump from becoming president By Chris Megerian Some liberals who really, really, really dont want Donald Trump to be president are pinning their hopes on a long-shot effort to prevent him from officially winning the election. Understanding how their plan would work requires some background on the electoral college, which was established in the Constitution at a time when the founding fathers were wary of direct democracy. As widely known, presidents are not chosen based on the national popular vote  if they were, Hillary Clinton would be the next commander in chief, given she is ahead by roughly 1.7 million votes. Each state is assigned a certain number of electoral votes based on population. Those votes are awarded to candidates based on the states popular vote. Trump won the presidential race with 290 electoral votes. (That total will reach 306 if Michigan is called for him, as expected.) The process doesnt end on election day. Each electoral vote is represented by an elector, an actual person who has to cast an official ballot for the president on Dec. 19. The electors are chosen through different processes state by state, and usually are selected by state political parties. With unrest over the result, there are efforts to persuade electors to be faithless, meaning they wouldnt back Trump even if he won their states. A Change.org petition calling the president-elect a danger to the Republic has almost 4.6 million supporters. What are the chances of this actually happening? Very slim, says George C. Edwards III, a Texas A&M political science professor who has written a book about the electoral college. From time to time, there are faithless electors, he said. Theyre few and far between. There were some electors who refused to vote for winning candidates in the 1800s, such as six who declined to support James Madison, but never enough to sway the outcome of the race. In the last century there have only been a handful of cases. There were some attempts to persuade electors to back Al Gore over George W. Bush during the disputed 2000 election, but they were unsuccessful. Facebook

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Can Trump put another Justice Scalia on the Supreme Court? By David Savage Judge William H. Pryor Jr. of the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals moderates a panel discussion during the Federalist Societys National Lawyers Convention in Washington last week. ( (Cliff Owen / Associated Press)) President-elect Donald Trump will soon have the chance to make good on one of his most consequential campaign promises: fill the Supreme Court vacancy with a judge in the mold of conservative icon Justice Antonin Scalia, who died in February. Any Trump nominee is almost guaranteed to be a conservative jurist who is antiabortion and supports a strict interpretation of the 2nd Amendments right to bear arms. But what kind of conservative he selects will determine whether his nominee will be quickly confirmed or instead trigger a fierce fight in the closely divided Senate, potentially overshadowing the early months of Trumps presidency. If Trump opts for a Scalia-like justice, as he repeatedly said he would during the campaign, conservatives lawyers say the betting favorite is Judge William H. Pryor Jr. from the 11th Circuit Court in Atlanta, a former Alabama attorney general who called the Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion the worst abomination in the history of constitutional law. The 54-year-old Pryor believes in Scalias approach of interpreting the Constitution by its original meaning  one that has little room for gay rights, even womens rights. His nomination would electrify Trumps conservative base, but it would also set off a confirmation battle for which the outcome is not assured. Read More Facebook

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Michelle Rhee has some thoughts on Donald Trump By Joy Resmovits After meeting with president-elect Donald Trump Saturday, former Washington, D.C., schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee weighed in on people who have told her to avoid him. She also indicated that shes not likely to be named as Trumps secretary of Education. In light of the speculation about the Secretary of Education role, I wanted to clarify my position and what's best for America's students. pic.twitter.com/DXRZxdAZNX  Michelle Rhee (@MichelleRhee) November 22, 2016 Facebook

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Trump veers off script on climate change, his potential conflicts of interest and even whether to prosecute Clinton By Evan Halper President-elect Donald Trump strayed far from the talking points of his campaign during his wide-ranging interview Tuesday with New York Times journalists. Trump suggested he does not necessarily need to sever ties to his businesses while president. He said he has an open mind to acting on climate change. And he even offered some praise for the Clinton Foundation. On the business ties, Trump was vague about when he will wind them down and how. He suggested he intends to transfer ownership to his kids, but then he also noted that the president is immune from federal conflict-of-interest laws. "In theory I could run my business perfectly and then run the country perfectly. There's never been a case like this,"he says of his tangles  Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) November 22, 2016 Trump on his businesses/conflict q's: "The law's totally on my side, the president can't have a conflict of interest."  Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) November 22, 2016 Trump, who once declared global warming a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese, backed off his skepticism of climate change. He said he believed there is a connection to human activity and warming  but he is still undecided about how much of one. And he said he has an open mind to keeping in place the international climate agreement President Obama took a lead in negotiating, which Trump has been vowing for months to withdraw from. Tom Friedman asks if Trump will withdraw from climate change accords. Trump: Im looking at it very closely. I have an open mind to it."  Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016 Trump also addressed the public re-emergence of the white supremacist movement, and how his campaign has energized those groups. He said he disavows and condemns such groups, including the neo-Nazis who gathered in Washington over the weekend. But he defended his pick of chief strategist, Stephen K. Bannon, the Breitbart News executive who boasted that his outlet is the platform for the alt-right. Trump: Ive known Steve Bannon a long time. If i thought he was a racist, or alt-rightI wouldnt even think about hiring him."  Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016 Trump is asked about concerns from minority groups about Breitbart Newss coverage under Steve Bannon. His reply: pic.twitter.com/FBqCGwQpBr  Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016 When the conversation turned to Hillary Clinton, Trump said he will not press law enforcement agencies to prosecute her. And he even said people could argue the Clinton Foundation has done good work. Trump is pressed if he has definitively ruled out prosecuting Hillary Clinton. Its just not something that I feel very strongly about."  Michael M. Grynbaum (@grynbaum) November 22, 2016 That last tweet was Trump making clear he doesn't favor prosecution. Added people could argue the Clinton Foundation has done "good work."  Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) November 22, 2016 Read More Facebook

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Ben Carson made it clear that he was too inexperienced for a Cabinet job. Now Trump says hes considering Carson for one By Evan Halper I am seriously considering Dr. Ben Carson as the head of HUD. I've gotten to know him well--he's a greatly talented person who loves people!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 22, 2016 It was only a week ago that Ben Carson had put out word that he wasnt qualified to run a federal agency, and thus had no place in Donald Trumps Cabinet. Now Trump says Carson would be the perfect person to run a federal agency. Trump tweeted on Tuesday that he is seriously considering Carson to run the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Carsons qualifications? Hes a greatly talented person who loves people! Perhaps Carson was playing hard to get last week, when one of his top advisors, Armstrong Williams, told multiple news outlets that Carson wasnt a good fit for any of the Cabinet posts. Dr. Carson feels he has no government experience; hes never run a federal agency, Williams told the Hill. Trumps tweet that Carson was at the top of his list for the HUD job was unusual for another reason. Such trial balloons are typically floated anonymously, to gauge public reaction. If its hostile, the president-elect can scrap the plan and deny it was ever something he seriously contemplated. After Trumps advisors put the media on notice Tuesday morning that they would offer no details of what Trump will discuss at his meeting with Carson, Trump went ahead and shared them with millions of people himself. Facebook

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Donald Trump may have won the election, but hes still mad at the media By Evan Halper The President-elect does not care who knows how unforgiving or vain or distracted he is, David Remnick writes. https://t.co/6vOriXjf4E  The New Yorker (@NewYorker) November 22, 2016 So much for burying the hatchet. Even victory has not diminished Donald Trumps resentment of the news media. His relations with the news outlets have gotten no better now that he has transitioned from confrontational candidate to confrontational president-elect. Trumps angry rant about the New York Times on Tuesday morning  in which he briefly canceled a meeting with the outlet  followed what was by several reports a stormy session the day before with major news networks. Television executives and journalists traveled to Trump Tower for the closed-door meeting anticipating a discussion about media access to the White House and perhaps a recalibration of the increasingly hostile relationship. Trump had something else in mind. He delivered an angry scold about the way he has been covered, complaining of unfairness even in the selection of the photos of him used during broadcasts, which, he griped, emphasized his double chin. He called the coverage outrageous and dishonest, according to a report in the New Yorker. Its unclear what Trumps intentions were. But if his goal was to chasten the media, he did not succeed. Some at the meeting described being offended and accused Trump of failing to understand the press 1st Amendment protection from government suppression. Facebook

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Aide says Trump does not want to pursue charges against Hillary Clinton By Del Quentin Wilber A top official of Donald Trumps presidential campaign on Tuesday reaffirmed signals sent by the president-elect that hes not interested in pursuing criminal charges against Hillary Clinton, despite his repeated campaign promises to prosecute the Democratic nominee over her handling of classified materials and involvement in the Clinton Foundation. Kellyanne Conway, Trumps former campaign manager, also told MSNBC that congressional Republicans should follow Trumps lead, suggesting they drop their own probes into Clinton. I think when the president-elect, whos also the head of your party, tells you before hes even inaugurated that he doesnt wish to pursue these charges, it sends a very strong message, tone, and content to the members, Conway said. Trump had promised his supporters that he would re-investigate whether Clinton broke laws while using a private email server as the nations secretary of State, even after the FBI concluded she had not. During a presidential debate, he even pledged to assign a special prosecutor to look into the matter. Despite his supporters strongly favored such an investigation -- they often erupted into chants of Lock her up! at his rallies -- Trump hinted after the election that he had changed his mind, telling 60 Minutes earlier this month that the Clintons were good people and he didnt want to hurt them. Conway said the former Democratic presidential candidate still has to face the fact that a majority of Americans dont find her to be honest or trustworthy, but she added, If Donald Trump can help her heal, then perhaps thats a good thing to do. FBI Director James B. Comey has said that Clinton was extremely careless in how she and her aides handled classified information on her private server while she served as secretary of State. But agents, he said, turned up no evidence they had intended to violate espionage laws. The Justice Department agreed with Comey and closed the inquiry. Its highly unusual for a president to tell an attorney general whether or not to investigate a potential criminal matter, especially one involving his political rival. Trumps apparent desire to drop the matter raises questions about the FBIs inquiry into the Clinton Foundation, which unlike the email probe has not been concluded. The attorney general would have some discretion whether to prosecute, said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond. Politically, however, its not feasible if the president really doesnt want it to happen. The FBI has not commented on the status of any investigations into the Clinton Foundation. FBI agents in New York were reportedly looking into the nonprofit and wanted permission to use more aggressive law enforcement tools to dig deeper into the organization. But they were blocked by prosecutors and top FBI officials who did not believe the investigators had developed evidence to justify such actions, according to law enforcement officials. Facebook

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One of Donald Trumps meetings might offer a clue for how he wants to replace Obamacare By Noam N. Levey Dr. James Jackson performs a physical on Matthew Shorter, 51, a Medicaid patient enrolled in the Healthy Indiana Plan, at the Heart City Health Center in Elkhart, Ind. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune) Donald Trump has consistently vowed to repeal and replace Obamacare. But he has yet to explain what he intends to replace it with. His meeting schedule today might offer a clue of what he is pondering. On the agenda is a chat with Seema Verma, an architect of Indianas unusual healthcare program for the poor. Indiana is among a handful of red states that took federal aid through the Affordable Care Act to expand Medicaid eligibility to poor, childless adults. But unlike most traditional Medicaid expansions, Indiana set up a system that requires many low-income residents on the program to pay small monthly contributions for their health coverage. Conservatives, including the states governor, Vice President-elect Mike Pence, have argued that this makes poor patients take greater responsibility for their health. And healthcare advocates in Indiana generally supported the program, in large part because it was seen as the only way to expand health protections in the deeply conservative state. But cost-sharing requirements for low-income patients remains controversial, and a number of states that have experimented with it in the past stopped after concluding it was too expensive and difficult to administer. Read More Facebook

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Britain says not so fast to Trump tweet about Nigel Farage as ambassador to U.S. By Laura King Donald Trump, right, welcomes pro-Brexit British politician Nigel Farage to speak at a campaign rally in Jackson, Miss., in August. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press) Donald Trump and Nigel Farage were always something of a love match. But cold political realities may have intervened. The U.S. president-elect tweeted late Monday that Farage, leader of a far-right British political party, would make a great British ambassador to Washington. Apparently, the British response early Tuesday could be summarized as: Er, no. There is no vacancy, the Guardian newspaper quoted a spokesman at 10 Downing St., the prime ministers official residence in London, as saying. We already have an excellent ambassador to the U.S. Farage was a wholehearted proponent of Brexit, the June referendum in which the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union, with still unknown long-term results. The British politician traveled to the United States during the campaign to offer his support for Trump, making rally appearances to sometimes bemused crowds to promote their purported common cause. In the course of his push for the presidency, Trump declared himself Mr. Brexit, and at one point dubbed his insurgent campaign Brextit-plus-plus  an allusion to his support for a referendum across the Atlantic that was strongly colored by anti-immigrant sentiment. Farage was among the early visitors to Trump Tower following the GOP candidates unexpected victory. The two posed, grinning, in front of a bank of gold-plated elevators in the president-elects Manhattan residence. But hopes of a more formalized relationship appear to have been dashed. The Guardian quoted members of Parliament as saying Farages inflammatory views made him a poor candidate for a diplomatic post. The Reuters news agency said it would be highly unusual for an incoming foreign administration to so publicly air its pick for a diplomatic post. Trumps suggestion, it noted, provoked anger, support and even hilarity in Britain. The news agency quoted a Conservative lawmaker, Simon Burns, as joking that Britain should name its own choice for U.S. envoy to the United Kingdom: Hillary Clinton. Facebook

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Trump the president vs. Trump the businessman: Can he juggle both? By Don Lee Donald and Melania Trump greet a guest at a grand-opening ceremony last month at Trumps new hotel in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images) The Trump Organization spent months trying to drive off the culinary union from its Las Vegas hotel, losing one legal battle after another before a federal labor board. Soon Donald Trumps company, which has refused to bargain with the union after housekeepers and other employees voted to join last December, could gain some leverage. As president, Trump will be able to appoint two new members to the National Labor Relations Board, giving the agency a 3-2 Republican majority that could be more sympathetic to Trump. We hope that Mr. Trump doesnt use his power to interfere, considering he has a financial interest in the outcome, said Bethany Khan, spokeswoman for Culinary Workers Union Local 226. Khans concern is but one of many examples of potential conflicts of interest that could arise for Trump the president vs. Trump the businessman. His vast holdings include hotels, office buildings and golf courses, and he has licensing deals across the globe. Read More Facebook

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Donald Trump briefly cancels meeting with New York Times and complains about its nasty tone By Amy Fiscus I cancelled today's meeting with the failing @nytimes when the terms and conditions of the meeting were changed at the last moment. Not nice  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 22, 2016 Donald Trump briefly canceled a meeting Tuesday with New York Times journalists, claiming that its terms were suddenly changed. The charge was made in the obfuscatory style that has come to mark Trumps tweets. He said only that the terms of the meeting were changed, not who changed them; the paper said Trump, not anyone on its side, had requested new terms after the meeting was set. NYT did not try to change ground rules. Trump did, asking for only a private meeting and no on-the-record segment, which NYT refused. https://t.co/EpmZFdDYAh  Jonathan Mahler (@jonathanmahler) November 22, 2016 The meeting was supposed to have included both a private discussion, similar to one Trump had Monday with television news network executives, and a segment where reporters were free to quote Trump by name. The Times said Trump later asked for the meeting to be fully private, a request the newspaper refused. After the cancelation gained widespread attention, spokeswomen for both Trump and the newspaper said it was back on as scheduled. Trump has done a handful of interviews since being elected, none with the Times, and has not held a news conference, as is customary for most presidents within a few days of their election. He also said the papers coverage of him had a nasty tone, without citing specifics. Its front page Wednesday included stories questioning the constitutionality of his foreign business deals and one citing concerns that the military might have too much influence over foreign policy in a Trump administration. 7:25 a.m.: This story was updated with the scheduled meeting being reinstated. Facebook

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Neo-Nazi alt-right crowd cheers the president-elect with Hail Trump By Jessica Roy A newly released video shows a room full of people doing the Hitler salute and yelling Hail Trump! after listening to a speech about white nationalism that invokes Nazi terminology. The video was taken over the weekend by a reporter for The Atlantic while working on a documentary about Richard Spencer. Spencer is the person speaking in the video. He runs the National Policy Institute, a self-described alt-right think tank that openly supports white nationalist and neo-Nazi policies. In the past, he has called for a peaceful ethnic cleansing of the United States. In the video, Spencer calls the media leftists and cucks, invoking popular alt-right insults for people they disagree with. He calls the media the Lugenpresse, which is what the original Nazi Party called the media in Germany  the lying press. We dont exploit other groups, he says, the we referring explicitly to white people. We dont gain anything from their presence. The press has clearly decided to double-down and wage war against the legitimacy of Trump and the continued existence of white America, he continues. But they are really opening up the door for us.... America was, until this past generation, a white country, designed for ourselves and our posterity. It is our creation, it is our inheritance, and it belongs to us. America was, until this past generation, a white country, designed for ourselves and our posterity. It is our creation, it is our inheritance, and it belongs to us.  Richard Spencer Members of the crowd give the Nazi salute throughout the speech. Last week, the Twitter accounts for Spencer and his think tank were suspended, along with a number of other alt-right accounts. Trumps campaign issued a statement in response to the video: President-elect Trump has continued to denounce racism of any kind and he was elected because he will be a leader for every American. To think otherwise is a complete misrepresentation of the movement that united Americans from all backgrounds. White supremacists have credited Trumps win with sparking a new interest in their movement. Facebook

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Donald Trumps first promises since winning the election leave out the border wall, NAFTA and his Muslim ban By Noah Bierman President-elect Donald Trump spent more than a year campaigning to build a border wall, repeal Obamacare and rescind President Obamas moves to protect from deportation some immigrants who came to the U.S. illegally. But in his first extensive public comments since winning the election this month, Trump mentioned none of those issues. Nor did he talk about withdrawing from the North American Free Trade Agreement, banning Muslims from entering the country, or ending the Syrian refugee program. Trump instead made five more modest promises for his first day in office during a nearly three-minute video released Monday that presented him as a more moderate figure and appeared to be an effort to soften Trumps message while he establishes an inner circle of advisors and Cabinet picks of hard-liners. In the video, Trump promises to withdraw from the massive Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, a potential disaster for our country, and instead pursue bilateral agreements with some of the Pacific countries involved. He promised to lift restrictions on energy production, including shale and coal, implement a rule that any new government regulation must be accompanied by removing two regulations on the books and to instruct his Joint Chiefs of Staff to develop a new cybersecurity plan. His only discussion of immigration involved the legal immigration system  a crackdown on visa fraud. Trump also said his previously announced ethics rules  barring employees in his administration from lobbying for five years after they leave the government and from lobbying for foreign governments for life  would take effect as soon as he is inaugurated. Trump vowed in the video to release more plans in the days to come. These are some of our Day 1 executive actions, spokesman Jason Miller said in an email. By no means is it everything hell work on day one or after that  many additional good things to come. Read More Facebook

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World gets glimpse of deportation plan Kris Kobach took to meeting with Trump By Colleen Shalby Kris Kobach, the Kansas secretary of state whos been tapped to join Donald Trumps immigration policy transition team, probably didnt intend for the world to see details of his plan to bar terrorists and Syrian refugees when he brought it to a meeting Monday. But thats what happened when he posed for a photo with President-elect Donald Trump outside of Trump International Golf Club in New Jersey. The document was in full unobstructed view, as Kobach apparently wasnt thinking about the power of a zoom lens. The clearest part reads: DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY KOBACH STRATEGIC PLAN FOR FIRST 365 DAYS Bar entry of Potential Terrorists Update and reintroduce the NSEERs screening and tracking system (National Entry-Exit Registration System) that was in place from 2002-2005. All aliens from high-risk areas are tracked. Add extreme vetting questions for high-risk aliens; question them regarding support for Sharia law, jihad, equality of men and women, the United States Constitution. Reduce intake of Syrian refugees to zero, using authority under the 1980 Refugee Act. Record Number of Criminal Aliens in the First Year Those details arent exactly new. Trump has made it clear that he intends to deport 2 million to 3 million immigrants in the country illegally who fall under his definition of criminal. And Kobach, who is behind several controversial immigration laws and was the architect behind the NSEERs system, has said previously that he will help Trump reverse President Obamas immigration policies. The Obama administration has set a second-term priority to deport migrants with criminal convictions. Since taking office, Obama has expelled more people than any other president in American history. Less legible on Kobachs document, but still visible, are mentions of its definition of criminal alien (any alien arrested for any crime, and any gang member); the phrase 386 miles of existing actual wall; the Patriot Act; and Draft Amendment to National Voter .... Its possible this line refers to the National Voter Registration Act. Kansas Senate Minority Leader Anthony Hensley criticized Kobach. Thats the height of irony if hes wanting a job in Homeland Security and youre able to see in a photograph what should be confidential information, Hensley said. Facebook

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Rolling out Obamacare was chaotic, but a repeal could be much worse By Noam N. Levey In the summer of 2013, as state and federal officials readied new insurance marketplaces created through the Affordable Care Act, millions of Americans started getting disquieting notices from their insurers. Health plans were being canceled because they didnt comply with the law, often called Obamacare. Some 4 million people were ultimately told they would lose their plans. The ensuing outrage sparked a political firestorm, seriously eroded public confidence in Obamacare and forced an embarrassed President Obama to change federal regulations so people could keep their coverage. Yet that tumultuous episode could be dwarfed by what President-elect Donald Trumps administration and its congressional allies unleash beginning next year. They plan to not only repeal the law but are contemplating changes that are significantly more far-reaching and could disrupt insurance coverage for many more Americans than did the original law. Read More Facebook

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The U.S. labor forces guy problem: Why arent more men working? By Jim Puzzanghera Inmates at San Quentin State Prison in August. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) As the recovery from the Great Recession continues, job growth is solid and the labor force is growing at close to its fastest pace since 2000 because more unemployed workers are coming off the sidelines. Still, the percentage of working-age Americans in the labor force remains stuck near its lowest level since the late 1970s. Although retiring baby boomers are the main reason, theres another troubling factor that experts predict wont be solved by stronger economic growth. Too many men in their prime dont have a job and arent even looking for one. Experts trying to figure out the reasons are probing the roles of criminal background checks, painkillers and even video games. In all, about 7 million men ages 25 to 54 are neither employed nor available for work, putting them outside the labor force. Their growing numbers worry and puzzle economists. Read More Facebook

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Obama gives strong support to Pelosi as she faces leadership fight By Christi Parsons House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) President Obama all but endorsed Nancy Pelosi to continue to lead House Democrats on Sunday, defending her as she faces a challenge to her position from restive members of the Democratic caucus. Although he is reticent to meddle in party votes while he is on the way out the door, Obama said at a news conference that he cannot speak highly enough of the first female House speaker, who has been a key ally on some of his most important work as president. She combines strong progressive values with just extraordinary political skill, and she does stuff thats tough, not just stuff thats easy, Obama said when asked whether the California Democrat should be reelected to her position. Obama made his remarks during a news conference in Lima, Peru, where he was wrapping up a summit meeting with Asian and Pacific leaders. Some of Pelosis decisions have been unpopular, even with voters in her San Francisco district, he said, but she has done them anyway because its the right thing to do for the American people. Pelosi faces a challenge from Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio, a seven-term member of the House. Perhaps the most notable example of her support for Obamas agenda was Pelosis steadfast support for the Affordable Care Act, which likely cost some Democrats their seats in Congress in the midterm election when Republicans took over the chamber. In offering advice to fellow Democrats, though, 
Fidel Castro died as he lived: to the sound of useful idiots making allowances for his crimes. (Thats not my term: It was Lenin who called liberal apologists for Communism useful idiots.)

The gold medal in the Useful Idiot Olympics should probably go to Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada. In a statement, he expressed his deep sorrow upon learning that Cubas longest serving president had died.

One can only imagine what George Orwell could do with that one word, serving. Castro did not serve, he ruled a nation of servants, often cruelly, while making obscene profits for himself and his family.

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To listen to some Castro defenders, youd think the scales of justice can balance out any load of horrors, so long as the substandard healthcare is free.

Fidel Castro was a larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century, Trudeau continued, repeating that word. While a controversial figure, both Mr. Castros supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for el Comandante.

Again, where is Orwells red pen?

El Comandante: The term drips with affection, doesnt it? Castros detractors? Would those be the families of the thousands he had executed? The survivors of Castros Caribbean gulag? Those who didnt drown trying to escape?

Trudeaus expression of deep sorrow was typical of a whole genre of Castro eulogies. His apologists have tended to romanticize the revolution and parrot Cuban state propaganda  literacy rates! Free healthcare!  while dispensing antiseptic euphemisms for the brutal reality of what the revolution wrought.

At least when people note that Hitler built the autobahn and Mussolini made the trains run on time, theyre usually being ironic. To listen to some Castro defenders, youd think the scales of justice can balance out any load of horrors, so long as the substandard healthcare is free and the schools (allegedly) teach everyone to read.

As much of the American left is openly mooting whether or not the American president-elect is a dictator in waiting, one has to wonder whether they would take that bargain: No more elections, no more free speech, no more civil liberties of any kind, but socialized medicine and literacy for everyone! American political dissidents, homosexuals, journalists and the clergy, just like in Cuba, can languish in prison or internal exile, but at least theyll be able to read the charges against them.

Such un-nuanced arguments always make leftist eyes roll. As University of Rhode Island professor Eric Loomis put it, Castro: Its Complicated! cautioning against thinking in terms of simplistic moral judgments. It seems to me that when people want to ban simplistic moral judgments, its usually because simple morality is not on their side.

Heres my Fox News colleague Geraldo Rivera on Twitter: Conservatives mocking nuanced view of #FidelCastro make me gag-What do they say about @realDonaldTrump? #RonaldReagan? RichardNixon? #Elvis?

Orwells red pen is too good for such asininity. Lest there is something I dont know about Elvis, none of these figures were brutal unelected despots responsible for the murder of their own people (10 times as many deaths as those credited to Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet).

One hint as to why Rivera and so many others were smitten with Castro: he was an international celebrity. Rivera even tweeted a picture of himself grinning broadly in el Comandantes presence along with his condolences. RIP #FidelCastro Yes, a despot who ruthlessly suppressed dissidents. But he defeated a dictator & was the premier revolutionary of his time.

Premier revolutionary of his time. Its as if Rivera thinks this title provides moral cover. This is the thinking that allows vacuous hipsters to unselfconsciously shrug when you tell them that the Che Guavara on their T-shirt was a sadistic murderer. Yeah, but he was cool.

But among serious leftists, Castros radical chic is secondary. For them, Fidels revolution provided the slender hope that America was on the wrong side of history. It was a symbol of resistance  intellectual, political and spiritual  to Western yanqui hegemony. They loved Cuba for many of the reasons they hate Israel (despite its exemplary literacy rate and universal healthcare system). They think  wrongly  that Israel is an extension of Western colonialism while Cuba was a rejection of it.

Castro understood this better than anyone, which is why he was able to serve his people for so long.

jgoldberg@latimescolumnists.com

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Californians should repeal Proposition 8 now, before we need to. Our states same-sex marriage ban was struck down by courts years ago, but its text remains part of the California Constitution, wedged uncomfortably between the equal protection clause and protections against employment discrimination: Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California, it says.

The language comes directly from the proposition, which passed in 2008 in the midst of a contentious tug-of-war over marriage equality in the state. A federal district court judge found Proposition 8 unconstitutional in 2010, but legal appeals kept it alive until 2013, when a U.S. Supreme Court ruling finally allowed same-sex weddings to resume in California. Laws that are found unconstitutional dont get erased; they just lose their legal force. So the text of the ban lies in wait, ready to spring back into action if given the chance. The election of Donald Trump might provide that chance.

Heres how Proposition 8 could make its comeback. Obergefell vs. Hodges and the other Supreme Court decisions that led to the nationwide legalization of same sex marriage were all 5-4 votes in favor of gay rights. That slim majority wont change when Trump fulfills his promise to replace Justice Antonin Scalia  who voted against marriage equality  with an equally conservative justice. However, three other justices are 78 or older (Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer). Should Trump get the chance to replace any one of them with another judge very much in the mold of Scalia  again, as he has promised  the 5-4 split will almost certainly flip. A new conservative majority would have little inclination to respect a right to same-sex marriage that Chief Justice John G. Roberts claims has no basis in the Constitution.

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A new conservative majority on the high court would have little inclination to respect a right to same-sex marriage.

If the Obergefell decision indeed falls, the federal district court order that allowed for same-sex marriage in California would soon be dissolved. California would return to 2008: Proposition 8 would again be the law. Existing marriages would remain in force, but same-sex couples would no longer be able to get married here.

California voters would no doubt quickly get to work repealing Proposition 8. But that would require a new initiative, a long and complicated effort involving either a two-thirds vote in the Legislature or a signature drive to get a new measure on the ballot and then a win at the polls. For a year or two at least, discrimination against gay and lesbian couples would again be the law of the state. This is a risk we can avoid by starting the initiative process now.

You may be tempted to think repeal simply wont be necessary. After all, when Trump was interviewed on 60 Minutes a few days after the election, he referred to Obergefell vs. Hodges as settled law, repudiating the Republican Partys 2016 platform, which condemned the courts marriage equality rulings. But dont be reassured. Trump doesnt get a vote on whether Obergefell stands. That choice belongs to the justices, including future appointees who see Obergefell in the way Scalia did: as a threat to American democracy.

The California LGBT community, especially those who are transgender or undocumented, may face other more immediate threats under the new administration than the return of Proposition 8. But the threat to marriage equality in California is of our own making. Californians cant control a lot of what will emanate from Washington in the next four years, but we can control what happens here. We enshrined discrimination in our state constitution in 2008. We own Proposition 8  and we can disown it, once and for all.

Brian Soucek is acting professor of law at UC Davis School of Law. bsoucek@ucdavis.edu.

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To the editor: I would hope that this article would be printed nationwide, as it is a prime and clear example of the failure of Republican free-market trickle-down economics at work. The only part missing is an examination of the distribution of tax cuts, that is, who got hit the softest and who got hit the hardest. (Hard times for Kansas and its schools as economic experiment creates gaping budget hole, Nov. 21)

I imagine Boeing in Wichita and other aerospace giants are pleased about being tapped so gently, while schools have to do without the support they need to generate the next generation of people that help Boeing stay huge and profitable. The blindness to the plight of those who want to improve themselves is unconscionable, and will serve to continue to import properly educated and qualified candidates for highly skilled positions instead of investing in our at-home future and growing our own talent.

Hopefully the people of Kansas will use whatever legal means necessary to give their children the bright future they deserve while showing the rest of the country what can be accomplished in a democracy.

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Lincoln Gable Riley , Culver City

..

To the editor: The Republicans got control of Kansas and instituted their financial plan of low taxes for the rich and for businesses. It failed. The Kansas economy is a flop, and it has run up huge deficits.

Now, on the national level, the Republicans will soon be in control of the House, the Senate and the presidency. Watch for similar tax initiatives with the claim that the economy will grow, and watch for similar failures.

Just like the citizens of Kansas, we will all pay for this experiment.

Norwood Price, Burbank

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To the editor: That two of President-elect Donald Trumps most recent cabinet appointments are women from the mainstream is the least significant thing about them. (Trump reaches beyond loyalists and adds diversity with latest Cabinet picks, Nov. 23)

Billionaire Betsy DeVos, appointed to head the Department of Education, is uniquely unqualified. She has been a longtime enemy of public education. She has no education degree, no teaching experience, has never worked in a school environment, and has never attended a public school or university. She advocates funneling money out of public schools and into for-profit and Christian education. This appointment is an all-out attack on public education in our country.

Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina, Trumps pick to be ambassador to the United Nations, has no international experience and is totally out of step with the majority of world leaders on climate change.

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These are the most relevant issues regarding the appointments, and they deserve to be mentioned prominently.

Neil Reichline, Tarzana

..

To the editor: DeVos advocates for charter schools and educational vouchers as alternatives to public schools.

Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize-winning economist and former chairman of the Presidents Council of Economic Advisors, singled out in a 2005 essay the effect of vouchers while discussing the quality of schools, particularly for low-income families:

Vouchers  what amounts to partial privatization of our elementary and secondary educational systems  have been put forward as a free-market solution to the shortfalls in educational quality. But the advocates of vouchers have never made a convincing case that they can be designed to promote higher educational attainments and greater racial integration across the entire educational system, rather than just for those receiving the vouchers.

George Shahinian, Huntington Beach

..

To the editor: Trumps misguided statements opposing Common Core show his complete lack of understanding on the issue.

The Common Core is not a curriculum to be taught; it is a method of teaching. The teach-test-reteach-retest legacy of No Child Left Behind actually left Americas schools behind in the all-important areas of creativity and problem solving. Now, Trump wants to return to the simplistic education system that teaches kids what to learn, not how.

Trump forgets two things in his rush to bash public education and its teacher unions in favor of privatization. First, those heavy industry jobs he wants to bring back simply do not exist anymore. With increasingly computerized production, the skills set needed for these new jobs require much more mind and much less muscle.

Second, Thomas Jefferson advocated for free public education as a way to protect democracy. Does Trump want to undermine this basic tenet of our countrys foundation?

Bob Bruesch, Rosemead

The writer, an inductee into the National Teachers Hall of Fame, is a member of the Garvey School District Board of Education.

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This is certainly not Bush v. Gore, a Wisconsin elections official said Monday.

Well, what is it?

The state is initiating the first significant candidate-driven recount in a presidential election since the 2000 ordeal in Florida between then-Vice President Al Gore and eventual President George W. Bush.

This time, though, Donald Trump is certain to remain president-elect after Wisconsins nearly 3 million ballots are re-tabulated. But the fight here and potentially in other states has given third-party candidates new rationale for seeking public attention for their causes, and it has given Trump fresh ammunition to trash his opponents  as well as, bafflingly, the political process in which he just secured the presidency.

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Here is a look at the issues involved in the Badger State and elsewhere as the seemingly unending 2016 presidential election seeps into overtime.

Why is Wisconsin heading toward a recount?

In requesting a recount Friday, just ahead of a deadline to do so, Green Party candidate Jill Stein cited well-documented and conclusive evidence of foreign interference in the presidential race, as well as irregularities observed in Wisconsin. Wisconsin was one of Trumps narrowest wins, by about 22,000 votes.

Why is Jill Stein the one seeking the recount?

An excellent question. Wisconsin has no threshold for triggering an automatic recount, leaving it up to individual candidates to request, and pay for, any re-tallying of the votes. Stein received 31,006 votes in the state, about 1% of the total, giving her the standing to seek a recount even though shes unlikely to benefit from a potential change in result.

Another candidate, Roque Rocky De La Fuente, applied for the recount ahead of Stein, part of what he called an effort to bring the weaknesses of our electoral system to the attention of every citizen. De La Fuente received just 1,514 votes in Wisconsin.

This is as much about getting their names in the news as it is about election integrity. For Stein, the recount effort also helped raise funds  which she sought in connection with the recount, but which her campaign would not guarantee would be spent exclusively on recount efforts.

Steins petition was also prompted by a report on findings by J. Alex Halderman, a professor of computer science at the University of Michigan. He questioned whether Hillary Clintons poor performance in some counties were tied to the use of electronic voting machines that could have been tampered with. Stein included the post as exhibit one for her petition, even as Halderman clarified the interpretation of his analysis.

But what some saw as potential anomalies are easily explained by demography, separate analyses have said: The counties that use paper ballots tended to be urban, more Democratic-leaning areas where Clinton performed best.

Why does it cost so much?

The federal deadline to complete the recount is Dec. 13, and county officials may need to work evenings and weekends to meet it, according to state elections overseers. Wisconsins last statewide recount, a 2011 state Supreme Court race, cost $520,000 to examine about half as many ballots, according to an Associated Press survey of county clerks.

Candidates can challenge results of the recount in circuit court within five days of the recount being completed.

Steins public campaign for recounts led her to raise $6.5 million through an initial fundraising drive, toward a goal of $7 million she said was needed to cover costs. After her call for a recount received an enthusiastic response, she repeatedly increased the amount of money she said she needed.

Where does Hillary Clinton fit in to all this?

Clintons team did its due diligence in Wisconsin and other states and found no actionable evidence of vote manipulation, and no state where a recount or challenge was merited, said Marc Elias, a lawyer for her campaign. But once Stein initiated the recount, the Clinton campaign wanted to ensure it was represented.

That participation has been exaggerated and misconstrued by some to say Clinton is herself challenging the result. Wisconsin election officials said Monday that Clintons campaign would not bear any costs for the recount, but that it  like Trumps campaign  was eligible to observe the process.

And yes, Clinton, her campaign, Democrats, even some Republicans and many independent and outside voices were critical of Trumps refusal during one of the televised debates to say he would honor the result of the election. He later clarified to say that he reserved the right to challenge any questionable result if he suspected potential fraud. Thats quite different, both in spirit and in literal terms, to this process. In fact it is Trump, not Stein nor Clinton, falsely alleging a widespread effort to manufacture illegal votes.

Where else might we see recounts?

Pennsylvania and Michigan are two other closely contested states where Stein is seeking recounts. They, along with Wisconsin, made up the Clinton firewall that Trump successfully breached to win.

Its worth pointing out that elections in this country are not conducted by a single entity. All 50 states have their own processes for conducting elections for presidential electors, and their own rules for certifying, auditing and potentially recounting results. And some states allow counties and municipalities leeway to act independently of one another, on issues such as voting equipment, for instance. The Wisconsin Elections Commission calls its state the most decentralized in the nation, with primary authority for the recount at the county level with state oversight.

This uneven process virtually guarantees it is impossible to conduct widespread fraud that would turn an election.

Steins campaign said Monday that it was successful in initiating recount requests in 100 voting precincts in Pennsylvania, where Trump won by more than 68,000 votes. But there are more than 9,000 precincts statewide, so Stein is far short of what she needs to trigger a statewide recount.

A recount in Pennsylvania is especially unlikely to yield a substantially different result, given that it is one of just a dozen states where there is no paper record to review.

Elections officials in Michigan, where Trump won by more than 11,000 votes, certified results Monday, triggering a deadline for candidates to request a recount within 48 hours. Steins campaign said it will request a recount Wednesday thats done by hand.

What are the chances this changes the election results?

Slim to none, with none the leader in the clubhouse. Citing data compiled by nonprofit FairVote of the 27 statewide general election recounts in the last 16 years, FiveThirtyEight found that the average change in margin was just 282 votes. The biggest was in the highest-profile case: Floridas presidential vote in 2000, when Al Gore gained 1,247 votes to close to within 537 votes behind George W. Bush, out of more than 5.9 million cast. Still, he didnt win the state, or the election.

Just three states  New Hampshire, Wisconsin and Michigan  had final margins of less than 1 percentage point in the 2016 election. In terms of raw votes, the closest outcome of the roughly dozen battleground states was New Hampshire, where Clinton won victory by just 2,736 votes. But the Nov. 14 deadline for any candidate to apply for a recount, as well as a Nov. 18 deadline for voters to petition the state for one, came and went.

Ive never seen a recount overturn margins as large as the ones were dealing with here, said David Wasserman, an elections analyst for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report who is closely monitoring the state-by-state electoral tallies.

Youre kidding.

Very little of this is funny.

So why do we care?

In part because were in the unique situation in which the president-elect, the winner of the election, is the one most publicly raising questions about the integrity of the outcome.

Trump attacked Stein for initiating the recount, then went on to say he would have won in the national popular vote as well as the electoral college had millions of ineligible votes not been cast, a false claim for which his own campaign has offered no definitive evidence.

The most likely source for Trump was hardly a credible one: a report without evidence cited by the fringe website InfoWars.com claiming to have verified that more than 3 million votes were cast by noncitizens. Virtually all of the votes cast by 3 million illegal immigrants are likely to have been for Hillary Clinton, meaning Trump might have won the popular vote when this number is taken into account, the site claimed.

As the Los Angeles Times reported just before the election, voter fraud  in which a person casts a ballot despite knowingly being ineligible to vote  is extraordinarily rare, according to a report by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law School. The 2007 study examined elections where wrongdoing was alleged and found the rate of substantiated instances of fraud ranged between 0.00004% and 0.0009%.

Vote tallying is ongoing  mostly in California  and Clinton is likely to win the popular vote by about 2.5 million votes.

Who is Trump talking about when he claims incorrectly that millions voted illegally?

He didnt specify, but he may have been talking about people who vote even though they are not citizens, a warning he repeated during the campaign. They are letting people pour into the country so they can go ahead and vote, he said in October, again without evidence. By law, all voters in national elections are supposed to be U.S. citizens. Even legal immigrants may not vote until they become naturalized.

Can noncitizens register to vote?

Its possible, though not legal. When people register, they must check a box swearing that they are citizens. But in most places, the question is handled on the honor system. Election administrators usually verify identity, by checking drivers license or Social Security records. But under federal rules, they may not ask for proof of citizenship, like a birth certificate or a passport.

Do they actually vote?

It has happened, though not in any meaningful fashion in terms of election results. A conservative legal foundation that has pushed for citizenship checks has obtained lists of people purged from the voting rolls for not being citizens. In Virginia, more than 1,000 people have been removed since 2011 in eight counties that provided records. In Philadelphia, election administrators purged 86 noncitizen voters over three years; 40 had voted at least once. Election supervisors say most of these cases were mistakes made by people who thought they could vote, not cases of intent to fraudulently vote.

Whats the evidence that millions of people are voting illegally?

There is none. Trump has mentioned a statistical analysis by three Virginia academics that estimated that more than 6% of noncitizens cast illegal votes in 2008. But that study was attacked by other experts, who said that the study made too much of a few people who said they were noncitizens and might have given incorrect answers to a survey.

Times staff writer Joseph Tanfani contributed to this report.

michael.memoli@latimes.com

For more 2016 campaign coverage, follow @mikememoli on Twitter.

ALSO:

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What seemed like a sleepy holiday weekend ended up feeling a lot like the campaign by the time it clanged to a conclusion Sunday, with President-elect Donald Trump suggesting Hillary Clinton only won the popular vote thanks to people casting ballots illegally in states including California.

Im Christina Bellantoni. Welcome to Essential Politics, back after a holiday hiatus and about to transition to a new schedule. (More on that soon.)

Trumps Twitter accusations are being met with encouragement by some Republican officials. Democrats appear to have a mixed reaction to the forthcoming recount in Wisconsin, led by Green Party nominee Jill Stein.

It was the Clinton campaigns willingness to go along with the recount in that state (and potentially Pennsylvania and Michigan) that prompted Trumps strong reaction Sunday, an 11-tweet response that reprised Clintons debate answer about the need for a loser to accept election results.

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More striking was his claim that millions of people had illegally voted for Clinton.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump wrote, citing Virginia, New Hampshire and California as his examples.

Sacramento bureau chief John Myers reports that top elections watchers say theres no evidence of any sort of fraud here. (By the way, California still had just under 1.5 million ballots left to count before the Thanksgiving break.)

Cathleen Decker writes for Mondays front page that the president-elect has left many questions unanswered about his new administration and that so far, if anything, the transition has been a re-run of the campaign that preceded it  more publicly riotous than most with Trump as its centering force.

Such tactics served Trump well in the 17 months since he declared his candidacy for president, she writes, but their persistence in the transition resurrects a question asked repeatedly since then: Are these growing pains, or the way its going to be? Some answers may come with the appointments of the most influential cabinet posts, but they are clouded by public rancor among Trumps confidants.

We examined the pressure Trump is under to select Mitt Romney as his secretary of State, and continue to cover the comings and goings of the Trump transition on Trail Guide. For the latest, check it out and follow @latimespolitics.

ELECTORAL COLLEGE CAN MAKE TRUMPS VICTORY OFFICIAL

Some liberals are holding out hope that Trump could be kept from the presidency by members of the electoral college, a little-known group of people who play a key role in formalizing the election results. Chris Megerian explains how it works, and why its unlikely that Trump has much to fear.

And Liam Dillon reports the Electoral College meeting will be bittersweet for the California electors who had expected Clinton would defeat Trump. The state GOP chairman, who would have been an elector had Trump won California, said he was fine with missing the electoral college party because Trump won the presidency.

The 55 Democrats who will gather at the state Capitol on Dec. 19 to officially cast their ballots for Clinton will be delivering the states massive electoral vote haul to Clinton. Many of them are either party officials, or relatives of state leaders.

TRUMPS EYES AND EARS

Jared Kushner has never worked in government or politics before this year. But the 35-year-old real estate developer has a unique qualification to serve as one of the next presidents closest advisors  hes Trumps son-in-law. Megerian introduces readers to Kushners role in helping guide Trumps campaign and writes that Kushner is poised to continue wielding influence, even if he doesnt wind up with an official White House job.

HISTORY IN THE MAKING

House Democrats on Wednesday will elevate a woman of color to leadership for the first time  and shell be a Californian.

Sarah Wire reports on the historic nature of the race between Reps. Barbara Lee and Linda Sanchez for the vice chair position in the House Democratic Caucus. It may put their California colleagues in a tough position, but it will diversify the public face the party presents to the nation at a time of heightened attention to a Trump presidency. And dont forget there are a host of ambitious Democratic lawmakers ready to move up.

Well be covering the race, along with Rep. Tim Ryans challenge to Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, closely on our Essential Politics news feed.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAS MAYORS WEIGH IN

When it comes to Trump, L.A.s Democratic Mayor Eric Garcetti and San Diegos Republican Mayor Kevin Faulconer are in agreement.

I interviewed them about the president-elect, the border and what they expect in the coming year at a recent post-election symposium hosted by The Times in downtown Los Angeles.

CALIFORNIA LOOKS TO THE TEXAS PLAYBOOK

As California turned blue on election night, state political leaders rushed to set up the state as a liberal counterweight to Trump, laying the groundwork for four years of battles with Washington.

The posture is out of character for a state that in recent times has tended not to view federal power with hostility. Jazmine Ulloa and Melanie Mason detail how the Golden State seems to be taking a page from a perennial rival: Texas playing the chief antagonist to President Obama.

DRAWN-OUT BATTLE FOR SENATE SUPERMAJORITY

Democrat Josh Newman took the lead for the first time last week in his race against Assemblywoman Ling Ling Chang (R-Diamond Bar) in Californias 29th Senate District. Changs initial lead of nearly 4,000 votes shrank considerably as more mail and provisional ballots were counted, and as of Wednesday, Newman was ahead by about 1,500 votes. The next round of updates is expected Monday afternoon and well be covering it here.

POLITICAL ROAD MAP: LONG BALLOT COUNTING, TOP-TWO PRIMARY

California elections continue to evolve from changes in the rules governing the casting of ballots and the selection of candidates.

In his Sunday columns that bookended the holiday week, Myers took a look at why the counting of ballots takes so long in the Golden State and how the 2010 decision to make a major change to candidate primary elections has changed one major political party but not the other.

WHATS NEXT FOR BILINGUAL EDUCATION

Proposition 58, which overhauls English-only instruction in California, cruised to victory on election night, granting public schools more power to develop and implement their own bilingual and multilingual programs. Ulloa reports that the onus will now fall on parents and teachers to make them happen. That could prove challenging given the troubled legacy of bilingual education in the state, and as schools continue to wrestle with teacher and funding shortages.

TODAYS ESSENTIALS

 The new California Legislature will see a slight rise in diversity but a drop in the number of women.

 Proposition 66, which seeks to expedite the death penalty, was officially called as having passed.

 The marijuana industry is celebrating the passage of an initiative legalizing recreational marijuana in California, but local elections saw voters in 37 counties and cities  including Long Beach, San Diego and San Bernardino  approve ballot measures imposing separate local taxes or fees on pot. Patrick McGreevy reports that some activists and industry leaders are worried about the affordability of legal marijuana as cities and counties pile their own taxes of up to 15% on top of the 15% state excise tax approved by voters who passed Proposition 64.

 In case you missed it while we were on break, Rep. Ami Bera was declared the winner in his re-election fight against Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones. Also, GOP Assemblywoman Young Kim (R-Fullerton) conceded her close race against Democrat Sharon Quirk-Silva for Assembly District 65.

 Assemblywoman Patty Lopez (D-San Fernando) is eyeing a run for LAUSD school board. Lopez, a one-term legislator who was unseated by fellow Democrat Raul Bocanegra, has filed papers to run for the boards sixth district and has until Dec. 6 to submit signatures.

 My former colleague Gwen Ifill passed away earlier this month after a battle with cancer. I shared my thoughts here, and Colleen Shalby wrote on Thanksgiving about what Gwen taught her  and the nation  in times of discord.

LOGISTICS

Did someone forward you this? Sign up here to get Essential Politics in your inbox daily. And keep an eye on our politics page throughout the day for the latest and greatest. And are you following us on Twitter at @latimespolitics?

Please send thoughts, concerns and news tips to politics@latimes.com.
President-elect Donald Trump not only alleged widespread national voter fraud in a series of messages posted on Twitter on Sunday, but took the time in one tweet to target the ballots cast in California as an example of the problem.

Trump called the fraud serious in the state, along with Virginia and New Hampshire, and blamed media bias for the lack of coverage the allegations have received.

It was the first time the president-elect has specifically voiced concerns about voting in California. The tweet came in the wake of several days of criticism from both Trump and his advisors over an effort by the Green Party to force a recount of votes cast in Wisconsin and possibly Michigan and Pennsylvania.

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The tweet, posted on Sunday afternoon, was met with condemnation from the states top elections official.

Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2016

It appears that Mr. Trump is troubled by the fact that a growing majority of Americans did not vote for him, Secretary of State Alex Padilla, a Democrat, said in a statement. His unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a president-elect.

Elections officials in the states 58 counties have not yet completed counting the ballots cast this month, but theres no doubt Trump was trounced by Democrat Hillary Clinton. In returns as of Saturday night that add to mounting evidence of just how far out of reach the state is for Republicans, Clinton was ahead by more than 3.9 million votes.

Political Road Map: Heres why it takes so long to count ballots in California 

The president-elects Sunday comments are not in line with any reporting or investigations into intentional acts in California designed to influence the outcome of the vote. Even so, the concern for voting integrity was echoed by a top state Republican.

I just think our system is ripe for fraud in California, said Harmeet Dhillon, the former vice chair of the California Republican Party and current Republican National Committee member.

Dhillon said she had not seen evidence of a systemic effort to rig Californias elections, but said Republicans had often raised concerns about election operations. In particular, she criticized the states relatively new law that requires the counting of any absentee ballot postmarked by election day and arriving as long as three days late. She said it was possible a ballot envelope could be postmarked using a private postage meter that had been set to Nov. 8 but was cast the next day.

The word postmarked is not clear in the law, said Dhillon, a San Francisco attorney.

But any such incident would be too isolated to sway a statewide election such as the presidential contest. Trumps accusation, offered as so many of his tweets without any further explanation or substantiation, stood in contrast to what otherwise at this point are only a series of vignettes about ballot or election mistakes in California.

Broad-brush allegations of voter fraud and illegal voting serve only to undermine the publics trust and confidence in the elections process and run the risk of further deflating voter participation, said Dean Logan, registrar of voters in Los Angeles County and president of the statewide association of elections officials.

Unlike other states, elections observers point out that California has a series of safeguards built into the systems used by individual counties and overseen by state officials. Those include voter-verified paper records for any ballots cast by electronic device (though the preponderance of votes are now cast using optical-scan ballots) and a 51-year-old law requiring an audit of the results in all races by hand-counting 1% of the ballots in each precinct across the state.

California has the most robust voting verification laws of any state in the country, said Kim Alexander, president of the nonpartisan California Voter Foundation.

In the almost three weeks following Trumps election, numerous online posts have alleged  with no actual evidence  voter fraud in various places across the country, often tied to allegations that those votes came from immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

Even so, Dhillon said the integrity of elections in California and across the nation is a serious issue that Trump is trying to highlight.

I think a single fraudulent ballot is a serious instance of fraud, she said.

john.myers@latimes.com

Follow @johnmyers on Twitter, sign up for our daily Essential Politics newsletter and listen to the weekly California Politics Podcast

ALSO:

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How Nancy Pelosis daughter and Dianne Feinsteins granddaughter became part of the electoral college

Trump the president-elect: So far, acting a lot like Trump the candidate

Updates on California politics

Track the Trump transition
I want to endorse all of Ray Richmonds observations and emotions in his Nov. 19 column, An open letter to Trump voters.

You all baked this foul dish. I for one am not eating any of it. And dont cry to me when Trump delivers on zero of his campaign promises. He is not going to indict Clinton, for example. And he is not going to cut middle-class taxes either.

No, you broke this egg, let me see you put it back together. Good luck with that.

Kevin Harrop

Burbank

..

Precedent and the president-elect

Re: An open letter to Trump voters, Ray Richmond. Although both of the leading presidential candidates were untruthful hypocrites, only one of them brought the specter of racial hatred and religious intolerance to the table. That candidate did not win the popular vote, but he won the electoral vote and will be our next president. Millions of Americans now fear what will happen to them after Jan. 20 instead of looking forward to a bright future for our country.

Seventy-four years ago, my parents were incarcerated by our government and relocated to concentration camps. They were born in California and had never committed any type of criminal act. Their crime was that their parents came from Japan and that they looked like the enemy. They were perceived as potential traitors and Executive Order 9066 justified their imprisonment. Their families lost everything and the experience affected all profoundly, including me. Both of them had to endure racial prejudice and discrimination for more than half of their lives.

No Americans, native born or immigrant, should be forced to dread the possibility of incarceration or being placed on a registry because of their appearance, the color of their skin, or the god they believe in. What happened to the American ideals of equality and freedom of religion? Those ideals should not be interfered with by some hateful politicians or a fearful public. The new president has the opportunity to show that our fears are unfounded. Let us hope that he does that and makes a sincere effort to stem the divisions in our country. Otherwise, he will face a unified opposition of millions of Americans who will not accept an agenda of hate and intolerance.

Thomas Saito

Burbank

..

Big helpings of civic gratitude

I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving.

As I celebrated Thanksgiving with family, I gave thanks for the blessings and the freedoms we enjoy every day. I am very appreciative of the great opportunity you have given me to serve as one of your council members in our great city.

I am thankful that we live in a city with so many caring residents who are involved in our community to help those who are less fortunate. Im also thankful for all of our city employees, our police and fire departments who are dedicated and work hard every day to provide all residents with great services.

Happy Holidays!

Councilman Bob Frutos

Burbank

..

Lets target traffic concerns

For a month we have been wondering whether or not a proposed Target on Hollywood Way was a rumor. Last week we got some confirmation when Patrick Prescott gave a presentation to the City Council. The Target Express is going to be roughly two-thirds the size of our Ralphs on Buena Vista, but with far less parking, even when you subtract the CVS parking lot. I dont see where the overflow is going to park. Mr. Prescott mentioned that a traffic study might not be needed because the property was formerly retail.

The past 20 or so years of driving by, I have not seen much evidence of retail at this property  an occasional piano sale, yes, but not a steady stream of people going in and out. I welcome a Target facility that is a 10-minute walk from my house, but I have some concerns about the parking and the traffic. I urge the City Council to order a traffic study. Dont grandfather this in. Lets proceed with caution.

Carol Tensen

Burbank

..

Grateful for the Spirit of Giving

Thank you to all who donated to our fundraiser for Spirit of Giving on Nov. 4. The Burbank Coordinating Council will use all profits for the upcoming Holiday Basket program. To all who helped to put on this event, our thanks and love.

Sponsors, you are terrific! You are on our website for everyone to see and appreciate.

Caterer, musicians, site manager, Pastor Ross Purdy and First Presbyterian Church, National Charity League, and our amazing committee  you did it!

A special shout out to our wonderful emcee, Marsha Ramos, to Sister Regina, and our amazing honorees, Emily Gabel-Luddy and the Burbank Fire Department. You are the best ever! We are grateful to everyone who helped and everyone who attended. This will help us serve the families who are unadopted (nearly 200 each year).

Anyone wishing for information on how to adopt a family or donate to Holiday Baskets can find it by visiting our website at www.burbankcoordinatingcouncil.org and downloading an application (if you are a family in need) and donor forms, found under volunteer opportunities (to help out). You can call us (818) 238-7647 or email ccholidaybaskets@aol.com.

We are not done yet. The food drive is Dec. 10, were packing bags Dec. 14, building baskets Dec. 16, and delivery day is Dec. 17.

Janet Diel

Burbank

The writer is president of the Burbank Coordinating Council.
If you want to try out Fathoms social impact cruises, youd better act fast. The give-back trips aboard the cruise brand that Carnival Corp. launched last April will end this summer.

Thats not to say the Fathom experience will vanish, the company says, but more on that later.

Fathom promises a weeklong cruise for passengers who want to have an impact on peoples lives. Cruises are designed to be inexpensive and sail on a more intimate ship, the 704-passenger Adonia.

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The sole destination is the Dominican Republic, where travelers arrive to help teach English in schools, work on building clean-water plants and help with reforestation. Prices on cruises from Miami are low (around $850 for an inside cabin for two people), and most on-board and land excursions are included in the price.

Last May, the cruise line added Cuba as a destination  not for social impact projects but for cultural tours. It was the first cruise ship to sail from Miami to Cuba in 50 years.

Now the Adonis will return to the British-based P&O Line for summer cruises. And Fathom experiences will expand across our many Carnival Corporation brands sailing to the Dominican Republic and beyond, a company statement says.

That means you can buy a social impact excursion for the Dominican Republic (and other destinations to be added in the future) on other Carnival Corp. lines, such as Holland America, Carnival or Princess.

Fathoms cruises will continue until the end of May.

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South African President Jacob Zuma was fighting for his political survival Monday, ambushed by a surprise no-confidence vote launched by his opponents in the governing party, the African National Congress.

Zuma has waged a struggle in recent months to hang on as president amid deep divisions in the ANC over his leadership. A series of senior figures have called for him to go, after accusations he allowed members of a powerful family, who are in business with his son, to influence Cabinet appointments and to benefit from government contracts.



For the record: An earlier version of this story said the Gupta family has made more than $500 billion from their business dealings with the South African government. The correct figure is $500 million.

At least four Cabinet ministers and several senior party members called for Zumas dismissal during the partys national executive committee meeting over the weekend and Monday, local media reported. Among them was the tourism minister, Derek Hanekom, who proposed the no-confidence vote Saturday, triggering a bitter three-day struggle.

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The executive committee has the power to topple Zuma as the countrys president, but it cannot remove him as party leader.

Outgoing South African Public Protector Advocate Thuli Madonsela at a news conference on Oct. 14 in Pretoria, South Africa. (Gianluigi Guercia / AFP/Getty Images )

Zumas links to the wealthy Gupta family were exposed in a report by South Africas public protector  an ombudsman-like figure  earlier this month. The report by Thuli Madonsela stopped short of accusing Zuma of breaking the law but called on him to set up a judicial inquiry into the influence of the Gupta family, which has interests in mining, the arms industry and media.

Zuma has indicated he will challenge the report in court. The Gupta family has denied any wrongdoing.

In the past year Zuma has been weakened by successive political controversies, including a scandal over his use of public funds to partially pay for upgrades to his personal home in Nkandla. The Constitutional Court ruled in March that Zuma breached the constitution by ignoring a recommendation by the public protector that he repay the funds. He has since repaid the money, around $540,000.

Another concern centered on the ANCs disastrous performance in municipal elections in August, when it lost control of three major cities, Johannesburg, Pretoria and Port Elizabeth, to the opposition. (Cape Town was in opposition hands before August and remains so.)

The no-confidence debate in the executive committee comes with sluggish economic growth of less than 1% and unemployment at more than 27%, a figure that excludes those who have given up searching for work. State-owned enterprises such as South African Airways and the electricity provider Eskom are losing millions.

A ratings agency, Fitch, warned Friday that political infighting would likely continue to distract the ANC in the coming year. The agency dropped its outlook for South Africa to negative, signaling a possible downgrade to junk status in the future. Moodys warned Saturday that divisions in the governing party, low growth and high unemployment posed the greatest threats to South Africa. But neither of the agencies downgraded South Africa, as was feared.

A third ratings agency, Standard & Poors, is due to announce its decision on South Africa later this week.

Zuma, 74, has grown weaker since last December, when he fired the finance minister, Nhlanhla Nene, replacing him with a little-known ally, David van Rooyen. The South African currency, the rand, plunged on markets and Zuma was forced to reverse the decision four days later.

He appointed Pravin Gordhan to the job but relations between the two have been tense. The National Prosecuting Authority last month filed fraud charges against Gordhan but dropped them in a move perceived by South African analysts as a blow to Zuma. Senior ANC figures have claimed the charges against the minister were political.

Mondays vote in the national executive committee  a body that until recently was strongly behind Zuma  indicated waning support for the president, with analysts predicting that his opponents will continue to struggle for his dismissal, even if they lose Mondays vote

In recent months, disquiet about Zumas leadership has grown among senior ANC figures, including a former finance minister, Trevor Manuel, an apartheid struggle veteran, Ahmed Kathrada, and other former government ministers. Several unions allied with the ANC have also called on Zuma to step down.

In a symbolic move, the Nelson Mandela Foundation, set up by the countrys revered former president and ANC leader, said last month that Zuma had failed the test of national leadership, and called on the governing party to put the country in safe hands.

Zuma is due to remain in office until elections in 2019, but the party is to hold a national conference next year to select his successor. The two strongest leadership rivals are Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and the chairwoman of the African Union commission, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Zumas ex-wife. Ramaphosa has the backing of the powerful trade union council, COSATU.

Zuma, the illiterate son of a domestic worker, was head of the ANCs underground military intelligence wing during the apartheid era and was jailed alongside Mandela. Zuma learned to read in prison on Robben Island, where he served a 10-year sentence.

If he is toppled, Zuma would be the second South African president to be removed by the ANC in office, after Thabo Mbeki was sacked by the National Executive Committee in 2008, paving the way for Zuma to become president in 2009.

Mbeki joined the chorus of Zuma critics this month when he said South Africa was in a state of despair because of corruption and looting of state resources.

Zuma has survived several no-confidence votes in the parliament, most recently on Nov. 10. The ANC has dominated South Africas parliament since the first democratic vote in 1994 and its support in national elections hasnt dropped below 60%. The August municipal elections marked the first significant repudiation of the party by voters, although only at the local level, when its support fell to about 54%.

The slump in support in the August poll raised fears that the party could face similar voter disaffection in national elections in 2019.

The Gupta family, Ajay, Atul and Rajesh Gupta, who have made more $500 million out of their business dealings with the South African government, boasted to a government official in October 2015 that they had made Zumas son, Duduzane, into a multimillionaire, according to testimony revealed in the public protectors report.

Zuma is due to meet the ANCs integrity committee later this week to answer questions about the state of the government under his leadership. The committee doesnt have the power to remove him but could recommend that the executive committee do so.

He also faces the possibility of having to face 783 corruption and racketeering charges, dropped just before he came into office as president in 2009. In April, the High Court overturned that decision, a decision Zuma has appealed.

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Every time Kelvin Chan returns home around midnight from the daily pro-democracy rallies here, he finds his father fuming silently in the living room.

He says nothing when I come in, said Chan, 23. He just gets up and goes to his bedroom.

When Chan tries to broach the subject of freer elections, the patriarch is intractable, convinced his son is jeopardizing the young mans future and meddling futilely in Chinese politics.

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Its tearing apart our relationship, the recent college graduate said.

Like many young protesters who have taken to the streets, Chan is struggling to bridge a generational divide freshly exposed by more than two weeks of polarizing demonstrations.

On one side are students and recent graduates whose democratic aspirations are seasoned by the growing competition for university placements, jobs and ever-more expensive apartments because of the influx of mainland Chinese.

On the other side are parents, often pragmatic first- or second-generation immigrants from the mainland who prize stability above all and see little hope, let alone use, in challenging Beijings authoritarian rule.

This group in their late 40s or 50s witnessed the June 4 Tiananmen massacre and are inculcated with a deep sense of political powerlessness, said Dixon Ming Sing, associate professor of social science at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, citing the 1989 crackdown on protests in the Chinese capital. They think that Beijing is such an economic giant that its really difficult, if not impossible, for them to move an inch in terms of further democratization.

The younger generation, on the other hand, has seen how mass activism successfully blocked two attempts by China to diminish some of the territorys autonomy: the 2003 defeat of an anti-subversion bill known as Article 23 that would have eroded freedom of speech, and resistance in 2012 to a proposal for so-called patriotic education in schools that critics said was an attempt to brainwash children into loving China.

Ever since Britain returned Hong Kong to China in 1997, the territory has operated under a framework known as one country, two systems that preserved democratic freedoms. And although Hong Kong citizens were never permitted to choose their colonial governor, they were supposed to be allowed to directly elect the territorys chief executive beginning in 2017.

Then in August, Chinas legislature announced that the chief executive would be chosen from a slate of candidates screened by Beijing, sparking the current demonstrations. Even if we were still under the British, we would fight for the right to vote, Chan said.

Experts agree there is little hope of Beijing opening elections to a popular vote. Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying reiterated that point this week in an interview with a local broadcaster, saying there was almost zero chance of Chinese leaders changing their stance.

The protests are being led by three main groups: Occupy Central With Love and Peace, headed by two professors and a Christian minister; Scholarism, a group of high school students; and the Hong Kong Federation of Students, which is made up of college students.

Pessimism in Hong Kongs future skews young. A Hong Kong University poll released last month showed that only 11% of respondents ages 18 to 29 had confidence in the one country, two systems policy. By comparison, 52% of respondents 50 or older said they were confident in the system.

Part of that gulf in opinion can be explained by changes in geopolitics since the Tiananmen crackdown 25 years ago, said Jeffrey Wasserstrom, an expert in Chinese history at UC Irvine.

When the older generation in Hong Kong looked at their regional neighbors in 1989, there was a right-wing authoritarian regime in Taiwan and a right-wing authoritarian regime controlling South Korea, Wasserstrom said. There seemed to be a lot of variations of one-party rule. And now young people are seeing how the most modern and exciting cities tend to be ones where people have the right to vote and seem to be doing very well.

The discontent isnt purely political. Hong Kongs youths are stepping into a far more competitive environment than their parents generation.

Up to 10% of undergraduates at local universities and more than 60% of graduate students now come from the mainland, leaving fewer places for natives.

Many Hong Kong graduates complain that the mainlanders also have a distinct advantage in the hunt for jobs because so much business is conducted in China. Command of Mandarin, not the Cantonese dialect of Hong Kong, is essential.

Meanwhile, homeownership moves further out of reach. Housing prices have hit record highs in the territory of 7 million, in no small part because of the deluge of mainland money pouring in.

Upward mobility has been constricted, said Sing, the social science professor.

Amanda Hui, 48, agrees that young people are facing more pressure. But she thinks the disruptive sit-ins will only alienate politically moderate residents like her.

Its total chaos, said Hui, a stay-at-home mom walking past an intersection occupied by protesters in the Mong Kok district. Ive never seen anything like this in Hong Kong. They should leave. Even if all of Hong Kong decided to protest, it wouldnt change Beijing.

To Mabel Chung, abandoning the protests is unthinkable, even though her parents strongly disapprove of the challenge to Beijing. The 20-year-old Chinese-language and literature major at the Chinese University of Hong Kong has been camping out at the main demonstration site in the Admiralty district for about a week.

Her father, a construction worker and Peoples Liberation Army veteran who immigrated illegally to Hong Kong from the mainland in the 1970s, told Chung that she was naive to believe she could make a difference in the territorys future.

I mostly just try to avoid talking to them about it, Chung said.

Despite heaving in agony Sept. 28 when police deployed tear gas, she has stuck with the sit-in and has come to cherish its utopian atmosphere. Protesters offer dim sum to passersby. Public restrooms are chock-full of donated toiletries. Students offer free tutoring to one another and build desks along a highway median to use for studying.

Im scared, but I feel like Im doing the right thing by being here, said Chung, who sleeps on a plastic bag splayed out on the ground and uses her backpack as a pillow.

Trevor Yeung, who tries to squeeze in a few hours each day at the Admiralty sit-in after work, hasnt been able to avoid confrontation with his parents.

One morning, while the three were eating breakfast at a restaurant, Yeungs father said, Look at how these stupid students are stopping everything in Hong Kong and hurting the stock market.

Yeung, who had kept his emotions bottled for days, shot back, What if your son is one of those stupid people?

The relationship has been cool ever since. Yeung, a 26-year-old artist, reminds himself his parents are not college-educated and have not traveled the globe, as he has done.

I dont know how to talk to them about this, Yeung said. Theyre not politically active. I cant just stay at home looking outside. I need to participate. I want to help.

david.pierson@latimes.com

Special correspondent Nicole Liu in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

Twitter: @dhpierson
In late 1973, one year after Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law, Amado Picardal distributed pamphlets at his university decrying the death of democracy. Marcos security agents responded by brutally interrogating the 18-year-old student  kicking him in the solar plexus and kidneys, until he passed out  and detaining him for seven months.

The Philippines cast off martial law in 1981  and five years later, Marcos was ousted by massive, pro-democracy protests. But now, the current president, Rodrigo Duterte, is publicly flirting with bringing it back  and Picardal, now an activist and priest in the city of Baclaran, near Manila, is taking the threat seriously.

Duterte is more dangerous than Marcos, Picardal said. I dont think he has any conscience. No sense of remorse.

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Duterte was inaugurated June 30, and his early tenure has been marked by profanity and endorsements of violence. He has acted on campaign promises to rid the country of illegal drugs without regard for due process, triggering a wave of extrajudicial killings, both by police and vigilantes. More than 3,000 people have died. When Western officials called for the killings to stop, Duterte delivered profanity-laced tirades against the U.S., United Nations and European Union.

He has also raised the specter of martial law as a threat to critics who might thwart his initiatives.

Experts say that because Duterte understands the law  he was once a prosecutor  and the risk of provoking a public outcry, he likely wont declare martial law as long as his approval ratings remain high. (He said this month that he was not a fan of martial law, calling it a contingency to meet widespread violence.) Yet he might not rule it out if his opposition grows stronger.

The administration is still very popular and secure in its position, said Richard Javad Heydarian, a professor at De La Salle University in Manila. So I doubt they, so far, feel the need to go extraconstitutional.

On Nov. 12, Duterte said that he might be forced to suspend the writ of habeas corpus  which grants detainees the right to challenge the legality of their detention  to rein in lawlessness on the southern island Mindanao. Suspending the writ is widely considered a precursor to declaring martial law.

Im just warning them, he said. I dont want to do it because its not good  but I will do it because I have no remedy for it.

In early September, Duterte put the country under state of lawless violence after a bombing in Davao, Mindanaos biggest city, killed 14 people, granting the military special powers to aid in police operations. Afterward, a close associate, Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, told local media that Duterte was mulling the idea of declaring martial law, but ultimately decided that it was not necessary.

In August, Duterte threatened to declare martial law if the Philippines judiciary blocked his drug war. Please do not create a confrontation, a constitutional war. We will all lose, he said.

Under the Philippines 1987 Constitution  which the country adopted after Marcos ouster, to return the country to democratic rule  the president may not suspend the writ of habeas corpus except in cases of invasion or rebellion when the public safety requires it.

Although Dutertes popularity remains high, recent controversies have revealed its potential pressure points.

In October, Duterte pledged to deepen economic and military ties with Beijing, eliciting polarized reactions in the country. Most Filipinos distrust China and hold an overwhelmingly positive view toward the U.S., in part because of a years-long conflict between Manila and Beijing over vast swaths of disputed territory in the South China Sea.

He has also approved, to great controversy, the interment of Marcos remains at the National Heroes Cemetery in Metro Manila. On Nov. 18, helicopters lifted the dictators remains from a mausoleum in his home province of Ilocos Norte to the cemetery, where he was buried in a closed ceremony. Thousands of people have protested the burial nationwide.

Former Philippine President Fidel Ramos called the burial a step backwards for Dutertes administration, in the sense that they are losing support, they are losing friends.

For those who are concerned about martial law  and we still have plenty of them  these signals are not very comforting, said a Manila-based human rights activist who requested anonymity, citing fear for his personal safety. And I think thats part of the reason why the burial of Marcos generated a lot of backlash.

The thing to keep in mind is that theres nothing right now that [Duterte] cannot do, the activist said, adding that the president has strong support in other branches of government. Hes pretty much given a blank check to do whatever he wants.

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Building on dramatic advances over the last two days, Syrian pro-government troops stormed opposition-held neighborhoods in northeastern Aleppo on Monday, signaling an imminent defeat for the rebels who have waged a more than four-year battle for the once-thriving commercial city.

The new advances came a day after government troops, working in concert with Syrian and Palestinian militias, overran key rebel districts in the northern city, cleaving the oppositions bastion in two.

The crucial surge Monday came on the 15th day of a Russian-backed, do-or-die government offensive to drive the rebel factions out of the city, which has been divided between the two sides since 2012.

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Pro-government forces continued their rout on Monday, consolidating their control over the strategic Sakhour neighborhood and taking the entire northeastern section of the rebel enclave.

Thousands of residents streamed out of the enclave, making their way towards the areas taken by the government or to Sheik Maqsood, a Kurdish-dominated area to the north controlled by a Kurdish militia that has assisted the government against the rebels.

The Russian Center for Reconciliation, a Russian Defense Ministry organization that monitors the fighting in Syria, said on Monday that more than 3,000 people had left. However, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based watchdog group with activists in Syria, put the figure at 10,000.

The government also reclaimed Suleiman al Halabi, a district that is home to a vital water pumping station that services both sides of the city, according to the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency, or SANA.

In years past, the rebels had used the station as a bargaining chip, forcing the government to provide services to rebel-held areas of the city.

Technical crews entered the station to repair the damage and restart it as soon as possible, Aleppo Gov. Hussein Diab told SANA.

Opposition activists, including the Syrian Observatory, confirmed the advance.

Hours later, government and opposition Aleppo community pages on Facebook announced that water had begun to flow again.

The governments advance forced the opposition to seek refuge in areas still under their control in the southeastern parts of the city.

One rebel fighter, visibly frustrated as he spoke in a video widely circulated on social media, excoriated opposition supporters who now blamed rebel factions for Aleppos fall.

The war is not equal. There is unbelievable bombing: Helicopters, barrel bombs, planes, rockets, mortar shells There isnt a neighborhood that hasnt been destroyed, he said.

He blamed the loss on the opposition abandoning the fight in Aleppo to focus instead on battling Islamic State. In August, Turkey backed a number of opposition factions in an attempt to claw back areas taken over by the extremist group in northern Syria. Many fighters abandoned front lines against the government near Aleppo to fight alongside Turkish troops, who provided arms and money for the anti-Islamic State offensive.

You left O slaves of dollars, the fighter concluded.

But for the remaining residents of eastern Aleppo, the focus was not on fighting. Instead, many sought a safe passage out of the city, or at least a break in the fighting.

Their numbers are unclear. At its height, 400,000 people were thought to have resided in rebel-held parts of Aleppo during the early part of the Syrian civil war.

Many pro-government commentators, however, contend that as few as 60,000 people remain, and they base that on what has been seen in other rebel-held areas recovered by government forces.

The town of Daraya, for example, was said to have more than 8,000 occupants when it was occupied by rebels and under siege. However, when it was finally evacuated earlier this year, government forces reported that they found fewer than 2,000 people still residing there.

People here are saying that no matter what they call themselves, revolutionaries, opposition or just plain Syrian, they want a cease-fire, said Dr. Salem Abu Nasr, a dentist based in the rebel-held Bustan al Qasr neighborhood, contacted via telephone on Monday.

After that, whether you open a safe passage, bring the regime in, take the rebels out, whether [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan meets with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, our primary concern is to stop the bloodshed, he said.

Bulos is a special correspondent. Follow @nabihbulos on Twitter:

ALSO

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How Russias military campaign in Syria is helping Moscow market its weapons

Syrian government refuses United Nations truce terms for Aleppo

UPDATES:

1:05 p.m.: This story was updated throughout with staff reporting.

This story was originally published at 1 a.m.
For Amalia Cortes, a loyal member of Cubas revolutionary generation, there is no question that Fidel Castro helped transform the country for the better.

Of course I will be in the Plaza de la Revolucion to say goodbye to our comandante, said Cortes, 69, referring to the homage planned this week in a signature Havana square for the late Cuban leader. We have to thank him for so much  thanks to him we have food, there is education, our comandante fought for his people and we have much to be grateful for.

But for others, especially younger Cubans, it was long past time to look beyond Papa Fidel and the revolutions accomplishments in arenas such as education and healthcare.

We have to be objective, said Maria, a medical student, seated in Revolution Square. Fidel did a lot of good things.... But at the same time what good does it do if there are no jobs, no opportunities for progress?

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I believe that Fidel did good and bad things and we have to be fair about it, added Maria, who, like others even mildly critical of the government, asked that her last name not be used.

The normally buoyant capital has been a notably subdued place since Castros death was announced Friday. Tourists grumble about the lack of music and life in the bars and cafes as the country begins an official, nine-day mourning period. There were no posters mourning Castro evident on Sunday, but Cuban flags and banners reading Viva la Revolucion adorned public buildings.

Cubans of all ages and economic backgrounds took time to reflect on the Castro era, which spanned several generations and lasted through momentous world events, including the Cuban missile crisis, the Bay of Pigs invasion and the fall of the Soviet Union, Cubas longtime benefactor.

Among young people, there seemed to be a sense of hope that Castros passing would signal a more open era, with enhanced individual freedom and opportunities for employment. Many voiced a sense of isolation, though some conceded that things had improved under President Raul Castro, Fidels younger brother, to whom an ailing Fidel had ceded power.

I wish there were more liberties, that we could leave Cuba easier, visit other countries, said Everardo, 18, who did not want his last name used. Fidel was always against that.

Carlos Montero, 18, acknowledged that society had opened up in recent years, but complained that access to the Internet was limited and costly.

The Internet should be free in the schools, like it is in the rest of the world, Montero said, adding that his parents didnt even know what the Internet was. But here, thats a dream. Still, things have gotten a little better with Raul.

In his final years, Fidel Castro probably had little concrete influence over his brother, who formally took over in 2008. Fidels death may now give a symbolic and psychological freedom to Raul to act as he sees fit.

But it is unlikely that Fidels death augers a fundamental change, despite the heralding of a new era in some quarters.

Already, Raul Castro had ordered significant reforms to the Cuban economy and loosened restrictions on citizens seeking to travel abroad  changes long resisted by Fidel.

Raul, 85, who has said he will step down in 2018, has allowed a measure of private enterprise, enabling individual citizens to open small-scale businesses, such as restaurants, beauty salons, spas and car washes.

And Cubas relationship with the Castro brothers historic adversary, the United States, has been transformed.

In December 2014, Raul Castro and President Obama announced that their countries were renewing diplomatic ties after a half-century of Cold War animosity. Though Washingtons trade embargo against Cuba remained in place, the new joint initiative spurred fresh economic exchanges involving various sectors, including airlines, banks, hotels and agribusiness.

But Obama  and, now, President-elect Donald Trump  continued to call on the Castro government to follow economic liberalization with significant political transformation.

The death of Fidel Castro will not fundamentally change this route.  Arturo Lopez-Levy, professor at the University of Colorado

U.S. officials say they want to see truly competitive elections with candidates who do not belong to the ruling Communist Party; the release of political prisoners (although only a handful remain); and a broader ability for dissidents, human rights activists and opponents of the government to express themselves openly, in the press and in the streets.

Raul Castro has resisted, and, even without Fidel looking over his shoulder, he is not likely to budge. After decades of animosity, the Cuban leadership warily views U.S. demands for democracy as a pretext to install a more Washington-friendly government in Havana.

Senior Cuban officials seek examples of governance that stand as alternatives to the superpower to the north. They frequently cite China and Vietnam as their models, with their ostensibly communist governments, flourishing Western-style economies and lack of political freedoms.

Under current circumstances, many analysts say, Raul Castro would have little incentive to alter Cubas political system in a way that would threaten ruling-party hegemony. Repeatedly, Cubas leader has insisted that there would be no acceptance of multiparty politics or basic freedoms such as the right to assembly.

Raul is likely to circle the wagons and make sure his rear guard is protected before embarking on new initiatives, said Ted Henken, a sociology professor at Baruch College and a Cuba expert frequently consulted by the Obama administration.

The government in Cuba is controlled by a Communist Party council that serves as a legislative body and is consulted a few times a year for new laws. Fidel, and Raul after him, have had all-but-complete control of the body.

Last year, a pair of candidates tried to become the first non-Communist politicians to win municipal posts, mounting a modest campaign. Both failed miserably. The lesson to would-be reformers was clear.

The death of Fidel Castro will not fundamentally change this route, because in terms of the political system, its all been symbolic, part of the Latin American revolutionary patriarchy, former Cuban intelligence analyst Arturo Lopez-Levy, now a professor at the University of Colorado, wrote this weekend.

Miguel Diaz-Canel, named by Raul Castro as first vice president on the same day he announced his impending retirement, is widely seen as his heir apparent.

Diaz-Canel, from a younger generation, is more modern than the Castros and much more Internet-savvy. But it remains difficult to anticipate his moves. He is beholden to the old Communist Party apparatus but also eager to move Cuba into the modern world, Cubans who know him say.

For Trump, opposing forces are keen. He has pronounced his opposition to any opening with a Castro government, but he is also under enormous pressure from fellow entrepreneurs who see a buck to be made on the tropical island.

After Raul Castros retirement, Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress will be able to argue they are operating in a truly post-Castro environment, allowing them to make even more business deals. But opposition to any rapprochement with communist Cuba remains deep, especially among Cuban American Republicans in south Florida.

Few expect a swift end to the U.S. trade embargo blocking U.S. financial dealings with Cuba.

It was President Eisenhower who initially slapped the embargo on Cuban exports of sugar and other trade, eventually costing Cuba $1 trillion, according to Havana.

The Cuban government has routinely blamed the measure  the blockade, as Cubans call it dismissively  for the islands dire economic circumstances.

By tweaking regulations, Obama has done almost everything within his power to lift embargo restrictions. But only Congress can end the embargo, and it has refused to do so. Now, with Republicans holding sway in Washington, lifting the embargo seems a long shot, though Trump has not publicly signaled his intentions with respect to the trade ban.

With the passing of Fidel Castro, it also seems possible that the island leadership will want to reaffirm its commitment to the core principles of the man who personified the revolution. The nine-day mourning period declared in Cuba appears, at least publicly, as a means of cementing Fidels legacy, not rejecting it.

Havana will retrench to demonstrate that the Revolution survives its founder  and continues to defy the grasp of the United States, John Kavulich, president of the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, predicted.

There is nothing expected to alter the commercial, economic and political timetable, Kavulich said, meaning, retrenching for a bit to demonstrate a post-Fidel Castro revolutionary stability.

patrick.mcdonnell@latimes.com

tracy.wilkinson@latimes.com

Sanchez of the Times Mexico City bureau reported from Havana, Times staff writer Wilkinson reported from Washington and staff writer McDonnell from Boston.

ALSO

Fidel Castros death could ensure Obamas opening to Cuba survives

The Cuba where Fidel Castro died is a very different place from the one he ruled for decades

In Havana, Fidel Castros passing marks the end of an era
All material is subject to strictly enforced copyright terms & conditions and cannot be repurposed or reproduced.  19882022 Latin American Financial Publications Inc.
Eleven and a half years ago, a spacecraft called the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) set up on a mission to Mars. Right now the MRO continues to orbit around Mars. The Red Planet has always intrigued scientists, as it's a place that's so mysterious to many.

On January 2002, NASA has found evidence that water exists on Mars. On that mission, The Mars Odyssey space probe captured some breathtaking pictures of frozen ice on the poles of Mars. But during that time, it could not conduct studies deeper than the surface.

As time passed, technologies became more advanced. On August 2005, NASA has launched their MRO space probe, which is specially equipped with Ground Penetrating Radar that can detect objects underneath the Martian surface.

The MRO have discovered that Mars's Utopia Planitia basin has concealed an almost 260 to 560 feet thick ice sheet, which is larger than the area of the US state of New Mexico. The discovery of life on Mars may have been significantly possible if the discovery revealed water instead; such, of course, would have been evident in the radar scans.

So now, the concept that Mars only has ice on either of its poles has become outdated. Using an imaging spectrometer on MRO, researchers discovered that the Red Planet has hydrated mineral signatures on slopes where mysterious streaks are seen.

These discoveries are more important for people to understand Mars' past because alongside Earth, it has long orbited within the so-called "Goldilocks Zone" within the solar system. Whereas Earth went on to support life, the entirety of Mars became a desert.

Scientists reported that the discovered ice sheet likely accumulated as part of a Martian ice age and was buried before it could melt into a lake or evaporate into space. Perhaps this research will perform an important role in the future to create a Martian colony.
The former leader of Cuba, Fidel Castro, have recently passed away due to his failing health at the age of 90 years old. Meanwhile, her sister, Juanita Castro, said in an interview that she would be attending his brother's funeral.

According to an International Business Times report, Juanita mentioned that there was an unresolved family issue. It started many years ago when his other brothers decided to give away the plantation of their entire family.

"In light of the bad rumors that said I was going to go to Cuba for the funeral, I want to clarify that I have never returned to the island, nor do I have plans to do so," Juanita Castro stated in an interview with Miami Herald.

For the record, Juanita Castro was exiled in Miami for 50 years. It was a long time for her not to see his hometown but she has no plans or returning. According to her, it was a great sacrifice for her to be in pain and isolation as she has decided not come back to Cuba anymore. On the other hand, she still expressed her grief upon the death of his brother Fidel.

Moreover, Daily Mail reported that Juanita had lost her connection with her family in Cuba while she was exiled in Miami. Also, she suffered rejection in Miami because she was Castro back then. Despite these sufferings, she is one of the four sisters of Fidel Castro that have been so supportive in the late 1950s to overthrow Fulgencio Batista, then the ruler of Cuba.

Meanwhile, with Fidel Castro's funeral, the government of Cuba will be preparing a public memorial for the former Cuban leader to be held in Jose Marti Memorial until November 29, 2016. Also, as reported in International Business Times, a mass gathering will take place at Havana's Plaza of the Revolution, a place where Castro often spoke in front of his supporters.

Moreover, the remains of former Cuban leade will be buried in Tanta Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago de Cuba, which is said to be one of the important cities in his early life.
Fidel Castro is one of the world's influential leftist leaders. When he died on November 25, 2016, due to his aging and illness at the age of 90, Cubans and the world share mixed reactions: from celebration to mourning. However, there are always lots of reasons why the world commemorates Castro's life, death, and legacy.

Cubans will commemorate Castro's life during at mass memorial this week, which highlights the story of the late leader when he led the revolution almost sixty years ago. The funeral will be held on Sunday, December 4, 2016, at Santa Ifigenia cemetery in Santiago de Cuba, the Havana TImes reports.

The mourning period will last for nine days. On Monday, a tribute will be paid by firing two simultaneous 21-gun salutes, Cuba's state news agency reported as quoted by CNN. From Tuesday to Saturday, soldiers will shoot cannon firing every hour from 6 am to 6 pm. Around tens of thousands of people will pay their last respects on Tuesday in Plaza Jose Marti. Marti was a Cuban poet and a fighter who fought against the country's independence against Spain.

On Wednesday, Cubans will attend a ceremonial journey to salute to Castro's remains, starting from the route when Castro and his group assumed power from Fulgencio Batista in 1959. His remains will arrive in Santiago de Cuba Saturday for a 7 pm rally at the Antonio Maceo Revolution Square. On Sunday, the ashes will be laid to rest after a 7 am service. At 9 am, a gun salute will be heard closing the ceremony in Havana and Santiago de Cuba.

Most Cubans consider Castro their father. Many wept and felt as if they lost their father. People put flowers and photo under the statue on the University of Havana's main steps. The university was the place where Castro studied law.

However, Castro still triggered a controversy around the world, even after his death. Cuban immigrants in Miami expressed their joy and happiness over the leader's decease. They tossed a champagne, waved the flag saying" Satan, Fidel now is yours". They say the death of Castro is the moment they have been waiting for 55 years.

In 2008, he handed over the presidency to his brother Raul.

World leaders expressed their condolences over Castro's death, praising Castro as among the most influential leftist leaders in the world.

Castro is seen as the leader who bravely fought against the US domination. Despite his controversial nature, he managed to provide free housing, education, and health access to Cubans.
As a nine-day of mourning following the death of their legendary leader Fidel Castro at the age of 90 last Saturday still continues, they will see their leader's remains be taken a cross-country tour from Havana to Santiago de Cuba retracing in reverse the route Castro assumed power in 1959.

His ashes will be buried in a cemetery in Santiago de Cuba, on December 4, 2016. The city is where Castro grew up and studied.



Some of the world's leftist leaders are planning to attend the ceremony, including the Jeremy Corbyn, UK's Labour Party leader, and Ireland's Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams. However, it is still unknown whether US president Barack Obama will pay his last respects to Castro. As of November 27, 2016, no official announcement was made on who will represent the U.S to pay the last tribute to the bearded socialist leader.

US President-elect Donald Trump is one of the world's leaders who cheered and welcomed the socialist leader's death as stated on his Twitter "Fidel Castro is dead!". Castro's sister, Juanita Castro is not going to attend her brother funeral, as she is against her brother's authoritarian rule. Juanita has been living in Miami for 51 years and stated her commitment to standing by Cuban exiles despite feeling the loss of a brother, as NBC reported.



Castro toppled the military dictator Fulgencio Batista in 1959 and took over the presidency. He transformed the tiny Caribbean state into a socialist country with a free access to health care, education, and housing. He survived over 600 assassination attempts and survived 10 US Presidents, making him a role model as a leader who fought bravely against the Western imperialism. Moreover, Castro was known for strongly opposing US intervention in the Caribbean, as written by CNN



As US President Barack Obama normalized ties with Cuba, the relationship between the two countries is uncertain after Donald Trump is elected as the new President of the US. If Trump snubs what Obama has done, this will bring the relationship back to the past 50 years, .
By Helen Haines, 1891

The acquisition of Louisiana by the United States marked a distinct era in the history of New Mexico. Before this period the Spanish provinces had been isolated, as it were, from the rest of the world; but now that this enormous tract had become American territory it was impossible for the ancient barriers to remain, and within ten years from the date of the purchase, a fluctuating but steadily increasing intercourse had sprung up between the Western cities of the United States and the northern provinces of Mexico. The Santa Fe trade, as this overland commerce was called, had no definite origin, but was rather the result of accident than of any organized plan. Beginning with the desultory traffic carried on with the Indians by Spanish and American trappers, its scope gradually extended, until the distant cities of Santa Fe and Chihuahua had become markets for the commodities of the eastern coast, and the Santa Fe trade was a recognized feature of American commerce.

The first American to penetrate the wilds of Louisiana and enter New Mexican territory was James Pursley, a Kentuckian, but his arrival at Santa Fe was antedated by that of Baptiste Lalande, a French Creole, who reached the province in 1804. In the early part of this year Lalande was dispatched on a trading expedition by William Morrison, a merchant of Kaskaskia, Illinois  then one of the extreme frontier settlements, a few miles above St. Louis, Missouri on the eastern side of the Mississippi River. He was furnished with the necessary articles for barter with the Indians, and his orders were to push up the Platte River, make his way, if possible, to Santa Fe, and report on the prospects of commercial intercourse between that city and the United States. After a perilous journey, Lalande succeeded in reaching the Rocky Mountains, then he dispatched a party of Indians into Mexico to inform the authorities of the arrival of this stranger from the distant East. A mounted troop of Spaniards set out at once and brought the trader and his goods to a small settlement some miles north of Taos, New Mexico. From Taos, Lalande proceeded southward to Santa Fe, disposing of his merchandise as he journeyed on, and making profits that exceeded his utmost expectations.

So well was the enterprising Baptiste pleased with the country, its inhabitants, and its possibilities in the line of trade, that he gave up all thoughts of returning East and settled himself in business at the capital upon the funds supplied by Morrison, to whom he neither forwarded remittances or accounted for the proceeds of the adventure. It was to collect the amount due the merchant of Kaskaskia that Dr. John Robinson, of Zebulon Pikes party, proceeded to Santa Fe.

It was in 1805 that James Pursley, famous as the first to discover gold in what is now Colorado, entered New Mexico. A native of Bairds Town, Kentucky, he left St. Louis, Missouri in 1803 with three companions and traveled to the headwaters of the Osage River, engaged in trapping and trading with the Indians. After many exciting adventures, in which his daring won for Pursley the title of The Mad American, the four hunters were capsized in a rough canoe of their own constructional at the junction of the Osage and Missouri Rivers, losing their entire stock of peltries  the fruit of a whole years hunt. They managed to save arms and ammunition, and soon after were hailed by a Frenchman, who was descending the Missouri River to trade with the Mandan Indians. Pursley embarked with him for the voyage, and early in the ensuing spring was sent out on a hunting and trading expedition with a large band of Paducah and Kiowa Indians and a small quantity of merchandise. They were attacked by Sioux and driven from the plains into the mountains of Colorado, where the unwieldy party  which numbered nearly 2,000 men and 10,000 animals  wandered along the headwaters of the Platte River.

Here, it was that Pursley observed strong indications of gold-bearing deposits and even obtained some of the virgin mineral, which he carried in his shot-pouch for several months. Believing, however, that he would never succeed in reaching a civilized region, and feeling that the precious metal was worthless in the wilderness, he threw his samples away from sheer weariness and disgust. After journeying some distance along the Platte River, the Indians, knowing they must by now be close to New Mexico, sent Pursley and several of their number to Santa Fe to see if the Spanish authorities would allow them to enter the province and trade with the people. This request was granted by Governor Alencaster, and the Indians returned for the remainder of the company, who after disposing of their merchandise at profitable prices departed for the East. But Pursley, now that he had, at last, reached a civilized community, did not choose to trust himself to the perilous journey across the plains. He reached Santa Fe in June 1805 and established himself as a carpenter in that city. In 1807 he was seen by Lieutenant Zebulon Pike, who described him as having made a great deal of money and being a man of strong natural sense and undoubted intrepidity. Although well treated by the authorities, Pursley was placed under continual surveillance; he was forbidden to write or send any communication to the East and was obliged to give bonds that he would not leave the country without permission from the government. This was probably due to his having imprudently mentioned his discovery to the Spaniards, who were very anxious that he should conduct a detachment of cavalry to the spot where the gold had been found. But, the sturdy pioneer, believing the locality to be within the territory of the United States, obstinately refused to divulge the secret,  for which firmness the citizens of the Centennial State certainly owe him their deepest gratitude.

For the next five years nothing is known of any Spanish-American intercourse, though it is probable that a fragmentary traffic was kept up; but the return of Lieutenant Zebulon Pike and the relation of his travels, published in 1810, stimulated general interest in the subject. The lieutenants account of the high prices prevailing throughout the North Mexican provinces, and the immense profits to be reaped by enterprising traders, spread like wildfire through the eastern settlements, and many of the adventurous frontiersmen  hunters, traders, and trappers, the typical pioneers of those days  determined to make their way across the unknown region of Louisiana to this new land of promise. In 1812 an expedition was organized under the direction of Robert McKnight, James Beard, Peter Chambers, and several others, in all a party of nine or ten. Believing that the revolutionary movement under Hidalgo, in 1810, had completely removed the old restrictions on trade, which rendered all foreign intercourse, except by special permission of the Spanish government, illegal, they crossed the prairies to New Mexico, following the directions of Lieutenant Pike.

Their route, the only one then known, was westward to the Colorado mountains and then down the Rio Grande to Taos, New Mexico; and after a long but uneventful journey, they succeeded in reaching Santa Fe. Their arrival at the capital could not have been at a more inopportune moment. The liberal principles fostered by Hidalgo had just been vigorously quenched, the revolutionary leader had been arrested and shot, the royalists were once more supreme, and all foreigners, but especially Americans, were believed to be the agents of a new revolution and were objects of the most intense suspicion. The unfortunate traders, who were as yet hardly aware of their dangerous situation, were instantly arrested as spies, their entire stock of merchandise confiscated, and themselves taken to the jails of Chihuahua and Durango, where they were rigorously confined for the space of nine years. During this period several efforts were made for their release by Congressman Scott of Missouri, and letters were sent by Secretary Adams to the king of Spain and the viceroy of Mexico, but nothing was effected, and it was not until 1822, when the revolutionary party under Augustine de Iturbide became once more predominant, that the unfortunate Americans were set at liberty by order of the new emperor of Mexico.

Before the return of McKnight and his unlucky companions, and in the year 1815, Julius de Mun and Auguste P. Choteau proceeded with a large party to the waters of the Upper Arkansas River, where they engaged in hunting and trading with the Indians. A year later they entered New Mexico and visited Taos and Santa Fe; at the latter place, they were hospitably received by Governor Mainez, who gave them full liberty to hunt and trade north of the Red River and east of the mountains. Notwithstanding this permission, in June 1817, during the governorship of Don Pedro Allande, a force of Spanish dragoons arrested Choteau, De Mun, and 24 others, and brought them to Santa Fe, also opening the caches made by the trappers and taking articles to the value of over $30,000. At the capitol, the Americans were court-martialed, imprisoned for two days, and dismissed, without recovering their property. They immediately returned to St. Louis and entered a suit for damages against the New Mexican authorities; the action dragged on until 1836, and it is not known if it was ever definitely settled.

Notwithstanding the personal misfortunes of these early adventurers, their narratives only induced others to fit out expeditions. In 1822 an Ohio merchant named Hugh Glenn, who kept a small trading station at the mouth of the Verdigris River, fitted out a party and proceeded by a circuitous route up the Arkansas River toward the mountains, encountering many dangers and privations, but finally reaching Santa Fe in safety. In this same year, Captain William Becknell of Missouri, with four friends, started from the vicinity of Franklin, in his native State, with the intention of trading with the Comanche. When near the mountains he met a party of Mexican rangers who induced the Americans to accompany them to New Mexico, where, though their stock of merchandise was small and of little value, the members of the expedition cleared a handsome profit. The captain returned to Missouri alone the following winter, leaving his company at Santa Fe. His favorable reports stimulated others to embark in the trade, and in May 1823, Colonel Cooper with his sons and about ten others left Franklin with $5,000 worth of goods, transported by pack-horses, and arrived safely at Taos.

Captain Becknells second expedition met with very different fortune; elated with his former success and confident of still richer profits, he set out with a company of 30 men, carrying $5,000 in merchandise. In his eagerness to reach his destination the captain resolved to abandon the circuitous route heretofore followed, and, having reached the caches on the Arkansas River, directed his course straight toward Santa Fe. With no other guide than the starry heavens, or, it may be, a pocket compass, said Dr. Josiah Gregg, the party embarked upon the arid plains which extended far and wide before them to the Cimarron River. The adventurous band pursued their forward course without being able to procure any water except the scanty supply they carried in their canteens; this was completely exhausted after two days march, and the sufferings of the men and beasts drove them almost to distraction. They were reduced to the cruel necessity of killing their dogs and cutting off the ears of their mules in the vain hope of assuaging their burning thirst with the hot blood; this only served to irritate the parched palate and madden the senses of the sufferers. Frantic with despair, in the prospect of the horrible death which stared them in the face, they scattered in every direction in search of water. Frequently led astray by the deceptive glimmer of the mirage, or false ponds, as these treacherous oases of the desert are called, they resolved to retrace their steps to the Arkansas River, but were unequal to the task and would undoubtedly have perished had not a buffalo, fresh from the riverside, with a stomach distended with water, been discovered just as the last rays of hope were receding. The hapless intruder was dispatched and a draught procured from its stomach. I have since heard one of the party declare that nothing ever passed his lips that gave him such exquisite delight as his first draught of that filthy beverage. This relief enabled some of the strongest men of the party to reach the river, where they filled their canteens and hurried back to the assistance of their comrades. By degrees, they were all enabled to renew their journey, and following the course of the Arkansas River for several days, succeeded in reaching Taos, 60-70 miles north of Santa Fe.

From 1821-22 may be dated the real commencement of the Santa Fe trade, as from this period the caravans increased in size and value, the worth of the merchandise transported rising gradually from $5,000 to $80,000. The fall of Spanish authority and the establishment of the Mexican government removed many restrictions from the progress of the intercourse and swelled the ranks of the traders, who found the profits of their enterprises enormous, even considering the cost and difficulty of transportation. Before the establishment of trade with the United States, New Mexico had depended entirely upon the Spanish market or the fluctuating products of Mexico for her supplies. In accordance with the usual selfish policy of Spain, all manufactured articles were imported to the colonies from Spanish ports, in return for exports of raw material. This, although profitable for the mother country, was hard on the colonists, who were forced to pay exorbitant prices for even the cheapest manufactured goods. Indeed, so odious were these restrictions on commerce considered, that in 1771, Viceroy Bucareli informed the king that trade could never prosper in Mexico until the monopoly enjoyed by the merchants of Cadiz should be removed, and begged that the colonists be allowed, at least, to remit their funds to Spain and bring back the return freights in vessels of their own. For this reason also, the war between Spain and England, in the last years of the 18th century, was of great advantage to Mexico, for, as the seas were filled with the enemys cruisers, the Spaniards dared not send out large amounts of coins and their trade was confined chiefly to exports from the mother country. Thus, the immense product of the Mexican mines was retained in the country and home industries flourished, many of the internal provinces, and the cities of Oaxaca, Guadalajara, and Ixtlahuaca, manufacturing large quantities of silk, cotton, and wool. Notwithstanding this growing activity in Mexican commerce, these infant industries were as yet, inadequate to supply the demand, and all manufactured articles commanded extravagant prices, especially in the northern provinces, where the expense of transportation was added to the original cost  the citizens of Santa Fe paying two and three dollars per yard for the coarsest calicoes and cheapest domestic cloths. It can easily be imagined that the reports of these prices and the profits attendant upon them should have impelled American merchants to send their goods to these remunerative markets, where the gains of one expedition doubled the cost of outfit and transportation.

The next event of importance in the annals of the Santa Fe trade was the introduction of wagons; up to 1824 all goods were transported by pack mules, which necessarily limited the amount and value of the freight; but in that year the caravans which departed from Missouri employed not only the usual quota of mules but 25 wheeled vehicles, principally what were then called Dearborn carriages. The experiment proved entirely successful and from this period wagons were exclusively used, some of them being of great size and drawn by 10 or 12 mules. In the first years of the trade horses were used to draw the vehicles as mules were scarce and expensive, but as soon as the latter could be procured in abundance horses were discarded except for riding purposes. In 1829 oxen were tried and found, much to the surprise of the traders, to be perfectly capable of performing the duties of the trip. From this time onward the number of oxen and mules employed in the business was about equal, the superiority of the former in cheapness and strength is balanced by the greater endurance and speed of the latter.

The starting-point of the caravans was at first Franklin on the Missouri River, 150 miles west of St. Louis, but in 1831 the proportions of the trade had so increased that some spot nearer the western frontier was considered necessary, and the choice fell upon Independence, Missouri situated about twelve miles from what is now Kansas, then known as the Indian border, and three miles south of the Missouri River. This place gradually became the point of outfit, departure, and debarkation; here repaired the adventurer about to embark in his trading enterprise; here were procured provisions, mules, oxen, and sometimes wagons; and here the final preparations for the long journey across the plains were made. Not only was Independence the starting-point of the Santa Fe caravans, but the Rocky Mountain traders and trappers, and the emigrants to Oregon took this town in their route. During the season of departure  which was usually in May  it was a place of much bustle and activity; here, said Josiah Gregg, were seen men of every class, with a little sprinkling of the softer sex. The fustian frock of the city-bred merchant, furnished with a multitude of pockets, capable of containing a variety of extra tackling; the backwoodsman in linsey or leather hunting-shirt; the farmer, with his blue jean coat, and the wagoner, with a flannel-sleeved vest.

Among the weapons noted were the rifle for the frontiersman, the double-barreled fowling-piece for the sportsman, scatterguns, repeating arms, pistols, and knives. The task of organizing a caravan was no light one; the first step was the election of an officer entitled Captain of the Caravan, who was the commander of the expedition, and whose authority was never questioned. By him, each proprietor was notified to furnish a list of his men and wagons; if the company was a large one all the vehicles were divided into four divisions, and a lieutenant was appointed whose duty it was to inspect every ravine and creek along the route, select the crossings, superintend the encampment, and generally look after the arrangement of the wagons; watches were also appointed, usually eight in number, to stand guard a quarter of each alternate night. Besides personal arms, the caravan often carried one or two small cannons, mounted on carriages. The merchandise was packed with the utmost care, a task requiring no little skill, but in which many became adept, filling the wagons with such evenness that on their arrival at Santa Fe not one article would be disturbed or injured. A  Santa Fe assortment, as it was called, consisted generally of merchandise such as was usually seen in the smaller retail stores of the East, viz: woolen and cotton goods, silks, hardware, notions, etc. The principal articles in demand were cotton velvets and domestic cotton; the latter, which were by far the most called for, were brown, unbleached, and blue, and formed almost half of every assortment; in spite of their ready sale, however, they were the most unprofitable articles taken, on account of their weight and the heavy-duty imposed upon them by the Mexican authorities who, in 1837, issued a decree prohibiting the entrance of all shirtings, calicoes, and drillings. American manufactures alone were in demand, the British cottons being much less durable, and of a lighter texture. Besides the merchandise, provisions for the men were carried, consisting chiefly of bacon, flour, coffee, sugar, and salt  buffaloes furnishing all the fresh meat used on the journey.

The train left Independence in detached parties and rendezvoused at Council Grove, Kansas about 150 miles distant on a branch of the Neosho River; here all arrangements were completed for the journey, the Catch up! catch up! of the captain rang out from his station in the foremost wagon, the answering shouts of Alls set! from the drivers proclaimed that everything was in readiness, and in a few moments the caravan was on its way to Santa Fe. The appearance of these long lines of white-topped vehicles was singularly impressive; the wagons advanced slowly in four parallel columns but in broken lines, often with considerable intervals between; the unceasing Crack! crack! of the wagoners whips, resembling the distant report of musketry, sounded almost as if two hostile parties were engaged in a skirmish. The rear wagons were usually left without a guard, as the horsemen all preferred to be in front, where they could be seen moving in scattered groups sometimes over a mile in advance. The evolutions of the wagons were intricate and required much skill on the part of the drivers; when marching four abreast the two exterior lines spread out and then met at the front angle, while the two near lines kept close together until they reached the point of the rear angle when they wheeled suddenly out and closed with the hinder ends of the other two, thus systematically concluding a right-lined quadrangle with a gap left at the rear corner for the introduction of the animals. Every night the wagons were formed into a hollow square, acting as a defense against Indians and a temporary corral for the cattle; outside of this square the campfires burned and the traders slept, while those whose turn it was to watch kept guard. The difficulties of the route were all surmounted by the energy of the travelers; in many places, temporary bridges of long grass or brush covered with earth were made, and sometimes buffalo boats were constructed by stretching hides over empty wagon-bodies or frames of poles.

As the wagons approached within 200 miles of Santa Fe a party of avant couriers, known in the parlance of the prairies as runners, pushed on in advance to the capital; they were generally proprietors or agents, and their purpose was to procure and send back a supply of provisions, to secure good accommodations for the merchandise, and, what was no less important, come to an agreeable understanding with the custom-house officials. When the crossing of the Red River was reached the caravan was met and accompanied for the remainder of the journey by a Spanish escort provided to prevent smuggling; here, also, a branch of the expedition usually proceeded westward to Taos. Five or six days later and the long-expected goal appeared in sight; great was the exultation as wagon after wagon descended the steep declivities to Santa Fe; the little cannons fired enthusiastic salutes, the muleteers cheered vociferously, and all was rejoicing and confusion. I doubt, in short, said Gregg, whether the first sight of the walls of Jerusalem were beheld by the crusaders with more tumultuous and soul-enrapturing joy. The arrival, continues the same writer, produced a great deal of bustle and excitement among the natives. Los Americanos! Los Carros! La entrada d,e la Caravana! were to be heard in every direction; and crowds of women and boys flocked around to see the new-comers. The wagoners were by no means free from excitement on this occasion. They had spent the previous morning in rubbing up and now they were prepared, with clean faces, sleek-combed hair, and their choicest Sunday suit, to meet the fair eyes of glistening black that were sure to stare at them as they passed. There was yet another preparation to be made in order to show off to advantage; each one must tie a brand-new cracker to the lash of his whip, for on driving through the streets and the plaza publico, everyone strived to outvie his comrades in the dexterity with which he flourished this favorite badge of his authority.

The contents of the wagons were soon transferred to the warerooms of the custom-house, and the members of the expedition spent a few days in recovering from the fatigue of their tedious journey; the wagoners and traders repaired in throngs to the numerous fandangoes which were kept up for some time after the arrival of a caravan, while the merchants were actively employed in more important labors, each endeavoring to get his goods through the custom-house before his neighbor and to supply the country dealers on their annual visit to the capital.

The derechos de arancel (tariff imposts) of Mexico, to quote again from Gregg, are extremely oppressive, averaging about 100%, upon the United States cost of an ordinary Santa Fe assortment. Those on cotton textures are particularly so. According to the tariff of 1837  and it was still heavier before  all plain-wove cotton, whether white or printed, paid twelve and a half cents duty yards, besides the derecho de consumo (consumption duty), which brings it up to at least 15. For a few years Governor Armijo, of Santa Fe, established a tariff of his own, entirely arbitrary,  exacting $500 for each wagon load, whether large or small, of fine or coarse goods! Of course, this was very advantageous to such traders as had large wagons and costly assortments, while it was no less onerous to those with smaller vehicles or coarse, heavy goods. As might have been anticipated, the traders soon took to conveying their merchandise only in the largest wagons, drawn by ten or twelve mules, and omitting the coarser and more weighty articles of trade. This caused the governor to return to the ad valorem system, though still without regard to the tariff general of the nation.

On about the first of September, four or five weeks after the arrival of the caravan, the return trip was commenced; the number of wagons was greatly reduced, many of those taken being sold in the province, and the return cargo  the profits of the expedition  was of gold-dust or silver bullion, furs, buffalo rugs, wool, and Mexican blankets. The loads weighed generally about 1200 pounds, and while the outward journey occupied at least 70 days, the homeward trip seldom exceeded 40; indeed, in 1851, Frank X. Aubrey, a young Canadian and well-known scout, made the distance from Santa Fe to Independence in five days and ten hours.

When the trade was well established several petitions were sent to Congress by the people of Missouri, requesting that a road might be marked out and treaties made with the Indian tribes; in January 1825, a bill was passed granting both these requests and appropriating $30,000 for their execution. The work was never completed, however, although energetically begun by the commissioners, Messrs. Reeves, Mathews, and Sibley, and the surveyor, J. C. Brown, who made a treaty with the Osage and commenced the survey. The line of the proposed road was determined as far as the Arkansas River and designated by mounds of earth; but it never seemed to have been used by the travelers, who persistently refused to be carried off from the old trail, which had been the route of their predecessors, and which had the sanction of experience if not of scientific engineering.

The first route followed, as we have seen, was by a line almost directly westward to the mountains of Colorado, and then south to Taos. Afterward, when the trade assumed importance, a road along the Arkansas River, and then southwest to the Raton Pass was sometimes used; but the route which was the ordinary and favorite one for a long series of years was that along the Arkansas River, then across to the Cimarron River, and so entering New Mexico, proceeding in an almost direct line to the Wagon Mound  which made a conspicuous landmark  and then to Las Vegas, San Miguel, and Santa Fe. In the spring of 1837, an attempt was made, principally by Mexican merchants, to establish an independent trade with Chihuahua, leaving Santa Fe entirely out of the intercourse; but, though begun with much enthusiasm, it was found a losing enterprise and speedily abandoned.

The famous scout and Indian fighter Kit Carson first gained his renown by his skill and daring in guiding parties over the Santa Fe Trail, his own first trip having been made as far back as 1826; another well-known scout was Colonel A. G. Boone, grandson of the famous Daniel, who is said to have been able to speak all the Indian languages. Among the early traders and pioneers was James L. Collins, afterward superintendent of Indian affairs in the Territory, who arrived at Santa Fe in 1827, with a caravan of 53 wagons, the largest up to that period. In 1831, Joseph Gregg, whose book, The Commerce of the Prairies, is the authority on all matters pertaining to the trade, made his first trip, and in this same year Captain Jedediah Smith, the well-known Rocky Mountain pioneer, met his death. He had been separated from his party and wandered across the plains in search of water; at last a small stream was found, but as the captain stooped to drink he was pierced by a Comanche arrow and died instantly. In 1833, Charles Bent was captain of the annual caravan, which numbered 93 wagons, and the following year Thomas Kerr commanded an expedition the profits of which amounted to nearly $200,000. Among the traders of 1835 was the celebrated Captain John Sutter, who established himself in business in Santa Fe, leaving that city for California in 1838.

In the early years of the trade there was little trouble from the Indians, but as the proportion of the traffic increased and the annual caravans, the period of their passage, and their value, became known to the natives, many cruel attacks were made, and the Indians were ever prepared to swoop down upon any straggling bands of traders on their homeward journey or small parties insufficiently supplied with arms, who considered themselves fortunate to escape with only the loss of their animals or goods. The first encounter of this kind recorded took place in 1826 when a party of 12 returning traders encamped upon the banks of the Cimarron River with only four guns between them; here they were visited by a band of Indians, who noticed their defenseless condition, and after making friendly demonstrations withdrew, only to return with about 30 warriors, each carrying a lasso. They informed the Americans that they wanted some horses, and the traders, unable to resist so large a force, gave them one apiece. But the Indians were not yet contented, each brave must now have two horses. Well, catch them! was the acquiescent reply of the unlucky band; upon which the Indians mounted the animals they had just obtained, and swinging their lassoes over their heads plunged among the stock with furious yells, and drove off the entire herd of 500 head of horses, mules, and asses. The first murder committed by Indians took place in 1826. Two young men, members of a returning party, named McNees and Monroe, having fallen asleep by a stream since known as McNees Crossing, were barbarously shot with their own guns in full sight of their caravan. The bodies were buried on the banks of the Cimarron River, and as the companions of the murdered men were engaged in performing these last services a small party of Indians, who probably had no knowledge of the recent outrage, were seen to advance on the opposite side of the stream. The traders, burning with fury and a desire for vengeance, opened fire upon the Indians, all but one of whom were killed. The survivor bore the tidings to his tribe, who, in their turn, pursued the caravan for days and finally succeeded in carrying off 1,000 head of stock, although the traders managed to escape. Not satisfied with this bloodless revenge, the Indians a little later attacked a company of 20 men on their homeward trip, killing one and taking all the animals, thus compelling each of the traders to carry his share of the proceeds on his back to the banks of the Arkansas River, where it was cached until a conveyance to the United States could be procured; these shares amounted to $1,000 each, or a load of 80 pounds in silver bullion to each man.

These repeated outrages induced the traders to apply for government protection, and in 1829 a United States escort of three companies of infantry and one of the dragoons under Major Bennet Riley was detailed to accompany the caravan of that year past the most dangerous portions of the route. The escort stopped at Chouteaus Island, in the Arkansas River, but as soon as the traders advanced without its protection they were attacked by Kiowa warriors and one man was killed, the assailants disappearing in safety before the arrival of the troops, who were at once summoned. Major Riley and his men remained on the Arkansas River until the autumn when they accompanied the returning caravans to Independence. This was the only protection afforded by the United States until 1834, in which year 60 dragoons under Captain Clifton Wharton acted as special escort, and again in 1843 when large detachments under Captain Cooke escorted two different caravans as far as the Arkansas River.

From the time of its re-establishment in 1844 the Santa Fe trade continued without interruption, many wealthy New Mexican merchants taking part in the business. It was not seriously affected by the war with Mexico, for the caravan of 1846, in which year Santa Fe was taken by the United States troops, contained 414 wagons and merchandise to the value of $1,752,250. Under American government the intercourse flourished; not only were the Territories of New Mexico and Arizona supplied, but the northern parts of Mexico also became a market for American goods. With the gradual extension of the railroads, however, the starting-place moved further and further westward, the forwarding establishment being transferred from Hays City, Kansas, to Sheridan, Kit Carson, Granada, La Junta, El Moro, Las Vegas, and so onward until the railroads were in operation throughout the Territory and no other mode of transportation was necessary.

By Helen Haines, excerpted from History of New Mexico: From the Spanish Conquest to the Present Time, 1530-1890, New Mexico Historical Publishing Company, 1891.

Compiled and edited by Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated December 2019.

Also See:

Early Traders on the Santa Fe Trail

Santa Fe Trail (Main page)

Santa Fe Trail  Exploration & Illegal Trade  Pre-1821

Santa Fe Trail Photo Gallery
The Mexican-American War, from its outbreak on May 13, 1846, until the termination of hostilities signified by the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo in 1848, transformed the Santa Fe Trail. United States acquisition of the Southwest following the conflict put the Trail under domestic jurisdiction, although it still carried international trade.

Mexico had always viewed Texas and the United States as different entities, but the passage of a joint resolution for the annexation of the Republic of Texas through U.S. Congress on March 1, 1845, placed considerable stress on U.S. relations with Mexico. Other factors in previous years such as the U.S. territorial expansion of the 1840s, the migration of U.S. citizens into northern Mexico via the Santa Fe Trail, the boundary dispute between Texas and Mexico, U.S. citizens financial claims against Mexico in addition to the political instability of the Mexican government, all contributed to a weakening of relations between the two countries. The election of James K. Polk as President of the United States in 1844 under a mandate for Manifest Destiny announced the U.S. intention to expand to the Pacific Ocean with Oregon, Texas, and California just three of the goals of the expansionist movement. Official hostilities between the United States and Mexico began on May 13, 1846, when the U.S. Congress declared war on Mexico.

The Santa Fe Trail contributed to the expansion of the Union. Among the first U.S. forces to move along the Santa Fe Trail into New Mexico was the Army of the West under the command of Colonel Stephen Watts Kearney. The Army of the West left Fort Leavenworth, Kansas on June 16, 1846, and chose to follow the Mountain Route of the Trail because it provided access to water and to a ready-made base for operations  Bents Fort, Colorado. From Bents Fort, on August 2, 1846, the Army of the West marched toward Santa Fe, New Mexico, reaching the city unchallenged on August 18, 1846. The first wagon train to succeed Kearnys army was that containing Susan Shelby Magoffin by whose account it took five days to cross Raton Pass. Kearney was anxious to promote his mission as one of liberation and not that of conquest, so, to this end, circulars were sent to Mexican villages in advance, promising them friendship and protection under U.S. control. Brigadier General Kearney declared the U.S. occupation of New Mexico on August 19, 1846. The annexation of New Mexico by the United States resulted in Charles Bent being installed as Governor of the territory of New Mexico on August 22, 1846.

As the territory of the United States increased, so too did the need for more routes farther west. The Mormon Battalion, composed of 500 young men from Nauvoo, Illinois, under the leadership of Captain Philip St. George Cooke, were dispatched from Fort Leavenworth, Kansas to provide support for the Army of the West as it set out to open a wagon road from the Rio Grande to California. The Mormon Battalion followed the Cimarron Route and met with some resistance in New Mexico in 1847. Reinforcements were sent via the Santa Fe Trail under the leadership of Colonel Sterling Price, and they were successful in maintaining U.S. control. Another portion of the Army of the West under the command of Colonel Alexander Doniphan marched down the Rio Grande Valley to capture Chihuahua, Mexico, which had also become a popular destination for Santa Fe traders.

Troops assigned to occupy New Mexico were dispatched over the Santa Fe Trail at various times during the course of the Mexican War. Indeed, many individuals who had become familiar with the Trail through their part in the war effort would later come back as traders. Resistance to U .S. occupation continued in the form of guerrilla warfare with insurrections at Taos and Mora, New Mexico, in early 1847, with Governor Charles Bent perishing in the Taos confrontation. The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo in 1848 signaled the end of the war, but only the beginning of expanding trade. Three thousand wagons, 12,000 people, and 50,000 head of livestock were estimated to have moved over the Trail in the summer of 1848.

Increasing use of the Santa Fe Trail during the Mexican War continued to pose a threat to American Indian habitation. Big Timbers, located east of Bents Old Fort on the Arkansas River in Colorado, is an example of one such instance. At Big Timbers between 1846 and 1847, the increase in traffic along the Santa Fe Trail meant that the habitat and hunting of game had been disrupted, the water had been polluted, and trees had been cut down indiscriminately.

As a result of such incursions, 47 Trail travelers were killed, 330 wagons were destroyed, and 6,500 animals were stolen. In September 1847, a battalion of troops was assigned to guard the wagon trains. Roving columns of soldiers ready to participate in battle were employed initially; however, this mobile police force proved to be ineffective due to the length of the corridor that had to be patrolled.

With the signing of the treaty, the United States acquired what is now considered New Mexico, Arizona, California, Nevada, and Utah, in addition to parts of Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas. The Texas Annexation of 1845 and the Mexican Cession of 1848 provided for the creation of California, the Utah Territory, New Mexico Territory, and Texas, with the remainder comprising the unorganized territory. Despite the U.S. preparation for war with Mexico, several aspects in the execution of a successful military operation, as they related to the Santa Fe Trail, were apparently not fully considered. The method of supplying the army demonstrated a lack of deliberation in that provisions reached the military outposts faster than wagons could become available for their distribution. Even when they were available, their drivers were often inexperienced. The Mexican War altered the pattern of the Old Santa Fe trade. New Mexican and interior Mexican merchants, while successful, assumed a declining proportion of the Santa Fe trade following the Mexican War. The Santa Fe route changed from foreign to domestic jurisdiction while small proprietors were replaced by large freighting companies. With the increasing commercial value of merchandise, the Santa Fe trade expanded.

Compiled and edited by Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated December 2020.

Also See:

Mexican-American War

Santa Fe Trail (main page)

Santa Fe Trail Detail & Timeline

Santa Fe Trail People

Source: National Register of Historic Places Nomination
The importance of the period of railroad expansion westward along the course of the Santa Fe Trail from its eastern terminus in 1865 to its arrival in Santa Fe in 1880 lies in the fact that it witnessed the change in the character of overland trade along the Trail. By 1865, territorial and state boundaries had become more formalized and would soon be further refined to provide the basis for the continued formation of the United States.

Although the Mountain Route of the Santa Fe Trail had been in common use since the 1840s, its terrain provided many obstacles to wagon movement. One such obstacle was the tortuous eight thousand foot, axle-breaking Raton Pass. The Raton Mountains themselves were a series of high mesas, separated by narrow, precipitous canyons, adjoining the Sangre de Cristo Mountains at right angles and extending eastward for over 100 miles along what is now the ColoradoNew Mexico border. Raton Pass was by no means the only route over this mountainous terrain. There was another route west of it, and four routes to its east  San Francisco Pass, Manco de Burro Pass, Trinchera Pass, and Emery Gap-which could accommodate the passage of traders. Some of these routes remained difficult, if not impassable, for wagons. Recorded use of Raton Pass as an avenue of communication dates back to the early 18th century when Ulibarri (1706), Valverde (1719), and probably Villasur (1720) en route from Santa Fe via Taos went over the Taos-Palo Flechado Pass through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains onto the plains of northeastern New Mexico and from there, through Raton Pass into southeastern Colorado. Antonio Valverde y Cosio, Governor of New Mexico, who led an expedition through Raton Pass in 1719, documented the difficulties of that route.

In 1865, Richens Lacy Uncle Dick Wootton assembled a group of Mexican laborers and commenced work on blasting overhangs and hairpin curves of the Trail at Raton Pass. Wootton had obtained charters from the Colorado and New Mexico legislatures to build a toll road over Raton Pass from Trinidad to the Red (Canadian) River. Upon completion of the work in that year, a toll road was opened, allowing wagons easier access to the Mountain Route. This venture proved to be extremely profitable, with in excess of 5,000 wagons using the toll road in 1866. In a single one-year, three-month and nine-day period in the 1860s, Wootton made $9,163.64 on receipts alone. The Sangre de Cristo Pass fell into disuse while Woottons road became the principal artery between Colorado and New Mexico until the coming of the railroad.

On September 21, 1865, the first train arrived in Kansas City over the Missouri Pacific Railroad. Even though individuals left Kansas City for Santa Fe as late as 1868, the last wagon trains left Kansas City in the spring of 1866. As the eastern terminus of the Trail moved westward, former locations on the Santa Fe Trail that relied on the influx of traders and trading suffered. On August 31, 1867, the Junction City Union reported that: A few years ago, the freighting wagons and oxen passing through Council Grove were counted by thousands, the value of merchandise by millions. But the shriek of the iron horse has silenced the lowing of the panting ox, and the old trail looks desolate.

The Kansas Pacific Railroad (formerly the Union Pacific Railroad, Eastern Division) and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad shortened the Trail as their steel rails raced for Santa Fe: Sheridan (May 1868); Burlingame (September 1868); Cheyenne Wells (March 1870); Kit Carson (March 1870); Emporia (summer, 1870); Newton (July 1871); Hutchinson (June 1872), Great Bend (July 1872); and Larned, Kansas (August 1872). In 1878, Wootton sold out his toll road through Raton Pass to the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad.

From before the Civil War and even after the arrival of the railroad, military freighting remained an important activity along the Santa Fe Trail. Since much of the military freighting that did take place was fulfilled by civilian contractors, this activity also presented the opportunity for military-civilian interaction. Despite the delivery delays and damage of military freight, the transportation system that allowed for civilian contractors proved to be cheaper and more manageable than providing government trains. The lack of success of government freighting experienced during the Mexican-American War prompted the government to experiment with contract freighting. The relative success of these civilian contracts resulted in more of them being awarded to serve the increasing number of military outposts that were developing along the Trail. As the competition among civilian contractors increased, the cost of transportation of military supplies decreased but transported items still increased up to five or six times their original value when transportation costs were included. The provision of a military escort and the westward advance of the Kansas Pacific Railroad in the late 1860s witnessed a decrease in the uncertainty, the length of time, and the expense of military freighting. In the 1870s, the principal Arms handling military freight for New Mexico were Otero, Sellar and Company, and Chick, Browne, and Company. As the railroad continued its westward advance to Santa Fe, these competing freight companies followed them. When the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad finally reached the western terminus of the Trail in 1880, transportation costs declined and wagon hauls grew shorter. Railroad transportation allowed for faster, more frequent shipment of supplies resulting in less spoilage, loss, and deterioration of goods often characteristic of long wagon hauls.

The effect of the railroad on the overland Santa Fe trade is reflected in the repeated shortening of the wagon segments of the Trail. Some traders responded to the impact of the railroad on wagon transport by moving their trading operations westward ahead of the railroad. One such trader was Don Miguel Antonio Otero who moved the eastern headquarters of his trading operations westward seven times in eleven years from Kansas in 1868 to Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1879. Since the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad had won the race for the right of way through Raton Pass, it was their trains that were to thunder into Las Vegas on July 4, 1879, and eventually into Santa Fe on February 9, 1880. Soon after this date, wagon use of the Trail as a means of long-distance transportation of goods and individuals proved inefficient, thus closing this chapter in the history of the Santa Fe Trail.

Compiled and edited by Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated December 2020.

Also See:

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad

The Railroad Blasts Across America

Raton Pass

Santa Fe Trail (main page)

Source: National Register of Historic Places Nomination
A Bethlehem Township man who was out on parole after pleading guilty in two burglary cases is back behind bars, the Northampton County Sheriff's Department reports.

Jeffery M. Werkheiser, 48, right, is back in Northampton County Prison after violating parole on burglary guilty pleas, the Northampton County Sheriff's Department reports. (lehighvalleylive.com file photo)

The sheriff's department Criminal Warrants Division arrested Jeffrey M. Werkheiser, of the 4000 block of Wilson Avenue, without incident on Friday at home after two bench warrants were issued Nov. 9, charging Werkheiser violated parole, authorities said.

Werkhesier was sentenced March 24 to 11 to 23 months in county prison after he stole about $10,000 in goods from his neighbors during a burglary spree in March 2015, authorities said.

After receiving credit for time served and despite going missing for a time from the work release facility, he was released Sept. 13, court records show.

On Oct. 7, he was determined delinquent in his parole, court papers say. He had made no payments on about $8,000 costs, fees and restitution, records show.

He was initially charged with eight counts of burglary, seven counts of theft and receiving stolen property, as well as four related offenses, the sheriff's department said.

Many of the charges were withdrawn as part of a plea deal. He would have faced 160 years in jail on the eight burglary charges alone, Pennsylvania sentencing guidelines show.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Construction is underway on the first Madison Farms homes, which will be available for sale in the spring.

The 57 single-family, townhouses and carriage homes join the existing 294 luxury rental residences and a 153,000-square-foot shopping center in Bethlehem Township that includes ShopRite, Starbucks, MOD Pizza, Chipotle and a state liquor store, according to a news release from The KRE Group, which is developing the site with The Silverman Group and Ryan Homes.

Prices are not yet available for the homes in the development off Freemansburg Avenue just west off the Route 33 interchange.

"This new phase of homes represents the first ownership opportunities in a community that has already been a tremendous success as a rental property," said Jeremy Kaplan, chief operating officer of The KRE Group.

The for-sale homes will include both three-and-four-bedroom layouts with a transitional home design that blends modern and traditional aesthetics.

Construction of another phase of 276 rental units, which broke ground this summer, is supposed to wrap up in the summer of 2017. The full build out of all of the rentals is expected to finish in the summer of 2018. The rental units range in size from 790 to 1,375 square feet and prices start at $1,320.

More single-family homes, townhomes and carriage homes are planned in the future. A total of 837 luxury residences will be built at Madison Fams, 267 of which will be for sale.

Pocket parks, bike paths and a dog run will dot the 100-acre community and 35 acres will remain open space. All residents have access to amenities, such as an outdoor pool and picnic area, a clubhouse with a fitness center, yoga, billiard and media rooms.

Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
After a Northampton County judge in 2013 sentenced Jeffrey Curtis Drexler to 12 months of probation after Drexler pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography, a notation in a court record said "continue with treatment."

But what the 27-year-old former Nazareth and Palmer Township resident continued doing was looking at child pornography, federal authorities charge.

Jeffrey Curtis Drexler (Pennsylvania State Police Megan's Law photo)

Drexler was charged Oct. 20 and arrested Oct. 21 on one federal count of possession of child pornography, according to court records and federal authorities.

The home where he lived at 1223 Tatamy Road was searched Sept. 23 and he was interviewed then and a second time on Oct. 6 by agents of U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations, records show.

He admitted to using the TOR browser to download sexual images and videos of girls between the ages of 5 and 15, court papers said. He also admitted to previously sexually assaulting a 14-year-old and an 8-year-old, authorities said.

A forensic workup of Drexler's cellphone revealed 237 images of child pornography and evidence that the TOR browser had been installed, according to court documents.

He allegedly told investigators that he had been looking at child pornography since he was 18 or 19 years old -- a few times a week since 2013 -- and he would delete the images and the browser from his cellphone because he was afraid of being caught again. Agents couldn't preview any porn on his phone the day the warrant was served, they said.

His previous conviction meant he had to register as a Megan's Law offender, but he moved in a few homes down the street from Tracy Elementary School and had continued access to children through his housemate and through his girlfriend, authorities said.

After a detention hearing, a judge agreed with the government's assertion that Drexler was both a flight risk and a danger to others, court papers say. He is being held in federal detention until trial, currently scheduled 9:30 a.m. Dec. 28 in federal court in Philadelphia.

Homeland Security Investigations became aware of Drexler when agents were conducting a nationwide probe of an Internet-based child-pornography bulletin board, according to court records. Drexler allegedly downloaded a porn video from there on Nov. 16, 2015, involving an 11-year-old girl.

The video was the basis for a search warrant for the Tatamy Road home, authorities said. A federal grand jury returned the one-count indictment against Drexler.

If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, with a maximum of 20 years. He also faces between five years and a lifetime of supervised release as well as a $250,000 fine, authorities said.

"He is a danger to any child in the community," the government said in its request that Drexler stay locked up until trial.

Nancy MacEoin, an assistant federal defender with the Federal Community Defender Office, declined comment.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Interstate 78 near the Morgan Hill overpass in Williams Township was "a mess" Sunday evening after a multi-vehicle crash on the westbound side of the highway, authorities said.

Injuries were reported just before 6 p.m. near mile marker 75.5, with as many as four vehicles crashing, according to a Northampton County emergency dispatch supervisor.

A Pennsylvania State Police trooper at the Belfast barracks couldn't immediately provide lane closure information, saying she had "a mess on my hands."

At least some traffic appeared to be moving on a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation camera, and some of the westbound vehicles were getting off at the Easton exit.

PennDOT later reported a lane restriction.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A Donald Trump supporter's in-flight tirade on a Delta flight to the Lehigh Valley has earned him a lifetime ban from the airline.

Delta's CEO announced the ban in a memo issued companywide on Monday and later posted on Delta's website.

"After questioning the customer, our team members made the best decision they could given the information they had and allowed him to remain on the flight. However, if our colleagues had witnessed firsthand what was shown in the video, there is no question they would have removed him from the aircraft," Ed Bastian wrote. "He will never again be allowed on a Delta plane."

Read the entire memo here.

The passenger, who has not been identified, asks, "We got some Hillary b-----s on here?" in the 44-second video filmed by a fellow passenger.

"Donald Trump! He's your president. Every g-----n one of ya's. If you don't like it, too bad," he concluded before sitting down in what appeared to be an otherwise quiet cabin.

The flight was headed from Atlanta to Lehigh Valley International Airport in Hanover Township, Lehigh County.

Delta Airlines initially issued a statement that the man should have been removed from the flight.

"We have followed up with the teams involved and all agree that this customer should not have been allowed to continue on the flight," the statement said. "Our responsibility for ensuring all customers feel safe and comfortable with Delta includes requiring civil behavior from everyone. The behavior we see in this video does not square with our training or culture and follow up will continue so we can better ensure our employees will know they will be fully supported to make the right decisions when these issues arise."

Reporter Yashar Ali said in a now suspended post on medium.com that he had identified the man as a Chester County resident who works for Rockwell Collins.

Rockwell Collins investigated the matter and found that the identification was wrong, and the man on the flight was not one of its employees.

See statement regarding incorrect identification of Delta Airlines Flight 248 passenger. pic.twitter.com/Q5FbKmx588  Collins Aerospace (@CollinsAero) November 28, 2016

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A woman with a personality disorder who has committed over 80 violent incidents in care has been sentenced to two months in jail, with Judge Catherine Staines saying Irish mental health laws need to be changed in order for the woman to receive proper treatment for her condition.

A psychiatric report on Eileen Mullin, previously residing at The Bungalow, Nua Healthcare, Athgarvan, Newbridge, has indicated that there is no facility in Ireland that could meet the accuseds needs.

The problem here is that the barrier to treating her is a legal one, said Judge Catherine Staines, going on to say that the accuseds personality disorder is not recognised in Ireland as a mental illness, as it is in the UK.

The report concluded that what is required is a change in the law, a remark that Judge Staines agreed with.

Theres a clear need for a change in the law, she said, adding that the accused needs to be transferred back to the UK where she can be dealt with.

Saying that it was a matter of urgency that a suitable place be found for the accused, Judge Staines declared: There clearly is a responsibility on the HSE to find that place.

The HSE was not represented in court at last weeks proceedings.

When the case previously came before the court on November 3, Doctor Lorcan Martin of the HSE said that the HSE could not provide care for the accused as her condition, personality disorder, does not fall under the Irish Mental Health Act.

Last weeks court heard that solicitor for the defence, Ms Caroline Egan will be bringing the matter to the High Court to invoke vulnerable persons jurisdiction.

In relation to charges against the accused, Judge Staines said these were serious charges which included an assault on the court clerk.

Mullin faced a number of charges, including assault at Portlaoise Courthouse on July 10; breach of the peace at the Midlands Hospital, on October 19; and threatening or abusive behaviour, and failure to comply with the direction of the gardai, at Portlaoise Main Street, on October 20.

Judge Staines imposed two months in prison, backdated to October 27.

The judge said hopefully Ms Egan will have the matter before the High Court before the accused is released, so as to secure a place for her.

Recognisance was fixed in the event of an appeal.
The Portarlington HQ of the Data Protection Commission may not see the benefit of a 2.8m government increase, as 40 new jobs could go to its Dublin office.

The commission has said that the new jobs it will create following a government budget increase, will be allocated on a business needs basis between Portarlington and a sub-office that was opened in Dublin two years ago.

Planning for the recruitment of additional staff is at a very early stage. While it is not possible to provide details of the total number of staff that will be recruited in 2017 or their location, allocation between Portarlington and Dublin will be made on a business needs basis, a spokesperson told the Leinster Express recently.

There are already almost 60 staff working between the two offices. The extra staff to be taken on, are to include legal, technical and investigative experts.

The Commission has however confirmed that the office in Portarlington will remain open.

The Commission will get funding of over 7.5 million for 2017, up by 2.8m from this year, in recognition of the role it plays to protect the privacy rights of EU citizens.

It regulates internet companies based in Ireland like Google and Facebook.

The office has received budget increases every year since 2014 when it got 1.9m.

The commission office was moved to Portarlington in 2006 to a rented office over a shop on Station road, as part of the governments short lived decentralisation plan.

Comments have been made since by industry media on the unlikely location of what is Europes privacy hub above a convenience store. In 2014 The Dublin office in Fitzwilliam Square was opened as a meeting space.

The Data Protection Commissioner Helen Dixon welcomed the funding.

The additional funding will be critical to our preparations for the implementation of the EU General Data Protection Regulation in May 2018. In 2017 we will continue to invest heavily in building our capacity and expertise, including the recruitment of specialist staff, to administer our new enforcement powers, Ms Dixon said.
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Since May 2016, the Liberal Democrats have been the clear winners when it comes to taking seats in local by-elections. Many campaigners will have seen the following graph:



With 21 seats gained, and only 1 lost, the net result of +20, with our vote share averaging up 9% is a good recovery which the party should be proud of. We need to continue to work hard, but at the same time, steady progress.

Conventional thinking would have us believe that when a party is in Government, they do badly in elections. Conversely, opposition parties should be doing well. Therefore, if Labour were to be on a serious road to power, it should be thrashing the Conservatives by achieving net gains from them.

Yet if 2016 has taught us anything about politics, its that convention has gone out of the window. Digging deeper into local authority by-election figures, I was shocked to learn that the reverse is true  the Tories are gaining seats off Labour. Since 2016, Labour have won 3 seats off the Tories. This figure should be a lot higher for the Official Opposition. Surprisingly though, the Conservatives have won 7 net seats off Labour, including a result in Pendle last Thursday:

Reedley (Pendle) result:

CON: 51.1% (+8.4)

LAB: 46.6% (-7.6)

LDEM: 2.3% (+2.3)  Britain Elects (@britainelects) November 24, 2016

This figure now means that Labour are still losing seats, but as of Thursday 24th November they have lost more Councillors net (-11) compared to the Conservatives (-7). For every seat Labour gain off the Tories, they lose two.

There are clear signs that this is a trend, because Labour are losing net Councillors not only to the Lib Dems (-5), and the Conservatives (-4), but other parties as well. Whilst Scottish Labour are trading seats with the SNP (2 net gains and losses means its even here) theyve also lost seats to Plaid.

Labour are even -1 seat down to UKIP. Yes, leaderless, MEP-punching, leadership-contender-resigning, expenditure-investigated, xenophobic UKIP are taking seats off Jeremy Corbyns Labour.

Worse may be yet to come. The Liberal Democrats saw a strong surge in Witney, where they were clearly competitive, resulting in some fabulous body language from different candidates on the night:

The excellent Liz Leffman slashed the Tory majority down to around 6,000 votes, leapfrogging both UKIP  and also Jeremy Corbyns Labour. At the time of writing, the latest polling sees a Lib Dem surge in Richmond Park, with Zac Goldsmith falling down to 46.7% and the Lib Dem Sarah Olney surging to 43.3%. With polling day next 1st December, the Lib Dems may capture the seat with a late surge. Labour, a distant third, are out of the running.

What of Corbyns Labour then? With the late Jo Coxs seat respectfully not being contested by the Conservatives, the Lib Dems and others, comparisons are impossible here. However, the Sleaford and North Hykeham by-election provides Labour with an opportunity, where Labour came a distant second in 2015. Yet early signs are that Labour are struggling to make an impact.

Despite Jeremy Corbyn visiting the constituency, Ladbrokes lists Labours chances of winning at 100/1. Again, a serious Official Opposition would be competitive in this seat. Instead, Labour, having selected a Brexit candidate for this by-election, are splitting the anti-EU vote with UKIP and the Conservatives. Meanwhile, many commentators have noticed the 40% Remain vote is rapidly concentrating around the Lib Dems Ross Pepper who has emerged as the serious pro-Remain challenger.

Unlike opinion polls, both Parliamentary and local authority by-elections are real. They represent collectively, not hundreds, not thousands, but tens of thousands of votes cast in real elections, with local by-elections being held all over the country since May 2016. The continued trend of losing local council seats is something that the Labour Party, as the Official Opposition, cannot afford to ignore.

* Simon Foster is a lecturer in Politics and Economics, and has published twenty-five books on Politics, PSHE and Citizenship.
Weve been hearing a lot recently about the post-truth era and what that means for the world. Generally, this is framed as meaning that the truth doesnt matter any more; that it is becoming easier, and perhaps fully acceptable, for politicians to lie and get away with it. But I have started to wonder: what if its worse than that? What if the post-truth era means that people now deny the very existence of truth?

The roots of this lie in resentment towards politics as a whole. People have always dismissed politicians as all a bunch of liars/crooks, but its arguably become more commonplace to do so since the global recession hit. The natural progression from this is that you get to a point where the truth doesnt matter. You start to draw a false equivalency between all politicians, painting them all as equally bad as each other, when in reality there are many good politicians as well as shades of grey within the bad ones. The US Presidential election is the obvious example here.

This folly of false equivalency pervades other areas of life outside of the political arena. I am reminded of the coverage following the death of Harambe, the gorilla who was shot after a child fell into his cage. A very sad story indeed, and one can debate the ethics of placing a human life above an animal life (for what its worth, Im in the child comes first camp), but thats a separate discussion. What I am concerned with is the reporting of eye witness accounts. In one story, an eye witness claiming that the gorilla didnt look threatening was placed in direct contrast to the views of animal experts, who said that he was displaying signs of danger and aggression. There is no comparison here. The eye witness account may be interesting in terms of the narrative of the event; it is, however, utterly irrelevant in terms of a scientific analysis of animal behaviour. Yet the impression the article gives is one of I guess well never know.

Wellyes we do, actually. The truth here, or at least as close to the truth as we can possibly get, is the unanimous verdict of independent animal behaviour experts. Anything else is meaningless speculation.

Politics is following a similar path. We have recently seen an MP attacking an independent body of economic analysts because, in his opinion, they were not being positive enough: an opinion motivated entirely by emotion with not a single shred of factual evidence to back it up.

During election campaigns both here and across the pond weve had off-hand dismissals of experts and facts. It is tantamount to saying not just that the facts dont matter, but that they dont exist: everyones opinon is worth the same and it doesnt matter how much knowledge you may have on a topic (because knowledge is worthless if you do not accept the existence of factual truths)  what matters is how people feel. It is a dangerous road to go down.

* David Gray is a musician, actor and writer based in Birmingham. He is a a co-director of Keep Streets Live
This was the headline in the print version of the Observer yesterday, although it came out rather differently online.

It states:

The Liberal Democrats are to target pro-EU Labour supporters and soft Tories who backed remain, in a final canvassing blitz ahead of Thursdays Richmond byelection, amid growing confidence in their camp that they are within striking distance of winning the seat. Party documents obtained by the Observer, laying out their strategy for the final days, suggest undecided Labour voters will be key, and failure to persuade enough of them to vote tactically may prevent the Lib Dems pulling off one of the biggest byelection upsets of recent years.  The Lib Dems own internal polling now puts Goldsmith on 46.7%, the Lib Dems on 43.3% and Labour on 9.5%.

Meanwhile, out on the streets of Richmond and North Kingston we are 

 canvassing

 delivering

 getting posters up

 and smiling a lot.

Not sure that will be recorded.

Apparently there is a Zac Goldsmith poster in this photo  can you find it?

Here is everything you need to know if you want to help Sarah Olney become our MP for Richmond Park this week.

Thanks to everyone who posted photos to the campaign page which I have unapologetically nicked.

* Mary Reid is a contributing editor on Lib Dem Voice. She was a councillor in Kingston upon Thames, where she is still very active with the local party, and is the Hon President of Kingston Lib Dems.
THE Courts Service of Ireland has been criticised over its decision not to include any public parking spaces within Limericks new multi-million euro criminal courts complex.

When it opens in twelve months time, the complex will incorporate six court rooms, custody facilities and a number of offices.

The facility, which will be 7,350 square metres in size, is being built at a site, known locally as Costellos Yard - which is adjacent to Limerick Prison.

Construction work began last year after BAM Building (formerly Rohcon) was awarded the contract for the project by the National Development Finance Agency.

Concerns have been expressed by a number of stakeholders about the lack of parking within the new development and the impact this may have on traffic in the immediate vicinity of the complex.

A spokesperson for the Courts Service has confirmed there will be no facility for members of the public  including witnesses and jurors  to park when attending court.

There will be car parking for staff, An Garda Siochana, the Prison Service and the judiciary. There will be no public parking in this or in any new court facility we build, he said.

Solicitor Darach McCarthy, who is a committee member with the BAR Association in Limerick, has accused the Courts Service of ignoring the real concerns of court users.

The attitude has been frightening there has been no consultation and I have grave concerns. There has been a gross disregard for the needs of court users  particularly jurors and potential witnesses, he said.

The Limerick Leader understands that concerns in relation to parking and traffic management at the new courts complex were first raised more than a year ago and at a number of high-level meetings since.

We have a policy of locating court facilities near public transport, or central to a town, or near publicly available parking facilities. In Limerick there is plentiful public parking in nearby facilities," said the Courts Service spokesman.

Limerick City and County Council has echoed this view with a spokesperson insisting there is sufficient parking in the immediate vicinity of the new complex to cater for demand.

On-street parking operates on all streets adjacent to the development, while adequate off-street parking is available to sustain the development in nearby Summer Street and Cornmarket Square, which include pre-booking provisions and late night parking, said the spokesperson.

He added the provision of traffic and parking provisions in respect to staff and public users of the new courthouse have been addressed by the planning process.
CAPPAMORE Library has been announced as one of just 23 in the country and the only facility in County Limerick approved for an Open Libraries initiative.

The Government scheme provides for seven-day opening from 8am to 10pm. Staffing levels and staffed hours remain unchanged, while the extended hours are unstaffed.

The state-of-the-art Cappamore Library is part of the latest roll-out of the project, however, Cllr Noel Gleeson has voiced his opposition to the plan.

He said he is completely against Cappamore Library opening without any staff in the building.

Speaking at a Cappamore-Kilmallock municipal district meeting, the local councillor expressed concerns that the facility, opened in 2014, may be vandalised if people are allowed in on their own without supervision.

I got a phone call about what is being proposed - longer hours with no staff. It has been trialled in Galway. I am completely against it. How can you allow anybody go into a beautiful new building that is going a bomb without any staff?

Im not accepting it - it is completely wrong. We have seen what has happened with community halls. It can happen anywhere with a small minority, said Cllr Gleeson.

It is understood that anyone over 18, who is signed up for the service, can scan into the building using their library card during the unstaffed hours.

Cathaoirleach of the municipal district, Cllr Eddie Ryan said: It is a high risk.

Cllr Gleeson referenced the Solas System in Cappamore Library, which is the first of its kind in Ireland, and includes touch screen table PCs offering an exciting suite of programmes and apps for all ages.

There are only four of these in the British Isles. I will be voicing my opposition. I saw work being done on the door [of the library]. I wasnt informed of that. I should have been notified as any councillor in their area should, said Cllr Gleeson.

Cllr Lisa Marie Sheehy said she had heard murmurs about the plans for Cappamore Library. She also opposes the library being available when there are no staff on site.

If we go that way with everything we will be losing jobs. There is a risk factor, said Cllr Sheehy.

Asked for a response by the Leader, a Limerick City and County Council spokesperson said: As part of the Open Libraries initiative launched by the government, Cappamore Library in County Limerick is one of 23 libraries to be given approval-in-principle for the scheme.

Further details in relation to Cappamore will be released following a briefing with local representatives from the Cappamore-Kilmallock municipal district which will be held in the coming weeks.

Dublin city councillors have voted against the introduction of the service, saying that it is strongly opposed to the initiative and will support library staff and their trade union to resist the introduction of staffless libraries.

In late September, Impact said they would be balloting members to consider industrial action.

This is a downgrading of library services that dismisses the value of integrated library services and reduces a library to simply a building full of books, said a spokesperson for the trade union.

Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Simon Coveney said: There will be no reduction in staffing levels or staffed hours as a result of the service, either in the short or long term.
THE TANAISTE and Minister for Justice and close colleagues have paid tributes to the late Inspector of Prisons and former judge Michael Reilly, who died over the weekend.

Judge Reilly served as judge on the Limerick District Court bench for 16 years, followed by sitting at Special Criminal Court bench, and was subsequently appointed Inspector of Prisons in January 2008.

Judge Reilly served as a solicitor in Clonmel, before being appointed to the bench in Limerick District Court.

Leading the tributes, Tanaiste and Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald described the late judge as robust and fair-minded.

State solicitor Michael Murray said that he did trojan work and always with the greatest courtesy.

The hallmark of his style of sitting was that he was always courteous, no matter who you were or what you done, he never failed to deal with somebody humanely and with courtesy. He was a unique individual in many respects.

He added that, outside of court, Judge Reilly was very gregarious and very good company.

Limerick Solicitors Bar Association president, Dan OGorman, said that he was one of the finest judges ever to preside.

Solicitor Ted McCarthy described him as a very able judge and very intelligent man.

Judge Reillys funeral takes place place at Portroe Church, Tipperary, this Tuesday morning. He is survived by his wife Eleanor, daughters Jilly and Evie, sons Tom and Peter, brothers Peter and Rory, sisters Eve and Sally, and extended family.
WHEN fiddle-supremo John Sheahan picks up his bow in the parish church in Glin next month, it will be a kind of home-coming for this last surviving member of The Dubliners.

For this is the church where Johns father Paddy, from Ballyguiltenane would have come to worship. And it is where the heroism of his grandfather Patrick is also commemorated.

John still has many cousins in the Glin area and a lot of them are musical too, explained John Anthony Culhane, chairman of the Glin Development Association which has invited John Sheahan as its guest star at their annual Gala Christmas Concert on December 16. We are looking forward to welcoming him back to his home-place.

Johns father, Mr Culhane explained, was Paddy Sheahan from Ballyguiltenane, Glin who enrolled in An Garda Siochana was based in Dubliln. His mother, he added, was Drew, from Ardagh.

Moreover, his grandfather was Patrick Sheahan, also from Glin who was a member of the Dublin Metropolitan Police and who died, trying to rescue another man in the city in 1905.

A man of formidable size, 6 4 in height and 18 stone, he went on duty on May 6, 1905 to cover for a friend who had wanted to go to the theatre when a Dublin corporation workman got into difficulties while working underground in Burgh Quay. Constable Sheahan went down the sewers but died of suffocation trying to rescue the man who was overcome by deadly gas.

Thousands thronged the quays as Constable Sheahans coffin was brought to what was then Kingsbridge station, and from there, by train, to Foynes and on to Glin for burial.

Constable Sheahans grandson began his working life with the ESB but gave it up to join the Dubliners in 1964 and played with the group until 2012 when the Dubliners name was retired following the death of founding member Barney McKenna.As Barney McKenna once said, John is the 'memory chip', the part of the band who never forgets, 'the mortar between the bricks' that kept the band together.

John Sheahan has toured the world and played with many great artists including the Chieftains, Pogues, U2 and the Clancy Brothers. A renowned fiddle and mandolin player, John has composed many musical pieces including his chart topping hit, The Marino Waltz. And more recently, John has become a published poet with his collection A Fiddlers Dream.

Appearing with John in Glin will be Bagatelle, the band whose hits are the sound-track to many peoples younger lives. Their songs, including Summer in Dublin, Second Violin, Leeson Street Lady and the very popular emigration song, the Flight of the Earls, were all charts topping hits in the 80s and 90s.

Formed in Bray in 1978, they have shared stages with U2, Van Morrison, Bob Marley and Don McLean and this will be the last chance to hear Bagatelle live in concert.

This, their final tour should prove to be a very memorable and nostalgic occasion, Mr Culhane said.

Tickets for the concert on December 16 are available for 25 in local shops , from members of Glin Development or by contacting Siobhan at 087 9944245.

Meanwhile, the old-time December Fair in Glin will take on Saturday, December 3 when there will also be a Christmas market in the local community hall, Ceol Corbrai.
May 3, 2021, 5 PM

This Honolulu postmark commemorating the 1941 Pearl Harbor attacks pays tribute to Navy hero Doris Miller.

By Michael Baadke

Two pictorial postmarks in this weeks listings commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Japanese military attack at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Dec. 7, 1941. The attack killed more than 2,400 Americans and injured more than 1,100 others, devastated the United States naval fleet in the Pacific, and directly led to the United States declaring war on Japan the day after the attack.

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The Dec. 7 postmark from Boca Raton, Fla., depicts the USS Arizona Memorial, part of the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument.

The postmark from Honolulu, Hawaii, is based on a wartime editorial drawing by artist Charles Henry Alston as part of his work for the Office of War Information and Public Relations.

The original drawing pays tribute to Navy Messman Third Class Doris Miller, whose heroic actions during the attack resulted in his receiving the Navy Cross, the first black Navy member to be so honored. Miller was additionally honored on a 44 U.S. stamp issued Feb. 4, 2010, in the Distinguished Sailors set of four (Scott 4443).

To obtain these postmarks, address your requests to:

75th ANNIVERSARY Station, Postmaster, Box 811943, Boca Raton, FL 33481-1943, Dec. 7.

75th ANNIVERSARY Station of Pearl Harbor, Marketing Office, 3600 Aolele St., No.106, Honolulu, HI 96820-9998, Dec. 7.

The following cancels are also available:

31 YEARS OF CHRISTMAS IN COMFORT Station, Postmaster, 726 Front St., Comfort, TX 78013-9998, Nov. 26. (Lit candle with holly at base.)

SANTAS WORKSHOP Station, Postmaster Postmark Request, Box 1768, North Pole, NY 12997-1768, Nov. 28-Dec. 31. (Elf with long list, candy canes, Naughty or Nice.)

WINTER WONDERLAND Station, Postmaster, 761 S. First St. W., Snowflake, AZ 85937-5579, Dec. 1. (Large ornate snowflake within circular lettering, 27 snowflakes as killer bars.)

FLOYDADA Station, Postmaster, 226 W. Missouri St., Floydada, TX 79235-9998, Dec. 1. (Large Christmas star, Unto Us A Child Is Born.)

SARATOGA SPRINGS Station, Postmaster, 245 Washington St., Saratoga Springs, NY 12866-9998, Dec. 1. (Three carollers, 30th Annual Victorian Streetwalk.)

TARLETON STATE UNIVERSITY Station, Postmaster, 431 N. Graham St., Stephenville, TX 76051-9998, Dec. 1. (Texas state outline with large T, Centennial Celebration, The Texas A&M University System Member 1917-2017.)

SANTA CLAUS Station, Postmaster, Box 9998, Santa Claus, IN 47579-9998, Dec. 1-25. (Santa Claus with elf.)

CHRISTMAS TREE Station, Postmaster, Box 9998, Turnersburg, NC 28688-9998, Dec. 1-30. (Motorcyclist, motorcycle pulling Christmas tree.)

HOMETOWN CHRISTMAS Station, Postmaster, 127 N. Main St., Delphos, OH 45833-9998, Dec. 2. (Small house, Santas House.)

ANGEL Station, Postmaster, Box 9998, Angelica, NY 14709-9998, Dec. 2. (Angel in flight blowing horn with stars.)

THE OLD POST OFFICE Station, Postmaster, 2168 Seventh Ave., Anoka, MN 55303-9998, Dec. 6. (Anokas old post office building, 1916 2016.)

The following cancels were granted 30-day extensions:

VETERANS DAY Station, Clerks Office, 62-450 Chiriaco Road, Chiriaco Summit, CA 92201-9998, Nov. 11. (Rosie the Riveter sign, We Can Do It! General Patton Memorial Award Honors Rosie The Riveter WWII 1945-1945, small image of soldier in helmet from back, four stars.)

CHRISTMAS IN PENDLETON Station, Postmaster, 137 W. State St., Pendleton, IN 46064-9998, Nov. 12. (Door with windows showing tree, jingle bells, We Guarantee Snow!)

AMERICAS BEAUTIFUL NATIONAL PARKS Station, Stamp Fulfillment Services, Cancellation Services Unit, Box 449992, Kansas City, MO 64144-9992, Nov. 17. (Trees and American flag, circular marking with cannon, Fort Moultrie, Ft. Sumter Na. Mon., Sullivans Island, S.C., 11 stars outside circle.)

FORT MOULTRIE QUARTER LAUNCH DED Station, Stamp Fulfillment Services, Cancellation Services Unit, Box 449992, Kansas City, MO 64144-9992, Nov. 17. (Soldier with Liberty flag, Fort Sumter National Monument, ATB35.)

The following cancel was granted a 60-day extension:

DIWALI FESTIVAL Station, Stamp Fulfillment Services, Cancellation Services Unit, Box 449992, Kansas City, MO 64144-9992, Oct. 5. (Two postmarks: illuminated diya [candle]; elephant.)

Share information by writing to Postmark Pursuit, Box 4129, Sidney, OH 45365.

Instructions for requesting postmarks

Linns subscribers can see complete instructions for requesting postmarks here.
Why the recent FIP election is stirring up strong dissent among the APS and others

May 4, 2021, 3 AM

The United States and Great Britain were unexpectedly shut out in the International Federation of Philately's recent election.

By Matthew Healey, New York Correspondent

The unexpected shutout of the United States and Great Britain from philatelys worldwide organizing body has caused rancor in top philatelic circles, both in the U.S. and Europe.

The International Federation of Philately (Federation Internationale de Philatelie, or FIP), which is essentially the United Nations of stamp collecting, has more than 90 member countries, each represented by its national philatelic organization. The United States, for example, is represented by the American Philatelic Society.

The 90-year-old federation is based in Switzerland, and is in fact affiliated with the United Nations through its observer status at the Universal Postal Union.

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The FIPs main activity is to determine the rules and standards for international exhibiting, ensure that judges evaluate exhibits consistently, and to lend its imprimatur to major worldwide exhibitions such as World Stamp ShowNY 2016 held May 28-June 4 in New York City, and Philataipei 2016 held Oct. 21-26 in Taipei,Taiwan.

However, critics of the organization have complained that it does little to promote philately beyond the elite world of international exhibiting.

Many would like to see a world philatelic body that could better articulate a vision for the future of the hobby and do more to support affordable exhibiting and encourage young collectors.

The FIPs seven-member board of directors, advised by 10 commissions on specific philatelic subjects, meets a couple times a year for discussions, typically in conjunction with one of the major shows.

Each continental grouping  Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Africa-Oceania  elects two FIP board members, with the seventh being the president, currently Tay Peng Hian of Singapore.

During this years elections to the board, which took place Oct. 26 in Taipei, Reinaldo Macedo of Brazil and Aldo Samame of Peru were elected for the Americas, while Bernard Jimenez of France and Yigal Nathaniel of Israel were chosen to represent Europe.

The candidate from the United States, former APS President Stephen Reinhard, unexpectedly lost, as did Britains Chris King.

Before the vote, the departing U.S. board member, Peter McCann, had assured everyone that Tay supported Reinhard, which would have effectively kept the U.S. seat on the board.

At the last minute, however, Tay indicated to his allies among the Asian and Latin American contingents that they should vote for Samame instead.

In an angry letter distributed online to members of the philatelic community, James Mazepa, chairman of the APS international committee, distinguished philatelist, and experienced international judge, denounced Tays maneuverings.

The result of all this collusion is that the United States and Great Britain, the two largest philatelic communities in the world in regard to exhibitors and judges, do not have a position or say on the F.I.P. Board, Mazepa wrote.

Mazepa dismissed as bogus the stated reason for Tays withdrawal of support from Reinhard: that judges at World Stamp Show-NY 2016 were somehow mistreated because water and coffee were not provided in their lounge.

In Mazepas view, Tays power play was an effort to continue doling out and receiving favors, such as reimbursement for travel to international shows.

Tay did not want Steve and Chris King from the U.K. on the F.I.P. Board because he knew they would challenge him and so limit his power and ability to grant favors. We now have an F.I.P. Board comprised of those who will not seriously challenge Mr. Tay, Mazepa continued.

To drive home his displeasure, Mazepa also called for the United States to withdraw its participation from next years international exhibition in Brazil and encouraged the APS to explore the formation of a new international body to rival the FIP.

Tay did not respond to a request from Linns for comment.

Although Mazepa was not speaking officially for the APS, his comments appeared to resonate with many in the United States and Europe.

Another APS board member, Rich Drews, circulated a letter from the president of the Portuguese Philatelic Federation expressing support for the idea of an alternate world body.

Chris King, who said he lost his election by just three votes, criticized the whole F.I.P. culture in a message to the Chicago Philatelic Society on Facebook.

He called the result the trading of favours behind closed doors, rather than a presentation of any vision for the future of philately.

King laid out what he called a manifesto, calling for more transparency, a clear sense of direction, and more democratic efforts to promote philately worldwide by encouraging contact among collectors and supporting philatelic events of all kinds.

Speaking by phone from his home in Florida, McCann said that despite having been double-crossed by Tay he harbors no ill will, and pointed out that Tays presidency will expire in 2018 and he cannot run again.

The APS board is tentatively scheduled to meet Dec. 6, although Executive Director Scott English informed Linns Nov. 22 that nothing was yet on the agenda regarding participation in Brasilia 2017, which takes place Oct. 24-29, 2017, or the other issues raised by Mazepa.

There are no plans to host another FIP-endorsed stamp exhibition in the United States until the Boston 2026 show, in 10 years time. English did, however, offer the news that the APS is mulling a major, non-FIP show in the United States in 2021.
Nov 27, 2016, 2 PM

A semipostal stamp in Luxembourgs Cars of Yesteryear series pictures a green Ford Motel T. The stamp was issued Dec. 6 in sheets of 10.

A 1924 green Model T assembled by Ford France in Bordeaux is pictured on a Luxembourg semipostal in its Cars of Yesteryear series.

In announcing the semipostal stamp, Luxembourgs philatelic bureau said that contrary to the myth that all Model Ts were painted black, they were produced in other colors as well.

The 0.70+0.05 semipostal is part of a set of four to be issued Dec. 6.

For more information, visit the website here!

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Children watching a public hanging in Iran

NCRI - One of the members of the parliament in Iran admitted that the widespread mass executions under the sovereignty of the Mullahs' regime bring wrath and fright to people. He called for reconsideration to these executions.





On 23rd November 2016, MP Ezzatollah Yousefian who is the representative of Amol City in the parliament had a speech in the parliament and said: "We have carried out many executions, every day. The number of executions in drug sector is very high. Do we have to carry out execution every day? We need to reconsider it eventually, dont we?"





Ezzatollah Yousefian referred to the psychological impacts of the executions in the society and said: "When I was the attorney general of Mazandaran Province, a report came from the Ministry of education in 1990. It was stated that as one person is executed in a day, nearly 20 to 30 students do not attend school anymore. I asked them about the reason and they told me that those who are being executed have a kind of family relationship with the students.





A woman in the court said to the Judge: "Your honor, I said to my son not to marry this girl because his father is sentenced to death penalty."





At the end, the Iranian MP stressed the significance of the fact that it is not only the matter of death penalty when one person is executed. The psychological impacts will remain in his family for years.



In other words, this condemnation is not only for the victim but also for his family. The families, relatives and generation also suffer about the execution in Iran."





Ezzatollah Yousefian also discussed the increasing number of executions in Iran. He addressed all members of the parliament and said: "Are we going to continue this way in 20 years? What are the consequences? Take a look at the age of addiction among the students. Look closely at the age of addiction in our society. In our country, there are people who are waiting to sell their kidney due to poverty whereas on the other part of the world the kidney receivers are naturally waiting for a kidney transplant. Nevertheless, the kidney seller has to wait for his turn since there are many people out there who actually want to sell their kidney. Note that I have not yet mentioned about selling other body parts. The issues are not trivial, however. The words are only spoken but there is no action towards them."

 | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; send a submission; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE!

Source: NCRI , November 27, 2016
You would thing that the entire Chavez debacle would be enough. Oh, **** no, not even close. I mean they are just a step away from honoring Stalin and Pol Pot and Mao. At the same time probably going to tell you that Henry Ford was a monster. Well, ok they already have to a degree. There is reality and there is Socialist wannabe progressives. The two do not exist on the same plane.
I've been living one to two months each winter in Jalisco state since 1998. And no, I do not go to all inclusive or "secluded tourist destinations" exclusively.



Nor did I claim that all of Mexico is "great."

I simply laughed at you stupidly using the word "everything' in YOUR post.

If you would only put some effort into reading comprehension.



Why are so many of you RW such pussies? Always worrying about someone "chopping your head off" or some such ****. Turn off the computer, get out of your mom's basement and LIVE a little bit.
Surprise! Inside what appeared to be a giant crocodile mummy were two juveniles (red) and 50 baby crocodiles (blue).

High-resolution scans of a sizable Egyptian crocodile mummy have revealed a secret that the croc had literally kept under wraps for 2,000 years.

There were unexpected stowaways hidden under the mummy's bandages  dozens of baby crocodiles, each one individually swaddled.

Earlier scans of the mummy completed in 1996 had found that the so-called "giant" crocodile, which measures about 10 feet (3 meters) in length, was actually two smaller juveniles, placed together and wrapped to resemble one much larger individual.

But those scans didn't tell the whole story. It wasn't until recently, when additional scans were acquired and carefully scrutinized, that 50 tiny, hidden crocodiles also came to light. [Photos: Giant Crocodile Mummy Packed with Baby Crocs]

The crocodile mummy is part of the Egyptian Collection at the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities (DNMA). The DNMA scientists conducted new 3D X-ray scans of the object, and collaborated with Swedish visualization group Interspectral to create a digital model of the mummy for an interactive "virtual autopsy," which would allow visitors to strip away the mummy's layers and explore what lies beneath.

The 50 baby crocodiles were wrapped in the pine rope bindings that secured the two juvenile crocodiles together, according to a statement released by Interspectral. They were likely all mummified together as an offering to the crocodile god Sobek, and additional plant material, wads of fabric and coils of rope padded them to form a single, massive crocodile shape, DNMA Egyptologists suggested in the statement.

Computed X-ray tomography (CT) technology has improved greatly since the mummy was first scanned in 1996. But although the recently gathered data was more detailed than the older scans, it still required extensive interpretation, Interspectral co-founder Claes Ericson told Live Science in an email. He explained that the technician had already been working with the mummy's data sets when he zoomed in on an unusual detail purely by chance, discovering that it was a tiny skeleton.

Dozens of individual baby crocodiles were found inside the giant crocodile mummy. (Image credit: Copyright Interspectral 2016)

"It's a combination of good hardware (the scanner), good software (Inside Explorer), a good pair of eyes and luck," Ericson said.

To noninvasively explore fragile specimens such as this one, researchers and museum conservators use a variety of scanning technologies, including laser scanning, photogrammetry, CT scans and lidar (light detection and ranging), Ericson said. But only CT scanning captures internal and external structures in three dimensions. In this case, the scans allowed DNMA curators to observe details in the mummy that previously went undetected, presenting them with exciting new information about an important artifact.

"When we started work on this project, we weren't really expecting any new discoveries," a DNMA curator said in a statement published Nov. 15. "What was intended as a tool for museum visitors has yet produced new scientific insights."

The crocodile mummy interactive and the newly renovated DNMA Egyptian galleries opened to the public Nov. 18.

Original article on Live Science.
NASA challenged engineers to pack an entire satellite dish into a cereal box with Radar in a CubeSat (RainCube), a technology-demonstration mission scheduled for launch in 2017 that will measure rain and snowfall on Earth from space.

Until now, most satellite dishes have been parabolic, which means that bigger dishes led to better radio transmissions. But radio-frequency engineers have been known to call the forces guiding communications over the air "black magic" because of their complicated physics, NASA said in a statement  and new CubeSat technology must fit that magic into a new, tiny package.

CubeSats are spacecraft designed to be light, cheap and extremely small; most aren't much bigger than a cereal box.

"It's like pulling a rabbit out of a hat," Nacer Chahat, a specialist in antenna design at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), said in the statement. "As space engineers, we usually have lots of volume, so building antennas packed into a small volume isn't something we're trained to do."

Chahat and his team worked with a CubeSat team on the design for RainCube, which is something like an umbrella stuffed into a jack-in-the-box, NASA said in the statement. When the cube opens, an antenna pops out and its ribs extend from a canister to spread out a golden mesh. The RainCube antenna has to be small enough to be crammed into a 1.5U container (1U, a CubeSat unit, is roughly equivalent to a 4-inch cubic box, or 10 x 10 x 10 cubic centimeters).

"Large, deployable antennas that can be stowed in a small volume are a key technology for radar missions," JPL's Eva Peral, principal investigator for RainCube, said in the statement.

RainCube's antenna relies on the high-frequency Ka-band wavelength, a rare choice for current CubeSats. Besides working with smaller antennas, that wavelength allows for a large increase in data transfer over long distances because of its higher frequency, making it the perfect tool for telecommunications, NASA said in the statement.

While most CubeSats have been limited to simple studies in near-Earth orbit, RainCube's technology could help scientists eventually use CubeSats much farther away, reporting back from Mars or beyond.

"To enable the next step in CubeSat evolution, you need this kind of technology," said JPL's Jonathan Sauder, mechanical engineer lead for the RainCube antenna.

Follow Kasandra Brabaw on Twitter @KassieBrabaw. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
The best way for competitive swimmers to hold their fingers is to spread them slightly apart so they rake the water, a new study finds.

In the hunt for the technique that could bring the fastest freestyle swimming, previous research hinted that swimmers could improve their efficiency by spreading their fingers apart, but much remained uncertain how this might work and how much swimmers needed to spread their fingers to benefit.

To solve this mystery, fluid dynamicists investigated both virtual models of human arms in computer simulations and 3D-printed models of human arms in wind-tunnel experiments. They analyzed the forces that these models experienced at five different levels of finger spreading: At zero degrees of spread, where all the fingers were pressed together like a paddle, through progressively wider 5-degree intervals all the way to 20 degrees of spread. [The 4 Types of Exercise You Need to Be Healthy]

The best results were seen with 10-degree finger spreading in both computer simulations and wind-tunnel experiments, the researchers said.

The researchers explained that as fingers spread apart, some water slips through them. However, the resulting turbulence can limit the flow of water between the fingers. As such, slight finger spreading can effectively increase the surface area of a hand. Up to a certain point, the benefit from this effective boost in surface area outweighs the effect of water lost between the fingers, said study co-author Josje van Houwelingen, a swimming fluid dynamicist at the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands.

In the study, even 5-degree finger spreading reduced the amount of drag that arms experience by 2 percent in computer simulations and 5 percent in wind-tunnel experiments.

"Using optimal finger-spreading might give a competitive edge," van Houwelingen told Live Science.

Although these effects are subtle, they could make a big difference in races between elite swimmers. "When you are a top swimmer, this very small effect, only a few percent, can make the difference between a gold medal and no medal at all," van Houwelingen said in a statement.

"We made a rough, and a little bit exaggerated, estimate for the possible improvement on the 50-meter freestyle," van Houwelingen said. "This resulted in a 0.6-second improvement." In contrast, she noted that the time difference between first and sixth place at the woman's 50-meter freestyle final at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro was just 0.12 seconds. [10 Biggest Doping Scandals in Olympics History]

Van Houwelingen noted that she was a swimmer herself, and tried the raking technique during swimming. She found it difficult to keep her fingers spread a constant distance from each other, "but since elite swimmers can also optimize their starting position up to 1 degree, they most probably also can also apply something of this knowledge to their technique."

The researchers noted that their research involved arms moving somewhat unrealistically at constant speeds through fluids. They now plan to put 3D-printed arms in a big water tank and see what forces they experience when they perform more realistic swimming movements using a robot. [Infographic: Body Types of Olympic Athletes]

The scientists detailed their findings Monday (Nov. 21) at the annual meeting of the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics in Portland, Oregon.

Original article on Live Science.
Cats are famous for their fastidious self-grooming, but the way their tongues are able to get them so clean has remained somewhat of a mystery. Scientists knew that feline tongues were covered in spines, and now a group of engineers has found that the teensy structures are shaped like claws and work like Velcro to clean cats' coats.

The findings could help engineers design robots that can grip surfaces, and even lead to more efficient hairbrushes and better ways to clean wounds, the researchers said. [20 Weird Dog and Cat Behaviors Explained by Science]

Cat licks

Alexis Noel, a mechanical engineer at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, began investigating the spines on cat tongues after she watched a cat lick a thick blanket and it immediately got its tongue stuck.

"I was home for the holidays and watching TV with the family cats," Noel said. "Murphy, a 3-year-old male cat  short-haired breed, with tan stripes  decided that the couch blanket smelled tasty, and decided to give it a good lick.

"When I was done laughing at this curious cat, the scientist in me began to question how a soft, wet tissue could stick to something so easily," Noel told Live Science. "After a few seconds of struggle, he figured out that he could detach his tongue by simply pushing his tongue into the blanket rather than pulling, de-hooking the blanket loops."

Using high-speed video cameras, Noel and her colleagues recorded a cat removing cat food deeply wedged into a 3D-printed fur mat. They also 3D-printed a model of a cat tongue four times bigger than normal and experimented with it.

"We are the first to 3D-print a cat tongue mimic," Noel said.

The scientists noted that cats' tongue spines are curved and sharp. "In terms of shape and sharpness, it reminds me of cat claws," Noel said in a statement. The spines' hook-like nature essentially helps them behave like Velcro: As cat tongues glide over fur, their spines catch on tangles of hair, she said.

Moreover, "when the cat's tongue hits a snag, it pulls on the hooks, which rotate to penetrate the snag even further," Noel said in the statement. "Like a heat-seeking missile for snags, the hook's mobility allows the cat to better tease tangles apart." The rotating behavior of these hooks also helps wedge particles between them, helping them catch food, the researchers added.

Noel's future research will explore how the spacing of cat tongue spines influences how well they groom, and how the lubricating layer of saliva on the cat tongue helps or hinders grooming.

"While saliva is known to break up dirt and oil, reducing fur matting, prior research has shown that wetting actually increases friction between hairs, which would make the brush more likely to yank hair out of the skin  painful!" Noel said.

In addition, they "are also looking to acquire tongues from tigers, lions and other large cats to understand how the tongue spines scale across the cat family," Noel said. "However, this may prove difficult to study, since exotic animal tongues are difficult to locate and acquire," she added.

Cat-tongue tech

This research could help scientists design soft robots capable of gripping items, Noel said. Whereas conventional robots are rigid  which makes them vulnerable to harm from bumps, scrapes, twists and falls  soft robots made from elastic plastic and rubber are resistant to many kinds of damage, and can wriggle past obstacles that can impede hard robots. [7 Cool Animal-Inspired Technologies]

"In the world of soft robotics, researchers are still struggling on ways for soft materials to grip surfaces," Noel said. Research on cat tongues might help overcome this challenge  they are flexible just like floppy soft-robot limbs "and yet can pull apart tangles in fur," she added.

These findings also could lead to better hairbrushes, Noel said.

"The first-known hairbrush is dated back to 8000 B.C.," Noel said. "Since then, the hairbrush design really has not changed. We look to understand what makes hair detangling less painful, and how the cat tongue can be scaled to suit human hair, providing a novel design to the traditional hairbrush."

The finding could lead to easier-to-clean hairbrushes. "A typical hairbrush has spines that stick straight out. When hair collects on the brush, it forms a thick mat that must be removed by hand," Noel said in the statement. In contrast, when not in use, the spines on a cat tongue lie nearly flat against its surface, like overlapping shingles. This allows "the mat of hair around the bristles to be removed with a single finger swipe. These openings face the cat's throat and are also why cats swallow their hair and end up with hair balls."

The researchers "will be developing the cat tongue mimic technology through the Innovation Corps at Georgia Tech," where they "plan to talk to consumers, beauty specialists and medical device specialists around the U.S. for application opportunities," Noel said. "We have submitted a provisional patent for this technology and plan to develop an application within the next year."

Noel said there were questions from other scientists as to how they plan to compare the cleaning efficiencies of cat tongue mimics to those of regular hairbrushes. "I recently developed a grooming machine which drags brushes through fur and measures the resistive forces," Noel said. "With this grooming machine, we can compare the friction forces associated with brushing to material properties of both the hair and brush."

The scientists detailed their findings Nov. 21 at the annual meeting of the American Physical Society's Division of Fluid Dynamics in Portland, Oregon.

Original article on Live Science.
A veterinary team from NOAA, the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, and North Carolina State University assesses the stranded humpback whale.

A humpback whale that stranded on a sandbar in Moriches Bay in Long Island, New York, on Nov. 20 was euthanized on Wednesday (Nov. 23), after attempts to move the animal into deeper waters were unsuccessful.

Marine biologists and veterinarians evaluated the whale's condition and determined that the animal was too badly injured to survive.

"It was thin, limp, weak, minimally responsive, [and] had evidence of neurological abnormalities and extensive skin injuries with evidence of infection," the team said in a statement released Nov. 23. The team included individuals from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research and Preservation (RFMRP), the International Fund for Animal Welfare, and North Carolina State University.

Related: Big Miracle: The Real Rescue in Images

"Based upon these findings, the most humane option was to euthanize the whale since its chance of surviving in the wild was minimal," the experts added.

Reports of a whale swimming in Moriches Bay first surfaced on Nov. 13, the RFMRP shared on Facebook. The group explained that the whale, which appeared to be a young humpback, was probably feeding, and the RFMRP advised boaters to keep their distance.

However, on Nov. 20, the whale became grounded on a sandbar in Hart's Cove in very shallow water  about 1 to 2 feet (0.3 to 0.6 meters) deep, according to NOAA.

RFMRP biologists, who respond to whale strandings under NOAA's guidance, attempted to dislodge the animal from the sandbar by using boats to create wave action that would lift the whale free. However, the waters were too shallow. Even after several tide cycles raised the water level around the whale, the animal remained stuck.

The team evaluated several other options for freeing the whale, but the possibility of causing great harm to the animal in the process was simply too high, the RFMRP said on Facebook. The decision to euthanize the whale, which involved an injection, was the only remaining option, said John Bullard, director of NOAA's Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office.

"The tidal conditions and other oceanic or biological factors that led to this stranding overtook any ability by our responders to rescue it," Bullard said in a statement. "We are thankful to our partners and the community for their caring response and respect for law enforcement as we pursue this humane option."

A necropsy will be performed on the whale after it is transferred to a safe location. The procedure will help scientists determine whether health issues caused the animal to strand in the first place.

Original article on Live Science.
A cemetery containing at least 15 burials was found beside the remains of the ancient city at Abydos. One of the tombs (shown here) holds the remains of at least one person in a fetal position. The grave would have been covered with a building (remains shown in the image) in ancient times.

The remains of a 5,000-year-old city, including a cemetery and several houses, have been unearthed at the site of Abydos in Egypt.

The city, whose size is not clear, dates to the early dynastic period when the first pharaohs ruled a united Egypt, said Mahmoud Afifi, the head of Ancient Egyptian Antiquities at the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities, in an Arabic language statement.

One of the houses excavated in the newly discovered 5,000-year-old city at Abydos was made mostly from organic materials that are now decomposed. Inside the house, archaeologists found pottery and stone tools. (Image credit: Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities)

Photos released on Thursday (Nov. 24) by the ministry show the remains of buildings made of mud bricks and organic materials that are now mostly decayed, along with pottery and stone tools found inside the structures. In addition, a necropolis (cemetery) holding at least 15 burials was found near the city, according to the ministry statement. The remains of a person lying in a fetal position were found in one of the now-exposed graves, according to the released images, which also show a structure nearby that would have covered the burial in ancient times. [Photos: Ancient Egyptian Tomb with Pyramid Discovered at Abydos]

A structure made of mud-brick, possibly a residential complex was found in the ancient city at Abydos in Egypt. (Image credit: Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities)

Although the people buried in this cemetery were probably not pharaohs, many early rulers of Egypt were buried at Abydos at sites not far from the city.

For instance, a pharaoh named Aha, who ruled Abydos more than 5,000 years ago, built an elaborate complex that included tombs for servants, dwarfs (who may have served as entertainers) and animals, including lions and dogs. Aha's tomb was discovered more than a century ago, and archaeologists believe that some or all of the people and animals buried with Aha may have been sacrificed after the pharaoh's death so that they could be buried with him.

Many news outlets suggested the city was 7,000 years old, an error that may have resulted from mistranslating the Arabic language release. The ministry, which now uses a Facebook page to issue news releases and video, did not release an English language statement. The ministry used to be able to issue news releases in both Arabic and English and had a staff member who could respond to reporter inquiries. The ministry's increasingly limited ability to communicate with media, particularly English language outlets, may have contributed to the confusion that led many media outlets to report that the city is 7,000 years old when it is actually closer to 5,000.

The Egyptian antiquities ministry has been facing a cash crunch for years as the countrys tourism has yet to recover to the levels it enjoyed before the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, according to several experts familiar with the situation.

Original article on Live Science.
El Castillo is a pyramid with 91 steps on each of its four sides.

What do a Russian nesting doll and a Mayan pyramid have in common? Archaeologists have confirmed that the iconic Pyramid of El Castillo in eastern Mexico is actually a pyramid within a pyramid within a pyramid.

In the 1930s, the first hidden pyramid was revealed within the Kukulkan tomb at Chichen Itza in Mexico, which researchers estimate was built between about A.D. 850 and A.D. 900. Now, scientists have found an even smaller pyramid inside that one that may have been constructed between A.D. 600 and A.D. 800.

Although the last construction of El Castillo occurred around A.D. 950 to 1000 and combined elements of Mayan and central Mexico cultures, the interior pyramids are "more purely Mayan" because they were constructed earlier, the archaeologists said. [Photos: First Glimpse into a Mayan Tomb]

There has been some controversy surrounding the chronology of Chichen Itza, according to Denisse Argote, an archaeologist and geophysicist at Mexicos National Institute of Anthropology and History. Argote said that although the dating of the structures is not fully proven, the pyramid's interior structure could add to the establishedchronology and understanding of the Mayan culture's early stages.

"Now the second substructure, more ancient than the ones known, would be of a pure Mayan style," Argote said in a statement. "The study of this substructure could tell us a lot about the beginning of the settlement in the site and its cultural influences."

The researchers used a technique called electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), which involves deploying hundreds of electrodes on the surface of the pyramid and into the ground. Without disturbing the archaeological site, ERT injects a direct current and relays any changes in electrical properties, highlighting structural differences inside the monument.

Using this technique, the researchers acquired more than 45,000 observations that helped detail the interior of the Pyramid of El Castillo. The ERT technique confirmed the 2014 discovery of a partially water-filled sinkhole beneath the pyramid, as well as the previous pyramid discovery and the finding of the new structure, the archaeologists said.

"The results indicate the existence of two pyramids inside the main Mayan building," said coordinating researcher Rene Chavez, a geophysicist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

Chavez added that although Mexican researchers discovered one of the interior pyramids in the 1930s, "the second substructure was just a hypothesis in some archaeologists minds."

The new discoveries will be detailed in a poster presentation Dec. 14 at the American Geophysical Union's fall meeting in San Francisco.

Original article on Live Science.
A couple of weeks ago, Annabel and I had an idea for a new mini-series featuring oodles of down-to-earth wedding advice from all of our wonderful Little Book Wedding Directory members.

So, we sent out a note to everyone and asked them to submit their best tips and nuggets of wisdom. The response was unbelievable. Ive spent the last week sifting through over 30,000 unmissable words of wedding advice from the most wonderful wedding suppliers.

In the first of this mini-series, Im going to be sharing some of the best suggestions from all our wedding friends, focusing on the week and day before your wedding. Before Christmas, well also be publishing features about the morning of the wedding, the ceremony, the drinks reception and dinner as well as the evening celebrations. Were even looking at post-wedding essentials too. In fact, because weve been so overwhelmed by the brilliant advice weve received, well be publishing a special online magazine in the New Year and thats going to be a planning essential for sure.

But, for now, lets turn out attention to the week before your wedding. Now, I know from my years as an award-winning wedding planner that this is when everything gets super serious! However organised youve been throughout the planning process, there are things that can only be done in those last few days. So, its really important that youre totally on it with the wedmin but you also need to be really kind to yourself. It might seem that its all a bit too much or that everything is so near and yet so far. I promise you that a plan, some support and a good dose of the advice below will see you through in fine style.

Actually, I need to start this feature a little bit earlier than the week before the wedding because the fabulous hair stylists and makeup artists that youll find in Little Book for Brides have some wise words to make sure that your hair and skin is in top condition come the big day.

Amazing Face, Dorset Makeup Artist + Follow

Exfoliating once week will increase blood flow to the face and improve the skins overall condition by 100%, says Caroline from Amazing Face in Dorset. Its amazing that so many clients really never do it and to me, its the most important part of any skin care routine. It will really make your skin glow and increase its radiance so you get a youthful, less tired appearance. The next step, when it comes to preparing your skin, is to always moisturise after cleansing  a foundation will always look smoother, more polished and your skin will just glow

The right skincare regime should ideally be started months in advance, advises makeup artist Kristina Gasperas. You should make sure that you are keeping yourself well-hydrated, drinking warm water with lemon juice and a fresh smoothie with lots of green vegetables daily. Also make sure that you are eating plenty of oily fish and avocado as these help keep the skin in top condition.

Then, when it does come to the week before the wedding, our beauty experts are very sure that there are things you truly DONT need to do: Dont have a facial the week of the wedding as it can cause breakouts, says Antonia from Elle Au Naturel.

The same is true of threading and waxing so avoid these in the days before your wedding. Instead, schedule everything for around two weeks before the wedding to give you time to heal should you have a reaction or breakout. This is not the time to try anything new with your skincare, cautions makeup artist Maxine Wilson. Stick with the product that youve tried and tested and DO NOT TOUCH any spots! Left alone, therell be plenty of time for them to heal before the big day!

So, lets head on in to the week before the wedding and its time to step-up the organisation:

If youre using multiple suppliers, nows the time to think about a room layout plan, says Caroline from Vowed & Amazed. If you can create one and send it through to your suppliers, theyll be really happy! Many couples say to us oh, therell be someone there on the day wholl know what to do and so often, there isnt anyone available or theyre busy elsewhere. So, pre-planning the room layout makes things quicker and easier for you and your suppliers.

Whilst were talking about your wedding day suppliers Check in with each and every one of your suppliers for the big day in the week before, advises Val from superb wedding planners Benessamy Weddings & Events.

Make sure that they have everything they need and everyone is on the same page. Confirm final timings with them by sending out a schedule of the day. Its always a good idea to send out the same comprehensive schedule and contacts sheet to everyone so that all the suppliers have a good idea where they fit into the wiser plan, and not just their small part.

Hannah from All Things Borrowed agrees: We love lists! Lists upon lists! Everything is so much clearer when its down on paper. Make a list of all the things that still need to be done and just cross them off one at a time. Having a million things whizzing through your head will only stress you out even more.

Of course, its not just your suppliers that you need to contact as Val from Benessamy Weddings & Events explains: Speak to any guests that you havent heard from or are concerned about and ensure that you know their plans. If guests are travelling from further away, check in with them and make sure theyve booked their travel and accommodation. You dont want a panicked call the night before when they cant find a hotel room! Aint that the truth!

Now, with all the big arrangements confirmed, lets take a look at a few more practical things to do that can make your wedding day smoother If you have hired a wedding planner or stylist now is the time to make sure they have any menus, table plans, placement cards and name cards ready to lay out on the day, says Harriet from De Winton Paper Co.

For those of you that have chosen to plan your big day without hiring a professional planner then it is worth liaising closely with your venue to see if they will be placing these items out for you or if you will need to make alternative arrangements.

You want to have your final dress fitting about 2-3 weeks before your wedding so that there are no last minute alterations required and you can enjoy collecting your dress in the week before your wedding, explains Laura from Brides of Winchester.

Before you collect your dress and accessories from your boutique, plan where youll store your dress when you get it home, says Lindsay from Dress in Love Weddings. Ideally, and especially if you have a long train, your dress needs to hang at full length so the train doesnt crease. Have a clean, white king-sized duvet cover ready to hang over your dress to protect it when you take it out of the gown bag.

In the week before, make sure that one of your lovely bridesmaids or your mum knows how to help you into your dress, says Helena from Heavenly Vintage Brides. Getting into a wedding dress is not like getting dresses normally and gowns will often have buttons or even need to be put on carefully over the head with the use of a makeup scarf. Always make sure that you have a practice run! And its not just the bride who needs to think about her ensemble either: One of the problems we find on the grooms side often comes if youve hired suits, says filmmaker Julie ONeill from Mintyslippers Media Ltd.

Weve experienced lots of instance where the suits are the wrong colour or the waistcoats are missing. Leaving the suit in the bag and not checking it when its picked up isnt a good idea. Check everything in advance and avoid any last minute dramas.

Encourage the male members of your wedding party to get their hair trimmed early on in the week before rather than leaving it too close to the wedding, says Claire from Littlebird Weddings. Mens hair always looks better with a bit of growth!

Nows also the time to make sure that your wedding party knows whats expected of them as photographer Ross Hurley explains: Assign a bridesmaid or groomsmen the role of chief helper. This needs to be someone whos trustworthy and can keep to time. This will be the go-to person for anything on your wedding day. Within this week, let them know their duties. As a photographer, I ask for one person in particular who can help find correct family members for your group photos. This person, also usually then helps me out with a few other tasks on the day. This means you are not bombarded with questions or requests and are free to relax and enjoy your wedding.

Sian from Tilly Trotters Brides agrees wholeheartedly: Definitely identify your go to person. This is the poor devil wholl be tasked with dealing with any issues that arise on the day. Theyll have to pay suppliers, deal with your drunk cousin etc. etc. so that you and your partner are left to carry on oblivious to any dramas! So, being given the super-helper badge might not be the best job ever but someones got to do it! There is also something else that you really have to do, however much you might like to avoid it

It might sound dull but nows the time to make sure that your finances are in order, especially if suppliers need to be paid on the day or just before, says Claire from Littlebird Weddings. Once thats done, you can get on with thinking about the big day.

Val from Benessamy Weddings & Events agrees: You really need to make sure your books are balanced, especially as your bank balance takes a final blow in the weeks before your wedding. Make sure that you keep a list of whos been paid and whos yet to be paid and, if anyone needs to be paid on the day, have that cash or cheque ready to give to someone else the day before and delegate that role.

The days before the wedding is a really special time and, as Michelle Kelly, Pocketful of Dreams wedding planner and mastermind behind the soon-to-be-launched Fearless Authentic 8-week wedding online course, its not the time for crazy amounts of work: This is your time to sit back and reflect on what youre actually about to embark on. Nows not the time to running a million and one errands. All this should be well and truly done by this point and you should be entering the final week with a huge sense of excitement and also confidence that everythings been boxed off and dealt with.

Michelle, and all of our experts, agree that the day before the wedding is absolutely one to savour: Make time to hang out with the special people in your life who might only be in town for the wedding, suggests Rachel from Paper Arrow Press.

Maybe invite a close friend to drink champagne with your while you get your nails done or book a table for early cocktails in the evening. Take time to pamper yourself and enjoy lots of lovely beauty treatments and massages, says designer Charlotte Balbier. Relax your body and mind so youre feeling calm and minimise your stress levels. A relaxed bride is a happy and beautiful bride!

Its also the perfect time to indulge your romantic side with a few small yet delightful gestures Write a handwritten note or card to your partner that they can open on the morning of your wedding, says Lorna from EYI Love. Tell them exactly why you cant wait to marry them and spend the rest of your life with them. Make sure you give a card to your partner to write to you so you can also have the joy of opening and reading this on the morning youll be wed.

Hide a little present to treasure in the pocket of your partners suit, says Sarah from Little Bevan. It can be something hell find on the morning of the big day. I embroidered our initials and wedding date on a big white linen handkerchief  but dont do as I did and do it at 5am on the morning of the wedding! Of course, its highly likely that there might be the small matter of getting your venues prepped and pretty too

If youre having a DIY wedding, rope in all you know to help you, advises Hannah from All Things Borrowed. Your family and friends all want your day to be the best so lots of help is at hand, just accept their offers!

Delegate as much as possible, says florist Rachel Grimes. Enjoy the madness! This is all part of the wonderful celebration of your marriage and memories will be made on this day and certainly on the next!

Make sure that youve got a team of people to help you because this will really relieve any stress, agrees Araminta from Jacaranda Catering. Then, before you and your fiancee leave each other for the night, make sure that you steal a moment for just the two of you. Be it a walk with the dogs, a drink in the pub or just a cuddle on the sofa, it will mean a lot.

The night before the wedding can be filled with many things  rehearsal dinners, pampering time with the girls or a quiet dinner for two. What everyone seems to agree on is that a late night and one too many drinks is not wise

Drink plenty of water and use an overnight hydrating face mask that youve previously tried and tested, suggests hair and makeup artist Laura Barrow. Youll wake up rested with glowing, supple skin.

Enjoy the night of pre-wedding celebrations with a good filling meal, a large glass of quality alcohol (only one, it helps you sleep!) and stay hydrated! says makeup artist Kylie McMichael. I also recommend that my brides have a hot bubble bath before bed as it lets your mind wander and you can process everything from the day and look forward to the amazing day that you have ahead.

Taking time out to remember whats really important and enjoy the occasion with your friends and family is something that all of our experts feel very strongly about and UK Celebrant, Samantha Kelsie explains it perfectly: In all the fuss and excitement of planning the bigger parts of the day, it can be easy to sometimes lose sight of the real reason that youre planning your wedding, especially when the stress kicks in. Remember, youre doing this first and foremost because of that little thing we call LOVE

So, that concludes this round-up of things for the week and day before your wedding and I still dont feel that weve scratched the service  therell be so much more advice in our post-Christmas magazine but I hope this first feature has given you plenty of ideas for your last single seven days.

Ill be back next week looking at the morning of the wedding and the ceremony itself but, for now, Ill leave you with these words from Michelle Kelly of Pocketful of Dreams and new venture, Fearless Authentic.

Finally and most importantly if you only do one thing in the week before your wedding it should be this: spend some time visualising your beautiful, emotional and sensational wedding day, really feel those feelings and make sure those visualisations are positive. Theres no place now for last-minute worries or imagined dramas  Im a strong advocate for the thoughts become things approach and I know that visualising what you want is one of the most powerful things you can do to actually make it happen. Its the law of attraction and trust me, it works.

Love Tamryn x
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Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Afghans returning from Pakistan

Hundreds of thousands of Afghan refugees are now returning from Pakistan, with the help of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). By the end the year 620,000 Afghans will have returned. In June the UNHCR had decided to increase their repatriation grant from $ 400 each to double, and it and the IOM are appealing for a combined dollar assistance of 73 million until the year for their return and resettlement.

In October beginning the Afghan Government had asked foreign aid doners hosted by the European Union to provide $ 3.8 billion a year at least by 2020. The voluntary repatriation centre on the outskirts of Peshawar in Pakistan is surrounded by trucks laden with the belon-gings of Afghan refugees who had come to Pakistan since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. Many are born to refugee parents, who have never seen Afghanistan. The Afghan Government is having difficulty in dealing with the returning influx. In Peshawar in Pakistan long established Afghan businesses are shutting down, their owners forced to sell their goods and property worth millions of dollars at throw away prices.

The process in Peshawar involves issuing temporary travel documents to Afghans, after destroyingtheir proof of registration cards, which will become invalid from November 15. Nearly one million Afghans refugees are considered by Pakistanis as a source of crime, unemployment and militancy, living in teeming slums breeding diseases like polio virus, which has nearly been eradicated elsewhere.

It is a poor time for the Afghan refugees to return. Their flood has driven up rents and food prices in Jalalabad, the big Afghan city up the road from Peshawar. In 2015, the Governor of Nangarhar, the capital of Jalalabad province, said he did not want Afghan refugees from different provinces to settle there. But the Afghan Government is encouraging them to return, with promises of land and has difficulties with those who leave the country to escape fighting with the Taliban. A bitter winter lies ahead and humanitarian agencies fear a crisis.

The Afghan refugees have to uproot themselves from Pakistan, where they had settled, some doing well in carpet and other businesses. They are uprooting themselves at a heavy cost as some had established profitable businesses in Pakistan. They will have to abandon their properties to go home.

The massacre of 130 school boys in Peshawar in 2014 had prompted the Pakistan Government to announce an action plan to repatriate all refugees, even though no Afghans were reported to have taken part in the attack.

The growing instability in Afghanistan makes it a poor time for refugees to return. The returnees will not find adjustment easy.

The Afghan Government is encouraging the refugees to return, with the slogan Grass is green on my land. But it is already struggling to deal with 221,000 people who have had to quit their homes in Afghanistan to escape fighting with Taliban. They have caused a humanitarian crisis.

The author is a veteran journalist who has written extensively on West and Central Asian developments. He also covered the 1962 Yemen war.
Home > Archives (2006 on) > 2016 > Bhopal Encounter a mechanism to terrorise Muslims and Secular (...)

by Arun Srivastava

It would be purely an act of naivete to view the killing of eight SIMI cadres through the narrow prism of encounter. An insight into the incident would reveal it is a part of the RSS design to eliminate dissenters, silence the voice of dissent and pave the path for implementing its policy of Hindutva and Hindu Rashtra.

The police and government narratives of the incident give the impression that the so-called terrorists were out to commit hara-kiri and that was why they preferred to run away in a very relaxed and leisurely fashion. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhans police had been straining hard to justify the killing by projecting them as hard-core criminals who had in the past also fled from the jail. The MP Police is in fact trying to project them as experienced criminals who had expertise in jail-break.

But it is the BJP chief, Amit Shah, who has unwittingly unravelled the truth behind the encounter. At a rally in Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh he disclosed that the BJP had chalked out the agenda of Attack Muslims to humiliate and terrorise them. After the secular elements the BJP views the Muslims as the potential force to check its design to convert India into a Hindu Rashtra.

Surprisingly, he described all the non-BJP Muslim leaders as goondas. He used goonda as an euphemism for Muslims. Shah also said that the BJP will ensure the protection of UPs Hindus. Citing the alleged exodus of Hindus from Kairana, he said: If the BJP comes to power, no one will leave their villages. Only those who are forcing you to leave will be made to leave. Shahs speech revealed the BJPs design to create a sense of insecurity among Muslims.

It is absolutely clear that Shah as the chief of the ruling party would not have dared to use such language without the tacit approval of the RSS bosses. The fact is that Shivraj Chouhan has turned the State into the RSS laboratory to experiment its Hindu policies and programmes.

A series of communal incidents have taken place in MP in the recent past. These raised the question about the security of Muslims. In all these incidents Muslims were at the target of the saffron brigade. A fact-finding report by a team of the All India Secular Forum revealed that more than 40 houses and the same number of shops owned by Muslims were set on fire in these incidents. According to the report submitted to the Director General of Police, the scene in the burnt houses and shops was such as if it was the handiwork of the army of an enemy country. On October 12 two villages of Dhar districtGandhwani and Pipalyawit-nessed arson and loot.

Incidentally, a report prepared by the Petla-wad Police on the October communal tension in the town accuses RSS leaders of trying to polarise Hindu voters to win the upcoming Petlawad nagar panchayat elections. They had forced a tazia procession during Muharram to change its route twice. Ironically the police officer who tried to control the situation was punished.

There is no denying the fact a vicious situation has been created by the Sangh and the Shivraj Chouhan Government. Obviously it would be wrong to believe that the police in such a back-drop would dare to take a rational approach. For them, the dissenters are the anti-nationals. Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat share a common vision and perception on this issue, the hate Muslim campaign enjoys the portentous endorsement from the government officials. Bhagwat has deployed in key organisational posts people who would toe the Sangh line and, at the same time, be non-confrontationist.

The chorus of the government officials and policemen in denying that it was a fake encounter simply underlined the indoctrination of bureau-cracy by the saffron rulers. Their audacity could be gauged from the simple fact that they told the people: No questions, we are patriots. It is a national shame that behind the veneer of patriotism the RSS and Modi Government have been trying to polarise the society and spread communal hatred.

The communalisation of the society and societal relations has attained such an ugly character that the villagers present at the encounter site preferred to pelt stone on the SIMI cadres as the police described them as Muslim terrorists. The reports point out that the villagers even raised nationalist slogans and cheered the police.

The police claimed that all the eight had been killed in an encounter. Was it true or fake? Only the political elites and rulers of Madhya Pradesh along with their police know the real fact and the true reasons for carrying out the criminal act. The people of India have the habit to exercise tolerance to such encounters. Nusrat Jahan was encountered but the culprits have not been framed. Nusrat was declared a terrorist. What was interesting was that the people, especially the urban middle-class guys, endorsed the government version..

In the case of the Bhopal encounter the police have been simply misleading the country at the behest of the RSS and Modi Government. The modus operandi of the encounter makes its explicit that it was planned by some powerful people close to the Sangh and MP Government. Else, how could they scale the wall of the jail? The police is trying to present a foolproof case. But a crime cannot be foolproof. It has got its own lacunae and holes.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the SIMI cadres were whisked out of the jail under a design. Ironically, the smart and competent MP Police has yet not been able to solve the quiz as to how and who killed the jail police constable. Apprehensions are being expressed that the constable might have been killed by some person acting at the behest of the vested interests.

What has been the most interesting aspect of the story is that the fugitives were caught within eight kms of the precincts of the jail. The police did not try to trace out the support-hand, from the outside as well as from the inside. This is not for the first time that prisoners fleeing the jail were encountered and murdered. There are more examples. A closer analysis of the incidents makes it implicit that in all the cases the authorities had provided the help and resources through their moles. The same process has been repeated in Bhopal too. The explanation of the Bhopal Police shows that they had used such notes here as well.



A new social and political order is in the making; under it the common people or even the political system is denied the right to question the actions of the ruling elite and the govern-ment: Dont ask questions. Asking question is abhorrent, is in bad taste. No doubt this is basic ethos of the democracy and democratic functioning, but the Sanghand precisely Modidoes not savour it. It was the basic tenet of transparency and openness of a functional democracy that Right to Information was enacted. But this is repugnant for Modi. Basically this is why he refused this year to inaugurate and participate at the annual convention of the RTI. This he did despite the fact that the RTI has made a world of difference to the process of decision-making, reduced arbitrariness and exposed corruption. It has become a great weapon in fighting injustice.

Democratic culture and the tradition of asking questions are under threat. First, the people have no right to ask questions, If at all someone musters courage to seek clarifications and asks questions he is invariably dubbed as anti- national. Only an anti-national could dare to ask questions from the patriots and nationalists!

Recall the remark that MP Chief Minister Chouhan made while briefing the media about the encounter; Shame on those who are shedding tears for terrorists. These people are liars. The most audacious has been obser-vations of the two precious ratnas (jewels) of Modi. While Kiren Rijiju ridiculed the democratic process itself: Asking questions is not good culture, his senior colleague, Venkaiah Naidu, sermoned: Asking questions is cheap politics.

Asking questions in NDA rule has become a taboo. The Modi Government has till date not answered who gave the mob the right to kill Akhlaq. It also did not answer: Did Akhlaqs family keep beef in their house? There are a number of questions waiting for an answer from the Sangh and Modi. They know that once they start replying to questions, they would lose the initiative and their fascist attacks would get blunted. They have to be ruthless. This is best manifest in the style of public address by Modi. He always uses an aggressive tone to silence the people and his critics alike.

This political culture and tendency will undoubtedly have an adverse impact on the polity and political ethos of the country. Anyone coming to powerit is not that BJP will continue to rule India till the country existswill resort to this tactics. India would cease to be a democratic republic. It cannot be ruled out that the bedroom relations of the husband and wife would be dictated by the political elites and rulers.

The worst victim of this intolerant behaviour has been democracy and the rule of law of the country. These people are trying to give a legal character to the fake encounters and obliterate the difference between a convict and an under-trial. The accused in cases of terrorism are being christened as terrorists and an undertrial has become a convicted prisoner.

There is an imperative need to tell the young police officers that there is no gallantry involved in shooting at people who cannot shoot back. They have come to serve the force, the country. But they are being used as pawns to further the ideological commitment of a political party. This is more dangerous than carrying out one or two simple orders of a politician. What happened in Bhopal was breaking the rules and laws to communally polarise the society and terrorise the Muslims. Doubts are being expressed on the basis of some video recordings that are making the rounds. In recent years we have seen how the young and intelligent police officers have become victims of the lust of power, position and material gains. There are many young officers who have had their careers cut short in recent years on account of their misplaced priorities. Most of them eventually have to cool their heels outside the corridors of power as they were caught on the wrong side of the law.

The former Chief of the Madhya Pradesh Prisons Department is on record saying that clear standard operating procedures (SOP) had been laid down in the Bhopal Central Prison for the operation of the CCTV system, for keeping the barracks of the SIMI undertrial prisoners under surveillance. Obviously, these SOPs were not followed scrupulously. It is also intriguing why the CCTV was not functioning on the day the encounter took place. The shutdown of the CCTV makes one suspect the credentials of the police officers, it also points to some serious nature of conspiracy.

The video makes it clear that all the fugitive SIMI cadres could have been arrested by the police on the hill-top as they had raised their hands to surrender. But the police killed them. Undoubtedly it was a cold-blooded murder. Nevertheless, had they been captured alive the entire conspiracy or story would have been exposed. At present the reason for their escape is wrapped in mystery. Their arrest could have exposed whether they were acting on the script of foreign forces, which had provided them with the necessary input.

Their killing in fact gives rise to the suspicion that it was conspired at some high level to carry out the encounter with ominous intentions to create panic among the Muslims and also bury some mysterious information. The suspicion becomes acute in view the following revelation: One of the most telling clips has someone issuing directions that all of the men must be killed Sabko nipta do. (Finish everyone.) Bilkul peeche nahi hatna hai. Gher ke pura kar do kaam tamaam. (Dont hesitate at all. Surround them and finish them off.) In one of the clips, people applaud after a man declares that all the eight are dead. Sir, badhai ho, aathon maare gaye. (Congratulations, sir, all eight are dead). Very good, very good. We are reaching there, the commanding officer is heard saying. Sanjeev Shami, Inspector General of the Anti-Terror Squad who led the operation, was emphatic in his assertion that the fugitives were unarmed and no cop was injured in the encounter. He reiterated that the eight SIMI activists shot dead in Bhopal on that day were not armed when they were killed. However, some police officers tried to justify the encounter arguing that they carried arms. The video clips suggest that all the bullets fired at the eight men hit them above their waists, indicating that the Supreme Court and National Human Rights Commissions guidelines, which state that in an encounter the police must fire below the waist, were violated.

Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) team, while interrogating the prison authorities, posed certain important questions. How could the prisoners escape by jumping the 28 feet boundary wall? How did the undertrials, who were lodged in two different cells, succeed in breaking the locks? Even some NIA officials hold that the terrorists did not react. A video clip purportedly showing policeman shooting at an apparently injured fugitive lying on a flat-topped rock raised doubts about the authenticity of the encounter. According to reports, the encounter took place with the help of local villagers, who first sighted the SIMI men. According to eyewitnesses, the terrorists hurled stones on the villagers and police before being gunned down in the encounter. The differing stands taken by administration officials on the sequence of events that led to the encounter further raised eyebrows.

Ever since the Modi Government came to occupy the Delhi throne, the RSS and BJP have been trying to terrorise the Muslims. Though on some occasion Modi assured full protection, the Sangh cadres continue with their modus operandi. A couple of days back the Chairman of Democratic Freedom Party (DFP), Shabir Ahmad Shah, alleged that the RSS was taking out rallies in the Valley to create a sense of fear and terror among the Muslims of the region. Shah said: It is extremely unfortunate that on one hand, the organisers of such rallies are the getting support of the government, forces, and police, while on the other, pellets are being showered upon the people holding peaceful protests. This is a sheer hypocrisy on the part of the so-called govern-ment.

Nothing could explain this RSS design with more clarity and insight than the eulogy of the Armys surgical strikes in PoK. No doubt it deserved appreciation. But the manner in which the BJP was projecting it simply reinforced the feeling that it was out to exploit it for achieving its political objective. The BJP is exploiting the militarys success in the ongoing electoral cam-paigns in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur. The BJPs election posters in UP have military images in the background, with an armed soldier and a reference to the surgical strikes. In the foreground stands Modi, clenched fist upraised, threatening Pakistan.

Eulogising the Army and its action is one thing and using the Armys operational success for political gains is quite a different thing. The BJP has been resorting to this tactics to bolster the Hindu psyche and at the same time terrorise the Muslim. Instead it should have used the occasion to assimilate the Muslim society with the mainstream. In 1999 too after the Kargil victory, the BJP had tried to piggyback on the militarys success. The then Army chief, General V.P. Malik, had however complained to the former Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, about the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)s election posters that featured the three military chiefs. Vajpayee ensured it did not happen again. Malik recounts: The armed forces were anguished because they were getting sucked into electoral politics as a result of the blatant effort to politicise the war for immediate electoral advantage. At one stage, in desperation, I had to send across a strong message through the media: Leave us alone; we are apolitical.

It is an irony that the BJP is not content with the spotlight focused on the Army. The party as well as the government wants the lions share of the credit for having shown Pakistan its place. Obviously it intends to send a message to both the Hindus and Muslims. The BJP leadership does not realise that it is demeaning the morale of Indias Army and the Indian Army is not a political army. It has stood upright in difficult circumstances. Modi and the BJP should not have used the surgical strike for narrow, parochial, Right-wing gains.

Since Narendra Modi came to power last year, the countrys Muslims have expressed growing concerns about a spate of inflammatory statements and actions undertaken by the Hindu nationalist leaders and activists. The most agonising has been the role of the secular and Communist forces and parties. So far they have not made any serious attempt to probe the real intentions and nature of the moves of the RSS, BJP and Modi Government. Their approach to the Bhopal encounter gives the impression that they are in a state of trance.

The author is a senior journalist and can be contacted at sriv52@gmail.com
Transcription

1 Final Technical Report Project Title Geodetic Constraints on the Slip Rate of the Mohawk Valley Fault Zone, California Award number: 08HQGR0027 Principal Investigator & Contact Information: Cornelis Kreemer Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology University of Nevada, Reno 1664 N. Virginia Street, Reno, NV Tel: ; Fax: Co-Investigator: William C. Hammond Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology University of Nevada, Reno Summary The Mohawk Valley Fault Zone (MVFZ) is a seismically active, predominantly strike-slip, fault zone in the northern Walker Lane, California. We established 18 new GPS monuments across the MVFZ. These monuments are similar to all other monuments established by the Nevada Geodetic Laboratory in the area, some of which were already established in the study area. These sites have been occupied for at least three campaigns over >2 year time-span. Most campaigns were 1-2 months long. We analyzed all data for these sites as well as for the regional continuous GPS sites from EarthScope s Plate Boundary Observatory, and created position time-series from which we derived horizontal velocities. We rotated these velocities into a frame relative to the northern Sierra Nevada Great Valley microplate by minimizing the velocities of 8 continuous stations. Velocities in this frame are predominantly oriented parallel to the trace MVFZ. We used the gradient of the along-strike velocities to infer a strike slip rate of 2.70.2 mm/yr (with a locking depth of 16.43.1 km). The normal rate is zero to within uncertainties. We will occupy all stations again in 2010, after which uncertainties in the velocities will be small enough to consider 1) any along-strike variation of slip, 2) a superimposed effect of other regional faults, 3) the possibility of unrecognized fault-normal component, and 4) the possible effect of asymmetry in crustal rigidity between the Sierra Nevada crust to the west and Sierra Valley to the east. Those results will feed into a peer-reviewed publication. 1

2 Report Background The Mohawk Valley Fault Zone (MVFZ) is located in the northern Walker Lane and likely marks the eastern boundary of the northern Sierra Nevada Mountains (Figure 1). The MVFZ is currently not directly used as input into the National Seismic Hazard Map (NSHM). This absence is, on one hand, understandable because of the dearth of paleoseismic data for this fault zone, but on the other is surprising given the relatively high seismicity rate along the MVFZ (Figure 2). Moreover, preliminary geodetic slip rates are relatively high compared to other faults in the Basin and Range (2-6 mm/yr) [Dixon et al., 2000; Hammond and Thatcher, 2007]. We use the term MVFZ for the entire ~100 km long fault zone between roughly the town of Truckee and 40 N (south of Lake Almanor at northwest corner of Figure 1), where many faults and lineaments have been recognized [Olig et al., 2005a]. The USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold database [Haller et al., 2002; Cao et al., 2003] only recognizes a small portion of it as the MVFZ and has it divided into the Mohawk Valley section (fault # 25a) and the Sierra Valley section (fault # 25b). The many late Quaternary faults and lineaments between Lake Tahoe and the southern tip of USGS fault 25b have been recognized and named as the Sierra Nevada fault zone [Olig et al., 2005b] and renamed as the Truckee fault zone [Olig et al., 2005a], but we consider it part of the MVFZ. The Grizzly Valley fault zone (trending ~55km NW from the town of Loyalton, parallel to the MVFZ) [Briggs and Wesnousky, 2003] may be distinct from the MVFZ, but further study is needed to understand their relative roles. Fig. 1) Quaternary fault compilation for a part of the northern Walker Lane, Sierra Nevada transition zone (modified after [Olig et al., 2005a]). Fig. 2) Epicenters from the Nevada Seismological Laboratory for events between Locations of seismic stations are shown as well. The MVFZ is highlighted by the linear cluster of seismicity between the north end of Lake Tahoe and the northwest corner of the figure. Although not included in the current NSHM, the seismic source for the MVFZ has been characterized with a maximum preferred magnitude of M=7.3 [Olig et al., 2005a], which does not include 2

3 the possibility of the rupture extending along their Truckee fault zone towards Truckee. If the entire fault zone ruptured in one earthquake, especially with a southward rupture directivity, an M=7.3+ event would be catastrophic for the town of Truckee, the rapidly expanding developments in Mohawk Valley, the town of Quincy, and the greater Reno-Carson City area. The two most important constraints in validating the likelihood of the occurrence of such an event come from better knowing the present-day slip rate and the extent of segmentation/connectedness along the fault zone. This geodetic study addresses the first issue. We limited our study to the part of the MVFZ between the towns of Truckee and Graeagle (in the Mohawk Valley), because this segment is likely representative of the MVFZ. The high rate of micro-seismicity along the MVFZ (Figure 2, see also [Rogers et al., 1991; Goter et al., 1994]) is unusual for most faults in the Walker Lane, and may indicate that this fault is an important player in accommodating regional deformation between the Sierra Nevada/Great Valley and the Basin and Range. The epicenters from the Nevada Seismological Laboratory catalog suggest a heterogeneous distribution: diffuse NW of Sierra Valley, absent where the MTVZ bounds the southwestern Sierra Valley, and intermittently more concentrated between Sierra Valley and Truckee. In addition there is an apparent lineament of seismicity west and parallel to the MVFZ, in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Since 1960 there have been 30 M>4 events in the vicinity of the MVFZ, the largest of which is the 2001 Mw=5.2 Portola earthquake. The area between Verdi and Reno has also been unusually active, with at least 3 M>6 events over the last century [depolo et al., 1997]. Unusually deep and concentrated seismicity, comprising over 1600 events, occurred over several months in late 2003 underneath northern Lake Tahoe, likely related to a deep magmatic dyke intrusion [Smith et al., 2004], and since then two M>4 events have happened near there. For most events along the MVFZ for which a focal mechanism has been determined the style is predominantly strike-slip with one nodal plane oriented sub-parallel to the strike of the MVFZ, indicating dextral offsets [Ichinose et al., 2004]. There is very little available data or published discussion on the Quaternary activity of the MVFZ. One study [Sawyer et al., 2003;, 2005] found that 2-3 Holocene events have ruptured a site in the southern Sierra Valley, with a recurrence interval of ~3,400 years, and an inferred right-lateral slip rate of mm/yr. The segment closer to the Sierras appears to have predominantly normal slip, with a much longer recurrence interval, and a long-term vertical slip rate of mm/yr [Sawyer et al., 1993]. The paleoseismic investigations thus mark the MVFZ as a relatively slow oblique dextral fault zone, slower than inferred slip rates on other right-lateral faults in the northern Walker Lane: mm/yr along the Honey Lake fault [Wills and Borchardt, 1993], mm/yr (but possibly 2.2 mm/yr) on the Warm Springs Valley fault zone [depolo, 2006], and up to 2.60.3 mm/yr along the Pyramid Lake fault [Briggs and Wesnousky, 2004]. The total slip rate across these three fault zones is consistent with the long-term slip rate inferred by [Faulds et al., 2005]. Geodetic estimates of the total slip rate across the northern Walker Lane have varied from 6-8 mm/yr [Thatcher et al., 1999] to 9.3 mm/yr [Bennett et al., 2003] to ~10 mm/yr [Kreemer et al., 2009]. The latter estimate is higher than the previous ones in part because it is based on GPS velocities that are corrected for the ongoing postseismic deformation following the historic earthquakes in the Central Nevada Seismic Belt which transfers some geodetic deformation further west into the Walker Lane [Hammond et al., 2009]. The geodetic estimates for the slip rate on the MVFZ are much larger than the geologic rate estimates. These were first reported to be 63 mm/yr [Dixon et al., 2000], but more recently [Hammond and Thatcher, 2007] reported a value of 2.30.3 mm/yr. The latter estimate was derived from a block-modeling approach in which the motion of crustal blocks, slip on the bounding faults, and the effect of elastic deformation due to fault coupling are simultaneously modeled. The slip rate estimate of [Hammond and Thatcher, 2007] for the MVFZ is the highest they found for any fault in the northern Walker Lane. However, their estimate was more uncertain than its formal error suggests, because of the sparse coverage of velocity estimates in the region and the related trade-off between the slip rate on the MVFZ and the Honey Lake fault. 3

4 Data Collection and Processing The GPS data used in this project come from stations that can be placed in three different categories: a) continuously operating stations of EarthScope s Plate Boundary Observatory, b) UNR MAGNET stations that have been installed outside of this project, and c) UNR MAGNET stations that have been installed as part of this project. Data for all stations for with the time-series span >2 year of data have been used and the station distribution in the area of the MVFZ is shown in Figure 3. Fig. 3) Red dots are MAGNET sites installed as part of this project, green dots are MAGNET sites installed outside this project, and blue dots are continuous PBO stations. Fig. 4) Site LEMO in Lemon Valley, CA, installed as part of this project 4

5 The UNR MAGNET monuments consist of a metal pin that is 7/8 wide and ~5 deep hole epoxyed into bedrock. An example of one of the sites in the study area is shown in Figure 4 and details on the monumentation and general observation strategy is given by Blewitt et al. [2009]. Data for the MAGNET stations are collected semi-continuously. This means that with having a fixed monument we simply place an antenna on the monument pin and attach it to a receiver (and power supply) at intermittent times. For each site we typically collect data for a few months per year (mostly in the summer months because of the snow, which covers most of this are between December-June). Station coordinates were estimated every 24 hours using the precise point positioning method [Zumberge et al., 1997]. Carrier phase ambiguities are successfully resolved across the entire network using an algorithm based on a fixed-point theorem that closely approximates a full-network resolution [Blewitt, 2008]. Satellite orbit and clock parameters, and daily coordinate transformation parameters into ITRF2005 were provided by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). We included the latest satellite and receiver antenna phase center models. Ionosphere-free combinations of carrier phase and pseudorange were processed every 5 minutes. Estimated parameters included a tropospheric zenith bias and two gradient parameters estimated as random-walk processes, and station clocks estimated as a white-noise process. Formal errors for daily station positions were computed assuming 10-mm 1-standard deviation errors in the ionosphere-free carrier phase data. ITRF2005 positions were transformed into a North America fixed reference frame by performing daily transformations into a frame that is defined by minimizing the horizontal velocities of 11 stations across the stable part of the North America continent (away from areas affected by Glacial Isostatic Adjustments). Common mode errors on the continental scale are further reduced by including an additional 35 stations as far away as Greenland, Alaska, Hawaii, and the Caribbean in a daily spatial (7 parameter) filter. We estimate velocities from the time-series using the CATS software package [see e.g.,williams, 2003]. For the PBO stations and three MAGNET stations (BOCA, CRYS and WARD) we account for annual and semi-annual constituents. For the remaining site do we simply fit a constant velocity. The same software was used to estimates rate uncertainties given the assumption that the error model is dominated by white noise plus flicker noise. The time-series and best-fit motion model are shown in Figure 5 for all stations shown in Figure 3 with time-series >2 years. 5

6 6

7 7

8 8

9 9

10 10 Fig. 5) North and East positions relative to North America (red) with formal 1-standard deviation uncertainties. Blue line shows best station model. For most stations we only solve for a linear velocity. For the PBO sites, BOCA, CRYS and WARD we also solve for an annual and semi-annual sinusoid.

11 Interpretation To aid interpretation of the horizontal velocity gradient across the MVFZ we choose the place the velocities in a local reference frame defined by 8 sites on the northern Sierra Nevada - Great Valley (SNGV) microplate: ORVB, P140, P141, P146, P310, P339, SUTB, WARD. Velocities are tabulated in Table 1. Table 1: GPS Velocities station Longitude ( E) Period relative to North America Northern SNGV Latitude ( N) start end v east v north  east  north v east v north ANTV BERR BOCA BONT BVAL CLIO CRYS ENGL FREN HENN HW JAMI LACE LEMO LUNC LYAL MNDS MOHA ORVB* P140* P141* P P146* P P310* P339* P PENT PERA QUIN SARD SBUT SUTB* TOLA TRUC TURN WARD* Velocities and uncertainties are in mm/yr * These stations are used to constrain the northern Sierra Nevada Great Valley (SNGV) reference frame Velocities relative to the northern SNGV are shown in Figure 6. The velocities are superimposed on top of the basemap of Olig et al. [2005a]. 11

12 Fig. 6) Orange vectors are velocities relative to the northern SNGV. Error ellipses represent 1-standard deviation uncertainties. Results are superimposed on basemap of Olig et al. [2005a]. Also shown are focal mechanisms of significant regional earthquakes. White line is the trace of the hypothetical single fault in an elastic half-space used to model the slip rate. Fig. 7) Velocity components parallel to the simplified MVFZ trace (Fig. 6) shown by blue circles with 1-standard deviation uncertainties. Predicted model (with slip rate of 2.7 mm/yr and seismogenic thickness of 16.4 km) is shown by red line. 12

13 Velocities are mostly aligned in the same directions of the MVFZ and we therefore model the slip rate of the MHVZ as a vertical strike-slip fault in an elastic half-space. When we fix the trace to that shown on Figure 6 and take the fault-parallel component of the velocity field, we solve for a slip rate s and locking depth d and find s=2.70.2 mm/yr and d=16.41.9 km. The  2 per degree of freedom is 1.9. The fit to the data is shown in the cross-section shown in Figure 7. Most of the velocities are from time-series less than 2.5 years, so velocity uncertainties are correspondingly large. As a result, the large uncertainties do not allow us yet to evaluate 1) along-strike variation of slip, 2) possible contribution from other regional faults (e.g., Honey Lake fault), 3) the possibility of a fault-normal component, and 4) the possible effect of asymmetry in crustal rigidity between the Sierra Nevada crust to the west and Sierra Valley to the east. Nevertheless, we present two alternative models. In the first, we solve for the location of the fault X while solving for s and d, and we find that X=-8.12.1 km, s=2.20.2mm/yr and d=8.12.9 km. The reduced  2 for this case is 1.8. The fit is shown in Figure 8a. This may not be a realistic model, since it places the fault traces clearly away from observed faults and seismicity. In the second alternative model we keep the fault trace fixed and assume a locking depth of 23 km, the maximum depth of seismicity in the area as recorded by the Nevada Seismologic Laboratory. We find that s=2.80.1mm/yr and the reduced  2 for this case is 2.0. Thus the slip rate is not very sensitive to the locking depth. The fit is shown in Figure 8b. Fig. 8a) Same as Fig 7, except that the location fault was solved for Fig. 8a) Same as Fig 7, except that the seismogenic thickness is fixed to 23 km. Papers and Presentations Briggs, R.W. and Hammond, W.C. (2009) Integration of geodetic and geologic data in the National Seismic Hazard Maps, report on workshop on geodetic and geologic datasets in the Northern Walker Lane, Reno Nevada, April 2009, Eos, v. 90, no. 38, 22 Sept Hammond, W.C., Blewitt, G., Kreemer, C. (2010) Block modeling of crustal deformation of the northern Walker Lane and Basin and Range from the MAGNET GPS velocities, J. Geophys. Res., in preparation. Hammond et al., (2010) Block Models of Walker Lane and Great Basin tectonic deformation, slip rates and seismic cycle effects, talk and poster presented at SCEC Workshop on Incorporating Geodetic Surface Deformation Data into UCERF3, Pomona, CA, April 1-2. Hammond et al. (2010) Highlights of geodetic measurement of the rifting of continental lithosphere in the Walker Lane, Western Great Basin, United States, MARGINS Successor Workshop, San Antonio, TX, Feb

14 Hammond, W.C., Kreemer, C., Blewitt, G., New geodetic constraints on the location and style of eastern and northern Sierra Nevada crustal deformation, AEG Annual Meeting,, South Lake Tahoe, NV, September 21-26, 2009 Hammond, W.C., Kreemer, C., and Blewitt, G. (2009) Strain partitioning in the northern Walker Lane and western Basin and Range from GPS measurements, Eos Trans. AGU, 90(22) AGU Joint Assembly, Abstract G12A-06, May Kreemer, C., Hammond, W.C., and Blewitt, G. (2009), Geodetic constraints on the rigidity and eastern boundary of the Sierra Nevada micro-plate, from Mohawk Valley to Southern Walker Lane, Eos Trans. AGU, 90(53), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract G23D-06. Kreemer, C., Hammond, W.C., and Blewitt, G. (2010), The slip rate of the Mohawk Valley Fault Zone, California, from GPS measurements, Geophysical Research Letters, in preparation. Kreemer, C. (2009) Regional strain rate maps in northwestern Nevada, Geodesy/Geology Workshop, USGS, Reno, NV, April Kreemer, C. (2010) New GPS constraints on deformation in the Intermountain West, U.S. Geological Survey, CO, March 25. Bibliography Bennett, R. A., B. P. Wernicke, N. A. Niemi, A. M. Friedrich, and J. L. Davis (2003), Contemporary strain rates in the northern Basin and Range province from GPS data, Tectonics, 22, 1008, doi: /2001tc Blewitt, G. (2008), Fixed-point theorems of GPS carrier phase ambiguity resolution and their application to massive network processing: Ambizap, J. Geophys. Res., 113, B12410, doi: /2008jb Blewitt, G., W. C. Hammond, and C. Kreemer (2009), Geodetic constraints on contemporary deformation in the northern Walker Lane: 1. Semi-permanent GPS strategy, in Late Cenozoic Structure and Evolution of the Great Basin - Sierra Nevada Transition, GSA Special Volume 447, edited by J. S. Oldow and P. Cashman, pp. 1-15, Geological Society of America, Boulder. Briggs, R. W., and S. G. Wesnousky (2003), The role of the Grizzly Valley Fault Zone in accommodating shear of the northern Walker Lane, NE California, USA, Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, 35, 581. Briggs, R. W., and S. G. Wesnousky (2004), Late Pleistocene fault slip rate, earthquake recurrence, and recency of slip along the Pyramid Lake fault zone, northern Walker Lane, United States, J. Geophys. Res., 109, B08402, doi: /2003jb Cao, T., W. A. Bryant, B. Rowshandel, D. Branum, and C. J. Wills (2003), The revised 2002 California probabilistic seismic hazard maps, Open-File Report 96-08, U.S.G.S. depolo, C. M. (2006), Determination of fault slip rates, plaeoearthquake history, and segmentation of the Warm Springs Vally Fault System, Final Technical Report, National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, Grant 04HQGR0082, 35 pp. depolo, C. M., J. G. Anderson, D. M. depolo, and J. G. Price (1997), Earthquake occurence in the Reno- Carson City urban corridor, Seismological Research Letters, 68, Dixon, T. H., M. Miller, F. Farina, H. Z. Wang, and D. Johnson (2000), Present-day motion of the Sierra Nevada block and some tectonic implications for the Basin and Range province, North American Cordillera, Tectonics, 19, Faulds, J. E., C. D. Henry, and N. H. Hinz (2005), Kinematics of the northern Walker Lane: An incipient transform fault along the Pacific-North American plate boundary, Geology, 33,

15 Goter, S. K., D. H. Oppenheimer, J. J. Mori, M. K. Savage, and R. P. Masse (1994), Earthquakes in California and Nevada, Open-File Report , U.S. Geological Survey. Haller, K. M., R. L. Wheeler, and K. S. Rukstales (2002), Documentation of changes in fault parameters for the 2002 National Seismic Hazard Maps - Conterminous United States except California, Open-File Report , U.S.G.S. Hammond, W. C., and W. Thatcher (2007), Crustal deformation across the Sierra Nevada, Northern Walker Lane, Basin and Range transition, Western United States, measured with GPS, , J. Geophys. Res., 112, B05411, doi: /2006jb Hammond, W. C., C. Kreemer, and G. Blewitt (2009), Geodetic constraints on contemporary deformation in the northern Walker Lane: 3. Postseismic relaxation in the Central Nevada Seismic Belt, in Late Cenozoic Structure and Evolution of the Great Basin - Sierra Nevada Transition, GSA Special Volume 447, edited by J. S. Oldow and P. Cashman, pp , Geological Society of America, Boulder. Ichinose, G. A., J. G. Anderson, K. D. Smith, and Y. H. Zeng (2004), Source parameters of eastern California and western Nevada earthquakes from regional moment tensor inversion, Bull. Seism. Soc. Am., 93, Kreemer, C., G. Blewitt, and W. C. Hammond (2009), Geodetic constraints on contemporary deformation in the northern Walker Lane: 2. Velocity and strain rate tensor analysis, in Late Cenozoic Structure and Evolution of the Great Basin - Sierra Nevada Transition, GSA Special Volume 447, edited by J. S. Oldow and P. Cashman, pp , Geological Society of America, Boulder. Olig, S., T. Sawyer, D. Wright, F. Terra, and L. Anderson (2005a), Preliminary seismic source characterization of faults near Stampede and Prosse Creek dams - Washoe project and Boca Dam - Truckee storage project, 65 pp, U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Denver. Olig, S., T. Sawyer, L. Anderson, D. Wright, I. Wong, and F. Terra (2005b), Insights into Quaternary strain patterns in the northern Walker Lane from mapping and source characterization of faults near Truckee, California, Seismological Research Letters, 76, 251. Rogers, A. M., S. C. Harmsen, E. J. Corbett, K. Priestley, and D. depolo (1991), The seismicity of Nevada and some adjacent parts of the Great Basin, in Neotectonics of North America: Geological Society of America, Decade Map Volume, edited by D. B. Slemmons, et al., pp Sawyer, T. L., W. D. Page, and M. A. Hemphill-Haley (1993), Recurrent late Quaternary surface faulting along the Mohawk Valley fault zone, NE California, Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs, 25, 142. Sawyer, T. L., R. W. Briggs, and A. R. Ramelli (2003), Paleoseismic investigations of the Mohawk Valley fault zone, Sierra County, northeastern California, Annual Project Summary, U.S. Geological Survey National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, Award 04HQGR0089, 4 pp. Sawyer, T. L., R. W. Briggs, and A. R. Ramelli (2005), Late Quaternary activity of the southern Mohawk Valley fault zone, northeastern California, Seismological Research Letters, 76, 248. Smith, K. D., D. von Seggern, G. Blewitt, L. Preston, J. G. Anderson, B. P. Wernicke, and J. L. Davis (2004), Evidence for deep magma injection beneath Lake Tahoe, Nevada-California, Science, 305, Thatcher, W., G. R. Foulger, B. R. Julian, J. Svarc, E. Quilty, and G. W. Bawden (1999), Present-day deformation across the basin and range province, western United States, Science, 283, Williams, S. D. P. (2003), The effect of coloured noise on the uncertainties of rates estimated from geodetic time series, J. Geodesy, 76, Wills, C. J., and G. Borchardt (1993), Holocene slip rate and earthquake recurrence on the Honey Lake fault zone, Geology, 21,

16 Zumberge, J. F., M. B. Heflin, D. C. Jefferson, M. M. Watkins, and F. H. Webb (1997), Precise point positioning for the efficient and robust analysis of GPS data from large networks, J. Geophys. Res., 102,
Thiruvananthapuram: The state ruling LDF observes a total shutdown on Monday to denounce the demonetisation which has left the cooperative banks function in trouble. The LDF convenor Vaikom Viswan in a statement announced that the state-wide shutdown will be from dawn to dusk. He added that it is a protest against the rash conduct of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The central government declared on 8 November that Rs. 500 and 1000 notes would no more be legal.The PMO denied meeting an all-party delegation led by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to brief him about the problems faced by the cooperative sector.

The strike turned out to be nation-wide strike, Aakrosh Divas that opposition parties announced against demonetisation.
Transcription

1 ON DATA BANKS AND PRIVACY HOMOMORPHISMS Ronald L. Rivest Len Adleman Michael L. Dertouzos Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, Massachusetts I. INTRODUCTION Encryption is a well known technique for preserving the privacy of sensitive information. One of the basic, apparently inherent, limitations of this technique is that an information system working with encrypted data can at most store or retrieve the data for the user; any more complicated operations seem to require that the data be decrypted before being operated on. This limitation follows from the choice of encryption functions used, however, and although there are some truly inherent limitations on what can be accomplished, we shall see that it appears likely that there exist encryption functions which permit encrypted data to be operated on without preliminary decryption of the operands, for many sets of interesting operations. These special encryption functions we call privacy homomorphisms ; they form an interesting subset of arbitrary encryption schemes (called privacy transformations ). As a sample application, consider a small loan company which uses a commercial time sharing service to store its records. The loan company s data bank obviously contains sensitive informa tion which should be kept private. On the other hand, suppose that the information protection techniques employed by the time sharing service are not considered adequate by the loan company. In particular, the systems programmers would presumably have access to the sensitive information. The loan company therefore decides to encrypt all of its data kept in the data bank and to maintain a policy of only decrypting data at the home office data will never be decrypted by the time shared computer. The situation is thus that of Figure 1, where the wavy line encircles the physically secure premises of the loan company. Copyright 1978 by Academic Press, Inc.

2 ijencodejtt encodes ( decodes [eta bank Lii:] Figure.2 This organization permits the loan company to utilize the storage facilities of the time sharing service, but generally makes it difficult to utilize the computational facilities without compromising the privacy of the stored data. The loan company, however, wishes to be able to answer such questions as: What is the size of the average loan outstanding? How much income from loan payments is expected next month? How many loans over $5,000 have been granted? These questions require computation for their answers. There are four possibilities that the loan company may pursue: (1) Give up the idea of using the time shared service and purchase an in house computer system. (2) Use the storage facilities of the time sharing service only to store the encrypted data, and use an intelligent terminal at the loan company office to do the necessary decryp tion and computation. (3) Persuade the time sharing company to make hardware modifications to its computer allowing the data to exist in decrypted form for brief moments inside its CPU, but such that the decrypted data is not externally accessable. (4) Use a special privacy homomorphism to encrypt its data so that the time shared computer can operate on the data without the necessity of decrypting it first. Option (1) can be very expensive, and does not necessarily solve the problem some form of encryption may be desired to protect the stored information against theft or malicious tamper ing by the in house systems programmers. Option (2) will work, but entails rather large communications costs in general. Option (3) is also workable, but requires the cooperation of the time sharing company. In section 2, we discuss this solution briefly. Option (4) requires only that a suitable privacy homomorphism

3 exist and that the loan company obtain an encryption/decryption device implementing this homomorphism. In sections 3 to 5, we examine the mathematical requirements for such a solution, some limitations on its applicability, and some potentially useful privacy homomorphisms, respectively. II. SOLUTION BY HARDWARE MODIFICATION In figure 2, we present a sketch of how a computer system might be modified to solve the problem of performing operations on encrypted data securely. In addition to the standard register set and ALU (A,B), a physically secure register set and ALU (C,D) are added. All communication of data between main memory and the physically secure register set passes through an encoder decoder CE) supplied with the user s key, so that unencrypted data can exist only within the physically secure register set. All sensi tive data in main memory, in the data bank files, in the ordinary register set, and on the communications channel will be encrypted. During operation, a load/store instruction between main memory and the secure register set will automatically cause the appro priate decryption/encryption operations to be performed. jdata Bank Files I/o *IMain Memoryl Standard Register Set A Figure 2

4 An obvious problem is getting the encoder/decoder (E) loaded with the user s key K without compromising the security of the user s key. One possible approach is to keep the user s key encrypted under control of a system key S. The encrypted form of K, Es(K), can be transmitted over the insecure channel to the system, decrypted by the physically secure decoder (F), and loaded into the encoder decoder (E). The user knows K and Es(K); the latter is obtained during a visit to the time shared services manager, who is the only one who knows the system key S. Besides the problems of key management, there are questions of the speed degradation caused by invoking the encryption! decryption with every load or store. However, it appears that suitably secure encryption (e.g. DES) can be performed on a time scale comparable to that of the instruction execution of many machines (e.g. 10 m sec). The most severe restriction on this solution, however, is one that will turn out to be a restriction on any solution to the problem (even privacy homomorphisms): it is not possible to simultaneously preserve security and give the system the operation of performing comparisons against known constants. That is, we may not give the computer system a means of performing operations sufficiently powerful to enable someone who knows only Es(K) to decrypt the data. The ability to perform comparisons against constants would allow someone to perform a simple binary search procedure to determine the decoded value of any datum. We examine this restriction in more detail in section 4. III. PRIVACY HOMOMORPHISMS One might prefer a solution which did not require decryption of the user s data (except of course at the user s terminal). That is, the hardware configuration will be that of Figure 1, but the encryption function used will permit the computer system to operate on the data without decrypting it. The unencoded data and the operations to be performed on it, we assume to be drawn from some algebraic system. An algebraic system consists of a set 5, some operations f1, f2,..., some predicates p1, p2,..., and some distinguished constants We denote this system by <S; f1, f2,... ; p1, p2,... l 2 >. For example, the system consisting of the integers under the usual set of operations might be denoted <Z; +,, x, ; <; 0, 1>; where Z is the set of integers.

5 S In addition to the algebraic system of the user (let s call it U), we shall need another algebraic system C to be used by the computer system. Encoding and decoding shall then mean mapping elements from U to C or vice versa, respectively. More formally, if then U = <S; f1, C = <S ; f1, k k, p; l Sm>, P ; 5 and we must have a decoding function : S - the encoding function l: S + 5. and its inverse, In operation, the user gives the computer system a description of the algebraic system C; in practice this means that the system has a subroutine to compute each of the operations f. and predi cates p, as well as representations of the distinguished constants s.. The users actual data base we denote as the sequenced1, d2,..., each d1 is an element of S. However, the user encodes each datum before giving it to the system; l l the encoded data base 4 (d1), 4 (d2) In order for the system to be able to operate on the (encoded) data base without decrypting it, the decoding function must be a homomorphism from C onto U. Formally, this means that (Vi)( a,b,c,...) [f.(a,b,...) c > f.((a),4(b),...)4(c)], and (Vi)( a,b,...) p (a,b,...) E p(4(a), p(b),.. (Vj) = Si carries each operation in C into the corresponding operation in U. Suppose now that the user wants to know the value of f1(d1, d2). He asks the system to computef1 ( 1(d1), (d 2)). Since 4 is a homomorphism, (f 1 (4(d 1),1(d2))) =f1(d1, d2) so that the system arrives at the encrypted form of the answer without having to decrypt the intermediate results. In general, an arbitrary computer program using the operations of U to compute some function of the user s data base can be transformed into another computer program suitable for operation on the encoded data merely by changing all f. s to f. s, all p. s to p. s,

6 liu?iulu J.. ntvesi er at. and all s s to s. s. 1 1 The requirements on the choice of the algebraic system C and the functions, are: (1) 4 and 4, the decoding and encoding functions, should be easy to conpute. (2) The operations f. and predicates p. in C should be efficiently computable. (3) An encoded version of a datum d., 4) (d.), should not l require much more space to represent than a representation of d.. (4) Knowledge of 41(d.) for many data d. should not be sufficient to reveal 4. (Ciphertext only only attack). (5) Knowledge of d. and (d.) for several values of d. should not reveal 4. (Chosen plaintext attack). (6) The operations and predicates in C should not be sufficient to yield an efficient computation of 4. (This relates primarily to the use of comparisons). IV. SOME SIMPLE OBSERVATIONS Some inherent restrictions limit the utility of privacy homo morphisms as we have described. The most severe is probably the following. Fact. If the operations available in C allow the computer system to determine the encoded version of arbitrary constants, and a predicate < for a total order is available, then there is no secure privacy homomorphism from C to U. This follows from a simple binary search strategy. For example, for the system of natural numbers and U = <N; +; <; 0, 1> C = <W; + ; < ; 0, 1 > for some set W, the malicious systems programmer on the computer system can decode (d.) by computing 01(1) = 1 01(2) = 1 + l such that 1( 4-1(4) =0_l(2)+0_l(2), and so on until he finds a k 2k) > (d,). Continuing, similar strategy enables him to compute d. exactly.

7 %?II LUIL4 ZJL4IIJ UIH4 I I I LdI.J 1 VIIIVIIIVIJ.lIIIJII4J IFS Other facts about the ability of one system to simulate another are not quite so easy to see, but can be found. For example, we have the following. Fact. If C is over the natural numbers and has the operations of addition, multiplication, and a binary equality predicate and a unary predicate equal to zero, then it has the capability to test for equality to an arbitrary constant. The proof follows from x=k <=> (x + 0) r.. (x2 = x+..+x) k times Lynch [1] gives an excellent study of the relationships between one algebraic system and another which simulates +. V. SOME SAMPLE PRIVACY HOMOMORPHISMS We give here four sample privacy homomorphisms. These are intended primarily as examples to support the hypothesis that useful privacy homomorphisms may exist for many applications. Some of them are rather weak cryptographically; a chosen plain text attack may break them. We list them anyway to illustrate the kinds of privacy homomorphisms that may exist. Example 1. Suppose U = <Z1; +p_l p l> the system of integers modulo p l with the operations of addition and subtrac tion, where p is a prime number. We may choose C = <Z;x,+>, the integers modulo n where n = pq, the product of p and a large prime q. Let g be a generator modulo p. Then we choose -l - x (x) = g (modulo n) and the decoding function is the inverse mod(p) logarithm, base g function. by the laws of exponents, is a homomorphism. If n is difficult to factor (both p and q are large) and the prime p is such that logarithms modulo p can be efficiently computed (see [2]), then the computer system can be given both g and n without fear of compromising the security of the data. Example 2. Suppose U = <Z; x;e >, the integers modulo p with multiplication and test for equality. Again, letting npq, where q is a large prime and supposing that n is difficult to factor, we may take l e (x) = x (mod n).

8 Konald L. Kivest et at. Since (Xe)(Ye) = (XY)e this is a homomorphism. This in the encoding function used by Rivest, Shamir, and Adleman in method of implementing public key cryptosystems [3]. The security of system should be very good, even the computer system is given both e and n. their this Example 3. U = <Z; +n x>, if is, fact, where n is again the product of two large primes p and q such that n is to factor. We choose to represent each element of Zn by a pair of numbers: difficult 4(x) = (x mod p, x mod q). The computer system forms the sum, difference, or product of two encodings by performing the operations componentwise, modulo n. Without knowing p and q, the system is not able to decode any numbers. Since there are several possible encodings of a given number, for equality is not possible. test Example 4. Suppose U = <Z; +,, x>, the system of integers under the usual operations of addition, subtraction, and The user chooses an integer n and represents of his data in radix n notation. The computer system can operate on these values without knowing n (and thus without knowing the unencoded data) by allowing individual coordinate positions to exceed n. For example, n = 17, we have,_l(23) = (1,4) plication. if multi all l(44) = (2,10).1(1012) =,_l(23.44) = (2,18,40). test Again, for equality are not possible since a given number might have several representations. The computer system can also find an encoding of any given constant by using that constant in the units position. just By combining two systems of the above one can implement the numbers using fractions. This system is not secure against a chosen plaintext attack, although has many good properties otherwise. rational really sort, Example 5. Suppose we again have U = <Z; +,, x>, the system of integers under the operations of addition, subtraction, and multiplication. Let k be chosen so thai intermediate used in any calculation are less than 2, and akl all let a0, a1,... it results be k randomly chosen integers. The encoding of the integer x, where x = Xkl.. x1x0 in binary notation (each x. is 0 or 1)

9 tin LJUSU DUflC3 UflU rrlvuty r1o1nu1norpfllrn. 11/ is the k tuple (f(a 1),... 0), f(a, f(a)) where k i f(z) = x.z i=o 1 The encoded representations can be operated upon componentwise. Decoding means interpolating a polynomial through the given values and then evaluating that polynomial at the point Z2. This privacy homomorphism is not very space efficient. The security of the system, even against a chosen plaintext attack, looks like it involves solving high order nonlinear equations for the a. s, but there are possibly cryptanalytic shortcuts. VI. CONCLUSIONS Privacy homomorphisms provide a novel way of ensuring the privacy of data which must be operated on. They are of inherently limited applicability, since comparisons may not in general be included in the set of operations to be used. In addition, it remains to be seen whether it is possible to have a privacy homomorphism with a large set of operations which is highly secure. The results presented here give a basis for some optimism about finding useful privacy homomorphisms; the examples given here are suggestive if not very practical. The open questions are Does this approach have enough utility to make it worthwhile in practice? For what algebraic systems U does a useful privacy homomorphism exist? REFERENCES [1] Lynch, N. and E. Blum, Efficient Reducibility Between Programming Systems, Proc. 9th Annual ACM Symposium on [2] Theory of Computing, (Boulder, May 1977), pp Pohlig, S. and N. Heilman, An Improved Algorithm for Computing Logarithms Over GF(p) and Its Cryptographic Significance (to appear IEEE Trans. Info. Theory). [3] Rivest, R., A. Shamir, and L. Adleman, A Method For Obtaining Digital Signatures and Public Key Crypto Systems, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Laboratory for Computer Science, Technical Memo, TM 82, April (to appear in CACM).

10 RonaldL. Rivest et al. DISCUSSION would an One most was modulo. n the p and q and when you do component wise you do modulo p and q you do modulo n good we know how However, a any of has a Sometimes He a which bank So, knows A, B, C and so on which Now, one would one might be factor n Rabin: I concerning safety. really doing the arithmetic don t it like to mention the of the separately, arithmetic. That looks pretty factor numbers. systems, is that the adversary additional consideration attractive proposals here Iben because is product of modular arithmetic, it in don t possibility for cracking special knowledge. the adversary has under his control, part of the input data. is the depositor in he actually being encoded. bank of looking at the encoding, ization of the values of in this particular case. is manipulating his to these account. are have to consider the possibility able to find the Rivest: It s quite plausible that it, then. one might be able to break Rabin: ging the system Yes, and by there are similar considerations of challen feeding it known information and following its course within the encrypted version, feeding it encrypted inf or mation and following its course we re evaluating its safety. Gaines: would be individual. what you Maybe must be taken into account I misunderstood, but I thought that chosen outside the system. Separately for each said. So that no one would have the opportunity to p when and q do

11 fl *.4tL4 ASL4ILfl.) L4fl4 I I LIt.J tiiiijiiiji1jiiijiiiu Rabin: May I add a remark? If you then propose to have different p and q for each customer, which is quite difficult and impractical, sometimes a non innocent by stander has knowledge of how much money you deposited. The other problem again exists. You must assume at least spotty partial information about the data which is going to be protected. Rivest: All the systems I ve presented, I think, are susceptible to variations of that kind of attack. I do not consider any of them very satisfactory for precisely those kinds of reasons.
Fidel Castro and the American Empire

The death of the brutal Cuban Communist dictator Fidel Castro closes the door, in some respect, on another disastrous page in US foreign policy history. For all the denunciations and criticism of Castro from conservative elements and exiled Cubans, his despotic rule was the outcome of decades of American imperialism which began with President William McKinleys infamous decision to wage war on hapless Spain in 1898.

The defeat of Spain and the confiscation of its possessions, which the US imperialist and corporate forces had longed prized, set the stage for the nations hubristic foreign policy course throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Americas action against Spain showed its ungratefulness for it attacked the country that did more for it than any other (including France) in its struggle for independence. Maybe Castros interminable reign, which had always been a thorn in the side of US globalists, was payback for Americas wanton aggression against Spain.

Castros rise to power came about not only through the bungling of American diplomacy, but also from genuine populist support directed against the thoroughly corrupt regime of the US puppet in charge at the time, Fulgencio Batista. Even by Latin American standards, the corruption which existed under Batista was legendary!

The US government played an enormous role in Batistas second presidency which began when he seized power in 1952. Throughout his second tenure, Batista received massive kickbacks from American multinational businesses for grants of monopoly privileges on the island. The most notable was the ITT corporation.

Batista used his unjust gains to enrich himself and buy weapons to be used against his opponents. It was claimed that when he fled Cuba he took a personal fortune of $300 million with him. While Batista and his ruling clique were enriching themselves through US assistance, the Cuban population suffered as the gap between rich and poor continued to widen.

Like Castro, Batista was ruthless in political repression which even American politicians noticed. In a speech during the 1960 presidential campaign, John Kennedy claimed that Batista had murdered some 20,000 Cubans!

Of course, the US empire learned little from the fiasco with Castro and continued on its rampaging, destructive ways  destabilizing, bombing, and squelching populist uprising across the globe. No sooner had the island become a lone communist outpost in the Western Hemisphere and the Cuban Missile Crisis was defused, than the nation plunged itself into a far bigger and more costlier quagmire in Vietnam.

Donald Trump rightfully condemned Castros murderous reign:

The world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Fidel Castros legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights.*

The President-elect must, however, understand the reason why Castro came to power and was able to maintain his totalitarian grasp for so long if America is to begin a new and hopefully peaceful foreign policy path.

Trump promised that the US would do all that it can to bring about a free Cuba:

Though the tragedies, deaths and pain caused by Fidel Castro cannot be erased, our administration will do all it can to ensure the Cuban people can finally begin their journey toward prosperity and liberty.**

The best way he could accomplish this task not only in Cuba but in regard to all other nations is to heed the words of Americas third president, Thomas Jefferson, on the proper foreign policy path for the nation: Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations  entangling alliances with none.

Maybe the demise of Castro and the ascendancy of Donald Trump is not a coincidence, but an opening which points to a new direction in foreign affairs: one that rejects nation building, intervention, and financial terrorism against friend and foe alike. Let us hope so.

*David Jackson, Trump Condemns Castro as Brutal Dictator. USA Today. 26 November 2016.

**Ibid.

Antonius Aquinas@AntoniusAquinas

By Antonius Aquinas

http://antoniusaquinas.com

 2016 Copyright Antonius Aquinas - 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.

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Fifty Years Later, Moore's Computing Law Holds

By Matthew Bey : Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel Corp., published his now iconic article  Cramming More Components into Integrated Circuits  in the journal Electronics on April 19, 1965. In this paper, Moore observed that the number of transistors fitting on a computer circuit board had roughly doubled each year. A decade later the time-scale was revised to 18-24 months and dubbed "Moore's Law." Following this principle, a computer purchased today would cost about half the price in two years. Processing is now down to one-sixtieth the cost it was a decade ago.

Intel co-founders Gordon Moore and Robert Noyce meeting in Intel's offices in 1970. (INTEL FREE PRESS/Wikimedia Commons)

The operation of Moore's Law over the past 50 years has changed the world in enormous ways. The resilience of his observation has been equally impressive. Within a short time of his formulation of the law, it became the core business model of semiconductor and fabrication companies as well as the foundational logic driving long-term strategy for corporations in the microchip and semiconductor business. The prescience of Moore's vision is most clear in the second paragraph of his 1965 paper, which forecasts many of the devices exhibited at the January 2015 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas:

Integrated circuits will lead to such wonders as home computers  or at least terminals connected to a central computer  automatic controls for automobiles, and personal portable communications equipment. The electronic wristwatch needs only a display to be feasible today.

In 2015, not only does the world have automatic controls for automobiles but also practical self-driving technology. Cellular phones and other mobile devices are now the most profitable segment of the electronics industry and the economic driving force maintaining the pace described in Moore's Law. Cloud-based computing is becoming mainstream for a wide range of applications. This month, Apple made headlines by selling over a million Apple Watches in a few hours.

This exponential growth in processing has accelerated technological progress and forced every country to adapt to change more quickly than at any other point in history. This is true not only for computers and digital information, but for essentially everything that exists in today's world. Unlike the Neolithic Revolution 12,000 years ago or the 1760-1840 Industrial Revolution, today's digital world touches every part of life and nearly every country on the planet. The developing world, too, is gaining access to advanced technologies more quickly. It has already transformed nations like Rwanda into potential regional communications technology hubs. Now, more than ever, technology is geopolitical.

From the 1950s to Now

The rapid development and innovation in U.S. and later Japanese semiconductor and computer technology gave the United States and its allies a powerful advantage over their Soviet competitors. Throughout most of the Cold War, the Soviet Union was on average a few years behind the Americans and Japanese. Because of the exponential growth of technology, however, this lag meant that it was more expensive for the Soviets to produce what was typically an inferior computer chip.

The differences between the Soviet and U.S. technology sectors were because of factors not considered by Moore's Law. Instead, it was the structure of research, development and eventual application in both contexts. The competition between the two powers throughout the Cold War provided a strong incentive for both governments to fund and develop technology. In the United States, NASA, the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health invested a huge chunk of federal funding in innovation, often defense-related. But by the 1960s, and into the 1970s, defense spending fed back to the development of control systems and computers. This was true in the Soviet Union as well.

Unlike the United States, however, the Soviet Union's research and development was almost exclusively geared toward the defense industry. Much like the previous German model, the Soviet model for science was full state control of funding, research and even the scientists and technologists themselves. This state-centered model left little room for expansion into consumer applications. In the end, the Soviet Union maintained an even footing in specific defense-related industries, but was far behind elsewhere.

In the U.S. capitalist model, by contrast, the focus of the domestic economy was the consumer market. Many of the innovations originally developed for defense purposes were quickly integrated into consumer goods and services thanks to more diverse capital allocation. IBM, for example, was responsible for over two-thirds of the world's computers in the mid-1960s, but much of their initial revenue was generated from the development of the B-52 bomber's computer systems and other air force technology. Defense spending also bankrolled a significant part of the initial development of integrated circuits in the early 1960s.

The space race against the Soviet Union in the late 1960s also helped the U.S. military consume over half of the world's integrated chips. However, those technologies eventually become commonplace in consumer electronics. By the 1980s the United States had grown into the world's premier industrial economy and helped U.S. companies pioneer innovation in areas such as home computing. The United States had also come to dominate the world's computer and semiconductor markets.

In Japan, most innovation was done in the context of a centralized government system that allowed Tokyo to exploit lower labor costs to produce the components more cheaply than the United States. But, unlike the United States, it did not allow new developments to rapidly extend to other adaptations.

The foundation laid by the U.S. system of innovation brought about perhaps the two most important revolutionary technological events of the post-Cold War era. In the final days of the Cold War and the period directly after the Soviet collapse  brought on in part by the lack of a consumer-oriented industry  the United States unveiled both the Global Positioning System and the Internet. These Cold War technologies reached the consumer market through the 1990s. The U.S. also spun off commercial satellite launches, paving the way for the privatization of space launches and space-based technologies.

The Internet  and machine-to-machine connections more broadly  led to a number of crucial developments. The most important of these was the online interface that gave individuals access to almost any information needed. By using computers to communicate, the Internet enabled people to organize and connect without physically meeting, far beyond the scope of a single telephone line.

Risks of Exponential Growth

The growth of computing, laid out in Moore's Law, was not without its challenges. It made the theft of information more feasible and prevalent than ever before. At both the individual and corporate level this fundamentally exposed once stable concepts of privacy and intellectual property. At the national level it brought about concerns of espionage and, for closed governments such as China, the dissemination of intellectual ideas. These concerns are at the center of the European Union's debate with Google on concepts like a person's right to be forgotten or the dominance and integration of Google, or previously Microsoft, into everyday life.

Cyber "warfare" has also manifested in relations between states and between state and society. The revelation of the extent of the National Security Agency's monitoring of communications has raised tensions between the United States and countries such as Brazil. In April, University of Toronto researchers also uncovered code originating from China being used to hijack personal computers in order to unleash distributed denial of service attacks to take down websites Beijing opposes. Hacks also extend to asymmetric attacks where small groups can attack entire corporations.

Because of the startling speed of innovation, risk has consequently escalated over a relatively short period. Not all outcomes, however, have been negative. Processing by "Big Data" has enabled sophisticated modeling of genomes, petroleum reservoirs, supply chains and logistics, as well as enabling financial engineering and medical research. Many of the breakthroughs in these fields simply would not be possible today, or at least as frequent, with weaker computer processing.

Moving forward, the world will become increasingly dependent on computers. Implementing and securing smart technology will likewise become a fundamental concern. The last few years have seen data breaches at a number of companies. Smart grids, automated and additive manufacturing and remote sensors are all going to become more important in the future, embodied in what has come to be called the "Industrial Internet," "Internet of Things" or "Industry 4.0."

The End of Moore's Law

Ultimately, Moore's Law is not an unbreakable law. It is merely an observed trend that has continued for far longer than Gordon Moore himself even expected. The question now is whether the trend will continue and if it is even worth investing the resources to maintain.

The early rapid development of the semiconductor and computing markets was originally funded and financed by the defense sector. Consistent government contracts meant consistent investment. Once the defense industry's market gave way to consumer electronics, however, desktop computing power became the main source of income that drove profits and incentivized maintaining the trend line set by Moore's Law. Eventually, of course, desktop computing power reached a point where the consumer market did not need to upgrade as frequently. Subsequently, the market's growth began to slow down. In time, the same became true for laptops.

The profit margins just did not exist. Today mobile computing in devices like tablets and cellphones represents the driving force behind innovation and continued investment into more powerful, smaller and efficient computer chips. By the end of the decade, tablet sales may be comparable to personal computer sales. The cellphone market, too, will be strong.

At some point, like personal computers and laptops before them, the need for growth in computing power for tablets and cellphones will no longer see corresponding increases in the buyer's user experience. Consumers will no longer be as interested in paying as much money for the latest iPhone, iPad or Samsung Galaxy.

Looking beyond mobile electronics, the question becomes whether the next phase will require development to progress as rapidly. Most of the growth in demand may emerge from cloud computing, which does not rely as much on physical size or remote sensors, which do not need more computing power than regular computers. There will continue to be niche applications  such as video games  but it is questionable whether their market share can ever approach the beast that is the personal computer and cellphone market. Progress on Moore's Law will inevitably slow down, and could do so quite soon, possibly even by the end of the decade. The market for existing technology will still be there, but it will not drive innovation into more powerful chips.

The industry is now reaching a point where increases in materials and fabrication technology are leading to rapid growth in design costs as the actual transistor itself gets smaller and smaller. These costs are now rising more than the value of the end product, meaning the exponential growth predicted by Moore's Law could slow because it is simply not profitable. In an early 2015 survey, over half of semiconductor industry leaders said they believe that Moore's Law will no longer be viable below 22 nanometer transistors. Currently, investors are exploring the 10 nanometer (or less) transistor. Even the existing technology tracks will eventually reach their physical limitations as nodes become smaller.

There are of course a number of innovative technologies that could be put in place to extend the shelf life of Moore's Law. These include using spintronics technology, using 2D materials or scaling nodes and gates vertically. They also include the potential for radically different forms of computing such as quantum computing. These innovations, however, are only justifiable to mass produce quickly if the demand for their benefits translates to real world applications. Massive budgets are required to replace semiconductor fabrication equipment every 18 months or so.

In the end, Moore's Law has revolutionized technology in the computer age. It is quite amazing that it has lasted 50 years and counting. But the law is merely an observation, and is now facing perhaps its most fundamental challenge.

"Fifty Years Later, Moore's Computing Law Holds is republished with permission of Stratfor."

This analysis was just a fraction of what our Members enjoy, Click Here to start your Free Membership Trial Today! "This report is republished with permission of STRATFOR"

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Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only. 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.

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Transcription

1 THE RESTORATION OF BEAUFORT CASTLE (SOUTH-LEBANON) A 3D RESTITUTION ACCORDING TO HISTORICAL DOCUMENTATION Pierre Grussenmeyer a, Jean Yasmine b a MAP-PAGE UMR 694, National Institute of Applied Sciences, 24 Bd de la victoire, Strasbourg, France b Po. Box 1019 Jounieh, Lebanon - CIPA XIXth International Symposium, 30 September- 4 October 2003, Antalya, Turkey New perspectives to save Cultural Heritage KEY WORDS: Lebanon, Beaufort, Architectural & Archaeological heritage conservation, Photographic recording, Documentation, Archive images. ABSTRACT: This paper presents the contribution of photogrammetry within the framework of the documentation of the Beaufort castle (South Lebanon), also called Qalaat el-chaqif (12-17 th century). After the withdrawal of the Israeli army of southern Lebanon, the Lebanese government asked for a consulting firm (J. Yasmine, DGA consultant) to establish general tender documents for the restoration of the Beaufort castle. Many parts of the site were destroyed or buried because of the war. In 2002, the castle has been surveyed by geodetic methods (GPS and total station techniques) to establish reference points and a revised map of the area. In 2003, J. Yasmine has completed the survey by aerial oblique images taken by helicopter and terrestrial images, following the recommendations of CIPA 3x3 rules. After the calibration of the different cameras, the block of images has been computed within the PhotoModeler TM package, in order to document and draw the parts difficult to reach by traditional topographic techniques and to check the homogeneity of this important historic building (approx. surface of 150m x 75m, height of 30m). Several archive images of the castle were taken by the French army between the years 1935 and 1937 (vertical and oblique overall views on glass plates). The aim of the project is to use this archive documentation in order to try to make a 3D restitution of the destroyed and buried historical structures of the castle. This restitution will help the consultant to establish the framework of the excavation and restoration tasks, by showing the historical structures destroyed by the war. This collaboration has been possible thanks to the academic relations between the laboratory of photogrammetry of INSA Strasbourg and the Restoration Centre of the Lebanese University in Tripoli. RESUME : Cet article presente une contribution de la photogrammetrie dans le cadre de la documentation du chateau de Beaufort (Sud du Liban), egalement appele Qalaat el-chaqif (12-17eme siecle). A l issue du retrait de l'armee israelienne du Liban meridional, le gouvernement libanais a demande a J. Yasmine, consultant pour la Direction Generale des Antiquites, d etablir une documentation des lieux en vue de preparer l appel d offres de la restauration du Chateau de Beaufort. Plusieurs parties du site ont ete detruites ou remblayees pendant la guerre. En 2002, le chateau a ete documente par des methodes topographiques traditionnelles (mesures GPS et releves tacheometriques) pour etablir des points de reference et la cartographie du site. Ce releve a ete complete par J. Yasmine en 2003 par des images aeriennes obliques prises a partir d un helicoptere, et des images terrestres suivant les recommandations des 3x3 regles du CIPA. L etalonnage des appareils photos et le calcul de l ensemble des images a ete realise avec le logiciel PhotoModeler TM. Le calcul en bloc des differentes photos a permis de verifier l homogeneite des donnees a disposition pour ce monument (surface du site d environ 150m x de 75m, hauteur de 30m), et de restituer et dessiner les parties difficiles a atteindre par les techniques topographiques traditionnelles. Plusieurs images d archives du chateau ont ete realisees par l'armee francaise entre les annees 1935 et 1937 (vues d ensemble verticales et obliques sur plaques de verre). Le but du projet est d'employer ces precieuses archives afin de produire dans les prochains mois une restitution 3D des structures historiques detruites et enterrees du chateau, en vue des recherches archeologiques. Cette restitution permettra d etablir le cadre des taches d'excavation et de restauration, en montrant les structures historiques detruites par la guerre. Cette collaboration a ete possible grace aux relations entre le laboratoire de photogrammetrie de l INSA Strasbourg et le centre de restauration de l'universite libanaise a Tripoli. 1. INTRODUCTION The Fort of Beaufort is a medieval castle constructed by the crusaders, the Ayyubids and the Mamluks. The castle is located in the southern part of Lebanon, a few kilometers far of the Israeli border. It is one of the emblematic monuments attesting the successive occupations of the site. After the Israeli withdrawal of southern Lebanon, the Lebanese government commissions a multidisciplinary team to establish a preliminary study for the restoration of the castle. This team is composed of

2 many specialists and is headed by Jean Yasmine, a consultant at the Directorate General of Antiquities (DGA). This team is responsible of the establishment of tender documents for contractors. There are many works on this important monument (dimensions of the castle: 75m x 150m; height. 30m; dimensions of the surroundings: 200m x 500m). There is archaeological excavation. There is consolidation and restoration of structures and surfaces. There are also cultural and touristic equipment in the scope of works. The present paper deals with the problems of the surroundings. After the independence of Lebanon in 1943, extensive works began. Lately, the castle became again a strategic stake in the war of Lebanon. Between 1976 and 1982 it was occupied by the Palestinians who attacked from this fortified point the North of Israel. Between 1976 and 1980, dozens of raids were made on the castle. On June 6 th, 1982, it was heavily shelled before it fell in the hands of Israelis on June 8 of that year. The destructions we see nowadays date from that period. The Israeli army stayed there and fortified the surroundings with bunkers and reinforced concrete blocks. Finally, in the year 2000, the Israeli army withdrew from the castle after the attacks of the Lebanese resistance. 3. THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL RESTITUTION AND THE AIM OF THE RESEARCH The problem raised for the restitution of the historic surroundings is the preservation of the archaeological remains while excavating the spoil heap dating of the war. Many of these archaeological remains can be seen on historical documentation. 3.1 The historical documentation Figure 1. Aerial view of the Beaufort castle (Nikon F3, 2003) 2. HISTORIC OVERVIEW OF THE CASTLE There is no text related to the castle before the arrival of the crusaders. This rock crest overlooks the passage towards the Syrian hinterland. It is difficult to imagine that there was not a fortified point controlling this passage before the arrival of the crusaders. The texts say that Beaufort was deserted and taken by the crusaders in A few years later, Beaufort was ruled by the Lord of Saida (Sagette). In the year 1179, a battle between Baudoin IV and Saladin took place while Renaud de Sagette was the master of the castle. Saladin took Beaufort in 1190, after a one year siege. A few years later, before the arrival of the Mamluks, Al Salih Ismail made a deal with the crusaders and gave them the castle back in In 1260, Julien de Sagette sold the castle of Beaufort to the Order of the Temple. This order kept the castle until On that date, the Mamluk Sultan Baibars besieged Beaufort and took it. Restoration works and new constructions are attested in Arab texts. The 14 th, 15 th and 16 th centuries were calm. In the 17 th century, during the reign of Fakhreddine, a prince of Lebanon, the castle became part of his fortified net. After the defeat of Fakhreddine, the ottomans destroyed the upper structures of the castle. Between 1616 and 1769, the area was ruled by feudal families. In 1782 `Al jazzar governor of c Akka (Saint Jean d'acre) besieged the castle, took it and destroyed its fortifications. In 1837, an important earthquake destroyed many parts of the castle. After this date, it became a quarry for the neighborhood and a sheep-fold. During the same period, in the late 19 th century, the Orientalists came and described the castle (successively Rey, Guerin, Conder & Kitchener). The castle was quiet in that period. After 1920, there was the French mandate on Syria and Lebanon. The French emphasized on the crusader period sites. The authorities began to consolidate and to restore these castles. Many series of historical photos of the castle exist. a- Serie 1: These are the photos of the publication of Paul Deschamps (Les chateaux croises en terre sainte, t. II, La defense du royaume de Jerusalem, Ed. Geutner, Paris, 1939). A little part of these photos were taken by the French air force of the Levant between the years These photos are only available in the publication. The original negatives were never found. The use of this documentation is difficult within the scope of this project; they can only be indicative photos. b- Serie 2: These are photos still existing in the Institut Francais du Proche-Orient (IFPO) archives (figure 2). All these photos were taken by the French air force of the Levant between the years 1930 and We were able to get duplicates (contact prints) of the original negatives. They were then scanned. c- Serie 3: These are photos existing in the archives of the DGA. All these photos were taken by the French air force of the Levant between the years 1931 and They are vertical views. Only contact prints are available; the original negatives were not found. Those contact prints were scanned. Figure 2. Example of archive photo of 1936 (IFPO), showing in the foreground the archeological hidden remains

3 3.2 The modern documentation After the end of the war, access to the castle became secure. There was a need to manage to realize a complete documentation of the unreachable parts of the castle (basically the eastern elevation over the valley). That s why a helicopter flight was scheduled in Aerial oblique views were taken (figure 1) in that flight. They were composed of digital images (Nikon Coolpix 5000, 2560x1920 pixels) and film-based small format color slides (Nikon F3, Nikkor lenses, 55 mm). Last but not least, a complete documentation requested terrestrial views of the castle; digital images and again film-based small format color slides were taken. Thanks to this exhaustive documentation, three-dimensional restitution was possible. All the modern documentation was produced in one day. were based on these surveys. The inaccuracies of these surveys did not represent a major problem for the restoration of the visible areas of the castle. However, these inaccuracies prevented us from computing the exact position of the archaeological hidden remains. We plan to generate a new AutoCAD documentation showing the surroundings of the castle and the archaeological hidden remains that should be dug out ( 5). Figure 5. Example of 2D AutoCAD map from the tacheometric survey of 2002 (level 4 of the castle). Figure 3. Example of modern photo (Nikon Coolpix 5000, 2003) 3.3 The topographic survey On that same day, while photos were being taken, a team of geodetic surveyors installed reference points on the ground and elevations of the castle. These points (figure 4) were easy to identify on the photos. A total-station was used by the surveyors to measure the reference points. This generated threedimensional coordinates for these points. Figure 6. Example of 2D AutoCAD section. 4. PHOTOGRAMMETRIC DATA PROCESSING 4.1 Multi-image photogrammetry Figure 4. Examples of targets used for the reference points 3.4 The AutoCAD documentation The first topographic surveys conducted during the preliminary study were not very accurate due to the difficulties encountered in trying to access some of the areas of the castle. These first surveys were performed using GPS and tacheometric techniques. The AutoCAD maps (figures 5 and 6) used to establish the tender documents for the restoration of the castle Photogrammetric solutions (Grussenmeyer et al., 2002) are either based on the processing of single images (e.g. image rectification of plane objects), stereoplottings (for stereopairs of photos), or multi-image restitutions when a set of convergent photos of an object is available. The last solution has been chosen for our project in order to process in one block the sets of photos taken from different cameras. We used the PhotoModeler software package from EOS System (Canada), well known for its applications in architecture and archaeology. The preparation steps in order to process the images were the following: - definition of the camera file for each type of camera: the camera calibrator module of PhotoModeler has been used; - for the archive images, an approximate camera file has been edited for further on the job calibration ;

4 - edition of the control point table (from the geodetic survey); - scan of the film or paper-based images (for the set of archive images and the color slides from the Nikon F3 camera). The basic steps in a project performed with PhotoModeler are : - choice two or more overlapping photographs from different angles of the object ; - use the point and line tools to mark on the photographs control and tie points; - reference the points by indicating which points on different photographs represent the same location on the object (homologous points); - process referenced data to produce 3D model; - check the adjustment and view the resulting 3D model in the 3D viewer ; - extract coordinates, distances, curves, surfaces, texturs etc. within PhotoModeler ; - export the 3D model to rendering, animation or CAD program. 4.2 Calibration of the cameras Four types of images are used for this project: - images from Nikon Coolpix 5000 in the extreme positions of the zoom (7mm and 21mm). This camera was calibrated in the two positions using the calibration grid proposed in the PhotoModeler software (module "camera calibration"); - images taken with a traditional reflex camera Nikon F3, equipped with an objective Nikkor 55mm. The calibration was carried out like previously after scanning the slides; - images of scanned with a resolution of 900dpi: unfortunately no photogrammetric information on the characteristics of the cameras used has been found until now. Several types of glass-plates-based cameras with focal distances of 20 to 30cm were used at that time for the acquisition of aerial and terrestrial views (Roussilhe, 1936). several projects) proposed in the PhotoModeler software allows the restitution of three-dimensional elements simultaneously on the photographs of 1936 and 2003, and to superimpose and display these results within a unique project. Figure 7a. Overview of the camera stations and the block configuration after the exterior orientation 4.3 Adjustment of the block of images of 2003 More than 130 images were realized in spring 2003 with the Nikon F3 and Nikon Coolpix cameras (a hundred images on the ground and about thirty in the helicopter). A first block of 18 oblique views of the castle was oriented in June 2003 using the control points materialized on the ground by targets (figure 4). Standard deviations of about 10 cm on the co-ordinates of the points measured on the images have been obtained. We then selected in this project ten visible points simultaneously on the images of , in order to define approximations of the photogrammetric parameters, and to calculate a block based on a selection of these archive images. 4.4 Adjustment of a block of archive images Initially we selected 4 oblique photographs (scales of 1/1000 to 1/2000) in order to document archaeological vestiges of the North and West parts. The approximate values of the internal and external orientations of the archive images have been computed within the module "process & autocalibration" of PhotoModeler with the help of control points defined in Merger of the two projects and preparation of the restitution Figure 7b. Aerial view of 1935, allowing to locate the camera stations of the figure 7a 5. RESTITUTION OF THE HISTORICAL STRUCTURES NOWADAYS DISAPPEARED From the block of images previously oriented, the restitution initially carried out in 2D in Autocad (e.g. fig. 5 and 6) will be enriched by a 3D restitution corresponding to the objectives of the documentation. We are then able to calculate and draw the visible structures on the aerial and terrestrial photographs of 2003 by digitalizing on the images (fig. 8). One will proceed in an identical way on the archive photographs to measure the archaeological structures currently covered by the remains of the war, or to plot in 3D parts of the castle currently embanked or destroyed (fig. 9). At this stage, the two separately calculated projects are referred to the same reference system. The process of merging (of

5 Figure 8. Multi-image restitution within PhotoModeler 5.0 Figure 9. Restitution of the embankment areas. On the left, the boundary of the embankment is marked on a photo of 2003 and on the right, the corresponding surface is projected on an archive photo of 1936 The superposition of the two restitutions make it possible to highlight the areas of interest (figures 9 and 10) for archaeological work and to estimate work of civil engineering (fill, cubature, rebuilding, etc). Moreover, the restitution of the site in wire frame and surface model can be supplemented by the addition of textures coming either from the images of 1936, or of those of From the resulting 3D photomodels, orthophotos can be calculated for the two periods, as e.g. for the frontages of the castle or the installations around the site covering the archaeological structures (fig. 11).

6 Figure 10. Archaeological structures are measured on the archive images of 1936 and the corresponding surface is shown on the photos of 2003 geographique et monumentale, vol. "Album", Bibliotheque Archeologique et Historique, Tome XXXIV, Paris, Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner, Plate LV. Grussenmeyer, P., Hanke, K., Streilein, A., Architectural photogrammetry. Chapter in Digital Photogrammetry. Edited by M. Kasser and Y. Egels, Taylor & Francis, pp Huot, J.-L., Salem Kardous, A., Photographies du Levant. Institut Francais d Archeologie du Proche-Orient, Beyrouth, Liban, 165 pages. Figure 11. Example of orthophoto of the archeological structure (computed from archive images) 6. CONCLUSION This project has shown the importance of photogrammetry within the framework of 3D documentation of the castle of Beaufort, for the development of the site and the landscape. The study presented in this paper shows that using the old aerial photographs taken by French air force of the Levant between 1931 and 1936, a comparative restitution makes it possible to locate in a precise way the visible archaeological structures on the archive photographs. Only a small part of the site was currently plotted with these techniques. This study will be supplemented in the next months by the complete photogrammetric restitution of the whole set of photographs carried out in April The contractor who will be in charge of the restoration will then have all information to release the great quantity of fill around the castle, in order to preserve intact the historical and archaeological structures which would be still in-situ below the embankment. 7. REFERENCES References from Journals: Grussenmeyer, P., Photogrammetrie architecturale et modelisation 3D du patrimoine. Revue de l Association Francaise de Topographie, 2 e trim. 2003, N 95, p References from Books: Deschamps, P., Les Chateaux des Croises en Terre Sainte II: La Defense du Royaume de Jerusalem, etude historique, Philipson, W.R. (Editor), Manual of Photographic Interpretation, 2 nd Edition. Edited by the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Bethesda, Maryland, 689 pages. Roussilhe, H., La photogrammetrie et ses applications generales, Tomes 1 et 2. Encyclopedie industrielle et commerciale, Librairie de l enseignement techniques, L. Eyrolles (Paris). References from Other Literature: Bessac J.-C. et Yasmine J., Etude preliminaire des chantiers de construction du chateau de Beaufort, in BAAL, N 5, p ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The authors would like to thank Ghassan Salame Minister of Culture of the Lebanese Republic and Frederic Husseini General Director of Antiquities for their help in organizing the helicopter flight. The authors would like also to thank Jean-Louis Huot, Alma Kardous (IFPO) and Anne Marie Afeiche (DGA) for their help in providing the historical documentation. The authors finally thank Mrs. Rawya Majzoub Barake, Director of the Center of restoration from the Lebanese University in Tripoli to have allowed and encouraged the organization of an introductory course in architectural photogrammetry in the diploma of specialized studies of restoration and conservation of monuments and historic sites in Tripoli, within the framework of the French-Lebanese cooperation. It was under these circumstances that the authors allowed to meet in 1998.
Al Horford

Boston Celtics' Al Horford watches against the Detroit Pistons in the first half of a NBA basketball game in Auburn Hills, Mich., Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016.

(AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Despite announcing four-time All-Star Al Horford will miss Monday night's game against the Miami Heat, the Boston Celtics have a nice opportunity over the coming week-and-a-half to string some wins together. The combined record of their next six opponents is 41-61, with just one of those games coming against a .500-or-better club.

With the exception of the Houston Rockets, a Dec. 5 opponent, the Celtics are in line to meet a number of lottery-bound teams:

at Miami Heat: 5-11

vs. Detroit Pistons: 8-10

vs. Sacramento Kings: 7-10

at Philadelphia 76ers: 4-13

at Houston Rockets: 11-6

at Orlando Magic: 6-11

Though they qualify as one of the NBA's unluckiest teams with injuries so far, the Celtics currently sit just one game out of second place in the Eastern Conference. Horford's concussion and Jae Crowder's sprained ankle hurt, but Boston still sits in a good position to compete for home-court advantage in at least the first round. While the team's overall net rating isn't nearly elite yet, the Celtics have played like conquerors with Horford on the court. That has come against mostly weak competition, but still, Brad Stevens' team has looked about as advertised when fully healthy: really good, but not quite great.

Brad Stevens: I think when weve had all of our bodies, weve been pretty good. Not that we cant improve.  Adam Himmelsbach (@AdamHimmelsbach) November 28, 2016

After one month of the regular season, the Eastern Conference standings feature a crowd of teams behind the Cleveland Cavaliers. The favorable schedule should give the Celtics a chance to climb out of the pack, or at least keep pace.
5321817498_18a79eafe0_o.jpg

Pages in the dictionary. Photo by Flickr user Chrispl57.

(http://bit.ly/2fszm3h)

Since 2010, Dictionary.com aims to pick a "Word of the Year" that reflects a large theme throughout the year and is based on user interest in trending lookup data.

This year, that word is "xenophobia." Dictionary.com defines the noun as "fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures, or strangers" and as "fear or dislike of customs, dress, and cultures of people who are culturally different from oneself."

Screen shot of Dictionary.com's definition of xenophobia.

The word xenophobia entered the English language in the late 1800s, finding its roots in two Greek words, xenos meaning "stranger, guest," and phobos meaning "fear, panic."

According to the Dictionary.com blog, user interest in the word began in April 2015, when there was a surge in lookups connected to attacks on foreign workers and overall rising "fear of the other" in South Africa.

The largest spike in the data for the word this year occurred on June 24 with a 938% increase in lookups - the day after the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union as the result of Brexit.

The second largest increase in searches was during the 2016 US presidential race. Dictionary.com credits a speech from President Obama on June 29, in which he expressed concern over the use of the term "populism" to describe Donald Trump's political rhetoric.

Obama insisted that this was not an example of populism, but of "nativism or xenophobia," which then lead to viewers to search for the definition of the term.
Chandler's 23.jpg

Chandler's Restaurant is located at 25 Greenfield Road in South Deerfield, at the Yankee Candle flagship store. (Don Treeger / The Republican)

( )

For the restaurant industry, December's arrival marks the start of the Christmas season, a time of the year when restaurateurs put their best efforts into producing an-always interesting array of special events. What follows are just a few of the tasty-sounding experiences waiting to be enjoyed.



On Monday, Dec.12, Dana's Grillroom in Wilbraham will be holding their fifth annual Free Pasta Dinner from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m.



A no-charge pasta dinner will be served to every guest who brings a new, unwrapped toy. The toys collected will be distributed to local families in need.



For more details contact the restaurant at (413) 599-1846.



There's a special holiday season gathering on tap at McCarthy's Pub in Belchertown on Wednesday, Dec.14. McCarthy's is holding a Kids Holiday Cookie Decoration Party that evening from 5 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.



McCarthy's answers at (413) 323-6420.



The Sheraton Springfield Monarch Place in downtown Springfield will be on Santa's list of stops this holiday season he makes appearances at two "Santa's Elves" breakfast events.



On Saturday, Dec. 10 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again on Sunday, Dec. 11 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Jolly Old Elf will be holding court. The buffet will include all his morning food favorites - pancakes, made-to-order omelets, pastries and muffins, fresh fruit, and more.



Children ages 4 to 12 are $9.95; the adult tariff is $17.95, not including tax and gratuity. Parking is free to those attending.

Reservations for either Breakfast with Santa can be made by calling (413) 263-2117.



The Hardwick Vineyard and Winery in Hardwick is offering Holiday Open House tours every Saturday in December from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Music, a hot cocoa bar, holiday treats, and tastes of Hardwick's own wines will be available.



For more details contact the Winery at (413) 967-7763.



This holiday season Storrowton Tavern in West Springfield will be conjuring up the Christmas spirit of old with strolling Victorian Carolers featured every Friday and Saturday evening from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. until Christmas.



Contact Storrowton at (413) 732-4188 for information and reservations.



The Publick House Historic Inn in Sturbridge is once again presenting its traditional calendar of holiday events.



Gingerbread House Decorating sessions will be held on December 3 and 10, with starting times at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., and 1 p.m. Participants will assemble and decorate their own "cookie cottage"; while the icing is setting up, cookies and cider will be served. Cost to attend is $35 per house.



Breakfast will Santa will be offered on the same two dates with seatings at 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. The Inn's Yankee Buffet Brunch, which features the likes of Belgian waffles, French toast sticks, scrambled eggs with cheese, corned beef hash, and quiche Lorraine will be served. Dessert selections include warm deep-dish apple pie and Grandma's chocolate cake with hot fudge and toasted marshmallow.

Children 3 to 10 years of age can indulge for $11.95; adults pay $18.95. Both prices are all-inclusive.

Reservations, which are required for either get-together, can be made by calling the Publick House at (508) 347-3313.

Santa and Holly the Elf will be making a special visit to Steaming Tender Restaurant in Palmer on Saturday, Dec. 17.

The experience is to begin with a breakfast buffet; Holly the Elf will then escort those participating to Steaming Tender's 1890s parlor car, where Santa will be receiving them.

The buffet, which includes traditional breakfast favorites, will have seatings at 8:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. The all-inclusive price is $15 for kids and $20 for adults, and reservations are mandatory.

Steaming Tender will also be hosting readings of "The Polar Express" on Saturday, Dec. 17 and Sunday, Dec. 18.

Dinner is included, with a for-grownups menu of pork roulade, sherry-glazed Cornish game hens, or vegan stuffed squash. Kids get to choose from their own special bill of fare.

The reading takes place in Steaming Tender's parlor car, where hot cocoa and cookies will also be served.

Three starting times, the first planned for 4 p.m., are available on Saturday. Sunday's readings start at 4 p.m. and 6.15 p.m. Tickets are $40 for adults and $25 for children; reservations are required.

For more details contact Steaming Tender at (413) 283-2744.

Figaro Restaurant in Enfield will be presenting "It's a Wonderful Scrooge" on December 4.

An interactive comedy show experience, the program is scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. seating. Tickets for the show only are $30.

Figaro's is offering a special before-theater menu that features a choice of entrees from among eggplant parmesan, chicken Francaise, veal parmesan, Boston scrod, or baked stuffed shrimp. The four-course menu includes appetizer, soup, salad and a dessert; the price for dinner is $25, not including tax or tip.

To make reservations, contact Figaro Restaurant at (860) 745-2414.

Side dishes

Karen and Michael Anderson, the owners of Tucker's Restaurant in Southwick, have sent word that Tucker's will be serving Sunday dinner throughout the month of December, with 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. as the hours of service. Contact Tucker's at (413) 569-0120 for more details or to make reservations.

* * *

Bottega Cucina is presenting its annual Chocolate Wine Dinner, a meal in which flavors derived from the cocoa bean play a prominent role in dishes both savory and sweet. The featured wines for this event, which is planned for Dec. 18 starting at 5 p.m., are from Bertani Winery. Located in Italy's Veneto province, Bertani is one of that region's most influential wine producers.

Five Bertani wines will be featured at the dinner, and Bottega Cucina Chef Philip Hillenbrand has created chocolate-inflected courses to go with each.

The meal begins with fried prosciutto ham with a white chocolate creme fraiche; cocoa-dusted scallops follow. A subsequent salad of grilled radicchio will be garnished with a chocolate nut crostini.

Osso buco braised in bittersweet chocolate is to be the main course, and it is to be paired with Bertani's signature Amerone. A chocolate crepe filled with Nutella cream will wrap up the dining experience.

Seats are by reservation only, and a $25 deposit is required. The total cost of the dinner is $85 plus taxes. Contact Bottega Cucina at (413) 732-2500 to book a seat at this wine dinner.

* * *

The Blue Heron Restaurant in Sunderland is planning a wine dinner for Friday, Dec. 9. Featuring wines from Argentinean producer Bodega Catena Zapata, the evening will feature a multi-course menu paired with Bodega Catena's best.

Menu details, along with the dinner's price and starting time, will be posted on the Blue Heron's website, blueherondining.com



Hugh Robert is a faculty member in Holyoke Community College's hospitality and culinary arts program and has over 40 years of restaurant and educational experience. Please send items of interest to Off the Menu at the Republican, P.O. Box 1329, Springfield, MA 01101; Robert can also be reached at OffTheMenuGuy@aol.com




I am a retired newspaperman. I am 69 and live in Poca, WV, with my wife of 45 years, Lou Ann. We grew up in Cleveland. Three kids. Grandfather.

More on who I am is here.

Report all errors to DonSurber@GMail.com
Moldova might not be the first - or even the fifth - place you think about when you think about world famous wine growing regions.

To be honest, Moldova's not a place I normally think about at all for any reason.

Even researching (otherwise known as Googling) Moldova and famous people from this landlocked, former Soviet republic wedged between Romania and Ukraine didn't ring any bells either.

Actress Silvia Busuioc?

Writer Vasile Vasilache?

And while the band O-Zone might be big in Moldova, I think it's fair to say most Americans have never rocked out to "Dragostea Din Tei."

That's why I was so intrigued when I came across several wines from Moldova for sale in Provisions in Northampton.

And even better, all of the wines cost less than $15 a bottle.

But are these wines any good?

They're better they're good. They're absolutely terrific and wonderfully unique. Below, you'll find my tasting notes for two red wines and three white wines from Moldova.

RED WINES

2013 Vinaria Din Vale Feteasca Neagra Rosu ($11.99 at Provisions in Northampton)

2011 Cricova Codru Vin Sec Rosu ($13.99 at Provisions)

WHITE WINES

D'Or Feteasca Regala Vin Sec Alb ($9.99 at Provisions)

2013 D'Or Traminer Vin Matur Sec Alb ($12.99 at Provisions)

2013 Vinaria Din Vale Feteasca Alb ($11.99 at Provisions)

But first, I thought I would include a little information about wines from Modolva in general.

HISTORY OF WINE MAKING IN MOLDOVA

According to the Wine of Moldova website, the history of wine making in the country dates back to 3000 BC. In the early 1800s, Moldova then became one of the main production areas for Russia. By the late 1800s, Moldova began supplying wine for other parts of Europe since many traditional wine-growing countries were in short supply due to the phylloxera epidemic, an insect blight that nearly wiped out many wine grapes in France. In more recent years, Moldova's "wine sector focused on producing quality wines."

WINE GROWING REGIONS IN MOLDOVA

There are four main wine growing regions in Moldova:

Balti - This wine-growing region in the Northern part of Moldova is known for producing brut wines.

Codru - One of the larger wine growing regions in central Moldova, Condru contains thousands of acres of vineyards used to make red, white and sparkling wines. Roughly half of Moldova's wine comes from this region.

Stefan-Voda - Located in the southern part of Moldova near the Black Sea, Stefan-Voda produces a wide range of wines, including several types of red and white wines.

Valul lui Traian - The second-largest wine growing region in the southern-most part of Moldova, this region also known as Trajan's Wall is best known for making red wines.

WINE GRAPES GROWN IN MOLDOVA

Along with many well-known grape varieties grown around the world (including Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir), two of the more unusual grapes grown in Moldova include two, white wines grapes: Fetesca Alba and Traminer. Examples of both are reviewed below.

TASTING NOTES FOR MODOLVAN WINES

RED WINES

2013 Vinaria Din Vale Feteasca Neagra Rosu - This medium-bodied, dry red wine tasted terrific right from the start. Right from the first sip, I loved the wine's warm, raspberry-like flavors which lingered on my tongue. I also tasted a hint of cherry and wrote down that this young wine had a slight fruit flavor.

A days later, some of those wonderful, warm fruit flavors had faded slightly. So if you do decide to buy this beautiful wine, I strongly recommend finishing the wine within a day or two to enjoy it at its peak.

2011 Cricova Codru Vin Sec Rosu - This easy-drinking, light red wine reminded me of young, French wines the first day I tasted the wine. A few days later, though, this wine tasted absolutely terrific and had a much more full-bodied taste. I was absolutely stunned by the transformation and definitely plan to try the wine again to see if it evolves the same way.

Cricova winery's also famous for having the second largest underground wine cellar in the world. The winery's underground cellars stretch for 75 miles. The largest underground wine cellar, Milestii Mici, are also located in Molodova and measure more than 120 miles.

WHITE WINES

D'Or Feteasca Regala Vin Sec Alb - This slightly effervescent wine had a crisp, clean aftertaste. The wine reminded me a bit of a toned-down, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. You could taste a hint of grass and green apples or grapes but the flavors were very subtle.

I would also recommend this wine to anyone who likes their white wines on the drier side, with just a hint of sparkling flavor. Another way to think of this wine - it's almost like a cross between a Sauvignon Blanc with a dash of sparkling wine added to it. Quite refreshing and very unusual.

2013 D'Or Traminer Vin Matur Sec Alb - My favorite white wine of the three tasted here, I was amazed by how light and buttery and creamy the wine tasted straight out of the bottle.

The wine also had a floral-like smell which reminded me of the flowers you often find on the sides of mountains in springtime. Everything about this wine was delightful - the smell, the taste and the aftertaste as well. Highly recommended.

2013 Vinaria Din Vale Feteasca Alb - The lightest of the three, white wines from Moldova reviewed here, this wine reminded me of a Pinot Grigio with a slight hint of pear flavors.

A fragrant wine as well, you could smell the fruit-like flavors as well with every sip. But what truly amazed me about this wine - and the other four ones reviewed here - was how unique and delightful each one tasted.

Cheers!

Wine Press by Ken Ross appears on Masslive.com every Monday and in The Republican's weekend section every Thursday.
HYDE PARK -- The head of the Boston Renaissance Charter School has organized a meeting to address parent concerns regarding a Facebook post that alleged of sexual acts occurring between 6-year-olds on a school bus.

According to the post five male students may have been molested by another student, who bribed them with gifts and threatened to shoot them. The poster said she is a friend of a mother whose son was assaulted.

The post, which was published last week, was shared thousands of times.

The charter school sent a letter to parents which said school officials are aware of the Facebook post and are looking into the incident

"This is a highly sensitive matter. We ask our school community to respect the privacy of our students and families, and allow the school to handle this appropriately," the school wrote.

The school released another letter last week inviting parents to a meeting at the Boston Renaissance Charter School Monday at 6 p.m.

Ensuring that all students are provided a safe and supportive learning environment has, and will continue to be, our top priority. We hope to see you Monday night," Alexandra Buckmire, head of the school, wrote in the letter.
Kellyanne Conway

Kellyanne Conway walks past reporters in the lobby of Trump Tower, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

(Evan Vucci)

Kellyanne Conway, the last of Donald Trump's campaign managers in the 2016 presidential election, is slated to appear with her counterpart from Hillary Clinton's campaign, Robby Mook, on the same stage this week.



Harvard University's Institute of Politics is hosting the event, dubbed "War Stories: Inside Campaign 2016."



Jake Tapper, who hosts CNN's "State of the Union" show, is set to moderate the discussion, which is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 1, at the Kennedy School in Cambridge.



According to the Institute of Politics, you need a ticket to get into the event, though CNN will be broadcasting the forum on Dec. 4.



Doors open at 5 p.m. and close at 5:45 p.m.



More information on tickets is available here.



Mook, who also worked on Clinton's 2008 campaign, managed Terry McAuliffe's gubernatorial campaign in Virginia and is the former executive director of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, according to the New York Times.



Conway is the president and CEO of the Polling Company, Inc.



Conway told the New Yorker earlier this year that her fiftieth birthday falls on the day Trump is getting inaugurated, Jan. 20, 2017. She had planned a trip to Italy before joining the campaign, the magazine reported.



"I'll either be at a fabulous party in Washington, D.C., or I'll be in Italy," she told the New Yorker before the election. "I can't lose."
BOSTON: A Lawrence man was arrested by Boston police Friday after they said he ran down a Boston police officer who was trying to arrest him for domestic assault.

Police have not identified the suspect but said he was apparently involved in a domestic disturbance on Julian Street in Dorchester at about 3 p.m.

When police arrived at the scene they approached the car he was sitting in. Reporting officers said the suspect threw his car in gear and tried to drive away, but in accelerating struck one of the approaching officers. The officer was able to brace himself and roll over the hood of the car. He was treated and later released from a local hospital.

The suspect struck a parked car as he fled the scene, police reported, then drove onto I-93 in the northbound lane headed to Lawrence. Police followed and saw the suspect crash his car near Exit 16. He was apprehended nearby after a short foot chase.

The 30-year-old Lawrence man will be arraigned in Dorchester District Court Monday on charges of assault & battery by means of a dangerous weapon on a police officer, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle causing personal injury, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident causing property damage and operating a motor vehicle after revocation or suspension.
CHICOPEE - Police Officer Mark Hammon will be biking in a 300-mile ride from northern New Jersey to the Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington D.C. to raise money for the families of police officers killed in the line of duty.

On Nov. 30 people can help by eating at the 99 Restaurant in the Holyoke Mall at Ingleside. Diners who show up between 5 and 9 p.m. and tell their servers they are raising for the Western Massachusetts Team for the Police Unity Tour Bike Ride will see 15 percent of the amount they pay go to the cause, said Michael Wilk, public information officer for the Chicopee Police Department.

Hammon who currently works at a school resource officer, will be participating in the bike ride in May, he said.
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. When Connecticut State Police chased Ricardo Torres along I-84 Saturday night, the speeds they reached was not the only thing that would surprise them.

Troopers told the New Haven Register that Torres's 2005 Infinity sedan hit speeds of 123 mph as he drove westbound on I-84 through an area where the speed limit is set at 55 mph.

Troopers were finally able to stop Torres near Exit 58 in East Hartford. In the car, troopers found Torres's three children, ages 5, 9 and 12 years old, and a 34-year old woman.

He was released on $5,000 bond after he was charged with reckless driving, risk of injury to a child and first-degree reckless endangerment.
In the last couple of weeks, Putin allies have come to power-- with his help-- in Moldava, Bulgaria and the United States. (Yes, Obama completely failed to protect America from that menace ... and now I'm worried that the brutal Russian dictator will turn Ed Snowden over to Trumpanzee the first time el Presidente Pepe The Frog needs a rabbit to pull out of a hat.) This morning the reported about Putin's ties to the neo-Nazi far right in an increasingly fascist Hungary (whose leader, Viktor Orban, and Trump have already forged a bond ). Last week, reported that some Russian agents were expelled from Serbia-- Russia's traditional ally-- for trying to implement a coup in neighboring Montenegro-- a coup that would have cost the lives of Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo jukanovic and Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic.

The plotters were allegedly going to dress in police uniforms to storm the Montenegrin parliament in Podgorica, shoot the prime minister, Milo jukanovic, and install a pro-Moscow party.





The Russian fingerprints on the October plot have heightened intrigue about Moscows ambitions in a part of Europe hitherto thought to be gravitating towards the EUs orbit.





A group of 20 Serbians and Montenegrins, some of whom had fought with Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, were arrested in Podgorica, the Montenegrin capital. In Serbia, meanwhile, several Russian nationals suspected of coordinating the plot were caught with 120,000 and special forces uniforms.





According to the Belgrade daily, Danas, the Russians also had encryption equipment and were able to keep track of jukanovics whereabouts.





Diplomatic sources told the Guardian the Belgrade government quietly deported the Russians after the intervention of the head of the Russian security council, Nikolai Patrushev, who flew to Belgrade on 26 October in an apparent effort to contain the scandal. The countrys interior minister, Nebojsa Stefanovic denied the government carried out any deportations connected to the plot.





A source close to the Belgrade government said Patrushev, a former FSB (federal security service) chief, apologised for what he characterised as a rogue operation that did not have the Kremlins sanction. In Moscow, a Security Council official told Tass that Patrushev didnt apologise to anyone, because there is nothing to apologise for.





The Serbian government was further rattled three days after Patrushevs visit when a cache of arms was found near the home of the prime minister, Aleksandar Vucic. The weapons were discovered at a junction where Vucics car would normally slow down on his way to the house.





Stefanovic said there were strong suspicions that an organised crime gang had been hired to kill Vucic for 10m, but he would not specify who was behind the alleged plot, saying further investigation would show whether people outside the region were involved.





...jukanovic has been instrumental in pulling his country to the verge of Nato membership-- an accession protocol was signed in May-- which has dashed Russian hopes of securing a naval foothold on the Adriatic. According to the Montenegrin press, Moscow lobbied hard in recent years for transit and maintenance facilities at the ports of Bar and Kotor.





The importance of such facilities was demonstrated late last month when the Russian carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov and its battle group was denied refuelling in European ports along their way to support the Russian military effort in Syria.





In Serbia, Vucic has been seeking a delicate balance between Nato and Russia, and the countrys armed forces have conducted military exercises with both, although far more frequently in recent years with Nato. Vucic has also refused to grant diplomatic status to Russian officials staffing a Serbian-Russian humanitarian centre established in the city of Nis in 2012, infuriating Moscow.





...Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry wrote on Facebook: The publication in the Guardian with a link to sources saying that Patrushev apologised for Russian nationalists who had planned to kill the prime minister of Montenegro is a classic provocation aimed at spreading knowingly false information.





I declare you liars of the day. You can sew your own hat.
This clip contains the viral Carrier Indianapolis plant video (also available here), then includes a discussion of why this is so bad, and why this was entirely discretionary by United Technologies (UTC), the company's owner. (Uygur fails to mention the $172 million "golden parachute" given to the UTC CEO in 2014.)

"They don't know what to do with all the money they have, and they're still firing American workers."

Cenk Uygur in the clip above.

Carriers decision to move the factory to Monterrey, Mexico, will eliminate 1,400 jobs by 2019. Mr. Trump quickly made the factory Exhibit A in his argument against the trade policies of Republicans and Democrats alike.



He cited Carrier again and again on the campaign trail, threatening to phone executives at the company and its parent, United Technologies, and to hit them with 35 percent tariffs on any furnaces and air-conditioners they imported from Mexico. To the cheers of his supporters, he predicted at rallies that Carrier would call him up as president and say, Sir, weve decided to stay in the United States.

Now his supporters expect action. If he doesnt pass that tariff, I will vote the other way next time, warned Nicole Hargrove, who has worked at Carrier for a decade and a half and is not certain what she will do if and when her job goes to Mexico.

In order for Trump to place a tariff on heating and cooling products made in Mexico coming to the US, first, hed have to withdraw from NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement between the US, Canada and Mexico. The treaty was formally signed into agreement by President Bill Clinton in 1994, but it was negotiated by Republican President George H.W. Bush.

Union president would be 'shocked' if Donald Trump convinces Carrier to stay in Indianapolis



The president of the union that represents 1,400 Carrier Corp. workers in Indianapolis is not optimistic that a last-ditch effort by President-elect Donald Trump can save their jobs.



Chuck Jones, president of United Steelworkers Local 1999, said Friday he has not been briefed on talks between the incoming Trump administration and Carrier. But he doesn't see any chance for Trump or Vice President-elect Mike Pence to reverse Carrier's plan to move its west-side furnace operations to Monterrey, Mexico.



"If in fact (discussions) do materialize into something, I would think they'd have to include us at some point in time," Jones said.



Trump announced his administration's talks with Carrier on Twitter, writing that he was "working hard, even on Thanksgiving, trying to get Carrier A.C. Company to stay in the U.S." Trump said he was "making progress" in keeping the heating and air conditioning giant in Indianapolis.



CNBC on Friday reported Pence is leading those talks, citing unnamed sources. Marc Lotter, a spokesman for Pence's vice presidential campaign, said in an email he had no comment beyond what Trump said. Spokespersons for Pence's office did not respond to requests for comment.



Carrier issued a statement via Twitter that confirmed it has been in touch with the Trump administration, but did not describe the nature of those communications. ...



Jones worries that campaign promise might be driving Trump to offer false hope.



"I think it's all a PR move," Jones said. "Trump said what he said when he was campaigning. We've been calling him out, that he made promises Carrier wouldn't move. In order to do something, I think he came up with this."

Sanders Statement on Carrier and Outsourcing

BURLINGTON, Vt., Nov. 26  U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Saturday:



During the campaign, Donald Trump made a 100 percent commitment to prevent United Technologies from shipping 2,100 jobs from Indiana to Mexico. All of us need to hold Mr. Trump accountable to make sure that he keeps this promise.



Lets be clear: it is not good enough to save some of these jobs. We cannot rest until United Technologies signs a firm contract to keep all of these good-paying jobs in Indiana without slashing the salaries or benefits workers have earned.



United Technologies is not going broke. Last year, it made a profit of $7.6 billion and received over $6 billion in defense contracts. It has also received more than $50 million in corporate welfare from the Export-Import Bank and very generous tax breaks.



In 2014, United Technologies gave its former CEO Louis Chenevert a golden parachute worth over $172 million. Last year, the companys five highest paid executives made over $50 million. The firm also spent $12 billion to inflate its stock price instead of using that money to invest in new plants and workers.



I call on Mr. Trump to make it clear to the CEO of United Technologies that if his firm wants to receive another defense contract from the taxpayers of this country, it must not move these plants to Mexico.



We need to send a very loud and very clear message to corporate America: the era of outsourcing is over. Instead of offshoring jobs, the time has come for you to start bringing good-paying jobs back to the United States of America.



If United Technologies or any other company wants to keep outsourcing decent-paying American jobs, those companies must pay an outsourcing tax equal to the amount of money it expects to save by moving factories to Mexico or other low-wage countries. They must pay back all of the tax breaks and other corporate welfare they have received from the federal government. And they must not be allowed to reward their executives with stock options, bonuses or golden parachutes for outsourcing jobs to low wage countries.



I will soon be introducing legislation to make sure that Donald Trump keeps his promise to prevent the outsourcing of American jobs. For the sake of American workers, this is a promise that cannot and must not be broken.

Put Trump on a very public and long-drawn-out hook to prove he actually stands for workers Put the corporate wing of the Democratic Party on the same hook, to prove they actually stand for workers Begin (perhaps) to redefine the Democratic Party as the true party of workers, not the corporate elite

Summary of the Outsourcing Prevention Act



In February, Carrier and UTEC [sic] announced that it would be closing two plants in Indianapolis and Huntington, Indiana shipping 2,100 jobs to Monterrey, Mexico, where workers are paid just $3 an hour. Both of these plants are owned by United Technologies. This legislation will provide a comprehensive solution to address this problem. United Technologies is not an outlier; it is representative of how so many multi-national corporations are taking advantage of our rigged economic system to pad their profits while hurting American workers. President-elect Trump made a promise during the campaign that he would prevent all of these jobs from being shipped overseas. The Outsourcing Prevention Act would make sure that Donald Trump keeps this promise by:



1. Preventing companies that outsource jobs from receiving federal contracts, tax breaks, grants or loans.



Last year, United Technologies received over $6 billion in federal contracts, making it the seventh largest recipient of federal contract funds. Over the past 15 years, this Fortune 500 company has used loopholes in the tax code to shelter more than two-thirds of its $38 billion in profits from federal taxation. It has also received over $50 million in corporate welfare from the Export-Import Bank. Under this legislation, companies would be barred from receiving future contracts, tax breaks, grants or loans from the federal government if they have announced plans to outsource more than 50 jobs overseas.



2. Clawing back federal benefits from companies that outsource jobs have received over the last decade.



This legislation would require all companies that outsource more than 50 jobs in a given year to pay back all federal tax breaks, grants and loans they have received from the federal government over the last decade.



3. Establishing an outsourcing tax on companies that move U.S. jobs offshore.



This legislation would impose a tax on all companies that outsource jobs. The tax would be equal to the amount of savings achieved by outsourcing jobs or 35 percent of its profits, whichever is higher. United Technologies estimated that it would save $65 million a year by moving its jobs in Indiana to Mexico. Under this legislation, the company would be required to pay a tax of no less than $65 million a year.



4. Prohibiting executives from profiting off of the outsourcing of U.S. jobs.



This legislation would prohibit companies that offshore jobs from enriching executives through golden parachutes, stock options, bonuses, or other forms of compensation by imposing stiff tax penalties on this compensation. In addition, companies that outsource jobs overseas would be prevented from buying back its own stock. In 2014, United Technologies gave its former CEO a golden parachute worth over $172 million. Last year, the companys five highest paid executives made over $50 million. The firm also spent $12 billion to inflate its stock price instead of using that money to invest in new plants and workers.

Yes.

I think by now most people know the story of the Carrier plant layoffs that sparked such anger (discussed in the video above; to view the Carrier clip only, click here ). A group of workers at a Carrier plant in Indianapolis were being told by management that their jobs were being eliminated and the plant moved to Mexico. The clip, shot by one of the workers at the meeting, shows their reaction. There's no doubt that the clip going viral had an influence on both the primary and the general election. It perfectly captures the state of working in American, and workers' reaction to it.During the campaign, Trump said he'd fight, as president, to restore all of the Carrier jobs lost in Indianapolis. From the(my emphasis):Here's video:The writer added:"I will vote the other way next time." This is exactly the leverage the Sanders wing of the Democratic Party needs to bring non-racist Trump voters back to the Sanders camp. (Do the Democrats want to be part of that camp? We'll find out soon .)As it turns out, Trump may be backing down. First, there's this He could do that  and in fact, he promised to renegotiate NAFTA in the first 100 days of his presidency . But will he do either  saveCarrier jobs in Indianapolis, plus renegotiate NAFTA? Many are doubtful, including the president of the union representing Carrier's workers (notice,; their Mexican workers won't be).The Indianapolis Star I hope you can see what's brewing  a classic bait-and-switch by Trump. After all, as Uyger points out above, all the government needs to do is threaten to cancel the lucrative United Technology (UTC) defense contracts  $6 billion worth of them  or refuse to grant new ones, until the plant, with its full complement of union workers, is restored.Even I could make that deal. The government has all the aces. It just has to play them. Will Donald Trump play his aces and keep his very high profile promise to Carrier workers and American workers through the nation?Will Trump keep his promise to Carrier workers? Perhaps he needs a nudge. Enter Bernie Sanders. Via his press office we find this (my emphasis):That's just the first half of the Sander challenge to Donald Trump  restore all Indianapolis Carrier jobs. The second half of his challenge is even stronger, both politically and in terms of policy. Look at the last paragraph in the press release again, the part that mentions the legislation.Legislation like this iswhat the Sanders and the Sanders wing needs to be doing  it's what Sanders would have done as president  and it's excellent to see them doing it. The "Outsourcing Prevention Act" that Sanders will introduce is described below. Read it for the pleasure it gives you.Note that just introducing it will do three things at once:Introducing the bill challenges both Trump and the Democratic Party to show where it stands  out loud and in public. Points 2 and 3 interlock. If the corporate wing of the Party publicly blocks this bill, point 3 will be made in reverse  the Democratic Party will be outed as being no better than Trump when it comes to jobs and the economy.Challenging the Carrier promise is a great first move, but if Trump does successfully negotiate to get those jobs back, the critical (to the nation) issue of job loss via outsourcing disappears for a while. Having a bill that works its way through Congress (a) keeps the conversation going for quite a while longer, and (b) represents afix to aproblem. Again, kudos to Sanders and his team for this strong move.Here are the details of the bill, from the Sanders press release quoted above:If you don't want to read the whole piece above, read just the four major points. Very nicely done. Again, exactly what Sanders would have done as president, and exactly why all those thousands showed up in all those stadiums to see and hear him.The only difference now is, he has to do it all from his Senate seat instead of the Oval Office. Pity that. Still, he's doing it, and we should be continuously grateful.Just thought I 'd throw that in. Remember, it didn't have to be this way GP

Labels: Bernie Sanders, corporate welfare, Democrats, Gaius Publius, Jobs Bill, outsourcing, Trump, unemployment
The Montana Department of Commerce works with statewide and local partners, private industry and small businesses to enhance and sustain economic prosperity in Montana. - Montana Is On The Move
The world's worst electoral strategist famously said, not very long ago, "For every blue-collar Democrat we lose in western Pennsylvania, we will pick up two moderate Republicans in the suburbs in Philadelphia, and you can repeat that in Ohio and Illinois and Wisconsin." Unfortunately that was the overall Clinton campaign strategy: let Trump have the white working class deplorables while we harvest votes from rich, white suburbanites who have tended to vote Republican in the past. It worked out badly because many Republicans in Pennsylvania (as well as Ohio and Wisconsin; God only knows why Schumer threw in Illinois) went home to Trump in the last week and those who didn't just weren't enough to balance out the losses from the blue collar Democrats Schumer was dismissing with such alacrity.





Interestingly, the strategy worked in places where it didn't matter-- not in the states where Hillary needed to win electoral votes but in states that were already so blue that she didn't need the Republican suburbanites and in states so red that a few college educated woman who normally vote Republican weren't go to change anything. So, for example, Hillary won Orange County, California-- first time for a Democrat in living memory. Her campaign pitch was perfect for well-off moderate Republicans in the suburbs between Los Angeles and San Diego. She won Orange County 556,544 (51.0%) to Trump's 472,669 (43.3%). How good was that? Well, let's compared it to Obama's vote there in 2012. He lost the O.C. to Romney 541,592 (53%) to 457,077 (45%). Hillary got almost 100,000 more voters than Obama had Romney won nearly 70,000 more votes than Trump. It didn't make any difference. Hillary was going to win California with or without Orange County.





It didn't make any difference in Texas either, where Hillary beat Trump in the Republican suburbs outside of Houston, San Antonio and Austin. (I haven't had time to analyze the data from suburban Dallas-Ft. Worth but I'd be surprised if it was much different.)





Most Houston suburbanites like in Harris County, which also encompasses the whole city of Houston so this gets a little tricky and trickier still when you realize that it's really just northern Brazoria County and southern Montgomery County that are actual Houston 'burbs. But bear with me a while. We're going to compare-- like we did with Orange County-- the 5 suburban Houston counties in terms of votes not just for Hillary compared to Trump, but for Hillary compared to Obama. The idea is that Obama maxed out whatever could be gotten in the Texas cities and that in counties like Harris (Houston), Travis (Austin) and Bexar (San Antonio) hillary's over-performance was from suburban voters.

 Harris- Hillary- 706,471 (54.2%), Trump- 544,960 (41.8%)

Obama- 585,451 (49%), Romney- 584,866 (49%)



 Fort Bend- Hillary- 134,475 (51.6%), Trump- 117,212 (45.0%)

Romney- 116,028 (53%), Obama- 101,043 (46%)



 Brazoria- Trump- 72,653 (60.4%), Hillary- 43,075 (35.8%)

Romney- 70,684 (66%), Obama- 34,327 (32%)



 Montgomery- Trump- 150,188 (74.0%), Hillary- 45,744 (22.5%)

Romney- 137,822 (80%), Obama- 32,852 (19%)



 Galveston- Trump- 73,566 (59.3%), Hillary- 45,503 (36.7%)

Romney- 68,594 (63%), Obama- 39,162 (36%)

And we'll add in Travis and Bexar counties (which include Austin and its southern suburbs and San Antonio and its suburbs).

 Bexar- Hillary- 319,191 (54.5%), Trump- 240,161 (41.0%)

Obama- 263,871 (52%), Romney- 240,519 (47%)



 Travis- Hillary- 306,475 (66.3%), Trump- 126,750 (27.4%)

Obama- 231,540 (60%), Romney- 139,503 (36%)

What do we see? We see Hillary gigantically out-performing Obama in the suburbs around Houston, Austin and San Antonio. Her strategy worked! But it was 100% meaningless. She beat Trump in Harris County by over 160,000 votes and she took more than 120,000 more votes there than Obama. That's huge! But except for bragging right, it doesn't get you a thing, not even a ride on the subway.





Romney won Fort Bend County-- easily the purest Houston suburban county of all (kind of like their version of Orange County)-- but Hillary didn't just win Ft. Bend Co. against Trump, she had more votes there than Obama and more votes there than Romney!





And even in the reddest areas around Houston, like Montgomery County, the northern parts of which as exurbs, not suburbs, Hillary significantly outpolled Obama-- 45,744 (22.5%) to 32,852 (19%).





None of these mattered. Texas was never in danger of slipping out of Trump's grasp and the DCCC was far too lame, incompetent and turgid to take advantage of Hillary's suburban coattails to even try to win any down-ballot races. Statewide, Trump won Texas' 38 electoral votes 4,681,590 (52.6%) to 3,867,816 (43.4%). Romney beat Obama in Texas 57-41%. Trump outpolled Romney by over 100,000 raw votes but Hillary outpolled Obama close to 600,000 votes! Imagine if those 600,000 votes were scattered among Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Michigan. Hillary lost Wisconsin by 27,257 votes, Michigan by 11,612 votes and Pennsylvania by 68,236 votes-- so just 107,105 in those 3 states worth 46 electoral votes, enough so that the country would have been well-saved from President Pepe The Frog.





But let's look at what happened in Pennsylvania, where her strategy was meant to have worked, but didn't. There are 5 suburban collar counties around Philly, although most of one of them, Berks, is more exurban than suburban so it's a bit of an outlier.

 Delaware- Hillary- 169,169 (59.4%), Trump- 106,559 (37.4%)

Obama- 164,805 (60%), Romney- 105,270 (39%)



 Bucks- Hillary- 165,861 (48.4%), Trump- 163,873 (47.8%)

Obama- 159,598 (50%), Romney- 155,876 (49%)



 Montgomery- Hillary- 251,083 (58.7%), Trump- 160,803 (37.6%)

Obama- 227,561 (57%), Romney- 169,903 (42%)



 Chester- Hillary- 140,188 (52.6%), Trump- 115,582 (43.3%)

Romney- 123,280 (50%), Obama- 122,232 (49%)



 Berks- Trump- 93,094 (52.9%), Hillary- 75,169 (42.7%)

Romney- 80,857 (50%), Obama- 79,895 (49%)

Clearly, Schumer was wrong about gaining 2 moderate Republicans for every blue collar voters who went to Trump in the western part of the state. Generally speaking, Hillary did a tiny bit better than Obama in the counties where she had to make up significant losses in other parts of the state.





By gearing a message towards moderate, college educated Republicans-- particularly women-- they inadequately messaged white working class men. And now we're stuck with President-elect Pepe the Frog.













UPDATE: Back To Texas





My friend, Zack Lyke, who managed the Tom Wakely campaign in TX-21, has been pouring over the precinct-by-precinct results and hopefully his work will help whichever Democrat runs against Lamar Smith in 2018. But this morning he shared some of the info he's dug up that is relevant to this comparison between and Texas and Philly area suburbs in regard to Hillary's strategy. Lets start with Precinct 3020, one of the most populous precincts of the Alamo Heights area, considered the chief voting precinct of this wealthy, white suburban-type area.





While San Antonio has an extremely high Hispanic population (55.6%), Alamo Heights comes in at just 13.55% Latino (93.80% white overall as a community). The median income of Alamo Heights is very high-- $77,257. The voter turnout is also very hight-- 72.29% this cycle. Typically speaking: white, rich, and high turnout in Texas = Republican. The precinct had 443 straight Republican ballots, and only 343 straight Democratic ballots-- yet this super-red precinct voted for Hillary-- 911 to 779 for Trump. The chance of a DCCC run by a character like Ben Ray Lujan compiling and using this type of data for 2018 is exactly ZERO. Tim Ryan is certainly a step in the wrong direction but with Pelosi picking DCCC chairs, there's virtually no chance that the Dems will ever win back the House.





UPDATE II: Atlanta Suburbs Too!





Scott Bland from Politico tweeted Tuesday morning that his magazine's precinct analysis of the GA-06 district Tom Price will abandon if he becomes Secretary of Health and Human Services was startlingly close. It's a carefully gerrymandered red district, safe-safe for Republicans, encompassing wealthy suburbs north of Atlanta (Chamblee, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, up the Georgia 400 to Alpharetta, and Obama lost with just 37% in 2012. Nov. 8, Trump did win the district-- but just barely and by the tiniest handful of votes; Bland reports that the score was Trump 47.7%, Hillary 47.5%!
The Clear Creek Fire has seen massive progress in the last several days and is now near containment as rains are expected to soak the area authorities said Monday.

According to updates from Thompsons Eastern Montana Type II Incident Management Team (IMT), the fire on Clear Creek Road, which started at midnight on Nov. 20, is now 86 percent contained and estimated at 3,186 acres. There are presently 495 personnel from 27 states, Washington, D.C. and Native American tribes working on scene to contain the fire and prevent structural damage.

These numbers demonstrate a massive improvement over the last 24 hours, with the fire originally 40 percent contained and estimated at 3,155 acres on Sunday, as efforts to slow the blaze from spreading have been successful.

Fire crews successfully brought the fire down from the top of Poplar Ridge to N.C. 80 and into the Locust Cove to protect homes and several hunting camps. Along the western edge of the fire and the southeastern portion, dozer and hand crews improved containment lines and have begun work on erosion control and suppression repair. Engines and crews continue to patrol and

monitor the southern, eastern and northeastern perimeter of the fire near Clear Creek and Lake Tahoma Roads and extinguish any hot spots they find.

As of 8 p.m. Sunday, N.C. 80 and Clear Creek Roads, main sources of structural involvement with responding agencies, are now opened to travel.

According to the Foothills Weather Network (FWN), the air quality has improved to a Code Orange, signifying by the air quality index (AQI) that sensitive groups such as small children, the elderly and those with cardiovascular or lung conditions may be at risk. Though minimal, these are signs of progress from the initial Code Red and Code Purple  unhealthy and very unhealthy  conditions over Thanksgiving weekend.

To make matters much more promising, the FWN has predicted a 30 percent chance of precipitation over Monday night and at least a 90 percent chance of showers through Tuesday and Wednesday. The National Weather Service has advised that these heavy rain showers will not necessarily end the drought, but will aid in drought conditions.

Agencies investigating the cause of the fire have narrowed their speculation to being arson, with an incendiary device to ignite flames probable. Anyone with information about the fires or a possible suspect is asked to call the Sheriffs Office at 652-2235, the 911 communications center at 652-4000 or McDowell County Crimestoppers at 65-CRIME (652-7463). Now, you can also text your tips to Crimestoppers. Text MCDOWELLTIPS and your information to 274637 (CRIMES). With Crimestoppers, your identity remains anonymous, and you could receive a cash reward.

A shelter is available upon request at Nebo Crossing Church for residents affected by the smoke from the Clear Creek Fire. Transportation is available by calling 652-3241 or 652-3982.

For periodic updates on the fire, please go to http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5106/ or visit the McDowell 911/Emergency Management and Clear Creek Fire Facebook pages.

The burning ban in western N.C. is still under effect. The McDowell County Commissioners ban on starting fires within 100 feet from households is still enforced. Violations will result in a $100 fine and $180 in court costs.
Marc Andreessen famously proclaimed that software is eating the world, in the sense that software keeps offering more services that were once delivered by professionals.

HeartFlow, Inc., a startup out Redwood City, CA, has developed software that wants to eat the cardiology world, at least the invasive angiography part of it, and make invasive cardiologists eat their hearts out.

Jokes aside, HeartFlow offers a brilliant solution to interpreting data thats already available for many patients: standard cardiac CT scans. The companys proprietary HeartFlow FFRCT software offers fractional flow reserve analysis derived directly from coronary CT angiograms. (HeartFlow technology received the European CE Mark in 2011 and FDA clearance in 2014.)

So the big idea is that in patients who are stable and who have an intermediate risk of coronary artery disease (CAD), the companys software offers the same or better level of analysis in identifying areas of stenosis as invasive coronary investigations. Putting such patients through a CT instead of the cath lab should save money and be better for patients.

Medgadget had an opportunity to interview HeartFlows Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Campbell Rogers. Dr. Rogers was previously Chief Scientific Officer at Cordis and prior to that served as the Director of the Cardiac Cath and Experimental CV Labs at Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston.

Medgadget: Dr. Rogers, can you describe to our readers the practical steps of how a cardiology group can set up your service? What hardware and software is needed to get CT scans to you and receive back the analyses?

Dr. Campbell Rogers: The process of enabling a site to receive HeartFlow analyses is easier than many think. It involves setting up a virtual machine to allow the transfer of data. The beauty of this is that no hardware or capital expenditure is required. For a HeartFlow analysis to be completed, a good quality scan must be provided, but HeartFlow does not require anything different than what is recommended by society guidelines. HeartFlow has an IT team that assists in setting up the virtual machine as well as a team of CT specialists that provide support to cardiologists, radiologists, and technologists. Today we accept over 90% of scans submitted to us.

Medgadget: What are the clinical implications of FFRCT, specifically how FFFRCT-guided care changes the work up pathway in patients with CAD? What are the selection criteria?

Dr. Rogers: In current practice a number of non-invasive diagnostic tests are available to help diagnose patients with suspected coronary artery disease. The problem is that these tests are not very accurate. As a result patients often undergo multiple tests before either being referred for invasive angiography or sent home on medical therapy. Even with all these tests, the majority of patients referred for invasive angiography do not have obstructive disease. In other words, patients undergoing invasive procedure, in retrospect, likely did not need that procedure or its associated costs, complications, and patient inconvenience. At the same time there are patients who receive an incorrect negative diagnostic test results, are sent home falsely reassured, and then are at risk for a coronary event. HeartFlow improves the diagnosis of patients with suspected disease, ensures the right patients are referred for invasive management, improving patient care and reducing costs.

As for the selection criteria, we encourage physicians to send patients who have received a CT where the functional importance of disease is indeterminate. What we see is that at most sites physicians typically send patients with 30-90% stenosis by CT.

Medgadget: The results from the prospective longitudinal PLATFORM study that looked at 1-year outcomes of FFRCT-guided care in patients with suspected CAD have just been releases in JACC (Vol. 68, No. 5, 2016 Aug 2, 2016:435) The results seem to be very encouraging. Can you tell us more about the results and their implications?

Dr. Rogers: The PLATFORM trial is a prospective clinical utility study. It considered patients with suspected disease who had been referred for invasive angiography. The use of a HeartFlow-guided strategy resulted in a 61 percent reduction in invasive coronary angiograms. 117 angiograms were cancelled and after one year none of these patients, where the invasive procedure had been cancelled, had suffered an adverse clinical event. Not surprisingly, the overall cost of care decreased immediately and significantly. Initial costs decreased by 33% and the savings increased over one-year follow-up.

Medgadget: It seems to us that clinicians are generally wary of proprietary software solutions. What we mean is that without knowing how the software interprets the data, clinicians are not fully comfortable putting their trust into results delivered by a computer. How do you convince clinicians that your technology is the best there is in interpreting the complexity of hemodynamic CT data?

Dr. Rogers: HeartFlow requires the application of complex yet well-established governing principles of computational fluid dynamics. HeartFlow does not intend to keep these processes a secret, but for a HeartFlow analysis to be accurate, processes must be standardized and these computational principles must be applied appropriately. The underpinnings of this technology were developed first at Stanford and then refined over the past several years. Before receiving FDA clearance HeartFlow completed three validation studies using three sequentially improved versions of the software. These studies demonstrated the accuracy of HeartFlows technology. Today more than 7000 patients have received a HeartFlow analysis. As HeartFlow continues to receive data and gain experience, the process and technology continue to be refined, providing an ever-improving solution for patients with suspected disease.

Medgadget: Is the company happy with the rate of adoption of its services in the US? What are the factors and bottlenecks that prevent wider adoption of your service in the US?

Dr. Rogers: After several years of development, these are exciting times for HeartFlow. Now clinically approved in the US, Canada, Japan, and Europe, we see growing adoption of HeartFlows technology. Just over the past six months several sites in the US have begun to publish their real world experience. Physicians are reporting inspiring improvements in patient care and significant reductions in cost.

At the moment, a significant challenge for HeartFlows expansion is limited reimbursement. Very recently a handful of medical payers, including Wellmark, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska, and Priority Health have provided access for HeartFlow analysis to their beneficiaries. Growing payer support will be a key component in making this service available to those in need. It is critical that we work together with other stakeholders including physicians, patients, and professional societies to make this possible.

Medgadget: We understand that your software received favorable draft guidance from the UKs National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. How is the companys progress in Europe? What are the challenges?

Dr. Rogers: We are impressed by the thorough work that NICE has done in reviewing HeartFlows technology. NICE has now completed their assessment of HeartFlow from clinical and economic perspectives. While the final guidance has not yet been released, we have been impressed by NICEs rigor and their leadership in the UK market. We anticipate that the NICE review of HeartFlows technology will be complete and publicly available in early 2017. We also have significant uptake on the continent, especially in Scandinavia.

Link: HeartFlow
Gastrointestinal disorders are the cause of significant morbidity in the United States, resulting in over $50B in healthcare expenditures by some estimates. Diagnosis of these disorders relies on largely anatomic evaluation with radiographic imaging and endoscopy. These tests poorly assess functional pathology. G-Tech Medical, a company based at the Fogarty Institute for Innovation and headed by Steve Axelrod, PhD, promises to deliver GutCheck, a non-invasive diagnostic patch that evaluates functional characteristics of the gastrointestinal system by measuring electrical activity.

The technology was first tested in wired form but now leverages Bluetooth wireless technology to transmit data via a smartphone to the companys cloud infrastructure for analysis and eventual assessment by a clinician. The use of wireless infrastructure allows patients to comfortably wear the patches at home or in the clinic.

G-Tech Medical has tested the technology and analytics in many clinical trials, including in patients diagnosed with Parkinsons Disease to evaluate gastrointestinal function, irritable bowel syndrome, and in the post-operative setting for detection of ileus (transient decreased gastrointestinal function) with encouraging results.

G-Tech aims to focus first on post-operative in-hospital monitoring with plans to launch into a clinic-based diagnostic for use by clinicians specializing in gastroenterology.

Link: G-Tech Medicals homepage
After Donald Trump won the elections in the US, Twitter was abuzz with the picture of potential UN Security Council country leaders that included Theresa May, Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping and Marine Le Pen. So now all eyes are on France and its upcoming presidential elections. The possibility of Frexit in case of Le Pens win is alarming enough, but Russia is also on the agenda. Russian-French relations have been strained since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis, but have got even worse after President Hollande accused Russia of war crimes in Syria that purportedly prompted Vladimir Putin to cancel his trip to France. While in American elections Russia had a clear favorite, and did not really have a plan B for Hillary Clintons win, French elections seem to be much more comforting.

In the recently finished primaries on the right, the losing candidate Alain Juppe criticised the winner Francois Fillon for leaning too close to Russia. Fillon did defend Russias actions on a number of occasions and even wished for a Putin-Trump alliance. Putin admitted himself that he cultivated a good relationship with Fillon in 2008-2012, probably because they both belong to the J. Mearsheimers I dont give a damn about small countries sovereignty school of thought. On top of that, Fillon fits well with the conservative turn of the Russian government, being a vocal supporter of la Manif Pour Tous (anti-gay marriage movement in France), whose traditional family poster has also been adopted by Russian anti-gay activists.

Marine Le Pen managed to shift Front National further to mainstream by purging some of her fathers most racist friends and allies and settling on a more conventional anti-migrant xenophobia. After all, Nicolas Sarkozys government expelled Roma migrants and closed borders way before the refugee crisis. Ms. Le Pen has been a welcome guest in Moscow and received a large loan from a Russia-affiliated bank for her party. Eurosceptic, pro-Trump and anti-NATO, Le Pen would be a perfect partner for Putin and the worst nightmare for the EU. At the same time, Sputnik News, a pro-Russian propaganda outlet, puts Fillon and not Le Pen into their IR dream menage a trois with Putin and Trump. [dirty joke edited]

The French left does not bode as well for Russia as the right. French Prime Minster and socialist contender Manuel Valls supports President Hollandes tough line on Russia in Syrian matters, but indicated that the sanctions against Russia might be lifted if there is peace in Ukraine. Another contender for the presidential post from the left, Emmanuel Macron, a politician from the left who does not support Francois Hollandes stance on Russias role in the Ukraine crisis might also be a good bet for Moscow. He visited Russia and voiced support for the end of anti-Russian sanctions. Nonetheless, economic cooperation between Russia and France continues despite the sanctions as evidenced by about a thousand alpine French goats who have just arrived in the Urals to jumpstart Russian production of goat cheese.

It seems Russia is likely to profit from the results of the presidential elections in France. The contenders support a warming up in the relations with Russia, albeit to a different degree. Even if Manuel Valls wins the elections, EUs united front for anti-Russia sanctions may be significantly weakened. Crimea might even be recognized as Russian despite the recent ICC statement. In any case, bad news for Ukraine.
by Richard Whitman , Columnist, November 27, 2016

Cheil Worldwide has partnered with the Advertising Club of New York's International ANDY Awards on an internship program to support two

winners from the shows Student Competition. The winners, Elena Hernandez and Rodrigo Dominguez, snagged the RESET award  the ANDYs professional category for innovation.



The duo's idea, Stop-It, is an ingenious app designed to help anyone who finds themselves in a domestic violence situation. Hernandez and Dominguez are students at the Miami Ad School in Madrid. Following their ANDY win, the pair were hired as interns by Breno Cotta, ECD, Cheil Madrid, who was enamored with the work and will collaborate with them in an effort to make the idea a reality. The pair began working at the agency November 3.



The internship program was the idea of Malcolm Poynton, Global Chief Creative Officer, Cheil Worldwide, who served as a judge at the ANDY Final Judging Session in Seville back in February.



Of Hernandez and Dominguez, Poynton said Without knowing where the Stop-It team came from, I knew that Cheil could help them realize their idea and the ANDYs agreed to work together to find a way to establish this internship. This is a great example of the ANDYs commitment to shaping the future of our business with the brightest talent of the next generation.



For its part, Ad Club New York President and CEO Gina Grillo added, The ANDYs provide a $10,000 scholarship each year to promising students, but this takes that investment a step further. I hope this inspires other jurors and agencies to do the same in the years ahead.

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by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, November 28, 2016

Rhode Island and Delaware had the most searches containing the keywords "near me" of any state in the U.S. during the U.S. holiday Black Friday weekend, according to data from Google released Monday.

Online searches helped in-store traffic jump nearly two-thirds in the U.S. on Black Friday, per Google data that attempted to draw a correlation between online searches and in-store visits. The AdWords Store Visits metrics aggregates anonymized data from Android users that have "Location History" activated on their device.

Bing also began showing real-time holiday hours in search results. The Bing holiday hours feature launched on desktop and mobile in time for the holidays. The extra information aims to help consumers make the connection between what they search for online and travel into the stores to purchase.



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Google reports that store foot traffic jumped 65% on Black Friday compared with an average weekend day in November. Clothing stores and toy stores saw more than double the foot traffic on Black Friday compared with an average weekend day in November, per Google.

The data also suggests that consumers spent more time in stores. Consumers typically spend between 35 minutes and 1.5 hours on Black Friday in electronics stores, compared to 25 minutes on an average day in November. Shopping malls showed a similar increase in visit duration compared to the average day in November.

While Black Friday had the highest mobile shopping searches on google.com of any day during the weekend, Thanksgiving Day came in a close second -- peaking at 8 p.m., presumably after visitors had left and families were winding down for the night after a full day of activities.

Consumers also took to desktops, increasing online sales. comScore also reported that consumers spent $24.52 billion online in the U.S. from desktops -- up 12% compared with 2015 -- during the first 25 days of the November to December 2016 holiday season.

Thanksgiving Day saw a 17% gain to $1.29 billion in spending. Black Friday 2016 had an even stronger spending day, with $1.97 billion in desktop online sales, just under the $2 billion milestone and up 19% from Black Friday 2015.

comScore data shows that households earning more than $100,000 in annual income accounted for 42% buyers and 45% of desktop spending on Black Friday.
Yahoo, Monday, November 28, 2016 3:48 AM

Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) is investigating the data breach that left 500 million Yahoo accounts exposed to hackers. The agency is currently looking information from Yahoo about claims that it helped the U.S. government scan users' emails.

Read the whole story at Yahoo 
by Philip Rosenstein , Staff Writer, November 28, 2016

What will the Trump Organization look like and how will it act during a Trump presidency?

To Julian Borger of The Guardian, Trump comes to the presidency in the spirit of a tycoon making a new acquisition, overseeing the merger of Trump Inc and America Inc.

This approach should be cause for alarm. The interests of the Trump Organization are in no way aligned with that of the American people.

It is hoped that Trump will not base his political decisions on what is best for his private wealth. The fear: If a small concession here or there creates a favorable outlook for a Trump real-estate development, it is not a stretch to assume Trump the businessman will triumph. Or, a foreign government may hire the Trump Organization as a "consultant" to curry favor with the Chief Exec.

Weve seen evidence of this potential push and pull between Trump the president and Trump the businessman during the nascent transition period.

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His daughter Ivanka, who leads the Trump Organizations development and acquisitions arm, was present when the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met with the president-elect. Further, reports emerged that in a phone call with Argentine president Mauricio Marci, Trump brought up the development of Trump Tower in Buenos Aires.

Other questionable actions by the president-elect, ranging from subtle calls for foreign delegations to patronize his hotels to taking time out of his day for nonpolitical related photo ops, have alarmed the public.

According to various legal scholars and former White House lawyers, Donald Trumps international business assets and relationships do pose a serious dilemma for the incoming president.

Even a former George W. Bush chief ethics counsel, Richard Painter, explains that Trump will have to provide assurance to the Electoral College that hes not himself going to be getting money from foreign governments that would violate the emoluments clause.

In other words, he cannot be paid off or incentivized by members of other governments.

Unfortunately, this already seems to be happening.

Trump, who one assumes has people advising him about rules, doesnt seem to be conversant on the potential for conflict. As far as the potential conflict of interests, the law is totally on my side, meaning, the president cant have a conflict of interest, proclaimed Trump.

The fallout from such smug indifference to tradition and ethics could be considerable. Blind trusts are created for a reason -- to ensure that a president's dealings are done in good faith. That the people's business, not his personal gain, remains paramount.

Ironically, since the government is a nonprofit entity, a major rallying point for candidate Trump was his business success. Trumps win is also a win for his brand, as well as a rejection of conventional politicians.

One thing is for certain: The [Trump] brand is certainly a hotter brand than it was before, as Trump told The New York Times last Wednesday.
There is insufficient evidence to suggest breast cancer screening should be stopped at a specific age. This is the conclusion of the largest study to date of mammography outcomes in the United States.

Share on Pinterest Researchers say there is no evidence that women should stop having mammograms after a certain age.

Study co-author Dr. Cindy Lee, assistant professor in residence at the University of California-San Francisco, and team recently presented their findings at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) annual meeting, held in Chicago, IL.

After skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among American women.

According to the American Cancer Society, around 246,660 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. this year, and more than 40,000 women will die from the disease.

Despite these grim statistics, breast cancer death rates have been falling in the U.S. since the late 1980s  a trend that has been partly attributed to earlier detection as a result of screening.

Mammography is considered the gold standard of breast cancer screening. The technique involves the use of X-rays to identify early signs of breast cancer, such as calcifications or tumors in breast tissue.

Guidelines issued by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in 2009 recommend that women aged 40-49 at average risk of breast cancer should make an individual, informed decision as to whether they undergo mammography, while women aged 50-74 should undergo mammography every 2 years.

For women aged 75 and older, however, the USPSTF state that there is insufficient evidence to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening mammography.
Partners gathered in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to assess progress in the malaria fight across the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). More than 55 representatives from ministries of health, WHO, funding agencies and other organizations shared updates on technical approaches, achievements and lessons learned.

According to a new report from WHO, there has been a major decline in cases and deaths across the GMS over the last 3 years. The six GMS countries cut their malaria case incidence by an estimated 54% between 2012 and 2015. Malaria death rates fell by 84% over the same period.

"Progress in the GMS was made possible through greater access to effective malaria control tools, particularly artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs), rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) and long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs) as well as improved access to these services by vulnerable populations across the region," said Professor H.E. Eng Huot, the Cambodian Secretary of State, who opened the meeting on 21 November.

But the spread of antimalarial drug resistance threatens to undermine these gains. To date, resistance of malaria parasites to artemisinin - the core compound of the best available antimalarial medicines - has been detected in five countries of the GMS. In some areas, resistance to artemisinin and its partner drugs has reached alarming levels.

Containing drug resistance

In 2013, WHO launched the Emergency response to artemisinin resistance (ERAR) in the Greater Mekong Subregion, a high-level plan of attack to contain the spread of drug-resistant parasites and to provide life-saving tools for all people at risk of malaria. That same year, WHO established a regional hub in Cambodia to coordinate multi-partner action.

The ERAR initiative brought fresh energy and resources to the GMS, generating new research, facilitating coordination and technical support and accelerating progress. But even as this work was under way, additional pockets of artemisinin resistance emerged independently in new geographic areas of the subregion. In parallel, there were reports of increased resistance to ACT partner drugs in some settings.

In view of the rapidly changing malaria landscape, WHO's Malaria Policy and Advisory Committee (MPAC), a group of leading malaria experts, agreed in 2014 that there was only one way forward: eliminating the disease altogether from the subregion.

GMS elimination strategy

In May 2015, GMS Ministers of Health endorsed the Strategy for malaria elimination in the Greater Mekong Subregion (2015-2030). Urging immediate action, this strategy calls for the elimination of P. falciparum malaria by 2025 and all species of human malaria by 2030.

Speaking at the forum in Cambodia, Dr Pedro Alonso, Director of the WHO Global Malaria Programme, reminded participants that there is a limited window of opportunity in which to act, and time is of the essence. "Eliminating malaria in the GMS will not be accomplished with a 'business as usual' approach. We need to quickly accelerate our efforts to achieve this ambitious goal, moving forward with strong determination and a deep sense of conviction."

With technical support from WHO and partners, all GMS countries have developed malaria elimination action plans. WHO will provide ongoing support for country elimination efforts through the Mekong Malaria Elimination (MME) project - a new initiative that replaces the former ERAR hub.

Knowledge sharing

Best practices shared at this week's meeting from the WHO European region and Sri Lanka showed that elimination can be achieved through the effective use of existing tools. Elimination success in these areas was attributed, in part, to the targeted application of effective control tools such as LLINs; the tailoring of interventions to local contexts and most at-risk populations; and strengthened health and surveillance systems - all outlined at the meeting as priority action areas for GMS countries.

In April 2016, WHO declared that all 53 countries of the European Region had reported at least 1 year of zero locally-acquired cases of malaria. Sri Lanka received the official WHO certification of malaria elimination in September 2016 after reporting more than 3 years of zero indigenous cases of the disease.

Partners highlighted the critical importance of country leadership as well as the need for strengthened collaboration across borders to accelerate progress and avoid duplication of efforts. WHO reiterated its commitment to providing coordination and technical support for this ongoing work.
Cancer cells' ability to invade and spread is what makes them deadly. In a recent study published in the journal Current Biology, Texas A&M College of Medicine researchers demonstrate that mitochondria, the so-called powerhouses of the cell, play a crucial role in a tumor's ability to grow. With a better understanding of how this process is regulated, new targets for cancer treatments could be identified.

Mitochondria, the organelles inside each cell that generate energy, play a crucial role in a tumor's ability to generate the energy needed to invade healthy tissue. "Mitochondria exhibit a remarkable ability to change their shape and spatial distribution within a cell," said Raquel Sitcheran, PhD, assistant professor at the Texas College of Medicine and corresponding author of the study. "We uncovered a surprising new regulator of mitochondrial dynamics that is important for promoting cancer cell invasion."

This regulator, which is called NIK, is a protein that regulates immune cell function and inflammation. Their new finding is that NIK is also present on mitochondria in brain, pancreatic and breast cancer cells. When the research team removed all NIK expression using CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, the cancer cells were no longer able to invade. On the other hand, NIK is upregulated when a cell becomes cancerous, and the more invasive tumors had higher activation of the NIK pathway.

In cancer cells, mitochondria typically undergo fission and are small in size, allowing them to move rapidly to areas of the cell with high energy demands - usually the branches of a cell that are invading surrounding tissue. Without NIK, the mitochondria become fused and are impaired in their ability to move efficiently to areas of the cell that initiate and drive the process of invasion.

"There's a link between NIK, mitochondrial function and cancer cell invasion," Sitcheran said. "It gives us a new angle in thinking about the role of mitochondria in cancer progression."

To understand how this works, think of the mitochondria - under normal circumstances, when they have plenty of NIK - as being able to morph into different shapes, from a slow, hulking bus to a nimble race car. "Mitochondria are very dynamic and can split, fuse and move in the cell," Sitcheran said. "When they're smaller, they can get where they need to go much more easily."

Sitcheran's work, led by doctoral student Jiung Jung and Sowndharya Ravi, was supported by grants from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas and the National Institutes of Health.

The research team's next steps involve learning more about exactly what NIK targets in the mitochondria and how NIK regulates cell migration during development.

"We've identified a new branch of the NIK signaling pathway, distinct from the known players," Sitcheran said. "We still have to understand each of the new players a bit better, but our findings highlight NIK's potential as a therapeutic target in a wide variety of deadly cancers."


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In 2009, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) released new guidelines stating the lack of evidence in assessing the benefits and harms of screening mammography in women aged 75 years or older.Researchers conducted a nation-wide study in 2015, on screening mammography outcomes and found that there is no clear cut-off age to stop breast cancer screening.The findings will be presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).This research supports guidelines to encourage screening decisions based on individual patients and their health status."All prior randomized, controlled trials excluded women older than 75, limiting available data to small observational studies," said Cindy S. Lee, M.D., assistant professor in residence at the University of California, San Francisco. "There has been a lot of controversy, debate and conversation regarding the different breast cancer screening guidelines, even among major national organizations, over the past few years."Dr.Lee and her team of researchers used data from the National Mammography Database.Over 5.6 million screening mammograms performed over a 7-year period between January 2008 and December 2014 in 150 facilities across 31 states in the U.S, were analyzed for the study.The research team looked at patient demographics, screening mammography results and biopsy results.Data from over 2.5 million women over age 40 were sorted into patient groups by age in 5-year intervals (40-44, 45-49, etc.).To evaluate the performance of screening mammography for each age group, four standard performance metrics were calculated:Recall rate is the percentage of patients called back for follow-up testing after a screening exam.Positive predictive value reflects the percentage of cancers detected during examination, for which biopsy was recommended or performed.Results showed a mean cancer detection rate of 3.74 per 1,000 patients, recall rate of 10%, PPV2 of 20% and PPV3 of 29%.The performance metrics showed a gradual upward trend for cancer detection rate, PPV2 and PPV3, but a downward trend in recall rate, with an increasing age from 40 to 90 years old."We know that the risk of breast cancer increases with age," Dr. Lee said. "With the uncertainty and controversy about what age to stop breast cancer screening, we want to address this gap in knowledge using a large national database.""The continuing increase of cancer detection rate and positive predictive values in women between the ages of 75 and 90 does not provide evidence for age-based mammography cessation," Dr. Lee said.The findings support the argument that the decision whether or not to stop screening should be based on an individual's personal health history and preferences.Source: Medindia
Russia This Week is a weekly review by the MEMRI Russian Media Studies Project, covering the latest Russia-related news and analysis from media in Russia, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe.

This issue of RTW features eulogies for veteran ally Fidel Castro, a blistering response to the EU's criticism of Russian media outlets and the withdrawal from the ICC.

Cartoon Of The Week



Twitter.com/sharzhipero, November 25, 2016.

After the end of his term as U.S. President, Barack Obama becomes a cab driver.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump directs him: "To the White House, please"

Zakharova Dixit

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova is one of the most-quoted Russian officials. She is known for using colorful language when describing Russian foreign policy in her weekly press briefings. The following are Zakharova's quotes of the week:



Recently, the Russian Cigar Union dedicated to Zakharova a special edition box of cigars with each cigar adorned with her picture. (Instagram.com/mzakharovamid)

On November 12, NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg penned an article in the British daily, The Guardian, titled "Now is not the time for the US to abandon NATO - nor should its European allies go" In the article, Stoltenberg wrote: "In the last few years we have seen a dramatic deterioration of our security, with a more assertive Russia and turmoil across north Africa and the Middle East. NATO allies have responded together. We have implemented the biggest reinforcement of our collective defense since the cold war. And the United States has significantly strengthened its commitment to European security, deploying a new armored brigade to Eastern Europe and delivering equipment and supplies to support future reinforcements if needed. This is deterrence, not aggression. We do not seek to provoke a conflict, but to prevent a conflict. NATO battalions numbering thousands of troops cannot be compared with Russian divisions numbering tens of thousands just across the border. Our response is defensive and proportionate. But it sends a clear and unmistakable message: an attack against one will be met by a response from all."

(Theguardian.com, November 12)

Commenting on Stoltenberg's article, Zakharova wrote in her official Facebook account: "Hereby is a short summary of (Stoltenberg's) publication translated to realpolitik language: 'Who's going to fund us and guide us? Who is going to pay for all that obscurantism we bear by Washington's will? We have forgotten how to think and act independently in recent years. We did everything for the American establishment including deploying troops and arms in our territories during peaceful times. So how can we look our own people in the eye? Our people will not forgive us this especially after the sanctions wars that ruined entire branches of our economies. And you will regret if we start living on our own independently. We turned a blind eye to whatever US has done in Afghanistan. We turned a blind eye that the drug (precursor) production there has grown manfold - and that these drugs are flowing to us in Europe. We keep silent about thousands of Alliance soldiers who became victims of the US adventure in Iraq. [We did so] not because we are ashamed but because you paid us off. And pay attention - the money was good enough. We are even prepared for a smaller amount if it suits you. We have also agreed to severe our relations with Russia by blaming her with all the sins for the sake of Washington's ruling administration, which placed a wager on it in order to hold on to the White House. Please understand us: we do not want to remove your blindfold because otherwise we'll need to recognize that we are detached from reality and still further that we are completely naked. Yours, hopefully forever, NATO's secretary general."

(Facebook.com/maria.zakharova.167, November 13)

Quotes Of The Week

During the Russian Geographical Society's award ceremonies on November 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin asked two young contestants who were 5 and 9-years old respectively (Timofei Tsoi and Miroslav Askirko), where do Russia's borders end. The answer was that Russian borders are limited by the Bering straits, which defined the limits of the Russian and US territories. Putin's remark was: "Russia's borders do not end anywhere" Putin later added: "That was a joke."

(Echo.msk.ru, November 24; Pravdareport.com, November 25)



(Echo.msk.ru, November 24)

On November 12, during his trip to the Avtodizel Motor Plant (an open joint-stock company and subsidiary of GAZ Group that produces engines), in Yaroslavl, Putin commented on the recent Russian drills: "Our armed forces are not out to threaten anyone. I want to stress this point once more so that everyone hears it, not only those present here today. Our army is not a threat, but it is combat-capable and has become modern and highly effective. We have dramatically increased the number of exercises and training maneuvers, including the spot inspections that sometimes cause our partners some concern. We do not get alarmed when they [the West] hold military exercises, but they immediately start getting nervous when we do so. They must be the nervous types. Let me say again that we are not a threat to anyone and have no intention of threatening anyone. Why should we want to? We have the biggest country in the world, as I already said, and everyone knows this. Our task is to ensure our own country and people's reliable security. Our armed forces have what they need to do this and we will continue to develop them."

(Kremlin.ru, November 12)

Tweet Of The Week:

Senator Alexey Pushkov (@Alexey_Pushkov) wrote on his Twitter account: "State Department: Russia has no reasons to consider NATO as a threat. Sure! This is a peace seeking alliance, which bombed Belgrade, Iraq and Libya purely for the sake of peace" The tweet refers to US State Department spokesman John Kirby's statement that the US did not see any reasons for Russia to consider NATO a threat.

(Twitter.com/Alexey_Pushkov, November 22)

In another tweet, Pushkov wrote: "NATO's secretary general said that Russia should take the alliance's calmly. It follows that he should take the Iskanders calmly. Why is he so nervous?"



(Twitter.com/Alexey_Pushkov, November 24)

Lavrov Mania

Russian designer Kirill Karavayev became rich at the age of 23 by creating pro-government T-shirts featuring Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.



(Rbth.com, October 26)

In The News:

EU Resolution On Russian 'Propaganda Warfare'

The EU approved a resolution against Russian "propaganda warfare". The resolution stated: "The Russian Government is employing a wide range of tools and instruments, such as think tanks and special foundations (e.g. Russkiy Mir), special authorities (Rossotrudnichestvo), multilingual TV stations (e.g. RT), pseudo news agencies and multimedia services (e.g. Sputnik), cross-border social and religious groups, as the regime wants to present itself as the only defender of traditional Christian values, social media and internet trolls to challenge democratic values, divide Europe, gather domestic support and create the perception of failed states in the EU's eastern neighborhood; stresses that Russia invests relevant financial resources in its disinformation and propaganda instruments engaged either directly by the state or through Kremlin-controlled companies and organizations; underlines that, on the one hand, the Kremlin is funding political parties and other organizations within the EU with the intent of undermining political cohesion, and that, on the other hand, Kremlin propaganda directly targets specific journalists, politicians and individuals in the EU."

(Europarl.europa.eu)

During media questions following the APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting, Putin was asked:

Question: "Mr. President, the European parliament has passed a resolution against Russian media outlets, naming RT and Sputnik as dangerous. What is your view on this?"

Putin answered: "What can I say? These attempts continue, they keep trying to teach us democracy. We keep hearing from our teachers that the worst way to deal with your opponents is to ban something. They tell us that this goes against the norms and principles of democracy. The best road is always that of open discussion and using this discussion to present vivid and convincing arguments in defense of your point of view.

If what you say is true and they have passed this resolution, this suggests that we are witnessing a clear degradation (in the political sense) of the concept of democracy in Western society, in this case, at the level of the European parliament."

(Kremlin.ru, November 21)

Margarita Simonyan, editor in chief of Sputnik and RT, said:

"How come they [the EU] don't understand that small steps like these, stemming from the lack of desire to listen to another opinion, lead the countries to slide down the slippery slope of becoming blind dictatorships, which start unnecessary media wars. Then they look back at themselves with disappointment and ask themselves 'how could we?'. There were several states in Europe which have already been through this. ..It's easy and very pleasant to talk about freedom of speech unless there is different opinion, which has not been heard previously. As soon as our information agency and television channel loudly voice this different kind of opinion - they (Europe) immediately got frightened and decided that freedom of speech is an excessive luxury for such, apparently, vulnerable countries as the European ones and for such a vulnerable organization as the EU."

(Ria.ru, November 23)

During her weekly press briefing, Zakharova commented on the EU resolution: "We must state with regret that the EU never pauses in its efforts to demonize Russia. In certain cases, its anti-Russian paranoia goes through the roof. We can't call this document anything other than an exercise in paranoia. We can provide all kinds of opinions, we can analyze it, but all that we'll come to as a result of this analysis will be exactly in this vein. The European Parliament has accepted yet another anti-Russian 'masterpiece': the resolution on EU Strategic Communication to Counter anti-EU Propaganda by Third Parties. Its title itself speaks volumes about the fact that the European Union is not in touch with the rest of the world and is in opposition to all others. This is an odd ideology.

"The document abounds in all sorts of phobias, concoctions and myths. On the other hand, this document is a graphic reflection of the ideology that the EU has cultivated vis-a-vis Russia in recent time. I would like to stress that the resolution equates the Kremlin's alleged 'propaganda war' against the West with the propaganda methods practiced by the Islamic State, a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation. It's just a clinical case.

"We have repeatedly stated - and I would like to reiterate it today - that Russia does not engage in anti-EU propaganda. If the EU has certain internal problems, their causes should be sought inside the EU, not in propaganda by third parties. This is the road back to a realistic perception of reality, to the [EU's] own self. Russia is interested in a united, stable and predictable EU, a partner with which we would like to promote equitable and mutually beneficial cooperation. We hope that the EU will finally realize that Russia is not an enemy to Europe and does not wish it ill.

"We hope that this resolution will not be followed by practical decisions to restrict the Russian media. And we are hoping with good reason, because the approval of this document (regrettably, it has the status of a document) has raised a huge wave of resentment within the EU itself. Many public figures said directly about this resolution that it was a disgrace for European countries to approve such documents in the 21st century. If, however, this document is implemented in practice, with the EU countries imposing restrictions on the Russian media, we will certainly retaliate.

"I would like to finish this highly unpleasant part of today's briefing by saying the following. If Europe takes this path, choosing it as its main road, namely, if it proclaims a media ban as its priority, then, to be honest, the time is not far off when the EU countries install radio relay stations on their borders with other countries, which will broadcast propaganda of 'Western values' (please note this because we will return to this somewhat later. I hope this will not happen). Or perhaps they will even go as far as start burning books which someone in the EU will think are at variance with the dominant ideology. Europe has been through all this already. Hasn't it drawn any lessons?"

(Mid.ru, November 24)

The Chairman of the Committee on International Affairs of the Russian Federation's State Duma, Leonid Slutsky, said: "In its Russo-phobic hysteria, the European Parliament is placing the blame on someone else substituting the term 'good' for the term 'evil.' This is pretty much the agony of Western politicians who survive only due to their fierce antagonism towards Russia."

(Ria.ru, November 23)

The Chairman of Russia's Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs, Senator Konstantin Kosachev, stated: "The fact that these resolutions are popping up reflects the Western system's serious crisis - [a crisis] that not only affects institutions but also values. If such phenomena as Brexit, or Trump's victory, or the rise in the popularity of right wing parties, or anti-immigration sentiments in Europe, as well as the fall of popular confidence in politicians and the media, must be explained by a strictly 'Stalinist approach' as a result of 'hostile enemy propaganda' - then the whole thing speaks for itself. The West unexpectedly clashes with its own unwillingness for authentic media pluralism - so 'the West' is trying to blacken the source of information itself. They essentially fight with opinions rather than facts."

(Ria.ru, November 23)

Senator Aleksey Pushkov stated: "The European Parliament's resolution reflects the panic amongst the majority of the EU MPs regarding the loss of the information monopoly, which the West enjoyed until recently. It clearly stipulates that in spite of all the talks regarding free speech and free flow of information, the majority of EU MPs pathologically fear information competition and are totally unprepared for it."

(Ria.ru, November 23)

Russia-Japan Crisis



Vitaly Podvitsky, Ria.ru, November 23.

Caption: "Hey, sensei, get back to reality".

On November 22, the Russian Defense Ministry deployed Bal and Bastion anti-missile systems on the Kuril islands of Iturup and Kunashir. Pravdareport.com reported: "Coastal missile complex Bastion is equipped with supersonic missiles P-800 Onyx. The system is able to destroy surface ships of different classes and types. One system may have up to 36 missiles to be able to protect more than 600 km of coastline. Armed with low-altitude subsonic anti-ship missiles X-35, the Bal missile system is able to destroy ground and surface targets of the enemy at a distance of about 130 km. The X-35 missile is capable of destroying ships with a displacement of 5,000 tons."

(Pravdareport.com, November 23)

Japan's Prime Minister Sindzo Abe said: "We have used diplomatic channels to say this does not go in line with this country's position and causes regret."

(Tass.com, November 14)

Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida will visit Russia on December 3 to hold talks with Lavrov in Moscow, whereas Putin is scheduled to visit Japan on December 15 and 16.

(The-japan-news.com, November 25)

Russia's Reactions To Castro's Death

Putin offered condolences following the death of the Cuban Leader Fidel Castro. Putin's telegram said: "Fidel Castro was a sincere and reliable friend of Russia. He made a huge input in establishment and development of the Russian-Cuban relations and close strategic partnership in all spheres."

(Tass.com, November 26)



Putin with Cuban leader Fidel Castro in Havana, on December 14, 2000. (Kremlin.ru)

The former President of the USSR Mikhail Gorbachev said of Castro: "He was an outstanding personality, unique... I had a very positive opinion about him. Very positive. I met him at congresses, and then I was in Cuba, and there we discussed common interests, we talked. We became very good friends and remained such... He took very close to heart what happened to perestroika. Well, I also took it even more to heart."

(Tass.com, November 26)

Leonid Slutsky, the head of the Duma's Foreign Relations committee, said: "[Fidel Castro] was a legend... he will eternally symbolize the fight against uni-polar world principles and the coercion of countries by foreign states to choose their path. After 50 years of struggle, despite blockade and hardships, Cuba proved victorious in its confrontation with the U.S. - it was done under Castro's leadership. The recently declared U.S. policy to restore relations with Cuba proves the absurdity and non-effectiveness of any sanctions and embargoes."

(Ria.ru, November 26)

Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Council of the Federation Committee on Foreign Affairs,said: "Regardless of how you perceive his personality, his scope without exaggeration was and he truly influenced the course of history."

(Ria.ru, November 26)

The Speaker of the Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, said: "He served as a guide for the entire world on the ideas of a welfare state - he was an invincible fighter for the independence of his own country, which under his leadership became a most influential member of international society."

(Ria.ru, November 26)

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev eulogized Castro in an official letter: "He devoted his whole life for serving his country. Cuba gained freedom and independence, built contemporary statehood and strengthened its authority in Latin America under his leadership."

(Ria.ru, November 26)

Gennady Zuganov, the Communist party (KPRF) leader, said: "I express my condolences to the Cuban people and the whole mankind. The man who passed away should not only be worshiped, but people should be proud of him and follow his path in their lives. I'm sure that our country remembers its friends and will do whatever possible to commemorate his legacy."

(Ria.ru, November 26)

Russia Withdraws From The ICC

On November 16, Russia withdrew from the International Criminal Court (ICC), as Putin signed the Decree "On the intention not to become a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court". The decision came, after the ICC released a decision stating that an international armed conflict exists between Russia and Ukraine, and that Russia's presence in the Crimea is a military occupation.

The Russian Foreign Ministry stated: "Russia has been consistently advocating prosecuting those responsible for the most serious international crimes. Our country was at the origins of the Nuremberg and Tokyo tribunals, participated in the development of the basic documents on the fight against genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. These were the reasons why Russia voted for the adoption of the Rome Statute and signed it on September 13, 2000. The ICC as the first permanent body of international criminal justice inspired high hopes of the international community in the fight against impunity in the context of common efforts to maintain international peace and security, to settle ongoing conflicts and to prevent new tensions.

Unfortunately the Court failed to meet the expectations to become a truly independent, authoritative international tribunal. The work of the Court is characterized in a principled way as ineffective and one-sided in different forums, including the United Nations General Assembly and the Security Council. It is worth noting that during the 14 years of the Court's work it passed only four sentences having spent over a billion dollars.

In this regard the demarche of the African Union which has decided to develop measures on a coordinated withdrawal of African States from the Rome Statute is understandable. Some of these States are already conducting such procedures.

The Russian Federation cannot be indifferent to the Court's attitude vis-a-vis the situation of August 2008. The Saakashvili regime's attack on peaceful Tshinval, the assassination of the Russian peacekeepers resulted in the Court's accusations against South-Ossetian militia and Russian soldiers. Eventual investigation of actions and orders of Georgian officials was left to the discretion of the Georgian justice and remains outside of the focus of the ICC Prosecutor's office attention. This development speaks for itself. We can hardly trust the ICC in such a situation."

(Mid.ru, November 16)

Senator Andrey Klishas, Chair of the Federation Council's Constitutional Law Committee: "The President's decision is consistent with the Russian Constitution and international law, since every single sovereign state independently decides which international treaties it is party to and the jurisdiction of which international organs it recognizes".

(Ria.ru, November 16)

Leonid Slutsky, chair of Duma's International Affairs Committee, said: "By equating the 2014 events in Crimea to an armed intervention the ICC crudely violated the norms embedded in the UN Charter regarding the right of peoples tp self-determination."

(Kommersant.ru, November 16)

New Round Of U.S. Sanctions

The U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed new sanctions on six individuals representing Crimea and Sevastopol in the Russian Duma. Commenting on the decision, Deputy FM Sergey Ryabkov said: "We will definitely respond... We regret that the administration, which will cease to exist in 60 days, is clinging to its own phantoms and demonstrates - aside the lack of common logic - the absence of a mere desire to try restoring the relations which were ruined by Washington... Our goal is to look for the future and seek a more positive agenda, after the authors of a failed policy ( towards our country) resign and will be replaced by people, who, we hope, will take a more responsible approach towards relations with Russia".

(Ria.ru, November 15)

New Electronic Warfare Defense System

Russia to develop new electronic warfare defense system which is designed to disrupt US and NATO military communications (High Frequency Global Communications System ). This EW system is supposed to be national strategic one, capable of incorporating all existing EW capabilities into a single chain.

(Ria.ru, November 14)

Putin's Meeting With UN Secretary-General-Designate Guterres

On November 24, Putin met with Secretary-General-designate of the United Nations Antonio Guterres at the Kremlin. Guterres told Putin: "I fully recognize decisive role of the Russian Federation not only in the UN but in all aspects of international relations. And I would say that an absolutely fundamental condition for me to be able to be useful to the international community is to be able to have a very constructive and positive dialogue and relationship with the Russian Federation."

(Kremlin.ru, November 24)



Putin with Guterres at the Kremlin (Kremlin.ru, November 24)

Russia In Syria

During an official visit to Belarus, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the Syrian crisis. Lavrov said: "As for the idea of organizing a meeting between opposition groups operating inside and outside Syria, I have heard about it. This issue is being seriously discussed both inside Syria, including by the National Coordination Committee, and outside the country, including by the Moscow and the Cairo groups. Even the members of the so-called High Negotiations Committee, which was formed in Riyadh, understand that this body's position and their refusal to take part in the political process as long as President Bashar al-Assad remains in power leads to an impasse. We support the idea of holding a meeting of this kind in Damascus. I think that the Syrian Government will agree to participate in this event. In fact, over the last six months the UN in the person of the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura has been seeking to undermine UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which calls for inclusive intra-Syrian talks without preconditions. Against this backdrop, patriotic opposition and the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic have no other option but to promote the intra-Syrian dialogue on their own."

(Mid.ru, November 22)

Russia-Turkey Relations

On December 1, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will go to Alanya, Turkey, for the fifth session of the Russian-Turkish Joint Strategic Planning Group (JSPG), which is part of the High-Level Cooperation Council led by the Russian and Turkish presidents.

(Mid.ru, November 24)

Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik said that Turkey is in talks with Russia to purchase of S-400 air defense systems. Isik said: "We are conducting talks with Russia over the S-400s. But we also go ahead with contacts with other countries on this issue. Russia's stance is positive."

(Tass.com, November 18)

Russia-Iran Relations

Commenting on the Hamadan base in Iran, chairman of the defense committee in the Federation Council, Senator Viktor Ozerov, said: "We don't have an urgent need to use the Iranian airbase [right now], following the agreement [with Syria on utilizing] Hmeymim airbase, but given the level of our cooperation (with Iran) we can't rule out that we will resume talks with Iran on that question."

(Ria.ru, November 14)

Senator Ozerov said that Iran's demand for Russian military hardware is estimated at around $10 billion, adding that formally sanctions against Iran have been lifted, enabling Putin to give the go-ahead for supplying S-300 air defense systems. Ozerov said: "The same UN Security Council resolution says that armor, artillery systems, planes and combat aircraft may be provided without UN Security Council permission up to October 2020... The package of contracts that have been discussed by now and Iran's demand are estimated at about $10 billion. It is not an amount to be provided over one year. It will take far more time."

(Tass.com, November 14)

After a meeting with the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Valentina Matviyenko, the Speaker of Russia's upper house, the Federation Council said that Rouhani "highly valued Russia's role in the preparation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)." She also stated that Rouhani "hopes Russia will continue to exert influence on the Western countries to have them implement their liabilities under this agreement in order to unfreeze other issues and lift remaining restrictions against Iran to give it a possibility to develop." (Tass.com, November 15)

Matviyenko said that visa requirements for Russians visiting Iran and Iranians visiting Russia may soon be dropped.

(Tass.com, November 14)

Strange But True

Putin met with American actor Steven Seagal at the Kremlin, presenting him with his new Russian passport and congratulated him on receiving Russian citizenship. Seagal promised that his relations with Putin will "never ever falter, never."

(Kremlin.ru, November 25)



(Kremlin.ru, November 25)
Introduction

A recent focus in the Palestinian press has been the power struggle between Palestinian Authority (PA) President and Fatah chairman Mahmoud 'Abbas and former Fatah Central Committee member Muhammad Dahlan, who was expelled from the movement in 2011 and is currently attempting to influence the Palestinian agenda and to empower his supporters in the face of 'Abbas's steps to exclude him from the Palestinian political scene.

Dahlan has been demonstrating his strength in a number of ways: in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip through conferences and protests organized by his supporters there, and also through efforts to strengthen ties between Egypt and the Gaza Strip; and in the Palestinian diaspora with conferences organized by his supporters in Lebanese refugee camps and in Europe. At the same time, 'Abbas is trying with all his might to completely exclude Dahlan and his supporters from Fatah, and to end the ongoing internal conflict in the movement with an institutional resolution to be approved at the Seventh Fatah Conference, which is set for November 29, 2016.

The escalation in the power struggle between 'Abbas and Dahlan is linked to the debate on the future of the Palestinian leadership, particularly the question of who 'Abbas's successor will be. This latter issue goes beyond the Palestinian discourse, in light of efforts by the Arab Quartet (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the UAE), and especially by Egypt, to influence the composition of the Palestinian leadership by including Dahlan in it and by grooming him to succeed 'Abbas as Fatah chairman and Palestinian president.[1] On October 6, 2016, the debate over 'Abbas's successor became more urgent after the 82-year-old 'Abbas was rushed to the hospital for a cardiac catheterization.

It is notable that in interviews, Dahlan has repeatedly stated that he is not seeking the Palestinian presidency and that he supports the candidacy of Fatah official Marwan Barghouti, who is serving five life sentences in an Israeli prison for attacks he orchestrated during the second Intifada.[2] However, Dahlan's political activity, as set out below, indicates that he does aspire to attain a very influential position in the Palestinian leadership, even if not necessarily that of president.

A notable manifestation of Dahlan's attempts to establish himself as part of the Palestinian leadership as the 'Abbas era comes to an end was the publication of an article critical of 'Abbas by former PA official Muhammad Rashid, a Dahlan associate who served as economic advisor to Yasser Arafat. The article, titled "'Abbas is a Political Corpse Awaiting Burial," stated that 'Abbas is wasting time as he weighs the reliability of those who aspire to be the next president. 'Abbas, he wrote, is attempting to stage-manage his exit on his own, without input from Fatah, or from the Palestinian people who will demand the right to elect their next leader in free elections. Subsequently, Mahmoud Abu Al-Hija, editor-in-chief of the PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, published a rebuttal to Rashid, accusing him of corruption, collaborating with Israel, and betrayal of the Palestinian cause.

This report will review the manifestations of the rivalry between the 'Abbas and Dahlan camps in recent weeks, and will provide excerpts of the pieces by Rashid and Al-Hija as examples of the discourse of the two rival camps.

With Arab Quartet Support, Dahlan Prepares The Ground For His Return To Senior Palestinian Leadership

As stated, in recent weeks, Dahlan has made vigorous efforts to stand out in the Palestinian arena as a political figure counterbalancing 'Abbas, as manifested by widespread media activity, including giving interviews to four different media outlets in two weeks. He has also made statements on the political process and on the situation of Fatah and of Palestinian society.[3]

The Arab Quartet countries, and especially Egypt, have clearly shown their support for Dahlan's activity and for his efforts to increase his impact on what is happening within Fatah. One reflection of this was the holding of two conferences, in October and November 2016, on the future of Fatah and the Palestinian issue at the Ain Al-Sokhna resort in Egypt. These conferences served as a platform for Dahlan supporters in the complete absence of Fatah members close to 'Abbas. The first, held October 16-17, was attended by 100-plus Palestinian and Egyptian politicians and businessmen, the vast majority of whom were close to Dahlan.[4] The conference concluded with a call for Palestinian unity and with an expression of support for Egyptian and Arab policy for it.[5] The second conference, held November 6-8, which purported to focus on economic issues but in fact was mainly political in nature, was also attended by many Dahlan supporters. The conferees called for opening the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip for the passage of people and goods[6] and for strengthening ties between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and even issued an open letter to 'Abbas of recommendations for ending the Palestinian schism.[7]

At the time the conferences were held, the Rafah Crossing was indeed opened intermittently, in an unusual measure, for the passage of students, permit holders and humanitarian cases.[8] During this period, the Egyptian media published many articles criticizing 'Abbas for his response to the measures of the Arab Quartet vis-a-vis the Palestinian issue.[9]

Although Dahlan was not present at either of the conferences, and refrained from stating publicly that he was directly involved in them, several weeks before they were held, reports indicated that he planned to hold a conference in Cairo, and Dahlan himself called to hold a conference for Palestinian dialogue.[10] In interviews held at the same time as the conferences he indicated that he was leveraging his connections with Egypt and other Arab countries in order to promote the Palestinian national enterprise and to support the residents of the Gaza Strip.[11]

Additionally, a conference marking the anniversary of Yasser Arafat's death and calling for Fatah unity was held in Brussels on November 22, and was attended by many pro-Dahlan Fatah members in Europe.[12] News websites close to Dahlan reported that the conference was under the auspices of "the Fatah movement" but had nevertheless been condemned by the movement's official representations in Europe, and that the hundreds of Fatah activists who attended the conference had stressed the need for unity and condemned 'Abbas's measures against Dahlan and his supporters.[13] Dahlan also told BBC Arabic in an interview that he intended to act to hold yet another national conference to settle the Palestinian disputes, and that Egypt would play a major role in it.[14]



Images from the October 16-17, 2016 "Egypt and the Palestinian Issue" conference in Ain Al-Sokhna (Karamapress.net, October 17, 2016)

The Palestinian conferences in Egypt and the concurrent easing of restrictions at the Rafah crossing highlight Dahlan and his supporters as key figures who wield influence with Egypt and who noticeably contribute to improving the economic situation in the Gaza Strip. Thus, these moves are a direct continuation of Egypt's policy as part of the Arab Quartet initiative to bring about a Palestinian reconciliation that includes Dahlan's return to Fatah and PA leadership.[15]

It is therefore unsurprising that Fatah justified its opposition to the Egyptian conferences in the same way it justified its opposition to the Arab Quartet's initiative to promote Fatah reconciliation. Fatah Spokesman Osama Al-Qawasmi said that the organizers of the conferences should have coordinated any debate on internal Fatah issues with the movement's official and legitimate leadership, adding that Fatah did not interfere in the affairs of others, and expects others to avoid interfering in its affairs.[16]

'Abbas himself subsequently reacted to Egyptian support for Dahlan by making a visit to Egypt's rival countries, Qatar and Turkey, on October 23-28, 2016, which included meetings with their heads of state and foreign ministers. According to Arab reports, 'Abbas's meetings were meant to send a signal to his traditional allies, chiefly Egypt, that he is able to forge contacts with other allies that back him rather than Dahlan.[17]

Fatah and PA leadership responded to Dahlan's political and media activity by preparing for the Seventh Fatah Conference, set to be held in Ramallah on November 29, 2016.[18] Preparations for the conference, which was scheduled to be held over two years ago but was repeatedly postponed, ramped up immediately after reports were published about Dahlan's intention to hold a conference in Cairo and following his call, on September 21, 2016, to hold a conference for Palestinian dialogue.[19] It seems that holding the Seventh Fatah Conference at this specific time serves two purposes: first, to send a message that Fatah's official institutions, led by 'Abbas, are the ones shaping the movement's agenda, and by extension, the greater Palestinian agenda; and second, to officially and completely remove Dahlan from the movement's ranks.[20] Recently, Fatah member Ashraf Jum'a, a Dahlan associate, announced that preparations were underway for an alternative Fatah Conference that would renounce the Seventh Conference and elect its own Central Committee and Revolutionary Council for the movement, instead of the ones elected at the Seventh Conference.[21] At a November 26, 2016 press conference in Gaza, pro-Dahlan Fatah members declared that the Seventh Conference was a national disaster and that they would not recognize its outcomes.[22]

Reports indicate that the Seventh Fatah Conference will deal with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Fatah-Hamas schism, and with reorganizing the ranks of Fatah.[23] Unlike previous conferences, which were attended by thousands of activists, only 1,400 Fatah members of various ranks were invited to this one, excluding many Dahlan supporters.[24]



October 20, 2016 preparatory meeting for the Seventh Fatah Conference chaired by Mahmoud 'Abbas (Wafa.ps, October 20, 2016)

On their part, Dahlan and his supporters oppose holding the Seventh Conference at the designated date, arguing that it is nothing but an attempt at a coup against Fatah and its heritage, and call for unity in Fatah - meaning the restoration of the Dahlan camp's full membership in the movement and its institutions.[25]

There have also been reports that the Arab Quartet has taken steps to prevent the Seventh Conference from taking place, notably reports that Jordan intends to revoke the Jordanian citizenship of Fatah members who attend it, although these reports were denied by elements in the Jordanian government,[26] as well as articles in the Egyptian press supporting Egypt's stance on the Palestinian issue, and Egyptian and Jordanian articles criticizing 'Abbas for his positions and conduct.[27] It is possible that the halt of monthly cash transfers from Saudi Arabia to the PA in early November is also tied to the rift with 'Abbas.[28]

Arab media also recently reported that on November 9, 2016, a meeting took place in Ramallah between 'Abbas and a high-ranking delegation headed by Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Abu Al-Gheit and his two predecessors, Amr Moussa and Nabil Al-Arabi. The three tried to pressure 'Abbas to agree to the appointment of a successor and enable Dahlan to return to the Palestinian political arena. According to the reports, these attempts were also rebuffed by 'Abbas.[29]



Cartoon in Jordanian government daily: 'Abbas walking a tightrope (Al-Rai , Jordan, November 23, 2016)

Attempts By 'Abbas To Suppress Activity By Dahlan And His Supporters In West Bank And Gaza

Dahlan's efforts to display his strength vis-a-vis 'Abbas, and 'Abbas' efforts to suppress Dahlan and his supporters, were manifest at the local level as well, in clashes between their respective supporters in the West Bank, and even armed clashes in the refugee camps of Al-Am'ari near Ramallah and Balata near Nablus, and in Jenin refugee camp.[30] The violence in the Al-Am'ari camp erupted after Dahlan supporters convened a conference on October 22, 2016. The stated objective of the gathering, which was the first show of strength of its kind by Dahlan supporters in the West Bank, was to call for unity among the Fatah factions ahead of the movement's Seventh Conference, and to voice support for the Arab Quartet's initiative to affect internal reconciliation in Fatah. On orders from 'Abbas, the Palestinian security apparatuses dispersed the conference minutes after it began, on the grounds that it was being held without a license.[31] In addition, Fatah took disciplinary measures against its organizers, including Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) member Jihad Tamalia, who was expelled from the movement[32] and activist Rifat 'Alian, who was dismissed from his position as the movement's spokesperson in Jerusalem.[33] According to reports, the movement also recommended taking measures against 17 others, including PLC member Jamal Al-Tirawi.[34] Jihad Tamalia's expulsion from the movement precipitated another wave of violent clashes between the PA security apparatuses and activists in Al-Am'ari who demonstrated their support for him.[35]

Alongside reports that senior Fatah officials who support Dahlan have been expelled from the movement, it was recently reported that at least 50 Fatah members in the Gaza Strip did not receive their October salaries because 'Abbas had ordered their salaries frozen due to their support of Dahlan.[36] This measure provoked fury amongst Fatah activists in Gaza, and a group of them called it a crime that would not be passed over in silence and -urged the Arab states and the international community to reexamine their support for the PA.[37]



Fatah officials close to Dahlan protest the withholding of their salary at a November 6, 2016 Gaza Press conference (Khbrpress.com, November 6, 2016)

Another notable reaction by Fatah against Dahlan and his supporters was the ratification of the order stripping Mohammed Dahlan of his parliamentary immunity. On November 6, 2016 the Palestinian Constitutional Court, established by 'Abbas in April 2016, ruled that the PA president was authorized to strip a PLC member of his immunity as long as the PLC was not convening. The court thereby determined that 'Abbas' presidential decree of January 3, 2012 stripping Dahlan of his parliamentary immunity was valid. Following this ruling, Yahya Rabbah, a Fatah Consultative Council member close to 'Abbas, announced that the movement would prosecute Dahlan.[38]

Likewise, on November 10, 2016, during the official ceremony marking the 12th anniversary of Yasser Arafat's death, 'Abbas hinted that Dahlan was involved in Arafat's death, saying: "If they asked me, I would say that I know [who was behind Arafat's -death], but my testimony is insufficient."[39] Two days later, Dahlan responded to this statement on his official Facebook page, calling to "immediately stop the cheap trade in the martyrdom of president Arafat" and adding that 'Abbas also was on the suspect list because he was the only one who had derived benefit from Arafat's removal.[40]



Dahlan Facebook post responding to 'Abbas's statements (Facebook.com/mohammad.dahlan2, November 12, 2016)

The schism between the 'Abbas and Dahlan camps was also felt in conferences in the Palestinian diaspora marking Arafat's death, including the abovementioned conference in Brussels attended by pro-Dahlan Fatah members in Europe. It was also evident in the holding of two competing ceremonies in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon: one in Sidon, initiated by the Fatah Central Committee that is supported by movement institutions and 'Abbas, and another in the 'Ain Al-Hilweh refugee camp, sponsored by the "Reform Stream," led by General Mahmoud 'Abd Al-Hamid 'Issa, (aka Al-Lino), who is close to Dahlan. At the latter ceremony Al-Lino attacked 'Abbas and declared that the Fatah Seventh Conference had no legitimacy.[41]

'Abbas, Dahlan Associates Trade Accusations In Palestinian Media

As stated, the growing tension between Dahlan and 'Abbas, and Dahlan's increasingly bold political statements, also found expression in a harsh article by former PA official Muhammad Rashid, a Dahlan associate. Rashid rejected 'Abbas's attempts to orchestrate his exit from the political arena in complete detachment from Fatah and its members. This article sparked a response from the editor-in-chief of the PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Mahmoud Abu Al-Hija, who penned a virulent article attacking Rashid. Both articles coincided with an escalation in the tension between the 'Abbas and Dahlan camps, and conspicuously underscored the personal rivalry between the two figures. Alongside them, additional articles were published in the Palestinian media reflecting the schism: articles in the pro-Dahlan media condemning 'Abbas's activity, and articles in the official PA media condemning Dahlan and his actions.[42]

Dahlan Associate: 'Abbas Is a Political Corpse Awaiting Burial; The People Will Oppose A Leader Imposed From Without, The Way 'Abbas Was

Writing under the title "'Abbas Is a Political Corpse Awaiting Burial," Rashid wrote: "Nobody knows [exactly] when the curtain will officially come down on the Mahmoud 'Abbas era, but everyone knows and acknowledges that 'Abbas is no longer anything but a political corpse awaiting the formal burial ceremony. [This,] after a decade or more of corruption, tyranny, and loss of political direction, which can also affect the period following 'Abbas, due to the weakness and feebleness of the Palestinian national institutions, and especially in light of the crumbling of Fatah unity and the emergence of "militaristic" islands in its ranks in the West Bank, which are preparing for the post-'Abbas period.

"There is a common misconception that whoever 'emerges the winner' in Ramallah can take control of Fatah, and whoever manages to take control of Fatah can 'emerge the victor' in the [contest for the] leadership of the Palestinian people. This conception motivates ambitious commanders in the militias and the security apparatuses to strengthen and arm themselves, regardless of the depth of the crisis and disagreement [this causes] among the Palestinian public, for the disagreements are no longer confined to Fatah and Hamas, but have spread to all Palestinian circles inside and outside the homeland...

"All these ambitious [figures] are secretly confronting 'Abbas, while openly trying to curry favor with him, in a hypocritical manner. Just as the secret confrontation takes many forms, the hypocrisy, too, finds various expressions: some, [pursuing] various hidden agendas, describe 'Abbas as the last of the titans; others invent road accidents to avoid accompanying 'Abbas to the funeral of [former Israeli president] Shimon Peres; still others openly opposed President ['Abbas] representing [the PA] at this funeral in accordance with the [accepted] protocol, and many are abandoning the [sinking] ship to avoid being associated with the disgrace of the [current] period.

"'Abbas himself feels very bitter towards these ambitious people, but he knows time is not working for him but rather against him and is [in fact] almost suffocating him and his sons. He fears that he will not have enough time to arrange a 'quiet death' [for himself] before it's too late, and that's why he is wasting time trying to avoid confronting some of these ambitious people, or all of them, [by] using this time to select the one among them who represents the safest option from his perspective. However, he has not yet found the one 'truly reliable' [candidate], and perhaps he never will...

"All this hypocrisy is taking place in the Muqata'a and its vicinity, or in any case within the municipal boundaries of Ramallah, far from the pulse of the people in Palestine and outside it, and moreover, far from the members of the Fatah movement. This is because 'Abbas and his ambitious allies want to secretly agree on a 'magic formula' that will be later imposed upon some shadowy Fatah conference, which will be prepared according to the requirements of [this] secret formula, if they manage to find it. Then the Palestinian National Council will quickly be convened so that its members can imbibe the drug prepared for them...

"The tension among the people and [in the ranks of] Fatah is mounting, and so is the people's inclination to take to the streets. Hence, the proponents of the 'Muqata'a + aspirants + municipal boundaries of Ramallah' formula may find themselves in a narrow channel trapped between a series of popular positions and demands that cannot be ignored or circumvented. Perhaps they will not find the time and resources to even understand these demands and positions, but any foolish assumption [on their part], that the people will be willing to repeat the same experience [i.e., accept an unelected leader] will be nothing but political madness...

"What is certain is that the 'Abbas era is over, except for the burial ceremony, and that the people will certainly not [agree] to repeat the experience of accepting a leader imposed by the will of outside [forces], as 'Abbas was imposed in 2003. The people will not capitulate and will not be frightened by the rattling of the militias' weapons, which are stored in the cities, villages and refugee camps of the West Bank, for no weapons can [defeat] a people that is willing to take up stones in defense of its honor and its freedom to select a worthy general leadership for Palestine. This selection will take place only by means of a fair and transparent [casting of] ballots. The Palestinians have already [held elections] in the past, [once] under occupation and again under the PA, and nothing will keep them from doing so in the future, even if [threatened] by the guns of the occupier or guns serving the occupier, or both."[43]

Editor Of PA Daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida: Rashid Is A Worthless Person Who Has Betrayed The Palestinian Cause

In response to Rashid's article, the chief editor of Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Mahmoud Abu Al-Hija, published an article of his own in which he virulently attacked Rashid's character, his activity in the Palestinian arena and his statements against 'Abbas. He wrote: "There is nothing more despicable than a thief talking of honesty and integrity, [a man] who once lived in abject poverty and grew rich on broker fees and by stealing public funds.[44] There is nothing more despicable than a declared collaborator talking about the Palestinian national cause after he betrayed this cause and its loyalists... This [Palestinian] cause took him to its bosom after he fled penniless from his homeland,[45] whose oppressive and violent regime he purported to fight. This thieving collaborator was not a Palestinian and has never become one [in the sense of embracing] the Palestinian identity - [the Palestinian] struggle, culture and humanity. [In fact], he has [never been] an Arab of any kind or even a Turkmen... He still identifies himself as a Kurd - while the Kurds renounce him, and, we suspect, [so do] the Turkmens.

"This is a man who used documents [provided by] the occupation and its institutions against the PA, when he sued [the PA] over the Jericho Casino, which he founded and [then] used its gambling tables as a cover for spying for occupation circles. Later he became a middleman serving these [occupation] circles wherever he went, after he fled from the Palestinian court system that still regards him as a fugitive from justice [and wishes to prosecute him] for the sake of public justice.

"We shall not mention his reputation as a businessman in order to avoid abusing the word [businessman], but we can refer to him as a man lacking any qualifications who purports to have an opinion on public affairs. [He is the kind of person] the Prophet warned about... This worthless man recently started spewing illogical claims regarding public issues and the national cause... The more strident his statements, the more they turn out to be vocal expressions of failure and, even more than that, of resentment and suppressed hatred. This is because they constantly parrot claims taken from Israel's frantic incitement campaign against President Abu Mazen. [These claims are stated] baldly, in the manner of a slave obeying his master...

"President Abu Mazen's era [represents] the age of the national plan, [a plan] which, under his leadership, began to march steadily towards its triumphant completion and [the establishment of a Palestinian] state. Palestine will never experience anything apart from the era of this [national] cause, for which its people are struggling and working... whether on the path of freedom or via the ballot box, but always with full confidence in their national identity, based on their own free will and their independent decisions..."[46]

*B. Shanee is a research fellow at MEMRI.

Endnotes:
Introduction

On November 29, 2016, Fatah's Seventh General Conference will take place at the Palestinian Authority presidential headquarters in Ramallah, three years later than stipulated by movement regulations. The date of the conference is no coincidence; it was on November 29, 1947 that the UN passed its Partition Plan for Palestine, and in 1977 this day was declared by the UN as the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People.



Emblem of the Seventh Fatah General Conference (Source: Facebook.com/Official.Fateh.1965)

The conference comes as 'Abbas faces tremendous pressure from Palestinian elements and from the Egypt-led Arab Quartet countries to appoint a deputy or successor, for two main reasons: first, so that there will be no political vacuum should he disappear from the scene, and second, to prevent Hamas from gaining control of the Palestinian Authority (PA), because by law, the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) chairman is next in the line of command if the president is incapacitated - and at present this role is filled by 'Aziz Duwaik from Hamas.[1] This pressure has been manifested by Egypt's sponsorship of conferences on its soil held by supporters of Dahlan 'Abbas's bitter rival and his possible successor,[2] and by the demands presented to 'Abbas by Arab League secretary-general Ahmad Abu Al-Gheit along with former secretaries-general Amr Moussa and Nabil Al-Arabi, during a visit to Ramallah, that 'Abbas accept the Quartet's proposal to appoint a successor for him and that he agree to a reconciliation within Fatah - demands that 'Abbas rejected out of hand.[3] In order to advance such a reconciliation, the Egyptians agreed to host all the Palestinian factions in Cairo after they met with representatives of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad earlier in November 2016.

Senior Fatah officials stated that the upcoming Seventh Fatah General Conference may select a deputy for 'Abbas only for his role as Fatah chairman, and that it is not authorized to appoint a deputy for him for his other roles as Palestinian president or PLO chief. Fatah Revolutionary Council member Amin Maqboul explained: "According to Fatah regulations, a deputy for the movement's chairman is chosen from among the members of the Central Committee. This is nothing new."[4] Fatah Central Committee member 'Azzam Al-Ahmad said: "[According to regulations,] the movement's chairman has a deputy. Since that is so, why is there a need to bring up this subject as long as this is stipulated in the regulations? Today, Abu Maher Ghneim is deputy movement leader, and before him, in the time of the martyr president Yasser Arafat, it was Khalil Al-Wazir Abu Jihad."[5] PLO Executive Committee secretary Saeb Erekat also said that 'Abbas needed no deputy: "President Arafat died without a deputy in place, and the PLO Executive Committee chose 'Abbas as president; Fatah's Central Committee convened and chose 'Abbas [as movement leader]; and the people went to the ballot boxes and chose 'Abbas as PA president."[6]

Even though Fatah had already discussed holding the conference this year, 'Abbas decided quickly, in early November, that it should be held now, with the aim of leveraging it to completely remove Dahlan from the movement. Dahlan, for his part, tried, with the backing of the Arab Quartet, to prevent or postpone the conference, but failed; additionally, his supporters were later eliminated from the list of conferees. But this is a temporary victory at best for 'Abbas, and he owes it to the PA. Because he acted against the wishes of the Quartet, he may pay for this in his relations with it, and particularly with Egypt. In the intra-Palestinian arena, the tense 'Abbas-Dahlan relations could develop into a full-blown rift between the two camps that will make the Palestinians' situation even worse than it is today.

Two days before the conference Dahlan associate Sufyan Abu Zaida called on all Fatah members who had been eliminated from attending the Seventh General Conference to raise their voices and protest against the injustice done them "so that the movement is not stolen from them."[7]



'Abbas, left, and Dahlan (Source: Assabah.com.tn, March 14, 2014)

In the meantime, the 'Abbas-Dahlan rivalry escalated, as reflected in exchanges of accusations between the camps, by the conference earlier in November held by Dahlan supporters in the Al-Am'ari refugee camp near Ramallah, and in the PA security apparatuses' ongoing harassment of Dahlan supporters, leading to violent clashes in which innocent bystanders were killed. In order to neutralize Dahlan and his supporters, 'Abbas took additional steps, including stopping the payment of wages for PA employees who support Dahlan, slashing the list of Seventh General Conference conferees so as to keep Dahlan's men away, as mentioned, from the 2,500 of the previous General Conference to 1,400, obtaining permission from a Palestinian court to remove PLC members' immunity so that Dahlan's men in the PLC can be targeted; and having security apparatuses preventively arrest their own personnel who are associated with Dahlan.

According to Fatah officials, the Seventh General Conference is expected to discuss a political plan and the impasse in the political process; methods for fighting Israel; the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation; Fatah's internal regulations; and conducting a self-examination in the movement, to focus on an assessment of achievements, conclusions from mistakes that were made, and injecting young blood into the movement leadership.

The disputes in the movement have contributed to lowered expectations about what the General Conference will accomplish. Several Fatah officials said that its being held at all is in itself an achievement, and added that keeping Dahlan and his supporters out and repelling efforts by half of the Arab countries to reinsert him into Fatah, with the accompanying message that the Palestinians are the masters of their own fate and that their decisions are independent, all constitute actualization of several of the conference's goals. Regarding Fatah's political plan, the officials said that it would focus on continuing diplomatic activity to isolate and delegitimize Israel, and on expanding the popular resistance.

This report will focus on the aims of Fatah's Seventh General Conference, on what it is expected to achieve, on the political program that will be discussed at it, on the appointment of a deputy/successor to 'Abbas, and on the rivalry between the camps of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud 'Abbas and Muhammad Dahlan, who could end up as 'Abbas's successor.

Conference Goals And Expectations

Fatah officials, especially from the 'Abbas camp, have widely discussed the conference's nature, goals, and expectations in light of the changes in the world and especially in the Arab countries, and in light of the dire state of the PA. Fatah Central Committee member Jibril Rajoub said: "I estimate that Fatah will emerge from the conference strong, consolidated, and united, and that it will be able to continue to bear the responsibility with which it is charged."[8]

However, there is little expectation of far-reaching changes in Fatah, as attested to by Fatah Central Committee member Muhammad Ashtiya: "When the conference doors are locked, [we will know] that having successfully convened is an achievement in itself."[9] Similar comments were made at a November 20 meeting for Fatah secretaries from West Bank districts.[10] Former Fatah leader in Bethlehem Awni Al-Mashni wrote in an article that the Fatah conference will not focus on the political plan, since there will be no real changes there, nor on personnel changes, since most Fatah members have similar views. The most important aspect of the conference, he said, is that it was convened without submission to outside pressure, even pressure from Arab countries, adding: "Holding the conference closes a chapter and opens a new one, and if it had not been convened, the rift in the movement would persist."[11]

Fatah Central Committee member 'Azzam Al-Ahmad said of the upcoming conference: "One of the purposes of the conference... is to stress Fatah's independent decision-making on internal Palestinian affairs and the Palestinians' non-intervention in the internal affairs of others, particularly Arab countries. This conference has special importance, particularly in the current situation. [The conference must discuss] putting its own house in order and must respond to the political questions that are on the agenda: How do we end the [Fatah-Hamas] rift? How do we end the occupation?... We must first and foremost discuss the general political state of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the impasse of the peace process... The conference must provide the appropriate tools for tackling these questions. Straightening out the internal situation in Fatah will make it quicker and easier to organize the general internal Palestinian situation, which is why the Fatah Central Committee decided to convene the Palestinian National Council a month after the Seventh Fatah General Conference."[12]

About other conference goals, Fatah Central Committee member Mahmoud Al-'Aloul said: "The conference is the beginning of the road to renewing the legitimacy [of 'Abbas and the PA institutions] and to introducing new blood [into the Palestinian establishments]." Ali Al-Musalmani, who was in an Israeli prison for 30 years, said: "The conference will support purging Fatah of the enemies of the national movement and of those who have harmed the movement and its history... The attempts by Muhammad Dahlan, who was thrown out [of Fatah], to [negatively] impact Fatah's democratic process will fail. I will take this opportunity to call on the security apparatuses to confiscate the illegal weapons in order to stop those who are collaborating with the occupation and all those who are trying to act against the Palestinians [i.e. Dahlan's men]."[13]

Fatah Revolutionary Council secretary-general Amin Maqboul said: "One of the tools to revive the movement and its institutions is to inject new blood [into them], by means of turnover, rotation in the leadership, and presenting new initiatives and ideas to step up the activity in all echelons. The conference will set out a new policy based on assessments of past eras, presenting reports on them, demanding accountability, and outlining the next steps. It will highlight both failures and achievements."[14]

The Conference's Political Plan: Popular Struggle, Boycotting Israel, International Activity

One key topic at the conference will be the political process and the nature of the struggle against Israel. Fatah officials have noted that the plan set to be discussed will continue 'Abbas's policy of opposing militarized struggle while expanding the popular struggle; continuing the diplomatic activity at the UN, and delegitimizing Israel by means of boycotts and lawsuits against it at the International Criminal Court (ICC). In an interview with Al-Ayyam, Fatah Central Committee member Nabil Sha'ath expanded on this: "The political platform presented to the Seventh Fatah Conference is not a platform of negotiation, but it leaves the door open to return to negotiation if certain demands are met. Furthermore, it is a platform of nonviolent conflict that still focuses on popular struggle and international activity, and that sets out the movement's roles while focusing on a comprehensive boycott. It is the changes in the world, and the disasters in Arab countries, that are bringing us to focus on the political conflict with Israel, to unite, to rehabilitate our own home, to restore our economy, to bolster our steadfast position, and to constantly initiate conflict with the Israeli settlement enterprise. This is accompanied by international legal, diplomatic, and economic activity."

Sha'ath added: "The political plan that will be presented at the seventh conference is a continuation of the historic positions of Fatah... When peoples face hardship, they must believe that the difficulty will pass, and therefore we will build our country and not lose hope of [the right of] return, the restoration of our land, and the establishment of our state. When things are hard, an individual must start by putting his own house in order; therefore, some of the political plan deals with reorganizing Fatah, reviving, uniting, and guiding the movement, and maintaining it as a national liberation movement until we attain freedom. The plan focuses on restoring national unity and Palestinian democracy by means of presidential and Legislative Council elections, thus restoring the legitimacy of the PLO and democracy in the organization by rebuilding it as the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people. Likewise, [the PLO] should [again] be given the authority to deal with fundamental political problems and with foreign affairs, because the PA focuses on domestic issues, while the PLO represents all the Palestinians in the world.

"The plan states that we must confront Israel, and not adapt to the Israeli enterprise or sink into the delusion of the political process, which Israel has destroyed and constantly opposes. We have accepted the French initiative and the [Saudi] Arab initiative, but our plan sets specific demands for renewing negotiations that have been mentioned more than once by President Mahmoud 'Abbas: ending [the construction in] the settlements, [implementing] the UN resolutions, [setting] an international framework and timetable for the international conference [i.e. the French initiative], starting a debate on the permanent arrangement, sketching out borders, and recognizing [a Palestinian] state."[15]

Discussing the nature of the struggle against Israel, Muhammad Ashtiya stressed the aspiration to repeat the 1987 First Intifada: "One of the most important results of the conference will be to address the 'smart popular resistance' - the experience of the Palestinians during the First Intifada, when the most important characteristic was mass participation and successfully attracting the whole world's attention. In our assessment, today's popular resistance is not of the desired scope, even though the necessary tools for it exist. Therefore we must utilize them as part of 'smart popular resistance.'"[16]

'Abbas, Dahlan Camps Accuse Each Other In Arafat's Death

As noted, the conference is taking place against the backdrop of the bitter 'Abbas-Dahlan rivalry, which has led to mutual accusations peaking with 'Abbas's statement that he knows who helped assassinate Arafat, and Dahlan's statement that it was 'Abbas who had freed an Arafat bodyguard detained by Palestinian security forces on suspicion of being an accessory to the assassination. Samir Al-Mashharawi, a Fatah official in Gaza who is close to Dahlan, demanded that 'Abbas "stop accusing others of assassinating President Yasser Arafat... because he ['Abbas] himself is in the circle of suspects." Al-Mashharawi added that Arafat, who never took the option of armed struggle off the table and always carried a weapon along with an olive branch at the UN, could not be compared to 'Abbas, during whose term of office "there has been a decline in the Palestinian people's fighting spirit, and who has turned the olive branch into a cudgel to bludgeon the opposition." He added: "Jibril Rajoub does not want the intra-Fatah reconciliation and has done all he can to thwart it."[17]

The 'Abbas camp, for its part, struck back at Dahlan and his supporters. Mahmoud Abu Al-Haija, who was appointed speaker of the conference, and editor-in-chief of the PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, said that schemes by Dahlan and his supporters to sabotage the conference had been thwarted, and Mahmoud Al-'Aloul added that all Dahlan supporters had been removed from the list of conferees.

Dahlan Camp Harshly Critical Of Their Exclusion From Conference

The Seventh General Conference conferees, whose numbers were, as noted, slashed from 2,500 to 1,400, now include: members of Fatah's Central Committee, Revolutionary Committee, and Advisory Committee; Fatah members from West Bank and Gaza Strip districts and from the Palestinian diaspora; representatives of public institutions and professional unions; National Security personnel; ambassadors and diplomatic staff; PLC members; district governors; representatives from the president's office and PA offices; representatives of prisoners; businessmen and experts in various fields; and representatives of youth and women.[18]

The exclusion of Dahlan supporters and the inclusion of 'Abbas's, including his sons Tarek and Yasser, triggered furious responses from the Dahlan camp. Dahlan himself told the Ma'an news agency: "There is no such thing as the 'seventh conference.' [What is happening is] a marginalization [of Fatah members] and an attempt to cause division. What is happening here is a clear coup [from within] the palace. The conference and the procedures planned in advance are nothing but an attempt at a coup against Fatah's history and tradition, and a pathetic attempt to eliminate pluralism in Fatah and push the movement towards strict Stalinist traditions and values that no one, no matter who, can impose."[19]

On November 23, Dahlan supporters in the PLC, some of whom have been removed from Fatah institutions, held a press conference in Ramallah in which they criticized the conference and its organizers. Fatah Revolutionary Council member Haitham Halabi called for a sit-in in front of Arafat's memorial on the day of the conference, to protest against how the conference had been organized and against the exclusion of senior Fatah members from it, and warned that this would perpetuate the rifts in Fatah.[20]

Criticizing the exclusion of Dahlan's supporters from the conference, and the security apparatuses' preventive arrest of Dahlan's associates, Sufian Abu Zaida wrote: "There will be no surprises in the preparations for the celebration [i.e. the conference] at the presidential headquarters under the weapons of the presidential guard and security apparatuses directly subordinate to [the guard]. For this celebration, which is wrongly called the Seventh Fatah General Conference, the conferees have been meticulously selected, after security apparatuses screened the names carefully to ensure the desired results for 'Abbas and several other interested parties. We were not surprised when hundreds of field operatives and Fatah officials of all ages and from all areas, whether military men, leaders of the prisoners, youth, and women's movements, or ambassadors, were replaced by ostensible fighters or ostensible Fatah members who have no role in the movement and have never declared their affiliation with it. They have also never been arrested and never waged any struggle in the name of Fatah or of any other faction. This does not contradict the fact that there are dozens of leaders at the conference whom we respect and very much admire."[21]

* C. Jacob is a Research Fellow at MEMRI.

Endnotes:
Manohar Parrikar is easily one of the best Defence Ministers India has ever had. He is also in the elite company of few men who have taken hard actionable military decisions during their tenure. This, however, doesnt mean that Parrikar was always so assured of the job he was entrusted with.

 BCCL

In a recent interaction, the Raksha Mantri said he was shivering when he first took office. "When I went to Delhi, I took experience of that city. I became Defence Minister with the blessings of you all. I was not knowing anything," Parrikar said, during the 'Vijay Sankalp' rally at Sanvordem constituency on Sunday.

Let me admit, I was shivering on the first day. I put up a brave face banking on my experience, but in reality I didn't even have knowledge about the rank of military officers," he said. But this was no blindside for the experienced politician. He quickly learnt the ropes and has been one of the most high performing ministers in the Modi cabinet.

 BCCL

Parrikar was the chief minister of Goa and recounted how coming from there, he was relatively unknown to military conflicts. "Goa's brush with the military was during 1961 when Indian Army liberated the state from Portuguese rule. After that we saw 1965 and 1971 wars. During the Kargil war, I have given slogans but in reality I was unaware about what is war and what is the preparedness required for that," he said.

Parrikar has been instrumental in giving a free hand to the army to retaliate to Pakistani aggression and this in turn has reaped results, even if for the short term. "You have noticed the impact of this liberty. Whenever there was attack on us, our brave soldiers have retaliated strongly. May be the surgical strike (in PoK) or firing at the line of border, Army has responded strongly, forcing the enemy to plead for peace. During last four days, there is no firing on the border," Parrikar said.

 BCCL

Considering the times that we live in, Manohar Parrikar is and will remain the right hand man for Modis action plan in south-east Asia, especially against Pakistan.
If you have never spotted a Bentley, or a Rolls Royce, or a Ferrari on Indian roads, you dont know your country well. We love luxury, and we love showing it off even more. Even as the country struggled to survive under demonetization, there was a Rs 500-crore wedding. The crack on black money was not enough to prevent people from flaunting their wealth. An MLA gifted his teenage son a Mercedes Benz on the kids birthday. Dattatray Phuge, who was shot dead a few months ago, was a 44-year-old businessman from Pune. His claim to fame was his eccentric dressing style: he wore a shirt made of gold.

 BCCL

It is very clear now, India is not a poor country. Reports suggest there are almost 185,000 millionaires in the country. We have the ultra rich and we have the ultra poorwe house both ends of the spectrum. On one hand, we are the kings of jugaad, reusing everything from plastic bags to old newspapers. On the other, we have the painfully rich. Plush houses and luxury cars are a marker of wealth and are a necessary status symbol. You are not rich until you have driven your luxury car (even if it means inching it at 5 km/hr through the narrow lanes of your colony) strutted around in designer wear, checked in to high-end places on Facebook, been to a couple of exotic foreign locations, had a destination wedding with probably a Bollywood star in attendance and talked about your ebony table in front of dinner guests invited for the sole purpose of showcasing it. You are not rich until youve flaunted your wealth ostentatiously and unapologetically.

 BCCL

Being rich equals being successful. As soon as you begin climbing up the social ladder, it is imperative that you exhibit a corresponding rise in status and lifestyle. Call it the trait of the noveau rich, it is spreading fast. A case in point was Vijay Mallya. The man did everything king-size. Nothing wrong with living it up, but when you are spiralling downwards in debt, you surely have muddled your priorities.

 BCCL

In stark contrast to this exhibitionism, there are also entrepreneurs/successful businessmen who dont even mind wearing the same type of clothes every day. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has identical sets of t-shirts and sweatshirts, all greys and blues, in his wardrobe so that theres no time wasted in thinking about what to wear every day. Does that mean better business, more success? Back home, Ratan Tata is a man of simple living and high thinking. Our former president Late APJ Kalam was yet another example of a man of simple taste and exceptional brilliance.

 Reuters, Facebook

Plutocrat  the dictionary describes it as someone who exercises power by virtue of his wealth. We are a class- and power-driven society. Money is important not only because it can buy you things, its important because it means power. The Tu janta nahi hai main kaun hoon syndrome is still deep rooted in the Indian psyche, even if its more widespread in North India. A high-power SUV is one sure-shot way of telling the world to make way when you arrive.

 BCCL

In a country where corruption is rampant, showing off power and wealth goes beyond just vanity. It is a way to ensure you get by in life smoothly. Love of luxury is a trait that is common here and in the West too. While it is but natural that in a developing country like ours where the struggle to survive is very real, a self-preservatory attitude comes naturally, it is also a choice to let things go a little, especially when you have millions in the bank account. Would this love of flaunting wealth as a symbol of power take a back seat if corruption were controlled? Would it slow down after the demonetization drive, after black money has been weeded out from the economy? We doubt; old habits die hard!

Disclaimer: The intention of this piece is not to shame or malign anyone or their tastes. This is a mere comparison and analysis of a trend.
The news about CNN accidentally airing porn for over 30mins is apparently a hoax. It was reported that instead of airing Anthony Bourdains Parts Unknown, CNN aired a porn film starring Riley Quinn, a transexual adult star, by mistake.

In a statement CNN said: The RCN cable operator in Boston aired inappropriate content for 30 minutes on CNN last night. CNN has asked for an explanation.

However, RCN has issued a statement that the whole incident did not actually take place and it all stemmed from a single persons tweet.

The person to first tweet about the mishap has deleted her account but she tweeted this to CNN.

 Twitter

Along with this picture.

 Twitter

A CNN spokesperson further added, Despite media reports to the contrary, RCN assures us there was no interruption of CNN programing in the Boston area last night.

So, the lesson is, dont believe everything you see on the internet.
The straining chord between India and Pakistan is getting thinner by the day; as the tension is fuelling a lot of aggression on both sides. Amongst the various messages being circulated that are fuelling patriotism, a video of a Sikh jawan singing a powerful song in Punjabi, sending a message to Pakistan is doing the rounds.

The song explains that the jawan is ready to take on the enemy if only the government allows it. The video is doing the rounds on WhatsApp and is going viral right now. The location of where the video was shot is not very clear. One can only pray for peace to prevail between the two nations right now. Humanity is bigger than any boundaries after all.
Facebook is really desperate to enter the Internet space in India and they are trying to bring back their Free Basics program again and it seems like they are not going to give up anytime soon. There was a raging debate the moment Facebook announced their plans for Free Basics as net neutrality has always been a complex and blood boiling topic.

Facebooks latest efforts include getting people in rural India to sign up on Facebook and the only way they can achieve that is with Express WiFi. It will basically let smartphone users buy data plans from local ISPs where Facebook will offer their software so that local ISPs and businessmen can sell data, which will be accessible via hotspots.

However the only difference from Free Basics is that Internet access will not be given away for free. Express Wi-Fi is Facebooks second attempt at reaching out to densely populated areas in India and they plan to do the same in other countries that have fast growing Internet users.

Facebook wanted to offer free Internet in rural areas through their Free Basics program that would let users have access to only certain websites, i.e. mainly Facebook for free. This, in turn, backfired since the scheme seriously violated net-neutrality norms.

Offering free Internet meant that other social media websites like Twitter, Reddit and YouTube would be blocked and they would never get a chance to make their mark in the Indian internet sphere. In fact, the only way people would be able to access it if they paid extra which again is a direct violation of net-neutrality.

Since the uproar, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India banned Free Basics in February 2016 due to the public referendum and outrage.

UPDATE

Facebook got in touch with us to give us a better picture as to what they are up to.

A Facebook spokesperson said-

 Currently we are working with ISP and operator partners to test Express Wi-Fi with public Wi-Fi deployments in multiple pilot sites. This solution empowers ISPs, operators, and local entrepreneur retailers to offer quality internet access to their village, town or region.

 Express Wi-Fi customers can purchase fast, reliable and affordable data packs via digital vouchers to access the Internet on the Express Wi-Fi network.

 We focus on building a sustainable economic model for all stakeholders involved, so that local retailer entrepreneurs, ISPs, operators, and Facebook can continue to invest in and operate lasting connectivity.

 We believe a sustainable economic model is the one which can scale to bring all of India online.
ELKO  The friends and family of John Carpenter gathered Saturday at the Elko County Convention Center to say goodbye to the longtime state assemblyman.

Carpenter died Nov. 19 after battling cancer and heart disease.

The funeral service was led by Carpenters son, Deacon John T. Carpenter. The younger Carpenter spoke of his father as someone highly devoted to his work and his family.

John T. Carpenter said even though he was not a regular in church, his father showed his beliefs in the way he lived.

My father was not a Bible thumper. He would not proclaim that the Bible says this or the Bible says that, he said. Instead he proclaimed his beliefs in the way he lived, in his actions throughout this life.

State Sen. Pete Goicoechea, who worked with John Carpenter in the Assembly, said Carpenters experience in the Legislature could have done even more good for Nevada had it not been for term limits.

He also shared an example of Carpenters old-school approach to his job.

You see, John knew how to get around technology. His state-issued computer served as a hell of a doorstop, he said. If you wanted to shoot John Carpenter an email, it would be printed out and you would get a response.

During his eulogy, Vince Juaristi told stories of what it was like to work under Carpenter doing various off jobs for him over the summers.

As Juaristi grew closer to him and was preparing to continue his education at Harvard, Carpenter gave Juaristi some words of encouragement when he began to worry about being judged by his new classmates who came from more prestigious backgrounds.

It dont seem fair, because youre going to walk all over them, Juaristi said, recalling the conversation. Theyre going to underestimate you and before you know it youll eat their lunch.

John T. Carpenter said that in his fathers final moments with his eyesight already failing him, he still found a way to acknowledge the family members who had surrounded his bed one last time before his passing.

I knew that he recognized me and I could feel the most intense love that I have ever experienced, he said. After a short time his eyes turned gray and he never opened them again.  I was talking to my daughter about this and her simple response was, what you experienced was divine love.
John A. Arnold Jr., 41, of Salt Lake City was arrested on Interstate 80 for speeding 1 to 10 mph over the posted limit; non-resident driving when privilege suspended, revoked or cancelled; and operating a vehicle without or tampering with a breath interlock system. Bail: $1,250
ELKO  Landon Howe, who is serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Louisiana Baton Rouge Mission, was critically injured Friday when he was struck by a car while riding his bicycle.

According to Facebook posts, injuries include broken ribs, a punctured lung, fractured skull and brain bleeds. Howe had surgery Friday night and is now recovering in the hospital. The bicycle helmet probably saved his life.

Howes parents, Susan and Leonard Howe, provided an update on Sunday after arriving in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Elder Howe will remain in a medically induced coma for awhile so he can heal. They slow down the anesthesia at times during the day to test for responsiveness. If he gets stable enough to get off the respirator and other intubation he will be flown home which for us, I believe, would be to a hospital in Salt Lake City. No telling how much damage/rehabilitation, but his responsiveness is encouraging.

His companion, Elder Mortensen, was also hit but only had scratches.

Howe graduated from Elko High School June 2015, where he was involved in music and was a member of the Band of Indians, Jazz Band and Choraliers. Prior to his mission, Landon said he planned on pursuing a degree in music education after his missionary service.

A Gofundme account has been set up, to help with travel and medical expenses, at www.gofundme.com/help-support-landon-howe.

Howe has been serving as a missionary since the end of September 2015.
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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.
ELKO  Two inmates were taken to the hospital after a fight at the Carlin prison camp escalated into a melee Sunday night.

The fight started around 9:15 p.m.

Staff deployed chemical agents to quell the disturbance, which had grown to an estimated 40 inmates, but the fight continued, stated the Nevada Department of Corrections. Staff called for assistance. Nevada Highway Patrol, Carlin Police Department and Elko County Sheriff Office SWAT responded to the scene and the fight ended quickly.

Elko County Sheriff Jim Pitts said said the inmates were armed with weapons fashioned from broom handles and towel racks, and went after guards but no guards were injured.

I dont know what the fight was about, Pitts said.

Injured were Sergei Potoyan, 39, and Oscar Barreras, 31. Pitts said Barreras was intoxicated and Botoyan may have suffered a skull fracture. They were treated and released at Northeastern Nevada Regional Hospital, then transferred to Lovelock Correctional Center.

Pitts said 145 prisoners are held at Carlin Conservation Camp, which has three wings with dorm-like sleeping quarters. Inmates are not locked in individual cells.

Approximately 20 inmates were being transported to higher-security facilities the day after the incident, according to the department.

The Nevada Department of Corrections Inspector Generals Office is heading up the investigation.

We dont take any disturbance lightly, stated NDOC Director James Dzurenda. My staff handled this incident very well. For the inmates, its a privilege to be at a conservation camp where they are not housed in cells and they train to work as teams. From them we expect much better behavior.

Conservation camp inmates are trained by the Nevada Division of Forestry to fight wildland fires. During the off season, inmates support the community by assisting with snow removal, weed abatement or other seasonal jobs as needed.

According to the Nevada Department of Corrections website, Barreras was convicted of grand larceny of a motor vehicle in Clark County. Potoyan was convicted of unlawful possession of a scanning device or re-encoder, also out of Clark County.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP)  A federal judge on Monday ordered a Utah man to remain jailed after prosecutors accused him of making thousands of painkillers and anti-anxiety pills while stashing away guns and more than $1 million in cash.

Magistrate Judge Paul Warner said he was worried that 26-year-old defendant Aaron Shamo could be a flight risk.

Prosecutors said they found 70,000 pills at his Cottonwood Heights home that were made to look like oxycodone but actually contained fentanyl. Authorities also say agents discovered 25,000 Xanax pills, an anti-anxiety drug.

Shamo was the only one in the home and two pill-manufacturing machines were running when agents arrived to search it, Assistant U.S. Attorney Stewart Young said.

He was caught red-handed printing the drugs, Young said.

Shamo is charged with possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute. He has not yet entered a plea.

Warner said officials have no idea how much money Shamo can access and also cited concerns about him complying with terms of a supervised release.

Shamo was already on probation for an earlier DUI when he was arrested Nov. 22 by federal agents, and he had failed to appear in court for a past traffic violation.

Prosecutors said he received chemicals, including fentanyl powder, from China to make the pills. Shamo kept detailed logs of where the pills were shipped around the country, Young said.

Young said Shamo had about $1.2 million in cash, five rifles and a handgun stored in his home and a stash house in West Jordan.

Young said it would be dangerous to release Shamo pending trial because he could have financial means to escape and possible contacts in China.

Shamos attorney Adam Bridge disputed the idea that his client had special contacts.

I dont think it would be very difficult for any of us to order something illegal from China, Bridge said.

Bridge said federal agents have seized his clients possessions and cash, preventing him from engaging in any activities, and other items left in his home were stolen later that day because officers didnt lock up after they left.

Bridge suggested agents could outfit Shamo with an ankle monitor, seize his passport and subject him to random searches if he were freed.

Warner wasnt swayed by the lawyers arguments.

Throughout the hearing, Shamo, wearing a blue jail jumpsuit and handcuffs shackled at his waist, stared straight ahead. He spoke only to correct the judges spelling of his name.

If convicted, Shamo could face up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
Once again, Christmas in Barcelona is the subject of heated public debate. When Deputy Mayor Jaume Collboni unveiled this years Christmas program of events, the nativity scene in the citys Sant Jaume square immediately sparked controversy, with some describing it as twisted.

A blend of the traditional with the modern? Carles Ribas

Aware that the left-leaning City Halls modern take on the representation of the birth of Christ would draw ire from some quarters, the official chose to embrace it.

The creche offers a contemporary vision inspired by a poem by Josep Vicenc Foix. We hope that it will bring as much controversy as other years, because otherwise it would just not be the nativity of Sant Jaume Square, he quipped.

The Vatican has approved the sculptures for worship

Within 24 hours irate comments began pouring in.

The Popular Party's (PP) leader at City Hall, Alberto Fernandez Diaz, accused the Mayor Ada Colau, of twisting Christmas.

The conservative politician said that the installation may be many things, but a manger it is not.

If Colau does not want to display a nativity scene, let her come out in public and say that theres nothing to celebrate at Christmas and no tradition to uphold, he continued.

The Three Kings of Orient have been replaced with photographs of Pau Casals, Joan Miro and J V Foix. TONI ALBIR (EFE)

The installation's creators, Toti Toronell and Quim Domene, say they drew inspiration from the poem Ho sap tothom i es profecia (or Everyone knows it and it is a prophecy), by Josep Vicenc Foix.

The poem is divided into nine stanzas, and the artists illustrated this by creating nine giant see-through spheres that bring to mind snow globes.

Inside the first sphere is a bed covered with straw. At its feet, several cardboard boxes that might conceivably be Christmas presents bear different words in stenciled letters that read Mule, Shepherd and Lamb. Other gifts are half-open, partly showing traditional figures lent by the Olot Museum  the Virgin Mary, Joseph and an angel. The box labeled Nen Jesus (Baby Jesus) is topped by a tiny crib containing the museums baby Christ figure.

In the second sphere, two automatons dance next to a pile of childrens shoes  in Spain, children traditionally put out a shoe so the Three Wise Men will leave them presents.

Is Christmas canceled? EL PAIS Mayor Ada Colau, who took office in June 2015 after running on a leftist civic platform called Barcelona en Comu, has been accused by conservatives of trying to eliminate Christmas traditions. Last year, the website of the City of Barcelona encouraged all residents to celebrate the winter solstice, noting that this is one of the oldest celebrations around. And not just in our territory, but in the entire world.

Other spheres feature a Picasso-like dove, Christmas trees, banquets and a character out of Catalan mythology known as Home dels Nassos, or Man of the Noses, who is said to have a different nose for every day of the year.

The representation of the Magi is another source of controversy. Instead of the traditional kings of Orient riding camels, there are three photographs of Catalan cultural figures  the painter Joan Miro, the musician Pau Casals and the poet Josep Vicenc Foix  rotating atop carriages with the words Gold, incense and myrrh.

In their defense, the artists say the sculptures on loan from the Olot museum have been approved for worship by the Vatican.

English version by Susana Urra.
HARBOR BEACH  Harbor Beach Community Hospital and Human Development Commission is offering a free Caregiver Education and Support Group. This is a monthly program for anyone who is a caregiver for someone with Dementia, Parkinson, Cancer, etc. This months topic will be SUPPORT, speaker Susan Arthur, LLBSW from the Human Development Commission will help you to better understand and care for your loved ones and yourself. This will take place from 9 to 11 a.m. on Tuesday Dec. 20 in the Administration Building Conference Center at the Harbor Beach Community Hospital at 147 South First Street in Harbor Beach. Refreshments will be provided. This program is partially funded by Region VII Area Agency on Aging.

To register please call 1-989-673-4121 or just stop in.
CASEVILLE  The members of the Caseville Historical Society had their monthly meeting at 10 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 10, at Maccabee Hall, 6733 Prospect St., Caseville.

There were 22 members and one guest present.

President Rich Bass opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance. He welcomed all in attendance. The minutes of the previous meeting and the treasurers report were presented and placed on file.

Bass updated attendees on a Historical Society of Michigan workshop, which will take place Friday. Its called Exhibits on a Shoestring, and begins at 9 a.m. in Lansing. Anyone interested in attending this workshop will find more information available at the museum office.

Bass said a new book about Pinnebog was written by Sue Healy, and is very informative and well researched. Bass reminded everyone of the Huron County Christmas Dinner on Dec. 3 at the senior center in Bad Axe beginning at noon. The speaker will be Janice Stein, who will talk about persons from Huron County serving in World War II. A sign-up sheet was circulated requesting volunteers to work at the museum over the coming month.

Reporting for the Membership Committee, Mary Taylor reported no new members and reminded those present that annual Historical Society Membership dues are due Jan. 1.

Events Committee Chairwoman, Joyce Miller, introduced guest Dale Melson, who is interested in the Civil War. Melson has a collection of Civil War memorabilia and brought some to the museum which were on display following the Michigan in the Civil War presentation Nov. 17.

Also reporting for the Events Committee, Sherry Hoelzle said the Christmas dinner is scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. Dec. 11. The menu includes prime rib and chicken cordon bleau. A fund-raising auction will follow the dinner. Tickets are $25 per person. Limited seating is available and only a few tickets remain.

Other events scheduled for the 2017 calendar year include: the Ice Cream Social on May 29, the Ladies Luncheon on June 10, The Cheeseburger Museum Aug. 11 through the 20, Museum Weekend Sept. 23 and 24, and the Christmas dinner in December. A checkers tournament has been suggested to be during the Shanty Days event but is in need of a coordinator in order to bring this idea to life.

Reporting for the Archival and Museum Committee, Rich Bass said 18 visitors had toured the museum over the past month. He said a large picture was donated by James A. Reeves featuring his great-great grandfather James A. Reeves in his Knight of the Maccabees uniform, circa 1900.

In support of the Genealogy Committee, Barb Eimers is available at the museum the first Thursday of each month at 1 p.m. to help those interested in completing family or building histories. Research materials are available for use at Maccabee Hall to assist in these endeavors.

Reporting for the Development Committee, Dave Krebs offered thanks to those who have been working to complete the upstairs renovations. He thanked D & D Construction, Last Call Drywall, All Pointes Services, Centerline Heating & Cooling, Jim Flock Plumbing, and Caseville true Value Hardware. Krebs said a new furnace is being considered and the electrical and drywall work is nearing completion.

Tom Carriveau reported on the Charity Island Lighthouse restoration. He said an effort is underway to secure funds to make repairs and updates to the light on Charity Island. Glenn Watterworth presented information on the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Watterworth had brought along several items to enhance the information.

The next meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. Dec. 15 at Maccabee Hall. All meetings are open to the public and everyone is invited to attend. Meetings are a great way to meet people and to share in the ambiance of persons interested in preserving the history of the Caseville Area.

For more information, call 989-856-9090, visit the web-site at www.thehchs.org/caseville, e-mail chscm@comcast.net, or like the group on Facebook.
Fidel Castro, the man who changed the history of Cuba with a socialist revolution that pitted the country against the United States for half a century, died on Friday night in Havana. His passing at the age of 90 signifies the disappearance of the most influential political figure of the 20th century in Latin America, a man who was as praised as he was demonized during his long and turbulent life. Having stepped back from power in 2006 due to illness, he retained a symbolic presence as part of the regime he had established in 1959, despite his age and weakness. But now, Fidel, as he was known to millions around the world, is gone. Cuba will move forward without him for the first time in six decades. The future that awaits, whether a hybrid model of single-party capitalism , pluralism under a hegemonic party, or a transition toward democracy , is impossible to predict.

People gather in Havana on Saturday to remember Fidel Castro. A. Ernesto (EFE)

More information Cuba deja atras el siglo XX con la muerte de Fidel Castro

Since stepping back from power, his brother, Raul Castro, 85, has led the country. The president and head of the armed forces announced the death of Fidel in a televised message, which he began with a trembling voice. With a heavy heart I am speaking to you to inform our people, the friends of our America and the world, that today, November 25 at 10.29pm, the Commander in Chief of the Cuban Revolution has died. As the news spread, bars and nightclubs closed, and even the iconic Malecon seafront was deserted as people headed home. The few people who stayed out and were prepared to discuss events spoke of Castro as a respected figure. They were sad but made little fuss. Losing Fidel is like losing a father, a guide, the lighthouse for our revolution, said Michel Rodriguez, a 42-year-old baker in statements to France Presse.

With Fidel Castros passing, the last vestige of the Cold War has expired

We were expecting it, but it is still a surprise, said Havana University history professor Enrique Lopez Oliva, aged 80. This marks the end of an era and the start of another, one that to ordinary people will speed up the process of change, he added.

While there was praise for Castro in Cuba, at least in public, in Miami, the heart of the anti-Castro movement, people came out on the street to celebrate after hearing the news. Little Havana, a historic stronghold for opposition to the Revolution, took on a carnival atmosphere as. Waving Cuban flags, banging pots, pans and drums, they cried: Long live a free Cuba!

The death of Castro also prompted reaction from leaders around the world. The outgoing US president, Barack Obama, the architect of his countrys thaw with the island, offered a measured response, preferring to hold out a hand to the Cuban people. His successor, President-elect Donald Trump, described Castro as a brutal dictator, signalling his intention to bury the rapprochement begun by Obama.

From Venezuela, the main ally of Cuba in Latin America, President Nicolas Maduro urged the revolutionaries of the world to follow the legacy of Castro, while the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, said that the Chinese people had lost a close comrade and dear friend.

On Saturday morning the streets of Havana morning were strangely empty and quiet

Following Castros death, the Cuban government declared nine days of mourning. His ashes will be taken from the capital after a procession across the island to Santiago de Cuba, where they will be interred alongside the remains of Jose Marti, the hero of the War of Independence against Spain, and who Castro considered his predecessor.

On Saturday morning the streets of Havana morning were strangely empty and quiet, according to the Cuban online daily 14 y medio, and absent of the usual cigar sellers, children playing, or queues to buy a newspaper. Leticia Rodriguez, who runs a boarding house, explained via telephone that the death of Castro was the only subject people were talking about. Even his critics are shaken. But everything is calm, we are now waiting for the funeral ceremonies.

Spanish news agency EFE reported that a number of students had gathered at the University of Havana to pay tribute to Castro where he used to say he had become a revolutionary,. We have lost our historic leader, one of the pillars of Latin American and the Caribbean, explained Nelson Ayala.

Following Castros death, the Cuban government declared nine days of mourning

With Fidel Castros passing, the last vestige of the Cold War has expired. The one-time partner of the Soviet Union, who allowed Moscow to install nuclear missiles aimed at the United States, is gone. So too the leader who repelled the CIA-coordinated Bay of Pigs invasion, and the propagator of revolutions around the world and who withstood 11 occupants of the Oval Office.

Cuba must now say goodbye to the leader who took it to the extremes of human experience  from the the triumph of the Revolution and the misery of the Special Period, to the years of hunger after the Soviet Union collapsed.

Raul Castro, the right-hand man of Fidel from the days of combat in the mountains against the forces of dictator Fulgencio Batista, will continue as president until 2018, when he has promised to step down. He will, however, continue to be general secretary of the Cuban Communist Party until 2021. If his health holds up, he will guide the process by which the island will open up to the rest of the world. After that, Vice-President Miguel Diaz-Canel looks set to take over. A former education minister, he is seen as a moderate.

Now, Fidel, as he was known to millions around the world, is gone

It is unclear how relations with the United States will progress once Donald Trump takes office in January. The president-elect has already said he intends to reverse the policies of the outgoing president, demanding that Havana allow political freedom before bilateral relations can established. But the momentum created by Obama, driven in large part by US business interests and widespread public support for improved relations between the two countries, could stymie Trumps demolition plan.

During his last appearance before the Cuban Communist Party conference, in April, the leader of the Cuban Revolution said goodbye to the people who he had schooled in his own particular way. Soon I will be just like everyone else, everyone gets their turn, he said. But the ideas of the Cuban communists will remain.

Fidel Castro will leave a lasting impression on Cuba, and will be the object of lively debate for decades to come. But the Commander-in-Chief has passed away, and Cuba now finds itself, definitively, facing up to the realities of the 21st century.

English version by Simon Hunter.
Ally Financial Inc., a digital financial-services company, provides various digital financial products and services to consumer, commercial, and corporate customers primarily in the United States and Canada. It operates through four segments: Automotive Finance Operations, Insurance Operations, Mortgage Finance Operations, and Corporate Finance Operations. The Automotive Finance Operations segment offers automotive financing services, including providing retail installment sales contracts, loans and operating leases, term loans to dealers, financing dealer floorplans and other lines of credit to dealers, warehouse lines to automotive retailers, and fleet financing. It also provides financing services to companies and municipalities for the purchase or lease of vehicles, and vehicle-remarketing services. The Insurance Operations segment offers consumer finance protection and insurance products through the automotive dealer channel, and commercial insurance products directly to dealers. This segment provides vehicle service and maintenance contract, and guaranteed asset protection products; and underwrites commercial insurance coverages, which primarily insure dealers' vehicle inventory. The Mortgage Finance Operations segment manages consumer mortgage loan portfolio that includes bulk purchases of jumbo and low-to-moderate income mortgage loans originated by third parties, as well as direct-to-consumer mortgage offerings. The Corporate Finance Operations segment provides senior secured leveraged cash flow and asset-based loans to middle market companies; leveraged loans; and commercial real estate product to serve companies in the healthcare industry. The company also offers commercial banking products and services. In addition, it provides securities brokerage and investment advisory services. The company was formerly known as GMAC Inc. and changed its name to Ally Financial Inc. in May 2010. Ally Financial Inc. was founded in 1919 and is based in Detroit, Michigan.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is the 5th largest bank in the world and the largest in the U.S. The current company is the result of a series of mergers that began in the earliest days of American banking history and include more than 1,200 original banks. The oldest predecessor is The Bank Of The Manhattan Company which was founded in 1799 by Aaron Burr. At the time, The Bank Of The Manhattan Company was the 3rd oldest bank in the U.S. and the 31st oldest in the world. The Chase Manhattan Bank, a precursor to JPMorgan Chase, was later formed when The Bank Of Manhattan Company purchased Chase Bank which was established in 1877.

JPMorgan & Co came to life in 1895 in order to finance the United States Steel Corporation. Itself a result of merger, the company also financed other early American businesses as well as aided the federal government by backing a bond offering. It wasnt until the year 2000 and after several more mergers that JPMorgan Chase & Co was born. It will be four more years before the merger with Bank One which is notable because it brings CEO Jamie Dimon into the picture.

JPMorgan Chase & Co was instrumental in aiding the US government during the 2008 financial crisis. It backed the accounts of several major banks including Bear Stearns and eventually took over their operations. Today, JPMorgan Chase & Co operates as a financial services company worldwide with operations on every continent and in more than 60 countries.

JPMorgan Chase & Co operates through four segments that are Consumer & Community Banking (CCB), Corporate & Investment Bank (CIB), Commercial Banking (CB), and Asset & Wealth Management (AWM). Services are available in branches in 48 of the 50 US states and around the world. Services are available via ATM, online, mobile, and telephone.

The CCB segment offers traditional banking services to consumers that include but are not limited to deposits, loans, mortgages, and lines of credit. The CIB segment provides investment banking products and services to businesses, institutions, and governments that range from prime brokerage, insurance, corporate strategy, and access to capital markets, to lending, cross-border financing, and derivative instruments. The CB segment provides financial services for small, medium, and large businesses including commercial real estate banking of all types.

The AWM segment provides investment management solutions to institutional and retail investors. This segment also provides retirement products, brokerage, trusts and estates, and investment management products.
Ag Growth International Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and distributes grain and rice handling, storage, and conditioning equipment in Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company offers storage equipment comprising grain and bolted bins, hopper bins, smooth wall bins, temporary storage equipment, unloads and sweeps, water tanks, fuel tanks; and conditioning equipment, such as mixed flow dryers, fans and heaters, aerations, airaugers, aeration floors, vents and exhausters, stirrings, and accessories. It also provides portable handling equipment, such as portable augers, conveyors, grain vacs, post pounders, seed treaters, and accessories; and permanent handling equipment, including bucket elevators, chain and belt conveyors, enclosed belt conveyors, distributors, feed handling equipment, screw feeders and conveyors, and spouts and connections. In addition, the company offers towers, catwalks, ladders, all-steel buildings, flat storage buildings; batch blenders, bulk scales, declining weight blenders, vertical blenders, micro-dosing systems, mixers, milling equipment; and controllers, hazard monitoring equipment, monitoring and automation equipment, sampling solutions. Further, it provides cleaning and destoners, rice milling and processing equipment, bin unloads, blending and control systems, Liquid and dry fertilizer blending and conveying equipment, turnkey design and build construction solutions for seed and fertilizer facilities, and farm management software. The company markets its products under the AGI, Airlanco, Batco, Brownie, CMC, Compass, Danmare, Ezee-dry, Frame, Grain Guard, Grainmaxx, Hi Roller, Hutchinson, Improtech, Junge, Keho, Mayrath, Milltec, MMS, Neco, PTM, REM, Sabe, Sentinel, Storm, Suretrack, Tramco, Twister, Westeel, Westfield, Wheatheart, and Yargus brand names. It provides its equipment for agricultural commodities. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Winnipeg, Canada.
Spains Civil Guard has detained four terror suspects in the provinces of A Coruna and Almeria. The men, arrested early on Monday morning, are alleged to be members of immigration networks used by the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist terrorist group.

A suspect of jihadism arrested on Sunday at the Madrid airport. Quique Curbelo (EFE)

Those networks are thought to have aided four terrorists who were smuggled into Europe by ISIS via the Greek island of Leros in October 2015. All four were meant to take part in the Paris attacks in November 2015, which left 130 people dead. However, two were arrested in Austria before they made it to France.

Investigators believe the suspects arrested in Spain on Monday were in contact with at least one of the men arrested in Austria both before and after the Paris attacks, the Interior Ministry has said.

Up to 450 citizens or residents of Spain may have traveled to Syria and Iraq over the last two years to join ISIS

Civil Guard intelligence services are now trying to establish whether the detainees are linked to the Paris attacks or were only involved in the people-smuggling ring which brought nearly 200 immigrants to Leros on October 3, 2015.

In a separate operation carried out on Sunday, Civil Guard officers arrested a Canary Islands resident of Palestinian origin at Madrids Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas airport. The man is suspected of trying to travel to Syria to fight for ISIS.

Spain has been at terror alert level four  the second-highest level  since the jihadist attacks against French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in January 2014.

Up to 450 citizens or residents of Spain have traveled to Syria and Iraq over the last two years to join ISIS, according to figures released recently by the Moroccan Center for Strategic Studies. That figure more than doubles the official number of Spain-based recruits estimated by the Interior Ministry, which talks about 190 individuals.

English version by George Mills.
The following companies are subsidiares of PepsiCo: Alimentos Quaker Oats y Compania Limitada, Alimentos del Istmo S.A., Amavale Agricola Ltda., Anderson Hill Insurance Limited, Asia Bottlers Limited, BAESA Capital Corporation Ltd., BFY Brands, BFY Brands LLC, BFY Brands Limited, BUG de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Balmoral Industries LLC, Bare Foods Co., Barrhead LLC, Be & Cheery, Beaman Bottling Company, Bebidas Sudamerica S.A., Beech Limited, Bell Taco Funding Syndicate, Bendler Investments II Ltd, Bendler Investments S.a r.l, Beverage Services Limited, Beverages Foods & Service Industries Inc., Bishkeksut OJSC, Blaue NC S. de R.L. de C.V., Blue Cloud Distribution Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arizona Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Arkansas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Colorado Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Florida Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Georgia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Illinois Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Indiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Iowa Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Kentucky Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Louisiana Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Minnesota Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Mississippi Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Missouri Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nebraska Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Nevada Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of North Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Ohio Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Oklahoma Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Pennsylvania Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of South Carolina Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Tennessee Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Texas Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Virginia Inc., Blue Cloud Distribution of Wisconsin Inc., Blue Ridge Sales LLC, Bluebird Foods Limited, Bluecan Holdings Unlimited Company, Bokomo Zambia Limited, Bolsherechensky Molkombinat JSC, Boquitas Fiestas LLC, Boquitas Fiestas S.R.L., Bottling Group Financing LLC, Bottling Group Holdings LLC, Bottling Group LLC, Bronte Industries Ltd, C & I Leasing Inc., CB Manufacturing Company Inc., CEME Holdings LLC, CMC Investment Company, Caroni Investments LLC, Centro-Mediterranea de Bebidas Carbonicas PepsiCo S.L., Ceres Fruit Juices Pty Ltd, ChampBev Inc., China Concentrate Holdings Hong Kong Limited, Chipsy International for Food Industries S.A.E., Chipsy for Food Industries S.A.E., Chitos Internacional y Cia Ltda, Cipa Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cipa Nordeste Industrial de Produtos Alimentares Ltda., Cocina Autentica Inc., Comercializadora CMC Investment y Compania Limitada, Comercializadora Nacional SAS Ltda., Comercializadora PepsiCo Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., Compania de Bebidas PepsiCo S.L., Concentrate Holding Uruguay Pte. Ltd., Concentrate Manufacturing Singapore Pte. Ltd., Confiteria Alegro S. de R.L. de C.V., Copella Fruit Juices Limited, Copper Beech International LLC, Corina Snacks Limited, Corporativo Internacional Mexicano S. de R.L. de C.V., CytoSport Holdings Inc., CytoSport Inc., Davlyn Realty Corporation, Defosto Holdings Limited, Desarrollo Inmobiliario Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Dilexis S.A., Donon Holdings Limited, Drinkfinity USA Inc., Drinkstation Inc., Drinkstation Innovation Co. Ltd., Drinkstation Limited, Dutch Snacks Holding S.A. de C.V., Duyvis Production B.V., EPIC Enterprises Inc., Echo Bay Holdings Inc., Elaboradora Argentina de Cereales S.R.L., Enter Logistica LLC, Environ at Inverrary Partnership, Environ of Inverrary Inc., Eridanus Investments S.a r.l, Evercrisp Snack Productos de Chile S.A., FL Transportation Inc., FLI Andean LLC, FLI Colombia LLC, FLI Snacks Andean GP LLC, Fabrica PepsiCo Mexicali S. de R.L. de C.V., Fabrica de Productos Alimenticios Rene y Cia S.C.A., Fairlight International SRL, Far East Bottlers Hong Kong Limited, Food Concepts Pioneer Ltd., Forest Akers Nederland B.V., Forty-Six Peaks Holding Inc., Fovarosi Asvanyviz es Uditoipari Zartkoruen Mukodo Reszvenytarsasag, Freshwater International B.V., Frito Lay Gida Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi, Frito Lay Poland Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay Sp. z o.o., Frito Lay de Guatemala y Compania Limitada, Frito-Lay Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Frito-Lay Dip Company Inc., Frito-Lay Dominicana S.A., Frito-Lay Global Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Inc., Frito-Lay Investments B.V., Frito-Lay Manufacturing LLC, Frito-Lay Netherlands Holding B.V., Frito-Lay North America Inc., Frito-Lay Sales Inc., Frito-Lay Trading Company Europe GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company GmbH, Frito-Lay Trading Company Poland GmbH, Frito-Lay Trinidad Unlimited, Fruko Mesrubat Sanayi Limited Sirketi, GB Czech LLC, GB International Inc., GB Russia LLC, GB Slovak LLC, GMP Manufacturing Inc., Gambrinus Investments Limited, Gamesa LLC, Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Gas Natural de Merida S. A. de C. V., Gatorade Puerto Rico Company, General Bottlers of Hungary Inc., Golden Grain Company, Goveh S.R.L., Grayhawk Leasing LLC, Green Hemlock International LLC, Grupo Frito Lay y Compania Limitada, Grupo Gamesa S. de R.L. de C.V., Grupo Mabel, Grupo Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Gulkevichskiy Maslozavod JSC, Hangzhou Baicaowei Corporate Management Consulting Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co, Hangzhou Haomusi Food Co. Ltd., Hangzhou Tao Dao Technology Co. Ltd., Health Warrior, Health Warrior Inc., Heathland LP, Helioscope Limited, Hillbrook Inc., Hillgrove Inc., Hillwood Bottling LLC, Hogganfield Limited Partnership, Holding Company "Opolie" JSC, Homefinding Company of Texas, Hudson Valley Insurance Company, IC Equities Inc., IZZE Beverage Co., Inmobiliaria Interamericana S.A. De C.V., Integrated Beverage Services Bangladesh Limited, Integrated Foods & Beverages Pvt. Ltd., International Bottlers Management Co. LLC, International KAS Aktiengesellschaft, Inversiones Borneo S.R.L., Inversiones PFI Chile Limitada, Inviting Foods Holdings Inc., Inviting Foods LLC, KAS Anorthosis S.a r.l, KAS S.L., KFC, Kevita Inc., Kinvara LLC, Kungursky Molkombinat JSC, Larragana S.L., Latin American Holdings Ltd., Latin American Snack Foods ApS, Latin Foods International LLC, Lebedyansky, Lebedyansky Holdings LLC, Lebedyansky LLC, Limited Liability Company "Sandora", Linkbay Limited, Lithuanian Snacks UAB, Mabel, Marbo Product d.o.o. Beograd, Marbo d.o.o. Laktasi, Matudis - Comercio de Produtos Alimentares Limitada, Matutano - Sociedade de Produtos Alimentares Lda., Mid-America Improvement Corporation, Mountainview Insurance Company Inc., Muscle Milk, NCJV LLC, New Bern Transport Corporation, New Century Beverage Company LLC, Noble Leasing LLC, Northeast Hot-Fill Co-op Inc., Office at Solyanka LLC, Onbiso Inversiones S.L., One World Enterprises LLC, One World Investors Inc., P-A Barbados Bottling Company LLC, P-A Bottlers Barbados SRL, P-Americas LLC, PAS Luxembourg S.a r.l, PAS Netherlands B.V., PBG Canada Holdings II LLC, PBG Canada Holdings Inc., PBG Cyprus Holdings Limited, PBG Investment Partnership, PBG Midwest Holdings S.a r.l, PBG Soda Can Holdings S.a r.l, PCBL LLC, PCNA Manufacturing Inc., PR Beverages Cyprus Holding Limited, PR Beverages Cyprus Russia Holding Limited, PRB Luxembourg S.a r.l, PRS Inc., PSAS Inversiones LLC, PSE Logistica S.R.L., PT Quaker Indonesia, Papas Chips S.A., Pei N.V., Pep Trade LLC, Pepsi B.V., Pepsi Beverages Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bottling Group Global Finance LLC, Pepsi Bottling Group GmbH, Pepsi Bottling Group Hoosiers B.V., Pepsi Bottling Holdings Inc., Pepsi Bugshan Investments S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Colombia Ltda, Pepsi Cola Egypt S.A.E., Pepsi Cola Panamericana S.R.L., Pepsi Cola Servis Ve Dagitim Limited Sirketi, Pepsi Cola Trading Ireland, Pepsi Logistics Company Inc., Pepsi Northwest Beverages LLC, Pepsi Overseas Investments Partnership, Pepsi Promotions Inc., Pepsi-Cola Advertising and Marketing Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bermuda Limited, Pepsi-Cola Bottlers Holding C.V., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company Of St. Louis Inc., Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company of Ft. Lauderdale-Palm Beach LLC, Pepsi-Cola Company, Pepsi-Cola Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Pepsi-Cola Far East Trade Development Co. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Finance LLC, Pepsi-Cola General Bottlers Poland Sp. z o.o., Pepsi-Cola Industrial da Amazonia Ltda., Pepsi-Cola International Cork, Pepsi-Cola International LLC, Pepsi-Cola International Limited, Pepsi-Cola International Limited U.S.A., Pepsi-Cola International Private Limited, Pepsi-Cola Korea Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Management and Administrative Services Inc., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Company Of Uruguay S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing International Limited, Pepsi-Cola Manufacturing Mediterranean Limited, Pepsi-Cola Marketing Corp. Of P.R. Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mediterranean Ltd., Pepsi-Cola Metropolitan Bottling Company Inc., Pepsi-Cola Mexicana Holdings LLC, Pepsi-Cola Mexicana S. de R.L. de C.V., Pepsi-Cola National Marketing LLC, Pepsi-Cola Operating Company Of Chesapeake And Indianapolis, Pepsi-Cola Sales and Distribution Inc., Pepsi-Cola Technical Operations Inc., Pepsi-Cola Thai Trading Co. Ltd., Pepsi-Cola de Honduras S.R.L., Pepsi-Cola of Corvallis Inc., PepsiAmericas Nemzetkozi Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, PepsiCo ANZ Holdings Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Alimentos Antioquia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Colombia Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Ecuador Cia. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos Z.F. Ltda., PepsiCo Alimentos de Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Amacoco Bebidas Do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCo Asia Research & Development Center Company Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Cyprus Limited, PepsiCo Australia Financing Limited Partnership, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 1 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Partner 2 LLC, PepsiCo Australia Financing Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Australia Holdings Pty Limited, PepsiCo Australia International, PepsiCo Austria Services GmbH, PepsiCo Azerbaijan Limited Liability Company, PepsiCo BeLux BV, PepsiCo Beverage Sales LLC, PepsiCo Beverage Singapore Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Beverages Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Beverages International Limited, PepsiCo Beverages Italia Societa' A Responsabilita' Limitata, PepsiCo Canada Finance LLC, PepsiCo Canada Holdings ULC, PepsiCo Canada Investment ULC, PepsiCo Canada ULC, PepsiCo Captive Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Caribbean Inc., PepsiCo China Limited, PepsiCo Consulting Polska Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo De Bolivia S.R.L., PepsiCo Del Paraguay S.R.L., PepsiCo Deutschland GmbH, PepsiCo Eesti AS, PepsiCo Euro Bermuda Limited, PepsiCo Euro Finance Antilles B.V., PepsiCo Europe Support Center S.L., PepsiCo Finance Americas Company, PepsiCo Finance Antilles A N.V., PepsiCo Finance Antilles B N.V., PepsiCo Finance South Africa Proprietary Limited, PepsiCo Financial Shared Services Inc., PepsiCo Food & Beverage Holdings Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo Foods A.I.E., PepsiCo Foods China Company Limited, PepsiCo Foods Group Pty Ltd, PepsiCo Foods Guangdong Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Nigeria Limited, PepsiCo Foods Private Limited, PepsiCo Foods Sichuan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Taiwan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Foods Vietnam Company, PepsiCo France SAS, PepsiCo Global Business Services India LLP, PepsiCo Global Business Services Poland Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Global Holdings Limited, PepsiCo Global Investments B.V., PepsiCo Global Investments S.a r.l, PepsiCo Global Mobility LLC, PepsiCo Global Real Estate Inc., PepsiCo Global Trading Solutions Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Golden Holdings Inc., PepsiCo Group Finance International B.V., PepsiCo Group Holdings International B.V., PepsiCo Group Spotswood Holdings S.a r.l, PepsiCo Gulf International FZE, PepsiCo Hellas Single Member Industrial and Commercial Societe Anonyme, PepsiCo Holding de Espana S.L., PepsiCo Holdings, PepsiCo Holdings LLC, PepsiCo Holdings Toshkent LLC, PepsiCo Hong Kong LLC, PepsiCo Iberia Servicios Centrales S.L., PepsiCo India Holdings Private Limited, PepsiCo India Sales Private Limited, PepsiCo Internacional Mexico S. de R. L. de C. V., PepsiCo International Hong Kong Limited, PepsiCo International Limited, PepsiCo International Pte Ltd., PepsiCo Investments Europe I B.V., PepsiCo Investments Ltd., PepsiCo Ireland Food & Beverages Unlimited Company, PepsiCo Japan Co. Ltd., PepsiCo Light B.V., PepsiCo Logistyka Sp. z o.o., PepsiCo Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., PepsiCo Management Services SAS, PepsiCo Manufacturing A.I.E., PepsiCo Max B.V., PepsiCo Mexico Holdings S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo Nederland B.V., PepsiCo Nordic Denmark ApS, PepsiCo Nordic Finland Oy, PepsiCo Nordic Norway AS, PepsiCo Nutrition Trading DMCC, PepsiCo One B.V., PepsiCo Overseas Corporation, PepsiCo Overseas Financing Partnership, PepsiCo Panimex Inc, PepsiCo Products B.V., PepsiCo Products FLLC, PepsiCo Puerto Rico Inc., PepsiCo Sales Inc., PepsiCo Sales LLC, PepsiCo Services Asia Ltd., PepsiCo Services CZ s.r.o., PepsiCo Services LLC, PepsiCo Twist B.V., PepsiCo UK Pension Plan Trustee Limited, PepsiCo Ventures B.V., PepsiCo Wave Holdings LLC, PepsiCo World Trading Company Inc., PepsiCo Y LLC, PepsiCo de Argentina S.R.L., PepsiCo de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., PepsiCo do Brasil Industria e Comercio de Alimentos Ltda., PepsiCo do Brasil Ltda., PepsiCola Interamericana de Guatemala S.A., Pet Iberia S.L., Pete & Johnny Limited, Pine International LLC, Pine International Limited, Pinstripe Leasing LLC, Pioneer Food Group Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Groceries Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Group Ltd., Pioneer Foods Holdings Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods Pty Ltd, Pioneer Foods UK Ltd, Pioneer Foods Wellingtons Pty Ltd, Pipers Crisps Limited, PlayCo Inc., Pop corners, PopCorners Holdings Inc., Portfolio Concentrate Solutions Unlimited Company, Premier Nutrition Trading L.L.C., Prestwick LLC, Prev PepsiCo Sociedade Previdenciaria, Productos Alimenticios Rene LLC, Productos S.A.S. C.V., Productos SAS Management B.V., Punch N.V., Punica Getranke GmbH, Q O Puerto Rico Inc., QFL OHQ Sdn. Bhd., QTG Development Inc., QTG Services Inc., Quadrant - Amroq Beverages S.R.L., Quaker Development B.V., Quaker European Beverages LLC, Quaker European Investments B.V., Quaker Foods, Quaker Global Investments B.V., Quaker Holdings UK Limited, Quaker Manufacturing LLC, Quaker Oats Asia Inc., Quaker Oats Australia Pty Ltd, Quaker Oats B.V., Quaker Oats Capital Corporation, Quaker Oats Europe Inc., Quaker Oats Europe LLC, Quaker Oats Limited, Quaker Sales & Distribution Inc, Raptas Finance S.a r.l., Rare Fare Foods LLC, Rare Fare Holdings Inc., Reading Industries Ltd, Real Estate Holdings LLC, Rockstar Energy Drink, Rolling Frito-Lay Sales LP, S & T of Mississippi Inc., SIH International LLC, SVC Logistics Inc., SVC Manufacturing Inc., SVE Russia Holdings GmbH, Sabritas LLC, Sabritas S. de R.L. de C.V., Sabritas Snacks America Latina de Nicaragua y Cia Ltda, Sabritas de Costa Rica S. de R.L., Sabritas y Cia. S en C de C.V., Sakata Rice Snacks Australia Pty Ltd, Sandora Holdings B.V., Saudi Snack Foods Company Limited, Sea Eagle International SRL, Seepoint Holdings Ltd., Senselet Food Processing PLC, Senselet Holding B.V., Servicios GBF Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada, Servicios GFLG y Compania Limitada, Servicios Gamesa Puerto Rico L.L.C., Servicios SYC S. de R.L. de C.V., Seven-Up Asia Inc., Seven-Up Light B.V., Seven-Up Nederland B.V., Shanghai PepsiCo Snack Company Limited, Shanghai YuHo Agricultural Development Co. Ltd, Shoebill LLC, Simba (Proprietary) Limited, Simba Proprietary Limited, Sitka Spruce, Smartfoods Inc., Smiles and Bites Holdings S.de R.L. de C.V., Smiths Crisps Limited, Snack Food Investments GmbH, Snack Food Investments II GmbH, Snack Food Investments Limited, Snack Food-Beverage Asia Products Limited, Snacks America Latina S.R.L., Snacks Guatemala Ltd., So Spark Ltd., Soda-Club CO2 Atlantic GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 GmbH, Soda-Club CO2 Ltd., Soda-Club Switzerland GmbH, Soda-Club Worldwide B.V., SodaStream, SodaStream Australia Pty Ltd, SodaStream CO2 SA, SodaStream Canada Ltd., SodaStream Enterprises N.V., SodaStream France SAS, SodaStream GmbH, SodaStream Iberia S.L., SodaStream Industries Ltd., SodaStream International B.V., SodaStream International Ltd., SodaStream Israel Ltd., SodaStream K.K., SodaStream New Zealand Ltd., SodaStream Nordics AB, SodaStream Poland Sp. z o.o., SodaStream SA Pty Ltd., SodaStream Switzerland GmbH, SodaStream USA Inc., SodaStream Osterreich GmbH, South Beach Beverage Company Inc., South Properties Inc., Spitz International Inc., Sportmex Internacional S.A. de C.V., Springboig Industries Ltd, Spruce Limited, Stacy's Pita Chip Company Incorporated, Star Foods E.M. S.R.L., Stokely-Van Camp Inc., Stratosphere Communications Pty Ltd, Stratosphere Holdings 2018 Limited, Streamfoods Ltd, TFL Holdings LLC, Tasman Finance S.a r.l, The Gatorade Company, The Good Carb Food Company Ltd., The Pepsi Bottling Group Canada ULC, The Quaker Oats Company, The Smith's Snackfood Company Pty Limited, Thomond Group Holdings Limited, Tobago Snack Holdings LLC, Tropicana Alvalle S.L., Tropicana Beverages Limited, Tropicana Europe N.V., Tropicana United Kingdom Limited, Troya-Ultra LLC, United Foods Companies Restaurantes S.A., V-Water, VentureCo Israel Ltd, Veurne Snack Foods BV, Vitamin Brands Ltd., Walkers Crisps Limited, Walkers Group Limited, Walkers Snack Foods Limited, Walkers Snacks Distribution Limited, Walkers Snacks Limited, Whitman Corporation, Whitman Insurance Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Beverages JSC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Brands Co. Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann Central Asia-Almaty LLP, Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods LLC, Wimm-Bill-Dann Georgia Ltd., Wimm-Bill-Dann JSC, and Wimm-Bill-Dann Ukraine PJSC.

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CIRCOR International, Inc. designs, manufactures, and distributes flow and motion control products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, North America, and internationally. The company has a product portfolio of brands serving its customers' demanding applications. It operates through two segments, Aerospace & Defense and Industrial. The Aerospace & Defense segment manufactures and markets control valves, pumps, regulators, fluid controls, actuation systems, pneumatic valves and controls, electro-mechanical controls, motors, and other flow control products and systems; propeller pumps; MIL-spec butterfly valves and actuators; brushless dc motors; switches; and actuation components and sub-systems. Its products and services are used in the military and defense, commercial aerospace, business and general aviation, and general industrial markets, as well as serves aircraft manufacturers and tier 1 suppliers. This segment offers its products under the CIRCOR Aerospace, Aerodyne Controls, CIRCOR Bodet, CIRCOR Industria, CIRCOR Motors, Hale Hamilton, Leslie Controls, Portland Valve, and Warren Pumps brands. The Industrial segment provides 3 and 2 screw pumps, progressing cavity pumps, specialty centrifugal pumps, and gear metering pumps; automatic recirculation valves; engineered valves; positive displacement pumps; general service control valves; and actuation and unheading devices for the end-users and original equipment manufacturers, as well as engineering, procurement, and construction companies. This segment offers its products under the Allweiler, DeltaValve, Houttuin, IMO Pump, IMO AB, Leslie Controls, RG Lawrence, RTK, Schroedahl, TapcoEnpro, Tushaco, and Zenith brands. The company markets its solutions directly and through various sales partners to approximately 14,000 customers in approximately 130 countries. CIRCOR International, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in Burlington, Massachusetts.
Post Holdings, Inc. operates as a consumer packaged goods holding company in the United States and internationally. It operates through five segments: Post Consumer Brands, Weetabix, Foodservice, Refrigerated Retail, and BellRing Brands. The Post Consumer Brands segment manufactures, markets, and sells branded and private label ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal and hot cereal products. It serves grocery stores, mass merchandise customers, supercenters, club stores, natural/specialty stores, and drug store customers, as well as sells its products in the military, ecommerce, and foodservice channels. The Weetabix segment primarily markets and distributes branded and private label RTE cereal, hot cereals and other cereal-based food products, breakfast drinks, and muesli. This segment sells its products to grocery stores, discounters, wholesalers, and convenience stores, as well as through ecommerce. The Foodservice segment produces and distributes egg and potato products in the foodservice and food ingredient channels. It serves foodservice distributors and national restaurant chains. The Refrigerated Retail segment produces and distributes side dishes, eggs and egg products, sausages, cheese, and other dairy and refrigerated products for grocery stores and mass merchandise customers. The BellRing Brands segment markets and distributes ready-to-drink (RTD) protein shakes, other RTD beverages, powders, nutrition bars, and supplements. It serves club stores, food, drug and mass customers, and online retailers, as well as specialty retailers, convenience stores, and distributors. Post Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1895 and is headquartered in Saint Louis, Missouri.
Robert Half International Inc. provides staffing and risk consulting services in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The company operates through three segments: Temporary and Consultant Staffing, Permanent Placement Staffing, and Risk Consulting and Internal Audit Services. It places temporary services for accounting, finance, and bookkeeping; temporary and full-time office and administrative personnel consisting of executive and administrative assistants, receptionists, and customer service representatives; full-time accounting, financial, tax, and accounting operations personnel; and information technology contract professionals and full-time employees in the areas of platform systems integration to end-user technical and desktop support, including specialists in application development, networking and cloud, systems integration and deployment, database design and administration, and security and business continuity. The company also offers temporary and full-time employees in attorney, paralegal, legal administrative, and legal secretarial positions; and senior-level project professionals in the accounting and finance fields for financial systems conversions, expansion into new markets, business process re-engineering, business systems performance improvement, and post-merger financial consolidation. It is involved in serving professionals in the areas of creative, design, marketing, advertising, and public relations; and placing various positions, such as creative directors, graphics designers, web designers, media buyers, front end developers, copywriters, digital marketing managers, marketing analytics specialists, brand managers, and public relations specialists. The company provides internal audit, technology consulting, risk and compliance consulting, and business performance services. It serves clients and employment candidates. Robert Half International Inc. was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California.
Few people were watching the official television channel at that time. News of Fidel Castros death began spreading on Friday night by telephone, like a vague piece of information. Again? asked my own mother when I told her about it. Born in 1957, this Havana native is going on 60 and does not recall life before the Commander-in-Chief took power in Cuba.

EVA VAZQUEZ

On Friday, three generations of Cubans closed a chapter on a period of history that each will define in their own way. Some will argue that with the leaders departure, a piece of our nation is also lost and that the Island now seems somehow incomplete. They are the ones who will shape the Fidelism creed that is sure to replace our imported Marxism-Leninism in all the manuals, the slogans and the passionate pledges of continuity.

The propagandists of the Fidel myth will place his five-letter name in the pantheon of national history. They will dedicate a revolutionary prayer to him every time that reality appears to refute the teachings that he left behind in his many hours of endless speeches. To his followers, anything bad that happens from now on will be because he is no longer with us.

In Miami, the exiles whom he so derided in his harangues are now celebrating the dictators last journey. And on the island, inside the privacy of their own homes, some people are uncorking bottles of rum. Ive been keeping it for so long that I thought I would never be able to drink it, said a neighbor.

More information Cuba sobrevive a Fidel Castro

He is one of the Cubans who woke up on Saturday morning with the feeling that a weight has been lifted off their shoulders  a feeling of lightness that they are still unaccustomed to.

This is also the time to remember those who did not make it this far: those who died under the Castro regime, who drowned at sea, who were the victims of the censorship imposed by the Maximum Leader, or who lost their sanity as a result of the delirious projects he sponsored. A vast chorus of victims voices is being heard today through the sighs of relief of the survivors, the displays of euphoria on the streets of Florida, and through a simple amen.

Raul Castro has been orphaned. He does not know life without his brother

The vast majority of Cubans, however, reacted to news of the lavish funeral preparations by turning down the TV volume and expressing their weariness with a shrug of the shoulders. This indifference is in stark contrast with the incoming messages of condolence from international leaders, whether those with ideological affinities to the regime or those without. On Havanas Malecon wall, just a couple of hours after Raul Castro had announced his brothers death, several groups of people continued to behave as they would on any other night, surrounded by an aura of sweat, sensuality, tedium and void.

Cubans who were under 15 in July 2006, when the presidents illness was first announced, can barely remember the sound of his voice. All they know are the photographs that he appeared in lately when he was being visited by some foreign dignitary, or else they are familiar with his increasingly nonsensical thoughts. This is a generation that never felt the thrill of Fidels oratorical prowess, and never backed his fearsome cry of Paredon!  the wall against which people were executed by firing squads  that made Revolution Square tremble.

These young people have already done the job of reducing Castros historical dimension to a size inversely proportional to the lack of moderation he exhibited in his governing style. They will not stop listening to a single line of their favorite reggaeton song in order to utter a Viva Fidel!. They will not give birth to a new generation of babies who will bear the deceaseds name, nor will they bang their own chests and tear out their hair during the burial ceremony.

Raul Castro (left) is himself 85 and it is unclear who will take his place. AFP

Never had there been less talk about the Commander-in-Chief than at the time of his passing. Never had oblivion loomed larger over his figure than when his demise was announced. The man who once filled every minute of Cubas life for more than 50 years gradually became dimmer, disappearing from peoples view in what is akin to an extremely long movie in which a character slowly walks away, getting smaller until he is nothing but a speck in our retina.

He leaves behind him the great lesson of Cuban contemporary history: that weaving the nations destiny into the will of a single man ends up transmitting the latters personality flaws to the entire country, and infuses a single human being with the arrogant belief that he speaks for everyone. For decades to come, his olive green cap and his Greek profile will fuel the nightmares of some, and the poetic digressions of others, not to mention the populist promises of many world leaders.

His anti-imperialism, as he stubbornly called it, will be remembered as his most constant trait, and the only issue that he managed to take to its last consequences. It is not for nothing that the United States was the second-most-prominent character in the documentaries that the state broadcaster began airing as soon as the news was announced. Castros obsession with his neighbor to the north always informed every step of his political life.

The eternal question that foreign reporters used to ask finally has an answer: What will happen when Fidel Castro dies? Today, we know that he will be cremated and that his ashes will be taken up and down the island, then laid to rest at Santa Ifigenia cemetery, just meters away from Jose Martis grave. There will be tears and nostalgia, but his legacy will gradually wear away.

The State Council has decreed nine days of national mourning, but the official panegyric will last for months  enough to cover up the narrow reality of post-Fidelism, a system that the current president is trying to keep afloat by adding patches of market economy and calling upon the very foreign capital that his brother abominated.

The good cop-bad cop routine that the brothers used to act out before our eyes is now missing one of its parts. It will be difficult for Raul supporters to defend that the reforms are not going faster or deeper simply because, inside a mansion in Punto Cero, in Havanas outskirts, a ninety-something man has his foot on the brake.

Raul Castro has been orphaned. He does not know life without his brother, or has ever undertaken political action without first wondering what his brother would think about his decisions. He has never taken a step without those eyes staring at him, judging him, pushing him forward and underestimating him.

Fidel Castro is dead. He is survived by a nation that has already been through too much mourning to wear the colors of widowhood.

Yoani Sanchez is a Cuban journalist and editor of the digital daily 14ymedio.

English version by Susana Urra.
Camp Lejeune Town Halls Aim to Help Those Exposed to Toxic Water. Heres How You Can Go.

Retired Marine Master Sgt. Jerry Ensminger made it his mission to tell the world that if they lived or served on Camp Lejeune...
1. Trump Considering Retired Marine Generals for Defense, State

President-elect Donald Trump is considering retired Marine generals for secretary of defense and secretary of state. While he still wants retired Marine Gen. James Mattis at the Pentagon, the delayed announcement has some speculating that Trump may be weighing others for the job or that Mattis -- who would require a congressional waiver -- may not want it. Even so, the former head of Central Command has apparently convinced Trump to rethink his position on waterboarding. And after a key aide attacked former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney on the Sunday talk shows, Trump is also mulling retired Gen. John Kelly for secretary of state, according to The Associated Press. Retired Army Gen. David Petraeus is also under consideration for secretary of state. Meanwhile, Trump is considering the retiring Rep. Jeff Miller of Florida and former Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts for VA secretary, Politico has reported.

2. After Castro's Death, Will Trump Expand Guantanamo?

Trump seemed to welcome the news on Friday that Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, 90, died after ruling the Caribbean nation for nearly half a century and playing a major role in the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, tweeting, "Fidel Castro is dead!" President Barack Obama campaigned on a pledge to close the military prison on Guantanamo Bay, and while he reduced the number of inmates there from about 240 to about 60 (with 20 more cleared to be expatriated), his efforts to shutter the detention center were repeatedly defeated by lawmakers in Congress, according to Fox News. Trump, on the other hand, has vowed to increase the size of the facility, saying in April, "we're gonna load it up with some bad dudes, believe me, we're gonna load it up," the network reported.

3. Lawmakers to Review Force Levels in Iraq, Afghanistan

Rep. Vicky Hartzler, a Republican from Missouri and chairwoman of the House Armed Services Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, will hold a hearing at 10 a.m. Thursday to study U.S. force levels in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some 5,000 American troops are serving in Iraq to help Iraqi and Kurdish forces battle militants affiliated with the Islamic State. The U.S. plans to keep some 8,400 U.S. service members in Afghanistan next year. Watch for retired Army Gen. Carter Ham, among those testifying, to argue for bigger military footprints in both countries. It's unclear whether the discussion will touch on Syria, where roughly 300 American troops are serving and where Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott Cooper Dayton was killed by a roadside bomb on Thanksgiving, becoming the first U.S. service member to die in the fight against ISIS in the country.

4. Senators to Scrutinize Navy's Troubled LCS Program

Sen. John McCain, a Republican from Arizona and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, plans to grill senior Navy and Pentagon officials on the status of the service's troubled Littoral Combat Ship program during a hearing of the panel set for 9:30 a.m. Thursday. The USS Montgomery, an Independence-class trimaran made by Austal, this month sustained a second crack to its hull. The incident was the latest setback for the $36 billion acquisition effort. Out of eight vessels delivered to the Navy, five have either sustained damage or encountered engineering problems. More information on the hearing is here.

5. Pentagon Leaders to Attend Reagan Defense Forum

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford will be among the several hundred defense experts attending the annual Reagan National Defense Forum, set to run all day Saturday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. Dunford will give the keynote address beginning at 12:15 p.m., while Carter will provide closing remarks beginning at 5 p.m. The theme of this year's event is "Peace Through Strength: National Defense and the New Administration." Panelists will discuss a number of issues, from the presidential transition to strategic deterrence to cyberattacks. The full agenda is here.

-- Editor's note: This story was updated to correct the number of troops authorized to operate in Syria in the third paragraph.

-- Hope Hodge Seck and Richard Sisk contributed to this report.

-- Brendan McGarry can be reached at brendan.mcgarry@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Brendan_McGarry.
Depending on your PT test, the order of swimming may best be determined by where it is in the order of events of that test.
Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

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

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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

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The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

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
GRAND RAPIDS, MI - Dematic North America - which announced plans to close its local production facilities in favor of its new plant in Mexico in January - has said it will keep its Grand Rapids factory operating until at least next fall.

The announcement, which affects about 250 local production workers, is unrelated to the election of Republican Donald Trump, who railed against the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and promised to penalize American companies that shipped jobs to Mexico.

"It hasn't had any effect," said Dematic President John Baysore in telephone interview with MLive and The Grand Rapids Press on Monday, Nov. 28. "The bottom line is our business is growing like crazy."

The timetable to shut down local production have been moved back to the fall of 2017, which could mean anytime between September and December, depending on the strength of current orders, Baysore said.

The decision to keep Dematic's production facilities in Grand Rapids open hinges on the new orders and Dematic's need for manufacturing capacity, Baysore said. "This is just about adjusting to our capacity requirements."

Locally based at 507 Plymouth Ave. NE, Dematic designs and builds automated systems for warehouses, distribution centers and other sites with material-moving needs. About 900 of its local employees have white collar and engineering jobs.

During the past year, Dematic's blue collar employment has fluctuated between 200 and 300, depending on its orders, according to company spokeswoman Cheryl Falk.

Baysore said the decision to keep its local production facilities open also is not related to the company's recent acquisition by KION, a German maker of forklift trucks and automated material handling equipment. KION closed on its $2.1 billion purchase on Nov. 1.

Earlier this year, members of the United Auto Workers Local 1485 said they had no response to the company's threat to move 300 manufacturing jobs to its factory in Monterrey, Mexico.

"When we looked up the pay rates in Monterrey, we found they were anywhere from $1.50 to $1.80 an hour," said Scott Wahlfeldt, president of Local 1485. "It's really difficult for anybody here in the United States to accept wages like that. It would be illegal."

Dematic's 300 blue collar workers earn anywhere from $11.55 to $19.19 per hour for unskilled positions, Wahlfeldt said. Skilled positions pay up to $24.26 an hour, he said.

Dematic's factory at the corner of Plymouth Road and Michigan Street NE has been a fixture in the Grand Rapids manufacturing scene for more than 75 years.

The company was founded as the Rapids-Standard Company in 1939 when industrialist James R. Sebastian merged his business, Standard Truck Caster Company, with Rapids Manufacturing Company of Grand Rapids. The company's name was changed to Rapistan in 1966.

In 1980, the company was acquired by Lear Siegler Corp. and exchanged hands four times until 2006, when it was acquired by Triton, a private equity firm.
ANN ARBOR, MI - Hundreds of Ann Arbor residents and their children gathered at the Kerrytown Market and Shops for the annual Christmas tree lighting on Sunday, Nov. 27.

"The best part of this is that it brings our community together. It's not about shopping, it's about community and kicking off the holiday season in a positive way," said Karen Farmer, Organizer and Manager of the Kerrytown Market and Shops.

Farmer, who has been organizing the tree lighting for about 10 years, said it started with about 20 people and has grown into hundreds attending as it was on Sunday.

Members from the Pioneer High School choir sang Christmas carols with the crowd while children held onto fake candles eagerly awaiting the arrival of Santa Claus.

As Santa arrived, children screamed with excitement and hoped for a chance to talk with him before he counted down from 10 to light the tree.

Afterwards, Santa stayed until every child got to talk and have their picture taken with him.

"I think people come because it's genuine and sweet," said Farmer.
ANN ARBOR, MI - A woman in Ann Arbor received quite a scare on Thanksgiving week when she opened a bag of California grapes and found what appeared to be a venomous black widow spider inside.

"It was really creepy. It was a big one," said Ariel Raupagh of Ann Arbor. "I definitely jumped back."

Her husband, Elliott, came to the rescue and helped capture the arachnid in a Tupperware container, which they then stuck in the freezer.

The jury is still out on whether it definitely is a black widow, but Raupagh and at least one expert who's looked at photos of it say it sure looks like one.

Raupagh is considering taking it to a University of Michigan professor for verification. Luckily, she said, no one was bitten.

The venomous bite of widow spiders is considered harmful to humans because of the neurotoxin latrotoxin.

Raupagh said she bought the Sunview-brand grapes from the Kroger store on Plymouth Road on Monday, Nov. 21.

She pulled the bag out to rinse the grapes on Wednesday morning, Nov. 23, and that's when the eight-legged stowaway came crawling out.

Raupagh said she knows what a black widow looks like from a past encounter with one in a tent while doing field biology work in California, and she believes that's what she found in her grapes, which were imported from California. She suspects the spider hitched a ride here from California.

"It's a fairly good guess because, to my knowledge, we don't have very many black widows around here," she said. "It's got the distinctive hour glass on it."

Barry OConnor, a professor in the University of Michigan's department of ecology and evolutionary biology who has a doctorate in entomology, examined Raupagh's photos of the spider and believes it's definitely a widow (genus Latrodectus), and probably a western widow (species L. hesperus).

OConnor said the red, hour-glass marking visible on the spider is pretty characteristic of North American widow spiders. But if it really came here on grapes from California, he said, it's probably the western widow.

"The northern widow is native to Michigan but isn't seen very much and

would not be active in the cold weather we've been having," he said, adding all widow spiders can be dangerous to people due to their toxic venom.

Anne Danielson-Francois, an associate professor of biology at U-M-Dearborn whose research focus includes spiders, also looked at the photos and believes it appears to be a "false widow" (genus Steatoda), which she said is common and not a danger to anyone. She said widows typically have bright red markings, whereas false widows have dull, dark-brown markings.

"I do not see the bright red markings that would indicate a black widow on the abdomen," she wrote in an email. "However, the photos are poor quality, dark and blurry. And I cannot clearly see important features such as eye arrangements and genitalia that are used in spider identification."

Danielson-Francois said black widows are found in Michigan. She said they're not common down in this part of the state, but certainly up north.

Rachel Hurst, consumer affairs manager for Kroger, said it's uncommon for customers to find spiders in their grapes, but it can happen.

She and a Sunview representative both said the grapes are packed out in the fields where spiders are common.

"We just don't see it a lot on Kroger's end," Hurst said of spiders making the trip from a vineyard in California to a store in Michigan.

Even if it was a black widow, Hurst said, it wouldn't damage or poison the grapes because spiders are around vineyards only to feed on insects.

As the amount of pesticides used in the field have been reduced due to consumer demand, Hurst added, there are more insects and spiders now.

"It's not due to a store situation," she said, adding it also is not a reflection of store uncleanliness.

Hurst said the grapes come pre-packaged and are put straight on store shelves after being taken out of crates and boxes, and Kroger does not wash them.

She said Kroger is willing to offer Raupagh a refund or exchange as compensation for the spider encounter.

Raupagh said she's just glad no one was bitten.

She said her 4-year-old son sometimes reaches in and eats grapes straight from the bag, but she doesn't think he did this time.

Raupagh said she also appreciates that the presence of a spider might be a sign that Sunview isn't overdoing it with pesticides.

"I like to see signs of life in my grapes," she said.

"Just maybe not a black widow."

OConnor said he actually dealt with a nearly identical situation many years ago when another Kroger customer found a black widow in some produce.
ANN ARBOR, MI - During campus attacks like the one that occurred at the Ohio State University on Monday, Nov. 28, police at the University of Michigan closely monitor developments and are prepared to respond should they be needed on campus.

U-M Division of Public Safety and Security Public Information Officer Diane Brown said officers were aware of Monday's incident and "are diligent in their U-M patrols."

"We closely monitor developments - including through federal, state, and local resources - to adjust as needed to local needs," Brown said in an email. "As always we encourage anyone who sees something suspicious to call 911 right away. "

During the attack at OSU, which was done with a car and butcher knife, and was not an active shooter incident as originally reported, the campus was a frenzy after the school sent out a series of tweets warning students of an active shoot and that they should "run, hide, fight."

Brown said U-M police have a Run, Hide, Fight page on its website informing students of what steps they should take in the event of an attack or an active shooter.

Students are first urged to move away from the threat as quickly as possible; evacuate regardless if others agree; and leave their belongings behind when they are informed of an active shooter or attack incident.

If an evacuation isn't possible, students are then urged find a secure place to hide and barricade themselves in by locking and securing doors; create barriers to prevent or slow down the threat from getting to them; and remain out of sight and quiet, including silencing their phones.

As a last resort, students are told to attempt to disrupt or incapacitate an active shooter or attacker "only when your life is in imminent danger." In this scenario, they are urged to incorporate a distraction by throwing items or yelling loudly; be aggressive and use improvised weapons; and disarm a shooter or attacker and solicit help.

The Associated Press reported the Ohio State suspect was shot and killed by an officer Monday morning, Nov. 28. Nine people were injured in the attack with one of the injuries being described as critical. Two were treated for stab wounds, four for injuries suffered from the car, and two others for cuts, according to the school.

An alert was sent to students shortly before 10 a.m. Monday morning.

University police chief Craig Stone told the Associated Press that the suspect drove over a curb near a classroom building and that an officer near the scene shot the attacker. School officials are saying that the threat to the campus ended when the attacker was shot.

Jacob Bower, a 20-year-old Ohio State student, told CNN that he witnessed the man pull a knife near Koffolt Laboratories and Watts Hall on campus.

"He pulled a large knife and started chasing people around, trying to attack them," Bower told the network."Luckily there were so many people, he couldn't focus on one target. I didn't see anyone get stabbed, but I saw the police officer take down the stabber.

"He waited till everyone was clear, and the stabber clearly wasn't stopping. (It) took three shots to take him down. (The) stabber had a crazy look in his eyes."
Richard Spencer,Richard B. Spencer

In this Nov. 18, 2016, photo, Richard Spencer attends the largest white nationalist and Alt Right conference of the year, in Washington. The University of Michigan said it has not received any confirmation that Spencer will appear on campus to speak, despite a recent Washington Post story claiming he planned to begin visiting college campuses like U-M. (Linda Davidson/The Washington Post via AP)

(Linda Davidson)

ANN ARBOR, MI - The University of Michigan says it's not aware of any upcoming campus visit by the man credited for coining the term "alt-right,"contrary to a recent story in The Washington Post claiming he planned to visit in the coming weeks.

U-M Spokesperson Kim Broekhuizen said the university can't confirm Richard Spencer has been extended an invitation to speak on campus, and the university is "not aware of any invitations sent by student groups at this time."

Broekhuizen said only a student organization would be able to rent space for Spencer to speak at a location on campus like the Diag -- not an independent organization. Spencer's group, the National Policy Institute, does not list any future speaking engagements on the U-M campus.

The Post article said Spencer planned to speak at Texas A&M and the University of Michigan in the coming weeks. The article referenced Spencer playing a video on his phone, where U-M students were filmed chanting, "No alt-right! No KKK! No racist USA!"

"We're getting under their skin," Spencer said in the article. "I take a sadistic pleasure in that."

In recent months, the U-M campus has had several instances of racist flyers left throughout different parts of campus buildings, leading to protests among the students. In late September, two flyers, titled "Why White Women Shouldn't Date Black Men," and another urging "Euro-Americans" to "stop apologizing, living in fear and denying your heritage," appeared inside Haven and Mason including an "Alt-Right" logo.

The National Policy Institute drew headlines for its recent gathering where some attendees mimicked the Nazi salute. Spencer told The Associated Press the salutes were "ironic exuberance" that "the mainstream media doesn't get."

Spencer said Trump's election validates his view that America must reject multiculturalism and "political correctness" in favor of its white, Christian European heritage, according to The Associated Press.

Trump was asked about the rash of racist incidents during a post election interview on CBS' "60 Minutes." Trump said he was "saddened," and he looked into the camera and said, "Stop it." But Trump has steadfastly defended his hiring of Bannon, who previously led Breitbart News and in July described it as a "platform for the alt-right" -- just a month before he took the job running the Republican nominee's campaign.
Scott Snyder 2.jpg

Principal Scott Snyder greets Tyrece Coleman in the hallway between classes, Thursday, September 8, 2016, in Ypsilanti, Mich. Ypsilanti Community Schools Superintendent Ben Edmondson announced Monday, Nov. 28, 2016, that Snyder is no longer principal of YCHS.

((Junfu Han | The Ann Arbor News))

YPSILANTI, MI - Ypsilanti Community High School will be under new leadership through the rest of the 2016-17 school year.

A letter from Superintendent Ben Edmondson to Ypsilanti Community Schools families on Monday, Nov. 28, announced that Scott Snyder "will no longer be serving Ypsilanti Community Schools and has opted to pursue other professional ambitions and opportunities. This is a mutual separation and a personnel matter."

"We wish Mr. Snyder nothing but success in his future endeavors and thank him for his service to our students and school community," Edmondson wrote in the letter.

YCHS assistant principal Cory Gildersleeve has been promoted to interim YCHS principal for the remainder of the school year, Edmondson said in the letter to families. Amanda Rawsky, who has served as special education department chair at YCHS and is the district's transition coordinator for special education students, is the new interim assistant principal.

The personnel changes go into effect immediately, said district communications coordinator Yen Azzaro.

Snyder, who was hired as YCHS principal going into the 2016-17 school year, declined to comment on his current employment status with YCS or his future professional plans.

Based on their job performance for the remainder of the 2016-17 school year, Gildersleeve and Rawsky would be hired to their new positions on a permanent basis, Edmondson's letter states.

"We have full confidence in their leadership capacity and ability to instill high expectations we set for all our YCS cultures and climate," Edmondson wrote. "I also believe their transition will allow for little disruption to the academic and physical and emotional environment of the school. Students have built relationships with both administrators and the transition has already occurred."

Gildersleeve was hired at YCS in 2015, and he previously worked with Edmondson at Ann Arbor Public Schools' Pathways to Success Academic Campus. He holds a bachelor's degree from Central Michigan University, a master's degree from Marygrove College and an administrative certificate from Eastern Michigan University.

Snyder was hired as principal of Ypsilanti's New Tech High School for the 2015-16 school year, and he took over as interim principal of YCHS too when previous principal Tanya Bowman was arrested in March on a federal bribery charge that stemmed from her time at Detroit Public Schools.
Ombudsmans authorities extended (video)

The draft on amendments in the law on Human Rights Defender and adjacent laws is being discussed at todays NA session. According to the draft, the authorities and the toolkit of Ombudsman are extended. Heritage Party lawmaker Tevan Poghosyan, addressing a question to Deputy Minister of Justice Arthur Hovhannisyan, who was presenting the draft, noted, Can you explain more clearly whether after these changes the human rights situation will improve, the Ombudsman will be freer, more independent and whether new qualitative services will be provided. The Deputy Minister noted that the draft will grant the Ombudsman new authorities, additional tools, From this point of view, yes, the draft contributes to Ombudsmans further activities, will help within the frames of prevention mechanism, so that the group of experts can enter penitentiary institutions without any obstacles. In this case the state institutions should be more alert and dont create obstacles for Ombudsmans activities. Independent lawmaker Edmon Marukyan said that there is a mistake in the law; it is written that the Ombudsman is inviolable, including for his opinion in the National Assembly or voting and cannot be persecuted, but voting is the provision connected a lawmaker. Another observation of the lawmaker related to the fact that the official, who hasnt provided documents to Ombudsman, is held accountable, Examining international experience, we can amend it so that this issue be discussed in the independent body and solved, and there should be administrative accountability, as due to an officials activities, human rights violation may have occurred, the person may be imprisoned for days, in this case disciplinary accountability is very weak. He also noted that according to the law, Ombudsman can propose to the state body to hold the person accountable, I propose to change that article and adopt that Ombudsman can propose the type of accountability, for example, dismissal. Deputy Minister Arthur Hovhannisyan answered that they had noticed the mistake, the word voting will be removed. As for other observations, he stated that they are waiting for the opinion of international experts and soon they will receive the conclusion of Venice Commission whether an official should be subjected to disciplinary accountability or not and whether Ombudsman himself can express his viewpoint on type of accountability.
20161013_115003.jpg

Walter Hagen (left) and Monte Oswald (right), of Bay City, met with Ute Schlieker, cultural and tourism secretary for Bay City's sister city of Ansbach, Germany, in September.

(Courtesy Photo)

BAY CITY, MI -- A pair of Bay City residents who recently paid visit to our sister city of Ansbach, Germany, say they helped quell some concerns about the cities' 55-year-old relationship that were raised by the Germans earlier this year and have a plan to patch things up next summer.

In September, Bay City residents Monte Oswald and Walter Hagen traveled to Ansbach where they met with Ute Schlieker, the German city's culture and tourism secretary. In July, Schlieker called out Bay City in the town's newspaper for being a "quiet" sister city partner and said ending the relationship was not out of the question.

On Tuesday, Nov. 22, the duo presented Bay City Manager Rick Finn and Deputy City Manager Dana Muscott with a book about Ansbach's history that was a gift from city officials there and signed by Schlieker.

From left, Bay City Deputy City Manager Dana Muscott, Walter Hagan, Monty Oswald and Bay City Manager Rick Finn in Bay City Hall on Tuesday, Nov. 22. Hagan and Oswald recently traveled to Bay City's sister city of Ansbach, Germany and presented Finn and Muscott with a book that was a gift from the city's government.

Hagen, who moved to Bay City from Germany in 1959, and Oswald, who splits time between Bay City and his family's bear ranch in Newberry in the Upper Peninsula, are both members of the Great Lakes Bay Region chapter of the Deutsch Amerikanischer National Kongress -- or DANK -- club, an organization that celebrates the German heritage. They say they don't want to lose Ansbach as a sister city.

"(Schlieker) did bring up the concerns that the city had with Bay City, but we think the visit went well and are hoping to reinvigorate things next year," Oswald said.

Bay City officials have said they, too, hope to have a better relationship with Ansbach, but a lack of funding doesn't allow for the city to send over delegates on a regular basis. Bay City Mayor Kathi Newsham said the relationship will likely be salvaged through a steady stream of communication via mail or email.

But Hagen and Oswald said more can be done if their German club works regionally, specifically with the city of Frankenmuth, which celebrates a 50th anniversary with its sister city of Gunzenhausen next year. They've worked with Frankenmuth officials and discussed the upcoming visit with Schlieker while they were in Ansbach in September.

"From Bay City's perspective, we think it's a good idea to let a private, nonprofit group, like our club, work to keep this relationship going," Oswald said. "We think it's going to be a great visit."

Sometime next summer, officials from Ansbach are going to travel with a contingency from Gunzenhausen to Frankenmuth. The Germans are expected to spend time in Bay City as part of that trip. Members of the German club are providing lodging for the officials, Oswald said.

"We think it's going to be much easier to try and package this as a regional activity," he said.

Finn agreed with Oswald, saying it's likely best that a nonprofit group, like the German club, handle future visits to Ansbach. He said he is willing to work with the club and ensure a proper visit is arranged for the German officials next summer. A date is still being finalized.
This mess will result in worse consequences (video)

At the NA extraordinary session today, during the discussion of the draft on making amendments in the RA law on parties, the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) faction Head Naira Zohrabyan announced that 79 parties for the small country like Armenia are incomprehensible, It is incomprehensible, it is non-sense. I know that there are ten more parties, which are waiting for their turn to be registered in December. There are no abbreviations left in the dictionaries for the names of parties. Most of them are man-parties, which only want money. All the possible combinations have been exhausted. She noted that she is not against liberalization, But this mess will result in even worse consequences; parties with no plans and ideology will appear. There must be a filter in order to settle the problems. Minister of Justice Arpine Hovhannisyan said that she shares the concerns of Naira Zohrabyan, I will not touch upon your assessments, but I will touch upon your concerns that for a small country like ours so many parties are luxury and redundancy, to put it mildly. Compared with European countries, the existing law puts forward rather strict requirements. It is not the Ministry to say whether you are a man-party or you have been established for earning money. No one among us should assess, but the voters, who give their assessment, for example, during local elections we witnessed when party speaks of one result, but receives another. The freer the field is, the faster crystallization of the field happens, toughening will result in the opposite. Naira Zohrabyan replied, If the Ministry and the Government were consistent, so many parties would not meet law requirements, which aim at political bazaar. As we have recently witnessed how against their will 7000 people have become Republicans. Mrs Zohrabyan, do you have any proofs, that they have become Republicans against their will? responded the Minister.
UIC: Number of Armenians favoring the EAEU getting less and less

The Eurasian Monitor agency has conducted a survey among the populations of EAEU member countries in order to reveal peoples attitude towards the EAEU in these countries. The following question was formulated for the population of EAEU member countries: It is known that Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia have united to form part of the Eurasian Economic Union (a common market of 5 countries). How do you feel about this decision? In Other EAEU Countries Thus, in 2012, when the EAEU did not exist yet, 80 percent of Kazakhstans population favored it, 10 percent were indifferent and 4 percent were against it. In 2016, 74 percent of Kazakhs favored the EAEU, 16% were indifferent and 5% were against. In 2016, 69% of Russian population favored the EAEU, 21% were indifferent and 4% were against. In Kyrgyzstan, only 50% of the population favored the EAEU in 2014 and 30% opposed it. However, after Russias promise to provide 500 million USD to Kyrgyzstan, there was a considerable shift in peoples opinion and currently 81% of the population is in favor of the EAEU, and only 10% are against. In all the EAEU countries (except for Belarus), the number of people with positive attitude towards the EAEU has decreased in 2016 compared to 2015, while the number of those with negative attitude has grown. In Armenia The picture is considerably different in Armenia. According to the same survey, in 2012, 61% of Armenian society favored the EAEU, 26% were indifferent and only 3% were against it. In 2013, the number of indifferent people reduced and formed 19%, the number of citizens favoring the EAEU increased reaching 67% and only 5% opposed it. In 2015, when Armenia officially became member of the EAEU, the number of people favoring this structured decreased and reached 56%, 29% were indifferent and 10% were against it. In 2016, the number of people favoring the EAEU further decreased to form 46%. The number of indifferent and opposing people increased and reached 33% and 15% respectively. Other Questions Among Armenians, the opinions on single currency are split: 45% are in favor, 42% are against. Moreover, the single currency is favored by low income respondents. It is also interesting that the residents of all the EAEU member countries favor signing a free trade agreement between the EU and the EAEU. There is a decline in the percentage of people who believe that there will be rapprochement between CIS countries in the coming 5 years. The most vivid dynamics in change of opinion on this issue is observed in Armenia  from 26% down to 14%. During last year, there was another issue that registered change of public opinion. In 2015, 86% of Armenians considered Russia a friendly state. Currently, that figure has considerably declined and reached 69%. In other words, 17% of Armenians have changed their opinion regarding Russian-Armenian relations during one year. Tatevik Vardanyan, Union of Informed Citizens
you are here:
business Tata Steel, Liberty House sign LoI for UK specialty steel biz Tata Steel has signed a letter of intent (LoI) with Liberty House to sell its UK speciality steel business, the company said in a statement on Monday. The deal, which also covers several South-Yorkshire based assets, is being pegged at an enterprise value of A100 million.
I dont get it

Whats so special about gold?

In my view, its just another commodity to trade on the market. If you want to buy some physical metal, you might as well use it as a doorstop. That will change in the future, if gold becomes an underground currency as I expect. But thats a story for another day.

Until then, like other commodities, theres a time to buy and a time to sell. Theres never a time to be hopeful!

The major trend (which I analysed last week) is the best indicator. It removes a lot of the emotional bias, and should keep you on the right side of the trade. In golds case, despite the volatility offering the potential of short term gains, there has never been a great time to buy over the past five years.

Despite the downtrend in motion, though, gold may bounce soon. After all, nothing goes up or down in a straight line. If we see a bounce towards the US$1,205 level, expect the promoters to shout that the gold correction is over.

Dont believe them!

Ill run you through the reasons why

Indias war on cash knocked out gold

Indias war on cash is one of the primary reasons weve seen gold move sharply lower.

As I discussed last week, the global war on cash is largely flying beneath the radar; yet it is rapidly transforming the world. India proved that physical money is becoming an endangered species last week.

As youve likely heard, the country is withdrawing a lot of cash: all its 500 rupee (US$7.40) and 1,000 rupee bills, to be precise. These notes represent 20% of the cash value in circulation and 80% of cash outstanding. Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the shock move under the cover of cracking down on corruption, unaccounted money and counterfeit currency.

Make no mistake: this is a lie spun to steal a little bit more financial freedom. Governments are dead broke and want more money to pay for their mistakes. Eliminating cash so that they can track and control every dollar we earn and spend, is the easiest way for them to steal our breadcrumbs.

Indians have another 30-odd days to hand in the roughly US$23.2 billion of high-denomination notes to banks and post offices. The currency crush is producing long lines, public anger, and a risk of major civil unrest.

Where does the heavy gold selling come into it?

Marketwatch.com explained on November 15 (my emphasis added):

Estimates have been that the underground economy in India is about 20% to 25% of the total economy; the point is that it is very large. The most common method to convert black money into white money over the past 50 years has been to slowly buy gold by paying cash using large bills. Converting black money into white money has been a major source of demand for physical gold. Now that large bills used to buy gold are worthless, demand for physical gold will decline.

And thats not all.

The biggest bombshell in over 45 years could hit gold any day now  a potential ban on gold imports into India. That would remove a massive source of gold demand from the market. Remember, Indias the second largest gold consumer worldwide. Among other things, its customary to gift jewellery in marriages.

News.trust.org reported on 25 November:

Mumbai resident Shashikant Zhaltes wedding this weekend will be less sparkling than his family had hoped, thanks to a cash shortage following Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis shock withdrawal of high-value notes to fight black money. Zhalte bought gold jewellery for his wife-to-be months ago, but had delayed purchases for his mother and sisters. The wedding season stretches from September to April, and Thomson Reuters-owned metals consultancy GFMS says it accounts for more than half of the countrys annual demand for gold. More than two-thirds of that demand of around 800 tonnes a year comes from the countryside, where farmers are struggling to get enough cash to buy seeds and fertilisers in the sowing season. Penetration of credit or debit cards and money apps is very low in rural India.

With the majority fearing for the worse, Indian gold premiums have surged to a two-year high, and jewellers have ramped up purchases. With the risk of gold becoming scarce, Indian prices have surged. Its complicated; but the Indian gold price reacts differently to the gold spot price. I wont get into the details today.

No cause for alarmyet

Fortunately, the Indian price panic may start to subside. The Times of India reported on Friday night:

There is no such proposal before the government on restricting domestic gold holding, the source said.

Thats a cleverly worded statement. There was no official denial of a gold import ban. That could still be on the cards.

Indias government has trialled several initiatives to reduce gold purchases. It has argued that citizen gold hoards are unproductive, and a sign of the countrys backwardness. The government believes the gold culture needs to be eliminated for the countrys modernisation.

The government has also aggressively raised tariffs on gold imports. And, as you may recall, more recently it orchestrated a scheme for citizens to swap their physical gold for paper gold products at commercial banks. This scheme, by the way, was a total failure.

So, will the Indian government totally ban gold imports?

Its a real possibility

If it happens, gold could plummet by more than US$200 per ounce into the New Year. For now, however, the official statement over the weekend may be enough for gold to bounce to US$1,205 per ounce.

Id be looking at shorting gold at that level.

Regards,

Jason Stevenson,

Resources Analyst
The chronicle of a life split between urban Manhattan and rural Montana.
Ex-choir director in Bucks County pleads no contest to molesting two students, secretly filming another
Friends In Pink is still on the radar and growing every year
The Italian Saga is an intricate coming-of-age story and captivating read, stuffed full of gender-role rebellion.

The first book in the Italian Saga series has the delightful title An Italian adventure: it will all make (less) sense when you grow up. The plot is structured around blossoming romance but traverses self-discovery, sexism and body image

Our protagonist, Leda, who prefers to be called Lee, lives in the north of Italy. When we first meet Lee, at age 8, she has solid friendships and a comfortable routine. But the unavoidable process of growing up begins and she struggles to combine a need for romance with her lack of the femininity considered to be the norm in the late 80s. Sicilian Nico has just moved into town and soon piques Lees curiosity. Can you guess Lees emerging dilemma?

The author, Gaia B Amman, was born and raised in Italy just like Lee. Her main aim as an author is to help as many people as she can through her writing*. As a professor of molecular biology at DYouville College in Buffalo, New York, she was once voted the professor of the month by her students. The award is no surprise when you consider the abundance of life-lessons  and Italian curses  I subconsciously absorbed from the saga: the protagonists curiosity and lack of a mentor leads her into a variety of fraught situations. Cleverly of Amman, as a reader youll discover the nuances of Lees world through her narration; we grow up with her.

As a result, the story covers some often-avoided topics like divorce, drugs and sexual abuse. Lee finds herself harshly reminded that the world is full of unwelcome experiences, despite her regular pleas to Jesus. In fact, Jesus is the main constant in the series: every night we witness Lees prayer, each one a reflective summary of whats just happened, indicating Lees progression as a person. Each prayer is, unsurprisingly, filled with the emotional turmoil of growing up.

If we look at The Italian Saga as a whole, each book is based around Lees summers. I feel like this focus on the summer holidays guides us towards Lees emotional growth, despite its correlation to her academic activities. So many teen romances novels contain protagonists who are unrealistically sure of their inner self, and I love how the main characters in The Italian Saga are truly just discovering themselves. I felt like I could relate to Ledas internal dialogue so much more that way.

The saga is beautifully written; Amman manages a combination of light-heartedness with sophisticated descriptions. Thats no mean feat! My favourite scenes are ones where descriptions give the writing a cinematic quality. I cant help but think how brilliantly these books would translate to the silver screen

But whats the best part? The saga isnt finished! The next installment, Sex-O-S: The Tragicomic Adventure of an Italian Surviving the First Time, is out now!

* I would also recommend Gaia B Amnans official website for a great read. Its the bible of indie author advice on writing!
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.
Many lenders may be biding their time until the December 1 mortgage rule implementation deadline, but some arent letting that stop them from teasing new products and plans.Merix is promising a broker portal refresh in Q1, which will provide more information, more efficiencies and include mobile access.The bank will be opening all of its products to Certified Brokers from December to February, according to Fiona Campbell, director central region, mortgage broker key accounts at Manulife.Manulife not only promises to avoid nixing any current broker offerings, but to offer even more. It plans to launch five new products in the New Year, with its sights set on small business owners, conventional, and investment properties, among others.The broker channel bank is launching a 2% senior saving account, according to Ed Arnone, regional business manager, Alberta south with Equitable.According to Elaine Taylor, vice president of sales at MCAP, its not about launching new products its about positioning for December 1.Taylor did, however, tease that lenders will have more to share following that deadline.Bridgewater is concentrating on its Gateway alternative product to start the New Year, but Todd Poberznick, assistant VP of B2B solutions, did say it is considering getting back into the A-space in 2017.There was an air of mystery surrounding Eclipses plans for the New Year.We are going to be bringing something out, Steve Lydon, associate Director, with Eclipse said. I cant tell you what.Lydon did, however, say it plans on rolling out new products in 2017.After months of planning and development, Home Trust is readying to officially launch its new broker portal, Loft in Q1. It has completed the development and pilot stages and is currently training staff on the new program.Home Trust has also launched its Make Mortgaging Great Again campaign, which focuses on improving service levels to brokers.Its even guaranteeing its turnaround times.As part of the campaign, Home Trust is making a 6-8-8 guarantee: Six business hour turnaround time on new applications, eight business hour document reviews, and eight business hours to instruct a solicitor on deals ready to fund.Home is also expanding its prime mortgage solutions, which will include promotional rates, uninsured mortgages, and refinance solutions.Scotia isnt going anywhere. The big bank is revamping its client onboarding process that will take the process outside of the branches.
With interest shifting further northward in the wake of the U.S. presidential elections, the Canadian commercial real estate sector can expect sustained activity throughout 2017, according to the head of an urban environment management firm.Last week, Allied Properties REIT chief executive officer Michael Emory stated that demand for commercial real estate in the countrys leading marketsand in Toronto, in particularwont slow down in the near future, especially considering Donald Trumps surprise win.The outlook in the next 24 months for Toronto office demand in my opinion is very, very good. Theres even a shortage [of leasable office space] in certain areas of the city, Emory said in an interview with BuzzBuzzNews.Certainly post-Brexit, there was a discernable [sic] flow of funds into Canada because of its, perhaps, safe-haven status, and its not unreasonable to think that post-the current election in the United States we may see a similar flow for the same reasons, Emory added. Only time will tell because nobody really is confident in anticipating whats going to happen in the United States of America in the next 24 to 48 months.Cited by various observers as one of the most attractive cities for office property buyers in North America, the Toronto commercial segments surging growth is a phenomenon two decades in the making, the CEO explained.Since the mid-1990s, people have been choosing to live, work and play, for the most part, in the inner cities as opposed to the broader suburban areas, he said.This trend is projected to fuel the rise of more flexible options for tenants, a shift that Allied is planning to capitalize into with its versatile retail offerings at The Well, a mixed-use development in Toronto.The old suburban notion where you needed a certain floor-plate size and massive amounts of parking simply is not achievable in the inner city, Emory said.Related Stories:
New members inducted into Institute of ...
A Central Florida salon owner is making life better for hundreds of women facing the battle of their lives. Gail Benson is working to make sure women with cancer still feel beautiful.

At just 19 years old, Schuyler Alexander is battling the disease.

You wake up and you dont feel good every day and then you look in the mirror and you dont feel pretty either, said Alexander.

Schuyler recently got to take a break from her cancer treatments for a few minutes in Bensons The Look Salon & Blow Dry Bar in Oviedo.

If only for a moment she forgets shes dealing with cancer, said Benson.

After Alexander had tried several wigs she wasnt happy with, Benson found one that had the perfect fit and look. Alexander was in tears after fitted with it.

When Benson heard about the national nonprofit Wigs and Wishes a couple of years ago, she said she realized she had to do something to help local women.

Empowering them through their illness and knowing that we have a talent that we can help someone else out with, said Benson.

Bensons Aloma Avenue salon is now filled with pictures of before and afters for hundreds of women. At first covering most of the costs out of her own pocket, Benson now leads a local fundraising effort thats helped hundreds of Central Florida women  even some young girls battling cancer.

The very first question is, am I going to lose my hair  and thats what is really a big thing that keeps us going, said Benson.

I think it gives women an opportunity to feel pretty again. And I think thats pretty significant, said Alexander.

I think it empowers them and helps them fight even harder against the disease, said Benson.

Benson is kicking off 25 Days of Giving benefiting Wigs and Wishes on Monday, Dec. 5. The fundraising event is at Bensons salon, The Look Salon & Blow Dry Bar, at 3635 Aloma Ave.

Benson can be reached at 407-977-8481.
ERIC RISBERG/AP

A United Airlines jet returned to the San Francisco International Airport after one of the engines failed shortly after taking off for Japan, officials said.

The Boeing 747 aircraft, which is carrying 202 passengers and 15 crew members, departed from San Francisco International Airport for Japan at 11:36 a.m. A short time after takeoff, the pilot was forced to shut down one of the four engines, said Doug Yakel, a spokesman for the airport.
San Antonio Express-News /File photo

Texas manufacturers are significantly more optimistic about the future, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.

The Dallas Feds latest survey of 111 Texas manufacturers is the first one published since the victory of Donald Trump in the presidential election, during which he pledged to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. and to protect American businesses from what he sees as unfair business practices by other countries.
Michael Short/Special To The Chronicle

A 9-year-old girl was molested on a San Francisco-bound BART train Sunday afternoon by a 26-year-old man who sat next to her, officials said.

Marcus Scott Brown was arrested in Oakland on suspicion of committing a lewd or lascivious act with a child under 14 years old and criminal threats, according to Alameda County custody records.
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Albany

In one of the area's largest-ever cases of employee theft, an accounting manager for Cargill at the Port of Albany admitted Monday she stole more than $3.1 million from the global agriculture giant over 10 years.

Diane L. Backis, 50, of Athens, caused losses of at least $25 million to Cargill, the largest privately held corporation in the United States, according to federal prosecutors in Albany.

Backis pleaded guilty to charges of mail fraud and filing a false tax return, which under federal sentencing guidelines could send her to prison for more than 11 years. She agreed to pay Cargill $3.5 million in restitution, forfeit her home in Greene County, give up an investment brokerage account and her Cargill pension.

She will be sentenced March 28 by U.S. District Court Judge Mae D'Agostino, who accepted Backis' guilty plea. Backis waived an appeal of any sentence of nine years or less.

"Diane deeply regrets her actions and apologizes profusely to her former employer Cargill, her co-workers and her family," said Backis' attorney, Scott Iseman. "Diane knows that she made a terrible mistake and is doing everything she can to make amends."

Backis, who claimed she earned $61,208 last year, actually took in $515,506, court papers said.

"Ms. Backis stole millions of dollars from her employer in a decade-long scheme to enrich herself so she could live beyond her means," U.S. Attorney Richard Hartunian said in a statement. "She stole money by diverting customer payments to her personal bank accounts and sold grain products for millions less than her employer paid, causing enormous financial losses."

Cargill, based in Minnetonka, Minn., uses its Albany location to receive, store and sell grain products. Backis' job was to create customer contracts, generate and mail invoices and receive and process payments from customers. Backis admitted that between December 2006 and June 2016, she intercepted payments from customers intended for Cargill and deposited at least $3,115,610 into her personal accounts for personal expense.

"The defendant was not, and knew she was not, authorized to deposit Cargill customer payments into her personal accounts or use Cargill customer payments for personal expenditures," Assistant U.S. Attorney Wayne Myers told the judge, reading the details of Backis' plea agreement.

Backis created phony invoices, usually on a weekly basis, and mailed them to Cargill customers. The bogus invoices often charged customers beneath Cargill's costs, which caused the huge losses for the company between 2006 and 2016.

In addition, Backis' invoices directed customers to send payments to Cargill in Albany instead of a financial institution, as required.

"As a result of these fraudulent invoices, Cargill customers routinely sent payments to the defendant at the Port of Albany, including through the mail," Myers said. "The defendant diverted some of these payments to her personal accounts."

Backis admitted she made false entries in the company's computer system to indicate customers were paying higher prices than the invoices showed.

To shield her scheme from the company's eyes, Backis indicated in computer records that "various customers owed Cargill money and then later reversed those entries," Myers said.

Backis admitted she misapplied customer payments to accounts of separate customers. She would intentionally write the wrong customer code on a payment and mail it to the company's personnel office. Backis claimed a $73,636.66 check sent Aug. 21, 2015, from one customer should be applied to another customer from Albany  and mailed that check to a bank in Pittsburgh. That was the specific instance for which Backis pleaded guilty.

Once Myers was done reading the lengthy description of Backis' crime, the judge faced Backis.

"Is that what you did and what occurred in this case," the judge asked.

"Yes," Backis replied.

The defendant, who appeared in street clothes, will remain free until her sentencing. She was fired earlier this year, officials said.

Pete Stoddart, a spokesman for Cargill, which employs 120 people in its two Albany locations, said because the case is still active he did not want to discuss it beyond what federal authorities said in a news release.

"What I can tell you is that Cargill has thoroughly audited its controls and trading systems and confirmed that this was an isolated incident, undertaken by one employee at a single Cargill location," the spokesman said, "Cargill customers were not adversely affected by the fraudulent activity."

FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Andrew Vale, who heads the bureau's Albany division, which investigated the case along with the of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Unit, was more specific.

"Ms. Backis repeatedly victimized her employer," he said. "This kind of fraud is a sinister act that involves not only criminality but a willingness to cause Cargill Inc. millions in losses."

rgavin@timesunion.com  518-434-2403  @RobertGavinTU
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STAMFORD  The family of a former city cop who died years after she was injured breaking up a school fight claims in a lawsuit the police chief has refused to approve federal survivor benefits for the officers two children.

The lawsuit filed last week in state Superior Court in Stamford asks a judge to demand either Police Chief Jon Fontneau or Ted Jankowski, director of the citys Department of Public Safety, Health and Welfare, to sign documents that would allow the children of Marcia Stella to receive federal death benefits and education assistance.

The family submitted a written request in April for Fontneaus signature, but were notified earlier this month that he refused to sign without an explanation, according to the lawsuit.

The familys attorney, Stewart Casper, said in a statement that it was a shame that a lawsuit is necessary, but the city and its workers compensation administrator have continuously stalled and stonewalled the familys claim for benefits.

Certainly, the chief should be capable of understanding that the men and women who serve the city want their families protected should any member of the force make the ultimate sacrifice, Casper said. It shouldnt matter the death was the result of post-surgical complications.

Kris Engstrand, president of the Stamford police union, said the union did not have a stance on the issue.

Fontneau referred questions to the citys corporation counsels office.

Stamford Corporation Counsel Kathryn Emmett declined to comment.

Stella, 36, died in February 2008, more than four years after the school resource officer was injured breaking up a fight at Cloonan Middle School.

Her death was accidental, from a combination of antidepressants and painkillers, the state's medical examiner ruled. Stella was likely taking the prescription painkiller Oxymorphone to ease pain linked to injuries she sustained breaking up the November 2003 fight, police said at the time.

According to the suit, Stella was in the schools cafeteria when the fight erupted between two girls. Stella pulled the students apart and experienced severe pain in her spine and left shoulder as she restrained one of the girls, the suit said.

Stella suffered severe neck, spinal and shoulder injuries in the incident, according to the lawsuit. She underwent two surgeries and missed most of her final four years on the job.

During that time, she began pain management treatment, which included oral medications as well as injections and surgical pain pumps, the lawsuit said. The suit says Stella died of an over-toxicity of medications she was taking because of the injury sustained on the job.

Stella had a son and a daughter, now a high school student who is applying for colleges and in need of tuition assistance, the lawsuit said.
BRIDGEPORT  A physician at Bridgeport Hospital has been charged with sexually assaulting a patient who went to him to see if he was healthy enough to have a tooth pulled.

Police said Dr. Louie Gangcuangco, instead of listening to the mans heart, grabbed hold of his genitals and pinched his nipples.

The doctor then asked the patient if he wanted to go out to Red Lobster, police.

Gangcuangco, 29, was charged with fourth-degree sexual assault. He was released after posting $75,000 bond pending arraignment in Superior Court on Jan. 5.

Upon being made aware of this issue by the police we immediately placed the resident on administrative leave, said Bridgeport Hospital Spokesman John Cappiello. Protecting patients is our primary mission. This accusation, if true, is inexcusable and absolutely inconsistent with all of our values. We continue to cooperate fully with local law enforcement officials in their investigation of the matter.

Gangcuangco is a third-year resident at the hospital. He is a graduate of the University of the Philippines and previously worked at the Hawaii Center for AIDS. He is also a best-selling author, according to several online biographies. His novel, Orosa-Nakpil, Malate, is described as the story of a young medical student who meets men who entangle him in a web of love, vengeance and sex.

Police said the 53-year-old alleged victim, who previously had open-heart surgery at the hospital, told them he had gone to the Bridgeport Hospital Clinic to be examined prior to having his wisdom tooth pulled.

The man related that Gangcuangco first asked him a series of health-related questions and then escorted him to an examining room, where the doctor asked the man to pull up his shirt so he could listen to his heart, police said.

The doctor then unbuttoned his jeans and unzipped his zipper and (the alleged victim) just figured the doctor wasnt done with the examination, the police report states.

But when the doctor went further, police said, the man protested and Gangcuangco smiled at him and he walked away. Dr. Gangcuangco opened up the curtain, washed his hands and walked out.

Police said the victim told them Gangcuangco later called him to find out how the tooth extraction went. He then offered to take the man out to a 99 Restaurant, police said.

When the victim to Gangcuangco he wasnt interested, police said the doctor responded: How about Red Lobster?
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STAMFORD  Adolescent years can be a stressful time for middle school students  and their teachers.

Its a very challenging time period because theyre going through so many changes, said retired teacher Lois Rinaldi, who taught at Stamfords King School for nearly three decades.

Rinaldi knows those obstacles  and blessings  so well that she wrote a book to help educators in their first year in middle school.

The Playbook for Middle School Teachers, Rinaldis first book, was published this fall and covers all the major events of the school year. It prepares new teachers for the first day of school, parent meetings, field trips, graduation and other events.

The book also teaches how to deal with sensitive issues like cell phone use, bullying and cheating.

Rinaldi said the book wouldve made a big difference when she began teaching more than three decades ago.

I learned everything by trial and error, the longtime Darien resident said.

In the book, Rinaldi also shares stories and tricks from her own experience and lists a step-by-step approach to effectively communicate with students, parents and administrators.

When talking about how to handle the vigor of middle school students, for instance, she described the day she stepped out of a classroom for five minutes and came back to find her class sitting in a circle watching some students dancing hip-hop.

She said the teachers mood sets the tone for the entire class. Rinaldi said its important to be organized and not get flustered because the smallest problem can throw you off.

To keep the equilibrium in the classroom, keep calm so (the students) can be calm, she said.

Besides teaching English at King School, a private school on Newfield Avenue, Rinaldi also taught at Greenwich High School and in schools in Enfield and Massachusetts.

In another anecdote in the book, Rinaldi recalls a field trip to Ellis Island near New York City, where she and her seventh-grade class took the wrong ferry on the way back home. She said she kept calm and spoke with the conductor, who gave them a free ride back to the island so they could take the right ferry.

Rinaldis books also addresses social media and a series of dilemmas that have emerged in recent years, such as whether to friend students and their parents online. The key message, she said, is to keep all social media activities to a very professional level.

Despite the challenges, Rinaldi said middle school is a very rewarding experience for teachers.

What I love about middle school is the energy you have in the classroom, she said. Theyre not afraid to take a chance, to get in front of a group.

The book is available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Archway Publishing.

noliveira@hearstmediact.com, 203-964-2265, @olivnelson
More Information

In their own words:

Reader reactions to "Getting There" column on strategies to slow down drivers:

I walk on fairly rural roads in Kent CT and, in my opinion, drivers are already going too slow. Worse, they either slow down and stare at me walking along like they expect me to dive into the poison ivy, or they pull into the opposite lane at speed.

I, personally, may have a fat a**, but I know for a fact that even my rural roads are wide enough for two cars and a pedestrian side by side. Tell Connecticut drivers to stop slowing down all stalker-y, and definitely to stop risking the death of everyone in an oncoming vehicle just to avoid one pedestrian by a full lane width.

On the other hand, when I'm driving, "Drive like your kids live here" looks an awful lot like "Drive like you own the place!"

'Why is it that kids are playing in the streets, anyway, when they have perfectly good lawns and nearby parks? Do they think they're living on the Lower East Side' ... insensitive! unaware! wrong metaphor!

Each Monday I look forward to your "GETTING THERE" articles and sit nodding in agreement with most of them. Today's really got to me. We live on Westway Rd. in Southport (the poor end) between the Metro North bridge and the turnpike bridge. The Metro North air horns I will save for another rant in a different e-mail.

Each morning between 7:00 am and 9:30 am the commuter traffic passes by our house averaging 60 mph. That isn't a really bad speed for I-95 but the speed limit on Westway Rd. is 25 mph. The rush hour between 4:00 and 6;00 pm isn't quite as bad as most of them are returning to loving families instead of work. I have e-mailed an acquaintance at the Fairfield police Dept. and I do realize that we are not the only neighborhood experiencing this problem. This morning two youngsters walking to the bus stop (no sidewalks here) were almost eliminated from that loving family category.

Join the conversation

Use #GettingThereCT to chime in on Facebook and Twitter
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Bolt cutters were never standard equipment for University of Connecticut security officers.

Then Virginia Tech happened.

UConn Police Chief Hans Rhynhart said that during that 2007 shooting rampage that left 33 dead, chains were used to lock the doors and keep rescuers at bay.

We adapted, Rhynhart said. Now all of our officers have access to breaching tools so if that were to occur here we could cut a chain off.

Rhynhart, like college security officials everywhere, paid close attention as events unfolded Monday on the Ohio State University campus, hoping to learn.

Authorities say an assailant, identified as an 18-year-old Syrian refugee, drove into a crowd on the Ohio campus, then went on a knife rampage, injuring a number of people before he was shot dead.

You can do all the preparations in the world and something like that happens, said George Estrada, executive director of operations at the University of Bridgeport. Its probably the furthest from your mind in terms of preparing.

College security officials across the region said that well-rehearsed procedures and protocols remain the most important way to prepare for such an event.

The protocols used at Ohio state (Monday) are the same protocols that every public safety and campus police department utilizes across the nation, said Paul Healy, director of public safety and emergency management at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield. We all follow the same protocols. That is why you saw a multilayer response.

And most think the Ohio State response helped minimize casualties.

Often with these cases we cant stop them, so the real job is to mitigate the immediate effects, said Jim Paturas, director at Yale New Haven Center for Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response.

At first glance, Paturas said it looks like Ohio State did a good job by getting the message out quickly, concisely and clearly.

They went online and announced there was an active shooter on campus, and that individuals had the choice to run, fight or hide," Paturas said. It sounds crazy but generally it is the best message. It should be your choice. You are in the situation.

Lessons learned

Home to dozens of college campuses, Connecticut has had its share of security scares and uses each to inform safety protocol, officials said.

In 2013, William Dong,was found at the University of New Haven campus with two loaded handguns in his pockets, 270 rounds of ammunition and a Bushmaster assault rifle left in his car parked near the university. The incident triggered a university lock down but no one was hurt.

Dong never fired a shot and was sentenced in 2015 to five years of probation for bringing a banned Bushmaster rifle to Connecticut.

In 2002, a disgruntled Fairfield University graduate claiming to have a bomb staged a seven-hour standoff with police in a Canisius Hall classroom on campus. He held a professor and more than 20 students hostage.

Again, no one was hurt and the hostage-taker, Patrick Arbelo was later ruled insane.

Todd Pelazza, director of public safety at Fairfield University, said the protocol used in 2002 was to not give out information and to wait for police before trying to neutralize the situation.

It is the opposite of what is done today.

Now, campus police are trained in how to enter and contain a situation as swiftly as possible. Students and staff get text message alerts to emergency situations.

At Fairfield University, there is a free application that students can download on their cell phones that alerts security to emergencies. It also turns on the cell phone microphone and camera so police can see and hear what is going on.

Its a system we hope we never have to use, Pelazza said.

John Dooley, chief of police at Southern Connecticut State University said whenever a tragedy like what happened at Ohio State occurs, campus security automatically increases its vigilance and visibility.

In the past weve not seen copycats, but its something to be aware of, Dooley said. Our system is tested periodically. (Now) we may test it more than once a semester.

Southern, like other campuses, has lock down and shelter-in-place drills. But it also has a lot of real estate to cover; there are 40 buildings on campus, most of them open to the public.

It is a difficult challenge, Dooley said.

Most campus security coordinate efforts with the police departments in their communities.

At UB, Estrada said he has a close relationship with the citys emergency operations system.

Every semester we have table top drills, a month ago we had a suspicious person drill, Estrada said. In the past, active shooter drills, high-rise fire evacuation drills everything that could possibly happen. Obviously, anything can happen.
Tyler Sizemore / Tyler Sizemore

Members of the New Milford Police Department will be hosting a "Stuff A Cruiser" toy drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday.

This is the first year the event will take place at Kohls, 169 Danbury Road. The event was previously held at Walmart.
NORWALK  A man complained to police recently that he received a letter from the state Bail Commissioners Office stating that he had failed to appear in court for a matter he knew nothing about, and after an investigation his cousin has been charged with criminal impersonation.

Police said the man told them that his cousin, Qadir Al-Amir of Bridgeport, was the one who had been arrested.
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West Palm Beach, Fla.

In a reprise of campaign-season rancor, Donald Trump and his lieutenants are assailing an effort  now joined by Hillary Clinton  to recount votes in up to three battleground states, calling the push fraudulent, the work of crybabies and, in the president-elect's estimation, "sad."

And as Trump worked to fill foreign policy and national security posts in his Cabinet, a top adviser expressed astonishment that 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney remained under consideration for secretary of state after his campaign-long questioning of Trump's character, intellect and integrity.

Trump on Sunday tweeted part of Clinton's concession speech, when she told supporters they must accept that "Donald Trump is going to be our president," and snippets from her debate remarks, when she denounced the Republican nominee for refusing to say in advance that he would accept the Election Day verdict.

This came on top of his saying it was a "scam" that Green Party nominee Jill Stein was revisiting the vote count in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Trump won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, and as of Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday.

Clinton leads the national popular vote by close to 2 million votes, but Trump won 290 electoral votes to Clinton's 232, not counting Michigan. She could conceivably tip the electoral balance in the remote event that all flipped to her in recounts.

From the sidelines, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Clinton rival during the Democratic primary turned ally during the general election, said: "No one expects there to be profound change, but there's nothing wrong with going through the process."

Trump planned to return to New York on Sunday after spending Thanksgiving weekend at his West Palm Beach estate. His transition team said the president-elect had scheduled a series of meetings Monday with prospective administration hires.

Among the jobs Trump has still yet to fill: secretary of state. Internal division over the position again spilled out into the open on Sunday as Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway voiced her concerns with the possibility of Romney landing such a significant position.

Trump supporters "feel a bit betrayed that you can get a Romney back in there after everything he did," Conway said. "We don't even know if he voted for Donald Trump. He and his consultants were nothing but awful to Donald Trump for a year." She added that she was "reflecting what the grassroots are saying."

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker are among other prospects to serve as the country's top diplomat.

"I'm all for party unity, but I'm not sure we have to pay for that with the secretary of state position," Conway said.

Trump's incoming chief of staff, national party Chairman Reince Priebus, acknowledged that Romney would represent "a team of rivals concept."

Trump was mostly silent on the brewing recount effort until it became known that Clinton would join it, at least in Wisconsin. On Saturday, a day after Wisconsin officials said they would conduct the first presidential recount in the state's history, Clinton campaign attorney Marc Elias said: "We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides."

Elias said Clinton would take the same approach in Pennsylvania and Michigan if Stein were to follow through with recount requests in those states.

That loosened Trump's tongue.

"Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in," Trump tweeted Sunday. "Nothing will change."

He quoted from her concession speech  "We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead"  and he concluded: "So much time and money will be spent  same result! Sad."

On NBC's "Meet the Press," Conway said Stein, "the Hillary people" and others supporting recounts have to decide whether they are going to back a peaceful transition "or if they're going to be a bunch of crybabies and sore losers about an election that they can't turn around."

Priebus, on "Fox News Sunday," called the effort a "total and complete distraction and a fraud and something that they should drop."
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A week after San Antonio Police Detective Benjamin Marconi was fatally shot, family, friends and fellow police officers gathered Sunday afternoon to pay their respects at a public viewing.

Starting at 3 p.m., residents and officers in uniform filtered into Porter Loring Mortuary at 1101 McCullough, just north of downtown, walking past a large American flag erected between two San Antonio Fire Department firetrucks.

Inside, countless photos of Marconi, smiling with friends and family members, scrolled on a large screen. Many visitors were visibly emotional as they walked away from the casket, fighting back tears and wiping them away.

RELATED: Public can attend Detective Marconi's viewing and funeral

The four-hour viewing precedes a 7 p.m. rosary for Marconi, who was shot twice in the head last Sunday morning while writing a traffic ticket in his patrol vehicle in front of police headquarters.

Police agencies and first responders from across Texas and a few from other states attended the viewing, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Fort Worth Police Department and the New York Police Department. Douglas Greene, spokesman for the San Antonio Police Department, said they expect well over 100 local and federal agencies will be represented at Marconi's funeral on Monday morning.

"It's overwhelming. We can't put a number on it," Greene said. "It feels that you're not alone."

Sgt. Jorna Huttunen was one of a handful of NYPD officers to make the trip from New York as part of the Brotherhood for the Fallen, an organization that lends financial and emotional support to the families of fallen officers by sending officers to funerals across the country.

Huttunen said the gesture is the least they can do to offer support and to connect with other officers, adding that many consider the force to be a second family. It's also important to not become "numb" to the number of officers killed in the line of duty, he said.

RELATED: Donald Trump called son of slain SAPD Det. Benjamin Marconi, family says

Jim Bruno, a retired firefighter from Kankakee, Ill. who has since retired in San Antonio, walked up to the mortuary in uniform. He said that while he did not personally know Marconi, all first-responders are affected by a fallen officer.

"When something tragic like this happens, whether it's somebody in blue or somebody in red, we all come together to mourn," said Bruno, who served as a firefighter for over 20 years.

San Antonio resident Frieda Bryant, 77, and her daughter Lisa said they wanted to show their support to police officers. They said they wished other members of the African American community would come out, too.

"We love this city. We love our officers," Bryant said. "I just want to let the family know  every policeman on the force  we're with you."

The viewing also drew those who knew Marconi personally.

RELATED: Ambush killing of SAPD's Marconi marks 18th officer killed in line of duty in Texas in 2016

Four decades ago, Bruce Sanders was Marconi's music teacher at Floresville Elementary School, back when the officer was in 4th or 5th grade. The 65-year-old, who has retired from teaching, decided to make the drive up from Marconi's hometown, 30 miles southeast of San Antonio, after seeing the news of his death on Facebook.

The news about how his former student died first brought tears, followed by disbelief and anger.

He remembers Marconi as a "good kid" who never gave him any trouble.

"I just want to give respect to Ben, a final goodbye," Sanders said.
In a case that has drawn outrage from advocates and concern from lawmakers, an Air Force lieutenant who reported that he was sexually assaulted is expected to plead guilty Tuesday to charges subsequently brought against him by the same military investigators handling his complaint as a victim.

First Lt. Adam Cohen faces a maximum of 107 years in prison for allegedly making false statements to military investigators, conduct unbecoming an officer, wire fraud, fraternization and indecent acts.

Prosecutors plan to argue at a court-martial this week at McConnell AFB in Wichita, Kan., that Cohen falsely claimed he was being harassed by friends of the man he accused of assaulting him. Cohen's alleged assailant was slated to testify as a witness against him.

Cohen said he decided to take a plea deal because it spared him from the daunting possibility of confronting his alleged attacker in court, which he described as tantamount to suffering another deeply personal violation.

This is the only option I have to avoid facing him, Cohen said.

Maj. John Bellflower, a special victim's counsel appointed to represent Cohen in his sexual-assault claim, criticized the government's handling of the case. The charges against Cohen create the appearance of retaliation against a victim, he said.

I think he's being persecuted, and I think he's being forced into making this plea because of the sheer magnitude of what's hanging over him, Bellflower said.

While the case against Cohen grew into fraternization charges involving his prior sex life, Bellflower said investigators failed to pursue charges against the alleged assailant before the statute of limitations expired.

Cohen, 29, said he suffered threats of blackmail from the alleged assailant and his friends for four years before he disclosed the sexual assault to Air Force investigators in October 2011, shortly after the repeal of the don't ask, don't tell policy. He said he remained silent because the alleged assailant threatened to report that they had consensual sex.

Documents obtained by the San Antonio Express-News show the investigating officer at Cohen's evidentiary hearing expressed concerns about the overlapping nature of the two cases against Cohen and his alleged assailant.

The document makes it clear that investigators viewed Cohen as a suspect but continued to interview him as the victim in the blackmail case without reading him his rights.

A spokeswoman for the government, Linell Letendre, defended the prosecution of Cohen.

She disputes the timeline of his complaint and said it was not until July 2012 that Cohen filed an unrestricted report of sexual assault by a soldier. Letendre said the Air Force investigated Cohen's accusations and relayed the case to the proper authorities in the Army.

Air Force investigators concluded it was Cohen who had been accessing computers without authorization and harassing those he accused of harassing him. Letendre said the case should boost the confidence of sexual harassment and assault victims in the military justice system. I am hopeful that victims of sexual assault will see that we are very serious about rooting out individuals who commit crimes like this.

After officials at McConnell denied Cohen's request for a transfer in April, the San Antonio Express-News featured his case in its Twice Betrayed series, which documented retaliation against victims who reported sexual assault in the military. Cohen was among other service members who felt threatened after coming forward as victims and were denied transfers despite a new Defense Department policy designed to protect victims by relocating them.

Cohen's case has drawn the attention of lawmakers, who are pushing top military brass to reform the way they prosecute sex crimes within the ranks.

In May, staff members for Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., asked Air Force officials to explain the reason for denying Cohen's request for a transfer. On Monday, a spokesman for the senator said the Air Force has yet to provide an answer.

In June, the office of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., asked the Defense Department to conduct an independent investigation of Cohen's case by the inspector general. In a separate request, Gillibrand's office asked the Air Force to accept Cohen's resignation in lieu of a court-martial. Failing that, her office asked for an administrative separation, nonjudicial punishment or a delay of the court-martial until the results of the investigation are complete.

The outcome in Cohen's case comes as every military branch struggles to show it is taking measures to stem a growing epidemic of sexual violence.

Bellflower worries that the case will stand as a worst-case example to other victims who may be reluctant to come forward for fear of reprisals.

I wish I could go back and not file my sexual-assault allegations over again, Cohen said. None of these charges would've come about had I not filed the sexual-assault complaint.

kking@express-news.net
A Texas man stole a backhoe from the City of Dallas and fled onto the freeway, where he crashed into an SUV and killed a woman Sunday, according to police.

Around 5 a.m, the backhoe burglar purloined the piece of machinery from the city's water department, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
A 35-year-old Midland man has been arraigned on charges in connection with a break-in at Washington Woods a week ago.

David Allen Kolodziej was arrested Tuesday afternoon after reports of the incident at the apartment complex, 821 Cambridge St., before noon Nov. 21.

Kolodziej was arraigned Wednesday on charges of home invasion and larceny in a building in connection with that case, as well as charges of breaking and entering a building with the intent to steal and possession of burglar tools in connection with another case. That case was investigated by authorities on Nov. 20.

Midland County District Court Judge Michael D. Carpenter set bond at $250,000 cash or surety, and set regular bond conditions of no contact with the victims, no drugs or alcohol and being subject to random drug and alcohol screening. Carpenter also granted a court-appointed attorney to represent Kolodziej.

Police were called to the apartment complex at 11 a.m. on Nov. 21. Midland Police said a suspect entered the main office and two apartments.

The resident of one apartment arrived while the suspect was still inside, and the suspect walked out at that point.

Stolen were cash and jewelry; no one was hurt.

Kolodziej is set for a preliminary hearing on Dec. 13.
Three years ago, Gloria De Luna was diagnosed with breast cancer. When she found out, she was the strong one in her family.

De Luna was never scared and stayed tough because of her faith in God, said her daughter, Jennifer Rivera.

My mom would always say, God is going to take care of me, her daughter said. He did. Im so lucky to have called her my mom. She truly was just a giving and loving person.

De Luna died Nov. 21. She was 60.

De Luna raised her daughter as a single mother. When Rivera was 10, De Luna took her daughter to St. Anns Catholic Church to attend school and told her as soon as they walked in that the place felt like home.

So she stayed, involving herself in parish life for the next 27 years, participating in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults team and Bible study, and teaching children about God.

My mother was a true servant, Rivera said. She loved God so much and trusted him. She became so involved because she wanted to show others what the love of God looked like.

De Luna also helped others through the St. Vincent de Paul Society. As a member, De Luna focused on aiding the homeless or those threatened with homelessness. She provided food and clothing, and at times paid their light and water bills.

Giving was so easy for her, Rivera said. She gave her time to the homeless because she thought that was a way of showing them hope.

More Information Gloria De Luna Born: Jan. 25, 1956, San Antonio Died: Nov. 21, 2016, San Antonio Preceded by: Father, Joe B. De Luna; a sister, Alice De Luna; and a brother, Joe B. De Luna Jr. Survived by: Mother, Santiaga De Luna; daughter Jennifer Rivera and son-in-law Vicente Rivera; and a sister, Josie Toste. Services: Funeral Mass at 10 a.m. Tuesday at St. Ann's Catholic Church, 210 St. Ann Street. See More Collapse

To support her daughter, De Luna worked at VIA Metropolitan Transit for 37 years. She began as an operator and retired as a secretary for Andy Garza, manager of customer relations.

She loved her job, Garza said. Most people considered her more of a friend than a co-worker. She was a kind person and gave whatever she had for those that needed it.

While De Luna was at work, she would have her daughter come after school to do her homework in the employee break room, Garza recalled.

She was the best mother, Rivera said. She took care of me on her own and raised me to treat others with respect.

Im going to miss a lot about her, but Im going to miss her smile the most.

paguirre@express-news.net
Ive been thinking a lot about the best imaginable Trump voter. This is the Trump supporter who wasnt motivated by racism or bigotry. This is the one who cringed every time Donald Trump did something cruel, vulgar and misogynistic.

But this voter needed somebody to change the systems that are failing her. She needed somebody to change the public school system that serves the suburban children of professors, journalists and lawyers, but has left her kids underskilled and underpaid. She needed some way to protect herself from the tech executives who give exciting speeches about disruption but dont know anything about the people actually being disrupted.

She is one of those people whom Joan C. Williams writes about in the Harvard Business Review who admires rich people but disdains professionals  the teachers who condescend to her, the doctors who dont make time for her, the activists whose definition of social justice never seems to include the suffering people like her experience. This voter wants leaders tough enough to crack through the reigning dysfunction, and sure enough, Trumps appointments so far represent the densest concentration of hyper-macho belligerence outside a drill sergeant retirement home.

This voter wants a philosophic change of course, and Trump offers that, too. The two party establishments are mired in their orthodoxies, but Trump and his appointees are embodiments of the nationalism espoused by Pat Buchanan, the most influential public intellectual in America today. Buchanans organizing worldview is embodied in visceral form in the person of Steve Bannon.

The globalists gutted the American working class and created a middle class in Asia, Bannon said in his Hollywood Reporter interview. The new political movement, he said, is everything related to jobs.

He vowed to drive conservatives crazy with a gigantic spending program to create jobs. He vowed to use that money to create a new New Deal that will win over 40 percent of the black and Hispanic vote, creating a neo-Jacksonian majority that will govern for 50 years.

Its not my cup of tea, but I can see why some good people might be willing to tolerate Trump and Bannons personalities in order to pursue it.

Thinking about this best voter has helped me take an emotional pause. Many of my fellow Trump critics are expressing outrage, depression, bewilderment or disgust. Theyre marching or writing essays: Should we normalize Trump or fight the normalizers?

It seems like the first thing to do is really learn what this election is teaching us. Second, this seems like a moment for some low-passion wonkery. Its stupid to react to every Trump tweet outrage with your own predictable howls. Its silly to treat politics and governance purely on cultural grounds, as a high school popularity contest, where my sort of people denigrates your sort of people.

Weve arrived at the moment of actual governing. Weve arrived at the moment when Trump has to turn his vague notions into concrete proposals.

Trump promised to rip up the Iran deal, but he seems to be realizing there are six other signatories and weve lost leverage with the Iranians because we already gave them back their money. Trump promises to repeal Obamacare, but how do you do that when it has already been woven into the fabric of every health care system in America?

Whether its reforming immigration or trade policy, his governing challenge is going to be astoundingly hard and complicated. Surely this is not the moment to get swept up in our own moral superiority, but rather to understand the specificity of the proposals he comes up with and to offer concrete amendments and alternatives to address the same problems.

Those of us in the opinion class have been complaining that Trump voters are post-truth, that they dont have a respect for expertise. Well, the experts created a school system that doesnt produce skilled graduates. The experts designed Obamacare exchanges that are failing. Maybe those of us in the professional class need to win back some credibility the old-fashioned way, with effective reform.

There will be plenty of time to be disgusted with Trumps bigotry, narcissism and incompetence. Its tempting to get so caught up in his outrage du jour that you never have to do any self-examination. But lets be honest: It wouldnt kill us Trump critics to take a break from our never-ending umbrage to engage in a little listening.

David Brooks is a columnist for the New York Times.
One of the more salutary outcomes of the election is that Democrats are finally beginning to question the wisdom of basing their fortunes on identity politics. Having counted on the allegiance of African-Americans, Hispanics, gays, unmarried women and the young  and winning the popular vote all but once since 1992  they were seduced into believing that they could ride this coalition of the ascendant into permanent command of the presidency.

Theyre reconsidering not because identity politics balkanizes society, creates state-chosen favored groups and fosters communal strife. Theyre reconsidering because its not working. Democrats read the 2008 and 2012 election results as a harbinger of the future. Then came 2016. They realize the huge turnout of their constituencies was attributable to Barack Obama, a uniquely gifted campaigner whose aura is not transferable.

And why assume that identity politics creates permanent allegiances? Take the Hispanic vote. Both Mitt Romney and Donald Trump won less than 30 percent, but in 2004 George W. Bush won 44 percent. Why assume that the GOP cannot be competitive again?

As these groups evolve socioeconomically, their political allegiances can easily change. This is particularly true for the phenomenally successful Asian-American community. There is no reason the more entrepreneurial party, the GOP, should continue to lose this vote.

Moreover, the legitimation of identity politics by the Democrats has come back to bite them. Trump managed to read, then mobilize, the white working class, and to endow it with political self-consciousness. What he voiced on their behalf was the unspoken complaint of decades: Why not us? All these other groups receive benefits, special attention and cultural approbation, yet we are neglected as both our social status and economic conditions decline.

For all the embrace of identity politics at home, abroad Obama has preached the opposite. Here is a man telling a black audience in September that he would consider it a personal insult, an insult to my legacy if they dont turn out for the Democratic candidate on Nov. 8. Yet on his tour abroad nine weeks later, his urgent message is to eschew tribalism in the name of a common universalism.

This doctrine of global consciousness found its photographic expression just two weeks ago. There was parka-bundled John Kerry on a visit to the Antarctic, to which he had dropped in to make a point about global warming. Three days later, Vladimir Putin, thinking tribally, renewed the savage bombing of Aleppo and then moved nuclear-capable missiles into Kaliningrad to remind Europeans of the perils of defying the strongman.

Putin is prepared to leave the Antarctic ice sheets to Kerry while he sets his sights on Eastern Europe and the Levant. Our allies, meanwhile, remain amazed that Obama still believes the things he said in his maiden U.N. address about the obsolescence of power politics and national domination.

Seven months ago, Obama went to Britain to urge them to remain in Europe. Now he returns to Europe to urge everyone to resist the siren song of a crude sort of nationalism, or ethnic identity, or tribalism.

This is rather ironic, given that what was meant as a swipe at both European and Trumpian ethno-nationalism is a fairly good description of the Democratic Partys domestic strategy of identity politics.

Ethnic appeal has been part of American politics forever. But the Hillary Clinton campaign was its reductio ad absurdum: all segmented group appeal, no message.

As for foreign policy, there has always been and always should be an element of transcendent mission to American actions. But its reductio ad absurdum was the Obama doctrine of self-sacrificial subordination of U.S. interests to universal values. That doctrine is finished. The results, from Ukraine to Aleppo to the South China Sea, are simply too stark.

For the Democrats, the road back  from tribalism at home and universalism abroad  beckons.

letters@charleskrauthammer.com
Whether it is building a figurative bridge between divided communities or constructing a real one to unite Phil Hardberger Park, it is a task worth doing.

In San Antonio, we sometimes disagree over a candidate or a big idea, but we generally work through it and always emerge with our collective civic pride intact.

In the case of Phil Hardberger Park, building a unique land bridge over Wurzbach Parkway is a good idea. The park is a former dairy farm and one of the few remaining large green spaces in San Antonio. An oasis surrounded by freeways, subdivisions and shopping centers, it is a very special place for many people.

The land bridge has long been part of a City Council-adopted master plan. As a former chairman of the city Parks and Recreation board and one of the original members of the Phil Hardberger Park Conservancy, I have been working on this worthwhile project since 2008.

For many of us who love big parks, we are motivated to continue our work for three simple reasons. First, the land bridge will complete the master plan by incentivizing the conservancy to leverage $10 million in private funds. The estimated cost for this iconic structure is $25 million.

So, if voters approve of $15 million in city bond funds as recommended by city staff, taxpayers will get a $25 million bridge for $15 million.

That is a bargain we cannot afford to brush off.

Second, the park is classified as a natural area. By definition, a natural area holds regional and statewide significance. Not surprisingly, data collected by the conservancy show that people from every City Council district and 51 different ZIP codes use the park.

It would be very appropriate to break ground on the land bridge during our citywide Tricentennial Celebration in 2018 as the conservancy has pledged to do.

Third, Wurzbach Parkway is very dangerous. Migrating deer and other wildlife pose a real threat to drivers. A beautifully landscaped 150-foot-wide, 1,800-foot-long land bridge will allow people and animals to cross overhead without coming into conflict with fast-moving cars and trucks.

To complete the master plan, fulfill community expectations and make Wurzbach Parkway safer for drivers, a land bridge must be built. Together, we can make this wonderful park whole and build a bridge we can be proud of forever.

Doug McMurry serves as a director for the San Antonio Parks Foundation and the Phil Hardberger Park Conservancy. He was co-chairman of the 2007 Parks and Recreation Bond Committee.
The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments about whether Bobby James Moore should be executed.

The case has significant implications for Texas standards for determining whether a person is mentally disabled, and if that person should be executed. Thats because the Lone Star State is an outlier in its practices  and not in an exemplary way.

Rather than using contemporary medical standards to determine whether a defendant is intellectually disabled, the state relies on a bizarre standard, one that mixes clinical definitions from 1992 and seven nonclinical traits based on fiction. Yes, fiction. Its known as the Lennie Standard. As in, Lennie, the character from John Steinbecks Of Mice and Men. Not surprisingly, most people dont meet the Lennie Standard.

Why? As Cornell University law professor John Blume told National Public Radio this August, the Lennie Standard is based on fiction. Its really based on stereotype. And stereotypes, of course, are not accurate. A person with disabilities might be able to perform some tasks, but not others.

Some background: Moore committed murder in 1980, during a botched armed robbery at a convenience store in Houston. Court documents show a history of intellectual disability (as well as severe abuse). His intelligent quotient tests have ranged from 57 to 78.

He failed first grade twice and was repeatedly socially promoted until the ninth grade. At the age of 13, he still did not know how to tell time, or understand subtraction or how a calendar works. He dropped out of school in the ninth grade. Numerous medical professionals have declared him mentally disabled.

This is significant because it fits with the generally agreed upon standards for determining if someone is intellectually disabled. First, the disability existed prior to adulthood. Next, it demonstrably affects a persons ability to function in the world. Finally, it meets contemporary medical understanding.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that a states determination is supposed to be informed by the medical communitys diagnostic framework, per court documents.

All other states went this route. The language might differ from one state to another, but the general principles are in agreement. Texas responded to that ruling in a different way, creating the Lennie Standard in 2004.

Tellingly, a state court ruled executing Moore would violate the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, prohibiting cruel and unusual punishment, because he meets contemporary medical definitions of mental retardation.

But the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals disagreed in 2015, ruling that Texas is prohibited from using contemporary medical standards. Moore must be judged by the Lennie Standard.

Whats peculiar is that legal scholars have noted Texas has no problem using current medical standards to determine intellectual disabilities in other areas of law, such as determining Social Security benefits. As Blume said to NPR, Texas has carved out this one exemption and added this gloss for capital cases only primarily because the Court of Criminal Appeals doesnt like the 2002 Supreme Court decision.

As is the case with many death penalty appeals, this is not really about Moore. He committed murder. He should be punished with life in prison. Whats really on trial are our values. Is it OK for the state to execute the incompetent and mentally disabled? Texans deserve a system that judges felons such as Moore by the best and most current medical and legal standards, not fiction and outdated science.
Fidel Castro made his island nation a brutal prison absent civil liberties and material security. He represented a major impediment to dismantling all that. The question, post-Fidel-Castro, is whether the island can get there as easily with Donald Trump as U.S. president.

The elder Castro died late Friday. Afterward, Trump and his incoming chief of staff Reince Priebus indicated a hardening of posture from the thaw undertaken by President Barack Obama.

They go there in recognition that civil liberties are indeed significantly absent in Cuba. But any potential hardening of relations threatens to return the two countries to circumstances that benefit neither nation. This would be a step in the wrong direction.

The two nations reopened embassies. And Obama allowed the export of Cuban cigars for personal use, made it easier (and cheaper) for commercial airline travel to and from Cuba and U.S. cruise ships can now dock there. Over the weekend, Trump and Priebus signaled that the U.S. will be seeking a better deal.

But a better deal doesnt start by taking steps backward. In his campaign, Trump threatened to dismantle Obamas executive actions on Cuba, though he did not explicitly go there this weekend.

The problem with hardball is that there is after all, still a Castro  brother, Raul  in charge. And if the Castros have been consistent in anything, it is self-defeating defiance in the face of U.S. disapproval. Ultimately, this hurts the very people Trump and Priebus say they want to help.

Under Raul Castro, the anti-American rhetoric and marches have diminished and there has been some modicum of entrepreneurial private-sector opportunities. A hardening of relations could mean a crackdown on dissidents, a revoking of even these small steps and a return to casting the U.S. as the boogeyman responsible for all of the island nations ills.

Understand, Fidel Castro has been the major architect of those woes, with his virulent anti-Americanism that shut the door on commerce with a neighbor 90 miles away, an alignment with the Soviet Union that brought the world to the brink of nuclear war, his export of revolution abroad, brutalization of his own people and his failure to liberalize either political or economic structures.

This is not to say, however, that the embargo on Cuba  which only Congress can lift  has helped matters. It has not. It is hypocritical, to boot. The U.S. trades with other countries with less than sterling human rights.

The fact is that better deals are made with better carrots. Trump should ask Congress to lift the embargo. Thats a deal that benefits everyone.
THE Roman Catholic Church has been plunged into mourning following the death of prominent Bishop Emeritus Martin Munyanyi Sunday morning.

He was 66.

The towering cleric of the Diocese of Gweru collapsed and died at his Shurugwi house under yet unclear circumstances.

Gweru Dioceses vicar-general, Reverend Father Simon Mavhiya confirmed Munyanyis passing on.

To all priests, religious brothers and sisters and all the lay faithfuls, dear brethren, my dear brothers and sisters in the Lord it is with a heavy heart to announce to you the sudden passing on of Bishop Emeritus Martin Munyanyi of Gweru Diocese, who collapsed and died at his home in Shurugwi, said Rev Mavhiya.

Pope Benedict XVI in May 2006 appointed Munyanyi the new Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gweru.

He succeeded the late Bishop Francis Xavier Mugadzi as bishop of the more than 196 000 Catholics in the Diocese of Gweru.

Munyanyi was born on January 3, 1956, in the Bikita district, Masvingo province then in the Diocese of Gweru.

He attended Beardmore Mine Primary School and Silveira Mission School before proceeding to Chishawasha to study for the priesthood and was subsequently ordained priest on September 3, 1983.

Funeral arrangements will be announced in due course.

 NewZimbabwe

Breaking News via Email
SEVEN out of 19 models who were in boot camp ahead of the Miss Tourism Zimbabwe (MTZ) national finals slated for 14 December at Montclair hotel in Nyanga, were involved in an accident last night.

The accident occurred in Vumba while the models were on their way to Eden Lodge where they were scheduled to sleep.

The models were scheduled to proceed to Chimanimani to visit Cyclone Idai-affected areas but could not proceed due to bad weather.

MTZ chairperson Sibusisiwe Dube confirmed the accident but asserted that no deaths were recorded as circulating on social media.

All the girls have been taken to Murambe garden hospital and are under observation, so that they get a comprehensive check-up.

There are some injuries on some, but no deaths have been recorded as people are speculating.

They are stable as we speak. We believe they were affected including those who are not physically hurt.

It is sad that such an unfortunate event transpired and we thank God because the accident was not fatal.

A support team has been dispatched to Vumba, to assist, since the event will no longer take place said Dube.

 Herald

Breaking News via Email
WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich.  Nearly 6,000 turkeys and other food items were distributed to nonprofit groups throughout Michigan, Ohio and Illinois just in time for Thanksgiving. With the help from various groups and organizations around the Midwest, the Associated Food and Petroleum Dealers (AFPD) was able to show its support for the local community.

"Many retailers and other local businesses have given generously to this program, said Auday Arabo, AFPD president and CEO. This is one way our local members work together with the community to provide families in need with a holiday meal.

The annual turkey drives are made possible from the efforts of dedicated AFPD members and volunteers who provide their time and resources, year after year, for more than three decades to help the local community have a special holiday.

"Any kind of opportunity that allows us to help out in the community and do charitable work is straight on point with our 76-year social mission," said Cathy Brock, senior account manager of association and chamber relations for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan. "AFPD has opened up opportunities to help within the community, particularly Southeast Michigan, that we would never have known about."

Since 1980, AFPD has donated more than 80,000 turkeys in the Michigan, Ohio and Illinois areas.
Despite the considerable inertia of consumers and businesses, the widespread reliance on the internal combustion engine, and the reluctance to increase energy taxes in a weak global economy, oil companies increasingly forecast that a peak in oil demand is not all that far away.

Admittedly, how quickly that takes place depend on when national government get (more) religion about curbing greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Wall Street Journal, the International Energy Agency has a default of oil demand continuing to rise in the face of collective inaction. However, its worth noting that the IEAs shorter-term forecasts have a bullish bias; will this prove to be true of their long-term scenarios? For instance, young people in the US are not only not keen about car ownership but some are even are ambivalent about having children. They are concerned the combination of environmental decay and escalating conflicts over resources means any children would have a poor quality of life.

Put it another way: Im skeptical of simple linear projections over periods of decades, which is what the top line in this chart amounts to:

The Wall Street Journal describes how a number of small and large oil companies are worried about peak demand for oil, starting with Hungarys MOL Group, which plans to reorient its business over the next decade to focus on petrochemicals, which it sees as having sustained demand, and away from fuel products. From the Journal:

Last month Shell finance chief Simon Henry caused a stir when he said the company sees oil demand peaking in five to 15 years. Shells latest published forecasts have consumption flattening toward the end of that period. State-owned China National Petroleum Corp. quietly issued a report in the summer predicting that Chinas oil consumptiona major driver of growth in recent decadeswill begin to fall by 2030, if not sooner. Global demand is expected to follow suit The question is more a question of when, rather than if, Dominic Emery, BPs vice president for long-term planning and policy, told the Economist Energy Summit in London this month. BP says oil demand could fall by the late 2020s if tougher emissions laws are enacted Peak demand will be later than the common dates that are being thrown around, but if it does happen, because were building multiple engines for the economy and were planning for an economy beyond oil, well be ready, Saudi Arabias energy minister, Khalid al Falih, told a conference in Istanbul last month.

Needless to say, other big firms, such as Exxon, remain optimistic, and OPEC forecasts that demand will grow beyond 2040. But BP and Total, among others, are hedging by building up alternative energy businesses.

As Wiliam Gibson said, The future is already here  its just not very evenly distributed. But a question to readers: the underlying assumption in the Journal story, which appears to reflect conventional wisdom in the oil biz, is that more stringent regulations on greenhouse gas emissions is what poses a danger to oil demand. I wonder if that is the only mechanism by which that could occur. What look like economic tail events, like a hard landing in China, or generational changes in attitudes towards energy use, could have a significant dampening effect. Another negative would be a rollback of globalization, since shorter supply chains, generally speaking, should mean less consumption of fuel for transportation. While the plural of anecdote is not data, I wonder what positive and negative development readers see on the ground from your vantages in the US and abroad.
Lambert here: Its almost like elite impunity is a continuing theme. Remember My administration is the only thing between you and the pitchfork?

By Roy Poses, MD, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at Brown University, and the President of FIRM  the Foundation for Integrity and Responsibility in Medicine. Cross posted from the Health Care Renewal website

The march of legal settlements by important health care organizations continues, although now producing barely an additional ripple on top of the white-capped covered ocean of news and commentary roiled by the recent US election. However, even the latest small settlement is a reminder of all the problems that continue under the surface. (And I have now beaten this metaphor to death, sorry.)

The Settlement

As reported very briefly in NJ.com:

A company that monitors cardiac devices worn by heart patients has agreed to pay $1.3 million in civil fines to resolve allegations it paid kickbacks to doctors to persuade them to use their services, the U.S. Attorneys Office announced. Mednet Healthcare Technologies, Inc. of Ewing, arranged fee-for-service and direct-bill agreements with certain hospital and physician customers for two services  event monitoring and telemetry  and charged them a fee, the office said. But Mednet then allowed the physicians to directly bill Medicare for the same services, and keep any reimbursements they received that exceeded the fee that Mednet charged them. U.S. Attorney Paul Fishmans office contends Mednet set up the remuneration agreements so their medical customers would continue to send referrals to Mednet, and were illegal under the federal Anti-Kickback Statute.

The Classic Elements

In this case, the allegations were that a company paid kickbacks (aka bribes) to physicians to cause patients to use their products. This appears to fit the ethical definition of corruption per Transparency International, the abuse of entrusted power for private gain. The physicians were entrusted to make the best decisions for patients, yet allowed their decisions to be influenced by the prospect of making more money (private gain). The company was entrusted to provide safe and effective products, yet over-promoted their products presumably to increase revenue, regardless of whether the ensuing use of it would lead to net benefit, or harm for patients, leading to private gain by their top executives and presumably private gain through bonuses for the sales people involved.

However, as has become usual in enforcement of laws regarding kickbacks, bribes, fraud etc, the case was resolved by a relatively small fine. (According to Yahoo Financials, Bio Telemetrys 2015 total revenue exceeded $178 million.) The settlement occurred years after the alleged bad behavior (which was said to occur from 2006 -2014.) There was no determination of guilt:

The claims settled in the agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability, [US Attorney Paul] Fishmans office said.

Of course, there was no determination of lack of liability, or that the allegations were false either. Left unanswered was why the company settled if no one had done anything wrong.

No one who enabled, authorized, directed or implemented the alleged kickbacks was named, much less suffered any negative consequences. Thus, they exhibited impunity.

All that is missing is the de rigeur statement that usually goes something like this: We will move on from now. Our company stands for the highest principles and will continue to provide wonderful products and services, yada, yada, yada

Comments

We have gone on and on that settlements like this do nothing to deter continued bad behavior by large health care organizations. Such settlements have been the norm in health care for years. They have also been the norm in finance. There were some famous statements to the effect that no one with major responsibility for the global financial crisis or great recession of 2008 went to jail. I contend that the impunity of top leaders in health care, in finance, and in other spheres has led to increasing health care and societal dysfunction.

Such settlements now seem to be the norm for very politically connected figures involved with large for profit education companies. To wit, per the New York Times,

Donald J. Trump has reversed course and agreed on Friday to pay $25 million to settle a series of lawsuits stemming from his defunct for-profit education venture, Trump University, finally putting to rest fraud allegations by former students, which have dogged him for years and hampered his presidential campaign.

The allegations were that the university, and Mr Trump himself, committed fraud:

Students paid up to $35,000 in tuition for a programs that, according to the testimony of former Trump University employees, used high-pressure sales tactics and employed unqualified instructors. The agreement wraps together the outstanding Trump University litigation, including two federal class-action cases in San Diego, and a separate lawsuit by Eric T. Schneiderman, the New York attorney general. The complaints alleged that students were cheated out of thousands of dollars in tuition through deceptive claims about what they would learn and high-pressure sales tactics.

The settlement was for $25 million, a lot of money, but peanuts for Mr Trump, who privately owned the company, and says he is worth billions.

No individual, including Mr Trump, who enabled, authorized, directed or implemented the alleged fraud will suffer any negative consequences. Thus the leaders of Trump University, and the Trump Organization exhibited impunity in this case.

And here is what Mr Trump publicly said about the university previously:

When political opponents pressed him on the claims during the campaign, Mr. Trump doubled down, saying he would eventually reopen Trump University. Its something I could have settled many times, Mr. Trump said during a debate in February. I could settle it right now for very little money, but I dont want to do it out of principle. He added, The people that took the course all signed  most  many  many signed report cards saying it was fantastic, it was wonderful, it was beautiful.

Mr Trump did settle, of course, but in a way that did not directly contradict his statement that the university was fantastic,  wonderful, beautiful. But the settlement did not affirm that statement either. And the settlement allows Mr Trump to proclaim, per his lawyer,

Mr. Petrocelli said Mr. Trump had settled the case without an acknowledgment of fault or liability.

But the settlement did not refute the allegations either.

So as we just said Thus the system appears to be rigged to favor of leadership and management of large companies, as opposed to health professionals, and particularly as opposed to patients. For years now we have discussed stories like this, which include allegations of severe misbehavior by large health care companies affirmed by legal settlements, but which only involve paltry financial penalties to the companies, and almost never any negative consequences to any humans. Furthermore, as in this case, these stories are often relatively anechoic, noted often only briefly in the media, and have inspired no real action by the US government. This adds to the evidence suggesting that US health care, at least, is rigged to benefit its top insiders and cronies, and as such, is part of a larger rigged system. We have previously discussed how market fundamentalism (or neoliberalism) led to deregulation, which enabled deception, fraud, bribery, and intimidation to become standard business practices, and allowed increasing concentration of power by large corporations. Managerialism allowed the top leaders of these corporations and their insider cronies to amass increasing power and money. Everyone else, other employees, stockholders of public corporations, customers, vendors and suppliers, and the public at large lost out. In health care, these changes led to an increasingly costly system which produced increasingly bad results for patients and the public.

We have called for years for what we sometimes term true health care reform to derig the system. Little has changed, while perceptions that the system is rigged have become more common. Failure up to now of the establishment do do anything about the rigging of the system leads to cynicism, and the search for quick and dirty solutions. But now we see that the US president-elect has personally benefited from this aspect of the rigged system. Do we really think he will now take the lead in unrigging it? Can I sell you a bridge connecting Brooklyn to Manhattan?

Instead, true health care reform would encourage open, widespread discussion of all aspects of health care dysfunction, particularly bad behavior by those who profit most from it, and would encourage health care leadership that puts patients and the public health first, is willing to be accountable for its actions, is transparent, honest and ethical.

And there is a parallel case to be made for larger reform of government and society.
Model could shatter a mystery of glass (w/video) (Nanowerk News) A glass is a curious material in between liquid and solid states of matter, but eventually glass always yields to its solid proclivity by settling into the ordered patterns of a crystal. Or so it was thought.

Princeton University researchers have developed a computational model for creating a "perfect glass" that never crystallizes -- even at absolute zero. Published in Scientific Reports ("The Perfect Glass Paradigm: Disordered Hyperuniform Glasses Down to Absolute Zero"), the model is a new way of thinking about glass and details the extremely unusual properties of a perfect glass.

"We know that if you make anything cold enough it will crystallize, but this is an extremely exotic situation where you're completely avoiding that," said corresponding author Salvatore Torquato, a Princeton professor of chemistry and the Princeton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials.

Scientists researching glass have been puzzled by its nature for more than a century. The unruly configuration of its molecules suggests that it should flow like a liquid yet it is as rigid and unyielding as a solid. The glass transition, or the temperature when cooled liquids transform into a glass, is another mystery. Whereas the transition from a liquid to a solid is extremely sharp, at 0 degrees Celsius in water for example, glasses can form over a range of temperatures and only if the liquids were cooled rapidly enough to avoid crystallization.

In developing their model, the researchers set out to determine whether a glass could exist that could forever avoid crystallization. "Our model is an out-of-the-box possibility," Torquato said.

The model stems from two areas in Torquato's research group that were well suited for a perfect-glass model. The lab focuses on exotic hyperuniform states of matter, materials for which atoms appear disordered locally but display long-range order globally that pops up in various contexts, including the eye of a chicken. The other is maximally random jammed packing, a way of arranging particles in a system so that it has a very high degree of disorder and the particles are jammed together, forever frozen in space.

In the perfect-glass model "crystals are banished," Torquato said. "They could never form by design of the interactions between the particles."

To find these perfect glasses, the researchers' model considered 2-, 3-, and 4-body interactions, which refer to the interactions between the number of particles, whereas previous models considered only 2-body interactions, or interactions between pairs of particles. While 2-, 3-, and 4-body interactions are more complicated and have yet to be seen in nature, expanding to these interactions allowed the researchers to suppress crystallization where others had failed.

In addition to its defining ability to resist crystallization, a perfect glass is imbued with zero compressibility, meaning that it is impervious to outside forces and also an excellent medium for propagating sound. In fact, sound would be able to travel through a perfect glass at the speed of light, said Ge Zhang, a graduate student in the Torquato lab and lead author on the study. Zhang and Torquato worked with coauthor Frank Stillinger, a senior chemist in Princeton's Department of Chemistry.

The model also offers a solution to a paradox that has perplexed researchers for decades and was first defined at Princeton in 1948 by the late chemistry professor Walter Kauzmann. The Kauzmann paradox considered the "entropy crisis" that's brought on by supercooling a glass-forming liquid beyond a certain temperature.

Entropy is a measure of disorder, which means that a free-flowing liquid has more disorder, and thus entropy, than a highly structured crystal. But as the liquid is cooled, the entropy difference between the liquid and crystal begins to decrease. If that trend played out to low enough temperatures, Kauzmann proffered, eventually there would be a temperature now known as the Kauzmann temperature beyond which the entropy, or disorder, of the crystal actually becomes greater than that of the supercooled liquid -- a paradoxical situation.

The perfect-glass model, however, sidesteps this paradox entirely. Since the glass cannot crystallize, there is no crystalline entropy with which to compare the liquid entropy, and thus no risk of running into the entropy crisis.

Normand Mousseau, physics professor at the University of Montreal, said that the Princeton researchers took an atypical approach to answering an old question: "At low temperatures, can the most stable structure be something that is a glass? Can that exist in the universe?" While their model doesn't fully answer those questions, it does provide more information, said Mousseau, who is familiar with the research but had no role in it. "Having a new way to look at this problem clearly helps us to move forward," he said.
Nano factories to prevent bacterial colonization (Nanowerk News) The 2016 research prize from the Dr. Karl Helmut Eberle-Stiftung, a foundation supporting innovative research, will provide 300,000 to the University of Konstanz in 2016.

The award ceremony will take place on Wednesday, 30 November 2016 at 16:00 in the university's Senatssaal. The funding from the Dr. Karl Helmut Eberle foundation will be used to support innovative and bold research projects at the University of Konstanz. From 2018 onwards, the annual funding will increase to 500,000 euros.

The award-winning project at the University of Konstanz will guide collaborative research between two established focus areas, material sciences and chemical biology, in a new direction. Bacterial pathogens create serious problems. For example, a significant number of serious diseases that affect patients after operations can be traced back to antibiotic-resistant pathogens. This is why it is of increasing importance to prevent bacteria from colonizing surfaces and forming biofilms. This is, however, easier said than done, since future approaches should avoid the use of antibiotics due to potential bacterial resistance.

The team around material scientist Sebastian Polarz and biologist David Schleheck will therefore blaze a new trail. Their idea is to place miniature factories on surfaces that will create a cocktail of chemical compounds. Without endangering humans, the released substances will then specifically target bacteria that attempt to replicate on these surfaces. The factories consist of nanoparticles in a "sponge" with extremely small hollow spaces or "pores". These pores have a diameter of five nanometres - a ten-thousandth of the diameter of a human hair - and house the active components to generate antibacterial substances.

They can, for example, release highly reactive oxygen species against which the pathogens are defenceless. Or special enzymes on and within the particles will start digesting the weakened bacteria. In the long run, the researchers intend to advance two visions: First, the different particles on the surfaces should interact in order to create a much stronger antibacterial response than would be possible if only one type of particle was attached to the surface. Second, the nano factories should eventually become self-sufficient. This means that they should be able to extract everything required for the production of the active substances from their environment without the need to supply it from the outside.

Sebastian Polarz studied chemistry at the University of Bielefeld and earned his doctorate at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in Potsdam, Germany. He was supported through the Emmy Noether Programme for junior researchers and received a Consolidator Grant from the European Research Council in 2014. He has been a professor of inorganic functional materials at the University of Konstanz since 2007.

David Schleheck studied biology at the University of Heidelberg and earned his doctorate at the University of Konstanz. Here he heads the Microbial Ecology Group, which is supported by the Heisenberg Programme through the German Research Foundation (DFG).
Researchers explore new 2D materials that could make devices faster, smaller, and efficient (Nanowerk News) A new study by an international team of researchers led by the University of Minnesota highlights how manipulation of 2D materials could make our modern day devices faster, smaller, and better.

The findings are now online and will be published in Nature Materials ("Polaritons in layered two-dimensional materials").

Two-dimensional materials allow strong light-matter interactions through polaritons.

Two-dimensional materials are a class of nanomaterials that are only a few atoms in thickness. Electrons in these materials are free to move in the two-dimensional plane, but their restricted motion in the third direction is governed by quantum mechanics. Research on these nanomaterials is still in its infancy, but 2D materials such as graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides and black phosphorus have garnered tremendous attention from scientists and engineers for their amazing properties and potential to improve electronic and photonic devices.

In this study, researchers from the University of Minnesota, MIT, Stanford, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, IBM, and universities in Brazil, UK and Spain, teamed up to examine the optical properties of several dozens of 2D materials. The goal of the paper is to unify understanding of light-matter interactions in these materials among researchers and explore new possibilities for future research.

They discuss how polaritons, a class of quasiparticles formed through the coupling of photons with electric charge dipoles in solid, allow researchers to marry the speed of photon light particles and the small size of electrons.

With our devices, we want speed, efficiency, and we want small. Polaritons could offer the answer, said Tony Low, a University of Minnesota electrical and computer engineering assistant professor and lead author of the study.

By exciting the polaritons in 2D materials, electromagnetic energy can be focused down to a volume a million times smaller compared to when its propagating in free space.

Layered two-dimensional materials have emerged as a fantastic toolbox for nano-photonics and nano-optoelectronics, providing tailored design and tunability for properties that are not possible to realize with conventional materials, said Frank Koppens, group leader at the Institute of Photonic Sciences at Barcelona, Spain, and co-author of the study. This will offer tremendous opportunities for applications.

Others on the team from private industry also recognize the potential in practical applications.

The study of the plasmon-polaritons in two-dimensions is not only a fascinating research subject, but also offers possibilities for important technological applications, said Phaedon Avoruris, IBM Fellow at the IBM T. J. Watson Research Center and co-author of the study. For example, an atomic layer material like graphene extends the field of plasmonics to the infrared and terahertz regions of the electromagnetic spectrum allowing unique applications ranging from sensing and fingerprinting minute amounts of biomolecules, to applications in optical communications, energy harvesting and security imaging.

The new study also examined the possibilities of combining 2D materials. Researchers point out that every 2D material has advantages and disadvantages. Combining these materials create new materials that may have the best qualities of both.

Every time we look at a new material, we find something new, Low said. Graphene is often considered a wonder material, but combining it with another material may make it even better for a wide variety of applications.
Find the newest releases to watch from National Geographic on Disney+, including favourite documentary series and films Free Solo, The Rescue, Shark Beach with Chris Hemsworth and The World According to Jeff Goldblum.
Barnardos has launched its annual Christmas Toy Appeal, supported by GLS ParcelShops.

The childrens charity is asking shoppers in Tipperary to add the Barnardos Christmas Toy Appeal to their shopping lists this festive season and help make a childs Christmas.

Every Christmas Barnardos needs gifts for children of all ages, from babies through to teenagers. The charity asks that all gifts are new and unwrapped and has a handy gift guide available on its website, www.barnardos.ie, to help shoppers choose age-appropriate toys and gifts.

For the seventh year running, GLS ParcelShops are supporting the Barnardos Toy Appeal. Drop your gift off at any of 180 GLS ParcelShops nationwide by Friday 16 December and it will be delivered to Barnardos in time for Christmas. To find your local GLS ParcelShops visitwww.barnardos.ie/toyappeal.

The GLS ParcelShopS in Tipperary are located in:

 Gala Foodstore, Carrick Street, Mullinahone

 Crosscannon Filling Station, Pike Street, Killenaule

 Abbey Stores, Carrigbeg, Carrick on Suir

 Direct IT, Barrack Street, Cahir

 Muphys, Main Street, Cloghjordan

 Sullivan's Foodstore, Ardcroney, Nenagh

 Roscrea Express, Benamore Business Park, Roscrea

 JKC Newsagents, 25 Pearse Street, Nenagh

Speaking at the launch, Barnardos CEO Fergus Finlay said, For most of us, Christmas brings up happy memories. But for many of the families we work with in Barnardos, it can be a burden. Thousands of children and families are facing hardships every day across the country  and we see first-hand the extra pressure they come under at Christmas.

We are truly grateful that, for the seventh year running, GLS ParcelShops will make sure every child we work with receives a Christmas gift. Thanks to GLS ParcelShops and all those who so generously donate to the Toy Appeal each year, we can make sure the children and families we work with experience the magic of Christmas.

Swen Kruger, MD of GLS Ireland, said: We are delighted to support the Barnardos Christmas Toy Appeal for the seventh year in a row. The GLS team will travel the length and breadth of the country to ensure that gifts are delivered in time for Christmas. We are thrilled to bring a little magic to the children and families Barnardos works with this Christmas.

Barnardos provides specialised early intervention and prevention services to over 13,100 children and families in 40 communities across Ireland.
Basel's days may be numbered.

That's the conclusion of Wall Street critics, industry observers and bankers alike, who see political support for the international capital accord at an all-time low.

The accord was already in danger prior to the election of Donald Trump as president, with the European Union threatening not to follow through on the final rules. But the president-elect may hasten Basel's demise, given recent statements from those in his transition team.

"As regulations are given from Basel into the U.S. financial regulators, we now have kind of an agreementwhere the U.S. is absorbing regulatory guidance, regulatory suggestions from the international community," said David Malpass, a senior economic adviser to Trump, in a speech last month. "New York and Washington and are benefiting from an international financial system which is leaving millions and millions of people around the countryout, so part of the goal is to create a financial system that works for the average person rather than for the financial elite."

Trump himself may have been alluding to Basel when he warned in a speech in October that his rival Hillary Clinton was cutting deals with foreign powers.

"Hillary Clinton meets in secret with international banks to plot the destruction of U.S. sovereignty in order to enrich these global financial powers for her special interest friends and her donors," Trump said. "My question is, do you believe that? And if not, how can you support someone who does?"

Ironically, the possible end of Basel comes as it was nearing the finish line  and is a complete reversal from the days after the financial crisis, when regulators across the world agreed that tighter safeguards were necessary.

Basel III was a response to the financial crisis, and a repudiation of Basel II, which relied on large banks' internal models to set capital standards. Instead, Basel III set higher, minimum capital requirements for the most systemically risky banks, rules for previously unregulated over-the-counter derivatives, liquidity requirements, and other standards. The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision is slated to complete the last of these rules by the end of the year.

Congressional Republicans have been critical of the Basel accords for some time. Outgoing Senate Banking Committee Chairman Richard Shelby, R-Ala., has said U.S. regulators' discussions with their international colleagues is opaque and outside the scrutiny of Congress. U.S. banks have similarly criticized regulators for "gold-plating" Basel rules by setting out even more stringent requirements than those mandated by the international accord.

Some observers herald recent developments as a welcome change.

"It would be great if we just told Basel, 'No thanks, we are not doing this anymore.' I don't buy into the whole international cooperation stuff," said Norbert Michel, a research fellow with the Heritage Foundation. "You could easily implement a simple requirement, a simple flat requirement that would exceed [Basel's] capital requirement and be compliant without having to go through all that" additional complexity.

But others warn that abandoning Basel could have grave consequences. Karen Shaw Petrou, managing partner at Federal Financial Analytics, said the accords may not be perfect and certainly have aspects to them  particularly the final round of rules  that may not be strictly in the U.S. near-term interests. But the accords are there to prevent global financial catastrophes, not boost short-term growth, and however flawed they may be, discarding them and replacing them with nothing isn't a smart move.

"It's absolutely true that Basel has been proposing some things that at least I think are not good for the United States  we have a different financial system, too," Petrou said. "But this really uneasy structure was designed fundamentally to prevent that lowest common denominator race to the bottom."

Ed Groshans, an analyst at Height Securities, agreed, saying the long journey toward Basel III started with simpler, far more flawed iterations in Basel I and Basel II  until international regulators finally agreed that banks need to be better capitalized and should have common prudential structures.

"Getting away from it is probably pushing us too far," Groshans said. "It has been a very long, arduous journey to get Europe, Japan and the U.S. all at least thinking about capital in the same way, thinking about the risk to capital in the same way."

But it isn't just the Trump team that is questioning the Basel rules. The European Union has been warning the Basel Committee that if the final rules do not help boost growth for member states, the continent will develop its own regulations and ignore the international standards. Basel committee officials and members have said that the final rules would not represent a significant increase in overall capital requirements.

Ed Mills, managing director at FBR Capital Markets, said that the international mood simply is not breaking Basel's way, and that Trump's election is a reflection of that pro-nationalist sentiment, not the cause of it.

"The U.S. is not the only place where nationalism is on the rise," Mills said. "Basel is on life support. I don't know if it is at its end."

Greg Baer, president and chief executive of the Clearing House Association, said the comments coming from Trump's camp are really just a matter of U.S. leaders catching up to the attitudes already prevalent around the world  that ever-higher capital standards are hard to sell in an atmosphere of stagnant economic growth.

"The current pressure on the Basel process is not coming from the incoming administration but rather from European and Asian governments that have concluded the Basel rules are a hindrance to economic growth," Baer said. "The U.S. banking agencies thus far have resisted calls for an EU-like call for evidence on economic policy impacts, and seem to be the only ones calling for still higher capital."

The Basel Committee is slated to meet in Santiago, Chile, on Tuesday to reach recommendations for the final rules to recommend to the Governors and Heads of Supervision. Greg Lyons, a partner with Debevoise and Plimpton, said what they conclude could be the difference between whether the international standards  and the committee itself  has any influence on global affairs in the near future.

"There are two questions: one is, 'Where does the committee end up?' And the other is, 'Wherever they end up, do the countries follow them?'" Lyons said. "If you're the Basel Committee, do you do what you think is right? Or do you soften the rules to maintain the stature of the Basel Committee for fear that, once you've been rejected on something, you become a committee of mere suggestions rather than having the force you historically have had?"

Another question is exactly how aggressive Trump and his administration will attempt to be in negating the Basel accords, and how quickly and completely they will be able to do so even if they are determined. Mills said that Trump's two vacant seats on the Federal Reserve Board and an open seat for Vice Chairman for Supervision, as well as near-term vacancies atop the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, mean that the reversal could begin quite quickly.

"This is almost done entirely through regulation," Mills said. "Basel ultimately is a recommendation. It is up to each country to implement it as they see fit. The Vice Chair positon and the two open seats are key to this."

Groshans disagreed, saying the Fed in particular is not an institution that turns on a dime. Moreover, he said, the standards are intertwined with U.S. law in such a way that might require legislation to untangle them.

"It would seem odd for the Fed, which has been an instrumental entity providing input to Basel, to just start tacking a different way," Groshans said. "The Federal Reserve has adopted these capital standards, so if there is going to be a change to capital standards it is going to need to come from legislation."

Lyons said that, because the portions of the accords that are now in place have gone through independent bank regulatory agencies, steering those agencies away from the accords will take time, even with top appointments. The more immediate effect would not be a reversal, he said, but an immediate halt to any new implementation.

"It would be a big move to completely dispose of Basel," Lyons said. "I don't think it would be the first thing on his agenda, but I would put it as another brick in the wall rising against international agreement."
The Grand Canyon in Arizona finds a place in any traveller's bucket list! The grandeur and spectacular steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado river in Arizona is a unique beauty to cherish. But how many of you have heard about the Grand Canyon of India!? Yes!! India has its own Grand Canyon which is as spectacular as the original! Let's take a tour through the Grand Canyon of India - Gandikota.

PC : Gagan Josan

Gandikota is a small village in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh which is fondly called as the Indian Grand Canyon. It is an offbeat tourist place located on the right bank of Pennar river. Known for its spectacular gorge formed by Pennar river that cuts through the Erramala hills, the impregnable fort of Gandikota has been famous since the ancient times.

Situated amidst beautiful landscape and wild forests, it is endowed with vast natural resources. Let's travel to this spellbinding landscape for a first hand experience with the Indian Grand Canyon!

The Grand Canyon of India - Gandikota!

PC : editor CrazyYatra

Gandikota fort sits majestically on top of a gorge amidst an amazing backdrop! It was one of the greatest forts of south India in its heydays and is still a place worth exploring for its unparalleled beauty. How many places can claim to be literally gorgeous, other than, of course, the Grand Canyon! This handsome piece of Nature's architecture in Gandikota has come to be known as the Grand Canyon of India giving serious competition to its Arizona counterpart owing to its breathtaking beauty!

Things to do at Gandikota

PC : Prashanth Pai

Spread over miles, this 13th century fort made in red sandstone comprises of gorgeous palaces with intricate carvings, perennial springs and a 5 mile perimeter wall guarding the fort! The breath taking views of the gorge and the Pennar river is simply unparalleled! Just like the Grand Canyon in Arizona, the stunning assemblage of rocks in the gorge is an artwork in itself. The bird eye view from the top is something one has to experience first hand.

The fascinating interiors of Belum caves nearby, astounds one and all with its magnificence! The architecturally rich temples of Gandikota and the picturesque lake of Rayalacheruvu are icings on the cake!

PC : Rajesh Kumar Karumanchi

Camping at Pennar river can be once-in-a-lifetime experience, relishing the gorgeous and charming backdrop! Gandikota has everything for everyone, even for the adventure thirsty. One can engage in a number of adventure activities like rock climbing, kayaking, rappelling and trekking, on their trip to Gandikota!

Best time to visit : November - February ; because of the pleasant weather

PC : editor CrazyYatra

How to reach : Gandikota is well connected to major cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad. Nearest Airports to Gandikota are Bangalore(260km) and Tirupati (220 km). Nearest Railway Stations are Tirupati and Jammalamadugu.

The striking beauty of Gandikota is going to pursue you for a long long time! Travel to The Grand Canyon of India for a reviving and relishing journey. Happy Travelling :)
The Chairman of the NATO Military Committee General Petr Pavel visited Iceland on 21 November 2016, where he met with Permanent Secretary of State, Mr. Stefan Haukur Johannesson, Director of Defence Mr. Arnor Sigurjonsson and other high level political and defence officials. While in Iceland, General Pavel also took the opportunity to deliver a speech at the Icelandic North Atlantic Treaty Association.

During his visit to Reykjavik, General Petr Pavel met with Director of Defence, Mr. Arnor Sigurjonsson and key staff. Discussions focused on Maritime Security, Cyber Defence, the fight against terrorism and Air Defence, especially the recent support of the Czech Air Force as part NATOs Air Policing mission over Iceland. The Chairman used the opportunity to thank Iceland for its continued commitment and contributions to NATO:  You contribute to our trust fund to help Ukraine modernise its command and control capabilities. These contributions show we can count on Iceland. And Iceland can count on NATO. Iceland is a valued Ally and has been for nearly 70 years. You contribute to NATO in many ways

While in Iceland, the Chairman also met with the Permanent Secretary of State, Mr. Stefan Haukur Johannesson. Following their conversation on North Atlantic Security and the continued importance of North Atlantic sea lines of communications, NATOs current and future security challenges and its continued adaptation, General Pavel remarked how We are facing the most challenging security environment since the end of the Cold War. Russia continues its destabilizing pattern of military activities in and around Ukraine. But also in the Atlantic and Arctic. NATO is responsible for the security of all its members  including in the Atlantic Ocean and the Arctic. We will never waver in that responsibility.

The Chairman then attended a roundtable with the Permanent Secretary of State, Mr. Stefan Haukur Johannesson, Foreign Policy Advisor Ambassador, Ms. Ingibjorg Davisdottir, Director of Defence, Mr. Arnor Sigurjonsson, Director of Public Security Ms. orunn J. Hafstein, Rear Admiral Georg Larusson, Minister-Counsellor Mr. Bjarni Vestmann, Minister-Counsellor Mr. Fririk Jonsson, Counsellor Ms. Olof Hrefna Kristjansdottir, and Captain Jon Gunason. A frank exchange of views on NATOs continued relevance in todays ever changing security environment and its ongoing Operations, Missions and Activities was held.

General Pavel concluded his visit to Reyjkavik by speaking at the Icelandic North Atlantic Treaty Association on the new challenges facing Northern Europe and Euro-Atlantic defence. He stressed that in this global security environment, it is more important than ever to work together. We, at NATO, recognize that success in addressing these challenges will depend on the wider nation-building efforts of the international community.
(NaturalNews) Chinese officials discovered nightmarish levels of lead and mercury in Jixi, a northeastern city, last month. After testing underground water in Jixi's Liumao Village in Heilongjiang Province, researches found mercury levels nine times the national standard, reported China Central Television.Cancer-causing lead levels were 700 times the national standard.Heavy metals such as lead, cadmium and mercury are often found in Chinese food exports. The occurrence of heavy metals found in Chinese exports is the result of extreme environmental pollution. One of the nation's leading culprits for pollution is the graphite-mining industry, in which China is the leading producer, providing 70 percent of the world's supply.Health Ranger Mike Adams made a recent appearance oneducating the public regarding dangerous heavy metals found in protein powders, herbs and superfoods grown in polluted nations like China.Through lab testing, Mike discovered that rice protein, a main ingredient in protein shakes, was frequently contaminated with toxic heavy metals . These include lead, mercury, cadmium and one metal rarely tested for, tungsten.Rice protein grown in California tested within the state's recommended levels of 0.5 mcg; imported rice protein from China tested at levels 20 times that limit."The FDA does not require organic foods to be tested for heavy metals," warned Mike.Residents near Jixi say officials go to great lengths to protect graphite-mining companies, despite their knowledge that it's contaminating native air and water Graphite mining has become extremely lucrative over the years due to a growing demand for lithium batteries. Lithium batteries are used to power laptop computers, smart phones and electric cars, including Tesla's Model S and Toyota's plug-in Prius.The value of graphite has skyrocketed, with a ton selling for 2,500 Yuan in 2010 or US $400. It's currently valued at 6,000 Yuan, or US $960.Chinese authorities have closed nearly 30 percent of graphite-mining plants due environmental-impact violations, and while this has lessened environmental impacts, it's also affected a world economy built around technology. The pollution has caused smog, contaminated water and even damaged crops, creating major health concerns.Nearly one mile from the mining plant near Jixi lie ash-covered rivers, homes and fields. "We have to bring in clothes put out to dry while they are still wet, otherwise they're covered in ash," said an elderly villager.Another villager said they know the ash has contaminated the water, but they have no other resources, forcing them to drink it."If you shine a torch in the evening, you see graphite ash falling like snowflakes on the fields," said another villager."Don't mention it. This has been damaging our health for a year," said a villager.Pollution from graphite mines can cause an array of environmental detriments including acid spills that cause lead poisoning, and unbearable smog.While a manager at the local Changyuan graphite-processing plant said they hadn't experienced any pollution problems, he admitted that a leak occurred on March 20, causing operations to temporarily be suspended. Residents said they had no knowledge of this leak, and were therefore unable to take precautions, subsequently drinking toxic water."Officials want to protect this business," said the local manager. "If they close small mines, where can they get tax and how can they solve unemployment problems?""The plant was set up by Shenzhen-based BTR battery Materials Co Ltd and local mine owners last year," reported. Some of their clients include Japanese electronic producer Panasonic and domestic car and rechargeable battery manufacturer BYD.Additional sources:
(NaturalNews) The cannabis plant's medicinal value is virtually unmatched by any modern medicine  even scientific evidence has shown us that. And yet, for some reason, the DEA continues to ignore the mountains of evidence that medical marijuana can, and does, help millions of people across the United States.Take, for example, the 100 million-some-odd people in the U.S. who suffer with debilitating chronic pain. Many of those people have had no choice but to turn to opioid pain relievers  you know, the drugs that are creating an addiction epidemic in our country and countless others. Those prescription painkillers are responsible for thousands of deaths each year. The American Society of Addiction Medicine estimates that 1.9 million people suffer with an addiction involving prescription painkillers, and over half a million people suffer with heroin addiction. The agency also notes that 4 out of 5 new heroin users started out on opioid painkillers. Estimates from the CDC have suggested that the majority of people who die from an opioid overdose had a prescription and were not using the drugs illegally.Clearly, opioids are problematic in our society. And yet, for some reason, the immense and extreme detrimental side effects of opioids  like addiction, accidental overdose and death  are somehow not severe enough to outweigh their potential medicinal value This would possibly be an acceptable rationale, if marijuana  which has a low potential for addiction and has an extremely low risk of overdose  was not illegal because the powers that be maintain that any benefit received from cannabis is vastly overpowered by its "risk" potential. It simply doesn't make any sense, and is totally contrary to what quite a bit of research has revealed.This hypocrisy is underlined by recent research which revealed that cannabis is actually being used as an "exit drug" to help people get off street drugs like heroin, and even opioid painkillers. Zach Walsh, associate professor of the University of British Columbia, led the systematic review, which was published in the journal. Walsh commented, "Research suggests that people may be using cannabis as an exit drug to reduce the use of substances that are potentially more harmful, such as opioid pain medication."Other studies have shown that marijuana could actually be used to help cure opioid addiction by reducing the severity of withdrawal symptoms. One study from Columbia University , found that patients given THC during recovery experienced less severe symptoms and were more likely to continue with the treatment program. Another study from the University of Michigan , found that medical marijuana could also be used to replace the use of opioid drugs in pain management, and reduced the need for the prescription painkillers. In fact, 185 patients reported a 45 percent overall improvement in their quality of life after making the switch. Patients also reported a 64 percent reduction in use of their conventional opioid medications.Essentially, science is indicating that in addition to helping people currently addicted to opioids, medical cannabis could actually help bring an end to the epidemic by providing a safe alternative to begin with.There are veritable mountains of evidence, both scientific and anecdotal in nature, affirming that cannabis does indeed have medical value. And yet the DEA continues to make obtuse and uninformed statements about marijuana. In discussing cannabis prior to the agency's most recent ruling, Russ Baer, a staff coordinator in the Office of Congressional and Public Affairs at the DEA, brazenly stated, "There's no safe, effective medical use, and a high abuse potential, and it can't be used in medical settings."These sentiments have no basis in reality. Baer himself acknowledged this when he noted that the plant has many medical uses. He claims that the government needs to sort out which of the compounds in marijuana are beneficial and which ones aren't.These bureaucrats are failing miserably at hiding the fact that Big Pharma intends to create medications based on the plant's compounds . Why allow the whole plant to be used when you can divvy it up into parts and sell them all for money? They've already done it with a product called Dronabinol.Almost 30 years ago, in 1988, the DEA's own administrative law judge, Francis Young, recommended rescheduling cannabis . Young stated that "marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man. By any measure of rational analysis marijuana can be safely used within a supervised routine of medical care." Unsurprisingly, the DEA denied the petition anyway. Recent studies have also shown that in 2013  when just 17 states had medical marijuana laws  medical marijuana contributed to just over $165 million in savings on prescription drugs. Since that time, medical marijuana use has expanded quite a bit. Imagine what those states are probably saving in care costs now. That clears things up a little bit, right?The failure of the DEA to reschedule cannabis and acknowledge the medicinal value of this plant is an embarrassment. There is, at this point, one reason  and one reason only  that would explain why our government has failed to keep with current science  and that's money.
Government now deciding all Americans should only trust 'modern' medical industry

No mass death using homeopathic treatments

(NaturalNews) Barack Obama's Left-wing federal bureaucracy continues to become more tyrannical, even as the man is on his way out the door  giving a good indication of just how tall an order it will be for President-elect Donald J. Trump to "drain the D.C. swamp" as he has pledged to do.In recent days the Federal Trade Commission actually ordered all makers of homeopathic products to- an unbelievable requirement, considering there was no such order sent to Big Pharma firms for their many questionably effective treatments.Once again, the federal government is picking winners and losers based on who has more political clout in D.C.Mind you, the homeopathic market in the U.S. is massive. As reported by the UK's, it is estimated that Americans spent $3 billion in 2007 alone on such treatments and remedies essentially created in 1796 by Samuel Hahnemann.But now, Obama's bureaucracy is attempting to drive a stake in the heart of an extremely popular industry  and one that millions of Americans rely on for their health (and should be free to choose if that's what they want). In a public notification, the FTC is ordering makers of homeopathic products to prove they work and are effective, or state that there is "no scientific evidence that the product works."The notice added: "Homeopathy, which dates back to the late-eighteenth century, is based on the view that disease symptoms can be treated by minute doses of substances that produce similar symptoms when provided in larger doses to healthy people."The notice went on to say that many homeopathic products are so diluted they no longer have "detectable levels" of the primary substance. Therefore, generally speaking, claims made by homeopathic product makers are "not based on modern scientific methods" and as such, are not "accepted" by establishment medicine.In addition, the federal regulatory agency said that homeopathic drug claims allegedly not substantiated by 'competent' and 'reliable' sources (that Uncle Sam also gets to pick, no doubt) may not be deceptive under the new order if the labeling includes 1) a statement claiming no scientific evidence indicates the product works; and 2) a statement noting the product's claims are only based on homeopathic medicinal theories from the 1700s "that are not accepted by most modern medical experts."Are you beginning to see where this push is coming from? If you guessed the establishment medical industry, you'd be right.But in fact, as we have regularly reported,in treating ailments and illnesses, regardless of the Obama administration's attempts to shut it down.In fact, just days ago we reported that the concept behind homeopathic medicine is sound. It seeks not to mask or suppress symptoms, like "modern" medicine, but rather to address an overall syndrome of body and mind, and thereby strengthening the body's own ability to defend against disease. Before actually advising on a treatment, however, homeopaths consider a patient's symptoms as well as their personal traits, physical state of being, history and psychological condition.And there is also this: The Food and Drug Administration admits that traditional medication errors account for at least one death every day, while injuring some 1.3 million people every year in the United States. In all, about 250,000 deaths annually are attributable to medication errors made by. The ones the Obama FTC isn't interested in regulating.Homeopathic medicine has no similar record of death.
The Russians did it with 'fake news' planted in hundreds of alternative media sites!

'Neo-McCarthey hysteria

Mainstream press trying to deflect from Clinton's pathetic second presidential loss

(NaturalNews) You have to believe that the managing editors at the Washington Post saved the tin foil from their Thanksgiving meal office party so they could issue it out as headgear for their reporting staff.Because only tin foil hat-wearing conspiracy nuts posing as journalists would churn out the kind kooky theory the paper published over the holiday as a legitimate "news" story.It seems like any independent media outlet that actually reports that truth  that would include ours, by the way  is really just a Russian intelligence asset working for Moscow.You can't make this stuff up.As noted by Zero Hedge , the Post is continuing the crumbling establishment media post-presidential election narrative that its chosen nominee, Hillary Clinton, only lost the election to Donald J. Trump because of "fake news" and "the Russians stole the election."The Post cited "two teams of independent researchers" to claim that "Russia's increasingly sophisticated propaganda machinery...echoed and amplified right-wing sites across the Internet as they portrayed Clinton as a criminal..." The paper further names Drudge, Zero Hedge, the Ron Paul Institute and Natural News , among many others.Consider us a part of the throng of "useful idiots" that real American patriots should be leery of.Citing a report from some group called PropOrNot listing more than 200 web sites that supposedly pushed Russian propaganda routinely to more than 15 million Americans, the Post  without irony  declared that somehow constituted "scientific evidence" of Russian election-tampering:But then the Post story includedpassage:So, which is it, boys and girls at the Post  Russiatilt the election in Trump's favor or itThat can be addressed easily, as it has already been answered. Not mentioned in the Post article is the fact that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, whose site released a trove of emails hacked from the Clinton campaign and the Democratic National Committee, has said the documents did not come from Moscow "The Clinton camp has been able to project a neo-McCarthyist hysteria that Russia is responsible for everything," he said in denouncing the Clinton campaign's accusations. ""Hillary Clinton has stated multiple times, falsely, that 17 U.S. intelligence agencies had assessed that Russia was the source of our publications. That's falsewe can say that the Russian government is not the source."But to the Post and the sycophants in the Democratic Party and the Clinton campaign,. The absurdity of that allegation is only surpassed by its comical nature.Several things.First, you'll note from the Post report that there is no evidence of Russian tampering using "fake news " planted in sites like ours, mind you  just goofy conspiratorialunder the facade of "scientific research." That's what we like to call the "Harry Reid Factor" - just throw out unsubstantiated charges no one can prove or disprove and hope they stick You'll also note that the Post got to decide the 'research' it cited came from groups it also decided on its own were 'independent.' We don't know that; for all we know, these groups could be filled with some of the most Left-wing activists in the country.For another thing, Russian propaganda did not start with this election  and it won't end with it, either. Even the Post acknowledged that. The Russians  then the Soviets  have attempted to "undermine" American democracy for decades during the Cold War. That didn't stop with the collapse of the former Soviet Union. So the assertion that all of a sudden Russia is attempting to subvert U.S. democracy is just stupid, and it makes you wonder if this would even be a "story" if Clinton had, in fact, won.And why does Russian President Vladimir Putin have so much animus against Hillary Clinton? By all accounts their meetings when she was Obama's secretary of state went alright; in fact, only meetings between Putin and Obama go badly . The Post never bothered to explain this, either, claiming generically that there was some Russian "goal of punishing Democrat Hillary Clinton" while "helping Republican Donald Trump."Furthermore, why does Putin want to 'help'? It only makes sense that no matter who is in the Oval Office, an American president will pursue policies that are in our country's best interests (Obama was the exception), and those generally do not align with Russian interests. Trump has given every indication he is willing to work to repair U.S.-Russian relations, but Clinton did not. Could that be the reason? Trump's approach is the right one because what sense does it make to have raucous relationships with a major nuclear power if you don't have to?The Post's wild conspiracy theory about "fake news planted by the Russians" is nothing more than a childish attempt to deflect from Clinton's pathetic second loss in her bid for the White House  and the establishment media's inability to push her over the finish line.But we'll have great sport poking fun at the Post and others for making such a claim with a straight face. And don't forget, you can always access truth sites via GoodGopher.com
Violence, injuries and near-death

Most corporate media avoiding coverage of what is happening at Standing Rock

(NaturalNews) As protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) ramp up, police may be getting more militarized and aggressive in their attempts to disperse picketing crowds.The reports that some 167 people at the ongoing protests against the DAPL on the Standing Rock Sioux reservation were injured in recent days by militarized police who essentially assaulted a bridge occupied by peaceful demonstrators  a crowd that included men, women, children and older persons.Even though temperatures were well below freezing, police used a water cannon to disperse the crowd. But, according to a video of the chaotic scene, police also used flash-bang grenades, tear gas, rubber bullets and the LRAD acoustic weapon.Among the injured, reports The Free Thought Project , was a 13-year-old girl who was reportedly struck in the face by a projectile, and three tribal elders who were seriously injured in the melee. In all, reports from the scene indicated that at least seven people required hospitalization.Medics on the scene had to perform CPR on one tribal elder who slipped into cardiac arrest . Native News Online reports that the elder remains hospitalized and is in critical condition.The confrontation with police took place near Cannon Ball, N.D., at the Backwater Bridge on Highway 1806, reports said.Emergency medical personnel from the Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux tribes attended to the injured, wet and freezing demonstrators who had been staying at the Oceti Sakowin Camp and in a nearby gymnasium. Scores suffered hypothermia , blunt force trauma and open wounds from non-lethal projectiles, as well as contamination from tear gas, according to reports.A joint statement from the Indigenous Environmental Network, Honor the Earth and Sacred Stone Camp regarding the incident, noted that hundreds of " water protectors"  another term for those protesting the construction of the pipeline out of fears that future leaks will contaminate local water sources  were injured when law enforcement personnel "blasted them with water cannons in freezing temperatures" November 20.The statement said that demonstrators came under assault as they used a semi-truck to remove burned out vehicles that police had linked to concrete barriers some weeks ago to block traffic on Highway 1806."Water protectors' efforts to clear the road and improve access to the camp for emergency services were met with tear gas, an LRAD (Long Range Acoustic Device), stinger grenades, rubber bullets, and indiscriminate use of a water cannon with an air temperature of 26 degrees Fahrenheit," the statement said, adding that flares fired by police started a few grass fires that were "ignored" by water cannon operators and extinguished by demonstrators.In addition, police allegedly downed three drones that were reportedly being used by the media, while targeting some journalists with less lethal rounds, the statement claimed."National Lawyers Guild legal observers on the frontlines have confirmed that multiple people were unconscious and bleeding after being shot in the head with rubber bullets," the statement noted.Many who have either witnessed events as participants, or who are otherwise somehow involved in the demonstrations, have also noted a particular lack of interest by the establishment media  the same group that is now ridiculously claiming that alternative media sites like Natural News are nothing but puppets for the Russian government  in what is taking place at Standing Rock reservation.Thedid report that a few news agencies  Fox News, The New York Times, ABC News and a few others  briefly mentioned or covered the protests, but coverage was conspicuously absent from other major media including CNN, CBS News and MSNBC, among others.And even then, thenoted, "their coverage is nothing compared to the work of independent journalists ... ."
Obama has brought radical Islamic terrorist "sleeper cells" into the USA and strategically placed them across the country

This attack underscores the importance of campus carry and extreme vetting of immigrants

(NaturalNews) A Somali refugee university student named Abdul Artan unleashed a mass attack on fellow students today at Ohio State. The Muslim radical, who entered the United States under a student visa, pulled a fire alarm then "mowed down evacuating students and staff with his car," reports the UK Daily Mail The lying mainstream media originally misreported this story as a "mass shooting," but it turns out the gunshots were law enforcement officers shooting Artan, halting his reign of violence as he. The name of the police officer who shot and killed Artan is Alan Horujko, who has been active with the force since January of 2015.UK Daily Mail describes the incident as a "ISIS lone wolf-style attack" carried out exactly as ISIS called for earlier this year Ohio State is a "gun free zone," meaning the school entices terrorists to target the campus for mass killings of students, knowing that students are not allowed to defend themselves with firearms. Notably, it was finally a gun carried by an OSU law enforcement officer who used lethal force against the assailant and ended his stabbing spree.As PJ Media reports:As you read all this, consider the evidence that Barack Obama, a Muslim hater of America, has spent much of his presidency deliberately placing Muslim refugees in cities and schools across America. The strategy is to distribute radical Muslims across the country, then wait for a few of them to unleash "lone wolf" attacks to cause maximum chaos and terror among the American populace."A U.S. official identified the suspect as a man of Somali descent," reports local CBS News . "The official identified Abdul Razak Ali Artan as the now-deceased suspect. He was born in Somalia and living in the United States as a legal permanent resident.""Artan fled Somalia with his family in 2007 before landing in Pakistan," reports Daily Caller . "He moved to the United States in 2014, where he was granted legal, permanent status."From Daily Caller:Apparently, he is exactly what the media portrays radical Muslims to be! He's a terrorist who unleashed mass death upon American students.Once again, this attack demonstrates the absolute lunacy of "gun free zones" on college campuses. Had students been allowed to legally carry self-defense weapons, they could have very likelyThis incident also reinforces the importance of so-called "extreme vetting" -- a Donald Trump strategy for making sure we don't allow radical Muslim terrorists to immigrate into the United States where they are later activated as lone wolf terrorists.More news on this issue is being published every few hours at NewsTarget.com Listen to my full podcast covering this at Health Ranger Report or listen below:
Fame is good. Well, at least, for monkeys. A new study suggests that the health of primates is partly determined by their "status" in their own social ladders, suggesting that upward mobility is indeed good for monkeys.



If proven, the study may help explain why people with poor backgrounds have higher rates of heart disease and diabetes. According to Noah Snyder-Mackler of Duke University, social adversity does "get under the skin."



Mackler, along with co-author Luis Barreiro of the University of Montreal and colleagues from both Duke and Emory University, led the study and observed 45 unrelated female rhesus monkeys. They slowly observed that they created a social "peking" order and found out the ones introduced earlier "ranked higher" than the last ones.



They then studied the activity of 9,000 genes in the animals' immune cells. According to New Scientist, activity in more than 1,600 genes differed between lower- and higher-ranking monkeys. This is true within "natural killer cells" or white blood cells that defend against infection. It appears these cells appear more in higher-ranking monkeys than lower-ranking ones.



While low-rankers had stronger immune responses against bacteria, it also fueled harmful infection. Their immune cells went into "overdrive" when exposed to bacterial toxin in the lab.



Scientists explained that while a strong immune response is good, it can be damaging in unregulated numbers.



When the monkeys were re-sorted and the low-rankers became higher-rankers, startling behavior happened. The new higher-ranking monkeys enjoyed benefits such as grooming and are now less likely to trigger inflammation.

Their study suggests that stress plays an important role in the statistics other than lifestyle habits such as smoking and exercise.



According to Science Daily, people in the social ladder differ in life expectancy by more than a decade. It was previously believed that these glaring health inequalities are attributed to healthcare access and lifestyle habits, but now this new research proves otherwise.



This means if similar molecular mechanisms underlie the link between social status and health in humans, then there can be social interventions that can be done to mitigate the physiological costs of low status.
The Ta'u Island in American Samoa in now completely run with Tesla power packs. In a tweet published Tuesday, Tesla Motors announced that the island now runs on nearly 100 percent solar energy, thanks to more than 5,300 solar panels and 60 Tesla Powerpacks.

After the successful $2.6 billion acquisition of SolarCity in Nov. 21, Tesla utilized SolarCity's microgrid system to provide sustainable solutions to energy generation. Before the introduction of solar energy, the island used to rely on 109,500 gallons of diesel per year or $8 million in fuel costs.

Ta'u is the largest island in the Manu'a Group and the easternmost volcanic island of the Samoan Islands. With only 600 residents, they used to depend on imported oil from the U.S., Asia, Central America, and Australia to run its generators. Now, the island can have electricity 24/7 with 1.4 megawatts (MW) of solar energy generation capacity (5,328 SolarCity solar panels) and 6 megawatt hours (MWh) of energy storage capacity (60 Tesla Powerpacks).

The project was funded by the American Samoa Economic Development Authority, the Department of the Interior, and the Environmental Protection Agency. A report from Business Insider stated how the project promotes cleaner energy sources in Dubai and Hawaii. With this new technology, the residents in the area hope to decrease the global carbon footprint around the globe.

In a Tesla blog post, local resident Keith Ahsoon explained that the project "will help lessen the carbon footprint of the world." Originally run on diesel, the burning fuel through generators are seen as bad for the environment and are expensive due to the fluctuating oil and gas markets.

"Living on an island, you experience global warming firsthand. Beach erosions and other noticeable changes are a part of life here. It's a serious problem, and this project will hopefully set a good example for everyone else to follow," Ahsoon added.

Last October, Tesla CEO Elon Musk noted how the acquisition aims to make solar and storage as compelling as electric vehicles to advance the world's transition to sustainable energy. Musk further described the acquisition as part of his "master plan," a fully sustainable energy covering transportation (Tesla EVs), energy generation (SolarCity), and energy storage (Tesla's Powerwall).
A rare phenomenon called "thunderstorm asthma" is currently plaguing the Australian city of Melbourne.

On Monday evening, a sudden drop in temperature from 35 degrees Celsius along with severe thunderstorms triggered mass pollen allergy asthma attacks, where over 8,000 people in the state of Victoria were rushed to the hospital.

To date, death toll has risen to six and three more are in critical condition, BBC reports.

Within a four-hour period that day, Ambulance Victoria had received over 1,900 calls and extra 60 ambulances were deployed, together with police and several groups of firefighters, Business Insider reports.

What is thunderstorm asthma?

According to the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI), asthma is a condition characterized by inflamed bronchial tubes or the airways in the lungs, typically triggered by an allergic reaction. In Australia, the asthma attack was triggered by hay-fever, the allergy to pollen. Heavy rain can make hay-fever symptoms - like asthma - worse, said the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy.

When rain falls, pollen grains absorb moisture and erupt, spreading small allergenic particles that could irritate the lungs when inhaled. According to Business Insider, these particles could irritate and inflame bronchial tubes, which are filled with mucus and cause difficulty of breathing.

"When you have a perfect storm coming together [of] a very high pollen day, high humidity, and a thunderstorm, the grains of rye grass absorb water with the humidity and they break up into thousands of pieces," Robin Ould, chief executive of the Asthma Foundation of Australia, told CNN.

"Normally with rye grass the pollen would be trapped by nose hairs. When it breaks up it goes straight to the lungs."

According to CNN, pollen levels peak in late spring, as it did in Victoria. The pollens combined with strong winds, rain and high temperatures, and this led to incidents of thunderstorm asthma.

An effect of climate change?

An international group of researchers suspects that the event could be caused by climate change. According to Paul Beggs, an environmental health scientist at the Macquarie University in Sydney, climate change could be responsible for this growing pollen potency because of carbon dioxide emissions.

"Plants use carbon dioxide through photosynthesis, and if you change the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere then their growth conditions are changing," Beggs told The Guardian. Researchers found that increasing amount of carbon dioxide led to changes in plants, including more potent pollen.

"All of these things are happening in the background: climate change, increasing pollen potency, and they all mean a thunderstorm asthma episode is more likely than it was 20 years ago," Beggs added.
Advocates of cannabis-based products to treat dogs and other animals suffering from anxiety, arthritis, seizures, cancer, and other ailments, are taking off.

Holistic Hound Pet Store manager Dianne Krenzer claims that the cannabis-based Treatibles are flying off the shelves. "I've never seen a product that has had such broad popularity and interest," Krenzer stated in a report at TechTimes.

Treatibles, the cannabis pet treat founded by Oakland company Auntie Dolores, contain cannabinoid (CBD) does not make people or animals high. In a report from recorder.com, Auntie Dolores CEO claims that the chewable offers relief from anxiety and pain, and does not harm animals.

"We have people using it (on their pets) for separation anxiety, or when they're going to the vet or groomer," Carella said.

Although certain states like Colorado have legalized medical Marijuana edibles, the Federal law does not approve of cannabis use in animal products. Under the federal law, the CBD and THC or Tetrahydrocannabidinol the active ingredient in cannabis giving its narcotic and psychoactive effects, are illegal. However, hemp also contains CBD which can be legally imported and sold in the US, causing a loophole in the federal law.

To avoid this, federal regulators have sent warning letters to producers who claim health benefits. At the bottom of the Treatibles website, a note is seen saying:

"The statements made regarding these products have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The efficacy of these products has not been confirmed by FDA-approved research. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. All information presented here is not meant as a substitute for or alternative to information from health care practitioners. Please consult your health care professional about potential interactions or other possible complications before using any product. The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act requires this notice."

Despite warnings, pet owners continue to use the chewable treats from claims of previous users. Veterinarians, on the other hand, have shown concern over the usage of CBD product due to the absence of data to support the user's claims.

"The number of products has exploded but because of the legal ramifications, we can't prescribe anything with the THC CBD in it," said Veterinarian Ashley McCaughan, at Creature Comfort Holistic Veterinary Center in Oakland.

Other cannabis-based chewable for pets include True Hemp, Canna-pet, among others.
The first clinical trials for an HIV vaccine will finally be launched.

The study, which is called HVTN 702, will involve a new version of the experimental vaccine that shows the biggest potential to protect against the HIV virus. The trials will be conducted in South Africa, enrolling about 5,400 HIV-negative but sexually active men and women.

"If deployed alongside our current armory of proven HIV prevention tools, a safe and effective vaccine could be the final nail in the coffin for HIV," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said in a statement.

"Even a moderately effective vaccine would significantly decrease the burden of HIV disease over time in countries and populations with high rates of HIV infection, such as South Africa."

The HVTN 702 study is a large, advanced-stage clinical trial that aims to determine if an experimental vaccine regimen is safe, tolerable and effective at protecting against the HIV virus.

The experimental vaccine regimen being tested for the study is based on the RV144 regimen, which was tested in Thailand four years ago on 16,000 people. The test, which was led by the U.S. Military HIV Research Program and the Thai Ministry of Health, was the first time a vaccine was found to be capable of preventing HIV infection.

During the Thai trials, the vaccine was found to be 31.2 percent effective at preventing the infection over the 3.5-year follow-up after vaccination. For the new study, the design, schedule and components of the RV144 vaccine regimen have been modified in an attempt to increase the magnitude and duration of vaccine-elicited protective immune responses.

If the vaccine proves to be 50 to 60 percent effective, drugmakers Sanofi Pasteur and GlaxoSmithKline to begin licensing negotiations with the South African government, Chicago Tribune reports.

"If this study shows efficacy . . . this would be a tectonic, historic event for HIV," Nelson L. Michael, director of the U.S. Military HIV Research Program, told Chicago Tribune.
A new study revealed that increasing carbon dioxide emissions could increase the risk of more frequent and more powerful hurricanes to strike at the northeastern coast of the United States.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, showed that the expansion of atmospheric circulation belts driven by the increasing carbon dioxide emissions is shifting the weather pattern. These changes in the weather pattern are causing the hurricane track to move northwards from western Caribbean towards the northern North America over the past few hundred years.

"Our research shows that the hurricane risk to the Northeastern coast of the United States is increasing as hurricanes track further north," explained lead author Dr Lisa Baldini, of Durham University's Department of Geology, in a press release. "Since the 19th Century this shift was largely driven by man-made emissions and if these emissions continue as expected this will result in more frequent and powerful storms affecting the financial and population centers of the Northeastern United States."

For the study, the researchers analyzed the chemical composition of a stalagmite collected from a cave in southern Belize, Central America to reconstruct hurricane rainfall for the western Caribbean from 450 years ago.

The researchers found that the average number of hurricanes that struck the Belize area have decrease over time, while documentary hurricane records from Bermuda and Florida reported increase in hurricane occurrence. This suggests that hurricanes were not disappearing at the Belize site, but begun moving to the north. The researchers also found that the industrial boom in the 19th century, which is linked to the increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, coincides with the decrease hurricane activity in the western Caribbean.

With their findings, the researchers conclude that the increase in the carbon dioxide emissions have become the main driver behind the migration of hurricane tracks by altering the weather systems. As the increasing trend of carbon dioxide emission continue to waltz upward, the researchers warn that the hurricane tracks could shift even further northward, increasing the risk of powerful hurricanes in the northeastern US.


A new study revealed that climate change poses a great threat in the long-term survival of deep-sea coral population in the North Atlantic region.

The study, published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, showed that any changes in the winter weather conditions can negatively affect the coral populations.

For the study, the researchers focused on a cold-water coral, known as Lophelia pertusa. These corals grow in deep waters maintained by tiny, fragile coral larvae. By drifting and swimming in the ocean currents, these larvae travel hundreds of miles between reefs where they attach and begin to grow.

"We can't track larvae in the ocean, but what we know about their behavior allows us to simulate their epic journeys, predicting which populations are connected and which are isolated," explained lead author Dr Alan Fox, of the University of Edinburgh's School of GeoSciences, in a press release. "In less well connected coral networks, populations become isolated and cannot support each other, making survival and recovery from damage more difficult."

Using computer models to simulate the migration of larvae across the vast stretches of ocean, the researchers were able to predict potential effects of weather changes to the long-term survival of Lophelia pertusa populations in the North Atlantic.

The researchers found that a possible shift in average weather conditions in Western Europe could greatly threaten the coral population. Additionally, changing wind patterns could alter ocean currents, driving larvae away from key sites in a network of marine areas established to help protect coral populations.

Furthermore, the researchers discovered that the network of Marine Protected Areas (MPA) in Scotland appears to be weakly connected, increasing the risk of death due to climate change. While the MPA of Scotland appears to be weakly connected, the coral population on Rosemary Bank seems to maintain the Scotland's network.

On the other hand, the gap in the MPA network between the coral population in the North Atlantic and along the coast of Norway can be connected with the help corals thriving in the oil and gas platforms in the North Sea and west of Shetland.


One of the tourist attractions in Barcelona and other parts of Europe is feeding pigeons in plazas and patios of historical landmarks. However, the birds have increasingly become a problem for the past decade as they tend to trash the city, turning it into a giant dump.

The birds have been reported to poo on not only historical landmarks and buildings but also on tourists. Local authorities have been continuously receiving complaints regarding this matter. The government believes that putting the birds on contraceptive pills may gradually solve their problems regarding waste.

According to a report from Express UK, early this year, there had been a proposal regarding the euthanization of the birds to significantly reduce their population by a huge percentage. However, the proposal received protests from various animal rights groups from all over the world. This leaves the government with a dilemma on how to reduce the bird's population.

Now, a new means of control has been put in place to replace the original plan of killing the birds. The birds will be fed contraceptive food to put contraceptive pills into the birds' system. It is expected that by mid of 2017, special feeding dispensers will be installed all over the city which contain contraceptive food.

The Barcelona government has considered expert advice to successfully perform the operation without harming the birds. Results will be analyzed after the first year to see how the new "feeding system" will affect the general health of the pigeons. It is also going to be checked whether or not such an operation will be fatal to pigeons. The operation is expected to cut down the pigeons' population by as much as 80 percent in the next five years.
German chancellor Angela Merkel has released a statement late last week regarding the country's plans of deporting hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants that arrived in Germany for the past year. The German leader has been criticized worldwide for her decision to open the country's borders to refugees. Now she seems to be retracting her move, pushing for repatriation.

The increasing conflicts in some parts of the Middle East have forced millions to flee to neighboring lands in search for peace and safety. Known as the Migration Crisis of 2016, thousands upon thousands of immigrants take their fate into boats that would carry them across the sea in hopes that European nations will accept their plea for help. Refugees from Syria and Iraq have been arriving on the shores of Italy, Germany, Greece, Sweden, and Hungary since 2014 in insurmountable numbers.

According to a report from Foreign Policy, around 49 percent of residents in Europe believe that accepting refugees at high numbers will be a major threat to European countries. A majority of citizens also believe that the presence of refugees will increase the possibilities of terrorism in their countries. This has created a dangerous divide in Europe, a problem which could be fatal to the economies of the members of the European Union.

As reported in Express UK, more than a hundred thousand refugees have been denied entry to Germany this year alone. Merkel has been quite frank about the realities that some refugees truly need support and asylum, yet there are also others who are trying to abuse the system. She has strongly insisted that only those that truly need refuge will be accepted and allowed to stay within the protection of the German government.
The office of US President-elect Donald J. Trump has announced that Founders Fund Principal Trae Stephens will join its transition team for the Department of Defense. Stephens will join Trump's so-called landing team.

As part of the defense transition team of the Trump administration, Trae Stephens, will give a hand in making policies and screening Defense Department staff. He, however, will not take a position in the incoming administration, Bloomberg reports.

From the data analytics company Palantir Technologies, Inc., Stephens moved to Founders Fund, where he "focuses on startups operating in the government space," according to his website profile. One of the many startups supported by the fund, Palantir Technologies first offered its services to the U.S. intelligence community.

Founders Fund is a San Francisco-based venture capital fund founded in 2005 by billionaire investors - including Trump supporter, Peter Thiel. According to an article by SpaceNews, it said that Founders Fund was the first venture firm to put its bet on Elon Musk's Space X, with a $20 million investment into the company in July 2008. This was followed by a $50 million round November 2010 and the $1 billion round in January 2015 led by Google and Fidelity. Although Founders Fund has kept mum on questions about how much its share on SpaceX is, the fact that its partner co-founder Luke Nosek has secured a seat on Space X's board of directors gives a hint.

Stephens appointment to the transition team came as no surprise because of his connection to Trump supporter Peter Thiel, the billionaire who, aside from Founders Fund and Palantir Technologies Inc., also co-founded PayPal and a director at Facebook Inc. The first and most important Trump supporter from Silicon Valley, Thiel said he hopes the Trump administration will focus more on the country's defense rather than wars abroad.

The Trump administration has been hard at work in completing its landing team. However, as of the latest, November 28, it has not yet made official if a member from NASA will be a part of it.
The Japanese government earned praises for fixing a massive sinkhole in just two days. But the drama isn't over yet as the Fukuoka sinkhole re-appeared weeks after it was fixed.

A sinkhole swallowed a five-lane street in Fukuoka, Japan last Nov. 8. The incident caused major traffic disruption and resident relocation. The sinkhole was attributed to an underground construction work, taking place near the busy street.

Authorities promptly renovated the streets in less than a week - two days to be exact. This abrupt solution earned the respect of residents worldwide. However, in less than a month, the sinkhole reappeared on the same spot.

There were 2,000 truckloads of soil mixed with cement dumped to fix the sinkhole, according to a report by IB Times. But on Nov. 26, authorities noticed that the road sunk by almost seven centimeters causing alarm over the safety of residents and driver/commuters using the roads.

Some signs of collapse manifested early on Saturday Nov. 26. The signs of sinking again showed early on Saturday, Nov. 26. Due to the fear of further sinking, the police cordoned off the area disrupting the traffic and business flow in the area. Official say the almost 30 square meter are suffered from a 7 cm collapse.

But after careful investigation, the authorities say the road will no longer sink further, therefore, the roads were opened to the public again at about 5:30 am, according to a report. The re-opening of the roads was done after careful investigation and after it was established that no life will be endangered by the resurfacing sinkhole.

Residents are hopeful that no further damage to the streets will manifest so they can live a normal life without fear of disruption, at the least and a giant sinkhole appearing in the middle of a busy street.

The 15-meter deep sinkhole that appeared on Nov. 8 caused power outages that affected almost 800 households, according to a report. But the recent incident last Saturday did not cause any power outages and other inconvenience aside from the minor road closure to give way to the inspection team to see if the roads are fit to be used.

Meanwhile, in London, a sinkhole also appeared where a broken water pipe main was located. The sinkhole caused major flooding and swallowed part of a bus. Passengers had to be rescued and streets were closed due to the sinkhole.
Several countries are fearing another possible pandemic as the H5N8 virus, also known as the bird flu, is spreading across the world like wildfire. Netherlands has reportedly euthanized more than 190,000 ducks in the country in hopes of containing the virus and preventing any possibility of an outbreak.

The particular virus strain has been reported in Asia in early 2014 but has taken two years to spread in Europe and the U.S. A report from New Scientist indicated that there has been an increase in the population of birds in Europe which suffer from the disease. Hundreds of thousands of birds are being killed to prevent a possible outbreak.

The population of birds with the disease has started to move from east to west since 2014. According to BBC, the long distance migration of wild birds throughout the globe has increased the speed of the spread of the virus. It is suspected that the disease has reached domesticated birds through the contamination from droppings from migrating wild birds.

Just last Thursday, South Korea has issued a nationwide warning to help contain the possible spread of the bird flu virus throughout the country. The entire country was alarmed when the cases of avian flu have dramatically increased in a matter of days. According to a report from Reuters, about 730,000 birds have been killed in South Korea alone to prevent the possible spread of the disease to humans.

So far, there had been no recorded cases of humans infected with the virus, and there are no indications yet that there is a possibility that this particular virus strain can harm people. However, the World Health Organization has not taken this lightly and still warned that human infection has a likelihood of occurring.
A United Airlines Boeing 747 airline bound for Tokyo returned safely to San Francisco International airport Monday after eyewitnesses reported hearing a loud bang and seeing flames coming out of its engine.

Officials at SFO said Flight 837, flying from SFO to Narita International Airport, had to shut down one of its four engines. The plane, which was carrying 202 passengers and 15 crew members, made a successful landing around 1:45 p.m. at SFO.

United Airlines confirmed that the plane experienced mechanical problems with one of their engines, but could not confirm whether there were flames.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the cause of the engine problem. Preliminary information indicates the problem was with the inboard engine on the left side.

Several eyewitness accounts on Twitter around noon reported hearing multiple loud bangs and seeing flames coming out of the plane's engine when it was flying above San Bruno.

"Just saw fire come out of an engine of a plane taking off from SFO. A United plane," tweeted Sam Smith at 12:08 p.m. Smith, who was in his office in San Bruno, said the plane had flames coming out of the left side of the engine, and that there was a loud bang.

"It looked like it was going to land," he said.

"Plane was at a low altitude - 10 to 20 feet flame out of engine for two seconds," Smith said, adding that he didn't see any smoke or hear any sirens on the ground.

Danny Reed, who works in San Bruno, also tweeted around the same time: "Just watched United plane engine catch fire out of SFO."

Reed said he was walking out of his office on Cherry Avenue to get to his car, when he heard multiple loud bangs. "It took me a second to figure out what was going on," he said. "A group of coworkers were already outside looking up at the plane. By the time I looked, I couldn't make out the flames, but several of my coworkers clearly saw the engine on fire. It appeared to me that the plane was in controlled defense mode."

Reed said nobody had cellphones out to take pictures: "Everyone was just busy looking up."

Reed said the "bang" sounded louder than fireworks. "There were at least three bangs - that's what caught my attention," he said. "It was concerning."

A video taken by Max Raju, a passenger on the flight, shows what appears to be a fuel dump from the aircraft after flames were seen coming out from its engine. Alf Raju, Max Raju's father, said his son was sitting next to the engine, and sent him the following text:

"'Suddenly big fireballs came out of the engine' - pilot shut down engine then tried to re-start and 'more big fireballs came out' ... [pilot] shut down the engine and then dumped fuel over Pacific before landing back at SFO."
A San Mateo County Sheriff's deputy was injured Sunday during an operation to detain three people believed to have smuggled narcotics by boat into Ano Nuevo State Park, officials said.

U.S. Coast Guard officials in the water early Sunday notified authorities representing the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations team and the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office that they were tracking a panga boat off the coast. The vessel, which is believed to be connected to smuggling activity, landed at the state park in Pescadero before authorities seized the detainees, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson James Schwab said.

The specifics of how the deputy was injured were not detailed, Detective Sal Zuno from the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office said. The deputy was transported to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

An investigation into the deputy's injuries and the operation are ongoing, officials said.

Further information was not available at the time.
Dozens attended a vigil Monday night for a South San Francisco police officer who remains in critical condition after he was struck in the head by a suspect's skateboard on Thanksgiving.

Community members and Officer Robby Chon's family and friends gathered at the South San Francisco police station at 33 Arroyo Drive to support the officer's quick and full recovery. Chon is a 12-year veteran of the force, who is married and has two children.

He has been in critical condition at San Francisco General Hospital since the day of the attack, having suffered a traumatic head injury, but he is showing signs of recovery. Doctors on Monday said they are "cautiously optimistic" with his progress. Fellow officers said he has a long road to recovery.

Chon's sister spoke to the gathering, making a tearful plea for prayers.

"I beg you, please continue to pray," she said. "I thank you for supporting my family and my brother. ... I look into my nephews eyes; I want to assure them everything will be OK and their dad will be safe. But he has a long road to recover from his injuries."

City leaders lit up the old City Hall in blue to honor Chon and said they will be making available blue lightbulbs for those who wish to install them in a porch light to show support.

The violent attack started around 2:20 p.m. Thursday near the 300 block of Grand Avenue when Chon attempted to approach a suspect reportedly disturbing the peace at a local business, police said. The suspect, who was later identified as Luis Alberto Ramos-Coreas, a 28-year-old resident of South San Francisco, did not yield to the Chon's commands, prompting the officer to call for backup.

A South San Francisco police officer who was left in critical condition Thursday after being hit in the head by a suspects skateboard was identified Friday, police said. Christie Smith reports.

When a second officer arrived, Ramos-Coreas took off from the scene on foot, according to police. During a subsequent chase, Ramos-Coreas immediately came to a screeching halt, pivoted and smacked Chon in the head with the skateboard.

Chon was transported to a local hospital and taken into the operating room, police said.

The second officer on scene was able to detain Ramos-Coreas after another brief foot pursuit, police said. Ramos-Coreas was booked on suspicion of numerous felony charges, including attempted murder of a law enforcement officer.

Ramiro Castillo

Ramos-Coreas does have a history of "criminal contacts" with police, but the specifics of those run-ins were not detailed by officials.

Since the assault, a GoFundMe campaign to assist Chon and his family has raised more than $109,000.

Officials are currently investigating the attack. Anyone with information is asked to contact the South San Francisco Police Department at 650-877-8900 or the anonymous tip line at 650-952-2244.

NBC Bay Area's Jean Elle and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
An Ohio State University student plowed his car into a group of pedestrians at the college campus and began stabbing people with a butcher knife Monday before he was shot to death by a police officer.

Eleven people were hurt, one critically, and taken to local hospitals.

The attacker was identified as Ohio State student Abdul Razak Ali Artan, a Somali-born refugee who came to America in 2014 as a legal permanent resident of the United States, officials said. Police said they are investigating a motive for his attack.

Ohio State University Police

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone said that the assailant deliberately drove over a curb outside a classroom building and then began knifing people. A campus police officer, identified as 28-year-old Alan Horujko, who happened to be nearby because of a gas leak arrived on the scene and shot Artan in less than a minute, Stone said.

Horujko has been on the police force less than two years, officials confirmed.

Clip, which aired during the 2017 MTV VMAs, includes images of betrayal, power and anger

Those injured in the attack included an Ohio State faculty member, four graduate students and three undergrads.

Surveillance photos showed Artan in the car by himself just before the attack, but investigators were looking into whether anyone else was involved, the campus police chief said.

Police did not provide details on a possible motive, but earlier said "this was done on purpose" and would not rule out terrorism. The FBI has joined local law enforcement to investigate the attack.

[NATL] Car, Knife Attack at Ohio State University

The details emerged after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning that there was an "active shooter" on campus near the engineering building and that students should "run, hide, fight." The warning was apparently prompted by what turned out to be police gunfire.

Numerous police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads. Students barricaded themselves inside offices and classrooms, piling chairs and desks in front of doors.

Lisa Goldstein

One student told NBC News she was walking down the street when she saw a car plow into a crowd of people who had evacuated an academic building during a fire alarm.

"This car just swerved and ran into a whole group of people," said Nicole Kreinbrink. "It hit a cop really bad."

"All these people were running and screaming and yelling," she added.

Stephen Yunker, an 18-year-old freshman at Ohio State University told MSNBC he was in his residence hall getting ready to go to class when he heard six to seven gunshots ring out. Yunker said he and his roommates soon heard sirens.

We saw fire trucks, couple cars, and a body laying on the ground, Yunker said.

He added that many students are shaken up and were "texting family members and friends" while the building was on lockdown.

Sam Speights takes medication for extreme anxiety and panic attacks. But there's no pill for a hurricane  especially when he ventured into it at the height of its fury. "You don't see the flying debris until it's right in front of you," said Speights. "You can't see it coming."

In recent months, federal law enforcement officials have raised concerns about online extremist propaganda that encourages knife and car attacks, which are easier to pull off than bombings.

The Islamic State group has urged sympathizers online to carry out attacks in their home countries with whatever weapons are available to them.

In September, a 20-year-old Somali-American stabbed 10 people at a St. Cloud, Minnesota, shopping mall before being shot to death by an off-duty officer. Authorities said he asked some of his victims if they were Muslim. In the past few years, London and other cities abroad have also seen knife attacks blamed on extremists.

The shelter-in-place warning at Ohio State was lifted and the campus declared secure after police concluded there was no second attacker as rumored.

The bloodshed came as students were returning to classes following the Thanksgiving break and Ohio State's football victory over rival Michigan that brought more than 100,000 fans to campus on Saturday.

[NATL] Top News Photos: Pope Visits Japan, and More

Rachel LeMaster, who works in the engineering college, said a fire alarm sounded on campus during the emergency.

"There were several moments of chaos," she said. "We barricaded ourselves like we're supposed to since it was right outside our door and just hunkered down."

LeMaster said she and others were eventually led outside the building and she saw a body on the ground.

Classes were canceled for the rest of the day.

The initial tweet from the university's emergency management department went out around 10 a.m. and said: "Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College."

[[403394416, C]]

Ohio State President Michael Drake said the active-shooter warning was issued after shots were heard on campus.

"Run, hide, fight" is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; hide, get silently out of view; or fight, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.
As lawmakers prepare to reconvene in Springfield Tuesday for the final string of veto sessions, some pivotal measures remain on the table.

Perhaps most importantly, state leaders are expected to resume budget negotiations Monday. Last week, Gov. Bruce Rauner explained that he had amended his 44-point turnaround agenda" to a simple five-point plan, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Rauners plan is now focused solely on workers compensation reform, education reform, pension reform, term limits and a property tax freeze. In addition, the Republican is also championing reforms that would grow the states struggling economy, although he is open to finding a compromise with House Speaker Michael Madigan on the issue.

No one particular reform has to be on the table, Rauner said during a Monday interview with NBC 5. Ill be flexible on whatever we do. The critical thing is, we have to send a message to job creators around the country and around the world that its a new day in Illinois."

Additionally, Rauner has made it clear that he's willing to negotiate a property tax freeze. According to the State Journal-Register, Rauner is now open to a property tax compromise that isn't necessarily tied to giving local governments the right to restrict collective bargaining to control costs, a caveat the Democratic-controlled General Assembly has opposed.

This week, there are also some important House hearings. On Monday, a House committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on a measure filed by House Republican Leader Jim Durkin that looks to cut costs by overhauling workers compensation, according to the State Journal-Register.

Durkin criticized the timing of the meeting, calling it premature in a letter to Democrats, which was obtained by the State Journal-Register.

Our goal should be to use the legislation as a starting point for discussion at our leaders meeting, Durkin said in the letter.

Madigan spokesman Steve Brown disagreed, claiming a committee hearing was an effective way to get feedback on the issue, according to the report. Instead, Brown suggested that the House was willing to work from 2011 reforms to save money.

On Wednesday, a separate House hearing is scheduled to address the findings of a 2015 report of the Local Government and Unfunded Mandates Task Force. Implementing recommendations from the report could help control statewide costs, the State-Journal Register reports.

John Patterson, spokesman for Senate President John Cullerton, told the paper that the Democratic leader is currently reviewing the report's findings. Rauner distributed the report at the last leaders meeting earlier this month.

I believe there were several piece of legislation filed and past (last spring) in the Senate as a result of that report, Patterson told the State Journal-Register.

Another important issue on this weeks docket is a push to save the states struggling nuclear power plants. The plan, which is being considered a corporate bailout by consumer advocates, would grant billions in subsidies to power companies in order to keep plants open, according to the Associated Press.

Rauner warmed to the proposal after a peak-demand pricing plan was dropped. The company claimed seven in 10 customers would have saved money, but critics said it would create unpredictable price spikes. Rauner has said that he wants to protect jobs, but fears increased power rates.

We cant have our energy costs go through the roof or well lost more jobs, Rauner said in Chicago last week. If we raise the energy costs for entrepreneurs that need to consume a lot of energy, they have to lay people off. Saving some jobs at a plant wont matter. So we need a balance.

The legislation was still being reworked last week and spokesmen for Madigan and Cullerton said the Democratic leaders arent yet ready to sign onto the plan, according to the State Journal-Register.

This week, lawmakers will also have the chance to override some of Rauners vetoes. During this months first veto sessions, the Senate voted to override Rauners vetoes of seven bills. This includes vetoes on automatic voter registration and legislation that would increase the pay of home health care workers from $13 an hour to $15 an hour, the State Journal-Register reports.

According to the report, Madigans Democratic House supermajority attempted to override the governors vetoes on four House bills earlier this month, but failed.

The Senate-approved overrides will now be sent to the House for approval. If the House cant override those vetoes, the bills will be dead.
An AT&T worker was wounded in a shooting Monday morning in west suburban Berwyn.

Just after 11 a.m., the AT&T employee was shot during an attempted armed robbery in the 6300 block of West Park Avenue, Berwyn police said.

The employee was working on some electrical panels when he was approached by a male who demanded his wallet, police said. The employee tossed his wallet to the robber and attempted to get away when he was shot in the back. He was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood. His age and condition were not immediately known.

The offender also fired at a second person who was sitting inside a work vehicle, police said. The vehicle was struck, but the person was not injured. Police said that person was not an AT&T employee.

The offender was described as black, in his teens or early 20s, wearing a grey hoodie and blue jeans, police said. He was armed with a black handgun. He ran south through an alley between the 3100 blocks of Cuyler and Highland, and then ran east on 32nd Street.

Due to the shooting, which occurred about four blocks away, Freedom Middle School at 3016 Ridgeland Ave. was placed in lockdown, police said.
Workers at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport are gearing up to launch a strike on Tuesday in an effort to negotiate for better wages and treatment.

Airlines are looking to keep disruptions to a minimum as an estimated 600 employees, including janitors, baggage handlers, cabin cleaners and wheelchair attendants, are expected to call off work in protest.

Those striking are not union members, but are trying to organize with the backing and assistance of Service Employees International Union Local 1. Mainly employed by private contractors at the airport, the workers are seeking union rights and a $15 per hour wage.

"They provide vital services. They're adults trying to support their family. The airport needs to be an economic engine for the entire city," SEIU Local 1 President Tom Balanoff said.

The demonstration comes approximately two weeks after the employees voted to strike, as they delayed the date so as not to impact travel over the busy Thanksgiving weekend.

"These workers care about their passengers, it was never their intent to disrupt [Thanksgiving] from them," SEIU Local 1 communications director Izabela Miltkoivkovich said ahead of the holiday. "They really want to have the public support them and stand with them in this fight for a better future."

"The workers aren't necessarily striking to shut the airport down. They're striking to elevate their message and their concern," Balanoff added.

The workers are expected to be joined by up to 2,000 supporters as they picket outside the airport on Tuesday.

It wasn't immediately clear how the strike will affect operations at O'Hare, one of the nation's busiest airports, but major airlines said there are procedures in place to keep operations running smoothly.

"We are taking the necessary steps to ensure a safe and on-time operation for our customers," United Airlines spokesperson Charles Hobart said in a statement.

"We are working closely with our vendors to ensure there is no disruption to our operation," American Airlines spokesperson Leslie Scott said, adding, "American supports better pay for workers across the board, but does not believe initiatives should target a specific group or industry."
A 4-year-old Hamden boy who was sitting in the front seat of a stolen car when it crashed on Route 1 in Branford Sunday has died, according to state police.

Police identified the child as Jairus Benjamin and said he was sitting on someones lap and not in a car seat.

"Jairus was joyful, was goofy," Briana Simuel, the boy's mother, told NBC Connecticut. "My baby always loved to play. He loved dinosaurs."

Police said 18-year-old Tyler Carey, of East Haven, was behind the wheel and driving erratically when East Haven police officers tried to stop a white Toyota Corolla, which did not have taillights on, around 6:30 p.m. The vehicle was reported stolen from New Haven,

Six people were in car, including two Carey, 24-year-old Brandon Little of New Haven, and four children under 14 years old, including Jairus, police said.

Carey fled and got onto I-95 North and East Haven police called off the chase before exit 55, police said.

Around two miles after police called off the chase, the Toyota hit a 2004 Honda Element head-on around, according to police.

"East Haven chased the vehicle for a period of time. It was a couple minutes when they decided that it was too dangerous of a situation," Trooper Kelly Grant, of Connecticut State Police, said. "They called the pursuit off and shortly thereafter, the vehicle crashed."

Moments later, surveillance video at a Mobil gas station showed a man carrying a young boy to the parking lot.

Six minutes later, an ambulance transported him to Yale-New Haven Hospital, where he later died.

"They don't know what they took from me," Simuel said. "My son is priceless."

Benjamin was related to one of the five other people who were in the car, according to police.

Carey and two other passengers fled the scene before police arrived, leaving behind the 4-year-old, a 15-year-old boy and Little, according to police.

Carey ran into the woods and a police dog found him, according to police.

Carey has been charged with reckless driving, engaging in a pursuit, misuse of plates, second-degree larceny, first-degree reckless endangerment, risk of injury to a minor, failure to have headlights illuminated and driving in an improper lane.

He was held on a $500,000 bond and police said more charges are likely because of Jairus death.

Police said there were outstanding warrants for Little out of New Haven and West Haven and he was arrested on those charges and held.

The one person who was in the Honda Element was not hurt, according to state police.

The off-ramp was closed for several hours but has since reopened.
While rain in the forecast this week will help, it will really only scratch the surface of getting the state back to where it should be during this drought. But after months of conserving water, residents in Bristol will take what they can get.

"Our reservoirs are half empty, you know. It's pathetic," Jerry Peatmen, of Bristol, said.

Reservoirs are below 45 percent capacity and the lack of rain altered Thanksgiving tradition for Peatmen family. They used paper plates to avoid using water to clean dishes.

"Definitely conserve it. I always did that anyway, I think we should all do that," Linda Romanaukas, of Bristol, said. "You know, turn the water off when you're brushing your teeth and all that stuff."

Bristol is under Phase 2 drought conditions and if there is not enough rain for reservoirs to climb above 55 percent through December, the city will move into Phase 3.

In a statement, the Superintendent for the Water Department, Robert Longo said, If we dont see beneficial rainfall and further reduction from customers soon, we will have to enact Phase III restrictions which include possibly reducing pressures in some areas of the City, so other areas such as the hospital will have the water needed for emergencies. We want the public to understand just how bad this Statewide Drought is (a)ffecting our levels and we are looking for the Citys residents to help us get through it.

While we are forecasting up to 3 inches of rain from Tuesday through Thursday, the climate prediction center says Connecticut requires 6 inches to a foot of rain to get us out of the drought.

"We need it," Romanaukas said. "Anytime we can get it, we need to take it."

While the drought is wreaking havoc on much of the state, residents are encouraged to truly take into account water conservation efforts.

Find tips to save water here.
Connecticut State police arrested a Mansfield man accused of trying to dine and dash from a grocery store.

State police said a trooper near the Big Y at 141 Storrs Road spotted a man running from the parking lot toward Route 195 while being chased by Big Y loss prevention personnel. The trooper jumped in and took the suspect into custody.

Loss prevention reported that the suspect, identified as Mark Gabriel Dorgan, 19, had eaten two servings of sushi in the store, then grabbed a 12-pack of Bud Light Raz-Ber-Rita and left without paying. When confronted, Dorgan took off.

Dorgan was charged with 6th-degree larceny. He was issued a $2,500 bond and is expected to appear in Rockville Superior Court on Dec. 7.
Actress Shailene Woodley spent her Thanksgiving continuing to protest the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), which is being built on sacred grounds of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in North Dakota.

Woodley, who was arrested and charged with criminal trespassing in October during a protest, said she was compelled to spend the holiday at the site because she felt few truly understood the true violent history behind Thanksgiving.

"Today is a day that many call Thanksgiving. It's a day where elementary school kids across America are taught false narratives about our native brothers and sisters," an emotional Woodley said. "None of our children know the truth about what happened to Native Americans when westerners decided to colonize this country."

Woodley continued, "We're here on Thanksgiving...a day that no one knows the history about. Thanksgiving was founded on a massacre. And we're here with these cops and snipers with rubber bullets. I'm just sick of it."

Dakota Access Pipeline protesters vowed Saturday to remain in their camp after the Army Corps of Engineers told them to leave the federal land they've occupied.

Activists protesting the continued construction of the pipeline were told to shut down one of their camps by Dec. 5 in a letter sent to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe's leader by the Army Corps.

But tribal leader Dave Archambault and other protest organizers said intend to stay in the Oceti Sakowin camp  one of three camps near the construction site  which would have been shut down by the encampment.

The protests stem from a continued demonstration against a 1,170-mile oil pipeline. Thousands have flocked to North Dakota to aid the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, who believe the pipeline could contaminate their water source, the Missouri River, and desecrate the tribe's sacred sites.
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong visits Kaysone Phomvihane Museum in Vientiane (Source: VNA)



Talking the press after the Party chiefs trip, Chairman of the Party Central Committees Commission for External Relations Hoang Binh Quan said this was the first overseas trip by the Party chief since his reelection at the 12th Party Congress, which was made at a time when the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Lao Peoples Revolutionary Party have entered a new term of office after their respective Party Congresses earlier this year.

The visit showed that Vietnamese Party and State especially treasure the Vietnam-Laos traditional friendship and special solidarity, he stated.

During talks and meetings, the two sides affirmed that the Vietnam-Laos time-honoured relationship is an invaluable asset for both nations, and an important element for victory in the countriesstruggles for independence and freeform in the past as well as in national construction, development and defence at present.

During the visit, the two sides discussed plans to expand comprehensive cooperation across fields, especially in the economy, infrastructure development, energy and tourism.

They also agreed to foster coordination and support each other in building Party and political system, enhance theoretical exchange and experience sharing in management, Quan said.

He added that the two sides signed seven cooperation documents on the occasion of the visit.

According to Quan, orientations, policies and measures to boost cooperation agreed during the visit will pave the way and create momentum for stronger cooperation between the two Parties, States and peoples, thus achieving fruitful results in the time ahead.

The two sides determination to solve difficulties and boost links across fields will help strongly foster trade and investment cooperation, he noted.

During his stay, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong had a meeting with 1,800 lecturers and students of the National University of Laos, during which he shared his thinking and and orientations on the Vietnam-Laos relations, Quan said.

The Party chief expressed his hope the two countries young generations will be a powerful pioneer force and high-quality human resources to serve each countrys development and contribute to promoting the bilateral relations, Quan added./.
Authorities said one person was killed and three more were injured after a crash in Dallas Sunday night. [[403348826,C]]

Dallas police said a silver Mercury Marquis and a blue Infiniti collided in the 2400 block of West Ledbetter Drive just before 9:45 p.m.

A man in the blue Infiniti died at the scene, according to police. Another man was transported to a hospital with injuries that were not life threatening.

A man and woman in the Mercury were transported to a hospital in serious conditions, but police said they were expected to live.

No further details have been released.
An American Airlines flight from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to Las Vegas was forced to land in New Mexico after an engine suffered a "mechanical issue" in flight, officials said.

American Airlines flight 1693 landed safely in Albuquerque with 178 passengers and six crew members shortly before 9 p.m. Sunday, an airlines spokeswoman said.

Video taken by a passenger showed what appeared to be flames shooting out from one of the engines of the Airbus A321.

@AmericanAir Flight 1693 DFW to LAS. Engine on fire before being shut off and diverted to Albuquerque. pic.twitter.com/UGNCYAJq58  Jason Skewes (@jasonskewes) November 28, 2016

Passengers applauded the crew after the plane landed safely, with firefighters and emergency personnel standing by on the runway.

The Fort Worth-based aircraft apologized to passengers on twitter for the disruption and offered passengers meal vouchers. Customers eventually landed in Las Vegas shortly after 3 a.m. MST.

Just in case you're wondering what @AmericanAir gave us in ABQ for our mid-air engine fire, emergency landing & 8+ hour delay. pic.twitter.com/jJ4azsjTYO  Herbie Pallotta (@Herbie) November 28, 2016

The Airbus remained in Albuquerque for inspection.
The mother of a teenager who used an "affluenza" defense after killing four people in a drunken-driving crash will remain free on bond while awaiting trial on a money laundering charge.

Tonya Couch, 49, has been free on bond since being charged with hindering apprehension of a felon and money laundering in connection with the "affluenza" case.

Monday's hearing was a status check by the probation department to see if there were any concern with her remaining free on bond. Her next probation hearing will be Jan. 9.

Tonya Couch is accused of taking $30,000 and fleeing to Mexico with her son, Ethan Couch, late last year after a video was published on social media that appeared to show her son at a party where there was alcohol.

Ethan Couch, who killed four people in 2013 while drinking and driving, was prohibited from drinking alcohol as a condition of his 10-year probation sentence.

Couch and her son were found in Puerto Vallarta in December and were extradited to the United States the next month.

Ethan Couch, whose case was transferred to adult court in April, is currently serving two years in county jail as a part of his adult probation.

It is not clear when Tonya Couch's trial on money laundering charges will begin.
Police said a grandmother shot another grandmother in the neck during a custody exchange in the parking lot of a Dallas Wal-Mart Sunday night.

At about 5:30 p.m., Janice Brown and Carla Hawkins met in the parking lot of the Wal-Mart in the 7400 block of Samuell Boulevard to transfer custody of a child, according to Dallas Police Department Sgt. Warren Mitchell. They are the grandmothers of the child, police said.

Mitchell said the women began to argue during the meeting. The argument then led to a physical altercation before Brown pulled out a gun and shot the Hawkins, striking her in the neck.

A Fannin County police officer, who was working off-duty, responded to the parking lot. He saw Brown, 53, running from the scene with a gun in her hand.

Police said she shot at the officer across the parking lot and he shot back at her. No one was struck during the exchange.

Brown was then taken into custody and will be charged with aggravated assault on a public servant.

Police said Hawkins, 55, sustained non-life threatening injuries.
Turkish authorities detained two reporters working for foreign news organizations in southeast Turkey, the latest journalists taken into custody as part of the government's sweeping crackdown following a failed coup in July, NBC News reported.

BBC Turkish correspondent Hatice Kamer was detained Saturday in the town of Sirvan while covering a recent copper mine collapse that killed at least 11 workers, the broadcaster said. Voice of America said its freelance reporter, Khajijan Farqin, was detained the same day in Diyarbakir.

Kamer was released on Sunday, BBC Turkish said. She told German broadcaster WDR by phone after being freed that she was told she would face charges of having supported the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, through her reporting. Kamer said there was no evidence for that.

Voice of America later reported Sunday that Farqin had also been released. The details of her arrest are still unclear, the outlet said.
A Northern California sheriff is promising to capture a pair of men who sawed their way out of a California jail and vanished late Thanksgiving Eve.

Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith told reporters Friday that authorities are using helicopters, dogs and other means as they search night and day for the two men. A $20,000 reward has been posted for the capture of Rogelio Chavez and Laron Campbell.

Smith said authorities believe the two are still in the area, noting search dogs tracked them to a nearby river before losing their scent.

"We will find these two and any person who is harboring or aiding and abetting in their escape we will attempt to prosecute," she said.

The sheriff also told reporters that authorities have received numerous credible tips from people who believe they saw the two, including one tip that came from the area that search dogs had chased them to.

She encouraged people to keep reporting such information but warned they should not to try to confront the men.

"I want to remind the community that these are dangerous people," she said. "They are not to be approached. Please just dial 911."

The search led authorities to a motel where several people were taken into custody Sunday night.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office received multiple tips that fugitive inmate Rogelio Chavez was at a Days Inn in Gilroy. But when authorities arrived Sunday night, he was nowhere to be found.

Police then took multiple people into custody for questioning. It was not clear if they are linked to the case.

Police say information suggests Chavez was at the hotel as recently as Sunday night but may have left before police arrived.

The pair escaped with two other prisoners by cutting through the bars covering a second-story window of the county's main jail and then rappelling to the ground. The others were quickly apprehended.

Chavez, 33, and Campbell, 26, are facing possible life sentences if convicted of burglary, extortion, false imprisonment and other charges they were being held on. Chavez had been held at the jail since August and Campbell since February 2015.

Chavez, who is from San Jose, is recognizable by a distinctive face tattoo resembling an inky gash going through his left eye. Campbell, who is from Palo Alto, stands 6-feet-4.

Smith said authorities still haven't found the tools used to cut through the bars and don't know how they were obtained.

"That's one of our big concerns," she said. "To think that we have inmates in there with those kinds of tools is pretty disheartening."

The escapees were being held in a dormitory designed to hold 20 people. Conditions there are often very loud, Smith said, making it hard for guards to hear any suspicious noise that might have been made.

That section of the jail, built in the 1950s, doesn't have cameras either, which helped facilitate the escape.

"From the officers' station you cannot see in," Smith said, adding there are plans to put cameras there in the future.

Wednesday's escape was discovered by a deputy patrolling the jail's perimeter.

"He kind of thought he saw some movement in the shadows, looked up and saw some bedding in the window," said Sgt. Rich Glennon.

A similar escape was made from a Southern California jail in January by three men authorities later determined had planned it for weeks.

They cut through the main Orange County jail's fifth-floor bars with tools smuggled in by an outsider, rappelled to the ground and escaped in a get-away car.

They later abducted a cab driver and forced him to drive them to Northern California.

The escape began to unravel when one of the men, fearful the others would kill the driver, fled to Southern California with him and surrendered. The others were captured soon after in San Francisco.
A Concord family is shocked and unsettled after someone cut electricity to their home and planted 56 American flags, seven of which were defaced with handwritten pro-Donald Trump messages, on their East Bay front lawn early Saturday morning.

Concord police are investigating the incident, reported by Jay and Denisen Hartlove, who live on Montana Drive.

The couple was preparing for bed just after midnight when Jay Hartlove heard someone fiddling with their screen door. When he went to check out the noise, he says he found scores of plastic American flags staked into his front lawn, and a man  believed to be a neighbor with whom the family has had previous issues  skulking away from the house.

"There was one in the door handle to our car, there were flags all over the front lawn, and there was one in our screen door," Denisen Hartlove said.

Some of the flags had "Build The Damn Wall" and "I Luv The Donald" written on them in black ink. The Hartloves say they are one of the more liberal families on the block, and believe they may have been targeted because of it.

"Why else would someone do that?" Jay wondered. "(The vandal) must have spent 20 minutes out there putting the flags in. This is not some drive-by prank.I mean, where do you get 56 flags in November?"

Upon finding the flags, the couple was irked but not worried. It was only after their electricity suddenly shut off at around 1:30 a.m. that the pair decided to call police.

"At that point, I thought we were under attack," Denisen said.

Family Rattled After Lawn Defaces With Trump Flags, Electricity Cut

Jay Hartlove, who went outside to investigate, says he discovered the metering box connecting power to their property had been ripped off.

The couple called the Concord Police Department and filed a police report with two officers, both of whom the Hartloves describe as being "very unhelpful."

"They basically said that because (the neighbor) denied doing it, they couldnt do anything," Jay said.

Chris Blakely, a spokesman with the Concord Police Department, said that officers are investigating, and noted that a detective has already been assigned to the case. A follow-up is scheduled for Monday, he said.

"For us to do our job efficiently, we have to make sure that we get all the information," Blakely said. "That includes taking photographs, talking to neighbors, seeing if anyone has surveillance footage. Its not as quick as some people want, but we do take it seriously."

Throughout the Bay Area and the nation, politically-motivated instances of harassment are being reported at an alarming rate, according to hate-tracking groups. As of Monday, the Southern Poverty Law Center had noted 701 reports of harassment since election day.

Many critics have pointed to President-elect Donald Trump's campaign rhetoric as fueling the incidents. In a sit-down interview with 60 Minutes, Trump told any of his supporters engaging in the behavior to "stop it."

The Hartloves, who have lived on Montana street for 20 years, are in the process of installing surveillance cameras around their home  a security measure they never thought they would need in their safe, suburban neighborhood.

"We like our house. We like the street. We like our neighbors. With very few exceptions, its a wonderful place to be," Denisen Hartlove said. "But, at this stage, I dont know that Im not going to wake up with the house burning down around me.

For her, the silver lining on a dark cloud has been the neighbors, Republican and Democrat, who have stepped up to condemn the vandalism.

"We had quite a few neighbors offer support and say You know what, thats not OK," she said. "They offered us help, and that was really nice to see. It was just really nice to see people step forward from our community."

Gillian Edevane covers Contra Costa County for NBC Bay Area. Contact her at Gillian.Edevane@NBCuni.com or through text or call at (669) 263-2895.
Waving Cuban flags, the Ladies in White marched through Little Havana Sunday as the dissident group plans a larger march Wednesday.

Sundays march was held after a news conference with several Cuban dissident groups. Activists talked about the continued fight for democracy in Cuba after the death of Fidel Castro.

Sylvia Iriondo, President of MAR for Cuba, spoke passionately about the unity of the Cuban exile community in South Florida. Community comprised of the old like us and the young of the men and the woman of the black and the white all united behind an ideal commitment for the freedom of Cuba, said Iriondo.

The mothers and wives of political prisoners were accompanied by various Cuban exile groups including the American Missile Crisis Veteran Association. Let the people know that United States and Cuba we are still fighting for the freedom of Cuba, exclaimed Jorge Ruiz Rodriguez, president of the group.

All of the Cuban exile groups say that the death of Fidel Castro marks the end of a painful history in Cuba but there is still a lot of work to be done for the demise of communism on the island nation.

Frank Carrill, a veteran of the Florida Army National Guard, also took part in Sundays march to support the movement and protest for human rights and liberty in Cuba.

Miami Police assisted in the march and say it was peaceful with no incidents as they prepare for this weeks large demonstration. The rally will be held at the Bay of Pigs Monument in Little Havana on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
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
What to Know Abdul Razak Ali Artan came to the United States in 2014

He was a student at Ohio State University

Artan was a refugee who lived in Pakistan after leaving Somalia before coming to America

Investigators are looking into whether a car-and-knife attack at Ohio State University that injured 11 people was an act of terror by a Somali-born student who had once criticized the media for its portrayal of Muslims.

The attacker, identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, plowed his car into a group of pedestrians on campus shortly before 10 a.m. Monday, and then got out and began stabbing people with a butcher knife before he was shot to death by a campus police officer, authorities said.

A motive was not immediately known, but police said they were investigating whether it was a terrorist attack.

Artan wrote on what appears to be his Facebook page that he had reached a "boiling point," made a reference to "lone wolf attacks" and cited radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, NBC News reported.

"America! Stop interfering with other countries, especially Muslim Ummah [community]. We are not weak. We are not weak, remember that," the post said.

Two hours before that, a post appeared, saying: "Forgive and forget. Love.

Artan was born in Somalia and was a legal permanent U.S. resident, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to discuss the case and spoke on the condition of anonymity. The FBI joined the investigation.

Ohio State University police Chief Craig Stone said Artan deliberately drove his small gray Honda over a curb outside an engineering classroom building and then began knifing people. Officer Alan Horujko, 28, who was nearby because of a gas leak arrived on the scene and shot the driver in less than a minute, Stone said.

Angshuman Kapil, a graduate student, was outside Watts Hall when the car barreled onto the sidewalk.

"It just hit everybody who was in front," he said. "After that everybody was shouting, 'Run! Run! Run!'"

Eleven victims were taken to three Columbus hospitals. Most had been hurt by the car, and two had been stabbed, officials said. One had a fractured skull.

Several prayer vigils were held Monday night to support the victims and the community.

Classes at OSU were canceled after the attack, but were scheduled to resume Tuesday.

Students said they were nervous about returning and planned to take precautions such as not walking alone.

"It's kind of nerve-wracking going back to class right after it," said Kaitlin Conner, 18, of Cleveland, who said she had a midterm exam to take Tuesday.

Rep. Adam Schiff, of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said the act bore the hallmarks of an attack carried out by someone who may have been self-radicalized.

Ohio State's student newspaper, The Lantern, ran an interview in August with a student named Abdul Razak Artan, who identified himself as a Muslim and a third-year logistics management student who had just transferred from Columbus State in the fall.

He said he was looking for a place to pray openly and worried about how he would be received.

"I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media. I'm a Muslim, it's not what media portrays me to be," he told the newspaper. "If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I don't know what they're going to think, what's going to happen. But I don't blame them. It's the media that put that picture in their heads."

In recent months, federal law enforcement officials have raised concerns about online extremist propaganda that encourages knife and car attacks, which are easier to pull off than bombings.

The Islamic State group has urged sympathizers online to carry out lone-wolf attacks in their home countries with whatever weapons are available to them.

Artan was not known to the FBI prior to Monday's attack, according to a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Dozens of FBI agents began searching Artan's apartment Monday night.

Neighbors said he was always polite and attended daily prayer services at a mosque on the city's west side.

Leaders of Muslim organizations and mosques in the Columbus area condemned the attacks while cautioning people against jumping to conclusions or blaming a religion or an ethnicity.

Surveillance photos showed Artan in the car by himself just before the attack, but investigators are looking into whether anyone else was involved, the campus police chief said.
What to Know Cubans are in the middle for an eight-day national mourning period for former leader Fidel Castro

On the streets of Havana, some people were grieving for "el comandante," while others were quietly celebrating and looking to the future

Castro's death comes as the U.S. has been opening up to the Caribbean island nation, which has been under communist rule for decades

While life was continuing on more or less as normal in Cuba following the death of Fidel Castro on Friday, many Cubans expressed genuine sadness at the leaders passing.

In one neighborhood in Havana on Sunday, an elderly man said that the father of the revolution, known by many as el comandante, is dead.

The Cuban people love Fidel. We love Fidel. Always we love Fidel, a driver behind the wheel of a 51 Pontiac said.

But there are also those reflecting on the brutality of Castros regime.

The Ladies in White, who are relatives of jailed dissidents, have marched in protest every Sunday after church for the last 13 years. They called off Sunday out of respect  and fear of retaliation.

Ladies in White leader Berta Soler says nothing will change and that those in power will remain.

Dictator Raul Castro will continue his war. More than dictators, they are like a mafia family. They can do whatever they want and they are still in charge of everything, Soler said.

On the second official day of mourning Sunday, a city known for music, culture and nightlife was subdued. On Monday, the city of Havana will begin to pay its respects to Castro with a large ceremony.
What to Know JetBlue's first commercial flight to Cuba was scheduled to depart JFK Airport on Monday morning

Tens of thousands will mourn late Cuban leader Fidel Castro in the Plaza de la Revolucion in Havana on Monday

Donald Trump arrived back in New York City on Sunday as he continues meeting with potential cabinet appointees

Get the top headlines of the day in your morning briefing from NBC 4 New York, Monday through Friday. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Cuba Remembers Fidel Castro

A nine-story portrait of a young Fidel Castro has joined the towering images of fallen guerrillas overlooking Havana's Plaza of the Revolution, the massive square where Cuba on Monday begins bidding farewell to the man who ruled the island for nearly half a century. Ordinary people have largely been staying at home, off streets hushed by a prohibition on music and celebration during the nine days of official mourning for Castro. For some, particularly younger Cubans, Castro's death barely registered. Tens of thousands of others, though, were expected to return to the streets Monday morning, when imultaneous 21-gun salutes will sound in the capital and in the eastern city of Santiago, where Castro launched his revolution in 1953.

Airlines Begin Commercial Flights to Cuba

JetBlue's first commercial flight to Havana will take off from John F. Kennedy Airport on Monday morning  a milestone that comes as the island nation mourns Fidel Castro, who died on Friday. The regularly scheduled flight takes off at 8:58 a.m. and will land in the Cuban capital of Havana. Along with JetBlue, American Airlines is also running a short, one-hour commercial flight from Miami to Havana on Monday, and Delta Air Lines has scheduled regular flights to Cuba starting on Dec. 1.

Cyber Monday Dethroned?

The Monday after Thanksgiving is traditionally the busiest online shopping day of the year, but stores are releasing internet deals earlier, stretching them through the week, as well as making them available in stores. Shoppers looking for discounts spurred online sales on Black Friday to a new high. Consumers spent $3.34 billion shopping online on Friday, a 21.6 percent increase from the same day last year, according to Adobe Digital Insights. As retailers stretch the meaning of Cyber Monday, the day itself is losing some clout.

Trump Back in NYC as Recount Looms

With his return to New York City on Sunday, President-elect Donald Trump faces a pressing need to set more of the foundation blocks of his presidency in place by filling vacancies for secretary of state and other top posts. Trump had been at his estate in Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday. He has a series of meetings scheduled in New York City with prospective administration hires on Monday. The president-elect sparked controversy over the weekend when he took to Twitter and claimed millions of people had voted illegally in the election. Wisconsin election officials are expected to meet Monday to discuss a possible timeline for a recount of that state's presidential votes, a recount filed by Green Party presidential nominee, Jill Stein. Meanwhile, top Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway said that the president-elect's supporters would feel "betrayed" if he tapped former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney as secretary of state. Romney was a fierce critic of Trump during the election. Speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press," Conway also said that Trump talks "regularly" with President Barack Obama and "very much enjoys" their conversations.

Pickpocket at "Hamilton" Theater: NYPD

The NYPD is searching for a woman who they say stole items from several people who were waiting for performers from the Broadway hit "Hamilton" outside the theater. Authorities say she's been pickpocketing for months.

Rare Tornado Captured on Video

A powerful and rare, late-November tornado tore through south-central Nebraska on Sunday. The twister hopscotched across farmlands, knocking down power lines and causing damage to farming equipment and structures. Luckily, no one was injured and no homes were directly hit. Watch the video.
What to Know JetBlue's first commercial flight to Cuba was schedule to leave from JFK Airport on Monday morning

The Queens-based airline canceled a party that was supposed to coincide with the event because of the somber mood back in Cuba

Cubans are in the middle for an eight-day national mourning period for former leader Fidel Castro

JetBlues first commercial flight from New York City to Havana took off from John F. Kennedy Airport on Monday morning  a milestone that comes as the island nation mourns Fidel Castro, who died just last week.

The regularly scheduled flight was set to take off at 8:58 a.m. and will land in Havana. After a slight delays, the plane was in the air and on its way to the Cuban capital.

Along with JetBlue, American Airlines is also running a short, one-hour commercial flight from Miami to Havana on Monday. Delta Air Lines has scheduled regular flights to Cuba, including from New York City, starting on Dec. 1.

JetBlue plans daily flights to and from Havana, and its an exciting time for many Cuban Americans, some of whom havent seen their family in years.

Back in July, JetBlue officially began direct flights to Cuba out of JFK when a charter flight flew to Havana's Jose Marti International Airport.

U.S. regulations now allow 12 categories of travel to Cuba. Americans without family ties in Cuba can go there if their trip fits into one of those categories, such as educational.

Back in July, JetBlue officially began direct flights to Cuba out of JFK when a charter flight flew to Havana's Jose Marti International Airport.

U.S. regulations now allow 12 categories of travel to Cuba. Americans without family ties in Cuba can go there if their trip fits into one of those categories, such as educational.

The Queens-based airline announced Monday that it was canceling a concert planned for 7 a.m. at JFK. The event, which was to include a musical band and dancing, was scrapped because of Castros sudden death on Friday, JetBlue security personnel confirmed.

Back in Havana, tens of thousands of people are expected to pay their respects to Castro at the Plaza de la Revolucion on Monday before his ashes are taken across the country. The event in the plaza is part of an eight-day period of mourning for the polarizing, yet revolutionary former Cuban leader.

Theres no dancing, drinking or partying in Havana, as no kind of celebration is allowed during the mourning period.

A number of airlines, including Frontier, Southwest, Spirit and United will also start flights in the coming weeks.
A Dallas preparatory school for boys denounced actions by one of its graduates, releasing a statement on Friday that said it rejects "racism and bigotry in all of its forms and expressions."

The message from St. Mark's School of Texas did not name the graduate but referenced a video of the alumnus "leading a white nationalist meeting in Washington, D.C."

White nationalist Richard Spencer, an alumnus of St. Mark's, lead a conference in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 19, drawing Nazi-style salutes from people in the audience.

In a video released on YouTube by The Atlantic, Spencer praised the election of Donald Trump as president by saying, "Hail Trump! Hail our people! Hail victory!"

America was, until this past generation, a white country designed for ourselves and our posterity, Spencer said. It is our creation, it is our inheritance, and it belongs to us.

St. Mark's statement, from headmaster David W. Dini, read in part:

On Friday, November 18th in our annual Thanksgiving message to alumni,

parents, and faculty, we referenced recent news stories that connect St. Marks to ideas

expressed by one of our graduates that conflict directly with our core values and

principles. Just one day later, video footage emerged of this alumnus leading a white

nationalist meeting in Washington, D.C., bringing even greater attention to these hateful,

divisive, racist, and anti-Semitic views. This has been deeply troubling and terribly

upsetting to our whole school community. At St. Marks, we reject racism and bigotry in

all its forms and expressions. Our mission, values, and programs stand in direct

opposition to these vulgar ideas. In light of such comments, our mission to develop boys

of strong character, compassion, empathy, and courage has increasing relevance and

importance.

"On Friday, November 18th in our annual Thanksgiving message to alumni,parents, and faculty, we referenced recent news stories that connect St. Marks to ideas expressed by one of our graduates that conflict directly with our core values and principles. Just one day later, video footage emerged of this alumnus leading a white nationalist meeting in Washington, D.C., bringing even greater attention to these hateful, divisive, racist, and anti-Semitic views. This has been deeply troubling and terribly upsetting to our whole school community. At St. Marks, we reject racism and bigotry in all its forms and expressions. Our mission, values, and programs stand in direct opposition to these vulgar ideas. In light of such comments, our mission to develop boys of strong character, compassion, empathy, and courage has increasing relevance and importance."

It continued:

"We remain deeply committed to including and valuing all students of different backgrounds, races, religions, beliefs, and experiences, and our commitment to those ideals is paramount and immutable."

Spencer is scheduled to address students at Texas A&M University on Dec. 6. The school said it did not invite Spencer but cannot stop the speech because people can reserve campus space available to the public.

The Dallas Morning News reported that some of Spencer's former classmates at St. Mark's began an online fundraising campaign to repudiate his ideas. The goal is to raise money for the International Rescue Committee, a nonprofit group that helps refugees and asylum-seekers, including in the United States.

Last December, the state of Texas tried to bar the International Rescue Committee from resettling Syrian refugees in Texas. But in June, a U.S. District Court judge ruled that Texas had no legal standing to bring a suit.
With his return to New York, President-elect Donald Trump faces a pressing need to set more of the foundation blocks of his presidency in place by filling vacancies for secretary of state and other top posts.

Distraction looms, however, much of it created by the president-elect himself, who cited a fringe conspiracy theory of widespread voter fraud during a 12-hour Twitter offensive on Sunday, casting a shadow over the legitimacy of an election that he actually won.

"I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," Trump tweeted Sunday. He later alleged "serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California."

Trump's transition team did not provide any evidence to back up the president-elect's assertions of fraud in the November election. They pointed only to past charges of irregularities in voter registration.

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., said Monday he had "not seen any voter irregularity in the millions."

"I don't know what he was talking about on that one," Lankford said of Trump on CNN's "New Day."

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest, asked about the claims, said Monday he would defer to the president-elect's team "for commentary on his tweets."

"I think what I can say as an objective of fact is that there has been no evidence produced to substantiate a claim like that," Earnest said.

Indeed, there has been no evidence of widespread tampering or hacking that would change the results of the presidential contest between Trump and Clinton. The Democrat's team said it had been looking for abnormalities and found nothing that would alter the results.

Still, Clinton's campaign was joining a recount led by Green Party candidate Jill Stein in up to three states.

The Wisconsin Elections Commission voted unanimously Monday to reject a request from Stein to conduct a hand recount of the presidential vote.

Instead, the commission voted to allow local election clerks to determine the method they would use for a recount.

The recount of Wisconsin's presidential vote will begin Thursday if the state receives payment on Tuesday. The commission has given counties until noon Monday to submit estimated costs for the efforts so Stein can be billed. Independent candidate Rocky De La Fuente has also asked for a recount.

Stein's request included an affidavit from J. Alex Halderman, who stated he's a computer scientist at the University of Michigan. He wrote in the affidavit that the only way to determine whether a cyberattack affected the results is to count ballots manually and examine the voting equipment.

Stein can ask a judge to order the recount be done by hand, which could considerably delay how quickly it gets done. Federal law requires the recount to be completed by Dec. 13.

Recounts are possible in Pennsylvania and Michigan as well.

"We intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides," Clinton campaign attorney Marc Elias said.

Trump narrowly won Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and, as of last Wednesday, held a lead of almost 11,000 votes in Michigan, with the results awaiting state certification Monday. All three would need to flip to Clinton to upend the Republican's victory, and Clinton's team says Trump has a larger edge in all three states than has ever been overcome in a presidential recount.

After spending the Thanksgiving holiday in Florida, Trump was back in New York for meetings with potential Cabinet nominees. His team was divided over his choices for secretary of state, particularly the prospect that Trump could tap 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney for the prominent post.

Romney is scheduled to hold his second in-person meeting with Trump on Tuesday. But the president-elect is also looking at other options, meeting Monday with retired Gen. David Petraeus and on Tuesday with Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

In an unusual public airing of internal machinations, Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway warned Sunday that the president-elect's supporters would feel "betrayed" if he tapped Romney as secretary of state. Romney denounced Trump in scathing terms during the campaign, prompting Trump to call him a "choker" who "walks like a penguin."

The spectacle of close aides who speak frequently with Trump in private being so explicit about their personal opinions in public raised the possibility that Conway was acting at Trump's behest.

People involved in the transition process said Trump's decision on his secretary of state did not appear to be imminent. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was initially seen as the favorite for the diplomatic post, but Trump is said to have grown irritated by questions about Giuliani's international business ties, as well as the mayor's public campaigning for the job.

Even with major administration decisions looming, Trump seems preoccupied by the prospect of a recount.

"Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in," He tweeted Sunday. "Nothing will change."

He quoted from Clinton's concession speech  "We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead"  and he concluded: "So much time and money will be spent - same result! Sad."

On NBC's "Meet the Press," Conway said Stein, "the Hillary people" and others supporting recounts have to decide whether they are going to back a peaceful transition "or if they're going to be a bunch of crybabies and sore losers about an election that they can't turn around."

Clinton's lawyer said her team has been combing through the results since the election in search of anomalies that would suggest hacking by Russians or others and found "no actionable evidence." But "we feel it is important, on principle, to ensure our campaign is legally represented in any court proceedings and represented on the ground in order to monitor the recount process itself," he said.
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What to Know New Jersey lawmakers are concerned about the fate of marijuana legalization after President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general selection

Sen. Jeff Sessions, who will lead the Justice Department, said in April that "good people don't smoke marijuana"

Four states approved marijuana legalization on Election Day: California, Massachusetts, Maine and Nevada

New Jersey lawmakers say they're concerned about what President-elect Donald Trump's selection of U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions as attorney general could mean for marijuana legalization, but they're still planning to move forward after Gov. Chris Christie's term ends in 2018.

Trump said during the campaign he favors letting states decide whether marijuana should be legalized, but he recently invited Sessions, an Alabama Republican who opposes legalizing recreational marijuana and said in April that "good people don't smoke marijuana," to lead the Justice Department.

"It seems like he's extremely anti-legalization," said Democratic state Sen. Nicholas Scutari, the leader of the legalization effort in the Legislature. "I can only take President-elect Trump at his word when he said it should be a state's right issue."

The issue comes to the forefront after Election Day when four states  California, Massachusetts, Maine and Nevada approved marijuana legalization, while four others  Arkansas, Florida, Montana and North Dakota  voted to establish medical marijuana programs.

New Jersey already has a tightly regulated medical marijuana program that includes six alternative treatment centers, or dispensaries, but the issue has largely stalled in New Jersey because of the Republican governor's resolute opposition.

This week on his regular radio call-in show, the governor criticized a resident who called him the only impediment to legalization. Christie argued that approving marijuana would clear the way for cocaine and heroin legalization, which has not been proposed, and said he would not agree to "poisoning" young people for the potential tax revenues.

"To me, legalization of marijuana for tax purposes  and that's the only way people justify it because you can't justify it any other way  is blood money," Christie said. "That's what it is to me."

Scutari acknowledges that it's unlikely Christie would ever sign the bill, which has not been reintroduced yet this year, but says he plans to begin the hearing process in the coming weeks to lay the groundwork for when Christie leaves office.

A top Democratic prospect for governor, Phil Murphy, said he supports legalization. Democratic candidate John Wisniewski, an assemblyman, has voted to expand the state's medical marijuana program. His campaign manager said he supports decriminalizing marijuana and creating a legal framework for a market.

Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli, an assemblyman, favors decriminalizing marijuana possession for those who have small amounts, but doesn't back full-scale legalization. He voted against bills expanding the medical marijuana program.

Republican Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, who is considering a run, hasn't weighed in on the issue. A spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to questions on expansion.

Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto has said he is open to considering legalization. His fellow Democrat, Senate President Steve Sweeney, sounded open to the idea and said he's taking his lead from Scutari. "When Nick's ready to roll, we're going to roll," he said.

But not everyone with a vote is on board. Beyond Christie, who'll be out of office at the latest in January 2018 when his term ends, several lawmakers are reluctant to sign off on expansion.

Democratic state Sen. Joe Vitale, who chairs the health committee, said not enough evidence from Colorado, Washington and other states where recreational marijuana is legal has been analyzed. He also said the potential for a revenue cash cow in budget-strapped New Jersey is not enough to authorize its use.

Part of the debate has also centered on decriminalizing the drug's use, with the aim of keeping lower-income men and women out of jail. Vitale sees this as a key distinction and said he backs decriminalization but not full-scale legalization.

"Legalizing a drug, I believe, is just a wrong direction to go," Vitale said.
A teen got onto his school bus after being shot on his way to school in Wilmington, Delaware, Monday morning, authorities said.

The incident played out along N Van Buren Street near 27th Street around 6:50 a.m., according to Wilmington police.

The Red Clay School District confirmed the boy is a ninth grader at John Dickinson High School on Milltown Road in Wilmington.

The boy and a group of other teens boarded their normal yellow bus and then the other children alerted the driver that the boy was shot, said Jay Brock, spokesman for bus company First Student. The driver called dispatch which then called police.

Police then came on the bus and took the boy off the bus, Brock said.

Medics rushed the boy to A.I. DuPont Children's Hospital where doctors treated him for gunshot wounds to his arm and abdomen, police said. The boy was listed in stable condition.

"He's very, very fortunate," said the teen's father, who did not want to be identified.

At least one bullet struck the windshield of a car parked nearby. It wasn't immediately clear how many shots were fired. James Harrison told NBC10 he heard the gunshots.

"We just heard gunfire, five rounds at least and then sort of people kind of hollering and running," Harrison said.

First Student said the bus driver followed all protocol and that no one else on the bus was injured.

"Couple of the other kids are kind of shaken up," said parent Royal Conquest. He said the shooting was difficult on parents as well.

No word yet on the circumstances surrounding the shooting. The teen's father said he didn't know of any conflicts his son had with anyone.

"Absolutely none," he said. "Just nothing to do. No direction, nothing to do."

The father also said he recently moved his son down to Wilmington from Philadelphia because he believed it would be safer.

"With just the flick of the switch anything can happen real, real fast," he said.

Police asked anyone with information to contact Det. A. Ford at 302-576-3606.

The school district planned on launching its "Corner-to-Corner" program where volunteers and paid staff keep an eye on bus stops. That program will be launched, with help from police, on Tuesday, said that district.[[238427591, C]]
Piano virtuoso Joshua White returned from a month-long European tour with saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa to perform his first show at the new location of Dizzys, now working out of the Musicians' Association on Morena Boulevard.

Accompanying Mr. White on this occasion were double-bassist Dean Hulett and, down from Los Angeles, Dan Schnelle on drums. White began the concert -- as he often does -- with soft, tinkling arpeggios that enticed the audience to lean forward and catch every nuance while Hulett and Schnelle filled the interstitial spaces with appropriate responses as the piano toggled between nagging repetitions and long strands of uninterrupted melody.

Short, stabbing chords triggered a plum ostinato and hissing hi-hat. Everyone dropped out to make way for a brilliant cadenza that didnt just flirt with atonality but embraced the concept with joyful commitment. Then, it was Hulett alone, spinning a tale on his unamplified bass that allowed each note to ring, sing and decay naturally, followed by Schnelle, who built his statement from light taps on his index finger.

Segueing into the next piece -- which sprang from the piano with tangled counterpoint like an angry Hydra before dialing down suddenly -- White again yielded to Schnelle, who began his solo by dragging a string of shells across the head of his snare drum before adding kick and hi-hat to assemble a raw swing decree. Schnelle has quietly taken his game to the next level, becoming a singular voice in the Southern California improvising community.

Hulett took the melodic lead while White strummed the inside of the piano. Gears shifted again, and the trio took on the trance-like nature of Keith Jarretts work with Paul Motian and Charlie Haden. Like almost every other piece this evening, this one was completely improvised, but I had a very clear impression that it might have had something to do with the situation in Standing Rock.

White began his deconstruction of Sonny Rollins "Oleo" as a solo tour-de-force, channeling Jaki Byard and Horace Tapscott into a kaleidoscopic vision of irresistible motion that was strong enough to jar planets out of their orbit. It inspired equally dynamic statements from Hulett and Schnelle.

Following up such gleeful mayhem with a pensive waltz proved how far White has progressed as a presenter. Contemplative chords rang into the night while Hulett used the opportunity to carve voluptuous arcs of velocity. Schnelle answered with the soft sound of brushes on cymbals before switching to sticks and changing the meter as the band found a groove hipper than Vince Guaraldi on steroids.

Even though the concert was almost completely improvised, everything had the flow and logic of painstaking composition. It takes real listening to pull that off.

These guys are real listeners.

Robert Bush is a freelance jazz writer who has been exploring the San Diego improvised music scene for more than 30 years. Follow him on Twitter @robertbushjazz. Visit The World According to Rob.
A couple had all of their belongings stolen just hours after moving to San Diego.

Nathaniel and Maria Castro had just moved into their apartment at Countryside Village in El Cajon Saturday night from Colorado.

They said it was late, so they didn't unpack their trailer and left it locked in the parking lot.

the apartment manager woke them up a few hours later, and said someone had just stolen their trailer.

it was filed with thousands of dollars worth of belongings, including the couple's social security cards and passports.

We had all of our personal belongings. We had clothes, woodwork that we did, wood that we brought. We had a lot of just personal items," said Nathaniel Castro.

The trailer has Colorado license plate on the back- OQX-178. Any information, you're asked to contact the owners at (858) 336-6230.
To close out the Thanksgiving weekend, Dream Dinners, a company that provides packaged dinners for families to heat at home, held a food packaging event for families in need Sunday.

More than 1,000 volunteers helped put together 160,000 meals, 25 percent going to hungry families in San Diego and the other 75 percent to Haitian families to help with hurricane relief.

Valerie Bass, owner of Dream Dinners in Encinitas, says they sold out of volunteer slots a week and a half ago.

"Once word spread people jumped online and signed up," Bass tells NBC 7.

Phil Harris, owner of Dream Dinners in Poway, has high hopes for next year's Thanksgiving event.

Can you think of a greater way to end Thanksgiving weekend than as a community coming together? Harris says. My hope, my vision is next year on Thanksgiving we host this event at Petco Park or Qualcomm, we do the largest food packing event in the world."

Upcoming volunteer opportunities can be found here.
Incumbent Dave Roberts has conceded in the District 3 race, according to a campaign spokesperson for Encinitas Mayor Kristin Gaspar. NBC 7 has reached out to the Roberts campaign to confirm the report but has not received a response.

Roberts reportedly called Gaspar Monday morning to concede in the close race for County Board of Supervisors. The race has been close with just over 1,200 votes separating the two candidates.

"Supervisor Roberts called Supervisor-elect Gaspar this morning to offer his congratulations and graciously offered his assistance in the transition," according to a written statement from Gaspar's campaign.

Roberts has held the seat since 2012 when he beat out Republican Steve Danon, former chief of staff to Congressman Brian Bilbray. Roberts replaced Pam Slater-Price who retired after 20 years on the board.

Roberts was the only Democrat on the Board of Supervisors.

Kristin Gaspar, a Republican, has served as the mayor of Encinitas since 2014, and before that was a member of the Encinitas City Council.

The third district runs from northern San Diego up the coast to Encinitas and includes Escondido, Rancho Bernardo, Scripps Ranch, Carmel Mountain and Tierrsanta.
Just days after authorities captured the suspect accused in the mysterious killing of a Santee woman in her home, her family raised money for a reward to catch a second suspect wanted in the attack.

Leticia Arroyo was killed on Oct. 4 inside her Santee townhouse.

Last week, Jose Luis Nunez-Torres, 21, of San Diego, was arrested and re-booked on a single count of murder for the killing. Nunez-Torres was already in custody at the San Diego Central Jail on unrelated charges.

However, police continue to search for a second suspect in the woman's death.

On Sunday, the victim's family raised money at an Applebee's in El Cajon. The money will go toward offering a reward for anyone with information that can lead them to the other suspect.

Her family says they will not stop until they find the second person responsible for her death. Leticia's sister, Priscilla Chavez, says they want justice.

"It was somebody that was desperate and willing to take somebody's life over it," said Chavez. "I just hope that we get justice for my sister."

The loss of their sister and daughter continues to weigh heavily on them, Chavez said. She said Leticia was a beloved daughter, sister and aunt who made everyone laugh and had an infectious smile.

"My sister was my best friend It's just you have to move on," she said. "It's hard when you know there's somebody out there."

The investigation is ongoing. If you would like to donate to help the family, the family has set up a GoFundMe page. Click here to find it.

In October, Arroyo's roommate came home to their residence in 8800 block of Mission Greens Road, near Mission Gorge, at around 10:40 p.m. to find the victim unconscious on the floor, critically injured. He called 911; deputies pronounced her dead when they arrived.

The investigation spanned several blocks in Santee as deputies gathered evidence. At this time, deputies said they found "blood evidence" was found in the street near the woman's home, although detectives have not yet determined if the blood belongs to the victim or to the suspect or suspects.

Sheriff's officials have not revealed what happened the day of the homicide.

Anyone with information on this case can reach out to the SDSOs Homicide Detail at (858) 974-2321 or (858) 565-5200, or San Diego County Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.
Police are searching for separate gunmen after three people were killed in three separate shootings over the long holiday weekend.

The most recent shooting happened Sunday afternoon in the 600 block of L Street SE. Police said a man and a woman were found suffering from gunshot wounds.

The man, later identified as Anthony Young, 27, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, said interim police Chief Peter Newsham at a news conference. The woman was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The deadly shooting happened blocks away from the Marine barracks.

"That's a very unusual area for a shooting like that to occur," Newsham said.

Newsham said the victims and gunman knew each other. Police described the gunman as a short black male wearing a gray coat and glasses.

Later in the afternoon, a man was shot and killed in the 1300 block of Howard Road, Southeast, in the Anacostia neighborhood. Police identified the victim as Orlando Donald Silver III, 37, of Washington.

On Friday, Breyona McMillian, 16, died after she was shot multiple times on the 1200 block of I Street SE.

Police said at least one gunman fired the shots, and McMillian was not the intended target

"It appears at least one suspect fired multiple times indiscriminately," Newsham said on Sunday. "There were multiple people out there. Somebody probably does have some information. If they could give us a call and share that with us, I think that would be helpful."

McMillian grew up in D.C. but moved to Iowa in February to attend boarding school. She was home this week for the first time since she left, her aunt said.

"Everybody loved her," McMillian's cousin Quashawn Wheeler said. "She was young, pretty, educated, liked to go to school."
Someone smashed and shattered the windows of at least 29 vehicles in Alexandria, Virginia, police say.

Trucks, cars and vans of varying makes and models were found with busted windows at several locations in Alexandria's West End neighborhood. The vandalized cars were parked along Rayburn Ave., Kenmore Ave. and Quantrell Ave.

A spokesperson for the Alexandria Police Department said it appears someone used a bat or a pipe to break the windows sometime between late Saturday night and early Sunday morning.

Nothing was taken from inside any of the vehicles.

"I don't understand why they would do something like this," said Dennis Vega, who was out Sunday looking at the damage to his car.

He said he thinks someone hit his car while it was parked, possibly by accident.

Police do not have a suspect.

"I hope the police can catch them, to be honest, because this is ridiculous," Vega said.
The disabled woman who was critically injured after a fire trapped her inside her house last week has died, authorities said Monday.

Emily Novotny, 74, and her daughter were inside their Riverdale, Maryland, home when the fire started about 4:30 a.m. Nov. 23. Novotny's daughter was able to get out of the home safely, but firefighters had to rescue Novotny.

The victim's daughter was treated for minor injuries, but Novotny was transported to the hospital with smoke inhalation and burn injuries. She died Sunday afternoon, according to fire officials.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but officials say it appears to be accidental.

According to officials, this is the ninth fire fatality due to accidental causes in Prince George's County this year.
Howard County police are searching for a 30-year-old man who was last seen at a Columbia, Maryland, hospital.

Joshua Sandoval was last seen leaving Howard County General Hospital in the 5500 block of Cedar Lane at 10:25 p.m. Sunday.

Officers searched for Sandoval overnight, but they could not find him in Columbia or at his home in Ellicott City. Investigators are concerned for his welfare because he is not dressed for the cold weather.

Police say a recent communication with a family member suggested he may be in distress.

Sandoval is 5 feet 10 inches and weights 152 pounds. He has brown eyes and brown hair. He was last seen wearing a hospital gown.

Anyone with information that can help police is asked to call 911.
A woman accused of stabbing her grandmother multiple times did it to "cut the demons out of her," Anne Arundel County police say.

A relative who was not at the scene called police to report that an 82-year-old woman at a home on 2nd Street in Pasadena, Maryland, had been stabbed by her granddaughter multiple times Sunday morning.

When officers arrived, they found the injured woman and arrested 20-year-old Savanna Esperson Weaver without incident.

The victim was transported to the hospital, but has since been released.

Police say the suspect stabbed the victim to "cut the demons out of her."

Weaver was transported to the hospital for an evaluation. She will be charged with attempted murder and other related charges when she's released from the hospital.
Nike's first power-lacing sneaker is finally on sale, but most people hoping to get their hands on the futuristic shoe will need to head to New York City, at least for now.

The Nike HyperAdapt 1.0 shoe, which mimics technology from the movie "Back to the Future II," is only on sale so far at two stores in SoHo, for $720. Some Nike Plus app users are also being given offers to purchase the shoe through the app.

The HyperAdapt allows users to make the fit looser or snugger on the fly by pressing buttons on the side of the shoe.

It will be released to more stores in December, as well as to Nike Plus app users, according to a company news release.

Nike has said that the potential for shoes with adaptive lacing is huge because it provides tailored-to-the-moment custom fit.

When users step into the shoe, their heel hits a sensor. They can press two buttons on the side to adjust the grip. Nike says in the future, the process won't be manual, and a sensor could sense when the user needs to have the shoe tighter or looser.

The self-lacing shoes in "Back to the Future II" were Nikes as well, and according to an article in Wired magazine in October, Nike designers worked with filmmakers to come up with the idea. It took 28 years for the technology to go from silver screen to city streets.

"I'm more excited about this than any project I've ever been involved with," one of those designers, now Nike Vice President of Creative Concepts Tinker Hatfield, told Wired.
Mental health officials in Vermont are spreading the word about a text messaging service aimed to support people experiencing mental health crises.

The Crisis Text Line is available nationally. In Vermont, users text "VT" to the number 741741 to open a free, confidential chat with a trained volunteer.

The service is available 24/7, said Dr. Jay Batra of the Vermont Department of Mental Health.

Batra explained the text line handles many types of mental health crises, from depression to anxiety and suicidal thoughts.

The point of the chats, Batra said, is to help people find calm and develop an action plan to feel better. The text chats are not a replacement for therapy, and are more about getting people help quickly in moments of crisis, the Department of Mental Health noted.

"Suicide is preventable," Dr. Batra said, discussing one reason someone may reach out to the Crisis Text Line.

Batra said Vermont has the highest rate of suicide deaths in New England, at nearly 18 per 100,000 people. The average national rate of suicide deaths per 100,000 people is 13, Batra added.

Vermont's suicide rate means more people die by suicide than in motor vehicle crashes, according to state public safety figures.

"When people feel that hopeless, they feel like it's a completely dark hole they can't come out of," Batra told necn, describing suicidal thoughts. "We talk to dozens, if not hundreds, of people who have survived thoughts of suicide who come out and tell us as dark as it felt in the moment, there's always light at the end of the tunnel."

For people seeking help with suicidal thoughts who want to make a voice call, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

Cathy Lamberton, whose son, Logan, died by suicide nearly seven years ago, said she is glad to know the new text service is available, among other counseling services and suicide prevention work in Vermont.

"Any tool you can find to get people talking about to connect, I'm all for it," Lamberton said. "It's definitely a good thing."

Lamberton said she has found ways to recognize grief from her sons death while not getting bogged down by it, as she promotes healthy approaches to healing.

Lamberton now is working to help others through workshops on stress management and healing from grief or trauma. Her next workshop is on Saturday, Dec. 10 from 10 a.m. to noon at Hotel Vermont in Burlington.

For more information on that seminar, click here.

At Spectrum Youth and Family Services in Burlington, clinical director Leslie Ferrer said the holidays often bring an increase in calls for counseling, due in part to added family or financial stress.

"It's definitely a time when if you have mental health issues, or you don't, stress definitely goes up and there's a lot of emotions," Ferrer said.

For more on mental health resources available in Vermont, visit this state website.
The Connecticut Audubon Society has released a sharply worded report, warning that many birds in the state are suffering slow, steady population declines because of a loss of nesting areas.

The saltmarsh sparrow, in particular, is at risk from rising sea levels, which threaten coastal habitats. Scientists say the bird could be extinct in 50 years.

Audubon Society senior director of science and conservation Milan Bull says it would be the first avian extinction in the continental U.S. since 1931.

The group is urging state officials to take steps to protect endangered bird species, and recommends the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection receive sufficient funding to plan for landscapes needed to accommodate birds as sea levels rise. The group also is calling for the expansion of shrub-scrub habitat.
A Williamstown, Vermont man has been arrested after allegedly stealing a buck hanging at another hunters home.

According to the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, Vermont State Game Wardens arrested Joshua Young.

On Nov. 14, Estey Manning reported the theft of his 145-pound buck to police. He checked it in two days earlier at a game reporting station. He provided a photo to a game warden.

On the same day the buck was stolen, wardens say Young tried to report the buck at the same station.

Young allegedly acknowledged he stole the buck from Manning.

He was charged with transporting a deer taken by another person without that person present.

Young is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 28.
The victim of a horrific hit and run accident caught on camera early Friday morning outside The Spot nightclub in Brockton, Massachusetts has died.

Sergio Licona was just 25 years old, a married father of three children who had come to Brockton two years ago from Honduras in search of job opportunities to support his family back home.

The accident occurred around 1:30 a.m. Friday. Witnesses told police Licona was leaving the club with a group of people when he was struck while crossing the street. According to witnesses, the driver failed to stop and drove up North Main Street.

His widow, Lizeth Mejia, told us by phone from Honduras that Licona had planned to come home soon.

He left his three kids, he left me, he left his parents in search of new opportunities and new dreams," she said.

When we spoke to Mejia, she believed Licona was still in a coma at Beth Israel Hospital, where he was taken after the accident. He passed away Monday morning.

This is something I still dont believe," she said, "something that we would like to think that it is a dream, that he will be alive and he will come back.

The district attorneys office said state police have identified the driver of the 2012 Jaguar SUV that struck Licona and then left the scene.

He is not being identified publicly pending charges.

Giovanni Perez, a friend of Liconas who also moved to Brockton from Honduras, said he is devastated that someone would hit him and leave him in the road to die.

When we saw the video, when he was hit, I felt something terrible, Perez said.

It is unclear when the driver involved in the hit and run will be arraigned, but the district attorneys office did say charges are pending.
A Rhode Island man is facing a number of charges after a brief motor vehicle pursuit Saturday in Ashby, Massachusetts, where police allegedly seized cocaine from the vehicle.

Police said an officer stopped a sport utility vehicle for speeding on West State Road at about 4:30 p.m.

When the officer approaced the SUV, the driver sped off and the officer returned to his cruiser to initiate a pursuit.

Police said the SUV proceeded down West State Road, passing multiple vehicles and driving in the breakdown lane. The vehicle then abruptly stopped and the driver exited the vehicle.

Police said the officer drew his firearm and ordered the driver to raise his hands.

The driver, identified as Dislyn Roa-De La Rosa, 23, of Providence, Rhode Island, did not comply with the orders and told the officer he did not understand English.

The officer was able to place Roa-De La Rosa into custody without further incident. He was charged with trafficking cocaine, failure to stop for police, passing in a no passing zone, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, possessing an open container of alcohol in a motor vehicle, and speeding.

During a search of Roa-De La Rosa's SUV, police said they found nearly $1,800 in cash in the vehicle. Police said several bags of a white power, later identified as cocaine, were found in a culvert up the road. Police allege the bags were thrown from the SUV by Roa-De La Rosa during the pursuit.

Roa-De La Rosa was ordered held on $15,040 cash bail pending his arraignment Monday in Ayer District Court.
Christian addiction charity Teen Challenge London is planning to turn Drayton Hall near Norwich into its headquarters and a rehabilitation centre for men, after it was gifted the freehold of the hall by its owner, the Lind Trust.

Christian addiction charity Teen Challenge London is planning to turn Drayton Hall near Norwich into its headquarters and a rehabilitation centre for men, after it was gifted the freehold of the hall by its owner, the Lind Trust.

The power of positive protest Philip Young encourages us to take a stand for what we believe, and has just written to Therese Coffey regarding climate change and the forthcoming COP 27. He explains why we should be prepared to protest. Read more

Norwich church celebrates with cribs and trees Rosebery Road Methodist Church in Norwich will be holding its annual Cribs and Trees Festival in December. Read more

Transforming Norwich lunch offers ministry tips Ex-Brighton vicar, Rev Phil Moon, will offer tips on how to keep going in ministry to the Transforming Norwich leaders lunch on Wednesday November 16. Read more

Quiet Waters in Bungay offers healing retreat Quiet Waters Christian Retreat in Bungay is holding a gentle day retreat exploring healing in the Kingdom of God. Read more

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
In the late 1990s, I was responsible for technical operations for a large healthcare organization. We supported more than 5,000 users across 50 locations and supported three distinct lines of business. We were a very progressive organization at the leading edge of technology innovation in healthcare.

It was not a simple operation.

Well, at least not for 1997. When I compare that environment to what IT leaders face today, however, a shudder of relief washes over me.

There is no point in whitewashing this: Managing the function of IT in my day was childs play compared to the incredible diversity of challenges facing the modern IT leader. Is it so complex, in fact, that it cannot truly be managed?

A diversity of challenges

At a recent gathering of IT leaders, the full diversity of challenges facing them was evident. The East IT Leaders Forum, produced by SINC USA, brought together more than 50 IT leaders from a wide range of industries and organizational types.

SINC USA

Leaders from organizations such as HealthSouth, Canadian Tire, Bank of America, The City of Toronto and Century Health Systems attended the three-day event held in Miami. The discussion docket exposed the difficulties facing IT leaders.

In the events workshops, think tanks and general sessions, the discussions spanned the usual suspects (security, big data/analytics, cloud), emerging technologies (hyperconvergence, blockchain), emerging strategies (digital ecosystems, new work models) and management issues (women in technology, talent retention, improving human interaction).

It was fascinating to observe conversations move effortlessly between incredibly complex topics. One moment, it was a deep dive into the specific technical and business implications of deploying a particular technology. In the next, the group would be engrossed in an in-depth conversation about the impact of technology on a specific industry.

SINC USA

And at several points during the event, it occurred to me that managing an environment this complex is pushing the boundaries of traditional IT leadership capabilities.

Rising to the challenge

Despite the whirlwind of issues facing them, the prevailing mood of the executives in attendance was excitement and hopefulness. Each attendee acknowledged the enormity of the challenges facing them, but they also felt there was a path forward.

I could name 20 things that Im dealing with right now, shared Ed Mattison, vice president of IT infrastructure, communications, and cybersecurity at Guthrie, a non-profit healthcare provider. But you cant eat an elephant all at once. It just comes down to prioritizing those things that have the greatest payoff with the least effort. Its all about being creative.

It was also clear that creative uses of technology and the sharing of ideas would play a significant role in dealing with the complexity that the ubiquity of technology creates.

Were dealing with major issues, such as dealing with scarcity of resources, with so many of our employees retiring, and balancing the competing needs of data demand and security, explained Fazal Husain, director of Enterprise Solutions with the City of Toronto. But events like these which bring me and my fellow executives together with the most innovative technology companies to help us understand what tools can help put us on the right path to dealing with these issues.

A focus on diversity and the human side of IT

The most striking idea from the event, however, was that the best way to cope with the array of challenges IT leaders face is through diversity itself. Moderating the Women in Technology Leadership discussion, Nutanixs vice president of corporate marketing, Julie OBrien, asked why it has been so difficult to get women into tech and IT despite numerous studies showing a direct correlation between greater diversity and higher levels of organizational performance.

The need for a greater focus on both gender and ethnic diversityand on the broader human element within ITthread throughout the event with discussions about addressing human needs through technology, retaining executive level talent and building better executive relationships.

But the idea that greater diversity could help IT leaders cope with the complexity was the most intriguing. OBrien pointed to Nutanixs Webscale Women initiative, which started as an internal, grassroots effort but has blossomed into a broader external effort that is playing an important role in shaping the organizations culture as the company growsreinforcing the idea that diversity brings new ideas and fresh perspectives.

Is IT becoming too complex to manage? The answer is most likely yes for leaders who cling to traditional management paradigms. But for organizations that embrace diversityin ideas, in technologies, in approach and in peoplethere is a hopeful path forward.

Disclosure: SINC USA covered my travel expenses to the East IT Leaders Forum, a standard industry practice. As of the time of writing, none of the organizations mentioned in this article are Intellyx customers.
Ukraine and Hungary intend to build a road to the Hungarian-Ukrainian border by 2020 and work on the introduction of joint border control.

The press service of Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers has reported that Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman at a meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban proposed to hold a new meeting of the commission for trans-border cooperation.

"The Ukrainian and Hungarian prime minister also promised to build a road to the Hungarian-Ukrainian border by 2020," the press service said.

Under Groysman's proposal the sides decided to order foreign ministers jointly with heads of border and customs services to work on the introduction of joint border control and the possibility of improving the operation of checkpoints to provide for comfort crossing the border.

Groysman thanked Hungary for prolongation of the project "Effective and Safe Border between Hungary and Ukraine" in 2017.

The Ukrainian prime minister said that the number of permits without paying road fees for Ukraine haulers in 2017 should be increased. He urged the Hungarian prime minister to consider this issue.

Groysman and Orban made arrangements that the governments of the two countries would soon create and approve a calendar plan to implement the top priority joint projects and start implementing it at once.

The Ukrainian prime minister thanked Hungary for providing a EUR 50 million loan to develop border infrastructure.

Groysman proposed that after signing the financial agreement the countries would at once switch to the practical implementation of joint projects. Among them are building an orbital road around Berehove and reconstruction of the Berehove-Mukacheve road, expansion and modernization of the Beregsurany-Luzhanka (Astei) checkpoint, building the new checkpoint Hagyhodos-Velyka Palad and introduction of joint border and customs control at it, building a new bridge across the Tisa River near the Chop-Zahony checkpoint and launch traffic movement between Dyida in Zakarpattia region and Beregdaroc in Hungary.
Cybersecurity needs to be a top priority for the administration of Donald Trump. The first task should be shoring up government IT systems. As recent attacks have shown, adversaries arent afraid to go after political organizations. Theres no reason to suspect they wont continue to target political entities such as the Democratic National Committee or step up attacks on government agencies.

Emphasize that information security applies to all agencies

Ideally, a cabinet meeting for all new secretaries should be held within three months of the inauguration to underscore that information security is essential for all agencies to complete their missions. Even secretaries whose agencies are not typically associated with either information security or IT need to be included.

All government agencies use computers, mobile devices, cloud services and other technology, giving the bad guys many avenues for carrying out an attack. President Trump must emphasize that cybersecurity has major national security implications and impacts all government organizations and all Americans.

+ Also on Network World: Trump remains frighteningly behind in cybersecurity +

Hardening the governments information security defenses is a huge undertaking that will take time to accomplish, a point that President Trump must emphasize. Metrics must be established that allow cabinets to measure how successful they have been at improving their defenses. Rolling out two-factor authentication for accessing sensitive systems and staying up to date on applying software patches are two examples of goals that can measured in quantifiable terms.

Start by appointing CISOs

The new president should fill government positions as quickly as possible. This is no small task given there are thousands of roles to fill, many of which require Congress approval.

Given the current political climate, getting Congress to agree on nominations for even the most common cabinet secretary positions could prove challenging to impossible. Instead of waiting for Congress to approve all high-level confirmations, the Trump administration should fill CISO positions for each government agency as soon as possible, since these are the people who are responsible for implementing and overseeing information security policies.

A key part of continuing to keep America great is ensuring that its government agencies and national infrastructure are prepared as best as possible for future cyber attacks.

The government can take a lesson from the private sector here in emphasizing the importance of naming a CISO. Information security is no longer just an IT problem. All organizations, whether theyre a federal agency or a company, need someone who actively promotes and monitors security. Protecting the government or a business requires executive attention and is not something that can be treated like an afterthought.

Dont forget about infrastructure

The Trump administration also needs to realize the importance of protecting the countrys infrastructure from attacks. Like I said in an earlier blog post, How the government can help businesses fight cyber attacks, utility providers are the nations soft underbelly. Our power plants, electricity grid, dams and reservoirs often lack adequate information security measures and are extremely vulnerable to an attack.

Beyond malware, ransomware, phishing scams and other common attack vectors, utility providers use industrial control systems that arent actively monitored for intrusions, making them the ideal way for an attack to infiltrate an organization. Stuxnet used this attack vector to cripple Irans nuclear program. Harming any part of our infrastructure could have disastrous consequences. Protecting infrastructure is already on the agenda of the National Security Agencys recently formed Cyber Mission Force. Hopefully, the new administration will continue and expand this policy.

Id also like to address the need for the new President to broaden the definition of critical infrastructure to include ISPs (another point Ive made in this space). The October DDoS attack that took down the domain name service provider Dyn caused people to panic. Imagine if future DDoS attacks were even more powerful, taking down the victims servers for even longer period of time and targeting companies that provide SaaS services. Businesses will suffer if their employees can't access their email or CRM applications.

The only way to protect our networks is for the public and private sector to work together. Hopefully, the Trump administration can help businesses realize the benefits of joining forces with the government on information security.

The time to act is now

Time is not on our side, unfortunately. Theres no indication adversaries, whether they are nation-states such as Russia and China or cyber criminals using nation-state tactics, are going to relent any time soon. They may even look for and try to exploit any gaps that emerge as the Obama administration hands over to the Trump administration.

This is all the more reason why information security needs to be a top priority for President Trump and must be handled within the first 100 days of his inauguration. A key part of continuing to keep America great is ensuring that its government agencies and national infrastructure are prepared as best as possible for future cyber attacks.
Just two days ahead of the first keynotes at the AWS re:Invent conference, Amazon Web Services announced today that $2 billion international shipping giant Matson plans to close its data centers and go all-in on the company's IaaS cloud platform.

Matson is a 134-year old Hawaii-based publicly traded shipping company with 22 vessels that run routes primarily in the Pacific Ocean.

The shipping industry requires advanced IT capabilities to enable precise tracking of assets and customer shipments as they move around the world, a press release announcing the news reads.

Equipment including vessels, shipping terminals, containers and trucks will all rely on Amazons cloud to provide visibility and analytics. Matson also has a custom built order-to-cash booking and billing system, logistics platform and customer-facing website all hosted in AWS.

re:Invent is a time when AWS likes to drum up stories of how customers are closing data centers and moving all their operations to the cloud. Netflix is one of the classic examples of this while the University of Notre Dame is another. Other companies, like GE and Capital One are more slowly moving to the cloud.

Expect more big name customers to pledge allegiance to AWS as re:Invent kicks off in earnest on Wednesday.

Related video:
Antitrust regulators at the European Union like to make American firms jump through an awful lot of hoops before approving a big merger, as they did to Oracle when it spent nine months trying to acquire Sun Microsystems back in 2009. Now they are doing it to Microsoft over its proposed $26.2 billion acquisition of LinkedIn.

Earlier this month, regulators expressed concerns to Microsoft that it would stifle access to LinkedIn's APIs and other mobile concerns. Last week, the European Commission said Microsoft had responded to those concerns by proposing "concessions," which Reuters has obtained.

According to the news outlet, Microsoft has made three major promises to the European Commission:

Microsoft will provide rivals with access to key LinkedIn APIs after the acquisition, so apps from those companies will be able to retain their LinkedIn-based functionality.

Android and iOS will be able to pre-install the native LinkedIn app on their devices, and Microsoft would not restrict LinkedIn to just its own devices (which would be insane given Windows Mobile's 1 percent market share).

Manufacturers would also be free to pre-install rival apps to LinkedIn on their devices

These proposed concessions are an attempt by Microsoft to demonstrate that it won't use the acquisition to try to stifle competition or punish partners who choose to favor rival networks over its own offering.

LinkedIn competitors

So, who exactly are these competitors? LinkedIn is far and away the top professional social network, and I've yet to encounter someone who uses a different network. There's Facebook, to a degree, but it's not really a work-oriented site.

However, there are two big ones in Europe, which would be in the European Commission's best interests to protect. One is called Xing, based out of Germany, with about 10 million members mostly in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. There's a bigger competitor, Viadeo, with about 65 million members in Europe and is now targeting the U.S. for expansion.

The deadline is past for Microsoft's competitors to provide feedback or raise any objections regarding the acquisition and Microsoft's proposals. Salesforce is one of them. It called for a full investigation into the deal back in October. The European Commission is expected to deliver its ruling on or before December 6.
Firms aired their views about impact of referendum result during talk

THE impact of Brexit on local businesses was discussed during a talk at Shaw House last week.

Lord Newby, former spokesman for Her Majestys Treasury in the Lords, talked with local businesspeople about how they think Brexit is going to affect their trade.

The meeting, chaired by Parliamentary candidate for the Liberal Democrats in Newbury, Judith Bunting, heard the views of businesspeople representing a range of industries, from farming and racehorse training to construction and the manufacture of scientific equipment.

Lord Newby gave his views as to what he thinks Brexit could mean for the future of business in Britain, particularly if it is not handled correctly.

Ms Bunting said: With such a range of interests in the room, debate was well informed and very varied.

Farmers are worried about losing subsidies and the environment protections provided by the EU, while one director of a company that exports around the world said he feels quite happy with the Brexit situation. Most people who came, import goods critical to their business and are feeling the pinch.

Racehorse trainer Geoffrey Deacon from Compton said: The evening was a really useful chance to talk over all aspects of Brexit, voice the concerns we have for our own businesses.

Jon Gage, director of Rivar, told how Brexit has started to impact his business. He said: As an importer of landscaping materials, the decline in the value of the pound is making our company pass on significant price increases to customers.

Up to year end, we will support our customers who may be committed to working on fixed-price contracts. However, in the new year some of our products will have a 10-per-cent increase applied to them.

The event was part of the Liberal Democrats National Brexit Consultation and businesspeople can still have their say at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/JTN73VY.

Ms Bunting said: As a Liberal Democrat, I believe that Britain is better off in Europe, but my immediate priority is to help ensure local businesses do not pay the price of a rushed withdrawal from the EU.
Public joint-stock company Ukrtransgaz has signed contracts on cooperation in transportation of natural gas and its storage in Ukrainian underground storage facilities with TrailStone Energy LLC and DufEnergy Trading SA.

"Ukraine has opened its gas market to European suppliers. Today three contracts on transportation of natural gas and its storage in Ukrainian storage facilities have been signed," the company said.

The press service said that TrailStone, DufEnergy and Engie (earlier GDF Suez SA) that signed the similar contract with Ukrtransgaz in October until recently sold gas to Ukrainian traders on the Ukrainian border.

"We are actively working on attracting European traders to work on the Ukrainian gas market. We are waiting for pilot supplies in December," Ukrtransgaz President Ihor Prokopiv said.

The signing of the contracts would permit European companies to supply gas to Ukraine and directly sell it to Ukrainian traders and consumers.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: Having suffered huge losses owing to decrease in transactions after the demonetisation move, ATM service companies are racing against time to recalibrate teller machines at the earliest. Calibration issues, coupled with cash crunch has put the business in distress.

While earlier, those in the business were hoping that reconfiguring the software would be sufficient, due to a change in the size of the new currency notes, even the hardware is being recalibrated.

The work is being done on war-footing basis. Banks alone cannot take care of the calibration. The outsourced agencies manage the task. Since banks are dealing with irate customers, they are trying to get the work done as soon as possible, a bank official in Bengaluru Branch of nationalised bank told Express.

As for service management companies, they have employed additional workforce to get the work completed soon. In fact, the workforce is fivefold more than the regular number, said V. Balasubramanian, President (Transaction Processing & ATM Services) and Spokesperson, Financial Software & Systems (P) Ltd (FSS).

Placing the losses at an estimated Rs 10 to 15 crores over the fortnight, he said the employees were working three shifts at a stretch to cope with the situation.

Banks pay us per transaction. Since the transaction has dwindled, it is a loss for us.

When it comes to human resources being deployed, the number of vans, gunmen and those monitoring the operations online have gone up five times, Balasubramanian added.

FSS, a Chennai-based Fintech leader manages 40,000 ATMS for banks in the country.

Calibration: How its done

The ATMs have cassettes that hold the cash. Usually the machines have either two cassettes or four. When there are four cassettes, two is reserved for holding Rs 500, one for Rs 100 and one for Rs 1000. Since the new currencies are different in size, ATM service companies are having to recalibrate these cassettes. Those in the industry said the cassettes come with a feature to adjust the size and hence they do not need replacement. Nonetheless, adjusting this feature in addition to reconfiguring the software takes about an hour per machine. This activity is done in co-ordination with banks, logistic companies that carry cash and the ATM service management companies.

Cash crunch top issue

However, beyond re-calibration, companies and banks said the major issue was cash crunch. Even those machines that have been adjusted to the new features of the currency notes are dysfunctional as there is no supply of cash.

The position is bad all over the country, Cash is drying up within half an hour of loading the machines, said Harvinder Singh, General Secretary and Spokesperson of All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC). The Rs 500 notes are in short supply. We are issuing only Rs 2,000 notes. But people cannot use only higher denomination notes. The condition of the officials working is getting worsened day by day, he said.

While outsourced companies are trying to push banks to provide cash as soon as possible, bank officials have their hands tied until RBI supplies cash to them. The recalibration will be done in another 4-5 days. Currency will still remain a problem. The confederation has written to the Finance secretary and minister apprising them of the situation, Singh added.

Banks in mission mode

About 47,000 ATM's have been recalibrated since the exercise began to enable them to start dispensing the new Rs 500 and Rs 2000 notes. The banks were asked by the task force set up by RBI to recalibrate 12,5000 ATM's everyday.

BENGALURU: Having suffered huge losses owing to decrease in transactions after the demonetisation move, ATM service companies are racing against time to recalibrate teller machines at the earliest. Calibration issues, coupled with cash crunch has put the business in distress. While earlier, those in the business were hoping that reconfiguring the software would be sufficient, due to a change in the size of the new currency notes, even the hardware is being recalibrated. The work is being done on war-footing basis. Banks alone cannot take care of the calibration. The outsourced agencies manage the task. Since banks are dealing with irate customers, they are trying to get the work done as soon as possible, a bank official in Bengaluru Branch of nationalised bank told Express. As for service management companies, they have employed additional workforce to get the work completed soon. In fact, the workforce is fivefold more than the regular number, said V. Balasubramanian, President (Transaction Processing & ATM Services) and Spokesperson, Financial Software & Systems (P) Ltd (FSS). Placing the losses at an estimated Rs 10 to 15 crores over the fortnight, he said the employees were working three shifts at a stretch to cope with the situation. Banks pay us per transaction. Since the transaction has dwindled, it is a loss for us. When it comes to human resources being deployed, the number of vans, gunmen and those monitoring the operations online have gone up five times, Balasubramanian added. FSS, a Chennai-based Fintech leader manages 40,000 ATMS for banks in the country. Calibration: How its done The ATMs have cassettes that hold the cash. Usually the machines have either two cassettes or four. When there are four cassettes, two is reserved for holding Rs 500, one for Rs 100 and one for Rs 1000. Since the new currencies are different in size, ATM service companies are having to recalibrate these cassettes. Those in the industry said the cassettes come with a feature to adjust the size and hence they do not need replacement. Nonetheless, adjusting this feature in addition to reconfiguring the software takes about an hour per machine. This activity is done in co-ordination with banks, logistic companies that carry cash and the ATM service management companies. Cash crunch top issue However, beyond re-calibration, companies and banks said the major issue was cash crunch. Even those machines that have been adjusted to the new features of the currency notes are dysfunctional as there is no supply of cash. The position is bad all over the country, Cash is drying up within half an hour of loading the machines, said Harvinder Singh, General Secretary and Spokesperson of All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC). The Rs 500 notes are in short supply. We are issuing only Rs 2,000 notes. But people cannot use only higher denomination notes. The condition of the officials working is getting worsened day by day, he said. While outsourced companies are trying to push banks to provide cash as soon as possible, bank officials have their hands tied until RBI supplies cash to them. The recalibration will be done in another 4-5 days. Currency will still remain a problem. The confederation has written to the Finance secretary and minister apprising them of the situation, Singh added. Banks in mission mode About 47,000 ATM's have been recalibrated since the exercise began to enable them to start dispensing the new Rs 500 and Rs 2000 notes. The banks were asked by the task force set up by RBI to recalibrate 12,5000 ATM's everyday.
By ANI

SHIMLA: Cash-crunch triggered by demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes is not only causing inconvenience to people in the country, but foreign tourists visiting here are equally troubled as they are unable to use smaller denominations.

"Arriving on the morning of the November 10, and being in Delhi, we found that we were not able to get any money. The hotel had all its cash taken away and as a result they couldn't give us small denominations, which is difficult when you are a tourist walking around and you need public convenience and you want to give tips; we couldn't do any of that.

The situation without any Indian money at all was very difficult. People were understanding, and even in some places, they took British pounds from us in order to be able to get over this problem. But, it really is quiet a difficulty. We are entirely reliable on credit cards. Because it's another day, and now we are in Shimla, we find that there are ATMs open.I am hoping that things will get easier," a tourist told ANI.

"It's been a nuisance, we can only use credit cards and debit cards," Juliet, another tourist, said.

Yesterday, foreign tourists visiting Taj Mahal in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, were caught off guard as ticket counters refused to accept their 500 and 1,000 rupee notes, and groups of foreigners were seen chipping in with change to buy tickets.

"I cannot buy a ticket because the ticket counter told me that 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee notes do not work here. I don't know how, but I cannot find a way in India", said a Chinese tourist.

Most foreign tourists were also unaware of the government decision and its intricacies. They also faced a problem exchanging currency as with both banks and Automatic Teller Machines (ATM) shut; there was an acute shortage of 100 rupee notes.

Domestic tourists also faced problems.

In a surprise announcement, the Centre withdrew the two of its largest currency notes at the midnight on Tuesday in a bid to flush out money hidden from the taxman.

SHIMLA: Cash-crunch triggered by demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes is not only causing inconvenience to people in the country, but foreign tourists visiting here are equally troubled as they are unable to use smaller denominations. "Arriving on the morning of the November 10, and being in Delhi, we found that we were not able to get any money. The hotel had all its cash taken away and as a result they couldn't give us small denominations, which is difficult when you are a tourist walking around and you need public convenience and you want to give tips; we couldn't do any of that. The situation without any Indian money at all was very difficult. People were understanding, and even in some places, they took British pounds from us in order to be able to get over this problem. But, it really is quiet a difficulty. We are entirely reliable on credit cards. Because it's another day, and now we are in Shimla, we find that there are ATMs open.I am hoping that things will get easier," a tourist told ANI. "It's been a nuisance, we can only use credit cards and debit cards," Juliet, another tourist, said. Yesterday, foreign tourists visiting Taj Mahal in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, were caught off guard as ticket counters refused to accept their 500 and 1,000 rupee notes, and groups of foreigners were seen chipping in with change to buy tickets. "I cannot buy a ticket because the ticket counter told me that 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee notes do not work here. I don't know how, but I cannot find a way in India", said a Chinese tourist. Most foreign tourists were also unaware of the government decision and its intricacies. They also faced a problem exchanging currency as with both banks and Automatic Teller Machines (ATM) shut; there was an acute shortage of 100 rupee notes. Domestic tourists also faced problems. In a surprise announcement, the Centre withdrew the two of its largest currency notes at the midnight on Tuesday in a bid to flush out money hidden from the taxman.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: Akrosh Diwas is likely to hit the normal life in city on Monday. Traffic may be partially affected due to the protest against demonetisation of D500 and D1000 notes.

The Congress government had earlier decided not to participate in Bharat Bandh. They announced support to protests in several parts of the city and state being planned as a part of Akrosh Diwas.

Bharat Bandh is not being observed. We are lending support to Akrosh Divas, said Home Minister G Parameshwara. All India Trade Union Congress,Centre of Indian Trade Unions and other trade unions have also extended support to the protest. However, Janata Dal (Secular) supremo HD Deve Gowda has said that the party will not be supporting Akrosh Diwas.

Security beefed up across city Bengaluru City Police have made elaborate security arrangements in the wake ofthe protest. Around 15,000 police personnel, including senior officials will be deployed at various places.

Thirty platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police, City Armed Reserve, 250 Hoysala patrolling vehicles, Quick Response Teams, water jets and D-Swat force have been deployed. Focus will be on central business district area.

Online campaign against stirs An online campaign against protests and bandh is also doing the rounds. It is asking people to stay away from protests, while highlighting the ill-effects of such politically-fuelled activities on common public. Poor people are worst-affected by such strikes, it says.

BENGALURU: Akrosh Diwas is likely to hit the normal life in city on Monday. Traffic may be partially affected due to the protest against demonetisation of D500 and D1000 notes. The Congress government had earlier decided not to participate in Bharat Bandh. They announced support to protests in several parts of the city and state being planned as a part of Akrosh Diwas. Bharat Bandh is not being observed. We are lending support to Akrosh Divas, said Home Minister G Parameshwara. All India Trade Union Congress,Centre of Indian Trade Unions and other trade unions have also extended support to the protest. However, Janata Dal (Secular) supremo HD Deve Gowda has said that the party will not be supporting Akrosh Diwas. Security beefed up across city Bengaluru City Police have made elaborate security arrangements in the wake ofthe protest. Around 15,000 police personnel, including senior officials will be deployed at various places. Thirty platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police, City Armed Reserve, 250 Hoysala patrolling vehicles, Quick Response Teams, water jets and D-Swat force have been deployed. Focus will be on central business district area. Online campaign against stirs An online campaign against protests and bandh is also doing the rounds. It is asking people to stay away from protests, while highlighting the ill-effects of such politically-fuelled activities on common public. Poor people are worst-affected by such strikes, it says.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: Police have arrested the wife of the driver of a cash management service provider who had robbed Rs 1.37 crore on November 23. According to police, the arrested has been has been identified as Elvin, wife of Domnic.

"Elvin surrendered in Banaswadi police station along with her kid. She surrendered before the police with Rs 79 lakh on Sunday night," police said. Domnic had robbed Rs 1.37 crore along with the vehicle on Wednesday afternoon while they were near Bank of India on K G Road.

On Thursday morning, the same vehicle was found abandoned near Mount Carmel College in Vasanth Nagar. The police had also recovered Rs 45 lakh cash and the gunman's gun in the vehicle.

Police said, "Elvin is being further questioned to know the whereabouts of Domnic. Domnic who has taken around Rs 12 lakh with him is still on run." Four teams have been formed to nab Domnic and it is suspected that he is still in the city.

BENGALURU: Police have arrested the wife of the driver of a cash management service provider who had robbed Rs 1.37 crore on November 23. According to police, the arrested has been has been identified as Elvin, wife of Domnic. "Elvin surrendered in Banaswadi police station along with her kid. She surrendered before the police with Rs 79 lakh on Sunday night," police said. Domnic had robbed Rs 1.37 crore along with the vehicle on Wednesday afternoon while they were near Bank of India on K G Road. On Thursday morning, the same vehicle was found abandoned near Mount Carmel College in Vasanth Nagar. The police had also recovered Rs 45 lakh cash and the gunman's gun in the vehicle. Police said, "Elvin is being further questioned to know the whereabouts of Domnic. Domnic who has taken around Rs 12 lakh with him is still on run." Four teams have been formed to nab Domnic and it is suspected that he is still in the city.
Ashwini M Sripad By

Express News Service

BENGALURU: Ever since the demonetisation came into effect, the hundis at major temples are filled with old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. The Muzrai Department has issued a circular to all the temple authorities asking them to deposit such currency notes in their bank accounts at the earliest.

Karnataka has at least 34,000 temples that come under the Muzrai Department. Of these, 175 temples are Class A (whose annual revenue is above Rs 25 lakh), 158 are Class B (annual income is between Rs 5 and Rs 25 lakh) and the remaining are Class C temples (annual income is less than Rs 5 lakh).

A senior official from the Muzrai Department said, In the last 15 days, the income of our temples has increased drastically. But we give the grades based on a temples income over three years. This trend of getting more revenue because of the banned currency will be there for some time.

Lakshmi, endowment officer, Banashankari temple, Bengaluru, said that when they opened the hundi on Thursday last, they had received some Rs 56 lakh. At least Rs 20 lakh were the banned currency notes. We will pay it to the bank. It is a record in our temple collection because we have never crossed Rs 40 lakh, she said. The Lakshmi Venkateshwara temple in Sampangiramanagar received Rs 5.26 lakh, of which about Rs 1 lakh were in old currency notes, an offical said. Venugopala Swamy temple in Malleswaram received Rs 24.58 lakh in their hundis, a large part of which was again in banned currency notes.

The top three income-generating temples in Karnataka are Kukke Subramanya temple in Dakshina Kannada district, which has an annual income of at least Rs 4.25 crore. This is followed by Nanjunedeshwara temple in Nanjangud taluk of Mysuru district and Renuka Yellamma Devi Temple in Savadatti of Belagavi district. The income of both is around Rs 3.5 crore to Rs 4 crore. The daily income at these temples has shot up by at least 20 per cent. Ganga Ram Baderiya, Principal Secretary to Muzrai Department, said that as per the instructions of the Union Finance Ministry they are depositing the money collected in the temples at the bank. We cannot stop people from putting the banned currency notes in hundis. But we are clearing the hundis on a day-to-day basis and the same is paid at banks, he added.

Muzrai Department sources said that a circular has been issued to all the temples authorities to open their hundis at the earliest. Normally, we open hundis once a month. Some are opened twice a week or once a fortnight depending on the collection. We were told to clear the hundis and pay to the bank before December 31. However, we can pay even after December 31 till March 31. But we have to submit an affidavit to the RBI, the source said.

BENGALURU: Ever since the demonetisation came into effect, the hundis at major temples are filled with old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. The Muzrai Department has issued a circular to all the temple authorities asking them to deposit such currency notes in their bank accounts at the earliest. Karnataka has at least 34,000 temples that come under the Muzrai Department. Of these, 175 temples are Class A (whose annual revenue is above Rs 25 lakh), 158 are Class B (annual income is between Rs 5 and Rs 25 lakh) and the remaining are Class C temples (annual income is less than Rs 5 lakh). A senior official from the Muzrai Department said, In the last 15 days, the income of our temples has increased drastically. But we give the grades based on a temples income over three years. This trend of getting more revenue because of the banned currency will be there for some time. Lakshmi, endowment officer, Banashankari temple, Bengaluru, said that when they opened the hundi on Thursday last, they had received some Rs 56 lakh. At least Rs 20 lakh were the banned currency notes. We will pay it to the bank. It is a record in our temple collection because we have never crossed Rs 40 lakh, she said. The Lakshmi Venkateshwara temple in Sampangiramanagar received Rs 5.26 lakh, of which about Rs 1 lakh were in old currency notes, an offical said. Venugopala Swamy temple in Malleswaram received Rs 24.58 lakh in their hundis, a large part of which was again in banned currency notes. The top three income-generating temples in Karnataka are Kukke Subramanya temple in Dakshina Kannada district, which has an annual income of at least Rs 4.25 crore. This is followed by Nanjunedeshwara temple in Nanjangud taluk of Mysuru district and Renuka Yellamma Devi Temple in Savadatti of Belagavi district. The income of both is around Rs 3.5 crore to Rs 4 crore. The daily income at these temples has shot up by at least 20 per cent. Ganga Ram Baderiya, Principal Secretary to Muzrai Department, said that as per the instructions of the Union Finance Ministry they are depositing the money collected in the temples at the bank. We cannot stop people from putting the banned currency notes in hundis. But we are clearing the hundis on a day-to-day basis and the same is paid at banks, he added. Muzrai Department sources said that a circular has been issued to all the temples authorities to open their hundis at the earliest. Normally, we open hundis once a month. Some are opened twice a week or once a fortnight depending on the collection. We were told to clear the hundis and pay to the bank before December 31. However, we can pay even after December 31 till March 31. But we have to submit an affidavit to the RBI, the source said.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Delhi High Court today sternly asked the city police to "cut across all political barriers" and find missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, saying there could be "something more" to his disappearance as no one can just vanish from the heart of the national capital.



Expressing concern over the whereabouts of the student who has remained untraced for 45 days now, the court also raised several questions, including why the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the injuries sustained by Najeeb was not mentioned in the Delhi Police's status report.



A bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel said if a person disappears from the national capital and remains untraced, then it would create a "sense of insecurity" in the people here and asked the police to explore all angles.



"This is the heart of India, the national capital. No one can just disappear from here. It creates a sense of insecurity in people. If he disappeared, then there is something more to that. All angles have to be explored. 45 days is a long period for someone to be underground," it said to the police which is of the view that Najeeb was "not forcefully abducted".



After perusing the status report of Delhi Police, the court asked why was Najeeb taken to the Safdarjung Hospital in an ambulance if he had no apparent or visible injuries, as this detail was missing from the police report.



It also asked why the report does not say anything about the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members allegedly of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) who are alleged to have brutally beaten him up and only mentions that the missing student had slapped one of them.



The judge questioned why the police waited till November 11 to interrogate those persons with whom Najeeb allegedly had an altercation on the night of October 14-15, prior to his disappearance on October 15 and against whom a criminal complaint was lodged on October 17.



"Cut across all political barriers. Get him back. You will get your answers at either of the two places, Jamia or JNU. No need to go to Aligarh or any other place so far," the bench told the police, which said that an auto driver has claimed to have dropped off Najeeb at the Jamia Milia Islamia University.

The court was hearing a habeus corpus plea filed by the student's mother 45-year old Fatima Nafees, who was in court today and was in tears during the hearing. She has sought directions to the authorities to trace her 27-year-old son who was pursuing MSc in Biotechnology from JNU.



During the hearing, the bench said it did not want to tell the police what to do but it can easily "shadow" some of the persons involved in the matter to know what was going on and to "fearlessly" tell the court what it has found out.



The court was also not pleased with the "attitude" of the JNU Vice Chancellor for not assigning anyone in the matter despite being served a copy of the petition.



"He does not think it is an important matter? This is not a good attitude," it said and directed JNU to file a response to the woman's plea by the next date of hearing.



The court also asked the varsity to reconsider Najeeb's expulsion from the hostel, if not already done so, and to advertise in newspapers that they will reconsider his punishment once he returns.



It asked Najeeb's mother to issue a statement asking him to return and directed the management and students of JNU to assist and cooperate with the police to trace him.



During arguments, the police said its Crime Branch was exploring all angles, including that Najeeb's disappearance had something to do with his "illness of mental depression" for which he was under medication since 2012. It was also of the view that he was hiding as he was probably ashamed of being expelled from the hostel.



Senior advocate Colin Gonzalves, appearing for Fatima, argued that he was "disappointed" by the manner of probe as the agency was not exploring the possibility of Najeeb being abducted as he was allegedly threatened by the ABVP members.



The court said someone getting beaten up in a college hostel was "not unusual", but no one disappears over it.



It also took note of the steps taken by the police, like uploading his details to the Zonal Integrated Police network, putting up notices across the city and issuing advertisements in newspapers, apart from enhancing the reward from Rs 50,000 to Rs five lakh for information leading to his recovery.



Najeeb's mother, in her petition filed through advocate Ali Qambar Zaidi, sought the setting up of a "court appointed Special Investigation Team of impartial officers of proven integrity from outside the state of Delhi" to take over the entire investigation from Crime Branch of Delhi Police.



She has also alleged that her son was beaten up by members of ABVP "which is affiliated to the RSS and therefore, closely connected with the BJP which is the party in power at the Centre and since the Delhi Police comes under the control of the Central Government, it is not likely that any progress will be made in the investigation".

NEW DELHI: Delhi High Court today sternly asked the city police to "cut across all political barriers" and find missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, saying there could be "something more" to his disappearance as no one can just vanish from the heart of the national capital. Expressing concern over the whereabouts of the student who has remained untraced for 45 days now, the court also raised several questions, including why the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the injuries sustained by Najeeb was not mentioned in the Delhi Police's status report. A bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel said if a person disappears from the national capital and remains untraced, then it would create a "sense of insecurity" in the people here and asked the police to explore all angles. "This is the heart of India, the national capital. No one can just disappear from here. It creates a sense of insecurity in people. If he disappeared, then there is something more to that. All angles have to be explored. 45 days is a long period for someone to be underground," it said to the police which is of the view that Najeeb was "not forcefully abducted". After perusing the status report of Delhi Police, the court asked why was Najeeb taken to the Safdarjung Hospital in an ambulance if he had no apparent or visible injuries, as this detail was missing from the police report. It also asked why the report does not say anything about the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members allegedly of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) who are alleged to have brutally beaten him up and only mentions that the missing student had slapped one of them. The judge questioned why the police waited till November 11 to interrogate those persons with whom Najeeb allegedly had an altercation on the night of October 14-15, prior to his disappearance on October 15 and against whom a criminal complaint was lodged on October 17. "Cut across all political barriers. Get him back. You will get your answers at either of the two places, Jamia or JNU. No need to go to Aligarh or any other place so far," the bench told the police, which said that an auto driver has claimed to have dropped off Najeeb at the Jamia Milia Islamia University. The court was hearing a habeus corpus plea filed by the student's mother 45-year old Fatima Nafees, who was in court today and was in tears during the hearing. She has sought directions to the authorities to trace her 27-year-old son who was pursuing MSc in Biotechnology from JNU. During the hearing, the bench said it did not want to tell the police what to do but it can easily "shadow" some of the persons involved in the matter to know what was going on and to "fearlessly" tell the court what it has found out. The court was also not pleased with the "attitude" of the JNU Vice Chancellor for not assigning anyone in the matter despite being served a copy of the petition. "He does not think it is an important matter? This is not a good attitude," it said and directed JNU to file a response to the woman's plea by the next date of hearing. The court also asked the varsity to reconsider Najeeb's expulsion from the hostel, if not already done so, and to advertise in newspapers that they will reconsider his punishment once he returns. It asked Najeeb's mother to issue a statement asking him to return and directed the management and students of JNU to assist and cooperate with the police to trace him. During arguments, the police said its Crime Branch was exploring all angles, including that Najeeb's disappearance had something to do with his "illness of mental depression" for which he was under medication since 2012. It was also of the view that he was hiding as he was probably ashamed of being expelled from the hostel. Senior advocate Colin Gonzalves, appearing for Fatima, argued that he was "disappointed" by the manner of probe as the agency was not exploring the possibility of Najeeb being abducted as he was allegedly threatened by the ABVP members. The court said someone getting beaten up in a college hostel was "not unusual", but no one disappears over it. It also took note of the steps taken by the police, like uploading his details to the Zonal Integrated Police network, putting up notices across the city and issuing advertisements in newspapers, apart from enhancing the reward from Rs 50,000 to Rs five lakh for information leading to his recovery. Najeeb's mother, in her petition filed through advocate Ali Qambar Zaidi, sought the setting up of a "court appointed Special Investigation Team of impartial officers of proven integrity from outside the state of Delhi" to take over the entire investigation from Crime Branch of Delhi Police. She has also alleged that her son was beaten up by members of ABVP "which is affiliated to the RSS and therefore, closely connected with the BJP which is the party in power at the Centre and since the Delhi Police comes under the control of the Central Government, it is not likely that any progress will be made in the investigation".
Shibu BS By

Express News Service

KOCHI: Over the years, hartals have scotched the plans of tourists - eager to have that perfect leisure experience in the Gods Own Country. Many times in the past, they were left stranded at railway stations and bus stands struggling to reach their preferred destinations.

The change in tourists plans had a cascading effect as well, causing huge financial loss to hotels and travel agents. But the tourists will have a less harrowing time on Monday. The ruling Left Front has called a hartal in the state to protest against demonetisation drive. The government and the hartal organisers have promised to spare tourists this time, courtesy the intervention of Tourism Secretary V Venu on Sunday.

He promised the operators of German cruise-liner AIDAbella, which made a turnaround call at the Cochin Port on Sunday, that hartal would not affect the movement of the tourists. The gesture has come as a great relief to the tourists and crew members, whose itinerary contained a detailed programme to explore the city. We conveyed our concerns to Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary V Venu.

It is unfortunate that the proposed hartal falls on the day when AIDAbella makes the turnaround call and as part of it over 1,000 highend tourists will be arriving at the Nedumbassery airport on Monday. They need to be transferred to the ship while another group of 1,000 tourists disembarking from the ship will have to be taken to the airport.

More than 600 tourists, who continue the cruise, have been planning to explore Kerala on Monday, said Sanjeev Kumar, managing director of Lotus DMC, which handles the ships excursions, turnaround operations and overland tours. The tourism secretary said the government would ensure that the tourists were not inconvenienced during their visit to the city, said Sanjeev. The tour operators cautioned that any untoward incident would have a negative impact on cruise calls/tourist arrivals to the state.

KOCHI: Over the years, hartals have scotched the plans of tourists - eager to have that perfect leisure experience in the Gods Own Country. Many times in the past, they were left stranded at railway stations and bus stands struggling to reach their preferred destinations. The change in tourists plans had a cascading effect as well, causing huge financial loss to hotels and travel agents. But the tourists will have a less harrowing time on Monday. The ruling Left Front has called a hartal in the state to protest against demonetisation drive. The government and the hartal organisers have promised to spare tourists this time, courtesy the intervention of Tourism Secretary V Venu on Sunday. He promised the operators of German cruise-liner AIDAbella, which made a turnaround call at the Cochin Port on Sunday, that hartal would not affect the movement of the tourists. The gesture has come as a great relief to the tourists and crew members, whose itinerary contained a detailed programme to explore the city. We conveyed our concerns to Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary V Venu. It is unfortunate that the proposed hartal falls on the day when AIDAbella makes the turnaround call and as part of it over 1,000 highend tourists will be arriving at the Nedumbassery airport on Monday. They need to be transferred to the ship while another group of 1,000 tourists disembarking from the ship will have to be taken to the airport. More than 600 tourists, who continue the cruise, have been planning to explore Kerala on Monday, said Sanjeev Kumar, managing director of Lotus DMC, which handles the ships excursions, turnaround operations and overland tours. The tourism secretary said the government would ensure that the tourists were not inconvenienced during their visit to the city, said Sanjeev. The tour operators cautioned that any untoward incident would have a negative impact on cruise calls/tourist arrivals to the state.
By PTI

MUMBAI: A 22-year-old youth from Kalyan in adjoining Thane district, who allegedly fled from home to join the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2014, had been killed, a senior police official said here today.



Aman Naeem Tandel was among the four youths from Kalyan who had left for Syria in 2014, purportedly to fight for the terror group ISIS.



"Tandel's father got a call informing about his death in Syria," the official said.



Aman's father Naeem Tandel, who lives in Govindwadi area of Kalyan, got a call late Saturday night from an unidentified number, the police official said.



Earlier this year, an ISIS video purportedly showing Aman among others and threatening to avenge the "killings of Muslims in Kashmir, Gujarat and Muzaffarnagar", had surfaced.



Aman was reportedly in touch with his family over the phone until the end of last year.

MUMBAI: A 22-year-old youth from Kalyan in adjoining Thane district, who allegedly fled from home to join the Islamic State (ISIS) in 2014, had been killed, a senior police official said here today. Aman Naeem Tandel was among the four youths from Kalyan who had left for Syria in 2014, purportedly to fight for the terror group ISIS. "Tandel's father got a call informing about his death in Syria," the official said. Aman's father Naeem Tandel, who lives in Govindwadi area of Kalyan, got a call late Saturday night from an unidentified number, the police official said. Earlier this year, an ISIS video purportedly showing Aman among others and threatening to avenge the "killings of Muslims in Kashmir, Gujarat and Muzaffarnagar", had surfaced. Aman was reportedly in touch with his family over the phone until the end of last year.
N V Ravindranathan Nair By

Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state BJP leaderships opposition to the proposed Erumeli airport might give its CPM counterparts a feeling of deja vu. The BJP is projecting its protest against the airport as an agitation for the landless people - once perceived as a CPM strong area.

The government maintains that the airport would be beneficial for Sabarimala pilgrims, but the detractors pointed out that the project undermined the very spirit of pilgrimage while making Sabarimala another tourist destination.

It was mentioned to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan that Erumeli is located in the buffer zone of the Periyar Tiger Reserve, but he downplayed the point saying the project should not be objected even before identifying the site.

The BJP is not against airport but it should come in government land, BJP national executive member V Muralidharan told Express.

The BJP said the government was planning to set up the airport at Cheruvally estate which it had taken over in May, 2015 from the Believers Church headed by evangelist Archbishop K P Yohannan. If the government sets up an airport on the government land complying with all the laws and without causing damage to the environment, BJP will welcome it. But now, it is planning to set up the airport in the Cheruvally estate and a case is pending in the court. By giving a share of the airport company to Yohanann in the name of the ownership of the land, the government is forfeiting its rights on its own land. It will weaken the states position in the case against illegal possession of over 5 lakh acres of land under the possession of corporate giants, said Muralidharan.

He said it was important to think whether another airport was necessary in the state when most of the airports were underutilised.

BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan has already made it clear that the party would launch an agitation for the second round of land reforms. The BJP leadership meeting held at Kozhikode in September had also taken the decision to campaign for land reforms to distribute land for the over 3 lakh landless people. In view of this, any attempt to set up airport in land to be distributed among the landless will be resisted, he said.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state BJP leaderships opposition to the proposed Erumeli airport might give its CPM counterparts a feeling of deja vu. The BJP is projecting its protest against the airport as an agitation for the landless people - once perceived as a CPM strong area. The government maintains that the airport would be beneficial for Sabarimala pilgrims, but the detractors pointed out that the project undermined the very spirit of pilgrimage while making Sabarimala another tourist destination. It was mentioned to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan that Erumeli is located in the buffer zone of the Periyar Tiger Reserve, but he downplayed the point saying the project should not be objected even before identifying the site. The BJP is not against airport but it should come in government land, BJP national executive member V Muralidharan told Express. The BJP said the government was planning to set up the airport at Cheruvally estate which it had taken over in May, 2015 from the Believers Church headed by evangelist Archbishop K P Yohannan. If the government sets up an airport on the government land complying with all the laws and without causing damage to the environment, BJP will welcome it. But now, it is planning to set up the airport in the Cheruvally estate and a case is pending in the court. By giving a share of the airport company to Yohanann in the name of the ownership of the land, the government is forfeiting its rights on its own land. It will weaken the states position in the case against illegal possession of over 5 lakh acres of land under the possession of corporate giants, said Muralidharan. He said it was important to think whether another airport was necessary in the state when most of the airports were underutilised. BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekharan has already made it clear that the party would launch an agitation for the second round of land reforms. The BJP leadership meeting held at Kozhikode in September had also taken the decision to campaign for land reforms to distribute land for the over 3 lakh landless people. In view of this, any attempt to set up airport in land to be distributed among the landless will be resisted, he said.
Ukraine is interested in developing cooperation with Turkmenistan in the field of transport.

Infrastructure Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Omelian told about it during a meeting with Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of Turkmenistan Satlyk Satlykov.

The sides discussed the development of bilateral cooperation in the field of freight traffic, the press service of the Infrastructure Ministry said.

"Transport services occupy a key position in the development of trade and economic relations between our countries. Development of comfortable conditions for transportation contributes to the further development of Ukrainian-Turkmen relations," Omelian said.

The Infrastructure minister of Ukraine also said that today an active work on the development of efficient technical and technological solutions in the organization of transport of goods between Asia and Europe through the territory of Ukraine is carried out. During the meeting the sides also discussed issues of development of relations in the aviation, rail and automotive industries.
Namita bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday turned educator, teaching a mammoth crowd in Kushinagar, largely consisting of rural masses from eastern UP, how easy it was to do the cashless transaction through smartphone apps to minimise the scope for black money and corruption. It was as easy as sending a WhatsApp message, he said.

Addressing a parivartan maharally in the land of Buddhas parinirvana, the PM sought 50 days time and peoples support in ridding the country of black money through demonetisation.

He exhorted the educated sections of the society, especially the youth, to teach people the use of apps on smartphones to encourage transactions without currency notes.

Saying that the country was ready for the much-needed change, the Prime Minister reiterated his governments resolve to root out corruption completely. I knew it was a difficult decision. I was aware of the hardships you all will go through but could take such a step just because of your unflinching support, he told the audience, adding We are late. Other countries had embarked up on this road much earlier. Now time is here to act and wipe out corruption from the country once and for all.

Attacking the opposition for its stand over demonetisation, the Prime Minister said: Were talking about stopping black money and corruption, they (Opposition) are talking about stopping the country. Is it logical? he asked the gathering, which replied with a resound No.

Targeting the Samajwadi Party government in UP, Modi accused it of ignoring the farmers of the state. If they have resolved their internal feud, now they should pay some attention to the issues plaguing the farming community. I dont think this UP government will be able to do any work. Theyre not even interested in this, he observed.

I want to tell the state government that if they have time and are concerned about the farmers of the state, implement the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Beema Yojana tp protect their crop against natural and other calamities, said the Prime Minister.

Earlier, starting his speech in Bhojpuri, the Prime Minister reiterated his conviction to serve all the sections of society, including poor, deprived and downtrodden.

My government is committed to serve you. I am your servant and determined to bring about conspicuous improvement in your life, said the PM at the rally attended by top party leaders, including Union Minister Kalraj Mishra, MPs Yogi Adityanath and Rajesh Pandey along with Reeta Bahuhuna Joshi the senior member and local MLA Swami Prasad Maurya. BJP state in-charge Om Mathur and state chief Keshav Maurya were also present.

Modi said that he owed a lot to Uttar Pradesh. I am grateful to the people of UP.

They strengthened my hands by sending me and my party men to Parliament with an overwhelming support. I am here to solve all your problems, he adding development of UP cant be done without the progress of eastern UP.

Asking the state government to implement all the development scheme with due honesty and resolve, the Prime Minister said that the Centre was ready to bear all the expenses on the development but the state government too would have to come forward for execution.

LUCKNOW: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday turned educator, teaching a mammoth crowd in Kushinagar, largely consisting of rural masses from eastern UP, how easy it was to do the cashless transaction through smartphone apps to minimise the scope for black money and corruption. It was as easy as sending a WhatsApp message, he said. Addressing a parivartan maharally in the land of Buddhas parinirvana, the PM sought 50 days time and peoples support in ridding the country of black money through demonetisation. He exhorted the educated sections of the society, especially the youth, to teach people the use of apps on smartphones to encourage transactions without currency notes. Saying that the country was ready for the much-needed change, the Prime Minister reiterated his governments resolve to root out corruption completely. I knew it was a difficult decision. I was aware of the hardships you all will go through but could take such a step just because of your unflinching support, he told the audience, adding We are late. Other countries had embarked up on this road much earlier. Now time is here to act and wipe out corruption from the country once and for all. Attacking the opposition for its stand over demonetisation, the Prime Minister said: Were talking about stopping black money and corruption, they (Opposition) are talking about stopping the country. Is it logical? he asked the gathering, which replied with a resound No. Targeting the Samajwadi Party government in UP, Modi accused it of ignoring the farmers of the state. If they have resolved their internal feud, now they should pay some attention to the issues plaguing the farming community. I dont think this UP government will be able to do any work. Theyre not even interested in this, he observed. I want to tell the state government that if they have time and are concerned about the farmers of the state, implement the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Beema Yojana tp protect their crop against natural and other calamities, said the Prime Minister. Earlier, starting his speech in Bhojpuri, the Prime Minister reiterated his conviction to serve all the sections of society, including poor, deprived and downtrodden. My government is committed to serve you. I am your servant and determined to bring about conspicuous improvement in your life, said the PM at the rally attended by top party leaders, including Union Minister Kalraj Mishra, MPs Yogi Adityanath and Rajesh Pandey along with Reeta Bahuhuna Joshi the senior member and local MLA Swami Prasad Maurya. BJP state in-charge Om Mathur and state chief Keshav Maurya were also present. Modi said that he owed a lot to Uttar Pradesh. I am grateful to the people of UP. They strengthened my hands by sending me and my party men to Parliament with an overwhelming support. I am here to solve all your problems, he adding development of UP cant be done without the progress of eastern UP. Asking the state government to implement all the development scheme with due honesty and resolve, the Prime Minister said that the Centre was ready to bear all the expenses on the development but the state government too would have to come forward for execution.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Even while the Parliament remained in a gridlock for eight days in a row, the government is expecting a breakthrough in the impasse soon, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to attend the proceedings of the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. NDA floor managers and a section of the Opposition claimed that the key to unlock the Parliamentary gridlock lies with the Lok Sabha, and a long speech of the Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi through an intervention is on the card.

Proceedings of both the Houses of the Parliament were marred with ruckus even while the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely introduced The Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016 at 2 pm amidst pandemonium in the Lok Sabha, which seeks to tax the undisclosed amounts through Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme. After repeated adjournments, both the Houses were adjourned for the day.

The Aakrosh Diwas (protest day) is now over. The Opposition has got the measure of their street power on the issue of demonetization. They want Rahul Gandhi to make a long speech in the Lok Sabha. The Prime Minister will also make an intervention and thereby explain the reasons behind the decision on demonetization. The deadlock in the Parliament will last only a few days more, sources in the government said.

The Congress and the Trinamool Congress leaders have also been learnt to have held parleys and discussed ways to climb down for the obstructionist position. The government will not agree with debate on demonetization under Rule 56 with adjournment and voting. The BJD floor leader in the Lok Sabha Bhartruhari Mahatab has shown the way by suggesting that the debate could be held under the Rule 184 with voting but without an adjournment. Mahatabs formula could be the possible way out, said a senior TMC leader.

Union Minister for Home Affairs Rajnath Singh assured the Lok Sabha that the Prime Minister would speak if the House takes up debate on demonetization. Singh was responding to the common demand of the Congress, TMC and Samajwadi Party for debate under Rule 56 along with the presence of the Prime Minister in the House.

The clear indication of resolution of the impasse came from the floor leader of the TMC in the Lok Sabha Sudip Bandyopadhyay, who argued that the Parliament should resume normal functions, as what else the House is for. However, the Opposition members also stated that the onus on resolution of the impasse lied with the government.

Meanwhile, there was a brief normalcy in both the Houses when the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha condoled the death of the Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Lader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mallikarjuna Kharge in the Lok Sabha lamented that the demonetization has led to chaos and suffering and people are in deep anguish due to hardship. Both the Houses witnessed the Opposition MPs in the well of the Houses raising slogans against the demonetization and the Prime Minister.



NEW DELHI: Even while the Parliament remained in a gridlock for eight days in a row, the government is expecting a breakthrough in the impasse soon, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi likely to attend the proceedings of the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. NDA floor managers and a section of the Opposition claimed that the key to unlock the Parliamentary gridlock lies with the Lok Sabha, and a long speech of the Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi through an intervention is on the card. Proceedings of both the Houses of the Parliament were marred with ruckus even while the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely introduced The Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016 at 2 pm amidst pandemonium in the Lok Sabha, which seeks to tax the undisclosed amounts through Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme. After repeated adjournments, both the Houses were adjourned for the day. The Aakrosh Diwas (protest day) is now over. The Opposition has got the measure of their street power on the issue of demonetization. They want Rahul Gandhi to make a long speech in the Lok Sabha. The Prime Minister will also make an intervention and thereby explain the reasons behind the decision on demonetization. The deadlock in the Parliament will last only a few days more, sources in the government said. The Congress and the Trinamool Congress leaders have also been learnt to have held parleys and discussed ways to climb down for the obstructionist position. The government will not agree with debate on demonetization under Rule 56 with adjournment and voting. The BJD floor leader in the Lok Sabha Bhartruhari Mahatab has shown the way by suggesting that the debate could be held under the Rule 184 with voting but without an adjournment. Mahatabs formula could be the possible way out, said a senior TMC leader. Union Minister for Home Affairs Rajnath Singh assured the Lok Sabha that the Prime Minister would speak if the House takes up debate on demonetization. Singh was responding to the common demand of the Congress, TMC and Samajwadi Party for debate under Rule 56 along with the presence of the Prime Minister in the House. The clear indication of resolution of the impasse came from the floor leader of the TMC in the Lok Sabha Sudip Bandyopadhyay, who argued that the Parliament should resume normal functions, as what else the House is for. However, the Opposition members also stated that the onus on resolution of the impasse lied with the government. Meanwhile, there was a brief normalcy in both the Houses when the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha condoled the death of the Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Lader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and Mallikarjuna Kharge in the Lok Sabha lamented that the demonetization has led to chaos and suffering and people are in deep anguish due to hardship. Both the Houses witnessed the Opposition MPs in the well of the Houses raising slogans against the demonetization and the Prime Minister.
By Express News Service

MADURAI: Based on specific intelligence inputs, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in collaboration with Tamil Nadu and Telangana police on Monday arrested three Al Qaeda suspects from Madurai and Chennai where they were running 'The Base Movement' of the terror outfit. The agencies have also arrested a fourth suspect who is yet to be formally arrested.

The three arrested include Abbas Ali, 27, resident of 11/23, second floor, 4th street, Ismailpuram, Munichalai Road, Madurai. He is VIII standard dropout and worked as a painter. He also runs a library in the name of Darul Ilm at Madurai and Suleiman, 23, presently residing at Chennai. He originally hails from Karimsa Pallivasal, Madurai. He works in a software firm and was the mastermind of the terror gang.

File photo of Mohammed Ayub (23) of Athikulam of Madurai, who is one among three youths arrested by NIA | Special arrangemnt by EPS

The third arrested person is Samsun Karim Raja is a resident of Viswanatha Nagar, K. Pudur, Madurai. He is a B. Com graduate and runs a chicken broiler shop at Kannimara Koil street in Madurai.

The fourth one apprehended is Mohammad Ayub Ali, 25 and is a resident of Island Nagar, Madurai. He is a Public Liaison Officer for a hearing aid company.

The arrested trio and the apprehended fourth suspect are being questioned jointly by the sleuths of Intelligence Bureau and NIA. They will be taken to Bengaluru for further investigation, a senior NIA official said here.

In the last 24 hours, in a joint operation with Tamil Nadu police and Telangana police, the investigators of NIA have apprehended four youths for their involvement in the blasts at court complexes. During sustained examination, they have confessed their involvement in these blasts, the NIA said in a statement.

Searches yielded certain digital devices like mobile phones and hard discs from their possession, the NIA said.

The agencies are searching for two other suspected Al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman, agency sources said.

The three arrested accused will be produced before local courts in Chennai and Madurai for seeking transit remand for taking them to NIA Special Court at Bengaluru. The NIA case relating to Mysuru blast case has been registered, the NIA statement added.

A top IB official here said all the three arrested persons were involved in bombing at courts, including Mysore, Chittoor, Kollam, Nellore and Malapuram.

According to preliminary questioning, the trio was allegedly planning to attack 22 top leaders of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

A series of five bomb blasts occurred in South India since April this year. These blasts included the one at vehicle parking at District Court Complex in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh on April 7, 2016, car parking area of CJM Court Complex, Kollam, Kerala on June 15, 2016, Court Complex Mysore, Karnataka on August1, 2016, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh on September 12, 2016 and toilet complex of Judicial Court, Malappuram, Kerala on November 1, 2016.

Subsequently, the Centre had entrusted the Mysore Police Station case no 63/2016 under sections relating to criminal conspiracy, Explosives Act under the IPC and certain provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act among others to the NIA for investigation. The NIA registered the case September 20 vide case number RC-03/2016/NIA/Hyderabad in connection with the blasts at Mysore Court Complex.

The responsibility of the blasts was claimed by an organisation called The Base Movement in its propaganda material circulated through pen drives and pamphlets, left behind at the crime scenes of the blasts at Nellore and Malappuram court premises.

MADURAI: Based on specific intelligence inputs, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in collaboration with Tamil Nadu and Telangana police on Monday arrested three Al Qaeda suspects from Madurai and Chennai where they were running 'The Base Movement' of the terror outfit. The agencies have also arrested a fourth suspect who is yet to be formally arrested. The three arrested include Abbas Ali, 27, resident of 11/23, second floor, 4th street, Ismailpuram, Munichalai Road, Madurai. He is VIII standard dropout and worked as a painter. He also runs a library in the name of Darul Ilm at Madurai and Suleiman, 23, presently residing at Chennai. He originally hails from Karimsa Pallivasal, Madurai. He works in a software firm and was the mastermind of the terror gang. File photo of Mohammed Ayub (23) of Athikulam of Madurai, who is one among three youths arrested by NIA | Special arrangemnt by EPSThe third arrested person is Samsun Karim Raja is a resident of Viswanatha Nagar, K. Pudur, Madurai. He is a B. Com graduate and runs a chicken broiler shop at Kannimara Koil street in Madurai. The fourth one apprehended is Mohammad Ayub Ali, 25 and is a resident of Island Nagar, Madurai. He is a Public Liaison Officer for a hearing aid company. The arrested trio and the apprehended fourth suspect are being questioned jointly by the sleuths of Intelligence Bureau and NIA. They will be taken to Bengaluru for further investigation, a senior NIA official said here. In the last 24 hours, in a joint operation with Tamil Nadu police and Telangana police, the investigators of NIA have apprehended four youths for their involvement in the blasts at court complexes. During sustained examination, they have confessed their involvement in these blasts, the NIA said in a statement. Searches yielded certain digital devices like mobile phones and hard discs from their possession, the NIA said. The agencies are searching for two other suspected Al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman, agency sources said. The three arrested accused will be produced before local courts in Chennai and Madurai for seeking transit remand for taking them to NIA Special Court at Bengaluru. The NIA case relating to Mysuru blast case has been registered, the NIA statement added. A top IB official here said all the three arrested persons were involved in bombing at courts, including Mysore, Chittoor, Kollam, Nellore and Malapuram. According to preliminary questioning, the trio was allegedly planning to attack 22 top leaders of the country including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A series of five bomb blasts occurred in South India since April this year. These blasts included the one at vehicle parking at District Court Complex in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh on April 7, 2016, car parking area of CJM Court Complex, Kollam, Kerala on June 15, 2016, Court Complex Mysore, Karnataka on August1, 2016, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh on September 12, 2016 and toilet complex of Judicial Court, Malappuram, Kerala on November 1, 2016. Subsequently, the Centre had entrusted the Mysore Police Station case no 63/2016 under sections relating to criminal conspiracy, Explosives Act under the IPC and certain provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act among others to the NIA for investigation. The NIA registered the case September 20 vide case number RC-03/2016/NIA/Hyderabad in connection with the blasts at Mysore Court Complex. The responsibility of the blasts was claimed by an organisation called The Base Movement in its propaganda material circulated through pen drives and pamphlets, left behind at the crime scenes of the blasts at Nellore and Malappuram court premises.
Harpreet Bajwa By

Express News Service

CHANDIGARH: In a Bollywood-style escape, six prisoners including a dreaded Sikh militant, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, broke out of the Nabha jail early on Sunday, after their accomplices talked their way into the high-security facility and sprayed 200 bullets on the prison guards, none of whom, miraculously, was hurt. Besides Mintoo, the fugitives are fellow militant Kashmir Singh and four gangsters  Harjinder Singh Bhullar alias Vicky Gondar, Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol, Gurpreet Singh Sekhon and Amanpreet Tonda.

The six who escaped from Nabha jail

Harminder Singh Mintoo - KLF chief, faces 10 terror cases; Harjinder Singh Bhullar - prime suspect in gangster Sukha Kahlwans murder; Gurpreet Singh Sekhon - faces 13 criminal cases; Kulpreet Singh - prime suspect Kahlwans murder; Amandeep Dhotian - held for theft; Kashmir Singh - shot at Punjab Sena chief Harvinder Soni

The Nabha jail has three rings of security besides electronic surveillance. Sources said about 12 men in police uniform drove up to the jail in four vehicles and told the guards that they had two handcuffed prisoners to hand over to the authorities. Once past the outer gate, they overpowered the guards and demanded the keys to the interior door, beyond which the six prisoners were waiting. The culprits then opened fire for cover and fled with the prisoners covered under blankets. The entire operation, from the arrival of the culprits at 8.30 am, took half an hour. It is suspected that they had help from the inside. One of the cars, a Hyundai Verna, suspected to have been used in the jailbreak, was abandoned in Kaithal district, Haryana. It had two different number plates. Sources said Parvinder Singh, who allegedly helped organise logistics for the jailbreak, was arrested by the UP police from Shamli district. He was reportedly present in one of the getaway vehicles.

A dozen people exited the jail firing their guns and drove away, going round a railway crossing that was closed at the time, an eyewitness told Express. Another eyewitness Sukhwinder Singh claimed the attackers had weapons concealed under blankets.

Khalistan Liberation Front (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo and five others escaped from the Nabha jail in Punjab on Sunday after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates and escaped with the inmates firing a hail of bullets.

Commenting on the incident, director general of police Suresh Arora said he would not rule out the connivance of jail staff. Sources said intelligence reports had alerted the police of a possible jailbreak. Police have obtained CCTV footage from the jail and other nearby establishments and sounded a wide alert across several neighbouring states.

A massive search operation has been launched and the borders with Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan have been sealed, with all vehicles being checked. Police were on edge around the State in the aftermath of the jailbreak. About 20 km from the prison, a woman travelling in a police vehicle was hit by a bullet fired by policemen when the vehicle jumped a barricade. She died.

Chief among the fugitives is 49-year-old Mintoo, an accused in 10 terror cases and a plot to kill Hindu leaders in 2013. He and fellow KLF operative Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi were deported from Thailand and arrested at the New Delhi airport on November 7, 2014. Among the gangsters who broke out, Vicky Gondar is a prime suspect in the murder of fellow gangster Sukha Kahlwan. The specialist in highway robberies and murders was arrested in December last year but escaped from the custody of the Ropar police before being recaptured.

Gurpreet Singh Sekhon alias Sonu Mudki, another inmate who escaped, hails from a family of brick kiln owners. Sekhon is a suspected accomplice in a murder case during the 2012 election in Punjab. He faces 13 criminal cases in Ferozepur, Faridkot, Moga, Bathinda and Chandigarh.

Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol is a Dubai-based NRI who owns a transport business and is the prime suspect in the murder of Sukha Kahlwan. He faces six criminal cases. He is the son of a former deputy director in the animal husbandry department.

Amandeep Dhotian, a gangster, was arrested last year by the Amritsar police for theft cases, including carjackings. He belongs to the Dhotian gang.

Hailing from Galwandi village under Khanna police district, Kashmir Singh, another fugitive, is a militant. He shot at Punjab Shiv Sena leader Harvinder

Soni in Gurdaspur last year, and was booked for attempt to murder.

With Assembly elections just two months away, the security breach quickly became a political issue in Punjab. The State government has suspended additional director-general of police (prisons) M K Tiwari and dismissed the jail superintendent Paramjit Singh Sandhu and deputy superintendent Karanjit Singh Sandhu from service.

Punjabs home secretary Jagpal Singh Sandhu has been told to inquire into the jailbreak and a special investigation team (SIT) has been set up in the intelligence department. We will have the report within three days, said deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.

The breakout has rung alarms in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with Home Minister Rajnath Singh speaking to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and national security adviser Ajit Doval to deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. A report has been sought on the episode as well as the state of security in Punjabs jails.

CHANDIGARH: In a Bollywood-style escape, six prisoners including a dreaded Sikh militant, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, broke out of the Nabha jail early on Sunday, after their accomplices talked their way into the high-security facility and sprayed 200 bullets on the prison guards, none of whom, miraculously, was hurt. Besides Mintoo, the fugitives are fellow militant Kashmir Singh and four gangsters  Harjinder Singh Bhullar alias Vicky Gondar, Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol, Gurpreet Singh Sekhon and Amanpreet Tonda. The six who escaped from Nabha jail Harminder Singh Mintoo - KLF chief, faces 10 terror cases; Harjinder Singh Bhullar - prime suspect in gangster Sukha Kahlwans murder; Gurpreet Singh Sekhon - faces 13 criminal cases; Kulpreet Singh - prime suspect Kahlwans murder; Amandeep Dhotian - held for theft; Kashmir Singh - shot at Punjab Sena chief Harvinder SoniThe Nabha jail has three rings of security besides electronic surveillance. Sources said about 12 men in police uniform drove up to the jail in four vehicles and told the guards that they had two handcuffed prisoners to hand over to the authorities. Once past the outer gate, they overpowered the guards and demanded the keys to the interior door, beyond which the six prisoners were waiting. The culprits then opened fire for cover and fled with the prisoners covered under blankets. The entire operation, from the arrival of the culprits at 8.30 am, took half an hour. It is suspected that they had help from the inside. One of the cars, a Hyundai Verna, suspected to have been used in the jailbreak, was abandoned in Kaithal district, Haryana. It had two different number plates. Sources said Parvinder Singh, who allegedly helped organise logistics for the jailbreak, was arrested by the UP police from Shamli district. He was reportedly present in one of the getaway vehicles. A dozen people exited the jail firing their guns and drove away, going round a railway crossing that was closed at the time, an eyewitness told Express. Another eyewitness Sukhwinder Singh claimed the attackers had weapons concealed under blankets. Khalistan Liberation Front (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo and five others escaped from the Nabha jail in Punjab on Sunday after armed men in police uniform tricked the sentries into opening the gates and escaped with the inmates firing a hail of bullets. Commenting on the incident, director general of police Suresh Arora said he would not rule out the connivance of jail staff. Sources said intelligence reports had alerted the police of a possible jailbreak. Police have obtained CCTV footage from the jail and other nearby establishments and sounded a wide alert across several neighbouring states. A massive search operation has been launched and the borders with Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan have been sealed, with all vehicles being checked. Police were on edge around the State in the aftermath of the jailbreak. About 20 km from the prison, a woman travelling in a police vehicle was hit by a bullet fired by policemen when the vehicle jumped a barricade. She died. Chief among the fugitives is 49-year-old Mintoo, an accused in 10 terror cases and a plot to kill Hindu leaders in 2013. He and fellow KLF operative Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi were deported from Thailand and arrested at the New Delhi airport on November 7, 2014. Among the gangsters who broke out, Vicky Gondar is a prime suspect in the murder of fellow gangster Sukha Kahlwan. The specialist in highway robberies and murders was arrested in December last year but escaped from the custody of the Ropar police before being recaptured. Gurpreet Singh Sekhon alias Sonu Mudki, another inmate who escaped, hails from a family of brick kiln owners. Sekhon is a suspected accomplice in a murder case during the 2012 election in Punjab. He faces 13 criminal cases in Ferozepur, Faridkot, Moga, Bathinda and Chandigarh. Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol is a Dubai-based NRI who owns a transport business and is the prime suspect in the murder of Sukha Kahlwan. He faces six criminal cases. He is the son of a former deputy director in the animal husbandry department. Amandeep Dhotian, a gangster, was arrested last year by the Amritsar police for theft cases, including carjackings. He belongs to the Dhotian gang. Hailing from Galwandi village under Khanna police district, Kashmir Singh, another fugitive, is a militant. He shot at Punjab Shiv Sena leader Harvinder Soni in Gurdaspur last year, and was booked for attempt to murder. With Assembly elections just two months away, the security breach quickly became a political issue in Punjab. The State government has suspended additional director-general of police (prisons) M K Tiwari and dismissed the jail superintendent Paramjit Singh Sandhu and deputy superintendent Karanjit Singh Sandhu from service. Punjabs home secretary Jagpal Singh Sandhu has been told to inquire into the jailbreak and a special investigation team (SIT) has been set up in the intelligence department. We will have the report within three days, said deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. The breakout has rung alarms in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with Home Minister Rajnath Singh speaking to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and national security adviser Ajit Doval to deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. A report has been sought on the episode as well as the state of security in Punjabs jails.
Harpreet Bajwa By

Express News Service

CHANDIGARH: The 49-year old Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh alias Mintoo who escaped from the Nabha high security prison on Sunday, was caught by the Delhi police on a tip-off by the Punjab police at New Delhi railway station on Monday.

Police sources claim that Mintoo was travelling in the Toyota Fortuner with Palwinder Singh of Jalandhar. Singh was the mastermind behind the escapade and associate of gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon who was also in the Nabha jail. Palwinder was nabbed by the Uttar Pradesh police from Kairana in Shamli on Sunday on his way to Nepal. Mintoo reportedly got off the SUV at Panipat in Haryana and proceeded towards Delhi.

After reaching the national capital, he called a relative in Subhash Nagar in Delhi. The mobile he was using was being tracked by the intelligence wing of the Punjab police which immediately alerted the special cell of Delhi about Mintoos location and he was nabbed.

Sources claim that Mintoo was also on his way to Nepal from Delhi and from there to Malaysia and subsequently to Pakistan. However, the person from Uttarakhand who was supposed to aid him, backed out and he was asked to board a train to reach Uttarakhand, from where he was to be taken to Nepal. He was in regular in touch with his contacts there, sources said.

According to police sources, during his initial interrogation Mintoo said that two jail officials and a jail inmate facilitated his escape. Also, he claimed to have gotten in touch with gangster Vicky Gondar though them, subsequently learning about the escape plan.

A team of Patiala Police has reached Delhi to take custody of Mintoo.

CHANDIGARH: The 49-year old Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh alias Mintoo who escaped from the Nabha high security prison on Sunday, was caught by the Delhi police on a tip-off by the Punjab police at New Delhi railway station on Monday. Police sources claim that Mintoo was travelling in the Toyota Fortuner with Palwinder Singh of Jalandhar. Singh was the mastermind behind the escapade and associate of gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon who was also in the Nabha jail. Palwinder was nabbed by the Uttar Pradesh police from Kairana in Shamli on Sunday on his way to Nepal. Mintoo reportedly got off the SUV at Panipat in Haryana and proceeded towards Delhi. After reaching the national capital, he called a relative in Subhash Nagar in Delhi. The mobile he was using was being tracked by the intelligence wing of the Punjab police which immediately alerted the special cell of Delhi about Mintoos location and he was nabbed. Sources claim that Mintoo was also on his way to Nepal from Delhi and from there to Malaysia and subsequently to Pakistan. However, the person from Uttarakhand who was supposed to aid him, backed out and he was asked to board a train to reach Uttarakhand, from where he was to be taken to Nepal. He was in regular in touch with his contacts there, sources said. According to police sources, during his initial interrogation Mintoo said that two jail officials and a jail inmate facilitated his escape. Also, he claimed to have gotten in touch with gangster Vicky Gondar though them, subsequently learning about the escape plan. A team of Patiala Police has reached Delhi to take custody of Mintoo.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: A vociferous Opposition in the Lok Sabha today continued their protests against the government over the demonetisation issue, forcing adjournment of the proceedings till noon. Soon after the House expressed its condolences over the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, Oppositon members, including those from the TMC and Congress, demanded that they wanted to speak on the demonetisation issue.

With Speaker Sumitra Mahajan declining their request and saying that the matter could be taken up after Question Hour, Opposition members trooped into the Well holding placards and shouting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the government. "No placards please... No papers," Mahajan told the protesting members and also reminded them that it was against the rules.

Over 30 members, including from Congress, TMC and the Left parties, were in the Well while members of AIADMK were seen standing near their seats. Amid the din, the Question Hour went on for around 20 minutes and saw four questions as well as supplementaries being taken up. With the protests continuing unabated, Mahajan adjourned the House till noon.

Opposition parties have been stepping up their protests against the government's decision to withdraw old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and are also observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' across the country today. Lok Sabha has witnessed a virtual washout of proceedings since the Winter Session started on November 16 due to the protests over the demonetisation issue.

NEW DELHI: A vociferous Opposition in the Lok Sabha today continued their protests against the government over the demonetisation issue, forcing adjournment of the proceedings till noon. Soon after the House expressed its condolences over the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, Oppositon members, including those from the TMC and Congress, demanded that they wanted to speak on the demonetisation issue. With Speaker Sumitra Mahajan declining their request and saying that the matter could be taken up after Question Hour, Opposition members trooped into the Well holding placards and shouting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the government. "No placards please... No papers," Mahajan told the protesting members and also reminded them that it was against the rules. Over 30 members, including from Congress, TMC and the Left parties, were in the Well while members of AIADMK were seen standing near their seats. Amid the din, the Question Hour went on for around 20 minutes and saw four questions as well as supplementaries being taken up. With the protests continuing unabated, Mahajan adjourned the House till noon. Opposition parties have been stepping up their protests against the government's decision to withdraw old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and are also observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' across the country today. Lok Sabha has witnessed a virtual washout of proceedings since the Winter Session started on November 16 due to the protests over the demonetisation issue.
Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Defence minister Manohar Parrikar is leaving for a two- day visit to Dhaka on Wednesday to bolster defence cooperation between the two neighbouring nation and also to counter Chinas growing footprint in the neighbouring nation. Parrikars visit will be the first ever visit to Bangladesh by any Indian defence minister in the last 45 years. China has delivered a diesel submarine to Bangladesh, the first ever submarine to Bangladesh navy.

Following Parrikars visit, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is also scheduled to visit to New Delhi to join Indias celebration of 1971 India-Pakistan war, which led to creation of Bangladesh. Official sources claim that Bangladesh prime minister, during his visit, will also present award to heroes of Indian armed forces for the deciding 1971 war.

During his visit, Parrikar will be accompanied with vice chiefs of Army, IAF and Navy alongwith Director General of Coast Guard. Parrikar visit is also seen to counter Chinese growing strategic footprints in Bangladesh. Besides meeting Bangladesh Prime Minister and President, Parrikar will also be visiting Chittagong military academy. Sheikh Hasina also holds Defence portfolio in Bangladesh cabinet. India can also offer building Offshore Patrol Vessel to Bangladesh apart from having regular military exercises between the nation, are some of the key points to be discussed during the visit.

Official sources said that apart from seeking closer cooperation in counter-terrorism, Parrikar led delegation will focus on the new defence cooperation framework that will lead to stepped up military hardware supply, technology transfer and joint exercise and proving training to Bangladesh military.

Bangladesh Navy on early this month received two Type 035G-class submarines from China for $203 million. The move only goes to further underline the growing bonhomie between Bangladesh and China. Type 035G-class submarines area, also known as Ming-class, is a class of diesel-electric submarines of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army Navy. The primary weaponry for Type 035G is Yu-3 torpedo, and French sonar DUUX-5 and its Chinese-built version were used on later units, 12 of which were completed between 1990 and 1999.

It is notable that Bangladesh has always been a close ally of India especially in its fight against terrorism. Bangladesh has been a victim of terrorism like earlier this year Dhaka blamed Pakistan for the deadly terror attack in its capital. In fact, Bangladesh was one of the first nations to pull out of the SAARC Summit in Pakistan after India announced its decision to not attend. Post the Uri terror attack on Indian Army, Bangladesh had slammed Pakistan, openly supporting India.

NEW DELHI: Defence minister Manohar Parrikar is leaving for a two- day visit to Dhaka on Wednesday to bolster defence cooperation between the two neighbouring nation and also to counter Chinas growing footprint in the neighbouring nation. Parrikars visit will be the first ever visit to Bangladesh by any Indian defence minister in the last 45 years. China has delivered a diesel submarine to Bangladesh, the first ever submarine to Bangladesh navy. Following Parrikars visit, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is also scheduled to visit to New Delhi to join Indias celebration of 1971 India-Pakistan war, which led to creation of Bangladesh. Official sources claim that Bangladesh prime minister, during his visit, will also present award to heroes of Indian armed forces for the deciding 1971 war. During his visit, Parrikar will be accompanied with vice chiefs of Army, IAF and Navy alongwith Director General of Coast Guard. Parrikar visit is also seen to counter Chinese growing strategic footprints in Bangladesh. Besides meeting Bangladesh Prime Minister and President, Parrikar will also be visiting Chittagong military academy. Sheikh Hasina also holds Defence portfolio in Bangladesh cabinet. India can also offer building Offshore Patrol Vessel to Bangladesh apart from having regular military exercises between the nation, are some of the key points to be discussed during the visit. Official sources said that apart from seeking closer cooperation in counter-terrorism, Parrikar led delegation will focus on the new defence cooperation framework that will lead to stepped up military hardware supply, technology transfer and joint exercise and proving training to Bangladesh military. Bangladesh Navy on early this month received two Type 035G-class submarines from China for $203 million. The move only goes to further underline the growing bonhomie between Bangladesh and China. Type 035G-class submarines area, also known as Ming-class, is a class of diesel-electric submarines of Chinas Peoples Liberation Army Navy. The primary weaponry for Type 035G is Yu-3 torpedo, and French sonar DUUX-5 and its Chinese-built version were used on later units, 12 of which were completed between 1990 and 1999. It is notable that Bangladesh has always been a close ally of India especially in its fight against terrorism. Bangladesh has been a victim of terrorism like earlier this year Dhaka blamed Pakistan for the deadly terror attack in its capital. In fact, Bangladesh was one of the first nations to pull out of the SAARC Summit in Pakistan after India announced its decision to not attend. Post the Uri terror attack on Indian Army, Bangladesh had slammed Pakistan, openly supporting India.
Harpreet Bajwa By

Express News Service

CHANDIGARH: All it took was a phone call to track down dreaded militant Harminder Singh alias Mintoo? The 49-year old Khalistan Liberation Force chief was one among six people who escaped from the Nabha high security jail on Sunday in an unprecedented prison break. Mintoo, who according to police, made a call that did him in. Punjab police, which traced the call and drew information of whereabouts from cell-phone tower data, tipped off Delhi police, who nabbed him.

The Dehradun Police also arrested two persons who were at the ready to provide logistics support to the escaped fugitives. Talking to Express, Senior Superintendent of Police, Dehradun, Sadanand S R Date said, We have arrested two persons a lady and a man. The ladys name is Geeta, wife of (a former Nabha jail inmate) Sunil Kumar, and other person is Binny. They were to provide logistics support to the fugitives, if they came to Dehradun. These persons were in touch with Parminder Singh alias Penda, who was arrested by the UP Police yesterday.

During the search of the house, police recovered mobile phones, SIM card, rods, fake Aadhaar cards and driving licences. Sunil, Geetas husband, was lodged in Nabha jail from 2009 to 2012, from which time the fugitives knew him and got in touch with him, the SSP said.

Sources in Punjab police said they have been intimated by the Uttarakhand Police that two of the accomplices of Parminder Singh have been arrested. During interrogation, Parminder revealed that besides him seven persons were involved in the jailbreak and that he was in contact with them through WhatsApp. Of these, five fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in Haryana, he said. The police recovered two SLRs (self-loading rifles), three rifles, 544 cartridges and a mobile phone from his possession, claimed sources.

Police sources also claimed that Mintoo was travelling in the Toyota Fortuner with Parminder Singh of Jalandhar, who was the mastermind behind the escape, and an associate of gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon lodged in Nabha jail. Parminder was on Sunday nabbed by Uttar Pradesh Police from Kairana in Shamli as he was on his way to Nepal. But Mintoo got off from the SUV at Panipat in Haryana and proceeded towards Delhi.

After reaching the national capital, he called a relative in Subhash Nagar in Delhi. To his surprise the mobile he was using was being tracked by the intelligence wing of the Punjab Police which immediately alerted the special cell of Delhi about Mintoos location and he was nabbed. There are no details about how police knew of the mobile phone in his possession.

Sources claim Mintoo was on his way to Nepal and that he planned to head to Malaysia on the way to his final destination, Pakistan. But the person based in Uttarakhand who was handling his escape from jail backed out. Mintoo was told board a train to reach Uttarakhand from where he would be taken to Nepal, as he was in regular in touch with his contact there.

Mintoo was arrested from New Delhi railway station this morning.

A team of Patiala Police has reached Delhi to take custody of Mintoo.

Police sources claim that during initial interrogation, Mintoo said two jail officials and an inmate facilitated his escape. He said he came to know of the escape plan as from a gangster named Vicky Gondar, whom he was introduced to by the inmate and jail officials.

Punjab DGP Suresh Arora said Harminder Singh Mintoo was in touch with terrorist groups in Pakistan but the jailbreak conspiracy was hatched by the gangsters.

He said an excellent national coordination among security forces led to the swift arrests.

Meanwhile another car used in the jail escape was today found abandoned at Pharal village in Kaithal district of Haryana. A car was found in the village, we are investigating, Superintendent of Police, Kaithal Sumer Partap Singh, said.

Yesterday another car, a Hyundai Verna, had been found abandoned at Solumajra village in Kaithal, with two number plates. A search of the car today revealed police uniforms in a bag and a few mobile numbers written on a piece of paper.

CHANDIGARH: All it took was a phone call to track down dreaded militant Harminder Singh alias Mintoo? The 49-year old Khalistan Liberation Force chief was one among six people who escaped from the Nabha high security jail on Sunday in an unprecedented prison break. Mintoo, who according to police, made a call that did him in. Punjab police, which traced the call and drew information of whereabouts from cell-phone tower data, tipped off Delhi police, who nabbed him. The Dehradun Police also arrested two persons who were at the ready to provide logistics support to the escaped fugitives. Talking to Express, Senior Superintendent of Police, Dehradun, Sadanand S R Date said, We have arrested two persons a lady and a man. The ladys name is Geeta, wife of (a former Nabha jail inmate) Sunil Kumar, and other person is Binny. They were to provide logistics support to the fugitives, if they came to Dehradun. These persons were in touch with Parminder Singh alias Penda, who was arrested by the UP Police yesterday. During the search of the house, police recovered mobile phones, SIM card, rods, fake Aadhaar cards and driving licences. Sunil, Geetas husband, was lodged in Nabha jail from 2009 to 2012, from which time the fugitives knew him and got in touch with him, the SSP said. Sources in Punjab police said they have been intimated by the Uttarakhand Police that two of the accomplices of Parminder Singh have been arrested. During interrogation, Parminder revealed that besides him seven persons were involved in the jailbreak and that he was in contact with them through WhatsApp. Of these, five fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in Haryana, he said. The police recovered two SLRs (self-loading rifles), three rifles, 544 cartridges and a mobile phone from his possession, claimed sources. Police sources also claimed that Mintoo was travelling in the Toyota Fortuner with Parminder Singh of Jalandhar, who was the mastermind behind the escape, and an associate of gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon lodged in Nabha jail. Parminder was on Sunday nabbed by Uttar Pradesh Police from Kairana in Shamli as he was on his way to Nepal. But Mintoo got off from the SUV at Panipat in Haryana and proceeded towards Delhi. After reaching the national capital, he called a relative in Subhash Nagar in Delhi. To his surprise the mobile he was using was being tracked by the intelligence wing of the Punjab Police which immediately alerted the special cell of Delhi about Mintoos location and he was nabbed. There are no details about how police knew of the mobile phone in his possession. Sources claim Mintoo was on his way to Nepal and that he planned to head to Malaysia on the way to his final destination, Pakistan. But the person based in Uttarakhand who was handling his escape from jail backed out. Mintoo was told board a train to reach Uttarakhand from where he would be taken to Nepal, as he was in regular in touch with his contact there. Mintoo was arrested from New Delhi railway station this morning. A team of Patiala Police has reached Delhi to take custody of Mintoo. Police sources claim that during initial interrogation, Mintoo said two jail officials and an inmate facilitated his escape. He said he came to know of the escape plan as from a gangster named Vicky Gondar, whom he was introduced to by the inmate and jail officials. Punjab DGP Suresh Arora said Harminder Singh Mintoo was in touch with terrorist groups in Pakistan but the jailbreak conspiracy was hatched by the gangsters. He said an excellent national coordination among security forces led to the swift arrests. Meanwhile another car used in the jail escape was today found abandoned at Pharal village in Kaithal district of Haryana. A car was found in the village, we are investigating, Superintendent of Police, Kaithal Sumer Partap Singh, said. Yesterday another car, a Hyundai Verna, had been found abandoned at Solumajra village in Kaithal, with two number plates. A search of the car today revealed police uniforms in a bag and a few mobile numbers written on a piece of paper.
UNDP to buy medicines under 17 programs for $48.5 mln using 2016 budget funds

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) will buy medicines under 17 state-funded programs for $48.5 million using 2016 budget funds. The first batch will arrive soon, UNDP Coordinator Zafar Yuldashev has said.

"We have held tenders under two programs and signed contracts saving $3 million. Next Monday [November 28] the medicines will be supplied," he said at the conference "Medicine Procurement in Ukraine in 2016" in Kyiv last week.

UNDP told Interfax-Ukraine that this concerns medicines to treat orphan diseases (Hunter's syndrome and Gaucher disease).

As reported, in October the Health Ministry signed contracts with UNICEF, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and Britain's Crown Agents to buy medicines for 2016 budget funds.
Harpeet Bajwa By

Express News Service

CHANDIGARH: The jailbreak at the Nabha high-security prison in Punjab has left the entire security establishment of the State embarrassed. Details are still emerging of the poor state of security measures in the prison and the tardy response to advance intelligence inputs suggesting a conspiracy to spring prisoners from the jail.

Police sources said that a week before the jailbreak on Sunday, the Bathinda police had arrested five alleged gangsters and learnt from them they they had been in regular touch with gangster Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol who was lodged in Nabha until his escape with five others on Sunday. The phones seized from the gangsters were found to have been used to make some 20 WhatsApp calls to Kuldeep Singh in a short span of time.

However, the police did not act on the information. The conspiracy to escape was hatched by gangsters Harjinder Singh Bhullar alias Vicky Gondar and Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol, and they roped in fellow gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon.

Sekhon asked his accomplice on the outside, Palwinder Singh, to mastermind the escape. After the early morning breakout on Sunday, Palwinder was arrested later in the day by the Uttar Pradesh police while on his way to Nepal.

A few days back, another gangster Navdeep Chadha was arrested by the police and it was discovered that he was in touch with Deol and Gondar. He too had made a few WhatsApp calls to them.

The other shocking lapse that has come to light is that Nabha jail superintendent Paramjit Singh Sandhu and deputy superintendent Karanjit Singh Sandhu were not present in the jail on Sunday. They, and a few other jail staff went to attend a social function without having informed higher officials, sources said. Both the jail officials have been dismissed by the state government.

The Nabha jail has more than 200 staff and some 550 prisoners. Interestingly, as this high-security prison is fitted with jammers, the question is how mobiles phones were made available to these gangsters," said one officer.

According to the source, Nabha prisoners freely used phones, operated social media accounts and managed gang operations from the inside. They also planned the killing of a gangster, he added.

Sources said the Facebook account of Gurpreet Singh Sekhon had a picture of him in jail, taken on Saturday. He wrote in the status column, Kaam aisa kro K naam ho jaye. Neeta posted his picture from the jail on his Facebook wall on November 23, three days before the escape and got some 900 likes.

In May this year, Gondar posted on Facebook about the killing of gangster Jaswinder Singh alias Rocky in Parwanoo in Himachal Pradesh, and challenged Bathinda senior superintendent of police P Swapan Sharma to take action. The murder was reportedly executed by gangster Jaipal on instructions from Gondar and Deol.

CHANDIGARH: The jailbreak at the Nabha high-security prison in Punjab has left the entire security establishment of the State embarrassed. Details are still emerging of the poor state of security measures in the prison and the tardy response to advance intelligence inputs suggesting a conspiracy to spring prisoners from the jail. Police sources said that a week before the jailbreak on Sunday, the Bathinda police had arrested five alleged gangsters and learnt from them they they had been in regular touch with gangster Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol who was lodged in Nabha until his escape with five others on Sunday. The phones seized from the gangsters were found to have been used to make some 20 WhatsApp calls to Kuldeep Singh in a short span of time. However, the police did not act on the information. The conspiracy to escape was hatched by gangsters Harjinder Singh Bhullar alias Vicky Gondar and Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol, and they roped in fellow gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon. Sekhon asked his accomplice on the outside, Palwinder Singh, to mastermind the escape. After the early morning breakout on Sunday, Palwinder was arrested later in the day by the Uttar Pradesh police while on his way to Nepal. A few days back, another gangster Navdeep Chadha was arrested by the police and it was discovered that he was in touch with Deol and Gondar. He too had made a few WhatsApp calls to them. The other shocking lapse that has come to light is that Nabha jail superintendent Paramjit Singh Sandhu and deputy superintendent Karanjit Singh Sandhu were not present in the jail on Sunday. They, and a few other jail staff went to attend a social function without having informed higher officials, sources said. Both the jail officials have been dismissed by the state government. The Nabha jail has more than 200 staff and some 550 prisoners. Interestingly, as this high-security prison is fitted with jammers, the question is how mobiles phones were made available to these gangsters," said one officer. According to the source, Nabha prisoners freely used phones, operated social media accounts and managed gang operations from the inside. They also planned the killing of a gangster, he added. Sources said the Facebook account of Gurpreet Singh Sekhon had a picture of him in jail, taken on Saturday. He wrote in the status column, Kaam aisa kro K naam ho jaye. Neeta posted his picture from the jail on his Facebook wall on November 23, three days before the escape and got some 900 likes. In May this year, Gondar posted on Facebook about the killing of gangster Jaswinder Singh alias Rocky in Parwanoo in Himachal Pradesh, and challenged Bathinda senior superintendent of police P Swapan Sharma to take action. The murder was reportedly executed by gangster Jaipal on instructions from Gondar and Deol.
Prasanta Mazumdar By

Express News Service

GUWAHATI: Assam's BJP-led coalition government on Monday directed all government-run madrasas and (Islamic) schools in the State to function every Friday and observe Sunday as a holiday.

The madrasas in the State will have to function normally on Fridays. Like any other educational institute, they will remain closed on Sundays, Assam education minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told the media on Monday.

He said there were no laws that made (permitted) the madrasas to remain closed on Fridays. Madrasas remain closed on Fridays in Pakistan and Bangladesh. We have to follow the laws of the land.

According to Indian laws, Sunday is a holiday for educational institutes. Therefore, if a (government-run) madrasa in the State is found closed on Friday, the government will place its principal under suspension, warned Sarma.

However, his diktat drew criticism from former Assam minister Siddique Ahmed of the Congress who termed it as communal. He is behaving like a leader of RSS-VHP. Through such a move he is trying to disturb communal harmony, alleged Ahmed, and appealed to the people to reject the minister. Assam has more than 1,000 madrasas, of which some 100 are government aided.

GUWAHATI: Assam's BJP-led coalition government on Monday directed all government-run madrasas and (Islamic) schools in the State to function every Friday and observe Sunday as a holiday. The madrasas in the State will have to function normally on Fridays. Like any other educational institute, they will remain closed on Sundays, Assam education minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told the media on Monday. He said there were no laws that made (permitted) the madrasas to remain closed on Fridays. Madrasas remain closed on Fridays in Pakistan and Bangladesh. We have to follow the laws of the land. According to Indian laws, Sunday is a holiday for educational institutes. Therefore, if a (government-run) madrasa in the State is found closed on Friday, the government will place its principal under suspension, warned Sarma. However, his diktat drew criticism from former Assam minister Siddique Ahmed of the Congress who termed it as communal. He is behaving like a leader of RSS-VHP. Through such a move he is trying to disturb communal harmony, alleged Ahmed, and appealed to the people to reject the minister. Assam has more than 1,000 madrasas, of which some 100 are government aided.
By PTI

MUZAFFARNAGAR: Alleged mastermind of the daring daylight Nabha jailbreak, Parminder Singh was sent to 14-day judicial custody by a court at Kairana in Shamli district today.



Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Tarun Kumar remanded him in judicial custody up to December 11 for keeping illegal arms and cheating and forgery.



Police have booked Parminder under sections 25/27 of Arms Act and 420 (Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (Forgery of valuable security, will, etc.), 468 (Forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (Using as genuine a forged document) of IPC.



He was arrested from Kairana yesterday when the getaway vehicle was stopped at a police picket.



Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates yesterday, were nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi late last night.



MUZAFFARNAGAR: Alleged mastermind of the daring daylight Nabha jailbreak, Parminder Singh was sent to 14-day judicial custody by a court at Kairana in Shamli district today. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Tarun Kumar remanded him in judicial custody up to December 11 for keeping illegal arms and cheating and forgery. Police have booked Parminder under sections 25/27 of Arms Act and 420 (Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (Forgery of valuable security, will, etc.), 468 (Forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (Using as genuine a forged document) of IPC. He was arrested from Kairana yesterday when the getaway vehicle was stopped at a police picket. Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates yesterday, were nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi late last night.
Ritu Sharma By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Many-a-times the Indian government has contended that several of its fugitives have been sheltered in Pakistan, but it turns out that the government has not sent out any official request and does not have any legal instrument to seek the return of the law evaders, suggesting that the demand may have been more of a political rhetoric.

So far, India has 110 extradition requests pending in foreign countries, with the US leading with 33 requests, the United Arab Emirates coming second with 19 extradition requests and the UK having 15 applications. With Islamabad dragging its feet on the extradition treaty with India, New Delhi cant refer to any legal text to demand the return of individuals hiding across the Line of Control.

As per available information, 110 extradition requests made to various foreign countries, namely USA (33), UAE (19), UK (15), Canada (13), Germany (3), Nepal (3), Bangladesh (3), Singapore (3), Italy (3), Australia (2), South Africa (2), Denmark (2), Nigeria (2), France (1), Spain (1), Venezuela (1), Saudi Arabia (1), Thailand (1), Hong Kong (1) and Oman (1) are at various stages of execution, MoS for External Affairs Gen (retd) VK Singh told Parliament.

The government has been making every effort to bring fugitives and criminals to justice. To facilitate extradition, India has signed treaties with 47 countries, and entered into extradition arrangements with nine others. In addition, India has also entered into a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty in Criminal Matters with 39 countries to facilitate investigations and service of judicial documents abroad.

Presently, among the SAARC countries, India has extradition treaties only with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. With Pakistan, it does not have any legal instrument that it can refer to for demanding the return of the 20 fugitives on its Most Wanted List. Under the conditions stipulated for extradition, it has been a norm that the act should be considered an offence in both the countries, but there are no defined guidelines about how to proceed in the absence of a treaty.

The top three fugitives on the list handed over to Pakistan are 1993 Mumbai blast accused Dawood Ibrahim and the brains behind the 26/11 attack Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Hafiz Saeed. But experts suggest that if Islamabad is serious about taking action against Indian fugitives hiding in its territory, it can take recourse in the Control of Entries Act, a law existing in both the countries.

And the 1952 law stipulates that any Indian citizen crossing over to Pakistan has to be tried, and it can invite a jail term of three months following which the Indian citizen has to be repatriated if not accepted anywhere else.

NEW DELHI: Many-a-times the Indian government has contended that several of its fugitives have been sheltered in Pakistan, but it turns out that the government has not sent out any official request and does not have any legal instrument to seek the return of the law evaders, suggesting that the demand may have been more of a political rhetoric. So far, India has 110 extradition requests pending in foreign countries, with the US leading with 33 requests, the United Arab Emirates coming second with 19 extradition requests and the UK having 15 applications. With Islamabad dragging its feet on the extradition treaty with India, New Delhi cant refer to any legal text to demand the return of individuals hiding across the Line of Control. As per available information, 110 extradition requests made to various foreign countries, namely USA (33), UAE (19), UK (15), Canada (13), Germany (3), Nepal (3), Bangladesh (3), Singapore (3), Italy (3), Australia (2), South Africa (2), Denmark (2), Nigeria (2), France (1), Spain (1), Venezuela (1), Saudi Arabia (1), Thailand (1), Hong Kong (1) and Oman (1) are at various stages of execution, MoS for External Affairs Gen (retd) VK Singh told Parliament. The government has been making every effort to bring fugitives and criminals to justice. To facilitate extradition, India has signed treaties with 47 countries, and entered into extradition arrangements with nine others. In addition, India has also entered into a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty in Criminal Matters with 39 countries to facilitate investigations and service of judicial documents abroad. Presently, among the SAARC countries, India has extradition treaties only with Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. With Pakistan, it does not have any legal instrument that it can refer to for demanding the return of the 20 fugitives on its Most Wanted List. Under the conditions stipulated for extradition, it has been a norm that the act should be considered an offence in both the countries, but there are no defined guidelines about how to proceed in the absence of a treaty. The top three fugitives on the list handed over to Pakistan are 1993 Mumbai blast accused Dawood Ibrahim and the brains behind the 26/11 attack Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and Hafiz Saeed. But experts suggest that if Islamabad is serious about taking action against Indian fugitives hiding in its territory, it can take recourse in the Control of Entries Act, a law existing in both the countries. And the 1952 law stipulates that any Indian citizen crossing over to Pakistan has to be tried, and it can invite a jail term of three months following which the Indian citizen has to be repatriated if not accepted anywhere else.
By PTI

JAMMU: The Army today said Pakistan had a "direct role" in the mutilation of a soldier's body along the Line of Control in Machhil sector of Kupwara district on November 22.

"Refer to Machhil operation of November 22, where body of one soldier was mutilated, search leads to recoveries that indicate Pakistans complicity," an army officer at the Udhampur-based Northern Command said in a statement.

Three soldiers were killed and the body of one of them was mutilated when infiltrators had ambushed an army patrol in the Machhil sector on November 22. The eatables and other items recovered from the area show the marking of "Pakistan Defense Force", "Pakistan standard" and the night vision that bears the seal of "Government Property", which is made by the US and used by the Pakistan army, the officer said.

"Three soldiers were killed in action on the LoC in Machhil. Body of one soldier mutilated, retribution will be heavy for this cowardly act," Army had said after the killing.

It was second incident of mutilation of soldier's body in less than a month, triggering outrage. On October 28, aided by the cover fire by Pakistani Army, terrorists had crossed the LoC and killed an army jawan and mutilated his body in Machhil sector.

One attacker was killed in that incident. In June 2008, a soldier of the 2/8 Gorkha Rifles lost his way and was captured by a Pakistani Border Action Team (BAT) in Kel sector. His body was found beheaded few days later.

JAMMU: The Army today said Pakistan had a "direct role" in the mutilation of a soldier's body along the Line of Control in Machhil sector of Kupwara district on November 22. "Refer to Machhil operation of November 22, where body of one soldier was mutilated, search leads to recoveries that indicate Pakistans complicity," an army officer at the Udhampur-based Northern Command said in a statement. Three soldiers were killed and the body of one of them was mutilated when infiltrators had ambushed an army patrol in the Machhil sector on November 22. The eatables and other items recovered from the area show the marking of "Pakistan Defense Force", "Pakistan standard" and the night vision that bears the seal of "Government Property", which is made by the US and used by the Pakistan army, the officer said. "Three soldiers were killed in action on the LoC in Machhil. Body of one soldier mutilated, retribution will be heavy for this cowardly act," Army had said after the killing. It was second incident of mutilation of soldier's body in less than a month, triggering outrage. On October 28, aided by the cover fire by Pakistani Army, terrorists had crossed the LoC and killed an army jawan and mutilated his body in Machhil sector. One attacker was killed in that incident. In June 2008, a soldier of the 2/8 Gorkha Rifles lost his way and was captured by a Pakistani Border Action Team (BAT) in Kel sector. His body was found beheaded few days later.
P K Balachandran By

The fluid political situation in Sri Lanka, and the erosion of popular support for the Sirisen a - W i c k r e m e s i n g h e combine, have together created in the minds of the minority Tamils, doubts about the regimes ability to draft a Tamil-friendly constitution and face the political storm that will certainly follow. Sensing a drift towards abandonment of the constitution- making exercise and its substitution by a few amendments to the existing constitution along with electoral reforms, the MPs of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the largest Tamil party in Parliament with 16 MPs, met President Maithripala Sirisena recently to air their concerns. Sirisena assured the MPs that he is keen on a new constitution as promised to the Tamils in the run-up to the 2015 presidential election, which he won thanks in part to the overwhelming support of the Tamils.

However, the President made it clear he will have to get the support of his political rival and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, especially for greater devolution of power to the Tamilspeaking provinces. He said he has asked PM Ranil Wickremesinghe to discuss the issue with Rajapaksa. While Tamil MPs do realise that support of Rajapaksas 50- odd MPs in Parliament will be necessary for the draft constitution to get the required twothirds majority, they also know Rajapaksa is a Sinhala-Buddhist hardliner who has often said he will not give to the Tamils in peacetime what he had denied LTTE leader Prabhakaran. Rajapaksa had trashed the idea of federalism and agreed to hold elections to the Northern Provincial Council only because of intense Indian pressure and Japanese prodding. But he insisted on continuing with a military man as the Northern Province governor despite objections by elected Chief Minister Wigneswaran and the TNA.

Rajapaksa has very significant support among Sinhala- Buddhists who account for 70 percent of Sri Lankas population. And the dominant view among the Sinhalese is that devolution of power to a Tamil province will end up in secession, thanks to the Tamils ingrained separatist mentality and support from Tamil Nadu and the Western nations. If Rajapaksa was defeated in the January 2015 presidential poll, it was because the minorities voted en masse against him while the Sinhalese were divided. But despite that setback, Rajapaksa bounced back in the July 2015 parliamentary polls when his faction of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) came second behind Wickremesinghes United National Party (UNP).

The faction led by Sirisena came third. In the past year, Rajapaksa has been gaining ground, despite the many misappropriation cases filed against his family members and political cohorts. A lack of cohesion in the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe coalition, frequent changes in policy, an inability to deliver on economic promises, concessions to the rich and high indirect taxes on the common man have resulted in the Rajapaksa regime shining in contrast. The rising tide in favour of Rajapaksa was evident in the recent elections to rural cooperative societies where Rajapaksa acolytes are thought to have swept the polls. Sensing lack of support among the rural Sinhalese, Sirisena has kept postponing long overdue polls to local bodies like the Pradeshiya Sabhas, urban councils and municipalities. With the tide turning in his favour, it is unlikely Rajapaksa will agree to Sirisenas proposal to give Tamils more than what has been given under the partly implemented 13th Amendment of the constitution. But even this tattered document is viewed by the Sinhalese as an 1987 Indian imposition which ought to be repealed. Tamil politicians have also noticed that Sinhalese MPs in the various constitution-drafting sub-committees do not take much interest in the proceedings and are irregular in attendance; they are interested only in electoral reforms.

Most Sinhalese MPs are keen on the re-introduction of the first-past-the-post system, which is favourable to them, while the minorities want the retention of proportional representation as much as possible. The Sinhalese MPs would rather not discuss devolution, and if at all they do, would propose the minimum. The issue of abolition of the executive presidency could also wreck constitution-making. Not all want it to go. Some key government members like Champika Ranawaka have said they will not like to make any drastic change in the constitution which will require a referendum. This means controversial issues such as a good devolution package to the Tamils and abolition of the executive presidency may be skirted and the new constitution may just be old wine in a new bottle.

Minister Susil Premajayantha hinted at this earlier this week when he said the government would either change the constitution or amend the present one. Knowing the animosity to the term federal structure, the sub-committee on Centre- Periphery Relations, chaired by TNA MP D Siddharthan and assisted by S Thavarajah, avoided identifying the structure it has recommended as either federal or unitary. But it recommended the grant of far-reaching powers to the provinces, including power over land and police currently held by the Centre. It also recommended a drastic reduction in the powers of the provincial Governor, transforming him into a figure-head. It also said provinces should be part of the Finance Commission which allocates funds to them. However, the final decision on devolution will be taken by the Steering Committee headed by the Prime Minister.



P K Balachandran is the correspondent of The New Indian Express in Colombo and has been reporting on Sri Lanka since 1997

Email: pkbalachandran11@gmail.com

The fluid political situation in Sri Lanka, and the erosion of popular support for the Sirisen a - W i c k r e m e s i n g h e combine, have together created in the minds of the minority Tamils, doubts about the regimes ability to draft a Tamil-friendly constitution and face the political storm that will certainly follow. Sensing a drift towards abandonment of the constitution- making exercise and its substitution by a few amendments to the existing constitution along with electoral reforms, the MPs of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the largest Tamil party in Parliament with 16 MPs, met President Maithripala Sirisena recently to air their concerns. Sirisena assured the MPs that he is keen on a new constitution as promised to the Tamils in the run-up to the 2015 presidential election, which he won thanks in part to the overwhelming support of the Tamils. However, the President made it clear he will have to get the support of his political rival and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, especially for greater devolution of power to the Tamilspeaking provinces. He said he has asked PM Ranil Wickremesinghe to discuss the issue with Rajapaksa. While Tamil MPs do realise that support of Rajapaksas 50- odd MPs in Parliament will be necessary for the draft constitution to get the required twothirds majority, they also know Rajapaksa is a Sinhala-Buddhist hardliner who has often said he will not give to the Tamils in peacetime what he had denied LTTE leader Prabhakaran. Rajapaksa had trashed the idea of federalism and agreed to hold elections to the Northern Provincial Council only because of intense Indian pressure and Japanese prodding. But he insisted on continuing with a military man as the Northern Province governor despite objections by elected Chief Minister Wigneswaran and the TNA. Rajapaksa has very significant support among Sinhala- Buddhists who account for 70 percent of Sri Lankas population. And the dominant view among the Sinhalese is that devolution of power to a Tamil province will end up in secession, thanks to the Tamils ingrained separatist mentality and support from Tamil Nadu and the Western nations. If Rajapaksa was defeated in the January 2015 presidential poll, it was because the minorities voted en masse against him while the Sinhalese were divided. But despite that setback, Rajapaksa bounced back in the July 2015 parliamentary polls when his faction of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) came second behind Wickremesinghes United National Party (UNP). The faction led by Sirisena came third. In the past year, Rajapaksa has been gaining ground, despite the many misappropriation cases filed against his family members and political cohorts. A lack of cohesion in the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe coalition, frequent changes in policy, an inability to deliver on economic promises, concessions to the rich and high indirect taxes on the common man have resulted in the Rajapaksa regime shining in contrast. The rising tide in favour of Rajapaksa was evident in the recent elections to rural cooperative societies where Rajapaksa acolytes are thought to have swept the polls. Sensing lack of support among the rural Sinhalese, Sirisena has kept postponing long overdue polls to local bodies like the Pradeshiya Sabhas, urban councils and municipalities. With the tide turning in his favour, it is unlikely Rajapaksa will agree to Sirisenas proposal to give Tamils more than what has been given under the partly implemented 13th Amendment of the constitution. But even this tattered document is viewed by the Sinhalese as an 1987 Indian imposition which ought to be repealed. Tamil politicians have also noticed that Sinhalese MPs in the various constitution-drafting sub-committees do not take much interest in the proceedings and are irregular in attendance; they are interested only in electoral reforms. Most Sinhalese MPs are keen on the re-introduction of the first-past-the-post system, which is favourable to them, while the minorities want the retention of proportional representation as much as possible. The Sinhalese MPs would rather not discuss devolution, and if at all they do, would propose the minimum. The issue of abolition of the executive presidency could also wreck constitution-making. Not all want it to go. Some key government members like Champika Ranawaka have said they will not like to make any drastic change in the constitution which will require a referendum. This means controversial issues such as a good devolution package to the Tamils and abolition of the executive presidency may be skirted and the new constitution may just be old wine in a new bottle. Minister Susil Premajayantha hinted at this earlier this week when he said the government would either change the constitution or amend the present one. Knowing the animosity to the term federal structure, the sub-committee on Centre- Periphery Relations, chaired by TNA MP D Siddharthan and assisted by S Thavarajah, avoided identifying the structure it has recommended as either federal or unitary. But it recommended the grant of far-reaching powers to the provinces, including power over land and police currently held by the Centre. It also recommended a drastic reduction in the powers of the provincial Governor, transforming him into a figure-head. It also said provinces should be part of the Finance Commission which allocates funds to them. However, the final decision on devolution will be taken by the Steering Committee headed by the Prime Minister. P K Balachandran is the correspondent of The New Indian Express in Colombo and has been reporting on Sri Lanka since 1997 Email: pkbalachandran11@gmail.com
By Express News Service

VIJAYAWADA: The nation-wide bandh called by the Left parties and the call for protests observing Jan Akrosh Diwas by the Congress party, evoked partial response in Andhra Pradesh on Monday. The leaders of YSR Congress party too extended their support to the Left parties by participating in the protests.



The leaders of CPI and CPM staged protests in front of the RTC depots in Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Kadapa, Kurnool and other places, while the student organisations affiliated to the Left parties protested at the RTC bus stands in Anantapur, West Godavari and Srikakulam.



Though the bus services were disrupted initially, the police took control and arrested the agitators to ensure smooth operation of RTC buses throughout the day. At Lenin Centre in Vijayawada, the protestors were forcibly arrested and taken to the police station.

While the Left parties were joined in the protest by YSRC and even BJP ally Jana Sena party leaders at some places in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam, the Congress party organised protests separately.



As a precautionary measure, some educational institutions remained closed in Kadapa, Nellore, Anantapur, Guntur, Visakhapatnam, and other districts.

The protests by Congress party and YSR Congress party evoked partial response. Retail outlets, vendors, shopping malls and eateries remained open since 12 PM.

VIJAYAWADA: The nation-wide bandh called by the Left parties and the call for protests observing Jan Akrosh Diwas by the Congress party, evoked partial response in Andhra Pradesh on Monday. The leaders of YSR Congress party too extended their support to the Left parties by participating in the protests. The leaders of CPI and CPM staged protests in front of the RTC depots in Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Kadapa, Kurnool and other places, while the student organisations affiliated to the Left parties protested at the RTC bus stands in Anantapur, West Godavari and Srikakulam. Though the bus services were disrupted initially, the police took control and arrested the agitators to ensure smooth operation of RTC buses throughout the day. At Lenin Centre in Vijayawada, the protestors were forcibly arrested and taken to the police station. While the Left parties were joined in the protest by YSRC and even BJP ally Jana Sena party leaders at some places in Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam, the Congress party organised protests separately. As a precautionary measure, some educational institutions remained closed in Kadapa, Nellore, Anantapur, Guntur, Visakhapatnam, and other districts. The protests by Congress party and YSR Congress party evoked partial response. Retail outlets, vendors, shopping malls and eateries remained open since 12 PM.
By Express News Service

VISAKHAPATNAM: In an attempt to tide over the problems being faced by people with no bank accounts after demonetisation, the District Water Management Agency (DWMA) has set a whopping target of opening 2 lakh bank accounts in 72 hours.

Following the government directive to encourage cashless transactions, the beneficiaries of 11 Agency mandals in the Visakhapatnam district will be covered under the project. To achieve the target, the banks have started recruiting more business correspondents in the areas where banking facility is not available.

After receiving instructions from collector Pravin Kumar, the DWMA officials are running from pillar to post to open 2 lakh bank accounts in the area with major tribal population. The officials are making arrangements to start exclusive bank melas in 11 Agency mandals in the district.

At several meetings organised the district administration, it has insisted that the bankers open branches in the Agency. However, lacking clearance from top managements, the banks are not coming forward to open the branches. Some banks like SBI and Andhra Bank have been sending their business correspondents to various tribal hamlets to encourage the tribals to open accounts.

After the state bifurcation, the AP government has included many works under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in the past two and half years. This has lead to the increase in number of job card holders to 6,40,371. Though the state and Central governments are insisting to pay MGNREGS wages through bank accounts, several reasons including the Maoists threat and non-viability of businesses are himndering the banks to open branches in the Agency areas.

However, after demonetisation, the government has resolved make all MGNREGS payments through bank accounts only. However, 1.97 lakh beneficiaries do not have bank accounts, as on November 25 and the collector has asked the officials to pay MGNREGS wages from December 1 through banks only. Further, the DWMA officials have been instructed to open bank accounts of the 1.97 lakh beneficiaries in the next 72 hours.

Meanwhile, over five lakh beneficiaries are yet to get Rupay cards. Terming that it is a huge task to be achieved in a small time span, managements of various national banks are saying that the target is unrealistic.

How will it be possible? It is non-viable to open branches in the Agency areas. Staff, buildings, net connectivity and security threat issues are yet to be resolved. Whatever be the quantum of business, be it `100 or `1 lakh, the procedure to be followed is the same. Already, nationalised banks have been facing losses due to the heavy dues from the priority sector lending. The government should think about the other side of the issue as well, assistant GM of a nationalised bank opined.

There are 5,13,014 women in SHGs of whom over 50,000 members do not have bank accounts. The government has been paying `35.06 crore as pensions to 3,24,431 beneficiaries including physically handicapped, senior citizens and widows in the district. However, the administration has been paying the pensions by cash only.

It is true that the target is huge. The top bosses are not even listening to the issues arising at the ground level. The officials are threatening of stringent action in case the targets are not met. During the Smart Pulse Survey, not looking at the ground realities, some of the enumerators are suspended. Notices were also served to a large number of employees. These are testing times for the employees, a senior official of DWMA lamented.

VISAKHAPATNAM: In an attempt to tide over the problems being faced by people with no bank accounts after demonetisation, the District Water Management Agency (DWMA) has set a whopping target of opening 2 lakh bank accounts in 72 hours. Following the government directive to encourage cashless transactions, the beneficiaries of 11 Agency mandals in the Visakhapatnam district will be covered under the project. To achieve the target, the banks have started recruiting more business correspondents in the areas where banking facility is not available. After receiving instructions from collector Pravin Kumar, the DWMA officials are running from pillar to post to open 2 lakh bank accounts in the area with major tribal population. The officials are making arrangements to start exclusive bank melas in 11 Agency mandals in the district. At several meetings organised the district administration, it has insisted that the bankers open branches in the Agency. However, lacking clearance from top managements, the banks are not coming forward to open the branches. Some banks like SBI and Andhra Bank have been sending their business correspondents to various tribal hamlets to encourage the tribals to open accounts. After the state bifurcation, the AP government has included many works under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in the past two and half years. This has lead to the increase in number of job card holders to 6,40,371. Though the state and Central governments are insisting to pay MGNREGS wages through bank accounts, several reasons including the Maoists threat and non-viability of businesses are himndering the banks to open branches in the Agency areas. However, after demonetisation, the government has resolved make all MGNREGS payments through bank accounts only. However, 1.97 lakh beneficiaries do not have bank accounts, as on November 25 and the collector has asked the officials to pay MGNREGS wages from December 1 through banks only. Further, the DWMA officials have been instructed to open bank accounts of the 1.97 lakh beneficiaries in the next 72 hours. Meanwhile, over five lakh beneficiaries are yet to get Rupay cards. Terming that it is a huge task to be achieved in a small time span, managements of various national banks are saying that the target is unrealistic. How will it be possible? It is non-viable to open branches in the Agency areas. Staff, buildings, net connectivity and security threat issues are yet to be resolved. Whatever be the quantum of business, be it `100 or `1 lakh, the procedure to be followed is the same. Already, nationalised banks have been facing losses due to the heavy dues from the priority sector lending. The government should think about the other side of the issue as well, assistant GM of a nationalised bank opined. There are 5,13,014 women in SHGs of whom over 50,000 members do not have bank accounts. The government has been paying `35.06 crore as pensions to 3,24,431 beneficiaries including physically handicapped, senior citizens and widows in the district. However, the administration has been paying the pensions by cash only. It is true that the target is huge. The top bosses are not even listening to the issues arising at the ground level. The officials are threatening of stringent action in case the targets are not met. During the Smart Pulse Survey, not looking at the ground realities, some of the enumerators are suspended. Notices were also served to a large number of employees. These are testing times for the employees, a senior official of DWMA lamented.
By PTI

BENGALURU: Hitting back at BJP national President for calling his government "the most corrupt" in the country, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today accused Amit Shah of lacking "morality" to talk about his rule, saying he himself was an accused in a murder case.

"Amit Shah has no morality.....he himself was an accused in a murder case," Siddaramaiah told reporters, apparently referring to the Sohrabuddin Sheik fake encounter case. Shah has since been discharged by the trial court which was upheld by the Bombay High Court. The Supreme Court also in August this year rejected a plea against discharge of Shah.

Siddaramaiah said, "..if Modi had not become the Prime Minister, he would have gone to jail.." and alleged that Shah had been saved by the CBI. "....these people are lecturing us," he said. Siddaramaiah also questioned as to "what moral right Shah has" to talk about his government being corrupt when the BJP was going to the people projecting the face of B S Yeddyurappa who, he alleged, had provided a "corrupt" government.

At an 'Other Backward Classes' rally of state BJP here yesterday, Shah had dubbed the Siddaramaiah government "the most corrupt" in the country and said the time had come for its removal and bringing BJP back to power in the state in the next elections.

BENGALURU: Hitting back at BJP national President for calling his government "the most corrupt" in the country, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today accused Amit Shah of lacking "morality" to talk about his rule, saying he himself was an accused in a murder case. "Amit Shah has no morality.....he himself was an accused in a murder case," Siddaramaiah told reporters, apparently referring to the Sohrabuddin Sheik fake encounter case. Shah has since been discharged by the trial court which was upheld by the Bombay High Court. The Supreme Court also in August this year rejected a plea against discharge of Shah. Siddaramaiah said, "..if Modi had not become the Prime Minister, he would have gone to jail.." and alleged that Shah had been saved by the CBI. "....these people are lecturing us," he said. Siddaramaiah also questioned as to "what moral right Shah has" to talk about his government being corrupt when the BJP was going to the people projecting the face of B S Yeddyurappa who, he alleged, had provided a "corrupt" government. At an 'Other Backward Classes' rally of state BJP here yesterday, Shah had dubbed the Siddaramaiah government "the most corrupt" in the country and said the time had come for its removal and bringing BJP back to power in the state in the next elections.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman has said that the full-featured energy market is being created in Ukraine.

"The market is competition, including competitive prices for consumers. The creation of the full-featured energy market, growth of own gas production, introduction of energy efficiency and the increase of budget revenue received from state-run companies  all these are consequences of those decisions to recover the energy sector we are making," Groysman said on his Facebook page.

He said that in October France's Engie signed the contract with Ukrtransgaz on gas storage in Ukrainian underground storage facilities. Switzerland's Trading SA and TrailStone Energy LLC signed the contracts with Ukraine.

"When we are criticized for the fact that 6.5-7 million households will receive subsidies, I would like to say that not new prices made Ukrainians poor. Many-year money depletion schemes used for the pockets of oligarchs who hid themselves with allegedly cheap gas have made our country poor. Today we are breaking these schemes, despite hot and strong resistance of those who was involved in their creation. The news we receive now confirm that the situation is changing. These changes would be more tangible day by day," Groysman said.
Express News Service By

KOCHI: The Income Tax (IT) Department has started procedures to fish out black money deposited in Non Banking Finance Company (NBFC), Cooperatives societies and Cooperative banks after they received information about number of such deposits in Kerala. IT department has admitted Rs 1200 crores of undisclosed income during across state in first 6 months of the year.

According to IT officials, several persons in Kerala have undisclosed source of income with deposits in NBFCs, Cooperative societies and Cooperative banks. For this IT would be conducting checking at these NBFCs, Cooperative Societies and Banks. During the checking held at NBFCs including gold loan providing companies, the IT department came to know that several anonymous deposits with out proper identity of the depositers. IT officials suspected this was a method adopted to invade income tax and stock black money.

The IT department also received information about several persons who have violated the rules by filing form 15G and 15H for no deduction of TDS on interest payment above Rs 10,000 on fixed deposits and recurring deposits. The IT department found that even the persons receiving lakhs of rupees as interest from the fixed deposits and recurring deposits filing the form 15G and 15H mostly with private banks and NBFCs.

Pranab Kumar Das, Principal CCIT and Director General of Income Tax (Investigation) in a statement issued on Tuesday stated that IT department have unearthed undisclosed income worth Rs 1200 crores in the first six month of the year from Kerala alone. The team under him conducted 29 search and seizure operations. From the searches, the IT department seized Rs 15.25 crores of currencies and Rs 16 crores worth jewellery.

According to IT department, the people who have not disclosed their investment and interest earned from bank deposits should may used Income Disclose Scheme till September 30. If disclosed no questions about such deposits and disclosure would be kept confidential.

KOCHI: The Income Tax (IT) Department has started procedures to fish out black money deposited in Non Banking Finance Company (NBFC), Cooperatives societies and Cooperative banks after they received information about number of such deposits in Kerala. IT department has admitted Rs 1200 crores of undisclosed income during across state in first 6 months of the year.According to IT officials, several persons in Kerala have undisclosed source of income with deposits in NBFCs, Cooperative societies and Cooperative banks. For this IT would be conducting checking at these NBFCs, Cooperative Societies and Banks. During the checking held at NBFCs including gold loan providing companies, the IT department came to know that several anonymous deposits with out proper identity of the depositers. IT officials suspected this was a method adopted to invade income tax and stock black money.The IT department also received information about several persons who have violated the rules by filing form 15G and 15H for no deduction of TDS on interest payment above Rs 10,000 on fixed deposits and recurring deposits. The IT department found that even the persons receiving lakhs of rupees as interest from the fixed deposits and recurring deposits filing the form 15G and 15H mostly with private banks and NBFCs.Pranab Kumar Das, Principal CCIT and Director General of Income Tax (Investigation) in a statement issued on Tuesday stated that IT department have unearthed undisclosed income worth Rs 1200 crores in the first six month of the year from Kerala alone. The team under him conducted 29 search and seizure operations. From the searches, the IT department seized Rs 15.25 crores of currencies and Rs 16 crores worth jewellery.According to IT department, the people who have not disclosed their investment and interest earned from bank deposits should may used Income Disclose Scheme till September 30. If disclosed no questions about such deposits and disclosure would be kept confidential.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Indicating that it is in no mood to ruffle NDA governments feathers at this juncture, the ruling TRS in the state categorically announced that it was not supporting the Bharat Bandh call given by the opposition parties on November 28, opposing Centres demonetisation move.

Our party will not participate in the Bharat Bandh to be observed on November 28, TRS MP B Vinod Kumar said here on Friday, a few hours prior to Prime Minister Narendra Modis arrival in Hyderabad.

While making it clear that his party is not backing the countrywide shutdown call, the TRS MP came down heavily on both the BJP and the Congress for not taking up a detailed debate in Parliament over demonetisation issue.

Both the parties have no commitment to discuss the key issue, which is causing untold sufferings to all sections of people, he commented.

On the other hand, Telangana Congress, which has been alleging that there is a secret understanding between the BJP and the TRS in the wake of demonetisation , further stepped up its attack on the ruling party.

TPCC chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy said, I dont understand why Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is maintaining silence over the rising sufferings of commoners due to unplanned move of demonetisation of higher value currency notes by the Union government. Ever since he met the Prime Minister in Delhi a few days ago, the CM has been adopting a soft stance towards the Centre.

Interacting with mediapersons in Hyderabad and Warangal on Friday, the TPCC president accused KCR of adopting dual standards towards the issue of demonetisation. On one hand, the Chief Minister is admitting of losses to Telangana State due to sudden demonetisation. On the other, he is not speaking on behalf of people who are facing severe hardships due to Centres insane move, he criticised.

The TPCC chief further alleged that CM KCR was apparently trying to take political advantage by supporting the Centre at this juncture.

However, the CM is not realising the negative impact of his decision on the people of Telangana State, the Congress leader said.

Uttam Kumar Reddy further said that the Centres latest decision of not allowing exchange of old notes at banks had put lakhs of people into trouble.

People living in 30 out of 31 districts of Telangana will now have to travel to Hyderabad to get their old notes exchanged at Reserve Bank of India. They will have to bear the travel cost and also lose their days earning to visit RBI counter in Hyderabad to exchange only `2,000 notes, he added.

HYDERABAD: Indicating that it is in no mood to ruffle NDA governments feathers at this juncture, the ruling TRS in the state categorically announced that it was not supporting the Bharat Bandh call given by the opposition parties on November 28, opposing Centres demonetisation move. Our party will not participate in the Bharat Bandh to be observed on November 28, TRS MP B Vinod Kumar said here on Friday, a few hours prior to Prime Minister Narendra Modis arrival in Hyderabad. While making it clear that his party is not backing the countrywide shutdown call, the TRS MP came down heavily on both the BJP and the Congress for not taking up a detailed debate in Parliament over demonetisation issue. Both the parties have no commitment to discuss the key issue, which is causing untold sufferings to all sections of people, he commented. On the other hand, Telangana Congress, which has been alleging that there is a secret understanding between the BJP and the TRS in the wake of demonetisation , further stepped up its attack on the ruling party. TPCC chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy said, I dont understand why Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is maintaining silence over the rising sufferings of commoners due to unplanned move of demonetisation of higher value currency notes by the Union government. Ever since he met the Prime Minister in Delhi a few days ago, the CM has been adopting a soft stance towards the Centre. Interacting with mediapersons in Hyderabad and Warangal on Friday, the TPCC president accused KCR of adopting dual standards towards the issue of demonetisation. On one hand, the Chief Minister is admitting of losses to Telangana State due to sudden demonetisation. On the other, he is not speaking on behalf of people who are facing severe hardships due to Centres insane move, he criticised. The TPCC chief further alleged that CM KCR was apparently trying to take political advantage by supporting the Centre at this juncture. However, the CM is not realising the negative impact of his decision on the people of Telangana State, the Congress leader said. Uttam Kumar Reddy further said that the Centres latest decision of not allowing exchange of old notes at banks had put lakhs of people into trouble. People living in 30 out of 31 districts of Telangana will now have to travel to Hyderabad to get their old notes exchanged at Reserve Bank of India. They will have to bear the travel cost and also lose their days earning to visit RBI counter in Hyderabad to exchange only `2,000 notes, he added.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: The demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes has dealt a death blow to narcotics business, terrorism and naxalism in India, Union minister of state for Home Affairs Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said.

Narcotics is smuggled into India through Indian Ocean from countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan. Most of the money involved in narcotics business is black money, which is again pumped into naxalism and terrorist activities. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put an end to these illegal and dangerous acts forever through demonetisation, said Hansraj Gangaram Ahir while speaking in Hyderabad on Sunday.

The results of demonetisation are already showing. More than 200 naxals have surrendered in Odisha in the last week, as their income sources have dried up. Demonetisation will put an end to ills like black money, corruption, terrorism and naxalism permanently, he further said.

Narendra Modi has taken up demonetisation only after a comprehensive study with a long term vision. Though people are facing problems initially, the move will provide many benefits in the future, he said. On the criticism by Opposition parties in Parliament on demonetisation, he termed it as hungama and made mockery of their protests. Opposition parties are not saying that demonetisation is wrong. They are only saying that sufficient time has not been given as they could not convert their black money into white, he chided.

Pointing out to Trinamool chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and BSP chief Mayawati as politicians who supported corruption in the past, Gangaram said that nation wide protests to be held by Opposition on Monday will end up as damp squib.

In the survey conducted by the PM on demonetisation, more than 90 per cent of the people have supported the move. The Bharath bandh will fail as people are supporting Modis decision, stressed Gangaram.

HYDERABAD: The demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes has dealt a death blow to narcotics business, terrorism and naxalism in India, Union minister of state for Home Affairs Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said. Narcotics is smuggled into India through Indian Ocean from countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan. Most of the money involved in narcotics business is black money, which is again pumped into naxalism and terrorist activities. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put an end to these illegal and dangerous acts forever through demonetisation, said Hansraj Gangaram Ahir while speaking in Hyderabad on Sunday. The results of demonetisation are already showing. More than 200 naxals have surrendered in Odisha in the last week, as their income sources have dried up. Demonetisation will put an end to ills like black money, corruption, terrorism and naxalism permanently, he further said. Narendra Modi has taken up demonetisation only after a comprehensive study with a long term vision. Though people are facing problems initially, the move will provide many benefits in the future, he said. On the criticism by Opposition parties in Parliament on demonetisation, he termed it as hungama and made mockery of their protests. Opposition parties are not saying that demonetisation is wrong. They are only saying that sufficient time has not been given as they could not convert their black money into white, he chided. Pointing out to Trinamool chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and BSP chief Mayawati as politicians who supported corruption in the past, Gangaram said that nation wide protests to be held by Opposition on Monday will end up as damp squib. In the survey conducted by the PM on demonetisation, more than 90 per cent of the people have supported the move. The Bharath bandh will fail as people are supporting Modis decision, stressed Gangaram.
By IANS

HOUSTON: A man was killed and nine others were injured in a shooting incident on early Sunday morning in New Orleans, the largest city in the US state of Louisiana.

The 10 persons were shot at about 1.30 a.m. local time in the French Quarter, a tourist destination in New Orleans, and the man died later at a hospital, Xinhua news agency cited the city's English daily the Times-Picayune.

Police confirmed the shooting at a press conference on Sunday afternoon, saying that the victims, aged from 20-37, included two females and eight males.

The police have arrested two persons, including one shooting victim, on firearms charges.

Shelvin Gray, 19, was one of the two arrested and booked with illegal possession of a firearm, the police said, adding that there have been no charges in connection with the shooting at this time.

The police said that they did not know the cause of the shooting, but witnesses said that there was a dispute before the gun fires.

HOUSTON: A man was killed and nine others were injured in a shooting incident on early Sunday morning in New Orleans, the largest city in the US state of Louisiana. The 10 persons were shot at about 1.30 a.m. local time in the French Quarter, a tourist destination in New Orleans, and the man died later at a hospital, Xinhua news agency cited the city's English daily the Times-Picayune. Police confirmed the shooting at a press conference on Sunday afternoon, saying that the victims, aged from 20-37, included two females and eight males. The police have arrested two persons, including one shooting victim, on firearms charges. Shelvin Gray, 19, was one of the two arrested and booked with illegal possession of a firearm, the police said, adding that there have been no charges in connection with the shooting at this time. The police said that they did not know the cause of the shooting, but witnesses said that there was a dispute before the gun fires.
By AFP

LONDON: Britain called on Monday for an immediate ceasefire in Aleppo, saying a humanitarian catastrophe threatened the Syrian city.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson also urged Russia and Iran to use their influence on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stop the assault his forces are waging.

Syria's rebels lost all of the northern neighbourhoods of their stronghold in east Aleppo on Monday, as the regime army made significant advances in its offensive to recapture the entire city.

"I call on those with influence on the regime -- especially Russia and Iran -- to use this to end the devastating assault on eastern Aleppo and ensure the UN's humanitarian plan for the city can be implemented," Johnson said in a statement.

"The assault is threatening a humanitarian catastrophe. Hundreds of civilians are reported killed in the past fortnight and thousands displaced by attacks over the weekend.

"We need an immediate ceasefire in Aleppo and immediate access for impartial humanitarian actors to ensure the protection of vulnerable civilians fleeing the fighting. These are humanitarian imperatives."

Johnson said everyone involved in the assault had a responsibility to protect civilians under international humanitarian law.

"Elsewhere, the Assad regime is using siege and bombardment tactics to force surrenders -- this too must stop," he added.

The loss of eastern Aleppo would be a potentially devastating blow to Syria's rebels, who seized the area in 2012.

LONDON: Britain called on Monday for an immediate ceasefire in Aleppo, saying a humanitarian catastrophe threatened the Syrian city. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson also urged Russia and Iran to use their influence on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stop the assault his forces are waging. Syria's rebels lost all of the northern neighbourhoods of their stronghold in east Aleppo on Monday, as the regime army made significant advances in its offensive to recapture the entire city. "I call on those with influence on the regime -- especially Russia and Iran -- to use this to end the devastating assault on eastern Aleppo and ensure the UN's humanitarian plan for the city can be implemented," Johnson said in a statement. "The assault is threatening a humanitarian catastrophe. Hundreds of civilians are reported killed in the past fortnight and thousands displaced by attacks over the weekend. "We need an immediate ceasefire in Aleppo and immediate access for impartial humanitarian actors to ensure the protection of vulnerable civilians fleeing the fighting. These are humanitarian imperatives." Johnson said everyone involved in the assault had a responsibility to protect civilians under international humanitarian law. "Elsewhere, the Assad regime is using siege and bombardment tactics to force surrenders -- this too must stop," he added. The loss of eastern Aleppo would be a potentially devastating blow to Syria's rebels, who seized the area in 2012.
By IANS

NEW DELHI: Global sexual well-being brand Durex on Monday launched "Umbrella with Raindrops" as the unofficial safe sex emoji ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1.



The unveiling of an unofficial safe sex emoji is the latest move in Durex's ongoing #CondomEmoji campaign which calls for putting a safe sex emoji on every smartphone in order to help young people communicate about safe sex, the company said in a statement.



"We believe the naming of "Umbrella with Raindrops" as the unofficial safe sex emoji will be a significant step towards helping young people put safe sex back on the agenda," said Volker Sydow, Global Director, Durex.



The #CondomEmoji campaign has trended both on Twitter and Facebook with supporters from over 160 countries backing the movement during a survey.



"While more than 60 per cent of young people surveyed admitted to being uncomfortable discussing safe sex, 72 per cent of respondents admitted that they found it easier to express emotions using emojis and more than three-quarters admitted that they use emojis to discuss sex and relationships," the survey findings noted.

NEW DELHI: Global sexual well-being brand Durex on Monday launched "Umbrella with Raindrops" as the unofficial safe sex emoji ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1. The unveiling of an unofficial safe sex emoji is the latest move in Durex's ongoing #CondomEmoji campaign which calls for putting a safe sex emoji on every smartphone in order to help young people communicate about safe sex, the company said in a statement. "We believe the naming of "Umbrella with Raindrops" as the unofficial safe sex emoji will be a significant step towards helping young people put safe sex back on the agenda," said Volker Sydow, Global Director, Durex. The #CondomEmoji campaign has trended both on Twitter and Facebook with supporters from over 160 countries backing the movement during a survey. "While more than 60 per cent of young people surveyed admitted to being uncomfortable discussing safe sex, 72 per cent of respondents admitted that they found it easier to express emotions using emojis and more than three-quarters admitted that they use emojis to discuss sex and relationships," the survey findings noted.
By AFP

BERLIN: Francois Fillon, frontrunner to become France's next president, has sparked unease in Germany with his friendly attitude toward Russia, which could make him an uncomfortable ally for Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Fillon secured the nomination of the French conservative Republicans on Sunday with a resounding victory over his more moderate challenger Alain Juppe.

Opinion polls currently predict that he would handily beat far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen in the knock-out finals of next May's presidential elections.

That in itself is cause for relief in Germany, France's traditional core EU partner, which has been rattled by the US election of Donald Trump, the Brexit vote and the rise of right-wing populism in Europe.

"Any French president who is not Marine Le Pen is good news for the German government," said Stefani Weiss, analyst on European issues at think tank the Bertelsmann Foundation.

There are other reasons why a Merkel-Fillon duo at the heart of Europe should at first glance be a good fit.

Both are from the conservative political family and rooted in the Christian faith, he a Catholic and she a Protestant.

The Frenchman's pledges to drastically shake up the economy and slash state spending are welcomed by the German government, which staunchly preaches austerity and balanced books.

Fillon, a self-professed Thatcherite, is depicted in Germany like a French version of former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who drove home painful social welfare reforms in the early 2000s.

While deeply contested in those days, the policies of Schroeder, a Social Democrat, have since been credited with bringing down unemployment and making the German economy more competitive.

But scratch a little deeper, and stark differences emerge between Fillon and Merkel, from their attitudes towards gay rights -- Fillon opposes gay marriage -- to their visions on how Europe should be run.

The French former prime minister sees a bloc piloted by individual states rather than by Brussels, while Germany is content to let the European Commission police certain issues, including the level of state deficits.

On the thorny subject of refugees and migration, Merkel wants a quota system in place for each EU member to take their share of asylum seekers.

This might be a tough sell for Fillon, who has argued that France has a "problem linked to Islam".

But most crucially the two differ on foreign policy, and on how Russia should be handled.

Fillon, accused by his critics of being too close to President Vladimir Putin, has called for the lifting of sanctions that were imposed after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.

He believes the EU and United States "provoked" Russia by expanding NATO's presence into eastern Europe.

Fillon has also urged an alliance with Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime against the Islamic State group.

These positions differ with those of Merkel, who has kept the phone lines open to Putin but adopted a firm approach against Russia's encroachment in Ukraine.

She is worried by Trump's admiration for Putin, has condemned Russian bombing of Syria's Aleppo as "inhumane and cruel", and refused to rule out imposing further sanctions on Moscow.

"In the diplomatic arena, there may be problems between Fillon and Berlin, with the first issue being policies vis-a-vis Russia," said Barbara Kunz of the Study Committee on French-German Relations.

Kunz said all this meant that, "even if no one is saying it openly, the Germans prefer Alain Juppe".

A member of the chancellor's party, speaking on condition of anonymity, agreed on this point, saying that the former prime minister's less hardline profile is a "better Merkel-fit".

Norbert Roettgen, who heads the German parliament's foreign affairs committee, also said that "there is no doubt that there is a major difference" between Fillon and Germany's position on Russia.

"It's not just about Ukraine, but also about whether Europe can remain a whole, a free continent" or is once again divided between a "free Europe and a zone of Russian influence", he told AFP.

"Sanctions are precisely the expression of a united rejection of Russia's position, which holds that might is right," he added.

"We have a fundamental disagreement on the issue of Russia and we need to speak about this with Francois Fillon."

BERLIN: Francois Fillon, frontrunner to become France's next president, has sparked unease in Germany with his friendly attitude toward Russia, which could make him an uncomfortable ally for Chancellor Angela Merkel. Fillon secured the nomination of the French conservative Republicans on Sunday with a resounding victory over his more moderate challenger Alain Juppe. Opinion polls currently predict that he would handily beat far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen in the knock-out finals of next May's presidential elections. That in itself is cause for relief in Germany, France's traditional core EU partner, which has been rattled by the US election of Donald Trump, the Brexit vote and the rise of right-wing populism in Europe. "Any French president who is not Marine Le Pen is good news for the German government," said Stefani Weiss, analyst on European issues at think tank the Bertelsmann Foundation. There are other reasons why a Merkel-Fillon duo at the heart of Europe should at first glance be a good fit. Both are from the conservative political family and rooted in the Christian faith, he a Catholic and she a Protestant. The Frenchman's pledges to drastically shake up the economy and slash state spending are welcomed by the German government, which staunchly preaches austerity and balanced books. Fillon, a self-professed Thatcherite, is depicted in Germany like a French version of former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who drove home painful social welfare reforms in the early 2000s. While deeply contested in those days, the policies of Schroeder, a Social Democrat, have since been credited with bringing down unemployment and making the German economy more competitive. But scratch a little deeper, and stark differences emerge between Fillon and Merkel, from their attitudes towards gay rights -- Fillon opposes gay marriage -- to their visions on how Europe should be run. The French former prime minister sees a bloc piloted by individual states rather than by Brussels, while Germany is content to let the European Commission police certain issues, including the level of state deficits. On the thorny subject of refugees and migration, Merkel wants a quota system in place for each EU member to take their share of asylum seekers. This might be a tough sell for Fillon, who has argued that France has a "problem linked to Islam". But most crucially the two differ on foreign policy, and on how Russia should be handled. Fillon, accused by his critics of being too close to President Vladimir Putin, has called for the lifting of sanctions that were imposed after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine. He believes the EU and United States "provoked" Russia by expanding NATO's presence into eastern Europe. Fillon has also urged an alliance with Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime against the Islamic State group. These positions differ with those of Merkel, who has kept the phone lines open to Putin but adopted a firm approach against Russia's encroachment in Ukraine. She is worried by Trump's admiration for Putin, has condemned Russian bombing of Syria's Aleppo as "inhumane and cruel", and refused to rule out imposing further sanctions on Moscow. "In the diplomatic arena, there may be problems between Fillon and Berlin, with the first issue being policies vis-a-vis Russia," said Barbara Kunz of the Study Committee on French-German Relations. Kunz said all this meant that, "even if no one is saying it openly, the Germans prefer Alain Juppe". A member of the chancellor's party, speaking on condition of anonymity, agreed on this point, saying that the former prime minister's less hardline profile is a "better Merkel-fit". Norbert Roettgen, who heads the German parliament's foreign affairs committee, also said that "there is no doubt that there is a major difference" between Fillon and Germany's position on Russia. "It's not just about Ukraine, but also about whether Europe can remain a whole, a free continent" or is once again divided between a "free Europe and a zone of Russian influence", he told AFP. "Sanctions are precisely the expression of a united rejection of Russia's position, which holds that might is right," he added. "We have a fundamental disagreement on the issue of Russia and we need to speak about this with Francois Fillon."
By PTI

LONDON: A top UK general who was part of the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State terrorists in the Middle East today said that a large amount of intelligence had been obtained on the dreaded terror group's plans to target Europe.

Major-General Rupert Jones, the deputy commander of the US-led operations against the militants, said the files had been retrieved in July by Western-backed Kurdish and Arab militias from the former Islamic State (ISIS) stronghold of Manbij, in the Aleppo governorate of northern Syria.

Jones told some British newspapers that an even bigger haul of data about ISIS was expected to be uncovered in the terrorists' stronghold of Mosul, in northern Iraq, which he predicted would fall by the early half of next year.

"Manbij was hugely important for external operations. A huge amount of intelligence gathered in Manbij related to threats in Europe and elsewhere," he said.

"I am absolutely certain that an extraordinary amount of intelligence will come out of Mosul. We have ramped up as a coalition our ability to gather and process all that intelligence, because it will be a labyrinth of intelligence and we need to get that into the hands of intelligence agencies," he said.

While specific plots against Britain had not yet emerged, he said he was in no doubt that ISIS, also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh, remained a threat.

"If we want to keep Britain safe, if we want to keep Europe safe, then we need to come and deal with Daesh," Jones said.

Heavy fighting continues in Mosul where Iraqi security forces began an assault to drive out ISIS nearly six weeks ago. The upcoming struggle for Raqqa will be worse, Jones predicted.

"What we are now in the process of doing is starting the isolation of Raqqa. For as long as Raqqa is sitting there, they can orchestrate external operations. So the sooner it is liberated or the sooner Daesh are liberated from there, the better," he said.

Jones stressed that an "extraordinary amount of progress" had been made by Western-backed Iraqi and Syrian forces.

LONDON: A top UK general who was part of the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State terrorists in the Middle East today said that a large amount of intelligence had been obtained on the dreaded terror group's plans to target Europe. Major-General Rupert Jones, the deputy commander of the US-led operations against the militants, said the files had been retrieved in July by Western-backed Kurdish and Arab militias from the former Islamic State (ISIS) stronghold of Manbij, in the Aleppo governorate of northern Syria. Jones told some British newspapers that an even bigger haul of data about ISIS was expected to be uncovered in the terrorists' stronghold of Mosul, in northern Iraq, which he predicted would fall by the early half of next year. "Manbij was hugely important for external operations. A huge amount of intelligence gathered in Manbij related to threats in Europe and elsewhere," he said. "I am absolutely certain that an extraordinary amount of intelligence will come out of Mosul. We have ramped up as a coalition our ability to gather and process all that intelligence, because it will be a labyrinth of intelligence and we need to get that into the hands of intelligence agencies," he said. While specific plots against Britain had not yet emerged, he said he was in no doubt that ISIS, also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh, remained a threat. "If we want to keep Britain safe, if we want to keep Europe safe, then we need to come and deal with Daesh," Jones said. Heavy fighting continues in Mosul where Iraqi security forces began an assault to drive out ISIS nearly six weeks ago. The upcoming struggle for Raqqa will be worse, Jones predicted. "What we are now in the process of doing is starting the isolation of Raqqa. For as long as Raqqa is sitting there, they can orchestrate external operations. So the sooner it is liberated or the sooner Daesh are liberated from there, the better," he said. Jones stressed that an "extraordinary amount of progress" had been made by Western-backed Iraqi and Syrian forces.
By PTI

BEIJING: Over 5,000 passengers were today stranded at the Urumqi airport in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region as a heavy snowstorm forced cancellation of over 40 flights, officials said.

Blizzards and freezing fog hit the region beginning early on Monday, forcing the runway to close in the regional capital of Urumqi, said a manager with the airport's operation center. As of 10 am, 42 flights had been delayed and eight others canceled, Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying.

Another four flights diverted to Kashgar airport in Xinjiang, he said.

BEIJING: Over 5,000 passengers were today stranded at the Urumqi airport in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region as a heavy snowstorm forced cancellation of over 40 flights, officials said. Blizzards and freezing fog hit the region beginning early on Monday, forcing the runway to close in the regional capital of Urumqi, said a manager with the airport's operation center. As of 10 am, 42 flights had been delayed and eight others canceled, Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying. Another four flights diverted to Kashgar airport in Xinjiang, he said.
By Associated Press

DORTMUND: Horst Wenzel, dubbed Germany's "Mr. Flirt," has been volunteering his services to teach young Muslim men who grew up in vastly different cultures how to approach women in Germany. Normally, Wenzel's students are wealthy but shy German men, but after the arrival of hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers in Germany  most of them young single men  he decided to offer his advice to migrants as well.

Here's some of his advice:

THE APPROACH: If you see a woman you like, don't ask her if you can talk to her; just do it.

FOCUS YOUR QUESTIONS: If you fire non-stop questions at her, she'll run away. Come up with something that makes her talk about herself.

TAKE THE INITIATIVE: Even Germany's emancipated women often like the man to take the initiative. Surprise her with unique pick-up lines; suggest original dates.

UNUSUAL COMPLIMENTS: Don't tell her she has pretty eyes; she's heard that a million times. Come up with something more unique: "I love the scent of your perfume," or "your voice is very beautiful."

UNIQUE DATES: Don't ask her out for coffee; make it the theater, a concert, rock climbing. Or plan something in the future to show you're really interested: Invite her on a trip to Amsterdam or Paris.

BODY CONTACT: Take her hand (not necessarily on the first date!) and see how she reacts. If she stiffens up, that's a bad sign. If she responds with tenderness, you're on the right track.

SEX AND LOVE: It's OK to have sex on the first, second or third date; sex is no big deal in Germany. But don't tell her you love her for at least three months. German women can't stand clinginess.

DORTMUND: Horst Wenzel, dubbed Germany's "Mr. Flirt," has been volunteering his services to teach young Muslim men who grew up in vastly different cultures how to approach women in Germany. Normally, Wenzel's students are wealthy but shy German men, but after the arrival of hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers in Germany  most of them young single men  he decided to offer his advice to migrants as well. Here's some of his advice: THE APPROACH: If you see a woman you like, don't ask her if you can talk to her; just do it. FOCUS YOUR QUESTIONS: If you fire non-stop questions at her, she'll run away. Come up with something that makes her talk about herself. TAKE THE INITIATIVE: Even Germany's emancipated women often like the man to take the initiative. Surprise her with unique pick-up lines; suggest original dates. UNUSUAL COMPLIMENTS: Don't tell her she has pretty eyes; she's heard that a million times. Come up with something more unique: "I love the scent of your perfume," or "your voice is very beautiful." UNIQUE DATES: Don't ask her out for coffee; make it the theater, a concert, rock climbing. Or plan something in the future to show you're really interested: Invite her on a trip to Amsterdam or Paris. BODY CONTACT: Take her hand (not necessarily on the first date!) and see how she reacts. If she stiffens up, that's a bad sign. If she responds with tenderness, you're on the right track. SEX AND LOVE: It's OK to have sex on the first, second or third date; sex is no big deal in Germany. But don't tell her you love her for at least three months. German women can't stand clinginess.
Coal stocks in the warehouses of thermal power plants (TPP) of Ukraine from November 20 until November 27, 2016 increased by 3.5%, from 1.871 million tonnes to 1.936 million tonnes, Ukrenergo has reported.

In particular, anthracite coal stocks rose by 0.9%, to 940,000 tonnes (including 123,000 tonnes at Luhansk TPP), while gas coal and long-flame coal stocks grew by 6.1%, to 996,000 tonnes (including 125,000 tonnes at Burshtyn TPP).

Ukrenergo said energy consumption in the morning of November 27 was 21.308 GW, while 37 coal power units and two turbine generators at the TPPs generated 7.234 GW. Nuclear power plants (NPPs) showed a capacity of 9.976 GW, hydroelectric power plants 1.783 GW, combined heat and power plants 2.120 MW and alternative energy units 195 MW.

Exports from the Burshtyn TPP energy island on November 20 stood at 163 MW. No exports to Poland, Belarus, Moldova and Russia were reported.
Express News Service

COLOMBO: The increasing activity of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the Indo-Pacific region is worrying the United States, said Adm. Harry B.Harris, Commander of the US Pacific Command, at the Galle Naval Dialogue 2016 here on Monday.

Adm.Harris went on to make a strong case for Maritime Domain Awareness and sharing of information among the countries of the Indo-Pacific Region. He stressed the importance of maritime cooperation as most of the earth is covered by the ocean prompting science writer Arthur C. Clarke to say that our planet should be called ocean rather than earth.

The US admiral called for a rule-based system for navigation in the South China Sea saying that freedom of navigation is the right of all which cannot be withheld by anybody.

The chief of the Indian Navy Adm.Sunil Lamba spoke of the traditional and non-traditional threats to the countries of the Indo-Pacific region and called for the establishment of a Centre for Maritime Cooperation which will coordinate the maritime security activities of the countries of the region .He also called for a Regional Architecture for Maritime Cooperation.

Adm.Lamba gave details of the initiatives taken by India to establish systems for regional maritime cooperation and the many joint exercises it has held with various countries of the region. As result of such cooperation there has not been a single case of piracy in the Arabian Sea since 2014, he pointed out. He said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis Neighborhood First policy helps maritime cooperation in the region.

Non-traditional threats such as those from terrorists, smugglers, human traffickers and pirates, dominate the scene. Traditional threats like maritime disputes between states have been sorted out amicably like the one between India and Bangladesh which was resolved by the two countries accepting the ruling of the UN Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague in 2014.

The Indian Naval chief asked maritime strategists to ponder over the challenges posed by climate change as rising sea levels would have a deleterious impact on coastal regions which tend to be densely populated.

Adm.Lamba urged countries to settle the dispute over the South China Sea to ensure the freedom of navigation within the framework of the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Rear Admiral Wang Dazhong ,Assitant to Chief of Staff of the Chinese navy, called for a democratic approach to issues of navigation and said that no country can consider itself to be omnipotent or stay aloof from issues of maritime security. He called for a system based on consultations with all the stake holders.

Adm. Dazhong said that China is a builder of maritime security because its One Belt One Road policy to promote global development is based on the maintenance of peace and security.

The Sri Lankan navy chief, Vice Admn.Ravindra Wijegunaratne, said that Sri Lanka could play a key role in maritime security in the region as it has developed the technique of tackling terrorists at sea.

COLOMBO: The increasing activity of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the Indo-Pacific region is worrying the United States, said Adm. Harry B.Harris, Commander of the US Pacific Command, at the Galle Naval Dialogue 2016 here on Monday. Adm.Harris went on to make a strong case for Maritime Domain Awareness and sharing of information among the countries of the Indo-Pacific Region. He stressed the importance of maritime cooperation as most of the earth is covered by the ocean prompting science writer Arthur C. Clarke to say that our planet should be called ocean rather than earth. The US admiral called for a rule-based system for navigation in the South China Sea saying that freedom of navigation is the right of all which cannot be withheld by anybody. The chief of the Indian Navy Adm.Sunil Lamba spoke of the traditional and non-traditional threats to the countries of the Indo-Pacific region and called for the establishment of a Centre for Maritime Cooperation which will coordinate the maritime security activities of the countries of the region .He also called for a Regional Architecture for Maritime Cooperation. Adm.Lamba gave details of the initiatives taken by India to establish systems for regional maritime cooperation and the many joint exercises it has held with various countries of the region. As result of such cooperation there has not been a single case of piracy in the Arabian Sea since 2014, he pointed out. He said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis Neighborhood First policy helps maritime cooperation in the region. Non-traditional threats such as those from terrorists, smugglers, human traffickers and pirates, dominate the scene. Traditional threats like maritime disputes between states have been sorted out amicably like the one between India and Bangladesh which was resolved by the two countries accepting the ruling of the UN Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague in 2014. The Indian Naval chief asked maritime strategists to ponder over the challenges posed by climate change as rising sea levels would have a deleterious impact on coastal regions which tend to be densely populated. Adm.Lamba urged countries to settle the dispute over the South China Sea to ensure the freedom of navigation within the framework of the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Rear Admiral Wang Dazhong ,Assitant to Chief of Staff of the Chinese navy, called for a democratic approach to issues of navigation and said that no country can consider itself to be omnipotent or stay aloof from issues of maritime security. He called for a system based on consultations with all the stake holders. Adm. Dazhong said that China is a builder of maritime security because its One Belt One Road policy to promote global development is based on the maintenance of peace and security. The Sri Lankan navy chief, Vice Admn.Ravindra Wijegunaratne, said that Sri Lanka could play a key role in maritime security in the region as it has developed the technique of tackling terrorists at sea.
By Associated Press

SAO PAULO: An explosion in an aerosol factory on the outskirts of Brazil's largest city injured at least 16 people on Monday, according to firefighters.

Images in local media showed towering flames and thick clouds of black smoke rising Monday morning from the factory in Diadema, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) south of the city center.

Methane, butane and propane were present at the factory, which was producing aerosol cans, according to Cpl. Cordeiro of the Sao Paulo state fire service. Firefighters had earlier described it as an insecticide factory.

Of the people injured, 13 were firefighters and were being treated for their wounds at local hospitals and at the site of the explosion, Cordeiro said. Three civilians were also injured and were treated at the site and let go.

Nearly 70 firefighters responded to the initial blaze, and more than two dozen were still at the scene Monday evening. The cause of the explosion and fire was unclear, Cordeiro said.

SAO PAULO: An explosion in an aerosol factory on the outskirts of Brazil's largest city injured at least 16 people on Monday, according to firefighters. Images in local media showed towering flames and thick clouds of black smoke rising Monday morning from the factory in Diadema, about 12 miles (20 kilometers) south of the city center. Methane, butane and propane were present at the factory, which was producing aerosol cans, according to Cpl. Cordeiro of the Sao Paulo state fire service. Firefighters had earlier described it as an insecticide factory. Of the people injured, 13 were firefighters and were being treated for their wounds at local hospitals and at the site of the explosion, Cordeiro said. Three civilians were also injured and were treated at the site and let go. Nearly 70 firefighters responded to the initial blaze, and more than two dozen were still at the scene Monday evening. The cause of the explosion and fire was unclear, Cordeiro said.
Ukraine and Turkey intend to increase goods turnover in the category of agricultural products in the coming years in view of the forthcoming agreement on a free trade area (FTA).

"I hope that our trade volumes will double in the near future," Deputy Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock of Turkey Mehmet Danis said during the Ukrainian-Turkish agricultural business forum in Kyiv.

According to him, over the past 13 years agricultural production in Turkey was steadily growing. Now exports of agricultural products from the country stand at $17 billion, while imports of agricultural products at $11 billion. Turkey delivers 1,600 items of agricultural goods to 192 countries.

"Ukraine is the second country in terms of cooperation in agriculture... Negotiations on the FTA will finish and our trade relations will gain a new impetus," the Turkish official said.

Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Agricultural Policy and Food for European Integration Olha Trofimtseva at the forum said trade turnover in agriculture between Ukraine and Turkey in 2015 was about $1 billion, over the ten months of 2016 some $700 million.

"Turkey ranks seventh among the importers of Ukrainian agricultural products and third among the countries exporting agricultural products to Ukraine following Germany and Poland," she said.
Fitch Ratings has affirmed PJSC CB PrivatBank's (Privat) and Bank Pivdennyi's (PB) Long-Term Foreign Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at 'CCC', reads a posting on the rating agency's website.

"The IDRs are driven by the banks' respective standalone creditworthiness, as expressed by the 'ccc' Viability Ratings (VRs). The VRs reflect weak asset quality, limited additional loss absorption capacity and modest core profitability that makes the banks' credit profiles highly vulnerable to further recognition of asset impairment. The VRs also consider the banks' relatively stable regulatory capital levels compared to direct peers - given moderate additional provisioning requirements so far identified in the sector asset quality review - and funding profiles. The latter is due to reduced deposit volatility as the exchange rate stabilized somewhat since Q1, 2015," the report reads.

"At end-H1, 2016, Privat reported non-performing loans (NPLs, loans more than 90 days overdue) at 12% of total loans and individually impaired loans other than NPLs at a further 28% (end-2015: 12% and 29%, respectively). Reserve coverage of total impaired loans (including NPLs) was a low 37%, with unreserved impaired loans equal to 156% of Fitch Core Capital (FCC). Privat has been required by the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) to obtain additional collateral for a significant portion of corporate loans, a process which started in 2016 and will likely be extended at least into 2017. Collateral structures and property valuations will be crucial in determining future reserve requirements," according to the statement.

"High related-party lending, large borrower and sector concentrations (the largest oil trading segment accounted for 20% of loans) and a still material share of FX-lending (49% of total), mostly to unhedged borrowers, remain sources of heightened credit risk. Related-party lending was reported in IFRS accounts at a high 19% of loans (equal to 109% of FCC) at end-H1, 2016 (end-2015: 18% and 119%, respectively), but in Fitch's view this may not fully capture all exposures to affiliated entities, given limitations on ownership transparency in Ukraine," Fitch said.

"The FCC ratio was 12% at end-H1, 2016, and Privat reported a total regulatory capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of around 10% at end-Q3, 2016. The latter was just in line with the usual regulatory minimum level, although the NBU has allowed banks to have CARs as low as 5% in 2016-2017, before raising the minimum requirement back to 10% by 2019. Regulatory forbearance in respect to only gradual strengthening of loan book quality and provisioning is important for Privat's reported solvency, in Fitch's view," the agency experts stated.

"Weak performance, driven by increased funding and credit risk costs, means that internal capital generation has been inadequate. Pre-impairment profit, adjusted for interest income accrued but not received in cash, was negative in the nine months of 2016. Sector deposit trends have stabilized in the nine months of 2016, and Privat has reported steady inflows. The bank's schedule of external debt repayments appears manageable following a restructuring in 2015. At end-9M16, the bank's FX-liquidity cushion of $670 million was sufficient to repay all wholesale external debt, although the stability of the bank's highly dollarized deposit funding is also key to maintaining FX liquidity. Net of scheduled external wholesale debt repayments in the next 12 months, FX liquidity covered around 11% of FX deposits at end-Q3, 2016," the document reads.

"Privat's UAH-liquidity is highly reliant on deposit trends and access to NBU funding. Fitch views Privat's financial flexibility as limited in light of scheduled repayments of NBU funding (equal to 9% of end-Q3, 2016 total liabilities) to August 2017. However, our base case expectation is that local currency liquidity support will be available for Privat from the NBU, as long as the regulator views the bank's solvency as adequate. Privat's systemic importance is underlined by the bank's 36% market share in retail deposits," the experts said.

"At end-H1, 2016, PB reported NPLs at 9% of total loans, and individually impaired loans (other than NPLs) contributed a further 20% of loans (end-2015: 11% and 23%, respectively). Reserve coverage of total impaired loans (including NPLs) was low at 45%, reflecting the bank's reliance on loan collateral. Recovery rates on these could be significantly constrained by a difficult operating environment, while additional downside risks to asset quality also stem from large borrower concentrations and FX lending (67% of the total), the latter mostly to weakly hedged borrowers," according to the posting.

"PB's loss absorption capacity is limited, with a regulatory CAR of around 10% at end-Q3, 2016. Fitch does not expect this to improve markedly given only moderate recapitalisation plans to end-2017 (equal to around 11% of end-Q3, 2016 regulatory capital). We expect pressure on PB's capital to remain significant as the bank's unreserved impaired loans were a high 92% of FCC at end-H1, 2016, and annualized pre-impairment profit (net of non-core revenues), at 0.3% of average gross loans in H1, 2016, offered only negligible capacity to absorb additional credit losses," the rating agency said.

"We expect pre-impairment performance to be constrained by still high, although gradually decreasing, funding and credit risk costs," the experts added.

"PB's deposit base remained generally stable in the nine months of 2016, reflecting broader sector trends. The bank has limited reliance on wholesale markets, while its liquidity management, in particular in FX, is highly reliant on access to FX liquidity through its Latvian subsidiary. Should this access become more constrained, PB's FX liquidity position would likely weaken significantly," the report says.

"Both banks' Support Rating Floors of 'No Floor' and Support Rating of '5' reflect Fitch's view that support cannot be relied on due to the Ukrainian authorities' limited financial flexibility to provide extraordinary support to banks, the two banks' private ownership and, in the case of PB, its limited systemic importance. Potential support from the shareholders, while possible, is also not factored into the ratings, as its probability cannot be reliably assessed," it states.

"The banks' VRs and IDRs could be downgraded if further deterioration in asset quality results in capital erosion, without sufficient support being provided by the shareholders, or if deposit outflows sharply erode banks' liquidity, in particular in foreign currency. Further stabilization of the country's economic prospects, combined with an improvement of banks' loss absorption capacity, would reduce downward pressure on ratings. However, an upgrade of either of the banks would probably require a significant strengthening of asset quality," the agency said.

The rating actions are as follows:

PrivatBank

Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency IDRs: affirmed at 'CCC'

Short-Term Foreign Currency IDR: affirmed at 'C'

Viability Rating: affirmed at 'ccc'

Senior unsecured debt of UK SPV Credit Finance plc: affirmed at 'CCC'/Recovery Rating 'RR4'

Support Rating: affirmed at '5'

Support Rating Floor: affirmed at 'No Floor'

National Long-Term Rating: downgraded to 'BB(ukr) ' from 'A-(ukr)', Negative Outlook

Pivdennyi Bank:

Long-Term Foreign Currency IDR: affirmed at 'CCC'

Short-Term Foreign Currency IDR: affirmed at 'C'

Support Rating: affirmed at '5'

Support Rating Floor: affirmed at 'No Floor'

Viability Rating: affirmed at 'ccc'
Spain will always help Ukraine in the implementation of its European aspirations, supports prompt completion of ratification of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement (AA), as well as immediate provision of the visa-free regime for Ukrainian citizens, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy assured Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.

According to a report posted on the Ukrainian president's website, Poroshenko congratulated Rajoy on his election as prime minister of Spain. The Ukrainian president thanked the Spanish premier the official Madrid's immutable support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. "Spain resolutely supports and will always support territorial integrity of Ukraine," Rajoy said.

Poroshenko praised Spain's positive vote during the consideration of the UN GA resolution on human rights violations in Crimea by the Third Committee.

The two officials agreed to step up efforts for the soonest signing of the agreement on the common air space between Ukraine and the EU.

Poroshenko and Rajoy spoke for the further enhancement of bilateral political dialogue and discussed the exchange of visits.
Sefcovic tells Poroshenko about his visit to Russia, further joint coordinated actions

President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has held a telephone conversation with European Commission Vice President Maros Sevcovic.

"Sevcovic has informed the president about the results of his visit to Russia on November 25," the press service of the Ukrainian president said on Saturday.

Poroshenko thanked the vice president of the European Commission for his personal role he plays in deepening the strategic partnership between Ukraine and the European Union in the energy sector.

"The two sides have coordinated further steps towards improving the security of energy supplies to Ukraine and the EU," the report says.
The Russian authorities are preparing for a large-scale provocation against Ukraine in Belarus, an MP, Chairman of the Standing Delegation of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada in NATO PA Iryna Friz said on her Facebook page.

"Russian TV channel Star (Zvezda), owned by the Russian Ministry of Defense showed a Soviet propaganda-styled news item about the alleged preparations by Ukraine against the Republic of Belarus. The news item says that Ukrainian intelligence agencies plan to send "a hit squad" of Belarusian origin to Minsk to overthrow the current government in this country," the message says.

This story, according to Friz, is an element of the Russian Federations preparation to a large-scale provocation against Ukraine on the territory of Belarus. The MP links this provocation with the fivefold increase of railway transportation volume of the Russian Defense Ministry to Belarus in 2017.

"The purpose of such action may be the elimination of the Lukashenko regime, the introduction of Russian troops, imposition of direct Russian control, as well as stationing Russian Armed Forces on the eastern border of the European Union. The aim is to increase political pressure on Europe," Friz said.

According to Friz, militants who took part in hostilities in Donbas, regular units of special operations forces of Russian Federation and Russian agents serving in Belarusian security agencies may be involved in the planned provocations.
A police vehicle has entered the internal yard of the Kyiv Sviatoshynsky District Court, where the questioning of Ukraine's ex-president Viktor Yanukovych is expected to be conducted via a televised linkup on Monday.

The police vehicle is probably carrying members of the Berkut police riot, who stand accused in the case involving the shooting of protesters on the Maidan (Independence Square) in early 2014,an Interfax correspondent reported.

Law enforcement officials currently refuse to comment.

At the same time, there are over 100 media assistants in the court building. There are several dozen people near the court building.

According to earlier reports, Yanukovych was expected to be questioned as a witness in the Kyiv Sviatoshynsky District Court via a televised linkup on Friday. Up to 100 Right Sector activists prevented five accused former Berkut members from leaving the Lukyanovske detention facility to go to the court building.

The court later rescheduled the hearing where Yanukovych was expected to be questioned via a televised linkup for 1:00 p.m. Kyiv time on November 28, 2016.
The head of Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office Yuriy Lutsenko has said ex-President Viktor Yanukovych has been indicted for treason.

"Taking into account that Yanukovych is not in Ukraine and is hiding from Ukrainian law-enforcement agencies, I will orally inform him one hour ago today official notice was sent to all known addresses of Yanukovych and his lawyer  I accuse Yanukovych as a Ukrainian citizen, of opening the door to the aggressor ," Lutsenko said in Kyivs Sviatoshynsky district court during a recess in court proceedings on Monday.

"[Yanukovych] committed state treason  with the aim of assisting the Russian Federation (RF) to violate Ukraine's sovereignty, hoping to receiving the assistance and protection from representatives of the Russian Federation for living in that country and avoiding criminal responsibility [for his actions] in Ukraine  providing military units of the army of the Russian Federation the appearance of legitimacy for invading and occupying Crimea, while knowing the obvious illegality of his own actions, composed, signed and sent written appeals to the Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin a request to use the RF armed forces in Ukraine, and in doing so assisted in carrying out destabilizing activities against Ukraine, as well as assisting RF officials and the RF military in conducting an aggressive war against Ukraine and committing deliberate acts with the aim of redrawing Ukraine's state borders  This resulted in serious consequences, including the violation of Ukraine's territorial integrity and the occupation of Crimea, as well as damages to Ukraine, which, as a result, lost state enterprises and property valued at more than UAH 1.8 trillion," Lutsenko said, reading the text of the indictment.

The PGO head said, "Taking into account this hearing is being conducted by Skype, I remind citizen Yanukovych this indictment against him is made by Ukraine's military prosecutor's office and has been given to his lawyer."

Addressing Yanukovych, Lutsenko reminded him of his procedural rights in court.

"And now, not as the PGO head, I accuse Yanukovych, a Ukrainian citizen, of opening the doors to aggression by our neighboring state and of violating the territorial integrity of Ukraine."

Lutsenko said the indictment is pursuant to two articles of Ukraines Criminal Code  Articles 100 and 111 (treason and violating territorial integrity of Ukraine).

After Lutsenko read the text of the indictment, representatives of Ukraine's military prosecutor's office served the text of the indictment to Yanukovych's lawyer Ihor Fedorenko, who was present in the courtroom.

Fedorenko said, "I hope, as a lawyer, that you have observed the procedure for notifying the suspect in accordance with law. I hope you understand that serving a copy of the indictment to lawyer is not the same as official notification, but merely giving the lawyer a copy of a document."

Lutsenko later near the courthouse told journalists that Yanukovych is suspected of committing at least 10 crimes.

"Yanukovych will ultimately be a suspect in each of criminal investigations," he said.
Ukraine's ex-president Viktor Yanukovych has asked the court to take into account U.S. experts' decisions on the events that occurred on the Maidan in 2013-2014 and investigate the killings of civilian participants in the events in central Kyiv together with the killings of law enforcement officials.

Yanukovych began his speech in court as a witness in the case involving former members of the special task unit Berkut via a televised linkup from Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on Monday, with free comments and the lawyers for the aggrieved party said they are concerned that the ex-president is using the time allocated to representatives of the aggrieved party, an Interfax correspondent has reported.

Specifically, Yanukovych asked the court to take into account the materials of the American study of the events that occurred on the Maidan. "The decisions made on the basis of this study state that ultra-right and oligarchic parties were involved in the killings of protesters and police on the Maidan on February 20, 2014," he said.

Serhiy Diachuk, the judge chairing the Sviatoshyn District Court, for his part, said the court will study these materials if they are filed with the case materials, but it is now more important for the court to receive information possessed by Yanukovych.

"If issues relating to the killings of protesters on the Maidan are considered, the killings of the law enforcement officials who were also killed in the course of the events should definitely be investigated, and therefore I would ask you to file my personal opinion with the case materials [...] It will considerably help the court determine the truth," Yanukovych said.
Ukraine's foreign minister Pavlo Klimkin will present the Ukrainian version of a plan to settle the situation in eastern Ukraine at a meeting of the foreign ministers of the Normandy Four nations due to be held in Minsk on November 29.

"At the meeting of the Normandy Four foreign ministers I am going to put primary emphases on the security and humanitarian issue, in particular the release of our political hostages, providing access to them for international organizations, the Red Cross. And I will also insist, of course, on our vision of the roadmap which will be able to make real progress in the situation," Klimkin told a press conference held jointly with Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom in Kyiv on Monday.

It is unlikely to be possible to reach a joint vision with Moscow regarding the roadmap for implementation of the Minsk agreements, he said.

"Whereas with France and Germany we do have a shared vision of the roadmap on key points, with Russia we are very far from even a common joint vision. I am fairly skeptical about us reaching agreement tomorrow on the main issues of this roadmap," he said.

Security and humanitarian issues are Ukraine's priorities, the foreign ministers said.
Food deals, seals and the 'Karate Kid': Can't-miss events this weekend

Get your fill at area restaurants, watch some seals, laugh at a comedy show, take in a concert and maybe even leave Newport County for some fun.
Reporter/Columnist

Julie Wurth is a reporter covering the University of Illinois at The News-Gazette. Her email is jwurth@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@jawurth).
Ukraine's disgraced ex-president Viktor Yanukovych has said that Serhiy Liovochkin, who was head of his administration during the protests on Maidan, could have been involved in the dispersal of the Euromaidan in the early hours of November 30, 2013.

"Yes, he could have been involved in it. It's possible. But I personally did not have any evidence of that. And the investigators failed to find it," Yanukovych said during the questioning via a televised linkup from Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on Monday.

"Because if it was the case, let the authorities prove it now. If they don't prove it, let it be on his [Liovochkin's] conscience. If he is innocent, then those who said those things about him should apologize. It should also be decided by court," Yanukovych said.

"At the same time, Yanukovych called the Euromaidan events "organized and planned provocations by those who wanted a change of the administration."

On November 23, Ukraine's Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Liovochkin is responsible for the dispersal of protesters on the Maidan. Liovochkin, for his part, said the unjustified cruelty of the police against students on the Maidan on November 30, 2013 was the reason why he left the post of presidential administration head.
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Professor Mark Viant THOUGHT LEADERS SERIES ...insight from the worlds leading experts

An interview with Professor Mark Viant, University of Birmingham, UK, Executive Director of Phenome Centre Birmingham and Director of the NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility

Please can you give an introduction to the new Phenome Centre Birmingham, how does this fit into the international network of phenome centres being created?

The new Phenome Centre Birmingham is an eight-million-pound research facility that has been funded by the Medical Research Council, by the University of Birmingham, and by four industry partners, namely, Beckman Coulter, Bruker, ThermoFisher Scientific and Waters. It is a clinical phenotyping centre.

It's the third of the phenome centres to open around the world following the National Phenome Centre at Imperial College, London and the Singapore Phenome Centre.

Opening of the Phenome Center at the University of Birmingham Play

Opening of the Phenome Center at the University of Birmingham from AZoNetwork on Vimeo.

What impact will the Phenome Centre Birmingham have on metabolomics research?

The Phenome Centre in Birmingham, at least initially, will focus on a lot of the collaborations and research interests of clinical scientists here in the Birmingham Health Partners, which is a partnership of different local hospitals and the University of Birmingham itself.

We collaborate strongly with clinical scientists in the local hospitals here in Birmingham. We'll be focusing on the following disease areas: blood cancers, inflammatory diseases, reproductive medicine, endocrinology and a number of other related fields.

What NMR facilities are available in the Phenome Centre Birmingham and who will have access to these?

We are very lucky to have extremely high quality mass spectrometry and NMR spectroscopy facilities. We have two Bruker 600 MegaHertz NMR spectrometers and a total of eleven mass spectrometers from Waters and from ThermoFisher Scientific. Lots of people will have access to these capabilities through the collaborative research service that we offer through the Phenome Centre Birmingham.

How collaborative will the research be here at the Phenome Centre?

Phenome Centre Birmingham's research is naturally going to be collaborative. You can't do metabolomics in a non-collaborative sense. You really need to have the integration of the metabolomics scientists with the clinical scientists and the informaticians and so forth.

Just as our research projects for the last decade in metabolomics have been highly collaborative, we expect exactly that same sort of collaborative mentality in the projects that the Phenome Centre undertakes.

NMR in Metabolomics Play

NMR in Metabolomics from AZoNetwork on Vimeo.

What do you think the future holds for metabolic phenotyping with regards to medical research and stratified medicine?

These really are exciting times for the future of metabolic phenotyping in medicine. We're at a point now where we have the analytical capability and the computational capability to collect very large data sets, mine those data sets and really find markers that are going to help to stratify patients into different disease groups to try and pinpoint which drugs a particular individual should take versus another individual with apparently the same sort of disease. I think there's great potential right now and in the next few years. We hope to see these metabolite measurements rolling more into the clinical scenario.

How do you hope to raise awareness of metabolomics via the Phenome Centre Birmingham?

Part of Phenome Centre Birmingham's mission and part of the metabolomics research here at the University of Birmingham is to spread awareness of metabolomics. We really are keen to get the word metabolomics out into the general public and for them to have an appreciation of what it means.

Metabolomics has for a long time been the little sister to genomics. Genomics is a term that many lay people and the general public would recognize and know a little bit about, but if you ask them what metabolomics is, they're surely not going to know at all.

One event that we first ran in September 2015 and are re-running again this year is a massive open online course or MOOC. This is an online awareness training course. When we ran it for the first time last year, we had two and a half thousand people including the general public and amateur scientists from across the world taking this online course and learning about metabolomics. The course makes people generally aware of what metabolomics is and what it can do for them.

About Professor Mark Viant

Mark Viant is a Professor of Metabolomics in the School of Biosciences at the University of Birmingham, UK, Executive Director of Phenome Centre Birmingham and Director of the NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility, two of the UKs national metabolomics centres.

As a passionate advocate for the growth of the metabolomics community, he leads training and outreach through the Birmingham Metabolomics Training Centre and as the ELIXIR-UK Sector Lead for metabolomics.

Mark is also a past President of the International Metabolomics Society. His research programme and interests encompass the development of optimised analytical and computational workflows for metabolomics and the applications of these technologies to investigate the metabolic pathways underlying toxicity and disease, both in the context of human and environmental health.

He is particularly fascinated by chemical and nanomaterial toxicology in non-animal invertebrate model organisms, for example Daphnia, and the translation of metabolomics based discovery research into mechanistically based tools for chemical safety and environmental diagnostics.

Mark has co-authored over 150 publications and his work has recently been recognised by the award of a 2015 Lifetime Honorary Fellowship of the International Metabolomics Society In recognition of his pioneering work in environmental metabolomics and for his sustained service to the Society. His vision revolutionized the Societys operations and reputation, expanding its reach to all corners of the world.
Cubresa Inc., a medical imaging company that develops and markets molecular imaging systems, today announced that their compact SPECT (Single-Photon Emission Computed Tomography) scanner was used in a study by Dalhousie University and Mount Saint Vincent University researchers in Halifax, Nova Scotia to help evaluate the diagnostic potential of a new molecular label that could lead to the early detection of Alzheimers disease in living patients.

Representative WT (wild-type, left column) and 5XFAD (Alzheimers model, right column) brains at the mid-coronal level. Row A: Histochemical staining of BChE, revealing marked elevation of BChE in AD, notably in the cerebral cortex. C = cerebral cortex, H = hippocampus, BG = basal ganglia, Th = thalamus, A = amygdala. Scale bar = 1mm. Row B: CT with co-registered MR at the same level as Row A. Row C: SPECT images acquired at 4 mins post-injection with co-registered CT/MR and ROIs. Marked retention in the cerebral cortex is evident in the 5XFAD brain compared to the WT brain and to a lesser extent in amygdala, hippocampus, basal ganglia and thalamus. Images courtesy of the Darvesh group and BIOTIC.

Alzheimers disease (AD) is a progressive neurological condition that causes dementia and for which there is no FDA-approved treatment for the underlying disease. There is a need for a non-invasive way to detect and diagnose the disease in living patients because definitive diagnosis still requires post mortem examination.

The study was performed by Dr. Sultan Darvesh and his research group at BIOTIC (Biomedical Translational Imaging Centre) at the Izaak Walton Killam Health Centre in Halifax, and was partially funded by TREVENTIS Corporation of which Dr. Darvesh is a scientific co-founder.

SPECT imaging provides 3D information with a high degree of sensitivity and specificity for detecting the presence of a particular radiolabeled enzyme, in this case the BChE (butyrylcholinesterase) enzyme. Prior research has shown that elevated BChE expression levels are associated with abnormal -amyloid (A) plaques in the brains of Alzheimers patients.

The novel molecular label, TRV6001, was synthesized and determined to bind to BChE with high specificity before being injected into 5XFAD mouse models of Alzheimers Disease. TRV6001 is still under development and has not yet been shown to be safe or effective in humans.

SPECT imaging has provided us the first direct in vivo evidence that the TRV6001 label can cross the blood-brain barrier and actually exhibits higher retention in the brains of AD mice (whose BChE level is markedly elevated) than in normal control brains, said lead author Drew DeBay, Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Medical Neuroscience, Dalhousie University.

In addition, the retention in BChE-associated brain structures was shown to closely follow the known histochemical distribution of BChE that has been previously established in AD mouse models.

Up to now there have been many false-positives. Previous labels were able to bind to A plaquebut A is also present in cognitively normal people. BChE, which we are detecting, is notably absent in the non-Alzheimers brain. Dr. Sultan Darvesh, FRCPC, Professor at the Department of Medical Neuroscience, Dalhousie University.

Alzheimers disease affects so many people and causes such pain and suffering for individuals and their families, said George Abe, CEO of Cubresa. Were pleased to know that our SPECT scanner has contributed to a big step towards developing effective treatments and monitoring their effect.

The research was presented this year at the Alzheimers Association International Conference (AAIC), the worlds largest forum for the dementia research community, in Toronto, Canada.
Maruti Suzuki Ignis, first unveiled at the 2015 Tokyo Motor Show, was slated to be launched in India during the festive season this year. However, heavy number of Vitara Brezza and Baleno on the production line pushed the launch of the sub-4 compact crossover to next year.Ignis will now be launched sometime between January - March 2017. Compared to its counterparts sold in Japan, Ignis is likely to be slightly different in terms of styling and a bit short on features. Maruti plan to sell the Ignis only through Nexa dealerships.With a tall height, large wheel arches and a distinctive front and rear end, the Ignis could compete against others of its kind in the Indian market.Maruti have given it features making it a premium offering. It is expected to come with touchscreen infotainment system with navigation, LED daytime running lamps, smartphone connectivity and Apple CarPlay, dual airbags and ABS, and reverse camera and parking sensor.The Ignis will come with an option of two engines - a modified version of the 1.2-litre K-series petrol unit found on the Swift and Baleno and the 1.3-litre DDiS diesel engine. It'll have two transmission options - a manual and a CVT.Maruti have not made any statement regarding Ignis' pricing. However, considering that it will be sold only through Nexa dealerships, a premium price tag could start around Rs. 5.5 lakh.The Ignis stands to give competition to other compact crossovers like Mahindra KUV100, or indirectly to compact SUVs such as Maruti Vitara Brezza, Ford EcoSport, Hyundai i20 Activ, Mahindra TUV300, Fiat Avventura and Fiat Urban Cross.
Ja bewafa ja, hame pyar nahi karna. NDA to Nitish Kumar  Vivek Mishra (@ivivekhr) June 13, 2013

Sonam Gupta Bewafa Nahin Hai, Nitish Kumar Bewafa hai ~ Kejriwal  Bhakt #RSS (@birajanath) November 27, 2016

Meanwhile lalu yadav is busy writing on notes "Nitish Kumar Bewafa hai"  Sad_indian (@Amit_knc2015) November 27, 2016

Remember Sonar Gupta? Yes, the one who was reportedly bewafaa (unfaithful).Ms Gupta now seems to have found a kindred spirit in Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who, if some reports are to be believed, is likely to commit Bewafaii to his friend and political ally Lalu Prasad Yadav.The photograph of a Rs 10 note on which Nitish Kumar has been accused of being 'faithless' by RJD chief Lalu Yadav has gone viral on social media.This must be seen in the backdrop of PM Modi's demonetization scheme, which was lauded by Nitish Kumar as a good way to curb black money. Lulu Prasad Yadav, on the other hand, has been very vocal in his criticism of PM Modi and demonetisation.The diametrically opposite reaction has quite clearly has led to uneasiness in the RJD-(JDU)-Congress Mahagathbandan, which so emphatically trounced the BJP in the state election, the result of which was declared almost exactly a year from Modi's Nov 8 declaration.Be it Sonam Gupta or Nitish Kumar, one must wonder is everything actually fair in love and war? Or politics, for that matter.
New Delhi: The BJP on Sunday accused National Conference chief and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah of speaking the language of Pakistan and insulting Parliament with his remarks in which he had made light of India's claims over Pak-occupied-Kashmir.



Attacking him, its National Secretary Shrikant Sharma said Abdullah was frustrated after losing power in the state and over the fact that it was returning to normalcy following months of unrest.



"He is speaking the language of Pakistan. He is speaking the language of terrorists like Hafiz Sayeed and Azhar Masood. He is unable to digest the return of the state to normalcy. In his greed for power, he is doing this vote bank politics. It only shows his mental bankruptcy," he said.



Noting that Parliament has passed resolutions reiterating India's claim over PoK, he said Abdullah had insulted Parliament even though he has been a Union Minister as well as a Chief Minister.



"PoK is a part of India and sooner than later we will have our sovereignty over it," he said.



The BJP leader blamed Abdullah family and Gandhi family for the Kashmir issue, saying had they listened to the then Home Minister Sardar Patel, then the problem would not have festered so long. Speaking at a public meeting on Thursday last, Abdullah had said PoK is not "your father's property" as he insisted that neither India nor Pakistan can capture the state's territory falling outside their control.
Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia has dismissed media reports that controversial Indian preacher Zakir Naik had been granted citizenship by the country, saying it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen.



"We don't give out (citizenships) automatically unless the person was born in the country to Malaysian parents," Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed said yesterday, rejecting media reports that the Islamist preacher had been granted citizenship by the country.



"There are many processes to follow and it takes decades to become a Malaysian citizen. Besides, Naik is not an important religious personality for the Southeast Asia region as we should have our own moderate model of Islam which fits the soft culture of the people here," Nur was quoted as saying by the Star online.



However, an ethnic Indian NGO, Hindu Rights Action Force (HINDRAF), said Home Minister Zahid Hamidi had denied Naik was given citizenship, but he was silent whether he was given a Permanent Resident status.



HINDRAF alleged in a statement that Naik had been provided with immunity and support by the Malaysian government and allowed to continue his preaching that "clearly fostered the spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice towards the Non-Muslim community in Malaysia."



Muslim majority Malaysia has a 25 per cent ethnic Chinese who are mostly Buddhists and Christians and eight per cent ethnic Indians, a majority of whom are Hindus.



HINDRAF president Wayathamoorthy alleged that thousands ofMalaysian Indians still continued to live in a "stateless manner."



The National Investigation Agency (NIA) in India has charged Naik and banned his organisation Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) under section 153-A of IPC (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony), besides various sections of anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
Twenty-four hours after the manhunt launched by the the Special Cell of Delhi police, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested on Monday near Delhi-Haryana border."Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police," said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh.He said Delhi police nabbed the dreaded terrorist on the basis of inputs passed on by Punjab police."We passed on the information about Mintoo following which Delhi police arrested him," official said.He said a team of Punjab police will go to Delhi to bring him back.According to sources, Mintoo had made a suspicious phone call to a person in Subhash Nagar in Delhi which was intercepted by police and that led to his arrest.National Security Adviser(NSA) Ajit Doval congratulated police teams of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and UP on the arrest of Mintoo for their alertness and coordination. The NSA also asked the police chiefs of these states to reward the officers who executed this job.It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged "mastermind" of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.On Sunday morning, 10 armed men raided the Jail and managed to free Mintoo and six others. Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal suspended top jail officials and formed a SIT to probe the jailbreak.An eyewitness told CNN-News18, "At around 8 am, ten armed men came to the jail gate in a Verna and a Fortuner car. They were wearing police uniforms and went inside the jail premises without any checking. Later, they sprayed more than 100 rounds of fire at jail security guards and managed to free Khalistan Liberation Force (KLO) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo and four others."As jail security failed to respond to the attack, the Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Suresh Arora said: "We will look into why our firing was not effective."Mintoo, a former member of Babbar Khalsa, was Wanted in 10 terror related cases.Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who also holds the Home portfolio, tweeted: "Pak(istan) desperate to revive terror post-surgical strike. Could be behind jail-break."Launching a scathing attack on the state government, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said Sukhbir Singh Badal must take responsibility for jailbreak and the state's home minister must resign over the issue.The jail-break has put a question mark on security in Punjab ahead of the 'Heart of Asia' conference in Amritsar on December 2 and 3, in which top leaders from various countries are expected to participate.
Two weeks after the winter session began and hardly conducted any business owing to repeated disruption over the demonetisation move by the Centre, there is a slim chance of Parliament functioning for a third consecutive week.

Opposition party members are conducting a Jan Akrosh Rally across the country to highlight the plight of the common man owing to the note ban.

Earlier we have witnessed round of protests by the Opposition as they remained firm on demanding Prime Minister Narendra Modis participation during the debate on demonetisation.

In Rajya Sabha, former prime minister and economist Manmohan Singh led the Congress charge against demonetisation, calling it a case of organised loot and legalised plunder.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley, however, denied accusations and said the Opposition was looking for reasons to run away from the debate.

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#FLASH: Khalistan terrorist Harminder Mintoo, who was arrested by Delhi Police today, brought to Patiala House Court #punjabjailbreak pic.twitter.com/bJQwGMJ2gA

 ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo - after escaping from Punjabs Nabha Jail - took a bus from Kaithal and reached Kurukshetra in Haryana, sources in the police department said.Sources said, Mintoo along with another fugitive took a bus to dodge the police who were primarily checking private cars at all the major intersections and bordering areas of Punjab.He reached Kurukshetra in 20 minutes and from there he took another bus to Panipat and then a bus to New Delhi. We got to know that he booked a ticket to Panvel in Maharashtra and planning to take shelter in Goa, police sources said.After staying for few days in Goa, he was planning to flee abroad. However, his call conversation helped the SIT to arrest him from Delhi on Monday.Addressing a press conference Arvind Deep, Special CP (Special Cell), said, The jailbreak was planned by Gurpreet Singh Sekhon and he helped Mintoo and Kashmira Singh (another KLF terrorist) to escape."Mintoo was not a part of planned escape but he was helped by other gangsters to flee", he said.Mintoo and Kashmira escaped in a SUV and both of them got down at Kaithal in Haryana. Mintoo changed his appearance by trimming his hair, beard and moustache, he said while adding that Kashmira will be arrested soon.On Sunday morning, 10 armed men raided the Jail and managed to free Mintoo and six others.Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal suspended top jail officials and formed a SIT to probe the jailbreak.Twenty-four hours after the manhunt launched by the Special Cell of Delhi police, Mintoo was arrested on Monday near Delhi-Haryana border.He was produced in Patiala House Court in the evening by the Delhi Police and sent to 14 days judicial custody.
Verkhovna Rada Opposition Bloc member and former head of the presidential administration under ex-President Viktor Yanukovych has blamed ex-Interior Minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko and "members of the former repressive machine" for beating protesters on Independence Square [on November 30, 2013].

"Notwithstanding that Zakharchenko and others in 2013 used all means of the repressive machine, they were not able to implicate me because the real guilt for beating people on the night on November 30, 2013 belongs to them," said a press release issued by Liovochkin's press service posted to the official website of the Opposition Bloc on Friday.

In the press release, Liovochkin says current Interior Minister Arsen Avakov and the People's Front Party are attempting to repeat the "exact same provocation  in order to deflect attention from their participation in the organization of the terrorist attack on the Inter TV channel.

The press release says Liovochkin on November 30, 2013 issued a statement concerning the brutal beating carried out by police on Independence Square. It says the reason for Liovochkin's decision to resign as presidential administration head on November 30, 2013 was to protest against the use of force against demonstrators.

Ex-president Yanukovych during skype-questioning on Monday said Liovochkin could have been involved in the beating of protesters on the night of November 30, 2013, but that he did not have proof of this.

"Yes, it is possible he was involved. Perhaps, but I don't have any proof of it and investigators have not established this," Yanukovych said.
The Supreme Court on Monday mulled shifting RJD strongman Mohd. Shahabuddin, facing trial in 45 criminal cases, from Siwan jail in Bihar to Tihar Central Jail in the national capital saying it is test case for the "concept of fair trial and witness protection".



"This is a case which gives a test for criminal jurisprudence on the concept of fair trial and witness protection," a bench of justices Dipak Misra and Amitava Roy said while also favouring all the pending criminal cases in Bihar to Delhi.



The bench adjourned the hearing for tomorrow and asked the advocates to come prepared on the point of transfer of cases and accused to Delhi from Siwan.



At the outset, senior advocate Shekhar Naphade appearing for Shahabuddin said the petition filed by wife of a journalist who was killed in May has sought his transfer out of the jail in Siwan.



He said that the plea is an interested litigation and is politically motivated and just because their are allegations he should not be transferred.



To this the bench said that for the concept of fair trial he can be transferred out of Siwan jail.



Naphade said it will be unfair on his part as he will loose the visitation rights.



"We are not saying you do not have any visitation rights but we have to weigh a balance somewhere," the bench said.



The senior lawyer then said that there are no allegation against him and the only allegation is that police was not acting against me.



"There are only allegations and not a single one is against me. Let CBI investigate whether I was in custody on May 13 when the alleged murder of a journalist took place. Just I am declared hardened criminal and a victim of media trial, I cannot be allowed to move out of Siwan jail," Naphade said.



Additional Solicitor General P S Narasimha appearing for CBI filed its status report in the court and said that it will welcome if the cases are transfered to Delhi.



The bench asked the counsel appearing for Bihar government as how many cases are pending against Shahabuddin to which he said that 44 cases are pending in the state while one case is pending is neighbouring Jharkhand against him.
New Delhi: Seeking to break the deadlock, Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday told Lok Sabha that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will speak on demonetisation if the Opposition wanted, but the rival parties demanding debate with a provision for voting remained unimpressed, forcing the House to adjourn for the second time.



A number of opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge (Cong), Sudip Bandhopadhyay (TMC) and Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP), spoke as they pressed for acceptance of their demand for an adjournment motion, a condition not acceptable to the treasury benches which want a debate without voting.



With the Opposition parties firm on their stand, Singh said nobody is questioning the government's intentions over demonetisation or imputing any malafide.



He said that the government was willing to listen to the complaints and suggestions different parties have over the execution of the demonetisation move.



"As far as the Prime Minister coming to the House is concerned, if the Opposition wants he will come and intervene.



I want to assure the Opposition. We are ready for a discussion," the Home Minister said during the Zero Hour after the Opposition leaders had spoken.



The decision on under which rule the discussion would take place is for the Speaker to make, he said.



Demonetisation is a "historic, bold and pro-poor" decision, Singh said, adding that it was taken to target black money and was in national interest.



However, members of a dissatisfied Opposition rushed to the Well, forcing Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to adjourn the House till 1400 hours.



Earlier, Kharge said demonetisation had harmed the economic system, the farmers, youths, labourers and women among others who are in distress.



Maintaining that over 70 people have died due to the faulty implementation, he cited the incident of a Union Minister facing difficulty in paying hospital bills after his brother died and said it is an evidence of the crisis. Union Minister Sadananda Gowda's brother had died in Karnataka.



"There is only one way to break this deadlock. The Prime Minister should come here (to the House) and our adjournment motion be accepted," Kharge said.



Bandhopadhyay said the government must take initiative to break the impasse as people will ask what does Parliament stand for if it is adjourned every day.



Supporting Kharge, the SP chief said if Modi does not come to the House on such an important matter, then when he will come. Farmers are facing a lot of problems, he said.



Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav (RJD) called the decision impractical and anti-people.



An AIADMK member said the government should take the initiative to ease people's sufferings, while B Mahtab (BJD) said the onus was on the Centre to take steps to break the impasse.



Anandrao Adsul (Shiv Sena) said neither 'Bharat Bandh' nor 'Aakrosh Diwas', which different opposition parties have announced for today, was visible but lamented that the recent announcement of NABARD disbursing Rs 21,000 crore to cooperative banks has not been implemented. The situation remains bad in rural areas, he said.



When the Lok Sabha met again at 2 pm after adjournment, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley rose to introduce a bill to amend the Income Tax Act allow authorities impose 75 per cent tax and 10 percent penalty in case they detect undisclosed wealth deposited post demonetisation.



Members from the opposition parties, who were asking the Speaker to take up their adjournment motion on note ban, rushed to the Well raising slogans. Jaitley then introduced the bill amid din.



The din and slogan shouting against the government continued for another few minutes and the House was adjourned for the day, 10 minutes past 2 pm.
New Delhi: Ahead of a visit by its Foreign Advisor Sartaj Aziz's to India to attend Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar, Pakistan on Monday said it will "positively consider" if India, as a host, proposed a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the forum.



However, none of the two has approached each other in this regard, Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit said.



"As a host, if India approaches us with a proposal (for talks on the sidelines), Pakistan will positively consider it," Basit told a news channel.



Aziz's would be the first high-level visit from Pakistan after the announcement of Comprehensive Bilateral Dialogue (CBD) in December last year which never took off in the wake of terror strikes, including the Pathankot airbase attack by Pakistan-based terror groups in January, and subsequent incidents which led to intense tension between the two countries.



India has been non-committal about holding bilateral talks with Aziz but has made it clear that "talks and terror cannot go hand in hand".
: BJP on Monday emerged as a major gainer in the first phase of municipal council polls winning 39 municipal chief's posts of the 147 urban local bodies, dealing a blow to Congress and NCP in the keenly fought elections, whose campaign centred around issues like demonetisation.Trends and results pouring in from around the state showed the BJP making inroads into the Congress and NCP strongholds.Polls were also held for 17 nagar panchayats on Sunday. As per the trends available till late afternoon, BJP is ahead with its candidates winning 455 seats, its ally Shiv Sena with 187, NCP 231 and Congress 333.In the last elections, BJP tally was 298, Sena 264, Congress 771 and NCP 916.However, in Parli municipal council in Beed district, Women and Child Development Minister Pankaja Munde of the BJP was outsmarted by her cousin and NCP leader Dhananjay Munde.The panel backed by Dhananjay, leader of opposition in Legislative Council, won 27 of the total 33 seats in Parli."I accept the people's verdict. I will analyse what went wrong and what led people to give this verdict," Pankaja said.Elections to 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats across 25 districts in Maharashtra were seen as 'mini' Assembly polls and a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who led the BJP's campaign to extend his party's influence in the rural areas, where Congress and NCP has held sway for long.Fadnavis, who entered third year in office heading the first BJP-led government in the state, had addressed around 50 poll rallies.As many as 15,826 candidates were in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held yesterday in the first phase with around 70 per cent of the electorate exercising its franchise.Polling was also held for municipal council presidents post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates were in the race.In all, 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, are going to polls in four phases. The next rounds of voting are scheduled on December 14, December 18, and January 8.Reacting to the results, Revenue minister Chandrakant Patil said, "BJP is expected to bag 50 municipal council president posts while in another 50 councils the party will increase it tally considerably."Terming the party's performance as "overwhelming", he said five years ago BJP was negligible in these areas and the outcome showed that people have accepted the demonetisation decision.Around 4,000 voters at Khanapur in Sangli district of Maharashtra elected only independent candidates rejecting the nominees of political parties. Elections to nagar panchayats were held in the state on Sunday and counting of votes took place on Monday.In Khanapur nagar panchayat, all the 17 seats were won by independent candidates, while NCP and BJP were completely routed. Khanapur tehsil is a part of Sangli's drought-prone region.ALSO READ:
The normally soft-spoken Nitish Kumar was in a foul mood on Monday. "This is murdering me politcally. What do you get out of this? This is not journalism, it is yellow journalism," he screamed.In his firing line were journalists who, according to him, planted stories to damage his political credentials. The five journalists sitting in his official Bihar Vidhan Sabha chamber, including this reporter, became punching bags for the day.Its rare to see Nitish fuming. Disgust, anger, frustration - all were evident as he spoke in a cold bitter manner, putting forth his counter-arguments."If it was any state other than Bihar an FIR would be filed against such journalists and they will be sent to jail. But I am a democratic man. I won't do such things," he said.The issue was his open support to Prime Minister Narendra Modis demonetisation drive. The way he minced no words in supporting this move led to much kite-flying in the media, especially on the possibility of him going back to the National Democratic Alliance fold. This speculation got a shot in the arm when Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah not only praised Nitish openly from a public dais but also sang paeans on Twitter - twice.It was immediately lapped up by the media. Kumar's open support for demonetisation when his ally Lalu Prasad was against it inevitably inspired this headline: 'Cracks in Mahagatbandhan, Nitish inches closer to NDA'.For most, this may seem speculative political reportage, but for Kumar, the implications were very damaging. It was a confusing message to his core vote bank, especially minorities, which would weaken his position as the most prominent and credible anti-Modi face. This was what the Bihar CM meant when he screamed "rajnitik hatya.Clarifying why he took a stand against Opposition's anti-demonetisation tirade, he said: "Demonetisation was always on my mind. I always believed this would be an effective way to crack down on black money hoarders. And if someone has taken this bold step, I will praise him, even if he is my political adversary. There is nothing more to it than this. I am just speaking my heart out and being honest. Thats it."
Islamabad: The Balochistan High Court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.



A divisional bench of the Balochistan High Court passed the order during hearing of review petition challenging acquittal of the 73-year-old former president by an Anti- Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.



Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, the son of Akbar Bugti.



The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".



However, Bugti's lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former president Pervez Musharraf has failed to appear before the court.



The court ordered that the administration should ensure adequate security to Musharraf while he appears in court.



Pakistan government had allowed Musharraf to go abroad in March this year for medical treatment.



Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistan's rugged mountains of Taratani in

Kohlu district on August 26, 2006.



Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistan's natural resources.



The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country. Musharraf, who went into self-imposed exile in Dubai after being forced to resign as president facing impeachment following the 2008 elections, had returned to Pakistan in 2013 to contest elections but was implicated in several cases. He also lost in the polls.



He was not allowed to leave the country until government allowed him in March this year to go abroad for treatment following orders by the Supreme Court.



Musharraf has been facing a slew of cases, including the high treason trial since 2013 and he was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government.



Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych had 54 telephone contacts with Ukrainian Choice public movement leader Viktor Medvedchuk from December 2013 to February 2014, the Ukrainian prosecution has said.

"We have established at least 54 telephone contacts between you and Medvedchuk in the period from December 2013 until February 2014," the prosecutor said during the questioning of Yanukovych via a video link between Sviatoshynsky District Court in Kyiv and Rostov Regional Court in Russia Monday.

"On February 20, 2014, between 8:56 and 8:58, that is before the time when the mass killings of protesters by police started  three outgoing calls from your personal mobile phone to a Russian subscriber were made... then at 8:59 you made a call from your mobile phone on Medvedchuk's phone... the call lasted for 144 seconds," the prosecutor said.

According to the prosecutor, then at 9:11 another call was made from Yanukovych's different phone number on Medvedchuk's phone.

Yanukovych said, "I had no personal phones. Any phones for communication were always held by my assistants. If there these conversations [with Viktor Medvedchuk] did took place, it is likely that these were my assistants... I do not remember [any such calls]."

In addition, responding to a question of the prosecutor, the ex-president said he has never met with Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov and did not communicate with him by phone.
Appalachian Power has announced grants totaling $155,000 for economic development projects in several Virginia and West Virginia counties and cities.

The 13 grants range from $5,000 to $20,000. The utility said in a news release that the funds will be used for site development or to support marketing and promotion, or new business development and retention.

Among the awards is $10,000 to assist the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance with a comprehensive workforce analysis for the Lynchburg metropolitan area, $5,000 to Nelson Countys Economic Development Department to pay for a county-wide economic development marketing plan that focuses on the U.S. 29 Corridor, and $5,000 to the City of Lynchburg Economic Development Department to aid in developing a pilot TechHire program to assist the unemployed and underemployed in finding jobs in health care, technology and advanced manufacturing.

Other locations awarded grants include, in West Virginia, Mason County, Wayne County, Huntington and Marshall County; and, in Virginia, Roanoke County, Mount Rogers region, and the New River Valley Economic Development Alliance in Radford.
Delta Air Lines will add a second daily nonstop flight beginning this summer from Richmond to its Minneapolis-St. Paul hub, a sign that the carrier is adjusting to growing demand in the Richmond region, airport officials said.

Starting in June, flights will be scheduled to depart Richmond at 8:45 a.m. and 5:15 p.m. Eastern time and arrive at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport at 10:33 a.m. and 7:10 p.m. Central time, respectively.

Richmond-bound flights will be scheduled to leave Minnesota at 1 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. Central time, arriving at 4:35 p.m. and 9:15 p.m. Eastern time. The flights will be operated seven days a week by Delta Connection carrier ExpressJet Airlines on a 69-seat CRJ-700 aircraft.

Its very convenient for flying to the Pacific Northwest and a number of the Canadian provinces, said Troy Bell, a Richmond airport spokesman. With the limited amount of data that we could pull, thats been a very popular route. Summers a good time to launch it.

Minneapolis-St. Paul is Deltas second-largest hub, with more than 400 peak-day departures to more than 120 domestic and international destinations, said Elizabeth Wolf, a Delta spokes-woman. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, where the company is headquartered, is Deltas largest hub.
When Southern Air first opened for business in 1946, it was common practice to purchase movie tickets during summer just to sit in air-conditioned theaters.

The company began on Fifth Street in Lynchburg with 15 employees installing early heating and air-conditioning systems. Over the past 70 years, it has expanded to a staff of about 800 offering plumbing, electrical and custom-built ductwork across Virginia, North Carolina and West Virginia. The company says its annual business has grown during that time from $250,000 to approximately $100 million. It now is headquartered at 2655 Lakeside Drive, across from the Lynchburg True Value hardware store.

Southern Air president Paul Denham emphasized the importance of growing Southern Air as a company that fosters career and community development. The company has a culture of promoting management from within  virtually every one of our service branch managers came out of being a service technician for us, he noted  and has recently developed a dedicated space in its Lynchburg fabrication center for on-the-job training.

I will consider myself successful if I leave this company in good hands for the next generation, Denham said. While we have some very interesting talents and skills that we have developed over the years, all of those are based around systems weve developed, but its about the people who work here and how they work together. The challenge for me is to continue to develop the people within our organization.

For its first eight years of operation, the company only served Lynchburg. In 1954, the growing Craddock Terry Shoe Company hired Southern Air to install the heating and cooling system in its new Chase City factory, marking Southern Airs first expansion outside of the city. In the 1960s, Southern Air began offering plumbing installation and pipe-fitting for buildings, and electrical work followed suit in the 1970s.

The company added an employee stock ownership plan in the late 1970s, and under this program half of the company is owned by employees.

Were pretty proud of the fact that our employees are all partners of the company, Denham said. They are working towards building a career here and building a retirement plan that they will benefit from if that company is successful. Its like family here.

By the time Denham arrived in 1989 as a project manager, Southern Air was completing all of the internal construction components for large projects including the Vines Center at Liberty University, public school buildings and the newly renamed Pacific Life insurance building, formerly the Genworth Financial building, downtown.

Once Southern Air began offering a range of construction services, it started doing pre-fabrication for large buildings. In its Lynchburg fabrication center, stacks and stacks of wall pieces have been built for Liberty Universitys new high-rise dorm. The company and the school have worked together since LUs earliest days.

Wall pieces are fully built with wiring and plumbing so each dorm room can be assembled in parts. Southern Air created two full mock-ups of completed dorm rooms so LU and Southern Air staff could finalize the design.

Over the years weve done a lot of work with Liberty, and now with their latest building boom we have a large presence on campus, Denham said. The pace at which they are trying to build over there is such that it really works well with our skill sets of coupling the pre-fabrication and pre-planning process.

To grow the ranks of skilled tradesmen working for the company, Southern Air offers an apprenticeship program for workers to learn on the job and earn certifications in plumbing and pipe fitting, electrical wiring, heating and air conditioning, and welding.

Within the past month and a half, Southern Air created a space in its fabrication center so students can work hands-on with tools and equipment. Denham said the new space helps instructors spend more time with students instead of wasting time trying to find equipment to work with.

Weve had some people around here complain that we spend so much money on training people, and what if they leave? he said. The way I look at it is, anybody weve trained, weve helped improve the society around us. We are going to train as many people as we can, and that way there will be that many more skilled tradesmen in the workforce.
Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, who is Kyiv's negotiator in the Trilateral Contact Group, hopes that the Normandy Quartet foreign ministers will manage to make advancement during their meeting in Minsk with regard to agreeing on a draft roadmap for implementation of the Minsk Agreements.

"I am hopeful that tomorrow, four minister will gather together and make such decisions that will leave the Ukrainian side more or less satisfied. After all, we, Ukraine and Russia, look at this problem with different eyes," Kuchma told reporters during a working trip to Ukraine's Zakarpattia Region on Monday.

Kuchma went on to once again emphasize that first and foremost, Ukraine needs peace and as long as there is no peace in Donbas, no elections can be held there. "To what extent will the Ukrainian side be able to persuade the Russian side, with the help from Germany and France, that there is no other way? For I don't know any examples in the world where elections are held in an occupied territory," he said.

Kuchma noted that there is still no progress achieved on separation of conflicting parties in Donbas.

He recalled that it had been agreed in Minsk that the sides would be disengaged in three areas. "In two [of the areas] troops and weapons have been withdrawn, but in Stanytsia Luhanska this has yet to be done. The reason is clear: the opposing side doesn't want it," Kuchma said.

At this point, observance of the regime of calm is the main task to be solved, he said. As long as the ceasefire regime is being violated, one must not make any concessions, Kuchma believes. "If we cannot achieve peace over a [distance of] nine km, then what can we say about 400 km?" Kuchma said.
Light from the East

Void of banality and run-of-the mill clich?s, Did the Right Sperm Win? brims with signature eastern tenets embraced long before the dawn of western civilisation.

Hoffman-Jackson takes a page from the teachings of revered teachers presenting timeless testimonies on love, detachment, and self-determination.

Knowingly or unknowingly, she invokes the ghosts of Lao Tzu and renders a western version of his Tao Te Ching.

Each anecdote is pithy, poignantly delivered, and a welcome exercise in philosophical thought. But nothing really prepares us for the writers metaphysical ride. The Psychic, her opening salvo, makes a statement on the aura, an intangible, sensitive and pulsating field of energy that cloths the human body.

Inexplicably, we are drawn to some people and repulsed by others.

How should we respond to these chemical reactions? In The Body Clock, Hoffman-Jackson is at her sagacious best.

Its deftly metaphorical and evokes Zen-like enquiry. Yet, it remains grounded in a captivating exchange between two mates. The dialogue shifts from biological cycles to a more a philosophical discourse.

Only when we grasp lifes energetic flow can we reap abundantly of its magnanimity. How much time do you have left on your body clock? Hoffman-Jackson asks. The present exists so briefly it cannot be ignored, she answers. The thoughts that just flashed across your mind are already in the past...You need to live for the future by starting to live now.

Your choices and decisions made in the now will determine who you are in the future. I Love You sounds a warning against attachment.

We conflate passion with love. In our misplaced sentiments we are vulnerable, victims of our own ignorance.

Love is sublime, never driven by sensibilities.

We forego pain and disappointment if only we practise detachment.

The avatars and mahatmas of yore have long advocated such.

To grasp the essence of authentic love, Hoffman-Jackson seeks guidance from the Good Book (Bible) relaying 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7, of which an excerpt reads; Love suffereth long, and is kind.

[Love] seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things...endureth all things. And in I will pray for you, she lays bare her Christian faith inviting us to explore the efficacy of Psalms 109.

Life is not fair! is Solomonic in tone.

We meet four young brothers, all holding different approaches to living. Only one emerges a success. For the other siblings life proves unforgiving, even tortuous. We are cautioned against upsetting natures balance - its homeostasis or the Yin and Yang principle in eastern lore. Surely, there is a definitive correlation between health, success, and happiness and our attunement to the cosmos. We must never overreach. Outside of this fundamental law we are swept up by the vagaries of life, doomed to irrelevance and the dustbin of history.

In an impressive play of words she recommends that we tweak the title. If Life is not Fear, she argues, then its a whole new game. She then prods us to meet our challenges without the tentative reservations that limit our excellence... In My best conversation...

ever, we discern vestiges of St Ignatius call for silence. Be still and listen. In quietude we open the channels to hidden treasures hitherto unknown. In silence we confront our demons; and in silence we find our helper and redeemer. We are now equipped to surmount the most Herculean of challenges. Therein are teachings that echo a Taoist saying, Have the patience to wait! Be still and allow the mud to settle. Later, in Live life like a FTSE company, she draws an interesting parallel between our life and the daily operations of a business.

We are charged with responsibilities.

The buck stops with us - the CEO of our lives. Yes, destiny (not fate) is in our hands. If only we take heed. The writer calls for strategic planning, a mission statement, and goals.

For most people...tasks are done without any deep thought. But what if you actually think of yourself in a different light? Try, if you can to separate each role; know when you are required to act as a Chief Executive Officer as opposed to an Operational Manager and act as such. And by the time she delivers the eponymous, Did the right sperm win, we are all disciples of truth mindful that our existence is purposeful, eternally valid and unique.

With stream-like ease lessons in pedagogy flow as Hoffman-Jackson injects new life into a genre that is exhausted and ironically grasping for meaning.

Undoubtedly, her trove of pronouncements has added a transformative, almost magical edge to the field of personal development.

Did the Right Sperm Win? by Vinette Hoffman- Jackson (c) 2016 Youcaxton Publications, UK Available at Amazon Ratings : Highly recommended
Do more to help Haiti

While we did reach out to Haiti, the truth is it needs help not just with food, water and clothing, but with the rebuilding of the country in all aspects. Even though we have our own problems right here, comparatively speaking we are a paradise. So in Haitis time of need let us be there for them with assistance for as long as necessary.

I appeal to our leaders to, first of all, give us a report on what is taking place in Haiti. Did the $6-a-person appeal bear fruit? Is there a plan going forward? There are citizens of this country who are willing to help once our leaders take up the challenge and lead.

Also, to those privileged multinationals and other companies, please be of even greater assistance to Haiti. I am sure their generosity will be well rewarded.The starling reality is that if Haiti does not receive the urgent help needed now, who knows where this country and its people will end up. Let us continue to show love and compassion. Also, prayer still works.

ARNOLD GOPEESINGH San Juan 
US$2M moved to Central Bank

Previously the money was being heavily guard by IATF officers round the clock. But, on Thursday at about midday, police officers escorted Customs and Excise officers to the Central Bank where the money was placed in another vault in an area where TT currency is kept. That area is guarded round the clock by security officers of the Central Bank and the access to the area is virtually impossible except for those who have access to the area.

Newsday understands that the decision to move the seized cash came about after it was determined that keeping the money at the Customs and Excise Department could be a security risk.

Officers who had been assigned to carry out guard duties at the Customs and Excise Department also expressed fear for their own safety.

While customs officers working at the customs and Excise building had also concern.

Newsday understands that a plot to steal the US 2 million was discovered by law enforcement officers, hence the decision to have the money guarded around the clock. Sources revealed yesterday that the US 2 million originated in Tortola then moved to Jamaica and then Trinidad.

False documents were used to have the money which was placed in a container with plywood arrived in this country to be cleared.

The homes of several local businessmen were searched by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) along with customs and Excise as part of the investigation.

An official from the US Customs and Excise Division arrived in the country a few days ago and has been recording the serial numbers and the money to determine when it was printed and where it originated from in the United States. Sources also revealed that Drug Enforcement Officers DEA based at the US Embassy at Marli Street Port of Spain are also assisting in the investigation. Yesterday Customs and Excise officers expressed relief that the moneys have been moved to Central Bank.

On Monday November 22, it was reported that the US 2 million was found in a container at the Port in Point Lisas and impounded at a Customs building.

After it was discovered that a plot had been made to steal the money, by deadly force if necessary, Customs and Excise officers, along with heavily armed officers of the IATF locked down the Customs building on Ajax Street where the money was being held.
He too disrespectful!

The Prison Service, in a news release, also condemned the report, calling it reckless, irresponsible, ill-informed and malicious. He is too disrespectful and callous! Richards said yesterday when contacted by Newsday.

His actions on Friday has misled members of the public into thinking that hard-working members of the Prison Service are conducting illegal activities.

He has undermined the Prison Service by reporting on actions without asking anything of the Prison Service, or without conducting any investigations whatsoever.

Inspector Roger Alexander has to apologise. If he is a big man, he will say sorry for his poor reporting. Richards called on Acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams to look into the matter and expressed disappointment that a television show, funded by the government to highlight the actions of one law enforcement agency, would maliciously undermine the legitimate actions of a fellow law enforcement agency.

Newsday understands that on Friday, Alexanders show, Beyond the Tape, featured a story which alleged that a prisoner was taken, by prison officers, to a bank in San Fernando to conduct business.

He was seen without handcuffs and was said to have been conducting his business freely.

Alexander claimed he received a picture from an ex offender who was at the bank at the time and recognised the prisoner.

The Prison Service, in a statement issued yesterday, explained that an individual who was remanded into prison in 2009, for the alleged murder of his wife, was granted approval to go to the First Citizens Bank in San Fernando to sign over his account to his sister.

The visit was planned and executed by officers of the Prison Welfare Department, along with the Operations Department of the prison and bank security. The prisoner was accompanied at all times by armed members of staff in civilian wear.

In order to eliminate panic the inmate was allowed to enter the bank in a closely supervised and monitored operation without handcuffs. The Prison Service said the father of the inmates slain wife, who was at the bank at the time, recognised the inmate and expressed concern. Prison officers attempted to allay the fears of the father-in-law, but he still proceeded to take photographs of the prison vehicle which escorted the inmate.

It was explained that that this is not the first time that an operation of this nature has been conducted since the Prisons Welfare Department has, on several occasions, allowed inmates to conduct business like the renewing of a National ID or Drivers Permit, or banking while under heavy guard.

In this particular case, the prisoners National ID, Drivers Permit and bank card had expired, making it difficult to pay legal fees and take care of his son.

Attempts to reach Williams and Alexander yesterday were futile.
It Took Heidi Klum

2 Years to Look Like This
The prosecution has said Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the night between February 18 and February 19. Yanukovych says he does not remember such a call.

During the hearing in Sviatoshynsky District Court of Kyiv via a video conference, the prosecutor said they established Putin twice called Yanukovych via special communication channels between February 18 and February 19, 2014.

"I am asking you to clarify the subject of these talks," the prosecutor told Yanukovych, asking him if he indeed had any contacts with Putin that night.

The ex-president said, "I do not remember such a conversation. Most likely, there was no such conversation. It is most likely, but I do not remember..."

Asked by the prosecutor whether this means that the witness denies that such a conversation with Putin took place, Yanukovych once again said that he does not remember.

In addition, the prosecutor said on February 18-19, 2014, former Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov and his son together with an employee of the Ukrainian State Guard Department went to Russia and met there with the top leadership, including Putin. The prosecutor asked Yanukovych if he knows anything about the purpose and circumstances of this trip. In response, the former president said, "This is the first I've heard about this. I do not know who flew where and who met whom. I did not communicate with Azarov during this time. It seems to me, he was no longer working as prime minister at the time."
(Newser)  Protesters massed in Brazil's largest city Sunday to call for the president to be removed from office and express outrage at a host of his policies, while the embattled leader tried to head off some of their criticism, the AP reports. President Michel Temer has suffered a continual drip of scandal and high-level resignations since he took office six months ago. But on Friday a scandal touched him directly for the first time amid allegations he abused his power to do a personal favor for one of his Cabinet ministers; he denied the allegation. Opposition politicians have promised to introduce measures in Congress calling for his impeachment, and on Sunday, hundreds of people gathered in Sao Paulo to call for just that. Representatives from political parties and social movements also protested against the government's proposal to cap spending to rein in the deficit, which many fear will result in deep cuts to education and health care.

Others were protesting rampant corruption in politics, criticizing not just the current administration, while some complained about a lack of suitable housing. One group held up a banner with a drawing of Fidel Castro, paying homage to the Cuban leader who died Friday night. Many criticized the way Temer came to power: He was the VP to President Dilma Rousseff, who was impeached and removed from office earlier this year, and protesters said that meant he had no mandate to pass widespread changes in government programs. But many protesters expressed disgust at all politicians. "So much money has been stolen," says a local butcher. "I'm against everyone who is involved in corruption." Congress is considering anti-corruption laws, but many Brazilians worry such measures might perversely be used to pardon politicians who engaged in the practice in the past. Temer held a rare Sunday presser to say he wouldn't allow any amnesty for such practices. (Read more Brazil stories.)
(Newser)  Prince William, member of one of the only families in the world where such a move might be necessary, has issued a statement supporting his brother's position on media coverage of his love life. The statement was released after rumors that William had disapproved of Prince Harry's statement earlier this month urging the press and others to stop harassing American girlfriend Meghan Markle, Vanity Fair reports. William, the Duke of Cambridge, "absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him," the statement issued by Kensington Palace says.

According to the Telegraph's chief reporter on the royals, the brothers had a heart-to-heart talk about whether Harry should issue the statement calling for tabloid reporters and Internet trolls to leave Markle alone. "They don't issue statements like that without talking to each other, and they talked about the Meghan Markle statement extensively in advance of it being put out," a royal source tells the paper. "No one wanted to have to put that statement out, including Prince Harry, and there was concern about confirming the relationship," the source says. "But over the course of one weekend things escalated to the extent that Prince Harry felt he had to act. (Read more Prince William stories.)
(Newser)  Ethics rules for lawyers in California are undergoing their biggest shake-up in 30 years, and some lawyers aren't happy about one proposed change: a near-total ban on having sex with clients. A state bar commission has proposed joining at least 17 other states in completely banning sex between lawyers and their clients, with exceptions only made when there's a pre-existing sexual relationship, the AP reports. Punishment could go as far as having legal licenses revoked. California currently only bans attorney-client sex if it causes the lawyer to "perform legal services incompetently" or if sex is demanded "incident to or as a condition of any professional representation."

Supporters of the ban say the current rules aren't working, noting that out of 205 complaints of sexual misconduct between 1992 and 2010, the state bar only disciplined one lawyer. "Let's face it, clients only come to you when they have a problem. Many clients are vulnerable in that situation. And we're just trying to establish protections," a law professor who served as a consultant to the revision committee tells Capital Public Radio. In a dissent filed with the commission, lawyer James Ham argues that ban supporters are unable to explain why a lawyer should be "disciplined for sexual relations with a mature, intelligent, consenting adult." (New lawyers in California have to swear an oath to be nice to each other.)
(Newser)  They came for salsa music and mojitos and ended up wandering through a city turned still and silent by nine days of national mourning for Fidel Castro. As Cuba prepares a massive commemoration for the leader of its socialist revolution, tens of thousands of high-season travelers have found themselves accidental witnesses to historyand smack in the middle of a somber city that's little like its usual exuberant self, the AP reports. "Who knows what tomorrow or after nine days brings in terms of the country and what happens for the future," says Graham Palmer, a 36-year-old visitor from London. "And I think we will certainly look back at the airport tomorrow and feel quite privileged that we've been here."

Yet Palmer and other travelers say there's also tinge of regret at seeing such a subdued Havana. Many museums have closed their doors, and a ban on live music has shuttered concerts and nightspots including the famed Tropicana nightclub. Old Havana these days is eerily devoid of the roving troubadours whose Buena Vista Social Club croonings normally echo through the streets. Visitors have been unable to visit the University of Havana or the Revolution Plaza, where Castro's ashes will be on display starting Monday. Meanwhile, a citywide ban on most alcohol sales means those savoring Cuban cigars for the first time have to do so without the traditional accompanying snifter of rum. (Read more Fidel Castro stories.)
(Newser)  A Texas state trooper was wounded on the Texas-Mexico border when a bullet apparently strayed from a gun battle on the Mexican side of the Rio Grande. The Texas Department of Public Safety says the trooper suffered a leg wound in the Friday afternoon incident, the AP reports. The trooper was on foot patrol with a Border Patrol agent in Fronton, on the border about 105 miles upstream from Brownsville. A US Customs and Border Protection statement says the federal agent also was hit but was protected by body armor. The trooper, whose identity hasn't been released, was hospitalized in stable condition. Authorities say it's unclear who was involved in the gunfight. (Read more Texas stories.)
(Newser)  Preparations inside a Pennsylvania firehouse for a "Light Up Night" parade on Sunday somehow ended up with a 16-year-old junior firefighter dead and a 21-year-old fire captain in jail. WPXI reports that George Matis Jr. was charged with criminal homicide and reckless endangerment in connection with the shooting of the Brownsville Area High School student. State police say they received a report around 4pm of a shooting inside the Redstone Township firehouse, where firefighters had been getting ready for the parade. The township is in Fayette County, around 45 miles south of Pittsburgh.

State police say the teenager, a volunteer with the Republic Volunteer Fire Department, was shot in the face after Matis pulled out a Glock inside the firehouse's business office, CBS Pittsburgh reports. The teenager was pronounced dead at the scene. Area residents, including the teen's classmates, rushed to the station to pay their respects after news of the incident spread. The parade was canceled, and a procession of fire vehicles escorted the dead teen's body from the station. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Matis is being held without bail in the county jail and a preliminary hearing will be held Dec. 7. (Read more Pennsylvania stories.)
(Newser)  A Cleveland couple was ready for the apocalypsebut apparently not for thieves. Teena Brayen says burglars broke into her home early Tuesday while her family was sleeping and made off with five shotguns, a high-powered rifle, a pellet gun, $1,000 worth of ammunition, 12 machetes, smoke grenades, a bulletproof vest, and food rations, reports ABC5. Brayen and her husband are members of militia group Three Percentersa name based on the claim that just 3% of the US population fought in the American Revolution, per the Washington Postand hoped to use the supplies to protect and provide for themselves in the event of catastrophe, or perhaps invasion by another country, Brayen tells Fox 8.

Brayen, who believes thieves saw the family moving weapons into their Cleveland home when they moved from New York a month ago, says she fears for "military personnel, especially, and our police officers" as one of the weapons taken "looks like a sniper rifle" and can pierce bulletproof vests and even cars. "They're ready for a war," she says of the thieves. "We were war-ready." Brayen adds she believed the weapons and gear were secure when she went to sleep on Monday night, but now suspects one of her two children left a door to the home unlocked. "I don't want to see anybody get hurt by what people took out of my home," she says. Police are investigating, reports the AP. (Read more Ohio stories.)
(Newser)  A surprise move earlier this month took India's two largest bank notes out of circulation, and on Monday scattered "day of rage" protests cropped up in various cities in response to the measure, the BBC reports. Although the ban on the 500- and 1,000-rupee notes was meant to flush out so-called "black money" (stashed cash that hasn't been subject to taxes; India says only 1% of its people paid income taxes in 2013), opposition parties claim the decision was a rash one that's placed citizens in economic upheaval: The two notes made up 86% of the country's in-circulation currency. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh calls the ban "monumental mismanagement"; earlier this month, the Guardian compared the move to "the failed experiments of dictatorships."

Demonetization protests have taken place in Lucknow, Kolkata (with a reported 25,000 in attendance), and Bangalore, with the states of Kerala and Tripura experiencing a disruption of "normal life" that has brought things in some areas to a "standstill," the Indian Express reports. People's attempts to get their hands on legal currency have been described as "chaotic," per the BBC, with banks and ATMs running out of money. (This BBC article clearly explains the limits on exchanging and depositing 500- and 1,000-rupee notes, and the tax implications.) PM Narendra Modi says people should get used to non-cash ways of paying, though Deutsche Welle reports many poor people in India don't have bank accounts and are struggling to find ways to pay for food and other necessities. (Read more India stories.)
The United States should join the negotiating process on peaceful settlement of the conflict in Donbas, Leonid Kuchma, the second Ukrainian president, Kyiv's representative in the Trilateral Contact Group in Minsk, said.

"If there is no will of these countries, if the United States does not join this cause in full, there will be nothing. And if once again all the countries play at peace and friendship, some local problems will be resolved, and the Ukrainian problem will be left aside, we will remain in the condition we are now," Kuchma told journalists during a working trip to Zakarpattia region.
(Newser)  Missouri claims less than 2% of America's population, but is the place where 14.5% of the convictions of the 62 people sitting on federal death row occurred. In a lengthy piece for the Guardian, David Rose looks at the lawyer who "has had more clients sentenced to death in federal court than any other defense lawyer in America": Frederick Duchardt, a Kansas City attorney who has served as the defense in seven federal death trials and seen his clients sentenced to death in four. In two interviews with Rose, the otherwise gregarious Duchardt gets defensive, saying he mounted an effective defense in what were "ugly, ugly" cases. Rose isn't so sure. The piece is rich with details, but one of Rose's bigger focuses is the standard use of a "mitigation specialist" during the "penalty phase" of death-penalty trials.

The American Bar Association is emphatic in saying capital defense teams "must" employ such an investigator, whose strength is uncovering medical records and getting those close to the guilty to reveal sensitive information that could help make the case that, due to horrific abuse or intellectual disabilities, he or she should be spared. In defending German Sinisterra and Wes Purkey, Duchardt opted not to use a mitigation specialist, and so failed to uncover details that Rose expresses could have helped the men's cases: Both had been repeatedly raped as children and suffered brain damage, facts that emerged during the men's appeals, via new legal teams, of their death sentences. Rose takes issue with Duchardt's assertion that it was all part of his strategy. Read Rose's piece in full here. (Read more death penalty stories.)
(Newser)  Dylann Roof may have the chance to question the very people he is accused of shooting when he stands trial for the murders of nine black worshippers at a South Carolina church. Judge Richard Gergel on Monday granted a surprise request from Roof to defend himself against 33 federal charges, with his lawyers serving as "stand-by counsel," reports ABC4. That means his lawyers can offer assistance if Roof asks for it, reports the AP. Roof, who faces the death penalty if convicted, told Gergel he understood the consequences of his decisionwhich came against the advice of his lawyersand could file objections and motions and question witnesses on his own.

"I do find defendant has the personal capacity to self-representation," Gergel said, per the Charleston Post and Courier, though he called the move "strategically unwise." Gergel's approval means Roof, 22, may now be able to question the three survivors of the Charleston shooting and their family members. The trial could begin within weeks. Jury selectioninterrupted by a competency hearing regarding a new psychiatric evaluation of Roofresumed Monday. Twenty prospective jurors will be questioned daily from a pool of 512 until 70 remain. That number will then be whittled down to 12 jurors and six alternates. A separate case in state court is to begin in January. (Read more Dylann Roof stories.)
(Newser)  Virginia is for lovers, but Utah is for givers, according to WalletHub. The site has named Utah the most charitable state in the country based on the number of people who volunteer their time, volunteering hours, percentage of income donated, and other factors. The top 10, with a score out of 100:

Utah: 69.6 Minnesota: 61.4 North Dakota: 59.35 Maryland: 59.2 Oklahoma: 58.2 Delaware: 58 New Hampshire: 57.9 Ohio: 57.8 Wisconsin: 57.6 Arkansas: 57.1

Click for the full list or see the most empathetic countries . (Read more Utah stories.)
(Newser)  President-elect Donald Trump is threatening to end the detente with Cuba initiated by the Obama administration. In a tweet a bit longer than the one he wrote to mark Fidel Castro's death, Trump tweeted Monday he "will terminate" President Obama's reestablishment of diplomatic ties and normalization of relations if "Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the US as a whole."

But Trump's warning could face opposition from some Republicans on Capitol Hill and corporate leaders who see continued engagement with Havana as good for American businesses and the best way to force the Cuban government to change, reports the AP. Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake said this past weekend a "get tough" policy that isolates Havana and restricts travel and commerce will hurt the Cuban people and make the US government "a convenient scapegoat for failed socialist policies." (Read more Cuba stories.)
(Newser)  Police officers conducting drug raids with their K9 units are now dealing with what the DEA has called an "unprecedented threat": fentanyl, the same powerful opioid that killed Prince earlier this year. Both the Miami Herald and NBC News report on the drug's dangers, which the cop canines are more vulnerable to because of their super-strong smelling skills, and because they're not typically decked out in the same protective gear (e.g., masks, gloves, and respirators) as their human counterparts. "If fentanyl is loose in an environment, it can spread out where a dog can absorb it through his pads. He could sniff it up through his jowls," Andy Weiman, a detective in Broward County, Fla., who trains dogs for the county's sheriff's office, tells NBC. And fentanyl is so toxic that the most minuscule amount is all that's needed to sicken or even kill.

Three K9 dogs became ill at the end of October while searching for cash in a Lauderhill, Fla., house, and as they were rushed to a nearby animal clinic for suspected ODs, agents conducting the raid found a bag containing fentanyl. "He was in kind of a sedated state. He had a lack of energy," Weiman described one of the dogs, which he had trained, to the Sun Sentinel about a week after the incident. Luckily, the dogs responded to the same treatment used on humans who suffer opiate overdoes: a dose of naloxone (aka Narcan) and plenty of fluids. All three police pups recovered and went back to work the next day, but Weiman tells NBC it was "very stressful" for their handlers, and local veterinarians have now trained cops how to spot and deal with possible fentanyl ODs. (The strange story behind a police dog's death in Georgia.)
(Newser)  The FBI has joined the investigation into Monday's car-and-knife attack at Ohio State University that left nine people injured and the assailant dead, reports NBC News. The suspect is Abdul Razak Ali Artan, an 18-year-old Somali refugee who attended the school, reports the AP. He reportedly left Somalia in 2007 with his family, moved to Pakistan, and came to the US in 2014. Witnesses say that a car plowed into a group of students about 10am, and the assailant then got out with a butcher knife and began stabbing people. A campus police officer fatally shot him within a minute. The AP reports that federal law enforcement officials have been worried about precisely this kind of an attack because of a recent wave of extremist propaganda online encouraging the strategy. One of the victims was critically injured.

"I thought it was an accident initially until I saw the guy come out with a knife," says one student. The attack happened outside Watts Hall, and the Columbus Dispatch reports that students were congregating outside because of a reported gas leak in the building. It was unclear whether the report of the leak was related to the attack. Another witness tells CNN that the assailant had a "crazy look in his eyes." He says the responding officer shot the assailant because the "stabber clearly wasn't stopping." The president of the Somali Community Association of Ohio says reports of the assailant's Somali background is disturbing. "Every Somali person has been calling me, and everybody is crying," he says. (Read more Ohio State University stories.)
Black Friday is almost over but the $59.99 Nintendo NES Classic console is yet to be sold online since its launch. Will Walmart and Amazon offer the Mini NES Classic this Cyber Monday sales event? Fans were disappointed during Black Friday, which did not have the NES Classic on sale.

Cyber Monday is another big sales event that follows Black Friday weekend sales, which started November 25 and ran for three days. Walmart had some flash sales of the NES Classic online before Black Friday. So where do online shoppers go to grab the very elusive NES Mini?

According to the website i4u, Best Buy stores would get NES Classic inventory for the Black Friday event. That did not materialize and fans are hoping that the NES Mini will be available this Cyber Monday. Best Buy shoppers in Canada were luckier due to the sale of the NES Classic during Black Friday.

News Every Day reported that fans of the Nintendo NES Classic Mini have turned to a tracker website to hunt down the very elusive console for Black Friday. Nowinstock.net contains information that will allow users to determine locations where units of the NES Mini are available in multiple countries, with a list of places offered. The website can be used by shoppers to hunt for the NES Mini this Cyber Monday week.

According to the website Express, desperate buyers can use the tracker website to help keep tabs of the NES Classic Mini. Consumers are not yet assured of getting the console despite their pre-orders due to limited stock. But, they could also check the website starting Cyber Monday and its succeeding days.

Meanwhile, Amazon assured their waiting fans that the stock of the NES Classic Mini will be replenished soon. The U.S online retailer released a statement informing consumers that the company "will be fulfilling customer orders in the order in which they were placed, and expect to fill all pre-orders by mid-December 2016."
During skype-questioning ex-President Viktor Yanukovych failed to provide concrete answers to questions addressed to him. In addition, Yanukovych gave false testimony, evidence of which is in the possession of Ukrainian prosecutors," head of the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) of Ukraine's department for special investigations Oleksiy Donskoy had said.

"He is not answering concrete questions. By law, he should first answer questions of the defense, give his version of events and then it's our turn to ask questions," Donskoy told journalists during a recess at Kyiv's Sviatoshynsky district court, where Yanukovych appeared via skype on Monday.

Donskoy said the task before the prosecution is to demonstrate the "wishywashyness of testimony" given by Yanukovych.

"I think we were able to do this. Yanukovych was not able to concretely explain the circumstances of the events, about which he was asked. I think he did not answer how he on February 23, 2013 at 03.51 arrived in Eisk [Russian Federation], or from where he was returned to Crimea by military aircraft. We also did not receive an answer about the letter [asking] to send Russian military units to Crimea. This was very important to us, because the events on February 20, 2013 and that letter are part of the same chain of events, where there was one motive," Donskoy said.

He said prosecutors have evidence Yanukovych provided false testimony.

"The critical questions we wanted to ask were either not answered or Yanukovych lied, in particular regarding [aide to Russian Federation president Vladislav) Surkov. Yanukovych and Surkov met [Yanukovych's residence] at Mezhyhirya. We know the day and the exact time of the meeting. Yanukovych maintains he had no contact with Surkov. This is a lie. We have evidence of the meeting. When we evaluate his testimony procedurally we will show that his testimony is false, that he lied in his answers to our questions," Donskoy said.

The prosecutor said Yanukovych was summoned to give testimony by defense lawyers, making the task of state prosecutors to debunk everything the ex-president said.

"I think we did not receive answers to concrete questions, or received false testimony. In this we succeeded," Donskoy said.
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Ukraine's ex-president Viktor Yanukovych said he did not order law enforcement officials to use force on protesters on Kyiv's Maidan in 2013-2014.

While being questioned as a witness in a court hearing of the former Berkut riot police members case, Yanukovych said, responding to a question from the affected party as to whether he ordered law enforcement officials to use riot control weapons during protests in the period between November 30, 2013 and February 18, 2014: "I was against the use of weapons and against bloodshed from the very beginning until the very end. It was my committed position."

"I could not have issued such orders," he said.

"As for the weapons that were on Maidan, they came from various sources. First of all, they included people's own weapons such as hunting rifles. Secondly, there were weapons seized from the Ukrainian Security Service and local police facilities," he said during the video questioning, when asked what he knew about the Maidan protestors' armament.

Some types of foreign-made weapons were marked, he said.

"I have no evidence of these [weapons] having been specifically imported to Ukraine," he said, adding that he was talking mainly about sniper rifles.

He also told the court that fire against Maidan protestors came from opposition-controlled buildings.

"I was told that fire was being delivered from buildings controlled by the opposition, I had no one to instruct to cease fire from these buildings. This is why the law enforcement bodies were operating on their own," Yanukovych said.

When asked how he knew that fire had been delivered from opposition-controlled buildings, Yanukovych said: "This information effectively came from the media, from the reporters' comments. This could be watched online on all channels."

"I said just one thing to law enforcement chiefs: everything needs to be done to stop this," the ex-president said.
New Delhi:

India is set to witness biggest protest yet against the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 old currency notes on Monday as at least 18 opposition parties prep for countrywide bandh and marches.



Samajwadi Party workers started their protests against the currency ban at Allahabad by clocking railway tracks and raising slogans.



Congress, TMC, CPM, CPI, NCP, BSP, AAP and RJD are expected to be part of protests on Monday. TMC leader Mamata Banerjee had earlier lead the protest march to Rashtrapati Bhawan.



However, Congress has said that it will neither participate nor support bandh but will take out protests marches and Nitish Kumars JDU has decided to completely by-pass the protests and support the currency ban.

Also read | Opposition witnesses cracks, JD (U) withdraws from demonetisation protest



Here are the live updates:

Delhi (2:30 pm): Apart from Congress and other opposition parties, National Students Union of India also staged a protest against demonetisation

West Bengal (1:00pm): Addressing the anti-demonetisation rally in Kolkata on Monday, West bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said, "We may die or survive, our slogan will be to remove Narendra Modi from power." She accuded PM Modi of acting like a God while making this deciosn, "PM Modi has suddenly came up with this decision acting like God; Never asked who needs Rs 500/1000 and made the demonetisation move." "Bazaar, cinema, Jatra (theatre) - everything got affected, but he (PM) didnt care about the common people," she added.

Kolkata: TMC leaders and workers take out protest march #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/m16bttULQs  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016









Kolkata (WB): Left parties, including CPM and CPI, stage a protest over #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/KyoWTOhdG5  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

#Delhi: Rahul Gandhi protesting in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue at the Parliament complex

#Jammu: Congress workers held a Jan Akrosh rally, detained by Police

#Demonetisation protests: MK Stalin and DMK workers taken into preventive custody by Police in Chennai



Nagpur: BJP's 'Jan Abhaar Divas' to counter Congress's #janakroshdiwas, offer sweets and flowers to people working #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/z5JbYcBwmg  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

#I think maybe they(BJD Odisha Govt) have also been affected by this demonetisation move: Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister

#Initially they supported demonetisation,but surprisingly today Odisha Govt has shut down schools and colleges: Dharmendra Pradhan,Union Min

All the opposition is united, except for JDU which is maintaining a dual stand: Naresh Agarwal,SP MP #DeMonetisation#wintersessionpic.twitter.com/luVjE5XxSt  ANI (@ANI_news)

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Bandh observed in Thiruvananthapuram #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/7INC0pP7uo  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Also read | 12-hour bandh called by Left parties begins in West Bengal with minimum impact

#Bihar: CPI(ML) workers in Jehanabad stop Hatia-Patna Express train in protest against currency ban

Bihar: CPI(ML) workers in Darbhanga stop train in protest against #DeMonetisation (earlier visuals) pic.twitter.com/Aj7eqyrHzF  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Normal life continues in Kolkata #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/uvoqCI7w6t  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

#Bihar: CPI(ML) workers in Darbhanga stop train in protest against

#We have not called for Bharat Bandh , as it causes inconvenience to people, we called for Jan akrosh divas: GN Azad,Congress

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Beijing:

An eight-year-old boy in east China is getting visitors from across the country as he looks likeChinese billionaire Jack Ma, according to a media report.

Up to 50 people, a day has visited Fan Xiaoqin over the past two weeks. The boy looks remarkably like one of China's richest men, Jack Ma who founded the e-commerce companyAlibaba, the BBC reported.

Rumours had been swirling on social media that the billionaire had promised to fund his education, right through to university. The boy's family, who live in Jiangxi province, are poor and rely on government benefits.

Xiaoqin's father Fan Jiafa is disabled - his right leg has been amputated - his mother has had polio, and his grandmother, who is in her 80s has Alzheimer's. When journalists asked Alibaba if there was any truth to the gossip, they were told it was unfounded.

The company issued a statement on Weibo: "All the news about Mini Jack Ma shouldn't be treated as a joke. To fund one child education is easy, but in order to help millions of poor children, more resources need to be used." That hasn't dampened the public's interest, though.

Guess who's the real #JackMa of #Alibaba? The 2nd richest Chinese to fund education of his poor 8-yr-old look-alike https://t.co/iw5mZRJ8bf pic.twitter.com/S61ZTuRlsb a China Xinhua News (@XHNews) November 14, 2016

"MiniJack Ma" as he is now known, first became an online sensation in 2015 then faded from public view, but with this month's new and unfounded rumours, people started contacting and visiting the family offering Xiaoqin starring roles in films and adverts.

"It's a good thing that my son looks like Jack Ma," FanJiafa told BBC Trending, but he has reservations about some of the offers they've received. "I don't want him to go into the film industry and make money now. I hope Xiaoqin can be independent one day and support himself but I believe only education can improve his life."At the moment, Xiaoqin is struggling to keep up in school and can't write. "I just hope Xiaoqin can receive a good education," says his dad.

"I don't read and write much as I just spent two years in primary school. I think studying the most important thing." And the family has had plenty of moral support on social media. "How depressing! Some people are really opportunistic!"commented one angry Weibo user.

Xiaoqin's father says he doesn't know who to trust and is worried about sending his sons away. Over the past 10 days,he's received more than 10,000 yuan (USD 1,500) in cash donations, clothes, food and household items. What he wants now is for "the local government to help me and offer me some advice," the report added.

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Colombo:

Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba arrived in Colombo on Sunday on a five-day bilateral visit aimed at consolidating and enhance the bilateral maritime security relations between India and Sri Lanka.



During his visit, he will hold bilateral discussions with President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and senior dignitaries including the Chief of Defence Staff and the three Service Chiefs, an official statement said.



The Admiral will also attend the Galle Dialogue which is being held at Colombo. The Galle Dialogue is an annual conference hosted by Sri Lanka on the issues of Maritime Security and Cooperation between international navies.



Representatives from 39 countries and 13 international organisations are likely to participate in the event.



He would be delivering key-note address on Indias perspective on the benefits of Strategic Maritime Partnerships, during the event.



There exists a robust Naval cooperation between India and Sri Lanka encompassing a wide span which includes operational interactions through bilateral exercises, coordinated patrolling along the common maritime border, training, port calls, capacity building and capacity augmentation initiatives, the statement said.



The Admiral will also lay a wreath at the Indian Peace Keeping Force memorial, which has been built by Sri Lanka to honour Indian Martyrs, during his visit.Lanbas visit also comes days after India and Sri Lanka held their fourth Annual Defence Dialogue (ADD) here on November 3.



Defence Secretary G Mohan Kumar and the Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Karunasena Hettiarachchi co-chaired the meeting along with their delegations, comprising officers from the Defence Ministries, Foreign Affairs Ministries and the Armed Forces of both the countries.



During the ADD, various ongoing defence cooperation initiatives were jointly reviewed and new avenues for cooperation identified. The regional security situation and issues of maritime security were also discussed at the meeting.

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
London:

Prime Minister Theresa May has admitted that the challenge of securing the best deal possible for the UK on Brexit keeps her awake at night, a media report said today.

In an interview with The Sunday Times magazine, she said that the negotiations with the European Union (EU) over Britains exit from the economic bloc had contributed to her working long into the night.

In this job you dont get much time to sleep, the 60-year-old prime minister said. May became UKs second female Prime Minister on July 13 after Margaret Thatcher.

Asked about her biggest anxieties and what kept her awake at night, May said: Its a moment of change. Its a hugely challenging time. And we need to get on with the terms of Brexit. And Im very conscious of that.

I want to make sure that everything we do does ensure Britain is a country that works for everyone. And that we really get out there and forge a new role in the world post-Brexit.

We can make a success of it, we will make a success of it but these are really complex issues. We need to get on with the deal in terms of Brexit. We need to get the best deal possible for the UK, she said.

In one of her most personal interviews so far, May said that that her husband Philip John May gave her advice on her wardrobe and accessories.

Its taken a bit of adjusting for him to see people writing about what he wears and taking selfies of him, but hes getting used to it! Hes been surprised by how much interest hes had. Philip says he gets 90 per cent of the fun for only 10 per cent of the effort, she said of her husband of 36 years.

Opening up about her own childhood as the only child of a clergyman, May also said some of what drives her - her Christian faith, her self-belief and her sense of duty.

She said: There was never any suggestion that because I was a girl there were things I couldnt do. My parents approach was very much: whatever you do, do your best. There was never any suggestion that because I was a girl there were things I couldnt do.

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New Delhi:

Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was on Monday nabbed from Delhi railway station, a day after he escaped with five other inmates from Nabha jail in Patiala.

Mintoo has been arrested from Delhi railway station by Delhi police, said a senior official of Punjab police in Chandigarh.

He said Delhi police nabbed the dreaded terrorist on the basis of inputs passed on by Punjab police.

We passed on the information about Mintoo following which Delhi police arrested him, official said.

He said a team of Punjab police will go to Delhi to bring him back.

It is the second arrest in the case. UP police last evening arrested the alleged mastermind of the daring daylight jailbreak, Parminder Singh.

He was arrested from Kairana in Uttar Pradeshs Shamli district when the getaway vehiclea Toyota Fortunerwas stopped at a police picket

Here are the live updates:

#I dont have any faith in Punjab police, and the matter should be given to CBI: Capt Amrinder Singh

Nabha jail is Punjabs high security jail. Obviously it is a part of game being played by Punjab govt: Capt Amrinder Singh #punjabjailbreak pic.twitter.com/gOlh4ZkaF4  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Kairana (UP): Parminder, arrested in connection with #PunjabJailBreak sent to 14-days judicial remand pic.twitter.com/4ojjqOFb3u  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

Excerpts from press conference of Arvind Deep,special CP (special cell)





Khalistani terrorist Harminder Mintoo, who was arrested by Delhi Police today, brought to Patiala House Court #punjabjailbreak pic.twitter.com/zv1MooJCVk  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

#It was a pre planned thing, Harminder Mintoo was part of the module of the escapees: Arvind Deep

#Investigation is on the preliminary stage; we are interrogating Harminder Mintoo, he was carrying some money with him: Arvind Deep

#We were constantly in touch with Punjab,Haryana,UP police after #Nabhajailbreak;Team at strategic locations,checked guesthouses,hotels-ADeep

#Pistol and 6 cartridges recovered from Harminder Mintoo. Case has been registered under relevant sections: Arvind Deep

#DCP monitoring situation; interrogation of Harminder Mintoo underway, we're conducting further probe based on leads given by him-Arvind Deep

#Harminder Mintoo had trimmed his beard, it was difficult to identity him; his plan was to escape from Goa via Mumbai: Arvind Deep

#Special cell arrested Harminder Singh Mintoo near Nizamuddin parking lot yesterday (on Sunday): Arvind Deep,special CP (special cell)



Excerts from press conference by Meerut IG on the arrest of Parminder, one of the escapees from Nabha jail:

#Have announced Rs 50,000 for Shehzad Ali, Deepanshu Tyagi & Rampal for showing exceptional courage: Ajay Anand,Meerut IG

#Our personnel involved in this Shehzad Ali, Deepanshu Tyagi & Rampal,reward announced for them and gallantry award recommendation: Meerut IG

#We overpowered him after a lot of effort, he was planning to go to Dehradun: Ajay Anand,(Meerut range IG) on Parminder

Shamli(UP): Huge cache of arms and ammunition recovered from car of Parminder who was arrested in connection with #punjabjailbreak pic.twitter.com/sMx9M6Puby  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) November 28, 2016

Car with Punjab no. plate found in Pharal village in Kaithal (Haryana), suspected to be in connection with #PunjabJailBreak pic.twitter.com/nqUaIQGoKp  News Nation (@NewsNationTV) November 28, 2016

Also read:

Nabha jailbreak: Police arrest one person; huge cache of arms recovered

High alert in Northern states after Punjab jail break



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New Delhi:

Day 9 of Parliaments Winter Session is likely to continue in a stalemate as the opposition parties plan to stage a biggest protest yet on the issue of currency ban.



Declared as Jan Akrosh Diwas, Monday will witness Bharat bandh call from selective parties while others plan to take out marches across India.



Divided as the opposition may be in strategy of protests outside Parliament, inside they plan to unite against the ruling NDA government and continue demands of a clarification from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes.

In the morning opposition parties are scheduled to hold a meeting at around 9:30 am, while PM Modi will meet senior ministers at 10:30 am.

Also read | Live updates on Jan Akrosh Diwas | Recap of Day 8 of Winter Session | Rahul Gandhi asks PM to join debate

Here are the live updates:

#Govt needs to list how many ppl & who all bought shares more than Rs 5 crore, gold, foreign exchange in last 1 & half months: Anand Sharma

#Black money is in real estate, share markets, securities, bullion market

#Rajya Sabha adjourned for the day amid ruckus

#If PM makes a big announcement; protocol is that PM gives statement on 1st day of Parl.;1st time that PM hasn't followed that: GN Azad in RS

#Banking Act, Constitution don't give PM or FM the power to deprive people access to their own money or ration it: Anand Sharma in RS (2:20pm)

#Lok Sabha adjourned till Tuesday 11:00am

#Finance Minister Arun Jaitley moves amendment in taxation law in Lok Sabha (2:03pm)

#Houses reumse session at 2:00pm

#You want PM to come to Lok Sabha for this debate then he will and he will make an intervention: HM Rajnath Singh in LS

#Lok Sabha adjourned till 2pm (12:20pm)

#If you have a complaint on implementation then we are ready to debate,don't doubt our integrity: HM Rajnath Singh in LS

#More than 70 people have died, and more than 1000 people have been injured: Mallikarjun Kharge,Congress in LS

#Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2pm

#In meeting of 18 opposition parties we decided to hold Jan Akrosh Diwas not Bharat Bandh. PM is responsible for Bharat Bandh: GN Azad in RS

#Rajya Sabha adjourned till 12 noon as opposition demands PM's presence & uproar overcurrency ban continues (11:50am)

#Opposition including DMK, CPM, Congress and RJD protesting in front of Gandhi statue in Parliament

#MPs protests in Well as Rajya Sabha resumes session (11:45 am)

#Lok Sabha adjourned till 12:00pm (11:20am)

#Rajya Sabha adjourned till 11:41am amid demands of apology from PM

#Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha sessions begin (11:00am)

#Let PM come and talk to us inside the house: Rahul Gandhi on PM's remarks against opposition

#Delhi: Rahul Gandhi chairs strategy meeting of Congress Lok Sabha MPs



#This oppn protest is against 125 crore people of the country who have whole heartedly supported #DeMonetisation : Jitendra Singh,MoS,PMO

#Opposition meeting ends, parties to demand apology from PM for his remarks against opposition : Sources (Read full story here)

#PM Modi reaches Parliament (10:30am)

#Opposition should debate in both houses of the parliament, we are ready.Why are they running away?: Ananth Kumar

#Senior opposition leaders Anand Sharma, Jyotiraje Sindhia, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Derek O Brian, Sudip Bandopadhyay arrive for Opposition party meeting (9:40 am)

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Jammu:

Opposition National Conference leaders on Sunday came in the defense of party president Farooq Abdullah over his controversial remarks saying his statement was based on facts as history stands testimony that the LoC has not been altered during the past nearly seven decades.

Questioning BJPs political understanding, senior National Conference leaders in a joint statement said, We want Line of Control to be the line of peace, line of mutual understanding, trust and regional cooperation rather than line of conflict and animosity.

The NC leaders expressed hope India and Pakistan would come to terms with this reality and live like good neighbours.

We cannot progress and prosper, carrying the baggage of animosity and hostility any longer, as generations have perished in pursuit of peace and tranquility, the leaders said.

They also recalled that such a proposal was seriously considered by former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpyee during while discussing the issue with his Pakistani counterpart.

And, both the leaders had agreed to the preposition in-principle, they added. Lashing out at the BJP for its uncalled for reaction to the assertion of Farooq Abdullah, National Conference said that they should open up their minds and not behave like ostrich.

Facing realities is better part of valour, they said, adding that jingoistic posturing will only push the subcontinent to destruction and devastation.

They referred to the colossal loss to human lives during the four wars between the two countries and the ongoing proxy war in the Valley and said allowing this situation to continue will be a grave injustice to future generations, who have the right to progress and prosper in a healthy and peaceful environment.

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on Sunday said neither India could take back PoK nor Pakistan has the power to take this part of Kashmir by going to war, so the solution to the problem lies in dialogue between the two countries.

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Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said his decision to leave the country in 2014 was caused by the wish to prevent a civil war.

"I made the decision [to leave Ukraine] and only then I addressed Russian President Vladimir Putin and told him that I have made the decision to leave the territory of Ukraine, because I think that this is very dangerous not from the point of view of my life, but from the point of view of the life of Ukrainians," Yanukovych said during an interrogation at Kyiv's Sviatoshynsky District Court in videoconference mode from the Rostov Regional Court on Monday.

He believes that if he had remained in the country, this would have led to a civil war on the whole territory of Ukraine.

"A war such as that in Donbas would have started throughout Ukraine if I had stayed there," the former president said.
Mumbai:

BJP and Shiv Sena have won six seats each as the counting of votes began this morning in the election to 147 municipal councils and 17 nagar panchayats across 25 districts in Maharashtra, seen as a litmus test for the Devendra Fadnavis government.

As many as 15,826 candidates are in the fray for 3,705 seats spread over the municipal councils and nagar panchayats, where voting was held on Sunday in the first phase with around 70 per cent of the electorate exercising its franchise.

No nominations were received for Shirala Nagar Panchayat in Sangli district while 28 candidates were elected unopposed. Counting of votes began at 10 AM. Polling was also held for municipal council president post in 147 places for which 1,013 candidates are in the race.

The polls are being viewed as mini Assembly elections and a test of popularity of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis who led the BJP campaign to make inroads in the rural areas where Congress and NCP hold sway.

This is for the first time that presidents of municipal councils will be elected directly by people. The second phase for elections to 14 municipal councils will be held on December 14.

Demonetisation, farm distress, improvement in rural infrastructure and caste tensions due to morcha by various communities in the run up to the polls were the main issues apart from local matters.

While ruling alliance partners, BJP and Shiv Sena, had tied up for the polls, the opposition Congress and NCP didnt formally announce any alliance. While BJP projected development as its main plank, during the campaign Fadnavis hailed the demonetisation move as a major attack on black money.

The Congress highlighted the hardships being faced by the poor and common man due to demonetisation among other issues. In total, including yesterdays phase, elections are being held for 212 civic bodies, comprising municipal councils and nagar panchayats, in four phases.

The next rounds of voting are scheduled on December 14, December 18, and January 8.
Chandigarh:

Another car was on Monday found abandoned in a village in Haryanas Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.



The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district. Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.



A car has been found in the village. Further investigations were under progress, Kaithals SP Sumer Partap Singh said, adding police and forensic experts were examining the car.



Another car had been found abandoned on Sunday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.



Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra. Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

Also reads | Punjab jailbreak: Huge cache of arms recovered from car of accused arrested in the case, reveals Meerut IG (Live updates)



The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, he said.



Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.



Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates yesterday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.

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Bengaluru:

Joining the nation-wide Jan Aakrosh Diwas against demonetisation of high-value currency, ruling Congress in Karnataka held protests and rallies throughout the state against the Narendra Modi governments action on Monday.

The protest affected the functioning of both the Houses of Karnataka Legislature, now in a 10-day winter session at Belagavi, as they did not sit on Monday in line with the decision taken by the Business Advisory Committee (BAC).

BAC had decided to suspend the sitting amid opposition by BJP, which walked out of the meeting on Friday.

An extra day of session would be held on December 3 to make up for the loss of business today.

Life in Bengaluru and elsewhere remained normal with commercial establishments, educational institutions, banks and private offices working as usual and public transport and Metro maintaining their regular services.

Official reports said barring protests by Congress, the situation in the entire state, including the districts of Mysuru, Gadag, Haveri, Belagavi, Kalaburgi, Chamrajanagar, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada and Kolar, was normal.

In Bengaluru, Congress staged a demonstration in front of Town Hall near City Market at the nucleus of the city, where State Working President R Gundu Rao, a few legislators and local leaders took part.

At the protest, Congress workers raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and carried placards against demonetisation which they said has hurt the common people.

Hundreds of Congress workers led by Rao took out a procession to Mysore Bank Circle in the heart of the city, causing major traffic snarls.

Congress workers set afire tyres in Kalaburgi and Ballari and formed human chains in Ramanagara and Mandya.

Countering Congress, BJP workers observed Sambhram Divas (Celebration Day) to back demonetisation and distributed sweets and offered flowers to people in Mysuru, Belagavi, Chamarajnagar and Mandya and other places and raised slogans hailing Modi.

Jan Aakrosh Diwas did not strike chord as expected as the state has seen five days of bandhs, protests and strikes in the last four months, including one on Cauvery water issue with Tamil Nadu which was marked by large-scale violence.

Janata Dal (Secular) had made it clear it would not join the protests though, while endorsing the fight against black money, it was against the manner against which demonetisation was implemented as it was an unrealistic decision which has been forced on the people.

In Bengaluru, various associations representing cab operators, trucks and private bus transporters and autorikshaws did not support the protest.

Police had stepped security across the state, deploying armed and reserve forces to prevent any trouble.

In Bengaluru, some 15,000 policemen were on duty, apart from platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police and City Armed Reserve.

Also Read: Jan Akrosh Diwas: We may die or survive, our slogan will be to remove Narendra Modi from power, say Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata

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New Delhi:

Steel major Tata Steel on Monday announced the signing of a Letter of Intent with Liberty House Group to enter into exclusive negotiations for the potential sale of its Speciality Steels business for an enterprise value of 100 million subject to due diligence and corporate approvals.

Liberty House is owned by steel baron Sanjeev Gupta.

As per a report in Economic Times, The Letter of Intent covers several South Yorkshire-based assets including the Rotherham electric arc steelworks, the steel purifying facility in Stocksbridge and a mill in Brinsworth as well as service centres in Bolton and Wednesbury, UK, and in Suzhou and Xi'an, China.

Speciality Steels employs about 1,700 people making steels for the aerospace, automotive and the oil & gas industries.



In a statement, Bimlendra Jha, CEO of Tata Steel UK, said: "The Speciality Steels business is independent of the pan-European strip products supply chain and today's announcement is in line with the overall restructuring strategy of the UK portfolio.

This is an important step forward in seeking a future for Speciality Steels and we have reached this stage thanks to the efforts of employees, trade unions and management. We now look forward to working with Liberty on the due diligence and other wo ..

Tata Steel UK has invested 1.5 billion of capital over the last nine years. The company's boards consider the technical feasibility and economic returns of investments when taking decisions, as well as their affordability.

The company is pursuing a transformation plan to create a sustainable future for its UK strip products business. The success of this plan is likely to influence decisions on future investments.




New Delhi:

Delhi High Court on Monday sternly asked the city police to cut across all political barriers and find missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed, saying there could be something more to his disappearance as no one can just vanish from the heart of the national capital.

Expressing concern over the whereabouts of the student who has remained untraced for 45 days now, the court also raised several questions, including why the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the injuries sustained by Najeeb was not mentioned in the Delhi Polices status report.

ALSO READ: (Missing JNU student case: University enquiry finds ABVP member guilty of assaulting Najeeb Ahmed)

A bench of justices G S Sistani and Vinod Goel said if a person disappears from the national capital and remains untraced, then it would create a sense of insecurity in the people here and asked the police to explore all angles.

This is the heart of India, the national capital. No one can just disappear from here. It creates a sense of insecurity in people. If he disappeared, then there is something more to that. All angles have to be explored. 45 days is a long period for someone to be underground, it said to the police which is of the view that Najeeb was not forcefully abducted.

After perusing the status report of Delhi Police, the court asked why was Najeeb taken to the Safdarjung Hospital in an ambulance if he had no apparent or visible injuries, as this detail was missing from the police report.

It also asked why the report does not say anything about the alleged on-campus scuffle between Najeeb and some members allegedly of Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) who are alleged to have brutally beaten him up and only mentions that the missing student had slapped one of them.

ALSO READ: (Missing JNU student case: Delhi Police to roll out print, radio ads for info on Najeeb)

The judge questioned why the police waited till November 11 to interrogate those persons with whom Najeeb allegedly had an altercation on the night of October 14-15, prior to his disappearance on October 15 and against whom a criminal complaint was lodged on October 17.

Cut across all political barriers. Get him back. You will get your answers at either of the two places, Jamia or JNU. No need to go to Aligarh or any other place so far, the bench told the police, which said that an auto driver has claimed to have dropped off Najeeb at the Jamia Milia Islamia University.
New Delhi:

Government has in-principle approved strategic disinvestment of loss-making subsidiary of Indias largest steelmaker SAIL, Salem Steel Plant (SSP) and the Parliament was informed about it on Monday.

SSP, a special steel unit of state-run SAIL, pioneered the supply of wider width stainless steel sheets and coils in the country.

The government has accorded in-principle approval of strategic disinvestment of SSP in Salem district of Tamil Nadu, Minister of State for Steel Vishnu Deo Sai said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

SSP is a loss-making unit of Maharatna firm SAIL, he added.

It has been consistently making losses for the last 5 years despite investment of around Rs 2,200 crore by SAIL under the modernisation and expansion project of SSP, the minister said.

The Salem plant can produce austenitic, ferritic, martensitic and low-nickel stainless steel in the form of coils and sheets with an installed capacity of 70,000 tonnes per annum in cold rolling mill as well as 3.64 lakh tonnes a year in hot rolling mill.

Its steel melting shop can produce 1,80,000 tonnes of slabs per annum. Besides, the plant has the countrys first top-of-the-line stainless steel blanking facility with a capacity of 3,600 tonnes per year of coin blanks and utility blanks/circles.
New Delhi:

In a swift operation, chief of Khalistan Liberation Front militant outfit Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested here last night within hours of his escape from Nabha jail in Punjab, with Delhi Police saying he was planning to flee abroad, to Malaysia or Germany.

However, high alert continued in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi as about 12 armed dreaded fugitives are still at large.

Two cars used by them in the escape have been found in Haryanas Kaithal district.

48-year-old Mintoo was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway stations parking area, marking the second arrest in the sensational jailbreak case of yesterday morning in which 8 people stormed the prison to free six inmatestwo militants and four dreaded criminals.

Earlier, Parminder alias Penda was arrested yesterday in Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh, few hours after the jailbreak. Mintoo, accused in 10 terror cases, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan, Punjab Director General of Police Suresh Arora said.

Harminder was carrying a sophisticated semi-automatic pistol along with six live cartridges when he was arrested, Arvind Deep, Special Commissioner of Delhi Polices Special Cell, told reporters here today.

He had bought a (train) ticket for Panvel and from there he had plans to go to Mumbai and then to Goa. He had good contacts in Goa since he had stayed there for 18 years from 1989 to 2007, Deep said while giving details of the arrest effected nearly 200 km from the scene of the crime.

Finally, Harminder planned to flee to Germany or Malaysia, where he had good contacts since he had stayed there, police sources said. He was produced before a court here which sent him to seven days police custody.

During interrogation, Harminder said the jailbreak was under planning for the last six months and its masterminds and executors were Gurpreet Singh Sekhon and Harjinder Singh who are members of a criminal gang, said DCP (Special Cell) P S Kushwah.

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Chandigarh:

Haryana police force was on maximum alert on Monday, a day after the sensational Nabha jailbreak incident in neighbouring Punjab, as one more abandoned car was found in Kaithal district.

Acting on inputs that some fugitives had passed through Haryana territory, the police remained on maximum alert and a vigorous search was on to nab the accused.

"We are maintaining a high alert. If any of the fugitive is found in Haryana, we will immediately nab him," IGP Karnal Range, Subhash Yadav said.

Another car was found on Monday abandoned in a village in Haryana's Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned in Pharal village in Kaithal district.

Kaithal in Haryana is about 70 km from Nabha in Punjab where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.

"A car has been found in the village," IGP Yadav said, adding it was suspected to have been used in Sunday's jailbreak incident. Another car had been found abandoned on Sunday in Solumajra in Kaithal and is suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail."

Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers had been found from the car which was found in Solumajra.

Also Read: Punjab jailbreak: Another abandoned car with found in Kaithal, Haryana

Further investigation in the matter is being conducted by Punjab Police," Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kaithal, Tarun Kumar said.

The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, Kumar said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Security has been beefed up in Haryana and police force has been put on high alert after Nabha jailbreak incident at Patiala in neighbouring Punjab on Sunday.

The borders with Patiala and the adjoining borders with Ambala, Kaithal and Jind have already been sealed. Checking is being carried out at 'nakas', Yadav said.

Khalistan Liberation Front Chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates on Sunday, was today nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi.

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At a meeting between Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom the parties coordinated their positions ahead of a European Council meeting and noted the need to extend anti-Russian sanctions.

"Poroshenko once again thanked the Swedish government for its unshakable position on the need to keep the anti-Russian sanctions in place until full restoration of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine... The Swedish foreign minister noted that the sanctions must continue," the Ukrainian president's press office said in a statement on Monday evening.

The parties also coordinated their positions in the run-up to the European council meeting due to be held on December 15-16, in particular, on the introduction of visa-free travel for Ukrainians and completion of the association agreement ratification process.
Yanukovych says he is not seeking power, but wants to stop Donbas conflict

Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych does not lay claim to power, but is thinking about the means to resolve the conflict and restore Donbas, Yanukovych said.

"It is not about me, but what comes next. And what comes next is my biggest concern. I've heard that I seek power, but I don't, I don't think about that, I think about how to stop war, how to return people to their native land, restore Donbas," he said during a press conference in Rostov-on-Don.

He said that he has not left Russia since 2014.

"Ukraine was divided not by my not signing an agreement on the creation of a free trade zone," he said.

He expressed hope that the current Ukrainian authorities will be able to sit down at the negotiating table and unite the country. "I hope the authorities will have wisdom and strength to sit down at the negotiating table, unite the country, bring back hundreds of thousands of refugees not only from Donbas, but the entire Ukraine, and return people a future," Yanukovych said.
Japan again sends fighters to head off Chinese warplanes near mainland

(NationalSecurity.news) Japan has once again scrambled fighter-interceptors in response to a flight by Chinese fighters and bombers through a strategic passage into the Pacific Ocean between Okinawa and Mikyako Island.

Japans Air Self-Defense Force scrambled fighters to intercept a pair of Chinese Su-30 fighters and H-6 bombers, Stars and Stripes reported. The Defense Ministry added that the Chinese planes were intercepted Friday, and the flight did not infringe into Japanese territorial airspace. That said, the flight took place through a politically sensitive area.

It was the second such flight since September, when Beijing dispatched at least eight fighters and bombers through the area  apparently to send a message to Tokyo, the Tribune News Service reported, adding:

Fridays flight involved two H-6 bombers and two intelligence-gathering aircraft that flew northwest over the Pacific Ocean toward the East China Sea, passing through the strait south of Okinawa. The two Su-30 fighters entered the passageway from the opposite direction, making U-turns to link up with the four other aircraft before flying to the East China Sea, the Defense Ministrys Joint Staff Office said in a news release.

The move came the same day China and Japan held the sixth round of talks on a stalled maritime and air communication protocol intended to prevent accidental clashes between aircraft and vessels. Implementation of the mechanism has been stalled since Japan effectively nationalized the disputed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea in 2012.

Beijing and Tokyo have blasted each other this year over a number of incidents in the air and sea as tensions continue to boil. This has prompted concern over the prospect of an accidental clash by the two Asian giants. 

China and Japan are involved in a territorial dispute over the Senkakus. Beijing unilaterally declared an air defense identification zone over the East China Sea in 2013, and its coast guard vessels frequently face off around the Japan-administered islands, which are claimed as Diaoyu by China and Tiaoyutai by Taiwan.

One of the most pressing foreign policy issues facing the incoming Trump administration is figuring out how best to ease tensions that have been steadily rising between China and Japan, historic rivals. China has become much more aggressive in recent years after updating and upgrading its forces in response to rising economic growth. China now holds the worlds No. 2 economy, behind the U.S. and ahead of Japan, which is No. 3.

More:

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Thousands of veterans coming to aid Standing Rock : 5 facts you should know

Veterans from multiple branches of the U.S. Military are planning to head to North Dakota to protect protesters (called Water Protectors) at the site of the Dakota Access Pipeline protests.

Article by Jessica McBride

The organizers are raising money to send as many veterans as possible to stand between Water Protectors and law enforcement, and the organizers online fundraising site has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in just a few weeks as people from all over the United States and world embrace the #NODAPL cause.

The group, which calls itself Veterans for Standing Rock, is calling for our fellow veterans to assemble as a peaceful, unarmed militia at the Standing Rock Indian Reservation on December 4-7 to protect the protesters from the law enforcement presence there.

The Dakota Access Pipeline (called DAPL in shorthand) is a multi-state oil pipeline that has been the focus of increasingly intense clashes for months between Water Protectors and law enforcement near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation in North Dakota. The Water Protectors say they are taking a stand for future generations and water quality, as well as fighting to protect sites of cultural and spiritual significance. The energy company behind the pipeline has claimed it will create jobs and reduce dependence on foreign oil sources.

The protests have brought together a historic gathering of people from many Indian nations as well as other protesters and celebrities.

Heres what you need to know:

1. The Veterans Have Raised More than $330,000 for Their Efforts

The veterans established a GoFundMe site to raise money for the veteran militia. You can find the site here.

The site has raised the more than $330,000 in just 14 days as people rally to support the tribe and Water Protectors. The veterans have also created an online enlistment form that veterans can use to sign up for the effort.

Pipeline supporters say it will create jobs and reduce American dependence on foreign oil. The Water Protectors say the pipeline could harm the environment and is endangering sites of spiritual and cultural significance.

Everyday becomes more evident that the defenders of America must stand with the Water Protectors, the veterans say on their site. Lets stop this savage injustice being committed right here at home. If not us, who? If not now, when? Are you a hero? Are you honorable? Not if you allow this the be the United States.

2. The Veterans Come From All Branches of the U.S. Military

According to the GoFundMe site, those involved are veterans of the United States Armed Forces, including the U.S. Army, United States Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Coast Guard.

The organizers wrote that the funds they raise will go towards providing food, transportation and supplies for the brave patriots that come and stand with us.

The organizers continued, Its time to display that honor, courage, and commitment we claim to represent. Its time for real Patriots. Now more than ever, its time for anyone and everyone to lead.

3. The Clashes Have Grown More Intense With Reports of Injuries & Dogs Used Against Protesters

The veterans say they want to protect the Water Protectors from what they call assault by police, who have adopted an increasingly militarized presence they say is necessary to protect private property. The Morton County Sheriffs Department said on November 25, Protesters continue to make aggressive efforts to trespass on property north of the protest camps.

This has led to dramatic imagery as police in military-style vehicles and riot gear confront Water Protectors, who are often on horseback. The company that is building the pipeline has used private security guards with snarling dogs at the site, and has claimed some of its guards also were injured.

Protesters have said they were bitten by dogs, maced, and, most recently, a female protesters arm was blown off. In the latter incident, the Standing Rock Medic and Healing Council released a statement that said in part, The Morton County Sheriffs Department has stated that she was injured by a purported propane explosion that the Sheriffs Department claimed the unarmed people created. These statements are refuted by Sophias testimony, by several eye-witnesses who watched police intentionally throw concussion grenades at unarmed people, by the lack of charring of flesh at the wound site and by the grenade pieces that have been removed from her arm in surgery and will be saved for legal proceedings.

The veterans site says, on November 20, the Morton County Sheriffs Departments forces attacked water protectors with water cannons in freezing temperatures and launched concussion grenades into a peaceful crowd. Several had to be treated for hypothermia and one protester who was hit directly with a grenade has reportedly had her arm amputated as a result.

The Sheriffs Department posted a response on Facebook but now appears to have deleted its Facebook page entirely.

Protesters also said they were kept in cages that resembled dog kennels after on mass arrest. A woman was charged with struggling with an officer and firing a weapon, but missing.

4. The Effort Was Organized by Veterans Who Are a Screenwriter & Police Officer

According to CNN, the event organizers are Wesley Clark, a veteran, screenwriter and activist and Michael Wood Jr., a retired Baltimore police officer and Marine Corps veteran who advocates for police reform.

Clark told CNN: Im going for religious reasons. Im not a leader. Im not in charge. We are self-organizing this. On Twitter, Clark says he lives in Los Angeles and calls himself Jack of All Trades, Committed Christian.

Clark has said he was moved to act after receiving a call from a Standing Rock elder, and Wood told the news media, If we dont stand up for the oppressed, thats the snowball that starts that leads to everyone elses oppression.

5. The Veterans Say They Wont Tolerate Any Hate & Want People to Bring Body Armor but Not Weapons

The effort has a Facebook page where people can get more information. It reads, in part, ADMIN NOTE: Weve received a tremendous response from many of you wanting to join the march and get more information. Thank YOU & WELCOME! Step 1 is registering using the roster form pinned to this page. Once you complete that more details & communications will follow. Our team is currently coordinating Ride-Shares from all over the US leveraging the funding from the GoFundMe. Details on supply needs, gear and travel logistics are forethcoming. Be patient with us please, we are small group of volunteers and were working hard to ensure this all goes to plan for everyone. If you have any questions, concerns or press queries please email them to [email protected] and thank you for your passion and your service.

The Facebook page invites veterans to come to Standing Rock Indian Reservation and hold the line with Wes Clark jr, Michael Wood jr, Tulsi Gabbard and hundreds of other veterans in support of the Sioux nation against the DAPL pipeline. Bring Body armor, gas masks, earplugs AND shooting mufflers (we may be facing a sound cannon) but no drugs, alcohol or weapons. Op Order to be published 10 November 2016.

The organizers say they will not tolerate hate, violence or divisive behavior of any kind. Were doing this to support our country so lets do it with honor, working together. We can stop this savage injustice being committed right here at home. If not us, who? If not now, when?

Read more at: heavy.com

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Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday sent a message of condolence to his Cuban counterpart, Raul Castro, after Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro passed away late Friday at the age of 90.

In the message sent to Raul Castro, first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, president of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers of Cuba, Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, offered his deepest condolences on the death of Fidel Castro and sincerest sympathy to his family.

The English translated version of the message is as follows.

Distressed to learn of the passing away of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, I, in the name of the CPC, the Chinese government and people and in my own name, express my deepest condolences to you and through you to the Communist Party of Cuba, the Cuban government and people, and my sincerest sympathy to Fidel Castro's family.

Fidel Castro, founder of the Communist Party of Cuba and Cuba's socialist cause, is a great leader of the Cuban people. He has devoted all his life to Cuban people's great cause of struggling for national liberation, safeguarding state sovereignty and building socialism.

He has made immortal historic contributions to the Cuban people and to the world socialism development. Comrade Fidel Castro is a great figure of our times and will be remembered by history and people.

I met with Comrade Fidel Castro many times and held in-depth conversations with him. His real knowledge and deep insight inspired me as his voice and expression live in my memory. Both I and the Chinese people miss him deeply.

Comrade Fidel Castro, who dedicated his life to the friendship between China and Cuba, paid close attention to and spoke highly of China's development.

As a result of his care and support, Cuba became the first Latin American country to establish diplomatic ties with China in 1960. Since then, the two countries have witnessed profound development of bilateral ties, fruitful results of cooperation in a wide range of areas and deepening friendship between the two peoples, thanks to Comrade Fidel Castro's solicitude and painstaking efforts.

The death of Comrade Fidel Castro is a great loss to the Cuban and Latin American people. The Cuban and Latin American people lost an excellent son, and the Chinese people lost a close comrade and sincere friend. His glorious image and great achievements will go down in history.

I believe that under the strong leadership of Comrade Raul Castro, the Communist Party of Cuba, the Cuban government and its people will carry on the unfinished lifework of Comrade Fidel Castro, turn sorrow into strength and keep making new achievements in the cause of socialist construction.

The friendship between two parties, the two countries and the two peoples will definitely be consolidated and further developed.

The great Comrade Fidel Castro will be forever remembered.
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NEWTOWN - A year ago, advocates here and in Washington, D.C., said the chances of fixing the nations broken mental health system were better than at any time in recent memory.

And if votes over the next month on a $6.3 billion bill go as Republican Congressional leaders predict, Americans can expect some of that reform before President Obama leaves office.

The bipartisan legislation, which includes components of a mental health reform bill co-authored by Sen. Chris Murphy, includes $1 billion for state programs to combat opioid addiction and other drug abuse, as well as money to expand government mental health programs.

That is fantastic news, but I want to see everything that the bill includes, said Jeremy Richman, the CEO of the Avielle Foundation, a brain research nonprofit he co-founded after his daughter was slain in the Sandy Hook massacre. Addiction research is one of the areas of neuroscience research that has been successful - and of course opioid addiction is a huge problem in Connecticut.

A greater Danbury substance abuse prevention and treatment organization agreed.

It does sound like this is a good direction for us, but we want to wait to see how this plays out for Connecticut, said Lee Bodkin, the marketing and communications director at the Midwestern Connecticut Council of Alcoholism. In Connecticut there are not enough (mental health) beds, and the resources are scarce, so any of this assistance is a good thing.

The bill, which could be voted on by the U.S. House of Representatives as soon as Wednesday, has components of Murphys bill included in it that offer:

Grants for states to break down barriers between physical and mental health care systems.

Federal money to treat people with low incomes who have serious mental illness.

Early-intervention grants for children as young as 3 years old with signs of mental illness.

Grants that support pediatricians consultation with mental health teams.

Ive gotten to know people in Connecticut who are struggling with addiction, and doctors who face mental health and substance abuse issues head on every single day, Murphy said in a prepared statement. People in Connecticut and all over the country are counting on us to do something.

Momentum for mental health reform has been building in part because of high-profile mass shootings across the country since the horrific 2012 slayings of 26 first-graders and educators at Sandy Hook School.

The Sandy Hook shooter was a disturbed and isolated 20-year-old named Adam Lanza, whose mental health could have been better managed by his parents and the Newtown school district, a state report concluded in part.

Nicole Hockley, the mother of a boy slain in the massacre and a co-founder of the non-profit Sandy Hook Promise, has said advocates recognize mental health reform has the ability to move faster through Congress than gun reform.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said once the House votes on the bill the Senate will follow before the end of year, the Associated Press reported.

Murphy said the deal is good for Connecticut families.

Nearly everyone I talk to knows someone who has been victimized by our nation's broken mental health system or our countrys heroin epidemic, Murphys statement read. I hope we get it done and on the President's desk as soon as possible.

rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342
NEW MILFORD  Local developers Thomas Pilla and his wife, Elaine, were arrested Nov. 15 and charged with criminal lockout and second-degree larceny.

Both were released on $2,500 bond and are scheduled to appear Dec. 1 in state Superior Court in Bantam.
REDDING  Officials are hopeful the towns piece of the Norwalk River Valley Trail will be completed without having to pull from its operating budget.

The Board of Selectmen unanimously approved applying for a grant through the Western Connecticut Council of Governments this week that would cover 80 percent of the costs to build Reddings one-mile portion of the trail, which would be about $254,000. The remaining $63,400, or the 20 percent match, would be paid for by the organization associated with the trail, donations or in-kind work.

We feel optimistic about it, said Stuart Green, a Redding resident who has been working on the project.

Redding volunteers have already raised about $21,000, or a third of the match, Green said.

The finished Norwalk River Valley Trail will span 38 miles through five towns, beginning at the Maritime Aquarium in Norwalk and ending at Rogers Park in Danbury. Norwalk, Danbury, Ridgefield and Wilton have pieces of the trail in place. Existing sections in Ridgefield and Danbury are established trails that will be tied into the system. All five towns are actively working on segments.

There are several pieces built out that are beautiful, said First Selectman Julia Pemberton.

First Selectman Julia Pemberton said the grant process is very competitive, but hopes the high profile of the trail will help. If the town is selected for the grant, but the trail group is unable to pay its share, then the town could reject the grant, Pemberton said.

The town of Reddings budget is not on the hook for this, she said. It just gets us in the running.

Green said theyve also heard of possible funding sources that could help cover the match. Some of the charity runs have already allocated some donations for the trail.

The trail began as an idea about 40 years ago to use land the state had purchased decades ago for the Super 7 highway project. The highway, which would have connected New Milford to Norwalk, faced heavy opposition at the time from environmentalists and local residents. The trail was made possible by a legislative change championed by state Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton.

It began to materialize though in 2009 when a $180,000 grant was awarded to complete a routing study to determine the feasibility.

The Board of Selectmen have already approved designs for Reddings section, from Picketts Ridge Road to Fire Hill Road. It reflects the towns character with an unpaved path that would allow horses. The level path would most likely be smooth and coated in a hard stone powder to prevent it from turning to mud.

Once the permits are approved and funds secured, it is expected to take about three months to construct the Redding section.

kkoerting@newstimes.com; 203-731-3345
DANBURY - Lost in last weeks announcement by Mayor Mark Boughton that he is exploring another run for governor is his intention to seek an unprecedented ninth term as the citys mayor.

Danbury will always come first, the Republican said on Monday. Danbury is my first love.

Boughton said a run for governor would not signify any lessening of commitment to the city where his family has deep roots and he began his working life as a high school social studies teacher.

I have received a lot of emails and phone calls from voters urging me to run for statewide office, because Danbury has a story to tell, he said. If I dont win, I can at least raise our profile across Connecticut and tell the story of the terrific place we have here, which will bring more investment and more economic development.

But the citys Democratic leader was quick to criticize Boughtons plan to explore a run for governor while trying to hold onto local office, saying City Hall is not a consolation prize.

If his intent is to move on and run for governor, then God bless him, but he is trying to ensure that if it doesnt work out, he will have a fallback position, said Democratic Party Chairman Gene Eriquez. This is his third bite at the apple, not his first.

Boughton has run for the states highest office twice before. He bowed out of the 2014 race because he could not raise enough money.

The eight-term mayor will spend the next 13 months trying to raise $250,000 in small amounts to qualify for millions in public campaign financing.

Eriquez said the Democratic Party would have a strong candidate to challenge Boughton by early next year.

In 2015, the Democrats failed to nominate a challenger, in part because no one wanted to run against a seven-term incumbent.

Eriquez, a former long-term mayor himself, said he was not among the mayoral candidates considering a run against Boughton in 2017.

Boughton said there was nothing incongruous about exploring a run for governor while running for reelection as mayor.

Gene is saying what he has to say because he is chairman of the Democratic Party, Boughton said. It will be up to the voters to make that decision, not Gene.

rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342
This op-ed piece is a special To The Washington Post from Eric Chenoweth, the co-director of the Institute for Democracy in Eastern Europe.

In assessing Donald Trump's presidential victory, Americans continue to look away from this election's most alarming story: the successful effort by a hostile foreign power to manipulate public opinion before the vote.

U.S. intelligence agencies determined that the Russian government actively interfered in our elections. Russian state propaganda gave little doubt that this was done to support President-elect Trump, who repeatedly praised Vladimir Putin and excused the Russian president's foreign aggression and domestic repression. Most significantly, U.S. intelligence agencies have affirmed that the Russian government directed the illegal hacking of private email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and prominent individuals. The emails were then released by WikiLeaks, which has benefited financially from a Russian state propaganda arm, used Russian operatives for security and made clear an intent to harm the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.

From the Russian perspective, the success of this operation can hardly be overstated. News stories on the DNC emails released in July served to disrupt the Democratic National Convention, instigate political infighting and suggest for some supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) - without any real proof - that the Democratic primary had been "rigged" against their candidate. On Oct. 7, WikiLeaks began near daily dumps from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's email account, generating a month of largely negative reporting on Clinton, her campaign staff, her husband and their foundation. With some exceptions, there was little news in the email beyond political gossip and things the media had covered before, now revisited from a seemingly "hidden" viewpoint.

Russian (and former communist) propaganda has traditionally worked exactly this way: The more you "report" something negatively, the more the negative is true. Trump and supportive media outlets adopted the technique and reveled in information gained from the illegal Russian hacking (as well as many "fake news" stories that evidencesuggests were generated by Russian intelligence operations) to make exaggerated claims ("Hillary wants to open borders to 600 million people!") or to accuse Clinton of illegality, corruption and, ironically, treasonous behavior.

Part of the Russian operation's success is that we cannot measure the effect. Did the DNC emails depress the Sanders vote for Clinton? Did the Podesta emails turn off independents? Would voters have responded differently if major media had reported the email releases not as legitimate news but as an intelligence operation by a hostile foreign power aimed at undermining the integrity of U.S. elections? There are no clear answers. But there are certainties: The email operation increased negative stories about Clinton, fueled an immense propaganda attack and diminished coverage of actual issues. The large polling lead Clinton gained after the debates slipped significantly under this barrage of negativity - even before FBI Director James B. Comey's bombshell.

Again, was there coordination with this foreign intervention? Russia's deputy foreign minister, Sergei A. Ryabkov,boasted that government representatives maintained multiple "contacts" during the campaign with Trump's "immediate entourage." (Campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks issued a denial.) This is on top of reported U.S. government suspicions that a Trump adviser met with the intelligence operative directing the hacking. Where are the committee chairmen in Congress demanding an investigation? How is it that Republican Party leaders accept the intervention of a foreign power in the election of their party's presidential candidate?

Putin is pursuing large strategic goals: recognition of the annexation of Crimea and international acceptance of foreign aggression to change state borders; Russian control of Ukraine; weakening or even dissolution of the European Union and NATO; restoration of Russia as a great power; and restored dominance over the former Soviet bloc and its environs. In pursuing these aims, Putin is engaged in a disciplined effort to influence democratic politics in the West, including financial and propaganda support for the narrow Brexit victory and for a network of far-right (and pro-Russian) nationalist political parties and groups throughout Europe. Now he has achieved what had to have been his most improbable goal: helping elect a sympathetic U.S. president who wants to form an alliance against terrorism. What will Trump give in exchange? He has already reaffirmed his intention to end support for pro-Western rebels in Syria, which effectively gives Russia a free hand to make President Bashar al-Assad its satrap. The greater danger is Trump's attitude toward NATO as a "soft" alliance that, like the Western powers in 1939, won't "die for Danzig." It would mean the alliance's end.

In his book "Putinism," Soviet and Russian historian Walter Laqueur describes the varied ideological strains that animate the former KGB agent. The "Russian national idea" that has emerged is to defend Russia, Eurasia and the world from the anti- civilizational corruption of Western liberal democracy. Frighteningly, Putin's worldview has resonance in the populist and nationalist fixations of Stephen K. Bannon, the president-elect's senior counselor, whose stated mission is to "destroy" the "establishment" and end the domination of the "donor class." Bannon's "closing argument" ad for Trump, redolent of Russian propaganda, described the United States as a corrupt and failing state because of nefarious "global special interests." It all points to grave danger for democracy and a world order that has kept the peace for 70 years. Is this what America voted for?

- - -

Chenoweth is co-director of the Institute for Democracy in Eastern Europe.
Morrison Menon case studies in Dubai Women College curriculum

Qatar,Business/Economy,Education, Sun, 27 Nov 2016 IANS

Doha, Nov 27 (IANS) UAE-based chartered accountants Morison Menon on Sunday said that two of studies have been included in the business curriculum of Dubai Women College-Higher College of Technology (HCT).

"We are pleased to announce the inclusion of Morrison Menon in the business curriculum of HCT-Dubai Women College in the form of two case studies," Morrison Menon said in a release here.

The studies in question were written by Nikola Perovic and Kavita Shah, addressing various subjects relevant to the firm's core business in the UAE, it said.

The first study is titled "The first Super Brand in the knowledge economy in the UAE."

"The second study titled 'The Super Home Brand Morison Menon. Running economic and social engine together in UAE' addresses the companies ever burgeoning array of local corporate social responsibility (CSR) policies and its impact on its immediate environment," the statement added

Dubai Women College Director Tarifa Al Zaabi said: "We are pleased that our academic staff have developed classic business case studies originating from UAE and representing Morison Menon. We were looking for a global brand organically grown in UAE fully integrated with the local community and culture and playing a prominent role in sustainability and social impact."

"The business environment in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council), which has fully embraced the spirit of globalization, demands talented business leadership. To be considered as an approach worth emulating is both humbling and a source of great delight" Managing Partner of Morison Menon Qatar Kurian Kuriakose said in the statement.

--IANS

bc/vd
6,000-year-old pentagon house discovered in China

China,Art/Culture/Books, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Beijing, Nov 28 (IANS) Archaeologists have found ruins of a pentagonal structure in China's Shanxi province which is believed to have been a tribal meeting hall or a leader's office 6,000 years ago, authorities said on Monday.

The semi-subterranean house, discovered at the neolithic ruins in Taoyuan, a village in the province, covered a total area of 90 square metres, with surviving walls reaching a maximum of 50 cm, Xinhua news agency quoted Xue Xinming, a researcher with Shanxi provincial Institute of Archaeology, as saying.

The walls were painted with a mixture of grass and mud inside, and several holes were also found where wooden pillars were located to support the house and walls, said Xue.

A cylinder-shaped fireplace was also found underground in the house, which ancient people used for heating, cooking and lighting.

According to Xue, the pentagonal building was rare for that period as the prehistoric people only built structures larger than 80 square metres in the shape.

"Such a big building perhaps was an office of a tribe leader or a public venue for meetings or worship ceremonies of a major tribe," he said, adding it was the first of its kind found in Shanxi province.

Previously, a dozen prehistoric pentagonal buildings had been found in China, mainly located in Lingbao city in Henan province.

The discovery is part of findings from an excavation that began in August in Taoyuan to prepare for highway construction in the area, said Zheng Yuan, excavation team leader of the project.

Zheng said the total excavation area is 2,500 square metres, and aside from four house ruins, they have also discovered ruins of a pottery kiln and unearthed a variety of pottery pieces.

She said the excavation is important for researching society and life in the Miaodigou Culture, the most powerful period in prehistoric China, which was centred around the provinces of Shanxi, Shaanxi and Henan.

--IANS

py/vt
Hunt continues for fugitives of Nabha jailbreak

Punjab,National,Defence/Security,Crime/Disaster/Accident, Mon, 28 Nov 2016 IANS

Chandigarh, Nov 28 (IANS) Security agencies on Monday continued their hunt of six high-profile prisoners, including two terrorists and four gangsters, who had escaped after a sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in Punjab a day earlier.

Police and security agencies were alerted in six states, including Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. Routes towards Nepal were also being checked.

"Raids are being conducted at various places. It appears that the prisoners who escaped and their attackers went in separate directions soon after escaping from the Nabha prison," a senior Punjab Police officer told IANS on Monday.

In neighbouring Haryana, the Haryana and Punjab Police confirmed the recovery of a Hyundai Verna car from a village in Kaithal district. The abandoned car was one of the getaway vehicles used by the escaped prisoners and their attackers.

"On search of the car, we recovered a police uniform and some mobile numbers. We are investigating this. The registration number plates of the car are fake," a Haryana police official in Kaithal said.

Six criminals, including Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, Kashmir Singh (both terrorists) and dreaded gangsters Gurpreet Sekhon, Vicky Gounder, Amandeep Dhotian and Neeta Deol, had escaped from the Nabha Jail after the attack.

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Sunday evening nabbed gangster Parvinder Singh, who admitted to being one of the attackers in the jailbreak, from near Shamli town in western Uttar Pradesh.

Uttar Pradesh ADG (Law and Order) Daljeet Chowdhary said that Parvinder, who was in a Toyota Fortuner SUV, was intercepted by police in the western UP district in the evening and arrested.

A haul of weapons, including three rifles and one SLR (self loading rifle) was also recovered from the vehicle.

"The Punjab Police has been informed about the arrest. He is being questioned for further leads on his accomplices. He is the main accused in the jailbreak," Chaudhary said.

A high alert was sounded across north India after armed men, said to be 10-12 in number, attacked the maximum security Nabha jail. The attackers, dressed in police uniform, came in three-four cars and breached the tight security of the prison around 9 a.m.

Witnesses said the attackers fired at least 100 rounds during a well-planned and executed attack that lasted barely 10 minutes.

Despite several rounds of firing, no one was injured. Official sources said the security in the jail did not retaliate, raising suspicion.

DGP Arora admitted that "conspiracy", "connivance" and "lapses" led to the incident.

A young woman, Neha, who was a dancer with a dance troupe, was killed as a police team fired at a car which did not stop at a security barricade near Samana town.

Punjab DGP Suresh Arora admitted that the incident was a case of "mistaken identity".

A security lockdown was ordered along Punjab's border with Haryana and Rajasthan and with Pakistan.

The Punjab government has announced a reward of Rs 25 lakh to anyone giving information leading to the arrest of the six prisoners.

Punjab Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who visited the jail on Sunday afternoon, tweeted: "Pak(istan) desperate to revive terror post surgical strike. Could be behind jail break.

"We will uncover the conspiracy behind jailbreak at all costs," he added.

The Punjab government suspended the Additional DGP, Jails M.K. Tiwari. The Nabha Jail Superintendent and his deputy were dismissed from service, Badal said.

Several top terrorists, gangsters and criminals are lodged in the Nabha Jail, located about 100 km from Chandigarh.

--IANS

js/in
China has been making immense contributions to Bangladesh's efforts in building digital Bangladesh, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) State Minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak said.

"In the past 4 decades Bangladesh and China relations have undergone speedy transformation," Palak on Saturday at a discussion meeting.

The minister stressed the need for strengthening the Bangladesh-China relations for further cooperation in various fields.

"Level of cooperation have accelerated since Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina-led Bangladesh Awami League government came into power in Bangladesh in 2009."

Prime Minister Hasina declared her vision to build a digital Bangladesh.

"In this process, we started inter network among the all government offices and all government officers. We have connected 18,000 government offices up to sub-district level with the support of Chinese government," he said.

"I would like to convey my heartiest thanks to the Chinese government for supporting us for building our digital infrastructure across the country and fulfill PM Hasina vision for building digital Bangladesh."
Israel won't allow IS to open new border front: PM

Israel,Politics,Terrorism, Tue, 29 Nov 2016 IANS

Jerusalem, Nov 29 (IANS) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Israel will not allow a new "front of terror" in the Golan Heights, a day after Islamic State (IS) militants clashed with Israeli soldiers.

"There have been attempts to attack our forces," Netanyahu said on Monday, referring to the shooting and mortar attack launched by IS militants near the Israeli-Syrian border on Sunday.

"We will not allow radical Islam to open a front against us in the Golan Heights. Israel will not allow any drizzle of assaults, and will attack if necessary," Xinhua news agency quoted Netanyahu as saying.

On Sunday, IS militants fired at Israeli soldiers from a machine gun-mounted truck.

Israel quickly responded with an airstrike, killing four gunmen in the vehicle.

In addition, Israel's Air Force struck a compound used by IS militants in the southern Syrian Golan Heights on Sunday night.

--IANS

vgu/
Commercial customers made other delivery arrangements

due to labour uncertainty, which reduced volumes and revenue

OTTAWA, Nov. 25, 2016 /CNW/ - The Canada Post segment lost $60 million before tax in the third quarter, when the risk of a work disruption prompted commercial customers to make other arrangements to deliver their parcels and mail.

The net financial impact of the labour uncertainty is estimated at $100 million for the third quarter. That figure reflects the significant reduction in revenue but also includes slightly lower costs, such as less use of overtime and temporary employees, because volumes had declined sharply in all lines of business. The Corporation and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers reached tentative agreements on August 30, 2016, but volumes took much longer to recover. Employee benefit expenses were also lower in the third quarter due to a $44-million non-cash one-time gain, resulting from the new collective agreement with the Canadian Postmasters and Assistants Association (CPAA) in August 2016.

The Canada Post segment's $60-million loss before tax in the third quarter, which ended October 1, 2016, compared to a loss before tax of $13 million in the third quarter of 2015. For the first three quarters, the Canada Post segment recorded a loss before tax of $15 million, compared to a loss before tax of $20 million in the same period in 2015. The improved results over three quarters are largely due to growth in the Parcels business over the first two quarters of 2016.

Parcels results

The labour uncertainty in the third quarter meant that volumes in the rapidly growing Parcels line of business declined for the first time since the first quarter of 2014 and revenues declined year over year for the first time since the first quarter of 2012. Parcels revenue decreased by $30 million or 7.9 per cent while volumes declined by 2 million pieces or 5.2 per cent in the third quarter of 2016, compared to the third quarter of 2015. For the first three quarters, Parcels revenue increased by $45 million or 4.5 per cent and volumes increased by 7 million pieces or 5.9 per cent, compared to the same period in 2015.1 That growth was lifted by the results over the first two quarters. It reflects the strength of Canada Post's e-commerce strategy and its innovative solutions for retailers and consumers.

Transaction Mail results

In the third quarter, Transaction Mail volumes continued to erode as mailers adopt digital billing. They decreased by 120 million pieces or 13.8 per cent and revenue fell by $79 million or 10.8 per cent, compared to the same period in 2015, which had benefitted from the one-time impact of the October 2015 federal election. The labour uncertainty worsened the ongoing volume decline. For the first three quarters of 2016, Transaction Mail revenue decreased by $114 million or 4.3 per cent while volumes fell by 231 million pieces or 7.7 per cent, compared to the same period in 2015.1

Direct Marketing results

In the third quarter, Direct Marketing revenue decreased by $45 million or 15.2 per cent, while volumes decreased by 210 million pieces or 17.5 per cent, compared to the third quarter of 2015. These results were also affected by the labour uncertainty, and by stronger results from the same period of 2015, which had benefitted from federal election mailings. For the first three quarters, Direct Marketing revenue decreased by $64 million or 6.7 per cent while volumes fell by 295 million pieces or 7.5 per cent, compared to the same period in 2015.1

Group of Companies results

The Canada Post Group of Companies2 reported a loss before tax of $25 million in the third quarter, compared to a profit before tax of $10 million in the same period in 2015. For the first three quarters, the Group of Companies recorded a profit before tax of $19 million, compared to a profit before tax of $28 million for the first three quarters of 2015. Purolator reported a profit before tax of $32 million in the third quarter of 2016, an increase of 76.9 per cent compared to the third quarter of 2015. For the first three quarters of 2016, Purolator earned a profit before tax of $35 million, a decrease of 1.3 per cent compared to the same period of 2015.1

To read the full report in PDF, visit canadapost.ca/aboutus and select "Financial Reports" from the Corporate menu.

Background

The operations of the Canada Post Group of Companies are funded by the revenue generated by the sale of its products and services, not taxpayer dollars. Canada Post has a mandate from the Government of Canada to remain financially self-sufficient and to provide a standard of postal service that is affordable and meets the needs of the people of Canada.

Variance percentages of revenue and volume were adjusted to reflect the impact of one less business (trading) day and one less paid day in the first three quarters of 2016, compared to the same period in 2015. The Canada Post Group of Companies consists of the core Canada Post segment and its three non-wholly owned principal subsidiaries, Purolator Holdings Ltd., SCI Group Inc. and Innovapost Inc.

SOURCE Canada Post

For further information: Media Relations, 613-734-8888, [email protected]
SMITHS FALLS, ON, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - Canopy Growth Corporation ("Canopy Growth" or the "Company") (TSX: CGC) today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire MedCann GmbH Pharma and Nutraceuticals (MedCann), a German-based pharmaceutical distributor who has successfully placed Tweed-branded cannabis strains in German pharmacies.

MedCann has proven its ability to navigate the complex regulatory environment for cannabis importation and distribution in Germany. With a highly experienced leadership team, led by Dr. Pierre Debs, it has established itself as a leading cannabis importer and distributor within Germany where the cannabis industry still relies solely on imported products.

"Germany has begun a process of enabling medical access to cannabis and through a policy that recognized Canopy as the first legal supply source from North America," said Bruce Linton, Chairman and CEO of Canopy Growth Corporation. "This acquisition establishes a distinct and purely medicinal corporate entity that helps us today but also positions us for domestic medicinal production inside Germany if the regulatory environment shifts."

The various production sites within Canopy have developed a track record of producing consistent strains that yield reliable cannabinoid profiles harvest over harvest, a federal requirement for cannabis exports entering Germany. At this time, Tweed is capable of producing numerous stabilized strains and will position MedCann well in this market. Bedrocan Canada products will not be provided to the German market due to license restrictions.

"Germans need access to high-quality cannabis and Tweed's products are proving to be up to the very strict standards set by the federal government," said Dr. P. Debs, founder of Medcann. "Working together as one team will allow Canopy Growth through Tweed, Tweed Farms, and future production sites to supply the unmet demand that has been building over the past decade."

Germany permitted patient access to medical cannabis in 2005. No domestic production currently exists with cannabis imports currently from Canada and Holland.

The acquisition is structured against certain licensing milestones that will move the Company towards domestic production opportunities. 674,631 common shares in the Company will be issued to MedCann upon the closing of the transaction. A further 367,981 commons shares in the Company will be issued on the 18-month anniversary of obtaining an Import and Distribution License from the German Health Minister. A further 122,660 common shares in the Company will be issued to MedCann principal upon achieving certain other milestones within two years of closing the transaction.

This incentivized structure, combined with Canopy Growth's experience establishing and expanding upon licensing form the foundation of a strong early market position in Europe's largest economy.

The acquisition is subject to the approval of the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Here's to Future Growth.

About Canopy Growth Corporation

Canopy Growth is publicly traded on the TSX and a leading diversified producer of medical cannabis through its wholly owned subsidiaries Tweed, Bedrocan Canada, and Tweed Farms. The Company operates a collection of diverse brands and curated strain variety, supported by over half a million square feet of indoor and greenhouse production capacity.

About MedCann GmbH Pharma and Nutraceuticals

MedCann GmbH was founded in June 2015 by Dr. Pierre Debs and Rainer Hofmann. MedCann GmbH is an importer, manufacturer and distributor of medical cannabis products and is federally licensed by the German Heath Ministry. Dr. Debs is a stem cell biologist with over 25 years research experience at world class research universities in the US and Europe. Rainer Hofmann is a successful businessman having established and directed a variety of businesses in the Heidelberg area for over 20 years. MedCann GmbH operates under strict GMP and GDP guidelines for all aspects of sourcing, transporting and releasing medical cannabis products.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "estimates", "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 statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Canopy Growth Corporation, Tweed Inc., Tweed Farms Inc. or Bedrocan Canada Inc. to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and Canopy Growth does not undertake an obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise unless required by applicable securities legislation. Neither the Toronto Stock Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Canopy Growth Corporation

For further information: Media: Jordan Sinclair, [email protected], 855-558-9333 ex 309; Investors: Tyler Burns, [email protected], 855-558-9333 ex 122; Director: Bruce Linton, CEO, [email protected]
-- Acquisition Enterprise Value approximately 711 million Brazilian Reais

-- 206 MW of high-quality, contracted hydroelectric and cogeneration operating assets

-- Long-term partner Falcon Flight (investment vehicle of the Santo Domingo family) to own a 20% interest in the portfolio

-- Latin American portfolio expands to 1,423 MW of operating assets

SAO PAULO, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ -- ContourGlobal announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire Neoenergia's interests in a 206 MW portfolio of operating generation assets located in Brazil. The portfolio consists of seven hydroelectric plants totaling 130 MW in the states of Bahia, Goias and Rio de Janeiro and four high-efficiency cogeneration facilities totaling 76 MW in Parana, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

ContourGlobal's President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Joseph Brandt, said: "We are pleased to expand our business in Brazil where we have operated power generation facilities for over a decade. The acquisition announced today adds to our existing hydroelectric portfolio and further expands our Solutions business which provides on-site high-efficiency energy to commercial and industrial customers."

Alessandra Marinheiro, Executive Vice-President of ContourGlobal, highlighted: "These long-term contracted assets are located in, or adjacent to, Brazilian states in which we have an operating presence and include dollar denominated cogeneration facilities similar to our Solutions plants in Europe and Africa. Our operating platform enables us to efficiently integrate these new facilities into our Latin American organization."

The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017 and is subject to various conditions and approvals including by the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) and the National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL).

About ContourGlobal

ContourGlobal is an international power-generation company with approximately 4,200 MW* in operations in 20 countries and on three continents. ContourGlobal's 2000 employees operate a portfolio of 61 thermal and renewable power plants utilizing a wide-range of technologies.

ContourGlobal has 1,850* MW in operation and development in Latin America, consisting of 1,423 MW in operation in Brazil, Peru, Colombia and the Caribbean and 426 MW in late-stage development in Mexico and Peru.

*MWs include the acquisition announced in this release

SOURCE ContourGlobal

For further information: For further information: Media--Heidi Gluck +43 1 512 43 21; +43 664 4416240; [email protected] and in Brazil, Ademar Proenca +55 11 3147 7100, Investors--Alice Heathcoate +1.646.386.9900, http://www.contourglobal.com
Practice cell phone safety with Lif3 Canada Smartchip

TORONTO, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - A growing body of evidence links electromagnetic radiation (EMR) to a multitude of health risks.1-6 In response to this emerging public issue, Lif3 Global has launched the Lif3 Smartchip in Canada. Lif3 Smartchip is the most advanced laboratory tested and proven cell phone radiation reduction technology available on the market today, reducing the radiation specific absorption rate (SAR) by up to 99 per cent.7

Today in Canada, there are 29.8 million cell phone subscribers.8 While there are many conclusive studies outlining health risks related to cell phone radiation, there continues to be ongoing global research to determine the long-term effects of EMR on health.9-10 The Lif3 Smartchip simultaneously absorbs and re-directs radiation away from the head and body and is the only one of its kind to have minimal impact on the signal strength of a cell phone. The Lif3 Smartchip adheres to the back of a cell phone and is available for the most popular smart phone models.

"I've been conducting SAR testing for many years, and the Lif3 Smartchip results are most impressive in reducing radio frequency radiation exposure," said Jay Moulton, Chief Engineer at RF Exposure Lab.

In June 2016, the Standing Committee in Health received a Parliamentary report entitled, 'RADIOFREQUENCY ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION AND THE HEALTH OF CANADIANS' that engaged industry leaders in Canada to develop a better understanding of the relationship between emissions and risks to health and wellness of Canadians.11 As a response, the Government of Canada has recognized the need for further research and investigation into possible links between EMR exposure and cancer.12

"Researchers and scientists believe it could take 20-30 years to fully understand the impact of our digital lifestyle," said President and CEO Lif3 Americas, Nicholas Kosciolek. "As our exposure to radio frequency radiation continues to increase, we can't afford to take a wait and see position with our health. At Lif3 Canada, we understand how integral cell phones are to our lives. Our goal is to educate Canadians about the potential health hazards associated with cell phone radiation and encourage Canadians to get smart about cell phone safety."

After five years of research and development by a world class radio frequency engineer, the Lif3 Smartchip is now available in Canada. Tests conducted in a number of accredited independent labs: RF Exposure Lab in San Marcos, California and EMC Technologies in Melbourne, Australia, have shown the product provides radiation reduction rates at the highest recorded levels to date. Lif3 Smartchip is the first of its kind to offer cell phone users a solution to enjoying their devices while minimizing some of the potential health risks associated with cell phone usage.

Lif3 Smartchip is now available for purchase at www.lif3smartchip.ca.

About Lif3 Canada

As one part of an overall safer use strategy, Lif3 Canada is committed to providing mobile technology users with science-based products and risk reduction interventions that significantly minimize EMR exposure. We are dedicated to educating the public, building awareness and facilitating the discussion with Federal regulatory bodies, as well as giving back to the community by supporting charities focused on children's health. Lif3 Canada is currently investigating near field testing and DNA research. Lif3 Canada is also engaging public policy experts and EMR stakeholders and opening lines of communication. For more information, please visit www.lif3smartchip.ca.

References 1. Report of Partial Findings from the National Toxicology Program Carcinogenesis Studies of Cell Phone Radiofrequency Radiation in Hsd: Sprague Dawley SD rats (Whole Body Exposures). May 19, 2016. http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2016/05/federal-study-links-cell-phone-radiation-cancer 2. Science Direct. Microwave frequency electromagnetic fields (EMFs) produce widespread neuropsychiatric effects including depression. Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy. Volume 75, Part B, September 2016, Pages 4351. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0891061815000599 3. International Electromagnetic Field Alliance. International EMF Scientist Appeal submitted to the United Nations on May 11, 2015. http://www.iemfa.org/emf-scientist-appeal-to-the-united-nations/ 4. Reproductive BioMedicine Online. Habits of cell phone usage and sperm quality  does it warrant attention? September 2015Volume 31, Issue 3, Pages 421426. http://www.rbmojournal.com/article/S1472-6483%2815%2900300-4/abstract 5. Science Direct. Why children absorb more microwave radiation than adults: The consequences. Journal of Microscopy and Ultrastructure. Volume 2, Issue 4, December 2014, Pages 197204. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213879X14000583 6. World Health Organization. Electromagnetic fields and public health: mobile phones. October 2014. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs193/en/ 7. The Evidence. 2016. https://www.lif3smartchip.ca/how-it-works/the-evidence/ 8. Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA). Facts & Figures - Wireless phone subscribers in Canada. 2016. http://www.cwta.ca/facts-figures/ 9. Canadian Cancer Society. Cell phones and radiofrequency fields. 2016. http://www.cancer.ca/en/prevention-and-screening/be-

aware/harmful-substances-and-environmental-risks/cell-phones/?region=on 10. Canadians For Safe Technology. New Evidence Cell phones cause Brain Cancer makes Canada's Safety Standards Out of Date. May 30, 2016. http://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/new-evidence-cell-phones-cause-brain-cancer-makes-canadas-safety-

standards-out-of-date-581281901.html 11. RADIOFREQUENCY ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION AND THE HEALTH OF CANADIANS. Report of the Standing Committee on Health. Ben Lobb Chair. June 2015. 41st Parliament, Second Session. http://www.parl.gc.ca/content/hoc/Committee/412/HESA/Reports/RP8041315/hesarp13/hesarp13-e.pdf. Accessed November 24, 2016 12. The Honourable Jane Philpott, M.P. Minister of Health. Government Response to the Report of the Standing Committee of Health Entitled: Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Radiation and the Health of Canadians. http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=e&Mode=1&Parl=42&Ses=1&DocId=8481964 Accessed November 24, 2016

SOURCE Lif3 Canada

Image with caption: "Lif3 Smartchip Launches in Canada (CNW Group/Lif3 Canada)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20161128_C5658_PHOTO_EN_826016.jpg

For further information: For more information or to schedule an interview, contact: Glenna Labelle, Director of Marketing, LIF3 Canada, 705-946-8620, [email protected]; Caroline De Silva, Account Director, Argyle Public Relationships, 416-968-7311 ext 231, [email protected]
 Photo and interview opportunity 

MONTREAL, Nov. 22, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Shop The Neighbourhood, a local shopping awareness campaign from Yellow Pages (TSX: Y), encourages Canadians to adopt sustainable shopping habits by supporting small businesses in their communities. This year, to celebrate its fourth edition, Shop The Neighbourhood - now a year-round campaign - continues to put an emphasis on the Saturday between Black Friday and Cyber Monday and is asking Canadians to take part in the Shop The Neighbourhood Challenge by making a local purchase during one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year.

Approximately 12,500 businesses and one million Canadians participated in last year's Shop The Neighbourhood event resulting in $155 million invested back into the Canadian economy.

WHAT: Yellow Pages employees, along with participating local business associations, will be mobilizing in select neighbourhoods across Canada to raise awareness for the importance of local businesses and the positive impacts of shopping locally. To celebrate the shop local cause, street teams will be distributing free Shop The Neighbourhood balloons and shopping bags. Canadians are invited to join in the festivities and take the Shop The Neighbourhood Challenge by making purchases at local businesses in their neighbourhoods to show their support.

WHEN: Saturday, November 26th  11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

WHERE: Media are invited to the following locations, forming the central point(s) of each area's Shop The Neighbourhood events.

Toronto

The Kingsway

Sidewalk area in front of 3010 Bloor Street West

Roncesvalles Village

South West corner of Wright Avenue and Roncesvalles Avenue (High Park Library Lawn  228 Roncesvalles Avenue)

Montreal

Boulevard Saint-Laurent

Parc des Ameriques (corner of Rachel E. and Saint-Laurent blvd.)

Promenade Wellington

Eglise Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs (4155 Wellington St.)

Vancouver

West End

Jim Deva Plaza (1200 Bute Street )

Kitsilano West 4th Avenue

Sidewalk area in front of Miz Mooz Boutique (2177 West 4th Avenue)

Calgary

Kensington

Plaza Theatre (1133 Kensington Road NW)

WHY: Shop The Neighbourhood aims to bring awareness to the benefits of supporting small business and to challenge Canadians to shop local year-round and especially during the holiday season when large-scale shopping events drive dollars away from our local economies. Shop The Neighbourhood reminds Canadians that small businesses are our economic backbone. They create jobs, funnel funds back into the community, keep decision-making power localized, and generally contribute to building healthy, thriving neighbourhoods. Shopping locally means helping strengthen small businesses and, by proxy, the neighbourhoods where Canadians live, work and play.

For more information on the campaign, visit www.shoptheneighbourhood.yp.ca.

About Yellow Pages

Yellow Pages (TSX: Y) is a Canadian digital media and marketing solutions company that supports neighbourhood economies by helping local businesses reach new customers and foster stronger relationships with existing clients through its various media and products. Yellow Pages holds some of Canada's leading local online search properties including YP.caTM, RedFlagDeals.comTM, Canada411.caTM, the Comfree/DuProprio network and YP NextHome, as well as mobile applications YP, YP Shopwise, YP Dine, Comfree, RedFlagDeals, Canada411 and 411.ca, as well as the Yellow PagesTM print directories. Through Mediative,Yellow Pages is a leader in national advertising through its various channels and services devoted to North American businesses. The Company also owns JUICE Mobile, a mobile advertising technology company whose proprietary programmatic platforms facilitate the automatic buying and selling of mobile advertising between brands and publishers. For more information visit www.corporate.yp.ca.

SOURCE Yellow Pages

Image with caption: "Yellow Pages employees, along with local business associations in participating neighbourhoods across Canada, are inviting shoppers to take the Shop The Neighbourhood Challenge and make a local purchase in support of small businesses. (CNW Group/Yellow Pages)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20161126_C5661_PHOTO_EN_823811.jpg

For further information: Media Contact: Toronto: Christina Arseneau, 647-302-1448, [email protected]; Montreal: Beatrice Gougeon, 514 688-3936, [email protected]; Vancouver: Izabela Leszko, 604-805-0423, [email protected]; Calgary: Jenny McKenzie, 587 226-3665, [email protected]
TORONTO, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - Following the popularity of their Orange is the New Black Friday sale, Sunwing, Canada's #1 to the sun has added massive savings on vacation packages for one day only on Cyber Monday. Customers who book by midnight on Monday can save up to 70% off packages at 800+ resorts in the most popular vacation destinations. However, sun-worshippers will have to book right away, as these deals are expected to sell fast.

During the one day sale, shoppers can avoid the overwhelming crowds that come from leftover Black Friday deals, and browse Sunwing's many vacation deals in the comfort of their own home to snag packages for numerous departure dates throughout the winter in some of the most popular vacation hotspots across the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America. It's never been easier to get on board with Canada's #1 for family, adult and luxury vacations and save.

All Sunwing packages available in the sale also include return flights on Sunwing Airlines where passengers can sit back and relax while on board, with award-winning Champagne Service that includes a sparkling wine toast, complimentary non-alcoholic beverage service and buy on board selection of light meals and snacks with choices inspired by Food Network Canada Celebrity Chef, Lynn Crawford. Passengers also benefit from a generous complimentary 23kg checked luggage allowance.

To book your next all-inclusive vacation visit www.sunwing.ca or contact your travel agent.

Suggested Tweet: Save up to 70% on your next vacation with @sunwingvacay #CyberMondaySale #1tothesun #sunwingmode

About Sunwing

As Canada's #1 to the sun and North America's largest vertically integrated travel company, Sunwing has more flights to the south than any other leisure carrier with convenient direct service from over 34 airports across Canada to over 50 popular sun destinations. This scale enables Sunwing to negotiate the best deals and exclusive offers at all of the top-rated resorts across the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America. Renowned for its award-winning service, Sunwing is consistently voted the #1 leisure airline by travel agents and is the perennial winner of the Consumer Choice Award. Customers can look forward to starting their vacation off in style with Champagne Service, which features a complimentary glass of sparkling wine, tea and coffee and non-alcoholic beverage service; together with a buy on board menu of light meals and snacks (including kids' choices) inspired by Food Network Canada Celebrity Chef, Lynn Crawford. Sunwing customers also benefit from the assistance of the company's own knowledgeable destination representatives, who greet them upon arrival and support them throughout their vacation journey.

SOURCE Sunwing Vacations

Image with caption: "Cyber Monday (CNW Group/Sunwing Vacations)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20161128_C4752_PHOTO_EN_826024.jpg

Image with caption: "Sunwing Vacations (CNW Group/Sunwing Vacations)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20161128_C4752_PHOTO_EN_826019.jpg

For further information: For all media enquiries, please contact: Kim Banjac, PR Specialist, Signature Vacations, 1-800-387-5602, [email protected]
CALGARY, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW/ - Toro Oil & Gas Ltd. (TSXV: TOO) ("Toro" or the "Company") announces its financial and operating results for the three and nine month period ended September 30, 2016. Selected financial and operational information is set out below and should be read in conjunction with Toro's September 30, 2016 interim financial statements and the related management's discussion and analysis, which are available for review at www.sedar.com or the Company's website at www.torooil.com.

Third Quarter Financial and Operational Highlights

Averaged 748 boe/d in production during Q3 2016, of which 56% represents oil and liquids compared to 710 boe/d of production in Q3 2015 and 766 boe/d in Q2 2016. Q3 2016 production decreased only 2% from the prior quarter, despite no drilling activity or other significant fieldwork in Q3 2016, evidencing the low decline characteristic of the Hamilton Lake Viking pool. Toro's Alberta Viking production continues to correlate highly with well type curves forecasted in the Company's independent reserve report;





Raised approximately $13 million in gross proceeds via a bought deal offering. Net proceeds were used to eliminate bank debt outstanding, enhance cash reserves and improve overall liquidity to partially fund future drilling programs;





in gross proceeds via a bought deal offering. Net proceeds were used to eliminate bank debt outstanding, enhance cash reserves and improve overall liquidity to partially fund future drilling programs; Based primarily on a 70% increase in realized gas sales prices over the second quarter of 2016, on an activity basis, Toro generated a positive operating income of $632 thousand for Q3 2016. This compares $593 thousand in Q2 2016 and a loss of $26 thousand in Q1 2016. Toro continues to hold absolute production costs at low levels and with production increases, should result in better economies of scale. Per unit operating costs slightly increased to $19.03 per boe for Q3 2016 as compared to $17.50 per boe in Q2 2016, however current quarter operating costs per unit were significantly lower than reported Q3 2015 production costs of $25.92 per boe. Per unit operating costs were higher in Q3 2016 primarily due to lower production levels and higher gas processing charges;





for Q3 2016. This compares in Q2 2016 and a loss of in Q1 2016. Toro continues to hold absolute production costs at low levels and with production increases, should result in better economies of scale. Per unit operating costs slightly increased to per boe for Q3 2016 as compared to per boe in Q2 2016, however current quarter operating costs per unit were significantly lower than reported Q3 2015 production costs of per boe. Per unit operating costs were higher in Q3 2016 primarily due to lower production levels and higher gas processing charges; Subsequent to the quarter, Toro successfully closed three separate divestitures of non-core properties netting proceeds of approximately $2.3 million for a gain of approximately $0.5 million . These proceeds combined with cash reserves at the end of quarter, results in a pro-forma debt-free working capital position of approximately $6 million .

Financial Results

(CAD$ thousands unless otherwise specified)



Three months ended September 30 Nine months ended September 30

2016 2015 % Change 2016 2015 % Change Operational Performance











Production Volumes













Oil and NGLs (bbls/d) 419 414 1 483 319 52

Natural gas (mcf/d) 1,970 1,775 11 1,875 1,781 5

Oil equivalent (boe/d) 748 710 6 796 615 29













Financial Performance













Production revenue (1) 2,352 2,458 (4) 6,832 6,056 13

Net comprehensive loss (1,763) (569) 210 (12,608) (7,505) 68



Per share - basic and diluted (0.02) (0.01) 56 (0.17) (0.13) 23

Cash deficiency from operations (2) (520) (601) (13) (1,094) (1,188) (8)



Per share - basic and diluted (0.005) (0.01) (57) (0.01) (0.08) (81)













Realized Sale Prices













Oil and NGL's ($/bbl) 50.03 51.80 (3) 44.33 53.72 (17)

Natural Gas ($/mcf) 2.33 2.98 (22) 1.87 2.83 (34) Oil Equivalent ($/boe) 34.19 37.65 (9) 31.34 36.07 (13)













Netback ($/boe)











Realized sales price 34.19 37.65 (9) 31.34 36.07 (13)

Royalties (7.40) (6.43) 15 (5.73) (4.43) 29

Production expenses (19.03) (25.92) (27) (18.17) (22.82) (20)

Transportation expenses (1.27) (3.92) (68) (2.37) (3.05) (22) Operating netback ($/boe) (2) 6.49 1.38 370 5.07 5.77 (12) General and administrative (3) (13.91) (12.81) 9 (10.99) (18.08) (39) Interest expense (0.43) (0.47) (9) (0.87) (0.44) 97 Other income - 1.38 nmf (6) - 4.82 nmf (6) Income on assets held for sale 0.14 0.88 (85) 0.09 0.42 (79) Cash netback ($/boe) (7.71) (9.64) (20) (6.70) (7.51) (11)













Capital expenditures











Capital expenditures (4) (142) 11,002 nmf (6) 563 14,245 (96) Net acquisitions (dispositions) (5) (21) (11,850) (100) (155) (9,391) (98) Total capital expenditures (163) (848) (81) 408 4,854 (92)













Liquidity











Net debt (surplus) (2) (4,014) (1,936) 107 (4,014) (1,936) 107 Bank facility - undrawn portion - 25,000 nmf (6) - 25,000 nmf (6)













Weighted average shares outstanding













Basic 113,193,357 56,853,281 99 76,045,453 55,840,702 36

Diluted 113,193,357 56,853,281 99 76,045,453 55,840,702 36



























(1) Production revenue is presented gross of royalties and inclusive of realized hedging gains (losses). (2) Cash deficiency in operations, operating netback and net surplus are non-IFRS measures. See "Non-IFRS Measures". (3) General and administrative expenses for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 include one-time restructuring costs of $454. (4) Three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 include SR&ED credit received of $287. (5) Represents the cash expenditures (proceeds) from the acquisition (sale) of assets, as applicable. (6) No meaningful figure.

Operational and Corporate Update

While crude oil prices were neutral to slightly negative in Q3 2016 compared to Q2 2016, natural gas prices rose significantly which served to strengthen the Company's operational profitability. Corporately, primarily due to one-time staff restructuring costs, Toro incurred a corporate cash deficiency of approximately $520 thousand during the third quarter. These reorganization costs were considered necessary to right-size the business and achieve further efficiencies in the midst of continued commodity price uncertainty. However, with an expectation of further appreciation in commodity prices due to macro-economic factors, the Company forecasts positive cash flow from operations, inclusive of corporate costs. As press released on October 11, 2016, Toro also has begun certain steps to prepare for an up to ten well drill program. Final financial and operational commitments to this program however will not occur until the Company believes a sustained recovery in oil commodity prices exists which generate appropriate rates of return to grow the business. Notionally, the Company targets a minimum of US$50 West Texas Intermediate as the threshold oil price.

About Toro Oil & Gas Ltd.

Toro is a junior oil and gas energy company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange. Toro is focused on acquiring, developing and exploiting large oil in place pools within the Alberta-Saskatchewan Viking light oil fairway. Toro intends to grow by way of organic development and strategic acquisitions while maintaining strict financial discipline to maximize shareholder return.

Abbreviations

bbls barrels bbls/d barrels per day boe barrels of oil equivalent boe/d barrels of oil equivalent per day mcf thousand cubic feet mcf/d thousand cubic feet per day

Forward-Looking Information

The reader is advised that some of the information contained herein may constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of National Instrument 51-102 and other relevant securities legislation. Forward-looking information contained herein includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to timing of any future drilling programs, anticipated future capital efficiencies and operating cost economies of scale, forecasted future operating costs per unit, Toro's ability to take advantage of better commodity prices and Toro's future liquidity and funding sources. Such forward-looking information is based on the Company's current expectations regarding its future business and reflects management's current beliefs and assumptions based on information currently available to them. Statements relating to "reserves" are also deemed to be forward-looking statements, as they involve the implied assessment, based on certain estimates and assumptions, that the reserves described exist in the quantities predicted or estimated and that the reserves can be profitably produced in the future. Actual results may vary from forward-looking information and readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking information contained in this press release is presented as of the date hereof and the Company does not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking information contained herein to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

Forward-looking information involves significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking information including risks associated with the impact of general economic conditions, industry conditions, governmental regulation, volatility of commodity prices, currency fluctuations, imprecision of reserve and resource estimates, environmental risks, competition from other industry participants, the lack of availability of qualified personnel or management, stock market volatility and the Company's ability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources. Additional risks and uncertainties are described in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 31, 2016 which is filed under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

Non-IFRS Measures

This press release provides certain financial measures that do not have a standardized meaning prescribed by IFRS. These non-IFRS financial measures may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Cash flow from (used in) operations, operating netback and net debt (surplus) are not recognized measures under IFRS. Management believes that in addition to net income (loss), cash flow from operations, operating netback and net debt (surplus) are useful supplemental measures that demonstrate the Company's ability to generate the cash necessary to repay debt or fund future capital investment. Investors are cautioned, however, that these measures should not be construed as an alternative to net income (loss) determined in accordance with IFRS as an indication of Toro's performance. Toro's method of calculating these measures may differ from other companies and accordingly, they may not be comparable to measures used by other companies. Cash flow from (used in) operations is calculated by adjusting net income (loss) for other income, unrealized gains or losses on financial derivative instruments, transaction costs, accretion, share based compensation, impairment and depletion and depreciation. Operating netback is calculated based on oil and gas revenue less royalties, production expenses and transportation expenses. Net debt (surplus) is the total of cash plus accounts receivable, prepaids and deposits, less accounts payable plus bank debt.

51-101 Advisory

In conformity with 51-101, natural gas volumes have been converted to barrels of oil equivalent ("boe") using a conversion rate of six thousand cubic feet of natural gas to one barrel of oil. In certain circumstances, natural gas liquid volumes have been converted to a thousand cubic feet equivalent ("mcfe") on the basis of one barrel of natural gas liquids to six thousand cubic feet of gas. Boes and mcfes may be misleading, particularly if used in isolation. A conversion ratio of one barrel to six thousand cubic feet of natural gas is based on an energy equivalency conversion method primarily applicable at the burner tip and does not represent a value equivalency at the wellhead. Given that the value ratio based on the current price of crude oil as compared to natural gas is significantly different from the energy equivalency of 6:1, utilizing a conversion ratio on a 6:1 basis may be misleading as an indication of value.

Estimates of reserves and future net revenue for individual properties may not reflect the same confidence level as estimates of reserves and future net revenue for all properties, due to the effects of aggregation. Estimated values of reserves may or may not represent the fair market value of the reserve estimates.

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.

SOURCE Toro Oil & Gas Ltd

For further information: Barry Olson, President and Chief Executive Officer; Greg Phaneuf, Vice President, Finance and Chief Financial Officer; Telephone: (403) 237-9996
(Xinhua) 08:38, November 28, 2016

File photo taken on April 11, 2013 shows Fidel Castro attending the inauguration of a school in Havana. Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro has died at 90, local media said on Nov. 26, 2016. (Xinhua/Cubadebate)

Chinese President Xi Jinping said Saturday that history and people will remember Fidel Castro, calling the Cuban revolutionary leader "a great figure of our times."

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks in a message of condolences to Raul Castro, first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, president of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers of Cuba, after Fidel Castro died late Friday at the age of 90.

"In the name of the CPC, the Chinese government and people, and in my own name, I express my deepest condolences on the death of Comrade Fidel Castro and sincerest sympathy to his family," Xi said.

Fidel Castro, founder of the Communist Party of Cuba and Cuba's socialist cause, was a great leader of the Cuban people, Xi said, adding that he has made immortal historic contributions and devoted all his life to the Cuban people's great cause of struggling for national liberation, safeguarding state sovereignty and building socialism.

The late Cuban leader has also made immortal historic contributions to the world socialist development, Xi added.

Fidel Castro also dedicated his life to the friendship between China and Cuba, Xi said.

Xi added that the China-Cuba relationship has enjoyed great development since the two countries forged diplomatic ties 56 years ago thanks to Fidel Castro's solicitude and painstaking efforts.

"The death of Fidel Castro has made the Chinese people lose a close comrade and sincere friend. His glorious image and great achievements will go down in history," Xi said.

"The great Comrade Fidel Castro will be forever remembered," said the Chinese president.
ELLENBURG CENTER, N.Y. -- A missing hunter from Vermont has been found dead in Upstate New York.

The body of Ira Munn Boardman was discovered on Sunday morning, about a mile from his hunting camp in the Ellenburg area in Clinton County, WPTZ-TV reports.

Boardman, 58, of South Hero, Vermont, had been missing since Nov. 19. Hundreds of people helped in the search.

New York State Police are investigating the death, but do not suspect foul play.

The cause of death is not yet known. An autopsy is planned.
Chinas CRRC corporation has announced its beginning research and development into a 600km / h high-speed maglev train, which would bring the travel time from Beijing to Shanghai down to only take 2 and half hours, about the same as taking a plane.

CRRC, the worlds largest supplier of rail transit systems, is expecting to complete the first sample maglev train by 2020 and is hoping to test it on a track in east Chinas Shandong Province, reports Peoples Daily Online.

In the 1970s and 1980s, countries like Germany, Japan and the United States started trying to develop maglev transportation systems. Japans Yamanashi Maglev Test Line shocked the world with a speed of more than 500 km / h. In comparison, Chinas conventional trains at that Time could only reach average speeds of 60.3 km / h.

High-speed maglev technology raises the prospect of faster travel across China. Whereas conventional train features tried and tested technology, are safe and have good interoperability, maglev trains can offer higher speeds, easier travel over gradients, and have more route options.

Shares in Chinese train manufacturer CRRC jumped Monday in Hong Kong as investors welcomed the announcement of expansion plans in Europe and Australia.

After Fridays close, CRRC said a joint venture between subsidiary CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles and an Australian company has won an order from state of Victoria to supply subway trains. The Chinese company will take a 45% slice of the 2 billion Australian dollar (US$1.49 billion) project. It will build 65 trains over the next six years. CRRC will be responsible for design, manufacturing and testing of the rolling stock. In addition, it will invest to A$15 million in the joint venture, holding 10% stake in the joint-venture company.

Also, on Sunday, CRRC announced that its subsidiary CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive is planning to buy Skoda Transportation, a Czech rival.

CRRC is benefiting from the yuans fall against the U.S. dollar. Foreign orders for rolling stock lift the companys dollar revenues, boosting the companys profit in yuan terms.
In graduate school at the University of Wisconsin, Rachel Slaybaugh began studying the Boltzmann Transport Equation  a single equation that describes where all of the neutrons are in a nuclear system, Slaybaugh explains. Anything in a nuclear system starts with where all of the neutrons are, so it lets you figure out everything else.

Working with the equation can be challenging, so Slaybaugh developed expertise in creating algorithms and software to solve the equation faster and more efficiently, which ultimately can be applied to designing and modeling new nuclear technologies.

Truly predictive modeling will end up making it a lot more feasible, affordable and practical to ask questions about whats going to happen in new reactor design scenarios, Slaybaugh says. I also have this serious concern about best practices and quality: You want to make sure that the codes you are using in nuclear systems work.

Advanced nuclear is the umbrella term used to describe novel research on smaller reactor designs that incorporate alternative nuclear fuels and cooling systems. Some advanced designs reuse existing nuclear waste as fuel; or use fuel that does not require enrichment, which reduces security concerns associated with nuclear energy.

The big thing is that the government is making national lab resources available to private companies in a way that it wasnt before, Slaybaugh says. If you are a nuclear startup, you can only go so far before you need to do testing, and you are not going to build a nuclear test facility, because that is hard and expensive. But now you could partner with a national lab to use their experimental resources. Ive been talking about how to set up a pathway from universities for this kind of research.

Over the past year, Third Way, a supporter of Slaybaughs nuclear innovation bootcamp, published a number of reports and white papers defining the advanced nuclear industry. They found 48 projects and startup companies working on advanced nuclear energy technologies, worth over $1.3 billion, all over the U.S. and Canada.
File Photo: Ecns.cn

The Chinese Embassy in the Philippines said Sunday that they are not aware China and the Philippines are talking about a second visit to China by President Rodrigo Duterte as was reported by Philippine media. But there is a clear rationale for the two countries to come closer amid the possibilities rendered by US President-elect Donald Trump, according to analysts.

"I am going back to China soon. The schedule is being worked out now," Duterte was quoted as saying by the Philippine Star on Friday after he ended his trip to Peru where he attended the 24th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders' summit.

However, an employee at the Chinese Embassy told the Global Times on Sunday that "we noticed relevant Philippine reports, but we haven't heard the two governments have discussed a second visit."

During Duterte's four-day visit to China in October, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Duterte agreed that the two countries would properly handle differences and achieve a full improvement and greater progress in bilateral ties, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

On the sidelines of the APEC summit, Duterte told Xi that the Philippines is willing to be friends with "brotherly" China forever.

Manila is becoming more dependent on China than the US for its economy, which relies heavily on foreign investment, considering that Trump won the US presidential election earlier this month, Chen Xiangmiao, a research fellow at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times.

Trump said he would pull the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal the moment he takes office, AFP reported.

"The uncertainties brought by Trump on his Asia-Pacific strategy have made Duterte pin his hopes on China to develop the Philippine economy and solve the South China Sea disputes to safeguard regional peace," Gu Xiaosong, head of Southeast Asian Studies at the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.

China is willing to participate in the Southeast Asian nation's infrastructure construction, covering railways, urban rail transit, highways, ports and other areas, so as to benefit the Philippine people, Xi said during his meeting with Duterte in October.

Chen said the two countries are very likely to further their talks on the disputed island in the South China Sea, including the establishment of a contact mechanism and protected marine sanctuary, if Duterte returns to China.

A Philippine Department of Tourism official said Manila is considering adding China to its visa-free policy, the Guangming Daily reported on Saturday.

Only 491,000 of the 120 million Chinese who traveled overseas last year visited the Philippines, the official said, adding that countries with a visa-free policy for China like Thailand and Malaysia have attracted more Chinese tourists.

"The development of tourism will not only increase incomes and jobs in the Philippines but will also help the country diversify its industries, which used to rely heavily on agriculture," said Chen.

The Chinese Embassy in Manila also said it has yet to negotiate with the Philippine government on a visa-free policy toward China.

Dealing with illegal activities

Chen added that cooperation between China and the Philippines would also help to crack down on illegal activities, such as drug smuggling and illegal workers.

A total of 1,240 Chinese nationals were arrested for allegedly working for an online gambling operator in Fontana Leisure Park in Clark Freeport, a former US air base north of Manila, the Associated Press reported Friday.

The Chinese Embassy said on Saturday that 29 of the arrested Chinese under 18 years of age have been allowed to leave, and another four tourists who had been mistakenly arrested would also be released as long as their identities are confirmed.

The Philippine Bureau of Immigration and Justice department are still conducting an investigation, according to the announcement.

The two countries might also talk about how to deal with Chinese in the Philippines involved in the latter's nationwide crackdown on drugs, Gu noted.

Read more:

Xi, Duterte agree to further improve ties, boost cooperation

Duterte open to support Chinese-backed FTAAP: Official
Below is a piece by a concerned Nigerian on reasons why you shouldnt take up the N-power job even if you are offered.

Below is a piece by a concerned Nigerian on reasons why you shouldnt take up the N-power job even if you are offered.Am I telling you to refuse a job opportunity in this recession? Yes, I am, with conditions attached.Is the N-Power job one of the best things this government has put forward? Only time will tell.Am I a member of the opposition who badmouths everything done by the change government? No, I am not. My job does not allow partisanship.I am a young Nigerian experienced enough to show concern and advise people about accepting government jobs. You might be one of the many young unemployed Nigerians who will probably take any job especially a federal government opportunity. However, think it through very well.Do not join the N-Power program We are young people who have dreams and hope to achieve them within the confines of Nigeria and her challenges. However, after many failed job interviews, we drop to the level of taking any opportunity we can grab (like contract jobs with some terrible Asian companies in Nigeria).Many have been there, many are still there and more will join the train.Yet, these dreams and aspirations do not go away; they always return after you get the job and earn money. This is when desperation sets in, and you wish you never took the job. If N-Power program will destabilize your personal goals, please think well before making a decision.You might be thinking this is an opportunity to eat out of the national cake, that you can be lazy and unpatriotic like most civil servants and earn your pay. This is Nigeria; I do not doubt the possibility.However, this is also the 21st century; free salary is becoming less popular in government service. If you think the na government job, I fit do anyhow attitude will work, you might be in for a shock. N-Power might be an opportunity to work more for less pay.Do you remember those lazy teachers that make you teach their classes during your service year? It might happen again. This is why some people think N-Power is an extension of the NYSC.Do you run a business in a thriving city like Lagos, Ibadan or Enugu? What are your plans for your business if you join N-Power? What if N-Power takes you to places like Lokoja , Gusau or Bakassi where you cannot continue your business or do a side hustle? Think before you accept the job.Every part of Nigeria has its own opportunities; some just dont offer widespread economic ones. Some places in Nigeria, even state capitals, are just towns where civil servants thrive and political appointees, directors and permanent secretaries are big men chasing skirts.I do not wish to be an agent of doom, but N-Power jobs will hardly translate to full time Federal Civil Service job. Government organizations are overstaffed and cost the government a lot of money in salaries and allowances. There is a stronger chance of becoming unemployed again with two years relevant or irrelevant experience than getting a government job.N-Power is a fulfillment of the political promise to give jobs to youths. The change slogan must continue to rent the air. Just like the different YES programs of the states, many unemployed graduates are brought in for a set period, phased out and new ones take their place.The N- Power program does not suit every unemployed person. Young Nigerians should not let desperation determine their choices. Government offers do not always mean you have inherited a gold mine. Think well!However, if you decide to take the job, please be patriotic, and offer your best to the country.(NB: This is an opinion piece and does not necessarily express the view of NigerianEye)
The All Progressives Congress (APC), has called for calm and appealed to opposition parties and their candidates to accept defeat in the ...

The All Progressives Congress (APC), has called for calm and appealed to opposition parties and their candidates to accept defeat in the Ondo state Governorship election in good faith.The National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, made the appeal in a statement issued by Mr Edegbe Odemwingie, the party`s Assistant Director of Publicity in Abuja on Sunday.The statement was issued on behalf of the APC National Working Committee (NWC).Odigie-Oyegun congratulated the APC`s governorship candidate, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu and his running mate, Mr Agboola Ajayi on their landslide electoral victory.The party also expressed gratitude to the people of the state for their impressive turnout and peaceful conduct during the election.APC also thanked President Muhammadu Buhari and other party leaders for their invaluable support to the party.The APC thanks the Ondo electorate for voting for the party in the keenly-contested election.The Ondo electorate had voted for the candidate with a proven track record of performance who will bring about the kind of focused leadership and multi-faceted development the state deserved.The party assured the people of the state that its candidate will deliver on their expectations.The NWC said that the outcome of the Ondo governorship election demonstrated the confidence and trust of the people in the overall leadership of President Muhammadu Buharis APC-led administration.According to the party, APC and the President hold such confidence in sacred trust.APC said the task before its leadership was to unite the party and heal wounds, with the 2016 governorship concluded.Akeredolu was declared winner of the Ondo governorship poll by Prof. Abdul-Ganiyu Ambali, the INEC Chief Returning Officer in the election.He won the election by 244,842 votes, followed by the candidate of PDP, Eyitayo Jegede, who scored 150,380 votes, AD candidate, Olusola Oke, came third with 126,889 votes.NAN
Former Premier League referee, Graham Poll, has called for Jose Mourinho to be banned for six games.Mourinho was sent to the stands for the second time this month, during Manchester Uniteds 1-1 draw with West Ham at Old Trafford on Sunday.The Portuguese angrily kicked a water bottle, after Pogba was booked for diving in the first half and referee Jonathan Moss sent him to the stands.It is the second time this season that Mourinho has been sent to the stands at Old Trafford. He was also dismissed during last months 0-0 draw with Burnley. That time, it was for confronting referee Mark Clattenburg at half-time.Mourinho was given a one-match touchline ban from the FA for his behaviour, after he accepted an improper conduct charge.The former Chelsea boss was also fined 50,000 earlier this season for media comments he made about referee Anthony Taylor before Uniteds game at Liverpool.Writing in his column for The Daily Mail, Poll said: Jon Moss was absolutely right to send Jose Mourinho to the stands after another petulant outburst.The way Mourinho lost his temper, culminating in him booting a water bottle a long way down the touchline, is clear for all to see.The fact that Moss was also correct in the decision which appeared to incense the United boss  cautioning Paul Pogba for simulation  is irrelevant as respect needs to be shown irrespective of the accuracy of decisions.United fans may well say that referees are treating their manager more harshly than others but for far too long his excesses were either ignored or tolerated.Referees have had enough of the clear lack of respect the Portuguese displays, none more so than Moss, who also dismissed him last season.So now referees are doing their jobs its time the FA did theirs. A six-game stadium ban might just do the trick.
Experts expect economic reforms to deepen to deal with challenges

China's economic growth will continue to advance steadily in 2017, and the country is expected to deepen reforms to tackle remaining challenges, experts said.

Given the sluggish global growth, China's economy is under pressure. Several economic indicators in the first three quarters of 2016 support the view that the country will be able to meet this year's GDP growth target of 6.7 percent, said Tian Yun, director of the China Society of Macroeconomics Research Center.

Tian told the Global Times that the growing Producer Price Index (PPI) in September was a promising sign that the country's industrial deflation has ended.

PPI, which measures the cost of goods at the factory gate, ended a 54-month decline in September, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on October 14.

Efforts to help domestic companies deleverage have also gained some ground, Tian said.

On the basis of the current economic trajectory, GDP growth will range from 6.5 percent to 6.7 percent in 2017, he said.

Liu Xuezhi, a senior analyst at Bank of Communications, agreed, saying that China's economy is approaching an inflection point, which means economic growth in 2017 will not slow as it did in previous years, though a rapid recovery is also unlikely. "[The economy] will advance steadily," he told the Global Times.

Liu forecast that "China's GDP will grow 6.6 percent or 6.7 percent in 2017."

Experts said rising infrastructure spending is expected to drive China's economic growth next year.

The country's investment in infrastructure projects rose 19.4 percent year-on-year to 9.5 trillion yuan ($1.37 trillion) over the first 10 months in 2016, the NBS said on November 14.

"Infrastructure investment can contribute to economic growth only if the investment can be transferred into supply and consumed by customers. If not, it just contributes to excess capacity," Tian cautioned.

The services sector will play a vital role in China's economy in the 2017, Liu said.

The added value created by services sector grew by 7.6 percent in the third quarter in 2016. The services sector contributed around 58.5 percent to China's GDP growth in the first three quarters, according a report released on Friday by CMB International, a wholly owned subsidiary of China Merchants Bank.

Other industries such as high-end equipment manufacturing and high technology will help drive economic growth in 2017, Liu said, noting that consumption created by online shopping will also contribute.

However, experts also showed concern about China's economic prospect due to the country's sluggish exports and the uncertainties in the real estate market.

In the first 10 months of 2016, China's exports declined 7.7 percent year-on-year, while imports fell 7.5 percent, according to data from the General Administration of Customs on November 8.

"We'll know that the economy has hit bottom only when China's exports start to see zero growth and then move toward a slight increase," Tian said, noting that "the growth must last one to two quarters, not just one month."

Indeed, recently released home-buying restrictions have reined in the overheated property market, said Yan Yuejin, research director at the E-house China R&D Institute. The goal of the restrictions is to let some air out of a real estate bubble.

That will allow some capital to flow into sectors such as infrastructure, which will boost economic development to some extent, Yan told the Global Times on Sunday.

The domestic property market will possibly cool slightly, but will not experience a sharp fall in the coming year, he said, noting that "housing inventory will be further reduced across the country."

With the goal of achieving medium-to-high speed growth, China is expected to further deepen supply-side reforms and step up efforts to cut industrial overcapacity, experts said.

The Chinese government is expected to adopt prudent monetary policy to counter potential risks in the domestic and international markets, such as currency fluctuations and capital outflows, Liu noted.

The yuan will continue to face downward pressure in 2017, but it is controllable and the currency will not suffer from depreciation in the long term, experts said.
Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has accused Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court Abuja, of getting at him for asking the Nat...

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has accused Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court Abuja, of getting at him for asking the National Judicial Council to sack him.Calling on the council to curb his excesses, the governor alleged that the judge granted an interlocutory order against him in a matter pending before another judge.The Court of Appeal in its judgment on November 23, had lambasted Abang while setting aside his ruling of October 14, which conferred recognition on Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the last Saturdays Governorship Election in Ondo State.Following this, the governor called on NJC to save itself from embarrassment by sacking the judge.Fayose, who spoke through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, on Monday reiterated the call to the NJC to sack Abang.He, however, said he was not surprised that the judge opted to get at me through strange and obnoxious proceedings.Fayose added, If Justice Abang is an honourable person, he would have declined to handle the matter, let alone granting an indefinite order less than 48 hours that I called for his sack.However, because Justice Abang is not honourable, those desperately looking for means to get at me and are ready to enlist the support of anyone that is amenable, including the Satan, rushed to him last Friday and secured an exparte order with interlocutory nature the same day the application was filed.How could a judge have granted order on a matter that is before another court of coordinate jurisdiction and such an order will be granted the same day?The governor maintained that Abang was nothing but a cancer that was eating deep into the judiciary and by extension the entire country if allowed to continue as a judge.It is on record that justices of the Appeal Court described Justice Abang judgments as fraudulent and that he raped democracy. They went further to say that he (Abang) embarked on a wild goose chase; spoke from both sides of his mouth and acted like Father Christmas. In saner climes, what he should do is to resign because that is a clear indictment on his personality and character.Therefore, I insist that the NJC should wade into Justice Abangs fraudulent judgments with a view to showing him the way out of the bench so that our judiciary can redeem its image, he added.
The Gubernatorial Candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke on Monday congratulated Mr Rotimi Akeredol...

The Gubernatorial Candidate of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke on Monday congratulated Mr Rotimi Akeredolu of the All Peoples Congress (APC) who won last Saturdays election even as he decried the heavy monetization of the election process.Oke who addressed the Press in Akure commended both the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the security agents deployed to the State for being fair in the handling of their duties but regretted that the open and free use of money to purchase votes during the election by the ruling parties remains a sad commentary on the nations electoral process.This development, according to him, required the urgent intervention by government if the much publicized anti-corruption agenda of the Federal Government must have meaning to Nigerians.His words: in the last seven years, the policy direction of the government of the day ( in Ondo State) has resulted in the growth and circulation of poverty to our people.The resultant effect is the debilitating poverty that had made the people so vulnerable. Therefore, trading away dignity in the face of excruciating hunger during electioneering process requires little or no considerations for morals and values that defined us as a people. The open and free use of money to purchase votes, during the election by the ruling parties remains a sad commentary on our electoral process. This requires urgent intervention by government if the much publicized anti-corruption agenda of the Federal Government must have meaning to Nigerians.Offer of money for votes is worse than looting the government treasury. Apart from compromising the dignity of the people, it provides a fertile training ground for future looters of government treasury. The consequence of it is to render the anti-corruption fight a farce. There may be no economic matter more urgent, difficult to unravel and more sensitive to the pursuit of the average person in Ondo State than the current indignity foisted on the people by poverty orchestrated by maladministration and priority misplacement by the current administration. We hope the incoming administration will address the problem of poverty so that the integrity of our electoral process will be restored.He noted his observation of Ondo people who appear confused and unsure of what would follow the immediate satisfaction from the naira handout received in consideration of the votes cast.They appear wondering whether the votes they delivered yesterday would restore light, revive dead industries, complete the uncompleted ones, give hundreds of thousands of unemployed graduates employment, pay arrears of salary to workers and guarantee regular payment of salary; whether their votes will make water to flow again in their unused and rusted water pipes, reduce dust on our roads, revive our education and health sectors and so on, he stated.Oke, who recalled the event leading to his and his followers movement to the AD, said the movement was necessitated by the need for us as democrats and conscience of the people to shun the in-built perfidy and organized deception in APC as revealed during its primary election.We moved to AD less than six weeks before the gubernatorial election. We knew it was a big challenge and the greatest challenge was time. But we were determined in the pursuit of our dream.We know how bad the situation is and we are aware that the art of governance is difficult and complex, especially during trying times. The steep reduction in global oil prices from over 120 dollars per barrel to roughly 30 dollars and the huge debt profile of Ondo State present a hard challenge that requires a prepared mind and experienced hands in the saddle. We are convinced that we can no longer afford past practices.That was the compelling re-occurring issue that defined our struggle. We thank the people of Ondo State who believed in the struggle of Alliance for Democracy and its candidate, Chief Olusola Oke.Ondo State requires economic re-engineering, creative reform, materially changing the substance of its economic policy as well as the objectives of that policy in a way that the economic well-being of the people will be restored again. Therein lies the essence of progressive democratic governance and that is what our party, the Alliance for Democracy stands for. The incoming government therefore must urgently address the issue of ravaging poverty in the state through: Industrialization; Job/Wealth Creation; Rural Integration; Infrastructural Development; Security,He, therefore, assured that as members of the opposition, the AD shall continue to contribute to the process of governance and would not hesitate to point, in a civilized manner, the attention of the incoming government to any area where the masses seem not to have been considered in the policy framework of governance.We shall voice our opinion whenever we believe any member of the incoming government strayed from the progressive calling required of the administration, he posited.He, therefore, congratulated the governor-elect, Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN and wish him success and praying to God to guide him as he directs the affairs of our dear state.
A member of the Board of Trustees, BoT, of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and a close ally of President Muhammadu Buhari right from t...

A member of the Board of Trustees, BoT, of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and a close ally of President Muhammadu Buhari right from the days in the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, Buba Galadima, has stated that nothing has changed in terms of corruption and looting of public funds in the present government.He said, People are just stealing left, right and centre because of their initial fear that when this government comes in, they would be chased is no more there. So, it is business as usual in everything.He said Nigeria is not only on a reverse gear, but on a standstill.Galadima was speaking with the Tribune at the weekend, where he noted that no aspect of the economy has witnessed development so far, saying that, At least if it is not on a reverse gear it is on a standstill.According to him, some elements of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, are still controlling affairs in the country.People who call the shots for 16 years still call the shots. So, how do you expect the government to move forward? Talk to any of the ministers individually and hear them talk.In all human endeavours, there is no development. A lot of money was pumped into the economy and one is not seeing the impact of the money that was put into the economy.The reason is simple, the government of change has not changed the personnel of those they call names every day.They only decide they are giving money and they pay themselves because nobody has checked or cross checked or investigated what commitment the previous government held.
Senator Ben Murray-Bruce is finally admitting that politicians like himself are Nigeria's biggest problem.

Senator Ben Murray-Bruce is finally admitting that politicians like himself are Nigeria's biggest problem.Murray-Bruce is calling for the reduction of the salaries of political office holders."A leader opens himself to ridicule when he preaches made in Nigeria at a conference then is escorted to board his convoy of foreign cars! The recession is caused by the mentality of our leaders. If we want our healthcare to improve then let us stop paying politicians like me jumbo pay and instead pay doctors jumbo pay. If we want our education sector to improve let us stop paying politicians like me jumbo salary and rather pay teachers maximum allowances," Murray-Bruce said.
A statement released by his publicist says Seun Egbegbe was never taken to Kirikiri prison. His theft case has been adjourned to February...

A statement released by his publicist says Seun Egbegbe was never taken to Kirikiri prison. His theft case has been adjourned to February 18th, 2017.Find below the press release.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has given reasons why the six houses seized from Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayo...

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has given reasons why the six houses seized from Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose may never be returned to him.The EFCC said the houses  both in Lagos and Abuja  were seized via a court order issued on July 20 this year while it was investigating the governor in relation to various offences including diversion of public funds.It said it has, in the cause of investigating Fayose, found that the houses were acquired through third parties, who it has identified and has proceeded against.The commission said the question of whether or not to vacate the July 20 order for the seizure of the house no longer arises as the new owners of the houses have been identified and a new order has been issued against them.The EFCC stated its position in its counter affidavit to a motion by Fayose asking a Federal High Court in Abuja to vacate the July 20 order for temporary forfeiture of his houses.The house include: four units of 4 bedroom at Charlets 3, 4, 6 and 9 Plot 100 Tiamiyi Salvage V. I. Lagos.Others are: No: 44 Osun Crescent, Maitama, Abuja and Plot 1504 Yedseram Street, Maitama, Abuja.The EFCC said, in its counter affidavit, that its investigation has revealed that houses were acquired through companies known as J.J. Technical Service, Spotless Investment Limited and one Mrs. Moji Ladeji.It said at the expiration of the July 20 order given by Justice Nmandi Dimgba (of the Federal High Court, Abuja) for 45, it went before another judge of the court  Justice Okon Abang  for a new order of interim forfeiture granted on November 3 this year.The EFCC argued that in view of the new interim order of forfeiture, which is to last until the case against the new owners of the properties is concluded, Fayoses motion now before Justice Dimgba has become an academic exercise.An order was made by this court on the 20th of July 2016 for interim attachment/forfeiture of the properties contained in this application for a period of 45 days.The order has since lapsed and the respondent, upon further investigation, discovered the names through which the properties were acquired and had to proceed against those names.The respondent (EFCC) re-attached the properties and reapplied to this honourable court for fresh order before Honourable Justice Okon Abang, which application was considered and granted.An order of interim or forfeiture is meant to preserve the res (subject matter) pending investigation or conclusion of trial.It is thus of interest to state that in view of the respondents exhibit EFCC1 (a copy of the order by Justice Abang), the order now being sought by the applicant has already been overtaking by time and event.The applicants (Fayoses) application is thus, a pure waste of time and an academic exercise, which is based on nothing, the EFCC said.The absence of Fayoses lead lawyer, Mike Ozekhome (SAN) prevented the hearing of the Governors application yesterday.Following the agreement of lawyers to both sides to return another day for the hearing, Justice Dimgba adjourned to December 19.
EDGEWATER - The ferryboat Binghamton, which carried passengers between Hoboken and Lower Manhattan for more than six decades, will be demolished beginning in December, according to a report in the New York Times.

The double-ended steam ferry became a landmark as it crossed the Hudson River from 1905 through the 1960s. After it was decommissioned sometime before 1970, the ship found a second career as a floating riverboat-style restaurant and nightclub.

But the restaurant closed in 2007. The historic Binghamton was ravaged by Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, becoming damaged beyond repair. Legal efforts to revive the ferryboat as a business have failed in court. In later years, the landmark sat rotting, tethered to a gangplank near Edgewater.

"Nine years ago, it could have been in full operation, with three functions going on at one time," Roger Gross, who is overseeing the demolition, told the N.Y. Times.

In 1997, Nelson Gross, a political powerbroker from Teaneck who owned the boat, was kidnapped and beaten to death by teenagers. One of them worked as a busboy on his vessel. Nelson Gross was Roger Gross' uncle and father of Neil Gross, who ran the restaurant.

For 10 years after Gross' death, the Binghamton continued as a restaurant. But financial problems and lawsuits led to its closure nine years ago.

Michael Gelfand of the Bergen County Historical Society told the N.Y. Times the ship serves as a visual connection to the past.

But most of its worthiest elements - stained glass, a plaque declaring the ferryboat a historic site - have been destroyed in storms or stolen by vandals, according to the report.

"From a preservation point, the damage is done," Gelfand told the Times.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
TRENTON -- A prominent Bergen County lawyer recently had his law license suspended for admitting that he secretly helped his business profit while serving as a borough attorney.

The state's Disciplinary Review Board agreed to have Dennis Oury's three-year suspension retroactive to when he was first temporarily suspended in November 2009.

Joseph Ferriero, left, walks in 2008 with his attorney Joseph Hayden, center and fellow co-defendant Dennis Oury. (Photo by Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

Oury, along with former Bergen County Democratic Organization leader Joseph A. Ferriero, created a company called Governmental Grants Consulting and marketed it to North Jersey towns, including the town Oury served as a lawyer for, without disclosing their ties to the company.

Oury was later appointed to serve as Bergenfield's attorney. During his reign, Bergenfield purchased an estate with grants obtained through his consulting company and he went on to bill the borough for his legal work.

He also pleaded guilty to one count of failing to file federal income tax returns.

Oury received three years of probation and was fined $17,500, but avoided jail time. Ferriero, meanwhile, was sentenced to almost three years in prison for his role in a racketeering and bribe scheme.

Oury's attorney didn't immediately return a request for comment.

Sara Jerde may be reached at sjerde@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SaraJerde.
boozle-StJamesPension Brenner (2).JPG

Deborah and Henry Lubinski recently learned Deborah's pension from St. James Hospital is going bust.

(Tom Brenner/for NJ Advance Media)

Pensions have been on their way out for a long time.

They're expensive for employers, and they require lots of rule-following and reporting.

But the sponsors of pension funds run by Catholic hospitals have taken advantage of an IRS rule, which, in effect, gives zero protection to retirees if the pension goes bust.

The U.S. Supreme Court could decide as early as Monday whether it will consider such pension cases, impacting thousands of New Jerseyans who worked for St. Peter's University Hospital in New Brunswick and tens of thousands of Catholic hospital employees nationwide.

The decision could also affect another Catholic hospital pension that's months away from going belly up, Bamboozled has learned.

The pension promised to employees of the now defunct St. James Hospital of Newark is almost broke, leaving 76 employees without the retirement money they were counting on.

The letter received by Deborah Lubinski saying her St. James pension is about to fail.

Earlier this month, Deborah Lubinski of Fanwood learned her St. James pension would fail in "approximately five to seven months, depending on the investment performance of the assets."

The news came in a letter from Transamerica Retirement Solutions, the company that invests the fund and sends the monthly payouts to recipients.

Lubinski's husband, Henry Lubinski, said the letter was a shock.

"For us this is disappointing but not life changing," Lubinski said, because his wife's monthly benefit isn't large. "There have to be many others who devoted their entire working life to St. James now faced with disaster. That is the real story."

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE?

We followed a long and twisty trail to find the responsible party.

Transamerica doesn't sponsor the fund but instead manages investments and makes payouts. It said in a written statement it's been trying to get direction from the sponsor of the plan, Cathedral Healthcare System, which is affiliated with the Archdiocese of Newark. Cathedral was "unresponsive" to inquiries, Transamerica said.

In its letter to pensioners, Transamerica suggested they contact the archdiocese for more information.

So that's what we did.

The archdiocese told Bamboozled it's not responsible.

"We certainly understand the frustration and worries of the participants of the St. James Hospital retirement plan, but the information that Transamerica Retirement Solutions provided to them is not correct," spokesman Jim Goodness said. "The Archdiocese did not sponsor or administer that plan, nor were we responsible for the plan."

That was confirmed by Transamerica.

St. James' owner, Cathedral Health, was purchased by Catholic Health East (CHE) in 2008. As part of the deal, St. James and another Catholic hospital -- Columbus Hospital -- would essentially shut down and some services would be absorbed by St. Michael's, which was also part of the deal.

An article in The Catholic Advocate said Catholic Health East took on the pension liability. Catholic Health later merged with Trinity Health, which says it did not take the pension liability.

At the time, The Star-Ledger reported the sale hinged on a low-interest bond deal for CHE and state approval for the shutdown of the two hospitals. It was approved.

A press release dated Jan. 11 of that year said: "Despite the imminent closure of acute-care services at St. James Hospital and Columbus Hospital, CHE has also agreed to assume responsibility for all three hospitals' liabilities -- important news for employees, vendors, and bond holders."

An article in Catholic Advocate that month reported the same.

It seems that CHE still had responsibility for the pension, but it wouldn't be that simple.

CHE merged with Trinity Health in 2013, but a Trinity spokeswoman said the pension assets and liabilities were not part of the 2008 transaction.

What about the press release?

The spokeswoman said she didn't know why "seemingly with incorrect or misleading information" was released.

That wasn't our last corporate stop. Earlier this year, Prime Healthcare bought St. Michael's from Trinity.

Prime said it didn't take on the liability, either.

Even with corporate responsibility uncertain, we figured the pension would have insurance from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, or PBGC.

You see, traditional pension plans have to follow a lot of rules to provide safeguards for pension recipients under the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).

Those include minimum funding requirements for the plan and PBGC insurance.

If a plan insured by PBGC fails, PBGC will make pensioners mostly whole. There's a monthly maximum payment limit, but generally 85 to 90 percent of the benefit would be covered.

That's when the bad news for St. James pensioners was confirmed: PBGC said the pension was considered a "church" plan and was not required to carry insurance.

COURT FIGHTS

An IRS rule gives an out to pension plans with religious affiliations, saying ERISA rules don't apply.

That means they could essentially run pensions without having to follow the same rules as non-religious plans, and they didn't have to buy insurance to protect pensioners.

This provided a windfall for Catholic hospitals. They no longer had to pay the insurance, but they also saved on all the paperwork and filings requirements of plans under ERISA. What's more, they could substantially underfund the pension plans with no consequences.

The consequences would instead be faced by workers who had counted on their pension plans to fund their retirement.

In 1990, back when St. James was owned by Cathedral Health, PBGC said, it requested to change its pension plan to a "church" plan. Cathedral said it made a mistake when the pension was established and it always should have been a "church" plan.

The change was granted.

PBGC said most of Cathedral's premium payments were refunded.

So now, participants in this plans have no recourse outside of whatever remedies are provided by state law, PBGC said.

That means the only option for pensioners would be to sue.

Pensioners have sued, and they've made progress.

Deborah Lubinski will soon lose her pension as St. James Hospital's plan goes broke.

Several recent court cases argued that because the Catholic church doesn't fund Catholic hospitals, the hospitals' pensions shouldn't have the "church" exemption.

Right here in New Jersey, the Metuchen Diocese-sponsored St. Peter's University Hospital pension plan was covered by ERISA until 2008, when its request to be considered a "church" plan was granted.

That led to one of the lawsuits that may make it to the Supreme Court.

Plan participant attorneys from Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll argued the plan was established by the hospital and not by the Catholic church, that St. Peter's followed ERISA laws for 32 years, paid PBGC premiums until 2010 and gave employees documents that said the pensions were covered under ERISA and the pensions were guaranteed by PBGC.

St. Peter's said the case should be dismissed because the plan was, in fact, a "church" plan.

But the court sided with pensioners, saying to receive "church" plan status, the plan would have to be established by a church, not just be affiliated with one.

Then St. Peter's lost its appeals.

With a decision that the plan should not be a "church" plan, a lawsuit alleging St. Peter's violated ERISA could continue.

But with the Supreme Court, St. Peter's is giving it one more try. The district court granted St. Peter's request to stay the proceedings until there's an answer on whether the Supreme Court will consider reviewing the case by granting cert (short for certiorari).

If the Supreme Court denies cert, in essence, declining to review case, it would be a dagger in the heart of St. Peter's efforts and impact similar cases against Catholic hospitals in California and Illinois.

And it would set a precedent that could be good news for the St. James pensioners.

That decision could come down as early as today, according to persons with direct knowledge of the case.

The Lubinskis say they're going to contact the attorneys from the St. Peter's case to see if there's a chance for St. James.

"I find that it's interesting that a corporation [the hospital] that was spun off is now using the exception when they are not in fact church-funded or a church agency of any kind," Henry Lubinski said. "They are church in name only."

"They're hiding. They're using a loophole to act in an inappropriate and unethical manner," he said.

We'll let you know what happens.

In the meantime, if you want to check up on the status of your own pension plan, contact your plan sponsor. And if you don't get the answers you want to hear, contact PBGC at (800) 400-7242, or search for your plan online.

Staff researcher Vinessa Erminio and staff reporters Susan K. Livio and Kathleen O'Brien contributed to this report.

Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com.

Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com's weekly e-newsletter.
A Singapore-bound cargo ship from Taiwan with armored military vehicles on board was inspected and detained by Hong Kong customs on Thursday last week. The Chinese foreign ministry responded Friday that the "Chinese government is firmly opposed to any forms of official interaction between Taiwan and countries that have diplomatic relations with us, military exchanges and cooperation included." The case is still being verified, but those military vehicles have raised new questions over Singapore's policy toward China.

Given that Singapore is a small country with limited space for military exercises, the nation has to train its troops overseas to maintain a strong defense force. According to the Taipei Times, former Taiwan leader Chiang Kai-shek and then-Singaporean prime minister Lee Kwan Yew ratified a secret agreement called Project Starlight in 1975, under which Singapore can send troops to Taiwan annually for training.

It is to some extent understandable that Singapore did this before it established diplomatic relations with China. But after 1990, the year that formal diplomatic ties were established, it is no longer reasonable for Singapore to continue Project Starlight or any kind of military exchanges with Taiwan.

In 2012, Singapore claimed it would suspend bilateral military cooperation with the island. However the recently detained vessel with its cargo of armored vehicles reveals Singapore's hypocrisy.

For quite some time, Singapore has been pretending to seek a balance between China and the US, yet has been taking Washington's side in reality. Singapore was never a military ally of the US, but has given the green light to US military forces' long-term presence at its Changi Naval Base as well as allowing US Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon aircraft to operate out of its airbases. This has turned Singapore into a platform for Washington to contain and deter Beijing. Singapore claimed it was not picking sides in the South China Sea disputes, but its remarks about the issue are far from neutral; instead, it has actually complicated and expanded the scale of the case.

It should be expected that a small country like Singapore has its own tactics of survival in games of major powers. The country, which used to know its boundaries, is losing its balance now. Its measures to contain China are becoming obvious. The military equipment seized by Hong Kong authorities this time further adds to the suspicion that Singapore might be working against the "one China" principle.

It should be understood that if public opinion about Singapore changes in China, it will turn into a huge blow to bilateral ties, result in a possible adjustment to Beijing's foreign policies and profoundly impact Singapore's economy.
GLOUCESTER CITY -- Police are hoping someone can identify a man who stole an American flag from the front of a store.

Police released this security camera image as part of their investigation into the theft of an American flag from the front of a business. (Gloucester City Police Department)

Authorities have released a security camera image of the theft, which occurred shortly after 2 a.m. Thursday in the 500 block of Monmouth Street.

Three males walking east on Monmouth approached Express Food Market.

One of them ripped down the flag from the front of the store, police said. In doing so, he pulled the flag holder from the wall.

The alleged thief is seen on the right in the image released by police. The photo shows only two of the males.

Anyone who can identify them or has information about the theft is asked to call city police detectives at 856-456-7797.

Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
The Government of Liberia has reaffirmed its commitment to the "One China Policy."

The government also restated its support to China's concept of "one country, two systems" and every effort by the Chinese Government to achieve national reunification.

The Liberian government's statement comes in the wake of an alert about two separate communications (each dated August 19, 2016 respectively) signed by the former Speaker of the erstwhile Transitional Legislative Assembly, Mr. George S. Dweh, Sr., to Taiwan authority.

The communications were suggesting bilateral discussions to establish an economic trade link with the Government of Liberia.

A Liberia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs' statement, released by the Liberia News Agency (LINA) says Mr. Dweh is a former government official, who in no way is or has been an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs nor has he had any official relation with the Ministry or is an envoy of the President of Liberia.

"The government wishes to make it clear that Mr. Dweh has never, at any time, held meetings with any official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on any matter relating to Taiwan," the statement noted.

Meanwhile, the Government of Liberia says it takes this matter very seriously and, because of the gravity, and has alerted the relevant security agencies to investigate the matter so as to avert a diplomatic faux pas with the friendly Government of the People's Republic of China as well as to determine Dwehs motivation for this dubious overture.

It can be recalled that in 2003, after the resumption of diplomatic relations with China, Liberia signed a Joint Declaration and a Memorandum of Understanding in which it once again recognized China.

Furthermore, on 19 August 2005 the Liberian Senate and House of Representatives each passed Resolution No. 001 of the 52nd Legislature, which confirms and reaffirms [its] total unwavering commitment to the 'One China' Policy. This resolution made the new policy irreversible.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump continues to challenge the integrity of the U.S. election system, claiming widespread voter fraud cost him the popular vote. Even though there is no evidence to support his claim, it is very unusual for a soon-to-be president to cast so much doubt on American democracy.

The latest totals have Hillary Clinton leading Trump in the popular vote by more than two million, but Trump refuses to accept the results as legitimate. Trump tweeted on Sunday, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, referring to the vote recount effort in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. He did not provide evidence to back up that claim.

Trumps claim appears to have originated with Gregg Phillips, a self-described voter fraud specialist. Completed analysis of database of 180 million voter registrations, Phillips wrote on Twitter on November 12. Number of non-citizen votes exceeds 3 million, he added. Two days later, Phillips further bolstered his claim. We have verified more than three million votes cast by non-citizens, Phillips wrote on November 14.

Radio host Alex Jones website Infowars reported the claim made by Phillips on November 14. Report: Three Million Votes in Presidential Election Cast by Illegal Aliens, citing unconfirmed evidence. If true, the report wrote, Trump still won the popular vote. Virtually all of the votes cast by 3 million illegal immigrants are likely to have been for Hillary Clinton, the report concluded. Jones is considered by many to be a conspiracy theorist. In December 2015, then-Republican presidential candidate Trump was interviewed by Jones on Infowars. Your reputation is amazing. I will not let you down, Trump told Jones.

The Washington Post examined the claim made by Phillips before it became a statement made by the next U.S. president. The Post found no evidence that millions of people voted illegally in the election and called Trumps claim bogus. Phillips has also refused to provide evidence to back up his claim, but he continues to defend it. Millions of illegal votes were cast, he wrote in response to Trumps claim on November 27. We began work on this project in 2009, he added.

Trump has repeatedly challenged the integrity of the U.S. election system. After Mitt Romney lost the presidential election in 2012, Trump wrote on Twitter, This election is a total sham and a travesty. We are not a democracy! At the final presidential debate in 2016, Trump refused to say that he would accept the election results. Trump won, but the President-elect continues to attack the integrity the election system of the country that elected him president. Even without evidence of voter fraud, Trumps claims directly undermine Americas core credibility.
The Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport revealed that, following in the footsteps of Subway Lines 4 and Line 14, Subway Line 16 has also introduced a PPP mode to attract social capital for construction and operation. In addition, the line has drawn investments through equity financing for the first time, Chinanews.com reported on Nov. 27.

PPP refers to Public-Private Partnership. It is an internationally recognized public service mode accomplished through cooperation between public and private sectors.

Total investment in Beijing Subway Line 16 is 49.5 billion RMB. The project includes two components. The first component covers civil work like caves and stations, for which investment is about 34.5 billion RMB, or roughly 70 percent of the total; that portion will be covered by the government. A charted company will invest 15 billion RMB in the second component: trains and signal equipment.

According to guidelines released by China's State Council in 2014, the Beijing Municipal government has made great efforts to promote the introduction of social capital in infrastructure. The transportation sector signed a cooperation agreement with Beijing MTR Corporation Limited (BJ MTR) in November 2015 for the construction and operation of Beijing Subway Line 16. Beijing MTR received the operation rights for 30 years.

Beijing MTR, established in January 2006, is jointly backed by Beijing Infrastructure Investment Co. Ltd. (2 percent), Beijing Capital Group (49 percent) and MTR Corporation (49 percent). The compound investment and financing mode has eased the government's funding pressure.
Going to Dolly Parton in New Orleans? Don't be late
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.
Wang Xing, a 17-year-old boy from Jimo, Shandong province, killed his mother with an ax and buried her in a shallow grave under their chicken coop. Wang's mother's body was found several days later by the boys grandmother, Liu Kaolan, who lives next door. The boy was later arrested by police.

According to the investigation, the victim, Li Juan, was always overprotective of her son, forbidding him from leaving the house without her permission and supervision. Li was so cautious that other locals and even Wang's grandparents next door hadn't seen the boy in a long time.

Wang was eager to look for work outside the village, but Li discouraged his ambitions, claiming that the world outside was too dangerous for him. After killing Li, Wang took his mothers phone along with 1,200 RMB and fled to Qingdao, securing the lock on the gate outside his house as he left. From Qingdao, Wang continued on to Jinan and then Chengdu, but he was finally apprehended by police on Sept. 22.

In court, the teenager was very calm, relating the events of his crime without any visible sadness or remorse.

Wangs father died from cancer in 2004, and Li's relationship with her mother was rocky. Most of the time, Li came and went without having much contact with neighbors. As for her son, Li always said he was at school or at work, so Li's neighbors were unaware of the extent of Wang's restrictions prior to this incident.
07:14:42 AM

Feels Like:

Mostly Cloudy

Today

Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 79F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.

Tonight

Mainly clear skies. Low near 65F. Winds light and variable.

Tomorrow

A mainly sunny sky. High 81F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.
To get workers' comp benefits for an on-the-job injury or illness, you need to follow your state's rules for reporting the injury and filing a claim. Learn how to file a claim and where to get more information and help.

If you've suffered a work-related injury or illness, you may be entitled to workers' comp benefits, including medical care, part of your lost wages while you're off work during your recovery, and permanent disability benefits if the injury left you with long-lasting limitations.

To get these benefits, you must report your injury and file a claim according to your state's procedures. While each state has its own workers' comp system, the procedures for filing a claim are generally similar. Below we'll discuss the workers' comp claims procedures that all states share.

Report Work Injury to Employer

In nearly all states, the first step to getting workers' compensation benefits is to report your injury or occupational illness to your employer. States have very different time limits for notifying an employer of a work injury or illness. The deadline is often 30 days or so, but it can be as short as a few days and as long as a year.

Regardless of how much time you have, you should inform your employer of your injury as soon as possible. The longer you wait, the more skeptical your employer or its insurance company will be of your claim. And, the sooner you file your claim, the sooner you can receive benefits.

You should also get immediate medical attention if your injury requires it. For emergency treatment, you can go to the nearest emergency room or urgent care. For all other treatment, you will need to follow your state's rules for seeking medical treatment.

File a Workers' Comp Claim

Once you report your injury, your employer should give you any necessary forms to fill out. Typically, the employer will submit these forms to its insurance company and the state workers' compensation agency. In some states, this will be the official start to your workers' compensation claim. In these states, you will need to file official paperwork with the state workers' comp agency only if your benefits are denied and you want to appeal the decision.

In other states, you will also need to file an official workers' comp claim form with the state workers' compensation agency at the start of your case. The deadline for this step also varies from state to state. While workers often have a year to file the claim, the timeline could be significantly shorter in some states. (Learn more about the various time limits in workers' comp cases and details on the filing procedures for workers' comp claims in certain states.)

You can get information, forms, and assistance from your state's workers' compensation agency. In the unlikely event that your employer refuses to cooperate with you in filing a claim, a call to your local workers' comp office will usually remedy the situation.

Federal employees are subject to a completely different workers' compensation system. You can find forms and instructions for filing claims at the website of the Division of Federal Employees' Compensation.

What Happens After You File a Workers' Comp Claim

The insurance company will conduct an investigation before approving or denying your claim. The insurer must tell you what it decided, usually within two to four weeks. In some states, if your claim isn't denied by the deadline, it will automatically be considered approved.

If the claim is approved, you'll start receiving benefits. If your claim is deniedwhich often happensyou have the right to appeal.

When to Contact a Workers' Comp Attorney

If your claim has been denied, you should speak with a lawyer as soon as possible. There are many reasons for denials, from missed deadlines to disputes over whether your medical condition is related to work.

The appeals process is complicated, with strict deadlines. An experienced workers' comp attorney can help your case in many ways, from gathering evidence that bolsters your claim to negotiating with the insurance company or representing you in hearings.

And a lawyer usually won't cost you anything up front. In almost all states, workers' comp attorneys charge a percentage of your benefits if you winand nothing if you lose.
(Xinhua) 20:25, November 28, 2016

ISTANBUL, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- At the heart of Istanbul lies the Topkapi Palace, a must-see to tourists from around the world for its rich trove of treasures collected during a period of some 400 years as Ottoman Sultans' residence.

Among the antiques are thousands of Chinese porcelain pieces made during China's dynasties of Song (960-1279), Yuan (1206-1368), Ming (1368-1644), and Qing (1644-1911), the largest collection of Chinese ceramics outside of China.

The first recorded use of the Chinese wares in the palace was in 1457 at the circumcision ceremonies for Fatih Sultan Mehmed II's two sons, Bayezid and Mustafa, Turkey's Hurriyet daily reported back in 2013.

All the wares are silent witnesses to China's interactions with Turkey and the region during the ancient Silk Road period.

"We first established our relations with China through the merchants during the ancient Silk Road period which connected the entire world," said Umit Kiler, deputy president of the Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association.

For Irem Calisici, an academician from Dokuz Eylul University based in Izmir, western Turkey, the unique Chinese porcelain collection in Topkapi is the "most striking evidence" of the diplomatic and commercial relations existing between the Ming Dynasty and the Ottoman Empire.

Citing the record, she noted in an article that the two great empires had sent emissaries to visit each other, establishing a cultural recognition on top of diplomatic ties.

During the course of history, however, the bond was broken now and then.

"Today, thanks to the Belt and Road initiative this connection is going to be reestablished," Kiler told Xinhua.

Sitting on both ends of Asia, China and Turkey have voiced their readiness to revive the ancient Silk Road, along which the links are expected to extend from China to Central Asia and the Middle East, and then on to Europe via Turkey.

In China, President Xi Jinping put forth the Belt and Road initiative three years ago, seeking to connect trading partners along the ancient Silk Road through land and sea routes.

Under its Middle Corridor plan, Turkey's project for the modern revival of the ancient Silk Road, a transport network will in the end connect Beijing with London.

"Turkey will again play an important role in connecting London with Beijing through the new highways and railways," said Kiler. "Turkey is ready and very determined again to bridge the two edges of the world."

Both China and Turkey are harboring dreams of growing stronger and more prosperous in the years to come, laying a solid foundation for closer bilateral cooperation.

Beijing and Ankara have signed a memorandum of understanding on harmonizing their Belt and Road and Middle Corridor projects, and both Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang and Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Turkey this month for further discussions on their integration.

Turkish leaders, for their part, pledged to advance cooperation on key projects like an already-agreed-upon high-speed rail linking Kars in Turkey's east with the western Turkish city of Edirne, and the construction of a third nuclear power plant in Turkey.

The Middle Corridor plan and the Kars-Edirne rail "will help China to knock the door of Europe, contributing to the revival of modern Silk Road," said Altay Atli, a research associate with the Asian Studies Kiler, of the Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association, suggested that Turkey and China could develop "significant partnership" as well in the fields of mining, agriculture and animal husbandry.
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.
(Xinhua) 21:01, November 28, 2016

NANJING, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and Vietnamese police arrested 29 fugitives in a six-month joint operation, they announced at a wrap-up meeting Monday.

Chinese police detained nine Vietnamese suspects in China while the Vietnamese side caught 20 Chinese suspects in Vietnam, according to the Ministry of Public Security (MPS).

The campaign, the second of its kind, ran from April to September this year. Another will begin in January and run until June.

The cooperation exercise will be used as a successful example of how to detain fugitives on the run, according to the MPS.

The first joint campaign between November 2014 and July 2015 resulted in the detention of 47 fugitives.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenias armed forces have 27 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, said Azerbaijans Defense Ministry Nov. 28.

The Azerbaijani army positions located in Qaymaqli village of Azerbaijans Gazakh district underwent fire from the Armenian army positions located in Barekamavan village of the Noyemberyan district of Armenia.

Meanwhile, positions of the Azerbaijani army located in Munjuglu, Kokhanabi and Aghdam villages of Tovuz district were fired at from the Armenian army positions located on the nameless heights and Mosesgeh village of Armenias Berd district.

Moreover, the Azerbaijani army positions were fired at from the Armenian positions located near the Armenian-occupied Chilaburt village of the Tartar district, Shikhlar and Javahirli villages of the Aghdam district, Kuropatkino village of the Khojavand district, as well as on nameless heights of the Goranboy, Tartar and Fuzuli districts.

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, Nov. 28

By Ilhama Isabalayeva  Trend:

A bill on genocide is being prepared in Azerbaijan in connection with the 25th anniversary of the Khojaly tragedy, said Bahar Muradova, deputy speaker of the Azerbaijani parliament.

She made the remarks addressing the presentation of the project titled Study of legal aspects of recognition of crimes of genocide and ethnic cleansing at international level.

The bill preparation began Nov. 20, according to Muradova.

"Public opinion will also be taken into account in the preparation of the bill," she added.

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.

On February 25-26, 1992, the Armenian armed forces, together with the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops, stationed in Khankendi, committed an act of genocide against the population of the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly. As many as 613 people, including 63 children, 106 women and 70 old people were killed as a result of the massacre. Eight families were totally exterminated, 130 children lost one parent and 25 children lost both. A total of 487 civilians became disabled as a result of the onslaught. Some 1,275 innocent residents were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 people still remains unknown.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan 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.
Shock illusionist Dan Sperry will once again bring his unique brand of magic and illusion to Chicagoland.

Sperry, who was a semi-finalist on NBC's "America's Got Talent" in 2010, will perform his show "Magic No Longer Sucks" at 7 p.m. Nov 29 at The Arcada Theater in St. Charles, Illinois.

The entertainer was last in Chicagoland during the summer when he performed at a cancer benefit for a friend. Sperry, who also created and sells his own coffee called Zombie Java, has also been involved in a variety of creative projects. He's also designed visual effects for the band Jane's Addiction's latest tour.

FYI: Dan Sperry will perform at 7 p.m. Nov.29 at The Arcada Theater, 105 E. Main St., St. Charles, Illinois. For tickets and other information, call (630) 962-7000 or visit arcadalive.com. Also visit dansperry.com.--Eloise Marie Valadez
VALPARAISO  Authorities said alcohol may have played a role in a head-on collision early Wednesday on U.S. 30 that left a 23-year-old Hobart woman dead.

Jennifer Syjut had to be extricated from her vehicle and was pronounced dead a short time later at the scene, police said.

The crash occurred shortly after midnight in the eastbound lanes of U.S. 30, just west of of Ind. 2, according to the accident report.

Witnesses in a westbound vehicle told police that they noticed headlights behind them and then realized the other vehicle, which was driven by Syjut, was traveling west in the eastbound lanes of the highway, police said. Syjut's vehicle struck an eastbound vehicle head on.

The other driver, 21-year-old Shaun Sullivan, of Valparaiso, had to be extricated from his vehicle and was transported to the Methodist Hospitals Northlake Campus in Gary.

A firefighter at the scene reported smelling alcohol after placing Syjut in the ambulance, police said.

Porter County Coroner Chuck Harris said alcohol may have been a factor, but toxicology reports aren't expected for five weeks.
Police arrested a 67-year-old Dyer man Friday in connection with an alleged plot to have three people seriously injured, police said.

Seif El Sharif, who was released Sunday on bond, faces three counts of conspiracy to commit aggravated battery, Cook County sheriff's spokeswoman Sophia Ansari said.

The Sheriff's Office is a member of an FBI task force, which received information earlier this month that El Sharif had agreed to pay someone to seriously injure three people, she said.

The people are business associates of El Sharif, who reportedly owns strip clubs, Ansari said.

After further investigation, El Sharif was arrested Friday, Ansari said. The case is being prosecuted by the state's attorney's office.

El Sharif's next court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday in Markham.
VALPARAISO  A 32-year-old Kingsford Heights man is accused of cheating an elderly Portage woman out of $3,102 in a home repair scam.

Brett Lawson is charged with a felony count of home improvement fraud.

The homeowner told police that after speaking Sept. 1, 2015, with a woman, who she thought was with a construction company, she met with Lawson at her home.

He quoted her $7,400 to repair hail damage, and the woman gave him a down payment of $3,102, police said.

Lawson reportedly told the woman his crew would begin work within the week, but no one showed up. She attempted to contact Lawson, but the business address Lawson gave her either did not exist or led her to vacant buildings.

After contacting Lawson by telephone, he said his child was sick, he was unable to begin the work and would repay her, police said.

When the money was not repaid and no work was done nearly a year later, the woman filed a complaint in small claims court, police said. A judge suggested she contact police, which led to the criminal charge.
INDIANAPOLIS  Indiana school referendums are passing at higher rates than before as all but three of the 20 ballot questions in this years primary and general elections were successful.

Voters said yes in November to raising taxes or keeping tax hikes in place to support day-to-day operations and construction projects in nine of 10 cases, the Indianapolis Business Journal reported.

Some advocates said the referendums are a sign that Indianas schools arent being funded adequately and taxpayers are willing to pay more. Others said it shows Indiana property tax caps are having the intended effect of making voters directly responsible for tax hikes.

Washington Township Schools parent and volunteer Kristina Frey said the ballot success shows a pretty clear mandate that our voters do want to support schools and an increased understanding of the fact that school funding has changed and that it is now up to the communities to fill the gaps in funding from the state. She added that she would prefer to have the state provide adequate funding without going through the referendum process.

The 85 percent success rate is the highest since the votes became a more popular tool for schools after property tax caps were instituted in 2008.

The caps are supposed to limit the total property taxes that homeowners and businesses must pay, however this can reduce revenue to taxing units like schools.

If approved in a referendum, taxes can go above the caps.
INDIANAPOLIS  Lt. Gov. Eric Holcomb will travel to London Saturday for a four-day trade mission aimed at establishing and renewing state relationships with British businesses.

The Republican is scheduled to meet with potential investors in Indiana's manufacturing, defense, agriculture, life sciences, logistics and technology sectors, as well as United Kingdom government officials.

He also plans to visit leaders of British businesses operating in Indiana, which has more than 60 facilities owned by U.K.-based companies that employ 31,800 Hoosiers  including BP in Whiting.

"We have a strong record, and I will tirelessly continue the momentum in the years to come," said Holcomb, who takes office as Indiana governor on Jan. 9.

"My administration will work hard to foster relationships with job creators and government leaders in the U.K. and new markets worldwide and build upon the strong partnerships from which Hoosiers have already benefited."

In 2015, the state exported more than $1.2 billion in Indiana-made products to the U.K., according to the Indiana Economic Development Corp., the state's commerce department.

This is Holcomb's first overseas trade mission since being appointed lieutenant governor in March. He will be traveling with Indiana Commerce Secretary Victor Smith and IEDC staff.

The cost of the state delegation is being covered through private donations to the Indiana Economic Development Foundation.
MUNSTER  Veterans Day will now be a paid holiday for town employees following adoption of a resolution by the Town Council.

Councilman Joseph Simonetto read the resolution that created an 11 paid holiday for regular town employees.

Im very proud to be able to read this because I served my country from 1966 to 1971 in the United States Air Force, Simonetto said.

A memo from Clerk-Treasurer Dave Shafer to the Town Council said repeated requests have been received over the past decade to recognize Veterans Day, Nov. 11, as a paid holiday.

The letter said the council had contemplated replacing one of the other 10 paid holidays or adding an 11th.

With Council President John Reed absent, the council adopted the resolution unanimously.

Several residents, including representatives of local veterans organizations, spoke in favor of the resolution prior to the vote being taken.

The council also approved unanimously an ordinance that creates new regulations for the placement of donation/collection bins.

What this is pertaining to are the donation bins that appear to be popping up throughout town and we have a guideline now to control those which require they just cant be just placed anywhere and there is a permit fee required in order to have those placed on the property, Councilman Dave Nellans said.

Kate Lewis-Lakin, town management analyst, said the ordinance was modeled after one that regulates dumpsters in town.

Its mostly aesthetics and just making sure that any boxes that are going out for donations are going to actual charitable purposes, Lewis-Lakin said.

Some of the new requirements included in the ordinance are the prohibition of third-party collection bins, a $250 permit fee, proper screening and the placement of bins on concrete pads.

The council also approved a contract with P & C Trucking to haul leaves and wood chips to the Lake County District Leaf Compost Facility at 35th and Chase Streets in Gary.

Theyre extending the price that they gave us for the past two years, $210 a load, Lewis-Lakin said.
LOWELL  The Tri-Creek School Corp. board has taken the next stop toward its ambitious 2017 Solar Project that would substantially reduce energy costs through solar panel arrays at all school locations.

The board recently approved bid specifications for the project presented by Bruce Breeden of Telamon.Corp. in Carmel, Indiana.

He said the documents include language that will allow for an increase or reduction in the size of the solar panel arrays should bids come in higher or lower than expected. The project is being bid as four separate packages for each of the schools. He said companies can choose to bid on all four packages and state the discount that will be provided for being awarded the entire project. The bids are due Dec. 28 and will be opened later that day.

A public meeting at 10 a.m. Dec. 14 is set to review all aspects of the project and include tours of each of the solar panel array sites.

Two months ago, Breeden said the aggressive schedule is aimed at breaking ground possibly as early as March.

Lowell Middle School, 19250 Cline Ave., already is home to solar panel arrays which were used as an outdoor classroom during the installation. The panels offset energy costs at the school and the transportation building adjacent to Lowell Middle School.

Superintendent Debra Howe has said the hope is to get totally off the grid and be self-sustaining. Utility costs are paid out of the general fund which, after the state school funding formula was changed, has been greatly reduced.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Ilhama Isabalayeva  Trend:

Armenia, which continues its occupation policy, must stand trial, said Azerbaijani MP Samad Seyidov.

He made the remarks addressing the presentation of the project titled Study of legal aspects of recognition of crimes of genocide and ethnic cleansing at international level.

Seyidov noted that the negotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement continues.

He said that Armenian officials who advocate destructive position in Nagorno-Karabakh [conflict] are active members of international organizations, they use Europes funds and continue expansionist policy.

Seyidov said it is necessary to sue all criminals after Azerbaijani lands are liberated, either through negotiations or in any other way.

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.
CROWN POINT  Investigators have identified the man found dead Friday in the Kingsbury Fish and Wildlife Area, but the cause and manner of the man's death remains unknown.

The LaPorte County Sheriff's Office identified the man Sunday as Mark A. Huber, 41.

The sheriff's office said in a news release Huber had resided in Goshen for several months, but he was originally from the Cleveland, Ohio, area.

The cause and manner of Huber's death remained unknown, but Huber's body is scheduled to be autopsied on Monday, the release states.

Police have not ruled out foul play in Huber's death, the release states.

Law enforcement were notified at about 10 a.m. Friday of a possible body in the wildlife area.

Sheriff's officers and Indiana Department of Natural Resources officials were dispatched to the scene and Huber's body was found near Tracy Road west of First Line Road.

Huber's death remains under investigation. Anyone with information about Huber or his death can contact the LaPorte County sheriff's detective bureau at (219) 326-7700, ext. 2404.
The city has placed a full vacate order at a Bronx apartment building after a devastating three-alarm fire left an elderly woman in critical condition Sunday.

The Department of Buildings says 1038 Southern Boulevard, near Westchester Avenue in Longwood, suffered a partial roof collapse.

The fire started shortly after 8 p.m. inside an apartment on the top floor.

An 85-year-old woman living in the building was rushed to the hospital, after she was found unconscious in the hallway.

"She was found by our people, Ladder 48. The officer, lieutenant found her in the hallway and dragged her out," said FDNY Deputy Chief James Nichols.

"When I walked outside, I just see the ambulance pulling out an older lady and she's like in her underwear and they like throw her on the ground and just like drag her out to the street and she's just laying there by herself," said one witness.

The DOB also placed a partial vacate order on two apartments in the adjacent building.

The Red Cross is assisting twenty families who were displaced by the fire.
Pauline Oliveros, a composer whose lifes work aspired to enhance sensory perception through what she called deep listening, died on Thursday at her home in Kingston, N.Y. She was 84.

Her death was confirmed by her spouse, Carole Ione Lewis, a writer and performance artist known as Ione.

Early in her career in the 1960s, Ms. Oliveros avidly adopted cutting-edge technologies, working with magnetic tape and prototype synthesizers at the San Francisco Tape Music Center.

Already active as an improviser, she approached electronic music with a performers instincts; to make Bye Bye Butterfly (1965), which John Rockwell, The New York Times music critic, called one of the most beautiful pieces of electronic music to emerge from the 60s, she manipulated a recording of Puccinis opera Madama Butterfly on a turntable, augmenting its sounds with oscillators and tape delay.
Season 7, Episode 6, Swear

It was fringe character week on The Walking Dead on Sunday, as we left the main group behind entirely to spend an hour watching Tara and Heath scavenge, frolic in a zombie sandbox and negotiate post-apocalypse morality.

We also met yet another new settlement: a militant tribe of women whose husbands, brothers and sons had been killed by a particularly vicious gang of Saviors. The experience turned the group into an object lesson in violence begetting violence, as the women adopted a strategy of killing all interlopers on sight. This zero tolerance policy found its purest expression in a little girl who hoped to murder defenseless strangers, though another resident, Cyndie, longed for a more humane way to live.

The star of the night, however, was Tara, who on Sunday got nearly as much screen time as shed collectively received to date. You remember Tara, right? The spunky woman who first arrived in this story during the Governors comeback tour, before joining Team Rick via the Abraham and Glenn group? Youll recall that she and Heath left on a supply run right after last seasons attack on the Savior satellite post. That means they were blissfully unaware of everything that had transpired since  the murder of Taras girlfriend, Denise, shot through the face by Dwight; the deaths of Glenn and Abraham; the subjugation of Alexandria.

Indeed, much of the episodes emotional electricity came from that fact that, until the very end, we were more informed than Tara. She hoped to find ammunition for guns Alexandria no longer has. She thought the Savior matter has been settled in her groups favor. She couldnt wait to get back to Denise. She believed Abraham and Glenn were still alive. And so on. The dynamic produced palpable dread  I cringed every time Denise came up  and it also illustrated how dramatically the narrative has flipped in the relatively short time since Tara and Heath split the scene.
On May 14, 1969, the woman was in a car with two men in Harlem when a police officer pulled them over and found heroin, Investigator Salomon said. She gave the name Shirlene Dixon and an address in the St. Nicholas Houses, three blocks from the Apollo Theater. She was born in 1939 and was 30 years old.

But that lead fizzled. The womans full record revealed several arrests in New York in the 1960s, and each time, she gave a different name  Evelyn Moore, Fanny Hill, Acey Moore  and various Harlem addresses. Before then, she was arrested in Atlantic City on charges of embezzlement and served a short time in prison. The best that could be said for the names was that none of them were likely her own.

The police in New York City found a photo from the most recent arrest and sent it to the State Police. The person in the photo, stone-faced in a raincoat, appeared to be a young man.

Then, a break: A detective in the 32nd Precinct in Harlem found, in the basement of the station house, a desk blotter from 1969, when the woman was arrested. It listed the names of the people in the car with her. One of them was a 17-year old named Doug. Eight months ago, state troopers visited Doug, now 65, at his home in New Jersey, and they showed him the photo.

Thats her, Investigator Salomon said Doug told them. I remember her.

Doug agreed to be interviewed by telephone for this article with the condition that his surname be left out because of the violent nature of the crime. He knew the woman by the initials A. C., and never asked what they stood for.

A. C. dressed like a man, and carried herself as one, he said. Always looked like someone that stepped out of a magazine, he said. Very fashionable. Knit sweaters, sharkskin slacks, alligator shoes. The look was in line with how she earned her money, he said  selling drugs.

She was about 10 years older than Doug. We slept together, he recalled last week, rather awkwardly, his wife by his side. But A. C. was bisexual and in love with a female friend of Dougs from his building. It wasnt really that big a deal, Doug said of the intertwining relationships.
During that time, I once found myself in the same room with him, a ballroom in Havana for a celebration of the 26th of July, the anniversary of the young rebels catastrophic attack on the Moncada barracks. (Leave it to Fidel to make a resounding failure the centerpiece of his mythos.) A friend and I had managed tickets to the exclusive affair. When he arrived, we felt the room tremble as we spotted him maybe 50 yards away, an old man and yet as majestic as wed always heard but couldnt imagine. To our astonishment, he seemed to turn toward us.

And then we clutched each others hands. We have to go, right now, my friend said. I nodded: I was suddenly terrified that we might somehow wind up near him and that a photograph of the moment would reach Miami, causing my entire family to drop dead. For her, who lived in Cuba, the possibilities were much worse. We ran out of there, breathless until we reached the Malecon. I was afraid, she said later, that I wouldnt be able to keep my mouth shut and that Id start shouting. Down with Fidel!

As the news of his death has begun to sink in, Ive thought about my parents, both of whom Fidel outlasted. If they were still alive, Im pretty sure they would have joined my cousins celebrating in Miami. My father knew Fidel from childhood, and because he knew him, hes one of the few of his generation who never, not once, flickered with favor toward Fidels revolution. My father loathed him, unequivocally and with a singular fury because, in his mind, Fidel interrupted his life, forced him into exile and ruined his country.

But when he talked about how Fidel had outsmarted so many American presidents, and how Fidel had cunningly dodged all those assassination attempts, it was not just a smidgen of admiration he betrayed, but an identification.

Fidel embodied the best and worst of us. We loved his smarts. And his defiance. And when he imagined our tiny little island as a continent, we shared his delusion. We hated his ambitions and loved that he had them. Hang out with a bunch of Cubans, and the minute someone gets imperious, someone else will call her out for the little Fidel in her; in all of us, really.

Perversely, not much will change in Cuba after Fidel. He handed power over to his brother in 2006 and made the arrangement permanent in 2008. Cubas future hasnt been his for a long time.

And yet the future doesnt feel like its really in the hands of the Cuban people yet, either. On Saturday morning, the writer Nestor Diaz de Villegas sent out a mass mailing: Fidel has died. Theres not an atom, an iota, a minute, a cell, a millimeter of my life that didnt have everything to do with Fidel Castro, that is not Fidel Castros. I dont know if theres any difference between Him and me. I belong to his time, his History, his endurance. Its me who has died, theyll cremate me tomorrow. Theyll incinerate something, a pound of my flesh on the tyrants funeral pyre.
Ever since Uber showed up in Europe in late 2011, the American ride-booking service has faced vocal opposition.

Some of its drivers have been attacked by angry taxi drivers in Paris. Two of the companys most senior European executives have stood trial on charges of running an illegal transportation service in France. And taxi associations from London to Frankfurt have accused Uber of flouting local rules and undermining European rivals. The company denies the accusations.

These heated battles will culminate on Tuesday in arguments before the European Court of Justice, the regions highest court, which will most likely determine how Uber can operate across the European Union, one of the companys largest international markets.

At stake is the ride-booking services often aggressive worldwide expansion. Uber has opened in more than 300 cities on six continents. That has helped the American tech company reach an eye-popping valuation of $68 billion, making it one of the most successful start-ups ever to come out of Silicon Valley.
The president has no intention of stepping down, the people are fighting on the streets, and the government is paralyzed. We have no option but to impeach her.

WOO SANG-HO, the floor leader of South Koreas main opposition Democratic Party, on President Park Geun-hye, who is accused of corruption and influence peddling.
MIAMI  I did not meet Fidel Castro in a history book like most American children. I met him in my house surrounded by early exile furniture, a term my mother favored. I bumped into him at the dining room table over a meal or in the living room while the grown-ups drank tumblers of whiskey or at the beach when my mother cursed him, toes in the sand, as she remembered Cubas idyllic beaches.

Worst of all, I ran into Castro in my childhood nightmares.

He was a version of the boogeyman and, even 220 miles away, he was impossible to escape.
LOS ANGELES  Here in Los Angeles, where nearly half of the citys residents are Latino, Mayor Eric Garcetti has vowed to do everything he can to fight widespread deportations of illegal immigrants.

In New York, with a large and diverse Latino population, Mayor Bill de Blasio has pledged not to cooperate with immigration agents. And Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago has declared that it will always be a sanctuary city.

Across the nation, officials in sanctuary cities are gearing up to oppose President-elect Donald J. Trump if he follows through on a campaign promise to deport millions of illegal immigrants. They are promising to maintain their policies of limiting local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration agents.

In doing so, municipal officials risk losing millions of dollars in federal assistance for their cities that helps pay for services like fighting crime and running homeless shelters. Mr. Trump has vowed to block all federal funding for cities where local law enforcement agencies do not cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

The OSCE monitoring held on the line of contact between the Azerbaijani and Armenian troops passed without incidents, said the press service of Azerbaijans Defense Ministry Nov. 28.

The monitoring was held Nov. 28 under the mandate of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative on the line of contact near Azerbaijans Tartar city.

On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring was held by Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, the personal representative of the OSCE chairperson-in-office and his field assistant Jiri Aberle.

On the Azerbaijani territories occupied and controlled by Armenian armed forces, the monitoring was held by field assistants of the OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Ghenadie Petrica and Peter Svedberg.

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.
Dr. Mitchell wrote that he and Dr. Jessen sequestered prisoners in closed boxes, forced them to hold painful positions for hours and prevented them from sleeping for days. He also takes credit for suggesting and implementing waterboarding  covering a detainees face with a cloth and pouring water over it to simulate the sensation of drowning  among other now-banned techniques. Although they were unpleasant, their use protected detainees from being subjected to unproven and perhaps harsher techniques made up on the fly that could have been much worse, he wrote. C.I.A. officers, he added, had already decided to get rough.

Mr. Obama declined to open a broad inquiry into the treatment of terrorism suspects, saying as president-elect that the nation needed to look forward. He did not rule out prosecuting those who went beyond techniques authorized by the Justice Department, but no one has been charged with those offenses under his watch. During the George W. Bush administration, a C.I.A. contractor was convicted in the death of an Afghan detainee at an American military base in Afghanistan.

Henry F. Schuelke, a Washington lawyer with the firm Blank Rome, who represents Dr. Mitchell and Dr. Jessen, said that he believed his clients were left holding the bag while C.I.A. officials involved in the program have been protected from the lawsuit. The government and its officers, namely many of the C.I.A. officers, enjoy sovereign immunity, Mr. Schuelke said in an interview.

Image Gul Rahman, an Afghan captured in November 2002, was found dead in a secret C.I.A. prison. A representative of his estate is a party to the lawsuit against the two C.I.A. contractors. Credit... Habib Rahman, vis Associated Press

Mr. Schuelke and colleagues have argued in court that the senior United States District Court judge, Justin L. Quackenbush, should dismiss the case because, among other reasons, sovereign immunity extended to their clients, who were acting on the governments behalf. But the judge denied the motion and the case has proceeded under the Alien Tort Statute, which allows foreigners to sue in United States court for violations of their human rights.

If the former detainees are successful, it would be the first time a United States civilian court has held individuals accountable for their role in developing counterterrorism policies after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. All of the other cases have been thrown out on procedural grounds, said Jonathan Hafetz, a professor at Seton Hall Law School. If this is successful, it could pave the way for other torture victims to seek redress. Still, some lawyers say it could be difficult for the plaintiffs to prevail.

The case has proceeded in large part because the psychologists role in the program has already been documented, particularly in the declassified executive summary of a Senate Intelligence Committee investigation of the interrogation program released in 2014. While the Justice Department has fought to restrict the scope of sensitive information that it has been asked to produce in the case, it has thus far not asserted the state secrets privilege, a broad power to protect national security that could effectively shut down the suit. That could change, analysts say, under the Justice Department in the Trump administration. Representatives for Mr. Trump did not reply to requests for comment on the case, scheduled for trial in June 2017.
KAMPALA, Uganda  A long-running conflict between armed rebels and Ugandan security forces in a remote district near the Democratic Republic of Congo border escalated Sunday when Ugandan troops moved against a tribal king.

Gunfire erupted outside the palace of Charles Wesley Mumbere, the king of the Bakonzo people, when the Ugandan troops tried to disarm Mr. Mumberes guards and arrest him. The security forces overwhelmed the guards, broke into the palace and took Mr. Mumbere to a police post for questioning.

Capt. Arthur Timbaganya, a spokesman for Ugandan troops in the area, said Mr. Mumbere was not under arrest, but had been rescued from the palace for his own safety. The police disputed that account, saying the king had been detained.

Armed rebels in the Ruwenzori region are believed to be loyal to the king, who has been a vocal critic of Ugandas longtime president, Yoweri Museveni. The government has accused Mr. Mumbere of leading the rebels.
SEOUL, South Korea  South Korean lawmakers will vote on Friday on the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye, who is accused of helping a friend commit extortion. If she is forced from office, it will be a first for South Korea, but the process is long and uncertain. Heres how it works.

What is Ms. Park accused of?

Prosecutors say Ms. Park conspired with Choi Soon-sil, an old friend, to extort tens of millions of dollars from South Korean businesses. Ms. Park cannot be indicted while in office, but she has been identified as a criminal suspect, which had never happened to a president before.

She has also been accused of helping Ms. Choi illegally gain access to confidential government documents. Opposition parties say the combined allegations are serious enough to warrant her removal from power; some members of her own party agree, as do leading South Korean newspapers and most of the public, according to polls. Huge protests have been held in Seoul demanding that Ms. Park step down, but she has refused.

What is required for impeachment?

The 300-member National Assembly is expected to vote on an impeachment bill on Friday, the last day of the current legislative session. If 200 members vote yes, the National Assembly will formally ask the Constitutional Court to impeach her and remove her from office. To reach 200 votes, the opposition lawmakers will need at least 28 members of Ms. Parks conservative party, Saenuri, to join them.
PARIS  French voters chose a socially conservative, budget-cutting former prime minister on Sunday to lead the center-right Republican Party in next years presidential election. Once again, the outcome upset pollsters initial predictions, and it paved the way for a likely face-off with the countrys far-right party in 2017.

Francois Fillon, 62, a sober, dark-suited government veteran who called for economic sacrifice, major changes in the French workplace and a crackdown on immigration and Islam, won about 67 percent of the vote in the primary contest on Sunday, crushing his more centrist opponent, Alain Juppe, who is also a former prime minister.

French presidential elections are usually decided in two rounds, with the first round winnowing the field to two candidates. Having won his partys primary, Mr. Fillon is widely expected to be one of those two finalists in the general election in the spring.

It now seems increasingly unlikely that the current governing party, the Socialists, will produce the other. The French left is weak and in disarray after five years in which high unemployment rates and slow economic growth have barely budged. President Francois Hollande has not said whether he will run for another term, and many in his party hope he does not.
PARIS  France on Monday officially returned a 16th-century portrait, attributed to Joos van Cleve or his son, to the descendants of Hertha and Henry Bromberg, a German-Jewish couple who were forced to sell the work of art in Paris when they fled Germany before World War II.

Audrey Azoulay, the French culture minister, said at a ceremony at her ministry here that she was very happy to return the painting to the Brombergs grandchildren, Christopher Bromberg and Henrietta Schubert, who attended the ceremony with their spouses.

I measure the importance of this gesture in the eyes of history, Ms. Azoulay said, while also acknowledging that the restitution was quite belated.

Henry and Hertha Bromberg sold the painting in Paris in 1938 as they were fleeing Nazi Germany for the United States. Henrys father, Martin Bromberg, had acquired the work at an auction in Berlin in 1912.
RIJSWIJK, The Netherlands  Early next year when a converted cargo container on a floating foundation of plastic bottles opens on the flood-prone shores of Korail Bosti, Bangladeshs largest slum, few of its users are likely to celebrate the 320-square-foot space as a revolution. Yet, according to Koen Olthuis, the lead architect on the project, it is part of the greatest transformation in urbanism since Elisha Otis built the safety brake that gave rise to the modern elevator, skyscrapers and ultimately urban density.

It will change the DNA of cities, Mr. Olthuis said of the technology at the heart of his designs in an interview in his studio, a converted supermarket in this suburb of The Hague that also serves as his business headquarters.

In an era when the needs of growing urban centers are changing rapidly and rising sea levels threaten waterside construction, Mr. Olthuis has been busy working on a solution: the floating building.

Mr. Olthuis founded Waterstudio  which he describes as the first modern architecture firm to exclusively build floating houses  in 2003. More than a decade on, he and his team consider themselves pioneers in a growing movement. The firm has completed more than 200 floating homes and offices, many of them in the Netherlands, where several floating neighborhoods have sprung up in the last decade.
The joy must have been palpable in 2013 when three New York art traders arranged through Sothebys to sell a newly discovered painting by Leonardo da Vinci, the Renaissance master, for $80 million.

One of them had purchased it at an estate sale for less than $10,000 eight years earlier, when most experts viewed it as only the work of Leonardos school.

But the traders joy later soured, according to court papers, when they learned that the man who bought it, an important Swiss art dealer, had turned around and sold the painting within days to a Russian billionaire for $47.5 million more.

The traders asked Sothebys, according to court papers, whether it had been aware that there was a much higher price to be had for the painting.
As host of The Daily Show, Trevor Noah comes across as a wry, startled and sometimes outraged outsider, commenting on the absurdities of American life. During the presidential campaign, the South African-born comic remarked that Donald J. Trump reminded him of an African dictator, mused over the mystifying complexities of the Electoral College system and pointed out the weirdness of states voting on recreational marijuana.

In the countdown to and aftermath of the election, Mr. Noah has grown more comfortable at moving back and forth between jokes and earnest insights, between humor and serious asides  the way hes done in his stand-up act, and now, in his compelling new memoir, Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood.

By turns alarming, sad and funny, his book provides a harrowing look, through the prism of Mr. Noahs family, at life in South Africa under apartheid and the countrys lurching entry into a postapartheid era in the 1990s. Some stories will be familiar to fans who have followed the authors stand-up act. But his accounts here are less the polished anecdotes of a comedian underscoring the absurdities of life under apartheid, than raw, deeply personal reminiscences about being half-white, half-black in a country where his birth violated any number of laws, statutes and regulations.

The son of a Xhosa mother and a Swiss-German father, Mr. Noah recalls that the only time I could be with my father was indoors: If we left the house, hed have to walk across the street from us. It was dangerous, as a light-skinned child, to be seen with his mother as well: She would hold my hand or carry me, but if the police showed up she would have to drop me and pretend I wasnt hers.
American tourists are numerous, relatively affluent and culturally distinct enough that tour guides in other lands often receive special training to know how best to accommodate them.

But the guide trainers say there are some basic ways that Americans can be better guests when taking tours abroad. Generally, that means being open to new experiences and asking more questions about the culture youre visiting rather than talking about your own. There are specific steps, too.

Learn a few of the most common words or phrases. Hello, excuse me, thank you and goodbye are common courtesies that you should learn and use in the local language. Even if you mispronounce the words, its the gesture that counts.

Watch your body language. Customs vary widely, but how and whether you point or beckon can potentially offend, and in the Muslim world the left hand is reserved for bathroom hygiene. Some societies keep eyes downcast as a sign of respect, especially with elders, making an Americans direct gaze feel awkward to tour guides. Do your homework ahead of time about such things before visiting a country or culturally distinct region for the first time.
The laws position on conflicts of interest has evolved. In a 19th century case arising from the building of the transcontinental railroad, the Supreme Court in Wardell v. Railroad Company took a strict view by voiding a contract in which corporate directors were the beneficiaries of the agreement with the company. The court explained that the law therefore will always condemn the transactions of a party on his own behalf when, in respect to the matter concerned, he is the agent of others, and will relieve against them whenever their enforcement is seasonably resisted.

Since then a much more flexible approach has developed for dealing with conflicts, in recognition that corporate directors often have multiple business interests that could prevent many from serving. Under Delaware law, the most influential state for corporations, a contract or transaction involving a conflict of interest is not voidable solely because of the financial interest of a director. To avoid any problem, disinterested directors can approve the deal despite the conflict as long as all the details are disclosed in advance.

The key to dealing with conflicts  whether actual or potential  is transparency about any decision that could have an effect on Mr. Trumps business interests if he decides not to divest his holdings or create a truly blind trust. Unlike the approach of many teenagers, who believe that it is easier to beg forgiveness than permission, in business the advance notice of a potential issue can lessen its impact.

The challenge is coming up with a mechanism for dealing with questions that might arise from Mr. Trumps business interests rather than relying on the good faith of the parties involved or deflecting the issue with claims that any criticism is only political, especially in foreign countries in which the president-elect has investments, as The New York Times points out. In a corporation, it is the responsibility of the board of directors to approve transactions despite a conflict. The executive branch does not have anything comparable to deal with potential conflicts involving the president.

Some critics have pointed to potential problems Mr. Trumps business interests could present under the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution. That obscure provision provides that no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince or foreign state.

Although it is not clear what constitutes an emolument  defined by Websters New World Dictionary as gain from employment or position, payment received for work, salary, wages, fees, etc.  the provision is intended to keep federal officials from receiving benefits beyond their salary while in office. In Griffin v. United States, a case in which former President Richard M. Nixon sought compensation for the tape recordings made while he occupied the Oval Office, a federal district judge explained that the framers of the Constitution forbade the president from receiving any emolument other than a fixed compensation, in part because they feared the consequences of allowing a president to convert his or her office into a vehicle for personal profit.

The Constitution does allow for receiving an emolument with congressional approval, which could be a path to vet presidential decisions that might present a conflict of interest. If Congress approves actions that would affect part of Mr. Trumps company after full disclosure of the potential benefit, that would go a long way toward removing any taint, in much the same way that corporate directors can acquiesce to a conflicted transaction.
Details added (first version posted on 15:06)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Seba Aghayeva  Trend:

Azerbaijan is considering taking a legal action against a group of foreign researchers who illegally conducted archaeological excavations in the Azykh Cave in the Armenia-occupied territories of Azerbaijan, Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, told Trend Nov. 28.

Earlier, Armenian media reported that a group of foreign researchers is conducting archeological excavations in the Azykh Cave located in the occupied Azerbaijani territories.

According to the report, the group included researcher of Spains National Museum of Natural Sciences Dr. Yolanda Fernandez-Jalvo, research associate at the UKs Blandford Town Museum Dr. Tania King, and research scientist at the Natural History Museum, London, Dr. Peter Andrews.

These people illegally crossed the state border of Azerbaijan, without a license of the countrys relevant authorities, conducted archaeological excavations in the territory of the Azykh Cave in Azerbaijans Khojavand District, and took the objects of historical and cultural heritage, found during excavations, out of the country by fraud and secretly, without customs control, said Hajiyev.

Such illegal actions of the researchers are violation of territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan, he added.

Hajiyev said these persons, with their illegal actions, also violated the international humanitarian law.

Hajiyev noted with regret that the Spanish Museum of Natural Sciences, Blandford Town Museum and the British Museum of Natural History dont take the necessary measures to prevent their employees illegal actions that are contrary to the international humanitarian law.

The spokesperson said that one of the "leaders" of these illegal actions in the Azykh Cave is Levon Yepiskoposyan, an employee of Armenias National Academy of Sciences.

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.
The veteran deal maker James C. Woolery has left Hudson Executive Capital, the activist hedge fund he co-founded, the firm said on Monday.

In a statement, the firm said that Mr. Woolery had resigned due to personal reasons. It added, We are grateful for the help that Jim provided in the successful launch of the firm, and wish him well in all his future endeavors.

The move signals the latest changeup in the career of Mr. Woolery, 47, a longtime adviser on big transactions. He began his career at the law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore before decamping to JPMorgan Chase in 2011 to become a co-head of the banks North American mergers practice.

Mr. Woolery left JPMorgan two years later to rejoin the practice of law at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, where he was set to become that firms chairman. But in 2015, he departed to found Hudson Executive with Douglas L. Braunstein, formerly a top banker at JPMorgan.
Ms. Baum was quoted by The Morning Call on Nov. 26 as saying that she had first noticed the man, who was not identified, shouting pro-Trump slogans in the terminal while waiting to board Flight 248. The man ended up sitting next to her, and she told him she had been out of the country and asked him about the election, she said.

Ms. Baum told The Morning Call that as the man became animated, jumping out of his seat, she began recording him with her cellphone. In the video, the man is seen clapping his hands and shouting at other passengers.

He says in part: Donald Trump, baby! We got some Hillary bitches on here?

The man also yelled: Donald Trump! Its your president. Every goddamn one of you. If you dont like it, too bad.

A Daily Beast writer was also provided with a copy of the video.
In many cultures, the classroom teaching model is the expert delivering a steady stream of knowledge to students who do not ask questions. This tradition can seep into a didactic presentation style among tour guides. Americans like more give and take, Mr. Lennox said.

We teach guides to ask what their group is interested in, and what they already know, so the tour can be customized, he said. Guides are also taught to observe and respond to body language for signs of interest or disinterest.

Even compliments and expressions of gratitude can be tricky. On his tours in Guyana in South America, Mr. Lennox noted that some rural guides would give overweight Americans a thumbs-up and say things like, Ah, packing it on  good deal! as a compliment, equating an ample waistline with abundant wealth.

Conversely, Americans seemed to say thank you for everything the guides did, a custom that made the local people feel indebted to them, Mr. Lennox said.

Learning cultural cues is important for guides and tourists alike, given the large number of people from the United States who visit other countries. Tens of millions of Americans travel abroad each year, according to the Commerce Department. And when they travel, nearly 40 percent of American leisure travelers overseas participate in some kind of guided tour, according to the research website Statista.com.
Perhaps the most unexpected fashion icon of the year has just added another glossy credit to her name. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the Nigerian-born novelist and feminist known for novels like Americanah and Purple Hibiscus; recipient of a MacArthur genius grant, the O. Henry Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award (among others); and author of a viral TED Talk, We Should All Be Feminists, which has been viewed over three million times since its delivery in 2012 as well as sampled by Beyonce, is now the face of No7, the makeup brand owned by the pharmacy chain Boots.

This follows her front-row appearance at Diors spring runway show, where she was both guest of honor and inspiration  printed across one of the T-shirts was the title of her TED talk  as well as her inclusion on Vanity Fairs International Best-Dressed List.

Though her feminism may seem at odds with this embrace of the fashion world, Ms. Adichie has argued, most recently in a letter she posted to her Facebook page about raising a daughter, that diminishing things that are considered feminine, such as makeup and fashion, is part of a culture of sexism. As to why, consider the following. (The conversation has been edited and condensed.)

How have your feelings on makeup evolved?

In general, the cultures that I know  Nigeria, the U.S., the U.K, Western Europe  all largely judge women quite harshly for appearances. But in Nigeria, theres a slight difference. There isnt much of a judgment if youre an accomplished woman and seem to care about your appearance.
A rare but treatable form of cancer can now be diagnosed cheaply and easily with dried blood spots instead of whole blood, scientists in Seattle announced last week.

The new test for chronic myeloid leukemia can be run with a few dime-size spots on a paper card that can be mailed to a center for diagnosis.

Dr. Jerald Radich, a leukemia specialist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, said that since his lab developed the test cards have arrived by mail and in luggage from Africa and Asia, still useful after heat, cold and weeks in transit.

The test began as a summer project for high school and college students in my lab, Dr. Radich said. A major hurdle, he said, was finding paper that wasnt so acidic or starchy that it degraded the RNA marker used to detect the disease.
The opaque rules of managed care plans can bewilder and frustrate new Medicaid patients. And as the number of new enrollees has surged, states have struggled to provide  and enforce  adequate access to specialists who complain they are woefully underpaid by Medicaid.

Legal aid groups in several states have raised concerns that trauma patients are facing unreasonably long waits for appointments, especially for mental health care. Referrals are often far away, and low-income patients who rely on public transportation to reach their appointments seemingly have no recourse.

People say, Its taken me months to get these services, and Ill say, It should take three weeks, said Elizabeth Landsberg, a former director of policy advocacy at the Western Center on Law and Poverty, a legal aid group based in Sacramento.

Walking a Little Faster

Despite the growing pains associated with the expansion of Medicaid, the improvements in care and quality of life for men like Kenneth Berry are evident.

In a sleekly decorated waiting room at a clinic in Beverly Hills, Calif., Mr. Berry shifted in a white leather chair, his long estrangement from the health care system finally over. Now enrolled in L.A. Care, a Medicaid managed care plan in Los Angeles, Mr. Berry sought an orthopedic surgeon to relieve the pain he had long felt with every step.

To his disappointment, the surgeon recommended against removing the bullet in his right hip and the one in his shattered shinbone for fear of causing more nerve damage. Instead, the doctor recommended cortisone shots from the pain specialist in Beverly Hills.

Hed since had two shots and waited nervously in the doctors office for his third. My posture is better, and Im walking a little faster, Mr. Berry said. I had been bent over and felt like an 80-year-old man.

His Medicaid card has replaced uncertainty with security. Without it, he said, I would still be waiting.
Ms. Jose took home the prize for best actress for Ma Rosa at Cannes in May, seven years after Mr. Mendoza was voted best director at the festival for his film Kinatay. In September, another prominent Filipino director, Lav Diaz, won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival with The Woman Who Left, a four-hour film noir about a woman who seeks revenge after being wrongly imprisoned for 30 years.

The success of Philippine film abroad has not been an overnight sensation, said Roger Garcia, executive director of the Hong Kong International Film Festival. Its taken some time to build up. They have been very persistent.

Its been a remarkable turnaround for an industry that just 15 years ago was nearly moribund. In the early 2000s, production had dwindled to about 50 films a year, from around 150 in the 1980s.

The country has experienced what are often called two golden ages of film: in the 1950s, and again in the 1970s and early 1980s (during the martial law years under President Ferdinand E. Marcos).

During that second wave, directors like Lino Brocka, Ishmael Bernal and Mike de Leon, working in the face of censorship imposed by the Marcos regime, made their names with socially conscious and political films and paved the way for this generation of independent filmmakers.
Howard Hughes was a real person. He was 6-foot-4, Texas-born, an only child and an extremely rich orphan at 19. Until his death in 1976, he lived among us (if hiding out in hotel penthouses, emerging only to be sneaked onto and off private planes, counts).

But much of what we know about him  as aviation-industry pioneer, demanding movie producer, man about town, germophobe and ultimately billionaire recluse  has come from movie portrayals over more than a half-century, going back as far as Max Ophulss 1949 melodrama Caught. Dont be confused by the lead characters name in that film: Smith Ohlrig, the sadistic Long Island tycoon, was thoroughly Hughes, with whom Ophuls had just had an unpleasant working experience at RKO.

The latest incarnation of Hughes can be seen in Warren Beattys romantic drama Rules Dont Apply, which opened on Wednesday. The film shows Hughes in late middle age, ruling over the palm-trees-and-convertibles world of midcentury Hollywood, lurking in the shadows a lot and eventually devolving from eccentricity to lunacy.

Every picture tells a slightly different story, but there are patterns.

Rules Dont Apply (2016)

THE HUGHES STAND-IN Warren Beatty, at 79
It says everything you need to know about Eric Gonzalezs abrupt ascension to the post of acting district attorney for Brooklyn that when he was recently honored by a local public high school, the award he received was still emblazoned with his predecessors name.

Mr. Gonzalez had made a brief appearance in a balloon-festooned gymnasium to receive the prize, which had been meant for his boss: Ken Thompson, the former district attorney whose death last month from cancer, at age 50, shocked the city. While the school had managed to add Mr. Gonzalez to the program, there had been no time to re-engrave the little crystal statue.

Mr. Gonzalez graciously accepted it. He then turned to address a crowd of students who, like many in the borough, had no idea who he was. I wish Ken were here for this, he said. But you should know that he believed that the criminal-justice system needed to be changed because so much of it comes down on young people like you.

It has been a disconcerting time for Mr. Gonzalez, who since mid-October has struggled both to console his grieving staff and to find his own voice in the chorus of mournful praise for Mr. Thompson, a man whom he not only served as a second-in-command, but also considered a friend and mentor. Virtually unknown before October, Mr. Gonzalez has also been thrust into a rapidly approaching political campaign: one that he has chosen to approach, as he did with that award last week, by embracing the Thompson name.
City officials and a coalition of state legislators are seeking state funds to cover about 38 percent of the $1.7 billion cost, but the city will go ahead without state help: The administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat, has included the entire amount in the citys 10-year capital plan. Robert Collyer, the citys deputy transportation commissioner for bridges, said the city would have less money to repair other bridges if it had to pay for the projects entire cost. They dont get any better than they are today unless we work on them, he said.

Gary Holmes, a spokesman for the State Transportation Department, which maintains 679 bridges in New York City, said the state has already provided significant funding for the citys transportation system, including this year committing $23.2 billion in capital funding for projects overseen by the State Transportation Department and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. D.O.T. works closely with our local partners across the state, Mr. Holmes said. We will continue engaging with the city on all of the projects under their jurisdiction, including their plan to rehabilitate the B.Q.E.

In addition, city officials have called for state legislation that would allow them to use an expedited building process, called design-build, which could allow construction on the highway to start in 2020, three years earlier than planned.

Some residents have already gotten a taste of what life could be like with a rebuilt Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. In response to complaints about noise, city transportation officials made temporary repairs to the highway last summer that included patching up concrete and repaving road surface.

Since then, complaints about noise and vibrations have dropped. Phyllis Elliott, an associate real estate broker whose apartment building sits next to the highway, said it was like getting a huge, fabulous new carpet.

Its wonderful, she said, adding, Its too quiet; we cant sleep.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev offered condolences to Irans President Hassan Rouhani over heavy casualties caused by a railway crash in the country.

I was deeply saddened by the news of casualties caused by a railway crash in Semnan province, the president said.

On behalf of the people of Azerbaijan and on my own behalf, I extend my deep condolences to you, the families and loved ones of those who died and the people of Iran, and wish the injured soonest recovery, the president added. May Allah rest the souls of the dead in peace!
With the demand for wireless broadband growing, the Federal Communications Commission is auctioning off a big chunk of the public airwaves. Billions of dollars are likely to change hands, a windfall that could transform local media across the country.

This broadband spectrum is now used by TV stations to broadcast their signals to the comparatively small number of customers who rely on antenna reception at a time when most people use cable, satellite or streaming services.

Thats why broadcasters are being encouraged to sell some or all of their spectrum to the F.C.C. in the auction. Stations can opt to give up their channels, share a channel with another broadcaster, or move elsewhere on the dial. In turn, the F.C.C. will sell this spectrum to mobile communications companies hungry for bandwidth to deliver more videos, texts and social media to their customers.

The proceeds from these sales could produce enormous public benefits if they are used to build a 21st-century infrastructure for public interest media. For states, communities and universities holding licenses in play, the auction presents an important opportunity to invest in new ways to meet the information needs of the public.
Napoleon is said to have remarked that if only a cannonball had hit him when he was riding into Moscow in 1812, he would have gone down in history as the greatest man who ever lived. In similar fashion, Fidel Castro outlived the moment of his greatness, if not the romance of his appeal.

Fidel. A single word suffices to evoke the man who descended from the Sierra Maestra with his ragtag army to overthrow the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista in 1959, purge Cuba of American domination, proclaim the empowerment of the poor, and embody Latin Americas thirst for an end to government by the pampered coteries of imperialism.

His message in its moment was electric. Fidel was the bearded hero of the voiceless pueblo. An unequal, corrupted continent was ripe for revolution; Ernesto Che Guevara set out from Havana in the mid-1960s to foment it.

Scarcely a nation in Latin America escaped the storm, from the Chile of Salvador Allende to the Nicaragua of the Sandinista revolution in 1979, from Argentinas vicious military crackdown on leftists with its tens of thousands of disappeared to Brazils harsh government of the generals. The ideological potency of Fidels victory was singular.
ATLANTA  We do not yet know the policy of the next administration toward Israel and Palestine, but we do know the policy of this administration. It has been President Obamas aim to support a negotiated end to the conflict based on two states, living side by side in peace.

That prospect is now in grave doubt. I am convinced that the United States can still shape the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict before a change in presidents, but time is very short. The simple but vital step this administration must take before its term expires on Jan. 20 is to grant American diplomatic recognition to the state of Palestine, as 137 countries have already done, and help it achieve full United Nations membership.

Back in 1978, during my administration, Israels prime minister, Menachem Begin, and Egypts president, Anwar Sadat, signed the Camp David Accords. That agreement was based on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, which was passed in the aftermath of the 1967 war. The key words of that resolution were the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in the Middle East in which every state in the area can live in security, and the withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict.

Image From left, President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel and President Jimmy Carter of the United States in 1978 during the White House announcement of a Middle East peace agreement reached at Camp David. Credit... Associated Press

The agreement was ratified overwhelmingly by the Parliaments of Egypt and Israel. And those two foundational concepts have been the basis for the policy of the United States government and the international community ever since.
In June 2015, the Office of Personnel Management announced that foreign hackers had stolen the personnel records of millions of federal employees, one of the most damaging cyberattacks in history. Just weeks later, the office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff shut down its unclassified email system for several days after officials detected that it had been breached.

These serious intrusions came months after a group affiliated with the Islamic State briefly commandeered the Central Commands Twitter account and rebranded it as the Cyber Caliphate.

Given the enormity of the problem, one of the responses by the Department of Defense might seem befuddling. Theyve asked hackers willing to play by strict rules to find vulnerabilities in some of the Pentagons unclassified computer system.

Well-intentioned computer security experts routinely scan the internet in search of vulnerabilities, which they often map out and report. Until now, doing that on Pentagon sites carried the considerable legal risk of running afoul of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
The troubled coal industry, which stirred such great political concern during the presidential campaign, is about to take on a decidedly human dimension in the Senate. A bipartisan push is underway there to rescue the failing pension and health benefits of thousands of retired union coal miners. Their benefit plans have become severely underfunded during the industrys downturn, as coal companies declare bankruptcy and renege on obligations to workers at a time when there are fewer young miners to contribute support.

One by one, hard-pressed coal companies have been bailing out on contract promises. The latest, Patriot Coals benefit fund, told 12,500 retirees last month that their health coverage will stop on Dec. 31. More than 10,000 other retired workers face similar cutoffs over the next year, according to the Senate sponsors of an emergency rescue plan. It would tap into funds from an existing mine cleanup program in order to bolster union health and retirement plans with an estimated contribution of $220 million a year.

The plan, called the Miners Protection Act, was sent for floor action by a bipartisan 18-to-8 vote of the Senate Finance Committee in September. But it has run into trouble with the Republican majority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. He questions why the bill would protect only members of the United Mine Workers of America, which has an estimated 89,000 pensioned miners and family members and 22,000 workers vested for the future.
Meanwhile, the wages of low-income laborers have not kept up with increases in the cost of living. And as economic growth continues to slow, low-income workers are unlikely to see significant gains in wages anytime soon.

Many of those people who heeded Deng Xiaopings call to get rich were small-business owners  and entrepreneurship remains a route to enrich oneself. But, as Wang Jianlin, one of Asias richest men, said in a speech at Harvard in 2012, its difficult for a private company to have success in China. State-owned enterprises still enjoy favorable treatment from the government, giving them a competitive edge over private businesses. The successful entrepreneurs are often those, such as Mr. Wang, who have easy access to top officials.

Access matters in such a corrupt society. Ever since the introduction of the market economy, corruption has been expanding. It is repeatedly cited in surveys as a top concern of the public.

At the core of the corrupt culture are wealthy businessmen, state monopolies, private-property developers and government officials. In China, the government controls not only a large portion of the wealth but the market itself. Those who are close to powerful officials have access to financial resources. This system feeds on itself, making the rich richer and the powerful more powerful. A waterfront pavilion gets the moonlight first, as the Chinese would say.

Education used to serve as one of the few class equalizers. In books, one can find beauty and golden mansions, as the traditional saying goes. Throughout imperial China, young men from humble backgrounds often became wealthy officials after passing through the civil-service examination system.

But today, education is failing to help people move up the social ladder. Like everything else in the market economy, education has become a commodity. The better a university, the more expensive it is. Children from impoverished families struggle to afford college, even if they succeed in passing the strict entrance examination. Children from the countryside face more hurdles: Many of the spots in the better urban universities are reserved for local students, putting rural residents at a disadvantage. One report from last year said the percentage of university students from a rural background is half of what it was 30 years ago.

For the vast majority of children of migrants living in cities, the race is lost before they reach college age. Because of the many barriers for migrants to enroll their children in legitimate city schools, parents often send them to hometown schools or substandard city schools for migrants run by staff who lack proper qualifications. Struggling in a legal gray area, many migrant schools are frequently shut down by authorities.
What will happen if President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress carry out their pledge to repeal the Affordable Care Act, the 2010 health reform law? By most estimates, up to 22 million people, many of them poor or older Americans, will lose their health insurance.

Mr. Trump seems to recognize this would be disastrous  to an extent. Since the election, he has said that he wants to keep the part of the law that prohibits insurance companies from discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions. Without this provision, insurers can deny those customers coverage, charge them exorbitant rates or refuse to cover treatment for those conditions.

But Mr. Trump and other Republicans are delusional if they think that they can preserve that provision while scrapping the rest of the health care law. Insurers are able to offer policies to people with pre-existing conditions because the law greatly expands the number of people who are insured, thus spreading the costs of treating people with chronic conditions over a larger number of paying customers.

The law provides subsidies to help individuals and families buy policies on government-run online health exchanges (those who do not buy insurance are required to pay a tax penalty). Take away or greatly reduce that benefit and millions wont be able to afford the plans, and many insurers will simply stop selling policies or will charge individuals and families much higher rates. The law also expanded Medicaid by financing state programs with federal money. Take away that money, and many states will no longer be able to provide care to millions of poor families.
To the Editor:

The other day a loyal worker on our property, who happens to be Mexican, got into his car at the end of the day to find that dog feces had been put in the cab of his truck, on the drivers side.

When his boss told me, I was appalled. He explained that there has been an uptick in events such as these, as well as verbal abuse. He shook his head, perplexed as to why. I suggested that racists now have a champion in Donald Trump and feel free to express their true feelings. Its trickle-down racism.

This happened on my watch in my lovely, bucolic town in the hills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. We live in Silicon Valley. I guess Donald Trumps America is now everywhere.

I am disgusted, sad and scared for the future of this country. This is a small story, but the incident is symbolic of something enormously dark and ominous.
KIEV, Ukraine  In the two years since the Revolution of Dignity, Ukraine has made more progress as a country than it had since declaring independence in 1991. We are finally tackling corruption in a meaningful way, and we have introduced a raft of reforms that will help the state to function better. After our economy contracted for two consecutive years, we now expect to see it grow again. And we have achieved all of this under the most challenging of circumstances: while fighting a Russian-led war that has cost thousands of lives, and with a Russian occupation of the Crimean peninsula and the Donbas region crippling our economy.

Yet Ukraine continues its journey to becoming a democratic, fair and prosperous country at the gates of Europe, a vision that so many of my fellow citizens died for during the Maidan Revolution in the beginning of 2014 and continue to die for defending our country against Russia.

What we have achieved in the last two years we could not have done without the hard work and sacrifice of our people at home and, critically, the staunch support of our partners abroad. The partnership and support of the European Union has been very important. But nowhere has Ukraine found a better friend and more committed ally than the United States. Without the huge support America continues to give us, we would not be making the progress that we are today. That continued support is more important now than ever.

On the campaign trail, Donald J. Trump made a number of references to Ukraine and said many things relevant to my country. He also suggested, memorably, that he would like the United States to get on better with Russia, which he suggested would be a good thing.
On June 19, 1980, my mom and dad were sitting on the porch after dinner when a police officer on a motorcycle with a sidecar rode up to the house. He had a list of people bound for the United States and asked if my dad was home. It was time for him to leave. My mom was absolutely gutted as he rode away with nothing more than the clothes he was wearing. For weeks there was no news of him. Finally my mom learned he had made it safely to the United States. When I was older, I learned that my dad, unsure if hed ever see us again, locked himself in the bathroom every night, stared at a photo of my mom and me, and cried.

A month to the day later, it was our turn to leave. My mom had enough time to pack 30 jars of baby food, saltines, clothes for me and 100 Cuban pesos. We waited 12 days in a camp at the Mariel before leaving. I got a fever. Guards strip searched my mom and confiscated her money. Finally we crammed into a boat with 300 other people and set sail from Mariel around three in the morning on July 31. My mom remembers looking at the vast ocean on the horizon and the people throwing up all around her and thinking to herself, My god, what have I done?

In the end, we made it. My dad, a mechanic by trade, had immediately found a job when he arrived. They both worked hard, took English lessons, bought a home and opened a business. My sister was born. Life went on.

But that didnt stop them from longing to go back. I remember every New Years party would end with Willy Chirinos song, Nuestro Dia (Ya Viene Llegando), which translates to Our Day is Coming. My parents eyes would get misty as they wondered if this would be the year we would be reunited with our family in Cuba. In 1994, we were finally able to go back and visit. I had nine days to build a lifetime of bonds and memories, to get to know my older sister and grandparents and cousins. It was not enough time but it was all we had.

I live in Brooklyn now. When I heard the news that Fidel Castro had died I didnt break into a cold sweat. After all these years, it felt almost anticlimactic. My parents have lived in Miami longer than they lived in Cuba. This is home now. We wont get back all those years that we missed with our loved ones, some of whom have passed away. Ill never know what my grandmothers morning routine was. What made her laugh, what her life was like when she was a kid. Why my grandfather chose to be a baker.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has left for Azerbaijan on a two-day official visit, BelTa news agency reported.

The aircraft with the Belarusian head of state on board departed from Minsk National Airport.

According to the program of the visit, Alexander Lukashenko is set to meet with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev for face-to-face talks and expanded-participation negotiations.

The two leaders are expected to discuss the state and prospects of advancing Belarusian-Azerbaijani relations, including trade and economic cooperation, work on joint cooperation projects, interaction in the area of investments, agribusiness, and sport.

A number of international documents will be signed after the talks. The Belarusian head of state is also expected to meet with Azerbaijani Prime Minister Artur Rasizade.

Alexander Lukashenko paid official visits to Azerbaijan in 2007, 2010 and 2013. In June 2015 the head of state paid a working visit to Azerbaijan to attend the First European Games opening ceremony.
In those days, the 1970s, I thought Id be able to do anything with my life. I chose physics because it was clean and elegant. I didnt go through that thing that often happens to teenage girls where they fall off of the cliff of self-confidence and get discouraged about science. The discouraging things happened later on.

When?

In graduate school and later, when I was a postdoc at M.I.T. Before then, there was a lot of discrimination around me, but I had rationalizations. If I didnt see other females in advanced classes, I thought, Maybe no other woman wants to do this. I now think my attitude was laughable.

When I got to M.I.T., in 1984, there were very few women full professors, maybe two. I was the only female postdoc at the Center for Space Research. It was there that I first started examining the environment I had chosen. I could see that there were plenty of young women starting out in STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] fields, though the higher one went, the fewer the women.

Was the atmosphere at M.I.T. discouraging to your own ambitions?

The guy who hired me was wonderful, but there were very few women. I remember a male assistant professor once telling me Id have an easy time obtaining employment once I finished, because affirmative action gave women a big advantage over more qualified men.

In 1990, when I got my first faculty position, I saw more sexism. This was at the Space Telescope Science Institute, on the Johns Hopkins campus. At the time, around 15 percent of the Ph.D.s in astronomy went to women. Yet, there were only three other woman among 52 faculty members.

When women applied for jobs, the guys would come hear their talks. Then, theyd go, Well, I dont know how much of that was hers. And then some guy gave a talk that was vague and undocumented, and theyd go, Lets try to hire him.
We need to get revenue at an early stage, even before doing actual debris removal, to prove that we are commercial, as a business, said Mr. Okada, who added that he had already raised $43 million from investors.

The more ambitious step will come in 2018, when Mr. Okada says Astroscale will launch a craft called the ELSA 1. Larger than its predecessor, the ELSA 1 will be loaded with sensors and maneuvering thrusters that will allow it to track and intercept a piece of debris.

The company settled on a lightweight and simple approach to grabbing space debris: glue. Astroscale has worked with a Japanese chemical company to create an adhesive that would cover a flat surface about the size of a dinner plate on the ELSA 1. The craft would bump into a piece of space junk, which would stick to the craft and be dragged out of orbit. Both the ELSA 1 and the debris would burn up on re-entry.

The concept of deorbiting space junk is not novel. As the debris problem has grown in urgency in recent years, space agencies and companies have released dozens of concepts for cleaning up low Earth orbit.

The Air Force has proposed a laser broom that would use ground-based lasers to vaporize a spot on an objects surface, creating a puff that would act like an engine to push it down toward the atmosphere.

Other proposals call for using robotic arms, nets, tethers and even harpoons to spear debris. The challenge, experts say, is to build an unmanned spacecraft that can be used to track, approach and grab a dark object tumbling through space at 17,000 miles per hour.
BERLIN  Yorai Feinberg was going about his daily routine this month when his social media feeds and cellphone began lighting up.

It was the 78th anniversary of the Kristallnacht, the 1938 Nazi pogrom against Jews, and the Berlin restaurant owned by Mr. Feinberg, a 35-year-old Israeli, had been included without his knowledge on a map of the city that a far-right group had published on Facebook.

The social media post listed the names  and addresses  of local Jewish institutions and Israeli-owned businesses under the banner Jews Among Us, in bright yellow Gothic script. Mr. Feinberg soon received anonymous phone calls telling him, I hate Jews.

A standoff quickly developed between Facebook, the social media giant, and German authorities over what many here said was its inadequate response to the publication of the map. But Germanys rules on what may be said or published  among the worlds toughest, with long prison terms for denying the Holocaust and inciting hatred against minorities  ensured that the post was eventually deleted.
No evidence has emerged that Mr. Artan had any connection or allegiance to radical ideology. Though no terrorist group had claimed responsibility for the attack, the Islamic State was updating its online audiences on the rampage on Monday.

Both the car-ramming and the knife attacks are now established forms of aggression inspired by the Islamic State. An attacker in Nice, France, used a delivery truck to kill dozens of pedestrians in July, and chats between an attacker in Wurzburg, Germany, and his Islamic State handler indicate he was initially told to use a car to carry out his assault that same month, before he settled on using an ax because he did not have a driving permit.

The authorities in Ohio said that it was too soon to know what had motivated Mr. Artan, but that it was clear the attack had been deliberate. Mr. Artans Columbus home was surrounded by squad cars, crime scene tape and a bomb squad truck on Monday afternoon, and police officials said they were waiting for a search warrant.

This was done on purpose, said Chief Craig Stone of the Ohio State University police. To go over the curb and strike pedestrians and then get out and start striking with the knife  that was on purpose.

The attack, initially reported as an active shooter by the university, stunned students who were returning to class after Thanksgiving break, leading to a 90-minute shelter-in-place warning and an admonition from campus officials to Run Hide Fight.
WILLIAMSON, W.Va.  If a single moment captured coal countrys despair this year, it was when Bo Copley, a soft-spoken, out-of-work mine maintenance planner, fought tears as he asked Hillary Clinton how, having dismissed coals future in language that came back to haunt her, she could come in here and tell us youre going to be our friend.

That was in May. Mr. Copley, 39 and a registered Republican, was very uncomfortable with Donald J. Trump then, he said. But over time, in a paradox of the Bible Belt, Mr. Copley, a deeply religious father of three, put his faith in a trash-talking, thrice-married Manhattan real estate mogul as a savior for coal country  and America.

God has used unjust people to do his will, Mr. Copley said, explaining his vote.

Now coal country is reckoning with an inconvenient truth: Experts say Mr. Trumps expansive campaign promise to put our miners back to work will be very difficult to keep. Yet as he prepares to move into the Oval Office, Appalachians are eyeing Washington with a feeling they have not had in years: hope.

The American market for coal is shrinking, industry analysts agree. Utility companies have drastically reduced their reliance on coal, in part because of President Obamas aggressive regulations to cut emissions from power plants, but also because natural gas is cheaper. Nationally, about 300 coal-fired power plants have closed since 2008, according to the National Mining Association, a trade group.
ATLANTA  A federal judge on Monday granted Dylann S. Roofs request to represent himself in his hate crimes trial on charges of killing nine African-American parishioners at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C., raising the possibility that the avowed white supremacist could cross-examine survivors and family members of the deceased.

Death penalty experts predicted that Mr. Roofs trial, a deeply somber matter in a city still recovering from the massacre, would now take on elements of farce and reveal less than some hoped about the psychological origins of Mr. Roofs alleged rampage. By controlling his case, they said, Mr. Roof may decline to present evidence of his mental instability that his highly regarded defense team might have emphasized in both the guilt and penalty phases. Federal prosecutors are seeking to send Mr. Roof to death row, having rejected his offer to plead guilty to 33 charges in exchange for a life sentence.

Jury selection in Mr. Roofs trial had been delayed for three weeks after his lawyers petitioned Judge Richard M. Gergel of Federal District Court in Charleston to declare him incompetent to stand trial. A two-day hearing on that question was closed, but it now seems likely that Mr. Roofs relationship with his legal team broke down over its desire to present evidence related to his mental state.

On Friday, having studied a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation, Judge Gergel ruled that Mr. Roof was competent. The standard for competency is low under federal law, merely a determination that the defendant is not suffering from a mental defect that renders him unable to assist in his defense or understand the consequences of the case.
A group of military veterans protested at a private Massachusetts college over the weekend, objecting to a decision by the college to allow the American flag to be removed from its main flagpole, and adding their voices to a debate on a campus that has seen the flag lowered, removed and even burned since the election.

Organizers estimated that 400 people attended the veterans protest on Sunday afternoon at Hampshire College in Amherst, billed as a peaceful demonstration of freedom and a show of solidarity and respect for the flag and for veterans.

Video taken at the event by Derek Cloutier, 34, a Marine veteran and a founder of the New England Veterans Alliance, showed American flags being waved on a campus green as protesters chanted raise our flag.

Its really two demographics clashing in a sense, Mr. Cloutier said in a phone interview on Monday. There are people that have family that have served or are veterans themselves, and then you have people who might not have anyone in their lives who might have served or dont know anyone like that.
HAVANA  It seemed like a new chapter in a long and troubled history.

Thousands of Cubans bid farewell to Fidel Castro on Monday, filing into a plaza where he often railed against American imperialism. The same morning, the first regularly scheduled flight from the United States in more than 50 years landed in Havana, a potent example of the newly opened doors between the former rivals.

But President-elect Donald J. Trump warned on Monday that the push to build ties with Cuba after decades of animosity could quickly be wiped away.

If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal, he said on Twitter.

Mr. Trumps message threatened to end one of President Obamas signature foreign policy initiatives. Mr. Obamas moves to relax restrictions on commerce, trade and financial transactions with Cuba were never part of a single deal, but rather a decision that engagement with the island nation would bring more change than decades of isolation.
WASHINGTON  A week after the presidential election, the leaders of the conservative legal movement gathered here for the annual convention of the Federalist Society. The mood was by turns somber and giddy.

The meeting had been planned as a memorial to the legacy of Justice Antonin Scalia, who died in February. But the surprise election of Donald J. Trump energized the affair.

Instead of talk of opportunities lost, the hallways of the Mayflower Hotel buzzed with ambitious plans. There was general satisfaction with the 21 candidates on Mr. Trumps list of potential Supreme Court nominees, many of whom were present.

If one of them succeeds Justice Scalia, the Supreme Court will again be dominated by Republican appointees, though Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, a moderating force, will retain the decisive vote in most of the closely divided cases.
A new website that accuses nearly 200 college professors of advancing leftist propaganda in the classroom and discriminating against conservative students has been criticized as a threat to academic freedom.

The site, Professor Watchlist, which first appeared Nov. 21, says it names those instructors who advance a radical agenda in lecture halls.

We aim to post professors who have records of targeting students for their viewpoints, forcing students to adopt a certain perspective, and/or abuse or harm students in any way for standing up for their beliefs, wrote Matt Lamb, an organizer of the site.

The Professor Watchlist is a project of Turning Point USA, a nonprofit organization that says its mission is to educate students about true free market values. Charlie Kirk, its founder and executive director, wrote in a blog post that its no secret that some of Americas college professors are totally out of line and that it was time to expose them.
Details added (first version posted on 11:11)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received British Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy for Azerbaijan Baroness Emma Nicholson on November 28.

President Aliyev recalled with pleasure his recent meeting with Baroness Nicholson. Hailing the expansion of Azerbaijan-UK cooperation, the president stressed the importance of diversifying this cooperation from energy to other sectors.

The president said diversification of economy is among key priorities for Azerbaijan, adding that this is of crucial significance amid the situation with the global oil prices.

The president underlined the importance of building stronger ties with traditional partners in areas that can boost sustainable development.

Baroness Nicholson described her recent meeting with President Aliyev as successful. Touching upon the cooperation with Azerbaijan, she pointed out relations with the country`s financial institutions, including banks and the stock exchange.

Baroness Nicholson said London Stock Exchange is interested in establishing partnership ties with Azerbaijan. She proposed organizing a conference jointly with Azerbaijani financial institutions in London next spring, highlighting the importance of the Azerbaijani president`s attending the event.
JOHANNESBURG  Weakened by scandals and electoral losses in August, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa faced a challenge to his leadership for the first time at a meeting on Monday of top officials of the governing African National Congress.

Officials of the A.N.C.s national executive committee, including three members of Mr. Zumas cabinet, introduced a motion over the weekend that urged Mr. Zuma to step down, according to South Africas news media. They said that Mr. Zumas tainted leadership would harm the party in future voting, especially in national elections scheduled for 2019.

Committee members met Monday evening, but there were no announcements of any action taken. Analysts had said it was unlikely that the presidents critics would succeed in pushing for a vote of no confidence. Mr. Zuma is believed to still have strong support within the 104-member committee, which includes many loyalists appointed by him over his seven years in office.

Still, even what might amount to a minor rebellion in the A.N.C.s top leadership appeared to have caught the party by surprise over the weekend. It also deepened divisions with the cabinet and the party as Mr. Zumas government grapples with a poor economy, an unemployment rate of 27 percent and a possible downgrade of South Africas national debt by credit agencies worried about poor governance.
CORAL GABLES, Fla.  Juanita Castro considered her brother Fidel a traitor and had not spoken to him in 52 years, but, even so, she feels that a piece of her is missing now that he is dead.

Mr. Castro was reviled by many as a despot who had killed innocents and caused countless Cubans to flee the island, and when he died Friday night, spontaneous parties broke out in the streets of Miami. Ms. Castro expressed disdain for the thousands who danced and rejoiced over her brothers death.

Logically, that reaction hurts, Ms. Castro, 83, said Sunday in an interview at her home in a quiet, well-kept neighborhood here in South Florida, where she has lived since 1964.

Its not necessary to do what the Cuban people have done here in the streets of Miami, she said. I respect the sentiment of everybody; I cannot accept this. Its not a good thing.
SEOUL, South Korea  The South Korean government indicated on Monday that it was rolling back its plan to require schools to use only state-issued history textbooks, an apparent shift for a signature project of President Park Geun-hye as she faces a corruption scandal and an escalating public backlash.

The Education Ministry unveiled the drafts of the new textbooks on Monday, asking for feedback from the public. But it wavered over its earlier decision to require all middle and high schools to use only the government-issued textbooks, starting next year.

That decision prompted criticism that Ms. Parks conservative government was returning education to the countrys authoritarian past. Under the dictatorship of her father, President Park Chung-hee, the government wrote history textbooks and used them to justify his 1961 military coup and his 18-year rule.

Now, as huge crowds take to the streets demanding Ms. Parks resignation over a corruption scandal and as her approval ratings have fallen to the low single-digits, the government has found it increasingly difficult to carry out that decision.
LONDON  The spectacle surrounding the U.K. Independence Party continued on Monday, as the party named Paul Nuttall as its leader after the previous one resigned last month after less than three weeks in charge, citing internal squabbles and rivalries.

The announcement on Monday that Mr. Nuttall would lead the right-wing, anti-immigration party would seem to allow the acting leader, Nigel Farage, a polarizing figure who has made much of his new friendship with President-elect Donald J. Trump, to move to the United States, as some of his friends have suggested he might do.

In October, one leadership candidate, Steven Woolfe, ended up in the hospital after a fight with another party member at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France.

Mr. Woolfe then said he would quit UKIP and rejoin the Conservative Party, claiming that UKIP was in a death spiral and was ungovernable without Mr. Farage. Shortly afterward, Diane James, who was elected party leader in September, quit after 18 days, a casualty of the continuing divisions.
BEIRUT, Lebanon  Thousands of people were sent fleeing for their lives on Monday as rebel fighters lost a large stretch of territory to government forces in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, in what could prove to be a turning point in the conflict, both militarily and psychologically.

Residents described desperate scenes of peoples being killed by shells as they searched for shelter after their homes came under the heaviest bombardment yet of the nearly five-year civil war. Years of airstrikes and shelling have destroyed entire neighborhoods of the rebel-held half of the divided city, once Syrias largest and an industrial hub.

At least 4,000 people have fled from the rebel-held eastern districts to the citys government-controlled western side and have registered with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in Jibreen, a neighborhood there, Jens Laerke, the spokesman for the United Nations office of humanitarian affairs, said on Monday.

As the rebels absorbed the harshest blow since they seized more than half the city four years ago, it seemed increasingly likely that President Bashar al-Assad would eventually manage to take back all of Aleppo.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

Azerbaijan is ready for active continuation of cooperation with Belarus in all directions, said Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

President Aliyev made the remarks Nov. 28 during the one-on-one meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko, who is on an official visit to Baku.

We hold regular meetings. It shows that the relations between our countries are close and friendly," said President Aliyev.

We regularly meet in Minsk, in Baku, in other places, within the frameworks of international events, and an exchange of views with you is always very useful and pleasant, President Aliyev told Lukashenko during the meeting.

Over the recent years, we have solved a lot of issues of bilateral format, and there are good results. And every time, during a new meeting, we summarize the outcomes and see that even in a short period, we still have results, said President Aliyev. We are ready for active continuation of cooperation with Belarus in all directions. Today the bilateral format covers almost all spheres of our life, said Ilham Aliyev.

The president went on to add that the process of increasing cooperation in traditional spheres continues. President Aliyev said that new directions of cooperation are also being defined.

We are friends and partners, we have always supported and support each other in all matters. I am very pleased to see you again in Baku as Azerbaijans good friend, a person who is much loved and respected in Azerbaijan, and I am sure that Your visit today will give new impetus to our cooperation, said Ilham Aliyev.

Many documents will be signed that will determine the paths of development of relations in the future. And, we will surely talk about the bilateral issues, regional issues and the issues that currently are of concern to the entire world community. We are friends and partners, President Aliyev said.

He once again welcomed President Lukashenko and thanked him for accepting an invitation and visiting Azerbaijan.

I wish you a successful and pleasant visit," President Aliyev said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

Azerbaijans first lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva has met with a delegation led by British Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy for Azerbaijan Baroness Nicholson.

Mehriban Aliyeva said she is happy to see Baroness Nicholson at the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, expressing her confidence that this visit will contribute to strengthening of the friendly bonds and cooperation between the two countries.

The first lady said Azerbaijan has great respect for the activity of the British Prime Ministerial Trade Envoy, and also emphasized the political and public activity of Baroness Nicholson.

Mehriban Aliyeva praised what Baroness Nicholson has done to protect womens rights, provide care for children, as well as in other areas, particularly culture.

The first lady expressed hope that Baroness Nicholson will cooperate with Azerbaijan, especially with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.

Baroness Nicholson highlighted projects carried out by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, and proposed implementing several projects in the field of healthcare.

The British trade envoy praised the activity of the Azerbaijani-British inter-parliamentary friendship group. She invited president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, MP Mehriban Aliyeva to visit the UK for holding meetings at the House of Lords.
ANAHEIM  Three people were injured, including two critically, in a Monday morning traffic collision in Anaheim, authorities said.

The crash happened about 7:15 a.m. at the intersection of Gilbert Street and Katella Avenue, said California Highway Patrol Officer Jose Perdomo.

According to witnesses, a Toyota Camry was heading south on Gilbert Street when it might have run a red light and collided with a Ford F150 truck heading west on Katella Avenue, Perdomo said.

The truck t-boned the Camry, trapping the driver of that vehicle inside, Perdomo said. Emergency personnel used heavy equipment to extricate the operator of the Camry.

Two other people were also injured in the crash. Information regarding whether they were in the Camry or truck was not immediately available.

All of those hurt were transported by ambulances to area hospitals. Their names were not immediately released.

An investigation into the crash is ongoing.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7767 sschwebke@scng.com Twitter: @thechalkoutline
BEIRUT  Thousands of Syrian civilians fled fierce fighting in Aleppo on Sunday as government forces moved within a mile of slicing the citys last rebel-held stronghold in half.

At least 500 people have been killed and more than 1,000 wounded in a 13-day offensive led by President Bashar al-Assads troops on the east side of a city that has taken on huge symbolic importance in the Syrian civil war.

Under siege and with no food aid left, half a million civilians are now trapped there. On Sunday, residents said they had nowhere left to run.

My house is full, said Bassem, who asked to be identified only by his first name for fear of retribution from the government. The floors are packed but no one is sleeping.

The fall of east Aleppo would devastate rebel ambitions to hold ontoa rump state in northern Syria, and could hasten the governments recapture of the entire country.

Assads soldiers  supported by Russian- and Iran-backed forces  advanced on the rebel-held districts in a pincer movement Sunday, taking the neighborhoods of Jabal Badra and Baadeen in the east and advancing slowly through al-Sakhur in the west.

Their breakthrough had come Saturday with the recapture of Masaken Hanano, the largest rebel-held district of Aleppo and the first to slip from government control.

Its fall underscored how far the tide has turned for Assads forces, more than 5 years into a war that has killed half a million people and displaced most of Syrias prewar population.

The rebels seemed ascendant when they seized east Aleppo in 2012, boasting that a march on Damascus would be next. Now, they are being bombed and besieged in pockets of land across the country.

A simultaneous advance by Kurdish-led forces Sunday pushed into the Bustan al-Basha neighborhood.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group, said nearly 1,700 civilians had fled east Aleppo to government-held areas while another 2,500 had left for Sheikh Maksoud.
Nearly 15 years after the United States adopted a program to interrogate terrorism suspects using techniques now widely considered to be torture, no one involved in helping craft it has been held legally accountable. Even as President Barack Obama acknowledged that the United States tortured some folks, his administration declined to prosecute any government officials.

But now, one lawsuit has gone further than any other in American courts to fix blame. The suit, filed in October 2015 in U.S. District Court in Spokane, Wash., by two former detainees in CIA secret prisons and the representative of a third who died in custody, centers on two contractors, psychologists who were hired by the agency to help devise and run the program.

One of them, James E. Mitchell, has written a book to be released Tuesday about his involvement in the program. In the book, he argues that he acted with government permission and that he and Bruce Jessen, the other psychologist and his co-defendant in the lawsuit, received medals from the CIA.

Legal experts say the incoming Donald Trump administration could force the cases dismissal on national security grounds. Deciding whether to invoke the state secrets privilege over evidence requested in the lawsuit could represent the new presidents first chance to weigh in on the issue of torture. Trump has endorsed the effectiveness of torture and said he would bring back waterboarding, though it is not clear now that he intends to do so.

Lawyers for Mitchell and Jessen have clashed with the Justice Department over what classified evidence is needed to defend against the suits allegations that the men designed, implemented, and personally administered an experimental torture program.

Last month, despite U.S. government opposition, the court approved the defendants request for oral depositions of John Rizzo, a former CIA acting general counsel, and Jose Rodriguez, the former chief of the agencys clandestine spy service who also headed the CIAs Counterterrorism Center.

Mitchell was first publicly identified as one of the architects of the CIAs enhanced interrogation program nearly a decade ago, and has given some news media interviews, but is now providing a more detailed account of his involvement. His book, Enhanced Interrogation: Inside the Minds and Motives of the Islamic Terrorists Trying to Destroy America, (Crown Forum) was written with Bill Harlow, a former CIA spokesman. It was reviewed by the agency before release. (The New York Times obtained a copy of the book before its publication date.)

In the book, Mitchell alleges that harsh interrogation techniques he devised and carried out, based on those he used as an Air Force trainer in survival schools to prepare airmen if they became prisoners of war, protected the detainees from even worse abuse by the CIA.

Mitchell describes sequestering prisoners in closed boxes, forcing them to hold painful positions for hours and preventing them from sleeping for days. He also takes credit for suggesting and implementing waterboarding  covering detainees faces with a cloth and pouring water over it to simulate the sensation of drowning  among other now-banned techniques.

Although they were unpleasant, their use protected detainees from being subjected to unproven and perhaps harsher techniques made up on the fly that could have been much worse, he wrote. CIA officers, he added, had already decided to get rough.

Obama declined to open a broad inquiry into the treatment of terrorism suspects, saying as president-elect that the nation needed to look forward. He did not rule out prosecuting those who went beyond techniques authorized by the Justice Department, but no one has been charged with those offenses under his watch. During the George W. Bush administration, a CIA contractor was convicted in the death of an Afghan detainee at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan.

Henry F. Schuelke, a Washington lawyer with the firm Blank Rome, who represents Mitchell and Jessen, said he believed his clients were left holding the bag while CIA officials involved in the program have been protected from the lawsuit. The government and its officers, namely many of the CIA officers, enjoy sovereign immunity, Schuelke said in an interview.

Schuelke and colleagues have argued in court that the senior U.S. District Court judge, Justin L. Quackenbush, should dismiss the case because, among other reasons, sovereign immunity extended to their clients, who were acting on the governments behalf. But the judge denied the motion and the case has proceeded under the Alien Tort Statute, which allows foreigners to sue in United States court for violations of their human rights.

If the former detainees are successful, it would be the first time a U.S. civilian court has held individuals accountable for their role in developing counterterrorism policies after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

All of the other cases have been thrown out on procedural grounds, said Jonathan Hafetz, a professor at Seton Hall Law School. If this is successful, it could pave the way for other torture victims to seek redress. Still, some lawyers say it could be difficult for the plaintiffs to prevail.

The case has proceeded in large part because the psychologists role in the program has been documented, particularly in the declassified executive summary of a Senate Intelligence Committee investigation of the interrogation program released in 2014. While the Justice Department has fought to restrict the scope of sensitive information that it has been asked to produce in the case, it has thus far not asserted the state secrets privilege, a broad power to protect national security that could effectively shut down the suit.

That could change, analysts say, under the Justice Department in the Trump administration. Representatives for Trump did not reply to requests for comment on the case, scheduled for trial in June.

Lawyers for the detainees said they had no need for classified information. There are dramatically more details in the public record about what the CIA and the psychologists did, said Steven Watt, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union. Now, any attempt to argue that torture is a state secret would be a transparent attempt to evade accountability.

But lawyers for the psychologists contend they require access to secret information to prepare an adequate defense.

In his book, Mitchell, who had been identified years before the Senate Intelligence Committee report and formed a company that received $81 million for counterterrorism after Sept. 11 (his personal percentage of profit from the contract was in the small single digits, he wrote), nonetheless criticizes Senate staff for allegedly leaking his name, which he said made him a target of terrorist threats. He also says the techniques he used sometimes caused resistant detainees to cooperate in providing useful intelligence, though the book offers little if any new evidence that this is the case.

Mitchell says Democratic Senate staff cherry-picked documents to create a misleading narrative from tens of thousands of pages of the CIAs own documentation that the committee reviewed over several years while compiling its report. The report concluded that the CIAs use of harsh interrogation techniques was brutal, costly, ineffective at gathering intelligence and damaged the United States standing in the world. The CIA did not provide comment on Mitchells book by the time of this articles publication.

In one instance, Mitchell describes his and Jessens experiences with Gul Rahman, an Afghan citizen captured in November 2002 in Peshawar. He was found dead, naked from the waist down on a bare concrete floor in the freezing cold at a secret CIA prison that month, shackled and short-chained to a wall. A representative of Rahmans estate is a party to the lawsuit that the ACLU lawyers filed against the two psychologists.

Mitchell writes that he and Jessen raised concerns about Rahmans well-being before their departure from the site, just days before his death. To imply that his death was part of the program I was involved with is simply false, Mitchell writes.

But a January 2003 CIA memorandum outlining an investigation into Rahmans death, released to the ACLU in late September, found that Jessen interrogated Rahman after he was subjected to 48 hours of sleep deprivation, auditory overload, total darkness, isolation, a cold shower, and rough treatment. (The document had previously been released, but in a more redacted form without the psychologists names.) During that interrogation, Rahman resisted answering questions and complained about the violation of his human rights.

Jessen also said he thought it was worth trying a rough takedown, during which Rahman was forced out of his cell, secured with Mylar tape after his clothes were cut off, covered with a hood, slapped, punched and then dragged along a dirt floor, the memo said. Rahman died of what an autopsy suggested was hypothermia.

The other two plaintiffs, Suleiman Abdullah Salim, a Tanzanian, and Mohamed Ahmed Ben Soud, a Libyan, continue to suffer from psychological problems related to their torture, The New York Times has reported.

The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory and punitive damages. This case shows that there are consequences for torturing people, Watt of the ACLU said, adding that it should serve as a warning to anyone thinking about bringing back torture.
Im already over the 2016 holiday shopping season.

Nothing seems like a must-have, and the discounts dont seem that appealing. Maybe its a byproduct of the lack of true innovation in American commerce, where incremental change or the me-too mentality keeps goods makers acting conservatively, business-wise.

Or maybe Im just tired of shopping!

But as a public service, Im offering up my dream list of 10 goods and services that could be on next years must-give gift list for the 2017 shopping mania:

WHOLE-HOUSE TV

Lets be honest. Homes have become basically holding vessels for our electronic gadgetry addictions.

Example: How much bigger do TVs have to get? And who has space for them?

At least TVs get cheaper each year, so why not just start selling TV walls or building entire residences where every vertical surface is a video display?

DRONE MOWER

It would be really nice if these remote-controlled flying marvels actually did something productive, other than make noise and take pictures and videos from above.

Wouldnt it be cool if they could be outfitted with some sort of productivity tools?

I can imagine a laser-powered, grass-snipping, flying lawnmower or perhaps a drone that doubles as a leaf blower powered by ultrasonic waves.

POKE BELL

At the rate theyre opening new poke fast-food outlets, I fear many traditional concepts are in danger. (Or maybe the fad will soon flame out?)

But if youre betting this is the next great taste, Im figuring well soon see chopped raw fish offerings on fast-food menu boards at pizza places, burger chains and Mexican joints.

Who knows, with all the innovation we see at quick-serve outlets  maybe well be giving gift cards to Poke Bell, Del Poke or Poke Jr.!

INFUSION COFFEE

Im not talking some new fancy brewing methodology. Im talking medical-grade equipment.

Who doesnt need a constant supply of caffeine to get through the day? Why not deliver Joe intravenously and continuously?

Look, if the hospital can send you home with various do-it-yourself medical technologies, how hard is it to hook you up for a shot of energy?

ORNAMENT PRINTER

The ultimate gift for the techy do-it-yourselfer.

Wouldnt it be great to be gifted a factory-sized 3D printer that lets you design and manufacture your own holiday ornaments, fake Christmas trees, menorahs etc.? Imagine all the gifts you can create, year-round!

Isnt it time that we begin making stuff again in America?

WI-FI UGLY SWEATER

We all have that one ohmigod-hideous sweater that has a sole purpose: to be worn to that annual holiday event where ugly sweaters are highly encouraged.

Theres only one problem: You can never find that sweater when you need it!

I have a cure. You see so many modern appliances and gadgets with Wi-Fi communications, from toasters to refrigerators to childrens toys. Lets sell an ugly sweater with location technology sewn in so it can be easily found the one day a year you need it!

NICHE FACEBOOK

Face facts. You would pay good money never to hear THOSE views from THOSE friends and relatives ever again.

And Im pretty sure Facebook knows that! So, I can foresee niche accounts at Facebook or other social media venues (of course, for a fee) where news and views opposing your own beliefs can never be found.

Envision the demand for Facebook Right or Facebook Left. Or even Facebook Cute Puppy Pictures Only! Whos in?

ALASKAN CRUISE

Its possible that in 12 months time many foreign lands wont be thinking favorably of the United States.

That could definitely alarm international trade, especially tourism.

Cruise fans may want to consider booking an Alaskan voyage soon. Why? Perhaps no other country will let our citizens visit.

NO-VOICE PHONES

Whats the next big thing some cellphone maker will kill from its devices?

I could see a market for smartphones without any built-in voice communications. A simple texting, browsing and social media machine.

Cmon, do you think your kids really want to hear from mom or dad? These youngsters already dont talk to one another via voice communications.

Voice is sooooo 1990s.

CRAFT WATER

Whats the next HOT beverage now that beers gone craft brew gourmet?

Water doesnt sound like much of a gift. Unless, somehow through fancy marketing, we can convince people that we have created a specialty custom beverage. Imagine experienced water experts mixing ingredients from various parts of the world and packaging it in fancy bottles.

Is a varietal hydrodioxide  at $10-plus a pop  next years hot holiday gift?

Contact the writer: jlansner@scng.com

Did you miss?

Did one of these bring you here? 9 reasons folks move to California

Census: 1 in 5 of new arrivals to Southern California came from foreign lands

Want affordable housing? Move to Trumpland!
LOS ANGELES  Here in Los Angeles, where nearly half of the citys residents are Latino, Mayor Eric Garcetti has vowed to do everything he can to fight widespread deportations of unauthorized immigrants.

In New York, with a large and diverse Latino population, Mayor Bill de Blasio has pledged not to cooperate with immigration agents. And Mayor Rahm Emanuel of Chicago has declared that it will always be a sanctuary city.

Across the nation, officials in sanctuary cities are gearing up to oppose President-elect Donald Trump if he follows through on a campaign promise to deport millions of immigrants in the country illegally. They are promising to maintain their policies of limiting local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration agents.

In doing so, municipal officials risk losing millions of dollars in federal assistance for their cities that helps pay for services like fighting crime and running homeless shelters. Trump has vowed to block all federal funding for cities where local law enforcement agencies do not cooperate with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents.

But as Trump prepares to take office, Democratic bastions, including San Francisco, Boston and Philadelphia, have reaffirmed plans to defy the administration and act as a kind of bulwark against mass deportations.

I like to compare this to conscientious objector status, said Mayor Libby Schaaf of Oakland. We are not going to use our resources to enforce what we believe are unjust immigration laws.

The latest clash will be most acutely felt in California, home to an estimated 2.3 million of the countrys 11 million unauthorized immigrants. Not only does the state allow such immigrants to obtain drivers licenses, but it also offers them in-state college tuition and allows them to hold professional licenses to work as lawyers, architects and nurses. A state law passed in 2014 limits counties cooperation with federal officials.

The policies came under renewed attack last year, after a young woman was shot by an immigrant with a criminal record who lived in the state illegally and had been released by the authorities in San Francisco.

Los Angeles, which in 1979 became the first city to specifically bar officers from stopping people to ask about their immigration status, could lose as much as $500 million of its $9 billion budget. The amount includes money for anti-terrorism programs and community health centers.

Taking away funding because our law enforcement will not act as federal agents would not only be irresponsible but immoral, Garcetti said. It would be an unprecedented overreach of federal executive power to take even more of our taxes away.

Supporters of tougher immigration policies, however, expect a swift response. Dan Stein, president of the Federation for American Immigration Reform, which opposes legalization for unauthorized immigrants, predicted a very aggressive, no-holds-barred support for using the full power of the federal government to discourage this kind of interference.

These local politicians take it upon themselves to allow people who have been here for a long time to stay here and receive services, Stein said. The Trump administration is basically saying, If you want to accommodate, dont expect the rest of us to pay for your services.

Some believe Trump could go further than simply pulling federal funding, perhaps fighting such policies in court or even prosecuting city leaders.

This is uncharted territory in some ways, to see if theyre just playing chicken, or see if they will relent, said Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, which supports reduced immigration.

Cities have gotten away with this for a long time because the federal government has never attempted to crack down on them, Vaughan said.

The fight could also signal a twist in the struggle over the power of the federal government, as this time liberal cities  rather than conservative states  resist what they see as federal intervention.

Cities may not have the power to give people rights, said Muzaffar Chishti, director of the Migration Policy Institutes office at the New York University School of Law. But they have a lot of power of resistance, and thats what theyre displaying right now.

No legal definition of sanctuary cities exists, and many mayors dislike the label, saying it is an unfair way to describe policies that merely stop local law enforcement from acting as immigration deputies.

Generally, the term refers to jurisdictions that have placed limits on when local law enforcement agencies comply with federal requests to hold unauthorized immigrants for detention and turn them over to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.

Those requests greatly increased after the Obama administration extended nationwide an electronic monitoring system by which the fingerprints of every person booked by local or state police are sent to the Department of Homeland Security for checking against immigration databases.

More than 500 counties and cities have some kind of policy limiting cooperation with the immigration authorities, according to an estimate from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, an advocacy and legal assistance group in San Francisco and Washington.

The latest fight is beginning to play out much like one that occurred in the mid-1980s, when activists in the nations big cities resisted immigration policies of the Reagan administration. Central Americans had become the subject of fierce political jockeying, and scores of churches opened their doors as sanctuaries to flout the Reagan White House.

Members of churches and synagogues are again offering their houses of worship as sanctuaries for people fearing deportation, according to groups that work with immigrants and refugees. A faith-based network known as the sanctuary movement was revived in the past few years to take in those at risk of deportation by the Obama administration.

In Oakland, a site of resistance a generation ago, Schaaf has no doubt that the community will again marshal its resources to help unauthorized immigrants. The city is exploring ways to offer legal services to immigrants.

We do have many undocumented immigrants, but often these are residents who came to our city as toddlers. They have grown up here and gone to our public schools, Schaaf said. These are not illegal aliens, they are friends children, people sitting next to us in our church pews and on the bus. Here it feels much more personal.

Oakland stands to lose as much as $140 million in federal funding for homeless shelters, meals for the elderly and low-income preschool programs.

Schaaf has started asking local philanthropists if they will put up money to replace any lost federal funds. This is our highest priority as far as our response to this election, she said.

In the past, conservatives have embraced the notion that state and city officials can assert themselves with immigration laws. One of Trumps immigration advisers is Kris W. Kobach, who helped write a law in Arizona that allowed the police to question people they detained about immigration status. That provision was upheld by the Supreme Court.

Rudy Giuliani, an adviser to Trump who is expected to join his administration, unsuccessfully sued the government in 1996, when he was the mayor of New York, over a federal law he said infringed on local protections for unauthorized immigrants.

De Blasio in New York has signaled that he will look for more ways to fight widespread deportations, and the city is directing unauthorized immigrants to its free legal services. New York has the countrys largest municipal identification program and maintains a database of nearly 1 million people. De Blasio has pledged not to give any information from the program to the federal government.

Melissa Keaney, a lawyer at the National Immigration Law Center, said the federal government could not compel states to carry out immigration enforcements.

Anything that tries to coerce a local government is going to be challenged because these agencies are only responsible for local arrests, Keaney said. Their responsibility is for carrying out public safety criminal law, and it is not within their responsibility or authority to act as federal agents.

How much cities can fight off deportations remains unclear. Legal experts say that city officials cannot bar immigration agents and that it is unlikely that they could declare a physical sanctuary on public property. Much of their resistance may lie in simply not cooperating.

Rick Su, a law professor at the University at Buffalo who has researched immigration and local government, said that unless Trump ratchets up the number and reach of federal immigration agents, it is difficult to see how he can achieve the two to three million removals that he has proposed without state and local assistance in identifying and detaining suspected unauthorized immigrants.

For now, many city leaders are focusing on calming unauthorized immigrants frayed nerves.

Jorge Elorza, the mayor of Providence, R.I., and the son of unauthorized Guatemalan immigrants who were eventually naturalized, stood behind a lectern one recent evening to reassure about 150 people who had filled a high school cafeteria.

Folks may feel threatened by what they hear, Elorza told them, addressing the crowd in English and Spanish. We will protect our communities and our families so they can continue to live their lives free of fear and safe in our communities.
Homebuying in Mission Viejo in the third quarter rose 10 percent as 454 residences sold vs. 412 a year ago, according to CoreLogic.

Here are nine trends in and around Mission Viejo from the report:

1. Mission Viejo ZIP code 92691  197 homes sold in the period, same as a year ago. Median selling price of $635,000 vs. $606,000 a year ago, a gain of 4.8 percent.

2. Mission Viejo ZIP 92692  257 homes sold vs. 215 a year ago. Thats a sales gain of 19.5 percent. Median of $645,000 vs. $630,000 a year ago, a gain of 2.4 percent.

And heres some countywide trends of note for the July-to-September period:

3. Orange County median price for the quarter was $643,000  up 4.9 percent or $30,000 in a year!

4. Countywide sales were 10,077  up 0.2 percent in a year!

5. Local single-family home sales totaled 6,111  down 3.9 percent from a year ago. Median selling price was $705,000  up 3.7 percent from a year ago.

6. Resales of O.C. condos were 2,920  down 0.7 percent from a year ago. Median selling price was $450,000  up 5.4 percent from a year ago.

7. Builder sales in the county were 1,046  up 38 percent from a year ago. Median selling price was $820,000  down 0.6 percent from a year ago.

8. In Orange Countys 27 least expensive ZIPs  median sales price at $568,750 and below  2,754 homes sold. Thats down 5.6 percent compared to a year ago.

9. In the 27 priciest ZIPs  median sales price beginning at $705,000  3,147 homes sold. Thats up 8.9 percent compared to a year ago.

DID YOU MISS?

Did one of these bring you here? 9 reasons folks move to California

Census: 1 in 5 of new arrivals to Southern California came from foreign lands

Want affordable housing? Move to Trumpland!
COLUMBUS, Ohio  A Somali-born Ohio State University student plowed his car into a group of pedestrians on campus and then got out and began stabbing people with a butcher knife Monday before he was shot to death by a police officer. Police said they were investigating whether it was a terrorist attack.

Eleven people were hurt, one critically.

The attacker was identified as Abdul Razak Ali Artan. He was born in Somalia and was a legal permanent U.S. resident, according to a U.S. official who wasnt authorized to discuss the case and spoke on the condition of anonymity. The FBI joined the investigation.

The details emerged after a morning of conflicting reports and confusion, created in part by a series of tweets from the university warning there was an active shooter on campus and students should Run Hide Fight. The warning was prompted by what turned out to be police gunfire.

Police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads. Students barricaded themselves inside offices and classrooms, piling chairs and desks in front of doors, before getting the all-clear an hour and a half later.

Ohio State University police Chief Craig Stone said the assailant deliberately drove his small Honda over a curb outside an engineering classroom building and then began knifing people. A campus officer nearby because of a gas leak arrived on the scene and shot the driver in less than a minute, Stone said.

Student Angshuman Kapil was outside Watts Hall when the car barreled onto the sidewalk.

It just hit everybody who was in front, he said. After that, everybody was shouting, Run! Run! Run!

Student Martin Schneider said he heard the cars engine revving.

I thought it was an accident initially until I saw the guy come out with a knife, Schneider said, adding that the man didnt say anything when he got out.

Most of the injured were hurt by the car, and at least two were stabbed.

Columbus police Chief Kim Jacobs, asked whether authorities were considering the possibility it was a terrorist act, said: I think we have to consider that it is.

U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff of Los Angeles, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said the bloodshed bears all of the hallmarks of a terror attack carried out by someone who may have been self-radicalized.

Here in the United States, our most immediate threat still comes from lone attackers that are not only capable of unleashing great harm but are also extremely difficult, and in some cases, virtually impossible to identify or interdict, he said.

Ohio States student newspaper, The Lantern, ran an interview in August with a student named Abdul Razak Artan, who identified himself as a Muslim and a third-year logistics management student whod transferred from Columbus State.

He said he was looking for a place to pray openly and worried how he would be received.

I was kind of scared with everything going on in the media. Im a Muslim. Its not what media portrays me to be, he told the newspaper. If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I dont know what theyre going to think, whats going to happen. But I dont blame them. Its the media that put that picture in their heads.

In recent months, federal law enforcement officials have raised concerns about online extremist propaganda encouraging knife and car attacks, easier to pull off than bombings.

The Islamic State group has urged sympathizers online to carry out lone-wolf attacks in their home countries with whatever weapons are available to them.

Leaders of Muslim organizations and mosques in the Columbus area condemned Mondays attack while cautioning people against jumping to conclusions or blaming a religion or an ethnicity.
LA HABRA Police are seeking a man who robbed another man at gunpoint in the parking lot of a shopping center late Saturday, officials said.

The crime unfolded shortly after 7 p.m. as the victim was walking through a parking lot of a shopping center in the 900 block of Harbor Boulevard, just north of Whittier Boulevard, La Habra police Sgt. Jeff Baylos said.

The robber approached the victim, brandished a handgun and demanded money, the sergeant said. The gunman then patted the victim down and grabbed about $200 in cash and a cellphone from his pocket.

Baylos said the robber was last seen getting into a pickup truck, possibly a black Ford Ranger, which sped off.

Police described the robber as a Latino man, about 5 feet 2 inches tall, with long hair and wearing a hooded sweat shirt.

Anyone with information can reach La Habra police at 562-383-4300.

Contact the writer: bday@scng.com
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

Meeting with representatives of BP office in Azerbaijan including Recruitment Advisor Mehriban Shikhzamanova, Recruitment Coordinator Sabina Veliyeva and Drilling Engineer Farid Huseynov took place at Baku Higher Oil School. At the meeting, Summer Internship 2017 at BP was presented to BHOS students and teachers.

Sabina Veliyeva provided detailed information about the program, admission procedures and interns selection criteria. She emphasized that BP in Azerbaijan conducts summer on-the-job training for BHOS students for a third year in a row.

Students Elshan Mikailov, Ahmed Gadandarli and Umid Tarlanli spoke about experience, which they gained during the internship at BP in Azerbaijan. Then BP representatives answered numerous questions from the students.

In the course of internship and on-the-job training, the students participate in companies operations, work with experts and perform various tasks with usage of advanced technologies and equipment.

They also attend induction courses on Health, Safety and Environment policy and procedures. This experience helps the students improve their technical skills and put to use knowledge they gained during their study.

They also have opportunity to learn more about engineering operations in oil and gas industry, safety requirements and business conduct rules at BP.
Jeff Zucker

The Committee to Protect Journalists, which called Donald Trump an unprecedented threat to the rights of journalists, had its $1,000-a-plate banquet at the Waldorf-Astoria Nov. 22. Humble pie should have been served.Jeff Zucker, president of CNN and chair of the dinner, had been excoriated on Nov. 21 by Trump at a meeting with reporters. The New York Post said Trump started with Zucker and said, I hate your network, everyone at CNN is a liar and you should be ashamed.

Trump kept saying, Were in a roomful of liars, the deceitful, dishonest media who got it all wrong, reported NYP. The meeting was supposedly off-the-record. The New York Times did not report it. NYP headlined: Summit is a firing squad.

Zucker made no mention of the Trump blast at the CPJ dinner, funded by blue chip media and other corporations. He said CNN will hold the new administrations feet to the fire and they should respect that even if they dont welcome it.

Zucker Called Hypocrite, Provokes Laughter

Zuckers demand for fair treatment by Trump, after his network had done its best delegitimize the Trump candidacy, provoked tweets in the audience that included the words laughter, hypocrisy and cognitive dissonance.

Tweeted James Warren, chief media writer for Poynter: There was no evident suggestion of hypocrisy expressed around the room but that clearly was the take of some at the august New York gathering.

Lydia Polgreen, editorial director, NYT Global, tweeted: Some cognitive dissonance hearing David Remnick then Jeff Zucker on press freedom tonight at the CPJ awards dinner. Remnick is editor of the New Yorker.

Miriam Elder

Miriam Elder, BuzzFeeds world editor, tweeted there were laughs in part of the crowd when Zucker said CPJ will hold the administrations feet to the fire.

Tweeted Jeremy Scahill, a co-founder of The Intercept: Committee to Protect Journalists dinner: Jeff Zucker just gave blah blah about holding Trump to account. He just went to off record Trump meeting."

Anna Holmes of Jezebel noted that Zucker had hired Corey Lewandowski, former Trump campaign manager, as a CNN commentator but he resigned in October. Lewandowski was bound by a non-disclosure agreement with Trump that limited his ability to criticize Trump. He was also still receiving severance pay from Trump.

Keynoter Christiana Amanpour, CNNs chief correspondent, briefly referred to a Trump post-election tweet that said, Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting. Very Unfair.

Trump walked back the part about the protesters but not the part about the media, said Amanpour, adding: We are not there but postcard from the world: this is how it goes with authoritarians like Sisi, Erdogan, Putin, the Ayatollahs, Duterte, et al.

Trump Emboldens Despots, Says CPJ

The CPJ board, headed the past five years by Sandra Mims Rowe, on Oct. 6 said CPJ was making an unprecedented foray into U.S. politics because A Trump presidency represents a threat to press freedom unknown in modern history. Said the statement:

Since the beginning of his candidacy, Trump has insulted and vilified the press and has made his opposition to the media a centerpiece of his campaign. Trump has routinely labeled the press as dishonest and scum and singled out individual news organizations and journalists. Full text of the CPJ statement is here.

CPJ staffers at 2015 dinner

Alt-Left in Bed with Alt-Right

The Waldorf dinner, in which the alt-left (CPJ) is in bed with conservative and even alt-right companies, is a mirror image of Seminar, called PR Seminar until 2007, the annual four-day gathering of 200+ PR heads of blue chips and editors and publishers of leading media. Registration is $3,500. The 30-member executive committee meets throughout the year in New York. www.theseminar.biz

No mainstream media ever write about Seminar. Editors who attend are sworn to secrecy. The 2016 Seminar was June 5-8 in Scottsdale, Ariz., and the 2017 meeting will be June 4-7 at The Breakers, Palm Beach. Among members is New York counselor Mike Paul who joined Publicis this month as head of communications for Publicis Media. He skipped the 2015 Seminar to protest lack of people of color in high PR posts.

The publics view that the media and alt-left are in league together against traditional values held by mid-America is what drove the election of Trump. The right and alt-right dont mind funding banquets of the alt-left because blue chips hold the purse strings and can yank them when needed.

Buffet for working press at CPJ dinner (photo: Jane Landers)

Since CPJ will now direct the attention of its 27-member New York staff (13 others work abroad) to policies that block press freedom in the U.S., it should look at its own restrictive policies that confine working press to the Waldorf balcony where they dine on potato chips, pretzels, cold cuts and soft drinks. CPJ does not want them to hear the undercurrent of disbelief that greets some CPJ speakers. CPJ, with $16.5 million in net assets before the Nov. 22 dinner, took in $1.75 million at the dinner.

Next CPJ chore would be looking at the restrictive press policies of the major PR groups including PR Society of America, Intl Assn. of Business Communicators and Arthur W. Page Society, all of which bar press access to member lists. PRSA and IABC stopped publishing lists of members more than 10 years ago and wont let press join. Such lists were very helpful to reporters. The three groups list individuals as members but almost all dues are paid by employers.

Reporters at CPJ dinner (photo: Jane Landers)

Kerry Paterson is senior advocacy and communications officer at CPJ. Samantha Libby and Gypsy Kaiser previously had the post. Paterson joined CPJ two years ago.

Favored press were allowed to the regular dinner on the Waldorf ballroom floor Nov. 22. An unidentified CPJ staffer tried to block ODwyer associate publisher/editor Jane Landers from going to the pre-dinner reception but Landers said she was properly invited and joined the function.

CPJ Asks Meeting with VP Pence

CPJ, despite its condemnation of Trump and the fact that much of the press, led by NYT, disdained and even ridiculed the Trump candidacy, has written to VP-elect Michael Pence asking for a meeting to discuss ways to preserve First Amendment values in the U.S. and press freedoms around the world

Rowe told Washington Post public editor Margaret Sullivan Oct. 16 that Trump thinks media exist only to satisfy his needs and give him publicity.

NYT, breaking a tradition of not covering the CPJ annual banquet, assigned editorial board member Carol Giacomo

She noted that CPJ usually focuses on the fight for press freedoms overseas but this year, throughout the presidential campaign, Donald Trump relentlessly excoriated and mocked journalists, fostering a hostile environment in which his supporters often joined in taunting and threatening the press corps.

CPJs New U.S. Focus Is Needed

The shift of some of CPJs attention to the U.S. will fill a void if this promise is kept. Our attempts for years to connect with the staff have gone nowhere.

Executive director Joel Simon, refuses to visit the nearby ODwyer offices. No one would talk to an ODwyer staffer who went to the CPJ offices at 330 Seventh ave. at 29th st., 12 blocks away. CPJ staffers say they already have a full plate.

PRSA has barred reporters from seeing its membership list since 2006 after many years of giving them free copies of its printed directory. The Societys last press conference by leaders was in 1993. Reporters were barred from its annual Assembly from 2012-2014.
Eric Starkman

One of the most popular tourist attractions in New York Citys Times Square is Robert John Burck, better known as The Naked Cowboy. Despite his moniker, Burck is neither naked nor is he a cowboy. He parades around the district in his underpants, cowboy boots and hat, with a guitar strategically placed over his crotch. Theres nothing on the public record indicating that Burck even knows how to ride a horse.

Mr. Burck, who reportedly pulls in $150,000 a year making a spectacle of himself, achieved his infamy not because of his deft media relations skills, but rather an appreciation of the fact that the media pays attention to people who act or say things shocking or provoking. In 2012, he garnered some free publicity when he declared himself a Tea Party Presidential candidate, vowing a very conservative policy and an unapologetic commitment to our borders, our language, and our culture.

Donald Trump is The Naked Cowboy on steroids. As a national carnival act, Trumps presidential campaign was impressive, as he won the election running pretty much on the same populist platform Burck articulated four years ago. Trumps mastery of shock and provocation is perhaps unparalleled, and this expertise has created the erroneous perception that hes a master of media manipulation. But as underscored by his recent interview with the New York Times, Trumps professed claim that he is a master negotiator is as bogus as Burcks cowboy representation. Indeed, when compared to the media relations management capabilities of Hillary Clintons team, Trump and his people are downright incompetent.

Trump is correct in arguing that the Times coverage of his campaign was decidedly the harshest of the mainstream media, a claim in which I suspect the newspaper takes great pride. Jim Rutenberg, the newspapers media columnist, acknowledged that reporters regarded Trump as a demagogue playing to the nations worst racist and nationalist tendencies and the newspapers stories about Trump uniformly drip with disdain. Columnist Ross Douthat even joked about Trumps assassination, and unlike a Los Angeles Times contributor with a similarly warped sense of humor, wasnt fired for the missive.

Admittedly, there are no shortage of people who view the Times Trump coverage as accurate and very well deserved. Regardless, the Times clearly established itself as Trumps foremost media enemy and one he shouldnt engage, particularly given that the newspaper had violated a promise to keep comments from an earlier off-the-record meeting private. Yet Trump still agreed to meet with a bevy of the newspapers newsroom and editorial page journalists last week on terms that were considerably less favorable and controlling than the newspaper granted Clinton.

Thanks to WikiLeaks, were aware of the degree the Times was willing to genuflect to Clinton in order to gain access to her. Reporter Mark Leibovich allowed Clinton and her communications people to veto entire portions of comments she made in interviews she did with him. The editorial control was such that Clintons people were even allowed to nix a joke from comments they granted could be published.

As Americas next President, Trump could have potentially vanquished the Times by forbidding everyone in his administration from engaging the newspaper, thereby forcing the publication to essentially become an aggregator of news from other publications in its coverage of his Presidency. Instead, he agreed to an on-the-record meeting that unbelievably began with him saying that I have great respect for the New York Times. Tremendous respect. Its very special. Always has been very special.

The Times journalists in attendance were not wooed by Trumps flattery, and with the exception of publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr.  and possibly columnist Thomas Friedman  no one in the room appeared interested in making nice. (Amazingly, White House Correspondent Julie Hirschfeld Davis showed up late to the meeting). Consider executive editor Dean Baquets first question suggesting that Trumps election was responsible for an alt-right convention the previous weekend in Washington.

Im going to let Vanity Fairs T.A. Frank, a Trump detractor, explainthe unjustified bias of Baquets question:

(Richard) Spencers alt-right organization, the National Policy Institute, held its annual conference in Washington, drawing about 300 people, none with any meaningful known connection to Trump or even to (the vehement Trump supporting website) Breitbart. (In fact, when I counted, I saw that Spencer has received less coverage at Breitbart  much of it focused on disavowing any connection to him, than in the New York Times.), Frank wrote.

The New York Times was the clear beneficiary of the Trump meeting. For all Trumps Twitter ranting about the Times being a failing newspaper, they have him on the record wholeheartedly praising the publication. The transcript of the meeting is considerably more damaging than any article the Times has previously published about Trump, as it reveals how shockingly shallow and inarticulate he is when not in a controlled setting. Just as Franklin Delano Roosevelts aides prevented him from being photographed in a wheelchair, one would expect Trumps people to strive to avoid publication of full transcripts of his disjointed thinking.

Given that Trump won the election without the Times support, getting Trumped by the newspaper on its own hardly matters. But if Trump can be so easily played and exploited by an enemy located within an easy limo ride from his home and office, one must legitimately wonder how hes going to manage enemies he has never met located in places he has never been.

* * *

Eric Starkman is co-founder and president of Starkman, a corporate and crisis communications firm. He can be reached at [email protected] Follow him on Twitter, @ericstarkman.
In your Jeep Creep questions, please list your first and last names, your hometown, and your state/province/country, so that we can publish that information here. If you dont provide this information, we may not be able to publish your question and answer. Dont forget to be as complete as possible with the description of your Jeep and its problems, too. Send your Jeep questions to [email protected], Attn: Jeep Creep.

More Jeep Creep Q&As

October 2016 - Off-Road Tire Upgrades, Winter Prep and More

September 2016 - Air Horns and Communications Add-Ons

August 2016 - O2 Sensor Codes, Axle Conversion and More

One Jeep recallsfrom NHTSA this month

(www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/recalls/monthlyreports.cfm)

16V-734: Chrysler is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Jeep Wrangler vehicles manufactured June 16, 2015, to August 14, 2016. In certain crash conditions, the front impact sensor wiring may be pulled until it detaches before a signal can be received by the Occupant Restraint Controller (ORC). If the ORC module does not receive a signal from the front impact sensor, both frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners will not deploy in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury. Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will reroute the front impact sensor wiring and relocate the impact sensor branch, free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 800-853-1403. Chryslers number for this recall is S76.

Engine Swap

I have a 1989 Jeep Cherokee Pioneer with the six-cylinder 4.0L. Can I put a 318 Dodge V8 in it? I cant find anything on that swap.

John Weller

Logan, Utah

You sure can, John. You can install almost any engine into almost any Jeep, providing you have the patience, ability, money and equipment. However, there are several enginesmainly Chevy or Jeepthat would be much easier to install. Contact Advance Adapters to ascertain if the company makes the adapter, motor mounts, etc., that youll need. Im also sure you can get a wiring loom from Painless Wiring, even if it has to be custom crafted.

Mad Module

I have a 1989 Jeep Wrangler Laredo 4.2L. I lost power going to the distributor, so I replaced the ignition module. It cranked fine for a couple days. Now I have no fire at the distributor again.

Steve Young

Johnsonville, NC

Steve, this is the same ignition module my Scrambler had. I remember I had to replace two of them on one Rubicon trail trip before we even left the pavement, so I started carrying a spare and never had to use it. You should have the Jeep/Motorcraft blue grommet module. You need to buy a name brand unit as the cheaper ones have a high failure rate. Since youve already suffered one failure, I suggest you buy two and carry the spare, which will probably mean youll never have to change it again.

Upgraded Ignition

I have a 1988 YJ 4.2L bored 60 over, ported/polished head, cam upgrade, four-barrel carburetor, and headers. Its all for off-road use. Now I want to upgrade the ignition system. I was thinking about MSD. What would you suggest?

Will Battles

Tampa Bay, Florida

That sounds like an excellent idea to me, Will. In fact you probably should have done that much earlier in the rebuild. And your Jeep doesnt sound too bad either. Depending on what MSD kit you purchase, you may also need a module to drive the tach, if you have one.



Goofy Gauges

The instrumentation of my daughters 1998 Grand Cherokees, which we bought used, fades in and out. The instruments will go out for a while then come back on. Also, there are a couple of dark areas in the cluster. Have you any suggestions to fix this economically?

Bill Brolander

Trenton, NJ

Bill, the instrument cluster needs to be repaired, rebuilt, or replaced with a known-good unit from a junkyard. As you remove the defective cluster, make detailed notes and/or pictures of each procedure so that you can replicate them on the reconnect.



No Heater

I have a 1995 Wrangler YJ. My heater quit working. I checked the fuses and that didnt do it. I was wondering if you could help me.

Moses Gordon

Marshall, IN

Moses, if you checked on both sides of the fuse for juice, what you need to do now is trace the wiring. I know its going to be difficult, but it could save you some money. Check for juice on both sides of the switches, then at the motor itself (make sure the switch is on when you check at the motor). If juice is present at all these locations, youll probably need to replace the fan motor. By the way, I forgot to ask if its just the fan motorwhich I assumed from you checking the fusesor is there no heat coming from the registers at all? If its no heat at all, it could be the vacuum duct switching controls.



Wrangler S?

I just purchased a 94 Jeep Wrangler. When I took it to get insurance on it I was told that its an SE. But when I look it up on NADA, there is no 94 Jeep Wrangler SE. Can you help me figure this out? Im really just trying to see if I overpaid for the vehicle.

Otto Vincente

Commerce, CA

Since you didnt mention a price, Otto, Im not sure whether you paid too much or not. But according to my library, the S and SE model names were interchangeable at different points in the model run and were the base models. During the first few years the backseat and rear bumperettes were optional, some years the six-cylinder engine was an option, other years only the four-cylinder engine was available in the base model.



Brake Warning Light

I have an 86 CJ7. I had a front brake line break. After replacing the line, refilling the reservoir, and bleeding the brakes, I still have the brake warning light on. How do I remedy this?

Bill Smithson

Gaviota, CA

Your proportioning valve needs to be adjusted. Youll find all the necessary information in a Clymer or Chilton Jeep manual, which you can find at any auto parts store.



No Heat Jeep

I have quick question. Im new to Jeeps, but just wondering why my 1990 Wrangler only has heat blowing from the defrost and floor vents? Is this normal? This barely heats my Jeep. If this isnt normal, have you any ideas on how to make it blow from the dash vents?

Rick Rickman

Bremerton, WN

This is normal. The dash vents are for air conditioning. Two things you could do: Examine all the heater ducts or hoses under the dash to make sure they arent kinked, loose, or clogged. Make sure youre getting as much air flow at the ends of the hoses as you are at the heater. Another thing: If you dont have a full carpet kit, a full carpet kit would insulate the floor and help warm up the Jeep. In addition, 4Wheel Parts offers a 12VDC backseat heater that mounts on the floor. This should keep your toes toasty. One more thing I just remembered. Some of the Toyota FJ40s were equipped with a roundish heater in the backseat area. This heater connected to the engine cooling system with hoses just like your stock heater, and it was equipped with a fan that blew heat out a 360-degree circle. If you could find an old FJ40 in a junkyard you might be able to rescue one of these heaters.

In your Jeep Creep questions, please list your first and last names, your hometown, and your state/province/country, so that we can publish that information here. If you dont provide this information, we may not be able to publish your question and answer. Dont forget to be as complete as possible with the description of your Jeep and its problems, too.

For some reason the questions have fallen off, and I know we havent answered all your Jeep technical questions. There are no dumb questions; only unasked questions. Send them in and try to stump us.Jim Brightly

Send your Jeep questions to [email protected], Attn: Jeep Creep.

More Jeep Creep Q&As

October 2016 - Off-Road Tire Upgrades, Winter Prep and More

September 2016 - Air Horns and Communications Add-Ons

August 2016 - O2 Sensor Codes, Axle Conversion and More

As usual, each month, Im shouting out a huge THANK YOU to Paul Schupp at Rock Lizard 4x4 in Kingman, Arizona, for his invaluable assistance in answering many of the Jeep Creep questions.
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The Washington Post: Useful-Idiot Shills for a Failed, Frantic Status Quo That Has Lost Control of the Narrative

November 27, 2016

Don't you think it fair and reasonable that anyone accusing me of being a shill for Russian propaganda ought to read my ten books in their entirety and identify the sections that support their slanderous accusation?

I was amused to find my site listed on the now-infamous list of purportedly Russian-controlled propaganda sites cited by The Washington Post. I find it amusing because I invite anyone to search my 3,600-page archive of published material over the past decade (which includes some guest posts and poems) and identify a single pro-Russia or pro-Russian foreign policy entry.

If anything, my perspective is pro-US dollar, pro-liberty, pro-open markets, pro-local control, pro-free-press, pro-innovation, and pro-opportunities to rebuild America's abandoned, decaying localized economies: in other words, the exact opposite of Russian propaganda.

My "crime" is a simple one: challenging the ruling elite's narrative. Labeling all dissent "enemy propaganda" is of course the classic first phase of state-sponsored propaganda and the favorite tool of well-paid illiberal apologists for an illiberal regime.

Labeling everyone who dissents or questions the ruling elite's narrative as tools of an enemy power is classic McCarthy-era witch-hunting, i.e. a broad-brush way of marginalizing and silencing critics with an accusation that is easy to fabricate but difficult to prove.

Such unsupported slander is a classic propaganda technique. It has more in common with Nazi propaganda than with real journalism.

The real useful-idiot shills are the editors and hacks paid by the Washington Post, who are busy penning articles such as "Why the electoral college should choose Hillary Clinton". Isn't this fundamentally a call to over-ride the Constitutional framework of the republic's democracy?

In other words, the ruling elite's candidate lost, so let's subvert democracy to "right this terrible wrong" that was wrought by fed-up debt-serfs.

Substitution is a useful technique to reveal propaganda: if Trump had lost by a thin margin, would the The Washington Post publish an article "Why the electoral college should choose Donald Trump"?

Any site suggesting such an outlandish subversion of American democracy would of course by labeled Russian-controlled propaganda by The Washington Post. In other words, it's OK for the organs of Imperial Propaganda to call for the subversion of the Constitution, but if someone else dares to do so, you know the drill: they're labeled a tool of Russian propaganda.

Just as a reminder, this is the status quo / ruling elite's handiwork The Washington Post shills/propagandists support: a status quo of institutionalized privilege, corruption and systemically soaring wealth and income inequality:

The institutionalized impoverishment of non-elite students:

The institutionalized impoverishment of the bottom 99.9%:

The institutionalized impoverishment of everyone below the protected technocrat-insider class of shills, apparatchiks and professionals:

This is what The Washington Post is pushing: a parasitic, predatory, exploitive, ruinously corrupt and venal ruling class and its army of apologists/lackeys/factotums.

The fundamental source of the Post's hysterical accusations is the ruling elite has lost control of the narrative. This is the source of the mainstream media's angst-tinged hysteria and frantic efforts to marginalize and discredit any dissenting narratives that undermine or question the power of a corrupted, self-serving ruling elite that has failed the nation and its citizens.

This is why Donald Trump was routinely labeled a Russian shill by the mainstream media during the campaign. Regardless of what you think of Trump or Clinton, what can we say about a supposedly responsible media that so cavalierly spews fact-free accusations of foreign control? This is the height of irresponsible propaganda being passed off as "journalism."

Free speech implicitly carries the responsibility of the reader/listener/viewer to make a critical assessment of the content, its source and its aim: who benefits if we accept the narrative being pushed?

The delicious irony of The Washington Post's hysterical campaign to smear dissenters as tools of Russian propaganda is that it only serves to discredit the Post itself. For my part, I invite you to read all ten of my books and make your own critical assessment of the content and answer these questions:

1. Did you find even a single passage in the thousands of pages that favored Russian policies?

2. Did you find any passages that favored domestic resilience and self-reliance, localized economic development, and the promotion of innovations that favored the many rather than the few?

3. Don't you think it fair and reasonable that anyone accusing me of being a shill for Russian propaganda ought to read my ten books in their entirety and identify the sections that support their slanderous accusation?

If they can't support it, then isn't their accusation the very propaganda they claim to be identifying?

Just as a reminder: here's my chart of the Ministry of Propaganda (from 2007):

When Does "Managed Perception" Become Reality? (May 1, 2011)





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Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

Trend:

Head of the Baku branch of Lomonosov Moscow State University, corresponding member of Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Professor Nargiz Pashayeva has met with rector of Moscow State University, Academician Viktor Sadovnichy. The meeting was held at the Fundamental Library of Moscow State University.

They discussed the issues relating to the establishment of the faculty of physics, which is the sixth faculty at the Baku branch of Lomonosov Moscow State University. Professor Pashaeva emphasized that the Physics Department of Moscow State Universitys Baku branch has five laboratories - Mechanics, Molecular Physics and Thermodynamics, Electricity and Magnetism, Optics and Atomic and Nuclear Physics.

They also highlighted the issues related to the educational process, prospects for the development and expansion of the activities of MSU Baku branch in the coming years and the establishment of a branch of the Scientific Center, which will cover fundamental research areas in the field of physics, chemistry and mathematics.

According to Professor Pashayeva, the opening of this Scientific Center will contribute to the development and growth of the scientific potential of students, undergraduates, graduate students, young researchers and combine the process of research and training of students. The Center will also serve as a good platform for cooperation between the scientists of Azerbaijan and Russia in the field of physics, chemistry and mathematics.

Professor Nargiz Pashayeva expressed deep gratitude to Academician Viktor Sadovnichy for assistance in developing the MSU Baku branch, including the opportunity for graduates to continue their education at Moscow State University.

They also addressed the issues of cooperation between the MSU Baku branch and high-status foreign universities, in particular the University of Oxford. Professor Pashaeva highlighted the activities of the Nizami Ganjavi Scientific Center (http://www.orinst.ox.ac.uk/research/nizami-ganjavi/home), which was founded at the University of Oxford in 2013. She stressed that the Nizami Ganjavi Center implements important long-term researches on historical heritage and culture of Azerbaijan, and also hosts conferences, lectures and discussions, conducts various training programs at the international academic level.

Nargiz Pashayeva also spoke about the British Fund. She emphasized that the fund was set up given the growing professional scientific interest in Azerbaijan and the Caucasus region in the United Kingdom and regular consultations with a number of British scientists, public figures and politicians (http://production.bfsac.org.uk/) in UK. The Fund aims to promote academic projects and fundamental researches on Azerbaijan as well as to enhance cultural and social ties.

Before the meeting, Professor Pashayeva and Academician Sadovnichy viewed an exhibition featuring a collection of paintings by Russian collector Malkevich. The collection was donated to Moscow State University by Expocenter Central Exhibition in Moscow and is now on display at the Fundamental Library of the university. The collection features about 300 works by great Russian painters Shishkin, Polenov, Savrasov, Levitan, Benua and others.

Professor Pashayeva also viewed exhibits the History Museum of Moscow State University, which was founded by MSU rector Sadovnichy in 1995. At present, the History Museum houses 3,500 exhibits and an extensive photo library.

This museum also exhibits a reduced scale model of Russian satellite Mikhail Lomonosov designed to study of transient light phenomena of the upper atmosphere of the Earth, radiating characteristics of the Earth's magnetosphere.

At the end of the meeting, Professor Pashayeva expressed gratitude to Academician Viktor Sadovnichy for the warm welcome and support of all the endeavors of the MSU Baku branch. Rector of Moscow State University Viktor Sadovnichy wished the MSU Baku branch and its rector Nargiz Pashayeva success. He also expressed his intention to visit the Baku branch next year.
Note to long-distance walkers: Skip the hiking shoes and go with sneakers.

Thats what Barry Jurgensen of Omaha learned the hard way during his epic 527-mile walk this past summer from Nebraska City to Chicago.

Jurgensen, an award-winning history teacher at Arlington (Nebraska) High School, designed the walk to trace the path to freedom that two enslaved women took to escape Nebraska in 1858, using the Underground Railroad.

Jurgensen teaches about the Underground Railroad, the system of safe houses for people in slavery who sought freedom. His students have helped uncover nearly two dozen Underground Railroad sites. I wrote about Jurgensens effort in February. He did the walk in June and reached Chicago in July, raising about $26,000 for a nonprofit organization called Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives.

On Wednesday he was formally acknowledged for that effort, as were several others from Arlington.

Jurgensen, a 33-year-old father of two, embarked upon what even today can be a treacherous journey  the main danger being texting drivers, not slave catchers. His goal was to raise money and awareness for the Frederick Douglass group, which is named after the former slave, abolitionist and orator, and is dedicated to ending modern-day slavery, called human trafficking.

Jurgensen left Omaha wearing hiking boots. By the time hed hoofed the first 170 miles to Des Moines, hed gone through three pairs of hiking shoes or boots. His knees were shot, and his blisters so painful, he could hardly stand it. He got a pair of running shoes in Des Moines, which made the rest of the journey much easier.

He was joined by others on parts of his journey, and they also faced risks from distracted drivers. His wife was nearly struck and a former student twice experienced near-misses from cars that veered onto the shoulder, where they walked.

Jurgensen allowed himself a ride just once in this monthlong trek. He hopped in a car to cross the Mississippi River at Clinton, Iowa.

Overall, he said, the experience was educational and rewarding. Wherever he went he gave presentations about the Underground Railroad and those two fleeing Nebraska women, Celia and Elizabeth. Jurgensen said he experienced the kindness of strangers who provided a place to stay or a meal or, in some cases, even bought him Band-Aids and ointment. He said most people were supportive and interested.

On Nov. 16 two representatives of the nonprofit group came to Arlington High to present the annual Frederick Douglass Human Rights Award. Jurgensen was named along with fellow teacher Amber Sims, student Tierra Krivohlavek and recent graduates Tamisha Krivohlavek and Austin Harms.

Jurgensen called the walk one of the best experiences of his life.

I knew I could never replicate what (the fleeing slaves) had gone through, he said.

But in physically traveling the womens journey, in retracing their steps, Barry Jurgensen felt more connected with the two former slaves and the past.

***

Ruey Dei also walked a good deal of his journey back to his native South Sudan.

And he wants to return, using the same plane-car-bus-boat-foot route he and his wife, Michaela, used in April 2015 when they traveled to the South Sudanese city of Motot.

There, Ruey (pronounced Ray), a 29-year-old graduate student at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, was reunited with his mother after 20 years apart. Ruey and his mother had separated during what seems like interminable civil war in South Sudan. He wound up in Omaha, graduated from Omaha Burke and UNO, and is now married with a daughter, Gloria, who is 4.

I wrote about Rueys reunion and his harrowing trip, which involved refugee camps, broken-down buses and a riverboat ride in a cramped boat with snapping crocodiles. He and his wife nearly ran out of water, and their feet bled from walking in the African savanna. I wrote about how happy the son was to see his mother and how devastated he was to see how bad things were in a country he left at age 7, and how much he wanted to help  but had no idea where to start.

Well, hes starting. Ruey is working with Christ for the City International, an Omaha-based nonprofit, to raise funds to help a struggling school feed and educate children in Motot. He is hoping to raise at least $25,000, which he said would cover the cost of hiring teachers at a $100-a-month salary, chefs and materials for the school. Funds raised would also help pay for the $5,000 it would cost him to get to South Sudan and back.

This is not an easy place to get to or from. South Sudan, a place long beset by civil war, remains so. Ruey left South Sudan two decades ago because of a civil war that at the time had battle lines drawn along religious and geographic lines. When the southern part of what used to be known as Sudan became its own independent republic in 2011, hopes for peace were high. But since 2013, warfare between competing tribes has again created conditions causing people to suffer and flee. So this makes travel in and out of the capital city, Juba, very difficult. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel, citing ongoing fighting, intercommunal violence and violent crime.

U.S. officials also warn that risks of carjacking and banditry are high and that any U.S. citizens going there should have medical evacuation insurance and evacuation plans that do not rely on the federal government.

So Ruey is taking an indirect route through Ethiopia that will require more time and more modes of transportation. Hes hoping to go in May.

He said the last trip was hard, but speculated that maybe all these years in the United States have made him too soft. He sees the mission  educating and feeding children in his mothers town  as more important than his comfort.

I dont mind it. I dont mind it, he said of the planned journey.
The Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium is expected to surpass 2 million annual visitors for the first time in its history sooner than originally projected.

As of Monday afternoon, the zoo was about 400 visitors shy of the landmark figure of 2 million. The zoo expects to welcome its 2 millionth visitor sometime Tuesday.

The zoo initially expected to break the record in early December. But a mostly nice holiday weekend had higher than expected attendance.

That lucky No. 2 million will score a pretty prize for good timing.

The record-setting guest will be given a package that includes a $500 zoo gift card, a zoo-themed gift basket, a personal photographer for their day at the zoo and a two-year patron-level zoo membership.

The patron membership includes free admission to the zoo, the Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari and the zoos Imax theater for two adults and up to six children or grandchildren plus two additional guests with every visit. The membership also includes discounts on concessions and in the gift shop, and other perks.

The zoo has already broken its all-time attendance record of 1.7 million, set in 2012. The opening of the African Grasslands and the Alaskan Adventure splash ground, as well as an unseasonably warm fall helped this years attendance.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Nov. 28

By Elchin Huseynov  Trend:

First section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Tajikistan (TAT) railway has been commissioned.

Addressing the ceremony to commission the railways first section on Nov. 28, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov said that TATs opening provides ample opportunities for the countries of the region, as well as Europe, Asia and the Pacific.

An 85-kilometer rail line has been constructed in Turkmenistan in the first stage of the project.

Berdimuhamedov said the new rail line will contribute to development of economic cooperation between the neighboring countries and facilitate the supply of goods to Azerbaijan, China, India, countries of Europe and other regions.

New rail and road bridges will also be opened across the Amu Darya River in the coming days.

Addressing the event, President of Afghanistan Mohammad Ashraf Ghani said the new railway revives the Silk Road and will turn into an important transport corridor to Europe, the Pacific and Asia.

During the ceremony, the two presidents also attended the opening of a railway terminal for the transit, storage and shipping of oil products. The terminal will make it possible to load 2,000 tons of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel per day into tankers.
The family of a 16-year-old who died Saturday after being shot has turned its focus to the sad task of raising money for his funeral.

Markeise Dunn, a student at Parrish Alternative School, was shot Saturday about 10:30 a.m. He was found near 24th and Pratt Streets and taken to Creighton University Medical Center, where he died.

His mother, Dawn Hollingsworth, said Dunn was a typical 16-year-old who loved to play with his nephews and have dance-offs with his younger sister.

He will truly be missed and he was very much loved, she said.

On Sunday, family members had set up a Go Fund Me page to raise money for burial expenses.

To raise more money, others sold $6 dinners of chicken, spaghetti, corn, cornbread and soft drinks on Sunday. They were taking orders through a Facebook event.

A candlelight vigil is scheduled at 5 p.m. today near 24th and Pratt Streets, Hollingsworth said. A First Responders prayer walk is planned for 5:15 p.m. Tuesday at the same location.

Hollingsworth said her son just hung out with the wrong crowd and that the family was planning to move out of the neighborhood in February and eventually move to Lincoln.

Hollingsworth said Dunn always wanted to work and earn money rather than go to school.

He never asked for money, she said. He always did work.

She said Sunday afternoon that she hadnt yet been able to see the body. She said authorities were performing an autopsy.

Police have not announced an arrest in the shooting.

Dunn was the 27th homicide victim in Omaha in 2016. There had been 41 criminal killings in the city at this time last year.

He was the second Omaha Public Schools student to be fatally shot this year. Gustavo Soto, 18, died in May just before he was set to graduate from Central High. Three people are facing charges in connection with his death.

OPS spokeswoman Monique Farmer said Dunn was in 11th grade. She said grief counselors will be available today for staff or students who request them, and that district staffers will express condolences to the family and ask if they can help.

We are deeply saddened by the news of this tragic loss, and extend our deepest condolences to the family, Farmer said.

Tributes to Dunn poured in on his Facebook page. One friend wrote: He had heart, loyalty, respect of family values, I miss you my guy.
COUNCIL BLUFFS  Martha Bruckner, superintendent of the Council Bluffs Community School District, announced Monday that she plans to step down in June, at the end of the school year.

The educators in Council Bluffs Community Schools have made a tremendous difference in the lives of children, and it has been wonderful to be part of that work, Bruckner said in an email sent to staff Monday that announced her retirement. However, the time has come for me to spend more time with my family.

Bruckner, 67, was named the states superintendent of the year by the School Administrators of Iowa organization in October 2015. She has served in her current position since 2007. Her annual salary is $225,330.

During her nine years at the helm of Council Bluffs schools, the district has seen renovations to most of its school buildings, investment in technology for students and teachers, and improvements to its graduation and literacy rates.

This school district and our community mean the world to me, she told staff in the email. I pledge to dedicate all my energy in the next months and far beyond to do anything I can to support you, our district, our community and all our kids.

Late last year she told the Council Bluffs Nonpareil that the districts graduation rates were reported as the worst in the state when she took the job. Then, in May, the Council Bluffs Community School District celebrated its 10th straight year of graduation gains, reporting a figure of 88.5 percent in 2015  up nearly 20 points from 68.6 percent in 2005.

Many of those students are now attending college cost-free through the Pottawattamie Promise program, an Iowa West Foundation initiative in which Council Bluffs schools were among the founding partners.

In recent years Bruckner has been instrumental in launching reading initiatives at Council Bluffs schools. The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading has honored the district for several consecutive years. Its reading intervention programs at the early elementary level, too, have become a model for other districts facing a state mandate that third-graders must be proficient at reading, or take an intensive summer reading program or face retention.

Under Bruckners watch, elementary and high schools have received major face-lifts, while district officials have their sights on improvements at Kirn and Wilson Middle Schools as well. Three elementary schools  Gunn, Washington and Walnut Grove  were closed during her tenure, while Carter Lake and newly opened College View moved into new buildings.

Now, students in third through 12th grades have Chromebooks through a 1:1 initiative, and thousands of students are served by free Wi-Fi service, in which the school district is a partner.

Bruckner came to Council Bluffs in 2007 after serving as the head of curriculum and instruction at Millard Public Schools for five years. Before that she was a classroom teacher and high school principal with the Ralston Public Schools and a professor and department head at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
Christmas at Concordia will take place Friday through Sunday at Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska.

Two highlights of the weekend are the Scholarship Parade of Homes from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday and the open house on campus from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Sunday.

The open house will be in the Janzow Campus Center and will feature lighting of the 40-foot outdoor Christmas tree at 6 p.m. on the Holthus Family Plaza.

The Parade of Homes will feature homes in and around Seward.

Tickets for the Parade of Homes may be purchased for $12 at Concordia in Weller Hall, Room 206; online at christmasatconcordia.net; and at several banks in the area. Tickets may be purchased on the day of the event for $15 in the Weller Hall lobby or the Seward High School lobby.

UNMC gets grant to improve nursing care of older patients

The University of Nebraska Medical Center has received a $100,000 grant to work on innovations in the care of elderly patients transitioning out of the hospital.

UNMCs College of Nursing will develop interprofessional teams to focus on communication of patient information, care plans and evidence-based assessments. The teams will engage in teamwork education, lectures and simulation exercises. The work will culminate with students and staff members putting the training into practice.

The grant will involve training UNMC pharmacy students and nurse practitioner students and staffers at the Rehabilitation Center of Omaha and Ambassador Health of Omaha. The latter two are skilled nursing facilities that serve older adults.

National statistics indicate that the transition from hospital to home or nursing facility can be problematic. Adverse events lead to people being readmitted to the hospital.

Young musicians taught by UNL students to perform

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln/Lincoln Public Schools String Project fall concert will be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Park Middle School.

Third- and fourth-grade students will demonstrate their skills after 10 weeks of working with students in the UNL Glenn Korff School of Music.

The students are divided into the 60-member Vivaldi Ensemble and the 20-person Mozart Orchestra.

Students come from 20 LPS schools to participate in after-school classes at Park Middle School.
The brown swath of evergreen trees is a clear sign of how life has changed near the site of a deadly pipeline leak in Burt County, Nebraska.

Steve Chace, the last evacuee after an anhydrous ammonia pipeline leak, has been back home for more than a week. He had not been able to stay in his home for nearly a month after the leak, first reported the night of Oct. 17.

His home, about 200 feet from the site of the leak, sits on 80 wooded acres. Hundreds of cedar trees there are dead, he said.

They should be green year-round, but they were scorched by the ammonia, he said. I dont think any of those are going to survive.

The leak led to the death of Phillip Hennig, 59, and triggered the evacuation of 23 households in the rural area north of Tekamah and south of Decatur.

All except Chace were able to return within a week. Because his home was so close, Chace would have been at risk as crews from Magellan Midstream Partners, the operator of the pipeline, excavated the contaminated dirt.

Workers for Magellan are still excavating near the leak site, he said, but his home is no longer considered to be at risk. Chace, an environmental consultant, stayed with his mother in Omaha.

Anhydrous ammonia is a commonly used fertilizer in agriculture. It is one of the most dangerous materials that farmers work with.

Chace said the ammonia vapors killed his landscaping plants. His oak trees dropped their leaves early, and he does not know yet if the trees will survive.

Magellan has said it would help evacuees with their expenses.

Its pretty much a life-changing event, Chace said. Im sure my property value is going to plummet. Being able to sell that place and buy an equal place isnt going to happen.
Saudi Arabia's energy minister Khalid al-Falih said on Sunday that he believed the oil market would balance itself in 2017 even if producers did not intervene, and that keeping output at current levels could therefore be justified.

Under a preliminary agreement reached in September in Algeria, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would reduce its production to between 32.5 million and 33 million barrels per day, its first supply curb since 2008.

OPEC oil ministers meet in Vienna on Wednesday in an effort to finalize that deal; OPEC also wants non-OPEC producers such as Russia to support the intervention by curbing their output. Falih said on Sunday Saudi Arabia was sticking to its position on the Algiers agreement that everyone should cooperate, Reuters reported.

"We expect the level of demand to be encouraging in 2017, and the market will reach balance in 2017 even if there is no intervention by OPEC. But OPEC intervention aims to expedite this balance and the market recovery at a faster pace," he said.Asked whether Saudi Arabia was keeping its output high in November at around 10.6 million barrels per day, however, Falih said: "The level of demand for Saudi crude is still high and very healthy."

"Regardless of Saudi and its market share, I think if we look at it as an indication of the health and recovery of the oil markets, it is a positive sign that makes us optimistic about the market recovery.""I don't think that we have one path only in OPEC meetings, which is cutting production - I think maintaining production at current levels is justifiable, taking into consideration the recovery of consumption and growth in developing markets and the United States," he added.

Falih, speaking to reporters at the headquarters of national oil giant Saudi Aramco, did not elaborate on Saudi Arabia's planned production levels.A meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC producers was originally due to be held on Monday this week, but it was called off after Saudi Arabia declined to attend; Falih said on Sunday this was because no agreement within OPEC had been reached so far.
The writer is the author of The Accidental Victim: JFK, Lee Harvey Oswald, and the Real Target in Dallas and The Lone Star: The Life of John Connally. He wrote this for the Los Angeles Times.

In the hours after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, after Lee Harvey Oswald shot and killed Dallas Police Officer J.D. Tippit and was identified as the presidents assassin, a Secret Service officer named Mike Howard was dispatched to Oswalds apartment.

Howard found a little green address book, and on its 17th page under the heading I WILL KILL Oswald listed four men: an FBI agent named James Hosty; a right-wing general, Edwin Walker; and former Vice President Richard Nixon. At the top of the list was the governor of Texas, John Connally.

Through Connallys name, Oswald had drawn a dagger, with blood drops dripping downward.

Special Agent Howard turned the address book over to the FBI and, ultimately, to the Warren Commission. Only some time later did he learn that the list with its hugely important insight into the killers motive had been torn out of the book.

I didnt hear about Howard or talk to him until after I published my book The Accidental Victim three years ago on the 50th anniversary of the assassination.

In it I argue a circumstantial case that it was Connally, not JFK, who was Oswalds target in Dallas. It is the story of a smoldering grudge in which Oswald came to associate Connally with all the setbacks in his disastrous, hopeless life.

This grudge began in January 1962. Oswald was in the Soviet Union, where hed gone after being honorably discharged from the Marine Corps. When the Marines learned he wanted to defect, Oswalds discharge was summarily downgraded to undesirable. (The defection was never consummated.)

Oswald was angry and for good reason; his actions after his discharge had nothing to do with his three years as a Marine.

By early 1962, Oswald was disenchanted with Soviet life and wanted to return home. He was now saddled with a wife, Marina, and a child, and he knew that someone with a ninth-grade education, who had spent time in Russia and had an undesirable discharge on his record, would have few prospects in America.

Oswald wrote a heartfelt plea to Connally, a fellow Texan and the head of the Navy Department, the civilian overseer of the Marines. In poignant terms Oswald asked Connally to redress what was a transparent miscarriage of justice. What he got back a month later, in February 1962, was a classic bureaucratic brushoff. The dismissive letter arrived in an envelope with Connallys smiling face on the front, bursting from a Texas star and announcing his bid for the Texas governorship.

In the months after Oswalds return to America, his worst fears were realized. He did, indeed, have serious trouble finding and holding jobs in Texas. According to the testimony of Russian emigres in Dallas who knew him during this period, every time his discharge came up in a job interview, Oswald froze, and his blame of Connally deepened.

In her testimony to the Warren Commission, Oswalds wife definitively named Connally and not Kennedy as her husbands target. She repeated this belief in testimony to the U.S. House Select Committee on Assassinations in 1978. Dallas emigres also testified to Oswalds obsession with Connally.

Moreover, there was ample testimony that Oswald bore no animus toward Kennedy. Indeed, he admired JFKs important initiatives, such as the presidents efforts at detente with Russia.

Why was this evidence on motive ignored and buried in the official investigations? More pointedly, why is Oswalds little green book  which Ive examined in the National Archives  missing that pivotal page? For many years, in a community college class he teaches, retired Special Agent Howard has put forward his view of the assassination: Connally, not Kennedy, was Oswalds target.

To the question of the missing address book page, Howard suggests two possibilities. J. Edgar Hoover, the FBI director, would not have wanted his agency, through agent Hosty, to be implicated in Oswalds murderous rage.

As it turns out, Hosty had vigorously interviewed Marina Oswald over her immigration status just weeks before the assassination. An infuriated Oswald left a written threat at the Dallas FBI office in early November 1963.

Hosty testified to Congress that on orders from higher-ups he deep-sixed the threat after the assassination. President Lyndon B. Johnson might have had an even stronger motivation: He would not have wanted Connally, his closest friend, to be identified as the catalyst for the crime.

For 53 years, a cottage industry has developed over the motive for the Kennedy assassination. It had to be connected to the Mafia or the Russians or the Cubans or Oswalds Marxist beliefs or Jack Rubys petty crimes in the Dallas underworld.

The public has embraced the notion that the greatest crime of the 20th century must have been the product of an equally grandiose conspiracy.

But none of these conspiracy theories holds up when the events of the six months before Nov. 22, 1963, are carefully studied.

Oswald was no coldhearted professional assassin under orders. The real answer to the reasons he took aim are to be found in his frustrations and obsessions.

And the real tragedy of Dallas lies in the accidental death of a president who just happened to be in the line of fire.
Santas sleigh ride in La Vista was canceled Sunday on account of the rain.

On the same day, nearly 200 miles to the west, a rare late-season tornado hopscotched through south-central Nebraska.

The weird, warm autumn shifts to more seasonable weather this week as the calendar flips to December.

Still, theres no indication of bitter winter weather soon, said John Walsh, a meteorologist at KMTV.

Were going to see some cooler air, but its going to be mixed in with some above-normal temperatures, Walsh said Sunday. Nothing too dramatically cold is coming up.

Sundays afternoon rain delivered about a quarter-inch of moisture to the metro area, according to the National Weather Service. At Eppley Airfield, the weather service had recorded 0.26 of an inch of rain as of 6 p.m. At the Council Bluffs airport, the total was 0.33 of an inch.

Santa has rescheduled his sleigh ride through La Vista for next Sunday afternoon.

Merl Heinlein, a meteorologist with the weather service in Hastings, said early reports indicated modest damage from Sundays tornado. The twister is known to have traveled, lifting and dropping, about 20 miles from the Red Cloud area to near Lawrence. It was first reported around 4:30 p.m. and last seen on the ground shortly after 5 p.m.

Outside Red Cloud, an outbuilding was flipped, tree limbs and power lines were downed and some center-pivot irrigators were turned over.

The weather service sent out a team today to survey damage, which will provide a clearer description of the path, duration, damage and intensity. Preliminary assessments indicated that it was an EF1 tornado.

While tornadoes are rare in Nebraska in November, this is the second year in a row the state has had a November tornado.

Last Nov. 16 a tornado touched down southeast of Beaver City. Prior to that, the last November tornado was one in Cass County on Nov. 17, 2000, according to the weather service.
A rebellion free Karnataka BJP hails Yeddyurappa as future CM

Bengaluru

oi-Anusha

All doubts of rebellion within the state BJP were rested on Sunday with K S Eshwarappa addressing B S Yeddyurappa as the future Chief Minister of Karnataka. Sunday's rally made it clear that the BJP in Karnataka is back to being the force for the Congress to reckon with in the 2018 assembly polls.

[Also Read: Eyes on 2018 polls Karnataka BJP organises OBC Rally]

Sunday's rally was more than just BJP's show of strength among OBC voters. In a masterstroke of sorts B S Yeddyurappa checkmated attempts of rebellion by Sangaolli Rayanna Brigade under the leadership of K S Eshwarappa under the garb of strengthening dalit votes.

The man who had earlier called raised a storm over B S Yeddyurappa's style of functioning was forced to withdraw his dissent. First the SC/ST rally and then the OBC rally under Yeddyurappa's leadership has cemented one firm point, there is only one boss in the state BJP and that is B S Yeddyurappa.

With rebellion quelled and former leaders of the Congress like Srinivas Prasad and Jayaprakash Hegde by its side, BJP is all set to take on the Congress heads on in 2018 assembly polls. Should the united BJP be a cause of worry to the Congress that is grappling with dissent amongst its own leaders now?

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 16:35 [IST]
Bharat bandh: In Congress ruled Karnataka it's business as usual

Bengaluru

oi-Anusha

Even as the Congress in Karnataka organised a massive protest outside Town Hall in Bengaluru, it is business as usual across the state. Establishments, schools, colleges and transport services remained unaffected.

The Karnataka Congress staged a massive protest against Prime Minister Modi's demonetisation move on Monday. A march from Town Hall to Mysore bank circle marked Congress' protest in support of Aakrosh Diwas. The march was led by senior Congress leaders including the party's working President Dinesh Gundu Rao.

[Also Read: Bharat Bandh- Tripura comes to a standstill]

District units of the Congress have also been instructed to carryout protests and submit a memorandum to respective District Commissioners. The memorandum will speak of Congress' dissatisfaction over demonetisation move.

Apart from protests, life has been largely unaffected in Karnataka. While holiday has been declared for schools and colleges in some districts, others are functioning as usual. Transportation services are operational but will be halted if incidents of violence are reported. All shops, businesses, establishments are fully operational.

Petrol bunks, hospitals, malls, cinema halls, tourist spots, banks are unaffected and remain open as usual. Even as the State assembly called off session for both the houses, all government offices are up and running as usual.

[Also Read: 'Left' alone, Kolkata unaffected by Bandh]

APMC yards, wholesale markets and retail shops remain open. While examinations have been cancelled as a precautionary measure, most colleges remain open. The JD(S) has refused to support any bandh call likewise the Congress that has only planned protests for the day.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 12:51 [IST]
Go to mediation center- court tells sadananda Gowda's son

Bengaluru

oi-Anusha

A Bengaluru court today asked D V Sadananda Gowda's son Karthik Gowda to approach the mediation center to reach an amicable settlement with an actress who had accused him of cheating and rape.

While hearing a petition filed by Karthik Gowda to quash the chargesheet against him in a case of cheating filed by the lady, the court suggested that both parties approach the mediation center to reach an amicable solution.

[Also Read: Karthik Gowda writes letter to KFCC, claims Mythriya's film is based on his life]

Karthik Gowda's counsel sought time over the court's suggestion following which the case was adjourned to November 30. Union Minister D V Sadananda Gowda's son was accused of cheating and rape by a Kannada actor.

OneIndia News
Senior Journalist Gauri Lankesh convicted in defamation case

Bengaluru

oi-Anusha

A Hubbali court convicted senior journalist Gauri Lankesh in a defamation case filed by BJP MP Pralhad Joshi.

Pronouncing the judgement on Monday, the second Judicial Magistrate First Class court sentenced her to six months imprisonment besides imposing a Rs 10,000 fine. Prahlad Joshi and BJP leader Umesh Dushi had filed separate defamation cases objecting to a report against BJP leaders published by Gauri Lankesh in her publication on January 23, 2008.

After deciding that she failed to provide any substantial evidence for the writing the court convicted her for defamation. The senior Journalist moved a bail application in the court which was granted immediately.

Gauri was the sole accused in the case filed by Pralhad Joshi and accused number 2 in case filed by Dushi. The court ordered six months imprisonment and Rs 5,000 fine on each of the cases on her.

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 22:27 [IST]
3 arrested as NIA cracks 5 court blast cases

Chennai

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Three persons were arrested in Madurai in connection with the Mysuru blasts. The three persons identified as Kareem, Ayub and Abbas Ali are said to be part of the Base Movement outfit or the erstwhile al-Ummah.

The three were arrested by the National Investigation Agency. The trio will be taken to Mysuru for further investigation.

With these arrests the NIA claims it has cracked 5 different cases where explosions took place outside courts in South India.

List of blasts:

Vehicle parking place at District Court complex, in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh on 7.04.2016

Car park area of CJM Court Complex, Kollam, Kerala on 15.06.2016

Court Complex, Mysore, Karnataka on 1.08.2016

Nellore, Andhra Pradesh on 12.09.2016

Toilet Complex of Judicial Court, Malappuram, Kerala on 1.11.2016.

Also read: In Mysuru blast probe, new terror outfit Base Movement emerges



Details of 3 arrested persons

Abbas Ali, 27 yrs, s/o Nainar Mohammed, resident of 11/23, 2nd floor, 4th street, Ismailpuram, Munichalai Road, Madurai. He studied up to 8th standard, and is a painter. He is also running a library in the name 'DARUL ILM' at Madurai.

Suleiman,23 yrs, s/o Saeed Mohd Abdulla of Karimsa Pallivasal, Madurai, now residing at Chennai. He works in a software firm and was the main leader of the terrorist gang.

Samsum Karim Raja, s/o V.S. Mohammed Jainullah-buddin No.17, Ramu kothanar compound, Viswanatha Nagar, K. Pudur, Madurai. He is a B.Com graduate and runs a chicken broiler shop at Kannimara Koil street in Madurai.

The Base Movement

Soon after the blast outside Mysuru, the police started studying the similarities between the other blasts. The police learnt that the blast could have been the handiwork of a group called the Base Movement.

The police had found a letter signed by the Base Movement with a photograph of Osama Bin Laden outside the court at Kollam and Chittoor. However no such letter was found outside the Mysuru court.

The Base Movement is not a new outfit. In fact it was the al-Ummah which changed its name as the heat on it was getting high.

The al-Ummah has been a radical outfit targeting Hindu leaders. It was also responsible for the blast outside the BJP office in Malleshwaram, Bengaluru.

OneIndia News
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov.28

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

Trends exclusive interview with Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs and head of the Bureau of Energy Resources at the US Department of State Amos Hochstein.

Q: How do you assess the current progress in the implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project?

A: Thanks to strong support from the government of Azerbaijan and its project partners, there has been significant progress in the implementation of all the major segments of the Southern Gas Corridor. This includes expansion of the Shah Deniz field and the South Caucasus Pipeline, as well as construction of the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) and the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP). As a result, first gas should be delivered to Turkey in 2018 and to Europe in 2019-20. The United States government continues to support this strategic project.

Q: Russia and Turkey have recently reached an agreement on the Turkish Stream project. To what extent will the role of Southern Gas Corridor increase under new conditions, given that the EU intends to diversify the energy supply sources?

A: One of the important features of the Southern Gas Corridor is its scalability. Although it initially will carry 16 billion cubic meters per year (bcma), its capacity can be expanded as additional gas becomes available, whether from Azerbaijan or other sources, including Iraq, Turkmenistan, the Eastern Mediterranean, or elsewhere. This means the Southern Gas Corridor has the potential to make a significant contribution to EU efforts to diversify its energy supply sources  and is why I have spent so much of my time as Special Envoy supporting this project.

Q: How does the United States assess the significance of the Southern Gas Corridor for Europes energy security and for itself?

A: Affordable and reliable energy is a fundamental element of economic growth, and diversity is a key element of a nations energy security. In this context, diversity means diversity of fuel type, as well as diversity of source and supplier. The Southern Gas Corridor will provide Europe a new source and route of supply for natural gas, which is one of Europes main sources of energy. An economically-strong and more energy-secure Europe is in the interest of the United States, which is one of the reasons we strongly support the Southern Gas Corridor. On the other hand, a second line of Turkish Stream (should it be approved and Russia secure additional contracts in Europe) would bring more Russian gas to Europe without enhancing security of supply and could block the expansion of the Southern Gas Corridor, thereby preventing the export of additional gas from Azerbaijan.

Q: Construction of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will create a network of gas pipelines and interconnectors in south-eastern Europe, as well as to supply gas to Albania. However, there are some forces which oppose the projects implementation. How appropriate is the position of these forces?

A: TAP is an important part of the Southern Gas Corridor, since it provides the final link in the chain that will bring a new source of gas to Europe. TAP is being implemented using the most modern and up-to-date technology, including appropriate safety and environmental safeguards.
Amarinder wants Nabha jailbreak case handed over to CBI

India

oi-PTI

Chandigarh, Nov 28: Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh today demanded handing over of the Nabha jailbreak case to CBI, alleging a deep-rooted conspiracy, "which has deepened" with the arrest of Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.

"Since the Punjab Police DGP Suresh Arora has already admitted to conspiracy and connivance in the matter, the case should not be probed by the Punjab Police and handed over to CBI for an independent investigation," he said.

Amarinder Singh also accused the ruling Akalis of "resorting to communal polarisation when faced with imminent defeat". "The jail break incident also pointed to such an attempt by the state government," he alleged in a statement here.

Reacting to the arrest of Mintoo less than 24 hours after he dramatically escaped from Nabha jail in Patiala district along with five others yesterday, Amarinder warned against allowing the matter to be pushed under the carpet with the arrest of Mintoo, and called for a thorough probe.

KLF chief Mintoo who escaped from Punjab jail arrested

"It is a clear case of connivance," he maintained and added that since Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, the case could jointly be probed by the CBI and the IB, with support from the Delhi Police. "The ease of his arrest belied Sukhbir Badal's claims of a Pakistani role in the escape of the hardcore terrorist, who has about a dozen terror cases against him," said Amarinder.

"Had the whole thing been plotted from across the border, Mintoo would have by now escaped out of India, instead of waiting in Delhi to be nabbed," he further stated.

The former Punjab Chief Minister demanded "meticulous interrogation" of Mintoo by independent agencies to get at the root of the conspiracy. "With the entire police and administrative machinery in Punjab in the grip of the Akalis, such blatant incidents of law and order breakdown were to be expected in the run-up to the Assembly polls in the state," he said.

Assembly polls in Punjab are scheduled early next year. Expressing apprehensions of violence and possible terrorist attacks in the poll-bound state, Amarinder reiterated his demand for imposition of President's Rule to ensure free and fair elections in Punjab. Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was today nabbed from Delhi railway station.

PTI
Attired in shorts and vest, BJP MLA denied entry in Assembly

India

oi-PTI

Patna, Nov 28: Arriving in shorts and vest to register his protest against delay in construction of Bettiah-Manuappa road, BJP MLA Binay Bihari was today denied entry in the Bihar Assembly for violating "shishtachar" of the House.

Not allowed entry, the BJP MLA from Lauria in West Champaran district sat on dharna in the lawns outside the assembly.

Bihari had come in the attire to protest against the state government for not constructing the 44.325 km road from Bettiah to Manuappa via Yogapatti Ratwal despite Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's announcement on it at a public meeting in 2013.

Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar raised the issue in the Assembly and pleaded Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhary to allow Bihari come inside the house. Later, the Speaker after taking details from officials informed the House that the member was not allowed to attend the proceedings in shorts and vest as it violated "shishtachar" (etiquette) of the House.

He quoted rule 29 (1) of Assembly which prohibits "ashisht acharan" (not following etiquettes) inside the House and said the present case fell in that category. Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, Leader of Opposition in Assembly Prem Kumar and a host of party legislators joined the agitating MLA.

Later, talking to reporters, Kumar attacked the chief minister and held him responsible for the MLA vowing to wear shorts and vest till the road was constructed. Binay Bihari said he would continue with the attire in the winter months.

PTI
Caught months later, man had robbed bank and got a new look

Bank holidays in November 2022: Here is the full list of non-working days

Bank officials among 3 held for illegal exchange of old notes

India

oi-PTI

Mumbai, Nov 28: Three persons, including two bank officials, were arrested in Maharashtra's Latur district for allegedly trying to illegally exchange scrapped currency notes worth Rs 11 lakh with new ones, police said today.

This is the third such incident in Latur where some people, in connivance with authorities, allegedly tried to exchange old notes with the new ones, they said.

"The branch manager and a cashier of a public sector bank along with a trader were arrested on Saturday. The bank officials were carrying new currency notes, while the trader was in possession of Rs 11 lakh in form of scrapped notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denominations," Latur Superintendent of Police Shivaji Rathod told PTI.

Working on a tip-off, the bank officials and the trader were arrested on Saturday when they were exchanging the notes on the footpath outside the divisional office of State Transport Corporation, he said.

Rs 11 lakh in new notes of Rs 2,000 denomination were seized from the bank officials, who had allegedly sought 20 per cent commission for exchanging the old notes, police claimed.

Those arrested have been identified as, bank branch manager Himanshu Rajbahadur Singh, cashier Shishupal Rajpalsingh Arya and local trader Manoj Bhanudas Ghar.

They were later produced in a court which remanded them in police custody for three days, police officials said. The accused have been booked under IPC sections 188 (disobedience to duty), 379 (theft) and 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property), police added.

Earlier, officials of another public sector bank, having a branch at Udgir in Latur district, were arrested for allegedly exchanging Rs 18 lakh illegally. Later, a cashier working in MSRTC's Udgir office also exchanged old notes with the new ones without following proper procedure, police said.

PTI
Is there a Bharat Bandh tomorrow: Here is what we know

Bharat Bandh: A divided opposition undecided on whether to close down or not

India

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Nov 28: The opposition appears to be confused and divided over the Bharat Bandh today.

Some want a shut down, others want to only protest.

The opposition led by the Congress had originally said that November 28 would Akrosh Day.

This meant that there would be anger demonstrated against the government in the form of protests.

However there would be no shut down they said.

In Kerala the government says it would not be a bandh, but a hartal.

The CPI(M) however has a different take in West Bengal. It wants a shut down, but the ruling TMC says it would only protest.

In Bihar and Odisha there are no takers for the bandh. Both governments have welcomed the decision on demonetisation and hence a bandh call on this issue would be meaningless.

In Congress ruled states such as Karnataka, there is no clarity what so ever.

Jairam Ramesh of the Congress had said that there would be no shut down and the BJP was spreading wrong information.

He also added that there would only be protests against the decision. Going by this statement, it becomes clear that in the Congress ruled Karnataka there would be no shut down.

The respective district administrations have been told by the government to take a call on whether schools should function or not. As of now there is no call to close down schools.

If normal life is not hit, then schools and colleges would function as normal.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 7:28 [IST]
Nobody can call bandh in the state without permission: Kerala HC slams PFI hartal

Bharat Bandh, a flop show? Narendra Modi scores political points

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

New Delhi, Nov 28: The Jan Aakrosh Divas called by the Opposition over the demonetisation issue was already a "flop" show, even before it could have kick-started on Monday.

By Sunday evening it was clear that the bandh would be partial, with almost no impact on the day today life.

Initially, the opposition parties gave an impression that the day will be marked by nation-wide strike against Narendra Modi government's decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes on November 8.

However, as the day for the "bandh" came closer, most of the political parties--including the Congress and the Trinamool Congress Party--clarified that they did not support the bandh.

[Also Read: Public opposes Bharat Bandh called by Opposition against demonetisation]

It seems only the left parties are keen on stalling normal life of the people.

The flip-flop by the opposition on its stand on the bandh has come as a major relief for the ruling BJP-led NDA government, which came under fire over demonetisation from its critics.

Moreover, the opposition's U-turn is seen as a major boost to the government's decision to go ahead with the demonetisation, in spite of severe criticism against it.

"All trade unions have hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's move and declared that they would keep their shops open and pay no heed to the opposition's demand for 'Bharat Bandh' on November 28. The so-called Bharat Bandh has already failed," said Vijay Goel, Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports.

OneIndia

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 9:45 [IST]
Is there a Bharat Bandh tomorrow: Here is what we know

Bharat Bandh- Tripura comes to a standstill

India

oi-Anusha

The 12-hour shut down called by the Left parties has brought Tripura to a standstill. While Congress in the state decided to protest in support of Aakrosh Diwas, the BJP rallied shouting slogans in support of demonetisation.

Transport services including train services were massively hit by the bandh call given by left parties in Tripura. Government offices remained shut in the state with private offices also choosing to down shutters. Business establishments took a beating with shops, wholesale and retail markets shutting down over Bharat Bandh.

[Also Read: Bandh in Kerala- What is shut and what is not]

Schools and colleges remained shut crippling normal life in Tripura as part of dawn to dusk strike. Private as well as public transport vehicles remained off road with security forces patrolling the street as precautionary measure to avoid any untoward incident. While air transport remained unaffected, road and rail transport took a severe hit.

[Also Read: Demonetisation 'Bandh': DMK stages protest in Chennai]

The opposition parties of TMC and Congress decided to stay away from the bandh call but to protest in form of rallies against the government's demonetisation move while the BJP rallied in support of demonetisation and against Aakrosh Diwas in various parts of the state.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 12:36 [IST]
BJP's tact to divert attention from Morbi, says a stung Kejriwal after Sukesh's claims

BJP resposible for 'Bharat Bandh', says Mayawati

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Nov 28: BSP chief Mayawati on Monday accused the BJP of doing a "Bharat Bandh" by demonetising higher currency currency and said the opposition was not divided over the issue.

"The BJP alleged that the opposition has called a Bharat Bandh, but the fact is that the BJP itself has done a Bharat Bandh by demonetising high currency notes," Mayawati told the media.

She said there was no division within the opposition ranks.

"There is no rift in the opposition parties over demonetisation. The entire opposition is united," the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister said.

She said the opposition had been demanding answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the November 8 demonetisation that has caused a cash chaos across the country.

"We saw Modiji came to the Rajya Sabha before lunch but skipped the next session because he knew the opposition would demand answers from him," she said. "Why is he skipping Parliament?"

"We heard Modiji speak in Kushinagar, where he accused the opposition of supporting black money and corruption," she said.

"Our party is concerned about the poor implementation of the demonetisation, which has made life of the poor miserable in the last 20 days."

The opposition parties had last week said that November 28 will be marked by nation-wide strike against Narendra Modi government's decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes on November 8.

IANS
Castro's funeral: Rajnath Singh to lead delegation

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

New Delhi, Nov 28: Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will lead a delegation to Havana on Tuesday to attend iconic Cuban leader Fidel Castro's funeral, said reports.

The revolutionary icon, who defied the United States for nearly half a century, and governed Cuba as the Prime Minister from 1959 to 1976, died on Saturday at he age of 90.

Cubans will pay tribute to their late iconic leader, Fidel Castro, for two days, starting Monday morning, at the Jose Marti Memorial, located in the Plaza de la Revolucion.

This would mark the beginning of the funeral ceremonies which would last until Sunday, December 4 From Monday 9.00 a.m. local time through Tuesday at noon, people would be able to visit the memorial to pay tribute and bid their last "goodbye" to the leader of the Cuban Revolution Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday condoled the demise of Castro whom he described as one of the most iconic personalities of the 20th century and a "good friend" of India.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 14:28 [IST]
Demonetisation 'Bandh': DMK stages protest in Chennai

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Chennai, Nov 28: DMK, which is a Congress ally, on Monday took out a protest march in Chennai against the Centre's demonetisation decision with hundreds of party workers marching the streets with party flags.

Several police personnel were seen at the march to prevent any untowards incident from taking place.

As per latest reports, DMK Treasurer and Tamil Nadu Opposition Leader M K Stalin has been taken into preventive custody.

According to reports, party chief M Karunanidhi earlier said 'opposition leaders' had decided to hold countrywide protests against the ruling BJP on the issue and that DMK will protest outside central government offices in Tamil Nadu.

He urged good participation by party workers and asked them to voice support against this "anti-people" move of the Centre.

DMK on Friday backed former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his criticism on the way the BJP government has implemented demonetisation and charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi with ignoring the people by not responding to Singh's queries on the matter.

DMK Treasurer and Tamil Nadu Opposition Leader M K Stalin had said, "Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh put it beautifully when he called it a monumental management failure."

[Also read: DMK backs Manmohan Singh's criticism on demonetisation issue]

The opposition parties had last week said that November 28 will be marked by nation-wide strike against Narendra Modi government's decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes on November 8.

OneIndia News
Demonetisation- Protests get support, bandh gets a thumbs down

India

oi-Anusha

The bandh call given by Left parties over demonetisation seems to have failed to evoke strong support. While political parties across the country have expressed their support for protest, there seem to be no takers for bandh apart from left parties.

Left party workers stopped train services as part of their protests in Bihar even as JDU and BJD decided to not support the bandh. Leaders of the parties decided to lay low on Aakrosh Diwas.

Even as TMC and the congress refused to yield to the bandh call by left parties, TMC led by Mamata Banerjee will take out a rally against Modi Government's move of Demonetisation. The government however, has issued strict instructions to all its staff to be present for work as usual.

[Also Read: No Bandh, only "Jan akrosh divas", says Congress]

In Karnataka transport services started as usual on Monday but will be stopped if situation demands. Most district collectors have asked for schools and colleges to function as usual. The Bangalore University has postponed exams and the Karnatak university at Dharwad has declared holiday. The Karnataka congress will protest against the government's move with rallies. The JDS has decided against supporting the bandh.

Kerala government led by leftist CPI(M) has called for a hartal that will be complete in Kerala. All business establishments will remain closed for the 12-hour shut down. Transport has been hit.

[Also Read: Bharat Bandh: A divided opposition undecided on whether to close down or not]

SP and BSP have decided to extend token support to the protests but not the bandh call. The Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi and DMK in Tamil Nadu also have planned protests.

Banking and emergency services in all states will function as usual. In most states, business, transport, malls, petrol bunks and schools and colleges are functioning as usual.

Left parties seem to be the only ones to support the bandh call given by themselves. No other political party has extended support to the bandh but those opposed to demonetisation move have decided to protest in their own ways. Fear of earning the wrath of the common man already bearing the burden of demonetisation has prompted political parties to maintain their distance from the bandh call. The BJP however, is viewing it as vindication.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 9:34 [IST]
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Maksim Tsurkov  Trend:

BP and its partners in Azerbaijani oil and gas projects together with the Azerbaijani Economy Ministry extended the implementation of the local business development program by two years, Bakhtiyar Aslanbayli, BP Azerbaijan vice president, told reporters in Baku Nov. 28.

He added that the main goal of the program is to give momentum to the development of business potential in Azerbaijan.

The program has been implemented since 2007 and around 2,000 small and medium-sized enterprises have already used it, Aslanbayli added. As a result of the program implementation, a number of the companies which participated in it, signed contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars with numerous clients.

BP and partners are interested in active participation of local companies in their operations and projects in the region, he added.

Legislative requirements have changed over time, Aslanbayli said. We have decided to extend the implementation of the program by two years and bring it in accordance with the modern standards and requirements. Azerbaijani Ekvita service consulting company will deal with the program implementation.

Over one million manats (official exchange rate on Nov. 28 is 1.7196 AZN/USD) is planned to be spent for the program implementation in the next two years, Aslanbayli added.

The program is being implemented only for the Azerbaijani companies, Ilgar Mehdi, Ekvita managing partner, said at the event dedicated to the extension of the program.

Joining the program is free, Mehdi said. Preference will be given to certain sectors. The program is not limited to the oil and gas sector.
Gap between rich and poor has widened, needs to be bridged: Gadkari

Demonetisation: BJP organises Jan Abhaar Divas against shutdown

India

oi-Jagriti

Nagpur, Nov 28: BJP activists on Monday organised Jan Abhaar Divas in Maharashtra to counter Jan Akrosh Divas call given by Congress against the demonetisation.

Sweets and flowers were given to those working in Nagpur on Monday defying the shutdown called by the opposition.

A united opposition has been constantly attacking the Centre over poor implementation of the move.

The Jan Aakrosh Divas called by the Opposition over the demonetisation issue turned out to be a "flop" show as it failed to get desired response from mass in the country.

Paswan welcomes Nitish Kumar's decision to support demonetisation

The demonetisation move announced by government on November 8 has brought all opposition parties together in Parliament, but they appear divided over the way they will protest against the measure on Monday.

Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) president Nitish Kumar has extended his to Centre's demonetisation move and dared RJD and Congress to come out of the grand alliance government if they have problem with it. "

Nagpur: BJP's 'Jan Abhaar Divas' to counter Congress's #janakroshdiwas, offer sweets and flowers to people working #Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/z5JbYcBwmg  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

OneIndia News
ED raids multiple places linked to gangster-turned-MLA Mukhtar Ansari in UP, Delhi

AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan sent to 4-day police custody in Delhi Waqf Board graft case

Delhi police arrests former MLA, Congress leader Rambir Shokeen under MCOCA act

India

oi-Jagriti

New Delhi, Nov 28: Former independent MLA from Mundka constituency and Congress leader Rambir Shooken has been arrested by the special cell of Delhi police, media reported on Monday.

Shokeen arrested under provisions of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) carried a bounty of Rs 1lakh on his head.

He was charge-sheeted last year under provisions of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) for his alleged involvement in a crime syndicate headed by his nephew Neeraj Bawana.

Delhi Police recovers AK-47 from former MLA Rambeer Shokeen's property

Shokeen was elected to the Delhi Assembly as an independent MLA in 2013 , and he later joined the Congress party.

Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999 (MCOCA) is law enacted by Maharashtra in 1999 to combat organised crime and terrorism.

Delhi Police special cell arrests ex-Independent MLA and Congress leader Rambir Shokeen under MCOCA act  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

OneIndia News
Govt announces nationwide campaign for submission of digital life certificates

Crow instigating a fight between two cats leaves netizens in splits

Delhi: Fire in Majnu ka Tila shanties renders Pakistani refugees homeless

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Nov 28: Dozens of Pakistani refugees living in a slum settlement were rendered homeless as nearly 30 shanties were gutted in fire at north Delhi's Majnu ka Tila on Sunday.

A senior Delhi Fire Service Officer said the fire incident was reported around 12.45 PM.

He said nine fire tenders were rushed to the spot and it was brought under control soon and no casualty was reported.

The affected families have taken shelter at their relatives in the settlement, having around 100 temporary shanties, police said.

PTI
BJP suspends 5 rebel leaders in Himachal Pradesh, state vice president among them

BJP's tact to divert attention from Morbi, says a stung Kejriwal after Sukesh's claims

BJP govt has freed investors from red tapism: PM Modi at Invest Karnataka 2022 Summit

BJP mocks AAP as posters of 'Kejriwal Massage Centre' spotted outside Tihar Jail

Difference in words and work: AAP leader joins BJP days ahead of polls

How BJP MP managed daughter's wedding in 2.5 lakhs: Kejriwal

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Nov 28: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Mahesh Sharma following his daughter's marraige and asked did he managed the marraige expenses in Rs 2.5 lakhs post demonetisation.

"BJP MP Mahesh Sharma's daughter wedding. Is he making all the payments in cheque? Is he managing the marraige in Rs 2.5 lakhs? How his notes were exchanged?" Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Kejriwal asked.

The AAP has been protesting against the central government's demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes.

Rs 500 crore wedding celebrations begin in Bengaluru

The opposition has called for Bharat Band on Monday in protest against the November 8 announcement.

Serpentine queues have been witnessed outside banks and ATMs, as many anxious people waited for hours to deposit or exchange their spiked currency notes or obtain cash.

IANS
If you don't talk to Pakistan, you give terrorists and sponsors what they want: Former NSA

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Nov 28 India's former National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon says there is no alternative to talking to Pakistan to resolve outstanding issues because not talking is to allow terrorists to have a "veto on the relationship" and submitting to the "agenda of terrorists and their sponsors".

"If you don't talk, you are actually giving the terrorists and their sponsors what they want, because they don't want talks... They want to control the dialogue. They want to have a veto on the relationship. So, I don't see why you should allow them to do that," Menon, who also served as Foreign Secretary and ambassador to important capitals, including Islamabad and Beijing, told IANS in a chat ahead of the formal launch of his book, "Choices - Inside the Making of India's Foreign Policy" (Penguin Random House).

"Talking doesn't mean you don't do the other things necessary to deal with the terrorists. You have to eliminate the terrorists, do what a state is supposed to do.

"But that also doesn't mean you stop talking. If you have an opportunity, do talk, and you have a lot to say... you do want the ceasefire to be restored, you don't want the standoff in the relationship with cross-border terrorism going on and on... and a lot of this with the support of the Pakistani state, and elements of the Pakistani state.

"We need to raise this and talk to them about it," Menon stated.

He was speaking in the context of reports that Sartaj Aziz, Pakistan's foreign policy adviser, was coming to Amritsar early next month to attend the multinational 'Heart of Asia' conference on Afghanistan, raising questions about whether or not there should be bilateral talks between the two countries to break the ice following the Uri terror attack that left 19 Indian soldiers dead in September and a reprisal strike inside Pakistan by Indian Special Forces.

Menon thinks use of application of military force -- or "surgical strikes" as India's cross-border action against "terror launchpads" in Pakistan were described -- had "limited utility".

"It is not going to change the mind of the Pakistan Army which sponsors this cross-border terrorism or the ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) or the jihadi tanzeems who undertake it, nor is it going to destroy their infrastructure or the courses they espouse and what motivates them. That is not going to change."

He said any way the tanzeems "seek martydom" and are not afraid to die.

Menon reiterated that "covert cross-border action" had been undertaken by the previous administration too, but the government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh decided not to go public with it as these strikes were more focused on outcomes rather than on influencing public opinion.

"If your goal is to effect public opinion at home, you have to deal with its consequences," said Menon, adding that these often raised public expectations of results and then "control of escalation becomes a challenge".

"The moment you go public, then these (expected outcomes) are unlikely to happen because then both sides' faces are involved. Both sides have to show that they have not been deterred or frightened." He said the Manmohan Singh "kept quiet for a reason" on the covert actions that were undertaken "and the reasons (for not publicising them) are still valid".

Menon said the dilemma of dealing with Pakistan was that "there was not one Pakistan" as there were "large portions of Pakistani society that was not inimical to India".

In his book, Menon says that "an Indian policymaker must deal with several Pakistans -- with civil society, the Pakistani business community, civilian politicians, the army and the ISI, and the religious right (which extends from political parties to jihadi tanzeems).

"Not all of these Pakistans have the same attitude towards India, and each responds and acts differently towards India and Indians."

He said thanks to "Pakistan's decline into irrelevance, Indian motives to address India-Pakistan issues are diminishing. The tragedy is that Pakistan is increasingly becoming a single-issue country in Indian discourse, and that issue is the zero-sum one of security".

And, he says, as Pakistan becomes ever closer and more tied to China, "India-Pakistan relations will bear the imprint and will probably pay the price".

The book, to be released by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, deals with difficult decisions in foreign policy and national security faced by India's government leaders and the choices they are often forced to make in the existing circumstances.

IANS
Kejriwal questions expenditure on wedding in minister's family

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Nov 28: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday took a dig at Union Minister Mahesh Sharma over the expenditure incurred on his son's marriage asking if he made all the payments by cheques.

However, Sharma hit back at Kejriwal asking him to get his facts right as it was his son's marriage and not daughter's as mentioned by the AAP leader in his tweet.

Linking the marriage to demonetisation, Kejriwal questioned the mode of payment and expenditure incurred on Sharma's "daughter's" wedding.

Kejriwal tweeted, "Are all the payments for BJP MP Mahesh Sharma's daughter's wedding being done through cheque? Is Rs 2.5 lakh being spent for the wedding? How were notes exchanged?"

Sharma responded: "Please get your facts right. My son is getting married. Yes, all the payments are being done through banks."

Kejriwal had earlier demanded a probe into the lavish arrangements for former Karnataka Minister G Janardhan Reddy's daughter's marriage.

PTI
KLF chief Mintoo who escaped from Punjab jail arrested

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

New Delhi, Nov 28: Dreaded terrorist and Khalistan Liberation Force Chief, Harminder Singh Mintoo who escaped from the Punjab jail has been arrested. Following a major search operation, Mintoo was arrested in Delhi.

On Sunday ten armed men wearing police uniforms fired several rounds before taking away Mintoo and four others with them. The other gangsters who were freed by the armed men were Gurpreet Singh, Vicky Gondhra, Nitin Deol and Vikramjeet Singh Vicky.

Mintoo who was wanted in 10 different terror cases was arrested on November 8 2014 at the IGI airport in Delhi. He was arrested while he was returning from Thailand. He is wanted in several cases including the 2008 attack on Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh and 2010 recovery of explosives at Halwara Air Force station.

Mintoo, 47 had deflected from the Wadhawa Singh-led Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) to take over its splinter outfit KLF in 2009. His arrest was dubbed as a major catch by the Punjab police.

According to the intelligence bureau, Mintoo had been tasked by the ISI to carry out an Independence Day attack in 2014.

OneIndia News

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 9:17 [IST]
Lok Sabha will begin functioning smoothly in a day or two: Speaker

India

oi-PTI

Speaker New Delhi, Nov 28: Amid the continuing impasse in Parliament over demonetisation, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan today expressed hope that the House will resume functioning smoothly in a "day or two" as the government as well as the opposition parties want discussions to take place. "I am trying. I am repeatedly requesting as well.

I hope that it (Parliament) will function. When both the parties, the ruling party and the opposition, are ready for discussion, both want discussion, under which rule it has to be done, that has to be discussed.

I think in the next one or two days, it will start (functioning)," she said. Both Houses of Parliament have witnessed minimal work after the winter session began on November 16 after a united opposition continued to disrupt proceedings over hardships caused to the people due to demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

Asked whether repeated adjournments amounted to snatching away of the rights of MPs who want to speak on important topics, Mahajan said she has been trying to conduct the Question Hour despite the noise and MPs' right to speak should not be taken away.

"That is why I am trying. Whichever MP wants to speak, their right should not be snatched away from them. That is why you might have seen that I try to run the Question Hour session. I also do not like that there is so much noise in the House and I am trying to continue with it.

"Today also I tried as some people had requested me that they want to speak on important issues in the Zero Hour. I have been trying for the last two days.

Those members who come to Parliament, their rights should not be snatched away," she told reporters outside Parliament.

She said that it is an "ongoing" process to reach out to the government and the opposition parties as they too want discussion and asserted that she is also willing to take the initiative to bring everybody together and talk to them.

"Why not? I will definitely do that and I have been doing so as well. Attempts are going on. It is an ongoing process. At one point, I am quite sure that everybody will accept something...," she said.

Asked whether the decision on disallowing the adjournment motion would be revisited, Mahajan said, "Let us see. We want that House should run.

For that let us see what happens. I will have to talk to both of them (government and opposition). Both of them are ready for discussion. Under which rule, all of them have to decide together. Not only one person can decide," she said.

PTI
What is Anti-doping bill? Does India really have a doping crisis?

LS adjourns amid Opposition protests over demonetisation issue

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Nov 28: A vociferous Opposition in the Lok Sabha today continued their protests against the government over the demonetisation issue, forcing adjournment of the proceedings till noon.

Soon after the House expressed its condolences over the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, Oppositon members, including those from the TMC and Congress, demanded that they wanted to speak on the demonetisation issue.

With Speaker Sumitra Mahajan declining their request and saying that the matter could be taken up after Question Hour, Opposition members trooped into the Well holding placards and shouting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as the government.

"No placards please... No papers," Mahajan told the protesting members and also reminded them that it was against the rules. Over 30 members, including from Congress, TMC and the Left parties, were in the Well while members of AIADMK were seen standing near their seats.

Amid the din, the Question Hour went on for around 20 minutes and saw four questions as well as supplementaries being taken up. With the protests continuing unabated, Mahajan adjourned the House till noon.

Demonetisation: Has Narendra Modi committed political suicide, asks Tavleen Singh

Opposition parties have been stepping up their protests against the government's decision to withdraw old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and are also observing 'Jan Aakrosh Diwas' across the country today.

Lok Sabha has witnessed a virtual washout of proceedings since the Winter Session started on November 16 due to the protests over the demonetisation issue.

PTI
Fact Check: Mehbooba Muftis claim that J&K students are forced to sing bhajans is misleading

Mehbooba Mufti gets notice to vacate official bungalow 'meant for J&K CMs'

Mehbooba Mufti comes out in support of demonetisation, calls it "historic decision"

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

New Delhi, Nov 28: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Monday came out in support of Union Government's demonetisation initiative and described it as a "historical decision".

Speaking to reporters outside Parliament here, she said that the situation in the valley has been improving.

Ye mamooli faisla nahi hai,kuch din dikkat hogi logon ko lekin ye mulk ke liye historical saabit hoga: J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/3lbsHVgUmO  ANI (@ANI_news) 28 November 2016

Meanwhile, several Congress workers were detained by the police in Jammu during a 'Jan Akrosh' rally.

The opposition parties had last week said that November 28 will be marked by nation-wide strike against Narendra Modi government's decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes on November 8.

On the other hand, the BJP is holding a 'Jan Abhaar Divas' in Maharashtra and offering sweets and flowers to people who are working to counter the Congress party's 'Jan Akrosh Diwas' rally against demonetisation.

OneIndia News

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 14:00 [IST]
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Leman Zeynalova  Trend:

Libya is not going to participate in OPEC oil cuts for the foreseeable future, according to the statement published on the website of the countrys National Oil Corporation (NOC).

NOC chairman Mustafa Sanalla has explained this with the dangerous economic situation in Libya.

Sanalla said Libya's oil production had more than doubled since the lifting of force majeure at Oil Crescent ports in September, and that he hopes the use of blockade tactics in Libya to achieve political objectives would soon be a thing of the past.

Libyas oil can be a force for unity if it is allowed to flow freely, he said. Nearly all Libyans oppose blockades because they harm all of us. The important thing now is that all Libyans should benefit from increased revenues. This will be the real test of whether we can pull through our current political crisis and keep our oil flowing.

In September, OPEC producers agreed during the informal meeting in Algiers to cut down the oil output to 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from current production of 33.24 million bpd.

How much each country will produce is to be decided at the next formal meeting of OPEC on Nov. 30 in Vienna.
Congress will bring back old pension scheme in Gujarat, if voted to power: Rahul Gandhi

Prez, PM Modi express grief over deaths in Gujarat bridge collapse, Cong asks party workers to extend help

No Bandh, only "Jan akrosh divas", says Congress

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

The divide over the shutdown call given by the opposition in protest of demonetisation today seems to be growing wider with Congress asserting that it is merely a " Jan akrosh divas" and not a "bandh".

Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad told news agency ANI on Monday that a "Bharat Bandh" would cause inconvenience to the people.

Meanwhile, normal life reportedly continued in Kolkata despite a 12-hour Bandh call given by Left parties.

Left parties 12 hour bandh call: Normal life continues in Kolkata #DeMonetisation pic.twitter.com/uvoqCI7w6t  ANI (@ANI_news) 28 November 2016

In Bihar and Odisha there are no takers for the bandh. Both governments have welcomed the decision on demonetisation and hence a bandh call on this issue would be meaningless.

Addressing a rally in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while he had called for an end to corruption and black money, the opposition was rooting for the 'Bharat bandh'.

"The government is working to end the flow of black money and corruption but they (opposition) are talking about Bharat bandh (shutdown)," Modi said.

[Also read: Bharat Bandh: A divided opposition undecided on whether to close down or not]

The opposition led by the Congress had originally said that November 28 would Akrosh Day.

OneIndia News
Gap between rich and poor has widened, needs to be bridged: Gadkari

No proposal to expand range of tax concessions for SEZs: Govt

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Nov 28: There is no proposal to broaden the range of tax concessions for Special Economic Zones (SEZs), which has seen more than Rs 4 lakh crore investments till end of September this year, government said today.

SEZ is a designated duty free enclave and developers of such facilities would get direct as well as indirect tax concessions.

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed the Lok Sabha during Question Hour that there is no proposal at present to broaden the range of tax concessions for SEZs.

The fiscal concessions and duty benefits allowed for SEZ developers and units include exemption from central sales tax, service tax and from income tax for 15 years.

They are also entitled to duty free import/domestic procurement of goods. "As on September 30, 2016, an investment of Rs 4,06,690 crore has been made in different SEZs and an employment for about 16.88 lakh persons has been generated," she said in a written reply. In recent years, various steps are being taken for promoting investments in SEZs.

Sitharaman said the initiatives include reduction in minimum land area requirement for setting up new SEZs to 50 per cent for multi-product and sector-specific ones and introduction of online processing of various activities relating to SEZ developers and units for improving ease of doing business.

Responding to a query on whether there are plans to set up an SEZ for marble processing works, Sitharaman said "there is no new thinking at the moment".

The government has ensured that the policy for the marble sector would benefit every section of marble producers and those people with skill for marbles, she added.

PTI
Central Vista to be unveiled by PM Modi today | 7 things to know

Opposition MPs protests outside Parliament

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Nov 28: Expressing concern over the plight of common man, MPs of various opposition parties led by Rahul Gandhi today staged a protest against the government on the demonitisation issue in front of Parliament as part of the 'Jan Aakrosh Divas' observed across the country.

However, no MP from Trinamool Congress, JD(U), SP and BSP, BJD were seen at the joint Opposition dharna outside Parliament though they raised their voices against the move in the House.

Besides the Congress vice-president, many senior party leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Veerappa Moily along with JP Yadav of RJD, Supriya Sule of NCP, Kanimozhi of DMK and Mohd Salim of CPI(M) participated in the protest near Gandhi statute.

Raising slogans, the MPs demanded steps to ease the problems being faced by the people due to the demonitisation drive.

"There is anger against demomitisation which is reflecting from Parliament to street. In the name of fighting black money, poor have been made to suffer while rich people have been let off," RJD MP JP Yadav alleged.

Congress leader Moily termed the Modi government's move was a "fake fight and not a genuine fight against black money." "Black money is a cause of corruption.

Mulayam Singh Yadav seeks PM's statement on demonetisation

But where is the fight against corruption? What happened to Lokpal?" he asked and added the money in circulation cannot be called black money.

"We are interested in discussion. PM must come to the House to explain," he said. Scindia said, "It has happened for the first time in the world that one cannot draw one's own money. So we are raising the common man's voice outside and inside Parliament."

Asked about parties holding protests separately, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury said, "There is no division among opposition. All parties may march separately but they are striking together. Parliament is not functioning because PM is no coming to the House."

PTI
Five years of demonetisation: Notes in circulation on rise; so are digital payments

PM Modi should admit that demonetistion a failure: Owaisi on cash seizure in UP

Demonetisation: Opposition protests at Mahatma statue in Parliament complex

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

New Delhi, Nov 28: Opposition parties on Monday staged a protest against the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes near Mahatma Gandhi's statue in Parliament House complex as both the houses witnessed pandemonium over the issue.

Leaders from the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, the DMK and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) protested outside Parliament.

The protest was led by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

Read more: Demonetisation: Oppn to continue protest in Parl, presses for PM's reply, JPC

Earlier, the opposition parties held a meeting in the parliament HOuse to chalk out their strategy over the issue.

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of the winter session on November 16 over the demonetisation that has triggered a cash chaos in the country.

IANS
Amidst bandh call over Agnipath, Kerala police has stern warning for protesters

Is there a Bharat Bandh tomorrow: Here is what we know

Public gives thumbs down to Bharat Bandh

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

New Delhi, Nov 28: While the Opposition flip-flops on its call for a nationwide strike, the public in general gives thumbs down to Bharat Bandh on Monday.

Few days ago, the opposition parties announced to stage Jan Aakrosh Diwas on November 28 to protest over the demonetisation issue.

The public in general voiced their opposition to the bandh call as it adversely impacts the country's economy.

In most parts of the country, offices, schools and colleges functioned normally.

[Also Read: Bharat Bandh, a flop show? Narendra Modi scores political points]

On social media, angry people voiced their opinions as why bandhs were bad for the country.

Initially, the opposition parties gave an impression that the day will be marked by nationwide strike and protests against Narendra Modi government's decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes on November 8.

However, later several parties--including the Congress and the TMC--decided to stay away from observing a bandh.

Except for the Left-ruling states like Kerala and Tripura, there was no sign of a shutdown in any part of the country.

OneIndia News

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 13:06 [IST]
Delhi-NCR likely to choke in the coming days

'Pollution not a state problem': As Delhi chokes, AAP leader passes the buck to Centre

Punjab jailbreak: Releasing Harminder Singh Mintoo was not part of the plan

India

oi-Vicky

Chandigarh, Nov 28: Palwinder Singh Pinda, one of the key accused in the Punjab jail break case, has told the police he had no intention of freeing Khalistan Liberation Force militant Harminder Singh Mintoo.

On Sunday 10 men stormed into the Nabha jail in Punjab and took away with them dreaded terrorist and Khalistan Liberation Force Chief, Harminder Singh Mintoo and four others.

The ten armed men wearing police uniforms fired 100 rounds before taking away Mintoo and four others with them.

The other gangsters who were freed by the armed men have been identified as Gurpreet Singh, Vicky Gondhra, Nitin Deol and Vikramjeet Singh Vicky.

Pinda who was arrested in Uttar Pradesh a few hours after the jail break said that he and his gang members had entered the jail to free the four gangsters. We had no intention of freeing Mintoo, he said.

When Mintoo learnt of the jail break he accompanied us, Pinda also told the police. He further confessed to the UP police it was Vicky Gounder who had told Mintoo about the jail break.

Mobile phone in jail:

Investigations being conducted have led the police to believe that there could have been an inside job.

It is clear that the gangsters were in touch with Pinda and others over phone. They had discussed the jail break over phone, investigations show.

When the ten armed men reached the jail premises they split into two groups. One group fired at least 35 rounds in the air while the other headed to the jail corridor.

Out there they overpowered the guards before freeing the gangsters and Mintoo.

Preliminary investigations show that one of the gangsters was stopped by a security personnel. However he managed to overpower him and also snatched his pistol.

OneIndia News
SC to hear plea to transfer Shahabuddin to Delhi Tuesday

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

New Delhi, Nov 28: The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear a plea seeking transfer of Mohammad Shahabuddin from Siwan district jail to another jail and his trial in Delhi.

The Supreme Court will also hear a plea for the handing over the cases of the RJD strongman to the Central Bureau of Investigaion.

The bench of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Amitava Roy said this while senior counsel Shekhar Naphade appearing for Shahabuddin opposed the plea.

The Supreme Court in last week of September set aside the Patna high court order granting bail to controversial RJD leader Shahabuddin in connection with murder of an eye-witness, whose two brothers had been killed by his henchmen.

Shahabuddin granted bail by the Patna High Court on September 7, was released from Bhagalpur jail on September 10. He was in jail for 11 years in connection with dozens of cases against him.

SC defers hearing of plea against Shahabuddin's bail

Kalawati Devi, wife of Chandrakeshwar Prasad and the mother of three youths who were killed by henchmen of the gangster turned politician, had also moved the Supreme Court seeking cancellation of bail granted to him in the case in which he has already been sentenced to life.

Mohd Shahabuddin matter to be heard by SC tomorrow regarding transfer of accused to Delhi and shifting trial to Delhi from Siwan(Bihar)  ANI (@ANI_news) November 28, 2016

OneIndia News
When will judiciary fill up the 4,937 vacancies in lower courts?

News

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

New Delhi, Nov 28 The war of words between the union government and the judiciary was out once again in the open. While Chief Justice of India, T S Thakur blamed the government for delaying the filling up of 442 judicial vacancies in the High Courts. Law Minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad too retorted by saying that the judiciary too had not filled up vacancies in the lower courts.

If one were to look at the issues relating to pendency, a word that has become synonymous with the judiciary, then the problem lies in the lower courts. 2,30,02468 cases are pending before the various courts as per the statistics available with the National Judicial Data Grid.

The other problem is with regard to the vacancies in the lower judiciary. The sanctioned strength in the lower courts is 21,320. Currently there are 4,937 vacancies. Litigants complain the most about the slow speed at which cases are disposed off in the lower courts. The average time taken to dispose off a case before the sessions court is one year and two months as per a survey conducted by the Rajasthan and Tripura High Court.

Slow disposal, high pendency:

The slow rate of disposal could be due to two factors. One is the large number of cases that are being filed. Second would be the shortage of judicial officers especially in the lower courts. The survey shows that in the trial court the average time taken to dispose off a case is is anything between 94 and 822 days. In the sessions court the average time taken ins one year and two months.

Data would also show that there are 226 cases relating to under trial prisoners which have been pending for the past ten years. 52 under trial prisoners have been in jail for over 10 years now. In the past three years the data would show that there are 18,000 cases pending relating to under trial prisoners.

OneIndia News

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Monday, November 28, 2016, 14:28 [IST]
No one has guts...: Junior defence minister's reply to China question

China power plant collapse: 9 detained

International

oi-PTI

Beijing, Nov 28: Nine more people were today detained in connection with a deadly construction site accident in China's eastern Jiangxi Province that left 74 people dead.

The platform for a cooling tower of a power plant under construction collapsed in Fengcheng City on November 24, leaving 74 people dead and two injured.

Local police detained nine people suspected of having major liability in the accident, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

[Also Read: Death toll rises to 74 in power plant collapse in China]

The construction of two 1,000-megawatt coal-fired power units at the power station began last July and was expected to be completed by early 2018. Construction on the cooling tower is part of an expansion of the Fengcheng Power Plant owned by Jiangxi Ganneng Co Ltd.

The tower is being built by Hebei Yineng Tower Engineering Co Ltd. Among the detained are chairman of Hebei Yineng Tower Engineering Co Ltd, and chief engineer of the construction project. Further investigation is under way, police added. Earlier, 17 people were taken into custody for the accident.

PTI
Fact Check: This video of a bus being attacked is from Egypt and not related to the ongoing violence in Iraq

Egypt denies military presence in Syria

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Cairo, Nov 28 Egypt on Sunday denied any military presence in Syrian territories as circulated by some Arab newspapers.

The Lebanese daily As-Safir newspaper said on Thursday that Egypt sent earlier in November an 18-member air force unit to assist the Syrian Army and two Egyptian military generals were carrying out aerial reconnaissance in Syria, Xinhua news agency reported.

"These claims only exist in the imagination of those promoting them," Egyptian Foreign Ministry's spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said in a statement, stressing that Egypt is committed to the principle of non-interference in other countries' domestic affairs.

The spokesman added that constitutional and legal measures need to be taken before sending any Egyptian soldier or equipment abroad, "and these measures are not done secretly without informing the Egyptian people".

The fighting in Syria has recently escalated in the war-torn city of Aleppo, killing dozens of people, as well as wounding and besieging many others.

Since erupting in March 2011, the Syrian crisis has claimed the lives of about 500,000 people and displaced over 10 million.

IANS
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Elena Kosolapova - Trend:

There are chances for the OPEC agreement on oil production cut, but its impact on oil prices will depend on the volume of cut, Arthur Berman, an independent US geological consultant with about 40 years of experience in petroleum exploration and production believes.

I think that OPEC will reach some kind of agreement this week. There is considerable economic pressure on Saudi Arabia for higher margins to meet its fiscal budget requirements, Berman told Trend by email.

The expert also noted that if OPEC ever had a strategy to stop the oil production in the US, it has not been overly successful. He reminded that US tight oil producers especially in the Permian basin have had ample access to capital especially when prices reach very low levels and investors see price upside.

Berman noted that in the past, Iran has been an obstacle to the OPEC agreement, but realistically, it cannot increase its production much more than it already has, without considerable investment in infrastructure and new drilling.

As for Iraq, it critically needs prices at or higher than current levels to maintain their fight against ISIS and to satisfy their budget needs, according to Berman.

The analyst also noted that Russia must be part of any agreement on oil production and it has signaled willingness to at least freeze the present output levels.

Meanwhile the expert stressed that OPEC is not a united front and has never been especially effective at assuring compliance among its members to past agreements. He reminded that production in Nigeria, Venezuela and Libya has decreased in the past few years due to civil unrests and economic problems.

Of the three, Nigeria is more likely to increase output while Libya's and Venezuela's problems are more systemic and long-lived, he said.

Commenting on OPEC agreements impact on oil prices, Berman noted that the agreement would increase prices by perhaps a few dollars although the market has already accommodated a few dollars into present prices in expectation of an agreement.

A lot depends on how much OPEC actually cuts, given the range that has been discussed, he said, adding that the current world production surplus is at least 1 million bpd and has shown little sustained momentum toward market balance.

According to OPECs November forecast, the world oil demand in 2016 will reach 94.4 million barrels per day. The world oil production in October, according to OPEC data, was 96.32 million barrels per day. Some 35 percent of the world liquids production comes from OPEC countries.

If the OPEC cut approaches 1 million bpd, prices will stay higher longer but if the cut is only a few hundred thousand barrels per day, higher prices will be less durable, Berman said.

The expert also noted that the US production has stopped declining and rig counts in the US tight oil plays have increased almost 20 percent since mid-September.

Higher prices will provide incentive for higher levels of production [in the US], he said.

In late September, OPEC agreed to cut its oil output for the first time since 2008. The group plans to reduce output to 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from current production of 33.24 million bpd. How much each country will produce is to be decided at the next formal meeting of OPEC on November 30.

Moreover OPEC officials were scheduled to meet with non-members including Russia on Nov. 28, but the meeting was cancelled last week after the Saudis decided not to take part. Saudi Arabia wants an OPEC deal in place before conversations with other producers such as Russia, one OPEC delegate told Bloomberg.

Follow the author on Twitter:@E_Kosolapova
US: Journalist 'likely' shot from Israeli position

IS, Israel clash for first time near Golan Heights

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Jerusalem, Nov 28: Israeli forces reportedly killed four Islamic State militants in Syria in the first direct clash between the country and the jihadi group, the media reported.

The militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online.

Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire early on Sunday.

They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.

All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk," an IS offshoot which controls the area.

Kodaikanal was a target for ISIS module in South India

Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.

Israel seized 1,200 sq. km (460 sq. miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.

IANS
'Nothing will change' as a result of vote recount: Donald Trump

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Washington, Nov 28: US President-elect Donald Trump said on Sunday on Twitter that "nothing will change" as a result of the campaign to recount the votes cast in three states in the November 8 presidential election.

The recount campaign is being headed by the Green Party's presidential candidate Jill Stein, EFE news reported.

In a series of tweets, Trump said that his main rival for the White House, Democratic Hillary Clinton, "conceded the election when she called me just prior to (my) victory speech and after the results were in".

In addition, the next day, Clinton telephoned Trump to say that "we have to accept the results and look to the future", he said, paraphrasing what she had said in one of the presidential debates.

"So much time and money will be spent -- same result! Sad," the President-elect went on to say, via Twitter.

Stein's campaign last Wednesday launched a fundraising effort to finance vote recounts in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, all of which Trump apparently won by narrow margins.

Wisconsin announced on Friday that it will conduct a vote recount in response to the formal request presented by Stein and another independent presidential candidate Rocky De La Fuente.

According to the Green candidate's campaign, there is "compelling evidence of anomalies" in voting in the three states in question and, therefore, it is necessary to verify the results in those states' counties that depend on electronic voting machines to tally the ballots.

Clinton's campaign, meanwhile, is backing the decision by Wisconsin authorities to conduct the recount despite saying that no irregularities have been detected in the election, and it said that it will also support recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan if the Green Party, as expected, formally requests them, EFE news added.

On Saturday, Trump issued a statement in which he called the Green Party's effort a "scam".

"The people have spoken and the election is over," Trump said. "We must accept this result and then look to the future. This recount is just a way for Jill Stein to fill her coffers with money, most of which she will never even spend on this ridiculous recount."

Despite the fact that Trump garnered more than 270 electoral votes, which technically is all that is required to win the presidency, Clinton received more than two million more votes than the real-estate mogul in the nationwide popular vote, according to the Cook Political Report Web page.

During the campaign, Trump was the one who had warned numerous times of possible election fraud and denounced the electoral system as being "rigged" against him, going so far as to threaten not to recognise the results of the election if he lost.

IANS


Pak off the FATF grey list doesn't mean it's not under scrutiny anymore: MEA secretary

Imran Khan again targets Pakistan's establishment on Day 2 of protest march; govt rules out talks over snap polls

Amid turmoil at home, Pakistan PM Sharif to visit China to felicitate Xi for his record win

Shehbaz Sharif arrives in China on maiden visit to felicitate President Xi Jinping on his record win

Pak says focus to remain on India border under Bajwa

International

oi-PTI

Islamabad, Nov 28: With its new army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa set to take charge, Pakistan has asserted that focus will remain on country's eastern border with India, even as the US nudged Islamabad to keep the pledge of not allowing use of its soil for terror attacks against neighbours.

Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest army by troop numbers from Pakistan's outgoing Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif, who paid farewell visits to President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif here today.

Sharif and Hussain lauded Raheel's valuable service as army chief and wished him the best for his post-retirement life, Radio Pakistan reported.

"The military policy will continue and there will be no immediate change in it (under Bajwa)," Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Geo News.

"The focus will remain on country's eastern border and the armed forces backed by the nation will meet all challenges," he said. "The legacy of General Raheel Sharif would continue in the light of the examples he set," Asif said.

The Defence Minister expressed hope that the government and military leadership will continue to work together for the betterment of the country. General Raheel will become the first army chief in more than 20 years to step down at the end of his term.

Previous army chiefs have either obtained extensions or in the case of General Pervez Musharraf, staged a coup.

Meanwhile, the United States yesterday welcomed the appointment of the new army chief and expressed hope that the country would never allow the use of its soil for terrorism against its neighbours. The US embassy in Islamabad, in a statement, welcomed Prime Minister Sharif's appointment of Bajwa.

"We look forward to continuing our work with Pakistan's elected leaders, with Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and with the Pakistani military to advance our shared counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism goals for Pakistan and the region, and to enable Pakistani authorities to honour their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistan's soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbours," it said.

Raheel, who is set to retire tomorrow, was appointed as army chief in 2013 by Prime Minister Sharif at the retirement of Gen Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani.

According to Pakistani media and experts, General Bajwa's "pro-democracy credentials" and his low-profile influenced Sharif to appoint him to the powerful post of army chief superseding four top generals.

The military has been in charge of the country for more than half of Pakistan's nearly 70-year history since independence.

PTI
US welcomes appointment of new army chief of Pakistan

International

oi-PTI

Islamabad, Nov 28: The United States on Sunday welcomed the appointment of the new army chief of Pakistan expressing hope that the country would never allow the use of soil for terrorism against its neighbours.

The US embassy in Islamabad in a statement welcomed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's appointment of Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa as the new Chief of Army Staff.

"We look forward to continuing our work with Pakistan's elected leaders, with Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa, and with the Pakistani military to advance our shared counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism goals for Pakistan and the region, and to enable Pakistani authorities to honour their pledge to prevent the use of Pakistan's soil for terrorist attacks against its neighbours," it said.

It also congratulated the outgoing Chief of Army Staff General Raheel and his family upon the conclusion of his three-year appointment.

"General Raheel has been a respected partner throughout his tenure as Army Chief. We appreciate his leadership in combatting terrorism in Pakistan and across the region, and his support for Pakistani civilian governance and institutions. He has demonstrated an impressive commitment to the peace, security, and well-being of the Pakistani people," it said.

The embassy also congratulated the new Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff Committee Lt Gen Zubair Hayat.

It also recognised the dedicated service of retiring General Rashad Mahmood whose place General Zubair will fulfil.

Sharif appointed Bajwa as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) by elevating him to the rank of four-star general yesterday.

Bajwa will take charge of the world's sixth-largest army by troop numbers in a formal handover on Tuesday, when General Raheel formally retires.

PTI
Supreme Court issues notice to Vinayak Baliga murder accused

Mangalore

oi-Anusha

The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to Naresh Shenoy accused in the murder of RTI activist Vinayak Baliga. The slain RTI activist's family had approached the Supreme Court after Naresh Shenoy was granted bail by the Karnataka High Court.

The RTI activist's family, in their petition, has claimed that bail to Shenoy was a threat to the family and witnesses in the high profile murder case. "Our concern is that the investigation is not complete and so the accused cannot be let free on bail", the petitioner's advocate had told mediapersons in Mangaluru earlier.

RTI activist Vinayak Baliga was hacked to death near his residence in Mangaluru on March 21. Naresh Shenoy, the prime accused was arrested after he went missing for over 2 months following the murder.

OneIndia News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit out at Opposition parties for their 'Bharat bandh' call against demonetisaion, saying they are organising the strike at a time when he is trying to root out corruption and black money." I am stopping black money and corruption and some are giving call for Bharat bandh," he said at BJP's 'Parivartan Yatra' rally in Uttar Pradesh.,Without naming any Opposition party, Modi said, "We are trying to curb corruption and they are organising Bharat bandh. Should there be Bharat bandh or should the route of corruption be blocked?",Several opposition parties have given a call for 'Akrosh Diwas' tomorrow to protest against the Centre's demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.,The prime minister said the decision on demonetisation was tough, "but (the) future will be bright".
Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that PM Modi will debate in Parliament on Noteban of needed. Meanwhile atleast 10 opposition parties are marking today as a day of protest against demonetization, though only the Left has called for a Bharat Bandh or a nationwide shutdown.
 2008-2022 One News Page Ltd.

All rights reserved.

One News is a registered trademark

of One News Page Ltd.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Maksim Tsurkov  Trend:

As much as $3.9 billion have been spent so far on the construction of STAR oil refinery of Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR in Turkey, the Turkish mass media outlets reported Nov. 28 with reference to Ibrahim Palaz, director general of the refinery.

He said that the total cost of the project is $5.7 billion.

As much as $3.3 billion of the total amount are financed by 23 banks, said Palaz. The loan agreement was concluded in a timely manner and on favorable terms, currently, the price of the loan would have been 1.5 percent more expensive, which would mean an additional cost of $450 million. The project needs no additional financing.

He noted that the construction work at the refinery continues in accordance with the schedule.

At the moment, the project is executed at 78.3 percent, Palaz said. The engineering work was carried out at 99.5 percent, the purchase work was done at 95.5 percent, and the construction work was implemented at 57.5 percent. As it was earlier planned, the refinery will be launched in April 2018.

The annual naphtha production volume, used by Petkim oil and chemical complex (where SOCAR has equity share) as the main raw material, will amount to 1.66 million tons at the STAR refinery.

Along with naphtha, the new oil refinery will produce diesel fuel with ultra-low sulfur to the amount of 5.95 million tons, aviation kerosene - 500,000 tons, reformate - 500,000 tons, petroleum coke - 630,000 tons, liquefied gas - 240,000 tons, mixed xylene - 415,000 tons, olefin LPG - 75,000 tons and 145,000 tons of sulfur. The refinery will not produce petrol and fuel oil.

It is planned to refine Azeri Light, Kerkuk and URALS oil at the plant.

At present, the share distribution in the project is as follows: 60 percent is owned by Rafineri Holding A.S. (100 percent owned by SOCAR Turkey Enerji A.S.), which had previously acquired all the remaining 18.5 percent share of Turcas Petrol in the project, and 40 percent belongs to SOCAR.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Elena Kosolapova - Trend:

OPEC meeting which will take place this week will be the most important cartel meeting in over than 40 years, director of Downstream Consulting at IHS Markit, Spencer Welch believes.

As a result of the meeting in Algiers last September where OPEC suggested they would cut production by around 1 million barrels per day to a total of 32.5-33.0 million barrels per day, they are now under intense pressure to deliver on this promise. This is resulting in potentially the most important OPEC meeting since 1973, when they decided on an oil embargo on oil supply to the west, Welch told Trend by email.

In late September, OPEC agreed to cut its oil output for the first time since 2008. The group plans to reduce output to 32.5 million barrels per day (bpd) from the current production of 33.24 million bpd. How much each country will produce is to be decided at the next formal meeting of OPEC on November 30.

Moreover OPEC officials were scheduled to meet with non-members including Russia on Nov. 28, but the meeting was cancelled last week after the Saudis decided not to take part. Saudi Arabia wants an OPEC deal in place before conversations with other producers such as Russia, one OPEC delegate told Bloomberg.

Welch noted that, a deal will be extremely challenging to deliver, given the political differences between members, particularly Saudi Arabia and Iran, and several OPEC nations actively trying to increase production  Iran, Iraq, Nigeria and Libya. However, the expert believes OPEC will reach some deal this week.

An agreement of some sort is more likely than not to emerge this week, as there are intense financial, political and credibility pressures on OPEC to strike a deal even if it is flawed, he said.
Rumble 16 Aug 2022

This week marks one year since the end of the 20 year US war on Afghanistan. Former US Gen. David Petraeus argues in The Atlantic..
cbs4.com 24 May 2022

At least two people were killed, a 66-year-old woman is in critical condition and several others have been hospitalized, according..
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Nov. 28

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

An oil terminal, which will make it possible to increase the export of oil products, has been commissioned close to Imamnazar customs point located in Turkmenistans Lebap Region on the border with Afghanistan, a source in the Turkmen government said.

The new facility with capacity of 540,000 tons of oil products per year was constructed by specialists of the Turkmen state oil and gas construction concern.

The terminal consists of four sections: administrative and auxiliary buildings, a section for reception of oil products, a section for storage of oil products and a section for pumping oil products into tank trucks in the border area.

Earlier a branch of the new railway from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan was stretched into the terminal.
Komfie Manalo, Opalesque Asia:

The Cayman Islands Court of Appeal has rejected Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken's (SEB) appeal against Justice Nigel Clifford's decision to order that redemption proceeds of approximately $8m should be repaid to the liquidation estate of troubled hedge fund Weavering Macro Fixed Income Fund Limited.

International law firm Ogier explained in a briefing that Weavering was placed into liquidation in March 2009 when it was discovered that its investment manager, Magnus Peterson, had masked large losses suffered through options trading with worthless swap transactions entered into with affiliated counterparties.

Shortly before the liquidation commenced, Peterson directed that redemption proceeds of approximately $8m be paid to SEB leaving redemption payments to other creditors unsatisfied.

The Grand Court and CICA both determined that the Redemption Payment was a voidable preference under Section145 of the Cayman Companies Law, that had to be returned to the liquidation estate. A voidable preference is a payment made to a creditor within six months of the commencement of a liquidation where the company intended that the creditor be preferred over other creditors.

Court re......................

To view our full article Click here




Make no mistake: the only thing that might prevent a huge and violent confrontation in North Dakota a week from today, with the Corps of Engineers Eviction Notice set for December 5, will be the members of the United States Senate and Congress who intercede next week and pressure the Army Corps of Engineers to rescind and withdraw their eviction notice to the Standing Rock Tribe and the Water Defenders.





I ask you to call not only YOUR 2 Senators and your Congress person, but certainly these 4 Senators who have already made it clear that they support the water defenders.

You can call these Senators, plus your own two Senators, through the main US Capitol number: 202 224 3121.

Update: an interesting twist: the Governor of ND, Mr. Dalrymple, is ordering the evacuation, NO MATTER WHAT THE CORPS OF ENGINEERS DOES! this is the accurate URL but the formatting here breaks it into two segments which can be put back together to get to the document and then read it. I suspect this will get argued really soon in Federal Court, if the Tribe's lawyers are on top of it....

www.governor.nd.gov/files/executive-order/Executive Order 2016-08.pdf

Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico is likely to follow through with that, as he has already decried the "inexcusable brutality" of the Police, and has asked Obama to move the pipeline. Getting the eviction order set aside is a small next step.

Please see also my earlier article on Heinrich and Standing Rock:

click here

I will be asking him to intercede with the Corps tomorrow morning, along with Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico. Tom might be a strong candidate to do so, among the US Senate. I recall that he father Stewart would lead marches in Farmington, New Mexico of Navajo Uranium Miners Widows, which I will remind him of. Stewart Udall was by far the strongest and most active environmentalist in the long history of the US Secretary of Interior.

Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey just two days ago wrote to the Attorney General, Loretta Lynch, urging the Justice Department to intervene and send federal monitors to Standing Rock "to ensure protesters can peacefully assemble and exercise the First Amendment rights."

Booker cited the reports of inappropriate police tactics waged against water protectors. Last Sunday night and early Monday morning North Dakota law enforcement shot rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons in frigid temperatures at some 400 water protectors on the Backwater Bridge, the site of a barricade on Highway 1806.

"I am deeply troubled by this tense situation, and particularly by reports indicating that law enforcement may be responding to peaceful protesters near Standing Rock with overly aggressive tactics," Booker writes. "We now stand at a critical moment in our Nation on police and community

relations."

Vermont's Bernie Sanders has already strongly supported Standing Rock Defenders, and readers here at OpEdNews and in Facebook Groups know that he would respond favorably to requesting him to implement this new idea of mine.

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From Consortium News



Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaking with supporters at a campaign rally in Phoenix, Arizona, March 21, 2016.

(Image by (Photo by Gage Skidmore)) Details DMCA



Although lacking "actionable evidence of hacking," Hillary Clinton's campaign has decided to join the recount of votes from the presidential election in the state of Wisconsin that was launched by Jill Stein, the presidential candidate from the U.S. Green Party.

Marc Elias, the Clinton campaign counsel, said the campaign decided to take part in the recount to discover whether there was "outside interference" in the election results. He said the campaign had been inundated with messages from Clinton supporters to do "something, anything, to investigate claims that the election results were hacked and altered in a way to disadvantage Secretary Clinton," particularly in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania.

Donald Trump narrowly beat Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, where the margin was only 11,612 votes, the closet presidential contest in that state's history.

Clinton would have to win all three states in the recount to receive 276 electoral votes to Trump's 260. A total of 270 votes are needed to win the presidency. Trump now leads 306 to 232. The electors will vote in their state capitals on Dec. 9. It is not clear if the three recounts would be finished by then.

"This election cycle was unique in the degree of foreign interference witnessed throughout the campaign: the U.S. government concluded that Russian state actors were behind the hacks of the Democratic National Committee and the personal email accounts of Hillary for America campaign officials," Elias wrote in an online message.

"We have quietly taken a number of steps in the last two weeks to rule in or out any possibility of outside interference in the vote tally in these critical battleground states," he said, adding that since the day after the election the campaign had lawyers and data scientists "combing over the results to spot anomalies that would suggest a hacked result."

But because the Clinton campaign "had not uncovered any actionable evidence of hacking or outside attempts to alter the voting technology, we had not planned to exercise this option ourselves." But now that Stein had initiated a recount in Wisconsin, "we intend to participate in order to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides," Elias wrote.

Stein's Cash

Stein has raised $6 million in just three days to pay for recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. She filed with Wisconsin on Friday, where officials said the recount would soon begin and plans to file in the other states next week.



Jill Stein

(Image by forward.com) Details DMCA



"If Jill Stein follows through as she has promised and pursues recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan, we will take the same approach in those states as well," Elias said.

There is no evidence of prior coordination between Stein and the Clinton campaign in the recount effort. But Stein's call for the recounts in the three states that could reverse the results of the election in Clinton's favor raised a number of questions about her motives, which she responded to in an online video and several television interviews.

Stein said she is not activating the recounts to either help Clinton or hurt Trump but to ensure the reliability of the country's voting systems. She said she did not believe the recount would change the election's result.

"You wouldn't get into an airplane and wait for it to crash to decide you need quality assurance and a backup system," Stein told the PBS News Hour. "Our voting system is no less important and we're basically calling for a system to verify voting. We shouldn't have to show there's been a disaster in order to safeguard a very vulnerable voting system."

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By Dave Lindorff



Like Sen. McCarthy before him, Post reporter Craig Timberg has a 'list' of subversives

(Image by ThisCantBeHappening!) Details DMCA



ThisCantBeHappening.net didn't make the Washington Post's list of 200 news sites that are "purveyors of Russian propaganda" designed to "undermine Americans' faith in democracy," but an article by yours truly published on our site on September 29 which was picked up by Counterpunch.org and run the following day was cited as "proof" that Counterpunch is just such a perfidious agent of Russian subversion of the US -- which I guess supposedly "outs" me as one of those secret Russian agents in the US alternative media.

The article in question, headlined US Propaganda Campaign to Demonize Russia in Full Gear over One-Sided Dutch/Aussie Report on Flight 17 Downing , called out the Dutch "investigation" into that horrific shoot-down of a fully-loaded Malaysian jumbo jet over war-torn eastern Ukraine in 2013, pointing out that the prosecutors and investigators involved refused to accept any radar or transmission monitoring evidence offered by Russia or by separatist rebels in the region, using instead only evidence provided by the Ukrainian intelligence service and government -- this despite the fact that both Ukraine and Russia possessed quantities of the BUK missile and mobile launchers that were known to have been involved in the downing of the plane, and should thus both be potential suspects in the case. I also noted that as reported by noted former AP investigative reporter Robert Parry on his own Consortium News site (also on the Washington Post's hit list of Russian propaganda sites), and by retired CIA Senior Analyst Ray McGovern, the Dutch investigators never asked for nor received any satellite surveillance photos or NSA transcripts of relevant telecommunications concerning the shoot-down from the US, though such evidence certainly exists.

The Washington Post article in question, written by Craig Timberg -- surely either one of the most credulous and lazy journalists working in a major US news organization (and that's really an accomplishment!), or a rank propagandist for the US government posing as a journalist at the Post -- relied upon only two sources for his dramatic "expose'" purporting to prove that a massive Russian propaganda campaign had surreptitiously attempted to undermine (perhaps successfully!) the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign and to throw the race to Donald Trump, at the same time undermining US foreign policy and faith in the US government while elevating the reputation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Both sources are falsely described by Timberg as being "two teams of independent researchers." The assumption we clearly are meant to have is that these organizations have no institutional bias.

In fact, the first of these sources, the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), turns out to be a hoary relic of the Cold War founded in 1955 by Robert Strausz-Hupe', an Austrian emigre' and passionate anti-Communist. It has continued its anti-Russian propaganda stance since the collapse of the Soviet Union and the 2002 death of its founder and now boasts on its board of trustees jailbait like former Reagan National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane, a key player in the Reagan-era Iran Contra scandal who pleaded guilty to four counts of lying to Congress but was pardoned by President Reagan, arch-neocon and Russia-phobe Robert Kagan, a key promoter of the the US invasion or Iraq in 2003, and a whole host of other right-wing anti-Russian fanatics.

At least FRPI is willing to let people know who it is and who is running the joint. In contrast, the other of Timberg's sources, PropOrNot, an organization with a website, PropOrNot.com , founded only several months ago, remains totally secret, providing no information on its site about its origins, its funding, its leadership or its staff. And yet Timberg confidently claims its information about Russia's alleged epic propaganda effort was the result of the painstaking analytical work of these "experts." In fact Timberg says the organization's executive director, whom he quotes, asked for and received anonymity along with all his staff because they wanted to "avoid being targeted by Russia's legions of skilled hackers."

And the Post's editors allow him to get away with this gutlessness and lack of transparency.

To get the full picture of how credulous and unprofessional -- or wilfully biased -- Timberg's editors at the Washington Post(often still considered one of the nation's top "newspapers of record"), were in not vetting his article, read the Intercept's article Washington Post Disgracefully Promotes a McCarthyite Blacklist from a New, Hidden and Very Shady Group. which devastatingly eviscerates both PropOrNot and the Post.

Suffice to say that besides allowing Timberg to use as the key source of his article and dramatic media blacklist an anonymous and clearly partisan group, PropOrNot, the Post's editors also never required their supposedly crack "technology reporter" to even attempt to contact a single editor or journalist at any of the named alleged purveyors or "useful idiots" he was accusing of secretly spreading Russian-sourced "false news." There's not even a perfunctory: "Efforts to contact the editors at Counterpunch were unsuccessful" in the entire piece. Timberg and the editors of a paper that once gave us the Watergate story that brought down President Richard Nixon clearly didn't even consider such basics of journalism important!

I can vouch for this personally. Counterpunch is listed on PropOrNot's home page [9] as number nine on the PropOrNot.org blacklist, under the headline: "Russian Propaganda Targets All Americans." PropOrNot conveniently included two links to Counterpunch articles which it indicates make its case for including the site on their list. The first, under the heading "Review Article," takes the reader to a page of Propornot.com and an article headlined: "Russia Useful Idiots Proliferate Russian Propaganda." Below that snarky headline, the PropOrNet analyst Joel Harding gives an analysis of the article, in which he questions the author's qualifications to be a self-described part of the American left, since he identifies himself as a socialist, which Harding then tells the reader "isn't exactly the normal American 'left', but the 'remnants of the Soviet' left." Comically, Harding fails to notice that actually the Counterpunch author in this case isn't even a US resident, but describes himself as a "retired aerospace worker living in British Columbia."

Clearly this is not a website given to sober expert analysis as characterized by the Post's Timberg.

In any event, the reprint that follows Harding's introduction, written by the Canadian Counterpunch contributor Robert Annis, and headlined "Western Media Propaganda Threatens Peace and Prolongs the Deadly Conflict in Eastern Ukraine," which ran Sept. 2, reports quite factually, quoting such Western sources as Reuters and the New York Times, that a plurality of Swedes and Finns oppose their respective conservative governments' efforts to join NATO. Annis then goes on to quite accurately write that US reporting on the civil war in eastern Ukraine fails to note that it is Ukrainian forces that are taking aggressive actions towards the separatist regions of Lugansk and Donetsk, not separatists (or Russians) invading the or threatening regions of Ukraine to the east of those two breakaway ethnic-Russian majority provinces.

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See original here

By Hunter

Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway, who has previously assured us that she will be going away now that the election is over but who still hasn't followed through on that, took to the Sunday shows to badmouth Mitt Romney, praise her boss for not throwing his political opponent in jail despite his absolute lack of authority to do that, and insist that Donald J. Trump doesn't need those intelligence briefings he has been mostly refusing to get because he gets all the secret world information he needs to know from ... foreign leaders?

BASH: [...] Is this true? Has he turned down the opportunity to get classified intelligence briefings? CONWAY: So he is receiving classified intelligence briefings and the president-elect is also receiving information through his personal and on the phone meetings with over what's now 41 world leaders. In addition to meeting with 60 men and women who could serve in his government but certainly without the promise of any formal position or certainly -- [...] BASH: But, Kellyanne, has he turned down classified briefings? CONWAY: I really -- I can't discuss that publicly.

Since the election, according to the Washington Post's sources, he's agreed to sit for only two of the provided daily classified intelligence briefings. But don't worry, says his staff, there's probably nothing important there that he isn't already hearing from his congratulatory phone calls from world leaders. No doubt they're getting him up to speed.

No matter how incompetent and buffoonish we were expecting a Trump White House to be, we may have to revise our estimates downwards. Again.

On the bright side, Kellyanne Conway has high praise for her boss for not immediately turning America into a banana republic a mere three weeks after being elected. Kellyanne, please explain why the president-elect is not pushing to throw his election opponent, Hillary Clinton, in prison for unspecified crimes?

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Old Guard, New Arrivals

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"I didn't vote for Trump," my buddy Ted said as he pulled out a chair to join me at the cafe'. "But I can understand why people did." He ordered a medium latte. "They'll be disappointed, though."

"You bet," I responded. "Trump only cares about Trump--and those named Trump. 'I'm not a populist, but I played one on TV'."

Ted chuckled. Then, a sigh.

"What?" I prodded. "I'm your friend. We can talk privately, and no one except OpEd News readers will hear us."

"It's difficult." Another sigh. "I try to be a good person. I try to be progressive."

"But?"

"They've changed the rules. It's gone too far."

He must have seen my puzzled expression, so he continued, "Look, let's go back a bit. Affirmative action."

"Uh-oh." I quickly sipped my coffee.

"No, listen. Slavery was horrible and unforgivable. The idea of providing reparations for that crime was a very good one. I wish the reparations had gone to those who needed them most, poor blacks in urban areas rather than the suburbanized middle class, but, the effort was honorable. And, we had a debt to the Native Americans as well, so we were right to include American tribes in affirmative action programs.

"I won $250 at Pachonga last weekend. I'll treat for that latte," I smiled.

"I'm being serious. But, sure. Go ahead," he grinned. "But then it all went south. Literally."

I waved for him to keep talking.

"Over the next decades, the affirmative action pool got bigger and bigger. First, Mexican immigrants, documented and undocumented, who came to the United States voluntarily were added." He stressed the word 'voluntarily'. "Then other "Latinos", immigrants from Central and South America, from Cuba, and from the Caribbean. Even people from Spain, a fellow European country, got benefits from the "Hispanic" banner--while my cousins in Ireland had to wait at the end of the line." He snorted. "My office gave a scholarship to a 'Latino' from Argentina, whose grandparents had escaped Nazi Germany." He blew on his latte for a cool down. "Affirmative action and reparations were replaced by 'Diversity'. All of a sudden, it didn't matter if you'd been forced to come to the US or your lands had been taken. A Hispanic sounding last name? International immigrant? Step to the front of the line."

"Surely helping our newest immigrants doesn't mean we are hurting our own citizens," I countered. "You haven't done so badly yourself."

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Disinformation: How it works When the MSM fails to persuade and loses the trust of the people, it attacks the sources of news the people DO trust.

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None of us can decide what is true, but maybe all of us can.

Fake news is news this week. The New York Times is asking Mark Zuckerberg to rule on what is true and what is fake. But if you read between the lines, they are asking that he rely on the New York Times to decide for him. The real reason this issue is coming to the fore is that the American government has lost its hold on what Americans believe to be true. They have squandered their credibility. They have fooled us once too often, and we have moved on to look elsewhere for our reality.

(I elide the New York Times and the U.S. Government because, on matters of "what is reality", they have spoken with one voice in recent decades; not since Nixon told us "I am not a crook" has there been a substantial strain of skepticism in the voice of the New York Times or the Washington Post. On October 17, 2004, Ron Suskind, writing in the NYTimes Magazine warned us that henceforth the Administration of GW Bush would be manufacturing its own reality. They have been feeding us that reality ever since.)

Now the Times-Post-Washington insiders are making their bid to put the cat back in the bag. They want our credence back. There are still many Americans who have never let their faith in these sources flag, and they will willingly sign on to internent censorship, or whatever it is takes to return our country to "one nation--one reality".

For the rest of us, we have moved on, and there is no going back. But what have we moved on to? The answer is that we have moved to a diversity of realities. America no longer agrees on basic political, historical or scientific truths. I would argue that that's a good thing. Reliance on a single authority to tell us what is true was never a viable system; it puts too much power in too few hands, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

A free marketplace of realities is not "one truth", but it is probably the best we can do. Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin and Tom Paine got it exactly right.

"The only security of all is in a free press. The force of public opinion cannot be resisted when permitted freely to be expressed. The agitation it produces must be submitted to. It is necessary, to keep the waters pure." (Jefferson, letter to Gen Lafayette, 1823)

A free open Internet with net neutrality enforced on service providers is a Jeffersonian dream. On the other hand, it is a nightmare for any government with totalitarian aspirations. Controlling a population by controlling information ever was a far more effective strategy than controlling people by force.

In this oped from today's NYTimes , Michael Lynch caricatures the "fake news" with some examples that we might all agree on. "Pope Francis endorses The Donald" "Hillary's public appearances have been faked by a body double" He doesn't go so far as to advocate internet censorship, but he lays the groundwork.

A few days earlier, the same NYTimes had assured us that Trump's electoral victory "accurately reflects the will of the American people." The Times began slandering the election integrity movement right after the 2004 election was stolen. Vote Fraud Theories, Spread by Blogs, are Quickly Buried . Most readers of OEN are not fooled. We know that the Times continues to lie to us about the JFK assassination 53 years ago, and has never apologized for dragging us into war in Iraq with a series of articles on "weapons of mass destruction". The Times played a crucial role in burying the research of Gary Webb, outing our own CIA as the world's biggest drug pusher. In this Harper's article, Thomas Frank documents The Media Extermination of Bernie Sanders . He summarizes his comprehensive review of the Washington Post, but had he focused on the NYTimes instead he would have had similar findings.

Real truth is messy, and none of us has time to research all our beliefs. We rely on trusted sources to inform our realities. Now that the NYTimes &co have squandered their credibility, we have scattered in different directions. Truth has been Balkanized. Deeper than a diverse set of ideologies, America now lives in a diverse set of realities. This has torn our country apart, and contributed to the paralysis of politics.

The solution is not a return to respect for the authority of a monolithic news engine. Less still are the biasing of search engines or outright censorship helpful in pulling America back together. Rather, we will continue forward toward bottom-up news sources like OpEdNews, and reliance on a corps of citizen journalists like you and me.


Castro leading fight against Bay of Pigs invasion, and as an old man

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"Yankees Go Home", "Out of Cuba", "Cuba Si, Yankee No". We sang and we wrote on placards that we carried back and forth before the US Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles, California on April 19, 1961. It was here that I joined the Fair Play for Cuba Committee.

This was the first time I had demonstrated, and here I was opposing "my" government, which I had "defended" between 1956 and 1960. I had recently been discharged from the United States Air Force, which I had joined at 17, in order to fight "communism". What I learned those years was that it was the US that was the aggressor. We constantly flew over and harassed Russian, Chinese and Cuban territory, yet we airmen and soldiers had orders that if "the enemy" did the same we were to shoot them down. They never did "trespass" however.

It was Cuba's revolution that woke me up to the reality of US's murderous, domineering foreign policy, which had been true since the very beginning of its independence from Great Brittan.

"Born in the USA: regimen of permanent wars" describes this history. http://www.ronridenour.com/articles/2012/1223--rr.htm

At the top of my website are quotations, which explain why I became an activist against US Manifest Destiny and the Monroe Doctrine and for a socialist alternative, something Fidel stood for.

"It is the function of the CIA to keep the world unstable, and to propagandize and teach the American people to hate, so we will let the Establishment spend any amount of money on arms," former CIA official John Stockwell, wrote.

"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." Edmund Burke

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James McEnteer

Vultures Over Havana

Fidel Castro and the Castration of U.S. Latin American policy

When Fidel Castro died in his sleep at 90 on November 25 in Havana, American news consumers might have been forgiven for thinking he was slain in battle.

"Today, the world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades," said Donald Trump, according to CNN.

"Fidel Castro's legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights. While Cuba remains a totalitarian island, it is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long"" Trump promised to join with the Miami Cubans toward a future in which "the Cuban people can finally being their journey toward prosperity and liberty."

That should make the Cubans afraid. Very afraid.

As jingos jeered and cheered, even journalists you thought must know better leapt upon the burning bier. In an article entitled, "Fidel Castro Finally Dies," The Daily Beast's John Avlon excoriates Castro as "a bully and a thug: the latest in a long line of self-interested opportunists who rule through fear and pretend that it is love."

Avlon condemns everyone who swallowed the myth of Castro as a revolutionary hero:"One of the most prevalent forms of moral myopia on western campuses and their downstream affiliates is a tendency to excuse whatever oppressive totalitarian violence is committed in the name of the left.

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Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Nov. 28

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

Turkmenistan has joined the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Trans-Asian Railway Network, Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network, as well as the Intergovernmental Agreement on Dry Ports, said the countrys Oil and Gas Complex in a message Nov. 28.

Meanwhile, the country has joined the International Convention on the Harmonization of Frontier Controls of Goods, according to the message.

These agreements are aimed at harmonization and simplification of intermodal transportation in the Asia-Pacific region, the expansion of international trade, improving the efficiency and reducing the cost of transportation and logistics services, meeting the needs of landlocked countries.

The message says that the Intergovernmental Agreement on Dry Ports was signed on Nov. 7, 2013, in Bangkok (Thailand) by representatives of several countries, which are members of the United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. The Agreement opens up new development prospects for landlocked countries and areas facing the challenges of prohibitive costs and complex logistics to get their goods and services to market.

The Agreement is designed to promote international recognition of dry ports, facilitating investment in dry port infrastructure, improving operational efficiency and enhancing the environmental sustainability of transport. The network of dry ports defined through the Agreement supports the Asian Highway and Trans-Asian Railway networks and ushers in greater prospects for the development of efficient international intermodal freight corridors.

The International Convention on the Harmonization of Frontier Controls of Goods is aimed at facilitating international traffic thanks to national and international coordination of control procedures and methods of their use.


David Moore

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My guest today is David Moore, a senior fellow with the Carsey School of Public Policy at the University of New Hampshire and former vice president of the Gallup Organization and managing editor of the Gallup Poll. As the current polling director at iMediaEthics, where he recently wrote the piece "Why the Exit Polls Sow Doubt About the Vote Count,"

Joan Brunwasser: Welcome to OpEdNews, David. This was another historic presidential election. Many voters continue to express doubts about the legitimacy of the official results. Is that simply a case of sour grapes on the part of half of our increasingly polarized electorate?

David Moore: Thanks, Joan, for your invitation to discuss the election results. In any election, there are always some people who won't accept the results regardless of the margin of victory. But I think there is reason in this election to at least audit the results. I don't believe that there is proof that the vote count was manipulated, but I do think there are enough oddities that suggest it's worthwhile to verify the vote count.

JB: This afternoon, we heard that Jill Stein and the Green Party are requesting an audit for Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. They're raising money right now in order to pull it off. Why those three states? What happened there?

DM: The basic reason for focusing on those three states is that the pre-election polls, and the early exit polls, suggested Clinton would win those states. Also, Trump's lead is less than one percent in Wisconsin and Michigan, and just over one percent in Pennsylvania. If Clinton had won those states, she would be the winner of the electoral vote as well as the popular vote, which now shows her beating Trump by close to two million votes (about 1.5% of the total).

JB: How valuable are pre-election and exit polls as predictors? To say the least, they don't seem to have been working really well in this and the past several elections.

DM: Pre-election polls have suffered a recent series of bad experiences, but not in the U.S. presidential races. Nate Silver's fivethirtyeight.com website aggregates state and national polls, to come up with a prediction of the overall winner. In 2012, he correctly predicted the winner in all 50 states and D.C., and in 2008 he correctly predicted all states but Indiana and one district in Nebraska.

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A PRIMARY ARGUMENT MADE by opponents of impeaching Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff was that removing her would immediately empower the truly corrupt politicians in Braslia -- the ones who were the driving force behind her impeachment -- and they would then use that power to kill ongoing corruption investigations and shield themselves from consequences for their own law-breaking. In that regard, Dilma's impeachment was not designed to punish corruption but to protect it. The last two weeks have produced new corruption scandals that have vindicated that view beyond what even its proponents imagined was possible.

In his short time in office, Temer has already lost five ministers to scandal, but these new controversies are the most serious yet. One major scandal involves an effort in Congress -- led by the very parties that impeached Dilma, with the support of some in Dilma's party -- to pass a law that vests themselves full legal amnesty for their crimes involving election financing. In late September, a bill appeared in Congress, seemingly out of nowhere, that would have retroactively protected any member of Congress from being punished for the use of so-called "caixa dois" (second box) monies in campaigns, whereby politicians receive under-the-table contributions from oligarchs and corporations that they do not declare.

Many of Brazil's most powerful politicians -- including its Foreign Minister, a majority of members of the lower House, and installed President Michel Temer himself (pictured above) -- are implicated in this scheme and are thus threatened with the possibility of prosecution. "Caixa dois" has been a key tactic used to bribe politicians. The issue has taken on particular urgency because the imprisoned billionaire CEO of the nation's construction giant Odebrecht, Marcelo Odebrecht, is about to finalize his plea agreement, and it will identify numerous key figures as having received millions of dollars in such undeclared donations.

It has already been reported that Temer's Foreign Minister, Jose' Serra, received R$ 23 million ($7 million) in such illegal funds from Odebrecht, much of which was deposited into a Swiss Bank account to avoid detection (those funds were for his losing 2010 presidential campaign against Dilma, showing how those who lost democratically and are mired in serious corruption are the ones who have now seized power due to Dilma's impeachment).

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From Nation of Change

Breaking news: An amazing new school for political activists is training thousands of people to be community organizers. They're using Saul Alinsky's classic manual, Rules for Radicals.

The Grassroots Leadership Academy gives how-to lessons in everything from mounting successful protest actions to recruiting middle-of-the-road voters. But, wait -- who's that hiding behind Saul Alinsky?

Good grief, it's the Koch brothers!

Yes, this "grassroots" outfit has been set up by the gabillionaires Charles and David Koch to train cadres of right-wing corporatists to spread their ideological laissez-fairydust across the land.

The academy is run through Americans for Prosperity, the Kochs' political wing, which put up $3 million to get it going. About 10,000 people have gone through training sessions in three dozen states. The brothers' grandiose scheme is to take over the Republican Party and use it as a tool to rebuild America itself into a Kochlandia, ruled by the super-rich.

Even their money, however, can't overcome one huge barrier: their message.

The academy's curriculum, for example, is loaded with such corporate nonsense as a course titled "The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels."

Attendees are indoctrinated with two overarching lessons: First, freewheeling corporate power -- unrestrained by labor, environmental, or other public protections -- GOOD. Second, Social Security, unemployment benefits, and other social programs -- VERY BAD.

Koch Kollege for right-wing social engineers is peddling a status quo agenda of corporate elitism and trickle-down ideology, which the vast majority of Americans are now openly rebelling against. It's like trying to sell chicken salad made out of chicken manure. There's not enough sugar in the world to make people swallow that.
Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

"You have something special and important here. Somehow you manage to teach and suggest and introduce the reader to concepts in a way that feels inclusive. Like, we're thinking about it together. Partly it might be because the subject, bottom-up, is innately understood by all of us and so it feels like you're stirring up stuff we already know. But also I think it's because you truly are practiced at connection consciousness and so it's natural for you (I'm guessing) to write about it with a desire to include us. As a reader I was learning more because it feels like you're inviting me to think with you."



Tsara Shelton, author
From Ramzy Baroud Website

Fear and trepidation are slowly building up, as US President-elect, Donald Trump, is fortifying his transitional team with people capable of bringing about a nightmare scenario, not only for Americans but for the rest of the world, as well.

For Palestinians, however, the signs are even more ominous. From former New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani, to Republican leader Newt Gingrich, the Trump team is filling up with dishonorable men who have made careers out of pandering to Israeli interests and unabashedly discounting Palestinian rights.

While Gingrich had claimed in 2011 that Palestinians are "invented" people, Giuliani, according to Jewish News Service "is fondly remembered in the Jewish community for expelling Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) chief, Yasser Arafat, from a United Nations concert at Lincoln Center in 1995."

Considering earlier statements made by Trump himself last May -- that the expansion of illegal Jewish settlements in the Occupied West Bank "should keep moving forward" -- to more recent comments by Trump's point person in Israel, Jason Greenblatt, that the illegal colonies are "not an obstacle to peace," it is fairly certain that the Trump administration is decidedly anti-peace and anti-Palestinians.

Israeli officials are, of course, rejoicing at the opportunity of working with such an administration, with Education Minister Naftali Bennet celebrating the "end of a Palestinian state" era and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman inviting Trump to "coordinate the development" of the illegal settlements.

But the media forecast for the next four years in US foreign policy towards Palestine and Israel is also prejudiced. It is true that Trump's prospective line-up of old politicians is not conducive to the achievement of a just peace in Palestine by any stretch of the imagination, but presenting the news as if the prospects of a thriving just peace had existed under the administration of Barack Obama is simply laughable.

The Obama administration, despite the uneasy relationship between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has been one of the friendliest and most generous towards Israel. Obama has remained steadfast on Israel's side as they both fought against Palestinian political aspirations in international institutions.

Only recently, Obama signed a "landmark agreement" by giving Israel $38 billion in military funding, the largest aid package in US history.

So those worried about things getting worse for Palestinians under a Trump presidency can take comfort in the fact that they already have.

But will this impact the American position towards a Palestinian state?

Not in the least because, again, Obama, like his predecessors fought tirelessly to prevent a Palestinian state from ever taking form. If a distinction is to emerge between the Obama and Trump administrations, it is likely to be manifested in rhetoric, not in action: the former refined and articulate, the latter belligerent and demagogic. Either way, Palestinians lose.

In his last speech before the United Nations, Obama dedicated a single sentence to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict -- a sentence that accurately reflected his failure to positively affect the outcomes of the Middle East's most protracting, destabilizing conflict.

Both sides would "be better off if Palestinians reject incitement and recognize the legitimacy of Israel, but Israel recognizes that it cannot permanently occupy and settle Palestinian land," he said. Nothing more.

While his previous speeches dedicated much rhetoric to the conflict in Palestine and Israel, the last UN speech -- and that sentence alone -- was a more honest indication of eight years that lacked vision, or even a sincere attempt at finding one.

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Back before the public came to terms with the grim causal relationship between cigarettes and cancer, smoking was a jolly affair, whose pleasures extended well beyond the physical act.

Smoking was sociable. Yes, there were certain situations in which three on a match could spell doom, but a far greater likelihood that lighting an attractive strangers coffin nail might kindle conversation, and more.

If you were at a loss for words, you might break the ice with the trading cards manufacturers slipped inside cigarette packs, such as these mid-30s beauties that came inside packs of Greys, a now-defunct British cigarette brand, and favorite of WWI vets.

The subject is unusual. Sports, cinema stars, and military scenes were common themes of the time. The Greys Anticipations series took creative liberties, by imagining a (cancer-free) year 2500, in which Londoners would be privy to such innovations as solar-lighting, moving sidewalks, and wireless television

Great Scott! Were they psychic!?

Hopefully not.

Hopefully, weve still got 484 years to find out

Picadilly, London, A.D. 2500: Roofed-in under non-conductive mica glass . . moving pathways . . rubber roadways avenued into 50, 100, 150 and 200 miles per hour . . suspended mono railways . . motors driven by atomic energy . . phonetic spelling . . wireless television . . lighted by captured solar rays . . excursions to Mars.

Im fine with excursions to Mars and monorails but atomic energy is as problematic as the health claims once put forward by cigarette ads.

At the Customs House on the Roof of London, A.D. 2500: The railway train has followed the ichthyosaurus into extinction. Mighty aerial liners transport passengers in their thousands, with great cargoes of merchandise from continent to continent. Mankind, living amidst such tremendous achievements, thinks, plans, and acts with corresponding bigness.

HmmI was kind of rooting for train travel to make a comeback

The Pleasure City, London, A.D. 2500: Pleasure-seeking has been raised to a fine art . . . mutitudes when the short days work is done find a satisfying means of relaxation in smoking GREYS Cigarettes and listening to the mammoth mechanical orchestra . . . characteristic of the music of the period . . . music so complex that it can be rendered only by wonderous mechanism.

This does sound rather fun, depending on whos doing the programming perhaps we should just stick with headphones and a busker on every corner.

A Hive of Industry, A.D. 2500: Literally a hive in that it is a city unto itself . . . radiating from the mammoth super-factory are workers dwellings and associated institutes . . . architecture governed by the prevailing material  concrete . . . no smoke (other than from tobacco!) . . . no household cooking . . meals delivered by pneumatic tube from central cookhouse.

UmI strongly suggest revisiting Terry Gilliams 1985 film, Brazil, before signing off on the whole pneumatic tube thing.

Darran Anderson, author of Imaginary Cities, took a closer look at one of the cards in the above talk about imaginary London. I share his opinion that phonetic spelling is the best thing that they envisaged of the future.

He also notes that the card is about 20 years ahead of its time in promoting a mid-50s-style vision of the future, but that it failed to predict the demise of Greys Cigarettes, by prominently advertising them on the side of a suspended monorail.

Hubris!

via Metafilter

Related Content:

In 1900, Ladies Home Journal Publishes 28 Predictions for the Year 2000

Nikola Teslas Predictions for the 21st Century: The Rise of Smart Phones & Wireless, The Demise of Coffee, The Rule of Eugenics (1926/35)

Cigarette Commercials from David Lynch, the Coen Brothers and Jean Luc Godard

Ayun Halliday is an author, illustrator, theater maker and Chief Primatologist of the East Village Inky zine. Her play Zamboni Godot is opening in New York City in March 2017. Follow her @AyunHalliday
Gaskets and Seals Market 2014-2020: Major market players Datwyler Holding Inc., Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, Flowserve Corporation, Gmbh & Co. Kg and others

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Gaskets are component placed between two stationary machine parts to avoid leakage. Seals are assemblies placed between two moving parts of machines to prevent effusion of any vapor, liquid or gas. Seals protects from insertion of dirt, contamination and pollution and environmental damage. Gasket integrates to any misalignment or irregularities on the surface, providing complete seal.Request Sample Report at:Gaskets and seals are widely used in automobiles, manufacturing plants, machineries and others. Rapid industrialization and growing urbanization drives the gaskets and seals market. Attributes like high compression and sustain high heat and pressure are anticipated to show accelerate growth of gaskets and seals market. However, replacement of mechanical components by the electrical components is expected to impede the growth of gaskets and seals market. Nevertheless, use of light weight mechanical components is likely to open new market avenues in the near future.The report provides a comprehensive view on the gaskets and seals market we have included a detailed value chain analysis. To understand the competitive landscape in the market, an analysis of Porters Five Forces model for the gaskets and seals market has also been included. The study encompasses a market attractiveness analysis, wherein product segments are benchmarked based on their market size, growth rate and general attractiveness. The report also analyzes several driving and restraining factors and their impact on the market during the forecast period.Do Inquiry before buying at:Ring joints, cork gasket, metallic gaskets, spiral wound gaskets, rubber gasket and non-asbestos gasket among others are some of the types of gaskets, while rotary seal, lip seal, mechanical seal and o-ring seal among others are types of seals. Based on the materials, gaskets and seals market is segmented into graphite, rubber gasket, fiber, silicone gasket and PTFE among others. Some of the key end users for gaskets and seals include marine and rail, electronics and electrical, automotive, machinery and aerospace among others.Browse the full report at:Geographically, gaskets and seals market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa. Extensive growth of industrial sector in Asia-Pacific majorly in India and China leads growth of the gaskets and seals market. North America followed by Europe is estimated to experience fastest growth of gasket and seals market.Datwyler Holding Inc., Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, Flowserve Corporation, Gmbh & Co. Kg, Victor Gaskets India Limited, Smiths Group PLC, Federal-Mogul Holdings Corporation and Dana Holding Corporation among others are the major key participants for gaskets and seals market.This report segments the gaskets and seals market as follows:Gaskets and Seals Market: Type Segment AnalysisGasketsRing jointsCork gasketMetallic gasketsSpiral wound gasketsRubber gasketNon-asbestos gasketOtherSealsRotary sealLip sealMechanical sealO-ring sealOtherGaskets and Seals Market: Material based Segment AnalysisGraphiteRubber gasketFiberSiliconePTFEOtherGaskets and Seals Market: End user Segment AnalysisMarine and RailElectronics and ElectricalAutomotiveMachineryAerospaceOtherGaskets and Seals Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia-PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilMiddle East & AfricaAbout US:Syndicate Market Research provides a range of marketing and business research solutions designed for our clients specific needs based on our expert resources. The business scopes of Syndicate Market Research cover more than 30 industries including energy, new materials, transportation, daily consumer goods, chemicals, etc. We provide our clients with the one-stop solution for all the research requirements.Contact US:Joel John3422 SW 15 Street,Suite #8138Deerfield Beach,Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803Email: sales@SyndicateMarketResearch.comWebsite:
Synthetic Biology Market, 2014-2020: Segmented by Healthcare, chemicals, agriculture and other

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Synthetic biology deals with the design and construction of new biological entities. It is an interdependent combination of biology and engineering for the construction of an artificial biological system. It involves the synthesis of complex, biologically based systems which display functions that do not exist in nature. Synthetic biology starts with the advances in molecular, cell, and systems biology and follows to transform biology in the way that synthesis transformed chemistry and integrated circuit design transformed computing.Get a copy of free Sample Report @The synthetic biology market is mainly driven by the growing demand for improved drugs and vaccines. Advancement in molecular biology is another key factor to drive the synthetic biology market. Synthetic biotechnology widely used in different application areas such as healthcare, chemicals, agriculture etc. This has fueled the growth of global synthetic biology market. However, some issues like bio-safety and bio-security of synthetic biology are expected to hamper the growth of synthetic biology industry.The global synthetic biology market is segmented on the basis of product, technology, application and region. Based on different products, a market is segmented as core and enabling products. The core product segment further segmented into synthetic DNA, synthetic genes, synthetic cells, XNA (xeno nucleic acid) and chassis organisms. And the enabling product segment further classified into DNA synthesis and oligonucleotide synthesis. Furthermore, a technology of the synthetic biology market can be segmented as genome engineering, DNA sequencing, bioinformatics and biological components & integrated systems.Get in-depth TOC (Table of Contents) with Tables and Figures @The report provides a comprehensive view of the synthetic biology market we have included a detailed company market share analysis, product portfolio of the major industry participants. To understand the competitive landscape in the market, an analysis of Porters Five Forces model for the synthetic biology market has also been included. The study encompasses a market attractiveness analysis, wherein application segments are benchmarked based on their market size, growth rate, and general attractiveness.Application segments have been analyzed based on historic, present, and future trends, and the market has been estimated from 2015 to 2020 in terms of revenue (USD Million). Healthcare, chemicals, agriculture and other applications such as biosecurity, R&D, energy environment etc. are the application segments of synthetic biology market from which healthcare application segment holds highest market share in terms of revenue.Inquire more before buying this report @Major regional segments analyzed in this study include North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa. This report also provides further bifurcation of a region on the country level. Major countries analyzed in this reports are U.S., Germany, France, UK, China, Japan, India, and Brazil. Synthetic biology market was dominated by Europe in 2014 and is expected have consistent growth in coming years. Europe is followed by North America.Some of the key players for global synthetic biology market includes DuPont, Inc., Agrivida, Inc., GeneWorks Pty Ltd., Biosearch Technologies, Inc., Evolva SA, Exxon Mobil Corporation, Green Biologics Limited, REG Life Sciences, LLC and Royal DSM.Browse detail report @This report segments the global synthetic biology market as follows:Global Synthetic Biology Market: Product Segment AnalysisCore ProductsSynthetic DNASynthetic GenesSynthetic CellsXNA (Xeno Nucleic Acid)Chassis OrganismsEnabling ProductsDNA SynthesisOligonucleotide SynthesisGlobal Synthetic Biology Market: Technology Segment AnalysisGenome EngineeringDNA SequencingBioinformaticsBiological Components and Integrated SystemsGlobal Synthetic Biology Market: Application Segment AnalysisHealthcareChemicals (Including Bio-Fuels)AgricultureOthers (Biosecurity, R&D, Energy, and Environment)Global Synthetic Biology Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilMiddle East & AfricaAbout US:Syndicate Market Research provides a range of marketing and business research solutions designed for our clients specific needs based on our expert resources. The business scopes of Syndicate Market Research cover more than 30 industries including energy, new materials, transportation, daily consumer goods, chemicals, etc. We provide our clients with the one-stop solution for all the research requirements.Contact US:Joel John3422 SW 15 Street,Suite #8138Deerfield Beach,Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803Email: sales@SyndicateMarketResearch.comWebsite:
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Nov. 28

By Demir Azizov  Trend:

The Legislative Chamber of Uzbekistans Parliament has adopted a law on combating corruption, the information service of the Legislative Chamber reported Nov. 28.

It was earlier reported that on Oct. 15, Acting Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev submitted a draft law on combating corruption to the Legislative Chamber as a legislative initiative.

The draft law is aimed at a comprehensive legislative regulation of relations in the fight against corruption, improving the efficiency of anti-corruption measures implemented by state authorities, organizations and institutions of civil society, as well as the complete elimination of corruption in all spheres of social life, creation of intolerable situation towards all its manifestations in society by raising legal awareness and legal culture of citizens.

Adoption of the law will create additional legal guarantees to protect the rights and freedoms of citizens, will contribute to the protection from illegal encroachments on private property rights, undue interference in the activities of businesses, and as a consequence, will ensure the growth of business activity and will increase the investment attractiveness of the country, according to the report.

In accordance with the set procedures, the law on combating corruption has been submitted for consideration to the upper chamber of the Uzbek Parliament, the Senate.
Genetically Modified Organisms Market: Global Size, Share, Dynamics, current trends/issues/challenges, 2014 - 2020

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Genetic engineering is the science of cloning or manipulating DNAs or genes to create new characteristic in the organism or produce protein or hormone. Genetic engineering is mostly used for generating recombinant DNA and is done by inserting desired trait gene or by deletion or mutating gene in cell or virus known as the vector. Genetically engineered plants, animals or microbes are called as genetically modified organisms.Get a copy of free Sample Report @Increased productivity due to genetically modified plants and government subsidy for development of genetically modified organisms are factors driving the growth of genetically modified organism market. Furthermore, a strong inclination of R&D in genetic research and expanding biotech and pharmaceuticals industries triggers the growth in the market. Also, affordable food, long shelf life, resistance to disease and increased flavors are some aspects that help in the development of a market. Yet, strict regulatory policy issues, a moral concern for human health and development of superweeds are prime restraints affecting the growth of genetically modified organisms market. Nevertheless, funding from government and private institutions for research and developing of the genetically modified organism is likely to open new market avenues in the near future.Get in-depth TOC (Table of Contents) with Tables and Figures @The report covers forecast and analysis for the genetically modified organisms market on a global and regional level. The study provides significant data of 2014 along with estimated from 2014 to 2020 based on revenue (USD Million). The report also offers the detailed competitive landscape of the global genetically modified organisms market. It includes company market share analysis, the product portfolio of the major industry participants. The report provides detailed segmentation of the genetically modified organisms market based on application segment, end users segment, and region.Inquire more before buying this report @The genetically modified organisms market is segmented on the basis of application, end-user and region. Modified plants, animals, and cell line are three types of applications. Modified plants are also known as transgenic plants. GM rice, GM cotton, GM soybeans, GM maize and others are some of the modified plants. Further, dolly the sheep, supply the fluorescent dog, goldfish, Vacanti mouse and others are types of genetically modified animals. Modified plants accounted for major market share due to widespread applications and advantages. Biotech and pharmaceuticals companies and research centers, clinical trial centers are the different end users of the genetically modified organisms market.The U.S., India, Brazil, China, Argentina, and Canada are witnessing an unprecedented boom in GM crops in recent times. There was the sharp rise in demand of GM crops in South Africa, Paraguay, and Australia in 2006. Europe has shown exceptional growth due to an appreciable production of GM maize in Spain owing to high cultivation rate. In Germany, Portugal, Czech Republic and France, transgenic crops continue to gain traction in the years to come.Browse detail report @Some top research centers in genetically modified organisms markets are NIAS, and ICGEB among others.The report segments of the genetically modified organisms market into:Genetically Modified Organisms Markets: Applications Segment AnalysisGenetically modified plantsGenetically modified animalsGenetically modified cell lineGenetically Modified Organisms Markets: End users Segment AnalysisBiotech companiesPharmaceuticals companiesResearch centerClinical trials research centersGenetically Modified Organisms Markets: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilMiddle East & AfricaAbout US:Syndicate Market Research provides a range of marketing and business research solutions designed for our clients specific needs based on our expert resources. The business scopes of Syndicate Market Research cover more than 30 industries including energy, new materials, transportation, daily consumer goods, chemicals, etc. We provide our clients with the one-stop solution for all the research requirements.Contact US:Joel John3422 SW 15 Street,Suite #8138Deerfield Beach,Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803Email: sales@SyndicateMarketResearch.comWebsite:
Learn details of the bispecific antibodies market analysis, trends, segment & forecast up to 2021

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Bispecific antibodies are one of the fastest developing markets in the field of immune response therapeutics, medications, and biologics. Bispecific antibodies are the combination of two antibodies which address distinctive antigens. Bispecific antibodies can recognize a single antigen target also they can identify two different targets at the same time. In recent years, antibody therapy has become a new treatment for various diseases. A bispecific antibody is an upgraded side of monoclonal antibody enhanced in structure and usefulness.Get a copy of free Sample Report @Bispecific antibodies are developing a most favored and helpful approach for treatment for a different disease, for example, lung, breast, and colon malignancy. With rising prevalence of various sorts of cancer, the worldwide market for bispecific antibodies treatment is essentially growing. However, complicated nature related with the treatment method of bispecific antibodies would disturb the worldwide market of bispecific antibodies treatment.Presently, bispecific antibody drugs are available in the market as well as in various stages of clinical trials. Numerous medications are in Phase I and II clinical trials while one medication, Removable, effectively got approval for marketing. Oncology rules the field of bispecific antibodies. There are various opportunities for the big pharmaceutical companies in this business sector. On account of the complex structure of bispecific antibodies, there are abundant open entryways for contract manufacturers in this market. In particular, the modification of bispecific antibodies is the intense assignment, making this field more appealing for speculators.Get in-depth TOC (Table of Contents) with Tables and Figures @The report covers forecast and analysis for the bispecific antibodies market on a global and regional level. The study provides historic data of 2015 along with a forecast from 2016 to 2021 based on revenue (USD Million). The report also offers the detailed competitive landscape of the global bispecific antibodies market. It includes company market share analysis, the product portfolio of the major industry participants. The report provides market opportunities for the upcoming years.North America and Europe were seen to be the biggest bispecific antibodies treatment market due to increasing incidences of diseases. Asia-Pacific is considered as the fastest growing market for bispecific antibodies treatment due to developing health care access in this area.Inquire more before buying this report @Various pharmaceutical companies are actively involved in development and manufacture of bispecific antibodies. Some of the key players in this market are Amgen, Bayer, Dow Pharma, ImmunGene, Immunocore, Merck, Novartis, Pfizer, and Roche among others.Global Bispecific Antibodies Market: Regional Segment AnalysisBrowse detail report @North AmericaU.S.EuropeUKFranceGermanyAsia PacificChinaJapanIndiaLatin AmericaBrazilMiddle East & AfricaAbout US:Syndicate Market Research provides a range of marketing and business research solutions designed for our clients specific needs based on our expert resources. The business scopes of Syndicate Market Research cover more than 30 industries including energy, new materials, transportation, daily consumer goods, chemicals, etc. We provide our clients with the one-stop solution for all the research requirements.Contact US:Joel John3422 SW 15 Street,Suite #8138Deerfield Beach,Florida 33442United StatesToll Free: +1-855-465-4651 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-386-310-3803Email: sales@SyndicateMarketResearch.comWebsite:
Text Analytics Market: Global Industry Size, Share, Segments Analysis and Forecast 2015-2021

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Text analytics, which is also referred as text mining or text data mining, is a process of extracting information from the available text sources. In this process, value content is derived from the provided raw data. This derived content is useful for business organizations to acquire ready-to-use information with insights. This data are used in research activities too.Get a copy of free Sample Report @This process is widely used in business organizations all around the world for summarization of data, classification of information, data investigation, and other purposes. Text analytic program or software is able to process both structured and unstructured data with accuracy and efficiency. These programs accept multi-language and foreign language data and run efficiently without any disturbance. Globally, the need of this software is increasing at a rapid pace. Increasing demand of social media analysis for effective brand development, creating multi-lingual text to overcome language barriers, growing data market, banking frauds, and stock market security breaches are some of the reasons contributing to the growth of text analytics market globally.Expanding internet appearance, increasing use of mobiles, and rising awareness about text analysis principles in getting insight into consumer behavior and preferences are other factors fueling the global market growth. However, lack of knowledge about software handling and high costs are the factors that may hamper the growth of the global market in future.Read TOC of Report @The global text analytics market is segmented on the basis of application, deployment model, organization size, and verticals. On the basis of application, the market is segmented as search-based applications, enterprise application, data analytics application, predictive analytics, web-based application, and others. Based on organization size, the global text analytics market can be segmented as small, medium, and large enterprises. Based on the deployment model, the market is further classified as on-premise model and cloud deployment model. Cloud deployment model is anticipated to get importance in future; small enterprises are dependent on on-premise model. Based on verticals, the global text analytics market is segmented as banking, financial serves, healthcare, retail and manufacturing, hospitality, CPG, and telecommunication.Geographically, the global text analytics market is further classified into the United States, Latin America, Africa, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Europe. North America is the leading region in the global text analytics market. This trend is followed by Western Europe and Asian regions.Browse detail report @The global text analytics market is lead by many major players owing to their efficient software. Some of the key players operating in this market globally include HP Development Co., Attensity Inc., Tableau Software, and Oracle.About UsZion 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:
High Voltage Cables and Accessories Market : Impact of Existing and Emerging Market 2021

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High voltage cables are shielded cables that are mainly used for power transmission at high voltage. They are made up of conductor, conductor shield, insulator, semi-conducting insulation shield, metallic insulation shield, and sheath. The high voltage cable systems consist of high voltage cables such as mass impregnated (MI), cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), bare conductors and accessories such as cable joints and terminations. XLPE and MI are used generally for underground as well as underwater cable systems. High voltage and accessories are combined together in order to transport electricity at long distances. The cables and accessories undergo relevant type of tests according to national as well as international standards, such as duration tests in order to prove completely functional cables or for the detection of faulty ones.Request to view Sample Report @The medium voltage cables generally operate in the range of 10 to 33 kV and those above 50 kV are the high voltage cables. Short high voltage cables are used in devices, while longer cables are used in buildings, as underground cables in industrial plants and for power distribution. Further, very long cables are used in applications such as submarine for underwater power transmission. High voltage cables are used in variety of applications such as in instruments, AC and DC power transmission and ignition systems. All these applications require highly insulated cable which must not deteriorate because of high voltage stress. The cables should prevent the contact of high voltage conductor with objects or persons, and must control the electric current leakage. Power transmission is considered as a critical area of investment in all key regions, worldwide. The power industry is in need for advanced transmission networks for power transmission in order to have good connections between the mainland stations and shores. Globally, it is expected that millions of circuit kilometers of new transmission lines are to be added in the near future. There are many advantages of using high voltage cables and accessories for power transmission which includes reduced line current for particular amount of power, better efficiency, and improved voltage regulation.Request to view Table of content @There are various factors which are considered as the major drivers for the growth of high voltage and accessories market. Most of the national transmission networks worldwide are old and have become less effective and efficient. Therefore, the growing demand for advanced technologies for reducing power cut and increasing efficiency of power transmission are boosting the need for high quality cables as well as accessories. Governments, private manufacturers & service providers, are significantly integrating their existing technologies with high voltage transmission systems in order to increase the capacity. Other factors include the growth of offshore wind farm activities, grid interconnections and high voltage transmission links which in turn are aiding the growth of high voltage cables and accessories market.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.305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,USA - Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.com
Vietnamese Defense Industry Outlook Representing a CAGR of 10.95% in 2016 in Combination with Future Growth Aspects

Industry Analysis

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Albany, New York, November 28, 2016: A latest report has been added to Market Research Hubs report offering, titled Future of the Vietnamese Defense Industry- Market Attractiveness, Competitive Landscape & Forecasts to 2021. This report offers detailed analysis of Vietnamese defense industry including its market size forecasts from 2017 to 2021. An in-depth analysis on defense budget allocation and key challenges with insights along with procurement plans expressed within the country and a breakdown of the defense budget with respect to the army, navy, and air force. The report also provide details on the key challenges faced by defense market participants within the country.Request For Free Sample Report:Firstly, the report analyzes the current market landscape and the changes done by the government in investment. Vietnam is one of the fastest growing defense markets in the world with a military budget valued at US$5 billion in 2016. The key areas of investment are likely to be fighter and multi-role aircraft, submarines, helicopter, naval vessels and surveillance systems. The Ministry of Defense is expected to invest in Military-IT (Networking), Infrastructure Construction, MRO facilities for frigate maintenance and SSK-diesel electric submarine over the coming years. Key factors such as territorial claims in the South China Sea, Chinese naval build-up and the acquisition of modern military hardware systems to replace out-of-date and aging equipment are anticipated to drive the countrys military expenditure in the forecast period of 2012 to 2021.It also provides a snapshot of the countrys expenditure and modernization patterns. The governments precise military modernization plans along with its great efforts will strengthen its military capabilities. For the future market growth, the country is expected to invest US$32.1 billion for defense purposes, in which US$10.7 billion is reserved for capital expenditure to fund defense procurements. According to the research, capital expenditure of Vietnam is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.91% over the forecast period.Make an Enquiry @Furthermore, report also provides an overview of key players and their market entry strategy, together with insights such as key associations, strategic initiatives and a brief financial analysis. Some of the top domestic and foreign defense manufacturers are listed below: Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (SBIC) Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS) Admiralty Shipyards SukhoiThe report allows readers to identify possible ways to enter in the market, along with full descriptions of how existing companies have entered the sector including key contracts, alliances and strategic initiatives. Porters five force analysis of the Vietnamese defense industry are also discussed in the report.Read Full Report with Table of Content:Market 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.90 State Street,Albany, NY 12207,United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (US-Canada)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Email: press@marketresearchhub.comWebsite:
ATM Market size to grow at 9.8% CAGR to reach $26.3bn by 2023

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ATM Market size is set to reach USD 26.3 billion by 2023; according to a new research report by Global Market Insights, Inc.Considerable need for financial inclusion, particularly in emerging economies, is set to drive revenue over the next few years. Continued efforts to reduce the percentage of the underbanked and unbanked population will also favorably impact global ATM market size.Use of voice recognition systems, biometrics, and other security devices help the customers to perform safe and secure financial transactions (cash withdrawal, transfer, deposits, bank account details, etc.). Enhanced security standards for safer, online, and physical financial transactions lead to a rise in the use of ATM services by the customers. Therefore, safer modes of financial transactions are majorly influencing growth. Continuation of the strict security standards could affect the ATM market size.Request for a sample of this research report @To reduce frauds, manufacturers and financial institutions have introduced anti-skimming, biometric devices and voice recognition systems. In the current business scenario, increasing use of automated systems primarily drives usage. Consumers are narrowing their technology interest to devices that offer multiple functions, ease-of-use, and privacy offers. Linkage of ATM with wireless devices would facilitate the customers to complete the transactions securely and increase product usage. Development of enhanced security features is estimated to shift focus of managing these transactions through smartphones.In order to provide seamless service to customer, continued availability of cash is essential. In case of brown ATMs, where banks outsource the operations and management activities, the third party in collaboration with financial institutions manages the cash for the bank ATM (onsite or offsite).Browse key industry insights spread across 70 pages with 31 market data tables & 28 figures& charts from the report, ATM Market Size By Solution (Deployment [Onsite, Offsite, Worksite, Mobile], Managed Services), Industry Analysis Report, Regional Trends, Application Potential, Competitive Market Share & Forecast, 2012 - 2023 in detail along with the table of contents:Key insights from the report include: Europe ATM market size will exceed USD 4.8 billion by 2023, at 8.9% CAGR estimation from 2016 to 2023. Managed services are set to witness high growth in the coming years, with offsite ATM market share expected to remain dominant over the forecast timeline. The result of a survey in 27 European countries indicated that card skimming was the most prevalent crime; however, 61% of European countries reported a reduction in fraud due to the use of anti-fraud devices and the implementation of Europay EMV technology that is embedded in automated teller machines. Technology standards are devised by International Organization for Standardization (ISO), Scrutiny Standards Council (SSC), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), European payment council (EPC), and Payment Card Industry (PCI) or are issued by vendors themselves. In addition to this, the current versions of PCI PTS POI Security Requirements and PCI PIN Security Requirements are the most needed standards. Reserve banks, Federal Reserve systems, and European Unions are deploying security standards and devices to reduce the number of frauds, due to which global the ATM market size will witness rapid growth. Companies accounting for ATM market share include NCR, Diebold, Wincor Nixdorf, GRG Banking, Euronet Worldwide, etc. The industry witnesses considerable R&D activities for new product development and innovation. The fixed cost involved in manufacturing is high and requires production in bulk amounts to achieve economy of scale benefits.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.29L Atlantic Avenue, Suite L 105,Ocean View Delaware 19970 United StatesPhone: 1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688Email: sales@gminsights.com
Global Cocoa Butter Market  Trends and Insights

http://www.indexbox.co.uk/store/world-cocoa-butter-market-report-analysis-and-forecast-to-2020/

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IndexBox has just published a new report World: Cocoa Butter  Market Report. Analysis and Forecast to 2020 ().This report has been designed to provide a detailed analysis of the global cocoa butter market. It covers the most recent data sets of quantitative medium-term projections, as well as developments in production, trade, consumption and prices.The global cocoa butter trade fluctuated mildly over the period under review. A slight drop in 2009 was followed by recovery in 2010 and another decline over 2011-2012. After increasing in 2013 and 2014, exports slightly decreased again in 2015, amounting to 5,650 million USD. Overall, there was an annual increase of +6.8% from 2007 to 2015.According to IndexBox estimates, the Netherlands continued to dominate the market in the global supplies of cocoa butter. In 2015, cocoa butter exports from the Netherlands totaled 1,610 million USD, which accounted for a 28% share in terms of global exports. Indonesia, Malaysia, France, and Germany were the other key global suppliers of cocoa butter in 2015, with a 39% combined share of global exports.Germany (+26.1% per year) and Indonesia (+15.4% per year) were the fastest growing exporters from 2007 to 2015. Indonesia strengthened its position in terms of global cocoa butter exports, growing its share from 7% in 2007 to 13% in 2015.On the other hand, Germany (14%, based on value terms), USA (12%), The Netherlands (10%), Belgium (9%), and the UK (6%) were the leading destinations of cocoa butter imports in 2015. Imports to Germany grew at a quick pace of +8% per year from 2007 to 2015. None of the major importers reduced their imports of cocoa butter over the period under review, and all of them maintained relatively stable import share sizes.TABLE OF CONTENTS1. INTRODUCTION1.1 REPORT DESCRIPTION1.2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY2.1 KEY FINDINGS2.2 MARKET TRENDS3. MARKET OVERVIEW3.1 MARKET VOLUME AND VALUE3.2 CONSUMPTION BY COUNTRY3.3 MARKET OPPORTUNITIES BY COUNTRY3.4 MARKET FORECAST TO 20204. PRODUCTION4.1 PRODUCTION IN 2007-20154.2 PRODUCTION BY COUNTRY5. IMPORTS5.1 IMPORTS IN 2007-20155.2 IMPORTS BY COUNTRY5.3 IMPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY6. EXPORTS6.1 EXPORTS IN 2007-20156.2 EXPORTS BY COUNTRY6.3 EXPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY7. PROFILES OF MAJOR PRODUCERS3 easy ways to order:1. Follow the link below to review a free sample or to buy the report:2. Call us +44 20 3239 3063 to discuss your information needs and for special discounts on multi-report orders3. Email your order to info@indexbox.co.ukPrice: 1490 EUR for Single LicenseSource:IndexBox is a leading market research publisher in the world. We conduct market research and publish reports.You can find more than 25,000 research reports in our web store, which cover global industries and regional markets. All the worldwide marketing data you need is at your fingertips.We collect this data from hundreds of highly reliable sources, verify it and carry out market analysis, uncovering new business opportunities and empowering you with actionable insights.The structure of our reports is intuitive and clear. We do our best to allow you to make strategic decisions and take immediate action. If you want to go further and be a step ahead of the market, just tell us your goals and we will tailor a report to your needs.Company Name: IndexBoxContact Person: Kirill BezverhiEmail: kirill.bezverhi@indexbox.co.ukPhone: +44 20 3239 3063Adress: United Kingdom, 44 Main Street, Douglas, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, ML11 0QWWebsite:
Seed Treatment Market - Future Trend, Growth, Forecast & Opportunities in the Coming Years

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DecisionDatabases.com offers Seed Treatment Market Research Report. This Report covers the complete Industry Outlook, Growth, Size, Share and Forecast Till 2022.Get Free Sample Copy @The global seed treatment market research report provides detailed information about the industry based on the revenue (USD MN) for the forecast period. The research study is a descriptive analysis of this market emphasizing the market drivers and restraints that govern the overall market growth. The trends and future prospects for the market are also included in the report which gives an intellectual understanding of the seed treatment industry. Furthermore, the report quantifies the market share held by the major players of the industry and provides an in-depth view of the competitive landscape. This market is classified into different segments with detailed analysis of each with respect to geography for the study period.A glimpse of the major drivers and restraints affecting this market is mentioned below:A. Drivers> A low cost solution> Rising food requirementB. Restraints> Unfavorable government policy> Difficulty in disposal of treated seedThe report offers a value chain analysis that gives a comprehensive outlook of the seed treatment market. The attractiveness analysis of this market has also been included so as to evaluate the segments that are anticipated to be profitable during the forecast period.The report segments the market on the bases of function such as crop protection chemicals and seed enhancement. Crop protection chemicals is further segmented into insecticides, fungicides and others (nematicides,harpin and biopesticides). Seed enhancement is further segmented into inoculants and physical seed treatment. Further, inoculants has been segmented into rhizobium inoculants, azospirillum inoculants, other inoculants (azotobacter, acetobacter), advantages of inoculation and regulations for commercial inoculants. The study incorporates periodic market estimates and forecasts. Each function has been analyzed based on the market size at regional and country levels.The report segments the market on the bases of types such as chemical seed treatment and non-chemical seed treatment (physical seed treatment and biological seed treatment). The study incorporates periodic market estimates and forecasts. Each crop type has been analyzed based on the market size at regional and country levels.The report segments the market on the bases of crop types such as cereals & grains (corn, wheat, and rice), oilseeds (soybean, cotton, canola and sunflower) and others (turf/forage grasses, alfalfa and sugar-beets). The study incorporates periodic market estimates and forecasts. Each crop type has been analyzed based on the market size at regional and country levels.View More about Seed Treatment Market Research Report @The report segments the market on the bases of applications technique such as seed coating, seed dressing and seed pelleting. The report provides forecast and estimates for each application technique in terms of market size during the study period. Each application technique has been further analyzed based on regional and country levels.C. Major players assessed in the report are:> BASF SE> Bayer Cropscience AG> E.I. Du Pont De Nemours and Company> Incotec Group BV> Monsanto Company> Nufarm Limited> Platform Specialty Products Corporation> Sumitomo Chemical Company Limited> Syngenta AG> The DOW Chemical CompanyGeographically, the report segments the market into regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa. The study details country-level aspects based on each segment and gives estimates in terms of market size.Major Table Of Contents:1. INTRODUCTION2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY3. MARKET ANALYSIS4. SEED TREATMENT MARKET ANALYSIS BY FUNCTION5. SEED TREATMENT MARKET ANALYSIS BY TYPE6. SEED TREATMENT MARKET ANALYSIS BY CROP TYPE7. SEED TREATMENT MARKET ANALYSIS BY APPLICATION TECHNIQUE8. SEED TREATMENT MARKET ANALYSIS BY GEOGRAPHY9. COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE OF THE SEED TREATMENT MARKET COMPANIES10. COMPANY PROFILES OF THE SEED TREATMENT MARKET INDUSTRYPurchase Complete Global Seed Treatment Market Research Report At:DecisionDatabases.com is a global business research reports provider, enriching decision makers and strategists with qualitative statistics. DecisionDatabases.com is proficient in providing syndicated research report, customized research reports, company profiles and industry databases across multiple domains.Our expert research analysts have been trained to map clients research requirements to the correct research resource leading to a distinctive edge over its competitors. We provide intellectual, precise and meaningful data at a lightning speed.3rd Floor,Fountain chambers,Nanabhai Lane,Fort, Mumbai - 1E-Mail: sales@decisiondatabases.comPhone: +91 99 28 237112Web:
Global Influenza Vaccines Market and Forecast to 2021 - Size, Share, Growth and Trends Analysis

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ReportsWorldwide has announced the addition of a new report title Global Influenza Vaccines Market and Forecast to 2021 - Size, Share, Growth and Trends Analysis to its growing collection of premium market research reports.The global influenza vaccines market is anticipated to reach nearly US$ 5 Billion by 2021. Influenza is a highly communicable disease and typically has the most severe impact on children and the elderly. Influenza viruses are considered as a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The vast population base together with significantly low vaccination coverage in emerging markets, rising government support for immunization and growing awareness of the value of influenza vaccine in preventing disease are the prominent factors that will fuel the growth of the influenza vaccines market.To view a detailed description and Table of Contents please visit:Geographically, North America is the largest market for influenza vaccines capturing around 50% market share in 2015. Asia is the second largest market for influenza vaccines. Europe is the third largest market for influenza vaccines, followed by Latin America with around XX% share in 2015. Australasia accounted for least share of the influenza vaccines market in 2015.On the basis of country, United States captures majority of the influenza vaccines market share. Japan is the second leading market for influenza vaccines with around XX% share in 2015. China and India are the third and fourth leading market for influenza vaccines with XX% and XX% market share respectively in 2015. Brazil, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Spain and South Korea are the other leading market for influenza vaccines.In the influenza vaccines brand sales segment, Sanofi's Fluzone holds the maximum share of the market being followed by Fluvirin/Flucelvax. GSK's Fluarix/FluLaval accounts for the third highest share of the influenza vaccines market. FluMist/Fluenz and Afluria/Fluvax stands at the fourth and fifth position in the influenza vaccines market, while Flublok has captured least share of the influenza vaccines market.This is the 2nd edition report on influenza vaccines market by iGATE Research. The report titled "Global Influenza Vaccines Market and Forecast to 2021 - Size, Share, Growth and Trends Analysis" provides a comprehensive analysis of the fast-evolving influenza vaccines market. This 195 Page report contains 137 Figures and 12 Tables to present a clear picture of the influenza vaccines market landscape.The Influenza Vaccines Market have been analyzed from 5 viewpoints:1. Influenza Vaccines Market, Persons Vaccinated and Forecast - By Region (2011 - 2021)2. Influenza Vaccines Market, Persons Vaccinated and Forecast - Country Wise Distribution (2011 - 2021)3. Global - Influenza Vaccines Brand Sales and Forecast to 20214. Global Influenza Vaccines Market - Major Deals5. Global Influenza Vaccines Market - Driving Factors and ChallengesInfluenza Vaccines Market, Persons Vaccinated and Forecast - By Region1. North America2. Latin America3. Europe4. Asia5. AustralasiaInfluenza Vaccines Market, Persons Vaccinated and Forecast - Country Wise Distribution (25 Countries Covered)1. United States2. Canada3. Brazil4. Mexico5. Germany6. France7. Italy8. Spain9. United Kingdom10. Netherlands11. Ireland12. Denmark13. Luxembourg14. Sweden15. Australia16. New Zealand17. Japan18. China19. India20. South Korea21. Singapore22. Hong Kong23. Malaysia24. Thailand25. IndonesiaGlobal Influenza Vaccines Brand Sales and Forecast - 7 Brands Analyzed1. Fluarix/FluLaval2. Fluzone3. Fluvirin/Flucelvax4. Influvac5. Afluria/Fluvax6. FluMist/Fluenz7. FlublokTo Get Sample Copy of Report please visit @About ReportsWorldwide.comReportsWorldwide.com is a leading provider of global market intelligence reports and services. With research reports from top publishers, consulting and advisory firms, ReportsWorldwide.com offers instant online access to a growing database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, geographies and trends.Abigail CrastoSenior Vice President101, Arch StreetBoston, MA 02110USPhone +1 (617) 398-4994Fax +1 (617) 398-4995abigail@reportsworldwide.com
Wine Barrel Market Globally Expected to Drive Growth through 2026

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http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/toc/rep-gb-2206

http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/wine-barrel-market

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A wine barrel is a hollow cylindrical container, traditionally made of Oak wood staves and bound with wooden or metal hoops. The wine barrel is majorly used for the aging of wine. After the fermentation of wine, it gets stored in the barrel for sedimentation of large solid particles and make it smooth. While the aging process, various flavors are imparted to wine as it goes through various chemical changes and allows a slow introduction of oxygen into the wine. Wine barrels are last for up to 100 years. While the aging of wine in barrels, usually gets the 50% extract that the barrel has on the first use and it gets decrease simultaneously as per the further utilization.Wine Barrel Market: DynamicsThe global wine barrel market has expected to register the significant growth as a demand of wine is increasing globally over the forecast period. Use of oak wine barrels for aging the wine makes it rich in taste and quality which is leading factor drives for the growth of the global wine barrel market. The controlled oxidation takes place during the aging in the barrel and resulted into decreased astringency and increased colour and stability of wine over the use of other barrels made up of plastic and metals which also boost the global wine barrel market in terms of revenue and volume.However, the many wine producers have started using alternative to oak wine barrels such as oak powders, chips and blocks in the normal metal vats of wine to give the essence of oak aromas and flavors which hampers the growth of the global wine barrel market. The prices of the oak wine barrels are increasing due to the difference between demand and supply, which can also restrain the growth of the global wine barrel market.Request for sample report:Wine Barrel Market: SegmentationThe global wine barrel market has segmented on the basis of type of oak wood, type of wine processed, toast level of oak wood barrel and geographical region.Based on type of oak wood, the global wine barrel market has segmented into:French oak woodAmerican oak woodEastern oak woodBased on type of wine processed, the global wine barrel market has segmented into:Red wineWhite wineBased on toast level of oak wood, the global wine barrel market has segmented into:UntoastedLight toastMedium toastHeavy toastRequest for TOC:Wine Barrel Market: Regional OutlookIn terms of geography, the global wine barrel market has been divided into five key regions, including North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Middle East & Africa (MEA). The global wine barrel market has expected to register moderate growth over the forecast period. North America has contributed the major share to the global wine barrel market due to the rapidly growing parent market of wine in the North America. North America followed by Europe has also registered a significant growth rate in terms of revenue due to increasing demand of wine. Latin America and APAC are also contributing descent market shares to the global wine barrel market over the forecast period. MEA is at nascent stage in the global wine barrel market and anticipated to register the healthy growth over the forecast period.Wine Barrel Market: Major PlayersSome of the key players of the global wine barrel market are OENEO, Francois Freres, THE BARREL MILL, Seguin Moreau Napa Cooperage, StaVin Inc., G & P Garbellotto S.p.A., Barry's Barrels, Canton, Bouchared Cooperages Australia PTY. Ltd. and Nadalie Australia.Various global companies are contributed descent growth to the global wine barrel market. The key players from North America and Europe has contributed major share to the wine barrel market in terms of revenue and volume.Over all the global wine barrel market has expected to register a significant growth over the forecast period.The research report presents a comprehensive assessment of the market and contains thoughtful insights, facts, historical data, and statistically supported and industry-validated market data. It also contains projections done using a suitable set of assumptions and methodologies. The research report provides analysis and information according to categories such as market segments, geographies, type, machine size and end use.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 us:616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705T (UK): + 44 (0) 20 7692 8790Email:sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Nov. 28

By Demir Azizov  Trend:

Permanent Mission of Uzbekistan to the UN has disseminated analytical information on inter-party competition and pluralism of opinions in anticipation of the presidential election in the republic as an official document of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly, the press service of the Uzbek Foreign Ministry said in a message.

The legislation of Uzbekistan is building a party system that serves as a means for citizens interests to be conveyed at the national policy level, reads the document.

The Constitution of Uzbekistan and the Public Associations Act, the Political Parties Act, the Political Parties (Financing) Act and a number of other legislative instruments adopted under the Constitution have laid a solid legal foundation for the establishment and free development of parties and public associations that express the interests of diverse sectors of the population, the document said.

The adoption of the act on strengthening the role of political parties in the renewal and further democratization of state governance and the modernization of the country was of fundamental importance, the document noted. This clearly defines the status of the parliamentary opposition and safeguards its activities.

The procedural and institutional framework for parties to engage in political and electoral processes has been gradually and consistently developed, reads the document. Pursuant to the 2003 and 2008 amendments and additions to the Constitution and the Presidential Elections Act, the Suffrages Guarantees Act, the Uzbek Parliament Elections Act and the Act on Elections to Regional, District and Municipal Councils, the head of state, parliamentary deputies and representatives of local government are elected exclusively on a multiparty basis.

Amendments were made to the constitution whereby the prime minister of Uzbekistan is nominated by the political party that wins the largest number of seats in the Legislative Chamber from the election, according to the document.

When a candidacy is being considered and approved in the Uzbek parliament, crucially, the candidate for the position of prime minister must submit a short- and long-term program of action for the Cabinet of Ministers. This allows the political parties represented in the Legislative Chamber to clearly set out their positions on the governments program for achieving national development milestones, and to determine the program of action for their participation, according to the document.

These and other amendments to the Uzbek constitution have created genuine conditions for an inter-party contest, a competition of ideas and programs, and the development of the multiparty system as a whole, said the document.

Uzbekistan is to hold an early presidential election December 4 due to the death of ex-president Islam Karimov, who passed away after suffering a stroke at the age of 79 on Sept. 2.

Candidates from four political parties of Uzbekistan participate in the presidential election - Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party (UzLiDeP), People's Democratic Party (PDPU), Milly Tiklanish (National Revival) Party, and Adolat (Justice) Social Democratic Party.

Among the presidential candidates are the countrys Acting President Shavkat Mirziyoyev from UzLiDeP, Sarvar Otamuratov from Milly Tiklanish Party, Nariman Umarov from Adolat Party, and Hotamzhon Ketmonov from PDPU.
Opportunities in China's SSD Market

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ReportsWorldwide has announced the addition of a new report title Opportunities in China's SSD Market to its growing collection of premium market research reportsWhile the worldwide SSD market saw respectable growth in 2015; the SSD market in China grew at a rate over three times that of the overall market. China's explosive growth was fueled by all segments of the client and enterprise SSD market.Opportunities in China's SSD Market provides a comprehensive overview of the Chinese SSD market and highlights the major local and international players active in the memory, SSD and controller space.To view a detailed description and Table of Contents please visit:This 90 page report covers the below topics:1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY2. CHINA SEMICONDUCTOR INDUSTRY China Semiconductor Memory Supply Chain China Memory Manufacturing3. NAND Flash Suppliers4. CHINA SSD MARKET Channel SSDs China Distributors IPC Market Datacenter & Enterprise SSD Cloud Services Content Delivery Search eCommerce Social Networking/Social Media Gaming5. CHINA SSD SUPPLY CHAIN SSD Suppliers Controller Suppliers China OEMsTo enquire about this Report please visit @About ReportsWorldwide.comReportsWorldwide.com is a leading provider of global market intelligence reports and services. With research reports from top publishers, consulting and advisory firms, ReportsWorldwide.com offers instant online access to a growing database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, geographies and trends.Press Contact:Abigail CrastoSenior Vice President101, Arch StreetBoston, MA 02110USPhone +1 (617) 398-4994Fax +1 (617) 398-4995abigail@reportsworldwide.com
Contact HTMLPanda for Error Free PSD To HTML5 Conversion

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November 28 2016, Delaware USA: HTML5 is an advanced web technology involved in the development of a user-friendly and accessible website. HTMLPanda can help you with trustworthy PSD to HTML5 conversion services with an innovative, featured and unique design for your business. Being a leader, we aim to offer services that are honestly impressive to make the most efficient step of development significant. With a rich experience in offering pixel-perfect conversion services in the shortest time possible, our developers create hand-coded, SEO-optimized websites that offer a great user experience by adopting the latest trends of the responsive design approach.Abreast with the expert team of developers, we assure rendering professional grade solutions. Our professionals hold expertise in the latest programming languages like JavaScript, HTML5, CSS3 and responsive web design. By utilizing the latest features, our experts are seasoned enough to use the best-optimized image, code manually and arrive at a lightweight website that offers better user experience. Our coders indulge in top-notch conversion and flawless markup to assure 100% compatibility to devices with the responsive implementation of designs. We, as a dedicated team always takes a step forward to accept new challenges to get acquainted with the latest technology for better client servicing.With our PSD to HTML5 conversion coding experts, we can handle any complex project at the quickest turnaround time. You can easily rely on our excellent HTML5 web development services for designing futuristic websites and applications at a competitive price. You will be glad to hear that we do not just accept PSD files as a source but you can also send us variety of image files like JPG, PNG, GIF, PDF, TIF etc to convert it into a clean, table-less and SEO semantic fully functional code.What you get by Opting Us as a PSD to HTML5 conversion provider?Robust XHTML Expertise100% Hand-coded markupSearch engine friendly pagesTable less XHTMLPixel-to-pixel QualityInteractive ConversionW3C validated markupNo bug issuesIntegration with top CMSOur services also include regular testing of the website for required compatibility and functionality. Our motive is to offer satisfactory results, therefore, we perform our best to delight our customers. Regardless of the industry vertical, our professionals make sure that all the requirements are tailored properly and delivered at the first place.To get a better insight of our services, get in touch with us at-As a renowned PSD to HTML5 service provider, HTMLPanda offers end-to-end conversion solutions to clients across the globe. With our HTML5 based responsive designs, you will be able to reach a newer set of target audiences as well as improve annual revenues considerably.HTMLPandaAddress: 1201 Orange St. #600,County New Castle Wilmington City,Delaware 19899,USACALL: +1 (302) 597-9039EMAIL: sales@htmlpanda.comWebsite:
Global Melamine Foam Market Segments and Key Trends 2016-2026

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http://www.qyresearchreports.com/report/global-melamine-foam-market-research-report-2016.htm

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Global Melamine Foam Industry 2016 Market Overview, Size, Share, Trends, Analysis, Technology, Applications, Growth, Market Status, Demands, Insights, Development, Research and Forecast 2016-2020.QYResearchReports.com introduces a new report recently added to its vast database. The report is titled, Melamine Foam. The report is a comprehensive analysis of the dynamics of the Melamine Foam market. It segments the global Melamine Foam market on the basis of key criteria. The market size of the Melamine Foam industry is predicted for both regional and global level. The drivers and restraints impacting the market have been discussed in detail. The report also analyses the current trends that are having a significant impact on the market. In addition to this, future opportunities in the market for players operating in the market have been discussed.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The report studies the various regulations and rules laid out by the regulatory bodies and the impact of these on the global Melamine Foam industry. In addition to this, the study discusses the markets hierarchy in each regional segment and offers estimated market size for them. The study also sheds light on the competitive landscape and discusses the challenges faced by each of the companies along with their recent developments. The strategies adopted and also the marketing tactics used by players have been discussed in the report.While massive data can be acquired about the global Melamine Foam market, focusing only on the important aspects is a challenge. Thus, analysts have collated all key aspects of the market and filtered the important data and statistics on the basis of relevance and usefulness. The report also includes the study of Porters five forces analysis, comprising the degree of competition, threat of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers and buyers, and threat of substitutes. This helps readers to get a clear picture of the market and the scope of market.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of ContentsGlobal Melamine Foam Market Research Report 20161 Melamine Foam Market Overview1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Melamine Foam1.2 Melamine Foam Segment by Type1.2.1 Global Production Market Share of Melamine Foam by Type in 20151.2.2 Rigid Melamine Foam1.2.3 Semi-Rigid Melamine Foamed1.2.4 Type III1.3 Melamine Foam Segment by Application1.3.1 Melamine Foam Consumption Market Share by Application in 20151.3.2 Industry1.3.3 Architecture1.3.4 Transportation1.3.5 Others1.4 Melamine Foam Market by Region1.4.1 North America Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.2 Europe Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.3 China Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.4 Japan Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.5 Southeast Asia Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.6 India Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.5 Global Market Size (Value) of Melamine Foam (2011-2021)2 Global Melamine Foam Market Competition by Manufacturers2.1 Global Melamine Foam Capacity, Production and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.2 Global Melamine Foam Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.3 Global Melamine Foam Average Price by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.4 Manufacturers Melamine Foam Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type2.5 Melamine Foam Market Competitive Situation and Trends2.5.1 Melamine Foam Market Concentration Rate2.5.2 Melamine Foam Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Manufacturers2.5.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, ExpansionFor Market Research Latest Reports Visit @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
Membrane Separation Market Growing at a CAGR of 10.8% by 2019

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/market-research/membrane-separation-market/toc

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The global membrane separation market was valued at USD 19.0 billion in 2012 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.8% from 2013 to 2019, to reach an estimated value of USD 39.2 billion in 2019.For More Information Request TOC (desk of content material), Figures and Tables of the report @Mandatory government regulation and increasing demand for clean processed drinking water is propelling the water processing industry to provide the public with clean processed drinking water free of impurity. Providing growth opportunity for water treatment industry among which, Membrane separation technology is one of the most popular methods used for cleaning water. Mandatory adherence of certain environmental standards by the national government such as the Clean Water Act especially in areas with water scarcity have influenced the demand for better water treatment technology, including membrane separation technology. Shifting from chemical to physical treatments of water is also a major driver as chemical treatments are perceived as an environmentally unclean technology with associated disposal costs. Additional awareness of water scarcity has influenced the demand for water reuse in water stressed areas.Governments and municipal authorities are increasingly waking up to the effects of environmental degradation on the economy. Worldwide industrial expansion and growing population are propelling the demand for better water treatment technology, providing growth opportunity for the global market of membrane separation technology. Additionally, the oil and petroleum industry is well established in the gulf and European countries such as Italy and Germany which involve membrane separation technology for liquid separation. Expansion of such industry is expected to increase the overall demand for membrane separation technology. Membrane separation technology is bifurcated into four major processes, microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration and reverse osmosis. Microfiltration dominates the market with more than 35% global market share in 2012. Whereas water & wastewater dominates the end-user market with 36% global market shares in 2012. The global membrane separation market grew from USD 19.0 billion in 2010 to USD 21.2 billion in 2013.Request Report Sample @European membrane market (largest in 2013) is expected to reach USD 13.8 billion in 2019, growing at a CAGR of 9.6%. In 2012 water & wastewater sector was the major end-user of membrane separation technology and is expected to increase at a CAGR of 11.1% during 2013-19. The membrane separation market is fragmented with several players in the market supplying membrane separation products to the end-users (water and wastewater, industrial and healthcare) in the market. Most of the companies produce different types of membrane products such as microfiltration, nanofiltration, ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis and sell them globally. Major companies operating globally and manufacturing all four products are Evoqua Water Technologies, Pall Corporation, Koch Membrane Systems Inc., Merck Millipore, Degremont SA, Dow Chemical Company, GEA Filtration, 3M Company, Nitto Denko Corporation and Veolia Environnement.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:
Gluten Free Food Market is Projected to Reach US$4.89 bn by 2021, Expanding at a 7.7% CAGR from 2015 to 2021

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http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/gluten-free-products-market.html

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com

Weight Management Opens Up New Growth Opportunities for Gluten Free Food ItemsGluten free food has created a new revenue stream in the food and beverage industry. Known to have the ability to lower cholesterol levels, ease digestive issues, and less fattening, gluten free food is seeing an increased demand amongst health conscious consumers. The gluten-free foods market has also been receiving a significant boost from the unique marketing strategies being adopted by manufacturers who are positioning these products as healthy and natural, thereby luring a large pool of the weight-conscious population.Download exclusive Sample of this report:These market drivers are expected to create an opportunity worth reach US$4.8 bn by the end of 2021 from US$2.84 bn in 2014. The market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 7.7% between 2015 and 2021. The product innovation brought in by bakers by selling gluten free items that taste and look the same as non-gluten free products are also augmenting the overall market. Thus, the growing demand for gluten free bakery products is expected to make a generous contribution to the revenues of the overall gluten free food market.Better Awareness about Health Benefits of Gluten Free Food Keeps North America in the LeadAs of 2014, North America accounted for a 23.2% share of the overall market. This share will continue to increase at a swift pace as this regional market is expected to rise at a CAGR of 11.4% from 2015 to 2021. The unprecedented growth of the gluten free food in North America will be due to the burgeoning demand for gluten free bakery items amongst the weight-conscious consumers. Furthermore, the higher level of awareness about benefits of gluten free food amongst overall consumers as compared other region will also propel this market in the near future.The high cases of celiac disease registered in the U.S. will be yet another factor responsible for the rise of this market in North America. Citing this health concern, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has set parameters for food that will be labeled as gluten free to avert the chances of consumers being misled by information printed on food packets.Browse Full Report With ToC:Gluten Free Bakery Products Remain Most Popularly Consumed Food ItemsOut of all the products available in the global gluten free food market, the bakery products segment is expected to witness a robust growth pattern. The dependency on bakery items and a wide range of bakery items available through a sprawling network of retailers will be responsible for the rise of this segment. The gluten free bakery segment is expected to progress at a CAGR of 8.5% during the forecast period. Furthermore, the growing number of diabetics who also prefer gluten free food items due their long-term health benefits will also be crucial to the momentum this segment will pick in near future.Some of the important players shaping the competitive landscape of the global gluten free market are Dr Schar AG/SpA, Boulder Brands Inc, Hain Celestial Group Inc., Freedom Foods Group Ltd., Genius Foods Ltd., and Mrs Crimble's amongst others. Companies are focusing on expanding into fresh food verticals to appeal to a wider audience in the coming years. Furthermore, players will also have to ensure utmost food safety to earn improved brand value in the near future.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. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, 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.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Roundup of Dashboard cameras market Forecasts and Market Estimates, 2020

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Dashboard cameras are real-time video recording devices usually attached on the windshield of vehicles and integrated with dashboards in the vehicle. These devices are designed to record real-time videos that capture the inward as well as outward sides of vehicles. Dashboard cameras find its applications in private cars, law enforcement vehicles, and rental and other commercial vehicles. These cameras provide continuous video recording, which could be used as evidence in event of an accident or civil or criminal lawsuits.Dashboard cameras are categorized based on technology, type and geography. The demand for dashboard cameras is majorly driven by their numerous advantages, especially their utility in case of accidents, emergency services, and for evidence gathering, among others. Dashboard cameras help insurance companies to expedite claim settlements as these cameras provide lucid evidence of the incidents. Various insurance companies offer discounts on insurance premiums for car owners who equip their vehicles with dashboard cameras. Rising support from insurance companies to install dashboard cameras is another major factor influencing the growth of this market.Get More Information:The report on the dashboard cameras market provides the current scenario as well as the future market potential of dashboard cameras, globally. The market for the dashboard cameras has been extensively analyzed on the basis of product type, technology and geography. Based on type, this market is also segmented into basic dashboard cameras, advanced dashboard cameras and smart dashboard camera.The market size and forecast in terms of revenue (US$ Mn) as well as volume (thousand units) for each of these segments have been provided for the period from 2012 to 2020, considering 2012 and 2013 as the base years. Based on the technology, dashboard cameras are categorized into single lens (single channel), multi lens (dual channel) and rearview dashboard cameras. The report also provides the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for each segment of the market for the forecast period from 2014 to 2020 and analyzes the contribution of sales channels i.e. OEMs (car manufacturers and retail). This would help dashboard camera manufacturers to select ideal distribution channels according to their requirements. The report also highlights the views of car manufacturers about integrating dashboard cameras with their new cars.Geographically, the market for dashboard cameras has been segmented into regions: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Rest of the world. The market size and forecast for each region have been provided for the period from 2012 to 2020 along with the CAGR (%) for the forecast period from 2014 to 2020. The report also includes country level analysis for major markets in Europe (Russia, France, Germany, UK, Norway and Sweden) and Asia Pacific (China, Korea, Japan and Oceania).Browse The Report:The dashboard camera market report includes the quantitative analysis in terms of unit shipment (thousand units) as well as revenue (US$ Mn) and forecast for the period 2014 to 2020. The report also highlights attractive market segments in each regional and global market which helps manufacturers and suppliers in their tactical decision making. The study also includes qualitative analysis of the competitive scenario in these regions. The market overview chapter in the report includes qualitative analysis of the overall market highlighting the factors determining the market dynamics such as drivers, restraints, and opportunities along with market attractiveness analysis and value chain analysis. This report also highlights demand supply trends, product and technology trends, original equipment suppliers and manufacturer trends in the global as well as in regional markets.The report also provides a section on the competitive landscape, wherein the market positioning of leading players in the global dashboard cameras market in 2013 has been analyzed. The report concludes with the profiles of major original equipment suppliers (OESs) and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the global dashboard cameras industry such as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) US LLC, Delphi Automotive Systems Pvt Ltd, Papago Inc., Toyota Motor Corp, Harman International Inc, Garmin International Inc, Qrontech Co., Ltd. (Lukas), Pittasoft Co. Ltd. (BlackVue), DCS Systems Ltd. (RoadHawk UK), and others.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. TMRs experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants, 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.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion Devices Market Worth US$ 4.5 Billion by 2024

Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion Devices Market

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New York, November 28: Market Research Engine has published a new report titled as Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion Devices Market By Product Type (Embolization Coils, Embolization Particles, Coiling Assist Devices, Flow Diverter Devices, Liquid Embolics, and Accessories); By Application (Peripheral Vascular Disease, Neurology, Oncology, Urology); By End-users - Global Industry Analysis and Forecast 2016 - 2024How Big is the Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion Devices Market?The Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion Devices market is expected to exceed more than US$ 4.5 Billion by 2024; Growing at a CAGR of more than 7.5% in the given forecast period.Download Free Sample Report:Transcatheter embolization is a method of insertion synthetic material or medication called embolic agent into blood vessel during catheter to block the blood flow in the direction of a specific area of the body. Embolization is a very efficient method to prevent anomalous bleeding and is simply enveloping as compared to open surgery. The transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices market have observed physically powerful development in the past few years because of the increasing focus on improvement, resulting in superior product approvals and product launches around the word. The market is also differentiating by considerable research and progress leading to numerous technological innovations.The major driving factors of Transcatheter Embolization & Occlusion devices market are as follows: Increasing prevalence of cancer Rising approval of minimally invasive surgeriesThe restraining factors of Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion devices market are as follows: High rate of the products. Need of skilled professionalsThe transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices market is segmented on the lines of its product, end user, application and regional. Product is further segmented into accessories, embolization particles, embolization coils, liquid embolics and flow diverter devices. Accessories consist of catheters, guidewires and others. Under embolization particles segmentation it covers drug eluting beads, microspheres, radio embolization particles and others. Under embolization coils segmentation it covers balloon assisted coiling, stent assisted coiling, coiling assist devices, detachable and pushable. Based on end user segmentation it covers hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers and clinics. Based on application segmentation it covers peripheral vascular disease, neurology, oncology, urology and others. The transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices market on geographic segmentation covers various regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa. Each geographic market is further segmented to provide market revenue for select countries such as the U.S., Canada, U.K. Germany, China, Japan, India, Brazil, and GCC countries.Browse Full Report:This report provides:1) An overview of the global market for transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices and related technologies.2) Analyses of global market trends, with data from 2013, estimates for 2014 and 2015, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2024.3) Identifications of new market opportunities and targeted promotional plans for transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices.4) Discussion of research and development, and the demand for new products and new applications.5) Comprehensive company profiles of major players in the industry.REPORT SCOPE:The scope of the report includes a detailed study of global and regional markets for Transcatheter Embolization and Occlusion Devices Market with the reasons given for variations in the growth of the industry in certain regions.The report covers detailed competitive outlook including the market share and company profiles of the key participants operating in the global market. Key players profiled in the report include St. Jude Medical, Inc., Abbott Laboratories,Medtronic plc, BTG plc, Boston Scientific Corporation, Cook Medical, Inc., Edwards Lifesciences, Johnson & Johnson, Merit Medical Systems, Inc., Penumbra, Inc., Pfizer, Inc., Sirtex Medical Limited, Stryker Corporation, and Terumo Corporation. Company profile includes assign such as company summary, financial summary, business strategy and planning, SWOT analysis and current developments.The Top Companies Report is intended to provide our buyers with a snapshot of the industrys most influential players.The Transcatheter Embolization & Occlusion Devices Market has been segmented as below:By Product Segment Analysis Accessorieso Catheterso Guidewireso Others Embolization particleso Drug eluting beadso Microsphereso Radioembolization particleso Others Embolization coilso Balloon assisted coilingo Stent assisted coilingo Coiling assist deviceso Detachableo Pushable Liquid embolics Flow diverter devicesBy End-user Analysis Hospitals Ambulatory Surgical Centers ClinicsBy Application Analysis Peripheral Vascular Disease Neurology Oncology Urology OthersBy Regional AnalysisNorth AmericaEuropeAsia-PacificRest of the WorldReasons to Buy this Report:1) Obtain the most up to date information available on all transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices.2) Identify growth segments and opportunities in the industry.3) Facilitate decision making on the basis of strong historic and forecast of transcatheter embolization and occlusion devices data.4) Assess your competitors refining portfolio and its evolution.About MarketResearchEngine.comMarket Research Engine is a global market research and consulting organization. We provide market intelligence in emerging, niche technologies and markets. Our market analysis powered by rigorous methodology and quality metrics provide information and forecasts across emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models. Our deep focus on industry verticals and country reports help our clients to identify opportunities and develop business strategies.Media ContactCompany Name: Market Research EngineContact Person: John BayEmail: john@marketresearchengine.comPhone: +1-855-984-1862, +91-860-565-7204Country: United StatesWebsite:Address: 3422 SW 15 Street, Suite #8942, Deerfield Beach, FL 33442, United States
Vascular Access Devices Market Worth US$ 8.0 Billion by 2024

Vascular Access Devices Market

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New York, November 28: Market Research Engine has published a new report titled as Vascular Access Devices Market By Product Type (Central Catheters ( PICC, CVC, Dialysis Catheters, Implantable Ports), Peripheral Catheters ( PIV Catheters, Midline Catheters), Accessories); By Application (Medication Administration, Administration of Fluid & Nutrition, Transfusion of Blood Products, Diagnostic Testing); By Route of Insertion (Subcutaneous and Intravenous); By End-users - Global Industry Analysis and Forecast 2016 - 2024How Big is the Vascular Access Devices market?The Vascular Access Devices market is expected to exceed more than US$ 8.0 Billion by 2024; Growing at a CAGR of more than 6% in the given forecast period.Download Free Sample Report:Vascular access devices are medical apparatus used to gain access to the bloodstream which are flexible and hollow tubes. These tubes are made by silicone, latex and other materials introduce in veins, to deliver medicine, nutritional compounds, administer fluids and collection blood products and blood. The expansion of the global vascular access devices market will be attributed to growing geriatric population and the rising frequency of kidney failure, diabetes, cancer and many diseases. Technical development in the field of vascular access has resulted in the expansion of new and an inventive product includes drug coated catheters and anti microbial coated catheters which minimized the occurrence of catheter related infections and complications.The major driving factors of Vascular Access Devices Market are as follows: Technological innovations Enhance in the number of lifestyle diseases Rising medical tourism Reimbursement policies Demographic changes Governments changing focus towards providing better healthcare services. Increase in incidences of target diseasesThe restraining factors of vascular access devices market are as follows: Lack of regulatory approvals. Catheter associated risks. Pricing pressureThe vascular access devices market is segmented on the lines of its product type, application, route of insertion, end user and regional. Product type is further segmented into accessories, central and peripheral. Central type consists of implantable ports, dialysis catheters, CVC and PLCC. Peripheral type contains midline catheters and PIV catheters. Based on application segmentation it cover diagnostic testing, transfusion of blood products, administration of fluid and nutrition and medication administration. Under end user segmentation it covers hospitals, clinics, ambulatory surgery centers and diagnostic centers. The vascular access devices market's geographic segmentation covers various regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Middle East and Africa. Each geographic market is further segmented to provide market revenue for select countries such as the U.S., Canada, U.K. Germany, China, Japan, India, Brazil, and GCC countries.Browse Full Report:This report provides:1) An overview of the global market for vascular access devices and related technologies.2) Analyses of global market trends, with data from 2013, estimates for 2014 and 2015, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2024.3) Identifications of new market opportunities and targeted promotional plans for vascular access devices.4) Discussion of research and development, and the demand for new products and new applications.5) Comprehensive company profiles of major players in the industry.REPORT SCOPE:The scope of the report includes a detailed study of global and regional markets for Vascular Access Devices Market with the reasons given for variations in the growth of the industry in certain regions.The report covers detailed competitive outlook including the market share and company profiles of the key participants operating in the global market. Key players profiled in the report include Becton, Dickinson and Company, Fresenius Medical Care,C. R. Bard, B. Braun Melsungen AG, Cook Medical Inc., Siemens Healthineers, Baxter International, and Medtronic, Inc.Company profile includes assign such as company summary, financial summary, business strategy and planning, SWOT analysis and current developments.The Top Companies Report is intended to provide the buyers with a snapshot of the industrys most influential players.The Vascular access devices Market has been segmented as below:By Product Type Analysis Accessories CentralImplantable portsDialysis cathetersCVCPLCC PeripheralMidline cathetersPIV cathetersBy Application Analysis Diagnostic testing Transfusion of blood products Administration of fluid and nutrition Medication administrationBy Route of Insertion Analysis Subcutaneous IntravenousBy End User Analysis Hospitals Clinics Ambulatory Surgery Centers Diagnostic CentersBy Regional AnalysisNorth AmericaEuropeAsia-PacificRest of the WorldReasons to Buy this Report:1) Obtain the most up to date information available on all vascular access devices.2) Identify growth segments and opportunities in the industry.3) Facilitate decision making on the basis of strong historic and forecast of vascular access devices market data.4) Assess your competitors refining portfolio and its evolution.About MarketResearchEngine.comMarket Research Engine is a global market research and consulting organization. We provide market intelligence in emerging, niche technologies and markets. Our market analysis powered by rigorous methodology and quality metrics provide information and forecasts across emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models. Our deep focus on industry verticals and country reports help our clients to identify opportunities and develop business strategies.Media ContactCompany Name: Market Research EngineContact Person: John BayEmail: john@marketresearchengine.comPhone: +1-855-984-1862, +91-860-565-7204Country: United StatesWebsite:Address: 3422 SW 15 Street, Suite #8942, Deerfield Beach, FL 33442, United States
Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market 2016 Dynamic Market Impetus, Premium Applications, Elite Projects & Sales

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Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Industry 2016 Market Overview, Size, Share, Trends, Analysis, Technology, Applications, Growth, Market Status, Demands, Insights, Development, Research and Forecast 2016-2020.Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials provides a thoroughly detailed study on the global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials market as based on a segmented pattern. Key factors dealt with in the report include the different utilities or products offered by the market players along with the supply and demand scales for current market statistics as well as projected market statistics. The global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials market is therefore analyzed first in a historical sense by gathering all relevant data over the past few years, and then migrates on to the marketas future which is a predictive analysis based on current numbers and trends, as deciphered using proven research methodologies. The interpretation of each result is left to the user who can take their business endeavors even further based on the given information.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The geographical analysis of the global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials market is conducted using multiple key regions based on continental diversities and other factors. For each key region, the report provides data based on the overall demand, its growth and the factors that influence it, the proportional presence of key players and regional ones, and the rate at which each region progresses in the market in terms of research and development efforts. The competitive landscape of the global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials market is analyzed using procedures such as the SWOT analysis, giving the reportas users a high definition perspective on the market and what it may be shaped like in the near future.The global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials market is also described on the basis of its industry chain structure, in as much detail as possible. This includes key statistics on the production rates and capacities of the overall market and details on industry policies that affect them, the efficiency with which the available resources are utilized, the current available production capacities and the rate at which they are utilized.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of Contents1 Industry Overview of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.1 Definition and Specifications of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.1.1 Definition of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.1.2 Specifications of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.2 Classification of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.3 Applications of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.4 Industry Chain Structure of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.5 Industry Overview and Major Regions Status of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.5.1 Industry Overview of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.5.2 Global Major Regions Status of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.6 Industry Policy Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials1.7 Industry News Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2.1 Raw Material Suppliers and Price Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2.2 Equipment Suppliers and Price Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2.3 Labor Cost Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2.4 Other Costs Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2.5 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials2.6 Manufacturing Process Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials3 Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis of Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials3.1 Capacity and Commercial Production Date of Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Major Manufacturers in 20153.2 Manufacturing Plants Distribution of Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Major Manufacturers in 20153.3 R&D Status and Technology Source of Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Major Manufacturers in 20153.4 Raw Materials Sources Analysis of Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Major Manufacturers in 20154 Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Overall Market Overview4.1 2011-2016E Overall Market Analysis4.2.1 2011-2015 Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Capacity and Growth Rate Analysis4.2.2 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Capacity Analysis (Company Segment)4.3 Sales Analysis4.3.1 2011-2015 Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales and Growth Rate Analysis4.3.2 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Analysis (Company Segment)4.4 Sales Price Analysis4.4.1 2011-2015 Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price4.4.2 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis (Company Segment)4.5 Gross Margin Analysis4.5.1 2011-2015 Global Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Gross Margin4.5.2 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Gross Margin Analysis (Company Segment)5 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Regional Market Analysis5.1 North America Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Analysis5.1.1 North America Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Overview5.1.2 North America 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.1.3 North America 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis5.1.4 North America 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Share Analysis5.2 Europe Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Analysis5.2.1 Europe Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Overview5.2.2 Europe 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.2.3 Europe 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis5.2.4 Europe 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Share Analysis5.3 Japan Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Analysis5.3.1 Japan Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Overview5.3.2 Japan 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.3.3 Japan 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis5.3.4 Japan 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Share Analysis5.4 China Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Analysis5.4.1 China Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Overview5.4.2 China 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.4.3 China 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis5.4.4 China 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Share Analysis5.5 Southeast Asia Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Analysis5.5.1 Southeast Asia Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Overview5.5.2 Southeast Asia 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.5.3 Southeast Asia 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis5.5.4 Southeast Asia 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Share Analysis5.6 India Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Analysis5.6.1 India Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Overview5.6.2 India 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Local Supply, Import, Export, Local Consumption Analysis5.6.3 India 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales Price Analysis5.6.4 India 2015 Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Market Share Analysis6 Global 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Segment Market Analysis (by Type)6.1 Global 2011-2016E Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Sales by Type6.2 Different Types Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Product Interview Price Analysis6.3 Different Types Hypoparathyroidism Clinical Trials Product Driving Factors AnalysisFor Latest QYResearchreports Press Release Visit @QYResearchReports.com is an unimpeachable source of market research data for clients that comprise acclaimed SMEs, Chinese companies, private equity firms, and MNCs. We provide market research reports on various categories such as Energy, Chemicals, Alternative and Green Energy, Manufacturing, Machinery, Pharmaceuticals and Materials, and Glass.QYResearchreportsContact Us1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United States+1-518-621-2074866-997-4948USA-Canada Toll freesales@qyresearchreports.com
Condiment Sauces Market is Expected to Exhibit a positive CAGR of 3.2% from 2014 through 2020, and Rise to nearly US$23.40 bn by 2020

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Condiment sauces are used in food to enhance taste, flavor or as a complimentary item in different dishes. It is used either as table dips or in cooking or as both. The condiments sauces market has experienced a diversified trends across different regions such as North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and RoW. The Global condiment sauces market is expected to witness rapid changes due to fast changing eating patterns across all the regions. In Asia Pacific region, the condiment sauces market is expected to grow significantly, mainly due to growing demand from leading markets such as Japan and China among others. In North America region, the leading markets are U.S. and Mexico. In Europe the leading market are UK, Germany, France and Russia among others. Brazil and Egypt are the developed markets in RoW. The emerging markets such as Mexico, Egypt, Turkey, South Africa, Poland and Peru among others are expected to witness growth in demand for sauces. Preference for fast food is another key factor that drives the demand for condiments sauces dramatically.Download exclusive Sample of this report:The rise in consumption of condiment sauces is supported by increasing busy life style and growing urbanization in emerging markets. Moreover, the growing preference for fast food that includes condiments sauces as an important ingredient to enhance flavor is expected to drive the market in the next six years.The demand for condiment sauces is expected to grow in the markets such as Mexico, India, Egypt, Colombia and Thailand among others due to increase in the number of fast food restaurants. The major markets such as U.S., Japan, China, and Germany are expected to witness the rising demand for tomato ketchup, soy sauce and mustard sauce over the forecast period. Condiment sauces are easily available in almost all the distribution channels such as Supermarkets or Hypermarkets, Dollar Stores, Food & drinks specialists, Variety Stores & General Merchandise Retailers, Department store and convenience stores among others. However, improving lifestyles in developed countries are expected to support the growth of supermarkets and hypermarket in the next six years.The global condiments sauce market was worth USD 18,684.3 million in 2013 and it is expected to reach USD 23,395.7 million in 2020. The global condiments sauces market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.21% from 2014 to 2020. The growth in the market is mainly attributed to growing demand for condiments sauces in developed markets such as U.S., Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and Germany for tomato ketchup, Japan, China for soy sauces, and France for mustard sauce.Browse Full Report With ToC:By country, U.S. held the largest market share followed by Japan in 2014 and this trend is expected to remain same during the forecast period. The demand for condiment sauces in these countries is driven by busy lifestyle of people and their dependence on the fast food. The demand is supported by popularity of the condiment sauces among consumers to make traditional and authentic multi-cuisine food at home. The consumption of sauces is expected to increase in countries such as Mexico, Egypt, Turkey, South Africa, Poland, Peru, Colombia, and Denmark among others by 2020.The market size of condiment sauces for U.S. and Japan is expected to grow at a higher CAGR than that of other countries in global market. However, developed markets are expected to increase the demand for condiments sauces due to busy life style and changing eating patterns.The Hypermarkets and Supermarkets, food and drinks specialists and convenience stores are the most preferred distribution channels and are expected to maintain its leading position in distribution share of condiments sauces by 2020 followed by Cash & Carries, Warehouse Clubs and Dollar Stores, and Variety Stores & General Merchandise Retailers.About UsTransparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The companys exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend 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.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Tehran, Iran, November 28

By Mehdi Sepahvand  Trend:

Irans President Hassan Rouhani has set up a committee tasked with ratifying Irans oil deals, IRNA news agency reported November 27.

Headed by Mohammad Forouzandeh, the committee will monitor the compliance of new oil deals proposed by the Oil Ministry with the regulations instated by the countrys cabinet.

The report did not mention the current position of Forouzandeh, though he may be the one who is a member of the Expediency Council, advisor to President Rouhani, a former head of the Mostazafin (oppressed) Foundation, as well as once defense minister.
Overview of Global Probiotic Strains Industry 2016 by its Market Types, Consumption, Probiotics Supplements & Applications

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The difficulty in acquiring information pertaining to markets is a problem faced by organizations. Useful data which can help enterprises make investments in such a way, that they earn profits is important for success. While an exhaustive amount of data can be acquired about a market, filtering the data is the real challenge. Analyzing and including aspects of the market that can be useful and hold potential requires the services of experienced market specialists.This report on global Probiotic Strains market offers a solution to this problem by offering an in-depth analysis of the diverse aspects of the industry. The report sketches the impact of the regulatory bodies and also discusses the ongoing trends affecting the Probiotic Strains market.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @This report studies sales (consumption) of Probiotic Strains 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, coveringChr. HansenProbiLallemandDanisco (Dupont)DSMCerbios-PharmaValioWincloveNebraska Cultures IncorporationMorinaga Milk IndustryThe factors driving the growth of the market and challenges faced by key players are included in the report. It presents valuable information about the development of the global Probiotic Strains market. The present value as well as the estimated value of the global Probiotic Strains market in the near future have been given. Primary and secondary research methods have been employed to analyze the market size. The detailed information on the companies profiled in the study makes it a must-have report for both new and established players in the global Probiotic Strains industry.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of ContentsGlobal Probiotic Strains Sales Market Report 20161 Probiotic Strains Overview1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Probiotic Strains1.2 Classification of Probiotic Strains1.2.11 Lactobacillus1.2.12 Bifidobacterium1.2.13 Bacillus1.2.14 Streptococcus1.2.15 Saccharomyces1.2.16 Enterococcus1.2.17 Pediococcus1.2.18 Lactococcus1.3 Application of Probiotic Strains1.3.1 Application 11.3.2 Application 21.3.3 Application 31.4 Probiotic Strains Market by Regions1.4.1 USA Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.2 China Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.3 Europe Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.4 Japan Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.5 India Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.6 Southeast Asia Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.5 Global Market Size (Value and Volume) of Probiotic Strains (2011-2021)Latest Press Releases @QYresearchreports.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.QYResearchReports1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-618-1030Web:Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com
South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Market Size, Company Share, Price Trends, Capacity Forecasts Outlook in to 2020

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"The Report Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry Outlook in South Korea to 2020 - Market Size, Company Share, Price Trends, Capacity Forecasts of All Active and Planned Plants provides information on pricing, market analysis, shares, forecast, and company profiles for key industry participants. - MarketResearchReports.biz"GlobalDatas new report, "Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry Outlook in South Korea to 2020 - Market Size, Company Share, Price Trends, Capacity Forecasts of All Active and Planned Plants", provides in-depth coverage of South Koreas ABS industry and presents major market trends. The report covers South Koreas ABS plants and presents installed capacity by process and technology. It also gives historical and forecast market size, demand and production forecasts, end-use demand details, price trends, trade balance data, and company shares of the countrys leading ABS producers to provide comprehensive coverage of all parameters of the ABS industry.View Report AtScope- ABS industry supply scenario in South Korea from 2006 to 2020, comprising plant capacity growth and installed plant capacity by production process and technology- Detailed information of all active plants and planned ABS projects in South Korea with capacity forecasts to 2020 and additional details such as process, technology, operator and equity- ABS industry market dynamics in South Korea from 2006 to 2020, consisting of market size, demand and production outlook, demand by end-use sector, and average prices- Trade balance data from 2006 to 2020, including import and export data and net exports and imports as a percentage of demand- Company snapshots, including company overview, business description and information on current and upcoming ABS plants- Company capacity shares for key ABS producersReasons to buy- Obtain up-to-date information on South Koreas ABS industry- Benefit from GlobalDatas advanced insights and analysis- Identify the macro and microeconomic trends affecting the industry- Understand the market positioning of the countrys ABS producers- Learn about opportunities in the ABS industry- Develop market-entry and market-expansion strategies- Benchmark your operations and strategies against those of major companiesDownload Sample copy of this Report at :Table of ContentsTable of Contents 2List of Tables 4List of Figures 5South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Supply Scenario, 2006-2020 6South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Total Plant Capacity, 2006-2020 6South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Installed Plant Capacity by Technology, 2015 12South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Company Share, 2015 14South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Market Dynamics, 2006-2020 15South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS), Industry, Market Size, 2006-2020 15South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Demand and Production Outlook, 2006-2020 17South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS), Industry, Demand by End Use Sector, 2015 19South Korea, Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Price Forecasts, 2006-2020 20South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS), Trade Balance, 2006-2020 22South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Imports and Exports, 2006-2020 22South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Net Exports, 2006-2020 24South Korea Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Industry, Imports as Percentage of Demand, 2006-2020 26LG Chem, Ltd., Company Snapshot 28LG Chem, Ltd., Company Overview 28LG Chem, Ltd., Key Information 28LG Chem, Ltd., Business Description 28Business Overview 28LG Chem, Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Market, 2015 30LG Chem, Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Capacity Split, South Korea and Rest of the World, 2015 30LG Chem, Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Plant Capacity Share in South Korea, 2015 31LG Chem, Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Capacity in South Korea, 2006-2020 32LG Chem, Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Plant Details in South Korea, 2015 32SWOT Analysis 33Overview 33LG Chem, Ltd. Strengths 33LG Chem, Ltd. Weakness 34LG Chem, Ltd. Opportunities 34LG Chem, Ltd. Threats 35Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Company Snapshot 37Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Key Information 37Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Market, 2015 38Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Capacity Split, South Korea and Rest of the World, 2015 38Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Plant Capacity Share in South Korea, 2015 39Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Capacity in South Korea, 2006-2020 40Samsung Petrochemical Co., Ltd., Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Plant Details in South Korea, 2015 40Ineos Group AG, Company Snapshot 41Ineos Group AG, Company Overview 41Ineos Group AG, Key Information 41Ineos Group AG, Business Description 41Business Overview 41Ineos Group AG, Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Market, 2015 45Ineos Group AG, Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Capacity Split, South Korea and Rest of the World, 2015 45Ineos Group AG, Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Plant Capacity Share in South Korea, 2015 46Ineos Group AG, Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS) Capacity in South Korea, 2006-2020 47SWOT Analysis 48Overview 48Ineos Group AG Strengths 48Ineos Group AG Weakness 49Ineos Group AG Opportunities 49Ineos Group AG Threats 50Appendix 52Definitions 52Installed Plant Capacity 52Technology 52Abbreviations 52GlobalDatas Methodology 52Coverage 52Secondary Research 53Primary Research 53Expert Panel Validation 53Contact Us 53Disclaimer 54MarketResearchReports.biz is the most comprehensive collection of market research reports. MarketResearchReports.Biz services are specially designed to save time and money for our clients. We are a one stop solution for all your research needs, our main offerings are syndicated research reports, custom research, subscription access and consulting services. We serve all sizes and types of companies spanning across various industries.State Tower90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-621-2074Website:E: sales@marketresearchreports.biz
Research Report Covers Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker Industry 2016 : Market Analysis

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Qyresearchreports include new market research report "Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker Market 2016 Industry, Analysis, Research, Share, Growth, Sales, Trends, Supply, Forecast to 2021" to its huge collection of research reports.Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker market is driven by various factors, a detailed assessment of which is included in the report. The study provides an in-depth analysis of the global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker market, highlighting the various growth drivers and restraints influencing the markets trajectory between 2016 and 2021. It calculates the impact of the Porters five forces on the market. Using the industry-leading analytical tools the report gauges the bargaining power of suppliers and buyers. The analysis also helps evaluating the threat of new entrants and the degree of competition prevailing in the market.Considering the dynamic consumer choices, it is imperative for companies to plan their marketing strategies better. The report provides valuable recommendations intended to help companies create winning strategies. It thus includes exhaustive information aimed at giving a better perspective of the global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker market to its stakeholders. Besides this, the report also studies the markets vulnerabilities to the latest domestic and international policies. For meticulous insights, the global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker market has been segmented based on various parameters. Factors impacting the markets growth across the segments are analyzed in detail and opportunities are reviewed.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @To study the vendor landscape prevailing in the global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker market, the report has included profiles of some of the leading companies operating therein. The product portfolio, financial reports, and strategies adopted by the companies are analyzed in detail. Furthermore, SWOT analysis is conducted to identify the opportunities and threats that these companies are forecast to witness over the course of the forecast period. The analysis also highlights the weaknesses and strengths of the companies profiled.The report therefore compiles exhaustive information on the global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker market. The data is obtained from various trusted industrial sources. It also includes insights from the industry experts.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of Contents1 Industry Overview of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.1 Definition and Specifications of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.1.1 Definition of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.1.2 Specifications of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.2 Classification of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.3 Applications of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.4 Industry Chain Structure of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.5 Industry Overview and Major Regions Status of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.5.1 Industry Overview of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.5.2 Global Major Regions Status of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.6 Industry Policy Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker1.7 Industry News Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2.1 Raw Material Suppliers and Price Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2.2 Equipment Suppliers and Price Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2.3 Labor Cost Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2.4 Other Costs Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2.5 Manufacturing Cost Structure Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker2.6 Manufacturing Process Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker3 Technical Data and Manufacturing Plants Analysis of Mobile Phone Loudspeaker3.1 Capacity and Commercial Production Date of Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker Major Manufacturers in 20153.2 Manufacturing Plants Distribution of Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker Major Manufacturers in 20153.3 R&D Status and Technology Source of Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker Major Manufacturers in 20153.4 Raw Materials Sources Analysis of Global Mobile Phone Loudspeaker Major Manufacturers in 2015For Market Research Latest Reports Visit @QYResearchReports.com is an unimpeachable source of market research data for clients that comprise acclaimed SMEs, Chinese companies, private equity firms, and MNCs. We provide market research reports on various categories such as Energy, Chemicals, Alternative and Green Energy, Manufacturing, Machinery, Pharmaceuticals and Materials, and Glass.1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United States
Industrial And Specialty Gases Market - Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Analysis And Forecast, 2012 - 2018

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Gases which are sold for general purpose to industries, mainly based on air gases and other related gases are known as industrial gases. Gases which are critical components for industries such as chemicals, materials processing, foods, semiconductors, medical, biotechnology, and environmental are known as specialty gases.The global market for industrial and specialty gases is expected to reach 10.15 trillion cubic feet by 2015.In 2009, the market for industrial and specialty gas experienced a fall due to worldwide economic slowdown. The U.S. is the market leader followed by Europe and Asia Pacific in terms of potential. The Asia Pacific market is expected to grow with a CAGR of 3.1% by 2015.Get Free PDF Brochure for more Professional and Technical insights :The major forces driving the growth of the market is the high demand from end user industries such as energy, healthcare and electronics. Moreover, increasing demand from emerging economies is the main factor contributing to the growth of the market. In addition, consolidation, strategic business alliances and concentric diversifications are the strategies propelling the growth of the industrial and specialty gases market.Structural and regulatory restrictions and penetrating market growth are some challenges faced by the industry.The market is expected to get a chance to grow due to R&D activities which are focused specially on new applications. Operating expenditure, decrease in cycle times and low capital are the other factors expected to boost the global market growth.Some of the key players of the market are Air Liquide (L Air Liquide S.A.), Air Products and Chemicals, Inc, Airgas, Inc, Praxair, Inc., the Linde Group, American Air Liquide Holdings, Inc., and Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation.This market research report analyzes important market segments, and major geographies. This report is a complete study of current trends in the market, industry growth drivers, and restraints. It provides market projections for the coming years. It includes analysis of recent developments in technology, Porters five force model analysis and detailed profiles of top industry players. The report also includes a review of micro and macro factors essential for the existing market players and new entrants along with detailed value chain analysis.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. TMR's experienced team of Analysts, Researchers, and Consultants, use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information.Our data repository is continuously updated and revised by a team of research experts, so that it always reflects the latest trends and information. With a broad research and analysis capability, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques in developing distinctive data sets and research material for business reports.ContactTransparency Market Research90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:Visit :
Carbon Footprint Management Market Expected to Reach 12.94 Billion USD By 2021

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The carbon footprint management market is estimated to grow from USD 7.76 Billion in 2016 to USD 12.94 Billion by 2021, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.8% during the period 20162021.The objective of the research study is to provide detailed segmentation of the carbon footprint management market on the basis of type, deployment model, vertical, and region. It also aims to provide information regarding the key factors influencing market growth; strategically analyze sub-segments with respect to individual growth trends, future prospects, and contribution to the total market; analyze opportunities in the market for stakeholders; provide strategic profiles of the key players in the market to comprehensively analyze the core competencies; and draw competitive landscape of the market. The base year considered for the study is 2015 and the market size forecast is from 2016 to 2021.Browse Our Recent Research on Global Carbon Footprint Management Market @The research methodology used to estimate and forecast the carbon footprint management market begins with capturing data on key vendor revenues and the market size of the individual segments through secondary sources such as European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and The Energy and Carbon Emissions Inventory Database (ECDB). The vendor offerings are also taken into consideration to determine market segmentation. The bottom-up procedure was employed to arrive at the overall market size of the global market from the individual technology segment in the market. After arriving at the overall market size, the total market was split into several segments and sub-segments, which were then verified through primary research by conducting extensive interviews with key industry personnel, such as CEOs, VPs, directors, and executives. The data triangulation and market breakdown procedures were employed to complete the overall market engineering process and arrive at the exact statistics for all segments and sub-segments.The carbon footprint management market value chain includes carbon footprint management software vendors such as Ecova, Enablon, Greenstone+, IHS Markit, processMAP, Thinkstep, and Verisae, while the services vendors for carbon footprint management include Enviance, FirstCarbon Solutions, Schneider Electric SA.Target Audience CFM vendors Energy service providers (private/government) Transportation vendors IT firms Consultants/consultancies/advisory firms Private or investor-owned utilities Government associationsThe research study answers several questions for the stakeholders, primarily which market segments to focus in during the next two to five years for prioritizing the efforts and investments.Scope of the ReportThe research report categorizes the carbon footprint management market to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub segments:Get Sample Brochure of the Report @By Type Software Service Professional Service Managed ServiceBy Deployment On-Premises On-DemandBy Vertical IT and Telecom Manufacturing Commercial Buildings Transportation UtilitiesBy Region North America U.S. Canada Europe U.K. France Germany Others Middle East and Africa (MEA) Asia-Pacific (APAC) Latin AmericaAvailable CustomizationsWith the given market data, Publisher offers customizations as per the companys specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:Product AnalysisProduct matrix which gives a detailed comparison of product portfolio of each companyGeographic AnalysisFurther breakdown of the APAC carbon footprint management marketFurther breakdown of the MEA marketFurther breakdown of the Latin American marketCompany InformationDetailed analysis and profiling of additional market playersOrder Global Carbon Footprint Management Market Analysis with Forecast (2016  2021) @About us:MarketIntelReports (MIR) aim to empower our clients to successfully manage and outperform in their business decisions, we do this by providing Premium Market Intelligence, Strategic Insights and Databases from a range of Global Publishers.A group of industry veterans who are well experienced in reputed international consulting firms after identifying the sourcing needs of MNCs for market intelligence, have together started this business savior MarketIntelReports.Contact us:Sales ManagerMayur S2711 Centerville Road, Suite 400,Wilmington,Delaware,19808United Statespr@marketintelreports.comTelephone: 1-302-261-5343
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Fatih Karimov  Trend

Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh will leave Tehran for Vienna on Nov. 29 to participate in the 171st session of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), SHANA news agency reported.

Zanganeh earlier told reporters that OPEC can reach a lasting agreement on output and management of the oil market.

Following a meeting with Algerian Minister of Energy and Mining Nureddin Bouterfa on Nov. 26, Zanganeh said that Algeria provided Iran with a package about production quota for every member.

OPEC is indebted to the Algeria meeting and efforts over the past several months to fix the production at the 32.5 million bpd level, he said, adding that Algerian energy minister's proposal to specify output quota for every member was considered carefully.

We are to set forth our views on the proposals in the 171st OPEC ordinary session in Vienna, Zanganeh said.

OPEC in its extraordinary session in Algerian on September 28, decided to fix its production at the level of 32.5 million bpd.

OPECs current output stands at 33.6 million barrels per day, so the members need to decrease the production level by 1.1 mbpd to materialize the agreed output level.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Dalga Khatinoglu  Trend:

Irans President Hassan Rouhani set up a committee tasked with ratifying Irans oil deals on November 27.

Headed by Mohammad Forouzandeh, former chief of staff of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the staff including several top officials of former hardliner president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, would monitor oil deals.

The staff members are Davoud Daneshjafari, economy minister of Ahmadinejad, Ghoalhossein Nouzari, oil minister of Ahmadinejad and several figures close the current government including Houshang Naderian, Mohammad Mir-Mohammadi and Gholamreza Shafei.

The committee will monitor the compliance of new oil deals proposed by the Oil Ministry with the regulations instated by the countrys cabinet.

The new committee staff implies that Rouhani wants to include the representatives of all political wings in the new oil and gas deals with foreigners, to reduce the oppositions ideas for the new designed oil contracts, called Iran Petroleum Contract (IPC).

Under severe disapproval by mostly government critics, the IPC model has been modified several times to meet their concerns about possible flaws.

The first tender for upstream projects had been projected for November, but the tender announcement seems to have been postponed again.

Iran unveiled the generalities of IPC in November 2015, offering 49 oil and gas projects to foreigners. In the IPC model, Iran has kept its sovereignty over its hydrocarbon reserves, but payment of all direct and indirect expenses, as well as finance and operation costs will be dependent on allocating a portion (maximum 50 percent) of products or proceeds based on current day sale prices.

IPC will replace the old buy-back contracts. It is being advertised as a risk service contract which includes integrated exploration, development and production.

Finally, Iran signed the first heads of agreement (HOA) based on IPC with Tadbiri Energy Group, affiliated with the Execution of Imam Khomeini's Order (EIKO) organization, for increasing the recovery rate of three fields on Oct. 4.

The value of the deal would be $2.2 billion after EIKO chooses a foreign partner and signs an agreement with the Oil Ministry.

IRGC and EIKO were the major critics of IPC before.

Iran needs at least $100 billion investment in upstream oil and gas projects by 2021, of which 80 percent is projected to be attracted from foreign companies.

The offered 21 gas and 29 oil fields based on IPC:
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28



By Fatih Karimov  Trend:



An economic forum dubbed Showcase Iran 2016 was opened in London on Nov. 28 to promote Irans investment opportunities, IRNA news agency reported.



The two-day event is co-organized by Frontier Exchange and the Intelligent Persians Corporation with contribution of Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines & Agriculture (TCCIMA) and the UK Department for International Trade (DIT).



Hamid Badieinejad, Irans ambassadors to the UK and Hassan Forouzanfar, a board member of the TCCIMA as well as representatives of British financial and legal firms are among the speakers of the forum.



Forouzanfar said that the forum aims to attract finance and investment to developmental projects of Iran.



Following the Nov. 28 session, private sector activists of Iran and Britain will hold mutual negotiations on the second day of the event, he added.


Monday 28 November 2016 1:17pm



Professor Crump and collaborators have studied typhoid and other causes of fever in northern Tanzania for more than a decade.

The University of Otago received a three-year NZD $439,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for Professor John Crump and collaborators at Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Centre and Duke University to study severe typhoid fever in northern Tanzania.

Typhoid fever is estimated to cause approximately 20 million fever illnesses per year, but there is considerable uncertainty about the proportion of patients who develop complications and die, especially in African countries.

Professor Crump says with new typhoid conjugate vaccines on the horizon that provide protection against typhoid fever from a younger age and for a longer duration, policy-makers need information to decide how typhoid vaccines should be deployed in affected countries.

A detailed understanding of not only the number of illnesses, but also the frequency of typhoid complications and deaths is needed for countries to weigh whether to invest in typhoid control and prevention compared investments in other diseases.

Over the past 20 years we have made great progress in understanding how many typhoid fever illnesses occur annually in various geographic locations. However, accurately measuring less common events like typhoid intestinal perforation and fatal typhoid fever is more difficult, he says.

Professor Crump and collaborators have studied typhoid and other causes of fever in northern Tanzania for more than a decade.

We are glad to have been supported to contribute data on severe typhoid fever to this important multi-centre study, he says.

It is hoped that the collective findings will help countries to better understand the impact of typhoid fever on people and in turn support decisions about investments in prevention interventions like vaccines.

For more information, contact:

Professor John Crump

Centre for International Health

University of Otago

Email: john.crump@otago.ac.nz
Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Khalid Kazimov  Trend:

Iranian police forces that had been waiting for hours outside an MPs house to arrest him backed down after the lawmakers fans held demonstrations there.

The police had waited outside to arrest Mahmoud Sadeqi, Tehran representative to the Parliament, when he was going home, but he resisted and managed to get inside, Entekhab news website quoted Sadeqi as having said.

Their effort was against the law on overseeing Parliament members, he said, adding the police were still waiting outside.

The following morning, news sources said a number of Sadeqis fans, including students, political activists, as well as some members of the parliament, had gathered outside his house. The police finally left.

Sources also said Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani had stepped in to cease the police mission.

The right-wing Fars news agency said Sadeqis warrant of arrest had been issued because some persons had pleaded against him for promoting false allegations.

Recently in his speech at the Parliament floor, Sadeqi had raised concerns about some financial workings of the Judiciary.

Following that, Judiciary Chief Sadeq Amoli Larijani raised voice against Sadeqi, accusing him of following the schemes of the post-2009 election disturbances.

In response, Sadeqi wrote a letter to the Judiciary chief, assuring him that he and some other MPs had started legal efforts to fight corruption and help economic transparency.
This year, 50 businesses will share a $72,058 premium dividend thanks to safe work practices and their participation in a workers compensation group dividend program available through the Midland Area Chamber of Commerce.

The dividend amount returned is based on each participants premium costs and range from $32 to over $12,936, with an average dividend of over $1,441.
A new group of K-12 education leaders committed to professional growth will join the Saginaw Valley State University Gerstacker Fellowship program in 2017.

As part of the initiative, 11 teachers, principals, superintendents and program administrators from across Michigan will receive concentrated leadership training over a 1-year period. The experience concludes with a capstone international trip to Japan in April.

Previous overseas trips have included Finland, China, South Korea and Taiwan. Last years group also traveled to Japan.

These trips send participants to educational institutions, where participants learn about international educational systems and corporate settings, where they discover how leadership plays out in different cultural and economic settings.

Kimberli McMahan, an elementary Spanish teacher in Midland Public Schools, was one of the 11 educators chosen for the opportunity.

This is, without question, the most treasured and important opportunity of my professional career, she said. I look forward to studying, in depth, what it means to be a good leader and a good educator in this global world with the other members of the cohort. The Gerstacker family is so generous to provide such a rich fellowship program, and I know the students of Michigan will benefit as we take action with the things we learn over the next year.

The program was established in 2005 with a $1.5 million endowment from the Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation of Midland. Participants are known as Gerstacker Fellows. They meet monthly on weekends.

SVSU faculty from various disciplines instruct the group on subjects such as organizational leadership, ethics, finances, communication, human resources, entrepreneurship and education with a global perspective.

In addition to McMahan, those selected to participate in the program in 2017 are as follows:

 Gordon Culver, a science teacher at Frankenmuth High School

 David Farley, principal and the K-8 curriculum director at Richfield Early Learning Center at Richfield Public School Academy in Flint

 Renae Galsterer, assistant superintendent of the Mount Morris Consolidated Schools District

 John-Matthew LaGalo, principal of Bridgeport High School

 Patrick Malley, principal of Meridian Early College High School in Meridian Public Schools

 Vicki Mikusko, an elementary school principal and director of special education in the Bullock Creek School District

 Carla Postell, the director of curriculum integration and instruction at Hazel Park Schools in southeast Michigan

 Noreen Saylor, a high school English language arts teacher at Carrollton Public Schools

 Brigette Uhrich, an assistant principal at the Saginaw Intermediate School District Transitions Center

 Lisa Williams, principal at Lincoln Middle School in the Van Dyke Public School District in Warren.

The Fellows were nominated by their schools and selected on the basis of their past academic and service accomplishments, and the recommendations of others as to their potential for true excellence in leadership.
Late this summer the Michigan Municipal League (MML) kicked off a statewide tour designed to educate the general public, local media, community service organizations, small business owners and elected municipal leaders about the way our state legislature funds our communities.

The League is a non-partisan nonprofit foundation based in Lansing dedicated to supporting local government leadership and economic development through advocacy in the state Legislature.

Since 2002, Michigan has cut state support for cities more than any state in the nation.

In August, I contacted MMLs COO Tony Minghine to see if he and his colleagues would be willing to bring their eye-opening educational Finance Road Show to Midland after reading about their first presentation in Jackson.

My request was quickly and respectfully denied by MMLs media director, Matt Bach. Not because they werent willing. Minghine and Bach were both excited at the prospect. Im just not a member of the League.

Instead, I was informed by Bill Allen, president and CEO of the Midland Business Alliance, that both he and City Manager Jon Lynch were working with the League to bring their SaveMiCity presentation to Midland. Both organizations, apparently, are dues-paying MML members.

A week after the statewide elections in November, I received a follow-up note from Allen. He informed me the Midland Area Chamber of Commerce (MACC) would be hosting representatives from both MML and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy for a panel discussion on the states funding of municipalities.

The lunchtime Government Affairs Committee meeting was today at 11:30 a.m. Although Im not a chamber member, I was invited to attend. I declined. Why?

Shortly before receiving Allens invitation, several friends advised me the meeting agenda theyd received said both organizations were only going to give a brief overview of their respective perspectives on the local revenue sharing conversation.

The government committee would then determine if MACCs board should make MMLs entire Investing in Michigan Communities: Finding Fair Funding for Strong, Successful Communities presentation available to the full Chamber membership.

Not to the entire community, mind you. Just the MACC membership.

How does that kind of closely-controlled cloistered conversation help the rest of the area residents, small business owners, community service organizations and elected municipal leaders throughout Midland and mid-Michigan? Especially those trying to understand and appreciate whats driving the community service, infrastructure and revenue-sharing cutbacks, budget adjustments and millage proposals made by their elected representatives at the city, township and county level of government.

In October, Mott Community College hosted the Leagues Investing in Michigan Communities road show in their state-of-the-art 125-seat Regional Technology Center auditorium.

Its located in Flint, the home of 100,000 mostly black residents and small businesses recently poisoned by financial management bills proposed, referendum-proofed and approved by Michigans GOP-controlled state Legislature and quickly signed into law by Republican Gov. Snyder as the Local Financial Stability and Choice Act 436 of 2012.

The discussion focused on the arcane budget decisions recently made by disconnected lawmakers pursing their own partisan political agendas in Lansing. About 70 community leaders, business officials and area residents attended the meeting to learn how Michigans broken system for funding municipal government has negatively impacted their local budgets for the last six years. The response was so positive that a second Save MI Cities presentation was scheduled the day after the elections at the University of Michigan-Flint.

This was the sixth community conversation MML has participated in statewide since I first contacted them about bringing their educational finance road show to Midland back in August.

It appears that a few folks downtown have decided that, except for MACC members, the rest of the taxpayers in the City of Modern Explorers arent interested in how their city, county and municipal governments are funded in Michigan.

If you want to learn more about SaveMICity, the entire two-hour MML presentation, panel discussion and Q&A session conducted in Flint is available for free at https://goo.gl/wUM2Wk

Dont miss the question that Fentons city attorney asked Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich at 01:50:29 in the video.

While listening to Ananichs response, download a copy of MMLs Michigans Great Disinvestment: How State Policies Have Forced Our Communities into Fiscal Crisis at https://goo.gl/gGhu2K. Youll find the budget hurdles currently being faced in Midland, Mount Pleasant and Saginaw mentioned on several pages in the 60-page disinvestment analysis.

When youve finished watching and reading these information-packed resources, be a good neighbor and share the links with everyone you know in the Comeback State. Especially your elected Michigan state senator, House representative, city council and county commission members. Ask them when SaveMICity is coming to Midland for all to see.

Eric Anders is a resident of Midland.
Tehran, Iran, November 28

By Mehdi Sepahvand - Trend:

Commander Fidel Castros campaign against domineering power will go down in history, wrote Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif signing a guestbook at the Cuban Ambassador to Irans residence, during a ceremony to commemorate the late Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.

Zarif wrote a note of condolence on behalf of Iran to Cuba, referring to Castro as The great leader of the revolution of the people of Cuba, who played a big role in freedom seeking and arrogance fighting in Latin America.

The government and people of Iran will always stand by the government and people of Cuba, he added.

Castro died on November 26 at the age of 90.

He famously led a guerrilla campaign that gained popular support and ousted US-backed Cuban dictator General Fulgencio Batista on January 1, 1959.
Bloomington-Normal

POP LORE, Cautious Exuberance and Flowers, For You; Dec. 3-Jan. 10, Jan Brandt Gallery, 1106 W. Bell St., Bloomington; ink on cheesecloth by Andrew LeMay Cox, mixed-media works by Erin Elizabeth and Harry Widebotham, paintings by Danny Epstein; opening reception, 7-9 p.m. Dec. 3; thereafter, viewing by appointment at janbrandtgallery@gmail.com.

Chicken Foot Gourd Bowls; through Dec. 9; Heartland Community College Joe McCauley Gallery, Instructional Commons Building Room 2507, 1500 W. Raab Road, Normal; ceramics by Danell Dvorak and drawings/paintings of them by John Cassidy; free; 309-268-8620.

ISU University Galleries; noon-4 p.m. Mon., 9:30 a.m.-7 p.m. Tue., 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Wed.-Fri., noon-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun., Uptown Station, 11 Uptown Circle, Normal; rotating exhibits in three galleries; free; 309-438-8321.

Strange Oscillations and Vibrations of Sympathy; through Dec. 18, ISU University Galleries, see above; works by contemporary female artists that acknowledge women writers. Related events: screenings of Dawn Roe's "The Sunshine Bores/The Daylights," through Dec. 18, Milner Library.

IWU Merwin and Wakeley Galleries; school hours, noon-4 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 1-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun., 7-9 p.m. Tue.; 302 E. Graham St., Bloomington; rotating exhibits; free; 309-556-3391.

Biosphere; through Dec. 9, IWU Merwin Gallery, see above; prints by by Taryn McMahon.

Hatta-Hatta; through Dec. 9, IWU Wakeley Gallery, see above; paintings and mixed-media works by Gretchen Beck.

McLean County Arts Center; 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Tue., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wed.-Fri., noon-4 p.m. Sat.; 601 N. East St., Bloomington; rotating exhibits, sales, rentals, art classes and lectures; free; 309-829-0011.

Holiday Treasures Exhibition and Sale; through Dec. 31, McLean County Arts Center, see above; affordable works and seasonal items by more than 60 local and national artists.

Abstracted Landscapes; Dec. 2-31, McLean County Arts Center, see above.; paintings by Dick Folse. Opening reception, 5-7 p.m. Dec. 2.

McLean County Museum of History; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat. (until 9 p.m. Tue.), 200 N. Main St., Bloomington; permanent and rotating exhibits; adults $5, seniors $4, students, children under 12 and members free; 309-827-0428.

Challenges, Choices and Change: Making a Home; McLean County Museum of History, see above; new permanent exhibit exploring experiences of people from around the world who made McLean County their home.

Abraham Lincoln in McLean County; McLean County Museum of History, see above; new permanent exhibit on Lincoln's life in Bloomington.

Prairie Aviation Museum; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Thu.-Sat., noon-4 p.m. Sun., 2929 E. Empire St., Bloomington; permanent and rotating exhibits and displays with aerial history themes; adults $5, ages 6-11 $3, 5 and under free; 309-663-7632.

Central Illinois

U of I Krannert Art Museum; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Sat. (until 9 p.m. Thu. during fall and spring semesters), closed Sun, 500 E. Peabody Drive, Champaign; paintings, porcelain, historical artifacts, traveling art exhibits; $3 donation suggested; 217-333-1861.

Zina Saro-Wiwa: Did You Know We Taught Them How to Dance?; through March 25, U of I Krannert Art Museum, see above; video installations, photographs, more.

Making and Breaking Medieval Manuscripts; through Feb. 11, U of I Krannert Art Museum, see above; hand-drawn/embellished scrolls, books and maps.

School of Art + Design Faculty Exhibition; through Dec. 22, U of I Krannert Art Museum, see above; various media.

Borderline Collective: Northern Triangle; through Dec. 22, U of I Krannert Art Museum, see above; installation featuring art works and historical documents.

Amity Township Museum; 1-3 p.m. first Sun. of month or by appointment, 510 Main St., Cornell; displays and artifacts relating to history of Cornell and Amity Township; free; 815-358-2973.

Spencer Sauter: Painting; 9:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Mon.-Thu., 9:30 a.m.-noon Fri., Nov. 30-Jan. 16, Illinois Central College Performing Arts Center Gallery, East Peoria; paintings; free; 309-694-5113. Opening reception: noon-2 p.m. Nov. 30.

Eureka College Burgess Hall Art Gallery; 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays and by appointment on weekends, third floor of Burgess Hall, Eureka College, Eureka; rotating exhibits; free; 309-467-6866.

Simpkins Military History Museum; 1-5 p.m. Tue., Thu., Sat., or by appointment; 605 E. Cole St., Heyworth; permanent and rotating military history exhibits; free (donations accepted); 309-473-3989.

The Vietnam War 50th Anniversary; through Nov. 30, Simpkins Military History Museum, see above.

Dickson Mounds Museum; 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, 10956 N. Dickson Mounds Road, Lewistown; displays, special exhibits; free; 309-547-3721.

Lincoln Heritage Museum; 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 1-4 p.m. Sat., Lincoln Center at Lincoln College, 300 Keokuk St., Lincoln; Lincoln-era items, audio-visual displays, tours, exhibits, more; adults $7, children/tours $4; 217-735-7399.

Contemporary Art Center of Peoria; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Sat., Riverfront Arts Center, 305 S.W. Water, Peoria; rotating exhibits in two galleries; free; 309-674-6822.

Staying the Course; through Dec. 16, Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, see above; works by Jenni Bateman, Nicola Blease-Perry, Ande Lister and Patricia Whalen-Keck.

A Small Wonder Gift Shop; through Dec. 16, Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, see above; holiday art gift show and sale.

Forest Park Nature Center Nature Art Show & Sale; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun., through Dec. 31, Forest Park Nature Center, 5809 Forest Park Drive, Peoria Heights; nature and wildlife art by local artists; 309-686-3360.

Peoria Art Guild; Foster Arts Center, Harrison and Washington streets, Peoria; rotating exhibits, gift shop; free; 309-637-2787.

Peoria Riverfront Museum; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Wed. and Sat., 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thu.-Fri., noon-5 p.m. Sun., downtown riverfront Peoria; permanent and rotating exhibits, planetarium shows, Giant Screen Theater and events; $8-$11; 309-686-7000.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition; through March 12, Peoria Riverfront Museum, see above; touring exhibit recovered artifacts from Titanic wreck site and room re-creations.

Museum of the Gilding Arts; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sun., April-Oct., and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Sun., Nov.-March, 217 N. Mill St., Pontiac; displays, history and hands-on exhibits dedicated to the art of gilding and gold beating; free (donations welcome); 815-842-1848.

Pontiac Community Art Center; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun., 103 W. Madison St., Pontiac; rotating exhibits; 815-844-5831.

5 by 5; through Nov. 30, Pontiac Community Art Center, see above; art relating to the No. 5 to commemorate center's 5th anniversary.

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sun., 212 N. Sixth St., Springfield; Lincoln-themed exhibits, historical displays, special events, more; adults $12, seniors and students $9, ages 5-15 $5, under 5 free; 217-558-8844.

Rare and Rarely Seen; through Jan. 29, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum, see above; rarely exhibited items from museum's permanent collection.
BLOOMINGTON  The state's child welfare agency will be ordered to turn over records related to a woman who has accused a man of raping her during an on-campus orientation event at Illinois State University.

Shawn Childs Jr., 19, of Chicago is charged with sexual assault and abuse of an incoming student on July 19 at Hewett Hall during Preview. Childs, also a prospective new student at the time, came to the event with his father Shawn Childs Sr., 40.

Neither Childs Jr. nor the alleged victim ended up enrolling at ISU.

The state has opposed a request by defense lawyer Stephanie Wong to subpoena the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services for the alleged victim's records.

Assistant Attorney General Anapama Parachuri argued Monday that ISU police have provided the defense with several pages of records related to the woman's conversation with her DCFS caseworker after the incident.

Further disclosures of documents about the woman, who has been a ward of the state since 2010, are inappropriate and irrelevant, said Parachuri.

In comments supporting the subpoena request, Wong outlined alleged inconsistencies in the woman's statements to authorities.

Several hours after the alleged rape, the woman, 19, told a police officer she saw Childs Jr. drop a capsule into her drink which she consumed, said Wong. An hour later, in an interview with another officer, that accusation changed and she identified a second man was identified as the person who put something in her drink, according to the defense.

Initially, Childs Jr.'s father was charged with possession of Ecstasy  the drug believed to have been put in the drink  but those charges were amended after lab results showed the substance was a different synthetic drug, cathinone. Childs Sr. pleaded guilty Nov. 4 to a reduced drug offense and was placed on probation.

Childs Sr. admitted to police that he purchased alcohol for the underage minors.

Wong said police also heard two versions of what happened inside the alleged victim's dorm room. The woman claimed Childs Jr. barred her roommate from entering the room during the incident, an account that differs from the roommate's recollection that the alleged victim refused her entry, said Wong.

The fact that the second man also spent time in the woman's room after Childs Jr. and recorded their interaction for a posting on social media is another factor that must be taken into consideration, Wong argued.

Before she was taken to the hospital several hours after she reported the incident to police, the woman told her DCFS case worker "she was OK and there was no sexual assault," said Wong.

The DCFS records could contain information of any previous claims of sexual assault made by the alleged victim against others, according to Wong.

"We are entitled to determine the credibility of this young woman. My client has the absolute right to confront his accuser," said Wong.

Drazewski ruled that he will review the confidential state records and decide what if anything will be submitted to the defense. Any documents provided to Wong will be sealed under a protective order.

A Jan. 25 hearing is set to review the status of the case. Childs Jr. remains free on $10,035 bond.
NORMAL  Graduates of Lincoln College's Accelerated Bridge to Education program have some advice for people thinking about finishing a degree.

My advice is not to talk yourself out of taking a degree, said Lee Drinan of Bloomington. The tools are in place.  People are there to help.

Tim Fulton of Normal said, It takes discipline to finish school but he found going back to school through the ABE program awakens inside of you the drive to do better.

Drinan, Fulton and Robert McClellan were recently honored by Lincoln College for scoring well on national exams called the Major Field Test.

Fulton placed in the top 5 percent on the Criminal Justice Major Field Test. Drinan and McClellan placed in the top 6 percent on the Business Major Field Tests.

Nearly 1,500 colleges and universities use on of the Major Field Tests to evaluate their curriculum and compare the effectiveness of their programs to other programs nationwide, Lincoln College officials explained. Students are required to analyze and solve problems, understand relationships and interpret material from their major field of study.

The ABE program offers bachelor's degrees in nine fields at Lincoln College's Normal campus and at satellite sites in Peoria and Oglesby. It has hybrid classes with online and in-person components. Typically, students take one class at a time and the classes meet for five to eight weeks, with a 4-hour classroom session once a week.

Fulton became a father when he was 16 and put his education on hold while he and his wife worked and got stabilized. When he decided to go to college, I wanted a teacher I could see face-to-face and a schedule that would fit around work obligations.

His wife, Kristen, also a graduate of the ABE program, inspired him, said Fulton.

We drove each other  and helped each other, he said.

Drinan said, The program really does work well for adult learners.

She liked the face-to-face classroom time.

You have such a breadth of experience that everyone in the room has. The conversation you have in the room is really good, said Drinan, who works for Wells Fargo in its corporate risk area.

Lincoln College President David Gerlach said, I am very impressed with these students, their dedication, drive and determination. They not only embraced the challenges that came with working full-time and being adult learners, but they excelled in the classroom.

Drinan said, The greatest challenge was carving out the time that it requires, but the professors are good at letting students know what's expected up front.

Once you figure out how classes are structured, it generally falls into place, she said.

Fulton, who works in information security at State Farm, said his bachelor's degree in criminal justice might not directly relate to his job but he still applies what he learned.

I was taught to think. That's what Lincoln did for me, he said.
BLOOMINGTON  City staff and an outside consultant want to expand the boundaries of a proposed tax increment financing district north of downtown Bloomington to encompass more properties, including the city-owned Creativity Center.

The City Council will consider the request when it meets at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall.

Initially, the proposed TIF district along the north side of Chestnut Street near North Main Street included the former Mennonite Hospital/Electrolux site at 807 N. Main St., three adjacent parcels owned by Illinois Wesleyan University, and the former Quinn's Shell service station.

"But through the process of having the consultant actually up here on site, we determined we should include the Creativity Center and its parking lot, the Burr House Bed & Breakfast and Taqueria El Porton Restaurant," said Bloomington Economic Development Coordinator Austin Grammer.

On Monday, the consultant, St. Louis-based Peckham, Guyton, Albers and Viets (PGAV), will present the council with the results of an eligibility study that the state requires for the creation a TIF district.

In May, the council authorized a $14,000 payment for that study. PGAV has quoted an additional fee of $17,500 to draft the proposed redevelopment plan and perform related consultant work. The city's economic development budget for this fiscal year has sufficient funds to cover the expense, said Grammer.

Once the council approves a redevelopment plan, it can then proceed with the process of establishing a TIF district.

The PGAV study determined the area in the proposed North Main Street/Chestnut Street TIF District contains conditions that qualify it as both a blighted area and one with buildings that need to be conserved.

"The former Electrolux property was determined to be blighted before becoming vacant and torn down," said Grammer. "Two buildings on that same block owned by Wesleyan are also determined to be blighted, as is the Elmo Quinn gas station across the street."

The city finalized its purchase of the former Electrolux property from Kirk Holdings LLC for $1.4 million on Nov. 2. The sale was pending completion of demolition at the site.

"Now that the city owns that property we're looking forward to partnering with Illinois Wesleyan to find a buyer to privately develop that whole four-acre block," said Grammer.

City staff is recommending the properties be combined to create a mixed-use development for residential and/or commercial use.

The three other properties are being considered for inclusion in the TIF district to provide a redevelopment tool to assist private developers in the acquisition or renovation of those sites.

In a TIF district, the increase in property tax revenue generated by improvements in the district is diverted from the taxing bodies into a fund earmarked for economic development within the district.

The bed and breakfast at 210 E. Chestnut St. is for sale, and the current owner indicated that a future buyer may need to make significant updates to the home to continue operating it as a B&B, or convert it back to a single-family residence, said Grammer.

The owner of the restaurant at 901 N. Main St. is contemplating an expansion and renovation of the building.

The council could leverage TIF funds to support renovation efforts at the Creativity Center at 107 E. Chestnut St., said Grammer.

Or, if the council ultimately chooses to divest the city of ownership of the Creativity Center building and relocate activities originally planned for the building elsewhere, or forego the entire concept, TIF could be used as a tool to support a private developer converting the building back to offices or other use, said Grammer.

PGAV conducted similar feasibility studies that led to the creation earlier this year of the the Southwest Downtown TIF District and Empire Street Corridor TIF District, which includes the former Colonial Plaza Shopping Center where several national brand stores have since opened.

The council also will consider approving applications to the Bloomington-Normal Area Economic Development Council to use the local One Voice lobbying effort in Washington, D.C., to seek federal money for two major road projects.

One application would be for the construction of the Hamilton Road extension from Bunn Street to Commerce Parkway, which could cost $14.5 million if an at-grade crossing is constructed rather than a bridge.

The second application would be for a $20 million project to widen and upgrade U.S. Business 51 between Olive Street at the southern edge of downtown Bloomington and College Avenue in Normal.
Tehran, Iran, November 28

By Mehdi Sepahvand - Trend:

The Iranian Foreign Ministry has denied reports that Tehran and Moscow have mutually lifted the visa requirements.

The ministrys spokesman Bahram Qassemi told IRNA news agency on November 28 that the final agreement for the visa waiver has not been signed yet.

It has been decided that tourist group visa requirement to be cancelled under special circumstances, something that has not become operational yet, he said.

His statement came after Sputnik news agency reported that Iran and Russia had [torn] down the visa wall.

The news agency quoted Yevgeny Ivanov, head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Consular Department, as having said that per the new agreement, tour groups of 5 to 50 people heading to Russia from Iran or vice versa will be granted a visa-free stay of up to 15 days.

Qassemi, however, said much remains to be done to remove the visa requirement for citizens on both sides.
Donald Trump is busy selecting the administration and the choices are rumored to be inexperienced in their relevant fields. Just recently the President-elect chose Betsy Devos as the nation's education secretary.

Trump praised DeVos' brilliance and stated that the education reformer can bring a real change to the education system and make it beneficial for schools and children. According to USA Today, DeVos supported the choices of Republicans in terms of education and aimed at providing innovative ways of learning. DeVos, being a reformer also emphasized the importance of parents choices in schools for their children.

It was reported that DeVos' appointment is a step towards better education for both the children and their parents as she's the founder of The American Federation for Children (AFC). But the flaw analysts found the appointment of DeVos, who is the daughter in law of Amway Cofounder Richard DeVos, will be most likely to have business inclinations just like Trump.

With that said, skeptics note that such people can only encourage privatization of schools. However, that observation is yet to be seen as the newly appointed secretary has yet to assume the position.

Meanwhile, Forbes revealed DeVos is humbled to be selected as the United States' education secretary. She also accepted the challenges of the education system in the country.

DeVos also intends to improve the quality of education. In addition, DeVos' plan also aims to provide grounds for children to develop their potential to the fullest extent possible.

It's interesting to know that DeVos has never taken any role in public education but has been active in working for choices of school. Devos is a huge supporter of charter schools and voucher-based schools, which are run on funds given by businessmen.

DeVos' choices and previous experiences are currently sparking mixed reactions from the public. But it is yet to be seen what the new education secretary is capable of and what reforms could she proposed in the coming time.
Homes are shelters and they deliver a sense of protection to those who live in them. Unfortunately, the number of homeless people in the United States seems to be increasing every year.

According to Los Angeles Times, more than 63,000 children are homeless in Los Angeles County. These children come from Latin, white and black families that are considered underprivileged beyond average. These children live in shelter homes and endure great difficulties in life.

To help such children, a program called Schools on Wheels was initiated. Schools on Wheels Skid Row Learning Center aimed to help children with their studies by tutoring them after schools. This voluntary help enabled children to learn and study what they can't study in schools.

These homeless children are facing a lot of stress and bullying in schools. They cannot also pay much attention when it comes to learning education.

Life is hard for skid row children in many ways. It is an undeniable fact that these children are living without basic necessities and households. Food is a luxury for them and meals are often provided by the volunteers. However, these food services are not always organized and are not offered on a permanent basis.

Christianity Daily also highlighted that Los Angeles is the home to most homeless children and providing them with food is a major concern. A ministry named 5 Breads and 2 Fish is contributing a lot towards feeding the families.

Food companies voluntarily sponsor the ministry and provide them with supplies of different food items. People from religious circles such as Together Presbyterian Church also help in the cause and almost one thousand families are fed through the program.

With the help and support of such programs, these homeless children are living their lived a little better. However, more efforts must be done in other areas such as health, jobs and skill training to assist them in living a non-impoverished life.
The law is a high-esteemed and economic profession, many people in the society believe that Lawyers are tough and ambitious, but we cannot deny the fact that they too are undergoing a lot of stress in their day to day lives. Pressure coming from their family, from the people surrounding them and much more from the demands of the kind of work they have.

They are trained to be intellectual and emotionally detached; they think rather than feel which hinders them to cope with emotional problems. Their profession demands perfection thus putting up pressure to give their clients and peers their highest competency. In the hearing proceedings and antagonistic nature of the court gives them the impression not to show any signs of weakness according to Lawyers with Depression.

Thus, mental health distress and substance abuse are more directly linked to the profession.

According to CBC News, the lead researcher of a U.S Study that was published in the Journal of Addiction Medicine, Patrick Krill, compared to the other high professions, lawyers are much more vulnerable to greater risk of depression about three times higher than the general population in the United States.

Journal of Addiction Medicine published last February that among the highly educated professionals the rate of lawyers is two to three times higher.

Its impact on the society is huge; people who depend on lawyers, the functioning of the economy and government are affected because of the declining capacity of the lawyers.

Michele Hollins, a lawyer who is a victim of depression, made a full recovery, and when she started her term as a president of the Canadian Bar Association last 2014, she spoke openly about mental health and made sure those programs were in place. Lawyer assistance programs are important to provide confidential counseling and treatment.


Superfetation, a rare condition where the female's reproductive cell is then fertilized by the male's reproductive cell after the first egg cell and sperm cell are ovulated, is a phenomenon that has long been speculated as far back as the 4th century by Aristotle.

The Hill Family, living in Australia, is reported by BBC that the woman of the house is conceived by having a twin with a ten-day gap. The married couple did not expect the following news since Kate Hill; the child bearer also has a condition called polycystic ovary syndrome - which the both then takes sessions for it to be treated - that makes them both think that Kate will never bare and give Peter their first child according to a BBC report.

The condition is not common to the doctors since there are still no legit explanations on how these egg cells are still ovulating even if there is an ovulated cell. A typical woman that is pregnant does not usually ovulate. As the woman gets pregnant, they excrete the hormone progesterone, which is the reason why the doctors have these doubts where these conditions are still obtained by some of the pregnant women of the globe. As to Peter Hill's situation where the sperm cells are still existing inside Kate's reproductive system, science explains that it is possible that the cells inside Kate could still be working, and for this instance, there could also be a possibility of another pair of fertilization. The sperm cells inside could still live up to several days, approximately five (5) days, according to The Mayo Clinic. There are also studies coming from The U.K.'s National Health Service that sperm cells could live up to seven (7) days and notes the public that sperm cells could wait inside the female's reproductive system and could travel up to the woman's fallopian tube so it could find another egg cell since it has its time as the female is not yet ovulated.

On the other hand, the twin sisters, Charlotte and Olivia are still safely delivered by their mother although the twins differ from their mass since it is the effect of their gaps. Their father, Peter, still considers the twin as their "little miracle."


Teens who watch porn are more prone to develop sexually abusive behaviors that turn them into sexual predators. A study has revealed just how crucial sex education is among the young, which could serve as warning to parents.

If teenagers learn sex first from pornography, then its impact could be harmful to how they view the act as they get into relationships. With kids easily having access to sensitive materials online through smartphones and other gadgets, experts said that parents should be more vigilant about where and how their teenagers are learning about sex.

Researchers from the University of Melbourne conducted the study on 14 individuals who have sexually abused other people. Of these, 12 participants confirmed that they were teens who watched porn and three participants admitted to their sexually abusive behavior because of what they have seen from these materials.

"The access that young people are having to pornography, as well as our collective 'turning a blind eye,' is akin to a kind of cultural grooming of children," lead study author Gemma McKibbin said, per The Melbourne Newsroom reports. Teens who watch porn tend to normalize sexually deviant behaviors because no one is telling them that this is not the norm.

The study's findings are not far off as there have already been several researchers on teens who watch porn who develop sexually abusive behaviors, as reported on Addiction. Some experts believe that as technology bombards kids with smut, they are not mature enough to process what they watch. Without someone properly guiding them, the kids thus develop predatory behaviors.

McKibbin recommends having a "consistent, protective sex education" among the young, which starts with the parents even before the children are old enough to go to school. But the experts also said the government should also intervene by coordinating with both porn and telecommunications industry to ensure that pornographic content aren't consumed by minors. Sex education instruction must also be improved in schools.

Parents, what do you think is the best way to handle teens who watch porn? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Nostradamus's predictions are sometimes bone-chillingly accurate. It even predicted the Sept. 11, 2001 attack on New York and many other world catastrophes. Many are interested to know what he has for next year. Nostradamus 2017 Predictions are believed to be not-so-violent compared to his predictions for the past years.

According to Alex Noudelman, probably one of the interesting Nostradamus 2017 prediction involves Russia and Ukraine. For the longest time, both countries have been in strife. This year, Russia and Ukraine will come to an agreement. This may seem clear but this could also involve handing back Crimea to Kiev.

Nostradamus 2017 prediction also involves China making a bold move. China will be the new world super power, bumping off the US in the top spot. This is also the same prediction of a blind woman, Baba Vanga.

The Latin American countries were also not spared on Nostradamus 2017 predictions. However, his prediction for this part of the globe is rather positive.

Latin American countries never had the breakthrough it needed, except for it hosting the 2016 Rio Olympics last summer. 2017 sees good development for Latin America as most will be moving away from leftist policies which is supposed to end civil unrest, thus bringing in more investments.

North Korea and South Korea have divided even after the Korean War ended in mid 1940s. Both have had violent past with a lot of provocation initiated by North Korea against the South. However, Nostradamus 2017 prediction sees both countries being reunited.

North Korean notorious leader, Kim Jong-un will be dethroned and will seek refuge in Russia. This may open the North Korean doors to finally reunite with the South, making it one Korea. Something that has been on the works for so long.

Maybe these may happen, maybe these won't. It is meant to be seen. But know that his predictions have happened with precise accuracy. According to Business Insider, he accurately predicted Death of Henry II, the great fire of London, the French Revolution, Adolf Hitler, JFK Assassinations and of course, 9-11 attacks.
Miesha Tate, a former UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion, has been slammed by Brazilian Mixed Martial Artist Bethe Correia for leaving the sport following her loss to Raquel Pennington at UFC 205. Correia reportedly believes that Tate's reactions towards her loss revealed that she is bipolar.

"She showed she's bipolar because when the UFC didn't want her fighting for the belt, she wanted to retire. She lost to Raquel and got herself in a bad phase, lost to Amanda, and announced her retirement," the Brazilian MMA fighter claimed in a report from MMA Fighting.

Correia also accused that Tate's decision to withdraw from fighting shows that the retired MMA fighter is weak. "When you're not going the way you want and you run away from it, that shows weakness," she said.

Correia apparently compared her own reaction about losing to multiple MMA fighters in the past. She claimed that despite being defeated, she did not want to retire. She also revealed that her previous fight with Rhonda Rousey left a damage in her but it encouraged her to fight more to have experience and see another fight with Rousey someday.

Meanwhile, Tate has not answered Correia's accusations yet but let's talk about bipolar disorder and how it affect one's job. Bipolar disorder presents extreme mood swings from depressive to a manic state. It is considered to be a serious mental condition as it can pose threat to an individual's health because of risky behavior.

People with bipolar disorder may find it hard to cope with work but the condition does not restrict a person from having a job. One key is to reduce stress level by picking a career carefully and taking a time off as necessary to attend therapist appointments according to WebMD.

If there is a need for financial support, some companies offer disability insurance so a recovering individual may still receive income while paying attention to recovery. It is also important to take things slow when one gets back to work as it could be stressful sometimes. Looking for part-time jobs before transitioning to full-time responsibilities may help.

Bipolar disorder can be treated with atypical antipsychotics, mood stabilizers and antidepressants apart from regular therapies. Those who experience periods of unusual behaviors, intense emotions and sleep pattern changes are advised to seek medical attention to receive proper diagnosis and treatment.
Canada is already on its way in having recreational marijuana legalized, which caused a division among the pro-cannabis users and health care professionals, especially pediatricians. The Canadian Pediatric Society is asking for help from the government to make necessary precautions in terms of having recreational marijuana available among the youth.

Pediatricians urged the government to set up an age limit in regards to the availability of recreational marijuana. According to CBC News, health care professionals raised their concern through a statement on Thursday, which did not only focus on restricting recreational marijuana access among the youth, but limiting the access of products that contains THC such as edibles, and oil.

"We want to ensure that sales of cannabis products are prohibited to all youth under the legal age for buying tobacco and alcohol, so 18 or 19, depending on their location in Canada," said Dr. Christine Grant, an adolescent medicine specialist at McMaster University who co-authored the CPS position paper. "And importantly, we want the government to strongly consider limiting the concentration of THC in cannabis that 18- to 25-year-olds can purchase legally."

It was mentioned that pediatricians are highly concerned with the youth's brain development is quite rampant and healthy during the individual's 20's, which can be altered by the marijuana consumption. It was then mentioned that by increasing the age restriction in terms of having access to recreational consumption, healthcare professionals are hoping that they can potentially decrease the brain development risks.

"We know that our brains develop well into our 20s and also from science that cannabis has an effect both structurally and functionally on our brains and that when our brains are developing we're most vulnerable," Grant said Wednesday from Hamilton. "So by limiting concentrations of THC up until 25, we're hoping we can mitigate some of the risks."

As a parent, what are your views on recreational marijuana consumption among the youth? Do let us know through the comment section below.
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Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 28

By Orkhan Quluzade  Trend:

Turkeys Prime Minister Binali Yildirim will pay an official visit to Russia on Dec. 6-7, said a message posted on the website of the Turkish PMs administration.

Yildirim is expected to have meetings in Moscow and Kazan.

The prime minister will be accompanied by ministers and a delegation of representatives of the countrys private sector.

Turkish media previously reported that Yildirim will visit Russia in early December.

Reportedly, the Turkish PM, during the negotiations with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev, will discuss further steps on normalization of relations between the two countries.

It is expected that the agenda of negotiations will include the issues of using national currencies in the trade between Russia and Turkey, creation of free trade zone, development of tourism, as well as the fight against the Islamic State (aka IS, ISIL, ISIS or Daesh) terrorist group in Syria and Iraq.

The Turkish prime minister is also expected to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This is Binali Yildirims first visit to Russia after his appointment as prime minister in May 2016.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @o_quluzade
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Today, the electoral college has become a subject of much discussion. And its not surprisingfor the first time in history, a presidential candidate has won the popular vote by nearly two million votes and yet lost the electoral college. Weve had presidential candidates win the popular vote but lose the electoral college before, but never so dramatically. Conservatives have rushed to defend the electoral collegeperhaps not surprising, given that their candidate won. Progressives, for their part, have grown critical of the systemsome are calling for doing away with the electoral college altogether.

Today I want to focus on two points. First, the electoral college we have today is not the electoral college the founding fathers set up. The founding fathers could not have imagined a disagreement between the popular vote and the electoral vote, because such a thing could not have happened in the system they set up. Second, the creation of the electoral college was, at its inception, incredibly contentious. Many founding fathers, including such luminaries as James Madison, preferred the popular vote to an electoral college system. There was fierce disagreement even then.

The Founding Fathers Electoral College

The Constitutional Convention that met in the summer of 1787 may have created a new constitution, but this document needed to be ratified by at least nine states before it would go into force. Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay wrote a series of essays now titled the Federalist Papers, explaining and defending the new constitution. Hamilton described the electoral college in Federalist No. 78:

It was desirable that the sense of the people should operate in the choice of the person to whom so important a trust was to be confided. This end will be answered by committing the right of making it, not to any preestablished body, but to men chosen by the people for the special purpose, and at the particular conjuncture. It was equally desirable, that the immediate election should be made by men most capable of analyzing the qualities adapted to the station, and acting under circumstances favorable to deliberation, and to a judicious combination of all the reasons and inducements which were proper to govern their choice. A small number of persons, selected by their fellow-citizens from the general mass, will be most likely to possess the information and discernment requisite to such complicated investigations. It was also peculiarly desirable to afford as little opportunity as possible to tumult and disorder. This evil was not least to be dreaded in the election of a magistrate, who was to have so important an agency in the administration of the government as the President of the United States. But the precautions which have been so happily concerted in the system under consideration, promise an effectual security against this mischief. The choice of SEVERAL, to form an intermediate body of electors, will be much less apt to convulse the community with any extraordinary or violent movements, than the choice of ONE who was himself to be the final object of the public wishes. And as the electors, chosen in each State, are to assemble and vote in the State in which they are chosen, this detached and divided situation will expose them much less to heats and ferments, which might be communicated from them to the people, than if they were all to be convened at one time, in one place.

If this sounds nothing like the electoral system we currently have, that would be because it is nothing like the electoral system we currently have. The only holdover from this system is that each state has a certain number of electoral votes. That the candidate that wins a states popular vote receives all of its electoral votes is new. That people vote for a presidential candidate rather than for an elector is new. That the people of each state select the electors is also newearly on, many states selected their electors via their legislatures rather than via a vote of the people; the Constitution allowed either. Andfinallythat parties run presidential slates (the president and vice president together) rather than electors voting for whatever two individuals they felt were most qualified (without political affiliation) is new, too.

When we talk about the electoral college, were actually talking about a collection of different elements. As the electoral college currently functions, the people of each state vote for a presidential candidate; the candidate which receives the majority of a states popular vote receives all of that states electors. This is not how the electoral college functioned at the beginningor how it was intended to function when the Constitution was ratified. Each state was to select electors (this selection would be made by either the legislature or the people) based not on party affiliation (the Founding Fathers did not intend for us to have political parties) but rather on the expectation of their good judgement. These electors would consider the qualifications and independently cast their votes for the two candidates they thought best (electors voted independently rather than as a state block).

Ill explain in a bit why (and how) all these things changed. What I want to emphasize here is that when we say electoral college today we are not talking about the founding fathers electoral college. Instead, we are talking about a system changed almost beyond recognition from its original creation and intention. There is absolutely no guarantee that the founding fathers, if resurrected today, would approve of our current system, because it is not the system they created. Those defending our current system are not defending the electoral college the founding fathers created. Theyre defending something new and different.

The Founding Fathers Were Not in Agreement

I often hear people talk about the Founding Fathers as though they were some sort of monolith. They were not. They were constantly disagreeing with each other. At the Constitutional Convention, some delegates argued that the Congress should select the President; others felt that would compromise the independence of the branches of government and could lead to chaos in Congress. Some supported the selection of electors while still others argued that the president should be selected by popular vote.

In the end, how the president would be elected was one of the most contentious matters addressed by the founding fathers that summer. There were 30 different votes on the topic held on 21 different days. Here are the minutes of James Madisons testimony at the Continental Congress on July 25, 1787:

The option before us then lay between an appointment by Electors chosen by the people-and an immediate appointment by the people. He thought the former mode free from many of the objections which had been urged agst. it, and greatly preferable to an appointment by the Natl. Legislature. As the electors would be chosen for the occasion, would meet at once, & proceed immediately to an appointment, there would be very little opportunity for cabal, or corruption.  The remaining mode was an election by the people or rather by the qualified part of them, at large: With all its imperfections he liked this best. He would not repeat either the general argumts. for or the objections agst. this mode. He would only take notice of two difficulties which he admitted to have weight. The first arose from the disposition in the people to prefer a Citizen of their own State, and the disadvantage this wd. throw on the smaller States. Great as this objection might be he did not think it equal to such as lay agst. every other mode which had been proposed. He thought too that some expedient might be hit upon that would obviate it. The second difficulty arose from the disproportion of qualified voters in the N. & S. States, and the disadvantages which this mode would throw on the latter. The answer to this objection was 1. that this disproportion would be continually decreasing under the influence of the Republican laws introduced in the S. States, and the more rapid increase of their population. 2. That local considerations must give way to the general interest. As an individual from the S. States he was willing to make the sacrifice.

The first difficulty Madison mentions was solved by requiring electors to vote for no more than one candidate living in their state, but was ultimately rendered moot by the rise of political parties. The second difficulty Madison discussesthe disproportion of qualified voters in the N. & S. States, and the disadvantages which this mode would throw on the latteris about slavery. The 3/5 clause, by which slaves were counted as 3/5 of a person for the purpose of representation, inflated southern power in the House. This advantage would not be replicated in a presidential election held by popular vote. Madison, though from the South himself, was fine with thisthe sacrifice was worth it, he felt.

Elbridge Gerry disagreed with Madisons support for a direct election of the president, however, because he believed the people were ignorant and not to be trusted with something as serious as a presidential election. A popular election in this case is radically vicious, Gerry stated. The ignorance of the people would put it in the power of some one set of men dispersed through the Union & acting in Concert to delude them into any appointment. Gerry wasnt alone. Others, such as John Dickinson, sided with Madison, arguing that an election by the people was the best & purist source. James Wilson agreed, arguing for the popular vote on the grounds that If we are to establish a national Government, that Government ought to flow from the people at large. Governeur Morris viewed the executive branch as the voice of the people, selected by them to protect against legislative tyranny.

Ultimately, the matter was unresolved and the issue was thrown to the Committee of Eleven on Postponed Matters. This committee created our current system, which ultimately became part of our Constitution. Rather than having the president elected by Congress or through popular vote, the electoral college provided that the states would select electors who would then choose the president. It was an eleventh-hour compromise solution. It satisfied elitist concerns about the peoples capacity to select the president while simultaneously removing presidential selection from the hands of Congress and ensuring that the people were involved in the process (electors had to be common citizens, not elected officials).

How Did We Get Our Current System?

The electoral system outlined above wasnt set up for political parties. The idea was that electors would choose a president from among various qualified politicians. However, the system did allow for each elector to select two candidates for president; this was to ensure that at least one politician could receive votes from the majority of the electors. With the rise of two competing political partieswhich happened almost immediatelyelectors began treating this double-ballot provision as a vote for president and for vice president. This created some serious problems.

George Washington did not join a political party. He did not like political parties. However, while he was in office two competing political parties developed organically. Upon his leaving office, each political party put forward its two most popular figures, urging electors who were members of their party to select these individuals. Suddenly, which political party an elector belonged to became very, very important. Suddenly, people and legislatures began selecting electors not on the basis of their sound judgement but rather on the basis of their party affiliation. Suddenly, electors began pledging, beforehand, which candidates they would vote for. In other words, the system quickly ceased to function as intended.

The breakdown was pretty dramatic.

In 1796, Alexander Hamilton, a Federalist, sought to influence the election by convincing electors who had pledged themselves to the Democratic-Republican Thomas Jefferson to also vote for the Federalist Thomas Pinckney. This was because Hamilton disliked the leading Federalist candidate, John Adams, and hoped to see Pinckney elected instead. Hamiltons plan was foiled when enough Federalist delegates voted for Adams but not Pinckney, offsetting Democratic-Republican electors who voted for Pinckney rather than Aaron Burr, the other prominent Democratic-Republican candidate.

Then there was the election of 1800. Democratic-Republican electors universally selected both Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. One elector was supposed to leave Burr off to ensure that Jefferson would receive more votes than Burr, making Jefferson president and Burr vice president, but this was bungled and the election was ultimately thrown to Congress, which then had to choose between two candidates of the same party. Burr decided he wanted to be president, not vice-president, and things got very very messy. Congress ultimately had to weigh in on an inter-party conflict.

After the election of 1800, the nations leaders went back to the drawing board, because it was very clear this system was not working. The result was the 12th amendment. This amendment stipulated that electors would vote for one candidate for president, and one candidate for vice president, thus eliminating the sort of manipulation attempt ted by Hamilton in 1796 and by the Democratic-Republicans in 1800. Ever after, electors have voted for one of a number of competing party tickets rather than for two individual candidates.

But wait! This still doesnt sound like the system we have today.

Initially, a number of states selected their electors via their legislatures. This is no longer the case. In 1868, the 14th amendment required states to allow the people to vote for the states electors; by this time, however, those states that had at one time selected their electors via the legislature had already moved away from this scheme. The last holdout was South Carolina, which persisted in having its legislature choose its electors until 1860.

Initially, the electoral vote could be split, some electors voting for each candidate. This is no longer the case. Whether to bind all of a states electors to vote for the winner of the popular vote is actually up to each individual state; it is not dictated by the Constitution. Why do states do this? A states voters tend to select a presidential candidate from the same party that controls the states legislature. At some point, legislators realized they could give their party a boost by tying all electoral votes to the states popular vote. And once one state did this, the others had to follow, or their candidate would be at a disadvantage. This is notI repeat, notrequired in the electoral college system, nor is it how the system was intended to function.

Initially, people voted for electors rather than for a president.

Check out this ticket distributed in Virginia in 1860:

If you wanted to vote for the Democratic ticketDouglas/Johnsonyou would vote for one of the electors listed on the sheet, depending on your district. Heres another:

If you wanted to vote for the Republican ticketLincoln/Hamlinand you lived in New York, you would vote for an elector from this list, depending on your district.

Today, we vote directly for a presidential ticket rather than for an elector. This is not how the founding fathers set up the electoral college system to function. And that, rather, is the pointwhat we refer to today when we speak of the electoral college is not the founding fathers electoral college. It is one that has strayed dramatically from its initial creation and intentions. It has become something else entirely.

Conclusion

Ive heard many people argue, over the past month, that the founding fathers created the electoral system to ensure that candidates had to appeal to all regions of the country, and to all demographics. This is not the case. Many founding fathers preferred a national popular vote to the electoral system ultimately createdlets not pretend this idea is newwhile other founding fathers argued that the people were incapable of making so important a selection. The electoral college was a compromise solutionand its original form differed dramatically from its current form.

Lets pause to ponder one very important point: Under the system the founding fathers created, it was literally not possible for the popular vote to come in conflict with the electoral vote because the people did not vote directly for the president.

I am by no means saying we should return to the system the founding fathers initially created. The founding fathers were not all-knowing, and the electoral college system they created was not designed for needs of the twenty-first century. In fact, their system didnt even work for the eighteenth century. They had to amend it less than two decades after penning it. But lets stop pretending that the electoral college system is the way it is today because it was intended to be that way, or meant to be that way, or designed to be that way. It wasnt.

If the electoral college still has a function today, that function is post-hoc.

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Today is one of my favorite days.

As pretty much all my friends are told, well, every year, today, the 27th of November in the calendar of the Roman Catholic church as well as for those of the Eastern Churches who follow the revised Julian calendar, this is the feast of Sts Barlaam and Josaphat. The Orthodox who continue to use the Julian calendar observe the feast on 26th of August.

Actually, for the most part this holiday is no longer actually observed. The source for the official canonization of Barlaam & Josaphat, a story of the prince Josaphat and his conversion to the true faith through the guidance of the hermit Barlaam appears in the West in the eleventh century, apparently composed by the monk Euthymios, although attributed to the seventh century John of Damascus. In fact the story is quite a bit older than either the eleventh or seventh centuries. Variations on it pop up all over the place, from the Golden Legend to Shakespeares Merchant of Venice. It is what one may call a classic.

However, in the nineteenth century scholars realized the true source of the story. The name Josaphat derived ultimately from the Sanskrit and means bodhisattva, enlightenment being. They figured out the story, through some interesting turns, was really that of the Buddha.

I do love that.

While we can say with near certainty that Jesus never visited Tibet, or even India, there was in fact lots and lots of cross fertilization. Ideas and people followed that Silk Road in both directions and for a long time.

So, of course the story of the Buddha would make it West, even if only as a faint echo. But, what about the other direction? We know Christianity made it as far as India. That church exists to this day, or, at least its descendant organizations. But, what about ancient China?

Well, it should not be much of a surprise how in 1625 workers digging near a temple discovered a large stone monument. Local intellectuals began to examine it and discovered it recorded the story of a long lost Christian mission to China. Written in Chinese and Syriac it recounted the early Seventh century mission of Bishop Alopen and the establishment of the Luminous Religion, a Chinese branch of the Church of the East, sometimes called the Nestorian Church. Whats particularly interesting is how the tablets Christianity doesnt quite line up with Nestorian orthodoxy in some interesting ways. The trinity, for instance, is mentioned, as is the incarnation, but theres no reference to a crucifixion or resurrection. It was also clear that the Luminous Religion had synthesized with both Buddhism and most of all with Daoism.

All so tantalizing, but just this one large stone monument left as testimony to something long gone. It appeared that during the Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution in the middle of the Ninth Century, while it knocked Buddhism back on its heels, it also wiped out several smaller religious communities, including the Luminous Religion, which apparently the authorities considered a Buddhist heresy. A factoid I find delicious. But what did that mean?

What the Luminous Religion actually was remained a delicious hint at something, but no one was sure of what precisely. Then on the 25th of June, in 1900 a Daoist monk stumbled onto a cache of manuscripts hidden in a cave near Dunhuang, an ancient city along that Silk Road. This discovery ranks with finding the Dead Sea scrolls and the Nag Hammadi library, and in fact in some ways exceeds them in importance. It proved a treasure trove of documents, some fifty thousand of them, in fifteen different languages, including at least one language that has otherwise been lost to the sands of history. Some of the Daoist and Buddhist texts are priceless, deeply re-orienting a world of scholarship. For me the early edition of the Platform Sutra is enormously important. The cache also included the oldest printed book in the world, an edition of the Buddhist Diamond Sutra.

And it included texts from that long gone Luminous Religion, what have come to be called the Jesus Sutras. Sutra means thread, and is used in the sense of our shared Indo-European Englishs suture, a binding thread. In Buddhism a Sutra is a sacred text. And while Christian, the shifts from normative Christianity are such that many feel Jesus Sutra a more accurate characterization of these texts.

Now the best single source about the religion and its texts for us is Martin Palmers The Jesus Sutras: Rediscovering the Lost Scrolls of Daoist Christianity. A scholarly study, although it is not without its critics, many of whom suggest he slants his translations in ways that are not warranted by the texts themselves, making the Buddhist and Daoist influences larger than is warranted. Me, Im going for his version whole hog.

There are many significant features of this Luminous Religion. One that caught me quickly is the blending of Guanyin, who had already been transformed from an indigenous Chinese goddess into the Buddhist archetype of compassion, reshapes once again with Mary, becoming a heartful image that many of us whove experienced both Buddhism and Christianity, including me, have also found ourselves. Im also taken with the integration of Christian and Buddhist liturgical practices, and most important of all Im just astonished at the new Christian texts of the Luminous Religion, those Jesus Sutras using Buddhist and Daoist imagery and idioms, and with all that transforming Christianity into something for me now very exciting and compelling. Its worth noting how this also happened earlier in Chinese religious history when Indian Buddhism came to China and began translating its texts into Chinese using Daoist terminology, and birthing out of that, that whole new Buddhism that we call Zen.

The Luminous Religion was, as it were, innocent of Augustines terrible idea of original sin, instead embraced the loveliness of the world, and while celebrating the divine origins of their teacher, consistently emphasized his teachings as the truly important thing, describing a holy way of life. They embraced both reincarnation and karma. Now, as a rationalist turn, my Buddhism doesnt actually include the classical Buddhist idea of karma and rebirth in the literalist sense of our intentions leading to some sort of post-mortem reanimation. But, I see how easily this way can enfold a rationalist understanding. Very easy, indeed.

My friend the independent scholar Adrian Worsfold summarizes the Luminous Religions followers as vegetarians, (who) promoted non-violence, charity, sexual equality, care for nature, and were (nearly uniquely in their world strongly) anti-slavery. And, while it continues the Trinitarian formula for baptism, with the change of calling the spirit, pure wind, the Luminous Religions teachings otherwise map nicely nineteenth century Unitarianism, emphasizing salvation by character, rather than through a vicarious atonement. Well, that is it would if Unitarianism emerged out of Christianity, and Buddhism, and Daoism streaming together as a new version of the ancient Watercourse Way.

All so wonderful.

The religion that I so wish caught hold

F
Patna: The Red Brigade and its various flavors including the CPI, CPI-M, and CPI-ML on Monday observed 'Jan Akrosh Diwas', or the Public Anger Day, to protest against the Center's decision to pull Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes from circulation in a purported attempt to put a lid on black money in India.

{gallery}newsimages2016/nov/112816{/gallery}The day-long bandh, by all accounts, was deemed 'lukewarm' at best with some trains being delayed by red-flag carrying protestors in Patna and other parts of Bihar. Other than the usual road block features like scuffle with people in cars and two-wheelers, clashing with law-enforcement officials, minor lathi charge to control the mob, and fiery speech by those holding the megaphones, the event was by and large peaceful across the state.

Nearly all businesses and educational institutions in Patna remained opened throughout the day though the traffic jam caused by the bandh at most major intersections like Dak Bungalow Crossing, JP Golumbar and Kargil Chowk near Gandhi Maidan, R-Block, and Gardanibagh caused enough grief to those who only cared about getting from one point to another.

Hundreds of protestors in Patna were taken into police custody but later released at their own cognizance.

Scene at Patna Junction and Rajendra Nagar Terminal was also the same as many times before where belligerent students carrying placards of their party sat on the railway tracks and hijacked locomotive engines in an attempt to disrupt railway traffic to make their point.

Meanwhile, two of the three members of the Bihar Grand Alliance  Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)  took out their own separate protest rallies in Patna and elsewhere in Bihar. Still reeling by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's decision to praise Prime Minister Narendra Modi on demonetization issue and his resolve to not join the nationwide protest on Monday, the two key allies of Nitish Kumar kept their protest rallies a low-key affair so as not to ruffle the feathers of the Janata Dal  U  the third and the most dominant constituent of the Mahagathbandhan.

Pappu Yadav's Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) also took out a small rally on Monday though Yadav himself was missing from action.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and activists celebrated the 'failure' of the day-long bandh by the leftist parties by lighting firecrackers at the Kargil Chowk.

"The whole event was a major flop and only those people who joined it were those who are against any move that aims to curb corruption. More than 90% of the people of India are in favor of demonetization. By joining the protest, both RJD and the Congress have confirmed that they have no intention of getting rid of black money that they have amassed," said senior BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition in Bihar Assembly Prem Kumar.

BJP legislators in the Assembly called Congress President Sonia Gandhi, RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, and Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal the 'dalals' (or brokers) of black money expectedly earning some boos from the Congress and the RJD leaders.
Iran State Railway Chief Resigns, 3 Arrested After Train Crash Kills 45

11/27/16

Source: Tehran Times

TEHRAN - Three railway staff have been detained after a deadly train collision took place in Iran's north-central province of Semnan on Friday. The accident happened when a passenger train in motion crashed to another one that had stopped at the station. 45 died and over 100 got wounded.







People in Tabriz held a candlelight vigil on Saturday night for the victims.

(photo by Islamic Republic News Agency)





It is believed that sub-zero temperature contributed to the first train technical failure and consequently to the crash.

The persons who were in charge at north-east railway control center at the time of the collision are now under arrest, Semnan prosecutor general Heidar Asiabi said on Saturday.



The orders for identifying any other probable guilty persons are issued and a committee to look into the causes of the accident will be formed in no time, Tasnim news agency quoted Asiabi as saying.





Source: Vatan Emrooz daily





Meanwhile, Hossein Ashouri, an Iranian Railways Company official, said one of the trains had stopped between the towns of Semnan and Damghan after an apparent mechanical failure, forcing officials to halt others on the line.



But when a new shift started at the control center in Shahroud, the second train was allowed to resume its journey, AFP reported.

Iran's railroad chief resigns over fatal train crash news

TEHRAN (Tasnim News Agency) - Managing Director of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways Mohsen Pourseyyed Aqaei resigned after a train crash that killed 45 people in the province of Semnan on Friday, offering an apology to the nation for the deadly incident.





Mohsen Pourseyyed Aqaei



Speaking to IRIB news on Saturday night, Pourseyyed Aqaei said the Minister of Road and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi has accepted his resignation. In the meantime, Iranian lawmakers are working on a plan to impeach Akhoundi for what they call his weak performance that led to the terrible train crash.




Iran Should Be Worried About a Trump Administration

11/28/16

By Shireen T. Hunter (source: LobeLog)



"Trump in the box"

Source: Front page of Iranian daily Forsat Emrooz





Those observers in Iran who thought that a victory by Donald Trump in the US presidential race would be in Iran's interests should by now have realized how wrong they were. It's not just because President-elect Trump vowed during the election campaign that he would tear up the Joint Comprehensive Plan of action (JCPOA). More importantly, he has made key appointments that will have significant consequences for the future direction of American foreign policy.

The president-elect has appointed retired Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn to the post of national security adviser, K.T. McFarland as deputy national security advisor, and Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) as director of the Central Intelligence Agency. They all have one thing in common: they loathe Iran. Equally of consequence will be the choices that Trump makes for the positions of secretary of state and defense. Currently, retired Marine General James Mattis is the frontrunner for the post of secretary of defense. He is well known for his bleak assessment of Iran's role as a troublemaker at the root of all problems in the Middle East, a country that is inherently belligerent and hostile to the United States. Two of the men mentioned for secretary of state, notably former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Senator Bob Corker, are also anti-Iran. Giuliani even seems to have a benign view of the Mujahedin e Khalq and their leader, Maryam Rajavi. Even a third candidate for this post, the 2012 Republican Party nominee for president, Mitt Romney, cannot be considered friendly to Iran.

In addition to Trump's prior statements, all these appointments and would-be appointments herald a tough approach in America's policy towards Iran in the coming year.

Beyond the JCPOA

Even if the Trump administration does not tear up the nuclear deal, it could still make life difficult for Iran. One way would be through influencing the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to become punctilious in judging Iran's compliance with the JCPOA. The agency's head, Yukio Amano, is no fan of Iran. Moreover, he is very much attuned to America's wishes. Once he senses that the winds are shifting in Washington, he will likely adjust his sails accordingly. Harassed by the agency, Iran's hardliners could push it to withdraw from the agreement. If statements by Iran's supreme leader, Grand Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Hosseini Khamenei, and by its Revolutionary Guard commanders are anything to go by, this is a distinct possibility. The leader has said that if the US tears up JCPOA, Iran will burn it. Obviously, in this event Iran would be the major loser, since the risk of a US military attack would once again become real.

Of course, Iran and the United States are not the only signatories to the JCPOA. Russia, China, Britain, France, and Germany are as well. All are likely to remain loyal to the deal even if the United States were to withdraw. Nevertheless, the European financial and business community would grow even more wary of doing business with Iran than they are now, and there is not much that their respective governments could do to force banks and businesses to deal with Iran. This would be especially so if the United States reinforced strictures on foreign banks that have wanted to do business with Teheran. Moreover, in light of all the other issues on which the Europeans will have to deal with the Trump administration, ranging from trade to the future of NATO and US relations with Europe in general, it is unlikely that Europeans would seriously challenge America on Iran. Russia has its own issues to tackle with the US, and, as it has done in the past, it would probably leverage the Iran issue to gain concessions from America on other fronts, notably Ukraine and Syria. China is in a similar position.

The US might even embark on a policy of trying to destabilize Iran internally, by manipulating various discontents, including ethnic and religious minorities. Washington might even use the Mujahedin e Khalq, despite its lack of credibility among most Iranians.

Iran's regional rivals and enemies have already been trying to gain President-elect Trump's ear. Nearly all significant leaders have either talked to him or have sent him letters of congratulations, All, from Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, have expressed hopes that Trump will be more responsive to their fears and concerns, especially regarding Iran. Even Iraq's prime minister, Haidar Al Ebadi, has been in contact with Trump. The presence of an anti-Iran administration in Washington will embolden Iran's enemies in Iraq, which are not inconsiderable. While other Middle East leaders are scrambling to talk to the president-elect, Iran refuses to deal with America officially and openly, except on an ad hoc basis. This puts Iran in a far less favorable position than its Middle East rivals. In addition, despite their current financial difficulties, some Middle East states, notably those of the Persian Gulf, can reward America by making large military purchases.

What Should Iran Do?

First and foremost, if it is subjected to excessive scrutiny by the US and the IAEA, Iran should resist the temptation of adopting a defiant posture or reneging on the JCPOA. It should avoid provocative actions such as conducting further ballistic missiles tests or holding military exercises in the Persian Gulf. These actions could provide just the excuse that Iran hawks around President Trump might need to ramp-up anti-Iran measures. Iran should even avoid inflammatory rhetoric.

Second, Iran should not underestimate the risk of a US military strike. True, this could cause damage to some American interests, but the cost to Iran would be prohibitive. Despite the government's continued cult of martyrdom, most Iranians are tired of war, sanctions, and isolation. America is not Iraq, and the Iran of today is not the one that fought the war with Iraq in the 1980s. That was a patriotic war, whatever the regime says. A substantial portion of Iranians would see an American attack as the result at least in part of reckless provocations by their own government.

Lastly, the Iranian leadership and especially the hardliners and Revolutionary Guards should realize that they can't continue their contradictory foreign policy. They cannot gain respectability and integration in international society while also waging a so-called anti-imperialist and revolutionary policy. They cannot continue attacking the US and expecting it and its allies to help them revive the Iranian economy.

Politics are seldom fair, least of all international politics. But raging against the injustices of the international system and the big powers is not a well-formed foreign policy geared to enhancing the security and prosperity of Iran and its citizens. Time is running out for Iran to mend its ways and to adopt a national instead of a revolutionary foreign policy.





About the Author:



Shireen T. Hunter is a Research Professor at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. Her latest book is Iran Divided: Historic Roots of Iranian Debates on Identity, Culture, and Governance in the 21st Century (Rowman & Littlefield, 2014).




Kofax Power PDF review TechRadar Pro

Kofax has a handful of multi-platform apps to help you alter and annotate PDFs. Standard is likely the one best suited for most needs, and is the software well be exploring in this review.
The Royal Canadian Air Force announced Monday that a CF-18 fighter jet has crashed, resulting in the death of the pilot, Sputnik International reported.

On Monday afternoon the RCAF said that it had dispatched a team of helicopters to search for the downed pilot in Cold Lake, Alberta, but that effort has ended.

"Tragically, we can confirm that the pilot did not survive the accident," the RCAF tweeted Monday afternoon. The RCAF declined to name the pilot until their next of kin has been informed.

The pilot was flying a CF-188 Hornet, commonly referred to as a CF-18 Hornet.
Not a lot has changed since we last reviewed Cayzu (whose Basic plan begins at $4 per user per month). Small companies looking to strengthen their customer service presence will find it a worthy choice in the cloud-based help desk arena, not only because of its low price but because of its ample third-party integration options. On the minus side, its lack of big-business capabilities such as change management, workflow automation, and advanced reporting keep it behind the competition, especially our four Editors' Choice winnersHappyFox, Freshdesk, and Zoho Desk and the more enterprise oriented Vivantio Pro.

Setup and Getting Started

As with most other products, signing up for a Cayzu trial is as simple as providing a primary name, email address, and phone number and a name for the help desk. A system-generated email lets you get the administrator account configured, after which you're presented with a dashboard and a to-do list to continue setup. The additional configuration steps are optional, but they include important items such as adding agents, configuring branding, and adding topics to the self-service portal.

Cayzu handles branding in a slightly different way than other help desk tools. Each additional brand or product you configure is treated as a separate instance of the app, with separate URLs, email addresses, and design elements. Each brand instance is still fully manageable from a single help desk view, however. This is an easy way to segregate your agents to handle tickets only for specific brands. You can also emphasize this separation further by using IP whitelisting.

Ticket Management

Cayzu offers several tools for efficiently handling common tasks, which can save customer service agents time and your business money. Tickets can be initiated through a web form, customer email, or even through social media such as direct messages (DMs) to your corporate Twitter account. The system will help you configure these social channels to properly route such requests so they don't overtake any social media marketing you might be doing. Once a ticket has been generated, Cayzu can automatically route it to the proper group or individual by using assignment rules created by using a single-page form. These can perform specific actions (e.g., assign to agent or set group, status, or priority) based on a set of conditions (such as brand, product, or source).

Cayzu lets you build and manage multiple custom forms for help desks that deal with numerous request types such as technical support, billing, or sales questions. One-click tools allow admins to add custom text fields, drop-down lists, check boxes, and more, quickly and easily creating forms that match the specific needs of a particular product or service. These forms help ensure that support staff gets the appropriate information to assist the customer.

You can also define quick responses which let agents provide standard answers to common questions. The company also recently integrated the agent portal with the knowledge base so agents can more quickly find useful resolution information.

Cayzu offers a lot of features for managing difficult tickets on the fly. Customizable ticket fields aren't an ad hoc feature, but they can help with handling difficult products or situations. The ability to split cases or merge conversations can make handling unusual cases easier. Like Freshdesk and Freshservice, Cayzu offers agent collision, which lets you see when someone else is looking at the same ticket as you.

Standard automations, such as closing tickets when they're resolved or when they've gone without a response from a customer for a specified period of time, can be enabled or disabled with a click. More complex automation actions are somewhat limited. The company has recently let clients use assignment rules in conjunction with custom fields to enhance automations, but you're still not getting the level of automation you'll find in tools such as Freshservice and HappyFox. For companies content with basic automations, Cayzu will work well, but it's something to investigate via the free trial before purchasing.

A Plethora of Portals

Customer self-service is a key strength for Cayzu. The company offers support for multiple user portals, each of which can be configured for a different brand or product. User portals support ticket creation, FAQs, news, and knowledge base articles. Any of these options or categories can be disabled or hidden from the user portal. You can even configure who can submit tickets through the user portal, meaning whether users must be logged in, if users or their companies must already be defined within the system, or even whether users can log in using their Google, Facebook, or LinkedIn accounts.

One additional feature that makes Cayzu's user portal a killer feature is its integration with Google Analytics (GA). The de facto standard for web analytics, GA can help you track which knowledge base articles are providing value to your customers and which areas need additional attention. And if you've got code-capable IT staffers on hand, Cayzu offers a Representational State Transfer (REST)-based application programming interface (API) that lets you build data exchanges with other business analytics tools as well. The latest release has greatly expanded the API to add more functionality.

Reporting and Analytics

Cayzu offers 14 canned reports, spanning everything from tracking your help desk workload to getting statistics about your FAQ utilization or viewing ticket submissions by contact or company. While each of these reports provides insights into key areas of your customer service business, Cayzu's reporting functionality does suffer from some limitations, although the company has addressed some of our previous complaints.

The latest updates make it possible to schedule a report to run automatically and export reports to Microsoft Excel. Report customization is still a minus unless you count the ability to add custom fields. For large organizations with advanced customer service and help desk needs, the lack of customizable reporting could be crucial. But for smaller operations, Cayzu's reporting library probably has you covered. Many help desk services, including HappyFox, lack custom reporting for just this reason, so again, Cayzu isn't alone in this regard.

Another area in which the product's not alone (witness Atlassian's Jira Service Desk) is its touting the ability to serve as an asset management platform in addition to its primary help desk mission. While Cayzu has an asset manager, it's still a tracking solution bolted onto a ticketing system. That may be fine for some, but if asset management is critical to your operation, it's another thing to check during the free evaluation period.

Integrations and Extensions

In addition to its close ties to Google Analytics, Cayzu supports a large selection of out-of-the-box integrations with popular business web apps such as FreshBooks, Microsoft Skype, Salesforce, and just recently Microsoft Teams. These are all available for easy implementation right off the Cayzu website once you've configured your primary instance of the product (no coding required).

Cayzu also easily integrates with social networks such as Facebook and Twitter. Integration with customer relationship management (CRM) solutions including SugarCRM and Zoho CRM is also available, as are several chat options. Cayzu can even leverage LogMeIn Rescue to remotely view your customer's desktop for improved troubleshooting.

For more advanced users, as mentioned, Cayzu offers a REST API, as do numerous other help desk contenders. Whether that adds any value to your business depends on how much customization your process requires and if you have the in-house coders to make use of it.

Pricing and Plans

Cayzu pricing has not changed since our previous review. The Basic plan costs $4 per user per month (paid annually) and offers email and social ticket management, a basic knowledge base, and a web widget. The Team plan costs $9 per user per month and adds assignment rules, app integrations, time tracking, and custom branding.

The Pro plan costs $19 per user per month and adds reporting, asset management, custom fields, Single Sign-On (SSO), and more. The Enterprise plan costs $29 per agent per month and adds the REST API, portal customization, and custom agent roles. The Enterprise Plus plan costs $39 per agent per month and includes IP whitelisting and a 99 percent up-time service level agreement (SLA).

Cayzu offers some key functionality over and above competing help desk platforms, notably around branding and customer self-service. But it also has some shortcomings, especially when it comes to automation and custom reporting. As always, the key to deciding whether it's the right tool for your business is determining which features are most critical for you; if providing self-service tools for multiple brands is essential, Cayzu could be right up your alley.

Cayzu 3.5 (Opens in a new window) Check Price (Opens in a new window) Pros Handles multiple brands or products with ease

Self-service portal is excellent, particularly with Google Analytics integration

Free tier is a bonus for small teams Cons Automation tools aren't comprehensive, although much improved since our initial review

Reporting engine doesn't support custom reports The Bottom Line Cayzu does well as a help desk platform for smaller businesses and startups, offering a good set of features and strong third-party integration options at a very nice price. But if you're looking for more enterprise-oriented capabilities such as advanced reporting and automation, you'll need to keep looking.
Inland Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown promised to remain active in the community in an emailed message to supporters that comes roughly two weeks after her loss to fellow Democrat Eloise Reyes.

Brown, D-San Bernardino, expressed gratitude for her friends and family in the Thanksgiving Day message.

While we were not successful this time, I am determined more than ever to remain an advocate for this region and a civic leader in the community I have called home for almost since I was a teenager, Brown said.

As a nation and as a community we have many challenges ahead. We must remain engaged, vigilant, and informed. We must continue to fight for equality, justice and tolerance. And we must work together to create a good quality of life for us all.

Brown, who was first elected to the Assembly in 2012, lost her re-election bid in the 47th Assembly District, which includes part of the city of San Bernardino in addition to Colton, Grand Terrace, Rialto and Fontana.

The race between Brown, a moderate, and Reyes, a progressive, was one of the most competitive and costly of the past election cycle. Independent expenditure committees spent more than $6 million in the district.

The Brown-Reyes fight reflected a larger battle between moderate and liberal Democrats in Sacramento. Brown angered liberals with her votes on labor legislation and gun control, among other issues, and Reyes supporters called the assemblywoman Chevron Cheryl in an effort to tie her to the oil and gas industry.

Brown said she was standing up for her blue-collar district against a liberal agenda that would cost her constituents money and jobs.
At least eight people were stabbed, hit by a vehicle or otherwise injured in an attack Monday morning on the Ohio State University campus, and a suspect was shot, school and hospital officials said.

Police did not immediately release the suspects condition and gave no details on a possible motive. Hospital officials said the eight victims had non-life-threatening injuries.

The details started to emerge after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning students that there was an active shooter on campus near the engineering building and that they should run, hide, fight. Numerous police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads.

The shelter-in-place warning was lifted about an hour and half later, and university spokesman Ben Johnson issued a statement that made no mention of any gunfire other than the shooting of the suspect. The injured were stabbed, hit by a vehicle or suffered other injuries, Johnson said.

Rachel LeMaster, who works in the engineering college, said a fire alarm sounded before the attack.

There were several moments of chaos, she said. We barricaded ourselves like were supposed to since it was right outside our door and just hunkered down.

LeMaster said she and others were eventually led outside the building and she saw a body on the ground.

Cassidie Baker, an Ohio State senior, said she saw police or paramedics helping one person on the ground outside Watts Hall, a materials science and engineering building.

No one really knows what is happening, other than theres an active shooter, she said.

After the active shooter warning was lifted and the university declared the scene secure, the school said all classes would be canceled for the rest of the day.

The initial tweet from the universitys emergency management department went out around 10 a.m. and said: Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.

Run, hide, fight is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; hide, get silently out of view; or fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.

The university followed up with another tweet: Continue to shelter in place in north campus area. Follow directions of Police on scene. The university asked anyone with information to call police.
Inland city leaders are starting to discuss how to respond to California voters Nov. 8 approval of recreational marijuana.

But wait, some residents may say, dont most cities in Riverside and San Bernardino counties already ban growing and selling pot?

They do, but many of those bans cover medical marijuana and dont mention pot for recreational purposes, or adult use, as its also described.

Not everyone agrees on whether that leaves a loophole for someone to farm pot or open a dispensary, but cities including Corona, Riverside and San Jacinto are seizing the chance to review their rules and decide what to allow.

Riverside Councilman Mike Gardner told colleagues Nov. 15 that they should discuss whether to expand the citys ban to recreational pot.

Now that it is legal, people will buy it in adjoining jurisdictions that allow it and bring it back here, whether we tax it or not or whether we allow it or not, and we will deal with whatever problems may come with that, he said.

NEW LAW

Prop. 64, the initiative that passed earlier this month, gives all California adults the right to buy, possess and grow small amounts of marijuana and use it in their own homes and other specified places such as licensed cafes. It doesnt allow people to use pot in public or drive while high, and employers still can fire workers who fail drug tests because of marijuana.

Under the new law, recreational marijuana businesses would need licenses from the state and the local jurisdiction where they want to operate. Cities still have power to regulate or ban pot businesses, including retail sales and large-scale cultivation.

Thats the main topic of debate for a number of Inland cities that already ban medical pot dispensaries.

Concerned that a hole in city rules might lead recreational pot businesses to open in Hemet, that citys council members passed a temporary ban on them Nov. 15. The ban can be extended up to two years while the council hammers out any rule changes.

The state isnt expected to start issuing licenses until 2018, so a pot business opening before that likely would be deemed illegal, Hemet Assistant City Attorney Stephen McEwen said. Having explicit rules on the books puts the city in a better position to discourage or shut down any illegal pot shops, he said.

And though the state is not expected to grant a license if a business doesnt have a city permit where it plans to open, McEwen said, You want to make sure that your provisions are very clear.

POLICY CHANGES?

With a year or so left until state licenses are available, some cities are taking the time to rethink their policies.

Until recently, Riverside was on the forefront of opposition to marijuana, winning a 2013 battle at the state Supreme Court over whether cities can ban dispensaries through zoning. Since 2009, the city has shut down 108 dispensaries.

Early next year, Riverside council members will discuss whether to regulate and tax pot shops.

What changed?

This is something thats now legal in our state, whereas it was only legal for very limited purposes previously, Gardner said.

But for Gardner and officials in other cities, many questions remain. How many pot stores could open, and where would they be located? How could such all-cash businesses deter robberies and other crime? What about commercial marijuana farming?

Weve had numerous requests from people that want to grow or manufacture (pot) products, Corona Councilman Eugene Montanez said. Im afraid that unless we come up with some sort of rules and regulations, it could get out of hand.

Montanez said he opposed Prop. 64 and has concerns about pot and law enforcement, especially driving under the influence. He wants the council to talk about not only what policy is right for Corona, but how surrounding communities pot decisions might affect the city.

NOT FOR ALL

Other Inland communities are studying the issue but may end up doubling down on their medical pot bans.

Upland city leaders fought to get Measure U, which would allow medical marijuana dispensaries, on the November ballot instead of a special election. The California Cannabis Coalition, which backed the initiative, is still battling the city in court, but voters rejected the measure Nov. 8, said Santa Monica attorney Roger Jon Diamond, who represents the coalition.

San Jacinto recently approved a temporary ban on pot businesses and is working on new rules that could require permits for those who wish to grow the six plants theyre allowed under Prop. 64 and could allow a limited number of outdoor grows on large lots.

City voters just approved a measure that puts a tax of up to $50 per square foot on marijuana cultivation or manufacturing, but that doesnt mean the council will charge that much or even permit large pot grows, said deputy City Attorney Mike Maurer.

Council members put the tax on the ballot so they dont have to return to voters later, he said.

Its up to the city from a policy standpoint to decide what type of businesses, if any, they want to allow, Maurer said.

At least one San Jacinto councilman will continue to just say no. Alonso Ledezma said he believes allowing recreational pot will lead users to harder drugs and bring crime.

I dont even want to hear the word, he said. Its really bad for the community.

WAY FORWARD?

Some marijuana proponents see the new wave of city discussions as a chance to change minds.

Passage of Prop. 64 is one more reason local municipalities should consider passing sensible regulations on marijuana rather than outright bans, Riverside attorney Jason Thompson said.

Thompson is working with clients who want permission to grow pot commercially in Beaumont and are pushing a possible ballot measure to regulate marijuana in Jurupa Valley.

Many cities budgets are tight, so allowing pot sales could boost the local tax base, Thompson said, adding, If they think its just a small amount of money, theyre sadly mistaken.

Diamond, the Santa Monica attorney, doesnt see most local leaders reconsidering their opposition to pot, and he said its hard to say whether the outcome of Prop. 64 indicates Inland officials are out of step with their constituents.

For him, its best to take the issue straight to voters. Though the Upland measure failed, the approach worked in San Bernardino. Voters there approved Measure O, which allows up to five marijuana businesses to open in the citys commercial and industrial zones.

Diamond represented Vincent Guzman, the San Bernardino resident behind Measure O.

I dont sense yet a willingness on the part of the cities, so my vision would be more initiatives, Diamond said.

The traditional reason for an initiative in the first place is to bypass the legislative body when theyre unresponsive.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9461arobinson@scng.comTwitter: @arobinson_pe
Two weeks ago the United States and the United Kingdom issued separate statements that threatened to revoke the visas of Ghanaian politicians who would incite violence prior and in the aftermath of the December 7, 2016 general elections.



Keen observers would agree that although these countries appeared and indeed were accused by a section of the Ghanaian public of interfering in Ghanas domestic affairs, their deterrent statements appear to have calmed the violent rhetoric and the actual attack against political activists and civilians in the run-up to the elections.



Whilst acknowledging that the underlying motivation of states in the international arena is the pursuit of their national interests, it is noteworthy that the import of the statements that were issued by the United States and the United Kingdom were consistent with the international norm of the responsibility to prevent which is one of the three pillars of the Responsibility to Protect Doctrine that was adopted by the United Nations over a decade ago.



The other two pillars are responsibility to react (intervention) and responsibility to rebuild during and after violent conflicts, respectively.



To be sure, the Responsibility to Protect Doctrine redefines sovereignty as shared responsibility of states and the international community to protect human rights and the rule of law.



Thus, in the context of the potential threat of widespread violence in Ghana at the time, the United States and the United Kingdom behaved as good international citizens who sought to impress upon Ghanaian politicians and people to respect the rule of law and human rights. The diplomatic move by the United States and the United Kingdom should motivate the behavior of external players who have (in)direct interest in a peaceful, prosperous, and secured Ghana.



Informed readers would agree that the porous nature of the land borders of African states and the ethnic affiliations along these borders pose a major challenge to Africas international relations and national security and human security.



As colonial impositions, porous land borders are partly responsible for the irresolvable violent conflicts that are dotted on the African continent. Not only are these porous borders exploited by criminal groups, and in some cases state actors, in the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons and drugs, but as well, these largely unprotected boundaries are major sources of threat especially during democratic elections.



In the specific case of Ghana, the two major political partiesNew Patriotic Party and National Democratic Congress are constantly engaged in the trading of accusations and counteraccusations that foreigners usually cross Ghanas borders to participate in the voting during general elections. In fact the allegation of the presence of foreigners on Ghanas electoral register is yet to be settled in contemporary Ghanaian politics.



Given the delicate nature of the lingering border and foreign voters issue, and the ramification for national and human security, the upcoming Ghana elections, in my view, provide a unique opportunity for Ghanas neighbors and partners to play a crucial external role to ensure the integrity and transparency of the elections. In other words, within the context of the norm of the responsibility to prevent (electoral disputes that could degenerate into violence), external players in Africa and beyond must be proactive in mitigating the perceived or real problem of foreign voters participation in Ghanas elections.



An immediate step forward is to initiate a regime of high level diplomatic involvement through the issuing of public diplomatic sermons that not only impress upon Ghanas neighbors to restrain non-Ghanaians from participating in Ghanas elections but also facilitating the safe passage of Ghanaians who are returning to participate in the upcoming elections.



Corollary, it would serve the enlightened interest of Ghanas neighbors to adopt unilateral domestic policies that aim at ensuring the security, integrity, and transparency of Ghanas December 7, 2016 elections. Ghana should reciprocate such a diplomatic gesture in future. This is necessary in the sense that geography alone has imposed inalienable mutual security and economic interests upon Ghana, Burkina Faso, The Ivory Coast and Togo.



Aside from Ghanas immediate neighbors, regional bodies, primarily, the Economic Community of West African States and the African Union must take keen interest in preventing undue interference by foreign voters in the December 7, 2016 elections.



These bodies must be seen to engender Ghanaian and international public confidence prior and during the elections in enforcing the democratic values that are embedded in their legal instruments especially the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance.



In that vein, these African regional bodies must go beyond the traditional deployment of election observers to making public diplomatic efforts in partnership with Ghanas immediate neighbors to ensure that the sovereign right of Ghanaian citizens to elect their leaders is not undermined by the participation of foreign voters in the upcoming elections.



In short, ECOWAS and AU have external responsibility to prevent electoral fraud and must be seen to be playing active diplomatic roles not only in Ghana but in the neighboring states to ensure a successful and peaceful electoral process.



Beyond Africa, it would not be out of order to call on France, who is a key player in view of its colonial past in Ghanas neighboring states, to take the lead among other players such as the United States, United Kingdom, European Union, United Nations as well as emerging economic powers such as China and India not only to impress upon Ghanas neighbors to ensure that Ghanas elections are protected but also to assist these countries in their domestic plans to ensuring same.



In short, it may not be enough for these external players to deploy election observers without helping to secure the electoral process beyond Ghanas borders.



Ghanas elections security, like others in Africa, depends on both internal and external forces. As the Electoral Commission, political parties, and Ghanaian stakeholders work within their sovereign rights, let the external players demonstrate publicly both in words and deed their shared responsibility in ensuring the integrity of the electoral process and outcome in Ghana.



As noted earlier, the Responsibility to protect doctrine offers the normative framework within which these external players could act to prevent potential chaos prior and in the aftermath of Ghanas elections 2016. When security is at stake, nothing should be taken for granted.



Edward Akuffo is an associate professor of international security and international relations at the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada.

Source: Edward Akuffo, PhD









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has urged Russia to fully lift all restrictions on supplies of Turkish foodstuffs to the Russian market.

It is necessary to lift all existing restrictions imposed to reduce Turkish exports of food and agricultural products, he told TASS Nov. 28 in the run-up to the visit of Russias Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Turkey.



"We should not speak about how to return our relations to the pre-crisis level. We should discuss how to develop them further and bring them to new heights," Cavusoglu said.



He added that all visa restrictions between Turkey and Russia should be lifted.



The relations between Moscow and Ankara deteriorated sharply in late 2015 when Turkey shot down a Russian Su-24 bomber with two pilots on board. In June 2016, Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter of condolences to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over the death of a Su-24 pilot and expressed regret over the incident.
Ms. Yolanda Cuba, Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone Ghana has expressed concern over the introduction and implementation of Interconnect Clearinghouse (ICH) in the country by the National Communication Authority (NCA), arguing that ICH operation would rather overburden consumers.



According to her, telcos would be forced to charge customers extra since they cant bear all the costs from ICH operation. And this, she said, would bring untold hardship to subscribers.



It could be recalled that during the first quarter of this year, Afriwave Telecom won the bid to operate interconnect clearing house services in Ghana as the most qualified firm to deliver on license following a parliamentary approval of ICH.



And as per their mandate Afriwave Telecom will provide a common independent mechanism for monitoring, routing, billing and settlement of local and international interconnect traffic for all existing and future telecommunications operators in the country.



But unfortunately some leading network operators including MTN were not happy about the move explaining that the operations of Interconnect Clearing House (ICH) would create a monopoly with a single point of interconnectivity failure that would increase the potential for network disruption and moreover it would also create an additional bureaucratic layer that would result in an increase in telecommunications cost to the subscriber as well compromise privacy and security.



Adding her voice to concerns raised earlier by other players in the telecommunication industry speaks volume about telcos' concerns about the ICH. Ms. Cuba addressing at a stakeholder forum in Accra with representation from Civil Society Organizations, Industry players and the Media, could not come to real terms with the fact that the regulator will allow an ICH operator to make capital investment, while the cost be borne by telcos and subsequently transferred to the consumers.



She then urge civil society to take particular interest in developments unfolding in the countrys telecom sector and help address some of it so as to help the sector grow.



The Vodafone CEO then reiterated Vodafone Ghanas commitment in assisting the Ghanaian economy and seeing it grow hence the investing of over US$1.7billion in Ghana since 2008 and noted that nothing including the upcoming general elections scheduled for the 7th of December, 2016 in the country could deter it from continues investment into Vodafones operation.



We not going to go on investment strike because of an election, Ghanaians need our services and we will not disappoint them," she said.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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RelatedPosts Ayariga Fires 2 Executives For Endorsing Nana Addo

The All People's Congress (APC) has declared its support for the flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo.



In a statement, the party said they decided to back the NPP flagbearer because of the high level of incompetence and corruption in the ruling Mahama administration.



Read full statement below



APC DECLARES SUPPORT FOR NANA AKUFO-ADDO FOR THE 7TH DECEMBER 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

---------------------------------------------------

The National Executive Committee(NEC), the 10 Regional Executive Committees(REC) and the majority of the Parliamentary Candidates of the All People's Congress(APC) declares support for Nana Akufo-Addo of the New Patriotic Party(NPP) for the 7th December 2016 general election.



This endorsement of Nana Akufo-Addo has become very necessary considering the high level of incompetence, corruption, mismanagement of the economy, high rate of unemployment, killer taxes, collapsing of the Private Sector businesses, high utility Bills, nepotism, tribal politicking etc. under the 8years rule of John Mahama NDC.



Enough is Enough and the trending song now is CHANGE OF INCOMPETENT JOHN MAHAMA PRESIDENCY.



We strongly believe that Only Nana Akufo-Addo can offer Ghanaians a more credible, incorruptible and transformational leadership than all other Presidential Candidates contesting the 2016 general election.



We shall seriously campaign for the Victory of Nana Akufo-Addo and the NPP for the remaining days to the general election.



We shall provide Ghanaians with interesting revelations within FIVE(5) Days to the 7th December 2016 general election that shall cause the massive defeat of John Mahama and the NDC.



We are equally entreating all APC members across Ghana to campaign vigorously and vote massively for Nana Akufo-Addo, the only credible Presidential Candidate for the 2016 Presidential Election.



Nana Akufo-Addo agenda for jobs creation is the only solution to the socio-economic transformation of Ghana.



Upon sober reflection, we strongly believe in the 1 District 1 Factory, 1 Village 1 Dam, 1 Constituency $1million as doable and feasible Policies.



However, we wish Dr. Hassan Ayariga (APC Founder & Leader) well for his personal decision to endorse John Mahama for the Presidency on the 28th November 2016 at the Aviation Social Centre.



We are urging all Ghanaian Voters to vote against the NDC and reject John Mahama in accordance with Revelation 3:16.



Finally, we are passionately appealing to Ghanaian voters to honour Nana Akufo-Addo with their votes in accordance with Deutronomy 5:16 so that all of us can be guaranteed of financial and economic healing in accordance with Acts 5:16.





#VoteforChange

#Vote Nana Akufo-Addo as President





For and on behalf of the Leadership of All People's Congress(APC).





...Jointly Signed...



Razak Kojo Opoku

(APC General Secretary)



Emmanuel Carl Bartels

(2016 Vice-Presidential Candidate)

Source: Peacefmonline









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Students of the University of Ghana (UG), Legon, are said to have rejected sachet water branded with the logo of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC).



According to reports, the NDC campaign team came to the campus Saturday evening, November 26, 2016 with trucks loaded with the sachet water to distribute to the students who are preparing to write their end of semester examinations.



They went to Akuafo and Mensah Sarbah Halls with two of the trucks fully loaded with the water bearing the name of the partys parliamentary candidate for Ayawaso West Wougon, Delali Akwasi Brempong.



But the students were said to have rejected them and started chanting we need change.



Delali Brempong is challenging the incumbent New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament, Emmanuel Kyeremanteng Agyarko, for the seat.





Source: Today









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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It is exactly 9 days to Ghanas much awaited presidential and parliamentary polls mainly between incumbent NDC and main opposition NPP.



Both parties are very optimistic of wining the December 7, polls - but the electorates will decide if President John Dramani Mahama should Toaso, to wit continue or there will be a change of government for Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to head to the Flagstaff House.



But before that, an Islamic cleric, numerologist and philosopher whose prediction on USA election was accurate has hinted a massive win for the Elephant party over the incumbent NDC.



Sheikh Ustaz Sham-una Jibril noted that the NPPs flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is going to emerge as the winner in the upcoming elections by polling 58%.



In a statement copied to Peacefmonline.com Sheikh Ustaz explained that Nana Addo is leading overwhelmingly in the spiritual realm.



Beside in the Spiritual realm the original figure of Nana Addo and the NPP is 58% while the Political figure is 53.47% to this end, a lay man on the street will be confuse, he said.



Read below his statement:



An Islamic Cleric, Numerologist, Philosopher, Psychologist and a Spiritual hacker Mallam Shamuna Ustaz Jibreel who is globally known for his accurate prediction on both local and international platforms is descending his prediction on the Elephant against the December 7th Polls.



However, the cleric who predicted win for President Buhari of Nigeria on Daily Guide dated 16th March, 2015 (http://mobile.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Cleric-predicts-victory-for-NPP-Buhari-350582) said Cleric Predicts win for NPP, Buhari and gave the actual percentages and the breakdown of state to state results, he further said the Nigeria election will have a bearing on the Ghana's election.



Beside In the Spiritual rhyme the original figure of Nana Addo and the NPP is 58% while the Political figure is 53.47% to this end, a lay man on the street will be confuse. What I am trying to put across is that due to some electoral malpractice and In- vigilant of the opposition parties instead of scoring 58% as written on the Spiritual tablet, It will reduce to 53.47% so also instead of Mahama and the NDC scoring 37.84% it will shoot to 44.96% as written in my previous article dated 26th September 2016 Prez Mahama & Goodluck Siamese twins . . . Hell Poll 44. 96% in Dec.



http://www.peacefmonline.com/pages/politics/politics/201609/293159.php



Even in our daily activities similar things happen. For example when you look at the original pay slip of Civil and Public Sector workers from the Controller and Accountant General is different from what the Cashier will give the person due to some government deduction.



As usually These Spiritual prediction is grounded in Quran Chapter 85: 19 - 22 which provides that 'And yet the unbelievers persist in rejecting the truth. But Allah doth encompass them from behind. Nay this is a Glorious Quran. Inscribed in the Tablet preserved'.



It should be noted that I am the first person on the surface of the earth to Congratulate Nana Addo and his Party whiles waiting for the elections, on peacefmonline.com dated 11th July, 2016. I've Congratulated Nana Addo as Ghana's President.



(http://m.peacefmonline.com/pages/politics/politics/201607/284986.php)



And I pledge again that I will not attend Nana Addo Investiture even if I am invited as I turn down not to attend President Buhari Inauguration in Abuja when I was invited dated 2nd April 2016  Ghanaian Cleric for Buhari Inauguration



(https://m.modernghana.com/news/608751/ghanaian-cleric-for-buhari-inauguration.html)



I strongly believe that the EC boss is chosen not only to conduct 2016 election, but rather to conduct subsequent election till her end of tenure.



So I caution the Electoral Commission of Ghana to act like the INEC of Nigeria who conducted their election with transparency without the fear of any the Military or the Incumbent government, and also the Police and Military should treat all political parties fairly with neutrality and justice. Lastly I edge John Mahama and NDC to act like Goodluck Johnathan of Nigeria who accepted defeat, congratulated and handed over power peaceful to an opposition party APC (Buhari) when the need arises.



The Real figures is in the hands of the owner (ALLAH) his words and decision are final not my Predictions.



I call on all and sundry to pray for Transparent, Credible and Peaceful Elections most especially Muslims across the world should recite Hasbunallahu wa ni`mal Wakil:     in Quran Chapter 3 vrs 173 to 174. Each person should recite 150 times daily till two weeks after election.



Note: The recitation is NOT for a victory of any Political Party, But for PEACE of the Country.

Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/ Twitter: @Washman5/ Instagram: Washman007









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There seems to be controversy surrounding a poll supposedly conducted by pollster Ben Ephson on the upcoming presidential election.



Over the weekend, Statesmanonline released the results of the polls which put the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) presidential candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, ahead of incumbent President John Dramani Mahama with 8% clear points.



The original polls, which were alleged to have been conducted by Mr Ephson, Editor of the Daily Dispatchnewspaper, is said to tip Akufo-Addo to win the December 7 election with 51.90%, nearly eight percentage points ahead of incumbent President John Dramani Mahama, with a 2% margin of error.



Its tips Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) to get 1.10%, followed by Ivor Greenstreet of the Convention Peoples Party with 0.70%, Dr Edward Mahama of the Peoples National Convention (PNC) with 0.45%, Nana Konadu Agyeman-Rawlings, National Democratic Party (NDP) with 0.25%, independent candidate, Jacob Osei Yeboah 0.15% and 1.80% people still undecided as to who to vote for.



The general concerns across the country which influenced the responses of the respondents, were the general hardships, high utility bills, corruption and unemployment, among other factors.



Details



As of March 3, this year, the alleged Ephson polls conducted in conjunction with some operatives of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) tipped the NPP to win the presidential election with 51.855%, while the NDC had 41.52 %; followed by another one conducted on June 15, which put the NPP at 50.9%, the NDC 42.10% and then 49.20% for the NPP and 42.25% for the NDC in an August 15 survey, while that of September 7 and November 21, gave the NPP 50.80%, 51.90% and the NDC 43.95% and 43.65% respectively.



The NPP was tipped to win the elections with five regions  Ashanti 76.0%, Eastern 57.5%, Greater Accra 51.5%, Central 50.5% and Western 48.0%  with the NDC expected to put up a strong showing in four regions  Volta78.0, Upper West 64.0%, Upper East 63.5% and Northern 55.5%.



But Mr Ephson is said to be trying hard to massage the outcome of the polls to suit President Mahama and the NDC to say that it would be a close race, but the NDC would win the presidential election with 50.2%.



Fabrication



This is what the pollster is disputing, describing the report as a total fabrication. It is not true, he rebutted.



In an interview with DAILY GUIDE yesterday, Mr Ephson denied the supposed polls emanating from his stables. He rather indicated that hes likely to release his report this week.



Even though he admitted that he had indeed conducted a poll to that effect, he wondered if those making the claims were implying also that polls that had been done which favoured Akufo-Addo were manipulated to his (Akufo-Addos) advantage.



In the event that Ben Ephsons poll tends to predict a win for President Mahama in the upcoming election, it would be the first to put the president ahead of Akufo-Addo since all local and international polls and researches conducted so far put the NPP leader as the winner of the 2016 general election with a wide margin.



Even an international research firm from South Africa contracted by the NDC gave it to Nana Akufo-Addo.



Schemes



Sources have it that in this last lap to the elections, the NDC reportedly intends to go all out with image denting messages, including the splashing of certain posters in the Ashanti Region to create the impression as though the NPP presidential hopeful was undermining the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.



Another is also expected to emerge with Akufo-Addo promising Amoatia Ofori Panin that when elected president he would make him (Okyenhene) greater than the Ashanti monarch  just to spite the king and create disaffection for the NPP in the Ashanti Region.



The NDC has also targeted to snatch not less than 11 parliamentary seats in the region, including that of Adansi Asokwa, by funding the independent candidate there. The rest are Offinso North, Ejura-Sekyedumase, Nyhiaeso, Asante Akim North, Ahafo Ano South-East, Ahafo Ano South-West, Akrofuom, Fomena, Obuasi West and Atwima Mponua.



In the Eastern Region, the NDC is also eyeing Asuogyaman, Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Suhum, Ofoase-Ayirebi [by supporting the PPP candidate], Abirem, Fanteakwa, Lower West Akim and Akwapim South.

Source: Daily Guide









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Daily Statesman can report that the outcome of the latest research conducted by the Bureau of National Investigations on the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections predicts a one-touch victory for Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party, with a clear NPP majority in Parliament.



This latest BNI survey is consistent with an earlier one they did, except the high number of undecided voters in the earlier one has dropped considerably.



Like the BNI survey, the Daily Statesman can further report that the actual poll conducted by researchers for Ben Ephson, Editor of the Daily Dispatch, also predicts but a slim one-touch victory for the opposition leader.



But consistent with nearly all the polls out there, Ben Ephson's real poll results have Nana Akufo-Addo maintaining an 8 percentage point lead over the incumbent, President John Dramani Mahama.



However, the Daily Statesman has learnt that the results that his researchers on the field brought are not likely to be what he may be sharing with the public this week.



According to very reliable sources, Mr Ephson had been impressed upon by the sponsors of the polls, largely funded by First Lady Lordina Mahama, to claim that the election will be very close, but per his expectations and calculations, President Mahama is going to win with 50.2%.



His polls, according to evidence shared by those who work with him and very unhappy about the machinations going on, give Nana Akufo-Addo 51.90%, nearly eight percentage points ahead of the incumbent, President John Dramani Mahama.



The poll, which they said has a margin of error of 2%, had only 43.65% of those polled saying they would vote for John Mahama of the National Democratic Congress.



According to the polls, President Mahama and the NDC are losing the elections mainly because of the economic hardship, escalating unemployment, corruption, arrogance of power and the general wind of change blowing in the country.



The latest BNI poll gives Nana Akufo-Addo 52%, six percentage points over President Mahama who is predicted to receive 46% of the popular votes on December 7.



For the entire parliamentary elections, the BNI research suggests the NPP is likely to get 144 seats, with the NDC losing its current majority to secure 131 seats.



According to the BNI, in addition to winning its traditional strongholds of Ashanti and Eastern Regions, the NPP is on course to winning the swing regions of Greater Accra and Brong-Ahafo while sharing the other swing regions of Central and Western almost equally with the governing NDC.



However, the NPP expects to register one of its biggest wins in the Central Region, according to our checks.



The BNI poll projects that the NPP will get 75% in the Ashanti region; 60% in the Eastern Region; 51% in the Brong-Ahafo Region; a 50% in the Greater Accra Region; 49% in the Central Region; 49% in the Western Region; 43% in the Northern Region; 35% in the Upper East Region; 33% in the Upper West Region; and 18-20% in the Volta Region.



The NDC, on the other hand, is projected to get 80-82% in its stronghold of Volta Region; 63% in the Upper West Region; 61% in the Upper East Region; 55% in the Northern Region; 49% in the Western Region; 49% in the Central Region; 47% in the Brong-Ahafo Region; 47% in the Greater Accra Region; 38% in the Eastern Region; and 25% in the Ashanti Region.



However, when contacted for a comment, the founder of the Danquah Institute and respected political strategist, Asare Otchere-Darko, warned the NPP against complacency.



He said, "polls are only indicative of what people said their choices were at the time they were asked. No polls can also tell you the impact of vote-buying, voter turnout and possible manipulation of results."



To him, the positive thing is the large lead that the NPP flagbearer seems to maintain over the President in all the polls out there, a gap which ranges between 8 and 14 percentage points.



"It is difficult to see how John Mahama can overturn this lead. But, it may all mean very little if the NPP is unable to get its people out to vote in their numbers on the day and get those votes protected all the way to the point of declaration of the presidential results."

Source: Daily Statesman









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Flag bearer of the main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akufo-Addo and his running mate, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, are serial liars, Communications Minister Dr Edward Omane Boamah has said.



Dr Boamah, at the Meet The Press series in Accra on Monday, 28 November catalogued a series of lies which he said had been told by the two opposition politicians against the Mahama administration.



On 9 December 2014, he said Nana Akufo-Addo lied about the cost of the Kasoa Interchange and insisted it had been inflated, when he delivered the Alhaji Aliu Mahama memorial lecture. Not even facts to correct the obvious misinformation from an NPP  not NDC minority ranking Member of Parliament on roads and transport committee  could satisfy him. This is false.



On 19 October 2015, he said Mr Akufo-Addo lied about some $10m used by the government to print diaries. Once again this is false.



On 21 October 2015, Dr Boamah said Mr Akufo-Addo claimed at a gathering in Amsterdam that government and the Electoral Commission were scheming to rig the 2016 elections. He provided no proof, another falsehood.



Again, on 19 December 2015, Dr Boamah said Mr Akufo-Addo lied at an NPP delegates conference in Sunyani that all government projects had been awarded to enrich government officials. He provided no proof, another falsehood.



On 29 February 2016, he lied that the Ridge hospital project was inflated by $142million, yet another falsehood.



According to Dr Boamah, the lies of Dr Bawumia, the former deputy governor of the central bank, against this government are even more disingenuous  the case of the servant undoing the master.



On 25 March 2015, he lied at a lecture at the Central University College that the AfDB had suspended Ghana the previous month and we were still on suspension as of the time he was delivering the lecture. AfDB denied this claim, another falsehood.



In November 2015, Dr Bawumia lied that the NDC government has borrowed $37billion in seven years. The illogical implications of his claim were quickly exposed. He then quickly shifted the goal post and tried to explain  shall I say rationalise  that he was talking about the value of money borrowed when our debt has never been calculated through the fraudulent manipulation of figures that he attempted to employ that day, Dr Boamah added.

Source: Classfmonline









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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On 23rd October, 2016, we all heard the sudden passing away of Mampi hitmaker, Vybrant Faya. Well, on Sat, Nov 26, he was buried in Tema.



There is one current trend among our celebrities here in Ghana, and this is their inability to attend funerals of their fellow celebs. Well, I have been observing this current trend and thinking they will repent but it seems to be getting out of hand and this so-called-too known, feeling big celebs to attend funeral of a sort has to be nipped in the bud.



We were all in this country when the late Prez of Ghana, Evans Fiifi Attah Mills kicked the bucket, right? Yes, during his funeral, even his fierce political opponents made it a point to attend his funeral; Prez Kuffour was there, Nana Akuffo-Addo was there, you name it. They all made that frantic effort, forgot about their differences and what have you, and made it to his funeral just to give him a befitting burial.



During the funeral of Vybrant Faya, our musicians decided not to attend the funeral. It was only the likes of Kofi Kinaata, Donzy, Ras Kuuku, and a rep from MUSIGA who were there. Yes, a whole funeral of a musician, not even this fellow dancehall acts were there. Shatta Wale was nowhere to be found, Samini no appearance, not even Stonebwoy who stays in Ashaiman made it to his funeral.



These musicians will wake up the next day and be preaching peace, peace and peace. Common funeral, they cant put hatred, too-known aside, and attend the funeral of their fellow dancehall act who had passed on, smh. At least, go and spend even 30 minutes at the funeral grounds and bounce off enn, eihh



On why they didnt attend the funeral, Im sure Shatta Wale will come and tell us he was shooting a video, Samini will be like hes preparing for his SaminiFest concert, Stonebwoy will be like I have a show in the Volta Region.

Source: Bigtriceonline.blogspot.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Star Observer have published the frankly devastating story of Sam and Andrew*, who were reportedly assaulted at a fast food restaurant in Sydneys Inner West by an aggressive and vocal Donald Trump supporter, who was more than comfortable to voice and display his blatant homophobia.

The two men who were in line at the McDonalds near Newtown early Monday morning last week (21st Nov) when they noticed another man aggressively rambling about new President-elect.

Sam alleged,

He was saying things like how white men rule now that Trump has won, I was horrified. Andrew was lovely and very protective of me, he tried to encourage me to stay away from him. But I turned around to the guy and said Im gay  do you have a problem with that? and with that he went off.

After the man learned that Sam and Andrew were gay, he allegedly changed his mantra of white men rule to straight white men rule.

The mans friends restrained him as he got more aggressive, loudly shouting and pointing at the two men. Eventually, his friends reportedly managed to drag him out of the restaurant.

Sam and Andrew, obviously shaken, got their food takeaway and hurriedly left the McDonalds. However, the man was allegedly waiting for them.

He hit me on the head, and because Im a pretty big guy, I went down hard  immediately there was blood everywhere, said Sam. He kept mouthing off, but when he hit my head things went a bit blurry from that point.

Andrew said hed been looking at his phone attempting to quickly book a ride home when hed realised Sam was injured:

I looked up and he was bleeding all over his face. I quickly assessed him and could see that he was moving and blinking, so I knew he was okay in that moment. Then as I turned around he king hit me in the face. I didnt fall over, but as I realised what had happened he struck me again with a piece of glass I think, as it cut my skin and I was bleeding.

Andrew fought back, saying that he did so to protect Sam, because the aggressor allegedly looked like he wanted to kill the pair:

I was trying to protect Sam because I knew he wasnt capable of looking after himself, he was on the ground. When I fought back I didnt feel so defeated in a way, I remember thinking to myself there are so many LGBTI people that have been killed by people like this, and I almost wanted to hit him back for those people.

The attackers and his friends then allegedly tried to drag Andrew down the street, but officers from the Newtown Police arrived and stopped the incident from escalating.

Sam was taken to a nearby hospital in an ambulance, and Andrew immediately went to the police station to give a statement.

Police (who Andrew says were fantastic, as were the McDonalds staff) told the men that the perpetrators had been charged and would face court in a few weeks, due to the fact that the CCTV footage had caught the attack very clearly.

In a statement given to PEDESTRIAN.TV, NSW Police confirmed that an incident occurred at Stanmore McDonalds at approximately 1:30am on Monday 21st November.

They also confirmed that two men, aged 18 and 21, were charged with assault and affray. They will appear in court on the 15th of December.

Andrew told Star Observer that it shocked him that these type of assaults exist in 2016:

When youre hearing that 72% of the population want marriage equality, but were still getting bashed, its horrific.

Sam and Andrew also said that they wanted to share their story to serve as a warning for LGBTQIA people, that unfortunately, the community must still remain careful in certain situations.

The appointment of Trump as President-elect has given confidence and a voice to many people who reject equality for minority groups.

Dont just assume its 2016 and everythings okay, because clearly whats happening in the world is affecting peoples judgement and mentality. I think in the LGBTI community we need to check in with each other and make sure we talk more about these things.

Too true. We wish Sam & Andrew* a fast recovery, and our deepest appreciation for sharing their story: you are incredibly brave and strong.

* Names have been changed for privacy reasons.

Source: Star Observer.
Among the shitload of harrowing cases coming out of Australias immigration system, you might remember the story of Hamid Kehazaei, the second asylum seeker to die in offshore detention after Manus Island was re-opened in 2013.

The Iranian was killed by a treatable bacterial infection on September 5th 2014 at the age of 24, which rightly triggered widespread condemnation of Australias detention facilities and the bureaucratic delay in bringing Kehazaei to better medical facilities.

Today, a coronial inquest into Kehazaeis death began in Brisbane, and The Guardian has obtained exclusive documents that demonstrate just how poorly our immigration system managed his case.

The documents paint a depressing picture of life within the centre, including descriptions of Kehazaei and another detainee having to care full-time for another man going through a mental health crisis, but they also demonstrate Kehazaeis stoic, friendly character.

As internal descriptions show, he was an absolute top bloke:

Transferee reports having no difficulty with social functioning and gets along well with other transferees from different ethnicities and nationalities. He presents as a very positive person who has a stoic attitude to his current circumstances.

However, the real find is the Department of Immigration and Border Protections response to the doctors who urged Kehazaei be treated in a Port Morseby and, once his condition had worsened, an Australian facility.

And god, if their actions dont make you absolutely fucking livid at how little our government actually cares about the lives of people seeking asylum, than nothing will.

See, while Kehazaei became ill on Saturday August 23rd and, after being put on antibiotics, became ill enough from his life-threatening widespread systemic infection to require emergency services by early Monday August 25th, a department official did not immediately authorise a transfer request to Port Moresby.

They instead told the International Health and Medical Services, which manages healthcare in the centre, that:

I am wondering why this cant be managed at Lorengau hospital? Even using something unusual should be able to be managed locally. Is there a [drug] supply issue that we are unaware of? Again, these should be brought in, rather than the person being transferred if this is the case. DIBP staff on island are being pushed for this urgent transfer in the next 18 hours, however I dont have adequate information to be able to escalate at this point if this is still warranted.

IHMS then forwarded the request to a more senior official, but, I shit you not, that official had gone home for the day so the email was not read until Tuesday, August 26th.

By that point, the infection had poisoned Kehazaeis blood and medical reports indicate he was becoming increasingly oxygen deprived, so doctors upgraded the request to move him to a Brisbane hospital for advanced tertiary care.

Instead, 23 hours after the original request was sent, DIBP brought Kehazaei to a Port Moresby hospital, where he suffered three heart attacks. It wasnt until Wednesday August 27th that he was brought to Brisbanes Mater Hospital at 10pm, barely alive.

He was declared to be brain dead by September 3rd and, with his familys permission, was taken off life-support on September 5th at 7.35pm.

Earlier in the day, then-immigration minister Scott Morrison had updated the media on Kehazaeis health, and included what would seem to be a bare-faced lie:

Our focus and care has been on this young man, from the moment he presented to medical officers at Manus Island and on focusing on the interests and engaging with the family. Thats where our attention has been.

Medical reports later showed that while Kehazaeis infection had come from rare, water-born illness chromobacterium violaceum, he could have been easily treated with specific antibiotics, cheap and widely available in PNG, if his illness had been identified by local health services earlier.

When other detainees found out about Kehazaeis death, they asked staff who will die next?

Sadly, we dont reckon thisll be the last gut-punch to come out of the inquest.

Source: The Guardian.

Photo: Refugee Action Coalition.
Trumps Decision to Drop TPP Deal: A Big Chance for China to Lead, Push for Own Trade Pact

Americans march to hold a protest against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal in Washington, D.C. (Photo : Getty Images)

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said with finality on Tuesday, Nov. 22, that he would drop the Asia-Pacific trade pact that links U.S. and 11 countries when he assumes office on Jan. 20, calling it "a potential disaster for our country."



According to Reuters, Trump's statement has paved the way for China to take on the leadership role on trade and diplomacy in Asia, as a trilateral trade deal is already being discussed by China, Japan and South Korea.



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After Trump's announcement, Australia and Japan also vowed to push ahead with the trade deal, sans the U.S.



"The TPP would be meaningless without the United States," Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, while parliament continues to discuss its ratification.



In Canberra, Australian Trade Minister Steven Ciobo said that even without the U.S., countries can continue with the TPP by amending the agreement and sign up new members.



"We could look at, for example, if China or Indonesia or another country wanted to join, saying, 'Yes, we open the door for them signing up to the agreement as well.'"



Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, however, said that reopening negotiations would now be difficult. "If you sign a fresh agreement, you have to go through it again. We haven't crossed that bridge yet. We'll cross it if and when we come to that."



With the U.S. out of the picture, it will be a big chance for China to push for its own regional trade deal that some observers say is weak.



"Pushing them forward is the idea that, if they don't act, it will look like China's very weak trade deals are the only game in town," Derek Scissors, a scholar on Asian economies and trade at the American Enterprise Institute, said.



But unlike the TPP, which is focused on opening up economies and setting standards for labor and environment, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) pushed by China is more of a traditional trade agreement that mainly involved reducing the tariffs.



At the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Peru during the weekend, the RCEP was the focus of attention of many leaders.



While several countries reportedly signified intention to join the 16-member bloc, including Chile and Peru, current members are trying to reach a deal as soon as possible, Tan Jian, a senior member of China's delegation, said.



On Tuesday, Nov. 22, China's foreign ministry said that the country maintains an "open attitude" on any deal that promotes free trade in the region as long as it does not become "fragmented and politicized."



"We are willing to keep pushing the (RCEP) talks process with all sides to achieve positive progress at an early date," foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said.



Last week, Vietnam abandoned its own ratification of TPP, while Malaysia showed its interest in the RCEP.



Some economists cautioned that Trump's plan to re-negotiate trade deals to give back jobs to the Americans and impose punitive tariffs on Mexico and China could trigger a trade war and lose the gains of liberalization.



As a diplomatic initiative of Obama, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was aimed at reducing tariffs in countries that make up about 40 percent of the world economy, but Trump's decision and the failure of the U.S. Congress to ratify it, have both contributed to TPP's demise.



Similarly, the major trade deal between the U.S. and Europe is also about to collapse after Britain decided to withdraw from the European Union, while mounting opposition in France and Germany also threatens to ruin it.



At a U.S.-China agricultural trade seminar in Washington, officials from both the Obama administration and China did not talk about the TPP collapse and Trump's pronouncements against China.



Although he did not talk about Trump's statement, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang said that it would "unacceptable to our farmers" if the U.S. would terminate the agricultural trade.



"China is one of the most important markets for agricultural exports, accounting for nearly a fifth of U.S. agricultural exports. . . . On average, every U.S. farmer exports about $12,000 of agricultural products to China every year," Wang said.


Police in Adelaide have shot a man after he allegedly threatened a child with a gun during an abduction and chase that lasted around 90 minutes.

The man had allegedly assaulted and abducted his children and former partner at gunpoint before forcing them into a car in the suburb of Cumberland Park, before driving through Adelaides west and northeast and being stopped on Hindley St about 11.45pm.

Tactical officers surrounded the car when the man allegedly produced a gun and threatened the three-year-old child, leading police to shoot him. He was rushed to Royal Adelaide Hospital but it is believed that his injuries are not fatal.

Assistant Police Commissioner Paul Dickson gave a press conference at the scene:

Once [police] stopped the vehicle they attempted to arrest the offender, he said.

When they were doing that, it will be alleged that the offender threatened the three-year-old girl with a firearm, and that is when a decision was made for the police officer to fire at the offender.

The woman and the two children are not believed to be injured, but are being treated for shock at the Womens and Childrens Hospital.

Source: News.com.au.

Photo: YouTube.
Kensington Palace has issued a practically unprecedented second statement about Prince Harrys love life, which is obviously headline news at the moment vis-a-vis a certain actress by the name of Meghan Markle.

As youve no doubt read, the palace issued a statement recently confirming the princes relationship with Markle, asking tabloids and paparazzi to back the hell off.

Its now issued a second one via The Telegraph, confirming that  contrary to multiple news reports  Prince William approved of the first statement.



The Duke of Cambridge absolutely understands the situation concerning privacy and supports the need for Prince Harry to support those closest to him, the second statement reads, confirming the brothers had a heart-to-heart before issuing the first.

A royal source told The Telegraph that William and Harry, much like B1 and B2, would never do something like issue a statement on their smang friends without consulting the other.



They dont issue statements like that without talking to each other, and they talked about the Meghan Markle statement extensively in advance of it being put out, the source said. The Duke was as alarmed as anyone about what was happening with Meghan.

No-one wanted to have to put that statement out, including Prince Harry, and there was concern about confirming the relationship.

But over the course of one weekend things escalated to the extent that Prince Harry felt he had to act.

Hot tip: if you wanna get Kensington House to confirm something in writing, continue to report the exact opposite.

Source: The Telegraph.

Photo: Getty / Ray Tamarra; Mark Cuthbert.
There was one fairly heartwarming, and as it turns out prophetic comment on the ole Tweeters last night as Crowded House brought their glorious four-night stand on the steps of the Sydney Opera House to a close.

Not only was the concert for the enjoyment of the 5,000-odd that crammed themselves into the Opera House forecourt for the closing night of the legendary and hugely beloved bands ARIA Hall of Fame reunion stand, but an entire countrys worth of lounge rooms was also able to tune in, thanks to a live broadcast orchestrated by the ABC.

During the show, Double Js resident lead scribe Dan Condon mused on the concept of so many people all watching the set simultaneously:

The world doesnt seem so bad when you realise hundreds of thousands of people are currently singing along to #CrowdedHouseLive  Dan Condon (@doncandon) November 27, 2016

Turns out Condon was right on the money.

The OzTAM ratings for Sunday night are slowly filtering in this morning, and the live broadcast is officially a winner for Aunty as far as viewership goes.

Some 643,000-odd people across the nation tuned in for the special event, marking 20 years since the band famously played a farewell show on that very same spot back in 1996.

Thats well over a half-a-million people who, in the middle of a year of otherwise brow-furrowing global turmoil and tragedy, sat down in their lounge rooms to sing along to a bunch of remarkably effective pop songs written by a bunch of weirdo Kiwis who never saw an unorthodox chord structure they didnt like.

643,000 Australian viewers all getting a little bit teary as Neil Finn belted out the final few bars of Better Be Home Soon before fireworks lit up the Sydney night sky behind the Opera House.

In a year where good news has apparently been somewhat hard to come by, thats a real bloody nice little thought, isnt it.

If you were among those who tuned in, we hope you had a real special night with it. We know we did.

And if you missed it, the whole thing is still up to be streamed on demand via the ABCs Facebook page, as well as on ABC iView.

Crowdies forever.

Source: Perth Now.

Photo: Mark Metcalfe/Getty.
PEDESTRIAN.TV has partnered with Hertz to get you hitting the open road this summer. Theyve dropped their young renters surcharge and to celebrate theyre running a comp to win a seven day car rental, GoPro Hero5 Black, camping gear + a $300 fuel voucher (valued at approx. $3K all up). Keen? You can enter HERE by telling Hertz why you + your mates should win the ultimate escape.

Who the hell doesnt love a good road trip? Sure, travelling O/S is great and all that jazz, but the price tag? Not so much.

With summer knocking on ya door, we pulled together a few great options for your next road trip.

GO FORTH AND PUT PEDAL TO THE METAL, GOOD PEOPLE.

SYDNEY TO JERVIS BAY

If youre all about those coastal drives (who isnt, tbh), then the road trip from Sydney to Jervis Bay should be right up yer alley. Its a journey marked by several beaches, so yall know the drives going to be scenic as hell.

SYDNEY -> SEA CLIFF BRIDGE

Photo: Grand Pacific Drive.

Whichever route you and your gang decide on, make sure it includes a drive along Sea Cliff Bridge. JUST LOOK AT THAT THING. MAN MEETS NATURE AND ALL THAT.

SEA CLIFF BRIDGE -> ILLAWARRA FLY TREETOP WALK

Photo: Illawarra Fly Treetop Adventures.

Head back inland, soaking in the lushness of NSWs forests, toward the Illawarra Fly Treetop Walk. Once there, you can hang out with all the birds and the bees and the little monkeysssss. NOTE: theres no actual monkeys there, we just couldnt not take up the chance to whack in a Mean Girls quote.

ILLAWARRA FLY TREETOP WALK -> KIAMA

Photo: Visit NSW.

THAR SHE BLOWS. Drop by Kiamas blowhole to see natures more kick-ass / furious side. The drive to this natural landmark is certainly worth it.

KIAMA -> SHOALHAVEN RIVER (NOWRA)

Photo: @shoalhavenriverfestival / Instagram.

There are a heap of cafes in Nowra  just drive up to one of em, grab something to eat and have yoself a picnic on the bank of Shoalhaven River.

SHOALHAVEN RIVER -> JERVIS BAY

Photo: Wiki Australia.

Ah, Jervis Bays infamous Hyams Beach. Why cant life be as beautiful as your offensively white sand. Why? WHY? WHYYYYY. The area is full of decent things to see, so our advice is to hit the road with a fully charged phone (in case you get lost) and explore this damn-fine locale. It really is Australia at its best.

MELBOURNE TO PHILLIP ISLAND

As any true-blue Victorian will know, the tried-and-tested trip from Melbourne to Phillip Island is nothing but ace times. Our advice, however, is to throw yoself into everything your first stop  the Dandenong Ranges  has to offer. The drive there starts off with urban scenery as you leave the city, then shifts to offensively beautiful natural sites as you near the ranges. Gotta love those man-made vs. mother nature juxtapositions, right?

MELBOURNE -> DANDENONG RANGES

Photo: Visit Victoria.

The Dandenong Ranges is jam-packed with epic stuff to do and see. Pretty much anywhere you drive will leave your jaw on the floor. Of the many, heres our three favourite things to soak in while youre there:

GEPPETTOS WORKSHOP

Photo: Geppettos Workshop / Facebook.

Look, were well aware that were recommending visiting a toy store to an audience whose Hot Wheels days are behind them, but we reckon Geppettos Workshop is 110% worth swinging by. Cmon, guys. Embrace that inner-child of yours and whatnot.

PIGGERY CAFE

Photo: Piggery Cafe.

Youll undoubtedly be happier than a pig in mud after a feed at the Piggery Cafe. We guarantee that the drive there is worth it, and if youre of the vegetarian persuasion, then theyve got options for you too.

KOKODA TRACK MEMORIAL WALK (1000 STEPS)

Photo: Visit Dandenong Ranges.

If youve grown up in Victoria, you wouldve undoubtedly heard of 1000 Steps. Its the perfect stop off for those wanting to get the ol pulse racing via some pretty arduous exercise. Even if youre not all about that #Fitspo life, its a good way to hit reset when youve been driving for too long  just dont climb all of em.

DANDENONG RANGES -> PHILLIP ISLAND





Photo: Phillip Island Chocolate Factory.

Yep, thats no joke a chocolate waterfall. You can find it at Phillip Island Chocolate Factory. Get in your car. Turn it on. Take in the breathtaking sites on your way and go there. Go there now.

PERTH TO GERALDTON

The length of the drive from Perth to Geraldton makes it a great one for long weekend getaways, but if youre in a position to do so, we recommend taking a few extra days off so that youve got enough time up your sleeve to keep your sightseeing a chilled affair.

PERTH -> CERVANTES

Photo: DPAW.

If youre not a local of WA, then were happy to inform you that the drive to the Pinnacles is one of the most gawjus in existence. The place itself is a must-see for those who are impressed by natures weirdness. For those who arent, it still makes for a great Gram opportunity.





CERVANTES -> JURIEN BAY

Photo: DPAW.

Get your aquatic fix of scuba diving / snorkelling / swimming / windsurfing / surfing / fishing in Jurien Bay. FYI: the water is as clear as a friggin crystal. Make sure you take advantage of petrol stations whenever you see them as theyre few and far between.





JURIEN BAY -> GERALDTON

Photo: TripAdvisor.

Look, as youd now be well aware, most of the trip from Perth to Geraldton involves interacting with the ocean to some extent. Just embrace it and get amongst Geraldtons finest beaches on your time off.

One of the best things about our land thats girt by sea is that its travel opportunities are pretty much limitless (Australia, youre #KillingIt). These are but a few options, yall. Get your research on and find a route thats gonna tick all the boxes on your end.

If youre reading this and sobbing due to a lack of suitable wheels, fret not. Hertz have dropped their young renters surcharge, and to celebrate, theyre running a comp to win a seven day car rental, GoPro Hero5 Black, camping gear + a $300 fuel voucher (valued at approx. $3K all up). Hertz also have some handy optional extras for your trip like wifi (yep, legit) and NeverLost satellite navigation  so even if you dont win, have a think about hiring from em sometime soon. If the comps something youre deadset keen on, you can enter HERE by telling Hertz why you + your mates should win the ultimate escape.

Photo: Grand Pacific Drive.
Shu Qi Joins Director Chen Yu-Hsun in 'The Village of No Return'; Movie Gets Spring Festival Release

Shu Qi, along with her co-stars, promotes the film The Village of No Return. (Photo : Getty Images)

Box-office queen Shu Qi teams up with award-winning director Chen Yu-Hsun in the upcoming comedy film The Village of No Return or Jian Wang Cun () in Chinese.



From his hilarious TV commercials to memorable shorts Chen takes the directors seat again with this action-comedy film. It is Chens sixth film foray in the comedy genre.



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The film reunites Chen with producers Yeh Jufeng, Lee Lieh, and Warner Brothers Taiwan, following their breakout hit Zone Pro Site. It also features best actor awardee Wang Qianyuan as one of the main characters with Eric Tsang, Tony Yang, and Lin Mei-Hsiu as supporting characters.



The Village of No Return is set during the end of the Qing dynasty. The remote and isolated Yu Wang Village is turned upside down when a mysterious Taoist priest brings a magical equipment that can erase ones memory.



Since then, all the villagers have forgotten their past. They live happily ever after while a dangerous plot behind their back is just about to be unveiled.



Both Shu Qi and Wang Qianyuan described the magic equipment as an important weapon in the film.



"The weapon can control people's minds, making them more agreeable. Also, it can change people's attitudes, suddenly making people that someone disliked liked much," Shu Qi first explained.



"When a person wears it on his or her head, it works on his or her brain. It's as simple as using a computer mouse to delete unsightly photographs off a computer while keeping only the best," described Wang Qianyuan.



He added: "It's a village with no decent person. Everyone is eager to pursue their desires: about women, money, or power. But the helmet accidentally releases them and makes them become better people."



The action-comedy film is due to be released in Spring 2017. Expected to be a blockbuster hit, it already has more than 11,000 likes on its Facebook page and is gaining more each day.


UPDATE: Read the recount petition

Green Party's Jill Stein wants to recount the election results in Pennsylvania. Now all she needs is tens of thousands of volunteers to help her do it.

Stein published a video Sunday explaining what Pennsylvania voters needed to do in order to force a presidential election recount in the state. It involves having tens of thousands of volunteers fill out legal documents, getting them notarized and then sending copies to Stein's team.

That's a tall order from a presidential candidate who got less than 50,000 votes in Pennsylvania.

"This is a movement for democracy to restore the promise of democracy starting with reforms so that we can have confidence in our votes," Stein said.

"One of the symptoms of a democracy run amuck is that we have to jump through all these hoops, that the process is so very different and very complicated from state to state. In Pennsylvania, it's especially complicated."

Stein has raised more than $4 million to initiate recounts in three states -- Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan. A recount filing fee in Pennsylvania is $500,000, according to Stein.

But what needs to happen in order for Stein to get her recount? First, she needs at least three volunteers from each of Pennsylvania's thousands of voting precincts.

Then, each of the volunteers will need to download an affidavit available on her website, fill it out, get it notarized and submit it to the county clerk's office.

Stein said volunteers will also need to take a photo of the affidavit once it's all filled out and email it to her recount team. Stein said all of this needs to be done by Monday, though she didn't give an exact time.

Stein said the grassroots recount movement is made up of people from various political parties. The purpose of the recount, she said, is to restore confidence in the country's electoral system and not to benefit one political party or one presidential candidate.

"I'm confident that we can mobilize these legal statements, these affidavits, and get them in tomorrow, Monday, ideally, possibly Tuesday as a holdover," Stein said.
UPDATE: The shelter-in-place order has been lifted, as of 11:30 a.m., and all OSU classes have been canceled for the day.

Ohio State University's Emergency Management has tweeted a warning to shelter in place on the north campus in Columbus.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that one suspect has died. The Lantern, OSU's student newspaper tweeted at 11:13 a.m. that a suspect had been taken in handcuffs from a parking garage.

Television station WCMH reports that as many as seven people may have been injured. The Associated Press reports that two are in stable condition but information on the others was not available. The Dispatch says the number of injured is nine.

A SWAT team and bomb squad are on the scene, according to The Lantern.

UPDATE 1/2 : Shelter in Place lifted. Scene is now secure. ALL classes are canceled on Columbus campus for the remainder of the day.  OSU Emergency Mngmnt (@OSU_EMFP) November 28, 2016

Authorities have said one suspect is dead at #OhioState. Nine people have been transferred to hospitals. https://t.co/xUNGj9oxRk pic.twitter.com/0ty2JTVyzK  Columbus Dispatch (@DispatchAlerts) November 28, 2016

According to police officer on scene, radius is surrounded, possible suspect in Lane Ave. Garage.  The Lantern (@TheLantern) November 28, 2016

Police surrounding Lane Avenue garage. Swat vans present. Bomb squad as well. pic.twitter.com/0ITvwaqXAm  The Lantern (@TheLantern) November 28, 2016

Ambulances line Woodruff Avenue, street is blocked off between High and College pic.twitter.com/oQD7rhjP7y  The Lantern (@TheLantern) November 28, 2016

Active shooter at Ohio State believed to be down pic.twitter.com/5igDfUkqTf  Rust Coast CLE (@RustCoastSports) November 28, 2016
Police in Upper Allen Township have charged a man with assault for an incident at his home.

Halid Hatim

Police reported Monday that they were called to the hospital around 3 p.m. Friday to investigate an assault on a woman. They said they determined that Halid Hatim, 47, had attacked a female relative at his home in the 600 block of Geneva Driver earlier that day.



Hatim was arrested in Harrisburg on Saturday on charges of aggravated and simple assault and harassment and committed to Cumberland County Prison in lieu of $125,000 bail, police said.
A western Pennsylvania businessman is denying charges he sexually abused a string of teen boys over multiple years - including on out-of-state trips. But that isn't stopping the FBI from trying to track down as many of the man's alleged victims as it can.

The Butler Eagle newspaper reports that suspect James M. Leroy, 54, of Penn Township, Butler County, Pa., has been indicted by a federal grand for allegedly twice traveling out of state with minors to engage in illicit sexual conduct.

A western Pennsylvania businessman, identified as James M. Leroy, 54, of, Butler County, is denying charges he sexually abused a string of teen boys over multiple years - including on out-of-state trips. But that isn't stopping the FBI from trying to track down as many of the man's alleged victims as it can.

Leroy also faces charges in Butler County, including two counts each of indecent assault of a person under the age of 13, indecent assault of a person under age 16 and reckless endangerment, and five counts of corruption of minors, and four counts of child endangerment, the newspaper writes, adding:

According to court records in the county case, the victims allege Leroy assaulted them, then gave them varying gifts including cash, clothes, video games and a dirt bike.

He faces a preliminary hearing Jan. 11.

Leroy, the owner of a manufacturing business who remains in federal custody in Ohio, is denying the charges through his attorney, the newspaper reports:

"This is completely out of the character of Mr. Leroy," his defense attorney, Steven Townsend of Pittsburgh, told the newspaper. "When we get into court, the boys' motives will become clear."

Meanwhile, the Butler Eagle reports that the FBI is actively looking to identify more of Leroy's alleged victims:

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Pittsburgh Division, at 412-432-4000.

Read more of the latest Pa. buzz:
Lancaster County aerial photos

Looking north at the city of Lancaster, Lancaster County, February 25, 2016, aerial photo.Dan Gleiter, PennLive.com

(Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.)

LANCASTER -- Immigrants and refugees are responsible for a decent portion of the economic successes in Lancaster County, according to a new study.

Foreign-born residents made up about $1.3 billion of Lancaster County's $25 billion economy in 2014, according to the study titled New Americans in Lancaster published by New American Economy. The report also found that the population of 23,094 immigrants and refugees in the county has a huge impact on the local economy "through their high rates of workforce participation, large tax contributions, and spending power."

New American Economy, which conducted the study in partnership with the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce and the Lancaster Refugee Coalition, found that immigrants helped create or preserve 1,062 local manufacturing jobs in Lancaster County.

The immigrant impact measured by the study comes in a county that overwhelmingly supported Donald Trump. The president-elect has spoken out against legal and illegal immigration, ultimately won 57 percent of the 240,000 votes cast in Lancaster County.

The foreign-born population in Lancaster County grew by 10.3 percent from 2009 to 2014, nearly double the rate of growth by percentage of the county's overall population growth.

The existing population and boom represented $52.5 million in state and local tax contributions and $103.3 million federal tax contributions in 2014. Social Security contributions were more than $62.8 million, and Medicare contributions were nearly $16.4 million in the same time frame.

Immigrants are estimated to have $440.5 million in spending power, constituting about 4.3 percent of the metro area's spending power, according to the study. Additionally, there are 1,081 self-employed immigrants in the county and their businesses generated $37.7 million in 2014, the study found.

"Lancaster County serves as yet another example of a great American community benefitting from the talent and hard work of immigrants," said John Feinblatt, chairman of New American Economy, in a statement released wirh the study. "Immigrants not only help power key local sectors like manufacturing and healthcare, but also start businesses that create jobs both in the county and across the state."

The economic impact has also led to an increase in housing values, according to the study. Between 2000 and 2014, housing values in the county increased by $178.2 million, with $52 million of the increase coming between 2009 and 2014.

Cheryl Irwin-Bass, vice president and COO of the Lancaster Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement that the statistics reflect the assets and capabilities immigrants and refugees bring to the county.

"We are humbled and inspired by the level of welcome the local community has shown to these newcomers, and look forward to working together in welcoming refugees and immigrants to the county," Irwin said.

Data analysis showed many of the foreign-born residents who set roots in Lancaster County have become naturalized as of 2014. There were 13,570 immigrants who are now naturalized citizens, meaning 58.8 percent of the foreign-born population had naturalized as of 2014.

Of the 9,524 remaining residents, 3,698 are eligible for naturalization. Vietnam, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Germany and Cuba are the top five countries from which people emigrated to come to Lancaster County.
BARLETTA HEADSHOT ART.jpg

Rep. Lou Barletta, a Republican representing the 11th congressional district, is rumored to be in line for a post in Donald Trump's cabinet.

(File)

Rep. Lou Barletta's scheduled meeting today with President-elect Donald Trump has been rescheduled for Tuesday, according to a spokesman for the congressman's office.

Barletta, a Republican from the 11th congressional district, is a member of Trump's transition team and is reportedly being considered for secretary of Transportation.

Barletta sits on the House Homeland Security and Transportation committees. He was an early Trump supporter who became a campaign surrogate and was eventually tapped to serve in his transition team.

Barletta last year was instrumental in getting bipartisan consensus for a five-year transportation bill poised to improve roads, bridges and rail systems. In December, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act.

Barletta, who a few weeks ago was re-elected for a fourth term, has also been an outspoken advocate of immigration reform and crackdown on illegal immigration. He is widely regarded as a hardliner with regards to immigration.

The 11th congressional district spans across 15 counties and includes parts of Dauphin, Perry and Cumberland.
A worker performs a CD4 HIV test at a lab of Shanghai Xuhui District Central Hospital on Dec. 6, 2006, in Shanghai, China. (Photo : Getty Images/ China Photos)

China's national drug watchdog announced on Wednesday that it has examined clinical research results on a domestically produced anti-HIV drug in its final phase prior to being officially approved for use by the public.



Once approved, the new-generation drug, named Albuvirtide for injection, is expected to be the world's first long-acting intravenous treatment for HIV, according to a report from the state-owned Global Times newspaper.



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Developed by the Nanjing-based Frontier Biotechnologies Inc, the medicine can interrupt the HIV life cycle in its earliest state. It has been put into clinical trials in 12 clinical centers across the country since February 2014, the report said.



According to a statement on the company's website, Albuvirtide is the world's first long-acting anti-HIV drug to enter phase-3 clinical trials that is effective on both the HIV-1 virus and other similar viruses.



The drug contains a fusion inhibitor that should be used alongside antiretroviral drugs to treat people suffering from HIV who have received antiviral therapy, the statement said.



The China Food and Drug Administration said it has verified medium-term experimental data of the drug's phase-3 clinical trials in the Beijing Youan Hospital (BYH), which took charge of conducting national clinical trials of the drug.



"Medium-term experimental data shows that one primary and three secondary endpoints of the trial have all achieved expectations," Wu Hao, dean of the BYH infectious diseases center, told Xinhua.



Wu said the drug, which is taken once a week, is much more effective and safer than current drugs as it does less damage to the kidneys.



The data was collected between the 24th and the 48th weeks of the trials that include 83 experimental drugs and 92 control groups, the Frontier Biotechnologies said in a statement to the Global Times.



"Current HIV treatments used in China are either generic or imported, and were developed one or two decades ago and are comparatively ineffective under current conditions," said the company's government affairs manager, surnamed Zhang.



Zhang said once approved, the company is willing to promote the drug as soon as possible.



Six in every 10,000 people in China are affected with HIV/AIDS. Over 570,000 people in China had been found to be HIV positive by the end of 2015, and an estimated 32 percent of those infected remain undiscovered, said Liang Xiaofeng, deputy director of the CDC at a forum in October.



Liang said the Chinese government has taken measures, including the expansion of the scope of medical examinations, to deal with the disease.


FILE - In this Jan. 25, 2011 file photo, the Boeing Company logo on the property in El Segundo, Calif. Boeing Co. A World Trade Organization panel on Monday, Nov. 28, 2016 ruled that Washington state offered billions in illegal tax breaks to plane maker Boeing, saying that the U.S. government must take action to end the plans within months. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)
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More days of rain, snow predicted for this winter

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently predicted that the Great Lakes region will have more frequent precipitation than usual this winter.
A Hong Kong store displays a signage that says it accepts Alipay payment from customers. (Photo : Getty Images)

Some 4,000 Japanese vendors are now using Alipay, providing Chinese travelers with more payment options, according to the Chinese payment service provider.



An article by technologynewschina.com said that the Japanese vendors that support Alipay include the country's two international airports, the Narita International Airport and the Kansai International Airport; home appliance stores like Bic Camera, Edion, Joshin, and Yamada Denki; department stores like Daimaru, Kintetsu, Odakyu, Takashimaya, Tokyu, and Tobu; duty free shops like Don Quijote, Laox, and Takeya; apparel brands like Beams, United Arrows, and Uniqlo; convenience stores like Lawson, 7-11, and Family Mart; and cosmetic outlets stores like Kyorindo, Kirindo, and Welcia.



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Alipay's entry into the Japanese market was jointly announced by Ant Financial Group and Japan's Recruit Lifestyle, in September last year. The two companies also announced Alipay's access to the smart point-of-sale (POS) network of Recruit, which covers about 176,000 vendors.



The main targets of Alipay's service are Chinese tourists going to Japan. Alipay serves mostly vendors where most purchases are made by Chinese tourists. But the third-party payment service has not yet targeted Japanese consumers.



According to Chen Qingyang, head of Ant Financial's overseas business unit for Japan market, said that regulatory styles, business habits, and market volumes of each country vary. Based on the features of a country, they will create a strategy and may introduce Alipay to Japanese consumers in the future after further research.



Alipay, which started in 2004, now serves more than 80,000 overseas offline stores in 70 countries and regions. It has also cooperated with ride-hailing app Uber and used in 69 nations and regions including Airbnb.



Alipay can also be used by Chinese tourists in Germany after it reached an agreement with Munich Airport in August. Munich Airport is the first in Europe that supports Alipay payment services.



Galeries Lafayette, an upscale French department store in Paris, also signed an agreement with the payment service provider, China Daily reported.


Alzheimer's can now be prevented with exercise combat - recommended for people over 50

A hand of comfort is laid on baby boomer's hand (Photo : Getty images/AFP / Stringer)

The computer records every respiration of Prairie Village woman at the University of Kansas Alzheimer's Disease Center. Exercise physiologist asks the patient to push harder to feed carbon dioxide levels to the computer.



"Can you hang in there like for 15 more seconds?", physiologist says to prepare a chart of vitals for exercise combat for people over 50. Alzheimer's is the second-most-feared disease in the United States, behind cancer.



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Millions of aging Americans similar to Poehler put efforts to escape from the cataclysm of the brain-wasting disease. This disease bothers nearly 5.4 million people. If no cure or prevention is found in the United States this number continues to grow as baby boomers age.



Miami Herald reported, in a national study, published online in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, positive signs were found that was so far a bleak chance. The study found that the rate of dementia in people 65 or older has come down from 11.6 percent in 2000 to 8.8 percent in 2012. The researchers are still exploring as reasons for this change are not yet fully understood.



Clinical Alzheimer's is seen in one out of every three people over the age of 85 in the United States and at least one out of 11 are aged over 65.



At the age of 65, Poehler is cognitively healthy and attempts to stay fit. Earlier, Poehler's grandmother suffered due to Alzheimer's and it took away both memory and life, followed by mother who is in a memory care unit.



Baby boomer says that a lot of difficulties is experienced before stepping on the treadmill. Ann Poehler's strides go fast on the treadmill as feet pound and heart races from 150 to 160 beats per minute and more.



Mohave daily news revealed that a trial treatment for Alzheimer's has failed again. Many were disappointed who hoped drug maker Eli Lilly would finally show a way to slow down the progression of this disease.



The company announced that the drug did not work better than placebo treatment. This result was found in a study of more than 2,100 people affected with mild Alzheimer's.


A preface to the prophecies of Nostradamus. (Photo : YouTube/ The Debunker)

Nostradamus predictions together with Baba Vanga prophecies and the insight of Pope Francis regarding World War 3 have been widely searched over the past weeks. And this continuing increase of interest over the said topic and that of relating to the world's ending have become more evident as 2016 will soon bid farewell.



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There has been a surge of attentiveness regarding the potential World War 3 as drastic changes and catastrophic events are experienced by the global community. The recent conclusion of the U.S. presidential election, the increasing influence of Islamic terror groups, and gradual shift of the superpowers are a few of the global episodes being linked to the impending World War 3 event.



Nostradamus predictions have been once again revisited by experts and enthusiasts alike in seek of possible hints that could unravel some of the questions and fears displayed by this generation.



In one of the theories reported and in connection to the recent presidential election won by Donald Trump, it has been widely speculated that the upcoming U.S. president may be the one to trigger an apocalypse or what other viewed as World War 3.



Many believed that Trump is the one being referred to by Nostradamus as the "the great shameless, audacious bawler." The Sun also added that the Donald Trump is a "False trumpet concealing madness."



While some individuals seek the words of Michel de Nostredame for enlightenment and guidance, most religious faithful tend to listen to the words of Pope Francis regarding World War 3. While some prophecy subscribers still seek for the arrival of the apocalypse, Pope Francis claimed that the feared World War III might have already begun. With the current series of crimes, massacres, and destruction, the Holy See warns of the "piecemeal" World War III, according to the BBC.



The claim of potential World War 3 may be evident with the events occurring in our society today. Hence, fear of the world's ending drawing near may be reasonable for some. However, to somehow serve as solace for the fearful ones, the Baba Vanga prophecy speculates that the death of the Earth would likely happen in the year 3797. Thus, giving us more time to prepare ourselves of what is to come.






Alchemy's 152mm-travel Arktos Custom is about as exotic, and maybe as rare, as an albino lobster in the tank at your local Fish Shack restaurant. Based in Denver, Colorado, Alchemy are best known in road circles for creating custom carbon road frames, and earlier this year they launched their first carbon mountain bike, a hardtail 29er called the Oros. But the lobster that we're testing here is their first full-suspension bike, and it features a unique rear-end design called Sine Suspension that employs a clean looking dual-link layout.





If, like me, you're thinking that this particular albino lobster is above your pay grade, Alchemy is now The Arktos Custom's carbon fiber front triangle is made in the good ol' US of A, which no doubt plays a roll in the frame's $3,799 USD price tag. That's a big chunk of change, but it's also about $50 more than a Specialized S-Works Stumpjumper frame or roughly $250 more than a Yeti SB6 frame. The Arktos with the XT build shown here, complete with Praxis' impressive C32 carbon wheels, retails for $7,999 USD.If, like me, you're thinking that this particular albino lobster is above your pay grade, Alchemy is now including a standard Akrtos frame on their menu that's born in Asia rather than the US and costs $800 USD less than the Custom model. Arktos Custom Details



 Intended use: all-mountain / trail

 Rear wheel travel: 152mm

 Wheel size: 27.5''

 US-made carbon front triangle

 66 head angle

 438mm chainstay length

 12 x 148mm rear spacing

 Sizes: S, M, L, XL

 Weight: 28lbs 15oz

 Frame price w/ Fox Float X: $3,799 USD

 MSRP as tested: $7,999 USD



The Arktos Custom's carbon fiber front triangle is manufactured in the United States, while the rear-end comes from Asia.

Frame Details

Internal routing and a clean looking design give the Arktos a tidy appearance, but it might be too tidy for some - there are no ISCG tabs or place to bolt on any type of chain guide.

The Arktos' 152mm of travel is controlled by its Sine Suspension dual-link layout.

The Arktos' Suspension Explained

While the Arktos could pass for a single pivot bike with a rocker link to actuate its shock, its Sine Suspension is, in fact, a dual-link design, with the lower link tucked away inside the frame. According to Alchemy, the system has a suspension curve that's regressive up to the shock's sag point for traction and small bump compliance, and then progressive until the last 15% of the bike's travel to create a more playful, energetic feel.



It becomes regressive again at the end of the stroke to best work with how an air shock naturally ramps through its stroke.



What could be mistaken for a single-pivot desgn is actually clean looking dual-link system. The lower link is tucked into the frame and hidden behind the swingarm.

3 Questions With Sine Suspension Designer, David Earle

Mike Levy:

The Arktos' Sine suspension has what looks to be a relatively unique curve that starts regressive before going progressive and then finally regressive again. What does this do for the rider?

David Earle:

Levy:

The Arktos pedals extremely well. Is this down to a relatively high amount of anti-squat, or is there another reason?

Earle:

Levy:

What would you tell a rider who wants to put a coil-sprung shock on the Arktos?

Earle:

Specifications

Specifications Release Date 2016 Price $7999 Travel 152 Rear Shock Fox Float X Fork Fox Float 36 Headset Cane Creek 40 Tapered Cassette Shimano XT 11-40T Crankarms Praxis Grinder Rear Derailleur Shimano XT 1x11 Chain Shimano HG Shifter Pods Shimano XT 1x11 Handlebar ENVE Stem ENVE Grips Ergon GE1 Brakes Shimano XT Wheelset Praxis C32 Tires Maxxis Minion Seat WTB Silverado Pro Seatpost RockShox Reverb Compare to other All Mountain/Enduro/XC



Climbing

Like to Climb? The Arktos does that job incredibly well. Don't like to climb? At least you won't be able to blame it on the bike.

Descending

Alchemy's 152mm-travel Aktos sits more on the fun and playful side of the breed than some other bikes of similar ilk.

Those who like to leave the ground and take different lines will find a willing partner in the Alchemy.

Technical Report

Praxis' Girder cranks, and especially their carbon C32 wheels, are standout components that probably don't get the attention that they should.

Pinkbike's Take:

There are only a handful similarly usable six-inch-travel bikes on the market when it comes to all-around capabilities. This travel bracket is littered with rigs that are really good at this or that but are about as fun as a hernia operation at the opposite task, which is why the Arktos is such a standout - it does pretty much everything to a high level. Whether or not you feel that makes it worth the coin is up to you, but there's no denying that Alchemy have created something special. - Mike Levy

About the Reviewer



Mike Levy spent most of the 90s and early 2000s racing downhill bikes and building ill-considered jumps in the woods of British Columbia before realizing that bikes could also be pedaled for hours on end to get to some pretty cool places. These days he spends most of his time doing exactly that, preferring to ride test bikes way out in the local hills rather than any bike park. Over ten years as a professional mechanic before making the move to Pinkbike means that his enthusiasm for two wheels extends beyond simply riding on them, and his appreciation for all things technical is an attribute that meshes nicely with his role of Technical Editor at Pinkbike. Age: 35  Height: 5'10  Inseam: 33"  Weight: 165lb  Industry affiliations / sponsors: None  Instagram: killed_by_death

Alchemy has been making carbon road frames in the United States for years now, so they know a thing or two about how to do carbon fiber manufacturing. The entire process is done in-house, from cutting the molds to laying up the carbon sheets that will eventually become a bicycle frame, to painting the frames in what seems like near countless color options and assembling all the parts. Basically, raw ingredients head into the factory at one end, and complete bikes roll out the other.The whole process isn't one that's commonly done in the United States these days, and it flies in the face of nearly everything else that's being made in Taiwan and mainland China. ''Well, its about investing in the engineering and design up front,'' Matt Maczuzak, Vice President of R&D at Alchemy, said of the company's methodology when he spoke to Pinkbike's Vernon Felton earlier this year. ''We spent a lot of time and effort figuring out how do we build this thing as smartly and efficiently as humanly possible. Its the way we mold it and the way we process it afterward.''And what comes afterward is one hell of a good looking bicycle. The Arktos has a clean, uncluttered appearance going for it, with its two short suspension links mostly hidden inside the front triangle and behind the swingarm. Shift, dropper post, and brake lines run inside the frame - there is no external option - and a threaded bottom bracket means that mechanics can happily leave both their hammer and their press in the tool box.As you'd expect, the rear hub spacing is a 12 x 148mm setup, but it's what isn't present that caught my attention: no ISCG 05 chain guide tabs and no place to bolt on a top-only, direct-mount chain guide means that Arktos Custom owners will depend entirely on their clutch derailleur and narrow/wide chain ring. That'll be enough for many riders, but I could see some wanting to fit a guide, or just some protection, given that it's a six-inch-travel bike. You could, of course, use an old school adapter plate sandwiched between the frame and drive-side bottom bracket cup. Interestingly, the less expensive ''standard'' Arktos frame that comes out of Asia and costs $800 less does come with removable ISCG 05 tabs.The Arktos' Sine Suspension was penned by Dave Earle, a man whose resume also includes developing Yeti's Switch suspension system, and stints as the Senior Engineer at both Santa Cruz and Specialized. It's fair to say that he knows a thing or two about designing a mountain bike.That last bit of travel, where it becomes regressive, is where the design differs from a VPP system. On VPP bikes the curve remains progressive for the entirety of the bike's travel. Because air shocks are inherently progressive, ramping up towards the end of their stroke, having the suspension curve become regressive is meant to give the bike a bottomless feel, allowing it to remain supple even during large impacts.Suspension travel of the rear wheel can be divided into three areas; each area has a specific function. First is negative travel through sag point, second is mid range, third is deep travel to bottom out. The ideal suspension system will be designed to optimize each of these areas for the best suspension performance. Negative travel is responsible for small bump feel and should be plush, mid range should be firm and lively, end of travel should avoid ramping and feel bottomless, without bottoming out... That is exactly what Sine Suspension does, the shock rate is a big part of this, other kinematic variables play a role in this to a smaller extent.There is not a high amount of anti-squat on the Arktos, it is just enough to keep it level when pedaling. Pedaling efficiency is not only due to anti-squat, it is how the anti-squat relates to the shock rate (mostly). Basically, there are two forces that push the wheel down; one is the shock force, and one is the chain force (basically anti-squat). Balancing those two together is the trick for pedaling efficiency. The Sine Suspension shock rate actually promotes stable pedaling itself as well. High anti-squat does not necessarily give good pedaling performance; it can make the bike have bad traction and if it is very high will make the bike rise up in heavy efforts. It's really a balance of the entire kinematic system that gives good pedaling.Coil shocks... The bike was designed for air shocks, both the kinematic design and the mechanical design are for air. I have not ridden the bike with a coil, so I really cannot comment. I think it would ride well with a coil; I cannot see why it wouldn't. That said, the mechanical design was done for air shocks... I think it might be difficult to mount most coils.That big 4x4 truck sucks on the highway; it's hard to eat soup with a fork; you probably wouldn't survive a canoe trip across the Atlantic. If you want to be really good at something, it usually makes sense to use specialized equipment. There's a reason why cross-country bikes do cross-country stuff well, why downhill bikes go down all the things, and why, for a long time, all-mountain bikes kinda sucked at most tasks. But it's rigs like the Arktos that, by being relatively proficient at doing stuff that it shouldn't be - I'm talking about climbing, of course - are proving that the gap between a solid mid-travel bike and more focused machines is always shrinking.I don't mean to say that it's really good climber for a 152mm-travel bike; I mean just a really good climber, period. It feels as efficient and full of life as something with 20mm, or even 30mm, less travel, which is ideal if you're the kind of person who likes to pedal a very capable bike over long distances. Basically, the Arktos doesn't make it seem like you're paying a price for lugging around six-inches of travel, partly because it's a relatively lightweight thing but also because you don't feel like the bike is sucking the life force out of your legs as if it's some sort of slow moving ham beast on wheels. You can leave the shock open and spin up anything, even at thirty-five percent sag, and it obviously gets even better if you flip the cheater switch to the Trail setting. The firmest mode is almost too firm for any sort of off-road climbing, though, unless you plan on bar-humping your way up fire roads at max effort.The Arktos' 66-degree head angle isn't exactly EWS worthy these days, but that's clearly not what Alchemy had in mind when they penned this bike. It also means that it doesn't feel like you're steering it from behind the rear wheel when rolling through switchbacks or other technical sections. It is, of course, not as nimble as a bike with less travel or steeper numbers, but it manages to be more of a very capable, long-legged trailbike than a watered down enduro race rig when the going gets tough and a lot of riders start to unclip or tip over embarrassingly.Combine the easygoing handling with bucket loads of traction from the weighty but grippy Minion tires run around 20 PSI (possible due to the wide Praxis C32 carbon rims) and the Arktos feels surprisingly capable under duress. The traction is there for you, the bike's numbers aren't of the silly, new-school sort where it's so slack and long that you get the impression that you're on a tandem, and unlike some other six-inch-travel bikes, it's not about simply managing to get the Arktos to the top of the mountain by any means necessary.Those who enjoy not just the descending, but also the climbing aspect of a ride will have a good time on the Arktos due to the bike's efficient and technically adept nature. Simply put, it's one of the best ascending six-inch-travel bikes we've had on test; a sort of powerlifter who loves a long cardio workout every now and then.The Arktos is full of beans on the descents, partly due to geometry that doesn't require the speed and handling skills of a pro racer to unlock, and partly because it's an efficient feeling platform that rewards a rider's efforts with a whole load of momentum. It's no Slash or Spartan when things are really fast and rough, but most riders are going to have much easier time getting the Arktos off the ground at low speeds or through the back-to-back corners where the second begins while you're still in the middle of the first. It's very Mojo HD3-ish in this regard, in that Alchemy has made the Arktos never feel like too much bike but it still has your back when you send it into a section of trail that's more dangerous than asking an ISIS warlord where the local internet cafe is located.And while you can't quite charge blindly into things and expect nearly guaranteed traction and triumph like you almost always can on a slacker, longer bike, the Arktos chassis, wide Praxis C32 carbon wheelset, and Minion tires do make for a capable package. It's a relatively sharp handling thing, and it's certainly one of the more lively and responsive bikes in this class. The fact that it is so fun on tame trails, or when not riding at ten tenths, is what makes it such a great machine. Well balanced would be a good way to put it, with just the right amount of sharpness to the steering to keep it from being more of a lazy sack of suspension, but not so much so as to take away from what a six-inch-travel bike should excel at - descending.When it comes to the Arktos' suspension, the Fox 36 fork is superb in every metric that you could rate. Supple, ultra-tuneable, and as supportive as an AA sponsor, it's a big reason why the Arktos is as fun as it is. The Float X shock also works well, and it's probably a simpler and smarter choice for a bike that's not an out and out enduro race rig, but the front of the bike almost calls for a Float X2 on the back to match. There were a few times when, having launched into a mess of roots or rocks, that the rear-end felt a tad spiky for how much travel it has. A more adjustable Float X2 might be the solution for those who ride at a high level or have the terrain and coconuts that call for it. It's hard to tell if the bike's Sine Suspension system and it's tricky curve really makes a difference, to be honest, but it probably plays a part if why the Arktos feels so playful - that middle-stroke support likely helps.While the Arktos is a fun bike, it's also one that audibly lets you know how fast you're going when crossing over those same roots and rocks. I guess you could think of the chain slap as a rad-o-meter that tells you how rowdy you're getting, but an old tube and a bunch of tape seemed liked the better choice.There's a very clear distinction between the Arktos and slacker and longer-travel bikes like the Slash and Spartan, but that's to be expected. I'd choose the Akrtos every day of the week if I weren't an extremely fast rider who focuses on enduro races (I don't). Something like the latest Remedy and a Mojo HD3 are both far more comparable, of course, and I'd argue that the first example is the most capable of the three when it comes to scary and/or fast terrain. It's a toss up between the HD3 and the Arktos, which is a real compliment to what Alchemy has created: One of the best all around six-inch-travel bikes on the market, and one that's going to tickle the fancy of a rider who loves to be on something exotic and rare.You better hope that your clutch derailleur and narrow/wide chain ring are in fine working order, as there's also no ISCG tabs nor a location to bolt on a top-mount mini-chain guide of some sort. I realize that the Akrtos is more of a trailbike and an enduro rig, but I still feel like it should be easy to mount a guide on such a bike if required. It does have a threaded bottom bracket shell, so you could go with a hokey ISCG adapter plate if you're really needing some extra chain control... Or you could pay $800 less to get the Asian-made Arktos that comes with tabs. Just sayin'.There was some trouble with the Arktos' main pivot, with the drive-side finding a way to come loose multiple times, despite copious amounts of thread locker and a lot of yelling at it and fist shaking. Alchemy says that a few early test bikes, but none that went out to customers, had this issue and that their own in-house machine shop that manufactures these links remedied the problem awhile back. In other words, those who've bought an Arktos shouldn't have to yell at it.Praxis' new C32 carbon wheels have to be one of the best options out there for a rider that wants a wide, sturdy carbon wheelset. They're true to this day, despite a handful of nasty moments that surely would have knocked an aluminum rim on the back of the bike out of alignment, and their 1,628-gram weight, 32mm inner width, and $1,799 USD MSRP make them more attractive than a handful of other options on the market. Both the front and rear hub shells are of Praxis' own design, and they've dropped in DT Swiss' 36-tooth Star Ratchet system rather than the higher tooth option because it's proven to be more reliable. The bike's Praxis Girder cranks also seem top notch and were trouble-free.
The thriving business of online piracy. (Photo : YouTube/ Al Jazeera English )

The Pirate Bay, Kickass Torrents and Torrentz are among the top torrent download sites that were recently affected by a government crackdown for their anti-online piracy campaign. With all the technical and legal tensions being experienced by the said torrent sites, the outcome would likely foreshadow the future of global online piracy.



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In the past months, there have been an increase of curiosity over the federal crackdown of torrent sites, especially after top ranking sites Kickass Torrents and Torrentz experienced a shutdown. This incident was likely preceded by The Pirate Bay being guilty of assisting in copyright infringement during Sweden trial, which led to the blocking of the specific site.



Meanwhile, KAT's founder is still fighting for innocence with his recent arrest, implicating him to the copyright infringement violation of his website. While the U.S. federal prosecutor is insisting that torrent sites like that of KAT, TPB and others are flea markets for infringing files and software alike, KAT defense attorney is adamant in his views that such site is just a mere online index of digital contents similar to that of Google, according to TorrentFreak.



Now, these actions of the international agencies and different government branches against the proliferation of online piracy may at first glance look successful. However, despite the effort of the said agencies, popularity of torrent sites are still expanding. In fact, after the shutting down of the reliable and top torrents sites, several proxy or mirror sites were established. Apart from that, other sites that were disregarded before of their torrent value are now being used by eager torrent file searchers and downloaders.



There is no telling on how the current crackdown of torrent sites will affect the popularity of online piracy, but if the results would be viewed through its current trend, then online piracy will likely be unstoppable. The current legal actions and technical respond of government agencies may not be offering a direct and final solution, it is just delaying its progress with all the mirror and alternative sites sprouting online. Available resource for The Pirate Bay, Kickass Torrents, and Torrentz alternatives were outlined by KATStatus as reference.






A demonstrators 1-month-old baby girl is dead after an officer desperately tried to save her life during a police shooting protest Saturday in Baltimore.

Police said in a facebook post that the babys mother was one of about 30 people who were protesting at the scene of Fridays police-involved shooting of a knife-wielding man, who remains in critical condition.

According to witnesses, the mother took a break from protesting to feed her baby inside a pizza shop. Seconds later, she told a customer that her little girl had stopped breathing, according to witnesses.

Police said people approached an officer and told him a baby girl was not breathing inside the restaurant. Maj. Richard Gibson then performed CPR until paramedics arrived. The baby was declared dead at a nearby hospital, the Washington Times reports.

Community activist Duane (Shorty) Davis, a critic of Baltimore police in the wake of Freddie Grays 2015 death in police custody, recorded the video and in it, he commends Gibson for doing his best to save the child, the New York Daily News reports.

He told Gibson he did what he had to do for real.
A Colorado State Patrol trooper was on the shoulder of Interstate 25 near Castle Rock when a tractor-trailer rig crossed the solid white line and hit him, killing him instantly, according to court documents obtained by 9NEWS.

Trooper Cody Donahue, an 11-year veteran, was out of his patrol car investigating another crash when he was killed shortly before 2 p.m. Friday.

Noe Gamez-Ruiz, 41, the driver of the truck, was arrested on suspicion of careless driving causing death and failure to yield the right of way to an emergency vehicle.
Actors Emma Roberts (L) and Evan Peters arrive at the premiere of Walt Disney Pictures' 'The Lone Ranger' at Disney California Adventure Park on June 22, 2013 in Anaheim, California. (Photo : Getty Images/Kevin Winter)

It seems like Emma Roberts and Evan Peters have straightened things out. Reports claimed the "American Horror Story" stars are, once again, engaged.



Speculation that Roberts and Peters have rekindled their romance started when the pair was spotted walking around the Provincetown, Massachusetts over the Thanksgiving holiday. There, the two were photographed sharing a romantic kiss.



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While out strolling the streets of Provincetown, Roberts and Peters took a photo with a few fans. Later, the images were shared to an "American Horror Story" fanmade page on Twitter.



Evan Peters and Emma Roberts with fans. pic.twitter.com/0cOvYTOblw

 AmericanHorrorStory (@fyeahahs) November 24, 2016



Not long after it came to light, a source close to Roberts told Us Weekly that the pair decided to give their relationship another go. The source claimed Roberts and Peters were, once again, engaged and revealed that the former wears her engagement ring while at work. However, neither stars have commented publicly on their current relationship status.



This recent sighting comes days after the "Scream Queens" actress tagged Peters in an Instagram post. In the photo, the former was seen holding a funny wine bottle bag.





Roberts and Peters met on the set of the 2013 indie film "Adult World" and announced their engagement in March 2013. In 2015, the two called off their impending wedding, only to reunite a couple of months later. However, they split up again earlier this May.



In a post break-up interview with Allure magazine, Roberts revealed she replaced her engagement ring with three other gold rings on her left hand. The gold rings served as a reminder to always "love yourself and always know what you are worth," she added.



Currently, Roberts plays Chanel Oberlin in the comedy-horror anthology TV series "Scream Queens." At the EW PopFest in late October, the actress opened up about what it was like to be directed by her co-star Jamie Lee Curtis on the show. She said that the latter is an exceptionally promising director, adding Curtis trusts them way more than everyone else and that she knows to pat their egos on the back.



Check out Roberts as Chanel Oberlin on FOX's "Scream Queens" Season 2 here:






Sgt. Alvin Adams of the Wood County (OH) Sheriffs Office died Saturday morning after an apparent accidental discharge of his personal weapon, according to Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn.

Adams, 56, worked as a jail sergeant at the Wood County Justice Center and has been part of the force for at least 12 years, Wasylyshyn said Saturday afternoon.

The accidental gunshot took place outside at Adams home in Grand Rapids. He was off duty at the time and the weapon was not his department-issued firearm.

Adams reportedly was shot in the side and yelled for his girlfriend to call 911. Adams was taken to Wood County Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the Sentinel-Tribune reports.
A prosecutor's widely expected decision to retry a former police officer on a murder charge in the traffic-stop shooting of an unarmed man came with the surprise that he wants to move the next trial out of the Cincinnati area, the Associated Press reports.

Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters announced plans for the request on Tuesday as he said he would try fired University of Cincinnati officer Ray Tensing on the same charges on which jurors deadlocked. A judge declared a mistrial Nov. 12 after jurors remained hung after 25 hours of deliberations. The charges are murder and voluntary manslaughter in the July 19, 2015, fatal shooting of Sam DuBose.

Deters says he wants a jury in another Ohio county, away from intense local attention.

It's very rare for a prosecutor to ask for a change of venue, usually sought by defense attorneys who think a fair and impartial jury can't be seated, legal experts say.

Jurors in the racially charged case were scared of being identified, even revolting and refusing to come out of the jury room at one point, Deters said. Prosecutors talked to some of the jurors after the mistrial, and Deters said prosecutors think the intense local attention could have "seeped into the jury room."
Officer Christine Garcia (Photo: YouTube video screen shot)

San Diegos first transgender police officer was kept out of an event at the San Diego LGBT Community Center in Hillcrest earlier this month because she was wearing her uniform.

The Transgender Day of Remembrance, an annual event to honor those who lost their lives to anti-transgender violence, was held Nov. 17 at the facility on Centre Street.

Officer Christine Garcia, who publicly transitioned last year, helped plan the event and was part of the police department security detail that watched over a commemorative march down University Avenue.

After the march, when Garcia tried to enter the event as a member of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community, she was asked to leave because her police uniform could upset others in attendance, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

When leaders at the center learned what had happened they directly apologized to Garcia and San Diego police Chief Shelley Zimmerman.
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Sen. Marco Rubio, who supported Trump during the presidential election, refused to say that he trusts the president-elect with the nuclear codes during an interview on Sunday.

Video:

https://youtu.be/l8hsB_T1QjQ

CNNs Dana Bash asked Rubio repeatedly if he still had concerns about Trump having the nuclear codes:

BASH: Senator, do  do you still have those concerns about President-elect Trump?

RUBIO: Well, Dana, the bottom line, we had an election. And, ultimately, the voters chose him, both as our nominee and now as our president.

So, the election is over, and now it comes time to govern. And  and were going to give him every chance to be successful. And thats what Im focused on now. At some point, elections end and the governing needs to begin.

.

BASH: Senator, I  I completely get that elections are over, and now it is time for governing.

But given the fact that it is time for governing and your criticism was about his abilities to govern, you know, even as far as saying that he shouldnt have his  have the nuclear codes because hes too erratic, what will you do as senator, as somebody who actually has the  the responsibility of check and balance, to make sure that he is governing properly, given the concerns that you expressed?

RUBIO: The same  the same as I would do with anybody else whos elected. I mean, we have a role in the Senate, for example, in our Cabinet appointments and nominations, that well review each of those. And  and well play our proper role under the Constitution.

.

BASH: So, do you feel comfortable now with Donald Trump in charge of the nuclear arsenal?

RUBIO: I feel comfortable that the voters have chosen him to be the commander in chief. And were going to give him every chance to be a successful one. And, ultimately, it will be incumbent upon him, as it would be upon any president who was elected, but a  to prove their capability in that role. And  and he deserves that opportunity. He has earned it at the ballot box.

Journalists have seen this Rubio before. When the Senator from Florida gets a question that he doesnt want to answer, he gives them the Marco Two-Step dodge.

The question that Rubio dodged involved whether or not he trusted the man he supported in the general election not to cause a nuclear war once he is in office.

It is a serious question that goes directly to the post-WWII standard for presidents that they can be trusted not to blow up the world.

The implication of Rubio not saying that Trump can be trusted with the nuclear codes is chilling and should be considered by every Electoral College elector before they cast their ballot for Donald Trump.
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In his most unpresidential moment yet, President-elect Trump took to Twitter to push a conspiracy theory with no evidence to support it, that millions of people illegally voted for Hillary Clinton.

Trump tweeted:

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 27, 2016

It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 27, 2016

states instead of the 15 states that I visited. I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 27, 2016

For those who are keeping score at home:

Number of Trump tweets about the recount: 12

Number of Trump tweets about post-election hate crimes: 0

As a candidate, Trump would make things up constantly on his Twitter account, and people would laugh because he seemed like a nutty old guy ranting on Twitter. That nutty old guy is now the president-elect, and the next President Of The United States appears to believe that millions of people illegally voted for his opponent in the last election.

The beliefs that Trump expressed arent those of a president. Presidents dont cast doubts upon the electoral process of the country that they have been elected to govern. Donald Trump is expressing views that are often shared by authoritarians and dictators that form the basis of their justification for their purge of political enemies.

The next President Of The United States has invented a conspiracy theory to make himself feel better about losing the popular vote.

Hopefully, Electoral College electors are watching this stunning behavior unfold, and they are coming to the conclusion that putting Donald Trump in the White House would endanger the United States of America.
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President-elect Donald Trump accused New Hampshire, Virginia, and California of voter fraud. Officials in all three states have released statements denouncing the President-elects baseless conspiracy theory.

Trump tweeted:

Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California  so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias  big problem!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 28, 2016

California Secretary of State Alex Padilla tweeted:

Another irresponsible attempt to undermine confidence in our elections. Baseless and counterproductive. https://t.co/DW3ETVTsVM  Alex Padilla (@AlexPadilla4CA) November 27, 2016

Virginia Department of Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortes said, The claims of voter fraud in Virginia during the Nov. 8 election are unfounded. The election was fair and all votes cast by eligible voters were accurately counted.

New Hampshire Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan, told Politico, We have heard claims like this in the past, relative to our elections, but we have been provided no evidence that suggests that there is voter fraud on a widespread scale in New Hampshire. When comments like that are made, he added, we become very concerned about the perception, which sometimes is more important than the reality when it comes to conducting elections because the voters need to feel confident that their votes are counted accurately.

The situation is unprecedented in modern American political history. The president-elect is attacking the integrity of the electoral process in states that he lost, and the states are responding by denouncing the incoming presidents baseless conspiracy theories.

It can be argued that there hasnt been this much division between a group of states and the man who will be running the executive branch of the federal government since the Civil War. When Donald Trump talks about bringing the nation together, it is wise to keep in mind that he is the person who is responsible for much of the current division.

The states are sending the message that Trump is not going to be allowed to lie at will as president. The nation is moving closer to uncharted waters as divisions that were once partisan is turning into a full-scale revolt against a president-elect who refuses to stop making things up.
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The Wisconsin Elections Commission has denied a request by Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein for a hand recount of all ballots.

The AP reported, The Wisconsin Elections Commission has voted unanimously to reject a request from Green Party candidate Jill Stein to conduct a hand recount of the presidential vote. Instead, the commission Monday voted to allow local election clerks to determine the method they would use for a recount.

Stein can appeal, and ask a judge to order the recount by hand, but it appears that the plan is to simply run the same ballots through the voting machines again. Running the ballots through the machines again will accomplish nothing, as Stein is claiming that the election system is not secure and could have been compromised.

Green Party officials said on Sunday that they are willing to go to court to get what they are spending a million dollars on. They want a hand recount of all ballots in the state. It looks the 2016 recount has run into its first court battle as Wisconsin election officials have shown that they intend to push this recount through as quickly as possible.

Stein is going to need to go to court, and if the 2000 recount is a guide, she will need to raise a great deal of money, because most of the critical battles in the process will play out in court, not at tables in precincts around the state.
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*The following is an opinion column by R Muse*

During the 2012 general election, and campaign, one could hardly believe the level of mendacity coming out of the Willard Romney campaign. In fact, it became fairly apparent that no matter how frequently the Republicans in Congress lied as part of their automatic opposition and obstruction to President Obama up to that point, their deceit and lies paled in comparison to Romneys seemingly pathological lying. Four years later, despite Willards record capacity to lie, even he couldnt hold a candle to Donald Trump who epitomizes what it means to be pathologically incapable of telling the truth; an affliction that permeated his entire campaign staff. Now that the election is over, one of Trumps trusted accomplices is still lying profusely and although there is no excuse for lying, there is a purpose in the filthy lie that Donald Trump won by a landslide and by the most significant number of votes since Ronald Reagan in 1984.

After a brief stint as the Trump campaigns inside voice on CNN, former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski is back on team Trump and lying for his boss as if his very existence depends on it. After telling the truth during a speech about the monumental assist Trumps campaign received from FBI director James Comey eleven days before the election, Lewandowski nearly out-lied his corrupt boss Donald Trump. He repeated a Trump campaign lie and said that Donald Trump won the election campaign by the largest majority since Ronald Reagan in 1984. Seriously, Lewandowski actually told a lie that it seems nearly impossible that every person on the planet knows was a gross violation the Ninth commandment.

The brief truth is that in the past eight presidential elections since 1984, Donald Trump comes in at number 8 out of 8 in the popular vote and 6th out of 8 in the Electoral College vote. Add to that little bit of truth, Hillary Clinton garnered a couple of million more popular votes than dirty Don and more than any other white male candidate in history; and her lead continues to grow.

Now, it is simple to think Lewandowski and the Trump camp are lying about a landslide victory and a mandate just to stroke their megalomaniac boss over-inflated ego, and that may be the case. But there is another reason that makes just as much sense; the policies that Republicans and Trump will ram down the throats of the American people are highly unpopular.

With every policy position, campaign promise, and stated proposals on the Trump-Republican agenda certain to invoke anger among Americans, Trumps liars are attempting to convince the people that promising to implement those devastating policies are why Trump won a monumental landslide victory. And, that no matter how unpopular the Koch-GOP and Trumps agenda, they are, after all, mandated by the voters to unleash Hell on the people. Sadly, Americans are so inherently ignorant, uninformed, easily fooled and just plain stupid, that they will likely fall for the Trump lies and accept damaging policies they heard from Trumps acolytes are mandated by the people.

There arent many Republican-Trump policies that have the support of the majority of Americans, and it is relatively safe to say there are next to none, but perusing recent polling about just a few of the policies Trump and Republicans have pledged to implement demonstrate just how unpopular their policies are and why it is important for them to lie about a non-existent mandate.

Trump, and for sure, Republicans have pledged to give the National Rifle Association their due attention in both relaxing gun regulations and blocking any hope in Hell of ever getting simple and sane gun safety laws enacted. This is despite an overwhelming majority, including NRA members, of the population that want the most basic of safety provisions; universal background checks. They will never happen.

On a womans choice, Trump has made it clear he will specifically nominate a Supreme Court justice who pledges to overturn Roe v. Wade. Whether it is his misogynistic twist on exerting control over all American women, or playing at abject obedience to the Vatican, Pope Francis, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Hobby Lobbys owners, or the evangelical right, Trumps, the USCCB, evangelical right and Hobby Lobbys owners plan and intent for the nation is contrary to will of the majority of Americans who do not want it overturned.

On tax cuts for the rich, the people have for years wanted the wealthys unfair tax breaks reined in; most Americans are not enthused about another Republican plan where the rich getting richer at their or the nations expense. Of course Republicans and Trump could not care less what the people want and are proposing unheard of tax cuts for the rich; at the expense of everyone else.

Related to giving more wealth to the rich is the Koch Republican plan to seize all federal public lands, including wilderness areas, national parks, and protected areas and transfer them to corporate control and privatization. Although the people vehemently oppose the idea, the Koch brothers want it so badly that the GOP made it an integral part of the official RNC platform.

Americans also overwhelmingly want immigration reform that includes a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, and among those wanting Congress to act is no small number of Republicans. However, like the other policies Trump and Republicans will enact, a minority of Nazis (alt-right), white nationalists, bigots, Ku Klux Klan members, Donald Trump and white supremacists dont want any reform that doesnt involve mass deportation and imprisonment.

By now some Americans are aware that the concept of Medicare as they know it and as it was devised is set for a massive reform in the shape of a coupon. Even though the people do not want the retirement healthcare program privatized, the Koch brothers, Republicans and Donald Trump do and they own the government. Some Americans likely thought there was a chance Social Security would be expanded, or at least protected, and the majority of the people want the program preserved, but now that the Kochs, Republicans and Trump run the nation, Social Security will be fortunate to survive privatization. It is all but guaranteed Republicans will raise the retirement age and cut benefits; because it is contrary to the will of the majority.

This list could go on for pages, but the point is that the American people are going to get a very healthy, and unchallengeable, dose of everything the majority opposes. It is possible that some of the people may catch on that the next iteration of government will fundamentally go against their wishes and best interests, but even that is questionable. Because besides the stupid people who voted for what they never wanted, it is possible that if Trump and his thugs lie enough that he is doing what the people mandated in a landslide election, he can convince more stupid Americans that the Republicans impending assault on them is mandated by their fellow citizens. If successful, Trump camps ploy may go down as a con on par with George W. Bushs Iraq War swindle.
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Jill Stein is following through on her promise to request recounts in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, as the Green Party presidential candidate has filed for recounts in both Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

The Pennsylvania recount process is complicated. According to CBS News, In Pennsylvania, a statewide recount can occur if at least three voters per precinct or election district submit affadavits. There were some 9,175 election districts in Pennsylvania as of June, 2015, according to Citizens for Election Integrity (CEI), a group which advocates for accuracy in elections.

Candidates cant directly file for a recount, so her campaign is joining an already initiated voter appeal.

Stein said in a statement, We must recount the votes so we can build trust in our election system. We need to verify the vote in this and every election so that Americans of all parties can be sure we have a fair, secure and accurate voting system.

Pennsylvania is where Trump has his biggest lead of 68,000 votes over Hillary Clinton. The odds of a recount changing the results in Pennsylvania are slim, but Stein was correct. Voters need to be able to trust the electoral process.

There has never been an election that raised so many doubts concerning its legitimacy in the history of the country, as 2016 has. President-elect Trump created these doubts by claiming that the election was rigged.

It is important for these concerns to be put to rest once and for all, and the best way to do that is with a hand recount in the three closest swing states.
The Avengers will be seen next in Joe Russo and Anthony Russo's "Captain America: Civil War." (Photo : Instagram/avengersmovie)

Things have been quiet around "Avengers: Infinity War," as zero updates on filming and casting has been released by Marvel. However, a recent Twitter update suggests that the cast and crew may have already begun discreetly filming for the highly-awaited Marvel event in history.



A photographer named Atlanta Filming on Twitter posted on Nov. 19 that "Avengers: Infinity War" started filming two weeks prior. Although Joe and Anthony Russo have released photos of potential filming locations for the movie, no official word about the film has been released. The Russo brothers are directing "Avengers: Infinity War."



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While little is known about the "Avengers: Infinity War" plot at this point, the Russo brothers describes the upcoming film as "a culmination of everything that's occurred in the Marvel Universe up to the point where the Marvel Universe is released."



The personal conflict that rose in "Captain America: Civil War" will bleed into "Avengers: Infinity War." For one, the strain in Iron Man and Captain America's relationship will remain when they reunite in the next Avengers. Their relationship is a most complex thing and it's still uncertain how they can move forward from it.



Speaking of Captain America, Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes' relationship will foster even more as they move forward in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Steve has finally tapped into Bucky's humanity, but his doing so came at a great cost and at the expense of the Avengers as a team. There's still a lot left to be uncovered with respect to Bucky. Will he remain good or will he stay bad?



Another relationship that's being developed in the upcoming "Avengers" film is that of Scarlet Witch and Vision.



"Certainly Scarlet Witch and Vision. It's a very compelling story," Joe Russo told /FILM. "Obviously, it's one ripped from the comics that, for many years, there was some very interesting storytelling and characters. One character is searching for how to identify with humanity, another who is on a journey away from her humanity towards becoming a very powerful being.



Meanwhile, Doctor Strange is confirmed to join the rest of the gang in "Avengers: Infinity War."



"Avengers: Infinity War" has been scheduled for an April 25, 2018 release date.






Watchdog and Public Service reporter

Thad Moore is a reporter on The Post and Couriers Watchdog and Public Service team and a graduate of the University of South Carolina. To share tips securely, reach Moore via ProtonMail at thadmoore@protonmail.com or on Signal at 843-214-6576.
Representatives of Boeing and five Japanese companies sign a deal to manufacture key components for its twin-aisle 777X jets Thursday. Boeing has inked a deal for five Japanese companies to manufacture key components for its twin-aisle 777X jets.
The organization is just steps away from other cultural landmarks such as the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park headquarters, the Beaufort History Museum and the Robert Smalls House. Executive Director Victoria Smalls led the move from the organization's prior home on John's Island in Charleston County. Read moreGullah Geechee Heritage Corridor's move to Beaufort strengthens city's claim as center for history
The SC capital city may fine anyone setting off pyrotechnics after 11 p.m., except for New Year's Eve and Fourth of July celebrations and approved events such as Fireflies baseball games. Read moreShooting off late-night fireworks banned in Columbia
I Am Not Madame Bovary is Best Example How to Go Around Chinas Strict Censorship Laws

Closing Gala - 64th San Sebastian Film Festival (Photo : Getty Images)

China is notorious for its strict censorship laws which had resulted in the banning of western social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. The newly approved film censorship law may seem to make life harder for the countrys movie producers, but cinema experts know how to go around Chinas censorship laws.



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BBC cites the case of Chinese director Feng Xiaogang who megged a risque movie, I Am Not Madame Bovary, yet managed to have it exhibited as a mainstream film. The movie tells the story of a peasant Chinese woman who battles the bureaucracy.



Feng Xiaogang did it by fitting Chinese President Xi Jinpings anti-corruption campaign in the movie, passed off as a comedy film that did not rely on jokes or witty lines to make the audience laugh. The director instead used absurd situations to tackle the legal challenges the woman grappled with over two decades.



Although Feng Xiaogang used black comedy in I Am Not Madame Bovary, the director knew how to present sensitive subjects in ways that got the films approval by senior officers at the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television who were aware that the movie spoke the truth and had a worthy message for Chinese moviegoers.



If Chinese filmmakers go by the letter of the countrys new censorship law, the list of banned topics is long. It includes gambling, drug abuse, criminal methods, superstition and violence. Those are the donts. There are also the dos, namely, local films should serve socialism and the Chinese people.



Those who had gone too far and presented lewd materials, such as the young Chengdu woman who posted a video of foursome sex, felt the sting of governments harsh censorship law. But those wise enough to go around it by crafting movies of high quality and value show one can outwit government bureaucracy and even win the critics praise just like what Feng Xiaogang did.






Updated at 3:30 p.m. with details about the council meetings in Februrary.

Though it's only 28 feet long and occupies only 18 feet of city airspace above the alley that splits the block, for now it's the most important skyway in Rochester .

The skyway was privately built and provides access between the 318 Commons building and the former Paine Furniture building. As the Answer Man correctly noted in his column Saturday , it connects 318 Commons to the Big Brad's building, which is directly across the alley from the easement area. By connecting with Big Brad's, they kept the more historically valuable Paine building intact.

All three buildings are owned by Rochester developers Hal Hendersonand Grant Michaletz. 318 Commons , at 318 First Ave. SW, is best known for its vital role as a center for the University of Minnesota Rochester, including student housing and classrooms, though others know it as the home of the Loop bar and restaurant.

The 130-year-old Paine building, at 313 S. Broadway, one of the oldest buildings left downtown, is being renovated after years of sitting vacant. And Big Brad's, at 309 S. Broadway, is famous for -- well, being Big Brad's, a popular watering hole.

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Last year, Henderson and Michaletz, doing business as GKH2 Holdings LLC, proposed to build the mini-skyway over the north-south alley as part of redeveloping the Paine building. After a rather tortured process at the Rochester City Council last winter, which I'll get to in a minute, the city granted a revocable permit for the skyway on Feb. 22.

GKH2 went right to work and the skyway was ready to go by September.

Why was the skyway important? Because it allowed direct access to the renovated second floor of the Paine building, where UMR now leases 8,000 square feet of space for classrooms and other purposes. It was good for Henderson and Michaletz's prospects for leasing the space. It was important for "activating," in developer jargon, a long-dormant historic building on Rochester's main drag, and it was more than convenient for UMR to have a direct link between its classrooms in 318 Commons and its space in Paine.

Win-win-win, right?

Wrong. At least the city council says it's wrong. Last Monday , they revoked the permit and said the new skyway will be closed or torn down if the owners don't reach an agreement with the George F. Pougiales Trustand trustee Helen Rolandabout a skyway easement to their property at 324 First Ave. SW.

They set a deadline of Jan. 4 for Henderson and Michaletz to reach a deal with Roland.

One council member, Nick Campion, was unapologetic about what happens next if they don't. "I have no problem tearing it down," he said.

UMR says Paine link is vital

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The council voted 4-3 to revoke the permit -- something that's almost never done, as far as I can tell. I've asked city officials to tell me when it last occurred and whether it involved removing a structure.

The skyway cost just over $375,000, Henderson told me Friday. That may seem like a lot for 28 feet, but skyways aren't a lot cheaper just because they're short, he said.

He doesn't expect Campion or anyone else to tear it down. Neither does UMR. Chancellor Steven Lehmkuhle wrote a strongly worded letter to the city council prior to the vote, saying "UMR's operational continuity is being threatened" by the impending revocation of the permit and the threat to close or remove the skyway.

"Operationally, our space in the Paine building is key to UMR's success and there are no alternative options," he wrote. "We are deeply concerned that this space would be threatened as if we have not been faithful, or beneficial to the community in our efforts. We have obligations to the fulfillment of our mission and we will work within that mission and University resources to maintain our access to this vital space."

The letter further saber-rattles that "the threat of removing skyway access is operationally and financially unacceptable," and concludes, "We respectfully ask that the City and City Council work to resolve this issue in cooperation with the building owners and not continue to apply pressure or threaten to apply pressure through the building occupants."

The council's handling of this has greatly frustrated an influential business leader, who redeveloped a key block with 318 Commons and helped to "activate" that whole stretch of First Avenue, and it has greatly annoyed UMR.

How did it come to this point?

It's all about leverage. That's the term council member Michael Wojcikused in the debate over the permit in January and February. I reviewed the videotapes of the meetings and at the Jan. 11 Committee of the Whole meeting, Wojcik said, "Ultimately, this is the time we have our ability to negotiate. Once it's up and the access is up, we lose our footing in the negotiations."

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He said a few minutes later that "once the negotiations (for the Paine skyway) are done with, there's no leverage to try and get that connection in there anywhere in the future."

That turned out not being true, of course. The skyway is up and open, and the council still is using it for leverage.

The council voted 6-1 on Feb. 22 to approve the revocable permit. Wojcik was the lone "no" vote, though Campion that night said, "Our nuclear option is, we will shut down the skyway" if no deal was reached on a skyway connection to the property next door.

At the Jan. 11 meeting, Wojcik was clear that he has no interest in eventually extending the skyway system south of Fourth Street, where UMR hopes to build a campus someday and new private development is imminent. Though a skyway across Fourth Street isn't part of the city's current downtown plan, other council members and city officials definitely are interested in it.

"I don't ever see the skyway going south of Fourth Street," Wojcik said at the January meeting. That's in keeping with his and his allies' negative view of the impact of skyways on downtown's vitality at the street level.

So his main concern is with the skyway easement to "Helen's property," described as a "business condo" building. No development plan has been filed. Roland says she's been seeking an easement for at least three years, though Henderson told the city council in January that the issue had only just come up again after 18 months of silence from Roland.

In any case, it would appear that those who support Roland's unannounced project saw the Paine skyway permit as the right moment to press for a resolution.

The alley option

Henderson said Friday he has agreed all along to extending the system and has three easements in place (including one that goes to the north), with a fourth that could go through Big Brad's if there's ever a Broadway crossing. His building is criss-crossed with easements. He's not in favor of Roland's preferred path, which would split the second floor of his building along a now-narrow 6-foot corridor. Henderson says it makes more sense to extend the skyway along the east side of the alley.

That would mean Roland would need to build a link across to it, so this dispute is in part about the council choosing "winners and losers" along the skyway route -- who's going to pay the most, whether by negotiation, condemnation or possibly assessment.

By the way, the council was more preoccupied with the skyway issue on the east side of the alley when this was discussed last winter. There was concern about the impact on historic buildings, and Wojcik wanted to have a consultant involved. He also wanted an independent third party helping GKH2 and Roland to resolve their issue, not City Administrator Steve Kvenvold.

The council discussed various conditions for the permit, and in fact it first approved an agreement on Feb. 1 that included three conditions for the revocable permit: an easement to connect with other buildings on the 300 block, an easement to connect 318 Commons with "Helen's Property," and an assurance that the alley skyway wouldn't mess with the historic value of Big Brad's.

That agreement was approved unanimously, but GKH2 objected, saying the three conditions had "detrimental ramifications" and "insurmountable requirements" not only on the 318 Commons side of the alley but for Big Brad's and Paine, which they were attempting to renovate as "vibrant and productive buildings."

In the end, after efforts led by council member Mark Bilderback, the issue returned to the council on Feb. 16 and on Feb. 22, when an amendment explictly rejected conditions that required a deal, though Campion, among others, was clear during debate that a deal with Roland was expected.

Henderson said Friday that from the beginning, he's made it clear that an agreement would have to be approved by his lender. Whether the lender ( Barclays , with the loan serviced by Wells Fargo and Rialto Capital Management ) would ever go along with a reduction in revenue-producing floor space is another matter, but he says if Roland and the city can get that done, fine. (This is where Wojcik and maybe other council members think there has been foot-dragging.)

For her part, Roland made it clear in an email to council members prior to the vote that "we think there are personal and business reasons preventing the parties from a meeting of the minds. We also think those reasons are irreconcilable and a new path to obtaining the extension is necessary."

So that's the impasse. The "new path" is a threat to tear down a brand new skyway, and it's about leveraging the moment.

Does the council really have leverage, despite the chest-thumping about tearing it down? I assume the only ones with leverage at that point will be the attorneys, and they charge by the hour.

Competing interests

The impasse is also about connections. Henderson and Roland have some history when it comes to the Paine building. Henderson says Roland was among a group that tried to buy the Paine building at the time that he and Michaletz got it in 2014 . According to Henderson, that group included the Gerrardsof Gerrard Corp., which owns 321 and 325 S. Broadway, home to the Refashion consignment shop, a cellphone repair shop and Gerrard offices.

Henderson and his wife Holly own the two buildings (Steam coffeehouse and the Canvas and Chardonnay shop) in between the Gerrard properties and the Paine building.

There are also political connections worth noting. The Gerrard family contributed $1,000 to Wojcik's re-election campaign this year, which as a group makes them the biggest contributors. They gave even more generously to Bilderbackand council president Randy Staver 'sre-election campaigns. Those three, plus Campion, who wasn't on the ballot, voted to revoke the skyway permit.

Henderson says he donated $100 each to Staver and Wojcik challenger Scott Hoss'campaigns; those are below the limit that have to be itemized on campaign finance reports.

Also on the political front, Roland is associated with Sean Allen, who ran unsuccessfully against incumbent Staver this fall. Allen's Midwest Landing real estate firm is working with Roland on her as-yet unannounced project.

Wojcik was supportive of Allen's run and hoped it would lead to a new majority on the council. So there are political dynamics playing out as well.

Wojcik told me by email Saturday that the possibility of a skyway down the east side of the alley is "interesting, and I would like to see an estimate, but I expect this would be a seven-figure expense and I would not want to commit tax dollars. There is a question of who would pay for the connection. If we could do it with 100 percent assessments, that would be a possibility. The simplest (route) is still going through 318 Commons and crossing the alley again there."

He notes that "there are essentially two projects that would likely go with a connection: Helen's and the non-historic properties at Broadway and Fourth," the Gerrard properties.

Wojcik said the impasse and his "frustration with Hal," which came out vividly in an email exchange prior to last Monday's vote, "is the culmination of years of half-hearted attempts at cooperation. I so mistrusted Hal that I wanted assurances on an easement prior to allowing the alley connection. This is especially frustrating because his building, the skyway connection, and his tenants are largely taxpayer-supported entities."

He's "particularly disappointed" that Henderson and Michaletz continue to refer the easement issue to their lenders. He said that "as a finance professional, this whole notion is laughable. Even in the most dire of circumstances, there are still easy workarounds to make this work. Hal just doesn't want to. Further, no one is looking to take anything from him, everyone agrees he will be fairly compensate for any net loss of space."

'Least expensive' route

Wojcik said the "final straw" was demands that Henderson allegedly made of Roland regarding any deal. "I think that is where he basically lost the entire council," he said.

I asked Henderson about that and he said, "We provided a DRAFT agreement that Kvenvold requested as a starting point. The requests are only common sense and totally intended to protect our property rights. They are very practical and basic for any real estate transaction."

The document, dated Oct. 24, is attached to this file.

I traded emails with Roland Sunday and asked whether she might accept a skyway that runs along the alley, rather than directly from 318 Commons. She said first of all that she hadn't heard about that proposal since early 2015, when GKH2 apparently pitched it.

"We have looked at all options for skyways in this area and have talked with the city and other property owners about the possibilities," she said. "The conclusion has always been that at this time and considering the future extensions of the skyway, the 500-square-foot UMR closet on 318's second floor (which would be taken for the skyway) was the least expensive and most efficient route.

"I am willing to consider any connection that will allow neighboring properties to connect to the public skyway system. I would hope that the connections and extensions would be undertaken and timed to facilitate growth and development. Without having discussed the east side alley skyway with anyone lately, I would have to ask whether all affected property owners have weighed in, what the cost would be, who would bear the cost, and what the timing would be?"

I asked her whether she thinks the Paine skyway will be torn down.

"I think it is unfortunate that the revocable permit was the route chosen for the alley skybridge to the Paine building," she said by email. "I am not sure what other options might have been on the table, but the revocable permit is not working for anyone at this time. 318 Commons, the landlord, is not happy. UMR is not happy. The council is not happy...

"With that said, I think the city must find a solution to our problem of connecting to the skyway now. I don't see how 324 (First Ave. SW, her property) could have waited nearly three years and be told there's no deal. What would that say about development in downtown Rochester? A long-time owner of a great downtown corner cannot have access to the skyway that is within inches of its property line?

"All of the players, including the public and diverse users of the skyway system, deserve to be treated fairly so that the system can work for everyone."

She acknowledged there's interest in extending the skyway over Fourth but didn't take a position on that, and she confirmed that she and her husband were "approached with a plan for revitalizing and rehabbing the Paine building when it was still owned by the Paine family. We walked through with an architect who explained the issues and challenges. We were unable to transact the deal."

Late Sunday, Roland emailed Bilderback and Staver to propose a meeting on Tuesday. In the email, she said, "You might recall that I had letters from the Gerrards, the Armons, Traci Downs, the Stencil Group and the GFP Trust, as well as support from multiple downtown business people, property owners, and developers when this first came before the Council in January. I have kept most of those interested parties abreast of developments and they are all still very interested in a positive outcome.

"In other words, this is not just about a connection to 324, and anyone suggesting that it is, is simply mistaken."

Hung up

Whether Henderson and Michaletz have "lost the council," as Wojcik says, is far from clear. Staver said by email Saturday that "the main idea of the revocation is to get the participants' attention. This has been very frustrating for those of us close to the topic that the parties can't seem to come to a resolution."

Unlike Wojcik, Staver says he is "not pointing fingers at either party, (we're) just frustrated that they can't seem to find closure ... despite the sharp talk, I really don't believe we will actually take action to remove the skyway. I think some other parties, with interest in a skyway system, will also now come to the table."

Staver says that "perhaps a 'spine' skyway down the alley to the south is a preferred solution," and he clearly thinks the skyway system should extend to the future UMR campus area. He called the permit revocation "a positive means to the end of better design and access to possible development south of Fourth Street."

Again, that's not what Wojcik wants. He wants it to dead-end at Fourth Street.

In other words, the council is as conflicted as the property owners. Hung up in the middle is that 28-foot, $375,000 skyway over the alley.
STEWARTVILLE  A Rochester man was taken into custody Sunday after authorities say he fled in a car and on foot on Thanksgiving evening.

Michael Alan Bunnell, 23, was allegedly driving a vehicle that triggered the automated license plate reader of an Olmsted County Sheriff's deputy on patrol in Stewartville about 7:45 p.m. Thursday. The ALPR indicated the registered owner is a woman with a suspended or revoked driver's license.

When the deputy attempted a traffic stop at Second Avenue and 10th Street, the driver instead drove north, eventually stopping near Eagle Lane and 21st Street Northwest "after several evasive maneuvers," said Capt. Scott Behrns.

The man behind the wheel  later identified by the 19-year-old passenger as Bunnell  then ran off, the report says, and officers were unable to find him.

On Sunday, the Rochester Police Department notified the sheriff's office that Bunnell, who was also wanted by the Minnesota Department of Corrections, had been seen at the GuestHouse Inn and Suites, 435 16th Ave. NW.

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A deputy who responded to the scene spotted Bunnell on the second floor of the motel, Behrns said. He initially denied any involvement in the incident Thursday, but when confronted with the passenger's story, he allegedly admitted to his role.

Bunnell could be charged with felony fleeing a peace officer and gross misdemeanor drug possession. Behrns said a small amount of methamphetamine was found inside the vehicle Bunnell had reportedly been driving.

He was sentenced in March to a year and a day in prison for a felony drug conviction, with credit for 99 days already served. It's unclear when he was released.
Anthony Johnson salutes the crowd during a press conference for the UFC 202 event. (Photo : Getty Images/Ethan Miller)

UFC light heavyweight title contender Anthony Johnson wants nothing but the best for UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier despite losing an immediate shot at the belt in their supposed UFC 206 title bout after Cormier withdrew from the fight because of an injury.



Cormier and Johnson are scheduled to dispute for the UFC light heavyweight title as the main event of the UFC 206 on Dec. 10 at the Air Canada Center in Canada before the champ was forced to withdraw from fighting because of an undisclosed injury, MMA Fighting reported.



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Johnson, who would have to wait for months before getting a crack at the title, tweeted he wishes for the full recovery of his rival. Cormier told Johnson through Twitter that they will still "get to rock and roll" and apologized for what happened.



With what happened, Cormier would end 2016 without defending his title as he also pulled out from his UFC 197 rematch against Jon "Bones" Jones because of an injury. The two were scheduled to meet again in the Octagon in UFC 200 before Jones failed his USADA drug test the week of the bout. Anderson Silva, who replaced Jones for a three-round non-title bout, surrendered a unanimous decision to Cormier.



Johnson, meanwhile, who was defeated by Cormier for the vacant light heavyweight belt in UFC 187, bounced back magnificently and registered three straight knockout wins over Jimi Manuwa, Ryan Bader and Glover Teixeira.



The UFC is still looking for a replacement for Cormier while the co-main event of UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis and Max Holloway will headline UFC's penultimate pay-per-view of 2016. UFC 206 recently lost the Rashard Evans and Tim Kennedy fight after the Ontario Commission chose not to license Evans' medical issue, SB Nation's Bloody Elbow reported.



Donald Cerone will also see action in UFC 206 against Matt Brown in the welterweight division while Kennedy will face Kevin Gastelum in replacement for Evans.






Dodge County

Mantorville Art Guild receives grant

MANTORVILLE  The Mantorville Art Guild Gallery & Studio has received a $10,000 Arts & Cultural Heritage grant for Summer Youth Art Camps from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council. It was one of 40 grants awarded for arts organizations in the region.

Houston County

La Crescent considers street repair

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LA CRESCENT  The La Crescent City Council is considering doing some work on South Third Street.

At its Nov. 14 meeting, the council approved authorizing the city engineer to prepare construction costs for reconstruction of the road between Elm and Maple streets. It would allow possibly adding sidewalks on each side.

Fillmore County

Christmas Tea set for Saturday and Sunday

SPRING VALLEY  The Spring Valley Historical Society will host its annual Christmas Tea Saturday and Sunday at the home of society director Julie Mlinar at 102 N. Washington St.

The cost is $12 and reservations are required by calling Mlinar at 507-346-7659. Proceeds will help raise money to re-roof the Washburn-Zittleman House Museum and the Ag Building.

Mower County

Hormel retiree breakfast will be Dec. 13

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AUSTIN  A breakfast Dec. 13 will honor Hormel retirees at the Mower County Senior Center.

You can have either strawberry pancakes and sausage or a fruit plate with a jumbo muffin. Tickets cost $5 in advance at the Senior Center or $6 at the door. Spouses are invited.

Wabasha County

Council approves land purchase for hotel

WABASHA  A standing-room only meeting at Wabasha City Council on Nov. 15 featured discussion of whether the city should allow Grand Eagles Hospitality to purchase land between the Eagle Center and the Eagle's Landing Condominiums.

The council approved the purchase 5-2, although that does not automatically mean the hotel will be built there.

Goodhue County

Kenyon fire hall is on track

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KENYONThe Kenyon City Council reported at its meeting Nov. 15 that the new fire facility is progressing on track.

The contractor Bolton & Menk said the sanitary sewer, water main and storm sewer are complete. Foundations and footings are in place, and gas and electrical installations have begun.

Winona County

Commissioners settle wrongful dismissal case

WINONA  The Winona County Board of Commissioners has reached a settlement with a former administrator who sued for wrongful termination in 2014.

Duane Hebert contended he was discriminated against because his wife worked for an energy company with whom the county was considering working on a renewable energy project. He argued she had no connection to the project.
LANESBORO  Deer hunters in southeastern Minnesota finished out their season with caution, waiting to hear more after the state Department of Natural Resources announced last week that chronic wasting disease had been found in two deer shot in Fillmore County.

This is just the second time the always-fatal neurological disorder has been discovered in Minnesota. The two deer, shot within a mile of one another north of Preston, were found to have the disease. While fear that the disease may be more widespread is not keeping hunters out of the woods, it has them wondering what's next.

"I think it's kind of wait and watch right now, and see what kind of plan they're going to implement," said Phil Kruegel, a hunter who stopped Sunday at the Lanesboro BP gas station to purchase a muzzle loader season license. "I know there's a lot of concern in my neighborhood."

During the first deer hunting seasons, the DNR tested about 450 deer in a 15-mile radius from where the two infected deer were found. Results from another 373 samples collected during the opening days of the second season still are pending.

"The fact that these two deer were close together could tell us that perhaps we're dealing with a local issue that we can hopefully manage as we have in the past," Dr. Lou Cornicelli, wildlife research manager for the DNR told the Post Bulletin on Tuesday .

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Kruegel said hunters on his land, just south of Lanesboro, harvested four deer. His grandson's deer was the only one of the four tested for CWD, though they haven't received the results yet.

But the uncertainty hasn't scared him off.

"I have mixed feelings about it," Kruegel said. "It's sad in a way. People who love to hunt deer are going to be sad."

Joe Huntseui, another hunter with land near Lanesboro, said he's not too worried right now. He said he wouldn't eat a sick deer and keeps an eye out for any signs of abnormalities.

Though details of the state's plans are not immediately known, the response will proceed "quickly and aggressively" because the disease is "difficult to eliminate and expensive to manage," according to the DNR. They've collected nearly 2,500 samples from around the state, and the only two positive tests were from the deer near Lanesboro.

Minnesota DNR officials told the Post Bulletin Tuesday that they expect the response will be similar to one implemented six years ago in Pine Island, when a doe was found infected with CWD. In that case, the DNR created a 300-square-mile CWD zone, and hunters and professional sharpshooters culled the herd, killing and testing about 5,000 deer during a three-year period. None tested positive for the disease.

Hunters also likely will be instructed not to feed deer, which Kruegel said would change things for him.

"I'm a friend of the deer," Kruegel said, noting he's fed deer corn, alfalfa hay and apples for 30 years.

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He added he thinks with the heavily wooded, hilly terrain of the region, it could be difficult to eliminate all the deer. Though he noted he would be willing to participate on a "limited" basis.

Infections in Iowa, Wisconsin and Missouri have raised concern in Southeast Minnesota. Rather than registering their deer online or by phone, hunters in the area were required to register at a station so tissue samples could be gathered for CWD testing.

Sue Kenyon, who works at the BP gas station where hunters purchase licenses and register their deer, said news of CWD in Fillmore County was kind of a shock to hunters and the community.

"Being so far it's just two, hopefully it'll be OK. We don't know. I guess it's just kind of a waiting game," Kenyon said. "We just have to wait and hear."
Faced with deteriorating roads and aging utilities, local officials are having to make some tough decisions about boosting taxes next year.

In Lanesboro, city officials proposed a preliminary property tax levy increase of nearly 12 percent. City Administrator Michele Peterson said that proposal included the city's wish list for infrastructure repairs.

"We have fallen behind. There were several years where there were not any projects, so now we're trying to play catch-up but maintain what we currently have without anything getting into a further state of disrepair," Peterson said.

But Peterson said she expects the city council will scale back the proposed levy increase to 2.9 percent. That requires prioritizing repairs, because a 12 percent tax increase "is not feasible."

Statewide, preliminary property tax levies for cities in 2017 are 6.2 percent higher than this year's actual levies, according to the Minnesota Department of Revenue. Meanwhile, counties' preliminary levies are up 4.2 percent and school districts are 2.8 percent higher. The preliminary levies are used to calculate tax estimates for Truth-in-Taxation notices sent to property owners. Those notices also list when local Truth-in-Taxation meetings are scheduled.

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Local governments are required to set preliminary property tax levies by Sept. 30. Local officials must pass their final property tax levies by Dec. 28. These tax levies can be less than the preliminary levy but not more.

Aging infrastructure fuels increases

So why are cities, in general, considering higher property tax increases than counties or schools? Officials interviewed for this story point to aging infrastructure as a primary reason.

In Byron, the preliminary tax levy for 2017 is set to rise by 8 percent. City Administrator Mary Blair-Hoeft said the city faces needed road improvements. Between five to eight years ago, the city got behind on capital improvement projects, and Byron is still trying to catch up.

"It takes awhile to catch back up because they are not small potatoes," she said.

Blair-Hoeft said she is going to ask the council to keep the increase at 8 percent. But she said local growth of 5 percent is expected to offset the city tax increase so that residents experience only a 3 percent tax increase.

The Stewartville City Council set a preliminary tax levy increase for 2017 of more than 13 percent. City Administrator Bill Schimmel said the biggest reason for the bump is a decision to begin investing more money into fixing streets and utilities that are 40-plus years old.

"Our biggest increase was the amount dedicated for capital improvement projects. In other words, our street, water and sewer reconstructions that we have been trying to tackle for eight years," he said.

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Schimmel said another reason for the rising taxes is stagnant Local Government Aid levels. The city was slated to receive more than $51,000 in additional state aid next year as part of a state tax bill that failed to become law.

Schimmel said he expects city officials will reduce the levy amount. He said there is also hope that the county's growth might lessen the impact of the city tax increase for homeowners.

Not all cities are poised to raise taxes. The city of Oronoco set its preliminary tax levy for next year the same level as this year's. Vice Mayor Skyler Breitenstein wrote in an email that the city council has kept taxes flat for the last six years.

"Oronoco, like surrounding towns, has welcomed new businesses and new home construction which have all increased our tax base. So each year when we get our estimated tax base, we work really hard to take the levy amount from the previous year and work within the estimated taxes generated, without raising the levy even 1 percent. Some would say that is foolish, we feel it is living within our means," he wrote.

Lawmakers weigh in

Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa, is chairman of the House Property Tax and Local Government Committee. He said it appears townships and counties have worked hard to limit property tax increases, but he is dismayed by the tax increases proposed by cities.

"Between now and last year, I've seen more egregious and wasteful spending out of some of our cities  especially Minneapolis and some in St. Paul. And I'm sure there is some in our smaller cities, too. But it just continues to be very prevalent in those large cities," he said.

Drazkowski said he expects there will be discussion at the Capitol next year about imposing levy limits on cities, which limits how much they can raise taxes. He also plans to push his proposal to allow citizens to petition for a reverse referendum if a county or city raises its property tax levy. If 10 percent of voters sign the petition, an election would be set during the next year's general election on the tax increase.

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Sen. Dan Sparks, DFL-Austin, said one of the key ways to reduce local property taxes is by boosting state aid to cities and counties. He said he has historically not been a fan of imposing levy limits on local governments.

"We've got to be kind of careful if we start going down that road," Sparks said. "Obviously, we want them to be good stewards of the money, but those folks  county commissioners, city council members and mayors  also have election certificates. They are held accountable."
Think of the words you often see used to describe Black Friday : Chaos. Madhouse. Crowded. Lines.

Now listen to the words heard most often on Small Business Saturday : Experience. Friends. Support. Community.

There's no doubt, it seems to be an entirely different atmosphere, with shoppers in a much calmer state of mind. But make no mistake, the shoppers come out.

"We always see a flux on Small Business Saturday," said Penny Bracken, owner of Kismet Consignment , 601 N. Broadway Ave., which offers fashion, furniture and home decor throughout three retail spaces.

In typical big-business retail, "if you go into a store and see an item, you see 10 of them," she said. Her store is more diverse.

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"It's more of an experience, so they tend to take more time shopping," she said. "Everything seems to be moving so fast; we want people to slow down. It's a space to diffuse."

Another difference is the shoppers themselves, said Bracken, who sees groups of people come in together, friends and family alike.

"My favorite is the generational" group, she said. "The grandmother sees a memory, the child sees it and says, 'What's that?' We're creating these opportunities for them to make their own memories."

Right on cue, mother and daughter Cindy Wiese, of Byron, and Allison Anderson, of Osseo, Wis., stepped inside.

"We're having Thanksgiving today, so this is kind of a break from cooking," Anderson said.

Wiese, who likes the store for its "unique finds," said she was looking for gift ideas. The two also were planning stops at businesses in downtown Rochester, she said.

Bracken closes the store for about three weeks suring the holidays; she'll be open just 10 more business days.

She uses the break to paint, create new displays and recharge but also has learned it just isn't profitable to compete with national retailers as the shopping season winds down.

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"We really want to give our staff the time off," Bracken said, "but in those last days, people are at the mall. This is our push."

Paul Bennett, owner of Dwell Local , opened at 10 a.m. Saturday, but the design studio and artists' consignment shop at 602 Seventh St. NW had customers outside at 9:15, he said.

The business was full of shoppers about 11 a.m., though Bennett said he didn't do much in advance of the big day. With more than 40 area vendors, "I don't think we really need to" because the word spreads through social media.

He estimated he'd see two to three times the usual number of customers Saturday, and "we'll be slammed up until Christmas Eve." Regular customers often bring in visiting friends and family.

Case in point: Nancy Evans, of the Quad Cities , who was in town to visit her son and his family. She cradled what appeared to be a Victorian-era sugar dish-turned candle holder.

"I like to support local artists and businesses  it's a great way to give back to our communities," Evans said.

"We've become such good friends with our customers," Bennett said, as a vendor stepped in to help at the cash register while he spoke to a reporter, and the friendships extend to other small businesses.

Indeed, Bracken mentioned Bennett's store, saying "he creates a whole occasion" for shoppers on Small Business Saturday.

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"That's something that's been really nice," Bennett said, "that support of other small business owners."

He's passing it on, too, inviting Abe Sauer, of Old Abe Coffee Co., and Chrissy Ries, of eth'tique , to park their mobile businesses in his lot on Saturday.

There's been a swing of the pendulum, Sauer said, since the days when "big-box" stores moved into areas, nearly decimating downtown retailers.

"There's definitely been a change," he said. "People want a more personal connection, a history with something. They've watched a business grow, come up, and they want to feel invested in things, to feel like they built that."

Because customers fled local businesses to shop at national retailers, Sauer said, "Small Business Saturday is a good opportunity for people to feel like they're resetting the blend" of the two markets.

Jennifer Jensen, of Rochester, called eth'tique "one of the best small business shops around town." She was picking up a birthday gift "and an impulse buy for myself" from the fair trade boutique that operates from the back of a box truck.

Ries sells clothing, jewelry, shoes and handbags from small business-owning mothers across the world. A purchase from eth'tique guarantees no one in the production line was victimized or exploited.

Saturday was bringing in "lots of new faces," said Ries, who soon will open a brick-and-mortar shop in Stewartville.

What made the event a success, she said, "is the community atmosphere of the businesses here today. It's an experience  from the coffee to the treats to the incredible artists, it draws the community together."
The ongoing dispute between the governor and legislative leaders over whether to have a special session is starting to seem an awful lot like the classic 1990s film "Groundhog Day."

Since May, Gov. Mark Dayton and lawmakers have been trying to reach a deal on a special session. At first, the focus was on passing a tax cut package and $1 billion public works bill that failed to become law. In October, the attention shifted to calling a special session to help Minnesotans struggling with the cost of health insurance in the individual market. But again and again the result is the same  attempts to reach a special session deal have failed. And with only five weeks left in the year, prospects appear dim for a special session focused on health insurance costs.

Last week, Dayton called on Republicans "to quit dilly-dallying and get to work" on a special session. In October, the governor proposed a 25 percent rebate for Minnesotans who buy health insurance in the individual market who do not qualify for federal tax subsidies. That would cost the state an estimated $300 million.

But Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston, said the governor is to blame for the inability to reach a deal on a special session. He added that Dayton's news conference last week didn't help matters.

"His press conference was probably the most pathetic in the history of mankind. He is saying we throw a bunch of money at something and everything is OK. It's purely a political stunt on his part," he said.

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Davids said his biggest concern with the governor's plan is it would mean anyone  even a billionaire  would be eligible for a rebate from the state. Dayton's proposal also does nothing to address access problems. He said constituents in his district no longer can purchase insurance in the individual market that has Olmsted Medical Center in-network, meaning some people are losing their doctors.

In a letter to the governor last week, Republican lawmakers outlined their ideas for addressing the health insurance cost issue. They include a one month, 20 percent rebate for people who bought insurance in the individual market. Legislators then want to set up an income-based system for determining how much assistance consumers would receive going forward. The GOP also favors a one-time expansion of a state law that lets consumers continue to see their current physician for up to 90 days. Also on the list are several proposed long-term fixes.

But Dayton said the Republicans' proposal could not be implemented right away, unlike his plan. In a letter to GOP lawmakers, the governor noted these proposals are being released a month after he unveiled his plan.

"Continuing to throw out other undeveloped and unvetted possibilities, appears to me to be a pretext for not taking action. If that is truly your intention, then say so, and we can all postpone further consideration of your ideas and numerous others until next year," Dayton wrote.

Republicans will be in charge of both the state Senate and House when lawmakers return to St. Paul on Jan. 3. Republicans also will be in charge at the federal level, with Republican Donald Trump becoming president and the GOP controlling the U.S. House and Senate. It is expected Republicans will push forward major changes to the Affordable Care Act.

Rochester DFL Rep. Tina Liebling said she has become convinced Minnesota Republicans are not really interested in a special session because they don't want to spend the $300 million to help consumers. She noted that prior to the election, GOP House Speaker Kurt Daudt was calling on the governor to put forward a plan to help consumers or he would call for his resignation. But since Dayton released his plan, Republicans have done little.

"To me, I believe it's pure politics. It's not helping the people who need the help. And for all their wringing of their hands, I think it was all for show because they are not moving forward. When push comes to shove, they don't want to spend the money to help people," Liebling said.

The governor did request lawmakers meet with his staff today to talk about the possible special session. Both Davids and Liebling say they plan to attend.

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Civil War art vote

Expect a lively discussion during Tuesday's Minnesota State Capitol Preservation Commission meeting. Members will be talking about whether all Civil War-related art should be removed from the Governor's Reception Room. The discussion comes after the Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board voted against re-installing the restored art pieces in the room. The board did not specify whether the Civil War art should stay in the Capitol or be moved elsewhere.

Dayton supports getting rid of the art in the reception room, writing in a letter that the art in the room "should be more welcoming and also more broadly representative of our state's history. It should better represent the full complexion of our state and a more varied perspective on our history, geography and culture."

The governor serves on the commission. So does Rochester GOP Sen. Dave Senjem, who has vowed to fight the effort to remove all the Civil War art from the room. Rochester GOP Sen. Carla Nelson also is expected to testify against removing the art.

The preservation commission can make its own recommendation, but the final decision on what happens to the art will rest with the Minnesota Historical Society's executive council.
Arts center sees low enrollment, high turnover

GOLDEN VALLEY  The board that oversees the Perpich Center for Arts Education wants to figure out why it has high staff turnover and declining enrollment at its two Twin Cities-area schools.

The center provides art resources to school districts and runs a two-year art high school in Golden Valley and a middle school in Woodbury.

The center's high graduation rate has been a selling point, but the structure of the center, which gets a large part of its $12 million budget from the Legislature, calls for it to justify its existence every two-year budget cycle.

Enrollment is down by almost a third in five years, and the high school has had four principals in just over seven years. A board report earlier this month cited a need to figure out why so many employees are resigning.

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In 2001 and 2011, legislators discussed the possibility of turning Perpich into a charter school and closing the center entirely.

The center also is the subject of a financial audit and program audit. The results for the former are expected next month, and the latter audit's results are expected to be released in January.

Former school counselor Dianne Auger said staff and faculty have been pressed by the leadership's desire for a 100 percent graduation rate.

Man killed after struck by train

MOORHEAD  A man has been killed after he was hit by a train in Moorhead.

Police say the incident happened about 2:15 a.m. Saturday.

The man's body was found on the tracks near J.C. Chumley's bar and restaurant. He was pronounced dead at the scene, and authorities believe he might have been stationary on the tracks when the train hit him.

An autopsy is being conducted by the Ramsey County Medical Examiner's Office.

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His name has not been released.

U of M students seek immigrant protections

MINNEAPOLIS  A petition circulating around the University of Minnesota is calling for administrators to declare the school a "sanctuary campus."

Dozens of similar petitions are dispersing around college campuses across the country in the wake of President-elect Donald Trump's proposed immigrant policies. They ask school leaders to protect students and community members from deportation.

The University of Minnesota petition asked the school's president, Eric Kaler, and other officials to pledge their support to those who may be vulnerable to policy changes or violence targeting immigrants and refugees. As of Sunday afternoon, more than an estimated 1,000 students, faculty members, alumni and staff signed the petition.

The document said Minnesota Student Association President Abeer Syedah drafted the petition and will send it to Kaler and other administrators Wednesday. Syedah said the university's general counsel office is looking into the legality of the petition's requests.

"What I explained to the office of the president was (that) we as a student body and we as a Gopher community are not about to debate any community member's right to stay or be here on this campus," Syedah said.

University officials said they're closely following discussions that represent a variety of opinions on the country's current and future immigration laws. Other than that, officials did not comment on the petition's language or requests.
MNsure sent 2,300 notices with incorrect health plan details

MINNEAPOLIS  Minnesota's health insurance exchange program has sent out 2,300 notices to enrollees that include incorrect information about their plans.

A reader contacted the Star Tribune to tell the newspaper about the problem. State officials said earlier this week that corrected notices are being mailed out.

The error has to do with information for 2017. Instead of listing the enrollees' insurance plan choices for next year, the notices list their 2016 selections. Officials say the problem was due to computer coding.

MNsure said in a statement that the error doesn't impact enrollment for consumers, and plan selections are correct in the system.

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More than 28,000 residents have signed up for health coverage through the exchange since open enrollment began Nov. 1.

4 in custody in connection with slaying

MINNEAPOLIS  Four people are in custody in connection with the killing of a Prior Lake man, an incident that led to a police chase in the southern Minneapolis suburbs that ended with officers shooting one of the suspects.

A 27-year-old man and 39-year-old woman were booked Thursday on suspicion of murder. Two Minneapolis men, ages 27 and 28, are also in custody.

None of the suspects has been formally charged. Police expect charges to be filed after the holiday weekend.

The four are suspects in the slaying of 42-year-old James Herron of Prior Lake. Authorities say they fled from the scene. There was a chase and authorities shot one of the men after they say he fired at them.

University of St. Thomas to assist low-income students

ST. PAUL  The University of St. Thomas plans to launch a two-year program aimed at helping low-income students earn degrees.

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The Dougherty Family College at St. Thomas will start with $18 million in private donations. That includes money from Mike Dougherty, head of the Dougherty Financial Group

The program is geared toward helping low-income students earn an associate's degree in liberal arts and start on an eventual bachelor's degree. The yearly cost of the program is $15,000, but with scholarships and grants, tuition could be as low as $1,000.

The idea resonated with Dougherty. He was orphaned before age 14 and kicked out of Creighton University, but found discipline in the military and came back to enroll at St. Thomas.

Texas man arrested in alleged road rage incident

ST. JAMES  A Texas man is in custody in Minnesota after allegedly firing a gun at another motorist.

The Watonwan County Sheriff's Office says authorities responded to a reported road rage incident on a road south of St. James on Thursday evening. The caller said a man in another vehicle pointed a gun out the window and fired a single shot in his direction.

It wasn't immediately clear what sparked the alleged incident.

Authorities later located the suspect, his vehicle and the gun at a St. James home. They arrested a 28-year-old man from El Paso, Texas. Formal charges were pending.
SARTELL  Colorful parrots and toucans, large dragonflies and wide-eyed frogs adorn the lobby and exam rooms at the new Child Advocacy Center in Sartell.

This place immediately signals to kids that it's designed for them.

It's a far cry from the sharp corners and granite of the St. Cloud police station. It's also not a space that reflects doom and gloom, or the trauma that comes with childhood abuse and sexual assault.

In a building separate from any law enforcement office or medical offices, children can be interviewed and given support services after accusations of abuse arise. The center is new for Central Minnesota. Other areas of the state have similar programs, and there are about 800 in the U.S.

By design, it avoids the intimidating and busy atmosphere of a police department and affords privacy that might not happen in a busy clinic waiting room, director Katie Boecker said. Police officers lock up their guns before entering rooms with the kids.

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Children don't face a panel of interviewers or have to retell their story over and over to police officers, attorneys, social workers and doctors.

They tell their story once, to one person, in a quiet, private room. Their interviewer is trained to be neutral, to allow the child to lead the interview. It's designed so as not to lead a child to a story that isn't true, and to allow the child to share the stories they're ready to tell.

From another room, relevant members of the multidisciplinary team  law enforcement officers, prosecutors, child protection workers, medical personal and advocates for the child  observe via an audiovisual system. DVD copies of the interview can be made immediately and taken with them, for purposes of reports, investigation and filing charges.

In a separate room, the child's caregiver  a nonoffending parent or family member, a foster parent or a social worker  can talk to another member of the team and hear about the medical and mental health services available to the family.

Before the story is finished being told, the family already can start to heal.

Next door, a child can get a well-child exam by a doctor trained to work with children and victims of abuse. Previously, a child might only have a medical exam for the purpose of gathering evidence and had to see a doctor in the Twin Cities. But here, all children can be examined, close to home. If needed, more sophisticated imaging and other medical services are just blocks away.

"The overall message is: It's going to be OK. Your body is OK," Boecker said.

Working great

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The center is one of seven in Minnesota. They're designed with the same, child-focused, multidisciplinary model and accredited through the National Children's Alliance. The local center will apply for accreditation in March next year.

The Central Minnesota center started seeing clients in September. As of Nov. 18, staff had handled 20 cases. So far, it's been working great.

One case dealt with an unlicensed daycare facility where a number of kids were allegedly abused, said Matt Engelking, chief of the juvenile division for the Stearns County Attorney's Office.

"In at least one of those instances, during a well-child exam, they disclosed some additional injuries which led to additional disclosures," he said. "That's the benefit of bringing these under one roof."

A key piece of the center is the forensic interview, designed to get as much relevant factual information from a child as possible. Some local law enforcement are trained in the technique.

"They come in with a very neutral approach," Boecker said. They'll start with a question like: "Do you know what brought you in here today?"

The goal is not to push an agenda, but to listen to what the child has to say and wants to say. If a child isn't ready to talk, then so be it. The interviewer doesn't go in looking to make a case. Perhaps, the incident was a misunderstanding or it was a false allegation.

"Sometimes, they'll walk out and not say anything," Boecker said.

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Boecker's role is not only to manage the center but to focus on the healing of the child.

"A lot of this is just listening to them," Boecker said.

Sometimes the child's primary caregiver is too traumatized to offer the support a child needs, or they're the one causing the harm. The help extends to siblings and other family members as needed, just as the harm can.

"Victims receive wraparound services from the beginning," said Dave Hartford, director of St. Cloud Hospital Behavioral Health. The idea is to intervene early, to prevent further trauma or negative impacts down the road.

Certain therapeutic approaches aim to reduce negative emotional and behavioral responses following child sexual abuse, domestic violence, traumatic loss or other traumatic events. That could include nightmares, bed-wetting, no appetite or refusal to eat, stomach aches or missing school.

Reducing fear

The center's location happens to be near the new site of CentraCare's behavioral health department. That means Boecker can actually walk kids and caregivers over, introduce them to staff and therapists and help them set up an appointment. That takes away from the anxiety leading up to an appointment.

It reduces fear for adult and child. They already know where to go, what the office will look like, who the staff is. That makes their chances of showing up for the appointment that much greater, Boecker said.

The center makes referrals to any appropriate service in the community, including the Central Minnesota Sexual Assault Center and Anna Marie's Alliance. In the past, it may have taken several months for a child or caregiver to even get in to see a therapist.

"They don't have three months," Boecker said. "They need that immediate follow-up. That's the role of the advocate."

There's some education to be done for the non-offending caregivers as well.

"That parent has to know how to help that child," Boecker said.

They also know the impact isn't over when the family leaves the center. Advocates serve as a main point of contact throughout the life the case. And Boecker says some may not need any follow up.

All of this comes out of more research and understanding in the medical community on how trauma can negatively affect kids well into adulthood.

"We've known for a long time, there are literally physical manifestations of childhood trauma and the medical community really hasn't gotten a good hold on it," said Janelle Kendall, Stearns County attorney.

The cases usually end up in the criminal justice and child protection systems, not necessarily in health care settings.

Trauma research includes the Adverse Childhood Experiences study, which looks at the effects of physical or sexual abuse. Kendall, members of law enforcement, public health and other county departments have been working to make the county more responsive to those needs.

"It's just kind of the 'Aha!' moment," Kendall said. "It just makes sense when you've been reading police reports your whole career."

She has witnessed victims and offenders who can't reason through things or see the options they have.

"When you look at how the human body would form if it's in fight or flight mode constantly," Kendall said, "it made a lot of sense. ... Physically, they don't have the capacity that other people may have. It's just outside their experience."

Hole of coverage

Child advocacy centers were one way to get directly at that issue of childhood trauma. There was a big hole of coverage in the middle of Minnesota, Kendall said. Child advocacy centers already operate in Fargo, Bemidji, Duluth, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester and Winona.

The group received a $130,950 grant from the Minnesota Office of Justice Programs for startup costs for the center.

Current staff includes Boecker, a nurse and a child advocate, all employed by CentraCare. They're still looking for a medical director. Two local pediatricians work part-time at the center  Dr. Geri Jacobson and Dr. David Kruse. Both specialize in pediatrics for CentraCare Health.

One of the next steps for the team is identifying ways to make the center sustainable, through grants, fundraising and other means. Eventually, Kendall sees the center needing to handle 400 to 500 cases a year, easily.

The center is starting work in Stearns County, but hopes to expand to surrounding agencies. Agencies that want to use the child advocacy centers must agree to bring all child abuse cases to the CAC. Referrals come from child protection and law enforcement.

Kendall said funding for the center could be something they bring to county boards, especially if the center can show concrete savings in how child protection cases flow through the system.

Insurance can be billed for some of the health services, but that covers only a small percentage of the cost for the center, Hartford said. Families are not charged to use the advocacy center services.

There's a lot of work to getting all those systems to jive together.

"The model presupposes that law enforcement and child protection will allow health care into their investigations," Kendall said. "It has been a fascinating experiencing."

Each agency has a different objective. Law enforcement wants to identify crimes and evidence. The attorney's office is looking to prosecute. Child protection wants to protect the child and prevent more abuse. Medical services are concerned for the physical well-being and mental health.

"It was extremely complicated," Hartford said. "We had to work together to create something new that was really a collaborative effort."

The center helps agencies work across county lines  a key advantage because St. Cloud is in three counties.

Multiple agencies can get information without requiring the family and child to retell traumatic experiences.

"We are collapsing time frames, coordinating the information sharing with professionals, minimizing the amount of trauma," Engelking said. "It will all occur seamlessly under one roof."

The research tells them that prosecutions should become more efficient, with improved quality of evidence. It makes it easier for a family to go through the criminal justice process, too.

"Conviction rates end up being higher because the family sticks with it," Kendall said.

Members of the team have been passing along a story about a recent visit from a little girl. After a long day of interviews and exams, the child walked out of the center with a smile on her face. She said, "I love this place. When can I come back?"

"She felt safe," Boecker said. "We gave her exactly what we wanted."
ST. CLOUD  Dan Rassier, 53, of St. Joseph says he is suing the Stearns County Sheriff for naming him a person of interest in the 1989 kidnapping of Jacob Wetterling.

It ruined his reputation to be wrongly accused in the high-profile case, Rassier said.

He accused Sheriff John Sanner of ignoring evidence from the FBI gathered shortly after the abduction that pointed to Danny Heinrich  who eventually confessed to the crime. Heinrich was sentenced this week to 20 years in prison on a child pornography charge after admitting to abducting and killing Jacob.

In 2010, Sanner publicly named Rassier, a neighbor to the Wetterlings, a person of interest in the case.

Being investigated for the crime without any evidence, Rassier said, was a nightmare for his family.

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"The stress is unbearable," he said. "It was unbearable for my dad, and we really believe that he died an early death because of the stress."

Rassier previously told MPR News that he planned to sue law enforcement, and that police treated him like a killer for years  until Heinrich confessed earlier this fall.

Authorities dug up Rassier's yard, secretly recorded him, dove into his love life and put him under hypnosis for an interview with investigators.

Another man also announced his intention to file a lawsuit against Sanner, saying he was wrongly accused in a separate case.

Ryan Larson was arrested in connection with the 2012 killing of Cold Spring police officer Tom Decker, but authorities later declared him not a suspect.

Larson, who accused Sanner of violating his constitutional rights in a wrongful arrest, says he received death threats and suffers from PTSD.

"If there's accountability taken on the part of Stearns County," Larson said, "I think it will definitely help in preventing it from happening again. The ordeal I went through, I wouldn't wish it upon anybody."

Sanner could not be reached for comment.
ST. CLOUD  A Somali-American woman will be the first to compete in the Miss Minnesota USA contest while wearing a hijab and other modest Muslim clothing that keeps her fully covered.

Halima Aden, 19, of St. Cloud will be part of the competition today and Sunday in Burnsville. In addition to her hijab, she'll wear a full-body outfit called a burkini during the swimsuit competition, and she'll modify evening gowns.

Denise Wallace, executive co-director of the Miss Minnesota USA pageant, said in a statement that the company values inclusion and celebrates diversity. Wallace said Aden's burkini will be acceptable and the decision "is in line with the values of the Miss Universe Organization in empowering women to be confidently beautiful."

Aden said she's been bullied for wearing her hijab and hopes the pageant will help disrupt some misconceptions about her religious and cultural beliefs.

"This pageant is so much more than just beauty. Their whole message is being confidently beautiful, so I didn't think that I should allow my hijab to get into the way of me participating," Aden said. "This is a great platform to show the world who I am ... just because I've never seen a woman wearing a burkini (in a pageant) it doesn't mean that I don't have to be the first."

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If Aden wins Miss Minnesota USA, she would go on to compete in the Miss USA competition. The winner of that goes on to Miss Universe, formerly owned by president-elect Donald Trump, who sold the pageant after broadcast partners refused to air it due to remarks he made about Mexican immigrants during the campaign. Trump has also spoken negatively about Somalis in Minnesota.

Aden, who was born in a refugee camp in Kenya and came to Minnesota as a child, said she wasn't thinking about Trump when she entered the pageant.

"What I wanted to do was to just give people a different perspective," she said. "We just needed one more thing to unify us. This is a small act, but I feel like having the title of Miss Minnesota USA when you are a Somali-American, when you are a Muslim woman, I think that would open up people's eyes."
Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn) and Will Smith (Deadshot) talk about "Suicide Squad" at the 2015 Comic-Con International in California. (Photo : Getty Images/Kevin Winter)

Australian actress Margot Robbie is set to star in Wong Kar-wai-directed movie about the murder of Maurizio Gucci, grandson of Gucci fashion house founder Guccio Gucci. The movie is slated to be Wong's directorial return following the release of his critically acclaimed film "The Grandmaster" in 2013.



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The story centers on the murder of Maurizio, who was gunned down in the foyer of his office. The suspect was the victim's ex-wife, Patricia Reggiani, who hired a hitman to kill Maurizio. Before his death, the former sold his stocks in the fashion company for $170 million. Maurizio and Reggiani later separated, but Reggiani could not accept it so he threatened to kill him.



Reggiani was convicted for Maurizio's murder and was sent to 26 years in prison. She earned the nickname "The Black Widow." She declined to apply for parole, saying "Ive never worked in my life and I'm certainly not going to start now."



According to The Film Stage, the movie about Maurizio's murder was supposed to be directed by Ridley Scott, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Angelina Jolie in leading roles. The role of Reggiani was later attached to Penelope Cruz; however, rumor has it that Robbie is in the running to play the role.



The movie is said to be in the early stages, with Andrea Berloff and Charless Randolph each working on drafts of the script, The Guardian reported. Megan Ellison's Annapurna Pictures is producing the film.



Director Wong Kar-Wai is known for his keen eye for visual detail and moving narratives, making the Gucci murder story another exciting visual feast.



In related news, another renowned fashion designer will have her story retold through the lenses. Lady Gaga is set to portray Donatella Versace in "American Crime Story" Season 3, which revolves around the murder of Donatella's brother, Gianni Versace, in 1997.



Gianni was gunned down outside his Miami Beach mansion in July 1997 by a serial killer later identified as Andrew Cunanan. The killer committed suicide eight days later using the same gun that killed Gianni. The motive for Cunanan killing Gianni remains unclear.



"American Crime Story" Season 1, which was about the murder trial against O.J. Simpson, won nine Primetime Emmys.






HAVANA  Fidel Castro's revolution was slowly dying  or so it seemed.

Communism had collapsed in Europe, and Cuba's Soviet lifeline was severed. Food was in short supply. Power outages silenced TV sets normally tuned to a nighttime soap opera. Factories rusted in the tropical heat.

The title of an American book seemed just right: "Castro's Final Hour."

That was in 1992.

Castro's "final hour" became weeks, then months, then years. Even as China and Vietnam embraced free markets, Castro clung to his socialist beliefs and Communism's supposed dinosaur went on to rule for another decade and a half. Along the way he became godfather to a resurgent Latin American left, mentoring a new generation of leaders: Hugo Chavez, of Venezuela, Evo Morales, of Bolivia, Rafael Correa, of Ecuador.

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No other Third World leader prompted so much U.S. hostility for so long. Castro brought the planet to the brink of nuclear war in 1962, during the Cuban missile crisis. He sent tens of thousands of troops to aid leftist governments in Africa and nurtured guerrilla movements that fought U.S.-backed governments across Latin America.

He endured a crippling U.S. economic embargo and outlasted 10 U.S. presidents  all of them preaching regime change in Cuba  finally resigning 11 months before Barack Obama moved into the White House, not from U.S. pressure but because of serious illness.

After Castro transferred power to his brother, Raul, first temporarily in 2006 and then permanently on Feb. 19, 2008, he survived another eight years in quiet retirement before his death Friday. By hanging on in the shadows, he helped his followers avoid political unrest and eased the island into a communist future without the only leader most Cubans had ever known.

To the end, Castro remained a polarizing figure. For many he was a champion of the poor who along with Ernesto "Che" Guevara made violent revolution a romanticized ideal, a symbol of liberation who overthrew a dictator and brought free education and health care to the masses.

To exiles who longed for Castro's demise he personified a repressive regime that locked up political opponents, suppressed civil liberties and destroyed the island's economy. Hundreds of thousands of Cubans began fleeing north almost immediately after Castro's 1959 revolution as he started turning exuberantly capitalist Cuba into a socialist state, dismaying reformists who thought he meant only to topple thuggish strongman Batista and restore democracy.

The exodus transformed not only Cuba but also parts of the United States, most notably South Florida, which became the center of virulent anti-Castro sentiment. As Cuban exiles gained political strength, they became a bulwark against softening America's trade embargo against the island.

To those whose families were uprooted and saw their properties seized, Castro was nothing less than a tyrant. He chose the losing side in the Cold War, and by the twilight of his rule democracy's roots had spread so extensively through the Western Hemisphere that Cuba was the only corner without at least some level of multiparty government.

But love him or hate him, there was no denying he played an outsized role on the world stage for much of the 20th century, all from his perch on an island smaller than the state of Pennsylvania.
WASHINGTON  At long last, Fidel Castro is dead. Now the oppressive system he installed in Cuba can wither and die, too  unless Donald Trump reverts to Cold War policies and gives Cuba's failing dictatorship new life.

It is tempting to see Castro's death as little more than a formality. After all, his brother Raul has been running the country for a decade, ever since ill health forced Fidel to step aside and kept him from reassuming command. But the very fact that Fidel still drew breath served as a limiting factor in the program of economic reform Raul has been trying to enact.

According to The Washington Post, Raul Castro gave a speech in April in which he joked that "we have two parties here, just like in the United States  Fidel's and mine." Fidel's is the Communist one, he added, "and you can call mine whatever you want."

There is considerable truth in those words. Raul has been trying to move his country toward the Chinese model of authoritarian one-party rule combined with some degree of free-market economic development. Fidel, a true believer in the brutal communist experiment, has consistently tried to slow, derail or reverse any meaningful economic change.

Fidel was reportedly appalled at the way Mao Zedong's China was transformed by Deng Xiaoping's reforms. He saw the society dividing into haves and have-nots. Worse, in his mind, he saw the Chinese Communist Party potentially sowing the seeds of its own demise by allowing the accumulation of private wealth and the development of civil society. He was determined that the Communist Party of Cuba would not make the same mistake.

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But the Cuban leadership no longer had a choice. Fidel barely managed to survive the collapse of the Soviet empire and the loss of huge subsidies from the USSR and Eastern Europe. Cubans were hungry in the mid-1990s, and there were violent anti-government riots, but El Comandante loosened strictures on private agriculture and enterprise -- and then tightened them again as the crisis abated.

The Castro regime got another lifeline from the late Venezuelan strongman, Hugo Chavez, whom Fidel cultivated as a protege. Chavez gave his mentor billions of dollars' worth of oil, so much that the Cubans were able to satisfy their own needs and sell the surplus on the world market for precious hard currency. But Chavez died, Venezuela's economy melted down and the Castro regime found itself fresh out of saviors.

That explains Raul's willingness to work with President Obama to normalize relations. Those who complained that the United States didn't "get more" in the deal fail to understand the reality of today's Cuba. From their point of view, Cuba's leaders were surrendering one of their primary instruments of power and control: the "threat" from Cuba's hostile neighbor to the north.

For half a century, the Castros cited the U.S.-imposed trade embargo, the travel ban for U.S. citizens and other such measures as "proof" that the Cuban revolution was under sustained attack by the United States. From my experience -- I've made 10 trips to Cuba and written a book about the place -- most Cubans are not gullible; they see their government for what it is. But they are nationalistic. Even most of the brave dissidents who stood up to the Castro regime argued that hard-line U.S. policy was counterproductive, doing more to shore up the system than weaken it.

Raul Castro knows he needs the economic boost that an opening to the United States will produce. But the price he is paying -- allowing more free-market economic development, permitting freer access to the internet, letting more Cubans have smart phones -- will make any return to a "purer" form of communism impossible.

That's where things stand now, and Fidel's death should hasten change on the island. Unless a certain president-elect does something tragically dumb.

"If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole," Trump tweeted Monday, "I will terminate deal."

I'm betting that no one, including Trump, knows exactly what that means in concrete policy terms. But we do know that now, for the first time since the Kennedy administration, we have the chance to flood Cuba with American ideas and values. That is how we promote freedom.

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If Trump goes back to a posture of implacable U.S. hostility, he will disappoint and discourage millions of Cubans while strengthening the hand of only one: Raul Castro, who will be all too happy to play David to Trump's Goliath.

Eugene Robinson is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the Washington Post.
HALIFAX, Canada  The annual Halifax International Security Forum brings together senior Canadian, European, and U.S. military and civilian officials, and you can guess what was on everyone's mind this year:

What kind of foreign policy can we expect from President-elect Trump?

To be more specific, the crowd was eager to pump U.S. participants, including a bipartisan delegation of U.S. senators, about whether Trump would turn his back on NATO and cozy up to Vladimir Putin. Many asked whether the president-elect might hold an early meeting with Putin even before getting together with NATO allies  which would send a dangerous signal.

The Europeans fear that Trump could sell out Ukraine in exchange for a "deal" with Russia on Syria. Any such deal, they say, would undercut the broader security and stability of Europe  and the United States.

However  as several senators made clear at Halifax  Trump would face bipartisan opposition within the U.S. Senate if he recognized Russia's annexation of Crimea and its invasion of eastern Ukraine.

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What was striking in Halifax was Europeans' uncertainty about Trump's intentions due to his public disdain for NATO and his constant praise for Putin. At a time when Putin is trying to facilitate the rise of the radical right in Europe as well as the breakup of the European Union, Trump appears ready to help him. (Cheering on Britain's Brexit from Europe is a prime example.)

So the Europeans were anxious to know whether Trump really meant what he said about NATO or even grasped the impact of his words.

"The erosion of confidence and trust is corrosive," said Pauline Neville-Jones, a former British government security minister, at a panel on NATO. "We need more NATO not less NATO," added Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic. "The situation in the world requires cooperation between Europe and the United States."

The test case for Trump's intentions will be whether he plays Putin's game on Ukraine.

During the campaign, candidate Trump indicated he might recognize the Russian leader's annexation of Crimea (and ignore Moscow's destabilization of eastern Ukraine). The Russian invasion of Ukrainian territory in 2014 ended the post-WWII understanding on the continent that sovereign boundaries would not be changed by force. It also violated the 2004 Budapest Memorandum under which Moscow and Washington guaranteed the territorial integrity of Ukraine in return for that country giving up its nuclear weapons.

Yet Trump operatives gutted the Republican Party platform's support for Ukraine. Rumors have swirled that the president-elect might be open to lifting sanctions on Russia imposed over Putin's invasion of Ukraine in exchange for some kind of deal on fighting the Islamic State in Syria.

Never mind that Russia has shown little interest in fighting the Islamic State, preferring to leave that dirty work to the Americans or the locals. Never mind that Moscow is mainly interested in cementing the control of its Syrian proxy, President Bashar al-Assad, and getting American buy-in. Never mind that a deal with Moscow is effectively a deal with Tehran, which wants Assad in power because he lets them transfer arms via Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon  in order to fight Israel.

But let us return to the cost of recognizing Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

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"If you give up now on recognition of the annexation of Crimea, one of the building blocks of post-WWII peace will have been ruined," I was told by Ukraine's vice prime minister, Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, at the Halifax Forum. If Trump breaks the unified Western stance against the Russian invasion, she added, Putin will use that fracture to widen other divisions in the alliance.

Moreover, a sellout of Ukraine would raise further questions about America's commitment to the NATO alliance. After betraying the commitments to Ukraine made in the Budapest Memorandum, how would Washington get other nations to trust it on NATO guarantees, asks the Ukrainian leader? If Russia sends "little green men" (the euphemism for Russian soldiers without military insignia) into NATO member countries such as Latvia or Estonia, would Trump even care?

Of course, many presidents have believed that they could change Russia's direction. George W. Bush tried it; at President Obama's behest, Hillary Clinton initiated a "reset" with Moscow (which candidate Trump derided). Now Trump thinks he alone can pull it off.

However, "Putin is not ready for compromise," the Ukrainian minister warns. "He is thinking in zero-sum terms, but he backs off if the West holds the line." Putin would have invaded farther into Ukraine had not the West finally taken a stand, she adds.

If Trump isn't willing to listen to European leaders on Ukraine, he might be persuaded by Congress, where GOP stalwarts such as Sen. John McCain have taken a firm stand on the issue, as have many other senators.

At the forum, Sen. Chris Coons, D.-Del., told me:

"If President-elect Trump moved swiftly to try and trade Ukraine and Crimea and Syria with Putin, there would be strong bipartisan pushback. Many of the members have visited Ukraine and recognize the cost and consequences of Russian aggression.

"For Trump to try and turn on a dime and change our national approach to Putin, who has undermined democracy across Europe, would have drastic consequences for his standing in Congress and with the American people."

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That doesn't mean that the president-elect can't dialogue with the Russian leader. But he faces a steep learning curve on how to deal with Putin and avoid disaster over Ukraine. There will be serious security consequences for America and Europe if Trump simply plunges ahead.

Trudy Rubin is a columnist and editorial-board member for the Philadelphia Inquirer.
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Cash Collector with Spanish



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Ta propozycja bya zozona przez Accenture Operations Sp. z o.o.

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Collections Team Lead with Spanish



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Jezeli poszukujesz pracy w branzy Finanse, zajrzyj tutaj: Praca Finanse

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The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has called on all broadcasting stations operating in Nigeria to honour the copyright royalty agreement they entered into with Copyright Society of Nigeria through the Broadcasting Organizations of Nigeria and Independent Broadcasting Association of Nigeria in 2014.

The Minister made the call recently at the headquarters of his ministry in Abuja when he met with the COSON delegation, which was led by the Chairman, Tony Okoroji.

Also present at the meeting were the heads of all Federal Government-owned broadcasting agencies including the Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission Ishaq Modibbo Kawu; the Director-General of Nigerian Television Authority; Yakubu Mohammed, and the Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Mansur Liman. All Senior Assistants of the minister were also in attendance.

In his opening remark, the minister reiterated the need for a nationwide re-orientation as well as the need to respect copyright laws. Speaking further, he added that the Nigerian creative industries have the potentials to form the bedrock of a new Nigerian economy.

Addressing the minister, Mr. Okoroji said that his delegation was not in Abuja for photo opportunities with government officials but to seriously engage the government on matters that concern the Nigerian creative industries.

The COSON Chairman made several specific requests, which he said would produce speedy results and be of immense benefit to the nation. The requests include the following:

 The Federal Government should ensure the full implementation of the Private Copy Levy scheme without any further delay.

 The Federal Government should make it very clear to all telecommunications companies operating in Nigeria that henceforth, there will be zero tolerance for the infringement of the Intellectual Property rights of Nigerian citizens whose works are deployed by these companies.

 All Federal and State owned broadcasting stations and other government institutions must respect the intellectual property rights of citizens, as there is no provision under the law that exempts them from the infringement of copyright with respect to the content broadcast or deployed by them.

 The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) should be requested as a matter of urgency to take necessary steps to begin the take down of the several pirate websites bastardizing and frittering away Nigerian Intellectual Property on the Internet.

 The Ministry of Industry, Trade & Investment, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs ought to be requested to act swiftly to ensure that the brazen and massive piracy of Nigerian music, movies and literature across our continent is no longer tolerated.

 The Nigerian Copyright Commission should be given new vigour and empowered to pivot towards the effective implementation of anti-piracy measures in the digital environment as the nature of piracy has changed.

 The National Assembly should be made to act with dispatch to ensure the promulgation into law of the new Copyright Bill, which contains several provisions dealing with emerging issues and the infringement of copyright in the digital era.

 Necessary action should be taken to get the National Endowment Fund for the Arts up and running so that there are resources to take care of funding for creative projects and the welfare of creative people who have fallen into hard times.

It was agreed at the meeting that a working group comprising officials of the ministry, COSON, and government agencies would be urgently set up to address the issues raised at the meeting.

The COSON delegation to the Minister included Afro juju star, Shina Peters; Rub-a-dub maestro, Ras Kimono; Gospel music star, Kenny Saint Best, and Queen of love, Azeezat Allen.

Also in the delegation were COSON General Manager, Chinedu Chukwuji and COSON Public Affairs Consultant, Mrs. Lucy Ajayi.
A group of professional and business women has advised the Federal Government to address issues affecting women-owned businesses in Nigeria.

The Association of Nigerian Women Business Network gave the advice through its National Business Agenda launched in Abuja last week.

The launch, which was witnessed by dignitaries from government, public agencies, the private sector, diplomatic circle and civil society, was held at Barcelona Hotel in Wuse II district of the federal capital city.

Developed with the support of the Center for International Private Enterprise, an affiliate of the American Chamber of Commerce, the agenda offers a guide to addressing challenges business and professional women face in Nigeria.

Based on a research into priority issues affecting women-owned businesses in the country, it made policy recommendations for addressing four key challenges and for generally fostering Nigerias economic growth.

The challenges include lack of government patronage for made in Nigeria goods, and poor access to finance for women-owned businesses.

The others are inadequate consultation and inclusion of women business and professional associations in politics, economic and socio-cultural matters at all tiers of government, as well as illegal, arbitrary and double taxation of businesses by government institutions in the country.

The agenda is basically a device employed by Nigerian professional and business women who are entrepreneurs to identify policies, regulations and legal provisions that hamper business activities at different areas in the nation, national coordinator of the group, Nkiru Okpala, said at the launch.

This is a tool that educates the private sectors on public policies that affect them, identifies the regulations or bureaucratic measures that hinder business activities in the nation, and proffers positive solutions for reforms, Mrs. Okpala said.

In a goodwill message, Dikko Radda, Director-General of Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, SMEDAN, commended the association for coming up with the agenda.

He said the document was timely, considering that it offers concise and concrete recommendations and reformative actions that will improve the economic situations of women doing business in Nigeria.

Mr. Radda said the timing was also auspicious considering that the Federal Government was exploiting the huge but untapped potentials of Nigerian women by aligning them into the mainstream of political and economic activities.

Women make up 49.6% of Nigerias population. This figure becomes even more significant in rural Nigeria where women contribute more than 65% of labour resources to agricultural production, storage, processing and marketing of food crops.

Women ownership of business enterprises in Nigeria accounted for 43.22% as against 56.68% for micro enterprises, while female accounts for 22.76% as against 77.24% for male in the small and medium enterprises. This is a clear indication that women need to do more to mainstream their micro enterprises into small and then medium, he said.

Mr. Radda said the agenda would redefine the ownership structure of businesses and realign them to the advantage of Nigerian women.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, said the agenda will place in focus, key actions needed to mitigate the challenges faced by women in business in order to improve their performance.

The current economic recession the country is confronted with demands such as focused actions to motivate and mobilise a critical mass of female private sector operators to participate actively and grow the economy through wealth creation, employment generation, export promotion, import reduction or substitution with high quality made in Nigeria goods and services for economic diversification, the minister said at the event.

The time is ripe to call for total elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, especially women in business, if they are to participate meaningfully in the much needed economic recovery and growth processes at this critical period, Mr. Ngige added.

The Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, lauded the group for the efforts it took to put the agenda together. He said the outcome would improve the chances of success in their future endeavours.

These endeavours will in no small measure contribute to the fast growth of the Nigerian economy through diversification which is the target of this administration, he said.

I am particularly appreciative of the fact that the private sector is playing a critical role to complement governments effort to enhance the economic and social development of the country by improving sustainable entrepreneurial development among women in all the states and local government areas of the nation through research, advocacy, and policy reform initiatives.

I would like to assure you that government in return, is willing to collaborate with the private sector by ensuring that conducive environment exists for businesses to thrive in the country. Mr Amaechi said.

The ANWBN was formed by 18 women business organisations in February 2013 to aid government and policy makers in Nigeria to map out practical means of actualising sustainable results and thereby enhance the environment for business to operate.
About 30 people were killed Monday as Somali villagers attacked al-Shabaab militants who tried to impose taxes on them, officials and residents said.

Residents and local security forces clashed with the militants in Dumaaye village and its surroundings near the port of Harardheere in central Galmudug region.

Locals, including nomadic people, took up arms against al-Shabaab fighters who want to loot their resources, including livestock, a regional senior official said.

The 30 fatalities included 26 militants, Galmudug Security Minister Osman Isse Nur said.

He added that the regional authorities had sent additional security forces to help villagers keep al-Shabaab at bay.

The Islamist group, which has battled the Somali government for a decade, issued no comment.

(dpa/NAN)
A Kaduna-based journalist, Abdulkareem Albashir, died on Monday at the age of 68.

Family sources said he died at Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria, around 3:47 p.m. after a protracted illness.

The body has just been transported home at Kinkinau GRA in Kaduna and we are currently preparing for his burial tomorrow Tuesday by 11am, one of the sons of the deceased said.

The senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, in a condolence statement issued by his aide, Suleiman Ahmed, described Mr. Albashir as a journalist who exemplified himself in his field of discipline for decades.

Mr. Sani also described Mr. Albashir as a man of dignity and honour who lived a reputable life of service to his country, and to humanity.

His unmeasured contribution to the development of journalism in Nigeria can never be forgotten in the history of the profession, he added.

Mr. Albashir is survived by one wife and seven children.

He was a staff of Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, FRCN, a former editor-in-chief of the defunct New Democrat newspapers, and a columnist.
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has rejected the outcome of Saturdays governorship election in Ondo State.

The party described the outcome of the election as declared by the Chief Returning Officer of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Abdul-Ganiyu Ambali, as a charade and not the true reflection of the will of the people of Ondo State.

Mr. Ambali had Sunday declared the All Progressives Congress candidate, Rotimi Akeredolu, winner of the election.

Mr. Akeredolu polled 244, 842, to defeat the PDP candidate, Eyitayo Jegede, who rallied 150, 380 votes to place second in the race.

The spokesperson of the PDP, Dayo Adeyeye, on Monday said the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, aided the APC to rig the election.

He said INEC has now graduated from inconclusive Elections as seen in Kogi, Bayelsa, Osun, FCT, Imo, Nassarawa and some other previous By-Elections in the Country to Advanced Election Rigging, as in the

case of Edo and Ondo States Gubernatorial Elections.

Mr. Adeyeye, in a statement, said it is common knowledge that the APC Agents openly bought votes of the electorates in the full glare of security operatives who did nothing to prevent such dastardly violation of the Electoral Law.

It is not surprising that the electorates in Ondo state became so vulnerable to the corruptive influence of the APC because of the hash economic situation in the Country inflicted on Nigerians by the APC Administration which have indeed made all Nigerians virtually beggars in their own Country.

Mr. Adeyeye said PDP had persistently called for the postponement of the Election before Saturday, for at least two weeks to enable the Party Campaign and prepare properly for the Election.

He said the partys request followed the setback orchestrated by Justice Okon Abang and the charlatans in PDP who allowed themselves to be used by the APC to destroy our chances in the Ondo State Election.

The actions of INEC in collaboration with the APC led Administration left us no time to campaign and sell our Candidate and Party Manifesto to the electorates in Ondo State.

Our persistent call for the postponement of the Election which was backed and supported by more than 20 other political parties were all rejected by INEC which were acting the script of the APC.

It was a carefully planned and well-orchestrated strategy to rig the Election well in advance by preventing the PDP from planning and campaigning for the Election. The APC has hereby introduced a new formula of rigging Election in Nigeria.

In view of the fact that the Election was blatantly manipulated from the beginning to the end to favour the APC, we vehemently reject the results of the November 26, 2016 Gubernatorial Election in Ondo State, he said.

He also said Saturdays election and all actions leading to it fell short of laid down principles guiding conduct of elections in Nigeria.

We have instructed our Candidate and the Ondo State Chapter of our Party to proceed to the Tribunal to challenge the Outcome of the Election.

We call on the Judiciary to redeem Nigerias image on this matter as we request for the total Cancellation of the Election in Ondo State, the party said.
The Ali Sheriff faction of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, said it has identified impunity and lack of respect for the partys constitution and the rule of law as the major problems that led to the its failure in the Edo and Ondo governorship elections.

Many have expressed the belief that the decision of Mr. Sheriff and his supporters to factionalise the PDP led to its failure in the elections.

The faction, at a media briefing on Monday in Abuja, however said the blame for the losses falls on three governors elected under the platform of the party.

Although the faction did not mention the names of the three governors, it has been engaged in running battles with governors Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State and Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State.

Mondays press briefing, addressed by the Deputy National Chairman of the faction, Cairo Ojougbo, said  in all these difficult times only three governors have been the architects of the destruction of the party.

Mr. Ojougbo said only the governors of Taraba, Gombe, Bayelsa, Cross Rivers and a few others have been very cooperative and are willing to let the party grow. They have shown maturity, understanding and sagacity in the affairs of the PDP.

THE BEGINNING OF OUR DOWNFALL

The Sheriff faction recalled that the impact of impunity in the PDP manifested itself for the first time in the 2011 general elections when the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, defeated the PDP in Nasarawa State.

We had a sitting governor then who could not deliver. This was the first warning against impunity. It was ignored.

Then in 2015 we had governors in Benue, Kogi, Niger, Jigawa, Plateau, Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Bauchi and Adamawa. We lost in all these states for a common reason, the governors were not unpopular but they imposed their surrogates and the people voted them out. We paid for impunity, Mr. Ojougbo said.

The faction argued that an analysis of the 2015 general election showed that all the ten states the party lost were in the northern part of the country, adding that even south-south states would not have survived if former President Goodluck Jonathan did not hail from the region. It said the figures that emanated from the south-east were also abysmal.

Mr. Ojougbo said the outcome of the 2015 election proved that although governors are very important in winning elections for a party, they do not necessarily determine the outcome.

The running of the party should therefore not be left entirely to their whims and caprices. The party must have a say because party is supreme. In the case of Mimikos Ondo, the party was denied the valuable say, he said.

The party leader also said that the faction had cried to all concerned ahead of the Edo election that the party hierarchy in the state was defective and that the Leadership needed to be changed to allow the 60 stalwarts of the PDP who defected to APC return to the fold.

Of course the governors refused. There was no surprise to the result.

In Ondo State, the script was written in 2013 when Governor Mimiko returned to PDP. All members he met on the ground left the party for him and he took over the PDP. The structure was handed over to the Labour Party.

If Oke had not gone to AD and Mimiko managed leadership sportsmanly, PDP would have won the election convincingly.

In the election, APC scored 244,842 votes while PDP scored 150,380 and AD scored 126,889 votes. It is a fact that the AD votes belong to PDP and the simple arithmetic shows why PDP lost; our votes went to Oke and AD, he said.

He also said that when Mr. Mimiko returned to the PDP, his fellow governors appealed to him to allow for harmonization but he refused.

He said all the PDP members led by Olusola Oke therefore left the party.

Mr. Ojougbo said in choosing a candidate to succeed him, Mr. Mimiko did not allow original members of the PDP to buy forms.

He mainly anointed Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) who was returned unopposed.

Party members cried to the high heavens that Jegede is from the central zone where Mimiko hails from. Their cries fell on deaf ears, he said.

He also said the primary election organised by the Sheriff faction had six participants which returned Jimoh Ibrahim as the candidate.

Jimoh hails from the South. He campaigned vigorously and convinced the people to vote for him. But alas Mimiko will not allow him carry the party flag.

Mimiko used the instrumentality of state government to overwhelm Jimoh but could not overwhelm the masses and voters. Of course the result is out there for all to see, he said.

Sheriff independent of Buhari, APC

Mr. Ojougbo also said the accusation that Mr. Sheriff was doing the bidding of Nigerias ruling APC is not tenable.

He said it was PDP governors who invited Mr. Sheriff to be the chairman of the party. He also said when he (Sheriff) assumed office, he put in place a committee to conduct a National Convention to elect people of good character to run the affairs of the party.

He added that Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State was appointed the chairman of the zoning committee.

The Governors met and decided that Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff should continue in office. The question is was it Mr. President, General Buhari or the APC who sourced Senator Sheriff for the PDP?

Was it the APC who chaired the zoning committee that zoned chairmanship to Sheriff? The answer is No.

We therefore call on all Nigerians to discountenance the idea that Sheriff is working for the APC. Sheriff was offered the senatorial ticket in the last general election after he left the APC. Senator Ali Modu Sheriff is a complete PDP faithful whose desire it is to reposition the party.

Truth be told, Sheriff is insisting that power be returned to the people, he said.

Mr. Ojougbo also spoke about the belief that Mr. Sheriff was a sponsor of the terrorist group, Boko Haram,

He said it is on record that when Mr. Sheriff was governor of Borno State, he suppressed and completely routed the Boko Haram.

Boko Haram Killed 5 members of his family in the process of his fight against them.

But when the current Governor of Borno State, Shettima, took over office, Boko Haram became emboldened, virulent and malignant.

Note also that Shettima became governor because Boko Haram killed the man who was to be governor. His death paved way for the emergence of Shettima who willingly and deliberately encouraged Boko Haram.

Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff has taken to court the Attorney General of Borno State who claimed that Sheriff is Boko Haram in Suit No. FCT/HC/CU/2494/2016 between Senator Dr. Ali Modu Sheriff vs. Barrister Kaka Shehu Lawan and 3 others which is currently ongoing, he said.

Mr. Ojougbo said although the faction does not comment on individuals, but for the sake of the survival of the party we take exceptions to the utterances of Prince Adeyeye.

He said Mr. Adeyeye, spokesperson of the Ahmed Makarfi PDP faction, is attacking Mr. Sheriffs faction believing that he will be awarded the governorship ticket of Ekiti State.

The sheriff faction, however, warned that if the PDP is not restructured, even if he ( Adeyeye) is awarded the ticket which we know Fayose will not do, it will be an exercise in futility and a waste of time like Eyitayo Jegedes.

Mr. Ojougbo said Mr. Sheriff is the agent of change for the PDP and multiparty democracy in Nigeria.

Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff remains the only and authentic National Chairman of the PDP and the NWC remains the only administrative body authorized by law to run the party.

He concluded the briefing by calling on all party members to unite or the PDP will be dead forever.
According to the 2015 annual report of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, the north-west topped the table of arrests for drug related offences for that year, with a total of 2,205 persons, beating the south-west which recorded 1,785 arrests. The north-central followed with 1,605 while the south-south, south-east and north-east recorded 1,380, 979 and 824 respectively.

But out of a total of 2,205 people arrested on drug charges in the north-west, only 38 were females  the least, compared to other zones, especially south-south which led with a total of 269 females.

This could be because the arrests were made largely for trafficking and use of narcotics such as cocaine, heroin and cannabis, which constituted over 90 per cent of drug seizure for the year and previous years.

The NDLEA, established by Decree 48 of 1989 (now CAP N30 LFN 2004) is the government agency charged with eradicating illicit traffic and use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

However, the agency faces an uphill task in dealing with the problem of drug abuse by women in the north because, its mandate does not cover cough syrup, the most commonly used substance by the women.

The NDLEA borrows from World Health Organisation, WHO, which has placed under international control about 118 narcotic substances, while that of psychotropic substances is about 111.

But the list does not include cough syrups and the tablets that Northern women now use to get high. Although codeine is in the list of narcotics, when it is used in cough mixtures, it is regarded as medicine and is perfectly legitimate. So, the ladies settle for cough mixtures that contain codeine.

Tablets such as rophynol, tramadol, diazepam and lexotan, which are abused by Northern women, are controlled drugs that are sold only after a doctors prescription.

It was gathered that the tablets are usually prescribed for extreme pain such as that experienced by people suffering from the sickle cell disease and neurological disorders. But those intent on getting them for a moment of high easily and readily purchase the drugs.

According to a pharmacist, Kemi Olatundun, controlled drugs affect the mood and could make the user a danger to herself/himself and to the society.

She said codeine cough syrup is also classified among control drugs because of the codeine contents, and they are to be sold only at a doctors prescription.

The abuse of codeine syrup and these tablets now constitute the greatest challenge faced by drug officers operating in Northern Nigeria. Since the law does not forbid the drugs from being sold or consumed, it is difficult for law enforcement agencies to tackle the menace.

Hamza Umar, state commander of the NDLEA in Kano, told the icirnigeria.org that the state was witnessing the involvement of more women in drugs, basically cough syrup and off -the-counter drugs like rohypnol, tramadol and others.

Mr. Umar disclosed that he had 19 females in detention and that all were arrested in one day for drug abuse. One is a 200-level university student.

I will not deceive the public. It is indeed increasing. We are seeing more women now getting involved in drugs. I just sent our operatives into town and within one hour they rounded up over 100 girls involved in drugs. And they found these girls in just two places inside Sabongari, and they cut across all ages, he revealed in a chat.

His counterparts in Sokoto, Zamfara, Kaduna and Katsina have made similar revelations. The NDLEA Commander in Sokoto said the involvement of women in drugs is now a serious problem not just in the state, but in the whole of the North. He told our reporter in an interview that while men abuse cannabis, the women now abuse cough syrup with codeine content.

To tell you the truth, I think the issue of cough syrup came around 2005, thats when we begin to see a proliferation of cough syrup. I started this job in the 90s and we never saw anything like this. It has become an epidemic. I had worked in Lagos and Ondo and I have never arrested anybody over cough syrup or heard any case of abuse of cough syrup, he lamented.

Since cough mixture is not regarded as narcotic, it is not captured in the statistics of the NDLEA. But Mr. Idris gave an indication of how serious the problem is.

A former Commander of the NDLEA in Kano said about three million bottles of codeine cough syrup are being consumed daily in Kano state alone, he stated.

Codeine Addiction

It is common to see young girls in social spots at night openly take cough syrup in many cities across the north, but especially in Kano, Kaduna, Sokoto, Katsina, Gusau, Gombe, Maiduguri and Yola.

In Kano where retailers of codeine are largely based in Sabongari, you find single and married women in the streets of Odutola, Sanya Olu and Abedi at night, from 9.00 p.m. till early hours of the morning, frolicking with bottles of soft drinks mixed with bottles of codeine.

Married women who live in conservative parts of the city send children or friends to buy the drugs for them.

Umar Dambo, a medicine store owner in Gusau, told icirnigeria.org that married women in the city send their children to buy the syrup.

Usually they start buying from 6.00 p.m. until about 9.00 or 10.00 p.m. when most shops would close.

Users of codeine syrup have different reasons for taking it. According to Jummai Salau, who lives in Sabon Gari Kano, codeine improves her sexual prowess.

She told the reporter that most of her friends who use codeine do so for the same reason.

Even married women use it to satisfy their husbands, she revealed, but stressed that there were those who use it to cool tension.

Officials of NDLEA also corroborated Jumais confession.

Some of the married women confessed to us that they take it to improve their libido so that their husbands would not look for other women. Some say they have marital problems, and some say it just makes them forget their worries, said the Kano NDLEA commander.

In Borno, especially Maiduguri, codeine addiction among girls and women has become an epidemic. A member of the state Civilian JTF told this website that girls and women of all classes take codeine.

Many girls in this town are drug addicts. Forget how beautiful or well-dressed a lady is or even how expensive you think she looks. Some of them just need codeine and once a man can buy them codeine, you can have them. The worse is that even married women are not left out, he said.

A young girl, who spoke to our reporter in Maiduguri on condition of anonymity, confessed that she belonged to a group of girls hooked on codeine. Although she knew abusing the drug was not good for her health, she has not been able to stop it.

I know codeine is not good but I want to leave it gradually, not at once. I tried it in the past and it affected me. I could not eat or sleep and I was always angry.

But she said she is trying to reduce her codeine consumption to a bottle or two per day, in the hope that one day I will stop.

Drug Abuse and Mammy Markets

Since the drug law does not cover cough syrup, NDLEA has been hamstrung in fighting codeine abuse among women in the North. The NDLEA in Sokoto once arrested a woman in whose house operatives found many cartons of codeine cough syrup even when she did own a chemist. But her husband went to court and the court ruled that the woman be released and the seized items returned to her.

Due to the legal lacuna that makes it impossible to prosecute women abusing cough syrup, the NDLEA in the north, especially the north-west, is working in concert with state Hisbah commissions and vigilante groups.

Since Sharia law forbids Muslim women from freely socialising with men or married women going out alone at night without company of their husbands or male relatives, it is easier for the Hisbah commission to deal with the problem of codeine abuse than the NDLEA.

The Hisbah commissions have been provided patrol vehicles, which drive officials around major spots in the state capitals. Women and girls are arrested for indecent dressing, wandering or when seen in company of men who are not their husbands. They are taken to Sharia courts for immediate prosecution, and sanctions range from strokes of cane to jail terms.

In Gusau, Atiku Balarabe, chairman, state Hisbah Commission, said some of the women have been committed to prison for two or three months on such offences.

In Kano, apart from using the Hisbah and vigilante groups, culprits are also exposed through the media. Recently the Vigilante Group of Nigeria, Kano Branch, arrested a female codeine dealer and user while on an afternoon patrol.

According to Awalu Yusuf, Commander of the Giguyun branch, Kano, she was found during a stop and search. She was a passenger inside a tricycle dressed in Muslim hijab. She was taken to the Kano State radio where she gave her name as Umme Ado, a graduate of Kano University of Science and Technology. She had concealed bottles of codeine under her hijab, items she said were meant for delivery to some married women inside the city.

The aggressive operations of the Hisbah and the vigilante groups have also forced codeine women to be smarter. Many of them resorted to buying the drugs and taking them at home. Those who still prefer socialising with friends resort to renting rooms in guests houses during the day and night so they can buy and drink codeine and other drugs they need.

But many have also found safe havens inside Mammy markets in some military barracks where there seems to be connivance between authorities at the Nigerian Army barracks who own the markets and drug dealers, especially in Zamfara and Sokoto. Codeine and other drug users use Mammy markets in these states as rendezvous.

Inside the Mammy Market in Sokoto, Aba Street is a bustling drug market at night and users walk freely with codeine bottles. The major drug dealers have shops in the market. There are more than a dozen patent medicine shops on Aba Street, but what they sell mostly are codeine syrup and varieties of tablets used by drug addicts. Customers also walk into some of the shops to buy cannabis and smoke in corners of the market. Girls as young as 15 can be seen drinking codeine and smoking cigarettes.

Some beer parlours in the market also have stocks of codeine syrup for female customers. The syrup is not displayed on shelves, but served on request. Halima Katdaba, one of the codeine women who come to the market daily, explained that those who buy codeine more from the market are married women. They come from inside the city to buy and take home. Some of them make friends with us so that we can help them buy and deliver to their homes without anybody suspecting, she stated.

NDLEA officials in Sokoto disclosed that the mammy market remains a challenge for them as they cannot enter the barracks without the approval of the army authorities. A senior official said last year the State Security Service, SSS, gave the agency a list of suspected drug dealers operating in the mammy market and the list was passed to the Army authorities, but nothing was done.

Reacting to a question on the mammy market, the NDLEA state commander said: The issue of Mammy market is giving us serious headache. Those involved in the drug business have found a safe haven in the market because ideally we cannot go there and make arrest without the prior knowledge of the authority there. So we made effort some months back but the strategy had to be reviewed. But were still in contact with the military authorities so that we can put heads together to bring the issue of drugs in Mammy market to an end.

Law enforcement officers in Kano, including police officers are a common sight in the drug havens of Sabon gari. They visit known drug dealers and retailers for settlement. Some of them are also drug addicts, and supply drugs to users. In Kaduna, Hassan told this website that she had telephone numbers of police officers she could call whenever in need of drugs, and they would deliver.

The Kano NDLEA Commander told icirnigeria.org that he dismissed an officer, Murtala Usman, who was found to be involved with drug dealers in Sabon gari. Another officer was demoted.

But the army authorities in Yobe, Taraba and Gombe have been able to stop drug peddlers and users from using their mammy markets by controlling entry and searching the markets for drug users or sellers.

How to fight drug addiction

Many are of the opinion that ignorance is a major factor for the rise is cases of drug abuse not just among women but even among males in the north. While educated men and women have been involved in drug abuse across the states, NDLEA officials and the police say majority of drug addicts in the zone are not college educated and could be easily lured into drugs.

Statistics have also confirmed that the north-west and the north-east are the most educationally disadvantaged states in the country, indicating that ignorance may truly be a major factor.

A Nigerian Demographic and Health Survey conducted in 2008 showed that states in the north-west, except Kaduna have the most educationally disadvantaged women in the country.

Women in these states have between 0-20 per cent literacy, lower than states in the north-east with between 21-60 per cent literacy levels.

This is why the NDLEA has embarked on public enlightenment of the citizenry across north-eastern states on the dangers of drug abuse. There are jingles running on state radio and television stations on the dangers of abusing drugs.

Some community leaders interviewed also expressed this view but added that families should teach their children morals from early age to counter peer group influence.

The NDLEA has also tried to fight codeine addiction by cutting off supplies into states in the north. NDLEA officials are a common feature on major highways into the north, doing stop-and-search of vehicles and passenger luggage.

According to Kibo, the strategy is to cut off drug supplies to dealers and users-a measure e said was yielding positive results.

But the Sokoto State Commander of the NDLEA gave a more pragmatic solution. He called on the National Assembly to urgently enact legislations that will limit the production and consumption of codeine syrup in the country.

What we are now asking is that the National Assembly should look into the issue of cough syrup so that it can be included among drugs that are controlled. We know the companies producing these drugs and they are doing it in large quantities. So it is very easy to solve the problem from the source. If you allow companies manufacturing to keep producing them, they have to look for buyers. If there is no law that stops them from distributing it, then it will increase, Mr. Idris told icirnigeria.org.

There are indications that the codeine problem in the north has also caught the attention of the National Assembly, which is now working to have new legislations to stem the malaise.

The chairman of the Senate Committee on Drugs and Narcotics, Joshua Lidani, told this website penultimate weekend that codeine addiction among women in the north has become a problem requiring urgent attention in order to save the current and future generation of women in the region.

Mr. Lidani disclosed that his committee had met with NDLEA officials over the issues and both resolved to have a review of the drug law in the country.
The Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Olusola Oyewole, and Pro-Chancellor, Adeseye Ogunlewe, have finally been released on bail.

Both men were charged last Friday at an Abeokuta court for allegedly mismanaging the universitys N800 million.

Although they were granted bail on Friday, the bail conditions were not met early enough on that day. They consequently spent the weekend in prison before they were released on Monday.

The lead counsel for the accused, Benjamin Ogunmodede, who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES, expressed joy that his clients were released at about 5 p.m. on Monday.

I can authoritatively confirm to you that the duo of Oyewole and Ogunlewe have just met the bail condition and have just been released now.

I am just driving out from the court premises alongside with the them. They have been released from the prison to join their families, Mr. Ogunmodede said.

A third person arraigned with the university vice chancellor and the pro-chancellor was also granted bail on Monday.

Moses Ilesanmi, the universitys bursar, was not granted bail on Friday as his lawyer did not conclude the bail application.

He was asked to remain in the custody of the anti-graft agency, EFCC, till Monday.

On his return to court, Mr. Ilesanmis counsel, Adedamola Lapite, asked the court to grant his client bail in liberal terms pending the commencement of trial.

The defence lawyer added that the charges against Mr. Ilesanmi were bailable.

The prosecuting counsel, Kayode Oni, however, opposed the bail application stating that the arguments brought forward by Mr. Lapite were not valid.



The judge, O. Majekodunmi, having heard from both counsel, granted Mr. Ilesanmi bail in the sum of N50 million and two sureties in like sum.



Mr. Majekodunmi emphasised that the two sureties must be owners of landed property within the jurisdiction of the court. He added that the sureties must deposit their title documents with the court.

The judge also ordered that the sureties be level 15 officers in the Ogun State Civil Service and must deposit their international passports with the court.

The trial of the three university officials was adjourned to December 16, 19, and 20.

In a related development, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC , has asked the federal government to order the reinstatement of the three whistleblowers and 20 others sacked by the university.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported how the university sacked three staff who reported the alleged corrupt practices to the anti-graft agency, EFCC.

The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, called for the immediate reinstatement of 23 members of Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU.

The NLC president made this known in a letter to the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, and a copy was made available to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Monday.

In the letter, Mr. Wabba said: Between Nov. 8 and Nov.11, 23 members of SSANU have been relieved of their appointments maliciously and vindictively.

They were victimised for reporting cases of corruption to the EFCC.

SSANU, one of our affiliate, has informed us that its members at the FUNAAB have been victimised.

Do permit us to observe that the actions of the Council and Management of FUNAAB do not only constitute impunity and lawlessness but a violation of the fundamental human rights of these workers.

This is as enshrined in Section 39 of the 2009 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

According to Mr. Wabba, in order for the war on corruption to succeed, whistle blowers should be protected by all means and not victimised as is presently the case at FUNAAB.

We request you to cause an investigation into what is going on at FUNAAB as well as ensure that the affected workers are recalled unconditionally.

We await your intervention, please accept the assurances of our highest esteem.
The Northern States Governors Forum and the General Electric International, on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding, MOU, for the construction of five solar plants some parts of Northern Nigeria.

The plants are expected to generate 500 megawatts of electricity.

Chairman of the Northern States Governors Forum, and Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, signed the agreement on behalf of the Governors, while General Electrics Senior Executive, Western Europe and Africa, Armand Pineda, and the President/Chief Executive Officer, General Electric, Nigeria, Lazarus Angbazo, signed on behalf of their company in a brief ceremony which held at Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja.

Based on the MOU, the General Electric, which has 120 years experience in power generation, is to build five solar power plants to be located in Borno, Kebbi, Nassarawa, Niger and Taraba States.

Each of the plants is expected to generate 100 megawatts of electricity totaling 500 megawatts across the 5 States.

The electricity is meant to stimulate economic activities and social services in the affected States through boosting agricultural food processing, small scale businesses in addition to supplying electricity to schools and hospitals.

The 19 Governors of the north jointly created this approach. We want to go beyond lamentation to provide solutions and we all know that power is key to industrial development.

With power, we can create jobs, stimulate our economies and make life better for our people. The General Electric has over 120 years experience in energy solutions and they have been operating in Nigeria for over 50 years, we cannot have a better partner than GE.

We shall do our part as Governors, this I will assure you. We are deeply committed to this agreement Mr. Shettima said at the MOU signing ceremony.

The Northern Governors Chairman enumerated challenges of poverty, unemployment, and poor access to education, poor healthcare amongst other underdevelopment indications threatening the north.

He said power could provide a vehicle for the north to reposition itself for a better future.

The Northern Nigeria Global Economic Re-integration Programme, newly created by the Northern States Governors, is coordinating the project, which is a pilot phase.

According to a release by the spokesperson of the Borno Governor, Isa Gusau, the programme aims to serve as vehicle for the economic recovery of northern States through international relations on infrastructure, manufacturing, as well as to stimulate agricultural value chain and trade.

It also aims at making the region a global player in agricultural export in line with the vision of the late Premier of the Region, Ahmadu Bello.

The release also said the Governors Forum engaged the services of Tanimu Kurfi as Chief Executive Officer of the Programme.

Mr. Kurfi was the Chief Economic Adviser to late President Umaru Yaradua and he has wide contact with leading development companies and financial institutions across the world.

Mr. Kurfi said he took up the challenge put forward by the Northern Governors as a result of the strong passion and commitment to the aggressive development of the north so far shown by the Northern Governors since Mr. Shettima became the forums chairman in 2015.

Reaffirming their commitment to the MOU, General Electrics Senior Executive, Western Europe and Africa, Mr. Pineda and the President/Chief Executive Officer, General Electric, Nigeria, Dr. Angbazo both pledged that they would work round the clock to realize the project for the benefits of citizens of the five States.
The Chief of Army staff (COAS), Tukur Buratai, on Monday said the Nigerian Army was planning to establish a command secondary school with boarding facilities in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi.

Mr. Buratai, a Lt. Gen., who was on a working visit to the state, also told Gov. Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi, in Birnin Kebbi that the Nigerian Army Engineering Corps (NAEC) would construct the bridge linking Shema and Bakoshi in Zuru Local Government Area.

He said the proposed Army command secondary school in the state would be the second to be established nationwide.

The COAS said the project was to ensure that the Nigerian Army sustain the cordial relationship with the Army friendly state governments and promote the educational development of youths in the area.

He assured the state government that the Nigerian Army would execute the projects professionally.

Mr. Buratai also commended the state government for reposing confidence in the Nigerian Army in its efforts at securing the territorial integrity of the nation.

He also lauded the state government for allowing the army to construct developmental projects there and ensuring a healthy relationship between the military and the civilian population.

The COAS commiserated with the state government over the death of an indigene, C.U. Umar, a Lt. Col., who was killed by the Boko Haram terrorists in an ambush while on duty in the North-East.

In his remarks, Gov. Atiku Bagudu commended the Chief of Army Staff for restoring peace to the country as well as improving the professional conduct of the Nigerian Army in the task of protecting the territorial integrity of the country.

He said the state would sustain the cordial relationship with the military, especially, in the areas of combating cattle rustling and kidnapping.

Mr. Bagudu used the occasion to call on security agencies to work together in curtailing the spate of attacks and incursions into the countrys territory by neighbouring countries.

I acknowledge the friendly posture between the state and the Nigerian Army and assure the top echelon of the Army that the relationship will be sustained he said. (NAN)
The U.S. Government has distributed N51 million grants ($167,227 at N305 per $1) to 30 non-governmental organisations in Nigeria for community-based projects.

The Ambassadors Small Grants Programme was presented to recipients from different geo-political zones in the country on Monday by the new U.S. Ambassador, W. Stuart Symington, at the U.S. embassy in Abuja.

The small grants programme is largely funded by the special self-help programmes through the Department of State and U.S Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

Mr. Stuart said that the self-help projects have been aiding people and communities across Africa for 20 years.

With its main focus on Nigerian communities, the ambassador reaffirmed the cliche that Nigeria is the heart of Africa.

Nigeria is the most important project in Africa and one of the most important projects in the world.

Smart people have said if Nigeria succeeds, Africa will succeed and if Africa succeeds then the world will succeed, he said.

He expressed delight that the grants were geared towards assisting persons and families affected by HIV and AIDS, including innovative projects that provide care and support to orphans, vulnerable children and their households.

These community-driven grants seek to encourage communities to undertake similar activities on their own in the future, he said.

Mr. Stuart noted that for Nigeria to grow economically, the country should not depend on others but should generate income and stimulate economic growth by focusing and developing locally made products.

The new U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria also urged the grant recipients to be accountable in the various projects they are undertaking so as to achieve positive results in their various communities.

The NGOs received grants ranging from N865,895 ($2,839) to N3 million ($9,990).

The NGOs include: Intensive Rescue Foundation International, represented by Jennifer Ogochukwu, which received N1.6million ($5,444) to construct ten squat toilets to service 734 students and 10 staff members in Ugieda primary school, Edo State; Development Empowerment Initiative, represented by Austine Ibikunle, which received N1.3million ($4,527) for health promotion and household economic strengthening for OVC care; and Hope Yet Welfare Foundation, represented by Bulus Bature, which received N1.5million ($5,000) for construction of classrooms and VIP toilets for OVC in a community in Kaduna, amongst others.

The grants are expected to benefit more than 160,000 men, women and children in Nigeria.

The projects in Nigeria include purchasing books and equipment for schools, constructing boreholes, building and rehabilitating schools, classrooms and health clinics, and supporting groups that teach a trade.
President Muhammadu Buhari Monday in Abuja called for stronger commitment to the implementation of the peace process in South Sudan while assuring that the Federal Government will remain steadfast in following up to ensure that the country regains stability.

Receiving the Letter of Credence of the Ambassador of the Republic of South Sudan, Paul Akaro, at the State House, President Buhari said delay in implementing the peace accord had affected the development of the country in spite of the lofty potentials for growth.

I was a little disappointed with the subsequent developments in your country. I was hoping that we can move forward and develop the great potentials of your country after the peace accord.

The African Union will continue to hold your leaders to account in implementing the peace process. And the leaders should be able to accommodate one another for the good of your people, the president said.

President Buhari told the ambassador that the peace process would be most effective when accepted and implemented by leaders from within the country, without external interventions.

In his remarks, Mr. Akaro said the government of national unity in South Sudan was still committed to the peace process in the country.

We know that the only way we can achieve stability and development is to implement the peace process. We are grateful for your support, he said.

The President, who also received the Letter of Credence of the Ambassador of Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic, Malainine Sadik-Bachir, said Nigeria will continue to support the country as it strives to realize its goals of development.

You can be assured that Nigeria will remain steadfast in her support for Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic. We will continue to do our best for you, he said.
With the result of Ondo State (governorship election), the PDP should know by now that rebranding goes beyond mocking the APC with a musical video of apes playing guitars.

 Festus Keyamo, Nigerian lawyer, on the defeat of the PDP in the just concluded Ondo governorship election in which Rotimi Akeredolu of the APC won (Source: Twitter)

Apart from the APC, political parties in Nigeria are now contesting elections against INEC. The PDP went to the election with its hands tied to the back because of the uncharitable actions of INEC, which has no doubt become an arm of the APC.

 Ayodele Fayose, governor of Ekiti state, alleging that the Ondo state governorship election, won by Rotimi Akeredolu of APC, was rigged (Source: The Cable newspaper)

If the Judiciary is being cleaned, what of the National Assembly which stinks much worse than the Judiciary?

 Olusegun Obasanjo, former president of Nigeria, asking President Muhammadu Buhari to step into the allegations of budget padding made against the Federal House of Representatives by a whistleblowing lawmaker, Abdulmumin Jibrin (Source: Premium Times)

Fidel Castros legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights. While Cuba remains a totalitarian island, it is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve.

 Donald Trump, U.S President-elect, on the death of Fidel Castro, the former revolutionary leader of Cuba (Source: The Washington Post)

The biggest Judas in Nigerian politics today is Jimoh Ibrahim. He sold his party for money. He lives like Judas and he will end like Judas.

 Femi Fani-Kayode, a former minister of aviation and a PDP leader, engaging in war of words with Jimoh Ibrahim, PDP governorship aspirants who made a u-turn and campaigned against his party after the Court of Appeal ruled that his named be replaced with that of Eyitayo Jegede as the authentic party candidate for the Ondo governorship election. The PDP lost the election to the APC (Source: Twitter)

Its unfortunate that you are affected by Boko Haram insurgency, but I want to assure you that if I were in government, Boko Haram would not have happened.

 Atiku Abubakar, former vice president of Nigeria, said to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Yola, Adamawa State, while distributing food to them o mark his 70th birthday (Source: Premium Times)

If we are not careful, the only thing of value and credibility that we can say to Nigerians that is still relatively intact in the APC will be President Buhari. And Buhari, more than anybody else, knows that his personality and character alone cannot win him an election.

 Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, former APC, Kaduna State, asking the president to intervene in the internal crises rocking the ruling party before the next general election (Source: Premium Times)

My job is not to applaud elected leaders, but to stand up for what I believe in. We comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

 Nicholas Kristof, New York Times columnist, reacting to the accusation that he failed to read the mood of the American electorates when he was thrashing Donald Trump in his writings. Mr. Trump surprisingly defeated the Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, in the recent presidential election in the U.S (Source: Twitter)

The Igbos are a unique people in the country. God forbid, if Nigeria should break, they are the only nation that can survive because they are industrious people. All the permanent structures found everywhere are owned by the Igbo people. Wherever you go in the country, you will find an Igbo man there.

 Ayodele Fayose, the governor of Ekiti state, said when the Ndigbo Community in Ekiti conferred him with the traditional title of Nwanne  De  Namba at Ado Ekiti during the Igbo Cultural Day (Source: Vanguard)

If a man hits you in time of courtship, the signs are strong that youll spend life with a bad copy of Mike Tyson. Dont.

 Oby Ezekwesili, former minister of education in Nigeria and a leader of the #BringBackOurGirls (Source: Twitter)
The Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, Afenifere, considers the victory of Rotimi Akeredolu of the All Progressives Congress in the just concluded Ondo governorship election as a blow to Bola Tinubus hold on south-west politics, the organisations spokesperson has said.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, declared Mr. Akeredolu winner on Sunday, having polled 244, 842 to defeat his challengers, mainly Eyitayo Jegede of Peoples Democratic Party with 150,380 votes and Olusola Oke of Alliance for Democracy with 126,889 votes.

This outcome, Afenifere spokesperson, Yinka Odumakin, told PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday, meant Abuja has prevailed over the south-west which worked against Akeredolu.

And this is going to have implications for future politics of the south-west, Mr. Odumakin added.

Pressed to explain what he meant by Abuja and south-west  Mr. Odumakin said that, the South West APC has a controlling leadership under Tinubu, or by South West I mean the Tinubu caucus which is the majority in the region.

And, at the moment, Fashola (Babatunde), Governor Ibikunle Amosun (of Ogun State) and Fayemi (Kayode) do not belong to that group under Tinubu which was opposed to Akeredolus emergence.

He said Afenifere would watch these implications as they unfold.

Mr. Akeredolus emergence as the candidate of the APC months ago at the expense of several aspirants, including Olusegun Abraham, backed by Mr. Tinubu, had generated crisis which saw aggrieved defeated aspirants petition the partys appeals panel.

The panel invalidated Mr. Akeredolus victory at the primary poll, but the National Working Committee of the party led by John Odigie-Oyegun overruled the panel, provoking a furious Mr. Tinubu to accusehis party of injustice and undemocratic tendencies, and demand Mr. Oyeguns resignation in a strongly worded letter through which he also renounced the honorific title of national leader of the ruling party.

But Mr. Odigie-Oyegun, who hit back at Mr. Tinubu and dismissed allegations against him as reckless, has remained in office, apparently backed by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Mr. Tinubu and his core loyalists, including Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State and Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State refused to endorse Mr. Akeredolu and shunned his grand rally attended by Messrs. Buhari, Oyegun, Amosun, Fayemi and Senate President Bukola Saraki in Akure.

One of Mr. Aregbesolas aides, Bola Ilori led ADs Mr. Okes campaign and many card carrying APC members, citing injustice in their party, openly mobilised support for Mr. Oke, fuelling claims Mr. Tinubu backed the ADs candidate against his own partys flag bearer.

Mr. Oke joined AD to contest the election after he lost in the APC primary. But despite the support he had from APC members in the south-west, he came distant third leaving over 100 thousand votes between himself and Mr. Akeredolu who faced abandonment by his own party members and leaders in the region.

In his victory speech, Mr. Akeredolu thanked Mr. Buhari, Mr. Oyegun whom he called our indefatigable and principled chairman, and loyal governors  subtly hitting at his APC governors in the south-west allegedly involved in anti-party activities.

However, hours after Mr. Akeredolu was officially declared winner by INEC, Mr. Tinubu congratulated the governor-elect and noted his persistence and perseverance.

The governor-elect first contested the Ondo governorship election in 2012, fully backed by Mr. Tinubu, but came third, trailing Mr. Oke of PDP then, and the outgoing Governor Olusegun Mimiko, who then used Labour to clinch a second term.

In his reaction, Mr. Tinubu also extended congratulations to Mr. Buhari whom he called the national leader of the party whose stature and dignity helped guide the APC to another victory

Mr. Ambode also congratulated Mr. Akeredolu, just after Mr. Tinubus reaction on Sunday, and charged the governor-elect to pursue unity of Yoruba through regional integration and economic transformation of the south-west. But Mr. Aregbesola has not issued any public reaction as at the time of filing this report.

The Afenifere and Mr. Tinubu have been on divergent paths since the latters tenure as Lagos governor.

Afenifere was the socio-cultural organisation behind the AD in 1999, as Egbe Omo Oduduwa was for the Action Group led by late Obafemi Awolowo in the 1950s.

However, the group did not back the AD candidate in the Ondo election because of the perceived support Mr. Oke enjoyed from Mr. Tinubu.
About 600,000 Nigerian men, women, and children (90 per cent of the people living with HIV/AIDs) are currently on HIV treatment, with more than 55,000 pregnant women being provided anti-retroviral drugs for the prevention of mother-to- child transmission of HIV, the U.S. Consul-General has said.

John Bray, who spoke during a 2016 World AIDS Day programme in Lagos on Monday, said 8.7 million people have received HIV counselling and testing, while 750,000 adults and children living with the HIV/AIDs have received care and support.

I want to assure you of the U.S. governments unwavering commitment in supporting partner countries to control their epidemics, and our focus on ensuring every dollar invested has the greatest impact for those in need, Mr. Bray said.

The theme for this years World AIDS Day is Leadership. Commitment. Impact.

Mr. Bray said since its inception in 2004, the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has disbursed more than 3.4 billion dollars to support Nigerias HIV/AIDS response.

As some of you may know, last week the Nigerian federal government launched a simplified version of its HIV Anti-discrimination Act to strengthen the Nigerian HIV response system which is geared towards stopping HIV related stigma by 2020 and eliminating the disease by 2030, he said.

The United States governments commitment to ending the AIDS epidemic cannot be overstated. We invest with our voices, our capacity, and our dollars. PEPFAR is the largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease in history.

Through PEPFAR, we are maximizing our impact by making smart investments to reach those most at risk and in need  preventing millions of new HIV infections and saving millions of lives. PEPFAR is using data to invest in evidence-based interventions in the geographic areas and populations with the greatest HIV/AIDS burden and accelerating country progress toward achieving epidemic control.

The U.S. government agencies working in Nigeria as part of PEPFAR include the United States Agency for International Agency for Development; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Department of Disease; and U.S. Embassy and Consulate, Public Affairs Sections.

Mr. Bray said the U.S. Department of Defense HIV Program in Nigeria is working to increase the capacity of the Nigerian military medical system to treat and prevent HIV infection among members of the military, their families, and their surrounding communities.

Uniformed officers from the U.S. military forces work side by side with their colleagues from the Nigerian military to provide services, he said.

This partnership has become a model for the implementation of a coordinated approach throughout the world.

The Consul-General said with the contributions of the U.S. and Nigerian governments, the United Nations, Global Fund, private sector, faith-based community, civil society, and other partners, the AIDS epidemic could be ended by 2030.

We have the tools and the data to deliver on this promise, but it will not happen automatically or easily, said Mr. Bray.

We must not only drive toward controlling the AIDS epidemic but also ensure the long-term sustainability of national HIV/AIDS programs. PEPFAR is using our Sustainability Index and Dashboard (SID) to track, assess, and improve our investments toward strengthening sustainability.

We must come together as a global community  with urgency, focus, and transparency  to achieve an AIDS-free generation where no one is left behind. One key aspect of transparency is making granular data available. PEPFAR is helping lead the way in this area by making our quarterly program results available for everyone to see and use.
Over 1 million adherents of Tijjaniya from many African countries have converged on Yola, the Adamawa State capital, for three days to offer special prayers to free Nigeria from insurgency and recession .

During the three-day event, scholars within and outside the country including Dahiru Bauchi and the Deputy Chief Imam of Abuja Central Mosque, Ibrahim Makari, were led by a Moroccan scholar and the world leader of Tijjaniyya Islamic Movement, Muhammad Kabir, in prayers for peace in Nigeria.

Mr. Bauchi who spoke at the annual remembrance day of the founder of the Tijjaniyya movement, Ahmadu Tijjany, expressed optimism that the current insecurity situation would soon end.

I am so optimistic that the attendance of these revered disciples and progeny of Maulana Sheikh Ahmadu Tijjani is a blessing to us and entire Nigeria.

As they offer special prayers, almighty Allah will surely answer our prayers and bring to an end the insurgency as well as the economic hardship that plagued the country. 

In his remark, Governor Muhammadu Jibrilla commended the scholars for their contribution to the maintenance of peace in the North East sub region and Nigeria in general.

He also appreciated the determination of the federal government in tackling security challenges in the area, calling for public support for the Buhari administration.

Hundreds of soldiers and police men were assisted by vigilantes and first aid groups to maintain security in Yola metropolis as mammoth crowd filled the town.
Thousands of Nigerians forced by Boko Haram fighters to flee abroad from their homes in the North-east have begun to return home, the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, has said.

A report by the agency said at least 29,581 of the documented 240,000Nigerian refugees who had fled into Cameroon, Chad and Niger are back in the country.

The report came months after the news that Cameroon planned to repatriate at least 56,000 Nigerian refugees.

The Nigerian government debunked an allegation that it had endorsed the plan for the repatriation.

In 2015, Cameroon, a non-member country of the ECOWAS, was accused of dehumanizing Nigerian refugees by chasing about 2,600 of them out of their territory without informing Nigerian officials.

In gross violation of the international etiquettes on refugees management, Cameroonian officials reportedly piled the Nigerian refugees into trucks and dumped them in border communities in Adamawa state.

Most of the returnees had lamented the unfriendly environment they endured in Cameroon before its government finally hauled them out.

They claimed that the Cameroonian gendarmes evacuated about 12,000 Nigerians in just four days by cramping about 40 refugees, including women and children, into vehicles designed for 12 to 15 passengers.

In June, the Nigerian government signed a tripartite agreement with the United Nations High Commission for Refugee, UNHCR, and Cameroon for the return of the refugees. About 80,000 Nigerian refugees were expected to return following the agreement.

According to the latest NEMA report on humanitarian relief intervention, about 29, 581 Nigerians who fled communities in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa as result of insurgent activities to Republic of Niger and Cameroon voluntarily returned last year.

The report, which was issued by the spokesman of NEMA, Sani Datti, said 13,046 Nigerians returned from Niger Republic in May 2015 and were received in Geidam, Yobe State.

This group were those forcefully repatriated by Cameroon.

Between April and December, 2015 NEMA received about 16,595 Nigerians that had voluntarily returned from Cameroon through the Sahuda border crossing area near Mubi, Adamawa State, the report further stated.

The report indicated that most of the refugees were being received back in IDP camps where officials of the concerned north-east states joined other aid agencies to provide them with humanitarian relief supports.

Some of the Nigerians that fled to neighbouring countries (Niger, Chad and Cameroon) were provided with humanitarian relief support by Nigeria through NEMA to alleviate their suffering, the report said.

The displaced Nigerians have also received humanitarian supports from the host governments, the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), the host communities and Nigerian citizens living in the three host countries.

There are presently 20,804 displaced Nigerians living in Chad, 80,709 in Cameroon and 138,321 in Niger, the report stated.

NEMA said it hopes to get over the issue of humanitarian conflict, with the improving successes recorded by the Nigerian Military with the support of Multi-National Joint Military Task Force (JTF) in the fight against Boko Haram insurgents.

The agency said its focus was gradually shifting towards Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Resettlement, Recovery and dignified return of IDPs back home while process for the return of Nigerian refugees from neighbouring countries is equally on-going.

The relief agency also said it would sustain the humanitarian response through enhanced collaboration with the affected states and relevant stakeholders in order to overcome the challenges in the north-east of Nigeria.

Meanwhile, about 240,000 documented Nigerians remained trapped in Cameroon, Chad and Niger Republic, waiting for help to return home.
Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue has ordered the immediate termination of the appointment of the Executive Secretary of the Teachers Service Board, TSB, James Pine, for embarrassing the state government.

The Acting Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Bem Meladu, told the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Makurdi that the state government was embarrassed by the actions of Mr. Pine who allegedly assaulted a staff-member under him.

He said that Mr. Pine also used criminal force on the staffer and while the case was in court, he turned down all overtures toward peaceful resolution of the matter.

The SSG regretted that the matter dragged on in court till he was convicted by a court on charges of assault and criminal force.

The official said very senior officials in government tried to arbitrate in the matter to no avail and lamented that the conviction was very embarrassing to the government.

Governor Ortom has, therefore, directed the termination of his appointment because Pines conviction by the court was an embarrassment to the governor, the government and the people of the state.

Mr. Pine, who was appointed by Mr. Ortom in 2015, was dragged to court by one of his subordinates, James Asema, on account of assault and criminal force.

The magistrate court had on Thursday last week found him culpable and sentenced him to five months imprisonment or an option of N10,000 fine.

(NAN)
The Ebonyi State government has set up a task force to move into markets and confiscate foreign rice found in them.

The state governor, David Umahi, who had earlier pronounced a ban on rice imported into Nigeria, disclosed this while performing the ground breaking ceremony of ultra modern Kpirikpiri market on Monday.

The governor insisted that for anyone to sell foreign rice in Ebonyi, the person must ensure compliance with all due processes to certify it is not poisonous; an indication the ban is not total as the federal government which has the powers to restrict import still allows legal importation of rice.

We have set up a Taskforce and directed them to confiscate foreign rice found in our market. The person should give us the certificate of the quality of the rice, you have to prove the import duties you paid for it, where you brought it from and you give us Standard Organization of Nigeria certificate to prove that the rice is not poisonous.

Mr. Umahi said foreign rice is poisonous as according to him, some of them were stored for more than 20 years abroad before being smuggled into the country.

That is why we have cases of cancer, cases of kidney failure and all kinds of diseases that our people were not known for. So you are taking risk if you are selling foreign rice in the land of Ebonyi, he added.

The governor said enough rice was being produced in Ebonyi and the state was looking for distributors.

He promised to open up modern markets in the 13 local government areas of the state and assured that the Kpirikpiri market when completed would compete with any other modern market in the country.

Meanwhile , the Special Adviser to the governor on Trade and Investment, Peter Obah, has ordered all foreign rice dealers in the state to evacuate the produce from the state within two weeks.

Foreign rice should be evacuated or moved out of the state within two weeks. Once again, no sells, buying or consumption of foreign rice in Ebonyi State.

This is to safeguard the lives of the people who now consume unhealthy substances packaged as foreign rice to Africa in recent times.

Action would commence to impound all foreign rice seen in the state within two weeks of this statement.
The candidate of the Alliance for Democracy, AD, in the just concluded governorship election in Ondo State, Olusola Oke, on Monday congratulated the winner of the election, Rotimi Akeredolu of the All Progressives Congress.

He, however, decried the heavy monetization of the election held on Saturday.

Mr. Oke came a distant third at the election with 126, 889 votes, winning only two local government areas, Ilaje and Okitipupa.

In a statement made available to journalists in Akure, Mr. Oke commended both the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the security agents deployed to the state for their fairness in the handling of their duties.

According to him, alleged open and free use of money to purchase votes by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and the APC blighted the process.

He said the ugly development required the urgent intervention of government if the much publicized anti-corruption agenda of the Federal Government would make any meaning to Nigerians.

In the last seven years, the policy direction of the government of the day (in Ondo State) has resulted in the growth and circulation of poverty to our people, he said.

The resultant effect is the debilitating poverty that had made the people so vulnerable.

Therefore, trading away dignity in the face of excruciating hunger during electioneering process requires little or no considerations for morals and values that defined us as a people.

Offer of money for votes is worse than looting the government treasury. Apart from compromising the dignity of the people, it provides a fertile training ground for future looters of government treasury.

The consequence of it is to render the anti-corruption fight a farce. There may be no economic matter more urgent, difficult to unravel and more sensitive to the pursuit of the average person in Ondo State than the current indignity foisted on the people by poverty orchestrated by maladministration and priority misplacement by the current administration.

He expressed the hope that the incoming administration would address the problem of poverty so that the integrity of the electoral process would be restored.

Mr. Oke, who recalled the event leading to his movement to the AD, said it was necessitated by the need for them to shun the in-built perfidy and organized deception in APC as revealed during its primary election.

We moved to AD less than six weeks before the gubernatorial election. We knew it was a big challenge and the greatest challenge was time. But we were determined in the pursuit of our dream, he explained.

He assured that as members of the opposition, the AD would continue to contribute to the process of governance and would not hesitate to point, in a civilized manner, the attention of the incoming government to any area where the masses seem not to have been considered in the policy framework of governance.

But the APC has denied that it was involved in vote buying during the election, accusing the PDP and others of spreading the report.

Steve Otaloro, the Publicity Director of the party in Ondo State, said those alleging that it bought votes should prove their allegations against the party.


The owners of Kammermans Marina in Atlantic City would love to clone a longtime employee whos retiring, but they cant. So they need to hire somebody to fill the unusual role of deckhand and administrative assistant, but manager Stacey Kammerman says finding the right worker can be pretty hard.

Thats what brought her and her husband, Chris, to a recent Greater Atlantic City Chamber session explaining a collection of incentives and help that local employers can get in hiring new workers. That help includes grants of up to $10,000 to pay for six months of on-the-job training for workers who have collected unemployment benefits after losing other jobs  in a county where more than 10,000 people were laid off after five Atlantic City casinos closed since the start of 2014.

Joe Kelly, the local chambers president, said the business group plans to offer similar seminars on hiring help roughly once a month into next year.

Managers from a dozen or so small businesses showed up for the November version at Flat Stone Tavern & Grill in Egg Harbor Township. The informal session featured Karen McCormick, a business outreach specialist for the chamber, digging into the details of at least nine separate programs that potential employers can use to help find and train workers.

They include that state program giving businesses $10,000 worth of training incentives, for up to 26 weeks, to pay half the salaries of recently unemployed workers. The jobs have to be considered full-time and pay at least $10 an hour, McCormick said.

Two other state-funded efforts offer to pay half the wages, up to $4,000 in one case, for on-the-job training of unemployed people or those registered in one of several public-assistance programs, she added.

Another offers training incentives for hiring workers who are 55 or older, McCormick told the managers, and a federal Work Opportunity Tax Credit can be worth as much as $9,600 for companies willing to hire people with significant barriers to employment, including disabled veterans or ex-offenders.

The tax credits, a couple of businesses have expressed a lot of interest in those, she said Monday. For some employers, thats an easier way to be reimbursed for training costs.

But the program that has gotten the most attention from local companies involves those $10,000 training grants, McCormick confirmed.

At Kammermans Marina, the owners have decided to hold off on hiring until the boating season starts up again next spring, manager Stacey Kammerman said Monday. But she definitely plans to see what the chamber can do for her when shes ready to go.

Especially the fact that theyre willing to pay up to $10,000 for (hiring) a displaced employee  thats really helpful for a small employer, she said. I dont think a lot of businesses  realize how much help is really available to them for hiring incentives.

And at the 55-year-old, family-owned marina, the owners say good training is crucial because the way workers treat customers can attract new ones  or lose old ones.

People go to a marina because of the service. Everything is about the service to the customer, she said.

George Pappadopoulos, of Galloway Nutrition, also liked the sound of some of the help available to employers but wasnt sure if it would work for the particular needs of his business. Still, he said, he planned to contact the chamber to find out if any of the programs are a fit.

Kelly said he knows the hiring seminars include lots of information and details. But he emphasized that these monthly meetings are hardly the end of the employment services the chamber offers.

We want to hold their hands in the process, Kelly said. When theyre ready, were here to help.
ATLANTIC CITY  The resorts seven remaining casinos may have dodged a bullet when voters rejected a plan to allow North Jersey casinos, but the fight to expand gambling in the state is set to continue.

Some state lawmakers are developing a plan that would allow video lottery terminals at the Monmouth Park and Meadowlands racetracks without a public vote as a way of increasing revenue to help the struggling horse-racing industry.

Assemblyman Ralph Caputo, D-Essex, has said he is exploring options to boost revenue at horse-racing tracks without a public referendum. According to a 1982 ruling by former Attorney General Irwin Kimmelman, the lottery terminals do not require a public referendum.

Video lottery terminals, or VLTs, are machines that allow gamblers to bet on the outcome of a video game. The terminals are similar to slot machines in that each is a stand-alone device containing a random-number generator.

During the November election, voters overwhelming rejected a plan that would have cleared the way for two casinos to be built at least 72 miles from Atlantic City and in different counties.

Assemblyman Chris Brown, R-Atlantic, called the VLT idea a backdoor method to try to expand gambling.

While Im thrilled that by putting middle-class families first and standing up to political bosses and special interests we were able to defeat North Jersey casinos, it is frustrating these political bosses and special interests are ignoring the will of the people and now saying voters be damned in trying to force North Jersey casinos on our families, Brown said.

The issue of introducing video lottery machines at racetracks has been talked about for more than two decades, said former Gov. Donald DiFrancesco, who spent more than 30 years in the state Legislature.

At the recent League of Municipalities Convention in Atlantic City, DiFrancesco said, Of course they should have them. If people want to go and play the slots at the racetrack, then go ahead.

Former Gov. Jim McGreevey said the installation of lottery machines would benefit both the horse racing industry and Atlantic City.

It will not continue to exist if we dont do something about it, McGreevey said of the horse racing industry. I think that its a rational way to do it, which also balances the long-term interest of Atlantic City.

While having an effect on the citys gambling market, VLTs wouldnt have as large an impact as additional casinos in North Jersey, said Colin Mansfield, a casino analyst with Fitch Ratings.

Expanding casino gambling to North Jersey could have forced three to five Atlantic City casinos to close, leaving 20,000 to 30,000 more people out of work, city casino officials have said.

It would take some of the revenue, but how much we dont know yet because we havent looked at it yet, Mansfield said. It wouldnt be as much as, say, a resort type of casino, which was proposed during the referendum.
LOWER TOWNSHIP  Off Tabernacle Road are the graves of black Civil War veterans and relatives of the first black families in the township.

You might not know it unless you knew where to look.

The deceased, including nine sailors who washed up on the beach in 1850 after their ship went down, are in Union Bethel Cemetery.

The cemetery is overgrown and covered with downed trees. Some of the gravestones are missing; others have broken or fallen over.

Its an old cemetery, with the earliest graves dating to the mid-1800s. It contains members of the first black families in Lower Township, including the Turners and the Vances. Some of those families histories can be traced to the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

It also has the graves of Doris Middletons daughter, who died in 1976, and great-great grandfather.

Middleton, 77, of Pleasantville, said she was disgusted at the state of the cemetery when she visited a few weeks ago.

Her friend, Kim Turner-McDuffie, said her mouth dropped when she saw the condition of the site.

I cant believe one of our Civil War cemeteries looked like that, she said. It was terrible.

The issue is not new. In 2012, an enterprising Coast Guard petty officer who moved nearby recruited several other Coast Guard members to spruce it up.

Three years before that, a local Boy Scout troop did that same thing, according to a story in the Cape May Herald.

In fact, every mention of the cemetery in The Press during the past 30 years cites its neglect or small projects dedicated to trying to take care of it.

But the problem persists and can be traced to the cemeterys creation.

Richard Fellows, a former member of the township historical society, has a copy of the original deed. The owners of the cemetery and those responsible for taking care of it would be the descendants of the five original trustees of Union Bethel Church, which once stood nearby. But now, the site in limbo, Fellows said.

The best solution for the cemetery would be for either the township or the county to take ownership of it, Fellows said. The other option would be the creation of a nonprofit that would be responsible for the sites upkeep.

Public Eye contacted U.S. Coast Guard Training Center Cape May and the offices of state Sen. Jeff Van Drew and U.S. Rep. Frank LoBiondo to see if they were aware of the cemeterys condition or if they had solutions for it.

Van Drew, D-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic, said he had worked on projects with local organizations, including veterans groups, in the past to help clean up the cemetery. He added that he would try to gather volunteers to clean it again.

LoBiondos spokesman said the congressman was not aware of it but that he would be willing to partner with the appropriate authorities and concerned interests to find a solution. A spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard said he didnt know of any volunteer projects planned for the site, but said he would pass it on to groups within the base that drive their community volunteer efforts.

Middleton said she doesnt care who does it, she just wants the cemetery restored and cared for regularly.

I just want to get this done before I close my eyes, she said.
The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary is holding a three-day summit in Cape May on the health of the Delaware Bay and Delaware River from Jan. 22 through Jan. 25, with more than 100 presentations on the ecology of the area.

The partnership has run the summit annually since 2005. It says the event "has served as a catalyst for collaboration, bringing together experts from diverse sectors who share a common cause and a passion for the Delaware Estuary and environmental preservation."

Scientists, educators and others are expected to attend, as well as interested citizens.

Registration is open now, with cost breaks for early registrations until Dec. 1.

Day one opens with long sessions on "Post Sandy Lessons," focusing on what we have learned in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and "Trash Talking the Waterways," about monitoring and lessening waste pollution in waterways.

It also includes a look at "Thin Layer Placement on Coastal Wetlands," with reports on several pilot projects using dredge spoils to build up wetlands that are both subsiding and being broken up by erosion and rising sea water.

Other topics tackled during the event include "Estuary Restoration" and "Living Shorelines."

To register or for more information visit http://delawareestuary.org/summit/.
Some of the best news this month has almost been lost in the preoccupation with the presidential election. Significant progress has been made in reducing homelessness, one of the toughest social policy challenges.

Best of all, homelessness fell in New Jersey much more than nationwide. And even in struggling Atlantic County and South Jersey, there were substantially fewer homeless people this year.

The federal 2016 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, released in mid-November, put the national homeless decline over the past decade at 15 percent. During the same period, the number of homeless people in New Jersey dropped by 49 percent  the second biggest reduction among states (after Michigan, which saw a 67 percent plunge).

In Atlantic County and South Jersey, the pictures a bit different. While the nation and state slowly recovered from the severe recession, this regions shrinking casino industry pitched it back into recession. Thats probably responsible for its spike in homelessness in 2013-14.

Atlantic Countys 476 homeless people, as of January 2016, was only slightly less than the 514 counted in 2007. But this year there were 36 percent fewer homeless than at the peak of 746 in 2013.

Likewise in the broader region  as shown in a federal measurement also including Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Camden counties  the homeless count of 1,068 this year was a quarter lower than in 2007 and down 37 percent from its 2014 peak of 1,695.

And heres a welcome bonus: The number of homeless veterans in New Jersey declined 20 percent from last year to 556 this year. Thats better than the states 12 percent dip in homelessness since last year.

These improvements take persistent, patient work by lots of people and agencies, including major federal and state initiatives. In this region, Jewish Family Services Atlantic Homeless Alliance runs a county-funded intake center that works closely with the Atlantic City Rescue Mission, Pleasantville Housing Auth-ority and John Brooks Recovery Center. Since 2014, about a third of those going through the program have been matched with permanent housing.

Theres plenty more to be done, of course. The 20 percent of homeless people with addiction and mental health problems pose tougher challenges, not only because they often dont stay in the system long enough for effective help. Too few state housing vouchers compared to the number in need also is an impediment. Ancora Psychiatric Hospital in Winslow Township alone discharged 763 patients this fiscal year. Organizations such as Career Opportunity Development Inc., AtlantiCare and Collaborative Support Programs of N.J. in Absecon have housing programs for those with mental health issues.

The improvements seen in this years federal report should make people addressing homelessness locally feel good about their accomplishments. We hope it also inspires them to keep up the good work in reducing one of societys more intractable problems.
The Swiss foreign ministry will also review assets freezes on deposed leaders from Tunisia and Ukraine

Switzerland will decide in February whether to extend or lift a freeze on deposed Egyptian president Hosnis Mubaraks assets in Swiss banks, SwissInfo website reported.

According to the website, the Swiss government currently holds frozen about USD 570 million in assets from Egyptian banking clients.

Roberto Balzaretti, the new head of the public international law directorate at the Swiss foreign ministry, said it is likely that the government will review next year whether to extend a number of asset freezes, including those of Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and Ukraine's Viktor Yanukovich.

According to Balzaretti, Switzerland has returned over the past 30 years almost $2 billion in misappropriated funds deposited in Swiss banks by politically exposed persons.

Last July, Switzerland introduced a new law to help seize and repatriate illicit wealth looted by foreign dictators and held in its banks in cases which are not covered by standard asset freezing-restitution procedures and international requests for mutual legal assistance.

The new law reverses the burden of proof and obliges the account holder to prove the money was earned legally. The law foresees an administrative freezing of assets, which is much more flexible. It also enables us to give technical support such as sending a lawyer or technicians to countries to assist, said Balzaretti.

In January 2016, Switzerlands attorney general said that they were still investigating whether the hundreds of millions of dollars in frozen funds linked to Mubaraks family originated from money laundering or from supporting and involvement in criminal organizations.

In the same month, Egypts appeals court rejected Mubarak's appeal against a conviction of embezzling public funds, making him the first Egyptian president to be convicted of corruption as the ruling is final and cannot be challenged further.

Mubarak and his two sons were found guilty of embezzling EGP125 million in public funds originally allocated for the upkeep of presidential buildings. The trio served the three-year jail sentences handed to them during their time in pre-trial detention.

Reconciliation to unfreeze

Last August, Egypt's prosecutor-general sent a request to judicial authorities in three countries, including Switzerland, to unfreeze the assets and funds of once-fugitive and Mubarak aide, Egyptian business tycoon Hussein Salem and his family, following a final reconciliation with the Egyptian government.

The requests were sent after the business mogul gave up EGP 5.3 billion (approx. $300 million) to the government, which accounts for 75 percent of his assets in Egypt and abroad, according to the justice ministry.

The Interpol was asked in September by Egyptian authorities to lift the names of Salem and his family off its Red Notice Wanted list.

Salem, 82, fled to Spain shortly after Egypts 2011 uprising that overthrew long-time president Hosni Mubarak. He has received two jail terms in absentia over corruption charges including squandering public funds, profiteering and money laundering.

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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.




The committee said the request submitted to cancel Mansour's parliamentary immunity was based on malicious grounds

Egypt parliament's constitutional and legislative affairs committee rejected Monday a request aimed at removing the parliamentary immunity of independent MP and high-profile lawyer Mortada Mansour.

The head of the committee, Bahaaeddin Abu Shoqa, told reporters that the request, submitted by Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek, was based on malicious -- rather than objective -- grounds "and as a result it was rejected."

The request accused Mansour of directing insults to rival lawyer Essam El-Islambouli while he was defending his son and MP Ahmed Mansour before the Court of Cassation in July.

The request was attached with a CD showing Mansour directing insults at El-Islambouli while he was walking in the court's corridors.

Sadek said Mansour's insults represent a slander and libel crime and as a result parliament should move to lift Mansour's parliamentary immunity so that he could be questioned by judicial authorities.

A report by the committee said most of the insults and verbal clashes that occur in the corridors of courts are a routine thing.

"This is because lawyers usually become rivals in courts and each is trying to defend their clients in any way, not to mention that this issue is not related to parliamentary business in any way," said the committee's report.

El-Islambouli is the lawyer of political analyst Amr El-Shobaki who was a candidate in the Giza district of Dokki against Mansour's son and MP Ahmed in last year's parliamentary elections.

The Court of Cassation said in a report last July that El-Shobaki should be declared the winner of El-Dokki seat after a vote count showed that he had led Mansour by 300 votes.

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THE HAGUE, The Netherlands, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Aegon today announces that its Supervisory Board intends to nominate Matthew J. Rider (1963, US citizen) for appointment as CFO and member of the Executive Board at its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders on May 19, 2017. The appointment is subject to approval by the Dutch Central Bank.

Matthew Rider, who succeeds Darryl Button, will start on January 1, 2017. Matthew Rider joins Aegon after a sabbatical following over 25 years in various roles within the financial services industry. He was a member of ING's Management Board Insurance until 2013, having previously served as Chief Financial Officer for ING Insurance and as Head of Product Development for ING's US Retail Annuity Business. From 1994 until 2003 Matthew Rider held various positions in the Merrill Lynch Insurance Group, including Chief Actuary and Chief Investment Officer. Prior to joining Merrill Lynch he also worked for Transamerica and Banner Life Insurance Company.

Matthew Rider holds a Bachelor's Degree in Applied Mathematics and Economics from Brown University, Providence, RI. He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and Member of the American Academy of Actuaries.

"Having already spent a memorable couple of years working for Transamerica at the start of my career, I'm particularly excited to be joining Aegon and seeing the remarkable transformation the company has been through, and supporting its onward journey", said Matthew Rider.

Rob Routs, Chairman of the Supervisory Board said: "We are very pleased that Matthew is joining Aegon. He brings a broad range of experience, including managing Finance and Risk functions and developing a

Solvency II framework. We look forward to benefiting from his extensive knowledge in banking and

insurance in Europe and the United States."

"We look forward to benefiting from Matthew's extensive knowledge in banking and insurance in Europe and the United States." -Rob Routs, Chairman of the Supervisory Board

About Aegon

Aegon's roots go back more than 170 years - to the first half of the nineteenth century. Since then, Aegon has grown into an international company, with businesses in more than 20 countries in the Americas, Europe and Asia. Today, Aegon is one of the world's leading financial services organizations, providing life insurance, pensions and asset management. Aegon's purpose is to help people achieve a lifetime of financial security. More information on aegon.com/about.

For the Editor

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SOURCE Aegon N.V.
PORTLAND, Oregon and PUNE, India, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Global Automotive Suspension Market is expected to reach $284 billion by 2022, growing at a CAGR of 4.9% during the forecast period, according to new research published by Allied Market Research. The passenger vehicle segment is estimated to dominate the market from 2016 to 2022. Asia-Pacific dominated the global market accounting for a market share of around 37% in 2015.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140911/647229 )



Technological advancements, rise in production of vehicles, and increase in demand for luxury & comfort drive this market. Moreover, rise in demand for lightweight suspension system and development of advanced suspension system for two wheelers are expected to boost the market growth. However, continuous strength of global vehicle standards and high maintenance cost of advanced suspension systems could hamper the market growth.

Summary of the Report Automotive Suspension Market can be accessed on the website at:

https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/automotive-suspension-market

A suspension system is a mechanism that physically separates the car body from its wheels. It includes spring, dampener, and various links, in which the spring stores potential, and kinetic energy while dampener dissipates the energy. The sale of electric, hybrid, and conventional vehicles has witnessed a global upsurge. The market share of automotive suspension technologies is expected to increase. In addition, the adoption of air suspension and electro-magnetic suspension has significantly increased in the automotive industry. Technological advancement of this system is expected to boost the market growth in untapped markets of LAMEA and Asia-Pacific.

The passenger vehicles industry segment is projected to maintain its lead due to increase in sales of vehicles and advent of new technology. Moreover, the sale of advance suspension systems in the two-wheeler industry has increased, owing to stringent safety laws, lightweight components, low costs, and increase in disposable income. Likewise, increase in demand for safe and light weight suspension technologies in commercial vehicles in the developed economies of North America have boosted the market growth.

Asia-Pacific generated the maximum revenue in 2015, and is expected to maintain its dominance till 2022. This is attributed to the increase in public demand for more luxury & comfort in the vehicles, rise in sales, and enforcement of laws & regulations by government authorities. Moreover, rise in disposable income of public propelled the growth of the Asia-Pacific automobile suspension market.

Asia-Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing region throughout the analysis period. China is expected to dominate this region in terms of sales of passenger cars. This is attributed to the implementation of stringent vehicular safety norms, rise in awareness of safe and comfortable vehicles, and growth in buying power of consumers in the emerging markets such as India, Malaysia, and China to adopt advance automotive suspension technologies. Rise in demand for lightweight suspension system and development of advanced suspension systems for two wheelers offer lucrative opportunities to the players in the automotive suspension market.

Automotive Suspension Market Key Findings:

In 2015, passenger cars led the market revenue, and this segment is projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.9% during the forecast period.

Two wheeler segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of 7.4%, owing to the wider adoption of air suspension technologies around the globe.

The hydraulic suspension system is projected to generate the largest revenue by suspension type.

China is the major shareholder, accounting for about 60% of the Asia-Pacific automotive suspension market in 2015.

is the major shareholder, accounting for about 60% of the automotive suspension market in 2015. India is expected to be the fastest growing country and expected to exhibit a double-digit growth.

The key players in the automotive suspension market have focused on expanding their business operations in the developing countries, with new product launches as a preferred strategy. The major players profiled in this report include KYB Corporation (Japan), Hendrickson USA, L.L.C (U.S.), Gabriel India Limited (India), FOX Factory, Inc. (U.S.), WABCO (Belgium), Continental AG (Germany), ZF TRW (U.S.), Magneti Marelli S.p.A (Italy), Tenneco Inc. (U.S.), and Sogefi SpA (Italy).

Read similar market research reports on Automotive systems and accessories at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/automotive-and-transportation-market-report

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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.

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SOURCE Allied Market Research
BASEL, Switzerland and HELSINKI, Finland, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

BC Platforms, a world leader in genomic data management solutions, today announced that it will collaborate with Microsoft to provide integrated genomic data management solutions in the cloud to Codigo46. Codigo46, an emerging Mexican company, is building and managing the largest biobank in Latin-America in co-operation with Mexican health and research authorities. Codigo46 will genotype one million Mexican subjects in the next three years for the purpose of delivering personalized medicine benefits to patients. BC Platforms signed a partnership with Codigo46 in July 2016.

Tero Silvola, CEO of BC Platforms, said: "Since the announcement earlier this year of our collaboration with Microsoft, we have been optimizing our product offerings for Azure utilizing both advancements in software and cloud hardware. Microsoft has built a scalable cloud-based service that enables us to easily and reliably process large volumes of genomic data and we are leveraging this in our partnership with Codigo46."

Lorenza Haddad, Chief Executive Officer at Codigo46, commented: "I am very excited about our partnership with BC Platforms which now includes the addition of Microsoft. We believe that these collaborations will allow us to reach our goals of advancing research in Latin America and in the global field of personalized medicine. Our vision is for each patient to have a bespoke pharmacogenomics profile enabling them to receive the ideal personalized treatment. Initially we will focus on understanding metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, and its complications, as one of the most significant unmet needs in Mexico. We believe that with the support of both Microsoft and BC Platforms we can achieve our ambitious goals and change the face of healthcare and wellbeing in Latin America and beyond."

David Heckerman, distinguished scientist and director of the Microsoft Genomics team, commented: "Microsoft is committed to being a leader in genomics solutions through our Microsoft Azure platform. In collaboration with BC Platforms and Codigo46, we are supporting the advancement of academic and commercial research with the goal of improving health outcomes for individuals, communities, and large populations."

For more information, please visit http://www.bcplatforms.com and http://www.microsoft.com/genomics

- ENDS -

Media contacts:

For more information, please contact:

BC Platforms

Tero Silvola, CEO

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email: tero.silvola@bcplatforms.com

Katja Stout, Citigate Dewe Rogerson

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email: katja.stout@citigatedr.co.uk





SOURCE BC Platforms
Certificate-as-a-service (CtaaS) distribution model can help certificate authorities (CAs) become full service companies, finds Frost & Sullivan's Network Security Team

MOUNTAIN VIEW, California, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The domain-validated (DV) Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) certificates market is changing dramatically due to new management and purchasing options, such as the certificates-as-a-service model (CtaaS), new distribution channels, and evolving pricing models. The availability of free DV certificates through Let's Encrypt and cloud services companies is undermining the price of all types of SSL/TLS certificates and forcing companies, which make the majority of their revenue from (DV) certificates, to rethink the sustainability of their business.

Frost & Sullivan's latest analysis on the SSL/TLS Certificates Market (http://frost.ly/zv), reveals how certificate authorities are creating customer value beyond SSL/TLS certificates (Internet of Things, Digital Signatures, Device Authentication), as well as top competitors in the market today.

For complimentary access to more information on this research, please visit: http://frost.ly/16g

SSL/TLS certificates are based on mature technology. While there may be creative differences from different vendors within the CA/Browser Forum, the highly codified nature of SSL/TLS certificate standards make competitive differentiation (at least concerning the certificate itself) difficult.

"Certificate authorities (CA) need to explain the complete sequence of services and all that is entailed in the SSL/TLS certificate ownership chain," stated Frost & Sullivan Network Security Senior Analyst Christopher Kissel. "Both public and private root systems for device, site, and server authentication will be needed as Internet of Things (IoT) evolves."

Providers should ensure that the issuance of a SSL/TLS certificate adds value beyond the certificate itself by offering key management, inventory, technical support, and limited website protection services. They must also augment SSL/TLS certificates with other digital signature services, and use public and private root hierarchies for the development of IoT.

"In order to build a sustainable business and remain competitive, CAs should continue to add a variety of digital certificate and digital signature services to their portfolio and work toward becoming a full service company," noted Kissel.

SSL/TLS Certificates Market, is part of Frost & Sullivan's Network Security Growth Partnership Service Program which includes insights on advanced sandbox techniques, intrusion prevention and detection systems, managed and professional security services, and knowledge-based security (VM, NAC, and SIEM).

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, works in collaboration with clients to leverage visionary innovation that addresses the global challenges and related growth opportunities that will make or break today's market participants. For more than 50 years, we have been developing growth strategies for the global 1000, emerging businesses, the public sector and the investment community. Contact us: Start the discussion

SSL/TLS Certificates Market

K0B3-74

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-- Acquisition Enterprise Value approximately 711 million Brazilian Reais

-- 206 MW of high-quality, contracted hydroelectric and cogeneration operating assets

-- Long-term partner Falcon Flight (investment vehicle of the Santo Domingo family) to own a 20% interest in the portfolio

-- Latin American portfolio expands to 1,423 MW of operating assets

SAO PAULO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ContourGlobal announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire Neoenergia's interests in a 206 MW portfolio of operating generation assets located in Brazil. The portfolio consists of seven hydroelectric plants totaling 130 MW in the states of Bahia, Goias and Rio de Janeiro and four high-efficiency cogeneration facilities totaling 76 MW in Parana, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

ContourGlobal's President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Joseph Brandt, said: "We are pleased to expand our business in Brazil where we have operated power generation facilities for over a decade. The acquisition announced today adds to our existing hydroelectric portfolio and further expands our Solutions business which provides on-site high-efficiency energy to commercial and industrial customers."

Alessandra Marinheiro, Executive Vice-President of ContourGlobal, highlighted: "These long-term contracted assets are located in, or adjacent to, Brazilian states in which we have an operating presence and include dollar denominated cogeneration facilities similar to our Solutions plants in Europe and Africa. Our operating platform enables us to efficiently integrate these new facilities into our Latin American organization."

The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017 and is subject to various conditions and approvals including by the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) and the National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL).

About ContourGlobal

ContourGlobal is an international power-generation company with approximately 4,200 MW* in operations in 20 countries and on three continents. ContourGlobal's 2000 employees operate a portfolio of 61 thermal and renewable power plants utilizing a wide-range of technologies.

ContourGlobal has 1,850* MW in operation and development in Latin America, consisting of 1,423 MW in operation in Brazil, Peru, Colombia and the Caribbean and 426 MW in late-stage development in Mexico and Peru.

*MWs include the acquisition announced in this release



Related Links

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SOURCE ContourGlobal
LONDON, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The world of healthcare has greatly benefitted from enhanced connectivity as a by-product of the digital age. However, this benefit has contributed to exposing medical devices and their softwares to cyber attacks. Malicious digital interferences can be significantly detrimental to patient safety.

Cyber security initiatives require attention from various areas for example - systemic and technical perspectives. Security researchers have been uncovering hazardous flaws recently with medical devices to help with awareness on the various intervention methods which may be used. Recent guidance published by the FDA has reinforced the responsibilities expected of medical device software manufacturers in regards to the cyber security of their products.

Pharma IQ brings you the Software Design for Medical Devices whitepaper looking at what you need to know in regards to software cyber security to medical devices. This whitepaper was prepared ahead of the Software Design for Medical Devices Summit taking place in Munich on the 21st - 24th February 2017 as we provide you with insight on the FDA's Postmarket Management of Cyber Security in Medical Devices guidelines. Find the event programme and details on http://www.sdmdeurope.iqpc.co.uk

Media Contact: Rumina Akther, Trainee Marketing Manager, IQPC: rumina.akther@iqpc.co.uk or call +44(0)207-368-9442

Press are invited to attend this important industry summit, if you would like to a complimentary press pass please email Rumina Akther on rumina.akther@iqpc.co.uk

SOURCE IQPC
Related Egypt court rejects third appeal against prison sentence for novelist Ahmed Naji

The Egyptian parliaments constitutional and legislative affairs committee rejected on Monday proposals by two MPs to abolish jail terms for those convicted of publishing materials that violate public decency, state news agency MENA reported.

The two MPs, Nadia Henry and Ahmed Saeid, had also proposed that private citizens not be allowed to file cases accusing others of violating public decency, leaving it up to prosecutors to initiate legal proceedings in such cases.

Although the parliamentary committee rejected the abolishing of jail terms, it agreed that only the prosecution should be allowed to initiate legal procedures in these cases.

The MPs who made the proposal argued that Article 178 of penal code 58, which allows imprisonment for publishing-related cases, is unconstitutional as it restricts freedom of expression.

The proposal by the MPs recommended only a fine not exceeding EGP 50,000 be imposed in such cases.

If [the late Egyptian literary heavyweight] Naguib Mahfouz was still among us, he would face trial, as his novels included material that would be deemed as violating public morals, a Monday statement by the MPs said.

Article 178 of penal code 58 states that whoever makes or holds, for the purpose of trade, distribution, leasing, pasting or display, [materials] against public morals, shall be punished with detention for a period not exceeding two years and a fine of [EGP 5,000 to EGP 50,000].

A campaign to change this law was launched earlier this year following the imprisonment of writer Ahmed Naji for publishing a sexually explicit article in a literary state newspaper.

The prosecutor accused Naji of publishing a text that spewed sexual lust and transient pleasures, using his mind and pen to violate public decency and good morals, inciting promiscuity.

The third appeal filed by Naji's defence team to suspend the implementation of the sentence was overruled last Saturday.

The initial decision to refer Naji to court came after one of the newspaper's readers filed a legal complaint claiming that reading the text caused him to experience heart palpitations and an extreme feeling of sickness along with a sharp drop in blood pressure.

An online campaign titled Egypt art on trial has been launched in solidarity with Naji and stands against the existence of the charge of violating public modesty, and that Article 178 of the criminal code restricts the freedom of writing and creativity, contradicts the Egyptian constitution and should be amended.

In late April, Naji's defence team filed an appeal before the Court of Cassation, though a court session to hear the motion has not yet been set.

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In Zhu's acceptance speech, he expressed his hope that GSC will play a positive role in promoting the PV industry's development around the globe, by improving policy, technology, and investment simultaneously.

Specifically, he suggested that GSC could integrate resources among different countries and districts by sharing successful operating experiences and business models between developed markets and emerging markets.

Earlier this October, Zhu invited global industry leaders to join the International Forum on Energy Transition and took them to visit the "Future Energy Forum" built by GCL. Zhu said: "In the near future, we will seek to initiate more theme activities in Southeast Asia, Western Asia, Africa, and Latin America, to support and promote photovoltaics' development in those emerging markets."

Under Zhu's leadership, GSC will also target standardized market development, easing malignant competition, resolving trade disputes, and driving a healthy industry ecosystem.

Zhu will encourage technology innovation in the PV industry, particularly among the intersection of multiple applied technologies, as well as new and traditional energy.

Moreover, Zhu suggested that GSC make practical efforts, such as forming a solar power development fund, to drive financial innovation.

"It's my greatest honor to be the President of GSC's second committee. I promise to leave no stone unturned to promote the global development of the PV industry," Zhu said.

About GCL

GCL is an integrated energy group that specializes in clean, efficient and new energy. Since its foundation, GCL has committed itself to "Bringing Green Power to Life" by providing supreme energy and delivering first-rate services. With a total asset value of almost RMB 200 billion, GCL owns holding shares in five listed companies, including GCL-Poly Energy Holdings Ltd. (3800.HK), GCL New Energy Holdings Ltd. (0451.HK), and GCL System Integration Technology Co., Ltd. (002506.SZ).

About Global Solar Council

The Global Solar Council is an international organization founded in 2015 to coordinate the efforts of the world's solar energy associations. The first committee is led by Bruce Douglas -- Chairman of Solar Power Europe from Dec. 2015 to Dec. 2017. GSC's vision is to ensure that solar energy is the leading contributor to the world's energy system, by aiming to create 10 million solar jobs by 2030.

The Founding Members of the Global Solar Council (GSC) are national and regional solar associations from both established and emerging markets, including the world's largest markets of Europe, Australia, China, South America and the United States. Leading corporations across the solar supply chain also help lead the organization through the Global Solar Council Leadership Forum and are essential founding members to the organization as well.

SOURCE GCL System
COPENHAGEN, Denmark, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The new LanguageWire Episerver Connector makes it quicker and easier than ever before to translate digital content.

Today, LanguageWire, a Danish tech company that connects brands with language experts via its language collaboration platform, announced the release of a new Episerver integration. The LanguageWire Episerver Connector acts as an automatic link between a company's Episerver software and LanguageWire. This dramatically reduces the time spent on the translation of web content in Episerver, an innovative .NET Experience Platform. The average time savings equal a massive 20 minutes per page per language according to research conducted by LanguageWire of their customers.

With the internet and digitalisation continually making the world a smaller place and brands increasing their content output, the need for new and more efficient translation integration technology is clear according to Jesper Lehrmann, Product Director for Connectivity at LanguageWire.

"At LanguageWire, we develop new solutions that make it easier for our customers to communicate globally. Our new Episerver Connector makes it possible for businesses to create multilingual content in just a few clicks directly in the Episerver Platform," said the experienced digital strategist. "By integrating and automating translation processes, we eliminate the majority of manual tasks and errors that come with the production of localised content. This dramatically reduces time spent on translation and speeds up time-to-publish.

"For example, translating a new website of 100 pages into five languages would save a massive 10,000 minutes. This corresponds to over a month's work, or 166 hours," Lehrmann said. "This quickly becomes a lot of money in terms of pounds and pence.

"As with all of our customers, our language collaboration platform provides access to our outstanding network of language experts," the connectivity expert explained. "Consistently high quality translations are vital in a world of customer experiences. We ensure this by giving our customers the ability to choose their own team of preferred suppliers. This means they work with people who understand the brand and deliver quality every time."

Further information as well as the possibility to book a demo of the LanguageWire Episerver Connector can be found at languagewire.com/episerver or go directly to the Episerver add-on store http://www.episerver.com/partners/add-on-store/languagewire.

About LanguageWire

Since 2000, LanguageWire has built a solid reputation for quality translations and superior technology solutions, and today we enjoy a leading position amongst translation companies worldwide. Every day we earn the loyalty of our customers by delivering hassle-free solutions, high-quality translations and measureable value. We do this through our overall commitment to excellence; our skilled people and handpicked translators and editors; and by providing innovative technology and proven results to companies who want to reach markets abroad.

About Episerver

Episerver connects digital commerce and digital marketing to help organizations create unique digital experiences for their customers, with measurable business results. The Episerver Digital Experience Cloud combines content, commerce, multi-channel marketing, and predictive analytics in a single platform to work full-circle for businesses online - from intelligent real-time personalization and lead-generation through to conversion and repeat business - with unprecedented ease-of-use. Sitting at the center of the digital experience ecosystem, Episerver empowers digital leaders to embrace disruptive, transformational strategies to deliver standout experiences for their customers - everywhere they engage.

For further information, please contact:



Jesper Lehrmann

Product Director, Connectivity

LanguageWire

Mobile: +45-31395366

E-mail: jle@languagewire.com



SOURCE LanguageWire
New report finds education and civic engagement reduce propensity to violence

PORTLAND, Oregon, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- A multi-year Mercy Corps program demonstrates that the combination of education and civic engagement plays a critical role in disrupting the path toward violence for Somali youth. Critical Choices, an analysis of Mercy Corps' Somali Youth Leaders Initiative, shines a light on a proven method to address underlying drivers of political violence, including violent extremism.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110818/DC54665LOGO-a

"Education plays a critical role in creating an environment where youth are engaged in learning and feel less isolated and excluded," says Beza Tesfaye, Conflict and Governance Manager for Mercy Corps and author of the report. "However, education on its own does not address young people's frustrations with feelings of injustice and being unable to make a positive difference in their communities."

Mercy Corps found that when combining secondary education with civic engagement opportunities such as community action campaigns, youth's propensity to participate in violence dropped by 14 percent. Their propensity to support violence dropped by 20 percent.

The Somali Youth Leaders Initiative  funded by the United States Agency for International Development  aims to benefit more than 150,000 youth and reach millions more youth, educators, government officials and community members. The program improves access to education and quality of learning by expanding and rehabilitating school facilities, training teachers and providing non-formal education to out-of-school youth. Civic engagement opportunities include environmental clean-up days, education contests and advocacy.

"Youth account for more than 75 percent of Somalia's population and represent both the hope for a bright future and a possible source of instability," says Tesfaye. "Combined with education, giving youth the ability to help their communities fulfills a desire to do something positive, meaningful and impactful."

Mercy Corps calls on the government of Somalia and the international community working in Somalia to increase investments in programs that expand access to both education and civic engagement. Global policy makers can leverage these findings to develop effective policies and programs to address the underlying drivers of violence and violent extremism worldwide.

The study was undertaken to better recognize effective approaches to strengthening stability and preventing violence and reflects surveys of more than 800 youth, age 15 to 24, over a 14-day period in May and June 2016. Read or download the full report here.

Related Links

http://www.mercycorps.org



SOURCE Mercy Corps
MOSCOW, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Mobile TeleSystems PJSC ("MTS" or the "Company" - NYSE: MBT; MOEX: MTSS), the leading telecommunications provider in Russia and the CIS, and VimpelCom" PJSC (Beeline brand) announce the start of spectrum sharing in 4G-network in Cherepovetz (Vologda region) which allows to increase data transfer speeds available to the subscribers at peak speeds of 150 Mb/s. Vologda region became the first region where two operators united their spectrums within a large-scale project to jointly construct and utilize LTE networks in more than 30 regions in Russia.

Sharing of the operators' 10 MHz bandwidth in the 2600 MHz range spectrums will permit an increase in data transfer speeds over LTE networks up to a peak speed of 150 Mb/s.

In December 2015, MTS and VimpelCom signed an addendum to their agreement on the joint planning, development and usage of LTE networks, which they originally concluded in 2014 to unite their spectrum bands in 20 regions in Russia. In 2016, the list of the regions was expanded to 31. Apart from Vologda region, in 2016-2017, the operators plan to unite their spectrum resources in other regions.

The development of the project became possible due to adoption of amendments to the law "On Communications" that legislated the operator's right to jointly utilize spectrum.

"After two years of execution, our ambitious project with VimpelCom is entering its final stage - during the next year, we'll unite our LTE networks on shared spectrums in more than 30 regions. The project allows us to minimize costs on construction and utilizing of the base stations, decrease the timeline for network launch and what is more provide our subscribers with the higher mobile internet speeds in modern LTE networks", noted Andrei Ushatskiy, Vice President for Technology and IT.

In December 2014, MTS and VimpelCom signed a partnership agreement to jointly plan, develop and use LTE networks in Russia in 36 regions in Russia. Under the agreement, in 2014 - 2016, MTS develops shared mobile data networks in 19 regions in Russia, while VimpelCom constructs networks in 17 regions.The agreement will last seven years with an option of prolongation. During this period, operators will share base stations, sites, transport networks and other infrastructure. The agreement will not preclude either company from develop their own networks in addition to shared infrastructure in the designated regions.

* * *

For further information, please contact in Moscow:



Joshua B. Tulgan

Director, Department of Corporate Finance and Investor Relations

Mobile TeleSystems PJSC

Tel: +7 495 223 2025

E-mail: ir@mts.ru



Learn more about MTS. Visit the official blog of the Investor Relations Department at http://www.mtsgsm.com/blog/



* * *

Mobile TeleSystems PJSC ("MTS" - NYSE:MBT; MOEX:MTSS) is the leading telecommunications group in Russia, Central and Eastern Europe. We provide wireless Internet access and fixed voice, broadband and pay-TV to over 100 million customers who value high quality of service at a competitive price. Our wireless and fixed-line networks deliver best-in-class speeds and coverage throughout Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Turkmenistan and Belarus. To keep pace with evolving customer demand, we continue to grow through innovative products, investments in our market-leading retail platform, mobile payment services, e-commerce and IT solutions. For more information, please visit: http://www.mtsgsm.com.



* * *



Some of the information in this press release may contain projections or other forward-looking statements regarding future events or the future financial performance of MTS, as defined in the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify forward looking statements by terms such as "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "will," "could," "may" or "might," and the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. We wish to caution you that these statements are only predictions and that actual events or results may differ materially. We do not undertake or intend to update these statements to reflect events and circumstances occurring after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. We refer you to the documents MTS files from time to time with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, specifically the Company's most recent Form 20-F. These documents contain and identify important factors, including those contained in the section captioned "Risk Factors" that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those contained in our projections or forward-looking statements, including, among others, the severity and duration of current economic and financial conditions, including volatility in interest and exchange rates, commodity and equity prices and the value of financial assets; the impact of Russian, U.S. and other foreign government programs to restore liquidity and stimulate national and global economies, our ability to maintain our current credit rating and the impact on our funding costs and competitive position if we do not do so, strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions and our success in integrating acquired businesses, potential fluctuations in quarterly results, our competitive environment, dependence on new service development and tariff structures, rapid technological and market change, acquisition strategy, risks associated with telecommunications infrastructure, governmental regulation of the telecommunications industries and other risks associated with operating in Russia and the CIS, volatility of stock price, financial risk management and future growth subject to risks.



* * *

SOURCE Mobile TeleSystems (MTS)
LONDON, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Make The Air Fair asks the public to #TellSharon and stop takeover of the airwaves

A new campaign is calling on UK consumers to join the fight to ensure more choice and better quality in the mobile sector and curb BT's dominance.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161125/442981LOGO )



(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161125/442982 )



(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161125/442983 )





Three UK, TalkTalk, CityFibre, Federation of Communication Services, Gamma and Relish have come together as Make The Air Fair to call on Ofcom to make sure no one mobile network can own more than 30% of the UK's vital mobile airwaves (known as spectrum).

This will mean that all mobile consumers, regardless of their network provider, benefit from more choice, improved performance, faster speeds and lower prices.

Spectrum has the single biggest impact on a network's ability to offer a fast, reliable mobile service at a price that consumers can afford.

Ofcom and its Chief Executive, Sharon White, recently asked for views on how the next batch of mobile airwaves should be sold off. Supporters will be able to #TellSharon they want better mobile by going to maketheairfair.org.

UK consumers are already faced with rising prices and patchy coverage. This will get worse with consumers facing the misery of poorer service and increasing costs, unless Ofcom acts to address the imbalance at the next auction which is due to take place next year.

In the whole of the developed world, only Thailand and Malaysia have a larger imbalance of the airwaves amongst mobile operators compared to the UK. BT and Vodafone own almost three quarters of available airwaves.

65% of UK consumers want a cap on how much one company can own of a resource used for a public service, according to a survey carried out by Three and YouGov.

The campaign will see Ofcom's CEO Sharon White transformed - across various advertising channels - into a mobile superhero and the nation's consumer champion with the power to protect competition.

Campaign Statements:

Dave Dyson, CEO at Three UK, said: "The UK mobile market is broken at a critical time when it should be leading and not lagging almost all other developed countries. Ofcom must prove it is on the side of consumers and apply a 30% cap on total spectrum ownership following next year's auction.

"Spectrum is a national asset that should benefit every citizen. If it's all controlled by one or two massive businesses then you can't have effective competition and everyone loses out. This is the moment for the British public to stand up and fight for real choice and better mobile services."

Mark Collins, Director of Strategy and Public Affairs at CityFibre added: "We are at a critical point in determining the future of the UK mobile market. With growing investment in the next generation of mobile network infrastructure, the time is right to protect the viability of that competitive market.

As a challenger in our market, CityFibre is wholly aligned to the change this campaign seeks to achieve. The regulator must ensure that the upcoming auction is designed to improve services for all".

- ENDS -

Notes to Editor s

Make The Air Fair is calling for a 30% cap on the total amount of airwaves that any one operator can own after the auction.

In the whole of the developed world, only Thailand and Malaysia have a larger imbalance of the airwaves amongst mobile operators when compared to the UK: BT has the largest proportion of all available mobile spectrum with 42%. Vodafone has 29%, Three has 15% and O2 has 14%.

The campaign calls on Ofcom to put a limit in place so that no one network can own more than 30% of the useable mobile airwaves post-auction.

A 30% cap post-auction will deliver:

Genuine choice of mobile networks offering competitive prices and great coverage

A mobile industry that ensures that the UK is at the forefront of new technologies like 5G and get the associated economic benefits

Better speeds for all mobile customers to support our nation's digital economy

More choice for consumers through a healthy MVNO sector

About Make the Air Fair

The campaign is founded by Three UK and supported by TalkTalk, CityFibre, the Federation of Communication Services, Gamma and Relish.

About the Survey

Three and YouGov conducted a survey into consumer attitudes towards service providers. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2171 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 17th - 18th October 2016. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+).

SOURCE Three UK
SAN FRANCISCO, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The nuclear medicine market is expected to reach USD 13.8 billion by 2024, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. The burden of chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiac disorders is on rise. Nuclear medicine products are widely used for diagnosis as well as treatment of cancerous and cardiovascular disease.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150105/723757 )



The increasing prevalence of these disorders poses direct impact on usage of radiopharmaceutical market. For instance, as per the data published by the World Health Organization (WHO), the incidences of cancer are anticipated to increase by 70.0% which is further anticipated to drive the demand for radiopharmaceuticals.

The diagnostics when combined with nuclear medicine improve on accuracy. The accuracy in the diagnosis has a direct impact on the decision-making and treatment monitoring process. Adoption of PET as a diagnostic tool is rapidly increasing since it has high accuracy over other diagnostic techniques.

Browse full research report with TOC on "Nuclear Medicine Market Analysis By Application (Diagnostics: Cardiology, Neurology, Oncology, Thyroid, Lymphoma, Therapeutics: Thyroid, Bone Metastasis, Lymphoma, Endocrine Tumor) Segment Forecasts, 2013 - 2024" at: http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/nuclear-medicines-market

Further key findings from the study suggest:

The product segments of nuclear medicine are divided into diagnostic and therapeutic. Diagnostic products held commanding share in 2015, this can be attributed to the advancements in scanning technologies.

Therapeutic products such as Alpha Emitters, Beta Emitters and Brachytherapy are anticipated to exhibit lucrative growth.

The key diagnostic application areas of nuclear medicine formed the largest market in 2015. These applications are in cardiology, neurology, oncology, and thyroid.

North America owing to well-planned policies, reimbursement structure, high healthcare spending and increasing awareness dominated global nuclear medicine market in 2015.

owing to well-planned policies, reimbursement structure, high healthcare spending and increasing awareness dominated global nuclear medicine market in 2015. Asia Pacific is expected to witness lucrative growth in coming eight years. Increasing per capita income and reform in policies is favoring market players in terms of ease of doing business.

is expected to witness lucrative growth in coming eight years. Increasing per capita income and reform in policies is favoring market players in terms of ease of doing business. The players in the nuclear medicine industry include Eckert & Ziegler Group, Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals, GE Healthcare, Jubilant Life Sciences, Bracco Imaging S.p.A, Nordion, Inc.

Browse related reports by Grand View Research:

Grand View Research has segmented the global nuclear medicine market on the basis of product and region:

Global Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2013 - 2024) Diagnostics SPECT TC-99m TL-201 GA-67 I-123 Others PET F-18 RB-82 Others Therapeutics Alpha Emitters RA-223 Beta Emitters I-131 Y-90 SM-153 Re-186 Lu-117 Others Brachytherapy Cesium-131 Iodine-125 Palladium-103 Iridium-192 Others

Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2013 - 2024) North America U.S. Canada Europe UK Germany Asia Pacific Japan China Latin America Brazil Mexico MEA South Africa



Access research insight: http://www.grandviewresearch.com/research-insights/nuclear-medicine-market-emerging-technology

About Grand View Research

Grand 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.

Read Our Blogs - http://www.grandviewresearch.com/blogs/healthcare

Contact:

Sherry James

Corporate Sales Specialist, USA

Grand View Research, Inc

Phone: 1-415-349-0058

Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519

Email: sales@grandviewresearch.com



Web: http://www.grandviewresearch.com

SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.
MADRID, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

PharmaMar (MSE:PHM) has announced the start of an open-label, multicenter, Phase I study in Japan to evaluate the recommended dose (RD) of PM1183 (lurbinectedin) in patients with certain types of unresectable/advanced solid tumors.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150203/727958-b )



The main objective of the study is to determine the recommended dose of PM1183 in Japanese patients. Furthermore, the secondary objective will be to evaluate the safety profile, to obtain preliminary information on the antitumor activity along with pharmacokinetic characteristics of PM1183 in Japanese patients when compared to Caucasians.

The study population has to be patients born in Japan or descendants from both Japanese parents that suffer disease progression according to the Response Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST v1.1).

As Dr Arturo Soto, director of Clinical Development of PharmaMars Oncology Business Unit, explains "three clinical sites in Japan will participate in the trial; the number of patients that are to be included will depend on the tolerability and activity observed in PM1183 and the dose level required to identify the recommended dose in this population".

CONTACTS:

Paula Fernandez, Media Relations Manager

+34-638-79-62-15

pfalarcon@pharmamar.com



Investor Relations

+34-914444500





SOURCE PharmaMar
HONG KONG, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) kicked off a series of celebration activities for its 80th anniversary on 25 November 2016. To mark the beginning of the year-long celebration, PolyU held in the morning the "International Forum: Nurturing Talent and Building Capacity in Supporting the Belt and Road Development" (the Forum) and in the evening "PolyU 80th Anniversary Launch Ceremony A Prelude to the Celebrations", gathering Senior management of about 10 universities from the mainland, Egypt, Italy, Kazakhstan, Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Turkey and United Kingdom, as well as leaders in the local business sector.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161128/443154 )

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161128/443155 )



Guest of Honour at the Forum, Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, Secretary for Education of the Hong Kong SAR Government, commended PolyU for its efforts in the Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative, "I am pleased to note that PolyU has provided a very comprehensive answer by demonstrating what it has done to foster people-to-people bond under the B&R Initiatives. By launching a number of student programmes, PolyU has strived to enhance students' understanding on the latest developments of the B&R countries. All these would undoubtedly help build up a large pool of human capital with the skills, knowledge and global vision necessary to support the important B&R Initiative."

At the Launch Ceremony, Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Chief Secretary for Administration, HKSAR Government, said that the development of PolyU over the decades is a remarkable story of academic growth and success. PolyU's rising international recognition and standing not only testify to PolyU's regional and international impact, but also exemplify the rapid advancement of higher education in Hong Kong.

Chairman of the University Grants Council (UGC), Mr Carlson Tong, commended PolyU for its contribution to the development of Hong Kong and said, "Adhered to UGC-defined role statement, PolyU emphasises on application-oriented teaching, professional education and applied research and maintains strong links with various sectors, employers and the community."

Professor Timothy W. Tong, President of PolyU, said, "PolyU has grown together with Hong Kong over the past eight decades in a fast-changing global landscape and answered to the call of the times appropriately. We not only embark on research to advance the frontiers of knowledge, but also create solutions to problems and change the world for the better."

An anniversary theme song "Shape the Future", written and composed by PolyU's alumni, was presented on stage by C AllStar, a pop music group. The Launch Ceremony was followed by cultural performances by PolyU Choir and Orchestra, university students from the Mainland, Italy, Kazakhstan and Russia.

That day also saw the opening of PolyU's Alumni Atrium, which is a new facility of an area of 250 square metres dedicated to the alumni community. It provides a spacious and comfortable environment for leisure, recreation and cultural activities through which alumni can cultivate friendships and foster exchange and partnerships with other members of the PolyU community.

Press contact :

Ms Michelle Li

Communications and Public Affairs Office

Telephone : (852) 3400-2128 / (852) 9162-8048

E-mail : michelle.sp.li@polyu.edu.hk



SOURCE The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)
BURNLEY, England, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Victoria Foy has been appointed as the Managing Director of Safran Nacelles' U.K. subsidiary, Safran Nacelles Ltd., in Burnley, England, which produces and delivers components for the company's jet engine nacelles.

Victoria Foy previously was Safran Nacelles Ltd.'s Finance Director, a position she held for the past four years. In her new role, she succeeds Chris Plumb, who is retiring.



"We're delighted to welcome Victoria to the helm of our business in the UK," said Jean-Paul Alary, the President of Safran Nacelles. "She already has made a tremendous contribution while working with the company, and her familiarity with our culture and activity - as well as her strong leadership skills - will ensure she continues to build on our reputation as a reference in the Nacelle market. Victoria will also be an inspiration for young women in the aerospace sector."

The Burnley site manufacturers and assembles a variety of nacelle components for Safran Nacelles, covering applications that range from business jets and regional passenger aircraft to single aisle and large widebody airliners. Its activity includes elements of the very large nacelle for Airbus' A330neo (new engine option) jetliner, and the inner fixed structure (IFS) for Airbus A320neo aircraft.

Prior to joining Safran Nacelles in September 2012 as Finance Director at the Burnley site, she acquired significant experience as finance director of an American subsidiary Victoria Foy's professional career spans over 25 years in corporate banking and manufacturing as a qualified Chartered Management Accountant.

She has a post-graduate diploma in Business Administration with Manchester Business School.

Victoria Foy is a board member of the North West Aerospace Alliance, an organization that represents and supports the aerospace industry across northwest England.

Safran is a leading international high-technology group with three core businesses: Aerospace (propulsion and equipment), Defence and Security. Operating worldwide, the Group has 70,000 employees and generated sales of 17.4 billion euros in 2015. Safran is listed on Euronext Paris and is part of the CAC40 index, as well as the Euro Stoxx 50 European index.



Safran Nacelles is the world's second leading supplier of aircraft engine nacelles, with more than 17,000 in service, logging over 100,000 flight-hours per day. It supplies nacelles and components for all segments of the aviation market, from business and regional jets to mainline commercial jets.



For more information : http://www.safran-group.com and http://www.safran-nacelles.com.

Follow @Safran and @SafranNacelles on Twitter

SOURCE Safran Nacelles
EYSINS, Switzerland, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Tax Free Shopping has been introduced to Shanghai , allowing foreign travellers to reclaim VAT on purchases

Global Blue and Bank of China have collaborated to offer the service

International shoppers can save with major brands and retailers including Chanel, Louis Vuitton , Marks and Spencer and Shanghai No. 1 Department Store

Visitors to Shanghai from the Republic of Korea can now save 9% on their purchases as the country has introduced its first Tax Free Shopping scheme for foreign visitors.

From today, Global Blue, the world's leading Tax Free Shopping provider, has partnered with Bank of China to make the service in Shanghai widely available and help retailers to provide the best Tax Free Shopping service to their international customers.

Almost 200 stores in Shanghai have already signed up to the TFS scheme, including major department stores [e.g. Takashimaya, Pacific, Parkson and Bailian (Group) Department Stores], luxury brands (e.g. Chanel, Hermes, Tiffany and Louis Vuitton), high street names (e.g. Zara, Bershka and Marks & Spencer) and local retailers (e.g. Silk King, Lao Feng Xiang Jewellery and Chow Tai Fook Jewellery).

In a few simple steps, Korean shoppers from can make savings on both consumable and non-consumable goods that they will export in their personal baggage, including fashion and beauty items, watches and jewellery, and alcohol.

To claim the VAT refund, shoppers simply need to follow these three steps:

When paying for purchases request a Tax Free Form and VAT invoice from shop staff When departing the country, visit the Customs desk at the airport and present the completed Tax Free form and VAT invoice, passport, receipts and unused purchases for verification. Once verified, Customs will provide a stamp for the Tax Free form Claim the refund via the refund counter at the airport

As part of the scheme Global Blue will also work with Bank of China to increase the number of retailers signed up to the scheme and will help participating retailers to better advise foreign visitors using the Tax Free Shopping service.

The minimum purchase amount to qualify for a Tax Refund is 500RMB (approximately 85191KRW). The scheme is available to all foreign visitors and residents from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

To locate participating retailers in China visit: globalblue.com/storelocator.

About Global Blue

Global Blue pioneered the concept of Tax Free Shopping 35 years ago and is now the worldwide industry leader, delivering Globe Shoppers the best shopping experience and creating value for retailers and partners through a range of products and services:

Global Blue's Tax Free Shopping solutions allow thousands of retailers, including most of the world's best luxury, fast fashion and department store brands, to quickly and safely offer Globe Shoppers savings of up to 19% when shopping in 300,000 stores around the world

Global Blue's Dynamic Currency Conversion solutions allow merchants in 75,000 outlets around the world to offer foreign customers a simple and cost efficient way to pay in their domestic currency

Global Blue's SHOP is a targeted print and online media platform, enabling merchants to speak directly to Globe Shoppers and attract more international visitors through their doors

Global Blue operates in 51 countries, employing 1,800 people worldwide. From April 2015 to March 2016, Global Blue powered 30 million Tax Free Shopping and 12 million Dynamic Currency Conversion transactions. These totalled 21 billion worth of sales in store.

In addition, through the publication of over 9 million SHOP magazines and maps, and the creation of a wide range of online content, Global Blue helps its retail partners reach and engage with 30 million Globe Shoppers annually.

For more information visit corporate.globalblue.com .



Media contact

E: pressenquiries@globalblue.com

T: Duncan Skehens, AVP Communications (+44)-7909-513-301

SOURCE Global Blue
Armed men have abducted three UN refugee agency staffers, including two foreigners, from Sudan's strife-torn Darfur region, a local government official told AFP on Monday.

Two Nepalese and a Sudanese national working for UNHCR were abducted Sunday in Geneina, the capital of West Darfur state.

"A group of armed men kidnapped yesterday three UNHCR workers, two Nepalese and a Sudanese, from Geneina," Abdelah Mustafa, spokesman for the state government of West Darfur told AFP.

"Police are searching for the kidnappers."

UNHCR officials were not immediately available for comment, but its spokesman in Khartoum told AFP by text message that a meeting was underway to discuss the "urgent incident".

Darfur has been engulfed in a deadly conflict since 2003 when ethnic minority groups took up arms against President Omar al-Bashir's Arab-dominated government, which launched a brutal counter-insurgency.

At least 300,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced in Darfur since then, the UN says.

Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court on war crimes and genocide charges related to Darfur, which he denies.

Sudan insists that the conflict in Darfur has ended, and that it wants UN peacekeepers who have been deployed in the region the size of France since 2007 to leave.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


LONDON, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

This Giving Tuesday, immerse yourself into a virtual world where aviation and sight-saving innovation combine to restore sight. Blindness prevention charity Orbis is giving people the opportunity to venture inside their unique Flying Eye Hospital; via an in-depth, 360 degree virtual reality tour, voiced by Oscar-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou. View the tour with:

a phone

a computer

VR goggles

Tour now: http://www.orbis.org/flying-eye-hospital-uk

Globally, 285 million people are blind and visually impaired and 80% don't need to be. Ninety percent live in developing countries with scare access to quality eye care. Orbis transforms lives by working to eliminate avoidable blindness through long-term programmes across Africa, Asia and Latin America as well as through its Flying Eye Hospital - the world's only eye hospital on-board an MD-10 aircraft.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161125/442944 )



During the virtual tour, viewers can make their way through the plane visiting the operating theatre, on-board classroom and patient recovery room.

Acting tour guide is award-winning actor Djimon Hounsou. Known for his roles in blockbusters such as Gladiator, Blood Diamond and Amistad, Hounsou was announced as Orbis's Continental Ambassador for Africa in June 2016.

"What I appreciate most is that Orbis has a direct impact on people's lives - impact not only felt by those successfully operated on and given the gift of sight, but also the trained practitioners, empowered with the skills to continue serving their communities. This is a cause worth advocating for and just the type of organisation that the world needs to support," says Hounsou.

Giving Tuesday, which comes hot on the heels of Cyber Friday and Black Monday, is a simple premise; following the most consumer-driven days of the year, the campaign asks people to do something for charity. Now, Orbis is asking people to support their incredible sight-saving work as well as encouraging people to share the tour with their friends, giving as many people as possible the chance to get on-board this incredible aircraft.

The first Orbis Flying Eye Hospital took to the skies in 1982. It has since visited 78 countries and helped Orbis reach hundreds of communities globally - training thousands of doctors and nurses and providing life-transforming treatments. It's also hosted a number of influential figures including Mother Teresa and Fidel Castro.

In June 2016, Orbis unveiled its brand new 'Third Generation' Flying Eye Hospital. Six years in the making, this unique aircraft will enable Orbis to have an even greater impact, preventing many more people from going needlessly blind.

The Flying Eye Hospital is set to touch down in London in March 2017. Viewers of the tour can sign-up to be the first to receive information about the MD-10's first visit to the UK.

The virtual tour has kindly been created pro-bono for Orbis by Charles Mansfield-Osborne from StreetVisit.

SOURCE Orbis
HATFIELD, England, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

FOR EMEA MEDIA ONLY - NOT FOR SWISS/AUSTRIAN/US JOURNALISTS

Data from nine abstracts for Eisai's epilepsy treatments perampanel and rufinamide will be presented at the 70th Annual Meeting of the American Epilepsy Society (AES), 2-6 December, Houston, Texas, which provide further insight into their long-term use in people with epilepsy.

Perampanel is indicated in the European Union for patients aged 12 years and older, for adjunctive treatment of partial-onset seizures (POS), with or without secondarily generalised seizures, and for adjunctive treatment of primary generalised tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizures in patients with idiopathic generalised epilepsy (IGE).[1]

Rufinamide is indicated in the European Union for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients with epilepsy aged four years and older.[2]

"These data provide real world insights into the activity of perampanel and rufinamide in potential patients over a wide range of ages. Through new and continued research with perampanel and rufinamide, we aim to further educate the epilepsy community about these debilitating diseases," comments Lynn Kramer, MD, Chief Clinical Officer and Chief Medical Officer, Neurology Business Group, Eisai.

The development of its epilepsy portfolio underscores Eisai's human health care (hhc) mission, the company's commitment to innovative solutions in disease prevention, cure and care for the health and wellbeing of people worldwide. Eisai is committed to the therapeutic area of neurology and to address the unmet medical needs of people with neurological conditions and their families.

Perampanel abstracts at AES (presented in the George R Brown Convention Center, Hall A3, Level 3):

Abstract Number Abstract details Poster # 2.189 Evaluation of perampanel as monotherapy for focal Date: Sunday 4 seizures: experience from open-label extension studies December Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Kwan P, Mintzer S, Laurenza A, Patten A, Cartwright K B3 Poster # 2.190 Adjunctive perampanel (PER) in patients (pts) with partial Date: Sunday 4 seizures or primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures December (PGTCS): effect of age at diagnosis Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Kramer L, Patten A, Laurenza A, French JA B3 Poster # 2.193 Long-term efficacy and safety of adjunctive perampanel: Date: Sunday 4 pooled analyses of the open-label extension (OLE) studies December Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Rektor I, Krauss GL, Inoue Y, Kaneko S, Williams B, Patten B3 A, Bibbiani F, Laurenza A, Wechsler RT Poster # 2.222 A systematic review of real world perampanel treatment Date: Sunday 4 outcomes December Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Krauss G, Tsong W, Steinhoff BJ B3 Poster # 2.225 An indirect treatment comparison (ITC) of perampanel Date: Sunday 4 versus brivaracetam in patients with partial-onset December seizures with or without secondary generalisation Time: 10:00-16:00 Location: Hall A3, Tsong W, Kockelmann E, Tremblay G, Mehlig H, and Patel V B3 Poster # 3.238 Adjunctive perampanel in patients with drug-resistant Date: Monday 5 partial seizures with and without concurrent vagal nerve December stimulation therapy in Phase III studies Time: 08:00-14:00 Location: Hall A3, B3 Laurenza A, Klein P, Williams B, Patten A Poster # 2.191 Phase II trials of adjunctive perampanel in Japanese Date: Sunday 4 patients with refractory partial-onset seizures, an December open-label, ascending-high-dose study (study 231) and Time: 10:00-16:00 long-term extension study (study 233) Location: Hall A3, B3 Hiramatsu H, Saeki K, Ohnishi A, Kaneko S, Inoue Y Poster # 3.232 Factors influencing the efficacy of perampanel: Date: Monday, multivariate analysis of a randomized, double-blind, December 5 placebo-controlled Phase III study Time: 08:00-14:00 Location: Hall A3, B3 Nishida T, Inoue Y, Kaneko S, Saeki K, Ishikawa K

Rufinamide abstracts at AES (in the George R Brown Convention Center, Hall A3, Level 3):

Abstract Number Abstract details Poster # 3.363 Safety and Cognitive Development Effects of Adjunctive Date: Monday 5 Rufinamide in Pediatric Subjects With Inadequately December Controlled Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS): Final Results Time: 08:00-14:00 From Study 303 Arzimanoglou A, Ferreira J, Satlin A, Olhaye O, Kumar D, Location: Hall A3, Dhadda S, Bibbiani F B3

Notes to Editors

About Fycompa (perampanel)

Perampanel is a first-in-class, non-competitive AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid) glutamate receptor antagonist on post-synaptic neurons.[1] AMPA receptors, widely present in almost all excitatory neurons, transmit signals stimulated by the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate within the brain, and are believed to play a role in central nervous system diseases characterised by excess neuroexcitatory signalling, including epilepsy.[3] Since launch, approximately 52,000 people living with epilepsy have been treated with perampanel.[4]

About Inovelon (rufinamide)

Rufinamide is a triazole derivative that is structurally unrelated to currently marketed antiepileptic drugs (AEDs).[5],[6] It is believed to regulate the activity of sodium channels in the brain which carry excessive electrical charges.[5] Rufinamide was approved for adjunctive therapy for seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in Europe (under the brand name Inovelon) in 2007 in patients four years of age and older. Rufinamide is available as film-coated tablets containing 100mg, 200mg and 400mg rufinamide and as a 40mg/ml oral suspension.[2]

About Epilepsy

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions in the world, affecting approximately six million people in Europe, and an estimated 50 million people worldwide.[7] Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain that affects people of all ages. It is characterised by abnormal discharges of neuronal activity which causes seizures. Seizures can vary in nature and severity, from brief lapses of attention or jerking of muscles, to severe and prolonged convulsions. Depending on the seizure type, seizures may be limited to one part of the body, or may involve the whole body. Seizures can also vary in frequency from less than one per year, to several per day. Epilepsy has many possible causes but often the cause is unknown.

About Eisai EMEA in Epilepsy

Eisai is committed to developing and delivering highly beneficial new treatments to help improve the lives of people with epilepsy. The development of AEDs is a major strategic area for Eisai in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Russia and Oceania (EMEA).

In the EMEA region, Eisai currently has four marketed treatments including:

Fycompa  (perampanel) is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive treatment for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures in idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in patients aged 12 years or older

(perampanel) is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive treatment for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures in idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in patients aged 12 years or older Inovelon  (rufinamide) is indicated for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients 4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis)

(rufinamide) is indicated for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients 4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis) Zonegran  (zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma)

(zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma) Zebinix (eslicarbazepine acetate) as adjunctive treatment in adult patients with partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation (Zebinix is under license from Bial)

About Eisai Co., Ltd.

Eisai Co., Ltd. is a leading global research and development-based pharmaceutical company headquartered in Japan. We define our corporate mission as "giving first thought to patients and their families and to increasing the benefits health care provides," which we call our human health care (hhc) philosophy. With over 10,000 employees working across our global network of R&D facilities, manufacturing sites and marketing subsidiaries, we strive to realise our hhc philosophy by delivering innovative products in multiple therapeutic areas with high unmet medical needs, including Oncology and Neurology.

As a global pharmaceutical company, our mission extends to patients around the world through our investment and participation in partnership-based initiatives to improve access to medicines in developing countries.

For more information about Eisai Co., Ltd., please visit http://www.eisai.com

References

1. Fycompa (perampanel) Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) Available at: http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/EPAR_-_Product_Information/human/002434/WC500130815.pdf Accessed November 2016

2. Inovelon (rufinamide) Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC). Available at: http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/EPAR_-_Summary_for_the_public/human/000660/WC500032938.pdf Accessed November 2016

3. Lee K et al. AMPA Receptors as Therapeutic Targets for Neurological Disorders 2016;103:203-261

4. Eisai. Data on File 2016. DOF PER112

5. Wier H et al. Rufinamide for Pediatric Patients with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome. Pediatric Drugs 2011;13(2):97-106

6. Xu M et al. Pharmacokinetics and Tolerability of Rufinamide Following Single and Multiple Oral Doses and Effect of Food on Pharmacokinetics in Healthy Chinese Subjects. European Journal of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics 2016;41(5):541-548

7. Epilepsy in the WHO European Region: Fostering Epilepsy Care in Europe. Available at: http://www.ibe-epilepsy.org/downloads/EURO%20Report%20160510.pdf Accessed November 2016

December 2016

Fycompa-EU0185

SOURCE Eisai
DUBLIN, Nov 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "World: Kaolin - Market Report - Analysis and Forecast to 2020" report to their offering.

This report has been designed to provide a detailed analysis of the global kaolin market. It covers the most recent data sets of quantitative medium-term projections, as well as developments in production, trade, consumption and prices. The report also includes a comparative analysis of the leading consuming countries, revealing opportunities opened for producers and exporters across the globe. The forecast outlines market prospects to 2020.

The global exports of kaolin amounted to 1,696 million USD in 2015, fluctuating mildly over the period under review. A 26% drop in 2009 was followed by recovery over the next two years, until exports slightly dipped. They increased modestly in 2013 and 2014, ending 2015 with a 5% decline. Overall, there was an annual decrease of -1.7% from 2007 to 2015.

According to estimates, USA remained the dominant global exporter of kaolin. In 2015, the USA's kaolin exports totalled 562 million USD, which accounted for a 33% share in terms of global exports. Belgium, The UK, Brazil, and China were the other key global suppliers of kaolin in 2015, with a 45% combined share of global exports.

Belgium (+6.1% per year) and China (+4.6% per year) were the only major exporters that showed a positive rate of growth from 2007 to 2015. Belgium strengthened its position in the global kaolin export structure, growing its share from 7% in 2007 to 14% in 2015.

On the other hand, Japan (7.9%, based on value terms), Belgium (7.8%), Finland (6.5%), Germany (6.5%), and China (5.6%) were the leading destinations of kaolin imports in 2015. Imports to China grew the fastest, at a pace of +4.9% per year from 2007 to 2015. By contrast, Japan, Finland, and Germany contracted their imports of kaolin over the same period. None of the major importers saw significant changes to their import share size, with Japan displaying the largest share contraction of -4 percentage points.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Introduction1.1 Report Description1.2 Research Methodology

2. Executive Summary

2.1 Key Findings

2.2 Market Trends

3. Market Overview

3.1 Market Volume and Value

3.2 Consumption by Country

3.3 Market Opportunities by Country

3.4 Market Forecast to 2020

4. Production

4.1 Production in 2007-2015

4.2 Production by Country

5. Imports

5.1 Imports in 2007-2015

5.2 Imports by Country

5.3 Import Prices by Country

6. Exports

6.1 Exports in 2007-2015

6.2 Exports by Country

6.3 Export Prices by Country

7. Profiles of Major Producers

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/xhfnqn/world_kaolin

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
MANCHESTER, England, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Black Friday is about great offers but often great frustration for shoppers. Start-up Formisimo (www.formisimo.com) reveals how online shoppers get frustrated and abandon websites completely, and they've crunched data on Black Friday to show how different it is from a normal shopping day.

Black Friday 2016 saw stronger conversion rates for retailers than Black Friday 2015.

(Conversion Rate increased by 21% vs Black Friday 2015. Conversion rate of 31% on Black Friday 2016, 26% in 2015, 28% on a normal Friday)

An average of 69% of online shoppers abandoned their purchase on Black Friday 2016. (Improved from 75% abandonment in 2015, and 72% on a normal Friday)

Shoppers on Black Friday made more mistakes in the checkout process, with Mobile users correcting the checkout at a 15% higher rate than Desktop users.

(Corrections in the checkout process up by 7% on Black Friday 2016 versus a normal Friday)

Full statistics at: http://www.formisimo.com/blog/black-friday-2016-checkout-conversion-statistics/

Commentary

Consumers have always found it hard to complete online checkouts - they move from an excited phase of choosing a product to being asked many questions. Online checkouts are often badly designed and they want information entered in a specific way. Small issues add to frustration, and this builds up to a point where the potential customers abandons the website, and in many cases they won't return in the future.

Black Friday is an exciting time for consumers. They're exposed to significant cost reductions and they want to get hold of a product as soon as possible. When they're confronted with a checkout process their excitement levels reduce and they have to fill in more and more fields. The cognitive load increases, and can reach breaking point.

Black Friday is a deal-focused day and shoppers will visit unfamiliar websites in order to get the best deals. On a normal shopping day, users visit a site that they are comfortable with and the buying process is much easier as they know what questions will be asked. When visiting a new website even straight forward questions can become more difficult as they're phrased in different ways. The layout of the checkout is different or the options aren't the same as sites with which one is familiar.

The challenge for e-commerce sites on Black Friday is to create a checkout process that's well designed, that asks for as little information as possible and that is error free.

Quotes

Formisimo CEO Al Mackin says, "On one of the busiest online shopping days of the year retailers are still losing 69% of customers because of their checkout process. That's a huge amount of money left on the table."

"Customers are happy when they find great deals but hate having to fill in an online checkout. When you're rushing to buy a discounted product on a website you haven't visited before you want a seamless checkout experience, and retailers run the risk of losing shoppers because their checkout is confusing, long-winded or broken."

"Often customers are presented with long-checkouts, with lots of questions. They'll be told that they have entered incorrect data, that there's an error somewhere or they'll just be so confused that they leave the site complete, never to return. The retailer can lose out on a customer for the rest of their lifetime."

About Formisimo

www.formisimo.com

Contact:

Author: Al Mackin

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: UK: 0800 772 0982

Outside of the UK: +44 800 772 982

Related Links

Black Friday E-commerce Statistics

Formisimo (Author)

This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com

SOURCE Formisimo

Related Links

http://www.formisimo.com


LOS ANGELES, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Alcantara was a contributing partner at several recent cinema events celebrating Italian excellence and creativity in Los Angeles.

Cinema Italian Style 2016 featured a red-carpet screening of Italy's official Oscar submission for Best Foreign-Language Film, "Fire At Sea" from writer-director Gianfranco Rosi. Winner of this year's Berlin International Film Festival's Golden Bear Award, "Fire at Sea" has been described by Meryl Streep as "a daring hybrid of captured footage and deliberate storytelling."

Also showcased during the 10-day event was "Franca: Chaos & Creation" by Francesco Carrozzini, a documentary dedicated to the director's mother, Vogue Italia's Editor-in-Chief Franca Sozzani. The film highlights her groundbreaking coverage of the fashion industry, while also exploring the relationship between Sozzani and Carrozzini as mother and son. The film was first shown in September at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival.

Held November 14-23 at the Egyptian Theatre, the 12th edition of Cinema Italian Style was produced by Luce Cinecitta and American Cinematheque under the auspices of the Consulate General of Italy in Los Angeles with support from the Italian Ministry of Culture. As part of its support for the program, Alcantara upholstered the theatre's more than 600 seats in luxury blue-navy Alcantara.

Alcantara has cultivated strong relationships with artists and designers, as well as international museums, over the years.

"Cinema Italian Style 2016 represented an extraordinary occasion for Alcantara to strengthen its ability to master all the realities of contemporary lifestyle, from fashion to automotive and from high-tech to interior design, always combining tradition and innovation under the banner of our authentic 'Made in Italy' brand," said Andrea Boragno, Alcantara's Chairman and CEO.

He added that "Alcantara shares an affinity for elegance, style and beauty thanks in part to our privileged, long-lasting relationship with the world of design, cinema and the arts in general."

Alcantara also was a recent partner at the 30th Annual American Cinematheque Awards Gala held in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in October.

Alcantara S.p.A. - www.alcantara.com

Founded in 1972, Alcantara represents a prime example of Italian-produced quality. As registered trademark of Alcantara S.p.A. and result of a unique and proprietary technology, Alcantara is a highly innovative material, offering an unrivalled combination of sensory, aesthetic and functional qualities. Thanks to its extraordinary versatility, Alcantara is the choice of leading brands in a number of application fields: fashion and accessories, automotive, interior design and home decor, consumer-electronics. These features, together with a serious and certified commitment in terms of sustainability, make Alcantara a true icon of contemporary lifestyle: the lifestyle of those who want to fully enjoy their everyday life, respecting the environment.

Since 2009 Alcantara is certified "Carbon Neutral", having defined, reduced and offset all the CO 2 emissions derived from its activity. To mark out the path of the company in such a field, every year Alcantara draws up and publishes its own Sustainability Report, certified by TUV SUD international authority and available also on the corporate website. Headquartered in Milan, Alcantara's production site and R&D department are located in Nera Montoro, in the heart of Umbria Region (Terni).

Press Material: http://www.alcantara.com/en/press_area/index.do

User: press

Password: alcantara

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160505/364299LOGO

SOURCE Alcantara

Related Links

http://www.alcantara.com


AGOURA HILLS, Calif., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE: AMH) (the "Company"), a leading provider of high quality single-family homes for rent, today announced that, on November 17, 2016, UCLA's IS Associates, Southern California's leading group of information technology executives, presented its annual Executive Leadership Award (ELA) to UCLA alumnus, Bryan Smith, Executive Vice President and President of Property Management of American Homes 4 Rent. Sponsored by the UCLA Office of Information Technology, the IS Associates' award is given to a senior general management executive who has brought information systems into the most strategic and high-level decision-making processes, as well as into widespread use throughout the organization.

"American Homes 4 Rent is capitalizing on the opportunity of disruption that is changing entire industries with the engagement of ubiquitous access and use of networked data and information," said UCLA Vice Provost Jim Davis, Office of Information Technology. "UCLA and the IS Associates are thrilled that this year's award is going to Bryan Smith, an executive leader who has embraced the role of information technology to create an entirely new model for rental property operations and who is from our own UCLA community."

American Homes 4 Rent was founded in 2011 with the purpose of institutionalizing the single-family rental industry. To execute on that vision, Mr. Smith contributed to the development of an innovative acquisitions model, using mobile technology to achieve scale in reviewing brokered opportunities and trustee sales across more than 40 markets in 22 states. He helped pioneer the use of directed technology solutions to remove friction from the touring and leasing process. At each step of the property lifecycle, new tools were developed, deployed and refined to create a significant advantage over competitors while efficiently scaling up operations. With the contribution of Mr. Smith's leadership, American Homes 4 Rent was able to rapidly acquire, renovate and lease almost 50,000 homes while simultaneously building a national management and operating platform with an enterprise value of over $10 billion and over $850 million in annualized revenues.

"There are very few firms that have so completely and so seamlessly integrated their technology platforms into their business models the way American Homes 4 Rent has," said Don Olender, executive director of IS Associates. "Bryan has demonstrated the proactive leadership necessary to drive the use of technology to meet AMH's primary business objectives, and it is truly exciting to see the combined levels of business productivity and positive customer outcomes that are possible when technology is leveraged this way."

About Bryan Smith

Bryan Smith has served as Executive Vice President and President of Property Management of American Homes 4 Rent since February 2015. He is a licensed real estate broker and a Certified Public Accountant in the State of California. He is responsible for property management operations nationwide. Smith earned a B.A. in Business Economics from UCLA in 1996 and an M.B.A. from the UCLA Anderson School of Management in 2002.

About American Homes 4 Rent

American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE: AMH) is a leader in the single-family home rental industry and "American Homes 4 Rent" is fast becoming a nationally recognized brand for rental homes, known for high quality, good value and tenant satisfaction. We are an internally managed Maryland real estate investment trust, or REIT, focused on acquiring, renovating, leasing, and operating attractive, single-family homes as rental properties. As of September 30, 2016, we owned approximately 48,153 single-family properties, in selected submarkets in 22 states.

Additional information about American Homes 4 Rent is available on our website at www.americanhomes4rent.com.

About IS Associates

IS Associates is a UCLA-sponsored organization that is dedicated to the effective management and understanding of information systems and the effective leadership of the information technology functions. The organization provides a management education forum for its membership, which is open to organizations involved in the professional application of information systems to business and research. The organization includes senior executives, leading consultants and suppliers, government, and UCLA faculty, staff and students in a program of information-sharing and research. For more information about IS Associates, visit www.isassociates.org.

Contact information:

American Homes 4 Rent

Investor Relations

Phone: (855) 794-2447

Email: [email protected]

UCLA

Office of Information Technology

Barbara Woltag

Phone: (310) 794-5169

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE American Homes 4 Rent

Related Links

https://www.americanhomes4rent.com


PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On November 11, the Members of the American Philosophical Society (APS) elected Linda Greenhouse their thirty-seventh President. Greenhouse is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist best known for her thirty-year career covering the United States Supreme Court at the New York Times and currently the Knight Distinguished Journalist-in-Residence and Joseph Goldstein Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School. She was elected to APS Membership in 2001 and has served as Vice President since 2012. Greenhouse follows in the footsteps of such luminaries as Benjamin Franklin (the Society's founder and first President) and Thomas Jefferson, who served while also holding the offices of Vice President and President of the United States. Greenhouse was unanimously elected and will be the first woman to serve as President of the Society in its 273-year history.

"My involvement with the American Philosophical Society has been a source of learning and pleasure. My goal is to help the Society continue to fulfill its mission of intellectual inquiry and 'promoting useful knowledge,' and I am most honored by the confidence that my fellow members have placed in me," Greenhouse said.

As President, Greenhouse will oversee the operations of the nation's first and oldest learned society. Founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1743, the APS has, since its inception, supported the advancement of knowledge in America through the election of Members who have made significant contributions to society and through the support of new research projects. Early members included George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Paine, James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Marshall. In the nineteenth century, John James Audubon, Robert Fulton, Charles Darwin, Thomas Edison, and Louis Pasteur were among those elected. Albert Einstein, Robert Frost, and George Marshall hint at the scientific, humanistic, and public accomplishments of twentieth-century members. The first woman was elected in 1789 - the Russian Princess Dashkova, president of the Imperial Academy of Sciences of St. Petersburg.

Today, the Society dedicates its endowment of $180M to supporting scholarship in all fields. The Society operates the oldest scholarly imprint in North America, supports a research library and museum of international significance, provides over $1M in grants to young scholars, holds twice annual meetings to showcase cutting edge research, and elects members who have made important contributions to the humanities, sciences, arts, and civic affairs. Today the Society has 1,009 elected members: 844 resident members and 165 international members from more than two dozen foreign countries. Only 5,573 members have been elected since 1743. Greenhouse's sister Carol Greenhouse, a cultural anthropologist at Princeton University, is also among the ranks of APS Members, making the Greenhouses the first sisters to both be inducted into the Society.

Greenhouse will succeed Clyde Barker, the renowned transplant surgeon and the longest-serving Head of Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania, who is stepping aside due to mandated term limits. The Society's other recent Presidents include Baruch Blumberg (2005-2011), winner of a 1976 Nobel Prize, and Frank Rhodes (1999-2005), former President of Cornell University.

"Linda's extraordinary career and her years of service as a Member and officer of the APS indicate that she will be an outstanding president," current President Clyde Barker said.

For media inquiries please contact Jessica Frankenfield at [email protected] or 215-701-4427.

About Linda Greenhouse:

Linda Greenhouse is the Knight Distinguished Journalist in Residence and Joseph Goldstein Lecturer in Law at Yale Law School, a position she assumed in 2009 after 30 years covering the Supreme Court for the New York Times. Greenhouse still writes a biweekly column for the Times.

Greenhouse is a graduate of Radcliffe College, Harvard University, and earned the degree of Master of Studies in Law from Yale Law School, which she attended on a Ford Foundation fellowship. Her numerous awards during a 40-year career in journalism include the Pulitzer Prize (1998); the Henry Friendly Medal from the American Law Institute, of which she is an honorary member; and the Carey McWilliams Award from the American Political Science Association for "a major journalistic contribution to our understanding of politics." She is a former member of the Harvard University Board of Overseers and currently serves on the Senate of Phi Beta Kappa and the Council of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

About the American Philosophical Society

The American Philosophical Society, the oldest learned society in the United States, was founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin for the purpose of "promoting useful knowledge." In the 21st century the Society sustains this mission in three principal ways. It honors and engages distinguished scientists, humanists, social scientists, and leaders in civic and cultural affairs through elected membership and opportunities for interdisciplinary, intellectual fellowship, particularly in the semi-annual Meetings in Philadelphia. It supports research and discovery through grants and fellowships, lectures, publications, prizes, exhibitions, and public education. It serves scholars through a research library of manuscripts and other collections internationally recognized for their enduring historic value. The American Philosophical Society's current activities reflect the founder's spirit of inquiry, provide a forum for the free exchange of ideas, and convey the conviction of its members that intellectual dialogue and critical thought are inherently in the public interest. The Society will celebrate its 275th anniversary in 2018 with Greenhouse as its President. For more information, please visit https://amphilsoc.org/.

SOURCE American Philosophical Society

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MISGAV, Israel and TUTTLINGEN, Germany, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- B. Braun Melsungen, The Trendlines Group and ApiFix jointly announced B. Braun's lead position in ApiFix's B round financing; ApiFix is a Trendlines portfolio company. B. Braun's Aesculap division invested $2.8 million in the $5 million round which is to close by end of 2016.

The ApiFix System for scoliosis: after implantation on curvature (at right) and after correction (at left).

ApiFix is disrupting the scoliosis device market with its minimally invasive, non-fusion spinal implant system for the correction of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS). Traditional surgical correction is a highly invasive procedure involving fusion, which results in a rigid spine and low patient quality of life. The ApiFix system is implanted in a minimally invasive procedure and does not require fusion, thus maintaining spine flexibility and high quality of life. The global market for ApiFix is over $1.15 billion. ApiFix received CE Mark in 2012 and is marketing its device in Europe. More than 100 operations have been performed with the ApiFix implant; first patients are now 4-years post-surgery. Clinical results and patient quality of life are excellent. ApiFix videos can be viewed at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Pn9dlrTMNA and https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvPLPheAOrplckoGviotA7w.

ApiFix CEO, Eran Feldhay M.D., remarked: "Clinical experience with ApiFix's non-fusion correction system for the treatment of scoliosis is growing. We have now completed more than 100 surgeries with overwhelmingly positive results. This funding round will support our FDA submission in the coming months and assist the expansion of our clinical and commercial activities in Europe."

ApiFix's founding investor and largest shareholder, The Trendlines Group, welcomed the B. Braun investment. Todd Dollinger, Trendlines' Chairman and CEO, who also serves as chairman of ApiFix, said: "This round positions ApiFix for accelerated growth and brings B. Braun's substantial experience to ApiFix's board of directors. We look forward to B. Braun contributing to bringing ApiFix's breakthrough scoliosis solution  and future products  to patients around the world."

B. Braun, one of the world's leading providers of healthcare solutions, began partnership activities with Trendlines in 2015. Trendlines and B. Braun have established mutual deal flow to identify potential new investment opportunities and are working together in the establishment of incubators and collaboration in the development of new technologies, solutions, and products. B. Braun invested approximately US$5 million in Trendlines as a cornerstone investor in Trendlines' 2015 initial public offering in Singapore. B. Braun and Trendlines have executed a memorandum of understanding for co-investment in Trendlines Medical Singapore, Trendlines' first incubator outside of Israel.

Prof. Dr. Hanns-Peter Knaebel, a member of the B. Braun Management Board and CEO of their Aesculap division, commented, "Our deep interest in innovation and in bringing disruptive products to patients and the medical community drives our internal R&D efforts and, as well, brings us to search the world for investment opportunities to achieve these same goals. Our investment in ApiFix, a Trendlines portfolio company, further cements the B. Braun / Trendlines collaboration effort."

About B. Braun

With over 56,000 employees in 64 countries, B. Braun is one of the world's leading manufacturers of medical devices and pharmaceutical products and services. Through constructive dialogue, B. Braun develops high quality product systems and services that are both evolving and progressive  and, in turn, improves people's health around the world. In 2015, the group generated sales of approximately 6.13 billion.

About The Trendlines Group

The Trendlines Group is an innovation commercialization company that invents, discovers, invests in, and incubates innovation-based medical and agricultural technologies to fulfill its mission to improve the human condition. As intensely hands-on investors, Trendlines is involved in all aspects of its portfolio companies from technology development to business building. The Trendlines Group is traded on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX: 42T) and in the United States as an American Depositary Receipt (ADR) on the OTCQX (OTCQX: TRNLY).

Investor Contact Information

Israel

Judith Kleinman, Director, Investor Relations & Corporate Communications

[email protected]

+972-72-260-7000

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SOURCE The Trendlines Group Ltd.; B. Braune
CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The World Trade Organization (WTO) today rejected virtually all of the European Union's challenges to the Washington state tax incentives.

In today's case, the EU challenged seven different state tax incentives. The WTO rejected entirely the EU's challenge to six of the seven incentives and rejected most of the challenge to the seventh. The WTO held only and narrowly that a reduction in Washington state's Business and Occupancy (B&O) tax rate for future 777X revenues is inconsistent with the WTO agreements. The WTO threw out all of the EU's other challenges to various incentive programs and left untouched even the B&O tax rate as it applies to revenue from the other Boeing models produced in Washington state--the 737, 747, 767, 777 (current model) and 787.

In total, the EU claimed that Boeing had received $8.7 billion in subsidies. This claim was rejected by the WTO, which found future incentives totaling no more than $50 million a year to be impermissible. The WTO found that to date Boeing has received no benefit from the 777X rate incentive, and will not until 2020, because the first airplane will not be delivered until then.

"Today's decision is a complete victory for the United States, Washington State and Boeing," said J. Michael Luttig, Boeing's general counsel. "The WTO found in September that Airbus has received $22 billion in illegal subsidies from the EU and that without these subsidies neither Airbus itself nor any of its airplanes would even exist today. By contrast, in rejecting virtually every claim made by the EU in this case, the WTO found today that Boeing has not received a penny of impermissible subsidies."

"The WTO has repeatedly found that Airbus is entirely a creature of government, and they must now bring themselves into compliance with the international laws or risk massive sanctions," said Luttig.

In light of today's decision and the massive liability that the WTO has found against the EU and Airbus, we expect the EU and Airbus to appeal today's decision. "After any appeal," Luttig said, "we fully expect Boeing to preserve every aspect of the Washington state incentives, including the 777X revenue tax rate."

Contact: Tim Neale, 703-465-3220

SOURCE Boeing

Related Links

http://www.boeing.com


MELVILLE, N.Y., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Signifying a historic milestone in eye care, Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is proud to mark the 40th anniversary of the introduction of the Canon CR-45NM, the world's first non-mydriatic 45 degree retinal camera. Introduced to the public by Canon Inc. in 1976, the CR-45NM was the first retinal camera in the world to allow eye care professionals to screen patients' eyes without dilation, helping to alleviate discomfort or pain that the patient might otherwise experience during the process. Canon U.S.A. has taken the opportunity to not only commemorate this anniversary, but to also celebrate the capability of Canon retinal cameras to provide high-quality retinal images of the eye that can assist medical professionals in their diagnosis of certain illnesses.

The CR-45NM was the result of Canon Inc.'s desire to diversify its healthcare offerings, which began with the production of x-ray equipment in 1940. In the 1970s, Canon worked with medical professionals to develop a camera to provide doctors retinal images to assist in their diagnosis of a variety of illnesses. From this collaboration, the world's first non-mydriatic 45 degree retinal camera, the CR-45NM, was born. This device was the first retinal camera to allow screening of the eye without having to dilate the patient's pupil with a drop. Having been available for sale overseas through Canon Inc., Canon U.S.A.'s parent company, in 1976, the non-mydriatic camera was first made available to customers in the United States in 1977.

"The development of this device signified the first steps by Canon Inc. into the world of diagnostic eye imaging and an example of Canon dedication to be a leader of innovation," said Tsuneo Imai, vice president, Healthcare Solutions Group, Canon U.S.A., Inc. "Since 1976, eye care professionals have used Canon cameras to take high-quality images of the eye. We are tremendously proud to mark four decades of Canon producing successful eye care solutions and look forward to continuing this important work into the future."

Through the use of current Canon eye care technology, specifically the CR-2 AF Digital Non-Mydriatic Retinal Camera and the CR-2 PLUS AF Digital Non-Mydriatic Retinal Camera, eye care professionals can secure retinal images which can assist them in their detection of eye conditions. An example of Canon eye care devices being used for this purpose can be seen in the work of Canon consultant Ben Szirth, Ph.D., who serves as Director of Applied Vision Research & Ophthalmic Telemedicine at Rutgers University and conducts retinal screenings using Canon solutions every summer at the Children with Diabetes Friends for Life conference in Orlando, Florida.

"It is my opinion that the eye can serve as a window into the health of the whole human body, allowing physicians to use retinal screening to detect changes in the eye. There is no better time to celebrate the impact of the world's first non-mydriatic 45 degree retinal camera. The development of this device by Canon Inc. forty years ago helped put Canon on the path to develop the tools that eye care professionals use today," said Ben Szirth, Ph. D.

For more information on Canon eye care devices and solutions, please visit www.usa.canon.com/eye-care.

About Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Canon U.S.A., Inc., is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and industrial digital imaging solutions to the United States and to Latin America and the Caribbean (excluding Mexico) markets. With approximately $31 billion in global revenue, its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), ranks third overall in U.S. patents granted in 2015 and is one of Fortune Magazine's World's Most Admired Companies in 2016. Canon U.S.A. is committed to the highest level of customer satisfaction and loyalty, providing 100 percent U.S.-based consumer service and support for all of the products it distributes. Canon U.S.A. is dedicated to its Kyosei philosophy of social and environmental responsibility. In 2014, the Canon Americas Headquarters secured LEED Gold certification, a recognition for the design, construction, operations and maintenance of high-performance green buildings. To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company's RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/rss and follow us on Twitter @CanonUSA. For media inquiries, please contact [email protected].

Based on weekly patent counts issued by United States Patent and Trademark Office.

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Canon U.S.A. Web site:

http://www.usa.canon.com

For sales information/customer support:

1-800-OK-CANON

SOURCE Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Related Links

http://www.usa.canon.com


Jordan said Monday it had chosen five international consortiums to build the first phase of a multi-million-dollar canal linking the Red Sea to the shrinking Dead Sea.

The ambitious $1.1 billion project has been in the works for more than a decade and aims to provide much-needed water to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

It moved closer to reality in December 2013 when Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority signed a water-sharing deal.

Jordan's water and irrigation ministry in a statement Monday said the consortiums were made up of 20 engineering firms from Asia, Europe and North America.

The first phase of the project involves building a conveyance system to transfer 300 million cubic metres (10.6 billion cubic feet) of water each year from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea.

The ministry has said it would also see the construction of a desalination plant with a capacity of 65-85 million cubic metres a year.

Experts have warned that the Dead Sea, the lowest and saltiest body of water in the world, is on course to dry out by 2050.

Its degradation started in the 1960s when Israel, Jordan and Syria began to divert water from the Jordan River, the main source for the Dead Sea.

Water is a rare resource in Jordan, where 92 percent of the land is desert. The country is home to around seven million people and the population is growing with an influx of refugees from Syria.

Several environmental groups have warned that the project could undermine the fragile ecosystem of the Dead Sea, which they fear could be contaminated by water from the Red Sea.

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Medela Healthcare proudly presents the results of a case series which prove the clinical efficacy of Medela's Invia Liberty and single-patient-use Invia Motion NPWT systems. NPWT has become an indispensable tool in reconstructive surgery to accelerate wound healing and patient transition from hospital to home care. "We are glad to announce that Invia Liberty and Invia Motion were evaluated successfully for clinical efficacy, safety and ease of use. The positive patient outcomes of this case series confirms that we have clinically sound conventional NPWT and single-patient-use solutions. Clinicians and hospital administrators have concerns about inefficient transition processes and we are pleased that our simplifying solutions are proven to have clinical efficacy and contribute to fast patient healing", states John Broughton, Marketing Director Medela Healthcare US.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161124/442782LOGO )



(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161124/442780 )



(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161124/442781 )



Within the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC)[1] Fall 2016, Dr. Charles K. Lee, Chief of Plastic Surgery and Director of Reconstructive Microsurgery, St. Mary's Medical Center (SMMC), San Francisco and Assistant Clinical Professor of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), shares his experience with the new NPWT devices: "These cases clearly validate the relevance of Medela's NPWT devices Invia Liberty and Invia Motion in managing complex surgical wounds."

Medela's NPWT device(s) were used in the head, neck, trunk as well as lower extremities and were applied in the operating room immediately following surgery. Four patients underwent graft placements, two underwent flap procedures, and one device was applied post debridement for bridge therapy. In order to protect the surgical wound from an unfavourable healing environment, a silver contact layer was applied under the NPWT foam dressing in three cases. The NPWT foam dressing remained in place for three to ten days.

The gratifying outcome of the seven patient cases proves: Medela's NPWT devices successfully managed the surgeon's healing objectives and therefore validates Invia Liberty's and Invia Motion's relevance as alternative NPWT devices for several types of surgical wounds. "The four acute patients healed without any complications with the result that NPWT was discontinued after 5-7 days", summarizes Dr. Charles K. Lee on the positive patient outcomes. He complements: "Concerning the three patients discharged home, all managed the portable NPWT device Invia Motion easily and independently with no complications, resulting in complete healing of their surgical sites. The patients and their families were very satisfied with the overall experience from surgery to the discharge to home, successfully avoiding the need for an extended inpatient stay."

About Medela

With over 50 years of leadership in medical vacuum technology, Medela has proven success in developing innovative and award winning products that deliver Swiss engineering quality and reliability. Medela concentrates on two business units: "Human Milk", with basic research recognised globally and leading in the development and manufacture of breastfeeding products and solutions, and "Healthcare", engineering and manufacturing highly innovative medical vacuum technology solutions. Medela NPWT simplifies the delivery and management of NPWT to make it easier for healthcare professionals to help their patients heal.

[1] Further information about SWAC can be found under: http://www.sawcfall.com/

For more information about Medela products, e-mail inquiries to [email protected], call +1-(877)-735-1626, or visit http://www.medela-healthcare.us.

SOURCE Medela AG
ATLANTA, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been informed by Texas health officials that Zika virus infection has been diagnosed in a resident of Brownsville, Texas, without any other known risk factors, suggesting possible local transmission of Zika virus infection. This case may be the first known occurrence of local mosquito-borne Zika virus transmission in the state. CDC is closely coordinating with Texas and local officials to increase surveillance efforts and vector control activities in this area.

State and local officials in Texas proactively issued Health Alerts in October 2016 expanding the testing criteria for Zika virus disease. They are responding rapidly to the current situation with a community-wide search for additional Zika cases, as recommended in CDC's Zika interim response plan. Residents, especially pregnant women, should take steps to protect themselves from mosquito bites. They should use an insect repellent registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) containing one of the following ingredients: DEET, picaridin, IR3535, oil of lemon eucalyptus or para-menthane-diol, or 2-undecanone, wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants, use or repair screens on windows and doors, use air conditioning when available, and remove standing water inside and outside where mosquitoes can lay eggs.

"Even though it is late in the mosquito season, mosquitoes can spread Zika in some areas of the country," said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. "Texas is doing the right thing by increasing local surveillance and trapping and testing mosquitoes in the Brownsville area."

Zika virus spreads to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito (Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus), but can also spread during sex by a person infected with Zika to his or her partner. Most people infected with Zika won't have symptoms, but for those who do, the illness is usually mild. However, Zika infection during pregnancy can cause a serious birth defect of the brain called microcephaly and other severe brain defects in fetuses and infants.

We continue to learn about Zika virus, and we are working hard with our state, county, and local partners to find out more about Zika virus infection in Brownsville. Here is what we do know:

Zika is spread to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito ( Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus), both found in Brownsville .

species mosquito ( aegypti and albopictus), both found in . A pregnant woman can pass Zika virus to her fetus during pregnancy or during birth.

Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other severe brain defects and is associated with other adverse pregnancy outcomes in fetuses and infants.

A person who is infected with Zika virus can pass it to sex partners.

Many people infected with Zika virus won't have symptoms or will only have mild symptoms.

No vaccines or treatments are currently available to treat or prevent Zika infections.

As of Nov 23, 2016, 4,444 cases of Zika have been reported to CDC in the continental United States and Hawaii; 182 of these were the result of local spread by mosquitoes. These cases include 36 believed to be the result of sexual transmission and one that was the result of a laboratory exposure. This number does not include the current case under investigation in Texas.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

CDC works 24/7 saving lives and protecting people from health threats to have a more secure nation. Whether these threats are chronic or acute, manmade or natural, human error or deliberate attack, global or domestic, CDC is the U.S. health protection agency.

Contact: Media Relations

(404) 639-3286

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SOURCE Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Related Links

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AMSTERDAM, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Constellium N.V. (NYSE and Euronext: CSTM) announces today that three of its researchers were awarded the Medal of the Academy by the Air and Space Academy (AAE) for their achievement in developing groundbreaking Airware aluminium solutions. The AAE aims to encourage the development of high-quality scientific, technical, cultural and human actions, as well as to promote knowledge in these areas, acting as a focal point for activities in France and Europe. The Medal of the Academy recognizes individuals who significantly contribute to progress in the aerospace industry.

Timothy Warner, Knowledge Director and Metallurgy Group Manager, Alireza Arbab, Project Manager, and Bruno Chenal, Strategic Innovation Director, received the medal at the annual Solemn Session held by the AAE on November 25, 2016 in Toulouse, France. "This Medal is a testimony to Constellium's R&D commitment to advance the potential of aluminium and to fulfill our aerospace customers' needs and innovative ambitions," said Bruno Chenal, Constellium's Strategic Innovation Director. "We are particularly proud that Airware is now flying on the most prestigious aircraft and space programs, such as the Airbus A350 XWB, Bombardier's CSeries, the SpaceX Falcon Launcher and Lockheed Martin's Orion Capsule."

Airware is a major component in the advanced materials portfolio of the A350 XWB manufactured by Airbus. At the same AAE session, Fabrice Bregier, President and CEO of Airbus, received the Academy's Grand Award for his decisive role in the excellence of the A350 XWB program.

Airware is the result of decades of R&D to support the most innovative aerospace programs. Constellium's Airware was launched in 2010 as a comprehensive offer of high-performance aluminium-lithium alloys, best suited to feature in all parts of the primary aerostructure. Airware's lower alloy density and improved material properties allow an optimization of structural designs, which leads to an overall weight reduction and a drop in CO2 emissions. Airware guarantees higher durability due to its greater resistance to fatigue and corrosion, which enable airlines to target extended intervals of heavy maintenance. Airware is endlessly recyclable without any loss of properties. The technology contributes to the development of a sustainable aerospace industry.

Supporting the industry's endeavours to reduce its carbon footprint, Constellium continues to develop advanced Airware alloy solutions and manufacturing technologies by working together with R&D teams of the world's major aerospace manufacturers.

About Constellium

Constellium (NYSE and Euronext: CSTM) is a global sector leader that develops innovative, value added aluminium products for a broad scope of markets and applications, including aerospace, automotive and packaging. Constellium generated 5.2 billion of revenue in 2015.

www.constellium.com

Forward-looking statements

Certain statements contained in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This press release may contain "forward looking statements" with respect to our business, results of operations and financial condition, and our expectations or beliefs concerning future events and conditions. You can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as, but not limited to, "believes," "expects," "may," "should," "approximately," "anticipates," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "targets," likely," "will," "would," "could" and similar expressions (or the negative of these terminologies or expressions). All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Many risks and uncertainties are inherent in our industry and markets. Others are more specific to our business and operations. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the ability of Constellium and Wise Metals to achieve expected synergies and the timing thereof; the risk that the businesses will not be integrated successfully or such integration may be more difficult, time-consuming or costly than expected; Constellium's increased levels of indebtedness as a result of the acquisition of Wise Metals, which could limit Constellium's operating flexibility and opportunities; the potential failure to retain key employees as a result of the acquisition of Wise Metals or during the integration of the business, the loss of customers, suppliers and other business relationships as a result of the acquisition of Wise Metals; disruptions to business operations resulting from the acquisition of Wise Metals; slower or lower than expected growth in the North American market for Body-in-White aluminium rolled products and other risk factors set forth under the heading "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 20-F, and as described from time to time in subsequent reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The occurrence of the events described and the achievement of the expected results depend on many events, some or all of which are not predictable or within our control. Consequently, actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

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SOURCE Constellium

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-- Acquisition Enterprise Value approximately 711 million Brazilian Reais

-- 206 MW of high-quality, contracted hydroelectric and cogeneration operating assets

-- Long-term partner Falcon Flight (investment vehicle of the Santo Domingo family) to own a 20% interest in the portfolio

-- Latin American portfolio expands to 1,423 MW of operating assets

SAO PAULO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ContourGlobal announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire Neoenergia's interests in a 206 MW portfolio of operating generation assets located in Brazil. The portfolio consists of seven hydroelectric plants totaling 130 MW in the states of Bahia, Goias and Rio de Janeiro and four high-efficiency cogeneration facilities totaling 76 MW in Parana, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

ContourGlobal's President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Joseph Brandt, said: "We are pleased to expand our business in Brazil where we have operated power generation facilities for over a decade. The acquisition announced today adds to our existing hydroelectric portfolio and further expands our Solutions business which provides on-site high-efficiency energy to commercial and industrial customers."

Alessandra Marinheiro, Executive Vice-President of ContourGlobal, highlighted: "These long-term contracted assets are located in, or adjacent to, Brazilian states in which we have an operating presence and include dollar denominated cogeneration facilities similar to our Solutions plants in Europe and Africa. Our operating platform enables us to efficiently integrate these new facilities into our Latin American organization."

The acquisition is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017 and is subject to various conditions and approvals including by the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) and the National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL).

About ContourGlobal

ContourGlobal is an international power-generation company with approximately 4,200 MW* in operations in 20 countries and on three continents. ContourGlobal's 2000 employees operate a portfolio of 61 thermal and renewable power plants utilizing a wide-range of technologies.

ContourGlobal has 1,850* MW in operation and development in Latin America, consisting of 1,423 MW in operation in Brazil, Peru, Colombia and the Caribbean and 426 MW in late-stage development in Mexico and Peru.

*MWs include the acquisition announced in this release

SOURCE ContourGlobal

Related Links

http://www.contourglobal.com


LONDON, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The world of healthcare has greatly benefitted from enhanced connectivity as a by-product of the digital age. However, this benefit has contributed to exposing medical devices and their softwares to cyber attacks. Malicious digital interferences can be significantly detrimental to patient safety.

Cyber security initiatives require attention from various areas for example - systemic and technical perspectives. Security researchers have been uncovering hazardous flaws recently with medical devices to help with awareness on the various intervention methods which may be used. Recent guidance published by the FDA has reinforced the responsibilities expected of medical device software manufacturers in regards to the cyber security of their products.

Pharma IQ brings you the Software Design for Medical Devices whitepaper looking at what you need to know in regards to software cyber security to medical devices. This whitepaper was prepared ahead of the Software Design for Medical Devices Summit taking place in Munich on the 21st - 24th February 2017 as we provide you with insight on the FDA's Postmarket Management of Cyber Security in Medical Devices guidelines. Find the event programme and details on http://www.sdmdeurope.iqpc.co.uk

Media Contact: Rumina Akther, Trainee Marketing Manager, IQPC: [email protected] or call +44(0)207-368-9442

Press are invited to attend this important industry summit, if you would like to a complimentary press pass please email Rumina Akther on [email protected]

SOURCE IQPC
DENVER, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Denver Mattress Company, one of Furniture Row's four specialty stores, is pleased to announce the grand opening of a new store in York, PA. Located at 1785 Rodney Road, York, PA, 17404, the debut store represents the 111th in the US.

Discussing the new store, regional manager Reuben Carranza says, "Our goal at Denver Mattress is to make mattress shopping a comfortable experience by providing the best service, selection, quality, and value. I want people in Pennsylvania to be able to find the perfect mattress at a very reasonable price. I am especially excited to share our patented custom mattress fittings, where our experts help individuals find the best mattress for their body type and sleep patterns."

By using the same high-quality materials as other leading brand-name manufactures, Denver Mattress is able to eliminate the middleman and pass the savings on by taking on the role of manufacturer, retailer, and distributor. In many instances, Denver Mattress' prices can be up to 50% less than the competition.

Denver Mattress carries the widest selection of top mattress brands, including their own extremely popular Doctor's Choice mattress, the best mattress buy under $800 as selected by the nation's leading consumer magazine. For years Denver Mattress has been ranked as one of the very best mattress stores in the nation for quality, service, selection, and value. With a 365 Night Better Sleep Guarantee customers can rest easy knowing they'll find a mattress that meets their comfort standards.

During the grand opening celebration from November 25th through February 2nd, shoppers can get two free Grand Vitae pillows with the purchase of $499 or more.

About Denver Mattress Company

Denver Mattress manufactures its mattresses in its Denver-based factory and distributes them to its own retail stores. By having a single factory, Denver Mattress is able to maintain high quality control standards and deliver a more consistent product at a lower cost than multiple factory producers. A Better Tomorrow Starts Tonight. Visit www.DenverMattress.com.

About Furniture Row Companies

The specialty stores of Furniture Row (Denver Mattress, Sofa Mart, Oak Express, and Bedroom Expressions) provide home furnishings, mattresses, and linens all at one convenient location. Family-owned and operated with more than 330 stores in thirty states, Furniture row is one of America's largest furniture and bedding retailers. Real Furniture. Real Value. Visit www.FurnitureRow.com.

Furniture Row also owns and sponsors the #78 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Toyota driven by Martin Truex Jr. Visit www.FurnitureRowRacing.com.

Contact: John Knippenberg | Furniture Row Marketing

[email protected]

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SOURCE Denver Mattress Company

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Who: In the ultimate act of service at the beginning of Chicago's coldest season, Drs. Simon Lee, Johnny Lin and Kamran Hamid, foot and ankle surgeons at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, and a group of residents, physician assistants and medical students from Rush University Medical Center, will give shoes, socks and medical care to homeless men and women at a shelter on Chicago's west side. "Soles 4 Souls" serves an estimated 200 men and women who will line up to enjoy warm, dry, healthy feet.









Without proper medical care, clean/dry shoes and socks, homeless individuals often neglect the health of their feet. They can suffer from frostbite, fungus and a variety of painful foot conditions. The MOR medical team will look for and treat any of those conditions.







What: "Soles 4 Souls" on Chicago's west side







When: Wednesday, Nov. 30, 2016, 7 to 8 pm







Where: Franciscan House of Mary and Joseph



2715 West Harrison Street



Chicago, IL 60612

773.265.6683







Background: An analysis by Chicago Coalition for the Homeless estimates that 125,848 Chicagoans were homeless during the 2014-15 school year  that's up 8% from the year before.









"Soles 4 Souls" is affiliated with Soles4Souls, Inc., a national, not-for-profit organization dedicated to procuring and distributing shoes to people in need all over the world.









Dr. Simon Lee, a foot/ankle surgeon at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush, began the Chicago chapter of the program in 2007 and since then, he has been actively involved in coordinating this annual event on Chicago's west side. In addition to the medical screenings and socks from Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush physicians, the men and women of the shelter will also receive free shoes donated by Red Wing Shoe Company and socks from Dignity U Wear.
























"I'm deeply honored to be recognized by the San Fernando Valley Business Journal in 'The Valley 200,'" said Dr. Merkin. "We strive to contribute to a growing economy in the area offering quality, affordable, accessible healthcare that improves the lives of the members of the community we serve."

"This book is a nod of appreciation to those who are strengthening our community, making it the place we want to live and creating the opportunities our children deserve. This book is a salute to the leaders we depend upon," said Charles Crumpley, Editor and Publisher of the SFVBJ.

This inaugural edition of "The Valley 200" recognizes the 200 most outstanding, innovative leaders who shape and strengthen the community, creating new business opportunities, including jobs, for a dynamic economy that spans the entire region covering the San Fernando, Conejo, Santa Clarita and Antelope Valleys in California- if this vast area were its own city, it would be the fifth largest in the country. Under Dr. Merkin's leadership, HPN's family of medical groups in the region includes Regal Medical Group and Lakeside Medical Group in the San Fernando Valley and High Desert Medical Group in the Antelope Valley. HPN is currently the largest, physician owned and operated integrated delivery system in the country with over 50 related healthcare companies and medical groups, bringing 37 years of successful, coordinated, managed care with over 4000 primary care physicians and 30,000 specialists. HPN also encompasses numerous patent, venture capital, private equity, and insurance companies, including joint ventures with Rite Aid, Walgreen's Trinity Hospital Systems and Fresenius.

Dr. Merkin's commitment to improving healthcare goes beyond the San Fernando Valley community as he serves on the Board of the California Institute of Technology and the Board of Trustees at the Keck School of Medicine at USC. He is the Co-founder of FasterCures. He has established the Richard Merkin Foundation for Stem Cell Research at the Broad Institute at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the Richard Merkin Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Brain Sciences Institute, the Richard Merkin Foundation for Neural Regeneration at UCLA, and the Merkin Family Foundation Fund for Regenerative Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine at USC. Dr. Merkin supported the Merkin Initiative to Study Payment and Clinician Reform at the Brookings Institution in Washington DC and has also endowed two professorships at the City of Hope, one in immunotherapy and the other in gene therapy. Dr. Merkin is supporting translational sciences and health technology at Caltech through the Heritage Research Institute for the Advancement of Medicine and Science. He is on the Board of the California Nano Systems Institute and serves on many other boards that focus on science, healthcare and finance. Dr. Merkin launched the $3million Heritage Health Prize Challenge, a global incentivized data mining competition seeking to achieve a fundamental breakthrough in our ability to predict future hospitalization, creating an online global community of problem solvers helping to save the country over $40 billion in avoidable hospitalizations.

Dr. Merkin has been honored with the Dr. Armand Hammer Philanthropy Award from StopCancer, the Medical Visionary Award from UCLA Geffen School of Medicine, named one of HealthLeaders Media top 20 Leaders in the country and Healthcare CEO of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal. In addition, "Fast Company" named HPN one of the top ten most innovative companies in the world.

ABOUT HPN:

Heritage Provider Network, Inc. (HPN) is on the cutting edge of the accountable care model of healthcare delivery: coordinated, patient-doctor centric, integrated health care systems that represent the future of health care in the United States. HPN and its affiliates operate in California, New York, Arizona and Missouri providing high quality, cost effective healthcare to over one million individuals and are dedicated to quality, affordable health care, and putting patients' wellness first. (www.heritageprovidernetwork.com)

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SOURCE Heritage Provider Network, Inc.

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Fluidic Energy announced today a $20 million investment from Asia Climate Partners (ACP). As a joint venture between the Asian Development Bank, ORIX and Robeco, ACP is a mid-market private equity fund dedicated to clean energy, resource efficiency and environment sectors in the Asia-Pacific region. By supporting Fluidic Energy's expansion of its game-changing, intelligent and low cost energy storage technology, ACP hopes to expand renewable energy access in Southeast Asia while limiting carbon intensive energy adoption and replacing environmentally damaging diesel gensets.

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"Energy storage is a key enabler of widespread decentralized renewable energy generation and we see enormous potential in our core countries like India, Indonesia and the Philippines, that have high penetration of diesel generation and low electrification rates. Fluidic has achieved a substantial track record in long-duration storage solutions, with over 100,000 batteries installed in telecom backup power, rural electrification, and micro grid applications globally since 2011, and we are honored to join a prestigious group of investors in supporting Fluidic's further growth in Asia. We are excited about this investment for many reasons, including: commercial traction of Fluidic's product and its proven ability to deliver in diverse environments and harsh conditions; competitive position in its target markets; and the team's commitment to high environmental standards and improving lives through its business offering," said Duarte Da Silva, Managing Director, ACP.

Fluidic Energy has established a strong presence in Asia, including a regional headquarters and manufacturing facilities. Fluidic has been manufacturing its energy storage systems in Indonesia since 2011 and supplying its systems to both telecom and rural electrification applications. In one of the company's recent projects, Fluidic deployed more than 22MWh of energy storage to 96 PV and energy storage powered rural electrification projects across the archipelago, providing clean and reliable energy to more than 110,000 people.

Of the more than 1.2 billion people without electricity on our planet today, 600 million are living in Asia. "Although we were founded in the U.S. and offer solutions for markets such as telecom, grid firming, and critical power, we immediately recognized the positive impact we could have in the Asia-Pacific region. We focused much of our commercialization strategy on Asia for the first several years simply because there was a problem that we knew we could help fix," said Steve Scharnhorst, CEO of Fluidic Energy.

By combining the best energy and power centric technologies with integrated intelligence, Fluidic uniquely approaches the market with a whole product solution optimized for long duration and harsh environmental settings. A key enabler for Fluidic's hybrid solutions is its proprietary Zinc-air battery technology, which is optimal for long duration applications due to its unique air-breathing architecture. Using "free" air allows for significantly lower costs as runtimes extend. Fluidic solutions can store large amounts of energy and discharge that energy over several days, providing autonomy to villages and communities. This autonomy allows communities to adopt renewables, without sacrificing continuous, reliable electricity; remaining fully functional even when there is limited sunshine for days. In comparison to mini-grids that provide only a few hours of autonomy, days of autonomy helps empower these areas via economic growth and commercial activities. The environmental benefits speak for themselves: lower emissions while using no lead, cadmium, mercury, fossil fuels or other toxic elements; displacement of diesel generators and lead acid batteries and reduced CO 2 .

To date, the company has shipped more than 100,000 batteries worldwide and impacted more than three million people and thousands of communities by delivering reliable, affordable electricity to businesses and homes in diverse and difficult operating climates. The company recently announced an ambitious commitment to bring affordable and reliable energy to 100 million people globally by 2025.

"We appreciate this partnership with ACP, including their regional expertise and the synergy that we can create with our combined vision of leveraging technology and investment to truly change lives in Asia and around the world," said Scharnhorst.

About Fluidic Energy

Fluidic Energy is dedicated to accelerating the worldwide transformation to clean, reliable energy through its innovative and intelligent energy storage solutions. Enabled by groundbreaking battery technology and smart-grid intelligence, Fluidic Energy designs, manufactures and markets long-duration energy storage solutions globally. As the first company to deliver rechargeable Zinc-air battery technology in high production volumes Fluidic Energy has over 100,000 batteries globally with its industry leading whole product approach. Fluidic Energy continues to build momentum as the long-duration energy storage leader, installing systems worldwide that increase reliability, functionality and surpass cost targets necessary for practical energy storage adoption. While meeting market needs now, Fluidic Energy is paving the path for the smart, sustainable, and accessible grid of the future.

For more information, visit www.fluidicenergy.com

About Asia Climate Partners

Asia Climate Partners (ACP) is a private equity fund based in Hong Kong and supported by the Asian Development Bank, ORIX Corporation and Robeco Group. With approximately $440 million of investment capital to date, ACP is one of the largest private equity platforms for environmental finance in emerging Asia. ACP is looking to partner with market-leading, high-growth Asian businesses in India, China and South East Asia with a particular focus on the clean energy, resource efficiency and environmental sectors.

For more information, visit www.asiaclimatepartners.com

Contact: Katie Avila

Fluidic Energy

+1-480-966-0242

[email protected]

8455 N 90th Street

Scottsdale, Arizona 85258

www.fluidicenergy.com

SOURCE Fluidic Energy

Related Links

http://www.fluidicenergy.com


The Munich-based company has won global recognition for its leading-edge visualization tools for cardiology and radiology imaging. From an advanced applications developer, it has evolved into a vendor of powerful cardiovascular workflow and decision support solutions, including risk management and therapy monitoring, leveraging cutting-edge deep learning technology.

"In line with the current trends, TOMTEC's solution portfolio has been expanded to cover the entire gamut of cardiovascular imaging modalities, and has been re-engineered using the latest zero-footprint IT standards," said Frost & Sullivan Industry Analyst Dinesh Kumar. "Its vendor-agnostic platform aids seamless connectivity with existing hospital IT systems, thereby enabling tighter integration of stakeholders along the care pathway in facilities of all sizes, even those with complex workflow environments."

TOMTEC was among the early movers in the clinical workflow automation space. In its endeavor to present actionable clinical data, it developed deep learning algorithms that automatically extract features and train various applications, including those for clinical validations. This ensures the delivery of high-quality, validated, and user-independent results for clinical decision support and helps serve as a foundation for data mining in electronic medical records (EMR) for population health management (PHM).

One of the prominent application areas of TOMTEC's workflow automation solutions is the congestive heart failure (CHF) patient population. Caregivers that employ the company's automated image recognition and workflow automation tools are able to measure and monitor their patients in real time. Such an integrated approach makes possible for accurate assessments of early and late stages of heart failure by tracking subclinical deterioration of the heart.

As part of its clinical integration efforts, TOMTEC's cardio-oncology solution resolves the critical side-effects of existing procedures, such as cardio-toxicity. Supporting proprietary technology from its partners, the company ensures precise detection, assessment, and quantification of abnormalities. The integrated management of patient-specific conditions paves the way to more personalized treatments and overall robust patient outcomes.

"One of the most important value propositions of TOMTEC's solutions is their customer centricity," noted Kumar. "Despite competing against much larger vendors providing broad-based imaging IT solutions, TOMTEC's focus on developing a next-generation solution within its core area of expertise sets it apart from the competition in the North American market."

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that has demonstrated excellence in implementing strategies that proactively create value for its customers with a focus on improving the return on the investment that customers make in its services or products. The award recognizes the company's inordinate focus on augmenting the value that its customers receive, beyond simply good customer service, leading to improved customer retention and ultimately customer base expansion.

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.

About TOMTEC

TOMTEC IMAGING SYSTEMS GMBH, with headquarter located in Munich / Germany, is a worldwide leader for medical image software solutions. Specialized in cardiology it offers state-of-the-art solutions for clinical customers and industry partners.

The products encompass a wide range of 2D and 3D/4D technology for visualization, automated analysis, quantification, reporting and image management. TOMTEC products are available for adult and pediatric cardiology, obstetrics, gynecology, radiology and vascular diagnostics. Moreover, TOMTEC offers a sustainable full-service component in sales and an education program with best-practice sharing among professionals.

The company claim "Excellence in Digital Healthcare" represents striving for excellent image and analysis quality, ease-of-use, reproducibility of automated measurements and an all-around service- and education offering.

The company maintains close working relationships with many leading universities and research institutes around the world.

Visit TOMTEC's website at www.tomtec.de

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, works in collaboration with clients to leverage visionary innovation that addresses the global challenges and related growth opportunities that will make or break today's market participants. For more than 50 years, we have been developing growth strategies for the global 1000, emerging businesses, the public sector, and the investment community. Contact us: Start the discussion.

Contact:

Chiara Carella

P: +44 (0) 207.343.8314

F: 210.348.1003

E: [email protected]

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SOURCE Frost & Sullivan

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Yemeni security and medical officials say at least 13 civilians have been killed by an airstrike by the Saudi-led military coalition in a western port city.

The officials told The Associated Press on Monday that airstrikes hit two homes in rural areas northeast of Hodeida, which is under control of the country's Shia rebels.

Among the victims are women and children, according to a medical official in al-Thawra hospital. The airstrikes, which took place on Saturday, also destroyed telecommunications towers.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak to the press.

The coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 at the request of the internationally-recognized government after the rebels seized the capital, Sanaaa, and started pushing southward.

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All predictive models correlate the movement of an illness through a population over time, but current simulations fail to account for a seemingly obvious idea: that mobility and activity varies among people, and that these variations impact the likelihood of contracting or spreading an illness.

A new paradigm was explained in a paper published in Physical Review Letters by Maurizio Porfiri, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at NYU Tandon, Alessandro Rizzo, a visiting professor at NYU Tandon and an associate professor of control engineering at Politecnico, and Lorenzo Zino, a Politecnico doctoral student in pure and applied mathematics.

The researchers assume that some people are more active, some less so, and their model accounts for how these differences may impact disease spread. Their approach permits nuanced modeling of different illnesses  from a highly contagious airborne virus such as influenza, which moves quickly among people with high mobility but is limited by those who seclude themselves, to a virus like HIV, which has a long latency period and slower transmission rate.

"The way I move is the way I catch a disease," said Porfiri. "We're changing the point of view from which we start outbreak simulations because we can't understand how a small outbreak evolves into an epidemic without understanding how different people's activity levels help spread it."

Several traditional models assume homogeneity within the community. "It's like sick people are all in a specific place, connecting with a set number of people, and that's not realistic," said Rizzo. "Some people make more connections than others, and the scale of those connections may be comparable to the scale of the disease."

Porfiri and Rizzo explained that traditional simulations use a "discrete time/continuous activity" approach, which typically requires extensive and lengthy simulations. The researchers employ simpler systems of coupled differential equations that allow for the manipulation of factors that can influence disease spread.

This is the first piece of research to emerge from a three-year, $375,000 National Science Foundation grant awarded to the team to study the concurrent evolution of the dynamics of infectious diseases and the networks through which they spread. The research was also funded in part by grants from the U.S. Army Research Office (ARO) and Compagnia di San Paolo.

The team has developed one of the few disease modeling approaches that uses heterogeneities in activity levels as a factor in spreading disease. In experiments to test their model, the team successfully predicted the movement of influenza on a university campus and the spread of a trending topic on Twitter.

"We have infinite possibilities to see the impact of interventions," said Porfiri. "We can understand how vaccines, quarantine, or other parameters influence contagion. Some illnesses catch fire, while others are quashed immediately. This framework allows for analysis of why and how that happens."

In the future, the researchers expect that this model will aid management efforts during an outbreak, including implementing vaccination strategies, evaluating the risks and benefits of travel bans, and gauging the effectiveness of disease prevention campaigns.

Continuous-Time Discrete-Distribution Theory for Activity-Driven Networks, is at http://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.117.228302.

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.

www.facebook.com/nyutandon

@nyupoly

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SOURCE NYU Tandon School of Engineering

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For many health care professionals, trying to keep up with the rapid advances in medicine, drug therapy and research can be challenging. The HIV consult program aims to close that gap for HIV disease management across Michigan.

The program is a partnership between the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and Henry Ford Hospital, a leader in HIV/AIDS treatment and research since the epidemic took hold in the 1980s.

Henry Ford's team of HIV experts assist health care professionals by providing the latest information about HIV disease management, drug therapy, perinatal treatment, exposure, prevention and more, says Norman Markowitz, M.D., an Infectious Diseases physician who leads Henry Ford's HIV team.

Health care professionals who have questions that require immediate attention are to call 313.575.0332. Non-urgent questions are submitted online at www.henryford.com/HIVconsult. Online questions are answered within 24-48 hours.

"As health care professionals, we all strive to provide patients the best care possible," says Dr. Markowitz. "The consult program is a valuable resource for helping our professional colleagues better care for their HIV patients. A lot has changed over the years in HIV care management and we can share the latest best practices."

More than 1.2 million people in the United States are living with HIV, and 1 in 8 of them don't know it, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Between 2005 and 2014, new cases of HIV infection dropped 19 percent. Michigan ranked 16th in the HIV diagnoses in 2013.

HIV, human immunodeficiency virus, can lead to the disease AIDS if left untreated. Advances in antiviral medications have enabled doctors to effectively manage AIDS as a chronic disease and patients with HIV to live a safer, normal life span. Today, many HIV patients take one pill once a day, compared to a multi-drug regimen from just a few years ago. Still, prevention is the best medicine.

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SOURCE Henry Ford Hospital
CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ikonopedia is showcasing its new Closed-Loop Resolution Manager, designed to keep breast imaging patients from falling through the cracks, here at the 102nd Annual Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) meeting, November 27-December 2, 2016. The Ikonopedia Closed-Loop Resolution Manager monitors patients to full resolution of all clinical concerns -- saving valuable time for the radiologist and staff. Ikonopedia will demonstrate the new system at the Konica Minolta booth (South Hall #1919), who is an integration partner.

The Closed-Loop Resolution Manager is designed to know when a patient returns for a follow-up encounter and will close the loop automatically at that time or send an alert if the patient is overdue. Specific reports can be generated to reconcile high-risk patients that have not returned for follow-up.

The Ikonopedia structured reporting system reliably captures pertinent data to meticulously track patients through each stage of the exam process. The MQSA-compliant toolset is targeted and automated to monitor patients in all categories of care. Structured data is captured from the patient questionnaire, risk-assessment, tech report, clinical report, follow-up recommendations and more. Data is monitored to produce automatic warnings and alerts, personalized patient letters along with a detailed report to relay these findings to referring physicians.

"Ikonopedia has a robust breast reporting system at a very reasonable price point and had the ability to work fast and smart to get us operational quickly. With the Closed-Loop Resolution Manager, we can ensure that all women get the appropriate follow-up. That's important to me as a clinician and it's critical to women's peace of mind," said Cheryl Futerman, MD, radiologist, who owns Welch Road Imaging, a free-standing outpatient imaging center in Menlo Park, California.

Ikonopedia provides reporting tools for screening and diagnostic modalities including mammography, ultrasound, and MRI. MQSA audit data is automatically captured in the background and reports are BI-RADS language compliant based on the latest BIRADS Atlas (5th edition). Data is pulled forward from previous exams and our risk-assessment tools including Tyrer Cuzick to automatically alert the radiologist and populate reports for high-risk patients.

Based on its recent analysis of the breast imaging reporting solutions market, Frost & Sullivan recognized Ikonopedia with the 2016 Frost & Sullivan Enabling Technology Leadership Award in the Breast Reporting System Market. Frost & Sullivan recognized Ikonopedia for its innovative approach to breast imaging reporting, which has not only helped mammography centers optimize patient and referring physician reporting, but also to implement individualized patient risk assessment tools.

About Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc.

Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc. is a world-class provider and market leader in medical diagnostic imaging and healthcare information technology. With over 75 years of endless innovation, Konica Minolta is globally recognized as a leader providing cutting-edge technologies and comprehensive support aimed at providing real solutions to meet customer's needs. Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc., headquartered in Wayne, NJ, is a unit of Konica Minolta, Inc. (TSE: 4902). For more information on Konica Minolta Healthcare Americas, Inc., please visit www.konicaminolta.com/medicalusa.

About Ikonopedia

Ikonopedia was founded by three expert breast imaging Radiologists: Laszlo Tabar, MD is the author of six books in 10 languages on mammography and a world renowned educator; A. Thomas Stavros, MD is the author of one of the most popular reference books in the field of breast ultrasound; and Michael J. Vendrell, MD is an expert in breast MRI and CAD design with extensive experience in breast-imaging software. For more information, visit www.ikonopedia.com.

SOURCE Ikonopedia

Related Links

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SANTIAGO, Chile, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- On November 23, at the APEC CBET Workshop in Santiago, Chile, experts from leading B2B cross-border e-commerce firm DHgate.com, global communications giant Tencent, international payment service provider UnionPay, and successful e-commerce entrepreneurs introduced 300 Chilean MSMEs (micro-small-and-medium sized enterprises) to the cross-border e-commerce industry ecosystem and value chain, in order to provide Chilean MSMEs with a better understanding of the opportunities and disruptive impact of cross-border e-commerce, and new technologies in the areas of internet financing, payments, and social commerce they can leverage to run and grow their businesses.

APEC CBET Chile

During the workshop, the industry experts explained the roles of marketing, payments, customer service, trust and safety, logistics, internet finance, and all other components of the industry ecosystem in cross-border e-commerce. The APEC CBET Chile workshop not only included speakers from DHgate.com, Tencent, and UnionPay, but also local leaders such as the Executive Director of the Chile Pacific Foundation Loreto Leyton, the Director of the Santiago Chamber of Commerce George Lever, the Chief of Staff for the Trade Minister of Chile Nicolas Shubert.

Tencent

Vice President of Tencent Qidian Wang Xiangyu discussed social commerce, which is the use of social channels to facilitate commerce and transactions, and the way it is changing the way international and domestic business communications alike are realized. Mr. Xiangyu explained to the audience, "Digitalization has accelerated globalization and has already changed the way we communicate, most people already use mobile, Tencent has expertise in this area and would like to help all of you to improve efficiency and grow your network." DHgate and Tencent Qidian are currently co-developing a next generation social commerce app together.

UnionPay

The head of Union Pay Chile, Chen Jianpeng explained the new financial services available that are specifically designed for MSMEs to utilize for cross-border e-commerce business. He explained how MSMEs should take advantage of the availability of short-term financing in order to scale up their digital trade businesses, "UnionPay is seeking to help MSMEs with our many new and innovative internet finance service products, and worldwide online payment methods. These alternative payment and financing methods are becoming more and more popular, and this trend is reshaping people's lives and the way we run businesses."

Successful Cross-Border E-commerce Seller Case Study

Successful DHgate.com seller and General Manager of BabyOnline, Ms. Shen Min, explained how her life has been changed thanks to DHgate.com, which allowed her to start a small business when she was only in her 20's, and then scale it up in size until she became a top seller, without having to sacrifice time with her children. In just four years of development, her company's annual sales are over 1.4 million US dollars, her business covers over 200 markets, has its own factory, and needs only 70 employees to operate. 60% of her orders come from the United States, Canada, and Australia.

APEC CBET

The APEC CBET program is a worldwide recognized cross-border e-commerce capacity building program for MSMEs supported by DHgate.com, and has been endorsed by APEC since 2013. APEC CBET seeks to provide MSMEs with the necessary training they need to go global, and have trained thousands of MSMEs throughout the APEC region. Workshops have been increasing in frequency since an official report was released by the USC Marshall School of Business funded by APEC that stated 73% of APEC economies indicated that cross-border e-commerce will be the next disruptive force on their economies. APEC CBET was recently featured in a policy paper to economic leaders at the G20 Hangzhou in September as a potential solution for empowering global MSMEs to access global markets.

ABOUT DHgate

DHgate.com is the first to market and the biggest B2B transactional cross-border e-commerce marketplace in China, aiming to provide global buyers with quality products at competitive prices. Founded in 2004, DHgate.com has approximately 10 million global buyers from 230 countries and regions, with 1.4 million global sellers offering 40 million products. DHgate.com's business enables buyers to directly access global manufacturers of the world's top brands with rich product selections. DHgate.com is an all-in-one platform with integrated services for international logistics, cross-border payments, internet financing, etc. DHgate.com's US, UK, Spain, and UAE product distribution warehouses allow for 24 hour delivery and convenient product returns & refunds, bringing great convenience to buyers at http://www.dhgate.com.

SOURCE DHGate.com

Related Links

http://www.dhgate.com


Habitat Humanitarians is launching on Giving Tuesday as a reminder of the important contributions an individual can make in improving our world. On #GivingTuesday and through the holiday season, join the Habitat Humanitarians by pledging support of Habitat's work in helping families in need of affordable homes .

"Habitat Humanitarians honors influencers and ambassadors who exemplify extraordinary dedication to service in alignment with Habitat's vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live," said Jonathan Reckford, CEO, Habitat for Humanity International. "President and Mrs. Carter, Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood have been dedicated volunteers and passionate voices on behalf of Habitat about the issue of affordable housing, and we are excited to celebrate their longtime support and service in this unique way."

Country music stars and longtime Habitat volunteers Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood have volunteered with Habitat for more than a decade. They first volunteered together with Habitat in New Orleans to help build the 1,000th and 1,001st post-Hurricane Katrina Habitat for Humanity home on the Gulf Coast. Brooks and Yearwood have lent their names and support to numerous Habitat events and projects, including the Carter Work Project and National Women Build Week.



"Garth and I are honored to be named Habitat Humanitarians, alongside President and Mrs. Carter," said Yearwood. "We have had the privilege of building Habitat houses with the Carters and Habitat homeowners and countless volunteers over the past 10 years. This important work offers a hand up to those in need of a decent place to call home and transforms the lives of all who touch it. We are proud to be able to do our part."

"Rosalynn and I couldn't think of anyone more deserving of this honor than our dear friends Trisha and Garth," said Carter. "We are pleased to congratulate them and look forward to working with them next July during the Carter Work Project in Canada."



Since 1984, President and Mrs. Carter have been champions and strong voices for affordable, decent housing for all, donating their time and leadership each year to build and improve homes through Habitat for Humanity's Carter Work Project. Over the course of more than 30 years, they have worked alongside nearly 100,000 volunteers in 14 countries to build, renovate and repair more than 4,000 homes, and inspired millions more through their dedication to the mission.

This holiday season, the public is asked to pledge their support of Habitat's mission. Every contribution can help Habitat homeowners build the strength, stability and independence they need to build a better life for themselves and their families.

To donate, visit habitat.org/GivingTuesday.

About Habitat for Humanity

Driven by the vision that everyone needs a decent place to live, Habitat for Humanity began in 1976 as a grassroots effort on a community farm in southern Georgia. The Christian housing organization has since grown to become a leading global nonprofit working in nearly 1,400 communities throughout the U.S. and in more than 70 countries. Families and individuals in need of a hand up partner with Habitat for Humanity to build or improve a place they can call home. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage. Through financial support, volunteering or adding a voice to support affordable housing, everyone can help families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. Through shelter, we empower. To learn more, visit habitat.org.

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SOURCE Habitat for Humanity International

Related Links

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SHANGHAI, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. ("JinkoSolar" or the "Company") (NYSE: JKS), a global leader in the PV industry, today announced that its Shangrao production facility received IEC TS 62941 photovoltaic industry technical specification certification.

IEC TS 62941 specification was launched in early 2016 and is administered by the International Electro Commission ("IEC") to certify the quality of photovoltaic module manufacturers' management systems. IEC TS 62941 technical certification is based on ISO9001 or equivalent quality management system but adds on a few additional requirements. IEC TS 62941 creates higher industry standards for photovoltaic module product design, development, product certification, process control, key raw material control, procurement, product testing/monitoring, documents and other aspects. TUV NORD, who assessed JinkoSolar as a third party, specifically highlighted the outstanding system planning and organization of JinkoSolar's Shangrao production facility.

"Receiving IEC TS 62941 certification demonstrates the level of quality that JinkoSolar's modules are known for internationally as well as its stringent production standards," commented Mr. Huang Zhongpei, JinkoSolar's Quality Center Vice President. "With this certification, JinkoSolar will be able to continue improving its quality, reliability, service quality and customer satisfaction with standards that are recognized internationally. This creates value for our customers, forms an integral part of our strategy and positively impacts the overall development of JinkoSolar's business."

About JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.



JinkoSolar (NYSE: JKS) is a global leader in the solar industry. JinkoSolar distributes its solar products and sells its solutions and services to a diversified international utility, commercial and residential customer base in China, the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Chile, South Africa, India, Mexico, Brazil, the United Arab Emirates, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, and other countries and regions. JinkoSolar has built a vertically integrated solar product value chain, with an integrated annual capacity of 4.5 GW for silicon ingots and wafers, 3.7 GW for solar cells, and 6.5 GW for solar modules, as of September 30, 2016.

JinkoSolar has over 15,000 employees across its 6 productions facilities in Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Xinjiang Provinces, China, Malaysia, Portugal and South Africa, 16 oversea subsidiaries in Japan (2), Singapore, India, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Spain, United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Australia and South Africa. 18 global sales offices in China (2), United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt, Morocco, Ghana, Kenya, Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico.

To find out more, please see: www.jinkosolar.com

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute "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, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends, "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Among other things, the quotations from management in this press release and the Company's operations and business outlook, contain forward-looking statements. Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in JinkoSolar's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:

Mr. Sebastian Liu

JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.

Tel: +86 21-5183-3056

Email: [email protected]

Mr. Christian Arnell

Christensen, Beijing

Tel: +86 10 5900 2940

Email: [email protected]

In the U.S.:

Ms. Linda Bergkamp

Christensen, Scottsdale, Arizona

Tel: +1-480-614-3004

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.
"Town & Country Village is an excellent space for a J.McLaughlin store as the company continues to build national name recognition while maintaining its standing as a neighborhood store. With quaint shops, not to mention a local cobbler, barber and a bespoke stationery studio, Town & Country Village has that quintessential neighborhood atmosphere that the brand values. We hope to become a regular stop for locals and visitors alike," says CEO Mary Ellen Coyne.

"We are thrilled to be opening another location in Texas and our 113th location nationwide. The store will be chock full of our Holiday and Resort collection which features festive printed tees, cashmere cardigans perfect for travel, and statement dresses. The assortment should blend nicely with the lifestyle of the Texas customer," says Creative Director and Co-Founder Kevin McLaughlin.

To further celebrate and support the opening of the new store, J.McLaughlin will host an opening event on Tuesday, November 29th. Proceeds from the event will benefit Stages Repertory Theater, a nonprofit professional theater with deep roots in the Houston Community.

The design of the West Houston store will feature all of the elements that classify the trademark J.McLaughlin vibe, an inviting feeling with distinctive details, furnishings and decor. In keeping with the colorful palette and cheeky details of the brand, the interior of this store is decorated in strong shades of green and blue complemented by boxwood plants and a unique woodgrain wallpaper. The 1,417 square foot store is located in Town & Country Village at 600 West Sam Houston North Parkway and will feature a full assortment of women's and men's clothing and accessories. The West Houston store marks the 5th location in Texas and brings J.McLaughlin's retail portfolio to 113 stores.

ABOUT J.MCLAUGHLIN

J.McLaughlin was founded by two brothers, Kevin and Jay McLaughlin, in 1977. Their goal was to create a new American sportswear brand based in New York and built on several basic concepts: classic clothes with current relevance, sold in a friendly retail environment that has a neighborhood feel. With over 100 retail locations, J.McLaughlin occupies some of the most picturesque main-street real estate in America.

True to the vision of the McLaughlin brothers, the stores have a warmly residential feel and exemplary customer service. "Being a good neighbor" is central to the brand's approach to business, and J.McLaughlin values being a welcome and active member of each community in which it operates. The company also operates a fully responsive digital flagship at www.jmclaughlin.com. The company is headquartered in Brooklyn, New York.

An American Original since 1977.

Media Contact:

Anna Meacham

J.McLaughlin

718.532.9075

[email protected]

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SOURCE J.McLaughlin

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BOSTON, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- John Hancock Investments has named Luji Brock and Brad Feeley as new members of its institutional sales team. Ms. Brock, CMFC, AIF, is a managing director supporting the firm's UCITS business, while Mr. Feeley is managing director and ETF Specialist.

Ms. Brock, based in Houston, joined John Hancock one year ago as a vice president and strategic relationship manager for the firm's Retirement Plan Services business. Previously she served as the UCITS sales specialist for Eaton Vance. She reports to Todd Cassler, president of institutional distribution.

"We're confident Luji will be a vital resource for our UCITS business," said Mr. Cassler. "She will primarily focus on decision makers within Latin American-focused private banks, RIAs, and wealth management firms. We're pleased to welcome her to John Hancock Investments."

Mr. Feeley, based in Chicago, is focused on retail and institutional channels at John Hancock Investments, acting in a specialist capacity with existing salespeople as well as covering ETF-centric firms directly. Most recently he was with Guggenheim Investments, where he sold UITs and ETFs in the Midwest region across a range of channels. Prior to that, he was with Invesco in various roles. He reports to Michelle Fuller, managing director, ETF distribution.

"Brad's expertise will prove valuable to us as we continue to build out our ETF product line amid the strong momentum we've already created for this business," said Ms. Fuller. "We're delighted to have him join our team."

About John Hancock Investments

John Hancock has helped individuals and institutions build and protect wealth since 1862. Today, we are one of America's strongest and most-recognized brands. As a manager of managers, John Hancock Investments searches the world to find proven portfolio teams with specialized expertise for every fund we offer, then we apply vigorous investment oversight to ensure they continue to meet our uncompromising standards and serve the best interests of our shareholders. Our unique approach to asset management has led to a diverse set of investments deeply rooted in investor needs, along with strong risk-adjusted returns across asset classes.

About John Hancock Financial and Manulife

John Hancock Financial is a division of Manulife, a leading Canada-based financial services group with principal operations in Asia, Canada, and the United States. Operating as Manulife in Canada and Asia, and primarily as John Hancock in the United States, our group of companies offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents, and distribution partners. Assets under management and administration by Manulife and its subsidiaries were CAD$966 billion (US$862 billion) as of September 30, 2016. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as MFC on the TSX, NYSE, and PSE, and under 945 on the SEHK. Manulife can be found at manulife.com.

The John Hancock unit, through its insurance companies, comprises one of the largest life insurers in the United States. John Hancock offers and administers a broad range of financial products, including life insurance, annuities, investments, 401(k) plans, long-term care insurance, college savings, and other forms of business insurance. Additional information about John Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.

Investing involves risks, including the potential loss of principal. There is no guarantee that a fund's investment strategy will be successful. John Hancock Multifactor ETF shares are bought and sold at market price (not NAV), and are not individually redeemed from the fund. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns.



Dimensional Fund Advisors LP receives compensation from John Hancock in connection with licensing rights to the John Hancock Dimensional indexes. Neither John Hancock Advisers, LLC nor Dimensional Fund Advisors LP guarantees the accuracy and/or completeness of an index (each an underlying index) or any data included therein, and neither John Hancock Advisers, LLC nor Dimensional Fund Advisors LP shall have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions therein. Neither John Hancock Advisers, LLC nor Dimensional Fund Advisors LP makes any warranty, express or implied, as to results to be obtained by a fund, owners of the shares of a fund, or any other person or entity from the use of an underlying index, trading based on an underlying index, or any data included therein, either in connection with a fund or for any other use. Neither John Hancock Advisers, LLC nor Dimensional Fund Advisors LP makes any express or implied warranties, and expressly disclaims all warranties, of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose or use with respect to an underlying index or any data included therein. Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall either John Hancock Advisers, LLC or Dimensional Fund Advisors LP have any liability for any special, punitive, direct, indirect, or consequential damages, including lost profits, arising out of matters relating to the use of an underlying index, even if notified of the possibility of such damages.

A fund's investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses should be considered carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other important information about the fund. To obtain a prospectus, contact your financial professional, call John Hancock Investments at 800-225-5291, or visit our website at jhinvestments.com/etf. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing or sending money.

John Hancock ETFs are distributed by Foreside Fund Services, LLC, and are subadvised by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP. Foreside is not affiliated with John Hancock Funds, LLC or Dimensional Fund Advisors LP.



MF334126

SOURCE John Hancock Investments

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GARY, Ind., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Indiana, known as the Crossroads of America, ranks #1 in the country for the number of pass-thru highways. Each year, 724 million tons of freight move through the state. Indiana also ranks #1 for the shortest distance to the median center of the US population, affording access to most of the US in less than 24 hours. This central location is the primary reason companies like Kaplan Trucking invest in the State.

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Kaplan Trucking has been an industry leader in steel transport since 1934. In 2014, seeking to improve their original 3,900 SF Gary, IN facilities, Kaplan Trucking retained LEE Companies, Commercial Construction Managers, to oversee the expansion. LEE Companies carefully phased and scheduled the expansion so that business was never interrupted and continued daily throughout the entire process. The renovation doubled the site parking capacity and transformed the facility's interior from a congested space into a highly organized open-concept office. The updated state-of-the-art 7,600SF terminal is contemporary, light-filled, and perfectly aligned to the daily workflow of employees, drivers, and guests. The modern minimalist exterior features steel siding, perfect for the steel city.

LEE Companies is currently assisting Kaplan is in another improvement to their Northwest Indiana terminal - 50 dedicated circuits for semis. This effort, commonly called shore power, allows truck drivers access to power without the traditional idling. Shore power is estimated to save up $3/hour and ultimately means lower fuel and maintenance costs in addition to quieter, cleaner air. This measure is both environmentally and economically sound, while keeping driver comfort and retention at the forefront.

"Dave Ferrante and his team at Kaplan Trucking exemplify the highest levels of corporate citizenship and it's been a pleasure working with them to improve their facility in Gary and the environment in general," said Patrick Lee, president of LEE Companies.

Kaplan Trucking's Gary location, just east of Chicago, close to 4 major interstates, mere miles from the port of Indiana and the Gary International Airport, truly exemplifies Indiana's nickname: the Crossroads of America.

LEE Companies http://www.leecompanies.net/, is a Gary based Project and Construction Management firm that has been minimizing costs, maximizing quality and optimizing schedules for its clients for over forty years. LEE Companies has designed, engineered, renovated or constructed hundreds of buildings, from industrial facilities and airplane hangars, to charter schools and custom homes.

Media Contact:

Patrick Lee

[email protected]

(219) 938-8829

SOURCE LEE Companies

Related Links

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TOKYO, Japan and PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Komazawa University and Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR) today announced a new advanced radiotherapy education center in Japan. Located on the Komazawa campus in Tokyo, the education center is equipped with a fully functional Varian TrueBeam medical linear accelerator and offers hands-on educational courses for medical professionals and students on the planning and delivery of advanced radiotherapy for the treatment of cancer.

The goal of the educational courses is to enhance the knowledge and skills of health professionals on the delivery of radiotherapy using Varian technology, as well as establish standards for radiotherapy education at Komazawa University. The educational courses will utilize the TrueBeam system integrated with the company's suite of oncology and radiotherapy software, including Eclipse treatment planning system, and ARIA oncology information system.

"With the increasing number of cancer cases in Japan, it is critical to increase the number of skilled professionals who can deliver radiotherapy treatments at a high standard," said Masao Hoshina, Professor at Faculty of Health Science. "By collaborating with Varian on this radiotherapy education center, we have the opportunity to expand the pool of qualified professionals and maximize the use of this important technology in the fight against cancer."

"We are honored to collaborate with Komazawa University on this new advanced radiotherapy education center," said Mitchell Silong, managing director Oncology Systems Japan at Varian. "The goal of the center is to help medical professionals enhance patient care with expanded educational programs on the use of radiotherapy and radiosurgery in the treatment of cancer."

Varian's TrueBeam family of medical linear accelerators incorporate numerous technical innovations that dynamically synchronize imaging, patient positioning, motion management, and treatment delivery during a radiotherapy or radiosurgery procedure.

About Varian Medical Systems

Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, focuses energy on saving lives by equipping the world with advanced technology for fighting cancer and for X-ray imaging. The company is the world's leading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiation. The company provides comprehensive solutions for radiotherapy, radiosurgery, proton therapy and brachytherapy. The company supplies informatics software for managing comprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centers and medical oncology practices. Varian is also a premier supplier of X-ray imaging components, including tubes, digital detectors, cables and connectors as well as image processing software and workstations for use in medical and industrial settings, as well as for security and non-destructive testing. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 7,700 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America, Europe, and China and sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com or follow us on Twitter.

About Komazawa University

Komazawa University School Corporation has established two universities (Komazawa University and Tomakomai Komazawa University) and two affiliated high schools (Komazawa University Senior High School and Komazawa University Tomakomai High School), at which a fully-rounded academic program is provided and a wide array of research is undertaken. The program and research are based on an academic doctrine expressed as "Gyougaku Ichinyo", meaning "the Fusion of Study and Practice", which is a set of principles grounded in the teachings of Buddha and the spirit of Zen.

Komazawa University is a private university with over 420 years of proud history and rich tradition including an earlier period as a traditional institution of higher learning and over 130 years since its transformation into a modern university in 1882. Currently 15,500 students study in its seven faculties and eight graduate schools, including the Faculty of Health Sciences which provides training to clinical radiologists. The fundamental philosophy of the university is encapsulated in the"Gyougaku Ichinyo" doctrine, that is, "oneness of study and practice". Gyou and gaku refer to practice and study, respectively. These two elements are considered essential to academic research, as they are inseparable in high-minded Buddhist ethics, that is, it behooves the student to make efforts to develop his or her own character as well as have an unwavering commitment to academic research. The development of one's own character relies on having an acute insight into the present without unthinkingly following the trends of the times, choosing the path that is right for oneself as well as gaining knowledge and skills, while obtaining the certifications that are necessary for one's career. This unremitting effort in the development of one's own character is the ideal model of education that Komazawa University advocates. The most appealing feature of the comprehensive education that Komazawa University has to offer is that all of the school's faculties are located within the same campus, assuring the student exposure to a wide variety of disciplines and access to a broad array of research. For further details, please visit https://www.komazawa-u.ac.jp/.

Press Contact

Mark Plungy

Varian Medical Systems

+1 (650) 424-5630

[email protected]

Public Affairs Office, General Affairs Dept.

Komazawa University

+81 (3) 3418-9828

[email protected]

SOURCE Varian Medical Systems

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http://www.varian.com


The Kuwaiti cabinet on Monday submitted its resignation to the emir of the oil-rich Gulf state following snap parliamentary polls, an official statement said.

The move falls in line with the emirate's constitution which requires the cabinet to step down after polls.

After accepting the resignation, Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah will either reappoint the outgoing premier, Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah, or name another senior member of the ruling family to form a cabinet.

The new cabinet must be formed before parliament holds its first session within the next two weeks.

The election on Saturday saw the Islamist-dominated opposition win nearly half of the 50-seat parliament after it ended a four-year boycott and took part in the polls.

Analysts predict the return of political disputes in parliament unless the ruling family-led government succeeds in cooperating with the opposition.

Around half of the opposition candidates who won seats are Islamists from a Muslim Brotherhood-linked group and Salafists.

The emir dissolved the previous parliament due to a dispute over hiking petrol prices.

But a majority of the elected MPs have openly said they would oppose any austerity measures by the government to boost non-oil income.

Voters dealt a heavy blow to candidates from the outgoing parliament, with more than half of them failing to win seats in the new assembly.

Only one woman was elected and Kuwait's Shiite Muslim minority was reduced to six seats from nine in the previous house.

Unlike other Arab states in the Gulf, Kuwait has an elected parliament with powers to hold ministers to account, even though senior members of the ruling family hold all the top cabinet posts.

The election came as Kuwait faces its most acute budget crisis in years. Oil income, which accounts for 95 percent of government revenues, has nosedived by 60 percent in the past two years.

The OPEC member which pumps 3.0 million barrels per day of oil posted its first budget deficit of $15 billion last year following 16 years of surpluses.

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At more than 20,000 square feet, the LAX United Club is one of the airline's largest and most stylish. The location features a gourmet kitchen and bar offering expanded food and beverage options, seating areas conducive to working and lounging and spectacular views of the airport, the Hollywood Hills and the Los Angles skyline. The design also takes advantage of the city's gorgeous year-round weather, with a spacious and scenic outdoor terrace where customers can relax with a cocktail or a meal alfresco.

To download high-resolution renderings of the new United Club at LAX, visit the airline's newsroom at http://newsroom.unitedcontinentalholdings.com/LAXenhancements.

"When you think of Los Angeles, you think of glamour and sophistication, and this new United Club certainly reflects that," said Julia Haywood, the airline's executive vice president and chief commercial officer. "LAX is a key piece of our global route network, and we're incredibly proud that it will house one of our finest United Clubs. Aesthetically, it's unlike any other, with panoramic views of the city and an outdoor terrace. These unique amenities  along with fresh food, wine menus, craft cocktails and, most importantly, exceptional service and hospitality for our customers  will elevate the entire experience to something that will truly impress and delight visitors."

United's terminal redevelopment initiative at LAX promises to deliver a superior and reimagined experience to the travelers at LAX, one of the airline's premier West Coast hubs and a key domestic and international gateway. Over the past several months, United has opened a new economy lobby, new baggage claim areas and, in cooperation with the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA), installed a new security checkpoint complete with five state-of-the-art automated screening lanes to modernize the airport security experience for the airline's customers.

United in Los Angeles

United has proudly served Los Angeles for more than a half century, providing its customers with 150 daily flights from LAX to more than 50 destinations across the globe. With over 5,000 employees throughout the region, United is committed to the Los Angeles community and building a workplace that will help the airline's employees deliver great service to its global customers.

About United

United Airlines and United Express operate more than 4,500 flights a day to 339 airports across five continents. In 2015, United and United Express operated more than 1.5 million flights carrying more than 140 million customers. United is proud to have the world's most comprehensive route network, including U.S. mainland hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. United operates more than 720 mainline aircraft, and this year, the airline anticipates taking delivery of 21 new Boeing aircraft, including 737NGs, 787s and 777s, as well as six used Airbus A319 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of Star Alliance, which provides service to 192 countries via 28 member airlines. For more information, visit united.com, follow @United on Twitter or connect on Facebook. The common stock of United's parent, United Continental Holdings, Inc., is traded on the NYSE under the symbol UAL.

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CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ingenuity has released its annual State of the Arts in Chicago Public Schools report, which reflects an increase in elementary schools meeting weekly instructional minutes and the number of schools Strong or Excelling in the arts across nearly every network. These latest findings make it clear that schools have made significant progress in expanding and incorporating arts in the school day since 2013 when CPS put the Arts Education Plan into action.

"We know that exposure to the arts is just as critical as math and sciences to a 21st century education, which is why we launched the district's first comprehensive arts plan to improve access for students in schools across the city," said Mayor Rahm Emanuel. "Since that time, the arts have become a core component of the school day, helping students excel in their studies overall, while providing them the creative outlet that allows them to realize their full potential."

READ THE FULL REPORT

Arts LiaisonsCPS employees nominated by their principals to be the school's "arts champion"report data which are the basis for their school's Creative Schools Certification rating (a four-point scale from Emerging to Excelling). For example, Excelling schools meet an arts instructor to student ratio of 1:350.

Research shows that in schools with rich arts programs, students have increased attendance and graduation rates, and are more civically involved, and teachers report higher job satisfaction.

IngenuityCPS' non-profit partnerhas garnered national attention for its comprehensive data reporting on arts education resources and implementation in the nation's third largest school district. The fourth year of findings include:

Over 2/3 of CPS students attend a school Strong or Excelling in the arts

On average, 96% of elementary school students had access to arts instruction

96% of schools partnered with at least one community arts partner

"The strength of CPS arts education has helped our students channel their creativity and hone their skills to become the next great creators and innovators," said CPS Chief Education Officer Dr. Janice K. Jackson. "Ingenuity's findings confirm that we are moving in the right direction, and we will continue to seek opportunities to elevate arts education in schools throughout Chicago."

CPS, Ingenuity, and partners use the report to measure the progress of the arts plan, identify areas of improvement, and work with school leaders to expand arts programming. Findings are also used at the network and school level to encourage strategic choices when planning for the arts.

Data was reported through multiple sources, including individual schools and hundreds of community arts partners, all of which feed Ingenuity's artlook Map.

"In our fourth consecutive year of tracking student access to the arts in CPS, we see encouraging progress city-wide," said Paul Sznewajs, Executive Director of Ingenuity. "Six of ten schools are now considered Strong or Excelling in the artsa significant increase from two years ago. There is still work to be done, but this meaningful progress reaffirms an underlying commitment by many CPS principals to the arts."

CPS' Arts Education Plan seeks to improve access to the arts in every school in two ways: designating the arts as a core subject similar to math, science and social studies; and establishing a requirement of two hours per week of arts instruction in every elementary school, made possible by extending the school day under Mayor Emanuel's tenure.

Contact:

AmySue Mertens

312-583-7463

[email protected]

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SOURCE Ingenuity

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WASHINGTON, Nov. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is the letter sent to Politico on November 23rd, which NCRI-US releases publically, since Politico has refused to publish.

Dear Editor, Daniel Benjamin's 3,326-word tirade (Giuliani Took Money From a Group That Killed Americans, Does Trump Care?, Politico Magazine, Nov. 23), is a litany of threadbare, oft-repeated, and long-debunked allegations, originally concocted by the murderous mullahs of Iran, against the main Iranian opposition movement, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (PMOI/MEK).

It amounts to nothing more than a pitiful attempt to overshadow the failure of policy of appeasing the Iranian regime, which is universally condemned as the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism and the leading per capita executioner of its own citizens and for the slaughter of over 100,000 dissidents, including 15-year-old girls and pregnant women.

One is reminded of the infamous saying, "Tell a lie that's big enough and repeat it often enough, and the whole world will believe it."

In the best-case scenario, Mr. Benjamin's hyperbolic regurgitation of a defamatory MEK narrative from his time in office suggests that, unlike policy experts in Washington, he is unaware that these allegations and characterizations have since been refuted in detail by independent research, and formally discredited by successive high judicial investigations. His boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, demonstrated her lack of confidence in Mr. Benjamin's position in 2012 by removing the terrorist designation of the MEK to make US counter-terrorism policy consistent with those of the EU, UK, France, a large bi-partisan group of U.S. Congress members, and many bipartisan senior former leaders whose integrity Mr. Benjamin has impugned. We are left only with the awkward specter of one former official, now in academia promoting his byline, who would profit from studying issues before attempting to write about them.

Indeed, several independent studies make it palpably clear that the MEK had no role in the assassination of US military officers and Pentagon contractors in Iran more than 40 years ago. Neither was it involved in any form or shape in the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran, nor did it take part in the crackdown on Iraqi Kurds or Shiites, and nor did it ever pay any politician. The targets of the MEK's military operations, which the group unilaterally ceased in June 2001, were, according to international law, legitimate military targets, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) whose crimes are only surpassed by the Third Reich, and which is responsible for the death of hundreds of foreign nationals, including Americans.

There was nothing "inexplicable" about Secretary Rumsfeld declaring the MEK members in Camp Ashraf as protected persons in 2004. "A 16-month review by the United States has found no basis to charge members of an Iranian opposition group in Iraq with violations of American law, according to senior American officials," wrote the New York Times.

Contrary to Mr. Benjamin's assertions, the delisting of the MEK was no act of charity. America's second highest court forced Mr. Benjamin's hands. Nor did the MEK's challenge to the designation begin in 2012. Ever since it was blacklisted in 1997, as "a goodwill gesture" to the murderous mullahs of Iran, as acknowledged by Benjamin's colleagues at the time, the MEK challenged its designation.

At the time of MEK's 2008 challenge, Mr. Benjamin's predecessor, Ambassador Dell Dailey urged the Secretary to revoke the designation because it had no basis in fact or law. The call fell on deaf ears as the State Department was contemplating opening a consular office in Tehran at the time, according to the New York Times.

The Court of Appeals finally heard the case and in 2010 unanimously rejected the designation, saying that the Secretary had provided no evidence to justify the decision. But the State Department refused to heed the court's ruling, prompting the MEK to file a writ of mandamus. In their briefs to the court and during the oral hearing, Benjamin and his cohorts vehemently argued against the delisting. The court, of course, felt otherwise, and granted the writ of mandamus, the first since 1803, delivering a sharp rebuke to the State Department, calling its delay "egregious" and ordering it to take action or it would delist.

Ironically, in his many appearances before Congressional hearings, Mr. Benjamin never uttered any of these allegations when grilled by members from both sides of the aisle, because he knew that despite several classified briefings provided to the members on the MEK, Congress strongly rejected MEK's FTO designation, which it viewed as a goodwill gesture to Tehran, as 99 members (52 D and 47 R, including seven committee chairs) called for the group's delisting.

As for the situation at Camp Ashraf, Mr. Benjamin is being disingenuous. In violation of repeated and written commitments to protect the residents of Ashraf, the State Department handed over the control of the Camp to the government of Nuri al-Maliki, a puppet of Tehran. The FTO designation and Mr. Benjamin's unjustifiable foot dragging in complying with the Court of Appeals ruling, set the stage for the Iraqi security forces to launch three deadly assaults on the residents, resulting in the deaths of more than 100 residents and the wounding of over 1,000 more.

Oddly enough, Mr. Benjamin's piece repeats the talking points contained in a letter sent in the same week by an Iranian regime's senior official, Javad Larijani, to Federica Mogherini, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. One wonders about the coincidence!

Mr. Benjamin's remarks are in sharp contrast to Secretary of State John Kerry's views, who lauded the resettlement of all members of "exiled Iranian opposition group, the Mujahedin e-Khalq, or MEK," from Iraq to Europe in September 2016, emphasizing that "their departure concludes a significant American diplomatic initiative that has assured the safety of more than 3,000 MEK members whose lives have been under threatI first became involved in this effort when I was in the Senate  I'm very proud that the United States was able to play a pivotal role in helping to get this job done."

Benjamin fails to refer to what the MEK has done to expose the Iranian regime's terrorism and reveal the Iranian regime's major nuclear sites, which triggered the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) inspections of the uranium enrichment facility in Natanz and Heavy Water Facility in Arak in 2002 for the first time. Since then, the majority of the visits by the IAEA inspection teams have been to the sites first uncovered by the MEK.

Relying on a vast network inside Iran, MEK revelations of the nuclear weapons program significantly contributed to the world peace. If it were not for the MEK nuclear revelations, Tehran would have had the Bomb by now. Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA) told a House Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing "We all owe a debt of gratitude to the MEK for bringing this information to the world, and causing the United States and the world to focus on the problem."

What Mr. Benjamin has tried to overshadow by attacking possible nominees of Mr. Trump and parroting stale and discredited slanders against the MEK, is the stark reality that the American people soundly rejected the policy of giving concessions to the turbaned tyrants of Iran. This policy must change and the Iranian regime must be held to account for the many crimes it has committed against the Iranian people and the international community. This is what Mr. Benjamin and the pro-Tehran lobby are finding very difficult to digest.

Soona Samsami

U.S. Representative,

National Council of Resistance of Iran

CONTACT: Ali Safavi, 202-747-7847, www.ncrius.org

SOURCE National Council of Resistance of Iran-U.S. Representative Office
WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Eisai Inc. announced today the presentation of 12 posters during the 70th annual American Epilepsy Society (AES) Annual Meeting, highlighting data from the company's anti-epileptic drugs FYCOMPA (perampanel) CIII and BANZEL (rufinamide). The studies investigate these two drugs across multiple age groups and types of epilepsy, offering an understanding into therapy for these difficult-to-treat conditions. In addition, data will also be shared by Eisai on the prevalence of epilepsy and the burden on caregivers of those living with epilepsy. AES 2016 will take place at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, TX, from December 2-6.

"These data provide real world insights into the activity of perampanel and rufinamide in potential patients over a wide range of ages," said Lynn Kramer, M.D., Chief Clinical Officer and Chief Medical Officer, Neurology Business Group, Eisai. "Through new and continued research with perampanel and rufinamide, we aim to further educate the epilepsy community about these debilitating diseases."

This release discusses investigational uses for FDA-approved products. It is not intended to convey conclusions about efficacy or safety. There is no guarantee that any investigational uses of such products will successfully complete clinical development or gain FDA approval.

The following data will be presented during poster sessions on Sunday, December 4th through Monday, December 5th:

Poster Title Poster Details (All Times CT) Perampanel Evaluation of Perampanel as Monotherapy for Focal Seizures: Experience from Open-Label Extension Studies This post-hoc analysis evaluated the efficacy and safety of perampanel in seven patients who achieved monotherapy in the open-label extension studies for refractory focal seizures. Poster: 2.189 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Adjunctive Perampanel in Patients with Partial Seizures or Primary Generalized Tonic-Clonic (PGTC) Seizures: Effect of Age at Diagnosis This post-hoc analysis of perampanel Phase III studies evaluated if age at epilepsy onset impacted treatment effect for adjunctive perampanel in partial seizures and Primary Generalized Tonic-Clonic seizures. Poster: 2.190 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 A Systematic Review of Real World Perampanel Treatment Outcomes This systematic review of 9 observational studies and 10 case reports was performed to understand how perampanel performed in the broader epilepsy population. Poster: 2.222 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 An Indirect Treatment Comparison (ITC) of Perampanel versus Brivaracetam in Patients with Partial-Onset Seizures (POS) With or Without Secondary Generalization Using pooled data from Phase III randomized clinical trials, this ITC analysis compared the efficacy and safety of these two treatments. Poster: 2.225 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Long-term efficacy and safety of adjunctive perampanel: pooled analyses of the open-label extension (OLE) studies This post-hoc analyses of pooled long-term efficacy and safety outcomes in patients with generalized tonic-clonic seizures across open-label extension studies of perampanel reports on the long-term adjunctive treatment with perampanel irrespective of prior treatment. Poster: 2.193 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Phase II trials of adjunctive perampanel in Japanese patients with refractory partial-onset seizures, an open-label, ascending-high-dose study (study 231) and long-term extension study (study 233) These studies evaluated the safety and efficacy of perampanel in Japanese patients with refractory partial-onset seizures with or without secondarily generalized seizures. Poster: 2.191 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Adjunctive Perampanel in Patients With Drug-Resistant Partial Seizures With and Without Concurrent VNS Therapy in Phase III Studies This post-hoc analysis reports on the efficacy and safety of perampanel in subjects with drug-resistant partial seizures with and without concurrent vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy from Phase III clinical studies. Poster: 3.238 Date: Monday, December 5 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Health Care Resource Utilization Before and After Perampanel Initiation for the Treatment of Epilepsy in the United States Using a large, nationally representative claims database, this analysis assessed the impact of perampanel on health care resource utilization among people with epilepsy in the U.S. Poster: 3.255 Date: Monday, December 5 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Rufinamide Safety and Cognitive Development Effects of Adjunctive Rufinamide in Pediatric Subjects With Inadequately Controlled Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS): Final Results From Study 303 These results report on the final 2-year safety, tolerability and cognitive data from Study 303, a Phase III, open-label, 2-year study of adjunctive rufinamide (oral suspension) in pediatric subjects aged 1 to <4 years with inadequately controlled Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS). Poster: 3.363 Date: Monday, December 5 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3

Eisai will also present the following posters on the burden of epilepsy on caregivers and the prevalence of epilepsy:

Poster Title Poster Details (All Times CT) The Caregiver's Direct Medical Costs in Epilepsy This health care utilization study analyzed survey responses from 500 caregivers of people with epilepsy and estimated their associated direct medical costs. Poster: 2.338 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Estimating the Economic Burden of Caregiving in Epilepsy This healthcare utilization study analyzed survey responses from 500 caregivers of people with epilepsy and estimated the economic impact of epilepsy for caregivers, both in terms of increased health care utilization costs and work productivity losses. Poster: 2.335 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3 Racial Differences in the Incidence and Prevalence of Epilepsy in United States Veteran Population Using the Veteran's Health Administration (VHA) Medical SAS data set, the goal of this epidemiological study was to determine the incidence and prevalence rates of epilepsy in the U.S. veteran population across various racial groups. Poster: 2.332 Date: Sunday, December 4 Time: 12-2 PM Location: Hall A, Level 3

About Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a medical condition that produces seizures affecting a variety of mental and physical functions. According to the Institute of Medicine, epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, which affects 2.9 million people in the United States. Partial-onset seizures are the most common type of seizure seen in people with epilepsy, accounting for 60 percent of all seizures. Generalized seizures account for approximately 40 percent of all epilepsy, with primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures being one of the most common and severe forms of generalized seizures. Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome is diagnosed in more than 30,000 children and adults in the United States.

About FYCOMPA (perampanel)

FYCOMPA (perampanel) is indicated as adjunctive therapy for the treatment of partial-onset seizures with or without secondarily generalized seizures and primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures in patients with epilepsy 12 years of age and older.

FYCOMPA is an oral medication and is a selective, non-competitive AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid) receptor antagonist. The precise mechanism by which FYCOMPA exerts its antiepileptic effects in humans is unknown.

FYCOMPA has been designated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as a federally-controlled substance (CIII).

Important Safety Information for FYCOMPA (perampanel) CIII

WARNING: SERIOUS PSYCHIATRIC AND BEHAVIORAL REACTIONS  Serious or life-threatening psychiatric and behavioral adverse reactions including aggression, hostility, irritability, anger, and homicidal ideation and threats have been reported in patients taking FYCOMPA



 These reactions occurred in patients with and without prior psychiatric history, prior aggressive behavior, or concomitant use of medications associated with hostility and aggression



 Advise patients and caregivers to contact a healthcare provider immediately if any of these reactions or changes in mood, behavior, or personality that are not typical for the patient are observed while taking FYCOMPA or after discontinuing FYCOMPA

Serious Psychiatric and Behavioral Reactions

In the partial-onset seizures clinical trials, hostility- and aggression-related adverse reactions occurred in 12% and 20% of patients randomized to receive FYCOMPA at doses of 8 mg and 12 mg per day, respectively, compared to 6% of patients in the placebo group. These effects were dose-related and generally appeared within the first 6 weeks of treatment, although new events continued to be observed through more than 37 weeks. These effects in FYCOMPA-treated patients led to dose reduction, interruption, and discontinuation more frequently than placebo-treated patients. The combination of alcohol and FYCOMPA significantly worsened mood and increased anger. Homicidal ideation and/or threat have also been reported postmarketing in patients treated with FYCOMPA. Patients taking FYCOMPA should avoid the use of alcohol. Patients, their caregivers, and families should be informed that FYCOMPA may increase the risk of psychiatric events. Patients should be monitored during treatment and for at least one month after the last dose of FYCOMPA, and especially when taking higher doses and during the initial few weeks of drug therapy (titration period) or at other times of dose increases. Similar serious psychiatric and behavioral events were observed in the primary generalized tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizure clinical trial.

Suicidal Behavior and Ideation

Antiepileptic drugs (AEDs), including FYCOMPA, increase the risk of suicidal thoughts or behavior in patients. Anyone considering prescribing FYCOMPA or any other AED must balance the risk of suicidal thoughts or behavior with the risk of untreated illness. Epilepsy and many other illnesses for which AEDs are prescribed are themselves associated with morbidity and mortality and an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior. Patients, their caregivers, and families should be informed of the risk and advised to monitor and immediately report the emergence or worsening of depression, suicidal thoughts or behavior, thoughts about self-harm and/or any unusual changes in mood or behavior. Should suicidal thoughts and behavior emerge during treatment, consider whether the emergence of these symptoms in any given patient may be related to the illness being treated.

Dizziness and Gait Disturbance

FYCOMPA caused dose-related increases in events related to dizziness and disturbance in gait or coordination. Dizziness and vertigo were reported in 35% and 47% of patients in the partial-onset seizure trials randomized to receive FYCOMPA at doses of 8 mg and 12 mg per day, respectively, compared to 10% of placebo-treated patients. Gait disturbance related events were reported in 12% and 16% of patients in the partial-onset seizure clinical trials randomized to receive FYCOMPA at doses of 8 mg and 12 mg per day, respectively, compared to 2% of placebo-treated patients. These adverse reactions occurred mostly during the titration phase. These adverse reactions were also observed in the PGTC seizure clinical trial.

Somnolence and Fatigue

FYCOMPA caused dose-dependent increases in somnolence and fatigue-related events. Somnolence was reported in 16% and 18% of patients in the partial-onset seizure trials randomized to receive FYCOMPA at doses of 8 mg and 12 mg per day, respectively, compared to 7% of placebo patients. Fatigue-related events were reported in 12% and 15% of patients in the partial-onset seizure trials randomized to receive FYCOMPA at doses of 8 mg and 12 mg per day, respectively, compared to 5% of placebo patients. These adverse reactions occurred mostly during the titration phase. These adverse reactions were also observed in the PGTC seizure clinical trial. Patients should be advised against engaging in hazardous activities requiring mental alertness, such as operating motor vehicles or dangerous machinery, until the effect of FYCOMPA is known.

Falls

Falls were reported in 5% and 10% of patients in the partial-onset seizure clinical trials randomized to receive FYCOMPA at doses of 8 mg and 12 mg per day, respectively, compared to 3% of placebo-treated patients.

Withdrawal of AEDs

A gradual withdrawal is generally recommended with AEDs to minimize the potential of increased seizure frequency, but if withdrawal is a response to adverse events, prompt withdrawal can be considered.

Most Common Adverse Reactions

The most common adverse reactions in patients receiving FYCOMPA (5% and 1% higher than placebo) include dizziness, somnolence, fatigue, irritability, falls, nausea, weight gain, vertigo, ataxia, headache, vomiting, contusion, abdominal pain, and anxiety.

Drug Interactions

FYCOMPA may decrease the efficacy of contraceptives containing levonorgestrel. Plasma levels of FYCOMPA were decreased when administered with carbamazepine, phenytoin, or oxcarbazepine. Concomitant use of FYCOMPA with other strong CYP3A inducers (e.g., rifampin, St. John's wort) should be avoided. Multiple dosing of FYCOMPA 12 mg per day enhanced the effects of alcohol on vigilance and alertness, and increased levels of anger, confusion, and depression. These effects may also be seen when FYCOMPA is used in combination with other CNS depressants.

Pregnancy and Lactation

Physicians are advised to recommend that pregnant patients taking FYCOMPA enroll in the North American Antiepileptic Drug (NAAED) Pregnancy Registry. Caution should be exercised when FYCOMPA is administered to pregnant or nursing women as there are no adequate data on the developmental risk associated with use in pregnant women, and no data on the presence of perampanel in human milk, the effects on the breastfed child, or the effects of the drug on milk production.

Hepatic and Renal Impairment

Use in patients with severe hepatic or severe renal impairment is not recommended. Dosage adjustments are recommended in patients with mild or moderate hepatic impairment. Use with caution in patients with moderate renal impairment.

Drug Abuse and Dependence

FYCOMPA is a Schedule III controlled substance and has the potential to be abused and lead to drug dependence.

Please see accompanying Full Prescribing Information for FYCOMPA (perampanel), including Boxed WARNING.

You are encouraged to report side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch or call 1800FDA1088.

About BANZEL (rufinamide)

BANZEL (rufinamide) is an anti-epileptic drug indicated for adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) in children 1 year and older and adults. BANZEL is a triazole derivative that is structurally unrelated to currently marketed antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). The clinical significance of this structural difference has not been established. It is believed to exert its effect by regulating the activity of sodium channels in the brain which carry excessive electrical charges that may cause seizures.

BANZEL is currently available in 200 and 400 mg tablets and in a 40 mg/mL oral suspension formula for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) in children 1 year and older and adults. It has been on the market since its FDA approval on November 14, 2008.

Important Safety Information for BANZEL (rufinamide)

Contraindication:

BANZEL is contraindicated in patients with Familial Short QT syndrome.

Warnings:

AEDs increase the risk of suicidal thoughts or behavior in patients. Patients, their caregivers, and families should be informed of the risk and advised to monitor and report any emergence or worsening of depression, suicidal thoughts or behavior, or any unusual changes in mood or behavior, or thoughts of self-harm. If these symptoms occur, consider if it may be related to the AED or illness because epilepsy itself can increase these risks.

Use of BANZEL has been associated with central nervous systemrelated adverse reactions, such as somnolence or fatigue, coordination abnormalities, dizziness, gait disturbances, and ataxia.

Precautions:

Formal cardiac ECG studies demonstrated shortening of the QT interval (mean = 20 msec, for doses  2400 mg twice daily) with BANZEL. Caution should be used when administering BANZEL with other drugs that shorten the QT interval.

Multi-organ hypersensitivity syndrome has been reported in association with BANZEL therapy. In clinical trials, hypersensitivity reactions occurred in children less than 12 years of age and within 4 weeks of starting BANZEL therapy. In addition, rare cases of Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms and Stevens-Johnson syndrome have been reported in association with rufinamide therapy post marketing. If any of these reactions are suspected, BANZEL should be discontinued and alternative treatment started. All patients who develop a rash while taking BANZEL must be closely supervised.

As with all AEDs, BANZEL should be gradually withdrawn to minimize the risk of increased seizure frequency.

Adverse reactions:

In the pooled, double-blind, adjunctive therapy studies in adults and pediatric patients ages 4 and older, the most commonly observed (10%) adverse reactions with BANZEL vs placebo, respectively, were headache (25% vs 20%), dizziness (17% vs 10%), fatigue (15% vs 9%), somnolence (13% vs 9%), and nausea (11% vs 7%).

In a multicenter, parallel group, open-label study in pediatric patients (1 year to less than 4 years of age) the most commonly observed (10%) adverse reactions and with a higher frequency with BANZEL vs any other AED, respectively, were vomiting (24% vs 9%), somnolence (16% vs 0% ), constipation (12% vs 9%), cough (12% vs 9%), bronchitis (12% vs 0%), rash (12% vs 9%), and decreased appetite (12% vs 9%).

Please see the BANZEL Full Prescribing Information

About Eisai Inc.

At Eisai Inc., human health care (hhc) is our goal. We give our first thoughts to patients and their families, and helping to increase the benefits health care provides. As the U.S. pharmaceutical subsidiary of Tokyo-based Eisai Co., Ltd., we have a passionate commitment to patient care that is the driving force behind our efforts to discover and develop innovative therapies to help address unmet medical needs.

Eisai is a fully integrated pharmaceutical business that operates in two global business groups: oncology and neurology (dementia-related diseases and neurodegenerative diseases). Each group functions as an end-to-end global business with discovery, development, and marketing capabilities. Our U.S. headquarters, commercial and clinical development organizations are located in New Jersey; our discovery labs are in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania; and our global demand chain organization resides in Maryland and North Carolina. To learn more about Eisai Inc., please visit us at www.eisai.com/US.

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SOURCE Eisai Inc.

Related Links

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The course is part of the NYU ABILITY Project, which brings together engineers, designers, scientists, educators, speech and occupational therapists, and individuals with disabilities. The program is one of the many ways in which the NYU Tandon School of Engineering uses technology in service to society.

Described by Indiewire as "an empathy engine," the film illustrates the trajectory of personal growth and bonding that these first-time filmmakers experience in the classroom and beyond. A Q&A session will take place after the screening and will include remarks from Goldstein, NYU Tandon Professor and Co-Founder of the NYU Ability Project R. Luke DuBois, and "The Ability Exchange" Director Bing Wang; Dean Katepalli Sreenivasan will introduce the film. Victor Calise, Commissioner of the New York City Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities, will moderate the session.

"At NYU Tandon, a long standing dictum has been that Man is one with Nature, from which flows the ideal that one must use one's technical and scientific knowledge for the benefit of humankind," Sreenivasan said. "The Ability Project and our Disabilities Studies course ensure we are cultivating the character of students as well as their technical knowledge in their chosen field. We are pleased to welcome Director Wang and to invite all New Yorkers and their friends to share the insights he gleaned from Allan Goldstein's life-affirming course."

Goldstein is a faculty member in the Technology, Culture and Society Department at NYU Tandon. He helped establish the Disabilities Studies minor, a cross-school, interdisciplinary program intended to educate students about the historical, social, and legal circumstances that shape the experience of disability  and help them discover ways in which they can put their engineering knowledge to use in the field. His is one of three core courses for the new minor.

"As an educator, it's very rewarding to see how the students change throughout the semester," said Goldstein. "This heartwarming film captures that transformation and showcases just some of the pedagogy that makes a Tandon education unique. Viewers will see a different side of engineering students and self-advocates living with cerebral palsy." The film documents how students work together with consultants from United Cerebral Palsy of New York City throughout a semester that often transforms their lives.

Bing Wang produced, directed, shot, and edited the film, which takes place in an intimate class setting at NYU Tandon and NYU's Media and Games Network (MAGNET). Woven into his story are glimpses of the unusual experiential teaching method that Goldstein uses in his class.

"It's gratifying to have this screening in the place where it all started," said the filmmaker. "It feels like a homecoming of sorts because of my time on this campus as well as with the students and advocates in the film."

Wang was concurrently awarded a master of arts degree from the Cinema Studies Program at the Tisch School of the Arts and a Culture and Media certificate from the Anthropology Department at New York University. A Brooklyn transplant by way of his native China, Wang says he adores cinema verite and investigating family, communication, and identity topics. He is known for his editorial role in Heather White and Lynn Zhang's powerful feature "Who Pays the Price: The Human Cost of Electronics" and Fusion's TV documentary "Lavender Marriage." He associate-produced Ursula Liang's award-winning film "9-Man" and is developing a new project about gay deaf parenting.

Paul Tudisco, a self-advocate living with cerebral palsy who served as a consultant in the class, met students in the Disabilities Studies course who would later help him develop the Limitless Stylus tool that is optimized for users with limited hand mobility.

"The film shows that people with disabilities can do anything," said Tudisco. "It was inspiring to help teach students more about disabilities and now have a film to show the world."

To view the trailer, visit https://vimeo.com/132402599. To join the conversation: #TheAbilityExchange.

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, innovation, 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

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SOURCE NYU Tandon School of Engineering

Related Links

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HARRISBURG, Pa., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As more pertussis cases are identified in Franklin County, Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Karen Murphy today announced the department is offering appointments for free tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis, or Tdap, vaccines November 29, 30, and December 1 at the Franklin County State Health Center, 375 Floral Ave., Suite 1 in Chambersburg. Residents can call 1-877-PA-HEALTH to schedule an appointment.

Appointments are available from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, November 29, and 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, November 30 and December 1.

"Vaccination is the safest and easiest way to help stop the spread of pertussis, or whooping cough," said Secretary Murphy. "Since residents are still being diagnosed with whooping cough, the Department of Health wants to ensure that as many people as possible have access to the vaccine."

To date, 84 cases of pertussis have been confirmed in the Chambersburg/Shippensburg areas of Cumberland and Franklin counties. The Department of Health vaccinated nearly 1,300 residents recently at five clinics.

The pertussis vaccine is recommended for children to enter school. Because immunity from the vaccine fades over time, most adolescents and adults are susceptible to the disease. In addition to the typical childhood series of pertussis immunizations at 2, 4, 6, 15-18 months, and a booster at 4-6 years, the department recommends the adolescent-adult pertussis vaccine, tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis, or Tdap, booster for:

Individuals 10-64 years of age who are not fully immunized;

Pregnant women during each pregnancy, preferably between 27 and 36 weeks gestation. Women who have never received Tdap and who do not receive it during pregnancy should receive it immediately postpartum;

People who have contact with pregnant women or infants too young to have received a full series of vaccinations; and

All family members and caregivers of infants who are not old enough to get vaccinated against pertussis.

Pertussis is an infection of the respiratory system and is characterized by severe coughing spells that end in a "whooping" sound when the person breathes in. The first symptoms of whooping cough are similar to those of a common cold including runny nose, sneezing, mild cough, and low-grade fever. After about one to two weeks, the dry, irritating cough evolves into coughing spells that can last for more than one minute and can lead to vomiting.

For more information, visit www.vaccinesforlife.com or call 1-877-PA-HEALTH.

MEDIA CONTACT: April Hutcheson, 717-787-1783

SOURCE Pennsylvania Department of Health

Related Links

http://www.state.pa.us


The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) kicked off a series of celebration activities for its 80th anniversary on 25 November 2016. To mark the beginning of the year-long celebration, PolyU held in the morning the "International Forum: Nurturing Talent and Building Capacity in Supporting the Belt and Road Development" (the Forum) and in the evening "PolyU 80th Anniversary Launch Ceremony A Prelude to the Celebrations", gathering Senior management of about 10 universities from the mainland, Egypt, Italy, Kazakhstan, Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Turkey and United Kingdom, as well as leaders in the local business sector.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161128/443154 )

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161128/443155 )



Guest of Honour at the Forum, Mr Eddie Ng Hak-kim, Secretary for Education of the Hong Kong SAR Government, commended PolyU for its efforts in the Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative, "I am pleased to note that PolyU has provided a very comprehensive answer by demonstrating what it has done to foster people-to-people bond under the B&R Initiatives. By launching a number of student programmes, PolyU has strived to enhance students' understanding on the latest developments of the B&R countries. All these would undoubtedly help build up a large pool of human capital with the skills, knowledge and global vision necessary to support the important B&R Initiative."

At the Launch Ceremony, Mrs Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, Chief Secretary for Administration, HKSAR Government, said that the development of PolyU over the decades is a remarkable story of academic growth and success. PolyU's rising international recognition and standing not only testify to PolyU's regional and international impact, but also exemplify the rapid advancement of higher education in Hong Kong.

Chairman of the University Grants Council (UGC), Mr Carlson Tong, commended PolyU for its contribution to the development of Hong Kong and said, "Adhered to UGC-defined role statement, PolyU emphasises on application-oriented teaching, professional education and applied research and maintains strong links with various sectors, employers and the community."

Professor Timothy W. Tong, President of PolyU, said, "PolyU has grown together with Hong Kong over the past eight decades in a fast-changing global landscape and answered to the call of the times appropriately. We not only embark on research to advance the frontiers of knowledge, but also create solutions to problems and change the world for the better."

An anniversary theme song "Shape the Future", written and composed by PolyU's alumni, was presented on stage by C AllStar, a pop music group. The Launch Ceremony was followed by cultural performances by PolyU Choir and Orchestra, university students from the Mainland, Italy, Kazakhstan and Russia.

That day also saw the opening of PolyU's Alumni Atrium, which is a new facility of an area of 250 square metres dedicated to the alumni community. It provides a spacious and comfortable environment for leisure, recreation and cultural activities through which alumni can cultivate friendships and foster exchange and partnerships with other members of the PolyU community.

Press contact :

Ms Michelle Li

Communications and Public Affairs Office

Telephone : (852) 3400-2128 / (852) 9162-8048

E-mail : [email protected]



SOURCE The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU)
WASHINGTON, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will help wrap the National Park Service Centennial celebrations when they officially light the National Christmas Tree in President's Park on Dec. 1 during the 2016 National Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony. Olympic Gold Medalist swimmer Simone Manuel is also set to make a special appearance with First Lady Michelle Obama.



Hosted by Eva Longoria, this year's National Christmas Tree Lighting features a line-up of chart topping talent who will make the night merry and bright. Yolanda Adams, Marc Anthony, Kelly Clarkson, The Lumineers, Chance the Rapper, James Taylor, Garth Brooks, and Trisha Yearwood will all perform a collection of holiday favorites accompanied by Afro Blue and the Airmen of Note.



Keep up with the National Christmas Tree on Twitter at @TheNationalTree and follow #NCTL2016 on social media for more information about the event and its history.



The National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony is presented by the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation, the official charity of America's national parks. Through a partnership with the National Park Foundation, the Hallmark Channel will exclusively broadcast the National Christmas Tree Lighting on Monday, December 5 at 7 p.m. ET. The event can also be viewed on the National Christmas Tree Lighting website, thenationaltree.org, starting Tuesday, December 6, 2016.



An American holiday tradition started by President Calvin Coolidge in 1923, the National Christmas Tree Lighting is a great example of the countless ways there are to #FindYourPark.

Celebrating 100 years of the National Park Service, Find Your Park/Encuentra Tu Parque is a public awareness and education movement to inspire people from all backgrounds to connect with, celebrate, and support America's national parks and community-based programs. Celebrating the National Park Service Centennial and setting the stage for the Service's next 100 years, #FindYourPark invites people to discover and share their own unique connections to our nation's natural landscapes, vibrant culture, and rich history.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 413 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities.

The National Park Service has cared for the White House and its grounds since 1933. President's Park, which includes the Ellipse and Lafayette Park, was officially included in the national park system in 1961.

ABOUT CROWN MEDIA FAMILY NETWORKS

Crown Media Family Networks is the umbrella unit subsidiary of Hallmark Cards, Inc., housing cable's leading family friendly networks, Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, as well as their corresponding digital extensions HallmarkChannel.com and HallmarkMoviesandMysteries.com. The company operates and distributes both channels in high definition (HD) and standard definition (SD) with Hallmark Channel available to 90 million subscribers and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries in 67 million homes in the United States. Hallmark Channel features an ambitious slate of new, original content, including movies; scripted series, such as "When Calls the Heart," and "Good Witch" and "Chesapeake Shores"; annual specials including "Hero Dog Awards" and "Kitten Bowl"; world premieres of Hallmark Hall of Fame presentations, and a daily, two-hour lifestyle show, "Home & Family." Hallmark Channel is also home to the popular annual holiday franchise "Countdown to Christmas," featuring a lineup of 24/7 holiday programming. Rounding out the network's lineup are television's most beloved comedy and drama series, including "The Golden Girls," "The Middle," "Frasier," "Last Man Standing" and "Home Improvement." Hallmark Movies & Mysteries is a separate 24-hour, digital cable network featuring a unique mix of new, original movies and acquired series focused on the lighter side of the suspense and mystery genres. The network also features its own annual holiday programming franchise, "Most Wonderful Movies of Christmas," as well as presentations from the multi-award-winning Hallmark Hall of Fame library.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION

The National Park Foundation is the official charity of America's national parks and nonprofit partner to the National Park Service. Chartered by Congress in 1967, the National Park Foundation raises private funds to help PROTECT more than 84 million acres of national parks through critical conservation and preservation efforts, CONNECT all Americans with their incomparable natural landscapes, vibrant culture and rich history, and INSPIRE the next generation of park stewards. In 2016, commemorating the National Park Service's 100th anniversary, the Foundation launched The Centennial Campaign for America's National Parks, a $350 million comprehensive fundraising campaign to strengthen and enhance the future of these national treasures for the next hundred years.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

National Park Service

Jenny Anzelmo-Sarles

202-619-7177

[email protected]

National Park Foundation

Alanna Sobel

202-796-2538

[email protected]

Hallmark Channel

Pam Slay

818-755-2480

[email protected]

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140324/DC89075LOGO

SOURCE National Park Foundation

Related Links

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MANHATTAN, N.Y., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- In the spirit of giving a gift that gives back this holiday season and in the evolution of a profit for good company founded by social advocate Kim Widener, WovenWell announces the launch of its On-line store www.wovenwell.com. Each purchase makes a difference, as 20% of the company sales will be given back to addressing mental health initiatives in meaningful ways. Watch this Welcome to WovenWell Video: https://youtu.be/rFj2jQAXdpE.

The Profit for Good Company started with a piece of Ghanaian Kente Cloth, which was gifted to founder Widener as a hostess gift. She quickly began cutting it up into the now Signature D Ring Kente Cloth Belt that has become synonymous with the emerging brand. Currently, items featured on the website include holiday stockings, tree ornaments as well as everyday lifestyle fashion and home accessories made from traditional Ghananian Textiles as well as Bolga baskets made famous by First lady Michelle Obama's trip there several years ago. New items will be added weekly as the textiles hand sourced and exported from Ghana continue to be cut and sewn into popular fashion items or added as a signature accent to items recognized.

"My goal is that the belt is a statement of an emerging global movement," states Widener.

Materials for these items were regionally sourced from all over Ghana and will benefit the Ankaful Psychiatric Hospital, which Kim Widener and her team have adopted and began to fund initiatives there even before the merchandise was ready for sale. WovenWell products will continue to be made from materials in developing countries and will be cut, sewn and finished in the United States. Belts, scarves, pillows, wine bags, hand-woven baskets and more are great gifts that give back and retail at key price points under 20, 35, 50 and 75 dollars. In November, they debuted a seasonal pop-up retail space at TURNSTYLE in Columbus Circle, NYC with positive reception.

Mental health initiatives need global support more than ever and Kim Widener has set out to do just that by creating the WovenWell profit for good company. Kim's social advocacy led her to create WovenWell after a meaningful and inspiring visit from her friend Craig Carty, who is Chief Executive Officer of The Relevance Network, offering support for social and health development initiatives worldwide. "In Ghana, like many other low and middle income countries, we see numerous challenges around the provision of mental health services. One simple means by which to support beneficiaries of often-stigmatized psychiatric care in marginalized settings is to engage them in activities that provide opportunities to support themselves, and that they enjoy," says Craig. He continues, "What Kim and WovenWell have launched in the Cape Coast region of Ghana is a perfect example of how community engagement and social investment should work: suggest opportunities, make sure that they make sense for the beneficiaries, engage with local experts to inform best practices, and return profit share to keep the initiatives going."

Why mental health? According to the WHO (World Health Organization), one in 5 people globally are affected by mental health issues. Addressing mental health is an important route to eradicate poverty and human rights issues. In countries like Ghana where stigma runs deep, people with varying degrees of mental and neurological illness needlessly become a burden on already exhausted resources. WovenWell uses local resources to give long-term psychiatric patients skills, hope and purpose while demonstrating to local communities that patients can contribute in meaningful, financially beneficial ways.

WovenWell will also begin initiatives to use local health care professionals to educate local communities on having open conversations about mental health since it can be cured or mitigated if treated early, with the right care. Local, early care is an inexpensive method minimizing more expensive treatment down the road.

The ultimate result: WovenWell undertakes mental health related projects one institution at a time, and the sales of these retail items they have developed will provide funding, with a significant portion of the proceeds going back to their partners in hospitals and facilities to aid the recovery and acclimation of the patients back to a better day to day quality of life for the mentally challenged. Their focus and premise is to engage meaningful activity that is essential for positive action. This is not a charity; rather, WovenWell believes in sustainable progress through creative collaboration. The emphasis is working in partnership with hospitals and their patients to enable confidence, purpose, inclusion and hope. As WovenWell begins to work, the tag line All Well & Good will be self-evident in what the company and its partners accomplish.

About WovenWell: WovenWell is a profit for good and a wholly women owned company. The goal is to support mental well being in meaningful ways, in developing countries, using local resources. WovenWell products are made from materials in developing countries and will be cut, sewn and finished in the United States. Every purchase makes a difference, as 20% of the sales will give back to addressing substantial mental health needs in these countries.

www.wovenwell.com

About Kim Widener: Kim Widener, Founder & CEO of WovenWell, a 'profit for good' business with a heart, is dedicated to launch what will be a global mental health initiative one community at a time. After years of involvement in non-profit organizations and extensive experience in the business world, Kim has taken time to reflect on many issues surrounding 'giving' and 'aid.' She is now funding the production of signature fabrics from Ghana to increase social advocacy and raise awareness for mental health issues. A world traveler and mother, Kim considers WovenWell as the natural extension of her desire to find the missing link in the areas she cares most about  to enable confidence, purpose, inclusion and hope for others. She envisions a world in which mental illness loses its stigma and is recognized as a serious global issue that has an impact on all of us economically, politically and socially, whether or not individuals and their families are directly affected.

WovenWell has retained Bettina L. Klinger and Susan Belfer for branding, marketing, public relations services, product development, and brand introduction and growth. For media inquiries, interviews, Collaboration or general information contact [email protected], 917-930-8654.

Website: http://www.wovenwell.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wovenwell/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wovenwellworks/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/wovenwellworks

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/wovenwell/

Contact:

Susan Belfer and Bettina Klinger of WovenWell

[email protected]

Photos:

https://www.prlog.org/12604112

Press release distributed by PRLog

SOURCE WovenWell

Related Links

http://www.wovenwell.com


One by one, hundreds of Mosul residents raised their shirts to prove they did not have suicide bombs strapped to their bodies, closely watched by Iraqi special forces fearful of the threat posed by Islamic State, even in areas they now control.

The men then handed over their identification cards so their names could be checked against a database of wanted Islamic State group members, part of the painstaking process of clearing militants from each neighbourhood of their Mosul stronghold.

Every time Iraqi forces capture a section of Mosul in their offensive against Islamic State group, it can take up to a week to ensure it is clear of militants.

Some hide in the network of tunnels they have constructed, while others mix with thousands of displaced people or stay behind to form sleeper cells in the crowded neighbourhoods of Mosul, a city of more than one million people.

Iraqi security officials say they have seized a large area of eastern Mosul in the biggest ground operation in the country since the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Iraqi leaders hope the Mosul campaign will bring stability after years of sectarian bloodshed followed by the arrival of IS, an ultra-hardline Sunni group, in 2014.

While the Iraqis seem confident of victory, the security clamp-down in the Shuqaq al-Khadra'a district of Mosul suggests Islamic State group still poses a threat even as it loses territory.

Iraqi special forces were on patrol when their intelligence division heard from local people that Islamic State militants were still in the area.

Special forces and intelligence officials ordered residents to gather at a square with their identification documents.

"Lift up your shirt now," one officer yelled at a man, acutely aware that suicide bombers are one of IS's group most effective weapons.

The residents, many with beards of the size required by Islamic State group, sat in rows as their names were called. From time to time, a mortar bomb exploded nearby or shooting rang out.

Sitting at computers, special forces officers compared the names on identification cards to a long list of wanted men.

"There are about 39,000 wanted men in Iraq," said Mohamed Ali, a National Security officer. About 80 percent, he added, are "terrorists", the term Iraqi officials use to describe Islamic State group and other militants.

As identification cards were handed over, senior intelligence official Hussein Za'alan lectured the men sitting on the ground about the "evils" of Islamic State group, hoping they would provide information on the militants.

"They brought foreign fighters, criminals to this country," he said. "They just take women, impregnate them."

Another officer also sought to win the trust of the residents of predominantly Sunni Mosul, where IS group won support initially because of widespread discontent with the Shia -led government in Baghdad.

"We need your cooperation. Don't be scared. Remove fear from your hearts. Daesh is finished," he said, using a derogatory Arabic acronym to describe Islamic State group.

"Look what they do. They turn your young children into suicide bombers."

The officer didn't have to look far to see how easy it is for Islamic State group to recruit young Iraqis.

Omar Abdullah, 51, one of the men being processed, sat beside his 16-year-old son, Ibrahim. The teenager attended Islamic State indoctrination lectures on religion for 10 days before Abdullah managed to persuade him to leave the group.

But he was not so lucky with another son, who is an Islamic State fighter in the nearby city of Tal Afar.

"He wanted to get married but he didn't have the money because times are tough," said Abdullah. "Daesh brainwashed him, gave him money and promised him virgins in heaven. I lost my son."

An elderly man who did not immediately admit his son had joined Islamic State was chastised in front of the group. "You lied to me. You are Islamic State," a special forces officer shouted.

As intelligence officials lectured the men, some residents identified one of those in the square as an Islamic State member.

With a hood put over his head, he was handcuffed and questioned. "Talk, talk," yelled an interrogator.

"We are investigating. He could be Daesh, or the people that ratted him out may just have something against him and are trying to get him in trouble," he told Reuters.

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"Our customer chose to continue investing in Patriot because Patriot saves lives," said Ralph Acaba, Raytheon vice president of Integrated Air and Missile Defense. "That added capability will strengthen our customer's protection against the evolving threats of tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and enemy aircraft."

Patriot is built on a foundation of more than 1,400 flight tests, 3,000 ground tests and the experiences of the five nations that have used Patriot in combat operations.

The contract was awarded less than 45 days after Poland officially requested Patriot from the United States government and the Netherlands awarded Raytheon a contract to begin upgrading its own Patriot systems. Since December, 2014, the 13 Patriot partner nations have invested more than $7.2 billion with Raytheon in procuring and upgrading the system.

About Global Patriot Solutions

Raytheon's Global Patriot Solutions is the most advanced portfolio of air and missile defense technologies in the world, providing comprehensive protection against a full range of advanced threats, including aircraft, tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles. Patriot is continually upgraded and enhanced to leverage the latest technology. Thirteen nations depend on Patriot as the foundation for their defense.

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.

This document does not contain technology or technical data controlled under either the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations or the U.S. Export Administration. E16-SYKZ.

Media Contact

Mike Nachshen

+1.520.269.5697

[email protected]

Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3GhlWKkroc&app=desktop

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161118/441157

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161118/441158

SOURCE Raytheon Company

Related Links

http://www.raytheon.com


DENVER, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- RE/MAX, LLC, headquartered in Denver, Colo., has signed an agreement to purchase the Master Franchise for the Georgia, Kentucky/Tennessee, and Southern Ohio Regions owned and managed for many years by the independent RE/MAX Regional Services group. The agreement to purchase the regions was signed less than three weeks after RE/MAX agreed to purchase RE/MAX of New Jersey.

"When Howard McPherson purchased RE/MAX of Georgia in 1978, he took a risk based on the potential of a young real estate brand that had about 1,000 agents, at the time. He and his family grew the region into a four-state operation with over 250 offices and almost 4,000 agents," said Dave Liniger, CEO, Chairman of the Board and Co-Founder of RE/MAX, LLC. "Howard has been extremely successful in growing the RE/MAX brand in Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Southern Ohio and we thank him and his family for their dedication. It's a real RE/MAX success story, and a testament to the outstanding brokers, owners and sales associates who helped build the brand in these four states. We look forward to working with them, providing the services they need, and growing our market presence even more."

The acquisition of the RE/MAX Regional Services Region is expected to close before the end of the year, bringing the total of U.S. company-owned regions to 18. In 2016, RE/MAX, LLC has also purchased or agreed to purchase the Master Franchise rights for New York, Alaska and New Jersey.

"It's been a real pleasure to work with so many great brokers and agents in Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Southern Ohio," said Dane Ellison, RE/MAX Regional Services CEO. "They're in good hands moving forward, and we believe RE/MAX market presence will continue to grow. That's what happens when great agents put the interests of their buyers and sellers above all else."

Susan Goiser, Region Vice President of RE/MAX Florida, will oversee services in Georgia, while Jeff LaGrange, former Region Vice President of RE/MAX Pacific Northwest and RE/MAX Alaska, will lead the regional team supporting Kentucky/Tennessee and Southern Ohio.

RE/MAX has a worldwide network of over 110,000 agents in over 100 countries and territories, a global footprint larger than any of its competitors.

For investor relations information, please click here.

About the RE/MAX Network:

RE/MAX was founded in 1973 by Dave and Gail Liniger, with an innovative, entrepreneurial culture affording its agents and franchisees the flexibility to operate their businesses with great independence. Over 110,000 agents provide RE/MAX a global reach in more than 100 countries and territories. Nobody sells more real estate than RE/MAX when measured by residential transaction sides. RE/MAX, LLC, one of the world's leading franchisors of real estate brokerage services, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of RMCO, LLC, which is controlled and managed by RE/MAX Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:RMAX). With a passion for the communities in which its agents live and work, RE/MAX is proud to have raised more than $150 million for Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and other charities. For more information about RE/MAX, to search home listings or find an agent in your community, please visit www.remax.com. For the latest news about RE/MAX, please visit www.remax.com/newsroom.

SOURCE RE/MAX, LLC
DUBLIN, Nov 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Remote Diagnostics Market - Forecast to 2021" report to their offering.

The global remote vehicle diagnostics market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 16.79% from 2016 to 2021, to reach a market size of USD 30.22 Billion by 2021. Stringent emission norms, the rising demand for safety and security in vehicles, and the growing inclination towards premium vehicles are expected to propel the growth of the remote vehicle diagnostics market.

The remote vehicle diagnostics market, by application, is dominated by the roadside assistance segment, which is estimated to be the largest market, in terms of volume, during the forecast period. The high demand for roadside assistance as a standard feature in vehicles is attributed to the advantages it offers, including remote assistance at the time of a vehicle breakdown, emergency support, and sending a mechanic in case of critical failure. The market for such applications is witnessing substantial growth, with regulatory bodies planning to mandate some of the applications.

The North American region is estimated to be the largest market for remote vehicle diagnostics during the forecast period. This can be attributed to the high adoption rate of innovations and advanced technology in the region. Additionally, the demand for premium cars with advanced safety and security features is high in this region. North America has some of the most stringent regulations for vehicle safety, emissions, and fuel economy in the world; this is expected to boost the market for remote vehicle diagnostics in the region.

A key factor restraining the growth of the remote vehicle diagnostics market is data security and privacy concerns. Owing to the increased number of electronic components in the vehicle, additional data has to be diagnosed on a real-time basis. The need to provide real-time information would bring about the threat of cybersecurity. This would adversely affect the remote vehicle diagnostics market.



Companies Mentioned:



Continental AG



Delphi Automotive PLC



Magneti Marelli S.p.A



OnStar LLC



Robert Bosch GmbH



Snap-On Inc.



Softing AG



Vector Informatik GmbH



Vidiwave Ltd.



Voxx International Corporation

Key Topics Covered:

1 Introduction



2 Research Methodology



3 Executive Summary



4 Premium Insights



5 Market Overview



6 Remote Vehicle Diagnostics, By Region, Vehicle, & Engine Type



7 Remote Vehicle Diagnostics, By Application



8 Remote Vehicle Diagnostics Market, By Connectivity



9 Remote Vehicle Diagnostics Aftermarket, By Region



10 Competitive Landscape



11 Company Profiles



12 Appendix



For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/3qjtr5/remote

Media Contact:

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

http://www.researchandmarkets.com


CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A delayed U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration ban on kratom would stifle scientific understanding of the herb's active chemical components and documented pharmacologic properties if implemented, according to a special report published today in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

The report cited the pharmacologically active compounds in kratom, including mitragynine, 7-hydroxymitragynine, paynantheine, speciogynine and 20 other substances, as one basis for further study. It also emphasized the extensive amount of anecdotal evidence and current scientific research that indicates kratom may be safer and less addictive than current treatments for pain and opioid withdrawal.

"There's no question kratom compounds have complex and potential useful pharmacologic activities and they produce chemically different actions from opioids," said author Walter Prozialeck, chairman of the Department of Pharmacology at Midwestern University Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine. "Kratom doesn't produce an intense euphoria and, even at very high doses, it doesn't depress respiration, which could make it safer for users."

Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa) is indigenous to Southeast Asia, where the plant was used for centuries to relieve fatigue, pain, cough and diarrhea and aid in opioid withdrawal. Currently sold in the United States as an herbal supplement, kratom drew DEA scrutiny after poison control centers noted 660 reports of adverse reactions to kratom products between January 2010 and December 2015.

"Many important medications, including the breast cancer treatment tamoxifen, were developed from plant research," said Prozialeck.

"While the DEA and physicians have valid safety concerns, it is not at all clear that kratom is the culprit behind the adverse effects," said Anita Gupta, DO, PharmD and special advisor to the FDA.

Dr. Gupta, an osteopathic anesthesiologist, pain specialist and licensed pharmacist, has treated a number of patients who've used kratom. "Many of my patients are seeking non-pharmaceutical remedies to treat pain that lack the side effects, risk, and addiction potential of opioids," she said.

Kratom is currently banned in states including Alabama, Florida, Indiana, Arkansas, Wisconsin and Tennessee. The DEA is scheduled to decide whether to place kratom on its list of Schedule 1 drugs, a classification for compounds thought to have no known medical benefit. Marijuana, LSD and heroin are Schedule 1 drugs, which prevents the vast majority of U.S.-based researchers from studying those substances.

The full report can be reviewed here.

About The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association

The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association (JAOA) is the official scientific publication of the American Osteopathic Association. Edited by Robert Orenstein, DO, it is the premier scholarly peer-reviewed publication of the osteopathic medical profession. The JAOA's mission is to advance medicine through the publication of peer-reviewed osteopathic research.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150716/237742LOGO

SOURCE American Osteopathic Association
SafeDK, the leading mobile SDKs Management Platform, today announced that it has closed a Series A investment round of $3.5 million from Samsung Next Tel Aviv, Marius Nacht, StageOne Ventures, Kaedan Capital, as well as leading angel investor Leon Waisbein. This funding round follows a seed investment of $2.25 million that was announced in November 2015 and was led by StageOne Ventures.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160525/806560 )



The company is also announcing the release of the first ever iOS SDK Management Platform, after the completion of a successful iOS beta integration in hundreds of thousands of mobile devices. The Android solution was launched less than a year ago and is already deployed on millions of mobile devices worldwide.

SafeDK will use the funds of the current financing round to scale its operation, increase hiring and enhance its expansion in the US market.

"Our suite of solutions has helped Android mobile developers across the globe ensure that the performance, stability and privacy of their apps are not compromised. Now we are looking to emulate that success to the important iOS development community and expand our activity to new verticals." Says Ronnie Sternberg, SafeDK's Co-founder and VP Business Development, "SafeDK has already proved invaluable in helping to avoid millions of crashes, excessive battery consumption issues as well as privacy breaches, all in production apps."

"SafeDK technology provides unprecedented accountability and control to mobile developers and increases privacy and security," says Eyal Miller, General Manager at Samsung Next Tel Aviv. "A solution that improves the quality of apps can only help to make the work of mobile developers and publishers better."

"SafeDK's unique solution provides real value to mobile developers and publishers alike by thwarting the underlying causes of most app crashes and glitches" says Tal Slobodkin, Managing Partner at StageOne Ventures. "We have been working very closely with Orly and Ronnie and are pleased by the company's progress. The opportunities that this financing round presents are tremendously exciting."

Founded in 2014, SafeDK is the world's first mobile SDKs management end-to-end solution. The offering includes real-time SDKs visibility and control, an SDK Marketplace that provides top-rated SDKs for mobile apps and business intelligence tools for the SDK industry. SafeDK has seen tremendous growth since its launch with many app publishers and SDK providers worldwide using one or more of its solutions.

Most mobile apps use 3rd party SDKs to add functionalities that include advertising, analytics, social, and more. These SDKs often lead to certain malfunctions of the apps such as slowing down, crashing, excessive battery consumption and malicious behavior. To safeguard their apps and their users, app publishers simply integrate SafeDK's solution into their development environment, where it automatically identifies all the SDKs in that particular app. From that point onward, the publishers gain full visibility and control over the real-time behavior of their SDKs with the ability to view live SDK issues and statistics, turn their privacy permissions on and off, or remotely deactivate an entire problematic SDK. No additional intervention on the part of the developer is required beyond the initial integration.

What makes SafeDK a crucial solution for developers is the ability to update their apps' new SDK configuration with a simple click of a button, and without the need for version updates. Once a developer makes changes using the SafeDK dashboard, these changes are automatically reflected across all devices. SafeDK users can stay up-to-date on the latest issues with the SDKs they utilize in their apps and get real time statistics and alerts, which minimizes the amount of time an app and its users are at risk.

About SafeDK

SafeDK is a complete mobile SDKs management platform which enables app publishers to build better and safer apps. SafeDK covers the entire span of the app development cycle, from finding the top-rated SDKs in the SafeDK Marketplace, to ongoing monitoring and real-time control of SDKs. SafeDK was founded in September 2014 by Orly Shoavi and Ronnie Sternberg, and has it's headquartered in Herzelia, Israel. The company is funded by Samsung Next Tel Aviv, Marius Nacht, StageOne Ventures and top strategic Angel investors, including Leon Waisbein and Kaedan Capital.

SOURCE SafeDK
Waitt's appointment was made during the Board's tri-annual meeting on November 18.

"I am delighted the Trustees unanimously agreed that Ted is the right successor to lead the Board," says Jacobs. "He is wholly enthusiastic and committed to Salk's basic biological research and has the enterprising leadership and vision to expand the reach of the Institute's science even further."

Salk Institute President Elizabeth Blackburn says: "We are thrilled to have Mr. Waitt as the leader of Salk's Board. His financial acumen and entrepreneurship, as well as his extensive experience as a Salk Trustee, will serve the Institute well. I am confident he will help advance the Institute's mission for high-impact research that solves biomedical mysteries and transforms the world for many more years to come."

Waitt joined the Salk Board of Trustees in 2004. He has served as a vice chair, as well as chair of Salk's Governance Committee. He currently sits on Salk's Executive Committee.

In 2008, the Waitt Foundation gave a $20 million grant that funded the creation of the Waitt Advanced Biophotonics Center at Salk. The center employs next-generation imaging and visualization tools that enable investigators from across many biological disciplines to take advantage of the latest technology for advancement in such research areas as aging, cancer, neuroscience, metabolism, vision, infectious diseases and genetic disorders.

In accepting the chairmanship, Waitt expressed his gratitude to Jacobs for shepherding the high-risk, high-reward biomedical science that has long been his passion.

"I have big shoes to fill," says Waitt of succeeding Jacobs on the Salk Board. "I look forward to working closely with Dr. Blackburn, the faculty and the Trustees to implement Dr. Blackburn's vision for bold, transformative science while ushering in an era of unprecedented financial success at Salk."

Waitt says he intends to dedicate the majority of his professional time to Salk and related scientific areas while the Waitt Foundation will continue to remain focused on ocean conservation. In the past decade, the Waitt Foundation has invested over $70 million in global ocean initiatives and has been involved with a number of partners in the creation of over 12 million square kilometers of protected ocean around the planet.

"While I continue to view overfishing as the single biggest fixable problem facing our planet and its inhabitants in the near term, I see biological research as the biggest opportunity for humanity over the next decade. I'm humbled to play a role alongside the incredible Salk scientists who will undoubtedly continue to deliver incredible breakthroughs for the benefit of mankind," says Waitt.

A native of Sioux City, Iowa, Waitt attended the universities of Colorado and Iowa and received an honorary doctorate of science from the University of South Dakota. He has earned a number of honors, among them the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the U.S. Small Business Association and ranking as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Americans by the United States Junior Chamber of Commerce. He was appointed by Congress to serve on the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce. He retired from Gateway in 2004 and has devoted his time and resources to philanthropy since then.

Waitt has four grown children and resides in Southern California with his wife, Michele.

About the Salk Institute for Biological Studies:

Every cure has a starting point. The Salk Institute embodies Jonas Salk's mission to dare to make dreams into reality. Its internationally renowned and award-winning scientists explore the very foundations of life, seeking new understandings in neuroscience, genetics, immunology and more. The Institute is an independent nonprofit organization and architectural landmark: small by choice, intimate by nature and fearless in the face of any challenge. Be it cancer or Alzheimer's, aging or diabetes, Salk is where cures begin. Learn more at: salk.edu.

Contact: Salk Communications

[email protected]

(858) 453-4100

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SOURCE Salk Institute for Biological Studies

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AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- November 11 is a day set aside to honor veterans for their service and sacrificethis year, Santa Rita Ranch partnered with Operation Finally Home and Highland Homes to provide one brave veteran and his family with a tangible token of our nation's gratitude. Operation Finally Home, a national non-profit organization, partners with experienced builders and welcoming communities like Santa Rita Ranch to pair wounded, ill or injured veterans with homes that fit their (and their family's) needs.

One such deserving veteran was honored on Saturday, November 12, at the TX vs. West Virginia game in Austin, TX. David DeTuccio, a Purple Heart recipient, knew he and his family were in town to be interviewed by Operation Finally Home. When he was invited onto the field for the coin toss, he had no idea he and his family were about to be presented with a mortgage-free Highland home in the Santa Rita Ranch community.

DeTuccio, who joined the military in 2007, was deployed in Baghdad in 2008, where his unit, the 10th Mountain Division 2nd Infantry 30th Battalion, was known for being involved in raids and extractions. On Feb. 19, 2008, they were ambushed outside their compound. DeTuccio was struck with an improvised rocket-propelled explosive device, and was transported to Balad Air Base trauma center. Multiple surgeries and therapies followed, leaving DeTuccio with shrapnel wounds, severe PTSD, memory loss, headaches, and seizures among other recurring difficulties.

As DeTuccio, his wife Nicole, and their four children stepped onto the field, they knew they wanted to move to Austin, TXbut had no idea their dream was so close to becoming a reality. During an on-field presentation, they learned they were the recipients of a mortgage-free Santa Rita Ranch home, the second veteran family Operation Finally Home has connected with the community. The family will move in this summer, and DeTuccio can already see the way their lives will change. As he told TexasSports.com, "It will change our family lineage. When you don't have an expense, such as a mortgage, you can spend that extra money on education. Now I feel I can ask my kids, 'What do you want to bea doctor, a lawyerthose now become possibilities.'"

Santa Rita Ranch is a 3,100-acre community located north of Austin near Liberty Hill, two miles off 183 North, just north of the Hwy 29 and Ronald Reagan intersection. It is developed by Elizabeth and Ed Horne and Mariner Real Estate, with a distinctive Hill Country style.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20151029/282037LOGO

SOURCE Santa Rita Ranch
BEIJING, SAN FRANCISCO and TAIPEI, Taiwan, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/-- WI Harper Group, a leading cross-border early stage venture capital firm, has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Luxin Venture Capital Group and Shandong Leader Equity Investment Fund. Mr. Peter Liu, Chairman of WI Harper Group, Mr. Ji Binchang, Chairman of Luxin Group, and Mr. Shen Xi-Liang, Chairman of Shandong Leader Fund, Mr. Sean Peng, Managing Director at WI Harper, Mr. Biao Wang, Chairman and General Manager of Luxin, Mr. Yue Jiang, General Manager of Shandong Leader Fund, attended the signing ceremony which was hosted in Shandong.

Under this strategic initiative, the three parties have agreed to launch a cross-border fund, with an emphasis on investing in promising startups in the US and Greater China. Additionally, through investing in cutting-edge startups in the areas of robotics, artificial intelligence ("AI"), virtual reality ("VR"), augmented reality ("AR"), autonomous vehicles, big data, cloud computing, healthcare IT, medical devices and biotech, they will support China's national policy of growing and further improving its technology infrastructure.

Chairman Peter Liu commented, "In the last 20 years, WI Harper Group has devoted itself to driving cross-border economic growth through investing in innovative start-ups. We demonstrated this in China by identifying and licensing core telecommunication technology from the US, establishing a joint venture with a Chinese SOE, which eventually paved the way to the launch of China's 3G standard. I am confident that, with this joint venture in place, we will continue bringing disruptive technologies to help foster China's next wave of growth."

"Exploring global opportunities has been an area of interest for Luxin," added Chairman Binchang Ji. "It is a pleasure to work with a world-class investment group that can bring our vision to fruition. WI Harper Group is one of the first Venture Capital funds to have an unique cross-border angle. Additionally, our visions are aligned in helping China develop its economy by bringing the best talent and innovation into China."

Chairman Xiliang Shen closed by saying, "We are thrilled to be working with WI Harper and Luxin and look forward to leveraging our strengths to build a global brand."

About WI Harper Group

Founded in 1996, WI Harper Group is a global leader in cross-border early stage venture investing between the US and Asia. The firm manages over US$1 billion in committed capital and has made over 300 investments with more than 80 exits. The firm maintains three offices in San Francisco, Taipei, and Beijing with over 20 investment professionals.

SOURCE WI Harper Group
HOUSTON, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Teachers of Tomorrow announced the launch of its innovative teacher training and certification program in Nevada. The teacher certification program has been approved by the Nevada Department of Education as an alternative route to teaching licensure and received an initial license from the Nevada Department of Postsecondary Education to begin operations in the state.

"Nevada has seen crippling teacher shortages for many years and recently created a method for teacher programs like ours to help school districts quickly address those shortages," said Vernon Reaser, CEO of Teachers of Tomorrow. "We are honored to be one of the initial programs to achieve approval and licensure to help Nevada schools find the teaching talent they need."

Teachers of Tomorrow provided the state of Nevada with an exhaustive look at the operations and curriculum of the organization to demonstrate that it meets the standards for postsecondary schools as well as the high standards for teacher training. The program's thorough and detailed application was unanimously approved on the first review by the Nevada Commission on Professional Standards at their October meeting.

Teachers of Tomorrow customized additional training content to enhance the relevancy and rigor of the teacher preparation coursework and will operate as Nevada Teachers of Tomorrow in the state. The new website, NevadaTeachers.com, launched today to serve career changers and recent college graduates who want to teach in Nevada, and their team of advisors have been trained to guide teacher candidates through the process of becoming a teacher.

Nevada Teachers can also be reached at 844-588-3224.

About Teachers of Tomorrow (www.teachersoftomorrow.org)

Teachers of Tomorrow is the largest, fastest growing Teacher Certification Program in the nation, delivering online and in-person training to individuals pursuing a career in teaching. Teachers of Tomorrow is also the #2 most diverse ACP in the country with 46% non-white enrollment. The company offers a strong value proposition to new teachers and school districts that are seeking to hire highly qualified candidates. Over the last 11 years, Texas Teachers has certified more than 42,000 new teachers, and in 2016 the Company trained and certified an estimated 7,000 teachers. Teachers of Tomorrow is an approved teacher certification provider in Texas, Florida and Nevada and provides professional development to district and school teacher certification programs Utah.

SOURCE Teachers of Tomorrow

Related Links

http://www.teachersoftomorrow.org


The first edition of the festival will take place in February 2017

The award winning Spanish actress Maribel Verdu was announced as one of the guests of honour at the upcoming Aswan Womens Film Festival.

Headed by Egyptian actress Elham Shahin, the first Aswan Women's Film Festival will take place in February and showcase local and international films with women filling primary roles, directed by women, or focusing on women's issues.

Scriptwriter Mohamed Abdelkhalek, director of the festival, highlighted how having Verdu at the festival will be a great asset for the festivals first round. He added that the festival hopes to build bridges of trust and cooperation with international stars and film institutions.

Sherif Awad, the festivals head of international affairs, said that Verdu seemed happy to be invited to the festival and to Egypt, which will be her first visit.

He highlighted that Verdu is an acclaimed star with a long cinematic repertoire of over 60 films since 1984.

Verdu was born in Madrid, and began acting at the young age of 13.

Most of her films are Spanish, but she is best known to English-speaking audiences for her roles in Guillermo del Toro's 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth, and Alfonso Cuaron's 2001 film Y tu mama tambien (And Your Mother Too).

She has received over 20 awards, including best actress from the prestigious Goya Awards for her role in Blancanieves in 2012, in addition to nine other Goya nominations. She also won a best actress award from Cinema Writers Circle Awards, Ghent International Film Festival, Jose Maria Forque Awards, among others.

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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ALBANY, New York, November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The field of Core Administration Solutions for the Healthcare Industry is highly fragmented owing to the presence of a large number of established players offering hardware, software, and services, says Transparency Market Research in a recent report. Considering the vast growth opportunities in developing regions such as India, Brazil, and China, players are focusing on diversification opportunities across these countries through mergers, acquisitions, and consolidation practices. To encash the vast growth opportunities in the core administration segment in the healthcare industry, owing to various government norms like Obamacare or Affordable Care Act (ACA), competitors are also focusing on extensive product development to offer differentiated services.

According to Transparency Market Research, the global technology spending on core administration in healthcare market sector will exhibit a 5.7% CAGR over the period between 2016 and 2024, rising from US$25,900 mn in 2015 to US$42,317 mn by 2024.

Download Exclusive Sample Copy of this Report:

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=16961

Of the key end users of core administration solutions in the healthcare industry, the payers segment accounted for over 88% of the overall market in 2015 and is expected to remain the key driver of technology spending on core administration in the healthcare industry throughout the forecast period. Geographically, North America dominated, accounted for over 50% of the overall funds spent on enabling technologically advanced core administration solutions in the healthcare industry in 2015. The trend is expected to remain strong over the forecast period as well.

Rising Demand for Value-based Reimbursement Modules to Drive adoption of IT Solutions in Healthcare

Rising convergence of a variety of digital platforms for managing and processing the ever-expanding healthcare data, continuously changing healthcare reimbursement reforms and regulations, and digitally empowered consumers are collectively making the healthcare administration space increasingly complex. While at one point cost competition is at the peak in the healthcare industry, payers (insurance agencies) are pressing healthcare providers to switch from a volume-based (payment for service) to a value-based reimbursement module (payment for value).

By requiring that healthcare providers deliver services at lowest costs to patients, value-based reimbursement modules entail more financial risks for providers and critically necessitate the effective management of core administrative processes to cut costs. The situation demands a robust IT infrastructure and an integrated platform wherein the payers can streamline workflows for provider contracting and engagement. In the next few years, the increased need for such platforms will emerge as one of the key drivers of technology spending on core administration in the healthcare sector.

Outdated Technology and Applications Discourage Technological Advancements in Healthcare IT Infrastructure

However, the overall global spending on technology for core administration in the healthcare sector is expected to be negatively impacted due to factors such as the presence of outdated technology and applications across several data collection and delivery nodes, continuously changing healthcare reforms, and ever-changing ways of financial transactions.

The inability of healthcare professionals in using complex or time-consuming features in technologically advanced digital healthcare applications is another key factor deterring the adoption of IT solutions for managing core administrative processes in the healthcare sector. The use of IT solutions by health professionals is growing at a steady pace globally, but it is not uniform. A substantial gap exists between the numbers of providers, which is relatively small presently, the number of consumers who actively use the Internet for any purpose, which is on rise at a rapid pace, and the much larger group of patients and healthcare providers that has not used it or cannot use it.

This review of the present and future scope of technology spending on core administration in healthcare is based on a recent report by Transparency Market Research, titled "Technology Spending on Core Administration in Healthcare Market - Global Industry, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2016 - 2024."

Request for Discount on this Report: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=D&rep_id=16961

Global Technology Spending on Core Administration in Healthcare - By Solution

In-House Hardware Software Services

Outsource

Global Technology Spending on Core Administration in Healthcare - By Deployment

Cloud-Based

On-Premise

Global Technology Spending on Core Administration in Healthcare - By End Users

Payers Insurance Companies Government Others

Providers Hospitals Others



Global Technology Spending on Core Administration in Healthcare- By Region

North America U.S. Canada

Europe Germany U.K France Italy Spain Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific (APAC) China India Japan Australia New Zealand Rest of Asia Pacific

(APAC) Latin America Brazil Mexico Rest of Latin America

Middle East & Africa (MEA) Saudi Arabia UAE RSA Rest of Middle East & Africa

& (MEA)

Browse Related Research Report:

IT Spending on Clinical Analytics Market (Platform - Stand-alone, Integrated; End User - Payer (Insurance Companies and Government) and Provider (Hospital and Clinics); Solution - In-house (Hardware, Software, and Services), and Outsource; Deployment - Cloud-based and On-premise) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, and Forecast 2016 - 2024 http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/it-spending-on-clinical-analytics-market.html

Healthcare IT Outsourcing Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2015 - 2024

http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/healthcare-it-outsourcing-market.html

About Us:

Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a U.S. based provider of syndicated research, customized research, and consulting services. TMR's global and regional market intelligence coverage includes industries such as pharmaceutical, chemicals and materials, technology and media, food and beverages, and consumer goods, among others. Each TMR research report provides clients with a 360-degree view of the market with statistical forecasts, competitive landscape, detailed segmentation, key trends, and strategic recommendations.

Contact Us:

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SOURCE Transparency Market Research
SINGAPORE, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- TransferTo, (https://www.transfer-to.com), the leading B2B cross-border mobile payments network, has appointed Sandra Hua Yao to lead TransferTo's business operations in East Africa. The appointment is part of the company's continued geographic expansion to support its global strategy and grow TransferTo's presence in the emerging markets.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161125/442908

Sandra Yao with TransferTo logo

Sandra Hua Yao, Vice President, Business Development joins from the National Bank of Kenya where she led the bank's digital transformation and new business acquisition of Chinese Foreign Direct Investment. Prior to joining the National Bank of Kenya, Sandra led the mobile payment team for Orange Money where she oversaw business transformation and a strategy shift for the service.

Yao is based in Nairobi, Kenya and will be responsible for strategic direction, operations, overall leadership of the East Africa region and acquiring new network partners.

"TransferTo has grown from strength to strength since our founding as a B2B cross-border mobile payments network. We already work with over 100 mobile operators across Africa and are engaged with the Mobile Money services, Financial institutions, and major brands to transform cross-border mobile payments. Nairobi is an important move for us to demonstrate our commitment to providing best-in-class mobile money solutions and services to our African partners. Sandra joins us with a proven track record and we're confident that her experiences and knowledge will elevate our market leading position. We welcome Sandra to the TransferTo team and look forward to her success," said Eric Barbier, Founder & CEO, TransferTo.

Speaking of her appointment, Yao said, "Africa is a leader in Mobile Money and a cornerstone of TransferTo's network. This represents an exciting opportunity to continue my passion for mobile financial services, which plays an important role in linking families across borders, creating jobs and driving economic development. We will build on the simplicity and convenience of sending or receiving money on mobile phones to solve cross-border money transfer challenges."

About TransferTo

TransferTo is a B2B cross-border mobile payment network, interconnecting financial institutions and mobile operators globally. Thousands of leading companies, including Vodafone's M-Pesa, Tigo Money, Orange, Western Union, PayPal and Xoom rely on TransferTo's Mobile Money and Airtime Hub.

TransferTo provides its partners with a global compliance framework for all relevant regulatory requirements, enabling thousands of businesses in more than 100 countries to offer real-time Mobile Money and Airtime transfer services to their customers. In 2015 alone, TransferTo Mobile Money and Airtime Hub processed more than 50 million transactions.

Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK, TransferTo links more than 4.5 billion mobile users, through partnerships with more than 400 mobile operators. Its investors include Ingenico. For more information, please visit: https://www.transfer-to.com/

Media Contact: [email protected]

Related Links

TransferTo Website

This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com. For more info visit: http://www.newswire.com.

SOURCE TransferTo

Related Links

https://www.transfer-to.com/


SALT LAKE CITY, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Each year, the Direct Selling Association (DSA) partners with NBC News' TODAY to gather donations from its member organizations to assist charities throughout the country. This year, USANA donated over $146,000 in retail goods to support this effort. The global nutritional company provided 12,000 of its personal care productsshower gel, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, toothpaste and moreto help those who need it most.

"We love supporting this drive each year and are grateful for DSA's philanthropic commitment to serving those less fortunate," said Kevin Guest, CEO of USANA. "Our values align directly with theirs as we continually look for ways to give back to the community."

The company's own charity, the USANA True Health Foundation, provides aid and other assistance to those struck by natural disasters in ailing countries. Just last month, USANA provided $80,000 in relief to Haiti after a destructive hurricane hit this small island causing irreversible damage. The Foundation also donates multivitamins to children all over the world who struggle to obtain the nutrition they need to lead normal, healthy lives. Over $6.2 million in product has been given since its inception in 2012.

For more information about the DSA Toy Drive, visit NBC News' TODAY at today.com.

About USANA

Founded in 1992, USANA Health Sciences (NYSE: USNA) is a U.S.-based nutritional company that manufactures high-quality supplements, personal care and healthy food products in its FDA-Registered Drug Establishment in Salt Lake City. Learn more about USANA by visiting our web site http://www.usana.com or the official USANA blog http://whatsupusana.com.

Media Contact: Ashley Collins

Executive Director of PR, Social Media and Communications

(801) 954-7629

media(at)us.usana(dot)com

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120807/LA53885LOGO

SOURCE USANA

Related Links

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WASHINGTON, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Adhering to its bipartisan approach in representing the Indian American community, USINPAC hosted a Presidential dialogue series with members of President-elect Donald J. Trump's election campaign and transition team. The interactive dialogue, was attended by a cross section of Indian Americans from across the country. Listeners eager to know more about the incoming administration fielded questions to Congressman Lou Barletta, representing Pennsylvania's 11th Congressional district and Matt Keelen, a republican strategist and consultant for the Trump campaign.

As a former businessman, Congressman Lou Barletta spoke from personal experience when he lamented banking regulations and taxes that hurt businesses today. Donald Trump, with his business experience would work to enable businesses to make profits, which would then be invested back, buy more equipment, hire more people, which would generate more payroll taxes.

Regarding healthcare reform the Congressman supported repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act, making it affordable for employers too. Free market would drive prices down, individuals would be able to buy healthcare across state lines, have health savings account.

Congressman Barletta lauded the relationship between India and the United States saying, "India is the world's largest democracy and United States is India's second largest trading partner. We have much in common. I believe under a President Trump the relationship will get even stronger as many who come from India to the United States will be able to find a better opportunity to start a business, grow a business, and invest into this economy because this economy will take off under President Trump.

Republican strategist Matt Keelen opined that President-elect Trump understood the importance of US-India ties, as the two nations share the same values, face the same issues with terrorist attacks on our soil. President Trump would promote bilateral ties as President Bush had.

On the possibility of Indian Americans featuring in the new cabinet, Keelen mentioned two prominent names being discussed; Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley and former Governor of Louisiana Bobby Jindal. Keelen encouraged more Indian Americans to run for Congress, especially those with experience as small business owners and to consider being part of the Trump administration.

Sanjay Puri, Chairman of USINPAC thanking Congressman Barletta and Matt Keelen for engaging with Indian Americans remarked, "We look forward to working closely with the new administration and providing qualified candidates who are looking to work in this administration."

Indian Americans desiring to work with the incoming administration should send their resumes to [email protected] or visit USINPAC to apply.

About USINPAC

The US India Political Action Committee (USINPAC) is the voice of over 3.2 million Indian- Americans and works on issues that concern the community. It supports candidates for local, state and federal office and encourages political participation by the Indian- American community. Visit www.usinpac.com for more details.

Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE US India Political Action Committee

Related Links

http://www.usinpac.com


OR YEHUDA, Israel , November 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Valtech Cardio, Ltd., (Valtech), an innovator in the field of device development for mitral and tricuspid valve repair and replacement, today announced agreement to be acquired by Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (Edwards). The acquisition will give Edwards access to the CardiobandTM Reconstruction System (Cardioband) for transcatheter repair of the mitral valve and tricuspid valve of the heart.

"We are pleased that Edwards, a global leader in patient focused medical innovations for structural heart disease, has elected to include in its growing portfolio of transcatheter based therapies, the CardiobandTM system for both mitral and tricuspid valve repair. We believe this will position CardiobandTM to achieve its full potential as a fundamental breakthrough in the way patients are treated for both mitral and tricuspid regurgitation" said Amir Gross, Founder and CEO of Valtech. "On behalf of the entire Valtech organization, I want to thank the many physicians who supported us over the past ten years in the development of the CardiobandTM platform."

"None of our success with the CardiobandTM program could have been achieved without the passion and perseverance of the entire Valtech team. We are extremely proud of their accomplishments over the past ten years, and are very excited about the potential impact CardiobandTM will have on patient care in the years ahead," said Lawrence Best, Executive Chairman of Valtech.

About Valtech's Products

CardiobandTM Mitral Reconstruction System

CardiobandTM received CE Mark certification in September 2015 after demonstrating safety in a clinical trial among patients with functional mitral regurgitation. CardiobandTM permits physicians to repair the mitral valve in a first-line setting while preserving the option to perform future percutaneous or surgical valve repair and/or replacement.

CardiobandTM combines a reconstruction implant, similar to surgical annuloplasty devices, with a transcatheter transseptal delivery system. Connection of the implant to the mitral annulus is sutureless, using specially designed anchors. Reshaping of the mitral annulus to eliminate FMR is done under physiological conditions and echocardiographic guidance for optimal results.

CardiobandTM Tricuspid Reconstruction System

CardiobandTM TR is designed to enable physicians to reconstruct the tricuspid valve using the same technique and implant as the CardiobandTM mitral valve repair technology. The company is recruiting patients for its CE study in Europe.

CardiovalveTM Replacement System

Prior to the closing, Valtech will spin out its early stage CardiovalveTM program, and as part of the agreement, Edwards will retain an option to acquire the CardiovalveTM program at a later date. CardiovalveTM is a transcatheter, transseptally delivered, low-profile, mitral valve replacement (TMVR) system following the Valtech way of delivering surgical based solutions without the risk of surgery. The CardiovalveTM platform has an orientation-indifferent structure for reduced implant complexity and was designed from inception to enable transseptal delivery.

About Valtech Cardio, Ltd.

Valtech Cardio, Ltd., founded in 2005, is a privately held company specializing in the development of devices for mitral and tricuspid valve repair and replacement. Aside from CardiobandTM, Valtech's portfolio includes a surgical valve repair portfolio and a transcatheter valve replacement, CardiovalveTM, in development. Valtech has full in-house development, manufacturing and clinical research capabilities, as well as over 150 patents and patent applications. Valtech is headquartered with R&D facility in Or Yehuda, Israel. For more information visit the Company's website: www.valtechcardio.com.

Contact

Amir Gross

Valtech Cardio

[email protected]

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160913/407099LOGO





SOURCE Valtech Cardio Ltd

Related Links

http://www.valtechcardio.com


DENVER, Colo., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Vista Gold Corp. ("Vista", the "Company," "we" or "our") (NYSE MKT: VGZ) (TSX: VGZ) today announced the results of process area optimization studies that have the potential to enhance the project economics for the Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia. The anticipated economic improvements are the result of process flowsheet changes that are expected to produce higher gold recoveries and lower process area operating costs. Testing indicates that these objectives can be accomplished through selectively screening and rejecting sub-economic, coarse crusher product prior to grinding; resulting in opportunities for improved gold recovery through finer grinding and improved operating costs down-stream of the grinding circuit.

A conference call with management to discuss the results of the Mt Todd gold project optimization studies is scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 2:00 pm MST.

Summary of Process Area Optimization Results

Earlier this year, Vista completed an independent review of the Mt Todd gold project. The combined input of the independent consultants and the project management team resulted in additional comminution and metallurgical recovery evaluations. These evaluations assessed opportunities to selectively remove below cut-off grade material from the process circuit after crushing. This results in less material being processed in the grinding and leaching circuits. The reduction in material results in excess grinding capacity which can be used to achieve a finer grind size in the final product and a corresponding increase in gold recovery for the remaining portion of the leach feed. Achieving the finer grind size is not expected to materially change the total grinding costs. Most importantly, the higher gold recovery is expected to increase cash flow, while the leaching, cyanide detoxification and tailings management costs are expected to decrease as a result of the reduction in the volume of material processed.

We completed size distribution and assay analysis of the high pressure grinding rolls ("HPGR") crusher product. This indicates that screening the HPGR crusher product at 5/8" produces an oversize product that accounts for 15-20% of the weight, but contains only 7-9% of the gold. Subsequently, we completed test work with Tomra Sorting Solutions, Inc. ("TOMRA") at their facilities in Germany to evaluate the recovery of sulfide/quartz/calcite-bearing material using Laser Reflection/Fluorescence and X-ray Transmission ("XRT") automated sorting techniques. This test work indicates that approximately 85% of the gold in this oversize fraction can be efficiently recovered with a return of 30-40% of the weight. We expect this to translate into an 11.5% reduction in material to be processed in the grinding/leaching circuits with a 1.6% loss in gold coming from the elimination of sub-economic material from the process stream.

If there is an 11.5% reduction in material passing to the grinding circuit, we expect to achieve a final grind size of 80% passing ("P80") 75 microns ("m"), approximately 17% finer than the final grind size used in our May 2013 PFS of 90 m. Test work confirms that at a P80 75 m grind size, we can expect to achieve gold recoveries in the range of 83-84%, up from the 81.7% reported in the May 2013 PFS.

Vista's President & CEO, Frederick H. Earnest commented, "The process improvements that we have identified have the potential to generate lower operating costs and better gold recoveries without adding materially to the capital costs of the project. These improvements, coupled with the current US dollar to Australian dollar exchange rate have the potential to produce a significant improvement in project economics. We are now evaluating an update of our preliminary feasibility study."

Detailed Discussion of Metallurgical Testing Program Results

Mt Todd Deposit Geology

The Mt Todd deposit is hosted by a silicified sequence of greywackes, siltstones and shales. This host is cross-cut (nearly perpendicular to the bedding planes) by two different series of quartz and calcite veins. The injection of quartz- and calcite-rich solution provided the transportation mechanism for the gold and other sulfide minerals found in the deposit. The gold in the Mt Todd deposit is associated with the veining and occurrence of sulfide minerals, and is found only in small concentrations (likely the result of micro-fracturing) in the host rock. The quartz/calcite veining is pervasive throughout the deposit with vein thicknesses running from a couple of millimeters to several centimeters. Vein density can vary from 3-4 to 10-15 veins per meter. Selective assaying was completed to assess the presence of gold exclusively in the veins and/or sulfides compared to the host rock. Selective samples submitted to Pine Creek Labs in Pine Creek, Northern Territory, Australia indicated that carefully selected veins and sulfide samples contained 0.16-41.4 grams Au/tonne of sample compared to 0.05-0.46 grams Au/tonne of sample for the host rock. The relatively small proportions of vein/sulfide material account for the average grade of the deposit, and at the same time highlight the value of efforts to separate the host rock from the gold-bearing veins and sulfides.

HPGR Product Screen-size and Gold Distribution Analysis

In 2012, we prepared two bulk samples representative of the Mt Todd deposit using metallurgical core dispersed across the deposit (identified as M1 and M3). These two samples were sent to Thysen Krupp Industrial Solutions' HPGR testing facilities in Germany for HPGR crushing tests. A total of approximately two tonnes of material between the two composites was crushed. The HPGR crushed material was returned to Vista for subsequent metallurgical testing. Using HPGR crushed material from these two composites, we undertook studies to evaluate the amount of material and amount of gold contained in various screen size fractions. The results of this analysis are summarized in the following table. This work (including the subsequent sample prep) was completed by Resource Development Inc. of Wheatridge, Colorado ("RDi") with assaying completed by Florin Analytical Services in Reno, Nevada.



M1 Sample M3 Sample

Wt% Au (g/mt) %

Distribution

Au Cumulative

Au Passing Au (g/mt)

in Screen

Undersize Wt% Au

(g/mt) %

Distribution

Au Cumulative

Au Passing Au (g/mt)

in Screen

Undersize Feed 100 0.92 100 ----- ----- 100 0.79 100 ----- ----- +7/8" 6.6 0.71 5.1 94.9 0.93 4.3 0.67 3.7 96.3 0.79 7/8" x 5/8" 13.1 0.53 7.5 87.4 1.00 11.7 0.4 6 90.3 0.85 5/8" x 3/8" 19.8 1.19 25.8 61.6 0.93 17.2 0.87 19.1 71.2 0.84 3/8" x 1/4" 12.6 0.92 12.7 48.9 0.93 12.7 0.72 11.7 59.5 0.87 -1/4" 47.9 0.93 48.9 ----- ----- 54.1 0.87 59.5 ----- -----

Based on this data and with some understanding of the minimum size requirements for selective automated sorting we determined that the 5/8" screen oversize provided a meaningful volume of material for our testing to evaluate selective sorting and rejection. This size was also selected because it is reasonable to expect that screening can be effectively achieved at this size in a full scale operation. Physical observation of the +5/8" material indicated visually identifiable portions of vein material and sulfide material. It was noted that the majority of the 5/8" material showed no visual indications of veining or sulfides.

Automated Sorting Testing

Automated sorting is employed by many industries, and in the gold sector the Coeur Kensington mine is successfully operating an automated sorting circuit to recover higher grade ore before wasting the rejects. Many different sensors are used today in sorting, including but not limited to: Optical, Laser, XRT, Near Infrared, Visible light, Electromagnetic, and Color. A sample of +5/8" oversize material was sent to TOMRA's mining sorting division for testing. Testing was performed under the supervision of Outotec personnel using XRT and Laser sorting sensors. Testing indicates that a combination of XRT and Laser sorting methods could effectively identify the material containing quartz/calcite veining and/or sulfide material for subsequent removal using automated air sorting technology. A larger sorting test is planned to verify the promising indicative results. The following table summarizes the results of test work completed by TOMRA under Outotec supervision at TOMRA's mining sorting division in Germany.







Grade % Distribution



Wt % Gold (g

Au/mt) Total Sulfur (%) Gold Sulfur Average Feed (Calculated) 100% 1.98 0.84 100% 100% Average Product 35.6% 4.80 2.10 86.1% 88.6% Average Waste 64.4% 0.43 0.15 13.9% 11.4%

Grind-size/Recovery Testing

As part of the comprehensive metallurgical testing completed in 2012, we completed grind size optimization studies. Those studies indicated that a P80 of 90 m was the optimum grind size. At that time we recognized that finer grinding could result in higher gold recoveries, but the additional capital (i.e. larger mills) and power could not be justified to achieve the incremental increase in gold recovery. With the successful completion of the screening and automated sorting tests, we evaluated the relative advantages of down-sizing the mills to match the expected throughput compared to maintaining the mill size and grinding to a finer size.

As part of the recent testing, we completed grinding tests to achieve an initial product with a P80 of 90 m. This product was subsequently screened to assess the relative proportion of material at size fractions from 100 mesh to minus 400 mesh. This screen analysis indicated that 40-50% of the ground material was minus 400 mesh and 10-20% of the material was plus 200 mesh. RDi completed an analysis of the energy requirements to grind to a finer size and determined that the ball mills selected for the project in the 2013 PFS, operating with 11.5% less feed from the crushers would be able to successfully produce a product with a P80 of 75 m without any additional power demand. Based on grind-size and leach recovery work completed in 2012 and work recently completed by RDi, we expect that total recoveries in the range of 83-84% can be achieved with mill product with a P80 of 75 m.

Evaluation of Potential to Incorporate 2-Stage HPGR Crushing

In addition to the foregoing work, we prepared additional core composite samples and sent them to KCA in Reno, Nevada for additional HPGR testing. We conducted a testing program to evaluate the potential to achieve significant additional size reduction through 2-stage HPGR crushing. The objective of the program was to evaluate the potential to achieve sufficiently fine ball mill feed that even finer grinding, and hence higher gold recoveries, could be achieved. At this time we are not convinced that the additional capital and operating costs of 2-stage HPGR crushing can be justified by the results, but additional testing is contemplated.

Qualified Person

Dr. Deepak Malhotra, of Resource Development Inc., is a Qualified Person as defined under Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this news release.

Management Conference Call

A conference call with management to discuss the results of the Mt Todd gold project optimization studies is scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, 2016 at 2:00 pm MST.

Event Title : Vista Gold's Mt Todd Gold Project Optimization Update

Toll-free in North America: 1-866-233-5249

International: 416-642-3300

This call will also be web-cast and can be accessed at the following web location: http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=1322195&s=1&k=B2530005D32B12FE6F9AE93198FAF931

This call will be archived and available at www.vistagold.com after November 29, 2016. Audio replay will be available for 21 days by calling toll-free in North America: 1-888-203-1112, passcode 1698128.

If you are unable to access the audio or phone-in on the day of the conference call, please email questions to Connie Martinez, Manager  Investor Relations (email: [email protected]), and we will try to address these questions prior to or during the conference call.

About Vista Gold Corp.

The Company is a well-funded gold project developer. Our principal asset is our flagship Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia where we are seeking approval of our final environmental authorization and evaluating an update of our preliminary feasibility study. We also hold approximately 4.4% of the outstanding common shares of Midas Gold Corp., non-core projects in Mexico and the United States and royalty interests in Indonesia. For more information about our projects, including technical studies and resource estimates, please visit our website at www.vistagold.com.

For further information, please contact Connie Martinez at (720) 981-1185.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that we expect or anticipate will or may occur in the future, including such things as the potential to enhance the project economics for the Mt Todd gold project in Northern Territory, Australia; the anticipated economic improvements that the process flowsheet changes that are expected to produce; selectively screening and rejecting sub-economic, coarse crusher product prior to grinding; our expectation that the capital costs will not add materially to the capital costs of the project; the effect on the projects economics of the current US dollar to Australian dollar exchange rate; our plan to finalize a schedule for the completion of an updated preliminary feasibility study; and our expectation that we will announce our plans for its completion in the near future and other such matters are forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. The material factors and assumptions used to develop the forward-looking statements and forward-looking information contained in this press release include the following: our approved business plans, exploration and assay results, mineral resource and reserve estimates, results of optimization studies and results of preliminary economic assessments, technical studies, pre-feasibility studies and feasibility studies on our projects, if any, our experience with regulators, and positive changes to current economic conditions and the price of gold. When used in this press release, the words "optimistic," "potential," "indicate," "expect," "intend," "hopes," "believe," "may," "will," "if," "anticipate," and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Such factors include, among others, uncertainty of resource and reserve estimates, uncertainty as to the Company's future operating costs and ability to raise capital; risks relating to cost increases for capital and operating costs; risks of shortages and fluctuating costs of equipment or supplies; risks relating to fluctuations in the price of gold; the inherently hazardous nature of mining-related activities; potential effects on our operations of environmental regulations in the countries in which it operates; risks due to legal proceedings; risks relating to political and economic instability in certain countries in which it operates; as well as those factors discussed under the headings "Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the Company's latest Annual Report on Form 10-K as filed on February 26, 2016 and other documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Canadian securities regulatory authorities. Although we have attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements and forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Except as required by law, we assume no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information; whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Vista Gold Corp.

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CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Volpara Solutions announced the launch of VolparaEnterprise 2.0 software, which helps breast imaging providers deliver high quality, personalized breast screening, here at the 102nd Annual Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) meeting, November 27-December 2, 2016. (RSNA Booth - South Hall #4574).

VolparaEnterprise software, which was commercially launched in 2016, delivers key performance indicators (KPIs) for hundreds of performance and quality metrics, including positioning, compression and equipment utilization. The Microsoft Azurebased solution provides continuous quality assurance and performance monitoring through dynamic, interactive dashboards. Updated with every mammography or tomosynthesis exam, the VolparaEnterprise ConstantQuality metrics may help facilities comply with the FDA's new EQUIP inspection program.

Designed to support large or small enterprises, VolparaEnterprise software enables breast imaging providers to provide objective evidence to demonstrate compliance and quality of care. Users can perform rapid quality control checks to optimize the productivity and efficiency of imaging resources, to help reduce costs through the reduction of retakes, and to increase staff effectiveness.

Updates to VolparaEnterprise 2.0 software include additional data and analytics tools to help improve imaging providers' understanding of their performance and provide better understanding of their patient population and referral patterns. A new technologist-specific dashboard enables technologists to monitor their own performance, and the new technologist Quality Quadrant diagram summarizes staff performance on patient positioning and compression to identify training opportunities. A broader use of infographics makes data easier to interpret, and new role-specific "landing pages" summarize performance data for each user.

"VolparaEnterprise has given us the ability to monitor performance and quality every single day. With real-time, objective information, we no longer have to wait for ACR accreditation or for a radiologist to complain about inferior images to learn about quality concerns" said Mindy Shikiar, VP of Operations at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. "We are now beginning to use VolparaEnterprise to reshape the training of our technologists. VolparaEnterprise contains this amazing capability for analyzing patient positioning, which now gives us the ability to objectively identify which technologists are doing well and offer additional training to those who may need it."

VolparaEnterprise software provides Clinical Quality Measures (CQMs1) sought by payers to justify supplemental screening. The objective assessment of volumetric breast density helps reduce time spent by radiologists and technologists on recalls that are not clinically beneficial, such as ultrasound on BI-RADS A/B breasts inadvertently deemed "dense" due to subjective assessment of density. This not only results in better patient care, but preserves proper equipment utilization, staff workflow and productivity.

"In the end, it's all about our patients. We were already proud to offer the Boca Raton community an amazingly well equipped and staffed breast center with dedicated professionals who truly care about our patients' well-being and long-term health. Adding VolparaEnterprise software has enabled us to implement new quality processes that will help ensure that every woman's mammogram is the best that we can offer," said Kathy Schilling, MD, Medical Director of Boca Raton Regional Hospital's Christine E. Lynn Women's Health & Wellness Institute.

Volpara Solutions is showcasing its entire suite of quantitative breast imaging tools, including

VolparaDensity, at RSNA. The company's technology is currently in use in 35 countries, and more than 9 million women have had their breast density analyzed using VolparaDensity.

About Volpara Solutions

Founded with the goal of helping radiologists give women the most accurate information possible regarding their breast health, Volpara Solutions is the wholly owned sales and marketing arm of Volpara Health Technologies Limited of New Zealand (formerly Matakina Technology). Available in most markets where breast cancer screening is commonplace, VolparaDensity provides an objective volumetric measure of breast density from both digital mammography and tomosynthesis data. VolparaDensity is part of a suite of quantitative breast imaging tools built on the Volpara Solutions algorithm that allows for personalized measurements of density, patient-specific x-ray dose, breast compression, breast positioning and other factors designed to provide critical insight for breast imaging workflow. For more information, visit www.volparasolutions.com.

1 https://www.cms.gov/regulations-and-guidance/legislation/ehrincentiveprograms/clinicalqualitymeasures.html

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160713/389465LOGO

SOURCE Volpara Solutions

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CHENGDU, China, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Western China International Fair, which has been hosted 16 times in Chengdu, has become a platform for international communication and cooperation. This year's fair, which held its opening ceremony on November 3 and ended on November 14, organized 75 events related to investment promotion and trade cooperation. Regions from Sichuan province, of which Chengdu is the capital, signed deals for 836 projects at the 2016 fair with total investment valued at some 657.25 billion yuan ($96.32 billion).

Jeong Hyeon-jun, a representative from the Korea Business Incubation Association, said that the association and South Korean exhibitors appreciated that the fair provided them with such a platform, where they found South Korean products were popular in China. Amanda Koh from Malaysian CocoScience Co said the company thanked the fair for the considerate services it provided before and during the event. Cathy Lee, a black tea exhibitor from Sri Lanka, said: "We feel the fair has become more and more international and the conference and exhibition environment is satisfying."

The fair, held in western China's Chengdu, is not inferior to those in Beijing and East China, Lee said.

The Chengdu Investment Presentation and International Cooperation Zone Project matchmaking event, hosted in the Tianfu New City Convention Center on November 2, was regarded as a highlight of the fair. The presentation and matchmaking activity saw the signing of 19 agreements worth 158.63 billion yuan, the fair's organizers said.

In one of the thirteen project investment deals struck, Siemens will help Beijing-headquartered BOE Technology Group Co., a supplier of internet-of-things technology, products and services, to upgrade and reform production lines with total investment valued at 1 billion yuan.

Six strategic cooperation agreements involving 115 billion yuan included one for an industry fund focusing on Sino-Germany (Chengdu) innovation cooperation.

The fair invited foreign and domestic companies to learn about the economic and social development of Chengdu and potential opportunities in the city. The companies also discussed cooperation with businesses and industry associations from Chengdu.

Local officials said the fair aimed to help Chengdu become a regional hub of the economy, science and technology, cultural creativity, foreign contact and comprehensive transport in western China.

The first phase of the 11th EU-China Business and Technology Cooperation Fair, another important event at the Western China International Fair, was held from November 2 - 6 in the Chengdu Hi-tech Industrial Development Zone. Its second phase took place from November 6 - 8 in Qingdao.

Statistics showed that the first phase saw more than 150 companies from 14 European countries and more than 400 Chinese enterprises engage in more than 800 matchmaking talks.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161121/441473

SOURCE China Council For the Promotion of International Trade Chengdu Sub-council
SHENZHEN, China, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ZNV announced the release of WeKeeper 2.0 and new partnerships at a press conference on a Gold cruise on the Huangpu River in Shanghai on November 22. WeKeeper 2.0 is another revolutionary breakthrough from ZNV following their comprehensive smart data center management software, WeKeeper 1.0, which was launched seven months ago, and has since stunned the market. The breakthrough will significantly improve the safe operation conditions of data centers and help managers further reduce operation costs and energy consumption. ZNV has also reached intent agreements for long-term cooperation with Cloudera and GFGQ in an aim to create more valuable products and solutions for data center users in the future.

The amount of data hosted at data centers has explosively increased, particularly during the rapid development of Internet around the world. As the core of storage, operation and maintenance of data, data centers face more and more challenges, particularly due to the increasingly enlarged data center scales and complicated systems. How to solve the issue of increasing detection points and more and more complicated data? ZNV has introduced the latest big data technology and worked with Cloudera to develop big data solutions that are applicable to data center management so as to multiply the data processing capacity and thoroughly solve the problems of delayed data processing, alarms and decision making.

According to Robert Zhu, ZNV Executive Chairman and CEO, WeKeeper 2.0 is intended to solve the issues facing data center managers, particularly in terms of reducing downtime, lowering operation expenses, and saving more energy. Compared with WeKeeper 1.0, WeKeeper 2.0 features faster speeds, where the big data engine speeds up system data processing and reduces system retrieval response from 10 seconds to less than 2 seconds, so that mass data analysis and retrieval can be completed in several seconds instead of dozens of minutes, as in the past. Systems are running more safely thanks to quick response and timely prediction and decision making, while reducing energy consumption and saving operation expenses for customers by means of further complex mathematical modeling. What's more, the upgraded version is more user-friendly and creates a better visual experience, with more comprehensive functions, beautiful interfaces, and convenient access and use.

WeKeeper 2.0 is a solution that brings forth concept innovation in data centers. It integrates power safety management, room environment management, intelligent subsystem management and operation and maintenance management. The solution is driven by event streams and is guaranteed by big data analysis in the background, creates significant value in lowering maintenance costs, intensifies operations and maintenance management, ensuring room security and rationalizing resource utilization, and realizes in-depth data analysis and operation services for customers in a brand-new 2.0 age.

Dr. Joe Cao, ZNV's CTO, said, "Faced with rapid growth of mass data at data centers, we've released WeKeeper 2.0 based on big data architecture, driving innovation in operation and maintenance, management, service consultancy, and data collection and analysis, offering advantages in resource management, data analysis and service customization. This solution not only analyzes energy consumption for collected big data and realizes PB-level data screening and archiving in seconds on the basis of big data management and evaluation prediction, but also uses real-time data modeling to predict potential risks, generate alarms in advance and provide the most professional decision suggestions for customers."

Representatives from Cloudera and Shanghai GFGQ Cloud Computing Technologies, Inc. attended the conference as partners. Cloudera is a leading supplier of Apache Hadoop software, services and training. Over 65% of companies in the Fortune 500 are using Cloudera's products, and Cloudera's customers cover a variety of industries, such as science, finance, telecom, retails, energy, medical care, and new media. Cloudera's East China and Taiwan Manager, Ding Yelei, said, "We are looking forward to cooperative development with excellent data center solution providers in the industry and realizing more value from big data collection, analysis and management for customers. ZNV agrees with our development goals, and we hope to continue to provide more quality data products and services for data center customers."

As a leader in cloud computing, Shanghai GFGQ Cloud Computing Technologies, Inc. has built one of the biggest data centers in China, offers integrated comprehensive cloud computing solutions, and has helped customers realize lower costs and better services. In terms of strategic cooperation with ZNV, Shangban Heqing, president of GFGQ, addressed the conference, "Our goal is to build smart, safe, reliable and energy-efficient data centers for customers, so we choose strategic partners with advantages in both rich experience and deep technological accumulation. During our long-term cooperation, we believe that ZNV is our most reliable partner, and we will continue to strengthen our cooperation in the field of data centers."

ZNV Executive Chairman and CEO, Robert Zhu, said, "Our present performance depends on the trust and support of partners, who have offered us long-term support in technical and market strategic cooperation. By relying on deep cooperation with Cloudera in big data research and development, WeKeeper 2.0 has made great progress in data collection, analysis and management." In terms of strategic cooperation in the big data market, ZNV has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with GFGQ, which further verifies the substantial development that ZNV has made in the area of DCIM solutions as well as recognition of the company. "Based on the friendly ecological chain partnership and more advanced technical solutions, ZNV hopes to provide more quality products and services for customers and become the leader in the field of data centers," added Robert Zhu.

SOURCE ZNV Technology

Related Links

http://www.znv.com.cn


Memory is not really under our control. It is not something we can control nor is it something that we really own. It is only something that brings us together with people and it will remain that way.

Thus pronounced Zainab Magdy on the stage of the Jesuites Centre in Cairo.

The quote comes from a performance titled Ordinary People, written, performed, and directed by Magdy, and staged at the Jesuit Centre from 22 to 26 November.

Ordinary People is the outcome of Hilfe das Volk kommt (Help! The People are Coming!), a playwriting residency organized by the Literature Colloquium Berlin in partnership with the Maxim Gorki Theater and supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung (Berlin). Magdy staged the playa one-woman show in Berlin in October, before bringing it home to an Egyptian audience this month.

With a simple set of desk, small lamp, laptop, and a chair, combined with a screen in the back showing video art of scenes, and anonymous facebook posts that harmonize with the performance, Magdy fills almost 50 minutes with many stories and memories, transitioning smoothly between dreams and reality. We follow two parallel lines: Magdy's own history and losses, and those of others, which have merged somehow in Magdy's memory.

"Part of my master's thesis was about collective memory. The issue of memory was always an interesting subject, but artistically I never thought this would be the topic of my first project. Over the course of a year, the subject arose as I went through several experiences, which contributed unconsciously to the project," Magdy told Ahram Online.

An actress who works in academia on the side, Magdy graduated from the department of English language and literature at Cairo University, where she is also an assistant lecturer. She has been writing creatively and acting in independent theater since 2008. In recent years she has been part of writing workshops that focus on writing for storytelling and performance with gender sensitivity in mind, such as 'The Odd Ducks' Project. Earlier this year, she also participated in Zig Zig, a play directed by Laila Soliman that tells the story of 12 Egyptian women who were raped by British soldiers in 1919.

Our minds separate our memories into jar-like compartments. These jars filled with memories are buried somewhere inside our mind in this thing called memory, and these jars will either remain or eventually break.

"I started to hear so many details of Mostafa's disappearance, from different people. Although I never met him, his story weighed on my mind. Earlier, I had dealt with the death of a friendshe got Alzheimers before she died, and it was scary to me when she did not recognize me... I told her story in the performance. Then again, one morning when the director Mohamed Khan died, I felt that our life is desperate. I did not know him but he became part of my memory through his films, and by the memories of him in my friends' minds," Magdy recalls.

In the performance, Magdy tells the story of a missing person, the details of which match the story of Mostafa Massouny, one of the most high-profile cases of alleged forced disappearance in Egypt, who went missing in June 2015 as he went out to buy food. His family said that they looked for him everywhere; in hospitals, police stations and morgues.

Massouny, a graphic designer and video editor, worked for a private company before his disappearance. His family said that they found out through "different channels" that Massouny was being held by state security and that his release was imminent. The family's claims were denied by the interior ministry, yet one year on, Masouny's fate is still unknown.

She went to sleep while peeling potatoes. She was going to make a potato casserole in the oven, Mostafa's favourite dish, with a kilo and a half of potatoes like she always did, always she peeled a kilo and a half, sliced them and lay them in the pan. She fell asleep with the potato skins lying around her on the sofa as she watched T.V.

The way Magdy interweaves Massouny's story with her own personal stories about loss and memory is painfully artistic. It is the way we see his facebook posts on the screen without his name that heightens the feeling of loss, as if his name is being erased from our collective memory.

The potato skins started twirling and turning into flowers: orange blossoms. The orange blossoms grew back into branches and the branches grew into an orange tree and the orange tree grew ripe oranges, ready for eating. She woke up and found her son sitting next to her, wearing the shirt and the pants he was wearing the day he disappeared.

Magdy decided to write a blog post. When asked about the conceptual framework of the script, she said she was not thinking of certain concepts, but spontaneously connected the concepts of "memory," "loss," and "forced disappearance." She never published the post, as it evolved into the script she'd been searching for, for months. This has become her performance, an outcome of the writing residency workshop.

"As a child, I used to go to Marsa Matrouh every year. After 8 years of not going, I went [there] on a writing retreat ... So many memories about my family returned to my mind there. Most of the memories I tell [in the play] are linked to that place," Magdy said.

"I chose to write about the things that are settled in my memory, the gaps in the stories we have been told by our families and our friends, and their stories, which turn into our own memories. For me, memory is connected to loss, because when a person dies or disappears, what is left of him is what we remember about him," she observed.

In 2008, I was 20 and I travelled for the first time outside of Egypt. For some strange reason, this trip slips from my memory, or I just dont like to remember it. I only remember my friend's mother, with whom we were staying, telling me as a matter of fact that lower class people travel to Marsa Matrouh and Port Said. Each summer, we would travel to Port Said and Marsa Matrouh.

As she moves across the memories, Magdy identifies two kinds of struggles for people who have lost someone: when a friend or loved one is known dead or when he is missing, or has lost his memory. The certainty, or lack thereof, makes a difference. In both cases though, the memories remain vivid.

Magdy said that as she created and directed the play, it was very difficult to take charge of everything. She wrote the text, directed and acts in the play. She felt that the text was too personal to hire anyone else to perform. On the other hand, this is her first experience as a directora process from which she learned a great deal.

Being the director and an actress at the same time proved challenging. She observes that at times it was difficult for her to view the play from a distance, especially as the performance is infused with great personal detail and emotion.

"It took me a while to recognize that I was distancing myself. It became clear to me as I [could see myself] hiding behind the jokes I tell, not to be deeply involved in what I say of my own memories," added Magdy, whose jokes drew laughter from the audience, even in the middle of such complicated and gloomy topics as memory and loss. As she performed she projected a unique ability to act out other characters and use her voice in a well studied, theatrical way. Her talent surfaces when she recites poetry or speaks prose in a sweet deep voice.

She also incorporated short videos into the performance, blending them successfully with the one-woman show's pace.

Magdy still believes that the script could be developed, and she is excited to perform again in Cairo. She says that she needs to arrange the financial resources first, as the budget she received for the project was all spent on the Cairo performance.

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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As much as the US presidential elections was about the future of America, it was also an evaluation of Obama's legacy

Using tough and shocking language, both in vocabulary and content, used many times against broad sections of Americans themselves and against symbols of the ruling establishment, Donald Trump has presented himself as offering a different vision.

Trump pledged to regain America's lost greatness, a result of Obama's legacy, promising economic, financial and social policies that would rebuild the country, purifying it of different sections of immigrants living on American soil, some illegally, others not. These sections are looked upon as a reason for the deterioration of the condition of the middle classes, threatening the country's security and safety.

Trump stoked the fears of wide sections of Americans, especially white workers of medium and low education, on two things in particular, namely: the economy and security. This in turn influenced broad sections to vote in favour of change and experiment with new policies manufactured outside the ruling establishment. Trump has repeatedly described this establishment as corrupt.

Such a choice reflects the prevalent and current mood within US society. It also reflects a number of constants that exist in American society. The most important of these constants is a racist legacy: differentiating between American whites and those of different ethnic minorities; a conservative legacy towards women; an isolationist legacy that seeks to lighten the burden of world leadership and follow American interests outside its borders; an arrogant legacy that thinks that America should remain the first power in the world and that it must have the best of everything, in Trumps words; and finally, a pragmatic legacy based on self-interest and not being committed to principles that Trump described in one of his speeches as suiting losers.

The reality of the situation is that this underlying legacy within American society, that expressed itself strongly in voting for Trump, rightly described as a populist candidate, exists also in several European countries where immigrants come to live from all parts of the world, such as France, Germany, Belgium and other EU countries.

These countries face almost the same problematic Trump expressed in his election campaign. If we put into consideration whats known as the "domino effect," it is natural that a development in a certain country or a certain region due to circumstances and factors present in other regions would cause the same results. So it seems right-wing currents in France, Germany, Belgium and Denmark will do better in coming elections within the next two years in comparison to previous elections.

Definitely Trumps success relies on fulfilling some of his promises, especially reducing immigration, creating jobs through returning industries that left the country due to free trade treaties, cutting down military adventures abroad and besieging border-crossing terrorist organisations, starting with the Islamic State (IS) group and passing through its branches in other countries in cooperation with trustworthy regional allies. This will result in gradually enhancing the standing of the right-wing in different European countries.

At this point, the European-American relationship will be refounded on new rules. New fields of cooperation may be witnessed between right-wingers on both sides of the Atlantic. At the same time, mechanisms and institutions established after World War II will be reviewed, on the top of which comes NATO.

Whats important in this scene is that Trump succeeds in America. This in turn wont be easy. Some inside America has already started to talk about the way to overthrow Trump, making his policies fail and setting obstacles before him. It is expected that there will be huge media monitoring of every step Trump takes, starting with his choices for his administration and passing through legal amendments he aims to pass and ending with the foreign relations he intends to undertake.

One of the most prominent matters will be reviewing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Canada and Mexico, adjusting US policy from political and economic tit for tat and imposing sanctions on Russia to cooperating with it in different fields and issues. The most salient of issue is fighting IS and the terrorist Al-Qaeda-inspired organisations, whatever their names, in Syria and ceasing the policy of changing regimes. This policy has caused catastrophes in more than one country. We Arabs have seen the greater share of this in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Libya, and some of its effects in Egypts Sinai.

The writer is a political analyst.

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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
(Beijing)  The head of China's top graft-fighting agency is spearheading a pilot program to consolidate the country's anti-corruption agencies in an apparent effort to better coordinate their work and create a body similar to Hong Kong's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC).

Wang Qishan recently finished a nine-day mission to Shanxi and Zhejiang provinces and to Beijing to launch the program on a trial basis, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

He told local authorities that China's supervision commission system, which is under the jurisdiction of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), will incorporate the functions of party discipline agencies, anti-corruption supervision agencies at all levels of government, and anti-corruption investigations by judicial authorities.

Commissions in each jurisdiction will pool corruption- and embezzlement-fighting resources at local prosecutors' offices, working along with the party's discipline authorities to facilitate anti-corruption operations in China, he said.

Wang, one of the seven members of the all-powerful Standing Committee of the party's Politburo, heads the CCDI.

Wang's visit to the three areas from Nov. 17-25 came after the general office of the party's Central Committee outlined its pilot program, saying it wanted to create an agency similar to Hong Kong's ICAC.

That integrated agency allows authorities to coordinate anti-corruption efforts and keep tabs on all government payrolls, Wang said.

Prosecutors' offices in Shanxi were told to freeze hiring and suspend promotions and transfers in their anti-corruption units and those handling embezzlement cases, a provincial official said.

Contact Li Rongde (rongdeli@caixin.com); editor Ken Howe (kennethhowe@caixin.com)
Islamabad, Nov 23 : A cat owner has sued an Islamabad veterinarian, accusing him of negligence that allegedly led to her cat's death, the media reported on Wednesday.

Mismah Sundus told Dawn she took her two-month-old cat for a routine check-up to Faisal Khan's clinic in Sector F-7 of the Pakistan capital.

"My cat was admitted to the hospital and I was asked to return the following day," Sundus said.

The same evening, when she picked up her cat from the clinic and returned home, the cat fell sick.

Sundus said she rushed her kitten to another doctor's clinic where it died.

"The doctor told me my cat had been kept at a lower temperature, not suitable for mammals. This is why my cat died," she added.

A post-mortem report was also submitted in the local court.

The plaintiff accused Faisal Khan and his staff of negligence, and asked for Pakistani Rs 25 million in fine.

Sundus also demanded that all accused serve a jail sentence. She made a plea to the veterinary council to install CCTV cameras in these clinics to monitor how animals are treated.
New Delhi, Nov 23 : The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its order on the Bihar government's plea seeking cancellation of bail granted to RJD legislator Rajballav Prasad Yadav, who is to stand trial for raping a minor in February this year.

Reserving the order, the bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre said: "We are concerned with fair trial, because it is a case filed under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POSCO) and a child is also involved. We are not going to dismiss the petition (by Bihar government) because we want fair trial."

The court said that it would pronounce its order in a couple of days.

The apex court said this as it was told that on its direction, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) lawmaker from Nawada was sent back to jail for two weeks and the period was coming to an end.

The court on November 8 ordered Rajballav to surrender so that the victim girl could record her statement before the trial court.

The court reserved its verdict on the bail plea even as senior counsel Dushyant Dave, who appeared for Rajballav, tried to assure the bench that he would stay away from Bihar until the trial in the case of minor's rape is complete.

However, this was opposed by senior counsel Gopal Subramanium, who said that there are many important witnesses, including the doctor who had examined the victim, to depose before the court which was trying the case.

Subramanium told the bench that Rajballav's second bail plea before the Patna High Court, in which he was granted the bail, should have come before the bench that had rejected his first bail plea.

The Bihar government had moved the apex court against the grant of bail to Rajballav by the Patna High Court in September.

He was accused of raping the girl at his residence in Bihar Sharif, and was suspended from the party after the incident came to light.

However, he continues to be an RJD lawmaker in the state assembly.

Rajballav, who was denied anticipatory bail by a local court in Bihar Sharif in February, was on the run but later surrendered in the court in March.

He was granted bail by the high court on September 30. Yadav was named one of the five accused in the chargesheet filed in April.

Besides Rajballav, Sulekha Devi and those accused of providing women to the RJD lawmaker for sex were named the accused.
Kolkata, Nov 23 : Three women associated with two city nursing homes were detained for questioning by the Criminal Investigation Department of West Bengal Police in a case of inter-state child smuggling, an official said on Wednesday.

Eight persons, including a doctor, two quacks and a owner of a nursing home, were arrested from Baduria in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on Tuesday for allegedly running a child smuggling racket.

"Two women from a Behala-based nursing home and another woman from a College Street-based nursing home have been detained in relation with the child smuggling racket that we found yesterday (Tuesday)," Deputy Inspector General of Police (CID) Bharatlal Meena told IANS over phone.

They are being questioned in the state CID headquarters Bhabani Bhavan.

Earier on Wednesday, the CID officials also sealed the house of a doctor in Thakur Nagar in North 24 Parganas for allegedly being involved in the Baduria-based child smuggling racket and interrogated his wife and brother.

"The doctor might be involved with the child smuggling racket in Baduria. We have sealed his house for further investigation," Meena said.
New Delhi, Nov 23 : Almost the entire opposition put up a united front against demonetisation on Wednesday paralysing Parliament's functioning over the mode of discussion on the issue and the Prime Minister's presence during debates on the issue.

Thirteen opposition parties, barring the Left and the Aam Aadmi Party, protested near Mahatma Gandhi's statue in Parliament House premises. The Trinamool Congress held a rally at the Jantar Mantar here, attended by leaders of several opposition parties, including the Janata Dal-United, Samajwadi Party, Nationalist Congress Party and the Aam Aadmi Party.

The opposition also decided on a countrywide 'Aakrosh Diwas' protest on November 28 over the November 8 demonetisation move.

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi, who led the opposition protest, called demonetisation a "scam".

Gandhi said the opposition wanted a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the issue.

"We feel this decision is a scam. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) had informed his close friends about this (demonetisation) before the announcement. We want a JPC to probe this," Gandhi said during the protest along with leaders of 12 other opposition parties.

"What the Prime Minister has done is the world's biggest impromptu financial experiment.

"He (Modi) can go to a pop concert and speak, but 200 MPs of the opposition are standing here to demand his presence," Gandhi said.

Leaders from the Congress, Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, Janata Dal-United, Trinamool Congress, Nationalist Congress Party and the DMK protested outside Parliament.

The opposition members displayed placards carrying slogans like 'Not a surgical strike, carpet bombing on common people', 'Demonetisation of hard-earned money', 'Save poor people' and 'Stop persecution of common people'.

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of winter session on November 16 over demonetisation, that has triggered a cash chaos in the country.

In the Lok Sabha, opposition members want a debate under an adjournment motion, which entails voting.

In the Rajya Sabha, which started a debate on demonetisation on the first day, the opposition is seeking the presence of the Prime Minister in the house.

To break the logjam, the government has convened a meeting of floor leaders of different parties on Thursday.

The meeting will be attended by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Information and Broadcasting Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.N. Ananth Kumar.

Accusing Modi of robbing the poor of their livelihood through demonetisation, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee said the BJP-led Centre had completely lost its credibility.

Addressing the protest rally at the Jantar Mantar, the West Bengal Chief Minister dubbed Modi a "Hitler" and said the country is not secure under his rule.

"With just one decision, you destroyed the entire country. Modi-ji, do you realise how people are starving? How people are forced to shut their shops? How farmers have been ruined? Do you realise how you have robbed their livelihood and driven the common people to the brink," asked Banerjee.

"The situation now is worse than even during the Emergency. This government has lost all credibility; and once credibility is lost, everything is lost. The country is not secure under Modi. This government will have to go," she said while addressing her second public meeting in the national capital within a week.

Taking a stand different from party President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on demonetisation, former Janata Dal-United President Sharad Yadav participated in Banerjee's protest rally.

Speaking on the occasion, Yadav flayed Modi for "evading" Parliament and demanded that the Prime Minister come to the house and account for -- what the JD-U leader said were -- the sufferings of the masses.

"Come to Parliament and tell us the reasons... tell why you wreaked havoc in the houses of farmers, fishermen, the poor, the common man. And if you don't, then remember -- the Congress once had imposed Emergency and people had given a befitting reply.

"You must have heard of revolution; people will show you what revolution means."

In Kolkata, West Bengal Ministers and senior Trinamool Congress leaders participated in a massive protest rally organised by the state's ruling party against demonetisation.
Hyderabad, Nov 24 : Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday entered his new official residence, said to be the biggest held by any Chief Minister in the country, drawing flak from the opposition.

Accompanied by his wife Shobha Rao, son K.T. Rama Rao, a cabinet minister, and other family members, KCR stepped into the dream house at 5.22 a.m. amid the chanting of Vedic hymns by priests.

The new complex, spread over 10 acres of land and about one lakh square feet built-up space, has come up close to the existing camp office-cum-residence of the Chief Minister in Begumpet.

KCR, as the Chief Minister is popularly known, and his wife participated in "Sudarshana Yagnam" conducted under the supervision of seer Chinna Jeeyar Swamy.

As part of the "griha pravesh" (house warming ceremony), the couple performed "Daiva Pravesam", "Yati Pravesam", "Go pravesam" and "Pravesam" (formally entering) ceremonies.

Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, his wife Vimala Narasimhan, KCR's daughter and MP K. Kavitha, nephew and state minister Harish Rao and state ministers and top officials attended the ceremony.

Estimated to have been built at a cost of over Rs 40 crore, the complex, "Pragathi Bhavan", comprises the CM's residence, office, conference hall and the two existing buildings.

Soon after forming the first government in newly created Telangana state in 2014, KCR had started work on the new residence.

A firm believer in "vaastu", the ancient system of architecture, KCR had reluctantly moved into the existing camp office after removing 'vaastu defects'.

The "vaastu" advisors of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief had advised him against occupying the existing camp office built in 2004 by then Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy at a cost of Rs.8.10 crore.

KCR considered the building "inauspicious" as Rajasekhara Reddy had reportedly moved in without performing rituals and he died in a helicopter crash a few months after returning to power in 2009.

His successor K. Roshaiah also could not complete the term while Kiran Kumar Reddy faced a turbulent time as the last Chief Minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh.

The Telangana CM had been using only residential part of the complex both as residence and office but never used the camp office.

KCR is facing flak from the opposition for what they said was a waste of public money on a new building though the existing residence was in good condition.

Congress leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir said KCR was doing a Nero. He said the CM moved into a five-star bungalow with bullet-proof toilet and bedrooms at a time when people were suffering due to demonetization of high value currency.

Shabbir, who is leader of the opposition in the state assembly, said KCR moved into posh new house while his poll promise to build 2.6 lakh double-bedroom houses for poor remained unfulfilled.

Activists of Telugu Nadu Students Federation (TNSF), the youth wing of Telugu Desam Party (TDP), tried to lay siege to the new residence of KCR as a mark of protest.

Police arrested the TNSF activists who raised slogans against the Chief Minister.

The protestors said the government had no money to pay towards arrears for the reimbursement of students' fee but spent huge money on the new residence.
Kolkata, Nov 24 : Complaining that their business has declined by 75 per cent across the nation due to an acute cash crunch post demonetisation, hawkers on Thursday burnt an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Hundreds participated in a rally brought out by the 'Hawker Sangram Committee', the West Bengal wing of National Hawkers Federation, from Subodh Mullick Square in central Kolkata to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation headquarters.

"The hawkers' business that had a daily turnover of nearly Rs 8,000 crore in the country has come down to Rs 2,000 crore after demonetisation. More than 60 people have died throughout the nation. We strongly oppose this attempt to destroy the nations economy in the name of recovering black money,"said Saktiman Ghosh, Hawker Sangram Committee general secretary.

The rally, an annual event to protest against the 'Operation Sunshine', a hawker evacuation drive in the city 20 years ago undertaken by the then Left Front government, had added significance this year due to the demonetisation, which has hit hard the unorganised business sector.

The participants carried black flags and posters decrying the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes and large banners condemning the Operation Sunshine that had taken the lives of 18 hawkers.

Raising slogans against Modi, they burnt his effigy, describing his November 8 demonetisation announcement as a conspiracy to promote online business.

"Prime Minister's decision is a conspiracy to promote online business and demolish the poor working class. More than 50 percent of the street vendors in India do not have bank accounts. They need the supply of hard cash for daily transactions," Ghosh complained.

A 14 member delegation of hawkers met state Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim after the rally with demands to resolve the cash problem.

"We will inform the minister about the problems our hawkers are facing for the lack of smaller denomination notes. We will also demand the implementation of Central Street Vendor Act and hawkers' rehabilitation," Ghosh said.
New Delhi, Nov 25 : The Rajya Sabha on Friday was adjourned twice amid chaos as the opposition sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's apology for saying that demonetisation was being denounced because its critics had been tripped by the sudden announcement.

The House was adjourned in quick succession. It was first adjourned till noon and later till 2.30 p.m.

Soon after it met in the morning, opposition members were on their feet demanding Modi's apology for his remarks that its critics were not given any time to "save" their unaccounted money.

The Leader of the Opposition, Ghulam Nabi Azad, said it was promised on Thursday that Modi would sit through the debate on the ban on 500 and 1,000 rupee notes but he did not.

All opposition parties, including the Congress, BSP, Samajwadi Party and Trinamool Congress, who had been vociferous critics of the demonetisation, vociferously sought Modi's apology.

The Prime Minister should come to the House and apologise, they demanded.

The Upper House again witnessed similar noisy scenes after it met at 12 noon.

Speaking at a book release function earlier and clearly referring to the opposition, Modi said they would have been happy with the demonetisation decision had the government informed them in advance.

Both the Houses of Parliament have been disrupted over demonetisation since the winter session began.
Gandhinagar, Nov 25 : The Gujarat government on Friday invited Patel agitation leader Hardik Patel for talks to reach an amicable solution to the community's demand for quotas in government jobs and educational institutions under the other backward classes (OBC) category.

"We are willing to hold talks with Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) leaders, including Hardik Patel, to bring about a solution to this long-standing problem," said Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel.

"In the past too we have maintained that the issues canAbe resolved only through negotiations," he added.

The move is seen as an effort to resolve one of the toughest challenges faced by the ruling BJP since Narendra Modi shifted from state politics to become Prime Minister in 2014. The Patel agitation had seen the BJP lose its grip over 80 per cent of local self government bodies after a gap of two decades in December last year.

Hardik Patel has welcomed the decision by the Vijay Rupani government. "We will raise our two key demands of reservations for Patel community in government jobs and educational institutions as well as action against the policemen who treated our people in a high-handed manner during the agitation," he said.

Hardik at present remains exiled outside the state's geographical boundary for six months as ordered by Gujarat High Court under his bail conditions and the period gets over in January. Official say the talks can be held at Udaipur, where Hardik is stationed, Ahmedabad or state capital Gandhinagar.

"We have called a meeting of all our convenors to discuss whether to meet the government, when and whether it is in the interest of the community. But, one thing is clear that if the state government tries to play politics as it did in the past during the Anandiben regime, then it would backfire and we would re-launch the agitation with even more force," said PAAS spokesperson Varun Patel.

The Opposition Congress on its part called the invite by the government as a "desperate" move to save itself from losing the state in forthcoming elections.

"First they beat up people, including young and women, and now they are showing empathy. It is BJP government that has filed innumerable cases, including those of sedition, against so many youngsters. Talk of discussions is just another sham," said Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi.
Imphal, Nov 26 : Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh said on Saturday that law will take its own course while dealing with United Naga Council President Gaidon Kamei and Information Secretary S. Stephen, who were arrested by police on Friday.

"Legal process has already started regarding these two UNC leaders and there is no question of releasing them unconditionally," Ibobi said.

The UNC on November 1 imposed an indefinite economic blockade to protest against the government's move to create two new districts.

Ibobi said efforts were on to arrest the other absconding members of the UNC who have been charged with imposing the blockade.

The UNC and other Naga groups have called for a 24 hour "total shutdown" from Friday evening demanding the unconditional release of the two leaders.

Naga leaders said the protest against the proposed new districts of the Sadar Hills was a "political issue" and there was no justification regarding the arrest of the two UNC members.

On the other hand, Manipur has been reeling with the shortage of all items, including fuel, since November 1.

Petrol brought by a few tankers is rationed and a liter is sold at Rs 300 in the black market.

According to officials, charges are being framed against the two UNC leaders in the light of the Supreme Court's directives regarding the blockades.

The Manipur High Court on Friday took a view of the blockade and directed the government to ensure the movement of vehicles along the two highways.

Ibobi said the condition of the NH 37 which skirts Nagaland, will be improved before the onset of the rainy season.

In the past, some Naga groups had also imposed blockades against Manipur making it impossible to transport anything along the NH 2 which passes through Nagaland.

Ibobi said: "On Friday nearly 400 trucks and oil tankers brought various items from Assam to Manipur, and the situation will soon be normalised."

In accordance with the high court order, Chief Secretary Oinam Nabakishore and Director General of Police (DGP) L. M. Khoute have been making arrangements to ensure the movement of the vehicles.

Officials fear the UNC and the All Naga Students' Association Manipur may intensify their agitation.

The police are making arrangements to escort the stranded trucks.
Chandigarh, Nov 27 : The Punjab Police and security agencies are investigating the recent activities of the six prisoners who escaped from the maximum security Nabha Jail premises on Sunday following a well-planned attack by unidentified armed men.

Police sources said CCTV footage of the jail, call records of jail officials and others and posts on social media sites were being studied to know the involvement of people in the sensational jailbreak.

Of the prisoners who escaped, Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested in November 2014 as he returned to India from Thailand after being deported from there.

He was nabbed from the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport in New Delhi along with an aide after security and intelligence agencies tracked him.

Mintoo's aide Gurpreet Singh, also deported from Thailand, was also arrested.

Mintoo is wanted in several terror cases in Punjab. Police had claimed that Mintoo was planning terrorist strikes in the region.

"The KLF chief was wanted in 10 terrorist offences and his key aide Gurpreet Singh had been tasked to execute a conspiracy of assassinating Hindu leaders in 2013 which was foiled by Punjab Police," Punjab Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) Hardeep Singh Dhillon had said then.

Punjab Police traced and located them in Thailand in co-ordination with central agencies. On November 7, they were brought from Thailand to New Delhi in co-ordination with Thai authorities and arrested.

Two Punjab police officers camped in Thailand for three weeks while tracking the terrorists there.

"It was established that Harminder Singh was using a fake Malaysian passport issued in the name of Gurdeep Singh (Passport A-22967012 issued in Ipoh, Malaysia) and a fake Malaysian ID Card No. 610320086949," Dhillon said.

Mintoo was trying to revive and strengthen the KLF with foreign based supporters. He visited Pakistan and later travelled to Italy, Belgium, Germany, France and other European countries for 11 months (June 2013 to May 2014) before coming to Southeast Asia.

The Punjab Police came to know about the conspiracy to eliminate Hindu leaders after sleeper cells were busted by the police in 2013-14.

Mintoo had close contact with Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) officers.

Another terrorist, Kashmir Singh Galwadi, who was involved in an attack on a Punjab Hindu leader in Gurdaspur in 2013, also escaped. He was also associated with the pro-Khalistan movement.

Gangster Vicky Gonder, arrested in December last year, was suspected to be behind the murderous attack on another gangster, Sukha Kahlwan, near Jalandhar in January 2015. Kahlwan was in police protection and was being taken for a court hearing when the attack took place at Phagwara town.

Kahlwan was gunned down while the police personnel accompanying him failed to repulse the attack.

Gonder and other gangsters had been in the news for running the affairs of their gangs from inside Punjab jails and also using social media.

Gangster Gurpreet Sekhon, who also escaped on Sunday, led another gang which was involved in murder, kidnappings, extortion and highway robberies.

The other two gangsters, Neeta Deol and Vikramjit, were also involved in various crimes in Punjab and other places.
China's largest train maker has appointed a new chairman who will also be the company's party secretary, as the company joins a growing number of Chinese state-owned enterprises (SOEs) that are merging the two roles.

Liu Hualong, whose new dual role with China Railway Rolling Stock (CRRC) Group was announced Monday afternoon, has been the company's general manager. Xi Guohua, who has been CRRC Group's president and executive director, will take the titles of vice president, deputy party secretary and general manager.

These new appointments are part of a larger program to consolidate party control over SOEs.

China's State Council, the nation's cabinet, had issued a directive in August 2015 that told SOEs to synchronize party committee operations with the enterprises' commercial operations. "The reform of SOEs must adhere to the party's political principles," the State Council wrote.

The directive said "an SOE's chairman and party secretary positions will be held by one person in principle."

Such adjustment has already been taking place in many centrally owned giants, such as First Automobile Works Group Corp., China State Construction Engineering Corp. and China Minmetals Corp., whose top corporate jobs are also shared by their party chiefs.

Liu was vice president of CRRC Qiqihar Co., a freight-wagon subsidiary of CRRC. He also served as deputy general manager of China South Railway Corp., or CSR. Xi once served as director of CSR's Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive Research Institute, and was also formerly deputy party secretary and deputy general manager of China CNR Corp.

Contact editor Ken Howe (kennethhowe@caixin.com)
Houstan, Nov 28 : A man was killed and nine others were injured in a shooting incident on early Sunday morning in New Orleans, the largest city in the US state of Louisiana.

The 10 persons were shot at about 1.30 a.m. local time in the French Quarter, a tourist destination in New Orleans, and the man died later at a hospital, Xinhua news agency cited the city's English daily the Times-Picayune.

Police confirmed the shooting at a press conference on Sunday afternoon, saying that the victims, aged from 20-37, included two females and eight males.

The police have arrested two persons, including one shooting victim, on firearms charges.

Shelvin Gray, 19, was one of the two arrested and booked with illegal possession of a firearm, the police said, adding that there have been no charges in connection with the shooting at this time.

The police said that they did not know the cause of the shooting, but witnesses said that there was a dispute before the gun fires.
Paris, Nov 28 : French actress Lea Seydoux has suggested that she would be open to the idea of dating a man from the US, but she thinks they are prone to spending "too much time at the gym".

Asked if she would date an American man, Saeydoux said: "Yeah, of course, why not? But I don't find them very ... there is something not so sexy about American men. They are too self-conscious and they spend too much time at the gym."

The actress's family are part of the French establishment, but she believes that her privileged background has held her back in some respects, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

The 31-year-old told Esquire magazine: "In France, it's hard to become someone on your own. Even if you are a superstar, they will always say, 'Yeah, but you come from that world.' It's difficult to have ambition if you live in Paris."

Seydoux, who featured in the James Bond film "Spectre", was introspective as a youngster and would even ponder whether life was worth living.
Chandigarh, Nov 28 : Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested from Delhi in a joint operation by the Punjab Police and the Special Crime Branch of the Delhi Police on Monday morning.

The arrest was made within 24 hours of the sensational jailbreak at the maximum security Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday in which two terrorists and four gangsters escaped after the prison was attacked by armed men.
Mumbai, Nov 28 : Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for acknowledging his contribution to 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' (Clean India Mission).

Modi on Sunday shared an audio file on Twitter, where he is heard reciting a poem by Amitabh.

"A special message from Amitabh Bachchan on Swachh Bharat," Modi tweeted.

The 74-year-old actor re-tweeted to thank Modi.

"My most gracious and respectful thanks to the honourable Prime Minister Mananiya Shri Narendra Modi-ji, for acknowledging my small contribution," Big B tweeted.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : Opposition parties on Monday staged a protest against the demonetisation of higher currency notes near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament House complex as both houses of parliament witnessed pandemonium over the issue.

Leaders from the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, the DMK and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) protested in the Parliament House precincts.

The protest was led by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

However, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool Congress and Janata Dal United (JDU) stayed away from the protest, which was mainly a Congress show.

Later, Samajwadi Party Rajya Sabha member Ram Gopal Yadav told IANS that his party was "kept in the dark" over the protest.

"Hamein to wahan hona hi nahi tha (We were not supposed to be there). The opposition parties had a meeting in the morning. This protest was not discussed then. We were kept in the dark," Yadav said.

However, he added that his party was with the rest of the opposition in observing 'Akrosh Diwas' (protest day).

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of the winter session on November 16 over the demonetisation that has triggered a cash crunch in the country.
New Delhi/Chandigarh, Nov 28 : Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested at a railway station in Delhi on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from a high security prison in Punjab.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KCF) leader was nabbed from the Nizamuddin railway station by the Special Cell of Delhi Police, Special Commissioner of Police Arvind Deep told IANS.

"He was arrested between 1 and 2 a.m.," Deep said. "He had reached Delhi by changing a number of buses and was headed from Nizamuddin to Panvel (in Maharashtra)."

His plan was to then travel to Goa and from there flee the country, said a senior police officer on the condition of anonymity.

According to the officer, Mintoo, after his escape, entered Haryana, where he took a bus from Kurukshetra to Panipat and then boarded another bus to reach Delhi.

An earlier report said the arrest followed a joint operation by Punjab Police and Delhi Police.

Asked if this was true, Deep said the Punjab Police had "alerted us that Mintoo might go towards Delhi.

"So we formed several teams which kept vigil at strategic locations. He was spotted by our men at the Nizamuddin station."

The arrest happened within 24 hours after Mintoo, another terrorist and four gangsters broke out of the Nabha Jail in Punjab on Sunday morning after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men.

Punjab Police officials had said on Sunday that the escaped prisoners had fled towards Haryana.

Mintoo was arrested in 2014 with 10 cases against him. The other terrorist who escaped on Sunday was Kashmir Singh Galwadi.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said a report had been sought from the Punjab government and promised the Centre's assistance to nab those on the run.

"The Home Ministry has been doing whatever needs to be done," Singh said in Delhi.

"This (jailbreak) is a state subject and the Home Ministry has already sent advisories to states in this regard. The state (Punjab) government is looking into the matter," he said.

Mintoo would be presented in a court in Delhi and handed over to Punjab Police on transit remand.

On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who carried out the sensational jailbreak, was caught in Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh.

The attackers, dressed in police uniform, breached the prison security around 9 a.m. and fired at least 100 rounds during the well-planned attack that lasted barely 10 minutes.

After the jailbreak, a police team shot dead a woman travelling in a car which failed to stop at a barricade.
Jerusalem/Damsacus, Nov 28 : At least four Islamic State militants were killed by Israeli forces in Syria, in what is being called the first direct clash between the country and the jihadi group, the media reported on Monday.

The IS militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online as saying.

Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire on Sunday.

They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.

All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk", an IS offshoot which controls the area.

Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.

Later on Sunday, the Israeli Air Force overnight struck a compound used by the militant group inside Syria, the military said in a statement.

The attack targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the IS as an operation centre along the border in Golan Heights, Xinhua news agency cited the statement as saying.

Several fighter jets took part in the raid, dropping 10 one-ton bombs on the target.

Israel seized 1,200 sq. km of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.

The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.
Canberra, Nov 28 : Foreign workers will continue to play a leading part in filling positions in vital services in rural Australia, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said on Monday.

In defence of the government's Temporary Skilled Work (457) visa regulations, in which foreign workers are allowed to work in Australia for up to four years, Joyce said overseas workers were vital to the rural Australian workforce as urban-based professionals continue to shun moving out of the cities, reports Xinhua news agency.

Using the example of doctors, Joyce said that many regional communities would have no local doctors if only Australian-educated practitioners were allowed to practice.

He said that while, in a perfect world, locally-trained doctors would be available to all Australians regardless of post code, it would simply never happen as many local doctors were unable or unwilling to move out of major cities.

Joyce said the government's 457 visa regulations hit a "sweet spot" which the opposition's planned regulations would miss.

"The first thing that all Australians would love in their town is an Australian doctor," Joyce told Guardian Australia.

"And if they can't get an Australian doctor, the next best thing is a foreign doctor. It's a real worry for people in regional Australia that if you or your child gets sick, there simply is no doctor there."
Manjeri (Kerala), Nov 28 : Amid a controversy over the gunning down of two alleged Maoists, a court here on Monday asked the authorities in Kerala to preserve their bodies until Tuesday evening.

The court said it will deliver its verdict by Tuesday evening.

The court issued the instruction while hearing a petition filed by several human rights activists and the brother of one of the killed Maoists, who claim that this was a fake encounter, unlike what is claimed by Kerala Police.

Police said it was only after the Maoists opened fire that they retaliated and shot the two dead.

Incidentally, a court in Kozhikode had earlier asked police to preserve the bodies until Monday evening, following which they have been kept in the mortuary of the state-run Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

Monday is the fifth day since the Kerala Thunderbolts -- an elite commando force of the state police -- during a patrol in the deep forests of Nilambur, reportedly shot dead the two ultras, Koppam Devarajan and Ajitha alias Kaveri.

After the incident, the Communist Party of India (CPI) -- the second biggest ally of the ruling Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government -- criticised the killings, after which various human rights activists took up the issue.

The local media houses here also received a call from a person identifying himself as a Maoist, who said that this is a case of fake encounter.

Senior BJP leader V. Muraleedharan, in a statement on Monday, asked the Communist Party of India-Marxist to end playing hide and seek on the issue.

"Whenever such incidents happen in other states, the CPI-M is the first to react by saying that it is a fake encounter. For the first time, this has happened here, but even Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is silent.

"All he said is that information is still coming in. He should break his silence," said Muraleedharan, a former state BJP chief.

The Kerala government has announced a crime branch police probe into the incident.

The Congress party has demanded a judicial probe into the killings.
Jerusalem, Nov 28 : The Israeli Air Force overnight struck a compound used by Islamic State militant group in Syria, military said.

The attack targeted an abandoned UN building that has been used by the IS as an operation centre along the border in Golan Heights, Xinhua news agency cited the statement as saying.

Several fighter jets took part in the raid, dropping 10 one-ton bombs on the target.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The compound was a base for a shooting attack on Sunday, in which the IS militants fired at a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights from a machine gun-mounted truck.

Israel responded with an airstrike, killing four gunmen in the vehicle.

It was reportedly the first confrontation between Israeli soldiers and IS militants.

Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.

While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : A court on Monday sent to seven days police custody Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was arrested here a day after his sensational escape from a Punjab prison.

Delhi Police told the court that they were probing his links with Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh allowed police to quiz Mintoo till December 5.

Mintoo was arrested at a railway station here on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from the Nabha prison in Punjab along with another terrorist and four gangsters.
Mumbai, Nov 28 : Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, whose directorial "Pink" has been invited for a special screening at the United Nations headquarters in New York, feels honoured and says the film has initiated a movement.

Chowdhury said: "We are really honoured. The way people far beyond the target audience have loved 'Pink' is beyond anything we could have imagined. It won't be wrong to say 'Pink' has initiated a movement."

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who stars in the film, which deals with crime against women and more, said: "It is indeed a singular honour. 'Pink' was not meant to be an effort to initiate a movement. But if it has initiated a debate, a discussion, and discourse on the safety of women, I think the purpose of the film is well served."

"Society and morals have undergone changes with time, as have the laws of the land. We are not out to change laws or even suggest that we can. We have just constructed a fictional story and through the circumstances that prevail, put out a few points that could perhaps be viewed as relevant. Our efforts have made an impact far beyond the expected."

Referring to the special screening, Big B's co-star Taapsee Pannu said that the team never thought "Pink" would have such long legs.

"Every time it achieves a new milestone, it feels like we have won an Oscar. This news of the film being invited to the UN came as another reward in our 'Pink' hat. The fact that it is a such a real and honest depiction of the reality that faces women in our country, made it so important, I think," she added.

The film's co-producer Shoojit Sircar is overjoyed.

"It's a great honour. 'Pink' is an universal film. All across the globe, women go through similar situations every day. It's not just a problem in our region. This is a great opportunity for us to start the 'Pink' discussion in the US. In the same way, it's affected our people here India. I hope the people outside also get impacted by the film in the same way."
Guwahati, Nov 28 : The Assam government has decided to discontinue the weekly holiday on Friday in some of government-run high madrassas in the state, said Health & Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday.

Sarma said that the state Education Department has already issued instruction to those madrassas to function like other schools on Friday.

The minister said it came to his notice only recently that some madrassas observe weekly holiday on Friday.

"It was recently that during a meeting with education officers, I found this strange thing that the government-run high madrassas in three districts, including Lakhimpur, Naogaon and Morigaon, observe holiday on Friday," the minister said.

"We know that official weekly holiday in Pakistan and Bangladesh is on Friday, while in India, the United States and Europe, Sunday is the weekly holiday," he said, adding that there cannot be two rules for holiday.

"I know that the government allows one or one-and-half-hour break to people, who believe in Islam, to offer Namaz on Friday. But there is no holiday on Friday as such. Even when the assembly is in session, we follow the same practice," he said.

The Education Department has already instructed that the practice will be discontinued and there will holiday on Sunday and not Friday. The erring headmasters of those madrassas will be suspended, it warned.

Former minister and Congress leader Siddique Ahmed, however, slammed Sarma over the decision and said that the minister wants to say that Muslims are second class citizens in Assam.

"Sarma is saying that Assam is not Pakistan or Bangladesh, meaning Muslims are second class citizens in Assam. The Muslim community will boycott Sarma," Ahmed said.

"He (Sarma) is trying to divide the people of the state on religious lines and pitting one community against the other," Ahmed added.
Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 28 : The dawn-to-dusk shutdown called by the ruling Left Democratic Front in Kerala on Monday crippled normal life as only private vehicles plied on roads and offices registered minimal attendance.

The opposition Congress, however, held a protest sit-in at the Raj Bhavan here.

While opposition parties called for nationwide protests on November 28 in different states after the November 8 demonetisation, the LDF led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist announced a shutdown in Kerala to denounce demonetisation that left state cooperative banks in turmoil.

Organisers of the shutdown had left tourism and banking establishments out of the purview of the bandh call.

Movement of pilgrims to the famed Sabarimala temple remained unaffected as their vehicles were allowed to move despite the shutdown.

Attendance in banks was poor as vehicular traffic and business took a hit.

The Pinarayi Vijayan-led state government had called the strike to also protest the "rash" behaviour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in declining to meet an all-party delegation from Kerala, which wanted to apprise him of the turmoil in the cooperative sector.

In Kerala, nearly 1,600 primary cooperative banks are attached to 14 district banks, which are linked to the Kerala State Cooperative Bank. Deposits in these cooperative banks total around Rs 1.27 lakh crore, Cooperation Minister A.C. Moideen said last week.

"The situation in Kerala is going from bad to worse... the entire system here is going to collapse," said Finance Minister Thomas Issac, while launching a protest here in the state capital.

The Congress-led opposition, however, expressed strong reservations over the shutdown.

Normal life has already turned topsy-turvy in the past 20 days due to demonetisation and further straining it is not the answer to the public woes, the Congress said.

As the opposition party staged the sit-in in front of the Kerala Raj Bhavan, top opposition leaders, including former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala, courted arrest but were later let off.

Indian Space Research Organisation officials here worked under police security, as did IT employees at the Technopark here and at Kochi.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Janata Party supporters distributed sweets in Kasargode to all those who rode their vehicles amid the shutdown.

The shutdown, however, facilitated transportation of an organ for transplant from a brain dead person in Kozhikode to Kochi in almost two and a half hours, which was half of the normal time it would have taken otherwise.

A report from Agartala in Tripura, where also the Left parties are in power, said normal life was crippled in the northeastern state too due to a 12-hour shutdown to protest against demonetisation of high-value currency.
Dubai, Nov 28 : Expatriates in the UAE are struggling to send money to their families in India post-demonetisation of Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes, the media reported on Monday.

Their families are facing a tough time withdrawing cash from banks since Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the move on November 8.

The cash crunch has badly hit rupee remittance transaction to India through bank transfers and instant cash transfers, Gulf News quoted the staff at certain money exchanges in Abu Dhabi as saying.

"I sent money for my family but my son is unable to withdraw it from the bank because of long queues," Shamseer Singh, who works with an insurance company in Abu Dhabi, was quoted as saying.

He said many blue-collar workers from his state of Punjab depended on instant money transfers, which are very convenient for their families to collect.

The situation has deprived Indian expatriates of an opportunity to cash in on a record low exchange rate of rupees.

Indian rupee fell to a record low of 68.86 against the US dollar last Thursday, making one dirham worth 18.7 rupees.

On Sunday, rupee was around 18.58 against dirham. Despite that there were not many customers to send money to India.

A Deutsche Bank research report said on Sunday that the rupee is expected to see further depreciation in the coming months and may breach the 70-level (against dollar) by December and touch 72.50 by the end of 2017.

"Whenever rupee goes down against dollar, there used to be a huge rush; but not now," said a money exchange employee.

Western Union, confirming the continuing currency crunch at their collection points in India, said on Sunday that in addition to cash payout, they were facilitating direct to bank account services and providing consumers an option of receiving remittances via account payee cheques, said the report.
Kolkata, Nov 28 : The Congress' West Bengal unit on Monday demanded a CBI probe into the inter-state child smuggling racket in which a total of 16 people have been arrested in a week.

"We appeal to the state government to launch a CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) probe in this matter. Private nursing homes have mushroomed across the state. Such incidents are injustice to our children," said state unit President Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

"We want to know from the state government where there is any monitoring system regarding private nursing homes in the state," he said.

The CID busted the smuggling racket when they conducted a raid in Baduria-based Sohan Nursing Home in North 24 Parganas district on November 21 and recovered three babies.

A total of 10 newborn baby girls were recovered from a private mental asylum in south Kolkata, as the probe into the sensational child smuggling racket in Bengal unearthed two skeletons and murkier details.

A total of 16 people have so far been arrested from different places of Kolkata and districts.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : A fresh terror case was filed by Delhi Police on Monday against Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was sent to seven days' police custody by a local court after he was recaptured here a day after his sensational escape from a Punjab prison.

Delhi Police told the court that they were probing his links with Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI.

Police also informed the court that a fresh FIR was registered against Mintoo under Section 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for being a member of a banned terror organisation.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh allowed police to question Mintoo till December 5.

Mintoo was arrested at a railway station here on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from Nabha prison in Punjab along with another terrorist and five gangsters.

Delhi Police informed the court that Mintoo was earlier a member of the banned terror organisation Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), a Khalistani militant group, but later joined the Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF), of which he later became chief.

Police also told the court that Mintoo had gone to Pakistan and attended a training programme conducted by the ISI.

Delhi Police has recovered a pistol from his possession and also slapped charges under Arms Act.

Police told the court that custodial interrogation of Mintoo will help in nabbing other co-accused who have helped him in his escape from jail.

Detailing the sequence of the jail break, police told the court that Mintoo and his associate snatched a rifle from the jail guards and fired upon them, injuring two of them.

Mintoo was arrested in 2014 and has 10 cases against him. The other terrorist who escaped on Sunday was Kashmir Singh Galwadi.
Chennai, Nov 28 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday arrested four suspected Al Qaeda activists - three from Tamil Nadu's Madurai and one from here, said police.

Police alleged that the four suspects had plans to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 21 other leaders.

The arrested men -- identified as M. Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali (all of Madurai) and Dawood Sulaiman from here -- also allegedly issued threats to several embassies in India, police said.

Temple town Madurai is around 420 km from here.

According to police, Sulaiman, who works in an IT company here, was picked up based on the information given by the three men picked up from Madurai.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : Former Delhi legislator Rambeer Shokeen has been arrested under the stringent MCOCA on charge of running an organised crime syndicate, police said. A court here on Monday sent him in three-day police custody.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass allowed the Delhi Police to quiz Shokeen till December 1, court sources said.

"Shokeen, who was declared a proclaimed offender, was arrested on Sunday evening from Yuva Shakti School at Rama Vihar in Karala in outer Delhi. He is an uncle of jailed gangster Neeraj Bawana," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pramod Kumar Kushwah told IANS.

The other accused in the case are Bawana, Pankaj Sehrawat, Sunil Rathi, Rahul Dabas, Naveen Dabas alias Bali, Naveen Hooda alias Bhanja, Amit Malik alias Bhura, Gurpreet Singh and Deepak Dabas alias Deepa -- who were charge-sheeted under Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in October 2015.

Bawana was arrested on April 7 last year from west Delhi's Mundka area and is in judicial custody with eight other accused.

The police charge sheet said all the accused are running a crime syndicate involved in extortion and murders, apart from land grab and settling of property disputes.

Police said Bawana is kingpin of the racket while Shokeen is the political face of the syndicate.

Shokeen was found using the clout of these criminals to contest assembly elections to further his political ambitions and gaining pecuniary benefits, police said.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear a plea for transferring RJD strongman Mohammad Shahabuddin from Siwan district jail in Bihar to Tihar Central Jail and holding of his trial of the 45 cases he faces in Delhi.

The apex court will also hear a plea for the handing over the cases to the Central Bureau of Investigaion for further investigation.

The bench of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Amitava Roy said this while senior counsel Shekhar Naphade appearing for Shahabuddin opposed the plea, contending it would adversely affect the visitation rights of Shahabuddin's relatives.

However, the bench said: "This is the situation which is the test case of our criminal jurisprudence in context of witnesses protection and the concept of fair trial."

"According to the constitution and law, there has to be a fair trial," it said.

The observation from the bench came in the course of the hearing of two petitions, one by Chandrakeshwar Prasad whose three sons were killed in two separate incidents by Shahabuddin's henchmen.

The other is by Asha Ranjan whose journalist husband was allegedly killed at the instance of Shahabuddin for exposing his activities in Siwan jail.

Describing the matters before the court as an "inspired litigation", Naphade said that his client had repeatedly said that he has been "a victim of political conspiracy".

As he said that if 45 cases were to be transferred to Delhi for trial, then it would take 20 years for their completion, the court asked why he thought so.

Even Additional Solicitor General P.S.Narasimha wondered how the trial of 45 cases would stretch to over 20 years.

In an attempt to persuade the court that his client faced a 'media trial' and wanted the bench to see some photographs, the court observed: "We can't go into photographs. Why should not cases be shifted to Delhi? CBI investigating (the case) in the State (Bihar) is one thing. The transfer of cases to Delhi is another."

"The trial can take place in Delhi, CBI will bring witnesses."

The top court had on October 24 issued notice to Shahabuddin on the plea by Chandrakeshwar Prasad and Asha Ranjan seeking his transfer from Siwan jail to Tihar Jail in Delhi and holding of his trial through video-conferencing.

The top court had on September 30 had ordered Shahabuddin back to jail in the Rajiv Roshan murder case as it pointed to the need for balancing the consideration of individual liberty of the accused with that of societal interest.

The court had reversed September 7 order of Patna High Court granting him bail.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : Hundreds of NSUI activists and supporters were detained on Monday when they tried to march to Parliament House and gherao it to demand waiving of educational loans and deferring of payment of admission fee till March next year.

Around 1,000 National Students Union of India (NSUI) supporters from across the country marched towards Parliament House -- where the winter session of both the houses of Parliament is on since November 16 -- to gherao it but were detained by police and taken to Parliament Street police station.

"We demand waiving of educational loans of students. If the government can waive outstanding loan dues worth crores of rupees of capitalists, it can certainly do it for students," NSUI President Amrita Dhawan told IANS.

"We demand that since students are going through a severe cash crunch (after demonetisation), they be exempted from paying admission fee till March next, or else allowed to use old currency notes," she said.

The Centre had banned old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 from November 8 midnight.

The protesters said demonetisation had left people penniless and the note ban was not in public interest.

Congress leaders Anand Sharma, Deepender Singh Hooda, Ahmed Patel and Randeep Surjewala were among those who addressed the protesters and accused the Centre of apathy towards public misery after demonetisation.

"This note-ban is nothing but an attempt to draw people's attention away from the government's failures. During its 2014 general election campaign, the Bharatiya Janata Party had promised to create two crore jobs if it came to power. However, only two lakh jobs have been created till now since May 2014," Amrita Dhawan said.

"The Centre is indulging in self-glorification by renaming central schemes and structures, while the people are forced to stand in queues for long hours to get their own money," the NSUI leader added.

A memorandum meant for Prime Minister Narendra Modi was submitted by protesters to officials concerned, which termed the demonetisation authoritarian and violation of the Constitution.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : The Delhi Congress on Monday held a protest march here to protest against demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes.

The 'Jan Akrosh' (public anger) march was led by Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken.

Hundreds of Congress workers joined the protest march, which started from Mandi House and headed towards Parliament to "wake up the government" to see the hardships faced by the common people following demonetisation.

The protesters raised slogans against the central government and its demonetisation decision.

The opposition parties, including the Trinamool Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party, Aam Aadmi Party and the Left parties, have been criticising the government's November 8 move of spiking the high-denomination currency notes.

They have also been stalling proceedings of Parliament over the issue for the past two weeks.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : A Delhi Police Sub-Inspector, arrested on charges of misappropriating Rs 18 lakh in demonetised currency, on Monday accused three police officers of assaulting him in custody.

Sub-Inspector Sudhir Rathi's defence counsel Pradeep Rana moved an application before Metropolitan Magistrate Sushil Kumar, claiming that the three Delhi Police officials beat up his client.

Rana told the court that his client was forced to sign blank papers and opposed any extension of his police custody. He urged the court to initiate an inquiry on his application.

But the court allowed the police to quiz Rathi for one more day but asked it to file its reply to the application and his medical report.

Rathi, posted at Kalyanpuri police station, was arrested on Sunday after he allegedly misappropriated Rs 18 lakh in old notes belonging to Bihar-based cloth merchant Amanatullah Wasim.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : Khalistani terrorist Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested at a railway station here on Monday morning, a day after he escaped from a high security prison in Punjab.

The Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) leader was nabbed from the parking area of Nizamuddin railway station by Delhi Police's Special Cell, Special Commissioner of Police Arvind Deep told IANS. He was later produced in court which sent him to seven days police custody, on the Delhi Police's plea.

"He was arrested between 1 and 2 a.m. when he was taking a ticket from the counter for going to Panvel (Maharashtra) from Nizamuddin," Deep said, adding Mintoo planned to move subsequently to Goa, where he had spent 18 years since 1989 and had good contacts.

Mintoo had also a plan to flee from the country to Thailand or Malaysia where also he had several good contacts. Earlier he had also visited these countries on a fake passport, said the senior police officer.

According to police, after escaping from the high-security Nabha Jail in Punjab, Mintoo along with Gurpreet Sekhon and fellow terrorist Kashmira Singh Galwadi, escaped on a SUV. Sekhon, who was the mastermind in the jail break, dropped the duo at Haryana's Kaithal.

Trying to change their looks by trimming their beards and moustaches, they travelled to Panipat and then boarded another bus to reach Delhi, where they separated, he said.

"When we surrounded him at the parking area of railway station, Mintoo also tried to attack the team with a pistol but police managed to apprehend him. A pistol and six cartridges were recovered from his possession," said Deep, adding the operation was still on to arrest Kashmira Singh.

"He may be in Delhi, we are working on it," he said.

On their escape, he said it was "all pre-planned". "We are suspecting that they have also exchanged money from their associates which is also a matter of investigation. We are interrogating with him," said Deep.

An earlier report said the arrest followed a joint operation by Punjab Police and Delhi Police.

Asked if this was true, Deep said the Punjab Police had "alerted us that Mintoo might go towards Delhi.

"Punjab Police had alerted Delhi Police on Sunday morning that the escaped terrorists and gangsters could go toward the national capital to escape to other parts of the country. We had deployed teams of Special Cell personnel at every railway station, bus terminal, bus stand, guest house, hotel and escape routes on border areas of the city," he said.

"We have also shared their photos with the teams and gave directions to arrest any person involved in suspicious activities," Deep said.

Mintoo was earlier wanted in more than 10 terror related cases, which included the 2008 attack on Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, Deep said.

The arrest came within 24 hours after Mintoo, another terrorist and four gangsters broke out of the Nabha Jail on Sunday morning after it was attacked by 10-12 armed men. On Sunday evening, Parminder Singh alias Pamma Singh, one of the alleged gunmen who carried out the sensational jailbreak, was caught in Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh.

Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh allowed police to question Mintoo till December 5 as Delhi Police told the court that they were probing his links with Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI, and that custodial interrogation will help in nabbing other co-accused who have helped him in his escape from jail.

Police also informed the court that a fresh FIR was registered against Mintoo under Section 20 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for being a member of a banned terror organisation.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said a report had been sought from the Punjab government and promised the central government's assistance to nab those on the run.

"The Home Ministry has been doing whatever needs to be done," he said.

"This (jailbreak) is a state subject and the Home Ministry has already sent advisories to states in this regard. The state (Punjab) government is looking into the matter," he said.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Monday approved appointment of Lt. Gen. A. K. Bhatt as the Indian Army's new Director General of Military Operations.

He will replace Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh who moves to Mathura as commander of the army's 1 (strike) Corps.

The new appointment come nearly two months after the surgical strike by Indian troops across the Line of Control to neutralise terrorist launching pads, which Lt Gen Singh as DGMO had announced on September 29, and as incidents of ceasefire violations from Pakistan continue along the International Border and Line of Control.

The cabinet panel also approved the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs to appoint Lt. Gen Shokin Chauhan as Director General of Assam Rifles on deputation basis for a period of two years with effect from the date of his assumption of charge or till his retirement from the Army or until further orders
Gandhinagar, Nov 28 : Elections for members of 10,318 panchayats in Gujarat, including sarpanches or village heads, as well as by-elections for vacant panchayat seats elsewhere will be held on December 27, the Gujarat Election Commission announced on Monday.

State Election Commissioner Varesh Sinha said the votes will be counted on December 29.

The manual voting -- and not through electronic voting machines -- will be held at 24,454 polling stations in 91,002 wards. Of the nearly 1.89 crore eligible voters, 98,64,234 are men and 90,22,758 women.

There are over 14,000 gram panchayats or village-level bodies in the western state.

Though panchayat elections are held without election symbols and not on party basis, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the opposition Congress have pulled out all stops to ensure candidates backed by them are elected as sarpanches.

These would be the major elections after the crucial district and taluka panchayats as well as nagar panchayats elections held last December.

Thanks to the statewide Patel agitation for reservation, the BJP suffered the first-ever electoral jolt in those December elections after the exit of Narendra Modi from the state politics to become the Prime Minister in 2014.

The Congress, which has been out of power in the state since 2002, sees a ray of hope for the crucial assembly polls due in December 2017.

Besides the Patel agitation led by Hardik Patel of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS), Gujarat also witnessed a major Dalit agitation in the wake of public flogging of four youngsters in Una village in Saurashtra region.

And now, the opposition party expects that the public suffering due to Centre's November 8 demonetisation will help it.

The BJP claims to control a majority of the panchayats, while the Congress maintains the situation is quite different now.

State BJP spokesman Bharat Pandya told IANS: "The panchayat polls are not contested on party symbols, but 70 to 80 per cent panchayats have our sarpanches."

"Modi, as Chief Minister, had called all village sarpanches thrice to Gandhinagar, which itself was unheard of. Besides, our government drastically increased financial grants to panchayats. They had never felt so empowered earlier under the Congress," Pandya said.

Congress leader Manish Doshi said: "Look at the suffering of villagers and you will know that the state government has done little except make announcements."

"When our party rules with a brute majority in district and taluka panchayats, do you think the lowest rung of the Panchayati Raj Institutions is with the BJP or rather go with candidates supported by the BJP?" Doshi asked.

"The results will show. The panchayat elections were due in October but the ruling party was reluctant to hold them till now," he added.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : Delhi Police has arrested four persons wanted in several criminal cases, including murder and attempt to murder in south Delhi, police said on Monday.

The accused have been identified as Rohit Choudhary, 29, a resident of Aaya Nagar; Ravi, 29, a resident of Karol Bagh; and Anil Kumar and Rajesh Kumar, both 30-year-old and residents of Dakshinpuri, police said.

On a tip-off, their car was intercepted by a Special Staff team in Dera village on Monday morning.

Four pistols, 72 live cartridges, 20 mobile phones and a car they stole from Greater Noida area were recovered from their possession.

"Rohit Chaudhary graduated from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College of the Delhi University. He was also active in student politics during his college days. Later, he came in contact with anti-social elements and took to the wrong path," Deputy Commissioner of Police Ishwar Singh said.

Anil Kumar earlier ferried school children in his cab. Later, after coming in contact with some anti-social elements, he started committing crimes.

Rohit and Anil had a reward of Rs 50,000 on their head. They had been declared 'Proclaimed Offenders' by a city court, Singh said.

Ravi who learned Monographic Designing but could not earn enough money, started committing crimes with some anti-social elements in Karol Bagh area.

Rajesh Kumar worked with a CGHS dispensary in Pushp Vihar, but he committed a murder in 2006. He later met Rohit, Anil and Ravi in jail and joined their gang, police said.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) and the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) on Monday signed an MoU to scale up skill development in hydrocarbon sector, an official release said.

"The MoU was signed by Petroleum Secretary K.D. Tripathi and MSDE Secretary Rohit Nandan in the presence of Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy," release said.

Speaking on the occasion, Dharmendra Pradhan said as his ministry is gearing up for new avenues that Petroleum & Natural Gas sector will open up for the country, there is tremendous focus on sourcing skilled workforce to make the plans successful.

"The partnership with MSDE through this MoU signing will help MoPNG to develop a ready workforce for Exploration and Production, Pipeline & Transportation, Refinery & Marketing and service providers going forward.

"We are investing back into our sectors and for the country's brighter future," he added.

Rajiv Pratap Rudy, welcoming the contribution from the hydrocarbon sector, said: "The hydrocarbon sector has tremendous potential for employment generation, and hence it is vital to develop a skilled workforce to meet both current and future needs."

The petroleum ministry has set up the Hydrocarbon Sector Skill Council (HSSC) with representatives from the government, public and private sector to address the skill development needs of this sector.

Both ministries will develop globally-benchmarked workforce for this sector and will create better economic opportunities for the youth through skill development programmes.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : A tri-national alliance of developing nations spread across three continents got a fresh lease of life on Monday with the launch of a fellowship programme for scholars from Brazil and South Africa.

Supported by the Ministry of External Affairs, the Research and Information System (RIS) for Developing countries, a think tank headed by former Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran, will be hosting two scholars each from Brazil and South Africa for an IBSA (India, Brazil, South Africa) Fellowship Programme lasting from three to six months.

Preeti Saran, Secretary (East) in the External Affairs Ministry, while launching the programme, said that IBSA has been acknowledged as a successful example of South-South cooperation.

She said that there were several issues on which the three countries could work better.

The programme will see scholars from Brazil and South Africa doing research on South-South cooperation across a range of issues in India. RIS has set up a committee that will select the scholars from the applications it has received.

Speaking at the launch, Shyam Saran said that IBSA represented three emerging economies that are also three major democracies.

"The fellowship programme will provide a platform for scholars from Brazil and South Africa to study new challenges like SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN) and the Paris (Climate) Agreement (signed at the end of last year)," he stated.

Conceptualised in 1999, the IBSA became a reality with the Brasilia Declaration in June 2003 signed by the Foreign Ministers of Brazil, India and South Africa.

India will host the next IBSA summit in 2017. Of the five IBSA summits held till now, South Africa hosted the last one in 2011.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Union government on a plea by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, seeking the framing of a cogent and clear national security policy and guidelines covering economic offences as well.

A bench of Chief Justice T.S. Thakur and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud issued notice as Swamy pointed to the issuance of phase three FM licence to the Maran family-owned Sun TV in Tamil Nadu.

Issuing notice, the court observed that this could not be linked to the question of national security involving the sovereignty of the country.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader has sought "detailed guidelines for the security clearance" and the "foolproof policy for the grant of security clearances" as he cited the divergent views taken by the high courts across the country.

Seeking that economic offence too should be brought in the ambit of national security policy and guidelines for the issuance of clearance certificate, he said that those involved in or being prosecuted for the economic offences should not be given air waves.

Swamy was referring to the prosecution of Marans in Aircel-Maxis matter, one of the 2G cases. The court was told that chargesheet has been filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation against them.

The CBI has accused former Telecom Minister Dayanidhi Maran of putting pressure on a Chennai-based telecom promoter C. Sivasankaran to sell his stakes in Aircel and two subsidiary firms to Malaysian firm Maxis Group in 2006.

Besides others, Dayanidhi Maran's brother Kalanithi Maran too has been accused in the case.

Swamy said that there has to be clarity as to at which stage of criminal prosecution, a parson should be barred from bidding for airwaves. Should it be only after conviction or a stage prior to it like registration of FIR, filing of chargesheet or framing of charges, he asked.
Hyderabad, Nov 28 : Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to clean the political system in toto by introducing state funding of elections.

Backing the Prime Minister's initiatives to check corruption and black money, he said the government should completely kill the vulgar expenditure in elections.

Stating that his Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) is ready to go for cashless funding, he suggested that Modi should clean the whole political system.

KCR called for changing the very mood of the campaign and mooted the idea of e-campaign.

He appealed to Modi to make the country 100 percent free from black money and Acorruption. "If you (Modi) dismantle black money in all its forms, ensure that nobody in this country asks for bribes and nobody pays bribes, then only you can succeed and bring a total revolution. If you do this the government of Telangana and its people will stand by you," he said.

At one time KCR evaded a direct reply on whether he supported demonetisation or opposed it. "There is no point in discussing the past. Today is 18th day after it has come for implementation. The debate should be regarding the future," he said.

However, replying to another query, the Chief Minister termed demonetization as a welcome move. "This is definitely a scheme of things. It depends on the way you want to understand it," he remarked.

Asked if the new note of Rs 2,000 will not encourage hoarding of black money, KCR said the Union government may scrap this high value note too. "It may help in identifying those who have stashed black money. This could be a strategy," he said.

KCR said people would decide if demonetisation was not going to pay back to the country. "People will teach a lesson. Remember what happened to Mrs Indira Gandhi after emergency."

On the allegations by Congress that he entered into a secret deal with Modi, the Chief Minister hit back saying it was Congress which created black money, encouraged it and destroyed the country.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : Congress leader Anand Sharma on Monday demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi should be held accountable and tried for "looting people's money".

The Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha was reacting to the government's move to introduce a bill in the Lok Sabha to amend the Income Tax rules and coming up with an income disclosure scheme called the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) 2016.

"Let Lok Sabha consider the bill, then we'll take care whenever it comes to Rajya Sabha. They cannot enact it as a law before it is passed by Rajya Sabha," Sharma told IANS.

"Modi is looting people's money, and now he is trying to be generous. First banks collapsed, then people's money was looted, and they were forced to put it in banks. Illegally people were denied access to their own hard-earned money. Now, he is trying show generosity by starting this Jan Kalyan Yojana," he added.

"The prime minister must be held to account and tried for looting people's money."

His Lok Sabha colleague Gaurav Gogoi said: "It is another scheme allowing those who have unaccounted money to be legalised. While the poor is suffering and is unable to withdraw their hard-earned money, those who have got black money are being allowed a way out."

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha to amend the Income Tax rules, levying a tax of 60 per cent on undisclosed income or investment or cash credit deposited in the banks.

The government has also come up with an income disclosure scheme called the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) 2016 which allows people to deposit money in their accounts till April 1, 2017, by paying 50 per cent of the total amount -- 30 per cent as tax, 10 per cent as penalty and 33 per cent of the taxed amount, that is 10 per cent, as Garib Kalyan Cess.
New Delhi, Nov 28 : India's trade deficit with China rose to $52.69 billion in 2015-16, from $48.48 billion in the year before, Parliament was informed on Monday.

Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told the Lok Sabha in a written reply that during the April-September period of the current fiscal, the deficit stood at $25.22 billion.

"Increasing trade deficit with China can be attributed primarily to the fact that Chinese exports to India rely strongly on manufactured items to meet the demand of fast expanding sectors like telecom and power," she said.

She also said that as India and China are both members of the World Trade Organisation, any trade restrictions imposed requires to be WTO compliant.

No blanket ban can be imposed on China, or any other member country, under the WTO framework, she said.

In a separate reply, the minister said that the government has not yet decided on granting relaxation of sourcing condition in the single brand retail sector to three companies.

"Only 3 companies have sought relaxation of sourcing condition. No decision has been taken by the government in this regard," Sitharaman said, without disclosing the names of the companies concerned.

Under Indian foreign direct investment (FDI) norms, proposals involving foreign investment beyond 51 per cent are required to source 30 per cent of the value of goods purchased from within India.
Geneva, Nov 29 : An estimated 21 million people worldwide are trapped in conditions of contemporary slavery, including some five million children, a UN office said.

the office of "Slavery is not something that belongs to the past but a cruel reality of our age," the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Monday in a media statement.

They also announced an upcoming event which will showcase the extent of modern-day slavery, Xinhua news agency reported.

The event, entitled "Revealing the Child Faces of Modern Slavery", will be organised by the UN Human Rights Office to mark International Day for the Abolition of Slavery on December 2.

The event is also to mark the 25th anniversary of the UN Voluntary Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, which since it's establishment in 1991 has supported of thousands of men, women and child victims of various forms of slavery.

In 2016, the Fund issued grants to projects in 34 countries, helping more than 29,000 victims, a third of whom were children, the UN rights office said.
Washington, Nov 29 : President-elect Donald Trump will meet former CIA Director David Petraeus furthering speculation about a possible job as Secretary of State, media reports said.

The meeting was announced on Monday by transition team officials, the Washington Times reported.

Petraeus, a four-star general, also served as CIA director from 2011 to 2012 when he resigned after he admitted sharing classified information with his biographer, whom he had an extramarital affair with.

The other top candidates for the job are former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who have been met with criticism.

Asked if the president-elect was nearing the end of his search for a secretary of state, a spokesman said,"He'll complete that when he's ready. He's going to pick the person that he thinks will do the absolutely best job."
Nancy Patsch, President Envision IT Being Firm of Endearment takes a whole-hearted approach to our business, employees, and community. Nancy Pautsch, President Envision IT

Regarded as one of the most prestigious awards for IT innovation, Envision IT of Madison Wisconsin, is a nominated finalist of the Citrix Partner Innovation Award. The only North American company to garner such distinction. How did Envision achieve such an honor? Lets look back on how this evolved.

As technology came into the business world 40 years ago, the technology channel was established to help partners and manufacturers sell and implement technology solutions. Almost like the retail industry for consumer goods, the channel was a new type of business for consumers and businesses to procure hardware and software. Software publishers like Novell and hardware manufacturers like DEC and Compaq were helping their resellers start and grow extensions of their own business.

Business boomed in the 80s and 90s. It was the era of consumerism and technology followed suit. Technology was shifting from mainframe to client/server architectures. Technology was extending beyond the bunker and into the masses. PCs started to appear on every desk as computers became essential tools for businesses.

The reseller channel was in full swing with the first wave of new technologies and the market was hungry for computers to optimize workflows. Supply had a hard time keeping up with demand and channel resellers were judged and compensated by manufacturers on volume alone. Pumping product into the market was the objective and resellers with smooth operations/supply chain flow were the titans of IT. The commodity game was on.

In the 90s the channel expanded as the Internet became mainstream and new manufacturers like Cisco came onto the scene. As the 90s continued, the channel matured, with manufacturers introducing tiered levels of partnerships. The new tiers focused on volume and placed weight on technical specializations. There was a recognition that the complexity of the technologies required unique skillsets to make the products work as advertised. Manufacturers couldnt scale or focus on implementing their own products and needed the channel to do so.

In order to continue profitably reselling manufacturers products, resellers had to invest in engineering talent to properly implement the solutions. This required resellers to invest in their engineering talent and was a sign of skin-in-the-game for the manufacturers. By the turn of the century, resellers businesses were fully dependent on the manufacturers success. Without that product to resell, the resellers business would fold as it was often more than 90% of their overall revenue.

This specialization and commitment to a product line created the concept of the catchy acronym VAR, or Value Added Reseller. The new name seemed to help justify the existence of resellers through their ability to configure and support products. However, as the industry developed, students were graduating with technology certifications and end-customers were getting their staff accredited and trained to maintain most manufacturers products. VARs took advantage of the delay between new products being introduced and students graduating technology programs by only implementing the newest technologies from the manufacturers. VARs got exclusive access to training materials and support services to further solidify the relationship between resellers and manufacturers.

As technology advanced more manufacturers entered the industry. Similarly, as the channel developed, more resellers entered the industry. Competition increased driving prices down and narrowing resellers profit margins. However, many resellers invested in engineering resources to meet the partner specialization qualifications defined by the manufacturers. The resellers quickly noticed that their margins for implementation services were significantly higher than profit on reselling products; however, they were inextricably linked. Product sales still led to product implementations and the only way resellers reaped professional services margins was to sell more product. As VARs tried to stay relevant and/or grow their business and margins, they took on more products. Now most VARs have a line card of products that they can use to architect solutions.

It hasnt been smooth sailing during this evolution. Theres constantly been strife between manufacturers and their resellers as to the occasional direct deal when a manufacturer bypasses their beloved partner to take a deal direct.

All of this begs the question where do the VARs loyalties lie? It seems the manufacturers and their resellers are mostly focused on each other but where is the end-user in the mix? A VAR makes most of their money by selling new product (or upgrades) and implementing it. With a line card of several manufacturers, VARs sales people are compensated on profit margins and SPIFs so their compensation is directly tied to selling as much product as they can. Is the VAR architecting whats right for the client or whats right for their wallet?

So what is a business consumer of technology to do? Who truly is a trusted advisor? The problem is, this story wont change soon. Most VARs are beholden to the manufacturers since a majority of their income is dependent on hardware and software products.

In 2013, the 2112 Group in association with CA Technologies authored the paper, The Services Era: The Transformation of the IT Channel. That paper predicted some of the disruption were seeing today as well as the difficulty for legacy solution providers to thrive in the new world of service. In 2016, Gartner reported IT spending for services and software outgrew any other IT discipline with many declining as cloud market share grows. As the market shifts away from capital expenses towards everything as a service (XaaS), many VARs and telcos have shifted to also become service providers or cloud resellers.

The partner ecosystem has changed, both vendors and end users must adapt to this change. Technology is more important than ever to almost every type of business. Organizations are longing for an unbiased partner that tells them the truth  whats best for their business versus selling them the latest shiny product to implement or rack space or white-labeled/re-branded cloud service.

Out of Madison WI, Envision IT fits this new paradigm focusing on optimization, they have chosen not to have a line card. They believe in the Age of Transcendence which means that the user experience matters more than the stuff. To that end, they dont focus on product, rack space, or cloud resale. They bring an agnostic view to clients and focus on the clients business objectives. An interesting element of their strategy is to step out of the product transaction sequence, and they encourage clients to buy on premise technology or cloud solutions from the clients favorite reseller, but taking overall responsibility for the success of the delivered solution.

Envision suggests that the business should determine the technology direction and not the other way around. And as the 2112 Group espoused back in 2013: The companies that evolve services to operationalize more IT assets toward better business outcomes and take administrative burdens off their customers shoulders will find value and sustained viability over those that remain stuck in legacy or even hybrid models.

Disenchanted with the cut-throat and garbled intentions of the VAR-world, the management of Envision IT are operating the organization as a Firm of Endearment based on the business principles of Conscious Capitalism. They believe that they can be good and do good for all of their stakeholders that include their employees, clients, business partners, and communities and still be profitable. Account Managers and project teams are motivated to effectively work towards their clients identified technology objectives that support desired business outcomes.

Time will tell if this new breed of technology partner is indeed the right formula for today's and tomorrows technology-reliant businesses, and that will prove the industry is indeed evolving.
Maintenance Assistant rebrands to Fiix

Maintenance Assistant Inc today announced that the company has changed its brand to Fiix, and launched a new website as part of a larger corporate rebranding. The cloud-based maintenance and asset management software provider will now offer its industry leading CMMS under the new brand, Fiix.

We started this company with the goal of transforming maintenance into a powerful business asset. That goal still stands, but the industry has changed immensely. We felt it was time for a name and a brand that fits our company culture, reflects the value we bring to our customers, and captures where were heading, says Marc Castel, CEO.

Fiix offers a robust yet affordable CMMS for a market that has traditionally been wildly underserved by larger, on-premises software vendors. By focusing on working with maintenance managers who are new to CMMS software, or looking for a replacement for complex legacy systems, Fiix has acquired a strong and growing base of thousands of customers.

The rebranding will not impact any of the existing products or services offered by Fiix. Instead, it provides a visual and philosophical platform for the company to continue to develop modern, flexible maintenance solutions that evolve with changing technology.

Our commitment is to help our customers work towards better maintenance, but we want Fiix to be more than just a tool. Were a partner for customers to work with to create successful, sustainable, and efficient businesses, says Castel.

Visit Fiix for more information about the rebranding.

About Fiix

Fiix creates modern maintenance software thats easy to use, flexible, and affordable. Its cloud-based CMMS is disrupting the market by revolutionizing how thousands of companies worldwide schedule, organize, and track maintenance. Learn more, at http://www.fiixsoftware.com.

Fiix is a trademark of Maintenance Assistant Inc.
Research has uncovered a new use for an established drug as a therapy for an age-old health problem. Nearly all Americans drink alcoholic beverages, but unfortunately many struggle with what physicians now describe as Alcohol Use Disorder. Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) includes problematic drinking such as binge and chronic consumption, with both increasing risk for poor health, including death. To date, there are not particularly effective therapies for AUD, with only three FDA approved drugs along with behavioral modification programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous. Together or alone, none are particularly effective and relapse is common, making the development of new therapies vital.

A collaborative effort between Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) researchers Susan Bergeson, Ph.D., Josee Guindon, Ph.D., Peter Syapin, Ph.D., clinicians David Edwards, M.D., David Trotter, Ph.D., and Deborah Finn, Ph.D., at Oregon Health and Science University has identified a potential new treatment for AUD.

Recent research has used new technologies to identify genes and pathways related to neuroinflammation as part of alcohols action on addiction processes, said Bergeson, associate professor in the TTUHSC Department of Pharmacology and Neuroscience. Minocycline, a tetracycline antibiotic normally used against bacterial infections, has known anti-inflammatory actions and recently was shown to reduce alcohol consumption.

In research described in four companion papers published by the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, the teams first reported the screening of several tetracycline drugs to see if all were effective in reducing alcohol use. The results pointed to a specific structural component of the drugs as responsible for positive outcomes and led to the discovery that tigecycline, a minocycline analog, was highly effective in reducing binge and chronic consumption, in both dependent and non-dependent animals.

In addition, withdrawal seizures, which represent a medical emergency in humans, also were reduced in mice by tigecycline. Finally, binge drinking was shown to cause a persistent change in pain perception, which was reduced in males, but not females, by tigecycline. The Bergeson, Finn, Guindon and Syapin labs research lead to the conclusion that tigecycline, already approved by the FDA for use in humans for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA infections, may be a good lead drug for the effective reduction of alcohol drinking, withdrawal symptoms and pain.

We have known that high levels of alcohol consumption can cause damage to the liver and brain, but it has been more difficult to understand how AUD is cemented, said Bergeson. Every person knows a family member or close friend that struggles with AUD, and now with these findings, a simple antibiotic that is already FDA approved could help.
No one can afford to abdicate consumers in todays hyper competitive environment.

Join ShopAdvisor and former SVP of Marketing for Hasbro, Ira Hernowitz, for an informative webinar to learn how shopper data, location awareness, product availability, and intelligent content can create more valuable mobile campaigns to increase post-holiday in-store shopping, gift card redemptions and year-end purchases.

With shopper behavior evolving at an unprecedented rate, and the blurring of where brick and mortar ends and online begins, access to the type of data available through ShopAdvisor is essential to maximize engagement with your customers both pre and post holiday. No one can afford to abdicate consumers in todays hyper competitive environment, says Hernowitz.

Who: Jeremy Daly, CTO, ShopAdvisor and Ira Hernowitz, former SVP Marketing, Hasbro and EVP, Toys R Us

What: For brands and retailers the week following Christmas is just, if not more crucial than Black Friday. For most, its their second highest sales week of the year. So what can brands and retailers do after the Christmas shopping rush to capitalize? How can they stand out from the crowd and get their share of post-holiday shopping, returns, gift card redemptions and year-end purchases?

Studies show post-holiday returns are a great opportunity for retailers to acquire new customers, as well as re-engage existing customers. Additionally, getting consumers into brick-and-mortar locations to return unwanted holiday items makes them more likely to end up making another purchase. Brands and retailers also know that having accurate product availability information is crucial to making sure the shopper gets what they want. With the week after Christmas being one of the most competitive times for brands and retailers, it is imperative to make sure consumers are receiving hyper targeted messaging, compelling in-store offers, real-time product availability and an experience that will leave them jolly into the next year.

The webinar will cover:

-How to effectively use proximity marketing to drive post-holiday shoppers into brick-and-mortar locations for returns, gift card redemptions and year-end deals

-The importance of product availability, specifically after Christmas

-Delivering compelling shopper experiences that are relevant to brands and retail stores

-The data you need to optimize post-holiday shoppers path to purchase

When: Tuesday, December 6, 2016 at 1.30 PM EDT

Where: GoTo Webinar - register at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5836695182544828931?utm_swu=3064
Because ZST enables us to offer a Living Technology, we are able to continue to provide these significant upgrades to help keep our customers at the cutting-edge of ultrasound

Mindray/ZONARE, developer of next generation ultrasound technology, announced a major upgrade for the companys ZS3 ultrasound platform at the annual Radiology Society of North America (RSNA) congress being held in Chicago, IL, November 27  December 2, 2016. The new upgrade provides several enhancements including a significant contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and image optimization advancement using a recently developed digital synthetic spatial compounding (DSSC) element.

Using our patented ZONE Sonography Technology (ZST), we are able to create spatially compounded B-mode images using acoustic data from a single transmitted wave compared with conventional compounding methods which require multiple transmissions. We believe this is unprecedented in the industry, said Glen McLaughlin, PhD, chief product officer, Mindray. DSSC is especially useful with CEUS imaging as we are able to interrogate the region of interest with just one acoustic wavefront, which is designed to significantly reduce the destruction of micro-bubbles. The systems software then rapidly processes the received echo information, resulting in enhanced image clarity due to greater retention of micro-bubble volume.

As DSSC breaches the temporal constraints of conventional spatial compounding, B-mode image quality and frame rate are virtually unaffected when employing multiple imaging modalities. DSSC is enabled for B-mode across the entire family of ZST platform transducers. The new enhancement is available to all ZS3 system customers as part of the 5-year state-of-the-art guarantee, which was provided from the date of initial purchase of the unit.

Because ZST enables us to offer a Living Technology, we are able to continue to provide these significant upgrades to help keep our customers at the cutting-edge of ultrasound, said McLaughlin. We believe in partnering with our customers beyond just selling a box that becomes obsolete in a few months. Due to this mission, we have enjoyed many long and ongoing years with a wide variety of healthcare providers.

The release also provides additional image quality improvements, needle optimization for the L8-3 and L10-5 transducers, plus significant new calculation enhancements including a new package for small parts. A purchasable 3D/4D mode is available as well as is Qview, which interacts with a Qpath server for maximizing workflow.

About Mindray/ZONARE

Mindray is a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of medical devices worldwide. Mindray maintains its global headquarters in Shenzhen, China; North American headquarters in Mahwah, New Jersey; and multiple development facilities and offices in major international markets including an ultrasound Innovation Center in Silicon Valley, CA. Mindray supplies a broad range of products across three primary business segments, patient monitoring and life support, in-vitro diagnostics, and medical imaging systems. For more information, please visit http://www.mindray.com.

ZONARE is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mindray located in Silicon Valley, CA. As a Mindray Center of Innovation, the company is solely dedicated to ultrasound excellence through its innovative, award-winning next generation technology which provides the platform for the companys Living Technology designed to meet its customers evolving imaging needs. The patented design and ZONE Sonography Technology (ZST) architecture of the Z.One PRO and ZS3 platforms deliver high-end image quality and clinical versatility.

# # #
The National Bankruptcy Conference (NBC) announced today the election of two esteemed bankruptcy professionals to membership as Conferees. We are pleased to add these stellar Conferees to our membership. They will broaden and deepen our collective experience and enhance our ability to continue to perform our key non-partisan advisory role for Members of Congress and their staff, said Jane Vris, NBC Chair. We are pleased to introduce the following Conferees:

Craig Goldblatt, Partner at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP in Washington, D.C.

Craig Goldblatt is an experienced bankruptcy litigator, with a focus on complex bankruptcy disputes and bankruptcy appeals. The core of his practice has been protecting the interests of secured creditors, financial institutions and insurance companies in bankruptcy-related disputes, though he has also represented leading technology, transportation and communications industry clients in bankruptcy matters. He has argued three bankruptcy cases in the Supreme Court of the United States, participated actively in several other Supreme Court bankruptcy matters, and regularly handles bankruptcy disputes at trial and on appeal. He has also developed an expertise on consumer bankruptcy matters, representing several major mortgage servicers, holders of credit card and other unsecured debt, and bankruptcy trustees in a variety of regulatory investigations, bankruptcy disputes and appeals.

Susan M. Freeman, Partner at Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie LLP in Phoenix, AZ

Susan Freeman concentrates her practice on business bankruptcy and civil appeals of all kinds. She is the only lawyer invited to membership (and leadership) in both the American College of Bankruptcy and the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. Susan is listed as counsel in over 150 appellate decisions, and has briefed and argued before the U.S. Supreme Court. She has represented asset purchasers, indenture trustees, secured creditors, debtors in possession, trustees and committees in chapter 11 cases. Susan has a particular expertise in bankruptcy ethics, and has written extensively and spoken frequently at seminars on that topic, as well as representing lawyers and trustees and serving as an expert witness on professional responsibility issues. Susan is certified by the Arizona State Bar Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in bankruptcy law.

The NBC is a non-profit, non-partisan, self-supporting organization of approximately sixty lawyers, law professors and bankruptcy judges whose primary purpose is to advise Congress on the operation of bankruptcy and related laws and any proposed changes to those laws. The NBC was formed in the 1930s at the request of Congress to assist in the drafting of major Depression-era bankruptcy law amendments, ultimately resulting in the Chandler Act of 1938. The NBC has been a resource to Congress on every significant piece of bankruptcy legislation since that time. Please visit http://www.nationalbankruptcyconference.org for additional information on our work.
With the large inventory of luxury properties wthin our company, we couldn't be more excited to unveil our new Luxury Collection program in January 2017.

Chicago real estate brokerage Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group announced that beginning in January 2017, the firm will offer their luxury properties a new program. The company sponsored program will be available to all Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group listings over $1 million, or $800,000 in select communities.

With the large inventory of luxury properties within our company, we couldnt be more excited to unveil our new Luxury Collection program in 2017, said Nancy Nagy, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group. She continued, This new program will have a focus on digital marketing, specifically international, and will tie in with the global features already present on BerkshireHathawayHS.com, such as the currency exchange and the translation feature available in Chinese, French (European and Canadian), German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese (Brazilian and European) and Spanish (European and Latin American). Korean, Russian and Taiwanese translations will be available soon. We know that more and more luxury buyers are coming from abroad, so it makes sense to showcase these incredible properties around the world. Additionally, our agents have found these features to be extremely beneficial to their clients, as more upper bracket sellers want and expect international exposure for their homes.

Emphasizing digital marketing, all listings over $1 million, and $800,000 in select communities, will get exposure on major luxury websites such as LuxuryRealEstate.com. Agents will have the option to upgrade to a higher tiered program that would include additional features. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group holds a strong place in the luxury market in Chicago, representing 1 of every 5 luxury homes sold in Chicago in the last year. **

Our company excels at luxury property marketing, and digital is the new standard by which we are reaching an increasingly global, mobile and social audience of buyers, said Caitlyn Terrell, Executive Director of Luxury and Development of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group. She continued, This program gives our agents the ability to expose their luxury listings to a greater audience while providing a higher level of service for their clients.

About Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices KoenigRubloff Realty Group is a full-service real estate firm with nearly 1,500 real estate professionals and staff in 23 offices serving customers throughout the Chicago metropolitan area, the North Shore, Western Suburban communities and Harbor Country, Michigan. Deep local roots are complemented by the extensive global reach of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, the top real estate brand in the nation. Affiliated and ancillary services in the form of HomeServices Lending, Fort Dearborn Title, and Fort Dearborn Insurance complete the comprehensive services offered to clients. Visit KoenigRubloff.com.

*Luxury properties are those listed at $1,000,000 and above. In the western suburbs, qualifying listings are those listed at $800,000 and above.

**$1 million+ each, MRED MLS, Chicago, Attached and Detached, Total Closed List + Sell, 10/01/2015 - 09/30/2016
Carnegie Council, Making Ethics Matter Since 1914 Carnegie Council's acclaimed current affairs programs feature prominent experts from the world of international affairs, including acclaimed authors, Nobel laureates, and high-ranking UN officials.

Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs announces its upcoming current affairs programs, which are open to the public.

All talks take place in the Council's headquarters in New York City and are streamed as live webcasts.

To attend in person, please RSVP. Go to: http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/calendar/upcoming.html.

Events take place at:

170 East 64 Street, New York, NY 10065.

If not attending in person, watch them as live webcasts here: http://www.carnegiecouncil.org/live.

Upcoming Events:

Artificial Intelligence: What Everyone Needs to Know

Tuesday, November 29, 6:00-7:30 PM

Jerry Kaplan

Over the coming decades, artificial intelligence will profoundly impact the way we live, work, wage war, educate our young, and care for our elderly. It is likely to greatly increase our aggregate wealth, but it will also upend our labor markets, reshuffle our social order, and strain our private and public institutions. Can a machine be held accountable for its actions? Should intelligent systems enjoy independent rights and responsibilities, or are they simple property?

Foreign Fighters, Homegrown Terrorism, and the Prevention of Violent Extremism

Wednesday, December 7, 6:00-7:30 PM

Seamus Hughes, Mohammad-Mahmoud Ould Mohamedou, Ali Soufan

Recent events in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and the United States have highlighted the importance of the multifaceted challenge that violent extremism has come to represent. How is homegrown terrorism evolving and how can it be tackled? What viable policy options can be considered to address the impact of the current wave of violent radicalization? This panel discussion, co-organized by the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) and Carnegie Council, brings together leading experts on the topic to share their views and assessments.

Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion

Wednesday, December 14, 8:00-9:15 AM

Paul Bloom

We often think that empathy, our capacity to experience the suffering of others, is the ultimate source of goodness. Nothing could be farther from the truth, says Yale researcher Paul Bloom. Based on groundbreaking scientific findings, "Against Empathy" argues that far from helping us to improve the lives of others, empathy is a capricious and irrational emotion that appeals to our narrow prejudices. How does empathy lead to cruelty? What implications does this have for fighting climate change, going to war, or deciding who to imprison?

Women's Rights are Human Rights: Global Challenges to Reproductive Health

Wednesday, December 14, 6:00-7:30 PM

LaTanya Mapp Frett, Terry McGovern, James Ketterer |

This event will explore the current status of reproductive rights around the world, noting advances that have been made and challenges that still exist. In addition, the speakers will discuss how women's health issues are affected by the ongoing conflicts in several regions, the refugee/migration crisis, the role of religion in politics, populist movements, and the persistence of authoritarian regimes. How might the new U.S. president address these issues? What policies might change?

ABOUT CARNEGIE COUNCIL

Founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1914, Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs is an educational, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that produces lectures, publications, and multimedia materials on the ethical challenges of living in a globalized world. Go to http://www.carnegiecouncil.org.
www.NterOne.com We are thankful and honored to be a part of the Cisco ecosystem and privileged to be recognized by Cisco with this prestigious acknowledgement, said Brandon Yohn, President and COO at NterOne.

NterOne received the Cisco Americas Learning Partner of the Year award at Cisco Partner Summit 2016, held November 1-3 in San Francisco. The event, led by Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins, attracts Channel Partners from around the world and is one of Ciscos largest annual partner events.

This prominent award is presented to a Learning Partner in the Americas region that has demonstrated growth, innovation, excellence, and acceleration in the overall Cisco community.

We are thankful and honored to be a part of the Cisco ecosystem and privileged to be recognized by Cisco with this prestigious acknowledgement, said Brandon Yohn, President and COO at NterOne. "We place significant and strategic value in our core Cisco relationships which enables us to evolve more rapidly, driving greater value and expertise within the partner community. Our focus on introducing new Cisco products and solutions is a cornerstone of our business."

NterOne has office locations in the United States and Latin America, and has employees spanning the globe. I extend my personal thanks to our extremely talented and dedicated employees, said Anthony Hamilton, CEO at NterOne. This award reflects their hard work, dedication, and commitment to NterOne, our training solutions, partners, and the customers we serve.

NterOne will continue to invest in bringing advanced Cisco training solutions to market as it closes out 2016 and moves into 2017. The company plans to launch many innovative products and services that focus on enabling businesses and individuals to thrive in the digital economy.

About NterOne:

NterOne is a global training and consulting company focusing on live online training, self-paced e-learning, private onsite training and software focused on the training industry. The company is headquartered in Reston, Virginia with cloud offices globally. NterOne owns and operates a Data Center in North Carolina. NterOne is an Authorized Direct and Specialized Cisco Learning Partner, VMware Authorized Training Center, and Microsoft Learning Partner. The companys key technology focus areas include Virtualization, Data Center, IoT, Cloud, Analytics, Enterprise Networking, Collaboration, Service Provider, Optical, Wireless, and Security.

For more information, please visit the corporate web site at http://www.NterOne.com.

NterOne is a registered trademark of NterOne Corporation in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.
This week, the FinTech Professionals Association (FTPA) will host Whats Next for Payments, a panel featuring top executives in the fintech and payments space. The event is sponsored by Dykema and scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 1 from 4 pm to 6:30 pm CT at 77 Degrees in North Austin.

Central Texas is quickly becoming a leader within the global fintech communitywith a very large concentration of payments leaders. Whats Next for Payments? brings together leading payments experts to discuss EMV, mobile wallets, data analytics, and regulatory predictions. The panel of speakers, includes Houston Frost (Payment Data Systems SVP Corporate Development and Prepaid Products), Michael Ward (World First Chief Revenue Officer and CEO North America), Brett Howell (Bleu co-founder and SVP of Business Development), and Brent Warrington (Hyperwallet Chairman and CEO). Erin Fonte, a payments lawyer with Dykema, will moderate the panel.

"Dykema is excited to sponsor this FinTech Professionals Association panel in Austin, says Fonte. In a time of unprecedented evolution and change in payments, our firm's Payments, FinTech, and Digital Commerce practice works with a variety of innovative startups in the payments space, as well as traditional FIs addressing changes. It's clear Austin is quickly becoming a major payments and FinTech hub, and we are committed to help build the professional network and knowledge base in Austin and beyond."

Tickets for Whats Next for Payments? are $15 for the general public and $10 for FTPA members. Tickets cover admission and limited drinks and appetizers. Purchase tickets on Eventbrite here.

To become a member of the FinTech Professionals Association, click here.

FTPA events offer an opportunity for members of traditional financial services and fintech innovators to come together to discuss the most important topics impacting all of us, states FTPA Executive Chair Joy Schoffler. This upcoming panel features an amazing group of top executives in the payments space, who will examine current trends and explore where the industry is heading.

Thank you to our panelists for offering their time and expertise, to Erin Fonte for moderating the panel, and to Dykema for sponsoring the event, adds Schoffler.

###

About FinTech Professionals Organization:

The FinTech Professionals Association is a non-profit organization bringing the traditional financial services world together with new and emerging financial technology companies to info(at)fintechpros(dot)org.

Media Contact:

Leverage PR

Christopher Ruth

(512) 502-5833

chris(at)leverage-pr(dot)com
butter LONDON, the prestige colour cosmetics and nail lacquer brand, is excited to announce the expansion of their new distribution channel with video commerce company, Evine (evine.com). The cult-favorite cosmetics brand had four successful live appearances on the platform in 2016, and will end the year with live segments airing on December 1 through 3 featuring an array of holiday gifts.

As a growing company, butter LONDON is seeking to expand and diversify its distribution channels to gain exposure and increase brand awareness, says Sarina Godin, President of butter LONDON. Evine offers a compelling interactive platform that allows us to educate and engage with our consumers and we are excited to continue our collaboration.

Evines live approach to shopping is ideal for connecting directly with new and existing butter LONDON customers. During the shows, fans enjoy a live demonstration of the product and a unique perspective on the brand that other retailers are unable to replicate, with expert insight from butter LONDONs president. In addition to airing on Evines cable and satellite network, the segments stream live on evine.com, mobile devices and via Evines various apps, including Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and select Samsung Smart TVs.

Were thrilled to have partnered with butter LONDON and offer our customers their luxurious, British-inspired nail products, said Teresa Harris, Vice President of Beauty at Evine. Our beauty customer is savvy, well-informed and extremely ingredient conscious. butter LONDONs carefully crafted, good-for-you formulations appeal to this educated customer base and continue to be a hit at Evine. We look forward to helping our customers Be Good to Themselves with products that allow women to treat themselves like the queens they are.

An assortment of covetable lip and nail sets from butter LONDONs Wonderfull Holiday Collection will be featured on Evine throughout the height of the holiday season. butter LONDONs next Evine segment is slated to air December 1 at 11 p.m. EST and will highlight The Most Wonderfull of All Lacquer Set, which recently received a coveted placement as one of Oprahs Favorite Things for 2016.

About butter LONDON: Founded in 2005 by a beauty-obsessed British entrepreneur and Londons premier fashion manicurist, butter LONDON catapulted into the runway world bringing a refreshingly hip & haute fashion sense to nails. This trailblazing luxury approach  fueled with a better-for-you ingredient philosophy  quickly made butter LONDON the first world-renowned, high-fashion 3-Free nail lacquer brand. Today we continue to create innovative, imaginative, good-for-you products for eyes, lip, face, and nail using the same ingenious Crafted with Care approach to formulations. We believe playful is beautiful and we encourage you to live a little with lively, luxe products you can trust. We are makeup royaltyand we wear it very well.

About Evine: Evine Live Inc. operates Evine, a digital commerce company that offers a compelling mix of proprietary and name brands directly to consumers in an engaging and informative shopping experience via television, online and on mobile. Evine reaches approximately 87 million cable and satellite television homes 24 hours a day with entertaining content in a comprehensive digital shopping experience.
Our hope is that through the purchase of holiday sweaters, the community will come together to help someone in Kansas City who needs a warm meal- Doug DePew

The Disabled American Veterans and City Union Mission partner together again this year for their Sweater Meal Donation Program. During the month of December, for every specially marked sweater purchased at Red Racks Thrift Stores or City Thrift Stores, a meal will be donated to those in need through City Union Mission.

Our hope is that the community will rally around those in need this holiday season by purchasing a holiday sweater for their office or family party, said CEO Doug DePew. In turn, we will provide a meal, on the customers behalf, to City Union Mission.

The sweaters that make up this Meal Donation Program are authentic Ugly Christmas Sweaters from the 80s and 90s. These sweaters are perfect for your family or office holiday party and are priced as low as $17.00 each, with a portion of that cost donated for a meal.

While the Sweater Meal Donation Program is active, if the community would like to donate a meal as opposed to purchasing a sweater, an in-kind donation for a meal will be accepted at all Red Racks Thrift Stores and City Thrift Stores then given to the Mission on the customers behalf.

City Union Mission provided 250,144 meals to those in need throughout 2015. Our customers helped provide 967 of those meals through the Sweater Meal Donation Project of 2015. In 2016, our goal is to provide 1500 meals to those who may otherwise not have a meal during the holidays!

Red Racks Thrift Stores and City Thrift Stores are committed to providing a clean, bright, fun shopping experience for anyone looking to save money on designer brands as well as deeply discounted everyday brands. The fun and excitement of thrift is in the thrill of the hunt, with thousands of fresh and unique items available each day.

Red Racks Thrift Stores is owned and operated by the Disabled American Veterans City Thrift Stores are owned by City Union Mission.

http://www.redracksthriftstores.com, http://www.citythrift.org

####
Artificial intelligence is changing the way the world does business.

Digitization and artificial intelligence expert Mark Minevich has been inducted into the B20s inaugural task force (https://www.b20germany.org/the-b20/structure/) focusing on digitalizations growing effects on the global economy at the B20 Conference in Berlin: Resilience, Responsibility, Responsiveness  Towards a Future-Oriented, Sustainable World Economy. The conference takes place December 1-2, 2016. It marks the beginning of the German G20 presidency and the perennial engagement process with working activities and events leading to the G20 Summit in July 2017. Minevich is founder of Going Global Ventures, senior fellow of the U.S. Council of Competitiveness, and venture partner of GVA Capital.

An integral part of the G20 process, the B20 leads engagement with G20 governments on behalf of the global business community. The B20 promotes dialogue among policymakers, civil society, and business at the international level, according to B20Germany.org. In the B20, business representatives from the entire G20 develop joint recommendations and advocate specific policy-actions across the complete G20 agenda.

The B20 comprises five task forces that focus on major economic issues. In addition to digitalization, task forces for the upcoming meeting include trade and infrastructure; energy, climate, and resource efficiency; financing growth and infrastructure; and employment and education. The digitalization task force will include a focal area on AI.

AI is a massive ongoing innovation process that raises not only enthusiasm, but also societal skepticism. The B20 supports the growth of AI and wants to foster innovation and the rollout of applications in this area. To unlock societal support, an improved review and explanation of the technologys huge potential is needed. The G20 members can directly benefit by deploying smart infrastructure and improve AIs reliability, costs, and utilization.

Artificial intelligence is changing the way the world does business, said Minevich. New technologies have emerged in this field that will reengineer the service economy and revenue opportunities. However, we need to understand where we are heading as people and society at large with this technology.

Transportation is one industry AI is reshaping with autonomous systems, such as driverless cars. Autonomous transportations growing capabilities are predicted to limit driver error (http://www.csg.org/pubs/capitolideas/enews/cs80_1.aspx), which could reduce the funds spent on accidents and make certain jobs in industries such as insurance and public transportation obsolete. The U.S. Department of Transportation and many states are investing in regulations and research on autonomous transportation, but the technology is growing so rapidly (http://www.mckinsey.com/industries/high-tech/our-insights/disruptive-trends-that-will-transform-the-auto-industry) that it can be difficult for policy to keep up.

Minevich noted that, unlike other technologies utilizing AI, compromised autonomous systems in transportation pose the risk of physical harm to humans. The effects of AI on the transportation of people and goods continues to be a newsworthy issue, he said. Compromised systems could place humans in autonomous vehicles at risk. Therefore, the security of these systems is of the utmost importance. We seriously need to discuss how to best reap the economic benefits of AI and autonomous systems while protecting those it intends to serve.

For more information on the B20, its purpose, and its upcoming events, visit http://www.b20germany.org or follow the B20 on Twitter (https://twitter.com/b20).

About Mark Minevich

Mark Minevich, author and world-renowned visionary in the fields of digitization and artificial intelligence, is the principal founder of Going Global Ventures, a New York-based investment, technology, and strategic advisory firm dedicated to leading high-growth tech clients to success in the global knowledge economy.

Marks additional roles include venture partner of GVA Capital in Silicon Valley; senior fellow/advisor of the U.S. Council of Competitiveness in Washington, D.C.; associate partner of Blackhawk Partners Inc., an international family investment group; and strategist and advisor to Global Emerging Markets, a $3.4 billion alternative investment group that manages a diverse set of investment vehicles.

Learn more about Mark at http://www.markminevich.com.
On November 11, the FSH Society honored four distinguished researchers and community members at their inaugural CureFSHD National Gala in Boston, Mass. The event, hosted by WBURs Morning Edition Host Bob Oakes, celebrated 25 years of progress towards finding a cure for Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD). The gala, which attracted more than 250 researchers, scientists, FSHD patients and supporters, was considered a great success by attendees and organizers alike.

FSHD, one of the most prevalent types of muscular dystrophy, is a degenerative muscle disease that causes progressive weakness, usually starting with the face, shoulder, arms, legs and abdomen, but can spread to almost any skeletal muscle. FSHD affects approximately one million people yet, there is currently no treatment or cure.

Our inaugural National Gala was a chance for the entire FSHD community to come together to recognize exceptional individuals who have dedicated their lives and careers towards advancing FSHD related research, said Daniel Perez, co-founder, President and CEO of the Lexington based non-profit FSH Society. While there are many worthy candidates, this year we recognized a research pioneer whose work has played a major role in establishing the scientific foundations of the FSHD field and a young investigator who has published high-impact work and shows exceptional promise to develop into a leader. We also honored two pivotal members of the FSH Society community for their commitment to building the organization.

The 2016 FSH Society Pioneer Award was received by Dr. Ir. Silvere M. van der Maarel, who has made seminal contributions to the identification of the unifying genetic mechanism underlying FSHD. Professor van der Maarel was trained as a human geneticist at the Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center in the Netherlands. His scientific interests focus on the genetic and epigenetic bases of FSHD.

The 2016 FSH Society Young Investigator Award Winner was given to Charis L. Himeda, PhD, for many innovative studies, including her contributions to a ground-breaking 2015 paper published in Molecular Therapy. Dr. Himeda, an Instructor in Cell and Developmental Biology in the lab of Peter Jones at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, has published a widely noted study demonstrating the use of CRISPR gene-editing technology to suppress a gene that plays a key role in FSHD.

The CureFSHD National Gala was also a chance for the FSH Society to recognize two extraordinary individuals who have provided many years of dedicated service to the FSH Society.

Dr. David E. Housman, Ludwig Professor of Biology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is a renowned scientist and teacher who has been an inspiring mentor to hundreds of scientists for nearly half a century, raising awareness of FSHD by including it in the MD/PhD curriculum. Under his leadership as Chairman of the FSH Societys Scientific Advisory Board, the SAB has reviewed hundreds of grant applications, resulting in $7 million in grants awarded to date and more than 300 publications in top-tier journals.

Chris Stenmon, a dedicated member of the FSH Society served as a member of the FSH Society Board of Directors from 2006 to 2014, serving on the Finance and Development committees, as well as being treasurer for 2014. Mr. Stenmon was diagnosed with FSHD as a teenager and began his involvement with the Society by organizing and hosting a fundraiser beginning in 1998 which has since evolved into a major annual event raising nearly $300,000 over the years.

The FSH Society has been there for me whenever I needed them, said Stenmon. The founders, with their perseverance, drive, and will to never give up, are the main reasons we have made so much progress toward treatments and a cure.

# # #

About the FSH Society

The FSH Society is a world leader in combating muscular dystrophy. The non-profit has provided millions of dollars in seed grants to pioneering research worldwide, creating an international collaborative network of patients and researchers. The FSH Society seeks to serve as a source of information and support for all patients and families with FSHD; act as a driving force in the development of research directed towards treatments and ultimately a cure; and bring support to patients and research for FSHD through effective engagement of governmental and private sector organizations and entities. For eight consecutive years, the Society has received the Charity Navigators four-star rating, the highest distinction held by less than two percent of non-profit organizations in the country. The FSH Society offers a community of support, news and information for FSHD patients and families through its website at http://www.fshsociety.org. For more information about FSHD, please contact the Society at 781-301-6649.

Press Contact:

June Kinoshita: The FSH Society

781.301.6649; june.kinoshita(at)fshsociety(dot)org

Theresa Masnik: SHIFT Communications

617.779.1871; FSHSociety(at)shiftcomm(dot)com
The MIAMI Association of REALTORS (MIAMI) is the first and only association in America to be awarded the Diamond Global Business Council Award from the National Association of REALTORS (NAR). The Diamond award is the highest level of achievement presented by NAR and was awarded to MIAMI on Nov. 5 in Orlando for its unprecedented commitment to excellence in global achievement on behalf of its nearly 45,000 members. MIAMI provides education and services to help its members connect and market their properties worldwide.

MIAMI, which has 160 international partners, is the only Diamond Council among the 115 global business councils nationwide. MIAMI had earned NARs Platinum Council award, which was previously the highest level attainable each of the past five years. MIAMI is innovative in helping its members become global led NAR to create the Diamond Global Business Council Award.

I hope you are as proud of this achievement as we are of the hard work and dedication that your association has contributed to raising members awareness of global business in your local market, said Janet Branton, the senior vice president of NARs Commercial and Global Services. For the past six consecutive years, MIAMI has demonstrated the utmost commitment to helping members capture their share of the global real estate market in the United States.

Diamond Global Council Awards will only be awarded to councils who qualify for the program after earning five consecutive years of Platinum Council status, NAR announced.

Councils are reviewed on a case-by-case basis by NAR and evaluated in five focus areas: Business Plan, Marketing & Communication, Events/Education, Outreach and Benchmarking. NAR awards status classifications based on their level of activity, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond. More than 350,000 Realtors are represented by global business councils across the country.

MIAMIs commitment to international business began 20 years ago. MIAMI began signing global partnerships with Realtor associations in 1996. Today, MIAMI has 160 international partnerships. The partnerships help create greater exposure for the South Florida market, increase business opportunities and fuel a stronger local economy.

MIAMIs extensive International Referral Network links MIAMI association members and their properties to more than 250,000 real estate professionals around the world. MIAMIs International Referral Network provides MIAMI members with a competitive advantage, which benefits buyers, sellers and the communities they serve.

MIAMI is continually networking, growing and adding to these partnerships. This year, MIAMI has participated and/or exhibited at 14 major real estate conferences in France, Panama, Colombia, China, India, El Salvador, Spain and Dubai. MIAMI promotes Miami real estate at these conferences and provides brokers and Realtors reference materials with important South Florida market facts.

Last year, foreign real estate buyers in the South Florida real estate market accounted for 36 percent or $6.1 billion of total sales volume, according to the 2015 Profile of International Home Buyers in Miami Association of Realtors Business Areas, conducted by MIAMI and NAR. In Florida, Miami and Fort Lauderdale account for 50 percent of foreign sales, according to the 2015 Profile of International Home Buyers in Florida.

In addition to its 160 global partnerships, MIAMI hosts an award-winning annual International Real Estate Congress.

The 22nd annual International Real Estate Congress was held on Oct. 30 to Nov. 1 at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables. About 80 foreign delegates from 13 countries and Realtors from South Florida and throughout the United States networked, learned and collaborated.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun headlined the 2016 MIAMI Congress keynote speakers. MIAMI CEO Teresa King Kinney revealed initial findings from the latest Miami Profile of International Buyers, a survey conducted for MIAMI by NAR. Coral Gables-based data security and privacy attorney Aldo Leiva spoke about Cuba. Other nationally-regarded speakers presented along with panels of top brokers and tech experts.

Foreign delegates from Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Dubai (UAE), El Salvador, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy and Spain participated at the MIAMI Congress. For more information, visit MiamiCongress.com

NAR presented MIAMI with the Diamond Global Council award on Nov. 5 during the International Awards Ceremony at the NAR REALTORS Conference & Expo in Orlando.

About the MIAMI Association of REALTORS

The MIAMI Association of REALTORS was chartered by the National Association of Realtors in 1920 and is celebrating 96 years of service to Realtors, the buying and selling public, and the communities in South Florida. Comprised of six organizations, the Residential Association, the Realtors Commercial Alliance, the Broward Council, the Jupiter Tequesta Hobe Sound (JTHS) Council, the Young Professionals Network (YPN) Council and the award-winning International Council, it represents nearly 45,000 real estate professionals in all aspects of real estate sales, marketing, and brokerage. It is the first and only association in America to earn the National Association of REALTORS Diamond Global Business Council award. It is the largest local Realtor association in the U.S., and has official partnerships with 160 international organizations worldwide. MIAMIs official website is http://www.miamire.com

###
After expanding into China and setting up office in the Philippines, Ramco Systems continues its expansion in APAC with Bruneis largest bank and flagship Islamic financial institution, Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam Berhad (BIBD) today announcing that it will integrate its business processes across HR and enterprise resource planning functions with Ramco Systems Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) integrated with full suite Human Capital Management (HCM) and Global Payroll.

Cloud software provider Ramco beat global vendors to secure the contract with BIBD, Bruneis flagship Islamic bank and the countrys largest financial services provider serving all banking sectors. The partnership marks Ramcos entry into Brunei and strengthening of presence in South East Asia.

Ramco will implement its ERP solution integrated with full suite HCM and Global Payroll, across BIBDs branches and 900+ employees spread in Bruneis four districts. The scope of engagement includes Finance and Accounting, Inventory and Procurement, as well as core HR functions, Time & Attendance, Payroll, Training and Recruitment.

Tahir Muzaffar, CIO, Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam, said, We are excited to embark on a digital journey with Ramcos ERP integrated with full suite HCM & Global Payroll. This transformative project will support our push into digitizing our back office operations as part of our overall business strategy of streamlining our services & processes to not just our customers and partners, but also our internal staff. Our partnership with Ramco ERP will digitize procurements, payments and hire to retire functions thus bringing better visibility of our assets and improving productivity. With in-built Mobility and Analytics, we will be among the forerunners in bringing modern-day banking experience to our partners and staff.

Virender Aggarwal, CEO, Ramco Systems, said, Ramco has been a trusted choice of brands looking for embracing innovative technology solutions that can transform their business. Our partnership with Bruneis leading financial Institution is a reflection of the strong product capability, innovative features that we bring to the table and above all positive customer sentiment. With BIBD, we expand into yet another new market which holds new promise and opportunity for further growth in Asia.

Ramco ERP as a postmodern and single integrated ERP platform has been delivering significant innovation, cost savings, and superior business processes to organizations, globally. Ramcos focus on innovations in usability, context-awareness, mobility, overall flexibility, apart from comprehensive set of functionality has enabled smooth transitions possible for customers. Ramco also offers a comprehensive hire to retire HR Software with Global payroll and Time & Attendance. With a comprehensive coverage of APAC, Middle East and Australia, Ramco Global Payroll covers countries such as Hong Kong, Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, China, India among others in APAC; all of GCC and Egypt, Nigeria, Ghana, Sudan, Republic of S. Africa, in Middle East-Africa; Australia, New Zealand, United States and UK.

About Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam Berhad

BIBD is the largest financial institution in Brunei Darussalam, leading the market in terms of assets, financings, and deposits. BIBD is headquartered in Bandar Seri Begawan with fifteen branches and the largest network of ATMs located strategically in all four districts of Brunei Darussalam.

BIBD was ranked 38th in terms of Soundness (Capital Asset Ratio) in the top 1,000 World Banks by The Banker in 2016. BIBD is one of the safest banks in the world and is given an impressive credit rating of A- by Standard & Poors in 2015, the highest for a Bruneian bank and among the highest in the region. BIBD has been named the Best Retail Bank in Brunei by The Asian Banker in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016.

For more information on any of BIBDs other products or services, please log on to the BIBD website at http://www.bibd.com.bn, visit your nearest BIBD branch or get in touch with the BIBD Contact Centre at 2238181.

About Ramco Systems:

Ramco is a fast growing enterprise software player disrupting the market with its multi-tenanted cloud and mobile-based enterprise software in the area of HCM and Global Payroll, ERP and M&E MRO for Aviation. Part of the USD 1 billion Ramco Group, Ramco Systems focuses on Innovation and Culture to differentiate itself in the marketplace. On Innovation front, Ramco has been focusing on moving towards Cognitive and Robotic ERP with features such as Mail It  a feature which enables users to transact with the application by just sending an email; HUB It - a one screen does it all concept built to address all activities of a user; Thumb It  mobility where the system presents users with option to choose rather than type values and Prompt It  a cognitive ability which will let the system complete the transaction and prompts the user for approval.

With 1600+ employees spread across 22 offices, globally, Ramco follows a flat and open culture where employees are encouraged to share knowledge and grow. No Hierarchies, Cabin-less Offices, Respect work and not titles, among others are what makes the team say, Thank God its Monday!

Positioned as Achiever in Everest Group's Multi-country Payroll Platform Assessment; Winner of ISG Award for Innovation; Chosen as Preferred Next-Gen MRO IT Vendor by ARSA; Winner of HR Vendors of the Year Award 2015; Winner of CIO Choice Honor & Recognition 2016

For more information, please visit http://www.ramco.com/

Follow Ramco on Twitter @ramcosystems and stay tuned to http://blogs.ramco.com

For further information, contact:

Vinitha Ramani

+91 44 3090 4204

vinitharamani(at)ramco.com
Advantage/E-Z Rent A Car Expanding our SLC Station will accelerate AEZs current growth trend and strengthen our national footprint.

Advantage Rent A Car, operator of the Advantage and EZ brands (AEZ), proudly announces the opening of the companys new, expanded rental car facility at Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC).

Expanding SLC is a logical, strategic choice for AEZ, said Scott Davido, president of AEZ. Utah is the home of Life Elevated, boasting five National Parks, seven National Monuments and The Greatest Snow on Earth, making it one of the top all-season recreational, sporting and commercial regions in the United States. Expanding our SLC Station will accelerate AEZs current growth trend and strengthen our national footprint.

Serving more than 22 million passengers a year, SLC is a major hub for flights across the West and Midwest. As a Delta Airlines hub, SLC welcomes visitors flying in from Atlanta, as well as cities in Canada, Mexico, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

With more than 330 flights depart daily to more than 90 non-stop destinations, including London-Heathrow, Amsterdam and Paris, SLC also is a superb gateway city for our partner rental company, Europcar, Davido said.

AEZ now serves 23 of the 25 largest airports in the U.S. When considering total traffic at the nations top 100 airports, AEZ has access to 75 percent of the deplaning passengers.

About AEZ

AEZ, operating through its Advantage and EZ brands, is the fourth largest car rental company in the United States. A leader in the industry, AEZ is active nationwide with 75 locations in 44 markets, including 23 of the nations 25 largest airports, and globally through its partnership with Europcar. AEZ draws on the strength of its combined companies to deliver superior service, choice and value for its customers.

For more information, visit Advantage.com or E-ZRentACar.com, or engage with AEZ on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Use the hastags #AdVroomVroom, #YourAdvantage, #EZLiving, #TheEZWay and #EZBreezy to join the conversation online.
We have invested a tremendous amount of resources and effort into continually improving our platform to make small and medium-sized businesses, and agencies that serve these customers, more successful.

WordStream, Inc., a provider of online advertising software and services, has been awarded the 2016 North America Google Channel Sales New Accounts Champion Award for the highest percentage of new account growth among Googles North American partners.

The growth award was presented to WordStream CEO Ralph Folz and VP of Sales John Judge in the San Francisco Bay Area during Googles annual Premier Partner Summit.

WordStream is proud to have achieved the 2016 Google Channel Sales New Accounts Champion Award representing the highest level of new customer growth of any North American Google Premier Partner, said Folz. We have invested a tremendous amount of resources and effort into continually improving our platform to make small and medium-sized businesses, and agencies that serve these customers, more successful.

This is the second consecutive year that WordStream was recognized at the annual summit; in 2015, the company was presented with the first Google Channel Sales Platform Innovator Award for the continuing commitment to creating technology that empowers businesses to succeed through online advertising.

WordStream is a Google Premier Partner. The company has reached significant milestones this year, including the launch of new product offerings, and celebrated multiple awards.

About WordStream

WordStream Inc. provides software and services to help online marketers maximize the performance of their paid search and social campaigns, driving traffic, leads, and sales for lower costs. WordStreams software platform, WordStream Advisor, facilitates more effective campaigns by automating proven best practices and delivering expert-level results in a fraction of the time for campaigns on Google AdWords, Bing, and Facebook. The companys managed services division also provides full-service pay-per-click (PPC) marketing management through a fully certified team of advertising experts.

WordStream has been recognized for thought leadership in digital marketing through its blog and free learning resources including PPC University, and offers award-winning free tools, such as the AdWords Performance Grader, to assist marketers with campaign analysis and strategy.
An Australian author, based in Queensland, has published his debut novel that examines how humans interact with the ocean and its inhabitants. Through a unique pair of stories, Lucaz Abrams demonstrates the majesty and mystery of the sperm whale as well as the intimate access that modern technology, particularly virtual reality, offers to those who wish to explore the ocean remotely in his novel, DEV-OCEAN.

Abramss fascination with the evolution of whales as well as his proximity to the Great Barrier Reef is demonstrated in his fluid descriptions of marine life and the mysterious, sometimes ghostly, underbelly of the ocean. A key theme of the book, Abrams emphasizes the importance of conservation efforts in regard to marine life and marine mammal life.

We only vaguely know whats happening down there in the deepest, darkest abyss where only a few dare to go, Abrams said. It all tempts our curiosity and imagination.

The books first story exhibits a wide range of emotions as a seafarer encounters a sperm whale during a mid-ocean fog that obscures the real world. In the second story, a young surfer dives into a virtual reality-style reef exploration game for that ultimate scuba experience with true-to-life interactions and drama that stretch his bravado to the limit.

DEV-OCEAN will grip readers with its spontaneity, spirit of adventure and graceful approach to examining marine life.

DEV-OCEAN

By Lucaz Abrams

ISBN: 978-0-9944403-1-0 (paperback); 978-0-9944403-2-7 (electronic)

Available at the Lulu Online Bookstore, Barnes & Noble and Amazon

About the author

Lucaz Abrams has a background in visual arts and currently lives in Queensland, Australia, in close proximity to the Great Barrier Reef. He hopes to see the resources of the worlds oceans used in a responsible and sustainable way. To learn more, please visit http://www.abrams-dev-ocean.com.au/.

###

Review Copies & Interview Requests:

LAVIDGE  Phoenix

Danielle Grobmeier

480-998-2600 x 614

dgrobmeier(at)lavidge(dot)com

General Inquiries:

LAVIDGE  Phoenix

Kalin Batts

480-998-2600 x 524

kbatts(at)lavidge(dot)com
Id like to extend a big thank you to Mark Santacrose and Tecta America for providing a great opportunity for the current employees, said Gary Wolfe, President of Wolfe Roofing and Sheet Metal.

Tecta America, the national leader in commercial roofing, announces that Gary Wolfe, President of Wolfe Roofing and Sheet Metal, A Tecta Company, plans to retire at the end of the year. Gary has been a recognized leader in the industry for over 40 years. Gary sold his Reading, PA business to Tecta America in September of 2016.

After graduating from the Seton Hall University with a bachelors degree in industrial relations, Wolfe embarked on a lifelong career as an entrepreneur. Wolfe first worked at his fathers roofing company for two years before launching his own roofing company in 1973, when he was 23 years old. Wolfe sold his company in 2015 to Tecta America, the leading national commercial roofing company in the U.S., with over 50 locations and headquarters in Rosemont, Ill.

Wolfe is actively involved with his industrys professional organizations, community groups and with his alma mater. He has served as the president of the NRCA Roofing Industry Alliance for Progress, the Roofers Mart of Central Pennsylvania, and the building Industries Exchange of Reading and Berks County, and has been a member of the Firestone National Contractor Advisory Committee. Wolfe is the director of the Maidencreek Fish & Game Club and served as a director of the South Mountain YMCA. He currently serves on the Seton Halls Stillman Schools Advisory Board. Gary has recently been named to Seton Hall Universitys Entrepreneur Hall of Fame.

Gary has been a wonderful leader in the industry for many years and built a terrific company. We are fortunate to have been able to work with Gary following our acquisition a little over a year ago. We look forward to continuing our close relationship with Gary for many years and wish him all the best in retirement, said Mark Santacrose, Tecta America CEO.

Im very pleased to pass the baton off to a strong team of roofing professionals. Id like to extend a big thank you to Mark Santacrose and Tecta America for providing a great opportunity for the current employees, said Gary Wolfe, President of Wolfe Roofing and Sheet Metal.

Tecta also announces that Jeffrey Koller will be named President of Tectas Wolfe operation beginning in January. Jeff has been a Senior Project Manager/Estimator at Wolfe for 9 years. Jeff will do a terrific job leading the company following Garys retirement, said Santacrose. He has big shoes to fill but he has a great team around him and we are confident he is ready to take on this challenge.

In the last 9 years working for Wolfe Roofing, Gary has taught me several important fundamentals to running a successful and profitable business, including, the three most important assets in your company are your employees, customers and suppliers, said Jeffery Koller.

Wolfe Roofing is a 42 year old, roofing and sheet metal company. The company has a reputation for exceptional service, professionalism and superior quality in the roofing industry.

About Tecta America

Tecta America is the nations premier commercial roofing contractor with operations located from coast to coast. Our unyielding commitment to quality, expertise and professionalism is what makes us the industry leader. Installation, repair, emergency damage response, sustainability options and morewe offer the responsiveness of a local roofing contractor backed by the resources and stability you need from a commercial roofing solution. For more information, visit our website at http://www.tectaamerica.com

Company Contact:

Robin Hollerich

507-385-4420

rhollerich(at)tectaamerica(dot)com
We will reward TRANSCOMs confidence in us by providing the highest quality service with safety, integrity and high performance.

The U.S. Transportation Command (TRANSCOM), an agency of the Department of Defense (DOD), has awarded Crowley Logistics Inc., a subsidiary of Crowley Maritime Corp., a multi-year contract to provide transportation and related services supporting Department of Defense activities in the U.S. and Canada.

The Department of Defense Freight Transportation Services (DFTS) contract is one of the largest logistics contracts awarded by the U.S. government. The period of performance is two base years followed by five option years for a total value of approximately 2.3 billion dollars.

We are very proud and appreciative of the opportunity to support our country and the Defense Department with transportation and logistics services through this new TRANSCOM contract, said Tom Crowley, company chairman and CEO. We will reward TRANSCOMs confidence in us by providing the highest quality service with safety, integrity and high performance.

The program encompasses all forms of truck transportation to include less-than-truckload, full truckload, expedited and refrigerated services. Delivery locations will include vendor facilities, Defense Department warehouses or depots, and U.S. military installations.

"Our purpose as a company, be it today or as we enter our 125th year in business next year, is 'enriching lives through innovative solutions done right.' We are proud of our past work together with the U.S. military, and look forward to this next chapter of our service to the armed forces. This award is a testament to the entire Crowley team's focus on moving beyond ocean transportation to crafting complete supply chain solutions for all our customers, said Frank Larkin, senior vice president and general manager, logistics and commercial services.

Larkin noted that Crowleys participation in this contract will provide more than 70 new employment opportunities in the local Jacksonville community.

About Crowley Maritime Corp.

Jacksonville-based Crowley Holdings Inc., a holding company of the 124-year-old Crowley Maritime Corporation, is a privately held family and employee-owned company. The company provides marine solutions, energy and logistics services in domestic and international markets by means of six operating lines of business: Puerto Rico Liner Services, International Liner Services, Logistics Services, Petroleum Services, Marine Services and Technical Services. Offered within these operating lines of business are: liner container shipping, logistics, contract towing and transportation; ship assist and escort; energy support; salvage and emergency response through its 50 percent ownership in Ardent Global; vessel management; vessel construction and naval architecture through its Jensen Maritime subsidiary; government services, and petroleum and chemical transportation, distribution and sales. Additional information about Crowley, its subsidiaries and business units may be found at crowley.com.
With Prodensa as our partner, we will be able to focus our efforts on our core business while they take care of all the compliance with Mexican regulations, so that our operation will always be on the safe side

Mexico, October 26th, 2016 - In a recent announcement, Andy Hennessey, Chief Financial Officer of the company headquartered in Louisville, said their market continues to grow and are now targeting the Mexican market with the establishment of a new office south of the border.

Premier Packaging has over 400 employees in the US and will add more people to their team that will be focused on growing the customer base in Mexico and providing support to their already existing customers, Hennessey said.

Premier Packaging is dedicated on providing a wide catalog of protective packaging material that serve different industries such as electronics, medical, consumer goods, textile, food, among others. Their products range from custom corrugated boxes and packaging, bin boxes, foam packaging and stock boxes and cartons.

One industry that continues to grow and drive our business is e-commerce, as many items that are shipped by mail need our protective equipment, Hennessey added. The key to our success is intimately learning the needs of our customers. We dont ask whatwe ask why? And those answers drive savings far beyond the packaging spend.

For their Mexico operation, Premier Packaging has teamed-up with Grupo Prodensa, a leading Mexican firm that is focused on providing consulting and back office support for all areas that are unique to the Mexican business environment. With Prodensa as our partner, we will be able to focus our efforts on our core business while they take care of all the compliance with Mexican regulations, so that our operation will always be on the safe side, he said.

For more information regarding Premier Packaging's solutions and products, visit http://www.prempack.com
SutiTravel, a leading travel booking service provider, is excited to unveil the latest features intended to provide customers with a seamless travel experience.

Feature Enhancements include:

Seatmap

Users can now book a seat of choice. The solution allows users to view available seats with access to a real-time seating chart.

SutiTravel includes a color coding system with each seat color coded making it easy to select the right seat.

Travel insurance

SutiTravel now offers insurance to its customers. We have links with various insurance service providers that offer insurance policies to travelers. Input trip details into the system and the rest will be handled by our solution.

Paytm integration

SutiTravel has been integrated with a new payment gateway  Paytm. Travelers can now book tickets directly from Paytm, providing the fastest service possible.

For more information, please visit https://www.sutitravel.com

About SutiSoft

SutiSoft provides a comprehensive suite of cloud-based business platforms and solutions for companies of all sizes. These platforms include scalable and easy-to-use solutions for HR, Employee Travel & Expense, Wireless Spend Management, CRM, Document Management, Business Data Analytics, and Electronic signature. Our platforms and solutions enable small, mid-size, and large enterprise customers to control costs, save time and assist in making smart business decisions. Headquartered in Los Altos, California, SutiSoft also has regional offices in Germany, India, and Japan. For additional information visit our website at http://www.sutisoft.com.
mRELEVANCE, LLC was honored by the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago with two SAMMY awards for marketing at the recent SAMMY and Key Awards banquet. The awards are:



Marketing Campaign/Promotion of the Year: The Cinco de Mayo Open House for Greenscape Homes was promoted as an eblast and emailed out to Chicago-area brokers as an invitation for a Cinco de Mayo themed event. Bright colors and fun patterns were used to catch the eye of the agents and also reinforce the Mexican theme. Boldly colored text was used to highlight the big draw of a $1,000 gift card giveaway. High-quality photos were used to showcase the homes that Greenscape builds.

Event of the Year: The Greenscape Homes Broker Open House campaign was created to drive brokers to a specific open house event for Greenscape Homes. An eblast was sent to Chicago-area brokers and agents advertising an open house luncheon. The VIP eblast was created to provide an initial interest in the event by creating a VIP allure for those that chose to attend.

mRELEVANCE also received three Honorable Mention awards for:

Sales Brochure  Greenscape Homes Missing Piece

Website Design  Gallagher & Henry

Website Design  Gerstad Homes

Mitch Levinson, managing partner of mRELEVANCE, LLC commented, Its exciting to be recognized among our peers for both marketing and web efforts. We cant wait to see what the coming year will bring to the Chicago home building industry and mRELEVANCE.

The Home Builders Association of Greater Chicagos SAMMY and Key Awards celebrate their 44th anniversary in 2016. The awards began in 1972, and have grown throughout the years to now feature more than 100 building, remodeling, marketing and personal achievement categories. The SAMMY & Key awards are the premier awards of Chicagos residential building industry. To see more award winners, visit ChicagoRealEstateForum.com. For more information about mRELEVANCE, visit http://www.MarketingRELEVANCE.com.

About Marketing RELEVANCE: mRELEVANCE, LLC creates relevant marketing and communications that reach audiences with focused and strategic messages. Through technology and creative content, messages are delivered to target markets to encourage customer action and interaction.

With offices in Atlanta and Chicago, mRELEVANCE can connect your company with buyers and build relevant relationships nationwide. For more information, visit http://www.MarketingRELEVANCE.com, Like us on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/mRELEVANCE, Follow us on Twitter at @mRELEVANCE or call 770-383-3360 or 847-259-7312.
flsf.org I am committed to giving back to the community and those in need, especially children. We are excited to celebrate 1 million meals donated through The Frank L. Stile Foundation!" says Dr. Frank Stile, MD, FACS, president of The Frank L. Stile Foundation.

The Frank L. Stile Foundation (FLS) hosts a Holiday Giving Winter Carnival on Dec. 2 from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. at 8954 Spanish Ridge Ave, Suite 1. The event is open to the public and features rides, carnival acts, games, toy drive, food, and drinks. The highlight of the evening is the FLS Foundation Giving Event, with major donations to Three Square, The Shade Tree, and St. Judes Ranch for Children. The FLS Foundation will present a check for 500,000 meals to Feeding America, a non-profit organization dedicated to feeding the hungry throughout the U.S. In celebration of 5 years of successful giving, the FLS Foundation Holiday Giving Winter Carnival will commemorate 1 million-plus meals served. Learn more and RSVP at http://flsf.org/.

I am committed to giving back to the community and those in need, especially children. We are so excited to celebrate 1 million meals donated through The Frank L. Stile Foundation! Philanthropy is our mission, both in my private practice and the foundation. We are major advocates of Three Square, The Shade Tree and St. Judes Ranch for Children, and were proud to donate 500,000 meals to Feeding America and expand our reach to help even more children and families in need, says Dr. Frank Stile, MD, FACS, president and founder of The Frank L. Stile Foundation.

Founded in 2011, the FLS Foundation was created by Dr. Stile to serve the needs of children in crisis. With over 860,000 meals donated through 2015, the FLS Foundation aims to end child hunger, one meal at a time. The FLS Foundation provides awareness and resources to better the health, nutrition, safety and well-being of children.

Via donations, the FLS Foundation supports local and national food banks. In addition to help from generous supporters, most of the initiatives are personally funded by Dr. Stile. Stiles plastic surgery practice is the first and only in Nevada that dedicates a portion of all proceeds to provide meals and services to help children in need, both locally and nationally.

The FLS Foundations team members are committed to volunteering, and devote countless hours to the local Las Vegas community. The FLS Foundation volunteer team consists of friends, family, Dr. Stiles office and surgery center staff. Along with other members of the community, the FLS Foundation team regularly volunteers their time to local Missions, food & clothing drives, and help with food packaging and distribution initiatives for food-insecure children and families. Learn more about making a financial contribution or volunteering with FLS Foundation at http://flsf.org/.

Recipients of the FLS Foundation Holiday Giving Event include Three Square, Southern Nevadas only food bank providing food assistance to the residents of Clark, Esmeralda, Lincoln, Nye Counties. Three Squares mission is to provide wholesome food to hungry people, while passionately pursuing a hunger-free community. The Shade Tree provides safe shelter to homeless and abused women and children in crisis and offers life-changing services promoting stability, dignity, and self-reliance. The Shade Tree is the largest shelter of its kind in the state and is the only 24-hour accessible shelter designed specifically to meet the needs of women and children in Southern Nevada. St. Judes Ranch for Children transforms the lives of abused and at-risk children, young adults, and families, by empowering them to create new chances, new choices and new hope in a caring community.

The Feeding America network is the nations largest domestic hunger-relief organization. The nationwide network of food banks provides more than 3.6 billion meals to virtually every community in the United States through food pantries and meal programs. As the largest domestic hunger-relief organization, Feeding America is leading the movement to solve hunger nationwide.

Stile is a world-renowned cosmetic plastic surgeon, certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, American Board of Medical Specialties, and Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. His private practice provides the full spectrum of plastic cosmetic surgery procedures in Las Vegas. Stile is a published author of articles and books in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Microsurgery literature and has presented his research at national and international plastic surgery conferences. Stile has innovated published techniques, and his work has been featured in The New York Times, Maxim, Real Fighter, The Huffington Post, Wired Magazine, and many others. Committed to philanthropy, Stile aims to continue to donate a portion of his revenues from his private practice to helping others through the FLS Foundation. In addition to the FLS Foundation and his surgery practice, Dr. Stile owns and operates an onsite Skin Care Clinic/Med Spa and FDA regulated surgical center to provide the most extensive and highest quality care for patients.

About The Frank L. Stile Foundation

During the great recession of our time, Dr. Stile, MD, FACS, witnessed the impact of an unprecedented economic downturn on the local and national economy. What was most troubling to him was the realization of its economic impact on the health and welfare of children. The concept of food insecurity and the pervasiveness of this tragic circumstance were unsettling. Many families lacked the means to care for themselves or feed their children. Moved by this, The Frank L. Stile Foundation (FLS) was created in 2011 by Dr. Frank Stile. The FLS Foundation objective is to serve the special needs of children and families in crisis. The foundations goal is to raise awareness and resources to improve the health, nutrition, safety and well-being of children. The foundation funds medical care for children, supplemental nutrition programs, and provides funding to nonprofits, locally and nationally. Learn more at http://flsf.org/.

About Frank L. Stile, MD, FACS

Dr. Frank L. Stile is a world-renowned and accomplished cosmetic plastic surgeon and businessman in Las Vegas. Dr. Stile is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, American Board of Medical Specialties, and Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. With over 20 years of experience, Dr. Stile has had the privilege of treating thousands of patients, helping them achieve their cosmetic surgery goals. He regularly entertains national and international visitors, as well as colleagues at his practice. Learn more at http://www.DrStile.com.

Media Inquiries:

Angela Delmedico

Elev8 Consulting Group

Ph: 702.706.8250

Web: http://www.elev8cg.com
Radiant Vision Systems hosts a webinar November 30 at 9:00 A.M. PST: Truly Automated Light and Color Measurement for Tell-Tales and Indicators

Radiant Vision Systems, a leading provider of visual test and inspection systems for lighting and display devices, announces that it will host a live webinar to demonstrate the latest technology in its ProMetric and TrueTest software platforms, Auto-POI. This new software capability will be introduced in a live webinar titled Truly Automated Light and Color Measurement for Tell-Tales and Indicators on Wednesday, November 30, from 9:00-10:00 A.M., followed by a live audience Q&A session with webinar presenter Shannon Roberts.

Auto-POI (Automatic Points of Interest) enables automatic detection and evaluation of illuminated tell-tales and indicators across entire automotive instrument clusters. Auto-POI offers the fastest method for cluster evaluation both on the line and in R&D settings, with the ability to measure the luminance and chromaticity of multiple indicators simultaneously in a single image. This is accomplished using an imaging colorimeter to capture a full two-dimensional image of a dashboard, display, or other panel for wide area inspection. From the colorimeters software interface, users can draw regions directly on the captured image to define areas to inspect. Based on user-defined CIE color and luminance thresholds, the softwares Auto-POI capability will automatically detect and outline indicator shapes and characters that match defined tolerances, measuring the luminance and color for each indicator within the set, as well as evaluating the uniformity of values across the indicator set. Auto-POI captures these measurements for all indicators on a panel, regardless of where the indicators are located. For instance, a user may set minimum and maximum CIE xy chromaticity values for a target red color, which Auto-POI will use to identify all red indicators across the instrument cluster. These indicators can then be evaluated for cross-symbol harmonization. Within the same inspection, a user could add additional criteria to set target CIE values for green indicators in the cluster, enabling the user to view results for both red and green indicators and evaluate multiple sets of indicators at once.

Join Radiant Product Manager, Shannon Roberts, as she introduces Auto-POI in Radiants latest webinar and provides an active demonstration using Auto-POI and ProMetric Software to measure multiple points of interest in a single image. Having joined Radiant as an Applications Engineer, with experience as Applications Engineering Lead, Roberts brings in-depth technical expertise and knowledge of light and color theory to product application and evaluation. Roberts has a B.A. in Physics from the University of Colorado, Boulder.

For additional information about this webinar or to register for the live broadcast on November 30, visit http://www.RadiantVisionSystems.com.

About Radiant Vision Systems

Radiant Vision Systems works with world-class brands and manufacturers to deliver creative visual inspection solutions that improve quality, reduce costs, and increase customer satisfaction. Radiants legacy of technology innovation in photometric imaging and worldwide install base date back more than 20 years and address applications from consumer electronics to automotive manufacturing. Radiant Vision Systems product lines include TrueTest automated visual inspection software for display systems, and ProMetric imaging colorimeters, photometers, and light source measurement systems. Radiant is headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA, with strategic offices in China and South Korea. Radiant has been a part of Konica Minoltas Sensing Business Unit since August 2015. For more information, visit http://www.RadiantVisionSystems.com.
Migrating to the cloud isn't just about applications or data centers. It's about weaving together the applications, office(s), data centers, and cloud locations

QOS Consulting LLC (QOS), a consulting firm dedicated to helping organizations improve the performance of their applications and people by improving the performance of their networks, announced today that Co-Founder & EVP Client Solutions Frank Cittadino will be speaking during The Channel Companys NexGen Cloud Conference and Expo. The session, SD-WAN--Your Connection to Agile Cloud will be held from 10:30  11:00 a.m., December 7, 2016, in California Ballroom B at the Anaheim Hilton in Anaheim, California.

According to The Channel Company, Cloud computing is enabling todays hottest technologies--analytics, IoT, security, mobility, dev ops, containers, advanced system architectures and many more. NexGen is designed for the solutions providers on the cutting edge of the channel building business models around these next-generation technologies. These early adopter, services-oriented partners are a step ahead of the pack looking to identify the cloud-based solutions which will drive new revenue and future profits.

During Franks session, participants can find out more about SD-WAN and how it can support cloud deployments. Software-Defined WAN capitalizes on the flexibility and agility of SDN by shifting network monitoring and management from physical devices to the application. This allows for the use of public and private connections for lower-cost and highly flexible connections to the cloud.

Mobile or fixed device in hand, your users don't care where the application is there when they need it, on the device they're using and performs acceptably. The cloud is increasingly where the application is. For the IT professional, the cloud is a place, characterized by not being where your traditional WAN is optimized to route traffic. Traffic running in a straight line from their office(s) to their data center is efficient already. All other traffic flows necessitate expensive architecture chewing up bandwidth and resources, said Frank. Migrating to the cloud isn't just about applications or data centers. It's about weaving together the applications, office(s), data centers, and cloud locations.

About QOS Consulting

For more than a decade, QOS Consulting has been helping organizations improve the performance of their applications and people by improving the performance of their networks. With technology and project management expertise, the team works with enterprise businesses to advise and manage implementation and migrations of complex services. For more information, visit qos-consulting.com.

Press Contact:

Benh Pham

QOS Consulting LLC

(310) 817-6954

benh(at)qos-consulting.com
APS (Powered by Payscout) is pleased to announce it is partnering with the nationally-recognized Sessions Firm for a number of compliance-related initiatives.

Partnering with The Sessions Firm affirms our efforts to assist our merchants with best practices in the ARM industry, said APS Vice President Jennifer Brummett. It is a testament to our commitment to our customers and enhances our credibility in the ARM space.

The Sessions Firm will work with APS on several compliance-related initiatives, including the review of APS solution for handling Regulation E payment requirements. The Sessions Firm will also assist in the review and explanation of outstanding issues facing potential merchants for Payscouts Risk Department.

The partnership builds on an existing relationship that featured a joint presentation at the recent ACA International convention in Denver, Colorado entitled, Im Watching You! Complying with the CFPBs Vendor and Client Management Responsibilities. This type of thought-leading presentation demonstrates the industry knowledge that both APS and The Sessions Firm can provide to ARM merchants and underscores the cultural synergy between the two entities.

Bryan Shartle, a partner at The Sessions Firm, commented: Everything we have seen so far, as well as the work we have done together, confirms our view that APS has a tremendous amount of knowledge about the ARM space, truly cares about the challenges its merchants experience in complying with regulations, and wants to make that process as simple as possible.

The Sessions Firm will also proactively monitor APS merchant portfolio for potential problems that would require intervention and implementation of best practices to address.

Brummett added, We are very pleased to have the expertise of The Sessions Firm in our corner. This partnership represents our commitment to Integrity/Trust and Reliability, two of Payscouts Cultural Attributes and key features of the services our customers have come to count on from us.

About APS (Powered by Payscout):

APS has been a leading provider of payment processing services to the ARM industry for over 10 years. It serves many of the top U.S. debt collection agencies and accounts receivable management companies directly and through integrations with over a dozen of the top rated software providers to the industry. Through its competitive rates, ability to offer services in a highly scrutinized market, and a variety of unique, value-added protection and verification tools to help its ARM clients stay in compliance, APS has become a trusted advisor and thought leader in the ARM industry.

APS was acquired by Payscout, Inc. in October 2015. Since then, it has been fully integrated into the Payscout operation and has the ability to offer all of the global services that Payscout is known for. The APS brand has been maintained in the ARM marketplace because of its longstanding name recognition and reputation in the industry.

About Payscout, Inc.:

Payscout Supports the Entrepreneurial Dream One Transaction at a Time.

Payscout is a global payment processing provider covering six continents by connecting merchants and consumers via credit, debit, ATM and alternative payment networks. What differentiates Payscout is its mission to support the entrepreneurial dream one transaction at a time. Payscout achieves this by being a thought leader in the payments industry. Its Go Global Now technology platform gives merchants instant access to 100+ countries, billions of consumers and trillions of dollars. Payscout offers payment processing solutions for brick-and-mortar and eCommerce transactions, and has earned acclaim as a new-generation provider of merchant banking services, specializing in online/eCommerce retailers with a predominant proportion of card-not-present (CNP) transactions; it is one of the few providers to deliver a true global payment solution that encompasses all merchant risk verticals. Customers can access Payscouts credit card processing services via a state-of-the-art, web-based user portal and through direct interactions with highly-trained experts. In addition to supporting thousands of clients across a multitude of industries and all 50 American states, Payscout maintains global partnerships with VISA USA, Bank of America Merchant Services, VISA Europe, VISA Latin America, VISA Asia Pacific, MasterCard Worldwide, China Union Pay, Deutsche Bank, First Data and Payscout Brazil. Payscout was recognized as one of Americas fastest-growing privately-held companies in 2014, 2015, and 2016, ranking #2,416 in 2014, #434 in 2015, and #383 in 2016 on Inc. Magazines Inc. 500/5000 list. Within the financial services industry, Payscout placed #140 in 2014 and #24 in 2015. For more information, visit http://www.payscout.com.

About The Sessions Firm:

Sessions, Fishman, Nathan and Israel, commonly referred to as The Sessions Firm, was founded in 1958. The Firms Consumer Defense Practice Group is the largest national practice group dedicated to representing debt collectors, creditors, and other financial institutions. We provide sophisticated consumer defense representation with no start-up time. Since 2001, we have defended tens of thousands of consumer lawsuits throughout the country. We have also defended over a thousand class actions and assisted many clients in resolving complex consumer litigation. In addition to litigation defense work, the Firm is also nationally known as experts on compliance and regulatory issues involving the various federal and state regulators, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Trade Commission, Attorneys General, and state and municipal licensing authorities. The Firms 12 offices are located in the nations top litigation hot spots, including California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, and Texas. For more information, visit http://www.sessions.legal.

# # #

Media Inquiries:

George Smith

george(at)payscout.com

888-211-4470
"As one of the most unique properties in Chicago, this is a historic hotel that truly offers guests the best of the city just outside its doors," stated Cassie Yen, Executive Vice President.

The Whitehall Hotel has launched a Cyber Monday Campaign for the 2016-2017 holiday season, with features including savings on room rates and parking.

Guests who book at the property until November 28, 2016 will receive 40% off regular room rates and 40% off valet parking. Additionally, guests who are members of the hotels loyalty program, Whitehall Insiders, will receive 40% off the room rate and free valet parking. This offer covers stay dates throughout 2017, allowing guests to book not only last-minute holiday travel, but a downtown Chicago getaway for the new year.

As one of the most desirable places to stay in downtown Chicago, the Whitehall Hotel is located in an historic building overlooking the Magnificent Mile, with access to Chicagos best shopping, dining and culture.The holidays are one of the peak times to visit the city, with a number of winter events, performances and exhibitions taking place throughout Chicago, close to the Whitehall Hotel. Guests booking this Cyber Monday offer will also enjoy signature amenities including concierge service, on-site business and fitness centers, executive boardroom access, meeting and event facilities, and complimentary morning newspaper and coffee in the lobby.

We are honored to announce this special offer for the Whitehalls guests, stated Cassie Yen, Executive Vice President at The Whitehall Hotel. As one of the most unique properties in Chicago, this is a historic hotel that truly offers guests the best of the city just outside its doors.

About The Whitehall Hotel

Founded in 1928, the historic Whitehall Hotel is a luxury boutique property located on Chicagos Magnificent Mile. Recent renovations and a redesigned website have seen a number of honors; the Whitehall has earned the recognition of Fortune Magazine as one of the eight great small hotels in the United States, and Travel & Leisure has named it as one of Chicagos five great hotels.

Accommodations range from standard king and queen rooms to expanded suites, with in-room features such as premium Egyptian cotton linens, luxury bath amenities, custom-designed furniture and original artwork. Close to the attractions of the Loop, Magnificent Mile, and Millenium Park, the Whitehall Hotel offers an elegant retreat in the heart of downtown Chicago. Guests can reserve accommodations online or contact reservations at 312-944-6300.
We hire the most qualified specialists in each division, and ensure that all of our employees deliver the highest level of customer care. When you call Bill Howe, you are treated as family.

Bill Howe started as a one truck San Diego plumber in 1980, setting out to offer the community a n affordable service and quality work. For over 35 years, he has successfully grown the company to over 160 employees across four divisions offering expert services in plumbing and drain cleaning, heating & air conditioning, flood remediation and reconstruction, and epoxy relining solutions for residential and commercial applications.

In addition to numerous industry awards including Best Contractor by Contractor magazine in 2013, San Diegos Best plumber, best heating & air company, and best contractor in 2016, the family-owned and operated company has also been chosen throughout the county as the favorite community plumber by Beach and Bay press readers multiple years in a row.

Beach & Bay Press delivers local news to readers in the coastal communities in San Diego such as La Jolla, University City, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, and Point Loma. The local publications tailor news and information directly to the unique lifestyles of beach community readers and host the Best of Readers polls each year allowing readers to vote for their favorites.

Bill Howe started out at 974 Thomas Street in Pacific Beach, and continues to do a great amount of business along the coast. Bill Howe offered several benefits to his customers in the early years such as 24-7 service, special account status to local property management companies, and specially tailored services treating each customer like family. Although we have grown since I first began, we retain that family oriented service, said Bill Howe, President of the Bill Howe Family of Companies. We hire the most qualified specialists in each division, and ensure that all of our employees deliver the highest level of customer care. When you call Bill Howe, you are treated as family.

In the latest Beach & Bay Press Readers Poll, Pacific Beach residents have chosen Bill Howe as their Gold Medal San Diego plumber. We started in Pacific Beach, said Tina Howe, Vice President of Bill Howe Family of Companies. And, we are especially proud that our customers and community still consider us their preferred plumber.

The Local family-owned and operated company services San Diego county from the border in the south to the 78 in the North county. They continue to hire and train all of their field employees, customer service representatives, and field supervisors to uphold the Bill Howe Way and deliver nothing but the best services and customer care.

For more information about the premiere San Diego plumbing services at the Bill Howe Family of Companies, visit http://www.billhowe.com, or to speak with Bill or Tina Howe regarding this announcement, contact Bill Howe Marketing Director, Julie Riddle at Julie@billhowe.com.

About Bill Howe Family of Companies

Bill Howe Family of Companies is comprised of Bill Howe Plumbing, Inc.; Bill Howe Heating & Air Conditioning, Inc.; Bill Howe Restoration & Flood Services, Inc. The family-owned and operated company began in 1980 with the plumbing division and has grown into San Diego Countys largest low-cost one-stop-shop for service, repairs and installation, offering both residential and commercial services. 9085 Aero Drive, Suite B, San Diego CA 92123. Call 1-800-BILL-HOWE because We Know Howe!

###
The new candidate marketplace enables both job seekers and employers to extend their reach in an unparalleled way by eliminating the unnecessary traps of traditional job boards.

Cadre Scheduling, a cloud based platform used by employers of contingent talent, launches its interactive candidate marketplace designed specifically for the needs of this mobile workforce on December 1, 2016 to more effectively and affordably connect employers with candidates actively seeking temporary, project-based, temporary to hire, contract, or freelance work. Cadre Scheduling will release this candidate marketplace on December 1st to improve the process for job seekers and employers in the gig economy.

"Everyone needs to mobilize teams faster and constantly improve their earning potential," said Kathy Harrell-Latham, CEO of Cadre. "The new candidate marketplace enables both job seekers and employers to extend their reach in an unparalleled way by eliminating the unnecessary traps of traditional job boards."

Employers already use Cadre Scheduling to eliminate emails and to automate reporting with city ordinances mandating requirements for earned sick and safe, parental leave, predictable scheduling and other scheduling requirements.

David Young COO of Cadre Scheduling said: "We are proud to start with a sizeable pool of talented and qualified job seekers in Minnesota and across the country." He continues to say, "At a time of unprecedented regulation of the employee-employer relationship, it is important to us that Cadre Scheduling offers companies a unique ability to improve their earning potential while also serving as a bridge to long-term employment."

As part of the launch of its candidate marketplace, Cadre is also excited to announce it partnership with Clarus Solutions. Clarus Solutions is a leader in capturing Work Opportunity Tax Credits (WOTC) for the staffing industry. Philip Wentworth, Clarus Solutions' VP of Sales said, "Clarus Solutions offers a customized WOTC program for each staffing firm client to optimize, automate and maximize WOTC tax credits." Wentworth went on to say: "Our partnership with Cadre underscores our core mission in working to help put qualifying WOTC candidates back to work--something that is in everyone's interests."

This event will be held at the new office of Cadre Scheduling in WorkAround Shared Office Environment in the heart of the Twin Cities Innovation District.

"We are thrilled to have Cadre as a member of our space." said Buffie Blesi, CEO of WorkAround Shared Office Environment. "The team can plug right in, take advantage of the fiber optic internet and flexible furnished offices while continuing to expand without additional capital expenditures."

Job-seekers, employers, city officials, and media are invited to attend a ribbon cutting event on December 1st at 10:00 am at the Cadre Scheduling offices located in WorkAround at 2828 University Ave SE #150 Minneapolis Minnesota 55414. The festivities will also include a job fair and opportunity for candidates to connect with prospective employers. Advance registration is encouraged but not required.
Help Suraj Today plus 50% Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That's the problem.  A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Meet Suraj. Suraj means "sun" in Hindi. Suraj was rescued off the streets of Dharamsala, India by Dharamsala Animal Rescue. The staff chose this name for him because even though he has mange and is skinny as can be, he still has a sunny disposition. He greets everyone with his beautiful eyes and a wagging tail.

The Gates Foundation has partnered with Dharamsala Animal Rescue for #GivingTuesday 2016, a global giving movement that has been driven by individuals, families, organizations, businesses and communities in all 50 states and in countries around the world. Since its founding in 2012, millions of people have come together to support and champion the causes they believe in and the communities in which they live.

DONATE on #GIVING TUESDAY

After two days for getting deals  Black Friday and Cyber Monday #GivingTuesday is a day for giving back. In dozens of towns, cities, regions and states from Alaska to Maine, and Charlotte NC to Dallas TX, people are embracing this day as an opportunity to raise money for local nonprofits, schools and arts organizations; run food and clothing drives; teach children about philanthropy; encourage acts of kindness; collaborate with their neighbors; and celebrate generosity.

In 2015, nonprofits raised more than $117 million online on #GivingTuesday to help make the world a better place in countless ways. Much more was generated offline and through donations of time and other resources. People participated in #GivingTuesday activities in 71 countries around the globe last year, and this year, participating countries include Australia, Brazil, Kenya, Slovenia, Tanzania, the UK and more.

This year, donations will be matched by 50% with a little help from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation:

#GIVING TUESDAY DONATION SITE

Shweta Kanwar, Social Media Manager asks, "Why can't the world be all about love and giving."

Dharamsala Animal Rescue was founded in 2008 and is a registered 501c3. Dharamsala Animal Rescue has been working to improve the lives of dogs living on the streets of Dharamsala while inspiring more compassionate behavior towards stray dogs in the community. Click HERE the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will match your donation.

Help Decrease Suffering and Increase Compassion on Giving Tuesday 2016.

.
Stefana Pecher,MD Connecticut and Rhode Island's Medical Marijuana Specialist Opioid Painkillers are Widespread and Dangerous.

Dr. Stefana Pecher and her professional medical team at The Country Doc Wellness Center in North Stonington, Ct. announced today that she has implemented MMJ Technologies, the cannabis industry's first-of-its-kind medical marijuana study technology for her Connecticut and Rhode Island patients.

Dr. Pecher, understanding the need to responsibly recommend medical marijuana, document, and remotely manage patients' symptoms, was excited about the new MMJ technology and hopes that other healthcare professionals will use the technology in order to better advise patients who would benefit from the use of medical cannabis via such MMJ technology solutions.

(http://www.medicalmarijuanadocconnecticut.com)

Opioid Pain Killers are Widespread and Dangerous

Former FDA head from 1990 to 1997 Dr. David Kessler conceded during a CBS News interview that there is a serious opioid epidemic, adding:

This has been one of the great mistakes of modern medicine. Dr. Kessler called it an American condition. This is an American disease. (Source)

Dr. Pecher noted that many people die daily from opioid pain killer overdoses. Eighty percent (80%) of heroin addicts were once prescribed opioid drugs for legitimate pain concerns. One of Dr. Pechers concerns is that opioids are not as helpful for chronic pain as most may think.

As ones tolerance to an opioid drug increases, the demand for higher doses with more prescriptions involving other pain killers becomes a necessity that invites addiction.

Using CDC statistics, Dr. Pecher revealed that opioid drug sales quadrupled in the decade between 1999 and 2010. Not surprisingly, the death rate from prescription pain killers also quadrupled during that time. As those drugs filter out into the populace, more people take them non-medically, especially teenagers.

In the USA, one in 20 over 12 years of age used opioid pain killers non-medically during 2010. Almost 7,000 people are treated by emergency facilities in the U.S. daily for overdosing opioid pain killers or using them in a manner other than directed. Nearly half of opioid users who go for 30 days or more wind up taking opioid drugs for another three years and beyond.

Dr. Pecher explained that two major studies have shown no positive long-term pain relief from opioid use for chronic pain compared to placebo. Conversely, many studies confirm opioid side effects ranging from addiction to death by overdose, usually by respiratory or cardiac compromise.

The open window of opioid pain relief is small. As the diminishing pain relief demands increased opioid use, the threshold for overdose is rapidly approached. The success rate from conventional opioid withdrawal strategies is marginal at best.

Dr. Pecher mentioned an Israeli clinic that had a 70 percent successful opioid-addiction treatment plan utilizing medical marijuana. Patients were opioid-free within seven months with no adverse symptoms. This is much more optimistic than the 8 percent success rate achieved utilizing other standard methods of opioid treatment bolstered by pharmaceuticals that have their own side effects.

Where states have legally authorized medical marijuana use, opioid overdose declined on an average of 25 percent.

For this reason, Dr. Pecher would like to see more physicians who reside in states that have legalized medical marijuana understand her methods of gradually and safely substituting medical cannabis for opioid painkillers while using the MMJ technology as a tool for monitoring the patient population's health and therapeutic outcomes.
Worldwide Environmental Products, Inc., a private California-based company, has been awarded the contract with the State of Missouri, Department of Natural Resources for the Gateway Vehicle Inspection Program. After a competitive bid process, the official notice of award was published by the State on September 6, 2016, and the proposed solution from Worldwide Environmental Products, Inc. has been chosen for the State of Missouri.

Worldwide will work with the Department of Natural Resources and Missouri State Highway Patrol to implement the nations first tablet-based vehicle emissions and safety inspection program, utilizing state-of-the-art inspection components which include ruggedized inspection-grade tablets and Worldwides BAR Certified OBDII Data Acquisition Device (DAD).

Over the next few months, all licensed inspection stations in the Gateway Vehicle Inspection Program will be provided with a completely new inspection system which has been designed to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of vehicle inspections while providing inspectors with a user-friendly, rugged mobile inspection solution. Worldwides initial contract with the State will last for a period of four (4) years, with renewal options for up to an additional three (3) years.

The State of Missouris award to Worldwide was upheld after the States previous contractor, Opus Inspection, filed a protest of the State's award. Worldwide Environmental Products, Inc. received the Notice to Proceed" with the contract on October 26, 2016. The award comes after the State initially awarded a contract for the Gateway Vehicle Inspection Program to Worldwide in August 2015. However, after a protest of the States procurement process was filed and upheld, the award to Worldwide was cancelled and an updated procurement was released by the State. After a second competitive bid process, the proposal submitted by Worldwide was again selected by the State as the most favorable solution for the Gateway Vehicle Inspection Program.

For over thirty years, Worldwide Environmental Products, Inc. has been a leader in designing and providing innovative, high-quality vehicle emissions and safety inspection solutions. From highly-rated hardware and software to advanced database applications and hosting, to vehicle diagnostic training and turnkey I/M program management, Worldwide has earned and maintained a strong reputation for its expertise in providing long-term, successful vehicle inspection solutions.
No Frill Bar and Grill in Virginia Beach has generously partnered with ORPHANetwork to help provide #HopeFor250 on Tuesday, November 29th

No Frill Grill is joining ORPHANetworks #HopeFor250 campaign on #GivingTuesday, a global giving movement driven by individuals, families, organizations, businesses and communities in all 50 states and in countries around the world. #GivingTuesday  happening this year on November 29th  is the biggest giving day of the year worldwide. It follows Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday.

#HopeFor250s goal is to provide Hope and a Future through care and nourishment for 250 vulnerable children living in the least food secure regions of Nicaragua. The Matagalpa/Jinotega regions are mountainous, rural regions of Nicaragua. Jobs are hard to find; education is limited; food sources are not reliable. ORPHANetwork is working through the Local Nicaraguan Church to bring Hope and change to this region.

This year, No Frill Bar and Grill, located at 1620 Laskin Road in Virginia Beach, has generously partnered with ORPHANetwork to help provide #HopeFor250 children in Nicaragua. Hampton Roads residents are encouraged to dine for lunch or dinner at the Virginia Beach location, a popular locals favorite which notoriously serves Great, Big Food at great prices, on Tuesday November 29th.

ORPHANetwork has partnered with businesses, families, friends, and individuals across the country who want to impact a childs to support #HopeFor250  with a goal of raising $50,000 by November 29th. No Frill is the first Virginia Beach restaurant #GivingTuesday partnership in the city where ORPHANetwork is headquartered.

About ORPHANetwork

ORPHANetwork currently partners with 240 Local Church Initiatives in Nicaragua to supply daily holistic care to over 22,000 vulnerable children in the form of nutritional food, basic medical and dental care, clean water, hygiene training, and spiritual development.

Additionally, ORPHANetwork cares for 367 orphaned and abandoned children through their partnerships with six orphanage homes across Nicaragua. For more information, visit ORPHANetworks website (orphanetwork.org) or the #HopeFor250 site (orphanetwork.org/givingtuesday).
Colin Broderick's first feature film "Emerald City" tells the tale of a hard living crew of aging Irish construction workers in NYC and of one character in particular who may have found a way out.

Pat Mack, played by the comedic theatrical actor, John Keating, lives in the Irish enclave of Woodlawn, Yonkers, with his wife and two kids. His Manhattan based construction business is teetering on the brink, but his personal life might be in worse shape that that. Meanwhile on the job he is trying to rally a crew of Irish misfits who might be well be unemployable were it not for his misguided sense of cultural commitment to each of them.

The movie features retired Irish professional boxer, John "The Derry Destroyer" Duddy, in his first starring role. John plays retired boxer Podge Quinn. Podge lives in Sunnyside, Queens, and works as a carpenter on Pat Mack's crew of misfits. Podge has fallen in love with a local Irish barmaid, Mary, who has had her fill of sweet talking Irishmen. Podge is having trouble proving to her that he is not like the others.

Outside of Keating, Duddy, and the roll of Lucy, played by the American actress, Eden Brolin, Broderick cast mostly inexperienced actors to keep with the feeling of authenticity he felt the story deserved. Many of the main cast had never set foot on a stage or in front of a camera before filming Emerald City. Many of them are working class Irish carpenters he'd gotten to know on job sites over the years.

Broderick, originally from County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, who wrote, directed, produced, and stars in Emerald City, delivers a glimpse into this Irish immigrant subculture with a sense of ease and authenticity that betrays his own working class background. He has worked construction in New York City for thirty years. In the past eight years, since he sobered, he wrote a memoir "Orangutan" detailing the recklessness of his own hard partying lifestyle. The book published nationally by Random House to wild acclaim, continues to breach the best seller lists in the U.S. as one of the top recovery memoirs of its genre. Random House also published his second memoir "That's That" which details his life growing up in Northern Ireland during the years of The Troubles. His new book, the anthology, "The Writing Irish of New York" will be published in the spring by Fordham University Press.

Emerald City is co-produced by Brendan Coyle (Mr Bates on Downton Abbey), Don Cisternino of MagnifiCo Inc. and Sid Levin of TLA Talent and Literary Agency. Brendan Coyle reached out to Broderick after seeing a short movie "Smile" he'd made on You Tube a few years ago. The two bonded further after realizing that they shared the same background: Coyle's father grew up in Tyrone just a few miles from Broderick's home place. Don Cisternino met Colin Broderick through their mutual friend John Duddy, who is currently an actor represented by Hollywood Agent Sid Levin of TLA. MagnifiCo and TLA joined forces earlier this year to create a boutique talent and literary agency with a global reach.

Emerald City, made for just a hundred thousand dollars, is Broderick's homage to the millions working class Irish immigrants who have toiled in relative obscurity for the past three centuries, plying their skills to build the most remarkable skylines in the world. Emerald City serves as both a testament to that lineage but more importantly as a way of marking what Broderick sees as a cultural shift away from Irish manual labor and the end of the irish immigrant construction identity as we have come it know it. Pat Mack's crew of lovable misfits may very well be the last of the Mohicans.

Emerald City has been Shortlisted for Best Feature in The London Irish Film Festival 2016 and will have its global premiere as it closes out the festival Sunday Nov 27 at The Curzon Theatre, Soho.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OkIspu5aKPA
Top Public Relations Companies

The representatives of 10 Best PR are pleased to announce Veritas as the winner of its November 2016 Best Public Relations Company Award. Other top winners are Exponent and Big Picture PR, which provide a diversity of solutions to meet clients needs.

10 Best PR is an organization that is committed to continually presenting the public with valuable, accurate information regarding public relations companies. That is why it is driven to research and identify leading firms within the PR industry each month.

Veritas is a public relations company that is committed to operating in excellence and expedience. This makes the company stand apart among the leading PR companies that are known for getting results on behalf of their clients. The company offers a wide range of brand-building services to ensure that the client's product or service line becomes increasingly visible across the platforms used most frequently by the target market. The representatives of Veritas also work with dedication and diligence to ensure that the client develops a strong, positive relationship with media representatives.

Exponent is a top public relations company that provides clients with diverse PR services to ensure that the brand becomes increasingly powerful and visible in the public eye. The representatives of the organization have worked with clients in a wide range of industries, including health and wellness, rural living, retail, and food and nutrition. Additionally, the Exponent professionals maintain a customer-oriented outlook that ensures the client's personal perspective and professional objectives remain integral to the development and evolution of the PR project.

Business owners who insist on attaining amazing results should consider connecting with the professionals of Big Picture PR. The dynamic representatives of this savvy public relations company specialize in providing clients with personalized, contemporary PR services that empower them to interface with the public in a progressive, powerful way. For this and other reasons, Big Picture PR is a top PR company with a strong reputation. Additionally, the representatives of Big Picture PR work with dedication and persistence to ensure that the business owner's relationship with influential media officials remains strong and positive. Finally, the Big Picture PR representatives provide each client with detailed, regular feedback regarding her or his account. This approach helps ensure that the business owner is always informed and in control of the PR process.

For more information about the November award winners, visit http://www.10bestpr.com.
An international youth innovation competition is offering more than $200,000 in grants and prizes to teachers and students.

Each year, The Paradigm Challenge invites students aged 4 to 18 to use kindness, creativity, collaboration, and STEM skills to solve a real-world problem. This year, students are challenged to create new ideas to reduce waste in homes, schools, communities, and/or around the world.

More than 50,000 students participated in last years Paradigm Challenge, which focused on preventing fatalities and injuries from home fires. The number of youth who entered our inaugural Challenge to help save lives truly was inspiring, said Jeff Richardson, Project Paradigms founder and CEO. Student solutions included inventions, community events, mobile apps, videos, posters, and songs.

The Grand Prize and an all-expense-paid patent application was awarded to the 1st place winners in the 15-18 age division for their life-saving invention called the Fire Mitt. The Fire Mitt is an oven mitt that quickly and easily unfolds into a fire blanket which can be deployed to put out a cooking fire.

Emma Spencer and Scott Johnson, the Grand Prize winners, believe the ability to invent is not a special gift, but something that is in all of us. Anyone can become an innovator, noted Spencer, You just have to put your mind to it.

Teen inventor Alexis Lewis, who has spoken at The White House and is the narrator of the competitions video lesson plan, agrees, Inventing is just problem-solving that results in a physical solution. Kids fresh perspectives on problems can lead to solutions adults would not have considered. The Paradigm Challenges 6 Steps to Solve Any Problem video is, Lewis noted, a great way to teach kids that they already have what it takes to solve problems and make a difference in the world.

The Paradigm Challenge is a terrific opportunity for educators who are looking for motivational project-based learning activities for their students, explained Ashley Greenway, 2016 Allen Distinguished Educator and Georgia STEM Laureate. The Challenge is particularly appealing because of its engaging online video lesson plans and supporting materials.

The 100 Finalist teams with the best ideas will win cash prizes of up to $100,000. Their supporting teachers will win cash grants up to $5,000. In addition, the top team in each age category will win a trip to Los Angeles to attend The Paradigm Challenges black-tie prize ceremony. Last year, teams came from as far away as New Zealand and India to attend the event.

There is no cost to enter the competition. The deadline for entries is May 1, 2017.

About the Paradigm Challenge: The Paradigm Challenge is a new annual competition created by Project Paradigm in collaboration with the American Red Cross and supported by a coalition of partners, including Youth Changing the World and the National Youth Leadership Council. The theme of the competition will change annually.

About Project Paradigm

Project Paradigm, a national private foundation headquartered in Los Angeles, California, aims to identify, support, and collaborate with passionate individuals and organizations to inspire, lead, and facilitate paradigm shifts in the approaches to global challenges. Learn more at projectparadigm.org/founder. Or like us on Facebook and Twitter (@ParadigmChlleng).
Dr. Arvind Philomin of Esthetix Dental Spa and his family served Thanksgiving dinners at the Bowery Mission. Help is doing something to aid or assist someone, Esthetix Dental Spa is committed to helping. It's why we're here

Thanksgiving was the busiest day of the year at the Bowery Mission. For Thanksgiving 2016, the 136-year-old Bowery Mission on the Lower East Side of NYC served Thanksgiving dinners both at the historic Bowery location and at locations throughout New York City. They roasted and hand carved 650 turkeys, cooked 8,000 pounds of potatoes, 3,000 pounds of vegetables and baked 500 pies.

Dr. Arvind Philomin of Esthetix Dental Spa plus family members Dr. Divya Adusumilli, Krish Philomin, Annika Philomin, and Esthetix Dental Spa office staff members Vineet and Deepthi volunteered and served Thanksgiving dinners at the Bowery Mission.

"There are a lot of people in New York City who go hungry every day. This community has given enough to sustain my family and the families of the group that work with me at Team Esthetix. I can contribute by feeding a proper Thanksgiving meal to a whole bunch of starving New Yorkers. I think I make a difference in to the community that provides for me," said Dr. Philomin. Help is doing something to aid or assist someone, Esthetix Dental Spa is committed to helping. It's why we're here.

Since being founded in 1879, the Bowery Mission strives to be the most effective provider of compassionate care and life transformation for people in need in New York City. This fits well with Dr. Arvind Philomin's support for the Marine Corps' Toys For Tots program and MGE Management's alliance with the Boys and Girls Clubs' Fight Against Illiteracy.

ABOUT THE BOWERY MISSION: it is a mission and men's shelter in the Bowery neighborhood of Manhattan. The Bowery Mission provides food, medical services and employment assistance to the working poor and homeless men women and children. At night The Bowery Mission opens its chapel to serve as a emergency shelter for homeless men. In addition to these services, The Bowery Mission offers a long-term (6-12 month) residential program providing homeless men the opportunity to rejoin society as working, contributing members.

The Bowery Mission

227 Bowery,

New York, NY 10002

Help out at the Bowery Mission anytime:

https://www.bowery.org/volunteer/

https://www.bowery.org/donate/

Phone 212-674-3456

ABOUT DR. ARVIND PHILOMIN AND ESTHETIX DENTAL SPA: Arvind Philomin, DDS uses state-of-the-art dental implant technology and equipment to provide exemplary care to every patient needing dental implants in the 10471 area and nearby. Patients at Esthetix Dental Spa can feel confident about the work being done and their new, beautiful smile. Patients living in Upper Manhattan, Washington Heights, Riverdale and the Bronx should look to Esthetix Dental Spa for Invisalign teeth straightening, teeth whitening, dental implants and all of their dental needs .

Dr Arvind Philomin

Esthetix Dental Spa

285 Fort Washington Ave #CD

New York, NY 10032

http://www.esthetixdentalspa.com

Phone 212-795-9675

Fax 212-795-1631

https://youtu.be/AU23v7Q0ho0
Husson University's Richard E. Dyke Center for Family Business hosts a variety of events that benefit both student and members of the local business community. This is a great event for anyone with an interest in business or marketing.

Husson University will be sponsoring a career panel discussion with four area marketing and communication experts at the Richard E. Dyke Center for Family Business on November 29, 2016 at 9:00 a.m.

This is a great event for anyone with an interest in business or marketing, said James Westhoff, director of Career Services at Husson University. The media professionals and entrepreneurs on our panel will talk about what it takes to break into and succeed in todays communications industry.

The four media professionals who will comprise the panel include:

T.J. Holloway, the president of Holloway Group Consulting. Holloway earned a Master of Science in Business (MSB 2008) and Master of Business Administration (MBA 2012) from Husson University. Holloway Group Consulting offers professional development and training in a number of industries. Holloway and his organization have served a variety of businesses including Sprague Energy, JSI Store Fixtures, Inc., Hollywood Casino, the Charlotte White Center, Downeast Horizons, and many more businesses in the greater Bangor area. The Holloway Groups professional development offerings focus on business writing, emotional intelligence in the workplace, managing change, management, leadership, and supervision. In addition to leading Holloway Group Consulting, T.J. Holloway is also an adjunct professor at Husson Universitys College of Business where he teaches BA 101 Introduction to Business.

Dale Landrith, the chief strategist at Dream Local Digital. Landrith graduated from Husson University in 2000 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing. He joined Dream Local Digital in 2013 as a marketing strategist and sales executive. In 2014, Landrith was promoted to chief strategist. In this role, Landrith is responsible for overseeing the organizations online strategist team and leading all client work, research and strategy development. He focuses on driving success and growth for clients, staying on top of trends with small-medium sized businesses in social media and search engine marketing, and best practices that can be applied to clients unique business needs.

Laurie Lozier, a senior media consultant at the Bangor Daily News. She is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Science in business administration degree at Husson University. Lozier began her career at the Bangor Daily News in July 2012 as a digital sales consultant. After just four months, she was promoted multi-media consultant at the newspaper, a position she held for over four year. In May of 2015, Lozier became a senior media consultant at the newspaper. In this role, she helps sell the newspapers advertising opportunities to local area organizations looking for marketing solutions. Prior to joining the Bangor Daily News, Lozier was a client service manager at Dream Local Digital.

Jillian Piehler, the marketing director at Sutherland Weston. Piehler grew up in Machias, Maine, and is a graduate of the New England School of Communications at Husson University where she earned a Bachelor of Science in marketing communications in 2008. She is also a graduate of the Bangor Region Leadership Institute (BRLI) and serves on the Steering Committees for both BRLI and FUSIONBangor. Jillian leads the Sutherland Weston account management team whose role is to work closely with our awesome clients and manage a variety of projects.

The advent of digital media has revolutionized modern communications. Social media and computer technology have completely changed the ways this industry operates and measures success. I look forward to hearing this panels insights into where we are now and what we can expect in the future, concluded Westhoff.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact James Westhoff, director of Career Services at 207.992.4909 or westhoffj(at)husson(dot)edu. Those interested in attending are encouraged to arrive early since seating is limited.

The Holloway Group, LLC, is a leading independent professional development and consulting firm serving clients throughout Maine and New Hampshire. As an organization, The Holloway Group focuses on quality and reliability, not size. The heart and knowledge behind their relationship team leads to an unwavering commitment to the highest service levels in professional development. The firm is committed to four simple principles: customer priority, people count, operational excellence and reputation matters. To learn more visit HollowayGroupLLC.com.

Dream Local Digital is a digital marketing agency specializing in interactive media, marketing, SEO, and social media. Dream Local Digital works with newspapers, media companies, ad agencies, and directly with small to medium-sized businesses on all aspects of their online marketing plans, from website development, content strategy, and social media to search engine optimization, reputation management and e-mail marketing. Visit us at DreamLocal.com.

The Bangor Daily News is Maine's largest online news source, covering the entire state. A family-owned newspaper now in its fourth generation of ownership, the Bangor Daily News has been Maine's newspaper of record for 120 years. Established in 1889 by the great grandfather of the current publisher, Richard J. Warren, the company continues to serve its readers and its advertisers with products that are relevant to the times. To learn more visit BangorDailyNews.com.

Sutherland Weston is a team of marketing professionals dedicated to shaping organizations brands and sharing their stories. The firm is a full service, Maine-based, marketing-focused company who works best with business clients that are seeking smart, creative, and effective revenue growth strategies and not-for-profits looking to be more efficient with their communications budget. For more information, visit SutherlandWeston.com.

For more than 100 years, Husson University has prepared future leaders to handle the challenges of tomorrow through innovative undergraduate and graduate degrees. With a commitment to delivering affordable classroom, online and experiential learning opportunities, Husson University has come to represent superior value in higher education. Our Bangor campus and off-campus satellite education centers in Southern Maine, Wells and Northern Maine provide advanced knowledge in business; health and education; pharmacy studies, science and humanities; as well as communication. In addition, Husson University has a robust adult learning program. For more information about educational opportunities that can lead to personal and professional success, visit Husson.edu.
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.
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PORT BYRON -- Anns Helping Hands has a lot to be grateful for this season, after the River Cities Rotary Club gave the non-profit store a facelift.

Ann McCarrell of the store said the Rotarians improved the space adjacent to the store for storing larger donated items, with all materials and labor donated. The Illinois 84 building also received an upgraded facade, a fresh coat of paint, improved lighting, a new rolled roof and trim for both the building and a storage shed and a better system to help the non-profit give back to the community.

Members of the River Cities Rotary reached out and wanted to know if they could help with the facade," Mrs. McCarrell said. "Its been a joint venture, for which we are truly grateful.

It really looks wonderful," she said. "Were very pleased."

Anns Helping Hands is a not-for-profit organization devoted to helping those in need through food, school supplies, clothing and household items. The resale store, at 805 S. High St., Port Byron, accepts household, toy and clothing donations, with proceeds from their sale supporting the organization and its community outreach.

Although signs state donations should not be left when the store is closed, workers often arrive in the morning to find larger items that cant immediately be stored. This has prompted complaints from community members and frustration for Mrs. McCarrell who has rented the building for the seven years.

River Cities Rotarian and Port Byron resident Joe King -- "the mastermind of the project," according to Mrs. McCarrell -- decided to help Anns Helping Hands because of its community efforts.

I joined Rotary last year and wanted to help organize a project that was impactful for the community," Mr. King said. "Id dropped off some things at Anns and saw she could use new roof and organization inside. So I mentioned it as a possible project at the Rotary meeting, and everyone was very supportive."

Mr. King said more than $1,000 worth of materials was donated to the project. Quinn Hardware in Hampton donated most of the hardware, he said, with Rotary members also donating wood and cash. He was joined by Rotarians Chris Bode, Elizabeth Saelens and Steve Dickhut in four afternoons of facade improvements.

We also got a ton of support from Anns supporters and teenagers that help her out," said Mr. King. "Everything that she does for the community is a lot more than we think about, such as giving young men the opportunity for meaningful work."

Port Byron Building Inspector Doug Streeter also donated six pallets with wheels to make it easier, and faster, for the group to load heavier items.

The upgrades couldnt have come at a better time according to Mrs. McCarrell, who said the old roof was full of holes and water leaked in on many items stored in the shed. Water-damaged items were removed during the renovation to make room for other items.

The south end of lean-to had been covered only by tarp. Volunteers put in a wall and door. Mr. King also has ordered signs to prevent people from parking on the Great River Trail that runs next to the Ann's Helping Hands.

Port Byron Mayor Kevin Klute applauded the work.

"Anything that helps Ann out is a good thing," he said. "I think its great that the Rotary stepped up and helped out another non-profit in need. Shes doing good work there, and any bit of help she can get is positive.

"Im glad to see the Rotary took it upon themselves to recognize an area to provide support and follow through.
Hundreds of gay rights activists marched in a parade in New Delhi on Sunday, highlighting the continuing discrimination India's LGBT community faces and demanding the repeal of a law criminalizing homosexual acts.

As they marched to the beat of drums, some participants in the annual gay pride parade said much has changed in recent years, with people starting to accept them. But others said India's right-wing government is against the rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

Activists had cheered in 2009 when the New Delhi High Court declared as unconstitutional Section 377 of the Penal Code, which criminalizes homosexual acts. But the judgment was overturned four years later when India's Supreme Court decided that amending or repealing Section 377 should be left to Parliament, not the judiciary.
Today is Monday, Nov. 28, the 333rd day of 2016. There are 33 days left in the year.

1866 -- 150 years ago: Capt. Copp, the postmaster, said the new post office building was going up fast and would soon be open and serviced by The Three Soldier Boys.

1891 -- 125 years ago: The Negus Brothers placed three billiard tables in their hotel.

1916 -- 100 years ago: Capt. Walter Rosenfield spoke to the Rotary club, telling of his experiences in the cavalry during the Mexican War.

1941 -- 75 years ago: Tops on the best-seller book list was "Clarence Darrow for the Defense."

1966 -- 50 years ago: Moline Mayor James Arndt, speaking of plans initiated four years ago to relocate the Central Fire Station and the Police Department into single headquarters, said the time has arrived for him to aggressively push for capital to finance the project, estimated to cost $750,000. Mayor Arndt said the city has methods of financing the building without requesting tax money.

1991 -- 25 years ago: They didnt actually dig into the frozen ground at the site of their new headquarters, but officials of Associated General Contractors of the Quad-Cities held a groundbreaking ceremony on Monday anyway. Armed with gold-plated shovels, AGC officials and Rock Island Mayor Mark Schwiebert stood at 520 24th St., where the 34,000-square-foot building will be built.
Rebel defenses collapsed as government forces pushed into the city's Sakhour neighborhood, coming within one kilometer (0.6 miles) of commanding a corridor in eastern Aleppo for the first time since rebels swept into the city in 2012, according to Syrian state media and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group.

Kurdish-led forces operating autonomously of the rebels and the government meanwhile seized the Bustan al-Basha neighborhood, allowing thousands of civilians to flee the decimated district to the predominantly Kurdish Sheikh Maqsoud, in the city's north, according to Ahmad Hiso Araj, an official with the Syrian Democratic Forces.

The government's push, backed by thousands of Shiite militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq, and Iran, and under the occasional cover of the Russian air force, has laid waste to Aleppo's eastern neighborhoods.

An estimated quarter-million people are trapped in wretched conditions in the city's rebel-held eastern districts since the government sealed its siege of the enclave in late August. Food supplies are running perilously low, the U.N. warned Thursday, and a relentless air assault by government forces has damaged or destroyed every hospital in the area.

Residents in east Aleppo said in distressed messages on social media that thousands of people were fleeing to the city's government-controlled western neighborhoods, away from the government's merciless assault, or deeper into opposition-held eastern Aleppo.

"The situation in besieged Aleppo (is) very very bad, thousands of eastern residents are moving to the western side of the city," said Khaled Khatib, a photographer for the Syrian Civil Defense search-and-rescue group, also known as the White Helmets.

"Aleppo is going to die," he posted on Twitter.

The Britain-based Observatory, which monitors the conflict through a network of local contacts, said around 1,700 civilians had escaped to government-controlled areas and another 2,500 to Kurdish authorities.

More than 250 civilians have been killed in the government's bombardment of eastern Aleppo over past 13 days, according to the Observatory.

Locals reported thousands more were moving within the eastern neighborhoods, away from the front lines, but staying inside areas of opposition control.

"The conditions are terrifying" said 28-year-old Modar Sakho, a nurse in eastern Aleppo.

Wissam Zarqa, an English teacher in eastern Aleppo and outspoken government opponent, said some families would stay put in the face of advancing government forces.

Syrian state media reported government forces had seized the Jabal Badro neighborhood and entered Sakhour Sunday after it took control of the Masaken Hanano neighborhood Saturday.

Syrian state TV broadcast a video Saturday showing a teary reunion between a soldier and his family after nearly five years apart, according to the report. It said the family had been trapped in Masaken Hanano.

The Lebanese Al-Manar TV channel reported from the neighborhood Sunday morning, showing workers and soldiers clearing debris against a backdrop of bombed-out buildings on both sides of a wide thoroughfare. Al-Manar is operated by Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group aligned with the Syrian government.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces' advance into Bustan al-Basha dealt the opposition a further blow.

Rebels and opposition figures have long accused the SDF and its predecessor groups of conspiring with the government to quash a nationwide revolt.

Araj denied there was any coordination between government and Kurdish-led forces.

"We were responding to calls from residents in Bustan al-Basha to secure the neighborhood," he said. He added the SDF had entered the area handily as rebel militants fled.

Aleppo used to be Syria's largest city and commerce capital before its neighborhoods were devastated by the country's more than five-year-long civil war.

The U.N.'s child agency warned Sunday that nearly 500,000 children were now living under siege in Syria, cut off from food and medical aid, mostly in areas under government control. That figure has doubled in less than a year.

Many are now spending their days underground, as hospitals, schools and homes remain vulnerable to aerial bombardment.

"Children are being killed and injured, too afraid to go to school or even play, surviving with little food and hardly any medicine," said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake. "This is no way to live  and too many are dying."

Activists also reported Sunday tens of civilian casualties from a presumed government or Russian airstrike on a village outside Aleppo.

The Local Coordination Committees activist network in Syria reported 15 civilians killed in a Russian airstrike on the village of Anjara, controlled by the opposition in the western Aleppo countryside, and tens of others wounded. Activists usually identify planes by their silhouettes and home base.

The Observatory said the strike was accompanied by raids on other opposition-held villages in the Aleppo countryside.

Meanwhile, Anadolu also reported Sunday that the Islamic State group had used chemical weapons against Turkish-backed Syrian opposition fighters in northern Syria, wounding 22. The report cited a statement by the chief of general staff's office. The report could not be immediately verified independently.

Later Sunday, Turkey's emergency relief directorate, which investigated the claim, said it found no trace of chemical warfare. The military was not available for further comment.

Elsewhere in Syria, Israeli aircraft struck a machine gun-mounted vehicle inside the country Sunday, killing four Islamic State-affiliated militants on board after they opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Golan Heights, according to the Israeli military.
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"What we are really designing this for is the squeezed middle, the people on average incomes who get $800-$1000 worth of tax relief," said Luxon.

2 hours ago
LVB awarded the Polish manufacturer a framework contract in March 2015 to supply up to 41 45m-long vehicles to replace the citys ageing fleet of Tatra trams. The contract included an initial firm order for five vehicles and the latest option takes the total number of LRVs on order to 14.

A third of the components including HVAC and electronic components will be sourced from companies in central Germany with assembly taking place at Solaris plant in Poland.
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The UN Security Council is expected to adopt a resolution in a few of days imposing new sanctions on North Korea in response to Pyongyang's fifth nuclear test.

Its five permanent members have tentatively agreed on a draft of the resolution and could make a final decision at a closed-door meeting on Monday.

Following Security Council approval, the resolution would be put to a vote by the full UN General Assembly, likely on Tuesday or Wednesday. Building on existing sanctions, the new measures would further cut the regime's annual revenue by almost $700 million (US$1=W1,177). Specifically, they would target North Korea's coal exports to China, as well as its maritime and financial sectors.

The resolution also seeks to freeze the assets of North Korean individuals and institutions with links to Pyongyang's weapons programs.
Since 2014, the Islamic State has established a small presence in Afghanistan. Islamic State leaders call this province, or wilayat, Khorasan, a reference to the historical region that encompassed parts of Iran, Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Yet despite their effort to expand power and influence in the region, the Islamic State-Khorasan Province, as Islamic State leaders refer to the affiliate, controls virtually no territory except for tiny areas in such districts as Deh Bala, Achin, and Naziyan in the eastern province of Nangarhar. The Islamic State has conducted only a handful of attacks in the region, failed to secure the support of most locals, and struggled with poor leadership.

The Afghan Taliban has emerged as one of the Islamic State's fiercest enemies, though the U.S. and Afghan governments have conducted strikes as well. Taliban commanders have orchestrated an aggressive campaign against the Islamic State to kill its senior leaders, co-opt its members, and undermine its ideology. This development is a double-edged sword for the United States, with broader implications in the campaign to unseat the Islamic State from territorial control in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. The weakening of the Islamic State is a positive step. But Taliban successes against Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's organization have increased the Taliban's strength in eastern and southern Afghanistan, creating a separate challenge for the United States and its allies.

The Rise of the Islamic State in Khorasan

In 2014, Islamic State leaders communicated with militant groups in South Asia to gauge the possibility of expanding the Islamic State's influence in the region. The Islamic State began conducting an information campaign through word of mouth, printed material, and other forums. Islamic State sympathizers, for example, distributed a 12-page printed booklet titled Fateh (or victory in Pashto) in Pashtun areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan. As Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan spokesman Shahid Shahidullah remarked in late 2014: Oh our brothers, we are proud of you in your victories. We are with you in your happiness and your sorrow  All Muslims in the world have great expectations of you. We are with you, we will provide you with mujahedeen and with every possible support.

The remainder of this commentary is available on lawfareblog.com

Seth G. Jones is director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center at RAND and an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University's School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He is author, most recently, of Waging Insurgent Warfare (Oxford University Press).

This commentary originally appeared on Lawfare on November 27, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
China International Broadcasting Network (CIBN), one of Chinas seven broadcasting networks licensed to distribute over-the-top (OTT) content has selected Irdeto to secure its digital platform.





CIBN, a subsidiary of China Radio International, is Irdetos first customer for Irdeto Rights with China DRM Support in a country where demand for OTT services has increased from 13% in 2013 to 30% in 2015, and is forecast to reach around 49% by 2017.These figures are according to a whitepaper by Dentsu Aegis Network China with OTT players iQiyi, LeTV, MangoTV, Tencent, Youku and iPinyou, and research partners Miaozhen and Nielsen which also estimates that 95 out of 100 TV sets sold in the country will be OTT-enabled by the end of 2016, amounting to more than ten million TVs.We are delighted to partner with Irdeto to integrate its China DRM solution to our OTT applications and set-top boxes (STBs), which will safeguard premium content on our network and platforms, said Fu Qiang, deputy general manager, CIBN.We expect revenues generated from premium OTT services in China to continue to grow over the next few years as demand for premium content increases. We are confident that our collaboration with Irdeto will improve overall viewer experience for our customers and instil greater confidence for the studios and content providers to enter the Chinese market, which will in turn generate revenue growth for our paid OTT offerings.With Irdetos content protection, CIBN will be able to securely stream video to their customers, including 4K and ultra HD content, while complying with the stringent requirements by Hollywood studios and Chinas State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT).Marco Xie, general manager, China, Irdeto , added: As demand for premium content increases amongst Chinese consumers, it is crucial for operators like CIBN to securely offer consumers access to high definition premium content. With a world class level of security for delivery platforms, content owners can accelerate the release of new content and offer premium content to the Chinese OTT audience.
Subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service Hooq is making its presence felt in Singapore with a soft launch this month ahead of a full launch in January.





Hooq, a partnership between Singtel, Sony Pictures and Warner Bros, was the first local over-the-top (OTT) brand to launch in Asia when it teamed up with Globe for a Philippines service in February 2015. Since then it has also launched in Thailand, India and Indonesia, but Singapore is the first high-income market it has entered.The service, provided unsurprisingly by Singtel, offers consumers a mixture of Hollywood, Thai, Filipino, Bollywood and Indonesian shows, with a selection of packages for the telcos pre- and post-paid customers.The SVOD service is provided through Singtel affiliates in its other operational markets - AIS in Thailand, Airtel in India, and Telkomsel in Indonesia - and is a strategy it aims to pursue as it grows.Getting consumers to convert from trialling to paid subscribers is proving to be very difficult. Which explains why some of the global players are really struggling in Asia. They havent been able to get traction, Krishan Rajagopalan, Hooqs co-founder and chief content and distribution officer, told Mumbrella.Because we have the strongest [telco] players in each market exclusive to us  at least with respect to the regional competition  we have a really good chance of owning the market this year, he added.Hooq will compete with other regional services such as PCCWs Viu, iflix, local service StarHub Go, and international giant Netflix.SVOD services are consumed by 14% of Internet-connected people in developed countries of the Asia Pacific, and 11% of those in its emerging markets, according to a recent Kantar TNS survey.
Ukrainian journalist charged with espionage to stay in Russian detention

MOSCOW, November 28 (RAPSI, Lyudmila Klenko)  Moscows Lefortovsky District Court has extended the detention of Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was allegedly spying on Russias Armed Forces and National Guard, until January 30, 2017, RAPSI reported Monday from the courtroom.

The matter was considered behind closed doors on the prosecutions motion because the case is classified as secret.

On October 7, Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) charged Sushchenko with espionage. The Lefortovsky District Court of Moscow has ruled to put him in detention.

According to the FSB, the Ukrainian citizen has purposively collected classified information about the Armed Forces and National Guard of Russia. Leak of data abroad could cause damage to the national defense capability.

Sushchenko could face up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.

Ukrinform news agency earlier confirmed that Sushchenko has been acting as its reporter since 2002. Since 2010, he has been working as Ukrinforms personal correspondent in France. According to the agency, the man arrived in Moscow on private business during his vacation and was arrested immediately upon his arrival.

Ukrinform repelled accusations against Sushchenko calling him a journalist with years of unblemished professional reputation.




BBC News, November 21, 2016

A suicide bomber has killed at least 27 people at a Shia Muslim mosque in the Afghan capital, Kabul.

Many more were wounded in the blast at an annual Shia ceremony at the Baqir ul Olum mosque in the west of the city.

The attacker arrived on foot and blew himself up among worshippers inside.

So-called Islamic State (IS) said that it was behind the blast. It is the latest of several recent attacks on Afghanistan's Shia community claimed by the Sunni Muslim militant group.

Monday's bombing took place at 12:30 local time (08:00 GMT) during a service to commemorate the death of Imam Hussein, the Prophet Muhammad's grandson and a Shia martyr.

Eyewitnesses said the service was almost over when the bomb was detonated.

Police gave the figure of 27 dead, but the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said 32 were killed and more than 50 injured. Some reports suggest a higher number of wounded.

IS said the attack was carried out by an IS "fighter" but gave no other details on its self-styled Amaq news agency.

"I was inside the mosque and the Mullah was reading the prayer," Ewaz Ali, 50, who suffered minor injuries, told the Associated Press news agency.

"Suddenly a huge explosion happened, then everywhere was dark."

Another worshipper, Nadir Ali, told AFP news agency the blast had created a cloud of dust: "When the dust settled down, I saw the mosque was full of flesh and blood. I was injured in my waist and had to crawl out of the mosque."

Local reports suggested children were among the dead.

There has not been a proper census for more than 40 years, but it is estimated that around 20% of the Afghan population are Shia Muslims - the rest are Sunni. Most Shia Muslims come from the Tajik and Hazara ethnic minorities.

They have been spared levels of sectarian violence seen in Pakistan and Iraq, but they have been targeted at least three times in recent months:

- In a gun attack on a shrine in Kabul in October in which at least 14 people died

- In an explosion at a mosque in October in the northern province of Balkh in which at least 14 people died

- In a suicide bomb attack on a Shia protest march in July, which left 80 dead

All three attacks were claimed by IS.

Groups affiliated to IS, present in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar along the Pakistan border, seem intent on fomenting sectarian violence, says the BBC's Harun Najafizada in Kabul.

What is really worrying is that fragile national unity now seems to be targeted, with possibly devastating results if such attacks continue, our correspondent adds.

Taliban militants were quick to distance themselves from Monday's attack.

"We condemn this blast," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told the BBC. "This act cannot be our work and has nothing to do with us."

President Ashraf Ghani called the attack an attempt "to sow seeds of discord".

Afghan government Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah urged the country not to fall victim to "enemy plots that divide us by titles".

"This attack targeted innocent civilians - including children - in a holy place," he said via Twitter. "It is a war crime and an act against Islam & humanity."
Way over a million protesters braved sleet and icy temperatures on Saturday to call for the ouster of President Park Geun-hye over a snowballing corruption scandal. Organizers said a record 1.5 million people converged in downtown Seoul and another 400,000 across the country.

Thousands rally against President Park Geun-hye in Gwanghwamun, Seoul on Saturday.

Once again the protests were remarkably peaceful for Korea and no one was arrested or injured. Holding banners that read "Arrest President Park" and "Surrender Now," the protesters stopped just 200 m short of the presidential office and attempted to surround it. Foreign media were awed by the sheer size of the candlelight protests, which the New York Times described as "almost festive." China's Xinhua News said Koreans "opened a new era of demonstrations," while Japanese broadcaster NHK said it was the "largest demonstration since the 1987 pro-democracy protests" that ousted military dictator Chun Doo-hwan.

Protesters carry torches as they march on Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Saturday.

Organizers said 50,000 protesters gathered in Daegu, Park's traditional stronghold, as well as 70,000 in the southwestern city of Gwangju. More protests are planned for this Saturday.
he medical student told me to use his name. He said he didnt care. Maduro is a donkey, he said. An asshole. He meant Nicolas Maduro, the President of Venezuela. We were passing through the wards of a large public hospital in Valencia, a city of roughly a million people, a hundred miles west of Caracas. The hallways were dim and stifling, thick with a frightening stench. Some were full of patients waiting silently in long lines outside exam rooms. Others were dark and deserted, with the overhead lighting ripped out. The medical student, lithe and light-haired, kept us moving, peering through swinging doors, conferring with colleagues in blue scrubs.
Veteran politicians led by former National Assembly Speaker Park Gwan-yong on Sunday urged President Park Geun-hye to step down by April to overcome the crisis resulting from the scandal that has engulfed her.

They also called for a new, non-partisan prime minister to be appointed and the Constitution to be revised so that some of the president's sweeping executive powers are devolved to parliament.

The elder politicians gathered in a hotel in Seoul for a four-hour meeting before offering a series of proposals that included the April deadline.
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Absence of comprehensive data protection and privacy laws will be barriers in the government's digitalisation drive, reports Sayan Ghosal/Business Standard.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

The government's demonetisation scheme has given a fillip to digital transactions in the traditionally cash-based economy.

Amid the changing times and the plethora of conveniences associated with e-payments, experts have again highlighted the lack of a comprehensive data protection and privacy framework.

The Nilson Report, a trade newsletter covering the card and mobile payment segments, estimates fraud losses incurred by banks and merchants in electronic transactions reached the equivalent of $21.8 billion in 2015. This figure is expected to grow as more and more transactions go cashless.

India's recent brush with transactional fraud, involving 3.2 million debit cards, have highlighted the growing necessity of ensuring safety and security in the digital payment space.

Advent of an e-payment regime now places a greater responsibility on the government, corporate entities and citizens alike to spread awareness about the associated risks, to ensure a well-protected financial environment.

India's data protection scenario is highly decentralised. It is governed primarily through a series of sector-specific laws in individual regulatory spaces.

Introduction of a comprehensive law on data protection has been in the pipeline since 2010, without much progress on the ground.

A glimpse of a generic data security scheme can be found in certain provisions of the Information Technology Act. Sections 43 and 66C outline criminal provisions dealing with cases of extraction of data without permission and identity theft.

Sections 43A and 72A provide for compensation and punishment for disclosures in breach of lawful contracts.

According to Stephen Mathias, partner, Kochhar & Co, though the amount of compensation payable under Section 43A is unlimited, it fails to cover cases involving the government.

As a large majority of banking institutions are part of the public sector, the provision seems feeble in protecting the rapidly evolving transactional space.

Section 72A makes the disclosure culpable only when there is an intention to cause wrongful loss or gain.

However, such intent is hard to prove, often allowing companies to escape prosecution.

To modernise the regulatory framework in the transactional space, the government introduced the Information Technology (Reasonable security practices and procedures and sensitive personal data or information) Rules, 2011, laying down guidelines for the collection, possession, storage and dissemination of personal data.

These Rules also promote reasonable security practices and require annual due diligence and audit exercises to ensure conformity.

Additionally, the Banking Codes and Standards Board of India lays down further safeguards on handling of personal data in financial transactions.

However, many of these requirements are optional in nature.

One may contractually opt out of these, undermining the effectiveness.

"Till the Reserve Bank of India starts penalising banks for non-adherence, its efforts are sure to be lacklustre. Some banks are yet to comply with even the old guidelines and the whole of the cooperative sector is outside the clutches of the regulator," says Prashant Mali, president, Cyber Law Consulting.

The RBI, he says, should also have separate guidelines for mobile payments. At present, the regulation of these platforms is weak.

India's tryst with encryption standards has further complicated the issue of data security.

According to Salman Waris, founder partner, TechLegis, there exists a practical dichotomy between the RBI-mandated minimum standards (128-bit) and the maximum permissible encryption levels (40-bit), allowed by the department of telecommunications.

"This often requires banks to obtain permissions and provide encryption keys to DoT, creating a hurdle in Ease of Doing Business for these entities," he says.

Introduction of a two-factor authentication for online transactions does go a long way in securing digital payments.

However, further guidelines on protecting original data sources in banking databases is a must for smooth transition into a cashless system.

"The government may consider protecting personally identifiable information such as spending patterns, in addition to the current protection awarded to sensitive data. And, an enhanced security framework should always be promoted," says Vaibhav Parikh, partner, Nishith Desai Associates.

According to Sunil Abraham, executive director, Centre for Internet and Society, apart from legislating on an omnibus data protection law, introduction of data protection officers to regulate the market and respond to changes will build confidence and promote a culture of digital payment.

Consolidating the multi-layered Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements and proper implementation of the e-KYC system, alongside the development of a secured central digital database, such as Aadhaar, will also give a boost to e-transactions.

"The lack of adoption of electronic payments by merchants is another hurdle to achieving a digital payment regime," says Rahul Matthan, partner, Trilegal.

Under the present system, sellers have to bear several associated costs. These are disincentives for transitioning into a cashless economy.

"The government," says Matthan, "must come up with innovative solutions to encourage vendors to adopt these alternative modes of payment."
NRIs can only exchange or deposit old notes in India.

For deposits over Rs 2.5 lakh, they can get a notice requiring them to disclose source of funds and/or file returns, reports Tinesh Bhasin/Business Standard.

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com

Non-resident Indians could run into difficulties if they possess discontinued currency notes amounting to a high value.

Not only do NRIs have limited options for exchanging/depositing old notes; in some cases, they might need to provide additional disclosures.



Foreign branches of Indian banks are not accepting the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes for either depositing or exchanging.

The only way NRIs can deposit or exchange currency is either by coming to India or authorising someone, in writing, to deposit the notes into their Non Resident Ordinary Account, provided they are able to send the money back home or it is in India.

The authorised person will need an authorisation letter and a valid identity proof, such as an Aadhaar card, driving licence, voter ID card, passport, PAN card, etc.



The deadlines and rules are the same for residents and NRIs.

There is no limit on the amount one can deposit. But if the deposit exceeds Rs 2.5 lakh, the NRI may face enquiries about the source of the money, irrespective of whether he files tax returns in India or abroad.

"If an individual has not filed a return of income (since he does not pay taxes in India), he may receive a notice from the income tax authorities to either file a return of income or produce relevant information or records, to substantiate the income/deposits made. If able to substantiate the source of income/deposit, there is no need to worry," says Amarpal Chadha, partner, EY.



While depositing money in an NRO account, the NRI may need to disclose the source of funds at the branch itself.

"The deposit needs to be in line with the profile of the customer," says Jose Skaria, assistant general manager, international banking department, Federal Bank.

He explains that banks graded customers before the government's demonetisation drive started. If you deposit this in an NRO account, and it's a high-value transaction, you might need to provide a copy of the currency exchange receipt.



According to norms, if a person's response is found unsatisfactory, the bank needs to file a Suspicious Transaction Report within seven days, which is passed to the Financial Intelligence Unit of India.



"We have an NRI client who had withdrawn Rs 10 lakh in old notes from his account earlier in the year for a medical emergency in the family. On depositing these old notes, he had to disclose his earlier transactions," says Gautam Nayak, a chartered accountant.

An NRI also needs to keep in mind that he is not allowed to take more than Rs 25,000 in cash outside India, under the Foreign Exchange Management Act.



Many are also not aware that the government had last year restricted cash transactions to Rs 20,000 for loans, deposits and immovable property.

If an NRI had accepted cash payment of more than Rs 20,000 as part of the total consideration for the sale of a property, he might need to pay a penalty.

"The penalty is a sum equal to the amount of the loan or deposit or specified sum so taken or accepted," says Chadha.
Both Indian firms have been in talks with investors for nearly a year to raise fresh funds of as much as $ 1 billion, but with little success so far.

Indian unicorns such as Flipkart and Ola are struggling to raise fresh funds at valuations higher than or equal their last funding round as investors see them ceding market share to global rivals such as Amazon and Uber in the country.

Both Uber and Amazon are flush with funds and are accused of receiving more favourable treatment by the local authorities, as they invest aggressively to dominate India, the last large open market globally.

Flipkart, the most valuable Indian startup and largest e-commerce marketplace in the country, has seen its value erode from a peak of $15.2 billion to as low as $9 billion. Analysts attribute the drop in value to missteps in running the company, but also to the growing competition from Amazon, which is running up higher losses to grow market share.

India's other hot startup, Ola, too recently suffered a markdown in value by its largest investor Softbank, which attributed close to a quarter billion dollar loss to the drop in valuations of Snapdeal and Ola. Ola was last valued at $ 5 billion, but is looking at raising funds at 40 per cent less at $ 3 billion.

"Amazon and Uber are well-funded internationally and have no problem bring in funds as and when required. At no point in time are they being valued with respect to what's happening in India, but in the case of Flipkart and Ola they need to raise money periodically," said Harminder Sahni, founder and managing director at Wazir Advisors.

"I don't think they can survive for too long if they are going to be egoistic about not raising money at a lower valuation. You can't be smart and say you won't do it, because then your company will disappear."

Both Indian firms have been in talks with investors for nearly a year to raise fresh funds of as much as $ 1 billion, but with little success so far.

While Flipkart, which now claims it be a bigger and mature company than a startup, is looking at hiring an investment banker to pitch itself to newer investors, Ola, which is being pushed to the wall by Uber, is resigned to accept fresh funds at 40 per cent lower valuation or at $3 billion from investors such as Softbank. A deal is yet to be finalised.

"The only option for them is to innovate and go back to their bootstrapping days. The alternative of succumbing to raising more money at lower valuations may put these companies in a vicious downward spiral, as current investors would feel cheated and end up extracting a heavy price in terms of lesser degrees of latitude that the promoters will enjoy going forward," says D V R Seshadri, Clinical Full Professor at the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad.

Both Ola and Flipkart need cash to battle rivals in the digital economy which has historically favoured just one player to control a disproportionate share of the market.

This is true in the case of both e-commerce and ride hailing where the company which can continue to subsidise products and services for longer to customers and create more valuable for suppliers will win.

"In my mind it's not a choice at all. Survival will always take precedence over valuation. If you survive, you might be able to build that valuation back, but if you try to hold out to get the right valuation, you might die in the process," said Devangshu Dutta, chief executive at management consulting firm Third Eyesight.

"The fact is that e-commerce has been in the past four to five years a business which is characterised by attrition. It's essentially to raise more money so you can outlast the competition."
SRK's selfie with son Aryan. Salman-Kareena's impromptu terrace nights. What is making Alia Bhatt cry? Top social media posts from your favourite celebrities.

Shah Rukh Khan shared a photograph with his eldest son Aryan and wrote, 'Thanks to Thanksgiving got to spend time with my lil one.'

***

'Be wise to be healthy and wise,' says Salman!

Salman Khan shared a shirtless picture of himself and wrote, 'Enjoy #DearZindagi #aliaa #srk on anti obesity day. #Indiafightsobesity #DrMuffi I am in! Are you? B wise 2 B healthy and wealthy.'

***

What is making Alia Bhatt cry?

Alia Bhatt wrote a long message for her sister Shaheen on her birthday. 'You're so kind I could cry, you're so funny I could cry, you're so pretty I could cry! Basically I could cry just thinking and talking about you. Not because it's sad but because it's SO special( & cause in our case crying is a frequent episode) You inspire me to express and motivate me to stay sane. You are everything and more! The words " I love you " are never enough... but for now Happy Birthday Sister!'





She shared another picture and wrote, 'Love you guys! #LoveYouZindagiClubMix coming soon'

***

Katrina-Manish pose for pictures

Manish Malhotra shared a picture with Katrina Kaif from Maldives where they are shooting and wrote, '#maldives #LongWotkingDay #FashionShoot with the very #gorgeous #KatrinaKaif . #PosingTime with #beautiful #Katrinakaif . #night after #FashionShoot.'

***

Saif-Kareena's impromptu terrace nights

Amrita Arora Ladak shared a picture of the gang and wrote, 'Impromptu terrace nights are best! #friendsforeves #greatwinegreatcompany #winterscoming.'





She shared another picture writing, '#terracenights #home #noplacelikehome.'

***

Happy birthday, Esha Gupta!

Esha Gupta shared this picture with costume designer and celebrity stylist Devraj Das and wrote, 'Love you @d_devraj thank you my love #birthdaymornings.'





Sonu Sood shared a picture with her and wrote, 'Happy birthday my gorgeous @egupta super year awaits ahead.'

***

Why is Suniel Shetty thanking Salman?

Suniel Shetty posted a picture with Salman Khan and wrote, 'Can't help but think of you all day today as Ahan takes a step forward in the industry! Your gentle push & immense encouragement has got him here! Love U Bhai!'

Ahan, incidentally, is Suniel Shetty's son, who will be launched very soon.





Athiya Shetty shared a picture of her brother Ahan and wrote, 'To a beautiful journey ahead! Congratulations my Aaani so proud to be your sister!! #AhanShetty #Junior.'

***

Akshay Kumar says thank you

Akshay Kumar shared a picture of his Airlift crew and wrote, 'Heard it was packed house for the #Airlift screening at @IFFIGoa! Been almost a year since release, thank u for showering us with so much love.'

***

Ranveer-Shilpa's fun on set

Shilpa Shetty Kundra shared a picture with Ranveer Singh, who promoted his new film Befikre on her show Super Dancer.

'With the amazing and full of energy @ranveersingh on the sets of #superdancer #funonset #befikre,' she wrote.
'I have no doubt that the government means well.'

'I am merely curious to know whether my suspicions of it being enthusiastic about shooting first and aiming later are unfounded,' says Aakar Patel.

It was said about the French leader Giscard D'Estaing that the idea of a European Union thrilled him, but the details bored him. I have often suspected that this attitude is to be found in many of the things that are taken up by this government.

Over two weeks have gone by since Narendra Modi's grand strike against black money and it is fair to say that two things need to be acknowledged.

First that the wide popular support for Modi is holding despite inconvenience.

Second that the evidence of an economic problem caused by the shortage of cash is piling up through reports.

The reports are similar, whether from Surat or Ludhiana or Moradabad, all manufacturing centres. They speak of units either running under-capacity or shutting down because of lack of demand, and of raw materials being unavailable because of cash shortage.

Another common factor is the reluctance of the units to keep labour, and migrant workers being laid off or told to return home for now.

We will have to wait for proper data to come in but if the anecdotal reports are indicators of something larger going on there is trouble ahead in December and the new year.

What explains the support for Modi which, and this cannot be denied, is wide and popular despite the uncertainty deliberately produced? Let us look at it since this period has also brought the Modi government to mid point.

The unique thing about Modi's time in office so far is his launching of magnificent schemes and major announcements.

These launches and announcements capture the imagination of the country, certainly they capture the attention of the media.

Make in India, bullet train, Smart Cities, Swachch Bharat, surgical strike, demonetisation. All of these and other initiatives of Modi share a pattern. They represent a grand break from the past. They promise to rip away the old and decayed and replace it with something new and better.

Do they achieve this to any extent? What are the real consequences? These we will know only in time.

Let us look at one example. The surgical strike after the attack on Uri was meant to be a response to violence being sent from across the Line of Control.

It has been reported that since the surgical strike, the Indian Army has lost 20 soldiers. This happened mainly because the LoC, which was previously relatively peaceful under a ceasefire, has been aflame after the surgical strike.

The defence minister now says that the ceasefire is holding again, but meanwhile 20 Indians are dead. So was the surgical strike a good decision?

It is anti-national to answer that question in any way but one, so we will leave it there. I should say however that the Indian soldier is worshipped and expected to martyr himself. There is only a sort of reverence for his contribution and no real respect for his life.

This theme of grand announcement leading up to something whose benefits and damage we are not certain of can be said about many announcements.

The surgical strike against black money will, of course, take a little longer to show its real effect. But what about the bullet train, on which we are spending about Rs 1 lakh crore?

What about expending diplomatic energy and the prime minister's personal goodwill on the pursuit of a position on the Nuclear Suppliers Group?

Have the consequences been analysed with the rigour that is expected? I am not questioning the intention here, and I have no doubt that the government means well.

I am merely curious to know whether my suspicions of it being enthusiastic about shooting first and aiming later are unfounded.

Modi is our most credible politician. No other leader could have led the nation into such turbulence with confidence that he would carry the day. He will remain popular for the rest of his remaining two-and-a-half years and will be very difficult to beat in 2019.

Many of the consequences of his actions will be revealed before that and I hope for his sake and for ours that he has been as interested in the details as he was thrilled by the grand idea.

Photograph: Shahbaz Khan/PTI Photo

Aakar Patel is Executive Director, Amnesty International India. The views expressed here are his own.
The US, India, Russia and Japan should form an alliance to preserve the world peace and stability and secure freedom against radical Islam and China, a top American lawmaker has said.

In favour of the alliance, Congressman Dana Rohrabacher said India is particularly poised to grow into a world power if it adopts right policies.

Observing that his world view is similar to that of the president-elect, Rohrabacher said Japan, India, Russia, and the US share common interests, common rivals, and by working together would fashion a more peaceful and prosperous world.

"New alliances, like a grand alliance with the United States with Russia, Japan and India could well do more to preserve the peace and the stability of the world and secure our freedom -- especially against radical Islam and China -- than any of the old alliances could because the old alliances are not useful in meeting todays challengescompared to what they did 40 years ago," Rohrabacher said.

"India is particularly poised to grow into a world power," Rohrabacher told the BreitBart News.

"India has that kind of potential. With the right policies, India will have the same economic growth we have seen in China. Its people have incredible entrepreneurial and technological skills and talents," said Rohrabacher, who is Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee on Europe, Eurasia and Emerging Threats.

"Let's take a look at China," he said, adding that the only way to impress upon the Chinese leaders that their intimidation of their neighbours must stop is to present them with an overwhelming force and power that they know they can never match, Rohrabacher said.

"The United States is no longer in a position to do that alone," he noted.

Rohrabacher said the Asia Pacific rebalance was an attempt to meet the challenge from China, but China is now more emboldened because of President Barack Obama's pivot was so poorly executed.

"I'm trying to think of anything of substance in Obamas supposed pivot to AsiaI didn't see anything of substance at all and I am sure the Chinese did not," he said.

"Thus, if you have a President of the United States beating his chest and suggesting some major foreign policy maneuver and then there's nothing, that's going to do nothing but encourage the Chinese," he said, adding that America should embrace its position as a Pacific power through partnerships with India, Japan, and Russia.

"India and Japan are major powers in the worldright nowand their potential is enormous. If we are working with them and we have a workable coalition with them, that is something that would balance off the dynamics at play with an expanding China," he said.

"Japan has a very strong economy that is quite often overlooked, and it so often overlooked as a force in the world because it is so peaceful," Rohrabacher said.

Photograph: US Army
In a swift operation, chief of Khalistan Liberation Front militant outfit Harminder Singh Mintoo was arrested in Delhi on Sunday night within hours of his escape from Nabha jail in Punjab, with Delhi Police saying he was planning to flee abroad, to Malaysia or Germany.

IMAGE: Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo comes out after being produced at Patiala House court in New Delhi. Mintoo was arrested by the police in Delhi after he was freed along with another terrorists by four gangsters from the Nabha jail on Sunday. Photograph: Atul Yadav/PTI Photo

However, high alert continued in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi as about 12 armed dreaded fugitives are still at large.

Two cars used by them in the escape have been found in Haryana's Kaithal district.

Mintoo, 48, was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station's parking area, marking the second arrest in the sensational jailbreak case which occured in Sunday morning in which eight people stormed the prison to free six inmates -- two militants and four dreaded criminals.

Earlier, Parminder alias Penda was arrested on Sunday in Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh, few hours after the jailbreak.

Mintoo, accused in 10 terror cases, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan, Punjab Director General of Police Suresh Arora said.

Harminder was carrying a sophisticated semi-automatic pistol along with six live cartridges when he was arrested, Arvind Deep, Special Commissioner of Delhi Police's Special Cell, told reporters.

"He had bought a (train) ticket for Panvel and from there he had plans to go to Mumbai and then to Goa. He had good contacts in Goa since he had stayed there for 18 years from 1989 to 2007," Deep said while giving details of the arrest effected nearly 200 km from the scene of the crime.

Finally, Harminder planned to flee to Germany or Malaysia, where he had good contacts since he had stayed there, police sources said.

He was produced before a court in Delhi which sent him to seven days' police custody.

During interrogation, Harminder said the jailbreak was under planning for the last six months and its masterminds and executors were Gurpreet Singh Sekhon and Harjinder Singh who are members of a criminal gang, said DCP (Special Cell) P S Kushwah.

Giving details of the operation, Kushwah said after receiving information about the escape of six men from Nabha Jail of Punjab, Delhi Police was put on high alert and the special cell was also tasked by senior officers to develop information and apprehend them.

There was quick sharing of information by Punjab, Haryana and UP Police with their counterparts in Delhi.

Meanwhile, information was received that one of the criminals identified as Palwinder Singh alias Penda was arrested by UP police in Shamli district.

On interrogation, Palwinder disclosed that Harminder and Kashmeer Singh were dropped by him in Kaithal, Haryana. He said that they might come to Delhi, the DCP said.

Pictures of Harminder and Kashmeer were circulated through whatsapp to all the districts and an alert was also issued to all the SHOs about his presence in Delhi, he said.

Police personnel were asked to be on lookout for any suspicious movement, the DCP said.

IMAGE: Rapid Action Force men at Nabha Central Jail, which was stormed by armed men who helped in escaping five terrorists. Photograph: PTI Photo

"Personnel were deployed on probable hideout areas and checking of guest houses was undertaken. Searches were conducted at bus terminals, railway stations, etc," he said.

A police team was deployed at Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station where they noticed a Sikh man having patka on his head and a trimmed beard that looked as if it had been trimmed haphazardly and improperly, said Kushwah, adding that he was looking extra conscious which raised suspicion.

"The person bought ticket and came outside of the building and as he was moving out, he was apprehended by the police personnel who grappled with him and managed to snatch the pistol from him," he said.

A case under sections 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 186 (Obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions) IPC along with relevant sections of the Arms Act and 20 Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act has been registered at Police Station Special Cell, said the DCP.

"On the day of incident, all the men who ultimately escaped from jail were out in the open in the jail premises as a 'bhandara' was being organized at the Gurudwara in jail premises. In accordance with their plan, they reached near the exit gate of the jail at the time when the intruders in police uniform stormed the jail," the officer added.

"After escaping from the jail, Harminder, Kashmeer Singh, Gurpreet Singh Shekhon and Amandeep Singh, boarded a Toyota Fortuner. Shekhon was driving the vehicle. Around 24 kms before Kurushetra, Harminder Singh and Kashmeer Singh got down from the vehicle, Kushwah said.

They were given Rs 19,000 by Mani (Shekhon's brother).

"Both of them had hidden themselves in the sugarcane fields. Kashmeer Singh went to the nearby village and brought a pair of scissors. They cut their hair and trimmed their beard to change their appearance and boarded a jeep to Kurushetra. From Kurushetra to Panipat, they went by bus and then changed another bus to ISBT, Delhi," said Kushwah.

Sources said that Kashmeer and Harminder had separated at Kashmere Gate bus terminal in Delhi to avoid suspicion and apprehension and had decided to move separately towards Nizamuddin Railway Station with the objective of ultimately going to Goa where Mintoo had lived for 18 years, the officer added.

"Mintoo used to visit Pakistan frequently and there are reports that he had backing of Pakistan's ISI, which is being investigated," the DCP (Special Cell) said.

"He was involved in 12 terror-related cases, including the attack on Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in 2008 and recovery of explosives at Halwara Air Force Station near Ludhiana in 2010," said Kushwah.

Mintoo was earlier a member of Babbar Khalsa International which he left in year 2009 and revived Khalistan Liberation Force.

He used to operate from Thailand and Malaysia before he was arrested by police from IGI airport in 2014 after being deported from Thailand for possessing fake passport.

In Thailand, Mintoo had set up a base and was using it to mobilise funds for the banned Sikh groups, Kushwah said.

Before being arrested, he had also travelled to Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, the officer said.

Parminder, who was arrested on Sunday in Shamli district, has claimed that eight people were involved in the jailbreak and he was in contact with them through Whatsapp.

He said during interrogation that he was staying in a hideout in Dehradun and five other fugitives were in Karnal and Panipat in search of a hideout, Uttar Pradesh Police said.

Parminder, who was accused of killing Punjab police inspector Gurudev and was on the run, told police he was also involved in narcotic smuggling in states including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab, SP of Shamli District Ajay Sharma said.

On Sunday evening, when he was travelling to Dehradun his vehicle was intercepted by police at a check post in Kairana in Shamli district in western Uttar Pradesh, police said.

ALSO WATCH: Khalistani Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo re-arrested
In an unprecedented allegation by a President-elect, Donald Trump has alleged that millions of people voted illegally for Hillary Clinton in the November 8 polls and serious voter fraud were committed in three states where he lost.

Trump, who offered no evidence for his claims, said that he would have won the popular votes in the United States general election if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump said in a first of the series of tweets on Sunday evening.

He alleged that serious voter fraud were committed in three States of Virginia, New Hampshire and California where he lost.

The allegation by Trump, who won the required votes in the Electoral College to secure the presidency, comes as Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's lead in the popular vote over Trump has surpassed 2.0 million votes and is expected to grow to more than 2.5 million as ballots in populous states such as California continue to be tallied.

Clinton has 232 Electoral College votes in her kitty as against 270 required to be declared as elected.

The Republican billionaires allegations came as steps are being taken towards recounting of votes in the swing state of Wisconsin, which Trump won.

Earlier, he described an impending recount of votes in Wisconsin as a scam and said the results of the presidential election should be respected instead of being challenged or abused.

It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4- - states instead of the 15 states that I visited. I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)! Trump said in another tweet.

Soon he fired another tweet alleging voter fraud in three states.

Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem! Trump said.

This is the first time he has alleged voter fraud in his own victory, however, neither he nor the campaign explained the reasons for such an allegation or if they have any evidence of it.

The Washington Post described the allegations as baseless, while The New York Times said the claims are unsubstantiated.

The Presidential Transition Team did not respond to a question in this regard.

Donald J Trump made the unsubstantiated claim during a series of Twitter posts in which he railed against a push for a recount in three states, the New York Times reported.

Trump taking up the social media with a flood of tweets -- nearly a dozen -- comes a day after the Clinton Campaign said that it would join the Green Party efforts towards recounting of votes in three States of Wisconsin, Philadelphia and Michigan. Trump won all these three states but by a narrow margin.
Dubbing the BJP-led government at the Centre as "anti-poor", Opposition parties on Monday hit the streets across the country to protest the note scrapping decision.

During their 'Jan Aakrosh Divas', opposition leaders and party activists accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of pushing the country into an "unprecedented financial turmoil" and questioned why he was not speaking in Parliament on the issue.

Raising slogans, they demanded steps to ease the problems being faced by the people due to the demonetisation drive. They decried the invalidation of Rs 1000 and Rs 500 currency notes as "anti-poor and pro-corporate" and demanded that the government let people use the old notes until it makes new notes available.

Here are a few glimpses of protests from across the nation.

"We believe the Prime Minister has brought the country to a standstill. He has imposed 'deshbandi' (holding country hostage) with 'notebandi' (demonetisation). "90 per cent of our people do cash transactions every day. Their lives have been hit quite hard. We are protesting against all this," CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said during the protest in Delhi. In the image: The protest march by Left parties on its way to Jantar Mantar from Mandi House. Photograph: Manvender Vashist/PTI Photo

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee threatened to demonstrate outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence against demonetisation, vowing to dislodge him from the seat of power if the scrapping of high value currency notes is not withdrawn. "The entire country is suffering. There is no money in banks, ATMS. So far 80 people have died due to the hardships caused by demonetisation. But Narendra Modi is having a sound sleep and giving lectures on taking the country towards cashless economy," she told a rally in Kolkata. In the image: Trinamool supporters during Mamata Banerjee's rally against demonetisation in Kolkata on Monday. Photograph: Swapan Mahapatra/PTI Photo





Hundreds of workers from various opposition parties, led by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, were arrested when they staged protests across Tamil Nadu against the Centre over the manner in which the demonetisation was being implemented. Besides DMK, leaders and workers of its allies -- Congress, IUML and Left parties were among those who hit the streets as part of the nation-wide protests, slamming the ban on Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes as a "war on rural poor" and causing "hardship" to the common man. In the image: CPI activists scuffle with the police in Chennai. Photograph: R Senthil Kumar/PTI Photo

In Jammu, Congress activists staged protest at a few places against demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee President G A Mir said, "The common people are bearing the brunt of this ill-thought-out move of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Many innocent people have lost their lives while standing in queues (outside banks) to get their money exchanged. This is a financial emergency imposed by the BJP government." In the image: Police detain senior state Congress leaders during their Jan Akrosh rally in Jammu. Photograph: PTI Photo

The Samajwadi Party asked the BJP-led NDA regime to introspect the demonetisation move and said that 'Aakrosh Divas' is aimed at safeguarding the interests of the nation which stands extremely distressed. "The opposition parties in various states have come up with their respective slogans (opposing demonetisation). So, we have called for a 'Jan Aakrosh' because India is automatically witnessing a shutdown now as the entire market is closed," Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agarwal said. In the image: Congress workers protest against the demonetisation in Lucknow. Photograph: Nand Kumar/PTI Photo

In Bihar, Congress, RJD and CPI-ML took out a protest march on the streets of Patna and stalled traffic movement at some places. Road traffic was, however, normal and attendance in offices, banks and schools and colleges remained by and large unaffected. Train services were hit at Darbangha, Madhubani, Masauri in rural Patna, Ara, Jehanabad and other places. In the image: AAP workers protest against demonetisation in Patna on Monday. Photograph: PTI Photo

People in central Delhi protest against the government's decision to withdraw 500 and 1000 Indian rupee banknotes from circulation. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters

Leaders and volunteers of the Left parties and VCK court arrest in Puducherry, after stopping Mangalore Express in Puducherry. Photograph: PTI Photo

Samajwadi Party workers block a railway track near Prayag Station as part of a nation-wide protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation move, in Allahabad. Photograph: PTI Photo

Anger has spilled out on the streets as they are forced to stand in long queues at banks to deposit their money. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters

Protesters had to face-off with police men in Assam as they participated in the Jan Aakrosh Diwas protests in Guwahati. Photograph: Rediff.com
Its been eight days since the opposition parties have stalled Parliament over the demonetisation issue.

Functioning of both the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha was disrupted, leading to their premature adjournment for the day.

IMAGE: Opposition leaders carry out a protest at Parliament House against PM Modi's demonetisation move. Photograph: PTI Photo

Lok Sabha:

In the Lok Sabha, a number of Opposition leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge of the Congress, Sudip Bandhopadhyay of the Trinamool Congress and and Mulayam Singh Yadav of the Samajwadi Party, pressed for acceptance of their demand for an Adjournment Motion and debate under a rule that entails voting. They also demanded presence of the prime minister during the debate.

In response, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said the PM will speak on demonetisation if the Opposition wanted but the debate should take place, for which the rule will be decided by the Speaker.

Singh said it was clear that nobody was questioning the governments intentions over demonetisation or imputing any malafide.

Even as he was speaking, opposition members trooped into the Well and shouted slogans.

Amid the din, Singh said the government is ready for a discussion and willing to listen to the complaints and suggestions different parties have over the execution of the demonetisation move.

As far as the prime minister coming to the House is concerned, if the Opposition wants he will come and intervene, Singh said, assuring the Opposition.

The decision regarding the rule under which the debate should take place is for the Speaker to make, he said.

He termed demonetisation as a historic, bold and pro-poor decision taken to target black money and in national interest.

However, as the uproar continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till 2 pm.

Earlier, Kharge said demonetisation had harmed the economic system, the farmers, youths, labourers and women among others who are in distress.

The Congress leader said over 70 people had died due to the faulty implementation of demonetisation decision.

He cited the incident of a Union minister facing difficulty in paying hospital bills after his brother died and said it was an evidence of the extent of the crisis. He was referring to Sadanand Gowda who faced the problem.

There is only one way to break this deadlock. The PM should come to the House and the oppositions adjournment motion should be accepted, he said.

Bandhopadhyay of Trinamool said the government must take initiative to break the impasse as people will ask what does Parliament stand for, if it is adjourned everyday.

Supporting Kharge, Mulayam Singh said if Modi does not come to the House on such an important matter, then when he will come. Farmers are facing a lot of problems, he said.

Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal called the decision impractical and anti-people.

An All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam member said the government should take initiative to ease peoples sufferings, while B Mahtab of the Biju Janata Dal said the onus was on the Centre to take steps to break the impasse.

Anandrao Adsul of BJP ally Shiv Sena targeted opposition parties, saying neither Bharat Bandh nor Aakrosh Diwas, which different parties had announced for Monday, was visible.

He, however, lamented that the recent announcement of the Centre that NABARD would disburse Rs 21,000 crore to cooperative banks has not been implemented. The announcement had come after an unhappy Sena delegation had met the PM.

Situation remains bad in rural areas, he said.

When the Lok Sabha met again at 2 pm after adjournment, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley rose to introduce a bill to amend the Income Tax Act allow authorities impose 75 per cent tax and 10 per cent penalty in case they detect undisclosed wealth deposited post demonetisation.

Members from the opposition parties, who were asking the Speaker to take up their adjournment motion on note ban, rushed to the Well raising slogans. Jaitley then introduced the bill amid din.

The din and slogan shouting against the government continued for another few minutes and the House was adjourned for the day, 10 minutes past 2 pm.

Rajya Sabha:

IMAGE: In the Rajya Sabha, members stormed the Well and demanded for the PM's presence. Photograph: PTI Photo

Meanwhile, in the Rajya Sabha, soon after the House mourned the death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and the listed papers were laid, Naresh Agrawal of the Samajwadi Party said nationwide protest Aakrosh Divas is being observed on Monday against demonetisation that has caused hardships to common man.

Leaders of other opposition parties including Mayawati of the Bahujan Samaj Party, Derek OBrien of Trinamool Congress, Sitaram Yechury of CPI-M and Anand Sharma of Congress joined in.

Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the nation was seething in anger over the hardship and harassment caused because of the announcement made by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8.

Soon, Congress and TMC members trooped into the well of the House shouting slogans against the PM. Ruling benches also joined him by shouting slogans favouring start of a discussion on the issue.

Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu rose to state that the discussion which had started on the opening day of the Winter Session of Parliament on November 16 and has not yet concluded, should be resumed, instead of such disruption of proceedings.

Deputy Chairman P J Kurien agreed with the suggestion of Naidu but the din continued, forcing him to adjourn the proceedings for half an hour.

When the House met again, the Opposition members were again on their feet shouting slogans against demonetisation.

Kurien insisted that the discussion on the demonetisation be resumed. He said the PM will come once the discussion starts.

Yechury asked why the PM was not coming to the House.

Kurien asked Yechury how he knew the PM would not come, while noting that it is already on the record that he will speak on the issue.

As the Opposition members kept shouting slogans in the Well, the Chair adjourned the House till noon.

When the House reassembled for Question Hour, Azad said he wanted to make it clear that 18 Opposition parties have decided to observe Jan Aakrosh Divas.

He said there was no discussion among them about Bharat Bandh. If anyone has raised the issue of Bharat Bandh, it is the PM, the Leader of Opposition said, adding Modi is responsible for Bharat Bandh.

The Congress leader said the opposition is observing the day as Jan Aakrosh Diwas to highlight the aakrosh (anger) across the country.

There is aakrosh (anger) among the youth, the women and the old against this new policy of demonetisation, Azad said, adding that so far 75 people have lost their lives due to the governments decision to go for demonetisation.

He said a 96-year old man had died while standing in a queue outside a bank in Chennai and a young girl had committed suicide as there was no money for her wedding.

Earlier, when Ansari allowed Azad to speak, the I&B minister said he wanted to raise a point.

Ansari, however, said the floor has already been given to Azad and if the government has a point it would be allowed later.

The treasury benches then created din, prompting the Chairman to adjourn the proceedings till 1400 hours because the House is not being allowed to run.

When the House met again at 2 pm, Commerce Minister Nirmala Sithraman, on behalf of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, tabled a notification providing for exemption of central excise duty for the manufacture of Point of Sale devices.

Soon after this, SP leader Naresh Aggarwal raised a Point of Order. As he started, he made certain comments about the Treasury Benches which was objected to.

The Deputy Chairman eventually expunged the remark after listening to both the sides.

Afterwards, Congress leader Anand Sharma raised a Point of Order, questioning how the government could deprive the common man of his own money in the bank accounts by limiting withdrawals.

He said the Constitution specifically says that a person cannot be deprived of his property by the government.

Sharma said there is no law under which this has been done and therefore it is illegal.

The Constitution does not allow even the PM or the government to deprive the citizens of their money and property, especially bank accounts, the Congress leader said, adding not one Bill was tabled in the House in this regard.

The PM and the government must answer, he said.

He said nearly 80 people have died due to demonetisation move while standing in queues.

Leader of Opposition Azad said this is the first time when such an announcement has been made and the PM has not given a statement in the Parliament.

Such an important decision was announced after the ongoing Winter Session was called for and before it actually began, he said.

He said the opposition has demanded discussion over the move to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in both the Houses, but in the presence of the PM since he has announced the move.

He said some are saying that the Cabinet was not informed and even the finance minister did not know. Then how can the finance minister reply to the points raised by the opposition, Azad added, insisting on the presence of the prime minister.

Taking a dig at Modi, he said he can even come to the Parliament Library for events and address every rally in Uttar Pradesh but cant come to the House. As Congress sloganeering followed, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the government is ready for discussion like always.

He said the opposition had failed in its Aakrosh Divas on the streets, so it was disrupting the House proceedings.

Following the ruckus, Kurien adjourned the House till Tuesday morning.
The army on Monday said Pakistan had a "direct role" in the mutilation of a soldier's body along the Line of Control in Machhil sector of Kupwara district on November 22.

"Refer to Machhil operation of November 22, where body of one soldier was mutilated, search leads to recoveries that indicate Pakistans complicity," an army officer at the Udhampur-based Northern Command said in a statement.

Three soldiers were killed and the body of one of them was mutilated when infiltrators had ambushed an army patrol in the Machhil sector on November 22.

The eatables and other items recovered from the area show the marking of "Pakistan Defense Force", "Pakistan standard" and the night vision that bears the seal of "Government Property", which is made by the United States and used by the Pakistan army, the officer said.

"Three soldiers were killed in action on the LoC in Machhil. Body of one soldier mutilated, retribution will be heavy for this cowardly act," Army had said after the killing.

It was second incident of mutilation of soldier's body in less than a month, triggering outrage.

On October 28, aided by the cover fire by Pakistani Army, terrorists had crossed the LoC and killed an army jawan and mutilated his body in Machhil sector. One attacker was killed in that incident.

In June 2008, a soldier of the 2/8 Gorkha Rifles lost his way and was captured by a Pakistani Border Action Team in Kel sector. His body was found beheaded few days later.
The home ministry has given sanction to the National Investigation Agency to file a chargesheet against Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others in the Pathankot terror strike carried out on January 2.

After receiving sanction under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the NIA will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, and handlers of four terrorists -- Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif in the chargesheet to be filed soon, official sources said.

The four terrorists, after entering into India from Bamiyal area of Gurudaspur, had carried out the strike inside the strategic Pathankot Indian Air Force base killing eight people including seven personnel of the Indian Air Force and the National Security Guard.

The fresh chargesheet will help India in building pressure on the international community to declare Azhar and his organisation a global terror group under the United Nations' anti-terror laws. The previous attempts were spurned after China exercised its veto power.

The chargesheet will name only four terrorists involved in the attack as against six claimed by the NSG.

According to the NIA, the terrorists, who were killed after two days of gunfight were identified as Nasir Hussain, Hafiz Abu Bakar, Umar Farooq and Abdul Qayum and they were residents of Vehari (Punjab), Gujranwala (Punjab), Sanghar (Sindh) and Sukkur (Sindh) districts of Pakistan respectively.

The NIA's probe will also included looking into the phone numbers and a conversation that one of the terrorists had minutes before launching the attack besides a video message of Rauf released on Jaish-affiliated website minutes after the strike.

In the video message, which was subsequently removed from the website, Rauf had claimed responsibility for the Pathankot attack.

The charge sheet will also include evidence of linking the footprints of one of the terrorists obtained from Bamiyal besides matching of DNA sample found from a soft drink can in the hijacked car of Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.

The Pathankot terror strike had seen a joint investigation team from Pakistan also arriving in India for carrying out a thorough probe.

However, upon their return, the Pakistani team claimed that India neither shared much of evidence nor allowed it to interrogate the personnel involved in repulsing the attack.
Despite being in the crosshairs of the police, politicians and vigilantes, Malini Subramaniam continues to report from Bastar, Chhattisgarh, a hotbed for Maoist insurgency.

For her work, often under life-threatening circumstances, she has won the International Press Freedom Award 2016.

P Rajendran meets Subramaniam at the awards night in New York City.

IMAGE: Malini Subramaniam, left, with Samantha Power, the US Ambassador to the UN. Photograph: Kind courtesy AmbassadorPower/Twitter.com

'There has never been a more dangerous time to be a journalist.'

Malini Subramaniam knows a little about this point, reiterated with variations by many of the speakers at the annual dinner organized by the Committee for the Protection of Journalists at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City on November 22.

Subramaniam, who faced persecution after reporting the law and order situation in Bastar, Chattisgarh, for Scroll.in, was one of the winners of the CPJ's International Press Freedom Award, given to journalists who do sterling work in bad, even life-threatening, conditions.

Subramaniam was forced to leave the area with her teenaged daughter this February, after vigilantes and the police allegedly encouraged her neighbours to attack her and forced her landlord to evict her.

She continues to report about events in Bastar, a hotbed for Maoist insurgency and where beleaguered government forces often overreach themselves, declaring Adivasis found in the forests that they consider their home as insurgents.

"The police file cases against the villagers," Subramaniam told Rediff.com in an interview prior to the event, adding that, though the security forces are meant to be the protectors, "civilians are made vulnerable by the government."

Yet, she even goes back to Bastar off and on -- at the risk of incarceration or worse -- to write about excesses happening there.

"I used to (also) write about Maoists killing Advasis," said Subramaniam, describing the case of a boy "brutally" killed by the Maoists.

Subramaniam says she came into the local government's crosshairs soon after she wrote news reports alleging that claims of surrendering Maoists in Chintalnar involved rounded-up locals with no connection with the radical movement.

She described being followed and questioned and being treated with the kind of hostility reserved for a foe.

In particular, she recalled frustrating an attempt by the police to rush into her house by telling them they would need a search warrant first.

As had happened in other cases, Subramaniam feared any access would give the police a chance to plant something incriminating in the house.

But after having people shout slogans outside her house, having stones thrown at her house and her car windows smashed, she knew that, in the absence of some sane intervention, the situation would escalate out of control. And then she had a child Samaa, 15, with her. So the pair left to join Subramaniam's husband.

As Scroll.in described it, Subramaniam was facing trouble from more than the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Chattisgarh. She knew two of the men shouting slogans from an earlier meeting -- one was from the BJP, the other from the Opposition Congress. The duo had apparently come together in bipartisan unity against the inconvenient journalist.

Samaa, who was also at the New York event to fete Subramniam, remembers hearing the men shouting at her mother, and exhorting the neighbours to join them against her mother.

Samaa said she felt no resentment toward her mother whose work put them in this dangerous situation.

"I was angry at them," she said. "They were childish. And I am a child (saying this)," she said with an incredulous laugh.

Subramaniam had to take Samaa back to Bastar secretly a few months later so that she could finish her exams. Despite the stress, Samaa did pretty well in the exam.

IMAGE: A grieving family in Chhattisgarh. Malini Subramaniam says she came into the local government's crosshairs soon after she wrote reports alleging that claims of surrendering Maoists in Chintalnar involved rounded-up locals with no connection with the radical movement. Photograph: Parth Sanyal/Reuters

Subramaniam was not drawn to knife-edge journalism because of the opportunity it would afford her to hobnob with film stars, clink glasses with the glitterati, or engage in the loud rabble-rousing that passed for analysis on television.

While Subramaniam had a degree from MS University in Vadodra, Gujarat, and had studied at the Xavier Institute of Communications in Mumbai, she found her calling in social work, which she studied at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, also in Mumbai.

It was as a social worker for the International Committee of the Red Cross that Subramaniam first went to Bastar. Over time, she saw the atrocities visited on the people and first thought someone ought to write about it.

Then she wondered, why not herself? She stayed on even after the ICRC closed shop in Bastar and sought that she move to New Delhi. Subramaniam had found her calling, even though it was at a freelancer's salary.

The CPJ dinner and fundraiser was the regulation glitzy affair, with over 700 guests from the media and corporate world attending. New Yorker Editor David Remnick, who was standing in for Gwen Ifill of PBS, who died recently, spoke of how the figures spoke for the dangers journalists now faced.

The 240 of them in jail around the world was the highest number since the CPJ was set up, he said, and then went on to name three journalists who had been killed in the line of duty this year: Belarus state television's Pavel Sheremet, National Public Radio's Zabhihullah Tanama and David Gilkey.

"Being a journalist is not a protection," he said, arguing that, in fact, the label made them targets.

Jeff Zucker, president of CNN Worldwide, raised the same point when he said: "There has never been a more dangerous time to be a journalist."

"More journalists are doing conflict journalism than ever," Zucker added.

Subramaniam was the first winner announced. And when she came up to speak, she spoke about how Adivasis were caught in the middle of the fight between Maoists and government forces.

"The state government (of Chattisgarh) used appalling methods to silence all voices," she said. "The Government of India watched, doing nothing."

Among others, she thanked her editors at Scroll.in for their unstinting support, her colleague Kamal Shukla who accompanied her on many of the stories, and her family, including Samaa; Ashim, her supportive husband; and her other daughter, Sakhi.

The others who won awards were Oscar Martinez, the editor of El Salvador's El Faro, an online publication, that wrote pieces on organised crime; Can Dundar, a Turkish journalist whose government accused him of exposing State secrets and helping terrorists when his paper, Cumhuriyet, exposed -- with photographic evidence -- that the government was lying when it said it was not supplying arms to Syrian rebel groups; Mahmoud Abou Zeid (Shawkan), an Egyptian photojournalist who has been in jail since 2013 while covering the dispersal of a protest in Raba'a Al-Adawiya Square in Cairo.

Christiane Amanpour, CNN's chief international correspondent and a senior adviser to CPJ, won the Burton Benjamin Memorial Award for 'her extraordinary and sustained achievement in the cause of press freedom.'

In her acceptance speech, she argued for journalism that would not brook intimidation or be caught in the trap of false equivalencies.

Amanpour said that journalists around the world sought examples in their American counterparts and ought not be let down. She argued against the proliferation of fake news and the role Facebook played in promoting it.

"As a profession, let's fight for what is right."

"Let's fight for our values."

"Bad things do happen when good people do nothing."

"...Let's fight to remain relevant and useful."

Speaking to Rediff.com about Subramaniam, Kamal Shukla spoke sombrely: "In my life, I have never seen a woman journalist braver than her."

He described how she came into the jungles with him despite the danger, and added, "I learn from her."

Shukla, a veteran reporter of 28 years who has seen other journalists reduced to government contractors, is himself restricted from free movement by the local police.

"It is very hard," Shukla said, "to be an independent worker."
Some readers may be curious about the forthcoming Martin Scorsese film, Silence . The story follows two Jesuit priests (played by Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver) who leave Portugal in order to discover the fate of Father Ferreira (Liam Neeson), a missionary to Japan whom rumor has it had abandoned the faith. Although I have not seen the movie, I have read the book that the movie is based on. I have some spoilery reflections on the book, but since I haven't seen the movie I'm not necessarily prepared to comment on it or recommend it.

My suspicion is that the majority of Christians in the west, much like myself, have never heard about the earliest Catholic missions to Japan in the 17th Century. The Jesuits came to Japan in 1549, and while I should not (and cannot) here give a history of Christianity in Japan, it is worth admitting that the 1630s and 40s were a time of unbearable persecution. The tortures exacted on the Christians of Japan during this time are horrifying to consider.

Shusaku Endo's book Silence , a fictionalized account of these true events, was written in the 1960s by a Roman Catholic. I speak of this book as neither a Roman Catholic, nor as someone with any special or unique knowledge of the history of Christianity in Japan. One of Endo's enduring themes is the incompatibility of Christianity (or any other religion) with the Japanese culture. One of Endo's repeating themes in this book is that Japan is a "swamp" which takes, changes, and transforms ideologies until they no longer resemble their former selves. From reading the translator's preface, one can see that there are autobiographical aspects to this argument. Endo sees a struggle within his own heart away from his Catholicism, and in one interview said that in spite of his own religious upbringing, "there was always that feeling in my heart that it was something borrowed, and I began to wonder what my real self was like. This I think is the 'mud swamp' Japanese in me." So for Endo, Christianity can never really take root in Japan unless it changes, transforms, or adapts. Of course, this is a popular modern theme, this idea that Christianity will wither and die if it does not change with the times. It seems harder to believe here in the West where most people still preserve some nominally religious veneer. It's a bit more persuasive when one considers that less than 1% of people in Japan are Christian. I do not agree with Endo that Christianity must change in order to be received, but there is a tension here in the book. On the one hand Endo seems to think that Christianity needs to change. On the other hand, he seems to fault the corruption of Christianity in Japan with the Jesuit willingness to adapt.

Father Ferreira in the book does give a speech where he points out that the type of Christianity that has taken root in Japan is nothing resembling what they knew back in Portugal. Accommodations have been made for ancestral reverence, and the gods they worshipped haven't gone away - they've simply taken a back seat to Christ in the minds of the new Japanese converts. Ferreira faults the Jesuit tendency to adapt to local superstitions and customs rather than replacing them, implementing them into their version of Christian theology, thus transforming it into something entirely different. And so there is an interesting tension in the book. Was the accommodation of the Jesuits right or wrong in Endo's mind? If it was right, then why does Ferreira find fault with it? If it was wrong, then Endo seems to think Christianity wouldn't have even taken hold in the slightest.

I found myself utterly captivated by Silence. Reading this book was a remarkable experience for me. I will try to make the case here that Christians need to be made more aware of this book. It belongs on our bookshelves next to Walker Percy's The Moviegoer and the writings of Flannery O'Connor in the sense that it asks the hard questions, pushes the reader in painful ways, and doesn't offer preachy or simple answers.

[I warn that from here on out my review contains spoilers. If you want to read the book, I recommend that you get it and read it right away, but do stop reading this review!] The novel takes place in the 1630s after a Jesuit priest in Japan named Ferreira is reported to have apostatized from the faith. Finding this impossible to believe, the Priests Rodrigues and Garpe make the dangerous journey from Portugal to Japan in order to live as missionaries among the Japanese and also to find out what the truth is of Ferreira's fate. Half of the book is the written journal of Rodrigues, while the other half of the book is either written in a third person format, or contains the letters of others associated with the narrative. Rodriguez and Garpe are eventually captured by the authorities and witness horrific circumstances as they watch the Japanese Christians laying down their lives for the faith. There is no glory in these martyrdoms, as Rodriguez had always imagined. Rather, there is a brutality and cruelty which he had never imagined. Prior to the arrival of Rodriguez, the Japanese forced the priests to renounce the faith and tortured them until they did so, with none of them recanting. However, we soon discover that the Japanese chose a different method altogether, beginning with Ferreira. They use this same technique to great effect on Rodriguez, as well. Rather than torturing the priests, they torture the Christians, telling Rodriguez that all he must do is renounce the faith in order to end their sufferings.

Some of the greatest struggle in the book takes place as Rodriguez recounts his own psychological agony. There are hard questions. It is one thing to suffer for your own faith - to endure pain and suffering for the sake of one's love for Christ. But is it self-centered to refuse to recant in order to end another's suffering? "The price for your glory is their suffering," says Inoue.

At one climactic moment in the book, Rodriguez can hear the moaning of the Christians as they hang in the pit, their cries going up and reaching his ears. These Christians have all recanted, but they will not be released until Rodriguez tramples the image of Christ himself. Suddenly, the image of Christ speaks: "Trample! Trample! I more than anyone know of the pain in your foot. Trample! It was to be trampled on by men that I was born into this world. It was to share men's pain that I carried my cross." Rodriguez obeys, and the Christians are released.

The title of the book, Silence refers to Rodriguez' constant lament that God is silent as his people suffer. "Why is God continually silent while those groaning voices go on?" At one point Rodriguez is praying and he says, "'Lord, I resented your silence." He receives a reply: "I was not silent. I suffered beside you." The book is Job-like in its unwillingness to offer straight answers.

As the reader you can't help but wonder if what Rodriguez did is right or wrong. The book implies that he never really gives up believing, but that he spends the remainder of his days as a secret Christian of sorts, outwardly obeying the magistrate. As long as the priests stay away and Rodriguez continues as he is, the authorities promise to leave the Christians alone.

Later in the book, Inoue speaks to Rodriguez and he says, "I've told you. This country of Japan is not suited to the teaching of Christianity. Christianity simply cannot put down roots here...you were not defeated by me...You were defeated by this swamp of Japan."

Another character in the novel who matters a great deal is the weakling Kichijiro, who is a pathetic figure, folding under persecution every time, terrified of the authorities, turning in Father Rodriguez at one point, but always returning, always repenting. At one point Rodriguez is thinking of Kichijiro and he wonders to himself: "How many of our Christians, if only they had been born in another age from this persecution would never have been confronted with the problem of apostasy or martyrdom but would have lived blessed lives of faith until the very hour of death." What stinging words! To Christians who live in the West, free of persecution, free of tortures and pain it is so easy for us to judge one such as Kichijiro, and yet constantly throughout the novel we are confronted repeatedly by his tragic and pathetic figure. I think that we as readers would be wise to see ourselves in Kichijiro.

Part of the reason why this book became so controversial in Japan upon its release was that people read the book as theology and not as literature. Endo has complained about this, because he insists his purpose was not to offer up a story for theological dissection. Though I can't resist the urge completely, as you can see, I will do my best not to follow Endo's critics into the murky theological waters that this book seems to invite. Endo's novel is a masterpiece, plain and simple. Christians need to meditate upon the nature of suffering, the pains of martyrdom, and the difficult questions that confront us in this novel. I have lamented before that Protestant writers seem to be incapable of facing painful and hard existential questions like those in this book without resorting to preachy narrative devices.is the exemplification of how to do a novel tackling the subject of faith and suffering head-on while avoiding the dreadfully tacky literary pitfalls we so often see all around us.

Martin Scorsese's adaptation of this film has been recently completed and it is expected that it will begin showing in theaters in time for awards season. I really hope that Scorsese is able to faithfully translate this book into film. I have my doubts, but I do suspect that if the trailer is any indication the film may hold very close to the novel.
Central African Republic: UN envoy calls for protecting civilians as scores killed in ethnic violence

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Central African Republic: UN envoy calls for protecting civilians as scores killed in ethnic violence, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583bf2f0412.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

25 November 2016 - Condemning the recent outbreak of ethnic violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) that has killed scores of people, the United Nations Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide has called for an immediate end to the hostilities and urged the authorities to take urgent measures to protect the population from further violence, regardless of their ethnicity or political affiliation.

According to a news release, some 85 civilians have reportedly been killed, 76 wounded and nearly 11,000 displaced from the town of Bria, Haute Kotto prefecture due to clashed between two armed groups - the Front Populaire pour la Renaissance de la Centrafrique (FPRC) and the Union pour la paix en Centrafrique (UPC).

"Given the country's recent history, this kind of targeted violence is extremely dangerous and must be stopped," said Special Adviser Adama Dieng, warning that new outbreak of violence could result in reprisal attacks and rapidly escalate.

He also called for full investigations into allegations of targeted killings and to ensure that those responsible are held accountable.

"If carried out in a widespread or systematic manner, such acts could constitute crimes under international law that can be prosecuted before national or international courts," he stressed.

Reportedly, the FPRC singled out ethnic Fulani in Bria and carried out house-to-house searches, killing, looting and abducting residents. The armed group also occupied hospital buildings, preventing wounded Fulani from receiving medical treatment.

Peacekeeping troops deployed by the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) later took control of the hospital and reinforced measures to protect civilians in Bria.

Clashes have also been reported between opposing factions of the mainly Muslim ex-Seleka armed group in Bambari, Ouaka prefecture.

The Secretary-General's Representative for the CAR and the Deputy Representative travelled to Bria and Bambari, respectively, along with Ambassadors, UN officials and representatives of the African Union and the Economic Community of Central African States and called for an immediate end to hostilities.

Also in the release, Special Adviser Dieng welcomed progress towards the establishment of the Special Criminal Court in the CAR, which will investigate serious violations of international humanitarian law committed in the country, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity since 2003.
UN, global community back efforts of Somalia's electoral bodies to ensure credible, legitimate polls

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN, global community back efforts of Somalia's electoral bodies to ensure credible, legitimate polls, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583bffc940c.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

25 November 2016 - The United Nations and other members of the international community have commended the efforts of Somalia's electoral bodies to ensure a credible and legitimate electoral process and supported the bodies' decisions to disqualify candidates who engaged in corruption, intimidation and manipulation in the ongoing parliamentary elections.

The Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (FIEIT), the State-Level Indirect Electoral Implementation Teams and the Independent Electoral Dispute Resolution Mechanism (IEDRM) are making efforts to ensure credibility and legitimacy of the electoral process in the African country.

In a joint press statement issued yesterday, the UN, African Union, Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, Ethiopia, Italy, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States complimented on the successful efforts of these bodies.

They welcomed the determination of the bodies to enforce the rules of the 2016 electoral process as stipulated by the National Leadership Forum (NLF), particularly their resolve to sanction efforts to influence the election results through corruption, intimidation, manipulation or other malpractices.

"The international community will firmly support decisions by the FIEIT and the IEDRM to nullify election results that have been rigged through such misconduct and to disqualify candidates who have engaged in such malpractices," the statement said.

As for allegations that some clans that have been assigned three or more seats in the federal parliament's House of the People are refusing to comply with the NLF requirement that one of every three seats be reserved exclusively for women candidates, the international community recalled that the NLF had decided that the seats of any clan failing to fulfil this requirement will be suspended, pending a decision by the relevant State-Level Indirect Electoral Implementation Team and regional administration on the status of those seats.

Finally, the international community called on all parties to scrupulously comply with the rules and the code of conduct governing Somalia's electoral process in order to safeguard its credibility and the legitimacy of its results.
DR Congo: UN envoy calls on political stakeholders to show flexibility to aid election process

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as UN News Service, DR Congo: UN envoy calls on political stakeholders to show flexibility to aid election process, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583bffe640d.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

25 November 2016 - Wrapping up a visit to Africa's Great Lakes region, a United Nations envoy today urged stakeholders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's (DRC) electoral process to do more to help ensure the country is able to hold peaceful elections.

"The Democratic Republic of the Congo is at an important turning point in its political history - I call on all parties to demonstrate flexibility and readiness for compromise to create propitious conditions for peaceful and credible elections," the Secretary-General's Special Envoy for the Great Lakes region, Said Djinnit, said today, according to a news release from his office.

The envoy's comments came at the end of a four-day trip to the DRC's capital, Kinshasa. According to his office, the aim of the visit was to consult with a wide range of national stakeholders on the electoral process and related political issues and seek their views on how best to support the ongoing mediation efforts led by the Conference Episcopale Nationale du Congo (CENCO), which, it said, are aimed at broadening the consensus on, and inclusivity of the electoral and political process building on the so-called Global Political Agreement reached on 18 October.

Last month, the DRC's Constitutional Court granted a petition of the National Electoral Commission to postpone the elections to 2018. Meanwhile, on 18 October, participants in a national dialogue on elections signed an agreement to conduct the polls in April 2018 - however, the dialogue is being boycotted by several of the main opposition groups, some of which have been staging protests.

According to the news release, accompanied by senior officials from the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), Mr. Djinnit held "fruitful" meetings with the Acting Secretary-General of CENCO, the representatives of the Presidential Majority, the opposition coalition of political parties known as the Rassemblement, as well as several individual political leaders. The UN envoy also paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister-designate Samy Badibanga.

The news release also noted that in his meetings, Mr. Djinnit expressed support for the ongoing mediation efforts by CENCO, and encouraged representatives from the government and the Rassemblement to exercise restraint and take additional confidence-building measures to help create the enabling environment for successful and peaceful negotiations.

While in the region, the Special Envoy also visited the Republic of Congo, where he met with President Denis Sassou Nguesso in the country's capital, Brazzaville. They discussed the preparation of the next meeting of the Regional Oversight Mechanism of the Framework for Peace, Security and Cooperation, which will be held in October 2017, as well as the need for promoting common ground between the electoral stakeholders in the DRC and the situation in Burundi.
UN refugee agency steps up support as winter bites for displaced in Iraq and Syria

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN refugee agency steps up support as winter bites for displaced in Iraq and Syria, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c000a412.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

25 November 2016 - With winter approaching and temperatures falling, the United Nations refugee agency is preparing to open more camps and increase life-saving assistance to support the nearly 15 million people displaced by fighting in Iraq and Syria.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reports that the existing camps in Iraq are rapidly filling up, and it might become a struggle to find new sites and accommodate more people. UNHCR currently has six camps open  in Erbil, Duhok, Kirkuk and Salah Al-din governorates.

The camps in Erbil and Duhok alone host more than 47,485 displaced Iraqis, or 68 per cent of the almost 70,000 Iraqis who have fled Mosul since a military offensive began on October 17. The numbers fleeing the city have been stable in recent days, but could climb again if clashes in the city intensify and safe routes out emerge.

According to UNHCR spokesperson, Matthew Saltmarsh, UNHCR is working very hard to find shelter solutions and provide enough assistance to assist displaced Iraqis, with a plan to reach 1.2 million people in the next few months.

UNHCR has launched a 'Winter Assistance Plan' for 2016-2017 to raise money for accommodation of displaced people and refugees in countries like Syria, Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt and Iraq. But the $355 million plan has been only partially funded.

The winter assistance in Syria has already reached 800,000 people, with a budget of $30 million.

Internally displaced Iraqis flee fighting in Mosul. UNHCR/Ivor Prickett

Khazer N-1 IDP camp for internally displaced people from Mosul. UNHCR/Jordi Matas

UNHCR distributes winter relief items to Hasansham camp in Iraq in November 2016. UNHCR/Bathoul Ahmed

Iraq's Al Alam Camp for internally displaced people. UNHCR/Nasreddine Touaibia

 

I burn plastic and cardboard in order to get some warmth during the winter. We barely survive here, said a 70-year-old Aisha, who lives in an unfinished building converted into a shelter for internally displaced people in hard-to-reach Qudsaya, a mountain town a few kilometres from Damascus in Syria.

She is among millions of people affected by the wars in Syria and Iraq, who lost their homes, and are terrified by the upcoming winter months.

Overall, assistance is increasingly moving towards cash, which offers flexibility and independence to recipients. Regionally, half of displaced Syrians being targeted, or 1.6 million people, will receive some form of cash assistance. For displaced Iraqis, 75 per cent will benefit from cash payments, stated Mr. Saltmarsh, adding that the distribution of winter items is underway, including clothing, blankets, heating fuel, insulation materials and other basics.
DPR Korea: With victims' suffering 'enormous,' urgent solution needed UN rights expert

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as UN News Service, DPR Korea: With victims' suffering 'enormous,' urgent solution needed UN rights expert, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c005640e.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

25 November 2016 - Wrapping up a 10-day visit to Northeast Asia, a United Nations human rights expert today called for a multi-faceted and people-centred approach to improve the "extremely complex" situation in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

"I met people who have lost trace of close relatives as a result of abductions or displacement during the Korean War. Their suffering is enormous and the urgency for the solution is accelerating with advancing age of victims and their families", said Special Rapporteur Tomas Ojea Quintana in a news release issued by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

According to the UN human rights office, since the creation of the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, in 2004, successive mandate holders have made requests to visit the DPR Korea, however, access has so far not been granted. In that regard, the experts have visited other countries in the region such as Japan, Thailand and the Republic of Korea.

This was Mr. Ojea Quintana's first visit to Northeast Asia after being appointed as the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPR Korea) by the UN Human Rights Council in August. He visited the Republic of Korea and Japan.

Further in the release, the Special Rapporteur stressed the need of holding the perpetrators of human rights violations accountable. By doing so, further violations could be deterred, he added.

He also said that pursuing accountability as well as expanding humanitarian and human rights initiatives by pushing for more engagement with authorities in DPR Korea - two approaches taken by the civil society in the country - are complementary and that all civil society groups deserve his support.

Noting that it was remarkable that the people who had to leave DPR Korea were "well aware" of their rights and that discussions with them helped him understand some of the human rights violations that motivated their decision to leave.

"I was particularly moved by their testimonies as well as their resilience," he said, adding: "Despite all the challenges that they have been through, they now look forward to the future."

The Special Rapporteur will present a full report on his mission to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council in March 2017.

Independent experts and Special Rapporteurs are appointed by the Council to examine and report back on a specific human rights theme or a country situation. The positions are honorary and the experts are not UN staff, nor are they paid for their work.
Morocco: Drop Homosexuality Charges Against Teenage Girls

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Morocco: Drop Homosexuality Charges Against Teenage Girls, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c01264.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Authorities in Marrakesh, Morocco should drop charges against two teenage girls suspected of same-sex conduct, Human Rights Watch and the Aswat Group for Sexual Minorities, a Moroccan group, said today. The two girls, ages 16 and 17, face up to three years in prison for allegedly kissing each other.

Morocco's courts frequently prosecute men under the country's anti-homosexuality laws. This is the first known case involving girls.

"These two girls could go to prison for simply expressing affection for each other," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "Moroccan authorities should drop charges against them and stop prosecuting people for private consensual acts."

On October 27, 2016, the mother of C.S. brought C.S. and B.H. to a police station in Marrakesh. Police reports state that C.S.'s mother told police that she suspected the girls of homosexual behavior because she had seen a photo of them kissing in her daughter's phone and had noticed a red mark on her daughter's neck. Both girls were immediately arrested and detained for 48 hours on suspicion of homosexual conduct. On October 29, the girls appeared before the prosecutor, who brought charges under article 489 of Morocco's penal code and set a November 25 trial date. He also charged B.H. with vagrancy.

Moroccan law criminalizes what it refers to as acts of "sexual deviancy" between members of the same sex, a term that police reports and court documents use to refer to homosexuality more generally. The law provides for prison terms of up to three years and fines of up to 1,000 dirhams (US$104). In Morocco, the age of full criminal responsibility is 18, but minors are tried in adult court, with some special provisions, such as closing the trial to the public.

Moroccan and regional human rights groups spoke out after the arrests, calling on authorities to release the girls. On November 3, the court provisionally released both girls, pending the trial. B.H. told Aswat that C.S.'s mother and sister beat both girls before taking them to the police. Aswat and Human Rights Watch expressed concern about the physical and emotional well-being of C.S., who is now back at home, and emphasized that C.S. should be protected against domestic abuse.

The case also raises fair trial concerns, in light of allegations of rights violations during detention, Human Rights Watch said. One of the defense lawyers, Moulay Elghourfi, told Human Rights Watch that the only evidence he has seen are the "confessions" written in the police report.

He said the girls repudiated the content of the police statements in front of the prosecutor, saying the police had coerced them into signing statements they had not read. B.H. told Aswat she was made to sign five statements, none of which she was allowed to read. The police reports, reviewed by Human Rights Watch, are identical, except for the names of the girls. In both statements, police have written identical testimony and identical confessions relating to "sexual deviancy."

Human Rights Watch has documented a pattern in which Moroccan courts violate the right to a fair trial by often relying on confessions to convict defendants and by failing to investigate seriously or at all when defendants repudiate those statements as either coerced or falsified. In five cases involving 77 defendants adjudicated between 2008 and 2013, Moroccan courts convicted the defendants primarily on the basis of contested confessions. Defendants in many cases or their lawyers have repeatedly told Human Rights Watch that the police either forced or intimidated the defendants into signing their statements without reading them.

B.H. told Aswat that she was forced to sign the statements after police transferred her to an adult prison, where she was held in a cell with adults. B.H. said she was threatened by other prisoners, who appeared to know the details of her case. Family members told Aswat that B.H. was transferred to Boulmharez prison and C.S. to a detention center for minors. B.H.'s mother told Aswat that she was not aware of her daughter's detention for the first 24 hours.

Moroccan law and international standards require the separation of minors from adults in detention. In October 2014, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in its concluding observations urged the Moroccan government to ensure that detention, including pretrial detention, is used as a measure of last resort for minor defendants.

"The girls' experience in detention was traumatic and humiliating," said a member of Aswat. "B.H. told us she was threatened by adult prisoners. She said she was so afraid she didn't eat for three days. C.S. told us that before she was sent to the juvenile detention center, the girls were forced to undress for inspection in front of other prisoners."

Criminalizing consensual, homosexual conduct violates fundamental human rights protected under international law. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Morocco ratified in 1979, prohibits interference with the right to privacy. The United Nations Human Rights Committee has condemned laws against consensual homosexual conduct as violations of the ICCPR. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has held that arrests for consensual homosexual conduct are, by definition, human rights violations.

Morocco's 2011 constitution, in its preamble, states that Morocco "commits to banning and combatting all discrimination toward anyone, because of gender, color, beliefs, culture, social or regional origin, language, handicap, or whatever personal circumstance." Article 24 also protects the right to privacy, including private communications. Only judicial authorities in accordance with Moroccan law can order access to private content.

Moroccan authorities should drop charges under article 489 against B.H and C.S. and legislators should abolish article 489, which contravenes the most basic rights enshrined in Morocco's constitution, Human Rights Watch and Aswat said.

"While Morocco grapples with the real problems of poverty, unemployment and extremism, the authorities find time to prosecute two teenagers for an alleged kiss," Whitson said.

Copyright notice:  Copyright, Human Rights Watch
Burma: End Prosecutions for Critical Speech

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 27 November 2016 Related Document(s) "They Can Arrest You at Any Time" - The Criminalization of Peaceful Expression in Burma Cite as Human Rights Watch, Burma: End Prosecutions for Critical Speech, 27 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c01904.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Burmese authorities continue to arrest and charge individuals, including members of the ruling party, for criticizing the military and government, Human Rights Watch said today.

On November 18, 2016, National League for Democracy (NLD) member Myo Yan Naung Thein was charged with defamation for a Facebook post criticizing the military for "failing to defend the country" against attacks in Rakhine State and calling for the commander-in-chief of the armed forces to resign. He is being held without bail, and faces up to three years in prison under Burma's Telecommunications Law.

"No one seems safe from prosecution under Burma's overly broad laws criminalizing free speech," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director. "It's crucial that the NLD, many of whose members spent long years in prison for their political views, act to end these prosecutions and amend the law."

Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law is a vaguely worded provision that criminalizes "extorting, coercing, restraining wrongfully, defaming, disturbing, causing undue influence or threatening any person by using any telecommunications network." A member of parliament who serves on the Parliamentary Commission for the Assessment of Legal Affairs and Special Issues recently announced that the commission was preparing to review the law in light of criticism of its continued use.

In recent months, the authorities have used section 66(d) to arrest individuals who allegedly insulted or defamed NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Htin Kyaw, or the military. In September, Aung Win Hlaing was sentenced to nine months in prison for calling the president an "idiot" and "crazy" on Facebook. On November 11, Ko Hla Phone was sentenced to two years in prison for allegedly posting digitally altered images of former president Thein Sein and Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing on social media. Section 66(d) is also now being used to prosecute the chief executive officer and chief editor of Eleven Media, Than Htut Aung and Wai Phyo, for an article that suggested that Rangoon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein had accepted an expensive watch from a prominent businessman.

Human Rights Watch takes the position that defamation  a false statement of fact that harms someone's reputation  should not be a criminal offense, as criminal penalties are always a disproportionate punishment for harm to someone's reputation. Defamation cases involving public figures are particularly problematic, allowing those in power to penalize their critics or those who seek to expose official wrongdoing. The United Nations Human Rights Committee has made clear that speech that is considered insulting, even speech that insults those in a position of power, should never be the basis of a criminal prosecution.

"Exposure of corruption and criticism of the government, however crudely worded, are essential elements of a rights-respecting democracy, and should not be the basis of criminal prosecutions," Robertson said. "The Burmese parliament should move quickly to amend section 66(d) to bring it in line with international standards for the protection of free expression."

Copyright notice:  Copyright, Human Rights Watch
Oman: Court postpones verdict of "Azamn" journalists, in a trial held below international standards, according to trial observation report

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 28 November 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Oman: Court postpones verdict of "Azamn" journalists, in a trial held below international standards, according to trial observation report, 28 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c04034.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

The continuing prosecution and trial of three "Azamn" journalists in Oman has been marked by procedural flaws and the abuse of punitive press laws, according to a final Trial Observation Report published by a coalition of human rights groups today.

The continuing prosecution and trial of three Azamn journalists in Oman has been marked by procedural flaws and the abuse of punitive press laws, according to a final Trial Observation Report published by a coalition of human rights groups today.

On 07 November 2016, the Omani Appeal Court in Muscat heard the case against three journalists of "Azamn" newspaper, Ibrahim Al-Maamari, Yousef Al-Haj, and Zaher Al-Abri. The coalition of rights groups which monitored the trial was composed of the Gulf Center for Human Rights (GCHR), the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), Front Line Defenders, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and both the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders.

The independent human rights lawyer, who attended the Appeal Court trial on 7 November 2016 in Muscat, finds that the hearing fell below international fair trial standards.

The verdict was set for 17 November but is now due on 12 December 2016. The coalition therefore renew its calls for the charges to be dropped and/or for the defendants to be acquitted. See: http://www.gc4hr.org/news/view/1424

The full report finds, inter alia, that:

Pre-trial detention of the three defendants in the summer of 2016 was arbitrary and disproportionate, while conditions in solitary confinement constituted inhuman and degrading treatment;

There was a failure by the State to afford the defendants timely access to legal support;

The central charges brought against the defendants act as a broad and disproportionate tool for state action against the media, offend the principle of legality and pose a significant obstacle to successfully mounting a fair defence.

The Appeal Court trial failed to remedy the irregularities in the lower Court hearings.

Read the full report online here.
The newspaper's management fired MacGregor, its special investigations editor, on 31 October for supposedly breaching company policy and "uphold the paper's reputation" and "damaged national reconciliation" through this story and other she had written. But the management declined to tell her exactly how she did this.





Her dismissal followed the publication of a story on 27 October about the alleged rape of dozens of women by soldiers during an operation in the northwestern state of Arakan, nowadays also known as Rakhine State, a restive region with a persecuted Muslim (Rohingya) minority.





Headlined "Dozens of rapes reported in northern Rakhine State", the story reported numerous allegation of rape by security forces during military operations in the region, based on information gathered by human rights organizations in Myanmar. Reuters published a report the next day that seemed to confirm the information.





As reported by the Rangoon English-language weekly Frontier Myanmar, government officials lost no time in denouncing MacGregor's story. President's office spokesman Zaw Htay, for example, accused her of using "uncredible (sic)" sources in a Facebook post on the day her story appeared.





Former information minister Ye Htut went so far as to call for her to be charged under section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law, which criminalizes online defamation and was used to arrest two senior Eleven Media Group journalists on 11 November.





Frontier Myanmar said the information ministry called the management of the Myanmar Times on 28 October, three days before her dismissal, to voice its displeasure with MacGregor's reporting.





According to information obtained by RSF, the government's meddling was not limited to this call. After her dismissal, the Myanmar Times human resources department contacted the information ministry in order to report that she had been fired. This was an extraordinary step for a newspaper to take.





Two Home Affairs Ministry officials led by former junta member Lt. Gen. Yaw Sew then went to the newspaper's headquarters on 8 November to confirm that MacGregor really was no longer working there. RSF has been told that officials with other ministries also contacted the Myanmar Times about MacGregor. This brings to at least three the number of government bodies involved in her dismissal, which has been condemned by her colleagues at the newspaper.





"The government's public comments and the date of Fiona MacGregor's dismissal already left little doubt about government interference in the Myanmar Times' affairs and it is confirmed by the information we have gathered, which clearly shows she was the victim of a political reprisal," said Benjamin Ismail, the head of RSF's Asia-Pacific desk.





"We call for a judicial investigation into this abuse of authority, in order to shed all possible light on the involvement of government officials in her dismissal, especially as her story and ensuing dismissal have come at a moment when the United Nations is expressing concern about possible crimes against humanity in Arakan."





Ismail added: "At the same time, we think that it is not too late for the management of the Myanmar Times to reverse course. If it does not, and if it cannot justify her dismissal, it could be exposed to legal proceedings for violating Burma's labour code."





After the publication of MacGregor's story, the staff of the Myanmar Times was banned from covering the military operations in Arakan pending directives from the information ministry on how the region and its Rohingya minority should be covered.





The president's office announced on 16 November that it planned to lift the restrictions on journalists who want to cover the conflict in Arakan. Burmese media and NGOs that defend media freedom had denounced many curbs on reporting in the region.





The humanitarian crisis in Arakan and the fate of the Rohingyas continues to be one of Burma's biggest taboos. For more than four years, RSF has been urging the authorities to lift the restrictions on access to the region, especially for journalists and foreign observers.





Despite significant progress from 2011 to 2014, the media freedom situation continues to be worrying in Burma, which is ranked 143rd out of 180 countries in RSF's 2016 World Press Freedom Index. Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy is now the governing party but former junta members continue to wield a great deal of political influence.
The genocidal logic of South Sudan's "gun class"

Publisher IRIN Author Alan Boswell Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as IRIN, The genocidal logic of South Sudan's "gun class", 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c060d4.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

South Sudan's civil war began in December 2013 with ethnic cleansing in the capital, Juba, committed by a government put in power by external brokering aimed at paving the way for the world's newest nation.

This South Sudan political experiment lasted two and a half years. Its bloody collapse continues, a slow-motion calamity on a par with any crisis in the world.

Last week, the UN special adviser on preventing genocide, Adama Dieng, declared South Sudan at risk of genocide. The sudden focus is warranted but tardy. Some estimate that South Sudan's death toll rivals Syria's. But the atrocities described now in South Sudan's Equatoria region - charred bodies in torched villages, gang rape, depopulation as a tool of war, and political violence waged against perceived ethnopolitical blocs - has characterised the war since its inception.

In the beginning, many observers performed mental gymnastics to downplay the ugly ethnic nature of South Sudan's war. The new concerns over genocide risk reversing that mistake, casting the violence as chiefly ethnic, not political. Both miss the mark. In a South Sudan where political might flows up from mobilised ethnic enclaves, politics is ethnopolitics, and the ethnic tension is politically driven by the "King of the Hill" logic of a crude state formation.

This year I witnessed a Shilluk ethnic defense militia march new graduates to war with songs against the Dinka, after the government annexed traditional land to a neighboring Dinka state. I landed in Wau, a historically diverse provincial town, to emptied streets patrolled by Dinka soldiers after a Dinka militia avenged a Fertit rebel attack by torching a Ferit neighbourhood. At an abandoned medical research facility deep in the forest of Western Equatoria, a Zande rebel leader derided the Zande governor, simply, as "Dinka" - the height, for the rebel, of all insults.

Origins

South Sudan's ethnopolitical war is rooted in the flaws of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which installed a non-representative and ethnically fractured party, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement, in charge of a future country it never won over. Many South Sudanese militias, some more representative of political constituencies than others, successfully resisted the SPLM throughout the war. But peace brokers crowned SPLM

The SPLM's lack of monopolised or legitimised rule rendered South Sudan a failed state before birth. This is the origin of South Sudan's derided "gun class": without a state, politics is war. Rather than address this structural timebomb head-on, the 2005 CPA peace accord perversely incentivised SPLM leaders to latch hold of external sovereignty instead of legitimising its rule. Patchwork patronage coupled with crude collective punishment held the state together, but reinforced South Sudan's ethnopolitical lines.

This fractured state did not withstand its first power dispute. Riek Machar, South Sudan's vice president, a Nuer, challenged President Salva Kiir, a Dinka, for SPLM leadership, and Kiir sacked him.

Riek's "antics", Justice Ambrose Riny Thiik, who leads an influential Dinka nationalist lobby, told me, "sent waves through the Jieng (Dinka) community". Anyone who wants to lead South Sudan "must be someone that can win [the] support of our community", South Sudan's largest, he maintained. "So we joined together, all the Jieng communities of Bahr el Ghazal and Greater Upper Nile."

A Dinka paramilitary force secretly arrived in Juba, and its sudden ethnic cleansing campaign forced the ethnic Nuer out of South Sudan's political space and into armed rebellion and exile. South Sudanese got the message: In South Sudan, ethnicity trumps citizenship. If so, one could barely construct an entity more ripe for mass atrocities than South Sudan's weak ethnocratic rule over militarily fractured zones of ethnopolitical control.

The Nuer mobilised in vengeance, raiding towns and slaughtering Dinka in retaliation. Kiir relied increasingly on Dinka nationalism to wage the war and mobilise recruits. Political patronage dried up. Kiir's political base narrowed further.

Where now?

The war widened with the August 2015 peace deal, which granted Machar an official opposition army. National recruitment into Machar's force surged in new strongholds, a perverted but predictable effect of the accord's provisions. Unaligned militias, like the Arrow Boys in Western Equatoria, loosely joined Machar's now-official opposition, and mobilisation efforts in Equatoria and Western Bahr el Ghazal picked up.

A similar descent into war repeated itself across the country: rebel mobilisation sparks government hostility. Dinka security officers detain young men; some disappear. Civilians flee the garrison towns to the countryside. Broad retaliation follows rebel raids; more Dinka reinforcements arrive, reinforcing a sense of ethnocratic occupation. Isolated garrison towns suddenly float in seas of hostility. The government, increasingly, resorts to draining the sea.

This sea is now lapping up to the shores of Juba, which is within Equatoria. South Sudan is not Sudan or Syria; no rump state exists. The war is increasingly existential. If the history of mass atrocities should tell us anything: beware the desperate, not just the strong. Thus far, in the brutal logic of South Sudan's war, all sides become weaker and weaker, more and more vulnerable.

South Sudan's ethnopolitical crisis requires an ethnopolitical solution. The solution to the winner-take-all struggle is not a new winner-take-all election between armed parties. Nor will South Sudanese give up their arms until the political crisis is resolved. This only appears a chicken-or-egg predicament if one assumes South Sudan must be built top-down in a repeat of failed statebuilding models. South Sudanese voted for liberation. Instead, they are stuck in the violent spiral of a state collapse into bloody ethnopolitics waged over a centre created by peace brokers and statebuilders. Many flee. Others won't, or can't. The world will watch.

When Dinka, Nuer, and Shilluk first sought shelter with the UN in Malakal, violence raged between the ethnic groups inside the camp. The UN head called a meeting and John Chuol, a community police volunteer, stood to speak. "I told her to divide us up, so we'd stop fighting. She did. And it worked," he told me. Tensions calmed, allowing Chuol to start a youth league bringing the groups back together as South Sudanese.

Chuol invited me to the youth meeting. Dinka, Nuer, and Shilluk mingled. Days later, government forces torched the camp, including Chuol's home, while evacuating the Dinka inside.
Russia: prisoners who protested against torture and extortion face the prospect of serving 10 years in prison

Publisher International Federation for Human Rights Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as International Federation for Human Rights, Russia: prisoners who protested against torture and extortion face the prospect of serving 10 years in prison, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c09444.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Four years to this day, after a protest that took place in the Penal Colony of Kopeysk (Ural Region), which had come to symbolize the use of torture and of extortion in Russian prisons, 17 of its participants are on trial and face 10 years of imprisonment. An international mission is observing the hearings to monitor the respect of the rights of the persons concerned.

Seventeen individuals are being tried by a court in Chelyabinsk (Ural Region) since 1 June 2015 for having committed acts that according to the prosecution amount to "mass riots". The facts date back to 24 and 25 November 2012, when hundreds of prisoners climbed onto the prison roof in order to protest against the torture and extortion practices they were being subjected to on a daily basis on the part of the prison staff. The prisoners demanded that a prosecutor be sent from Moscow, as well as media teams, so that their complaints vis-a-vis the administration are followed up on. The events inside the prison, which rapidly obtained widespread media coverage, passed off peacefully and ended when the prisoners' demand was met.

On the other hand, clashes outside the colony opposed the prisoners' relatives and acquaintances and the police's anti-riot unit, as a result of which 8 police officers were injured and 38 persons were arrested. Six of the trial's indictees are former prisoners who were outside the prison during these events.

Russia's Presidential Council on Human Rights sent a fact-finding mission to the scene immediately after the protest. This mission collected 358 complaints, of which 255 were related to torture, physical violence and other forms of harassment. It uncovered a large-scale corruption scheme based on the extortion of money from the prisoners' relatives and the widespread use of violence, which involved the prison's direction, the guards and a "disciplinary section" made of prisoners. The mission found out about practices including keeping detainees tied to a grid for the all day and sometimes more. For instance, it reported that a prisoner was tied to the grill, with a bucket on the head and subject to pepper spray during about 16 hours, due to the fact that he wrote a lot of complaints about the conditions of detention.Moreover, the mission has established that the legal avenues for complaints had been completely ineffective. In addition, the mission criticized the shortcomings of the investigation on the death of a prisoner in summer 2012, allegedly caused by AIDS and described by witnesses as the result of his beating by colony wards.

In a statement published on 11 March 2013, the Presidential Council came to the conclusion that "massive, systematic and flagrant violations of the rights and interest of the prisoners" exist in the prison. It found that "all these circumstances have led to a situation in which () the protection of the rights and interests of the persons serving a sentence in Prison IK-6 was impossible. As a consequence, this has pushed the prisoners to stage a protest, which has received public attention not only in the Chelyabinsk Region, but also in the whole country."

Despite the seriousness of the acts documented by the Presidential Council, such acts have largely remained unpunished. On the disciplinary plan, warnings were imposed on 12 officers. The Director of Colony No. 6, Mr. Mekhanov was dismissed. Several officials of the Colony and the Regional Penal Service, including its Director, were also forced to retire or were transferred to another working place.

Until now only the former director of the Colony, Mr. Mekhanov, was prosecuted. On 22 December 2014, a court sentenced him to 3 years of suspended imprisonment with regards to 10 occurrences of money and asset extortion, and for organizing an illegal manufacturing of knives. On 5 June 2015, the court handed down yet another judgment in which Mr. Mekhanov was equally proven guilty of exceeding official powers (extortion of money from prisoners and their relatives) on several other occurrences. This time he was sentenced to one and a half year of suspended imprisonment. However, due to an amnesty, he was released from the given punishment. The acts of torture did not lead to any judicial proceedings.

Upon the request of local organizations, and in light of the fact that the protesters risk being convicted to harsh sentences for a protest action that originated from acts of an extreme gravity, the European Prison Litigation Network has established an observation mission for the trial under the auspices of an international steering committee comprising nine experts.

Without prejudice to the observations which will be published by the steering committee, the Network and FIDH are gravely concerned by the failure to consider, during the preliminary phase of the trial, of the context of torture which led to the protest. In these conditions, any shortfall in summoning the defence's witnesses would seriously compromise the fairness of the trial. Furthermore, the absence of an in-depth and effective investigation aimed at identifying and prosecuting the perpetrators, represents a violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECtHR, Lyapin v. Russia, 24/07/2014, no 46956/09). Therefore, the Network and FIDH urge the authorities to put an end to this situation of impunity. It recalls that, under Article 3, the investigation must be complete, prompt, independent, impartial and subject to public scrutiny (Lyapin v. Russia, prev.).
End harassment of cartoonist Zunar

Publisher International Federation for Human Rights Publication Date 27 November 2016 Cite as International Federation for Human Rights, End harassment of cartoonist Zunar , 27 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c09a44.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

The Malaysian government must immediately end the harassment of renowned cartoonist Zunar and drop all charges against him, FIDH and its member organization Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) said today.

On 26 November 2016, at approximately 6:00pm, police in George Town, Penang State, detained Zulkifli Anwar Ulhaque, better known as Zunar, under Article 4(1)(c) of the 1948 Sedition Act (publication of 'seditious' material) and Article 504 of the Criminal Code ('intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace'). [1] On the morning of 27 November 2016, the George Town Magistrate's Court approved the police request to remand Zunar for an additional 24 hours for further investigation. However, Zunar was released on the same day at 7:00pm.

Police had arrested Zunar as he reported himself to the Patani Road police station a day after the local ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party's Youth Chief Mohamed Norhiesam Ismail filed a complaint against Zunar in relation to his cartoon exhibit at the George Town Literary Festival, which opened on 25 November 2016. The exhibit featured several cartoons portraying Prime Minister Najib Razak.

On 25 November 2016, at approximately 2:30pm, a mob of about 30 people led by another local UMNO Youth Chief, Rafizal Abdul Rahim, stormed Zunar's exhibit, physically attacked Zunar and took down some of the cartoons on display. Malaysia's riot police, the Federal Reserve Unit (FRU), intervened to restore calm. As a result of the attack, Zunar decided to cancel the exhibit, which was expected to run until 27 November 2016.

The events of 25-27 November are the latest in a series of acts of judicial harassment targeting Zunar.

On 17 October 2016, Malaysian immigration authorities at Kuala Lumpur International Airport prevented Zunar from leaving the country to travel to Singapore. According to Zunar, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Khalid Abu Bakar issued the travel ban with effect on 24 June 2016.

On 10 February 2015, Zunar was detained for three days on charges of sedition. The charges under the colonial-era law stemmed tweets he had posted on the same day, which suggested the Federal Court's decision to uphold the conviction of opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim earlier in the day was politically motivated. Zunar's trial is expected to begin on 24 January 2017. If found guilty on all nine counts of sedition, Zunar could be sentenced to 43 years in prison.

In addition, on 28 January 2015, while Zunar was on a speaking tour in the UK, police raided his office in Kuala Lumpur and confiscated 155 copies of two of his publications, "Pirates of the Carry-BN" and "Conspiracy to Imprison Anwar."

Zunar is the recipient of numerous international awards, including the "2016 Cartooning for Peace Award" and the "2015 International Press Freedom Award." He also volunteered to contribute to the FIDH Comic Strip Reports in 2013 and 2015.
Migrants and refugees in detention centres: the humanitarian consequences of Libya's governance breakdown

Publisher Overseas Development Institute (ODI) Author Sherine El Taraboulsi Publication Date September 2016 Cite as Overseas Development Institute (ODI), Migrants and refugees in detention centres: the humanitarian consequences of Libya's governance breakdown, September 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c0d874.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Migrants and refugees rescued off the coast of Libya are not escaping death; instead, many of them are suffering a slow death in Libya's 18 detention centres. These centres, managed by the Interior Ministry Department for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM), are currently holding about 3,500 people from all over Africa, including neighbouring countries like Egypt and Tunisia (Human Rights Watch, 2016). Detainees are held for long periods without trial and without access to their families. They suffer from disease, malnutrition and physical and sexual violence. By pushing migrants and refugees away from Europe and placing deterrence at the centre of refugee policy, European governments are indirectly contributing to what is both a humanitarian and a human rights crisis (Hargrave & Pantuliano, 2016). Based on interviews with humanitarian workers in Libya and human rights activists, this article calls for immediate, concerted action. The situation in Libya can be reversed if enough international pressure is brought to bear.

Detention centres and the unravelling of Libya

While atrocious conditions have long been a feature of Libyan prisons and detention centres, the situation in detention centres is also a consequence of the larger breakdown of Libya's institutions and rule of law. Since the outbreak of the Arab uprisings in 2011, Libya has been locked in turmoil and conflict as its social fabric has unravelled and its state institutions have collapsed. Three governments exist side by side: the Tobruk-based House of Representatives, the new General National Congress (GNC) and the Government of National Accord (GNA). Brokered through the UN in December 2015, the GNA is the only internationally recognised governing body in Libya, but it has struggled to unify the Libyan people beyond political, tribal and regional differences, has no support on the ground and has been described as a 'Frankenstein type creation with zero legitimacy' (Galustian, 2016).

A study by the United States Institute of Peace on Libya's detention centres (2016) paints a grim picture. The assessment team visited facilities in various regions of Libya, interviewing prison staff, government officials and human rights activists. They found directors struggling with 'scant resources, dilapidated facilities, and multiple security threats'; staff were unpaid and chains of command unclear. The Judicial Police, which has been tasked by the Ministry of Justice to run Libya's prisons and detention centres, 'operates in survival mode, with fresh challenges emerging every day and the limited progress toward reform achieved thus far unravelling fast' (Mangan and Murray, 2016). The turmoil following the 2011 revolution has created a 'splintered system struggling to cope with structural, security and budgetary challenges' (ibid.).

The Deputy Director of Amnesty International Middle East and North Africa, Magdalena Mughrabi, confirms the chaos and emphatically rejects any collaboration between the European Union (EU) and Libya, including the provision of funds, that does not take into account this reality. Mughrabi says: 'Of course the Libyan coastguard's search and rescue capabilities have to improve to save lives at sea, but the grim reality at the moment is that the Libyan coastguard is intercepting and returning thousands of people to detention centres where they suffer torture and other abuses' (Amnesty International, 2016). Any cooperation with the DCIM in the absence of safeguards against such violations would only make matters worse.

The situation in detention centres

Both Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have pointed to violations against detainees in Libya's detention centres. The centres are not equipped to handle the current number of detainees; detainees are held arbitrarily for prolonged periods without any access to the outside world, and their number keeps increasing because few are released. In addition to health concerns stemming from overcrowded conditions, including lice and fleas and high risks of spreading infection, malnutrition is a serious threat. A doctor who had access to detention centres in Tripoli described how, in one centre, detainees survived on 600-800 calories per day (against a recommended daily intake of 2,400-2,800 calories a day for men and 1,800-2,000 for women). DCIM ascribes the shortage of food to the ending of a contract with a private company to transport and distribute food. Finally, there is virulent racism against detainees from Sub-Saharan Africa among guards at the centres because of the association between black Africans and Gaddafi's regime (many fought on his side in the 2011 civil war). Some guards are taking the opportunity to exact revenge. Religion and language are also key factors in determining how refugees are treated in custody. Nigerians are less fortunate than people from Niger, for example, because Nigerians are Muslim and some speak Arabic.

Addressing needs: a rights-based humanitarian response

In the absence of a political settlement in Libya, a number of swift steps need to be taken to address the crisis unfolding in the country's detention centres. The crisis is both a humanitarian one and a human rights one. A two-pronged approach is thus needed, which includes addressing the root causes of human rights violations as well as their humanitarian manifestations. Quick practical steps include exerting immediate pressure on the DCIM to renew its contract with private food companies in Libya and ensure that food is distributed to detention centres, and that detainees are provided with sufficient food while in custody. More international presence is needed in Libya - UN and other international organisations are operating there via local staff - to guarantee that violations are reported and made known to the public. Many of the violations taking place in Libya today are unknown to the wider world.

On another front, EU member states preoccupied with keeping migrants and refugees away must take steps to improve conditions in the countries to which they are being made to return. This may be possible through conditional investment in infrastructure. One key sector for investment is Libya's weak and drastically eroded health system. Another priority is improving the quality of detention centres. EU states should demand that the Libyan authorities - fragmented though they are - are accountable for the funds they receive, and that their financial contributions are not used to support the building of more detention centres. Lawyers for Justice in Libya (LFJL), an NGO established as a response to the 2011 revolution, has expressed concern about attempts to stem the flow of migrants and asylum-seekers entering Europe by providing support for migrant detention centres (LFJL, 2016). LFJL has called on the international community to fund efforts to restore the rule of law and accountability in Libya and strengthen the rights of migrants in detention, through supporting human rights initiatives, strategic litigation and legal training.

Sherine N. El Taraboulsi is a Research Fellow at the Humanitarian Policy Group (HPG) at the Overseas Development Institute (ODI).

References

Amnesty International UK (2016) Refugees Shot at by Libyan Coastguard Before Being Detained in "Shocking" Conditions Back in Libya.

Hargrave, Karen and Sara Pantuliano, with Ahmed Idris (2016) Closing Borders: The Ripple Effects of Australian and European Refugee Policy. Case Studies from Indonesia, Kenya and Jordan. HPG Working Paper. London: Overseas Development Institute.

Human Rights Watch (2016) Europe's Plan Endangers Foreigners in Libya.

Lawyers for Justice in Libya (LFJL) (2016). LFJL calls on the European Council to protect the human rights of migrants and asylum-seekers embarking from Libya.

Mangan, Fiona and Rebecca Murray (2016) 'Prisons and Detention in Libya'. Peaceworks. Washington DC: USIP.
Panama: Release Dutch journalist and drop criminal defamation charges

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as Article 19, Panama: Release Dutch journalist and drop criminal defamation charges, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c0fd14.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Panamanian authorities should immediately release Dutch investigative journalist Okke Ornstein and abolish the crime of criminal defamation, Transparency International, the International Press Institute (IPI) and ARTICLE 19 said today.

Ornstein is currently facing a 20 month prison sentence for reporting on alleged corruption through his blog.

"Journalists must be allowed to do their jobs freely," Cobus de Swardt, External Managing Director of Transparency International, said. "Corruption is by its nature secret. Journalists play an important role in showing that the corrupt cannot get away with their crimes. It's no time to be incarcerating the messengers."

IPI Executive Director Barbara Trionfi added that it was "appalling" that Panamanian authorities were seeking to imprison a journalist for exposing alleged corruption "just weeks before an important gathering of global anti-corruption experts and activists is set to take place there."

She continued: "IPI's extensive research on the use of criminal defamation laws around the world provides clear evidence that these laws often serve as convenient tools for prominent figures to quash critical media coverage, hide embarrassing or uncomfortable information, and silence investigations into financial, ethical and professional wrongdoing - all of which is extremely damaging and counter to the public interest."

The charge of criminal defamation acts to deter journalists and leads to self- censorship, particularly on issues like fraud and corruption.

International bodies such as the OSCE, UNESCO and the UN Human Rights Committee have long expressed concerns over the use of criminal defamation laws to silence dissent. In many countries, these laws are subject to abuse by powerful actors - including government officials, civil servants or prominent businesspeople.

Prosecuting defamation under criminal rather than civil law leads to disproportionally harsh sanctions including hefty fines, suspensions on journalists' ability to practice their profession, and in some cases, prison sentences.

"This case is a clear example of the abuse of criminal defamation laws to target those reporting on corruption and protect governments and powerful actors from accountability. Laws criminalising defamation must be repealed in order to protect the rights of journalists exposing this information," said Thomas Hughes, Executive Director of ARTICLE 19.

From 1-4 December journalists from all over the world will come together in Panama City for the 17th 17th International Anti-Corruption Conference, which will highlight the importance of investigative journalism in the fight against corruption and present awards to journalists whose work has exposed corruption.

The International Anti-Corruption Conference will also host the annual Colpin Latin American Investigative Journalism Conference. The Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS), which co-sponsors the Latin American Investigative Journalism Award with Transparency International, will announce the 2016 winners at the event.

Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
Brazil: The work of women on radio is the theme of ARTICLE 19's new project

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 25 November 2016 Cite as Article 19, Brazil: The work of women on radio is the theme of ARTICLE 19's new project, 25 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c10774.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Panamanian authorities should immediately release Dutch investigative journalist Okke Ornstein and abolish the crime of criminal defamation, Transparency International, the International Press Institute (IPI) and ARTICLE 19 said today.

Ornstein is currently facing a 20 month prison sentence for reporting on alleged corruption through his blog.

"Journalists must be allowed to do their jobs freely," Cobus de Swardt, External Managing Director of Transparency International, said. "Corruption is by its nature secret. Journalists play an important role in showing that the corrupt cannot get away with their crimes. It's no time to be incarcerating the messengers."

IPI Executive Director Barbara Trionfi added that it was "appalling" that Panamanian authorities were seeking to imprison a journalist for exposing alleged corruption "just weeks before an important gathering of global anti-corruption experts and activists is set to take place there."

She continued: "IPI's extensive research on the use of criminal defamation laws around the world provides clear evidence that these laws often serve as convenient tools for prominent figures to quash critical media coverage, hide embarrassing or uncomfortable information, and silence investigations into financial, ethical and professional wrongdoing - all of which is extremely damaging and counter to the public interest."

The charge of criminal defamation acts to deter journalists and leads to self- censorship, particularly on issues like fraud and corruption.

International bodies such as the OSCE, UNESCO and the UN Human Rights Committee have long expressed concerns over the use of criminal defamation laws to silence dissent. In many countries, these laws are subject to abuse by powerful actors - including government officials, civil servants or prominent businesspeople.

Prosecuting defamation under criminal rather than civil law leads to disproportionally harsh sanctions including hefty fines, suspensions on journalists' ability to practice their profession, and in some cases, prison sentences.

"This case is a clear example of the abuse of criminal defamation laws to target those reporting on corruption and protect governments and powerful actors from accountability. Laws criminalising defamation must be repealed in order to protect the rights of journalists exposing this information," said Thomas Hughes, Executive Director of ARTICLE 19.

From 1-4 December journalists from all over the world will come together in Panama City for the 17th 17th International Anti-Corruption Conference, which will highlight the importance of investigative journalism in the fight against corruption and present awards to journalists whose work has exposed corruption.

The International Anti-Corruption Conference will also host the annual Colpin Latin American Investigative Journalism Conference. The Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS), which co-sponsors the Latin American Investigative Journalism Award with Transparency International, will announce the 2016 winners at the event.

Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
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.
RSF reinforces alliance with partner in Tajikistan

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 28 November 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, RSF reinforces alliance with partner in Tajikistan, 28 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c47524.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is stepping up cooperation with the National Association of Independent Mass Media in Tajikistan (NANSMIT) with the aim of providing journalists with more support following recent developments that do not bode well for freedom of information in Tajikistan.

As freedom of the press and the situation of independent media continue to decline in this Central Asian country, RSF and NANSMIT have decided to reinforce a partnership focused on protecting freedom of information. To this end, they have signed an agreement that will enable them to provide more effective coverage of violations of the right to inform and be informed.

President Emomali Rahmon signed a law on 2 November under which criminal proceedings can be brought against anyone "insulting or defaming the Initiator of Peace and National Unity and Leader of the Nation" - the title that has recently been awarded to Emomali Rahmon, placing him about all other citizens. This new crime is punishable by up to five years in prison.

At the same time, two of Tajikistan's last independent media outlets have suddenly closed since the start of November.

The first was Nigokh, a weekly covering social and political trends in Tajikistan that had established itself as an alternative source of information about domestic developments in its ten years of existence. The pressure that led to its closure was prompted by a misprint in the word "president" and showed the extremes to which the regime is ready to go in implementing the new law.

The second was the news agency Tojnews, which shut down two weeks later without giving any official reason. However, RSF has registered several cases of threats, harassment, and intimidation, especially judicial intimidation, against independent journalists in recent months.

The authorities meanwhile inaugurated a "Single Communications Switching Centre" on 11 November that centralizes all telephone and Internet communications with the aim of facilitating surveillance on the grounds of combatting terrorism and extremism. It allows the government to have complete control over domestic communications without any safeguards.

The foreign ministry also rescinded the accreditations of six journalists with the Tajik service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on 25 November. The ministry declined to explain this decision publicly but told RFE/RL by telephone that it was prompted by the broadcaster's refusal to withdraw an article from its website about the appointment of the president's daughter, Rukhshona Rakhmonova, to a senior position within the ministry.

"We are alarmed by the constant decline in the situation in Tajikistan for nearly two years and by the speed of this deterioration, and we fear that this country could become a new area in Central Asia where journalists have no rights," RSF programme director Lucie Morillon said.

"We believe President Rahmon's policies pose a great danger to peace and national stability. The government is trying to gain complete control over media coverage as the social and economic situation keeps on worsening. For all these reasons, we have decided to work more closely with our long-standing partner, NANSMIT."

Recent curbs on freedom of information include a decree in August reinforcing government censorship of "the entire sphere of news coverage" by TV and radio, with aims that include "enhancing Tajikistan's media image in the world arena" and protecting the country from "media attacks."

The decree defined TV and radio broadcasting as "ideological propaganda tools" that are used to wage "information wars" and "verbal struggles," and to deal "psychological strikes."

Tajikistan is ranked 150th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2016 World Press Freedom Index after falling 33 places. This was the biggest fall of any country in this year's index. Harassment of journalists and website blocking have increased since the 2015 parliamentary election and the banning of the Islamic Renaissance Party, the main opposition party.
With 500,000 children living under siege in Syria, UNICEF calls for humanitarian access

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 28 November 2016 Cite as UN News Service, With 500,000 children living under siege in Syria, UNICEF calls for humanitarian access, 28 November 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c47fd40d.html [accessed 2 November 2022] 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.

28 November 2016 - As the number of children living under siege has doubled in less than one year to nearly 500,000 amid escalating violence across Syria, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has called for lifting sieges and allowing immediate humanitarian access.

For millions of human beings in Syria, life has become an endless nightmare  in particular for the hundreds of thousands of children living under siege, said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, according to a news release which also stated that children are now playing and studying in underground spaces.

Children are being killed and injured, too afraid to go to school or even play, surviving with little food and hardly any medicine. This is no way to live  and too many are dying, he added.

UNICEF said that the 500,000 children live in 16 besieged areas across the country, almost completely cut off from sustained humanitarian aid and basic services. Some communities have received little to no aid in nearly two years. In eastern Aleppo alone, the agency estimates that 100,000 children are living under siege.

In the absence of safe spaces, children are turning to basement playgrounds, schools and hospitals to continue playing, learning and, when necessary, seeking medical care. In one besieged area, a group of volunteers built a playground and a park by linking a series of basements.

On average, around 200 children come to this playground every day. In another besieged area, an underground school provides 250 girls with the chance to keep learning.

As the conflict nears six years, UNICEF has renewed its call on all parties to lift the sieges across Syria, and to allow and facilitate immediate, unconditional and sustained humanitarian access to all areas across the country.
Title The Equal Rights Trust - Suggested issues and questions to be adopted at the 66th session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (pre-sessional working group) in relation to the sixth periodic report submitted by: Jordan

Publisher Equal Rights Trust

Publication Date 7 September 2016

Country Jordan

Cite as Equal Rights Trust, The Equal Rights Trust - Suggested issues and questions to be adopted at the 66th session of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (pre-sessional working group) in relation to the sixth periodic report submitted by: Jordan, 7 September 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/583c50ca4.html [accessed 2 November 2022]
Milan, Italy -- (ReleaseWire) -- 11/28/2016 --Italian footwear brand, GuidoMaggi, will open its first showroom on Dec. 1, 2016 in Milan at 18 Via Fiori Chiari in the historic Brera. The showroom is the first elevator shoe showroom in the world, showcasing the brand's latest selection of height increasing sneakers, loafers, boots and dress shoes, which are handmade in Italy and tailored by a team of skilled local artisans. Managed by Andrea Clessi, the flamboyant designer behind the "Clique Rielaboratorio", the store's interior design was intended to exude optimal luxury. Clessi carefully selected the store's furniture, with each piece echoing the same passion and skill found in GuidoMaggi's line of luxury elevator shoes. The brand currently delivers elevator footwear to more than 90 countries worldwide.



"To open a showroom in the capital of fashion has always been our goal," said GuidoMaggi CEO, Emanuele Briganti. "A company with a focus on exports like ours, which relies solely on e-commerce as a sales channel, sought to create a real experiential path. We have created a place where you can develop a sense of intimacy with the product. Choosing a shoe goes well beyond the simple visual factor. It also involves other senses, through the scent of leather, its softness, its comfort. Our company was founded as a craft workshop. We cherish these roots as they continue to guide us through the global market of e-commerce. Our new showroom allows a closer look of our craftsmanship. Our mission is to increase the stature of people who feel this need, and achieve it in a way that is natural, elegant and with maximum comfort."



GuidoMaggi shoes are created by hand utilizing two different methods of construction. Some shoes boast Blake seaming, which involves a single seam holding together the shoe's outsole, lining, upper and insole. Others include Goodyear stitching, created by a master craftsman attaching the outsole to the welt  a meticulous process requiring skill and patience. GuidoMaggi's collection of luxury elevator shoes can discreetly and effectively increase height by 2.4 to 5 inches instantly.



"Our strictly artisanal production provides classic elevator shoes, loafers, sneakers, boots and ankle boots, made by skilled craftsmen using the finest leathers and high quality materials. We also carry a unique and prestigious line of footwear made from exotic skins such as python, alligator, crocodile, ostrich and piracucu. GuidoMaggi is the only producer of shoes that utilize the skin of this rare and valuable Amazonian fish," said Briganti.



As a brand, GuidoMaggi accommodates a unique clientele, specifically the modern gentleman seeking to increase his height, style and self-confidence. GuidoMaggi's clients settle for nothing less than superior quality and absolute comfort. The company offers an exclusive bespoke experience, allowing customers to customize a pair of elevator shoes to their exact specifications, selecting from a range of color, leather and internal lift options. The showroom allows for direct interaction between the company and its customers, offering a more inclusive experience than ever before.



GuidoMaggi's Italian history is rooted in passion, skill and dedication. "Ours is the first showroom for elevator shoes in the world," said Emanuele Briganti, "and will be the ideal meeting place in which to breathe innovation and tradition; where each shoe has a soul and a story of its own to tell."



For more information:



GuidoMaggi  Luxury Italian Height Increasing Shoes

http://www.guidomaggi.com

tel. +39 347 23 52 322

email: press@guidomaggi.it
Once overlooked, Arjun Lothe seizes opportunity at Indian Creek

Indian Creek QB Arjun Lothe has all the intangibles a coach could dream of, but it took until his senior season to get his shot. He seized it.
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Workers sort coal on a conveyor belt near a coal mine in Datong in northern China's Shanxi province, Nov. 20, 2015.

Contradictions in China's energy and environmental policies are challenging antipollution efforts despite projections of progress toward long-term goals.

In its annual World Energy Outlook released this month, the International Energy Agency (IEA) gave positive ratings to both China's and world efforts to stem global warming.

"The prospective changes to the global energy scene are not yet enough to deliver the necessary containment of CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions. But we are making progress," wrote IEA executive director Fatih Birol in introducing the near 700-page report.

The agency cited encouraging trends in the national commitments of over 190 countries to limit the rise of world temperatures to 2 degrees Centigrade (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) since the start of the industrial age.

"So far, the two-degree target is not out of reach," said study coauthor Laura Cozzi at a prerelease press conference, but she stressed that greater efforts will be needed to meet the goal by the end of the century.

IEA officials noted that 2015 was a no-growth year for CO2 emissions, while non-carbon renewable energy sources accounted for more than half of new generating capacity for the first time.

All nations have contributed to global warming, but climate trends continue to depend heavily on China as the largest energy consumer and carbon emitter. Although the country leads the world in developing renewable energy sources like solar and wind power, it also burns about half the world's coal.

In its long-range forecast tables, the IEA projects that China's annual CO2 emissions will reach a high by around 2030 before declining to account for 24.2 percent of the world total in 2040 compared with 28.3 percent in 2014.

By contrast, U.S. emissions have already peaked with annual volumes dropping 6.1 percent from 2014 to 2020 and nearly 25 percent by 2040. The U.S. share of world CO2 will fall from 16 percent to 10.7 percent, the forecast said.

The projections are for the IEA's central "new policies scenario," which assumes that declared national intentions will be implemented.

Changes in coal policies

At the online prerelease press conference, IEA officials declined to address questions on possible shifts in U.S. policies after the recent presidential elections and potential effects on the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

During the campaign, Republican candidate Donald Trump called global warming a "hoax." But as president-elect, Trump told The New York Times last week that he is keeping "a totally open mind" with regard to climate change.

It remains unclear whether the new administration will support the Paris accords.

But changes in China's coal policies may cast an equally large cloud of uncertainty over the IEA projections that have been prepared during the past year.

Under rising international pressure, China set targets for reducing its massive production overcapacity in the steel and coal industries, which has been blamed for low prices, pollution and job losses at home and abroad.

In February, China's government pledged to cut up to 150 million metric tons of annual steel capacity and as much as 1 billion tons of coal by 2020. But at the same time, it approved economic stimulus projects that increased demand for coal and steel.

Policy contradictions came to a head over the past month with a steep drop in coal inventories that roughly doubled prices for the high-polluting fuel this year.

Faced with a price crisis, China's government moved in both directions at once, insisting that it will meet the 2020 targets for capacity cuts while authorizing coal mines to boost production by 1 million tons per day.

The increase threatens to reverse the declines in China's coal consumption since 2014, which encouraged climate change activists to hope that a major CO2 source had already peaked.

According to China's official figures, coal use fell 2.9 percent in 2014 from the year-earlier high of 4.24 billion tons, dropping by another 3.6 percent in 2015. In the first half of 2016, coal consumption was down 5.1 percent from a year before to 1.82 billion tons, the government said.

But that was before the recent shortages and the surge in output. If the trends continue, consumption could rise again and perhaps test the 2013 high.

"Since the capacity cuts were blamed for causing a supply shortage, it will not be easy to resolve the combination of a short-term crunch and a long-term excess," an analysis by the official Xinhua news agency said last week.

A wheel loader piles up coal at a coalyard in Yichang, central China's Hubei province, Sept. 12, 2016. Credit: ImagineChina Volatility in production

The IEA study voiced confidence in China's efforts to reduce coal use over time. It projects that coal demand will decline at an average annual rate of 0.5 percent through 2040.

But the report includes a reservation that reflects the current policy reversal and could spell trouble for the forecast ahead.

"Despite the efforts of policymakers to smooth the transition, there remains a risk that the volatility in coal production and pricing in China will increase over the coming years," it says.

"It cannot be excluded that exceptionally strong electricity demand growth, coupled with poor hydropower availability ... and a surge in industrial production ... might, over the medium term, lead to a new, transient spike in coal demand that exceeds the historical peak," the study says.

Despite the reservation, the IEA stressed that "all fundamentals point to Chinese coal demand having now entered a slow decline ...."

When asked about risks to the forecast from China's increased output, the IEA responded by largely restating the wording of the study without elaborating on how long the "transient spike" might go on. But the reference to the "medium term" suggests that higher coal consumption could continue for years.

Despite the growth of renewable energy and electric cars, the importance of China's coal consumption to climate change may be hard to overstate.

China's coal demand accounted for 51.6 percent of the world's total in 2014 and will still amount to 42.6 percent in 2040, the IEA projected.

Coal was responsible for 83 percent of energy-related CO2 emissions in 2014 and will still contribute 69 percent of the total in 2040, according to the forecast data.

Consumption could rise

Although the IEA expects a gradual decline in coal use, China's newly-released five-year plan for the electricity sector suggests that consumption could rise again.

Coal-fired generating capacity will expand by as much as 19 percent during the period, Bloomberg News reported, although the plan by the National Energy Administration calls for non-fossil power to increase by 48 percent.

"Coal consumption growth over the next five years is projected to be stronger than previously expected," Helen Lau, an analyst at Argonaut Securities Asia Ltd. told Bloomberg.

Environmental groups including Greenpeace East Asia have been highly critical of China's rapid construction of new coal-fired power plants at a time when the generating capacity of existing plants is severely underutilized.

The IEA report provides an explanation for China's addition of new coal-fired capacity while utilization of existing plants continues to decline to less than 50 percent.

In industrialized Western countries, "alarm bells ring with investors when coal plant utilization drops below 70 percent," the report said. But capital costs for plants in China are far lower.

Under the country's regulated electricity tariffs, China's power plants can run profitably with utilization rates as low as 32 percent, it said.

The calculations may be challenged by the recent price hikes for coal, but China's cost structure could support higher consumption for years.

Beyond the policy conflicts and questions about the projections, China's citizens have been left with a more basic contradiction.

Despite the official reports that coal use has been dropping for nearly three years, smog alerts in northern regions have been on the rise.

"Most people I know in China don't think it's getting any better," said Kristen McDonald, China program coordinator at Pacific Environment, a San Francisco-based nongovernmental organization.

"They see these data and say, 'Maybe it's getting better elsewherenot here,'" McDonald said.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen (L) shakes hands with new Foreign Minister Prak Sokhon (R) during a handover ceremony at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Phnom Penh, April 5, 2016.

Kicking the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights out of Cambodia is raising worries among the countrys citizens that they will have no place to turn if the rights watchdog no longer has a place in the country.

Cambodia will be a more authoritarian country without the U.N. office, a rickshaw driver named Chhun Oeun told RFAs Khmer Service. Even now, with the U.N. office here, several human rights activists have been arrested, beaten, and jailed. I cannot imagine how much worse the situation will be if there is no such office.

Am Sam Ath, a technical coordinator for human rights group Licadho, told RFA that closing the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) in Cambodia would be a loss for the entire nation as it will lose foreign aid and international respect.

Cambodia will be deprived of its foreign aid due to its action, he said. There might be fewer reports on human right abuses if the U.N. office is no longer present, but that doesnt do any good to the governments overall image.

Song Sreyleap, a Boeung Kak land activist, told RFA the Cambodian government is trying to avoid its responsibilities to its people.

If the government does not want the U.N.s intervention into Cambodias internal affairs, why has it failed to take good care of its own people? Why has it not done anything to improve the human rights situation? Why has it not stopped the suppression of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly? Why has it not stopped evicting people from their homes? she said.

Some 3,500 families were evicted from the land surrounding Boeung Kak lake in Phnom Penh, which was filled with sand to make way for a development project with close ties to Hun Sen and the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP).

Sar Sorn, a representative of Borei Keila community, told RFA the attempt by Hun Sens government to kick out the U.N. was a transparent attempt to hide his activities.

The government is afraid to face the truth about its abuses of human rights, and thats why it wants to close down the U.N. office, she said. If the government is truly accountable for its actions as it claims it is, then it shouldnt be afraid to let the U.N. office continue its mandate. Its threat to close the office reflects the regime of a dictator.

About 300 families in Borei Keila were forcibly evicted from their homes in 2012 to make way for development by the politically-connected construction company Phanimex.

Trader Sim Thida told RFA that she fears a return to the dark days of the Khmer Rouge.

Cambodia will be reduced to a regime like the Khmer Rouge where people were totally controlled and deprived of their rights and freedom, she said. Cambodia will lose a check and balance if there is no U.N. office.

'Arrogant and disrespectful behavior'

Cambodias Foreign Minister Prak Sokhon accused the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), of arrogant and disrespectful behavior toward the sovereignty of Cambodia, and threatened to end the countrys cooperation with the office unless it agrees to quit "meddling" in the nations internal affairs.

Despite the [Royal Government of Cambodias] efforts to enhance the smooth, constructive, and effective cooperation based on mutual respect, the OHCHR has furthermore been stepping up its interference in internal affairs of Cambodia, he wrote in a Nov. 22 letter to OHCHR leader Zeid Raad al-Hussein.

While the memorandum of understanding that allows the OHCHR to operate in Cambodia lapsed last year, the office has continued to function without it.

According to Prak Sokhons letter, that could end at the end of 2016 if the OHCHR refuses to agree to operate on the basis of the principle of respect for sovereignty and non-interference in Cambodias internal affairs.

Raivna Shamdasani, a spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said yesterday that discussions with the government on the new agreement were continuing, the Khmer Times reported.



The presence of OHCHR in any country depends on the agreement of the host country, and we are looking forward to continuing to discuss with the government the continuing presence of OHCHR in the country, she said, according to local media reports.



Sovereignty and Sam Rainsy

Cambodias government has bristled over comments made earlier this month by the OHCHRs country representative Wan-Hea Lee, who told local media that an Interior Ministry directive barring Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) leader Sam Rainsy from entering the country was a likely rights violation.

No elements of the decision to block the entry of Mr. Sam Rainsy into Cambodia have been brought to light that would allow anyone to assess its reasonableness, which renders the decision unjustified and arbitrary, Lee wrote in an email to The Cambodia Daily.

In October, the Cambodian government ordered police, immigration, and aviation authorities to "use all ways and means" to prevent opposition leader Sam Rainsy from returning from exile, as he has pledged to do before elections in 2017 and 2018.

The opposition leader has been abroad for a year to avoid a two-year prison sentence handed down in a defamation case. It is not the only conviction handed down by the courts.

In the latest case, the Phnom Penh Municipal Court found the opposition leader guilty of defamation on Nov. 8 for claiming that Prime Minister Hun Sens social medial team bought likes on Facebook from click farms abroad to increase his support.

At the time of his latest conviction, the opposition leader said he could never win in the Cambodian courts because they are puppets of the government.

ADHOC and NEC officialskept in jail

Meanwhile, the Cambodian appellate court on Monday refused to release four workers for the human rights organization ADHOC and a National Election Commission member who are facing charges in connection with the governments wide-ranging probe into deputy opposition leader Kem Sokhas alleged affair with a young hairdresser.

The Appeals Court upheld the Phnom Penh Municipal Courts decision to keep ADHOCs Ny Sokha, Yi Soksan, Nay Vanda, and Lim Mony, and the NECs Ny Chakrya in jail for up to six more months as the court collects more evidence in the cases, which are widely seen as politically motivated.

Ny Chakrya and the ADHOC workers face charges of bribery or attempted bribery for allegedly attempting to pay hairdresser Khom Chandaraty money to keep quiet about her alleged relationship with Kem Sokha.

The appeals court judge indicated that the court has upheld the investigative judges decision on the provisional detention as it is a criminal case and the investigation is not yet complete, Kea Sophal, an attorney for the ADHOC workers told RFA, saying the legal team has yet to decide what to do next.

Reported by Sideth Cheu and Samnang Rann for RFA's Khmer Service. Translated by Nareth Muong. Written in English by Brooks Boliek.
Fears are growing for the safety of top Chinese human rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong, who went missing, believed detained, last week.



Jiang, 45, has been incommunicado since he traveled to Hunan's provincial capital Changsha a week ago to meet with relatives of lawyers detained in last year's nationwide crackdown.



U.S.-based legal scholar Teng Biao said Jiang is in poor health with very high blood pressure, as well as being at risk of torture.



"We are extremely worried and concerned about the possibility that he could suffer torture or other forms of inhumane treatment [at the hands of the authorities]," Teng told RFA.



"I think the authorities have likely got him under surveillance ... I'm certain he has been kidnapped by them; that's without doubt," he said.



"The government is always using these kinds of underhand mafia tactics on lawyers and rights activists," he said.



More than 60 lawyers have issued a statement calling on the authorities to investigate Jiang's "disappearance" after he failed to make the D940 express train from Shandong back to Beijing on Nov. 21.



"If Jiang Tianyong is under some form of coercive measures [such as residential surveillance], then the department in charge of the case should immediately issue written notification to his family," the statement said.



"His right to hire a lawyer and other basic rights must also be guaranteed," it said.



Call for explanation



Jiang's wife Jin Bianling, who is currently in the United States, told RFA on Monday that the authorities owe her and the rest of his family an explanation.



"Jiang has been missing for a week now ... and we want to call on the authorities to investigate Jiang Tianyong's disappearance," Jin said.



"They should give his family an explanation, including specific details about his location, and any crimes he is suspected of," she said.



Jiang is likely to have been detained in connection with his representation of lawyers held in a nationwide crackdown that began on July 9, 2015 with a police raid on the offices of the Fengrui law firm and the detention of its key lawyers, including Wang Yu, his associates have said.



Beijing-based Jiang lost contact with friends and family after he visited Chen Guiqiu, the wife of detained rights lawyer Xie Yang, in Changsha.



"I want more and more people to know about his case," Jin said, adding that the charges used to detain more than 300 lawyers, activists, and law firm staff in the July 9, 2015 crackdown were "ridiculous."



"There's no way they stand up from a legal point of view," she said.



'A serious violation'



Henan-based rights lawyer Chang Boyang, who was recently hired by Jiang's father to defend him, said he is very worried for his client's safety.



"Enforced disappearances constitute a very serious violation of the law, and of the rule of law," Chang told RFA. "If that is going to happen, then nobody feels safe."



"If he has really committed a crime, then they should follow due process in dealing with it, and inform the family," he said.



"This sort of thing flies in the face of what President Xi Jinping was saying about running the country according to law," Chang said.



Fellow defense lawyer Chen Jinxue said he had reported Jiang missing at the Western Railway Station police station in Beijing last week, and called on them to investigate surveillance footage from the cameras in the station.



But Chen's status as Jiang's lawyer hadn't been recognized by police, he said.



"It is an illegal requirement to ask for proof of the lawyer-client relationship, but his family have sent it over anyway," Chen said.



"We will be pursuing this matter further," he said.



High-profile dissidents



German vice-chancellor Sigmar Gabriel last week expressed "concern" at Jiang's fate, according to the country's international broadcaster Deutsche Welle.



Jiang's disappearance came after he joined a group of lawyers, dissidents, and critical intellectuals who met with Gabriel during his visit to Beijing on Nov. 2 at the German Embassy in Beijing.



The lawyer has previously represented high-profile dissidents, including blind rights activist Chen Guangcheng, now living in the United States, and Christian rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng.



He was kidnapped by police in February 2011 and held for two months, during which time he reported being tortured and mistreated by his captors.



In March 2014, he was detained and beaten up by police to the extent that he lost eight teeth, after he tried to visits inmates of an extrajudicial "black jail" in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang.



More than 300 lawyers, law firm staff, rights activists, and relatives have been detained, questioned, or placed under surveillance or other restrictions since the crackdown began.



At least 16 remain in criminal detention on subversion charges, while four have been handed jail terms of up to seven years, according to the Hong Kong-based Chinese Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group.



Balance of rights



New United Nations chief Antonio Guterres, who is currently on a visit to Beijing, called on world governments to respect human rights.



China often clashes with U.N. bodies and envoys over its human rights record, and Guterres made the comments with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi standing beside him.



"In a world torn by war, a United Nations [should] enhance diplomacy for peace," Guterres said.



"In a world where so many rights are not respected, [we need] to make sure that there is an effective combination in human rights, of the civil and political rights and the economic and social rights in a balanced way," Guterres said.



Wang merely replied: "The U.N. is an effective platform for responses to global challenges and the central institution for international efforts to handle global affairs."



Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service and by Ng Yik-tung for the Cantonese Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.




Authorities in the Chinese capital on Monday detained hundreds of petitioners as the visiting new United Nations chief urged better protection for human rights around the world.



Police and security guards beat up some petitioners after hundreds of people with complaints and grievances against the ruling Chinese Communist Party gathered outside the national-level police complaints department in Beijing, eyewitnesses said.



"There were so many police there, about 1,000, with maybe 400 interceptors," Sichuan petitioner Yuan Ying told RFA, referring to security personnel hired by regional governments to escort petitioners home, often to face further harassment, violence, or detention in "black jails."



"They were all standing over by the alley leading to the Dongtangzi Church and around there," Yuan said. "The petitioners were being locked up and kidnapped for complaining about the government."



"Some interceptors snatched away one petitioner from right under the noses of the police," she said.



As the detentions and beatings took place, U.N. secretary general-elect Antonio Guterres warned of a weakening human rights regime around the world during a visit to Beijing.



Speaking amid widespread criticism of China's participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council, Guterres called on the United Nations to abide by its principles.



"In a world where so many rights are not respected, [we must] make sure that there is an effective combination in human rights, of civil and political rights and the economic and social rights in a balanced way," Guterres said.



Out on the streets, Gansu petitioner Qiao Hua reported similar crowds outside the State Council's land bureau, where some 200 petitioners had gathered, and outside the Ministry of Public Security.



"Things were very bad here on the ground today," Qiao said. "When I went to swipe my ID card at the ministry of public security, the interceptors were out in force, watching everybody."



"There were lots of security guards on duty inside as well."



The Sichuan-based Tianwang rights website said that the majority of people who complain to the ministry are those seeking redress for unlawful detentions and kidnappings at the hands of the police.



Death in custody



Some of the complaints were linked to the death in custody of 68-year-old petitioner Yang Tianzhi, as he was being escorted home by interceptors from his hometown, it reported.



Yang's mutilated, headless body was found at the side of a road in Sichuan's Yuechi county town on Aug. 17. Police detained nine suspects at the time, but there have been no developments on the case since, activists said.



Government officials declined to comment on the case when contacted by RFA.



Last week, rights activists unfurled a banner protesting the death in custody of Chen Shenqun, a rights activist from the northeastern province of Liaoning who spoke out about abuses she suffered inside the notorious police-run Masanjia labor camp.



Chen had been detained while petitioning in Beijing and held at the Majialou detention center on the outskirts of the Chinese capital, before being escorted home by police from her home district of Sujiatun in the provincial capital Liaoyang on Nov. 20.



Police said she died in a "car accident" but refused to allow relatives to see her body before cremation, prompting widespread suspicion she had been murdered.



Petitioners said they are planning a memorial event on Saturday for Chen, whom they described as a "good sister" and a "friend through adversity."



Fight for pensions



A former substitute teacher-turned-petitioner surnamed Cao told RFA that some 7,000 people from Liaoning are currently battling for their pensions after being hired on "temporary" contracts to carry out full teaching responsibilities for many years.



"We have come to Beijing to fight for our rights and to demand that they grant us both our professional status and our pensions and healthcare benefits," Cao said.



Teachers in China can be hired on civil service or non-civil service contracts, and those on the latter frequently complain of wages that are below a minimum living standard and often go unpaid for months.



Directive No. 32, issued by the central authorities in 1997, ordered local governments to put all teachers on civil service contracts, which carry higher wages and more benefits. But cash-strapped local authorities have dragged their feet over the new rules.



Instead, former teachers say they have been repeatedly stonewalled, detained beaten, and harassed by authorities if they try to take complaints against local government actions to higher levels of government.



A teacher from the northern province of Hebei said police have lately begun warning the protesting teachers not to give interviews to overseas media.



"They are trying to label us by telling us not to speak to foreign media outlets," the anonymous teacher, who has been petitioning since 2004, said. "They are saying we are spies."



"They'll be the death of us through sheer frustration."



Travel ban



Meanwhile, authorities in the northern city of Tianjin on Monday slapped a travel ban on activist Xu Nailai after he expressed public support for the 2014 Occupy Central democracy movement in Hong Kong.



Xu, who was prevented from crossing the internal immigration border into the former British colony with his daughter, said he was also told to notify police whenever he traveled.



"I'm supposed to inform three separate departments ... of my travel plans from now on," he told RFA on Monday. "We have a lot of laws in China, and they all look very good on paper."



"But there is no fairness or justice to speak of, because the Chinese Communist Party's word is law," Xu said.



Xu said he believes the restrictions are linked to his support for Hong Kong's pro-democracy Occupy Central movement.



"I have friends in Hong Kong, and I wanted to go and visit them, to talk about China's future and about my views on democracy," he said.



Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by Wong Lok-to for the Cantonese Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.




Ethnic Rohingya Muslim refugees shout slogans during a protest against the persecution of Rohingya in Myanmar outside the Myanmar embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Nov. 25, 2016.

The Myanmar government lodged a protest on Monday over remarks by a United Nations human rights official that the country is conducting an "ethnic cleansing" campaign on stateless Rohingya Muslims in the northern part of volatile Rakhine state.

Htin Linn, Myanmars permanent representative to the U.N. in Geneva, Switzerland, lodged a protest against John McKissick, head of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) in the nearby Bangladeshi border town of Coxs Bazar, for allegations he made against the Myanmar military in an interview that aired Nov. 24.

McKissick accused Myanmar army soldiers and border guard police of killing villagers, raping women and girls, and burning down homes in Rohingya communities during a security crackdown and search of Maungdaw and Buithidaung townships for armed militants following deadly attacks on border guard posts on Oct. 9.

The military has denied the accusations and blamed the Rohingya for burning down their own homes.

The security forces had engaged in collective punishment of the Rohingya minority after the attacks, which some locals and Myanmar officials blamed on a Rohingya militant group, the BBC reported.

Now its very difficult for the Bangladeshi government to say the border is open because this would further encourage the government of Myanmar to continue the atrocities and push them out until they have achieved their ultimate goal of ethnic cleansing of the Muslim minority in Myanmar, McKissick told the BBC.

Security forces have locked down the area and restricted access so that independent journalists and international aid organizations have been unable to evaluate the abuse allegations.

Htin Linn said he requested a meeting with UNHCR High Commissioner Filippo Grande who was out of town, so he met instead with assistant high commissioner Volker Turk on Nov. 25 to lodge the protest.

If such allegations were indeed made by the UNHCR, then Myanmar lodges strong objection against the UNHCR for unjust allegations made without substantiating evidence [against] the Myanmar government which is also tantamount to a breach of the code of conduct of the U.N., said a statement posted on Nov. 26 on the Facebook page of Myanmars State Counselors Office.

The statement went on to say that the allegations had a damaging effect on the Myanmar government and corroded the integrity of the UNHCR. It added that if necessary, Myanmar would also lodge an official written complaint.

Turk responded that officials at the UNHCR were surprised by McKissicks comments, and that they did not represent the agencys official position, according to the statement. He also said the UNHCR would look into the matter and issue an appropriate response to Htin Linns request.

Myanmar Rohingya refugees sit in a refugee camp in Teknaf in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar, Nov. 26, 2016. Credit: AFP Complaint against BBC

The Myanmar embassy in the United Kingdom sent a complaint letter to the BBC on Friday about its Nov. 22 report on the Rohingya, which it said was one-sided and based on hearsay.

The violence that has occurred in Maungdaw township has forced thousands of Rohingya, viewed by Myanmars Buddhist majority as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, to flee on foot and in boats to the Bangladeshi border. Guards have turned many away, while others have made it across and are staying in makeshift refugee camps.

Nearly 90 people have been reported killed, and about 30,000 have been displaced by the recent violence in northern Rakhine.

State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmars de facto leader, delayed a three-day visit to Indonesia on Monday following protests in the predominantly Muslim country over Myanmars crackdown on the Rohingya.

Indonesian police on Sunday said they arrested an Islamic State-linked militant for planning to bomb Myanmars embassy in the capital Jakarta.

A government spokesman, however, said Aung San Suu Kyi decided to postpone the trip so she could devote her attention to the situation in Rakhine and the conflict between ethnic armed groups and the army in northern Shan state.

Hundreds of Rohingya protested on Nov. 25 against the crackdown in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of predominantly Muslim Malaysia.

That same day, Malaysias foreign ministry called on the Myanmar government to address the alleged ethnic cleansing and said it would summon the countrys ambassador to convey its concerns about the matter, Reuters reported.

Also on Nov. 25, members of Islamic groups marched in a rally in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to protest what they called the persecution of the Rohingya in Myanmar.

The Myanmar government created a Rakhine Advisory Commission three months ago to examine conflict resolution, humanitarian assistance, and development issues in the impoverished and restive western state.

Former U.N. chief Kofi Annan, who leads the nine-member commission, will visit Maungdaw township on Friday, the online journal The Irrawaddy reported, citing Tin Maung Swe, secretary of the Rakhine state government. The two-day trip will be Annans second visit to Rakhine since his appointment.

Seven other commission members canceled a visit to Maungdaw in October because of security concerns.

Reported by RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
On December 5, the Tajikistan Foreign Ministry restored the accreditations of six Dushanbe-based RFE/RL journalists, 10 days after revoking their credentials over a report about a daughter of President Emomali Rahmon.

---

WASHINGTON -- Tajik authorities revoked the accreditation of six members of Radio Free Europe/Radio Libertys (RFE/RL) Tajik Service on Friday, November 25, the latest act in a series of incidents targeting the companys reporting inside the country.

We are outraged by this action by the Tajik government, which is a blatant attack on our ability to do our jobs as journalists, said RFE/RL President Thomas Kent. This is an abuse of an administrative procedure for political purposes that we expect to be reversed without delay.

The suspension came after Tajikistans Foreign Ministry contacted RFE/RLs Dushanbe bureau on November 25 about a story reporting the appointment of Rukhshona Rahmonova, Tajik President Emomali Rahmons daughter, to head the ministrys International Relations Department.

A ministry official gave RFE/RL five minutes to remove the story, saying otherwise the Dushanbe-based correspondents would lose their accreditation. RFE/RL refused to delete the story.

RFE/RLs reporting was based on a post on the Foreign Ministry's website, and further confirmed by a source in the ministry. The ministry has provided no official explanation for its actions.

In an earlier incident, RFE/RL refused authorities demand to take down a November 9 report of a security message issued by the U.S. State Department warning American travelers about the risk of terrorist activity inside Tajikistan.

Tajik authorities have used numerous means recently to exert pressure on RFE/RLs Tajik Service, known locally as Radio Ozodi, and other independent media inside the country. The Services website has been blocked since September, 2015, requiring users to employ alternative means to access it. Radio Ozodi journalists have been portrayed as being unpatriotic and damaging the countrys image in official media, interrogated by security service agents, and proffered friendly advice by authorities to avoid problems.

RFE/RLs Tajik Service serves a growing audience, registering more than 3.7 million views on YouTube and 1.5 million visits to its Russian and Tajik-language websites in October 2016. It has 130,000 followers on its Odnoklassniki social network account, with almost 1,000 new subscribers joining the group every day. The Service also broadcasts its content via shortwave and satellite channels, and through mobile apps.

Freedom House has designated Tajikistan as not free, with a score of 83 out of 100 in its 2016 Freedom of the Press index. Reporters Without Borders ranks Tajikistan 150th out of 180 countries in its 2016 World Press Freedom Index.
Four weeks after the ruling Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia party secured a constitutional majority in the second round parliamentary runoff vote, Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili has formally confirmed as prime minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, who had served in that capacity since late December.

The parliament had approved Kvirikashvili's cabinet by majority vote late on November 26 after a two-day debate. But the acrimonious criticisms of some nominees and of Kvirikashvili personally by the two opposition factions -- the former ruling United National Movement and the anti-Western Alliance of Patriots -- made it clear that Kvirikashvili's stated objective of promoting consensus and accord is likely to prove at best difficult, and possibly utopian.

Addressing the inaugural session of the new parliament on November 18, President Margvelashvili too had stressed the need for "constructive cooperation" between the various factions. Irakli Kobakhidze, who was elected parliament speaker at that session, similarly declared that he will try to ensure "the maximum possible constructive cooperation between political forces," but that doing so "will require our joint efforts."

The United National Movement, however, apparently has no interest in such constructive cooperation. When its leaders finally announced last month that its 27 deputies would not, as urged by party founder and former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, boycott the work of the new legislature to protest what they termed the blatant falsification of the election, they stated clearly that their intention was to create the maximum discomfort for the majority.

Combative Rhetoric

Accordingly, at both the inaugural parliament session and the special parliament session one week later to endorse the new cabinet, United National Movement representatives resorted to combative rhetoric. Giorgi Tughushi, for example, challenged Kobakhidze's declared readiness for cooperation with other political forces, citing his imputed "aggression and even hatred" for the United National Movement.

Minority leader Nika Melia, for his part, characterized Kvirikashvili as a "nominal prime minister," alluding to perceptions that it is Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia's founder, billionaire businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili, who in fact controls and dictates all aspects of government policy.

Kvirikashvili responded by asking Melia how he expected a "non-nominal" prime minister to behave. He recalled how, when the United National Movement was in power, one prime minister whom he declined to name (Vano Merabishvili) reportedly issued orders to Interior Ministry special forces troops and routinely telephoned judges to instruct them what verdicts to hand down.

A third lawmaker from the United National Movement, Elene Khoshtaria, told journalists that the content and discussion of the four-year government program unveiled by Kvirikashvili on November 26 shows that he and his ministers "are living in a parallel universe" and have no understanding of the problems the country faces.

That program entitled Freedom, Rapid Development, and Welfare, was based on Georgian Dream-Democratic Georgia's election program and expanded on the four-point program Kvirikashvili announced after his appointment in 2014. It encompasses educational, pension, and tax reform and a further stage in the ongoing reform of the judiciary.

Commentator Aleksandre Tvalchrelidze of the Academy of Natural Sciences had argued in an extensive interview with the news portal InterpressNews that the government program should not be confined to economic issues and that the hoped-for rapid development is contingent on structural reforms, including in the public sector.

Foreign-Policy Priorities

Kvirikashvili also stressed in his address to parliament that Georgia's foreign-policy priorities will remain unchanged, including reaching a free-trade agreement with the European Union and seeking a "deescalation" in relations with Russia without compromising on Georgia's insistence on respect for its territorial integrity.

Explaining the economic component of the program in greater detail, Economy Minister-designate Giorgi Gakharia listed as key challenges ensuring rapid economic growth and reducing the trade gap and unemployment.

Gakharia was one of just four new ministers, replacing Dmitri Kumsishvili, who took over as finance minister from Nodar Khaduri. Zurab Alavidze replaced Nodar Javakhishvili as minister for regional development and infrastructure; First Deputy Minister of Agriculture Levan Davitashvili succeeded his former boss as minister; and Viktor Dolidze, who represented the Free Democrats in the previous parliament, was named minister for European integration in place of Davit Bakradze, who has been appointed ambassador to the United States.

Tvalchrelidze attributed those changes not so much to the inefficiency of the ministers who were replaced as to Kvirikashvili's desire to select people whom he feels comfortable working with as part of a harmonious team.

Predictably, the United National Movement faction withheld its support for the new cabinet, declaring that the minimal changes show that the ruling party "does not understand the necessity for a change of policy."

Irma Inashvili of the Alliance of Patriots criticized the reappointment of the outgoing ministers of culture and environmental protection, arguing that both should be held criminally responsible for approving a new mining project that inflicted considerable damage on the prehistoric site of Sakdrisi, believed by some scholars to be one of the world's first gold mines.
Welcome back to The Farda Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that tracks the key issues in Iran and explains why they matter. To subscribe, click here.

I'm RFE/RL correspondent Golnaz Esfandiari. Here's what Ive been following during the past week and what Im watching for in the days ahead.

The Big Issue

Iran has accused two female journalists who covered the hospitalization and funeral of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini -- whose death in the custody of Tehran's morality police triggered protests across the country -- of being U.S. spies and the "primary sources of news for foreign media."

The accusations came in a joint statement by the feared intelligence branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Intelligence Ministry, which identified the two journalists, Nilufar Hamedi and Elahe Mohammadi, who are being held in Tehran's Evin prison, by their initials. The statement claims the journalists were trained abroad. It also says the protests that have shaken Iran were planned by the CIA along with other foreign intelligence services, including the British and Saudi spy agencies as well as Israel's Mossad.

The statement was met with fear and anger by Iranian journalists and their colleagues, who pushed back against the accusations. Senior editors of Hamedi's Sharq daily and Mohammadi's Hammihan dismissed the charges and said the journalists were only doing their jobs. "Our journalist and our newspaper.....acted within the framework of the journalistic mission," said Mehdi Rahmanian, editor of the reformist Sharq, while Gholamhossein Karbaschi, the editor of Hammihan, said the IRGC-affiliated Fars news agency and other news agencies had similar reports that included more details. More than 500 journalists, photographers, and other media workers demanded the release of their colleagues while calling on officials to allow the free flow of information.

Separately, Tehran's Journalist Association said that based on the statement by the Iranian intelligence agencies, journalism should be banned because "the normal activity of journalists has been cited as evidence of a crime." For its part, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists dismissed the charges against the two journalists as "conspiracy theories," adding that it will hold Iranian leaders accountable for any harm done to the journalists.

Why It Matters: The spying accusations against Hamedi and Mohammadi are a major escalation of state pressure on the media, which is already facing a severe crackdown and tough censorship. The spying charges leveled against the two carries the death penalty. According to the CPJ, more than 45 journalists and columnists have been arrested in the current crackdown. The French media watchdog Reporters Without Borders said Iran has become the world's biggest jailer of female journalists in the course of the current crackdown.

Meanwhile, reports have emerged that France-based Iranian journalist Vahid Shamsoddinnezhad, who had traveled to Saghez to cover the aftermath of Amini's death for the European TV channel Arte, has been in jail since September 28.

What's Next: The judiciary has not officially charged the two journalists with spying. The pushback from the Iranian press and journalists and international pressure could be instrumental in clearing the two journalists of the accusations.

Stories You Might Have Missed

Iranian authorities secretly buried the body of RFE/RL's Radio Farda broadcaster Reza Haghighatnejad at a location near Shiraz after seizing his body upon repatriation to Iran for burial. Haghighatnejad, 45, died of cancer in Berlin on October 17. His body was flown to Iran on October 25. His family was not allowed to see the body or participate in his burial. Radio Farda obtained a video of Haghighatnejad's gravesite , where the anthem of the current mass protests in Iran, Shervin Hajipur's Baraye, was heard in the background. The U.S. State Department has called on Iran to release Haghighatnejad's body and said the episode showed the extent the Iranian government will go to intimidate the press.

at a location near Shiraz after seizing his body upon repatriation to Iran for burial. Haghighatnejad, 45, died of cancer in Berlin on October 17. His body was flown to Iran on October 25. His family was not allowed to see the body or participate in his burial. Radio Farda obtained , where the anthem of the current mass protests in Iran, Shervin Hajipur's Baraye, was heard in the background. The U.S. State Department has called on Iran to release Haghighatnejad's body and said the episode showed the extent the Iranian government will go to intimidate the press. Iran has arrested rapper Toomaj Salehi, who had expressed support for the anti-govenment protests in Iran. Security authorities announced that the rapper was arrested on October 30 while attempting to flee the country. Salehi's uncle denied the claim, saying his nephew was arrested in the southwestern province of Chaharmahal Bakhtiari. Salehi was also detained last year over lyrics he wrote that condemn state repression, the killings of protesters, poverty, and injustice.

What We're Watching

Iran saw a surge in protests last week when thousands of people marked 40 days since the death of Mahsa Amini in state custody. In Amini's hometown of Saghez, a massive crowd gathered at the cemetery where the young woman is buried. Many walked to the cemetery amid reports that authorities had blocked the roads leading to Amini's resting place. Mourners also gathered last week at the grave of 16-year-old Nika Shahkarami near the western city of Khorramabad, 40 days after she was killed in the brutal state crackdown amid reports that security forces had opened fire to disperse mourners while also making arrests.

Why It Matters: The memorial ceremonies for those killed by security forces have energized the protest movement by fueling more anger with state repression. The establishment has responded with force. More protests could erupt as Iranians mourn those killed by security forces.

Thats all from me for now. Dont forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have.



Until next time,



Golnaz Esfandiari



If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Wednesday.
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has said he is ready to be formally questioned regarding the 2015 killing in Moscow of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov.

In an interview with TASS issued on November 28, Kadyrov called Nemtsov "Russia's enemy" and said he would fly to Moscow to answer interrogators' questions if they send him a subpoena.

Kadyrov said Nemtsov was not his personal foe or friend, adding that by killing Nemtsov, organizers of the assassination wanted to "discredit Chechnya" and get rid of Kadyrov as well as Nemtsov.

Kadyrov also called all opposition figures in Russia "traitors who are ready to sell their motherland for 30 pieces of silver," while reiterating his full loyalty to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Nemtsov was shot dead near the Kremlin in February 2015.

Several men from Chechnya have been arrested and charged in the case.

Earlier in April, Nemtsov's daughter, Zhanna Nemtsova, called on Russian investigators to interrogate Kadyrov.

Based on reporting by TASS
ATYRAU, Kazakhstan -- A court in the western Kazakh city of Atyrau has sentenced two participants in a mass protest against land reforms to five years in prison each.

The court on November 28 convicted Maks Boqaev and Talghat Ayan of inciting social unrest, spreading false information, and violating the law on public gatherings, and sentenced them the same day.

The defendants, who went on trial on October 12, have rejected the charges, saying their case is politically motivated.

They 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 demonstrations across Kazakhstan for almost two weeks.

The protesters expressed concern 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 the right to express their views publicly.
A court in the northwestern Kazakh city of Aqtobe has convicted 29 men in a high-profile terrorism trial.

On November 28, seven of the 29 defendants were found guilty of terrorism, murder, organizing and participating in a terrorist group, and illegal weapons possession, and were sentenced to life in prison.

Two other defendants were sentenced to 22 and 25 years in jail on the same charges.

Eighteen defendants were convicted of failing to report planned terrorist acts and sentenced to prison terms ranging from two to five years.

The other two defendants were convicted of harboring criminals and sentenced to four years each.

In June, a group of 25 alleged Islamic militants carried out attacks that killed five civilians and three members of Kazakhstan's security forces in Aqtobe.

Security forces killed 18 gunmen and arrested several others.

President Nursultan Nazarbaev has said the attacks were carried out by followers of Salafi Islam.

Based on reporting by Kazinform and Tengrinews


A Russian hacker who was convicted for his leading role in one of the largest data thefts in U.S. history has been released from prison after serving most of his 12-year sentence.

Vladimir Drinkman was released from a Pennsylvania jail on October 28, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons told RFE/RL.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) did not respond to an RFE/RL request for comment on whether Drinkman had been turned over for deportation, a process that can take up to several months. Drinkman's lawyer, Igor Litvak, declined to comment. RFE/RL could not immediately reach Drinkman.

Drinkman was a key member of a criminal hacking group that penetrated major U.S. corporations, including Heartland Payment Systems, which at the time it was breached in 2008 was one of the biggest U.S. payment-processing firms. The Heartland attack -- the largest breach in history at the time -- cost the payment company more than $200 million in losses.

Varonis, a U.S.-based cybersecurity firm, ranks the attack on Heartland among the 10 largest data breaches of all time.

Chuck Brooks, a cybersecurity expert and adjunct professor at Georgetown University, said the Heartland hack was a "wake-up call" for the payments and financial industries to enhance their cyberdefenses.



He said the breach led to stronger security policies, including a better understanding by CEOs and CFOs of the threats to business sustainability and reputation.

"After the breach, many companies added more stringent data and security policies, including encryption, multifactor authentication, and monitoring of systems and networks," Brooks told RFE/RL.

Heartland also later established the Payments Processing Information Sharing Council (PPISC), which serves as a forum for banks and payment processors to share information about breaches and compliance issues, he noted.

In addition to breaking into Heartland, the hacking gang also breached Nasdaq OMX Group, 7-Eleven, JC Penney, JetBlue Airways, and others, according to prosecutors. In total, they stole the data of more than 160 million credit cards, leading to more than $300 million in damages.

Greg Hunter, a Virginia-based lawyer who has represented cybercriminals from the former Soviet Union, said the Heartland case demonstrated the sophisticated evolution of Russian-speaking hackers.

"This was the beginning of specialization," Hunter told RFE/RL. "Rather than an individual hacker spending a lot of time stealing credit card data and then trying to monetize it, you had guys specializing in breaching the security apparatus of a site, others selling the data."

The appearance of hacker forums was critical to the phenomenon of a division of labor, he said.

Hacker sites "allowed these guys to find each other and work together. A guy who breaches banks could just focus on that, knowing he could find others to either help him know what to get and how to use it, or just buy his services outright," Hunter said.

Several of the most commonly used forums where hackers bought and sold stolen credit card data and traded tips included Cardplanet and Direct Connection. A Russian man, Aleksei Burkov, was extradited from Israel to the United States and later pleaded guilty in 2020 to U.S. charges related to his oversight of those forums.

He was deported to Russia last year.

According to U.S. court filings, Drinkman and another co-conspirator, Alexandr Kalinin, specialized in penetrating network security and gaining access to the corporate data systems. Drinkman along with a third man, Roman Kotov, also focused on mining the networks to steal valuable data.

Another Russian man, Dmitry Smilyanets, then sold the stolen credit card information on forums for $10 to $50 each and distributed the proceeds of the scheme to the others, according to prosecutors.

Kalinin and Kotov, both of whom are Russian citizens, are believed to still be in Russia.

Drinkman was arrested in the Netherlands in June 2012 at the request of the United States, along with Smilyanets.

While Smilyanets cooperated with U.S. authorities and arrived in the United States a few months after his arrest, Drinkman fought his extradition for more than a year.

Ultimately, Drinkman pleaded guilty in 2015 and was sentenced to 12 years in prison, including time served since his arrest. It is one of the harshest sentences given to a Russian hacker.

Drinkman served a total of 10 years and four months, or 86 percent of his sentence. U.S. federal prisoners earn credit each year for good behavior and typically serve 85 percent of their sentence.

Smilyanets was sentenced to just time served, or less than six years, and currently resides in the United States, where he works as a cyberthreat intelligence analyst.

He declined to comment when contacted by RFE/RL.
CHISINAU -- The pro-European integration candidate who lost Moldovas November 13 presidential election intends to appeal the ballot results to the countrys Supreme Court.

A lawyer for former Education Minister Maia Sandu, of the Party for Action and Solidarity, told RFE/RL on November 28 that his client will take her appeal to the highest court after the Court of Appeals declined to hear it.

Sandus suit claims the Central Election Commission and the Foreign Ministry violated the voting rights of Moldovans living outside the country.

Also on November 28, Chisinaus Central District Court continued hearings into a separate case filed by 140 Moldovans living in European Union countries who claim they were denied access to absentee ballots.

Sandu lost the November 13 runoff election to Igor Dodon, the pro-Russia leader of the Socialist Party.

Dodon left Moldova on November 27 on a private visit to Moscow for what he described as "a family celebration."
Russian President Vladimir Putin has fired four government officials who earlier this month were elected members of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Putin on November 28 published announcements of the dismissals of Vasily Khristoforov, head of the documents and archives section of the Federal Security Service (FSB); Konstantin Kotenko, head of the medical service of the presidential administration; Aleksandr Fisun, head of the medical service of the Defense Ministry; and Deputy Interior Minister Aleksandr Savenkov.

At a meeting of the governments Council on Science and Education on November 23, Putin said that he would dismiss any government official who accepted election to the Academy of Sciences, a total of 14 officials.

Putin said that the officials had all been told in writing in December 2015 that they would be dismissed from government service if they were elected to the academy.

He said it was not possible for officials to carry out their government duties and academic responsibilities simultaneously.

Based on reporting by Lenta.ru, TASS, Kommersant, and Komsomolskaya Pravda
MOSCOW -- A group of former inmates and convicts' relatives has publicly alleged widespread abuse by staff at a prison in northwestern Russia currently housing a high-profile protester who claimed torture earlier this month.

Ildar Dadin, who is serving 2 1/2 years for repeatedly holding unsanctioned demonstrations, in an open letter on November 1 alleged systematic abuse by prison guards.

Dadin's wife has warned that "they will kill him" if he remains at the IK-7 prison in Karelia.

The new allegations from prisoners and families come as Valery Maksimenko, deputy director of Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN), said a formal investigation had found no evidence of abuse against Dadin or other inmates. He called the activist "a very talented faker with great artistry and a great imagination."

"Today we will rebut the words of the deputy director of the FSIN," said Lev Ponomaryov, head of the For Human Rights movement, who led the November 28 press conference at the Sakharov Center where former inmates and relatives of current inmates painted a grim picture of prison abuse.

"My son has been there two years and he has another 1 1/2 years to go," Zhanata Gabzayeva, the mother of a 25-year-old Chechen serving time at IK-7, told reporters. "I'm not even sure whether he'll make it out of there alive."

She said her son, Khasbulat, was sent to the punishment cell for no reason and beaten until he lost consciousness, and has been targeted with other abuse.

"They hang him by his legs, they beat his feet, dunk him in the toilet, pour cold water on him," Gabzayeva said. "Help, please. You cannot treat people like this just because they are behind bars. There are no laws there."

"We don't even treat animals like this. How is this possible?" she added.

Public Pressure

The allegations increase the public pressure that began on November 1 when the 34-year-old opposition activist Dadin said he had been subjected to violent beatings and death threats from the warden and jailers at the IK-7 prison facility.

The European Parliament called in a joint statement on November 24 for Dadin's immediate release and for an independent investigation into allegations of torture. It also discussed "targeted sanctions" against individuals responsible for Dadin's treatment.

Human rights workers visited Dadin in prison and recommended that he be transferred from the IK-7 prison but Dadin declined such a solution, saying he believes his staying there would help.

The Federal Penitentiary Service has said its doctors found no traces of trauma or violence when they examined Dadin.

Maksimenko said on November 28 that a Federal Penitentiary Service inquiry found no evidence to support Dadin's allegations of torture or of the "illegal use of physical force against other inmates."

'Unbearable' Pain

At the press conference in the Sakharov Center later the same day, Ponomaryov read out a transcript of an interview he conducted on November 27 with a former inmate dubbed "Bek," who served a five-year sentence at the prison in Karelia Oblast but who was unwilling to attend the press conference out of fear of retribution.

Bek said he was immediately placed in the punishment cell upon arrival at the prison by guards who smelled of alcohol.

He said that the jailers would "take you out into the short corridor, where there is no camera, and turn off their personal cameras" before lifting him by his legs and contorting him into highly uncomfortable positions.

"When the pain becomes unbearable," Bek said, "they throw you onto the floor and start kicking you, literally trampling you into the ground. They don't kick in the head -- they kick the kidneys and the legs. It goes on for six-to-seven minutes."

He said that a female nurse was usually present during the beatings. "They watched and said, 'What are you shouting for?' or, 'Hold on,' or, 'Stop pretending.' I saw nothing human in any of them."

Other relatives and four former inmates who appeared via Skype made similar allegations.

Ponomaryov said the evidence and statements will be submitted to law enforcement for an investigation into the Karelia prison.

The purported mother of an inmate whose name was not given praised Dadin as a "real" human rights defender for declining to be transferred from the prison. "Today I have high hopes, thanks to human rights defender Dadin. After Dadin ended up there, there is resonance," she said.

"Today we are appealing to society with the hope that society can influence at least this," the woman said, complaining that regional law-enforcement agencies in Karelia cover up for each other's wrongdoing.

She said she hoped that outside investigators from Moscow would become involved.
The head of Russias postal service has denied any wrongdoing in connection with a criminal investigation launched into allegations that he received an excessive bonus for 2014.

Russian Post General Director Dmitry Strashnov told journalists in Moscow on November 28 that the situation surrounding the investigation had become "overheated."

"It is not possible to be creative" in calculating the bonuses for the heads of state-owned companies, he said.

On November 25, the Prosecutor-Generals Office announced a criminal case against Strashnov for abuse of office and embezzlement after it emerged that he was given a $1.5 million performance bonus for 2014.

The bonus was calculated using falsified figures and covering up some $62 million in losses, prosecutors said.

Strashnovs official salary is $85,000 per year.

Based on reporting by Interfax and The Moscow Times


Prosecutors in Russia have launched a criminal case against Ukrainian security agencies for alleged war crimes committed in the eastern Ukrainian Donbas region.

Svetlana Petrenko, a spokeswoman for Russias Investigative Committee, told journalists on November 28 that prosecutors have uncovered "previously unknown incidents" of artillery strikes on civilians by Ukrainian military forces.

As a result, a criminal probe against six Ukrainian military commanders has been launched, she said, naming Colonel Oleksandr Hruzevych, Lieutenant Colonel Mykhaylo Drapaty, Colonel Serhiy Panchenko, Colonel Serhiy Perets, and Lieutenant Colonel Volodymyr Horbatyuk.

The commanders are accused of "the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare."

The officers "fulfilled the clearly criminal orders of senior officials of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry," Petrenko said.

Ukraine has not commented on the charges.

According to the United Nations, more than 9,600 people have been killed since the conflict between Kyiv and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine broke out in April 2014.

Based on reporting by Interfax and TASS
A Moscow court has denied an appeal by former Economic Development Minister Aleksei Ulyukayev challenging his pretrial house arrest.

The Moscow Municipal Court on November 28 upheld an earlier court decision ordering Ulyukayev held under house arrest until his trial for allegedly accepting a bribe.

Ulyukayev's lawyers had argued their client should be held under less restrictive conditions and be allowed to travel.

Ulyukayev was arrested on the night of November 14-15 on suspicion of accepting a $2 million bribe in exchange for approving the purchase of a stake in a regional oil company by the state-owned Rosneft corporation.

He denies the allegations.

Moscow's Basmany District Court on November 15 ordered Ulyukayev held under house arrest for two months.

Russian President Vladimir Putin fired Ulyukayev from his ministerial post the same day.

Ulyukayev, who had served as economic development minister since 2013, is seen as a member of the camp of relatively liberal economists in the government of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

Ulyukayev became the highest-ranking Russian government official to face arrest since the time of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

Medvedev called the arrest "an extraordinary event" for the country.

Based on reporting by Rapsinews and Interfax
The descendants of agents of Josef Stalins secret police have asked the government to close down a newly opened database giving information about 40,000 of the agents, who are directly responsible for the murders of about 1 million Soviet citizens during the dictators Great Terror.

A handful of the descendants have written an open letter to President Vladimir Putin, himself a former agent of the Soviet KGB, asking him to close down the database, Russian media reported on November 27.

The database was created by the respected Memorial human rights foundation and is the first of its kind to provide detailed information about the perpetrators of Stalin-era crimes.

The descendants justified their request by saying they fear "that the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren [of the agents] might be the targets of revenge for the sake of repressed ancestors."

Memorial spent 15 years developing the database.

Based on reporting by newsru.com and Komsomolskaya Pravda


Thousands of civilians fled from eastern Aleppo after Syrian government forces drove rebels from six strategic districts of the city. Families carrying small children streamed into the Kurdish-held enclave of Sheikh Maqsoud in the northern part of Aleppo on November 27. The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said around 10,000 civilians fled eastern Aleppo over a two-day period. (Reuters)
14 A court in the northwestern Kazakh city of Aqtobe convicted 29 men in a high-profile trial aimed at alleged Islamic terrorists and their supporters. In June, a group of 25 alleged Islamic militants carried out a attacks that killed five civilians and three members of Kazakhstan's security forces in Aqtobe.


KYIV -- A Ukrainian corruption watchdog has changed its position on whether President Petro Poroshenko should have declared ownership of a Spanish seaside villa, raising questions about the state agency's independence from the presidential administration.

Poroshenko's ownership of the multimillion-dollar luxury villa was discovered during an investigation conducted by RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service. The investigation, published on November 10, also uncovered Spanish properties owned by two of Poroshenko's close political allies.

The revelations raised eyebrows because the properties were not listed in mandatory asset declarations that officials were required to have filed by October 30 as part of a new, International Monetary Fund-backed push to promote transparency in Ukraine.

While Poroshenko's administration argued that the president did not need to declare the villa because he declared ownership of the company to which the villa belonged, the government's National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC) initially said otherwise.

Deputy NAPC head Ruslan Radetskyy originally told RFE/RL in the course of its investigation that, by law, a public official submitting a declaration "must specify all property that belongs to him, through a company or as an individual."

But in response to a follow-up inquiry, Radetskyy wrote in an English-language e-mail to RFE/RL on November 21 that: "As long as Petro Poroshenko and members of his family do not use the property mentioned to gain profit, and the legal entity owning this property disposes of the latter on its own, this property is not a subject for e-declaration, in accordance with the law."

'Serious Loophole'

The response came just days after RFE/RL discussed the president's ties to the Spanish villa with Dmytro Shymkiv, a deputy head of Poroshenko's administration, and after RFE/RL had been told by Yarema Dukh, a communications official in the presidential administration, that the NAPC was eagerly awaiting a fresh inquiry about the villa.

"I understand it's something new," Dukh wrote to RFE/RL regarding the president's use of the villa and the e-declaration requirements, adding that the NAPC "reached me asking whether [somebody from RFE/RL] is still on the story."

Direct contact between the two offices regarding the ownership of the villa was something that Oleksandra Drik, president of the Kyiv-based Civic Lustration Committee, an NGO that monitors anticorruption reforms, says should not have occurred.

"Definitely there is influence [on the NAPC] from the administration of the president," Drik told RFE/RL. "I can see from what they say, from how they act and how they react to certain facts, that they are not independent," she added, referring to members of the NAPC.

Radetskyy's latest interpretation of the e-declaration law is also open to question. Dmytro Kotlyar, an anticorruption expert who co-authored the law, told RFE/RL that "Poroshenko should have probably declared the villa, rather than not."

Kotylar also said that Radetskyy's comment suggests that the NAPC had completed an examination of the president's declaration. This, he further suggested, would have been impossible in the short amount of time between RFE/RL's inquiries. Each of the more than 100,000 e-declarations submitted are long and detailed, and require extensive work to be thoroughly vetted.

Moreover, Kotylar continued, the NAPC "can't even do it yet legally," because the legal procedure to conduct declaration checks "has not entered into force." That will occur only once the Justice Ministry officially publishes the registration of the procedure -- and it had not yet done so as of November 28.

Daria Kalenyuk, executive director of the Kyiv-based NGO Anticorruption Action Center, wrote to RFE/RL, saying the NAPC's about-face reveals that "we might have a serious loophole in [the] law which allows officials to hide their luxurious property behind shell corporations and avoid criminal liability."
Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was accused of treason and conspiring with Russia after he fled from Kyiv in 2014, following widespread protests and their violent suppression. Speaking by video link from Russia, the former president denied giving the order to fire at demonstrators, and said that radical provocateurs were to blame. (AP)
Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych denied ordering police to fire on protesters during the violent demonstrations that roiled the country nearly three years ago and forced him to flee the country.

The statements -- made on November 28 via video link from Russia -- mark the first testimony from the 66-year-old given to a Ukrainian court over the violence in February 2014 that killed dozens.

hey also came as Ukrainian prosecutors used a pause in the proceedings in Kyiv on November 28 to announce formal treason charges against Yanukovych



"From the very beginning till the very end, I stood against bloodshed," Yanukovych said, speaking from the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, where he lives. "I am not capable of giving such orders."



Yanukovych was testifying as a witness in the trial of five former riot police officers accused of carrying out the shootings, which killed 82 protesters.

The former president, who is not on trial himself, had been scheduled to testify on November 25, but those proceedings were postponed after activists from the nationalist group Right Sector prevented the five defendants from being transferred to the Kyiv court. The five have pleaded not guilty.

WATCH: Yanukovych Denies Giving Order To Shoot

Prosecutor-General Yuriy Lutsenko told the court on November 28 that Yanukovych has been formally charged with treason.

"You are suspected of treason, complicity with representatives of Russia's authorities with the aim of changing Ukraine's borders, violating Ukraine's constitution, and unleashing a war of aggression," Lutsenko said.

'Planned Operation'

In all, more than 100 demonstrators were killed during the protests that started in November 2013 after Yanukovych placed a cooperation agreement with the European Union on hold.



Weeks after Yanukovych fled Ukraine in late February 2014, Russian troops took control of Ukraine's Crimea Peninsula and began backing separatists in eastern Ukraine, sparking a conflict that has claimed more than 9,600 lives.



Yanukovych is already being investigated on suspicion of mass murder by Ukrainian officials.



Yanukovych told the court that the shootings on Independence Square were part of a "planned operation" to topple his government.



"The Maidan violence was a pseudo-operation to take power," Yanukovych was quoted as saying by Russias state-run TASS news agency.



Lutsenko has said the Kremlin has allowed Yanukovych to be cross-examined merely as a public-relations stunt, pointing to Russian insistence that the testimony coincide with the third anniversary of the protests.



Moscow claims the uprising was orchestrated by the West and questions the legitimacy of Yanukovych's successor, Petro Poroshenko.

With reporting by TASS, Interfax, and Reuters


Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was accused of treason and conspiring with Russia after he fled from Kyiv in 2014, following widespread protests and their violent suppression. Speaking by video link from Russia, the former president denied giving the order to fire at the demonstrators, and said that radical provocateurs were to blame. The shootings in February 2014 came after three months of protests against his decision to block an association agreement with the European Union. (AP)
Exiled former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych is due again to be questioned as a witness at a trial of five former police officers accuse of shooting protesters in 2014.

Yanukovych had been expected for questioning via video link from Russia on November 25 in the trial of five Berkut riot police accused of carrying out the shootings. However, protesters from the Pravy Sector nationalist group prevented the five defendants, who have pleaded not guilty, from being transported to court from jail.

Pravy Sector has vowed more protests ahead of court proceedings on November 28.

Many in Ukraine are angry that Yanukovych is appearing as a witness and is not facing trial himself.

Yanukovych, who is now in exile in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, is being investigated on suspicion of mass murder.

More than 100 demonstrators were killed in three months of street protests in Kyivs Maidan Square.

The Maidan protests began in late 2013 after Yanukovych abruptly announced he was suspending a planned trade deal with the EU following pressure from the Kremlin.

Based reporting by AFP and Interfax
Israel issues the first 10-year visa to Chinese citizen

By: | From:english.eastday.com | 2016-11-25 17:43

The Consulate General of Israel in Shanghai issued an 8-year visa to a Chinese citizen this November, which is the longest validity visa, most close to a 10-year after the new policy was released.

This visa holder Mr. Jie is able to freely go to and from Israel before 2024 for sightseeing and business visits.

Under the newly-signed bilateral agreement between the two countries, starting from Nov. 11, 2016, a Chinese citizen holding a national passport could request a multi-entrance B2 visa for a period of up to 10 years in any of the Israeli consulates worldwide.

A Chinese citizen traveling to Israel with a 10-year visa will be able to stay in Israel up to 90 consecutive days each visit, and no more than 180 days each year, starting from the day he enters Israeli borders. The visa will be valid for duration of up to 10 years, but will expire no later than 6 months before the Chinese Passport expires. The visa will not be transferred to a new passport.

Obtaining a 10-year visa requires an almost new visa, a strong demand for multiple trips to Israel for business and tourism and complete submission of all materials required for visa. The 10-year visa charges 150 yuan RMB.
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging Richmond Sheriff C.T. Woody Jr. violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

In a 27-page ruling last week, U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne tossed the disability discrimination suit. He ruled that Woody did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to assign a deputy sheriff to a civilian job at the city jail when she could no longer perform as a deputy.

I always believed I operated well within the confines of established law, Woody said in a statement Monday. It is satisfying to see a court of law look at the facts, apply them to the law and come to a conclusion which is favorable to me and my organization of hardworking employees. I am truly sympathetic to Ms. Hall, but am satisfied to be vindicated by the federal courts.

The complaint filed in March said the former deputy, Emily Hall, developed a heart condition and was fired rather than offered a job she was qualified for and able to perform.

Hall applied for a payroll technician job but was ranked fourth of the four people who were interviewed for the job. The most qualified candidate was hired, according to the Sheriffs Office.

Hall later received a termination letter that said she was being let go effective May 10, 2013, because of organizational need, the complaint says.

Defendants never offered Ms. Hall a transfer or reassignment to a vacant position for which she was qualified as a reasonable accommodation, nor was Ms. Hall given priority for placement into any vacant position, the lawsuit says.

In his ruling, Payne wrote that the ADA requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations, unless doing so would cause an undue burden.  Payne held that the governments position was substituting the word necessary for reasonable.

The intent of the act is to ensure equality of opportunity and not to serve as an affirmative action law that would grant the disabled a competitive advantage, the judge wrote.

Reassignment to a vacancy is not always mandated by the ADA, even as an accommodation of last resort, Payne wrote.

Among other things, the complaint asked for Halls reinstatement with retroactive seniority, back pay with interest, and unspecified compensatory damages for injuries suffered as a result of the defendants failure to comply with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Had Ricky Javon Grays 10-year federal prison sentence been carried out as imposed, he would have been behind bars on Jan. 1, 2006, and not launching one of the deadliest murder rampages in Richmond history.

Gray, a convicted drug dealer and robber, ratted someone out. By helping the government in an investigation, his sentence was cut in half and he was released a year before he and nephew Ray Dandridge killed seven men, women and children over six days in South Richmond.

Dandridge was sentenced to life, and Gray is scheduled to be executed on Jan. 18 for the 2006 killings.

Repeat felons enter courthouses every day, whether they have had sentence reductions or not. And Grays five-year break for substantial assistance was not unusual  such reductions long have been used as an investigative tool.

Often, said Joshua Stueve, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorneys Office, you dont have a case if you dont have cooperators.

Federal law calls for stiff, no-parole sentences, and the reductions can serve as powerful inducements for defendants to implicate suspects higher up in a drug-distribution organization, for example.

Stueve declined to comment on Grays case. However, Charles E. Chuck James Jr., a former federal prosecutor who now is a partner at Williams Mullen, said that when the government files a motion to reduce a sentence in exchange for substantial assistance and a judge grants it, it is done with the goal of advancing public safety.

Downward departures are not acts of prosecutorial charity, James said.

Even the largest reduction that is recommended by a prosecutor and granted by the court is not an endorsement of the defendants criminal behavior, nor is it a guarantee the defendant will become a law-abiding citizen, he said.

Neither the court nor the prosecutor is responsible for the future acts of the defendant who receives a sentence reduction, James said.

***

It is unclear what Gray did for the government that warranted a reduction in 2001.

At the time, court records at least showed such reductions had taken place. Now, presumably for the safety of the informant, reductions leave few if any tracks in the public record.

Archived federal court records show that on June 22, 2000, Gray pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III, in Alexandria, to one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of crack cocaine, punishable by a mandatory-minimum term of 10 years up to a maximum of life in prison.

In pleading guilty, he admitted that from Aug. 1, 1999, to March 1, 2000, he conspired with others to distribute 50 grams or more of crack, obtaining at least 31 grams from others and distributing it to his customers in Arlington County.

Among other things, Grays plea agreement called for him to tell prosecutors about any and all criminal activities known to him, submit to a polygraph test if asked, and testify truthfully before any grand jury, trial or other proceeding if required.

On Sept. 1, 2000, Ellis sentenced Gray to 120 months in prison. A year later, the U.S. Attorneys Office filed a motion to reduce Grays sentence based on his substantial assistance.

An accompanying memorandum remains sealed. The 60-month reduction was granted at a hearing Sept. 21, 2001, and Gray was released from the Bureau of Prisons on Jan. 7, 2005.

The statement of facts signed by Gray in 2000 suggests that he, too, may have been prosecuted with the help of cooperators  two unindicted and unnamed conspirators from whom he admitted obtaining drugs. He also admitted getting drugs from two named people.

According to federal procedural rules, the government can ask judges to cut sentences in exchange for substantial assistance two ways: before sentencing, or after sentencing, as was done in Grays case, under what is known as Rule 35(b).

Some criminals get breaks both ways, provided there is no double benefit for the same assistance.

A study this year by the U.S. Sentencing Commission found that from Oct. 1, 2008, to Sept. 30, 2014, there were almost 1,900 sentence reductions of both types granted in the U.S. Eastern District of Virginia, which stretches from Northern Virginia through Richmond to Hampton Roads  more than in all but four of the countrys other 93 federal judicial districts.

The leading four districts were in Texas and Florida, which also prosecute many drug and firearm cases.

However, the Sentencing Commission found there were more Rule 35 sentence reductions  those sought after sentencing, instead of before sentencing  in Virginias Eastern District than anywhere else in the country during that six-year period. The study said the vast majority of Rule 35 reductions were for drug or firearm offenders.

In most districts, most reductions were granted on government motions made before sentencing rather than after sentencing. The commissions study noted the frequent use of Rule 35 motions by a handful of districts, led by the Eastern District of Virginia.

The study concluded: There is no clear data-based explanation for these differences, as those districts vary substantially from one another in overall caseload, offense mix and demographic composition.

***

But Stueve and others familiar with the federal courts here said it is in large part because of the Eastern Districts Rocket Docket.

The most recent Federal Courts Management Statistics available show the median time from filing a criminal case to its disposition in the Eastern District was 5 months, the fastest in the five states that make up the 4th U.S. Circuit  Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina and South Carolina  and seventh-fastest in the country.

Judges in the Eastern District move cases so quickly that prosecutors do not have an opportunity to file for a motion before sentencing as often as in most of the other districts, Stueve said.

Our sentencings are often set within 60 days of conviction, and that does not give enough time for whatever cooperation the defendant may have the ability to offer time to play out, he said.

Judges here usually will consider only one sentencing delay, typically 30 days, Stueve said. It doesnt happen here often at all, he said of sentencing delays. The dockets keep moving, which puts the onus on prosecutors and investigators to complete their work.

In other districts, when a defendant pleads guilty, a judge might delay sentencing for a year or two while the prosecution continues with its investigation. When sentencing finally is pronounced, the government files a motion ahead of time to account for any substantial assistance and does not have to use Rule 35.

Court figures show that in 2015, the Eastern District used presentencing motions in just 3.8 percent of cases, the lowest of any district in the country.

Comparable districts  such as the Southern District of New York, which issues them 21 percent of the time, and Philadelphia, which issues them more than 35 percent of the time  rarely make use of Rule 35, Stueve said. Thats because they kick their sentencings down the road, he said.

***

The Sentencing Commission study found that across the country, offenders who got post-sentencing reductions still wound up with longer prison terms  83 months  than those with reductions granted at the time of sentencing  52 months  or the average federal offender, who gets 44 months.

John G. Douglass, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law and a former federal prosecutor, said it is, and long has been, a practice for prosecutors to make offers of sentence reductions to defendants who cooperate.

The power of prosecutors to seek reductions, and of courts to grant reductions, is recognized in the federal sentencing guidelines, he said. The practice has important benefits for law enforcement. It can help identify the most culpable leaders in a criminal organization and provide the insider testimony that can be critical to successful prosecution.

On the other hand, there are dangers, Douglass said. Prosecutors need to take care that the inducements of sentence reduction dont lead to false testimony, he said.

That often means ensuring that the cooperators account is corroborated by other evidence.

And prosecutors are required to tell defense lawyers of any inducements offered to cooperating witnesses, he said.

So offers of sentence reduction typically are explored on cross-examination (during a trial) and used by juries to assess the credibility of cooperating witnesses, Douglass said.

Robert Wagner, with the Federal Public Defenders Office in Richmond, said he believes that there is a combination of things leading to the more frequent use of post-sentencing reductions in the Eastern District.

Sometimes youll have a case where a trial of a co-defendant or the trial of someone the defendant is cooperating against doesnt happen until after the sentencing of that defendant, so the government wants to keep them on the hook and not, basically, give them their carrot until the cooperation is completed, Wagner said.

He said that with the Rule 35, the client, somewhat, has to have continued loyalty to the government until that motion is filed.

In some ways it helps our clients to have it later, rather than sooner, said Wagner, although he added that he believes that in general, defendants would prefer reductions at the time of sentencing rather than later, because sometimes the reduction does not materialize for a number of reasons.
In a break from its single-sex residential tradition, Mary Baldwin University will offer new coeducational, three-year degree programs beginning next fall at its campus in Staunton.

Mary Baldwin announced Monday that a newly created coeducational unit called University College will offer residential programs that will be open to men and women after their junior or senior years in high school.

Men are already admitted to Mary Baldwins graduate and adult-degree programs but not to the residential college.

The Mary Baldwin College for Women will be retained within the coed university, said Crista Cabe, senior vice president for university relations.

The university is committed to preserving the single-sex legacy through the College for Women, she said, but really, for quite some time we have been a coeducational university. Thats who we are.

The new coed programs will offer fast-track bachelors degrees in health sciences, education, and Shakespeare and performing arts in living-learning communities for men and women ages 16 and older.

A fourth new three-year business program for female entrepreneurs will be part of the College for Women.

Mary Baldwin is one of three womens residential colleges in Virginia. Sweet Briar College and Hollins University also have coed graduate programs, but neither offers undergraduate degrees to men.

Cabe said the new programs are part of our evolution in diversifying our programs, and that is what has sustained us and kept us financially viable since the 1970s.

MBU also is home to the Virginia Womens Institute for Leadership, an all-female corps of cadets that was established by the state in 1995 as it unsuccessfully sought to keep Virginia Military Institute all-male.

The school officially became a university at the start of this semester, coinciding with its 175th anniversary. At the same time, the board of trustees renamed the residential program the Mary Baldwin College for Women.

Mondays announcement of the coed residential programs was accompanied by a statement from board chair Jane Harding Miller on the need to adapt to survive changes in the higher-education landscape.

We have looked to our strong history of bold and innovative changes that have resulted in both financial sustainability for the institution and life-changing results for those enrolled, she said.

Mary Baldwin plans to offer merit scholarships up to $22,000 annually, which would make the net cost comparable to that of a four-year public college.

Total enrollment this year is about 1,750. About two-thirds of students are in the coed programs, Cabe said.
The State Council has sent two inspection groups to Hebei and Jiangsu provinces to investigate any cheating in cutting steel overcapacity.

Premier Li Keqiang has called for rewarding local governments and enterprises that have done well in their efforts to cut overcapacity, and he urged severe punishment on any cheaters.

Cheating is done mainly through two ways: first, submit a report that includes data from operations that are already shut down, and second, fail to carry out efficient overcapacity reductions or disregard instructions from higher governments.

Premier Li makes an inspection tour of Wuhan Iron & Steel Group in Central Chinas Hubei province on May 23, 2016.

Curbing overcapacity directly determines the speed and efficiency of economic restructuring. In the process, relationships among administrative power, rule of law and market forces should be handled properly. Reducing excess capacity makes substantial adjustments for the market, and market measures should be used to improve industrial concentration and stabilize the relationship between supply and demand.

The joint inspection team, composed of 10 ministries and departments under the State Council, will not only check coal and steel overcapacity reduction efforts but also improve related monitoring and report channels to promote public awareness of illegal production of backward capacity.

China plans to cut 45 million tons of steel capacity this year, and the coal target is over 250 million tons. The country has reached this years basic reduction goals for steel and coal capacity, according to a State Council statement on Nov 23.
The ACLU of Virginia released a letter Monday criticizing the Petersburg City Council for meeting practices it said violate the spirit of open government laws.

The council over-relied on special meetings  sometimes called at the last minute, during the work day or held in cramped quarters  to decide matters of governance and financial management as the city faced a fiscal crisis, ACLU executive director Claire Guthrie Gastanaga warned in a four-page letter first sent to the council last week.

Holding meetings at inconvenient times and in small spaces that cannot accommodate the public violates the spirit of open government laws that serve to promote an increased awareness by all persons of government activities and afford every opportunity to citizens to witness the operations of government, Gastanaga wrote.

The council has drawn ire from Petersburg residents over the ways in which it has grappled with mounting financial challenges council members ultimately addressed last month with the hiring of turnaround specialists from Washington.

Critics say the way in which that group was hired lays bare the tension between the councils actions and best intentions for the future of the beleaguered city, which started the fiscal year beginning July 1 about $18 million in arrears and already $12 million over budget.

Experts in parliamentary procedure asked to assess the series of votes that resulted in the Robert Bobb Groups hiring last month said the council violated its own rules and possibly the city charter in forcing the matter to a second vote days after an initial vote for the partnership failed to pass, with two council members absent.

The councils rules require a month delay; the citys charter states that a reconsideration vote must have as many members present as were there for the initial vote.

The city attorney has defended the vote and says nothing illegal or untoward transpired during the second consideration of the Bobb Group contract, which sealed the $350,000, five-month deal with the firm.

Citizens publicly lambasted Mayor W. Howard Myers at a council meeting following the vote and are actively circulating a recall petition to oust him from the council.

Barb Rudolph, an organizer of the community group Clean Sweep Petersburg, welcomed the ACLUs intervention.

For the many citizens of Petersburg who want to better understand what our elected leaders are deciding and why, this letter is most welcome, Rudolph said. It puts City Council on notice that they cant hide behind their misinterpretation of FOIA laws and inadequate commitment to open government.

Reached Monday afternoon, Myers said he did not have any comment on the ACLUs remarks.

We have not violated any laws and have made any and all accommodations available during our emergency meetings, Myers said.

The vote last month on the Bobb Group occurred at one of 13 special meetings called by the council between March and October, according to an ACLU review. The council publicized some in advance as being called solely for closed-session discussions, which has the result of suppressing interest in attending and participating, Gastanaga wrote.

She asked that the council lessen its reliance on executive sessions and hold all meetings in public, even if it is not required to do so.

Even if legally permitted, the Council should hold all meetings in public unless there is a specific and important policy reason for the Council to meet outside of the hearing of the residents and public the Council was elected to serve, Gastanaga stated.

As of Monday afternoon, the ACLU of Virginia had not yet received a response from the city and Petersburg City Attorney Joe Preston had not returned a request for comment.

Bill Farrar, the ACLU of Virginias director of public policy and communications, said Petersburg joins the counties of Grayson and Fairfax in drawing a rebuke this year from the ACLU of Virginia.

Theyre not a unique case, Farrar said.

The ACLU of Virginia had already been monitoring media reports about Petersburg city governance but reached a tipping point when a city resident approached the group with serious and justifiable concerns, Farrar said.
Chesterfield County police are looking for a man accused of stabbing a woman to death earlier this month.

Tevin James McGougan is suspected of killing Nishae A. Samms on Nov. 11 at a home in the 6500 block of Statute Street, police said. Samms, 23, was pronounced dead at the scene from a stab wound.

Police have charged Tevin James McGougan, 23, of the 600 block of Cowardin Avenue in Richmond, with murder in connection with Samms' death.

McGougan is Samms' estranged boyfriend, police said.

Anyone who sees McGougan shouldn't approach him but should contact authorities immediately, police said.
Thirteen protesters have been sentenced to five days in jail for illegally blocking traffic on Interstate 95 in Richmond during a Black Lives Matter protest in July.

All 13 demonstrators pleaded guilty Monday afternoon in Richmond General District Court as part of a plea agreement.

While the judge allowed some to report to jail in December  at least one woman was granted a delay because she has upcoming college exams  others were immediately escorted off by sheriffs deputies to begin serving jail time.

It was rush hour. They put themselves in danger, and they put other people potentially in danger, so we thought that five days in jail was an appropriate punishment, said Richmond Assistant Commonwealths Attorney Davis Powell, the prosecutor in the cases.

Powell said in an interview afterward that the defendants behavior was rather irresponsible, adding that while demonstrators have the right to protest peacefully, stopping rush-hour traffic is an entirely different thing. ... We thought that warranted punishment.

After activists started a demonstration shortly before 6 p.m. on July 18, about 30 protesters made their way to the southbound lanes of I-95 near the Belvidere Street exit. Protesters held signs and chanted Black lives matter! and No justice, no peace, no racist police! Nearby, a banner hung from an overpass stating that black lives matter, along with a message of support for queer, undocumented and other people.

Some protesters stood side by side in the roadway and blocked vehicles from passing, causing a major backup on the interstate during rush hour.

By 6:20 p.m., Richmond police were on the scene and, after two warnings to move from the road to the grass, several protesters were handcuffed, according to police.

Those who refused to exit the interstate were charged with being pedestrians on a highway and with impeding the flow of traffic. On Monday, the 13 defendants, all represented by the same attorney, were convicted of obstructing free passage of others, punishable by up to a year in jail plus a $2,500 fine.

One by one, the 13 defendants went before Judge Jacqueline S. McClenney and pleaded guilty to obstructing free passage of others. The plea agreement, accepted by all of the defendants, stipulated that each of them would be sentenced to five days in jail and that the count of being pedestrians on a highway would be nolle prossed, or not pursued.

We were ready to prosecute them to the fullest extent had they not accepted the (plea) offer, and it was a Class 1 misdemeanor they were charged with, said Powell, noting that he thought five days in jail was a fair resolution, considering that the defendants generally had few prior run-ins with the law.

Three uniformed Virginia State Police troopers sat in the front of the courtroom Monday, but they did not need to testify because all of the defendants pleaded guilty.

For those allowed to serve their jail time next month, McClenney warned that if theyre late reporting to jail on the agreed-upon dates, they could face additional criminal charges.

On numerous occasions in the past year or so, protests in Richmond have drawn hundreds to more than 1,000 demonstrators who have blocked major city streets, including parts of Broad Street downtown, while dozens of police officers have redirected vehicular traffic.

Some demonstrations have prompted Richmond police to seek help from state police, who have swarmed into action and asked protesters to get off the interstate.

Earlier this month, on the night of Nov. 9, 12 protesters were arrested in Richmond  eight of them Virginia Commonwealth University students  after they sat in the travel lanes of the Downtown Expressway, blocking traffic, according to police. They were charged with unlawful assembly and being pedestrians on an interstate in what state police called a very dangerous situation.

Protesters made clear that night that they were unhappy with Donald Trump having just been elected president, as many chanted an expletive toward him in unison.

Some of the defendants arrested in that protest are scheduled to appear in Richmond General District Court today, when a trial date might be set. Other defendants are scheduled to appear in court Jan. 10. Powell will be the prosecutor in those cases as well.

Only one of the protesters convicted Monday is from Richmond. Five are from Charlottesville.

Those convicted and sentenced to five days in jail are:
A customer at a Dinwiddie County convenience store was shot and wounded Sunday night by one of two masked men during a robbery, authorities said. The male victim, whose identity has not been released, was taken by MedFlight helicopter to VCU Medical Center in Richmond.

Dinwiddie sheriffs Maj. William Knott said the two robbers were dressed in dark clothing and wearing bandanas over their faces when they entered the Quick Mart store in the 2100 block of Boydton Plank Road in McKenney about 8:20 p.m. Sunday. One of the robbers stayed at the front door while the other, armed with a handgun, went to the front counter and demanded money, Knott said.

For reasons unclear, the armed robber began firing multiple rounds inside the store, and the customer was shot in the back.

I dont know that (the customer) was doing anything other than just standing at the counter waiting to make a purchase, Knott said.

The assailants fled after receiving an undisclosed amount of cash, he said. The stores clerk was not harmed.

Investigators were in the process of reviewing the stores surveillance video to learn what happened, he said.

The victim had surgery, but an update on his condition was not immediately available. It was not clear how many times the man was shot, Knott said.
Former Nelson County Sheriff David Brooks was convicted Monday of two misdemeanors stemming from an illegal recording of an ex-political rival three years ago.

Brooks, 54, who served as Nelsons sheriff from 2008 to 2015, entered Alford pleas  maintaining his innocence while admitting prosecutors had enough evidence for a conviction  in Lynchburg Circuit Court to one count each of unlawful dissemination of images of another and malfeasance.

The charges stem from an October 2013 incident involving Malcolm Mac Bridgwater, a former deputy for Nelson and Amherst counties who unsuccessfully ran against Brooks in 2007 and 2011, according to indictments from a multijurisdictional grand jury filed in Lynchburg Circuit Court. Lynchburg Commonwealths Attorney Michael Doucette said Monday that Brooks, serving as sheriff at the time, approved of a plan in which two former deputies set up Bridgwater by working with a woman serving as an informant to lure him to a Lynchburg motel room.

In the course of carrying out the plan to catch Bridgwater in a sexual encounter, former Nelson sheriffs Lt. Rebecca Adcock took part in renting two rooms at an Econo Lodge in October 2013, and one of the rooms was set up with hidden camera and surveillance equipment, Doucette said. Adcock and another former officer, who was not charged because of his cooperation with the investigation, posed as the woman through online and phone contact to lure Bridgwater to the motel, Doucette said.

The offenses came to light because a Nelson County-issued credit card provided by Brooks was used to pay for the rooms.

Bridgwater, who was working for the Amherst Sheriffs Office at the time, lost his job because of the incident, Doucette said.

Brooks was sentenced to 24 months in jail with all time suspended, ordered 50 hours of community service, and imposed a condition that Brooks, who is retired, will not renew his law enforcement certification for a five-year period.
CHARLOTTESVILLE  Charlottesville City Councilor Wes Bellamy is facing calls to be removed from his job and other public positions he holds after a local authors blog featured tweets attributed to Bellamy that some consider racist and misogynistic.

The tweets show Bellamy claiming that he hates black people who act white or talk white, and considers white women to be the devil.

Most of the tweets appear to have been written between 2009 to 2014.

According to his Twitter account, Bellamy, who often tweets a few dozen times a day, created his account in April 2009. Since then, he has sent approximately 123,000 of the 140-character-max posts on the social media platform.

Other tweets published on the blog post written by author Jason Kessler show Bellamy, 30, saying that women often lie about the amount of men they have sex with and that he hates seeing White people in Orangeburg, the South Carolina community where he attended college.

In a statement sent Sunday evening, Bellamy, a first-year councilor, said he is sorry for having sent those tweets.

I sincerely apologize for the inappropriate things I posted to social media many years ago, the statement said. Im learning to be a better man, community leader, educator, public servant and overall person. Since then, Ive worked every day to become a better version of myself.

There are issues that need to be brought to light and dealt with. Equality in areas such as gender, sexual orientation and race need to be discussed, he said. Ive convened some of those conversations, (but) that does not mean that Im exempt from any of them, far from it.

According to a biography on the citys website, Bellamy, who is originally from Atlanta, moved to Charlottesville in 2009. After failing to be elected to the council in 2013, losing by just five votes, he was the top vote-getter in last years election.

In addition to serving on the City Council, he is an appointed member of the Virginia Board of Education and a computer science teacher at Albemarle High School.

He also is active with a number of community organizations, including serving as president of the 100 Black Men of Central Virginia, the Young Black Professional Network of Charlottesville and the Charlottesville/Albemarle Alliance of Black School Educators.

Kessler argues on his blog post that Bellamy routinely has been creating divisions in the community by dedicating himself almost exclusively to his Afrocentric racial agenda, running roughshod over the effete white liberals making up the Charlottesville Democratic Party.

Pointing to a number of recent controversies in the community, such as the movement to remove the citys Confederate statues and Bellamys call for a boycott of a local restaurant owned by a University of Virginia lecturer who recently wrote on social media that the Black Lives Matter movement is racist, comparing it to the Ku Klux Klan, Kessler said he looked into Bellamys Twitter posts for evidence of anti-white bias.

Kessler, who wrote last year on his blog that he is pro-free speech, anti-affirmative action, anti-cultural Marxist and pro-equality, among other things, declined an interview request Sunday. Kesslers social media accounts often reference the alt-right, a right-wing movement that rejects mainstream conservatism.

Recently, various institutions and civil rights organizations have condemned the movement, alleging that its supporters are often anti-Semitic, white ethno-nationalists who oppose feminism, refugee resettlement and multiculturalism.

Last week, prior to publishing his blog post, Kessler wrote on his Facebook that he is thinking about running for the City Council to protect the Confederate statues and curtail institutional racial discrimination (i.e. affirmative action).

He also said he wishes to protect the legacy of Thomas Jefferson from social justice warriors.

Im looking into it even if its just to raise awareness of these cultural issues, Kessler wrote. Im prepared to rain down some fire.

Kesslers blog post, which was published Thursday, prompted a number of readers to contact the City Council, the Albemarle County School Board and local media outlets.

City councilors and county school officials did not reply to requests for comment Sunday.

I believe Wes is unfit to serve because a position on the City Council requires an unbiased view of all Charlottesvilles citizens, said Aaron Wissinger, a city resident.

Responding to a request for comment, Wissinger said, one tweet that stood out to me was I dont like white people so I hate white snow! That seems like pretty obvious racism.  I find all of this appalling.

An Albemarle High School senior, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, said he finds it truly disgusting to know that this man is teaching in the school in which I attend.

The student added that he hopes the city will remove him from the council and that he hopefully gets fired from the school.

On Saturday, the Virginia Flaggers, an organization that has been advocating for the retention of the citys Confederate memorials, posted a statement on Facebook that called for the council to remove Bellamy from office.

Working with fellow councilman Kristin Szakos, Vice-Mayor Bellamy bullied council into spending over $10K to appoint a commission to evaluate the statues, based on his false white supremacy narrative, the statement said. Bellamy is unfit for office and all attempts to remove or alter our historical monuments must end immediately.

Nikuyah Walker, a local social justice activist and member of the Albemarle-Charlottesville NAACP, said she was alarmed by some of Bellamys tweets, but argued that they were presented with little to no context, and that they were written a number of years ago when he was still in his early 20s.

Walker said Bellamy has changed his way of thinking in some regards since then. Echoing a number of Bellamys tweets, Walker said he has told her that he thinks its wrong for black people to be criticized for talking white.

Questioning why Kessler looked so far back into his account, Walker said, Wes is a black male. You often face a different level of scrutiny because of that.
After President-elect Donald Trump claimed without evidence that there had been serious voter fraud in Virginia, his former campaign chairman for the state said Monday that he was not aware of any mass scale fraud.

John Fredericks, a conservative radio talk-show host who chaired Trumps Virginia campaign, said there were isolated incidents, such as the roughly 20 dead people registered to vote in Harrisonburg.

I was not made aware of any voter fraud in Virginia on a mass scale, Fredericks said in an interview. That doesnt mean that there isnt any.

Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe, who supported Trumps Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, laughed off Trumps claim while speaking to reporters.

When you make an allegation, put proof behind it, McAuliffe said.

Trump, who tweeted the remark Sunday night as part of a stream of messages in which he baselessly claimed he would have won the national popular vote if not for millions of illegal votes, specifically named Virginia, New Hampshire and California as states where fraud occurred.

The Republican also claimed the news media are covering up the alleged fraud, saying: Serious bias  big problem!

The false applications in Harrisonburg were discovered in September, well before Election Day.

Another voter registration fraud case is being prosecuted in Alexandria, but it also was discovered before the election and appears to involve a relatively small number of phony applications.

Clinton won Virginia by about 212,000 votes. The state uses a combination of paper ballots and touchscreen voting machines that arent connected to the internet, making widespread election-rigging all the more difficult.

The Republican-controlled General Assembly also passed a photo ID law pitched as a way to prevent in-person fraud. The measure was opposed by Democrats who said the law was meant to suppress minority votes.

Democrats pounced on Trumps remark and knocked the president-elect for a claim that Democratic Party of Virginia Chairwoman Susan Swecker called demonstrably false and irresponsible.

U.S. Rep.-elect A. Donald McEachin, a Democrat who won the race for the Richmond areas redrawn 4th District, said Trump should share any evidence he has immediately.

Without a shred of evidence, Donald Trump is recklessly alleging that millions of Americans who went to the polls and exercised their right to vote have together committed a massive, systemic crime, McEachin said in a prepared statement. He is attacking the very citizens he is supposed to lead as president.

U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., Clintons running mate, said on Twitter: Trumps claim of voter fraud in VA is shameful. @hillaryclinton won VA by 5+ points & popular vote by >2 million. Dont insult our voters!

Trumps transition organization did not respond to a request for clarity on what Trump meant and what evidence he had to support the Virginia claim.

His tweets appeared to be a reaction to the Clinton campaigns decision to take part in recount efforts in several states that arent expected to throw Trumps victory into question.

John Whitbeck, chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, said: As far as the statements of the president-elect, we are deferring to the incoming administration who we understand is looking into the matter.

Last month, two conservative groups focused on elections claimed in a report that they had discovered more than 1,000 non-citizens on Virginia voter rolls.

Some lawmakers and election officials cast doubt on the reports veracity, saying the authors overstated their findings and didnt take into account that many people flagged as non-citizens simply may have checked the wrong box on a form.

Republicans also have criticized McAuliffes efforts to expand voting rights for felons.

This year, the governor initially attempted to restore rights for more than 200,000 ex-offenders in one executive order, but the number was scaled back to about 67,000 after the Supreme Court of Virginia ruled that the sweeping order was unconstitutional, in response to a GOP challenge.

Republicans subsequently claimed that McAuliffe still was overstepping his authority by restoring rights individually after a review process. The high court rejected a GOP request to hold McAuliffe in contempt, allowing the governor to continue restoring rights through his revised process.

In a statement, House of Delegates Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, did not appear to share Trumps alarm and said Virginias election results have been canvassed and certified.
POLICE want to trace this man in connection with an investigation into an assault outside a takeaway.

Officers said the man pictured could hold important information about the early hours incident in Wombwell.

A 23-year-old man was reportedly assaulted by a stranger outside a takeaway on Station Road. He suffered facial injuries.

Police believe there was a brief argument inside the premises before the attack, between 1am and 2am on November 5.

A spokesman said: Officers also want to hear from you if you recognise the man pictured as they believe he could help with enquiries.

Anyone with information should call 101 quoting incident 133 of November 5 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.
AN INTERNATIONAL metals firm is set to purchase Tata Steel UKs threatened speciality steels arm  including its Rotherham plants.



Liberty House Group is now in exclusive buy-out talks with Tata, the London-based company announced on this morning.



Around 1,700 jobs could be saved by the 100 million deal, which is expected to be finalised early next year.



Jobs at Aldwarke and Brinsworth would be secured, along with more at Wednesbury, Stocksbridge and Bolton.



Liberty House Group has already bought Tatas Scottish steel plate mills, concluding the deal in April.



Sanjeev Gupta, Liberty House Groups executive chairman, said: We look forward to working with Tata Steel over the coming weeks to complete this hugely important milestone transaction.



We recognise the world-class skills of the speciality steels workforce and are eager to join with them to develop the business and increase market share, both domestically and internationally using our global presence.



Bimlendra Jha, chief executive of Tata Steel UK, said: This is an important step forward in seeking a future for speciality steels and we have reached this stage thanks to the efforts of employees, trade unions and management.



Chris Williamson, Rotherhams Community union branch secretary, said the mood this week was one of cautious optimism.



He added: We have a long way to go yet but at least its a start. It shows the workforce that they are wanted.

Wentworth and Dearne MP John Healey, said: This is one step closer to ending the limbo that the Tata business is in.

The priority now is to test Libertys plans for their commitment to the investment, jobs and marketing that can continue Specialty Steels success for the long-term.

Rother Valley MP Kevin Barron said: This is a step in the right direction for the UK steel industry, however I will continue to work with the Steel All Party Parliamentary Group to raise remaining issues such energy costs and business rates with the government to ensure British steel has a strong future.
Pangolin Diamonds said a diamond was found in one of the 275 samples collected during a semi-detailed sampling programme over Block 333 at the Malatswae project in Botswana.

A total of 14 diamonds had now been observed in soil samples from the project.

The company said this extended the presence of diamonds as previously reported from soil samples into four geographically different areas of the Malatswae project.

Taking the recommendations of the 43-101 prepared by iQuest into consideration, a detailed soil sampling programme has commenced over an 18 Ha area of the MTS Grid, it said.

Results from this programme are expected in 2017.

Pangolin said regional soil sampling was also in progress over areas of the Malatswae diamond project area that had not been covered by regional sampling in the past.

The company said detailed soil sampling was also completed over the "MSD Grid" in the eastern part of the Motloutse diamond project.

A diamond, several kimberlitic garnets and ilmenites were sorted from the concentrates, it said.

An extension to the MSD Grid is currently being sampled.

A diamond was reported from the MSD Grid area in 1996 by MIT Ventures.

Pangolin also said that a systematic 1 x 1 km soil sampling survey was in progress at Jwaneng South diamond project and the initial regional sampling programme was expected to be completed in 2017.

The company said it was fully funded to complete its exploration programmes.



Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished




(TASS)  ALROSA's Verhnemunskoye diamond deposit in Yakutia will be commissioned before the end of 2018, according to ALROSA's president Andrey Zharkov cited by TASS.

"We will soon complete the construction of technological passage from Udachniy to the diamond field. In 2017, we will continue active construction of a shift camp, residential complex, diesel power station, and according to the investment agreement with the Government of the Republic, the project should be completed before the end of 2018," - he said.

Earlier TASS reported that ALROSA had signed an agreement with the Ministry for the development of the Far East of the Russian Federation on state support in the amount of 8.5 billion rubles for the creation of technological 150 km passage from the city to the successful Verhnemunskoye deposit in Yakutia. The field is expected to create diamond-mining venture production capacity of 3 million tonnes of ore per year.

The Verhnemunskoye diamond field development is one of the largest investment projects of ALROSA. The volume of investment is 62.98 billion rubles. Ore reserves at the field are estimated at 65 million tons with an average grade of approximately 0.6 carats per tonne, or 38 million carats in total. Mine life is estimated until 2043.




The Oklahoma City Council has selected Herzog/Stacy and Witbeck to install the rail for the Oklahoma City Streetcar.

Representatives say the Herzog/Stacy and Witbeck bid is about $50 million, roughly $7 million less than the projected construction budget.

Construction is set to begin in January 2017. The OKC Streetcar is intended to connect the downtown area to Bricktown and other local districts and is funded by the MAPS 3 Modern Streetcar/Transit project.

The work our residents will start seeing as construction begins is the first step to building a modern intermodal public transit system for downtown Oklahoma City, said Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett. The MAPS 3 Citizens Advisory Board, the streetcar subcommittee, City staff and consultants have put in years of hard work on this project, and it will be exciting to see the finished product.

Representatives say the installation of rail and other infrastructure is expected to take place over the course of about two years, with Brookville Equipment Corporation building the modernized streetcars.

The OKC Streetcar will operate on rails embedded in the concrete on street-level in regular traffic lanes, and each streetcar will be operated by a driver following the same speed limits and traffic signals as other vehicles.

Lane and street closures are expected to affect downtown-area traffic during construction.

More information on the OKC Streetcar is available here.
Phase One of the 10-Year Vision for Metro Vancouver Transit and Transportation has been approved and is set to roll out in January 2017.

The announcement comes following the Mayors Council and TransLink Board of Directors approval of a CA$2 billion (US$1.49 billion) transit and road improvement plan to be implemented for the project.

With the 10-Year Vision underway, representatives say the region is leading among Canadian cities in delivering a major multi-modal, regional transportation infrastructure program.

TransLink is ready to deliver the services and investments in the Phase One Plan, said Kevin Desmond, CEO of TransLink. Our team has put in months of detailed planning and preparation. Now we are looking forward to putting this preparation into action, and delivering the positive change we heard our customers demand during the public consultation last month.

Phase One of the plan is expected to yield noteworthy improvements for Metro Vancouver commuters, such as reduced crowding on transit and HandyDARTTransLinks door-to-door, shared-ride service for passengers who are unable to use conventional public transit due to physical or cognitive disabilities; added service to areas that have not previously had transit options, addressing bottlenecks on the regions major road networks and creating pedestrian walkways and bike paths. Representatives say the approved plan includes input gathered through public consultation.

Confirming Phase One funding is a major milestone in delivering on the Mayors Councils 10-Year Vision that will keep people moving across Metro Vancouver, said Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson. Phase One of the 10-Year Vision delivers the regions biggest transit expansion in nearly a decade, kick-starting immediate and urgently needed improvements in our transit system while laying the groundwork for the Broadway Subway and Surrey-Langley LRT projects. I look forward to working with all levels of government to make the entire 10-Year Vision a reality.

Phase One of the 10-Year Vision will be funded by a CA$370 million (US$275.8 million) contribution from the federal government and CA$246 million (US$183.46 million) from the provincial government, with the remaining CA$1.3 billion (US$969.5 million) of capital and operating costs coming from TransLinks existing funding sources, cost savings and efficiencies, as well as new regional revenues including modest property tax and transit fare increases.

With Phase One set to roll-out in January 2017, the Mayors Council and TransLink will begin developing the plan for Phase Two, which is expected to be open to public consultation in 2017.

For too long, transportation investments have not kept pace with population growth, but with this plan we can begin to address transit overcrowding and road congestion. Were responding to what residents have been asking for: better transit service across the region and moving forward on important infrastructure like Surrey-Langley LRT, said Surrey Mayor Linda Hepner, vice-chair of the Mayors Council.

Planned improvements to be implemented during Phase One include:

10 percent increase in bus service

15 percent increase in HandyDART service

20 percent increase in rail service following delivery of new rail cars (Expo Line, Millennium Line and Evergreen Extension, Canada Line, West Coast Express)

Pre-construction and consultation on Broadway subway and Surrey-Langley light rail

New funding for improvements to the Major Road Network

Expansion and improvements to cycling and walking networks

Metro Vancouver customers will begin seeing improvements to the system in January 2017, including expanded service on the SeaBus, Expo Line, Millennium Line and Canada Line. Further rail service increases will be implemented as new fleet is delivered beginning in late 2018.
Thailand will on Monday release October figures for imports, exports and trade balance, setting the pace for a light day in Asia-Pacific economic activity.

Imports are expected to gain 1.0 percent on year after climbing 5.6 percent in September. Exports are called lower by an annual 1.0 percent after advancing 3.4 percent in the previous month. The trade surplus is pegged at $1.920 billion, down from $2.546 billion a month earlier.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Economic News

What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more.
Within weeks of winning the U.S. presidential election, Donald Trump has claimed he would have won the popular vote if millions of illegally cast votes were not counted.

Trump won the November 8th election due to his clear lead in Electoral College votes, but the billionaire-turned-politician lagged behind his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton by about two million popular votes.

Trump's claim, with no evidence offered to back it, comes in the wake of a call by Green Party candidate Jill Stein for a vote recount in Wisconsin. The Clinton camp is in support of the recount effort.

The latest controversial comments by the president-elect were made in a series of Twitter posts on Sunday.

"In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally," Trump tweeted.

He added, "It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4 states instead of the 15 states that I visited. I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)."

Electoral college votes are proportionate to each state's population. For example, California, the most populous American state, has 55 electoral votes, while a few small states and the District of Columbia have only three.

Trump alleged serious voter fraud in three states won by Clinton - Virginia, New Hampshire and California. "Why isn't the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem!" Trump said.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Political News
The incoming Trump administration may be rewriting relations with Cuba in a post-Fidel Castro era.

Comments by four key Republican leaders, including the President-elect, is pointing to this possibility.

In a statement on the death of Fidel Castro, Donald J. Trump said his administration will do all it can to ensure the Cuban people can finally begin their journey toward prosperity and liberty.

"Today, the world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades," said the billionaire-turned-politician on the death of the Cuban revolutionary leader.

"While Cuba remains a totalitarian island, it is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve," he added.

GOP Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, both of Cuban descent, are of the opinion that Washington's ties with Havana should be reevaluated.

In an interview on ABC News Sunday, Cruz said he hopes to see increased liberty in Cuba but that with Barack Obama's' restoration of diplomatic ties, it's hard for that to happen.

"Trump has made very clear that he felt that the moves President Obama has made toward Cuba were wrong and that he would examine them and change the ones that needed to be changed," Rubio told CNN.

Trump is willing to reconsider U.S. relations with Cuba, according to Republican party chief Reince Priebus. Trump's incoming chief of staff told Fox News Sunday that "There's going to have to be some movement from Cuba in order to have a relationship with the United States."

Efforts to normalize relations with Cuba took a quantum leap during the Obama administration. Obama had paid a historic visit to Cuba in March.

Cuba and the United States have reopened embassies in each other's capitals and announced a series of breakthroughs in talks on thawing their Cold War freeze.

Under new rules implemented by the Obama administration, restrictions on travel by Americans to Cuba are significantly relaxed, and the limited import of items like Cuban cigars and rum to the United States is allowed, as is the export of American computer and telecommunications to Cuba.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Following the death of former Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, President-elect Donald Trump has suggested he will reverse the steps President Barack Obama has taken to normalize relations with Cuba.

In a post on Twitter on Monday, Trump claimed he would eliminate the concessions Obama has granted Cuba unless the communist island nation agrees to a "better deal."

"If Cuba is unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people, the Cuban/American people and the U.S. as a whole, I will terminate deal," Trump said.

The steps taken by Obama include re-opening the U.S. embassy in Havana and enacting regulatory changes that allow more Americans to travel to and do with Cuba.

However, because the policies were enacted through executive orders and not an act of Congress, they can be easily undone once Trump takes office.

In a conference call with reporters, Trump transition communications director Jason Miller said the president-elect is aware of the nuances and complexities regarding the challenges that Cuba and its people face.

"To be clear, the president-elect wants to see freedom in Cuba for the Cubans and a good deal for Americans where we aren't played for fools," Miller said.

He added, "Our priorities are the release of political prisoners, the return of fugitives from American law, and also political and religious freedoms for all Cubans living in oppression."

Incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus told "Fox News Sunday" that Trump is "absolutely" willing to undo the steps Obama has taken if there are not changes by the Cuban government.

(Photo: Gage Skidmore)

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
A first-of-its-kind journey along India and Pakistan border

What binds the two most talked about nations - India and Pakistan together? What makes the
Israelis voted on Tuesday for an unprecedented fifth time in four years to break the political impasse that has paralysed the country.
Laura Kelly, Derek Schmidt locked in close governor's race, poll shows

New polling released Wednesday shows races for Kansas governor and attorney general remain toss-ups, as the Nov. 8 election nears.
Ladies and gentlemen, there is no need to be alarmed; Tuilaepa is here!

He flew all the way from Morocco, had a brief stop in New Zealand and his feet had barely touched the ground when he jumped right in and taken control of the volatile situation at the Police.

Now Samoa is calm and peaceful again. What could possibly go wrong?

Indeed what will Samoa ever do without our Mr. Fix It? Were talking about a man of many talents, our very own Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi.

Who needs a Cabinet? And who needs anyone else when youve got a leader can do anything and everything?

From rugby, to opening projects day and night to faafafine patron to being the savior of Samoa, he does it all with such aplomb.

Weve got to hand it to him; there are not many people like him in the world these days. Love him or loathe him, weve got to admire his rare qualities. Youve got to at least appreciate his willingness to be that leader who steps up to the plate when hes needed  especially into situations others would fear to tread.

Take the Police controversy for instance. The developments at the Police are no longer a secret. Theyve been told in detail on the pages of this newspaper and in other media forums.

The only thing missing from all those accounts was Prime Minister Tuilaepas input. But there is a perfectly logical explanation for that. You see when all that unfolded, Prime Minister Tuilaepa was in Morocco to try and save the planet.

In his absence, Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Health, Tuitama Dr. Leao Tuitama, did his best to steady the ship. To his credit, he had done quite a good job given that the conflict among police officers could have gotten out hand quite easily.

Now back in the country, Prime Minister Tuilaepa was itching to go to work.

He must have gotten quite fed up with Samoa making the headlines for the commotion down at the Police station so that the first thing he did when his Cabinet met was to grab the Police portfolio from former Minister of Police, Sala Fata Pinati. This was confirmed in a statement issued to the media later by the Office of the Press Secretariat.

The Hon. Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, will now assume responsibility for the Fire and Emergency Services Authority as well as take on the duties for the Ministry of Police, The statement reads:

Responsibility for Samoa Police had traditionally fallen under the purview of the Prime Minister. The decision to change these portfolios and return oversight of Samoa Police back to the Prime Minister, reaffirms the importance placed on law and order and in keeping Samoa a peaceful nation.

Well thats great to know isnt.

But what about old Sala Pinati?

Well hes been handed the Audit Office and Samoa Bureau of Statistics - in addition to being responsible for the Samoa Tourism Authority. That should keep him happy for now.

The fact is the second reshuffle in less than 12 months since the General Election will be interpreted in many ways by critics and supporters of the government. Some have already called him a dictator for trying to run everything in a one-man band fashion. Others say the decision reflects his absolute lack of trust in his Cabinet Ministers. Is there no one else capable of fixing the mess at the Police?

Whatever it is, youve got to admire Tuilaepas leadership. It doesnt mean his decision-making is not questionable but when you have someone who is so willing to throw himself into the line of fire for the sake of the nation, weve got to stand back and marvel. And he does with such a witty sense of humour.

For example, during is weekly media conference; Tuilaepa downplayed the divisions within the Police saying there is nothing to be alarmed about.

They are just playing a game  its not over yet, he said.

Maybe soon it will probably be done. Remember there is a beginning and an end so dont you worry themthe men are getting old but I feel its over now.

Asked about the ghost letters, he said he hasnt seen any.

The reason why I want to look at it is because I wanted to know who these young ghosts are, he said. It came in this girls newspaper (Samoa Observer) but I have been looking for the letter. If it came on the newspaper and I have not seen it then, I feel for the Observer because people can just fool them

Now in reassuring the nation about their safety, Tuilaepa was happy to show off the keys to the armoury.

I take it with me (everywhere I go) he said adding that all the firearms are in the armoury and the only weapons that have not been taken in are fire dance knives inside his office.

I have the keys here but Ill tell my driver tomorrow to take those in and lock it there, he said about the fire dance knives inside his office, not because I might get hurt but in case someone might get hurt from it if it falls on them.

Dont you just love those one liners? Typical Stui sense of humour.

Welcome back Mr. Fix it! Now good luck with trying to sort out the Police, you are sure going to need all your humour and charms to fix that mighty mess.

Have a great week Samoa, God bless!
The premiere of the movie Moana in Hollywood was not just about showcasing Polynesian traditions, culture, songs and dancing.

For some Pacific island fashion designers it was the breakthrough they had been dreaming about to show the world  especially Hollywood - how far they have come and just how creative they can be.

One of those proud designers is a woman who needs little introduction in Samoa. She is Cecilia Peterson Keil, of Cecilias Fashion House at Vaigaga.

One of her pieces, a jacket, was worn by Opetaia Foai of Te Vaka during the premiere. It was certainly an attention grabber, a piece that got fashion designers talking.

Speaking to the Samoa Observer, Mrs. Keil said the international focus for her company started last year.

I was invited to the Pacific runway in Sydney and from there I saw the opportunity in terms of this platform to get out of Samoa, she said.

I know that there are a lot of very creative and very good designers in Samoa, so why not get further? Why do we have to stay here?

When I got back I spoke to some friends that are into arts and from there we coordinated this Samoan fashion week which took place in September

The rest as they say is history.

Back to Moana and Te Vaka, Cecilia said she was delighted with the opportunity offered to her as part of the Pacific Runway Fashion Show.

When I left Australia I was told on the day at the airport that I have been selected as one of the designers to dress Te Vaka, she said. And when I came back, you know, I got this positive feedback, our Samoan fashion is going global. It was such an exciting time.

Cecilias husband, Konrad Keil, said all this happened because of the exposure they received in Australia. He said from their time there, they have made some key connections of companies they are looking to work with.

And its not just in Australia.

There is another chain in Papua New Guinea that was interested in her, he said. This is what she meant by taking it outside, having a platform to use all these talented designers. But I think the biggest achievement that happened to Cecilia is the event of dressing Te Vaka.

Konrad said his wifes work is unique and Moana was the perfect platform for it.

Cecilia's fashion is as different as the movie, he said. They even made the red carpet blue because it's the ocean of the Pacific. Cecilia is really pushing the traditional wear. It's not commercialised by the Asian market. It should never lose its significance.

For Mrs. Keil, she said her pieces are individual. You will never find clothes like hers.

Each of these symbols have a meaning, she said about the artwork on the jacket worn by Foai. Each pattern tells a story about life in Samoa back in the days, stories of families and friends. Each piece I design shows my Polynesian identity and gives me a great sense of pride.

Mrs. Keil said it took a couple of days to create the jacket.

The print is what makes it special, so it stands out. It is different, she said. We look at the Western trend and utilise some parts but I always add the Polynesian flavour to it. It's about having the traditional Polynesian parts and mixing them up with some casual Western parts. It's always about identity.

And what does she make of Samoan fashion going mainstream in Hollywood?

According to all the congratulations, it is a really big deal for Polynesian people. Opetaias wife sent me a message wishing me all the best and success. Western society may need some time to get used to this way of dressing.

So what does this mean for her business in Samoa?

Ninety five per cent of my work is sold to Australia New Zealand, America and Europe. The price is one of the reasons why I can't sell that fast. That might change now with the recent exposure of her work.
Samoas hidden treasure, the big island of Savai, took a turn yesterday to welcome the contestants of 2016 Miss Pacific Islands to its shores.

Savaii rolled out the red carpet giving the contestants a rapturous reception as the ladies enjoyed the tranquility of the Savaii ahead of their big day on Friday.

The contestants, their entourages and pageant officials boarded the Lady Naomi for an experience of Samoa Shipping Corporation hospitality.

Once they were in Savaii, they headed straight to Don Bosco Technical Training Centre where Father Mosese and his students welcomed them in traditional style. Each contestant was escorted to loud applause beginning a memorable day.

The next stop was the beautiful Amoa Resort where they took a little breather before heading to Safune where the Savaii Samoa Tourism Association put on an ava ceremony.

Vacations Beach Fale provided a scrumptious lunch before the girls checked out the gorgeous village of Manase and the Saleaula lava fields.

The rest of the afternoon was spent at Amoa Resort where the contestants had time to take a breather and rehearse their items for Friday nights finale.

The contestants are returning to Upolu this afternoon.
The suspended Police Commissioner, Fuiavailili Egon Keil, will plead not guilty to fresh charges filed against him by the Ministry of Police.

That was the indication from his lawyer, Leiataualesa Komisi Koria, when the matter was brought before Chief Justice, His Honour Patu Tiavaasue Falefatu Sapolu, yesterday.

We will be entering a not guilty plea to all these charges, Leiataualesa said.

These proceedings come at a great cost of the public, great expense in terms of government resources as well as the time of this honorable Court. We feel that the charges against my client are baseless and without merit.

But what the charges are exactly remains a mystery.

In fact, Lucy Sio, who appeared on behalf of the National Prosecution Office (N.P.O) asked for a two-week adjournment so that the charges could be finalised.

There are conflicting reports about the number of charges  with one saying the Commissioner is facing more than 200 charges.

Leiataualesa yesterday sought an order from the Court for Police to provide trial documents for all the charges.

To date, weve received not one copy of the charges file progressively since the 14th November 2016, said Leiataua.

The lawyer not asked for trial documents in relation to the charges but sought that they be provided by the end of the week.

He added that believes one charge is about an alleged one offence, which happened a long time ago, and since they brought the new charges, they are adding charges as they go.

It is the interest of my client, his Constitutional rights for adequate facilities to be provided for him to prepare his defense.

Leiataualesas application sought permission from the Court for his client to access certain information within the Ministry of Police, and access police witnesses who have knowledge of the facts about the proceedings.

We urgently need this for our trial to be relevant, he said.

Ms. Sio opposed the applications. She insisted her Office needs time to file a response to Leiatauas applications.

In response, Chief Justice Patu ordered the prosecution to file and serve all the charges and copies of the trial documents to the defense by Friday this week at 12noon.

In relation to the application for access to information and witnesses, the prosecution has been given until 5 December at 2pm to file a response. The actual hearing, however, has been adjourned until 12 December 2016.

Outside Court, the Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration, Papalii John Taimalelagi, confirmed earlier reports that the Commissioner is facing 271 charges.

Papalii said the number of charges against Fuiava includes counseling and procuring to murder, possession of unlawful firearm, being armed with a dangerous weapons, insulting words and threatening words.
A 16-year-old boy who was at the receiving end of a nasty beating has told of the horror he and his friends were subjected to in Apia last week.

The beating at Mulivai has Lanu Palepoi, of Talimatau, bruised and shaken.

Speaking to the Samoa Observer yesterday, Mr. Palepoi said the attack was unprovoked. He said him and his friends were hanging out when a group of young men approached them and started trouble.

It was around 11pm and we had just came back from McDonalds, he said.

So we decided to park the car and go out for some fresh air on the bridge before we head home.

Suddenly, we noticed a group of youngsters walking straight to us. They didnt ask questions. They just started punching us for absolutely no reason.

Horrified about what was happening, one of his friends sought refuge at a taxi stand nearby.

But two other guys from the group ran after him and started beating him up, he said. My friend said nobody helped him while he was getting beat up.

Mr. Palepoi on the other hand was already on the ground.

I was trying to fight them off but there were too many of them. They started kicking and punching me and I was helpless. It wasnt until a security guard of Ace came and thats when they ran off.

They ripped off my clothes and took all of our money that night. So we went to the police station and they (police) took us to the hospital.

Since the beating, Mr. Palepois nose has not stopped bleeding. He is suffering from internal injuries and his face is badly bruised.

His mother, Anna Tofoipupu Palepoi, said seeing her son in such a state has left her angry and sad. When he came home, he couldnt eat, she said. Even right now, he can hardly talk because of his bruises.

Looking at him like this, I just want to find the people who did this and kill them all.

Im a single mother who raised them up and never laid a hand on them. For him to come home looking like this is just not right. Words cant explain how I feel right now when I look at him.

Back to Mr. Palepoi, he said the memories of what happened are horrific.

I was helpless, he said. I thought to myself, what have we done to deserve this? All we did was just stand there. We were just hanging out and next minute we were getting beaten up. I thought they would never stop.

Initially, Ms. Palepoi said her son didnt want to speak up but she wanted to tell this story to warn other parents.

This is the first time Ive allowed my son to go out with his friends because I get worried and now he came back with this, she said.

To make it worse, the taxi drivers these kids ran to for help. I couldnt believe it when the kids told me that they (taxi drivers) didnt help them. I mean what if its their relatives? Would they still sit there and do nothing? My son and his friends are Samoans and I thought that these are all our children and that our people are loving and kind.

The mother went on to say that she only found out on Saturday morning when her son got dropped off.

My son told the police not to call me but still Im sure theres a law that a parent must be informed when incidents like this happen and especially he is under aged too, she said.

So what if something happened to him? Would they still listen to this kid and not call me?

I dont know Im just hurt, I feel so helpless because I cant do anything and he couldve been killed that night and I wouldnt have known.

Ms. Palepoi urged the parents not to let their kids out at night or anytime of the day. This happened to my nephews as well two weeks ago and they didnt want to speak up, she said.

Now it has happened to my son, I will not be silent because if I dont speak up, then this will continue.

The message I want to send to the parents is be careful about letting your kids out because there are losers out there who have nothing better to do than going around and beating up kids.

What do they get out of it? Does beating up other peoples children give them a better future? No, it only makes them cowards and losers.
Much attention will be focused in the coming weeks on whether it is appropriate for employers to require their employees to greet customers and others exclusively with Happy Holidays. A Christian employee may strongly prefer offering a more specific Merry Christmas to those he or she encounters in the course of the workday. But a religiously-inspired preference is not a religious mandate. An employer must reasonably accommodate the demands of their employees sincerely-held faith unless doing so would cause the employer undue hardship. There is no such duty to accommodate an employee preference that touches religion in any way.

Two cases illustrate this demand/preference distinction.

May an employer insist that all of its employees answer company phones Merry Christmas? As to any employees whose religion prohibits them in any way from celebrating or observing Christmas, the answer is no. That is the lesson one Kentucky manufacturing and design firm learned when it fired a payroll clerk/back-up receptionist after she informed the company president that greeting callers with Merry Christmas would compromise her beliefs as a Jehovahs Witness.

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The court in the Kentucky case found that the company could have accommodated the receptionists religious objections without undue hardship either by having her not answer the company phones during the Christmas season or by answering with the greeting Good Morning and the company name.

There are very few religions that prohibit its adherents from even acknowledging Christmas. Where an employer is informed that the employees bona fide religious beliefs preclude him or her from doing so, that request should be reasonably accommodated.

And yet matters of conscience are one thing; matters of preference are another. Is a Catholic employee entitled, for example, to walk off her shift many hours early on Christmas Eve day to volunteer in getting children, including her daughter, ready for a church Christmas play later that night? A federal court answered that question no and further held that the employer had the right to fire the employee when she left early, knowing that her request for the extra time off had been denied three days before.

The distinction the court drew was between a basically social obligation and a fundamentally religious duty. The employees request to appear at the church hall to set up for the church play, receive the children, and decorate was not a religious observance protected by laws requiring employers to accommodate their employees religious beliefs. The employees early attendance at the church hall was social in nature. It was far more extensive in time than necessary for religion. It was family oriented, a family obligation, not a religious obligation.

The employees desire to help with her daughters play involved the natural family interest of a good parent. Extraordinarily harsh though the court believed the employers response was, nothing in the law prohibited the employee from being fired for walking off the job.

This is treacherous legal territory for an employer. It is a bad idea to require an employee to provide documented proof that a requested accommodation  for time off, to be excused from participation in religiously-touched practices or celebrations  is driven by religion rather than by social preference. These cases and others show the employer is on firmest ground in rejecting such a request when the employee indicates that the requested accommodation is not at its core religious. Giving the employees asserted faith the benefit of the doubt otherwise will avoid expensive legal trouble long after the holidays are over.

Eaton is a partner with the San Diego law firm of Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek where his practice focuses on defending and advising employers. He also is a business ethics and employment law instructor at San Diego State University. Email: eaton@scmv.com. Twitter: @DanEatonlaw
El Cajon has joined several other cities in the county in passing an emergency ordinance that would temporarily prohibit the cultivation and sale of marijuana within its borders.

Santee, National City, San Marcos and Poway already adopted such measures, and Lemon Grove has a permanent law banning medical and recreational pot.

Proposition 64, legalizing the sale of recreational marijuana in California, was passed by voters Nov. 8. Until the state establishes its regulatory plan through state licenses, no retail or commercial operations are allowed.

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The El Cajon Municipal Code currently prohibits marijuana dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives, and prohibits the cultivation of marijuana.

That ban is unaffected by Prop. 64, which will allow certain local control over non-medical marijuana commercial activities. That includes a ban on such uses through land use legislation.

The citys urgency ordinance, passed unanimously Nov. 15, will last 45 days. City Manager Doug Williford said the city will look to pass a second one this month that will last for 10 months.

City Attorney Morgan Foley said the latest ordinance would not violate Prop. 64, since it only relates to outdoor cultivation of marijuana by individuals for their personal use.

The El Cajon ordinance requires all activities to be conducted inside a home or other building on the property.

Foley said the city is concerned that outdoor growth of the plant could cause problems related to theft, illegal consumption by anyone under 21, the sale of stolen marijuana, or illegal sales by the individual grower where the plants and products are made easily available to a third party

Prop. 64, the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act, allows people 21 and older to grow up to six plants at home and to buy and possess an ounce or less of marijuana and 8 grams or less of concentrated cannabis.

It is still illegal to smoke or consume marijuana in public. The law would also eventually allow the cultivation of marijuana for commercial use, but commercial sales wouldnt be legal until 2018.

Prop. 64 would establish a state regulatory system  the Bureau of Marijuana Control, part of the Department of Consumer Affairs  similar to the way the Department of Alcohol Beverage Control regulates the sale of beer, wine and spirits.

Retailers of marijuana would be subject to state control, including a 15 percent state excise tax paid by buyers and a cultivation tax paid by growers.

However the measure also allows cities to exert local control over non-medical marijuana commercial activities, including a ban on such uses.

We unanimously passed the emergency ordinance to give us time to carefully craft an ordinance that will be custom tailored for the city of El Cajons needs, City Councilman Gary Kendrick said. Almost certainly it will be an ordinance that doesnt allow marijuana shops near residential areas.

We get lots of bitter complaints about them, he said. And knowing council members as I do, we will not allow the sale of marijuana in our city. This is also to protect the public, especially children.

We have to keep marijuana out of the hands of children.
Solana Beach has authorized City Manager Greg Wade to negotiate with a consulting team that could help the small coastal community set up and administer a program to buy alternative energy for its residents and businesses.

The city has been a leader in San Diego County on a number of environmental issues including bans on polystyrene food containers, single-use plastic bags, and smoking in public places. Its now on track to be first city in the county to adopt a Community Choice Aggregation, or CCA, which California allows under a state law passed in 2002.

Forming or joining a not-for-profit CCA would allow residents to purchase more energy using alternative sources such as solar or wind power, instead of accepting the primarily fossil-fuel based sources of San Diego Gas & Electric Co. Electricity purchased by the group would be delivered over the existing SDG&E system.

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This month the Solana Beach City Council chose two companies, The Energy Authority and Noble Energy Solutions, to make up the consulting team.

The negotiations could take as long as six months before a proposal is brought to the City Council, said Assistant City Manager Dan King. There will be no cost to the city other than the staff time involved.

Were not rushing into this, said Councilman Peter Zahn. We could choose to withdraw at any time, or switch to another group.

A few residents have expressed concerns in recent months about the proposal, saying theyre worried people could be locked into paying higher rates for alternative energy.

Zahn said he doesnt see that as a problem, because any CCA would allow residents to opt out and stay with SDG&E as their energy provider.

Councilman Mike Nichols said he sees no risk in negotiating with the firms, adding, All we are going to do is get a lot of information.

The negotiations will cover ways to handle things such as billing, tracking accounts, finding energy sources and more, Wade said. Residents will receive multiple notices so that they are aware of the process as it unfolds, he added.

Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas and Del Mar are also discussing Community Choice Aggregation.

Several successful CCA programs have been formed in Los Angeles and Northern California. Those programs allow customers to buy a higher percentage of renewable energy at slightly lower rates than those provided by their traditional utilities. They also have the option of buying 100 percent renewable energy at a slightly higher rate.

CCA programs are also a way cities can meet the greenhouse gas reduction goals set by their state-mandated climate action plans.

SDG&E in August became the first utility in the state to lobby against CCAs.

philip.diehl@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @phildiehl
Chula Vista has recommitted to its bayfront master plan project, promising $1.2 million annually from the citys general fund to back its agreement with the Port of San Diego.

City Councilman Steve Miesen recused himself from the Nov.15 council vote due to a potential economic conflict of interest. The vote was made regarding several changes to the financing agreement.

This action demonstrates the citys continued commitment to this project, which will generate revenue and create the top-tier destination that Chula Vista deserves, said Chula Vista Port Commissioner Ann Moore.

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The agreement identifies the revenue sources necessary to build and maintain public improvements, infrastructure and other amenities in accordance with the final environmental impact report, previously approved by the city and port in May 2010.

It was later approved by the California Coastal Commission in 2012.

City Manager Gary Halbert recommended the changes in order to reflect updated commitments from both agencies that had been discussed in the past year.

Those changes go as far back as 2012, including the elimination of redevelopment agencies and related revenue along with the citys tourism and marketing district.

Despite the changes, Halbert said the message remains the same: To make this catalyst project come out of the ground, both the port and the city are going to have to go all in, and thats frankly what this financing agreement reflects.

About 15 years ago, the city and port began a collaborative planning process to create a master plan for the 535-acre Chula Vista bayfront.

The plan was envisioned to transform Chula Vistas industrial bayfront into a thriving residential and world-class waterfront resort destination.

The roughly $1.2 million would be directed to the construction of the roads, sidewalks and paths, open space improvements and mitigation measures and toward the convention center.

Halbert said that the bayfront project would receive revenues annually through existing service agreements with the port as well as through transient occupancy tax from RV park guests.

As surrounding properties begin to develop, well see growth and revenues at that point, he said. Wed be taking that money and putting it into the bayfront project.

Councilwoman Pamela Bensoussan said without this initial investment there wouldnt be a bayfront project.

This is a project that will have such a financial economic development benefit to the city that I dont see that we have any choice, and I think that its really important that we show our willingness to the port, she said. I think this is whats needed to finally put us over the top and get the ball rolling.

Project support is expected to include a combination of one-time and ongoing contributions from the city, port and county.

The ongoing contributions from each agency will be used to repay any issued bonded debt as well as offset the cost of operating and maintaining public infrastructure and facilities.

City staff is expected to continue working with the port to reduce general fund impacts to both agencies.

Next steps include city and port staff drafting the finance plan, which will provide additional detail and be brought back to the City Council for future consideration and approval.
One of Americas most enduring comedy stars is bring his Spend the Night with Billy Crystal tour to San Diego for a Feb. 16 show at Jacobs Music Centers Copley Symphony Hall.

His performance here, announced Monday morning, is one of more than 30 scheduled tour stops for Crystal next year. His 2004 Tony Award-winning one-man-show, 700 Sundays, got its start in San Diego as a page to stage production at the La Jolla Playhouse.

In a statement about his upcoming 2017 tour, Crystal said: This show is unique. Theres stand-up, and sit down, which gives me great freedom to tell stories, show film clips and talk about my life and career and the world as I see it. Its loose, unpredictable and intimate. The most fun Ive had on stage in a long time.

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Crystal is second only to Bob Hope as the most frequent host of the Oscars telecast. His best-known films include When Harry Met Sally, Analyze This andCity Slickers. His latest memoir, Still Foolin Em: Where Ive Been, Where Im Going, and Where the Hell Are My Keys?, made the New York Times best-seller list.

Tickets for Crystals Feb. 16 Copley Symphony Hall performance go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at ticketmaster.com and by phone at (800) 745-3000. Prices range from $75 to $125, plus service charges.

Twitter @georgevarga

george.varga@sduniontribune.com
Pauline Oliveros, the visionary composer, performer and teacher who co-founded the Department of Music at UC San Diego in 1967, died Thursday in her sleep at her home in Kingston, N.Y. She was 84.

Oliveros death was announced by renowned flutist Claire Chase, a San Diego native. Chase is the co-founder of the International Contemporary Ensemble, which often performed Oliveros groundbreaking music.

I am unmoored by the loss of Pauline, but I know she would want to me to step up and find words, Chase said, via email, Sunday.

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I have known Pauline from the time that I was a baby, and always admired her as a fierce, kind, bad-ass, and courageously original spirit. Pauline followed her own star wherever it led her  humble, devoted, extravagantly curious, effortlessly prolific, and deeply gifted in the way that the greats are. Bach, Schubert, Messiaen, Cage  Pauline is one of them, holding her own. We are so lucky to have known her.

Oliveros final concert was Nov. 10 at the Jewish Museum in Manhattan, where she played her futuristic V accordion. The digitally enhanced instrument enabled her to sound like she was performing on a conventional accordion one moment and an array of orchestral instruments the next.

One of her most important innovations was the concept of deep listening, which Oliveros began developing in the late 1980s. It was an approach she described as hear with your ears, listen with your heart and as exploring the difference between the involuntary nature of hearing and the voluntary, selective nature  exclusive and inclusive  of listening.

Pauline was a visionary, said UC San Diego music professor and acclaimed bassist Mark Dresser, who studied with Oliveros at the La Jolla campus in the 1970s.

She was a pioneering woman composer in electronic music, telematics  which enables musicians to perform in real time with musicians in other cities and countries. She also developed adaptive instruments for the disabled and was noted for her sonic meditations and writings, Dresser said.

She trained generations in the practice of listening as consciousness, mixing meditative practice and breathing techniques from qigong, with the emphasis on listening, tuning and feeling. he said. She was the first openly gay musician that I knew and had a first wedding ceremony in the early 1970s. And, besides being wickedly smart, she had a great sense of humor. I recall at New Music America in Houston she wore a top hat and a sandwich board reading, Hire a Composer.

In the early 1960s, Oliveros hooked up multiple reel-to-reel tape recorders to create feedback, echo and tape delays in her compositions, which found her using electronics in real time. Her work from this period is documented on Reverberations: Tape and Electronic Music, 1961-1970, a 12-CD box set released in 2012.

An early champion of synthesizers, Oliveros could also be playful, at one point using her bathtub as a reverb unit. On a far more serious note, her haunting 1971 composition, Sonic Meditations, was inspired by her shock and dismay about the then-ongoing war in Vietnam. Her 1989 album, Deep Listening, was recorded in a disused cistern 14 feet beneath the ground.

Ive always created situations or structures that challenge the status quo, Oliveros told The San Diego Union-Tribune in an interview prior to one of her early 1990s concerts at UCSD, where she headed the Center for Music Experiment from 1976 to 1979.

I do that to unseat some of the habits that one might have and allow one to become exposed to something different, or some other alternative. Because having a particular routine or ritual sometimes leads to not hearing something else.

Her bold work as a composer, performer and conceptual maverick were hailed Sunday by UCSD music professor Steven Schick, the longtime music director of the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus. He featured two of her compositions, Rock Piece and Thirteen Changes: For Malcolm Goldstein, at the Ojai Music Festival last year, for which Schick served as the 2015 music director.

Paulines music, like her spirit, was rich, generous, and welcoming, said Schick, who knew Oliveros for more than 20 years. With every encounter, Pauline demonstrated that listening was the most respectful and rewarding way to meet the world. Oh, how we need that now!

Born in Houston on May 30, 1932, Pauline Oliveros was fascinated as a child by the special effects she heard on such radio dramas as The Lone Ranger and The Shadow. She was also intrigued by the static produced when trying to tune in distant radio stations.

Oliveros took up the accordion when she was 9, followed by the French horn and tuba. She studied music at the University of Houston. At the age of 20, armed with $300 and her accordion, she moved to San Francisco in search of new musical adventures. She soon found plenty of them.

Oliveros studied at San Francisco State University and met such budding minimalist music icons as Steve Reich and Terry Riley, whose debut concert of his seminal 1964 opus, A Rainbow in Curved Air, featured Oliveros. In the early 1960s, she also became a key force at the San Francisco Tape Music Center, which was launched by Ramon Sender and Morton Subotnick as an incubator for innovative aural adventure.

In 1965, she began developing her Expanded Instrument System, a computer program for music that she continued expanding and refining through this year. There are far more women composers and musicians now than when Oliveros started, but she definitely stood out earlier in her career.

One really got the sense that being a woman composer was a hard road back in those days, said San Diego composer Joe Garison, who provided technical support at Oliveros UCSD concerts in the late 1960s. You could sense there were road blocks.

Even so, Oliveros was undaunted.

I didnt think of myself as a woman composer, she told the Union-Tribune. I just thought of myself as a composer. Because I saw my mother doing some improvisations and composing pieces, and I saw pictures of women as composers on the front of pieces of music, and because I was really coming from an inner impulse, it didnt occur to me I shouldnt do it.

After she left UCSD in 1981, she settled in New York where she founded the nonprofit Pauline Oliveros Foundation. It was created to nurture and support adventuresome musicians and composers. She went on to write at least five books.

In 2012, Oliveros received the John Cage Award from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts. Her opera, The Nubian Word for Flowers, debut in 2013 in Los Angeles.

When her muse led her, as it has done powerfully in the last few years, to the realm of opera, she followed it with such ferocity that she was writing music until her last hours, International Contemporary Ensemble mainstay Chase said.

Pauline wrote the very first piece for my ensemble, ICE, in the year 2000, and was one of the earliest advisers and supporters in the formation of the ICE idea. She was simultaneously the most demanding and the kindest mentor I have ever had. In recent years we played more together, and I was honored to have commissioned her for a piece for my Density 2036 project last year called Intensity 21.5, a Tribute to Grace Chase.

As Pauline was a kind of adopted grandmother figure for me, she was curious about my real grandmother, and we developed a piece in her honor that used her Expanded Instrument System. Shaping, learning, and ultimately performing that piece with Pauline was one of the high points of my creative life thus far. I have no words to express my gratitude for this woman and what she has done for me, for my colleagues, and for the field  so I will do what she would want me to do, which is to leave words aside and to make music.

In a 2012 interview with Art Forum, Oliveros marveled at her longevity in music.

Turning 80 has been fantastic.  I thought this would be a relaxing time in my life  a time to retire! she said. I was wrong.

At the time of her death, she was the Distinguished Research Professor of Music at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., where she headed the Institute for Deep Listening. She was also the Darius Milhaud Artist-in-Residence at Mills College in Oakland.

Oliveros is survived by her wife, Carol Ione Lewis, who wrote the libretto for their opera The Nubian Word for Flowers, three stepchildren  Alessandro Bovoso, Antonio Bovoso and Nico Bovoso  a brother, John Oliveros, and eight grandchildren. As of this writing, there is no word of any memorial services.

Twitter @georgevarga

george.varga@sduniontribune.com
Despite steep pay raises since the 9/11 terror attacks, too many military personnel still struggle to feed their families and need an easier way to get food stamps, according to a new bill from a San Diego congresswoman.

Susan Davis has introduced the Military Hunger Prevention Act in a bid to exempt the militarys Basic Allowance for Housing  a central component of most troops compensation  when determining eligibility for food stamps and 17 other federal food programs.

The legislation comes as food pantries and other charities said they continue to encounter strong demand from military households for their services.

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These are young families that are affected, generally, said Davis, D-San Diego, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee. We see them resorting far too frequently to emergency assistance. And that troubles people. It troubles people in San Diego. It troubles me. It troubles people around the country, but we think that weve found a pretty easy way to fix it.

Basic Allowance for Housing is a tax-free payment given to service members who dont reside in military housing.

About two out of every three service members nationwide draw the allowance, and the monthly amounts vary by each persons pay grade. Troops with spouses or children get a bigger allowance. Payouts also are pegged to housing and utility costs in each region of the nation.

Take as an example a junior Navy petty officer who enlisted three years ago and currently has a spouse and one child. The family lives near base in pricey San Diego.

That household would receive about $17,000 per year for the housing allowance, plus $4,000 in nontaxable help for food and other items, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. Add the sailors regular pay and the total compensation package hovers near $51,000 annually.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, thats about $3,000 less than what the typical full-time wage earner in San Diego County makes.

But its high enough to disqualify the service member from being eligible for food stamps. In fact, even if the household added three more children, the housing allowance would bar them from getting food stamps in California.

That has put the burden of feeding financially challenged military families on the private sector, according to an analysis by the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank.

The food bank said it aids more than 28,000 low-income armed forces personnel and veterans  29 tons of food distributed monthly through the Navy Wives Food Locker, Military Outreach Ministries and the Brother Benno Foundation, the Oceanside soup kitchen serving Camp Pendleton.

James Floros, president of the food bank, said local military families have been hit hard by skyrocketing housing costs  the median price for a San Diego home is about $490,000  plus high levels of unemployment among their spouses.

An estimated 18 percent of military spouses want a job but cant land one, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Thats more than 3 times the national rate.

The thing is, about 67 percent of military families depend on one wage earner, Floros said. We work really hard to see if they can qualify for (food stamps) because the benefit gives them a level of independence they dont have now. [Currently], theyre going to a distribution center to get food and waiting in line at 7 a.m.

Californias food stamp program  called CalFresh  pays $4.50 per person daily. Floros said service members wont be getting rich on food stamps if the Davis bill passes.

To him, junior enlisted service members with large families should be seen as the working poor, much like the 340,000 other San Diego County residents who depend on the food banks assistance..

To get service members and their families off the food stamp rolls, Congress created the Family Subsistence Supplemental Allowance in 2000. It provides up to $1,100 per month in extra compensation for a needy G.I., but only 188 active-duty troops received the benefit last year, according to the Government Accountability Office.

In 2001, Congress began rapidly raising pay for the armed forces. By the end of that decade, enlisted service members got more compensation than 90 percent of their civilian peers with the same levels of education and job experience, according to the 2011 Quadrennial Review of Military Compensation.

For instance: Enlisted troops with two-year college degrees garnered 44 percent more in wages and benefits than equivalent civilians, and troops with high school diplomas made 87 percent more than their civilian counterparts.

Yet when GAO investigators visited Camp Pendleton late last year, they found four food pantries on base. One of those programs alone fed between 400 and 500 Marine families every month.

In 2015, the Department of Defense determined that nearly a quarter of the children in Pentagon-run schools inside the continental United States qualified for free meals.

Last years Blue Star Families Military Family Lifestyle Survey revealed that 6 percent of respondents sought emergency food aid through a food bank or other charity.

Between September 2014 and August 2015, active-duty troops spent more than $21 million worth of food stamps at base commissaries, according to the Pentagon.

A 2013 Census Bureau study estimated that about 23,000 military families used food stamps during the previous 12 months  about 2 percent of the active-duty force.

More troops would use them if they knew how to access the program and overcame the stigma of buying groceries with food stamps, the GAO determined. To help overcome the stigma of handouts, the San Diego Food Bank launched a program that discreetly distributes more than 1,600 backpacks stuffed with groceries to 33 schools every week.

The initiative feeds chronically hungry students over the weekend, when they cant eat a free cafeteria breakfast or lunch. The students are summoned to a school office  typically the nurses station  to receive backpacks that they can tote home.

Its a moment of charity replayed every Friday at Miramar Marine Corps Air Stations Youth and Teen Center and two elementary schools located on Camp Pendleton, which is a key reason why Davis vows to reintroduce her bill in the next Congress if it fails this year.

Its unconscionable to people that we have not solved this problem, she said.

Neither President Barack Obama nor President-elect Donald Trump has commented on Davis measure.

cprine@sduniontribune.com
The nations largest state bar association is overhauling ethics rules for attorneys for the first time in 30 years, and some lawyers are unhappy about a proposal that would open them up to discipline for having sex with clients.

California currently bars attorneys from coercing a client into sex or demanding sex in exchange for legal representation.

Supporters of an all-out ban say the relationship between a lawyer and client is inherently unequal, so any sexual relationship is potentially coercive. But some attorneys say its an unjustified invasion of privacy.

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The proposal is part of a long-awaited shake-up of the state bar associations ethics rules for attorneys, which were last fully revised in 1987. Lawyers who violate the regulations are subject to discipline ranging from private censure to loss of their legal license.

A state bar commission has spent months crafting and amending 70 rules under goals set by the California Supreme Court. Other changes under consideration would allow the state bar to discipline attorneys for discrimination and harassment even without a separate finding of wrongdoing. The current rule requires a final determination of wrongful discrimination in a lawsuit or other proceeding before the state bar can take action.

Another change would bring California in line with other states by subjecting prosecutors to discipline for failing to turn over evidence they know or reasonably should know would help the defense.

The first and foremost goal is to promote confidence in the legal profession and administration of justice and ensure adequate protection to the public, said Lee Smalley Edmon, a California appellate court judge and head of the commission revising the rules.

The sex ban has divided the rules revision commission, though similar restrictions are in place in other states. As of May 2015, 17 states had adopted a blanket sex ban drafted by the American Bar Assn., according to an ABA committee that looked at implementation of the groups ban.

Like the ABA ban, Californias proposal creates an exception when the sexual relationship preceded the attorney-client relationship.

At an October commission meeting, lawyer and commission member Daniel Eaton said the current rule regarding sex isnt working, and he pointed to a lack of disciplinary action against attorneys as evidence.

Between September 1992 and January 2010, the state bar investigated 205 complaints of misconduct under the current sex restriction, according to an analysis of state bar data that accompanied the proposal. It imposed discipline in one case.

The current rule also forbids sex if it causes the lawyer to perform legal services incompetently.

A bright-line rule would provide clarity to attorneys and remove the difficulty of proving the sexual relationship was the result of coercion or negatively affected the lawyers performance, supporters say.

If we have a very flat guideline, it gets out of the area of subjectivity, said Andrew Servais, chairman of the San Diego County Bar Assn.'s legal ethics committee.

Opponents of the ban, including the Los Angeles County Bar Assn.'s ethics committee, say its unnecessary and would be struck down as an unconstitutional violation of fundamental privacy rights.

No empirical or even reliable anecdotal evidence shows a ban is needed to protect the public or regulate the legal profession, James Ham, another lawyer on the commission, said in a dissent filed with the commission.

Proponents of a complete ban cannot articulate why a lawyer should be disciplined for sexual relations with a mature, intelligent, consenting adult, in the absence of any quid pro quo, coercion, intimidation or undue influence, he wrote.

The revisions commission modified the proposal at the October meeting to create an exception from the sex ban for lawyers spouses or registered domestic partners. It also required the state bar to consider whether a client would be unduly burdened by an investigation of sexual misconduct if someone other than the client filed the complaint.

The bars board of trustees approved an additional public comment period on the sex ban rule earlier this month. The rules commission has until the end of March 2017 to get the boards approval for the proposals and send them to the California Supreme Court, which will have final say on the changes.
An attorney for a former Playboy playmate pleaded not guilty on her behalf Monday to charges that she secretly photographed a 70-year-old woman in the nude in the shower area of a Los Angeles fitness center.

Dani Mathers, 29, faces a misdemeanor count of invasion of privacy, having been accused of posting an image of the woman on her Snapchat social media account in early July. In addition to the photo, Mathers included the comment, If I cant unsee this then you cant either.

Mathers posting sparked public outrage as well as a national discussion about body shaming. Los Angeles City Atty. Mike Feuer said he hoped the case sent a message to others about such behavior.

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Prosecutors often use invasion of privacy charges against peeping Toms and people who conceal cameras to take sexually suggestive photos of women. But legal experts said this marks a rare instance in which authorities have brought charges against someone over photos making fun of someones weight.

Outside of court Monday, defense lawyer Thomas Mesereau said Mathers regrets the events and apologizes for her behavior and he expects the matter to be resolved in a fair manner.

Shortly after she posted the image and comments, Mathers issued a statement saying it was absolutely wrong and not what she meant to do. I know that body-shaming is wrong. That is not the type of person I am, she wrote.

Mathers said the photo was meant to be sent as a private message, but was posted publicly.

Mesereau has said his client did nothing illegal. She never tried to invade anyones privacy and never tried to violate any laws, he said.

Last month, Feuer condemned Mathers actions saying, body-shaming is humiliating, with often painful, long-term consequences.

It mocks and stigmatizes its victims, tearing down self-respect and perpetuating the harmful idea that our unique physical appearances should be compared to airbrushed notions of perfect. What really matters is our character and humanity. While body-shaming, in itself, is not a crime, there are circumstances in which invading ones privacy to accomplish it can be. And we shouldnt tolerate that, Feuer said.

Los Angeles police began an investigation in July after receiving a report of illegal distribution of the image. L.A. Fitness officials reported the posting to police as well, officials said.

Digital technology has made it easier to secretly capture others in their most private moments. Last year, a prominent Washington rabbi was sentenced to six years in prison after he pleaded guilty to secretly recording 52 women as they prepared for a religious bathing ritual.

In California, a U.S. Border Patrol supervisor admitted in federal court that he secretly recorded seven female co-workers in the bathroom of the Chula Vista office. Some states have increased the penalties for taking secret images, making it a felony. In New York, offenders can receive up to four years in prison for a first offense.

richard.winton@latimes.com

Follow @lacrimes on Twitter

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With only hours left before picket lines formed in front of Sharp hospitals countywide, the union representing about 4,800 of the health systems registered nurses canceled its walkout notice Sunday evening.

John Cihomsky, Sharps vice president of public affairs, said the United Nurses Associations of California decided to restart negotiations that had stalled since Friday.

Though it initially refused to say more, Sharp eventually issued a statement refuting reports from some San Diego media outlets that it agreed to a closed shop  a term that would have meant all registered nurses at its hospitals would have to pay union dues. Today, about 53 percent have union payments deducted from their paychecks, according to the company.

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Sharp said each currently employed nurse will continue to decide individually whether he or she wants to pay dues. New hires will be required to start paying within 30 days of hire but will have a five-day window to opt out after 90 days of employment.

Sharp also said the union agreed not to file another strike notice before Jan. 1 and that in the meantime, negotiations toward a new nursing contract are supposed to resume.

The union issued a short statement just before 9 p.m. Sunday that confirmed it had pulled its strike notice after finding common ground on the dues issue.

Sharp made some compromises and we made some compromises, said union president Denise Duncan.

The statement did not confirm the additional particulars given by Sharp.

After months of labor strife, the union had filed notice that it would hold a three-day strike beginning Monday. It and Sharp HealthCare have been tussling over wages other contract issues for several months.

Had it happened, the work stoppage would have been felt most directly in the emergency departments of Sharps four main hospitals.

On Sunday afternoon, Cihomsky said the strike would have caused the health provider to declare an internal disaster according to its emergency plan. The disaster protocols could have required stroke, heart attack and trauma patients to be diverted to other sites unless a situation mandated that a person be taken immediately to the nearest hospital, he added.

In anticipation of a strike, Sharp took steps to reduce patient demand, delaying or speeding up non-emergency treatments so they could be performed before or after the walkout.

In the past few months, the union has characterized the standoff with Sharp management as a fight against a high turnover rate at Sharp hospitals because nurses often leave for better-paying positions with competitors such as Kaiser Permanente and UC San Diego Health, which are both in hiring mode as they open large new hospitals.

Sharp has denied any turnover crisis, countering that it has offered significant wage increases to its nurses.

On Friday, the union clarified that its labor strife with Sharp is not just about competitive wages and nurse turnover, but also about scheduling, retirement benefits and empowering nurses to take care of patients.

Because the bargaining sessions are held in private, it is impossible for the public to verify the claims and counterclaims.

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paul.sisson@sduniountribune.com

(619) 293-1850

Twitter: @paulsisson
Supervisor Dave Roberts conceded to Encinitas Mayor Kristin Gaspar Monday, ending his effort for a second term and bringing a new face to county board of supervisors for just the second time in two decades.

Gaspars victory, coming nearly three weeks after Election Day, will remove the lone Democrat from the five-member board that oversees a sweeping array of regional land-use, social welfare and public safety agencies.

In her campaign, she offered herself as a more ethical alternative to Roberts, who last year became mired in a workplace scandal that resulted in payouts of hundreds of thousands of dollars to three of his former staffers.

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At the same time, she zeroed in on issues that have become staples of local politics.

I ran on a platform of fiscal accountability, support for public safety, and addressing our inadequate mental health programs and exploding homeless crisis, Gaspar said in a statement Monday afternoon. There will be a lot of change at the County in the next four years and Im looking forward to getting to work on those issues and make a difference for our taxpayers.

Roberts personally contacted Gaspar Monday morning to concede.

I called Kristin to congratulate her and offer my sincere help in transitioning the office to her between now and early January when she takes office, Roberts said in an email to supporters.

Gaspar was down 2,200 votes shortly after polls closed on Nov. 8, but as late returns and provisional ballots were counted, she took the lead on Nov. 18 and gradually widened her margin. As of Monday evening she was ahead with 50.27 percent of the vote to Robertss 49.73 percent, a 1,232 vote gap.

There werent any signs that Roberts would recover as more ballots were counted, said Gary Gartner, the incumbents campaign strategist.

We gained five votes yesterday for the first time in a week, he said.

Dave Roberts visits and stands on front of his Solana Beach campaign headquarters after thanking volunteer inside on the phones. (Charlie Neuman / San Diego Union-Tribune )

The race seemed to turn forever in Gaspars favor last week, Gaspars campaign manager, Jason Roe said.

We realized that the trends were going the right way. We were still a little concerned about how the provisionals might break outside of the absentees. We certainly knew by Friday, if not by Wednesday that it was a settled race, Roe said.

It seemed that there were a lot of conservative voters who were distrustful of the Postal Service and decided to personally return their mail-in ballot at a precinct, causing an unusually high number of late votes that were not counted until well after polls closed, Roe said. Many conservative voters also decided to write-in a candidate for president, and it takes the registrar a longer time to process their ballot, he said.

These factors gave Gaspar the support she needed for a win well after election day, Roe said.

We felt optimistic knowing what we knew, but its what you dont know, he said.

Gaspars win means that Republicans have a monopoly on the board of supervisors in a county where Democrats have a substantial plurality. As of the beginning of November, 36.9 percent of registered voters were Democrats, while 30.3 percent were Republicans. Another 27.7 percent did not belong to a political party.

Term limits will force two supervisors, Ron Roberts and Bill Horn, out of office in two years. Incumbents Dianne Jacob and Greg Cox were both re-elected in the June primary and will be termed out after 2020. Gaspar, should she win re-election, would then be the boards senior member.

Roberts became the first new supervisor in 20 years after Republican Pam Slater-Price decided to not run for re-election. He and his staff said they made a major effort to attend as many neighborhood meetings, ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings and other ceremonies as possible in order to listen to the community and build a positive relationship.

But Roberts was rocked by a scandal last year that became campaign fodder for his opponents in the primary and general elections, not to mention a costly transgression for county government.

Over three weeks, four women who worked for Roberts abruptly resigned and accused their boss of misusing county resources for his personal and political gain, and for having an overly-friendly relationship with one of his staffers. Three of the women filed formal complaints against Roberts and supervisors approved $310,000 worth of settlements.

As the election approached, Roberts said he had brought stability back to his office and his staff was diligently serving his constituents. He said he was collaborating with his colleagues on the board to help the county run efficiently and serve the needs of its most vulnerable populations.

The 3rd Supervisorial District includes northern San Diego up the coast to Encinitas, and encompasses Escondido, Rancho Bernardo, Scripps Ranch, Carmel Mountain, Tierrasanta and other areas.

Campaign finance reports show that as of Oct. 22, Roberts had raised $634,444 in his re-election effort, while Gaspar had raised $584,024. While the challengers campaign trailed in fundraising, her efforts were boosted by two independent expenditure committees supported by the business-oriented Lincoln Club and San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce that raised a combined $785,450. Developers contributed heavily to their efforts.

Roberts finished first in the June primary with 38.7 percent of the vote to Gaspars 34.34 percent. Escondido Mayor Sam Abed received 26.89 percent.

Ahead of the general election, Roberts also went on the attack. As he portrayed himself as a collaborative member of the board with endorsements from both major political parties, he cast his opponent as divisive. While his ability to work with other supervisors and broker practical solutions for the countys problems resulted in the board voting unanimously nearly all the time, Gaspar couldnt reach across the aisle, as evident on split votes on the Encinitas City Council, Roberts said.

County government is responsible for numerous services, but land-use policy is often one of its most contentious issues. Its also where the two candidates most clearly differed.

Roberts said amendments to the General Plan, which guides new development in unincorporated areas, should meet a tough standard that considers the needs of the impacted communities. Gaspar said the county would be remiss if it turned down proposed developments if they dont fit the general plan. Deviations, however, should mitigate impacts to neighborhoods, she said.

In the wake of last years scandal, Roberts lost contributions and endorsements. His legislative record also lost him some support as well.

The Service Employees International Union Local 221 said that Roberts re-election campaign didnt get labors full backing because he was too much like his colleagues on the board.

For organized labor and the progressive community, it proved challenging to garner resources and volunteers for someone who sang the same tune as the rest of the old guard Supervisors, union political director David Lagstein said in a statement.

SEIU supported Roberts in 2012 because they believed he would get the county to spend more money investing in San Diego families but he rarely voted or even spoke against the majority of supervisors when community members tried to get more spending on services.

Roberts campaign disagreed with the unions assessment.

He fought to provide the first pay raise and health benefits in 6 years to In Home Support Service workers and expanded the mental health services budget to over $500.8 million to provide to those most in need, the campaign said in a statement.

Gaspar will be sworn in on Jan. 2.

Twitter: @jptstewart

joshua.stewart@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1841
The La Jolla-based Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute has rejected the state of Floridas demand that it repay $77.5 million in development money that it received to help create a branch campus in Orlando.

In a letter made public Monday, the institute  commonly called SBP  also told Florida officials that they were wrong in recently claiming that SPB was about to stop operating the Orlando site. The institute said its satellite center will stay open for the next year, although it didnt mention what would happen afterward.

Florida officials have grown increasingly concerned about the Orlando campus because it has reportedly experienced deepening financial problems even though SPB was given about $350 million in development money during the past decade.

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SPB leaders hoped to solve these challenges by turning over the entire branch campus to the University of Florida. But that proposal recently fell through after Florida lawmakers, regulators and others intervened with their criticism of the proposed transfer, leaving the institute to seek other options.

In an October letter, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity demanded that SPB pay back $77.5 million of the development money it got. The state also told the institute that it had agreed to create 303 jobs in Florida  a level that hasnt been reached during a decade of operations.

In the institutes reply letter on Nov. 23, SPB wrote, Contrary to the unsubstantiated and erroneous allegations and claims in your (Oct. 28) letter: SBP is not in material default of any obligation in the agreement, SBP does not intend to cease its Florida operations in the coming months, SBP is not obligated to create 303 jobs, the (Department of Economic Opportunity) and the state of Florida are not entitled to any refund of any of the incentive funds that have been furnished by the state to SBP ... the state is not entitled at this time to any refund of any unused or unspent funds that have been advanced by the state, and the state is not entitled to any return of the equipment that has been purchased with funds from the state.

Erin Gillespie, a spokesperson for the Department of Economic Opportunity, said late Monday: (The department) remains committed to holding Sanford Burnham Prebys accountable for all taxpayer monies received and will continue to investigate our options for any repayment necessary of incentive funds that were provided ...

The disputing letters mark an escalation in tensions between SBP and Florida officials over what was originally envisioned as a biomedical center that would help Florida develop a thriving life-sciences industry.

Around the country, various cities, counties and states have at one time or another tried to launch biotech hubs because of the potential for high-paying professional jobs and the prestige of attracting scientists, doctors and other researchers focused on creating new therapies for everything from cancer to Alzheimers disease.

About 10 years ago, the state of Florida and other stakeholders there agreed to give SBP approximately $350 million in incentive funding to establish the campus in Lake Nona, a neighborhood in Orlando. The facility was meant to help anchor a major medical and health sciences park in that area.

Florida also provided substantial funds to have The Scripps Research Institute, another renowned biomedical name in La Jolla, set up a satellite operation in the town of Jupiter. Earlier this year, Scripps Research said it intends to continue running that campus.

The expansion agreements with Scripps Research and SBP were strongly promoted by then-Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. In particular, he said SBPs prestige in biomedical research would lure other scientists to Lake Nona. On the institutes end, SBP welcomed the opportunity to grow beyond La Jolla.

Despite the roughly $350 million in aid, SPB has struggled financially at Lake Nona. The institutes officials have blamed the situation partly on increased competition for funding from the National Institutes of Health, the main public underwriter of biomedical research in the United States. The national debate about heightened competition had arisen before the Lake Nona site opened.

SPB leaders also said they didnt anticipate getting hit by a devastating national recession in late 2007.

The institute has fared well in raising private donations for its La Jolla headquarters, but hasnt been able to do the same in Orlando.

gary.robbins@sduniontribune.com
Theyve stolen money from banks in England, knocked out electrical power in the Ukraine and interfered with the latest presidential election cycle in the United States.

Hackers are everywhere, causing ever more problems, leading many to ask: How should Donald Trump deal with cybersecurity when he becomes president on Jan. 20?

Its an issue he might have to address almost immediately. Forrester Research predicts that Trump will face a cyber crisis within the first 100 days of his presidency. The consulting firm said the crisis could be anything from a cyber attack by another country to Americans deep divisions in response to new digital security and privacy laws.

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To date, Trump has provided a very limited look at how he might handle a problem that has confounded other political leaders.

Last week, Trump said he would find better ways to protect power plants, hospitals and other vital infrastructure from cyber attacks and all other forms of attack. He has chosen retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn to be his national security adviser, and Flynn has expressed a willingness to launch cyber attacks, possibly against other nations.

What criteria would be used for such action? That has yet to be worked out.

Many people want more details. Some doubt Trumps resolve and focus.

Michael Hayden, who headed both the CIA and National Security Agency, told the website Passcode last week that Trump has shown no interest in understanding the issue.

Theres plenty of advice available for whoever wants it.

The San Diego Union-Tribune contacted a dozen cyber experts who proposed specific ways for thwarting everyone from lone wolf hackers in the United States to countries that digitally meddle with the safety and assets of Americans. Their suggestions include having government do more to train people to fill the tens of thousands of job openings that exist for cyber workers. Companies are begging for skilled professionals in that arena.

Experts also want government to increase use of self-defending computers and hire a better class of cyber specialists. The aim here is to prevent the sort of damaging hacks that have been carried out against the National Security Agency and the Office of Personnel Management.

Past cyber leadership roles in the government have been filled by many under-qualified individuals with highly irrelevant experience and expertise whose vision and leadership skills are limited to endless PowerPoint presentations, said Ashton Mozano, a cybersecurity professor at the University of San Diego.

Experts also said candor and cooperation are essential.

What the incoming and outgoing presidents both need to do is come clean with the American people about the enormity of the current challenges, said Stephen Cobb, a senior researcher in the San Diego office of ESET, a leading security company.

If world leaders do not swiftly agree that each country has an obligation to ensure its citizens comply with the basic rules of law in cyberspace, and commit to cooperating in the prosecution of cyber crimes, then the promise of the Internet and its related technologies will be seriously imperiled, blocking many paths to economic and social progress.

At the moment, there are no clear standards on what kind of cyber attack might lead to a cyber war and, possibly, to a war involving conventional weapons.

Trump has suggested he wont be pushed around on the matter. During a campaign stop in Virginia in October, he said: The U.S. has significant offensive cyber capabilities, but it has been shy about deploying them. This is the warfare of the future.

Similar comments have been made by Flynn. He told the website Security Ledger, We cannot win playing on one side of the playing field, on the defensive end. You only are going to win if you go on the offensive once in a while.

Such a strategy can be risky, politically and militarily. Analysts note that it can be extremely difficult to determine who is responsible for cyber-attacking American interests  and that makes retaliation dicey.

What if an attack came from Iran but we mis-attributed it to China? China wouldnt like that, said Herbert Lin, a cyber scholar with the Hoover Institute at Stanford University.

He also said political leaders need to be clear about what they mean when they use the word offensive.

Theres offensive retaliation. And theres going on the offensive, like we did with Stuxnet, said Lin, referring to the computer software program the U.S. used in 2010 to damage Irans nuclear program.

Among cyber experts, theres as much concern about the United States ability to defend itself as there is about launching an attack.

Thats especially true in regards to critical infrastructure such as the national power grid, financial markets, railways, air-traffic control and the defense industrial base, including shipyards like General Dynamics-NASSCO in San Diego, which builds and repairs Navy ships.

An assault on the power grid could impact our water supplies, create stock-market crashes, knock out phone systems, Internet, television, streetlights and traffic signals, said Darren Guccione, chief executive of the Chicago-based company Keeper Security. Such an attack could cost upward of $1 trillion to the U.S. economy.

Analysts said Trump could strengthen the nations cyber defenses by getting government and industry to battle the problem together. Theres currently a climate of distrust, especially on the part of tech industry. Business executives worry that government will order them to give law enforcement special access to certain devices, notably cellphones.

The issue erupted into public controversy this year when a federal judge asked Apple to help the FBI unlock an encrypted iPhone that was used by one of the assailants in the December 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino that killed 14 people and wounded 22.

Apple refused, saying that complying with the request would force it to write software that could then be used to sidestep the security features on hundreds of millions of iPhones. The company also expressed doubt that the request was a one off situation.

Many people have heatedly criticized Apple. They included Trump, who said during a campaign speech: Apple ought to give the security for that phone, OK? What I think you ought to do is boycott Apple until such a time as they give that security number.

The FBI later paid professional hackers to break into the iPhone. The overall incident caused much discussion and deep anger in Silicon Valley, where many technologists said the case symbolized the governments desire to invade peoples privacy.

Theres a pressing need to detect and monitor suspected terrorists operating in the U.S., said Chris Petersen, chief technology officer at LogRhythm, a security company based in Boulder, Colorado.

But he added: Law-enforcement agencies will need to work with Silicon Valley to find a rational compromise between strong encryption and responsible monitoring. With ISIS and other extremist operations using the Internet to recruit and indoctrinate U.S. citizens, a reasonable middle ground must be reached.

ESETs Cobb agreed that Trump will need to find a middle ground. There are considerable risks if a new push for law and order in cyberspace is not done right, he said. It could have chilling effects on innovation, privacy, diplomacy, even economic productivity.

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gary.robbins@sduniontribune.com
A decade ago, many people saw marijuana legalization as a fringe issue, not a serious policy question. This year, voters in four states passed legalization ballot measures and the development has barely made the front page. All told, marijuana is now legal in eight states: Alaska, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon, Washington  and, of course, California.

Related: New law should be cause for broad alarm

Marijuanas big win at the ballot box has been, understandably, overshadowed by the presidential election results. But it is a significant political development. Marijuana legalization, which so recently seemed inconceivable, now seems almost inevitable.

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What does marijuana legalization mean for San Diegans? Under state law, it is now legal for adults to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and to grow up to six marijuana plants. That part of the ballot measure, Proposition 64, has already gone into effect. But if you were thinking about buying some marijuana to stimulate your Thanksgiving appetite, youre out of luck.

The state has until Jan. 1, 2018 to begin issuing licenses to stores that hope to sell marijuana. And before that happens, the states Bureau of Marijuana Control will need to draft a wide range of regulations on everything from product labeling to environmental impacts. Only then will San Diegans be able to go to a state-licensed store to buy marijuana, much as they would alcohol  that is, unless the city chooses to ban marijuana sales.

Deciding whether to allow marijuana businesses and, if so, under what conditions, is a critically important question localities across the state face in the wake of Proposition 64. This is because although Proposition 64 tasks state regulators with overseeing and licensing marijuana businesses, the law gives cities and counties the option to ban the businesses or adopt significant land use restrictions on where they can operate.

A number of cities in California, including National City, preemptively banned marijuana businesses even before the passage of Proposition 64. The city of San Diego should not to go down that path.

Regardless of how you feel about marijuana legalization, adults in California can now legally possess an ounce or less of it. The only question is where they will get it: from unlicensed black market operators or at state-regulated stores.

San Diegos experience with medical marijuana dispensaries highlights why banning marijuana businesses, or relegating them to a few far-flung parts of the city, is a bad idea. California voters made medical marijuana legal in 1996 and the legislature passed a law to allow marijuana collectives in 2004. But it was not until a few years ago that San Diego passed an ordinance regulating dispensaries.

In the interim, unlicensed marijuana storefronts and delivery services popped up throughout the city  at one point numbering in the hundreds. These grey-market operators were bad for neighborhoods and medical marijuana patients alike. Unlike licensed businesses, fly-by-night operators do not have an incentive to invest in their community or to be good neighbors. And, without any oversight, consumers have no way to know whether the type of marijuana they are buying is what a seller claims, whether it was grown using dangerous pesticides, or how potent it is.

To its credit, the San Diego City Council tried to address this problem in 2014 by passing an ordinance to formally permit medical marijuana dispensaries. While there is a lot to praise about San Diegos medical marijuana ordinance, unfortunately it includes severe land-use restrictions that make it all but impossible for marijuana dispensaries to open in central parts of the city.

The result has been that San Diego has only licensed 15 medical marijuana dispensaries. Meanwhile, problematic unlicensed operators continue to attract customers. This dynamic recently led City Attorney Jan Goldsmith  previously a leading opponent of medical marijuana dispensaries  to suggest the city lift some of the land-use restrictions so that more legitimate and licensed dispensaries can open.

The lesson for San Diego officials when it comes to Proposition 64 is twofold. First, the city should craft an ordinance to regulate marijuana businesses sooner than laterwaiting until the state has started to issue licenses is too long. Second, we must not consign marijuana businesses to out-of-the-way industrial neighborhoods. If we want to stop black-market operators, licensed marijuana businesses need to be able to meet consumer demand. And that means allowing them to open up in central commercial districts.

Thankfully, there are signs that the San Diego City Council is on the right track in this regard. In anticipation of Proposition 64, the City Council put a measure to tax marijuana sales before San Diego voters in November. It passed 68 to 32 percent. And, shortly before election day, council members Chris Cate and Lorie Zapf wrote a joint memo stating that it is imperative that the City Council immediately begin discussions to craft local marijuana regulations.

Of course, all of this may end up being moot if the Trump administration moves to try to use federal laws to shut down state marijuana laws. But city officials do not have time to wait for word from Washington, D.C., before getting to work on drafting an ordinance to regulate marijuana businesses.

Kreit, an associate professor at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, chaired the citys Medical Marijuana Task Force in 2009-10.

Want to see more letters that appear only online? Follow @UTLetters on Twitter and UTOpinion on Facebook.

RELATED
Regarding Welcoming cities label debated as Trump term nears (Nov. 19): One of your interviewees mentions hidden homelessness, where families and friends are forced to crowd homes because of a lack of housing affordability.

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.

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This issue is real and impacts our most vulnerable, including refugees. These community members are committed to making San Diego a better place. After working for months or years to escape persecution and violence in their own countries, refugees finally have a chance to live in an open society with free markets, and contribute like regular, everyday people.

Without housing affordability, economic inclusion will not be achieved. Our elected officials and community leaders need to do more to make housing a critical component of welcoming communities.

Ramla Sahid

City Heights

Lets not sugar-coat Obama administration

In the U-T, letter writer Allan Peck (Obama administration a tough act to follow, Nov. 24) of Clairemont noted some of President Barack Obamas accomplishments as new jobs, unemployment down and an expanding economy. How come he didnt mention the $20 trillion national debt?

Jim Hudson

San Diego

Donald Trump should be focused on future

Regarding Donald Trump backing off some campaign vows (Nov. 22): It seems President-elect Donald Trump has more pressing issues concerning world matters as well as getting his administration in order.

But his concerns seem more focused on how he was unfairly treated by the media during his campaign, calling them liars, deceitful and dishonest. He also had some unkind words for the members of Hamilton for disrespecting Vice President-elect Mike Pence, calling the cast very rude and their show overrated.

He should be concerned about easing his stance on several major campaign promises that swayed a large portion of the electorate to vote his way that eventually became prominent themes.

Patrick McPhillips

Rancho San Diego

Trump must keep his drug price promises

Regarding Trump not indicating hell fight drug prices (Nov. 16): A lot of issues were brought up consistently during the campaign by the president-elect that inspired a large portion of the electorate to get fired up to cast their votes his way, but in the last recent days he has softened his stance on several of these issues. Trump has failed to mention since Election Day how he wants to deal with the pharmaceutical industrys price gouging of prescription drugs, which is a major theme of how he wants to change Obamacare.

Is Donald Trump the outsider who is going to change Washington for the best interest of the American people or is he just another politician looking out for his own interests? Only time will tell.

Patrick McPhillips

Rancho San Diego

Democrats have eight years to find excuses

Hillary Clinton lost because in the end the FBIs James Comey was not her homey? I dont think so.

Democrats neednt worry because the next eight years with President Trump will fly by.

A heartfelt thank you to Republicans for making the right decision and standing up for all Americans.

Vincent Dornisch

San Carlos

Residents did not receive fair warning

As a North Rim resident, it comes as no surprise that the City Council rubber-stamped the expansion of Francis Parker School. The goodwill of one toward the other is evident in Councilwoman Marti Emeralds praise of the school and her personal knowledge of many kids that have come through there.

What came as a surprise was the inclusion of a disputed new campus entrance from North Rim Court, the one and only access to and from our complex. The new campus entrance and the new traffic signal it necessitates at the intersection of Linda Vista Road have been strong bones of contention.

Both were omitted from the notice of public hearing sent to residents. This gave rise to the false hope the items had been dropped from the project. Would it have made a difference if they were included on the notice? Probably not. Was this fair play? Probably not.

Susan Lindgren

Linda Vista

If you dislike parades name, dont attend

It was an amusing but a dubious larticle by David H. Katz (Faith-neutral name is needed for parade (Nov. 25) regarding a name of a holiday parade.

Was Katz objecting because he is anti-Christian or perhaps practices a different religion? What I find sad today is wishing someone Merry Christmas may be deemed politically incorrect. The last time I looked, most of the country are Christians. And what happened to Happy New Year? Yet drive to any shopping mall in the country where merchants of all religions highjack the term Christmas to promote record sales. No problem utilizing banners, signage and even playing Christmas music.

I guess maybe we should ban White Christmas from being played on the radio. What holiday do you think people are referring to when people are substituting have a happy holiday instead of Merry Christmas or Halloween? My suggestion is stay home if you dont like the name of the parade. Merry Christmas.

Peter Malaspina

Carlsbad

Breaking news doesnt mean what it used to

President-elect Trump went to dinner recently without alerting the media, causing a storm of protest. The objection was that if something happened, media needed to promptly report.

Apparently Trump handlers consider the media need for instant gratification out of fashion. Im perfectly fine waiting to receive the Union-Tribune to catch up. No matter how serious, whats the downside waiting for the next print news cycle?

Breaking news should be retired as self-serving and replaced with older phrases like happening now  no implication of importance whatsoever. In the old days the Associated Press wire would beep five times for critical bulletins. Perhaps the media could implement something similar to sort news and further confirm the lack of criticality in the television broadcasts. Probably not.

Glen Paul Freiberg

Rancho Santa Fe

If the end is near, we should just enjoy it

According to Stephen Hawking, humans have only 1,000 years left before climate change, wars and diseases end life on Earth.

Knowing what I know about the solar system, I find solving the problem by colonizing another planet to be impossible. We seem incapable of doing the right things here on Earth. Best we go on having fun, consuming, generating carbon dioxide and accepting a media that fills content space with trivia in the interest of their advertisers.

Roger Newell

San Diego

Want to see more letters that appear only online? Follow @UTLetters on Twitter and UTOpinion on Facebook.
SAN DIEGO (CNS) - With a growing margin of over 1,200 votes, Kristin Gaspar on Monday claimed victory in her race for a northern San Diego County seat on the Board of Supervisors, over incumbent Dave Roberts.

The Encinitas mayor said Roberts congratulated her in a telephone call, making her the first candidate to defeat an incumbent on the board in 32 years. Im incredibly proud of the campaign we ran and so grateful to the many people who helped me raise money, walk precincts, and put up signs and get our message out,' Gaspar said.

She trailed Roberts on election night by 3 percent, but as absentee and provisional ballots were counted, Gaspar consistently closed the gap and after more than two weeks of counting, took a lead that grew to 1,242 votes after the most recent count.

I called Kristin to congratulate her and offer my sincere help in transitioning the office to her between now and early January when she takes office, Roberts said. He also sent an email to supporters thanking them for their assistance in helping him come close in his re-election effort.

Roberts prospects were hurt by a scandal over the way he managed his staff. Last year, the supervisors agreed to pay $310,000 to settle claims brought by three former staffers who accused him of misusing his powers.

Four years ago, he became the first Democrat to win a seat on the board in a couple of decades

Gaspar is the chief financial officer and business manager for Doctors of Physical Therapy, which has six North County offices.

I ran on a platform of fiscal accountability, support for public safety, and addressing our inadequate mental health programs and exploding homeless crisis,' Gaspar said. There will be a lot of change at the county in the next four years and Im looking forward to getting to work on those issues and make a difference for our taxpayers.'

Gaspar will be sworn in on Jan. 9, and will represent a district that covers the coast from Del Mar to Encinitas, runs east through Carmel Valley and stretches along the Interstate 15 corridor between Tierrasanta and Escondido, including Rancho Bernardo.
HAVANA, Cuba (AP)  Retired Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Friday blamed the Ukrainian government in Kiev for the downing of a Malaysian Airlines passenger plane.

He also criticized Israels ground offensive in the Gaza Strip, and the United States for saying Israel has a right to defend itself.

Castros comments were made in an opinion column published by state media entitled Extraordinary Provocation. It came days after he met with Vladimir Putin during the Russian leaders tour to boost ties with Latin American nations including Cuba, which during the Cold War was the Soviet Unions biggest ally in the hemisphere.

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Castro wrote that the Malaysian Airlines plane was flying over territory under the control of the bellicose government of the chocolate king Petro Poroshenko, using the nickname of the Ukrainian president, who leads a large confectionary business.

The plane was shot down Thursday as it flew over a conflicted part of eastern Ukraine, killing 298 people. Responsibility for the attack remains unclear.

He recalled that Cuba stood with Ukraine after its 1986 nuclear accident at the Chernobyl power plant, attending to the health of many children, and said the island nation cannot refrain from expressing its repudiation of the action by the same anti-Russian, anti-Ukrainian and pro-imperialist government.

He also criticized Israels ground offensive in the Gaza Strip, which was launched Thursday, calling it a repugnant crime, and the United States for saying Israel has a right to defend itself. U.S. President Barack Obama, he said, backs Goliath against David.

Castro left office provisionally in 2006 when he was stricken by a near-fatal illness. He formally left the presidency in 2008, ceding way for his younger brother Raul to take power.

He maintained a public voice by writing regular opinion columns called Reflections that were published across official newspapers and websites, and read out in their entirety by state TV news anchors. In 2012, he announced that he was retiring as a columnist as well, although he has continued to publish occasionally.
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Quetzaltenango, Guatemala -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/28/2016 -- Casa Xelaju, a full-service Spanish language immersion school dedicated to providing educators, teachers, administrators, and principals with the firsthand cultural experience and Spanish language learning environment they need to fully understand the heritage and Latin American roots of the subject they teach, announced this week their official summer 2017 Quetzaltenango, Guatemala trip dates for those interested.



Originating from a passion for providing a different kind of language and cultural immersion, Casa Xelaju techniques speed up the language acquisition and retention in all faculty and staff on the comprehensive trip. The school's teachers regularly participate in workshops and staff development to remain current with new language acquistion techniques.



"There's no way to fully learn a language without living it," said Julio E. Batres, Founder and Owner of Casa Xelaju. "Everyone agrees  it's impossible to be fluent without knowing the history, heritage, idioms, and culture surrounding a specific language. That's where Casa Xelaju comes into play. We want everyone to know the importance and root foundations that support the Latin American Spanish tradition."



The Quetzaltenango immersion trip is a 3-week Guatemalan adventure designed to give attendees the ability to better communicate with Latino students and their families. The 3-week program focuses not only on Spanish learning, but also on creating a better cultural understanding of Latino students and their families living in the United States. Additionally, educators will learn popular expressions used by their students and families, as well as have the opportunity to visit schools in rural and urban settings.



The two travel trips planned for this summer are June 25 to July 9, and July 9 to July 30, 2017. Casa Xelaju U. S. office is based out of Minneapolis, MN and will host informational meetings with details laid out regarding to the two trips. Teachers who partake in the trips can obtain 125 CEUS to renew their teacher's license of 16 undergraduate college credits for aspiring teachers and interested students.



"This is a full-experience, immersive trip unlike any other available for educators," said Julio E. Batres. "We are aware educators and students are under constant stress and requirements, which is why an immersion trip can accelerate the effective learning process tenfold. Visiting a foreign country is an eye-opening experience for any traveler, and doing it from a localized, family-centered approach will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."



The trips include one-one-on instruction in Guatemala, homestay immersion and experiences, volcano climbing, and various nature excursions for experiencing the raw beauty of the Guatemalan landscape.



Casa Xelaju is open every day of the week, and is currently taking applications for their two upcoming summer trips.



For more information, visit: http://www.casaxelaju.com/



Contact:

Julio E. Batres

612 920 3530

Quetzaltenango, Guatemala Callejon 15, Diagonal 13-02, Zona 1, Quetzaltenango, Guatemala
Jacksonville, FL -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/28/2016 -- Christian Faith publishing authors Steven Feazel and Dr. Carol Swain expose how the liberal Left seeks to brainwash children for their political gain. "Abduction: How Liberalism Steals Our Children's Hearts And Minds" is the creation of these two authors and serves as a practical guide to push back against the Liberal efforts designed to reshape children's worldview and destroy their moral compass.



The Left has corrupted movies, TV, music, court decisions, news reports, as well as the educational system in order to take control of the nation's youth. This book takes aim at parents who seek to protect their children from the devious deception of a liberal agenda. The authors sound an Amber Alert for the souls of America's youth.



Tim Wildmon, President of American Family Association believes that "Steve Feazel and Dr. Carol Swain ring a warning bell for all parents to heed who want their children to embrace and cherish traditional values and moral living that will allow them to live happy and productive lives.



Michelle Malkin, author of "Culture of Corruption" and "Who Built That" says "Everywhere we turn, from our schools, to Hollywood, to the media to the courts, children's minds and souls are being usurped by the radical secular Left. Carol Swain and Steve Feazel tackle the immoral architects of the "New Morality" in this trenchant and timely book--and show parents how to fight back".



Dr. Alveda King, Civil Rights and Pro-Life Activist, Author, Christian Minister says the book is "A national wakeup call sounding the alarm on how sinful forces are undermining timeless spiritual values which are so important to maintain to nurture the success of future generations. This unique book provides positive insight that if applied can push back against a culture that places too little value on morality".



Meet The Authors:



About Steve Feazel

Steve Feazel is an ordained minister who successfully planted two churches and served as an adjunct college professor in business. Now in retired status, he has produced three award winning, faith based documentaries on the topics of pornography (Every Young Man's Battle), abstinence (Yellow Roses) and abortion (A Voice for Life). He is an active writer and speaker and holds the following degrees: BA  Olivet Nazarene, M. Div.  Nazarene Theological Seminary and MBA  Arizona State. He and his wife, Edythe, have two grown sons and four grandchildren and reside in Gambier, Ohio.



Website: www.visionword.com



About Dr. Carol M. Swain

Dr. Carol M. Swain is a Professor of Political Science and Professor of Law at Vanderbilt University, is an award-winning author and a widely recognized expert on race relations, immigration, and evangelical politics. She has written or edited seven books. Her most recent book is Abduction: How Liberalism Steals the Hearts and Minds of Our Children (coauthored with Steve Feazel, 2016). Dr. Swain's other books include Black Faces, Black Interests: The Representation of African Americans in Congress (1993, 95), Be the People: A Call to Reclaim America's Faith and Promise (2011), The New White Nationalism in America: Its Challenge to Integration (2002), Contemporary Voices of White Nationalism (2003), and Debating Immigration (2007). Her op-eds have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, and USA Today. Dr. Swain has appeared on thousands of television and radio shows. In 2016, she was one of the leading experts in Dinesh D' Souza's latest film, Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party (2016). Dr. Swain lives in Nashville, Tennessee where she is active in church and civic activities.



Twitter: @carolmswain

Facebook: Profcarolmswain

E-mail: carolmswain@gmail.com

Website: www.carolmswain.net



View a synopsis of "Abduction: How Liberalism Steals Our Children's Hearts And Minds" on YouTube.



Consumers can purchase "Abduction: How Liberalism Steals Our Children's Hearts And Minds" at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, Kobo or Barnes and Noble.



Contact: Tony Cutillo, Publicist

267-241-1669

confirmations@mediaproductions.tv
Amsterdam, Netherlands -- (SBWIRE) -- 11/28/2016 -- No-one could ever accuse Kostas Metaxas of creating something "boring". Yet again, this eccentric artist presents us with his unique take on a very utilitarian subject - the headphone amplifier. Combining a historic art oevre - "memento mori" , contemporary sculpture with cutting-edge technology, his latest MARQUIS "Memento mori" is a sublime, minimalist Preamplifier-Headphone amplifier designed for music-loving audiophiles who require few functions but insist on the purest sound.



Memento mori means "remember that you must die" in the language of Latin.



For men living in antiquity all the way up until the beginning of the 20th century, death was seen as a motivator to live a good, meaningful, and virtuous life. It served to remind us of our own mortality, of our mistakes and failures and of the shortness and fragility of human life.



Memento mori "objects of art" compel us to meditate on the meaning of life.



Many of the obstacles we face in our lives are rather like the waves of the sea: relentless, bleak, repetitive and, ultimately, not responsive to our wishes or longings.



In the midst of our struggles, we can still appreciate the immense beauty and grandeur of life.



According to the artist, " I take every opportunity to infuse art into everyday objects. When I looked at what was being offered on the market, I couldn't believe that you only had a choice between unimaginative small boxes and oversized "tube" amplifiers pretending to be headphone amplifiers."



"Life is too short to listen to and enjoy expensive headphones through a boring, musically uninvolving [and ugly] headphone amplifier!"



TECHNOLOGY:



The MARQUIS borrows from over 25 years of concert recording experience with serious headphone monitoring to produce an amplifier with unparalleled transparency and effortless realism.



Like all Metaxas & Sins amplifiers, the CNC-machined "head block" can be meticulously finished in a choice of 10 aluminium colours, or automotive painted.



As well as a dedicated headphone amplifier and headphone stand, the MARQUIS also can be used as a minimalist preamplifier with a choice of 3 line-level inputs [RCA connectors] and a set of RCA outputs to connect to a power amplifier to drive a pair of speakers.



The solid CNC-machined base encloses the power supply to keep all stray RFI and noise from the delicate low-level signal stages, but also can be offered with optional "battery-pack" so that you can use the Marquis for over 5 hours before needing a recharge.



What the critics say...



"The Marquis is as fast as the devil, creates a beautiful aura without any indication of overshoot, has glow and spirit, temperament and cunning. It has fire. In comparison to the Marquis, most so called super-preamps sound waste, flabby, boring."



Ulrich Michalik, HI FI EXCLUSIV , Germany.



"The Marquis Preamp imposes far less of itself on the signal, handling its chores with near invisibility".



Ken Kessler, HI FI NEWS & RECORD REVIEW, England.



"The Marquis constitutes in our opinion, pure gold and is already the reference point in this price category and will not be superceded in a hurry".



Jean Hiraga/Patrick Vercher LA NOUVELLE REVUE DU SON, France.



"The conclusion: the sensation is perfect. A power Amplifier for 9000DM can reach without problems to the position of ABSOLUTE SPITZENCLASSE and is immediately equal to competitors that are three times more expensive".



Alexander Strobel, STEREOPLAY, Germany.



Specifications



FREQUENCY RESPONSE : DC - 5.0MHz (-3dB)



VOLTAGE OUTPUT: 15VRMS per channel into 50 Ohms with no more than 0.05% T.H.D.



SLEW RATE : Greater than 1000V/us small and large signal



T.H.D. : Less than 0.05% 20Hz-20KHz



I.M.D.(S.M.P.T.E.) : Less than 0.05%



SIGNAL/NOISE : -117DBV unweighed input shorted



SENSITIVITY: 26dB



INPUT IMPEDANCE : 100kOhms



About Kostas Metaxas

Admirer of the exceptional: Kostas Metaxas is a magazine editor, film producer, and art and technology enthusiast. He draws his inspiration from various sources, and his wide-ranging activities complement each other to enrich his creative work. His career is unusual: from art to design, the step was self-evident to him. In his hands, he holds the means of speaking to the soul. It was with the eyes of a discerning and multicultural artist that he approached this all-new design. His creations are unique and he has won countless awards for his designing talents.



His recent projects, among others, include precious gold and platinum "Haute Creation" Fountain pens and Lighter art-objects for Paris-based S.T. Dupont, a collection of Tourbillion Table Clocks for Swiss brand Matthew Norman and a range of Hi-End audio amplifier sculptures that wouldn't seem out of place in MOMA.



Ceaseless traveler: An Australian born to Greek parents, Kostas Metaxas travels the world from Darwin to London, the Greek islands to Germany. It was over the course of his travels that he found the inspiration for this object, the fruit of his boundless imagination. A self-taught designer, he likes to approach the conceptualization of objects through different materials. He applies contemporary technology to them and uses metals in an entirely novel way to innovate and create.



For more information, please visit: www.metaxas.com, metaxas@metaxas.com



Press Kit images download: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5hfu1oxkgqn8xce/AAC0yxGNgpoDYG_Bu16LSXS-a?dl=0



Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kostas.metaxas.37



Catalogue: http://www.metaxas.com/HIFI_2015.pdf
[ACCRA] African universities have made progress in addressing gaps related to research infrastructure and systems, according to a report published by the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM).



The report resulted from a review by the Capacity Research Unit (CRU) at the LSTM of research support systems and structures of universities involved in the Malaria Capacity Development Consortium in Africa to find gaps which could be addressed.

They had made most progress in improving support for research applications and project management, and made least progress in developing research strategies. Imelda Bates, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM)

Imelda Bates, the head of the CRU and a professor of tropical haematology at LSTM in an interview with SciDev.Net on 8 November, says the study was done to help the universities to plan systematically in how to strengthen their research capacity.



The report published on 2 September resulted from rigorous assessment of the universities strengths and gaps to identify the need for research capacity change agents or teams that are able to influence university decision-making and university-wide buy-in vision and actions for strengthening institutional research capacity.



Bates explains that data for the report were collected from January 2015 to May 2016, and were built on a baseline assessment undertaken in 2014 in the four universities  each located in Ghana, Malawi, Senegal and Tanzania.



"They had made most progress in improving support for research applications and project management, and made least progress in developing research strategies and in dissemination and uptake of research outputs, Bates tells SciDev.Net. "It is likely that other African universities and research institutions may face similar problems so these would be good target areas for support from governments and other funders.



The report also mentions that intermediate progress was made towards strengthening research infrastructure, research skills training and research-related management of human resources.



But the report makes recommendations for promoting research strengthening. Future programmes for strengthening institutional research capacity should incorporate mechanisms for inter-institutional sharing of challenges and solutions through exchange visits and joint workshops, the report says.



Eric Yeboah, a lecturer at the Department of Land Economy at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, says universities need freedom to set parameters such as competitive funding and quality of publications emanating from research.

"A universitys vison for research is important since it sets up goals and drives departments and faculties to work towards achieving it, says Yeboah. This must be done bottom up Let departments and faculties put out the vision and harmonise them to reflect the university-wide one.Isaac Yaw Opoku, an economist and researcher at Jayee University College, Ghana, says African governments need to use final research work produced by undergraduate and graduate students to tackle problems on the continent.He states that research is central to the growth of every university, therefore universities need to invest in research to produce proper output."Research is not a solitary activity, but an act of a community, so when we all come together as one and build the image of research, it will help Ghana to address socio-economic challenges, Opoku adds.This piece was produced by SciDev.Nets Sub-Saharan Africa English desk.
It has been previously reported that one of the landers of the European Space Agency (ESA) has crashed into Mars. Now, the agency has asked the nations to finish the exploration of ExoMars on the Red Planet.

A month after the crash, ESA has asked on Friday the member nations for support to complete the exploration on the Red Planet. They are talking about 400 million or about US$425 million.

The crater the ExoMars lander created when it crash landed may become the next target for scientific study on Mars. https://t.co/iXly49lF9i pic.twitter.com/UzRrVH7aUp  Science Channel (@ScienceChannel) November 1, 2016

The main goal of ExoMars is to look for evidence of life on the Red Planet regardless it is past or present. Now, to complete the exploration, Director of Human Spaceflight and Robotic Exploration from ESA David Parker said that ESA needs a bit over 400 million for the project, which includes all the technical work needed to take the vehicle up to the launch phase.

Coming from 23 countries, ministers that underwrite the Europe's space program will decide if they will cover the cost of the overrun. The meeting update will be held in Lucerne, Switzerland, next Thursday or Friday, according to ZNewsIndia.

ExoMars space programme needs an extra 400mn euros https://t.co/cnfq8sKCzU pic.twitter.com/OFJUEC6sDZ  FRANCE 24 (@FRANCE24) November 25, 2016

However, the expectations for the robot that will explore the planet Mars are that it can cover the Red Planet for at least 218 days. The two leading ESA countries in the ExoMars rover project are the U.K. and Italy. They both have mentioned that they are offering support in finance during the past Lucerne meeting. But it will require others in the 22-nation organization to dig deep as well, according to BBC News.
Barely a month after its demonstration probe crashed into Mars due to a computer glitch, the European Space Agency asked member nations an extra $430 million to complete the already expensive ExoMars exploration on the Red Planet.

ESA needs the money to finish building the ExoMars rover and meet its deadline to launch aboard a Russian rocket in August 2020. The rover, which will take about nine months to reach Mars, will be designed to search for microbial activity and evidence of life, both in the past and at present.

The two-part mission had successfully placed a spacecraft into orbit in October, but its lander that was designed to pave the way for a mobile-lab rover in 2020 smashed into the Red Planet's surface.

However, to complete the mission's rover, the space agency needs more money to carry out all technical work needed to take the spacecraft up to the launch phase.

Ministers from the 23 countries who are part of ESA's space program will decide if they could cover the cost that is needed to complete the mission when they meet on Dec. 1 and Dec. 2 in Lucerne, Switzerland, Physg.org reports.

What Is The ExoMars Mission?

"ExoMars is extremely important for European science and exploration," Roberto Battiston, President of Italy's ASI space agency, said in a press release by the European Space Agency.

"Together with all the participating states in the program, we will work towards the successful completion of the second ExoMars mission," he added.

As well known to the world, the ExoMars mission is a program by ESA to establish if life ever existed on Mars. Its mission is to investigate the Martian environment, especially if it was able to support life in the past. However, its goal is to examine samples from underground since the atmosphere of Mars is too harsh to support life.

According to ESA, the scientific investigations to be carried out after the rover lands on Mars is to search for signs of past and present life on the Red Planet, investigate how water and geochemical environment varies and search for Martian atmospheric trace gases and their sources.
Mexico's Popocatepetl volcano has been active since Friday, when it was seen spewing out a huge column of ash nearly 3.1 miles up in the sky. Villages located around the volcano, in the southeast region of Mexico City, have been warned of the seismic activity that can follow the eruption.

The Mexican National Center for Disaster Prevention (CENAPRED) has published an online warning that the Popocatepetl volcano has had 160 exhalations, which include gas and steam emissions, since Friday, Nov. 25. Three explosions also reportedly occurred on Saturday morning, and during the night the crater showed incandescence with some exhalations.

The national authorities have declared a Yellow Alert of Mexico's Volcanic Traffic Light warning system due to the volcanic activity. This system guides people how to behave depending on the scale of an erupting volcano.

According to SEGOB, at the moment, a Yellow Stage 2 warning has been announced, which means that the municipalities near the volcano have to be prepared to evacuate their homes. The security perimeter around the Popocatepetl has a 12-kilometer radius. The municipalities most vulnerable to the risks associated with the volcano include Ocoyucan y Puebla, Tianguismanalco, San Nicolas de Los Ranchos, Tochimilco, Cholula and Atlixco.

People have also been warned to not go near the volcano or its crater due to the dangers posed by the toxic gases and fragments that are being spewed out. Any changes in warning status will be communicated by the CENAPRED and other authorities according to official reports.

According to CNN, one of the 1,500 potentially active volcanoes in Mexico, the Popocatepetl has been active since 1994. At 17,802 feet, the volcano whose name means "mountain that smokes" is the second highest peak in Mexico after the 18,491 feet high Citlaltepetl.

Popocatepetl has had more than 15 major eruptions since the 16th century and it recently erupted just a little more than three months ago, on Aug.17. With its frequent eruptions, the volcano has become a part of the lives of people living in its periphery.

"People in the city get afraid. The fear does not exist here," Jose Cortes Agustin told CNN Mexico in 2013. "He (the volcano) would not hurt us. He gives us beautiful images that there's no reason to fear."
European Space Agency's released data from new satellites confirming the sinking of the San Francisco's 58-story Millennium Tower. The Sentinel-1 satellites detected that the said tower is sinking by a few centimeters every year. A study by ESA indicates that studying the city is helping scientists to improve the monitoring of urban ground movements, particularly for subsidence hot spots in Europe.

The Millenium Tower skyscraper is located on 301 Mission Street in the South of Market district in San Francisco. Its construction was completed in 2009. It is considered the tallest building in San Francisco and a home of some famous celebrities like Joe Montana and Hunter Pence.

In the study, the scientists used multiple radar scans from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 twin satellites to identify subtle surface changes deep down the area. This technique even reflects the radar beam. ESA and the team of researchers from North, PPO.labs and Geological Survey of Norway also mapped other areas in San Francisco Bay Area. They detected an uplift of the land around the city of Pleasanton probably due to replenishment of groundwater following a four-year drought that ended in 2015.

John Dehls from the Geological Survey of Norway explained that the experience and knowledge gained within the ESA's Scientific Exploitation of Operational Missions program give them strong confidence that Sentine-1 satellites will be a highly versatile and reliable platform for operational deformation monitoring in Norway and worldwide. It is reported that European cities are also undergoing the same sinking. This makes the San Francisco study helps the scientists. One example of this is the area around Oslo's train station in Norway, which is a reclaimed land, according to Phys.Org.

Dag Anders Moldestad from the Norwegian Space Centre explained that in Norway, they have already initiated a framework project to provide nationwide basic deformation products to the public, with a free and open data policy. He further explained that many other countries in Europe are also working toward setting up similar devices.
After decades of battling the growing number of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infections across the globe, a new major HIV vaccine trial is set to start in South Africa. This historic trial promises hope for millions of people to be protected from the still incurable disease.

The clinical trial, dubbed as HVTN 702, is the largest and most advanced HIV vaccine trial to be carried out in South Africa.

Despite the fact that fewer people are now dying from Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), the complication linked to HIV infection, since millions of people are now under drug treatment to suppress the virus, the efforts to prevent the spread of the virus is still not successful. In fact, the infection rate across the globe has continued to increase over the past years, The Guardian reports.

Past Trials Failed

There were efforts to create HIV vaccines in the past, and seven years ago, a clinical trial was conducted in Thailand. Unfortunately, a vaccine known as RV144 was tested on more than 16,000 people in Thailand and they turned up a previously unknown vulnerability in the resilient pathogen, The Washington Post noted.

The vaccine was only 31 percent effective and wore off over time. However, the study's results created an opportunity for scientists to reformulate the vaccine and bring it back for another clinical trial in South Africa, where some 7 million people are living with the virus.

The trial is set to begin by enroling the first 5,400 individuals aged 18 to 35 years old.

"If deployed alongside our current armory of proven HIV prevention tools, a safe and effective vaccine could be the final nail in the coffin for HIV," Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said in a press release by the National Institutes of Health.

"Even a moderately effective vaccine would significantly decrease the burden of HIV disease over time in countries and populations with high rates of HIV infection, such as South Africa," he added.

The Modified Vaccine

The HVTN 702 vaccine is a combination of two experimental vaccines, ALVAC-HIV and a two-component gp120 protein sub-unit vaccine. The good news is, the vaccine does not contain HIV. Thus, it does not pose any danger of HIV infection to the participants of the trial.

The scientists have modified a new vaccine from ALVAC-HIV, which is supplied by Sanofi Pasteur, and the protein vaccine, supplied by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), from the versions used in the previous RV144 trial.

The vaccine was modified to be specific to HIV sub-type C, the predominant sub-type found in South Africa. Moreover, the protein vaccine is combined with MF59, a different adjuvant than the one used in RV144, in the hope of creating a more robust and potent immune response against the virus. The scientists also hope that they could prolong the efficacy of the vaccine than the time period observed in the trial in Thailand.


The Indian Space Research Organization's (ISRO) Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) has completed its first revolution around the planet Mars. The iconic orbiter also referred to as Mangalyaan is orbiting Mars since September 2014. This means that one year on Mars is almost two years on the planet Earth.

Ritu Karidhal, the deputy operation director of Bengaluru-based MOM ISRO Satellite Center, said that the span of two years on Earth nearly equals to one on Mars. She further said that the Mangalyaan or MOM, which entered the orbit of Mars around two years ago, has completed one revolution. She added that the data being sent by it over a period of last two years is being studied by ISRO for analyzing atmospheric configuration, as noted by Times of India.

The data could also uncover the visibility of carbon content, if any, in the atmosphere of the planet Mars. Karidhal said that if Mars has methane or any form of carbon in its atmosphere, it would likely have the life as it hopes to have had in the past.

MOM could stay in the space for at least 5 to 10 years. It does not have any fuel system that could support its existence. On the other hand, it is driven by its various components. These would decide the future life of MOM, according to Karidhal.

The Indian Space Research Organization launched the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) on Nov. 5, 2013. This made ISRO the fourth space agency to reach Mars. It is also the first Asian nation to reach Mars' orbit. MOM was lifted off from the First Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andra Pradesh using the Polar Satellite Launch vehicle on Nov. 5, 2013.
In September 1620, many people were seeking for religious freedom that was set sail from England on the Mayflower. When the ship landed in November on the shores of Cape Cod, also known as the Massachusetts today, a scouting group was sent out. Until, in late December, the group landed in Plymouth Harbor where it is the place of first permanent settlement of Europeans in New England. The original settlers of Plymouth Colony are known as the Pilgrim Fathers or the Pilgrims.

Today, Archeologist found a conclusive evidence of the location of the original ancient Plymouth settlement where they lived for about 400 years.

In Reading Eagle news, it is reported that the group of researchers headed by the University of Massachusetts excavated a trove of 17th century artifacts, which include of pottery, tins, trade beads and musket balls at Burial Hill in Massachusetts -- a historic cemetery that is popularly known to be the burial site of several Pilgrims.

Also, researcher discovered and recovered a remain of calf skeleton, which was named Constance by the students, buried whole at the site.

CNN reported that the project is a collaboration of the University's Andrew Fiske Memorial Center for Archaeological Research, the Plimoth Plantation and the Institute for New England Native American Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

According to Kathryn Ness, curator at the Plimoth Plantation, "We actually have physical evidence. We have the items that they brought over from Europe that they used, that they touched. The calf they buried and the structures they built."

Furthermore, David Landon, associate director of the Fiske Center, said that, "While digging, we're constantly in the process of trying to interpret what we're finding." In addition, "It really goes to just moving slowly and trying to see if there are any patterns in the flow that we can map out. As soon as that starts, it becomes a slow process. It's about much more than the artifacts -- it's about trying to pin down soil color and trying to understand constructed features that are no longer there."

The team could not find the building foundation mainly because the structures from the original settlement were not made by bricks. Instead, they used "post and ground construction" -- a system of vertical wooded posts planted directly into the ground where they had to find holes for wood and dirt.

The team will continue to excavate and further carry on the research by next summer.
As the global warming continues to hit, the Arctic archipelago is badly affected. The latest survey that was conducted shows that the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard is heating up and it is really alarming.

The scientists said on Friday that the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard is currently in such an extreme warmth this year. The average yearly temperature could end up higher than the freezing point. If that happens, it would be the first time to ever be recorded.

Ketil Isaksen of the Norwegian Meterological Institute mentioned that the average temperature in the main settlement in Svalbard that is the Longyearbyen is expected to be around 0 degree Celsius or 32 degrees Fahrenheit. It will be over a month left in the year for the temperature to shift, according to ABC News.

"This is a little bit shocking.If you had asked me five or 10 years ago, I could not have imagined such numbers in 2016," said Isaksen.

Svalbard is an island group midway between the North Pole and continental Norway. The usual average is minus C (20 degrees F) and the warmest year until now was 2006. As the temperature in Svalbard was minus 1.8 degrees C (29 degrees F).

"Svalbard is a very good spot to show what's happening in the Arctic at the moment, noting that each of the past 73 months has been warmer than average," Isaksen added.

The Arctic rising temperature is already affecting the snow cover and the permafrost. Also, the amount of sea ice, which is in the second-lowest to be recorded this year is building up much slower than the usual as winter approaches.

Isaksen said that "There are still huge areas in the Barents Sea and the Kara Sea to the east of Svalbard that are free of ice. They should normally be ice-covered."

Meanwhile, the scientists believe that the loss of sea ice accelerates the warming because it reflects the sunlight back into space while the dark surface of the oceans takes in most of the radiation, as reported by The Independent.
Pigeon poops are everywhere in Barcelona and the historical monuments are being covered by these. This problem prompted the authorities to take action, setting aside the culling option.

Mail Online reported that animal activists are rejoicing about Barcelona's recent decision regarding its problem with almost 85,000 pigeons pooping around the city. These birds have become overpopulated in Barcelona and authorities have finally figured out the way to control their number -- by feeding them with birth control pills.

Since animal rights activists led by the Commission for the Protection of Animals have been rallying against catching these avian creatures in nets and eventually killing them, the city government has decided to opt for a non-violent procedure by the use of contraceptives to decrease their population.

"We will be using nicarbazin which acts first on the younger birds," a council spokesman told the news website.

The said drug reportedly hinders the formation of eggs among birds.

According to The Indian Express, in the last 15 years, this method has been successful in Spain's Catalan municipalities and the cities Alicante and Valencia. This disgusting problem, apparently, has been haunting authorities all throughout Europe for years and years.

To start off the process, the group will be conducting a bird census from this December to January of next year. A total of 40 feeding dispensers with contraceptive food will then be strategically placed in different city locations by April 2017.

"It's predicted there will be a reduction of 20 per cent in the pigeon population in the first year and between 70 and 80 per cent in four or five years," the council spokesman added.

Animal rights groups are finally relieved to hear about this new procedure. According to reports, 152 of these groups have previously come against the "unethical" way of collecting pigeons in nets and killing them.
One of the problems that NASA is facing sending astronauts in space is the food supply. This is especially for the long travel like going to the planet Mars. Recently, the agency has formulated the easiest and convenient food to feast on but it is not as appetizing to look at.

In the International Space Station or the ISS, the astronauts have 200 meal options to choose from. It is a big amount of food selection in space. However, in the deep space missions such as the planet Mars, it seems that NASA is up for a challenge.

In a report by NBC News, NASA has formulated calorie-laden breakfast bars. Thus, astronauts may be forced to munch these during the deep space missions in the near future.

Astronauts of the Future Will Feast on Calorific Bars - https://t.co/yuFi5LsnM2 https://t.co/9NoXG218L9  NYTribune Science (@nytrbscience) November 25, 2016

Since they will not be able to receive an additional cargo, as the astronauts will be traveling inside the Orion spacecraft from NASA, they just have to take what only they will be needing the most. It means that the newly formulated calorie-laden breakfast bars may be the right choice for them to save room.

According to NASA, the deputy health and medical technical authority for Orion, Jessica Vos, shared in a statement that, "When you have 700 to 900 calories of something, it's going to have some mass regardless of what shape it's in, so we've taken a look at how to get some mass savings by reducing how we're packaging and stowing what the crew would eat for breakfast for early Orion flights with crew."

However, the calorie-laden breakfast bars are still a work in progress. The agency is still working on getting that taste right.

Meanwhile, aside from the calorie-laden bars, NASA is also exploring ways on how will the astronauts grow food in space. This is because it is really difficult to send additional food supplies during their long-term travel.
FLORENCE, S.C.  The Salvation Army is seeking bicycle donations for Angel Tree, its Christmas assistance program.

The Angel Tree program allows Florence residents to adopt a child during the Christmas season. The childs information is placed on an angel tag that will hang from a Christmas tree in various businesses and organizations in Florence. Individuals or families can then choose a child from the tree to adopt for the holiday.

More than 670 children have registered for the Angel Tree program this year, according to Christopher Thornhill, major corps officer with Salvation Army. Thornhill said the bicycle donations will be provided to children who do not get adopted from the Angel Tree program.

Last year there were over 150 children who were either not adopted or whose angel was not returned, Thornhill said. We hope that's not the case this year, but we want to be prepared.

Last Christmas, the Salvation Army hit a speed bump in its operation after an organization that provided 150 bicycles each year had to stop its donations. Fortunately, members of the community stepped up and helped provide bicycles for each child in the Angel Tree program, plus additional families who missed the application deadline.

Thornhill is hoping for more of that same generosity and kindness this year, whether donations come in the form of bicycles, toys, clothing or monetary aid.

As always, financial contributions are the best way to support this program, Thornhill said.

Donations offset the costs of items that have already been purchased.

"It also allows us to continue our assistance with those same families needing rental and utility aid, Thornhill added.

The armys goal this year is to raise $60,000 to provide food, toys and other presents to the families that successfully completed the application process. The goal last year also was $60,000. Ultimately, the Salvation Army raised $82,000.

The 2016 fund drive started Friday and will run through Christmas Day, Thornhill said. Donations can be sent to the Salvation Army at P.O. Box 4108, Florence, SC 29502, or they can be dropped off at any BB&T location.

Toy donations can be dropped off from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Salvation Army at 2210 Hoffmeyer Road in Florence.

They can also be dropped off from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday or from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays at the Christmas Center at 1611 S. Irby St. in Florence.
FLORENCE, S.C.  A little over a year ago, Roche Carolina Inc. announced a restructuring as the Switzerland-based pharmaceutical concern sought a buyer for its Florence facility.

Sold.

Pharmaceutical developer and manufacturer Patheon announced Monday it has signed an agreement to take over the 300,000-square-foot facility situated on 1,100 acres along Old Marion Highway.

Under the terms of the purchase agreement, Patheon will acquire the site for an immaterial sum, plus the cost of associated inventory and spare parts," a press release on Patheons website stated . "Patheon has also entered into a multi-year supply arrangement with Roche. Patheon expects the supply agreement to help defray the costs associated with running the site for the next few years while it adds new client work into the facility. Over time, Patheon expects the Florence facility to have a similar financial profile to its other sites in its drug substance segment,

Pete Mazzaroni, Roche Carolinas director of communications, said the deal is expected to be closed in 30 or so days, plus or minus. The target date of completion is toward the end of January. The current workforce is approximately 200 people, he said. That number has trended down since a Nov. 12, 2015, announcement from Roche of an impending restructuring that put 270 jobs in limbo. This summer, company officials said the Florence facility would close by 2019 as it sought to divest of that property and three similar sites in Europe. When officials said that in late June, there were 220 people working at the plant.

Mazzaroni said the mood among the workforce is very positive.

The fact is that the goal was to find a reputable buyer to keep the site running and keep as many jobs as possible, he said. We look forward to integrating the two companies. Clearly this is good news for the community in keeping the site operational with as many jobs as possible. We were going to ramp down to closure. Obviously those plans have changed as weve achieved our primary objective.

With U.S. headquarters in North Carolinas Research Triangle Park and European headquarters in Zug, Switzerland, Patheon touts $1.8 billion in revenue for 2015 and employs 8,000 people in 26 locations around the globe.

As the only end-to-end provider of pharma development and manufacturing services, Patheon is uniquely positioned to integrate this new site into our global network and quickly leverage the capabilities with existing and new clients, James Mullen, Patheons CEO, said in the news release. The company will benefit from the additional North American API (active pharmaceutical ingredients) capacity and adds a state-of-the-art facility with approximately 200 scientific and manufacturing professionals.

S.C. Sen. Hugh K. Leatherman Sr., R-Florence said Monday he is absolutely elated at the news, calling Patheon a terrific company, and speculated that there will be some capital expenditures out there.

And from what I understand, they pay good wages and theyre a good company to work for, he said. Its the best thing that could happen to us.

Florence County Councilman James Schofield said he feels good about Patheon taking over the Florence facility.

Obviously theyre interested in keeping it running  in what form I dont know, he said. Its better news than what we thought we were getting.

In August 2014, the county council approved a new fee-in-lieu-of-tax agreement for Roche, which was investing $50 million in upgrades to the Florence facility. The arrangement added 10 years to an existing lease. A clawback clause outlines incentive repayment over the next 15 years if the company decided to leave or stop producing. The strengthened clawback clause was put in place at least in part because of Heinz bailing out of a facility that was eventually taken over by Ruiz Foods.

Schofield said Monday that Roches clawback clause depends on the language and whether it would be assumed by Patheon or how much theyre doing.

If theyre still making all the investments, my assumption is it would stay, he said, whereas if the company scaled back investments, the clawback would have some play.

Ultimately, he views Patheons move into Florence as good news.

We certainly welcome somebody investing in our community, he said. Thats always good news.

While financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, records show Roches properties and facility are worth at least $3.6 million, excluding equipment.
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The contract has a total value of around $127.06m, Boskalis said in a statement.

The expansion comprises the deepening, widening and extension of the access channel and turning basin. In total, approximately 32m cu m of sand, silt and clay will be dredged.

The activities will commence immediately and are expected to be completed late 2017. For this project one jumbo and two large trailing suction hopper dredgers will be deployed.

Currently, the terminal's access channel has a depth of 20.5 m suitable to receive suezmax-type vessels. By the end of 2017 the depth will be increased to up to 24.5 m, so the terminal will be able to receive VLCCs.

Between 2011 and 2015 Boskalis has been in charge of the development of a large part of Acu Port, which included the construction of two access channels, a turning basin, an inner channel and mooring berths as well as the 2.4 km of revetments for the inner harbour's protection.
Local partner TAG Marine, which is financing the project with Chinese investors, was optimistic about KLIP's prospects. Md of TAG Marine, Noormustafa Kamal Yahya said, however he hoped the port would attract more investors, while declining to reveal the ownership structure.

Noormustafa noted that Kuala Linggi has a natural draft of 30 m making it suitable to service large tankers, without the need to keep dredging.

He has his sights set firmly on taking a portion of the tanker trade from Singapore, claiming vast previous experience that has culminated in the KLIP project.

My company has been servicing large ships for the past 10 years handling palm oil, crude oil, liquefied natural petroleum, liquefied natural gas (LNG) among others. We are also the first in the region to handle LNG transfer from ship to ship," he said.

The Transport Ministry has gazetted KLIP not only as a industrial port and a bunkering hub, but also a port of refuge to aid casualty and vessel in distress, Noormustafa said.
The scheme launched on Friday at the 65th anniversary dinner of SMOU covers 6,000 subsidised hotel rooms over a two-year period and covers shipping companies that have collective agreements (CAs) with the union.

SMOU said that the scheme would both provide some financial relief for shipowners needing to pay for lodging for their officers when in Singapore for sign on/off and also assures the welfare of seafarers is not comprised in these tough times.

The current shipping industry is facing some headwinds and is going through a cyclical downturn. Therefore, it is important that our union continues to rally around and proactively come up with creative and yet practical ways to help the shipping companies overcome this tough period, commented Mary Liew, general secretary of SMOU.

In fact, earlier this year, SMOU announced a SGD1.5m one-off contribution to the shipping companies who have CA with us so that they can continue the shipboard welfare and training for the seafaring officers.

William Tan, director of Tai Chong Chiang Steamship said: This subsidy comes as a welcome move amidst the shipping situation now, and it will assure our officers of reasonable accommodation options after they sign off in Singapore  a win-win situation for both the shipping company and the seafarers.
Our world is becoming more urbanized than ever. Today, more than half of us are city dwellers. By 2050, two-thirds of the global population will reside in urban centers, according to the United Nations.

That's a challenge for the cities of tomorrow, which will see an influx of 2.5 billion people by mid-century. They will have to manage increased consumption of water, heating and electricity, as well as a rise in traffic and greenhouse gas emissions if public transportation, parking and traffic congestion aren't properly addressed.

With all these pressures, will cities be able to secure a good quality of life for their residents while conserving resources responsibly?

Increasingly, cities around the globe think so. By transforming themselves into "smart cities" - urban centers that deploy technology and conduct big data analysis in a bid to improve traffic flows, conserve streetlight electricity and collect garbage at customized frequencies for each resident, among other things - municipalities from Copenhagen to Kansas City hope to provide services more systematically and sustainably.

RELATED: Living Architecture Cools Cities and Spreads Seeds

"When you connect different kinds of data together in real time, cities can realize new efficiencies in many areas," said Munish Khetrapal, managing director of Cisco's smart cities division.

According to a projection by the industry consulting group IHS Markit, the number of smart cities worldwide will quadruple from 21 in 2013 to 88 by 2025.

New York City, Barcelona, London, Copenhagen and San Francisco are among those that have already embraced emerging technologies. Singapore is implementing a "Smart Nation" plan that involves saturating the city-state with sensors and cameras that will collect data about nearly every facet of its activities, enabling its government to monitor a vast range of operations in real time.

Three years ago, the Big Apple installed smart indoor lighting in 86 firehouses, which has saved the city $880,000 a year in energy costs. It also uses sensors in its water pipes to detect leaks and keep a watchful eye on water quality. The New York Police Department can also instantaneously detect gunshots, thanks to the Shotspotter sensor system.

Urban centers are increasingly linking the use of smart city technologies to their sustainability goals. Copenhagen, which aims to be carbon neutral by 2025, has installed sensors on its streetlights to monitor air pollution and sensors on its roads to help drivers find open parking spots, which eases traffic and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from unnecessary driving. Sensors on its waste bins allow authorities to monitor the levels of waste and adjust the frequency of pickups as necessary RELATED: Future Cities: Energy Saps Become Energy Innovators

The Danish capital is one of the first cities to adopt Cisco's new smart city platform, a cloud-based system that aggregates all of the data in a digital dashboard that provides a comprehensive view around the clock.

In India, the city of Jaipur has been saving electricity by dimming its street lights when sensors installed on the lights detect traffic lulls. They also enable city planners to improve the flow of cars through the timing of traffic signals by collecting data on traffic patterns.

"We are very happy that we have been able to actually deliver so many solutions in such a small span of time," Rajasthan official Shikhar Agarwal has remarked of Jaipur's advancements over the past three years. "Now we've become a case study that people from various cities from India and outside are coming and trying to learn things that we've been able to do here."

WATCH: How Instagram Fuels the Urban Explorer Movement
For a generation, the Hubble Space Telescope has been exposing the universe's deepest, darkest secrets. From imaging the volcanoes of Jupiter's moon Io, to watching the dramatic breakup of comets, imaging baby galaxies, and helping to nail down the universe's age, its data has been instrumental in today's understanding of the cosmos near and far. But it's an old telescope, unmaintained since the last space shuttle mission visited in 2009. While the observatory is in excellent health today, it's expected to stop collecting data sometime in the 2020s. What will we lose when the telescope finally dies? NASA is quick to point out that the James Webb Space Telescope, expected to launch in 2018, will enhance Hubble's capabilities in many ways. But for the telescope's higher resolution and ability to peer back to the very early days of the universe, there is one key thing it doesn't have: ultraviolet capabilities. (It also will lack some of Hubble's fine spectral resolution, and ability to observe a special spectral line called H-alpha that is useful for nebulae and stars.) Astronomers are being urged to submit as many UV proposals to Hubble as possible because once it dies, there are no immediate plans to launch a successor. (Astronomers could then pull from the archive as needed in future decades.) Earth's atmosphere filters out UV, which is great for protecting life, but bad for UV astronomy, so it needs to be done from space. Astronomers say they don't think another UV telescope will fly until the 2030s, at the earliest. RELATED: Our Universe Has 10-20 Times More Galaxies Than Thought "For example, one of the big topics that we're going to look at in star and planet formation is the accretion of gas on to young, newly forming stars or planets," said Adam Kraus, an astronomer at the University of Texas at Austin. He explained that as gas falls on to budding stars and planets, they radiate most of their energy in the blue and ultraviolet wavelengths. Webb won't be able to see this as Hubble does, he told Seeker.

NASA's Jane Rigby, the deputy project scientist for Webb's operations, points out that the new telescope is designed to do science that Hubble can't. Webb has seven times more collecting area and also works at near absolute zero (the coldest temperature possible). Hubble works at room temperature, so it can't see as well in the infrared. Webb will see into dusty places where stars are forming, or galaxies that have been deeply "redshifted" (with spectral lines moving towards the red end of the spectrum) due to cosmic expansion. Luckily for astronomers, it's expected that Hubble's and Webb's time in space will overlap. Hubble has a rich archive of observations that Webb could spend time looking at, including the famous "deep fields" of young galaxies. This type of work will be Webb's "bread and butter", Rigby said. There's also the potential to make stereoscopic or "3D" images of several objects, since Hubble (in low Earth orbit) will be a million miles away from Webb, further out in space. At the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), which manages Hubble observations, some astronomers suggest images could be taken of nearby objects. RELATED: Hubble at 25: Brief History of the Hubble Space Telescope "You could see Saturn's rings sticking out of the page, Mars looking like a globe, or Jupiter and its moons moving," Joel Green, a project scientist at STScI, told Seeker. "There's a few scientific reasons, too. You might want to look at how cloud structures change in 3D, or how an impact happens in 3D." Another possibility, he added, would be looking at a star explosion (or supernova) and from the distance between the telescopes, finding out where the explosion is coming from and examining certain features of the explosion.

Other observatories are planned after Webb. One is the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), which would use Hubble-class hardware that has a wider field of view. Its specialty would be dark energy and exoplanets. Another is the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), which would look at planets passing in front of the brightest stars in our sky. These likely would get going in the 2020s, if funding for the missions is fully approved. But the next generation is still being worked out. NASA draws heavily from the National Science Foundation's Decadal Survey when planning its missions. Right now, proposals are being formulated to present to members of the next decadal survey, which will be released in 2020. RELATED: For NASA's Hubble Successor, Failure Isn't an Option This will be the battleground for where UV astronomy is determined for the near future. NASA is planning to do up to four mission concept studies to present for the 2020 Decadal Survey, including a mission called the Large Ultraviolet/Optical/Infrared Surveyor (LUVOIR). As the name implies, it's supposed to be capable of observing in several wavelengths. If it flies, it would examine protoplanetary disks, look for and image black holes, map the Milky Way and even look at nearby exoplanet atmospheres for signs of habitability. But it is competing against several other mission concepts, including one focused on infrared (Far-IR Surveyor), one for X-rays (X-ray surveyor) and a more modest UV and optical observer called HabEx. HabEx may use a special, separate shield to filter out a star's light for direct planet observations, which would be a first in astronomy.
Press Release

November 26, 2016 Cayetano vows to push for a package of initiatives to modernize the PNP and sustain internal reforms A two-pronged approach has been proposed by Senator Alan Peter Cayetano to sustain the initial successes of the four-month war on drugs of the Duterte administration. "The modernization of the PNP entails adequate investment in its infrastructure and crime-fighting equipment and development of a service-oriented culture among its ranks based on integrity and love for country," Cayetano explained. "While the PNP is purging its internal organization of scalawags and crooks, we need to recruit and train more men and women with better pay to combat crime since they face risks and dangers everyday," he added. Cayetano filed Senate Bill No. 71, also known as the Philippine National Police Compensation Act of 2016, that seeks to increase the minimum base pay and allowances of PNP personnel, allowing the lowest ranking police officer to receive a gross minimum pay of P50,530 per month, inclusive of benefits and allowances. The senator warned that unless Congress acts on the pending bills to significantly increase the compensation and incentives for the police officers and soldiers, they remain vulnerable to crime syndicates, particularly drug lords. Cayetano also lamented that while crime syndicates continue to be innovative in promoting their illegal activities, our police are left with piecemeal budgets to improve their capacity to maintain peace and order. The senator said to fast track the effectiveness of the police organization, help through foreign assisted projects, legislation, supplemental budget, and private sector partnership should be explored. He said there are international organizations and trade partners that are willing to help the President's war on drugs. Additional funds for PNP equipment Cayetano underscored the opportunity to start the modernization process for the PNP through the 2017 national budget. "The budget for the PNP should be in line with the Capability Enhancement Program of the President," he said. He pointed out that the proposed PNP budget for 2017 is P136.3 billion, 20 percent higher than the current year's budget, but the entire capital outlay budget that includes the construction of police stations decreased by P450.2 million. Cayetano said it's bad enough that the proposed funds could barely meet the minimum standard to cope with the state's enemies that use far more modern communications equipment and high-powered firearms. The PNP already sought the support of Congress for the augmentation of its funds to sustain the conduct of Oplan Double Barrel, construct police stations, and procure modern equipment for its crime laboratories. The senator stressed the urgency of providing the PNP with state of the art equipment for the crime laboratories around the country in order to expedite the investigation process and, subsequently, strengthen the government's crime-prevention and crime suppression program. "Only through a sustainable modernization program for PNP will we be able to realize the promise of real change, the kind of change that our people expect from our new government," Cayetano said.
Press Release

November 26, 2016 GORDON KNOCKS SLOW IAS INVESTIGATION Senator Richard J. Gordon yesterday criticized the Philippine National Police - Internal Affairs Service (PNP-IAS) for its slowness in conducting investigations on erring policemen, particularly the investigation of officials and members of the PNP-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) Region 8 involved in the death of Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa. Gordon SAID it has been more than twenty days since Mayor Espinosa was shot dead inside his jail cell IN the Baybay City Sub-provincial Jail along with inmate Raul Yap while being served a search warrant by the members of the CIDG. And yet IAS has not yet finished its investigation and no one has been dismissed. "In an administrative case, only substantial evidence is needed. The evidence is already there like the firearms, bullets, etc. Summary proceedings lang yan. Dapat mabilis, in five days tapos na. Summary hearings should be fast, may affidavits and counter-affidavits then pwede na mag-submit ng recommendation so that the PNP chief, who has summary dismissal powers, can order the dismissal - or acquittal - of those who are responsible," he said. Gordon said the PNP chief and the regional directors have summary dismissal powers and can order the dismissal of erring policemen after the IAS has conducted a summary proceedings. There is also the People's Law Enforcement Board or PLEB which has jurisdiction to hear and decide citizen's complaints or cases filed before it against erring members of the PNP. He added that policemen must remember, and citizens must be reminded of the social contract with the people, which states that the police are given guns to protect the people. If the policemen are violating the contract, their guns should be confiscated. "Dapat mabilis umaksyon ang IAS. They should not take their sweet time in conducting investigations, dapat within five days tapos na and may recommendation na sila. Kapag mabagal sila, the citizens will think na wala silang ginagawa kaya nagagalit ang mga tao," Gordon stressed. Three officials of the CIDG Region 8, namely: chief Supt. Marvin Marcos, Supt. Santi Noel Matira and Chief Insp. Leo Laraga, recently presented themselves before the PNP-IAS over Espinosa's death. The IAS said they cannot fast-track the dismissal of the subject personnel because they want to build a strong case and avoid any technicalities. The three, together with 15 other members of CIDG Region 8 involved in the death of the Albuera mayor, were placed under restrictive custody effective November 24, upon the order of PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa. They are held by the Headquarters Support Service (HSS) until the final resolution of the case filed against them. The HSS head is tasked to monitor their activities and whereabouts and ensure that they are immediately available to face any inquiry.
Press Release

November 26, 2016 HONOR VOLUNTEERS' SACRIFICE FOR SUBIC FREEPORT - GORDON More than two decades after the departure of American forces from the former Subic Naval Base gave birth to a flourishing Freeport, Senator Richard J. Gordon stressed the need to honor the sacrifices of the volunteers who, twenty-four years ago, protected and helped into making Subic Freeport a star investment and tourism location. Gordon, founding Chairman and Administrator of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), said that without the volunteers' integrity, hard-work and compassion, Subic Freeport would not have been acclaimed as the most globally successful military bases-conversion effort shortly after the Americans turned over the facilities on November 24, 1992. The Commission on Audit recently came out with a report saying that the previous SBMA administration declared a P4-billion in a "accounts receivable" status in 2015. "We should honor the sacrifices of the thousands of volunteers who made Subic a flourishing investment and tourism hub. When the Americans left the bases, we guarded the facility so that there will be no looting and the naval base won't go the way of Sangley Point Naval Base in Cavite. Binantayan namin ng husto ang facility para walang mangyaring nakawan at pinanatili namin ang kalinisan ng kapaligiran," Gordon pointed out. "We had not yet fully recovered from the devastation caused by the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo and when the Americans left, our people lost their jobs. If we did not guard and maintain the facilities, we would have lost even more. Even before the departure of the US forces, I already had a vision to convert the naval base into a Freeport," he added. The senator said that through hard work and seamless service from investment to operations, foreign and domestic investors soon flocked to the Freeport so that 70,000 jobs were created, benefitting residents of Olongapo City, Zambales and the other nearby provinces. SBMA also did not receive a budget allocation from the government, instead the Freeport contributed to the national government's coffers. "I want to see Subic Freeport back to its former glory. I hope the new administrator will work hard to get new investors. The airport should also be rehabilitated to entice investors," he said.
Press Release

November 26, 2016 Recto optimistic on hiked funding to combat malnutrition Senators spearheading the bicameral push to increase the per meal budget of free school lunches are optimistic that the Senate version of the 2017 national budget would carry their proposal. Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto based his optimism on the admission by heads of the two agencies providing meals to malnourished kids that the present P13 per meal allocation is inadequate to bring desired improvements among the young underweight. Recto has proposed an increase of the per meal budget to P25, arguing that the state prisons' "P17 preso value meals" are costlier than the P13 meals served in public schools and daycares. He said his proposal will cost an additional P2.5 billion, "an amount that is small compared to the estimated P328 billion annual economic losses caused by childhood malnutrition." P1 billion of the P2.5 billion will go to the Department of Social Welfare and Development so it can hike its 2017 budget for supplemental feeding program to P4.42 billion, to enable it to serve one 25-peso meal to 1.74 million 2 to 4 year olds enrolled in daycares for 120 days. The balance of P1.53 billion will go to the Department of Education, to increase its feeding program budget to P5.17 billion, so it can provide one daily meal for 120 days to 1.9 million "severely wasted and underweight" children ages five (Kindergarten) to 11 (Grade 6). In their recent appearance before the Senate to defend their 2017 proposed budgets, officials of both DepEd and DSWD admitted that current funding levels for feeding programs are not enough to reverse the ravages of malnutrition. Recto agreed, reiterating his earlier observation that "anyone who can whip up a nutritious meal on P13 should win the Magsaysay Award in kitchenomics." "Walang karinderya ngayon na maghahain ng isang ulam at isang kanin sa halagang trese pesos. Wala ring kusinero na magsasabi na maari syang magpakain ng libu-libong bata sa budget na trese pesos bawat isa," Recto said. "If we are bothered by the small food budget given to convicts, then we should be outraged over the pitifully smaller allocation for meals of children in daycare centers and schools," Recto said, citing the P50 individual daily food budget of the country's 135,000 inmates. When Recto broached the idea of a higher feeding project during last week's plenary debates on the national budget, he made sure to elicit the assurance from DepEd and DSWD officials that they will spend the money in full and on time. The minority leader said funding should be contingent on the two agencies' prompt use of feeding funds "because of the bad way it was utilized last year, which bordered on criminal neglect." Citing official audit and fund utilization reports, Recto said DepEd delayed the release of P1.4 billion, out of last year's P2.4 billion in school feeding funds, transferring it to the regions only in Nov. 13, or when 2015 was about to end, thus defeating the program's aim of a 120-day feeding schedule. In her interpellation of the DSWD and DepEd budgets, Sen. Grace Poe likewise appealed for a higher allocation for nutrition programs for malnourished children as well as their prompt implementation. Recto said even if his proposal for a P25 per meal budget will not be fully met, "I would still be happy because anything higher is better than the status quo and represents progress." "Tanggap naman natin na maraming programang dapat punuan," he said.
Press Release

November 26, 2016 Villar cites DSWD-Carabao Center partnership for school children's milk-feeding program Sen. Cynthia Villar commended the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) for signing an agreement that will provide milk to school children and at the same time provide livelihood to poor dairy farmers. During the hearing on Senate Bill 144 or the Philippine Native Animal Development Act on Wednesday, PCC Exec. Dir. Arnel del Barrio, informed Villar that on November 22, he signed an agreement with DSWD Sec. Judy Taguiwalo on the Pilot Nutrition and Interventions through a Milk Supplementation Program under the Supplementary Feeding Program (SFP) and Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP). Under the agreement, some 10,000 children in pilot areas namely, Aliaga, Nueva Ecija; Talibon, Bohol; Damulog, Bukidnon; San Fernando, Bukidnon; and Maramag, Bukidnon will be given 200 ml of milk every day for the duration of 120 days from November 2016 to May 2017. Under the program, 2,019 liters of milk per day will be purchased from poor or small holder dairy farmers in the communities. Villar has expressed disapproval over the dismal output of the dairy industry which stands at 1 percent of the demand. She suggested tying up the government's Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) with a production component to help improve the agriculture sector. The vice chair of the Committee on Agriculture and Food cited the Thailand model where 6 million children are fed with 200 ml milk every day produced by local dairy farmers. The model proved to be successful with Thailand now producing 70 percent of their dairy need. "This is a welcome development. I hope you will be able to expand it to other areas and to benefit more school children. This is the sort of project we should be replicating, the kind that shoots two birds with one stone--malnutrition among our children and poverty among farmers," Villar said. Milk supplementation in addition to the regular meals of children in Child Development Centers (CDC) was proposed by PCC to address malnutrition while promoting the livelihood of poor/small holder dairy farmers in the community, pursuant to the government's thrust and priorities on the national milk feeding program. Under the P13.3-million pilot convergence project, focal persons to provide guidance, orientation and technical assistance to the Social Welfare and Development Officers (SWDOs), CDC workers, Project Development Officers (PDOs), livelihood workers, LGU officials, and other stakeholders, will be designated. DSWD will share with PCC the updated SFP food cycle menu/recipes to develop livelihood opportunities that may be established by SLP beneficiaries for the possible procurement of food items of alternative meals by the LGUs or the DSWD in the pilot CDC areas, such as milk-based soups, milk-based bread, cheese, and other milk-based food. PCC will ensure that milk products delivered to CDCs are consistently manufactured and packed to a quality standard considering proper handling and storage that is free from pathogenic bacteria.
Press Release

November 27, 2016 De Lima seeks SC speedy action on habeas data suit Sen. Leila M. de Lima has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to act with dispatch on her petition for writ of habeas data and put an end to the continued acts of slut-shaming, sexual harassment and psychological violence committed against her. In a Memorandum ex abundanti cautela (out of an abundance of caution) in the habeas data case she filed at the SC, De Lima cited several grounds by which the High Court should issue a writ of habeas data against President Duterte and his men. "President Duterte is not immune from being sued in habeas data for collecting and publicizing information about her private life and alleged private affairs because his acts constitute slut-shaming, sexual harassment and psychological violence," she said. Last Nov. 7, De Lima filed a petition for writ of habeas data in the SC to stop the President and his men from securing private details about her personal life and using them to degrade her dignity as a human being, a woman and a senator. In her petition, she cited several specific occasions where the President has repeatedly subjected her to crude personal verbal attacks which involved the wrongful and unlawful collection and publication of her alleged personal affairs. De Lima explained that the President's attacks against her have clearly and grossly violated her protected rights and therefore, are "outside the realm of legitimate public concern" and are not covered by official acts. "These wrongful acts are plainly outside of his power and authority as President of the Philippines, and that no reasonable person would differ from such conclusion," she said in her 14-page memorandum. The former justice secretary pointed out that the President's immunity from suit is not an inflexible rule that is automatically applied whenever he is subjected to judicial review for damages done to aggrieved parties. "The interest in maintaining the dignity of women and protecting them from slut-shaming, sexual harassment, and psychological violence far outweighs the dangers of intrusion on the authority and function of the Executive Branch," she said. She cited several cases from the decision of the US Supreme Court where presidential immunity from suit does not apply to unofficial conduct of the President because these unlawful acts are outside his official functions and responsibilities. In her petition, De Lima argued that these personal verbal attacks against her violated Republic Act 6713 and 9710, also known as "Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees" and "Magna Carta of Women", respectively. In her petition, De Lima has also asked to delete, destroy, or rectify these illegally-obtained pieces of private information against her, and to identify the foreign country that reportedly helped the President listen to her private conversation, the manner and means by which he listened to it, and the sources of information about her private affairs.
Press Release

November 27, 2016 GORDON POINTS OUT STUPIDITY OF SERVING SEARCH WARRANTS INSIDE PRISONS While the Constitution mandates that the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures of whatever nature and for any purpose shall be inviolable, Senator Richard J. Gordon pointed out that it is ludicrous to serve search warrants to people who are already incarcerated. Gordon said a search warrant is only applicable for those who have the right to protect their property from unreasonable searches or seizures but there is no need for a warrant to search the premises of a prison cell which is under government control. He issued the statement in connection with the killing of Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa, who was killed along with inmate Raul Yap inside their jail cells in the Baybay Sub-Provincial Jail while operatives of the Philippine National Police - Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) Region 8 were allegedly serving a search warrant. "I don't see any need for the CIDG team to apply for a search warrant because the subject of the search was already in jail. Search warrants are required under the law to protect an individual against unreasonable searches and seizures and his right to privacy," the senator stressed. "While there is no law prohibiting the issuance of the search warrant against a detained person, it is also not normal since regular inspections are conducted inside jail cells anyway. It is standard operating procedures for jail wardens or personnel to inspect and closely scrutinize all items brought inside the jail. Search operations are conducted either regularly or randomly to ensure that no prohibited items, i.e. drugs, gun, pointed weapons, metal spoons and forks or pointed toothbrushes etc, are smuggled inside the jail. And these are all done without search warrants," he added. Gordon likewise expressed alarm that it may have become a modus operandi for some unscrupulous members of the PNP to serve search warrants inside prison facilities to lend a legitimate color to their nefarious operations. He cited two other previous instances where inmates have been killed while a team of PNP operatives were serving search warrants inside the jail. Killed in the said operations were inmates Francisco Balagbis and Edgar Allen Alvarez. A week before the Espinosa killing, Balagbis, an inmate of the Baybay City Jail of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology-8, was killed during a raid conducted on October 28, 2016 by operatives of the Regional Anti-Illegal Drug Task Force of the Police Regional Office-8. On the other hand, Alvarez, who was incarcerated for kidnap for ransom affiliated with Hanz Tan, was killed when police operatives raided the Leyte Regional Penitentiary in Abuyog, Leyte on August 11, 2016. He was shot to death while allegedly attempting to fight the raiding team from the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, Regional Anti-Illegal Drug Special Operations Group, Regional Public Safety Battalion, and the Regional Maritime Unit. "The two were killed during similar type operations as that which led to the killing of Mayor Espinosa," Gordon noted.
Press Release

November 27, 2016 PHL Concludes Inaugural Exhibition in Venice Architecture Biennale The Philippines has successfully completed a back-to-back participation in the Venice Biennale as it concludes its inaugural pavilion, Muhon: Traces of an Adolescent City, in the Architecture Biennale on 27 November 2016. The Philippines' participation in the 15th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia came at the heels of its comeback in the 2015 Venice Art Biennale after a 51-year hiatus. "Muhon has started a dialogue that allows us to ponder on the realities that surround us, particularly on our built heritage, and to shape our own personal narrative as a community. As we close this milestone in our country's history of Philippine contemporary architecture, I wish to express my gratitude to everyone who has made this possible," said Legarda in a message she sent for the finissage of the Philippine Pavilion. Housed in three rooms at the 18th-century Palazzo Mora, Muhon, curated by Leandro Y. Locsin, Jr., Sudarshan Khadka, Jr. and Juan Paolo Dela Cruz of the Leandro V. Locsin Partners (LVLP), featured the works of six architects/architectural teams and three contemporary visual artists who presented three various interpretations--History, Modernity and Conjecture--of their chosen muhon or markers. The nine participants and their subjects are: Poklong Anading for KM 0; Tad Ermitan~o for Pandacan Bridge; Mark Salvatus for Binondo; Eduardo Calma for the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC); Jorge Yulo for Mandarin Hotel; 8x8 Design Studio Co. for the Magsaysay Center; C S Design Consultancy for Pasig River; Lima Architecture for the Makati Stock Exchange; and Man~osa & Co. for Tahanang Pilipino or Coconut Palace. The finissage served as both a closing ceremony for the exhibit and a get-together of the Filipino community in Italy. To complement the finissage, there will be lectures with the Filipino community on the Muhon experience by Philippine Pavilion Commissioner and National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Chairman Felipe de Leon, Jr. and by the curatorial team. Legarda, the visionary behind the Philippines' participation in the Venice Biennale, thanked everyone involved in the project. "I thank the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the NCCA, the Department of Tourism (DOT), the curatorial team and our artists and architects for their hardwork, passion and dedication to make this inaugural participation in the Architecture Biennale possible and successful. We have achieved a significant milestone with our back-to-back participation in the Venice Biennale. But it does not stop there because next year, we are moving closer to other pavilions as the Philippine Pavilion for the 2017 Venice Art Biennale will be at the historic Arsenale," said Legarda. To give Filipinos a chance to see the exhibition, Muhon will be mounted in several venues in the Philippines, the first of which will be at the Bulwagan ng Dangal, University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City. The Philippine participation in the 15th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, was made possible through the collaborative efforts of NCCA, DFA, and Office of Senator Loren Legarda, with support from DOT.
Press Release

November 27, 2016 'Agencies must spend the buck and not pass the buck' There is an emerging bad habit among agencies to transfer their allocations to other agencies and then report such transactions as fund utilization. In the case of the Department of Transportation, this is the scheme resorted to in its unused budget for airport improvement - through an 11th hour delegation of funds to CAAP, in a bid to beat the two-year expiry date of the appropriations. Other agencies with expiring appropriations have found it convenient to laterally move them to the little-known agency called Procurement Service, and then misleadingly report it as fund utilization. The rule ought to be this : Agencies must spend the buck and not pass the buck. Transferring funds to another government agency is not fund utilization. It is not procurement, but an accounting trick to prettify the books in order to give out a glowing report card. This loophole in public expenditure management should be plugged, otherwise agencies, instead of expeditiously commencing projects, would simply exercise the option of unloading unused appropriations on fellow agencies. Fund utilization through MOA is not spending; it is the budgetary version of the classic shell game, in which money is transferred from one government pocket to another government pocket. Parang binigyan mo ang isang tao nang pambili ng bigas na kakainin. Hindi nabili at walang nasaing at napakain. Ang ginawa nya ay ibinigay ang pambili sa kapitbahay at irereport nya na nagasta na ang pera. To lessen spending backlogs and accelerate project implementation, agencies with infrastructure budget should first resolve the technical deficit within their ranks. This can be done by hiring or commissioning the services of more technical people, like engineers and procurement specialists. Fewer lawyers to look into contracts, more engineers to implement those contracts. This is one important requisite before we usher the era of the promised infrastructure boom. Otherwise, more funds in the pipeline will only cause budgetary indigestion to agencies overwhelmed by too much funds and projects on their plate. This is the big inherited problem of Secretary Tugade, a professional and a good man. He needs all the help he can get in turbo-boosting the absorptive capacity of DOTr. DOTr has an outstanding unobligated fund of P38.8 billion as of Oct. 31, 2017. Of this, P17.9 billion represented 2015 unobligated funds, while P20.9 billion is for the current year.
Press Release

November 28, 2016 Bam eyes more livelihood, business opportunities for OFWs A senator wants to integrate programs on entrepreneurship for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to help them start their own business, making it unnecessary for them to leave their families to work abroad. "Mas maganda kung hindi lang tuwing Pasko o kada dalawang taon lang nabubuo ang pamilya ng OFWs. Mangyayari ito kung mayroon silang sapat na pagkakataon at kaalaman na makapagsimula ng negosyo," said Sen. Bam Aquino. Sen. Bam has filed Senate Bill No. 648 or the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipino Assistance Act to boost support for the OFW community and the families they leave back home. If passed into law, the measure integrates programs on livelihood, entrepreneurship, savings, investments and financial literacy to the existing efforts of embassies to equip OFWs with knowledge to start their own business. "Sa pamamagitan nito, magkakaroon sila ng sapat na kaalaman para magtayo ng sarili nilang negosyo upang hindi na sila mangamba sa kanilang pagbalik sa Pilipinas," the senator stressed. In addition, Sen. Bam also encouraged families of OFWs to visit the nearest Negosyo Center to get a proper advice on what kind of business to establish while their loved ones are working abroad. "Mahalaga na pag-uwi ng ating mahal sa buhay sa Pilipinas, makikita nila ang bunga ng kanilang pinaghirapan," said Sen. Bam. Aside from the livelihood aspect, Senate Bill No. 648 mandates the Public Attorney's Office to establish a help desk in every international port of exit in the Philippines to offer legal service, assistance and advice to departing migrant workers. "It also sets effective and efficient information dissemination on labor, employment, and migration data through various mediums, including social media, to provide OFWs with credible formation" said Sen. Bam. Sen. Bam recognizes the immense contribution of OFWs to the Philippine economy, saying that from January to August 2015, their remittances reached $16.21 billion or P764 billion. Despite this, OFWs remain vulnerable to poor working conditions and abusive employers. In addition, their employment abroad is no guarantee of financial success. In a survey conducted by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) last September 2015, only 38.2 pecrcent of the 563 household-respondents said that a portion of the money from OFWs are set aside for savings. "This is very alarming since many OFWs come home without a plan for retirement," Sen. Bam said.
Press Release

November 28, 2016 PANGILINAN WELCOMES SUPERMARKETS' BID TO BUY DIRECTLY FROM FARMERS, CALLS FOR INCREASE IN AGRI PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY MANILA -- Increased productive capacity of agriculture should follow farmers' access to market, said Senator Francis "Kiko" N. Pangilinan on Monday as he welcomes the commitment of five supermarket chains to purchase their supply of onion and garlic directly from farmers, as reported by Agriculture Secretary Manny Pinol. "Napapanahon ang naging commitment ng mga supermarket na direktang bumili sa ating mga magsasaka. Ito ang nais nating maging norm dahil makakatulong ito sa pagdagdag ng kanilang mga kita, at makakapag-ahon sa marami mula sa kahirapan (The commitment of the supermarkets to buy from our farmers is timely. We would like this to be the norm because our farmers' income would increase and their lives would be lifted from poverty), said Pangilinan. "Ang kailangan naman ngayon ay masigurong mayroong kapasidad ang ating mga farmers na matugunan ang magiging demand (Now we need to ensure that our farmers have the capacity to meet that demand)," said the chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food. SM, Rustan's, Shopwise, and SaveMore made the commitment through the initiative of Presidential Adviser on Economic Enterprise and GoNegosyo head Joey Concepcion, while Secretary Pinol secured the 20 strong supermarkets of NCCC Mall in Mindanao. "Mahalaga ang magiging papel ng private sector upang mapaunlad ang agrikultura sa bansa. Ngunit kasabay ng pagtaas ng demand ay tumataas din ang pangangailangan ng ating mga magsasaka para sa mga storage and transport facilities. Dapat makasabay ang suporta para sa kanila (The role of the private sector in improving agriculture in the country is important. The increase in the demand would be followed by an increase in our farmers' need for storage and transport facilities. The support for them should be able to catch up)," Pangilinan said. This initiative follows the pattern of Pangilinan's Sagip Saka bill which seeks to provide tax incentives to the private sector that buy agricultural produce directly from accredited farmers and fishers' enterprises. The bill also mandates national and local government agencies to do the same.
You cant tell its 1987 just by watching the video, but probably you could guess that it was made back when VHS was still a thing, back when San Francisco was a different sort of place. The film starts with some fuzzy shots of a small theater, people walking in and out with cases full of equipment. Then it cuts to Marshall Weber. He seems young, and he is.

Welcome to Artists Television Access new location at 992 Valencia St., he says. Well, contrary to popular belief, we didnt move out of South of Market because of the revolting trendiness thats going on down there right now, though certainly it was a good reason to consider a move. Actually, on Halloween of 1986, we had a fire that started from unknown causes during one of our Halloween performances. You can see some of the results of that fire in my lap right here.

Weber is holding a television, the old, boxy sort. One side of it is warped, a melted wave of plastic. He tells a dramatic story about a performer reaching to turn it on in front of a group of people begging him not to, thinking it might explode. As he gets to the end, he reaches over and, click, turns it on himself. Lo and behold, the TV worked.

Some 30 years later, the television still works as a stand-in for Artists Television Access, for function over form. ATA is a beat-up space on the corner of 21st and Valencia streets. The wood floors are scuffed and dull, the theater chairs squeak, and their springs give a little too much. Still, the space is an enduring outpost of underground culture on one of the citys most gentrified streets. ATA is a screening room, a gallery, a performance space, a place for artists to meet and discuss ideas. It is, at its heart, a place where a young artist can roll up, find a community and show some art.

Last year, the volunteers who run the space signed another five-year lease. It felt like a real David and Goliath situation, says Kelly Pendergrast, the president of ATAs board of directors. Five years is not forever, and Pendergrast doesnt dodge how difficult itll be to make the new rent, but, as the crowd started chanting all those years ago when the television buzzed to life and didnt explode, ATA lives.

Perhaps the best way to explain what ATA does or is  a moving target through the years  is with an example. Karla Milosevich, who is now part of the collective that curates the Right Window gallery at ATA, moved to San Francisco in the late 80s. She was fresh out of high school and working temp jobs. In her free time, she and her friends would thrift for costumes and stage photo shoots. Eventually that all led to an interest in photo and video work and then to the San Francisco Art Institute. By the mid 90s, shed graduated with a degree in video.

But at the time all the video systems were big. You had to have your big three-quarter-inch tape and youd go to your Hi8 tape to edit. So you needed two monitors and all these machines and a controller because you were really editing tape.

ATA was the only place with free access to that kind of equipment. She volunteered, edited her own stuff and helped others edit theirs. I just made art, and it was so liberating and wonderful, she says. It was a great venue for people just starting out in filmmaking because you could just make something and show it. And you still can.

There are a few places you could start the story of ATA. Perhaps the truest beginning is in 1980 with Weber, the man in the video. Hes just been booted out of Connecticut College and is driving a long-nose 1969 Ford Mustang (full of a spectrum of drugs) from one end of the country to the other. By this point, Weber says, hes an enthusiastic punk rocker. He enrolls in the Art Institute, where he ends up meeting John Martin, a really, really interesting guy whose art, at least according to the stories, might involve paying someone to take a class for him or having a nurse shoot him up with insulin until he went into shock.

Two years later, Weber graduates early with a degree in performance art and video. This is all just as this sort of media art is becoming a thing, and most galleries wont show the stuff. They grab some cheap warehouse space South of Market, open a live-in gallery and buy some gear. They make money by producing videos for paying customers while opening up their equipment to the public, free to anybody on government assistance.

What started out as the Martin/Weber Gallery would transform several times over the years, bending to meet whatever the community needed at the time. What matters most, though, at least for this story, is that it eventually became a nonprofit known as Artists Television Access.

Theres the ATA myth, which is kind of like the cool, punk, druggie, counterculture myth, but then I think theres also just the reality of really hardworking people from a very diverse community trying to do interesting programming, Weber says.

Craig Baldwin, an experimental filmmaker, remembers the move to 992 Valencia St. He decided to throw his lot in with ATA and joined them on the lease. They chased out rats and built walls. Hed had his own thing going on, a film series called Other Cinema that continues today. The movies, Baldwin says, generally fell along the mad (crazed artists), the bad (cult and exploitation films) and the rad (the political). His shows became the backbone for programming in the new space.

The basement of ATA is filled with stacks of film canisters and VHS tapes  all Baldwins. Young artists would come in on Saturdays, watching the rarities that Baldwin had managed to get his hands on. Anne McGuire, a local video and performance artist, was one of them.

McGuire first came to ATA in 1995 when a professor of hers at the Art Institute reserved the space to show class videos. I think a lot of people would say ATA is the first place they showed a film or video or did a performance  a place of firsts, she says.

But it was Other Cinema that brought her back. The first time she went, she went alone. Red Asphalt played, a film produced by the California Highway Patrol full of graphic images of car crashes. That was really horrible and wonderful, of course.

After that, she was all in. She would watch people wander Valencia Street from up in the projection room. Shed trade cassettes with Baldwin. (He liked some of my work.) Shed go to little parties hed throw in the basement and put on shows of her own. I made friends and felt at home there. Everybody needs a place to be comfortable or to be challenged.

Theres something that happens, even now, with a certain frequency at ATA on a busy night. A show will be going on, and the crowd outside  people waiting in line or flirting or smoking  will start to draw attention. Soon enough, somebody who has never noticed the space before will pop their head in. What is this place?

I know it feels mysterious to people, says Pendergrast, the board president. They dont know its actually a screening space. It just seems like this underground mystery.

Really, though, the same thing is happening there as has always happened there. Artists are renting the space out to show their work on the cheap; they just have to split the door with the venue. Baldwin keeps on with Other Cinema. One night a month, ATA holds an open screening; anybody can show their work. Other groups, like Periwinkle Cinema and Small Press Traffic, meet monthly. Professors still bring students here to screen their films.

Nobody really thought ATA would endure this long. Not Weber. Not Baldwin. In some ways, its survival is a minor miracle. The very thing that makes it so valuable  its accessibility  is the same reason its hard to keep the space afloat. Were totally committed to being cheap, Pendergrast says. The obvious solution is grants, but with an all-volunteer staff, including Pendergrast, applying for and winning them is no easy thing.

Youve got to build relationships, know the language, she says. One sign of hope: ATA just received a $100,000 grant from the city, which will help them make physical improvements to the space.

Leah Millis/San Francisco Chronicle

Late last year, ATA threw a party to celebrate the new lease. A collection of fuzzy, old-school TVs lit up one corner of the room. The theater seating had been moved to the walls. Up on the big screen what looked like a yule log burned on loop, but if you looked closer, youd see it was actually Darth Vader. At some point, Pendergrast took the mike.

You guys are the most gratifying crowd, she said. The room was full of folks who had come up here and moved on, and new artists who only just found the space. As everyone knows, were not just here to celebrate the holiday season or give away beautiful raffle prizes, but also the fact that ATA just signed a new lease to stay here on Valencia Street for another five years. The room erupted. In that moment, it was easy to imagine another group of people, 30 years before but probably much the same, watching that melted TV flicker to life.

ATA lives! ATA lives! ATA lives!

Ryan Kost is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: rkost@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @RyanKost

Artists Television Access: For more information on weekly events and screenings, go to www.atasite.org.

To see a video, go to www.sfchronicle.com.
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San Francisco is one of the most photographed cities in the world, but youve probably never seen it like this.

In June 1975 one of The Chronicles photographers captured stunning sights: views of the city and surrounding areas from the cockpit of the Goodyear Blimp. The images, squirreled away in a drawer of negatives in the papers basement archive for years, were shot by photographer Terry Schmitt and include aerial photos of the Golden Gate Bridge, Transamerica Pyramid, Candlestick Park and the citys waterfront.

Schmitt remembers the shoot well.

I went up from the airport at the Nut Tree (shopping center) in Vacaville, he said. We puttered down to the Bay Area ... and ended up at the Oakland airport, and had a very nice box lunch en route. I think we spent four or five hours in the air.

That wasnt the end of The Chronicles Goodyear exploits.

The paper later worked out a deal with the blimp folks where photographer Peter Breinig (a licensed pilot) actually got to fly the blimp and logged 15 minutes blimp time, Schmitt said. On another trip in the blimp, the pilot managed to line it up with the Transamerica Pyramid for a shot by (former Chronicle photographer) Art Frisch that front-paged the old Chron. It took only two tries to get the shot.

Despite the treasure trove of aerial shots included here, a search of the archives shows that few were used in print during that period. One that was used was a shot of the six blocks of the Western Addition, an incomplete redevelopment project that from the air reflected Chronicle reporter Larry Lieberts description in the accompanying article: a stretch vacant and useless behind wire fences  a bleak wasteland that was supposed to be Fillmore Center, a commercial centerpiece of a new neighborhood.

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.

Also in the collection are images of Interstate 280 under construction, and the student union at San Francisco State University before its debut. While San Franciscos skyline was shorter in 1975, many of its greatest landmarks were standing tall 41 years ago  even from above.

Bill Van Niekerken is the library director of The San Francisco Chronicle, where he has worked since 1985. In his weekly column, From the Archive, he explores the depths of The Chronicles vast photography archive in search of interesting historical tales related to the city by the bay.
For the third consecutive year, Oakland is boosting its contribution of public money to a nonprofit contractor whose chief executive officer has repeatedly blamed the city for the organizations financial distress.

The Oakland Private Industry Council holds a $1 million annual city contract to provide job training and placement services, largely through a downtown career center on Broadway. CEO Gay Plair Cobb has fought for the extra funding, helping the Private Industry Council collect an additional $250,000 in public funds last year after threatening to stop services, and an extra $50,000 in 2014.

This year, the city is on track to hand the Private Industry Council an extra $275,000. Some of the money would come from federal and state funds designated for job services and training. Some would come from the citys general fund, which also pays for such basic services as police, firefighting, libraries and public works.

The groups repeated requests for public funds have caused dissension in City Hall. While several council members have thrown their support behind the Private Industry Council, other officials say the city should insist on tighter financial controls.

The Private Industry Council needs to manage its own budget, Oaklands economic development chief, Mark Sawicki, said in an interview. When there are shrinking dollars available, organizations need to either downsize or go after money from other sources. And there are other sources available  not just the city.

Yet, on Nov. 3, Oaklands Workforce Development Board, a city authority that doles out federal and state funds for job programs, voted to award the group an extra $65,000 at Cobbs behest  an award that is pending approval from the City Council in December. And on Tuesday, the City Council will vote on whether to give the group $150,000 from the general fund to stave off a lawsuit threat from Cobb, who says the city owes the money as a penalty for late payments in previous years.

Additionally, Cobb and the other Private Industry Council staffers are asking the City Council for $60,000 in general fund dollars to bolster a neighborhood job center in West Oakland.

Were tired of coming back time after time after time to this body, literally begging for resources, Cobb told a committee of the City Council at an Oct. 25 meeting.

In an Oct. 28 email responding to questions raised by The Chronicle, Cobb accused the city of being incompetent and said its missteps represent undue denial and delay of services to the people who need them most.

Part of the $65,000 that Cobb requested from the Workforce Development Board was to compensate her organization for services it performed without the citys authorization. The group argued it should be paid $18,000 for job services it offered to laid-off employees of three companies  ConAgra Foods Inc., ITT Technical Services Inc. and IAC Search & Media Inc. The companies laid off a total of 84 workers over the summer.

The Private Industry Council would use the rest of the $65,000 on future assistance to laid-off workers. The Workforce Development Board agreed on Nov. 3 to amend the Private Industry Councils contract to retroactively authorize the groups summer work and to authorize future layoff services through June 2017.

A policy expert said the citys moves are extraordinary, particularly its contract amendment, which is pending City Council approval.

People cant just go out and mow the lawns of city parks and then come back and send a bill to the city, said Mark Morodomi, who served as Oaklands supervising deputy city attorney for 12 years, until 2013.

At the Oct. 25 meeting of the council committee, Sawicki noted that the group was asking to be paid for work apparently beyond what was in the scope of their contract.

Sawicki also pointed out that of the three companies that shut their doors, two had closed before the city learned about the layoffs.

That didnt stop us, said Richard de Jauregui, the Private Industry Councils director of planning, performance and program oversight. He said his group had dispatched staff members to each business. They found the doors locked at one of the businesses, ITT, but they left flyers and information packets, he said.

The Private Industry Council has long worked with the city to provide job-training programs that are largely paid for with federal money. From 2001 to 2011, the city entrusted the group with a huge responsibility: overseeing the millions of dollars Oakland received each year in federal job grants. The group awarded grants not just to other organizations, but to itself, a practice that drew concern from the states Employment Development Department, which helps administer the federal job funds.

In 2010, a state auditor said the Private Industry Council improperly accounted for or misspent $830,000 in federal stimulus dollars. The audit also found that the group had given job-training money to groups that spent it on such things as church repairs, car allowances and field trips to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

In 2011, the city began handing out the federal dollars itself, with the Private Industry Council winning one of several contracts. Two years later the Employment Development Department conducted another audit and found that the city was now properly monitoring its workforce contractors.

Yet Cobb and her supporters have repeatedly slammed the citys performance. The Private Industry Council has strong support from pastors, community activists and the Oakland Post newspaper, a weekly published by Cobbs husband, Paul Cobb.

Recently the Post ran a series of articles criticizing the citys handling of workforce funds. Some articles suggested Mayor Libby Schaaf was trying to shut down neighborhood job centers  an assertion the mayor denied during her State of the City speech in October.

Gay Plair Cobb chided the city at the Oct. 25 council committee meeting, saying officials have cut funding and delayed payments to nonprofit service providers, and passed up opportunities to get federal and state grants.

In the real world, it is stunning that there is no accountability, nobody loses a job, nobody loses a paycheck, Cobb told the council members. The only ones losing a paycheck are the ones delivering the services.

Council members Larry Reid and Rebecca Kaplan supported Cobbs request for the extra $60,000 from the citys general fund. The third committee member present that day, Councilwoman Annie Campbell Washington, raised questions about where the money would come from.

Its not clear why they need an additional allocation, Campbell Washington said later.

Reid accused city officials of deliberately denying the Private Industry Council enough money to keep its doors open, and he added that Cobb has had to pay rent from her own pocket.

I have an institution that is providing services to those that are less fortunate than us in the room, and theyre struggling to pay their rent, Reid said. Im almost to the point where (I think) were doing this on purpose.

Kaplan directed city staff to find a source for the $60,000 in funding.

At the time of the meeting Kaplan and Reid were running for re-election, and the day after the committee meeting, the Oakland Post endorsed them. They both won.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan
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Orlando Chavez has no intention of leaving the tiny, cluttered room where he has lived for eight years, with its bent window blinds, tattered carpet and leaky bathroom ceiling. Upstairs, construction crews tear through walls inside the six-story building, one of downtown Oaklands last single-room-occupancy hotels.

Theyre turning this into a tech haven, Chavez, 65, said about the 113-year-old Hotel Travelers, which is being converted into dorm-style housing for young professionals.

Chavez and two other tenants refused to move after the landlord, NDO Group, gave them 60-day eviction notices in July. Now five tenants, including Chavez, are suing NDO Group, alleging harassment and violations of Oaklands tenant protection ordinances.

The Hotel Travelers is one of many buildings that have historically provided housing for the citys poor but now face transformation for a wealthier demographic. With rents escalating rapidly and Uber preparing to take over the old Sears building, adding thousands of new employees to the downtown area, two City Council members are pushing for legislation to preserve these old hotels.

Noah Berger/Special to The Chronicle

Single-room occupancies have traditionally been a housing of last resort for people with bad credit, people who are sick, who have addictions or mental illness that would otherwise put them on the streets, said City Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney, who is leading the effort. She noted that residential hotels do not require credit checks, proof of income, large security deposits or long-term leases, making them more accessible than other forms of housing.

If they disappear, the consequences could be dire, particularly because the city already has a big homeless population, McElhaney said. The most recent one-night homeless census, taken in January 2015, found 1,400 people sleeping outside.

We have a need for these buildings, she said. The fact that theyre going away has my stomach in knots.

The problem isnt limited to Oakland, said state Sen.-elect Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley. Since 1960, she said, the number of single-room-occupancy hotels in Sacramento has dropped dramatically  from 78 to 14. In Los Angeles in 2008, city officials passed a law to protect 336 residential hotels.

Strong city ordinances have kept the number of SROs relatively stable in San Francisco, but some of those rooms are now going to students, tech workers and tourists.

Weve seen hotels advertising rooms on Airbnb or Booking.com, or theyll give vacant rooms a little touch-up and rent them out for $1,100 a month, said Chirag Bhakta, a longtime community organizer in San Francisco who works for the nonprofit affordable housing developer Mission Housing Development Corp.

Because San Francisco does not cap rent in residential hotels, building owners can charge what the market will bear.

Honestly, if the demand was high enough, an SRO room could go for $3,000 a month, Bhakta said.

In downtown Oakland, where a commercial boom has been under way for years, residential hotels have been replaced with more profitable ventures. A city report written last year by UCLA graduate student Brian Warwick documented some of these transformations. The Alendale Guest House near Lake Merritt became a market-rate apartment building, and the Hotel Westerner on San Pablo Avenue was demolished to make way for the Uptown development. The shuttered Will Rogers Hotel, ravaged by fire in 2002, was reborn in 2009 as the Clarion, a boutique hotel with a fitness center and two restaurants. The former Lake Merritt Lodge reopened in 2014 as a student dorm for the Hult International Business School in San Francisco.

Noah Berger/Special to The Chronicle

With 18 SRO hotels left in Oaklands downtown corridor, public officials are looking at how to help residents like Chavez. But, theres no legal mechanism to stop the SRO conversions.

Oaklands housing laws do not prevent residential hotel owners from turning their buildings into something that generates more income, such as a boutique hotel or condominiums. Building owners can even convert low-income hotel rooms into restaurants or offices, as long as the benefits of the conversion outweigh the loss from the citys housing supply.

McElhaney and City Councilman Abel Guillen have asked the citys planning department to craft SRO-protecting legislation. The council has also urged state legislators to exempt residential hotels from the Ellis Act law, which allows property owners to evict tenants and leave the rental business.

San Francisco and other California municipalities already have Ellis Act exemptions for residential hotels, but smaller cities such as Oakland lack that regulatory ability.

McElhaney said she is contemplating a six-month moratorium on residential hotel conversions to prevent owners from rushing to sell or lease their buildings before any new laws are adopted.

But promises offer little security to Chavez, who grew up in Oakland and has spent decades living in roach-infested hotel rooms and scruffy apartments. He said Oakland housing officials offered to put him in an apartment in Napa, far away from his day job at Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco.

So Id be commuting from Napa to San Francisco? asked Chavez, who has nerve damage in his feet.

Owners of SRO hotels say many of the buildings date to the early 20th century and are ramshackle, rat-infested and expensive to maintain.

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When we came in, the bathrooms were moldy and the shared kitchen was dilapidated, said Thomas Kerbleski, whose firm, Lakeside Investment Co., was among a group of investors that purchased the Fremont Hotel on Eighth Street in September 2015. Oakland City Attorney Barbara Parker sued the group in June, saying the owners had demolished parts of the interior as a ploy to boot out the low-income Chinese immigrant tenants and jack up rents.

Danny Haber, a partner in the group that owns Hotel Travelers, said that when his company first took over that property, the floors were rotten and mice were crawling up alongside the toilets.

They had fixed the plumbing with duct tape, he said. There were bedbugs everywhere.

Haber said he plans to increase rents when the building is renovated but keep them below market rate. Real estate website Zillow shows the market rate for a one-bedroom apartment in downtown Oakland is about $2,445 a month.

Housing advocates, meanwhile, are urging the city to buy the troubled buildings before developers can convert them.

The city could sell the buildings to nonprofit developers who would take care of the rehab effort, said Jeffrey Levin, policy director for the nonprofit East Bay Housing Organizations. Such an arrangement worked at the Empyrean Towers Hotel in Oaklands Chinatown, a blighted building being restored by the Berkeley nonprofit Resources for Community Development.

Solutions may take months or years to implement  too long for low-income renters who face imminent displacement.

One such tenant of Hotel Travelers was T. Baumann Knapp, who died of liver disease in September while pursuing the harassment case against NDO group.

He spent his last days up there alone, isolated and under pressure (from) management, Chavez said. And they kept asking him, When are you going to move out?

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter:@rachelswan
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High above the entrance to Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve in Guerneville, off a twisting road and through a gate thats usually locked, stand Pond Farms two old houses and a stark wooden barn.

Between the barn and one decrepit house, long empty, theres also a moss-blotted boulder topped by a formal bronze plaque: a memorial that reads in part Marguerite Wildenhain ... Artist, potter, friend.

The plaque hints at a slice of Northern California cultural history, in which a short-lived artist colony left behind a determined ceramicist who shaped a legacy of her own in the decades that followed.

Its the sort of place that until recently would have been torn down, consigned to memories. Instead, its a freshly preserved marker of how our region has and hasnt changed  and how preservation itself is being redefined.

Work is nearly complete on a state-funded effort to waterproof and structurally upgrade the barn, which in the 1940s was remade as a studio. Next year there will be a full renovation of the modest guesthouse built by Wildenhain, who died in 1985 at the age of 89. Not because its an architectural jewel, but to have an accessible space where artists can live and work at Pond Farm for months at a time.

Brian L. Frank/Special to The Chronicle

Pond Farm is part of an evolution in how were thinking about historic significance, said Anthony Veerkamp, who heads the San Francisco office of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Its important to make room for untold stories, underrepresented aspects of our past.

Veerkamp is one of the people who have worked in recent years on Pond Farms behalf. First, to defend it. Then, in 2014, to get it listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Now, to find the money to bring it back to life.

Even in its present state, Pond Farm evokes the spirit of a woman who fled Germany and then the Netherlands to escape the Nazis, but never left behind her passion for turning clay into something more.

The light within the barn glows, thanks to intricate slats on several windows. The wooden pottery wheels within the gabled central space are immaculate though unrestored, a tribute to the fastidiousness with which Wildenhain conducted workshops from 1949 until 1980. Outside, painted ceramic shards line a fire pit and are embedded in walkways.

Wildenhain was the first female student at the Bauhaus, Germanys legendary art school that opened in 1919. She went on to teach, marrying one of her students, and sailed solo from the Netherlands to New York in 1940. Her husband, unable to leave, was inducted into the German army.

By 1942 she was living in a tent beyond Guerneville, on land owned by architect Gordon Herr and his wife, Jane. The latter came from a wealthy San Francisco family and had purchased the former ranch with artists like Wildenhain in mind, imagining a creative refuge when World War II came to an end.

Gordon designed a single-room cabin for Wildenhain, who built out the interior. After that she did what she needed to do, planting row crops and fruit trees, learning to fix roofs or piping that leaked. She added a room to the cabin when her husband made it out of Germany in 1947, a reunion that ended when he left in 1950.

By then other artists had arrived, living downhill closer to town. The colony flourished briefly but frayed due to bickering egos, a situation exacerbated by Jane Herrs death of cancer in 1952. The only one who stayed was Wildenhain.

This is where the tale gains depth, and why Pond Farm lives on.

Brian L. Frank/Special to The Chronicle

For most of the year she worked on her own, or traveled for lectures and exhibitions. But every summer shed conduct two-month workshops for two dozen or so artists. The students had to be as committed as Wildenhain, heading uphill each day from Guerneville to be at Pond Farm by 8 a.m.

Four days a week they were at the pottery wheels. On Wednesdays they practiced drawing. Some days Wildenhain would talk philosophy under a peach tree near the barn, or ask a few students to her cabin for wine and sherry when the days session ended at 4 p.m.

All this should have ended in 1963, when the state used eminent domain to take the property of Wildenhain and others to create the Austin Creek State Recreation Area above Armstrong Redwoods. But she fought back, students wrote letters, and state parks officials agreed to allow her to stay on the land, paying rent.

The sessions continued, and Wildenhains stature in the pottery world grew, until she slowed down in her mid-80s.

After her 1985 death, Pond Farm went into arrested decay, Veerkamp said. State parks had this property it didnt yet think of as historic.

Her students believed otherwise. They gathered annually to clean the property and do what repairs they could, all the while making the case to preservationists and local parks advocates that this humble homestead had lessons to teach.

They convinced me pretty quickly that this was someplace special, said Michele Luna, executive director of Stewards of the Coast and Redwoods, which partners with the state parks department in Sonoma County. The thing thats most inspiring is sitting in a room and listening to her students, their heartfelt emotion about Marguerite herself and what she gave to them as people.

One visit was all it took to bring Veerkamp around. State parks officials were more skeptical, but Veerkamp and Luna say that once they signed on, they were committed.

The buildings are modest, no question. Wildenhain was never a household name. Yet the historic value is real.

Our best-known landmarks will always be the ones of undeniable significance and curb appeal, such as San Francisco City Hall. When we preserve Pond Farm, by contrast, we hold onto something more subtle.

Marguerites life is part of a larger pattern, Veerkamp suggested. This area attracted folks who were looking for different lifestyles, a chance to escape the ills of civilization.

Its unique the way this urge played out above Guerneville, through one woman who defied Nazis and bureaucrats and the expectations of her time. But the underlying saga has been part of America from the start. Honoring that truth, in all its varied forms, can only help inspire new and unpredictable stories to come.

John King is The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron
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In an age when Bay Area housing is in short supply, water is stretched and roads are jammed, it would be great if there were a simple answer to these tangled concerns.

Such as building two dams across the bay.

That was the panacea offered in 1949 to a U.S. Senate subcommittee that visited San Francisco to hear from a former song-and-dance man who was proposing nothing less than to take over where nature left off and rebuild the bay for 20th century man.

And instead of politely showing him the door, the officials followed up with a multiyear federal study.

That hearing marked the high point of whats known to local history buffs as the Reber Plan. Its a strange saga that deserves to be retold from time to time  if only as a cautionary tale pointing out that when a solution seems too good to be true, it very often is.

The vision belonged to John Reber, and while specifics changed often during his crusade, the core premise stayed constant: to dam off the north and south ends of San Francisco Bay. The trapped areas would become freshwater lakes, while the shallow wetlands alongside would be turned into coveted real estate.

By 1949, Rebers supporters included politicians, farmers, engineers and, yes, The Chronicle. On the front page of our Dec. 9, 1949, edition, readers found an account of the hearing that captured both the arm-waving lunacy of the project and the anything-is-possible mentality of the era.

The article left the impression that Rebers plan was the greatest boon to Northern California since gold was discovered at Sutters Mill.

Building one rock wall from San Quentin to Richmond, and another between Oakland and what now is Mission Bay, would allow the creation of a drought-defying local water supply second only to areas bordering the Great Lakes, Reber said. The dams would be wide enough for freeways and rail lines and feature docks for ocean vessels.

He promised more than efficiency, rest assured.

Gone would be the supposedly bleak waterfront reality of 1949 in which, Reber intoned, There is nothing for a tourist to do here but put on his overcoat, look at the two bridges and go home.

Every city along the shore would have bathing beaches. The two lakes would add up to the biggest fishing hole in the world. Thered also be room for a million bay-side homesites.

Goodbye, runaway housing prices.

As if that werent enough, Reber packaged his plan as an essential element of national defense should the eras tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union flare into something more.

The two bridges could be knocked down five minutes after the Cold War gets hot, Reber warned the senators, referring to the Golden Gate and Bay bridges.

Why a dam couldnt be demolished as well, he did not say. Instead, he gushed that because rock needed for the stone retaining walls would be blasted from the hills surrounding the bay, underground submarine bases could be built where the rock was removed. ... Military planes could be hangared under the hills.

Rebers credentials?

According to the 1960 Chronicle obituary  which also made Page 1  John Reber was a man without a single day of formal training as an engineer. He got his start by acting and putting on small-scale theatrical productions.

But upon his arrival here from Ohio in 1907 at age 20, Reber didnt like that the train to San Francisco actually ended in Oakland. Or that water flowed from the Sierra straight out the Golden Gate. Something should be done!

By 1935, Reber had traded thespianism for hydrological hype  or, as he described it much later to the Saturday Evening Post, one of the best-engineered daydreams on record. And his early career came in handy.

My forte in show business was casting, getting the right people in the right roles, Reber told the Post. It has been the same with the plan.

In the aftermath of the 1949 subcommittee hearing, Congress approved $2.5 million to study whether the mans grand dams made sense. Scientifically minded bureaucrats werent so impressed. In 1955, state engineers labeled the Reber Plan, as well as other, more modest barrier proposals, as fatally defective, with Rebers concoction the most disruptive.

They pegged his supposed $240 million budget as more than $1 billion off the mark  back when $1 billion was real money  and said the proposed Marin-to-Contra Costa dam would soon make the water behind it too polluted to use, the freshwater lake filling with silt.

Or, in the words of the 1955 report, It would transform a great natural harbor into an artificial bottleneck.

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Reber dismissed the findings as shameful.

It was another eight years, and three years after Reber passed on, before the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a report that, in The Chronicles words, conducted funeral services for the grandiose Reber Plan.

We studied his plan in every form possible, Brig. Gen. Arthur Frye said at a news conference. In no concept does it appear feasible.

Yet Frye felt obligated to tip his hat to Reber: No man had a greater impact on barrier studies, he said, on the concept of the unity of the bay region, and on its importance to the state.

A relic of Rebers persistence is the Bay Model, a huge hydrological tool thats still on display in Sausalito. It was built by the Corps of Engineers in part to test Rebers plan.

Beyond that, we are left with a midcentury example of something we still see today: People who talk big and offer pat answers to thorny problems often find a receptive audience. The more confidence you exude, the more you can get away with.

In this case, Rebers fact-free bluster was harmless enough. Well even let the impresario have the last word.

Among the many virtues of the plan, he told the Senate panel, is that the freshwater lakes would make warm days cooler and cool days warmer.

Id even change the climate, Reber said. This is some project.

Indeed it was.

Place is a column by John King, The San Francisco Chronicles urban design critic. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron

Rising Reality

To read John Kings series on Bay Area planning for sea level rise: http://projects.sfchronicle.com/2016/sea-level-rise
Anne Grillot, 78, spent her career as a nurse. These days, shes helping others heal through music.

At least once a month, Grillot and a handful of seniors crowd into a busy Mountain View coffee shop and whip out ukuleles, strumming and singing to tunes like the Everly Brothers Bye Bye Love and John Denvers Leaving on a Jet Plane.

Its kind of relaxing to sing, said Grillot, who on a recent jam session brought a second ukulele for others to play. Its social and positive. Youre not sitting around and grumbling, she said.

Once a curiosity from Hawaii, the ukulele has ridden a wave of popularity. Grace VanderWaal, a 12-year-old self-taught ukulele player, is the most recent Americas Got Talent champion, winning over the judges and the audience to take the title in September. Profiles of fast-growing San Francisco startup Slack mention CEO Stewart Butterfields fondness for the instrument. Sales nationwide climbed to $89.8 million in 2015, up from $41.8 million in 2010, according to the National Association of Music Merchants. The number of ukuleles sold has also more than doubled over that period to 1.2 million units in 2015, the trade group said.

Its struck a resonant chord, said Brian Majeski, editor of Music Trades Magazine. Its taken everybody by surprise.

Senior citizens, eager for leisure activities, seem to be picking up the instrument with gusto. A ukulele is lighter than a guitar, as well as easier to learn and relatively inexpensive (many sell for $60 to $75). As seniors get older, playing a musical instrument gives them the opportunity to socialize with new friends at jam sessions and exercise their hands, said Victor Fung, co-author of the book, Music for Life: Music Participation and Quality of Life of Senior Citizens. Schools facing cuts to their music programs have also been attracted to the low-cost ukulele, which has boosted sales, analysts said.

Gillian Altieri, founder of the San Jose Ukulele Club, said 60 percent of her group is made up of people 60 or older. She started the club in 2010 with just six people, and attendance has since climbed to 40 to 80 people at a meeting.

James Tensuan/Special to The Chronicle

Several Bay Area clubs, including Altieris, offer lessons for beginners at the start of the meeting, and later tackle songs that regulars like to play. But like any club, there are rules. The San Jose Ukulele Club doesnt allow tambourines, and while John Mayer and Beck songs have been in the mix, some modern artists havent made the cut.

We dont do Taylor Swift, because the majority of people dont listen to her, and one of the main things when we introduce a song is it has to be a song people are familiar with, said 62-year-old Altieri, a retired medical dosimetrist.

The ukuleles rising popularity has boosted sales for local manufacturers and music instructors. Petalumas Kala Brand Music Co. said it is selling more than 600,000 ukuleles a year, up 30 percent from five or six years ago. Most of its instruments, primarily imported from China, are priced from $49 to $499. Custom ukuleles made at its headquarters sell for several thousand dollars.

Any age group can play it, said Michael Upton, Kalas president. Its small enough for a little kid 2 or 3 years old, to an elderly person with limited hand strength.

Mike DaSilva, who makes custom ukuleles that range from $1,000 to $5,000, said his eponymous business in Berkeley is also going strong. All the high end, builders are not lacking for business, he said.

The ukulele traces its origins to Hawaii in the late 1800s, when islanders started selling their own version of a Portuguese string instrument, the machete de braga. They called it a ukulele, which in Hawaiian means jumping flea, according to the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad (San Diego County). The instrument gained national popularity when it was featured at the 1915 Panama Pacific International Exhibition in San Francisco. Since then, the instrument has been used by celebrities, including Arthur Godfrey in 1950s, and by modern ukulele artists including Jake Shimabukuro, who became popular with a YouTube video showing him playing the song While My Guitar Gently Weeps  on a ukulele.

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There is a wait list for Isabel Samaras ukulele classes in Albany. The artist, who teaches the instrument to no more than six students at a time, said part of the reason it is easy to pick up is it has just four strings. Plus, the sound is charming and sunny, making it impossible to be depressed or sad, Samaras said.

Its Prozac with strings, she added.

Jeff Furman, a 69-year-old retired engineer from Sunnyvale, believes in the ukulele's power to heal. In May, his wife, Ellen, fell down and doctors suspected she had a stroke, affecting her brain's ability to remember. At first, all she could do was hold the ukulele, but over time, she remembered how to play it. Jeff drove her to the club meetings  and took up the ukulele himself.

If you stop learning, he said, you are not alive anymore.

Wendy Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: wlee@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @thewendylee
A family argument during a Thanksgiving Day dinner in San Francisco ended with a trip to the hospital after a 25-year-old man was stabbed with a kitchen knife, police said Monday.

It was one of at least two Thanksgiving dinners in the city that turned violent. In a separate incident in the Portola neighborhood, shots were fired but no one was injured.

The stabbing took place at the Parkmerced townhomes and apartments in the 400 block of Serrano Drive about 8 p.m. Thursday.

The suspect, a 28-year-old man, had been fighting with the victim before he grabbed a knife from the kitchen, stabbed him, then ran away, police said.

The victim was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. Authorities later found and arrested the suspect. His name was not immediately released.

Police did not elaborate on the relationship between the suspect and victim, but described the fight as a family dispute.

In the Portola incident, a 30-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of negligent discharge of a firearm. Police have not yet released his name.

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.

The suspect was having dinner about 9:30 p.m. with two victims on the 700 block of Burrows Street when he showed them his gun. Both victims decided to leave because they felt uncomfortable, then the suspect pointed the gun at one victim before firing it into the air, police said.

The man fled but was later detained by police.

Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno
Heres a pop quiz: Name five types of cheese made from buffalos milk.

Struggling? Try two.

Most of us can only think of one: buffalo milk mozzarella. Were used to seeing those springy, alabaster rounds accompany tomatoes and basil in a Caprese salad, or maybe melted atop a pizza. Thats all cheesemaker Seana Doughty thought of, too, until a neighbor gave her some buffalo milk several years ago and asked her to make something with it.

Doughty now owns Bleating Heart Cheese in Tomales, where she primarily crafts raw sheep and cows milk cheese with distinctive names. She entered the cheese world when an unfulfilling desk job prompted her to apply for a cheesemonger position at Venissimo, a well-known cheese shop in San Diego. I had zero qualifications, recalls Doughty, who practically begged her way into the position. Once I started working there, I just fell head over heels in love with cheese.

A few wheels later, Doughty decided to teach herself cheesemaking and move to Sonoma County with her husband to start her own creamery. I needed to come to where the good-quality milk was. I knew that the North Bay was the epicenter of cheese on the West Coast, she says.

Within a year, she brought Bleating Hearts first cheese to market, a sheeps milk variety named Fat Bottomed Girl. (About that name: I took the cheese out of the mold too soon, and it got flat, Doughty says.)

While Doughty was busy building her business, her friend Andrew Zlot had a problem. Zlot runs nearby Double Eight Dairy, where he makes gelato from his herd of water buffalo. Gelato is a seasonal business, which leaves Zlot with excess milk during the colder months. He asked Doughty to take some, but she declined. I didnt have time to figure out how to work with water buffalo milk, she says.

Moreover, she had no interest in making mozzarella. I take my craft of cheesemaking very seriously, she says. For me to make mozzarella, it would be like dumbing down my abilities. Eventually, Zlot gave her the milk for free and encouraged her to experiment.

Knowing that buffalo milk is high in fat and that blue cheese requires a lot of fat, Doughty thought there might be something in that combination. She made a test batch of buffalo milk blue cheese and set it to age for a few months. I was expecting it to be terrible, she remembers. When I tasted it, I was very pleasantly surprised with the results, and I thought, maybe Im onto something here.

She tweaked the recipe and the resulting Buff Blue has since racked up several awards, including second-place best in show at the 2016 American Cheese Society Awards. Its like winning an Oscar, says Doughty of the competition that pitted her against 1,800 others. Doughty prefers to eat the rich cheese by itself to best appreciate its unique flavors that hint of smoke and earth. She also likes pairing it with chocolate: I see it more as a dessert item or appetizer.

Michael Short/Special To The Chronicle

Doughty believes she is one of just five cheesemakers in the world to make blue cheese from buffalo milk and the only one in California. Yet she is not resting on any laurels. Eager to expand her business, shes seeking investors to help fund a larger space for her creamery. People love the story and romance of the small family-run business and everyone talking about sustainability, she says. But you never hear people talking about financial sustainability, and thats critical for any business to operate. If youre too small, you cant be financially sustainable.

In the beginning, Bleating Heart focused exclusively on sheeps milk cheeses. Doughty helped found Californias fifth licensed sheep dairy in 2010 to give her a steady supply of milk. Even so, she quickly discovered she could not survive on sheeps milk cheeses only. A sheep on average will produce roughly a half gallon a day, she says, whereas a cow, depending on the breed and age, can produce as much as 10 gallons a day. Doughty buys her cows milk from Marshall Home Ranch & Dairy, which sits on the same property as her creamery.

Because Doughty sources all of her milk within a 15-mile radius, shes limited by seasonality and a variable milk supply. That creates hiring problems. If youre going to attract and retain good employees, you have to give them consistent hours, she says.

Michael Short/Special To The Chronicle

To improve stability, Doughty is trying to create more cows milk cheeses. Her first pasteurized cheese will come out by Christmas. Made from organic Jersey cows milk, this semisoft cheese gets washed in Death & Taxes black lager from Moonlight Brewing. Doughty plans to relaunch all her cows milk cheeses as organic in 2017.

As Doughty works to improve the viability of Bleating Heart, she feels confident shes doing the work she was meant to do: I never got hit with Cupids arrow for a human being, but I did with cheese.

Find Bleating Heart Cheese at retail shops in the Bay Area. Visit https://www.bleatingheart.com/buy-cheese for a complete list of where to buy. Buff Blue is a seasonal cheese usually available in the spring. Call ahead to confirm availability.

Alissa Merksamer is a Bay Area freelance writer. Email: food@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @glamsnack Instagram: @alissamerks
WASHINGTON  President-elect Donald Trump said Sunday that he had fallen short in the popular vote in the general election only because millions of people had voted illegally, leveling the baseless claim as part of a daylong storm of Twitter posts voicing anger about a three-state recount push.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump wrote.

The series of posts came one day after Hillary Clintons campaign said it would participate in a recount effort being undertaken in Wisconsin, and potentially in similar drives in Michigan and Pennsylvania, by Jill Stein, who was the Green Party candidate. Trumps statements revived claims he made during the campaign about a rigged and corrupt system.

Claims of wide-scale voter fraud have been advanced for years by Republicans, though virtually no evidence of such improprieties has been discovered  especially on the scale of millions that Trump claimed. Late Sunday, again without providing evidence, he referred in a Twitter post to serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California.

Evan Vucci/Associated Press

Alex Padilla, Californias secretary of state, scoffed as Trumps assertion.

His unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud in California and elsewhere are absurd, he said in a statement Sunday. His reckless tweets are inappropriate and unbecoming of a president-elect.

ALSO Trump aides set tough tone on Cuba relations

Kim Alexander, president of the nonpartisan California Voter Foundation, a nonprofit promoting the responsible use of elections technology, said she had no idea what Trump based his fraud assertion on, but added: I can tell you that California has the most robust voting technology of any state in the country.

As for the possibility of scores of noncitizens casting votes  a notion that has gained some currency among conservatives  We know historically that this almost never happens, David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research, told Politico.

Youre more likely to get eaten by a shark that simultaneously gets hit by lightning than to find a noncitizen voting, he said.

But Harmeet Dhillon, a California Committeewoman for the Republican National Committee, defended Trumps fraud claim, even as she acknowledged she was unable to quantify the extent of the problem.

There have been many episodes of voter fraud and lack of ballot integrity in California, Dhillon said, resulting from what she described as a nonsecure secretary of state website and poor verification processes at the county level. Its very Third World here in California, and election integrity seems to be a low priority in many respects.

On Saturday, Trumps transition team lambasted the idea that recounts were needed. This is a scam by the Green Party for an election that has already been conceded, it said in a statement, and the results of this election should be respected instead of being challenged and abused.

That message runs counter to the one Trump sent Sunday with his fraud claims: If millions of people voted illegally, presumably officials across the country would want to pursue large-scale ballot recounts and fraud investigations.

But the Twitter posts could energize some of his supporters, who have claimed online that Clintons 2 million-vote lead in the popular vote has been faked. Trump at times promoted other conspiracy theories during the campaign, including claiming that Sen. Ted Cruzs father was somehow tied to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

Many of Clintons supporters have been galvanized by the notion that vote recounts in the three states  where Trump leads by a combined total of about 100,000 votes  could somehow overturn Trumps commanding Electoral College victory. By announcing, three weeks after Clinton conceded the race, that it would participate in the Wisconsin recount, her team has helped reignite the contentious atmosphere of the campaign, of which Trumps Twitter barrages were a fixture.

Trump appeared fixated Sunday on the recount and his electoral performance. In a series of midafternoon Twitter posts, he boasted that he could have easily won the so-called popular vote if he had campaigned only in 3 or 4 states, presumably populous ones.

I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)! he wrote.

The afternoon messages followed a string of early morning posts in which the president-elect railed against the recount efforts. In an initial post, Trump wrote: Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change.

He went on to quote a comment by Clinton during one of their debates, in which she said she was horrified by Trumps refusal to say that he would accept the outcome of the election. And he noted that in her concession speech, she had urged people to respect the vote results.

We have to accept the results and look to the future, Donald Trump is going to be our President, Trump wrote on Twitter, quoting Clinton. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead. So much time and money will be spent  same result! Sad.

One person who spoke with Trump over the holiday weekend said the president-elect had appeared to be preoccupied by suggestions that a recount might be started, even as his aides played down any concerns. Another friend said Trump felt crossed by Clinton, who he believed had conceded the race and accepted the results.

In a post on Medium, Marc Elias, the Clinton teams general counsel, said the campaign would participate in Steins recount effort with little expectation that it would change the result, partly out of a sense of duty to the millions who voted for Clinton.

We do so fully aware that the number of votes separating Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton in the closest of these states  Michigan  well exceeds the largest margin ever overcome in a recount, Elias said, noting that Clinton campaign officials had found no actionable evidence of hacking or attempts to tamper with the vote.

In Wisconsin, Trump leads by 22,177 votes. In Michigan, he has a lead of 10,704 votes, and in Pennsylvania, his advantage is 70,638 votes.

Trumps aides echoed his concerns about the recount effort in appearances on Sunday morning television news programs. Kellyanne Conway, who was his campaign manager, said on NBCs Meet the Press that Clinton and her campaign advisers would have to decide whether theyre going to be a bunch of crybabies.

Trumps Twitter outburst also came as he is laboring to fill crucial positions in his Cabinet, with his advisers enmeshed in a rift over whom he should select as secretary of state. Conway on Sunday extended a public campaign to undermine one contender, Mitt Romney  a remarkable display by a member of a president-elects team. In her television appearances, she accused Romney of having gone out of his way to hurt Trump during the Republican primary contests.

Conway, echoing comments she posted last week on Twitter, made clear that she opposed choosing Romney as secretary of state.

There was the Never Trump movement, and then there was Gov. Mitt Romney, she said on ABC, adding later, I only wish Gov. Romney had been as critical of Hillary Clinton during the general election. During the primaries, Romney called Trump a fraud and a phony.

Chronicle staff writer Karen de Sa contributed to this report.
Horror came to City Hall.

The Chronicles front page from Nov. 28, 1978, covers the double assassination of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk.

Moscone and Milk were murdered in their City Hall offices yesterday morning, the story read. Former Supervisor Dan White turned himself in and surrendered his .38-caliber revolver to police about a half-hour after the shooting deaths.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, then the president of the Board of Supervisors who would become mayor upon Moscones death, was in City Hall when the killings occurred and found Milks body.

I put my finger to see if there was any pulse, and it went in a bullet hole in his chest, Feinstein told The Chronicles Carl Nolte in 2003. I think of it as if it were yesterday. I remember Harveys body, his blood on me. I see it all.

Both Moscone and Milk died instantly.

The double assassination left San Franciscos liberal political scene without two of its leaders, read the story by The Chronicles George Draper. Moscone, 49, was a socially concerned and liberal Democrat, and Milk, 48, was the citys first avowed homosexual to win elective office.

The killings shook the city to its core. Feinstein was in the middle of it all.

Fighting to control her emotions, Feinsteins first official (mayoral) act yesterday was to announce to reporters that (Moscone and Milk) had both been shot to death, a second story on the front page read.

Two hours later, still near tears, Feinstein presided over a Board of Supervisors meeting that lasted only long enough for her to urge the public to go into a state of very deep and meaningful mourning and to express sorrow with a dignity and an inner examination.

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

(Click to enlarge)




This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 2 1 of 2 Benicia Police Department / / Show More Show Less 2 of 2 Benicia Police Department Show More Show Less



Police nabbed a suspect who shot two men during an altercation over the weekend in a Benicia bar, officials said Monday.

The intense episode, which was captured on security video, happened around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, when 33-year-old Daniel Lopez of Vallejo walked into the Bottom of the Fifth bar on Military East, police said.
Two men were killed Monday on an Oakland Street when they were both shot multiple times in a brazen broad-daylight attack near the MacArthur BART Station, police said.

The victims, who were not identified, were gunned down around 10:15 a.m. on the 700 block of 39th Street, between West Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way, said Lt. Roland Holmgren, head of the Oakland Police Homicide Unit.

The citys ShotSpotter gunfire detection system notified police of the shooting. When officers arrived at the scene, they found both victims suffering from multiple gunshot wounds and a sedan that also had bullet holes, Holmgren said.

Both men were pronounced dead at the scene, Holmgren said.

No suspect was identified or arrested in the killings.

A woman who lives on 39th Street said the shooting happened outside her house and she dove onto the floor when she heard at least 10 shots. The woman, who did not want to give her name, said that once the shooting subsided she went outside and recognized one of one of the victims as an 18-year-old neighbor.

He was on the ground in front of me lying in a puddle of blood, said the woman. I saw his eyes. Ill never forget that.

She said the other victim was sitting inside the shot up sedan wounded.

Holmgren said more than 10 shots were fired in the incident and police were asking any witnesses to come forward.

He said homicide detectives believe that multiple suspects were involved in the shooting.

A $20,000 rewards is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killers.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky
President-elect Donald Trumps team is talking up a trillion-dollar fix-it plan for crumbling highways, train lines and airports. Republicans controlling Congress want tax breaks. Tech and drug firms with up to $2.4 trillion parked overseas want to bring their loot home.

These are the conditions that could produce a jobs and financial bonanza if the foreign-earned money can be brought back. The sum has steadily grown for years because giants like Apple, Google and Cisco dont want to pay a 35 percent tax.

Until now, Washington couldnt agree on an answer. But the political stars may now be in alignment. A Republican lineup bent on reducing the corporate tax bite may produce lower rates that invite returning the money here. A mother lode of revenue could be tapped at last by both government and business.

Its anything but assured. Trumps plan is hazy, though he frequently lashed at rundown infrastructure on the campaign trail. Where it would be spent and on what projects isnt spelled out, though his transition staff is putting out a $1 trillion target sum for public upgrades. At the same, time Trump favors cutting the corporate tax rate from 35 to 15 percent, a reduction that diminishes the money he needs to pay for his promised repairs.

If that money comes home and the taxes are paid, hundreds of billions could flow to Washington. In concept, Trump would have the money to make good on his pledge to repair bridges, ports and buildings. Democrats, whove pushed for public spending to create jobs, might be counted on to support the Trump plan.

Republicans in Congress could go along with the idea or spend it in other ways, such as paying down deficits created by other tax cuts. GOP lawmakers plan to use their majorities in both the House and Senate to remake the tax structure, going well beyond a Trump infrastructure wish list.

Theres unhappy history with a tax holiday for foreign profits. President George W. Bush backed a plan in 2004 that dropped the rate briefly to 5.25 percent and brought in billions. But the money went to executive salaries, stock buybacks and fatter dividends, not job-spurring research or expanded manufacturing. Washington shouldnt allow a repeat of this experience.

Silicon Valley has its own issues. Tech leaders nearly unanimously backed Hillary Clinton and denounced Trump. The same firms are worried that an immigration crackdown will impede the numbers of foreign engineers the industry claims to need. If the moneys brought home, Trump and the GOP may demand more products be manufactured here, not cranked out in Asian factories. Collecting overseas profits at a reduced rate may come with terms these firms dont want.

Its a multisided standoff, but it needs an answer thats eluded Washington for too long. If the funds flow into the U.S., the money should be used for maximum benefits. Companies should pledge to use it on job-expanding projects, not only shareholder checks. Washington should do its part by directing the funds at public projects that benefit the country. Leaving trillions in foreign bank accounts shouldnt continue.
The alarming evidence of Russias involvement in the U.S. presidential election continues to grow.

First, Adm. Michael Rogers, director of the National Security Agency, accused Russia of interfering with the election, citing WikiLeaks release of hacked information during the campaign.

Now, two teams of independent researchers have found that Russia was using a sophisticated propaganda campaign to spread misleading articles  fake news  online to undermine Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The researchers used analytics tools to trace the origins of social media posts and mapped connections among accounts that mysteriously kept delivering synchronized messages. They discovered that many of these accounts belonged to controlled, Russian-backed networks.

As frightening as it is to imagine that Russia successfully interfered with the U.S. electoral process, its very possible.

The U.S. government doesnt have many tools for detecting or fighting foreign propaganda. Americans are more credulous than they might be if we had experience with authoritarian governments; a recent Stanford study found that a large majority of U.S. students cant tell the difference between real and fake news. Our social media platforms  where an increasing percentage of Americans are finding their news  are designed to boost company profitability, not to educate the citizenry.

Congress needs to investigate Russias election involvement, and our security agencies need to improve our technological defenses against foreign propaganda. A cyberwar with a foreign power may not involve guns and missiles, but it can still inflict great damage.
The election of Donald Trump has exposed a lot of hypocrisy. White college-educated women, some of whom have made Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas the emblem of misogyny, the butt of jokes and ridicule for the rest of his life, voted for a man whose misogyny far exceeds that which has dogged Thomas since his 1991 confirmation hearing. Judge Thomas alleged sexual harassment has been the subject of film, television series, books and even part of an exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art in Manhattan, N.Y.

Often these projects were husbanded by television producers and publishers whose attitudes toward women are suspect. They are not feminists. Some are probably conservative.

Other conservatives, who called Trump a con man, dangerous and a fraud, are making a pilgrimage to New Jersey and to the Trump Tower. Evangelicals voted for a man whom Ted Cruz called a philanderer.

I heard two progressives praise Trumps economic populism. Unlike them, Latino immigrant families wont be trekking to New Jersey or the Trump Tower to make nice, because the president-elect has appointed Cabinet members who have pledged to deport them. Under Trump, blacks might be stopped and frisked on the way to the Trump Tower.

But the height of liberal hypocrisy occurred when Brandon Victor Dixon, a cast member of the musical Hamilton, lectured Vice President-elect Mike Pence about his political and social policies, which, in my opinion, are backward and even a little bizarre. This thing about merchants refusing to sell wedding cakes to gays reminds one of the Southern merchants who lost millions as a result of their refusal to do business with black consumers, another example of why bigotry is like a fool against itself. But putting that aside, Dixon said that he hoped that the show would inspire Pence to uphold American values.

This cast member is an accomplice to a show that misrepresents Alexander Hamilton as, in Lin-Manuel Mirandas words, an abolitionist and progressive. No, Mr. Miranda, not only did Hamilton negotiate the sale of slaves but left an invoice. This slave trader accused the British of stealing Negroes from their owners, which indicates that Hamilton believed that blacks were property to be owned.

Even Ron Chernow, author of the book Hamilton, upon which Miranda based his script, says that Hamilton may have owned slaves. So what kind of American value is Dixon talking about? Kidnapping? Receiving stolen goods?

Though Hillary Clinton didnt win the presidency because of the Electoral College, another American value based upon the slave trade, and the misogynistic attitudes of both men and women, glass ceilings are being shattered elsewhere. No longer is the field of history monopolized by men who are the groupies of the founding fathers. American Book Awards winners Professors Lyra Monteiro and Nancy Isenberg have written about the fallacy of representing Hamilton as something he was not. Professor Michelle DuRoss challenges historians who have portrayed Hamilton as an abolitionist.

Writers who have the courage to stand up to propaganda, whether it be presented in a wannabe autocrats tweets or from the stage, are the true American value. No, the cast of Hamilton shouldnt apologize. They should read.

Ishmael Reed is a poet, novelist, essayist, songwriter, playwright, editor and publisher. He teaches at the California College of the Arts. His latest book is "The Complete Muhammad Ali."
Bay Area theater: Please produce more plays like All Aunt Hagars Children, a Word for Word production now at Z Space.

We need more chances to see Velina Brown, Margo Hall and Edris Cooper-Anifowoshe, all superb veteran performers, all black women, in a single production. We need more black characters on our stages who are as original and full of surprises as those in Edward P. Jones story, who have deep flaws but also the agency to make interesting choices as they navigate their worlds.

Perhaps its telling that, as with all Word for Word productions, All Aunt Hagars Children didnt originate as a play but as a short story; it was published in the New Yorker in 2003. Word for Word, which was founded in 1993, is dedicated to staging works of fiction without, as the name suggests, altering a phrase. That means a great deal of narration, but Word for Word finds ingenious ways to make narration theatrical. Theres no storyteller standing off to the side; characters speak every word of the narration themselves. In dividing that prose into different characters lines, the company might have a small chorus speak a phrase in unison, switch speakers one word at a time or find within a bit of narration one phrase that can be delivered as diegetic dialogue. These choices both amplify the droll humor in the original story and unearth new resonance, ensuring that Word for Word productions are never mere readers theater but sui generis works of art in their own right.

Julie Schuchard/Word for Word at Z Space

All Aunt Hagars Children follows a 24-year-old Korean War vet identified in the program only as the Young Man (Khary L. Moye). He claims to dream of decamping from his native Washington, D.C, to Alaska for gold and girls, but that dream always feels ill- thought-through and halfhearted, more a product of his nature as drifter and outsider than of burning, inborn desire  all of which the Young Man himself eventually comes to realize. On the way, hes distracted, haunted, by two untimely deaths: that of a white woman (Sheila Balter) who collapses on the street just as hes disembarking a streetcar and whispers words in a foreign tongue, words that echo indelibly in his mind, as she dies in his arms, and the murder of a childhood friend, Ike, whose mother, Miss Agatha (Cooper-Anifowoshe), bids the Young Man to investigate, private eye-style, though hes just a file clerk.

Near bout two years gone by since the murder, Miss Agatha says, yet the police aint done any more than the day it happened  a chilling reminder that if the Black Lives Matter movement is relatively new, the heinous trends to which it calls attention are age old.

The unhurried pace of Jones story doesnt always translate well from page to stage, and as the central figure, Moye at times has an abbreviated range, his delivery occasionally stuck in the monotone youd expect of, well, narration. But the supporting ensemble excels. As the coquettish Minnie Parsons, Hall extends her leg as if its a piece of flypaper men might get stuck to. As the Young Mans mother, Brown, a comedic virtuoso, makes verbs like snapped and birthed sound onomatopoeic; its as if her vocal cords arent just speaking those words but performing those actions themselves. In a variety of roles, Cooper-Anifowoshe is so natural, so unstudied, that the whole theater experience melts away, and youre surprised, as a scene moves on, to remember that youre in a performance space.

Again, please, Bay Area theater: more shows like this!

Lily Janiak is The San Francisco Chronicles theater critic. Email: ljaniak@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @LilyJaniak

All Aunt Hagars Children: Through Dec. 11. One hour, 45 minutes. $33-$58. Z Space, 450 Florida St., S.F. (866) 811-4111. www.zspace.org

To see a video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=emoZJ-KdgNU
Its tough for California voters to say no to more money for school construction. They almost always approve state bond requests, and this month they passed a $9 billion package that backers promised would help pay for repairs and upgrades needed to preserve students access to safe, modern classrooms.

Unlike previous bonds, however, Proposition 51 was placed on the ballot not by lawmakers, but by developers looking out for their own interests. Its approval locks in an outdated system that was designed for a time when the student population was growing, and its application process may limit poor districts chances of claiming their fair share of the money.

Instead of prioritizing projects for needy communities, the state will dole out these bond proceeds the way it always has: on a first-come, first-served basis. Scores of well-off districts are already in line, and small, impoverished ones have no one in their corner helping them navigate the complicated application process. That means some worthy repair projects may never see a dime.

Children all across the state are sitting in subpar buildings with leaky roofs and classrooms that cant support their curriculum, said Jeff Vincent, who directs UC Berkeleys Center for Cities and Schools. Some of those problems may not get fixed anytime soon.

Its widely agreed that California needs more money for school buildings, and that the bond will help pay for projects that have languished. But the problem starts with how the funding is divided.

One-third of the $9 billion bonds proceeds will support new construction, another third will finance modernization projects, and the rest of it will go to career technical education, charter school and community college buildings. That mix may sound reasonable. But when the state created the School Facility Program in 1998, Californias population was booming and new school construction was needed to keep pace. By contrast, public school enrollment over the next decade is projected to dip slightly.

There will be some new construction needs. Some counties are growing, Vincent said. But to suggest that we should spend as much on new construction as we spend on modernization is out of skew with our needs on the ground. Demand for upgrades is far greater.

The next problem is how the money is awarded. Districts applying to the state must provide matching funds, giving wealthier communities an advantage because they can tap a deeper well of local taxes.

At Hanford Elementary School District, which serves a small farming town in the Central Valley, the wish list includes replacing old electrical wiring in schools that are more than half a century old, improving students access to computers, and getting new fire alarms.

Anticipating voter approval of Prop. 51, Hanford was one of nearly 200 districts across the state that used the November ballot to also seek voter approval of local school bonds.

The districts $24 million bond passed, but Hanford will never qualify for as much state support as Campbell Union School District, located in the heart of Silicon Valley. Voters there approved a $72 million bond, which could mean three times as much state matching money as Hanford  even though the districts serve about the same number of students in roughly the same number of buildings.

This disparity isnt fair to students from Hanford and other needy parts of the state, said Shin Green, a consultant in Oakland whose firm specializes in school infrastructure financing. We dont know where the next doctor or physicist or inventor will come from, Green said. Substantial differences in the quality of our facilities mean substantial differences in our kids opportunities to learn.

Poor districts incapable of raising money locally through bonds or developer fees  which communities charge to help pay for new school construction  may ask the state to cover a projects full cost. But few are familiar enough with the application process to make it work in their favor, Green said.

Districts trying to get the septic system fixed or get that bus alternator replaced may not even know who in Sacramento to call for help, Green said. Ive run across districts that assume they cant get any money and dont bother applying.

Still, Prop. 51 drew support from a large, diverse coalition of interest groups and politicians, including the California Chamber of Commerce, the State Building and Construction Trades Council, and both the state Democratic and Republican parties. Proponents were eager to replenish Californias fund for school construction, which ran dry four years ago after churning through $40 billion in bond money over the past two decades.

Prop. 51s loudest critic was Gov. Jerry Brown, who called it a blunderbuss and said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times that the Legislature could have done a better job than the developers who put that one together.

Tucked into Prop. 51 is a key provision that voters probably glossed over: It prohibits the state from modifying the way it allocates school construction funding without another vote of the people. Outgoing state Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Carol Liu, D-La Canada Flintridge (Los Angeles County), said she opposed the bond and wishes the Legislature could have done more to fix the problem.

We have lost an opportunity to reform a fragmented system of bond administration and disbursement that does not ensure that school districts and communities with the greatest need for new facilities receive funds, she said.

CALmatters.org is a nonprofit news venture devoted to coverage of state policy and politics.
At least one person was reported injured and movie theater patrons were forced to evacuate in Concord following a shooting outside, according to police.

Police responded to calls of shots fired at about 6:50 p.m. Sunday outside of Brenden Concord 14 Theatres on Willow Pass Road. The theater was evacuated as a precaution.
Attorney General Kamala Harris will intervene in case against a California law requiring criminal defendants to post bail to be freed while awaiting trial, a system that is being challenged in a lawsuit as unfair to the poor.

Harris office agreed to step in after San Franciscos city attorney and sheriff refused to defend the law, questioning its constitutionality and even-handedness.

Kristin Ford, a spokeswoman for Harris, said Monday the attorney general would seek approval from a federal judge in Oakland to intervene in the San Francisco case. Harris proposed intervention had been announced earlier in the day in a court filing by City Attorney Dennis Herreras office.

Bail bond companies also want to enter the case and defend the cash-bail system, a request opposed by the group that is challenging the law.

The state law requires courts in each county to set bail in varying amounts depending on the seriousness of the crime. Those who post bail are set free while awaiting trial, but defendants who cant pay the prescribed amount, or the 10 percent fee charged by bond companies, remain in jail until they are formally charged and arraigned, usually 48 hours after arrest. At that point, a judge sets conditions for pretrial release, often including bail, based on their assessments of the risk to public safety and the chance that the defendant might flee.

The nonprofit Equal Justice Under Law has challenged cash-bail systems in a number of states, including suits in San Francisco and Sacramento opposing the California law, and has won support from the Obama administration. The suits contend the law setting bail amounts for specific crimes discriminates against low-income defendants.

Bail bond companies say the system promotes public safety by giving defendants an incentive to show up in court. Opponents of the system argue that judges can protect the public just as well by evaluating defendants individually and setting conditions for supervised pretrial release.

San Francisco Sheriff Vicki Hennessy had been the sole defendant in the case. But on Nov. 1, Herrera, who had represented Hennessy, said he considered the bail law unconstitutional and would not defend it in court. Hennessy said the law was arbitrary and unfair but she would continue to enforce bail in the amounts set by San Francisco judges until courts said otherwise.

At the same time, Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda, said he would introduce legislation to eliminate bail requirements that punish poor people simply for being poor.

Harris office has defended the law in a separate suit in Sacramento, where a federal judge has rejected claims of discrimination. The attorney general was originally a defendant in the San Francisco case as well, but she was dismissed as a defendant in February when U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that the Constitution barred such a suit against the state.

Harris has chosen to re-enter the case, however, since the citys opt-out left the law without a defender.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com

Twitter: @egedlko
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Three people were detained in Pescadero early Sunday in connection with a possible drug smuggling incident off the coast of Ano Nuevo State Park, authorities said.

The Coast Guard, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements Homeland Security Investigations, and the San Mateo County Sheriffs office worked together to apprehend the suspects. The sheriffs office is leading an ongoing investigation.
A Millbrae resident who punched a Latino man after making derogatory comments about Mexicans in Redwood City pleaded no contest to a hate crime charge, prosecutors said Monday.

Michael Anthony Goggins, 34, initially pleaded not guilty to two felony counts of resisting an officer and a misdemeanor hate crime charge on Nov. 14 at the San Mateo County courthouse in Redwood City, according to District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.

In a Superior Court review conference Wednesday, Goggins pleaded no contest to felony threats to a police officer and misdemeanor hate crime charges, on the condition he does not serve state prison time, according to the San Mateo County district attorneys office.

He also requested no more than 120 days in county jail and a referral to the Pathways program, a mental health treatment outreach service offered by the court.

An employee at a Chevron gas station in the 2200 block of El Camino Real called police about 10:40 p.m. on Nov. 9 after Goggins started yelling at the worker, officials said. He shouted, Why are you in my country?; F you and You are lazy  according to the district attorneys office.

Afterward Goggins fled to Willow Street, where he attacked a Latino man, said Lt. Sean Hart, a spokesman for the Redwood City Police Department. The victim, a 20-year-old Redwood City resident, was walking with a friend when Goggins approached and punched him in the chest, Hart said.

Goggins allegedly spoke to the victim in Spanish, saying, Im white, Im from here, where are you from? He then used a racial slur to describe the victim before punching the victim in the chest, police said.

Goggins ran to Laurel Street, where he was met by police officers. He ignored police commands, violently resisted officers and tried to bite them, officials said.

After he was taken into custody, Goggins mentioned hitting a Mexican man, because he is a traitor, and began talking about aliens invading the country.

He was taken to a medical center for psychiatric evaluation. Officials said he appeared impaired at the time of the incident.

Goggins remained at Maguire Correctional Facility Monday, where he was being held on $50,000 bail.

His next court date is Friday, for sentencing and consideration for the mental health program.

Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno
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Tis the season to sit around and binge watch.

Streaming fans are sure to get something they'll like this season with all the new additions to Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu this December.

Check out the gallery above to see what's new on your favorite streaming giant this December.

Some classics and newer titles are heading to Netflix, with the addition of National Lampoons: Animal House, Beverly Hulls Cop, The Angry Birds Movie, and Captain America: Civil War this month. The second season of Netflix's original show Fuller House also begins in time for the holidays.

Related: 12 fall TV shows you can't miss

Fans of hit series The Man in the High Castle will be happy for the return of its second season this month, as well as a new season of Mozart in the Jungle and The Expanse.

Hulu has numerous hit movies being added this month. Apocalypse Now, American Beauty, Rain Man, and Pulp Fiction are all heading to the streaming platform. If you're missing the horror of October, the first eight Friday the 13th movies will all be available to stream on Hulu as well.
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A South San Francisco police officer, who was critically injured after being smashed in the head with a skateboard on Thanksgiving, is beginning to show positive signs of recovery, officials said Monday.

Officer Robby Chon remains in critical condition at San Francisco General Hospital after Thursdays violent attack, in which he was struck in the head by a suspect he was chasing on foot.

Despite his condition, Chon is showing signs of progress, police said.

He is beginning to show positive signs of recovery and doctors are cautiously optimistic regarding his progress, South San Francisco police officials said in a statement Monday.

Chon was injured while responding to a call around 2:20 p.m. Thursday about a man causing a disturbance at a business on the 300 block of Grand Avenue in South San Francisco.

The officer, a 12-year veteran of the police force, confronted Luis Alberto Ramos-Coreas at the scene, but the 28-year-old suspect took off on a skateboard, police said.

Chon called for backup as he chased Ramos-Coreas on foot, but police said the suspect stopped and struck the officer in the head with the skateboard.

Officers arrived at the scene and caught Ramos-Coreas, while paramedics rushed Chon to San Francisco General Hospital where he underwent surgery.

Ramos-Coreas made his first appearance in San Mateo County Superior Court on Monday afternoon, where he faced charges of attempted murder of a police officer.

Judge Rachel Holt ordered him to be held on $2 million bail at the San Mateo County Jail.

Ramos-Coreas, who stood in front of a dozen other in-custody defendants, spoke with the help of a Spanish interpreter.

At 5-foot-7, the defendant with short dark hair stood confidently in his jail-issued orange clothes as he answered the judge when asked if he understood the charges against him.

Ramos-Coreas is due back in the Redwood City courtroom on Wednesday for arraignment.

South San Francisco Mayor Mark Addiego expressed outrage over the attack at a news conference last week. The city will not tolerate violence of any nature directed at its police force, he said.

Ramos-Coreas has a lengthy criminal history that includes several violent incidents, South San Francisco Police Chief Jeff Azzopardi said. Ramos-Coreas was on probation for a felony charge in 2011, officials said.

Chon is married and has two children. About 100 members of the community and police officers gathered at the South San Francisco police station Monday evening for a candlelight vigil to show support for Chon and his family.

A GoFundMe page set up for Chon and his family has already surpassed its $100,000 goal.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky
Supervisor David Campos on Tuesday plans to propose spending $5 million to provide legal representation to immigrants living in the country without documentation who face deportation. Its the first test of whether San Francisco officials will stick to their pledge to remain a sanctuary city when Donald Trump becomes president.

Campos spent much of Monday huddled in his office with Public Defender Jeff Adachi, immigration advocates and others to hammer out details. Campos is hopeful there will be a vote on the legislation by the Board of Supervisors by Dec. 13, his last scheduled meeting before being termed out of office and less than six weeks before Trumps inauguration.

The president-elect has vowed to deport up to 3 million undocumented immigrants who have criminal records and decide later what to do with the rest of the estimated 11 million immigrants in the country without legal standing. He has also pledged to strip all federal funding from sanctuary cities like San Francisco, which shield such immigrants from federal immigration agents. In San Francisco, that could total $1 billion a year.

Immediately after Trumps election, Mayor Ed Lee and the Board of Supervisors were adamant that San Francisco would remain a sanctuary city despite Trumps threats. There are an estimated 44,000 immigrants living in the city without proper documentation.

Campos legislation is the first concrete proposal to his fellow politicians to make good on that pledge. Backfilling a $1 billion loss of federal funds could be a challenge as city officials grapple with funding shortfalls caused by higher-than-expected pension costs and the failure of a proposed sales tax increase on the November ballot.

This is part and parcel of being a sanctuary city, making sure we are prepared for what we know is coming, what the president-elect has said is coming, said Campos, who as a child entered the country illegally with his family from Guatemala, but is now a U.S. citizen. You cant on the one hand say youre going to defend sanctuary and then on the other hand not take concrete steps to make that happen.

Deirdre Hussey, Mayor Ed Lees spokeswoman, said the mayor supports additional funding for legal support for immigrant communities, and he will review Campos legislation to ensure community-based organizations are funded sufficiently.

Campos wants to give $2.6 million to the public defenders office to hire 10 attorneys, five paralegals and two legal clerks to represent detained immigrants facing deportation whose cases are assigned to the San Francisco Immigration Court.

Francisco Ugarte, an immigration attorney in Adachis office, said he wants attorneys at the immigration court every time new cases are heard.

Somebody should not be fighting their case in handcuffs and in jail without an attorney, he said. Thats our goal.

The California Coalition for Universal Representation, a coalition of immigration groups, recently published statistics showing that 68 percent of detained immigrants in California have no lawyer. Those who do have legal counsel are five times as likely to win their cases than those without it, it reports.

Its unclear whether the money would be enough to provide representation for every detained immigrant. Campos said it should be enough to provide representation for at least 60 percent of them. Adachi said he is in talks with foundations, including the San Francisco Foundation and the Bigglesworth Family Foundation, to provide additional private money.

Adachi said other jurisdictions, including Santa Clara County and Oakland, have also expressed interest in helping. He said that coordinating the project will be a Herculean effort, but that New York Citys universal representation program provides a model for how to do it.

Campos proposal would give another $2 million to community legal groups to hire 13 attorneys and six education and outreach staff, plus provide for shared office space and administration costs. Their charge would be representing immigrants facing deportation who are not being detained and providing education about legal rights to other immigrants who dont have proper documentation.

The rest of the funding, about $400,000, would go to nonprofits to staff a hotline and provide emergency legal representation in the case of immigration raids at workplaces, homes or elsewhere.

San Francisco is one of more than 300 sanctuary cities and counties nationwide. It adopted sanctuary status in 1989 to encourage undocumented victims and witnesses of crime to come forward without fear of deportation.

San Francisco has strict limitations on when federal immigration agents are notified that an immigrant living in the country illegally is in County Jail. In July 2015, an immigrant without proper documentation who had a criminal record and five previous deportations was released from San Francisco County Jail with no notification to federal agents. He allegedly went on to shoot and kill Kathryn Steinle as she walked on Pier 14 with her father.

Trump mentioned Steinles death regularly on the campaign trail as an example of a flawed immigration system. My opponent wants sanctuary cities, he said in July. But where was the sanctuary for Kate Steinle?

Proponents of sanctuary city status, though, say its crucial to ensuring that immigrants without proper documentation cooperate with police and also have access to health and education services, which benefit society as a whole.

Norma Ortiz, a 37-year-old resident who works as a cashier in Daly City, knows that firsthand. She came to the U.S. from Mexico illegally when she was 21 and was jailed in 2010 after calling police to report that the father of her son was abusing her. The man told police she was hitting him, and both were jailed.

Under the now-defunct Secure Communities Program, she was fingerprinted and that information was shared with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She was taken to an ICE holding cell and faced deportation, but obtained free legal representation from Ugarte and was released. She was able to obtain a U-visa for victims of crime and is now living in the country legally.

She said Monday the legal representation was essential.

I didnt know my rights, Ortiz said. He helped me legally, but also as a person.

Ana Herrera, an attorney with Dolores Street Community Services, said that there are roughly 36,000 deportation cases in the San Francisco Immigration Court, and that 1,500 of those defendants are being detained while their cases proceed. The court hears cases from around the region, not just San Francisco.

Herrera said these numbers are likely to rise significantly under Trump, which is why passage of Campos legislation is needed as soon as possible.

Its a need we already have right now, and its only going to get worse, she said. We need to be prepared for everything.

Heather Knight is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: hknight@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hknightsf
LONDON  Britains populist U.K. Independence Party chose European Parliament member Paul Nuttall as leader on Monday, replacing the charismatic but divisive Nigel Farage.

In his parting speech, Farage claimed the political upheavals that are taking Britain out of the European Union and Donald Trump into the White House are far from over. He said UKIPs anti-EU, antiglobalization politics had had a seismic effect in Britain and beyond.

It is Brexit that directly led to the establishment getting beaten on the 8th of November and Donald J. Trump about to take the presidency, Farage said, referring to the U.S. presidential election. We were the inspiration behind much of that.

Nuttall decisively beat two other contenders in a contest to head the right-wing anti-EU party, winning 62.6 percent of the votes cast.

The 39-year-old former college history lecturer vowed to unite the fractious party and fight to ensure that Britains divorce from the EU is not watered down during negotiations.

We will hold the governments feet to the fire electorally and ensure that Brexit really does mean Brexit, he said.

Mondays announcement follows a tumultuous period for UKIP, which was instrumental in forcing Britains Conservative government to hold a referendum on EU membership.

The June 23 vote to leave the bloc was a triumph for the party, which was founded to get the United Kingdom out of the EU. But UKIPs leadership  a collection of authoritarians, libertarians and former Conservatives  soon descended into squabbling.

Farage stepped down after the EU vote, which he said capped his political career. But replacement Diane James resigned after 18 days. The favorite to replace her, Steven Woolfe, also quit after a fight with a UKIP colleague that left him hospitalized.

UKIP won almost 4 million votes in the 2015 election, though that translated into just one of the 650 seats in Parliament because Britain doesnt have a system of proportional representation.

Nuttall said that as leader he would take on the left-of-center Labor Party in Englands former industrial heartlands.

For decades, Labor has been the main party of working-class voters. But, like Trump, UKIP has won the support of many lower-income voters by linking immigration and globalization to the financial squeeze felt by many families.

I want to replace the Labor Party and make UKIP the patriotic voice of working people, Nuttall said.
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HAVANA  Workers spruced up the Cuban capitals sprawling Revolution Plaza and began setting up fencing Sunday in preparation for two days of tributes to deceased leader Fidel Castro.

Throngs of islanders are expected to visit to pay their respects to Castros remains there starting Monday in the shadow of Havanas towering monument to independence hero Jose Marti and a huge sculpture of revolution leader Ernesto Che Guevara.

The Communist Party newspaper Granma published an extensive list of planned street closures and information on how Cubans will be able to access the square. Authorities called on islanders to go there to make a solemn oath of fulfillment with the concept of the revolution.

It is a great sorrow. Everyone is feeling it, said Orlando Alvarez, a jeweler who was fishing on the seaside Malecon boulevard in the morning. Everyone will be there at the square.

Cubas government declared nine days of national mourning after Castros death Friday night at age 90, and this normally vibrant city has been notably subdued since. On Saturday night, the Malecon, Havanas social center, was all but deserted, with dozens of people instead of the thousands who normally go to party there on weekends.

I have never seen this square so quiet, Spanish tourist Miguel Gonzalez said as he took pictures of Revolution Plaza.

A mass public ceremony is planned at the square Tuesday.

Elian Gonzalez, who as a boy survived a shipwreck and became the center of an international custody battle in Florida in 2000, said Castro will still be with Cubans despite his death.

Its not right to talk about Fidel in the past tense ... but rather that Fidel will be, Gonzalez said Sunday in an interview with state television. Today more than ever, make him omnipresent.

Fidel was a friend who at a difficult moment was with my family, with my father, and made it possible for me to return to my father, to return to Cuba, he said.

Gonzalez was a young boy when he, his mother and others attempted a sea crossing between Cuba and the United States almost two decades ago. His mother died on the voyage, but he survived and was taken to Florida. A bitter dispute broke out between his relatives in the United States, who wanted him to stay there, and his father back home.

Castro made the issue a national cause celebre and led huge demonstrations demanding Elian be returned to his father. U.S. authorities eventually sent him back to Cuba.
HAVANA  Passengers applauded as the first commercial flight from the United States to Havana in more than 50 years landed in Cuba on Monday, arriving as the island begins weeklong memorial services for revolutionary leader Fidel Castro.

Cubans saluted the packed American Airlines flight by spraying water from firetrucks above the plane as it taxied along the runway at Jose Marti International Airport in honor of the inaugural voyage.
NEW DELHI  An uneasy calm has fallen over the border between the Indian- and Pakistani-controlled portions of Kashmir after months of deadly firing and signs that the two countries were engaged in a brinkmanship not seen for decades.

Though guns have gone silent for the past five days, analysts say the two nuclear-armed neighbors have displayed unprecedented aggression this year without pursuing any real lines of diplomacy. Theyve amped up the artillery theyve used and targeted infrastructure instead of just military outposts. The corpses of soldiers killed in battle have been found mutilated.

The level of retaliation was definitely more intense than what India has done in the past, said defense analyst C. Uday Bhaskar of the New Delhi think tank Society for Policy Studies. There is a danger of it spiraling out of control.

India and Pakistan have long been foes, fighting two of their three wars over their rival claims to the Himalayan region of Kashmir. Countless rounds of peace talks have yielded scant results.

The two sides reached a cease-fire agreement in 2003, which held for the first few years but has seen frequent violations since then. Meanwhile, India accuses Pakistan of arming and training Kashmiri rebels fighting to oust India from the Muslim-majority region. Pakistan denies the allegation, saying it offers the rebels only moral support, and accuses India of an illegal military occupation of the disputed mountain territory.

Tensions began building this year as Kashmiri civilians on the Indian-controlled side rose up in rebellion, demanding independence or a merger with Pakistan. Violent street protests and clashes with Indian forces left 90 civilians dead and thousands injured.

The situation escalated further in September after anti-India rebels launched an attack on an Indian army base in the western Kashmiri town of Uri, killing 19 soldiers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised a befitting reply to those who dare to attack India, and India retaliated by sending small groups of military commandos across the border for what it called surgical strikes on terror bases. India said a dozen suspected rebels were slain, which Pakistan denied.

Pakistan, along with some residents near the border, accused India of using the Uri attack to ramp up border hostilities in order to distract attention from the public protests within Indian-controlled Kashmir.

Indian military officers, speaking on condition of anonymity, acknowledged the tensions have escalated to the highest level since the cease-fire came into effect.

Our reaction time is swift and severe. Its no more wait and watch, no more hold your fire to see what the higher bosses have to say, an army officer in Kashmir said.

The relationship with Pakistan is at a nadir at the moment, said Gurmeet Kanwal, a retired army brigadier at the Institute of Defense Studies and Analyses in New Delhi.
WASHINGTON  The Cuban government must move toward enacting greater freedoms for its people and giving Americans something in return if it wants to keep warmer U.S. relations initiated by President Obama, top aides to President-elect Donald Trump said Sunday.

The comments by Trump advisers Kellyanne Conway and Reince Priebus followed the death of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Castros younger brother, 85-year-old Raul Castro, took control in 2006 and later negotiated with Obama to restore diplomatic relations.

Priebus, Trumps incoming chief of staff, said Trump would absolutely reverse Obamas opening to Cuba unless there is some movement from the Cuban government.

Repression, open markets, freedom of religion, political prisoners  these things need to change in order to have open and free relationships, and thats what President-elect Trump believes, and thats where hes going to head, Priebus told Fox News Sunday.

Conway, another close adviser, made similar remarks and noted that any diplomatic deal will have to benefit American workers.

To the extent that President Trump can open up new conversations with Cuba, it would have to be a very different Cuba, she told ABCs This Week.

ALSO Havana readies for tributes to Castro

She added: He wants to make sure that when the United States of America, when hes president, engages in any type of diplomatic relations or trade agreements ... that we as America are being protected and we as America are getting something in return.

Desmond Boylan/AP

Conway said nothing on Cuba has been decided. But she noted that the U.S. is allowing commercial aircraft to do business with a repressive Cuban government and Cuban military. And she said the first order of business is to rally the international community around trying to free political prisoners.

While Obama opened some U.S. investment and travel to Cuba through executive order, vast restrictions tied up in the trade embargo remain at the insistence of Republican lawmakers.

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, whose parents were born in Cuba, said he is heartened by Trumps past hard-line rhetoric on Cuba. Rubio told CNNs State of the Union that the U.S. focus must be its own security and other interests and encouraging a Cuban democracy. We should examine our policy toward Cuba through those lenses, he said.

During the campaign, Trump said he would reverse concessions to the Cuban government by Obama unless the Castro government meets his demands.
Trilogy International, the skincare and home fragrance company, lifted first-half profit 10 percent and reiterated its earnings guidance for the full year.

Net profit rose to $3.5 million, or 5 cents per share, in the six months ended Sept. 30, from $3.2 million, or 5 cents, a year earlier, the Auckland-based company said in a statement. Revenue rose 63 percent to $47.8 million, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) gained 34 percent to $7.2 million.

Trilogy's brands include Ecoya, Trilogy and Goodness, and it owns CS & Co, the country's largest independent importer and distributor of fragrances and toiletries, which it bought in August 2015.

The company affirmed its September guidance for 2017 revenue of $100 million to $110 million, a gain of between 20 percent and 32 percent over 2016's $83 million of sales, and ebitda of $19 million to $21 million, from $16.3 million in 2016.

If Trilogy International achieves $100 million in revenue it will have almost tripled sales in just two years, mainly through the CS & Co acquisition. CS & Co delivered $24 million in revenue in the first half, and ebitda of $3.6 million.

Ecoya delivered nearly $9 million in revenue, up 4.4 percent from the first half of 2016, and $339,000 in ebitda, while its skincare brands Trilogy and Goodness posted $17.8 million in revenue, up 14.6 percent, though ebitda fell to $4.5 million from $5.5 million the previous year.

The bulk of Trilogy's sales still come from New Zealand, at $28.4 million in the first half, while $13.5 million in revenue came from Australia. The company said it is working to strengthen its distribution networks, signing an agreement with a broker and specialist beauty chain Credo Beauty in the US, along with an agreement with Chinese e-commerce company QBID to build its cross-border sales into that country.

In May, Trilogy acquired 25 percent of Chilean rosehip producer Forestal Casino for US$8 million in cash and shares, giving it certainty of supply for an oil used in skincare products. In the first half it gained $183,000 from its share of earnings.

The shares last traded at $3.66, up 1.4 percent in early trading, and have gained 30 percent this year. The board didn't declare an interim dividend.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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KiwiRail has announced a workaround for rail lines severed by the Kaikoura earthquake - a coastal shipping service from Auckland to Christchurch.

Its NZ Connect service will ship cargo from Aucklands Wiri Inland Port and KiwiRails Southdown Freight Hub to Lytteltons Midland Port or KiwiRails Christchurch terminal using shipping services supply by Australia's ANL shipping services, the state-owned railroad said in a statement.

The disruption to New Zealands key supply route between Auckland and Christchurch will continue for many months as the rail and road links are rebuilt, said chief executive Peter Reidy. Coming up with an alternative way of shifting freight for our customers was important, and KiwiRail is pleased it has been able to do this so quickly.

Among supply route blockages, Wellington's Centreport is hoping to get 25-to-30 percent of its container traffic back up after both its container berths were damaged by the quake. The Wellington port is able to serve container vessels that have their own cranes this week.

A plan to extend the service to include return of freight from the South Island to the North Island is being finalised and should be announced soon, KiwiRail said.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister John Key told his weekly post-Cabinet press conference that it was the government's intention to restore the rail link between Picton and Christchurch. Although final decisions about the route of both the main trunk rail line and State Highway 1 had yet to be finalised, the government is introducing emergency legislation to Parliament this week that will, among other things, allow landslide debris to be pushed into the sea.

A decision to build parts of the replacement rail and road links would be likely to require further enabling legislation.

"The long term expectation is that they would return rail (on the quake-damaged link)," said Key.

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LONDON: Indian steel giant Tata Steel is getting set to make some "major announcements" on its growth plans for the UK, according to a UK-based academic close to Tata Group interim chairman Ratan Tata.



Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, founder-chairman of Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) and one of the Tata Group's advisers, said the group is "resolving" the problems facing the business.



"Of course we went through some problems as you have read in the press in the last few months but we are now resolving it and we are working with everybody, with the workers, local authorities and government, in order to make sure that Tata produces steel here for the next 10 years at least. We will do that," Lord Bhattacharyya told a meeting of political and automotive leaders from the West Midlands on Thursday evening.



He stressed Britain "has got a lot of skill in steel", adding: "We have been going through some problems of course, temporary problems, but nevertheless I think we are on the verge of solving it. We will work with Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) to introduce thin steels for the new generation of cars."



The Labour party peer is also a member of the panel that will choose Tata's successor as group chairman, the 'Guardian' reports.



The future of Tata Steel's UK operations and its 11,000 workers has been in doubt since the firm announced a review in March and the entire UK business was put up for sale.



However, Tata Steel then announced a potential merger of its European operations, including the UK business, with the German group ThyssenKrupp.



Talks with ThyssenKrupp have been continuing, but Tata sources told the newspaper the company is now willing to commit to its UK sites whether this deal goes ahead or not.



The future of Tata Steel UK's pension scheme, the British Steel Pension Scheme, has been a major obstacle to the future of the business.



It has liabilities of more than 15 billion pounds and 130,000 members, making it one of the biggest retirement schemes in the UK.

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NEW DELHI: Uber, the US online taxi hailing company, on Friday rolled out new features in its riders and driver app, to make it a more personalised experience.

Features like shortcuts, calendar integration, and people search, promises to make the cab-booking a faster and personalised with an improved performance on 2G and 3G networks.

"We rolled out this new app, built ground up globally, with a strong focus on improving on all these fronts," said an Uber spokersperson.

Uber's new 'Destination first' feature lets users choose the destination first as the app asks "Where to?" as soon as the cab-booking process is initiated.

With shortcuts, the app learns from a frequent user's routine and predicts the destinations.

Uber's "Calendar integration", will allow riders to connect their calendar with the app which will mark the user's appointments and meetings as shortcuts.

Additionally, Uber will be soon rolling out a feature that would make the destination of a user not a place but a person.

"We know that people use Uber to meet friends, whether it is at a concert or a night out. This means the rider's destination is often a person," said the spokesperson.

The feature will enable riders to set their destination to a person instead of a place for which the riders will have to sync their contacts with their app, type their name in the search bar.

"Once they have shared their location, the rider will get moving," announced the spokesperson.

The new app rolled out November 2, 2016, and will be available globally all on iOS and Android in the coming days.

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NEW DELHI: Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant on Saturday that India must aim at a higher growth rate of 9-10 per cent to eradicate poverty by 2032.

"Our per capita income is $1,652. If we continue to grow at 7 per cent, by 2032. per capita income will be $4,000. If we grow by 10 per cent, per capita income will be $6,800 and India will have no poverty by 2032," Kant said at the annual general meeting of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry here.

"Unless we don't penetrate the global markets it will be very difficult for India to grow at 9-10 per cent. Indians must use the domestic market as a spring board and penetrate the global market.

India's contribution of exports to global market is very minimal, it is just 1.7 per cent," he added.

While India is growing at 7.5-7.6 per cent, it must be hungry and ambitious to grow at 9-10 per cent, he said.

"We also need factor market reforms. Unless labour laws, land laws are reformed, it will be difficult for India to grow at a high rate. You can't be in a situation where 79 per cent of your job creation is done by the micro-small and medium enterprise sector," he said.

Kant said that gender equality will play a very critical role. In India, women contribute only 17 per cent to the GDP while the world average is about 40 per cent.

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NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said he was confident that India would shine like gold after the government's decision to demonetise high value currency notes that would curb unaccounted wealth in the country.

"Just like gold we will emerge glowing from this fire. The main reason behind this confidence is our people," said the Prime Minister, defending the demonetisation move in his monthly radio broadcast "Mann ki Baat".

Modi said he had cautioned that there would be inconveniences caused by the move and that "we would face new problems".

"I had said it will take about 50 days for the situation to normalise. It is not easy to get rid of the 70-year-old problem" of corruption and black money, he emphasised.

"Your support despite severe problems touched me. You have not wavered despite efforts to misguide you," he said in his address to the nation, weeks after the surprise move that has caused unprecedented crash crunch in the country.

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WASHINGTON: Indo-US ties are likely to be further strengthened under the incoming Trump administration, the head of an American business advocacy group representing companies having presence in India has said and expressed hope that rhetoric against H-1B visas will also die down and sanity would prevail.



"Our expectation is that the India US relationship would get much more enhanced," Mukesh Aghi, the president of the US India Business Council (USIBC) told PTI.



Observing that "alignment of interest" between the two largest democracies of the world is "not tied to individuals, but to nations", Aghi said the relationship "probably would pick up a momentum" with this Administration.



A day after Donald Trump was elected as the president of the United States, Aghi on behalf of USIBC wrote a letter to the president-elect to invite the Prime Minister NarendraModi to the US in the first year of his administration.



"Now president-elect is little bit obliged, because Indian Americans were the only minority group which stood up for Donald Trump. So I think, he feels some sense of affinity (with India and Indian Americans). So I believe that you will see things moving strongly in the right direction," he said in response to a question.



Addressing a gathering of Indian Americans in New Jersey in late October, Trump had promised a better economic ties and strategic relationship with India, he pointed out.



USIBC and its members, he said, is "constantly in touch" with the transition team.



"The feedback is positive. The feedback is tell us what it is we need to put in policy structure to drive this relationship. That process continues daily between USIBC, its members and its transition team," he said.



Responding to a question on future prospects of H-1B visas, which is the most sought after work visas by Indian techies, the USIBC president said as some of its opponents including Senator Jeff Sessions, who has been nominated for the post of Attorney General, they have to look at "bigger" perspective.



"These are Republicans. They are business oriented. H-1B is not about job displacement. That was election rhetoric. H-1B is about making US industry, US companies more competitive...So I think, we have to take away that noise that H-1B is killing jobs in the United States," he said.



"You have to look at other side of this as well. It is because of H-1B, India is able to get large foreign exchange. And in return, India has become the number one buyer of US defence equipment. So, this is not just one sided story. You have to understand that if you kill H-1B there is an impact on defense side of the relationship as well," he said.



As a result, Aghi hoped that "the rhetoric would die down" and sanity would prevail.



Trump, while outlining his policy plans for the first 100 days in office, had said that he would investigate abuses of work visa programmes.



In its wish-list submitted to the president-elect, the USIBC said that it believes that pro-growth policies can expand commercial partnerships from USD100 billion to USD500 billion in the coming years.



USIBC said inviting Modi in the first year of his administration would send a clear signal about the importance of the bilateral relationship.

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A More Perfect Union featuring Mel Ziegler's Flag Exchange at the Tang Museum.

Election season update: As the presidential race dominated news coverage, journalists reached out to Skidmore for expertise and insights from faculty members, including Christopher Mann, Ron Seyb, Sheldon Solomon and Bob Turner.



As the 2016 presidential campaign dominated news coverage over the last year, many journalists sought expert commentary from Skidmore scholars. Political science and other professors were in high demand for interviews with media outlets across the country, to discuss regional political races, provide background on the election process, break down voter behavior, and analyze the outcome of the election. The Tang Museum also contributed, its A More Perfect Union exhibition serving as a stage for political debates and election night coverage.



Ron Seyb at the Election Watch Party. Ron Seyb at the Election Watch Party.

Palamountain Professor of Political Science Ron Seyb was quoted in a WNYT-TV (NBC) election outcome story titled Trump shocks Clinton as polls and results differ in presidential election.

WAMC-FM (Northeast Public Radio) aired a live Election Day interview about the voting-results watch party at the Tang Museum with the Tangs Dayton Director Ian Berry, business professor Minita Sanghvi, and political scientist Ron Seyb.

Political scientist Christopher Manns expertise was featured in The Christian Science Monitor in an October 24 article titled Speaking Politics phrase of the week: 'roll-off'

Political scientist Bob Turner provided expert commentary on FOX Newss national Special Report program on October 14, for a story about New Yorks heated 19th Congressional District race.

And Sheldon Solomon, professor of psychology, was quoted in a May 27 Washington Post article titled "This might be the darkest theory yet about why Donald Trump keeps winning." The article was also reported in a June 1 story in the Times of India. Watch Solomon's lecture from Reunion 2016 below:
#PM-apology PM apologizes for quip at press briefing on Itaewon tragedy Prime Minister Han Duck-soo issued an apology Wednesday for making a quip at a media briefing with foreign journalists with regard to the Halloween crowd crush in Itaewon. "Re...

#football Tottenham's Son Heung-min leaves Champions League match early after collision Son Heung-min of Tottenham Hotspur was forced to leave his club's latest UEFA Champions League match early following a collision with an opposing defender. Son was subbed out in...
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Now managed by the ACT government, the Griffin Centre was originally constructed on the corner of Bunda and Genge streets in Civic, on the opposite side of the road from where it currently stands. There, as the first centre of its kind in Australia, it served a multitude of community organisations, and its rooms were alive with the sounds of conversation, laughter, music, singing, and dancing.

The symbol of the centre, the griffin, a mythical half-eagle half-lion like creature, embodies the spirit of the establishment by merging the swiftness of the eagle with the courage of the lion.

Australian Red Cross staff and volunteers serve nutritious meals to vulnerable people at the Roadhouse six nights per week. Credit:Rod Taylor

Over the past five decades, tens of thousands of people have had the courage to use the centre's services to try something new, extend their social circle, or seek help, and as a result, many have been able to soar.
Judith Lucy and Denise Scott are looking forward to a good lie down when they arrive in Canberra this weekend. On stage that is.

The duo's new show, Disappointments, hits The Playhouse on Sunday night, and according to the ladies is a raucous mix of singing, dancing and "lying down".

Comedians Denise Scott and Judith Lucy arrive in Canberra on Sunday for the first run of their new show, 'Disappointments'. Credit:James Penlidis Photography

Bree Winchester caught up with both comedians to talk about the show, the horrendous year that's been 2016, and Facebook stalking.

Bree Winchester: We're looking forward to welcoming you back ladies!
Commissioned to undertake this work, in a cooperative arrangement between the YHA, In the City Canberra (ITCC), and the ACT government, was local artist Dai Cameron.

The latest of these has transformed Hillside Lane, which is located behind the Canberra City YHA in Akuna Street, by bringing the excitement, adventure, and energy of international travel to a previously drab wall.

For years, talented street artists have been quietly adding colour and vibrancy to city and Braddon laneways and back alleys under an innovative series of projects.

"I did this last winter, and it often rained, and on one day it even snowed, but I'm really happy with how it's turned out," said Cameron, who has been a graffiti artist for as long as he can remember.

Dai Cameron in front of his Hillside Lane creation. Credit:ROD TAYLOR

He began pencil sketching at age two, but was drawn to graffiti while in Year 5 at Yarralumla Primary School when a skateboarding friend showed him a book on "spray can art", and he's been hooked ever since.

"I loved the freedom of the style, where you could create anything, without rules or boundaries, and started doing it in my sketchbook and some other places, which was probably a bit naughty at times," Cameron said.

Since then Cameron has turned a passion into a career and created professional graffiti art in hundreds of locations around Canberra, and even internationally in China.
Residents of Canberra's inner south are concerned an ACT government move to allow a hotel to be developed at the proposed Kingston arts precinct was motivated by "maximising developer profits", rather than creating a genuine creative hub for the city.

The Canberra Times reported the government's overturning of a ban on a hotel and childcare centre being built on the block alongside a number of ACT Heritage-listed buildings.

Nick Swain and Rebecca Scouller of the Kingston and Barton Residents Group are concerned about a lack of consultation over the move to allow a hotel at the Kingston Arts precinct. Photo Elesa Kurtz Credit:Elesa Kurtz

Planning Minister Mick Gentleman has said the "technical amendment" to allow a hotel on the site would not change the actual height or size of any proposed developments, under a tender for the development of the precinct that is yet to be awarded.

But Kingston and Barton Residents Group's Rebecca Scouller said residents were concerned the changes would see another hotel developed in the area, with three other hotels already "on the horizon in Kingston, Griffith and Forrest" and possibly a fourth on the Kingston Foreshore peninsula.
Police are investigating an incident where a group of four teens on bicycles allegedly assaulted and robbed two teenage boys.

Police allege two boys were walking near the Drakeford Drive underpass at about 2pm on Sunday November 27 when they were approached by group four young people, three male, and one female, on bicycles.

The group of teens on bicycles dismounted and assaulted the pair, stole a mobile phone and wallet and then fled on their bikes.

The first male, described as Caucasian in appearance and aged in his mid-teens, was wearing a white shirt, dark pants, Nike shoes, a black Adidas bum-bag and riding an orange Giant mountain bike.

The second male involved was described as being of Pacific Islander/Maori appearance and aged in his mid-teens. He was wearing a black and white shirt, black pants and riding a blue bike.
A former Westpac financial planner has been banned from providing financial services, 2 years after concerns were raised by his employer.

Anthony Bishop, of Chelmer, Queensland, gave inappropriate advice to clients between 2010 and 2014, costing Westpac $1.1 million in compensation, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission has revealed.

The regulator said it found Mr Bishop failed to consider the best advice for his clients by implementing a "one size fits all" approach. He also caused clients to be over-insured, costing them in inappropriate premiums.

A spokesman for Westpac's wealth management arm, BT Financial, said the bank reported Mr Bishop to ASIC more than two years ago when it became aware of a number of issues surrounding his advice.
British 28-year-old Chloe Pincho is pretty clear about the impact of backpackers paying more tax.

"This tax is just not acceptable because they're robbing you already," Ms Pincho tells Fairfax Media at Bondi Beach a few hours after the deal sealing the tax's future was announced.

It was a similar message from several backpackers Fairfax Media met at Bondi on Monday with many of them saying the tax would decrease the attractiveness of Australia without necessarily wiping it off the budget travel map.

Currently working as a primary school teacher, Ms Pincho has also picked fruit in Shepparton, Victoria.
You must have seen them at your local cafe  young people armed with MacBook Airs, backpacks that look like they belong on an alpine trail, and the Wi-Fi password, freeloading on the internet and the table space for the price of a flat white.

These intellectual pieceworkers answer to job titles you won't recognise in occupations that have only existed since the dawn of the 2010s  content manager, brand strategist. Paid by the job, sometimes by the word (and sometimes not at all), they're the Uber drivers of intellectual labour, pieceworkers in the information economy.

Cafes have emerged as new-age workplaces for young people armed with their laptops. Credit:Jacob Ammentorp Lund

Their concentration increases the closer you get to Collingwood or Alexandria, where some cafes are like cubicle farms where almost everyone is tapping away at some project they need to finish, or having a meeting about the one they have to start.

With real estate so pricey and intellectual piecework precarious and poorly paid, you can hardly blame entrepreneurial youngsters for wanting a cheap desk that isn't in a share house bedroom.
Donald Trump - opposes any outcome in any vote he doesn't win. Credit:AP Some interesting glimpses, however, did emerge last week during an annual dialogue between China and Australia. Beijing hosted the Australia-China High Level Dialogue, a so-called 1.5 track diplomatic initiative, meaning that it's halfway between an officials-only event (track 1) and a fully unofficial one (track 2). President Barack Whatever the obvious criticisms of Trump as a ham-fisted statesman, under Obama's watch President Xi run amok in the South China Sea. Credit:AP The delegation of 16 Australians was led by former treasurer Peter Costello. His counterpart was former Chinese foreign affairs minister Li Zhaoxing leading a delegation of serving and former officials, civilian and military, plus business people and academics.

The day-long event was held under Chatham House rules. So I can tell you what was said, but not who said it. In general, the Chinese view was that, while much uncertainty remained, the outcome was not a bad one for China. The US, we were told, was suffering the consequences of overstretch, "a long-term overstretch of power in pursuit of global domination. It was politically, economically and financially unsustainable". Trump, according to a key Chinese expectation, "wants to focus more attention on fixing domestic problems at home  I think this is the right thing to do". If the US is entering a period of retrenchment, it frees China to pursue its own goals. On Trump's trade threats, "he's a businessman and I am sure he will weigh the pros and cons," because "nobody wants a trade war. Lobby groups will pressure him, Congress will try to shape the agenda." For a country that does not permit participatory democracy, China has a keen appreciation of how it works in America: "In the White House, he will have to adjust his policy rationally, in the interests of the US. So we have to wait and see how they will change their rebalancing policy, for instance," a reference to the Obama "pivot" or "rebalance" to Asia.

Asked how Beijing might like to see the security architecture of the Asia-Pacific change, a delegate said: "since World War II, the biggest security architecture was the US alliance system in East Asia. "This is a military alliance network. From China's view, our feelings are certainly different to Australia's or those of other US allies. The US system is not enough. It has given rise to disagreements and incidents. We at least need another alternative to achieve common security. "China thinks this issue is not resolved. President Xi has called for another security architecture in the region" in a 2014 speech. "We don't have a mature proposal. Certainly, we can't replace the US. We don't have the ability and US allies don't want us to." Any new architecture would need to be "inclusive", and may need to be "multi-tiered" the delegate said without elaboration.

In the event that Trumps' America should take any hard line against China, Australia was issued a pre-emptive warning not to take sides with Washington against Beijing. "Co-operation between China and Australia has reached a critical juncture," we were told. "We hope the US factor will be properly handled," one delegate said. The fate of the 12-nation US-led trade deal TPP, dumped by Trump as a first priority, was a lesson that "the US has only its own interests in mind." Another delegate said: "US-China disputes should not automatically become China-Australia differences. "You need to accommodate China's interests while developing your US ties."

And a third delegate, even more explicitly: "Economic ties alone cannot support the bilateral relationship." Strategic and military tensions could "threaten the whole relationship". Despite the bluster, there was a striking accord between the two nations' delegates. Both sides repeatedly declared that while the US and Europe are abandoning the free trade and investment agendas, China and Australia are not. And that, together, the two countries can become a global exemplar. The delegates felt strongly enough that senior members from both sides were prepared to go on the record with their views.

"China supports liberalisation of investment and trade," said Zhou Wenzhong, former ambassador to the US and to Australia and a former vice-minister for foreign affairs and current secretary-general of the Boao Forum. "TPP is dead," he told me, "but China supports the alternatives, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific," both of which include China and Australia, among others. The US is not a member of the negotiations towards RCEP and FTAAP is wider but in its very early days. "We support the opening policy because it's been very successful  it's made it possible for China to come this far." Peter Costello, current chair of the Future Fund, added: "It's an opportunity for Australia and China to show that open and free trade can be beneficial. One door closes and another door opens." Or as a delegate put it during the dialogue: "The dogs bark but the caravan moves on."
The death of Fidel Castro brings back many memories: a nationalist, who taunted and defied 10 US presidents; a serial human rights abuser, who pushed Cubans to take their chances with shark-infested waters rather than face life under communism; an economic incompetent, who cynically manipulated nationalist sentiments to deflect criticism of his repressive dictatorship; and a revolutionary, who threatened to contaminate the Western hemisphere with potent Marxist-Leninist ideas.

Moreover, as long as the US and the Soviet Union were locked in mortal conflict, Castro's Cuba represented a strategic threat to America. After all, it was an ally of, and a potential base for, a rival superpower, especially as it was situated only about 140 kilometres off Florida's coast. As a result, it was the location for the most serious crisis of the Cold War.

In October 1962, the Soviets had smuggled nuclear missiles into Cuba. President John F Kennedy wanted them out and kept US nuclear forces at their highest state of alert. For 13 days, until agreement on the removal of the missiles was reached, the world was on the brink of atomic holocaust.

If you think the Americans were right to compel the Soviets to dismantle missile sites, as Western conventional wisdom holds, then here's an uncomfortable thought: doesn't Russia also have a legitimate interest in protecting its sphere of influence?
Two Sydney brothers involved in the theft of three rare miniature monkeys from a NSW wildlife park at the weekend have pleaded guilty to transporting and intending to sell them.

Three pygmy marmosets were stolen from Symbio Wildlife Park, south of Sydney, on Saturday morning.

Two of the three missing pygmy marmosets have been found. Credit:Police Media

Jackson George, 23, and his brother Jesse, 26, were charged on Sunday with dealing with the proceeds of crime after they were found with one of the monkeys, a four-week-old, while driving in Appin, in south-west Sydney.

The older brother was fined and given a two-year good behaviour bond at Campbelltown Local Court on Monday.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has emerged as the latest bargaining chip in the government's frenzied bid to reintroduce a building industry watchdog before Parliament rises for the year.

As revealed by Fairfax Media on Monday, Liberal Democrat senator David Leyonhjelm has agreed to support the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) in exchange for changes to the way the ABC board conducts its meetings. Senator Leyonhjelm's vote will be crucial for the government to pass its bill to reintroduce the ABCC, one of its double dissolution election triggers.

Under the deal with Senator Leyonhjelm, the government has agreed that the ABC and SBS will follow at least half their board meetings each year with open community forums. At least two would be held in regional areas.

Senator Leyonhjelm said the forums would make the ABC more receptive to the views of Australians who live outside the "goat's cheese curtain" of inner city Sydney and Melbourne.
One Nation has joined the Greens in calling for reforms that would force governments to seek parliamentary approval to commit Australian troops to war.

Currently the law gives the government the power to send troops into conflict, but the issue of parliamentary approval has been raised this week by Victorian campaigner Michael Smith, who has walked from his home town of Chewton to Canberra carrying proposed legislation that would require the green light from the House of Representatives and the Senate.

He was backed by One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts on Monday, who said "the voice of the people is ignored".

"We need to do this before any commitment of troops overseas or any forces overseas. We need to make sure that the Parliament, representing the people, have that say. Not a couple of people," Senator Roberts said in video posted to YouTube.
A stoush between a Queensland law student and Labor frontbencher Terri Butler over claims of a "racist smear" is bound for court after he bluntly rejected her apology as a "sham" and vowed to press ahead with a $150,000 defamation lawsuit.

Ms Butler announced at the weekend she had apologised to 25-year-old Calum Thwaites after repeating on national television allegations levelled against him in a case brought under controversial section 18c of the Racial Discrimination Act.

Mr Thwaites was one of three Queensland University of Technology students accused of causing offence in a series of Facebook posts about an Indigenous-only computer lab. Mr Thwaites vehemently denied he used the phrase "ITT niggers" and the case against all three men was thrown out of the Federal Circuit Court this month.

On Q&A, Ms Butler implied the allegations had never been tested and said of Mr Thwaites' denials: "He would say that, wouldn't he?" Mr Thwaites elected to sue for damages of up to $150,000, claiming he had been traduced as a racist, bigot and perjurer.
Susan Kiefel has been named Australia's first female High Court chief justice  ending 113 years of men leading the nation's highest court.

After months of speculation about who would replace retiring chief Robert French, the Turnbull government appointed serving High Court Justice Kiefel to the role on Tuesday.

Brisbane-based Federal Court Justice James Edelman, who is just 42, will replace her as a puisne judge  a judge other than the chief justice.

Chief Justice French said in March he would stand down in January, ahead of his 70th birthday and in order to allow his successor to be in place for the start of the new year sittings on January 30.
As the last layer of decorating that can make all the difference, a lighting scheme using a statement chandelier shows that you've really put some thought into the final finishes of the room.

Boho chic

Team with lots of hanging plants and the whole space can take on a sunroom vibe. Credit:Touch Interiors



For a bohemian look try a shell chandelier or knotted macrame shades, as seen in this bright and breezy fully renovated 1920s Arts & Crafts home on Sydney's lower north shore. Team with lots of hanging plants and the whole space can take on a sunroom vibe.

Spring blooms
Australia's most wanted terrorist, Neil Prakash, tried to flee Islamic State by sneaking into Turkey but may have been undone by his social media posts, Fairfax Media has learned.

An international tug-of-war is looming following his arrest in Turkey a few weeks ago, more than six months after the US and Australian governments said Prakash had been killed in a targeted drone strike in Mosul, Iraq.

It has since emerged that he was only wounded and then crossed into Turkey using false documentation.

Intelligence sources say they haven't been able to extract from Prakash why he was trying to leave Syria but believe he may have become sick of life in Islamic State and tried to run.
Why shoot on drones? What makes them such an attractive option for a photographer?

When architects are pitching their work to a potential client they build a scale model of their building. Whether we're talking today or in the court of the Mughal emperor, all the masterpieces of world architecture were made to look great on a table  looked down on from above. This means that, in effect, drones are the first time we've been able to photograph buildings the way they were "designed" to be seen. Helicopters are high and distant, but drones are able to present the grounds, the buildings and the context in a way that's never been possible before.

This series captures a lot of iconic landmarks, but they're seen in a way that has not really been documented before. What was the idea behind this series?

I'd travelled extensively before the release of drones and had this mental list of places I'd been to in the past and had thought "this would be amazing if I was just up there instead of standing here on the ground". Suddenly I had the tool to realise those fantasies. I knew laws were going to come into play soon so I dashed through Europe, India and Russia doing as much work as I could while that window stayed open.

How many countries have you documented? It was 84 at last count that I read.
A 29-year-old NSW woman who stole $3.6 million from taxpayers forged the testimony of government child-care protection workers, used the evidence of a neurosurgeon and pretended she was a vulnerable foster carer in order to earn millions of dollars in child care subsidies, documents released by the NSW District Court have revealed.

Melissa Jade Higgins outside the Downing Centre for her bail hearing. Credit:Brook Mitchell

Over a two-year period, the owner of Aussie Giggles family day care, Melissa Jade Higgins, repeatedly used the same generic recommendation that "a child was at risk", which was faxed to the Department of Education under a Department of Human Services banner with different fonts and dates, to convince officials to funnel millions of dollars into her coffers.

Beyond the one-page forged letter from child protection services, the only other evidence Higgins provided was her diary of incidents with children, some of whom did not exist, to receive up to $180 an hour per child for special child subsidies when she was only legally entitled to $10 an hour.
The workplace watchdog has launched a fresh corruption investigation into Bill Shorten's Australian Workers Union protege, and the union itself, in a move that could sharpen the federal government's attack on the Opposition Leader.

Controversial Victorian Labor MP Cesar Melhem is now under formal investigation by the Fair Work Commission over allegedly corrupt deals struck as AWU head.

The revelation comes as the government tries again this week to have its Australian Building and Construction Commission legislation passed. At least two of the companies involved in the deals under the Fair Work spotlight are construction firms.

A Victorian state upper house MP since 2013, Mr Melhem is a close political ally of Mr Shorten, who was his predecessor and mentor as AWU Victorian secretary.
South Australian police have shot a man after he allegedly pointed a gun at the head of his three-year-old daughter during a dramatic confrontation with police in central Adelaide.

The shooting ended an ordeal for a young mother, her daughter and seven-month-old son that began nearly three hours earlier when her partner allegedly assaulted her at the Cumberland Park home.

The man, 26, is now in Royal Adelaide Hospital with non-life threatening injuries after being shot once on Monday night.

It's alleged he earlier assaulted two other people who tried to help his 23-year-old partner. He then forced his family into a car. Police were called just before 9pm, but they did not have a description of the vehicle.
Two drivers who attempted to merge onto a highway south of Sydney became involved in a violent road rage incident that left one of the men in hospital and the other charged with drink-driving and a string of other offences, police say.

Police will allege in court that a 21-year-old man was left running down the Hume Motorway at Yerrinbool in an attempt to escape from the second driver, aged 41, who had allegedly stolen his car during the dispute and started chasing the younger man.

The alleged confrontation began about 4.30pm on Monday as the two cars attempted to merge from the Old Hume Highway onto the Hume Motorway at Mittagong.

Police say the 41-year-old man was driving a red Hyundai Accent with a 45-year-old female passenger when he and the younger man, who was driving behind him in a black Honda Integra, became involved in a dispute as they attempted to merge.

As the vehicles then drove north through Yerrinbool on the Hume Motorway, the older man allegedly drove his Hyundai into the rear of the Honda, causing significant damage to the car.
The third monkey stolen from a zoo south of Sydney at the weekend as been found safe and well, to the "enormous relief" of the park's owners.

Gomez, a pygmy marmoset, was allegedly stolen from Symbio Wildlife Park at Helensburgh some time before 8am on Saturday. Two other marmosets, a 10-month-old female and a four-week-old baby who is too young to determine a gender, were also taken.

The park's owners were concerned the youngest monkey would die within 24 hours of being separated from its mother, so an urgent appeal was launched to get the trio back.

After a tip to Crime Stoppers, the younger marmosets were recovered by police in separate locations on Sunday. However, Gomez, 10, remained missing, with police urging anyone with information to come forward.
Brisbane Olympic gymnast Lisa Skinner who fell during a Cirque du Soleil performance on Sunday will be fitted with a brace on Monday to keep her body from moving, her mother says.

The 35-year-old was performing the aerial hoop solo act during Cirque du Soleil's Kooza performance at Skygate when she fell, plummeting to the floor just before 2pm.

Shocked audience members watched as crew rushed to the stage to treat the Albany Creek woman.

Paramedics rushed Ms Skinner, who was stable and conscious, to Royal Brisbane Hospital where she remained in the emergency ward for a number of hours.
Navdeep Singh describes himself as a working class, common man.

And now he's hoping to unseat Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk at the next state election.

Navdeep Singh is running for the Greens in the Premier's seat of Inala in the next Queensland election.

Mr Singh, known to his mates as "Nav", is the Greens candidate for the seat of Inala.

The seat has been held by Ms Palaszczuk since 2006, and by her father Henry Palaszczuk from 1992 to 2006.
Police are searching for a group of men after a man was stabbed and robbed at the Gold Coast overnight.

A man, 35, was walking down Frank Street at Labrador when three men jumped out of a vehicle and began attacking him at 12.45am.

Police are searching for three men after a stabbing attack on the Gold Coast. Credit:Glenn Hunt

The man was stabbed in the leg and knocked to the ground where he was stomped on by the trio before they stole his mobile phone, wallet and shoes.

The group fled the scene and the man went to a nearby hotel for help.
He boasted police would "never find the bodies" but after more than 40 years, a jury still found Garry Dubois guilty of killing Barbara McCulkin and her two daughters.

Family and friends never doubted the trio had met a grisly death after they disappeared from their Highgate Hill home on January 16, 1974, in Brisbane's most notorious missing-persons case.

Even investigators knew the underworld figures they were looking for after the McCulkins' 13-year-old neighbour, Janet Gayton, said she saw two people known as Vince and Shorty (Dubois' nickname) at the house the day they vanished.

But it was the long-awaited testimony of Peter Hall, to whom Dubois confessed days after the killings, that led a Brisbane Supreme Court jury on Monday to convict him of the rape and murder of siblings Vicki and Leanne and the manslaughter of Mrs McCulkin.
Indigenous leader Noel Pearson has emphatically denied racially abusing a Queensland minister, and says there's no culture of bullying in his schools program.

Queensland's Education Minister Kate Jones has told the ABC Mr Pearson abused her in 2009, when she was the environment minister, using the phrase "f---ing white c---".

Noel Pearson is founder and co-chair of Good to Great Schools Australia. Credit:Marian Faa

Mr Pearson didn't deny using "colourful language" in dealings over his Good to Great schools program, but he's told the ABC: "I completely, completely reject the suggestion that I directed any of those words at minister Kate Jones in 2009".

Mr Pearson went on ABC radio on Monday to answer allegations he used highly offensive language in his dealings with Queensland public servants who had raised concerns about his indigenous schools program.
The CSIRO on Tuesday will sign a technology licensing agreement with a Chinese solar company that could reap millions of dollars in royalties for the national science and industry organisation.

The deal with Beijing-based Thermal Focus will allow the company to bid for business in the burgeoning Chinese market for concentrated solar power using Australian-designed technology.

China aims to build infrastructure that produces 1.4 gigawatts of concentrated solar power by 2018, increasing this to 5GW by 2020.

"To put that into perspective, Australia has 50GW capacity in all its power stations," said Wes Stein, CSIRO's chief energy research scientist.
Police believe a man who was killed when his car crashed in Melbourne's east on Sunday had been "street racing".

The man, 36, lost control of his blue Ford sedan on Stud Road in Wantirna South, hitting a gas main before the car rolled on to its roof, about 5pm.

He died at the scene, while his passenger, 27, suffered serious chest and shoulder injuries.

Witnesses have told police the car was street racing with a dark-coloured hatchback just prior to the collision.

Anyone who witnessed the crash or has information regarding a dark-coloured hatchback seen in the area at the time is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
A Melbourne woman who died at the Earthcore dance festival in central Victoria may have had an existing medical condition, festival organisers say.

The 43-year-old from Bayswater in the city's east was found dead at the festival in Pyalong on Sunday, police said.

Revellers at an Earthcore festival. Credit:Earthcore/Instagram

In a statement on their Facebook page, organisers said medical staff attended within two minutes of her being found and were unable to revive her.

"Our condolences to the family and friends of deceased. Before anyone jumps to any conclusions over this very sad situation we would urge caution in making comments that can harm the family and friends of the deceased any further," the statement read.
Friends of Wayne Fowlie, who died at a Goldfields mine site in 2014, are rallying to raise the equivalent of his life insurance for his family after his policy was cancelled just weeks before his death due to a payroll error.

Mr Fowlie died at Central Norseman Gold's Harlequin mine on February 15, 2014 when he was fatally crushed in an underground rock fall.

Wayne Fowlie with his wife Raewyn and grandchildren shortly before his death. Credit:Facebook

His wife, Raewyn Fowlie, lost her court battle to have his $128,000 life insurance paid out by the mining company after it failed to pay his superannuation contributions for nearly a year before his death  causing his life insurance payments to default and his policy to subsequently be cancelled.

According to Ms Fowlie's friend, Janet Sykes, the legal fight cost Ms Fowlie more than $30,000.
Two separate bushfires that threatened neighbouring suburbs in Perth's south have been contained and controlled by firefighters on Monday afternoon.

While the bushfire alert level for one part of Baldivis was downgraded to 'advice', another 'watch and act' was issued when a blaze broke out to its east in the neighbouring suburb of Hopeland - on a busy afternoon for fireys.

The Department of Fire and Emergency Services had ealier in the day issued a 'watch and act' for people in an area bound by Herman, Burma and Wilkinson roads and Telephone Lane in the eastern part of Baldivis after the fire started at the intersection of Herman and Burma roads at just after 12.30pm.

This has since been downgraded

But as more than 24 firefighters managed to get that fire under control and were working to contain it at 2.50pm, DFES issued a separate 'watch and act' alert for the area immediately northeast.
London: The man who invented the word 'Brexit' says the UK government is making a mess of it and heading for "a stupid Brexit"  and he is trying to force them to do better.

Peter Wilding founded the lobby group British Influence (it calls itself a 're-think tank'), which this week launched a legal bid to stop the UK automatically leaving the European single market.

BI has written to Brexit Secretary David Davis to seek a formal, judicial review to decide whether  as they believe  Britain will remain part of the European Economic Area even if it leaves the European Union.

The government already faces a fight in the Supreme Court next week which could require parliament's approval to trigger the 'Article 50' Brexit treaty clause.
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PHILIPSBURG:--- Recently RBC Merchant Bank (Caribbean) Ltd. hosted an event in St. Maarten in celebration of the successful execution of a USD 32,000,000 TelEm Group Bond issue. The bond issue was arranged by RBC and the formal signing with TelEm took place in October, after months of negotiations.

RBC organized an informal gathering for TelEm Group, the investors, and the transaction team to celebrate the agreement and to recognize the effort and support that contributed to the success of the transaction. The Bond issue represents a significant achievement for both RBC and TelEm.

The TelEm Group will use the proceeds of the Bond issue to finance future capital expenditures and refinance existing debt obligations. This bond supplements a 8 Million loan obtained from the European Investment Bank (EIB) last year for an island-wide Fibre to the Home project in St. Maarten. Six major investors are providing the capital required for the Bond. This is the second time that the TelEm Group has successfully approached the regional capital markets to secure large funding from regional investors, according to Mrs. Helma Etnel, TelEm Group Chief Financial Officer. The Bond and consequent loan arrangement enabled TelEm Group to renegotiate more favorable terms and conditions. Additionally, the telecommunication company will now be accountable to only one company via a trustee, and no longer to several financiers as before.

Andrew Boissiere, Vice President Corporate and Investment Banking of RBC Merchant Bank said: Our aim is to bring our purpose to life by helping our clients thrive. The transaction process was characterized by challenges, unexpected surprises, and delicate negotiations. However, an innovative, flexible approach, regional collaboration, and teamwork contributed to a successful outcome. We are very proud of our long-standing relationship with the island of St. Maarten and to continue this path through the TelEm Bond issue. We are pleased that we were able to contribute to the further enhancement of the telecommunication infrastructure of the island.

To underline the successful achievement Boissiere awarded tool stones to TelEm Group. Etnel said: We are most thankful to RBC for their patience and hard work in securing this bond arrangement and look forward to a continued relationship.
Shaw Files Year-End Disclosure Documents

CALGARY, ALBERTA  (Marketwired)  11/28/16  Shaw Communications Inc. (Shaw) (TSX: SJR.B)(NYSE: SJR) announced today the filing with Canadian securities regulators of its 2016 audited annual consolidated financial statements, related managements discussion and analysis and 2016 annual information form, and the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of its 2016 annual report on Form 40-F, which includes the Canadian filings.

These documents are available on Shaws profile on the Canadian Securities Administrators website (). The Form 40-F is available on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissions website (). Any shareholder wishing to receive a printed copy of the 2016 annual report containing the audited annual consolidated financial statements and related managements discussion and analysis may request one by e-mail to .

About Shaw Communications Inc.

Shaw Communications Inc. is an enhanced connectivity provider. Our Consumer division serves consumers with broadband Internet, Shaw Go WiFi, video and digital phone. Our Wireless division provides wireless voice and data services through an expanding and improving mobile wireless network infrastructure. The Business Network Services division provides business customers with Internet, data, WiFi, telephony, video and fleet tracking services. The Business Infrastructure Services division, through ViaWest, provides hybrid IT solutions including colocation, cloud computing and security and compliance for North American enterprises.

Shaw is traded on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges and is included in the S&P/TSX 60 Index (Symbol: TSX  SJR.B, SJR.PR.A, SJR.PR.B, NYSE  SJR, and TSXV  SJR.A). For more information, please visit .

Contacts:

Shaw Communications Inc.

Investor Relations
Carl Announces Issuance of Shares on Conversion of $405,000 AIP Debt

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA  (Marketwired)  11/28/16  Carl Data Solutions Inc. (CSE: CRL)(CSE: CRL.CN)(FRANKFURT: 7C5)(OTC PINK: CDTAF) (Carl or the Company), a developer of Big-Data-as-a-Service (BDaaS)-based solutions for data integration, business intelligence, and the Industrial Internet-of-Things (IIoT) applications, is pleased to announce that several debtholders of the Company have converted indebtedness in the aggregate amount of $504,450 into 1,483,676 shares a price of $0.34 per share. Principal and interest of $101,250 was converted into shares of the Company by each of AIP Private Capital Inc., AIP Global Macro Class, AIP Global Macro LP, and AIP Canadian Enhanced Income Class (collectively, the Noteholders), the holders of the notes issued by the Company on June 29, 2016. Each of the Noteholders also received 100,000 shares pursuant to the terms of the Note Agreement entered into with the Noteholders. The shares issued are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day.

Greg Johnston, CEO of Carl, commented, This conversion of AIPs debt into shares, shows that our investors have confidence that we are on the right track to becoming a profitable company. As the potential of IIoT and Big Data becomes clear, institutional investors are recognizing Carls BDaaS solutions are critical in this era of transformation.

Carl is continuing to expand its data management, analytics and monitoring at a time when most of the industrial world is looking for data solutions that work efficiently, maximize profits and minimize costs. Almost weekly, a government or large organization announces that it will be seeking to leverage Big Data to improve business and everyday quality of life, and investors are taking notice. This debt conversion from the Companys institutional investors comes on the heels of a recently completed $900,000 private placement, demonstrating overall confidence in Carls position in delivering smart IIoT solutions.

About Carl Data Solutions Inc.

Carl Data Solutions Inc. is focused on providing next generation information collection, storage and analytics solutions for data centric companies. Building on its recent acquisitions, Flow Works Inc., a company that helps its clients analyze and understand all forms of environmental data through a powerful platform of data collection, monitoring, analysis and reporting tools and Extend to Social Media Inc., a company that specializes in unstructured data analysis from Social Media, Carl develops applications to work with new cloud-based mass storage services and analytics tools (Big-Data-as-a-Service (BDaaS)). Carls development platform can accommodate virtually unlimited storage of any type of data. This technology allows Carl to build advanced applications for monitoring, reporting and analysis. Carls data collection and storage methods allow the company to build smart Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)-based applications that can collect data from many diverse sources and provide deep insight for decision-making purposes. More information can be found at .

On behalf of the Board of Directors:

Greg Johnston, President, Chief Executive Officer, Director Carl Data Solutions Inc.

The Canadian Securities Exchange (operated by CNSX Markets Inc.) has neither approved nor disapproved of the contents of this press release.

Contacts:

Carl Data Solutions Inc.

Kimberly Bruce

Corporate Communications

(778) 379-0275
A guide to voter rights in Indiana. What you need to know before you cast a ballot
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The intensity of the light from FRB 150807 is displayed in this graph. Red corresponds to lower frequencies of radio waves, and blue indicates higher frequencies. The x-axis is time, revealing how the radio waves brighten and then fade away. According to a statement from Caltech, "The fine structure in the burst is the scintillation, or twinkling  the rays interfere constructively and destructively differently at different frequencies. This pattern provides insights into the turbulence in plasma towards the burst."

An extraordinarily luminous fast radio burst (FBR)  a brief, powerful emission of radio waves from a distant cosmic source  has revealed new clues about the web of matter that stretches between galaxies, according to a new study.

The newly observed FRB, called FRB 150807, is the most luminous FRB found to date, the researchers said.

As the light from an FBR travels through space, it is distorted by the intergalactic material it passes through. Based on the brightness of the bursts, researchers can estimate how far the light has traveled and then study the intervening regions of the universe.

"Because FRBs like the one we discovered occur billions of light-years away, they help us study the universe between us and them," Vikram Ravi, a co-author of the study and a postdoctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), said in a statement. "Nearly half of all visible matter is thought to be thinly spread throughout intergalactic space. Although this matter is not normally visible to telescopes, it can be studied using FRBs." [Mysterious 'Fast Radio Burst' Source Detected (Video)]

Only 18 FRBs have been detected to date, and astronomers are still unsure what cosmic event or object produces them.

A team of researchers detected FRB 150807 while using the Parkes radio telescope in Australia to monitor a nearby pulsar in our own galaxy. (Pulsars are a type of neutron star, a dense nugget of material left over after a star collapses.) Based on the brightness of FRB 150807, the researchers were able to localize the burst more accurately than they have in the past, according to the statement from Caltech.

The study of FRB 150807 has provided "the first direct insight into turbulence in intergalactic medium," according to the statement. So far, in the direction of FRB 150807, the turbulence levels are not above what theories have predicted, which is a good sign that scientists are on the right track in understanding this material.

The data can help researchers measure the magnetism between galaxies and thus determine how cosmic magnetic fields are created, according to the study, published Nov. 17 in the journal Science. In addition, the study authors said their finding "refutes some claims that FRBs are produced in dense environments with strong magnetic fields," according to the statement.

The Deep Synoptic Array prototype, which comprises 10 radio dishes in California and is expected to make its debut in February 2017, will make it easier to detect and locate FRBs, Ravi said.

"We estimate that there are between 2,000 and 10,000 FRBs occurring in the sky every day," Ravi said in the statement. "One in 10 of these are as bright as FRB 150807, and the Deep Synoptic Array prototype will be able to pinpoint their locations to individual galaxies. Measuring the distances to these galaxies enables us to use FRBs to weigh the tenuous intergalactic material."

Follow Samantha Mathewson @Sam_Ashley13. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
New technology could use X-rays to transmit data at high rates over vast distances in outer space, as well as enable communications with hypersonic vehicles during re-entry, when radio communications are impossible, NASA scientists say.

The technology would combine multiple NASA projects currently in progress to demonstrate the feasibility of X-ray communications from outside the International Space Station.

The radio waves used by mobile phones, Wi-Fi and, of course, radios, are one kind of light. Other forms of light can carry data as well; for instance, fiber-optic telecommunications rely on pulses of visible and near-infrared light. [Communicating With Deep Space - How It Works (Video)]

The effort to use another type of light, X-rays, for communication started with research on NASA's proposed Black Hole Imager. That mission is designed to analyze the edges of the supermassive black holes that previous research suggested exist at the centers of most, if not all, large galaxies.

One potential strategy to enable the Black Hole Imager was to develop a constellation of precisely aligned spacecraft to collect X-rays emitted from the edges of those black holes. Keith Gendreau, an astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, thought of developing X-ray emitters that these spacecraft could use as navigational beacons to make sure they stayed in position relative to one another. The system would keep them aligned down to a precision of just 1 micron, or about one-hundredth the average width of a human hair.

Gendreau then reasoned that by modulating or varying the strength or frequency of these X-ray transmissions on and off many times per second, these navigational beacons could also serve as a communication system. Such X-ray communication, or XCOM, might, in theory, permit gigabit-per-second data rates throughout the solar system, he said. (For comparison, the fastest current Wi-Fi standard also theoretically offers up to 1-gigabit per-second data rates.)

"As mankind moves further out into the universe, being able to communicate with home will require new technologies," Gendreau said. "XCOM will play in that."

One advantage that XCOM has compared to laser communication in deep space is that X-rays have shorter wavelengths than the visible or infrared light typically used in laser communication. This means that, in principle, XCOM can transmit more data for the same amount of power that laser communication requires, Gendreau said. Moreover, because X-rays have shorter wavelengths, they can be transmitted in tighter beams than visible or infrared light, so less energy is wasted in trying to communicate over vast distances, he added.

Moreover, X-rays can penetrate obstacles that impede radio communication. "Remember the radio-frequency blackout in the Apollo days, when the capsules were entering the atmosphere?" Gendreau said. "Well, high-energy X-rays can make it through the hot plasma that blocks the radio waves."

To experiment with XCOM, the researchers developed a device called the Modulated X-ray Source, or MXS, which generates rapid-fire X-ray pulses. MXS is slated to get installed on an experimental pallet that will be deployed outside the International Space Station in 2018.

MXS will transmit data via X-rays about 165 feet (50 meters) to the Neutron-star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER), which is designed to study neutron stars and their rapidly spinning relatives, pulsars, and will launch to the International Space Station in early 2017. MXS' data transmissions will be run by NavCube, a NASA computing and navigation platform.

Although most of the technology for MXS is ready, the researchers are still seeking additional funding to complete a space-ready version of the XCOM device, including its housing and high-voltage power supply.

"We have most of the hardware but need a little more support to complete the XCOM package," Jenny Donaldson who is leading the development of the NavCube payload, said in a statement. "This is a great opportunity to demonstrate NavCube and, if all things go as planned, X-ray communications."

X-ray modulation could enable more than deep-space communications. "For example, there is a real possibility we could significantly reduce the radiation doses in medical X-ray imaging using this technology," Gendreau said. "I like how a black hole imaging mission can enable real down-to-earth medical applications that can make a difference."

Follow Charles Q. Choi on Twitter @cqchoi. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
WASHINGTON  A principal in a venture capital fund whose investments include SpaceX has joined President-elect Donald Trump's transition team for the Department of Defense.

The office of President-elect Trump announced Nov. 23 that it was adding Trae Stephens to the existing transition team for the Defense Department. He joins an original group of nine people assigned to the "landing team" covering the Pentagon on Nov. 23, with a tenth person added Nov. 21.

Stephens is a principal at Founders Fund, a San Francisco-based venture capital fund co-founded in 2005 by billionaire investor Peter Thiel and several others. Thiel supported Trump's campaign, giving a speech backing him at the Republican National Convention in July, and was named Nov. 11 to the executive committee overseeing Trump's transition. [Related: What a Trump Administration Means for NASA]

Founders Fund was the first venture firm to invest in SpaceX, putting $20 million into the company in July 2008. The fund subsequently participated in a $50 million round in November 2010 and the $1 billion round in January 2015 led by Google and Fidelity. Founders Fund has not disclosed the size of its stake in SpaceX, but Luke Nosek, a partner and co-founder of the fund, is on SpaceX's board of directors.

Stephens came to Founders Fund from Palantir Technologies, a data analytics company that is also part of the fund's portfolio. Stephens "focuses on startups operating in the government space" at the fund, according to his biography on its website. Palantir's initial customers were primarily in the U.S. intelligence community.

SpaceX has, in recent years, made it a priority to win business from the Defense Department in addition to customers from NASA and the private sector. After a protracted dispute with the U.S. Air Force that included a lawsuit, the company won certification in May 2015 for Falcon 9 missions under the Air Forces Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle program. It won its first EELV launch contract, for a GPS satellite, in April after United Launch Alliance declined to bid.

While Stephens came to Founders Fund from Palantir, he does follow the progress of SpaceX to some degree. BOOM. Two in a row, he tweeted May 6 after SpaceX successfully landed a Falcon 9 first stage on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean during the launch of the JCSAT-14 satellite.

BOOM. Two in a row. https://t.co/dnacId3K2w

That landing came four weeks after another Falcon 9 first stage landing during the launch of a Dragon cargo spacecraft. Stephens retweeted a note of congratulations about that landing April 8 from President Obama, adding the hashtag "thanksobama."

#thanksobama https://t.co/1flpeGkI33

After a slow start, Trump's transition efforts have ramped up in the last week, with landing teams assigned to most cabinet-level departments and many other agencies. However, as of Nov. 25 the transition team had yet to officially announce any landing team members for NASA.

This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.
Amateur astronomer and space enthusiast Zack Payne wants more people to get excited about looking at the sky. So when November's full "supermoon" came the closest to Earth that it's been since 1948, he threw a "moon party" for his peers to come together and check out the giant, glowing moon in all its glory through his brand-new telescope.

Payne, who happens to be an old friend of mine, threw his supermoon viewing party on Nov. 14 in my hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee. Originally, his plan was to take his brand-new Orion SkyQuest XT10g Dobsonian Telescope out for its first test run and to spend the evening moon gazing with a few of his fellow space fans. To his surprise, a crowd of about 50 people showed up to see the supermoon. "I figured only like 10 or 15 would show up," Payne said.

Most of the party guests had never looked through a telescope before. Payne said the sight of his shiny new telescope alone was enough to wow people. "It looks like a cannon ... It's a big telescope, so it awed people immediately." He bought the telescope online earlier this month, and it arrived just in time for supermoon viewing. ['Supermoon' Photos: The Closest Full Moon Until 2034 in Pictures]

Zack Payne's Orion SkyQuest XT10g Dobsonian Telescope (Image credit: Zack Payne

By the time Payne had lugged the 70-lb. (30 kilograms) telescope to Victor Ashe Park, he was over the excitement of seeing his huge new telescope. Instead, he was stoked to see how "super" the moon looked in his stargazing machine. Compared to when he used his older XT8 Dobsonian telescope, the view was incredible, Payne said. "Everything is crisper, and it's a lot more detailed," he said.

"The moon was indeed super," partygoer Aaron Howell, who had never looked through a telescope before, told Space.com in an email. "The vast craters and scarred face were far beyond detailed  It gave great perspective to the test of time upon such an immense object."

Amateur astronomer Zack Payne took this photo of the supermoon during his "moon party" in Knoxville, Tennessee, on Nov. 14. (Image credit: Zack Payne

To get the best view of the supermoon, Payne used a moon filter on his telescope. Without a filter, the full moon is too bright to look at through a telescope. Its surface features can disappear in the glow, but it can also be blinding to look at. [Best Telescopes for the Money - 2016 Reviews and Guide]

Despite the light pollution and air pollution over Knoxville, Payne's telescope images turned out clean and crisp. With wildfires rampant in the southeastern U.S., a smoky haze had been lingering over the city for days. "With the haze, the light pollution formed a huge curve in the sky," Payne said.

Amateur astronomer Zack Payne took this photo of the supermoon during his "moon party" in Knoxville, Tennessee, on Nov. 14. (Image credit: Zack Payne

To take the best photos of the moon, he had to wait for it to rise high enough in the sky to where the atmosphere didn't interfere so much with the view. He arrived at the park to set up his telescope around 6:30 p.m. EST (2330 GMT), but he took his best supermoon photos closer to midnight, when most of the partygoers had already left.

The supermoon party was actually cut short by a park ranger, who insisted that they take their skywatching festivities elsewhere. The crowd quickly dispersed, leaving Payne to defend his own sluggish exit to the park ranger. "I have a telescope, man  hold on!" he hollered at the impatient ranger.

Payne's supermoon party was such an unexpected success that he now plans to throw more skywatching parties like it in the future. But he plans to shoot for more than just the moon: His next big plan is to throw a planet party, followed by galaxy parties, nebula parties, etc. If it's in his telescope's catalog, he's going to turn it into a reason to party.

For Payne, the best thing about his new telescope is its ability to bring his peers together to observe and appreciate space. "People were superexcited. They loved it. People even brought chairs to sit on and hang out. I got to teach them all about space," he said.

Now that it's clear that Payne's peers are interested in stargazing with him, he hopes to start an amateur stargazing class  free of charge  for the Knoxville community. "I don't have any formal astronomy education, but I do have the drive to want to inspire people," Payne said. And what better way to inspire young people than to party in the name of space.

Email Hanneke Weitering at hweitering@space.com or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
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Madrid, Nov. 28, 2016 (SPS) - Over 4.4 tons of humanitarian aid, mainly made up of foodstuffs were sent Monday to the Sahrawi refugee camps by Spanish associations friends with the Sahrawi people, said the president of Burgos city, Maite Gimenez.

This aid is the result of a common work by the associations of Palencia, Avila, Valladollid and Burgos, added Gimenez.

Like every year, those associations work for raising awareness and charity enabled us to collect a significant quantity of products, including medical and school materials and food staples like rice.

Maite Gimenez affirmed that "the humanitarian aid is crucial for the Sahrawis as the conflict is lingering and so solution was not reached."

The "current situation in the Sahrawi refugee camps has not changed for years," Gimenez said adding that the  situation doesnt progress and the people, notably the youth are tired."

The president of the Burgos Association friend with the Saharawi people also underlined that "the United Nations has not yet done anything to enforce the international resolutions leading to the holding of a self-determination referendum for the Sahrawi people. (SPS)

062/090/700
Lab4MEMS Project Recognized With Important European Innovation Award

Rome / 28 Nov 2016

The Electronic Components and Systems for European Leadership (ECSEL) Joint Undertaking announced the Lab4MEMS project as the winner of its 2016 Innovation Award during the European Nanoelectronics Forum, in Rome, Italy.

At its launch in January 2014, Lab4MEMS was identified as a Key Enabling Technology Pilot-Line project for next-generation Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) devices augmented with advanced technologies such as piezoelectric or magnetic materials and 3D packaging to enhance the next generation of smart sensors, actuators, micro-pumps, and energy harvesters. These technologies were recognized as important contributors to future data-storage, printing, healthcare, automotive, industrial-control, and smart-building applications, as well as consumer applications such as smartphones and navigation devices.

In accepting the award, Roberto Zafalon, General Project Coordinator of Lab4MEMS and the European Programs Manager in R&D and Public Affairs for STMicroelectronics Italy said, The ECSEL Innovation Award highlights the excellent results the Lab4MEMS team achieved through the projects execution and the high impact of its successes. In particular, Lab4MEMS developed innovative MEMS solutions with advanced piezoelectric and magnetic materials, including advanced 3D Packaging technologies.

In coordinating the 28m[1], 36-month Lab4MEMS project, ST led the team of twenty partners, which included universities, research institutions, and technology businesses across ten European countries. STs MEMS facilities in Italy and Malta contributed their complete set of manufacturing competencies for next-generation devices, spanning design and fabrication to test and packaging to the project.

In accepting the award, Roberto Zafalon, General Project Coordinator of Lab4MEMS and the European Programs Manager in R&D and Public Affairs for STMicroelectronics Italy said, The ECSEL Innovation Award highlights the excellent results the Lab4MEMS team achieved through the projects execution and the high impact of its successes. In particular, Lab4MEMS developed innovative MEMS solutions with advanced piezoelectric and magnetic materials, including advanced 3D Packaging technologies.

In coordinating the 28m[1], 36-month Lab4MEMS project, ST led the team of twenty partners, which included universities, research institutions, and technology businesses across ten European countries. STs MEMS facilities in Italy and Malta contributed their complete set of manufacturing competencies for next-generation devices, spanning design and fabrication to test and packaging to the project.

Lab4MEMS devices, technologies, and application improvements emphasized:

Micro-actuators, micro-pumps, sensors, and energy scavengers integrated on silicon-based MEMS using piezoelectric thin-films (PZT), for applications in Data Storage, Printing, Health Care, Automotive, Energy Scavenging, and Autofocus Lenses.

Magnetic-field sensors, for applications in consumer applications such as GPS positioning, indoor navigation, and mobile phones.

Advanced packaging technologies and vertical interconnections, including flip chip, Through Silicon Via (TSV) or Through Mold Via (TMV) for full 3D integration, which could be used in Consumer and Healthcare applications such as body-area sensors and remote monitoring.

All of these successes contributed to the Lab4MEMS project and are available to benefit the contributors. These participants were Politecnico di Torino (Italy); Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (Italy); Politecnico di Milano (Italy); Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per la Nanoelettronica (Italy); Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique et aux energies alternatives (France); SERMA Technologies SA (France); STMicroelectronics Ltd. (Malta); Universita ta Malta (Malta); Solmates BV (Netherlands); Cavendish Kinetics BV (Netherlands); Okmetic OYJ (Finland); VTT (Finland); Picosun OY (Finland); KLA-Tencor ICOS (Belgium); Universitatea Politehnica din Bucuresti (Romania); Instytut Technologii Elektronowej (Poland); Stiftelsen SINTEF (Norway); Sonitor Technologies AS (Norway); BESI GmbH (Austria).

[1] The total cost of the project -  28.2 million - was supported in part by funding from the ECSEL Joint Undertaking and by contributions from each of the respective National agencies: Italy, France, Malta, The Netherlands, Finland, Belgium, Poland, Norway, Austria, Romania.
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Calpine is acquiring a controlling stake in North American Power, a Norwalk company that sells electricity and natural gas to about 250,000 customers in a dozen states including Connecticut.

Houston-based Calpine (NYSE: CPN) is fresh off an $800 million deal struck in October to acquire Noble Americas Energy Solutions, which focuses on commercial and industrial electricity sales. The North American Power sale was first reported by Energy Choice Matters.
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STAMFORD  Dressed in a red gown embroidered with the black, double-headed eagle of the Albanian flag, Laurentina Nezaj, 19, of Stamford, sang an upbeat patriotic song about homesickness called Shqiperi o Nena Ime, as a standing-room-only crowd of Albanian Americans clapped in time.

Albanian Americans from Stamford and surrounding towns gathered at the Stamford Government Center Sunday afternoon to celebrate the 104th anniversary of Albanian independence with two hours of traditional dance, music and boldly colorful traditional costumes from different regions of their country. The annual celebration was organized by the Albanian American Community of Stamford, a heritage and culture group headed by Richard Lukaj, a banker from Greenwich.

Monday is Albanian Independence Day, when Albanians around the world honor revolutionaries who formed a parliament in the city of Vlore in 1912 and declared autonomy after 500 years of rule by the Ottoman Empire. After the declaration in Vlore, Ismael Qemali, a leader of the independence movement, raised the countrys flag from a second-story balcony.

Nezaj said during her childhood in Stamford, her family, who are originally from Kosovo, maintained a connection to the Albanian language, music and other traditions. As weve grown up, weve kept in touch with it, Nezaj said. We always celebrate Independence Day.

At the event U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and State Rep. William Tong, D-Stamford, spoke along with Besiana Kadare, the Albanian ambassador to the United Nations, and Teuta Sahatqija, consul general of Kosovo in New York City, who offered comments in Albanian.

Blumenthal and Tong expressed appreciation for the performances and spoke about the commonality of struggles of immigrants to find their American success story.

Blumenthal praised Lukaj for his generosity in the community before talking about his father, Martin, who arrived in traveled Frankfurt, Germany, to the United States in 1935 as a teenager with no money.

My father came to this country at 17 years old and came to escape persecution in Europe and knew virtually no one, Blumenthal said. This country gave him a chance to succeed. We are the greatest country in the history of the world because we are a nation of immigrants.

The annual celebration of Albanian traditions in Stamford also underscores the importance of keeping traditions alive, Blumenthal said. It is important to all of us as Americans to know your heritage and celebrate the Albanian-American heritage, because you are the best part of the nations tradition of immigrants, he said.

Tong encouraged adolescents and young adults performing at Sundays event to appreciate the sacrifices their parents and other elders have made. He recalled his fathers beginnings in the United States working as a cook in a Chinese restaurant. His father eventually went on to own his own restaurant.

How many people in this room know that story? Tong said. How many have lived that story? Today, I just want to say to the young people, this celebration happens now because your parents and grandparents made incredible sacrifices and continue to make incredible sacrifices. Give thanks for the opportunities youve been given and make the most of them.

After the speeches and performances, Lukaj and a smaller group gathered outside the Stamford Government Center to raise the red and black Albanian flag.

At the celebration Fjolla Gashi, 16, of Greenwich danced in several of the performances. Gashi helps organize the group of Albanian-American teenagers who usually take part. Her parents Mexhit and Serbeze Gashi are Kosovar Albanians who left Kosovo in 1998 because of the dangers of the Kosovo War, she said.

We like to share Albanian culture and, in a sense, keep it going, Gashi said. It doesnt matter what kind of Albanian you are. It is important to maintain the culture.
NORWALK  Edward Spires dying wish is to have a military funeral.

The 91-year-old Norwalk resident enlisted in the air force in 1946, serving as a Chaplains Assistant at Lackland Air Force Base following World War II.

He served there for two years, before one night, at a Halloween party, service members unearthed his secret. They claimed they saw him dressed in drag. They accused him of being gay.

After days of interrogation and threats of locking him up in military prison, Spires was discharged for homosexuality.

That left him marked, according to the books, as undesirable, barring him from receiving U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs benefits for decades and from being buried at a VA cemetery or having military honors at his funeral service.

Now, 70 years after he joined the armed forces, Spires is in poor shape  nearly dying several weeks ago after a bitter bout with pneumonia  and hes anxious that with his worsening health, he wont get that dying wish he has, simply because of his sexual orientation.

All of that still stands despite two attempts to have his discharge status upgraded after the repeal of Dont Ask, Dont Tell in 2010, which allowed openly gay, lesbian and bisexual people to serve in the military, and the opportunity for them to apply to upgrade their discharge status.

So, in a final attempt to get his discharge upgraded to honorable, and make him eligible for the funeral service he so desperately hopes for, Spires, along with a group of lawyers at the Yale Veterans Legal Services Clinic, filed a federal lawsuit against the Secretary of the Air Force on Nov. 18.

The idea that this man of faith who served dutifully as a chaplains assistant in the armed forces, who built a life and a career that has brought joy to those around him, would leave this earth considered undesirable in the eyes of his country, its unthinkable, said David Rosenberg, Spires longtime partner and now-husband, at a press conference announcing the lawsuit.

Rallying support

Since the repeal of Dont Ask, Dont Tell and Spires two failed attempts to upgrade his status, state leaders and organizations from across the country have rallied together to support him.

Spires had originally reached out to Stonewall Columbus, an LGBTQ advocacy group in Columbus, Ohio for help upgrading his status. Personnel there connected him with U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) who connected him with the Yale Veterans Legal Services Clinic, eventually leading to the lawsuit.

Blumenthal has since spoke out against the injustice that he says Spires and many other gay veterans face in the denial of their discharge upgrades.

Mr. Spires served our country with dignity and distinction and his record should reflect that, Blumenthal said in a statement. Passage of the Dont Ask Dont Tell Repeal Act marked an historic milestone for our military and for equality in America, but was only the beginning of the work we must accomplish to repair the horrible damage to so many veterans caused by decades of discrimination.

Blumenthal has urged the Department of Defense to expedite review of Spires case and said that he welcomes action taken by Yales law clinic.

However, he said While Mr. Spires is receiving expert help with his case, there may be thousands of others across the country who are encountering the same difficulties.

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) also expressed his support.

Discriminating against and firing soldiers because of who they love is wrong today, and it was wrong in the 1940s, he said. Our country owes all veterans the respect they earned by serving their country. Mr. Spires honorably served our country, and Im working closely with Senator Blumenthals office to get him the recognition he deserves.

A life of service gone awry

Spires joined the Air Force at the age of 20. He served as a chaplains assistant at a base near San Antonio, Texas. His regular duties included typing letters to distressed families, playing the organ at Catholic Mass and setting up the chapel for services.

There, his lawsuit says, he also maintained a large circle of civilian friends who were gay. In October of 1947, Spires said he recalled hearing rumors that the base commander called a meeting to discuss cleaning up the base of homosexuals.

At a Halloween party that same year, Spires dressed as That New Oxydol Sparkle, a reference to a popular advertisement for laundry detergent at the time. Someone at the party recognized him and, according to Spires lawsuit, mistook him for being in drag.

The Air Force discharged Mr. Spires in 1948. He was ineligible for a discharge upgrade until 2011 when the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Previously, that statute had prohibited gays and lesbians, including Spires, from serving openly in the military. Since 2011, Spires submitted two discharge upgrade applications to the relevant Air Force board  one in 2014 and another in 2016. The Air Force denied both applications though, on the ground that it cannot locate his records due to a 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.

In fall 2016, the Air Force apparently elected to reconsider its most recent denial, but has not indicated when it will complete its process. And Spires could be running out of time.

After his service, Spires moved from his Midwest roots of Ohio to New York City and eventually Connecticut. He held various positions within the arts and became well known as a prop and set designer for local community groups.

He now lives with his husband, Rosenberg, in Norwalk. They have been together for nearly 60 years and were married in 2009.

Rosenberg is also a military veteran. He, too, was questioned about his sexual orientation, but denied being gay and was permitted to stay, receiving an honorable discharge in 1956.

Spires was not available for comment, as he is medically fragile in his recovery from pneumonia.

As for the outcome of the lawsuit, Erin Baldwin, a Yale law student working on the case, said the ultimate goal is to have this upgraded as soon as possible.

Because Mr. Spires has not been especially well health-wise, Baldwin said, he is especially anxious to get his military upgrade so that he can have a military funeral.

Perhaps, before its too late.

KSchultz@thehour.com; 203-354-1049; @kevinedschultz
C USTOMERS took a breather from pulling cash out of Aberdeen Asset Management equity funds last quarter, helping the granite-city fund manager weather market storms battering its business.

The Scottish group, founded in Aberdeen in 1983, saw 883 million of equity investments walk out the door in the three months ending September, the 14th consecutive quarter of outflows but the slowest pace in two years.

Aberdeens equity funds are among the most profitable types of products it sells, cheering investors and sending shares up as much as 4%.

Were not seeing the level of outflows we were seeing and sentiment has been turning. We had a good quarter in terms of equities, chief executive Martin Gilbert said.

Pre-tax proft was 352.7 million, above the 329 million the City expected, thanks to higher performance fees. Revenues of 1 billion were also ahead.

Assets under management were bolstered by 20 billion-plus boost from sterlings drop and 32 billion shot in the arm from the rising tide of stock markets.

What with Aberdeens acquisition of small funds such as Arden Capital, Advance Emerging Markets and Parmenion Capital last year, it was enough to cushion the blow of 32.8 billion pulled by investors, sending assets under management up 10%.

Despite the ray of sunshine, dark clouds are massing on the horizon. A regulatory clampdown on fees charged and the rise of technology-driven passive funds such as ETFs, pose a challenge to Aberdeens brand of active management.

US President-elect Donald Trump is also a risk because his anti-trade rhetoric has damaged Aberdeens emerging markets stomping ground.

Gilbert has promised to clamp down on costs to help Aberdeen get through the rough patch. He believes the group is still on track to make cost savings of 70 million by March.

Operating costs were 679 million this year, up from 670.3 million last year. Aberdeen has a big office in Singapore which costs more to run now than before the Brexit vote.
S mall business agony aunt Jo Malone offers her advice on meeting business targets, and says dont be afraid to be more of a tortoise than a hare once in a while.

Dear Jo

Before setting up my business three years ago, I wrote a detailed strategy document. I used it as the basis to gain investment from an extended network of friends, which has allowed us to create the companys foundations. However, several factors outside my control (macroeconomic, mainly) mean I dont think Im going to hit the targets. Should I rewrite the strategy, disappoint investors or gun hard to hit the targets at the expense of long-term growth?

Jo says...

This is very much a chicken-and-egg situation, but welcome to the world of business! Unfortunately, the reality is that we dont always get our predictions right as so many factors can alter the course of business and frustratingly have a knock-on effect on the goals we have set out to achieve.

Personally, I would do everything humanly possible to hit those annual targets but not at the expense of damaging the brand  and if you feel this could cost you long term, it may be better to forfeit the short term.

Learn from this and always build safety nets into your forecasts as it is far better to overdeliver, especially when investors are involved. However, before you beat yourself up, do remember investors are aware of the risks before they hand the funds over.

If there is a genuine reason why your business has not performed as planned  external factors  then you are able to forecast and plan around these and the simple fact is that the results are just going to take longer to come to fruition.

The question you should be asking yourself is how you are going to use this set of circumstances to make you and your business stronger.

My husband Gary is my strategist and business partner. He always likes to remind me, when Im galloping ahead with an idea, that the direction we are heading in is always more important than the speed with which we deliver.

Keep that in mind and dont be afraid to be more of a tortoise than a hare once in a while.

Jo asks...

Peter Hansen of Sapient Corporate Finance says: Most investors know you are in the business of selling goods and services, not writing business plans.

Very few new businesses go exactly according to plan. It would be a mistake to take short-term actions designed to meet your profit forecast at the expense of the long term. Your investors will not thank you for that.

Be open and honest with your investors, especially about your own mistakes. The world is full of executives who blame the weather, the economy, imports etc  anyone but themselves.

This is an opportunity for you to build your reputation for candour and openness. Finally, how are you adapting your strategy? You need to show you have a plan for dealing with these new conditions. You should show that you understand the challenges.
A n overseas bidding battle for Lavendon Group kicked off today as Frances Loxam joined the hunt for the 350 million equipment rental firm.

Loxam, which is Europes biggest equipment hire group, said it had made a preliminary approach about a possible cash offer and urged shareholders of the London-listed group not to back Belgian firm TVHs 348 million hostile bid.

Discussions with Lavendon are ongoing and there can be no certainty that any offer will be made, nor as to the terms of any such offer, Loxam said.

Lavendon, which operates in Europe and the Middle East, told its investors to take no action at this stage, but did not go as far as rejecting the offer.

TVH tabled a 205p-a-share bid last week, but said it would not splash out more unless another bidder came to the table.

Shares in Lavendon jumped 12.5p, or 6%, today to 216.75p, above TVHs offer.

However, the share price still remains below the level from 2014.
D r Martens is stomping into Camden with big plans for a new European head office and flagship shop, north London landlord Market Tech Holdings revealed on Monday.

The brands designs were first sold in the area at The British Boot Company shop which became a favourite haunt of bands such as the Sex Pistols and Madness.

Now the footwear firm will open a two-storey standalone store at Stables Market. It will feature virtual tours of the factory and include a customisation section.

It has teamed up with music amplification specialists Marshall to host events at the shop.

The firm will also consolidate its three London offices under one roof in Camden Town.

Charles Butler, chief executive at Market Tech, told the Standard: Dr Martens was adopted by the subcultures in Camden, so its great to see the firm invest in the area.

He added: We are seeing heavy footfall here and Dr Martens plans show firms are expanding regardless of the Brexit vote.

Dr Martens said it was important to stay connected to people who wear its products.
I nvestors cashed out of Ladbrokes Coral today, concerned that the newly merged group could be eyeing up a 2.3 billion swoop Down Under just weeks after its 2.4 billion merger.

The FTSE 250 company has reportedly hired advisers to assess a possible bid for Australias Tabcorp, which has already agreed to merge with Aussie rival Tatts in a 6.8 billion deal.

Ladbrokes Coral is thought to be interested in just Tabcorp, potentially gatecrashing the merger with Tatts.

Analysts at Berenberg said a bid for Tabcorp makes strategic sense as it would limit exposure to the UK, where it is under pressure from regulators.

This seems like the best opportunity that Ladbrokes Coral has to diversify outside the UK, said analyst Roberta Ciaccia.

However, investors did not like the look of another costly deal, which if partly funded by cash could cause its 1.2 billion debt pile to grow. The shares fell 2.7p, or 2.2%, to 122.9p.

On the wider market, little hope that Opec will agree a production cut on Wednesday sent Brent crude down 49 cents to $46.75 a barrel.

The decline hit oil majors such as Royal Dutch Shell, the UKs biggest listed company, which was 36p, or 1.7%, weaker at 2075p, and left its mark on the FTSE 100, down 47.75 points at 6793.00.

Hargreaves Lansdown slipped 30p to 1185p following reports Barclays is to merge its banking and investment services arms, a move that could challenge the fund supermarkets dominance among private investors.

On the mid-cap index, Clydesdale Bank owner CYBG improved 8.7p to 280.4p as Goldman Sachs raised its rating to buy, encouraged by its ambitions to do deals.

It has already made a bid to buy the Williams & Glyn branches from the Royal Bank of Scotland.

For CYBG, we believe a combination with W&G has strategic merit, with the price and required capital the groups key considerations, Goldman said.

A downgrade to neutral from Exane BNP Paribas left hedge fund giant Man Group languishing at the bottom of the FTSE 250, 6.2p cheaper at 117.6p. The broker warned its fund performance continued to be sluggish.

On AIM, maiden half-year results from venture capital firm Draper Esprit, which backs food start-up Graze, lifted the shares by 5p to 360p.

Tiddler Active Energy rose 0.15p, or 5.5%, to 2.9p as it secured a $6 million loan to build its biomass plant in the US.
T he City of London Corporation on Monday gave the green light for the Citys tallest tower, dubbed the Trellis, to be built.

At 304.9 metres, the 1 Undershaft 73-storey skyscraper will be the highest in the Square Mile although five metres shorter than the Shard at London Bridge. It will occupy the site of what is now the Aviva Tower.

It will comprise nearly 1.4 million square feet of office accommodation, as well as shops. An estimated 10,000 workers will work there.

At the top of the building will be a free public viewing gallery with a restaurant. The Museum of London has also had discussions with developer Aroland Holdings over opening a dedicated gallery there.

Plans for "Trellis" skyscraper

It was approved by the planning and transportation committee following their vote of 19-2 to approve the project.

Earlier plans by Singaporean property firm Aroland were scaled back in October to just below the height at which buildings are considered a danger to planes on the approach route to City Airport.

Chris Hayward, chairman of the planning and transportation committee, said: This development shows the high levels of investor confidence in Londons status as a global city following our decision to leave the European Union.

He added: I believe this building will play an important part in increasing Londons attraction as the worlds leading financial centre.

Meanwhile the architect Eric Parry said: "This is a really exciting opportunity for Londoners and the team behind 1 Undershaft are thrilled to get started on the next phase of the project."
T he death of Fidel Castro  peacefully, and at the ripe old age of 90  is a cheery reminder that despite what Hollywood films would have you think, the CIA has been making a right old balls-up of everything since the beginning of time. Its various attempts to knock Castro off over the years make the FBIs intervention in the recent US election look like a model of quiet competence.

One of my cherished souvenirs of a trip to Cuba I made a few years back is a paperback book I bought from a street vendor there called CIA Targets Fidel: The Secret Assassination Report. This small marvel of comic prose draws on a declassified intelligence report to outline the many attempts on Fidels life and reputation. The exploding cigars, the toxin-smeared wetsuit, the fatal syringe disguised as a ballpoint pen Of all the murder plots, my favourite was the hope of booby-trapping a particularly attractive conch shell in the hope that Castro (a diving enthusiast in his younger days) would pick it up and  boom! It wasnt just murder they plotted. Grown men, on the frontline of the war against communism, sat in rooms trying to think of ways to get the Cuban leaders beard to fall out.

Unfortunately, all this stuff has tended to make Fidel look like Road Runner to Americas Wyle E Coyote: the resourceful and loveable foil in a comic drama. Well, he aint. Theres a reason the leaders of democracies dont give seven-hour speeches: you can boo them off.

It beggars the imagination that politicians from Justin Trudeau to Jeremy Corbyn have  while muttering some disclaimer about flaws or a controversial figure  lined up to applaud him: served his people; an internationalist and a champion of social justice. Here was a man who took power by violence, maintained it by violence, immiserated an essentially captive population and passed power by decree to his brother.

Yes, but he did give the people free healthcare and education. Yes, but most of the executions were in the early years. Yes, but he opposed apartheid. Yes, but he changed his mind eventually about sending LGBT people to forced labour camps. Yes but yes but yes but... Yes but nothing.

Jeremy Corbyn praises 'heroism' of revolutionary Fidel Castro

Amid the posturing and whataboutery, we should try to keep this straight: you dont have to pick sides. You dont legitimise Castros regime by pointing to Right-wing dictatorships that killed more people. You dont get anywhere with He wasnt as bad as Stalin any more than with the CIA supported Trujillo/Pinochet/Noriega/Batista and they were horrid.

Its not what your favourite dictator did that matters: its how he did it. Its not where he stands in the league table of dictators that matters but the fact hes there at all. If your argument is that X ran a one-party state in which violence was systematically used to suppress political dissent but that its not so bad because X achieved some good things, youve already sold the pass.

If the exercise of political power is illegitimate in the first place, what you do with it is the fruit of a poisoned tree. The notion of benevolent dictatorship  and to see Castros rule as benevolent takes quite some squinting in any case  should have no currency outside the sixth-form common room. There aint no such thing.

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MPs are singing out for Syrians

Tomorrow, to mark Giving Tuesday  the antidote to Black Friday and Cyber Monday  a collection of MPs will be yodelling carols on College Green at 1pm in aid of Singing for Syrians, a charity that encourages folk to fundraise for victims of the Syrian crisis by organising concerts.

You may not credit it, of course, but I have a hunch that there will be some people who would gladly fork out not to listen to parliamentarians warbling their way through Good King Wenceslas and the like.

Such people are awful philistines but we need their charity too.

In the absence of a Silence for Syrians appeal, why not take your ear plugs and a carton of eggs to College Green tomorrow and donate to singingforsyrians.com anyway?

Beatrice takes a royal swipe at popular music

This weekend, Princess Beatrice sliced open Ed Sheerans face with a ceremonial sword while attempting to knight James Blunt at a party. Not a sentence I thought Id ever find myself typing but there we are. Its one to marvel at. Apparently Mr Sheerans nice big round face interrupted an over-enthusiastic backswing. As her grandmother could tell her, this stuff is harder than it looks. But its interesting to speculate about what would have happened had Mr Sheeran, pictured above right, not taken one for the team. From the sounds of it, Mr Blunt would have been down an arm, at least. I wish Mr Sheeran a swift recovery. Meanwhile, I dont know whether its technically possible for someone whos already a member of the royal family to be knighted or made a dame. But for services to popular music does have a certain ring to it, doesnt it?

* Last year, when a hedge-fund boss bought a 16th-century masterpiece on loan in the National Gallery, a temporary export ban was slapped on the painting. The hope was the gallery could save Pontormos Portrait of a Young Man in a Red Cap by matching the 30 million paid by J Tomilson Hill III. That money has since been raised. Mr Tomilson Hill points out that he paid in dollars  so thanks to Brexits effect on sterling he wants an extra 5-7 million. Still, the painting is by an Italian artist, and we dont want that sort of foreign muck here anyway, right? Lets spend the money subsidising British products such as Marmite and crisps.
T he status quo isnt just being disrupted in the US. In France, the victory of Francois Fillon in the centre-Right partys primaries has brought within reach of the presidency a man who promises completely to change the software of France. Specifically he wants to cut taxes on businesses, slash public spending by 110 billion and reduce the number of public servants by half a million. He would also raise the retirement age from 62 to 65, extend the working week beyond 35 hours and ease Frances strict labour rules in order to boost employment.

This is a pragmatic, overdue programme of reform. The point well made by M. Fillon during the TV debates was that Frances restrictive laws on hiring and firing militate against employment. Britain is at the other end of the spectrum when it comes to employee protection, with a more casual working culture, but the French system is worse. Cuts to the overblown public sector make sense. So does scrapping the 35-hour working week, which has been vexatious for businesses such as restaurants. As friends of France, we should welcome a presidential candidate who would rejuvenate its economy, even if this means London is given a run for its money when it comes to competing with Paris for overseas investment.

A primary to choose the centre-Right candidate is new, but is a useful indication of how the actual presidential campaign next year will go. It now seems quite likely that M. Fillon could take on the Front Nationals Marine le Pen and win. M. Fillon dismissed his opponent Alain Juppes invocation of multiculturalism and diversity, instead insisting that immigrants must adopt the values of the French state. He also wishes to restrict immigration and put the family at the heart of social policy. In short, he not only constitutes a radical change from the policies of President Hollande, but could take votes from the Front National by giving expression to legitimate concerns about Islamic extremism in France. Also, he has a Welsh wife. He knows Britain and thats a good thing.

Transport madness

Next week could see the Southern rail dispute reach a new pitch, with drivers set to join guards in a three-day walkout. Until now it has been RMT-led conductors who have opposed the introduction of driver-operated train doors. The decision by Aslef, the drivers union, to ballot its members over a stoppage appears to stem not from hostility to the changes in principle, but because of a perceived failure by Southern bosses to seek Aslefs agreement before pressing ahead. This sounds like a poor excuse for the disruption which will ensue.

If industrial action by both sets of workers goes ahead Southern services will come more or less to a standstill. What makes the situation worse is that the RMT has also announced 24-hour strikes by workers on the Piccadilly and Hammersmith & City lines: these are unrelated disputes but the action has been timed to coincide with the Southern stoppages. For many, travelling into and around London next week will be a thoroughly miserable experience. This is a test for the Mayor, Sadiq Khan, who pledged in his manifesto to reduce the number of days lost to industrial action on the Tube. How tough will he be?

Emotional purchase

The new eBay store on Regent Street will have four clear booths with biometric sensors and facial-recognition technology to register shoppers emotional reactions to images of various products. Thus they will identify the products which shoppers desire most. Surely the ultimate form of window shopping?
I n 1965, an engineer named Gordon Moore made a prediction. He was working in Silicon Valley and could see first-hand how computer chips were getting more powerful with every passing year. He boldly predicted that this trend would continue, and that for decades to come, the processing power of computers would double every two years or so.

Amazingly, this forecast has proved to be unerringly accurate over the past 50 years. So much so in fact that people in the technology industry dont even refer to it as a prediction. Instead they call it Moores Law.

When you double something repeatedly, the numbers involved quickly get extremely large, which is the reason why the smartphone in your pocket today is vastly more powerful than the computers that NASA used to put a man on the moon in 1969.

The inexorable march of Moores Law has had a huge impact on our economy. From retail to advertising, and banking to property, ever more advanced technologies are upending old ways of doing business.

According to Yale University academic Richard Foster, back in the 1920s before the dawn of the digital age  the average life-expectancy of a private-sector corporation was around 70 years. Today, at a time of accelerating technological progress, the average life span has fallen to just 15 years, as new technologies make it easier than ever before for start-ups to reach global audiences, scale rapidly and out-compete venerable big businesses.

Whats fascinating is that this disruptive innovation is reaching the field of international development and charity work. Right now theres a new generation of not-for-profit start-ups using technology to achieve great things often in a lower-cost and more effective way than big and old-fashioned (but well-meaning) aid organisations.

As in so many other areas, this is one where London is leading the world.

Look at Help Refugees, for example, which was founded here in September 2015. Its a great case study in how an entrepreneurial charitable start-up can have an outsized impact. Within just one month of launching, Help Refugees was the number-one provider of assistance to refugee camps in Calais and Dunkirk. Today its funding 50 projects across Europe and has been able to get support to refugees more quickly and cheaply than big established aid agencies.

'Theres a new generation of not-for-profit start-ups using technology to achieve great things'

Or check out Videre, which uses cutting-edge technology to create hidden recording devices so that human rights activists can record abuses and mobilise public pressure. They may only have a tiny team but their world-leading mastery of digital tools means theyre achieving weightier results than better-funded and better-known charities.

The same goes for Spitalfields-based Moonshot CVE, which is harnessing data analytics and algorithms to fight online extremism and combat the spread of terrorist ideologies.

No matter what sector youre in, running a start-up is never easy. For insurgents in international development, a major challenge is accessing the 12 billion annual government aid budget, because the lions share goes to the big organisations that know how to lobby politicians and navigate public-sector bureaucracy.

Thats a real shame. If we get behind Londons brilliant international development start-ups, our city can have an even bigger impact on the world around us. Thats not a prediction  its a fact.
T he best explanation for Donald Trumps win, as for the Brexit vote that preceded it, is the stupefied reaction of the ruling class. In New York, London, San Francisco and all the other cosmopolitan powerhouses of the modern world, the same cry went up: How the f*** did that happen?

That this years signature democratic events took our leaders  in politics, business, culture, technology and the media  so much by surprise reveals how out of touch they have become. But, more interestingly, it shows how detached they are from the consequences of their own actions.

This is the true story of 2016. It is a revolt against the authors of our ruling orthodoxy, who have benefited so greatly from it, by those who are its victims. For decades weve been living in a world run by bankers, bureaucrats and accountants. Regardless of who has actually been elected to government, politicians of all parties have become stooges for an inhuman technocratic agenda whose key features are globalisation, automation and centralisation. An arid and brutal benchmark of efficiency has been prioritised over everything else.

The people who designed this world rarely spend much time in it. They buy their way out of the public services that are now more cost effective but somehow seem to treat individual people as an afterthought.

With the priceless advantage of a good education, more often than not bolstered by the kind of family stability that is increasingly elusive for many, they nimbly navigate the disrupted world of the end of a job for life.

They do their shopping at the farmers market or charming local delicatessens because the neighbourhoods they like to inhabit tend to have been spared the dead hand of corporate and big-developer homogenisation that has so disfigured most communities.

Of course, there is no doubt that the key elements of our ruling orthodoxy have brought great benefits beyond a better quality of life for the ruling elite. Globalisation has helped not just the rich but billions of poor people. Automation has transformed untold aspects of daily life for the better. Even centralisation can point to some successes  for example, in the ability of governing authorities to fight threats that transcend local or national boundaries.

But the advocates of this orthodoxy, who can be found on the political Left, Right and centre, have believed too much of their own propaganda. Globalisation, automation and centralisation are not inevitable laws of nature. They are affected by policy choices. And those making the choices have been casual about their impact on real people.

One key statistic brings it home: in America the median household income today is lower than it was in 1999. So after eight years of Bush and eight of Obama half of US households are earning less. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer is not a slogan: it is a fact of life for 50 per cent of Americans.

This is why Bernie Sanders on the Left and Donald Trump on the Right struck a chord with their talk of a rigged system and the need for a political revolution to overthrow it. They are right. It is a rigged system. Its structures, rules and values have been beyond democratic challenge. For at least 30 years what we might describe as the Davos Agenda  cynical, cruel and corrupt  has shaped the modern world.

This is the world I have spent most of my professional career fighting. In 1997 I started a company, Good Business, to try and persuade big companies to improve their impact on society.

In 2005 I joined David Cameron in a mission to modernise the Tory Party and turn it into a crusading force for more human values such as localism and social responsibility.

And in 2010, I went to work in Downing Street to help implement our manifesto pledge that invited everyone to join the government of Britain in a radical plan for decentralising power.

But my overwhelming conclusion, after nearly 20 years of trying to persuade Government and business to change from the inside, is that they didnt really want to. The ruling orthodoxy, and the structures that underpin it, were too powerful.

The only answer, as I argued in 2015 in my book More Human, is a revolution. Little did I imagine then that it would start to happen so quickly.

But the minute David Cameron announced there would be a referendum on leaving the EU, I knew it would provide an opportunity for a rejection of the ruling orthodoxy that would have worldwide impact.

Once Donald Trump made his first speech as a presidential candidate, I could see that his campaign represented the kind of direct challenge to the status quo that working Americans were yearning for.

So I was not in the least surprised that Brexit passed and that Trump won. The question is: will these votes deliver the kind of change we need?

It certainly seems as if Theresa May understands the resentment against the ruling class and its agenda in a way that her predecessor did not. But, as ever in politics, the real test lies in what you do, not what you say. And it does not seem to me as if radical change is on the horizon. The Prime Ministers pig-headed embrace of a narrow, mean-spirited Brexit instead of an optimistic, pro-enterprise, outward-looking one, is deeply alarming.

By contrast, Trumps early appointments do seem to indicate a serious shake-up is in the offing. Particularly encouraging is his appointment of a leader of the school reform movement as education secretary.

But to really bring about the revolution we need I believe we need far deeper change than we have seen this year. We need a whole new set of people who believe in radical change to stand for office at every level and take back the levers of power  here in the UK, in Congress and state government in America, and in every other democracy too.

Then we can really start to overturn the orthodoxy that started with such great hope but has disappointed so many.

Steve Hilton is CEO of Crowdpac, a political crowdfunding and data site, and a former adviser to David Cameron; @stevehiltonx
Y our front page and leader on stamp duty underplayed the iniquitous effects of the tax [Stamp duty must not hit Londons prosperity, Comment, November 24].

Taking into account the legal costs, estate agents fees, removal costs and  above all  stamp duty, moving house can easily cost more than a years take-home pay.

It is not at all surprising, therefore, that many people either will not contemplate taking a job away from their local area or decide to put up with hours of additional commuting, with the adverse effect that has both on their own home lives and on Londons crowded transport system.

Stamp duty not only limits job mobility, it prevents people upgrading to larger accommodation when they need it, stops them downgrading when they no longer need the space and pushes the price of accommodation further beyond the reach of many Londoners.

Malcolm Bacchus

Stamp duty is a very blunt instrument and, as a generator of tax revenues, is subject to the vagaries of the housing market [10bn stamp duty black hole shock, November 24]. As you point out, stamp duty is simply a tax on mobility, which is the last thing we want.

Council tax is a much better way of taxing property, and appropriate reforms could bring greater and more stable tax revenues for the state. Indeed, City Hall should broker a deal with the Treasury that gives London full control of the council tax regime in the city.

That way, we can revalue Londons housing stock  ducked since 1991  and introduce additional council tax bandings for more valuable properties in the capital.

Roger Jarman

After the Chancellor revealed that an alarming slump in property sales has affected his tax-raising plans, it would be appropriate to revisit the current rate of stamp duty.

The changes made by George Osborne in 2014 have led to buyers being put off buying a higher-priced house because of how much it will cost them.

Without stamp duty, the market would become much more fluid, allowing prices to change more freely to reflect supply and demand.

While I am not suggesting that the Government abolishes it, Philip Hammond should consider reversing the increase, which has plunged our economy further into the abyss.

Nick Collins

Tax increases and trying to penalise high-earning foreigners will only impact housing sales negatively, and soon there will be massive problems in lettings too as the Chancellor attempts to increase tax on lettings.

One has to question why a landlord should have to pay for a reference and credit check for a would-be tenant when they might not actually sign the contract?

Phil Gosling

Now is the time for Blair to come back

It is a shame that Tony Blair seems to have ruled out a frontline political comeback, despite his talks with Nick Clegg over tackling Brexit. Id hoped that his return would mean that we finally have a political figure willing to stand up to Theresa May. For all of his failings, Blair is far more charismatic than Jeremy Corbyn and would hold the Government to account. Lets hope his campaign to stop us from leaving the EU strikes a chord with the public.

Martin Wells

I thought Nick Clegg had more integrity than to link up with Tony Blair to fight Brexit. Blair is well known for his contempt for any opinion that doesnt match his own, but it seems a bit desperate of Clegg, as a thoughtful liberal, to fight against what was a democratic vote.

Steve Lustig

So the opportunistic Tony Blair apparently believes that those who voted to remain in the EU should be able to make their case that remaining is in the countrys best interest. As far as I am concerned, they were able to do exactly that when they voted in the referendum.

Marian Wilson

Met must do more to stop child abuse

The report by Her Majestys Inspectorate of Constabulary highlighting fundamental deficiencies in the way the Metropolitan Police handles cases of child sexual abuse is alarming.

We know from our day-to-day work that there are hundreds of children and young people in London in urgent need of protection, and it is essential that effective systems are put in place to keep them safe from sexual abuse and exploitation.

Strategic leadership, proper training and sharing information are the fundamental principles of safeguarding, and Barnardos would welcome the opportunity to work more closely with the force to improve the way it handles cases. Most police officers are doing the best they can in the circumstances. However, it is clear that much more needs to be done to ensure that children arent put in danger.

Lynn Gradwell, director, Barnardos London

43p-a-day drug can save womens lives

I read with concern that thousands of women are missing out on drugs that could stop breast cancer spreading because it is unclear which health body pays for them. These drugs, called bisphosphonates, cost on average 43p a day. If they were given to all women who could benefit, one in 10 breast cancer deaths could be prevented.

A breast cancer diagnosis can be devastating for patients and their families. If there are drugs out there that can prevent women dying from this dreadful disease, they must be made routinely available.

Emma Levy

Dont let a foreign leader intervene

I would be disappointed if the Government appointed an ambassador on the say-so of a leader of another country. These are sovereign affairs.

Apart from Nigel Farage being completely unqualified for the role, have we forgotten that Farage himself criticised an intervention by President Obama during the EU referendum campaign? How odd it is now that such an intervention from Donald Trump is both acceptable and welcome when it suits.

Daniel Keech
Tinie Tempah has promised to shake up mens fashion week in London after confirming he will be putting on a show in January.

The rapper, 28, has been heavily involved in the industry, having started his own clothing label under his umbrella business name Disturbing London almost 10 years ago. He is also an ambassador for London Collections: Men, which takes place next month.

The event will be his first fashion show and he has teased fans by likening it to the spectacles put on by lingerie brand Victorias Secret.

I dont want to say too much but in January there is something special that will be happening in regards to myself and clothing, he said.

Tempah is behind Disturbing London

I just want to take some of the influence of things Ive seen not only in Italy but when Ive gone to Victorias Secret shows, just incorporating everything into one exciting show. It will happen in the second week of January. So look out for it - it will be very fun.

Tempah, who has the most UK number ones of any British rapper, said he is super loyal to London. He said: Theres almost a lure, because of Paris and Milan and Japan in fashion, and as a musician America and Germany, theres always a lure to go somewhere else. But Im very aware of the time that we are in and I think London is very much the epicentre of whats going on in the world.

He is eyeing up a break soon to settle down and start a family. He said: Ive been doing this for 10 years now. I look at the Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney who are still doing it in their seventies, and, but for the grace of God, Id love to be too. Settling down is part of that plan. Ill wait until Im in the right place before I have kids.

To celebrate the launch of the new Vype Pebble, Vype have collaborate with Tinie Tempah and his label, DSTRB LND, to design a bespoke range of exclusive t-shirts inspired by the Pebble product. To get your t-shirt from an exclusive pop-up store, visit www.Facebook.com/GoVype.
D onald Trump wove his way through the tables at Balthazar in New York to where hed spotted David Bailey sitting with a friend. How do you get such classy women, Bailey? he demanded of the photographer. Bailey, whose exes include Jean Shrimpton, Catherine Deneuve and Marie Helvin, replied: You wouldnt understand, Donald. Its all to do with humour.

Although Donalds all right, Bailey continues now. I made a few commercials for his airline years ago and he used to phone me every year to ask me to do some beauty contest. People call him stupid but hes the most powerful man in the world. I wish I was that stupid sometimes.

And its not as if Bailey has done badly. Hes behind some of the most enduring images of the past half-century. His portraits of Michael Caine, Salvador Dali, David Bowie, Twiggy and The Beatles are instantly familiar. And though 79 in a few weeks, hes still working. Currently hes doing 10 pages for GQ featuring politicians. Boris Johnson and Tom Watson have confirmed. Hes fairly sure Theresa May will too, and Jeremy Corbyn has said yes (but that fella, he smells a bit of George Orwell to me).

Id been warned he could be blunt and grumpy but actually hes welcoming and polite. He checks we havent met before, explaining that his memory gets him into trouble. I said to Cher the other day, Its great to photograph you, I havent done you for ages. She said, You silly f**ker. You did me six months ago.

He has a charming, filthy, phlegmy cockney cackle. Except when I decline a selfie, at which point he erupts. What do you mean, you dont want your picture taken with me, you faaaakin bitch?

I capitulate and his assistant Mark does the honours with my phone. Bailey and I stand with our arms around each other. Later, when I look at the photo, Im grinning like an idiot and he has a face like thunder.

While best known for his portraits, Im here to talk about his exhibition, NW1, and the accompanying limited-edition book of photographs he took in the Eighties of streets and buildings around Kings Cross, Camden Town and Primrose Hill, where he used to live and where he owned a house that would be worth about 6 million today.

His conversational style veers in all directions. We might start off on, say, his mother Gladys thinking Jean Shrimpton was stuck up because she asked for another bed sheet You only had a sheet on the bottom back then. Glad said Who does she think she is?  and finish on how all Netflixs series are the same.

For this he blames his profound dyslexia and ADHD. I got them all, and dyspraxia, and its why he always interrupts. If you dont let me interrupt Ill forget what I was saying and it might be the best part.

In his studio, assistants, including his son Fenton (one of three children with Catherine Dyer, his wife of some 30 years), are busy. Mortimer, his chow dog, is snuffling and grunting as Bailey feeds him crisps.

Theres Damien Hirsts first butterfly painting on one wall, and examples of Baileys own art, which feature Hitler a lot, perhaps understandable given the hours he spent hiding in the coal cellar as a child from Nazi bombs. Theres also bizarre bric-a-brac such as stuffed parrots, magnifying glasses, conkers and Mexican masks.

Hes had such an extraordinary life, I say, but in some respects hes as known for his girlfriends as his art. His reputation for womanising wasnt helped by Blow Up, the film supposedly based on him (never liked it). Was he really such a cad?

Well it was mostly models and actresses, he says. Its normal. If youre a doctor you sleep with nurses. If youre an airline pilot you probably sleep with air stewardesses. If youre a director youll probably marry a scriptwriter. Sorry not writers, script girls.

He claims not to be a chauvinist  I love women. Bought up by them  but still calls most women girl, including the Queen when he photographed her in 2014. And one of his assistants he calls Egypt, on account of the fact that shes half Egyptian.

Hes full of declamatory statements such as There are too many fat people around, or Fringes make people look stupid. Can you imagine Stravinsky or Picasso with a fringe? Or Einstein?

And obviously he plays up the cockney bad boy. For instance, he tells me how much he likes single words. Like moonglow. Its such a nice word, like a poem in itself. You dont have to say anything else. Magical. Also rainbow. Or c**t.

Born in 1938, he lived with his tough mother Glad, a machinist, and his Aunt Dolly, who was in the flat upstairs. A regular cockney, shed say things like Dave, you cant keep sharpening the pencil, mate. His father Bert, who trained as a tailor and ran a club, was absent most of the time scallywagging. The family moved around Leyton and East Ham.

He describes how his Great Aunt Mercy, turned her Nissen bomb shelter into a country cottage: Plant pots outside the rusty tin. It was like a Rupert Bear oasis. And how his grandmother cut off waistcoat buttons and put them in the food of those she didnt like. And how he saw a V2 knock off a chimney once and it crashed onto the railway. He once dragged his sister Thelma, 18 months his junior, under the table as the windows blew in. For about a week I was a hero. Then they forgot and I went back to being a fucking pain in the arse.

His anecdotes take in losing his virginity in a bombed-out building aged 16, brothels in Singapore while in the air force on national service, and also the grit of poverty-stricken life in the Fifties, when the East End was ruled by violent gangs like the Canning Town Boys and the Dagenham Boys and a Greek gang run by a boy who was deaf and dumb. They used to have knives, the Greek boys, but mostly it was just your fists.

And of course the Krays, whom he knew. He photographed Reggies wedding to Frances Shea, who later committed suicide. (Hes only done two weddings; the other was Jerry Halls to Rupert Murdoch.) Reggie was all right, he says. I liked Reg, still do. But you had to watch Ron. He was nuts. You never knew which way he was going to turn. He says Reggie wrote film scripts. There was always a priest in the stories. No romance. Just violence. He pauses. But you have to understand the time and place.

Until now he hasnt written an autobiography but hes thinking about it. What hed most like to do is make a film about his childhood before its too late. Hed film it in black and white, of course, the colour of photography. He says his love of black-and-white came from the cinema  theyd go sometimes five times a week because the ticket was cheaper than the shilling needed to feed the gas meter.

After a stint as a debt-collector for Isaac Wolfson and Great Universal Stores, he assisted the photographer John French and within a year was working for Vogue. Despite a long association, theirs is a tricky relationship, in part because he doesnt like to be told what to do.

If youre an artist youve got to have an ego, he says. Dont tell me Graham Greene didnt have an ego. (That said, he disputes Vogue editor Alexandra Shulmans assertion in her new book that he once compared himself to Piccasso).

The Sixties were when he really came into his own flat-sharing with Mick Jagger (his best man when he married Catherine Deneuve), knocking around with Terence Stamp. It wasnt my heyday, he snaps when I suggest it. Now is my heyday. Bloody cheek.

Museums that stay open late 1 /9 Museums that stay open late Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy is always home to the big hitters, from David Hockney to Ai Weiwei, and it stays open until 10pm every Friday and Saturday (normal hours 10am-6pm). Fraser Marr Tate Modern If you want your modern art fix and want to make sure you dont miss the Tates latest blockbuster exhibition, it is open until 10pm on Friday and Saturday (normal opening hours 10am-6pm). Tate Photography Wellcome Collection The Wellcome Collection bring science to the masses, and previous exhibitions on sex and drugs have had people queueing for hours. If you want a sneaky science fix in your evening, the Wellcome Collection stays open until 10pm on Thursdays (normal opening hours 10am-6pm, closed on Mondays). Wellcome Collection Barbican Centre's Art Gallery The Barbican Centre has so much going on that you can check out their latest exhibition and you might even fit in a theatre show afterwards. Their Art Gallery stays open until 9pm on Thursdays and Fridays (normal opening hours 10am-6pm). Barbican V & A Museum The V&A won 2016 Museum of the Year, and its exhibitions in recent years have been unmissable, from Alexander McQueen to Hollywood costumes. On Fridays, the haven of design and art is open until 10pm (normal opening hours 10am-.545pm). Victoria and Albert Museum, London Science Museum The Science Museum stays open late on the last Wednesday of every month. They host a themed evening full of talks, workshops, drinks and music until 10pm, and future lates will focus on topics as diverse as gaming, crime, and big data (normal opening hours 10am-6pm). Science Museum National Gallery The National Gallery, home to over 2,300 paintings that date from the mid-13th century to the 1900s, stays open until 9pm every Friday (normal opening hours 10am-6pm). The National Gallery, London British Museum The British Museum in Bloomsbury holds a vast collection of world art and artefacts, including the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles; its open until 8.30pm on Friday if you want to end your week with some world history (normal opening hours 10am-5.30pm). British Museum Natural History Museum The Natural History Museum stays open late on the last Friday of every month, until 10pm. Plenty of activities plus lots of drinks make it a not quite like your usual museum experience (normal opening hours 10am-5.50pm). Trustees of the Natural History Museum London

He reels off his talented contemporaries  including Terence Donovan and Stephen Duffy, two of the most intelligent men I ever met  but doesnt think much of the new crop, except fashion photographer Tim Walker, who he likes. Of Mario Testino he says: For some reason he thinks Im jealous of him. What would I be jealous of? Certainly not his talent.

I ask what he thinks of controversial US photographer Terry Richardson and he tells me that Richardsons father Bob was one of two men that tried to stick their tongues down my throat. The other one was Freddie Mercury. Both unexpected and uninvited but a compliment if you think about it.

Hes not a fan of Instagram  Were going back to puppies in slippers and windmills  and was bemused when he first heard the word selfie. I thought it was masturbation, he says. And I was right  in a way it is a form of masturbation.

He loves to be contrary. He calls Lucian Freud superficial, saying anyone who doesnt think that forgets he painted both Kate Moss and Jerry Hall even though he did ugly pictures of them.

Anyway he prefers Francis Bacon and David Hockney, who is a friend. If only he put all that effort he put into smoking into something else, he couldve been a genius.

Im interested in how Bailey stays healthy, and he wheezes, Healthy? Whats that? He doesnt take holidays (cant think of anything more boring) and works insanely hard, until two years ago only averaging three or four hours sleep a night.

But on the other hand he doesnt drink (he gave up about 30 or 40 years ago fearing alcoholism) and has been a vegetarian since his early teens after seeing on Christmas morning his pet chicken strung up over the scullery sink, blood dripping from its throat.

He and Catherine have recently moved house, from Kings Cross to Tufnell Park, but they spend a lot of time in Devon, too, in an extraordinary sounding long house that dates back to 1222 and used to belong to Francis Drake.

He wanted to buy in Devon because as a kid I used to like Enid Blyton and all that shit, but the house was also a gift for Catherine I bought it without telling her and we went down there and she said, Oh fuck someones bought it. I said, Yeah me. Its yours.

Thats romantic, I say, and he says I suppose and then, perhaps so as not to seem mushy, he adds: Got a good fuck that night.

Marriage he calls stupid; madness and difficult. You physically change, especially women with the menopause and everything. They become a different person. They almost become men, a lot of women. More tough and down to earth.

Is that bad? Im not saying its bad or good, but the person you are living with, they were different when you married them. Thats difficult for lots of people.

He starts telling me all about the menopause and how some women get it at 27. How come hes such an expert? I read the New Scientist! he says, affronted.

And then he needs to go because he has to sign 100 books, which is a shame because, for all his provocation, I could listen to his stories all day.

@chedwardes

David Bailey: NW1 is published December 1 by HENI Publishing at 125; henipublishing.com

Visit standard.co.uk/arts for the latest news and reviews from Londons arts scene

Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout
W hether youve put on background music whilst enjoying a dinner with friends, or complained about how the music is too high in a restaurant, a staggering 82% of us, according to a recent survey by Bookatable, dont link our appreciation of food with the music that accompanies it.

Professor Charles Spence, a gastro-physicist from the University of Oxford, and Axel Boman, a Swedish music producer, have pooled their expertise to showcase just how much of a difference the perfect playlist can alter how much we enjoy a meal.

Together with Bookatable, they have developed the Musical Menus Festival which will allow us to experience their findings first-hand. Previously only experienced by test subjects in labs or diners at The Fat Duck in Bray, where Heston Blumenthal's Sound of the Sea dish was developed alongside Spence, the festival will allow more people to get a taste for their research and how it changes the overall dining experience.

As a preview to the festival, I was able to discuss with Professor Spence about his work, the festival and experience it for myself aboard the R.S. Hispaniola, along Embankment, one of the venues hosting the festival which starts on 27th November. The waters were a little choppy which probably added an extra sensory element to proceedings.

The idea of 'sonic seasoning' is nothing new with Spence having been researching the topic from Oxford for well over a decade in his Crossmodal Research Laboratory. His work has led him to work with Blumenthal as well as commercial projects with companies such as British Airways where sounds were able to decrease the 'blandness' of aeroplane food. The idea of gastro-physics is one which Spence is completed enveloped in, his enthusiasm for the subject was plain to see, and it's infectious. I am not a chef by training he says, so I am interested in everything else to optimise the food. The lighting level, the wallpaper, whether or not there is a tablecloth... By the end of talking with him, I was beginning to question all sensory influences I put myself through when eating throughout the day, be they positive or negative.

"Adagio for Strings by Simon Barber is the worst way to start off a meal" Spence informed me. As an emotive piece of music, Barber's Adagio for Strings can actually suppress our appetites, in much the same way that a heartbroken romantic will swear off food. To this effect, Spence went on to describe how positive palate cleansers, in the form of bright, major-key melodies, can actually encourage our appetites and make for a more positive dining experience; a reason why food we enjoy on holidays can taste so much better at the time than when we bring it home. Boman was tasked with finding such pieces, which differ from venue to venue across the festival, and can be used for any type of food to increase our enjoyment of it.

Professor Charles Spence is revolutioning the way we eat with music / Fine Dining Lovers

When it comes to the main courses, Spence tells me how 'soundscapes' are needed to augment the enjoyment of what is served. Previously only tackled in situations where one dish is presented, the challenge during the festival was to link different menu choices to the sounds played alongside them. These soundscapes can be rolling waves for fish or even a piece by Bjork that brings to mind the land and summer, ideal for meat dishes. For our meal, the common link between the choices on offer was the creaminess of the mashed potato, or blue cheese sauce. The research for this is fresh off the press with the journal Appetite having just published Spence and his team's discoveries on 'creamy music': long, legato notes which evoke a sonal taste. Sure enough, upon tucking into the creamy components of our dishes, their texture and flavour was heightened.

As interested as I am about the research, being spoon-fed what we should be experiencing seemed to distract from the supposed psychology of it but, at first, we were offered our own opinions on what the music meant for us. Over a couple of glasses of wine, red and white, we were asked which we preferred according to the musical accompaniment. If youre wondering, the lightness of a Mozart Flute Concerto was well matched, I believe, with the white whereas the deeper tones of a more sombre piece matched up with the earthier flavour of the red wine. Maybe it was drinking on an empty stomach, but I did feel as if the enjoyment of the wine was increased by the choice of music on offer. Wine pairings appeared just as important as the ambient music.

Throughout the meal, I was able to experience the different sounds that Spence had explained. Higher notes correspond to sweeter flavours, with bitterness being conveyed by lower tones - both of which were played simultaneously during dessert. Here we were able to consciously pick which taste we wanted to bring to the fore in our minds and on our palates. His research is starting to take on new taste sensations and as well as the recently published creamy findings, spicy music is going to be published shortly.

London restaurants with 2 and 3 Michelin stars 1 /16 London restaurants with 2 and 3 Michelin stars The Araki, Mayfair ** 3 Michelin stars Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, Chelsea *** 3 Michelin stars Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, Mayfair *** 3 Michelin stars Claude Bosi at Bibendum, Chelsea ** 2 Michelin stars Patricia Niven Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, Knightsbridge, London ** 2 Michelin stars Le Gavroche, Mayfair ** 2 Michelin stars Greenhouse, Mayfair ** 2 Michelin stars Helene Darroze at The Connaught, Mayfair ** 2 Michelin stars The Ledbury, Notting Hill ** 2 Michelin stars Marcus, Belgravia ** 2 Michelin stars Sketch (The Lecture Room & Library), Mayfair ** 2 Michelin stars Umu, Mayfair ** 2 Michelin stars

Spence is keen to get his research into all aspects of eating but his primary concern at the moment is most definitely within restaurants. "All too often the music we hear in restaurants is from the duty manager's iPod. It maybe doesn't match the feel of the restaurant or the mood they want to create." Having previously only worked with classical and operatic pieces, by collaborating with Boman, Spence is now able to add more contemporary and unique pieces thanks to Bomans eclectic, vast record collection featuring, at some venues, Fleetwood Mac to Daft Punk songs, carefully curated to increase the diners enjoyment. Hopefully restaurateurs will be able to get inspired by this. And not just to be played in the restaurant, adding music to the kitchens so that chefs can experience what they are making in a new way. Its an opportunity for whole restaurants to change how they think and interact with the food they make and serve.

Swedish music producer, Axel Boman, has curated playlists that will elevate the restaurant experience / Kalle Gustafsson

The Musical Menus Festival looks set to change our perception of food and music in the capital. Not only is it opening up restaurants eyes to how they can ameliorate the dining experience for customers with music, something generally on offer and easy to alter, it allows us, the consumers, to see where the future of eating will take us. A variety of restaurants are getting in the spirit of the festival such as Marco Pierre White Oyster Bar and Heliot Steak House as well as the R.S. Hispaniola each with their own curated playlist which will allow you to enjoy your meal to its full potential.

I asked Spence whether we would be able to use his research to improve our encounters with hospital food, or using tracks to help picky eaters more open to new foods. For the time being, he is looking at restaurants and then onto coffee shops and into the home with off the shelf playlists becoming available, but his future vision is bigger: perhaps taking it to more extreme environments like space. It seems that this is just the start of a culinary revolution.

The Musical Menus Festival takes places across London from the 27th November at Cigalon, Heliot Steak House, Hilton Double Tree, Marco Pierre White Wheelers Oyster Bar and Grill, RAW La Suite West and the R.S. Hispaniola and can be booked via bookatable.co.uk.

Fiona MacConnacher completed her Diplome de Patisserie at Le Cordon Bleu Paris. Follow her on Instagram @thecapedpatissiere
U ntil the day he found himself on the verge of sleeping rough, Ben Wardlaw thought homelessness was something that happened to other people.

Not to Ben, whose father was a banker and mother a school governor. Who grew up in a five-bedroom house in west London.

Who went to public schools and spent his childhood holidays sailing Toppers on the River Dart with the Dittisham Sailing Club.

Yet there he was, aged 19, waiting for a council worker to decide whether his condition was serious enough to warrant him being moved into temporary accommodation.

Privileged upbringing: Ben grew up in west London

I felt like my whole life was in this mans hands, says Ben, now 22, reflecting on how close he was to the edge and what a path without Centrepoints involvement might have looked like.

He had struggled with mental health issues his entire life. But as he became tall and strong in adolescence, the terrible rages he was prone to grew more serious.

People described it as a red mist but it wasnt like that, he says.

Ben's story 1 /12 Ben's story Ben's story Ben with his Mum and Dad as a baby Ben's mum Catherine Ben as a young boy Ben enjoyed many family holidays as a child Ben's story On a family holiday in New South Wales, Australia, in 2009 Ben at Hamilton Island in Queensland, Australia, in 2009 Ben with his dad on White Haven Beach Ben said his mental health issues put a strain on his relationship with family members Ben, now 22, is telling his story in support of the Standard's Christmas campaign

It was like somebody flicked a switch and robbed me of my free choice. Anything could set me off: it could be as simple as someone brushing past me in the school corridor; I would flip out and beat them up.

As I got older there was a real risk of a criminal record, prosecutions; of people getting seriously hurt.

His loving family were most in the firing line. He remembers the last time he was violent.

Homeless Helpline: Centrepoint want a freephone number for young people facing homelessness

He was in the kitchen, arguing with his mother. His younger sister came in and tried to break it up.

He grabbed her by the hair and tried to drag her up the stairs, while she and his mother screamed at him to stop.

Back in his room he broke down, like he says he did after 99.9 per cent of his rages.

Young and homeless: Ben was eventually asked to leave by his parents

That was a defining moment, where I said, Im never going to let that happen again.

But it wasnt the final incident. Three months or so later he locked his family out of the house, refusing to let them in unless they signed a contract he had written stating they could no longer tell him what to do.

The police were called and broke back in. For his parents, scared for the safety of Bens sister and two brothers, it was the final straw.

Centrepoint helpline pkg

I was a threat, says Ben. My parents had to make the choice between their ideals and the safety of my sister and brothers. They said, Look, we cant have you in the house.

It was awful. It sucked for everyone involved. I feel ashamed, thinking back on it. It was an awful, lonely time, and it will define the rest of my life.

For a while he sofa-surfed, staying with his grandmother and godmother. His mental health grew worse.

Unlikely homeless: Ben ended up in a Centrepoint hostel

Eventually, his godmother drove him into central London and he presented himself at mental health services at Charing Cross Hospital, where he was assessed by the crisis psychiatric care team.

A council worker stayed late to make sure Bens case was heard and decided his condition made him especially vulnerable to homelessness.

He was placed in temporary accommodation.

At first you dont want to admit it, he says.

Homelessness means admitting defeat, admitting that youve failed to do the simple  seemingly simple  thing of putting a roof over your head.

Centrepoint followed: At first he stayed in a high-support hostel, before moving into a low-support facility.

In total he was a resident for about 15 months. They fought his corner, found him therapy.

Centrepoint: Sade's story

He got involved in Centrepoint Parliament, which helps homeless young people find a voice. With their help he has learned to manage his anger better.

He is now living on his own in a studio flat in west London. He says his relationship with his family is improving.

Its not what we want it to be and it never will be, he says.

"There are some things neither side can forgive.

He is telling his story for the Standards Christmas Appeal because he believes the young and homeless helpline could be a lifeline for those who, like him, find themselves on the edge.

A helpline could ensure that those young people who need help get it, he says. It could save lives.

He is starting a business, a YouTube channel offering advice to men on how to be a modern gentleman.

He says he sees himself as a kind of vigilante, redistributing the secrets of his privileged upbringing: Theres an element where I think, Im going to take your thing and make it everyone elses thing. Its high time you had some uncertainty.

Ben, 22, is speaking out in support of the homeless helpline

He still sails when he can. I love the freedom it gives you, he says.

There are rules, but theyre governed by common sense.

"You decide when to tack, when to reef, whether to take it easy or go out in a Force 6 wind and challenge yourself. Out there, everything is your choice.

The Evening Standard's Homeless Helpline appeal is raising money for the Centrepoint Helpline, a brand new support service that will save young people from ending up on the streets.

To donate please visit our Just Giving page.
T hese are the shocking injuries inflicted on a pensioner who was savagely beaten and left for dead in the street in west London.

Richard Merry, 65, from Wimbledon, was viciously assaulted by a man near North Ealing station in the early hours of the morning.

He suffered brain injuries, cracked ribs, damaged eye sockets, a laceration to his left ear and cuts to his head and face.

Workmen discovered Mr Merry, a former painter and decorator, lying on a grass verge nine hours after he was attacked in Station Road outside the Eden Court apartment block.

The pensioner, who police described as a "born and bred Londoner", remains in hospital more than two months after the assault, which happened between 2am and 3am on September 13.

CCTV: Police want to speak to this man in connection with the assault

Scotland Yard has now released a photograph of Mr Merrys horrific injuries as part of an appeal to trace his attacker.

Officers also released a CCTV image of a man they want to speak to in connection with the assault.

Detectives from Ealing CID are appealing for information from anyone who can identify the man shown in the image, or anyone who may have been with Mr Merry prior to the incident.

Richard Merry, 65, shortly after he was admitted to hospital / Metropolitan Police

Police said CCTV enquiries have shown the victim appearing to have an argument with an unknown man near to Eden Court.

DC Joe Cato of Ealing CID said: "Mr Merry was the victim of a vicious assault and then left outside to be found hours later.

"He has agreed to be named, and for an image of his injuries to be released, to support our appeal for witnesses and information.

"I would urge anyone who can recognise the man shown in the CCTV still, or has other information that may assist the inquiry, to call police."

Anyone with information that may assist the investigation should call Ealing CID via 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit www.crimestoppers-uk.org.
A fantasist with a dangerous obsession with ambulance services posed as a paramedic to try to steal confidential papers from inside the headquarters of the London Ambulance Service, a court heard.

Andrew Vincent, 30, conned his way into the Waterloo building, trying to get hold of a document containing call signs and emergency contact numbers.

But he was rumbled when staff realised he was a notorious fantasist with a history of pretending to be a paramedic. He had been caught on film by Channel 5s Police Interceptors in 2010 driving a fake ambulance  with blue flashing lights and fluorescent markings  pretending he was rushing to an emergency.

At Blackfriars crown court Vincent admitted fraud by false representation for conning his way into the LAS headquarters on April 21 last year.

Prosecutor Ivan Clarke said: The defendant has a dangerous obsession with the London Ambulance Service and ambulance services generally.

The resource file ... is a highly confidential document containing numbers for LAS staff, information about where they are located, details of community response schemes and call signs, and emergency incident numbers.

Obsessed: Andrew Vincent

In the hands of someone intending to masquerade as a member of the ambulance service, that would assist them and in that situation there is always the danger of harm to others.

The court heard Vincent, who used a string of aliases, convinced LAS security staff to let him into the building at 8pm and then wandered the halls claiming he was looking for a staff newsletter.

He then asked for the 70-page resource file, pretending to work for the patient transport service in New Malden and claiming his copy was out of date.

However, when a suspicious manager asked to see his ID, Vincent claimed he was new and had not been given his credentials yet.

The manager was also tipped off by a colleague that Vincent might be a man who on previous occasions had impersonated a paramedic. He was reported to police, who discovered a London Ambulance service hi-vis jacket and official epaulets, as well as the name tag of a patient transport site manager at his home in Basingstoke, Hampshire.

Recorder Tom Nicholson-Pratt told Vincent: You cant go around pretending you are involved with the ambulance services in any way, shape, or form  do you understand that?

Vincent was given a 12-month community order with 120 hours of community service. He was also banned from ambulance service buildings under a restraining order.
A man has been rushed to hospital after he was stabbed in the neck outside a Primark branch in a packed shopping street in east London.

Emergency services including police, ambulances and a London Air Ambulance raced to Exchange Street in Romford at around 2.15pm after reports of a violent fight between two men.

Horrified Christmas shoppers told how one man was stabbed in the neck in front of them as officers taped off a section of the street outside Primark.

A Met spokesman said a man in his 30s was being treated for a stab wound to the neck and has been taken to an east London hospital.

An update on the mans condition was not immediately available.

Scotland Yard said no arrests had been made and enquiries continue.

George Mark, a radio apprentice at Time 107.5 FM, told the Standard around 10 police officers were stationed in the street when he arrived on Monday afternoon.

He said: "There were crowds of shoppers who had obviously seen the police cordoning the scene off as they walked past.

"It didn't seem as though anybody was scared although everybody there were trying to squeeze information out of the police at the scene.

Jill Hartwell posted on Facebook: "In Romford doing Christmas shopping and police everywhere someone has got stabbed just been airlifted by helicopter."

Another man tweeted: "So a man just got stabbed in the neck in front of me in Romford. What a town to live in."

Police in Havering are investigating and have appealed for witnesses to come forward.

Anyone with information can call Havering CID via 101 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111
B anking chiefs are calling for new legal powers to help them stop terrorists and other criminals from chanelling funds through the City  after revealing that as much as 50 million is already frozen in accounts as suspected proceeds of crime.

In evidence to Parliament, the British Bankers Association says its members have a strong interest in helping the authorities investigate criminal financing and regard the problem as a very important issue.

But it warns existing legislation makes it too difficult for banks to share information about their customers accounts with each other. It says this is hindering efforts to identify illegal activity by making it harder to put together jigsaw pieces that would identify money launderers, fraudsters and terrorists.

The BBA, which represents 200 banks managing 7 trillion in UK assets, wants MPs to lower the threshold for intelligence-sharing and make it easier for institutions to help each other spot criminal transactions.

Making a submission to MPs examining the Governments new Criminal Finances Bill, it also revealed banks have frozen thousands of accounts because of suspicions they are linked to criminality worth an estimated total of between 30 and 50 million.

The stock of suspended accounts is expected to grow by 2.5 million a year. The BBA added: The financial sector can... support law enforcement.

However, members have strong concerns that the powers do not go as far as necessary. Greater intelligence-sharing powers would aid the prevention and detection of financial crime [and] create a far stronger intelligence picture to allow industry and law enforcement to protect the public from fraud, and better disrupt terrorist financing and organised crime.

At the moment banks are only able to divulge information about a customers transactions if concerns are sufficient to trigger a suspicious activity report to law enforcers. The BBA says this threshold is too high.

Anthony Browne, chief executive of the BBA, told MPs: If there was activity just below the formal level of suspicion, if [banks] could at that stage share intelligence like two pieces of a jigsaw, they could find out that something happening in bank A is also happening in bank B. That could ... enhance intelligence-sharing.

Mules and others who are used to disguise money laundering including the proceeds of fraud or corruption could also be more easily detected, they suggest.

The bankers concede that increased sharing of customers data will raise concerns about civil liberties, but say these can be addressed by stating clearly in the new legislation details of what information can be shared and when.
T he Government is facing a legal battle over whether it can take the UK out of the single market following Brexit.

A pro-single market think tank, British Influence, has said it is writing to Brexit Secretary David Davis to inform him that it is seeking a judicial review of the Government's stance that the UK's membership to the European Economic Area (EEA) will end when it leaves the EU.

Lawyers argue that leaving the EEA is not automatic under Article 50 and would only happen if Britain triggers Article 127 of the EEA Agreement, the BBC reported.

Professor George Yarrow, chairman of the Regulatory Policy Institute and emeritus professor at Hertford College, Oxford, said: "There is no provision in the EEA Agreement for UK membership to lapse if the UK withdraws from the EU.

"The only exit mechanism specified is Article 127, which would need to be triggered."

If the courts back the legal challenge, Parliament could get the final say over EEA membership, and MPs could vote to ensure that Britain stays in the single market until a long-term trading relationship with the EU is agreed.

Brexit: Corbyn accuses May of having 'no plan'

At the least it would mean a lengthy legal process that could delay the Government's Article 50 negotiations with the EU.

Conservative MP and Brexiteer Dominic Raab slammed the challenge, saying: "Rather than coming up with new legal wheezes to try and frustrate the will of the people, these lawyers should be working with us to make a success of Brexit."

Nigel Farage is given Ferrero Rochers as a thank you for Brexit

A Government spokesman said: "As the UK is party to the EEA Agreement only in its capacity as an EU Member State, once we leave the European Union we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA.

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"The referendum result will be respected and we intend to invoke Article 50 no later than the end of March next year."
A pro-Brexit march on the Supreme Court which was to be led by Nigel Farage has been cancelled amid concerns it might be hijacked by far-right groups.

The Leave.EU demonstration was due to take place on December 5, the day the court's judges will consider a Government appeal to the ruling that Parliaments approval is required to trigger Article 50.

Invoking the Article will trigger the formal process of Britain leaving the EU.

Up to 100,000 people were expected to take part, according to Mr Farage, marching from Trafalgar Square along Whitehall, before gathering in Parliament Square near the court building.

However Leave.EU has announced plans will not go ahead following reports groups like the EDL, BNP and Britain First would also attend.

'Let's get even': Nigel Farage says there will be riots if Brexit is blocked

A statement on the campaign group's website said: "Unfortunately, our attention has been drawn to the possibility of far-right extremist groups hijacking what we intended to be a peaceful protest of the High Court's decision on Article 50.

"Furthermore, we have received information that several pro-EU groups were planning a counter protest and our fear is that things could get out of hand.

"The safety and well being of our supporters is of paramount importance.

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"With this in mind and after much consideration, it is with regret that we have had no other option but to cancel the event."
A row erupted today over whether the Liberal Democrats are within striking distance of beating Zac Goldsmith in the Richmond Park by-election on Thursday.

A LibDem analysis has put their candidate Sarah Olney within three to four points of Mr Goldsmith who is standing as an independent.

And Kit Malthouse, Conservative MP for North West Hampshire and a former deputy mayor for London, told BBC radios The Westminster Hour: The word we hear is that its tight. It will come down to the line. Lets hope that Zac prevails.

But the Conservative leader of Richmond Council, Lord True, one of Mr Goldsmiths allies, rejected the analysis, saying: These are the usual claims from the LibDem national by-election machine - thats not what we are finding on the doorstep.

Challenger: Lib Dem Sarah Olney / Alex Lentati

He believes that many voters are still backing Mr Goldsmith because of his record as a local MP and sticking to his pledge to resign from Parliament if the Government supported a third runway at Heathrow.

We are confident that will be rewarded on Thursday, he added.

Mr Goldsmith stressed he had held 50 public meetings during the campaign and thousands of conversations.

Zac Goldsmith on Heathrow airport decision

He added: Despite an unprecedented Lib Dem bombardment, the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

But Ms Olney insisted it was neck and neck, and she stressed: Every vote will count.

A Lib Dem win send a clear message that Theresa May should rein in her hard Brexit agenda.
T heresa May has revealed plans to deploy 150 troops to Poland to deter Russian aggression after talks with her Polish counterpart at Downing Street.

The Prime Minister said soldiers from the Catterick-based Light Dragoons and armoured vehicles will be sent to Orzysz in north-east Polish from April.

The move would bring British troops, close to the border with Kaliningrad, which houses Russias Baltic fleet and was sparked as a response to Russian aggression on the eastern flank of Europe.

It comes following talks between Mrs May and Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo in which the leaders pledged to become "even closer allies" amid Britain impending departure from the EU.

Summit talks: Mrs May said 150 UK troops would be sent to Poland from next April / EPA/ANDY RAIN

On Monday, Mrs May announced a wave of new UK-Polish collaborations across the fields of business, security, defence and academic research.

She said: I have reiterated my plan to guarantee the rights of Poles and other Europeans currently living in the UK, so long as the rights of British citizens living across the EU are guaranteed.

"I hope we can reach an early agreement on this issue, providing certainty for Polish citizens here and British people living in Europe.

This has been an excellent summit. We are two leaders determined to make the most of the relationship between our countries.

Close relationship: Mrs May said she wanted to strengthen ties between the two countries / PA

"I firmly believe that if we all approach Brexit in the same constructive and positive manner, then we can secure the right outcome for the United Kingdom and for our European neighbours too.

"As we embark on that new chapter, I look forward to further strengthening the relationship between the United Kingdom and Poland - two resolute and strategic allies working together for the benefit of both our countries."

Mrs Szydlo stressed that there had been no negotiations over Brexit during the Downing Street talks, as these would be a matter for the UK and the EU and would be initiated only when Article 50 was tabled.

Gratitude: Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydo said thank you to the UK for its response against alleged hate crimes towards Polish people in the wake of Brexit / EPA

But she said that Warsaw would insist on "reciprocity" in the rights and privileges accorded to UK citizens in Europe and EU citizens in Britain. And she said that she hoped Brexit would result in new relations between Britain and its former EU partners based on "mutual trust".

She said: "Today, we spoke about Brexit as a certain fact and outcome of a decision made by British citizens in a referendum.

"We are all wondering how this process will go. We are all trying to decide about our priorities and objectives but the negotiations will be held between the EU and the UK.

Summit: Politicians from the UK and Polish Governments meet in Downing Street / PA

"Poland - as a member of the EU - considers it very important what objectives and what priorities will be decided. We want the new relations to be built on mutual trust.

"As for reciprocity in terms of the rights and privileges, they have to be negotiated and there needs to be the right balance. This is the condition that will certainly be brought up by Poland."

Mrs Szydlo thanked the UK for its response to "very sad" alleged hate crimes against Poles after the Brexit vote, including the killing of Arkadiusz Jozwik in Harlow, Essex.

The Polish PM said: "I would also like to thank for the support given by the British Government to those members of the Polish community who have suffered after the very sad incident in hate crimes in the United Kingdom.

"You reacted immediately and we continue working together in order to make sure that the Polish community is safe."
T heresa May will not attend the funeral of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro, Government sources revealed today.

Boris Johnson is also deciding to give the funeral a miss, with a junior Foreign Office minister likely to represent the UK.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn looks likely to go although his office said he has not yet received an invitation.

The funeral has divided the world, with many left-wing leaders in South America set to attend but with senior Republicans demanding that Barack Obama stay at home.

Cubans around the world react to death of Fidel Castro

Fidel Castro - In pictures 1 /25 Fidel Castro - In pictures Castro speaks to a crowd in February 1959 during his triumphant march to Havana after the fall of the Batista regime AP Fidel Castro was born on 13 August 1926 Rex Features Castro, the young anti-Batista guerrilla leader, is seen in 1957 with his brother Raul, left, and Camilo Cienfuegos, right, while operating in the Mountains of Eastern Cuba AP Cuban leader Castro insisted on having a turn batting at the opening of a baseball tournament in Havana Getty Images Castro meeting in Harlem with Malcolm X in 1960 Rex Features Jose Llanusa, director of the Institute of Sports, Physical Education and Recreation, Castro and President of the Republic Osvaldo Dorticos Torrado in August 1962. They are watching a performance st the gymnastic festival in Havana, Cuba, in which 80,000 people participated Getty Images Fidel Castro Rex Features Cuban leader Castro with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in Cuba in 1976 Rex Features Castro speaks with Alberto Juantorena and Teofilo Stevenson (2nd right) as the Olympic Cuban delegation arrives back in Havana in August 1976 AFP/Getty Images Castro greets former Pope John Paul II at the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana in 1998 AP Castro gestures at a speaking event in 1999 as he explains that he does not understand why he is not blind after all the camera flashes he has received in Havana AP Castro raises his brother's hand, Cuba's President Raul Castro, as they sing the anthem of international socialism during the 6th Communist Party Congress in Havana in 2011 AP Giving a speech Press Association Castro attends the last day of the 7th Cuban Communist Party Congress in Havana in April 2016 AP Castro, delivers a speech with a poster of revolutionary leader Ernesto Che Guevara on the background, during the opening of the 1st ALBA Games on 17 June 2005 at Havana's Coliseum AFP/Getty Images Argentinian ex soccer star Diego Maradona talks to Castro before recording the footballer's TV programme "The 10's Night" in Havana on 27 October 2005 AFP/Getty Images Castro and Jimmy Carter during the state funeral for former prime minister Pierre Trudeau on 03 October 2000 in Montreal, Canada Rex Features Raul and Fidel Castro in1996 Rex Features African National Congress (ANC) President Nelson Mandela greets Cuban Olympic boxer Teofilo Stevenson on 25 July 1991 in Havana with Castro AFP/Getty Images

Mrs May has not commented on Castros death that was announced on Saturday morning.

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But Mr Corbyn hailed the revolutionary as a massive figure in the history of the whole planet.
T he leader of the Womens Equality Party today called for major reform of the tax system to support work whether it was paid or unpaid, visible or invisible.

Sophie Walker said the Government must create an economy which addressed historic inequalities which so often penalised women.

Millions of women around the country combine caring responsibilities  for children and elderly parents  with work and many struggle to make ends meet. London parents face the highest childcare costs in the country.

At the partys first conference, Ms Walker claimed that benefit cuts had overwhelmingly impacted on women, while raising the threshold at which tax is paid benefited men most.

It is a gender-blind economy that prioritises raising the personal allowance on income tax, benefiting a very small group of people, most of whom are men, she said.

And for the handful of women that do stand to gain, their momentary freedom is tempered by a lifetime of reduced benefits, lost pension contributions and shrinking public services.

Chancellor Philip Hammond announced in his Autumn Statement that the income tax-free personal allowance will go up from 11,000 to 12,000 over the course of this Parliament. Ms Walker called for a single flat rate of 25p for pension tax relief  there is currently a second, higher rate  which she said would provide a boost for up to 95 per cent of working women.

She also criticised the Governments handling of changes to the state pension age to bring women into line with men, which have left some in financial limbo on the verge of retirement.

The new party has called for an enormous cash injection into Scandinavian-style universal childcare, its main policy pledge, which experts claim could boost economic growth.

However, it faced some criticism that it represented primarily white, middle-class women, who made up the majority of 1,500 delegates. Ms Walker admitted that some women of other backgrounds might feel the party was not for them and pledged to make increasing diversity a litmus [test] of her leadership.
S low internet speeds, noisy eaters and moaners are among the top workplace irritations, a new study has revealed.

Research commissioned by technology giant Samsung asked 1,000 office workers to list their biggest gripes while they were at work.

The study showed most complaints came as a result of eating, computer problems and temperature inside the office.

According to the survey, 83 per cent of workers said noisy and messy eaters were "distracting" while 84 per cent said moaning was one of their biggest bugbears.

The survey suggested that distractions caused by colleagues meant workers lost on average 22 minutes each day.

Top 5 workplace bugbears Crashing computers and slow internet No access to emails Moaning Eating loudly or messily Being too hot or too cold

Workplace environment also featured high-up on the list with more than 80 per cent saying being too hot or cold and uncomfortable seats were major gripes.

However technology was deemed the greatest workplace annoyance with 92 per cent stating slow internet speeds and faults with their computers annoyed them.

Workers estimated technology problems meant they lost 30 minutes of working time on average each day.

In total the survey suggested that workplace irritations cost workers five-and-a half hours of working time a week.

The study found that these frustrations could push employees to quit, with a third of those surveyed saying they left a job because of an annoying colleague and 20 per cent because of the work environment.

The survey, which was conducted by Censuswide, questioned 1,000 workers from small UK companies with under 250 employees.
D onald Trump launched a fresh attack on his defeated White House rival Hillary Clinton today, alleging serious voter fraud in states won by the Democrat in a bitter and angry Twitter rant.

Any hopes that hostilities between the pair would cease following the billionaires presidential election victory were dashed as he launched a social media tirade alleging Mrs Clinton won millions of votes illegally.

The row has put plans for a dignified transition of power to Americas controversial choice as its next Commander-in-Chief into serious jeopardy.

Although the billionaire lost the popular vote by more than two million, he claims he would have won if the count had been above board.

Hillary Clinton: the Democrat won the popular vote but not the electoral college / PA

The diatribe was the latest in a string of outbursts since Mrs Clintons camp joined Green Party candidate Jill Stein in her call for a recount in three major Electoral College states; Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan, which were all won by the Republican.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Mr Trump claimed as he raged against the Clinton camp through his Twitter account in a slew messages.

Mr Trump insisted there had been serious voter fraud in three states won by Mrs Clinton.

Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isnt the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem! he tweeted.

It would have been much easier for me to win the so-called popular vote than the Electoral College in that I would only campaign in 3 or 4  states instead of the 15 states that I visited.

"I would have won even more easily and convincingly (but smaller states are forgotten)! Mr Trump added just before flying back to New York from his sunshine retreat in Mar-a-Lago, Florida.

Although Mr Trump tweeted that he won the Electoral College vote by a landslide, the 290 to 232 tally in his favour could, in theory, be reversed if wrongdoing is proved in the three states where a recount is being demanded.

Earlier yesterday, the president-in-waiting blasted Mrs Clinton as a hypocrite for backing the recount campaign that he has condemned as sad and a scam.

On Saturday, the Clinton campaigns general counsel Marc Elias said his team would participate in any recount request by Jill Stein - who raised more than $4 million in as many days to finance the challenge - to ensure the process proceeds in a manner that is fair to all sides.


N ine people were injured after an attacker ploughed his car into pedestrians at a US university campus before stabbing people with a butcher's knife.

Ohio State University told students to "run, hide and fight" and the campus was put on lockdown after reports of the attack.

The suspect was shot and killed by police. He was later named as a Somali-born student at the university, 18-year-old Abdul Razak Ali Artan.

Officers - including the FBI - are investigating whether it was a terrorist attack, police chief Kim Jacobs said.

Nine people were taken to hospital after being stabbed, hit by a vehicle or otherwise injured, university and hospital officials said.

Attacker: Police respond to reports of an active shooter. / AP

The universitys emergency department had initially tweeted there was an active shooter on the Columbus campus at around 10am local time - 3pm in UK time - on Monday.

But later police confirmed an attacker had driven a car into a group of people onto the pavement.

He started attacking people with a knife but was then shot in less than a minute by a police officer who was nearby.

Student Nicholas Flores reacts as police respond to an attack on campus. / AP

Student Martin Schneider said he heard the car's engine revving. He added: "I thought it was an accident initially until I saw the guy come out with a knife."

Angshuman Kapil, a graduate student, was outside the building when the car barreled onto the sidewalk.

"It just hit everybody who was in front," he said. "After that everybody was shouting, `Run! Run! Run!"'

At around 4.30pm UK time - one and a half hours after the initial reports came in - the university said the scene was now secure.

At least two people were being treated for stab wounds, four were injured by the car and two others were being treated for cuts, university officials said.

Asked whether it could have been a terrorist act, the police chief said: "I think we have to consider that it is."

All classes for the rest of the day were cancelled and roads around the scene remained closed.

Shock: Students leave buildings surrounding Watts Hall as police respond to reports of a shooting on campus. / AP

Dozens of police cars, officers, ambulances and fire trucks were seen outside the university buildings as students reported hearing commotion.

Some witnesses shared photos from the scene, including one of a person lying on the ground.

Eight injured: The scene is still on lockdown and roads around the campus are shut. / AP

In follow up tweets, the university told students to "continue to shelter" and wait for directions from police.

They later tweeted a photo of the police officer who had shot the suspect.

Ohio State University is in Colombus, in the north-east of the US. The campus has nearly 60,000 students and is one of the country's biggest universities.

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One student, Wyatt Crosher, told CNN he heard gunfire which sounded as if it came from a class building.

The instruction to "run, hide, fight" is a protocol for active shooter situations, the Associated Press reported.

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Surveillance photos showed Artan in the car by himself just before the attack, but investigators were looking into whether anyone else was involved, the campus police chief said.

The university confirmed it would be reopening on Tuesday with classes resuming.
A Ugandan student has told how she was stopped from going to class because her skirt was too short.

Joaninne Nanyange, a law student in the country's capital, Kampala, posted a picture of her outfit on Facebook saying she was barred from class because her knee-length skirt was distracting to men and boys.

Ms Nanyange said that on arriving at her law faculty she noticed there was policewoman at the door.

She wrote on Facebook: The uniformed woman flagged me down and being the law abiding citizen that I am, I stopped.

She asked me to pull my skirt down to see how far down it could go. I burst into laughter. Her request didnt make sense.

Ms Nanyange said when she told the woman she couldnt pull her skirt down any further she was told she could not enter campus.

When she protested, the woman told her that wearing a skirt like that might attract the male students and bar them from concentrating.

Speaking to the BBC programme World Have Your Say Ms Nanyange said: What I found most ridiculous was that my skirt really wasnt that short for any standard, even legal profession standards.

And secondly, the reason they gave meit wasnt about the fact that your profession requires you to have this length of skirt, it was about the fact that if you go with this length youll distract the men and boys.

That is what I found most shocking and more infuriating.

Ms Nanyange linked the incident to wider issues of womens rights in Uganda saying an institute of higher education should know better.

Uganda came 163rd out of 188 countries on the 2014 United Nations Gender Equality Index.
A young Syrian girl who was sent the Harry Potter books by JK Rowling has narrowly avoided death after her home was destroyed by bombing.

During heavy shelling in eastern Aleppo last night, Bana Alabed tweeted she thought we was going to die, saying one of her tweets would be her "last message".

By the end of the bombardment she said: "Tonight we have no house, it's bombed & I got in rubble. I saw deaths and I almost died."

On Monday morning, the seven-year-old, who has amassed 134,000 followers on Twitter, said the seige, by pro-Bashar al-Assad Syrian forces, was still going on.

She tweeted: "Under heavy bombardments now. In between death and life now, please keep praying for us."

Her messages have been retweeted by JK Rowling.

Bana, who lives with her brothers, mother and father, was sent an e-book by the author after her mother messaged asking how her daughter could get hold of the Harry Potter novels.

On her Twitter account, which is managed by her mother, the little girl has been sharing pictures and videos of the bomb damage in Aleppo for the last two months.

Talking to the BBC last month, mother Fatemah said her daughter "wants the world to hear our voice".

She said: "She says, 'Mum, why does nobody help us?'

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"She saw her friend killed, and our house bombed. She saw her school bombed. So that affected her."
U sain Bolt caused a stir as he arrived for the premiere of his new documentary with a group of nearly-nude dancers.

The Jamaican sprinter made quite an entrance in Leicester Square on Monday night as he posed with models and dancers wearing sheer bodysuits and elaborate headdresses.

Creating a party vibe in central London, they danced down the long red carpet at the carnival-inspired premiere.

After chatting to fans outside the Odeon in central London, 30-year-old Bolt seemed to be in his element as the faced the wall of photographers.

Party time: Usain Bolt at the London premiere of his new film (Matt Crossick/PA Wire) / PA

The record-breaking runner was also joined by his family at the glitzy world premiere of Benjamin Turner and Gabe Turners brand new film.

His parents and biggest supporters Jennifer and Wellesley Bolt were guests of honour at the screening, as well as his best friend and PA Nugent Walker.

Sean Paul and Tallia Storm also put in appearances, while Liam Payne walked the red carpet without other half Cheryl.

I Am Bolt - trailer

Posting a photo of Bolts proud parents, the films official Twitter account tweeted: Beaming with pride! @usainbolt's awesome parents have joined us tonight. #IAMBOLT.

Speaking on the red carpet, Bolt announced that he would be having a star-studded after party following the screening at Tape London.

Icon: The sportsman makes the most of his London launch (Matt Crossick/PA Wire) / Matt Crossick/PA

The brand new documentary explores the legacy of the fastest man in history, featuring interviews with his nearest and dearest.

Bolt is also interviewed for the new film, which is said to show a completely different side to the iconic sportsman.

I Am Bolt is released in cinemas and on digital download on November 28.
K im Kardashian is reportedly keeping a constant vigil by Kanye Wests bed as he remains in hospital following Thanksgiving weekend.

The reality star, who has been suffering her own ordeal after being attacked at gunpoint in Paris, is thought to have put her own problems aside to look after her husband.

According to reports, Kardashian has remained by Wests bedside at the UCLA Medical Centre since he was admitted last Monday.

Kim has been amazing. She knew he couldn't keep going the way he was, an insider told TMZ.

Kanye West cuts concert short after rant on Beyonce and Jay Z

She has been by his side through all of this, helping to feed him and laying by his side.

The source added: She has been an unbelievably devoted spouse. Hes a lucky man.

The rapper was taken to hospital last week after battling sleep deprivation, exhaustion and extreme dehydration.

He spent Thanksgiving in the facility, but is reportedly hoping to return home to his family at some point this week.

The rapper sparked concerned when he dropped the mic and cut short his concert in Sacramento last Saturday, following a meandering political rant.

After voicing his support for president-elect Donald Trump, West then lashed out at fellow musicians Jay Z and Beyonce.

He pulled out of his Sunday show with just hours to spare and later cancelled all of his remaining Saint Pablo tour dates.


The TV presenter and model received the lowest number of public votes, sending her out of the show.

Snowdon lasted 16 days in the Australian jungle.

It feels so surreal, she said. Im excited still because its been so amazing.

I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here 2016 1 /72 I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here 2016 Scarlett Moffatt in the Bishtucker trial 'Cavern of Claws' ITV/Rex Scarlett Moffatt is the 2016 winner of 'I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!' with Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly ITV/Rex Joel Dommett, Scarlett Moffatt, Adam Thomas are the final three contestants in 'I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!' ITV/Rex Martin Roberts holds a Lobster in his mouth for his Bushtucker Trial on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!' ITV/Rex Lisa Snowden leaves the I'm A Celebrity 2016 camp ITV Larry Lamb and Martin Roberts have an intense discussion ITV/Rex Danny Baker is the first contestant voted off I'm A Celebrity camp ITV Sam Quek, Ola Jordan, Adam Thomas and Wayne Bridge take oart in The Dingo Dollar Challenge: Get The Measure of It ITV/Rex Martin Roberts and Ola Jordan compete in the Bushtucker Trial: Bush Brewery ITV/Rex Adam takes revenge on Martin for spilling water all over his bed ITV/Rex 'Claim of Thrones' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Adam Thomas, Martin Roberts, Sam Quek, Wayne Bridge in 'Claim of Thrones' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Martin Roberts hugging trees ITV/Rex Adam Thomas gets stuck into the 'Food Factory' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Lisa Snowdon in the shower ITV/Rex Wayne Bridge gets all emotional ITV/Rex Joel Dommett and Carol Vorderman get to grips with 'Simply the Nest' in the Dingo Dollar challenge ITV/Rex Martin Roberts during 'Hell Hollow' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Martin Roberts gets tearful in camp ITV/Rex Danny talks to the celebs about his cancer ITV/Rex The blue and yellow teams battle it out in Hungry Games Part 2 ITV/Rex Ola Jordan showers ITV/Rex Scarlett Moffatt ITV/Rex Sam Quek and Martin Roberts attack the Rank Tanks in The Hungry Games Part 1 ITV/Rex Sam Quek and Martin Roberts during the Rank Tanks in The Hungry Games Part 1 ITV/Rex Carol Vorderman has a massage in camp ITV/Rex Joel Dommett takes part in 'The Great Ascent' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Jordan Banjo, Ola Jordan and Kiosk Keith take part in 'Dingo Dollar Crazy Golf' ITV/Rex Joel Dommett, Scarlett Moffatt, Sam Quek and Carol Vorderman relax in camp ITV/Rex Wayne Bridge, Scarlett Moffatt and Joel Dommett in 'Dingo Dollar Crazy Golf' ITV/Rex Ant and Dec make a controversial joke on Stephen Hawking ITV Scarlett Moffatt pull a face during a moment in camp ITV/Rex Adam Thomas in 'Stranded' the overnight challenge ITV/Rex Jordan Banjo feels a bit homesick on 'I'm a Celebrity .. Get me out of here!' ITV Ola Jordan, Carol Vorderman, Sam Quek and Scarlett Moffatt strike a pose in the jungle ITV/Rex Jordan Banjo and Wayne Bridge in 'Stranded' the overnight challenge ITV/Rex Lisa Snowdon takes a refreshing dip ITV/Rex Scarlett Moffatt during her 'I'm a Celebrity Big Bush Bake Off' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Carol Vorderman during her 'I'm a Celebrity Big Bush Bake Off' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Scarlett Moffatt during her 'I'm a Celebrity Big Bush Bake Off' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Scarlett Moffatt and Carol Vordermanduring her 'I'm a Celebrity Big Bush Bake Off' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Sam Quek consoles Scarlett Moffatt after their 'Tomb of Torment' Bushtucker Trial ITV/Rex Ola Jordan in the shower ITV/Rex Sam Quek, Scarlett Moffatt and Ola Jordan in the shower ITV/Rex Sam Quek, Scarlett Moffatt, Jordan Banjoa, Lisa Snowdon, Wayne Bridge, Ola Jordan, Joel Dommett, Adam Thomas and Carol Vorderman enter camp for the first time ITV/Rex James Jordan wants a mud fight between Sam Quek and Ola Jordan ITV/Rex Scarlett Moffatt's canoe capsizes on I'm A Celebrity ITV Carol Voderman walks the plank ITV/Rex Larry Lamb and Scarlett Moffatt head for camp in the 'Cruel Canoe' Challenge ITV/Rex Carol Vorderman takes a break in camp ITV/Rex Ola Jordan gets used to her new surroundings ITV/Rex Sam Quek parachutes from the helicopter in the Sky Challenge ITV/Rex Wayne Bridge, Joel Dommett and Adam Thomas hit the Jungle shower ITV/Rex Lisa Snowdon looks a tad nervous before her 'Sky Challenge' into camp ITV/Rex

Im really excited to see my dad and my boyfriend.

Talking about the atmosphere in the camp, she said: It was brilliant, there was such a great group of people.

Jordan [Banjo] is such a lovely, lovely boy. Whenever I was feeling down- hes got such passion and hes a lovely sweet guy.

Larry [Lamb] is just the don. Hes the man, I was panicking that he would go and we wouldnt be able to do anything for ourselves.

We were like a family, we really did all get on so well. It was just a nice atmosphere.

Phillip Schofield backs Scarlett Moffatt to win I'm A Celebrity

Snowdon also shared her thoughts on Homes Under the Hammer presenter Martin Roberts, who has been one of the main sources of contention in this years series.

Hes a strange guy. Hes got this sort of childlike innocence. He just kind of steams into conversations.

Its part of his charm I guess. Hes just a funny character. He has got shot down a lot of times by Danny [Baker] and Larry.

She pegged either Jordan, Joel Dommett, or Scarlett Moffatt to win the series.

The next celebrity will be leaving the jungle in Monday nights episode.

ITV, 9pm
A fter ten weeks in the competition, Ed Balls has finally left Strictly Come Dancing 2016.

The former Shadow Chancellor found himself in the dance-off for the first time against Judge Rinder, and was sent home by the judges.

Balls and partner Katya Jones lost out on a place in the quarter finals after performing a tango to the Rolling Stones' (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.

Craig Revel Horwood, Darcey Bussell and Bruno Tonioli all opted to save Rinder, with Bussell citing his better technical ability.

Strictly Come Dancing 2016 - who's been eliminated so far? 1 /10 Strictly Come Dancing 2016 - who's been eliminated so far? Week Seven Daisy Lowe and Aljaz Skorjanec failed to win over the judges in a dance-off against Greg Rutherford BBC Week Six Laura Whitmore and Giovanni Pernice left the competition after losing out in a dance-off to Ore Oduba hours after slipping up on her samba BBC Week Five Anastacia and Brendan Cole left the competition during the Fright Night special after judges voted to save Daisy Lowe Guy Levy/BBC Week Three Naga Munchetty was axed with dance partner Pasha Kovalev after losing a dance-off to Anastacia Guy Levy/BBC Week Four Lesley Joseph was pitted against Daisy Lowe when she was eliminated Guy Levy/BBC Quit Will Young quit the competition after the second live show due to "personal reasons" Guy Levy/BBC Week Two Tameka Empson was voted off after losing a dance-off to Laura Whitmore Guy Levy/BBC Week One Melvin Odoom was the first casualty of the ballroom after being booted out on the public vote Guy Levy/BBC

If people watching have had half the fun Ive had learning to dance with Katya, they must have had a complete blast, said Balls upon leaving.

Speaking on his dance partner, he said: Above all, the only reason weve been able to learn and entertain is because of Katya.

Shes going to go on to be a total dynamite knockout star.

Balls also praised the wonderful band, and thanked all the people who have kept me in this long.

Ed Balls nearly drops Katya Jones on Strictly Come Dancing

Katya was tearful as she praised her celebrity.

I absolutely love this man, she said. Its been the best, my first series and I couldnt have wished for better.

Entering the quarter finals are Danny Mac, Ore Oduba, Louise Redknapp, Claudia Fragapane, and Danny Mac.

BBC One, 8pm
This season of 'Love Is Blind' is shaping up to be absolute madness  here's what people are saying about it
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The Police and Community Together (PACT) program and local police departments will hand out donated turkeys in an effort to spark a conversation among the community and help people who are hungry.

The giveaways will start at the Mooresville Police Department at 10 a.m. on Dec. 17. The group will then go to the Troutman Police Department, Statesville Police Department and the Iredell Sheriffs Office annex in Harmony. They will stay at each location between one and two hours, said J.D. Williams, one of the founders of the PACT program.

The turkeys will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis.

The effort is an attempt to open a dialogue between police officers and the community, as well as feed people who don't have food around the holiday season.

This is a way to give back, Williams said. And is a way to help restore the communitys respect with police and allow people to get to know them.

The amount handed out at each location will be determined once all the turkeys are collected.

Williams said 118 turkeys have been donated so far. The group is trying to collect at least 500, with an ultimate goal of 1,000.

People wishing to donate turkeys or money for the giveaway can contact Williams for more details at 704-310-7255 or visit www.gofundme.com/4-city-christmas-turkey-tour.
KMG International and Rompetrol celebrate the National Day of Romania through a series of actions promoting the Romanian national values endorsed by the Groups actions developed in the oil industry.

KMG International is a promotor of the genuine Romanian values both through its expertise acquired in the oil industry and through its added value products offered to the clients in Romania, under the Rompetrol brand. By developing its main operational services, of refining, marine transportation of oil products, and of fuel distribution, KMG International represents a genuine growth driver for Romania, regardless if we refer to its employees activity, or to their know-how transferred abroad, or to the major economic and social impact our operations have. On the occasion of the National Day of Romania, we mark once again the success of our Romanian  Kazakh partnership by successfully promoting international and national values said the Prime Vice President of KMG International, Catalin Dumitru.

The office buildings of the two refineries held by KMG International, Petromidia  the largest and the most modern facility in the country  and Vega the longest working unit of its kind in Romania  were decorated with the Romanian flag. The three colour flag of Romania was anchored on a surface of 60m length and 16m width on the main office building of Rompetrol Rafinare in Navodari, which operates the two refineries. In addition, the national flag covers a surface of 14m in length and 6m in width of the office building surface of the Vega Refinery (see photo).

DefMin Motoc announces novelties on show at December 1 military parade

The clients who will stop at the Rompetrol gas stations on December 1st will receive stick flags of the Romanian flag which can be anchored on cars. Over 22,000 of such products will be distributed in the main gas stations throughout the country.

Moreover, on the National Day of Romania, Rompetrol clients will be able to attend a special event organized by Hei in the Rompetrol Sibiu gas station on Gen. Vasile Milea Street, a unique food experience, along with Printesa Polonic. Organised in partnership with the Povestasii Association, Rompetrol brings the workshop Stra-bucate in the Rompetrol station, as well as its stories regarding the special recipes of sandwiches and traditional Romanian dessert, made by Printesa Polonic.

On the occasion of celebrating the National Day of Romania, the company promotes the video project Made in Romania. Through its production units, KMG International is the largest oil refining company of the country, Petromidia has a capacity of over 5 million tonnes per year, is the only producer of bitumen and n-hexan through its Vega refinery operations but is also the only producer of polymers through its petro-chemical division and of industrial taps through its Rominserv Valves Iaifo Zalau.

At the same time, KMG International, in partnership with The National Press Agency Agerpress, runs the editorial project entitled 160 years of refining oil, between November 22nd and December 16th. Over 160 years ago, the Rafov refinery near Ploiesti, the first refinery in the world, was processing oil for the first time. Throughout the period of the project, media materials and documentaries will be showcased, which will cover among other things the history of the refining sector in Romania, the oil companies strategies in the refining sector or environmental issues.
Associate Professor Octavian-Dragomir Jora of the International Economic Relations Faculty of the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies declared on Monday to agerpres that Romania's assumption of the Presidency of the EU Council in 2019 is a chance to improve the country's image, since managing the UE's agenda represents "a unique moment, one of opportunity and challenge".

"In perspective, holding the EU Council's Presidency in the first semester of 2019, Romania has to adjust with intelligence and wisdom the two fibers which can durably exist only interlaced, using its political decision-making structures and evidently with an open and competent popular consultation. The first is outlining the oft-invoked "country project". It does not have to represent a simple piece of 'literature', filled with the intellectual infatuation of the contributors and the documents' custodians, but a two-directional educational exercise (between the decision-making and reflecting elites, on the one hand, and the public, on the other hand) and a sincere discovery of 'national interest'. In my opinion, this is the best known 'unknown' of the domestic public discourse. Is the most cited unread idea, undocumented by the authorities and their advisors. The second one is this administrative exercise, of institutional maturity: the Presidency of EU Council. Addressed responsibly and rigorously, it can have the benefit of improving Romania's image of exotic and erratic presence in the European picture, because managing the EU agenda represents a unique moment of opportunity and challenge" Octavian-Dragomir Jora stated.

He has specified that we should not be naive to believe that holding this mandate equals to "leading" the European Union, but is essential for Romania to introduce "the Romanian accents in the main European topics".

"(...) I believe that the legitimate interest of Romania is to maintain the assumed balance between freedom of movement and action for Romanians in the EU, on the one side, and obligations to respect the EU nations for the given public resources, on the other side, using these correctly and efficiently. Namely to continue building Romania's and Europe's correctly understood freedom and prosperity. It is a legitimate topic of a rotative European mandate, but especially a national long-term project" Jora underscored.
Romania's Supreme Council for National Defence (CSAT) will meet on Tuesday, the meeting agenda including topics related to the medium and long-term action strategy concerning Romania's relation with the Republic of Moldova, and the plan on employing Romania's armed forces to be sent on missions and operations abroad in 2017.

According to a press release from the Presidential Administration, the agenda of the meeting, headed by Klaus Iohannis, includes the following topics: measures adopted by Romania on enforcing the regimes of the established sanctions on international level (October 2015 - September 2016), the national plan of informative priorities for 2017, the implementation stage of the National Strategy for Defence, for the period 2015-2019, and the activity schedule of Romania's Supreme Council for National Defence.

"During the meeting also approached will be other topics of interest for national security," the press release says.

The CSAT agenda will be held on Tuesday, at 11:00 am, at the Cotroceni Presidential Palace.

The most recent meeting of the CSAT was held on 27 September.

agerpres
On Thanksgiving Day, President-elect Donald Trump hinted he is in contact with Carrier, a manufacturing company that has been in the spotlight for plans to move 2,000 jobs from Indiana to Mexico.

The tweet followed a pledge during the campaign to stop Carrier from moving the jobs overseas, which Trump made after a viral video circulated of Carrier officials announced the job losses earlier this year. "It's not like we have an 80 percent chance of keeping them or a 95 percent. One hundred percent," Trump said at a rally in Indianapolis in April.

Whether the president-elect succeeds will be one of the first big tests of whether he will be able to stick by his campaign promises. It also is a window into the unusual new world of a president-elect intervening on behalf of workers at one company that, though important in the communities it operates in, is small in the context of the entire economy.

Local politicians regularly meet with corporate leaders to negotiate tax credits and other incentives to encourage businesses to locate in a particular jurisdiction, but modern presidents have typically not micromanaged the economy in this way.

"It basically violates the notion of 'The free market knows best,'" said Lawrence Mishel, president of the liberal Economic Policy Institute in Washington. "It's an unusual thing for a Republican, that's for sure."

Mishel described the negotiations as "an important test" for Trump  of whether he can fulfill his bold promises to voters through a combination of experience in business and a new style of leadership. "I really hope the factory doesn't close," said Mishel, adding that Trump has "laid claim to a magic wand to be able to reverse" trends in global trade.

"His fingers are going to be in a lot more decisions," Nick Heymann, an analyst at the investment firm William Blair, said of Trump. "That kind of business perspective will be brought to how the federal government's run."

Carrier confirmed Thursday that the company's representatives had "had discussions with the incoming administration," but spokespeople declined to comment further.

The Carrier plant in Indianapolis builds furnaces. United, the firm that owns Carrier, will also close a plant nearby in Huntington, Ind. that manufacturers microprocessors for heaters, ventilators and air conditioners. The planned closures are part of a broader strategy on the part of United Technologies to reduce costs. The company's plan is to spend about $1.5 billion over three years to improve efficiency, Heymann said, including by shifting manufacturing to locations where labor is less expensive.

"They're, kind of, running in place at best in a tough economy," he said.

Representatives of the company have told state officials that the company will save about $65 million a year by moving production from Indiana to Mexico. United had about $55.7 billion in sales last year.

Analysts suggested that Trump could offer to seek special tax benefits for United Technologies, either at the state or the federal level, to help preserve the jobs. United Technologies has benefited from such largess in the past. The firm received some $400 million in additional tax breaks from the state of Connecticut, where United Technologies is headquartered, in 2014.

The company also received $500,000 in grants from the administration of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence. After announcing that the plant in Indianapolis would close, Carrier reported that it had repaid those credits.

Pence is now the vice-president-elect. As Trump's running mate in their successful campaign, he has a second opportunity to entice Carrier to stay.

Another potential source of leverage for the new administration could be United Technologies's military contracts. Besides Carrier appliances and Otis elevators, the firm also makes Pratt & Whitney engines for aircraft, including the engine used in the Air Force's controversial new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

"There's no question that as United Technologies's main military customer, the government has some leverage over the decision it makes in other areas," said Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Lexington Institute in Arlington and a defense industry-consultant.

That said, Thompson added, the Trump administration might need United Technologies as much as United Technologies needs Trump.

"It's not likely that Trump would use military contracting as a point of leverage because the government must have United Technologies engines in order to power its aircraft," Thompson said.

Others were more optimistic that Trump's entreaties would be successful.

Ivan Feinseth, the director of research at Tigress Financial Partners in New York, said that while labor in Mexico might be cheaper, energy is more expensive there, and shipping finished air conditioners across the border could be costly.

He noted that General Electric's appliance unit  now owned by the Chinese firm Haier  manufacturers most of its products for the U.S. market domestically, and that Whirlpool and other appliance makers have recently expanded some production in the United States as well.

For these reasons, it might not take much of a financial concession to persuade United Technologies to keep the Carrier plant open in Indianapolis, especially given how high the stakes are in terms of public relations.

"It would be good for both Trump and the company to keep the plant here," Feinseth said. "This is going to happen. It's very simple to put together."
The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., a state-controlled enterprise and the world's biggest lender by assets, is due to renegotiate its lease at Trump Tower in Manhattan during Donald Trump's presidency  a business matter that may raise constitutional questions for the incoming president, ethicists say.

The bank's lease is slated to end in October 2019, adding its renewal to the list of potential conflicts of interest for president-elect Trump, who has vowed to slap steep tariffs on Chinese imports and declare China a currency manipulator. The lease is no small matter for the Trump Organization. ICBC was Trump Tower's largest office tenant as of 2012, occupying 11 percent of its office space, according to mortgage documents filed by Wells Fargo & Co. that year.

The relationship between Trump and ICBC is one of the clearest financial connections between the president-elect and a foreign government, and it highlights the potential conflicts of interest that could spring from his sprawling business empire. While presidents are exempt from many rules designed to prevent such conflicts, the U.S. Constitution bars all U.S. officials from receiving gifts or payments from foreign governments under the so-called "emoluments" clause.

That clause has never been litigated, but it could be interpreted to extend to business transactions that aren't conducted at market rates, said Richard Painter, a University of Minnesota law professor who was President George W. Bush's chief ethics lawyer.

"It could be a problem if they pay anything more than the market rate or the market rate has changed somehow by the fact that he's president," Painter said. "Any concessions to him by the bank could be viewed as a gift, as a monetary value."

Through a spokesman, ICBC officials declined to comment. Trump's transition team didn't respond to emailed requests for comment. But in an interview with the New York Times last week, he mentioned his plan to transfer management of his company to his adult children, Ivanka, Donald Jr. and Eric Trump.

"I don't care about my company," he said. "It doesn't matter. My kids run it."

Ethics lawyers say that plan doesn't go far enough to insulate Trump from his business interests. In his interview with the Times, Trump said a sitting president "can't have a conflict of interest." Ethicists have recommended that he divest from his signature real estate holdings  as difficult as that may be  and move the resulting, more liquid assets into a blind trust.

Media reports since Trump's Nov. 8 election victory have focused on a series of potential conflicts of interest involving the billionaire's global business holdings. For example, Trump's partner in a building in Manila was also named an envoy to the U.S. in October, and the partner, Jose E.B. Antonio, said he hopes to expand his collaboration with the Trump Organization. Trump also met with three partners in a development in India, according to media reports, and foreign diplomats have been gathering at his newly opened hotel just blocks from the White House, according to the Washington Post.

Trump Tower's lease arrangement with ICBC is yet another example. As of September 2012, the bank paid $95.48 per square foot for its Trump Tower space  more than any other major office tenant in the tower, the Wells Fargo filing shows. For ICBC's 20,404 square feet, that's almost $1.95 million a year. The document, compiled for investors considering buying a piece of Trump's $100 million in debt against his tower, is the latest available with the tenant data.

Trump's election victory has raised fears of a trade war between the world's two biggest economies. On the campaign trail, he called China "the single greatest currency manipulator that's ever been on this planet" and blamed the country for stealing American jobs. At the same time, Trump boasted of his relationship with the Chinese bank.

"I love China!" he said in June 2015 at the start of his campaign. "The biggest bank in the world is from China. You know where their United States headquarters is located? In this building, in Trump Tower."

Far from hiding what many experts have described as a potential conflict of interest, Trump routinely cited the bank's tenancy as proof of the strength of his relationship with the Chinese and his skill at negotiating.

"I do deals with them all the time," he told the Washington Post in March when asked about the ambitions of the world's most populous country for the key South China Sea waterway. "The largest bank in the world, 400 million customers, is a tenant of mine in New York, in Manhattan."

Many experts say Trump's business relationship with ICBC could run afoul of the Constitution, Painter said. They think the U.S. president isn't allowed to receive payment for services of any kind under the emoluments clause, regardless of whether they're at fair market value, he said.

Trump will need to seek official advice from the Office of Legal Counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice on what kind of payments he would be allowed to accept from an entity controlled by a foreign government, Painter said. Trump could avoid violating the emoluments clause altogether if he sells all his assets or gives them  not just their management  to his children, he said.

Norman Ornstein, a political scientist and resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, said he considers ICBC's lease at Trump Tower a potential flash point for the incoming president. "That itself should violate the emoluments clause," he said.

Others disagree. The emoluments clause is intended to deal with a gift or salary paid by a foreign leader or government to the president, said Robert Kelner, chairman of the election and political law practice at Covington & Burling LLP.

"If we start to see foreign governments providing gifts directly to the president, that would be problematic," Kelner said. "But ordinary course-of-business dealings between a state-owned enterprise and a bona fide corporation owned by the President won't come anywhere close to violating the Constitution's emoluments clause. The founders would have been surprised to learn that George Washington couldn't sell his crops to a foreign chartered trading company."

The questions may only get ironed out via litigation, Ornstein said. "I have little doubt that before very long, someone is going to challenge Trump for violation of the emoluments clause, and his counsel will argue that it doesn't apply to the president, and it will make it into the courts," he said.

Because hotels are generally considered a service industry, foreign diplomats paying to stay at Trump International Hotel in Washington could also be a violation of the emoluments clause, Painter said. And if ICBC's lease agreement doesn't include payment for services, it could be allowed if the rent rate passes the market test, he said.

Whether payments reflect market values will "be very difficult to determine," Painter said. "You'd need to bring in an outside auditor. He could get a fairness opinion to evaluate it."

The emoluments clause was written to prevent foreign governments' using lavish gift-giving to influence U.S. officials. It remains an obscure and untested part of the Constitution. But legal scholars who have studied it largely agree that the Constitution gives Congress the strongest claim to determining the legitimacy of the payments, or even rejecting them. In an extreme case, Congress  both houses of which are currently controlled by Republicans  also has the power to impeach and even remove the president for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."

Impeachment over an emoluments-clause violation is considered unlikely. But Trump's administration could be tied up with information requests or public litigation over his business dealings in foreign countries, said Norman Eisen, a visiting fellow at Brookings Institution who previously served as the Obama administration's ethics czar.

"There's already a big public debate," he said. Simultaneous questioning in Congress, the courts, and the minds of voters is "the tried and true formula" for enforcing ethical norms, he added.

With assistance from Heng Xie and Jun Luo
BERKELEY  The family of Monica Elaine Sykes, last seen Oct. 28, fears the worst. But Berkeley police Capt. Art Jackson said it remains a missing-person case, with no evidence of foul play.

Sykes, 25, who lives with her sister and three nephews in the 6300 block of Fay Drive, left to buy candy and never returned, said her mother, Regina Sykes. One of the boys told family he saw his aunt get into a white vehicle.

Police have talked to Sykes' boyfriend, who has a white car, but declined further comment. She had worked at least a year at Ol' Henry Restaurant in Berkeley.

"She does not go more than a couple of hours without talking to her sister," her mother said. "It's been a nightmare  the worst thing that has ever happened in my life."

The family is using fliers and social media, and raised more than $5,000 online for a reward.

Regina Sykes is especially concerned that two others, Kelly L. Allen, 20, and Shemika Cosey, 16, have been missing from Berkeley for years. Jackson, the acting police chief, said he believes there is no connection.

Allen disappeared in 2007, after spending a night at a friend's apartment in the 8600 block of Frost Avenue in Berkeley. Cosey was staying at a relative's house in 2008 when relatives woke up one morning and found her gone.

Police said they have no new information about those disappearances.

Anyone with information on any of them is asked to call Berkeley police at 314-524-3311 or CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.

Kim Bell of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.
ST. LOUIS  St. Louis University's has chosen a professor from its own ranks to lead the law school.

William P. Johnson, who has been on the law school's faculty since 2012, will assume the role of dean of the school of law on Jan. 3.

He replaces Michael Wolff, a former Missouri Supreme Court judge, who was named law dean in 2013.

Johnson is a scholar of international business law and had directed SLU's summer law program at the Madrid, Spain, campus. He was previously on the law faculty of the University of North Dakota.

His appointment follows a national search.

We are fortunate to find such a bright, collaborative leader with a global view of legal education, said University Provost Nancy Brickhouse, in a prepared statement. Bill is the right person to move the School of Law forward and has strong support within the law school, where he has served on a number of important committees.

The law school has recently seen a sharp decline in enrollment, at rates that exceed a nationwide drop in law school students. In 2015, 502 students enrolled at SLU Law, down from 954 in 2010.
JEFFERSON CITY  An ever-growing and ever-aging inmate population means more Missouri prisoners are likely to die behind bars in the coming years.

Against that backdrop, the Missouri Department of Corrections is seeking bids from funeral homes across the state in a search for the best deal on burial and cremation services for prisoners.

According to bidding documents, the state wants the cheapest wood box and the most inexpensive grave liners, to cut down on an expense that cost taxpayers $62,000 last year.

While the department typically notifies inmate families when a prisoner dies, not all want the body nor can afford the expense of burial or cremation.

In such cases, and when a prisoner has no family, the state pays for disposing of the remains.

Under the current set-up, arranging a burial is left to local prison officials, who work with a local funeral home.

Now the state wants to formalize that process in hopes of reducing the overall cost.

With more than 32,000 inmates, Missouris prison population has more than doubled since 1990, when it was 14,074. Much of that increase comes from the rise of long, mandatory sentences.

With more prisoners serving more time, states such as Missouri are grappling with more inmate deaths.

Nationally, the U.S. Justice Departments Bureau of Justice Statistics reported that 88 percent of the 3,351 inmate deaths in 2012 were from illnesses. The age category with the most deaths was over 55.

As the states bidding documents note, As the offender population ages, the expense associated with offender deaths increases.

In 2015, Missouri officials say, 104 inmates died behind bars. Of those, the remains of 55 were not claimed by family.

That number could increase. There are 1,415 incarcerated offenders over age 60. The oldest is James Alexander, 92, a Bonne Terre man serving a 20-year term for a rape he committed at age 88.

Under terms of the bid, the state will have 19 pickup points at facilities throughout the state.

Whoever is hired will provide transportation, storage and cremation or burial preparation services for one or more of the prisons.

The contractor shall store the deceased offenders remains in a refrigeration unit 40 degrees or below as required by the state prior to cremation or burial, the documents state.

The state also doesnt want anything fancy. According to the request, funeral homes are asked to provide the lowest-priced casket available and, if necessary, the lowest-priced grave liner available.

But Corrections officials will listen to family members if they express a preference on what they want done with their relatives.

The department typically takes into account the wishes of family members, offenders and their religious beliefs when making the determination of cremation or burial. This will not change when a contract is in place, agency spokesman David Owen said.

As for a headstone, Owen said, it depends on how much a prisoner had in his or her personal prison bank account.

The department does pay for a marker if it chooses burial, and funds from the inmates account can be used for that purpose, as well, he said.

Other states have dealt with the issue in various ways. Texas operates a cemetery for inmates. In Louisiana, inmates make coffins in which to bury fellow prisoners who have died.

Missouri used to have a cemetery for inmates at the now-shuttered state penitentiary in Jefferson City. But the department no longer maintains any cemeteries.

In Illinois, remains that are not claimed by a family member are buried in local cemeteries at the departments expense, Illinois Department of Corrections spokeswoman Nicole Wilson said.

The cost of burying inmates in Illinois last year was $75,000 and was an estimated $74,000 the previous year.

Illinois does not pay for gravestones or markers, Wilson said.
NEW YORK  You might have thought about it, heard it. A lot. You might have even felt it: Dictionary.coms word of the year is xenophobia.

While its difficult to get at exactly why people look up words in dictionaries, online or on paper, its clear that in contentious 2016, fear of otherness bruised the collective consciousness around the globe.

The Brexit vote, police violence against people of color, Syrias refugee crisis, transsexual rights and the U.S. presidential race were among prominent developments that drove debate  and spikes in lookups of the word, said Jane Solomon, one of the sites lexicographers.

The 21-year-old site defines xenophobia as fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures, or strangers. And it plans to expand its entry to include fear or dislike of customs, dress and cultures of people with backgrounds different from our own, Solomon said.

The word didnt enter the English language until the late 1800s, she said. Its roots are in two Greek words  xenos, meaning stranger or guest, and phobos, meaning fear or panic, Solomon added.

The interest was clear June 24, within a period that represents the largest spike in lookups of xenophobia so far this year. That was the day of Brexit, when the UK voted to leave the European Union.

Searches for xenophobia on the site increased by 938 percent from June 22 to June 24, Solomon said.

Lookups spiked again that month after President Barack Obamas June 29 speech in which he insisted that Donald Trumps rhetoric was not a measure of populism, but nativism, or xenophobia, or worse.

Solomon added that chatter about xenophobia went beyond the spikes. It has been significant throughout the year, she said. But after the EU referendum, hundreds and hundreds of users were looking up the term every hour.

Robert Reich, who was President Bill Clintons labor secretary, felt so strongly about xenophobias prominence that he appears in a video for Dictionary.com discussing its ramifications. I dont think most people even know what xenophobia is, said Reich, who teaches public policy at the University of California, Berkeley. Its a word not to be celebrated but to be deeply concerned about.

The word and the sentiment reflect a broader mournful tone to 2016, with Oxford dictionary editors choosing post-truth as their word of the year, often described in terms of politics as belonging to a time in which truth has become irrelevant.

I wish, Solomon said, we could have chosen a word like unicorns.
By now you most assuredly know that Fidel Castrothe communist revolutionary who overthrew Cuban President Fulgencio Batista via guerrilla warfare in 1959 and ruled the island nation as a totalitarian dictator until 2006, when he installed his brother at the helmdied on Friday, November 25. He was 90 years old.

Castros legacy will be a complicated one. The myriad narratives will be shaped by the biases of the authors who document his life, and by the millions of people who will either mourn or celebrate his demise. These threads of opinion will not abide national boundaries, either; consider that, even among Cubans themselves, there will be those who benefited from Castros socialist state, while others did not fare so well.

Those who lost their businesses, land, homes, and even family members will not remember El Presidente fondly. I dont need to remind you that human rights violations wereand still arenot uncommon under the Castro regime. Consider the following summary of Fidels time in power, courtesy of the Washington Post: It began with mass summary executions of Batista officials and soon progressed to internment of thousands of gay men and lesbians; systematic, block-by-block surveillance of the entire citizenry; repeated purges, complete with show trials and executions, of the ruling party; and punishment for dissident artists, writers, and journalists. Mr. Castros regime learned from the totalitarian patron he chose to offset the U.S. adversarythe Soviet Union, whose offensive nuclear missiles he welcomed, bringing the world to the brink of armageddon. Mr. Castro sponsored violent subversive movements in half a dozen Latin American countries and even in his dotage helped steer Venezuela to economic and political catastrophe through his patronage of Hugo Chavez.

I have my own biases about Fidel Castro. While I do not harbor any personal connection to Cuba, I believe humans flourish in free societies, and the proper role of government is to be limited in power and scope, enabling individuals and businesses to interact with one another on voluntary terms. Cuba lies but 90 miles from Americas shores, yet it serves as a tragic example of the impacts of a politically and economically overarching government. You will not count me among those mourning Castro.

My opinion of the late dictator hardly matters, though. If youre reading this, you might be wondering what Castros death means for your future ability to acquire Cuban cigarsor, perhaps more interestingly, if this event will somehow expedite the ability of non-Cuban cigar makers to start including Cuban tobacco in their blends (assuming this isnt already happening under-the-radar). Crass as it may seem to think of cigars at a time like this, StogieGuys.com is, after all, a cigar website.

On one hand, perhaps not much will change. Fidel Castro hasnt been officially running the country for a decade (his brother, Raul Castro, was appointed presidential powers in 2006). And even though Congress is unlikely to change its tune on the longstanding embargo, recall that President Obamavia executive orderhas made it legal to bring back cigars purchased in Cuba or elsewhere, as long as the cigars are for personal consumption. This was the latest step in the gradual progress of diplomatic normalization that also included the reestablishment of embassies in Havana and Washington.

That said, President-elect Trump made promises to reverse the wheels Obama set in motion. The death of Fidel Castro is putting unexpected pressure on [Trump] to follow through on earlier promises, reports the Wall Street Journal. Mr. Trumps top aides said Sunday that he would demand the release of political prisoners held in Cuba and push the government to allow more religious and economic freedoms. Reince Priebus, Mr. Trumps incoming White House chief of staff, said the president-elect absolutely would reverse Mr. Obamas policies if he didnt get what he wanted from Cuba. Still, Trump could face pushback from U.S. companies now deeply invested in Cuba under the current administrations policy. Those companies include major airlines, hotel operators, and technology providers, while big U.S. phone carriers have signed roaming agreements on the island.

Time will tell how the new administration in Washington reacts to the various competing interests related to Cuba. There are plenty of issues and conflicts at play, and cigars are unlikely to be top of the agenda. For now, what seems certain is that the people of Cuba will continue to live under a regime whose main business is the promulgation of extreme political and economic repression. There was a one-party, socialist state during Fidel Castros reign; there is a one-party, socialist state with his brother at the helm; and, barring a new revolution, there will likely be a one-party, socialist state long after the 85-year-old Raul Castro is gone.

Patrick A

photo credit: Flickr
Police have detained nine people following a deadly construction site collapse that killed 74 workers and injured two others in Yichun, Jiangxi province, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Among the detained are the chairman of Hebei Yineng Tower Engineering Co Ltd, and the project's chief engineer.

The disaster occurred when a crane collapsed at about 7 am on Thursday, causing scaffolding and a construction platform to collapse inside an unfinished cooling tower at the Fengcheng Power Plant project.

Rescue crews were withdrawn from the site after a final search on Friday morning found no new casualties, the provincial government said.

Compensation of 1.2 million yuan ($173,500) will be paid to the families of each of the workers killed, the construction company said on Sunday.

Hebei Yineng Yanta Construction Co will pay the compensation, as well as burial costs.

A State Council panel announced on Friday that nationwide inspections will be carried out to prevent similar workplace accidents. Inspectors will check for safety hazards associated with elevated work platforms, cranes and scaffolding.

Earlier reports by Xinhua News Agency said authorities had confirmed the identity of 68 dead workers, ranging in age from 23 to 53.

According to Yichun officials, construction of the plant, which belongs to Jiangxi Ganneng Co, began in July last year and was expected to be completed by early 2018.

The incident is the most serious in China since a landslide last year at a waste dump in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, which buried buildings and killed 73 people.
By Jessica Resnick-Ault

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices gained more than 2 percent on Monday in volatile trading after falling as much as 2 percent, recouping losses as the market reacted to the shaky prospect of major producers being able to agree output cuts at a meeting on Wednesday.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled up $1.02, or 2.21 percent at $47.08 a barrel. Brent crude rose $1.00, or 2.12 percent, to $48.24 a barrel.

In post-settlement trading, oil futures pared gains after Reuters reported that OPEC experts did not agree on the details of a deal to cut output.

Trading was choppy after prices tumbled more than 3 percent on Friday as doubts grew over whether the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries would reach agreement to help curb a global supply overhang that has more than halved prices since 2014.

"Through Wednesday, trade will be very headline-driven," said Tony Headrick of CHS Hedging. "Comments coming out of pre-meetings, particularly from Iraq this morning, are really a driver today."

Market watchers expected prices to remain volatile until OPEC's Wednesday meeting offers the market a definitive answer as to whether OPEC and non-OPEC producers can agree on cuts.

"You're going to see a flattening out of positions closer to Wednesday," said Gene McGillian at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. Traders with long positions in the market may be reluctant to sell for fear of missing out on an upside if there is a production cut that triggers a rally.

After a cut is announced, sellers could emerge as oil rallies toward $52 a barrel, he said. "You don't fade at 47 or 45, because you're risking a loss on momentum if they do have an agreement."

On Sunday, Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said the oil market would balance itself in 2017 even if producers did not intervene, and that keeping output at current levels could therefore be justified.

The statement stoked simmering disagreement between OPEC and non-OPEC crude exporters such as Russia over who should cut production by how much.

By Monday, OPEC was scrambling to rescue the deal, with analysts warning of a sharp price correction if they fail. Prices spiked as Iraq's oil minister said the country would cooperate with the group to reach an agreement "acceptable to all".

A meeting scheduled for Monday between OPEC and non-OPEC producers was called off after Saudi Arabia declined to attend, while concerns over the feasibility of a deal pushed the crude oil volatility index close to a nine-month high.

Others warned that even if some form of output restriction is announced after producers meet in Vienna on Wednesday, the details matter greatly.

"Do not take an announcement of a headline cut of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) at face value. It could still imply an OPEC production level considerably in excess of 33 million bpd, depending on developments in Libya and Nigeria and the speed and rigour of compliance," David Hufton, managing director of brokerage PVM Oil Associates Ltd said in a note.

Even if a cut is agreed, oversupply may not end soon.

The U.S. oil rig count rose by three last week, and Goldman Sachs said that "since its trough on May 27, 2016, producers have added 158 oil rigs (+50 percent) in the U.S.".

(Additional reporting by Libby George in London, Henning Gloystein in Singapore and Yuka Obayashi in Tokyo; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Chizu Nomiyama)
Generac Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNRC) announced the signing of an agreement to acquire the assets of Motortech Holding GmbH & Co. KG (Motortech). The transaction, subject to regulatory approval, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2017.

Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Celle, Germany, Motortech is a leading manufacturer of gaseous-engine control systems and accessories. The companys gaseous-fuel sub-systems include knock detection, mixers, throttles and various controls, which are sold to European gas-engine manufacturers and to aftermarket customers. Motortech employs over 250 people at its German headquarters, manufacturing plant in Poland and sales offices located in the U.S. and China.

By combining resources and technology, Generac and Motortech will lead the industry in innovative, spark-ignited engine generator offerings, said Patrick Forsythe, Executive Vice President of Global Engineering at Generac. This acquisition allows Generac to expand its global market for gaseous products beyond standby generators, and it aligns with our strategy of gas power-generation leadership. It will significantly expand our worldwide spark-ignited engine capabilities, complementing the international growth Generac has experienced.

This is a very exciting transaction for Motortech, said Florian Virchow, CEO of Motortech. The integration into Generac will create broader product-application markets globally, and is expected to bring meaningful opportunities to improve our product costs and ultimately the value we bring to our customers. We are pleased to join the Generac family and look forward to our continued success as we work together to lead the gaseous-fueled power-generation market around the world.

The Virchow family and Motortechs current management team will continue to lead the Motortech business after the acquisition is complete.
Patheon N.V. (NYSE: PTHN) announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a state-of-the-art active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) manufacturing facility in Florence, South Carolina, from Roche Holdings, Inc., an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Roche Holding Ltd., which it will integrate into the Patheon network.

Under the terms of the purchase agreement, Patheon will acquire the site for an immaterial sum, plus the cost of associated inventory and spare parts. Patheon has also entered into a multi-year supply arrangement with Roche. Patheon expects the supply agreement to help defray the costs associated with running the site for the next few years while it adds new client work into the facility. Over time, Patheon expects the Florence facility to have a similar financial profile to its other sites in its drug substance segment.

Patheon will acquire a 1,100 acre, 300,000 square-foot facility with manufacturing capacity for API ranging from development to manufacturing services. With the addition of this site, the company expands its capacity for manufacturing highly potent compounds, and adds capabilities to support solid-state chemistry, micronization, and eventually, commercial spray drying.

As the only end-to-end provider of pharma development and manufacturing services, Patheon is uniquely positioned to integrate this new site into our global network and quickly leverage the capabilities with existing and new clients, said James Mullen, CEO of Patheon. The company will benefit from the additional North American API capacity and adds a state-of-the-art facility with approximately 200 scientific and manufacturing professionals.

The site features reactors ranging from 50-11,000 liters producing multiple products simultaneously, fully compliant with all applicable regulations, such as cGMP (current Good Manufacturing Practices) safety and environmental standards. It will provide Patheon with a major U.S. API operation capable of supporting products from clinical scale to commercial manufacturing and further enhances Patheons scientific and technical expertise

The statements in this press release that are not historical facts may be forward-looking statements. Such forward looking statements, based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Patheon's management, are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from the forward looking statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results.
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM -- (Marketwired) -- 11/28/16 -- Balabit, a leading provider of contextual security technologies, has announced two appointments to its Senior Executive team with the addition of Peter O' Neill as Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Matthew Ravden in the position of VP and Chief Marketing Officer. The new appointments are part of Balabit's major plans for international expansion. In the last 18 months Balabit has opened offices in the UK (London) and the US (New York), and the US market is already the company's fastest growing region.

Peter O'Neill most recently served as Global VP of Sales for Corvil Limited, whose solutions increase the performance of electronic trading systems for the world's major investment banks. Matthew Ravden joins from cloud security and archiving company, Mimecast, where he was Chief Strategy Officer.

"We have successfully completed the first phase of our expansion with the introduction of the Contextual Security Intelligence (CSI) concept in the UK and US market and we are delighted to welcome both Peter and Matthew to the team. Both are proven leaders in their fields, and we're looking forward to leveraging their expertise as we help protect more organizations around the world from cyber-crime," said Zoltn GyorkQ, CEO, Balabit.

About Balabit Balabit -- founded in Budapest, Hungary -- is a leading provider of contextual security technologies with the mission of preventing data breaches without constraining business. Balabit operates globally with offices across the United States and Europe, together with its network of reseller partners. Balabit's Contextual Security Intelligence" platform protects organizations in real-time from threats posed by the misuse of high risk and privileged accounts. Solutions include reliable system and application Log Management with context enriched data ingestion, Privileged User Monitoring and User Behavior Analytics. Together they can identify unusual user activities and provide deep visibility into potential threats. Working in conjunction with existing control-based strategies, Balabit enables a flexible and people-centric approach to improve security without adding additional barriers to business practices. Founded in 2000, Balabit has a proven track record, with 23 Fortune 100 customers and more than 1,000,000 corporate users worldwide.

For more information, please visit https://www.balabit.com/.

Source: Balabit, Inc.
NEW YORK, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- To ensure that the Institute for Private Investors (IPI) remains the preeminent organization for significant wealth owners in the U.S., Campden Wealth has tapped longtime entrepreneurship executive Brien Biondi to serve as its president. Biondi, who joined in late September, will serve as president of Campden Wealth, North America as well as for IPI, both based in New York City. For over 25 years, Campden Wealth and IPI have delivered membership services, peer-to-peer private meetings, educational programs, proprietary research, news and analysis for families and family offices.

Biondi comes to Campden/IPI after a successful career of leading numerous high-profile membership organizations for the past 25 years. Biondi has served as executive director of the Chief Executives Organization (CEO) and as chief executive officer of the Entrepreneurs' Organizations (EO). He began his career with KPMG. Biondi is also an active member of the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO).

"Brien is a progressive and proven leader known for his high integrity and ability to run high-profile global organizations, working with membership communities, professional affiliates and developing high performance teams," said Dominic Samuelson, CEO of Campden Wealth. "These are exciting times for the organization and show our ongoing commitment to develop the organizational structure. With Brien's expertise, we are certain that the Institute for Private Investors will continue on as the premier community for significant wealth owners in the U.S."

"It's an honor and a true privilege to serve in this new role of leading these world-class organizations. I'm excited to begin working on building and enhancing community and content," explains Biondi. "My aim is to broaden the IPI experience  providing new and improved member services, strengthening educational opportunities, and exploring new and innovative ideas as well as tools and strategies for building investments and administering wealth management."

Biondi is an advisor to many start-up companies and is active on numerous boards. He has served as chairman of the Greater Washington Area Board of Directors for the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE); was a member of the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation's Advisory Board; and served as a member of the National Governor's Association Entrepreneurship Advisory Group. Brien received his undergraduate degree from The American University in Washington, D.C. and earned his M.B.A. from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA.

About Campden Wealth

Campden Wealth is the leading independent provider of information, education and networking for generational family business owners and family offices globally in person, in print, via research and online. Campden Research supplies market insight on key sector issues for its client community and their advisers and suppliers. Through in-depth studies and comprehensive methodologies, Campden Research provides unique and proprietary data and analysis based on primary sources. Campden Wealth also publishes the leading international business titles CampdenFB, aimed at members of family owned companies in at least their second generation and CampdenFO, the international magazine for family offices and private wealth advisers. Campden Wealth further enhanced its international reach and community with the acquisition of the Institute for Private Investors (IPI), the leading membership network of private investors in the United States, founded in 1991 and with the establishment of Campden Family Connect PVT. Ltd a joint venture with the Patni Family in Mumbai, India in 2015. For more information: www.campdenwealth.com

About IPI

The Institute for Private Investors is a private membership organization offering non-commercial investor education, in-person networking and an online community to more than 1,000 ultra-high-net-worth investors from over 30 countries and 41 U.S states. Families of substantial wealth rely on IPI to provide a safe harbor where they can learn from each other and leading experts, while fostering lifelong relationships with like-minded peers. The Institute for Private Investors helps its members become better stewards of their wealth and make more informed decisions for their future legacy. In 1999, IPI created the nation's first private wealth management curriculum for principals and continues to collaborate on weeklong programs with The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. An affiliated company, the Investor Education Collaborative, LLC, was formed in 2004 to offer experiential educational formats and online classes. For more information: www.instituteforprivateinvestors.com

Contact:

Shahnaz Mahmud, Content & Marketing Manager at IPI[email protected] | (212)-693-1300

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/institute-for-private-investors-and-campden-wealth-na-welcome-noted-entrepreneurship-executive-brien-biondi-as-new-president-300367896.html

SOURCE Institute for Private Investors
WASHINGTON, Nov. 27, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is the letter sent to Politico on November 23rd, which NCRI-US releases publically, since Politico has refused to publish.

Dear Editor, Daniel Benjamin's 3,326-word tirade (Giuliani Took Money From a Group That Killed Americans, Does Trump Care?, Politico Magazine, Nov. 23), is a litany of threadbare, oft-repeated, and long-debunked allegations, originally concocted by the murderous mullahs of Iran, against the main Iranian opposition movement, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (PMOI/MEK).

It amounts to nothing more than a pitiful attempt to overshadow the failure of policy of appeasing the Iranian regime, which is universally condemned as the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism and the leading per capita executioner of its own citizens and for the slaughter of over 100,000 dissidents, including 15-year-old girls and pregnant women.

One is reminded of the infamous saying, "Tell a lie that's big enough and repeat it often enough, and the whole world will believe it."

In the best-case scenario, Mr. Benjamin's hyperbolic regurgitation of a defamatory MEK narrative from his time in office suggests that, unlike policy experts in Washington, he is unaware that these allegations and characterizations have since been refuted in detail by independent research, and formally discredited by successive high judicial investigations. His boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, demonstrated her lack of confidence in Mr. Benjamin's position in 2012 by removing the terrorist designation of the MEK to make US counter-terrorism policy consistent with those of the EU, UK, France, a large bi-partisan group of U.S. Congress members, and many bipartisan senior former leaders whose integrity Mr. Benjamin has impugned. We are left only with the awkward specter of one former official, now in academia promoting his byline, who would profit from studying issues before attempting to write about them.

Indeed, several independent studies make it palpably clear that the MEK had no role in the assassination of US military officers and Pentagon contractors in Iran more than 40 years ago. Neither was it involved in any form or shape in the takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran, nor did it take part in the crackdown on Iraqi Kurds or Shiites, and nor did it ever pay any politician. The targets of the MEK's military operations, which the group unilaterally ceased in June 2001, were, according to international law, legitimate military targets, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) whose crimes are only surpassed by the Third Reich, and which is responsible for the death of hundreds of foreign nationals, including Americans.

There was nothing "inexplicable" about Secretary Rumsfeld declaring the MEK members in Camp Ashraf as protected persons in 2004. "A 16-month review by the United States has found no basis to charge members of an Iranian opposition group in Iraq with violations of American law, according to senior American officials," wrote the New York Times.

Contrary to Mr. Benjamin's assertions, the delisting of the MEK was no act of charity. America's second highest court forced Mr. Benjamin's hands. Nor did the MEK's challenge to the designation begin in 2012. Ever since it was blacklisted in 1997, as "a goodwill gesture" to the murderous mullahs of Iran, as acknowledged by Benjamin's colleagues at the time, the MEK challenged its designation.

At the time of MEK's 2008 challenge, Mr. Benjamin's predecessor, Ambassador Dell Dailey urged the Secretary to revoke the designation because it had no basis in fact or law. The call fell on deaf ears as the State Department was contemplating opening a consular office in Tehran at the time, according to the New York Times.

The Court of Appeals finally heard the case and in 2010 unanimously rejected the designation, saying that the Secretary had provided no evidence to justify the decision. But the State Department refused to heed the court's ruling, prompting the MEK to file a writ of mandamus. In their briefs to the court and during the oral hearing, Benjamin and his cohorts vehemently argued against the delisting. The court, of course, felt otherwise, and granted the writ of mandamus, the first since 1803, delivering a sharp rebuke to the State Department, calling its delay "egregious" and ordering it to take action or it would delist.

Ironically, in his many appearances before Congressional hearings, Mr. Benjamin never uttered any of these allegations when grilled by members from both sides of the aisle, because he knew that despite several classified briefings provided to the members on the MEK, Congress strongly rejected MEK's FTO designation, which it viewed as a goodwill gesture to Tehran, as 99 members (52 D and 47 R, including seven committee chairs) called for the group's delisting.

As for the situation at Camp Ashraf, Mr. Benjamin is being disingenuous. In violation of repeated and written commitments to protect the residents of Ashraf, the State Department handed over the control of the Camp to the government of Nuri al-Maliki, a puppet of Tehran. The FTO designation and Mr. Benjamin's unjustifiable foot dragging in complying with the Court of Appeals ruling, set the stage for the Iraqi security forces to launch three deadly assaults on the residents, resulting in the deaths of more than 100 residents and the wounding of over 1,000 more.

Oddly enough, Mr. Benjamin's piece repeats the talking points contained in a letter sent in the same week by an Iranian regime's senior official, Javad Larijani, to Federica Mogherini, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. One wonders about the coincidence!

Mr. Benjamin's remarks are in sharp contrast to Secretary of State John Kerry's views, who lauded the resettlement of all members of "exiled Iranian opposition group, the Mujahedin e-Khalq, or MEK," from Iraq to Europe in September 2016, emphasizing that "their departure concludes a significant American diplomatic initiative that has assured the safety of more than 3,000 MEK members whose lives have been under threatI first became involved in this effort when I was in the Senate  I'm very proud that the United States was able to play a pivotal role in helping to get this job done."

Benjamin fails to refer to what the MEK has done to expose the Iranian regime's terrorism and reveal the Iranian regime's major nuclear sites, which triggered the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) inspections of the uranium enrichment facility in Natanz and Heavy Water Facility in Arak in 2002 for the first time. Since then, the majority of the visits by the IAEA inspection teams have been to the sites first uncovered by the MEK.

Relying on a vast network inside Iran, MEK revelations of the nuclear weapons program significantly contributed to the world peace. If it were not for the MEK nuclear revelations, Tehran would have had the Bomb by now. Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA) told a House Foreign Affairs Committee Hearing "We all owe a debt of gratitude to the MEK for bringing this information to the world, and causing the United States and the world to focus on the problem."

What Mr. Benjamin has tried to overshadow by attacking possible nominees of Mr. Trump and parroting stale and discredited slanders against the MEK, is the stark reality that the American people soundly rejected the policy of giving concessions to the turbaned tyrants of Iran. This policy must change and the Iranian regime must be held to account for the many crimes it has committed against the Iranian people and the international community. This is what Mr. Benjamin and the pro-Tehran lobby are finding very difficult to digest.

Soona SamsamiU.S. Representative,National Council of Resistance of Iran

CONTACT: Ali Safavi, 202-747-7847, www.ncrius.org

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ncri-us-iran-apologists-grasp-at-straws-regarding-mek-in-politico-300368741.html

SOURCE National Council of Resistance of Iran-U.S. Representative Office
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 11/27/16 -- A strike has been averted at Vancouver International after a new agreement has been reached between the IAM and Swissport Canada.

'We came to an agreement with the employer late Saturday evening with the exception of the Baggage Service Operations wages which will proceed to binding arbitration," explained IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 General Chairperson Todd Haverstock.

"This was the merger of two collective agreements into one, the former Servisair and the new Swissport Canada which made the bargaining process a long tough grind," said Haverstock. "I have spent much of this morning talking to members and most of them are extremely happy."

The three-year agreement provides:

-- Wage parity for Swissport Ramp employees -- An enhanced wage scale for Aircraft Groomers -- An enhanced lump sum payment for Servisair Ramp employees -- Enhanced longevity pay -- Improved sick time credits for Swissport employees

"We were faced with a potential strike and I thank IAM Grand Lodge Representative Ron Fontaine and IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 President and Directing Chairperson Fred Hospes, for their assistance in turning this into a positive result," said Haverstock. "I also want to thank the bargaining committee for their resolve and the membership for its patience in this matter."

The 558 members of IAM Local Lodge 16 provide ramp and grooming services as well as operate and maintain the entire baggage belt systems at Vancouver International. Swissport services Westjet, Cathay Pacific, China Eastern, and China Airlines, China Southern, Air China, Japan Airlines, Ana Airlines, Alaska Air, Korean Airlines, Air France, British Airways, Lufthansa, KLM, Qantas, Air New Zealand, Philippine Airlines, Air Transat and Eva Airlines.

Contacts: Todd Haverstock IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 General Chairperson 604-448-0721 / 604-518-0029 Bill Trbovich IAM Director of Communications 416-386-1789 Ext #6331 / 416-735-9765

Source: International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW)
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Terreno Realty Corporation (NYSE: TRNO), an acquirer, owner and operator of industrial real estate in six major coastal U.S. markets, announced today that it has executed a full building lease for 85,000 square feet in East Rutherford, New Jersey with a designer, developer and distributor of outdoor tools. The lease commences immediately and expires January 2022. The property was acquired in October 2015 subject to a short-term lease and subsequently renovated.

Terreno Realty Corporation acquires, owns and operates industrial real estate in six major coastal U.S. markets: Los Angeles; Northern New Jersey/New York City; San Francisco Bay Area; Seattle; Miami; and Washington, D.C./Baltimore.

Additional information about Terreno Realty Corporation is available on the companys web site at www.terreno.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. We caution investors that forward-looking statements are based on managements beliefs and on assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management. When used, the words anticipate, believe, estimate, expect, intend, may, might, plan, project, result, should, will, and similar expressions which do not relate solely to historical matters are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions and are not guarantees of future performance, which may be affected by known and unknown risks, trends, uncertainties, and factors that are beyond our control, including risks related to our ability to meet our estimated forecasts related to stabilized cap rates and those risk factors contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 and our other public filings. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, estimated, or projected. We expressly disclaim any responsibility to update our forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005018/en/

Terreno Realty Corporation

W. Blake Baird or Michael A. Coke, 415-655-4580

Source: Terreno Realty Corporation
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- First Lady of Los Angeles Amy Wakeland joins Los Angeles magazine Publisher Erika Anderson, Editor in Chief Mary Melton and Philanthropist Austin Beutner to announce GIVE LA via a press conference scheduled for Tuesday, November 29, at 10am PST at Los Angeles magazine's headquarters, located at 5900 Wilshire Boulevard (Los Angeles, 90036).

During this season of giving, Los Angeles magazine has designed a very thoughtful initiative to improve the lives of others by calling Angelenos to GIVE. GIVE Los Angeles (GIVE LA) is a unique effort, encouraging us to think, act and give back by embracing, promoting and supporting our local non-profits which help make life in Los Angeles the best it can be.

GIVE Los Angeles connects non-profits doing remarkable work in the community with people who are interested in sharing time, talent and resources with organizations serving causes they are passionate about. The philanthropic effort combines a custom printed publication (included with our December issue) from the Publishers of Los Angeles magazine with a digital giving challenge, powered by Crowdrise. The issue includes editorial coverage on important issues impacting our city and provides a listing of participating non-profits whose work serves Los Angeles County.

The GIVE Los Angeles online fundraising challenge is open to all non-profits featured in the GIVE magazine and will run through January 3, 2017. A $30,000 cash prize, funded by Los Angeles magazine, will be awarded and split among the top three charities that raise the most funds for the duration of the challenge.

Notable participating non-profits include: United Way, Present Now, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, LA Ronald McDonald House, Natural History Museum, The Music Center, Rand Corporation, and LA Kings Cares Foundation.

We can unite our city and country by GIVING. For more information, please email or call Karen Lewis at 310.760.1263.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005850/en/

for Los Angeles magazine

Karen Lewis, 310.760.1263

[email protected]

Source: Los Angeles magazine
VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Zymeworks Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of next-generation bispecific and multifunctional biotherapeutics, initially focused on the treatment of cancer, today announced that its abstract has been accepted for Poster Presentation at the 2016 American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting and Exposition, being held from December 3-6, 2016 in San Diego, California.

Zymeworks will present at the following session:

Session Information: 625. Lymphoma: Pre-ClinicalChemotherapy and Biologic Agents: Poster I

625. Lymphoma: Pre-ClinicalChemotherapy and Biologic Agents: Poster I Abstract Title: ZW38, a Novel Azymetric Bispecific CD19-Directed CD3 T Cell Engager Antibody Drug Conjugate with Controlled T Cell Activation and Improved B Cell Cytotoxicity

ZW38, a Novel Azymetric Bispecific CD19-Directed CD3 T Cell Engager Antibody Drug Conjugate with Controlled T Cell Activation and Improved B Cell Cytotoxicity Date : December 3, 2016

: December 3, 2016 Time : 5:30 p.m.  7:30 p.m. PST

: 5:30 p.m.  7:30 p.m. PST Location: San Diego Convention Center, Hall GH

About Zymeworks Inc.Zymeworks is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of next-generation bispecific and multifunctional biotherapeutics, initially focused on the treatment of cancer. The Companys Azymetric, AlbuCORE, and EFECT platforms, its Zymelink conjugation platform and cytotoxins, and its proprietary ZymeCAD structure-guided protein engineering technology, provide the flexibility and compatibility to precisely engineer and develop highly-differentiated product candidates. The Companys lead product candidate, ZW25, is a novel bispecific antibody being evaluated in a Phase 1 clinical trial. Zymeworks is also advancing a pipeline of preclinical product candidates and discovery-stage programs in immuno-oncology and other therapeutic areas. In addition to the Companys wholly-owned pipeline, its therapeutic platforms have been further leveraged through multiple strategic partnerships with global biopharmaceutical companies. More information on Zymeworks can be found at www.zymeworks.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005169/en/

Zymeworks Inc.

David Poon, Ph.D., 604-678-1388

Executive Director, External R&D and Alliances

[email protected]

or

Investor Inquiries

David Matousek, 604-678-1388

Senior Manager, investor Relations & Corporate Communications

[email protected]

or

Media Inquiries

Michael Lampe, 484-575-5040

[email protected]

Source: Zymeworks Inc.
Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May (R) and her Polish counterpart Beata Szydlo lay wreaths during their visit to the Polish War Memorial, in Northolt, Britain November 28, 2016. REUTERS/Carl Court/Pool

By Kylie MacLellan

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May discussed defense, security and trade with Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo on Monday as Britain looks to strengthen ties with a key ally before it leaves the European Union.

The summit, attended by several senior ministers from both countries, focused on the bilateral relationship rather than Brexit negotiations but May also updated her Polish counterpart on Britain's preparations.

"The UK and Poland have been close allies in the EU and we plan to be even closer allies once the UK has left," May told a news conference following the meeting.

May, who plans to kick off two years of divorce talks with the EU before the end of March, said Britain had made significant progress on preparing for those negotiations since her last meeting with Szydlo in July.

She reiterated her plan to guarantee the post-tertiary rights of the 3 million EU nationals in Britain, as long as the 1 million Britons living in the EU are given the same treatment, and said she hoped an early agreement could be reached on this.

There were an estimated 831,000 Poles in 2015, an increase of 750,000 on the number in 2004, according to Britain's Office for National Statistics, and there has been a spate of xenophobic attacks on them since Britain's June Brexit vote.

Szydlo said the rights of its citizens living in Britain was Poland's top priority for Brexit, but discussions on this would take place after the formal exit process has begun.

"Together we have to reach in negotiations solutions that will be most beneficial, and most of all acceptable, for both EU citizens ... as well as for British citizens. These negotiations will be held between the EU and Britain," Szydlo said.

Poland joined the European Union in 2004 and has been one of Britain's closest allies in calling for reform of the bloc.

Szydlo's government has seen Britain as a focus of its foreign policy in the EU since it came to power last year, in contrast to the previous centrist cabinet's emphasis on Germany.

"The United Kingdom is a strategic partner for Poland and I deeply believe that we will deepen our relations in the coming months and years," she told the news conference.

May said as part of its Brexit negotiations, Britain would have to look at justice and home affairs arrangements it had entered into as part of its membership of the EU, such as European policing agency Europol.

The two leaders also discussed their commitment to NATO, and May said Britain would deploy 150 troops and several armored vehicles to north east Poland in April next year to deter Russian aggression by helping secure NATO's eastern flank.

"We have agreed to work towards the first UK-Poland bilateral defense treaty and to strengthen ties between our defense industries," she added.

(Additional reporting by Paul Sandle, Michael Holden, Elizabeth Piper, William James and Marcin Goettig, Editing by Stephen Addison and Pritha Sarkar)
OSLO (Reuters) - Britain and Norway will begin a dialogue on trade policy in December after Britain's vote in June to leave the European Union, the British ambassador to Oslo told a business conference on Monday.

"What's really is important (in Norwegian-British trade relations), is the launch of a trade policy dialogue, which we expect to begin next month," Ambassador Sarah Gillett said.

Norway twice voted "No" to joining the EU in referendums but has a comprehensive trade agreement with the bloc through its membership of the European Economic Area.

(Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis, writing by Terje Solsvik, editing by Alister Doyle)
By Ethan Lou

(Reuters) - Canada has extended its small deployment of soldiers with the United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan this year despite concerns about its viability and soldiers' safety, an internal Canadian government memo showed.

A senior official said the extension would help to achieve the Liberal government's goal of increased U.N. participation, according to the April memo from Canada's foreign affairs ministry, obtained by Reuters under access-to-information laws.

Canada's Liberals, who took power last year, are eyeing a U.N. Security Council seat in 2021-2022, seeking to repair relations with the world body that deteriorated under their Conservative predecessors.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Sunday his government had reengaged with the U.N. peacekeeping mission, offering C$500 million ($373 million) and up to 600 soldiers.

Precise deployment destinations were yet to be decided and would depend on where Canadian soldiers would have the most impact, he said.

U.N. peacekeepers have been in South Sudan since 2011, when it separated from Sudan after decades of civil war. The country hosts some 13,000 peacekeepers, including those from the United States, Britain and Australia.

Canada's participation, dubbed "Operation Soprano," comprises just 10 soldiers, according to the Department of National Defence.

In the memo, Daniel Jean, then-deputy minister and now Trudeau's national security advisor, said Canada's participation in the U.N. Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) was "visible and positive." Continuing it was consistent with the government's "commitment to provide meaningful contributions to U.N. peace operations," he said.

"While an extension of Operation Soprano has been approved, concerns remain in connection with the safety of CAF (Canadian Armed Forces) personnel in South Sudan, as well as the overall ability of the UNMISS to achieve its mandate," he wrote to Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion.

A recent U.N. inquiry found a lack of leadership among peacekeepers in South Sudan, and that they failed to protect civilians. A top Kenyan commander was fired.

Canada's foreign affairs ministry referred questions to the Department of National Defence.

Asked about the memo, defense spokeswoman Captain Nicola LaMarre said soldiers were well-equipped to perform the mission and that deployment destinations were up to the government.

"We remain ready to conduct operations or implement changes to existing operations, as directed by the government," she said. "There is currently no plan to change the presence and personnel strength in the area."

(Editing by Bernadette Baum)
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Greek authorities need to stick to the terms of the country's rescue program, including further structural and product market reforms and privatizations, to pass a bailout review, ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure said on Monday.

"To bring the program to a successful conclusion and to restore market access for the sovereign on a lasting basis, it is above all essential that the Greek authorities continue to show a serious commitment to the goals and measures taken under the program," he said at an event in Athens.

(Reporting by Francesco Canepa; Editing by Catherine Evans)
Crew members look out from the container ship, the MV Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller, as it berths during its maiden port of call at a PSA International port terminal in Singapore September 27, 2013. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo

By Sophie Sassard and Ron Bousso

LONDON (Reuters) - Denmark's A.P. Moller-Maersk and DONG Energy are in talks to merge their oil and gas operations in a deal that would create a business worth more than $10 billion including debt, sources familiar with the matter said.

Maersk is working with Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) on the potential deal, while JP Morgan (NYSE: JPM) is assisting Dong Energy, said the people, who cautioned there is no certainty the parties would come to terms.

Maersk said in September it planned to merge or spin-off its energy assets as part of a major restructuring and instead focus on its core transport and logistics businesses.

DONG Energy said this month it was putting its oil and gas assets up for sale, as it wants to shift away from fossil fuels toward offshore wind.

Some analysts have said, however, that it could be hard to find buyers, with many other energy companies also putting assets up for sale due to low oil prices.

"The only thing that would make sense is a complete merger of their businesses,", said one of the sources, who asked not to be names because the deliberations are private.

A spokesman for DONG said: "We are in the very early stages of the sales process. There will be no sale before the end of the year and it is far too early to speculate over timing and indeed potential buyers."

Maersk, Bank of America, JP Morgan declined to comment.

Maersk held talks last year on possibly buying DONG Energy's oil and gas business, but the companies failed to agree on a price, Bloomberg reported in September.

Maersk Oil has suffered a series of setbacks, first and foremost when Qatar chose not to extend its 25-year license to operate the giant Al Shaheen field.

DONG Energy Chief Executive Henrik Poulsen said this month the company was "still in a very early stage of exploring market interest, but it is our impression that there is interest in an asset of this kind."

DONG has said cash flow at its oil and gas business breaks even at $35 per barrel. It has been producing 89,000 barrels of oil and gas per day this year, down from 115,000 barrels of oil and gas daily last year.

Maersk has previously held talks about buying a large part of the North Sea portfolio that Shell is looking to sell as part of a divestment plan.

(Additional reporting by Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen in Copenhagen; Editing by Mark Potter)
The CIUR symposium kicks off on Nov 26 in Hangzhou. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The "China Intangible Cultural Heritage Innovation Industry Alliance", initiated by Yong Xin Hua Yun, was established during the 10th China Industry-University-Research (CIUR) Collaboration Innovation Symposium, in order to fully carry out the protection of intangible cultural heritage (ICH).

Cultural platform Yong Xin Hua Yun was granted the year's top award  the National Innovation Achievement Award by CIUR association. The purpose of the annual symposium, held in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province, is to "integrate innovative resources, build innovative platforms, enhance innovative ability, and transform research achievement", through the collaboration of industry, university and research institutes.

"The new normal' economy needs the stimulation from cultural industry," said Li Yongjun, chairman of Yong Xin Hua Yun, during his speech. "The development of cultural industry also needs the boost from market innovation."

He explained that collaborative innovation and integration development of the cultural industry is becoming a competitive edge for companies. It will offer scientific support and create a new innovative cross-border system for the development of culture.

"As a leading member in ICH protection, we will continue to integrate cultural resources and explore market for ICH," he said. "So the world can learn more from each other in ICH protection."
Leaders of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have rejected new documents presented by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) as evidence for Panama Leaks case by denying any truth to those on Monday.

Daniyal Aziz and Muhammad Zubair addressed a joint press conference today during which they said that PTIs evidence proves that the political party did not have anything as proof against premiers family until November 15.

Federal Minister for Privatization, Zubair demanded Imran Khan to be held accountable for his alleged unaccounted-for wealth and asked him to explain why he allegedly concealed his offshore company.

He asserted that Hamid Khan was handed over the case without providing him evidence.

He alleged Imran Khans confidants of corruption and questioned the basis of his anti-corruption rhetoric. Muhammad Zubair accused secretary general of PTI, Jahangir Tareen of inside trading during his tenure as minister.

He demanded to hold Imran Khan accountable for establishing an offshore company and concealing an apartment.

Daniyal Aziz said that Imran Khan led a theatre act in Raiwind but proof neither against the premier nor his family surfaced. He said that the book which was quoted as evidence in Panama Leaks case talked about recipes of buttermilk and carrot pudding.

Jahangir Tareens cook, Haji Khan is declared owner of around Rs 37 million in documents and he should produce him before the public, Daniyal Aziz demanded.
Nearly a hundred Israeli settlers have once again stormed the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in the Old City of Jerusalem al-Quds amid simmering tensions between Israeli military forces and Palestinian protesters in the occupied territories.

Mahmoud Abu Atta, the media coordinator at the al-Aqsa Foundation for Waqf and Heritage, told Arabic-language Safa news agency that 96 illegal settlers, escorted by several groups of Israeli troops and led by a number of guides and rabbis, entered the site through the Bab al-Maghariba on Sunday morning.

The settlers staged lengthy stopovers in various parts of the al-Aqsa Mosque courtyard during the incursion.

Abu Atta added that Israeli soldiers were heavily present at the entrance gates to the mosque; and thoroughly checked the identity cards of arriving worshipers.

The settlers finally left the al-Aqsa Mosque compound through Bab al-Selseleh.

The al-Aqsa Mosque compound is a flashpoint Islamic site, which is holy to Jews and Christians as well. The mosque is Islams third holiest site after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.

The occupied Palestinian territories have witnessed tensions ever since Israeli forces imposed restrictions on the entry of Palestinian worshipers into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem al-Quds in August 2015.

More than 260 Palestinians have lost their lives at the hands of Israeli forces in the tensions since the beginning of last October. The violence has also killed at least 32 Israelis, two Americans, an Eritrean and a Sudanese.
Our age-old rituals View(s):

We are now in the age of digitalization. Four to five decades ago in the absence of high-tech equipment, people had to rely much on traditions and practices of their ancestors. Let me begin with one of my own experiences. Brought up in an environment on the banks of Gin-ganga, the river spilled over twice annually during the monsoons, causing havoc and damage to people, property, flora and fauna. Naturally, we were educated on the precautions to take during the floods. Thus, we had no fear of playing in the floodwaters to our hearts delight.

Once, I contacted hepatitis turning my skin yellowish. Villagers called it Sengamale, a waterborne disease.During a time when western medical practice was not widespread, with no western medical practitioner or a dispensary in the vicinity, my mother could only feed me with boiled coriander water at regular intervals. A family lived in the village who practised traditional medicine and specialized in treating hepatitis, by the application of the oil extracted from the seeds of Domba commonly called Alexandrian laurel ball tree (calophylliuminophyllum). Domba seeds were available in plenty during the fruiting season. Volunteers collected the fruit (the ball nut) a round, green drupe and brought them to the native medical practitioners house to extract the oil. The seeds when passed through a contraption made of two wooden rollers and operated manually would squeeze the juice out of the kernels and was used to extract Domba Oil from the juice so collected. A small quantity of Domba oil applied regularly on the stomach and rubbed gently for several days the ailment disappears and the body returned to normal.

Similar traditional practices are handed down to us from generation to generation. However, these processes invariably changed over the years, but their core value appears to have remained universal. Before the introduction of writing, these age-old practices were passed on from generation to generation, orally and by continuous practices. All such activities subsequently became a subject called culture in the broader sense.

The term cultureconsists of two main streams namely, tangible and intangible. The traditions and practices of human beings are enshrined in their minds, thus they are intangible. Modern technological innovations overshadow this part of the culture and it is therefore essential that these traditions and practices are preserved for posterity.

What Prof. W. I. Siriweera has attempted in his work Traditional Practices in Sri Lanka (second print) is to record the interesting and useful information relating to traditional agriculture, animal husbandry, irrigation, marine and inland fisheries.

The book addresses five major areas mentioned herein that are most relevant to the day-to-day life in Sri Lanka. It contains interesting extant traditions and practices up to recent times and some even up to now. The kem tradition, especially in the agricultural practices plays a major role in protecting harvest. Elaborating on kem rituals associated with agriculture,the author states that, The most elaborate rituals connected with paddy cultivation were performed in the threshing floor. Before bringing the paddy for threshing, a pit about three feet deep by half feet wide diameter is dug, to deposit various items to protect the harvest from unseen forces or spirits. These spirits are called Bahirava in Sinhala and Kuli in Tamil. Items such as betel, arecanut, coconut, a bronze plate in which charms (Mantra) have been written, a piece of turmeric, a piece of Kohomba wood, a piece of iron, bronze coins, sea shells, leaves of trees such as Divikaduru (Rejonadichotama), Nika (Vitedxnegundo) Bo (Ficus religiosa) and Iluk (Imperata cylindrical) a small round stone (arakgala) along with some ears of paddy were then placed in the pit. The placing of these items in the pit were undertaken at an auspicious time (p. 42). These practices are environmentally friendly and harmless to the human beings extant even today.

Prof. Siriweera referring to Kiri Itirima,explains it as a ceremony of boiling milk performed after each harvest on a morning of a Wednesday or Saturday considered to be the kemmura days, best suited to appease deities. The objective is the protection and well-being of reservoirs, crops, cattle, etc. The five deities whose blessings are invoked are Aiyanayaka, Kambili, Ilandari, Puduressa, and Kadugath Bandra. Every family in the village contributes rice for Kiribath and some families contribute milk as well.The ritual is performed under a lactiferous tree near a paddy field or the reservoir. A thatched shed is temporarily built in the venue and its roof is covered with a white cloth. The milk rice is cooked inside this shed in a large pot called raja heliya. Another small hut mal pela is constructed nearby to place the accoutrements of deities obtained from the village temple. While food is cooked the ceremonially attired kapurala the main actor in the rituals  prays and appeals to deities amidst drumming. Once the milk rice is cooked, it is offered to deities first along with other offerings such as betel leaves (Piper betel) and thereafter the villagers consume kiribath and disperse. (p. 94-5)

The author deserves a handsome compliment for his praiseworthy efforts to gather all possible information and condense it into five chapters. He has been successful in presenting the reader with a useful combination of tradition and culture through his work. Sri Lanka needs more works of this nature to highlight the rich heritage of her traditions.
Unmask and uproot the Aava Group View(s):

By B. Anton Jeyanathan

In the aftermath of the killing of two Jaffna University students who were riding a motor cycle in the early hours of the day, by the police officers in Jaffna, said to be at a barrier in order to stop them fleeing, the security situation in Jaffna became tense. Political parties of the North and the South attributed this incident to their own political advantage. However, it was heartening to note that the students union of all the universities throughout the island joined hands together in condemning this shooting. Let no political parties take undue advantage of this incident attributing it to violation of human rights by the police.

Since this matter is before judicial investigation, I do not wish to deal with the details of the shooting incident itself. However, the shooting by the police has raised many concerns and protests by members of civil societies, members of the University Students Association, religious societies etc. The prompt action taken by the President in instructing the Police Department to conduct impartial investigations and take the police officers involved in this incident into custody and proceed with a judicial inquiry has brought satisfaction to the people of Jaffna who had understood that this shooting has no political motive nor is it an oppressive act by the police. The domestic inquiries conducted by the police so far have revealed that there have been several serious lapses on the part of the police officers who were on duty and that the decision and the order to open fire was questionable. I am confident that the departmental inquiry will conclude with evidence to file departmental charges against the errant police officers in addition to the criminal charges which may be brought against the officers once the investigation into the shooting is over.

Language barrier

On a visit to KKS over the weekend I met certain respectable members of civil societies as well as religious leaders, all of whom unanimously acknowledged that there is a positive change in the attitude of the police who are stationed in the Northern province towards the people of Jaffna. Nevertheless, they expressed the opinion that most of the police officers deployed do not speak or understand the Tamil language which is spoken by the majority of the people in Jaffna and in the Northern Province. They were also of the opinion that the police officers have not been properly briefed or given orientation courses as to how their duties should help in the process of reconciliation and how they should be people friendly in their day to day duties.

They do not consider the police officers to be anti Tamil or that they are those who oppress or suppress the law abiding section of the Tamil population. They voiced their opinion that the police officers must be well conversant in the Tamil language, that they should be educated that the era of militant activities by the Tamil youth has been eradicated, and that the present population living in Jaffna and the Northern province are eager to follow the democratic way of governance and that they fully extend their co-operation to reconciliation and peaceful living.

Aava Group

In respect of the shooting incident there were allegations of a group named the Aava who are said to be operating in the Jaffna peninsula. Some of the allegations were that they are the rump of the LTTE and they are engaged in terrorist activities, and that the two students who were killed were also members of the same group. There were also allegations that this group was responsible for militant activities and that it was originally mooted by the armed forces, which allegations have no base. However, it is for the police to investigate the background of this group, trace their origin, and round up all members as it is also alleged that they are engaged in robberies and theft. It is the duty of the police to unmask and uproot this group once and for all without leaving room for further growth.

Release of lands

The concerned citizens and religious groups were also happy that the lands belonging to the peasants were released. They were also happy that the Secretary of Defence and the army had erected houses in the KKS area to be donated to those people who had been displaced due to the LTTE war. I am personally thankful to Mr. Karunasena Hettiarchchi, Secretary of Defence, who with the concurrence of the Northern army commander released the ancestral property which was in the high security zone near the KKS railway station.

However, the citizens expressed their concern about the situation in the KKS area where the Army is occupying the entire area from KKS junction up to Palali on the KKS/Palali road. The army has taken over the lands on either side of the road and in the process they had demolished churches and temples and even desecrated cemeteries. They expressed their hope that the President would give sympathetic attention to this aspect where the lands where churches, temples and cemeteries were located have been taken over by the armed forces and have these areas returned to the relevant religious authorities. These areas were the homeland of government servants, teachers, cement factory workers, businessmen, railway officers and fisher folk in the Oorany area.

uring the LTTE terrorist period all the residents in the area vacated their homes and either went abroad or found new homes in Jaffna, Kilinochchi and Vavuniya. Concerned citizens expressed the view that the civilians should be encouraged to return to these areas so that they could regain their lands and start a new life in their own land. The government has facilitated the railway service up to KKS which has become a boon to the people of Jaffna, and also the Railway Department where it is claimed that the Northern railway line is the one which brings in the highest revenue to the government compared to other railway lines.

The government has taken positive steps to resettle the displaced persons, releasing lands occupied by the armed forces back to the owners and taking further steps to genuinely build trust between the two communities. The people are free to go about from Colombo to Jaffna and to any part of Jaffna without any fear or hindrance. Now that the train service has been extended up to KKS and several trains are transporting people from Colombo to KKS and back, it would further the goodwill towards the government to allow the people who had lost their lands in the KKS area to come back and restore their lands so that they could continue their lives in the land they were born and bred.

Religious authorities

All religious authorities whose temples, churches and cemeteries have been demolished, whose lands have been taken over, should make an appeal collectively to the government to have their lands returned to them. The government is certain to examine their requests and release the lands with the concurrence of the army. It is for the religious authorities to take this matter up with the government to restore their lands.

(The writer is a retired Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the Police.)
Western financial technology companies are seizing the opportunity presented by surging numbers of Chinese students studying abroad to offer them loans and money transfer services.

UK-based Prodigy Finance, once it realized Chinese students could not get loans from British banks, even with high credit reliability, began funding tuition and living expenses.

"We think Chinese students will be a big growth area," said Ricardo Fernandez, a director at Prodigy Finance. "Traditionally, Chinese students study abroad with loans from other family members or government scholarships. But they are now starting to become familiar with the concept of a student loan."

What makes Prodigy Finance different from the big banks is its in-house system of calculating students' ability to make repayments, based on factors such as the university attended, future likely salary and exam scores.

So far, it has lent money to about 300 Chinese students, with a repayment rate of more than 99 percent.

Its Chinese student clients have attended some of the world's top universities, such as INSEAD, Columbia, Yale, London Business School, Oxford and Cambridge. Students pay loan rates of 5-8 percent, depending on what credit rating Prodigy calculates for them, based on criteria such as the student's university and their exam grades.

Those who lend students money through Prodigy, mainly education focused funds, earn returns of 4-6 percent.

Meanwhile, Bostonbased fintech firm Flywire is giving Chinese students a channel to send tuition fees directly to universities in order to speed up transfers, benefit from favorable exchange rates, and track the movement of funds.

Flywire advertises itself as offering the best exchange rates on the market, and offers to match any competitor's rates at the student's request.

Flywire and Prodigy's work reflects huge growth in the financial technology industry, particularly since the 2008 financial crisis.

Fintech is the financial service sector in which technology-driven companies produce solutions to challenge the traditional banking industry.

"What's most remarkable, of course, is that the services carried out by Flywire and Prodigy are being made available by non-banks, rather than traditional consumer lending organizations," said Howard Yu, a professor of strategic management and innovation at IMD Business School in Switzerland.

Yu said the reason no Chinese financial technology firms had so far tapped into this market was because it needs global networks and perspective.

Chinese financial technology firms could find new opportunities by leveraging their own expertise, which is in user data analysis, Yu said.
Steve Bearns with his wife Mary Xia Zu and their son Ryan in November 2015. [Photo/China Daily]

An English businessman has enlisted the help of his MP in a visa dispute with immigration authorities in the hope that his Chinese wife can return to Britain and be reunited with their three-year-old, British-born son in time for Christmas.

The family has been in limbo since the Home office declined to grant Mary Xia Zu a spousal visa a year ago after querying her application. The couple won their case at an appeal tribunal but a further application was ignored on the grounds that she was out of the country at the time caring for her sick father.

The Home office told China Daily: "Ms Xia had left the country before the appeal judgment was returned in July 2016we are unable to act on appeal judgments where an appellant has left the country." Fifty-four-year-old Steve Bearns met Mary, 35, in Shenzhen in 2006. They married in China in 2010 and moved to Wallingford in Oxfordshire with their son Ryan.

"Ryan is our reason to settle here. He is also a British citizen and has the right to have his mother with him," Bearns said. The separation means Ryan splits his time between the UK and China.

Mary was initially granted a family visit visa, but this only permits her to stay in the UK for 180 days within any 12-month period.

"Ryan goes to pre-school here and doesn't like being away, so when he was in China he would say 'mummy, mummy, why can't we go home?'" the businessman said.

"Since I brought Ryan back over in the summer, and whenever we Skype his mum, he is asking her when she's going to come home. It's very upsetting," Bearns said. "It's like we're sharing this little boy. The Home Office is denying our right to life as a family."

Bearns contacted his local MP, Ed Vaizey, who believes the couple has been treated shamefully.

Bearns has already spent around 3,000 pounds ($3,740) on trying to get his wife back to the UK and is now waiting for a date for a second appeal.

"It's ludicrous, we meet all the Home office requirements and we went through all the official procedures, provided the supporting documents and proof that they needed," said Bearns. He said normal family life had come to a halt.

"We haven't celebrated Mother's Day or Father's Day and birthdays have been missed. It seems like we won't be together as a family for Christmas either."

Bearns said the family did not want to be forced to move elsewhere and would not give up on the plan to live in the UK.
Following last weeks tragic accident on Dive Crescent resulting in the death of a 71-year-old American citizen, Tourism Bay of Plenty is thanking the industry and community for their support.

Bay of Plenty CEO Kristin Dunne says its heartening to see people rallying together.

All we had to do was pick up the phone and aid from a number of different avenues became available in an instant.

This is what makes Tauranga a great place to live. My observation is our locals welcome visitors as if theyre friends, which is why we are all deeply saddened when an incident as rare and distressing as this occurs.

Special thanks was given to Tauranga City Council Mayor Greg Brownless and CEO Garry Poole, Tauranga Police, Victim Support and the local hotels that opened their doors to accommodate.

Losing a loved one in another country is deeply distressing, and I have personally been in frequent contact with the victims husband. He is a private person and we have, and will, continue to respect his privacy.

The victims husband returned home on Saturday and while he was understandably shocked, he expressed his gratitude at the level of support and care he received while in our city. He was particularly concerned about others, and wishes everyone involved to be reassured this was an accident and he felt no-one was to blame.

Kristin says there has also been enormous support for Freewheeling Tours.

The team are reportedly deeply shocked and saddened at what happened, and are currently supporting their staff and families with counselling.

Following the accident, Freewheeling Tours has commenced their Worksafe investigation and are continuing to assist the police with their on-going investigations.

Every indication shows Freewheeling Tours followed their health and safety procedures, and this was a tragic accident.

Tourism Bay of Plenty is continuing to take every necessary measure to assist the police and authorities with their investigations.
The design of a new $6.5 million cycle/walkway bridge across the Wairoa River is poised to become a major drawcard for the regions tourism once complete in 2018.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council announced the design for the iconic bridge  a key part of the Omokoroa to Tauranga Cycle Trail project  at a special gathering in Council Chambers this evening.

Designed by architect firm Warren and Mahoney, the design features a curved, single span bridge with no piles in the water and a spectacular arch about 40 metres high at mid-point.

Councils Deputy CEO and Infrastructure Manager, Gary Allis, says the idea for an iconic bridge across the Wairoa River came in the initial development of the Omokoroa to Tauranga Cycle Trail, says Gary.

The project came to life when Tauranga Energy Consumer Trust came on board with a $1m grant.

Gary says concepts from four companies were invited for the design competition  the winning design chosen from a panel of judges made up of key project partners and Tangata Whenua.

We knew an iconic structure would attract more than just cyclists  our vision is to have a bridge that becomes a tourist attraction, contributing to the regions amenities and economic development.

We were looking for a unique creation, something that could be enjoyed by current and future generations. Were confident this bridge will do just that.

The bridge has an estimated cost of about $6.5m. Construction is expected to begin in July 2017 and last about 12 months.

Minister for Transport Simon Bridges spoke via video link at this evenings presentation and says the bridge will have huge benefits for the regions tourism and for the health and lifestyle of residents.

Im incredibly excited about this stunning design for the Wairoa Bridge.

Its going to be an a real drawcard in relation to overall an amazing cycle trail from Omokoroa to Tauranga for locals, commuters and tourists both throughout New Zealand and around the world.

Im incredibly proud to be one of the local members of parliament involved in this and to be the Minister of Transport thats helped to get the Omokoroa to Tauranga cycleway underway  one of the most significant in New Zealand outside of the main centres.

TECT Chairman Bill Holland says the Board wanted to see something special  and thats what has been delivered.

The words iconic and wow have all been used  personally I was wowed and stunned at this project.

When you get people collaborating together as has happened here youre going to finish up with something pretty special.

Lou Gates, of Ngati Kahu, says this design was the only concept without any feet in the water.

That was huge for us as Tangata Whenua. We are so happy with it. The arch is almost representative of our famous mountain Mauao.
A six-year-old girl with critical head injuries is one of a number of people injured in a head-on crash in the Bay of Plenty.

At 3pm, the Tauranga-based Trustpower TECT Rescue Helicopter was dispatched to the crash on State Highway 33, near Okere Falls.

Pilot and base manager Liam Brettkelly says a car and van had collided head-on, resulting in multiple patients.

"We flew a young girl, around six-years-old, to Waikato Hospital with critical head injuries.

"A woman in her 30s was trapped for some time in the car, she was cut free by the fire service before being flown to Waikato Hospital in the Bay Trust rescue helicopter, she was also in a critical condition."

Liam says other patients were taken by St John ambulance to Rotorua hospital.

Police are investigating the cause of the crash.
The Salvation Armys Christmas campaign has been given a major boost thanks to facilities management company OCS Limited and Cannon New Zealand.

During OCS annual conference held last week the company presented the Sallies with a cash donation of $15,150 plus hundreds of food and household items for Rotorua foodbank.

Managing director Gareth Marriott says with more than 4100 staff around New Zealand, the company wanted to support a charity making a big difference in all communities around the country.

Already this year weve been involved with the 14 Hours Homeless event, and each of our 23 branches across the country will be doing various activities to help stock Salvation Army foodbanks leading up to Christmas.

This is just the start of our relationship with the Salvation Army and were looking forward to supporting them long into the future.

Rotorua Salvation Army corps officer Ralph Overbye says the contribution is much appreciated as the need for food and support is year-round.

We cant offer the service we provide without help from people and organisations like OCS. The donation is great.

In addition, OCS has also donated 4000 products including personal items like shampoo, deodorant and toothbrushes to the Salvation Armys Waitakere Centre on Monday.
ATHENS - European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos on Monday called on the EU members to provide more support to refugees, accelerate the refugee relocation program from Greece and Italy and send more experts to assist in the assessment of asylum requests.

In statements to the press in Athens, he said that Greek authorities are taking the necessary measures to improve the living conditions in reception centers, in particular after the fire which broke out at Moria hotspot on Lesvos island last week, Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

A 60-year-old refugee and her six-year-old grandson lost their lives due to a cooking gas canister explosion in early Friday.

Avramopoulos' remarks were made shortly after Fire Brigade extinguished another fire which broke out at a refugee hospitality center in Kilkis in northern Greece on early Monday.

A wooden structure used as a school for refugee children and three tents were burnt from the blaze. No injuries were reported this time. According to the fire service, the blaze was most likely caused by a short-circuit.

The Greek government has pledged to take measures to decongest accommodation facilities and improve living conditions, but also calls on other EU countries to offer more aid to handle the crisis.

More than 62,000 people are stranded in Greece since last spring, after the closure of borders along the Balkan route to central Europe, according to Athens' latest official account.
Description

Broadway Supports LIHSA - a benefit performance for the campaign for the Long Island High School for the Arts featuring 20 performers with over 100 Broadway shows to their credit!

See Stars like Tony Award Nominee - Adam Pascal(RENT, Something Rotten!, Disaster!, Memphis, Aida, Cabaret, Chicago), Jackie Burns (Wicked, If/Then, Hair), Tony Award Nominee - Charl Brown (Motown, the Musical, Sister Act, Jersey Boys)

On November 28th Broadway Stars including Tony, Drama Desk and Olivier Award Nominees will come together to show their full support for Public Arts Education on Long Island. They will sing, dance and share their stories about their experiences on Broadway and in the Arts.

Long Island High School for the Arts

Tickets on sale at http://tickets.shovation.com

This event is open to the public and not to be missed! When purchasing tickets, don't forget to look for the special Meet & Greet link for a unique opportunity to have dessert with the performers.

www.nassauboces.org/lihsa

516-622-5678
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As 2016 turns out to be one of the worst years in the company's history, Samsung is looking toward 2017 to put things right. It's hoping that the Galaxy S8 smartphone will help lay to rest the explosive ghost of the Note 7, and if rumors are to be believed, the Korean firm is focusing all its efforts on the upcoming handset, which is said to feature 6GB of RAM and come with a 256GB storage option.

If the latest rumors - originating from China - are true, it will mean that the Galaxy S8 features 2GB more RAM than the S7/S7 Edge. 6GB may sound like overkill for a smartphone, and in reality it probably is, but earlier rumors suggested it could have been as high as 8GB.

It's also thought that the S8's internal storage will get a huge boost. While the S7 and S7 Edge come with 32GB of storage as standard (though there is a 64GB version as well), the microSD card slot mean running out of space shouldn't be an issue for most users. The S8, however, is said to offer 256GB of storage in its highest configuration. What this means for the microsSD slot is unclear, but it would be a surprise if Samsung removes the feature.

Back in September, a leaked report by Sammobile suggested the S8 may come with an Exynos 8895 SoC featuring ARM's new high-end Mali-G71 mobile GPU. While Tech Updates claims the S8 will ship with a 5.2-inch display featuring a resolution of 2160 x 4096 - an increase over the 1440 x 2560 found in the S7.

One aspect of the S8 that we know will definitely be present is its Siri/Cortana/Alexa-rivalling virtual assistant, which may be activated using a dedicated button on the side of the handset.

All of this means that the Galaxy S8 is said to be 28 percent more expensive to manufacture than the S7. Thankfully, the new smartphone will apparently have the same launch price as its predecessor did last year. Samsung is expected to unveil the S8 at Barcelona's MWC in February/March, we'll be there to find out which rumors turn out to be accurate.
Earlier this month, the 48th TOP500 list of the world's fastest supercomputers revealed that China and the US once again dominated the results. The Asian country's Sunway TaihuLight machine continues to hold the number one position with a Linpack benchmark of 93 petaflops, but it could soon face a challenge from Japan, which is planning to build a supercomputer capable of reaching 130 petaflops as early as next year.

When it comes to countries with the total number of supercomputers in the TOP500, Japan sits in fourth place with 27. Germany is one place ahead with 32 entries, while the US and China both have 171. But Japan does hold two spots in the top ten - its 13.5 petaflop Oakforest-PACS computer is at number 6 and the 10.5 petaflop k computer is ranked the world's seventh fastest.

But this isn't enough for Japan, which in recent years has lost some of its reputation as a tech leader to other Asian nations such as South Korea and China. The country's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will spend 19.5 billion yen ($173 million) on a supercomputer that can reach 130 petaflops - 37 more than Sunway TaihuLight.

"As far as we know, there is nothing out there that is as fast," said Satoshi Sekiguchi, a director general at Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, where the computer will be built.

It's hoped that the AI Bridging Cloud Infrastructure computer, or ABCI, will act as a research platform for the country's manufacturers, helping them in the development of self-driving cars, robots, and medical diagnostics.

Reuters reports that ABCI will be made available for a fee to Japan's corporations, who currently outsource data crunching to overseas firms such as Google and Microsoft. Bidding for the project has begun and will close on Dec. 8.
Chinese electronics company Xiaomi witnessed a clear decline in its smartphone profit lately. The company, however, is not afraid of the drop, as it announced it derives its profits from other products aside from smartphones.

Furthermore, company executives believe that the regression in its smartphone trade would have no significant negative impact to the company.

Despite experiencing a fallback in terms of revenue as of late, Xiaomi remained unfazed as it claimed that its profit does not revolve around smartphones alone. Revenue growth would be boosted by profits from smart home gadgets on top of the sales from its software network.

Humble Beginnings

Xiaomi had a market value of $46 billion during its 2014 fund-raising, which made it the world's most expensive start-up company at that time. During this period, it was also China's top-selling smartphone manufacturer.

Because of this, expectations began surfacing that Xiaomi would grow worldwide after finding out its growth statistics.

Unfortunately, 2015 was not good to the Chinese company, as it failed its worldwide smartphone goals by around 12 percent. Research firm IDC also mentioned that its smartphone sales actually dropped by a whopping 45 percent in the third quarter of 2015.

The Fall Of The Titan

Xiaomi was founded six years ago, and China is its biggest market, accounting for 70 million phones sold in 2015. This figure was way below its 100 million target set two years ago when an investment worth $1.1 billion helped value the company at $45 billion.

Furthermore, Xiaomi missed its renewed 80 million target, and it also missed the profits target in 2015. Despite this, the company was positive that it did not matter.

"Basically we're giving [handsets] to you without making any money ... we care about the recurring revenue streams over many years. We could sell 10 billion smartphones and we wouldn't make a single dime in profits," Global Vice President Hugo Barra stated.

How Is The Brand Surviving

Xiaomi has not at all been too eager on disclosing figures for its revenues after witnessing a decline in smartphone sales, but it has emphasized that its lineup of smart home appliances including rice cookers and water and air purifiers were key income drivers.

In fact, last April, VP Liu De stated that they were expecting double the sales of their smart home products to $1.5 billion by the end of the year.

Xiaomi has already invested in Southeast Asian countries and India and could soon be launching its first lineup of devices that are capable of 4G network connectivity in the United States before 2016 ends.

The company plans on initially targeting Chinese customers who would be traveling or living in the United States. Xiaomi also planned to make its debut at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas with a brand-new product for the market.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The thunderstorm asthma outbreak that hit Melbourne, Australia has claimed its sixth victim.

The patient, who had been in critical condition after suffering from medical complications, died in an Eastern Health hospital on Saturday, Nov. 26. Three others are in critical condition while another 12 patients remain in hospitals for less serious respiratory and related conditions.

What Caused The Outbreak

The heavy rains and winds on Monday caused rain-sodden ryegrass pollen grains to disperse over the city. This triggered thousands of pollen allergy asthma attacks as tiny pollen particles penetrate deep into the lungs of the populace causing breathing problems.

The pollen irritates the bronchial tubes causing them to get inflamed and filled with mucus, which made it difficult for people to breathe.

The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy explained that one pollen grain has up to 700 starch granules that are small enough to get into the lower airways in the lungs.

"When it rains or is humid, pollen grains can absorb moisture and burst, releasing hundreds of small allergenic particles that can penetrate deep into the small airways of the lung," ASCIA said.

About a tenth of people in Australia has asthma. Of these, 80 percent suffer from allergies particularly to rye pollen. Melbourne currently has a particularly wet spring season, which causes problem for asthma and hay fever sufferers.

Robin Ould, chief executive of the Asthma Foundation of Australia attributed the outbreak to a combination of factors such as very high pollen day, thunderstorm and high humidity, which caused grains of rye grass to break up into thousands of pieces.

"Normally with rye grass the pollen would be trapped by nose hairs. When it breaks up it goes straight to the lungs," he said.

Outbreak Affected Those Without Prior Asthma Problems

A third of those who suffered from asthma attacks claimed to never had asthma before. According to ASCIA, not everyone who gets thunderstorm asthma has experienced having it before.

Affected individuals normally had severe pollen allergic rhinitis and most have been allergic to rye grass. It is possible that the massive amount of small allergenic particles that were inhaled straight into the lung triggered the attacks.

More than 8,000 people were brought for asthma treatment in hospitals from Monday to Tuesday. Paramedics had to deal with nearly 2,000 emergency calls in five hours on Monday evening when asthma broke out. Ambulances as well as police and firefighters were deployed in response to the emergency.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Samsung announced the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge beta program for developing Android 7.0 Nougat in some parts of the world in early November. The company is now rolling out a new version of Android 7.0 Nougat beta built for the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 edge.

Android Nougat is Google's latest mobile operating system and it was released in August. Currently, the new OS is available only to a select number of Android mobile devices; however, it is expected to reach more smartphones in the coming months.

According to a SamMobile report, the third beta update has started rolling out in the UK and it is expected to be released in other parts of the world soon.

Features Of Android 7.0 Nougat Beta 3 Built

The new update is more focused on bug fixes and enhancements. Beta testers will not see many new features in the new update as previous betas have introduced a number of novel features and improvements.

Android 7.0 Nougat Beta 3 for Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge has improved Quick Panel usability. It brings a 4x3 button layout, brightness color menu, button grid menu and more.

The latest beta has also improved spacing between the clock and the status bar icon. Beta testers will also note improvements made to the multi-window, lock screen and notifications. The update removes Edge feeds and improves overall stability of the device.

Previous Issues Not Fixed

Several previous issues such as Wi-Fi disconnection, screen turning on issues and more have not been fixed in the update. Reports suggest that these issues remain unresolved as Samsung has not been able to find the cause of the problems.

It is likely that Samsung will release another beta for the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 edge, which will resolve these issues.

Size And Version Of Beta 3 Update

The update is available as a manual download and beta testers should note that the new update will change the software version to G935FXXU1ZPKK. The update weighs about 300 MB.

When To Expect Android 7.0 Nougat For Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge

Samsung has not confirmed an Android 7.0 Nougat release date for the Galaxy S7 and the Galaxy S7 edge. However, a previous Tech Times report has highlighted that the Galaxy beta program for the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge will continue till mid-December. The report also notes that these two Samsung phones should receive the new Android OS by end-December or early January 2017.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Android users were found to be more honest compared with iPhone users. The research, conducted in the United Kingdom, also linked the type of smartphone users with other series of descriptive demographic and psychographic criteria.

The research, published online in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, is the first one to link psychological traits to typologies of phone users, instead of just demographic criteria.

Smartphones And Psychological Profiles

As four in five adults in the UK own a smartphone, the market is split approximately 50/50 between Android and iOS. The study looked to find a correlation between personalities of the users and the phone types, revealing important characteristics of the key demographics interested in these types of products.

The methodology of the study was quantitative, and more than 500 volunteers were asked to complete a number of questionnaires about themselves, along with their attitudes and perceptions when it comes to their phones.

The research found that iPhone users are more likely to be younger, as well as twice more likely to be women, and see their phones as a status object instead of just a useful instrument. The iPhone segment was also found to be more extroverted, and less concerned about owning a device that most people like.

In contrast, Android users are more likely older males, found to be more honest and agreeable, as well as less likely to break rules just for personal purposes. Consequently, the representatives of the Android market were also found to be less interested in status and wealth than the consumers of the rival smartphone.

"In this study, we demonstrate for the first time that an individual's choice of smartphone operating system can provide useful clues when it comes to predicting their personality and other individual characteristics," noted Dr. David Ellis from Lancaster University.

The Influence Of Smartphones

Previous studies have found smartphone users in general to be less patient, as a result of the heavy usage of technology, also explaining that smartphone addiction could be a result of unmanaged impulses instead of a reward that comes from using them.

Another research suggests that the type of impulsiveness found in teens who are addicted to their smartphones, from the fear of missing out (FOMO) syndrome to the time they spend on their gadgets, is very similar to behaviors seen in gamblers. Consequently, this is all the more concerning for parents and medical specialists, as social media pressure can contribute to the overall unhappiness of children.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
BMW is reportedly cooking up a new i3 electric vehicle for 2017, increasing the car's range and updating its design.

Electric vehicles continue to gain momentum, but BMW hasn't been very successful in this segment of the auto market so far. While the automaker has been offering i3 electric vehicles for a few years now, it hasn't seen stellar demand.

Nevertheless, a neat redesign and a longer range could give the small electric vehicle just the boost it needs to become more successful.

BMW i3 Makeover

German publication Welt am Sonntag reports (via Reuters) that the BMW i3 model planned for next year will have both its front and rear ends redesigned. No images leaked just yet to offer a glimpse of the makeover, so it remains unclear for now just how the next BMW i3 will look like.

Increased Range

The publication further reveals that BMW will pack new battery technology into its next-generation i3, enabling the electric vehicle to have a longer range. The current BMW i3 can go for 114 miles on a full charge, but the range can be increased up to 180 miles via a "Range Extender."

Welt am Sonntag doesn't specify how long the new range will be, but it does note that it would be an increase of less than 50 percent. This means that the BMW i3 coming next year will still offer a mile range below 200 miles.

That's well below the range of other electric vehicles such as Tesla's Model S, but BMW's electric vehicles are more affordable than Tesla's. The Tesla Model S with a P100D battery, for instance, can run up to 300 miles on a single charge, but it starts at around $134,000 before incentives. The current BMW i3 with Range Extender, meanwhile, costs $47,450 (not including destination and other fees).

BMW Autonomous Vehicle Plans

The German publication also asked Klaus Frohlich, BMW's head of Research & Development (R&D), about the automaker's plans for self-driving vehicles. Frohlich said that BMW wanted to see a common standard for autonomous vehicles across the auto industry so that it could use the same systems and number of sensors.

As a reminder, BMW already teamed up with Intel and Mobileye earlier this year to create an open platform for autonomous vehicles by 2021. Mobileye also worked with Tesla on the carmaker's Autopilot system, but the two companies parted ways back in September.

It remains to be seen what BMW will offer next, but it may also look to score more partnerships to expand its offers. Fiat, for instance, partnered with Amazon to sell cars online, albeit the option is available only in Italy for now.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
As users become more vigilant in protecting themselves and their devices against malware, hackers are becoming more creative in how they spread their infected files.

According to a report by security firm Check Point, the latest development on malware propagation is the utilization of image files that come from social networks such as Facebook and LinkedIn.

Check Point Unveils ImageGate

According to researchers from Check Point, they have discovered a new attack method that has been named ImageGate.

Attackers were reported to have developed a new way of embedding malicious code into image files, sometimes with unusual extensions of SVG, HTA or JS but also at times in JPG or PNG form, which they then upload to social media websites. The attackers then exploit misconfigurations in the infrastructure of the social networks to force users to download the infected image files, which then spread the malware into machines upon clicking on the downloaded file.

Check Point researchers believe that a variant of the Locky ransomware is being propagated through ImageGate, with users who are tricked into opening the infected image files suddenly finding their files encrypted. As with all forms of ransomware, users that are victimized by ransomware will only be able to regain access to their files upon paying the amount that the hackers demand.

Locky was the same ransomware that held the medical data of a hospital in Kentucky hostage back in March. In July, a website that looks to help ransomware victims recover their data was launched, but it is not an all-encompassing solution.

How To Protect Yourself Against ImageGate And The Locky Ransomware

For protection against being victimized by Locky, as propagated through ImageGate or by any other method, the only thing that users will need to remember is to never open a suspicious file. As long as the infected file is not opened, even if it was downloaded, the ransomware will not be able to spread into the user's device and it can be safely deleted.

However, the alarming thing for Check Point is that ImageGate is using social networks as a delivery mechanism. Security apps and users place a huge amount of trust in the security of these websites, which could lead to the opening of infected files as they come from Facebook or LinkedIn.

ImageGate Not For Ransomware?

A spokesperson for Facebook, however, said that the analysis of Check Point is incorrect, as the problem of forced downloads to users of the social network are actually related to several Chrome extensions that were not working correctly. The extensions have since been reported by Facebook to the appropriate parties, with the spokesperson adding that there is no connection in the issue to ransomware such as Locky.

Nevertheless, it is better to remain vigilant against malware, as one wrong move could compromise the security of your device and all the important files stored within it.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Russia Is Planning A Manned Lunar Mission In 2031 | TechTree.com

It has been decades since the last manned Lunar Apollo 17 mission took place. After Russia became the first nation to send a human in space, the US wanted to one-up the Soviets by landing on moon. In six successful missions a total of dozen American men were lucky enough to walk on Earth's natural satellite. After the end of cold war though, the space race mostly fizzled out. However, with a recent rise in the number of private players, the space exploration field is looking quite intriguing. While American billionaire Elon Musk has proposed an ambitious plan to colonise moon, Russia's space corporation Energiya wants to set foot on moon.







Photo from Apollo 11 mission.



According to the Russian news agency Tass.com, Energiya's CEO Vladimir Solntsev said that his company will launch an unmanned flight in 2026. By 2027, Energiya will demonstrate its space module's take-off and landing capabilities in Moons orbit. He added that, "In 2029, there will be an unmanned flight of a new spacecraft to the Moons orbit. In the 2030s, we set the task of a manned flight to the Moon and in 2031 we plan landing on the Moon,"



Energiya's history dates back to 1946, which was known as Special Design Bureau number 1(SDB-1). Over the years, it has successfully carried out countless rocket and space projects. With so much experience, the company should not have any problem keeping up with the projected time-line.

TAGS: Space
19-year-old Melbourne teen Paul Sant has been arrested by Australian authorities for hacking air traffic control and sending unauthorised broadcasting over to pilots over radio bands restricted to aviation users. The teenager also caused one plane to abort a landing at Tullamarine Airport by sending false reports.

According to the police, Sant made 16 separate transmissions to pilots at Tullamarine and Avalon airports between 5 September and 3 November. Sant from Melbourne was arrested earlier this week after authorities suspected him of tapping into air traffic control.
Samsung Galaxy S8 Rumors, Specs, Features And Release

With the Galaxy Note 7 being a bummer and a huge let-down for its users, Samsung is looking to surpass the users expectations with the 2017 flagship phone of the company.

While possible design and features have already leaked but a recent speculation essentially points to the Galaxy S8 to come with a 256GB storage option for those who want more storage on their device. Also, the newest feature is that the model has an internal storage read and write speed up to 500 mbps making the transferring of data from other devices much faster.

Galaxy S8 is also expected to be available in two versions  5.7 inches and 6.2 inches display  without the home button and with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels, which enables the device to give the best video quality with high definition display.

Samsung has already confirmed its association with Qualcomm to supply the processors for the next batch of its high end devices. Although there is no official word yet, speculations have it that the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Edge will be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor and an Exynos 9-based model, which will probably be available internationally.

The leak also suggests the possibility of a fingerprint sensor. It appears that Samsung Galaxy S8 will include a button-less fingerprint scanner, which will be based on Ultrasonic technology. Also, the amount of RAM is expected to increase from 4GB to 6GB.

The phone display will come with a blended screen, protected with corning gorilla glass 5 making it water and scratch resistant. Aside from that, the device will also include an AI (artificial intelligence) assistant.

For picture lovers, the Galaxy S8 is rumored to come with a dual-camera setup on the back (12MP + 13MP) along with dual LED flash. The camera will also have features such as geotagging, smile detection, face recognition and other additional camera features for image enhancement. Other features include the latest version of Bluetooth 5.0 and HTML supported device.

Samsung Galaxy S8 will be announced at the 2017 Mobile World Congress that will run between February and March. The smartphone is estimated to cost around $850.
Cuba will not give up its fight against the blockade because it is illegal, unjust, and inhumane," President Diaz-Canel stressed. | Read More
Tmall Global, Alibaba Groups cross-border e-commerce platform, for the first time has partnered with several U.S. brands including Macys, Costco and Target to launch the Same Products, Same Time, Same Price, Same Black Friday campaign.

1. Tmall is turning black Friday into a Chinese phenomenon

Chinese consumers will get some of the same bargains that Americans do after Thanksgiving, from the same retailers with just a few taps on their mobile phones.

Tmall Global, Alibaba Groups cross-border e-commerce platform, for the first time has partnered with several U.S. brands including Macys, Costco and Target to launch the Same Products, Same Time, Same Price, Same Black Friday campaign. Starting with a pre-sale that launched on Monday and lasting through this coming Sunday.

Read the rest of the story here.

2. Lazada CEO: Southeast Asian startups need core strategies to survive

Entrepreneurs need to know their core strengths and it has to be something that only they can be good at, said Maximilian Bittner, CEO of ecommerce firm Lazada.

But succeeding in building up core strengths might not be enough to stay relevant, especially with new and disruptive businesses constantly popping up.

In the past, companies would have to invent something, whereas today, successful companies are those who meet a need at just the right time. Lazadas Bittner shared that disruption in the competitive ecommerce space is something he has concerns about.

Read the rest of the story here.

3. Walmart tackles food safety through block-chain trial

Like most merchants, the worlds largest retailer struggles to identify and remove food thats been recalled. When a customer becomes ill, it can take days to identify the product, shipment and vendor. With the blockchain, Wal-Mart will be able to obtain crucial data from a single receipt, including suppliers, details on how and where food was grown and who inspected it.

Read the rest of the story here.
West Baton Rouge sheriff's deputies are searching for a Tickfaw man suspected of being one of two gunmen in a Port Allen truck-stop shooting on Friday.

Samuel Tullos, 41, remains at large and is believed to have fled the parish, said Glenn Henagan, a detective with the West Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office. Tullos is wanted on a count of attempted second-degree murder in the evening shooting, which sent one man to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

A second suspected gunman, 27-year-old Joseph Foy, of Ponchatoula, was tracked to a sugarcane field off Rosedale Road and arrested not long after the shooting at the truck stop at 1680 N. Lobdell Highway.

Henagan said witnesses and surveillance footage showed the two gun-wielding men climbing into a vehicle and speeding from the scene of the shooting around 6 p.m. Friday. Deputies found the vehicle abandoned less than a mile away soon afterward.

One suspect in custody but search continues for second following West Baton Rouge shooting West Baton Rouge Parish Sheriffs deputies captured one suspect Friday night, but were still

Foy was booked into parish jail on a count of attempted second-degree murder.

Henagan asks that anyone with information about current whereabouts of Tullos contact Crime Stoppers at (225) 344-7867.
A Canberra lawyer has gone on trial in the ACT Supreme Court, accused of fraudulently obtaining thousands of dollars in legal fees.

Stephen Raymond Stubbs, 63, is alleged to have asked for and received $4000 from Legal Aid ACT, a service for Canberrans who cannot afford legal representation, while also being paid more than $30,000 by his client's mother.

A lawyer has been accused of fraudulently taking thousands of dollars in legal fees.

Stubbs' charges arise from events in late 2008.

In November that year, Canberra man Alexander Duffy had been arrested and charged with assault and acts endangering life.
Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol. Written by Tom Mula, based on A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Directed by Michelle Higgs. Produced by Craig Alexander and Michelle Higgs. The Street Theatre. December 9-11. thestreet.org.au or 6247 1223.

Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, telling the story of how miserly Ebenezer Scrooge has his soul saved one Christmas Eve, is one of the best known of Christmas stories. Chicago Tribune writer Tom Mula gives the story a twist in his play Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol. which he wrote  first as a book, published in 1995, then as a play  after playing Scrooge in a stage adaptation of the original story and thinking that Marley had been given a raw deal: why was Scrooge the one seemingly given a second chance at saving his soul when his former business partner, who provided the means by which he gets it, apparently was not?

Craig Alexander in Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol. Credit:Michelle Higgs

In this retelling of the story, Marley, who is deceased at the start of A Christmas Carol  "Marley was dead: to begin with" is how Dickens opens the tale  is the central character and this version focuses on how in bringing about the redemption of Scrooge's soul, he also saves his own.

Husband and wife Craig Alexander and Michelle Higgs are bringing Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol to Canberra for the second time  she is directing, he is acting  in a version of the show for one performer. Alexander narrates and plays more than a dozen characters in this "Show in a Suitcase"  bringing the story to life with the help of a suitcase (or two) full of everything necessary including lights, sound effects, props and costumes.
A former Canberra orthopaedic surgeon who previously had his medical registration temporarily suspended in relation to a series of problems with his surgeries has been employed at Bundaberg Hospital.

Dr Richard Hocking has been employed as a staff orthopaedic surgeon at the scandal-prone Queensland hospital for at least the past 12 months.

Canberra orthopaedic surgeon Dr Richard Hocking has been employed at Bundaberg Hospital after fighting the ACT Medical Board over its suspension of his practice registration.

Dr Hocking was investigated by the ACT's Medical Board and Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency over several years, after a series of botched surgeries in Canberra dating to 2011.

The ACT Medical Board initially suspended his registration to practise after a botched surgery in which a bone was removed from a 13-year-old patient's misaligned hip, destabilising the hip and requiring a full hip replacement.
Due to the remote location, fellow volunteers provided medical assistance for about two hours, including using a defibrillator, before ambulance officers arrived.

Jitte Nieuwenhuis, 79, pictured in his yellows, was an active member of the Krawarree brigade for 20 years.

Jitte Nieuwenhuis, of the Krawarree brigade in the Lake George Zone, suffered a suspected heart attack late on Sunday afternoon.

A 79-year-old NSW Rural Fire Service volunteer has died on duty in the Palerang region at Bendethera.

Jitte Nieuwenhuis, 79, pictured in his yellows, was an active member of the Krawarree brigade for 20 years.

A spokesman for NSW Rural Fire Service said the man was attending a fire at the remote Bendethera Camping area in the Deua National Park, about 200km south east of Canberra.

The firefighters had put out the smouldering wreck of a car when Mr Nieuwenhuis complained of chest pain. Soon after he became unresponsive.

NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said the service's condolences are with the member's family and friends, fellow crew and brigade members.

"We are offering every assistance possible to the volunteer's family and fellow members," Commissioner Fitzsimmons said.
Qantas Airways has baled out of an ambitious deal with American Airlines that would have increased trans-Pacific traffic for both carriers, after a United States regulator blocked it on competition grounds.

The US Department of Transport earlier this month tentatively knocked back an expansion of the airlines' alliance, announced in mid-2015, because it would have tied up about 60 per cent of traffic between Australia and the US, unfairly concentrating market power.

The Flying Kangaroo and American initially said they would appeal the decision to block the proposed joint venture, under which the airlines would have split marketing expenses and shared the revenue on each others' flights between Australia and New Zealand and the US.

But on Tuesday the airlines said they would withdraw their application for anti-trust immunity because they could not respond to the DoT's decision within the 14 days provided and were denied an extension.
There's a Chinese saying that stems from the philosophy in Sun Tzu's ancient text The Art of War: You can kill 1000 enemies, but you would also lose 800 soldiers.

Centuries later, the proverb is suddenly apt again, being mentioned frequently in discussions around Beijing. Now, it highlights the potential damage US President-elect Donald Trump could inflict if he makes good on his threat to start a trade war with China, the world's second-biggest economy.

Having backed off some other campaign pledges, it's unclear if Trump will end up slapping punitive tariffs on China  and Beijing has signalled some optimism he will be more pragmatic in office. Still, the message from China is that any move to tax Chinese imports would bring retaliation. The US economy would take a hit and America would damage its longstanding ties with Asia.

"China wouldn't like to see that happen," Fu Ying, who chairs the foreign affairs committee of the legislature and was a vice-foreign minister until 2013, said of the US imposing punitive tariffs. "But if so happens, it won't be one-way traffic," she said last week in Beijing.
Stuck with a 2G mobile network and slow internet speeds, a group of Norfolk Islanders are looking for the ultimate technology boost: fibre-to-the-island.

An undersea cable capable of 42 terabytes per second will soon be laid just 90 kilometres off Norfolk's coast and islanders need to put in an order soon. The problem is, they need someone to pay for it.

Will someone pay for Norfolk Island to plug into a 42 Tbps broadband connection?

And the Australian government is the most likely source of funds after taking responsibility earlier this year for the island, which sits in the middle of the ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia.

However, the islanders have been given a firm "no" and told to make do with NBN Co's satellite service.
The series ran from September 1969 to March 1974, attracting viewers during a period of extreme social change and the Vietnam War, neither of which touched the Bradys' world.

Henderson was making a film in Norway in 1969 when she was asked to appear in the pilot episode of The Brady Bunch, an unapologetically upbeat comedy about a woman with three daughters who meets, marries and makes a sunny suburban California home with a widower who has three sons.

Florence Henderson, who began her career as an ingenue soprano in stage musicals in the 1950s but made a more lasting impression on television as the perky 1970s sitcom mother on The Brady Bunch, has died in Los Angeles due to heart failure aged 82.

Florence Henderson (in brown) became a household name starring with the cast of the TV series The Brady Bunch.

Henderson defended the original television show from its detractors, who ridiculed it for its simplistic, impossibly wholesome plots and its idealised portrait of family life. "It was really a show that was seen through the eyes of a child," she said, "and it was supposed to have a little soft glow about it."

The question of whether Carol Brady was widowed or divorced was never definitively established on the television show. In A Very Brady Sequel (1996), the second of the two movies based on the show, a character (who turns out to be an impostor) claims to be her long-lost husband, who was thought to have died at sea.

Henderson pretended to clear up the mystery in a 2015 interview. "I killed my husband," she announced. "I was the original Black Widow. Nobody ever said, but I always say I just got rid of him."

Before the series, Henderson had built an impressive reputation with stage work. She starred in Fanny on Broadway in the mid-1950s, when she was in her early 20s; The King and I at the Los Angeles Music Centre; South Pacific at Lincoln Centre; national tours of Oklahoma! and The Sound of Music; and The Girl Who Came to Supper (1963), Noel Coward's last original Broadway musical.
The injustice  often criminal, often fatal  men inflict on women is one of the most disconcerting issues. The contravention of universal values such as fairness, respect and the sanctity of fundamental rights, including the right to life, is astounding. It is a manifold disgrace, encompassing domestic violence (the leading preventable cause of illness and injury for women between the ages of 15 and 44), and workplace inequality including income disparities and lack of access to positions of power.

And, as demonstrated in an investigation published by The Age on Monday, it also includes harassment of female staff by male customers across a range of industries, including retailing, design, hospitality and healthcare. The online presentation of the comprehensive package by writer Gina McColl includes first-hand testimonies from women who suffer harassment from customers in part because of a view that deference, availability and friendliness are part of the job.

Have look at yourselves, fellas.

Far from being an acceptable part of anyone's job, such harassment is unlawful  on the part of the offending customers and the women's employers. This has been unambiguously the case since a change five years ago in the Sex Discrimination Act. But there has not been a discernible rise in complaints to the Human Rights Commission, and there has been nary a court case to test the law. This suggests a lack of knowledge in the community that such rights, responsibilities and mandatory protections exist.

We believe this can be remedied through education programs and other measures. First, employer organisations should ensure their members receive detailed briefings and information about their duty to protect their staff against harassment by customers and clients. Second, employees should be given training by employers and unions on how to respond to inappropriate behaviour by customers.
This is the disparity that explains why Pauline Hanson chose to snorkel where she did last week, while giving the Great Barrier Reef a clean bill of health.

New data released late on Monday shows that in the south - including around Great Keppel Island, where One Nation Senators took to the water - 99 per cent of coral survived the bleaching event last summer.

Head further north, to the 700-kilometre stretch of shallow-water reefs north of Port Douglas, and it is estimated 67 per cent of coral in this area has died since February.

Terry Hughes, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, said recent underwater surveys had confirmed that bleaching due to increased ocean temperatures in February and March was the worst on record, but that the rate of death had varied markedly.
Many of Australia's coal-fired power stations will shut in coming years no matter what the government does, but a national plan will be needed to ensure the lights stay on and price rises are limited while they are replaced with cleaner models, Labor and the Greens say.

A Senate inquiry into the retirement of coal plants heard that many energy companies, unions, community and environment groups agreed closures were inevitable and want the federal government to introduce policies to help manage the shift.

One man blasted Engie for not closing the power station in a staged fashion over several years. Credit:Eddie Jim

Businesses making this case included AGL, the owner of the most coal-fired power generation capacity in the country.

The Greens-Labor dominated interim committee report says: "The question is not if coal fired power stations will close, but how quickly and orderly these closures will occur and what supporting policies if any will be in place to help manage the process.
In Rirratjingu culture, there is a sacred, rarely seen ceremony that honours the two Djan'kawu sisters who created life on earth. On Monday at Parliament House, it was the powerful opening scene of an event demanding an end to family violence in Indigenous communities.

Dancers came from North East Arnhem Land to join the biggest achievement so far of the No More campaign, a gathering that saw Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, dozens of other MPs and Gurindji journalist Charlie King link arms to call for change.

"They were holy and sacred," Rirratjingu elder Witiyana Marika said of the sisters. "Women are holy. Because they are creators, they bring life, our offspring."

The No More campaign, led by King, has taken hold amid the appalling rates of violence facing Indigenous communities, where women are 11 times more likely than non-Indigenous women to be murdered as a result of family violence and 34 times more likely to be hospitalised.
An imminent tightening of security at Parliament House threatens to deny public access to its signature sloping lawns, as authorities worry about the iconic building's ongoing vulnerability to a terrorist attack.

The restriction of access to the upper lawns - which has been pushed by security agencies in the past but never eventuated on heritage grounds - could alter the nature of the giant complex, which was designed to allow the people of Australia to walk over the heads of their elected representatives.

While details of the proposed upgrade are being tightly held, Fairfax Media understands a number of changes have already received the support of the major parties in the House of Representatives and will be progressed with senators this week, with a view to works beginning over summer.

New reinforcements are believed to include the installation of security barriers across areas currently accessible to the public, the erection of fencing and gates around the Senate and House of Representatives entries, fewer pedestrian entry points, and additional machine gun-equipped police patrolling its perimeters.
The first time I heard the phrase "alt-right" used with regards to political discourse, I honestly thought I was imagining it. Perhaps it's my lefty bias, but the idea that the right could have an "alternative" when they are the generally staunch defenders of the status quo (as they tend to benefit from it) seemed somewhat out of place. Yet since then, I have seen the term used over and over again, to describe a specific group of people within the right and why they feel they're distinguishable from the traditional right.

Mainly, alt-right has been used with regards to the US election and those who've supported Trump. There's already been much written about this but if people are not aware, the man who penned it; Richard Spencer of the National Policy Institute; might be able to explain while he talks about how the US is meant to be a "white country". As might this gleeful group of white people throwing celebratory Nazi salutes in honour of Trump's victory. Breitbart Technology journalist Milo Yiannopoulos could explain as well while also telling us how he feels feminist bullies are destroying the video gaming industry.

There has already been a lot of great coverage on the need to stop using the fluffy titles the alt-right created for themselves in order to obfuscate what they actually are: white nationalists, misogynists, homophobes and the like. It's notable that the editors from online publication ThinkProgress have released a statement outlining that they will "no longer describe racists as 'alt-right'". I cannot echo their views strongly enough. To frame hate speech as a mere alternative stream of political philosophy is not only dangerous, but it is not remotely conducive to a cohesive and accepting society where safety and tolerance is prioritised over persecution and fear.

In addition, as journalist Max Chalmers states, Australia's own parallels of the alt-right are very much alive. They already reside in our political chambers; trolling the media relentlessly. They have grassroots supporters who have been buoyed by their presence and have been marching our streets under various banners. I admit to being amused that the recent rally in support of Trump by these groups mobilised a tiny fraction of what the counter-rally of anti-racists managed to gather together. A minute rally showing, though, should not be taken to mean that these extremist reactionary elements are not of concern here.
A young driver who dragged a woman alongside his car and then left her for dead in a gutter in south western Sydney allegedly told a friend: "Yeh I done that bitch, she deserves it and thats what happens when you don't pay up".

Samantha Giufre, then 18, was left with life long injuries including brain damage after she was dragged by a car for several metres before she was thrown to the road after a drug deal went badly wrong in Casula in September 2014.

Fighting for her life in intensive care - receiving treatment for multiple fractures to her skull and face along with bleeding on the brain - Ms Giufre was unable to tell police what happened and it was six months later that the driver was charged.

Bashar Hawchar, now 20, was due to go on trial in Campbelltown District Court on Monday, but instead entered a guilty plea to dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm.
Family and friends of former NRL player Chad Robinson have appealed for public help to find the 36-year-old, who disappeared from Sydney's north-west at the weekend.

Robinson, a former Parramatta Eels and Sydney Roosters player, has not been seen since about 7.30pm on Saturday, when he left his house on Crestview Avenue in Kellyville in his silver Subaru Outback, police said.

Police said there were "grave concerns for his welfare, and police urge anyone who sees him to contact them immediately".

Robinson's sister, Monique Brennan, said her brother did not have his phone or wallet with him.
It was not a good idea, he told us by phone. "I abused my power to give the bullies a hard time," he said. Huffman thought of his name-swapping as a joke: a way to poke back at the people who've been harassing him and some of the site's volunteer moderators for months.

Huffman, also a Reddit co-founder, has landed in hot water after admitting that he used his administrative powers to secretly edit user comments that were critical of him on r/The_Donald  a popular, pro-Trump forum (or "subreddit"). He swapped all mentions of his own username with the names of the pro-Trump group's leaders, meaning that expletive-laden posts aimed at him looked instead as if they were insulting the group's leaders.

Steve Huffman, co-founder and chief executive officer of Reddit. Credit:Bloomberg

Huffman's admission fanned the flames of controversy that had been surrounding the subreddit  and its relationship with Reddit  for months. It also capped off what had already been a long week. Reddit was already warring with self-proclaimed Trump supporters after shutting down a subreddit devoted to "pizzagate"  the claim that there is secret child sex-trafficking ring run by prominent Democrats. The New York Times and others have debunked this theory. Reddit deleted that group for revealing people's personal information.

The subreddit r/The_Donald and its users are known for promoting conspiracy theories and fake news across Reddit, and gleefully invading and bombarding the rest of the platform with pro-Trump memes. In fact, it was so effective at flooding the site's front page with aggressive memes and posts that Reddit has had to change its algorithm to try to limit its reach. Nearly all of the abuse directed at Huffman, he said, came from avid posters to r/The_Donald. After Huffman's admission, many in the pro-Trump group demanded his resignation; he has not addressed those calls.

Huffman told us that he had been letting the abuse from the subreddit's users roll off him, but then wondered if turning the other cheek was setting a bad example. "If The_Donald had done this to another Reddit employee, I would have banned them," he said.

He said he intended to swap the names for just a few hours  despite the fact that doing so violates Reddit employee policies  just to give the subreddit's moderators a taste of what he goes through on a daily basis. Then, he said, he intended to put everything back.
A former Virgin Airlines baggage handler watched a passenger aircraft's landing gear come down before making a hoax radio call that forced the pilot to abort the landing and circle Melbourne Airport, a court has heard.

A Virgin Airlines flight arrived 15 minutes later than scheduled after its pilot heard Paul Sant broadcast the message "Go around" on a publicly accessible distress frequency on October 27, Melbourne Magistrates Court was told on Monday.

Airport radio hoaxer Paul Sant poses in a cockpit. Credit:Facebook

The pilot aborted the landing after hearing the message, and made a loop in the airspace above the airport before landing without incident.

During a bail application, defence counsel Pern Chaya said Mr Sant, 19, was autistic, and after being scared during a week in custody, understood the seriousness of his alleged offending. "He has now learnt how serious this is and that this is not a joke," Ms Chaya said.
St Kilda's notorious Gatwick Hotel has come under renewed pressure to shut down, now that a Victorian MP has urged WorkSafe to investigate the rooming house as an "unsafe workplace".

The formal complaint lodged by Liberal MP Margaret Fitzherbert requests an urgent inspection, following local traders' concerns that people feel unsafe on Fitzroy Street around the Gatwick.

But the government has labelled the complaint a "cheap stunt".

In her letter Ms Fitzherbert calls for WorkSafe to consider whether a prohibition order or "other such action" would be appropriate.
Motley Fool

Shares of newly public fintech companies Upstart Holdings (NASDAQ: UPST), SoFi Technology (NASDAQ: SOFI), and Lemonade (NYSE: LMND) were plunging today, down 5.2%, 9.3%, and 3.1%, respectively, as of 1:25 p.m. ET. It wasn't a good first half of the trading day for growth stocks in general, as investors may be worried about the Federal Reserve meeting today, in which the Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates by 75 basis points and give commentary on the rate hike outlook into next year. The decline even took hold of SoFi, which handily beat revenue and earnings estimates just yesterday, as the stock gave back all of its post-earnings gains, and then some.
A $10 million renewable energy-powered microgrid which has the potential to be the largest in the country will be developed in Western Australia's Midwest.

The coastal town of Kalbarri is currently supplied by a 140 kilometre long rural feeder line, which experiences outages due to environmental factors.

The microgrid will combine wind and solar power with a large-scale battery. Credit:Luke Sharrett

The microgrid will combine wind and solar power with a large-scale battery and Energy Minister Mike Nahan said the project will be closely looked at to see how the technology could benefit other towns in WA.

"This is a game changer for regional communities who rely on power from a long feeder line, which is subject to environmental factors that can cause outages," Dr Nahan said.
In assessing Donald Trump's presidential victory, Americans continue to look away from this election's most alarming story: the successful effort by a hostile foreign power to manipulate public opinion before the vote.

US intelligence agencies determined that the Russian government actively interfered in our elections. Russian state propaganda gave little doubt that this was done to support President-elect Trump, who repeatedly praised Vladimir Putin and excused the Russian president's foreign aggression and domestic repression. Most significantly, US intelligence agencies have affirmed that the Russian government directed the illegal hacking of private email accounts of the Democratic National Committee and prominent individuals. The emails were then released by WikiLeaks, which has benefited financially from a Russian state propaganda arm, used Russian operatives for security and made clear an intent to harm the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.

From the Russian perspective, the success of this operation can hardly be overstated. News stories on the DNC emails released in July served to disrupt the Democratic National Convention, instigate political infighting and suggest for some supporters of independent Senator Bernie Sanders - without any real proof - that the Democratic primary had been "rigged" against their candidate.

On October 7, WikiLeaks began near daily dumps from Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's email account, generating a month of largely negative reporting on Clinton, her campaign staff, her husband and their foundation. With some exceptions, there was little news in the email beyond political gossip and things the media had covered before, now revisited from a seemingly "hidden" viewpoint.
SEAT Alhambra Triumphs in Professional Driver Magazines Car Of The Year Award

LONDON - November 28, 2016: Not unaccustomed to hauling in the odd award, SEATs range-topping Alhambra has added to its ever-growing trophy cabinet with its latest trophy as MPV of the Year at Professional Driver magazines Car of the Year awards.

Facing up to stiff competition, the Barcelona-based brands ultra-practical and stylish people-mover, in SE Lux 2.0 TDI guise, was judged to be the best seven-seater MPV for Private Hire operators.

Mark Bursa, Editor of Professional Driver Magazine, said: Private Hire operators still need full-size people-movers, and the Alhambra really fits the bill. Facelifted last year with new sat nav, lights and Euro 6 engines, it has always been a potent product. Its a genuine seven-seater, with ease of access via sliding doors, not to mention low running costs.

Commenting on the win, Steve Mirfin, Product Manager, Alhambra, SEAT UK, said: The Alhambra was developed with comfort and practicality in mind. Few MPVs manage to offer the space, design and running costs that Private Hire operators want; the Alhambra excels in all of them, and this award is confirmation of that.

Professional Driver magazine, the monthly publication for the UK private hire, chauffeur and taxi industry tests its awards shortlisted models rigorously. The awards are judged by readers who are invited to a one-day test event to put the cars through their paces. Vital statistics such as boot space and sat nav are then put under the microscope, followed by the final hurdle, putting in a winning show on the whole-life running cost front.
if the people of Biafra want Republic of Biafra, it will be a reality during my administration. ----Donald Trump Donald Trump I wi...
Monday 05 September, 2016 Reliable information reaching Biafra writers desk has it that the life of Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indi...
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 28/11/2016 (2165 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two men have been arrested after a violent encounter with police on Friday night.

On Friday night, shortly after 6 p.m., Steinbach RCMP members attempted to stop a truck and trailer on Fire Road 13, in the area where a stolen Bobcat excavator was reported. The driver of the truck fled the scene, eventually ramming a police vehicle being used as a roadblock.

A passenger in the vehicle, 40-year-old Ricky Coltman of Winnipeg, exited the vehicle and was arrested but the driver of the truck attempted to flee the scene again. Police said it reported the driver was in possession of a hand gun.

The vehicle was finally abandoned after becoming stuck. Police found dozens of rifle rounds inside the vehicle.

After a two hour search of the area, police found and arrested 42-year-old Shawn Verestiuk of the Winnipeg-area. A loaded semi-automatic rifle was also recovered, which police had observed being thrown from the truck.

Verestiuk and Coleman face charges including weapons possession, aggravated assault on a police officer and possession of property obtained by crime.
The president-elect just tweeted something petulant, wildly incorrect, and dangerous. In other words, its a day ending in y.

At 3:30 p.m. on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, when most people were enjoying the final hours of peace before returning to work from the holiday, Donald Trump raged like a toddler being dragged around the supermarket about his popular vote loss.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, the next leader of the free world tweeted to over 16 million people.

Trump is currently losing the popular vote by over 2 million to Hillary Clinton, the person who is not about to be inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States. This lead will likely grow as more ballots are tallied in California, a predominately blue state.

There is absolutely zero evidence that millions of people voted illegally, and to suggest so undermines the entire electoral process; the very process that actually made Trump the next president. The claim, which has been widely spread and thoroughly debunked, was pushed by Trump acolyte Alex Jones, who traffics in conspiratorial lies including a theory that the Sandy Hook massacre was a staged event.

The tweet was one of many sent in the aftermath of a decision by the Clinton campaign to take part in a recount of vote totals in a few key states, including Wisconsin, after Green Party candidate Jill Stein raised money for the effort. Marc Elias, the Clinton campaigns counsel, made it clear that they found no evidence of tampering with voting machines in the states in question but wanted to ensure that it is fair to all sides.

This is not going to affect Donald Trump. There isnt going to be some massive, unearthed discovery of secret votes that usurps his fairly won election and throws it into the hands of his opponent. It is merely a cautionary procedure in an election that was decided by small margins in a handful of Rust Belt states.

Yet the man who is set to become the most powerful person in the world is treating it as if his life is on the line. It is outrage for the sake of outrage; selfish attention-grabbing to ensure that, no matter what, he has something to sit and gripe about. It is stoking resentment for resentments sake and sowing doubt as a means for him to be the final arbiter of what is fair, right, and true.

Hillary Clinton conceded the election when she called me just prior to the victory speech and after the results were in. Nothing will change, Trump admitted in the middle of his hours-long Twitter tantrum.

If nothing will change, why waste time screaming into the abyss like this?

The funny thing about his wild, and frankly pathetic, flailing is that if there were millions of people who voted illegally, that in and of itself would justify a recount; the very thing that he is spending his time railing against. And one of the only documented cases of voter fraud in 2016 was when a woman in Iowa, who happened to be a Trump supporter, was charged with voting twice.

This is a man who expects to earn respect in the office of the presidency, who instead of receiving daily intelligence briefings is meeting with foreign developers who have a stake in his company and waging a war against a Broadway musical instead of condemning near-daily acts of hatred committed in his name.

There was no such thing as a sore winner until Trump won the election.
Television commercials, generally speaking, are not supposed to both inspire you and make you cry. But Amazons new ad featuring an imam and a priest has given people hope while moving countless people to tears, including me.

In a typical holiday season I bet many of us would have viewed this commercial as corny or nothing more than a corporation trying to manipulate our emotions. But this is anything but a typical holiday season. Its our nations first where Donald Trump is the President-elect. Its a time marked with fear and anxiety. A time where good will is in short supply but hate crimes runneth over, carried out by self professed Trump supporters.

A time when people have called my SiriusXM radio show and begun crying at the thought of what their respective minority community may be subject to under a President Trump. One of the most moving calls came from a Jewish mother who explained that that due to the spike in anti-Semitic hate she has seen from Trump supporters, she feared for first time in her life putting a dreidel in her window during Hanukkah. This mother then broke down into tears asking a question that has stuck with me since our conversation last week: What has America become?

America has become a nation where our President elect says Islam hates us and anti-Semitism by his followers is at bone-chilling levels. An America where Trump calls people like Elizabeth Warren a racist and fraud but refuses to use such passionate language to denounce the white supremacists supporting him. An America where Trump is welcoming into his White House Steve Bannon, a man who provided a platform for the alt right to gin up hatred of minorities and especially of Muslims.

Simply put, this new commercial embraces American values more than the person just elected to be the President of the United States. The ad opens with a Protestant priest opening the door of his house to welcome a Muslim imam. (The men are not actors but actually both religious clerics.)

The two sit down, share coffee and some good conversation. At the end of their chat they stand up and we see these two older gentlemen both have knee pain. A short time later, the two men of the cloth, now apart from each other, go online to order something. Soon we learn that they had unknowingly ordered each other the identical gift: a knee brace. The commercial closes with the two wearing their knee braces and kneeling to pray in their respective houses of worship.

And cue the tears, at least from those who realize that this type of religious tolerance is fading fast in Trumps America.

Amazons ad is truly a profile in courage for two reasons. First, they undoubtedly knew that featuring a Muslim cleric as a kindly older manas opposed to a terroristwould anger some on the right. We saw that very thing in 2014 when Coca Cola aired an ad featuring a Muslim woman in a hijab and some conservatives freaked out that a Muslim was being depicted as a normal American. Its not surprising Amazon disabled the comments section for the ad on YouTube because I could only imagine the hate we would see posted there.

Secondly, Amazon, along with its CEO Jeff Bezos, were publicly threatened by Trump during the campaign that he would punish them both if he won. Why? Bezos also owns The Washington Post, which had been critical of Trump. Consequently in February Trump declared that Amazon, in his view, was an unfair tax shelter and illegal monopoly. Trump then vowed, Believe me, if I become president, oh, do they have problems...They're going to have such problems."

Trumps goal was clearly to intimidate Bezos and bully him into reining in the papers criticism. But Bezos would have none of that, instead responding, We live in an amazing country where we are allowed to criticize and scrutinize our elected leaders. In other countries you may go to jail or, worse, just disappear.

And this ad is more proof of Bezoss commitment to American values even though Trump will soon be President. In fact this ad represents everything Trump is not.

As Amazons director of advertising Simon Morris told The Guardian, this moving ad is about selflessness and thinking of other people. Morris added that Amazon consulted with people of both the Christian and Muslim faiths because we wanted to do it well and be respectful to the religions who are featured in it.

All of that is the polar opposite of Trump. He is neither selfless nor has shown that he truly cares about others. And obviously Trump is not respectful of other religions as we have seen with his demonization of Muslims and Islam and muted response to anti-Semitic hate spewed in his name.

In a holiday season that will be challenging for many, this beautiful commercialalready viewed by over a million people in a matter of daysoffers us hope. Its a reminder that despite Trump, many still believe in religious tolerance. And many are willingeven at the risk of personal attacks or financial lossto stand up for what is right. That is truly something that we should both be inspired by and thankful for this holiday season.
The battle for eastern Aleppo, Syrias largest city, is not even over yet but forces backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad already have their sights on their next target; the nations capital, Damascus.

Russia has ramped up its airstrikes and regime forces have more aggressively attacked rebel-held areas around Damascus, taking several villages and suburbs in the last week alone.

And yet, the growing regime grip around the capital has gone largely unnoticed as the focus has been on eastern Aleppos apparent imminent collapse. The regime is therefore poised to take new territory around Damascus regardless of whether its forces can seize and hold the rest of Aleppo city. If the regime can hold onto Aleppo, it would control nearly every major provincial capital in the countryDamascus, Homs, Hama and Latakiaand would be able to devote all its resources to taking the rural and suburbans towns around them, which opposition forces are in greater concentration.

The more the regime can claim under its control, the less influence the U.S. and its backed forces will have on the outcome of the war.

The fall of areas like eastern Damascus removes American options for meaningfully challenging the regime through proxy forces, Jennifer Cafarella, a Syria analyst for the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War, told The Daily Beast

Indeed, among some U.S. officials there was a sense of frustration Monday at the increasing collapse of U.S.-backed Free Syrian Army rebels in eastern Aleppo and the unwillingness of the U.S. to respond. That was not likely to change, officials said, as the Obama administration enters its final weeks.

The regimes sweep of areas around Damascus this week has been swift and aggressive.

In the last two days, the regime reclaimed control of the city of al-Tall, north of Damascus, shortly after reaching an evacuation agreement.

On Monday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 1,400 civilians and 1,450 rebels boarded 42 government buses and another 25 ambulances filled with injured residents and left the Damascus suburb of Khan al-Shih, the only opposition held area on a key route southwest of the capital. The residents left as part of an evacuation deal negotiated by the government a day earlier, allowing residents to flee to other opposition-held areas.

And in Ghouta, a city east of Damascus (the eastern part of which the regime hit with a sarin gas attack in 2013), the Syrian Army has made advances as Russian forces have ramped up airstrikes.

In the past three weeks, weve experienced new waves of strikes coming from the sky and the ground. These strikes have been hitting residential areas, particularly schools. There are still functioning medical centers but we are barely coping with this new wave of violence, a doctor working at a makeshift clinic in eastern Ghouta told Doctors without Borders Friday.

The regime push into eastern Aleppo over the weekend has inflicted the biggest losses for opposition forces since Free Syrian Army took control in 2012.

The regime has leaned heavily on outside help from Iran and Russia in its recent push into eastern Aleppo. Iran has sent in so many reinforcements in Aleppo that it hasnt required the deployment of as many Syrian forces, allowing the regime to expand toward reclaiming areas around the capital, observers said. Should Aleppo fall, Iranian forces could move toward the capital.

Roughly a third of eastern Aleppo fell out of opposition hands, largely in the north, in the past day, delivering a loss that was both psychological and tactical. Eastern Aleppo has been the cornerstone of the opposition, which has fought against Russian airstrikes, water and food shortages for months. Part of the help for the U.S.-backed opposition has come from al Qaeda, the most effective anti-Assad force on the ground.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, roughly 10,000 civilians have fled the regime captured parts of eastern Aleppo in recent days. Officials have estimated that as many as 250,000 civilians remain in opposition controlled Aleppo.

Even if the regime has begun looking past Aleppo, the fate of the city likely will change the trajectory of the war. ISWs Cafarella said that, if Aleppo does indeed fall, the opposition and jihadists could retaliate by targeting Alawite populations along the coast in places like Latakia. And it is that targeting that would force the regime to recalculate its focus on areas around Damascus.

Moreover, a regime victory in Aleppo would eliminate the elements of the opposition that had been willing to work with the U.S. to limit al Qaeda influence in Syria. That is, Aleppos fall would all but end U.S. influence a key part of the war, northern Syria.

It is hard to see how U.S.-backed groups recover from the loss of Aleppo, Cafarella explained. And it will ensure that Turkey and Qatar are the only countries with real influence within the opposition.
BEIRUT  Over the course of the last three days Syrian rebels suffered their worst defeat in four years as forces loyal to dictator Bashar al-Assad managed to sack a third of eastern Aleppo.

In a fortnight, at least 500 people have been killed and 1,000 more wounded as Russian and Syrian warplanes pounded the city from the sky while a consortium of Syrian soldiers and Iranian-built militias stormed it on the ground.

The assault came from east and west in an apparent effort to bisect rebel territory, which is already geographically isolated from the rest of the province.

First to fall on Saturday was the Hanano Residence neighborhood, a dense complex of apartment buildings and once a great prize for rebels who stormed it in 2012. That was followed Sunday by Jabal Badro and Al-Sakhour, where a chemical weapons attack killed six the week before.

One humanitarian activist from the city described the current situation to The Daily Beast as a total catastrophe.

Whats happening now in Aleppo is a genocide against the civilians, said Khaled Khatib, a Turkey-based media official for the Syrian Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets.

So ferocious is the bombardment that after Sundays strikes as many as 35 people remained trapped under rubble on Monday, unable to be reached by the White Helmets, whose vehicles and other rescue equipment have themselves been knocked out by airstrikes, according to a statement released by the organization.

Since November 15, it read, there have been a documented 2,000 airstrikes, over 7,000 rocket strikes, as well as ballistic missiles, cluster munitions, and chlorine gas dropped on various neighborhoods. All hospitals are now out of service.

Asked what he thought would happen to the city now, Khatib was at a loss.

In truth, we dont know what our fate is in the coming days.  Unfortunately we dont see any movement from the international community, or the major powers who claim to be friends of the Syrian people. We try to retain a sliver of hope that the situation may improve, but if nobody moves to stop the regime and Russian bombardment of civilians, we fear the greatest humanitarian catastrophe of the modern era will take place.

Certainly it could be the greatest catastrophe this century has seen.

Some 16,000 residents already have fled to regime-held areas or to Sheikh Maqsud, a district under Kurdish control, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. But they are still in danger.

Aleppo is now ground zero for the Assad regimes starve-or-submit policy, Anna Nolan of the Syria Campaign, an advocacy group, told The Daily Beast. Without international action to stop it we will see both civilian suffering and demographic engineering on an unprecedented scale.

The regime has lined up green buses for the purposes of civilian evacuation, but without any international presence or witnesses, said Nolan, We can only assume the worst for those that board these buses. If your house is on fire you don't call the arsonist to rescue you.

Formerly Syrias most populous city, prior to the exodus of many tens of thousands, parts of Aleppo fell to anti-regime insurgents in the summer of 2012. For most of Syrias five-and-a-half-year civil war, those parts of the city have served as the enduring symbol of what was once seen as an inevitably victorious revolution, in days when the prospect of a Western-led intervention still seemed likely.

As those hopes faded, particularly after Assads 2013 chemical attack went unpunished, East Aleppo acted as a steadfast irritant to a resurgent regime that had always promised to liberate from terrorists every last inch of Syria.

Today, however, the rebel citadel lies in ruins, a jagged and pocked wasteland where some 250,000 to 280,000 civilians still remain and the rebel contingent now largely consists of Islamist or Salafist brigades, including the al-Qaeda affiliate formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra. There is no ISIS presence, however, despite what Russian and Syrian state media have persistently claimed.

According to Jennifer Cafarella, a Syria analyst at the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for the Study of War, the blitzkrieg marks the first time that pro-regime fighters have seized major swaths of dense urban terrain.

Also of note: that fighting force consists mainly of regular soldiers of the Syrian Arab Army rather than Iranian-built militias, including Lebanese Hezbollah and Iraqi Shia factions, which have tended to do the regimes heavy lifting in Aleppo province. Those elements now provide reinforcements, which may have been how what appears to have been a fresh division was able to move so quickly in the northeast.

That said, Cafarella believes the alacrity of Assads successes owes more to months of sustained aerial bombardment backed by a starvation siege rather than to any new military capability.

The opposition is not yet collapsing, she said, but it is losing, and choosing carefully which fights to muster its man- and firepower.

U.S. military and intelligence officials have warned previously that the fall of Aleppo poses a dire counterterrorism challenge as it will surely lead to the further radicalization of the rebellion. It will also exacerbate tensions between the mostly Sunni Arab opponents of the regime  including those backed by the CIA, at least until incoming President Donald Trump decides otherwise  and Kurdish Peoples Defense Units, the YPG militias, most of whom are backed by the Pentagon as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the coalition war against ISIS.

Technically, the YPG that controls Sheikh Maqsud is not receiving U.S. support; only those units fighting the terror army east of the Euphrates River and closer to the ISIS capital of Raqqa do.

However, this is a distinction without much of a difference, Cafarella says, as all YPG units are controlled by the same political party in Syria and committed to the same expansionist project of Kurdish state-building. This has lead them to tactical understandings with the Assad regime in the past.

Partly as a result, the public perception among Sunni Arabs is that the U.S. proxy, the YPG, is de facto aligned with the dictatorship committed to their extermination, a perception that will only help jihadists in the long term.

Indeed, rebels have already accused the YPG of attacking them in concert with Assads forces in the last 72 hours, especially in the neighborhoods of Hullok and Bustan al-Basha, both of which have now been recaptured, according to Syrian state media. The YPG units here have benefited from regime armaments and air support, according to Cafarella. They are also rumored to have received assistance from Russian Spetsnaz, or special forces.

So the view from the ground is that rebels were forced to hand over terrain to a U.S.-backed group aligned with the regime, Cafarella said. This will have implications for the fight against ISIS. The fall of Aleppo will also force previously independent opposition groups into a greater dependence on al Qaeda.

The battle for Aleppo may be drawing to a close. The long war against extremism is about to grow much worse.

 Alex Rowell reported from Beirut, Michael Weiss reported from New York
COLUMBUSAn attack at Ohio State University on Monday morning left at least 11 people injuredall of whom are expected to recoverafter a Somali-born U.S. resident and OSU student struck them with his car and slashed them with a knife.

The attack began at approximately 9:52 a.m., director of public service Monica Moll said at an afternoon press conference. Abdul Razak Ali Artan aimed his Honda Civic at a group of pedestrians, jumping the curb and colliding with them. He then exited the vehicle and began slashing pedestrians. By 9:53 a.m., less than a minute later, responding officer Alan Horujko had shot and killed Artan, who police say appears to have acted alone.

University police sent text message alerts and tweeted about 10 a.m. for students to run, hide, fight, a common mantra printed on safety pamphlets for evading an active shooter.

Nicole Renninger was in a computer lab when she heard what at first she thought were construction noises and saw people running outside the window. Later, she figured they must have been gunshots, possibly from the police officer who shot and killed Artan. Renninger stayed in the room with one person after receiving alerts to take cover, hiding in a corner where they couldnt be seen from the outside.

I spent most of the time texting family and friends, Renninger said, letting them know she was safe, before the alerts were lifted at about 11 a.m. All classes were canceled for the day for the campuss 60,000 enrolled students.

Were one of the biggest campuses in the country. Its not unreasonable to think something like this would happen, said OSU student Dan Zubenko, who had just left a class nearby on north campus when he received the alert and locked himself in an office with about a half dozen other people, all of them checking the news and social media.

In an interview with the Ohio State student newspaper in August, Artan described himself as a pious and scared Muslim.

I wanted to pray in the open, but I was scared with everything going on in the media, the logistics management student told The Lantern after transferring from Columbus State Community College.

Im a Muslim, its not what the media portrays me to be. If people look at me, a Muslim praying, I dont know what theyre going to think, whats going to happen. But, I dont blame them. Its the media that put that picture in their heads so theyre going to just have it and it, its going to make them feel uncomfortable. I was kind of scared right now. But I just did it. I relied on God. I went over to the corner and just prayed.

Just before the attack on Monday morning, Artan posted to Facebook lamenting the treatment of Muslims worldwide. I am sick and tired of seeing [Muslims] killed & tortured EVERYWHERE I cant take it anymore, the posting read, according to ABC News. America! Stop interfering with other countries [if] you want us Muslims to stop carrying [out] lone wolf attacks.

NBC News reports Artan was born in Somalia and moved to Pakistan with his family in 2007. He came to the United States as a legal permanent resident in 2014.

While theres been no report that Artan pledged allegiance to ISIS, the OSU attack came just two days after the terrorist group put out a call for would-be jihadis in the West to carry out attacks there by using weapons that would not attract the attention of authorities, such as knives or homemade explosives.

In a grisly demonstration, ISIS member Abu Sulayman Al-Firansi demonstrated the best places to strike a target using a tied-up man. Another masked man then killed the hostage using the techniques. (The Daily Beast has reported that Abu Sulaymans nom de guerre belongs to a man supposedly in charge of planning attacks in the West, but it is also used by a number of other French foreign fighters.)

Around the campus, red Solo cups and cardboard beer boxes littered lawns just blocks from the scene of the attack, reminders of the raucous celebrations this weekend after OSUs big win against long-standing football rival University of Michigan.

Other streets were cordoned off with yellow tape as police officers collected evidence, interviewed witnesses, and documented the crime scene.

Police later cordoned off part of Nationwide Boulevard in the Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, home to many Somalis in this city, which has the second largest Somali population in the country. A bomb-squad vehicle was parked there and officers were investigating an address reportedly linked to the car Artan used in the attack.

Residents standing outside said they had never seen such a large police presence in the neighborhood.
Ben Carson spent the weekend thinking about an offer to be the secretary of Housing and Urban Development in Donald Trumps administration, and if he accepts, the retired neurosurgeon could complicate progress made on anti-housing discrimination laws during the Obama administration.

While it is somewhat unclear as to what Carsons goals would be in the position, he has criticized a recent HUD fair-housing rule, which requires local communities to assess patterns of income and racial discrimination in housing.

He has referred to the rule, known as Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing, as a mandated social-engineering scheme, and in one instance said it was indicative of policy in a communist country.

The rule was meant to correct a stipulation of the 1968 Fair Housing Act, which both banned discrimination in the housing market and required local communities to actively pursue fair housing. Should Carson be confirmed for the position, he would have authority over the way in which the new HUD provision is rolled out.

And it would appear, that hes no fan of it.

In a 2015 column for The Washington Times, Carson argued It is true that the Fair Housing Act and other laws have greatly reduced explicit discrimination in housing, but significant disparities in housing availability and quality persist, he wrote. To address them, the Obama administrations new agency rules rely on a tortured reading of the Fair Housing laws to empower the Department of Housing and Urban Development to affirmatively promote fair housing, even in the absence of explicit discrimination.

That latter preventative element is what seems to bother Carson so much.

In the same piece, he also criticized a Supreme Court decision, Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, that kept a provision of federal law banning housing discrimination.

These government-engineered attempts to legislate racial equality create consequences that often make matters worse, Carson wrote. There are reasonable ways to use housing policy to enhance the opportunities available to lower-income citizens, but based on the history of failed socialist experiments in this country, entrusting the government to get it right can prove downright dangerous.

But given the HUD position, Carson would, in part, be the very person entrusted to get it right.

In an interview with an Iowa radio station in 2015, Carson railed against an agreement between the city of Dubuque and HUD that sought to address the way in which the city gave out federally funded housing vouchers. Dubuque essentially agreed to not discriminate in their distribution of the vouchers against people moving to the area from primarily black urban areas.

Jan Mickelson, a local talk-radio host, described the stipulation to Carson, saying that people in eastern Iowa, for instance, have to recruit from Chicago their poverty-afflicted individuals to bring them to Iowa in order to qualify for Section 8 housing.

Carson was surprised and described the process as federal overreaching.

This is just an example of what happens when we allow the government to infiltrate every part of our lives, Carson said. This is what you see in communist countries where they have so many regulations encircling every aspect of your life that if you dont agree with them, all they have to do is pull the noose. And this is what weve got now. Every month, dozens of regulationsbusiness, industry, academia, every aspect of our livesso that they can control you.

While Carsons comments could be attributed to the fact that he lacks experience in the housing sector, thats exactly why his apparent selection has left a number of experts baffled at the choice.

I am astounded at the suggestion that Ben Carson would be nominated to serve as HUD secretary, Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, told CityLab. HUD is among the most important federal agencies tasked with ensuring compliance with the Fair Housing Act, and creating affordable and inclusive communities.

Not to mention Carson himself dismissed the possibility of serving inside the Trump administration less than two weeks ago.

On Nov. 15, Carson had decided not to seek a Cabinet position in Trumps administration, saying I believe it is vitally important for the Trump administration to have many outspoken friends and advisers who are outside of the Washington bubble, in a statement on his Facebook page. It is vital to have independent voices of reason and reconciliation if our nation is to heal and regain its greatness. I will continue to work with the transition team and beyond as we build a dynamite executive branch of government.

This was on the same day that his business manager and frequent spokesman Armstrong Williams said Dr. Carson feels he has no government experience, hes never run a federal agency. The last thing he would want to do was take a position that could cripple the presidency.

Just over a week later, Carson was signaling that an announcement about his role in the upcoming administration was imminent. As of Sunday, Williams had not responded to The Daily Beast about whether Carson has made up his mind.

But Williams, suggested in an interview with The Daily Beast on Tuesday, that if Trump deems Carson qualified thats good enough for him.

Mr. Trump is a visionary, Williams said in a Tuesday night interview. He knows that Dr. Carson cares about inner cities and rural America.
Preparing for a multi-generational, international fight against terrorists, U.S. special operations chiefs are launching a new counterterrorist nerve center at an undisclosed location in the Middle East to fight the so-called Islamic State, al Qaeda, and any other terrorist actor.

The Joint Special Operations Command, the U.S. militarys premier counterterrorist strike force, is expanding its existing targeting nerve center in the region to make space for more American terror hunting personnel from three-letter agencies like the CIA, NSA, and FBI to foreign partners like Britain, France, Iraq and Jordan.

The Obama administration is enshrining the strike forces role of gathering multiple points of view on who to kill and capture, as it did in Iraq and Afghanistan into a permanent information sharing platform, two U.S. officials tell The Daily Beast, speaking anonymously because they were not authorized to discuss the secret task force publicly.

This has been going on, said a senior U.S. official briefed on the expanded mission. Were just putting it on steroids.

Special Operations Command declined to comment, and Pentagon officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

JSOC had already removed more than three-dozen external operations planners off the battlefields of Iraq and Syria, including key ISIS operatives blamed for plotting deadly attacks in Europe and beyond.

The new effort approved by Secretary of Defense Ash Carter builds out an existing location to make space, and looks at the problem globally.

Its a platform for information sharing, the official said. People just need to come. The point is to gather them together, like the intelligence fusion centers now-retired Gen. Stanley McChrystal set up to fight Al Qaeda in Iraq.

We allowed other agencies to follow our operations (previously unheard of) and we widely distributed, without preconditions, intelligence we captured or analysis wed conducted, McChrystal wrote in his 2013 memoir My Share of the Task, describing the first fusion centers that sat Defense Intelligence Agency analysts next to National Geospatial Intelligence analysts and more.

The information sharing platform is based on JSOCs Joint Interagency Task Force based in Arlington, Virginia. The new expanded intelligence effort was first reported by The Washington Post.

Carter also expanded the influence of the head of Special Operations Command, Gen. Tony Thomas, by making him the conduit to the Defense Secretary for the joint interagency teams observations and recommendations for anything from more surveillance on a given area, to a recommendation to strike a terrorist leader or network.

Hes talking directly to the Secretary of Defense without any filter, the official said. He can say, this is how I would recommend dealing with the problem. It might be to hit a target or to activating local law enforcement in Bangladesh to arrest someone.

The official explained that when JSOC does carry out a strike, it still answers to the regional military commanderfor instance, Gen. Joseph Votel in the Central Command areaand still only carries out missions with the permission of the U.S. ambassador in the affected country.

Its a streamlining of communications, not an expansion of JSOC authority, a second senior U.S. official said of the new center. The normal chain of having to get approval still occurs. They are still having to seek the same permissions to do things.

But they can look at things transregionallyand give advicemore efficiently and more effectively by eliminating some unnecessary steps so you can get at this problem quicker, the official said, shortening the amount of time to get approval an intelligence gathering operation or a drone strike.

As this effort took hold, JSOC has been spending a lot of time reassuring its own U.S. government partners that they wont share everything with foreign partnersjust that which helps other governments identify, track and if necessary, arrest or kill terrorists in their midst.
By Chad Terhune and Christina Jewett, Kaiser Health News

At first, Vincent Karst, 55, was recovering well from his open-heart surgery in March 2015.

He resumed the activities he enjoyed, such as visiting car shows and eating out. But some months later, his condition mysteriously deteriorated. By fall he was so short of breath, nauseated, and overwhelmed by fatigue that he needed to be rehospitalized in York, Pennsylvania.

There, doctors diagnosed a new problem: a serious mycobacterial infection that was acquired during his surgery, according to his subsequent lawsuit. Aggressive treatment with antibiotics left him with partial hearing and vision loss.

Federal regulators acknowledge they were aware of infections tied to a heart-surgery device used in Karsts operation by the summer of 2014. But they waited 14 months before issuing a public alert about the risks, and it wasnt until last monthmore than two years laterthat they issued detailed recommendations to hospitals and patients on what to do.

Critics say a swifter response could have saved thousands of patients like Karst from being exposed to potentially deadly bacteria. Some patients fell ill or died without knowing the real cause, doctors say.

Now hospitals, which consider the heater-cooler machines crucial in open-heart surgery, are scrambling for ways to protect patients. And authorities have urged hospitals from New Jersey to California to notify hundreds of people who underwent surgery in recent years that they might be harboring a dangerous infection. Patients have sued, claiming they were infected in Pennsylvania, Iowa, South Carolina, and Quebec.

Experts and patient advocates say these cases are only the latest to expose holes in the nations approach to spotting and responding to dangerous deficiencies in medical devices.

Its another example of the poor oversight of medical devices and how the industry has accepted infection as the cost of doing business, said Helen Haskell, founder of the patient advocacy group Mothers Against Medical Error, in Columbia, South Carolina.

About 60 percent of U.S. hospitals that do heart surgeries rely on the Sorin 3T heater-cooler device used in Karsts surgery, which was approved for sale in 2006. But five other manufacturers sell heater-coolers in the U.S., and FDA officials say they share similar design features that make them prone to contamination.

The devices circulate water to warm or cool patients during bypass surgery, valve replacements, and some transplants. More than 250,000 heart bypass operations using heater-cooler devices are performed annually in the U.S. The infections caused by the devices can be slow-growing and often dont trigger symptoms for months or even years, making them difficult to track.

As a result, the risk is hard to quantify. At least 79 cases of infection tied to Sorin heater-cooler units in the U.S. and worldwide have been reported to the FDA since 2010, including 12 deaths. Those numbers are expected to rise.

This particular machine is everywhere, and it will be quite a while until we know the real extent of how many people were infected by this, said Dr. Michael Edmond, an epidemiologist at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics.

Its in the Air

The potential for contamination of heater-coolers was raised as early as 2002. In a published study, doctors at a German hospital found that germs and particles pollute the units and that disinfecting them is very difficult.

The study, presented at a medical conference in New Orleans, said the makers of the devices often do not provide any technology to reduce bacterial or other contamination, posing potentially serious consequences for patients.

The study focused primarily on water spilling out of the unit and contaminating the operating room. But it also raised the prospect of waterborne pathogens causing infection through aerosolizationwhich is believed to be the way the recent infections occurred. The units examined were not Sorin devices.

The FDA visited Sorins Munich, Germany, plant in April 2011 to address safety concerns about the heater-cooler machine, according to a lawsuit filed this month. That suit says Sorins instructions for disinfecting the heater-cooler every two weeks allowed for bacterial overgrowth well in excess of safe standards in just a day and a half.

Despite the 2002 German study, a spokeswoman for Sorin, Karen King, said the company wasnt aware of the threat of airborne mycobacteria until receiving a report from Swiss authorities in January 2014. (Sorin merged with another company last year to form London-based LivaNova.)

The water in the devices doesnt come in direct contact with patients so there wasnt much concern about infection until recently, health officials say. But it turns out lethal bacteria can grow inside the machine and then become aerosolized through the units exhaust fan. The germs can float down into the patients open chest or stick to an implantable heart valve.

King said the initial details concerning bacteria transmission were limited and that Sorin began investigating in 2014. The results led the company to notify hospitals in July 2014 that some of its heater-coolers had become contaminated and there was a risk of mycobacteria infecting cardiac patients.

Still, the company has maintained to the FDA that post-surgical infection appears to be exceedingly uncommon.

We are working with regulators to develop a solution that addresses their concerns and ensures continued clinician access to this important device which enables lifesaving cardiac surgery, LivaNova said in a statement. The company declined to answer additional questions.

LivaNova posted $1.2 billion in sales for all of its devices last year and says that half of the worlds cardiac surgeries rely, at least in part, on its equipment.

An Evolving Story

The FDA said it too was caught off guard by the danger posed by heater-coolers and has defended its handling of the matter.

This is an evolving story in terms of new information that became available as a result of ongoing studies and efforts in the U.S. as well as outside the U.S., said Suzanne Schwartz, an associate director at the FDAs center for regulating medical devices. It might seem to have taken a fair amount of time, but one of the challenges has been raising awareness in the health care community that this is a problem that needs to be addressed.

An FDA spokeswoman, Angela Stark, said the agency received at least two reports of infection tied to heater-coolers in 2009 and 2010. Details of those reports werent available in the FDAs public database of injury reports.

The agency didnt begin investigating until mid-2014. That was when it learned of the alert Sorin sent to hospitals and also around the time of an unusual infection outbreak at a South Carolina hospital, Schwartz said. The FDA said it only learned in spring 2015 that heater-coolers could blow bacteria across the operating room.

It came as a surprise to the health care community at large, Schwartz said. Once that recognition was there, we have been working very proactively with all the device manufacturers.

Dangerous and Resilient

Manybut not allof the confirmed infections involved an organism called Mycobacterium chimaera, a species commonly found in soil and tap water. They arent generally harmful to healthy people, but officials said they can lead to serious infections in patients who are already ill or have weakened immune systems.

The source of the contamination from heater-coolers can be two-fold: at the manufacturing plant and in hospitals themselves.

Last month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that an analysis of patient samples had confirmed that contaminated Sorin machines had been shipped through the summer of 2014 from the companys German factory.

The company told the FDA it addressed the contamination by introducing sterile water at the plant and adopting new disinfection measures in August 2014.

Still, the heater-cooler machines can also become contaminated from the local water hospitals pour into the units. And however the contamination occurs, the FDA has said the bacteria can be difficult to remove even when the manufacturers cleaning instructions are followed.

Some medical experts say the South Carolina outbreak in 2014, at Greenville Memorial Hospital, should have triggered a more forceful response by U.S. health officials, including the FDA.

That year, when investigating mysterious infections among more than a dozen patients, the CDC found a form of mycobacteria different from the one in the German plant in an operating room sink and in the Sorin heater-cooler being used.

Dr. Michael Bell, a CDC deputy director, said the outbreak was complicated because some of the infected patients had no link to the heater-cooler during their treatment. Nonetheless, he said the heater-cooler contamination could have contributed to some of the patient infections. Four patients infected with the mycobacterium died.

Lawrence Muscarella, a hospital-safety consultant in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania, said federal officials should have sounded the alarm over mycobacteria and heater-coolers after the 2014 Greenville hospital outbreak. Some deaths might have been avoided if the FDA and CDC had performed a more proactive investigation.

According to a lawsuit filed this month, a patient treated in a North Carolina hospital alleged that he was infected during a June 2015 liver transplant after a heater-cooler machine exposed him to the same bacteria implicated in South Carolina.

A Wakeup Call

Some patients and their families are left wondering why the device maker and government officials didnt notify the public sooner. Why wasnt more being done? said Jaime Jackson, an attorney representing Karst, the York patient.

WellSpan York Hospital and LivaNova both declined to comment on Karsts lawsuit, citing the pending litigation. Overall, the Pennsylvania hospital has reported 12 infections tied to the heater-coolers, and six of those patients have died. It has notified roughly 1,300 patients about possible exposure dating to 2011, according to WellSpan.

Meanwhile, the FDA has said heater-coolers remain critical to patient care and cant be removed without a viable alternative.

That has put many hospitals in a quandary. Some hospitals, such as the University of Iowa, chose to cut holes in the operating room walls, moving the units next door so the fan exhaust isnt falling on patients and surgical instruments. If I was having cardiac surgery, I would want that machine out of the room, said Edmond, the University of Iowa doctor.

But the CDC said that approach isnt always feasible. Other hospitals have put enclosures around the machines or pointed the exhaust fan away from patients and the surgical field. Many are now using sterile or filtered water in their machines, as health officials have recommended.

I dont think we have a one-size-fits-all solution for this, the CDCs Bell said. The reality is this is a wakeup call for the design of many medical devices, especially those in critical places like the operating room.
Is there any hope that the Trump administration will help fight climate changeor at least not make it worse?

So far, the signs are not good. As has been widely reported, one of Americas leading climate deniers, the fossil-fuel-funded non-scientist Myron Ebell, is heading Donald Trumps transition team for the EPA. Ebell isnt just the fox guarding the henhouse; hes a wolf. Add to that the Drill Baby Drill mantra, which will subsidize oil production but not renewable energy, and there is reason to be extremely pessimistic.

And then, as if on cue, the news got worse. As the Washington Post reported, the North Pole is an astonishing 36 degrees warmer than usual at this time of year. Coming after 2015, the Earths hottest year on record, that will have devastating effects for polar ice caps, which are already in a death spiral; thinner polar ice causes warmer ocean water beneath, which causes thinner polar ice, which causes warmer ocean water beneath, which you get the picture.

On the other hand, there are some reasons to hope. Lets look at three of them, and give each of them a name: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mike Pence, and Newt Gingrich.

Let me explain.

1. Save Us, Leo!

Its time to stop complaining about normalizing Trump. The guy is our next president. More than 60 million people voted for him. Whatever he stands for may be evil, or visionary, or deluded, or outrageousbut it is now normal, descriptively speaking. And as Saul Alinsky wrote nearly 50 years ago, even radicals must deal with the world as it is, not as it should be.

That means climate activists need to talk with Trump. But who will he listen to?

Well, quite possibly another hugely famous person, like Leonardo DiCaprio, who has just released yet another excellent climate documentary that no one will watch.

Leo, its time for you to go to Washington (or Fifth Avenue, I guess). Many liberals will hate you for it, but put a safety pin on your lapel and get a meeting. Trump wont listen to Bill McKibben, he wont listen to the Union for Concerned Scientists, and he sure as hell wont listen to me. But he might just listen to one of the highest-status celebrities of our time.

The thing is, climate change is detachable from most of Trumps program. Fine, hes committed to expanding fossil-fuel exploration. But this issue isnt the core of his message; its an outlier. Its easy to reframe investment in renewables as job-creation, as investing in infrastructure, as promoting innovationbecause all of that is true. Weve got to try.

Trump changes his mind on a lot of things. And unlike true climate deniers, he has only a passing familiarity with the giant heap of pseudo-science that was created to give the false appearance of scientific uncertainty. The guy has reversed himself on deportations, locking up Hillary Clinton, the extent of the wallthis should be easy.

Moreover, even climate deniers change their mindsbecause they have to. Take Myron Ebell himself. In the 1980s and 1990s, he denied that the Earth was warming at all. When that became undeniable, he denied that humans had anything to do with it. But just this past year, hes said that, yes, manmade climate change is real, yet its not nearly as serious as people say. (Which is still obviously false.)

The same people lying about climate change were the people who lied about cigarettes and cancer back in the 1980s. But a funny thing happened: The truth eventually won out, and hard-core defenders of tobacco changed their minds. Leowe need you.

2. Praying for Pence

A second unlikely hero could be our incoming Catholic-evangelical vice president.

As we reported two years ago, there has in fact been significant movement within the evangelical community on the issue of global climate disruption. White evangelical Protestants are still the most likely to be climate deniersin 2014, only 27 percent accepted the scientific consensus that human activity is causing the planet to warm. Yet a new generation of conservative religious environmentalists has pointed out that its not responsible stewardship of Gods creation (see Genesis 1:28) to radically disrupt the Earth that God has made. Nor is it pro-life to leave our children a planet with widespread agricultural disruptions and species extinctions. Nor does it love the least of these to allow poor nations to suffer from climatic devastation while rich ones adapt to it.

And for good measure, God promises in Revelation 11:18 that I will destroy those who destroy the Earth.

Unfortunately, most environmentalists speak a different language from evangelicals, and Christians have long worried that environmentalism is a kind of paganismthe green dragon in one hyperbolic presentation. Evangelicals have had to create an entirely new vocabularyCreation Care, for examplenot just to find better messaging, but to truly understand the issue of climate change within a conservative Christian worldview. Organizations like the Evangelical Climate Initiative and books like Katharine Hayhoe and Andrew Farleys A Climate for Change are shifting the Christian environmental conversation.

And dont forget that Pope Franciss radical encyclical on the environment was a complete game-changer for Catholics.

So, to take a cue from evangelicals themselves, I pray that the wisdom will prevail here. This is not a conversation that will involve people like me, but I hope that Mike Pence meets with the sincere evangelicals and Catholics who urge a spiritual approach to climate change. And whatever my profound disagreements with Mike Pence, he is a person of sincere faith.

Can that be said of Ebell, whose organization, Competitive Enterprise Institute, has taken millions from Exxon, Texaco, the American Petroleum Institute, the Koch Brothers, and other fossil-fuel giants? Can it be said of fake scientists like Willie Soon, who just about every climate denier relied upon until he was exposed as a fraud? Just as tobacco companies muddied the water with fake science, so oil companies are doing so now. Their agenda is obvious.

Or as Matthew 7:16 says, By their fruit you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?

3. Chasing Newt

Finally, theres Trumps strategic adviser.

Funny thing about Gingrich: Hes long toed the standard Republican-Libertarian line that environmental regulations are job-killers and the EPA should be dismantled. Back in 2008, he wrote a blog post titled Stop the Green Pig.

And yet, in that same post, he noted that geoengineeringdirect human intervention in Earths climatic systemscould be a way to address concerns about global warming. Well, what do you knowclimate realism.

Geoengineering is controversial. Even though some of its methods are incremental and benignfor example, allowing airplanes to fly a bit dirtier to scatter enough dust in the atmosphere to reflect more of the suns raysobviously the uncertainties are daunting. Its easy to imagine catastrophe.

Yet as I argued back in 1998, geoengineering is also a method of addressing climate change that Republicans might actually like. As Gingrich pointed out, it doesnt involve regulation. And it can be pursued gradually, as the effects of climate change become more acutely felt. Most importantly, it avoids the Hobsons Choice of either regulating or doing nothing at all.

Will Gingrich have the courage to say what he knows is truethat climate change is a real crisisas long as its clear that there are alternatives to the kind of top-down regulations that conservatives love to hate? Does he dare defy Big Oils orthodoxy that the best strategy is to deny, deny, and deny?

To be sure, this is messy stuff. Environmentalists usually like big marches, symbolic protests, and offsetting their carbon footprints. But your personal carbon footprint wont mean a damn thing if the countrys energy infrastructure doesnt evolve, or if other means arent found to collectively address global climate disruption.

If there is hope for the climate over the next four years, it wont be found in the gestural, romantic politics of think globally, act locally or protests like the one in North Dakota or pious slogans that only preach to the converted.

Celebrities, Christians, climate hackers  Im looking at you. We need your help. Please, dont be too pure to save us.
* Audit office estimates underpayment at A$11.6 mln

* NW Shelf says royalty compliance is "robust" (Adds maximum underpayment, NW Shelf comments)

MELBOURNE, Nov 28 (Reuters) - The North West Shelf joint venture, Australia's biggest oil and gas operation, cut royalties it owed by claiming more than A$5 billion ($3.7 billion) in deductions, some of which weren't valid, over the 18 months to December 2015, a government watchdog said on Monday.

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) said government departments need to take steps to tighten their collection of royalties from the North West Shelf, which accounts for about a third of the country's oil and gas output.

The finding comes at a time when oil and gas producers have been hammered by a slump in prices.

"The Royalty Schedule does not permit all the deductions currently being claimed," the audit office said in a report released on Monday.

The North West Shelf joint venture said it cooperated in the audit and was fully transparent.

"Woodside as operator of the NWS Project has robust compliance processes with regard to royalty obligations," a North West Shelf (NWS) spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The audit office said the joint venture reduced the royalty payable by taking more than A$5 billion in deductions, including operating costs, depreciation, cost of capital, crude oil and condensate excise, processing tariffs and joint venture participant costs.

Revenue reported from North West Shelf petroleum sales between July 2014 and December 2015 was A$19.7 billion on which A$1.9 billion in royalties were due. Of that, about a third went to the federal government and the rest to the state of Western Australia.

The audit office questioned the eligibility of deductions claimed for the cost of debt and equity funded capital and the excise paid on crude and condensate.

Royalty underpayments amounted to about A$11.6 million, at most, it said, based on the incorrect deductions the audit office had identified, however it added that there may be more.

Story continues

"Some errors in the claiming of deductions have been identified, but the available evidence indicates that the problems are much greater than has yet been quantified," the report said.

Australia's Department of Industry agreed with the audit office's recommendations for improving royalty collection.

Western Australia's department of mines and petroleum, however, considered its processes robust and said "the Commonwealth and State governments can be confident that royalties are being accurately assessed and collected".

The North West Shelf joint venture is operated by Woodside Petroleum. Its partners are BHP Billiton , BP, Chevron Corp, Japan's Mitsubishi Corp and Mitsui & Co, and Royal Dutch Shell.

($1 = 1.3385 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Sonali Paul; Editing by Michael Perry and Joseph Radford)
The perils of sharing a stage with socialist idealists at this particular moment in world history hit Prince Harry this weekend, as he was railroaded into publicly observing a silent tribute in remembrance of recently deceased Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Castro, who murdered, imprisoned and denied human rights to tens of thousands of his citizens including political opponents, gays, and dissenters, was described as a good friend of the island by Ralph Gonslaves, prime minister of the tiny Caribbean nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, which Harry was visiting as part of his tour of the region.

Castro invested in St. Vincent, and Cuba has been an important trading partner of the country for decades.

So when the governor general of St. Vincent, Sir Frederick Ballantyne, who is technically the queens representative in the Commonwealth realm, called on guests at a reception for the prince jointly to observe a moments silence for the communist dictator, Harry, who was standing on stage next to Ballantyne, had little choice but to join in.

Harry looked fixedly ahead during the silent tribute which lasted around 20 seconds.

Castros death has been greeted with jubilation by vast numbers of Cuban emigres who fled the country after he seized power.

Involving Harry in the tribute was widely seen as deeply unfair, and a breach of the protocol that royal visitors should not be press-ganaged into political activity.

Kensington Palace briefed journalists that the moment of silence was not planned in advance.
On Sunday night, viewers of Russias state-owned Channel One saw a dance performed by an Olympic champion in figure skating Tatyana Navka and a well-known actor Andrei Burkovsky. The dynamic dance routine featured spins and jumps and other complicated moves. A few times both dancers shined smiles at their audience.

There was just one extraordinary feature, which made some television viewers stop talking last night and freeze with open mouths: the dancers came onto the ice with made-up gaunt faces, dressed in the striped uniforms of Nazi concentration camps prisoners, with Stars of David on sewn onto them.

The scandal erupted even before the dancers finished their double-axels. But as many Russian stories, this one had several meanings and messages buried between the lines, open to various interpretations. Navka, for one thing, is not an ordinary figure skater. She is a Russian and U.S. citizen and also the wife of Vladimir Putins spokesman, Dmitry Peskov.

Her name brought the focus of attention on the Holocaust on ice, as Russias bloggers immediately called the dance, to the very top of the Kremlins power vertical. The performance illustrates the level of late-Putin era hypocrisy and cynicism, Russian opposition leader Ilya Yashin told The Daily Beast. They put young girls behind the bars for a twerk dance, which they find disrespectful to the memory of those who fought in the Second World War; but today they give highest points to an entertaining dance program which features Holocaust symbols.

Yashin was referring to a case from last year when three Russian women  the youngest 18 years old  were punished with up to 15 days of jail for dancing by a Soviet-era monument. Prosecutors at a district court in the Black Sea port city of Novorosiysk demanded prison for the dancers and the young women went to jail for offending Russian patriotism. But no such fate awaits Peskovs spouse even if she made light of a genocide which the Red Army helped put an end to.

Russias main channel presented the ice performance as something great and normal. The live audience applauded it; the dancers smiled; and the jury gave Navka and her partner the highest points for figure skating and acting. One member of the jury explained that Navka and her partner managed to satisfy the requirement for the televised competition and stage a piece from Life is Beautiful, Roberto Benignis 1999 tragicomedy set against the backdrop of the Holocaust.

The show was awful, Moscow-based Russian historian Irina Sherbakova told The Daily Beast in an interview on Monday. It demonstrated how tasteless and deaf the authors were, that to them anything, even the symbols of the massacre that murdered six million can be entertaining, can be sold for money.

Shoah mockery came at a particularly sensitive moment in Russian historiography. Last week, the famed human rights center Memorial published up to 40,000 names of Soviet officials, who served in the NKVD  the predecessor organ of the KGB  in 1935-1939, the period of Stalins Great Terror, during which the Soviet government murdered between 600,000 and 1.2 million people. The reaction was overwhelming, thousands of people entered our web site looking for their relatives names, Alexander Cherkasov, the chair of Memorial Human Rights Center told The Daily Beast. The archive was unique. Now everyone can see if their family members were executors or victims.

The Kremlin was more outspoken about this act of transparency, however, than it was about a tasteless sporting event. None other than Peskov, Putins flack, criticized Memorial for uploading the names of Stalins accomplices. This topic is very sensitive, he said, obviously many people have different opinions, some mirror opposite points of view. He had no such opinion of his wifes number.

Peskov and Navka have been in the center of various public controversies before. Liza, Peskovs daughter from his first marriage took her mothers side and publicly criticized Peskov during her parents divorce. Last year anti-corruption crusader Alexei Navalny found that the spokesmans Richard Mille watch was worth more than $400,000  far more than Peskov officially earns on a public salary. To explain away the luxury item, he immediately said that Navka had bought it for him with her own money. Withal, he has survived the scrutiny and his wife is likely to survive ignominy.

Putin seems to like Peskov a lot, they are both convinced that Russian people can be fooled and brain washed, said Stanislav Belkovsky, a presenter at Russias only independent TV Rain. Peskov and Navka hang out at social events with the most liberal crowd, they say they want to live in the United States. Peskov says that he is one of us, a Rain TV viewer. They are both cynical.

Navka, for her part, cant understand why people criticized her. As she told reporters on Monday, I am surprised to see such a reaction. Probably people have not seen that wonderful film, which won awards at the Cannes Film Festival and three Oscars. Our number featured the theme of that wonderful movie.
The subway passenger felt secure enough in present day New York City that he allowed himself to doze off while seated aboard a Manhattan-bound F train during the morning rush on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

After all, crime in New York is down 50 per cent since 1998, 80 per cent since 1990. Robberies are down 21 per cent compared to the same time last year, despite the sharp curtailment of stop-and-frisk that supposed experts said was sure to trigger a rise in crime.

Another man boarded the train at Jay Street in Brooklyn and sat next to the dozing passenger. The car filled so that those who subsequently boarded had to stand. Some no doubt grabbed the center poles to steady themselves.

Former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton once remarked to the Daily Beast that the sight of hands of every kindmanicured and grimy, dainty and toughone atop the other is what he would present to someone as a symbol of New Yorks greatness in old times and new.

Its the center pole, Bratton said. Every day five and a half million people hang on it.

He added, And by and large they get along.

The dozing passenger happened to be Asian and 63 years old. The man beside him happened to be Hispanic and in his 30s. They rode on with the rest of the train from stop to stop.

Around 9:20 am, as the train was reaching the Bryant Park42nd Street station, the Asian man awoke. The Hispanic man flew into a rage whose immediate cause was unclear. The nature of it was made unmistakable by his words.

Why dont you go back to your own country?

The Hispanic man proceeded to spit on the Asian man and punch him in the face and body. The attacker then hurried off the train and disappeared. The assault was added to the growing tally in the one category of crime that has skyrocketed in our new presidents hometown.

As of last Tuesday, bias crimes in New York had spiked 400 per cent since the election as compared to the same two-week period last year.

We are up considerably, said the present NYPD police commissioner, James ONeill.

ONeill remained cautious about ascribing a particular cause to the rise. But he had noted several days before, I have no scientific evidence as to why, but youve been paying attention to whats been going on in the country over the last year or so and the rhetoric has increased, and I think that might have something to do with it.

Even so, ONeill is not one to jump to conclusions. And the NYPD is tasked with assisting the Secret Service in providing security for the new president, no less so because many of us believe him more responsible than anyone else for the heightened rhetoric.

Along with placing a considerable security burden on New York with plans to keep his penthouse as a residence during his presidency, Donald Trump has almost certainly helped spur a hate crime spike in a city that derives its greatness from its diversity and otherwise leads the rest of the country in crime reduction.

To make it worse, Trump seems to have no understanding of the policing miracle that occurred all around him in recent years as he sat in his tower. Trump suggested during the Presidential debate on suburban Long Island that stop-and-frisk had led to the unprecedented decrease in crime in New York City and that crime had gone up after stop and frisk was curtailed. Hillary Clinton rightly disagreed.

Crime has continued to drop, including murders, Clinton said.

No, youre wrong, Trump replied. Youre wrong.

No, Im not, Mrs. Clinton said.

Murders are up, all right, Trump said. You check it.

Stop-and-frisks in the city were down by 97 per cent since 2011, but murders during that same period were not up, but down, by 32 per cent. That, after an already astonishing drop by more than 50 per cent since 1993.

Along with those facts comes this: even as Trump was promising to make America safe again, he did not bother to learn how the city where he was raised and where he continues to reside managed to make itself the safest big city in America.

Since his election, his only public reference to safety in New York came on November 19, after Vice-President elect Mike Pence was booed by some audience members at a showing of Hamilton.

The Theater must always be a safe and special place, Trump tweeted. The cast of Hamilton was very rude last night to a very good man, Mike Pence. Apologize!

As with crime reduction in New York, Trump was either indifferent or ignorant when it came to the particulars. The cast had not shown the slightest disrespect. The actor playing Aaron Burr, Bernard Victor Dixon, had stepped forward at the end of the performance to say there is nothing to boo here and to welcome Pence. Dixon had then spoken on behalf of all those who suddenly felt less safe everywhere after Trumps election. His words are as worth rereading as any of those of the real Aaron Burr.

We, sir, are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights, sir. But we hope this show has inspired you to uphold our American values, and work on behalf of ALL of us.

In a speech of his own back on election night, Trump had also called for people to come together and promised to be the president for ALL of us. But those had just been the words of a demagogue who had gotten what he wanted and now wanted to escape any responsibility for the incendiary and hateful things he had said to get it. His game clearly was to make it seem as if he were the unifier and his opponents were the dividers and the haters.

But although he could suddenly announce that Hillary Clinton had been a worthy opponent and go from lock her up! to leave her be, the poisonous passions he had unleashed in defeating her could not be dispelled simply because he was coaxed into looking into a camera on 60 Minutes and saying, stop it to those inspired to hate and violence by his win.

For all the talk during the campaign of him going off message, Trump had in fact stayed right on message the whole time; it is okay to judge people by their race, ethnicity and religion and to brand entire groups as rapists and to mock the disabled and to scoff at the family of a fallen hero and to tell unending lies even about 9/11 and to denigrate women and even boast about sexually assaulting them. His election apparently affirmed all that for his supporters and his central message remained toxically supreme no matter what mixed ones he has since begun sending.

Bias crimes continued across the country. His hometown witnessed an average of more than two a day while every other category of crime in New York remained at lows rightly termed historic.

Six days after Trump was nudged to finally say stop it, four young Muslim men were approached by a trio of white men as they sat on a bench in Trumps native borough of Queens.

I dont want any Muslim sitting on the bench, one of the white men was heard to say.

The white man then hit one of the Muslim men in the face with a bottle, fracturing his eye socket.

At least the Asian man on the subway three days later escaped serious injury.

But there are sure to be others, for the psychic pestilence he unleashed will still be out there, whether or not Trump ends up flip-flopping about Obamacare and everything else. You might dub him President Pandora were it not unfair to the woman of Greek myth to associate her with the hoohah grabber in chief.

Hours after Tuesdays bias attack on the subway, Trump flew off to Florida for Thanksgiving at his Mar-a-Lago estate. He returned on Sunday evening to New York and the tower that is now protected by more than 100 of the cops who perform the continuing miracle of making his hometown the safest big city in America in every crime category but the one he helped incite.

Trump is of course one New Yorker who can count himself safe in every regard.
Despite the fact there is zero evidencenone, nada, zilchthat widespread illegal voting had any sort of serious impact on the presidential election, Donald Trump went on a tweetstorm Sunday asserting that millions of people voted illegally.

So to defend their boss to perplexed reporters, Trumps spokesmen cited a years-old studyand that studys own authors say it doesnt prove the existence of voter fraud.

Trumps penchant for floating bombshell assertions with no evidentiary support seems boundless. In Sunday tweets, for instance, he wrote that there was serious voter fraud in California, New Hampshire, and Virginia (all states he lost). So, during the conference call, NPRs Tamara Keith brought up Trumps charges on the Trump transition teams daily conference call on Monday morning. What evidence, she asked, is there to support his claims? Jason Miller, a spokesman for the transition team, responded by criticizing reporters.

Its been ridiculous that so much oxygens been given to the recount effort where theres absolutely no chance of any election results changing, he said.

But, of course, having a low view of Jill Steins efforts does not prove that voter fraud is a thing. So Miller then pointed to two pieces of evidence: a 2014 Washington Post article discussing a report in the journal Electoral Studies which argued that enough non-citizens vote that they could change the outcome of close races.

That Washington Post story is important, Miller said.

Its also highly suspect, according to the Washington Post.

Editors added a note to the top of the piece after publication citing three rebuttals of the study that it itself published, as well as a peer-reviewed article that also ran in Electoral Studies and criticized the reports findings. Needless to say, plenty of reporters and editors shared Millers view that the Posts story (which is more than two years old) was important and worth covering. It also should be needless to say that an article from October of 2014 could not prove the existence of voter fraud in New Hampshire in 2016, since time travel is not a thing.

But the Washington Posts story wasnt the only report Miller marshalled to make his case; he also cited a report that Pew Charitable Trusts published in February 2012 titled Inaccurate, Costly, and Inefficient: Evidence That Americas Voter Registration System Needs an Upgrade.

The report found that about 1.8 million dead people were registered to vote at the time, and about 2.75 million people were registered in more than one state. These findings are obviously troubling.

But the it shows the Trump team is also conflating two different problems: The fact that voter rolls may need to be updated doesnt mean theres widespread, election-altering fraud. And just because the families of dead people havent alerted authorities that their names should be removed from voter rolls doesnt mean any illegal voting happened. And just because people are registered to vote in two states at the same timewhich often happens when people move from one state to another, register in their new home state, and forget to de-register where they used to livedoesnt mean all 2.75 million of those people surreptitiously crossed state lines on Election Day to vote twice against Donald Trump.

Thats silly.

Even the reports own authors agree. David Becker, the primary author, tweeted on Monday afternoon that it isnt reasonable to use its findings to suggest voter fraud is a major problem.

We found millions of out of date registration records due to people moving or dying, but found no evidence that voter fraud resulted, he wrote.

Trump has taken significant heat from fact-checkers for suggesting otherwise. FactCheck.org called Trumps Sunday assertions bogus. PolitiFact gave him a Pants On Fire rating for claims he made of large-scale voter fraud in the final weeks of the presidential campaignclaims based in part on his misinterpretation of the Pew study. And a report from CNNs Reality Check Team noted that the report proffered zero evidence of people voting multiple times.

Perhaps Trump has some additional evidence up his sleeve that would suggest his loss in California was due to insidious shenanigans. But reporters havent been able to ask him about it. The mogulwho once lambasted Hillary Clinton for avoiding reportershasnt had a press conference in exactly four months.
The first time Nada Merghani discovered Professor Mike Adams, it was because she was reading his Facebook post about her.

The only thing more disgusting than a jihadist Muslim is a pro-choice Muslim, Adams, a criminology professor at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, wrote in April 2015. *

Merghani was just a 17-year-old freshman, and said she had never spoken to Adams before.

The self-described black Queer Muslim and Sudanese refugee said the post was just the beginning of what she says became a relentless period of harassment from Adams and his followers for the next year until she left the school in November.

Adamss social media accounts and blog posts are littered with hate speech against gay, lesbian, transgender, and queer people. He condemned the gay lifestyle and likened same-sex marriage rights to rape. He called trans people mentally ill and asserted that any doctor willing to help with gender-reassignment surgery should be charged with mutilating a mentally ill person.

Adams wont speak to the media about Merghani or another student who accuses him of harassment (he didnt return requests for comment from The Daily Beast), but he frequently criticizes them on Twitter and Facebook.

Adams continues to attack and mock Merghani and other students, staff, and faculty in blog posts on Daily Wire, a website that according to its official Facebook page exists to unmask leftists in the media for who they are, destroy their credibility with the American public, and devastate their funding bases.

Last August, Adams published an article about Merghani, using her full name, stating she is bringing a Queer Muslim Jihad upon campus. Merghani said she feels personally threatened and unsafe on campus after the professor published the blatantly anti-Muslim, anti-LGBT rant suggesting Im a terrorist without a hint of truth or any regard for my personal safety.

Adams does refer to Merghani as a jihadist in the title of his post for Daily Wire. Adams clarifies that he does not see Merghani as a real terrorist threat in the content of his blog post, but by then damage is already done. Google Nada Merghani and her name appears besides the words jihad and terroristtwo words that could be a highly damaging association for a Muslim person.

This is far from the first time Adams has been fixated on a UNCW student.

In July 2009 UNCW student Chaz Housand and friend Chet Saunders were beaten unconscious after leaving a bar in downtown Wilmington. According to the Wilmington Star News, the police investigated the attack as a hate crime because Housand and Sanders are both openly gay.

When Adams heard about what happened to Housand and Saunders he expressed outrage about the beatings being investigated as a hate crime. In an August 2009 he wrote a scathing piece for conservative website Town Hall about the attack.

There will never be a shortage of people who choose lifestyles that make them more susceptible to violence than others, Adams wrote. It isnt the job of the government to protect these people.

According to a friend of Housand who wished to speak anonymously, Chaz was still in the hospital with broken bones when he heard the professor was blaming him and attacking him. It made him feel worse. Chaz is not really online or on social media anymore. What Adams did to him was disgusting.

Adams calls students who accused him of harassing them weak pansies and makes fun of the LGBTQ community for being too dramatic.

Sometime I wonder whether LGBT stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Thespian. So much drama, so few letters in the alphabet, he wrote on the Daily Wire.

He even compared gay rights to rape in an open letter entitled, Rape Wins.

You should be ashamed of yourself for committing spiritual rape in the name of tolerance and inclusion, Adams wrote to a man who sued a wedding photographer for refusing to shoot his same-sex nuptials.

Despite all of this, the school said Adams has done nothing wrong by its own standards.

Dr. Adamss online column and social media presence represent his personal expressions and opinions on a variety of topics, UNCW said in a statement. These expressions and opinions are neither within the requested scope of Dr. Adamss duties with the university, nor do they represent the views of this institution. However, they are expressions protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The school also said that speech didnt cross the line when it came to Merghani.

At this point, the university has not found evidence that Dr. Adams has improperly released any private or confidential information related to the student, or violated the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). There is no evidence of unlawful discrimination by Dr. Adams toward this student in UNCWs working, living, or learning environment, per the universitys harassment prevention policy. Finally, Dr. Adamss conduct and written material do not contain any evidence of a true threat toward this or any other student.

If the school were to fire or discipline Adams, he might sueagain.

In 2007, Adams sued UNCW for religious and speech-based discrimination after he was not promoted to full professor in 2006. A federal district court ruled in favor of UNCW in 2010, but then a federal appeals court overturned that ruling in 2011. In 2014 a jury upheld Adamss appeal of the initial ruling and awarded him $50,000 in back pay and ordered the school to pay more than $600,000 in legal fees. In the settlement the school also agreed to promote Adams to full professor, and administrators agreed to adopt procedures protecting Adams from renewed retaliation.

Since winning the lawsuit, Adams has ramped up his efforts, churning out more posts for Town Hall and the Daily Wire. He calls himself a vocal critic of the diversity movement in academia and brags about receiving countless hate mails [sic].

UNCW student Sydney Burton said she was hoping the schools code of conduct would offer more clearly worded rules against hate speech, because the current wording doesnt protect students from Mike Adams.

The Seahawk Respect Compact is the UNCW code of conduct document addressing University Diversity and Inclusion. This November the administration took measures to update the Compact, but the final draft is still in progress.

Right now, this university has done more to protect those that spread hate speech than the students that are victims of it, Burton said.

If the Compact doesnt protect students from hate speech, some UNCW students and faculty like Professor Wendy Brenner are wondering if Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act does.

Brenner, an associate professor in the Department of Creative Writing, said teachers are supposed to protect and challenge students, not harass or attack them. As a Professor, what am I going to tell students past, present and future? That they arent safe here? That they can expect to be harassed? Youd think if the school wont protect them Title VI would. How is this not an example of a protected class?

According to the U.S. Dept. of Education Office of Civil Rights website the responsibilities of school districts, colleges, and universities under Title VI require the school to address racial and national origin harassment.

Title VI requires an educational institution to respond to racial or national origin harassment that is sufficiently serious to deny or limit a students ability to participate in or benefit from the recipients education programs and activities (i.e., creates a hostile environment).

Some students and faculty are hoping the opportunity to finally relieve the school of Adams lies within the language of Title VI. More than 2,000 students and community members have signed an online petition asking for Adams to be removed from UNCW. Even if the UNCW administration and a federal appeals court grants Adams the right to free speech, Title VI states that his right to free speech stops when he starts to create a hostile environment.

Merghani says she was initially planning a lawsuit against UNCW, but now she is focused on continuing her education elsewhere. She says its important to keep going.

Strength is not an option for black women. I dont have time to fall apart. I still have an education to pursue. There are people who want to see me fail but they arent going to keep it away from me.
This is the last chapter in a series of articles about the authors experiences in Turkish prisons and the people she met there, from a NASA scientist to a member of the so-called Islamic State.

On day 17 of my incarceration, two lawyers and a translator (hired by the Committee to Protect Journalists) visited me. They really seem to think youre a CIA agent, the translator started. This is hard to ask, butdo you have any ties to the CIA? The FBI? Mossad?

I had to laugh. No, I said. Never.
ABOUT US

The Ecologist is an environmental news and analysis website with a focus on environmental, social and economic justice.

Our aim is to educate and inform as many people as possible about the wonders of nature, the crisis we face and the best solutions and methods in managing that crisis. Find out about our mission, and our team, here. The website is owned and published by The Resurgence Trust, an educational charity. To receive the magazine, become a member now. The views expressed in the articles published on this site may not necessarily reflect those of the trust, its trustees or its staff.
A Danish court in Torshavn, Faroe Islands has found Sea Shepherd Captain Jessie Treverton of the UK guilty of breaching Faroese animal welfare laws by causing "unnecessary suffering" to a pod of dolphins.

The conviction is replete with irony as Sea Shepherd was only present in waters off the Faroe Islands, a self-governing territory of Denmark, in an attempt to prevent the slaughter of hundreds of dolphins and other cetaceans.

And the alleged 'cruelty' against the dolphins consisted of trying to guide them away from a killing beach where they faced certain death at the hands of islanders wielding long, razor-sharp knives.

Each year over 800 pilot whales and other small cetaceans are regularly slaughtered in the Faroe Islands in a practice known as the grindadrap, which Sea Shepherd has actively opposed since the 1980s.

It was during one of these actions on 17th September 2014 that Captain Treverton and two other Sea Shepherd crew members from France attempted to protect a pod of over 200 officially protected Atlantic white-sided dolphins from the grindadrap.

They attempted to drive them away from one of the Faroe Islands' 23 'approved killing beaches' using their speedboat MV Spitfire. After being chased and boarded by Danish armed forces, the boat was confiscated and the three women were arrested by Faroese police.

'A legal precedent has been set, driving dolphins is against Faroese law.'

After multiple postponements of her trial date by the Danish court in the Faroe Islands, on November 24th Captain Treverton's case was finally heard, wherin she was found guilty of causing unnecessary suffering to a pod of dolphins and ordered to pay a fine of 5,500 Danish Kroner (approximately 740).

"I am very happy to accept the court's verdict that my driving a pod of dolphins to safety was against animal welfare laws, because if the law applies to me then it surely must also apply to the Faroese people", said Captain Treverton. "A legal precedent has been set, driving dolphins is against Faroese law. This is a victory for the oceans."

"This is a landmark ruling", said Geert Vons, campaign leader for Sea Shepherd's operations against the grindadrap. "Jessie's guilty verdict sets a precedent that the process of manoeuvring a small boat with view to 'herd' dolphins is considered a breach of the Faroese animal welfare law. This is exactly what the Faroese boats do when they herd pods of pilot whales onto the killing beaches to be slaughtered."

Commenting on the arrest of Captain Treverton and the two crew members at the time, Sea Shepherd Founder Captain Paul Watson said:

"Apparently in the Faroe Islands it is perfectly legal to kill a protected species, but it is illegal to push them back out to sea in order to keep them from harm's way because that is considered 'harassment'. The good news is, however, that a pod of hundreds of white-sided dolphins were successfully 'harassed' away from the vicious knives of the whalers.

"Last year, in August 2013, 450 white-sided dolphins fell to the cruel knives of these cetacean-slaughtering thugs. Fortunately the hundreds spotted today remain safe at sea. These three Sea Shepherd women can proudly say that they successfully 'harassed' the dolphins for the purpose of saving their lives."

But the boat is returned to Sea Shepherd, with its engines

The Faroese prosecutor attempted to argue in court that the boat should not be returned, or only the Spitfire's hull should be returned without the two 200hp engines. However, the Danish judge ruled that the MV Spitfire be given back intact.

"After over two years of being denied use of MV Spitfire, Sea Shepherd UK has successfully challenged the Faroese prosecutor's decision to seize the boat", said Rob Read, Sea Shepherd UK's Chief Operations Officer, who was present at the six-hour hearing on to challenge the seizure and confiscation of the MV Spitfire.

"Only when comprehensive checks on the condition of the boat and engines have been completed in the Faroe Islands will the Spitfire return to the UK."

In expectation of this ruling, Captain Treverton has provided police with a significant amount of video evidence to open an investigation into multiple breaches of Faroese animal welfare laws by Faroes participants in the 2016 grindadrap.

Oliver Tickell is contributing editor at The Ecologist.
Summary of Operation:Camile Thai Kitchen is a Thai restaurant and home delivery franchise. The business was founded in 2010, to develop a restaurant quality brand in the hot food delivered to the home sector. 70 per cent of Camiles sales are for home delivery, and a growing and significant proportion of sales are made online.

Ideal Franchise Owner Profile:Franchise owners at Camile will have three characteristics: Be willing to devote their full time and attention to the business. Have some food service or hospitality background, be extremely comfortable working with people and have a minimum personal investment available of at least 100,000 to invest.

Company Established: 2010

Training Provided: Initial training at Camile consists of a comprehensive six week training course on the job and in the classroom.

Services Provided: Ongoing training courses are provided regularly for all staff, management and the franchise owner.

Please note that The Franchise Magazine does not recommend or endorse any opportunity featured on this site and suggests that you seek indepent financial advice before investing in any franchise or business opportunity.

Back to Showcase list
Mike Smith of Boones Mill is the chairman of the depot restoration committee. The current councilman grew up in the town and developed a real love of trains.

When Mike Smith was growing up in Boones Mill in the 1950s, the train station was a popular place with the neighborhood boys.

I think I was about 10 or 11 years old and studying Morse Code in the Boy Scouts when Digby (Station Master Digby Greene) let me send a message to the station in Roanoke, said Smith, a Boones Mill councilman and co-chair of the train depot restoration committee. I was so excited. I have always been fascinated by trains.

Smith, now 76, watched as the depot fell into disrepair after it closed in 1962. He drove by the building every morning and told himself that if he ever won the lottery, he was going to restore it back to its original condition.

So when Smith learned that Norfolk Southern was about to demolish it due to liability concerns, he and other members of the community scrambled to raise enough money to save it.

Thanks to U.S. Senator Mark Warner, an extension was given by Norfolk Southern to allow the group time to raise the $50,000 it would take to move the building to its current location on the site of the old North American Homes modular housing plant.

Interestingly enough, it was Digby Greenes son, now 90 and living in Dallas, Texas, who gave the group the $50,000.

The depot needs to be preserved because it played a major role in Franklin County history, Smith said.

Boones Mill was a hub for shipping things out of the county, he said.

Records show that the Boones Mill depot was established in 1892 on Norfolk and Westerns Southern branch line that connected Roanoke with Winston Salem. It was later nicknamed the Punkin Vine because of its winding route through the Blue Ridge Mountains.

A Norfolk and Western publication from 1916 reported thousands of barrels of Albemarle Pippin and other varieties of apples, as well as thousands of cases of canned goods, being shipped annually from the station. Pulpwood and dairy products were also popular exports.

By 1917, local dairy farmers B.T. Flora and J.A. Naff were shipping 300 gallons of Grade A milk each day from Boones Mill to Clover Creamery in Roanoke.

A 1924 N&W magazine stated that over 22,000 bushels of green beans were shipped in one year, along with 113,000 gallons of milk.

The depot was also important to the people of Boones Mill because it was a major source of transportation with four passenger trains running daily and mail delivery until freight service was discontinued.

Now, Smith is determined to restore the old depot to its original condition, even down to the light bulbs, and organizations in the community are helping with his dream.

The tin roof was recently refurbished with money from the Franklin County Board of Supervisors, and the Franklin County Historical Society donated a rare Norfolk and Western caboose that will be restored and placed next to the depot on a concrete pad.

Two Boones Mill residents are also helping with the restoration. Harold Saul, who worked for N&W, donated a message hook that came out of the depot and an original sign, which says Colored Waiting Room and dates back to 1942. The restoration committee wants to preserve the depot for future generations because of its significance in the history of segregation and the Civil Rights movement.

Another Boones Mill resident Jessie Guthrie donated the original scales that weighed every piece of produce and baggage that went out of the depot.

The depot already has a collection of original items, including the Station Masters desk, a safe and several wall clocks.

The restoration committee is now raising money to build a dock around the depot to serve as a stage so it can be used as a community center and performance venue in addition to a museum.

Our goal at this time is to get it open to the public by summer of 2017, said Smith. We need money or a donation of lumber to build the loading docks around the front and back and also to install power. This will enable us to complete inspection for public use.

After it is reopened, we will plan musical events, a model train show and community activities, such as a Christmas program for local churches and a kids day with train rides and displays, he added.

Boones Mill has already received one grant from the Virginia Department of Transportation and has applied for another.

Our funding source is VDOT's Transportation Alternatives program, said Town Manager Matt Lawless. We have a current grant award for about $200,000. That paid for engineering, and we'll go to bid on stabilization work shortly.

We have also applied for another $200,000 to complete the interior restoration, Lawless added. That award decision won't be announced until next summer.

If the funding goes as planned, Lawless expects the restoration to be complete in the summer of 2018.

The Town of Boones Mill has several other projects in the works on the property surrounding the depot. A year-round farmers market is being planned across from the train depot. It will include 10 vendor spaces and a loading dock with an interior ramp to help vendors set up. The loading dock can also serve as a covered stage for live performances. Public bathrooms to serve both the farmers market and depot are also planned.

A 54,000 square-foot former factory space on the hill overlooking the depot is currently being renovated with Tobacco Commission funding to become a business center. Titan Trains, a builder of 1/8 scale high quality model trains, has just signed a lease. A distillery has also expressed interest in the business center but has yet to sign a contract, according to Lawless. The center is expected to be completed in April of next year.

Anyone interested in helping the town with the depot renovations can mail donations to The Town of Boones Mill, Attn: Depot Fund, Box 66, Boones Mill, VA 24065. All contributions are tax deductible and any donors that make a sizable contribution will be recognized on a permanent donor board located in the depot.

The town may qualify for matching funds, from $50 to $35,000, for donations from current and retired Norfolk Southern employees.
Podcast: Who comes out ahead in the Charlie Jones vs. Iowa football reunion?
STAMFORD  The Business Council of Fairfield County did not make a conventional pick this year for its top leadership award. And the honoree does not take a traditional management approach.

Joe Carbone, president and CEO of the Bridgeport-based workforce development organization The WorkPlace, is the recipient of the Walter H. Wheeler, Jr. Leadership Award, for corporate leadership. He is the first nonprofit leader in the past 20 years to earn the honor.

Carbone will accept the accolade Wednesday at a ceremony at the Crowne Plaza Stamford Hotel.

Joe and his colleagues at The WorkPlace reach out to those currently unable to compete in our economy, Reyno Giallongo Jr., First County Banks chairman and CEO and The Business Councils board chairman, said in a statement. They work with them to regain their footing, improve their skills and achieve the rewards and dignity of sustainable employment.

Carbone, 66, has led The WorkPlace since 1996. During his tenure, the organization has expanded its reach from a base of 8,500 clients  or customers, as Carbone calls them  to a current total of approximately 35,000. The organization operates this year with an approximately $26 million budget and runs a range of workforce programs that serve a broad constituency, including workers with disabilities, at-risk youth and veterans.

We can help businesses and employers in this region to think big, think broad and be the first to create and not to miss points that industries may very well miss, which may cause them to have their difficulties, Carbone said in an interview at The WorkPlaces headquarters. I think thats the general direction in which weve tried to make The WorkPlace move.

An executive who formerly worked for the multi-industry conglomerate Textron, Carbone runs The WorkPlace more like a for-profit business than a traditional nonprofit. He said that he pushes his colleagues to develop innovative approaches to advance the organizations goals.

If anyone sits here for a couple of years and doesnt generate ideas, theyre not going to be around, Carbone said. I dont care if your ideas fail, but I want to hear things and I want to see things.

Platform to Employment, a program that helps the long-term unemployed return to work, stands as one of The WorkPlaces most prominent initiatives. The program launched in 2011, a year after Carbone began conducting roundtable discussions with workers who had exhausted their 99-week unemployment benefits. The program launched with 100 shares sold to private investors at $6,000 a piece.

This community enabled an idea  that could have failed  to, in essence, be the catalyst to a national movement that brought hope and life to people who were giving up by the thousands every day, Carbone said. Its relatively easy here to be successful as a private not-for-profit, but youve got to convince people that theres a motive, that theres a reason why you do what you do and that its for the good of the community.

Some 1,200 people in Connecticut have participated in Platform to Employment, with 89 percent finding employment, according to The WorkPlace data. The program has been replicated in more than a dozen cities across the country and profiled by CBS 60 Minutes.

After 20 years leading The WorkPlace, Carbone said that he remains as committed as ever. Among his long-term goals, he wants The WorkPlace to launch within the next five years a nonprofit center in Bridgeport that it would own and manage.

This will be a national showcase, Carbone said. It will be a physical symbol and a movement that not-for-profits must look at not as a means of their future survival but as a sense of social responsibility. We need to be worthy of the tax exemption and respect we have as a private not-for-profit, which means we need to be willing to measure up.

pschott@scni.com; 203-964-2236; twitter: @paulschott
Beth Harpaz / Associated Press

The American Cancer Society, the largest non-governmental not-for-profit funding source of cancer research in the United States, has approved three new research grants totaling over $1.7 million to investigators at Yale University. These grants are among 11 new projects in effect across New England as of January 1, 2017, totaling more than $4.4 million.

The grants will help fund research on such topics as a more targeted treatment for melanoma. The cancer societys Chief Executive Officer, Gary Reedy, recently announced that the organization intends to double its annual research funding by 2021, which will result in an annual increase of approximately $240 million by 2021. The organization currently spends about $100 million per year in new grants to academic research institutions and another $15 to $20 million annually in research by ACS investigators in cancer epidemiology, surveillance and health services, behavioral research, and economics and health policy.
Employees are some of the most valuable assets a company can have and one of the most telling signs of a companys health is its employee retention rate. A low turnover ratio is a sign that the companys cadence is working the way its supposed to.

But a high turnover ratio indicates a big culture problem.

Related: Corporate Social Responsibility Can Give Entrepreneurs an Edge

Earlier this year, millennials surpassed Gen-Xers to become the largest generation in the American workforce. By 2020, nearly half of all U.S. workers will be millennials, and HR departments everywhere are taking notice.

With millennials as the leading generational workforce, this highly influential group has more interest in "making a difference" than in making money or finding prestige. Salary and benefits are the standard package used to attract employees. But recently, possibly due to the demographic changes going on, there has been a renewed passion for corporate social responsibility (CSR). And both recruiters and employees are responding.

Business is constantly evolving and I've said this before, but I cant say it enough: Employers must adapt, change or die.

Companies are now including social responsibility as part of an incentive package likely to resonate with a younger audience. In fact, according to a study by Greenbiz, millennial employees prefer to work for leaders whom they admire and who exemplify good CSR practices.

How can employers capitalize on this trend? Here are four steps for doing so:

1. Update your website

Whats the first thing people do when theyre researching a potential employer? They go to the website. If you don't have a separate tab for CSR or any volunteer work the company has done, add it now. You can upload videos about campaigns youve worked on and promote articles, emphasizing any community awards you've won or, simply, your company policies. Anything that will show potential employees you share their values and have a vested interest in the betterment of the community will be useful.

Related: Why Should Your Business Care About Social Responsibility?

In fact, I practice what I preach, as I am a big believer in giving back to the community. Spending my time mostly between South Dakota and New York City, I stay involved with several charities; and some of my employees do, too.

Every year, for instance, I co-host an event in New York City called Breathless on Broadway to raise awareness for pulmonary hypertension (PH), a rare, life-threatening lung disease. My company president, meanwhile, is involved in Simon Says Give, for the Sioux Falls, South Dakota chapter. This is a kid-founded and kid-operated non-profit that works to combat hunger in Sioux Falls, my hometown.

So, do what we do: Celebrate, on your website, the good things your company does and let future employees know where you stand; make CSR a best practice.

2. Decide: Whats your purpose?

One of the best things a company can do to recruit and retain employees and increase production is have a clear business purpose. While the exact purpose may vary, depending on the industry and a companys capabilities, its important that everyone know about the mission at hand.

If a company is to change with the times, you as employer need to make an effort to know what drives your employees and keep that business purpose at the center of your organization.

A perfect example is outdoor clothing giant Patagonia. Its mission statement highlights the company's commitment toward the environment. Foreign policy, immigration, jobs, health care, campaign finance are all important," the statement says. "But none of it matters on a dead planet. I would say Patagonia's purpose is pretty clear.

Your own purpose has to be a continuous effort, reflecting a long-term commitment to your CSR. If youre just putting up a good front, millennials will call you out on it, and you'll run the risk of losing a potential rock star employee.

Related Book: The Business of Good: Social Entrepreneurship and the New Bottom Line by Jason Haber

The worse thing is, you will hten have no one to blame but yourself. Having a consistent and lasting CSR policy improves company culture and boosts employee morale. It will encourage your employees to do better and work harder.

3. Encourage and engage your employees.

Millennials are more likely to stick around if they feel their passions for social good are being fulfilled. In fact, 53 percent of millennials surveyed in the Millennial Impact Report said they had been inspired at some point to work long-term for a company whose mission was to make a difference in the world.

Even more eye-opening was a Bentley University study stating that 84 percent of millennials surveyed said that making a positive difference in the world was more important than professional recognition.

For a generation that has been accused of being self-centered and disengaged, those are pretty significant numbers, not to mention encouraging ones. Maybe this next generation of leaders isn't as self-centered as weve been led to believe.

Keeping your employees engaged can create a bridge to keeping your customers engaged, as well. On surveys, 83 percent percent of U.S. consumers have said they wanted more of the products or services they use to contribute to a social cause, and 62 percent of customers worldwide have said they would switch brands if those they were using didn't have a clear social purpose.

Keeping everyone engaged is not only a good business practice, but also good for your bottom line.

Bond CSR with your brand.

If youre looking to attract socially conscious talent, you have to characterize CSR as part of your overall workplace culture. Why? Because this could be the determining factor whether a prospective employee will choose you or go to a competitor.

Also, candidates who are passionate about CSR during the hiring process will eventually (and hopefully), become your companys best ambassadors.

A brand ambassador is someone who eats, lives and breathes your brand. He or she is someone customers can identify with; and if your customers are happy with the service your employees are providing, well, thats good for your cause and your bottom line.

One brand that successfully integrated is brand and their cause, is Ben & Jerry's. The ice cream company has incorporated social justice into its brand, whose principle is, If you care about something, you have to be willing to risk it all -- your reputation, your values, your business -- for the greater good.

Clearly, Ben & Jerry's founders aren't shy about supporting causes that can be considered hot-button issues. Heck, earlier this year, they even got arrested!

Millennials are an interesting group of people, whom I dont pretend to fully understand. Yet I can say I have gained insight into how they see the world and how I, as an employer, can capitalize on that drive.

Recently, I interviewed Aria Finger, CEO of DoSomething.org, on my podcast and was a bit surprised to hear how many young people are volunteering and helping create social change through multiple causes and campaigns. In fact, their promise is: any cause, anytime, anywhere.

Related: 4 Steps for Launching Corporate Social Responsibility at Your Business

So, the upshot is, you can teach anyone how to do ar job, but you cant teach passion. You either have it or you dont. Companies capitalizing on young, passionate talent are doing it right. You dont have to be a corporate giant, either -- we all have something we're passionate about. As a founder, you just use it to your advantage.

Related:

4 Ways Employers are Using Corporate Social Responsibility To Recruit Millennials

Even Busy Executives Can Make Time for a Cause

Why Should Your Business Care About Social Responsibility?



Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
A new economic engine.

The study found that the marijuana industry, which is still growing, already outstrips the economic output of most industries in Colorado. Among the reports findings from all of 2015:

All marijuana industry-related activities generated $2.39 billion in state economic output.

The marijuana industry created 18,005 new full-time jobs in Colorado.

Because it is confined within the state, the Colorado marijuana industry already creates more economic output and employment per dollar spent than 90 percent of all Rocky Mountain State industries.

The marijuana industry generated $121 million in combined sales and excise tax revenues, which is three times more than those generated by alcohol sales and 14 percent more than casino revenue.

The future of marijuana industry in Colorado.

As the one of the first states to legalize marijuana for recreational use (along with Alaska, Colorado has led the way in regulating legalized marijuana sales. It also has provided an example of the impact legalized marijuana can have on an economy. The report estimates that the marijuana industry will grow by 11.3 percent each year through 2020.

This growth is driven by a demand shift away from the black market and by cannabis-specific visitor demand, the report states.

Total sales are expected to peak at about $1.52 billion annually in Colorado. So many cannabis tourists are visiting Colorado that the total amount of marijuana needed for them is projected to increase from 14 metric tons to 55 metric tons by 2020.

The huge growth has been driven through Colorados early movement into legalized marijuana, making it a magnet for businesses working in marijuana sales, manufacturing and testing and earning it the nickname Silicon Valley of Cannabis.
If we can begin to understand the sense of federalism as an idea rather than a fixed set of immutable relations, and moreover as an idea that is designed to balance and reconcile the competing claims of competing goods, then our debates over the promise of federalism may take on a new vitality and plausibility

Todays offering in our Timeless Essay series affords readers the opportunity to join Wilfred McClay as he examines the importance of the federal idea and how it pertains to todays politics. W. Winston Elliott III, Publisher

The concept of federalism has been one of the principal casualties of modern American history. One has to look far and wide to find American historians and political scientists who do not believe, with the smugness and tenacity of dogma, that our federal institutions are lumbering relics of a past we outgrew over a century ago, relics that have been little more than obstacles in the path of national unity and racial justice, and in any event have little or no place in a modern consolidated nation-state. Equally indicative of federalisms faded status is the fact that so few average Americans even know what the term meanshaving been habituated by the endless invocation of the term Federal government to regard federalism, if they think of it at all, as the opposite of what it really is.

It has not always been thus. Take, for example, the testimony of Alexis de Tocqueville, a great admirer of nineteenth-century American federalism. Tocqueville acknowledged, in the first volume of Democracy in America, that federalism is an exceedingly complicated system of government that demands the daily exercise of a considerable share of discretion on the part of those its governs. Indeed, he asserted that the U.S. Constitution itself, which he regarded as the most perfect federal constitution that ever existed, presupposed an astonishing level of knowledge and discernment in those being governed. Yet it seemed to him that even the humblest Americans of the 1830s had an instinctive grasp of federalism:

I have never been more struck by the good sense and the practical judgment of the Americans than in the manner in which they elude the numberless difficulties resulting from their Federal Constitution. I scarcely ever met with a plain American citizen who could not distinguish with surprising facility the obligations created by the laws of Congress from those created by the laws of his own state, and who after having discriminated between the matters which come under the cognizance of the Union and those which the local legislature is competent to regulate, could not point out the exact limit of the separate jurisdictions of the Federal courts and the tribunals of the state.[1]

In this glowing encomium is also buried a sober warning. Such a complex government would, Tocqueville observed, be ill adapted to a people which has not been long accustomed to conduct its own affairs, a statement that perhaps begins to convey some of what is at stake in the current efforts to revive federalism in the United States. Certainly there is evidence that the current revival is enjoying some success, and indeed there is even some reason to think that we may be embarked upon the most serious and sustained reconsideration of the federal idea in a century or more. The 1994 elections, the Supreme Courts 1995 Lopez decision, the growing prominence of the nations state governors, and the 1996 Congressional devolution of social-welfare programsall betoken the possibility, though still a remote one, that American federalism, as originally envisioned, may yet enjoy a second chance. But Tocquevilles words of warning suggest what may be the greatest obstacle: the American people themselves. An undifferentiated restlessness and antagonism to government is a mixed blessing at best, and may not be such a promising seedbed for a revival of federalism.[2] In short, we may no longer be able to presume an American citizenry with the same qualities of character and mind that prevailed 170 years ago. Like any other system of government, a genuine and sustainable federal system must be able to draw on, and in turn reproduce, a certain social character in its citizens. Once that chain of causes and effects has been broken, only a congenital optimist could feel certain that it can be restored.

But one must try, and one modest way of contributing to this difficult undertaking is to change the way we think about the trajectory of modern American history, and thereby restore some sense of the plausibility of the federal idea. That would involve a dramatic change, for by and large the American story is now told as the steady and inevitable triumph of nationalismthat is, of nationalizing and centralizing forces over local, regional, provincial, or particular concerns. Indeed, even allowing for the increasingly deconstructive effects of multiculturalism, the political history of the United States still continues to be told as a series of such struggles, in which the centralizers generally wear the white hats (or headdresses). In the Founding period, the forward-looking, continental-minded men who proposed the Constitution prevailed over the more backward-looking and localistic anti-Federalists. In the Civil War, a conception of the United States as an indissoluble national union prevailed over the lingering claims of state sovereignty. And so on, to the 14th Amendment, the Progressive movement, the First World War, the New Deal, the postwar civil-rights movement, the Great Societyeach a landmark along the broadening path to a more powerful, more comprehensive, more caring, more supervisory, and more beneficent national government. Each was a victory for what Herbert Croly called the national ideathe idea that all that is highest and most desirable in our culture is expressed by and in national institutions, and the enlarged sense of community and collective purpose they embody.

That, as I have suggested, may have begun to change. The persuasiveness of this model of American history has clearly begun to erode, both on the left and the right ends of the political spectrum. But the imprecise concept of devolution, though it may have certain short-term tactical uses for political conservatives, will not be sufficient to fill the intellectual and organizational vacuum left by the erosion of the national idea. In fact, in so far as it merely envisions devolution as a way of downsizing government at all levels, it really does not challenge the dominance of the national idea at all. It does not seek to augment or protect the independent authority of state and local political institutions, or to equip states and localities to contend with, and act as a check upon, national powersomething that single individuals are singularly unequipped to do. Hence it is not only devolution, but a more complex idea of the meaning of the national union, that we need to develop.

And this complexity is precisely the genius of federalismand of American federalism in particular. It divides political power between and among units of governmentcentral and local, higher and lowerin such a way that all retain certain elements of autonomy and self-governance. Federalism, thereby, offers the prospect of reconciling the advantages of independence with the advantages of combination, the cohesiveness and diversity of smaller-scale local organization with the material resources and external security provided by a unified nation-state. It need hardly be added, however, that for such a system to preserve its character, it must find clear and consistent ways of strictly limiting the powers of the central authority, and protecting the autonomy of the local and provincial governments. This can best be done through a written constitution, of precisely the sort that the Framers provided. Whatever else one may say about Madisons intentions in helping frame this unique composition of federal and national systems, he most emphatically did not offer the Constitution as a blueprint for a consolidated government that would completely supersede the separate authority of the states, or reduce them to mere administrative units at best.[3]

The federal idea, then, is an attempt to reconcile opposites, to find a balance between nationalism and localism without having to choose finally between one or the other. Contrary to familiar caricatures of the federal idea as a form of hidebound legalism, such a system, properly understood, is necessarily fluid and dynamic, even ambivalent in its sense of political lifes proper ends. It is not, and cannot be, a closed and finished product. Rather, it is splendidly fitted to a broadly liberal understanding of political life, especially the sort of liberal pluralism one associates with a figure like Isaiah Berlin, that envisions human existence as a struggle between and among many different expressions of human good and human perfection, rather than as a Whiggish struggle between darkness and light, grounded in the illusion of an eventual all-encompassing harmonious fulfillment and resolution of those conflicts.[4] This is one reason why the tendency of historians to reduce the Constitution to a compromise-ridden political deal is so misconceived; for the reconciling of opposites, the reconciling of the claims of conflicting goods, was one of the Constitutions substantive goals.

The federal idea, then, was not somehow incidental to the Framers intentions. It was absolutely essential, and we need to remember why. There are, roughly speaking, two reasons; and it is in keeping with my allusion to Isaiah Berlin that one of them is negative, the other positive. First, the negative one: The Framers distrusted power, distrusted government, distrusted majorities, distrusted human nature. They believed in the necessity of auxiliary precautions to guard against the abuses of power to which popular governments are prone. Hence the need to devise a government that deliberately set up opposite and rival interests that could check and balance one another, using ambition to counteract ambition. Federalism was a crucial part of this arrangement. The separation of national and state governments, in tandem with the separation of powers within each level of government, provided a double security for the peoples rights, through the effective dispersion of power.[5]

That, then, is the negative function of federalism. But it is complemented by an equally important positive function, one that gets far less attention than it deserves. Federalism, properly conceived, makes it possible to preserve the integrity and vitality of smaller-scale forms of political organization and association. A federal regime, properly constituted, should offer a multitude for arenas for meaningful acts of citizenship, the kind of acts that elevate and deepen human beings, while binding them more closely and affectionately to their locale, and through their locale, to the nation.

This perspective on citizenship is reflected with especial prominence in the classical-republican strains of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Anglo-American political thought and ideology. The older classical understanding of virtue stressed that the individual could not realize his human nature in its fullness without involvement in public lifeand that a strong republic depended upon a preponderance of such independent, public-spirited individuals for its very existence. Virtue, to paraphrase Randolph Bourne, was the health of the state, no less than of the energetic citizen. This vision has attracted the interest of a number of present-day liberal communitarians, like Michael Sandel, as an alternative source of social solidarity in a post-Marxian and post-nationalist era.[6]

There actually is a good deal to be said for such a reappropriation of republican ideology, and for a recovery of the exalted idea of citizenship and public life that it entails. Rough and tumble as it is, and always has been, public life in a democracy can and should function as a kind of school of the soul. Local and smaller-scale institutions are dearly better situated, in many respects, to play such an educative role, precisely because they offer more opportunities for meaningful acts of citizenship. But such neo-republican writers need to remember that there is always a less attractive side to republicanism. John Pocock himself has observed that idea of virtue is highly compulsive, for it demands of the individual, under threat to his moral being, that he participate in the res publica.[7] If one really takes it seriously, republicanism makes virtuous political activity the alpha and omega of existencea thoroughly dismal prospect, in many ways, of which it can truly be said that it is a cure worse than the disease. There is a danger that, in too zealously combating the unencumbered self, to use Sandels term, we end up falling into the arms of an unencumbered polity.[8]

The federal idea represents a genuine answer to this dilemma. It offers a way of allowing adequate scope to healthy individualism, to the satisfactions of private life, to the bourgeois virtues of a liberal democracy, while respecting and upholding the role that acts of citizenship, and republican notions of public life in general, play in the deepening and elevation of the soul. Here, again, Tocquevilles view of the matter is illuminating. Fearing the disintegrative effects of individualism in a liberal social order, Tocqueville sought to take the engine of sell-interest so that it would serve in the stead of virtue. He recognized that there must be an institutional framework to support such an endeavor, and he credited the Framers with having devised one. They had deliberately sought, he said, to infuse political life into each portion of the territory in order to multiply to an infinite extent opportunities of acting in concert for all the members of the community.[9]

In other words, Tocqueville saw in the federal idea a way Americans could retain the spirit of republican citizenship even when accepting the self-interested dynamism of liberal individualism. If this is right, then it can be argued that American federalism was, in effect, an effort to retain and reconcile the essential principles of both classical and modern political thought. This does not mean that Tocqueville believed Americans should be committed in perpetuity to a particular way of dividing authority, or that he was opposed to a powerful national government. But it did mean that they should be committed to the idea that political communities, if they are to have any real moral vitality, must find ways to spur their inhabitants on to the fullest development of their natures. It must permit themand require themto be citizens.

This does not mean, of course, that the federal idea has much in common with the growing plebiscitary tendency in present-day American politics, epitomized by the horrors of computerized direct democracy. On the contrary, it favors the careful discrimination of appropriate spheres of responsibility, and esteems solid, local knowledge over pseudo-cosmopolitan public opinion, particularly of the sort generated by mass media and measured by pollsters. By permitting citizens maximum feasible authority in the administration of minor and local affairs, the federal idea draws them into public life by giving them a palpable stake in the issues being deliberated upon. Far from undermining their attachment to the nation, the federal idea promises to strengthen their affection for the nation, and their confidence in the efficacy of national government, precisely by limiting the scope of national institutions, and readily drawing the energies of citizens most proximate or primal attachments into affirmation of larger affiliationsa nationalism fed, one might say, by patriotism.

Madison well understood most, or all, of this. Despite his famous argument in Federalist 10 for the extended republic as a check upon faction, he also insisted that the jurisdiction of the central government be restricted to certain enumerated objects, with the states and localities retaining their due authority and activity. He did not assume that a large and diverse nation could offer the same sense of moral community as a small and relatively homogeneous republic (though he did assume that the national perspective would generally be the more elevated one). Rather, he assumed that a judicious modification and mixture of the federal principle could combine the advantages of both.

For todays politicians to fulfill the spirit of these words, then, they will need to move in the opposite direction from that of the past centuryaway from the relentless centralizing trends of the past, and toward institutional arrangements that seek to multiply the opportunities for public association. The challenge is to find ways of restoring the sense of accountability and belonging offered by smaller, more human-scale institutions which can serve as schools of citizenship, while retaining the inestimable advantages of national government. This is the holy grail sought by so many of the political thinkers of our era, from Dewey to Sandel; but they generally have failed to noticed that this is precisely the promise of the federal idea. The federal idea does not require us to renounce a national governmentonly to specify and enforce its limits. And it does so not only to limit the power of the national government, but to preserve kinds of association, and qualities of soul, that are beyond the power of nationalism to sustain.

We have been too easily convinced, I think, by the reflexive argument that the federal idea is useless to us today because we cannot return to nineteenth-century institutions. This is to mistake one expression of the federal idea for the idea itself, and to imagine that the federal principle cannot permit growth or development, or find expression in other waysit is to forget the fact, to repeat, that federalism is not a closed, finished system, but is by its very nature dynamic and adaptive. If we can begin to understand this sense of federalism, as an idea rather than a fixed set of immutable relations, and moreover as an idea that is designed to balance and reconcile the competing claims of competing goods, then our debates over the promise of federalism may take on a new vitality and plausibility. The federal idea may then win more general acceptance as an idea whose time has comeagain.

This essay in our series of Timeless Essays was first published here in January 2013. Republished with the gracious permission of Continuity: A Journal of History, (Spring 1998).

The Imaginative Conservative applies the principle of appreciation to the discussion of culture and politicswe approach dialogue with magnanimity rather than with mere civility. Will you help us remain a refreshing oasis in the increasingly contentious arena of modern discourse? Please consider donating now.

Notes:

1. Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, (Liberty Fund, 2002).

2. I have touched upon these issues in A More Perfect Union? Toward a New Federalism, Commentary, 100 (September 1995), 28-33.

3. The Federalist Papers, (Numbers 39, 45, and 46). See, however, the suggestion made by Madison that the people might in future become more partial to the federal than to the State governments, and that such a change should not be precluded. But Madison went on to argue that even in such an instance, the federal powers efficacy would be limited, and would therefore give state governments little to apprehend.

4. Isaiah Berlin, The Crooked Timber of Humanity: Chapters in the History of Ideas (New York. 1991). Especially the essays entitled The Pursuit of the Ideal and The Decline of Utopian Ideas in the West, 1-48.

5. The Federalist Papers, 321-22 (Number 51).

6. Michael J. Sandel, Democracys Discontent: America in Search of a Public Philosophy (Cambridge. Mass., 1996).

7. J.G.A. Pocock, The Machiavellian Moment: Florentine Political Thought and the Atlantic Republican Tradition (Princeton, N.J., 1975), 551.

8. Michael Sandel. The Procedural Republic and the Unencumbered Self, Political Theory 12 (1984), 81-96.

9. Tocqueville, Democracy in America, II,110-11.
One of Nebraskas largest farms is heading to auction.

Thomas Land Co., a 28,645-acre farm overlooking Lake McConaughy, will be auctioned Thursday in Ogallala.

The farm offers a significant opportunity for both passive investors seeking a rental opportunity and active ranchers and farmers looking for a prime operation or a major expansion in one of the nations prime agricultural areas, said Scott Shuman, managing partner of Hall and Hall Auctions in Eaton, Colorado. The company is handling the sale.

The auction has attracted international interest. More than 500 people have requested additional information, Shuman said. He expects potential bidders from several states to attend the auction.

The land is situated on the edge of the Sand Hills ranching country between the North Platte and South Platte Rivers. Its three segments  ranch, irrigated, and non-irrigated crops  could each stand alone as separate enterprises. Together, they make a package investment unparalleled in the current North American land market, Shuman said.

It is very rare to find an assemblage of this magnitude and diversity being offered for sale, he said. This is a place to invest capital and enjoy the stability and the certainty that land offers.

Nebraska has about 49,100 farms and ranches. The average operation consists of about 920 acres. Ranches in western Nebraskas cattle country typically are significantly larger.

The farm and ranch operation was put together by the late Michael L. Thomas. A 1958 graduate of Ogallala High School, he turned down an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy to attend the University of Nebraska in Lincoln to study mechanical engineering. He was president of the Nebraska Young Democrats. Thomas trained as a Navy aviator in the 1960s, retiring as a lieutenant commander in 1969. He went on to become an airline captain for Pan Am.

Thomas and his wife, Lola, lived in Miami Beach, Florida, developing hotels and coastal land. In 2005, Thomas invested in his home county, creating Thomas Land Co. He died at age 74 in 2015.

Most of the 45 square miles of farm and ranch land straddles U.S. Highway 26 northwest of Ogallala. The operation includes other parcels scattered across Keith, Deuel and Perkins Counties.

The land will be offered in 50 tracts and combinations ranging in size from 10 acres to more than 5,000 acres. Major crops are winter wheat and dryland corn.

Tom Metzger, a Hall and Hall partner, said yields are high and the land is as productive as any in Nebraska.

Improvements on the north side of the property include a house, guest house, complete set of livestock working facilities and 120,000 bushels of grain storage. To the south, there is a shop, an equipment storage building and about 200,000 bushels of grain storage near the concentration of irrigated land. There are two modest residences in Deuel County.

Shuman said the farms diversity allows for the ability to market a cross-section of crops and livestock at different points in the production cycle.

And the location is hard to beat, given that the ranch overlooks the largest lake in Nebraska, he said. It provides spectacular views, in addition to some of the best grassland in the United States.

The sale features 26,739 deeded acres and 1,906 leased acres. It includes 3,647 acres of irrigated land, 11,705 dryland acres and 13,293 acres of ranchland. The grassland, plus hay and harvested cropland, provides grazing and feed for 1,250 cow-calf pairs. Twenty-seven center-pivot irrigation systems water the irrigated corn and soybean land.

Metzger said the scattered nature of many of the farms parcels makes the sale an opportunity for neighbors to buy an adjoining piece to expand of their own operations.

If not for the death of Mike Thomas, this land would not be for sale, he said.

The farms 900 cattle were sold in mid-November. Personal farm equipment was sold Monday. Thursdays land auction is scheduled for 10 a.m. at the Keith County Fairgrounds.
Residing in Grand Islands Northwest High School area, I am appalled with the proposed Heritage hazardous waste incineration facility. Many of us in the northwest area had our groundwater and wells poisoned with RDX from the Armys Cornhusker Ammunition Plant. Now we are facing a new menace, hazardous waste incineration, which would expel toxins into our air, robbing us of clean air to breathe. And this will possibly contribute to respiratory problems and future home devaluations due to our proximity to the proposed plant and its subsequent dispersal of hazardous waste emissions into our area.

Although Heritage has assured us their particle emissions will meet EPA standards, there is no guarantee that no one will be adversely effected. The EPA is not a precautionary agency. Instead, the EPA makes its decision on risk assessment and allows for exposing the public to risks as long as it determines those risks are reasonable. The EPA does not do its own research. They make their decisions from research funded by those companies who would most profit from a desirable outcome  the fox guarding the hen house scenario.

Grand Island has experienced air pollution in its eastern area from slaughtering operations and in our western area from bordering feedlots that periodically send waves of stink into our yards. Nebraska winds would transport Heritages toxic particles into our neighborhoods. Would Hall County be required to monitor the emissions released into the air and mail annual reports with listed contaminants to its residents, similar to Grand Island Utilities annual water report? Should there be a future significant increase in respiratory illness within the county, the first source of suspicion would be the hazardous waste facility.

The public should receive full disclosure of the hazardous wastes to be incinerated and released into our air  complete with the names of every toxic waste and the volumes thereof. Being informed there are only about 10 similar incineration facilities in the country, the point could be made, there are so few communities allowing toxic waste facilities because they have chosen to protect their environment and its residents from hazardous toxic particles. Other practical local concerns arise. How would the hazardous waste be transported into the facility? If by train, how would that interfere with Highway 30 traffic and if by truck, what roads would be used?

Though the Heritage plan may seem fortuitous to some, to many others, it threatens their quality of life. We value opening up our windows and welcoming the fresh air. No amount of monetary gain will compensate for the loss of ones health. It is Hall Countys responsibility to provide a healthy environment with clean air and clean water for its residents  this should be a part of our childrens heritage.
Virginias 452 auto dealerships are under attack. And the predator--as Virginia Automobile Dealers Association President Don Hall sees it--is Tesla.

Tesla, the all-electric automaker and energy company sells its own cars directly online and through its own branded stores, not through franchised dealerships. The company has one store and service center in Virginia as well as one gallery, where customers can look at the cars but not buy, or even test drive or discuss the price. And Tesla wants to open up one more store, where it can actually sells its vehicles, in Richmond.

This isnt sitting well with Virginias dealership association.

For the last 29 years I have fought as a gladiator to protect the rights of the Virginia auto dealers and their franchise system, Hall says in a YouTube video first posted in September and reported on by the Washington Post on Sunday. We are under attack. This system is under attack by the likes of Tesla and many others out there who believe the franchise system is a dinosaur and no longer works.

Hall then describes how other industries have succumbed to such attacks and that the dealership franchise system is the next on the hit list.

The video, which you can see below, was meant to promote the VADAs town hall-style meetings to educate dealers how they can lobby legislators to understand the importance of the franchise system.

Hall closes the video with Lets all strap on whatever it takes to win and lets win this fight to protect the franchise system.

The VADA held its last town hall meeting October 4 in Richmond, according to updates on its website.

The video provides just a sample of what legal and lobbying pressure Tesla is likely to face in the future.

Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Richard D. Holcomb is expected to decide on Teslas application for a Richmond store before December 14. And the VADA as well as Tesla have shown theyre willing to take their battles to court, if necessary.

Story continues

Dealerships are protected in all U.S. states by laws that prevent automakers with existing franchisees from opening their own dealerships to compete with them.

Virginia law prohibits a manufacturer to own or operate a dealership. However, the states the Department of Motor Vehicles commissioner is allowed to grant a license if a hearing determines that there is no dealer independent of the manufacturer that can operate a franchise. Tesla was granted such a license through a settlement agreement in December 2013.

When Tesla filed an application to open a second store, the VADA responded with a lawsuit. The lawsuit, filed in March, claims Tesla and Holcomb violated a 2013 agreement that the automaker could not own or operate a second dealership in the state until August 2017.

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Virginias dealerships have considerable economic power. The states 452 dealerships generated $22.2 billion in sales in 2015, according to the National Automobiles Dealership Association. Tesla doesnt provide a breakdown of how many vehicles it delivers per state. However, Tesla says it plans to deliver 50,000 vehicles total (thats a global number) in 2016, according the companys most recent outlook. In the third-quarter, Tesla generated $21.88 million of net income--its first quarterly profit (based on generally accepted accounting rules) in three years.

Dealer associations in a number of U.S. states, including Massachusetts, Missouri, North Carolina, and Washington, have tried to expand the law to include manufacturers like Tesla that don't have franchise dealers.

Some states--such as Arizona, Michigan, and Texas--have taken an extra step and passed laws that ban direct sales. In these states, Tesla can still have a showroom, where consumers can look, but not buy, its Model S, Model X, and eventually, Model 3 vehicles. Tesla staff cannot discuss the cost of the car. They must instead direct customers to the website or a store in a neighboring state for more information.

See original article on Fortune.com

More from Fortune.com
With the rise of incidents of bigotry on U.S. campuses after the November elections, a question has come up. How can we differentiate between free and hate speech and what can we do about the latter? The answer is complex, but there is a solution to the problem.

At the federal level - and contrary to popular belief - free speech is not absolute. The Supreme Court has ruled many times setting limits on speech, from child pornography cases, to deceptive advertisement to specific threats of violence. The fine line comes when dealing with espousing ideologies, like the ones held by hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan.

The main hate crime statute is the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. This statute makes it illegal to physically harm people based on their race, religion, national origin, gender or sexual orientation. Yet, the statute does not cover hate speech, nor does it criminalize threats of violence. Threats to inflict physical injury may be prosecutable under other hate crimes statutes, such as 42 U.S.C.  3631 or 18 U.S.C.  245. Such threats may also be prosecutable under generally applicable federal laws preventing interstate communication of threats. Some laws specifically address threats directed to some federal officials, such as the president.

However, the courts have ruled that comments intended as specific and immediate threats brush up against protections in the First Amendment, regardless of a persons race or religion. That is also the case of face-to-face comments meant to incite imminent lawlessness, such as violence or a riot. In 1942, a U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire case in which a Jehovahs Witness believer cursed at a city marshal, calling him a damned fascist, articulated a fighting words doctrine that restricted insults intended to provoke an immediate breach of the peace.

When specific threats are made, the courts have also determined that an actual threat (not just a vague and/or far-off remark) may constitute a crime. In the Virginia v. Black decision of 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court determined that a cross-burning in front of someones property constitutes an act of verbal violence because such an act was an attempt to communicate a serious expression of an intent to commit an act of unlawful violence to a particular individual or group of individuals.

Based on that decision, to generally say Kill all the Jews, for example, is protected speech no matter how hateful it sounds, but to say Kill that Jew who gave me an F is considered a crime. Therefore, context is very important. In this case the hateful speech was directed to a particular individual.

In a recent case a white student entered a class the day after the election and, while looking at the only Latino in the room, said in loud voice so everybody else could hear, So, when are you going to be deported? This is an example in which hate speech was specifically directed to an individual, and, therefore, is not protected speech.

A number of states go beyond federal law in criminalizing hateful speech. Many states have strict laws against hate crimes and discrimination and they fully and firmly enforce them. For instance, it is illegal in many states to target, harass, or discriminate against a person because of his or her race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation. The state of New York is an example.

Yet, the most important role can be that played by colleges and universities. The courts have ruled repeatedly that institutions of higher education can have stricter policies aimed at preventing certain speech or acts that create a hostile environment, allowing them to act based on their campus policies. We have already seen since the past elections that some campuses have even expelled students who have crossed those lines.

Many times those hate words do not have to be expressed verbally and/or in person, but may have been communicated through social media. For example, last week the names of six black freshmen students from the University of Pennsylvania were added to a racist group messaging thread. A University of Oklahoma student involved in the group was expelled from that institution and the Tulsa Community Colleges president said an unnamed student had been put on interim academic suspension while the college investigated his possible involvement in the racist messages.

Sometimes words may not be necessary to be considered an act of hate speech. Paintings of nooses in areas frequented by African-American students, tying a rope around the neck of the statue of an African-American person, depiction of racial epithets in areas frequented by Latinos, throwing body parts of pigs at a Muslim center, painting swastikas in Jewish-related locations, or sending a powdery substance to a particular individual, are considered cause for expulsion on many campuses. More serious acts, such as pulling the hijab off of Muslim women - something that has happened repeatedly since the November elections - are considered hate crimes to be persecuted under the Shepard and Byrd Act.

At the end of the day it is up to academic institutions to have clear and well-founded rules on how to act in cases like the ones described above, prosecute those cases following proper procedures so due process is respected, and then act firmly in order to dissuade potential perpetrators from committing hate crimes.

Open discussions on issues of the day should continue and be encouraged since they are at the essence of higher education. But we need to always make sure that civility and respect are upheld.

Dr. Aldemaro Romero Jr. is a writer and college professor with leadership experience in higher education. He can be contacted through his website at: http://www.aromerojr.net

The opinions expressed in this column are those solely of the author.
Glen Carbon officials have begun the process of studying whether the future development of the 54-acre Foucek property is eligible to be deemed a business district.

The proposed development is adjacent to Edwardsville Crossing.

Keith Moran, of Moran Economic Development, presented the eligibility study to the board at its last regular meeting.

If the village were ever to use the project as a business district we first have to review if it would qualify under the Illinois Business District Act, he said. We have to make a number of findings and one of those is if the area could be determined as blighted.

According to the Act, blighted means an area by reasons of the predominance of defective, non-existent, or inadequate street layout, unsanitary or unsafe conditions, deterioration of site improvements, improper subdivision or obsolete platting, or the existence of conditions which endanger the life or property by fire or other causes.

Moran informed the board that the area could be deemed blighted.

He said the lack of adequate street layout and access and undermining of the property make it qualify according to state statute.

Ultimately, these two factors, combined with the prime location for commercial development make us conclude that if you wished to proceed with a business district, the area qualifies and you would have the legal authority to establish the business district, Moran said.

Village Administrator Jamie Bowden informed the board that the study does not obligate the village in any way to make a decision about whether or not the area will become a business district.

A business district is an economic development tool used by municipalities in Illinois. It allows municipalities to levy an additional sales tax of up to 1 percent in .25 percent increments on retail goods sold within the established district. The additional funds are then reinvested back into the development to reimburse the costs associated with infrastructure upgrades and remediation.

Trustee Ross Breckenridge said he wanted to be clear to the public that the extra money that is generated in the business district is re-invested into the business district.

Moran agreed saying the money generated in a business district is spent in the district to remediate problems.

The study was paid for from an escrow account established by the developer of the proposed project, Caplico Twenty-One Inc.

In other business related to the development, trustees approved an agreement for technical services with Moran Economic Development for the development of a business district plan for both the 54-acre Foucek property and a 72-acre plot that is located on the east side of Route 159, north of Jean Ann Drive and south of the Country Meadows Subdivision. It borders Greenspace East to the east.
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Linkedin Aboeprijadi Santoso (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

When the populist Donald Trump won the United States presidency, as populism is on the rise globally, people began to wonder what impact it could have elsewhere in terms of such spirit.

Does it suddenly become relevant for Europe, as well as for Indonesian Islamic populists who have recently held mass rallies in attempts to threaten the state?

Some analysts have pointed out that Trump has exploited white supremacy and successfully championed frustrated working class sentiments vis-a-vis elitist-interventionist liberals.

In the same vein, the nationalist-xenophobic part of the establishment and the disappointed working class in the United Kingdom voted in favor of Brexit (the UKs exit from the European Union) last June.

Open populism is a sign of upcoming spirit representing latent undercurrents, which manifest in certain times. It denotes forces and rhetoric instantly appealing to popular instincts and sentiments, including primordial identities, in particular to those population segments in disadvantageous social lives, without better access to the industrial structure and state institutions.

With them being ignored or humiliated, populist demagogue calls for new morals could arouse rising self-identity, nationalist pride and upward mobility expectations.

In short, Trumps victory may be a wake-up call for populist dreams in Europe. For Indonesia, however, the dream has a distinct background.

The great popularity of the Christian governor of Jakarta, Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama, who is an Indonesian of Chinese descent, closely associated with some corporations and supported by the middle classes, has worried populist Islamists.

His simple statement mentioning a Quranic verse has been maliciously misconstrued to provoke massive emotions and set off allegations of blasphemy to prevent him from taking part in the gubernatorial elections.

What is significant, though, is this has led the political Islamic establishment  the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI)  to support the mass protest rallies initiated by a small vigilante group, the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), led by Rizieq Shihab.

Many immediately suspected the hands of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and retired general Prabowo Subianto, who had been politically close to some Islamic groupings in the past and now supported Ahoks competitors.

President Joko Jokowi Widodo responded as never before by demonstrating his authority as supreme commander, posing with the police, the marines and the Army special corps and ordering them to maintain the unity of the nation.

The root of the matter, however, goes back, partly, to the early days of the republic. Shortly after the Nov. 4 rally, Munarman, a former human rights lawyer-turned FPI leader, claimed Indonesian Islam had too often been betrayed since the Jakarta Charter, in which the state mandated the Muslim requirement to practice Sharia was deleted [from the Constitution] on Aug. 18, 1945.

In his view, typically, it was the secular forces that time that again had cheated Islam and Indonesias Muslim majority despite its key role in 1945 [the struggle for independence], 1965 [destroying the communists] and 1998 [the fall of Soeharto].

One member of an Islamist party recently complained, Throughout the New Order and after, we have always been a minority of second-class citizens, havent we? With such rhetoric, they called on the masses to be ready for syuhada (martyrdom) in future rallies.

Munarmans splendid demagogy reminds us of political Islam with its subjectively painful position as a minority with, theoretically speaking, majority aspirations, yet continually unable to satisfy them. He likened Indonesia metaphorically to a car with secular forces being the driver and Islam merely pushing the car.

Indeed, the Dutch sociologist WF Wertheim once called Indonesian Islam a majority with minority mentality (1959). Today we should perhaps mark them as a minority with a false consciousness of false majority aspiration  a delusion  since only a real majority with the same ideology could possibly achieve Sharia objectives.

Now, however, the conservative MUI, whose leaders include influential figures of the two biggest Islamic mass organizations, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, have joined the vigilante group to shape a greater configuration of groups with the dream of being a majority. This should not be taken lightly. It may be a greater driving force to challenge the government.

Whatever Trumps effect globally and on Indonesia (if any), Jokowi has to maneuver even more cautiously toward both general political Islam and the military.

New rightwing populism, because it is generally non-violent, is sometimes called fascism with a human face. Once the rising populist gambit of identity politics proves to work broadly and profoundly, it should put all sides into a new agenda.

Jokowi has already approached representatives of the MUI and the two biggest Islamic mass organizations, as well as 17 other Islamic groupings. Earlier, in a Cabinet reshuffle, he tactfully removed his closest adviser, the Christian retired general Luhut Pandjaitan, from his key position as political Tsar.

Given the new political constellation that is taking place, the President might be tempted to give more, rather than less, space to the military, and less and less to concede to the growing strength of political Islam. Either way, it is a threat to shrinking pluralist and democratic values.

---------------

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Linkedin Chandra Kusuma (The Jakarta Post) Brisbane  Mon, November 28, 2016

The 24th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders Meeting in Lima, Peru, last week discussed several key issues related to the Asia-Pacific region, especially economic growth and human development, climate change, free trade and investment, as well as real and functional connectivity in the region.

Specifically, with respect to investment and free trade, there is one issue that needs special attention. This is the ambitious APEC plan to achieve a mega-regional free trade agreement, or the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP).

It is astonishing that the FTAAP initiative has not captured sufficient Indonesian media coverage and government scrutiny. This article intends to reveal the main things that need to be carefully observed in the FTAAP plans, as well as to provide recommendations in regard to the continuation of the process in the context of APEC.

The exposure to FTAAP is expected not only to be significant to the government, as a forerunner in the process of negotiation, but also to all interested parties, largely business communities who will unswervingly feel the impact of FTAAP.

The FTAAP discourse basically started in 2006. Further emphasis has also been put in place with the issuance of a document entitled Pathways to FTAAP in 2010 by APEC Leaders. This document undoubtedly mandated APEC take immediate steps to comprehend the realization of FTAAP. However, since 2014, up to the current 24th APEC Economic Leaders Meeting, APEC has taken different approaches to pursuing FTAAP.

The APEC leaders are in agreement that FTAAP will only be comprehensive by relying on the outcomes of other free trade agreements that already exist or are in progress. In particular, the APEC leaders referred to the continuation of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Thus, it is currently clear that FTAAP will depend heavily on the development and conclusion of other mega-regional agreements, namely RCEP and TPP. APEC leaders have agreed that the process of forming FTAAP would be in parallel, outside the formal APEC process, to maintain the non-binding organizational commitment of the organization.

RCEP is well known, it is the proposed free trade agreement between ASEAN member states (AMS) and six countries with which ASEAN has existing free trade agreements (Australia, China, India, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand). Meanwhile, often seen as an alternative to RCEP, TPP is expected to be a megatrade agreement among twelve Pacific Rim countries, excluding China.

If we look at the current stance of APEC leaders toward FTAAP, namely relying on the outcome of other free trade agreements, perhaps one can jump to the conclusion that there should be nothing to worry about as it may just be a type of continuation. However, here lie the real hitches. There are major things that we need to look at more deeply. First, the political bias in FTAAP will depend on the stance of the United States in TPP, or Chinas stance, along with other major East Asian countries, in RCEP. It is perhaps not a secret nowadays that the US is actively steering and leads TPP negotiations. Apart from the expected protectionism policy to be adopted by the US after Donald Trumps victory in the US presidential election, currently the TPP is being coordinated by the US. The outcome of TPP negotiations will heavily depend on US leadership.

Meanwhile, China is the dominant state in RCEP. China has even explicitly reiterated its plan to make RCEP the main basis for the continuation of FTAAP. Indonesia, in turn, must take careful steps to provide its stance on RCEP and TPP, especially if the issues include providing wider market access to foreign goods. This is mainly because Indonesias stance on RCEP and TPP will then be carried forward as the basis for its commitment in FTAAP.

It will demonstrate Indonesias foreign policy tendencies, as well as its trade-bloc preferences in establishing economic integration with the rest of the world. It is also important to note the current circumstance that Indonesia has been officially involved in RCEP negotiations. Meanwhile, Indonesia is still undetermined and prefers to wait and see on the TPP continuation.

Second, by relying on the development and outcome of other free trade agreements, FTAAP is undoubtedly expecting to apply the principles of greater market access from pre-existing commitments, or previous commitments in other free trade agreements.

This means that whatever market access liberalization that Indonesia commits to in RCEP or TPP, it is almost certain that FTAAP will expect more liberalized access.

For instance, the restriction on foreign ownership in the banking industry is currently only 40 percent and, say, this was finally cemented in RCEP or TPP. Then, it is logical to expect FTAAP would put excessive pressure on Indonesia to give a greater commitment of more than 40 percent. This might be a very simple depiction of the real negotiation process that will take place in the future, taking into account that liberalization negotiations will be much more complex and involve sectors in aggregate. Nevertheless, rest assured that there will be sectors that will be harmed in negotiations.

APECs strategy in smoothing FTAAP by waiting for the formal development and outcomes of more liberalized negotiations is certainly an outstanding example. From the Indonesian standpoint, we need to look at this cautiously, as do business communities who have the biggest interest in transparent market access.

While FTAAP is currently still at an early stage and has not begun its formal process, all can virtually be negotiated from the outset. Given the active involvement of Indonesia in APEC and the improvements in Indonesias diplomacy in various international forums, such as ASEAN and the G20, we expect Indonesia will demonstrate its ability to lead the Asia-Pacific negotiation process for economic integration and liberalization.

***

The writer has been a member of Indonesian delegations for a number of negotiations on trade liberalization agreement frameworks, and is currently a PhD candidate in political science and international Studies at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.

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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan, North Sumatra  Mon, November 28, 2016

Following her achievement of winning the Miss Grand International 2016 title in late October, Ariska Putri Pertiwi returned to her hometown of Medan in North Sumatra for the first time on Saturday.

Alongside her parents Sudi Warsito and Hariati and administration officials, Ariska was welcomed by dance and Gordang Sambilan traditional music performances from South Tapanuli. She will reportedly stay in Medan until Monday.

During her visit she plans to visit an orphanage, the Rahmat International Wildlife Museum & Gallery and several beauty class events.

(Read also: University prepares to welcome US pageant-winning student)

This post was reposted using @the.instasave.app #theinstasaveapp  "Another social activity today. Look at their happy faces  #missgrandinternational2016 #MGI2016 #fantastika #Indonesia #medan" A photo posted by Miss Grand International (@missgrandinternational) on Nov 27, 2016 at 2:57am PST

North Sumatra Governor Erry Nuradi said that Indonesia, especially the province, was proud of Ariska's accomplishment. "Thank you for Ariska for popularizing Indonesia, especially North Sumatra, in the international scene. Don't forget to promote our country, especially our province's tourism," said Erry at the Kualanamu International Airport in Deli Serdang regency on Saturday.

He said that the government was currently developing the Lake Toba tourism area to become the Monaco of Asia. "Who else will promote Lake Toba tourism if not ourselves? Especially with Ariska's current status as Miss Grand International," he added. (kes)
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Linkedin Ni Nyoman Wira (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

Both rendang (beef simmered in coconut milk and spices) and nasi goreng (fried rice) were announced as the worlds best foods by CNN in 2011. However, not many people know that Indonesia actually has many variations of both dishes depending on where they are made.

When you buy nasi goreng in Lombok, the taste will be different compared to [for example] nasi goreng from Aceh, said founder of Sobat Budaya (Cultural Buddies) community Hokky Situngkir. Do you think rendang is only from West Sumatra? It can also be found in Kalimantan, but with a totally different taste.

The difference, Hokky said, is due to Indonesias diverse range of spices. There are also 50 different types of soto (soup), 60 different types of satay, and other dishes that are related to each other.

Those who want to learn more about the many traditional Indonesian dishes and their connection with one another can download the Nusa Kuliner (Culinary Archipelago) app.

Officially launched on Saturday, Nusa Kuliner is the result of a collaboration between research institute for complexity Bandung Fe and Sobat Budaya. The app boasts a collection of 1,458 traditional foods and beverages, including jamu (Indonesian traditional herbal and healthy drinks) and 100 types of sambal (chili-based sauce).

Aside from the unique ingredients, Indonesian foods usually have certain philosophy that lies within them, said Hokky who is also the president of Bandung Fe. If we separate them, Indonesian foods will lose their excitement.

(Read also: Six Indonesian startups to join Google mentorship program in US)

An image of the Nusa Kuliner app.(Google Play/File)

The app requires users to zoom in the mapping of Indonesian traditional dishes. They can later tap the Bahan Makanan (Ingredients) section to find lists of carbohydrate sources, standard condiments (salt, sugar), vegetables and a plethora of other spices, fruits and proteins. The app will then show the names of Indonesian dishes that contain the aforementioned ingredients. When users tap on one of the names, a photo of that particular dish will show up.

It is the initial feature, said Hokky. The purpose is to show the relatedness between Indonesian foods within the map based on the ingredients used to produce the food. For example, the main ingredient of nasi goreng is rice; what makes it different from one province to the other is the spices that are used.

The president of Bandung Fe Institute and founder of Sobat Budaya community Hokky Situngkir explains the Nusa Kuliner app during its launch on Nov. 26.(JP/Ni Nyoman Wira)

Aside from commonalities between different foods, users can also discover the underlying stories behind the dishes. Whats more satisfying than knowing what we are eating? A dish can be more exotic when we understand that it is related to other dishes, said Hokky, adding that they will collaborate with different research institutions to develop the app in the future.

The Nusa Kuliner app is available for free download on Android and iOS devices.

The launch of the app is part of Sobat Budayas series of events where they will hold a seminar and book launching. People are welcomed to add more information about Indonesian culture into its database at the Electronic Library of Indonesian Culture. (kes)
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Linkedin Ni Nyoman Wira (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

A photography exhibition in Jakarta is alerting the public to the growing risk of flooding because of land subsidence due to excessive ground water extraction and amid the fragile state of the 40-year-old seawall built to protect the capital city against rising sea levels.

The exhibition at the Van Vleuten & Cox Building in West Jakarta runs until Dec. 5.

Every place below sea level will be flooded, said Dutch photographer Cynthia Boll, the initiator of the exhibition "The People behind the Seawall". Such extensive flooding, according to Boll's research, will occur in the next 20-30 years.

For two years, Boll has followed four residents of North Jakarta to capture their struggles of living with the floods, namely 12-year-old student Alda from Pasar Ikan, fisherman Lukman from the Pojok kampung near the seawall, jamu (herbal medicine) seller Sarmini from Muara Baru near Pluit, and Sumari, a bicycle tour guide from West Jakartas Kota Tua.

(Read also: City policy causing floods)

Cynthia Boll explains the exhibition to the press.(JP/Ni Nyoman Wira)

I chose the four people because they represent different things. [I chose] Alda because shes the future and Sumari because hes connected to the heritage, Boll explained, adding that the flood would also affect Kota Tua, Jakartas old town. Boll said she had selected Lukman because he depended on the water for a living and had to elevate his houses floor every year due to the flood. Sarmini was chosen because the floods caused her economical loss.

Aside from Bolls photos, visitors can marvel at replicas of Aldas school uniform, Lukmans small boat, Sarminis water cart and Sumaris bicycle. All of them are displayed drowned in water and garbage. Boll also presents information she has gathered from experts about the flood risks.

(Read also: Utarakan Jakarta attempts to raise awareness on flooding)

Aside from Bolls photos, visitors can marvel at replicas of Aldas school uniform, Lukmans small boat, Sarminis water cart and Sumaris bicycle.(JP/Ni Nyoman Wira)

Bolls interest in Jakarta began when she heard the news about the city being threatened by the water. So I went to Jakarta, I talked to people in North Jakarta, where I saw the seawall and thought This is scary, she said. But what is scarier is that most young people are not aware [of it]. Boll feels a connection between Jakartas situation and her house in the Netherlands, which is built on a dyke. But, she adds, she feels safe in her house.

Jakarta is not the only sinking city, but also Mexico City, Dhaka, New Orleans, Venice  theyre all sinking cities. But Jakarta is the worst, I have to admit, she said. I had to start with Jakarta because it has the most urgent situation.

The exhibition is part of the Utarakan Jakarta (Say It Jakarta) campaign. The campaign, also initiated by Boll, started in October last year on different media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, websites, magazines and exhibitions. Meanwhile, the first exhibition of "The People behind the Seawall" was conducted in April.

All of the photographs from the exhibition will be donated to the Kota Tua Consortium, which will continue the campaign to alert the public, especially visitors of Kota Tua. Boll plans to expand the project to other cities. (kes)
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Linkedin News Desk (Associated Press) New York, United States  Mon, November 28, 2016

Someone renamed Donald Trump's midtown Manhattan building on Google Maps, and the new moniker isn't very flattering.

Instead of Trump Tower, it was briefly renamed "Dump Tower."

Users of the mapping service began noticing the new name for the Fifth Avenue building on Saturday and some took to social media to report it.

(Read also: Selfie tower: Trump's home becomes NYC's hottest backdrop)

Trump Tower gets renamed "Dump Tower" on Google Maps https://t.co/cqZ4YkwoZk  Huffington Post (@HuffingtonPost) November 27, 2016

Trump, the Republican president-elect, has not yet commented on it. Trump has been using Trump Tower as his transition headquarters.

A Google spokeswoman told The Associated Press that the company has changed the name back to its original.

The spokeswoman said user contributions help provide an up-to-date map, but also occasionally lead to inaccuracies.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post)  Sat, November 26 2016

Lung cancer looms over the lives of many Indonesians. The country, after all, is set to have the worlds largest population of smokers in the world within the next decade according to Dr. Sita Andarini, a Pulmonologist at MRCCC Siloam Hospitals Semanggi. The majority of the public knows that smoking is the number one cause of lung cancer, which is the most common type of cancer found among adults and is also the fifth leading cause of death among all diseases. However, despite knowing these facts, 63 percent of Indonesian males over the age of 15 years old are cigarette smokers. Its prevalence isnt just limited to smokers. People who smoke also end up affecting non-smokers via second-hand smoking. Pollution and industrial emissions can also cause lung cancer due to substances like asbestos and silica. The number of lung cancer patients has alarmingly increased five-fold in the last ten years. In the past, lung cancer patients are usually around the age of 60s and 70s. Nowadays, lung cancer sufferers are getting younger, with many of them below the age of 45. To learn more about lung cancer and its treatments, The Jakarta Post spoke to Dr. Sita Andarini. The following is a transcript of our interview, edited for length and clarity.

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Linkedin Rod McGuirk (Associated Press) Canberra  Mon, November 28, 2016

Aboriginal traditional dancers carrying clap sticks and spears and with faces painted white with clay traveled from remote northern Australia to Parliament House on Monday to draw attention to rampant domestic violence in Outback indigenous communities.

Scores of Rirratjingu people flew 2,900 kilometers (1,800 miles) from Yirrkala in the Northern Territory to dance a ceremony at the front door of Parliament and to urge national action against family violence in communities such as theirs.

"We are seeing horrifying rates of family violence in indigenous communities and it is incumbent on all people  community leaders, political leaders and businesses  to act to drive it down," Rirratjingu elder Bakamumu Marika said.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull linked arms with lawmakers of various parties, including opposition leader Bill Shorten, as a sign of solidarity against domestic violence as they watched the ceremony.

Turnbull later moved a motion in Parliament acknowledging that violence against women was a national issue that required a response from the entire community. The Rirratjingu people watched from the public gallery.

"Your dance is more powerful than the words we can speak here," Turnbull said. "You're using the strength of your culture to seek to stop this violence."

"You're using the power of you dance, your tradition, your culture, to communicate our need, our duty to respect women, and we thank you," he said.

Indigenous women were 34 times more likely to experience violence than other Australian women, Turnbull said. Indigenous women were hospitalized for domestic assaults 30 times more often than other Australian women, he said.

"We can and we must do better," Turnbull said.

Aboriginal communities around Yirrkala had reduced family violence by 29 percent in a single year through programs aimed at fostering respect for women, Turnbull said.
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Linkedin Indra Budiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

Along with a group of hard-liners, the Pancoran Police arrested 13 men on Saturday night at an apartment block in South Jakarta for allegedly holding a sex party.

Despite no strong evidence that the men had committed any crime, around 50 members of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) barged into an apartment in the Kalibata City apartment complex and forced the police to arrest the 13 men.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Raden Prabowo Argo Yuwono said Sunday the incident began after a circulated message about the alleged sex party was received by an FPI member. The member went to the unit and found a group of men not wearing any shirts before making a report to the Pancoran Police.

Escorted by the police and apartment security personnel, the mob entered the apartment and police officers took the men into custody.

However, Raden said the police were still investigating whether the men had committed any crime, saying that the only items that were confiscated during the raid were smartphones, condoms, and antiretroviral drugs for HIV patients.

We are not sure if there was any prostitution, all we know is they were playing some games there, Raden told reporters.

The Jakarta Posts source, who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, said the mob came at about 11:30 p.m. to one of the towers in the apartment complex. Members of the mob were shouting Allahu Akbar!

The source said the police arrived shortly after midnight.

FPIs public relations division said on their Twitter account @HumasFPI on Sunday that the groups investigation unit along with the police successfully broken up the alleged sex party.

The Posts source in the police said the men had not violated any laws. In Indonesia, homosexual sodomy is not a crime except when it is done with an underage individual.

It was not the first time the police have barged into a private event following pressure from conservative religious groups.

In February, they shut down a closed workshop held by LGBT group Arus Pelangi at Cemara Hotel in Menteng, Central Jakarta.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

Non-active Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama has said he regrets acting governor Sumarsonos decision to stop grants for the Indonesian Military (TNI) and police but to give funds to a Betawi group.

Ahok said his program of giving grants to the TNI and police as planned in the 2017 budget aimed to establish cooperation with the institutions in building parking lots and low-cost apartments.

Which [factor] is most expensive in Jakarta? Land. Who owns huge [amounts of] land in the city? The TNI and police, Ahok said on Monday as reported by kompas.com.

Regarding the funds for the Betawi Culture Consultative Body (Bamus Betawi) group, representing Jakartas native people, Ahok said he would not give grants to organizations that made unclear contributions to cultural development.

He would prefer to give funding to an art house that planned to perform overseas, he added.

Do not say that Im anti-Betawi. An organization that conducts political activities should not be given funds, Ahok said.

(Read also: Ahok to cease funding for opposing organizations)

Bamus Betawi is reportedly calling for Jakarta natives not to elect Ahok in next years gubernatorial election. (jun)
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Linkedin Sebastian Partogi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

(Courtesy of Salihara Community/Witjak Widhi Cahya)

Danish Ambassador to Indonesia, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea and ASEAN Casper Klynge said reading was an activity he could not live without, either for professional purposes or during leisure time.



When its work-related, I read not only non-fiction books but also articles [and] newspapers in order to produce certain documents about the economy and the environment, for example. Its essential for my work, he said on the sidelines of the Balabala dance performance supported by the Denmark Embassy at Salihara cultural center in South Jakarta.



Currently, he said he also reads a lot of stuff about the disrupting effects of digital technology and what it could possibly bring to societies and governments, particularly Indonesia.



Reading is also an enjoyable activity for him during his holidays and weekends, but he said during his leisure time he prefers to read books that are different from those he consumes for his professional activities. He likes works of fiction, mainly psychological thrillers.



When asked to name three books he has enjoyed, he jokingly replied: This interview brings me back to my time in high school; Im always good at book analysis.

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Linkedin Haeril Halim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

The recent hoisting of a number of Chinese flags in North Maluku by a Chinese company violated the 1958 Law on State Symbols, in which suspected offenders may be subject to criminal prosecution.

The members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) had removed at least two Chinese flags, flown at the compound of nickel miner PT Wanatiara Persada on Obi Island in South Halmahera, North Maluku, and at a local dock during the ground breaking event of a smelter project built by the company on Friday, TNI spokesman Brig. Gen. Wuryanto said on Sunday.

The incident violated the law, he said.

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Bulk of revenues still came from the bus segment.

Transport group ComfortDelGro's well diversified business provides growth avenues despite weak economic outlook, RHB said.

The firm noted how the group's bus segment is to benefit from higher margins post-transition to the government contracting model. Its taxi business is expected to maintain its resiliency even with the rise in popularity of ride-hailing apps like Uber and Grab.

"We expect ComfortDelGros Singapore bus business to book 7-8% EBIT margins from 4Q16 under the government contracting model (GCM), which should support growth into 2017," RHB explained.

In 3Q16, its bus segment contributed nearly $500m to the group's headline, or 50% of the total revenue for the quarter.

Meanwhile, its taxi business has seen negligible impact from rising competition presented by Uber and Grab

"Its taxi hire-out rate remains close to 100% and revenue grew 6-7% in 3Q16. While we expect the growth of its fleet to decelerate, its taxi rental rates (and taxi revenues) should rise as it continues to replace older cars with newer taxis," RHB noted.

For the past quarter, its taxi business registered around $330m revenues, contributing 33% to the overall headline.





More From Singapore Business Review


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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian is calling on Greater Jakarta residents to not be alarmed about a planned large-scale rally on Dec. 2 to demand that Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama be arrested for alleged blasphemy, explaining that law enforcers and protesters had sworn to promote a peaceful rally.

"Residents don't have to be scared or worried because the organizers of the rally have promised to carry out [the rally] in the form of peaceful religious activities," Tito said Monday after meeting with leaders of numerous Muslim organizations at the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) headquarters in Central Jakarta.

The rally, initiated by the National Movement to Safeguard the Indonesian Ulema Councils Fatwa (GNPF-MUI), will include dzikir (chanting), tausiyah (preaching) and Friday prayers at the National Monument Park in Central Jakarta on Dec. 2 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The rally will be a follow up to the Nov. 4 rally, during which more than 100,000 people flocked downtown to demand the prosecution of Ahok on allegations of blasphemy. The rally started in a peaceful manner but ended up in violence in the evening.

Ahok, a Christian of Chinese descent, sparked uproar among Islamic groups and communities after he made a comment on a verse in the Quran during a visit to Thousand Islands regency in late September.

Tito also suggested that organizers of other protests on Friday postpone their rallies.

"We don't want to see any disturbance of the holiness of the prayer. We, for example, don't want to see protesters in a labor rally scream among people carrying out dzikir," he said. (hwa)
Vice President Jusuf Kalla (left) attends a gathering with former anticorruption czar Antasari Azhar (right) in South Tangerang, Banten, on Saturday. The syukuran (a gathering to express thanks to God) was held to celebrate the release of Antasari, the former chief of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) who was freed on Nov. 10 after serving seven and a half years at the Tangerang Penitentiary for murder.(JP/Dhoni Setiawan)(left) attends a gathering with former anticorruption czar Antasari Azhar (right) in South Tangerang, Banten, on Saturday. The syukuran (a gathering to express thanks to God) was held to celebrate the release of Antasari, the former chief of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) who was freed on Nov. 10 after serving seven and a half years at the Tangerang Penitentiary for murder.(JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

Central Sulawesi Governor Longki Djanggola visited the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Monday to discuss problematic mining permit issuances in the province.

"[I came here] to talk about the supervision of mining permit issuance with KPK prevention division officials," Longki said in Jakarta.

Longki said his visit to the KPK aimed to prevent potential corruption in the issuance of seven mining permits in the province.

"All related parties will be invited to discuss the matter later on," he said, without revealing any dates.

In October, members of House of Representatives Commission VII overseeing energy affairs demanded that the antigraft body strengthen its monitoring of the issuance of mining permits in response to the recent disclosure of a bribery case involving Longki's counterpart in Southeast Sulawesi.

Southeast Sulawesi Governor Nur Alam has been accused of issuing dubious mining licenses for personal gain. He allegedly issued a permit for a mining concession in a protected forest area.

Mining operations in the area could reportedly cost up to Rp 3.5 trillion (US$259.45 million) in environmental losses, including the loss of local peoples source of drinking water. (fac/dan)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

Dozens of photos were exhibited at City Hall, Central Jakarta, on Saturday and Sunday to commemorate the anniversary of theater troupe Lenong Rumpi.

Lenong Rumpi (Gossiping Lenong), which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, had a popular televised Betawi comedy sketch show.

The exhibition, featuring stills of the show, was opened on Friday evening by acting Jakarta governor Sumarsono.

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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

The Jakarta chapter of the National AIDS Commission (KPAP) aims to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS in Jakarta by 2020.

The commission is stepping up its campaign through its latest program, the Fast Track City 2020-Ending AIDS Epidemic.

KPAP Jakarta secretary Rohana Manggala said the program was primarily aimed at reducing the number of new HIV infections.

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Linkedin Nani Afrida (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

Haris Azhar could not hide his disappointment when speaking about the legal reform package President Joko Widodo introduced to the public last month.

As a human rights campaigner, he is dismayed because the package was supposedly intended to vitalize the economy by stemming acute corruption, such as illegal levies and bribery, but in his opinion it grossly sidelines the promotion increased respect for human rights.

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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

The government has called on Iran to invest in Indonesias oil refinery projects as the oil-rich country can supply local refineries from its reserves.

"We have asked [Iran] to invest either in Bontang refinery [in East Kalimantan] with [state-owned oil and gas firm] Pertamina or establish its own refinery as we already allow 100 percent [foreign] ownership in the business," Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry director general for oil and gas IGN Wiratmaja Puja said on Monday.

The request, Wiratmaja said, had been conveyed last week to a visiting Iranian delegation led by Communications and Information Technology Minister Mahmoud Vaezi.

Wiratmaja added that Indonesia currently bought liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from Iran and was also planning to buy crude oil from there as well.

"Should Iran invest in refineries here, it can supply the refineries with its crude oil," he said.

Previously, the government successfully invited Saudi Arabias Aramco to invest in the Cilacap refinery revitalization project in Central Java. After the plant begins its operations in 2022, Aramco will supply most of its crude oil. (hwa)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

The Indonesian government has called on countries grouped in MIKTA (Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey and Australia) to engage in new and more concrete forms of cooperation.

"Indonesia supports MIKTAs innovative and concrete cooperation in the face of various common challenges," Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said in a press statement on Sunday, following her attendance at the 8th MIKTA Ministerial Meeting in Sydney, Australia, on Friday.

At the meeting in Sydney, foreign ministers of the MIKTA countries agreed to foster bilateral relations and support each others diplomatic missions through exchange programs, in which MIKTA members can send diplomats to the missions of other MIKTA members in countries where they have no diplomatic representatives of their own.

"With this cooperation, Indonesia could send its diplomats for internship programs to MIKTA members' representatives, such as in the Pacific countries, Africa or Central and South American countries, where Indonesia has no diplomatic representatives," Retno was quoted as saying by news agency Antara.

The foreign ministers of MIKTA also agreed to cooperate to exchange experience on applying innovative public policies. (dmr)
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Linkedin Evi Mariani (The Jakarta Post) News Desk  Mon, November 28, 2016

Social media activist Enda Nasution has said revisions to Law No. 11/2008 on information and electronic transactions (ITE) will not affect freedom of expression on social media.

Netizens on social media, Im sure, will continue to learn and become smarter because Indonesians will learn from past cases or mistakes, Enda said as quoted by Antara news agency.

According to Safenet, since 2008 there have been 169 incidents in which netizens have been reported for broadcasting messages on social media. The most prominent cases involved Prita Mulyasari in 2008; a debate between lawyer Farhat Abbas and musician Ahmad Dhani on Twitter in 2014; and university student Florence in 2014, who insulted Yogyakarta.

Among the latest cases are those involving human rights activist Haris Azhar and Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama.

The revision doesnt make much difference to freedom of expression, neither improving nor oppressing, he said.

Enda said Indonesia should have followed other countries lead by making defamation on the internet a civil matter rather than criminal. The sanction is fine, he said.

Press Legal Aid Institute executive director Nawawi Bahrudin begged to differ. He said the revision should have revoked Article 27, paragraph 3 of the law altogether, instead of only reducing the punishment from six to four years imprisonment.

He also commented on Article 26, which stipulates the right to be forgotten, whereby a source can request the deletion of past news. This could lead to censorship of past news, he said. (evi)
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Linkedin Fedina S. Sundaryani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

With over 2,800 Islamic boarding schools, known locally as pesantren, spread across the country, the jihadpreneur program is seen as a way to bring economic prosperity and divert students away from radicalism.

Dressed in a simple green batik shirt, M. Zakki talked proudly about his pesantren, Mukmin Mandiri, which is located in Sidoarjo, East Java, and its curriculum that helps his students gain agribusiness skills, specifically in the coffee industry.

Nowadays you have to understand both religion and entrepreneurship. Now is the time to nurture that [understanding] in pesantren and eventually we will be able to produce jihadpreneurs, he said on Friday after meeting with President Joko Jokowi Widodo at the Merdeka Palace.

Zakki was one among dozens of people involved in small and medium enterprises (SME) invited by Jokowi to discuss the ups and downs of SMEs during uncertain economic times.

Jihadpreneurs wont be associated with [violence] because they are people who are productive and have economic value, he said.

The program impressed Jokowi so much that he ordered the Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Ministry to introduce similar programs at other pesantren. It has come at the right time, with the country facing rising radicalism that threatens peace and stability.

A recent study conducted by the Analytical and Capacity Development Partnership (ACDP)  a European Union-funded organization  found that numerous values related to peace, tolerance and democracy could be found in Islams holy scriptures, but teachers of Islamic studies lacked the ability to convey these principles to their students.

The study also says that radical teachings can enter high schools through student participation in radical mass organizations in the community or through the extracurricular programs in Islamic education that are usually controlled by radicals.

Noor Huda Ismail, terrorism expert and founder of the International Institute of Peace Building, said radicalism flourished among tight-knit communities and small social circles, such as low-income people.

Around 80 percent of all Indonesian terrorists became involved because of their social networks, he said.

However, in business you cannot choose your customers, you have to be more open, he said, adding that the jihadpreneur program would be a positive move to thwart radicalism as it provided students with opportunities to develop themselves.

To become a student or santri at Mukim Mandiri, an applicant must undergo a Quran reading test and an entrepreneurship interview. If they qualify, they will study a curriculum that consists of 25 percent entrepreneurship theory and 75 percent practical studies.

Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Minister Anak Agung Gede Ngurah Puspayoga said he would visit Mukmin Mandiri next month to run a pesantren entrepreneurship program there, before embarking on a jihadpreneur mission to other schools.

Zakki is not alone in his efforts to make young santri more business-minded. Since 2012, the Indonesian Santri Entrepreneurs Association (HIPSI) has created workshops and training programs at pesantren in 15 provinces across the country in hopes that one million santri entrepreneurs would be produced by 2022.

HIPSI chairman M. Ghozali said the association  which was established by Indonesias largest Muslim association Nahdlatul Ulama (NU)  focused on providing training in several domains, namely agribusiness, maritime, culinary, information technology and creative industries.

Providing entrepreneurship training to students is deemed important because many schools do not provide official graduate certificates, making finding a job difficult. Graduates also often find themselves jobless because they lack the skills needed to maintain a job.

We want to increase the number of Muslim entrepreneurs in Indonesia. Theres not enough of them, Ghozali told The Jakarta Post. HIPSI currently has 7,000 members with approximately 1,500 active members.

Samuel Asset Management economist Lana Soelistianingsih lauded the jihadpreneur program, saying it would lead to the creation of more jobs, which would definitely help our economic growth because people can learn to work for themselves.

She also urged the government to integrate pesantren-rooted SMEs to larger existing industries to nurture business talent.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta/Havana  Mon, November 28 2016

President Joko Jokowi Widodo on Sunday expressed his deep condolences over the death of former Cuban President and revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, who died at the age of 90 on Friday.

I express my deep condolences for the government and people of Cuba on the loss of Fidel Castro, Jokowi told reporters on the sidelines of a National Teacher Day commemoration event in Sentul, West Java, on Sunday.

Earlier Vice President Jusuf Kalla said he remembered Castro as a good friend to Indonesias founding father and first president Sukarno, both leaders of developing countries during the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the US.

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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

Supporters of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo presented evidence in their first police interrogation on Monday regarding the alleged incitement committed by House of Representatives deputy speaker Fahri Hamzah during a mass rally on Nov. 4.

The Red and White Solidarity Group (Solmet) chairman Silver Matutina said the group would present video footage from Fahri's official website that showed Fahri making controversial remarks about Jokowi during the rally called to demand the prosecution of Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama for alleged blasphemy.

"We hope that this report can provide a deterrent effect and warn people not to incite others during any protest. No one has impunity from the law, including Fahri as a House deputy speaker," Silver said at the Jakarta Police office, adding that his group would also present eyewitnesses named Trijahja Budi Wibowo and Iwan who heard Fahri's speech during the rally.

On Nov. 11, Silver reported Fahri to the Jakarta Police headquarters for attempting to overthrow the legitimate government through his speech calling for the impeachment of Jokowi. He also told protesters that Jokowi had violated the law on several occasions.

Fahri also accused the president of having insulted Muslim figures and protecting a non-Muslim person who had allegedly committed blasphemy. Such a statement was a blatant lie, Silver asserted

Silver reported Fahri for allegedly violating Article 160 of the Criminal Code (KUHP) on incitement. (dan)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo are scheduled to take part in an attempt to break a tree planting record in Tuban, East Java on Monday.

Jokowi would join more than 5,500 people aiming to plant 238,000 trees within an hour to break the Guinness World Record, the Presidential Office press statement read.

The event has been organized in observance of Indonesian tree planting and national tree-planting month. The event will be held in Tasikharjo village, Jenu, Tuban regency in East Java.

According to the press statement, Jokowi and his entourage were scheduled to depart Halim Perdanakusumah airbase in East Jakarta on Monday morning for Juanda International Airport in Sidoarjo. From Juanda, the President would fly to Tuban using an Air Force Super Puma chopper.

Aside from the tree-planting event, Jokowi is also scheduled to inspect a village fund project in Jenu subdistrict.

The President will return to Jakarta after lunch. (dmr)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

State-owned railway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) will expand its freight services in southern Sumatra starting next year and obtain six coal companies as new clients.

KAIs spokesperson for southern Sumatra III division, Aida Suryati, said in Palembang on Monday that an agreement had been signed.

The deal is sealed and we will start in 2017, Aida said.

Aida refused to name the companies, but said they operated in Lahat, South Sumatra.

She said the six companies made a deal with KAI because transporting coal by train was more efficient than shipping it by truck.

The companies consider see the railway a better alternative because their coal trucks have to share the roads with private vehicles and they often experienced congestion.

KAI cooperates with coal companies like PT Bukit Asam, using designated routes from Tanjung Enim to Tarahan in Lampung and Tanjung Enim to Kertapati in Palembang, South Sumatra.

With the new cooperation, KAI will establish a designated route from Lahat to Kertapati.

We dont have to build anything new, the infrastructure is there, she said.

In Lahat, the company cooperates with PT Gumay Prima Energi, which sends 3 million metric tons of coals 180 kilometers by railway from Sukacinta in Lahat to Simpang Station in Ogan Ilir regency, South Sumatra. (evi)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

The Indonesian government must act quickly to help settle humanitarian problems in Myanmars Rakhine state, where Rohingya Muslims are subjected to persistent persecution by the military, a lawmaker said on Monday.

We urge the government to channel aid to the people in Rakhine state and to welcome its refugees, who are currently seeking shelter in Indonesia," House of Representatives defense and foreign affairs commission deputy chairwoman Meutya Hafid told The Jakarta Post.

The Golkar Party politician also demanded the government pressure other members of ASEAN and the United Nations to intervene, including by conducting an investigation in Rakhine, a Muslim-majority region in Myanmar.

On Friday, Indonesian Ambassador to ASEAN Rahmat Pramono said that ASEAN always championed dialogue as a means of resolving the issue, and such efforts were ongoing.

Burma Human Rights Network (BHRN) executive director Kyaw Win has said that Rohingya Muslims have long suffered from severe discrimination committed by the Myanmarese government.

He added that the Rohingya people had been shot, slaughtered and raped. Their houses had also been looted and burned.

The Rohingyas, who number about 1 million, are seen by many of Myanmars Buddhist majority as illegal migrants from Bangladesh. Their right to citizenship has been denied despite having lived there for decades. (fac/hwa)
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Linkedin Viriya P. Singgih (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

As Indonesia stands to see a boom in its e-commerce industry, logistics service providers are forced to prepare to cater to a growing number of customers.



What is it like to be a courier in Indonesia, a country scattered over 17,500 islands, in which most of the infrastructure is poorly developed?



It is inevitably challenging, at least for courier service and logistics company PT Tiki Jalur Nugraha Ekakurir (JNE), which has served customers from across the archipelago since November 1990.



To deliver a package from Jakarta to Tanjung Selor in North Kalimantan, which is directly adjacent to the Malaysian border, JNE needs to first send the package by plane to the nearest airport in Tarakan.



A speed boat will then take the package on the one-and-a-half-hour trip to Tanjung Selor.



Its even harder for us to deliver a package to the Baduy community [in Lebak regency, Banten] because we can only travel in that area on foot, JNE president commissioner Johari Zein told The Jakarta Post recently.



The Baduy, particularly Baduy Dalam (inner Baduy), people are known as a self-isolating tribe who forbid the use of electronics, public transportation and even footwear in their daily life as they aim to live closer to nature.



With such a situation and lack of proper infrastructure, speedy delivery is a Herculean task and it may be even harder in the future, considering that the government plans to turn Indonesia into the biggest digital economy in Southeast Asia by 2020, with a targeted transaction value of US$130 billion.



A study from management consulting firm McKinsey also shows that online sales could make up 7 to 8 percent of the countrys total retail market by 2020 from about 1 percent currently.



To help meet the target, the government has instructed state-owned postal service PT Pos Indonesia, which was founded in August 1746, to transform itself into the logistical backbone of Indonesian e-commerce from its current role as a company that heavily focuses on mail delivery.



At present, Pos Indonesia serves around 600,000 daily deliveries and expects the figure to increase to five million by 2020, as it takes e-commerce growth into account.



Pos Indonesia president director Gilarsi Wahju Setijono estimated that retail e-commerce activities could account for 25 to 30 percent of total retail value by 2030.



By that time, it expects the industrys total retail market value to have reached around Rp 10 quadrillion (US$736.92 billion) from the current figure of Rp 4 quadrillion.



This means the value of retail e-commerce alone would reach at least Rp 2.5 quadrillion by 2030 from Rp 40 trillion to Rp 80 trillion at present.



Pos Indonesia plans on investing big, especially on processing centers and storage capacity. Its storage capacity now stands at around 40,000 square meters (sqm) and the company is looking to expand it to 500,000 sqm within the next three to four years.



In 2020, we aim to complete 90 percent of our total deliveries within only 72 hours. [Chinese e-commerce giant] Alibaba Group is able to complete 70 percent of its total deliveries across China within 72 hours at the moment, Gilarsi said.



Meanwhile, JNE hopes to keep improving its IT sector in anticipation of higher e-commerce growth in the future. Around 60 percent of our 600,000 daily deliveries come from retail e-commerce market. The truth is, we can maintain a 30 to 40 percent annual increase of revenue in recent years because of the e-commerce boom in the country, Johari said.



Both companies acknowledge that physical infrastructure plays a key role as well and are pinning their hopes on the governments massive infrastructure projects to smooth their operations.



Indonesia slipped 10 places in the latest World Bank 2016 Logistics Performance Index (LPI) to 63rd out of 160 countries surveyed, particularly due to poor infrastructure nationwide, including ports and roads.



The government has announced that it expects to invite more private investors to participate in its infrastructure projects, which require more than Rp 5 quadrillion between 2014 and 2019.



Indonesian E-commerce Association (idEA) chairman Daniel Tumiwa said the emerging demand from retail e-commerce market would only benefit the customers, as each logistics service provider would compete to improve its performance and offer a more competitive price in the future.



Dylan Amirio contributed to the story.

------------------

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Linkedin Viriya P. Singgih (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

As Indonesia stands to see a boom in its e-commerce industry, logistics service providers are forced to prepare to cater to a growing number of customers.

What is it like to be a courier in Indonesia, a country scattered over 17,500 islands, in which most of the infrastructure is poorly developed?

It is inevitably challenging, at least for courier service and logistics company PT Tiki Jalur Nugraha Ekakurir (JNE), which has served customers from across the archipelago since November 1990.

To deliver a package from Jakarta to Tanjung Selor in North Kalimantan, which is directly adjacent to the Malaysian border, JNE needs to first send the package by plane to the nearest airport in Tarakan.

A speed boat will then take the package on the one-and-a-half-hour trip to Tanjung Selor.

Its even harder for us to deliver a package to the Baduy community [in Lebak regency, Banten] because we can only travel in that area on foot, JNE president commissioner Johari Zein told The Jakarta Post recently.

The Baduy, particularly Baduy Dalam (inner Baduy), people are known as a self-isolating tribe who forbid the use of electronics, public transportation and even footwear in their daily life as they aim to live closer to nature.

With such a situation and lack of proper infrastructure, speedy delivery is a Herculean task and it may be even harder in the future, considering that the government plans to turn Indonesia into the biggest digital economy in Southeast Asia by 2020, with a targeted transaction value of US$130 billion.

A study from management consulting firm McKinsey also shows that online sales could make up 7 to 8 percent of the countrys total retail market by 2020 from about 1 percent currently.

To help meet the target, the government has instructed stateowned postal service PT Pos Indonesia, which was founded in August 1746, to transform itself into the logistical backbone of Indonesian ecommerce from its current role as a company that heavily focuses on mail delivery.

At present, Pos Indonesia serves around 600,000 daily deliveries and expects the figure to increase to five million by 2020, as it takes e-commerce growth into account.

Pos Indonesia president director Gilarsi Wahju Setijono estimated that retail e-commerce activities could account for 25 to 30 percent of total retail value by 2030.

By that time, it expects the industrys total retail market value to have reached around Rp 10 quadrillion (US$736.92 billion) from the current figure of Rp 4 quadrillion.

This means the value of retail e-commerce alone would reach at least Rp 2.5 quadrillion by 2030 from Rp 40 trillion to Rp 80 trillion at present.

Pos Indonesia plans on investing big, especially on processing centers and storage capacity. Its storage capacity now stands at around 40,000 square meters (sqm) and the company is looking to expand it to 500,000 sqm within the next three to four years.

In 2020, we aim to complete 90 percent of our total deliveries within only 72 hours. [Chinese e-commerce giant] Alibaba Group is able to complete 70 percent of its total deliveries across China within 72 hours at the moment, Gilarsi said.

Meanwhile, JNE hopes to keep improving its IT sector in anticipation of higher e-commerce growth in the future. Around 60 percent of our 600,000 daily deliveries come from retail e-commerce market. The truth is, we can maintain a 30 to 40 percent annual increase of revenue in recent years because of the e-commerce boom in the country, Johari said.

Both companies acknowledge that physical infrastructure plays a key role as well and are pinning their hopes on the governments massive infrastructure projects to smooth their operations.

Indonesia slipped 10 places in the latest World Bank 2016 Logistics Performance Index (LPI) to 63rd out of 160 countries surveyed, particularly due to poor infrastructure nationwide, including ports and roads.

The government has announced that it expects to invite more private investors to participate in its infrastructure projects, which require more than Rp 5 quadrillion between 2014 and 2019.

Indonesian E-commerce Association (idEA) chairman Daniel Tumiwa said the emerging demand from retail e-commerce market would only benefit the customers, as each logistics service provider would compete to improve its performance and offer a more competitive price in the future.
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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan, North Sumatra  Mon, November 28, 2016

North Sumatra Police announced Monday that they had up rounded seven police officers along with two women while having an alleged drug party at a cafe on Jl. Listrik in Medan.

The police officers belong to mobile brigade unit and Binjai Police precinct.

North Sumatra Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Rina Sari Ginting said the officers were currently being questioned by the Police Internal Affairs, while the two women were handed to the police detectives for further probing and rehabilitation.

According to Rina, all officers and women have undergone drug tests.

We have conducted urine tests on them. All of them were found positive for drugs," Rina said.

They [the officers] will face legal proceedings, and they could face rulings ranging from transfer to dismissal," she asserted. (dmr)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Medan  Mon, November 28 2016

Serdang Bedagai Police officers in North Sumatra have arrested two men allegedly behind the death of a Malaysian man, Mohammad Ladzim Bin Abdullah, after being at large for two weeks.

Police arrested the Batubara regency residents named Ridwan, aka Iwan, 41, and M Fahmi for allegedly killing Ladzim, Sedang Bedagai Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Eko Suprihanto said on Saturday. They were arrested early Saturday morning and were taken for questioning.

In the preliminary investigation, the two suspects allegedly admitted to having murdered Ladzim by strangling his neck, Eko said. Police suspected the murder took place inside a car traveling from Kualanamu Airport to Batubara regency on Nov. 14. Ladzims body was thrown into a gutter of a plantation in Teluk Mengkudu district.

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Linkedin Marguerite Afra Sapiie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

The government has disallowed immigration agencies from utilizing their fast-track privileges in the processing of visa permits, a move that the immigration office claims is part of President Joko Jokowi Widodos agenda to crack down on illegal levies.

As a result of the new policy, which has been in effect since Nov. 14, foreigners working in Indonesia, as well as representatives of their employers, may be required to be present in person at immigration offices and join the queue just like regular applicants.

Heru Santoso, spokesperson for the Immigration Directorate General at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, however, denied circulating information saying that licenses issued to migration agents and other third parties would be revoked.

If [expatriates] want to submit through migration agents, its their right [to do so]. But the point is, our service to the agents is the same as other applicants. They need to queue up like everyone else, Heru told The Jakarta Post.

He asserted that all applications, be they through third parties or not, would receive equal treatment.

When asked if all applicants would be required to attend in person, Heru only said, Its the right of an immigration officer to request the presence of the concerned party. He repeated this when asked for further details.

Heru said the new policy would also help improve transparency and accountability in the countrys immigration services.

The efforts were especially aimed at tackling collection of illicit fees by immigration officers from agents that wanted to speed things up,

he said.

Another important thing is that [under the new policy] foreigners will be encouraged to find out the official cost [of visa applications]. All this time, they have been paying much more to migration agents for their services while very few of them actually know the official costs we charge, he added.

Heru said the ministry had notified all immigration offices in the country via an internal circular.

Combating illegal levies is Jokowis current priority in his first legal reform package, which aims to end the years-long practice of bureaucrats collecting illicit fees from members of the public in return for their public services.

Meanwhile, the new policy has triggered mixed responses from migration agents and expatriates.

The Permit House, a Jakarta-based agency, published an article on its website www.thepermithouse.com expressing concerns that under the new policy, expatriates and their sponsoring companies might have to be present at every step of the visa permit process.

They might have to come to immigration office more than five times, it said. The agency also informed there would be no more fast-tracking as all applications would be handled on a first in, first out basis.

Previously, applicants using a third partys services usually only had to come to the biographical data step of the process.

The governments official costs for immigration services, ranging from temporary to permanent stay visas, is stipulated under Government Regulation No. 45/2014 on types and tariffs of non-tax revenues.

A British woman living with her Indonesian husband in Canggu, Bali, who wanted to remain anonymous, welcomed the announcement, saying that she never liked migration agents because they tend to demand even up to a 500 percent commission fee.

She has been on permanent stay visa permit (KITAP) for 17 years. When her family used an agent to renew the permit earlier this year, she said she was charged Rp 35 million (US$ 2,587). She deemed it a good deal since, according to her, other agents could charge Rp 50 million.

Under the 2014 Government Regulation, KITAP extension costs

Rp 10.2 million.

Agents can be corrupt. I am not saying all of them, but a lot are. I am up for cleaning up the system, she told the Post.

But for 72-year-old Shane McRae, also a KITAP holder who has lived in Ubud, Bali, for six years, paying extra to agents is worth it.

The Australian said she was not pleased by the new policy, saying that the standard process was time consuming.

Having to go down to city multiple times and wait for hours for each step in the process is onerous, McRae said.
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Linkedin Marguerite Afra Sapiie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

The government has disallowed immigration agencies from utilizing their fast-track privileges in the processing of visa permits, a move that the immigration office claims is part of President Joko Jokowi Widodos agenda to crack down on illegal levies.

As a result of the new policy, which has been in effect since Nov. 14, foreigners working in Indonesia, as well as representatives of their employers, may be required to be present in person at immigration offices and join the queue just like regular applicants.

Heru Santoso, spokesperson for the Immigration Directorate General at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, however, denied circulating information saying that licenses issued to migration agents and other third parties would be revoked.

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Linkedin Marcel Thee (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

For education: Nila Tanzil (center) poses with students in one of the places where nonprofit organization Taman Bacaan Pelangi works to improve education.

The thought of leaving the comforts of financial security and career is very frightening for some but Nila Tanzil did just that so she could set up libraries in the countrys remote areas.

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Linkedin (Associated Press) Tokyo  Mon, November 28, 2016

North Korea is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, seen by the North as a rare comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States.

The North has ordered flags outside official buildings be flown at half-staff to honor Castro, the country's state media reported Monday. The iconic Cuban leader died Friday at age 90.

Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy and that a delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castro's memorial services.

According to a Japanese agency that monitors North Korean media, Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honored in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.

Besides flying flags at half-staff, it was not immediately clear what the mourning period, which ends on Wednesday, would entail.

Shortly after receiving news of Castro's death, Kim Yong Nam, head of the North's parliament, and Premier Pak Pong Ju sent a message of condolence to Castro's brother Raul, who assumed power after Fidel became too weak to continue as leader in 2008.

In it, they said that although Fidel Castro has died, "the feats he performed for the Cuban revolution and the fraternal relations of friendship between the two countries would remain forever."

But Fidel Castro's passing could well be the end of an era for North Korea-Cuba relations.

Because of their common enmity toward the United States and similar authoritarian power structures, Cuba and North Korea had maintained very close diplomatic ties throughout the years. The two countries established ties in 1960 and Castro visited the North in 1986 to meet with Kim Il Sung, the country's founder and Kim Jong Un's grandfather.

Such fraternal sentiment toward Havana and Raul Castro, however, appears to have dimmed in Pyongyang amid a rapprochement between Cuba and the US, who agreed to normalize ties in 2014.
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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

The National Police expect the Attorney Generals Office (AGO) to soon declare the dossier on Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama complete to pave the way for immediate trial.

"Insya Allah (God willing), today [Monday] or tomorrow, the AGO will declare the dossier P-21 [complete]. We hope that this week we can submit the supporting evidence and hand over the suspect to the AGO, National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said on Monday at the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) headquarters in Central Jakarta.

After naming Ahok a blasphemy suspect on Nov. 16, police handed over Ahok's case dossier to the AGO on Friday. The AGO, meanwhile, pledged to complete the examination of the dossier in less than 14 days.

Ahok, a Christian of Chinese descent, sparked uproar among Islamic groups and communities after he made a comment on a verse in the Quran during a working visit to Thousand Islands regency in late September.

A number of leading Muslim figures have accused law enforcers of protecting Ahok, who is seeking reelection next year, in the case. Ahok, who previously served as deputy Jakarta governor, replaced President Joko Jokowi Widodo after the latter won the presidential election in 2014.

Tito added that he hoped the legal process against Ahok could be settled by the court as soon as possible.

On Nov. 4, more 100,000 people wearing white participated in a downtown rally to demand the prosecution of Ahok on blasphemy charges.

Meanwhile, leaders of the National Movement to Safeguard the Indonesian Ulema Councils Fatwa (GNPF-MUI), the initiator of the Nov. 4 rally, applauded the police swiftness in investigating the case.

This case has caused a national uproar so it is better for prosecutors to detain Ahok, GNPF-MUI supervisory board chairman and Islam Defenders Front leader Rizieq Shihab said. (hwa)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

Police have given permission to conservative Islamic groups to organize a large-scale demonstration against Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama on Friday.

In a press conference at the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) on Monday, Rizieq Shihab, Islam Defenders Front (FPI) leader and advisory chairman of the National Movement to Safeguard the Indonesian Ulema Councils Fatwa (GNPF-MUI), said police agreed to guard the rally.

Police and the GNPF-MUI agreed the rally will be conducted on Friday, Rizieq said after meeting National Police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian at the MUI, as reported by tribunnews.com.

But, he said the GNPF-MUI, which earlier planned to conduct Friday prayers along Jl. MH. Thamrin and Jl. Sudirman during the rally, agreed to organize prayers at the National Monument (Monas) instead.

During the meeting, Tito forbade the group from praying along the streets, asking the group to pray at Istiqlal Grand Mosque.

(Read also: Police to ban use of Jakartas main roads for Dec. 2 rally)

The group, however, refused to pray at the mosque due to the huge number of protesters expected and finally agreed to hold Friday prayers at Monas, near the State Palace.

Tens of thousands of people, led by the group, staged a rally on Nov. 4, demanding the government prosecute Ahok on allegations of blasphemy.

Police have named Ahok a suspect in the case. (jun)
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Linkedin Fedina S. Sundaryani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

Life may be a beach in the archipelagic country of Indonesia, but hot sun, cool breeze or rushing waters alone is not enough to develop renewable energy sector without private sectors involvement.



Energy and Mineral Resources Ministrys new and renewable energy director general Rida Mulyana said recently that the governments desired energy mix would be hard to realize with only limited funds in the state budget for the development of renewable energy.



The government has set a goal to supply 23 percent of the national energy mix from renewable sources by 2025 in order to cut down on carbon emissions and wean itself from fossil fuels.



To reach the target, the General Planning for National Energy (RUEN) stipulates that renewable energy must make up at least 11 percent of the energy mix by 2017 or equal to 25.5 million tons of oil equivalent (mtoe).



However, the New and Renewable Energy Directorate General is facing a tight budget with Rp 900 billion (US$66.32 million) removed this year due to unexpected tax shortfalls, leaving only Rp 1.7 trillion in its coffers.



The budget is not a large enough fund to reach the energy mix. The energy mix can only be achieved with the help of private sector investors, Rida said.



The uphill battle to develop the renewable energy sector has become more challenging recently. Several months ago, the government proposed a Rp 1.2 trillion subsidy in next years state budget to cover the price gap that state-owned electricity company Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) had to bear in its operations.



The proposal was rejected by the House of Representatives Budget Committee, which argued that PLN could not be subsidized as a corporation.



The ministry has promised to issue a new regulation that would set a fixed feed-in tariff for geothermal power to clear uncertainties for investors and drive their investments higher.



Data from the ministry shows that as many as $1.198 billion worth of investments were recorded in the renewable energy sector from January to September, making up for 87.4 percent of this years target.



A majority of investments went to geothermal energy at $840 million, equal to almost 90 percent of what is expected throughout this year.



By the end of the third quarter, the total national electricity capacity from geothermal energy reached 1,513.5 megawatts (MW), supported by the installation of four new power plants.



The government is also waiting for developed countries to follow through on their commitments to establish a $100 billion climate fund, following the Conference of Parties 22 (COP22) in Marrakech, Morocco, recently.



Once established, Indonesia will submit a funding proposal for several programs to conserve and develop renewable energy, including the Indonesia Terang (Bright Indonesia) program, which hopes to light up more than 12,000 villages across the nation with renewable energy.



Meanwhile, Private Electricity Producers Association (APLS) chairman Ali Herman Ibrahim said that despite the countrys vast resources, many investors were reluctant to develop renewable energy sources due to piling red tape.



There needs to be a national consensus on developing renewable energy because sometimes companies find it difficult to get things signed off on in the regions, he said.



The Indonesian Renewable Energy Society (METI) chairman Surya Darma said renewable energy in Indonesia is always connected to lower cost pricing policy, with a limited off-taker. This means there will be no market if PLN does not buy electricity to distribute to the people.

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Linkedin Chandra Kusuma (The Jakarta Post) Brisbane  Mon, November 28 2016

The 24th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders Meeting in Lima, Peru, last week discussed several key issues related to the Asia-Pacific region, especially economic growth and human development, climate change, free trade and investment, as well as real and functional connectivity in the region.

Specifically, with respect to investment and free trade, there is one issue that needs special attention. This is the ambitious APEC plan to achieve a mega-regional free trade agreement, or the Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP).

It is astonishing that the FTAAP initiative has not captured sufficient Indonesian media coverage and government scrutiny. This article intends to reveal the main things that need to be carefully observed in the FTAAP plans, as well as to provide recommendations in regard to the continuation of the process in the context of APEC.

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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post)  Mon, November 28 2016

President Joko Jokowi Widodo, who was elected on the promise of reforming the legal system and ensuring a sense of security among citizens two years ago, eventually launched the long-awaited legal reform package last month.

The national legal system revitalization package focuses on the eradication of illegal levies and bribery, combating smuggling, the acceleration of vehicle document processing, efficiency in stay permit issuance for foreigners and the relocation of prisoners.

Jokowi has delegated the job to a task force headed by Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto, a former Army general who has been implicated in past

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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post)  Mon, November 28 2016

Without fanfare, President Joko Jokowi Widodo launched a legal reform last month amid a storm of criticism over lingering poor law enforcement, weakening combat against corruption and an outdated legal system. Despite discrepancies, the move has triggered state institutions to begin cracking down on corruption. The Jakarta Posts Nani Afrida and Pandaya take an in-depth look into the issue.



We mean to lift this weak state by reforming the legal system and law enforcement. The state will protect the entire nation and give all citizens a sense of security.



So say two tenets in Nawacita, or the nine-point agenda that Jokowi pledged on his presidential campaign trail in 2014. Two years into his five-year term last month, he launched his national legal system reform to prove he meant business.



Unlike the launch of the seemingly endless economic packages  there have been 13 of them so far this year  the national legal system revitalization package was quietly introduced. The supposedly historic event largely missed the media limelight. People became aware of it only after a police sting collared low-ranking officials with the Transportation Ministry for allegedly accepting grease money from a businessman.



Jokowi, whose ascending approval rating has hit 67 percent, according to one pollster, introduced the long due legal reform package amid criticism over poor law enforcement, a disoriented anticorruption campaign and his administrations weak political will to resolve gross human rights abuses that remain a thorn on his side.



As a president with a business background, Jokowi, a former furniture businessman in his hometown of Surakarta, has shown more concern in matters related to trade, investment, licensing and bribery than legal development and human rights.



The [legal reform] package is just too investment-oriented and offers no solutions to fundamental legal problems, said Alvon Kurnia Palma, chairman of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI).



Despite his high approval rating thanks largely to the economic performance and political stability he has achieved, the law and human rights situation inherited from his predecessors remains in shambles.



For example, just to show how inefficient the legislation is, official statistics recorded that more than 60,200 regulations had been made by both central and regional governments between 2000 and 2015.



On law enforcement, the 2015 rule of law index placed Indonesia at 52nd place with a score of 0.52. On corruption, Indonesia has remained one of the worst in the world at 88th place. The prosecution rate is low. For instance, of last years 755 reported cases of corruption, only 156 were taken to court.



As though giving credence to his critics, all of the about 3,000 regional bylaws Jokowi scrapped this year were all about local economy. They were annulled because they contravened higher laws and discouraged investment. But thousands of other bylaws deemed discriminatory against minority groups remain in place.



Whats more, the public funds earmarked for legal aid for the poor have been kept to the minimum. In 2013, the pro-bono fund was Rp 50 billion (US$3.7 million) but today it has been slashed to Rp 18 billion.



Peoples right to obtain legal aid has been curtailed on the pretext of budget deficit and in favor of infrastructure development, Alvon said.



The legal reform package also intends to address smuggling, which remains a headache for the authorities due to the limited resources to safeguard the vast archipelago. Especially worrying is the smuggling of drugs. Last year, the authorities handled 139 cases of narcotics smuggling. Equally serious is the smuggling of weapons for homegrown terror groups. Efforts to stop smuggling have been ineffective due to overlapping regulations, unrealistic policies and lenient punishments.



The chaos has created legal uncertainty. Rife corruption in the police force and judiciary, as surveys indicate, has sent public trust in law enforcers to the rock bottom. So the reform aims to build culture of law, empower law enforcers and reform legal instruments.



Priorities have been placed in five areas of priority: eradication of illegal levies and bribery, combating smuggling, acceleration of vehicle document processing, efficiency of stay permit issuance for foreigners and relocation of prisoners.





Particularly interesting is the new policy on the reform of the corrupt and overly crowded penitentiary system. The government will build special penitentiaries on outer islands for drug dealers, drug lords and terrorist convicts. Under the current system, which basically put prisoners of all crimes in the same facility, allows them to learn criminality from each other, making a deterrence effect unachievable.



Relocating penitentiaries to outer islands is expected to reduce overcapacity at prisons. Nationally, prisons have been designed to accommodate 119,000 convicts but in reality, they have been crammed with 202,000 criminals.



Illegal levies and bribery happen in all sectors but the combat will be focused on the public service, licensing, judicial mafia and the service industry  none of those have service standards.



If public service reform goes as planned, the notorious illegal levies that people have to pay when renewing vehicle documents or applying for drivers licenses at police stations should stop.



Probably to show that they have reformed, Jakarta police recently arrested a middle-ranking investigator, Adj. Comr. Brotoseno, for allegedly extorting Rp 3 billion from a businessman embroiled in a land acquisition dispute. The officer was formerly on loan to the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) but was returned to the police force after he allegedly had an affair with Angelina Sondakh, a Democratic Party politician and former beauty queen who was then convicted by the Jakarta Corruption Court.



While advocates praise Jokowis legal reform efforts, critics pooh-pooh as superficial and lacking far-fetched strategies that Indonesia really needs to improve the legal system, which has long been neglected.



The drums of war that Jokowi is banging against illegal levies and bribery is widely seen as benefitting mostly businesspeople, who have fretted about red tape and lots of grease money when obtaining business licenses.



More substantial measures such as increasing civil servants salaries, taking preventative measures against corruption and stricter enforcement, are seen as more urgent than KPK and police stings, which have yet to show the desired results  deterring corruption.



Human rights lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis recalled that the development of the legal system had been virtually sidelined ever since the administration of first president Sukarno, who compromised it with his never-ending revolution. Then dictator Soeharto ruled by law to cling to power for 32 years. Now, Jokowi put it after the economy.



He [Jokowi] should understand that economic development [] should go hand in hand with legal development. I think legal development and respect for human rights have received unfair treatment, like a stepchild in nation building.



Today, 18 years after reformation began, Indonesia has yet to see rule of law in place because, as Todung points out, the political elites do not want it. The legal system has been gradually improved, but it allows the elites to remain above the law.



A classic problem that slips from the legal reform scheme is how to bolster the independency of the judiciary branch of government. Never think again that police, prosecutors and judges are part of the executives. Their independency must be upheld, Todung said.



In recent years, the politicization of the judiciary system has been blamed for the criminalization of, say, KPK leaders targeting senior police officers.



Haris Azhar, coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS), said with the seemingly progressive legal reform package Jokowi meant to simplify the unresolved legal and human rights issues.



With the package, Jokowi offered a sound legal framework for an agenda that is funny but respectful  a reform intended to improve the economy but largely ignoring the more fundamental legal reform and human rights promotion.



Take the policy to stem bribery in the drivers license application process. That is basically an economic policy because it benefits the automotive industry, Haris said.



Lawmaker Nasir Djamil agrees legal reform should start from law enforcers, who have often bear the brunt of short budgets and an outdated legal system.



Nasir sees four major reasons as to why law enforcement should be reformed: Too many articles in the Criminal Code (KUHP) are ambiguous; supervision is slack; remunerations are low; and corruption is hard to crack because officers have strong esprit de corps.



Obviously, much is yet to be done to improve the situation. On the bright side, recent stings by the KPK and police show that government institutions have the will to address corruption.

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Linkedin Moses Ompusunggu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

The National Police have taken strong measures in quelling hate speech and provocations on the internet amid the ongoing tension due to pressure from Islamic groups for the authorities to detain incumbent Jakarta gubernatorial candidate and blasphemy suspect Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama.

Abdul Rozak, a 31-year-old vocational school teacher, has been named a suspect for allegedly inciting mass money withdrawal from banks, which could have turned banks insolvent, thus igniting a financial crisis.

Abdul was arrested by investigators from the National Polices Cyber Crime unit at his house in Penjaringan late on Thursday, three days after he had uploaded Facebook posts that called on Muslims to carry out a mass withdrawal of their money from banks on Nov. 25, to protest the governments handling of Ahoks alleged blasphemy.

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Linkedin Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

At a time when internet comments can send people to jail or ignite a rowdy protest on the street for offending the powers-that-be or the majority, a respected and influential Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) clerics decision to forgive the man who insulted him on Twitter has been met with praise.

Mustofa Bisri, affectionately known as Gus Mus, has arguably been the most respected cleric in NU, the countrys largest Islamic organization, since the passing of former president and NU chairman Abdurrahman Gus Dur Wahid.

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Linkedin Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28, 2016

At a time when internet comments can send people to jail or ignite a rowdy protest on the street for offending the powers-that-be or the majority, a respected and influential Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) clerics decision to forgive the man who insulted him on Twitter has been met with praise.

Mustofa Bisri, affectionately known as Gus Mus, has arguably been the most respected cleric in NU, the countrys largest Islamic organization, since the passing of former president and NU chairman Abdurrahman Gus Dur Wahid.

However, the fact that millions of NU followers are behind him does not make the 72-year-old cleric, who is an avid Twitter user, immune from internet insults.

A 25-year-old man named Pandu Wijaya sparked the anger of NU followers recently after throwing an insult at Gus Mus for advising Muslims to not join the planned rally in Jakarta on Dec. 2.

The rally is being organized to demand Jakarta Governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama be arrested and detained after having been charged with blasphemy.

Gus Mus called on those who were offended by the blasphemy attributed to Ahok to reconsider their plan to hold the rally, during which they will reportedly also conduct a Friday prayer along Jl. Thamrin and Jl. Sudirman, as well as at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle, all in Central Jakarta.

I heard the information that Friday prayers will be performed on the streets [during the rally]. I hope that is not true, said Gus Mus on his Twitter account @gusmusgusmu. If it is true, wow  in Islamic history, since the time of the prophet of Allah, never has there been such a major heresy. The Islamic world would be stunned.

Pandu, who has the twitter handle @panduwijaya, responded to Gus Mus tweet: There was no asphalt [roads], Gus, in the deserts. The first revelation about Friday prayers was given to the prophet when he was migrating to Madina. Heresy, ndasmu!

Ndasmu, which literally means your head, is a Javanese insult that is highly offensive if used against a respected figure. The term suggests that a person at the receiving end of the insult does not know how to use his brain.

Given his age and his status as an ulema (a learned man), Gus Mus is regarded in Javanese society as a wise old man who should be treated with respect. Pandus insult is offensive not only to Gus Mus, but to many of his followers.

PT Adhi Karya, the company where Pandu works, apologized to Gus Mus and decided to reprimand its employee. GP Ansor, a youth wing of NU, had threatened to go to Pandus house to ask clarification from his family.

In response to the companys mea culpa on behalf of Pandu, Gus said, There is nothing to apologize for. His fault is only using special language in a public space. We should understand he is still young.

He also asked Adhi Karya not to fire Pandu.

Facing public criticism, Pandu apologized on Twitter, saying he was deeply sorry for his rude words and hoped that Gus and his followers would forgive him.

Last Friday, Pandu, accompanied by his family, visited Gus Mus at his Islamic boarding school, Raudlatuh Tholibin, in Rembang, Central Java. Pandu and Gus Mus had their pictures taken together and they put the issue to rest.

Wahid Foundation executive director Yenny Wahid, one of Gus Durs daughters, said that Gus Mus had shown a good example on how to deal with online insults.

The Prophet Muhammad never fought back when he was attacked, had stones thrown at him, defamed and so on. He always prioritized forgiveness and never told his followers to fight back, she told The Jakarta Post.

Some Twitter users have also praised Gus Mus for his benevolence. Gus Mus has taught us that if someone deliberately insults you, dialogue is the best solution , said a Twitter user with the handle @zuhairimisrawi.
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Linkedin Liza Yosephine and Haeril Halim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, November 28 2016

The police have arrested two more suspects implicated in a plot to attack the House of Representatives complex and other prominent buildings in the capital.

The National Polices counterterrorism unit, Densus 88, arrested the suspected terrorists separately in the provinces of Aceh and Banten over the weekend.

The two are suspected of having links to Rio Priatna, who was earlier nabbed in Majalengka in West Java, for allegedly making explosives that police say could be more powerful than those used in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.

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Linkedin (Associated Press) Manila  Mon, November 28, 2016

Philippine coast guard officials say they've launched a search for five Filipinos who failed to return after fishing in the disputed Scarborough Shoal in bad weather off the country's northwest.

Coast guard spokesman Armand Balilo said Monday the fishermen left the shoal due to an approaching typhoon last week and have not been heard from. He said boats and ships passing in the area have been alerted.

Balilo said the Philippine coast guard plans to coordinate its search with its Chinese counterpart in the Scarborough area.

China seized the shoal in 2012 after a maritime standoff with Philippines. Chinese coast guard ships have been blocking Filipino fishermen from the shoal but were allowed back after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte discussed the territorial rift with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month.
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Linkedin Hrvoje Hranjski (Associated Press) Bangkok  Mon, November 28, 2016

A look at recent developments in the South China Sea, where China is pitted against smaller neighbors in multiple disputes over islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters crucial for global commerce and rich in fish and potential oil and gas reserves:

CHINA'S THINK TANK SAYS US NAVAL OPERATIONS UNDERMINE ITS SOVEREIGNTY

China's government-backed institute for the South China Sea has released a report detailing an increase in US military activities in the region, saying they threaten China's national security and undermine trust between Washington and Beijing.

According to the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, based on Hainan island province, the US military has carried out more than 700 naval and aerial patrols in the region last year, deployed more advanced reconnaissance aircraft, drones, electronic surveillance ships and satellites as well as nuclear submarines and aircraft carriers.

"China has become the No. 1 targeted country of the US close reconnaissance in terms of frequency, scope and means," the report said.

It said that the US made more than 260 close reconnaissance sorties against China in 2009, and the number increased to more than 1,200 in 2014.

Such activities are "also very likely to lead to accidental collisions at sea or in the air, making it an important negative factor affecting Sino-US relations and also peace and stability in the region," it said.

The report also notes US military alliances and agreements with Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Australia, Thailand and most recently, Vietnam.

The report said that from the US perspective, China's large-scale construction activities in the South China Sea confirmed the US suspicion that China intended to implement a strategy known as "anti-access/area denial," or actions designed to prevent an opposing force from entering an operational area or limit its freedom of actions within that area.

PHILIPPINES WANTS TO BAN FISHING AT DISPUTED SHOAL

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has considerably reduced tensions with China over contested South China Sea waters, says he plans to declare a marine sanctuary at the disputed Scarborough Shoal. Such a move would keep away both Filipino and Chinese fishermen and prevent China from constructing any facilities, like it did on seven other features farther south in the Spratly archipelago.

Despite Duterte's wishes, China has not yet committed to such a proposal. Without Beijing's nod, it would be meaningless because since 2012, China has effective control of the tiny, uninhabited coral reef within the 200-mile Philippine exclusive economic zone.

Duterte relayed his marine sanctuary plan to Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting last week on the sidelines of an APEC summit in Peru, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. said. Xi did not say whether he agreed.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said that China had made "proper arrangement" for Filipinos to fish in nearby waters, and reiterated that "the sovereignty and jurisdiction over the Scarborough Shoal is not, and will not be, changed."

The Chinese coast guard continues to block the entrance to the horseshoe-shaped lagoon.

AFTER VIETNAM, PHILIPPINES LOOKING TO UPGRADE ITS ISLAND FACILITIES

China has embarked on massive island-building in recent years in the South China Sea, drawing US objections and protests from rival claimants, particularly the Philippines and Vietnam.

But according to satellite images, Vietnam also has extended a runway on Spratly Island and constructed new hangars, apparently to accommodate surveillance aircraft.

Now, the Philippines too is looking to construct a new port on Pag-asa Island, internationally known as Thitu, its biggest prize in the disputed Spratlys.

The Philippine Department of Transportation has earmarked US$9 million for a seaport on the tiny island, which used to be a military installation in the 1970s and since then, home to about 200 civilians and 50 soldiers living in few dozen houses. It has a 1.3 kilometer (0.8-mile)-long runway but sea access is difficult because it is surrounded by shallow coral base.

In a report to the Philippine Congress, the Transportation Department said the new port would "vastly improve accessibility to the area and bolster the country's claims" in the South China Sea.

The Philippines had frozen all construction plans for the island until it won an international arbitration case against China in July that invalidated Beijing's claims to the South China Sea.

CHINA TO OPEN 1ST SOUTH CHINA SEA MUSEUM

China has long cited ancient history as the basis for its claim to virtually the entire South China Sea. Now, it plans to open the first South China Sea Museum to exhibit antiques from early Chinese dynasties that were retrieved from the disputed waters.

Ten ceramic pieces, including dainty vases, incense holders, drinking vessels, dishes, cups and saucers from the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), were donated to the museum last week by two Chinese companies that purchased them at an auction in New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art in September, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.

The museum, which is expected to open in March on south China's Hainan island province, also has received more than 800 pieces, including old compasses, logbooks and ceramics, that were found by fishermen, Xinhua said. Some date back to the 5th century and provide clues about trade along the maritime Silk Road, it said.

An international arbitration tribunal in July said that Beijing's claims are inconsistent with international law. It said that any historic rights were "extinguished" by the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which China ratified in 1996.

The tribunal said that while China had used islands in the past, it had never exercised exclusive authority over the waters. China has dismissed the ruling.

___

Associated Press writer Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.
The New York Post reported over the weekend that the mother of a teen killed at the Alfred E. Smith Houses last year has filed a lawsuit against the city.

On Sept. 26, 2015, 19-year-old Nathaniel Szeto was fatally shot in the lobby of a building at the Smith Houses, near Catherine Street and South Street. A couple of months later, cops arrested 15-year-old Johnny Molina of Sparrowbush, New York. He was charged as a juvenile with murder. Another suspect, 19-year-old Alexandros Lorentzos, was arrested just last month and charged with murder and robbery.

A lawsuit filed in state supreme court by Phanessia Liao, Szetos mother, argues that shoddy security at the public housing complex was partially to blame for her sons murder. The suit cites pre-existing broken, dangerous, hazardous and defective conditions in the building, including faulty locks. The inadequate security, allowed trespassers, other unlawful persons, and/or persons intent on committing crimes and/or violence access to Szetos home, the lawsuit alleges. Liao is seeking unspecified damages. City officials declined to comment.

Szeto worked as an assistant in a Lower Manhattan legal office.
1.

In 1943, Dwight MacDonald, one of the co-founders of the literary journal Partisan Review, lost an internal power struggle over its editorial direction and left to found a new magazine, Politics, that better suited his vision. The reasons for MacDonalds split with the other PR founders, Phillip Rahv and William Phillips, are complex and have been examined at length elsewhere, but in principle they involved both a difference of opinion regarding the participation of the United States in the war against Germany and Japan (which MacDonald opposed) and the question of whether Partisan Review would be principally a journal of leftist politics (as MacDonald wished) or one equally committed to independent-minded literary and cultural criticism. After MacDonalds departure, Partisan Review did not abandon politics, but it remained known as a journal open to distinguished work even from those who differed from the editors ideologically. Before finally closing in 2003, PR would go on to publish criticism  by fellow travelers (Irving Howe, Alfred Kazin) and ideological enemies (Saul Bellow, Robert Penn Warren) alike  that set a standard that other journals of opinion still strive to match.

Ancient squabbles at a now-defunct literary magazine, involving a good deal of now dated Marxist cant, are not inherently very interesting. But the Partisan Review, both in its high editorial standards and in its struggles to resolve inherent tensions between the domains of politics and art, continues to be a point of reference in our literary culture. The founders of n + 1 have cited PR as an example, even as they have produced a journal with a hipper, more contemporary voice; several of the core PR critics, including Lionel Trilling, remain culture heroes; and New York Times critic A.O. Scott maintains what amounts almost to an obsession with PR, citing its writers in his work, contributing an admiring introduction to a collection of essays by another PR stalwart, Mary McCarthy, and undertaking a book project surveying the American novel since World War II that seems consciously to invoke Kazins landmark study of the preceding period, On Native Grounds. It is Scotts fascination with PR and its fusion of ideology and culture that I wish to discuss here, along with the broader question of how the contemporary American novel ought to engage with politics.

Here is Scott in a recent Times essay:

Ever since the financial crisis of 2008, Ive been waiting for The Grapes of Wrath. Or maybe A Raisin in the Sun, or Death of a Salesman, a Zola novel or a Woody Guthrie ballad  something that would sum up the injustices and worries of the times, and put a human face on the impersonal movements of history. The originals are still around, available for revival and rediscovery and part of a robust artistic record of hard times past. But we are in the midst of hard times now, and it feels as if art is failing usMuch as I respect the efforts of economists and social scientists to explain the world and the intermittent efforts of politicians to change it, I trust artists and writers more. Not necessarily to be righteous or infallible, or even consistent or coherent; not to instruct or advocate, but rather, through the integrity and discipline they bring to making something new, to tell the truth.

This is a stirring statement of purpose for the arts, but one that should be parsed carefully. In this and a series of previous essays published over the last several years, Scott makes two related claims: (1) that our culture no longer makes a strong demand upon us morally or intellectually, but instead treats us simply as consumers whose expectations must be met; and (2) that a false dichotomy has arisen between our political and cultural lives, such that artists have abdicated their responsibility to examine the ideological structures that we are governed by and have instead been content to describe the compensatory mechanisms we have evolved to survive within them. What Scott wants is a more serious, more politically engaged culture, one more alive with disagreement and dissent.

Some of what Scott says, particularly on the subject of politics and the American novel, seems to me a little pushed, in the sense that he risks asking the wrong things of writers, or perhaps weights engagement on his terms too heavily, and imputes a didactic purpose to the novel as a genre that it cannot support. My purpose here is not to quarrel with Scott, however, but to explore some of the tensions that inhere in the novel of politics, and relatedly, to assess the extent to which the critical attitude that Scott has embraced remains salient in an era of very different cultural values. The sense of crisis to which Scott has addressed himself is no doubt real. Suddenly, everything seems to be up for grabs again in our political life. It is natural to hope, even if that hope is somewhat against the weight of experience, that artists can light the path ahead.

2.

The Partisan Review sensibility was in part a product of historical and biographical forces, to wit, the world of Ashkenazi Jews who immigrated to New York in massive numbers over several decades beginning in the 1880s. Irving Howe, Phillip Rahv, Alfred Kazin, and Leslie Fiedler all belonged to this world; Howe memorialized it in World of Our Fathers: The Journey of the East European Jews to America and the Life They Found and Made:

For about thirty or forty years, a mere moment in history, the immigrant Jews were able to sustain a coherent and self-sufficient culture. It was different from the one they had left behind, despite major links of continuity, and it struggled fiercely to keep itself different from the one they found in America, despite the pressures for assimilation. Between what they had brought and half preserved from the old world and what they were taking from the new, the immigrant Jews established a tense balance, an interval of equilibrium.

Scott is an inheritor off this culture through his mother, the historian Joan Wallach Scott, who grew up in a Brooklyn Jewish family, moved away from home, got a Ph.D., married a Protestant, and had little Tony. Other forces have acted upon him, too, of course: one could just as easily say that he is a product of the academy (his father, Donald Scott, teaches at CUNY); of Harvard (Class of 88); or of the newspapers where he has worked for 20 years. It might seem odd or even de trop to claim that there is a Jewish intellectual style and that Scott works within it, except that he makes little pretense otherwise; his work is studded with references to the PR critics (not all of them Jews, of course), men and women all now dead and to some extent forgotten  so much so, in fact, that what at first looks like interest begins gradually to seem more like obsession. While the PR critics are not Scotts only touchstones, they seem to embody for him the highest possibilities of the critical form.

There are good reasons to think that the PR intellectual style is outdated. First, because of the collective experience of the Holocaust, the Cold War, and McCarthyism  the extraordinary cataclysm of the middle of the 20th century, in which ideology threatened not just to eclipse civilization but to extinguish it  the PR critics did not draw sharp distinctions between politics and culture. For them, all cultural products referred to and derived from a system of relations that they saw in Marxist, philosophically materialist terms. Today, by contrast, we tend to regard culture as a semi-autonomous sphere, independent and self-justifying. Second, the PR critics wished above all to be thought of as serious, and their conception of seriousness, which they linked to cultural traditions inherited from Europe, is likely to seem anachronistic to us today; American culture has lost its last vestiges of self-doubt and become, at least in commercial terms, a dominant brand. Few critics today, even very cosmopolitan ones, think of Honore de Balzac, Stendhal, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe as salient points of reference when they talk about the form and potential of the novel. Third, the PR critics wrote in a mandarin style of intellectual assertion that hardly seems possible in an age in which critical authority is on the run in all spheres of intellectual life. We no longer assume that a Columbia professor like Trilling has the right to tell us how to read or what belongs in the canon.

On the other hand, there is a good deal that remains admirable and relevant in the PR style, despite its occasionally risible self-importance. An air of political crisis seems to have returned to American life, creating space for both reasoned dissent and all manner of charlatanism; there exists a new sense of possibility that is both exciting and terrifying. If that is so, then a somewhat artificial distinction between political and cultural life begins to look not just specious but irresponsible; we need our artists to remind us of who we are. And while the culture continues to become flatter, there is also a countercurrent of interest in what is authentic and best in the culture rather than what is given to us by media monopolists. The flattening of our culture should not be confused with its democratization, however determined Apple might be in its advertising campaigns to conflate the two. To dismantle or, at least, to interrogate structures of political and cultural power begins to look like pretty urgent work. At the end of this chain of propositions, Trilling, Fiedler, and especially Howe wait for us. Perhaps Scott chose his heroes better than one might have thought.

Scotts admiration for the PR critics also rests on values more narrowly literary. There were several gifted stylists in the PR crowd: Howe, who delivered opinions of undisguised vehemence in long sentences gentle on the inward ear; Trilling, Jamesian, diffident, balancing his long, erudite essays on a single concept or turn of phrase; MacDonald, whose essay Masscult and Midpoint finds a perfect equipoise between an unrepentant cultural snobbery and a sighing regret that such thoughts must be expressed. It is this fusion of political and aesthetic values that seems to interest Scott, the dream of a critical mind both free and disciplined. Scott is first and last a writer, a man who wants to get himself fully expressed on the page. His prose style is not flashy, and it takes sustained exposure to his work to realize that he is a very good writer indeed, one who has resisted the slackness that can creep in when you have multiple pieces due week after week, the diminished expectations of daily journalism. While Scott colors between the lines, rarely reaching for heightened rhetoric or memorable coinage, his steadily intelligent prose constitutes a quieter kind of intellectual heroism. He is less interested in providing that he is right about a particular work than in defending his aesthetic values or, more fundamentally, the importance of establishing aesthetic values and judging works of art, even popular art, by those standards.

3.

American literature has always been more wary of ideology than its European counterpart. Here we take our politics light, and with a good deal of artificial sweetener. Leslie Fiedler (another PR contributor) said that all American novelists were stunted, unable to accept their role in the culture at large, returning always to the intense, private, unmediated experiences of youth. Fiedler intended this as an indictment, at least in part, but the innocence of the American writer may not be entirely a bad thing. Europe in the 20th century suffered so grievously from excessive ideological passion, both in its politics and in its letters (Louis-Ferdinand Celine, Paul de Man, Gunter Grass), as to constitute a potent negative example.

Today we are inclined to think that a novelist whose primary purpose is narrowly didactic is likely to produce work that is date-stamped; but there are counter-examples strong enough to give one pause: Charles Dickens often wrote with a political purpose; Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn attacked the Soviet state with The Gulag Archipelago; and then there is the irrefutable case of George Orwell. Of course, the American novelist may have had less need to confront the state than her counterparts in other places and times, since the twin rhetorics of liberty and equality have always been part of our official discourse; an artist-provacateur like Ai Weiwei is a necessary figure in China  a sort of dramatist of state repression  but perhaps less so in the West. It may be the case, however, that the relation of the artist to the state has changed in America in the last decade with the gross expansion of the national security apparatus, which along with rapid technological change has shrunk the once generous zone of personal autonomy that we came to take for granted. If that is true, it may be time for certain creative work that cuts a little closer to the bone.

A criticism that attempts to take account of politics runs into an immediate paradox, which is that those novels that deal least directly with ideology tend to be the ones in which the strongest ideological assumptions are made; the preconditions of social life are so self-evident to their authors that they need not be stated. A Jane Austen novel is strongly concerned with domestic life and family relations, almost to the complete exclusion of ideological questions; and yet without the stable substructures of marriage and property on which it depends for both its plot and its social texture, it would falter on the first page. Unlike the plastic arts, the novel can never be wholly apolitical, given that even in its most experimental forms it seeks to refer to the world. Still, it would be a crude critic indeed who opted to take on the assumptions of these novels; he would almost be making a category error. Austen is a writer for all time; that she required a certain stability of society and manners has not proved disqualifying. Indeed, Henry James thought of this stability as virtually a precondition of the novel, or at least of his own. The novelist must sometimes have the freedom merely to take the world as he finds it.

The idea of the political novel is also somewhat in tension with the generative process that leads to the impulse to write. The political imagination seeks to solve problems, even to extinguish them. The violent political imagination seeks to extinguish false consciousness, which can only end in the extinguishing of human beings. The literary imagination is content to present problems, of whatever sort, taking the world as it finds it; in that sense it is conservative, even as it attempts the radical gesture of creation ex nihilo. The novel classically begins in the writers mind with a character or a situation, not with a political structure, a legislative event, a party congress. An idealistic young doctor and poet seeks stability, meaning, and honor as his country descends into violence is at least potentially Doctor Zhivago; a series of events in imperial Russia leads to the demise of the Romanov dynasty and the creation of the Soviet Union is something else entirely. Of course, a novel that begins with character may effloresce to become the story of a revolution, as with Zhivago. But what distinguishes the novel from the forms with which it has vied for space (biographies, narrative histories, religious texts) is its concern with private experience and, beginning with the modernists, interiority. The inner life observed is the lodestar of the modern novel: Mrs. Dalloway in her kitchen. The political novel, by contrast, seeks to link the individuals destiny to the mass society that conditions him and against which he struggles for autonomy.

However much faith we are inclined to place in our artists, we should acknowledge that the crisis that Scott asks art to explain, or at least to narrate, was (among other things) an event in economic history, arising out of very deliberate and identifiable policy choices made over the course of several decades by intelligent but apparently rather blinkered individuals. Sustained engagement with that history actually is important to understanding what happened. A novelist may be able to tell the truth about the sense of dislocation and free-floating anxiety felt by a laid off mortgage banker; or about how a familys life might unravel after the loss of their home; but she probably cannot explain the chain of causation that started with the invention of securitization and led to the jumbo mortgages that led to the building of that house that the family paid too much for, struggled to keep up, and eventually surrendered to the bank. John Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath, not Agricultural Practices in Northeast Oklahoma, 1926-1935, and while The Grapes of Wrath is an essential document in the record of our national experience, you would not want to consult it as a guide to farm policy. The novel as a genre gains strength and resilience from its engagement with the social sciences, but we should not confuse it with social science itself; the division of labor between the two exists for a reason and is essential to the vitality of both.

I do not think that Scott actually means to suggest that a novel is inherently a more trustworthy document than a Fed white paper or that the purposes of the two are coextensive. One assumes that a novelist may be as blinkered as the social scientist she meets in the faculty lounge. What we might legitimately ask a novel of the financial crisis to do is to speak to the moral imagination of the reader, to invigorate it, and to extend its reach to people and things that are not customarily the objects of her concern. That is part of its genre work. And is that not a enough?

Lionel Trilling both believed in the salience of literature to political thought and cautioned against asking the novel to do too much. Here he is in his most famous work, The Liberal Imagination (1950): To the carrying out of the job of criticizing the liberal imagination, literature has a unique relevance, not merely because so much of modern literature has explicitly directed itself upon politics, but more importantly because literature is the human activity that takes the fullest and most precise account of variousness, possibility, complexity, and difficulty. But in 1946, in an introduction to The Partisan Reader that was published shortly after the MacDonald schism and might be read as a commentary upon it, he had struck a more cautious note: Unless we insist that politics is imagination and mind, we will learn that imagination and mind are politics, and of a kind we will not like. Trilling, like Orwell, is a writer in whom ideologues of all stripes seem to find support for their views; most recently the neo-conservatives have sought to claim him as their own. But Trillings work seeks an autonomous space for literature and rejects a philistine criticism that would assess works primarily for their ideological correctness.

Scott himself clearly belongs to the political left, and the novel of politics he asks for is implicitly one that would vindicate his concerns. We generally think of the political novel as having a progressive or reformist purpose. It is well to remember, though, that two of the most influential political novels in the history of the West, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, were written from the right  and continue to animate conservative politics today. Another species of political novel, the anti-communist novel  Darkness at Noon, Animal Farm, The Gulag Archipelago  is not rightist in origin per se (Orwell, for example, described himself as a democratic socialist) but is strongly anti-utopian. Indeed, the novel as an art form is inherently anti-utopian, inasmuch as it seeks to point us to conflicts within the individual, and between the individual and society, that are inherently intractable. A political novels happy ending usually does not mean the end of war  which, be it literal or figurative, is with us always  but with the protagonists achieving a separate peace.

4.

If I am right that, among other things, the political novel faces a problem of scale  national politics tends toward the totalizing vision, while narrative fiction wants to be intimate  then the solution may be for the writer to deal with a small bore problem that can nonetheless be scaled up: a part that will stand for the whole. Ideology, in both its grainier and more sweeping senses, is at the center of Jonathan Franzens Freedom, a somewhat archly ironic account of American political values in the aughts. Franzen engages politics directly, in that several of his characters are actively trying to shape policy, and more subtly, in dramatizing how ideological tropes seep into private life and affect the choices we make in our homes and neighborhoods. Freedom extends themes present in Franzens earlier novel, The Corrections, but it takes on conservative political values more directly and with markedly less sympathy for their representatives. As such, Freedom was dealt with critically as a political novel (at least in part), though less in terms of whether the reviewer shared Franzens politics than whether Franzens attempt to bring ideology to the center of a domestic novel was prima facie legitimate.

Sam Tanenhaus, the author of a biography of Whitaker Chambers and a narrative history of the conservative moment in the United States, hailed Freedom as a masterpiece of American fiction; B.R. Myers, the author of A Readers Manifesto and a professor of North Korean politics (and therefore a man who knows something about the dangers of ideology) called it a monument to insignificance. Myers seemed to feel that Franzen was writing a kind of socialist realism, with his characters acting as representatives of certain tendencies in national life rather than vital individuals; he also found their diction and their inner lives banal (perhaps he has lived outside the country for too long to recall what we are actually like). Tanenhaus and Myers are both strong critics, and their radically different responses to Freedom suggest an ongoing lack of critical consensus regarding how politics should be dealt with in narrative fiction. Some critics demand that the authors politics be entirely soluble in the narrative, while others find a plainer statement of ideological assumptions bracing. This lack of consensus is not necessarily a matter for concern  chacun a son gout, after all  but it does leave the writer who has a sustained interest in ideology with a hard problem.

Freedom occasionally suffers from the impatience of its author with the very narrative techniques that Franzen employed to such extraordinary effect in The Corrections. While in the latter novel, Franzens use of free indirect style was masterful in bringing to life each of the members of the Lambert family, in his presentation of Freedoms Berglunds, Franzen hovers rather too close by, over-managing our interpretations. Freedom sometimes descends into a hectoring tone, holding forth rather than narrating. Its author seems burdened by the responsibility of telling us things we already ought to know. But a novel is not meant to be a substitute for watching PBS Newshour; it is not a discourse on citizenship. This is not to say that Freedom is not an excellent novel  only to suggest that Franzen did not manage the problem of blending his aesthetic and didactic purposes perfectly. There is something in the reader that wants to resist Freedom even as he admires its art and recognizes the world it creates.

Amy Waldmans The Submission deals not with the financial crisis that is Scotts immediate concern but with other signal event of our recent politics, the 9/11 attacks. The Submission starts with a high concept: the jury judging the anonymous submissions for a Ground Zero memorial unwittingly chooses an American of Middle Eastern descent, a slick, arrogant, and thoroughly secularized product of the Yale School of Architecture named Mohammed Khan. The choice of Khan activates opposition, some of it ugly, from a coalition motivated variously by religious animus, opportunism, and survivor guilt. Others rally to Khans defense in the name of tolerance, civic order, and aesthetic values. The ensuing struggle over the meaning of 9/11 and what might constitute an appropriate response to such a spectacularly successful act of political violence is a portrait of New York in that raw and tumultuous period that registers the change in mood and understanding created by the attacks.

The Submission was published to enormous acclaim, and it is in many respects a worthy novel, but three years later it already feels dated. Waldmans model was clearly Tom Wolfes The Bonfire of the Vanities, and The Submission answers Wolfes call for a less effete and more epistemic account of what actually goes on at the street level of our livid cities. While Waldman is a writer of patience and skill, the result still feels like a kind of super-journalism. The people in The Submission succeed as representatives of their social environment, but they never quite escape their representative status to succeed as individuals; as such, they are not literary characters at all, in the sense of seeming to possess autonomous selves. It is important to remember, as Wolfe has often failed to do, that while the techniques of fiction and newspaper reporting may seem similar, their purposes are very different and their truth-value depends on different claims. The Submission by its very conception carries a very heavy documentary burden, which necessarily inhibits the imaginative freedom of its author. Imagination is the faculty in which Scott places his final measure of trust, but imagination is often precisely what suffers when the novelist seeks to fulfill a didactic purpose.

5.

Literature is naturally against the grain of ideology. Ideology seeks to impose a pattern on historical experience, sometimes by violence; the patterns of literature perform gentler acts of persuasion, and they emerge only gradually. To get to the place where the pattern coheres and the authors meaning emerges (assuming that we are in the realm of novels that seek to perform in this way), the reader must pass through the slough of ambiguity. The pattern is the novels purpose, but the ambiguity is its basic condition. While the novelist may be God in the universe of his narrative, he accepts that his effect on the world is diffuse and indirect.

In asking that American novelists engage more fully with the political dimension of our national life, Scott is asking them to risk something of the freedom of thought and expression they enjoy, derived from their very unworldliness, that gives their work (for Scott) a unique truth-value. When the novelist becomes just another person who wants to sell us something, her moral status suffers, and so perhaps does her claim on our attention. So we should be careful about what we ask novelists (and poets, and filmmakers) to do.

Taken more broadly, however, Scotts recent attempts to diagnose why our culture is so persistently, noxiously trivial, even as our claims regarding our special status in world affairs become more grandiose and deluded, seem both honorable and timely. This is not say that Scott is a cultural pessimist per se; indeed, he rightly regards a renewable capacity for enthusiasm as a necessary part of a critics equipment. He is not despairing, but he is disappointed. Like the PR critics, who as the children of immigrants were both in love with America and perpetually disappointed by it, he is inclined to think that we ought to do better. Doing better might start with demanding art that demands more of us.

Image Credit: Flickr/Jaime Martinez-Figueroa
Screen Shot 2016 11 28 at 10.33.13 AM

Overall business activity in Texas turned positive in November for the first time since December 2014, according to the Dallas Federal Reserve.

In the first monthly survey since the US election, the headline index that gauges general activity in the sector jumped to 10.2. Economists had forecast that the index rose to 1.5 from -1.5 in October.

The downturn in Texas has mostly been due to the oil-price crash, which hurt the energy producers and their clients.

Like consumers across the US, business leaders in Texas expressed relief that the election was over. Specifically, some respondents were pleased that Donald Trump won, and they looked forward to economic growth in 2017 as the president-elect is expected to have a "new pro-growth and lower-tax focus."

"We are looking forward to the end of the disastrous socialist policies of the last eight years," one person said. "Please reduce the regulation, taxes and government interference so we can compete globally."

"Our manufacturing is being attacked more strongly than in the past by competition in Asia-Pacific," said an executive in the transportation equipment manufacturing business.

"Specifically, China, India and South Korea have undercut our domestic prices by over 30 percent on most comparable products. We expect the election to improve confidence in the economy with above average growth."

The sub-index for production was positive for a fifth straight month, as new orders improved and factories found more use for their available capacity.

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There is an active shooter situation on Ohio State University campus in the US, according to reports.

Students have been told to run, hide, fight by the universitys Emergency Management twitter account.

The Twitter account has also advised that students Continue to shelter in place and Wait for Police officers (sic) directions.

The warnings focus on the north part of the Coloumbus campus.

The incident began at around 9.30am local time. Ohio State University has around 60,000 students on its Columbus campus.The Shelter in Place alert has now been lifted and the area is now secure.One suspect has been shot dead by police. It is unknown whether there was more than one shooter. According to CBS, nine people have been admitted to hospital, one of them in a critical condition. The area around 19th and College avenues remains closed.
Fidel Castro is dead!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 26, 2016

(Paul Faith/PA)

(Alex Castro/AP)

Castro led a rebel army to victory to become one of the worlds longest serving leaders. His death prompted contrasting reactions from political figures around the world, with some praising him as a peoples champion while others described him as a brutal dictator. Firebrand politician George Galloway said Fidel Castro lives on in all of us, hailing him as one of the greatest human beings who ever lived.However, US President-elect Donald Trump described Castro as a brutal dictator. Trump laid into the revolutionarys record on human rights and pledged to help Cubans finally begin their journey toward prosperity and liberty after he takes over the worlds most powerful post in January. His statement, which pulled no punches, contrasted with the more measured words of President Barack Obama.Trump said: Today, the world marks the passing of a brutal dictator who oppressed his own people for nearly six decades. Fidel Castros legacy is one of firing squads, theft, unimaginable suffering, poverty and the denial of fundamental human rights. While Cuba remains a totalitarian island, it is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve. The White House issued a statement from Obama, which offered condolences to Fidel Castros family while at the same time saying our thoughts and prayers are with the Cuban people. Obama had attempted rapprochement with the Caribbean state in recent years after decades of trade bans and near all-out-war.The US president said: At this time of Fidel Castros passing, we extend a hand of friendship to the Cuban people. We know that this moment fills Cubans  in Cuba and in the United States  with powerful emotions, recalling the countless ways in which Fidel Castro altered the course of individual lives, families, and of the Cuban nation. History will record and judge the enormous impact of this singular figure on the people and world around him. One of the defining leaders of the 20th century, Fidel Castro was seen as both pariah and peoples champion.Speaking in Oxford, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn praised the Cuban revolutionary leaders heroism and said: Fidel Castro was a massive figure in the history of the whole planet. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said Castro was a historic if controversial figure and his death marked the end of an era for Cuba and the start of a new one for Cubas people. Former London mayor Ken Livingstone said the former Cuban leader was an absolute giant of the 20th century, and blamed the US for the restrictions on civil liberties under his leadership. He admitted of course Fidel did things that were wrong, adding: Initially he wasnt very good on lesbian and gay rights, but the key things that mattered was that people had a good education, good healthcare and wealth was evenly distributed.Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau paid tribute to Castro, who was a friend of his father, with deep sorrow. He said: Fidel Castro was a larger-than-life leader who served his people for almost half a century. A legendary revolutionary and orator, Mr Castro made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation. While a controversial figure, both Mr Castros supporters and detractors recognised his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for el Comandante.Irish president Michael D Higgins was among a host of world leaders who also paid tribute, saying Castro guided Cuba through a remarkable process of social and political change, advocating a development path that was unique and determinedly independent. He added: Fidel Castro will be remembered as a giant among global leaders whose view was not only one of freedom for his people but for all of the oppressed and excluded peoples on the planet. Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: There is no doubt that Fidel Castro was a vastly significant 20th century leader, but even as we respectfully acknowledge this on his passing, we must not overlook the appalling human rights abuses including brutal summary executions for which he was responsible.
The Icelandic government has taken legal action against the UK supermarket chain Icelandic Foods in a trademark dispute over the use of the name.

Iceland (the country)

The government argues that indigenous Icelandic companies are unable to properly promote their goods and services in the Eurozone because the frozen foods giant owns the European trademark Iceland.

Financial Times Thereported the statement made by the Iceland government: [we are] concerned that our countrys businesses are unable to promote themselves across Europe in association with their place of origin  a place of which we are rightly proud and enjoys a very positive national branding.

Companies such as Iceland Gold, a fish retailer, and Clean Iceland, a wholesaler of Icelandic national products, have both failed to register their respective names with the EU because of the supermarkets ownership of the trademark. The Icelandic government does not wish for the frozen foods chain to change its name. It rather wants it to forego its sole right to the trademark.

Iceland (the supermarket)

Previous attempts to resolve the dispute in a conciliatory manner have failed. This legal challenge has been a last resort. Iceland, the company, asserts that it will vigorously defend its rights to the trademark.

We have been trading successfully for 46 years under the name Iceland and do not believe that any serious confusion or conflict has ever arisen in the public mind, or is likely to do so, the company explained.

The government has filed a legal challenge at the European Union Intellectual Property Office located in Spain. This process is expected to last several months.
The makers of My Dad Wrote A Porno have shared some of the odd ways the hit podcast has helped its fans, including helping someone overcome their fear of losing their virginity and another using it as their birthing soundtrack.

My Date Wrote A Porno is a podcast series in which Jamie Morton reads out chapters from the erotic books his 60-year-old father has written, with reactions and discussion from his friends James Cooper and BBC Radio 1s Alice Levine.

The side-splitting podcast could have been something very different. I just wanted it for myself, says Alice, referring to the original plan to perform a one-woman show from Rocky Flintstones (pseudonym, obviously) Belinda Blinked series of erotic novels.

Left to right  James, Jamie and Alice (Dominic Lipinski/PA)

However, it soon became apparent that its a bit weird if [Alice] is just reading somebody elses dads pornography so I thought maybe if I read it, it would make more sense, says Jamie. Add James into the mix and youve got fantastic chemistry that listeners cant get enough of.

Talking about the shows legion of fans, Jamie tells us they have heard some unusual stories of how they are enjoying the podcast. One couple lost their virginities after listening to the show, and another used it as a birthing aid.

They were really intimidated by sex and had kind of built it up in their heads and when they listened to the podcast they realised sex is meant to be fun and you can laugh at it and its not that scary, and so  they got down, explains Jamie.

The podcast is known for an array of random characters who appear in one chapter and then disappear into the ether, leaving listeners wondering what happened to them. With that in mind, we asked who theyd like to see a spin-off novel about.

James wants to know more about the Duchess, an older lady who bids for protagonist Belinda at an auction, then proceeds to load her into a horse-box and have her wicked way with her.

Id love to see a back story to the Duchess, find out how shes got to this point, why she wears the flamboyant outfits why shes got such a large collection of sex toys I think there is a fascinating story to be told there.

The My Dad Wrote A Porno trio (Dominic Lipinksi/PA)

Alice says shed like to know more about the main woman herself, Belinda Blumenthal, a sales director at Steeles Pots and Pans who is looking to impress in her new role. Why did she leave her other job? She clearly left under a cloud of suspicion

Jamie chips in: There are hints at her father working in wine and stuff, but also, Id like to hear more about Bella. Bella is the company receptionist who really comes to life in book two, enabling Jamie to use his stellar Essex girl accent.

She was the most boring character ever committed to the page and now, we cant get enough of her, says Jamie.

@dadwroteaporno Feeling emosh! Cheers guys. Already on to my second bottle in true Bella style #spiritanimal #ByeBelinda pic.twitter.com/CZiti0Me7I  Rachel Bower (@little_bowie) October 24, 2016

The second season added more content for fans to laugh out loud to, with a host of celebrity fans making an appearance in special footnotes episodes. They are less formal than an interview, both in time spent and alcohol consumed. Apparently, Michael Sheen stayed until half twelve at night because he had so many questions and Daisy [Ridley] turned up with a couple of bottles of prosecco.

hard copy book Fans have been promised a third season in 2017, as well as a special released on Christmas Day. Not only that, but the team has released aof the first Belinda Blinked, complete with annotations, drinking game instructions and anatomical diagrams.

For those missing Belinda today, we've got good news. We'll be back for a special Christmas episode!



More details soon... #XXXmas pic.twitter.com/I3008RPaEr  My Dad Wrote A Porno (@dadwroteaporno) November 9, 2016

Itll be a very merry Christmas for podcast fans.
Hilton inks Phuket deal to deepen hospitality skills

PHUKET: Hilton Worldwide has signed a school partnership agreement with Prince of Songkla University (PSU) Phuket Campus to deliver a Hilton Class program.

tourism

By The Phuket News

Monday 28 November 2016, 04:52PM

Peter Webster (left), Regional General Manager for Hilton Singapore, Thailand and Philippines, signs the agreement at the Prince of Songkla University (PSU) Phuket Campus last week.

Under the agreement, Hilton will host guest lectures and presentations, organise on-site visits to Hilton hotels in Thailand, as well as provide access to development programs, which cover topics such as leadership, financial awareness and problem solving.

Leveraging Hiltons global expertise and resources and its presence in Thailand, the program will provide industry-focused knowledge and hands-on skills training that complement the universitys four-year Bachelor of Business Administration in Hospitality Management curriculum.

The latest signing with the PSU Phuket Campus marks Hiltons second academic alliance in Thailand, the fourth in Southeast Asia and India.

Our partnership with Prince of Songkla University Phuket Campus underscores our commitment to support the growth of tourism and hospitality in Thailand, said William Costley, Hiltons Vice President of Operations, South East Asia & India.

We are delighted to offer promising young students and also the youth in our communities more opportunities to develop their skills and gain insights into the world of hospitality. By sharing our experience and welcoming these students through our doors, we hope to broaden their horizons and make a positive impact on their future, he added.

The Hilton Class program supports Open Doors, Hiltons global commitment to impact at least one million young people by 2019 by helping them reach their full potential. Engaging and preparing young people through school alliances, apprenticeship programs and professional development programs is part of Hiltons approach to drive programs and partners that connect, prepare and employ young people around the world.

The Open Doors commitment builds on Travel with Purpose, the companys global corporate responsibility strategy to create shared value for the communities, business and environment in which it operates.

PSU, Phuket is honoured to have academic collaboration with the world-renowned leader Hilton as a strategic partner in order to co-produce highly qualified graduates to better serve the hospitality industry in Thailand, Asean and beyond, said Assoc Prof Puwadon Butrat, Vice President of PSU Phuket Campus.

We believe this strategic move will further enhance the school competitiveness in promoting our academic excellence in Hospitality and Tourism in the future, he noted.

Under the partnership, up to 35 promising third-year students from the Hospitality Management course will be selected for the two-year Hilton Class program. These students will attend Hilton Class as part of their industrial training, in addition to their academic curriculum at the university.

Hilton will also host guest lectures and presentations, organise on-site visits to Hilton hotels in Thailand, as well as provide access to development programs, which cover topics such as leadership, financial awareness and problem solving.

Students under the Hilton Class program will also be offered internships at Hilton hotels in Thailand for a period of two to six months, during which they will benefit from exposure to on-the-job training across various hotel functions. In addition, top performing students may be offered full-time employment at Hilton hotels upon graduation from Prince of Songkla University.
Myanmar national hospitalised after suffering electric shock at Phuket construction site

PHUKET: A migrant worker from Myanmar was hospitalised yesterday (Nov 27) when some steel construction rods he was carrying came into contact with low-hanging electric power cables causing him to receive an electric shock.

accidentsconstructionhealth

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Monday 28 November 2016, 12:13PM

After receiving first aid, Mr Veah was taken to Vachira Phuket Hospital as a precautionary measure. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

At around 10:30am yesterday the Narenthorn Rescue Centre (1669) were notified that a Myanmar national had suffered an electric shock while carrying steel rods at housing project construction site near the British International School, Phuket in Koh Kaew. Rescue workers arrived at the scene and administered first aid to a bewildered 42-year-old Mr Veah who luckily had only suffered minor injuries as a result of the electric shock. After receiving first aid Mr Veah was transferred to Vachira Phuket Hospital as a precautionary measure.
No charges to be brought against Phuket military impersonator

PHUKET: An officer form Chalong Police Station has confirmed that no charges are to be brought against a man who was under investigation by the 41st Military Circle and police after being found dressed in full military uniform and pretending to be military personnel in Chalong.

militarypolice

By Yutthawat Lekmak

Monday 28 November 2016, 03:45PM

Police have confirmed that no charges are to be brought against Prapoj Nunphakdee (left). Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

On Nov 18, four army officers led by chief of peace and order operations Maj Sathit Naikul escorted Prapoj Nunphakdee to Chalong Police Station to question him as to why he was pretending to be a high-ranking army officer.

At the time Maj Sathit declined to name the location where officers found Mr Prapoj but revealed that if he was found guilty of impersonating a military official he could face jail time of up to one year and fined up to B2,000, or both. (See story here.)

Maj Kanan Somrak, an inspector from Chalong Police Station, told The Phuket News today (Nov 28) that after investigating the motive behind Mr Prapojs antics no charges would be brought against him because he had done nothing to deceive anyone.

We have checked into Mr Prapoj and he is just a normal resident living in Chalong. We believe this whole issue has been a misunderstanding, Maj Kanan said.

We have questioned local people and they have confirmed that Mr Prapoj has never done anything to deceive anyone in this area. It appears he just likes dressing in full military uniform.

However, we have warned Mr Prapoj that if he is caught doing this again he will be charged, Maj Kanan added.
Phuket Russian tourists injured as bus goes off-road

PHUKET: Three Russian tourists were taken to hospital after the bus they were travelling in crashed into a verge at Khok Kloi, Phang Nga, yesterday afternoon (Nov 27).

Russiantransportaccidents

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Monday 28 November 2016, 10:18AM

Three Russian tourists were taken to hospital after the Phuket-bound bus went off-road in Khok Kloi, Phang Nga. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Three Russian tourists were taken to hospital after the Phuket-bound bus went off-road in Khok Kloi, Phang Nga. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Three Russian tourists were taken to hospital after the Phuket-bound bus went off-road in Khok Kloi, Phang Nga. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Three Russian tourists were taken to hospital after the Phuket-bound bus went off-road in Khok Kloi, Phang Nga. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

The driver, 26-year-old Inthonkorn Janrasklang, said the bus brakes failed as he approached the Intersection near the Khok Kloi Bus Station at about 2pm.

Mr Inthonkorn said he swerved off the road to avoid ploughing into traffic waiting at the traffic lights.

Mr Inthonkorn explained to Takua Thung Police Inspector Lt Thavorn Thongkam that the bus was carrying 42 passengers from Khao Lak to Phuket.

Three passengers were taken to Takua Thung Hospital for treatment of injuries.

The other 39 passengers are fine, Lt Thavorn said.
Phuket scores global winners at World Luxury Awards

PHUKET: MANATHAI Surin Phuket and Twinpalms Phuket were both bestowed the glowing accolade of global winners at the World Luxury Hotel Awards, held at the St. Regis Doha in Qatar late last month.

tourism

By The Phuket News

Monday 28 November 2016, 11:21AM

MANATHAI Surin Phuket edged out global competitors to be crowned the worlds best Luxury Design Hotel at the World Luxury Hotel Awards, held at the St. Regis Doha in Qatar.

MANATHAI Surin Phuket was named best Luxury Design Hotel in the world, while Twinpalms Phuket was crowned best Luxury Honeymoon Hotel on the planet.

Phuket hotels scored no less than 17 awards in all categories, and another six awards were handed to resorts in Phang Nga and Krabi. (See list below.)

The World Luxury Hotel Awards on Oct 29 celebrated its 10th anniversary in awarding the worlds finest hotels for their luxury offerings and exceptional service delivery. Hosted by the exquisite St. Regis Doha in Qatar, the evening saw over 350 guests from the worlds leading hotels and resorts gather to be recognised on stage for their outstanding efforts.

Awards were presented to luxury hotels and resorts in over 60 categories on a country, regional, continent and global basis. Special congratulations on the evening went to the Armani Hotel Dubai, situated within the iconic Burj Khalifa, honoured as the 2016 Global Hotel of the Year.

Mark Kirby, General Manager for the Armani Hotel Dubai proudly collected the award on stage.

In celebration of the decade anniversary, the World Luxury Hotel Awards designed a limited edition trophy for its winners, plated in 24-carat gold.

We wish to congratulate all our winners for the 2016 award year, who through their tireless efforts and unbounded passion to satisfy their guests needs, have received this honour tonight, said Anton Perold, Managing Director for the World Luxury Hotel Awards.

True luxury is no small feat, it takes a team of highly dedicated staff willing to go the extra mile and stop at nothing to ensure that no request goes unanswered. This is the definition of luxury, this is what defines a World Luxury Hotel Awards winner.

The 11th World Luxury Hotel Awards will be held at the Kulm Hotel in St Moritz on Dec 2, 2017.

WORLD LUXURY HOTEL AWARDS

(Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi)

Continent Winners

Aleenta Resort & Spa Phuket  Luxury Hideaway Resort (Phang Nga)

Impiana Private Villas Kata Noi  Luxury Private Pool Villa (Phuket)

Paresa  Luxury Boutique Hotel (Phuket)

Natai Beach Resort & Spa  Luxury Family Hotel (Phang Nga)

Country Winners

B-Lay Tong Phuket  Luxury Contemporary Design Hotel (Phuket)

Burasari Phuket  Luxury Spa Hotel (Phuket)

Maikhao Dream Villa Resort & Spa  Luxury Private Pool Villa (Phuket)

Nook Dee Kata Beach Resort  Luxury New Hotel (Phuket)

KATA ROCKS Resort And Residences  Luxury Private Pool Villa (Phuket)

Sawaddi Patong Resort & Spa  Luxury Family Hotel (Phuket)

Pimalai Resort & Spa  Best Service Luxury Villas (Krabi)

Layana Resort & Spa  Luxury Adult Beach Resort (Koh Lanta)

Region Winners
A transport truck lies on its side during 100km/h winds on the Seal Island Bridge in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. A Nor'Easter produced heavy snow and rain on Sunday, from Atlantic Canada into far eastern Quebec.
Watch the Two Minute Travel Guide to Thailand video

Getting About

Thailand is a country located in South East Asia, famous for tropical beaches and astounding temples. When you arrive in the capital of Bangkok, spend a couple of days exploring the city. It is a contrast of bustling city landscape and a labyrinth of alleys crammed with fragrant street food. Khao San Road is a good first stop; its exciting nightlife and cheap accommodation make it the perfect place for both experienced and first time travellers.

Eating Out

The food is guaranteed to be amazing. Trying a traditional Thai Green Curry and a beautifully sweet Phad Thai is essential. If youre feeling adventurous try Tom Yam or Sour Thai Soup, Som Tam and Khai Soi. An authentic dish of fresh mango and sticky coconut rice is also a breakfast staple.

History & Culture

Thailand has a rich culture where religion still plays a big part in everyday life and Buddhism is adhered to by over 90% of the population.

Entertainment

Southern islands such as Koh Phi Phi, Koh Tao and Koh Samui are famous for their beach parties and bars. Koh Phangan is host to the biggest Full Moon party, attracting up to 30,000 travellers at the height of the season. Aside from nightlife, Southern Thailand is also a hub for snorkelling, canoe cave exploring, rafting and scuba diving where spotting Reef Sharks, Leopard Sharks and Turtles is a common encounter.

Wildcard

A century ago, more than 100,000 elephants lived in Thailand. Now, there are about 5,000, with less than half of them wild. Make sure you research before visiting any Elephant parks. The Thai Elephant Conservation Centre is the only organization that is government-owned, located in Lampang, a province in Northern Thailand.
Organization: DanChurchAid

(DCA)

Duty Station: Kampala,

Uganda

Report to: Head of

Programmes

About US:

DanChurchAid (DCA) is a faith-based Danish INGO working closely with

church-based as well as secular NGOs in Uganda and in the Great Lakes region.

Their programmes cover two main areas: Active Citizenship with a strong focus

on good governance and democratization, and Food Security including

Humanitarian and Transitional Responses to conflict and natural disaster.

DanChurchAid has supported emergency relief and development programmes in Uganda

since 1979. DanChurchAid works through partners and with a gender-inclusive

rights-based approach, which is mainstreamed throughout all DanChurchAid

programme types as well as within the organization.

Job Summary: The Humanitarian

Programme Officer will be responsible for ensuring the implementation of high

quality and timely humanitarian response activities in close cooperation with

DCA humanitarian project team and NGO partners.



Responsibilities: Key Duties andResponsibilities:



In charge of monitoring, reporting and

documenting project results including lessons learnt



Ensuring close cooperation and exchange of

information within DCA and the ACT Alliance, inclusive participation in

cluster/sector meetings and collaboration on appeals and other joint

humanitarian responses



Assisting in project and proposal development,

as well as preparation and implementation of reviews and evaluations of

humanitarian projects



In charge of grants management including

financial project budget monitoring and accountability



Responsible for capacity building and work with

DCA staff and partners including ACT members



Experience: Qualifications, Skills andExperience:



The ideal candidate must hold a university

degree in humanitarian response or other related discipline.



At least five years experience from a similar

position in emergency and humanitarian response work



Extensive experience with grant management



Broad knowledge of Sphere Standards and Core

Humanitarian Standards (previous HAP)



Work experience from cash transfer programming

and mobile monitoring technology is an advantage



Previous experience with mainstreaming

protection, gender equality, and applying rights-based approach.



Outgoing, results-oriented and proactive with

good liaison and coordination skills

How to Apply:



explaining their suitability for the post, including three work-related

referees and copies of certificates to the following email:

mark DCA  Position name in the subject field where you replace

position name with the position you are applying for. Online attachments may

not fill more than 2 MB. All candidates should e-mail their updated CVs and cover lettersexplaining their suitability for the post, including three work-relatedreferees and copies of certificates to the following email: application@ppg.co.ug . Please clearlymark DCA  Position name in the subject field where you replaceposition name with the position you are applying for. Online attachments maynot fill more than 2 MB.

th

December 2016 Deadline: 9December 2016



find us on our facebook page

For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com orfind us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline






Harminder Singh Mintoo, the Khalistan Liberation Front chief who escaped from Nabha jail on Sunday, was arrested in Delhi hours after the daring jailbreak.

According to media reports, Mintoo was nabbed in a joint operation conducted by Delhi and Punjab police. He was arrested from Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district after the vehicle in which he was trying to get away was stopped at a police checkpoint.

The police also recovered guns and ammunition from the vehicle.

Mintoo is wanted in several terror cases, including the attack on Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in 2008 in Punjab. Police had claimed that Mintoo was planning more terrorist strikes in the region.

He was earlier arrested in November 2014 as he returned to India from Thailand after being deported from there.

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Sunday evening nabbed gangster Parvinder Singh, who admitted to being one of the attackers in the jailbreak, from near Shamli town.

Media reports suggest that Mintoo decided to join the group of people who were trying to escape from the prison after he was tipped off about the jailbreak plan.

A high alert was sounded across north India after armed men attacked the maximum security Nabha jail. The attackers, dressed in police uniform, came in three-four cars and breached the tight security of the prison around 9 am.

Witnesses said the attackers fired at least 100 rounds during a well-planned and executed attack that lasted barely 10 minutes.

Despite several rounds of firing, no one was injured. Official sources said the security in the jail did not retaliate, raising suspicion.

(With agency inputs)
The nation-wide shutdown called by the Left parties over demonetisation of high value currency notes evoked partial response in Telugu states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, but crippled life in Tripura and Kerala.

Shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in some areas of AP and Telangana while there was not much impact elsewhere.

The services of state-owned Road Transport Corporation (RTC) was near normal in both the state.

The activists of the opposition parties staged protest at RTC depots at many places since early morning, however, the bus services by and large remained unaffected.

Activists of Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party-Marxist (CPM), Congress and YSR Congress Party staged sit-in at RTC depots. However, the employees union stayed away from the shutdown.

The Left parties exempted banks from the strike call.

Buses off roads in Kerala

In Kerala, autorickshaws were seen plying in some places, providing some relief to people.

Police vehicles were used to transport railway passengers and patients coming from far off places to the Regional Cancer Centre in Thiruvananthapuram.

Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and private buses are keeping off roads in most places.

Some Sabarimala pilgrims who arrived at Kottayam by train complained that they were unable to leave for the Ayyappa temple as buses were not plying "We have been waiting for hours. Though some private taxis are available, we cannot afford them as the fares are exorbitant," a man from Andhra Pradesh said.

The tourism sector and vehicles of Sabarimala pilgrims have been exempted from the strike.

Keeping in mind the peak tourist season, the government had decided to exempt tourists from the strike. It has issued instructions to all departments concerned, including police to take all possible steps to ensure that the tourism sector was not hit by the strike.

Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran had also requested for exemption of tourists and tourist vehicles from the strike.

Tour operators were assured by Tourism Principal Secretary V Venu that the hartal would not affect the visitors.

Banks, newspapers, milk supply, hospitals and marriage functions would be exempted from the shutdown, LDF convener Vaikom Viswam had said in a statement.

Shutdown cripples life in Tripura

Government and semi-government, private offices, banks, educational institutions, shops and business establishments were remained closed due to the strike in the Left ruled Tripura.

All types of vehicles, except security forces, remained off the roads.

Aircrafts in-between Agartala, Guwahati, Kolkata and New Delhi have been plied as usual.

Train services between Tripura and rest of the country were affected as the Left party workers blocked several trains in different locations in the state.

"There is no untoward incident reported from anywhere in the state. The shut down remained peaceful across the state," police spokesman Uttam Kumar Bhowmik told IANS.

The BJP workers led by local leaders held several rallies in different parts of the state opposing the strike and urged the people to maintain normalcy all across.

"As part of the all-India agitation against the Centre's November 8 demonetisation, we have urged the people of Tripura to observe the 12-hour strike across the state, The strike was total, successful and spontaneous," Tripura Left Front convenor and former Lok Sabha member Khagen Das said.
Israeli forces reportedly killed four IS militants in Syria in the first direct clash between the country and the jihadi group, the media reported.



The militants opened fire on a military patrol on the Israeli side of the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, a military spokesman was quoted by the Independent online.



Lt.Col.Peter Lerner said the patrol came under machine gun and mortar fire early on Sunday.



They returned fire towards Syria before an Israeli aircraft engaged the militants, striking a machine gun-armed car and killing its passengers.



All of the gunmen were suspected militants from "Shuhada al-Yarmouk," an IS offshoot which controls the area.



Lerner said none of the Israeli soldiers, from the Golani Brigade, were wounded in the clash.



Israel seized 1,200 sq.km (460 sq.miles) of the Golan from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move never recognised by the international community.



Israel has been largely unaffected by the Syrian civil war next door.



While avoiding being drawn into the internal Syrian conflict, Israel attacks Syrian military targets when fire, even unintentional, spills over the demarcation line.



The Israeli army holds the Syrian government accountable for any fire from its territory, regardless of the source.


At the entrance of the Hasan Shame refugee camp, 20 kilometres east of Mosul in northern Iraq, women fleeing Islamic State remove their niqabs and burqas and hang them on a wire fence. Families torn apart by war are regrouping for the first time in two years. Sisters, brothers and cousins embrace in tears. Many of them had lost contact with each other, while the lucky ones were able to hide cellphones in holes dug into the floors of their homes.

The US-led offensive on Mosul, the last major stronghold of IS in Iraq, began on October 17. As Iraqs second largest city, Mosul once housed Kurds, Sunni and Shia Muslims and Christians. With most of its residents either displaced or being held to ransom by IS, the city is at the centre of a humanitarian crisis. Relief organisations expect the offensive to create at least one million internal refugees, which will add to the 3.3 million who have already been displaced.

The fate of all of them is in the hands of a mosaic of forces that today are fighting, apparently, for a common cause: the Iraqi army, the Kurdish peshmerga, the Shiite militia Hashed al Shabi, the most dangerous in the field, and several other local militias, each ready to claim their own power.

It was in June 2014 that IS captured Mosul, forcing two Iraqi army divisions to flee the city they were supposed to defend. In two years, IS imposed sharia on the citys population, forced thousands of Christians to flee their homes, confiscated their money, destroyed their churches and executed all Sunni and Shiite opponents. During his recent visit to Iraq, Filippo Grandi, UN high commissioner for refugees, termed the protection of civilians as the most important component of the military operation to liberate Mosul. The high commissioners office will need at least $200 million to effectively deal with the crisis at hand. At the moment, though, funds at its disposal do not exceed 38 per cent of the figure.

Meanwhile, in Iraqi Kurdistan, new refugee camps are springing up: One of them is Al Khazir, east of Mosul and near Bartella, one of the Christian villages recently liberated by the allied forces. Shaker Khalifa arrived at the camp a week ago with his wife and two childrena teenager and a four-year-old. He comes from Tob Zawa, a village near Mosul. Shaker takes a cigarette from his pocket and smiles. I could not smoke for two years, he says. At the beginning, they fined us 3,00,000 Iraqi dinars if they found us smoking. Then they started corporal punishment and arrests. They even forced us to throw out all our clothes, not accepting signs in English or drawings they thought were blasphemous. They destroyed TVs, phones and all other electronic devices. They wanted to prevent any contact with the outside world and make sure that the only reality we could know was their distorted reality. Above all, they wanted to prevent our children access a world different from their own, so that the brainwashing of their minds became easier.

In good faith: A bishop greets an Iraqi soldier near the Bartella front line.

In Tob Zawa, Shaker had a shop where he sold perfumes and detergents. Initially, IS members told him to pay a monthly fee. Then they forced him to close it down, because the sale of perfumes was forbidden as per their interpretation of sharia. I did not know how to feed my family, he says. I gave them all of my wifes jewellery for a few thousand dinars. I could not run away. For a long time, because of the mere fact of having lived under IS, we carried the burden of stigma and we feared retaliation. Living there or elsewhere for us represented the same danger.

The first two sons of Shaker escaped to Erbil in 2014. Ashraf, the third, was a teenager. His school, like all others in the region, was closed. Ashraf said that every Friday, IS members went from one house to another, gathering children for sessions at the mosque. They wanted to recruit children for the cause of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, IS chief and self-proclaimed caliph. Those who refused were dragged to the streets and whipped in public.

An Iraqi soldier gives water to a captured IS fighter.

One night, after the beginning of the offensive on October 17, IS members knocked on Shakers door, seeking Ashraf because someone had told them that he was a peshmerga spy. They tied my hands behind my back, blindfolded me and loaded me on to a car, says Ashraf. They took me to one of the tunnels they had built in the village.

Inside there were weapons and material to build bombs. There were also beds, food and medical supplies. I thought those men could have lived there for weeks, he says. They forced me into one of these tunnels to question me.

Someone informed the IS intelligence that Ashrafs brothers had joined the peshmerga to fight and defeat al-Baghdadi. I kept crying and screaming that it was not true, that none of my family was fighting against them. They tortured me for hours with electric cables and whips, says Ashraf. Shaker says that when Ashraf was finally released, his back resembled a map drawn of blood and wounds.

Hope springs eternal: Girls pray at a makeshift prayer room at a shopping mall in Erbil.

Those days, people living under IS feared of being punished, detained or killed. Today, weeks after the beginning of the offensive, the fear has been replaced by a dilemma: whether to stay at home with the risk of being held to ransom as human shields, or to get away and risk death by sniper fire or by the hundreds of mines left by IS.

Not all people in refugee camps have stories of suspicion and fear to tell. For many of them, life under IS represented, at least initially, a more dignified existence than that guaranteed by the government led by Nouri al-Maliki. Mahkmoud, the eldest among the thousands of newcomers from Tob Zawa, sits outside his tent. Around him are dozens of men from his village. In the beginning, IS members came to us and promised a better life, saying they wanted to protect the real Islam, showing themselves as liberators and friends, he says. They paid our boys 1,00,000 Iraqi dinars a month, and they took grain and bread to all the families in need.

Mahkmoud was wealthy. He had a farm in the village, and 10 per cent of his earnings every month went to IS. Initially, he willingly gave the money to support IS; later, unwillingly, to quell his fear of being killed. Mahkmoud described a life of deprivations, but with an initial, apparent stability. I had no choice, he says. For a time, I thought it was for a good cause, for the well-being that these men promised to bring to my people. They distributed all properties and goods confiscated from Christian villages. I thought that if we did not violate their laws, we could live in dignity. I thought: my life under IS cannot be worse than the one the government had reserved for me.

Then things changed. IS increased taxes and decreased wages, and consensus began to wane. And the more the consensus waned, the more brutal became the punishments. Repression became the watchword.

Karam el Hiam of Tob Zawa had a computer store that also sold electronic games. IS forced him to shut it down and destroyed all his belongings. Four months ago, his cousin was caught with a phone. The Hasbah, ISs ruthless police, tore her nails one by one. Then they killed her.

The Dibaga refugee camp, on the outskirts of Erbil, is a vast expanse of tents. With a capacity to accommodate no more than 28,000 people, it is now home to 40,000. In some cases, three families live in a tent; those who have no place in the tents sleep on the ground outside.

The Dibaga refugee camp, which houses about 40,000 people.

Water is scarce and there are not enough toilets. Food is a luxury. The hygienic conditions are worrying, especially for women, who have, in these two years, been forced into a life of segregation and violence, says Giulia Cappellazzi, head of Mission of Un Ponte Per (A Bridge for) in Iraq. We have heard hundreds of stories of abused women [who were] forced to give up their lives and remain locked in the house, fearing for their husbands and children. We believe it is necessary to help these women overcome the trauma.

Women struggle to talk even with psychologists: they are afraid of retaliation, since many of their relatives are still in Mosul and surrounding villages. They fear to show even their eyes under the niqab. Fatimah (who does not want to reveal her real name) is 25 years old. She is two months pregnant and walked seven hours to get to the safety of the Dibaga camp.

All is not lost: Families fleeing Mosul at night.

One night, a few months ago, IS members arrested her husband and father, a former Iraqi policeman, and took them to jail. Accused of being spies of the Iraqi army, they were tortured and hung from the ceiling for two days. Before they were let go, IS confiscated all their property.

Her father is no longer able to move his hands. Her husband often wakes up in the middle of the night, screaming. I was not used to wearing burqas, but the real shock for me was the imposition of the gloves, says Fatimah. One day I looked in the mirror and did not recognise the reflection on it. I did not know who was the woman hidden by the black cloak. I could not leave home unless accompanied by a first-degree relative. We were forbidden to study, to work. Even thinking was forbidden. They did not want citizens. They were only looking for soldiers willing to die.

Fatimah managed to escape on a Friday during prayer, because it was not easy to find them in the street, they were all in the mosque. When I left home, I was sure to die. Being here is a gift, she says.

Refugees at Hasan Shame camp queuing up for food.

Aicha (name changed) is 40 years old and a mother of four children. One of her children died three years ago, when her house was set on fire by a fundamentalist group in her Bir Halan village. In the village, everyone knew the most extreme families around us, and when men from Tikrit and Anbar arrived at Bir Halan, we called them bad tourists, says Aicha. At that time, my husband worked for the Iraqi police and they threatened him constantly. One day, they went to his office because they wanted to turn it into an office for the Islamic police. They ordered him to leave the office and never return. My husband refused. I was in the market buying something for lunch when a neighbour called me shouting that my house was on fire. I ran as fast as I could. My child was inside, sleeping. I tried to walk in the flames that enveloped my house to save him.

Aichas son died in the flames. The bad tourists became Islamic State.

Sadi Yusef Latif, 23, lived in Qayyara under IS for two years. His dream was to become a doctor, but he now lives in Jadaa refugee camp. He would like to wash and put on clean clothes, but there are none.

His cousin, Ibrahim, 19, was an asthma patient. One day, Yusef went with him to the Qayyara hospital to buy medicines. But IS members refused to oblige, because not all members of Ibrahims family were IS supporters. The few medicines left in the city were guaranteed only to the families faithful to al-Baghdadi. The others were left to die.

GUNFIRE AND BRIMSTONE: These battered walls in Kirkuk city say a long story. A story of fortitude. Even as the Battle for Mosul raged, IS snipers unleashed terror from this buildingclearly a diversionary tactic. The frustrated Iraqi-led coalition soldiers engaged in a long gun-battle to snuff the jihadists out.

Indeed, Ibrahim died soon, and Yusef decided it was best to try to escape than die under Islamic State. I knew there was one man in town who helped civilians escape, a source of the Iraqi army. So, one day, he took me home, hid me for a few hours until he received a call from his friend in the Iraqi police, and then helped me escape. I paid $200 for this. I was lucky; in some villages they were demanding $1,000. According to the UN, since the beginning of military operations, summary executions of fleeing civilians have multiplied in the villages still under the control of IS.

According to reports, IS has executed 230 people, including 190 former members of the Iraqi army, at al-Ghaslani military base. As the battle for Mosul enters a decisive phase, hundreds of families have been forced to move into the town from surrounding villages to be used as human shields. The bodies of executed civilians are piled in the square and streets of the suburbs and neighbouring villages.

The battle of Mosul will be tough and bloody, as IS had time to turn the city into a trap made of chemical weapons, suicide bombers and snipers scattered everywhere.

The blood price of this urban war will be very high. IS knows it cannot win this war, but the fidayeen are determined to make it very painful.

Recently, in the refugee camp at al Khazir, two girls arrived from a village near Mosul. One of them was injured by a mine. One of the hundreds of mines scattered by IS around the villages.

Going to die and punish, the watchwords of today.

Reprisals, possibly, that of tomorrow.
It is a balmy November evening in New Delhi. Basking in the success of her latest box-office hit Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is busy hopping venues, stirring up a frenzy in a celebrity-starved national capital.

In town to inaugurate the new Longines boutique at the Mall of India, she doesnt seem the one who can be rushed. Dressed in a royal blue silk gown with capped sleeves, Aishwarya glides through the crowds, tirelessly waving and pausing for selfies among loud cheers.

I hate jerky conversations and hurried appearances. I like giving time to whatever I do and expect the same from others, says Aishwarya, as we settle down in one of the cozy meeting rooms at the Taj Palace Hotel. How easy is it to go slow and steady in a business where dreams vanish in a heartbeat, and one has to make hay while the sun shines? I have always followed my heart. I come from an academic background and choosing movies as a career was a serious decision for me. I could have started my journey with a glamorous role but I chose Iruvar as my first film. I could have done the usual song, dance and looked glamorous, but I didnt want the film to be all about me. I was excited to work with Mani Ratnam on an unconventional debut, she says.

When not in school, Aaradhya (in pic) accompanies her mother, Aishwarya, to shoots and keeps herself engaged at the bus office | Getty Images

A political drama inspired by Tamil bigwigs M.G. Ramachandran and M. Karunanidhi, Iruvar fell flat at the box-office, but was appreciated by critics for her stellar performance. Over the past two decades, Aishwarya has acted in more than 40 films, including some Hollywood projects like The Pink Panther 2, Provoked and The Mistress of Spices. More than the movies, it is Aishwaryas global appeal as the ambassador of several international brands that has made her one of the most talked-about Indian celebrities across the world.

I have had one of my longest associations with Longines. When the brand approached me to be its global ambassador in 1999, it immediately made me smile for a couple of reasons: their history with watchmaking (180 years), craftsmanship, and the fact that the brand was already being represented by incredible personalities like Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. It thrilled me that I would be in such fine company in the very beginning of my career. It is a familial bond; they have been part of all my personal and professional milestones, says Aishwarya.

From walking the Cannes red carpet with lilac lips to mesmerising the audience with her super sexy avatar in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, Aishwarya is willing to experiment, regardless of how critics judge her. I do three to four films a year and my effort is to bring out something different with each one. When I did Devdas in 2002, the most obvious step would have been another big budget film, but I went ahead with Choker Bali, followed by Raincoat. This year, I portrayed Anuradha in Jazbaa, Dalbirji in Sarabjit and Saba in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil... all very different from each other, says Aishwarya.

Her first film with Karan Johar in 20 years, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil also marks Aishwaryas entry into Bollywoods coveted Rs 100-crore club. The worldwide earnings of the film have reportedly touched a whopping Rs 182.76 crore since its release in October.

As Johars svelte, sexy poetess Sabashe of the flaming red lips, mushy musings and come-hither looksAishwarya has played her glamorous best quite effortlessly in the film. When Karan came to me with the script, it was a yes already. I didnt imagine declining him, she says. There is a very sweet irony about Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. When Karan was making Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, he first approached me but I was travelling from the shoot of Aa Ab Laut Chalein in New York to work on Jeans at various locations. I just couldnt change the dates. Ranbir was the assistant on Aa Ab Laut Chalein. Today, eventually, when we got to work together, it is the three of us together in the same film and it makes us smile.

Ae Dil Hai Mushkil was about working with friends and for friends, says Aishwarya, and playing the supporting actor in the film was never a concern. I broke all this compartmentalisation with Iruvar. We are all artistes who are part of a larger canvas. Perception always tends to override everybodys contribution, but the fact is you can only enjoy that entire piece of cinema because of every individuals contribution in telling that story, she says. This little statement is very precious to meeach professional is important to tell a films story.

Sizzling chemistry: A still from Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, in which Aishwarya played the role of Saba, a poetess.

Apart from films, endorsements and some social work, Aishwaryas prime time is solely occupied by her five-year-old daughter Aaradhya. When not in school, Aaradhya accompanies her mother to shoots and keeps herself engaged at the bus office. The vanity van is mammas office [laughs]. I take along Aaradhyas homework and post-school activities so that we spend some quality time together. She knows of our vocation and what we do, but that is not the topic of the day, says Aishwarya. When she was small, I used to joke with her about that LOreal campaign plastered all over the city. I would tell her look mums waving at you. I have never sat her down to show my movies, but Im sure she will chance upon some passing trailer or song someday. Im raising her normally, like I have been raised.

Motherhood hasnt really influenced Aishwaryas choices in any way. Be it films or endorsements, she has learnt to juggle her roles with elan. You just figure out a way to schedule your life better and that is what I have been doing ever since Aaradhya came into my life. Im looking forward to be creatively engaged and be surprised, she says.

But has she deliberately cut off social media? Well, that is not completely true. I dont feel the need to be there, she says. When the whole Twitter and Facebook trend started out, it was more about making statements and adding followers. I didnt connect with it. When you are talking to the worlds most beautiful woman, you cant help but ask, how does it feel to be admired by millions? I try and project a very composed demeanour, but people who know me closely know that I get very conscious, she says with a laugh. I have the grace to thank everyone for their generosity, but it makes you shy. You end up changing the topic instantly, but yes, its overwhelming.
The attached photo photos a fireman carrying one of the many Sifrei Torah, which Baruch Hashem were saved from the fires that caused heavy damage to many neighborhoods in Haifa.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem/Photo Credit: N. district fire spokesman Uri Chubatro)
Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, who is not often interviewed by the media, is maintaining a high media presence in light of the widespread damage from fire in Haifa and other areas of the country.

The senior cabinet minister promised the nation that the bureaucracy surrounding compensatory payment to victims will be minimal.

Kahlon on motzei Shabbos met with officials from the Defense Ministry, Interior Ministry and National Emergency Authority as they are coordinating assistance for the many victims and destruction of homes, vehicles and other property.

During the meeting held in Haifa the decision was made that each fire victim would receive NIS 2,500 to begin, immediate assistance. One must contact local governmental authorities to receive the sum, which is given to each family member.

Kahlon promises the adjusters are out in the streets, with an emphasis on badly-hit Haifa, with the hope and goal of expediting processing claims for compensation. An estimated 700 families are homeless as a result of the fire while for many others, their home is not wiped out but in need of refurbishing following the fire damage.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Mrs. Miri Maoz Ovadia, a spokesperson for Nvei Tzuf (Chalamish) spoke with the media on Sunday morning, 26 Cheshvan. She describes the miracles that took place despite the enormous destruction resulting from the fire in their Shomron community on Friday night. Over a dozen homes were totally destroyed, homes in the veteran area of the community, some made of wood. A total 45 homes were damaged by fire in the community of about 350 families. The wooden homes were the first to catch fire and they were soon thereafter engulfed in flames.

Ovadia explained it would have been very difficult to get the people out but they were away on vacation this particular Shabbos.

It is added the siren sounded at about 11:00PM on a Friday night so many people were in bed yet Bchasdei Hashem there was no loss of life or injuries among residents or firefighters.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
While a frum home generally does not have internet, cable television and other devices, most homes in the Western world do and Haifa is no exception.

Residents are complaining that they feel like they are back in the stone ages as there is no internet in many homes hit by fires, leaving them without Facebook, without email, without WhatsApp and without all the other services that rely on internet connectivity.

Families tell Reshet Bet Radio they call the local 106 emergency number, Bezeq, Hot, and other internet and phone service providers and in most cases, no one is answering.

A senior Bezeq official told Reshet Bet he personally is out in the streets in this very area and the fact is, some areas have suffered heavy damage to infrastructure and restoration of service may take some time.

Parents explain the children do not know what to do with themselves  no internet and no television. Some might opine this is a hint that possibly, something is wrong with the lifestyle while others are simply waiting impatiently for basic services to be restored following the disastrous fires.

Haifa residents report the Haifa Municipality has responded as it should as did Israel Electric Company, explaining water and electric are operational in most areas.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
[WEBCAST IN EXTENDED ARTICLE]

This year, for the twelfth year on YWN, tens of thousands of viewers from around the world will be able to view the International Kinus HaShluchim banquet live on a broadcast made possible by the organizers of the Kinus. The live streaming webcast begins at 6:00PM on Sunday, Nov. 27, and is taking place at the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal.

The highlight is always the traditional roll call of countries and regions which is followed by spirited dancing.

As we have for more than a decade, YWN will be bringing you thousands of photos, as well as extensive video and photo coverage from the massive event.

5,600 Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic rabbinic emissaries and communal leaders from 90 countries, hailing from as far away as Bangkok and Kenya are gathering for the International Conference of Chabad-Lubavitch Emissaries. The event is considered the largest Jewish gathering in North America. This years conference carries an added significance as the North American Jewish community marks 75 years since the Lubavitcher RebbeRabbi Menachem M. Schneerson ZATZAL and Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka AH, arrived on U.S. shores from war-torn Europe in 1941, setting into motion the worlds most vigorous Jewish outreach program in history.

Visit Jewish.TV for more Jewish videos.
Letters threatening that President-elect Donald Trump will do to Muslims what Adolf Hitler did to the Jews were sent to three California mosques last week, according to the Council on Islamic-American Relations, or CAIR.

The handwritten letter, which referred to Muslims as children of Satan, were mailed to Islamic centers in San Jose in Northern California and Long Beach and Pomona in Southern California. It called Trump the new sherriff (sic) in town who will cleanse America and make it shine again by eradicating the countrys Muslim population.

You Muslims are a vile and filthy people. Your fathers are dogs, the letter states. You are evil. You worship the devil. But, your day of reckoning has arrived.

The letter went on to say that Muslims would be wise to pack your bags and get out of Dodge.

The Evergreen Islamic Center in San Jose was the first to receive the letter, according to CAIR, a civil liberties and advocacy organization for Muslims in the United States. Authorities were alerted Thursday night after the centers imam found it in the mail, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

On Saturday, CAIR said the Islamic centers in Long Beach and Pomona also received a similar letter.

The hate campaign targeting California houses of worship must be investigated as an act of religious intimidation, and our states leaders should speak out against the growing anti-Muslim bigotry that leads to such incidents, Hussam Ayloush, executive director for CAIRs office in Los Angeles, said in a statement.

The letter, which was signed Americans for a Better Way, ended with long live President Trump and God bless the USA.

Faisal Yazadi, chairman of the board of the Islamic center in San Jose, said he hopes the sender would try to engage in a conversation with the Muslim community.

Our doors are never locked, Yazadi told the Chronicle. I hope that person knows that were more than happy to have a dialogue. Hopefully, we learn a thing or two from him or her, and he or she learns something from us.

The FBI said this month that hate crimes against U.S. Muslims spiked last year to its highest level since the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

Law enforcement agencies across the country reported 257 anti-Muslim incidents last year, an increase of nearly 67 percent from 2014, according to recent FBI data.

Overall, hate crimes increased by 6.7 percent from 2014 to 2015. Anti-black and anti-Jewish incidents rose by about 7.6 and 9 percent, respectively, according to the FBI.

Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for CAIR, told The Washington Posts Matt Zapotosky that the anti-Muslim rhetoric that came out of the presidential campaign was to blame.

On the campaign trail in December, Trump called for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States. The ban is one of his most controversial and popular proposals, alongside building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and deporting illegal immigrants. Trumps campaign later repackaged the proposal, saying immigration should be suspended from countries compromised by terrorism.

More than 100 anti-Muslim incidents have occurred since the presidential election, according to CAIRs national office. The Southern Poverty Law Center, a hate-watch group, has tallied more than 700 incidents of harassment from Nov. 9 to Nov. 16. Many appear to have been made in Trumps name and were directed at immigrants, African Americans and Muslims. The center cautions that not all incidents have direct references to the president-elect and that not every report could be immediately verified.

CAIR also said this month that the FBI questioned Muslims in at least eight states to seek information about a possible threat from al-Qaida to carry out pre-election attacks.

Hassan Shibly, a lawyer and executive director of the CAIR office in Florida, told The Posts Katie Mettler that his clients were asked whether they knew the al-Qaida leaders killed in U.S. military strikes last month and whether they knew of anyone who wished to harm Americans at home or abroad. Among those questioned, Shibly said, were a youth group leader and wealthy doctors.

The FBI actions  to conduct a sweep of American Muslim leaders the weekend before the election is completely outrageous and  borderline unconstitutional, Shibly told The Post. Thats the equivalent of the FBI visiting churchgoing Christians because someone overseas was threatening to blow up an abortion clinic. Its that preposterous and outrageous.

(c) 2016, The Washington Post  Kristine Guerra
North Korea is observing a three-day period of mourning for Fidel Castro, seen by the North as a rare comrade-in-arms against the common enemy of the United States.

The North has ordered flags outside official buildings be flown at half-staff to honor Castro, the countrys state media reported Monday. The iconic Cuban leader died Friday at age 90.

Reports from Pyongyang said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a wreath to the Cuban Embassy and that a delegation of senior North Korean officials has left for Havana to attend Castros memorial services.

According to a Japanese agency that monitors North Korean media, Castro is the first foreign political figure to be honored in such a manner since Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004.

Besides flying flags at half-staff, it was not immediately clear what the mourning period, which ends on Wednesday, would entail.

Shortly after receiving news of Castros death, Kim Yong Nam, head of the Norths parliament, and Premier Pak Pong Ju sent a message of condolence to Castros brother Raul, who assumed power after Fidel became too weak to continue as leader in 2008.

In it, they said that although Fidel Castro has died, the feats he performed for the Cuban revolution and the fraternal relations of friendship between the two countries would remain forever.

But Fidel Castros passing could well be the end of an era for North Korea-Cuba relations.

Because of their common enmity toward the United States and similar authoritarian power structures, Cuba and North Korea had maintained very close diplomatic ties throughout the years. The two countries established ties in 1960 and Castro visited the North in 1986 to meet with Kim Il Sung, the countrys founder and Kim Jong Uns grandfather.

Such fraternal sentiment toward Havana and Raul Castro, however, appears to have dimmed in Pyongyang amid a rapprochement between Cuba and the U.S., who agreed to normalize ties in 2014.

(AP)
President Reuven Rivlin on Sunday, 26 Cheshvan spoke with the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and thanked him for his countrys assistance for Israel in during the wave of arson attacks.

President Rivlin told President Erdogan that he had met the Turkish firefighter pilots who assisted in Israel, They do wonderful work and we very much appreciate all they do, and added, I want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your decision to send us help when we needed it in fighting the fires. With their brave hearts and abilities, your pilots assisted us greatly.

President Erdogan thanked President Rivlin for his words and said, As soon as I found out that the fire was spreading I requested we send our helicopters and teams to help, and I hope and pray that the mission will end with the best outcome possible.

He went on to note that the relations between Turkey and Israel were in the process of a renewal and that the Turkish Ambassador would begin his service soon. The normalization of the relations between Turkey and Israel is of utmost importance for the whole region, President Erdogan said. I know that we can keep working together in the domain of natural gasses and that the conversations between our energy ministries will bear fruit.

Towards the end of their conversation President Erdogan asked President Rivlin about the initiatives pertaining to Muslim prayers. President Rivlin noted they would be, Considered with sensitivity, as any matter of freedom of speech and religion should be.

President Rivlin thanked President Erdogan again for their conversation, and asked that he would do all in his power to assist in the return of the soldiers bodies being held in Gaza, of Oron Shaul HYD and Hadar Goldin HYD, for proper burial in Israel. President Rivlin stressed that the State of Israel would continue to allow each person freedom of religion, whether they were Muslim, Christian or Jewish. The two Presidents ended their conversation expressing their hope to speak again soon.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Following the cross-border attack against Golani Brigade soldiers in the Golan Heights on Sunday, the Israel Air Force during the night retaliated, dropping ten one-ton bombs on an ISIS facility in Syria.

The attack was launched against an abandoned facility which was once used by United Nations forces, ten taken over and used by ISIS to attack Israeli forces across the border.

Bchasdei Hashem there were no injuries or loss of life on the Israeli side in the cross-border gunfire attack on Sunday.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
The Security Cabinet on Sunday, 26 Cheshvan approved the purchase of seventeen additional US-built F-35 state-of-the-art fighter planes. The deal will be funded by US aid given to Israel for defense. This will bring Israels F-35 fleet to 50 fighter planes.

To date, Israeli pilots have trained on the planes using simulators. The first two are expected to arrive in two weeks, and they will be flown to Israel by US pilots. Then Israeli pilots will have their chance to become acquainted with the aircraft.

It is also reported that one of the new planes will be used for testing, permitting the air force to test new weapons systems the advanced planet.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
A man plowed his car into a group of pedestrians at Ohio State University and then got out and began stabbing people with a butcher knife before he was shot and killed by an officer Monday morning, campus police said.

Nine people were hurt, one critically, and Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs said police were looking into whether it was a terrorist attack.

The details emerged after a morning of confusion and conflicting reports that began with the university issuing a series of tweets warning students that there was an active shooter on campus near the engineering building and that they should run, hide, fight.

Numerous police vehicles and ambulances converged on the 60,000-student campus, and authorities blocked off roads.

Ohio State Police Chief Craig Stone said that the attacker drove over a curb outside a classroom building and that an officer who was nearby shot the driver.

The threat ended when the officer shot the suspect, said Monica Moll, the schools public safety director.

The shelter-in-place warning was lifted about an hour and half later and the campus was declared secure after police concluded there was no second attacker, as rumored.

At least two people were being treated for stab wounds, four were injured by the car and two others were being treated for cuts, university officials said.

Rachel LeMaster, who works in the engineering college, said a fire alarm sounded before the attack.

There were several moments of chaos, she said. We barricaded ourselves like were supposed to since it was right outside our door and just hunkered down.

LeMaster said she and others were eventually led outside the building and she saw a body on the ground.

Cassidie Baker, an Ohio State senior, said she saw police or paramedics helping one person on the ground outside Watts Hall, a materials science and engineering building.

No one really knows what is happening, other than theres an active shooter, she said.

Classes were canceled for the rest of the day.

The initial tweet from the universitys emergency management department went out around 10 a.m. and said: Buckeye Alert: Active Shooter on campus. Run Hide Fight. Watts Hall. 19th and College.

Run, hide, fight is standard protocol for active shooter situations. It means: Run, evacuate if possible; hide, get silently out of view; or fight, as a last resort, take action to disrupt or incapacitate the shooter if your life is in imminent danger.

(AP)
Dr Alastair Riddells CV reveals a high-flying career with the forerunners of what are now GE Healthcare, Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer, followed by spells guiding businesses to IPO or trade sale.

So, what attracted him to the challenge of Feedback, the Cambridge-based AIM-listed medical imaging firm worth less than 4million?

'The persistence of Tom Charlton, who would not give me any peace until I said yes,' jokes Riddell.

Feedback: The AIM-listed medical imaging firm's new product, called TexRAD, is software that analyses medical images, to reveal features not always evident to the eye

Charlton is one of Feedbacks major shareholders who recruited the companys new chairman.

However, Riddells mind was actually made up by cold hard data that underscored the potential of its main product, TexRAD.

'When I went to Cambridge and spoke to the people who do the work there it became clear there was real potential in this,' he told Proactive Investors.

'What really convinced me was a small study theyd done.'

Before we get to that study, it is worth getting a feel for TexRAD does. It was the brainchild of the PhD of Dr Balaji Ganeshan, an expert on textural analysis of images gleaned from computed tomography (CT) scans.

Distilled down to the basics, it is essentially a very smart piece of software that analyses medical images, to reveal features that are not always evident to the human eye.

In doing so, it may 'in a very statistical, objective and numerical way relate the output to a prognosis for the patient', says Riddell.

Clever: TexRAD was the brainchild of the PhD of Dr Balaji Ganeshan (seen above), an expert on textural analysis of images gleaned from computed tomography (CT) scans

Ganeshan carried out a study of patients with liver cancer using TexRAD and the results were, in the words of the Feedback chairman, 'quite remarkable'.

'It quickly dawned on me that this could be a really valuable objective tool for giving an accurate prognosis,' he adds.

Riddell was announced as chairman in June, which hasnt given him a lot of time to shape strategy.

But he has a good idea how to get the business into the full commercial phase within the next six to nine months.

FEEDBACK AT A GLANCE AIM ticker: FDBK Value: 3.8m Share price: 1.81p Year high: 2.45p Low: 0.57p

He has hired a person with experience in the imaging industry to put together a marketing strategy and business plan 'which should be sorted in the next few weeks'.

Feedback is already making money from TexRAD with sales to institutions carrying out research.

To fully commercialise the product it must be granted a CE Mark, a European certification for the technology.

It hopes to receive the regulatory green light sometime in the first quarter of next year.

This will enable it to sell TexRAD to hospitals, where it will lend numerical support to the very skilled, interpretative work carried out by radiologists.

At that point it will require funds to hire a sales and sales support team, which in turn means Feedback will have to raise a little money to bankroll the expansion of what is currently a very lean team.

Riddell, the consummate City veteran, wont say when he will call on shareholders, or just how much Feedback requires, but he acknowledges there will be a need to fund growth.

Test run: Dr Balaji Ganeshan carried out a study of patients with liver cancer using TexRAD and the results were, in the words of the Feedback chairman, 'quite remarkable'

'We will go the market when I think we have a compelling story and we have some numbers for the market,' he says.

'We are not yet at that stage. We are ticking over; investing a little in market analysis and market development that I think will pay off.'

After that he expects to be able to unveil a new product that analyses tumour deposits in the lung.

In this regard it has partnership with a firm called Alliance Medical Group, which wants to integrate TexRAD into its scanners.

Meanwhile, a tie-up with a company in Poland called Future Processing provides Feedback with the coding know-how to develop a wider product suite.

Sales of the current product, though modest, reveal there is demand from a very specialist audience in the research sphere.

Pioneering technology: Feedback chairman Dr Alastair Riddell expects to be able to unveil a new product that analyses tumour deposits in the lung going into 2017

It means the technology is already being cited in literature by some of the leading centres for cancer research  providing a great endorsement of the TexRAD from key opinion leaders.

Commenting on the strategy going forward, Riddell said: 'My view is at the moment we are far too small and far too young to be engaged in corporate discussion.

'But, if we can grow sales the way I hope we can grow them, then in two or three years we might look differently at these corporate approaches.'

In the meantime, it is about 'investing in the company and doing things to a particular standard', the Feedback chairman says.

'Of course, the next milestone will be getting the CE Mark for TexRAD.
Europe's third-largest investment house Aberdeen Asset Management today posted a 28 per cent drop in annual profits, pointing to Brexit as a big blow to its business.

Aberdeen's underlying full year pretax profits fell to 352.7million, down from 491.6million a year earlier, as revenues dropped by 14 per cent to 1billion.

The Scottish group was stung by outflows of 32.8billion from its funds in the year to September 30, which included 8billion from its multi asset and quantitative funds.

However Aberdeen did manage to post 'healthy' net inflows into its emerging market stock funds - for which it is well-known - in the final quarter, and announced its total dividends would be unchanged from 2015 at 19.5p.

Under pressure: Aberdeen's chief executive, Martin Gilbert, said that economic and political newsflow has weighed on investor sentiment, leading to big outflows from the group's funds

The fund firm's total assets under management also grew by 10 per cent to 312.1billion by its year-end, helped by the acquisitions of FLAG Capital Management, Arden Asset Management, Advance Emerging Capital and Parmenion Capital Partners over the period.

Commenting on the results, Aberdeen boss Martin Gilbert, said: 'These financial results reflect, in part, our diversified business model and strict cost management.

'Economic and political newsflow has weighed on investor sentiment and, as expected, has led to further outflows from our business.'

Looking ahead, Mr Gilbert offered a cautious outlook. He said the industry faces a triumvirate of 'fee pressure, technological innovation and greater regulatory requirements' in the coming years.

Aberdeen Asset shares on the FTSE 250 index were initially higher this morning in reaction to the - as expected - results, but soon retreated, losing 1.2 per cent, or 3.6p at 282.6p.

Aberdeen's chairman Simon Troughton said: 'Future political and economic events, including the UK's negotiations to exit the EU, the start of President-elect Trump's term in office and European elections, will contribute to ongoing volatility in global markets in the short term.

'However, until there is greater clarity, it is difficult to predict the impact on markets over the medium and longer term.'

The 33 year-old investment giant - which has a market cap of 3.5billion - was one of several funds forced to suspend dealings in its property fund at the beginning of July as investors attempted to cash out following the Brexit vote.

Feeling the strain: The UK's negotiations to exit the EU and the start of Donald Trump's US Presidency are expected to contribute to ongoing volatility in global markets in the short term

Giving his verdict on the numbers, Nicholas Hyett, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, predicted that there is a yet another 'storm looming in the wings'.

He said: 'With a year end of the 30th September, these results miss the period after the US election when Donald Trumps America First rhetoric caused a significant fall in emerging markets.

'With Mr Trump looking set to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and even calling the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) into question, it looks like the US could shut its doors to a significant proportion of emerging market output. That could spell trouble ahead.'

Amid the tough market backdrop, Aberdeen said it is on track to make annualised cost cuts of 70million a year by March 2017.

The group last week reportedly said that it will not bid for UniCredit's fund management arm Pioneer.
New bank Masthaven has today officially launched after receiving the green light from the City watchdog in April.

The bank will focus on digital services much like other new recent challengers, such as Atom Bank, and has revealed its first tranche of competitive savings rates.

It has a one-year fix offering 1.35 per cent, a two-year fix at 1.53 per cent, a three-year at 1.61 per cent and a five-year deal at 2.01 per cent.

Masthaven Bank: The challenger has revealed its first tranche of savings deals

By comparison, the best one-year fix in the independent This is Money savings tables comes from Atom Bank and Ikano Bank at 1.4 per cent.

The top two-year fix is 1.6 per cent, while savers can also obtain a three-year rate at 1.63 per cent. The five year fix from the new bank is a best buy.

Savers can open the accounts with a minimum of 500 and maximum of 250,000.

Masthaven, based in London, has been a specialist lender since 2004. At launch, 80 per cent of its 100 employees are shareholders in the bank.

The bank is also offering personalised products. Its flexible term savings account allows savers to determine when their savings account matures to the day, of any period of time between six months and five years.

A slider tool on its website shows what rate they can obtain of the exact term they want. Masthaven says this is designed for customers looking to save for key events, such as a holiday or wedding.

Simon Kirby, economic secretary to the Treasury, hailed the arrival of the new bank. He said: 'We want our financial services industry to be the most competitive and innovative in the world, delivering greater choice and value for customers.

'New digital banks entering the market are a key part of this vision and help to cement the UK's leading position as a global fintech hub.

'I am delighted that Masthaven is now open for business and look forward to seeing it flourish as a new player in retail banking.'

Masthaven will also launch into the mortgage market in early 2017.

This will include bridging lending and development financing for self-builders.

The new bank is majority-owned by founder and majority shareholder Andrew Bloom.

He said: 'We are determined to help more people access financial products that will truly meet their needs.

'We have established a fantastic and dedicated team of experts to get the bank to launch and we are now very much looking forward to working with customers and brokers to show them what we have created.'

The bank is covered under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, meaning a 75,000 safety net for those who open an account.
Sir,



We grew up at a time when corporal punishment was the order of the day in schools and we were beaten to the last atom of our strength. Teachers were notorious for battering pupils and the Education Ministry was silent on corporal punishment for several decades.

This form of punishment shaped and refocused the lives of the children to the effect that there were limited cases of violence and crime in schools because corporal punishment would be meted out on learners in due course. Parents neither had a say nor complaint about it. Why? Because they knew a child had to be brought up in a fairly decent manner. I dont want to sound like an exponent of corporal punishment but I was only highlighting the positive aspects of this banned form of punishment.



I find it wise to compare the school life before and after the ban of corporal punishment. Our hearts throbbed with excitement when corporal punishment was phased out-perhaps replaced with the controversial positive discipline which has seen a lot of pupils in schools perpetrating violence, committing sex scandals, murder attempts, the list is infinite, with the immense hope that the African child was now free from the slavery of this notorious form of punishment.

Since the introduction of positive discipline criminal activities have been reported to be on the rise in schools, partially due to the fact that a teacher is no longer entitled to mete out corporal punishment on a pupil. As a result, pupils have thrived on violence and criminal activities because their freedom is not tinkered with now, they do as they please. Be that as it may, pupils seem to have misunderstood the objective of positive discipline and have thus taken it lightly.

Positive discipline is a disciplinary measure and instrument of enforcing punishment on a learner in a rather amicable way without the use of corporal punishment, which induced physical pain on the learners body. Its a disciplinary method commonly used by Europeans to enforce rigor in learners. However, an African child seems to and continues to struggle to master it, as he takes delight in manipulating it to serve his own ends. He thinks it has been introduced, essentially, to allow him infinite freedom to misbehave and act out of disrespect for his teachers.



The Ministry of Education has a colossal task to redefine the meaning of positive discipline in a broader perspective. Positive discipline did not fail the school authorities, it has failed the learner, and he has not complied with it but has misinterpreted its main objective. Lets all call for the alleviation of violence, criminal activities in schools. There is nothing wrong with positive discipline, its been misconstrued due to the fact that learners have not been oriented fully to it through campaigns and workshops something which the ministry should have undertaken at its inception.



Smanga Shabangu
MBABANE  Mfanzile Hlophe had a gashing wound on the top of his head, which had to be stitched when he got to hospital.



His uncle, Mandla Zwane, said they were told that Hlophe was hit with a rock on the head before he got burnt.

There are a lot of things we need answers for regarding this incident but since nobody is willing to talk to us, we will drop the matter.

The securiy guards did not enter through the main gate when they got into the homestead but used an informal entry point from behind the house. It is sad to hear that the accused persons are still walking free even after our son has died, Zwane said.



He said they would continue with burial plans for this coming weekend because nobody had come forward to tell them anything concerning their sons death.

Zwane revealed they went to the morgue on Saturday to make arrangements for the body to be moved from Mbabane Government Hospital morgue to another private morgue and they could not recognise him as Hlophe had suffered severe burns.



Nobody has come to us to tell us that we should not make any funeral arrangements.

The only people who came here are the Mayor Benito Jones and the Member of Parliament Johannes Shongwe and they revealed that they had heard of Hlophes passing from the media as nobody had informed them formally.



There was a community meeting held today (yesterday) and they made an announcement that our son had passed away.

There is nothing we are going to do except bury our child and if nobody tells us anything to the contrary, we will continue living our normal lives, Zwane said.



He further mentioned that they were informed by the community police that there would be a meeting this morning at the royal kraal.

Hlophe was allegedly doused with petrol on November 18, in front of his daughter, while he was in his yard at Mangwaneni and he rolled a few metres until he was out of his yard while trying to put out the fire in front of more than 16 men.



Seeing that the daughter attempted to put the flames out, one of the men who was among the crowd and was carrying a fire extinguisher, helped.

Hlophe leaves behind five children and a wife, whose house he was extending.



Acting Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Assistant Superintendent Phindile Vilakati stated that they had not made any arrests but they were still gathering evidence.

We are still going on with investigations and when we have all the elements to make an arrest, we will arrest the suspect or suspects, she said.
By the Greater Astoria Historical Society

In conjunction with the Greater Astoria Historical Society, the Times/Ledger newspaper presents noteworthy events in the boroughs history

On Nov. 8, 1939, the Queens-Midtown Tunnel was holed-through at 11:45 a.m., when Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, dressed as a sandhog, set off a blast that pierced the last 6 feet of rock. Postmaster General James Farley and Queens Borough President George Harvey were among the dignitaries who spoke at the ceremonies at the Manhattan entrance to the tunnel. The Queens entrance was still under construction. The tunnel opened to traffic Nov. 15, 1940.

The Worlds Fair closed for the winter to the tune of Auld Lang Syne on the midway. The fair site would become a virtual ghost town, with a skeleton crew to care for its $157,000,000 splendor and 1,216  acres until it reopened on May 15, 1940.

On Nov. 1, the Steinway Street bus route went into operation at 2 a.m. following ceremonies conducted at Steinway Street and 28th Avenue in Astoria. The new line signified the passing of the trolley-car from the Astoria-Long Island City area with one exceptionthe short line over the Queensboro Bridge. Borough President Harvey, members of the Steinway Street Merchants Association and the Astoria Heights Taxpayers Association saw one of the new buses put through its paces. The bus followed the last Steinway trolley and then passed it, thus demonstrating the flexibility and superiority of the bus over the trolley.

More than 400 homeowners packed the auditorium of PS 3, Forest Hills, and unanimously resolved to demand protection from the City Planning Board and the Board of Estimate against the further encroachment of apartment buildings on their community of small homes. They charged that the suburban residential character of their neighborhood was doomed if construction of apartment buildings was allowed to continue. These homeowners were the spearhead of a boroughwide movement for new zoning restrictions.

The Blissville Legion Post condemned a move to rename North Beach Airport LaGuardia Airport, after Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia. The Post was angry LaGuardia had refused to name a square in Woodside after the post. The mayors secretary on the Army Board said LaGuardia would not allow a park or any section of the city to be named after a living person or organization. The post commander observed that the mayor evidently was doing nothing to prevent city officials from naming an airport after himself. At the same time, the post commended Harvey for voting against a bill introduced by Bronx Borough President Lyons to name the airport after the mayor.

On Nov. 2, the airport was renamed Municipal Airport (LaGuardia Field),though Queens residents felt that the name should stay the same, since North Beach was known as an amusement park, or maybe be changed to Queens Airport to reflect its location. Its name was not changed to LaGuardia Airport until June 1, 1947, when it was leased to the Port Authority.

A Star-Journal reporter interviewed 82-year-old Capt. Rueben Palmer on his houseboat Idle Hour. The boat was beached on the shore of Flushing Bay. Palmer, who used to sail around the harbor with his wife (who had died), had lived there for 20 years. Palmer seemed content with his surroundings, which included kerosene lamps, a hand water pump and a ladder to the second floor. He lived a solitary life, but was visited every Sunday by a friend from Corona, who brought him some food and tobacco.
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By Patrick Donachie

A Tribe Called Quests new album Well Take It From HereThank You 4 Your Service, will be their last, according to the group, particularly after founding member Mailk Phife Dawg Taylors death earlier this year. The album is utterly in keeping with the rest of the seminal hip-hop groups discography without ever giving into the pull of nostalgia.

Though the new album by the group, which hails from Queens, was created over the past year, it seems particularly timely in the aftermath of the presidential election.

The albums roots lay in a reunion of the group in November 2015 on The Tonight Show to celebrate the reissuing of their debut album Peoples Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm. That show aired on the same evening as the Paris terror attacks. Phife Dawg; Kamaal Ibn John Fareed, known as Q-Tip; MC Jarobi White and Ali Shaheed Muhammad agreed to meet weeks later at Q-Tips home studio in New Jersey. After Phife Dawgs death in February from diabetes complications it was assumed that the group would not release another album, and fans were overjoyed in August to hear an album was forthcoming.

The guest performers cover a wide rangefrom Kanye West supplying the hook on The Killing Season and Kendrick Lamar adding a verse on Conrad Tokyo, to a spot by Elton John on Solid Wall of Sound and Jack Whites gnarled guitar on Ego. But you couldnt pick out the guests without a peek at the liner notes, and they remain subservient to the atmosphere the group concocts throughout.

The live instrumentation offers a DIY sheen to the minutely crafted backgrounds that are the foundation for the MCs. The aggression tends to be found in the agility of the raps, whether from Q-Tip, Phife Dawg, White or frequent Tribe guests Busta Rhymes and Consequence. Several of the songs continue in the vein of Tribes previous political work, with elliptical yet pointed critiques of the criminal justice system and the continued plight African-American communities face.

Imagine for one second all the people are colored, please

Imagine for one second all the people in poverty

No matter the skin tone, culture or time zone

Think the ones who got it

Would even think to throw you a bone?

Q-Tip raps this in the opening song The Space Program, asserting that such a program might be beyond reach for the disenfranchised throughout the country.

Yet the presidential election remains impossible to shake in several moments throughout the record. In the chorus of We the People, Q-Tip breaks into a chorus of All you black folks, you must go, all you Mexicans, you must go. By doing so, he levels a pointed critique of the President-elects campaign rhetoric. We all sing along, but if we stop to think, we may shiver at the thought.
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By Patrick Donachie

Police were seeking two suspects who shot two people during a home invasion attempt in Jamaica Sunday evening. One of the wounded was a state corrections officer, police said.

Officers responded to a 911 call of two people shot at 6:56 p.m., police said, at a home near the corner of Mathias Avenue and 166th Street. When police arrived, they found an unconscious and unresponsive 58-year-old man with several gunshot wounds to the torso. They also found a 52-year-old woman with a gunshot wound to the shoulder., and the New York Post reported she managed to struck one of the suspects with a hammer before they left the scene.

EMS workers responded to the scene and took both victims to Jamaica Hospital, where they were listed in critical condition.

Police described the two suspects as black males between the ages of 20 and 30, both wearing black hoodie sweatshirts and blue jeans. The two suspects forced their way into the house and shot both victims, police said. After opening fire, one suspect fled east on Mathias, while one fled westbound.

Police said no arrests had been made and the investigation was ongoing.
Times' Game of the Week Preview: No. 7 Beaver Area vs. No. 10 Deer Lakes

Beaver enters the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs riding high after closing the regular season strong. Up next: Deer Lakes for had coach Cort Rowse's Bobcats.
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Reading Joann S. Lublin's book, "Earning It: Hard-Won Lessons from Trailblazing Women at the Top of the Business World" can leave a working woman feeling like business is packed with successful female leaders. The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and management news editor for the Wall Street Journal interviewed women who are CEOs and former CEOs of major companies, from Hewlett-Packard to General Motors. Their wouldn't-take-no-for-an-answer success stories, some who rose from secretaries to the C-suite, compel a woman to dream of more. Of course the data Lublin also shares  that women ran 4.2 percent of companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index as of December 2015  remind the same woman that her ceiling is still pretty solidly glass. But in a refreshingly candid telling of women's work experiences, the 52 corporate female leaders Lublin interviewed speak about the adversity they faced to get to those leadership positions, from jaw-dropping sexual harassment tales to blatant discrimination and exclusion. They also provide advice at the end of each chapter.

So Lublin's giving it to us, both the triumphs and the trials, straight, including some of her experiences. Her own introduction to the work world was as the first female summer intern for the Washington, D.C., bureau of the Wall Street Journal in 1969, where her internship concluded with a kiss on the lips from her boss.
New York

A multimillion-dollar trove of seized Impressionist art believed to have been owned by the regime of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos has sat for five years in a climate-controlled Brooklyn warehouse, the subject of a bitter legal fight.

At issue is whether the 50 works  which include an 1881 painting by Claude Monet  should go to thousands of victims of the now-dead dictator, to the current Philippine government or to the personal secretary to Imelda Marcos, who contends she was rightfully given some of the art as gifts.

"It's a question of who is the owner and who is entitled," said Robert Swift, a human rights attorney representing nearly 10,000 victims of the Marcos regime who in 2011 won a judgment against Marcos, his estate and Imelda, his wife.

Of particular interest in the long-running, multi-jurisdictional case is an 1899 Monet from the "Water Lilies" series called "Le Bassin aux Nympheas," that the secretary, Vilma Bautista, sold in 2010 for $32 million. The other highly disputed items are three other prominent paintings still locked away in storage  an 1897 Alfred Sisley painting called "Langland Bay"; Monet's 1881 "L'Eglise et La Seine a Vetheuil"; and Albert Marquet's 1946 "Le Cypres de Djenan Sidi Said."

Both the government agency established by the Philippines to recover billions of dollars in assets believed to have been amassed during Marcos' 14-year regime, the Presidential Commission on Good Government, and Swift believe they're entitled to the paintings.

"My client has nothing against the human rights victims," said Casey Murphy, the American lawyer representing the commission. "Our point is, if these were paintings accumulated through misappropriated funds, they should go to all Filipinos and not just one class of people and their lawyers."

And then there's Bautista, who kept $28 million when she sold the water lily painting to a Panamanian corporation controlled by a London-based art gallery. That gallery then sold the painting to a British hedge fund manager in Switzerland for $43 million, according to court papers.

The hedge fund manager has paid $10 million to Swift's clients. The Filipino government has also sought to recover the painting.
ALBANY -- A 21-year-old man was charged with attempted murder Saturday in connection with a Thanksgiving shooting that sent one man to the hospital.

About 12:45 p.m. Thursday, police were called to a Clinton Avenue home, where a 35-year-old man had been shot in the torso, Albany police spokesman Officer Steve Smith said.
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Col. Michel Natali of Halfmoon, a veteran of the Iraq war, has been selected to command the New York Army National Guard's 53rd Troop Command at the Camp Smith Training Site near Peekskill.

Natali will lead more than 4,000 soldiers in military police, transportation, supply, engineer, and other Army National Guard support units located across the state.

Natali, who currently serves as the deputy commander of the 53rd Troop Command, will take on his new duties during a change of command ceremony at Camp Smith on Saturday.

He replaces Brig. Gen. Michael Swezey of Cohoes and a West Point graduate, who will be retiring after 36 years in the Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard.

In civilian life, Natali is a State Police investigator, assigned to the New York State Intelligence Center.

A native of Watertown, Natali was commissioned into the Military Intelligence Corps in May 1987 after receiving a Reserve Officers Training Corps Commission at Norwich University, Northfield, Vt.

He has served on active duty including commanding Headquarters Company of the 110th Military Intelligence Battalion and intelligence collection manager for the 10th Mountain Division Intelligence Section at Fort Drum. He also served as battalion intelligence officer for the 5th Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 8th Infantry Division in Mainz, Germany.

While serving with the 10th Mountain Division, Natali deployed to Haiti supporting Operation Uphold Democracy, to Somalia in support of Operation Restore Hope and to South Florida as part of the military response to Hurricane Andrew.

Natali joined the New York Army National Guard in December 1996. His National Guard assignments included intelligence officer of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, intelligence officer for the 42nd Infantry Division Headquarters, deputy commander of the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, commander of the 106th Regional Training Institute, and most recently director for intelligence and security Joint Forces Headquarters-New York.

He deployed to Iraq with the 42nd Infantry Division as deputy intelligence officer in 2005. He has also served as an active duty Guardsman as assistant chief of staff for intelligence for the 42nd Infantry Division and as the commander of the New York National Guard Counter Drug Task Force.

He is also a graduate of the Command and General Staff College and the United States Army War College. Natali earned a bachelor of arts from Norwich University, a masters in public administration from Marist College and a masters of strategic studies from the Army War College.

The colonel has earned a Bronze Star Medal, a Meritorious Service Medal, an Army Commendation Medal, an Army Achievement Medal, a Humanitarian Service Medal and an Army Parachutist badge.

Soldiers advance

Joshua Gioeli of Schenectady was promoted to captain while on duty with the New York Army National Guard's B Troop, 2nd Battalion, 101 Cavalry (Reconnaissance, Surveillance and Target Acquisition).

Alicia Seda of Albany advanced to captain while on duty with Company C, 101st Signal Battalion.

Joseph McMillen of Troy was promoted to second lieutenant while serving with the 719th Transportation Company.

Kenneth Redick of Rensselaer advanced to chief warrant officer 4 while on duty with Joint Force Headquarters.

Brian Manny of Greenfield Center was promoted to master sergeant while assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 369th Sustainment Brigade.

Brooke Leavitt of Troy was promoted to sergeant first class while assigned to Joint Force Headquarters.

Others promoted:

Specialist: Sarah Bliss, Hannacroix, Division Signal Company, 42nd Infantry Division; John Cavanaugh, Warrensburg, Signal Company, 42nd Infantry Division; Mason Hoefer, Mechanicville, Company E (Forward Support Company Infantry), 427th Brigade Support Battalion; Jesse Maher, 1156th Engineer Company; Daekwon Maye, Rotterdam, Headquarters and Support Company, 42nd Infantry Division; James McGill, Westerlo, Intelligence and Sustainment Company, 42nd Infantry Division; Morgan Moseley, Chatham, Signal Company, 42nd Infantry Division; William Newton, Spencertown, Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 104th Military Police Battalion; and Jamie Pratt, Latham, Intelligence and Sustainment Company, 42nd Infantry Division.

News of your troops and units can be sent to Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or brownt@timesunion.com.
Albany

A move to vote on a new Albany County Board of Elections Democratic commissioner was quashed by a court order Monday.

Acting State Supreme Court Justice Richard Platkin granted a temporary restraining order Monday morning after Democratic Commissioner Matthew Clyne filed a lawsuit against Jack Flynn, the Albany County Democratic Committee chairman, over Flynn's failure to submit the recommendation of Clyne for commissioner to the county legislature and to instead hold a revote on the $90,094-a-year post.

The party committee meeting  which had been set for Monday night  was called off following Platkin's ruling. Albany Attorney Joshua Ehrlich, an election law expert, was expected to have been recommended to replace Clyne.

"I'm restraining them from having proceedings on the selection of a county election commissioner," Platkin said. "I find the petitioner is likely to demonstrate that the county is not free to revisit the vote on the recommended candidate."

The party committee is required to file its recommendation for commissioner by Saturday. The county legislature's Democratic majority then votes to make the final approval.

The judge recognized the case "involves internal affairs" but said it still "raises election law."

"I believe the threat of a brief delay is outweighed by not only the petitioner's interest but also by the public's interest," Platkin said.

Flynn's attorney, Paul Collins, will file briefs no later than Friday, giving Clyne  who is representing himself  the chance to respond Monday. They're set to return to Supreme Court before another judge at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Clyne and his supporters see the revote as a way for County Executive Daniel McCoy to wield more power and set the stage for the city of Albany election next year, which is poised to pit Mayor Kathy Sheehan against Councilman Frank Commisso Jr.

McCoy is a Sheehan ally, while Commisso Jr.'s father Frank Commisso Sr. is the majority leader of the county Legislature.

"I think (McCoy and his allies) want their own person in here to control the information flow and know what's going on," Clyne said. "I think they're concerned about the direction that the city of Albany races is going to take in 2017."

Collins said the revote was called in order to properly go through the process, which calls for a "weighted vote" in a roll call by the members.

"The law requires proportionate voting, so that indeed the will of the 317 (party committee members) is heard and unfortunately (the earlier) vote when it was taken was not done on a weighted vote," Collins said. "They could reconsider the vote and do it right."

Committee member Dan Coffey, vice chair of the Bethlehem Democratic Committee, said he wanted a new commissioner because of tensions between Clyne and Flynn.

Matt Clyne fired Jack Flynn from his $46,387-a-year job at the Board of Elections, following an effort in September to table Clyne's reappointment as commissioner. That attempt caused an uproar among Clyne's supporters on the party committee, and the members voted to recommend Clyne's reappointment.

"We want someone in the Board of Elections who would be comfortable working with Jack and the party, and obviously that's not going to happen if Matt is approved by the county Legislature," Coffey said. "Hopefully the county legislature will still look at other candidates."

Clyne called the revote "absurd," and he noted that Flynn wasn't elected party chairman by a weighted vote, either.

City Council President Carolyn McLaughlin, who also is a potential mayoral contender and was recently ousted by Flynn as party chair, said County Democratic Committee members can't simply throw out a vote whose outcome they regret.

"Just because you didn't like the way the process came out, you can just throw it out?" she said. "That's not how the world works."

afries@timesunion.com  518-454-5353  @mandy_fries
SARATOGA SPRINGS  Volunteers decorated Christmas trees on Monday for the 21st Annual Saratoga Festival of Trees at the Saratoga Springs City Center.

The festival opens Thursday and runs through Sunday. A special preview from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday costs $75.
CALEDONIA (AP)  Law enforcement agencies are investigating after a woman was fatally shot in a hunting accident in western New York over the weekend.

Authorities say the accident occurred just before 4 p.m. Sunday in a wooded area near the Genesee River in Caledonia in Livingston County, south of Rochester.
Havana

He overthrew a strongman, brought his country free health care and education, and enlisted Cubans in what he called fights for freedom from Central America to South Africa. Fidel Castro also maintained a steel grip at home, jailing dissidents and gays, controlling freedom of travel and expression and declaring virtually any activity outside his control to be illegitimate.

Since the revolutionary's death Friday night, Cubans have defended Castro's record while human rights groups said they hoped that his brother and successor, Raul Castro, would move faster toward allowing Cubans more freedom of speech, assembly and other basic rights.

"The question now is what human rights will look like in a future Cuba," Erika Guevara-Rosas, the Americas director for Amnesty International, said Saturday. "The lives of many depend on it."

Under Raul Castro, Cuba has moved away from jailing political prisoners for extended sentences, instead making thousands of short-term arrests each year that Cuban dissidents say are designed to harass them and disrupt any attempt at political organizations. Cubans today feel freer to criticize their government in public, but any attempt at protest or demonstration is swiftly quashed. Independent journalists operate inside the country but find it nearly impossible to distribute printed material and they report repeated harassment from authorities.

Berta Soler, head of the dissident group Ladies in White, said Sunday that she and her supporters decided to refrain from their traditional protest after Mass at a Havana church, out of respect for the feelings of Castro's backers.

"We decided to pause this week, to take a break from our protest activities, given that the country is in mourning," she said. "As defenders of human rights, we've decided to respect the pain of others."

Many ordinary Cubans chafe at the country's restrictions but say they are less concerned with civil liberties than with earning enough money to buy food and basic goods. For decades, the Cubans most frustrated with the limits of life on the island have left for new lives in the United States, Spain and other countries, creating a relief valve that has lessened the internal pressure for change.

Ricardo Garcia, 56, who was out taking a walk with his wife Sunday, said that while Castro may have permitted only one political party, "he always consulted the people. And everyone has always been in favor."

At the same time, he said, "I'd like for everything to be more democratic, for everyone to be able to express themselves and define their own position."

Maritza Martinez, a 50-year-old taxi driver, said discussing human rights was inappropriate in the wake of Castro's death. "It's the type of thing that the enemies over there like," he said of Cuban-Americans in Florida. "Here we have health care, education, many good things."

Javier Hernandez, a 29-year-old bartender at a private restaurant, said most Cubans are more preoccupied with trying to make ends meet than with human rights.

"We work more than 12 hours a day and much of the time we don't even have a minute to think about issues like that," he said.
Albany

Construction of the city's new convention center led to the removal of one of Albany's largest blighted structures, the vacant 11-story Wellington Hotel annex, in 2014.

But as the new Capital Center readies for its March opening, down the hill there are no current plans to revitalize another site  the collection of vacant structures and crumbling parking lots where the convention center was originally proposed to be built off Broadway.

While the Albany Convention Center Authority owns the six acres that are sandwiched between the South Mall Arterial and South Pearl Street, the state-run public authority does little with the property other than collect parking fees and try "to keep the properties at some level of decency," authority chairman Gavin Donohue said recently.

The authority handed over the old site's future to New York's economic development arm, Empire State Development. ESD put out a request for proposals in 2015 that required the buildings and properties not be split up, and that housing be attached to any redevelopment. There was little interest.

ESD did not respond to a Times Union request to answer questions about the site. The state agency provided a one-sentence statement that said ESD is evaluating redevelopment plans for the property, which is not on the tax rolls.

Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan said she has talked with ESD officials, and is hopeful that now that the Capital Center will be done, the state can focus on the former site. "It's my understanding they too share the desire to move forward," Sheehan said. The city has also drafted new zoning for the property to encourage mixed uses.

However, what is commonly called "the parking lot district" has a poor track record for revitalization. In 1988, developer William Bantz, who owned the E-Comm buildings on Broadway, announced a massive development that included a transit center and 30-story office tower. Bantz would make similar announcements until the early 2000s when he agreed to sell his buildings for construction of the convention center complex.

Starting in 2009, the authority began buying more than 25 properties that included the former E-Comm buildings and parking lots that surround the Greyhound bus station. According to a Freedom of Information request, the authority spent $8 million for the properties, and another $3.8 million on site costs for the $220 million-plus convention center and hotel that never happened.

Once the state decided not to fund the larger facility, any other plans for development of the site never materialized. In 2013, Gov. Andrew Cuomo authorized long-held state money be released to build the smaller, $78 million Capital Center at its new location at Howard and Eagle streets.

Meanwhile, current building owners and tenants on Broadway say they're frustrated that the original site has been seemingly left abandoned.

Lena Hart, who owns Liberty Lofts and Precision Fitness at 374 Broadway, said the roads inside the convention center property aren't repaved and there is little snow plowing during the winter months. Hart's husband, Jim, is also vice president of Albany's Downtown Business Improvement District.

"We basically picked this spot because of the convention center. We felt the property would go up in price once the convention center came," said Hart, who bought the building with her husband in 2011. "But when the governor moved the convention center up the road, the main issue became how decrepit the property became."

In August, the authority had to demolish a building it owned at 50 Hudson Ave. after it began to collapse. The removal had to be done carefully as it was right next to the Van Ostrande-Radliff House, the oldest structure in the city, which Historic Albany Foundation owns. The group is awaiting word to see if it will get state money needed for the building's renovation. One of the nation's oldest urban parks, Liberty Park, is also on Hudson Avenue.

Historic Albany executive director Susan Holland said despite signs of decay in the nearby E-Comm buildings  the most obvious being an outer brick wall at 6 E-Comm that is crumbling off  the structures could be reused. Up until the authority's purchase, the buildings were rented for offices and apartments.

Ryan Mahoney, executive director of the Irish American Heritage Museum at 370 Broadway, said his nonprofit might be interested in the former Adirondack Trailways building that shares a wall with the museum and is owned by the authority. Mahoney acknowledged that renovation of the mid-century building would be expensive. But he said the museum can't investigate the possibility because the state has not allowed the properties to be split up and sold.

The museum, originally located in Greene County, also moved to Broadway five years ago because of the promise of the convention center.

"That area has so much untapped potential," Mahoney said. "It's absolutely frustrating."

lstanforth@timesunion.com  518-454-5697
THE ISSUE:

The Trump administration and Congress plan to replace the Affordable Care Act.

THE STAKES:

Unless they consider a single-payer or similar system, holding costs down will be impossible.

More Information To comment: tuletters@timesunion.com or at http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion See More Collapse

An American family that needs to keep EpiPens on hand because a member of the household is prone to severe allergic reactions to food or bee stings has little choice but to pay the more than $600 cost of a two-pack  unless they are fortunate enough to live near Canada. A quick drive over the border can save them a whopping $500.

This year the Pennsylvania-based drug maker Mylan deservedly became synonymous with corporate greed for hiking the price of an EpiPen two-pack from $93.88 to $608.61. It is the only manufacturer of the product.

For our neighbors to the north, though, the cost never spiked. That's because Canada regulates drug prices.

In the U.S., Mylan CEO Heather Bresch earned the scorn of Congress and the public in August as she attempted to convince a House panel why the 500 percent price increase for EpiPens was justified. News that her pay and benefits rose from $2.5 million in 2007 to almost $19 million in 2015 further fueled the outrage.

So it's no surprise Mylan has declined a request to testify this week before a U.S. Senate committee to discuss allegations it had been overcharging the federal Medicaid program for years. The Justice Department is in talks with the drug maker to settle the matter for $465 million.

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Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, who called for the company to appear before his committee, is critical of the proposed settlement, calling it too soft on Mylan. Mr. Grassley somehow blames the EpiPen situation on the Obama administration, when it's he and other Republican leaders in Congress who are at fault.

Rather than consider reasonable alternatives that would help keep down the cost of drugs to consumers  such as a single-payer system or a publicly-managed option  these lawmakers bow to the powerful health care, pharmaceutical and insurance industry lobbies. Those giant industries spend upwards of $400 million annually lobbying Congress. That's one of the reasons the Affordable Care Act lacked the fundamental changes needed to better control the rapid rise in medical costs. A single-payer system or a public option  most Western nations have one of those features or the other  would allow the government to negotiate prices for drugs and medical devices, but Congress has been steadfast in its opposition.

With Republicans slated to control both the White House and Congress next year, they are looking to finally "repeal and replace" the Affordable Care Act. It will achieve little, however, if they simply revert to a health care model that for years brought even more onerous increases than we've seen under Obamacare.

The EpiPen saga is emblematic of a key challenge Republicans face  to stand up to a powerful industry and devise a system Americans can afford. Sending people over the border so they can afford life-saving drugs should no longer be seen as a practical solution.
Anonymous

The Nov. 11 meeting between President Barack Obama and President-elect Donald Trump had me imagining Trump a la "The Godfather" explaining the birther accusations were "strictly business." For Trump, everything is "strictly business," which apparently justifies his use of disparaging rhetoric.

I found it appalling that many supposed people of faith tolerated his rhetoric. Of particular concern to me was the acquiescence of his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who is considered to be an Orthodox Jew.
The death has occurred of former Tipperary district judge Michael Reilly.

Judge Reilly, who was originally from South Tipperary, served for many years in this district, covering courts in Nenagh, Thurles, Cappawhite and Roscrea. He also served in Limerick city. He also sat in the Special Criminal Court. He was appointed to the bench in 1982.

Judge Reilly retired from the bench some years back and took up the role as Inspector of Prisons in 2007, a position he held until his death last Saturday.

He chaired the inquiry into the Ballycotton disaster in 1991, which inquired into the deaths of four fishery officers who died on July 7, 1990, after their vessel got into difficulties while on salmon patrol duty.

He was appointed by the Irish Government in 2007 to examine events related to injuries sustained by the Leader of the opposition party in the Seychelles, other leading members of that party and members of the public at the hands of the police in 2006.

Judge Reilly famously sat for a number of days in Thurles during the Feile festival and was scathing in his remarks about its organisers.

Having visited New Zealand in the 1990s, he brought back to Ireland the concept of community justice and was instrumental in setting up Nenagh Community Reparation project in 1999. Under the system, those convicted of minor offences do not receive a criminal record if they carry out certain actions under contract between them and the reparation programme. The programme now extends to most of Tipperary and Limerick and is available in Tallaght, County Dublin.

Judge Reilly was a high profile member of the Irish judiciary and was appointed in 1975 as a member of the Tormey Commission which reported to the Minister for Justice on Criminal Legal Aid. Between 1997 and 1999 he was a member of the Expert Group on the Probation and Welfare Service, and in 1999 he became a member of the Nally Committee which reported to the Attorney General on the Public Prosecution system in Ireland.

Between 1999 and 2007, Judge Reilly was a member of the National Crime Council and chair of the Criminal Justice System Subgroup of the Council. This Subgroup oversaw the completion of a number of reports including those dealing with developing a crime prevention strategy for Ireland: Tackling the Concerns of Local Communities; Public Order offending patterns; An examination of time intervals in the Investigation and Prosecution of Murder and Rape Cases in Ireland from 2002 to 2004; and a report looking at the community court concept

From 2003 to 2006, he was a member of PROTECT N&S, a joint initiative to develop co-operation between public bodies in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland with particular reference to the management of offenders, and from 2005 was a member of the International Penal and Penitentiary Foundation based in Switzerland.

A keen sailor, Judge Reilly was a member of Lough Derg Yacht Club in Dromineer.

Tributes were paid to him by Tanaiste and Minister for Justice Francis Fitzgerald who said: "He was robust and fair-minded in the way he carried out his work as Inspector of Prisons. He was not afraid to criticise where this was merited, but he retained the respect of everyone involved in penal policy throughout his tenure as inspector. Judge Reilly was determined his work would make a difference and it did."

She offered her personal condolences, and well as those of the Government, to his family.

Judge Reilly is survived by his wife, Eleanor; daughters Jilly (Foley) and Evie (Mulry); sons Tom and Peter; brothers Peter and Rory; sisters Eve and Sally; sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, relatives and many friends.

His remains are reposing at Keller's Funeral Home, Nenagh, this Monday, November 28, from 5pm to 7pm. Funeral arriving to Portroe Church on Tuesday at 11.45am for funeral Mass at noon, followed by burial in the adjoining cemetery.
The Transition Year students of Colaiste Phobal Ros Cre wowed audiences with their singing, dancing and acting talents in their recent production of The Wizard of Oz.

Forty eight students portrayed the tale of Dorothy Gale from Kansas, who Followed the Yellow Brick Road to the magical city of Oz.

The students began rehearsing for this production in September. Many of the group had never been on stage before but thanks to their hard work and the hard work and commitment of the shows producers Ms Egan and Mr Maher, audiences were treated to a fantastic production.

However, this show would not have been possible without the involvement of the entire school community. Many staff and parents too numerous to mention gave willingly of their time and expertise in ensuring the production was a success.

Thanks to all the 6th year students who were The Stewards of Oz ushering people to their sits and selling raffle tickets during the intervals of the performances. Well done to all the 5th year students who assisted with hair and make-up and who helped with props, with back stage and with lighting.

Thanks also to all the members of the pit choir for giving of their time during the rehearsals and the performances.

The musical was a tremendous success and each student involved in its staging should be very proud of themselves and of one another. Well done to all.
Members of the state police Clandestine Laboratory Response Team carry evidence and equipment toward their vehicles, walking past a house where a one-pot meth lab was discovered by Titusville Police in an apartment after being tipped off by a concerned citizen.
[November 28, 2016] California Virtual Academies Accepting Second Semester Enrollment for Families Seeking Online School Option

California Virtual Academies (CAVA), 10 independent online public schools, are currently accepting applications for the second semester of the 2016-17 school year for students in grades K-12. Families considering California Virtual Academies must submit an application before the open enrollment deadline of Feb. 8, 2017, for high school students or by Feb. 15, 2017, for grades K-8. Submitting an open enrollment application does not commit students to enrolling at CAVA for the second semester, but it provides them the option to do so. "California Virtual Academies provide students with a high-quality, tuition-free school alternative to the traditional brick and mortar school," said April Warren, California Virtual Academies Head of School. "The virtual school serves the needs of many students - those who are advanced learners, those who are seeking relief from bullying, and those who need a more accommodating schedule in order to nurture an extracurricular pursuit or balance their education with necessary medical treatment." Students with California Virtual Academies attend both live and recorded class sessions that are accessed online, enabling studentsand their teachers to engage and interact as if they were sitting together in a traditional classroom. Students also complete schoolwork using hands-on educational materials that are shipped to their home.



Each student is supported by a California-credentialed teacher who monitors student progress while providing professional insight and instruction. Teachers communicate with students via phone, email and the online classroom technology in order to provide an individualized approach that helps prepare students for career or college success. Teachers aim to establish a partnership with parents, so the students benefit from a strong network of support. Families are encouraged to take the necessary steps to ensure they have access to an effective educational option for their students next school year. CAVA will host several online and in-person events to help parents learn more about the program.

For a list of in-person events, information about California Virtual Academies and the application process, visit http://cava.k12.com/ About California Virtual Academies

California Virtual Academies are 10 independent online public schools that use the award-winning curriculum and tools provided by K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN), the nation's largest provider of proprietary curriculum and online education programs. Families do not pay for a student to attend an online public school. Common household items and office supplies like printer ink and paper are not provided. The California Virtual Academies are: CAVA @ Fresno, CAVA @ Jamestown, CAVA @ Kings, CAVA @ Los Angeles, CAVA @ Maricopa, CAVA @ San Diego, CAVA @ San Joaquin, CAVA @ San Mateo, CAVA @ Sonoma, and CAVA @ Sutter. This public school option may not be available in all counties. Our enrollment consultant can help address your technological and computer questions and needs. For more about CAVA, visit http://cava.k12.com/. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128006088/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Clemex signs a Merger Agreement with Principal Shareholders to privatize the company

Symbol: CXG.A-TSX-V

www.clemex.com

Shares Outstanding: 31,019,810 LONGUEUIL, QC, Nov. 28, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Following the receipt of the letter of intent on August 2, 2016 and the review of the Special Committee mandated on the same date by its Board of Directors, Clemex Technologies Inc. ("Clemex") (TSXV: CXG.A) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a Merger Agreement (the "Merger Agreement") and related agreements with 9804064 Canada Inc. (the "Purchaser") and a group of shareholders. The Purchaser is a newly-incorporated corporation owned by a group of shareholders, including RAL Diagnostics SAS, Zwick Roell AG and Mr. Yves Bassat, the President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors (collectively, the "Principal Shareholders"). Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, the Purchaser will purchase, in effect, all of the issued and outstanding Class A common shares of Clemex, other than shares held directly or indirectly by the Principal Shareholders, at a price of $0.20 in cash per share, representing total consideration of approximately $3.8 million. The $0.20 per share cash consideration represents a premium of 100% to the last trading price of the Shares on the TSX Venture Exchange on July 21, 2016 (the last date upon which the Shares traded prior to the announcement of the receipt of the non-binding letter of intent from the Principal Shareholders to privatise Clemex on August 2, 2016) and a premium of approximately 66.7% to the highest trading price of the Shares on the TSX Venture Exchange between January 1, 2016 and August 2, 2016. The transaction will be effected by way of an amalgamation of Clemex and the Purchaser under the Canada Business Corporations Act (the "Amalgamation"). Under the Amalgamation, shareholders (other than the Principal Shareholders and dissenting shareholders, if any) will receive, for each Class A common share of Clemex held prior to the Amalgamation, one Class A redeemable preferred share ("Amalco Redeemable Preferred Share") of the new corporation resulting from the Amalgamation ("Amalco") and immediately after their issuance, each Amalco Redeemable Preferred Share will be redeemed for $0.20 in cash. The Amalgamation is subject to approval by the shareholders of Clemex. In this regard, Clemex has called an annual and special meeting of shareholders, to be held at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, Stock Exchange Tower, 800 Square Victoria, Suite 3700, Montreal, Quebec at 10:00 a.m. on December 23, 2016, to vote, among other things, on the Amalgamation. Clemex will mail a detailed management information circular to shareholders shortly for the annual and special meeting. If shareholders approve the Amalgamation, it is expected to take effect promptly following the meeting. The Principal Shareholders collectively own, directly or indirectly, or exercise control or direction over an aggregate of 11,946,813 Shares representing approximately 38.5% of Clemex's issued and outstanding Shares. Mr.Karol Brassard, who beneficially owns, directly or indirectly or exercises control or direction over, an aggregate of 5,935,800 Class A common shares, representing approximately 19.14% of the issued and outstanding Class A common shares of Clemex, has irrevocably agreed, pursuant to a support agreement dated July 29, 2016, as amended on October 7, 2016 and November 8, 2016, to support and vote in favour of the Amalgamation and has further agreed, among other things, not to take any action which may in any way adversely affect the success of the Amalgamation.



The Amalgamation is a "related party transaction" within the meaning of Multilateral Instrument 61-101  Protection of Minority Security holders in Special Transactions as each of RAL Diagnostics SAS and Zwick Roell AG have beneficial ownership of, or control or direction over, directly or indirectly, securities of Clemex carrying more than 10% of the voting rights attached to all of Clemex's outstanding voting securities and Mr. Yves Bassat is the President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Clemex. In addition, two directors of the Corporation (Dr. Jan Stefan Roell and Mr. Frederic Imbs) are the respective representatives of the Zwick Roell AG and RAL Diagnostics SAS on the Board of Directors of Clemex and are respectively executive officers of these companies.

As a consequence of the Amalgamation being a "related party transaction", the special committee of independent directors has been established by the Board of Directors of Clemex to review and negotiate the Merger Agreement and related agreements with the Purchaser and the Principal Shareholders and make a recommendation to the Board of Directors. The Special Committee is composed of Louis-Francois Hogue (Chairman) and Normand Beauregard. Upon recommendation by the Special Committees and after consultation with its financial and legal advisors, the members of Board of Directors of Clemex entitled vote on such matter unanimously approved the entering into of the Merger Agreement and approved, subject to shareholder approval, the Amalgamation. In doing so, the Board of Directors determined that the consideration to be received by the shareholders other than the Principal Shareholders, is fair, from a financial point of view, to the shareholders and in the best interests of Clemex. In making its determination, the Board of Directors considered, among other things, an opinion from MNP LLP to the effect that, as of November 27, 2016 and based upon and subject to the limitations, assumptions and qualifications contained therein, the consideration to be received by the shareholders other than the Principal Shareholders is fair, from a financial point of view, to the shareholders, other than the Principal Shareholders. A copy of the fairness opinion will be included in the management information circular to be mailed to shareholders. The Purchaser and Principal Shareholders have demonstrated to the Special Committee that the Amalgamation will be fully-funded subject to meeting customary conditions as more fully described in the information circular to be mailed to shareholders. To be effective, the Amalgamation must be approved by a special resolution of the shareholders. The requisite approval for the special resolution will be: (a) at least two-thirds of the votes cast on the special resolution by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote at the annual and special meeting; and (b) a majority of the votes cast on the special resolution by shareholders present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote at the annual and special meeting, but excluding the votes casted by the Principal Shareholders and their respective affiliates. The Amalgamation is also subject to satisfaction of certain conditions set out in the Merger Agreement and amalgamation agreement. The Board of Directors unanimously recommends that shareholders vote for the special resolution at the meeting. Clemex will file a copy of the Merger Agreement and related agreements on SEDAR. MNP LLP is acting as financial advisor and Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP is acting as legal counsel to the Special Committee of Clemex in connection with the Amalgamation. McMillan LLP is acting as legal counsel to the Purchaser. Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, statements regarding the completion of the proposed Amalgamation and other statements that are not historical facts. Such statements are subject to assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including those discussed in our filings on SEDAR. Actual results or events may vary materially from expected results or events. In particular, the timing and completion of the proposed Amalgamation will be subject to certain conditions, termination rights and other risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the proposed Amalgamation will occur, or that it will occur on the timetable or on the terms and conditions contemplated. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the release. About Clemex Technologies, Inc. Clemex Technologies Inc. develops, manufactures and markets image analysis systems and software used by quality control and research microscopy laboratories. Clemex' customer base spans over many countries in America, Europe, Asia and encompasses major Research and Development Centers, prestigious Universities and large manufacturing industries in various fields including healthcare, automotive, aerospace, raw materials manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, mining and other sectors. SOURCE Clemex Technologies Inc.

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[November 28, 2016] Galera Therapeutics Expands Series B to $57 Million

Galera Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing transformational new treatments for cancer patients, announced today it has received $15 million in funding from new investor Sofinnova Ventures, bringing its Series B financing total to $57 million. Sofinnova joins existing investors New Enterprise Associates, Novartis Venture Fund, Novo Ventures, Correlation Ventures, Enso Ventures and Galera Angels. The proceeds from the financing will be used to prepare the Company's lead product candidate, GC4419, for Phase 3 registration studies. GC4419 is currently in a randomized, placebo-controlled Phase 2b clinical trial to evaluate its effects on the incidence, duration and intensity of severe oral mucositis in head and neck cancer patients undergoing chemo-radiation therapy. Additionally, the funds will be used to further develop the Company's pipeline of selective dismutase mimetics. "This investment by Sofinnova is a further endorsement of Galera's team, technology and clinical data generated to date, and of the promise of our dismutase mimetics to transform cancer treatment," said J. Mel Sorensen, MD, President and CEO of Galera. "We look forward to expanding our development programs and demonstrating the utility of our technology in treating patients with cancer." In connection with this financing, Mike Powell, PhD, General Partner at Sofinnova, will join the Glera Board of Directors. "Sofinnova Ventures has been intrigued for some time in Galera's scientific approach and thoughtful clinical development program," said Dr. Powell. "I am personally excited to support Galera and work with Mel Sorensen and his team again."



"We are very pleased to welcome Mike to our Board of Directors," commented Dr. Sorensen. "His experience and long history of success in biotech is well known and we look forward to his advice and input on our technology and development programs." About Oral Mucositis (OM)

Oral mucositis is a common, debilitating side effect of radiation treatment in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients. Severe OM, defined by the World Health Organization as Grade 3 or 4 OM, occurs in 60 to 80 percent of HNC patients receiving radiation therapy. Importantly, severe OM may result in interruptions in radiation treatment, which can compromise the otherwise good prognosis for tumor control in many of these patients. In addition, patients with severe OM suffer significant pain, may develop serious infections, and may be unable to eat solid food or even drink liquids. Further, the costs of managing these side effects are substantial, particularly when hospitalization and/or surgical placement of PEG tubes to maintain nutrition and hydration are required. There is currently no drug approved to prevent or treat severe OM in head and neck cancer patients. About Galera Therapeutics, Inc. Galera Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, focused on the development of breakthrough drugs targeting oxygen metabolic pathways. The Company's lead compounds are highly selective small molecule dismutase mimetics that closely mimic the activity of the human superoxide dismutase enzymes. While the biology of the superoxide dismutase family suggests a broad range of potential applications, Galera is initially focused on developing products for the prevention of radiation-induced toxicity, including oral mucositis, and the treatment of cancer. For more information, visit www.galeratx.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005476/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Healthcare Logistics Leader Creates Millions in Medicaid Savings

Veyo, the company that has accounted for over $7 million in savings for healthcare payers in its first year of service to state Medicaid plans and health systems, completed its 3 millionth non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) trip. Veyo is adapting advancements seen in consumer on-demand and rideshare transportation specifically for healthcare. Since launching in November 2015, Veyo has set new standards for reliability, transparency, on-time performance, quality and cost efficiency. The company celebrates its one-year anniversary in November, building upon 40 percent quarter-to-quarter growth and proven results that are raising expectations for NEMT standards. Accounting for over $5 billion in spending each year (Transit Cooperative Research Program), NEMT benefits are available to the 72 million Medicaid members in the U.S. (Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services). Traditional NEMT services experienced little change over the past two decades, using outdated dispatch systems that can lead to delays, missed appointments and poor quality of care. Veyo's proven model is now delivering the most reliable, efficient and advanced technology to consumers and healthcare organizations in the NEMT industry. To commemorate its one-year anniversary, Veyo will donate twenty-five cents for every trip completed on Tuesday, November 15th to the The National Kidney Foundation, resulting in $5,000. Approximately one-third of NEMT trips are made to dialysis centers for individuals affected by this serious but manageable kidney condition. "Each and every trip has an effect on the lives and communities we're serving," said Josh Komnda, president of Veyo. "To further that impact, we look forward to continuing to support and donate to the organizations that benefit and matter to NEMT recipients."



The NEMT industry has been plagued for decades with antiquated models that lack transparency and efficiency. Those receiving NEMT benefits are often frail, handicapped, in rural areas and without smartphones, making it difficult for consumer transportation companies to enter the space. Veyo is using breakthroughs from the consumer space to establish a new industry standard that better manages member benefits, improves health outcomes, and delivers the reliability today's consumers need and demand. In its first year, Veyo: Served 2.5 million Medicaid and Medicare Advantage members across Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Michigan and Texas;

Achieved a 0.03 percent grievance rate that is 100 times lower than the 2-4 percent industry average;

Dramatically decreased pickup delays and missed appointments common in traditional NEMT systems; and,

Established a 97.9 percent on-time rate, consistently outperforming the industry averages of 85-95 percent, while providing transportation for over three million total trips. Komenda adds, "Veyo's first year was extraordinary. And, there's still work to be done. We plan to double in size next year - helping 5 million people go to and from healthcare appointments safely and reliably every day as we expand our services to several new regions of the country."

Veyo's model is a complete, end-to-end NEMT solution. The company utilizes its virtual, scalable fleet of Independent Driver-Providers (IDPs) with commercial providers to improve the matching of supply with demand, making it more efficient and effective, and ensuring the right vehicles are dispatched each and every time. This provides a better participant experience and more efficient use of vehicles. In addition to the immense growth experienced, Veyo was named a winner of the San Diego 2016 Top Workplaces award by San Diego Union Tribune in November 2016. Veyo created hundreds of jobs across the six states in which the company operates, including over 100 in its San Diego headquarters. "People are the most important thing to us at Veyo. From our employees' health and happiness, to that of the patients we serve, people are always at the forefront," says Stanton Sipes, EVP of sales and business development at Veyo. The company also celebrated its first year by participating in Pedal The Cause, an organization and annual event that raises money for cancer research in San Diego. Veyo employees raised $5,000 in donations. About Veyo Veyo is pioneering the next generation of healthcare logistics as the leader in non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT). As a complete, end-to-end NEMT solution, Veyo's model uses advanced supply management, predictive analytics and automated dispatching, and customer-focused tools to ensure people get to and from medical appointments safely, securely and on time every time. Veyo is headquartered in San Diego and offers NEMT services throughout the state, as well as in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Michigan and Texas. Veyo is fully funded and majority owned by Total Transit, a longtime Arizona-based transportation company. Learn more at www.veyo.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128006031/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Honigman Adds Leading Corporate Lawyer

Tracy T. Larsen has joined Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP as co-chair of the Mergers and Acquisitions practice of the firm's Corporate Department. He will be based in, and the managing partner of, the firm's Grand Rapids office, the firm's first office in the city. Having one of the most active corporate practices in the Midwest, Larsen represents clients in a wide array of matters, including M&A, joint ventures, takeover defense, corporate finance transactions and restructurings, corporate governance and federal securities law issues. He has steered hundreds of transactions on both a domestic and international level involving tens of billions in trade value. "Tracy's addition to our firm will deepen our already robust M&A practice through working on complex transactions," said David Foltyn, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Honigman. "His arrival is the latest step in our talent acquisition strategy as we both expand our footprint in Michigan and welcome one of the most respected and active M&A lawyers in the Midwest." Larsen's clients have included mjor foreign businesses in their acquisition strategies throughout the United States, as well as U.S.-based corporations in domestic and cross-border deals. Serving as a chairperson emeritus of the Business Law Section of the Michigan State Bar, Larsen is also a prominent speaker on various topics of corporate law.



"I am excited for the opportunity to join Honigman's renowned M&A practice and leverage the firm's vast resources and capabilities to serve clients in some of the most complex and sophisticated middle-market deals in both Michigan and the U.S.," said Larsen. "This is an ideal next step in my career as I look to continue growing my practice and working alongside lawyers I've long respected in this space." Larsen earned his J.D., magna cum laude, from Indiana University (News - Alert) School of Law in 1984 and graduated from Hope College with a B.A., summa cum laude, with a degree in economics.

About Honigman Honigman Miller Schwartz and Cohn LLP is a general business law firm that serves clients in North and South America, Europe, Asia and other business centers around the world. Headquartered in Detroit, the firm has offices in Chicago, Illinois, as well as Ann Arbor, Bloomfield Hills, Kalamazoo and Lansing, Michigan. Honigman's attorneys practice in more than 60 legal areas and represent clients in a wide variety of industries. Honigman is proud to be named among the "101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For" and the Detroit Free Press "Top Workplaces." Honigman.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005081/en/

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[November 28, 2016] OncoPep Announces Initiation of Phase 1b Clinical Trial of PVX-410 in Triple Negative Breast Cancer

OncoPep, Inc. announced that a Phase 1b clinical trial is underway to evaluate PVX-410, a multi-peptide therapeutic cancer vaccine, as an adjuvant treatment in patients who have completed all planned therapy for stage II or III triple negative breast cancer (TNBC). The study, led by Steven Isakoff, M.D., Ph.D. at Massachusetts General Hospital, will assess the safety and tolerability of PVX-410 in combination with the checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab. "In this Phase 1b clinical trial, we are looking to evaluate the safety of PVX-410 alone and in combination with durvalumab, and to determine whether the vaccine and durvalumab can work together to assist immune system recognition of TNBC," said Dr. Isakoff, Associate Director for Breast Cancer Clinical Research at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Assistant Professor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. "We are hopeful that this approach will allow immune system recognition of cancer-associated antigens and result in a targeted immune response that can be utilized as a possible adjuvant treatment for stage II or III TNBC." "The initiation of this Phase 1b clinical trial of PVX-410 in TNBC marks an important milestone in OncoPep's development," said Doris Peterkin, Chief Executive Officer of OncoPep. "We are now developig PVX-410 in two oncology indications, TNBC and smoldering multiple myeloma, in which we are hopeful that the vaccine will provide enhanced immune targeting of cancer cells for improved patient outcomes."



The multi-center, open label Phase 1b study is designed to evaluate the safety, tolerability, and immune response to PVX-410 alone and in combination with durvalumab in an adjuvant setting in patients who have completed all planned therapy for stage II or III TNBC. Patients will receive six bi-weekly intramuscular injections of PVX-410, which will be given in combination with an intravenous infusion of durvalumab on the day of the 4th and 6th PVX-410 injection. The study is expected to enroll approximately 20 patients at multiple treatment centers, including Massachusetts General Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. More information on the trial can be found at clinicaltrials.gov, identifier number NCT02826434. About Triple Negative Breast Cancer

Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a form of breast cancer that lacks the three receptors found most commonly on breast cancer cells: estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR), and hormone epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2). TNBC accounts for approximately 15-20% of all breast cancer cases and is more likely to spread and recur than other forms of breast cancer.

About PVX-410

PVX-410 is a novel therapeutic cancer vaccine currently in Phase 1b clinical trials in smoldering multiple myeloma and triple negative breast cancer. PVX-410 consists of four peptides from unique regions of three cancer-associated antigens and is designed to elicit an immune response to the targeted tumor antigens. PVX-410 was granted orphan drug designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2013. About OncoPep

OncoPep is developing targeted immunotherapeutics to prevent the progression of cancer, prolong survival and restore the quality of life of patients. OncoPep's lead program is a multi-peptide therapeutic vaccine for use in treating smoldering multiple myeloma. www.oncopep.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005289/en/

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[November 28, 2016] The Second Optics Valley Cross-Border E-Commerce Forum Opens Today

WUHAN, China, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Second Optics Valley Global Cross-border E-commerce Forum (the Forum) is being held at the Hilton Wuhan Optics Valley today and tomorrow, November 28 - 29, 2016. This forum is supported by the Wuhan Municipal People's Government and the Department of Commerce of Hubei Province; it is being guided by the East Lake High-tech Development Zone Administrative Committee and the Wuhan Municipal Bureau of Commerce, and is organized by Winliner Global Information Technology Co., Ltd. and Transn iLangNet Network Technology Co., Ltd. Revolution and Innovation, A New Era of Cross-border E-commerce With the theme of "Revolution and Innovation, A New Era of Cross-border E-commerce", the forum aims to explore the new trends and orientation of the cross-border e-commerce industry and find new partnerships for county-level economies. With Wuhan Optics Valley as the hub, this forum will help build a platform for the communication and cooperation of the global cross-border e-commerce industry. Invitees to the Forum include nearly 30 mainstream business platforms and executives from various association from all countries and regions, the world's leading industry experts and scholars, responsible people from China's top 100 cities, and guests from representative companies in the cross-border e-commerce industry. In addition, Mr. Long Yongtu, the chief negotiator and former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation (MOFTEC); a representative from Valparaso, the second largest city in Chile; and the chairman of the Global Alliance for Cross-border E-commerce will all be in attendance. They will gather here to participate in discussions such as "How Urban Cooperation Creates Cross-Border E-Commerce", "Building A Silk Road in the Air", "The Revolution of Cross-Border B2B", "A New Source For Cross-Border E-Commerce: Artificial Intelligence and Sophisticated Technology", "Building the Brand of Cross-Border E-Commerce" and "Mobility and Socialization: The New Move of Cross-Border E-Commerce". Working to build friendly cities and help county-level enterprise do overseas business



Trade volume between the China and Chile has increased by four times in the 11 years since the signing of their bilateral free trade agreement. Furthermore, trade products are more diversified. Advantageous products have entered the markets of the respective parties; the long-term and friendly partnership of both countries has enabled more Chilean products to enter the Chinese market. In line with the development trends of foreign trade between the two countries, this forum will provide substantial help to Chinese cities and enterprises.The forum will promote Valparaiso in Chile and the matching cities in China to establish a new type of urban cooperative relations, promote bilateral industrial docking, economic and trade exchanges and facilitate the cultural and educational exchanges of the bilateral parties.

With the efforts of Winliner, the friendship city establishment signing ceremony will be held at the Forum between Yucheng, China and Valparaso, Chile. At the forum, a "Cross-Border E-Commerce Financial Engineering Research Base" will be established by several parties by integrating the theoretical innovation study and the practical application of industry. The research base is committed to adding cross-border finance to the vast county-level economy and promoting industrial restructuring and development. On November 29, a series of activities will be held at the Forum including, the County-level Economy Cross-border E-commerce Forum and the Cross-border E-commerce Purchasing Docking Conference. At these events attendees will discuss topics such as how cross-border e-commerce full industry chain service data will be released to the dock the market requirements of overseas institutions, an exploration of how county-level companies work together to help other county-level companies do business overseas and achieve success via cross-border e-commerce platforms. In addition to Wuhan and Hubei, officials from Anhui, Chuzhou and other Chinese cities will attend the Forum. An Optics Valley Sub-forum will be held with to extend the event's influence across China. About Winliner Global Information Technology Co., Ltd. Winliner Global Information Technology Co., Ltd., an organizer of the Forum, is a cross-border e-commerce company established based on mobile internet, big data and multilingual information processing technology. It has developed independently and launched a cross-border e-commerce SaaS platform named Winliner, which has a global vision. The platform has successfully connected the well-known e-commerce platforms and various marketing channels in all countries and regions of the world. In addition, it has a reserved, open interface that gradually integrates logistics, customs clearance, warehouse and payment, and other cross-border chain resources to produce a cross-border trade network covering all targeted markets without barriers. With the support of this platform, Chinese companies may achieve one-stop localized marketing and provide services to all targeted worldwide markets in their native languages. This makes cross-border trade just like domestic trade. Currently, it has established partnerships in more than 100 counties and cities in China and has helped 56 counties and cities of 7 provinces in China to build and run their respective platforms overseas in multiple languages. Winliner 4.0 has been successfully launched with the purpose of building a cross-border e-commerce global hub. For any questions regarding this release, please call: Shen Li

Tel: +86-132-9661-7300

Email: [email protected] To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-second-optics-valley-cross-border-e-commerce-forum-opens-today-300368623.html SOURCE Winliner Global Information Technology Co., Ltd.

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[November 28, 2016] SIME Dx Announces Validation of First Test for Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Premature Infants

SIME Dx, a digital molecular medicine company developing point-of-care diagnostics, announced data validating the efficacy of a lung maturity test (LMT) in identifying infants at risk of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) who could benefit from early surfactant treatment. RDS is a major cause of mortality and morbidity in premature infants. It can be effectively treated with surfactant, a therapy which reduces the effort needed to expand the lungs during inspiration and allow gas exchange to take place. Early surfactant treatment can help prevent the onset and impact of RDS, however, prophylactic treatment has been shown to be harmful and only necessary in half of all pre-term infants. The LMT could allow screening of all pre-term infants for RDS risk. The study, published online by ACTA Paediatrica, is titled "Rapid determination of lung maturity in premature infants at birth by mid-infrared spectroscopy" [doi:10.1111/apa.13683]. "This lung maturity test has been developed to identify pre-term infants who will benefit from early surfactant treatment. By only rapidly intervening in those infants who need treatment, we can significantly improve RDS clinical outcomes, and potentially lessen the need for mechanical ventilation and oxygen.The need for such a test has been highlighted in the recently published European Consensus Guidelines on the Management of RDS1," explained Prof. Henrik Verder, Department of Pediatrics, Holbaek University Hospital in Denmark, lead author of the paper and inventor of the test. "Surfactant treatment itself is very safe and effective, however, there are risks associated with the intubation required for administration. This poses the question of whether the risks of prophylactic surfactant outweigh the benefits when some infants do not need treatment."



The LMT is performed on small volumes of gastric fluid (aspirate) suctioned as part of the routine management of neonates at birth. Infra-red spectroscopic analysis of this gastric fluid, using a specially developed machine learning algorithm, determines the lecithin-sphingomyelin (L/S) ratio in the sample. These are biological constituents found naturally in the lungs. A low ratio indicates a high risk of RDS. This method was validated by comparing RDS risk predictions to actual incidences of RDS in patient samples collected in Denmark, Sweden and the UK. "The development of our lung maturity test is the culmination of many years' commitment and hard work by several collaborators. It is the first test resulting from our digital molecular diagnostics (DMDx) platform, which is able to measure multiple biomarkers from a single fluid sample, delivering real-time results to clinicians," stated Povl Verder, CEO of SIME Dx. "We are currently developing a bedside version of the test for use in a clinical setting. This will enable us to validate the test and collect the necessary data for commercialisation. Furthermore, the company is expanding the (DMDx) platform to apply cloud-based machine learning, so that in the future the data captured can be analysed to improve algorithms and develop new test."

This study was funded by the EU Horizon2020 Phase II SME instrument, project number 666668. About SIME Diagnostics SIME Dx is a digital molecular medicine company developing novel point of care diagnostics. Our digital platform, DMDx, analyses a single fluid sample for multiple biomarkers in real-time. Delivering precise diagnostic results to clinicians in critical moments. Our technology converges photonics, machine learning and medical science to enable preventative medicine. Developed by world-renowned scientists, the first DMDx application is a Lung Maturity Test (LMT) for premature infants used to help neonatologists diagnose Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS) minutes after birth. SIME Dx is a London (UK) and Holbaek (Denmark) based company part-funded through the EU Horizon2020 Phase II initiative and a Microsoft (News - Alert) Ventures alumnus. Further information can be found at www.simedx.com. 1 Sweet D, G, Carnielli V, Greisen G, Hallman M, Ozek E, Plavka R, Saugstad O, D, Simeoni U, Speer C, P, Vento M, Visser G, H, A, Halliday H, L, European Consensus Guidelines on the Management of Respiratory Distress Syndrome - 2016 Update. Neonatology 2017;111:107-125 View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005325/en/

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[November 28, 2016] SOTI Joins Premier Kathleen Wynne and Minister Brad Duguid on Strategic Trade Mission to Japan to Fortify Economic Relations

Mississauga, Ontario-based SOTI Inc. joined The Honourable Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario; and The Honourable Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development and Growth, on the Premier's first business mission to Japan. The delegates met with Japanese government and business leaders to foster new relationships and seek new opportunities with Japan in the communications technologies (ICT) sector. The Canadian leaders also encouraged Japanese investment in Ontario based on the province's competitive business environment, talented workforce and leadership in developing innovative technologies. The visit to Japan is the first leg of Premier Wynne's mission to Japan and South Korea. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005764/en/ Ambassador of Canada to Japan Ian Burney welcomed Premier of Ontario Kathleen Wynne and SOTI (News - Alert) executives Carl Rodrigues, President & CEO, and Adele Beachley, Managing Director, JAPAC, as part of the Premier's trade mission to Japan and South Korea, highlighting Ontario's most innovative companies scaling for global growth. (Photo: Business Wire) According to Premier Wynne "I am pleased to lead my mission to Japan with 45 delegates from Ontario, including SOTI. This mission and participation from leaders like SOTI will help build on our strong trade relationships and foster new ones. This will help Ontario attract new investments and lay the groundwork for future partnerships to foster our continued economic growth." Premier Wynne, Minister Duguid and SOTI CEO Carl Rodrigues (News - Alert) will attend several events to demonstrate Canada's growing presence and interest in Japan's strong technology market. "SOTI continues to lead Ontario ICT companies in promoting Canada's intellectual property, products and services to the JAPAC region," Minister Duguid said. "I continue to be impressed with SOTI's growth in the JAPAC region and around the world. SOTI is a fantastic ambassador to further promote Ontario's strength as partnerto the Japanese technology industry."



SOTI's deep Android management expertise and mobility management market knowledge has helped it win these new deals and expand its operations in the JAPAC region. According to the Premier's Global Strategy, trade is essential for Ontario's growth and competitiveness and strengthens the economy by creating jobs, accelerating innovation, increasing foreign direct investment and boosting GDP. Japan is a critical Canadian trade partner. In 2015, two-way trade between Ontario and Japan totaled more than $11 billion. [1] "We are very committed to expanding our operations in the JAPAC region, and traveling to the region for our second mission trip in less than a month," said Carl Rodrigues, CEO of SOTI. "We're delighted to join Premier Kathleen Wynne and Minister Brad Duguid on this critical mission trip to promote Ontario as a global trade center and to promote economic development and new job growth to the Ontario region."

SOTI's strength in managing IoT devices in retail, healthcare, transportation and field services will give it a significant advantage in winning IoT business within Japan. Download SOTI's e-book ""Things" are taking over the Internet" to learn how our new world of "things" talking to "things", management and security is more challenging and more important than ever. About SOTI Inc. SOTI is the world's most trusted provider of Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) solutions, with more than 17,000 enterprise customers and millions of devices managed worldwide. SOTI's innovative portfolio of solutions and services provide the tools organizations need to truly mobilize their operations and optimize their mobility investments. SOTI's flagship product, MobiControl, allows enterprises to enable, optimize and secure their mobile workforce across all platforms to support corporate-liable and Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies. SOTI extends secure mobility management to provide a total, flexible solution for comprehensive management and security of all mobile devices and connected peripherals deployed in an organization. For more information, visit http://www.soti.net/. [1] https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2016/08/premier-to-lead-mission-to-japan-and-south-korea.html View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005764/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Steven G. Zylstra, President and CEO of the Arizona Technology Council, Named Executive of the Year by the Arizona Society of Association Executives

The Arizona Technology Council is pleased to announce that its President and CEO, Steven G. Zylstra, has been named the Arizona Society of Association Executives (AzSAE) Executive of the Year. The highest recognition given to a chief staff executive by the AzSAE, Zylstra is being recognized for his commitment to his association, its members, his civic and community affairs, and the affiliate associations and organizations he serves. Zylstra will receive the honor at the AzSAE's 52nd Annual Awards Gala and Celebration, December 7, 2016, from 6 to 9:30 p.m. at the Radisson Hotel Phoenix North. Online registration is available at http://bt.ly/2fZAJDc.



"Steve is a stellar association professional and is well-deserving of the Executive of the Year honor," said Bob Moore, chief operating officer of the American Dental Hygienists Association and a certified AzSAE executive. "I had the pleasure of working with Steve for two years when he served as chairman of the Technology Councils of North America and I served as the first executive director. He leads by example, articulating the vision for his organization and getting those he works with to align with that vision." Since assuming leadership of the Arizona Technology Council in 2007, Zylstra has raised its role in public policy and has positioned the organization as one of the state's leaders in driving a pro-growth, business-focused state and federal technology agenda. He continually informs and educates policymakers on issues that are important to Arizona's economy and technology community, and testifies before the Legislature on a regular basis. Like a true leader, Zylstra uses his intellect and experience to help guide the way towards a more prosperous Arizona for all to enjoy.

"It's a true honor to be recognized by my peers in the Arizona Society of Association Executives," said Zylstra. "I have dedicated my professional life to technology and a career in associations, and I have been very fortunate to have worked with others who share my passion for the growth of Arizona's technology sector. This award is a testament to my staff and the entire technology community in Arizona who work hard to ensure our state remains competitive in a global economy." Zylstra's ethical and effective leadership has become a core component of every action and effort of the Arizona Technology Council. He is an articulate and passionate spokesperson for the value that technology can provide in raising social and economic standards in Arizona, and is a leading advocate for improving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. Zylstra is committed to building a better Arizona for generations to come. About the Arizona Technology Council The Arizona Technology Council is Arizona's premier trade association for science and technology companies. Recognized as having a diverse professional business community, Council members work toward furthering the advancement of technology in Arizona through leadership, education, legislation and social action. The Arizona Technology Council offers numerous events, educational forums and business conferences that bring together leaders, managers, employees and visionaries to make an impact on the technology industry. These interactions contribute to the Council's culture of growing member businesses and transforming technology in Arizona. To become a member or to learn more about the Arizona Technology Council, please visit www.aztechcouncil.org. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005567/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Transplace Acquires Canadian 3PL Lakeside Logistics

Transplace, a leading provider of transportation management services and logistics technology, today announced that it has acquired Lakeside Logistics, a Canadian-based logistics services company. This acquisition expands Transplace's presence throughout North America and further supports the company's commitment to strategic growth in order to meet the supply chain needs of its growing customer base. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Headquartered in Oakville, Ontario, Canada, Lakeside Logistics delivers customized managed transportation services and solutions to help shippers optimize supply chain operations and reduce transportation costs to support business goals. This acquisition continues Transplace's commitment to expanding the company's geographic footprint in Canada, which includes the 2012 acquisition of Canadian third party logistics (3PL) provider Torus Freight Systems, and the opening of offices in Calgary and Montreal in 2014. "Acquiring Lakeside Logistics further supports Transplace's commitment to strategic growth in order to build a competitive advantage for our company and our customers," said Tom Sanderson, CEO, Transplace. "The addition of Lakeside Logistics complements Transplace's current geographical footprint as well as the company's mission to deliver outstanding transportation management, intermodal, brokerage, and cross-border trade management services to shippers across North America." As one of the leading providers of transportation management services across North America, Transplace generates revenue in excess of $1.6 billion. Owned by Greenbriar Equity Group LLC, Transplace helps its customers manage a wide range of logistics and transportation needs by providing customized solutions through a proprietary web-based TMS platform. The company provides full transportation outsourcing carrier contracting and negotiation, and intermodal and freight brokerage services to a diverse customer base of manufacturers, retailers, consumer goods and chemical companies.



Jeff Moore, president & CEO, Lakeside Logistics, said, "Joining Transplace gives our current customers access to the company's broad range of transportation services, logistics technology and deep industry expertise. We look to continue to grow Transplace's footprint in Canada and provide outstanding service and value to existing and new customers." Lakeside Logistics will operate as part of Transplace's Transportation Management business, which is led by President & Chief Operating Officer Frank McGuigan, and all employees will report to Transplace Senior Vice President of Operations John Kelly.

McGuigan added, "As one of the few true customer and continuous improvement-focused lead logistics providers in Canada, Lakeside Logistics is a perfect fit to support Transplace's vision to deliver manufacturers, retailers, chemical and CPG companies the optimal blend of logistics technology and transportation management services. Bringing the Lakeside Logistics team on board better positions us to deliver transportation services that fit the intra-Canada and cross-border shipping needs of our customers." Lakeside Logistics was advised by Corporate Finance Associates in the transaction. About Transplace Transplace is a North American non-asset based logistics services provider offering manufacturers, retailers, chemical and consumer packaged goods companies the optimal blend of logistics technology and transportation management services. The company's services and capabilities include Transportation Management Services, Intermodal, Brokerage and SaaS (News - Alert) transportation management (TMS) solutions supplemented by supply chain strategy consulting services. The company is recognized among the elite 3PLs for its proven ability to deliver both rapid return on investment and consistent value to a customer base ranging from mid-market shippers to Fortune 500 companies. Follow the company on Twitter, Facebook (News - Alert) and the Transplace Industry Blog: https://blog.transplace.com https://logisticallyspeaking.transplace.com http://twitter.com/transplace http://www.facebook.com/Transplace View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005639/en/

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[November 28, 2016] Ulmer Bolsters Business Litigation Practice in Chicago by Adding Ronald Betman

Ulmer & Berne LLP is pleased to announce that Ronald Betman has joined the firm as Chicago-based counsel in its Business Litigation Practice. A veteran trial lawyer with 30 years of experience in business and financial services litigation, Mr. Betman joins Ulmer from Neal Gerber & Eisenberg LLP, where he was a partner in the General & Commercial Litigation Practice. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005793/en/ Ronald Betman, Counsel, Ulmer & Berne LLP (Photo: Business Wire) Mr. Betman represents individuals and Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes class action and complex litigation matters, with an emphasis on financial services-related cases, including securities and shareholder derivative liability lawsuits, as well as consumer class actions. Mr. Betman has deep experience rpresenting individuals and businesses in state and federal courts throughout the U.S., at both the trial and appellate levels. He also represents individual directors and officers in breach of fiduciary duty and derivative claims. Mr. Betman has handled numerous SEC (News - Alert), CFTC and state attorney general regulatory investigations, and has written extensively in this area.



"Ulmer's outstanding litigation practice and, in particular, its depth of experience in the area of financial services litigation, were very attractive to me in determining whether the firm would be a fit for my practice," Mr. Betman said. "I am excited to offer my clients the benefits of this platform, and equally pleased to have the opportunity to offer my knowledge and experience to Ulmer's existing clients." Mr. Betman earned his B.B.A. from the University of Michigan and his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School.

Ulmer works with its clients to minimize the business disruptions often caused by complex business litigation, while maximizing successful outcomes. Drawing from a pool of more than 90 highly skilled attorneys actively engaged in representing clients nationwide in litigation and arbitration matters, Ulmer partners with its clients to determine goals, evaluate risks and devise proactive and cost-effective solutions. The firm's litigators practice regularly in state and federal courts throughout the nation. Ulmer also acts as national and multi-district litigation counsel in securities, mass tort and other class action matters. About Ulmer At Ulmer, the focus is on exceeding client expectations and delivering superior, customized legal solutions for an exceptional value. From offices in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Chicago, and Boca Raton, the firm's attorneys serve as counselors and partners to a wide range of sophisticated clients to help them solve their complex challenges and achieve their goals. For more information, please visit ulmer.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005793/en/

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[November 27, 2016] .ART, the first internet domain dedicated to arts & culture, launches with more than 60 renowned museums & arts organisations

LONDON, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- .ART, the first domain created exclusively for the global art community, is pleased to announce that more than 60 world-renowned museums and arts organisations will launch dedicated websites on the new top-level domain, including the Art Institute of Chicago, Centre Pompidou, Fondation Beyeler, Fondation Cartier, Guggenheim Museum, Hauser & Wirth, ICA Miami, LACMA, MAXXI, Tate and Walker Art Center, among others. As early adopters of .ART, these organisations have exciting plans to activate their new domains, some of which include fully migrating or consolidating their existing websites to .ART, while others are launching new dedicated websites to showcase unique content from their artists and/or collections. "Our mission is to preserve the cultural legacy of the global art world. We are honoured that so many respected institutions from all over the world share our vision and conviction that .ART will transform the arts community's relationship with the internet and help protect their brand's heritage online," explains Ulvi Kasimov, Founder of .ART. John Matson, CEO of .ART continues, ".ART provides a new way for the art world to identify online. The domain is short, simple, memorable, and has immediate association with the arts. For our Early Adopters, a .ART domain is a natural expression of their brand." Early adopters will be given first access to .ART domain names, and thus, have the opportunity to launch content on their respective websites in advance of domains being available for purchase by the general public in summer 2017. .ART's early adopters shared their enthusiasm: Tate's Digital Director, Ros Lawler, says the museum is "delighted to take part in the launch of this new domain, which will help promote some of the world's greatest art collections, galeries and museums."



Benoit Parayre, Director of Communication and Partnerships at the Centre Pompidou explains, "A domain name for the art world has been long overdue and will now allow many cultural industry leaders, museums, art centres, galleries, collectors, etc. to have more relevant domain names to promote their collections and programming." "The Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain is excited to become a part of .ART's new digital neighbourhood and evolve its programs even further," says Digital Manager, David Desrimais.

Anton Vidokle, artist and founder of e-flux, adds, "The internet carries profound educational potential, and a reliable and informative domain dedicated to art will provide an invaluable source of knowledge. The art domain will become an effective platform that dignifies the excellent work of art organisations and artists from all parts of the world for all who love and care about the arts." Dominique Chevalier, President of the Syndicat National des Antiquaires (SNA), which organizes the Biennale des Antiquaires at the Grand Palais in Paris, explains "For us, and for our galleries, '.com' is too commercial and '.fr' is too generic. The problem with most domain names is that they don't say anything about the business that you do, '.ART' solves that." Lelia Pissarro, co-owner of Stern Pissarro Gallery and great-granddaughter of artist Camille Pissarro, adds, "The internet has had the biggest impact on the global art market. It has brought art to every corner of the world. The way forward in terms of domain names is clearly to categorize industries. We feel that with what the Pissarro names represents, marrying it with '.com' lacked elegance. Having the possibility to now use 'pissarro.art' is simply the perfect solution. It fills a long lasting gap in our marketing strategy and the way we project ourselves." The early adopters have wide-ranging plans for their respective sites: Tate, LACMA, Multimedia Art Museum, and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, will create websites highlighting various aspects of their collections, while the Fondation Cartier will use the domain to make its collection available to the public for the first time ever. Meanwhile, Centre Pompidou will launch a dedicated website with helpful information in English and other languages for its foreign visitors. Hauser & Wirth will celebrate the gallery's 25th anniversary with the launch of an interactive website featuring a visual chronology detailing the gallery's nearly three-decade history. In addition, Canesso Gallery, Galerie Meyer Oceanic & Eskimo Art, Galerie Perrin, Tomasso Brothers Fine Art, Stern Pissarro Gallery, and Venus will fully migrate their existing websites to their new .ART domains. Beginning in February 2017, .ART domain names will be available for registration to professional members of the art world, ensuring that key stakeholders are given the opportunity to secure their desired domains first. For a full list of .ART's early adopters, visit http://www.art.art. For more information, contact: [email protected]. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160525/372735LOGO

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[November 27, 2016] Galen Growth Asia to Host Summit for 30 of Asia's Leading HealthTech CEOs

SINGAPORE, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Galen Growth Asia, an independent organisation with the objective of developing the HealthTech ecosystem across Asia, will be hosting the first-of-its-kind HealthTech CEO Summit in Singapore on Friday, 9th December 2016. This is a rare occasion where 30 of Asia's most prominent HealthTech entrepreneurs from across Asia will be gathering along with 200 healthcare influencers to discuss, debate and analyse how HealthTech innovation is shaping Asia's healthcare landscape. Technology is an inevitable part of healthcare's global evolution, especially in Asia. A recent market study conducted by P&S Market Research confirms that Asia is the fastest growing region for digital health, with an annual growth rate of 27.6% during the forecast period of 2016-2022 (1). These start-ups are proposing ground-up solutions that are rewiring the way healthcare is delivered across the world. Panelists will introduce a myriad of health IT solutions that are currently disrupting traditional healthcare models, while simultaneously increasing access to healthcare in emerging economies. The featured start-ups representing over 10 countries in Asia, and having a total combined funding of over USD 200 million, along with a wide range of influencers from both public and private sectors with decades of experience in healthcare innovation and care-delivery, will collaborate together during this event in solving the most complex issues in healthcare. The Summit aims to enable business partnerships between entrepreneurs, corporations, and government bodies, which can thereby stimulate regional expansion of current technologies. Stanley Li, Founder of DXY.cn, China, which holds the largest online community for physicians worldwide clarifies: "HealthTech is a connector. It can bring different stakeholders together and provide a more comprehensive service to our customers." The nature of HealthTech lies in the ability of technology to connect patients with doctors and care-providers, as well as create a digital transparency between patients and care providers. Several of the Summit's entrepreneurs have an mHealth platform in which mobile apps now enable live consultations between patients and doctors, and also provide patients with a platform to monitor and track vital biometrics, and receive constant support and feedback regarding their condition. On a B2B level, several HealthTech start-ups have identified predictive algorithms that care-providers can use to identify better outcomes for patients suffering from chronic diseases. One of the Summit's featured startups, Holmusk, is a Singapore-based data-science company that develops predictive algorithms for personalized care and population health management. Featured speaker and CEO of Prenetics, Danny Yeung, concludes: "Transformation of the healthcare system is underway. Doing nothing is not an option." The prospects of Singapore becoming Asia's leading digital health hub are high. The Singaporean government has recently announced a USD 13 billion investment into R&D for healthcare, health IT solutions, and biomedical sciences (2). About Galen Growth Asia: Galen Growth Asia, the Asia HealthTech Connector founded in 2015, exists to act as a catalyst at the intersection of the healthcare and technology convergence to enable Asia's HealthTech ecosystem. Our mission is to develop a sustainable and vibrant HealthTech scene across Asia -- fostered through collaboration between corporations, investors, new ventures, hospitals, governments and other stakeholders. Organisation: Galen Growth Asia Email: [email protected]

Website: www.galengrowth.asia







Notes: 1. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/digital-health-market-in-asia-expected-to-grow-at-276-cagr-during-2016---2022-ps-market-research-582351711.html 2. https://www.futurereadysingapore.com/2016/singapore-a-gateway-to-southeast-asias-digital-healthcare-market.html



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[November 28, 2016]

Gemalto Subscription Management joins forces with Huawei's OceanConnect, boosting IoT ecosystem

AMSTERDAM, Nov. 28, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO), the world leader in digital security, entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Huawei, the world leading ICT solution provider, to realize the global Internet of Things (IoT) vision of both parties at Huawei Connect, Europe 2016.

Under the agreement, Gemalto is providing its award-winning LinqUs On-Demand Connectivity (ODC) solution integrated with Huaweis OceanConnect IoT platform, to enable seamless connectivity through secure remote subscription provisioning. Now, Huaweis customers and partners will be able to connect to any mobile operator of their choice, anytime and anywhere in the world. This partnership will help accelerate service rollout, reduce integration cost, and increase revenue for businesses looking to adopt enterprise or consumer IoT applications, such as those used in smart cities, connected cars, and intelligent homes.

Gartner predicts that the IoT ecosystem is growing by leaps and bounds, with 6.4 billion objects to be connected in 2016, and hitting 20.8 billion in 20201. On 1st September, 2016, Huawei launched its OceanConnect IoT platform and is now poised to contribute to this ever-growing trend.

Huawei is accelerating growth at full throttle in the cloud and IoT space. We have innovated and adopted various IoT solutions for multiple sectors, including smart homes, automotive, public utilities as well as oil and gas energy,said Zhang Qin, President of Huawei Cloud Core Network Marketing Execution at Huawei. With Gemaltos LinqUs On-Demand Connectivity integrated to Huaweis OceanConnect IoT platform, we will be able to fulfill the commitment of providing flexible, scalable IoT services to all our customers worldwide.







Similar to Huawei, IoT is one of Gemaltos top priorities as we move further into the digital age. We believe the partnership will open a new chapter of close collaboration and knowledge exchange between the two companies, said Suzanne Tong-Li, President, Greater China & Korea at Gemalto.

About Huawei OceanConnect

Huawei OceanConnect is an open ecosystem with the IoT connection management platform as its core. With open APIs and serial agents, it accelerates application release, simplifies terminal access, and ensures network connection. In addition, it provides one-stop services for partners including all kinds of technical support, marketing support and commercial cooperation.

With more than 170 released APIs, over 200 integrated devices and sensors, and more than 80 partners, Huawei OceanConnect Ecosystem provides solutions for Connected Car, Smart Home, Public Utility, Gas & Energy and other fields.

About Gemalto

Gemalto (Euronext NL0000400653 GTO) is the global leader in digital security, with 2015 annual revenues of 3.1 billion and customers in over 180 countries. We bring trust to an increasingly connected world.

Our technologies and services enable businesses and governments to authenticate identities and protect data so they stay safe and enable services in personal devices, connected objects, the cloud and in between.

Gemaltos solutions are at the heart of modern life, from payment to enterprise security and the internet of things. We authenticate people, transactions and objects, encrypt data and create value for software  enabling our clients to deliver secure digital services for billions of individuals and things.

Our 14,000+ employees operate out of 118 offices, 45 personalization and data centers, and 27 research and software development centers located in 49 countries.

For more information visit www.gemalto.com or follow @gemalto on Twitter.

Gemalto media contacts:



1 Gartner, Gartner Says 6.4 Billion Connected "Things" Will Be in Use in 2016, Up 30 Percent From 2015
[November 28, 2016] Leading Danish Retailers Select Verifone to Give Millions of Consumers More Cashless Pay Options at Checkout

(TRUSTECH Stand #LER D 027) Today, Verifone (NYSE:PAY), a global provider of payments and commerce solutions announced that Dagrofa, Denmark's third largest retail company, and REMA 1000, the country's fastest growing discount chain, have recently selected Verifone to enable more options for the way consumers shop and pay in their stores. Dagrofa and REMA 1000 represent significant wins and growing market share for Verifone. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161127005040/en/ With its chamber of commerce proposing to make all money transactions electronic, Denmark is a leader in the world's shift towards cashless societies with approximately 80 percent adoption of non-cash payments. The country is also home to one of the world's most progressive and widely adopted mobile payment schemes. MobilePay, created by Danske Bank, is installed in more than 90 percent of Danish consumer smartphones, and is only surpassed by Facebook (News - Alert) and Messenger in app acceptance. By upgrading to Verifone, Dagrofa and REMA 1000 will be playing a significant role in driving consumer adoption for mobile payment in the country, as it is ready for future mobile payment options such as plans by Dankort, the country's national debit card, to enable payments through consumer mobile devices. "We already support MobilePay, but now we are first in Denmark to integrate mobile payment with card payment in just one piece of hardware. We want to make it even easier for our customers to make digital payments. Verifone has all the necessary functionality and provides an open and very straightforward solution at the cash register. Combining every type of payment in the same device makes life easier for both customers and our employees. Our goal is to deliver excellent experiences related to food, and Verifone's solution will help us deliver on this goal," says CEO Per Thau from Dagrofa. "With the Verifone device upgrade, we can ensure our customers will have an easy and convenient experience using their preferre payment method whether it is a Danish or international card, Dankort or MobilePay," says CFO, Torben L. Srensen from REMA 1000.



"We are very proud that Dagrofa and REMA 1000 have selected Verifone as its payment solution provider. Our solution benefits both our clients and their customers alike as it can handle many payment methods including all payment cards and many mobile apps," says General Manager of Denmark Chris Lund-Hansen from Verifone. Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for VeriFone Systems, Inc.

This press release includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management's current expectations or beliefs and on currently available competitive, financial and economic data and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may vary materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements herein due to changes in economic, business, competitive, technological and/or regulatory factors, and other risks and uncertainties affecting the operation of the business of VeriFone Systems, Inc., including many factors beyond our control. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those associated with: successful rollout of cashless payment solutions with Danish retailers, execution of our strategic plan and business initiatives and whether the expected benefits of our plan and initiatives are achieved, short product cycles and rapidly changing technologies, our ability to maintain competitive leadership position with respect to our payment solution offerings, our assumptions, judgments and estimates regarding the impact on our business of the continued uncertainty in the global economic environment and financial markets, our ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses into our business and operations, our ability to protect against fraud, the status of our relationship with and condition of third parties such as our contract manufacturers, distributors and key suppliers upon whom we rely in the conduct of our business, our dependence on a limited number of customers, the conduct of our business and operations internationally, our ability to effectively hedge our exposure to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, and our dependence on a limited number of key employees. For a further list and description of the risks and uncertainties affecting the operations of our business, see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our annual report on Form 10-K and our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date such statements are made. Verifone is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise. About Dagrofa The group Dagrofa has a yearly turnover around 20 billion DKK and has 16.500 employees. The Dagrofa group consists in Denmark of the food store chains MENY, KIWI, SPAR, Min Kbmand, Let-Kb and the companies FoodService Danmark and Dagrofa Logistics. About Verifone Verifone is transforming everyday transactions into opportunities for connected commerce. We're connecting more than 27 million payment devices to the cloud-merging the online and in-store shopping experience and creating the next generation of digital engagement between merchants and consumers. We are built on a 30-year history of uncompromised security. Our people are known as trusted experts that work with our clients and partners, helping to solve their most complex payments challenges. We have clients and partners in more than 150 countries, including the world's best-known retail brands, financial institutions and payment providers. Verifone.com | (NYSE: PAY) | @verifone View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161127005040/en/

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[November 28, 2016]

88 Meeting Limited Launched Investor Calendar APP

HONG KONG, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- 88 Meeting Limited announces today the launch of 88 Meeting Calendar, an APP publishing investor meetings. 88 Meeting APP provides time and venue information of public listed companies' earnings and roadshows. Current coverage includes companies listed in Hong Kong and Chinese ADRs listed in the US.

Users can search, filter events, add events to phone calendars, and share calendar information through email, WeChat or WhatsApp. Through the APP, users can also follow listed companies and receive new event notification s. 88 Meeting Calendar APP is available in English, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese.







88 Meeting Calendar APP can be downloaded from Apple Store, Google Play, and other major Chinese Android APP distribution websites. For more information, visit www.88meeting.com.

About 88 Meeting Limited

88 Meeting Limited was founded by a group of buy-side and sell-side analysts in 2016. The mission of 88 Meeting Limited is to help investors connect, communicate, and invest. For more information, visit us online at www.88meeting.com. Or contact us at [email protected]m.
[November 28, 2016] MegaChips Signs Representative Agreement with Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd for the UK and Eire

Customers to Benefit from Semiconductors that Are Shaping the Next Wave of the Digital Revolution SAN JOSE, California, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- MegaChips, a global semiconductor company specializing in ASICs and Application Specific Standard products (ASSPs), has signed a sales representative agreement with Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd, a long established design-led, franchised, electronic component distributor and manufacturer's representative, for the representation of its products in the UK and Eire. Customers in these countries will benefit from semiconductor products that are shaping the next wave of the digital revolution, adding significant value for businesses and consumers in the areas of Internet of Things, displays, enterprise, and mobile computing all around the world. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161115/439906LOGO "MegaChips' high-performance, low-power semiconductors have an excellent reputation in the UK and Ireland, and we are pleased to offer their products to our customers," said Philip Hall Managing Director at Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd. "By adding these offerings to our portfolio, Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd is able to provide our customers with products that are designed for people and engineered for performance."



Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd will promote & support all MegaChips products, including Integrated Circuits (ICs) and System on Chips (SoCs) that are essential for the advancement of Application Specific Standard Products (ASSPs). "We are pleased to partner with Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd, known in the UK and Eire for its excellent technology portfolio and customer service," said Hamid Mohammadi, VP of Sales at MegaChips. "This sales rep agreement expands MegaChips' presence in these two countries, offering our technology to help people achieve healthier, safer and more fulfilling lives."

About Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd

Broadband Technology 2000 Ltd, based in Finchampstead, Berkshire, are technically driven franchised suppliers of the world's most Innovative Electronic Products and Solutions. Established in 1995, they are a team of experienced electronic component sales, marketing and engineering professionals who have a unique local knowledge of the diverse market within the UK & Eire territory allowing total support in the introduction of a product from the embryonic stage to full production. For more information, contact the company at tel# +44 (0) 1189 324600 or visit www.bt2000.co.uk. About MegaChips Technology America Corporation ("MegaChips America")

MegaChips America is a wholly owned subsidiary of MegaChips Corporation headquartered in Osaka, Japan. As one of the premier semiconductor companies, MegaChips provides Integrated Circuits (ICs) and System on Chips (SoCs) that are essential for the advancement of Application Specific Standard Products (ASSPs). Leveraging decades of technology excellence, partnerships and acquisitions, MegaChips is exploring and shaping the next wave of the digital revolution, adding significant value for businesses and consumers in the global market with innovations in the areas of Internet of Things, Displays, Mobility, and Wearable devices. The company uses its advanced technological capabilities and know-how to help people achieve healthier, safer and more fulfilling lives. For more information, contact the company at 408-570-0555, or visit http://www.megachips.com.

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[November 28, 2016] Volpara Solutions Launches VolparaEnterprise 2.0 Software at RSNA

CHICAGO, Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Volpara Solutions announced the launch of VolparaEnterprise 2.0 software, which helps breast imaging providers deliver high quality, personalized breast screening, here at the 102nd Annual Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) meeting, November 27-December 2, 2016. (RSNA Booth - South Hall #4574). VolparaEnterprise software, which was commercially launched in 2016, delivers key performance indicators (KPIs) for hundreds of performance and quality metrics, including positioning, compression and equipment utilization. The Microsoft Azurebased solution provides continuous quality assurance and performance monitoring through dynamic, interactive dashboards. Updated with every mammography or tomosynthesis exam, the VolparaEnterprise ConstantQuality metrics may help facilities comply with the FDA's new EQUIP inspection program. Designed to support large or small enterprises, VolparaEnterprise software enables breast imaging providers to provide objective evidence to demonstrate compliance and quality of care. Users can perform rapid quality control checks to optimize the productivity and efficiency of imaging resources, to help reduce costs through the reduction of retakes, and to increase staff effectiveness. Updates to VolparaEnterprise 2.0 software include additional data and analytics tools to help improve imaging providers' understanding of their performance and provide better understanding of their patient population and referral patterns. A new technologist-specific dashboard enables technologists to monitor their own performance, and the new technologist Quality Quadrant diagram summarizes staff performance on patient poitioning and compression to identify training opportunities. A broader use of infographics makes data easier to interpret, and new role-specific "landing pages" summarize performance data for each user.



"VolparaEnterprise has given us the ability to monitor performance and quality every single day. With real-time, objective information, we no longer have to wait for ACR accreditation or for a radiologist to complain about inferior images to learn about quality concerns" said Mindy Shikiar, VP of Operations at Boca Raton Regional Hospital. "We are now beginning to use VolparaEnterprise to reshape the training of our technologists. VolparaEnterprise contains this amazing capability for analyzing patient positioning, which now gives us the ability to objectively identify which technologists are doing well and offer additional training to those who may need it." VolparaEnterprise software provides Clinical Quality Measures (CQMs1) sought by payers to justify supplemental screening. The objective assessment of volumetric breast density helps reduce time spent by radiologists and technologists on recalls that are not clinically beneficial, such as ultrasound on BI-RADS A/B breasts inadvertently deemed "dense" due to subjective assessment of density. This not only results in better patient care, but preserves proper equipment utilization, staff workflow and productivity.

"In the end, it's all about our patients. We were already proud to offer the Boca Raton community an amazingly well equipped and staffed breast center with dedicated professionals who truly care about our patients' well-being and long-term health. Adding VolparaEnterprise software has enabled us to implement new quality processes that will help ensure that every woman's mammogram is the best that we can offer," said Kathy Schilling, MD, Medical Director of Boca Raton Regional Hospital's Christine E. Lynn Women's Health & Wellness Institute. Volpara Solutions is showcasing its entire suite of quantitative breast imaging tools, including VolparaDensity, at RSNA. The company's technology is currently in use in 35 countries, and more than 9 million women have had their breast density analyzed using VolparaDensity. About Volpara Solutions

Founded with the goal of helping radiologists give women the most accurate information possible regarding their breast health, Volpara Solutions is the wholly owned sales and marketing arm of Volpara Health Technologies Limited of New Zealand (formerly Matakina Technology). Available in most markets where breast cancer screening is commonplace, VolparaDensity provides an objective volumetric measure of breast density from both digital mammography and tomosynthesis data. VolparaDensity is part of a suite of quantitative breast imaging tools built on the Volpara Solutions algorithm that allows for personalized measurements of density, patient-specific x-ray dose, breast compression, breast positioning and other factors designed to provide critical insight for breast imaging workflow. For more information, visit www.volparasolutions.com. 1 https://www.cms.gov/regulations-and-guidance/legislation/ehrincentiveprograms/clinicalqualitymeasures.html Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160713/389465LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/volpara-solutions-launches-volparaenterprise-20-software-at-rsna-300368211.html SOURCE Volpara Solutions

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[November 28, 2016] Olympus Awarded an Innovative Technology Designation for Fourth Consecutive Year by Vizient, Inc.

CENTER VALLEY, Pa., Nov. 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Olympus, a global technology leader in designing and delivering innovative solutions for medical and surgical procedures, among other core businesses, announced today that two of its products were awarded Innovative Technology designations by Vizient, Inc., the largest member-driven health care performance improvement company in the country. The products awarded were the VISERA 4K Ultra High Definition (UHD) "Big Screen" surgery video system and the ENDOCUFF VISION endoscopic device. The coveted designations were based on direct feedback from 1300 onsite clinical experts and healthcare providers who attended the Innovative Technology Exchange at Vizient's Clinical Connections Summit. About Olympus' Two Products Awarded the Vizient Innovative Technology Designation: VISERA 4K UHD is a state-of-the-art Big Screen surgical video system that delivers 4x the resolution of HD (38402160 pixels) with better light and wider color spectrum, helping to better visualize anatomical patterns so that surgeons can operate with increased precision and confidence. The only fully integrated 4K imaging chain available for healthcare, VISERA 4K UHD brings OR personnel closer to the operating field through a 55-inch display of live, magnified anatomical features  providing more visual informtion to the entire surgical team. It's improved handling of the red spectrum can help better differentiate bleeding from anatomy in as many as 20 million laparoscopic and arthroscopic surgeries per year.

ENDOCUFF VISION is the second generation, single-use device designed to improve visualization for certain endoscopic procedures such as colonoscopies. Placed on the distal tip of a colonoscope, its unique hinged arms fall flat against the shaft of the scope to reduce slippage during forward advancement. During withdrawal, the arms flare out and stabilize the tip, gently stretching the mucosal surface to allow the physician thorough inspection of the anatomy during the search for polyps.



Todd Usen , President, Olympus Medical Systems Group at Olympus Corporation of the Americas. "Improving quality of care, reducing costs and enhancing patient satisfaction are important goals that can be attained if physician and nurse experience is heeded, and with the careful application of research and development toward meaningful advancements." "Due to the number of products and services being released and marketed as 'innovative', member hospitals truly value the peer-review system in place at Vizient to help them identify products worth further evaluation at their own facilities," said Debbie Archer, director of procurement and leader of Vizient's Innovative Technology program for suppliers. "After a review of the Olympus VISERA 4K UHD system and the ENDOCUFF VISION, Vizient's members agreed these products offer unique and incremental benefit over other products available on the market today, and recommended them for an Innovative Technology designation."

These new designations mark Olympus' fourth consecutive year to have a product recognized by Vizient. Other products receiving Innovative Technology designations include: 2015: QuickClip Pro Endoscopic Clip and PCF-H190DL/I Slim Colonoscope with ScopeGuide

2014: Diego ELITE Multi-debrider, BF-P190 Bronchoscope and 3D versus Robotic Surgery Cost Comparison Calculator

2013: HD 3D Laparoscopic Surgical Video System These designations will identify the Olympus products within Vizient's online contract catalog as Innovative Technology. This heightened visibility will encourage further consideration by members accessing these agreements. About Olympus Medical Systems Group

Olympus Medical Systems Group, a division of global technology leader Olympus, develops solutions for healthcare professionals that help improve clinical outcomes, reduce overall costs and enhance the quality of life for their patients. By enabling less invasive procedures, innovative diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy, and early stage lung cancer evaluation and treatments, Olympus is transforming the future of healthcare. For more information visit Olympus at www.medical.olympusamerica.com. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161116/440221

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160715/389973LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/olympus-awarded-an-innovative-technology-designation-for-fourth-consecutive-year-by-vizient-inc-300365834.html SOURCE Olympus Corporation of the Americas

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[November 28, 2016] Orbital ATK Ends 2016 with Three Successful Cargo Resupply Missions to the International Space Station

Orbital ATK (NYSE:OA), a global leader in aerospace and defense technologies, announced it successfully completed its sixth cargo delivery mission to the International Space Station for NASA. Known as OA-5, the mission marked the company's return to flight operations from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Wallops Island, Virginia and the second time Cygnus has been used as a platform for conducting research in space. "The OA-5 mission was filled with numerous accomplishments," said Frank Culbertson, President of Orbital ATK's (News - Alert) Space Systems Group. "We returned to flight operations at our home base in eastern Virginia, successfully launched aboard our upgraded Antares rocket and once again showcased Cygnus' dynamic versatility and value to serve as a platform for conducting science experiments and payload operations for key customers. I congratulate the entire NASA and Orbital ATK teams for a job well done." On November 27 at approximately 6:40 p.m. EST, Cygnus performed a safe, destructive reentry into Earth's atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean east of New Zealand, successfully concluding the OA-5 mission. Named the "S.S. Alan Poindexter" in honor of the two-time Space Shuttle veteran, Cygnus launched on October 17, and six days later, berthed with the International Space Station, delivering approximately 5,300 pounds (2,400 kilograms) of vital supplies and science experiments to the astronauts on board. It remained docked for 29 days and departed the space station on November 21. Prior to its departure, the astronauts loaded the cargo module with aproximately 2,469 pounds (1,120 kilograms) of items for disposal.



After departing the space station, Cygnus moved into its next phase of serving as an in-orbit science platform. It successfully executed the Saffire-II payload experiment and deployed four CubeSats that will be used for meteorological research. The mission marked the first time that a cargo spacecraft deployed satellites above the orbit of the International Space Station. The Spacecraft Fire Experiment-II (Saffire-II) was the second in a series of tests to study the behavior of large-scale fires in microgravity. Results from Saffire experiments lead to technologies and materials that will make deep space exploration spacecraft safer for astronauts; a critical factor as NASA prepares for long-duration missions on its journey to Mars.

Orbital ATK successfully sent the command from the ground to initiate the Saffire-II experiment. The command intentionally ignited nine different experimental material samples inside the Cygnus pressurized cargo module which grew and eventually burned out. The experiment, designed by NASA's Glenn Research Center and funded by NASA's Advanced Exploration Systems Division, executed as intended. NASA's Glenn Research Center is currently evaluating all data and imagery gathered from the test. Following the Saffire-II experiment, Cygnus used a NanoRacks CubeSat deployer to launch four CubeSats into orbit. The spacecraft boosted its altitude to a record 500 kilometers before releasing the satellites into orbit. The altitude boost will increase the on-orbit lifespan of the satellites from about nine months in a typical International Space Station deployment to at least two years. Now in their intended positions, the satellites will help enhance weather forecasting capabilities. Preparations are underway for the company's next mission under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services-1 (CRS-1) contract. OA-7 is targeted to launch in the spring of 2017. Under the CRS-1 contract with NASA, Orbital ATK will deliver approximately 66,000 pounds (30,000 kilograms) of cargo to the International Space Station through 2018. Beginning in 2019, Orbital ATK will carry out a minimum of six initial cargo missions under NASA's CRS-2 contract. About Orbital ATK Orbital ATK is a global leader in aerospace and defense technologies. The company designs, builds and delivers space, defense and aviation systems for customers around the world, both as a prime contractor and merchant supplier. Its main products include launch vehicles and related propulsion systems; missile products, subsystems and defense electronics; precision weapons, armament systems and ammunition; satellites and associated space components and services; and advanced aerospace structures. Headquartered in Dulles, Virginia, Orbital ATK employs approximately 12,000 people in 18 states across the U.S. and in several international locations. For more information, visit www.orbitalatk.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005495/en/

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[November 28, 2016] SMB Purchases of IT Products and Services Forecast to Reach $668 Billion in 2020, According to IDC

The first Worldwide Semiannual Small and Medium Business Spending Guide from International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasts small and medium businesses (SMBs - businesses with less than 1,000 employees) will spend $564 billion on IT hardware, software, and services, including business services, in 2016. This amount is expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.2%, reaching $668 billion in 2020. The new spending guide expands on IDC's (News - Alert) previous small and medium business forecasts by offering greater detail on spending by technology, company size, and geography. "The Third Platform has disrupted traditional IT markets and how large organizations deliver IT services. For SMBs, the result has been largely positive: a stronger ability to compete with larger firms, more easily enter new markets, more quickly develop new products, and drive higher levels of employee productivity. Over the next three years, we expect IT solutions to drive business outcomes, and in turn further close the competitive gap between SMBs and enterprises," said Chris Chute, vice president, Customer Insights and Analysis. SMBs will invest similar amounts in hardware, software and IT services throughout the 2015-2020 forecast with these three categories representing more than 85% of the worldwide total. While hardware purchases currently represent the largest share of this spending, it will also experience the slowest growth. Software, which is expected to grow faster than the overall market, will overtake both hardware and services to become the largest spending category by 2020. Business services will see the fastest growth of the four categories. More than half of al SMB software purchases in 2016 will go to applications, led by enterprise resource management (ERM), customer relationship management (CRM), and content applications, with the remainder evenly divided between application development & deployment and system infrastructure software. Hardware spending will be led by purchases of telecommunications equipment, personal computers, and peripherals, which will make up nearly three quarters of all hardware purchases in 2016. More than 40% of SMB services spending will go to outsourcing, which includes applications management, hosted applications and infrastructure management, and IS outsourcing as well as business process outsourcing. The remainder will be used to purchase project-oriented services and support & training services.



Medium-sized businesses (100-499 employees) will be the largest market throughout the 2015-2020 forecast with 38% of worldwide SMB IT products and services revenues coming from this group of companies. The remaining revenues will be generated about equally by large businesses (500-999 employees) and small businesses/small offices (1-99 employees). On a geographic basis, the United States represents the largest market with SMB IT spending expected to total $168.7 billion in 2016. The U.S. will maintain a total share of roughly 30% throughout the forecast period. Western Europe and Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) are the second and third largest regions for SMB IT spending, with Asia/Pacific growing faster than the overall market. The regions with the fastest grow over the five-year forecast are Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, and the United States.

"Western European SMBs show strong interest in adopting new disruptive technologies. Third Platform technologies are now imperative, as they are the building base for the adoption of Innovation Accelerators. In Western Europe, over 99% of companies are SMBs and they spent $154.3 billion in 2016, so they represent a relatively big market that is now transitioning to digital," said Angela Vacca, research manager, Customer Insights and Analysis, IDC. "European SMBs have been so far deeply rooted in their local market while today they have the opportunity to become more visible across borders as the Internet of Things and robotics combined with cognitive systems and 3D printing are reshaping the IT landscape. The adoption of all these technologies is creating new opportunities and, as a result, demand for highly skilled workers is also increasing across all vertical markets in the SMBs segment." IDC's Worldwide Semiannual Small and Medium Business Spending Guide provides detail on small and midsize business IT spending across 40 technology categories in 53 countries. This IDC SMB Spending Guide provides a granular view of the market for IT spending from a region, country, and technology perspective for four SMB size categories: 1-9 employees, 10-99 employees (total small business), 100-499 employees, and 500-999 employees (total midsize businesses). About IDC Spending Guides

IDC's Spending Guides provide a granular view of key technology markets from a regional, vertical industry, use case, buyer, and technology perspective. The spending guides are delivered via pivot table format or custom query tool, allowing the user to easily extract meaningful information about each market by viewing data trends and relationships. About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,100 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of IDG, the world's leading technology media, data, and marketing services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com. Follow IDC on Twitter (News - Alert) at @IDC. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005301/en/

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[November 28, 2016] SCAN Employees and Community Volunteers Deliver 2,200 Thanksgiving Meals to Local Seniors

Traditional turkey dinners with all the trimmings were delivered to 2,200 local seniors on Thanksgiving morning thanks to an annual meal delivery event organized by Long Beach-based SCAN. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005997/en/ Volunteers help direct traffic at SCAN's 24th annual Thanksgiving meal delivery event in Long Beach. (Photo: Business Wire) "SCAN's mission has always been to help seniors remain healthy and independent," said Denise Likar, a vice president at SCAN. "When you bring a holiday meal to a hungry senior who also needs companionship, you know you are making a difference in someone's life." The meals were prepared Thursday morning b a team of volunteers, then packed into bags with handwritten notes from local schoolchildren.



SCAN has organized this meal delivery event for the past 24 years, recruiting hundreds of volunteers to not only deliver warm holiday meals to seniors but to spend time visiting with the recipients, providing companionship and holiday cheer. Helping out at this event has become a tradition for many of the volunteers and their families. "We couldn't do this without our volunteers," said Likar, who has been spending Thanksgiving morning volunteering at this event for 14 years. "It is a rewarding and fulfilling way to start the day."

The holidays can be a difficult time for seniors, especially for those who don't have resources available or family nearby. In addition to the annual meal delivery event, SCAN employees call thousands of SCAN Health Plan's oldest members in December to visit with them by phone and wish them happy holidays. "Making that personal connection is key to helping seniors stay healthy and independent, and communities play an important role in making those connections," said SCAN CEO Chris Wing. "Our holiday events are great, but we work with the community year-round to help ensure the support is available whenever it's needed." About SCAN SCAN is a not-for-profit organization committed to keeping seniors healthy and independent. That's been our mission since our founding in 1977. Today we deliver on that mission through a variety of divisions and programs including SCAN Health Plan, one of the largest not-for-profit Medicare Advantage plans in the nation. Independence at Home, a SCAN community service, provides vitally needed services and support to seniors, disabled adults and their caregivers. SCAN also offers education programs, community funding, volunteer opportunities and other community services throughout our California service area. To learn more visit scanhealthplan.com or facebook.com/scanhealthplan, or follow us on twitter @scanhealthplan. Y0057_SCAN_10041_2016 IA 11222016 View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005997/en/

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[November 28, 2016] AXIS Capital Announces Acquisition of Aviabel

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited ("AXIS Capital") (NYSE:AXS) today announced that it has agreed to acquire general aviation insurance and reinsurance leader Aviabel, increasing the company's scale and relevance in the global aviation market. The "Aviabel" brand, including its Dutch brand "NLP" ("Nederlandse Luchtvaartpool"), will be retained as Belgium-based Aviabel supports the continued expansion of AXIS Insurance's aviation operation globally. AXIS will continue to maintain the company's locations in Brussels and Amsterdam. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions. "AXIS is committed to the aviation market for the long-term and, through this acquisition, we're increasing our scale and market relevance. Aviabel is a highly trusted and respected brand, with a portfolio that complements our existing business, expands our presence into the general aviation and smaller account segments, as well as increases our geographic footprint in aviation," said Mark Gregory, CEO of AXIS Insurance's International Division. "Aviabel is also a great cultural fit - like AXIS, it is a specialty company that is entrepreneurial and agile and that places a very high priority on its clients and its employees." Aviabel has more than 80 years' experience in providing insurance and reinsurance solutions for the general aviation sector and a portfolio of partnerships and clients spanning the globe and gross premiums written of approximately 50 million. The company's products and services extend across general aviation, airlines, airports, pilots and crews, and aerospace manufacturers. "Becoming part of AXIS provides an opportunity to benefit from the financial strength and resources of a global carrier and to significantly enhance the servces and programs that we offer to our clients and our employees," said Cecile Coune, CEO of Aviabel. "Further, AXIS is a company with a strong understanding of today's transformed insurance marketplace and its leadership has a clear vision for where the industry is heading. This is the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Aviabel, our team and our clients."



About AXIS Capital AXIS Capital is a Bermuda-based global provider of specialty lines insurance and treaty reinsurance with shareholders' equity at September 30, 2016 of $6.0 billion and locations in Bermuda, the United States, Europe, Singapore, Middle East, Canada and Latin America. Its operating subsidiaries have been assigned a rating of "A+" ("Strong") by Standard & Poor's and "A+" ("Superior") by A.M. Best. For more information about AXIS Capital, visit our website at www.axiscapital.com. Please be sure to follow AXIS Capital on LinkedIn.

About Aviabel Aviabel is a premier independent specialty aviation insurer and reinsurer with locations in Brussels and Amsterdam. Aviabel has been assigned an "A-" (Stable) rating by Standard & Poor's and an "A-" (Excellent) rating by A.M. Best. Aviabel NV/SA is a limited liability company incorporated under the laws of Belgium, with registered office at Louizalaan/Avenue Louise 54, 1050 Brussels (Belgium), and registered with the Central Enterprise Register under number 0403.248.004 (RLE Brussels). Aviabel is an insurance and reinsurance undertaking authorized with the National Bank of Belgium under number 0361. For more information about Aviabel, visit www.aviabel.com and follow Aviabel on LinkedIn and Twitter. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161128005696/en/

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Three seek NLCS Board District 1 seat in upcoming election

Three candidates are seeking election to the district one seat on the NLCS board: Incumbent Kirsten Collier, Craig Godsey and Jason Johnson.
Tom's Guide 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.
Even though the CES show floor opens in 38 days, Samsung has already begun a media blitz. In a Samsung-Is-Special PR release from Satellite Press Releases, the company bloviates about winning 35 CES 2017 Innovation Awards. Among the prestigious award list is the Samsung 850 Pro 4TB.

When Samsung launch the 850 EVO 4TB last July, many asked when a professional model would come to market. The 850 EVO is the best consumer SSD for a majority of users, but under professional workloads, the increased endurance and steady-state performance of the 850 Pro is a better product. You lose the speedy TurboWrite feature for quick bursts but gain long term performance in a heavy write environment.

The 850 Pro 4TB has long been rumored and even listed on Samsung's website under the firmware update section (opens in new tab).

Samsung 850 PRO SSD 4TB  As the worlds first 2-bit MLC 4TB consumer SSD, the 850 PRO is ideal for dramatically boosting PC performance. With an industry leading 4TB capacity, users have more space than ever before to store files locally. In particular, high data consumption users such as content creators, gaming and PC enthusiasts can upgrade their laptops and workstations from a hard disk drive to the 850 PRO SSD 4TB to surpass density limitations, reduce power consumption, better support heavy write-intensive applications, and improve PC and program load times.

The Samsung 960 Pro 2TB and PM971 512GB NVMe BGA also took home awards for a show that begins in over a month.

The Samsung SSD 960 PRO 2TB is both the highest performing and highest capacity NVMe-based consumer SSD in the M.2 form factor with V-NAND technology that Samsung has released to date. With the 960 PRO, professionals will stay ahead when it comes to storage endurance, reliability and density than ever before. Using a smaller form factor fit for ultra-thin laptops and PCs, users can take their files with them  and access them at rapid speeds  on the go. With the ability to survive up to 1.2 petabytes written, no other SSD on the market today can compete with the endurance provided by the 960 PRO.

Apparently, the author didn't read our review of the MyDigitalSSD BPX and it's 1,400 TB endurance rating in a 512GB class product.

In other Samsung news, a DRAMeXchange report except was published today by TrendForce.

"Samsung has a relatively complete Client SSD product line which includes high performance PCIe SSDs and thin, light weight SATA SSDs with large memory densities. Its dominance in the Client SSD market is unlikely to be challenged in the next 1-2 years, as many of its rivals are still playing catch up.", DRAMeXchange said.

I can't come up with a one-liner about giving away awards two years in advance. Given the current state of IMFT and Toshiba's 3D efforts, I'd say two years is shortsighted. Samsung's 48-layer V-NAND is superior to everything available today, and Samsung has a solid strategy for increasing production. The next generation 64-layer memory will give us more insight into how long V-NAND will be the dominate force in the market. The 48-layer shipping today increased performance over the 32-layer it replaced. If Samsung can sustain the same latency out of 64 layers, we may see a full decade of Samsung flash dominance.
In case you havent heard, theres talk that suggests Rove McManus will be making a return to hosting a late-night TV talk show. The Daily Telegraph reports Rove has partnered with Channel Nine to launch a new talk show in 2017.

The comedian, who recently returned to Australia after a stint in America to take on a role on radio, has reportedly been filming secret tests for the show in the same studio where Nine tapes their Today morning show for weeks now.

The move could be a boon for Aussie music. Fans of Rove Live will know that the show often hosted the latest buzzed-about Aussie acts, including powerhouse performances from the likes of Cut Copy, The Vines, and more.

However, our favourite musical moment on Rove Live is easily an interview the host conducted (or at least tried to) with The Dissociatives, a collaboration between Silverchair frontman Daniel Johns and local EDM legend Paul Mac, back in 2004.

Things were loose AF from the get-go. Johns came out skipping and immediately proceeded to shove a handful of Roves famous jelly beans into his mouth, before offering the bowl up to the crowd, and then finally taking his seat and launching into some hilarious banter.

Quite possibly the loosest musician interview on Australian TV since Molly Meldrum futilely attempted to interview Iggy Pop. Check it out below.
Dont let them win, sang Neil Finn, during the big old singalong that is Dont Dream Its Over. He implored the throng to hold onto that thought, as its an important one right now, and everyone raised their voices a bit louder. And although this was not a political night in any way, this definitely is a thought we do need to hold onto so that the dream doesnt end as the world enters very interesting times.

Yes, 20 years to the day and the fans have returned to the Sydney Opera House for the encore performance under the sails  albeit a paid affair for just over five thousand punters and not a farewell like 1996 with over 100,000 around the Harbour.

For some this was a chance to have a body memory of that performance two decades ago, and for others it was a chance to see Crowded House live for the first time as the band has been in dry-dock for the last five years.

The gorgeous sunset, the clouds, the coat hanger and the Opera House make for a beautiful setting for the campfire pop and rock of Neil Finn, Nick Seymour, Mark Hart and Matt Sherrod. With the crowd buzzing over the first gig of a four-night stand, there was a great deal of pleasure rising into the night sky over Bennelong Point.

Kicking off with the same song they started with 20 years ago was sweet, and Mean to Me had everyone warming up their vocal chords for the lengthy set ahead. Of course, outdoor gigs are not always the best for sound, and it was a bit muddy and low in volume at the start. Although the clarity improved throughout the night, the volume could have been much better, as hearing chatter throughout a rock and roll gig is not a good thing.

This is a minor quibble, as getting to hear songs like Pineapple Head, Hole in The River, Fall at Your Feet and Distant Sun live again made up for those issues. The community of souls in attendance singing along with Weather with You, Chocolate Cake and Its Only Natural when Tim Finn joined the band definitely made for a nostalgic pop performance. The set list was a deja vu of 20 years ago; not in the same order, but 18 of the 22 numbers played were rolled out in 1996. Definitely a nicely planned group of songs, but the flow and order just didnt quite conspire to make it a perfect night.

But the throng loves Finn and his cohorts; they love to harmonise and the connection between Neil and Nick, and the crowd has not been dampened through the years. Of course, no Crowded House gig could be complete without a final burst of vocals by all in attendance and, as the night closed on Better Be Home Soon, the crowd belted it to the skies.
Briggs and Trials dropped their eagerly anticipated first album as A.B. Original last week. The album, Reclaim Australia, has already received widespread praise as a vital powerhouse of a debut album and one of the most important Australian records of the year.

But speaking to triple j, the two emcees behind the project revealed they have pulled a King Gizz and are almost done with the sophomore release. Were almost done with the second one, Trials confirmed to the national youth broadcaster.

Trials was responding to a question about whether this project will be a one-off a la Temple of the Dog, or if we can expect more releases in the future. Cant stop, wont stop, Briggs told the station.

During the interview, the duo also discussed their recent cover of Paul Kelly Dumb Things for Like A Version. The widely talked-about and almost universally praised cover had many triple j listeners calling it one of if not the best LAV cover of the year.

These are the people you grow up listening to, who have done great things, Briggs said of Kelly. I know how instrumental Paul was in Uncle Archies music and getting that out as well, which opened up a lot of doors for Indigenous artists.

We wouldnt have these kind of platforms without people putting in that good work, for Arch and with Arch, to start those stories. Likewise, Kelly explained that there are many similarities between the Shepparton emcee and himself. We tell stories, he told Matt and Alex.

Meanwhile, Reclaim Australia is out now via Briggss own Bad Apples Music. Writing for Tone Deaf, Kieron Byatt hailed the album as the latest instalment in hip-hops proud history as providing a voice to the disenfranchised.

The message is raw, its undeniable, and its context is unprecedented, he wrote. Its something that Australia has been missing. This is if Run The Jewels made It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back with M.O.P writing every hook. However, one thing above all cant be understated: this is really good rap music.
In a world where fake news and false factoids are rampant, it is hard to distinguish what is true and what isnt, especially when it sounds so unbelievable. We have gone through some crazy news stories and unbelievable tales from history and culled even more of the most interesting, unbelievable facts that sound like BS, but are completely true.

10. Theres a Novel That Doesnt Contain the Letter E

In 1936, author Ernest Vincent Wright set out to write a book that did not contain the letter E, which is the most common letter in the English language. He got really excited about the project because other people said it would be impossible to do without ignoring the rules of grammar. Yet, Wright was able to bang out a 50,000 word novel, called Gadsby. To ensure he didnt use the E key on his typewriter, he disabled it. He said that the hardest problem was avoiding words that ended with -ed.

The plot of Gadsby revolves around the fictional city of Branton Hills, which was in a decline. The books main character, John Gadsby, leads a group of young people to help rejuvenate it.

The novel wasnt successful when it was first released, but the book has developed a following in later years and a first edition is now highly collectable.

9. A Woman Paid $10,000 for Invisible Art

Oh James Franco, sometimes you seem all right. But other times its hard not to figure out where you live, travel there, and then hit you up the backside of your head. Case in point is his the Museum of Non-Visible Art, which, you may have gathered, is full of art that doesnt physically exist. Instead, the artist imagines a piece of art and explains it to the audience. If that wasnt ridiculous enough, people can also buy the works of art. The purchaser gets a card with the pieces name, and then the owner takes it and puts it on their wall. And then they have to explain the art to their audience. Basically, its the most pretentious-sounding endeavor you can probably imagine (and then you can sell that imaginary endeavor, if youre James Franco).

Strangely, Franco is not the most pretentious person in this story. That would be the woman who bought a piece of invisible art for $10,000. Fresh Air was purchased by Aimee Davison, who says her title is a new media producer. We have to say, good choice of giving away your money to a rich movie star like James Franco; we dont think there are any starving children who could have used that money to, you know, eat.

8. Saudi Arabia Imports Camels from Australia

The first thing about this factoid that you may be surprised to learn is that Australia has camels. They were imported onto the continent in the 19th century from Arabia, India, and Afghanistan because they were well suited to Australias outback. However, when the combustion engine came along, the camels werent needed. So they were released into the outback, and today it is a huge problem. There is one roaming pack that has 750,000 camels.

Another thing you may be surprised to learn is that Australia also exports camels to Saudi Arabia, a place youd think would be plentiful with camels. It would be like Canada importing beavers.

While there are plenty of camel farms in Saudi Arabia, their camels are bred for domestic uses and racing. The camels from Australia are mostly used for meat, which is a delicacy in many countries in the Middle East.

7. Cleopatra was Greek, Not Egyptian

One of the most famous Egyptian rulers of all time is Cleopatra VII. When she was 18, in 51 BC, she became co-regent of Egypt with her 10-year-old brother and she more or less ruled for the next three decades.

While Cleopatra is a famous Pharaoh, she and the other Macedonian rulers of Egypt were Alexandria-based, which was the center of Greek culture. Cleopatra, like other rulers of the Macedonian dynasty, spoke Greek and observed Greek customs.

What made Cleopatra so beloved among the Egyptians was that unlike other leaders, she learned to speak Egyptian and ommissioned art of herself in traditional Egyptian style. As a result, Cleopatra was one of the most beloved of the Pharaohs, even though she was Greek.

6. The Internet Weighs as Much as a Strawberry

You may be wondering how the internet can have a weight, since it is data. Well, it turns out that when you download something to a device, lets say a song to your iPod, it increases the weight of the device. The reason the device gets heavier is because when data is added to a device, it results in something called trapped electrons and they have higher energy than untrapped ones, and the higher energy increases the weight. However, since the increase is so slight it is impossible to notice.

Using that information, the YouTube channel VSauce figured out how much all the data on the internet weighs. That includes all the cat pictures and pornography, and it is about 50 grams, or roughly the weight of a strawberry.

5. Its Possible for Twins to Have Two Different Fathers

While its very rare, it is possible for a set of twins to be fathered by two men. The condition is called heteropaternal superfecundation, and it happens when a woman ovulates twice in one month and has sex with two different men while ovulating. There are only a few recorded cases of it in history (a lot of that could stem from the fact that DNA tests have only been around since 1984), but what is really amazing is that it has happened not once, but twice at the place where people go to get paternity matters dealt with  Maury!

The first case of two different men fathering a set of twins happened in 2008. A woman named Regina was on the show to see if her ex-boyfriend was the father of her twins, and he was only the father to one of them.

The second time was in 2011 when 19-year-old Alejandrina went on the show claiming that her boyfriend Jose was the father of her twins. She also emphatically denied sleeping with anyone else but Jose. Well, the lie detector determined that was a lie, and the DNA test proved that Jose was only the father to one of the twins.

Both times it happened on the show, Maury and the audience were shocked. Mostly by the whole twins by different parents thing, but probably at least in part by the fact that Maury is still on the air.

4. The Voice Actors who were Mickey and Minnie Mouse Were Married in Real Life

Wayne Allwine got his start at Disney in the mailroom in 1966. Over the next several years, he was able to work his way up to the sound department, and became the third man to voice Mickey Mouse, a position he held for 30 years.

In 1985, Disney was starting a new show called Totally Minnie and Russi Taylor was hired on to be the voice of Minnie Mouse. After a recording session, they met in the hallway and hit it off immediately.

The couple was married for 18 years, until Allwines death in 2009 at the age of 62. Taylor is still the voice of Minnie Mouse and she also provides the voices of Martin Prince, Uter, and Sheri and Teri on The Simpsons.

3. Guy Gets Heart Transplant from a Suicide Victim, Marries his Widow, Commits Suicide the Same Way

In 1995, when Sonny Graham was 57, he needed a new heart or hed die from congestive heart failure. The good news for Graham was that a donor heart had come available, because 33-year-old Terry Cottle had shot himself.

After getting the heart, Graham was grateful, so he sent thank you letters to Terrys family. This led to Graham corresponding with Terrys widow, Cheryl Cottle. In January 1997, when Cheryl was 28, she and Graham met. Graham said it felt like hed known Cheryl his whole life.

In 2001, Graham bought a house for Cottle and her children to live in and three years later, Cheryl and Graham were married. 12 years after getting Terrys heart, in April 2006, Graham committed suicide. Just like Terry, it was from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

2. The Night Before his Execution an Inmate Escaped, but was Killed the Following Night in a Bar Fight

On November 21, 1973, 20-year-old Troy Leon Gregg was hitchhiking. He was picked up in Gwinnett County, Georgia, by Fred Edward Simmons and Bob Durwood Moore and at some point, Gregg decided to rob the two men. In the process of the robbery, Gregg shot both men to death. He was arrested, tried, and sentenced to death in 1974.

After appealing the sentence, the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence and Gregg was scheduled to be executed on July 29, 1980. However, the day before Gregg was to die, he and three other death row inmates escaped by sawing through the bars of their cells, and then wore fake guard uniforms.

However, Greggs freedom was short lived. He was beaten to death on the night he should have been executed at a biker bar by James C. Butch Horne Jr. The other three escapees were arrested three days later, though its unclear whether they, too, met some Final Destination-like fate.

1. Hitler was Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize

One of humanitys greatest villains was Adolf Hitler. Its impossible to figure out how many deaths he and the Nazis were responsible for, but it is in the tens of millions.

Three months after starting World War II with the invasion of Poland in 1939, (and 16 months after being named Times Man of the Year), Hitler was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Swedish politician Erik Gottfrid Christian Brandt. Another nominee that year was Mahatma Gandhi.

What the Nobel committee didnt get was that Brandts letter nominating Hitler was ironic. Brandt was anti-fascism and he wanted to provoke Hitler and the Nazis. When Brandt realized that the committee didnt know it was a joke, he immediately withdrew his nomination. We hope in part because he realized that if you have to explain a joke, its just not funny anymore.

In the end, no one won the 1939 Nobel Peace Prize because of the outbreak of World War II. But were hoping it would have been Gandhi over Hitler.

Robert Grimminck is a Canadian freelance writer. You can friend him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter, follow him on Pinterest or visit his website, or his true crime YouTube channel.

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Based on provisional data by the Bank of Greece, the balance of travel services showed a surplus of 2,038 million in September 2016, up 1.0% from a surplus of 2,018 million in September 2015. More specifically, travel receipts in September 2016 rose to 2,232 million (up 2.3% from 2,182 million in September 2015), while travel payments increased by 17.9% (September 2016: 193 million, September 2015: 164 million). The rise in travel receipts resulted from a 13.7% increase in inbound traveller flows, as average expenditure per trip decreased by 10.1%. Net receipts from travel services accounted for 81.9% of total net receipts from services and more than offset (148.8%) the goods deficit.

In January-September 2016, the balance of travel services showed a surplus of 10,472 million, down 7.1% from a surplus of 11,269 million in the same period of 2015. This development was driven by both a decrease in travel receipts (down 703 million or 5.5%) and an increase in travel payments (up 94 million or 6.2%). The fall in travel receipts resulted from a 9.3% decline in average expenditure per trip, as inbound traveller flows rose by 3.5%. Net receipts from travel services offset 86.5% of the goods deficit and accounted for 78.5% of total net receipts from services.

Travel receipts

In September 2016, as mentioned previously, travel receipts rose by 2.3% year-on-year. Looking at the breakdown by visitors country of origin, receipts from residents of the EU28 increased by 4.4% (September 2016: 1,603 million, September 2015: 1,536 million), while receipts from outside the EU28 dropped by 3.3% (September 2016: 569 million, September 2015: 588 million). The increase in receipts from within the EU28 was due to a rise of 188 million or 36.7% in receipts from residents of non-euro area EU28 countries, as receipts from euro area residents fell by 11.8 % (September 2016: 903 million, September 2015: 1,023 million). Among major countries of origin, receipts from Germany fell by 17.8% to 357 million and those from France dropped by 24.7% to 136 million. Receipts from the United Kingdom increased by 39.7% to 377 million. Turning to non-EU28 countries, receipts from Russia rose by 39.6% to 97 million, while those from the United States fell by 36.9% to 112 million.

In January-September 2016, travel receipts decreased by 5.5% to 12,085 million, relative to the same period of 2015. This development is attributed to lower receipts from both within the EU28 (down 2.8% to 8,389 million) and outside the EU28 (down 13.5% to 3,278 million). In particular, receipts from euro area residents fell by 7.4% to 5,093 million, while those from residents of non-euro area EU28 countries rose by 5.2% to 3,296 million. Specifically, receipts from Germany dropped by 10.4% to 1,798 million and those from France by 24.3% to 842 million. Receipts from the United Kingdom also decreased, by 5.6% to 1,763 million. Turning to non-EU28 countries, receipts from Russia rose by 5.4% to 410 million, while those from the United States fell by 26.7% to 628 million.

Inbound traveller flows

The number of inbound visitors in September 2016 rose by 13.7% year-on-year to 4,150 thousand. Specifically, visitor flows through airports and road border-crossing points rose by 9.5% and 17.5% respectively. This development reflected a 21.4% increase in visitor flows from within the EU28, as visitor flows from outside the EU28 fell by 2.3%. In greater detail, visitor flows from the euro area rose by 1.1% to 1,449 thousand and those from the non-euro area EU28 countries increased by 49.6% (September 2016: 1,544 thousand, September 2015: 1,032 thousand). Specifically, visitor flows from Germany decreased by 8.1% to 513 thousand, while those from France fell by 13.8% to 208 thousand. Visitor flows from the United Kingdom increased by 58.1% to 527 thousand. Turning to non-EU28 countries, visitor flows from Russia rose by 44.2% to 130 thousand, while those from the United States fell by 34.0% to 89 thousand.

The number of inbound visitors in January-September 2016 increased by 3.5% to 21,345 thousand (January-September 2015: 20,617 thousand). Specifically, visitor flows through airports rose by 6.8%, while those through road border-crossing points fell by 5.4%. In the period under review, visitor flows from within the EU28 increased by 13.1% year-on-year to 14,838 thousand, whereas those from outside the EU28 fell by 13.2% to 6,506 thousand. Visitor flows from the euro area rose by 6.9% and those from the non-euro area EU28 countries by 20.5%. Specifically, visitor flows from Germany rose by 6.2% to 2,536 thousand, while those from France fell by 11.6% to 1,186 thousand. Visitor flows from the United Kingdom increased by 15.6% to 2,456 thousand. Finally, turning to non-EU28 countries, visitor flows from Russia increased by 18.9% to 525 thousand, while those from the United States decreased by 2.8% to 640 thousand.

Related link: Developments in the balance of travel services: September 2016 - Table

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
Reaching a staff-level agreement for concluding the second review of Greece's programme before the December 5 Eurogroup was crucial so that a discussion on Greece's debt can begin and the efforts over the years of crisis can come to fruition, European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici said in Athens on Monday.

"My guess, my take, is that we are not so far away from this. That its doable. That we can make it and that you can have a deal with all parties around the table", Moscovici said while delivering the keynote address to the 27th annual 'The Greek Economy' Conference "Greece and the Global Disruptive Environment: A look into the future" organised by the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce.

He also underlined the need for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to stay on board as a guarantee to stability.

Throughout his speech, Moscovici also emphasised the social welfare elements of the programme and the need to "make sure that even those hardest hit during the crisis can again participate in sustainable and inclusive economic growth here in Greece."

He noted that there were two key goals, both of which were essential: firstly to improve the business environment and competitiveness, to increase investment in Greece and deliver economic growth, and secondly to integrate a social welfare system that is targeted, consistent and efficient.

Lght at the end of the tunnel

"This is what is required to support a robust economic recovery and a better, more stable future for the Greek people," the Commissioner said, offering assurances to Greek people that there was finally a "light at the end of the tunnel."

"A shift is now clearly observable and I am glad to be able to make this observation that wouldn't have been possible a few years ago when I started sitting on the Eurogroup as France's finance minister," he pointed out, citing recent upbeat forecasts for a return to 2.7 pct growth in 2017 and "encouraging signs" from the labour market.

At the same time, Moscovici underlined that Greece must continue and complete reforms so that the efforts "were not for nothing".

"There can be no backtracking, no going back to the unsustainable policies and practices of the pre-crisis period. Nobody must have any nostalgia for that period," he said.

He admitted, however, that a 24 pct employment rate, while an improvement, was no cause for satisfaction and that "downside risks remain".

"People here, as in many other parts of Europe and the world, do not feel they have and they are likely beneficiaries in the potential upside. We must always keep in mind that there are some Greek citizens, French citizens, American citizens, who feel that they are 'forgotten' by the political system and feel as if they are losers in globalisation," Moscovici admitted.

Greece's prosperity and economic stability

According to the Commissioner, there were four elements needed to support those hardest hit and ensure Greece's prosperity and economic stability in the long run: inclusive growth that 'left no one behind', a fair tax system that ensured everyone paid his or her fair share, "ownership" of reforms across the political spectrum and Greece once again becoming an active participant in its European future.

"That is the ultimate target for us all," Moscovici added, "I never accepted that there could be something like a Grexit. But I wanted more than that, I want a stable Greece, a strong Greece, to be a strong partner in a democratic Europe. Here we are in the birthplace of democracy where culture had its peak and this is a country that must be at the core of Europe not at its fringe."

He also noted that the feeling of exclusion from the benefits of growth was not unique to Greece and its "electoral translation" had led to a populist rise all across western soceities. He said this was particularly valid in Greece's case and emphasised the need for an efficient social welfare system.

"We have to pre-empt people's legitimate concerns and to ensure that economic growth is inclusive. To that end, a strong social welfare system, combined with education, culture, with training opportunities is essential. To ensure that all can participate in building Greece's future, we have to render the system both effective and sustainable. Greece's future is at stake; the first without the second means only those in a position to benefit today will benefit while future generations will be left to fend for themselves. This is not acceptable and that does not reflect the European social model and the European social model must be implemented in this country," he said.

As a key part of the effort he identified the national roll-out of the social solidarity income programme, pointing out that this was a key part of the second review programme, and highlighted the social welfare review undertaken with the World Bank to improve targeting and efficiency. Potential reforms, he added, may include improvements to family and disability benefits and also to health care, as a step to ensuring universal access and a system that is affordable.

Weaknesses in the labour market were another area highlighted by the Commissioner, who pointed out that labour laws "need to facilitate job creation as well as job security." "This is an equilibrium that is challenging to find in post-crisis economies, he said and also urged investors to take advantage of Greece's "abundant and skilled human capital."

Moscovici highlighted the great progress made by Greece is reforming its tax system: "Since july 2015 Greece has undertaken a substantial set of tax reforms, including restructuring of the relevant authorities. These reforms are intended to facilitate and improve tax compliance and collection, to extend the tax base so that not only a few pay while many benefit, simplify complexities and mitigate administrative burdens and overlap," he said.

European best practices

Such policies are not only in line with European best practices but also fully coherent with the current global push to see individuals and corporations pay their fair share, he added.

Moscovici particularly emphasised the need for Greece to now complete a growth and investment strategy that sets out a vision for the next two or three years.

"As we near the prospect of closing the second review of the ESM programme I would encourage the authorities, and I did this afternoon, to start thinking about what comes afterwards and how to prepare the ground from now," he said.

"Taking a perspective beyond the programme period is key to foster confidence in continued policy delivery and to deliver and develop a credible and well-supportive growth narrative for Greece. To be very frank, we still expect that. We need that. And that's what needs to be reinforced now. Stability, predictability over a long-term horizon, long enough to generate the benefits that have started to emerge and which we see as possible," he said.

He emphasised that Greece's place remained in Europe, and also its geopolitical role, on the front line of the refugee crisis, and its "strategically important" and "complicated" relationship with Turkey. "This gives you also the right to speak strongly about the future of Europe, not just about its past," he said.

"We are a few days ahead of a very important Eurogroup meeting, on the 5th of December...to me this must be opening of a sequence that needs to lead to what I call a global deal about the Greek programme. In my view that means completing a virtuous circle, where reforms are led, which leads to confidence, which also leads to a coming back of investors, foreign direct investors and Greek investors but also European investors in this country. Jumped growth."

And this is why it is so important that we are capable of reaching a staff-level agreement before the 5th of December, so that there is a sequence that is open that can lead us also to examine positively the question of debt, debt reprofiling before the end of this year. Also for that, we need to have a successful completion of the second review."

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
Business Insider UK published a Glassdoor report titled Which Countries in Europe Offer the Best Standard of Living? which takes into consideration the wages and living costs of EU cities

Business Insider UK published a Glassdoor report titled Which Countries in Europe Offer the Best Standard of Living? which takes into consideration the wages and living costs of EU cities in ranking them as affordable.

Two Greek cities are on the list, with third place going to Thessaloniki and fifth place to Athens.

The complete list of the "7 cheapest European cities to live in" includes:

7. Barcelona, Spain

The seventh-most-populous urban area in the European Union attracts professionals and tourists from across the world, but living costs are still low compared with wages.

6. Lisbon, Portugal

Glassdoor says the average nominal wage in Portugal is only about 15,500 (12,210, $17,641), but low local living costs mean the average city dweller will not be massively out of pocket.

5. Athens, Greece

The city may be rocked by mass unemployment and a refugee crisis, but if you have a job, Athens is a pretty cheap place to live.

4. Tallinn, Estonia

Living costs in the city are incredibly cheap, and considering it is the political and financial capital of Estonia, wages are on the rise.

3. Thessaloniki, Greece

The second-largest city in Greece is by the sea and a major transportation hub for the country, providing lots of jobs. It also is a tourist hotspot thanks to its museums and historical monuments.

2. Porto, Portugal

Glassdoor says the second-largest city in Portugal is about 70% cheaper to live in than New York City.

1. Tartu, Estonia

The beautiful city is the second largest in Estonia and is regarded by the country as its "intellectual capital" because it is home to the nation's oldest and most renowned university, the University of Tartu.

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
In an attempt to boost the countrys low birth rate, 10 hotels in the town of Assisi in central Italy launched the Fertility Room campaign

If youre looking for a romantic getaway, a number of Italian hotels are offering free accommodation to potential visitors, although there is a catch  you have to conceive a baby while staying there.

In an attempt to boost the countrys low birth rate, 10 hotels in the town of Assisi in central Italy launched the Fertility Room campaign, offering either reimbursement to those who get pregnant during their holidays or a second nights accommodation free of charge.

Utilizing the campaign slogan Venite ad Assisi. Insieme! (Come to Assisi. Together!), those who take up the offer will have to show a birth certificate which proves that nine months before (plus or minus 10 days) the baby was conceived at the hotel.

The initiative was reportedly developed by Eugenio Guarducci, a local tourism councilor, who hopes it will promote the historic town while also raising awareness of Italy's low fertility rate.

The low birth rate in our country is one of the most significant problems that society will have to face in the coming years, a campaign statement says. Giving birth to a child is a profound gesture of love, which should be encouraged despite the many difficulties of life.

The public image of Assisi

Not everyone is keen on the idea, however, with local authorities distancing themselves from the campaign, which is scheduled to run until March 31, 2017.

Claudio Ricci, an Umbria regional councilor and former mayor of Assisi, said that the region will investigate whether such a campaign is fitting for the public image of Assisi and the promotion of the region.

With only 8 babies born for every 1,000 residents in 2015, according to Eurostat, Italy is facing what has been described as a demographic apocalypse.

If we carry on as we are and fail to reverse the trend, there will be fewer than 350,000 births a year in 10 years' time, 40 percent less than in 2010  an apocalypse, Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin told The Local in May.

Italian women give birth to 1.39 children on average, which is compared to the 1.58 average across the EU, Elisabetta Addis, an economist and demographics expert at the University of Sassari, told the outlet.

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


Murabaha Finance, a top financing company in Saudi Arabia, has entered into an agreement with Shariyah Review Bureau (SRB), under which SRB will be the exclusive Sharia Advisor and Sharia Auditor for its financing products and operational upgrades.



Murabaha Finance has been in operation for over 7 years and has helped support both SMEs and individuals, involving successive leasing and financing infusions totalling several hundreds of millions of Saudi riyals, a statement said.



Ayman Al Habib, CEO of Murabaha Finance said: In providing convenient, low-cost Islamic financing access to a dynamic market of the Kingdom, Murabaha Finance has helped change the way many corporates and individuals manage their leasing and financial portfolio amid increasing market volatility. Moving forward we will be a trailblazing our facilities in terms of Sharia compliant programs, efficiency of customization, financing slate flexibility and customer focused impact.



Speaking on the assignment of the Sharia Advisor he added: "SRB distinguishes itself in the expertise of its dedicated professional staff, its local and international footprint, ability to understand the unique opportunities in Sharia business models, and the innovative approach that Murabaha Finance will take in ensuring that its corporate and individual customers receive value-added deals in a timely and cost effective manner."



SRB is a leading Sharia Advisory and Sharia Audit service provider in Saudi Arabia. Established to provide institutions with diversified, low-cost Sharia scholarly and Sharia Audit access, the firm manages banks, insurance companies, asset management firms, IPOs and international funds since 2004.



In Saudi Arabia alone, the firm is the sharia advisor for 25 per cent of the financing institutions licensed by SAMA, 26 per cent of the Saudi Investment Companies licensed by the CMA, and 23 per cent cooperative Insurance firms listed on the stock exchange.



Demand for high quality Sharia Advisory expertise is on the rise as institutions search for better, cost-effective and institutionalized solutions, said Yasser S Dahlawi, founder and CEO of SRB.



"Serving clients in the Kingdom weve assembled a world-class Sharia scholarly network and a dedicated team with many years of experience." Speaking about the new assignment he added We look forward to supervising Murabaha Finance activities in light of Sharia."  TradeArabia News Service
Arcadis, a leading global design and consultancy firm for natural and built assets, successfully hosted its annual young talent programme, Global Shapers, in collaboration with Qatar's public works authority (Ashghal) in Doha.



Global Shapers is an annual programme that Arcadis set up in 2012, and which offers 100 young professionals from around the world the chance to develop international connections and share knowledge.



The event saw over 100 young professionals spend a week working together and learning from each other. This years group included 15 colleagues from the Middle East, five of whom were from Qatar, as well as future leaders from Asia, Latin America, Europe, North America and Australia.



The week working together in Doha was the end of a six-month project, and saw the group create a series of practical tools to help build a more successful Arcadis and Ashghal.



The core theme for this years event was Client focus and Arcadis said it was very pleased to welcome several young professionals from Ashghal as part of this years cohort.



As well as bringing local knowledge and professional skills, the future leaders from Ashghal also offered a clients perspective on all of the solutions developed. These included a mentorship program, the implementation of social media success stories for both Arcadis and Ashghal, as well as a tool to better engage with clients.



The culmination of the week was a presentation to the Ashghal president Nasser bin Ali Al awlawi, and Mostafa Azzam, the learning and development advisor, Ashghal, as well as members of the Arcadis executive board including Renier Vree, Stephan Ritter, Stephanie Hottenhuis and Mary Ann Hopkins.



Jack Overkamp, the managing director of Arcadis Qatar said: "Qatars National Vision 2030 includes a number of major programs that should inspire the next generation of young talent within Arcadis."



"We were delighted to host this years Global Shapers in Doha where some of our brightest engineers, project managers and consultants could see, at first-hand, the range of opportunities on offer to work on some of the worlds most exciting programs, and to improve quality of life in Qatar," he noted.



Graham Reid, thw chief executive of Arcadis Middle East said: "Delivering great work and exceeding clients expectations is at the heart of our business. We were privileged and very fortunate to have Ashghal take part in this years Global Shapers event."



"The insight that their leaders and young professionals shared throughout the week will be of huge benefit to all of the young talent in Arcadis as they continue to develop their own understanding of what clients value most from their advisors," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Saudi Aramco is likely to start work on its giant ship repair and shipbuilding complex - to developed jointly by its partners National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri), Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries and UAE engineering firm Lamprell - in 2018, according to a report.



The Saudi Aramco joint venture project, which will come up at Ras Al Khair on the kingdom's east coast, is expected to cost more than SR20 billion ($5.32 billion) on completion, reported Reuters.



The government will finance the infrastructure of the complex such as dredging and other work as it did with other cities Jubail and Yanbu that have become major industrial hubs, said the report, citing the kingdom's energy minister Khalid Al Falih.



"Construction will start in 2018, production in 2022," stated Falih, who is also chairman of Aramco, at the company's headquarters in Dhahran.



Falih said other partnerships will be forged such as with US Mcdermott company which will make offshore platforms.
Leading interior design professionals will converge in Dubai, UAE, next month, in support of Surge, an international organisation that funds sustainable safe water and sanitation projects.



Under the concept Design, Dine, make a Difference (DDD) over 400 guests will attend its annual gala dinner at The Address Hotel, Dubai Marina, to support Surges global successes, in Cambodia, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Philippines and Uganda.



Since it was founded, Surge has provided safe water access via sustainable solutions to over 350,000 people in 11 countries, however according to Marita Peters, the executive director, Surge Middle East, much more needs to be done.



The facts are alarming - 2,300 people die every day because of inadequate drinking water and sanitation. Nearly 663 million people lack improved drinking water access and 2.4 billion lack improved sanitation services. By 2025 two-thirds of the world could live in areas of water stress, due to population growth and the changing climate, remarked Peters.



The upcoming DDD is being used as the climax for a unique competition which this year challenges interior designers to create a sustainable bookcase, made primarily out of recycled materials.



The competition, which is free to enter, will see designers volunteer their own time and creativity and engage build partners to bring their creations to life.



Some of Dubais most celebrated creative designers have taken the bookcase design challenge, such as Allen Architecture Interiors Design, Arcology International, Art Plus 971, Bluehaus, Maja Kozel Design, Pallavi Dean Design, Perkins + Will and Tony Archibold.



Commenting on her involvement, award-winning designer Laila Al Yousuf, the senior interior designer at Perkins+Will, said: "I thought that instead of donating money or attending a networking event, it would resonate with my peers far more, if we had to donate what we value most about ourselves, our creativity."



DDD also enjoys industrywide backing, especially from leading companies such as KPS World; Hussain General Trading; Acoulite, Boss Design; Consort; Haworth; Heimtex; Interface; Kvadrat Soft Cells; Office Inspirations; Seekers Furnishing and The Total Office, to name but a few.



Stephen Lockey, the managing director, KPS World, said the event reminds the whole industry to focus on CSR (corporate social responsibility) especially at a time when for many, their attention maybe turned towards the potential overindulgence of Christmas and the New Year celebrations.



"From a personal and professional perspective, it's an honour to support 'Design, Dine, make a Difference'. As a company, we have placed an emphasis on developing both philanthropy and sustainability and we wanted to partner with an organisation like Surge which embodies these values in their mission," stated Lockey.



It's also a privilege to be part of such a meaningful event that is now a fundamental part of the interior design industry and has become a fixture on its social calendar, he added.



The Master of Ceremonies is multi award-wining Dubai-based Palestinian actor and writer Dana Dajani, who was honoured earlier this year as Emirates Woman "Artist of the Year" 2016.-TradeArabia News Service
Spain and Qatar plan to sign a an agreement to form a $1 billion joint investment fund that would help the Gulf state invest in Latin America, said a senior official in a report.



Ignacio Escobar, Ambassador of Spain to Qatar, said that the negotiations on the agreement have been stalled for almost a year by political uncertainty in Spain, added the Oman Tribune report.



He added that the negotiations could resume once a new minister of trade has been appointed.


Equate Petrochemical Company, a global producer of petrochemicals, is supporting the ongoing 11th Annual Gulf Petrochemicals & Chemicals Association (GPCA) Forum as part of its contribution to the growth and progress of the industrial sector.



The event which opened yesterday (November 27) will conclude tomorrow (November 29), at the Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE.



The forum is being attended by top executives from petrochemical and chemical companies, as well as government bodies and other entities to discuss various topics.



As part of its participation in the event for the 11th year, Equate sponsored a professor and students from the College of Engineering & Petroleum at Kuwait University to attend the event and interact with other delegates, said a statement.



The companys sponsorship of the professor and the students for this event and other previous GPCA activities is part of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with the college during 2008 for overall partnership in industrial and academic fields, it said.



During the exhibition on the sidelines of the forum, the company hosted a number of prominent figures in the petrochemical industry, energy and economic sectors. Its participation included a display stand welcoming the events over 2000 participants from around the globe, it added.



Equate president and CEO Mohammad Husain, said: During 2015, the Arabian Gulfs petrochemical production exceeded 144 million tonnes, which increased from almost 137 million tonnes in 2014. Such rates prove this regions status as a global petrochemical production hub.



Husain, who is also a GPCA board member, said: Petrochemicals remain the Gulfs second main source of income after oil. For this industry to continue its positive contribution, it requires sustainability and innovation through advanced solutions, high-quality products and top in-class services.



The petrochemical industry still faces the same challenges of fluctuating prices due to supply and demand, feedstock availability, adequate infrastructure and, most important, specialized human capital, he said.



Regardless of these challenges, our company continues its efforts as petrochemical company with operations in Kuwait, North America and Europe. Such a focus on our values of trust, sustainability, reliability and innovation have enables us to become the worlds second largest Ethylene Glycol (EG) producer, he added.



At the same time, we are currently the only Middle Eastern company that has been successful to access US shale gas resources, he concluded.  TradeArabia News Service
Oman National Engineering and Investment Company (Oneic) has been awarded four contracts worth around RO5.5 million ($13.8 billion), a report said.



The company was awarded a 10-month contract by Muscat Electricity Distribution Company (MEDC) for construction of 320 MVA 33/11KV Primary substation at Al Amerat-2 for RO2.04 million, added the Oman Tribune report.



It also won another MEDC contract for construction of 320 MVA 33/11KV primary substation at Mawalleh South for RO1.99 million for a period of 10 months.



Dhofar Power Company awarded Oman National and Engineering and Investment Company contracts pertaining to bill printing and bill delivery for RO701,025 for two years commencing May 2017, the report said.



It also awarded Oneic contracts pertaining to meter reading for RO768,304 for two years from May 2017,according to the report.
Rising stars of the food industry are set to shine on the international culinary circuit thanks to the new Alen Thong Golden Coffee Pot Young Chef Challenge hosted at SIAL Middle East next month.



Taking place from December 5-7 at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), Sial is adding yet another gem to its crown with the new competition, which will see nine teams of five professional young chefs compete for the coveted accolade.



We look forward to welcoming the first edition of the Alen Thong Golden Coffee Pot Young Chef Challenge at SIAL 2016, said Thamer Al Qasemi, chairman of the organising committee of Sial Middle East 2016. The awards have attracted nine prestigious teams from around the world and we look forward to seeing them compete for the top title.



The competition will welcome entrants from China, Germany, Hong Kong, Lesotho, Namibia, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden and the UAE.



Three teams will go head-to-head each day, creating a mouthwatering menu of internationally-themed dishes including a cold salad, appetizer, plated hot main course and dessert buffet for forty people. The food will be assessed by nine respected World Association of Chefs' Societies (WACS) international culinary judges who will collaborate to appoint the winning team.



The Alen Thong Golden Coffee Pot Young Chef Challenge, organised by the Abu Dhabi chapter of the Emirates Culinary Guild in collaboration with the World Association of Chefs' Societies, will form an important part of La Cuisine at Sial, a popular show feature that is a top meeting place for foodservice professionals from around the world. The awards are in memory of John Alen Thong, a founding father of the Emirates Culinary Guild, who passed away in 2015.



The seventh edition of Sial, the Middle Easts fastest-growing professional trade exhibition for the food, beverage and hospitality industries, will feature more than 900 exhibitors, 500 VIP hosted buyers, and attract 22,000 food, beverage and hospitality attendees. Attendees will enjoy three days of business, networking and knowledge sharing, with access to niche conferences and innovative show floor events.



Sial is organised in cooperation with Strategic Partner, Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority and supported by Abu Dhabi Chamber as Host Sponsor and in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Food Festival. Al Dahra Agriculture is headline sponsor with Jenaan Investments the Diamond Sponsor and Emirates Food Industries Gold Sponsor. Emirates International Group for Food and Agriculture and Al Rawabi are Silver Sponsors; Mawasim are Bronze Sponsors; LuLu is the official Retail Partner; Etihad Airways is the Official Airline; and Emirates Culinary Guild and World Association of Chefs are Culinary Partners. - TradeArabia News Service


Backed by a growing number of modern facilities and government support, Makkah is set to become a new destination for the Mice tourism industry in Saudi Arabia, according to industry experts.



Traditionally seen as a site for religious travel, Makkah today is attracting a growing number of local companies and government authorities looking to combine their meeting and training requirements with Umrah pilgrimage.



Conrad Makkah Jabal Omar, the first Conrad property opened by Hilton in Saudi Arabia earlier this year, has seen its Mice business grow steadily, driven by demand from pharmaceutical companies and government entities that tend to conduct their board and annual meetings, as well as training and development programmes, over weekends in the Holy City.



There are several factors that contribute to the development of Mice tourism in Makkah, one of which is the growing supply of modern venues from new hotels that are opening in the market, equipped with the latest technology, said Ismail Sirry, general manager of Conrad Makkah Jabal Omar. Other factors include the improving infrastructure, companies desire to hold their meetings and trainings in nearby locations, and continuous government support.



Saudi Arabia aims to become the main destination for conferences and exhibitions in the Middle East by 2020. The kingdom has announced ambitious plans to invest $1.6 billion in its Mice tourism industry for the coming years to 2019, and several centres and venues will benefit from this financial boost.



Indeed, since our opening in June, we have seen very strong demand from both the public and private sector to utilise our meeting spaces for weekend meetings, as well as training and development initiatives. We expect this trend to continue growing throughout 2017, with more interest coming from energy companies, as well as banks, Sirry added.



New infrastructure expansion projects, mainly related to transport, such as the High-Speed Rail and Metro projects, and the new hotel development projects such as Hilton Makkah Convention Hotel Jabal Omar will stimulate the Mice sector further and help it grow.



One of the challenges of the Mice industry in Makkah is the inadequate meeting space to hold big events. With new developments entering operation soon, hotels can collaborate to drive the Mice segment in the Holy City forward, Sirry said, adding that Hilton Makkah Convention Hotel Jabal Omar, for example, will add up to 1,800 seat in meeting space when it opens in 2017. With two contemporary theatre-style meeting rooms that provide enough space for up to 100 people each, Conrad Makkah Jabal Omar is an ideal place to plan an intimate conference or a board meeting for small to medium-size group. Enjoying a direct access to Al Haram and the Holy Kaabah, this luxurious hotel offers its guests modern meeting spaces paired with the very latest audio/visual technology, inspiring food and beverage options, free wi-fi services, free parking and an escape from traffic congestion due to its strategic location in Jabal Omar development. - TradeArabia News Service


Kuwait Airways has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Amadeus, a leader in technology and distribution solutions for the travel and tourism industry, to transform its business processes.



Under the stewardship of Chairperson and CEO, Rasha Al Roumi, the Middle Easts first female airline CEO, Kuwait Airways has undertaken to implement a bold new strategy designed to revive the airlines once pioneering legacy in regional aviation, with clear infrastructural changes and new technologies that will see it become the preferred airline linking Kuwait to the world, by 2021.



This transformation process was announced in September this year, followed by the launch of the new livery and branding in October. While the rebranding represents a clear visual change, Kuwait Airways management is keen to stress that the transformation is not just cosmetic. With the help of the technology and business processes offered by Amadeus, Kuwait Airways is completely transforming its approach to business, in an effort to double its growth over the next five years.



It is to this end that, today, the airline is announcing its adoption of a complete suite of Altea solutions including Revenue Management, e-Commerce, Loyalty Programmes, Inventory, Reservation, Departure Control, Payments, as well as Mobile and Travel Intelligence.



This extensive portfolio will help the airline create more personalised travel experiences and adapt its offering to customer demand and preferences  in real-time.



Unique to the implementation of this project, Amadeus will be working throughout the Altea implementation, to support Kuwait Airways with best practices and new business procedures, and to help ensure a cost-effective and timely upgrade from the existing (legacy) system.



In order to keep pace with the exponential growth of the aviation industry across the Gulf Region, Kuwait Airways comprehensive overhaul of many of its business processes will see the airline working its way back to being the dominant carrier in its home market with opportunities for further expansion in the years to come.



Kuwait Airways is currently undergoing a wide-reaching programme of change and this comprehensive transformation process must be driven by the mission to reassert our pioneering legacy in the regions aviation industry. By working with Amadeus we are not just appointing a technology partner, we are working alongside a trusted provider with long-standing experience and expertise in the airline business. We are confident that the changes we are making will be the foundation blocks for Kuwait Airways success in the near and long-term future, said Rasha Al Roumi, Chairperson & CEO of Kuwait Airways.



With this partnership with Kuwait Airways, Amadeus is starting a new chapter not just as a technology provider, but as a business consultant as well. In addition to providing some of the best technology on the market, we want to help airlines reach their best results by sharing the experience and knowledge weve acquired through our 30 years in the airline business, said Maher Koubaa, vice president, head of Airline Group, Middle East and Africa at Amadeus. - TradeArabia News Service


Inspired by the positive regional potential of Expo 2020 and despite low oil revenues, increased numbers of travel professionals from across the Middle East participated in this years World Travel Market London 2016.



This event received a joint-record attendance of 51,500 and the highest number of exhibitor invitees and buyers in the 37-year history of the event.



There were a number of new exhibitors from the Middle East this year, including Saudia, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia and travel organization - Alraqi from Oman. Other key exhibitors included the tourism boards and associated partners from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman, Fujairah, Dubai Parks & Resorts, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan, Lebanon, Iran Doostan, Kuwait Airways and Oman Air.



Overall, the number of Middle East exhibitors showed a steady growth of 2.26 per cent compared to 2015 as regional governments look to diversify their economies away from falling hydrocarbon receipts. Those from the UAE occupied the lions share of floor space devoted to the region, which was to be expected with Expo 2020 Dubai on the horizon, but the indirect boost to regional travel and destinations, was not being underestimated, by other regional tourism boards.



The new-look three-day World Travel Market London enjoyed extended opening hours from 10am  7pm, which was phenomenally well received by the global travel industry with 51,444 senior industry executives in attendance  a 4 per cent increase on last year, according to unaudited figures. The increase takes total participant numbers back to the level of 2014  a record for the event, which launched in 1980.



Furthermore, the key benchmark of exhibitor invitees and WTM Buyers Club members in attendance were also at record levels.



Exhibitor invitees  senior industry executives invited by exhibitors on the first day of WTM London to discuss business deals  were up 9 per cent to 14,140.



WTM Buyers Club is the leading business club for senior travel industry decision makers with direct purchasing responsibility. The number of pre-qualified buyers from the WTM Buyers Club that attended the event stood at 9,714 - a 6 per cent increase on WTM London 2015.



Total visitor numbers (excluding press, ministers, ministers aides and students) stood at 31,951  a 5 per cent increase on WTM London 2015.



More than 865,500 on-stand connections took place over the three days of WTM London 2016 (November 7 - 9) leading to more than 2.5 billion ($3.1 billion) in industry deals being negotiated and signed.



Furthermore, over 3,000 (3,034) of the worlds media were in attendance  the highest number for more than 10 years  making the WTM International Press Centre the largest recurring press operation in the UK. The WTM International Press Centre was moved to the exhibitor floor for the first time to put the media at the heart of the event.



World Travel Market London senior director Simon Press said: WTM London has grown at an unprecedented rate in recent years making it the event where the industry conducts its business.



More than 2.5 billion in industry contracts were agreed at WTM London 2016 with more than 9,700 buyers conducting 865,500 meetings with 5,000 exhibitors.



The record number of participants, exhibitor invitees and WTM Buyers Club members is testament to the success of the new-look three-day WTM London and demonstrates all the key decision-makers and those with purchasing responsibility attend WTM London.



Audited figures of WTM London 2016 will be available in the New Year.



The travel trade industry is now preparing for Arabian Travel Market 2017, the Middle East installment of the World Travel Market portfolio, which is taking place from April 24 to 27 at Dubai World Trade Centre. Considered by many industry professionals as a barometer for the Middle East and North Africa tourism sector, Arabian Travel Market witnessed a year-on-year visitor attendance increase of 8 per cent to over 39,800 in 2016, with 2,520 exhibiting companies signing business deals worth more than $2.5 billion over four days.



Arabian Travel Market 2017 will build on the success of this years edition with the announcement of an additional hall as Reed Travel Exhibitions looks to add to its record-breaking achievements earlier this year. - TradeArabia News Service


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End Game

An all-hands prospecting effort leads Dave and the team to what they hope is rich ground. With just 48 hours to mine it, men and machines are pushed to the...
Thanksgiving weekend may be nearing its end. But, it's never too late or too early to book hotels for your next holiday - after all, Christmas and New year is just around the corner! So, book your hotel using best bookings sites for your next holiday trip.

According to CNN, booking travel online is just as safe as using your credit card to pay for a meal at a restaurant or an item at a shop. However, it is always better to opt for a reputable hotel booking website to handle your accommodation need. With countless booking sites all over the internet, how do you decide which one is for you? Here is a list of the best hotel booking sites to make it easier for you.

HotelsCombined is one of the most popular hotel booking sites. If you have only a limited time to make one search, this is for you. This place offers the lowest hotel rates and a wide array of options. You can search about 30 OTAs and booking engines at once. If you are not keen on a certain hotel, you can eliminate it from your search results.

Booking.com is a leading direct booking site. They are particularly good at finding the lowest rates in the business. They have best selections of filters, including a meal plan filter! It also helps that Frommer's has selected this hotel booking site as its booking partner. How is that for a reference?

Trivago is another one of the top contenders of the best hotel booking sites. Though it might not win in the price options category, it is easy to use and has an intuitive user-interface. It also uses one of the best filters in the business, and claims to search up to an astonishing 266 sites at once.

Hotels.com offers a complete set of filtering and sorting options for travelers who are quite particular with their booking taste. Since Expedia merged hotels.com's database with those of Europe-specialist Venere, travelers will get the same strong search results from both. This booking website consistently provide\s one of the lowest hotel rates in the business.

Agoda.com is one of the best best booking solutions for trips to Asia. It is one of the few regional booking engines in the business. Agoda outshines the rest of the direct booking sites when used to search for hotels and accommodations in Asia, as it almost always offers the most choices and lowest prices when you plan to book hotels or hostels.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
With 2016 coming to a close, foodies everywhere are looking for the next big food trends. Hotels and restaurants are aching to find the world's newest culinary leaders and well, they've made themselves known. Here the five biggest culinary trends we're bound to see in 2017.

First and foremost, we're going to have to give credit to what will probably be the most popular cuisine in 2017. Having been rewarded its first independent Michelin gourmet food guide, and receiving an intense downpour of stars and fusions, props have to be given to the savory food of SEOUL.

According to Traveller, this Korean food destination is going to be tearing up the food scene in the next year. With offerings ranging from luxurious fine dining to heart-warming bulgogi and Korean fried chicken, you can be sure to see more Seoul-based menu items popping up in restaurants everywhere.

Next, we'll have to mention what will probably be the biggest gimmick in terms of food. With flaming dishes, instant cooking, and finger foods out the window, the world is making way for a bigger gimmick: MOVABLE FEASTS.

No, we're not talking about food that's literally moving. We're talking about five-star buffets and gourmet meals being served on moving vehicles. With the emergence of Japan Rail's new five-star train and Royal Caribbean's Oviation of the Seas, foodies are flocking to air, land, and sky, to get their food fixes.

Drinks have always followed a certain standard with German beers and French wines always seeming to lead the pack. However, 2017 is definitely a year of change. How much change? Well, how about changes like English wines, Tasmanian beers, and airline-made health drinks?

You read that right! England is coming up with some incredible critically-acclaimed sparkling wines that rival even the most classic of French champagnes. Tasmania has left a lasting impression with its long trail of micro-brewed whiskies and beers.

Furthermore, airlines such as Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific have begun packing their menus with "power drinks" made with fresh fruits and vegetables. This is being done in a movement that is meant to make air travel a more revitalizing experience.

Culinary competitions will also be seeing a significant change in 2017 with them being held in different locations. For only the second time in its history, The World's 50 Best Restaurants competition will be held outside of the London base.

In 2017, the world-leading chef and restaurant ranking will be determined by a competition held in Melbourne, Australia. The event that will determine the listings is bound to be a real circus act, so expect extra coverage in the Land Down Under.

Finally, it's time to take a look at what is potentially going to be the biggest food group to rock our plates in 2017. Although veganism and vegetarianism are both rising in popularity in areas such as California and The UK, they won't be taking over the world just yet.

According to Fodors, 2017 will be a year for SEAFOOD. With the rise of popular tourist locations such as Hawaii, British Columbia, Greece, and Italy, the world is expecting to see a rise in seafood menu items all over the world. These savory creatures are already highly popular in all kinds of cuisines, but will probably be seeing even more action in the year to come.

So, there you have it: 2017's most exciting food trends. Be on the lookout for these trends in your own hometown or neighborhood. We hope the New Year brings you more gourmet adventures and more culinary escapades to come!

For more things to expect in the coming year, be sure to check out the video down below. It's full of some fun and exciting things to look forward to in 2017.

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Ancient Egypt civilization continuous to intrigue the modern era because of its mysterious series of unexplainable findings and discoveries. This year new revelations were out in the open, archeologist in Egypt has found a city that was believed to be a highly-profiled place way back 5,000 years ago. It lies close to the longest river in the world, River Nile, close to the Temple of Seti I in Abydos.

Archaeologists have unearthed tools, pottery and houses in the sunken city. Fifteen huge graves were also discovered. Specialists said that based on the size of the tombs, it indicates that high significant persons with high social standing were buried in that area. With these evidence, theories were formed that this city was a home to important officials and would have bloomed during early-era. It was found 400 meters south of King Seti I Temple.

The tools or utensils that where found are the same that was used for everyday life. They were indications that foods and drinks are provided to laborers during the construction of the royal tombs. The grave is similar to "mastabas" which is characterized by mudbrick with a rectangular outline, flat roof and inclined side. It is a traditional ancient tomb used at that time. The sighting comes during the time when Egypt is trying improve tourism. Its travel and leisure industry declined its number during the time President Hosni Mubarak was ousted in 2011, as reported by Yes Africa. Ministry of Antiquities facilitated the archaeological mission.

In a report of BBC, Professor Chris Eyre, an Egyptologist at the University of Liverpool said, "About a mile behind where this material is said to be we have the necropolis with royal tombs going from before history to the period where we start getting royal names, we start getting identifiable kings. So, this appears to be the town, the capital at the very beginning of Egyptian history."

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
"Hatsuyuki" was experience in Tokyo Japan this month. The colloquial term means the first snowfall. For the first time in 54 years, the country's capital experienced November snow on Thursday, November 24. The rare weather condition shocked its residents as the snow came 40 days earlier than its normal appearance. The city averages four inches of snow annually which usually falls during months of January and February.

The sudden snowfall slowed down public transportation, causing traffic, accidents and increased electricity usage due to the heating demand. According to Japan Times, "East Japan Railway Co. said services on parts of the Ome and Chuo lines were suspended as snow-laden tree branches sagged over the tracks. Trains on other lines, such as Seibu and Keio, as well as subway systems in Tokyo also experienced delays, operators said.

On Thursday morning, electricity consumption spiked to 95 percent of capacity due to rising demand for heating, according to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc." According to firefighters and other authorities, there are also reports of injuries surrounding prefectures. Some people accidentally slipped on snowy roads and pavements that leads to fractured bones and inconvenience.

The unusual occurrence was brought by the Arctic air that escaped in its normal route around the North pole. Arctic oscillation is an index that fluctuates over time with no specific periodicity. It is of the dominant pattern of non-seasonal sea-level pressure variations north of 20N latitude, and it is categorized by pressure irregularities of one sign in the Arctic with the opposite anomalies positioned about 37-45N.

The last time Tokyo experience November snow was in 1962, though it did not accumulate on the ground. During that time, the first contemporary skyscraper, the Kasumigaseki Building, is still on construction and not yet erected. After the Thursday freezing, nowadays Tokyo is back to its regular weather condition.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
New York is the perfect destination this 2016 holiday season. There are a lot of things going on in the city that will surely make the last of month of the year worthwhile.

Today is the best time to start planning out your NYC Christmas 2016 events in December. Here is a simple but helpful guide that will help you get started!

Enjoy some spectacular dancing and singing the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. This is a great show to start off our holiday in NYC. You will enjoy a night full of tap dancers, 'Rockettes' and even a flying Sanda. This one-of-a-kind show starts on Nov. 11 and runs through Jan. 2, 2017. Book your tickets here.

The Lighting of Rockefeller Christmas Tree is an event that you should not miss when you're here in December. This is an annual event that thousands of New Yorkers and tourists look forward to seeing. The Rockefeller Christmas Tree will be lit starting on Nov. 30 at 7pm this year. Regardless if you feel like reminiscing about your family like that kid in "Home Alone" or not, you are certain to feel the winter magic once you witness that 78-foot tall Christmas tree light up.

Christmas holiday season is never complete without some window shopping. But NYC offers a different kind of shopping with its Holiday Windows. This is the kind of window shopping that both the adults and kids would love. Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy's, and other department stores in NYC presents a whole new world behind a store glass. It is a world full of festivity, fun, and magic that will leave viewers enthralled. Enchanting window displays at Saks this year is themed "Land of 1000 Delight" and lights up at 5 to 11pm every ten minutes until Jan 2.

Among all the things to do in NYC this December, Bryant Park Winter Village is something that you should not miss. Aside from the hundreds of shopping and food options, it has a 7,000-square-foot ice-skating rink. If you are looking for a place to spend with your family on weekends or if you just want to take a spin on the ice while under the stars, this Winter Village is the perfect spot. You can bring your own skates or you can rent one for only $20. Skating hours are 8am to 10pm every day through Mar. 5, 2017.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
History buffs everywhere know all about Portugal's rich and powerful history of discovery, industry, and settlement. However, only the most experienced travelers fully understand the appeal of this great travel destination. This beginner's guide to Lisbon, Portugal can help explain why it should be at the very top of your must-see places.

Less experienced world travelers may not think of Portugal as a must-see travel destination right off the bat. However, travel veterans whom have experienced this majestic country first-hand are guaranteed to begin planning their next Portuguese trip as soon as they leave.

But what makes Lisbon so attractive to tourists and adventure-seekers? The answer may very well lie in its seven hills studded with historical landmarks and tourist hotspots. With everything from ruins of the ancient world, to some of the most impressive architectural feats in the world, this city is a photography paradise.

When in Lisbon, you'll immediately be captured by the city's rustic blue and rust-orange rooftops, stone walls and rich blue waters. However, as stated by Travel and Leisure, travelers often find themselves captured by the history and culture even more quickly than they expected.

Lisbon is home to some of the world's most culturally rich museums. Travelers will find only the freest and most interesting contemporary art in Museu Colecao Berardo. Other museums such as Museu Nacional das Coches offer views into Portugal's magical monarchic history.

It is also home to some of the most beautiful UNESCO-preserved historic sites such as the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos and the gorgeous ruins of Convento de Carmo. The largest collection of these historical sites may be located in the Belem district of Lisbon.

People who aren't necessarily interested in history will not be disappointed either. Lisbon is home to some of the most delectable seafood dishes that will satisfy even the pickiest palate. Travelling foodies will find themselves in a delicious blur of Portuguese and Italian cooking.

However, of all of Lisbon's food offerings, CNN Traveler highly recommends the pastries found in Lisbon. These must-try pastries vary from sweet to savory, including Pastreis de Belem which are soft-centered pastries often dusted with cinnamon and sugar, then taken with coffee.

Finally, a trip to Lisbon doesn't necessarily have to mean having an itinerary. Trip Advisor guarantees that a simple walk around the city will be enough to satisfy almost anyone. The gorgeous architecture, warm sun-infused weather, and dramatic street art would be enough to convince anyone that this is one of the world's most beautiful cities.

First-time travelers will find themselves begging to come back as soon as possible. With great food, incredible sights, and an overall beautiful aura, this city is sure to become a memorable favorite travel destination.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
A new year always means new opportunities. For the avid traveler, a new year also means new travel destinations and holiday plans. This 2017, these newly opened and newly renovated beach resorts are sure to be at the top of every beach bum's list.

With millennials leading the pack in terms of planning trips and holidays, it's easy to see why luxury is the central theme for new resorts around the world. Beach resorts in particular are putting extra emphasis on uniqueness, grandeur, and exclusivity.

New private island resorts continue popping up and are expected to be tourism highlights this coming 2017. The exclusive luxury feel of these posh resorts are bound to attract extra attention in the New Year.

According to Oyster, the private Dover Beach resort of Sandals Barbados is expected to do extremely well in 2017 due to its unique river-style pool. In addition, the resort boasts several amenities such as 11 unique restaurants, recreational activities, and an exclusive white-sand lounging beach.

The newly renovated Sanctuary Cap Cana in the Dominican Republic is another resort powerhouse to look out for. The adult-only luxury resort features a romantic Spanish castle town ambiance which is guaranteed to make it a top-pick for honeymooners and jet setting couples.

In addition, the luxury resort is located away from major resort areas, giving it an extra intimacy boost. Since its renovation in 2014, the resort now offers three individually-themed sections, decorated pools and gourmet restaurants.

Named as one of the most beautiful beaches of 2016, resorts in Kuai beach are expected to attract more travelers in the new year. With its rich orange sand, crystal clear blue-green waters, and breath-taking sunset views, it stands to be one of this year's top beach destinations.

As stated by Worlds Top Most, Kuai is catering more to explorers and thrill-seekers. With adventure spots such as the Kalalau Trail and Wimea Canyon, this incredible beach resort is destined to be a 2017 favorite. Furthermore, it's considered to be a great budget option, which only adds to its appeal.

Most of these beach destinations are offering premium rates and discounts during these shoppers' holidays of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Be sure to grab these incredible travel package deals so that you can enjoy full luxury at a fraction of the cost.

See Now: The U.S. had the highest number of Most Wanted properties, dominating the Hotels.com Loved By Guests Awards 2018
Departures from Ft. Lauderdale Open for Sale Dec. 1 with Special Captain's Circle Savings

For the first time in four years, Princess Cruises will offer Summer Caribbean cruises including Panama Canal transits in 2018. The 3,192-guest Caribbean Princess returns to sail on a full summer season of voyages ranging from seven-day Eastern and Western Caribbean to a 20-day Caribbean and Panama Canal Explorer. All Summer Caribbeancruises are open for sale Dec. 1.

The 2018 April to October summer program features 47 departures, roundtrip from Ft. Lauderdale, including eight unique itineraries visiting 23 destinations in 22 countries. In addition, four ports offer late night stays so guests have more time to explore the evening offerings these destinations have to offer.

New for 2018, 20-day Caribbean and Panama Explorer voyages combine a 10-day Panama cruise and a 10-day Southern Caribbean Medley or Eastern Caribbean Voyager cruise. Princess Cruises takes more guests through this engineering marvel than other cruise line.

"Summertime is the prime vacation season for most Americans and we're happy to offer the Caribbean in 2018," said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises president. "We have award-winning itineraries of various lengths so families, honeymooners, couples, friends and travelers alike can get away to explore new places, reconnect with one another and ultimately 'come back new' with Princess."

Caribbean cruise highlights for Summer Caribbean 2018, roundtrip out of Ft. Lauderdale, include:

Eastern Caribbean (7 days)  Guests can enjoy an adventurous week in the Caribbean, including calls at the ports of Princess Cays, St. Thomas, Grand Turk or Amber Cove with a multitude of water activities to choose from. Sailings depart May 26; June 9, 23; July 7, 21; August 4, 18; and September 1.

Western Caribbean (7 days)  Alternating with the Eastern Caribbean voyages, this itinerary features calls at Grand Cayman, Cozumel, Roatan and Belize highlighting the Mayan culture and history of the region. Caribbean Princess sets sail on this route on May 19; June 2, 16, 30; July 14, 28; and August 11, 25.

Guests can combine these popular seven-day Eastern and Western Caribbean voyages, for a 14-day Caribbean East/West Adventure.

Southern Caribbean (8 days)  For a more in-depth experience, one Southern Caribbean cruise will be offered with stops in Curacao, Aruba, Bonaire; departs May 11.

Eastern Caribbean Voyager (10 days)  For more relaxation time, guests will enjoy an extended Eastern Caribbean cruise, visiting Princess Cays, St. Thomas, Antigua, St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Kitts. Cruises depart May 1 and September 28.

Southern Caribbean Medley (10 days)  For those looking for deeper exploration, guests can travel to the beautiful beaches in the Southern Caribbean, including Princess Cays, St. Thomas, Dominica, Grenada, Bonaire and Curacao. Departures on April 11; September 8 and October 18.

Panama Canal with Costa Rica (10 days)  Transiting the new Agua Clara Locks with a Panama Canal partial transit, including a day of scenic cruising through Gatun Lake, guests will also visit Grand Cayman, Cartagena, Colon, Costa Rica (Limon) and Falmouth (Jamaica). Sailings depart April 1, 21; Sept. 18; and Oct. 8.

Guests can combine the cruise line's signature 10-day Panama Canal voyage with the 10-day Southern Caribbean Medley or Eastern Caribbean Voyager for the ultimate 20-day cruise vacation.

Captain's Circle Savings

Princess Cruises past guests are eligible for a special promotion when they book before August 31, 2017. Captain's Circle members booking a seven- to 10-day cruise, will receive a savings of $50 per person and those booking a 14- or 20-day cruise will save $100 per guest (does apply to third and fourth berth guests).

More Ashore and Top-Ranked Shore Excursions

Offering guests more time to explore local cultures and culinary offerings, select itineraries in the Caribbean offer extended stays in Aruba, Curacao, Cozumel and St. Maarten with departures of 9 pm or later.

Through the cruise line's exclusive partnership with Discovery and Animal Planet, guests can choose from immersive excursions for the whole family, including:

America's Cup Yacht Race (St. Maarten)  Discovery Recommended

Antilla Shipwreck Snorkel (Aruba)  Discovery Recommended

Mayan Ruins at Tulum (Cozumel)  Discovery Recommended

Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica (Limon)  Animal Planet Exclusive

Locally-Inspired Onboard Events

While guests sail aboard Caribbean Princess they will continue to enjoy the destinations they visit with the following offerings:

Locally-inspired cuisine, such as Caribbean island-spiced chicken

Festivals of the World  live entertainment celebrating Mardi Gras and Festival de Panama (Panama Canal cruises)

Steel Drum Lessons, Local Crafts, Talk Like a Pirate Day, Rum Tastings

Live narratives while sailing through the Gatun Locks (Panama Canal)

Discovery Encounters  local guest speakers sharing authentic stories and passion for their homelands

Club Class Mini-Suites

Summer 2018 Caribbean Princess guests can choose a new premium stateroom category featuring VIP amenities and exclusive dining with the new Club Class Mini-Suite. This elevated mini-suite category features select perks including new Club Class Dining, a reserved dining area with expedited seating and expanded menu options; priority embarkation and disembarkation; complimentary wine and luxurious bathrobes.





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The airline took delivery of its first 787 Dreamliner in July 2015 and has nine more 787s on order.

Boeing [NYSE: BA] and Vietnam Airlines celebrated the delivery of the flag carrier's 10th 787-9 Dreamliner last week.

"Vietnam Airlines is proud to welcome our 10th Boeing 787 Dreamliner on behalf of Vietnam Airlines, only 16 months after we took delivery of the first of these state-of-the-art new aircraft," said Phan Xuan Duc, Executive Vice President of Vietnam Airlines. "The 787 is one of the keys to our fleet expansion plans, and plays a vital role in enabling us to offer customers four-star quality of service and establish Vietnam Airlines among the leading carriers in Asia."

The airline took delivery of its first 787 Dreamliner in July 2015 and has nine more 787s on order.

"We are honored to deliver the 10th 787 Dreamliner to Vietnam Airlines, building on our more than 20 years of partnership to advance Vietnam's aviation industry," said Dinesh Keskar, senior vice president, Asia Pacific & India Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "The 787 Dreamliner has enabled Vietnam Airlines to profitably operate key routes such as Hanoi to Heathrow and Ho Chi Minh City to Sydney, while providing their customers with the best passenger experience available."

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an all-new, super-efficient family of commercial airplanes that brings big-jet ranges and speed to the middle of the market. Boeing designed the 787 family with superior efficiency, allowing airlines to open new routes profitably and fly directly where passengers wish in exceptional comfort. The 787 family uses 20 to 25 percent less fuel with 20 to 25 percent fewer emissions than the airplanes they replace.

Since entering service in 2011, the 787 has flown more than 125 million passengers on more than 530 routes around the world, including more than 120 new nonstop routes made possible through its efficiency.

To track Vietnam Airlines' 787 Dreamliners in real-time, visit: http://www.boeing.com/commercial/flight-tracker/#/787/HVN

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They can now borrow for up to $5m.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry announced the enhancement to IE Singapores Internationalisation Finance Scheme (IFS) and the reintroduction of SPRINGs Bridging Loan (BL) for companies in the Marine and Offshore Engineering (M&OE) industry.

These measures will help to address the intensifying financing challenges faced by the M&OE industry in recent months, as it experiences a unique and prolonged slowdown.

The schemes aim to facilitate M&OE companies access to working capital and financing. The BL will help Singapore-based M&OE companies finance their operations and bridge short-term cash flow gaps.

Eligible companies will be able to borrow up to S$5m each, with a loan tenure of up to six years. The maximum loan quantum for each borrower group is $15m.

Enhancements will also be made to IE Singapores existing IFS, which provides project/asset financing support for companies. The maximum loan quantum will be raised to S$70 m per borrower group from the current S$30m per borrower group for M&OE companies.

These one-off measures, developed in consultation with industry players, are targeted at stabilising the M&OE sector, as it copes with the prolonged weakness in oil prices amidst the slowdown and uncertainty in the global economic environment.

The Government will take on 70% of the riskshare for both BL and IFS.





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Saving old buildings is unfashionable these days; economists and writers think that we are all nostalgists and NIMBYs who are preventing the development that is needed to make housing affordable and keep cities from ossifying. Jane Jacobs is also being reassessed by those who consider her the patron saint of NIMBYs.

But a new study from the Preservation Green Lab, the Atlas of ReUrbanism, demonstrates once again that in most cases, the opposite is true; that cities with older, smaller buildings actually have higher density, more diversity, a greater number of small businesses and lots more entrepreneurial activity. And yes, they even have more affordable housing. It actually confirms Jane Jacobs dictum that "Old ideas can sometimes use new buildings. New ideas must use old buildings."

As was demonstrated in the recent American election, it is one thing to view the world from New York City or San Francisco, but it is a very different thing in the rest of America. The Atlas of Reurbanism mapped fifty cities on a fine-grained grid and came up with findings that would make Jane Jacobs proud. It builds on the work of the Preservation Green Lab in their earlier study, Older, Smaller, Better.

Old Architecture Creates Character

One of the key items that the Atlas measures is character. They recognize that preserving old buildings isnt about A buildings that everybody loves and considers "historic" , but those everyday B and C buildings that are the backdrop.

Blocks of older, smaller, mixed-age buildings add character and charm to cities, but these areas are far more than quaint relics. High Character Score areas provide a foundation for strong local businesses, innovative startups, and mom-and-pop small businesses. Whereas large, new buildings sometimes provide space for major employers, older blocks with more modest, unassuming buildings contain economic development engines of their own. For example, every Starbucks, Boeing, or Microsoft had to start somewhere, and in each of these cases, older, smaller buildings provided the launching ground.

And indeed, they found that there were 46 percent more jobs in small business in areas with high character.

Atlas of ReUrbanism/Screen capture

Older Is More Affordable

Its not always the best housing on top of the store, but it is often a place to start.

High Character Score neighborhoods also have higher percentages and counts of affordable units of rental housing. In many cities in the Atlas, there is twice the number of affordable housing units on blocks with older, smaller, mixed-age buildings. Economists and housing experts refer to a process of of filtering, in which older stock serves as unsubsidized, naturally affordable housing. This report shows clear evidence of just how important older housing is.



It is also really dense, housing a lot of people. As we have pointed out many times on TreeHugger, you dont have to go tall to get dense. The study confirms it.

Too often, however, density is associated only with building size and height. While some cities have areas where lots of people live in tall buildings, the densest neighborhoods overall are almost always characterized by blocks of older, smaller, low-rise buildings. Developed before the automobile claimed so much of our urban landscape, these areas have a hidden density that is clearly revealed by the data summarized in this report.



Atlas of ReUrbanism/ Los Angeles/Screen capture

Old Buildings Are Prosperous

As we have seen in cities all over North America, these areas of density and character are where people want to be, at all ages. You can knock everything down and build 40 storey towers like economist Ed Glaeser thinks we should do, but what do you get?

Dense, walkable, active, and architecturally rich neighborhoods are attracting new residents and investment. Older buildings with layers of history and flexible floorplans are attracting companies large and small. The ability of cities to attract and retain talented young workers is closely tied to the presence of character-rich places. The value of these areas points to the benefits of preservation advocacy and policies that support good design.

We have been talking about this for years anecdotally, but these very granular maps provide real data that confirm what Jane wrote in Death and Life of Great American Cities:

[Businesses] that support the cost of new construction must be capable of paying a relatively high overhead. If you look about, you will see that only operations that are well established, high-turnover, standardized or heavily subsidized can afford, commonly, to carry the costs of new construction. Chain stores, chain restaurants and banks go into new construction. But neighborhood bars, foreign restaurants and pawn shops go into older buildings. Supermarkets and shoe stores often go into new buildings; good bookstores and antique dealers seldom do.

It is not so simple as saying that real estate is all about supply and demand, and that if we build more new stuff prices will drop. New stuff is expensive and unaffordable for many of the uses that we are trying to promote, and it often doesnt even increase density or create many more housing units. The data from the atlas clearly show:

We need a mix. We need character. We need old buildings.

The atlas has studied fifty cities; only a few are posted so far but watch for more here.
Gagan K Teja

Tribune News Service

Patiala, November 28

Two Patiala youths have died allegedly due to gas leak at their flat in Georgia. The victims have been identified as Jiwan Singh (27) and Sher Singh (21). Jiwan hails from Badanpur village of Samana and Sher Singh is a native of Ratta Khera village and had gone to Georgia one year ago to earn livelihood.

He along with Sher Singh and another youth from Kolkata were working as drivers in a travel company and were staying together in a flat provided by the owner of the company.

As per reports, the trio had slept in the night after returning from work. The company owner got worried when the victims did not reach work the next day. He went to the flat but found it locked from inside. The gates of the flat were forcefully opened after the police reached the spot. They found the trio dead.

Their friend Jassi from Georgia informed that doctors confirmed that they had died of suffocation due to the gas leakage.

Jiwan is survived by his mother, wife and a one-year-old girl child and his death has devastated the family. Jiwan's cousin Rajpreet Singh said his mother had borrowed money to send Jiwan abroad as the financial condition of the family was not good. He further stated that Jiwan had even gone to Germany from Georgia but returned after a few days to join his friends.

Sher Singh is survived by his father and sister. His father works in the village gurdwara. Having lost their sons abroad, the families have now urged the Indian Government to provide financial assistance for bringing back the bodies of their children. They rue that even though they want to bring back their bodies to India at the earliest, they do not have sufficient money for the same.
ON Tuesday, General Qamar Javed Bajwa will start his tenure as chief of army staff, the fourth individual in Pakistan to do so in the 21st century. His predecessor Gen Raheel Sharif has given Gen Bajwa an excellent platform to build on, though circumstances will also shape how the chief will be able to proceed. Certainly, a priority must be to wind down large-scale military operations and retool the army for the next phase of counterterrorism operations.

The rehabilitation of Fata, the return of IDPs and a new constitutional scheme for the war-ravaged tribal areas are other important tasks in which the military will have an influential role. Then there are the national security and foreign policy arenas in which the military has an outsize role, a de facto situation made all the more important because of severely strained relations with India and Afghanistan and a growing focus on ties with China and CPEC.

While the army is an institution, the personality, preferences and personal relationships with leaders of other institutions of any army chief do matter. In this, it will remain to be seen what kind of leadership style Gen Bajwa has  the mould of the thinker that Gen Kayani cast himself in, the no-nonsense, action-oriented leader that Gen Sharif has been, or something else? But once again, the direction that is needed is relatively clear  the focus on counterterrorism and the need to initiate action in Punjab beyond the superficial steps taken so far. Clearly, there are matters of law and constitution to navigate here.

It is the prerogative of the elected government to decide policy and the military must abide by decisions taken. However, just as Gen Sharif was able to impress on a reluctant PML-N government the need to fight the banned TTP and abandon the foolhardy path of seeking negotiations  a view the centre belatedly embraced  Gen Bajwa may be able to persuade the government of new steps to be taken.

It must certainly not be done in a way that the government is seen to be under orders; there are cooperative ways to persuade the need for a change in policy.

Finally, there is the issue of military interference in politics. To some extent, Kayani and Sharif have distanced the army from the Musharraf era of total control of the political process. That has been a sensible and pragmatic repositioning that Gen Bajwa must try and further.

Where the civilians themselves seek military input and advice, the army chief can play a role that is democracy-enhancing and system-strengthening.

Beyond that, however, all army chiefs need to be mindful of institutional separation and the constitutional scheme of things. At no point would Gen Sharif have gained more than he would have lost had he opted to wade deep into the political process. Politics for politicians, army for national defence.

Apolitical, easy-going & compassionate

Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, something of a dark horse in this race for the post of COAS, is currently serving at the GHQ as Inspector General of Training and Evaluation  the position Gen Sharif held before becoming the army chief. He has commanded the 10 Corps, the army's largest, which is responsible for the area along the Line of Control (LoC). Lt Gen Bajwa has extensive experience of handling affairs in Kashmir and the northern areas of the country. As a major general, he led the Force Command Northern Areas. He also served in the 10 Corps as lieutenant colonel, where he was GSO.

Despite his extensive involvement with Kashmir and northern areas, he is said to consider extremism a bigger threat for the country than India. He has served with a UN mission in Congo as a brigade commander, alongside former Indian Army chief Gen Bikram Singh, who was also there as a division commander. He has previously also remained the commandant of the Infantry School in Quetta. His military colleagues say he is not attention-seeking and remains well-connected with his troops.

He is extremely professional, but very easy-going and full of compassion, an officer who had served under him said, adding that he was not protocol-minded either. Gen Bajwa is also said to be an apolitical person without any biases. He is from the infantry's Baloch Regiment, which has given three officers to the post of army chief  Gen Yahya Khan, Gen Aslam Beg and Gen Kayani.

By arrangement with the Dawn
Two days ago the Prime Minister was in Punjab. In the company of the Punjab Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister, Mr Modi meditated on the Indus Water Treaty, Pakistan, black money, counterfeit currency, terrorism etc. His presence sought to impart a kind of certificate of good conduct to the Punjab Government. On Sunday morning the criminals at Nabha mocked at all these claims of good governance and law and order. The sheer audacity of the Nabha escapees and their accomplices in believing that they could carry out such a jailbreak is an advertisement of sort. The jailbreak was virtually a cake walk. The only saving grace is the immediate arrest of one of the escapees, Harminder Mintoo, of the Khalistan Liberation Force.

What stood out clearly at Nabha was the cowardice of the jail staff and mismanagement of the so-called high-security jail. How easy it was for the gangsters to trick the jail staff into believing in their story. As the criminals opened indiscriminate firing, the jail staff failed to retaliate and stop the escapees in their tracks. But no one should be surprised at this meek surrender. It reflects a corrupt jail management culture in which prisoners are allowed access to mobiles, internet and drugs. This will not change with the suspension of a couple of jail officials. Post escape, the Punjab Police brought upon itself additional infamy when they fired at a car, killing an innocent young woman. Here they did not have the excuse of shooting in self-defence. All said and done Sunday was a bad day for the Punjab Police and its pretension to professionalism.

By making it easier for prisoners to come out on parole the Akali-BJP government has invited the charge of doing it to use criminals in elections. Such is the credibility of the government that soon after the Nabha jailbreak Capt Amarinder Singh immediately suspected high-level complicity, while Home Minister Sukhbir Badal saw a Pakistani conspiracy to revive terror. Why should Pakistan's dirty games impair the police capacity to act and do their job? All recent high-profile cases of murder have remained unsolved. None of the countless SITs have yielded any conviction. The sorry spectacle at Dinanagar, Pathankot and now Nabha should unnerve not just the citizens of Punjab but also our national security establishment.
Geetanjali Gayatri

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 28

Haryanas suspect escapees are on the radar of the Haryana Police with the Prisons Department working on drawing up its list of convicts after yesterdays jailbreak in Punjabs Nabha Central Jail. While security has been strengthened as a fallout of the Punjab incident and drop gates set up on roads leading to the jails, the department is already in the process of installing jammers in prisons where hardened criminals are housed.

Though convicts in the state usually plan an escape during the to-and-fro movement between the jail and court or the jail and hospital or while they are out on furlough or parole, the authorities are in no mood to take chances and are in the process of preparing a list of all such convicts who could attempt an escape to be able to cover them better.

Of the 19 jails in Haryana, the notorious criminals, primarily those convicted for multiple murders, or property offenders, are housed in the Sonepat and Jhajjar jails, sources in the police claim. The police intend to protect them better by keeping a closer watch on them inside and outside the jail.

For the purpose, the jail authorities are in the process of seeking 350 additional personnel in keeping with the existing vacancies to strengthen the security in the states jails. Sources said the department would either seek the services of Home Guards or employ ex-servicemen for the purpose sometime soon to tide over the winter when convicts use the fog cover to make good their escape.

After yesterdays jailbreak in Punjab, the jail authorities carried out searches in all prisons of the state in a special exercise to recover mobiles that maybe in use, besides introducing an additional security tier where visitors to the jail are being extensively frisked.

The problem of possession of mobiles with the jail inmates is not as serious as other jails since we modified the Prison Act in 2014 and added a Section, whereby anybody found having a mobile will not be granted parole for five years. Further, we are in the process of installing jammers, seven in Jhajjar, five in Sonepat and one each in Ambala and Gurgaon, after private companies were not found to be delivering to our satisfaction, Director General of Prisons Yash Pal Singal said, confirming that the department was preparing a list of inmates who could attempt an escape.

Of the sanctioned strength of 2,891 posts for security in jails, nearly 450 are vacant, while there are nearly 18,000 prisoners, including 10,908 undertrials presently lodged in Haryana jails, implying that there is one cop for every seven inmates.

Team to probe police failure: Ram Niwas

State Home Secretary Ram Niwas on Monday said that an investigation team had been constituted by Director General of Police to look into the reasons for the failure of the police personnel posted at a naka set up in Kaithal to intercept the escaped inmates from the Nabha Jail, Punjab. Disciplinary action would be taken against the erring police personnel, he said. Ram Niwas said nakas had been set up in the state to intercept the escaped inmates. He said the Haryana and Delhi Police had swung into action immediately after getting information from Punjab. He said strict orders were issued to maintain continuous vigil and prevent any kind of infiltration at state borders and check posts. He said red alert had been issued in the state the previous day and patrolling on the highways had been increased. Besides, malls, markets and other places with heavy footfall were also under surveillance, he added. TNS
Tribune News Service

Shimla, November 28

The people of the state have rejected the bandh call given by the Opposition. They have proved that they are backing the decision of PM Narendra Modi to end black money and fake currency, said former Chief Minister PK Dhumal.

In a statement issued here today, he said that the public is aware that demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes would end the parallel black money economy. As a result, the black money stored in the safe of some people would come out and could be used in the development of the country and the common man.

Lashing out at the leaders of Opposition parties, Dhumal said that it is high time that the leaders should understand that the common man is against corrupt practices.

Claiming that the bandh evoked no response and business remained as usual, he said that the public of India has given a befitting reply to all those indulging in negative politics.

He said that today, the people have united for nation building and the day when India would enter the list of developed countries in the world is not far.

He also advised the leaders opposing the demonetisation to leave the politics of protest and work for the betterment of the country.

A flop show

Hamirpur: The Bharat Bandh turned out to be a flop show. Even the Congress could not garner support for the shutdown. This was stated by district BJP president Anil Thakur. Only a handful of Congressmen gathered at the block level and tried to shut shops and other business establishments, but it did not work, he said. At the district headquarters, the Beopar Mandal refused to be part of the protest.

Anil Thakur said the people had accepted the decision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and had faith in him. He said only those who had hoarded black money were creating a hue and cry against demonetisation while honest people were favouring the decision.

He said Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh had given nothing to the district. Development works had come to a halt and people were facing various problems. They are battling poor health facilities, commuting on bad roads and reeling under water/power crisis.  OC
Nonika Singh

Neither we understand their language nor do they know ours. The winning team, superstar Song Kang-ho and director Kim Jee-woon of the South Korean film The Age of Shadows, which brought the curtains down at the 47th edition of IFFI, may have been restricted by the language barrier, but did someone say cinema is a universal language.

No wonder Kim Jee-woon, the director of the acclaimed film, hailed as the best western film of the year, rattles off names of more than one Indian film. Indeed, like the rest of the world, he too has been hugely impacted by Satyajit Ray and mentions his films like Aparajito, Pather Panchali etc. But his knowledge of Indian cinema doesnt begin or end with Ray. He knows Deepa Mehta, whom he met at a film festival in Morocco and of films like The Monsoon Wedding. If given a chance to helm an Indo-Korean production, he would like to combine the energy of Rajnikanths Robot with Korean sensibilities.

Korean cinema, he informs, began to acquire its identity more importantly since 2010 and unlike Hollywood here the director is the captain of the ship. To some extent it is star-driven. Indeed, Song Kang-ho is a hugely important star whose fandom runs far and wide. He agrees that stars do bring a lot to the film but then also jokes, Since people think all Koreans look alike, face value is not that important and its acting that matters. The talent of Song Kang-ho is corroborated not just by hordes of his admirers, who swear by him, but also by the director with whom he has worked for 20 long years in four films. Says Kim Jee-woon, In Korea the categorisation  he is an action hero, he is a romantic one  no longer exists. But if need be, a hero does train for the part of action. For instance Song Kang-ho trained in wrestling for over three months. Would he like to train himself to the tunes of Indian song and dance? And guess what Kim Jee-woon picks up the right word  masala films  to describe the same. Though he hasnt watched too many of these, just seen the trailers. Back home, however, Indian movies are lapped up by Koreans for sure. And Kim Jee-woon wonders why it took such a long time for Indian movies to make an entry into the Korean market. For even in early 1970s films like Haathi Ke Saathi were enormously liked and its tunes were copied.

Since films from Korea, which have been the country focus in this edition of the IFFI, have generated a very positive response does he envisage a possibility of a theatrical release of their movies in India? Yes its possible especially for actioners. But even more possible are perhaps remakes. He reveals how some Indian producers were interested in the rights of his films like I Saw The Devil. Since the agreement failed at the negotiation table, he laughs, They made it anyway. But thats India where copying is called inspiration.

However, that doesnt stop him from believing that greater co-operation and exchange between the two countries is not possible. Besides, like most of our mainstream directors, he too believes he owes it to the audiences to make a film that meets their expectations. South Koreas Oscar entry in the foreign language film category or not the espionage thriller set in the 1920s sure topped the South Korean BO for three consecutive weeks. So the winning combo is a happy one too, only too excited to share the film with Indian audiences at Goa.

nonikasingh@tribunemail.com

On the Throne

If Song Kang-ho delighted viewers with his part of an autocratic monarch and an unsympathetic father in the drama The Throne, yet another film of his at the Goa festival, the film impressed jury members of the IFFI too. Part of the competitive section known as Sado in its original language it picked up the special jury award. The film that was Republic of Koreas official entry at Oscars this year was commended by the jury for its artistic excellence and exceptional performance. In the absence of the director Lee Joon-ik of the riveting drama, Song Kang-ho received the award. The award carries a Silver Peacock, a certificate and a cash prize of Rs 15 lakh.
Madurai, November 28

In raids at several places in the city, three suspected Al-Qaeda operatives were on Monday arrested by the National Investigation Agency, police said.

Police said the three allegedly planned to attack 22 top leaders of the country, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

They were allegedly involved in threatening embassies of various countries in India, they said.

Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali. While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from G R Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram, police said.

Explosive materials were also seized from them.

Police said NIA raided several places on specific information that suspected Al-Qaeda activists were operating from South Tamil Nadu in and around Madurai.

"Explosive materials and arms have been seized from them," police said, declining to elaborate.

The trio was allegedly running the Al-Qaeda unit in south Tamil Nadu. They were also allegedly involved in the explosions that took place in various courts in the country over a period of time, police added.

NIA were also searching for two other suspected Al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman, they said.  PTI
Simran Sodhi

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 28

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is likely to travel to India next month to hold talks for strengthening ties between the two nations in the backdrop of growing terrorism in the South Asian region.

Officially, the dates have not been announced yet but the visit is likely to take place in the middle of the month with sources indicating that Hasina might be in the capital from December 18-20.

The recent boycott of the SAARC Summit by India in Pakistan found strong support from Dhaka which, of late, has been a vocal critic of Pakistan and its state sponsorship of terror.

Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Sahidul Haq was in the capital earlier this month to discuss the agenda for Hasinas visit and to chalk out details for possible agreements that can be signed. The most important item on agenda is the long-pending Teesta water sharing agreement. People privy to the developments said Dhaka would want to see India move forward on the Teesta agreement as that would give the Hasina government something to showcase to her people.
Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 28

Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was arrested in Delhi, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan but the jailbreak was planned by local gangsters, Punjab DGP Suresh Arora said here today.

The police, he said, were trying to find out as to who had funded the operation. Calls from the jail suggested that some of the escapees had received money recently.

On Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal hinting at the possible role of Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the DGP said there is a strong basis that Pakistans ISI was in touch with Mintoo.

Arora said a post-mortem of the incident would be undertaken as clearly serious lapses have taken place. He said swift co-ordination between various state police had yielded results, leading to the arrest of the two key culprits.

We have a sequence-by-sequence recording of events, showing lapses by jail security guards, which will be looked into. Some guards did make efforts to retaliate.Timely information provided by them on getaway vehicles and the attackers led to the arrests in UP and Delhi, the DGP added.
Bengaluru, November 28

Anticipating a more protectionist US technology visa programme under a Donald Trump administration, India's $150 billion IT services sector will speed up acquisitions in the United States and recruit more heavily from college campuses there.

Indian companies, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys and Wipro have long used H1-B skilled worker visas to fly computer engineers to the US, their largest overseas market, temporarily to service clients.

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Staff from those three companies accounted for around 86,000 new H1-B workers in 2005-14. The US currently issues close to that number of H1-B visas each year.

President-elect Trump's campaign rhetoric, and his pick for Attorney General of Senator Jeff Sessions, a long-time critic of the visa programme, have many expecting a tighter regime.

"The world over, there's a lot of protectionism coming in and push back on immigration. Unfortunately, people are confusing immigration with a high-skilled temporary workforce, because we are really a temporary workforce," said Pravin Rao, chief operating officer at Infosys, India's second-largest information technology firm.

While few expect a complete shutdown of skilled worker visas as Indian engineers are an established part of the fabric of Silicon Valley, and US businesses depend on their cheaper IT and software solutions, any changes are likely to push up costs.

And a more restrictive programme would likely mean Indian IT firms sending fewer developers and engineers to the United States, and increasing campus recruitment there.

"We have to accelerate hiring of locals if they are available, and start recruiting freshers from universities there," said Infosys' Rao, noting a shift from the traditional model of recruiting mainly experienced people in the US.

"Now we have to get into a model where we will recruit freshers, train them and gradually deploy them, and this will increase our costs," he said, noting Infosys typically recruits 500-700 people each quarter in the U.S. and Europe, around 80 percent of whom are locals.

ACQUISITIONS

Trump's election win and Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union are headwinds for India's IT sector, as clients such as big US and British banks and insurers hold off on spending while the dust settles.

In India's IT hub of Bengaluru and the financial capital Mumbai, executives expect a Trump administration to raise the minimum wage for foreign workers, pressuring already squeezed margins.

Buying US companies would help Indian IT firms build their local headcount, increase their on-the-ground presence in key markets and help counter any protectionist regulations.

Indian software services companies have invested more than $2 billion in the United States in the past five years. North America accounts for more than half of the sector's revenue.

"We have to accelerate acquisitions," said Rao at Infosys, which in the past two years has bought companies, including US-based Noah Consulting and Kallidus Technologies.

Jatin Dalal, Wipro's chief financial officer, said his growth strategy is to buy companies that offer something beyond what Wipro already does, or new, disruptive firms - such as Appirio, a US cloud services firm.

The chief executive of Tech Mahindra, CP Gurnani, said his firm, which two years ago bought network services management firm Lightbridge Communications Corp, is on the look-out for more US acquisitions, particularly in healthcare and fintech - financial technology firms that are disrupting traditional banking services.

OFFSHORING & AUTOMATION

In a broader shift from labour intensive onsite projects, Indian IT firms are also turning to higher-tech services such as automation, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.

With better technology and faster networks, IT firms are encouraging Western clients to adopt more virtual services.

Infosys CEO Vishal Sikka says he has focused on automation and AI as growth drivers since 2014. "The AI platform is 5-6 per cent of our revenues," he told Reuters. "Three years ago, it was zero."

More automation would mean fewer onshore developers.

"The 'Plan B' would be to accelerate the trend ... to reduce their reliance on people and increase their focus on delivering automation, leveraging the cloud for their clients," said Partha Iyengar, Gartner's head of research in India.

Reuters
New Delhi, November 28

Union Home Ministry has given its sanction to prosecute Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar and three others for the Januarys terrorist strike on a military installation in Pathankot.

The National Investigation Agency will name Azhar, his brother Rauf Asghar, Qashif Jan and Shaid Latif  two handlers of four terrorists who struck a base of the Indian Air Force in Pathankot  in its charge sheet, official sources said.

Sources said the new charge sheet would help Indias case to have the United Nations declare Azhar a global terrorist.

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The charge sheet will name only four terrorists  Nasir Hussain from Vehari in Pakistan's Punjab; Hafiz Abu Bakar from Punjabs Gujranwala; Sindhs Sanghar Umar Farooq; and Abdul Qayum from Sindhs Sukkur involved in the attack as opposed to six claimed by the National Security Guards.

The NIA had also investigated phone numbers; a conversation that a militant had minutes before the attack; and Raufs video message released on a Jaish-affiliated website claiming the attack.

The charge sheet will have on record evidence that linked footprints of an attacker secured from Gurdapsurs Bamiyal  from where the militants crossed over into India  and DNA samples from a soft drink can in a car the militants hijacked. The car belonged to Punjab Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh.

The gunmen struck the military base on January 2 in a predawn strike. Eight military men and all four gunmen were killed at the end of a 48-hour gun battle.

A joint investigation team had visited the air base to investigate the attack, but claimed that India refused to share much evidence and did not allow it to question the personnel involved in the militant strike.

China, an ally of Pakistan, has so far frustrated Indias attempts to have Azhar declared a global terrorist.  PTI
Chandigarh: Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, the Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) at the Army Headquarters, has been appointed as the General Officer Commanding of 1 Corps, the strike formation based at Mathura. He will take over from Lt Gen Shoukin Chauhan, who moves as the Director General, Assam Rifles, a Central Armed Police Force under the administrative control of the home ministry that has officers deputed to it from the Army. As DGMO, Lt Gen Ranbir Singh had come into public limelight when he, along with a representative from the MEA, had announced the Armys surgical strikes in PoK. The new DGMO, Lt Gen AK Bhat, is a recently promoted Gorkha officer. Lt Gen Ranbir and Chauhan are also from the Infantry. TNS
New Delhi, November 28

Opposition parties on Monday staged a protest against the demonetisation of old Rs 500 and 1,000 currency notes near Mahatma Gandhi's statue in Parliament House complex as both the houses witnessed pandemonium over the issue.

Leaders from the Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist, Communist Party of India, the DMK and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) protested outside Parliament.

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The protest was led by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

Earlier, the opposition parties held a meeting in the Parliament House to chalk out their strategy over the issue.

Both houses of Parliament have seen repeated adjournments since the beginning of the winter session on November 16 over the demonetisation that has triggered a cash chaos in the country.

IANS
Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 28

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it in Punjab on Friday and repeated it on Sunday in his Mann ki Baat radio programme. And now Union Ministers, BJP cadres and RSS affiliates have been asked to take forward his philosophy of a cashless economy by spreading awareness among masses.

The push to make India less reliant on currency notes, initially less cash as he said yesterday, and more on debit cards and other digital forms of money transactions was an important step to transform India into an economically powerful nation, VHP functionary Surendra Jain said. Therefore, the aim of the BJPs sister organisations  Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal  is to first train cadres, who will then disseminate awareness on digital transactions. The decision was taken at a day-long meeting of the two RSS affiliates yesterday.

Today Modi is learnt to have asked his Cabinet ministers to enlighten people about merits of e-wallets and other digital payment methods. Apparently, he asked his ministers to begin the awareness about cashless economy from home  with their staff followed by respective ministries and constituencies. Sources said BJP president Amit Shah, too, had asked party leaders at various levels to do the same.

In his Mann ki Baat programme, the PM acknowledged that a cashless society was not immediately possible but appealed to people to work towards it by being part of a less cash society immediately.
Patna/ Bengaluru/ Thiruvananthapuram/ Lucknow, November 28

Oppositions call for a shutdown against central governments decision to invalidate old 500 and 1000 rupee notes met a somewhat muted response across India, with widespread protests limited only to activists of opposition parties.



Bihar



Trains were halted in Bihar as the Left parties and others on Monday, police said.



More than a dozen long-distance trains were halted at Patna, Gaya, Jehanabad, Bhagalpur and Muzaffarpur railway stations and roads were blocked at several places across India.



However, ruling parties of the grand alliance in Bihar  the Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal and Congress  decided not to join the shutdown. While Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has said he supported the central governments measure, his allies, the RJD and the Congress  both of which have voiced their opposition to the move  staged a protest march.



Opposition parties  led by the Left  also held protests in Andhra Pradesh, although no shutdown was enforced. Leaders of the Communist Party of India and YSR Congress were detained at some places following demonstrations.



"We are not against the scrapping of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes but why did the government introduce Rs 2000 note. But the common man had been put through great misery due to the abrupt decision" Congress's state unit president N Raghuveera Reddy said, as he led his party workers in a protest rally from Andhra Ratna Bhavan to Lenin Centre.





Kerala



Kerala, however, witnessed a near complete shutdown as the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front, the ruling alliance in the state, spearheaded a 12-hour strike against the central governments measure.



Shops and business establishments remained shut and the state-run KSRTC and private buses kept off the roads across the state in response to the strike that began at 6 am.



The LDF held marches in several parts of the stat. CPI (M) state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan criticised the measure for causing 'hardship' to the public.



The Opposition  Congress-led UDF  did not participate in the strike, although they staged a march to the Raj Bhavan to register its protest against the Centre's decision, which it said caused crisis in the state's cooperative sector.



Several UDF protesters were arrested, police said.



With the Sabarimala pilgrim season on, Ranni, Chittar, Seethathode panchayats in Pathanamthitta district and Erumeli panchayat in Kottayam district have been exempted from the strike as also Tripunithura and Chottanikkara in Ernakulam where local temple festivities are on.



Tourist vehicles have also been exempted from the hartal.



Karnataka



The strike did not affect everyday life in Karnataka, where the ruling Congress joined the nationwide strike and held rallies in several parts of the state.



The protest affected the functioning of both the Houses of Karnataka Legislature, now in a 10-day winter session at Belagavi, as they did not sit today in line with the decision taken by the Business Advisory Committee (BAC).



BAC had decided to suspend the sitting amid opposition by BJP, which walked out of the meeting on Friday. An extra day of session would be held on December 3 to make up for the loss of business on Monday.



Life in Bengaluru and elsewhere remained normal with commercial establishments, educational institutions, banks and private offices working as usual and public transport and Metro maintaining their regular services.



Official reports said barring protests by Congress, the situation in the entire state, including the districts of Mysuru, Gadag, Haveri, Belagavi, Kalaburgi, Chamrajanagar, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada and Kolar, was normal.



In Bengaluru, Congress staged a demonstration in front of Town Hall near City Market at the nucleus of the city, where State Working President R Gundu Rao, a few legislators and local leaders took part.



At the protest, Congress workers raised slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and carried placards against demonetisation that they said has "hurt the common people".



In Bengaluru, some 15,000 policemen were on duty, apart from platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police and City Armed Reserve.



Goa



Opposition parties, including those aligned to the Left, staged token protests in Goa on Monday against the demonetisation of high value currency.



The parties that participated in the Jan Aakrosh Diwas protests included the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, Aam Aadmi Party and the Communist Party of India-Marxist.





Uttar Pradesh



The protest also received lukewarm response, in Uttar Pradesh on Monday. While the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) workers protested at railway tracks in Allahabad and Kanpur, all major markets by and large remained open.



No untoward incident was reported till noon from anywhere in the state though protests have been reported from Mainpuri, Chandauli, Etawah, Kanpur, Agra, Allahabad, Mirzapur, Bhadohi and Unnao, an official said.



Most trader organisations have excused themselves from the daylong shutdown, citing they had no instructions from their central leadership.



All major markets like Hazratganj, Narahi, Aminabad, Bhootnath and Gole Market remained open.



Shops also were reported open in Barabanki, Firozabad, Rampur, Sambhal, Amroha, most districts of western and eastern Uttar Pradesh. The Congress also staged protests at some places.  Agencies


Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 28

Punjab Congress president Capt Amarinder Singh today alleged that the ruling Akali Dal government was involved in the Nabha jailbreak and had engineered it to provoke tension and polarisation in the state ahead of the 2017 Assembly elections.

I have no faith in the Punjab Police inquiry into this matter. We want a CBI probe. How can a jailbreak happen in such a high-security facility? The Akalis are fully involved in provoking tension and polarisation in the state ahead of the elections. I have written to Home Minister demanding the Model Code of Conduct and dismissal of the state government, Amarinder said in Delhi today.

Previously, we saw the desecration of Guru Granth Sahib, then of the Geeta, then the Quran and now this jailbreak Obviously, people who escaped were facilitated to add firepower to the Akali ammunition for the upcoming elections. Five of the six who escaped are gangsters from the areas which Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his Deputy CM son Sukhbir Badal represent. These gangsters are from Jalalabad and Lambi, Amarinder said.

Political patronage evident: CPI

Chandigarh: The CPI on Monday demanded a probe CBI into the Nabha jailbreak case. In a statement, party state secretary Hardev Singh Arshi said criminals fled the high security jail with no resistance from the prison officials clearly indicated a deep-rooted conspiracy. He said the incident exposed the law and order situation in the state, besides exposing patronage given to gangsters by political parties. Arshi said it had also raised a question mark on the conduct of free and fair elections. tns

BJP accuses Jakhar of sacrilege

Chandigarh: Taking on PPCC vice-president Sunil Jhakhar, state BJP secretary Vineet Joshi on Monday said by describing gangsters as "laadli fauj" of Sukhbir Singh Badal, the Congress leader had hurt the sentiment of the Sikhs. Joshi said: "The army set up by Guru Gobind Singh is known as the 'laadli fauj' which stood against aggression and protected the rights of the common man. By terming gangsters as 'laadli fauj', Jakhar has disgraced the Khalsa Panth. He must apologise for the remark." tns
Chandigarh, November 28

Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh on Monday demanded handing over of the Nabha jailbreak case to the CBI, alleging a deep-rooted conspiracy, "which has deepened" with the arrest of Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo.

"Since the Punjab Police DGP, Suresh Arora, has already admitted to conspiracy and connivance in the matter, the case should not be probed by the Punjab Police and handed over to CBI for an independent investigation," he said.

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Amarinder Singh also accused the ruling Akalis of "resorting to communal polarisation when faced with imminent defeat".

"The jail break incident also pointed to such an attempt by the state government," he alleged in a statement here.

Reacting to the arrest of Mintoo less than 24 hours after he dramatically escaped from Nabha jail in Patiala district along with five others yesterday, Amarinder warned against allowing the matter to be pushed under the carpet with the arrest of Mintoo, and called for a thorough probe.

"It is a clear case of connivance," he maintained and added that since Mintoo was nabbed in Delhi, the case could jointly be probed by the CBI and the IB, with support from the Delhi Police.

"The ease of his arrest belied Sukhbir Badal's claims of a Pakistani role in the escape of the hardcore terrorist, who has about a dozen terror cases against him," said Amarinder.

"Had the whole thing been plotted from across the border, Mintoo would have by now escaped out of India, instead of waiting in Delhi to be nabbed," he further stated.

The former Punjab Chief Minister demanded "meticulous interrogation" of Mintoo by independent agencies to get at the root of the conspiracy.

"With the entire police and administrative machinery in Punjab in the grip of the Akalis, such blatant incidents of law and order breakdown were to be expected in the run-up to the Assembly polls in the state," he said.

Assembly polls in Punjab are scheduled early next year.

Expressing apprehensions of violence and possible terrorist attacks in the poll-bound state, Amarinder reiterated his demand for imposition of President's Rule to ensure free and fair elections in Punjab.

Khalistani Liberation Force (KLF) chief was today nabbed from Delhi railway station. PTI
Archit Watts

Tribune News Service

Muktsar, November 27

Six prisoners, among them two militants, broke out of a high-security prison in Nabha on Sunday morning. From KLF chief to a murder suspect gangster, here's a background of those who escaped:

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Harminder Singh Mintoo

Punjab Police arrested Khalistan Liberation Force (KLF) chief Harminder Singh 'Mintoo' and his key aide Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi at the New Delhi airport with central agencies assistance in November 2014. He was suspected of being involved in 10 cases of militancy at the time of his arrest. (Read full report here: Punjab Police arrest KLF chief, aide)

Harjinder Singh Bhullar alias Vicky Gounder

Originally from Sarawan Bodla village in Lambi assembly segment, Gounder is the prime suspect in the murder of gangster Sukha Kahlwan and was arrested in December 2015. He was moved to Nabha jail after a clash with a rival gang in Ropar jail.

Gounder is suspected of having been involved in another murder case by Jalandhar Commissionerate in 2010. His gang  gangster Gurshahid Singh alias Shera Khubbans group  is primarily involved in highway robberies and murders.

Gurshahid Singh was killed in a police encounter in Bathinda in 2012.

Gurpreet Singh Sekhon alias Sonu Mudki

Sekhon belongs to a family of brick-kiln owners from Mudki village. Gupreet is suspected of having been an accomplice in a murder during the 2012 assembly elections, although gangster Shera Khubban was the prime suspect in the case. At the time of his arrest on March 4, 2015, Sekhon faced 13 criminal cases in Ferozepur, Faridkot, Moga, Bathinda and Chandigarh. (Read full report here: Key accused in gangster Sukhas murder case held)

Kulpreet Singh alias Neeta Deol

Neeta, a Dubai-based NRI, runs a transport business. He is son of a former deputy director of animal husbandry Department and is originally from Moga district. He is the prime suspect in the murder of Sukha Kahlwan and was arrested from Sri Guru Ram Dass Ji International Airport, Amritsar, on April 22, 2015. At the time of his arrest, he was sought for six criminal cases.

Amandeep Dhotian

A resident of Tarn Tarans Dhotian village, Amandeep Dhotian (27) heads the Dhotian gang in Majha region. Amritsars Crime Investigation Agency had arrested him and six other members of his gang on November 5, 2015. He is suspected to have been involved in a number of incidents of loot and vehicle thefts.

Kashmir Singh: Had attacked Shiv Sena leader

Kashmir Singh was arrested and booked for attempt to murder after he had shot at Punjab Shiv Sena leader Harvinder Soni with a countrymade .315-bore pistol in Gurdaspur on April 12 last year. His two accomplices were also arrested.

Kashmir hails from Galwandi village, under Khanna police district. The police had claimed that Kashmir Singh had developed contacts with terrorist sleeper cells and had attacked Soni at the behest of a certain militant Sikh organisation. (Inputs by Ravi Dhaliwal in Gurdaspur)

Also read:



Attack on Nabha prison; 6 escape, including KLF militant, gangsters
Aman Sood and Prateek Chauhan

Patiala/New Delhi/Chandigarh, November 28

Police have arrested Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who was freed along with another terrorist by four gangsters from the Nabha jail on Sunday.

Reports from Delhi say Mintoo was arrested on Sunday night from the Delhi railway station from where he was to board a train. He is being interrogated by the IB and Delhi Police.

Mintoos preliminary interrogation revealed that two insiders in the jail and an inmate facilitated his escape.

A Delhi court sent Mintoo to seven days police custody.

Meanwhile, security agencies on Monday continued their hunt for the others in the Nabha jailbreak.

Police and security agencies were alerted in six states--Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. Routes towards Nepal were also being checked.

Raids are being conducted at various places. It appears that the prisoners who escaped and their attackers went in separate directions soon after escaping from the Nabha prison, a senior Punjab Police officer said on Monday.

In neighbouring Haryana, Haryana Police and Punjab Police confirmed the recovery of a Hyundai Verna car from a village in Kaithal district. The abandoned car was one of the getaway vehicles used by the escaped prisoners and their attackers.

On search of the car, we recovered a police uniform and some mobile numbers. We are investigating this. The registration number plates of the car are fake, a Haryana Police official in Kaithal said.

Khalistan Liberation Force chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, Kashmir Singh (both terrorists) and dreaded gangsters Gurpreet Sekhon, Vicky Gounder, Amandeep Dhotian and Neeta Deol--had escaped from the Nabha Jail after the attack.

Uttar Pradesh Police on Sunday evening nabbed gangster Parvinder Singh, who admitted to being one of the attackers in the jailbreak, from near Shamli town in Uttar Pradesh.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Uttar Pradesh ADG (Law and Order) Daljeet Chowdhary said Parvinder, who was in a Toyota Fortuner SUV, was intercepted by police in the western UP district in the evening and arrested.

A haul of weapons, including three rifles and one SLR was also recovered from the vehicle.

Punjab Police has been informed about the arrest. He is being questioned for further leads on his accomplices. He is the main accused in the jailbreak, Chaudhary said.

A high alert was sounded across north India after armed men, said to be 10-12 in number, attacked the jail. The attackers, dressed in police uniform, came in three-four cars and breached the tight security of the prison around 9 am.

Witnesses said the attackers fired at least 100 rounds during a well-planned and executed attack that lasted barely 10 minutes. Despite several rounds of firing, no one was injured. Official sources said the security in the jail did not retaliate, raising suspicion.

DGP Arora admitted that conspiracy, connivance and lapses led to the incident.

A young woman, Neha, who was a dancer with a dance troupe, was killed as a police team fired at a car which did not stop at a security barricade near Samana town. Punjab DGP Suresh Arora admitted that the incident was a case of mistaken identity.

A security lockdown was ordered along Punjabs border with Haryana and Rajasthan and with Pakistan.

The Punjab government has announced a reward of Rs 25 lakh to anyone giving information leading to the arrest of the six prisoners.

Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who visited the jail on Sunday afternoon, tweeted: Pak(istan) desperate to revive terror post surgical strike. Could be behind jail break.

We will uncover the conspiracy behind jailbreak at all costs, he added.

The Punjab government suspended Additional DGP, Jails, MK Tiwari. The Nabha Jail Superintendent and his deputy were dismissed from service, Badal said.

Mintoo produced in Delhi court

Mintoo was arrested from New Delhi railway station. This operation was jointly done by Punjab Police and Delhi Police Special cell.

After escaping from Punjab jail Mintoo called a relative in Subhash Nagar in Delhi. Following the phone call Punjab Police tipped off Delhi Police special cell about Mintoos whereabouts.

According to a special cell official, Mintoo was produced in Patiala House Court.

Mintoo, Pinda to be brought back

The Patiala police said they would bring Palwinder Pinda, who was arrested in UP in connection with the jailbreak, to Patiala and quiz him.

UP Police said Pinda was on way to Dehradun after breaking a nakka near Karnal. He had dropped all others in Haryana and was alone in his Fortuner. Three policemen were on the naka at Shamli who encircled his vehicle. Four guns were found from the vehicle.

The special operation cell will also question Mintoo to get to the bottom of the jailbreak, said a senior police officer in Patiala. He said Mintoo was to get to Nepal and through Malaysia was to leave for Pakistan. However, his facilitator in UP backed out following which his plan was altered at the last minute and he was asked to board a train and reach Uttarakhand and escape to Nepal. He would be brought back by Monday evening.

Meanwhile, Additional Chief Secretary Jagpal Sandhu and newly appointed Additional DGP Rohit Choudhary reached Nabha Jail to review the situation.

Insiders facilitated escape

Meanwhile, the Patiala police is in Delhi to take custody of Mintoo.

Mintoos initial interrogation revealed that two insiders in the jail and an inmate facilitated his escape. Mintoo got in touch with gangster Vicky Gounder though these people and this is when Gounder told him about his plan to escape.

Mintoo was in constant touch with his links to use the Uttarakhand route to escape to Nepal. With agencies
Chandigarh, November 27

The Punjab Government on Sunday suspended Additional Director General of Prisons MK Tiwari and dismissed Nabha jail superintendent and deputy superintendent in an action that followed this mornings jailbreak.

We will uncover the conspiracy behind terrorist - gangster Nabha jail break at all costs. /1  Sukhbir Singh Badal (@officeofssbadal) November 27, 2016

Rohit Chaudhary has been appointed the new ADGP Prisons.

Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal also voiced apprehension that Pakistan could be behind the sensational Nabha jailbreak, saying the neighbouring country was desperate to revive terrorism after Indian Army conducted the surgical strike across the LoC.

State police is investigating conspiracy between terrorists and gangsters to disturb peace in Punjab before elections. /2  Sukhbir Singh Badal (@officeofssbadal) November 27, 2016

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Pak desperate to revive terror post surgical strike.

Could be behind jail break, Sukhbir, who also spoke to the National Security Adviser Ajit Doval after the incident, tweeted.

He said earlier in the morning that the state government had set up a special task force to track the six escapees.

A Special Task Force has been set up under the (state) intelligence (wing) to track the criminals, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal said, speaking at Amritsar after a meeting with Director General of Police.

A team under ADGP has been constituted to investigate the incident. Strict action will be taken against whoever is responsible.

Pak desperate to revive terror post surgical strike. Could be behind jail break. /3  Sukhbir Singh Badal (@officeofssbadal) November 27, 2016

In a sensational jailbreak, a group of armed men in police uniform today attacked the high-security Nabha Jail and fled with six prisoners, including Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Mintoo.  PTI
Patiala, November 27

The Punjab Police and Uttar Pradesh Police late this evening overpowered and arrested gangster Palwinder Singh Pinda, 27, believed to be the mastermind behind the Nabha jailbreak, at Kairana in western UP. He was in a Fortuner.

Insiders said Pinda was attired as an ASI when he entered the jail. His arrest is expected to shed more light on the audacious attack.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

An accused in the murder of ASI Gurdev Singh, who was shot dead in Jalandhar in April 2013, Pinda was arrested by the Patiala police later that year along with his accomplice, Satnam Satti. He is a resident of Nihaluwal village in Jalandhar.

He faces four more cases  two in Jalandhar and one each in Kapurthala and Patiala. Shifted from the Patiala Central Jail to the maximum-security Nabha Jail earlier this year, he had escaped from police custody at the Patiala Civil Hospital in March this year when unidentified gunmen opened fire at the police escort party.

Hence, he was well-aware of the jail barracks and the channels through which he could contact the inmates inside, sources said. TNS
Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 28

Punjab DGP Suresh Arora on Monday said Harminder Singh Mintoo was in touch with terrorist groups in Pakistan but the jailbreak conspiracy was hatched by the gangsters.

Arora said the timely information provided by them on the description of cars and assailants led to their arrest in UP and Delhi. He said an excellent national coordination among security forces led to the swift arrests.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

On jailbreak, he said serious lapses took place, including the lack of retaliation by the jail guard holding the LMG. He said a complete review of the situation would be done and corrective measures taken.

The DGP defended Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal saying there was a strong basis that Pakistans ISI was in touch with Mintoo in jail.

He said the police were investigating as to who funded the gangsters for the escape.
Chandigarh, November 28

Another car was on Monday found abandoned at a village in Haryanas Kaithal district after the Nabha jailbreak incident.

The car was found abandoned at Pharal village. Kaithal is about 70 km from Nabha where the jailbreak incident took place on Sunday.

A car has been found in the village. Further investigations are on, Kaithal SP Sumer Partap Singh said, adding that police and forensic experts were examining the car.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Another car was found abandoned at Solumajra village in Kaithal on Sunday and was suspected to have been used by prisoners who escaped from the Nabha jail.

Some Punjab Police uniforms and some telephone numbers written on torn pieces of papers were found from the car which was found at Solumajra. Further investigation is being conducted by Punjab Police, DSP Tarun Kumar said. The car bore a fake Punjab registration number, he said.

Police teams from Punjab were called in for a coordinated investigation in the case.

Khalistan Liberation Front chief Harminder Singh Mintoo, who had escaped from Nabha jail in Punjab along with five other inmates, was nabbed from Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi. PTI
Islamabad, November 28

The Balochistan High Court on Monday issued a bailable arrest warrant against former Pakistani dictator Gen Pervez Musharraf in a case pertaining to the alleged murder of former Baloch nationalist leader Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti in a military operation in 2006.

A divisional bench of the Balochistan High Court passed the order during hearing of review petition challenging acquittal of the 73-year-old former president by an Anti-Terrorism Court in the case, Dawn reported.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Zaheeruddin Kakar heard a review petition filed by Nawabzada Jamil Bugti, the son of Akbar Bugti.

The counsel of Musharraf, Akhtar Shah pleaded to the court that although his client respects the court, he cannot appear before the court due to "security reasons".

However, Bugti's lawyer complained that despite repeated orders, the former president, Pervez Musharraf has failed to appear before the court.

The court ordered that the administration should ensure adequate security to Musharraf while he appears in court.

The Pakistan government had allowed Musharraf to go abroad in March this year for medical treatment.

Baloch leader Nawab Akbar Bugti was killed in an operation in Balochistan's rugged mountains of Taratani in Kohlu district on August 26, 2006.

Bugti had led an armed campaign to press for provincial autonomy and a greater share of profits from Balochistan's natural resources.

The death of the Baloch chieftain had sparked angry protests in parts of the country.

Musharraf, who went into self-imposed exile in Dubai after being forced to resign as president facing impeachment following the 2008 elections, had returned to Pakistan in 2013 to contest elections but was implicated in several cases. He also lost in the polls.

He was not allowed to leave the country until government allowed him in March this year to go abroad for treatment following orders by the Supreme Court.

Musharraf has been facing a slew of cases, including the high treason trial since 2013 and he was barred from leaving the country in 2014 by the government.

Musharraf seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.  PTI
Washington, November 28

In an unprecedented move, US President-elect Donald Trump today alleged that millions of people voted illegally for Hillary Clinton that prevented him from winning the popular vote too, threatening a truce between them after their bitter White House race.

Trump, who offered no evidence for his claims, said that he would have won the popular votes in the US general election if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.

In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally, Trump said in a first of the series of tweets. He alleged that serious voter fraud were committed in three States of Virginia, New Hampshire and California where he lost.

The allegation by Trump, who won the required votes in the Electoral College to secure the presidency, comes as Democratic rival Hillary Clintons lead in the popular vote over Trump has surpassed 2 million votes and is expected to grow to more than 2.5 million as ballots in populous states such as California continue to be tallied.

Clinton has 232 Electoral College votes in her kitty as against 270 required to be declared as elected.

The Republican billionaires allegations came as steps are being taken towards recounting of votes in the swing state of Wisconsin, which Trump won.

Earlier he described an impending recount of votes in Wisconsin as a scam and said the results of the presidential election should be respected instead of being challenged or abused.

In another tweet he alleged voters fraud in three States. Serious voter fraud in Virginia, New Hampshire and California - so why isnt the media reporting on this? Serious bias - big problem! Trump said.  PTI
Goma, November 28

More than 4 million children have lost at least one parent in Congo over the past two decades, the silent victims of continuous cycles of violence.

And more than 26 million orphans live in West and Central Africa, where Congo is located the second highest number in the world behind South Asia, according to the United Nations.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

These children have grown up amid conflict fueled by ethnic strife and the fight over valuable minerals. The violence and displacement are eroding the tradition of families caring for their own.

The breakdown in family means some orphans are forced to look after themselves and their younger siblings. Some are vulnerable to recruitment by armed groups. And many also face sexual exploitation, in a country where rape has become commonplace on the streets.

"They are the orphans with a story of violence since 1994 it's a generation of victims that continues," says Francisca Ichimpaye, a senior monitor at the En Avant Les Enfants INUKA center. And the children "lose their story in the violence." AP
Otto has tested its self-driving rigs in western states, and this week will begin demonstrations amid midwestern terrain in Ohio. Photo: Otto

Ohio is the next venue for autonomous truck tests by Otto, the Uber-owned development company that made a well-reported driverless beer delivery in Colorado several weeks ago.

An Otto vehicle was supposed to travel a 35-mile stretch of U.S. 33 on Monday in central Ohio, between Dublin and East Liberty, home to the Transportation Research Center, an independent testing facility, according to an Associated Press report.

An appearance by Ohio Gov. John Kasich during the demo was canceled when a brief stabbing rampage on the campus of Ohio State University in Columbus began about 10 a.m., and the governor shifted his attention to that, said ODOT spokesman Matt Bruning. (The incident, first reported as an active-shooter situation, ended quickly when an OSU police officer shot the perpetrator, though local media coverage remains intense.)

The public demonstration with Kasich involved will be rescheduled, perhaps for later in the week, Bruning said. Kasich has pushed for Ohio to be a leader in the fast-advancing testing and research of autonomous vehicles.

State officials say Ohio is well-positioned for such a role for many reasons, including a significant presence from the automotive industry, partnerships with university researchers, and seasonal weather changes that enable testing a variety of driving conditions in one place. Also, extensive logistics operations rely on transportation, so would be affected and perhaps aided by autonomous trucks.

The Otto truck will travel in regular traffic and a driver will be in the cab to intervene should anything go awry, ODOT officials said. That section of Route 33  built to freeway standards -- will become a corridor where new technologies can be safely tested in real-life traffic. A fiber-optic cable network and sensor systems are slated for installation next year.

"Certainly we think it's going to be one of the foremost automotive research corridors in the world," Bruning said.

The self-driving truck is also expected to travel next week on part of the Ohio Turnpike. The turnpike's executive director said in August that officials were moving toward allowing testing of self-driving vehicles on the 241-mile toll road, which cuts across northern Ohio and is a heavily traveled connector between the East Coast and Chicago.

Related: Uber Buys Autonomous Truck Startup Otto
When Moises Echeverria came to the U.S. with his family in 2002, he experienced snide, hurtful remarks from a handful of students and faculty at East Central High School.

A year after the Sept. 11 attacks, those taunts about going back to Mexico made the challenges more difficult for the teenager who had to learn English and adapt to a new culture.

Fast forward to 2016, and Echeverria is the CEO and president of the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice. A former client of the agency, he is poised and ready to help change attitudes and lives.

He knows from his own experiences that challenges are ahead, but he feels the support of the 65-member OCCJ board of directors  made up of businessmen and women and faith community leaders  will help the organization move forward.

Our vision is to eliminate bias, bigotry and racism in Tulsa and Oklahoma, he said. We also will stand against policies that oppress people.

OCCJ, through a variety of activities, reaches more than 12,000 Oklahomans annually and involves second and third generations.

Programs are reaching to second-grade students who learn that everyone is OK, even though they have different beliefs or skin color. The focus at the seventh grade is on anti-bullying and the negative impact it has on victims.

Education programs in schools and the community are focused on trying to get individuals to understand that everyone benefits economically and culturally when people work together.

These concepts didnt seem real when Echeverria was a high school student enduring taunts from his high school peers and others.

He felt rejected and discouraged, but later he had what he described as an eye-opening experience when he had the opportunity to attend the OCCJ Camp Anytown, a leadership program that presented challenges and provided leadership opportunities to participants.

He also learned that he was not alone and that his culture and background were his strengths he could build upon.

He returned to Camp Anytown first as a counselor and then, as a high school student, was asked to serve on OCCJs board.

That proved to be another eye-opening experience. He saw community leaders working together with the staff to make a difference in community social and justice issues.

That helped me see that successful people in the community really cared about others, Echeverria said.

The experiences also underscored lessons his parents taught about giving back to the community. He enrolled at Tulsa Community College and later earned an associates degree in international business in 2007.

He volunteered at TCC and returned to Camp Anytown as a volunteer counselor.

Echeverria graduated from Oklahoma State University with a degree in business administration after taking a two-year leave of absence that he dedicated to his church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Echeverria worked with a company that utilized his business degree, but he felt the tug of the OCCJ and continued to volunteer and serve as a panelist on a series that talked about leadership programs.

Another game-changer came when the president of the Phillips Theological Seminary asked him to be a presenter in the two-day Revival and Renew conference. The presentations led Echeverria to contact OCCJ executive director Nancy Day and tell her that he would be interested if a staff position opened.

After a staff member relocated, he became the program coordinator.

The importance of education, underscored by his parents, continued and Echeverria enrolled at the University of Oklahoma-Tulsa, in the master of human resources program.

Day retired two years later, and Jayme Cox was named to the leader position. Echeverria then became director of operations and adult programs in 2016 and also led the interfaith program.

Five months later, following Coxs resignation, Echeverria was named interim president and CEO. Then the interim was removed as he was named to lead an organization that helped him 14 years earlier.

Leadership roles have come Echeverrias way over the years, and he credits Tulsa Young Professionals as part of the learning process.

I have been involved with the organization for nearly three years, working in the diversity crew, he said. I have been the crew leader for two years and have been asked to chair TYPROS in 2018. Now I am serving as chair-elect.

Echeverria, looking ahead, said the OCCJ mission remains the same and is dedicated to achieving respect and understanding for all people through education, advocacy and dialogue.

Our vision is to eliminate bias, bigotry and racism in our state in our generation, he said.
Residents in Valsayn South are said to be marooned in their homes. Councillor for the area S
Nine is consulting lawyers over the womens magazines following continued publication regarding Today host Karl Stefanovic.

Darren Wick, Nines Director of News and Current Affairs, said, This very personal campaign is being prosecuted by weekly womens magazines running fictitious and damaging articles about Karl Stefanovic that are without any foundation of fact. At best, this is lazy and reckless reporting. At worst, there is a case that this campaign is designed to damage not only his reputation but our business as well and we no longer intend to tolerate these lies.

Nine has instructed Mark OBrien, one of Australias most experienced media and defamation lawyers, to act on Karl and Nines behalf in this matter and take the necessary steps to defend his reputation against the endless fabrications, he told Nines womens site 9Honey.

Earlier today New Idea published a story that Stefanovic was quitting Today whilst Womans Day also published an article on his personal life.

Last week co-star Lisa Wilkinson told Mamma Mia, a lot of lies were being published.

Theres human beings involved here, she said, referring to Stefanovics children with estranged wife Cassie Thorburn.

Stefanovic will soon begin a summer break from Today following the end of survey ratings.

Updated.
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).
Tesla Model X Elon Musk

It's easy to get distracted from Tesla's greatest achievement.

Elon Musk's upstart automaker builds fast, sexy electric cars that are prized by the Silicon Valley elite.

They are the ultimate rolling status toys, $100,000-plus rides that can, in some configurations, outrun Ferraris and Lamborghinis.

That's all wonderful, but Tesla's most meaningful "disruption" of the century-old auto industry is more prosaic: The company created a market that really didn't exist before.

True, General Motors and other companies had developed and sold electric cars. But they never sold in significant numbers. And even in the post-financial-crisis period, with more electric vehicles rolling off assembly lines than ever before, they constitute only about 1% of the global market for automobiles.

They haven't made a dent.

But Tesla is growing rapidly, roughly doubling its deliveries each year (about 50,000 in 2015, close to 100,000 in 2016, and half a million by 2018, if the company executes on Musk's ambitions). There are nearly 400,000 preorders, at $1,000 apiece, for the Model 3 mass-market vehicle, scheduled to launch late next year. That's an unprecedented number in the industry.

Does it mean there's vast, untapped demand for electric cars? I don't think so. Rather, I think it means there's vast, untapped demand for Teslas.

Chasing the wrong future

Chevy Bolt

Tesla has made history by creating a notable market that didn't exist before. But it's far from clear whether that market will grow to include vehicles that aren't Teslas. An early test will be the new Chevy Bolt, a $30,000 electric vehicle, after tax incentives, with a range of about 240 miles on a single charge; the car went into production in October. If its sales quickly match Tesla's, we'll have a solid indication that what consumers want are relatively inexpensive EVs. If they don't, we'll have confirmation that consumers ultimately just want Teslas.

Story continues

In any case, unless growth picks up in the EV space, automakers will have a difficult time making their electric-car programs work. Many major automakers are offering grand electric-mobility plans. Volkswagen, for instance, is trying to recover from its emission-cheating scandal by resetting itself as a future big-time provider of electric vehicles.

As we head into the heart of the auto-show season, we're seeing numerous new electric-car concepts. Electric freight trucks are a big discussion topic. No one wants to get left behind.

Unfortunately, the current EV market simply isn't large enough to support all these vehicles. It might be possible for automakers to do what GM is proposing with the Bolt and its Lyft investment: create a fleet of self-driving electric taxis. But this isn't really a conventional play for consumers. Individual auto ownership is the core of the car business, and it's that market that needs to expand if EVs are to begin taking market share from gas-powered cars.

The story is changing

Another factor pressing on the future success  or failure  of the EV market is a relatively recent, unforeseen, and rapid change in the big transportation story of the moment. From the mid-2000s until the emergence of Uber, the action was with electric cars.

But the narrative now is about ride-hailing, car-sharing, and self-driving cars  technologies that don't require electric cars and that can be brought online with internal-combustion vehicles much more quickly. It doesn't make sense for companies working in the new narrative to wait for the EV market to grow. They can stake their claims more fully with the next generations of gas-powered cars  the 99% of the market that doesn't have to be recharged every night.

uber driverless car

This might sound bad, and it is worth taking into account that Tesla is both the most successful all-electric-car company and a leader in autonomous mobility. But no one should be surprised that electric cars could lose out  again. Batteries are large, costly, and less practical than gas  and their development has been painfully slow. Today's lithium-ion designs are vastly superior to anything that came before. But it has taken over 100 years for EVs to simply catch up to gas-powered cars.

This is actually a good situation for Tesla. Musk and his team have, effectively, a monopoly. But that isn't what Musk wants. His vision is for a steady replacement of gas-powered cars by EVs.

That clearly won't happen if the self-driving/de-ownership trend really takes hold. Small, cheap gas-powered vehicles, outfitted with advanced software, will be much easier to build at mass scale than EVs. Tesla is aware of this, and that's why it's constructing a massive battery factory in Nevada, to bring down the cost of lithium-ion battery cells.

Day of reckoning

Mercedes Benz concept car

A reckoning is probably coming for all the automakers that are now following Tesla. Many see EVs as a way to meet future government fuel-economy and emissions standards. For these "compliance" vehicles to serve their function, people need to buy them. But if all those people really just want to buy Teslas, then the automakers will sour on directing their resources into products that lack appeal to customers.

From my perspective, the current EV market looks stalled. If it were going to take off, it would have by now  consumers would have decided that even a 100-mile-range electric car was a good deal. These vehicles have been in the market for years and haven't meaningfully displaced gas-powered cars. Low fuel prices have had something to do with this  gas-electric hybrid sales have also been weak  but the obvious conclusion is that consumers are as excited about EVs as manufacturers thought they would be. Consumers might even be indifferent.

As a result, carmakers seem to be hopeful about the electric-car future, rather than practical. They're assuming that their new EVs will be "Tesla killers." But if the growth of the EV market doesn't radically accelerate, the fight won't be worth it; Tesla will dominate a small market niche, and the dozen of traditional automakers will be left to battle for the tiny leftover percentages.

Meanwhile, consumers will flock to automakers that can provide the best self-driving tech.

So the industry is at a critical inflection point. And it could be Tesla's destiny to be the greatest electric-car company of all time. As well as the only electric- car company of any significance.

NOW WATCH: Tesla reveals how your self-driving car sees the road





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Paula Myrick Short, senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, has received the Alumni Achievement Award from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Paula Myrick Short, senior vice chancellor for the University of Houston System and senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at UH, has been awarded the Alumni Achievement Award by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) School of Education.

The School of Education alumni awards recognize the accomplishments, commitment and ongoing contribution to education of UNC alumni and honor their role in the life of the School of Education. Alumni selected to receive awards are individuals who are models for School of Education students and alumni through leadership, achievement, integrity and volunteer commitment.

The Alumni Achievement Award recognizes the exceptional achievement of an alumna who personifies the School of Education's commitment to support diverse and democratic communities in order to improve education in the state and nation for all children and the adults who care for them. Through their exceptional accomplishments, winners of the award have brought distinction to themselves and to their alma mater.

Short received her Ph.D. in administration in the Department of Organizational Development and Institutional Studies at UNC. She has served as senior vice president of academic affairs and provost at UH since January 2013. Prior to joining UH, Short served 12 years as Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for the Tennessee Board of Regents, the sixth-largest governing board system of higher education in the United States, annually serving more than 200,000 students. Short has served as a tenured faculty member at Auburn University, The Pennsylvania State University and the University of Missouri  Columbia.

As provost, she has worked to promote student success by establishing the UH Graduate School, the Foundations of Excellence Initiative and the Houston Guided Pathways to Success, and implemented cohort-based success initiatives such as Cub Camp, Provost Summer Read, and UHin4.

She has worked to change the faculty environment on campus by developing a Cougar Chairs Leadership Academy for department chairs, serving as co-principal investigator for a National Science Foundation ADVANCE grant to increase the number of women of color in STEM fields, and developing a competitive salary initiative to raise salaries to market rates.

To learn more about Provost Paula Myrick Short, visit: http://www.uh.edu/provost/about/provost/.

Media Contact:

Christine Klocke

Director of Marketing and Communication, Office of the Provost

University of Houston

Email: chklocke@uh.edu

Phone: 713-743-1182
Two Ukrainian An-32P of the Ukrainian State Emergency Service help Israel in extinguishing forest fires, the press service of the State Emergency Service reports.

On November 27, two Antonov' An-32P special firefighter planes of the Ukrainian State Emergency Service conducted patrolling near the city of Jerusalem. Also, the planes made two drops of water (totaling `16 tons) in mountain areas. The planes of the State Emergency Service continue extinguishing forest fires in the State of Israel, reads a report.

A reminder that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed the law on rendering humanitarian aid to the state of Israel. In particular, the president ordered the Ukrainian interior minister to send two AN-32s to help Israeli firefighters to extinguish fires near the city of Haifa.

On November 22, wildfires swept through central and northern parts of Israel. More than 75,000 people have been evacuated. Firefighting airplanes help firefighters to combat the fires.

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No Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but six were wounded in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone in eastern Ukraine over the last day, Ukrainian Defense Ministry's Spokesperson for ATO issues Colonel Andriy Lysenko said.

Over the last day in the ATO area no Ukrainian soldiers were killed, but six were wounded, Lysenko said at a press briefing in Kyiv on Monday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. iy
Turkey has already invested more than $260 million in the Ukrainian agricultural sector this year.

Ukrainian Agrarian Policy and Food Deputy Minister Olha Trofimtseva has stated this during the Ukrainian-Turkish Agribusiness Forum dedicated to expanding international cooperation in the agricultural sector between the two countries, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"Turkey has already invested more than $260 million in the Ukrainian agricultural sector this year," Trofimtseva said.

She also noted that more than 120 Turkish companies attended the Ukrainian-Turkish Agribusiness Forum to expand the opportunities for agricultural cooperation with the Ukrainian side.

"I hope that this format will give us an opportunity to give impetus to the development of cooperation in the agricultural sector, both in the development of trade and implementation of joint investment projects," Trofimtseva said and added that the Turkish side is interested in the cooperation with Ukrainian companies on the third markets.

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The Board of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA) has expressed concern about the extension of arrest of Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko and repeatedly appealed to the Russian authorities with a request to release him if trustworthy evidence against him cannot be presented.

This has been said in a statement of the EANA, which was sent to Ukrinform and signed by its President Jonas Eriksson and Secretary General Erik Nylen.

"The Board of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA) repeats its concern regarding the detention of Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko... Russian authorities must release more details explaining the detention of Roman Sushchenko. If trustworthy evidence against him cannot immediately be presented, he should be released and allowed to return to his home country," reads a statement.

The European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA) was founded in 1956, and today it includes more than 30 leading agencies in Europe. Ukrinform represents Ukraine in the EANA since 1995.

As reported, Ukrinform correspondent in France Roman Sushchenko was arrested in Moscow on September 30, where he arrived on a private visit. He was accused of espionage, allegedly being a member of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry. The Ukrainian Main Intelligence Directorate denied allegations of the Russian Federal Security Service.

The Russian court ruled at its closed hearing on October 1 to arrest the journalist for two months  until November 30.

On October 7, the Russian Federation officially charged the Ukrainian journalist with spying. Sushchenko denies any guilt.

Roman Sushchenko works with the Ukrainian National News Agency Ukrinform since 2002 and is agencys own correspondent in France since 2010.

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Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom has arrived in Kyiv on a working visit.

As the Foreign Minister posted on her Twitter page, she plans to discuss with the authorities in Kyiv Russia's aggression in Donbas and the continuation of Ukrainian reforms.

"Just landed in Kyiv, my 3rd visit. Russian aggression, Ukrainian reforms on agenda. Solid support for Ukraine's European future continues," she wrote.

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The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has dismissed Chairman of the State Penitentiary Service Volodymyr Palahniuk.

This has been stipulated in a corresponding Cabinet resolution as of November 23, the governments press service reports.

To dismiss Palahniuk Volodymyr Mykolayovych from the post of chairman of the State Penitentiary Service of Ukraine because of the liquidation of this service (clause 1 of the first part of Article 87 of the law of Ukraine on the state service), reads a report.

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Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin is very skeptical about the prospects to reach a joint vision with the Russian side regarding the roadmap to resolve the situation in the east during tomorrow's meeting of "Normandy Four" foreign ministers in Minsk.

He said this at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister of the Kingdom of Sweden Margot Wallstrom, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"I do not see the possibility of reaching an agreement with the Russian side regarding the most important issues of the roadmap since our common vision with the German and French colleagues is that first it is necessary to reach a minimum package of conditions related to the security sector in order to finally move towards such steps as a real preparation for future fair elections," Klimkin said.

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When a mortar crashed into the roof of Ludmila Mamot's house in the village of Nevelske last year, her three great grandchildren were injured.  UNHCR/John Wendle

NEVELSKE, Ukraine  This is a shattered town just a few hundred metres from the front line. Once 850 people lived here. Now just 44 remain.

Ludmila Mamot is one of them. Shes a great-grandmother and her husband and three succeeding generations have stayed with her. And so she checks her winter fuel supply: briquets stuffed with sunflower seeds and husks, donated by the NGO Caritas.

This is the first time weve got aid like this, and were thankful, she said. But, of course, it wont be enough for the winter.

Next door, in one of the two habitable rooms left in the broken house, her daughter-in-law Natalia folds the mounds of clothes the family will need for the winter.

This is the first time weve got aid like this But, of course, it wont be enough for the winter.

A mortar crashed into the roof of the house last year. It collapsed, injuring her three grandchildren in bed. They survived but much of the house burned. A great slab of the roof still lies in the nearby bedroom.

The family has made rudimentary repairs but Natalia says if the winter bites, theyll be cold. All the windows were broken and air still whistles in.

And so to the storage cellar in the yard. Its a gloomy four-square meter underground room, cramped for a family of seven. Here the family took shelter when there was shelling and here theyll stay with their home-made stove if the temperature really drops.

If theres not enough heat, well come here, she said, because the room is smaller and it heats up more quickly."

Ukraine: Fighting the cold

Many towns nearby are portraits of desolation  with houses half-destroyed by shells, bullets and fires. One of them is Sevierne.

Evgeny is a displaced person. He fled to Sevierne from nearby Pisky. The fighting there finally overwhelmed him.

They hit my house, I repaired it. They hit it again and I rebuilt. Then another hit, and I finally had to leave, he said.

Sevierne may not have been his best choice. The town appears to be in a bureaucratic limbo. He cant register as a displaced person from here.

In the street a delegation of frustrated women poured out their complaints to representatives of the NGO Proliska. One woman who is also named Ludmila, but goes by Liuda, said when she phoned up the local administrative office, they say theres no Sevierne on their map. The handful of residents cant register for compensation to repair their damaged houses.

They hit my house, I repaired it. They hit it again and I rebuilt. Then another hit, and I finally had to leave.

If they cant register as displaced people, they cant get pensions and few can afford to buy coal for the winter.

Proliska works with UNHCR and one of the goals of their visit was to assess fuel needs. Last year the NGO with other partners helped UNHCR to provide 60,000 people with winter assistance.

There will be more coal distribution this year to people like those in Severnoe, according to Irina Sinitsa, a project manager with Proliska.

But we dont have enough, and there are still a lot of families left without coal and without anything to heat their houses, she said.

In this landscape of destruction, paths in the nearby forests are mined, making it dangerous for people to collect wood for fuel.

The cold once again becomes an enemy. And, despite their fortitude, many here dont have the proper weapons to fight it.
Chinese tech manufacturing giant 'Xiaomi' has recently admitted that it's not making enough cash selling smartphone hardware.

According to a TechCrunch report, Xiaomi's business model is not about selling smartphones, but rather focuses its business strategy and efforts in the hardware business. In a recent Reuters interview, however, Xiaomi global VP, and former Android VP, Hugo Barra, admits that his company doesn't really make big revenue on smartphone hardware sales. Barra stated that the company really care about the recurring revenue streams rather than the immediate margin on hardware sales.

Barra added that the company sees hardware as a platform for delivering software and services in the long term, just like what Google really do with its Chrome web browser, where it used as a platform for delivering cloud-based applications and web services.

However, the company has missed its global smartphone targets by 12 percent last year. Its smartphone line took the hardest hits with sales dropping 12 percent globally. The latest IDC research suggests that its third-quarter sales in China will be down 45 percent. This has raised some alarm and doubts on the valuation side of the company.

The performance of the company is not reflective of its value two years ago when Xiaomi managed to reach a valie of $46 billion in its last fund raising in 2014. The funds it had raised that year made it the world's most valuable startup at the time.

But Barra remains unfazed about the negative report and dons a positive outlook for Xiaomi's long-term performance. In the said interview, the Chinese executive said the sudden drop in sales in China wouldn't impact Xiaomi's long-term profit growth.

Xiaomi is still considered as a major player in the consumer electronics categories. The Chinese manufacturing giant is currently holding the title as the fourth largest handset maker in the world.

Since the release of its first handset in 2011, Xiaomi has quickly gained significant market share in mainland China. Later, It later expanded into developing a wider range of consumer categories, which include developing smart home devices or the so-called IoT devices.

Xiaomi is one great example of startup companies that doesn't need an IPO (initial public offerings) or a startup funding round. The Chinese company is said to have more in common with Amazon's hardware strategy than with Apple.

Xiaomi employs a strategy very unlike other smartphone makers such as Samsung and Lenovo. Here, it priced the handset almost at bill-of-material prices, without compromising the quality compared to other smartphones.

The company gets its profits by selling phone-related peripheral devices and services, which include online videos, smart home products, apps, and much more.

To further reduce production and marketing cost, Xiaomi does not really own any physical stores. It sells its products exclusively from its online store. It also relies on social networking services when it comes to advertising and marketing campaigns.

Currently, the Chinese giant is investing heavily in India and another part of South East Asia and more recently, the US market.
There's a certain amount of difficulty that is to be expected when deciding to take up a PhD. However, there is one miserable cost that is not commonly talked about.

In a piece for Quartz by Jennifer Walker, she revealed details about how miserable she became during the third year of her PhD program. One night, she described, she sat on the bed with tranquilizers and a bottle of vodka.

She was planning to end her life. Fortunately, she was able to call her friend. The next morning, she decided to go see a therapist and considered quitting her PhD program.

"The days I spent pursuing my PhD in physics were some of my darkest," Walker wrote. "It wasn't the intellectual challenges or the workload that brought me down; it was my deteriorating mental health."

She described her feelings of isolation and uncertainty. She drank, cut herself and wanted to die.

There are a lot of people struggling with mental health issues in universities across the nation. According to Inside Higher Ed, a study at the University of California - Berkeley found that 47 percent of PhD students suffered from depression.

The data followed a 2005 study that revealed how 10 percent of PhD students contemplated suicide. Moreover, among the PhD students, the highest rate (64 percent) of depression was found in those in the arts and humanities fields.

"I assumed and hoped that simply taking antidepressants and just 'working harder' would help enough," a PhD student in biology who's been diagnosed with anxiety and depression said. "And when things did not quickly improve, this further affected my mood."

Isolation and the Impostor Syndrome are also common feelings among PhD students. There are concerns that these issues can have a much larger impact on students who don't have the right support system.

Several colleges and universities have provided support for graduate students. There are also non-profit organizations like Active Minds and the Jed & Clinton Health Matters Campus Program that can help these students.
Most high school students are preparing themselves to enter into one of the best schools in the country. Most of these seniors or junior are aiming for an Ivy League school of they can afford it. But there is one odd kid that dropped all of the Ivy League choices.

Instead, he is choosing to enroll at the University of Alabama. Ronald Nelson has decided to reject all the offers coming from Ivy League schools.

These schools include New York University, Vanderbilt, Stanford, Johns Hopkins and Washington University, cites Teen Vogue. Why would Nelson drop these offers and go for U of Alabama?

His high school days were full of achievements. He is the senior class president. He is also quite talented when it comes to the saxophone that he is recognized by his state. In addition, he is also a National Merit Scholar, plus a National Achievement Scholar.

Aside from getting a full ride and admission into the honors program, Nelson said that the decision was not easy. When it comes to his academic profile, he has a 4.58 weighted GPA and has 15 AP courses under his belt. When it comes to his SATs, he scored 2260 out of 2400 and scored 34 out of 36 on his ACTs.

According to this teenager, he had to do some deep dive soul searching to finally choose the University of Alabama. He admits that there was uncertainty before saying yes. Ultimately his decision was financial. He does not want to be in debt for years. His father adds that they can save the money for his future medical school. Although many of the schools offered financial assistance, they saw Alabama as a much better means to lessen the strain.

For Nelson and his family, it was a decision that involved looking into the future. They are trying to avoid unnecessary strain from having to pay off a huge amount of debt.
The White House announced last week that Malia Obama, the President's eldest daughter is headed to Massachusetts next fall. Malia chose to go to Harvard for college after touring the Ivies, Stanford and New York universities a few months earlier.

Considering that President-elect Trump's four older children have already attended and graduated from reputable schools, Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Tiffany share the same alma mater with their father, the University of Pennsylvania and Eric graduated from Georgetown University.

Let's look back at previous young occupants of the White House and the schools they attended.

Pres. Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush's fraternal twin girls attended separate schools. The older twin, Barbara Pierce Bush earned a degree in Humanities from Yale. She cofounded a public-health nonprofit group called Global Health Corps and serves as its CEO.

The younger fraternal twin, Jenna Bush Hager went to the University of Texas in Austin and got a degree in English. The author and editor-at-large of Southern Living magazine's parents did not attend her and her sisters graduation to avoid detracting attention from the ceremonies.

John F. Kennedy's children both hold degrees in law. The oldest child, Caroline graduated from Harvard and then went to study law at Columbia. The younger, John Jr. earned his degree from NYU School of Law.

Richard Nixon's eldest daughter Tricia Nixon Cox attended Boston College and earned a degree in English. Her younger sister Julie Nixon Eisenhower went to Smith College and earned a master's degree in education from The Catholic University of America.

Lynda Bird Johnson Robb went to the University of Texas in Austin. The eldest daughter of Lyndon Johnson is the last first daughter to be married in the White House. Lynda's younger sister Luci Baines Johnson went to Georgetown University's School of Nursing and health studies. Luci got married and was forced to drop out because the school did not allow married students.

The only daughter of Bill and Hillary Clinton, Chelsea has very impressive academic credentials. She graduated from Stanford with the highest honors then went to the University College of the University of Oxford for her master's degree. Chelsea earned another graduate degree from Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health before getting her doctorate degree back in Oxford.
(Adds background, details)

LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - A British think-tank said on Monday it planned to take legal action over whether the government can take Britain out of the single market as part of its exit from the European Union, in the latest legal attempt to challenge the Brexit process.

The pro-single market group British Influence said it believed the government could be breaking the law if it did not get a clear legal opinion as to whether Britain's membership of the EEA automatically ended along with its membership of the EU.

Membership of the EEA, which includes the EU countries as well as Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein, provides access to the single market and its free movement of goods, capital, services and people.

"The single market was not on the ballot paper," Jonathan Lis, the deputy director of British Influence, told Reuters. "We're leaving the EU, that's fine, but we don't need to leave the single market and the government should be embracing this intervention not disputing it."

A spokeswoman for the government said Britain was only party to the EEA Agreement in its capacity as an EU member state. "Once we leave the European Union we will automatically cease to be a member of the EEA," the spokeswoman said.

"The referendum result will be respected and we intend to invoke Article 50 (the formal mechanism to leave the bloc) no later than the end of March next year."

Theresa May's government is already challenging a ruling by the High Court that parliamentary approval is required before Article 50 can be triggered. The government has appealed the ruling and will make its case at the UK Supreme Court in early December.

Lis said British Influence was beginning to consult lawyers over its case and could not provide a likely timetable for any challenge. London's High Court would also have to grant permission for any judicial review to be heard once the case was submitted for consideration.

(Reporting by Kate Holton; editing by Michael Holden)
November 28 2016

Sanctuary Scotland have prepared plans for the construction of 180 homes at the former Craigbank housing estate in Nitshill , Glasgow, to be delivered by CCG and Mast Architects.Comprising a mix of affordable and private accommodation the scheme will comprise a mix of accommodation ranging from one bed flats through to four bedroom houses.Ten of the affordable properties are to be delivered under a pilot scheme designed to test different house types and construction approaches in order to inform delivery of subsequent housing.In their design statement the architects observed: The development uses a mainly brick facade with elements of render therefore, creative detailing has been utilised to create a dynamic and modern aesthetic which animates the facades.This is achieved through the use of header brick coursing to combine elements of the facade such as windows and doors and this is coupled with areas of corbelled brick detailing in a contrasting brick to further unify elements and lead your eye around the facade. The same brick detailing is used on all block types throughout the development which creates a unifying aesthetic.The scheme supercedes an earlier application for 143 affordable homes on the same site
To evaluate differences in clinicopathologic characteristics and oncologic outcomes between upper-tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC) patients in China and the United States (U.S.).

Clinicopathologic and oncologic outcomes data of UTUC patients treated surgically at tertiary care medical facilities in the U. S. or China from 1998-2015 were retrospectively compiled. Baseline demographics, comorbidities, and pathologic features were evaluated. Oncologic endpoints including intravesical recurrence and cancer-specific survival (CSS) were obtained following exclusion of patients who received systemic chemotherapy. Multivariable Cox regression was performed to determine predictors of adverse oncologic outcomes for each country.

775 UTUC patients were identified (451 China, 324 U.S.) with a median follow-up of 42 months. U.S. patients were more frequently male (65% vs. 44%, p<0.001), smokers (79% vs. 18%, p<0.001), had worse mean ASA score (2.7 vs. 2.2, p<0.001), and had prior bladder cancer (41% vs. 4%, p<0.001). Chinese patients more often had pre-operative hydronephrosis (56% vs. 40%, p<0.001), high-grade pathology (98% vs. 77%, p<0.001), muscle-invasion (64% vs. 38%, p<0.001), and nodal metastases (26% vs. 6%, p<0.001). U.S. patients had worse overall survival (OS) on Kaplan-Meier analysis (p=0.049), while country of origin did not predict local relapse or CSS.

Patient and disease characteristics of UTUC differ between Chinese and U.S. cohorts. Chinese patients appear relatively healthier at presentation but more often exhibit adverse pathologic features. While evaluation and management patterns may account for these variations, the pathologic findings may reflect differential underlying pathogenesis of disease, and additional study is warranted to further characterize these differences.

The Journal of urology. 2016 Jan 22 [Epub ahead of print]

Nirmish Singla, Dong Fang, Xiaohong Su, Zhengqing Bao, Zhenpeng Cao, Syed M Jafri, Gengyan Xiong, Lei Zhang, Ryan Hutchinson, Arthur Sagalowsky, Yair Lotan, Xuesong Li, Liqun Zhou, Jay D Raman, Vitaly Margulis

Department of Urology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA., Department of Urology, Peking University First Hospital, Institute of Urology, Peking University, National Urological Cancer Center, Beijing, China., Division of Urology, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA., Department of Urology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA. Electronic address: .

PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27887951
Soyfoods have long been recognized as sources of high-quality protein and healthful fat, but over the past 25 years these foods have been rigorously investigated for their role in chronic disease prevention and treatment. There is evidence, for example, that they reduce risk of coronary heart disease and breast and prostate cancer. In addition, soy alleviates hot flashes and may favorably affect renal function, alleviate depressive symptoms and improve skin health. Much of the focus on soyfoods is because they are uniquely-rich sources of isoflavones. Isoflavones are classified as both phytoestrogens and selective estrogen receptor modulators. Despite the many proposed benefits, the presence of isoflavones has led to concerns that soy may exert untoward effects in some individuals. However, these concerns are based primarily on animal studies, whereas the human research supports the safety and benefits of soyfoods. In support of safety is the recent conclusion of the European Food Safety Authority that isoflavones do not adversely affect the breast, thyroid or uterus of postmenopausal women. This review covers each of the major research areas involving soy focusing primarily on the clinical and epidemiologic research. Background information on Asian soy intake, isoflavones, and nutrient content is also provided.

Nutrients. 2016 Jan 24*** epublish ***

Mark Messina

Nutrition Matters, Inc., 26 Spadina Parkway, Pittsfield, MA 01201, USA. .

PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27886135
Oct. 26, 2022

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.  Cadets got the unique experience of interacting with and learning from the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2022 at the U.S. Air Force Academy Sept. 27-29. The National Character and Leadership Symposium sponsored the visit and three days of activities.The 12
At first glance, the sight of the two U.S. Army infantry staff sergeants discussing upcoming operations around a map seems like just another common occurrence here. With a closer look, however, a person could think their vision is playing tricks on them.



This isn't the first time this has happened, explained Staff Sgt. Mark Szyman, a squad leader in Heavy Troop, 3rd Squadron, 3rd Cavalry Regiment. Our first sergeant used to think we were messing with him by wearing the same name tapes.

September 10, 2016 - U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Mark Szyman (left), and his brother Staff Sgt. Nicholas Szyman in front of the Train, Advise and Assist Command-East headquarters in eastern Afghanistan. The brothers are currently deployed together with the 3rd Cavalry Regiment. (U.S. Army photo by Capt. Grace Geiger) Across from him, nodding his head in agreement, sits Staff Sgt. Nicholas Szyman, also a squad leader in Heavy Troop. The two are brothers, and natives of San Antonio, Texas, but currently they find themselves on a small tactical base in eastern Afghanistan.



This also isn't the first time we've found ourselves overseas together, said Nicholas. We were stationed together in Hawaii, and deployed together to Iraq from 2007-2009.



For the brothers, the military is a family profession. Their younger brother, Travis Szyman, was also in Heavy Troop with them before getting out of the Army, said Nicholas, and their father also served in the military.



Our parents are supportive of us, said Mark. I think it's better for my mom to know that we are together and can look out for one another.



Approximately halfway through their 9 month deployment, the brothers agree being together is a great experience. They also agree this deployment is different than their deployment to Iraq. Their troop is supporting Train, Advise and Assist Command-East and the advising mission here.



Mark, the oldest, is a squad leader in the ground defense zone platoon. His mission consists of providing force protection for the area immediately surrounding the base.



Nicholas is a guardian angel team leader. As a guardian angel, he facilitates the train, advise and assist mission by providing security for the advisor teams when they conduct engagements with their Afghan counterparts.



I think I have the better mission, said Nicholas, half-jokingly. But, he [Mark] does get to ride around in helicopters a lot more than I do.



Capt. Russell Huebner, former Heavy Troop commander, enjoyed the added sense of family spirit having siblings in his troop.



The good thing about having brothers in the unit is they bring others in to the family bond they have, said Huebner. They really raise the troop's morale.



The best thing about being together during our deployment is being able to vent to my brother when I can't talk to anyone else, said Nicholas. He knows and understands what's going on here already.



We have gone through literally everything together, said Mark.



When they aren't in Afghanistan, the brothers are stationed together at Fort Hood, Texas. They admit they don't spend as much time together back home because of their busy schedules. Nicholas is married to Rachel Syzman, and they have two children, Trinity and Liberty. Mark is married to Mary Kate Szyman, and the couple lives near Austin, Texas.



This deployment is also a bitter-sweet time for the brothers, as Mark plans to leave the Army after the deployment. But, for now, they are enjoying every moment together. By U.S. Army Capt. Grace Geiger

Provided through DVIDS

Copyright 2016 Comment on this article
Illustration of a station in the second phase of Metro Line No 5. Photo courtesy of the HCM City Management Authority for Urban Railways

Le Nguyen Minh Quang, director of HCM City Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR), said the city would seek investment from many sources, including ODA loans and loans through public-private partnerships.

The city will try to use the capital effectively and prevent any waste, he said.

Quang spoke at a meting on Thursday held by the Korea Railroad Research Institute, the Korea International Cooperation Agency and MAUR.

Total investment for the second phase is more than $2.4 billion, including construction cost and site clearance.

Of the figure, the South Korean government has committed to financing $500 million while the remainder ($1.9 billion) will come from the Vietnamese Government.

The section will measure 14.56 kilometres, including 13 stations, eight of which are underground. The second phase is an extension to the 8.89-km section in the first phase.

Hoang Nhu Cuong, deputy head of MAUR, said the metro line No 5 is an important line in the citys metro system as it passes through Nguyen Van Linh Street District 7 and the Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway.

The second phase will connect with metro line No 3b at the Hang Xanh intersection and metro line No 4 at the Phu Nhuan intersection.

Park Noh Wan, the Korean consul general in HCM City, said South Korea would transfer technology, exchange experiences and cooperate with Viet Nam, especially HCM City, to develop the metro systems.

Capital for the first phase of the metro line No 5 has been arranged, but construction has yet to commence.

MAUR has urged the municipal authority to submit an investment proposal for the first phase to the Government and National Assembly for approval.

Investors have committed to fund the project at a cost of $1.56 billion.

The Spanish Government is investing $328 million, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) $567 million, the European Investment Bank (EIB) $179 million and the German Development Bank (KfW) $239 million. The remainder will come from the Vietnamese government.

The first phase of metro line No 5, with nine stations, will have a total length of 8.9 km, including 7.46 km underground and 1.43 km above ground.

In the first phase, the line will connect with metro line No 1 at the Sai Gon Bridge and metro line No 2 at the Bay Hien intersection.

The metro line No 5 connects the Bay Hien intersection in Tan Binh District and Sai Gon Bridge in Binh Thanh District.

The metro line No 5 will transport passengers from outlying areas to the city centre, which is expected to contribute to socio-economic development.

The line, expected to be put into operation by 2025, will be driverless, with automated ticketing systems and smart cards.

HCM City has planned a total of eight metro lines, one tramway line and two monorail lines but currently only metro Line 1 between Ben Thanh in District 1 and Suoi Tien Amusement Park in District 9 is under construction. It is scheduled for completion in 2020.

The metro line No 1 has a length of nearly 20 kilometres and consists of 14 stations, three of which are underground.
More importers will be looking for US dollars as they stock up for the Tet celebrations

The USD/VND exchange rate has been rising over recent weeks, stemming from a number of local enterprises looking to buy USD to pay back loans before maturity in order to further avoid the Vietnamese dong devaluation.



A SHB Bank official estimated that its total outstanding dollar-denominated loans were reduced by 25 per cent in June as customers tried to pay debts. We see that those do not sign a forward contract in USD have bought dollars from banks or the free market to pay their debts, said the official.



Of SHBs $100 million credit in USD from the beginning of this year, less than a third was taken by non-export companies. The situation will become strain at the end of August and early September as current USD loans hit maturity and the demand from importers for trading goods catering for Tet starts rising, said the official.



ACB, for instance, reportedly lent half of its USD mobilisation and the situation was still in control. HSBCs monthly Vietnam monitor in July read that USD lending interest rates ranged between 5-6.5 per cent, while VND rates are around double these levels. However, the policy appears set to turn this USD demand cycle around.



The State Bank has been attempting to normalise the market and encourage lower dong rates. We see this process continuing and expect USD credit to rise less sharply in comparison to dong as rate differentials narrow. Exacerbating this will be the USD demand that comes to market when outstanding USD loans mature, read the report.



Although HSBC does not know the exact maturity of the USD loans, local reports suggest the majority are held over three to nine month periods. Therefore, through the third and forth quarter many will be due for repayment, meaning an increased demand for USD in coming months.



Although a gap in rates is likely to persist, slowing USD credit growth coupled with increasing dong growth should mean greater demand for dollars coupled with lower supply, putting clear pressure on dong to weaken.



However, trend of lending USD among local enterprises to enjoy low interest rate has decreased. The SSI banking bulletin in June this year read that USD lending rates had changed insignificantly. They are currently at 5.5 or 6 per cent for short-term loans and 6 or 7 per cent for medium- and long-term loans.



In contrast with dong deposit rates, from the middle of June, USD deposit interest rates started to increase along with the rise of foreign exchange rate.



The USD credit growth was much higher than that of deposits in the first half which made banks raise more USD to ensure liquidity in second half.



The highest USD deposit rate of state-owned commercial banks is 4.2 per cent for a 12-month term, whereas this rate of joint stock commercial banks is 5.2 per cent. Ho Chi Minh City reported its USD credit posted a growth rate of 39.4 per cent by June this year, valued at VND166.7 trillion ($8.7 billion). The pace was much higher than the rate of minus 2 per cent by June last year.

By Van Anh
Sai Gon River at night. Photo Dinh Hue

In recognition of this potential, the city in 2013 began a programme for waterway activities, but a lack of sufficient investment in infrastructure as well as the effects of pollution have led to disappointing results, according to experts who spoke at a seminar held on November 22 in HCM City.

From 2013 to the third quarter of this year, the number of tourists buying river tours rose 11.5 per cent to 257,700. But in the first nine months of the year, the number remained unchanged at 68,000 compared to the same period last year, Bui Ta Hoang Vu, director of the citys Tourism Department, said.

Phan Xuan Anh, a researcher in culture and tourism, who is also chair of the board for Saigon Boat Co, said that exploring the Sai Gon River and its waterways as well as canals surrounded by lush tropical foliage are popular activities for foreign tourists.

The citys main source of fresh water is Dong Nai River, which has a large basin of 45,000 sq.km, while the 200-km long Sai Gon River flows though 80 km of the citys area.

Apart from these main rivers, the city has a dense network of canals, including Ben Cat, Tham Luong, Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe, Ben Nghe, Tan Hoa- Lo Gom and Tau Hu.

Since 2013, the city has allocated funds for 13 berths and wharfs for tourist boats to dock, while 21 others have been funded by private investors.

The number of river tourism operators rose to 37 firms, with more than 130 boats in 2014, compared to five firms with 37 waterway transport in 2011.

Last year, however, the number of operators fell to 19 with around 100 boats, due to the closure of Bach Dang Wharf, a busy docking place for tourism boats and floating restaurants on Sai Gon River, according to Vu.

Challenges

In late 2012, the Saigontourist Holding Company was assigned by the city government to explore river tourism, Pham Huy Binh of Saigontourist said. By mid-2013, the company had launched seven river tours to lure domestic and foreign tourists but the results were short of expectations.

Speaking at the seminar on river tourism in HCM City, Binh said the services were unattractive for a number of reasons, including poorly developed docking berths and tourist services along the banks of rivers and boat stop stations, as well as pollution and high tour fares.

To attract tourists, Saigontourist invested in a new 800-seat boat, which included a restaurant, for sightseeing tours. However, after the Bach Dang Wharf closed, tourist boats had to dock at Tan Cang Port in Binh Thanh District, far from the city centre, making it difficult to attract visitors for river tours, Binh said.

He said a city master plan on river tourism should be developed in a timely manner so that businesses can then create their own plans.

Phan Xuan Anh, board chairman of Saigon Boat Co. Ltd, said that rowboat tours along the Nhieu Loc-Thi Nghe Canal had to be suspended because of pollution and massive fish deaths. "The canal is still polluted as waste is discharged into the canal by local residents," he added.

The boat tour, which was launched last year, received positive feedback from foreign tourists, but waste must be removed from the canals, Anh said.

Duong Thanh Thuy, chairwoman of the Trung Thuy Group, has invested in a new river tourism product called Goc Sai Gon (Sai Gon Corner).

The project on the Ben Nghe-Tau Hu canal in District 1 will be designed with different sections from Mong Bridge to Khanh Hoi Bridge, including a community space in old Sai Gon as well as corners for street food and coffee, according to Thuy.

Solutions

Nguyen Thanh Phong, chairman of the citys Peoples Committee, said the development of river tourism would play a vital role in the tourism industry, a spearhead economic sector for the city, and that solutions were being proposed to revamp the waterway programme.

Phong has asked the tourism department to quickly finalise the river tourism development plan.

He has also asked departments and local authorities to conduct inspections of the banks of Sai Gon River to find places to build docking berths for tourist boats.

Bui Xuan Cuong, director of the citys Department of Transport, said the department had proposed setting aside an area of 1,800 metres at Nha Rong-Khanh Hoi Port for tourist boats.

He said that Binh Loi Bridge had been upgraded to allow tourist boats to enter the citys centre.

Enterprises cannot make business plans to develop river tours as the city has failed to present a master plan as well as provide concrete information on river tourism development, Bui Ta Hoang Vu, director of the citys Tourism Department, said.

Next year, when the tourism department implement its tourism waterway plan, companies will then be able to develop their own tourism business plans, according to Vu.
illustration photo

Although details of its IPO have not been made public, Vietjet is preparing a $200 million IPO in December, according to a Reuters news bulletin from last week. This is big news for the stock market to close the year.

Vietjet declined to comment on the report and said the company has not released official information.

However, according to International Financing Review - another Reuters publication - the IPO will take place in early December and Vietjet was valued by analysts at between $1 billion and $1.4 billion.

Commenting on the information, experts said that top companies, such as Vietjet, would usually be valued at a premium, especially as Vietjet's growth rate has exceeded that of the Vietnamese airline industry, which for many years has seen double-digit growth.

Along with Vietjet, the debuts on the UPCoM market of Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) on November 21 and Vietnam Airlines in early December are bringing billion-dollar quality assets to the market. As a result, the market will become more attractive to foreign capital and local investors will have more options.

Rare catch on the horizon

Desire to invest in the aviation industry can be gauged by ACV's price movements on the UPCoM market. After only three days of trading, ACV went from VND25,000 (about $1.1) on November 21 to VND40,300 ($1.77) at the close of November 24.

Thus, with a total of 1.17 billion shares in circulation, ACVs market capitalisation has exceeded $2.1 billion. According to its 2016 business plan, the company is targeting $530 million revenue, $90 million in pre-tax profit, and a 5 per cent dividend yield.

ACVs shares have been soaring since appearing on the UPCoM market, possibly because of the limited quantity of tradable shares as well as the large price fluctuations typical to the UPCoM market. As of now, the Ministry of Transportation holds up to 95.4 per cent of ACV and these shares are not tradable.

Nonetheless, the price increases in ACV or Vietnamese top brewer Habeco, whose share rose from VND39,000 ($1.72) to VND145,000 ($6.38) in just eight trading sessions, has shown the appeal of big companies that are embedded in industries considered to have strong potential in Vietnam.

Back to the aviation industry, according to a forecast from the International Air Transport Association, Vietnam is among the seven fastest-growing aviation markets in the world and will become the third in terms of volume of passengers and transported cargo.

Figures from the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam are even more optimistic. In particular, in the first quarter of 2016 alone, domestic airlines transported over 9 million passengers, both domestic and foreign, up 32 per cent on-year.

However, even though there are four airlines in service, the market seems to be dominated by the competition of the two largest carriers, Vietnam Airlines and VietJet Air, which hold about 87 per cent of the domestic market.

For three years in a row, Vietjet shareholders received a dividend yield of 70 per cent annually. Notably, the 2016 yield is expected to be 100 per cent, and according to unofficial sources, 2017s profit could exceed 70 per cent of the chartered capital, not to mention additional paid-in capital.

According to its income statement, in 2015, Vietjets revenue rose by 205 per cent to $488 million, while net income reached $44 million. The company is targeting a revenue of $968 million.

As for Vietnam Airlines, in 2016, the company was aiming for a pre-tax profit of $101 million, up 121 per cent from 2015. Vietnam Airlines (OTC: HVN) launched an IPO in November 2004, selling 49 million shares for VND22,307 ($0.98) apiece.

According to a securities stock broker, HVNs shares are being offered at VND35,000-40,000 ($1.54 - $1.76) per share. This puts HVNs market capitalisation at about $2.8 billion, which would rank among the highest on the exchange, when listed.

According to analysts of a securities firm, these figures show a great potential for Vietnams aviation industry, and for investors the question is not of price but availability.

Looking back at Vietnam Airliness IPO, late 2014 was not the best time for the stock market, but there was fierce competition between investors registering to buy. Eventually, Techcombank and Vietcombank came out on top with much higher bids than initially expected.

This race will be repeated by Vietjets upcoming IPO, especially now that the stock market is vibrant. Vietjet has a few advantages, such as remarkable growth rate and a modern, dynamic management structure run by well-known entrepreneurs in the market. It is the first Vietnamese company to have a complete IPO that meets international standards.

These factors make the company more appealing than any state-owned enterprise currently being privatised, said the above expert. The market will do a better job at pricing, but simple methodologies, such as discounted cash flows or public company comparables, could easily value Vietjet at $2 billion - a December blockbuster for the Vietnamese stock market.
MHPS new representative office in Hanoi will give the thermal power generation equipment manufacturer a closer connection to Vietnam

The new office aims to strengthen the companys ability to both collect information and communicate with customers in Vietnam.

On November 4, a grand opening ceremony was held at the Hotel Nikko Hanoi, with guests spanning the range of Vietnams energy sector. In attendance were Deputy Director General Nguyen Khac Tho of the Ministry of Industry and Trades General Directorate of Energy; Katsuro Nagai, envoy of the Japanese Embassy in Vietnam; and representatives from local power and energy companies.

Addressing the ceremony, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) president Takato Nishizawa said, Our Hanoi representative office will be an important window for strengthening dissemination of information to customers and compiling local information. We will continue to provide high-quality infrastructure equipment and contribute to Vietnams economic development by offering advanced thermal power generation systems.

The occasion marked a new beginning for MHPS operations in Vietnam. The attendees prayed for happiness, and the traditional Japanese ceremony of breaking open a sake cask was performed to great excitement.

MHPS gas turbines will cater for Vietnams increasing power generation needs

Responding to robust demand

In Vietnam, power demand is increasing with the countrys economic development. In the past, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group received orders for major power generation facilities  such as steam turbines and heavy oil-fired boilers for the first O Mon Thermal Power Plant, owned by Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho  contributing to enhancing the power generation capacity of the country.

About 55 gigawatts of new thermal power projects are planned for the country from 2016 to 2030, based on the national power development plan Revised Power Master Plan No. VII released in 2016.

MHPS offers superior supercritical pressure coal-fired power generation facilities, and environmental facilities with less CO2 emissions than conventional systems. The firm plans to expand orders of its lineup of highly efficient gas turbines and combined cycle power generation facilities and others in the future.

MHI in Vietnam

MHI has a symbiotic relationship with Vietnam as a manufacturer rooted in the country, contributing to both technology transfer and employment creation.

The company has offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, which act as information gathering bases; an overseas affiliate near Ho Chi Minh City, MHI Engine Systems Vietnam (MHIES-V), which assembles, operates, and sells diesel power generation sets for distributed generation; and MHI Aerospace Vietnam Co., Ltd. (MHIVA), which performs structural assembly of components for commercial aircraft in Hanoi.

MHPS Hanoi now joins this domestic base, and will contribute to the economic development of Vietnam by delivering environmentally-friendly power products with a greater level of service than ever.
Credit card service providers will have to compensate card owners for any probable loss not caused by the owners, starting November 28, 2016. Credit card service providers will have to compensate card owners for any probable loss not caused by the owners, starting November 28, 2016. - Photo GenK.vn

This is according to Circular No. 30 from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

Banks and other financial entities will have a maximum of five days from the announcement of the results of inspection based on the clients' claims to comply with the appropriate contract and legal procedure as stated in the recently issued circular, which includes several additions to regulations on payment and intermediate payment service in Viet Nam.

In case the deadline for inspection of claim as stated in the card contract has already passed without a determined cause of loss or the party at fault, within the next 15 working days, the credit card issuer must negotiate with the card owner to find a solution or offer temporary compensation until a final decision is reached by the appropriate authorities on the fault and responsibility of each party.

With regard to cheque service and usage, SBV stated there must be a concrete regulation on the time limit for clients to file a claim, which would be no less than 60 days since the cheque is presented for encashment. Meanwhile, the time limit for the cheque service provider to handle the said claim must be no more than 30 working days from receiving the clients initial claim.

For cases of legal breach, investigation must be undertaken by an authorised government agency, whereas cases where no legal breach is involved can be handled by the card issuer and the card owner alone.

Circular No. 30 also deemed any probable loss due to concerned parties, such as intermediate payment organisations, international card organisations and card acceptance units, will have to be compensated by the said parties to the credit card issuers in accordance with a mutual agreement.
US President-elect Donald Trump. (File photo: AFP/Drew Angerer)

With the recount threatening to revive debate about the legitimacy of Trump's victory - his rival Hillary Clinton won far more popular votes, while he carried the all-important Electoral College count - Trump and his aides pushed back hard on Sunday.

Trump let fly a series of early-morning tweets in which he quoted Clinton about the need to respect the electoral process, while continuing to wage an extraordinarily public battle over the makeup of his future cabinet.

By late afternoon, Trump furthered that "In addition to winning the Electoral College in a landslide, I won the popular vote if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally."

Trump had warned before the election that the result might be "rigged," but he had offered no such complaint after his unexpected victory Nov 8 - until now.

Neither he nor any of his aides has offered any evidence of the "millions" alleged to have voted illegally, nor did Trump explain why he would oppose a recount if illegal voting was such a serious problem.

No election observers have pointed to any such widespread fraud.

It was the latest bizarre twist in an increasingly rough and jolting presidential transition, with much of it fought on social media and on the nation's television screens.

Trump's top aide Kellyanne Conway, in the middle of the turbulence, appeared on Sunday to at least hint that if the Clinton team pushes too hard on the Wisconsin recount, the president-elect might rethink his vow not to seek Clinton's prosecution for using a private email server when she was secretary of state.

While the recount was requested by Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who received a minute fraction of the total vote in Wisconsin, Clinton's campaign has said it would join the process despite having seen no irregularities in the White House contest so far.

Conway said on ABC that while Trump was being "magnanimous" toward Clinton, "I guess her attitude towards that is to have her counsel go and join this ridiculous recount."

And Reince Priebus, Trump's chief of staff, said that while the president-elect is not "seeking methods and ways to persecute and prosecute Hillary Clinton," Trump would probably be "open to listening" should any new findings against her emerge from future investigations.

LEGAL RIGHT

Bernie Sanders, Clinton's Democratic rival in the primary race and now a member of the Senate leadership, defended the recount.

"The Green Party has the legal right to do it," he said on CNN. "We have recounts probably almost every election. No one expects (there) to be profound change."

Marc Erik Elias, an election lawyer for the Democratic candidate, said in a post on Medium.com on Saturday that the campaign would also participate in recounts in Michigan and Pennsylvania if they are arranged.

Most election experts see almost no chance the election outcome could be reversed - Clinton trails in each state by several thousand votes.

Trump won Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin by a total of just over 100,000 votes, even while compiling many more than the 270 votes needed for victory in the Electoral College.

BLOWBACK AGAINST ROMNEY

But the dispute continued to roil what has already been a rough transition period, as serious signs of internal discord over cabinet picks again emerged on Sunday.

The discord centres around the position of secretary of state, with some in the Trump camp supporting Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, as a more mainstream choice while others favour the more divisive former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani.

In what political analysts considered a highly unusual public airing of those tensions from within the Trump team, Conway last week tweeted that she had received "a deluge" of concern from people warning against Romney.

Asked about that on Sunday, she told NBC that she was not "campaigning" against Romney but was "just astonished at the breathtaking volume and intensity of blowback" to a possible Romney nomination.

Trump supporters were infuriated in March when the former Massachusetts governor delivered a passionately worded attack on Trump on the part of the Republican Party's establishment, calling him a "fraud," given to "absurd third-grade theatrics."

However, the two seemed to have put their differences behind them when they met on Nov 19 to discuss a possible cabinet position.
International economic experts predict that Vietnams economy will continue to grow robustly despite the uncertain future of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Photo: Le Toan

Donald Trump last week announced that he will issue an executive action on his first day in office to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), describing it as a potential disaster for the US.

If this intention is followed through with, the 12-country trade pact  comprising Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US, and Vietnam  looks to be dead after eight years of negotiations, which culminated in a February 2016 signing.

Vietnam was set to become the biggest beneficiary of the TPP. The World Banks preliminary estimates for the 2015-2035 period suggested that the TPP could add about 8 per cent to Vietnams GDP, 17 per cent to its real exports, and 12 per cent to its capital stock.

But dim prospects for the TPP do not spell doom for Vietnams continued growth. Marlene Rump, a senior economist at international economic forecasters FocusEconomics, told VIR that if there is no TPP, Vietnam will continue its annual growth at a positive rate of above 6 per cent per year in the coming four years.

The firm predicts that Vietnams real GDP will expand by 6.4 per cent next year, before slowing to 6.3 per cent on average from 2018 to 2020.

According to New York-based business research group Conference Board, Vietnams economy is not likely to experience remarkable changes if TPP is not ratified by the US. Conference Board forecasts that Vietnams economy will grow 6.2 percent in 2016 and 6.5 per cent in 2017 without the TPP.

Given uncertainty over the TPP, the World Bank recently projected that Vietnams economy could rise 6 per cent this year, 6.3 per cent next year, and 6.3 per cent in 2018.

According to the World Bank, the average growth rate of 6 per cent is relatively high, especially compared with growth in the region and around the world.

The World Economic Forum last month released its forecast that Vietnam will likely grow by 6.1 per cent this year. This is far higher than surrounding nations, such as Japan (1.3 per cent), South Korea (0.5 per cent), Singapore (1.7 per cent), Indonesia (4.9 per cent), Thailand (3.2 per cent), and Malaysia (4.3 per cent). The average growth rate in Asia is expected to be 6 per cent this year.

At the Vietnam Summit 2016 in Ho Chi Minh City last month, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh said that, if the TPP is not adopted, Vietnam will not be significantly affected, as the countrys existing trade and investment ties with the US are very good and will continue flourishing.

Without the TPP, the US is already one of Vietnams biggest export markets. In this years first 10 months, the US remained Vietnams biggest goods importer, with an export turnover totalling $31.8 billion, up 15 per cent year-on-year. The US was also Vietnams sixth-largest goods supplier, with a total turnover of $6.7 billion, up 0.6 per cent year-on-year.

Minh noted that even if there is no TPP, Vietnam has a host of other free trade agreements (FTAs) to rely on, with partners such as South Korea, Japan, the ASEAN bloc, the European Union, and the Eurasian Economic Union.

According to FocusEconomics and Conference Board, without the TPP, FTAs such as the ones with the Eurasian Economic Union and the EU  and the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership  will underpin growth for Vietnam.

A further positive implication of the FTAs is that they oblige the Vietnamese government to undertake economic reforms to make it eligible for them, which will improve the investor environment and business climate in Vietnam, Rump of FocusEconomics said.

Overall, alternative trade deals could compensate to some extent for the TPP, and FocusEconomics projects that economic activity will still be supported by surging exports if the TPP is not ratified. For 2017, FocusEconomics expects exports to grow at 10.1 per cent, she continued.

Unless Trumps administration cuts existing ties, exports are expected to continue growing, though at a slower pace than they would with the TPP. The extent of protectionist policies that could be implemented in the US is difficult to assess at this point, though they would make it more costly and difficult for Vietnam to export to the US.

The TPP will only take effect when it is adopted by at least six signatories, which must hold at least 85 per cent of the combined GDP that all 12 signatories generated in 2013. In 2013, the US occupied 60 per cent of the combined GDP of the 12 member countries. In keeping with this mechanism, if the US Congress does not ratify the TPP, the agreement will not enter into force.
Ceola Waddell Jr., a homeless man whose street name is Mr. Dice, has re-created an elaborated apartment life on 39th Street underneath Freeway 110 and calls it Paradise Lane, in Los Angeles.
Hussam Ayloush is the Los Angeles director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the countrys largest Muslim civil liberties organization, in Anaheim, Calif., said that the Claremont and Long Beach Islamic centers in California have received threatening letters.
Cambodia and Vietnam reached a possible breakthrough in talks being held to end a dispute over the demarcation of the two countrys borders last week in Siem Reap.



Prime Minister hun Sen met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in the northern Cambodian city on Wednesday and agreed to write a joint letter to the French government to request more detailed maps of the border.



Relating to the border issue  both prime ministers agreed to write a joint letter to request France send mapping experts to help draw up a new map,

Kao Kimhourn, a senior minister, told reporters after the bilateral meeting.



He added that Hun Sen had also asked his Vietnamese counterpart to halt all ongoing construction along the border, without elaborating.



In late August a committee set up to discuss the issue decided to draft a letter to France asking the former colonial power to assist in resolving the dispute.



However, the idea was dropped when the two sides could not agree on the wording of the letter.



Va Kim Hong, head of the border committee, could not be reached.



Yim Sovann, an opposition spokesman, said as well as bilateral discussions, civil society should be involved to ensure that border demarcation is accurate.
Cambodias opposition has made a last-ditch call for the countrys election body to extend the period of voter registration for next years local elections, which was due to end on Tuesday.



The Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) asked the National Election Committee (NEC) to make the extension during a meeting between officials on Friday morning.



Yim Sovann, a CNRP spokesman, said large numbers of people still wanted to register in some communes, adding that a three-day extension would allow many more to cast ballots next summer.





About 20 percent of eligible voters have yet to register, many of whom are believed to be migrant workers.



We need to make it easy for them to be able to register to vote. Thats their right, so as a political party, the government as well as the NEC, we are obliged to ensure that [they] can exercise their rights to the fullest, he said.



Hang Puthea, NEC spokesman, said the body would consider the CNRP request when the deadline for registration was reached.



Like I said earlier, the law does not allow us to create mobile voter registration offices along the border. The NEC can do it, but we need to amend the law. Thats the major issue, he said.

Sok Eysan, ruling Cambodian Peoples Party spokesman, said the request was a populist move, adding that the current system was satisfactory.



The CPP wants everyone to implement the existing laws, he said.



In some big countries, less than 40 percent of voters go to vote, he added.





On Thursday, the Election Reform Alliance, a coalition of election-monitoring organizations, issued a joint statement asking for more time for registration.
President Barack Obama proudly hailed the opening of U.S. ties with Cuba after 50 years of hostility and reacted diplomatically to the death of former President Fidel Castro, expressing condolences to his family. President-elect Donald Trump has criticized Obama's Cuba policies, and released a toughly worded statement calling Fidel Castro a brutal dictator. The differences in tone may signal a major shift in relations. VOA White House Correspondent Cindy Saine reports.
A Somali student at Ohio State University drove his vehicle into a crowd of pedestrians Monday and then got out and began stabbing people, injuring 11. He was shot and killed by police.

"We have to consider that it is" a terrorist attack, said Columbus Police Chief Kim Jacobs.

Ohio State University identified the attacker as Abdul Razak Ali Artan, a student at the school. Community members in the Midwestern city of Columbus tell VOA's Somali service the man was of Somali descent and was about 20 years old.

A student of the same name was profiled in the August issue of the student newspaper, expressing concerns about the lack of Muslim prayer rooms on campus.

Hospital officials said none of the victims has life-threatening injuries.

OSU President Michael Drake said initially there were rumors of a second suspect. However, Drake said police have searched the area and believe there was only one attacker. The FBI also has joined the investigation.

Drake said he would not speculate about a motive for the attack. He said it was a deliberate attack because the suspect drove his vehicle over a curb to hit pedestrians on a sidewalk. He said the suspect then got out of the car and began stabbing people with a butcher knife.

OSU Police Chief Craig Stone said a campus officer arrived at the scene and shot and killed the suspect less than a minute after the attack began. Officials say the policeman, Alan Horujko, happened to be in the area of the attack because of a previous call and saw the scene unfold.

Students said they barricaded themselves inside classrooms and offices, pilling chairs in front of doors, when the incident was happening.

"We are scared, everybody is scared," Suad Osman, a member of Ohio State's Somali student association, told VOA's Somali service from the school's library as the incident was unfolding.

A professor at the school told VOA that his colleagues were "shaken."

WATCH: Police activity at the scene

The attack initially was reported by the university on Twitter as involving an "active shooter."

There are nearly 60,000 students at Ohio State's main campus in Columbus.

During Monday's news conference, Jacobs referenced a previous terrorism case tied to Columbus  that of Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, who was arrested in 2015 after returning from Syria. Mohamud, a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Somalia, was charged with providing material support to terrorists.

In September, a Somali-American man stabbed 10 people at a mall in the northern state of Minnesota, before he was shot and killed by an off-duty police officer. Officials said the suspect asked some of his victims if they were Muslim.

Columbus, Ohio, and Minneapolis, Minnesota, host the largest Somali communities in the United States.

VOA National Security Correspondent Jeff Seldin and reporters Carolyn Presutti and Harun Maruf contributed to this story.
When Iraqi troops began the operation to retake Mosul last month, fighter pilots in Americas F-22 Raptor jets struck the first Islamic State targets there. But that kind of operation may be in jeopardy.

The U.S. Air Force says a shortage of fighter pilots has become so dire that it is struggling to satisfy combat requirements abroad.

We have too few squadrons to meet the combatant commanders needs, Major General Scott Vander Hamm, the general in charge of fixing the fighter pilot crisis, said in an exclusive interview with VOA.

The Air Force is currently authorized to have 3,500 fighter pilots, but it is 725 fighter pilots short. And with fewer pilots, the number of fighter pilot squadrons have also dropped, from 134 squadrons in 1986 to 55 in 2016.

As a greater percentage of the force has needed to be deployed over the past 10 years, readiness -- the ability to accomplish missions at home and abroad -- has dropped 20 percent.

Some 'unpalatable options'

Were having to look across the board and offer some pretty unpalatable options as we get after it, Vander Hamm told VOA, and we may have to, within the next calendar year, start to take some degradations in the frontline squadrons."

What that would mean to us is that we would have to accept not being able to get forces to theater in the same time we could, which to a warfighter, that means it could cost lives in a conflict, he said.

Each pilot needs years of training to maneuver high-tech aircraft, which have evolved into flying supercomputers.

The Air Force is now training about 135 more pilots than two years ago, but that effort appears to have been undercut by the number of fighter pilots who have chosen to leave the Air Force.

After about 10 years, pilots are offered a bonus payment as incentive to stay on in the force. But in fiscal 2016, only 40 percent took the bonus. Vander Hamm told VOA the Air Force needs to retain about two-thirds of its fighter pilots up for contract renewal in order to fill the slots needed in the force.

Deployments

At Joint Base Langley-Eustis, pilots who fly the F-22 Raptor say that longer and more frequent deployments have devastated morale.

We were on 45-day rotations. Then they made it 90-day rotations. Then they made it 120-day rotations. Now its six-month rotations with one-year rotations sprinkled on top of it for key positions, said a lieutenant colonel who asked only to be identified by his call sign Buz due to his commanders concern about potential retaliation from enemy terror groups.

The deployments arent the only thing causing pilots to quit. While stationed at home, pilots often have to work extra hours to finish administrative tasks, in addition to maintaining their flying skills.

All of the same responsibilities fall on about half the number of people who were there before, and that creates a pretty high demand on these guys and their work life, Colonel Pete Fesler, the commander of the 1st Fighter Wing at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, told VOA.

The fighter pilot shortage has spiked at a time when commercial airlines, which offer more stable schedules at home and the potential for higher pay, are looking for more pilots.

If its up to just me, I definitely would stay in, but my family has a vote, a major who asked to be identified by his call sign Jack told VOA. If they want me to leave to do something else, then thats probably what Ill end up doing.

Solution to crisis

Tom Hunt, a former fighter pilot who left the Air Force in 2013, says he decided to leave for several reasons. He says he now earns more money as a Washington, D.C., lawyer.

He says the solution to the crisis does not have to be complex. Some people say you cant throw money at everything, you can. You absolutely can. If you said, the pilot bonus is now $500,000, single-lump sum payment, (I) guarantee you will solve your pilot shortage, Hunt said.

However, he also noted that paying one group so much more than another group might cause tension within the force, no matter how much the pay increase might be deserved.

The Air Force is asking Congress for money to raise the bonus from $25,000 per year to $48,000 per year, the first such bonus increase since 1999. They also have pledged to decrease administrative duties for fighter pilots in the squadrons.

The Pentagon hopes it will be enough to retain experienced pilots needed to keep up the Air Forces fast-paced operations as well as train new recruits.
An American volunteer fighting with a Kurdish militia was killed Monday in a battle against Islamic State fighters in northern Syria, Kurdish commanders in Syria said.

The American was reported killed north of Raqqa, where U.S.-backed forces are fighting Islamic State as part of an offensive to free the city, the de-facto capital of Islamic State.

A commander with the Kurdish People's Protection Unit (YPG), the main Kurdish armed force in Syria, confirmed the volunteer's death to VOA but gave no other details. He said the YPG will release a detailed statement Tuesday. He spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Kurdish YPG is a key element of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which has U.S. backing in its fight against IS in northern Syria. The YPG has enlisted the help of an unspecified number of volunteers from abroad in its fight in Syria.

The American's body will be sent to the city of Qamishli and then to the Kurdish region in Iraq before being transported to the United States, according to Mahmoud Bali, a VOA Kurdish service reporter in Syria. He said Kurdish officials are in touch with officials at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad to arrange for the transfer of the body.

The death would mark the fourth time an American died this year fighting with Syrian Kurds against IS.

Levi Shirley of Arvada, Colorado, was killed by a landmine on July 14; Jordan MacTaggart of Castle Rock, Colorado, died Aug. 3; and William Savage of Saint Mary's, Maryland, died Aug. 10 while fighting in a squad that included two Americans and a Swede.
The much fought over front lines in Aleppo separating Syrian rebels in the eastern districts from the mixed forces of President Bashar al-Assad surrounding them have begun to shift dramatically  thats hardly surprising given how outmatched the fight has become both in terms of manpower and the massive air power thats being brought to bear on insurgents and civilians alike in the east.

The anti-Assad rebel pocket in the east has now been split into two after regime forces captured the district of Sakhour, according to independent monitors as well as Syrian government officials. Syrian regime units have also pushed deep inside the strategic Hanano District in the rebels eastern pocket and they launched a fierce assault on another key district, Ard Al-Hamra.

Rami Abdulrahman, director of the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of monitors on the ground, estimates that opposition militias have lost more than third of the area they controlled in Aleppo city since the regime renewed an offensive in September.

That land-grab owes much to Russian intervention. According to Nawar Oliver of the Omran Center for Strategic Studies, an Istanbul-based think tank, Russian warplanes have mounted 3,359 airstrikes on Aleppo province in the past three months.

Oliver says only one percent targeted the Islamic State terror group  the rest hit anti-Assad rebels and civilians mostly in the citys eastern and southern districts, or to the west or south of the city where insurgents have tried at various times to break a months-long siege of their districts.

However, the ground being taken by Assads forces with Shiite militias from Iraq, Lebanon and Iran largely in the vanguard is being gained painstakingly slowly. Each collapsed house and rubble-strewn street is being fought over time and again. The assault on eastern Aleppo is taking its toll of government forces.

Last week. the head of a foundation in Tehran that provides aid to the families of the dead admitted that more than a thousand fighters with Iranian militias, many of them Afghan Shiite exiles, have been killed in combat in Syria  about 400 appear to have died fighting in Aleppo province in just the past three months.

For the rebels, bravado goes hand-in-hand with the desperate resistance the insurgents have mounted since a Russian-backed offensive in February across northern Syria left eastern Aleppo encircled. The commanders of the estimated 8,000 rebels drawn from Free Syrian Army and Islamist militias and the al Qaida-linked Jabhat Fateh al-Sham insist they can continue to fend off Assads forces. But when asked how, they fall back on citing the fighting spirit of the rebels  hardly a strategy to counter overwhelming numbers, the advantage of airpower and more powerful weaponry

The rebels have mounted major counter-attacks in recent weeks as they have battled to hold on to districts that first fell to them four years ago. But each rebel counter-offensive has been rolled back  the last concerted one in mid-November ended in failure when regime forces recaptured two districts on the southwestern outskirts of the city.

That has left the insurgents to resort themselves to indiscriminate shelling of parts of western Aleppo, a propaganda boon for a regime thats under fierce international condemnation for its massive targeting of hospitals, makeshift clinics, markets and schools. The White Helmets, a first-responders group, warned last week the meager food stocks left will run out within the next few days.

The huge Assad assault  regime reinforcements were sent to the city this weekend in what Damascus calls a decisive final battle  is testing not only the endurance of an estimated quarter-of-a-million civilians trapped, bombed on and starving in the eastern pocket.

It is testing the rebel forces  to the breaking point, fear diplomats, analysts and some rebel leaders.

Can they hold out? No, sadly no, from a military point of view, of course, they cant, says Gen. Salim Idris, a former commander-in-chief of the Free Syrian Army. It is hell in there, he adds.

Western diplomats also tell VOA that unless theres a change of heart by the West and a supply of anti-aircraft missiles to the insurgents, it is only matter of time, possibly just weeks, before theres a rebel collapse in eastern Aleppo.

Assad and the Russians mean to finish the rebels in Aleppo and with the indiscriminate, relentless bombardment I can see no way that isnt going to happen, says a Turkey-based Western diplomat, who asked not to be identified for this article.

They have to fold, unfortunately. he added.

Despite Assad regime claims that civilians are being prevented from leaving the east by the rebels, most residents contacted by VOA say they are more fearful of an insurgent collapse in their neighborhoods. Assads people are not going to treat us kindly if they break through  thats clear from their bombing of us now, says Mohammed, a onetime shop-owner and father of three, who like all civilians in the east forages as best he can for food to feed his family.

We have mainly been surviving on rice, he said. I managed to grow some food on the roof of the house but not enough to help us through the winter months, he adds. But then maybe this is all over before the winter comes, he said.

A Syrian obstetrician spoke of her fears to CNN last week. After explaining how she helped a wounded mother birth a baby whose eyes had been damaged from shrapnel injuries to the mothers back and abdomen, she said: I am so afraid the rebels will surrender.

And there seems little hope that Turkish-backed rebels fighting northeast of Aleppo against Kurdish militias and the Islamic State will be able to assist their comrades in the city.

Turkeys Prime Minister, Binali Yldrm, appears to be eager to assuage Damascus fears that the Turkish military intervention will somehow get entangled in Aleppo. The Turks Euphrates Shield operation in northern Syria will not target Aleppo, he told TRT television in an interview. We dont have such a target, he said, walking back his midweek threat of retaliation against Damascus for what Turkey claimed was a Syrian airstrike in northern Syria that killed four Turkish soldiers.

If the rebels fold in eastern Aleppo, beaten into defeat by overwhelming numbers and scorched-earth airstrikes, what then?

It is very dangerous if they lose Aleppo  the Assad forces will then focus west on Idlib province and then that will be the end, laments Gen. Idris. Homs, Hama, they are over. In the south nothing is happening. The commanders down there tell me the situation is very bad. They lack ammunition and outside support and all they can do is just hang on. The Damascus suburbs are desperate, too, for the militias, he adds.

Russian warplanes have already started pummeling Idlib. In mid-November, Russian Minister of Defense Sergey Shoygu announced the start of a major operation that he said would target ISIS and al-Qaida in Idlib. But as with Aleppo, the FSA and Islamist militias are bearing much of the brunt of airstrikes including from sorties flown by Su-33 Flanker-D fighters launched from the the Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Idlib will become the next killing ground, says a Western diplomat. And that will in effect kill what is left of the Syrian revolution, he adds.
While expressing optimism that the Central African Republic will become a stable, peaceful country, U.N. aid officials have acknowledged that the mission ahead would be a challenge and achieving the goal would require the sustained support of the international community  something that has been in short supply for some time.

"We are really here to appeal among member states for greater attention and greater support for a humanitarian emergency that is largely forgotten, or at least, overshadowed by other more mediatic [in the media] crises," said Fabrizio Hochschild, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator in the CAR.

Hochschild was part of a U.N.-CAR delegation that met with donor countries to appeal for nearly $400 million to meet the needs of 1.6 million people in the country over the coming year.

"The Republic of Central Africa is among the most poor, most forgotten, neglected places on this planet, and that chronic poverty and obscurity have been compounded by ongoing conflict," he said.

The Central African Republic has been lurching from crisis to crisis over the past two decades. In the last three months, six localized conflicts have erupted, leading to hundreds of deaths and the displacement of tens of thousands of people.

One of poorest countries

In a statement late Monday U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he is deeply concerned about renewed violence last week in the C.A.R. Two factions of the ex-Seleka clashed in Bria, Haute Kotto prefecture, killing and wounding dozens and displacing more than 11,000 people, mostly civilians. He said many of the victims appear to have been targeted based on their ethnicity.

Sporadic outbursts such as these over the past 20 years have contributed to making CAR one of the poorest countries in the world, with socioeconomic statistics that rank near the bottom of every international study.

For example, United Nations data show one in five children will die before the age of 5, one in every 10 women will die in childbirth, and close to half of all children who reach adulthood will suffer from chronic malnutrition  a malady that will have long-term physical and mental health consequences.

The United Nations reports annual per capita income stands at $325, with nearly half of the population of 4.6 million short of food and in need of humanitarian assistance.

Despite these and other dire statistics, Hochschild said that progress has been made since civil war broke out in 2013.

"It has its first-ever democratically elected government, an open government that acknowledges its challenges, a government more than ready to work with the international community," he said. "It has the largest-ever international mission  MINUSCA  working there in partnership with the African Union."

He said that the international community agreed on what needed to be done to make CAR a viable, self-functioning state. He added that those elements were reflected in the five-year national recovery and stabilization plan that was launched November 17 in Brussels and netted $2.2 billion in pledges.

While this was gratifying, he warned that "there are no quick fixes."

"There is a chance now to deal with the root causes," of this troubled country, he said, and that it could "become a beacon of peace" for the region if the international community remained committed to working with and supporting the country long-term.

Country in conflict

Fighting between the Muslim Seleka rebel coalition and Christian anti-Balaka militia has claimed thousands of lives. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that around 400,000 people are internally displaced and nearly half a million are refugees in neighboring countries, the majority in Cameroon.

Humanitarian coordinator Hochschild said there was a "temptation to dehumanize one or another group" in a polarized country in conflict. He said the temptation "to use and abuse religious or community differences to promote hatred and to seek to gain territory or influence" was always there and remained a cause for concern.

At the same time, he noted that there were "many Central Africans of very mixed faiths belonging to different communities who unite under a very different vision."

The CAR minister for social affairs and national reconciliation, Virginie Baikoua, told VOA that the country was planning to set up a new Commission of National Unity and Reconciliation, probably in the first half of 2017.

"Discussions are under way among the warring parties," she said, emphasizing the importance of "dialogue in achieving a durable peace."

The minister led a delegation earlier this month to Rwanda to learn how that country's commission had succeeded in reconciling the Huthi and Tutsi ethnic groups after the 1994 genocide.

She said the commission would enable people in CAR who have lost loved ones to learn the truth about what happened to them. "Once the truth is told, there will be justice. If there is no justice," she said, "there will be no peace."
China's state news agency reports police have detained nine people in connection with the collapse last week of a cooling tower being built on a power plant site that killed 74 people.

Xinhua said the board chairman of the Hebei Yineng engineering firm was among those arrested.

China said last week 13 people had been detained. It was not immediately clear whether the nine suspects in Monday's announcement were part of that total.

The collapse of the tower in Jiangxi province prompted calls for better construction safety regulations and inspections.

China has vowed to improve its poor construction safety record, but anger over lax standards continues to grow.